A week late on this one, my apologies!

Enjoy!

A familiar scent roused Kennen from his slumber and lifted his senses. It was the scent of a place he had called home for many years.

As he opened his eyes, he could see only darkness, though as his eyes adjusted, he could make out the muted silhouette of his living quarters at the Kinkou monestary.

Kennen immediately sat up and pounded his fist against the sheets.

"No! Damn Shen! Damn him!" Kennnen cursed.

This was not the deal they had made. Shen had broken his promise.

Kennen cast the sheets aside and made his way into the corridor outside of his room before stomping his way over to the quarters of the Eye of Twilight.

"Shen! This will not stand! I can't b-…" As he pulled open the paper divider that served as the doors and walls to all rooms in the monastery, he fell silent. Shen wasn't here. The room looked immaculate, untarnished, and empty.

Kennen's nostrils flared as he slid the divider closed and made his way to Akali's quarters.

"Akali, we need to talk. Right now." Kennen called out, staring at the ornate design that was printed on the door.

Silence.

"Akali?..." Kennen murmered as he slid the door open.

Empty.

Kennen stepped back into the corridor. Something wasn't right.

As he looked around, he noticed that the hall he stood in was not illuminated. The triumvirate quarters were always well lit.

He made his way down the narrow corridor and stepped out onto the temple grounds. The light outside was nearly blinding and very few shadows marked the ground, indicating that it was high noon.

As his eyes adjusted, Kennen's brows narrowed at what he saw before him. The monastery was empty. As he scanned from each wing of the grounds to the next, he saw not a single soul around.

The braziers weren't lit, the towering temple walls were vacant of any banners, and the disciples of the Kinkou order, who normally trained at this very hour in the inner cloister, were nowhere to be seen.

"Hello? Shen? Akali?... Master Rangi?" Kennen called out as he stepped out into the sunlight. A slight chill ran down his spine as his voice echoed through the empty courtyard and colonnades. "Anyone?"

He turned toward the temple which stood at the foot of the courtyard, opposite of the main entrance. The massive doors were appeared to be shattered inward, as if a great force had attempted to make entry.

Kennen dashed up the steps and slipped between the splintered doorway and found himself in complete darkness. "Elder Mara…?" His voice rang empty through the dark temple. He had expected to smell the familiar scent of heavy incense and candle smoke, but was met with only the musty smell of dust. The light outside illuminated an enclosed alter at the center of the temple; a shrine. Though usually bearing fruitful offerings, the sacred site was bare of anything save for a layer of dust.

"How do I make sense of this?" Kennen muttered to himself before stepping out of the darkness and back into the courtyard, making for the massive arch that marked the entrance to the monastery.

As he approached the archway, he was met by a steep level of stairs which hugged the wall of the mountain on which the monastery stood. He looked down to the lands below.

The villages and townships which dotted the foothills around the summit appeared to be very much alive and even bustling. He could see carts being drawn and people making their way through the streets in a manner as easygoing as he had always remembered.

He glanced back to the empty monastery behind him. A gale wind suddenly picked up and flowed through the archway, carrying away what few petals still lingered on the cherry blossoms that marked each corner of the cloister.

Kennen thought hard. There had to be a logical explanation for this.

He woke up in his room. It wasn't bare and empty like the rest of the monastery. Neither were Shen and Akali's rooms. Shen must have brought him back to Ionia after that night.

That night…

Kennen's attention was pulled from his thoughts as something on the horizon caught his eye.

A dark cloud loomed over the shoreline and seemed to being creeping its way toward land. Kennen's eyes narrowed.

That's no cloud, he thought to himself as the dark mass came into view.

They were birds. Hundreds. Even thousands.

And they were headed right for him.

Kennen clamped his hands over his ears as the massive flock passed above him. The shrill screeches and fluttering wings were near deafening. The birds flew so close to the monastery that he suspected they were poised to attack, but as the last of the stragglers passed overhead, it became clear to Kennen…

They weren't trying to attack…they were trying to fly away.

But from what? He pondered.

Kennen looked back to the horizon and saw yet another dark flock engulfing the horizon.

Not again, he thought to himself.

He stood his ground as he noticed something different. This flock was much larger and its formations more fluid, as if formed of a gentle wave of clouds.

As it breached the shoreline and began to spill out onto the land, a grim realization dawned on him.

This was no flock of birds. It was a shadow. A massive, impenetrable shadow.

Kennen watched closely as it drifted from one village to the next and as it did, the village seemed to be lost to the encroaching darkness. His eyes shifted back to the horizon…yet he could see no end of the darkness in sight.

Kennen's feet began to pull him back into the monastery. Was it fear? Was it uncertainty? He did not know. Though as he stepped back under the arch, his last full view of the land was obscured by the shadow, which looked to have reached the foot of the summit.

Still his legs carried him back, further and further until he was at the edge of the temple steps.

What followed, Kennen could barely comprehend. He did not see the sun seemingly vanish from the clear skies above. He did not see the archway obliterated. He did not see the world spin as he flung himself back inside the temple. He did not see the chained hook collide with the shattered door, sundering it to mere splinters. He only saw the twisted beryl formations and faceless horrors that surrounded him, grabbing and shrieking. He felt a dreadful coldness overtake him, snaring him in place, and a great weight pushing him to the hard floor. He felt himself lifted violently before being slammed back down.

Again.

And again.

And again.

Kennen struggled with all of the strength he could muster. He tried to focus, tried to reason, tried to summon the powers he knew hid within him…anything to retaliate.

But nothing came of it. His own powers…his own will… his own strength…had abandoned him.

Kennen's cries of protest turned to screams of terror. The force continued to yank him up, high into the air, before slamming him back to the hard temple floor, and though he could not feel it happen, he could hear bones begin to crack.

Yet the force never relented.

Up.

Down.

Up.

Down.

Up.

Down.

UP.

DOWN.

UP!

DOWN!

Teemo was sprawled out on his love seat, staring at the ceiling. The sheets and pillows he had pulled out for the night were now cast to the ground with abandon.

His gaze darted toward a single candle flickering in the corner. Conspicuous shadows danced around the walls of the living space but seemed to shrink as the flame began to die. Teemo's eyes followed the whisk of smoke that plumed from the extinguished wick and as it drifted past him, his nose wrinkling.

He couldn't sleep.

He ran the day's events through his head, as he had done at least a hundred times before for the last two hours…

The Kinkou had reached a compromise, allowing Kennen to stay in Bandle City for a full month.

He had given Kennen the formal fellowship offering at the beginning of the Summer's End Festival, as is tradition, and he, in turn, received one of his own.

He assumed Kennen knew the significance behind such a gesture, though he thought it unfair to expect Kennen to feel similarly or come to a conclusion that aligned with how Teemo truly felt.

And what did he truly feel? He had been asking himself that question for a long time. Before the Kinkou had arrived in Bandle City. Before he had even heard any news that they were making a voyage here.

Kennen was one of his best friends growing up. He practically considered him a brother.

Yet…

Teemo idly picked at his nails. It was a bad habit that Tristana always insisted on reminding him of whenever she had the chance. He hardly noticed he was doing it half of the time.

Tristana…

He had once felt something for her. At least, he thought he did. Tristana was, after all, the only one that had been there for Teemo ever since he joined the Scouts. She's saved his sorry skin more times than he can count, and vice versa. But after many rounds of deep conversations, both parties agreed that it would be best to simply remain friends. But he could say with full confidence that she was perhaps his best friend alongside Kennen.

He realized he had never much considered romanticism after that. Work usually kept him busy enough to put such things in the back of his mind.

But now…

It was a chore trying to ignore the strange feelings he was having. He wasn't so concerned about the social implications of Kennen being the target of his affections. Yordle culture did not look down on such things. He was more concerned with how it would compromise his role as a Scout of the Mothership and Kennen's role as the 'Heart of the Tempest'.

He had to admit…

The Ionians sure had neat titles.

Then again…he didn't seem to have any reservations about leaving the order the day before. But that concerned an act of dishonor…not romance.

Teemo gave a sharp sigh, opting to let his gaze return to the wooden ceiling of his cottage once more.

His ears suddenly perked as he heard a quiet whimper escape the bedroom.

The scout leaned up and tilted his head toward the direction of the noise.

"No…No!...NO!" Kennen's voice rang through the small house, startling Teemo to his feet.

He quickly dashed toward the bedroom only to see Kennen thrashing violently under the layer of blankets, his mouth agape in absolute fear.

Teemo's ears flattened at the scene before him. He recoiled slightly as Kennen's screams became frightful and incoherent. He knelt upon the bedside and grasped his shoulders before giving a firm shake, trying desperately to rouse Kennen from his fitful dreams.

Kennen was suddenly pulled back into reality. Though his screams still echoed through the small cottage, he could feel a sense of normality returning to his senses. He could feel hands against his shoulders, rocking him firmly. He could see a figure in front of the moonlit window across from the bed. It was a familiar figure. And a voice…

"Kennen! Kennen! Wake up!" The voice called out in a panicked tone.

It was a familiar voice.

Teemo's voice.

Kennen stopped his flailing as he heard the voice. He stared at Teemo, tears forming at the corners of his eyes.

Teemo ceased his rocking, but kept his hands on Kennen's shoulders.

Silence filled the room for a time before Teemo pulled Kennen into a tight hug. He could feel the fur on his chest beginning to dampen as a gentle sob escaped the other.

"Hey, hey…Shhh. It's alright, Kennen. It's alright. It was just a nightmare." Teemo's voice chimed quietly. He slowly rotated his hand in circles against Kennen's back.

Kennen buried his face in the other yordle's chest and kept it there for some time, trying to calm his terrified nerves. The soft warmth against his face, the gentle arms around his torso, and the familiar scent of the other's fur quickly returned him to a peaceful state. Yet even as he found peace in the wake of such a terrible nightmare, he did not budge.

Teemo glanced down to Kennen, who had grown oddly still. He nudged him gently. "You alright Ken?" He asked, trying to muster his best smile as the other pulled his head up to look at him.

Kennen could just barely make out Teemo's features, the harsh moonlight casting his profile in darkness. But he could see the white of his teeth. He could see his smile.

"I am now." He murmured softly. "…It was terrible. I…" Kennen tried to rationalize what he had witnessed in his dream, but was suddenly overwhelmed with exhaustion. He could also feel a sharp pain in the back of his head. No doubt it would be even worse in the morning. He simply gave a sigh and shook his head.

Teemo nodded in understanding. He could see the tire under his fellow yordle's eyes. "Right. You should get back to sleep. We'll talk about it in the morning." He stood up from his perch on the bed and made for the door. "Good n-…" He paused as his hand was grabbed.

"I want you to…stay here. With me." Kennen said at a near whisper. He could feel the initial resistance from his pull weaken in an instant.

Teemo silently obliged, pulling himself back onto the bed and crawling to the vacant spot at Kennen's side.

Kennen watched with tired eyes as Teemo settled under the comforter they now shared. He turned on his side, pressing his back to Teemo's torso before closing his eyes once more. He felt the same arms that had embraced him earlier curl around his waist, pulling him closer. He responded with a tender sigh before letting his exhaustion overtake him.

Teemo, on the other hand, simply laid in silence, his eyes taking in every candid detail and contour of Kennen's body against his before eventually closing.

Check back next week! As always, reviews and feedback are always appreciated. I'm trying to keep chapters between 2,000-3,500 words each. Hopefully that stays consistent.