Ahri walked into the dining room and read the menu. Tonight was Steak with vegetable soup. Ahri usually loved this meal, but for some reason her heart wasn't in it tonight. She headed back to her room without eating.

As she curled up under her blankets, Ahri wondered "Do the other summoners really like me, or just because of my looks?" Though she was usually satisfied with just the summoners and satisfying their carnal lusts, her earlier encounter left her thinking deeper. "What would it be like to have a true friend? Someone who would help me because they really like me? Someone who would be at my side even when things were tough? Do I have any real friends?" Ahri was on friendly relations with most champions, but a few words every month wasn't enough to count them as friends. Most of the male summoners adored her but felt no loyalness, the rest were faithful to people back home or the small population of women summoners. "I should get a real friend" Ahri thought.

The next day, Ahri woke up and put her silk dress on. She decided she would coyly make her move on that summoner during breakfast. First she had to get his name though. As she walked into the hall, she spotted him chatting with a small group of summoners not interested in Ahri. She got her food and then sat down next to him. "Hi" She softly said "Do you boys mind if I sit here today?"

The summoner looked over "No, not at all." He said with a smile, but his eyes were steely and showed defiance underneath.

"Sorry, but I never got your name yesterday." Ahri said talking directly to him so he could not avoid the question. Summoners nearby were already congregating around, trying to sit next to Ahri.

"My name is Gyree. I'm from Piltover. Just arrived yesterday. Sorry, have to go to a match." Gyree got up and left, his spot almost instantaneously filled by another summoner.

Ahri's tails drooped. This man, Gyree was hard to get. He seemed reasonably nice when she'd met him, but she had spooked him off. If only she'd have held her inner desires inside, she could've had a real friend. Suddenly, she felt sad, empty, alone. Ahri slowly walked out of the dining room and headed back to her own.

The hextech TV was already broadcasting the match when Ahri sank into bed. It was the placement for new summoners in the league. They pitted the 10 new summoners against each other. After rotating through 5 rounds of randomly selected teams they'd select the best 5 summoners to stay in the league; the other 5 were sent away. Gyree was one of the new summoners, so his placements would happen in the coming matches. Ahri wasn't sure whether she was rooting for Gyree or hoping he'd fail miserably.

Gyree walked confidently through the halls after his games. He felt elated. The matches had gone well, he only lost the 4th one and went positive for all of them. He was the first picked by the Institute. Gyree had always wanted to be an ADC main, and he had finally proven his prowess at the role. But behind the joy and smiles of the moment that he was an official summoner, there was a nag of sadness; for two reasons. Firstly, whenever the league looks for 10 new summoners it always picks 2 of each role, because then people would go for all roles evenly, not skipping support for the lack of glory. However, this meant that if you were worse than your lane opponent you were always going to lose lane, making you an unappealing choice. The enemy ADC seemed like a complete jerk, but the support seemed kind and quite good too. His name was Justa, and he'd drawn unlucky and had to face Gyree in every single match, just by chance. He was about average size, but had soft features for someone so athletic. You could see the curiosity in his eyes, but he usually averted them from shyness. However, when he was the 8th pick of the draft all that showed in his face was an expression of depression, defeat, and shame. Returning to your city-state after getting kicked from the league was always humiliating and embarrassing, but it was a chance you had to take. The league gave you up to a week to stay there and watch the summoners and champions, in consolation; but it usually humiliated the failed summoners even more. The second reason that Gyree was secretly sad was Ahri. When he left the table at breakfast, he'd made the mistake of looking back. Though Ahri didn't know it, he saw how sad she was; and it made Gyree a little downcast. It also encouraged him to play really well so he could make it up to her. He had no interest in what she'd offered last night, he was a man with values and only one true love. But he still felt the obligation to let her know that he didn't hate her. He had to go outside to the park to think this all over.

Ahri sat on the park bench, tails curled up around her. It was a chilly night, so Ahri was out here alone, but that's what she wanted. Alone. She'd watched all the matches and the small admittance to the league ceremony. She'd seen Gyree talk to the other summoners and champions after; it seemed like he was already friends with some summoners and on friendly terms with every champion he talked too. No one ever talked to Ahri like that. She'd realized then that the only interest most summoners had in talking to her was her body. This in turn, made the champions jealous and scornful, so she'd stuck to the summoners even more closely. Now, it might be too late to turn that opinion around. She tucked her tails around her and tears fell silently from her eyes onto the freezing ground.

As Gyree walked through the hedgerows of the garden, the icy coldness gripped him. It was a cold October, one of the coldest on record. He was glad he was out of the small, frigid Piltover orphanage. Then, as he turned out of the maze of dark hedges, he saw Ahri. She was sitting alone on the bench, her head in between her knees, her arms around her legs. She was shivering. Gyree paused. "I hope this isn't because of this morning" he thought, but he knew it was. Mustering all of his courage, he walked up to her.

Ahri heard the footsteps, but she didn't look up. She didn't feel like talking right now. The person moved closer. She had to appear presentable or this'd be the talk of the next morning. Stealthily wiping her eyes with a tail she took deep breaths. The person could just be walking by, there was no need to look up. But whoever it was, he wasn't walking by. He sat down on the bench next to her.

"Are you OK miss Ahri?" said the voice. It was soft, compassionate, and empathetic. Ahri knew who it was immediately. She lifted her head.

"Yeah Gyree, I'm fine." She avoided eye contact, instead looking at the ground.

"I'm sorry about what happened earlier today Ahri. I was stressed about last night and the upcoming matches. I've left behind a rough past in Zaun, and I never want to go back. Those matches changed my future. I'm sorry I was annoyed with you this morning. It was wrong of me to judge you so harshly for last night. I'm sorry."

Ahri didn't respond for the longest time. She just sat there, staring deep into his eyes. She could see that he was true to his word. It was a first for her; In all her time at the Institute she'd never received an apology from a summoner for hurting her.

Gyree shifted closer to her and gingerly put his arm around her, both of them looking up into the pitch black sky, sprinkled with tiny bright stars.

"It's alright Gyree, it's just that… That sometimes I feel so alone. No one loves me for who I am, only how I look. I wish I could go back and change, but now I can't. Everyone now thinks I'm a slut, a whore for all you summoners." Ahri broke down in tears, sobbing into her hands.

Without a moment of hesitation, Gyree embraced her. It was a firm hug, but somehow soft and compassionate. She shifted sideways and returned it. She stayed there a long time, in his warm and comforting arms. Eventually, she lifted her head.

"Will you be my friend?"

"Of course. I will always be there for you."

Ahri closed her eyes and hugged him close again.

"Thank you so much."