A Day of Rest
"mmmhhhh..." Irelia grumbled as she turned over in her sleep.
Half awake, the Ionian warrior blindly reached out to her left; her hand searching in vain to find her partner. Sadly, her wandering hand was unable to find Syndra.
"Mmm... Syndra..." Irelia mumbled and rolled over.
Still bleary with sleep, Irelia let out a small sigh and sank deeper into her bed's cushioning. The bed was warm and the call of sleep was strong. Irelia heaved another sigh as she slowly gave back into the lulling call of slumber. Alas, the tails of sleep eluded her as a sharp scent pierced her nose.
It smelled of a warm, yet delicious... burning...?
Her eyes snapping open, Irelia blinked and sniffed the air once more. Before she could fully identify the smell, the last vestiges of sleep clouding her mind were dispelled as Syndra burst into the bedroom.
"IRELIA!" Syndra practically shouted, her eyes wide with adrenaline.
"I- uh- wha!-" Irelia sputtered
"WHAT DID I DO WRONG!?" Syndra yelled again in the same loud voice.
"What do you mea- WHOA!" Irelia yelped as Syndra dashed over to the side of the bed and yanked the Ionian warrior out from underneath the blankets.
Without even bothering to explain herself, Syndra frantically dragged Irelia into the kitchen.
Finally, Irelia identified the source of the burning smell.
It was a pan on the stove.
Whatever was in it, was literally on fire.
"Holy-god-what-is..." Irelia started, but immediately stopped as she moved to kill the fire beneath the stove.
Without wasting a second, Irelia flipped a few switches and killed the main gas line that fed into the stove. Instantly, the fire extinguished itself.
Irelia heaved a sigh of relief as she watched the flames recede into nothingness. Finally, she glanced around the kitchen counter in a quick assessment of damage.
Saying it was a warzone would have been an understatement. Yet, it wasn't the fire that made the kitchen an absolute mess, it was food... and it was everywhere. Turning her skeptical gaze to Syndra, Irelia finally spoke up.
"Hey... did you try to... uhh... cook something?" Irelia inquired hesitantly.
Syndra bit her lip and looked away without replying.
"What were you trying to make anyway?" Irelia continued, taking a curious look at the black, smoldering ruin of mush sitting in the pan.
When Syndra didn't reply again, Irelia took a scanning gaze at the various array of food plastered around the counter. Off to the side, she noticed a carton of eggs, various assortments of vegetables, spices, and a few slices of chicken.
Then she noticed egg shells mixed in within the smoldering black mush in the pan.
"Omelet?" Irelia finally guessed, staring at Syndra and subtly demanding an answer.
"Maybe..." Syndra finally admitted, still refusing to meet Irelia's eyes.
Irelia bit back a surge of laughter as she stared at the mess in the kitchen.
"Wow..." She finally commented after she had quelled the urge to burst out laughing.
"Do you... know how to cook?" Irelia inquired with legitimate curiosity.
"Of course I know how to cook!" Syndra snapped back, though her face flushed crimson and she turned her face completely away from Irelia.
Irelia shut her eyes and turned to face the floor before clamping both of her hands over her mouth in attempt to stifle an even stronger surge of laughter. After a good minute of strained suppression, Irelia finally spoke.
"How... do you not know... how to cook after so many years of living alone?" Irelia finally gasped as she struggled to reestablish her composure.
Syndra turned slightly so she could see Irelia out of the corner of her eye while at the same time hiding her crimson flushed face as much as possible.
"I have people cook for me!" Syndra bragged gleefully. The sovereign neglected to realize that she unintentionally admitted to not knowing how to cook by saying such words.
Irelia twitched.
"You mean you pay people to cook for you right?" Irelia asked slowly.
"Pay? Why would I pay them?" Syndra inquired.
Without waiting for Irelia to answer her question, the sovereign continued.
"They offer me their goods as a means to please me!" Syndra declared happily.
Irelia shut her eyes and let out a groan.
"So Keith isn't the only one you rob? Who else gives you these... gifts... while you hold a sphere over their heads?" Irelia inquired with a roll of her eyes.
"Well theres-" Syndra started until Irelia interrupted her.
"Don't answer that... Please don't answer that..." Irelia interjected almost pleadingly.
Syndra frowned and turned to face Irelia once more. When the mage chose not to say anything in response, a brief and awkward silence settled between them until Irelia finally spoke up.
"Well... do you want me to make something?" Irelia finally offered, habitually tapping the ball of her foot on the floor.
Syndra immediately snapped her head away in a mildly arrogant gesture.
"I'm not hungry anymore." The mage declared.
Her stomach said otherwise as it let out an audible grumble.
Unlike the last few times where she bit back her laughter, Irelia completely gave in this time.
Dropping her head, the warrior planted her hands on her knees as her entire body shook with uncontrollable mirth.
Syndra, of course, turned beet red with humiliation as her lies fell flat yet again.
"Ahaha-... You're just so...ehehe... cute..." Irelia managed to gasp in-between gulps of air and strings of laughter.
Syndra responded by giving Irelia a pouting frown, although unlike the last time Irelia called her cute, the sovereign did not add any hint of anger to her actions.
After a few moments, Irelia finally composed herself enough to speak in a straight tone.
"So Syndra wants an omelet?" Irelia inquired as she staggered forward to embrace the still embarrassed mage.
Syndra sniffed in response, but chose to neither affirm nor deny Irelia's offer. It wasn't until after Irelia released her from her embrace that Syndra plopped herself down on the couch a few meters away and folded her arms and legs in a terse gesture.
"Aww, don't be like that Syndra..." Irelia chided mildly as the mage continued her silent protest.
Covering the distance between her and the mage in a few strides, Irelia stooped down slightly and planted a light kiss on the sovereign's forehead. Syndra looked up immediately; a small frown still on her face.
"You can cook with me." Irelia offered, meeting the mage's gaze with a small twinkle in her eyes.
Instantly, Syndra's frown was replaced with a slightly twisted, but genuine smile.
"Cook for me!" Syndra demanded happily.
It was Irelia's turn to frown.
"No... Cook with me..." The warrior corrected.
Syndra pretended to frown until Irelia reached down and gently pulled her to her feet.
"It'll be fun!" The warrior encouraged as she lightly tugged Syndra's arm in the direction of the kitchen.
"Cooking is no fun." Syndra replied airily.
"Power is fun... Plaything is fun!" The sovereign quickly added as she broke free of Irelia's grasp and wrapped her arms back around the warrior.
"C'mon- mmmngph- you have to learn... how to cook... at some point!" Irelia managed to wheeze as Syndra squeezed her with all her might, effectively forcing all of the air out of Irelia's lungs.
Finally prying herself free of the sovereign's strangling grasp, Irelia snatched the pan off of the stove and dumped the black smoldering ruin of an omelet into the trash. A quick rinsing and drying in the sink, and the pan was returned to the stove.
"Alright." Irelia quipped as she rubbed her hands together with anticipation. The warrior flipped the stove back on in preparation for cooking.
"First things first, little bit of oil in the pan so the food doesn't stick." Irelia continued, simultaneously pulling a bottle of cooking oil out of a cupboard and pouring a small amount into the pan.
Syndra blinked as she gazed at the warrior. Already, she was getting bored.
"Next, add in the meat you want since that takes the longest amount of time to cook." Irelia stated as she tossed some raw chicken slices into the pan. Instantly, the meat began to sizzle and give off a delicious smell.
Irelia poked the slices of meat around in the pan with a spatula until she decided that it was cooked enough.
"Alright, then we throw in the vegetables..." Irelia declared as she tossed a mixed array of mushrooms, onions, and tomatoes into the pan.
"Simple enough so far, right Syndra?" Irelia inquired happily.
"..."
"Syndra?" Irelia repeated questioningly.
"..."
Irelia finally turned around and glanced at the mage.
Syndra's head had drooped downwards. Her eyes were half shut with boredom and she was clearly not paying attention.
"Ugh! SYNDRA!" Irelia called out in an abrupt and commanding tone.
Finally, Syndra's head jerked upwards and she refocused her gaze on Irelia.
"... What?" Syndra quipped, blinking her eyes in attempt to feign attention.
Irelia sighed with resignation.
"Here... why don't you go beat the eggs..." Irelia muttered with annoyance as she handed Syndra a large bowl.
"Okay!" Syndra answered eagerly.
Before Irelia could even give her any instructions, Syndra flicked her hand in the direction of the egg carton. Instantly, the lid flipped open and three eggs whizzed into the air before smashing into the bowl, leaving a mixed mess of eggshells and egg yolks inside the bowl.
"Done!" Syndra called out happily, holding out the bowl of disaster in Irelia's direction.
"..."
Irelia's mouth hung open for a few moments as she stared at the mess inside the bowl.
"You... don't know how to make eggs..." Irelia finally managed to state.
"Of course I know how to make eggs. See?" Syndra answered as she tapped a finger on the side of the bowl.
Finally, Irelia let out an exasperated sigh.
"Alright... Come here..." Irelia called out as she turned the fire down on the stove.
Taking the bowl of ruined eggs from Syndra, Irelia dumped the mess into the sink before placing the bowl back on the counter.
"This... Is how you crack an egg." Irelia stated as she pulled a single egg from the carton, neatly cracked the surface on the sharp edge of the bowl, and dropped the egg yolk and egg white perfectly into the bowl. Not a single piece of shell landed inside the bowl.
"Got it?" Irelia asked as she gazed at Syndra through the corner of her eye.
Syndra nodded.
"Good. Your turn." Irelia stated, pushing the bowl in Syndra's direction.
Syndra bit her lip as she levitated a single egg out of the carton and brought it near the bowl.
"Hmph!" Syndra grunted as she abruptly flicked a finger and sent the egg into the edge of the bowl.
Unfortunately, Syndra yet again, used too much force. Rather than making a small crack in the egg, the entirety of the egg traveled into the bowl; splitting the egg in two halves with the upper half of the shell landing inside the bowl while the lower half, along with the egg yolk, landed with a messy splat on the counter.
"Done!" Syndra declared happily, deliberately ignoring the fact that she was unsuccessful in obtaining the desirable part of the egg.
"Ugh..." Irelia finally groaned in defeat.
"Y'know what? Why don't I just take care of this..." Irelia grumbled with an annoyed sigh. It was rather clear that Syndra had no intention of dealing with such a trivial task such as cooking.
"Okay!" Syndra readily agreed and whirled on her heel before strolling away.
"Ugh..." Irelia grumbled again.
Five minutes later, Irelia was finished cooking breakfast for the both of them. She took a few more minutes cleaning up the warzone Syndra had created before finally placing the two freshly cooked omelets on two separate plates.
"Synd-" Irelia caught herself before she almost yelled out the sovereign's actual name.
Annoyed, the warrior let out an unladylike snort before strolling towards the bedroom in search of Syndra.
"You in here?" Irelia called out as she poked her head into the room.
No Syndra.
"Bathroom?" Irelia called out.
The bathroom door was open.
No Syndra.
Finally, a sudden gust of cold wind alerted Irelia as to where the sovereign had disappeared to.
The front door stood wide open.
"C'mon, really?" Irelia sighed as she pulled on her boots and stepped out the door.
"Who asks for a meal and then leaves right away..." Irelia grumbled to herself as she looked around.
Off to the side of the house, Irelia noted several foot prints that disappeared behind the side of the house.
"C'mon! Breakfast is ready!" Irelia called out, allowing her annoyance to seep into her voice.
When Syndra didn't reply, Irelia shook her head with exasperation. Finally, she let out another grunt and stormed off at a brisk pace, following Syndra's footprints.
She didn't have to go far.
Just as the warrior rounded the bend about the corner of her house, a snowball came whizzing out of the tree line off to the side of the house and smacked Irelia square in the shoulder.
"Hey!" Irelia called out in a startled tone.
She turned her head just in time to see Syndra emerge from the trees with a predatory grin on her face.
"PLAYTHING!" Syndra shouted with delight.
Instantly, Irelia's eyes widened with terror.
As Syndra emerged from the tree line, so did an armada of freshly packed snowballs; all rising up into the air at Syndra's command.
"Syn- Don't do it!" Irelia shrieked, her voice raising in tone has her surprise increased.
"HAH!" Syndra shouted, flinging a hand in Irelia's direction.
Instantly, the snowballs went crashing towards Irelia; harmlessly pelting her in a barrage of fluffy snow.
Instinctively, Irelia ducked her head behind her arms and brought a leg half way up to her chest, attempting to protect herself from the barrage as best as possible. All attempts failed, however, when a lucky snowball caught her straight in the neck before sliding down into her shirt.
"AHH!" Irelia shrieked "IT'S COLD!"
All other words were drowned out as Syndra laughed hysterically until she finally ran out of snowballs to throw. By the time she was done, Irelia couldn't even be seen beneath a small mountain of snow stacked up against the side of the house.
After recovering slightly from her laughter, Syndra finally moved forwards.
The mountain of snow, and the warrior that was buried within it, were stalk still.
Hesitantly at first, Syndra shuffled up to the pile before taking a finger and poking it into the fluffy powder.
No response.
Syndra poked it again, this time pushing slightly deeper.
No response.
Finally, Syndra stepped closer to the pile. Just as she was about to poke the pile once more, a hand shot out and grabbed her wrist.
"Wha-!" Syndra sounded in shock.
"GOTCHA!" Irelia's muffled voice shouted from within the snow.
Instantly, Irelia put all her body weight into yanking the sovereign into the cold mountain of snow.
"NOOOO!" Syndra shrieked as she was pulled into the frigid pile of powder.
"This ends HERE!" Irelia shouted victoriously; the mage still thrashing about as she helplessly tried to free herself without using her powers.
Before Syndra could wiggle away, Irelia grabbed the sovereign by the shirt, deftly pulled the neck of Syndra's top open, and stuffed a large handful of snow down the opening.
"NAAAAAHHAAAA!" Syndra squealed as the freezing snow traveled down her body.
The mage frantically tried to get the cold powder out of her shirt, but neglected to pull away from Irelia first.
"Take this!" Irelia laughed as she shoved another handful of snow down the sovereign's shirt.
"Nooooo!" Syndra whined as she wriggled about, still trying to get the snow out.
Finally, the mage called upon a small amount of her magic and flung herself out into the air.
"You're not getting away!" Irelia shouted before lunging out of the pile in pursuit of the sovereign.
Irelia's hand closed firmly about Syndra's ankle just as the mage lifted off the ground; causing both Ionians to crash to the snow covered ground in a tangled heap.
Before Syndra could attempt another escape, Irelia flung herself forward, pinning the mage to the ground with her body weight.
"Nmmph!" Syndra grunted as she tried to push Irelia off her. Alas, she lacked the physical strength to do so. After a few more minutes of fruitless struggle, Syndra gave up and laid still, her lousy physical abilities finally exhausted.
"Do I win?" Irelia asked the mage, breathing lightly as compared to Syndra's ragged panting.
The mage paused for a second before replying.
"It's cold..." Syndra whined as she deliberately chose not to answer Irelia's question.
Smiling, Irelia pushed herself up until her arms were locked straight in her position above the sovereign. Finally free of the warrior's pinning weight, Syndra shifted onto her back so that she could face the blossoming Ionian above her. After gazing at each other for a few seconds, Syndra finally reached up and forcibly yanked Irelia down to her in a crushing hug. Startled, Irelia put up an initial resistance, but quickly gave in to the sovereign's embrace.
"Breakfast is ready..." Irelia finally manage to blurt out after Syndra released her.
Pushing herself completely off of the mage's body, Irelia sat back; allowing Syndra to rise from her flattened position on the snow. When the mage finally did rise from her position, Irelia let out a loose laugh.
"What!" Syndra snapped haughtily.
"You're a mess!" Irelia laughed back.
Indeed, the sovereign's appearance was far less glamorous that it usually was. Her long hair was a mess of tresses with a large amount of snow tangled up within it. On top of that, her borrowed clothes were a fairly sloppy disaster with various dark patches where snow had melted into the fabric.
"Look at yourself." Syndra shot back, sounding slightly indignant.
Irelia laughed at that too, knowing full well that her appearance was, to the very least, a mirror of the sovereign's messy state.
Pushing herself back to her feet, Irelia helped Syndra back up before pulling the sovereign in close to her. With a quick peck on the mage's cheek, Irelia whispered one word.
"Bath?" Irelia asked with a twinkle in her eyes.
Syndra grinned widely at that.
"Bath." The sovereign agreed.
Author's Notes
Hello again readers, I hope you all enjoyed that light hearted bit of fluff. It was pretty fun to write, but I won't be making many more filler chapters like this. That being said, yes, this chapter was written with the objective of being light in terms of plot. Think of it as a small break in the waves before the #%&* really hits the fan in the coming chapters.
As always, reviews and criticism are appreciated. Thank you all for your continued support, and I hope to see you in the chapters to come.