Author's Note: Hey, a chapter that is actually on time. Probably because it's the epilogue :P.
Tristana felt excitement bubble up inside her as she and the other final-year students made their way through the crowded auditorium for their graduation. Her teal eyes flicked over the crowd as she eagerly looked for familiar faces.
She easily spotted the bright white fur of her father, however her heart clenched when she couldn't make out her mother nearby. Her smile dropped ever so slightly as her emotions clashed inside her, unable to tell whether she was upset or grateful that the woman hadn't shown up.
However, her smile soon came back full force as she caught sight of the mass of curly, red hair next to him. Artemis had made it! Beaming, she waved at the pair of them.
Further up, the blue girl immediately noticed the entirety of Ziggs' family. Heather was there with her serene smile (even as her eyes kept a laser like focus on her younger children) while her husband played around with the settings on his video camera beside her. Pip, Coco and Taz were playing a game of pattycake on the floor while Cam grumbled next to them. The twins and Sophie were there as well and even Duke and his new wife had made it.
In the row in front of them, Rumble's parents sat; Rosalyn already crying while Chuck looked incredibly proud.
Then, at the very end of the row, the teen caught sight of Teemo. The pale boy looked happier and more confident than he had in a long while as he sat with his parents. Tristana smiled as she remembered the conversation that had happened after they'd gotten back from the forest.
As soon as Teemo opened the front door to his home, he was immediately smothered in a tight hug, curtesy of Nina. The pale yordle let her, leaning into the love and the warmth of the hug just as much as she was.
"Oh Teemo," Nina sniffed, trying not to cry. "I was so worried."
"I'm sorry mum," he said softly. "I just needed some space to think. I didn't mean to worry you." Pulling out of the peach-yordle's embrace, the teen turned to Miles as he approached. "It was a lot to take in," he finished.
The older yordle nodded, before leading the group into the lounge.
Once seated, the dark-brown yordle turned to his son. "I'm sure you have some questions," he said softly.
From where he was sandwiched between his friends on the other couch, Teemo nodded. "Why didn't you tell me?" he asked, hurt still lacing the low undertone of his voice.
"In part, it was because I didn't want to remember," Miles answered, feeling his wife squeeze his hand in support. "I didn't want to relive the death of my sister, the madness of my best friend and what I had to do in the end to stop it. And I never wanted you to be the one burdened by that knowledge, no matter how much I knew you were entitled to it; no matter how much I knew that one day you would come to us seeking that knowledge."
The male took in a deep breath before looking up to meet his son's gaze. "But for the most part, I was being selfish. I was scared that you would look at us differently after you knew. That you would be ashamed of what we- what I … let happen. That's why I didn't tell you at the hospital. I'm sorry."
Teemo was silent for a long moment before, in a timid voice, he asked, "Did you know when you adopted me?"
Nina stiffened in surprise at the deeper worry underlaying the question.
"No," she said firmly. "When we adopted you, it was because I'd met a lovely and gentle boy who brought so much joy to our family. It was only later, when the similarities between you and Mile's sister appeared that we started to suspect there was more to it. But no matter what we found, it never changed how we felt about you. You've always been that sweet, little boy we adopted and you will always be our son."
The pale teen couldn't deny the love shining in his mother's eyes anymore than he could the honesty of her words. Feeling his own eyes start to fill with tears, he looked away; discreetly wiping them away.
On the couch next to him, Ziggs shifted in curiosity. "So, how come no one made the connection until you did? I mean seriously, how do you misplace a baby like that?"
Tristana elbowed the lanky teen in the side. "Not the time Ziggs," she hissed.
Miles, however, just chuckled, "No, he raises a good point. Do you remember the nurse Miss Whitmore mentioned? The one who dropped Teemo at the orphanage?"
The teens nodded.
"That was Hayley, a friend of Nina's. She'd been checking up on Sera when we couldn't, including on the day of the attack. We'd always assumed she'd been killed before she got there, but it turns out she did make it to the house. There she found Sera collapsed in the kitchen, the injures she'd sustained inducing an early labour. However, at the time, no one had realised she'd survived long enough to give birth which is why we never went searching for the baby."
"But what about on the orphanage end?" Rumble asked. "How come they never found her name amongst the casualties?"
"Because she wasn't considered an unrelated victim," Nina said softly. "Her name remained anonymous out of respect due to her relation to the killer."
"So in the end, the pieces were there but no one had enough of them to put the whole puzzle together," Tristana summed up.
Finally managing to gather himself, Teemo turned back to his parents. "I'm glad you told me," he said, his voice raw but more confident now. "But you're right: in the end it doesn't really change anything. What happened then does not change who I am now, and it doesn't take away from the fact that you are the ones that raised me. I'll always consider you to be my parents."
Teemo met Tristana's gaze, giving the girl a thumbs up and a grin before her attention was pulled back to the front. Steadily, the final year students were seated on the stage before, with a fond look, the principal started his speech. "Fellow yordles, today we celebrate a monumental occasion for some of our beloved students as they transition from childhood to the adult world."
Shifting in her seat, the blue girl twisted around to spot Rumble and Ziggs seated two rows behind her. Both boys returned her face-splitting grin, the excitement and anticipation of the day mirrored in their own faces; bringing back memories from the night before.
The four teens had met up in their clubhouse outside of Bandle; likely, they realised, for the last time.
"I can't believe we're graduating tomorrow," Tristana voiced as she fondly gazed at the cluster of photos and drawings pinned above the desk. "It feels so surreal."
"It'll sink in," Teemo assured her knowingly from where he was leaning up against the wall.
"I'm just glad I won't have to do anymore assignments! Woo-hoo! Freedom!" Ziggs crowed before toppling over in his excitement.
Rumble just rolled his eyes, "We'll still have assignments at university dummy. We're not off the hook yet." He nudged the downed boy with his foot, causing him to whine.
"Why must the world be so cruel."
"So you guys are going to Bandle Uni right?" Teemo asked curiously.
The other two boys grinned. "Yep! We're doing engineering together!"
"And Trist's Megling training is on track," Rumble took over. "So we're all set."
"What about you?" Tristana turned to their cream-furred friend. "What are you going to do now?"
His expression turned thoughtful. "Honestly," he responded. "I'll probably go back to the Scouts."
The other three looked at him in surprise. "Really? After everything that happened?" Rumble asked.
"What if he comes back?" Tristana continued concerned.
Teemo didn't need to ask who she was talking about. "I have no doubt that he will," he told them seriously. "But when I thought about it I realised: that I wouldn't have been the same if you guys hadn't helped me through this. And that makes me worry about what could happen to you if I'm not here to help. I can't let something like what happened to me happen to anyone else. Not if I have a way to stop it. And if that guy is going to stay, then I might as well put him to good use."
When he looked up at them, there was a fire in his eyes that told the trio that he was determined to see his words through.
Up until now, the events that were happening hadn't really hit Tristana fully. But in that moment (sitting on the stage to her own graduation), it hit her like a bolt of lightning: things were never going to be the same ever again. Everything they'd ever known their entire life was about to change.
"And now, give it up to the class of 14!" Mr Jadefellow finished. As rehearsed, the final year students stood as one and strode down the hall and out the front doors. All to the sound of a thunderous applause.
As they walked, Ziggs and Rumble by her side (while Teemo and their families supported them), Tristana knew that it didn't matter. Yes, things had changed. But it didn't have to be for the worse. In the end, they had to decide that for themselves.
As the students and parents celebrated together, Artemis made her way over to the secluded corner where Miles sat. It might not be the most formal setting, but her report could wait no longer.
Casually, the redhead sat down across from the veteran Scout as he regarded her sombrely.
"How did the mission go?" he asked discreetly.
With a grim look, she slid across her mission report to the chocolate-brown yordle. "It was a success – if you can call it that. It took us a while but we found everything we needed to know what happened."
Miles cut the tape off the file but didn't open it yet. Instead he turned to the golden-skinned woman, hope warring with realism on his face. "Did you find any other survivors?"
Artemis was already shaking her head, her expression pained. "No. All the bodies were accounted for."
"And the culprits?"
The Megling said nothing, just gestured to the file with a disturbed expression.
With resignation, he opened the document and started reading. The details of the report, along with the corresponding images painted a very gruesome picture indeed; by the time the veteran scout had finished, his eyes were as wide as saucers.
"He did all of that to the hunters on his own?" Miles asked, his voice low despite his growing horror.
All Artemis could do was nod.
Annnd that's it! The end of this arc has come to a close. Thank you to everyone who stuck with me on this one, I know it was a little darker than the ones before it but I hope it was enjoyable anyway.
Anyway, as per usual I'll be taking a slightly longer break between arcs. So be looking for the first chapter of the next arc to be up in about a month (also per usual I will post at the end of this chapter to alert people to the new story going up). It will be a Kennen centred one again :).
Hope you enjoyed yourselves!
Candlestic
Fun facts:
1. Omega Squad Teemo is based on what would have happened to him had the other's not helped him through the trauma of this story (and could be what he becomes were anything drastic to happen to them all in the future).
2. The nurse Hayley was also a friend of Rosalyn's but she couldn't help out at the time since she'd just had Rumble.
3. Teemo's 16th birthday occurred while he was missing in the jungle. Some sweet 16th huh.