Chapter 6 – The Christmas Night
It was Christmas in Noxus. Du Couteau house looked empty, but Katarina got used to it. A few nervous maids who were staying in the mansion over the winter celebration were gossiping. The best answer why they didn`t leave for Christmas was because their crushes didn`t noticed them. So they kept dreaming and making scenarios. While Katarina was indifferent about these kind of things. Even for her split mood, the end of the year made her anger melts. She didn`t feel sadness, nor please.
As the night started to set and in the deep blue horizon the few snowflakes started to fall shyly like there was no place for them in the morning, the red haired was leading to her room. Inside the corridors was warm enough for her to wear a night sweater.
She arrived in her room and collapses on bed waiting for the next day. Definitely she will receive some gifts under the christmas tree, even if she wasn`t a child anymore. Her servants were nice people. But no present will cure her loneliness. After her father disappeared, Cassiopeia run in the dessert for gold and men, Talon left her behind and now this ugly scar ruined her face, she promised revenge. She promised she will find out what happened to her father.
Her thoughts run dry slowly into dream land.
At a certain moment, she could hear something in the window and wakes up confused. It was Talon! She opens the window large enough to hug him.
"Wait." He stops her because he knew he was dirty and cold. He hands her a scroll with the Noxus emblem. "I have a message for you. It`s from Swain."
"Talon!" The red head grabs his arm anyway dragging him inside. She noticed that he returned in slum and she felt pity and her eyes were begging for him to stay.
"Oh. And I have a present for you." He gives her a small red box. "Merry Christmas, Katarina." He smiles like nothing happened all these years when he was gone. Usually Katarina will be mad at him, but her noxian woman`s strength grabs him in, then closes the window.
"I guess I have a present for you too." She surely didn`t know he will come, so it was only a lame excuse to make him stay over the Christmas night.
She checks her room after midnight to see if Talon was sleeping. She was happy to see him that night, but in the same time she was sad to see him wearing raged clothes. Even his hair grew longer and it was messy. Yet he didn`t even had time to argue with her, so this will turn into her happy memory. A silent night.
In the morning he wakes up early, ready to disappear just like he came. But Katarina was up too, even ready to pinch him down with her knives.
"What the f ck?" He growls annoyed when he sees the red head and her daggers.
"Where are you leaving?"
"That`s none of your concern, miss scar. Now if you don`t mind me, I have things to do." He smirks in her face like in old times.
She worked for long on her bitterness and his challenge made her hands trembles in excitement. She didn`t bother about the disgusting nickname and jumps behind him pointing her blade at his neck. "And why should I allow you to leave... alive?!" The tone of her voice grew highly strong. This is what she trained all this time. A bitter self of a woman who lives for nothing good.
This thing made Talon bursts out laughing almost face-palming himself. To his point of view she was pathetic acting so superior in his face. "I think you don`t know a few things, Katarina." He turns around as she lowers her knife but her attitude didn`t change.
"Eh?" Her sharp green eyes cut through him.
"Firstly, I was the one who rescued you from the battlefield. I had a long talk with General Darius in your sake, so you shall thank me." He wasn`t amused at all now remembering how hard it was to melt the sour military general. Besides no matter how Katarina changed, he will not recognize her superior image.
"Do you really expect me to thank you? You must be a foul!" Her voice was supreme again.
"At least be grateful to people who stand by your side!" His words were harsh. This new Katarina looked even meaner than before. When she was younger she was just challenging him, but now she means what she says.
"Those who stood for me are long gone." She frowns cupping her arms with the daggers.
"Then I should left you there between Garen and Darius!" He pushes her daggers away already at his limits. The way Katarina changed was annoying out of his head. "Too bad your father entrusted me with his last words." He sighs and ruffles her hair being sick of her.
"What?!" She pushes his hand away and her jerk mood drops. "What did my father tell you?!"
"Stop being clingy. I won`t tell you." He ruffles her hair to piss her off more. Therefore she returned to old stubborn herself.
"Is there anything you hide from me, Talon?!"
"Calling me by name, won`t make me tell you." Talon sighs checking his pockets so he can be ready to leave the mansion. "...and yeah, you can say that it`s a secret."
After Talon left Du Couteau mansion, leaving Katarina all alone again, this time he didn`t feel bad for her. She changed into another person. Even if he knew the war was hard for her and this must be her reason, he thought that she will understand and she will become more friendly with him by time passing. Wrong. Now she deserve to be lonely and sad. At least he kept both promises to her father and to her. She wanted him to not leave, so he didn`t actually leave. Just took distance.
The raven noxian was enjoying the rare snowflakes leading through the forest to the exit gates. It was a shady day, a little bit foggy for this time of the year. There wasn`t snow, but the cold was enough to say that it was winter. The Christmas day.
Talon wore kindness with him ready to meet an old friend.
There was Riven waiting outside the gates with festive red and white clothes for Christmas. "Long time no see, Talon!" She hugs him as he approaches.
"Hey, Riven." He hugs her back pleased to see her. "I see you are doing well outside Noxus."
"Oh, please! Outside the gates, I opened a bar. You should come some time and have a drink. Slums seem like not doing well to you. See how bad you look for the general`s adopted son." She sighs and pats his shoulders.
"Ah, right... I just delayed overnight at his place for Katarina."
"The red head brat?"
"Yeah. She turns to be a pain in ass." He sighs and both of them started to walk the empty merchant road to Zaun.
He figured it out that Riven`s bar is in that direction so he didn`t bother asking, but at some point an ionian bush haired man appeared in front of them and to Talon`s delight , the man was looking as ragged as him. Riven was about to wave at him, but he jumps with his sword without sheath in Talon`s way, parting Riven away from him with a wind blow.
The noxian man used to carry a steel blade on his right arm anyway, so it wasn`t a big deal to dodge an ionian sword, but he didn`t know this person before so it was pretty sure this was a confusion.
"Yasuo!" Riven jumps over the part when she was surprised to see the ionian and her inner soldier instincts drove her hand to the back tie for her now inexistent sword. "Yasuo, stop! Talon is my friend!"
The ionian samurai shrugs like whatever and took his sword apart. "If you say so..."
"Heh." Talon thought that was the shortest clash ever and lowered his guarding blade, but receives a fast punch in his stomach. "What was that for?!" He growls at the ionian.
"Just in case you are planing something."
"I don`t!" Talon whines like a child in front of the older ionian and Riven punches them both over their heads.
"Idiots." She growls and starts leading them to her bar.