And we're back! I am terribly sorry for the long delay on this story. The end of 2016 was pretty rocky, but I plan to update this story regularly from here on. As always, feedback and reviews are appreciated! Enjoy!
The rooftops surrounding Bandle City square shimmered with a vibrant array of pink and gold as the sun began its descent in the west. Below, the streets were also aglow as orange and violet lanterns, hung from one side of the square to the next, sparked to life.
The revelers cheered their approval but began to fall quiet as a stout yordle took to the stage set up before the steps of city hall.
Mayor Jadefellow rose a single hand, prompting an abrupt silence from the audience, who now listened with anticipation.
The old yordle cleared his throat before addressing the crowd in a booming, radiant voice. "Today we observe a tradition that has stood the test of time. As we all know, the end of his day heralds an end to yet another summer…one that has brought with it rich and fruitful bounties! It also heralds the beginning of a time when yordle-kind is reminded of the importance of family, friends, and food. Our foremothers and forefathers saw the cooling of autumn and the coming of winter not as a time of hardships, but as a time for respite and reflection. And so we celebrate, not only the fruits of our labors, but also our families, our dearest friends, and those nearest to our hearts. With that said, I, Dennison Jadefellow, offer my formal commencement of this Summer's End celebration!"
The crowd responded with a roar of cheerful applaud, some of the Megling Gunners even sounding off from the rooftops with a boisterous boom from their cannons.
Mayor Jadefellow continued with both hands raised in prominence. "Now, it is with great honor that I present to you our group of special and distinguished guests from Piltover, the Yordle Academy's own Hexlight Quartet!"
The Mayor concluded his welcome with a humble bow before hobbling off into the crowds below.
Teemo gave a light grunt as he recovered from what could have been an unpleasant spill.
He found maneuvering through an impenetrable horde of tipsy yordles hard enough, though carrying a drink and balancing someone on his shoulders was proving to be difficult. It also didn't help that he wasn't exactly sober himself.
"How're you doing down there? Your shoulders aren't getting too sore are they?" Kennen called down to his companion. His slightly narrowed gaze and relaxed smile indicating that he was also not quite sober.
"Yeah-yeah! I think someone tried to trip me back there…" He secured his arms around Kennen's calves as he felt himself beginning to sway again. He took the opportunity to also lean his head forward to take a petite sip from the mug in his hand. "What do the performers look like?" He called up.
Kennen scanned the stage just as the night's entertainment were making their entrance. He noted the odd instruments they carried: an oddly shaped lute, a rack of percussions and drums, a long row of chimes, and a strange looking orb that stood upright along a yordle-sized pole. "Two humans and…two yordles by the looks of it!" He called back. "Keep moving forward we're almost close enough to see them from the street."
Teemo gave a small jump to secure the yordle perched over his shoulders, prompting Kennen to give a slight gasp in surprise. Teemo snickered and pressed on through the crowds.
The crowd suddenly gasped as an echo began to ripple from the stage. Kennen looked back to see a series of strange cabinet shaped machines situated behind the quartet visibly vibrating and emanating what looked to be a subtle blue glow. One of the yordle performers took to the pole sized conveniently for someone of his stature and gave the orb at the end two firm taps, causing the machines to send a pulse of blue light to snake its way through the air above the crowd.
Kennen looked on in awe at this display. It reminded him so much of the flows of magic that would accompany a Sona performance and like Sona's music, Kennen could feel a very real energy emanating from this lightshow. It was a pleasant feeling. An uplifting feeling. "Teemo! Quick! Let me down, you have to see this!"
Teemo had also perked his ears at the strange sounds and complied, letting Kennen slide down from his shoulders. His glanced up to see they were close enough to the stage that no one had to be on anyone's shoulders to see the performers.
The pale-furred yordle 'frontman' gave a wide smile, clearly pleased by the crowd's reaction, and nodded back to his fellow musicians. One of the humans, a redheaded woman, began to run her fingers through the hanging chimes, causing the machine behind her to conjure a gentle wave of orange light to collide with the blue streams already drifting through the air. The gentle echo of the chimes jingled a steady rhythm as the second yordle, a golden-furred fellow, began to hammer away at the rack of percussions, followed by the second human, a tall well-tanned man with a flamboyant black mustache, picking away at the mechanized lute in his hand, producing a rich volume of lavish colors and unique sounds.
Teemo, Kennen, and every other yordle in the crowd for that matter watched on in enchantment, though the awe-struck stillness of the gathering began to break as yordle after yordle found their hands raising and their feet moving to the rhythm of the music, as if the hextech-conjured lights around them were casting a subtle spell.
Kennen couldn't help but bounce up and down to the beat of the music. Either the music was truly getting to him or he had indeed had a little too much to drink. Or both.
Teemo tapped his feet and watched the lightshow with squinted eyes, though a sudden urge to abandon his inhibitions was beginning to grow.
The frontman stepped up to the orb and gave it one final tap before singing into it.
"Oooh, I think I've landed in a world I hadn't seen…" The yordle bellowed, his voice conjuring a brilliant infusion of the colors which already rippled through the crowds below.
The audience gave an exuberant gasp before clapping along. Cannons filled with confetti and flowers boomed skyward, unleashing a rain of even more color to shower the crowds below.
The singer continued, dashing his way from one side of the stage to the next. "Oooh, I think I've landed where there are miracles at work..."
Kennen attempted to curl his fingers around one of the streams of light that had drifted close and felt only a gentle warmth to the touch. He looked to Teemo who still seemed to be enjoying the show at his own reserved pace. Kennen wasn't having it. Despite his drunken state, he dove down to the ground and in one graceful feet of strength rose with a surprised Teemo now precariously perched on his shoulders.
"Wooooah- Kennen what are you doin-..." Teemo was cut short by the scene before him. A sea of cheering face, bouncing in near synchronicity with the music. As a flare of light rushed past his head, he suddenly felt his hands clapping briskly to the music and a wide smile forming across his face.
Kennen lit up upon seeing Teemo's face and he began to sway carefully now that he had precious cargo in tow.
"…Full of dreeaaaammms!" The singer's voice echoed through the square and was followed by a brief outro by the human playing the chimes.
The crowd gave another roar of approval as the song concluded, prompting the quartet to continue their set.
The rest of the early evening was filled with similar high energy songs, though as the night progressed, the music took on a more tender, romantic tempo.
"Sat on a roof…named every star..." The singer began.
Teemo and Kennen glanced around them as lovers began to pair up. Two by two, yordles took each other hand in hand and began to sway in intimate unison.
The aurora of conjured hexlight above them suddenly shifted to warm shades of pink and violet.
Kennen suddenly felt his hands grasped by Teemo.
"And time seemed to say…forget the world and its weight…" The voice of the singer echoed in the background.
Kennen seemed to sober slightly as Teemo offered him a gentle smile. His eyes followed the crème yordles hand as it broke from his and rose to adjust the flower behind Kennen's ear.
Kennen's cheeks flushed red under the fur of his face. As he returned the smile, he couldn't help but confirm his own suspicions about the flower offering.
"Kennen, I-…" Teemo was cut short as a loud explosion sounded from above, and with it a brilliant display of fireworks.
Kennen flinched slightly at the explosion but kept his gaze on Teemo who seemed to be transfixed on the fireworks above them. Kennen wasn't sure if it was all of the alcohol he had consumed that day, or if he was just feeling emboldened by urges he was tired of ignoring, but he suddenly decided to take advantage of this moment.
When Teemo shifted his attention back to Kennen, he suddenly felt his lips meet another's… and with purpose! Teemo's eyes widened. They were Kennen's.
"…'Cause now I always want to feel this way…" The singer chimed.
He held himself in suspended disbelief before slowly closing his eyes. His hands drifted their way around Kennen's waist as the two pressed deeper into the kiss.
He was glad his message had gotten across.
Kennen felt the entire world around him melt away and for a brief moment the fireworks above seemed like mere fireflies. He always thought that expression about butterflies in your stomach was just a figure of speech…in fact, they seemed to be rising, higher and higher and higher and higher…
Teemo blinked as Kennen suddenly broke the kiss and turned away.
The scout gave him a confused look but nearly burst as he heard what sounded like yacking coming from the ninja.
Kennen was hunched over with both hands resting on his knees. He heaved slightly and gave a poignant groan before garnering a few sympathetic pats on the back from nearby yordles.
Teemo awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck and mouthed an apology to those around him before stepping closer to Kennen. He rested a tender hand on the yordle's back, giving it a few firm pats as well. "Alright Ken, hold it in until we get to a bush, I'm takin' you home."
Kennen could only give another sickly groan in response.
Perhaps he had overdone it a little.
As the quartet finished their final performance for the night, hordes of yordles began to vacate the center square and flow into the greater streets of Bandle City. Wagons and carts packed to full capacity with tired, drunk, and happy yordles slowly made their way through the river of tuckered-out revelers to take those who lived further into the heartlands home.
Among them, a smiling Teemo guided a fuddled Kennen homeward.
Kennen gestured toward a nearby bush before making a brisk beeline towards it.
Teemo gave a nod and stood close by, waving a dismissive hand at those who dared to stop and gawk. The sound of yacking could be heard soon after.
Teemo's ears perked as he heard a sharp whistle nearby.
He looked around to see Tristana, pulling one of her Megling gunners by the hand and flagging him down.
"Teemo!" She called out before yanking the aforementioned gunner, a male, by the hand. "I've been looking everywhere for you. That was a pretty wild performance, huh?"
Teemo eyed the other gunner, who awkwardly stood at Tristana's side, eyeing Teemo nervously. It was obvious to Teemo that the gunner knew who he was. "Yeah, it was something else."
Tristana glanced to the other gunner, then back to Teemo." OH! Aha, sorry Teems. This is-…" She was cut short.
"Private Kelso of the fourth brigadier Megling core, Captain Teemo sir!" The gunner announced, giving him a firm salute.
Teemo instinctively returned the salute, but gave the private a flat look.
"Relax K, the Captain here is off duty. Can't you tell?" Tristana rolled her eyes. "Say…where's Kennen?" She asked, looking around.
Teemo jabbed a thumb toward Kennen who currently had most of his body buried within a nearby bush. He had been silent for the past minute, though as if to answer Tristana's inquiry, he suddenly gave a heavy yack.
Tristana snickered and gave Teemo a wink. "Happens to the best of us, right?"
Teemo crossed his arms and couldn't help but smile in return. "Not a word to HQ."
Tristana's snicker turned into a steady chuckle. "No promises." She walked closer to get a better look at Kennen before turning back to Teemo. She gave the flower fixed to his helmet a gentle tap. "Don't get into too much trouble Captain…"
Teemo snorted and eyed the orange marigolds situated behind the ears of both Tristana and the private. "Same to you." Teemo gave a sardonic wink of his own.
The private looked on with a clueless expression before Tristana suddenly pulled him back toward the crowd. "Cya Teems! Oh, and remember that we have recruit placements tomorrow! Bright and early!"
Private Kelso looked over his shoulder and gave Teemo a nervous wave. "B-bye Captain, a great honor meeting you, sir!" He and Tristana soon melded in with the endless stream of passerby's, but not before Teemo saw Tristana give the private a gentle punch on the arm.
Teemo gave a gentle sigh and looked back to Kennen who seemed to be trying to clean his mouth and chin off with a leaf. Teemo pulled a handkerchief free from his back pocket and offered it.
Kennen looked to Teemo with an apologetic frown before taking the small cloth offering and cleaning his face.
Teemo only smiled and put an arm over the other's shoulder as they continued their journey home.
"What about…uh…the gallery? The art gallery that used to be by the cobblers in the west ward of Bandle?" Kennen asked in a slurred voice as he practically walked against Teemo's shoulder.
Teemo shook his head. "Madame O'toole's? She packed up and left for Demacia about two years ago. Claimed there was a bigger market out there for her type of collection...Whatever that means. Some business union bought the plot and turned it into a counting house." Teemo would occasionally bring an arm around the other's waist to keep him from stumbling too far ahead or behind.
Kennen gave a thoughtful hum. "Mmm, that's a shame. Remember when we used to spend hours there trying to count up how many nudes we could find?"
Teemo snickered. "Don't think the Madame appreciated those visits…"
Kennen grinned. "Are you kidding? We were her best customers." He gave a chuckle before giving Teemo a tired smile.
Teemo could see his home just up the hill.
He gave the yordle a few firm pats on the back. "Don't pass out of me now, Ken." He said with a smirk.
Kennen's mouth opened wide with a heavy yawn. "No promises…" He murmured before seeming to shift a good portion of his weight against Teemo who was busy flipping through a ring of keys.
Teemo could only laugh. "Oh give me a break, you can take the bed tonight. Just don't puke in it." Teemo said as he entered the house, guiding Kennen to the back bedroom.
"Okay, Upsidaisy!" Teemo sang as he picked Kennen up and placed him on the bed.
Before his head could even hit the pillow, Kennen was already out like a rock.
Teemo looked down at the slumbering yordle before him.
Kennen had definitely had one too many…but in a way, he felt that the ninja had deserved a night like this. A night to have fun. A night to indulge. He wasn't sure just how strict the Kinkou were when it came to luxuries as simple as alcohol, though he suspected that it was something not frequently supplied. In a way, he had anticipated this happening.
What he had not anticipated was the kiss. He had hoped that it was sincere, but…
It was something he would have to address when Kennen was of sounder mind.
Teemo's gaze shifted to the flower still tucked behind the snoozing yordle's ear. He removed it, as well as his own flower and compared the two. They were both gold, though his seemed to have darker accents toward the center. He placed them in an unfinished glass of water he had neglected to dispose of the night before.
He looked back to Kennen and went to work pulling off the yordle's boots and loosening the top buttons of his shirt before pulling the covers over his waist. He brushed his auburn hair back and leaned down, planting a single kiss on his forehead.
"I don't envy the headache you'll have in the morning. Sleep tight Ken." Teemo whispered before making his way out of the bedroom and into the living room. The couch would suit him just fine for tonight.
I'd like to briefly address the lore precedence for this story. I started this story prior to the large lore overhaul that LoL has been undergoing (Which I think is great!) However, this story will remain consistent with lore prior to these overhauls and updates. I do plan on writing future fics using the new and updated lore as it is unveiled.
Disclaimer: AHFOD and Amazing Day both belong to Coldplay!