was written on the board making others look at her surprised.The Fox Vastayan glared at the mute girl. "Wow, Sona, thanks. I couldn"t tell this morning while looking at the mirror," she said sarcastically while trying to rub the sleep out of her eyes.
"Are you okay?" Aki asked worried for her friend"s sake. "Did you even get any sleep last night?"
"No," Ahri answered bluntly. She then looked at Tiara. "Did you hear anything from Grey?"
The Dancer glared at her. "Well, look who finally grew a conscious," she scoffed. "Even if I did, why would I tell you?"
The Fox Vastayan glared at her and was about to make some come back if it wasn"t for some random summoner to stop her.
"Hey, Nine-Tailed Fox?" the summoner said standing behind her. "I heard that the Abyss Watcher is finally not around," he said not noticing that Ahri"s tails started rattling in anger. "So, since that undead isn"t around anymore, want to hang out with me and my friends."
The Fox Vastayan was gritting her teeth while her eye started twitching making the other champions take a step back. The summoner was behind her so he couldn"t see that.
However, Ahri"s angry face was replaced by a calm smile as she turned around to look at the summoner with a hand on her hip.
She took a few seductive steps towards the summoner before raising her hand and caressing his face.
The summoner smirked and tried to put a hand around her waist… but then Ahri used the hand on his face to tightly grab his throat.
The angry look returned on the Fox Vastaya as she activated her magic and her eyes glowed a deep blue color.
Being so close while also looking directly into her eyes, the effects were very powerful on the summoner.
His head was filled with visions of death, despair, sorrow, and pain as his emotions were turned to utter chaos.
Ahri let go of the summoner and smirked deviously as he started crying loudly while screaming like he was being torn apart.
The Fox Vastayan turned her gaze towards the other summoners that apparently came with him. "So, anyone else would like to try their luck?" she asked making sure to show off her fangs.
"Ahri!" Kayle suddenly appeared floating with her wings. "The rules clearly say that champions cannot harm summoners," she said harshly before looking at the still screaming summoner. "That also includes using your magic to traumatize them!" she scolded.
"Then tell these man-wh*res to stay away from me!" Ahri yelled. She was already in a bad mood, and the idiot playboys who wanted to get under her skirt didn"t help. She started glaring at the summoners. "I don"t know who"s the idiot that spread that rumor about me f*cking people in the past, but it"s a lie! And I swear to the Old Wolf of Farron that if I see one more person wanting s*x from me that I"ll completely ruin their sanity!"
The summoners all nodded and immediately ran away. Meanwhile, everyone else was looking at Ahri shocked for something specific she just said.
The first one to ask was Tiara. "Did you just say, "I swear to the Old Wolf of Farron"?" she asked.
Ahri"s eyes widen realizing that she unconsciously used one of Grey"s quotes. "F*ck!" she cursed loudly as she covered her face and started walking away.
They all watched her walk away before Aki, Lux, and Sona turned to the others. "Okay, can someone tell us what was that about?" the young Crownguard asked.
[And more importantly, what"s this about Grey being missing?] Sona signed worried about the Abyss Watcher more than Ahri.
Solas sighed messaging his forehead. "We should probably sit down. This is going to need some explaining."
Meanwhile, Ahri was speed walking through the hallways trying to get back to her room but stopped seeing that going there wasn"t going to help much.
The Nine-Tailed Vastayan wanted to clear her head. To just find a place to sit down and relax. Hopefully a quiet place, too.
It was then that Ahri had remembered how Zyra keeps everyone from entering the garden. True, she didn"t have Grey with her, but she hoped that the Carnivore woman would still allow her to stay there.
With a new destination, Ahri started walking towards the garden with the hope of staying there.
Ahri made it to the green gates of the garden and entered. Much to her joy, it was quiet and mostly empty. The only ones there were Zyra and Storm.
The Carnivore woman looked at the fox Vastaya. "Ahri? What are you doing here?" she asked.
The Nine-Tailed Vastayan sighed. "Listen, Zyra. I know you don"t usually allow anyone in your garden without Grey around, but I really need some peace and quiet, so please, can I stay here for a while?" she asked giving Zyra a pleading look.
The Carnivore woman looked in thought. True, she didn"t allow anyone around without Grey being present, mainly because her children enjoyed the warm presence he gave off.
But, she knew that Ahri wouldn"t do anything, and the fox Vastaya really looked like she needs some rest. "Alright, you can stay here."
"Thank you," Ahri said in grat.i.tude as she walked in the garden and found a place to sit down.
Zyra stood at the side and started checking on her children. She was glad to see that Solas kept his word and Storm didn"t breath fire while also providing some rain.
The Carnivore woman started also thinking of Why Ahri was alone. She heard rumors about Grey being missing, but this probably means that they"re more than just rumors. Zyra stopped thinking when she heard something… it was light snoring.
When she looked, she saw that Ahri had laid down while using her tails as a cushion and fell asleep.
Normally, Zyra wouldn"t allow anyone to sleep in her garden, but remembering the state of the Nine-Tailed Vastayan, she decided to make an exception just this once.
Meanwhile, Ahri just snuggled into her tails. Some of them being a blanket, while the rest were working as her pillow.
Inside Ahri"s dream:
Ahri felt her eyes flutter open as she found herself on a couch. The Fox Vastayan immediately stood confused.
She"s definitely sure that she was in the garden, yet somehow she was now on a couch in some sort of living room.
It was very s.p.a.cious. The couch she was laying on was brown in color and had a few pillows on it. In front of the couch was a table with two chairs on the other side. Over the table is what seems to be an old-style open kitchen.
"Oh, you"re awake?" Someone asked.
Ahri looked and saw a woman wearing a mixture of black and green robes. They were obviously meant for stealth. She had light blonde hair that was tied into a braid the fell over her shoulder. She was holding a tray that had a kettle with two teacups.
However, what truly draws Ahri"s attention was the woman"s eyes. They were blue. And for some reason, Ahri can swear that she saw those blue eyes before.
"I wasn"t expecting any visitors, so I hope you don"t mind just tea," the woman said walking towards the table and putting the tray on it.
Ahri lifted herself and sat up on the couch before she started ma.s.saging her forehead. "No, tea is fine," she said before she realized something. "Wait, that"s not important. Where am I?" she asked.
"You"re in my home," the woman answered as she sat down on one of the chairs and started pouring tea.
"And who are you, exactly?" Ahri asked narrowing her eyes at the woman.
"Just a woman who saw someone in need of help," the woman replied as she set a cup of tea in front of Ahri before pouring herself one.
The Fox Vastayan glared at her. "I don"t need help," she denied.
The woman merely took a sip from her tea before saying, "That is not what that hurt look in your eyes is telling me."
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Ahri glared at the woman who just looked at her calmly. The Fox Vastayan didn"t keep her glare though.
The Nine-Tailed Vastayan couldn"t tell why. But, the woman"s familiar blue eyes made her feel… safe… trusting… and calm.
For a second, Ahri actually thought that this woman was using the same magic she uses to make her calm down, But she would have known if that was the case.
Seeing that Ahri wasn"t relaxed yet, the woman continued speaking. "Bottling up your emotions never helps. It only makes it all the more hurtful when they overflow. If someone is offering you to let your emotions out without judgment, then you should take it."
Ahri kept glaring at the woman. But, as much as she hated to admit, she knew the woman was right.
No one understands emotions as much as she does. And, the Nine-Tailed Vastayan knew that hiding your emotions just makes it painful when they come out.
After debating herself for a few seconds, Ahri sighed and spoke. "I… got into a fight with a friend," she started but stopped to see what the woman was doing. She was just sitting, giving her a warm smile without any judgment. So, she continued. "It was pretty bad and ended with us walking away from each other. And now, that friend is missing."
The woman nodded, all while keeping her warm smile. "I see, and now you"re worried that you might never get to fix your friendship with that friend," she said as a fact rather than a question. Ahri nodded and the woman asked, "Can you tell me what you two fought about?"
Ahri just looked down at with her hands on her lap. The woman in front of her was getting a little personal, but she really needed someone to speak to.
"I found out that he didn"t take a promise to me seriously, I said something I shouldn"t have, there was yelling, and we didn"t see each other since," Ahri summarized while keeping the personal details.
The woman nodded and asked, "Did that promise involve him fighting for something?" Ahri looked at her shocked before she nodded. The woman hummed in thought. "Alright, I won"t say who is right and who is wrong, but I want to ask you two more questions."
"You"re asking a lot of questions for someone I don"t know," Ahri said giving the woman a tired glare.
The woman just chuckled. "Well, I am asking questions to get to know you," she replied. Before Ahri can say something, the woman asked. "Tell me, how much did this friend of yours lose in his life?"
Ahri opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. The Nine-Tailed Vastayan stayed quiet for a few seconds before finally speaking. "... I think the better question is, "What did he NOT lose?"," she asked.
His home, his family, and his friends. Most of these were gone with barely anything left. In fact, when they first met, Grey had literally lost his entire world.
The woman nodded, and the look on her face made it obvious she was expecting that answer. "When someone loses so much in their life, they start losing their reasons to live, and without reason to live, you don"t have reason to fight for."
It only took Ahri a couple of seconds to understand what the woman was trying to say, and her face turned to one of horror.
The reason Grey didn"t fight seriously… is because he didn"t have many reasons to live.
"If that"s the case… then I just gave Grey LESS reasons to live," Ahri thought as tears started building in her eyes. "I"m… a terrible friend," she said as her hands covered her face.
The woman took a sip from her tea before nodding. "Here is my last question," she said making Ahri look at her between her fingers with teary eyes. "This friend… do you love him?"
"I… Of course I do!" Ahri yelled standing up from the couch. "How can I not love him!" tears started running down her cheeks as she started reflecting on all the time that she and Grey have spent together. "W-when I was a Fox, I had this natural connection to magic. I would hunt without a problem and keep predators away like it was a game. I got arrogant! And when I turned human, that arrogance stayed with my ears and tails. I"ve been acting like a spoiled little princess! But he never complained! He always did his best to make me happy, but I always took it for granted! And now… now I might never get the chance to see him again!" she finished sitting back down and breaking into tears.
The woman in front her stayed quiet and listened to everything the fox Vastaya said.
After a few seconds, the woman finally spoke. "You know, I experienced this feeling many times," she said making Ahri stop crying for a few seconds to listen. "The fear of never seeing the person you love ever again. It"s haunting. Every time that he went to walk through the dark, I would wonder if it"s the last time I ever see him again. But, he always came back. However, the fear that one day he might not come back was always on my mind, so when I had the chance, I finally told him how I feel, and he accepted. It felt like the weight of the world has been lifted from my back," she put her hands where her heart was. "If you truly love him, then believe that he will come back. And, when you get the chance, tell him how you feel."
Ahri just sat quietly and let the woman"s words sink in. She knew that the woman was right. She needed to believe in Grey, and it"s about time she finally tells him how she feels.
"You know, you never tasted your tea yet," the woman pointed out.
The Nine-Tailed Vastayan looked down and noticed that, somehow, her tea was still warm with steam coming from it.
Honestly, Ahri felt a little worn out after that outburst, so tea sounded pretty good for her. She picked up the cup, brought it to her lips, and took a sip.
Reality:
The Nine-Tailed Vastayan slowly opened her eyes. She sat up and saw that she was in the garden this time.
"Took you long enough," Zyra said walking towards her. "When you said a "while", I didn"t think you meant hours."
Ahri raised an eyebrow before looked at the sky and realized that it was now sunset. She had apparently slept more than she thought.
"Sorry," The Fox Vastaya apologized standing. "I didn"t get any sleep last night, and I was more tired than I thought."
Zyra nodded, but she wasn"t completely satisfied with the reply. "You know, usually, my children would have eaten you by now since you didn"t move for a while,"
The Nine-Tailed Vastayan Zyra a deadpan look. "Well, thank you for stopping them," she said.
The Carnivore woman shook her head. "I didn"t," she said making Ahri look at her confused. "I honestly was surprised that they didn"t touch you, and when I asked, they said that the Flames Of The World would be mad that they hurt you."
Ahri looked more confused. "Flames Of The World?" she asked.
"Apparently, that"s what they call Grey," Zyra said before she started walking away.
Ahri looked surprised before giving a self deprived chuckle. "Even when he"s not around he"s looking out for me," she said before she started walking to the exit.
Ahri"s thoughts went back to the dream she just had. She had no idea who that woman was, but she helped her a lot. And now, Ahri had someone she needs to talk to before Grey comes back.
With Grey:
The Abyss Watcher has finally reached the top of the mountain. He pulled himself to the top and found that the mountain had a volcano-like structure.
There was a landslide that leads to a giant field in the middle of the mountain. The walls of the mountain surrounded that field making it look like a giant bowl. The skies were now dark with clouds and the sound of thunder can be heard.
Sliding down towards the field, Grey started looking around for the medallion. But the field seemed empty.
However, he then noticed something odd. In the middle of the field was a person sitting on the trunk of a cut-down tree.
Walking towards the person, Grey was hoping that he might find a clue on where the medallion is.
The person turned out to be a man who looked to be in his thirties. He had black hair tied into a messy ponytail, and goatee connected to his mustache.
For clothes, he was wearing what Grey recognized as dark green Ionian robes mixed with some armor for the chest, forearms, shins, and left shoulder. On his waist, was a katana with a green sheath.
The man was drinking from a gourd bottle when he heard footsteps. He stopped drinking and saw Grey walking towards him.
"Well, this is new," the man said with a raised eyebrow. "You"re not Ama, that"s for sure. Been a while since I was visited by someone else, and it"s been longer since someone visited Takama no Hara itself."
"Can"t say I planned to end up here, but it couldn"t be helped," Grey replied with a shrug.
The man chuckled. "Well, can"t complain about that then," he said before he started drinking from his gourd bottle again.
"Do you know where the storm medallion is?" Grey asked cutting to the chase.
The man stopped drinking and looked at Grey. "The storm medallion?" he asked before narrowing his eyes. "I see, you"re planning to get to the Gate of Spirits."
"Yes," Grey nodded looking over the man. "And judging by your reaction, you have the medallion with you."
"I do," the man sat the gourd bottle down and stood up from the tree trunk. "But, for what reason do you want to reach the Gate of Spirits?"
"I wish to go back to Runeterra," Grey replied noticing the man"s change of character.
Like Ama, the man frowned upon hearing the name. "Oh, you want to go to THAT place, huh?" he said before slowly grabbing the handle of his katana. "Then we"re at a disagreement. I can"t simply hand it to you."
The Abyss Watcher was confused why both the man in front of him and Ama seemed to have some hatred towards Runeterra.
But, he decided to shrug it off and grab the handle of his Farron Great-sword. "Sorry, but I"m not leaving this place without the medallion."
The man chuckled before slightly crouching down while spreading his feet, getting to a battle stance. "Very well, Okame. Do your best, for now, you face me! Susano!"
Grey raised an eyebrow while doing the Legion etiquette. "You"re the second person to call me by that odd nickname."
"Trust me, it"s not weird if you know what it means," Susano said grabbing the handle of his katana in one hand and the sheath in the other. "Now, show me what you got!"
In one swift move, Susano pulled his katana and dashed towards Grey swinging his sword.
The Abyss Watcher immediately blocked pointing his sword downwards. He was shocked by the amount of speed that Susano carried.
Susano pushed his blade forward, and a gust of strong wind followed him making Grey skit backward.
The Abyss Watcher was surprised. That hit wasn"t natural. He suspected that the man in front of him uses wind magic.
His thoughts were cut off when Susano came in swinging his katana downwards for a slash, forcing Grey to dodge by rolling to the side.
The Abyss Watcher stood up and swung his sword at the man. Susano bent backward in order to avoid the sword cutting his head off.
Grey anch.o.r.ed his knife on the ground and continued swinging his sword making it go in a full circle.
Susano guarded using his katana but the hit made him skit back a few feet. The Abyss Watcher pulled out his knife and jumped up swinging down his sword.
Again, Susano guarded with his katana and was sent a few more feet back. He swung his blade at Grey who blocked with his knife.
Like before, winds followed Susano"s katana making the Abyss Watcher back away from the man.
Susano suddenly sheathed his katana. Grey noticed winds gathering around the sheath and immediately put up his guard.
In one swift motion, Susano pulled out his blade swing downwards. A current of wind followed the blade cutting through the air.
The Abyss Watcher raised his sword to block the strike. The wind current clashed with Grey"s Farron Great-sword creating a loud metal bang through the field.
Grey was sent sliding through the ground but managed to stay standing. The Abyss Watcher grunted as he stopped sliding.
That attack dealt more damage than he thought. So, taking advantage of the distance the attack made, Grey took the chance to drink from his Estus Flask.
After healing, the Abyss Watcher immediately dashed forward to attack Susano. The black-haired man simply blocked with his katana.
Both of them started trading swings. The clashing blades creating sparks through the air. But, eventually, they settled for a lock-down.
Susano then pushed Grey backward with the winds helping him. The black-haired man jumped back high in the air.
Suddenly, much to Grey"s surprise, lightning struck Susano"s blade while he was in the air.
Susano swung his sword creating a large arc of lightning. The Abyss Watcher was still shaking from the winds so he couldn"t move.
The lightning slashed Grey making electricity run through his body. The Abyss Watcher fell on one knee recovering from the shock.
Susano landed on the ground and dashed towards the Abyss Watcher swinging his blade.
Grey barely managed to raise his hand and use his own sword to block the hit. But, still hurt from the shock, the Lord of Cinder couldn"t protect himself as the winds pushed him sending him to his back.
Before the Abyss Watcher had a chance to recover, Susano drove the blade of his katana into his chest.
Grey coughed as he tried to move before his body went limp. Susano pulled out his katana and swung it to remove the blood.
"You"ve done well, Okame," Susano said as he turned his back to Grey. "But, it seems victory did not favor you."
Inside Grey"s head:
Like every time he would reach for the powers of the Lord of Cinder, Grey found himself in the Abyss Watcher temple with two statues.
One was a wolf, which contained the wolf"s blood soul. The other was the first of the dead, Nito, which had the soul of Death.
Honestly, Grey did not know which to chose. Susano was powerful, either of those two souls could help him, but he needed to be smart.
The Abyss Watcher needed something that would help him against Susano"s wind and lightning.
While debating on what to choose, the ground shook as a new statue rose from the ground at his side.
This statue was that of a woman wearing magician robes equipped with a hood. Her other features were not visible because the robes covered almost her entire body.
The statue of the woman had its hands extended forward as if they were offering something. Suddenly, a flame appeared between the woman"s arms. It looked like the Soul of Death, but while the Death soul was pale white, this one was deep red.
After a few seconds of confusion, the Abyss Watcher recognized the woman and the flame. "The… Witch of Izalith… and that"s the Soul of Life."
Grey was now beyond confused. It was already puzzling why he had the Soul of Death, and now he has the Soul of Life as well.
"I really need to ask Solas about this," Grey mumbled thinking that the Sun"s First Born might know something.
The Abyss Watcher shook his head deciding not to dwell on it for now. He had to beat Susano. He needed a counter for the man"s wind and lightning. He needed fire, and lots of it.
He needed… "Pyromancy," Grey mumbled thinking that the Soul of Life couldn"t have picked a better time.
Everyone who even heard of Pyromancy knows about the Witch of Izalith, who is called the mother of Pyromancy. The Soul of Life can give him exactly what he needs.
Reaching out towards the statue, the Dark red flame started floating towards Grey"s hand before he brought it and it vanished in his chest.
In reality:
Susano was walking away from Grey"s lifeless body. But, he suddenly stopped when he felt something.
He looked down and was surprised to see flowers suddenly growing from the ground, but not only under him but around the entire field.
They were white flowers that were giving off sparks of fire, but, somehow, they were not burning.
Susano looked back and his eyes widen seeing Grey stand up again. His sword was on fire, and he sheathed his knife as fire appeared in his left arm. His cape was also covered by fiery, root-like patterns.
The Abyss Watcher stood up completely and Susano readied his katana again. Grey immediately dashed forward swinging his now fiery sword.
The black-haired man used his katana to block but had to pull back his head slightly from the fire of Grey"s sword.
The Abyss Watcher pushed Susano away and raised his left hand before thrusting it forward, throwing a ball of red fire at his opponent.
Susano jumped back as the ball of fire struck the ground he was standing on, leaving a small puddle of lava.
The black-haired man sheathed his katana as winds gathered around it again. Grey saw this and raised his left hand before slapping the flames in it on his chest resulting in him being covered by a red aura.
Susano swung his blade sending a current of wind at the Abyss Watcher who swung his sword at it. Surprisingly, he was able to stop it while only sliding back a few feet.
Grey dashed forward and swung his sword at Susano, who was sent back a few feet. The black-haired man noticed Grey"s strength increasing.
Susano jumped back high in the air as lightning struck his Katana. He swung his blade creating an arc of lightning that struck the Abyss Watcher.
The Lord of Cinder fell to one knee again. Susano took his chance and dashed forward to the Abyss Watcher.
But, Grey then put his hand on the ground, and when Susano got closer, pillars of fire erupted from the ground striking the black-haired man.
Susano was forced to jump back, falling to one knee as the fire struck him. The Abyss Watcher stood up and was ready to battle again.
But suddenly, Susano raised his hand signaling for them to stop. Grey was curious but kept his guard up.
Susano started laughing as he stood up. "That was wonderful! I haven"t had a fight this exciting since I battled the Yamata no Orochi," he said laughing.
The Abyss Watcher noticed that the man in front of him no longer had the desire for battle. After calming down, the flames in him started going out while the white flowers vanished.
"Here," Susano pulled out something from his pocket and threw it at Grey. "You can have it. You"ve earned it."
The Abyss Watcher caught what was thrown at him and saw it was a medallion with the crest of a storm.
"Thank you," Grey said as he put the medallion away.
Susano shook his head. "No, thank YOU. I have been bored out of my mind with lack of activity, and you gave me fun I haven"t had in a long time."
Susano then swung his katana at the other side of the field, where a wall of the mountain split apart revealing a set of stairs that leads downwards.
"This should help you get down from the mountain while avoiding the fog. I a.s.sume you don"t want to climb back down after climbing up," he said in amus.e.m.e.nt.
"Thank you," the Abyss Watcher said in grat.i.tude. He really wasn"t in the mood to climb anything any time soon.
"One more thing," Susano said as Grey stopped beside him. "Just because you got my medallion, doesn"t mean your journey will be any easier."
"Thinking that life is easy is just a delusional ideal," The Abyss Watcher replied as he continued walking towards the stairs.
Susano laughed again. "That"s true, I guess," he said as he walked back to the tree trunk to sit down.
Meanwhile, the Abyss Watcher reached the stairs and started walking down them. "One down, two to go," he thought.
(A/N: Thank you for reading this.
I"m sure you know who Ahri met. You have to admit, that it would be stupid if she just understood what she did wrong without someone guiding her.
Also, I"m pretty that some of you(those who read my original story) noticed the difference of how Grey unlocked the Soul of Life. I have to admit, the way he unlocked it the first time was sort of anticlimactic, so I had to think of a better one.
Again, thank you for reading this. Remember to comment, review, and to tell me your thoughts.)