A/N: I am soooooooo sorry for the delayed update. Life got in the way, and I had to take some time to figure out this chapter as well. Without going into too much detail, I recently just completed a move after a huge, dramatic fiasco with my previous property managers so things should be looking up and improving here on out.

Thank you guys so much for your patience. Updates should be rolling out a bit more frequently. Especially since it's been like nine months since the last chapter (surprise! I gave birth to a new chapter for this fic!) But jokes aside, dear lord. Never let me go that long without an update again.

Despite a brief foray into the city for both the meeting and a few other small errands, Lux managed to return to the Crownguard estates with dusk rapidly approaching. It wasn't often she welcomed the dreary sight of the colorless buildings and imposing walls befitting that of a maximum security prison, but the day kept her spirits high. A certain Shuriman also prompted the normally exuberant blonde to sweep past the guards and nighttime servants with little conversation save a polite greeting here and there. Lux hadn't spotted Kepi within the capital, nor had the woman approached her as she left the city, yet they left the estates together. ' Could she have been caught…?'

"Ahem, and what would be keeping my daughter so preoccupied to the point of ignoring her own mother?"

Lux nearly tripped on her own feet from how fast she stopped in her tracks and whirled around. Augatha eyed her daughter critically as she sorted herself out in a hasty curtsy. "Good evening mother. My apologies, I did not wish to linger over long after my day in the capitol. A bath felt overdue."

The matron's expression softened only in the slightest, displeasure still etched in the lines of her face. "I know you, Luxanna. You're only ever quiet like so, when you are hiding something."

'Oh gods, did they really find her?!' "I've had much to contemplate and ponder," Lux explained, a conditioned, generalized response developed as a means to deflect suspicion.

"In regards to…? The Laurent situation?"

A bit of relief spread through her limbs. She suspected her lack of courtesy wasn't the primary reason why she had been stopped, especially since the woman knew the blonde had yet to give her a satisfactory answer to the 'Laurent situation.' There was no wriggling out of this, not this time anyway.

But that meant Kepi was still out of her mother's purview.

"Yes mother. I'm due to meet with her in the morning once more."

Augatha's frown deepened. "Another meeting? I would have anticipated a tad bit more than just these back-and-forth games."

"This requires a touch of patience," Lux reassured with a smile, though her sentiment didn't quite match her expression. "Rushing blindly into the beast's maw on the basis of inane gossip should be reserved for the brave and the foolish. Fio-... Laurent-" Lux caught herself, and on that selfsame name got a brilliant idea to shake her mother. "-would be quick to suspect tomfoolery if approached in such a manner. It would be equally unwise to strike at the heart of the matter without removing the scales first. She may be too young to manage a household in your eyes, but she does have a swath of experience in Demacian politics that can't be ignored. Subsequent meetings, therefore, are required to establish a basis of trust and consistency, as well as appeal to a greater sense of commitment to repairing any frayed bonds."

Lux tapped her chin in feigned thoughtfulness to add to the effect. "To quell the rumors, we need to ensure that all possible alternatives are considered and, if necessary, established. Whatever the results, they need to be a net gain for the benefit of Demacia against any coming storm. Weathering it without being adequately prepared has historically proven to be the detriment–"

"Very well, very well," her mother interjected, seemingly worn out by the blonde's propensity for long-winded and exceedingly one-sided conversations. Maybe they had a good use after all. "If there is aught else to glean from the Laurents, I want to be the first to know."

The blonde bowed with a hand over her chest. "You have my word mother. If I may be excused…"

Augatha waved her off. "Do you require a servant to draw a bath?"

"That will not be necessary. Just a quick soak and scrub to wash away the day." Lux giggled sheepishly when her mother gave her a weird look at the sudden pep in her tone. "And an early retirement for the evening. I'm expected to be prompt."

"Off you go then. If you require anything, send a word."

Eager to clear her mother's agonizing scrutiny, Lux hurried to her room. She slid inside and locked it without so much as giving away the contents inside, but to her dismay Kepi was nowhere to be seen. Disappointment and a renewed sense of dread filled her bones as she crept forward slowly. " Kepi?"

"I'm in your study, Lux."

For the second time in the span of ten minutes, fear gave way to relief. She hadn't known what to expect, but the Shuriman lounging in her chair with the botanical journal was a far more welcome sight than whatever else her mind conjured up. "You scared me. How'd you get in?"

Hazel eyes lifted from the book and met hers. A shudder ran down the blonde's spine - she'll never get used to the sharpness in them. "I never left."

"But you were with me this morning-..."

Kepi nodded. "That was the plan originally," she began, sitting up properly and setting the book facedown on the desk. "But I decided to return back here shortly after we split, and before the capital. I realized a Mageseeker's uniform would keep eyes away from me for a bit, but not Fiora's. Besides, I'd be uncomfortable if a stranger followed me - a lesson I learned well from you, and something best not repeated."

She couldn't argue with that logic. But if she had returned to the estate….

"Kepi, how have you been getting by on food then?" The Shuriman hadn't left since she took refuge, and it slipped Lux's mind to ask her if she was hungry in any shape or form given the fact they were more keen on securing her safety.

"The last time I ate was a few days ago." Days?! Kepi rubbed the back of her neck. "I've not seen a morsel since."

Lux stared incredulously at her, jaw slacked and guilt building in her stomach. Of all the things to overlook, why hadn't that been something she took note of? So wrapped up in thinking about Fiora, she mentally slapped herself for accidentally proving the rumor of her being an airhead. "I'm so sorry, I've completely forgotten."

Kepi gave her a lopsided grin, easing her worries for a moment with hushed whispers. "It's okay, don't fret. Shurimans, or at least in our tribe, are used to stretches of time without food. 'Fasting', for certain periods of the year so it doesn't bother me any." Considering the woman's poor health, that should have been at the top of her priorities, not lower. "Granted, Piltover has spoiled me a little with its overabundance of food. My body never fully adjusted after all these years."

"We have more than enough to spare here," Lux urged. "I can sneak something from the kitchen, if only to tide us over for the 'morrow. The cooks are used to my late night forays into the food stores, and all the night time servants are aware of my twilight trips during my studies." No one would be wiser to a few things missing here and there, even her family knew about her 'midnight snacking.' "Besides, I've only had a dessert and coffee from Sinful Succulence myself."

"That's where you were?" Kepi raised an eyebrow. "A bakery?"

Lux sighed, lolling her head back and staring up at the ceiling.

"Yes, and I'll tell you all about it after."

"Is that a whole-"

"-picnic basket?" Lux nudged past Kepi and hauled the basket into her study. "Yes, while I got a couple of odd stares they didn't really question it when I told them I hadn't eaten much for the day. It was easier than trying to carry everything in my arms."

Kepi's curiosity got the better of her as she lifted the lid on one side, awestruck by the spread within. "That's enough to feed a whole army, Lux…."

"Contrary to my skinny frame, I can eat a fair bit," the blonde admitted, suddenly self conscious about her figure. "I'm always running around and comparatively speaking, my brother could eat enough to feed several armies himself. Help yourself to whatever, I do need a quick bath."

"If I even know where to begin…wait, is that honey?"

Lux giggled at the utter shock in the woman's voice as she slipped into the bathroom, finally afforded a moment of privacy to decompress and strip away the day's woes. When she emerged from a cocoon of steam and heat, she found the Shuriman quietly contemplating over the few items pulled from the basket. "Can't figure out what to try?" she asked, drying out her hair with a towel.

"Er, well I would rather break bread with company, and it would be rude to you if I ate ahead."

Lux rolled her eyes and picked up a small, round loaf, literally breaking it in half and offering it to Kepi. "You're starving, and I did say it's okay. We're friends, no?"

The Shuriman stared at the offered bread and finally took it after no small amount of hesitation. The bite she took out of it betrayed her modesty. "Thank you for the meal."

Lux smiled, leaned against the desk, and gestured to her chair. "Please, sit. I'm far too energetic to sit still, and I'd hate to see it go unused. Besides, I've a lot to share."

And share she did.

By the time the blonde finished her tale, Kepi let out a low whistle. "So you agreed to meet her tomorrow? That's rather..sudden."

Lux nodded, idly nibbling on a dry cracker as she stared at the book forgotten at the end of the table. "Early too, by the sun's rise. I'd have to leave well before the crack of dawn."

The Shuriman processed that bit of information in contemplative silence. "You think she minds if you had a traveling partner?"

"She did request I come alone, or at least gave that impression."

Kepi locked eyes with Lux. "I'm…uncomfortable staying here much longer." The conversation took a more serious note with the admission. "I hear rumors, conversations about the Mageseekers. I didn't know your family was so ingrained with them, considering you're an Illuminator - a Radiant no less."

"Unfortunately," Lux groaned. "But the association is largely by marriage via an extension of the family. I try to distance myself from all that as much as possible, but I have my own history with the Mageseekers as well. Not entirely pleasant either; I don't appreciate how they operate." She could understand the hesitancy and the skittish behavior. "I don't fault you for wanting to find a way out. This isn't exactly the safest place."

"I am still eternally grateful for your hospitality, and offering me sanctuary," Kepi iterated, but Lux knew the arrangement would never be a permanent fixture. "I know a solution is difficult, especially in this political clime."

Lux shook her head. "Let's disregard that for now. I know she said she wanted me to bring myself, but never explicitly stated I come alone. I did so last time largely out of haste, and a bit of improvisation at the last second. A repeat would arouse suspicion on the account Illuminators don't exactly work alone." At the blank stare she received from the Shuriman, the blonde continued. "Illuminators work in pairs - largely to ensure safety in numbers but also to hold each other accountable. You've played a rather convincing role as a Mageseeker and evaded capture for quite some time, perhaps an Illuminator wouldn't be as difficult."

Kepi pursed her lips. "It was a necessity to hide in plain sight, and while changing hats on a dime is a skill I've unintentionally acquired as a survival tactic, wouldn't it paint you in a bad light if we deceived her?"

That part she hadn't considered, and Lux buried half her face in a hand. "We don't have many options, if any. What would you do?"

"We could keep it simple. Stick with the story of me being your charge, under the Illuminators' orders. It is neither a lie, nor a truth."

A white lie. "Technically, it's because I'm supposed to be looking for you, or at least responsible for your case." It only reminded her of the fact she needed to come up with a cover report for Kepi's "potential whereabouts." "The details of said case aren't exactly public knowledge, and the less anyone knows, the better off we are. You know Demacians have a propensity to spread rumors like wildfire." Still, it could work.

Kepi sighed. "And they are rather xenophobic….I feel cornered and damned."

Lux winced - bitter, but the truth nonetheless. "I feel Fiora isn't like most Demacians. Gossip doesn't seem to be her style, and I have reason to believe she wouldn't turn you away simply because you're a foreigner."

"What gives you that idea?"

"Here, let me just…" Lux shuffled around to the locked compartment of her desk, unlocking the drawer containing her little treasure. Kepi's eyes lit up with curiosity as the blonde tinkered around with it, watching as magic filled the room with a gentle light to reveal the scene she had precariously tapped from Nera a few days ago.

"That's amazing," Kepi breathed in childlike wonder, looking around the different projections of the Laurent's office space. "I didn't know you were capable of such things."

"I never thought to share it before." Lux giggled as the Shuriman rose to wander among the twinkling lights. "But look -- that is Fiora's servant, Nera. While I can't pinpoint exactly where she's from, she's definitely not Demacian."

Kepi stared up at the woman's likeness, far taller than herself. "That's because she's Ionian."

The instantaneous recognition perplexed Lux. "You- how-"

"-do I know? Piltover receives peoples from all over the world." Kepi stepped back when the projection strode her way. "And one of my colleagues works with a half-Ionian woman. They share some similarities."

If Nera was Ionian, then that meant Fiora had taken on a refugee during the most critical moments of the Noxus-Ionia campaign through the Illuminators. Nera's records would be on file, and the possibility that the woman indeed could have some knowledge of the state of magic in Demacia. Which meant...

"Then there is a very real possibility that Fiora is-"

"It's a long shot, but seeing her is oddly comforting." A stranger in a stranger land; yet somehow perfectly at ease in her environment. Nera's reminder echoed in Lux's mind - unconventionality was Fiora's play, and if she was to play the game, then she had to work outside the box.

"We'll go with your plan."

This was another blind gamble no matter which way Lux cut it. But if she had a shot, she would grasp the opportunity as tightly as she did her own magics.

"Tomorrow?"

"Will you be able to manage?"

Nera chuckled quietly at the hesitancy in her mistress' voice. It was rare for the duelist to be so unsure of herself, though given everything Fiora relayed from today it amused Nera to no end. Her streak of forward decision-making often paid off, and last-minute requests were well within Nera's ability to handle.

But usually Fiora carried an air of confidence in such things, not an evening full of second-guessing.

"Of course, I've had to prepare more on far tighter constraints before." When Fiora shot her a half-hearted glare, the white-haired woman let it glance off her. "With all due respect, it does not take much to arrange a simple tea set. There is little deviancy to your normal routine, aside from asking me to ready an extra practice rapier, milady."

The duelist sighed. She was no stranger to entertaining guests, but never during her personal training and not with an invitation from herself. Why she chose to do so bewildered even her, and she had spent the greater part of the afternoon fussing over an explanation mostly for her own sanity. "Efficiency, mon cher. I would not suffer a slot in my schedule to entertain -"

Nera cut her off. "Are you certain it's that, and not a little taste of revenge against the Crownguards?"

Fiora scowled. "I am above being petty."

"Really, ma petit rose?"

" Mon dieu, you sound like a mother."

"I'm old enough to be--"

"Oui, oui. You are far too cheeky tonight."

Nera placed a hand on her heart, feigning injury to her pride. "But my dear child finally has a friend!"

Fiora groaned and planted her forehead on her desk. " Nera…"

Quiet laughter filled the room, and even Fiora's ire melted away. "I only jest, milady. You may leave matters in my hand to receive our guest tomorrow."

Good, because any more teasing and she might have to find a new advisor.

A/N: Kepi, based off the Egyptian name "Kebi", means honey. :D

And yes, Nera is quite fluent in French. She kind of has to be to work with Fiora.