Author's Note:

Hi All - This is my first time writing a fanfic. I've recently started playing League of Legends and I've really been enjoying it. I'm not sure if all the facts are correct, but this is for fun.

Also, I really did not like what I had written for the previous version of Chapter 2. I'm just going to ...delete it. And hope no on notices. So let's pretend that didn't really happen, OK?

Disclaimer: All characters so far are property of Riot Games and I'm just borrowing them for this story.

Please review!

Summoning the Reluctant Hearts

Chapter 2 (again): Preconceptions

"So there's a new Demacian champion," Katarina announced as she entered the common gathering area shared by the Noxian and Zaun champions. "Some mute girl with no fighting experience." She paused to flip her dark red hair over a shoulder as she glanced around the room to her compatriots. "It's like the Demacians are completely giving up."

Swain and Darius looked up from the map spread between them, some strategy meeting Katarina surmised. "Who is she?" Swain asked while the room silenced to the voice of power.

"A musician," Katarina replied, leaning against a leather chair as she coolly regarded Swain. Although she accepted him in a position of power in Noxus, she was suspicious of him regarding the disappearance of her father. "Goes by Sona Buvelle. Made a name for herself in the recent years playing some strange instrument. I hadn't realized that the Buvelle family was musically inclined." Katarina added.

Talon had been following the conversation between Katarina and Swain with mild interest but hid his surprise as he heard the familiar name. No wonder the woman from the battle arena looked familiar to him. There were always posters and reviews of her performances, even in Noxus, and especially in the other city-states where he carried out his secret tasks and missions.

Swain nodded slowly. "I've heard her perform," he stated thoughtfully, "although I'm surprised that the Institute would consider her abilities to be champion-like."

"Support, probably," Darius added. "So she should be fairly neutral in the grand scheme of things. We should probably make a bid to win her over just in case."

"Bad support, if she has to fight with an instrument." Sion pointed out, "I don't know how hard we'd want to lobby her if she'd be more of a hindrance."

"Easy to counter," Viktor added, "Just break the instrument. Then she has no abilities and will be easy to kill."

"She was recruited by the Institute," Cassiopeia inserted herself to the conversation. "I heard Daisy Bothell complaining about it earlier,"

Daisy Bothell was a stout woman accustomed to getting her own way. Settling into her later years, Daisy enjoyed a great deal of seniority at the Institute and considered it a perk of the job to socialize and meet many famed personages in Runeterra. As head of Institute Recruiting Department, she had a penchant of dropping names into casual conversation, a habit which many found both annoying and amusing. Cassiopeia found it a good way to gather information.

"Apparently she wrung all sorts of concessions from the Institute as part of her conditions for joining. One of them being that her instrument cannot be damaged or stolen," she glanced at Viktor, "and other being that there will be a summoner assigned to levitate her during practices and battles." Cassiopeia glanced at Sion. "So we may have to take her at least somewhat seriously."

"Any other concessions?" Swain asked while the rest of the champions looked either thoughtful or impressed by Sona's foresight.

"Just one more that Daisy cared to share before she huffed off," Cassiopeia replied, reclining and rustling her scales against itself. "She was aggrieved that the Institute could not announce that there's a new champion until the next season because Sona wanted time to train. Apparently the Demacian Council agreed with Sona, so she will not be officially representing the Institute until then."

"So she's not to be fighting with or against us until another two months," Katarina mused thoughtfully.

"Most likely against us," Singed rejoined, "She hailed from Ionia before Demacia."

"So in two months, we will most likely be facing a mute musician support representing Demacia or Ionia whose instrument cannot be damaged or stolen," Darus summarized.

"With no prior battle experience," Katarina added.

"We need to know as much about her as we can," Swain decided. "Learn her abilities and habits. Find any vulnerabilities. She will probably train with the Demacians - House of Buvelle is one of the pillars in the Demacian state. The Demacians and the Ionians will most likely prejudice her against us. We cannot afford another hostile support."

With the exception of Morgana, Taric, Kayle and Zilean, all other support Champions were allied against Noxus and Zaun.

Cassiopeia smirked at Swain as she called out to her allies while they disbanded, "She's supposed to be beautiful fellas, so don't be afraid to seduce her if you need to." she chuckled darkly.

"That doesn't help, Cass," Katarina snapped at her sister.

"I don't see how," Cassiopeia answered innocently, counting on her fingers. "If she's in bed with one of our guys, she'd be too busy or exhausted to train. And we have her trust. And we can probably learn things about her. It's a win-win-win for everyone." Katarina sputtered indignantly while Cassiopeia looked over to Talon. "Would you be up for that? To take one for the team?" she teased with a grin. "It's asking a lot, I know."

Talon opted to scowl at her in response while his heart raced at the idea of having the alluring blue-haired woman in his bed. "Try to be serious," he answered quietly.

"How about I or Kat antagonize her and you comfort her? Be a hero." Cassiopeia suggested, crossing her arms under her chest after moving to the heavy drapes shielding the windows to look out into the Institute grounds. "I'll leave it up to you how you wish to comfort her, but I can recommend a few things if you really need help."

Talon scowled, "Perhaps the two of you can befriend her and read her diary, and not push either her or I into strangers' beds, hmm?" he responded darkly before strolling from the room with an angry twitch of his cloak.

Katarina glanced at Cassiopeia, smirking. "Touchy, isn't he?"

"I'd say he's the oppositeof touchy," Cassiopeia replied with a pout. "I was trying to help."

"Somehow I doubt that, Cass", Katarina replied as she straightened, heading for the door. "Perhaps I'll see if I can catch up with him."

Sona had moved her personal items to the quarters the Institute had provided to her earlier in the day and she had some time on her hands to get acclimated to living here. It had been about a month since her tour of the grounds and a scant week since she had agreed to join the Institute. I better learn what I can in the time I have, Sona mused as she made her way to the common areas of the Residences.

Although she had seen many battles and rooted for Demacia (and when there was no conflict, Ionia), Sona didn't know all the Champions from all the City-States participating in the Institute. As she was now in their august company, to sustain them in battle or to fight in opposition to them, she should probably know their skills and abilities and what to watch for.

"Don't forget," Xin Zhao caught up to her as she stepped into the open evening sky, "we train tomorrow morning at 8."

Sona nodded at him as he regarded her frostily before turning away. They'll learn to trust me, I suppose, Sona thought with an inward flinch as she tilted her head to regard the rising moon.

It was poor timing for Xin to stop Sona at the front steps just as Talon emerged from the common room. Concealing himself in the shadows behind a column, Talon waited as Xin announced her training schedule and depart before trailing after the woman. Accustomed to following targets, Talon had perfected the art of being invisible and unobtrusive.

He followed her into the quiet library and watched, keeping his distance as she wandered down the stacks, her fingers lightly trailing the spines of the books she passed by. Occasionally, she would pull a book from its position and flip through it before putting it back. It wasn't before long that she found what she was looking for and had collected some books.

From where he stood, he could see that her golden eyes were intelligent, although there seemed to be sadness within them. Her lips were also a touch fuller in the middle, giving them an alluring bow shape. She looked altogether irresistible. Talon shook himself mentally, What am I thinking? Focus.

He narrowed his eyes at her, torn between wanting her and hating that she was, of all things, a Demacian - the enemy. A Demacian, probably spoiled and accustomed to getting her way, who coasts along on based on connections with little skills other than a pretty face. Talon despised people like her - getting ahead in life based on family name or chance, not hard earned skill and strength. He clenched his fists, glaring at her in sudden anger. I will not be befuddled by that face.It's safer, logical, better, to treat her like any other enemy - without mercy.

Sona rubbed her nape under the fall of her lustrous blue hair, self consciously brushing her bangs from her eyes. Could she actually feel me watching her?Talon tried to relax his anger, force himself to center his emotions, to be impassive once again as he watched her write her name at the desk and remove the books from the property.

Although outside the gloomy and desolate library, Sona still felt uneasy. Clouds marred the night's sky and muted any light from the sliver of the moon. The perfect evening for pensive thoughts,she thought, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear and descending from the stairs of the building to return back. She hugged the books she'd picked up on the Institute and the Champion profiles to her chest and shivered, looking altogether vulnerable to Talon.

Weakness, disgusting, he glared, and before he was fully conscious of what he was doing, he appeared by her side in an instant, his hand closing over one of her elbows. "Fair warning, Demacian," he grated into her ear, "Do not cross me."

Sona stiffened, trying to free herself but his grip was like a vise. She turned around and looked at him with those golden eyes that appeared so guileless. She thinks to use her wiles to handle me? To gentle me?Talon stared at her with hostility and anger before roughly pushing her away. "The next time we meet on the battle arena, I will be cutting you down." He said, his tone scathing.

To his surprise, she didn't wilt like a flower or cower or weep. Instead, Sona glared back at him, defiant. Although unable to speak, he got the distinct impression that she had choice words for him. He almost laughed. Quelling any fight from her would take no more than effort than holding a cat. After a long minute, where she appraised him silently and coolly, she pushed past him to return to the Residences.

He let her go without comment, watching her retreating form and felt a smirk play at his lips. That was almost... fun.