Note- Has been revised.

Akali was walking towards her quarters after her evening meditations. She was currently stalking though the Piltover hallway, lined with techmaturgical devices so commonly made and pioneered in Piltover. The plaques on the doors led to rooms occupied by certain heroes of Piltover- there was Ezreal, behind that door rested Janna, and one only needed a nose to smell the experiments taking place behind the somewhat melted and beaten door of Heimerdinger.

As Akali continued down the hallway, unconsciously melding with the shadows, she began to hear something. Akali stopped in confusion. The sounds became clearer. A quiet sniffling in the background. That, and repeated words, murmured so quietly they were almost unhearable, and certainly undecipherable.

Akali was about to continue onwards- due to the nature of the champions of the league, nightmares were common (Kassadin came to mind)- but she realized which door she had stopped in front of.

The plaque read:

Caitlyn

Odd, Akali thought, Why would the sheriff have such nightmares?

Akali pushed the door open, and was greeted with the sight of Caitlyn in her bedclothes, huddled in a corner, staring out with wide eyes. Tears dripped from her brown eyes, her brunette hair spilling everywhere as she repeated the words Akali heard outside.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry."

Akali blinked in confusion. The Sheriff, usually cool and collected in the battlefield, was a broken, suffering woman in the darkness of her own room.

Caitlyn looked up, and seemed to notice Akali for the first time. "A-Akali? What are you doing here?" Caitlyn at her hands. "Are you here to punish me?"

Akali stepped forwards, hand held up in a non-threatening gesture and flipped on the light switch, saying "No, I'm not here to punish you- I just heard you from outside. What's wrong?"

"Their blood..." Caitlyn held up her right hand in horror. "It's right there."

Akali now knew what was happening. "Those people you had to kill in the past? They had to die."

"No!" Caitlyn shouted, "you don't understand!" Her voice dropped back down to a hoarse whisper. "There was a man."

Caitlyn's eyes closed as she relived the memory. "A man, name was Jonathan Cid. He was blackmailing, sending death threats, bending rules in unacceptable ways. I confronted him late one night."

Caitlyn's voice slowly rose in pitch as her tale continued. "He refused to listen, and pulled a pistol. I shot him."

Akali moved forwards, putting her hand on Caitlyn's shoulder, trying to do anything to stop Caitlyn's suffering, but Caitlyn pushed her away, to continue, "The next morning, they brought him out of his office. It looked like a murder."

Caitlyn was almost screeching at this point. "His children asked me to avenge his death and kill his murderer!"

Looking at her hands in newfound disgust, Caitlyn's eyes opened again, letting out another flood of tears. "There are others of those stories. Hundreds." She looked at Akali with widened eyes. " I'm a murderess. No better than the scum I hunt. And the ones that I... murder... haunt me, every day."

Akali slowly walked over to Caitlyn, putting her hands on Caitlyn's shoulders. "This was my first lesson as the Fist of Shadow. We do that which must be done."

Even as Caitlyn shook her head, Akali continued. "Tell me, would this... Cid, have ruined other people's buisnesses?" Caitlyn slowly nodded. "Did he kill anyone?" Caitlyn nodded again. "Would he have killed you?" Caitlyn shook her head, "No! That's... that's not the point. I still killed someone, a loving father, with two beautiful daughters, a strong, married son. Those faces, too, chase me." Caitlyn looked down again, unable to face Akali's gaze. "They all-"

Akali grabbed Caitlyn's head, forcing her to look into her eyes. "And who would've haunted you if you hadn't? The innocents he would've killed." Caitlyn slowly nodded, tears still slowly dripping, but stopping. "We do that which must be done. We both understand that."

Caitlyn slowly nodded. "Yes... it may not feel good, but... it had to happen." Caitlyn took a deep breath, calming herself. "I-I'm feeling a bit better now."

Akali, nodded, taking that for a dismissal. She opened the door and turned off the lights, gazing one last time at Caitlyn- who was slowly clambering into bed- and closed the door, only to hear a strangled choke. After opening the door hurriedly and turning on the lights with a flick of her wrist, Akali saw Caitlyn. Said sheriff couldn't even breath, and it appeared she was trying to fend off something with her right hand, and attempting to pry something off her neck with her left. Akali took a leap forwards, wrenching Caitlyn's hand off of her neck, making sure Caitlyn knew she was there. Caitlyn immediately relaxed.

Then came the words. "I can't sleep without someone. Someone who's here- someone who can show me what's true and what isn't." Akali blinked in surprise as Caitlyn continued. "Can you... stay the night?"

Akali thought for a second. After all, this occasion would be quite awkward. However, she remembered her own motto.

We do that which must be done.

Akali nodded, with a quick ,"yes". She twisted her body, pulling out a rug she carried with her at all times, and prepared to spend the night in meditation on Caitlyn's floor. She turned out the lights, and Caitlyn gasped again. Akali's eyes, before closed in her search for inner peace, immediately shot open, before standing up, taking a step, and putting her hand on Caitlyn's shoulder. Caitlyn took a deep breath, nodded in the darkness. Akali took her hand away, only to hear Caitlyn cry out this time.

Akali realized Caitlyn's problem- she didn't really know if Akali was there. She needed some way of reassuring her. Physical contact was needed for her to relax. So Akali, much to the surprise of Caitlyn, clambered into a spot in Caitlyn's bed next to her.

The two's arms and legs pressed together. Caitlyn relaxed, breathing in and out slowly, probably getting the best rest she'd gotten in months.

After several minutes, Caitlyn's chest started rhythmically rising and falling- it appeared she'd fallen asleep. Akali, however, still lay in the bed, eyes open, still alert.

A voice rose up from the other side of the bed. "Akali, thanks for coming and staying with me. No one else-"

The voice was silenced by a finger on the lips as Akali rose up from her spot to look down at Caitlyn. The sheriff's brown hair framed her face, eyes still wider than average, but still more relaxed than Akali had seen in the past few minutes.

This woman was forced to endure so much- kill, hunt, suffer- yet was forced to endure it all alone. Akali had been supported by her mother, the Kinkou, even her fellows in the Triumverate when things got hard. However, Akali marveled at how Caitlyn had managed to last thus far by herself.

Akali decided to put an end to that. She lowered her face, until their noses were touching and Akali's lips brushed Caitlyn's.

"I'll make sure of it." Akali's face dipped down by a centimeter, and the two shared a sweet kiss. Akali nearly gasped- Caitlyn tasted sweet, like honey.

Akali pulled back, both girls gasping for breath, Caitlyn's eyes wide as saucers.

Akali began to lower herself again. Right before the two met for the second time, she whispered, quietly, but loud enough to be heard by Caitlyn.

"You'll never have to be alone again."

Alright, well I've dug myself into a hole here. It seems it's set up perfectly for a lemon... and I really don't know about lemons.

AKA never written one, never experienced one (yeah, I'm the poor girlfriendless gamer)... etc.

So, no lemons. At least not yet- maybe when I build up my confidence.

-Note #2- now has a part 2! Chapter 13, Faces in the Night pt 2. Go read it! No, it's not a lemon.