#with garen saying his sister will be the death of him or something

[noxianwilled]

i have to be on pc to properly comment later but: i think captain's what's his name repeated attempts to just make sure Kat doesn't get back to noxus pretty much comfirm further there's something else at play. if it's really lb, whatever she's planning doesn't seem to include katarina asking swain any questions (which makes sense tbh). kat thinking she might kill swain is funny though. baby girl doesn't know how far out of her league she is yet lmao

[league-of-starlight]

Lux Voice Update concept:

First Move:

“The future can be bright, so long as we let hope live.”

“Come on, we’ve got a job to do.”

“In the name of magic, I shall punish the wicked!”

Long move:

“The people of Terbisia need me. Until I’m certain we can live without fear, I can’t return to Demacia with clear conscience.”

“The world might have darkness, but there’s still a lot of light if we go looking.”

First encounter:

“Have we met?”

“It’s not too late to leave.”

“I’d rather not blast you, so you can go.”

Joke response:

*Snort of laughter* “Okay, okay, that got me.”

Taunt response:

“I’ve been more afraid of my aunt than you.”

Killing:

(General):

“Go to the light. It can’t harm you…”

“I’m sorry, but it was the only way.”

“It had to be done…”

Recall:

“Be right back!”

“Starting to dim, got to brighten myself up!

Death:

“No…”

“Wait…”

“Sorry…”

Respawn:

(Stressed.) “If that happens to me one more time, I’m going to start blasting! Kidding, kidding…” *sigh*

“Woah! I’m… okay?”

“That was… dark.” *Nervous giggling.*

Character specific dialogue:

First encounter:

Annie: “A magic teddy bear? Now I’m getting jealous!”

Ezreal: *To herself* “Just ignore him, maybe he’ll leave.”

Fiora: *Imitating her accent* “En Guard, Miss Laurent!”

“Do you do anything besides fight?”

Galio: “Hey, sleepyhead! I’ve missed you.”

“I’ve grown up a lot since we last spoke. Three inches, to be precise.”

Garen: “…This is awkward.”

Jarvan: “You better keep an eye on those mageseekers.”

Jinx: “Have we met before? There’s something familiar.’

Katarina: “You might’ve helped me, but I’ve got my eye on you.”

Quinn: “Hi Quinn, hi Valor!”

Ryze: “If I win, could you teach me some rune spells? Please?”

Shyvana: “Has Jarvan ever ridden you into battle? What? I’m curious.”

Smoulder: “Aw, a little baby dragon!”

“I know someone who would love you!”

Sylas: “What do you want now?”

“Don’t you have enough magic?”

Mages:

“If you get tired of fighting, I know somewhere you can stay.”

Taunt:

Crystal Rose: “Oh, I remember going to royal balls. So many would-be suitors.” *shivering sound.*

Ezreal: “I’m flattered but you’re really, REALLY not my type.”

Garen: “I’m not just your kid sister anymore.”

Jinx: “I think I had a dream about you? Uh, that’s not weird to say, is it?”

Sentinel skins: “Sentinels of Light? Mind if I tryout?”

Katarina: “Have you and Garen made it past first base? Come oooon, tell me!”

Zoe: “You can have that Ezreal guy. Please, I’m begging you.”

Taunt Response:

Garen: (playfully) “Don’t be mean, Garen!”

Katarina: “Wait till I tell Garen about that!”

Nocturne: “Big talk for a shadow.”

Kill:

Ezreal: “Take a hint! Honestly…”

Garen: No, no, no, I’m sorry, I’m… *sigh*

Jinx: “…Why did you look so happy when I blasted you?”

Ryze: “Looks like I win.”

Sentinels: “Did I pass? …Oh. Hm. Too bright?”

Sylas: “The future will be bright. I just wish you could see it.”

——

Joke: “What’s a double rainbow? Ah, well… give me a minute, um…”

(Second time.)

“Well, a "double rainbow" is a phenomenon of optics that displays a spectrum of light due to the sun shining on droplets of moisture in the atmosphere. Does that explain it?”

(Third time in quick succession.)

“I’m not saying it again. Sorry.”

[kaelor0409]

So I've been watching @ohnoitstbskyen's play through of The Mageseeker, and been having a great time. The commentary is entertaining and insightful, as you'd probably expect if you're familiar with his content, and some of his comments got me thinking about a few things myself.

I've been on the fence about Mageseeker, since the whole point of the game seems to be to neatly wrap up the Mage Revolution plot that has been Demacia's ongoing arc for literally years now. I was on the fence about the Mage Revolution plot anyway, since it feels very much like the writers asked "how can we make our Generic Good Guy Fantasy Kingdom more nuanced and edgy", and the answer they came up with is "make them White Mana from Magic: The Gathering".

Still, TBSkyen's analysis in the videos below convinced me that there were interesting stories to tell with that premise, even if some of the writers weren't really handling it with the care it deserved.

Not having played the game, the concept of The Mageseeker felt like a hasty attempt by Riot to sweep a poorly thought out plotline under the rug so they could move on to other things. Who would have guessed that a "good" faction herding innocent people (including children) into concentration camps would be controversial?

Having watched a good chunk of the playthrough (and skipped to the end to get the final analysis), I can say that my fears were...somewhat unfounded? The game does mostly wrap up the plots around the Mageseekers and mostly puts a lid on the Mage Rebellion, but admits this is not a "clean" resolution and that the struggle will continue.

The real reason I've come around on The Mageseeker, however, is because I think it moves Demacia into a more narratively interesting place. "Outwardly good faction is secretly xenophobia, dogmatic, and committing a genocide" has honestly been done to death these days. What hasn't been done is "good faction realized 'whoops, we "accidentally" did a genocide', now what?". This is honestly pretty relatable, because if you live in Europe or anywhere Europe colonized, your national history probably includes some genocide.

So let's talk about Javan and Garen.

Jarvan ordered a genocide by knowingly signing an execution order for hundreds, potentially thousands of helpless mages (including children). It doesn't matter that he was "reluctant", it doesn't matter that he had to be talked into it, he willingly gave the order to exterminate an entire ethnic group ("magic" is technically not an ethnicity, but let's not split hairs here). Also his "preferred" alternative to executing them was to keep them locked up forever (which, yes, is still technically genocide), so even if you entirely blame the Mageseekers for the execution order he's still at fault.

Garen remained a loyal soldier even after Jarvan gave the order to commit genocide. He did initially object, but his objections were that his sister and friend might also get executed, not that the order itself was morally wrong. Even afterward, he only went outside of his role as Demacia's dutiful soldier to try and save his sister Lux. Only Lux, not any of the helpless mages she was sheltering, and when she asks him to join her in defending these defenseless people, Garen refuses. You could argue that Garen never actually harmed any mages himself (any mages that weren't trying to kill him first, anyway), but he certainly helped and when given the chance to flip to the oppressed side, he turned it down. At the end of the day, Garen was "just following orders", and we all know how much water that excuse holds.

So you have two "good" characters who very clearly did something monstrous. You also can't have them stop being "good" characters, because Riot sure as hell isn't going to go through all the effort to rebrand them at this point. So what do you do?

To be continued...

[cross-d-a]

WIP TAG GAME

Rules: post the names of all the files in your WIP folder, regardless of how non-descriptive or ridiculous. send me an ask with the title that most intrigues you and i’ll post a little snippet of it or tell you something about it! and then tag as many people as you have WIPs.

AAHH!! @bookjoyworm thank you so much for tagging me!!! I was really intrigued by your titles!!! ♪(๑ᴖ◡ᴖ๑)♪

I.....have a lot of WIPs. So, uh- they’re all under the cut (>//A//<;) I’m discounting all the old ones I know I’ll never get back to! 

(ヾ;￣▽￣)ヾ

(Fulfilled asks and ao3 published fics are linked!)

DMBJ:

A Ning & Jiang Zisuan & Liu Sang fam

ChuChu kicks Heihua in the ASS (GET IT BOYS!)

Guardian Crossover

HaoHua are Soft Idiots

Hei Xiazi/Chuchu/Xiao Hua/Xiu Xiu

High Jr dmbj rewrite

iron THREESOME adopt Li Cu

iron threesome pt.2 Li Cu the Cockblocker

iron threesome pt.3 Li Cu makes a FRIEND (aka SUPERPOWERED BABY)

iron triangle transmigrators

Jia Kezi & Li Cu

Jia Kezi and Wu Xie

Jia Kezi amnesia Guardian crossover

Jia Kezi timeloop

Jiang Zisuan SNEAKY BB

Li Cu & Bai Haotian

Li Cu in reboot

Li Cu travels back - poly

Li Cu time travel series (Wu Xie is EMBARRASSING)

Liang Wan centric

Liang Wan is BROS with Xiao Ge

Liu Sang fam

Liu Sang IRON PYRAMID 

Liu Sang timeloop

Modern Princess Mute

Pan Zi loves his son Wu Xie

star wars crossover

Wu Xie adopts Xiao Bai and Li Cu

Wu Xie Poly fic

Wu Xie takes Xiao Ge’s place :(

WU XIE timetravels!! to Mystic Nine!

MDZS:

guardian crossover.2 reborn in mdzs

guardian crossover

jiang cheng finds baoshan sanren

jin ling reborn

Jingyao

Lan Jingyi reborn

Lan Yuan reborn

Lotus Pier training

Meng Yao and Mo Xuanyu

meng yao hanahaki

Mo Xuanyu bookstore au

modern!huaisang

Nie Huaisang death death death

Nie Huaisang hanahaki

ouyang zizhen reborn

rogue cultivator jiang cheng raises jin ling

SW Crossover

Yanli timetravels

GUARDIAN:

and i’d die for you (again and again and again)

Feral!Shen Wei & Zhao Yunlan’s ass Suffers

Mama Zhao is brought back to life!!!

Shen Wei has friends

that one Sakura fic

the ABO fic

The one where Da Qing and Zhao Yunlan are married

the possessive panties one

unconventional timeloop

utter filth

Ye Zun has amnesia take TWO

Ye Zun has amnesia!

Yunlan is a selkie

Zhao Yunlan Amnesia fic!

Zhao Yunlan makes a deal with the hallows (chronic pain TIMETRAVEL)

STAR WARS: 

(broken into folders haha)

A Brief Snapshot:

Oldman Bruck

Ahsoka:

Twin Blades

All Our Yesterdays series

All Our Yesterdays (hurt more than i can say)

Blind!Xanatos:

Part.One

Part.Two

Feral Lives AU:

these ruined hands of mine (they seek out you, always you)

Jedha:

Chirrut Revisited

Chirrut

Jedi and Their Clones:

Bant’s Battalion

Hurricane Company

Feemor’s Fleet

Garen

Qui-Gon

Xanatos

King Maul:

Part.1

Oneshots:

Agricorps Obi + Clones

Bodhi and Leia become Besties

Bruck survives and gets sent to Clone Wars

DinLukeEzra!Au

Five People Shmi Skywalker Helped and One Person Who Helped Her

Gernal Shmi ver.2

General Shmi

Hairmaster Obi-Wan Kenobi

Hanahaki

Jedi as slaves

Kilindi Matako Lives

Little Gods

Manakin

Maul the Hot Single Dad

Maul&Ahsoka&Rex BROT3

my jedi (he did it to himself)

Never Goes the Way You Planned

O’ Death

Obligatory ABO Fic

Old Loves Not Forgotten

Poebi

rey is shmi

Sense8 au

Temple Guard

The First Apprentice

The Hunt

Unexpected Affection

why am i doing this

Xanatos becomes Obi-Wan’s Master

XanObi

Zuko fucks shits up

S Fics:

Lukin

Obisoka timetravel

sand and stardust:

Part Two.hurricane on the edge of oblivion (with nowhere to go)

Shmi the Marvel Mom:

Ironwalker

Spidey’s a Nerd:

Star Wars is for Nerds (and Luckily Spidey is one of the nerdiest of them all)

Star Trek Crossovers:

Bones

ExplorCorps

Una as a Jedi

Suns’ Worth:

Kaf and Quiet Nights Pt.2

Scarred Lekku Pt.3

Twin Suns:

One of Many

STAR TREK:

Mirror!verse

5 Times Leonard McCoy Allowed Himself to be a Father Despite the Empire (and the one time it made him too damn vulnerable)

How each of the bridge crew found out McCoy was a father 

No Matter How Sweet the Salt:

Beg.

Tony Stark doesn’t know what to do with himself

At least he’s got JARVIS

MARVEL:

Trans!Thor:

Part 2.Tony

Part 3.Stormbreaker

Oneshots:

Agent Winter

Clint

God!Tony

Gwen and Harry come back

Immortal!Tony

immortals!miles

Marvel crossover- Billy lives

Miles gets stuck in the MCU

Nat gets a family

Peter and the bois

Sarah Rogers time travels

that place you were dreaming of

The First Spider-Man

The Fives Moments it Took for Tony and Scott to Admit They Were Best Friends (and the first time they ever did)

The Split

Tony and the Humvee

What if...Aaron answered

STRANGER THINGS:

wolves and shit:

Vagabonds

Oneshots:

Karen Wheeler

Steve & Barb buddy fic

HARRY POTTER:

haru bday fic

NARUTO:

Sakura is Gaara’s Twin Sister

Village Hidden in the Stars

So I....have a lot of fic. As everyone does, haha. I just have too many ideas and a short attention span, unfortunately!!

UUHH I think I’m tagging some ppl who have already been tagged!! So just ignore this if you have! Also, this is no pressure tagging :) You don’t have to continue the chain and you DEF don’t have to send an ask with a title! I just thought you guys might find this fun to do for yourself!ヾ(*´∀｀*)ﾉ

@vishcount @jockvillagersonly @s1utspeare @humanlighthouse @thewindsofsong @undyingsunshine and anyone else who sees this and wants to give it a go~! 

｡ﾟ✶ฺ.ヽ(*´∀`*)ﾉ.✶ฺﾟ｡

[polichba-archived]

 I keep thinking about how genuinely bad sylas is as a character because riot doesn’t know how to write morally gray opressed people, like they always have to make them extremists or shit like that instead of. Actually writing them as morally gray.

 Like I think it could’ve been THAT easy to make Sylas actually matter and still be somewhat likeable - say what if Sylas wasn’t an extremist and he actually had plans to overthrow Demacia without like. kidnapping and killing innocents because that was dumb. What if he didn’t like Lux because she’s a Crownguard but they STILL decided to team up so they could actually save mages and shit. Like instead of them doing absolutely nothing you could have Lux go around and research or something. Sylas is still going to get executed except instead of just killing random people what if he uses Lux’s magic just to scare people away and have Lux go save him. What if Garen tried to stop Lux there but he can’t because she’s his sister and that strikes some drama between Garen and Jarvan. There’s still chaos because they used powerful magic like that in broad daylight and they still free others from the prisons and ACTUALLY run away together. Like Sylas still can be morally gray if he demands to do the best choice that could still do things like shock or hurt people without mass murdering a whole city centre. The king still dies and has his death blamed on the execution event. 

 Boom both of them go to Freljord Boom both of them get Freljord skins. Now you can have the fanboys and one tricks match skins or buy BOTH here’s your price for like a month. It’s not useless to the lore either because they’re actually trying to change things in Demacia. The battle from the Warriors cinematic will probably go away but they could have like scenes of Lux and Garen doing the same acts in different places like they’re echoing each other. Or even better give the short to other champions that haven’t been in a cinematic before. 

 Sorry for the essay but I am.. REALLY salty about how they just threw away a useless plot line that did NOTHING to change the lore except “Well demacia hates mages even MORE now”. Anyways ban Sylas every game

[theexemplarofdemacia]

Jarvan’s thoughts on everyone in Demacia

Garen

Jarvan’s oldest friend. Jarvan knows a lot of Garen’s personal fears and worries and, most importantly, his denials. Garen is a staunch supporter of the old traditions, and, while he respects Jarvan and knows that he only wants the best for Demacia, he disagrees with many of Jarvan’s ideas. Jarvan fears that this may one day bring the two of them into conflict with one another.

Lux

Garen’s, and, by extension, Jarvan’s little sister. Jarvan knows that Lux can take care of herself, and has long since figured out that Lux is a mage, but woe betide anyone who successfully hurts her. Lux is aware that Jarvan pretty much knows her secret, but both are too polite to talk about it with one another. Lux hopes that Jarvan will be elected the next king, and Jarvan is glad of her support.

Vayne

Jarvan does not care for Vayne. More to the point, he feels sorry for her. Shauna Vayne is stuck in a never ending moment unable, and unwilling, to move on. After the death of her parents Vayne has become a barely stable wreck of a human, and, the wrong kind of stimulus Jarvan knows, can turn her to be just as deadly as the monster she hunts.

Fiora

Jarvan and the noblewoman are quick to exchange snide remarks at one another, with sincerity and severity varying from barb to barb, but they never stray into the possibility of duels. Fiora is someone who Jarvan respects, she’s had a rough lot in recent years and has only flourished under it. His biggest problem with her, though, is that she is short sighted. Fiora is concerned, mostly, with her personal and family honor and rarely, if ever, indulges in life outside of that.

Quinn

Quinn has shown time and time again what Jarvan has been saying for years. Just because someone is not noble, does not mean that they cannot be extraordinary. Jarvan has spoken with the scout several times and she is someone he respects greatly, even if her companion, Valor, is too sassy than any bird has any right to be.

Xin Zhao

Xin is a mentor figure, almost everything Jarvan ever learned about fighting he learned from Xin. Xin does not care much for politics, Demacian or otherwise, and is staunchly loyal to the Lightshield house. When Jarvan is confused or stumped on something, Jarvan’s first inclination is to go to Xin for advice. He trusts Xin with his life.

Sona

Sona is a puzzle to Jarvan. He knows that there is more to her than she admits, and believes that rumors of her having magic have merit, but those are just pieces of it. He knows some of her personal history, how she was an Ionian orphan, gifted with the natural ability to play a wholly unique instrument, but some things just aren’t adding up. It’s a casual mystery for him to solve on the side, though, and not one that presses his mind.

Shyvana

Jarvan is the only person, in Demacia, who is privy to Shyvana being a Dragon. The two are loyal friends and carry a mutual respect for one another, and the trust that is born of risking their lives together. While she is not as close to him as Garen is, in some ways the two can talk about more together than he can with his best friend. While many are wary of her, the unshakable faith that Jarvan has shown to Shyvana in public has made many discard most of their doubts.

Galio

The Guardian of Demacia, still mostly a big hunk of rock unless magical warfare is involved.

[themindsalchemy]

Garen - League of Legends

[ESTJ 1w9 so/sp]

"This kingdom, and its people, have given me everything. What kind of man would I be if I gave any less in return?" 

Functional Axis: 

Te/Fi: Garen runs the Dauntless Vanguard in an unorthodox way, despite the incredulity of others, because he believes it to be strategically superior--and given the great respect others hold for him as a commander, he’s likely right. He has a keen awareness of the strengths and weaknesses of those under him, and is sure both to take their advice when they’re speaking in their expertise (Quinn when speaking about the best travel routes, and Merrick when talking about the conditions of a river they travel on), and to reorganize or sideline people when he feels their talents would be best suited elsewhere (moving Merrick to the rudder of the boat while they travel, and ordering Eben Hess, a notoriously obnoxious sub-commander, to stay behind when the Vanguard must dine with nobility).. He is able to make quick tactical judgements in battle which prevent his army from being trapped inside an enemy fortress, then bridge. Further, Quinn’s decision to go against Garen’s initial judgement that Quinn should escape as soon as possible nearly costs the Dauntless Vanguard their lives. For all his skill at making logical considerations, however, Garen rarely tries to evaluate the right or wrong of something on his own--when he learns, for sure, that his sister Lux is a magic user, he simply refuses to think about it rather than re-evaluate his (and Demacia’s) beliefs on mages. When he does start to think about the plight of Demacia’s border states, it shakes him deeply and he isn’t fully satisfied with any answer. He has a great reverence for ideas of honor, choosing not to attack a witch on a solo mission until after she drained more of his memories than they agreed, all because he was in her home, and reviling an enemy commander he had previously held respect for because of a betrayal.

Si/Ne: During his mission in Nockmirch, Garen often applies his military knowledge and family traditions to situations, correctly noticing that a bridge built between Nockmirch and Rijenland seems designed with military purposes in mind, and deducing that his great-uncle is an imposter when he fails to repeat their family’s motto back to Garen. He knows the names not just of those under his command, but those under their command as well, showing an incredible memory for details. However, Garen often struggles with understanding the importance of information beyond his direct interests, having been a poor student when he was younger in all subjects that didn’t have to do with the military, and simply ignoring all of the political discussion going on before his debrief to his aunt. He initially views his mission in Nockmirch as a waste of time, because to him it’s more important to avenge his king. However, when he starts to realize that there’s more to the situation in Nockmirch than simple betrayal, Garen does ultimately seek out an outside opinion on what to do, and breaks with Nockmirch’s ruling traditions to appoint the Lord of Nockmirch’s daughter to the throne. He’s able to connect instantly with a soldier from Nockmirch (who later turns out to be Noxian), through their shared experiences as soldiers having to wait on other nobility.

Enneagram: 1w9 so/sp

Garen holds himself and those in his command to high standards, drilling them even when tired because in his view, they need to be prepared even for adverse conditions, and is inwardly critical of the nobles he meets who indulge in luxury and haven’t seemed to have faced combat--visibly annoyed at the prospect of joining them for a feast. He blames himself for the death of his king, as well as the subsequent loss of his men to the rogue mages Sylas has brought together, and when asked about the latter by his aunt, he can only say that it was his fault for underestimating them and that he’s doing his best to bring their shields home. He tries to block out all doubts or potential conflicts in his morality with sheer willpower, even repressing his own memories of Lux’s magic for a long time, because he cannot allow himself to be “distracted” from his immediate duties. He rarely voices his critical thoughts unless the person is particularly heinous, or he is repeatedly baited into doing so.

[illumenas]

            Luxanna Crownguard’s current family; greyed-out boxes indicate that the family member is deceased. The Crownguards are an extremely old family dating back generation upon generation, but for the sake of time and my sanity, I’ve only gone back so far as Lux’s great-grandfather Fossian Crownguard. Below are some brief descriptions of key members. 

            Fossian Crownguard. Status: Deceased, at age fifty-seven, slaying a nameless being of dark magic and inconceivable evil; we know it as Nocturne. The demon, over time, did not stay dead, but Fossian certainly did. The town of Fossbarrow on the banks of Serpentrion was named after him, and there his tomb is kept at the foot of a cliff face, a marble slab depicting his legendary triumph against the nightmarish entity. His legacy was lived on by his wife Elysia Crownguard, maiden name Brackwell, and his son, Finian Crownguard.

            Finian Crownguard. Status: Alive, aged eighty-six. Faithfully served as King Jarvan II’s personal Crownguard for years until his retirement. Had two children with his wife Giselle, maiden name Fairwynd: Pieter Crownguard, and Rhodrick Crownguard.

            Lyra Albright. Status: Deceased, at age seventy-eight. Mother to Ulyssa and Lilia Albright. Passed away when Lux was eighteen years of age to illness. She was Lux’s favourite grandmother. Lux was granted a portion of Lyra’s belongings upon her passing, and keeps them inside an oak chest in her room back at High Silvermere.

            Thaniel Fontaine. Status: Alive, aged forty-eight. Head of House Fontaine, a wealthy protectorate family who maintains a sizeable mining town west of Fossbarrow, known as Norwyck. They, as a result, also own the thriving silver mines nestled in the mountains bordering the town; Thaniel’s marriage to Lilia’s sister Ulyssa is the reason that Lux’s father came to own a stake in said mines. Lux’s favourite cloak pin was wrought from the very same silver. It was a gift for her thirteenth birthday. 

            Rhodrick Crownguard. Status: Deceased, at age thirty-six. Was one of Demacia’s most renowned scouts and personal Crownguard of King Jarvan III up until his death. Luxanna did not know him well, as she was five years old at the time of his passing; though they say he died honourably in battle, it is whispered that his true end was met at the hands of terrible bloodletting magic.

            Adrienne Crownguard. Status: Alive, aged fifty-three. Widow of Rhodrick Crownguard; has chosen not to take another husband. Has a close and loving relationship with Luxanna’s family. Vocal about her hatred for magic users. 

            Lilia & Pieter Crownguard. Status: Alive, aged forty-six and fifty-seven respectively. Mother and father to Luxanna and Garen Crownguard. Following Rhodrick’s passing, Pieter took up his responsibilities, and now serves as King Jarvan III’s personal Crownguard, until the time that a new king is chosen and his son Garen takes up the mantle. Lilia maintains the estate and their business in Pieter’s absence back at High Silvermere. 

            Gryffin & Jakob Crownguard. Status: Alive, both aged twenty-eight. Lux’s cousins, twin brothers born to Adrienne and Rhodrick Crownguard. Nine years of age upon their father’s passing. Currently serving in the king’s army. Has a close relationship with Luxanna’s family; the kids all used to play together when they were children, though as Lux was the youngest ( and the only girl ) she often found herself at the mercy of much teasing and trickery from Garen and the twins.

            Bronwyn Fontaine. Status: Alive, aged sixteen. Lux’s cousin, only current daughter of Ulyssa and Thaniel Fontaine. Has somewhat of a sickly disposition and cannot stand to exert herself for long periods of time, though she has displayed incredible wit and is currently going through the motions of her education. Lux doesn’t get to visit her or her family terribly often these days, but they share an awful lot of similarities, and when they do visit it’s always a joy. Bronwyn feels something like a younger sister that Lux never had. 

[miighted]

                The emotional capacity for the Might of Demacia is largely irrelevant and non-existent, originally due to his upbringing, but later reinforced heavily and painfully by the events of his life. Garen, as a child, was met with mounting expectations from his family. He would inherit his father’s position as head of the Crownguard family, as well as become the next King’s Crownguard. Their family, too, is one of a long history and their consistency in the defending of their kings means their title and position in society is very important and very prestigious. It is a history greater than himself, and Garen would need to be prepared to inherit it. People would be looking to him in their time of need to protect them and their King, he would need to learn what this weight meant to him. He would need to learn to be Atlas before he could learn anything else.

                This reality of what he was born into, coupled with being a young trans boy, made his childhood rough and his relationship with his parents callous. His uncle was the one who took the reins into his hands in regards to letting Garen be the young boy he was, but in turn, it took a lot of political reconstruction for his parents. The lengths they went to amend his birth records as well as to reintroduce him as their son was one that was met with skeptical eyes from the elders of the Crownguard family and council. He would already need to prepare for the weight he would carry as an adult, and this made things more difficult.

                Garen, as a young child, was thankful for even being given the chance to be the boy he knew he was, and wanted to prove to his parents that the work it took to change everything had been worth it. Therefore, he did not question how they chose to raise him, he simply abided and strived to meet their expectations of him. His mother stopped holding his hands when he was a child, and she did not kiss his head when sending him to bed, and he did not ask her to. He knew why, and he accepted the reality of it. 

                His father, however, was almost cruel to a degree. He began training Garen a year before he properly began his military training, and he was rough and unkind. He would not help his son to his feet, and if the boy cried, he would only be told to raise his chin and be strong. He would not have the luxury to weep for himself when he was grown; he would become something greater than himself. There was also the notion that, if he wanted to be a boy, then he needed to prove he was one. He needed to be strong, he needed be tough, he needed to be wise. Not only must he meet the expectations of being a Crownguard, but he must also meet those of simply being a man. There is no room for imperfection.

                That is how Garen grew into the man he became as a young adult, with unwavering resolve and an expression that was unchanging. He was groomed to meet his fate.

                The three interpersonal relationships he did actually develop ( excluding his uncle ) were with his sister Luxanna, Taric, and Jarvan. Due to how he was raised and taught, as well as the lack of a deep emotional bond with either parent, the people Garen actually connected with were extremely few. However, this made the few relationships he did have very important to him, and led him to be all the more devoted. This, also, makes loss very hard for him because of how few interpersonal connections he makes, and how deep they few he has become.

                The losses that he felt with Jarvan and Taric, although not permanent, were both equally traumatizing to how Garen interacts with his emotions as well as how he interacts with other people. To sentence his own best friend to what he believes to be is the man’s impending death is a guilt he carries and buries into his chest, made him ache and rot from the inside out. Taric’s presence as his friend gave him windows into leisure he never pursued on his own, and an opportunity to express who he was. To lose him, to feel as though he was condemning the same man, marred his willingness to bond with other people. He lost his best friend, and despite how angry he felt with what Taric had done, he could not shake the responsibility he felt in killing the same man. 

                Taric’s banishment likely came in his early to mid twenties, and left him with only his sister and Jarvan as people he felt close with. His devotion to Jarvan was emphasized, and his military career began to advance further, wholly consuming him ( all of his time became devoted to the military and his responsibility as Crownguard now that Taric was also not present to act as a medium by pulling him away to leisure activities ). When Garen believed Jarvan was captured by the Noxians and later also believed him to die, Garen was emotionally ruined. In the canon lore it says he was inconsolable for days, which is true. Garen isolated himself for two in order to mourn, and since then he emotionally barred himself from other people with many, many walls, and like Taric’s banishment, he blamed himself. The loss of Jarvan, alongside Taric, and in his early youth the loss of his uncle has destroyed Garen’s ability to bond with people. The few he has grown close to, he has also lost in some way. Even though Jarvan returned alive, Garen was shaken to his core, and even though he later reunites with Taric, his emotional capacity has been forever stunted.

                Garen’s habit of showing little emotion is born of the many mental walls and armor he has raised around himself. Having lost the few people he was close with has left him more and more isolated mentally and emotionally, with little to no skill or understanding on how to form relationships because of his upbringing and his commitment to his military career. Garen never did anything for fun, he never learned how to talk with people or to entertain them. He learned how to be a soldier and leader, and that was it.

                The man was raised in order to become something beyond a single person, to fulfill a destiny, and in becoming a paragon of a nation he lacks personhood. He’s lonely, incredibly so, and he doesn’t even want otherwise because he does not know what anything else is like.

[rosywrites]

Ambrosia

Title: Reunited Chapter: Ambrosia By: ArisuChanSenpai (Visit my blog for AO3 link!) Fandom: League of Legends Ship: Jhin x Sona

Poppies, roses, daisies, sunflowers, and flowers of different kinds colored the front and inside of a shop among the lines of other stores and cafes in the street. It was hard to miss the burst of bright colors and arrangements, even from far away. A sign read “Buvelle Blossoms” on top in beautiful, handpainted cursive with a golden flower painted around the letters.

A woman walked out to the front, a watering can in hand, and watered the flowers and herbs in the front. The drops of water on the flower petals and leaves glistened in the sunlight as the stream of water passed by them. She patted the dirt in some pots to determine if a plant didn’t need any more water.

“Sona, dear, can you help me with a floral arrangement please?” a voice called out from inside.

Sona turned to walk inside to help her mother. “What event is it for?” she signed.

“According to this… lengthy email,” Lestara paused to give Sona her phone, “it seems this young man didn’t do so well with his lover. He even paid in advance for this bouquet to make his apology as clear as possible.”

Scrolling through the message, Sona smiled in sympathy at the sender’s name.

Garen Crownguard, the son of a prestigious family that supported a political family, the Lightshields, as bodyguards. Clearly in a relationship with the head of another political family, Katarina du Couteu. Very clear to almost everyone in town. It was a surprise his parents or the Lightshields hadn’t noticed yet, except his younger sister. His love and care for her was apparent in his email, going so far as to apologize and thank them for their trouble in making his bouquet.

She placed Lestara’s phone back on the table. “Do we have any purple hyacinths?”

Lestara tapped her nails against the wooden table in thought. “I believe we’re running out. I’ll have to order more after this, since I get the feeling we might use what we have left.” She chuckled to herself as she gathered roses of red and dark pink. “Will you get the hyacinths for me? And any other flowers you think might be necessary for this order.”

Sona walked through the aisles of flowers, whispering flower names under her breath. She carefully took out the purple hyacinths from their glass vase and shook the excess water off their stems. She then looked around her for other flowers that she can use for this bouquet. Her eyes spotted tulips that were in full bloom. Plucking a few red and many white ones, she returned to her mother and laid them on the table.

“Tulips?”

“I think they would go well with his message and how much he loves her,” Sona replied.

“Hopefully it comes across to her then.” The two laughed as they began arranging the flowers into a colorful bouquet with the red roses and tulips forming a heart among the yellow tulips and placing the hyacinths inside the heart. “Uh-oh, I think we’re running out of ribbons.”

“I think we still have one more roll in the back. I’ll go get it.” Sona hurried into the back room, her twintails bouncing with her steps.

“Take your time, dear! I’ll just hold them with a rubber band for now!” While Lestara was wrapping the bouquet in pink paper, she heard a shy knock on their open glass door and looked up. “Come in, dear. We’re just about to finish up.”

A shy-looking young man walked in with a book in his hand. “Good afternoon, Miss Buvelle. How are you?”

“Fixing up a bouquet for the lovely bodyguard who needs to apologize to his lover.” They exchanged knowing looks and chuckled. “Sona should be coming out soon, Jhin. She’s just getting me another roll of ribbons to wrap this up.”

“I wouldn’t mind if you helped me too, Miss Buvelle. I am here to buy more flowers for my next piece, anyways.”

The first half was a lie, and Lestara knew it. “Nonsense. Besides, Sona knows more about flowers than I do. You’re better off getting her help.”

Jhin fell silent in embarrassment. Even after so long, he couldn't hide his heart from Miss Buvelle. Was it the power of motherhood, he wondered. He took a moment to collect himself before looking around the shop.

“Mother, I found the ribbon,” a robotic, female voice sounded from the back. Sona walked out with a roll of red ribbons with white hearts on it and her phone, which was reading out her text. “It was in the bottom of the box, so we’ll have to order more soon.” She paused when she saw Jhin looking at red roses and sketching them in his book. Her eyes darted to Lestara, who was trying to suppress a grin behind her happy smile. Sona playfully nudged her mother in the arm before approaching Jhin.

“Welcome back, Jhin,” she signed.

“Hello, Sona,” he greeted back while signing ‘hello’. “How are you?”

“Good! How is your sign language?”

He shrugged bashfully. “I’m definitely getting better. Not the best, but I'm getting there.”

Sona’s eyes smiled as she gave him two thumbs-up. She then took out her phone to type a message into it. “What kind of flowers are you looking for today? Did you bring a photo of what you made last time?”

“Yes, I did! Hold on.” Jhin tapped an app and handed his phone to her. “I decided to name it “Golden Bells”, because the yellow daisies scattered around reminded me of ripples of sound that would come from a bell.” He watched her eyes widen with fascination and smiled. “I’ve already thought of a theme for my next piece, but I wasn’t sure what kind of flowers would go well with it.”

Handing his phone back, Sona started typing into her phone again. “What’s the theme?”

“Butterflies. I had this vision of a snowy day, and the crystallization of someone’s breath looked like butterflies. White and blue color scheme, to be more specific.” He opened his sketchbook to show Sona a few thumbnails. “Butterflies are usually associated with spring, but I thought it would also give a sense of irony to the idea.”

“I like it! It sounds nice.” She typed into her phone again. “Did you have a certain meaning in mind? It might be easier to narrow down your selection of white and blue flowers that way.”

Jhin sighed. “Sadly, no. I was thinking of using white roses, but they have a different meaning in our culture, something I’d like to avoid for this piece. I wouldn’t want to put the meaning of death in something as beautiful as crystal and snowflakes.” He pursed his lips as he turned to Sona, who was listening intently with a patient smile. “I seem to have rambled again…”

She shook her head reassuringly. “It’s okay.” She guided him to a row of white flowers. She signed “no” for the flowers that would be used in funerals or with negative meanings to narrow down the choices for him. From the remaining selections, Jhin had to choose from camellias, daffodils, daisies, orchids, and carnations.

“What would you say would be the closest meaning of each flower in relation to my piece? I understand that flowers have multiple meanings, given the context.”

A pause. “Camellia, you’re adorable. Daffodil, respect or unrequited love or “you’re the only one”. Daisies, innocence or secrecy. Orchids, beauty and elegance. Carnation, perfect love.”

He took this time to write down the notes. “Can we go see the blue flowers? This may take some time for me to think about what may be suitable for the meaning of my piece.” He followed Sona’s lead to a shelf of beautiful blue and indigo flowers. “Is there perhaps anything that means something like ‘unwavering’ or, ehm, ‘hope’, I suppose?”

Sona scanned the blue flowers and hovered her hand over a blue hyacinth and a blue iris. “This is the closest to what you’re looking for. The blue hyacinth means ‘constancy’, while the blue iris means ‘hope and faith’. Anything else?”

“No, these should do perfectly. Let’s see…” He looked through the shades of blue as if he was looking for something else. His eyes lit up as he spotted small flowers of baby blue. “Ah, there they are.” He gently took out a handful of forget-me-nots. “I think I will take these for today. I must press them before I use them on the canvas.”

Her eyes lingered on the forget-me-nots, her hand slightly tightening around her phone. “What are they for?” she signed.

Jhin smiled. “Believe it or not, it will also be used in my next piece. But I can’t give away anything more than that.” He held the flowers closer to him. “It will be featured in my upcoming gallery, once I finish it. Or, at least I hope it will be featured in it.” He looked up at Sona with hopeful eyes. “I was wondering if you and your mother would like to come see the grand opening. Free tickets, of course.”

She couldn’t do anything other than nod. She tried to keep a happy smile as she followed Jhin to the counter. After ringing up his purchase, she tugged at his sleeve to catch his attention. Her text read, “Come back soon?” without her text-to-speech function.

“Of course. I may even come back tomorrow. I’ll see you.” He gave her hand a gentle pat and let it linger before he left their flower shop.

Lestara was secretly watching from the back, shaking her head at how oblivious the two were to each other’s longing touches. “I’m starting to wonder—” She stopped. “Sona, dear, are you alright?”

Sona whipped around with worry darkening her face. “Mother, I think he has someone he likes. He bought forget-me-nots. Forget-me-nots!”

Oh, here we go. Lestara blinked, not having expected this reaction. “Don’t they represent reminiscing memories?”

“They also represent true love. I don’t, I really, am I wrong?” she signed in a panic. “He must like someone else if he bought forget-me-nots for his next piece… He didn’t even tell me more about it.”

“Sona, dear…”

“I was hoping… he might like me back.” Her head and shoulders drooped in dejection. “Maybe I was wrong.”

“Have you perhaps given it thought that he liked how they looked? Or how small they were to use on a canvas?”

“It’s possible…”

Lestara smiled sympathetically and hugged her daughter tightly. “Oh, Sona…” She patted her back as she leaned her chin on Sona’s hair. “Don’t you think that he might like you back?” Sona bit her lower lip and sighed through her nose. “I don’t think an uninterested person would let their touch linger like that, honey. Nor would they pat your hand before they leave. Or invite you to their upcoming gallery for free.”

“Now you’re teasing me.”

“Oh no, I’m just stating facts.” She released Sona and pecked her forehead. “You’re still young, Sona. You have plenty of time to keep trying.”

“I’m more weirded out that you’re so supportive of… this.” She gestured to her heart and the outside, referring to Jhin.

“Ah, young love. I just want to see you live a good and happy life, Sona. You’ve already graduated with a master’s degree in music. Now, you’re in love.” She paused as she seemed to have remembered something. “Actually, I believe I may have seen you fall in love with him while you were still studying. He graduated that year when you both met, if I recall correctly.”

Sona chose to ignore the last two comments. She sometimes hated how perceptive her mother was. “Didn’t you used to tell me love wasn’t the answer to a happy life?”

“It’s still not,” she immediately answered. “If it was, I would have had a husband by now. But I don’t carry much interest in that.” She chuckled at Sona rolling her eyes at her response. “But my point is that you seem happy to be in love with Jhin. If he causes you heartbreak though, I am kicking him out of the store.”

“So, you mean if he tells me that he likes someone else?”

“Exactly.”

“Mother!”

Lestara giggled mischievously as she pat Sona’s head. “Just a joke, dear. But really, I think you’ll be just fine.”

Sona sighed again. “If you say so.” She turned back to the counter, where the apology bouquet sat on top of it. “Is there anything else we could do for that bouquet?”

“All we can do is wait. He’ll be picking it up within an hour or so, if the time on his email is still correct.” Lestara tapped the email again to find the time. “Yes, he should be coming soon.” She chuckled at the email again. “Garen Crownguard. I never thought I’d live to see the day that boy breaks his usual uptight personality. To think a woman, his lover no less, would bring out a whole new side out of him.”

“Funny what love can do to people.”

“Like you?”

Sona mocked anger and nudged her mother’s shoulder. “Ha ha.”

  Orchestral covers played through Sona’s headphones as she dusted the front of the shop before taking the pots of flowers out. She stepped in sync with the music with her broom in hand, almost dancing with it like it was another person. Her steps eventually became more elaborate and turned into a dance of her own. But then she turned around.

And there was Jhin, watching in fascinated amusement with a bag slung around his shoulder.

A soft whining noise came from Sona’s throat as she crouched behind the buckets of flowers in shame. Her ears turned bright red, steam threatening to burst out as she dug her face into her skirt. There were times when she was glad she was mute. This was one of them. If she had a voice, she would have woken up the entire town with her scream.

Jhin was hiding a smile behind his hand, a light blush on his cheeks. “I apologize. I tried to let you know I was here, but you didn’t seem to hear me.” Sona started signing rapidly while still hiding her face, presumably signing every curse she knew and can think of on the top of her head. “I promise I won’t laugh. I thought it was endearing.”

Sona peeked, her face still red, and looked up at Jhin. “Promise?”

“Promise,” he signed back. He even crossed his heart.

Hesitant, Sona stood up and dusted her blue skirt. She couldn’t bear to look at Jhin in the eye while she was still blushing beet red.

“It was a lovely dance, Sona. I actually liked it,” Jhin tried to say.

She quickly pulled out her phone and furiously typed something into her phone. “No. No. No. No. I can’t tell you how embarrassed I am that you saw me. I don’t think you understand how mortified I am.”

“Would it help if I said it was… cute?”

Her blush now spread to her fingers as she typed on her phone again. “No, that’s worse, you ass.”

Jhin broke out into laughter. “But it was! You dance wonderfully, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen you dance before.”

“Shhh. Don’t.”

He snorted at how little emotion the speech function spoke in, when Sona must have been wanting to scream at him. “Before you start yelling at me again, I was wondering if you would like to stop by my studio next weekend.” He pointed behind him with his thumb. “It’s a short walk from here, and I wanted to show you some of the works I will be featuring in the gallery.”

Sona’s gaze remained on her screen. “What about your new painting?”

“It should be finished by then. I want to get your opinion on it before I show it to anyone else.”

What if his painting was for another person? Another person he liked? Another person that wasn’t her? Worry plagued her heart, but she refused to let it escape from its cage. She forced a happy smile and nodded. “I would love to see your work in person. I can be there on Saturday evening.”

“Fantastic. I will look forward to your visit.”

“Did you run out of the orchids you bought? We don’t have blue hyacinths at the moment, so you’ll have to wait until this weekend for more.”

“No. I just came to ask you about coming to my studio.”

She couldn’t help but giggle. “All this trouble for me?” she signed as a joke.

Jhin’s expression softened as he watched her laugh. “Why not?” he signed back. He slightly bowed his head to her. “Please give Miss Buvelle my regards. I’ll be heading back to my studio to work on the piece. I’ll see you soon, Sona.” He briskly walked away to hide a blush that he felt was becoming more apparent the longer he stayed.

Sona pressed her cheek against the top of the broom, stuffing her phone into her pocket, as she watched his figure disappear around the corner. She started repeatedly bumped her forehead against the tip of the broom, the memory of Jhin’s smiling eyes from catching her dance flooding back into her memory.

“Sounds like you might have a date on next Saturday,” Lestara said from behind Sona, who jumped and dropped the broom. “Am I wrong?”

“I wouldn’t call it a date. He just invited me to see his works early,” she signed with shaky hands. “It’s not like he meant it any other way.” Right?

Lestara shrugged but with a smug look. “If you say so, dear.” She went back inside without another word. Sona chased after her for answers, not knowing what her mother was thinking behind that smile of hers.

  The doorbell chimed as a woman closed the door shut behind her. There was no one around the flower shop to greet her. Strange. “Miss Lestara? Miss Sona?”

“We’ll be right there! Give us a moment!” Lestara and Sona appeared from the back, carrying a large box full of new plants.

“Oh dear. Let me help.” The woman rushed to the back to catch the corner of the box that threatened to topple over from their hands. They set it on the counter and took a moment to relax. “Glad I came just in time.”

Lestara arched her back to stretch from hunching over for the past few hours. “Our apologies, Miss Soraka. We were sorting new shipments of flowers this entire afternoon.”

Soraka chuckled. “No worries at all. Is that the last box?”

“Luckily, yes. We just need to sort these where they belong, but I think we’re in need of a break.” She gestured Sona to Soraka. “Would you mind helping her, dear? I’m going to get some water.”

Sona nodded and walked over to Soraka’s side. “Something you need today?”

“I’ve been wanting to brighten up my office after my orchids wilted while I was on a trip. Shame I couldn’t salvage them. They were completely shriveled by the time I came back.” She smelled the hibiscus and let out a satisfied smile. “I did some research about lavender recently and found that their scent has a wonderful calming effect. I thought it might be nice to have those for therapy sessions with my patients.”

Her eyes brightened as she looked at the box they carried earlier. “The lavender should be in that box. How many would you like?”

“Hmmm…” Soraka hummed in thought as she scrolled through the photos of her phone. “My office is medium-sized, and I would at least like to smell a bit of lavender whenever I walk in.

Sona tapped her chin. “I would put maybe four to five pots of lavender around the room.” She guided Soraka to the counter and took out a few varieties of lavender, sniffing for the ones with a stronger scent. She isolated a handful of stems and five handfuls of weaker-scented ones.

“Oh, that’s a lovely shade of violet.”

“You always did like that color.” Sona giggled. “Strong scented lavender might not look great, so I’m surrounding them with common ones to brighten the scent, if that makes sense.”

“I’m inclined to agree.” Soraka saved a few pages on taking care of lavender as Sona planted them in small pots. After idly watching people pass by the shop, some looking at the flowers inside, Soraka signed, “So, how are you and that young man doing?”

Sona’s fingers curled in as if they touched fire. Her eyes darted to the side in embarrassment. “Who, who do you mean?”

“You know, that young artist who’s been frequently coming here for a few years now,” Soraka signed, chuckling at Sona’s blush. “Khada Jhin, I believe his name was? I saw an advertisement that he was going to open his gallery soon.”

Her blush spread to her ears. “Does… everyone know about… him?”

“I can’t speak for everyone, but I believe some of the nearby shopkeepers might have an idea.”

Sona’s face contorted in humiliation as she slowly crouched behind the counter. Great. Just great. Not only did Soraka figure it out, but the other shopkeepers might have found out too. Is that why she saw that one barista across the street smile while she was talking to Jhin? Or those two bakers who had a weird look while Sona was excitedly talking about a new composition she made? Oh no. Everything made sense now.

“Did you tease her again, Miss Soraka?” her mother playfully scolded.

“I didn’t think it’d have that much of an effect on her,” Soraka said. She giggled as she looked over the counter. “Miss Sona, no one is judging you. There’s nothing wrong with falling in love with someone.”

“But people know now!” she furiously signed. “I know people know now! I can’t believe this.”

Soraka was about to say something until a knock on the door following the ring of the doorbell caught her attention. “Oh! If it isn’t our local artist.”

Sona sucked in a sharp breath and gripped onto the hem of Lestara’s skirt, desperately shaking her head.

“Good afternoon, Miss Buvelle. Miss Soraka. Is Sona here?”

There was a pause as Lestara and Soraka exchanged glances and then shook their heads. “She stepped out for a stroll. You just missed her.”

Slight disappointment flashed in his eyes but was quickly masked. “Ah, is that so? Perhaps you can help me, Miss Buvelle. I ran out of the white orchids due to an unexpected mistake I made. I was hoping you had more?”

“Of course, dear. They should be near the window.” Lestara walked out from the counter, her voice quiet and low as she spoke with Jhin. They weren’t close enough for Sona to hear what they were talking about, but the sudden change of tone to a surprised “oh!” worried her.

She peeked from the counter to see Lestara chuckling as she pat Jhin’s back. She took a deep breath and stood up with a nervous smile. Jhin noticed her immediately and seemed to brighten up. He went back to conversing with Lestara before approaching the counter.

“Just in time, Sona. I’m glad I caught you before I left.”

“What’s wrong?”

Jhin’s lips parted as his eyes looked up to remember something. His lips pursed in helplessness before signing, “Dinner?” He scratched the back of his head. “I wanted to ask if you would like dinner at a restaurant after I show you some of my work.”

Soraka gasped behind her fingers. “Ooh, you want to take Miss Sona out for dinner, I see,” she sang.

The artist laughed in embarrassment before looking up at Lestara. “If, if you don’t mind me picking her up early, of course, Miss Buvelle. I promise I will bring her back before her curfew, if she has one.”

Lestara joyfully shook her head. “Not at all, dear. Just bring her back safely, and I won’t kick you out of my store.”

“Of course, ma’am.” He looked at Sona, who hadn’t signed a word so far. “Don’t hesitate to let me know if you do not want to. I don’t wish to inconvenience you.”

Sona’s lips opened and closed a few times before she nodded. She held her phone up to him with a text that read, I would love to.

“Fantastic! I’ll come pick you up around sunset, if you’re fine with that?”

She nodded silently, her eyes still wide from surprise.

“How close are you to finishing your final piece, Jhin?”

“Very close. I’ve already painted the base and added the blue flowers. I just need to add in the white petals next once they crystallize.”

“What are the daffodils for?” Soraka asked. “I remember you mentioning something about a winter theme in your last work. I didn’t think you’d add yellow daffodils to this one.”

The paper crinkled in Jhin’s fingers as he brought up a bouquet of golden flowers. “I looked up a few flower meanings before I came here, and I found that daffodils are close to how I feel. The color suits the blue also.” He smiled shyly as he placed the flowers inside his bag. “I shall be taking my leave then. Good-bye.”

They waved him good-bye and turned back to Sona, who was frozen in place. Lestara cleared her throat to gain her attention. Sona blinked rapidly before she returned to reality. “I thought, I thought I was going to die of a heart attack.”

“Seems Miss Sona has a dinner date this weekend,” Soraka teased, watching Sona’s fair skin turn red. “Young love, right?”

Lestara huffed in amusement. “You’re telling me.” She helped Sona plant the rest and packing the pots in bags. “Make sure not to overwater the lavender. I’m sure your patients will love the new flowers, Miss Soraka.”

Soraka smiled as she took the bags into her hands. “I’m sure they would too. Thank you, you two. Enjoy the rest of your day!” She exited the flower shop and went on her way to her office.

After a few minutes of silence, Lestara nudged Sona on the arm. “Look at you. You get a first look at his gallery and a dinner date.”

“And it’s this Saturday, too…” Sona signed, dumbfounded.

“You mean the day after tomorrow,” Lestara stated.

Her lips tightened into a flat line when her hands stopped midair in realization. She checked the date on her phone. It was Thursday.   “It’s the day after tomorrow? Oh my god.” Sona dropped her phone on the counter and covered her face in her hands.

“Nervous?”

“More than nervous! What if I screw it up? What if I accidentally blurt out that I like him?” She pinched the bridge of her nose. “I don’t want to make it awkward between us. I definitely don’t want him to avoid me either.”

Lestara cleared her throat to suppress a chuckle. “Sona, honey, you’re worrying too much. Just let the date happen. Just let whatever happens happen.”

“That’s not easy to do, mother. Especially when you’re in front of someone you like.” Sona sighed and picked her phone back up again. She tapped on the email from Jhin that contained two free tickets for her and her mother to his upcoming gallery. Her eyes then darted to the side. “He bought daffodils.”

“He did.”

Daffodils had different meanings depending on the context. It usually meant a regard for the other, a message for a lover, or… Unrequited love, she thought. Sona sighed again in dejection. There was no way he could have been talking about her, right? If other shopkeepers knew about her affection towards Jhin, he must have known too. Was this meant to be an indirect, but polite way of telling her he can’t reciprocate her feelings?

Lestara clapped her hands to snap Sona out of her thoughts. “Now I know you’re overthinking things.” She smiled and kissed Sona’s head. “I promise you as your mother and a fellow woman that your feelings won’t be taken for granted.” She chuckled when Sona raised a brow in confusion. “You’ll see what I mean.”

  “Mother, is this dress really necessary?” Sona’s phone read. “This seems like overkill.”

“You call this overkill for a dinner date? It’s just a dress, dear.”

Sona was wearing a v-neck blue dress with golden flowers designed into the hem and climbing up to the waistline. She pulled her white cardigan closer to her chest in embarrassment. She typed into her phone. “But this is the dress I wore for my performances.”

Lestara turned Sona around to look at her outfit. She shrugged. “I don’t see anything wrong with wearing this to a dinner date. It becomes a casual-formal dress without the sash and cape you wear anyways.”

“I guess.”

“Jhin should be arriving to the flower shop soon, so you head down first. I’ll be watching from the back.”

Hesitation planted her feet into the wooden stairs that lead upstairs from the flower shop to their home. “Are you sure this is a good idea?”

“More than certain, honey. Now get out there!” Lestara gently helped Sona down the stairs to the back of the shop. “Tell me everything that happens when you get back, okay?”

Sona couldn’t understand why her mother was more excited about this than she was. But she had no time to question her. Jhin was probably waiting in the shop. She nervously stepped out of the door to see Jhin in a fuschia collared shirt and a grey vest on top with black slacks. He was checking his watch before looking up to see Sona by the door tucking in a strand of hair behind her ear.

He gave her a heartwarming smile that made her want to melt. “You look… beautiful,” he signed.

A blush colored her cheeks as her lips curled into a smile against her fingers. “Thank you,” she signed back. “I’m ready to go when you are.”

“Great.” He opened the door of the shop and gestured outside. “After you.” He gave Lestara, who poked her head out to wave him good-bye, a bow of his head before escorting her to his studio. “How was your day today?”

Sona scratched her cheek before answering with her phone, “Good! Garen stopped by today to thank us for the bouquet we made last week for Miss Katarina. He gave us some cooking supplies since he didn’t know what else to give us. His words.”

Jhin chuckled to himself. “I find it amusing to see them try so hard to hide their relationship when everyone knows already. Well, almost everyone. But I admire their effort.” He noticed that Sona was a little more quiet than usual. He slightly bent his back to her level, stepping a little closer to her. “Is something on your mind?”

She did a double-take at Jhin, letting out a breath she was holding in. Quick, think of something. “Sorry. I've never seen your work in person before, so I'm excited to see your final piece too. You finished it, right?”

“I did. The crystallizing of the orchid petals took some time, but I managed to get it finished.” He squeezed the strap of his shoulder bag as he pursed his lips, turning around the corner with Sona following next to him. “Uh, Sona, can I ask you something?”

“What is it?”

“Do you think it strange to draw someone you're inspired by? Someone you've been friends with for a while, but you want to change that?”

This question might have been risky, but Sona couldn't handle the suspense anymore. “Is your Butterflies piece a confession?” she spelled out the last word in letters.

Jhin gazed at her in surprise. “I… yes… was it that obvious?”

She knew it. Sona smiled a little sadly, nodding.

He exhaled, holding his hand to his face. “I suppose you would've figured it out eventually, since the flowers I used had a romantic context to their meaning.” He hummed in thought as he looked at Sona, who seemed to droop like a wilting rose. Something clicked in his head. She didn't realize it yet, did she? “Sona,” he called out to her with the gentlest voice. When Sona refused to look at him, he slipped his hand under hers, surprising her to look at him. “You’ll like what I made. I'm sure you will understand it immediately.”

They stopped in front of a building painted white and maintained cleanly. Jhin guided her upstairs to a door, unlocking it with a key and opening it for her to see. Sona was greeted by canvases and canvases of flowers painted onto them with oils, acrylics, charcoals, and so many other mediums. She breathed out in speechlessness. There were no words to describe how stunning each piece looked up close.

Many flowers were either pressed or fixed to maintain their fresh appearance, but they were beautifully incorporated into each artwork without looking gaudy or like an afterthought.

Jhin watched Sona observe his work with such mesmerization that he wondered how she would react to what he made for his final piece. He idly walked around the room as Sona went through each canvas. “My apologies for the scattered arrangement. I had to move them all to my living room to make the transferring easier for the moving people.”

Oh, so this was his apartment.

This was his apartment.

Sona felt her ears turn hot. She brushed her hair near her head to hide them as she moved onto the canvas hung up on the wall, covered by a beige sheet and lit by a spotlight. She turned to Jhin, who urged her to be the one to reveal the final masterpiece. Sona turned back to the canvas. It was one of the largest canvas among his other work, and she was able to see the flower petals pop from behind the sheet. Her hand slowly grabbed onto the corner of the sheet.

Jhin had held her hand before they arrived, reassuring her that she would like it.

She pulled it off the canvas, wondering what was hidden underneath.

He said that she would understand it immediately.

Her breath caught in her throat as the sheet revealed the artwork behind it. She stepped back in awe, looking at the whole canvas.

It was her. Her hair was colored with pressed forget-me-nots with the blue hyacinths accenting the former’s bright blue. The flowers hid her eyes, but she smiled in the painting, her breath turning into crystallized orchids that looked like butterflies and white wisps of paint. On her ear was a bouquet of daffodils, which protruded out the most from the pressed hyacinths and crystallized orchids. She looked so beautiful.

“What do you think? It was hard to come up with a message that wasn't so straightforward.” He lowered his head with a shy smile. “This is how I wanted to convey my feelings to you before I displayed it in my gallery.”

Sona slowly turned to Jhin in surprise. This had to mean differently. Was this piece… really for her?

Jhin chuckled nervously. “I've been practicing this for the past week, but please bear with me. I'm still not very fast at sign language.” He cleared his throat and brought his hands up. “I fell in love with you a few years ago, when we were friends. It was winter, when you were back for winter break. I was going through dark times, but I remember when you approached me with a bouquet of roses of all colors because you saw that I didn't seem like myself recently.” He took a deep breath. “You told me how flowers contain a beauty of their own, like how you saw my art containing a hidden beauty. I began experimenting with my art, and thanks to your bouquet, I was able to start my next painting using those roses. Your kind and faithful words brought me back up to my feet, and I began to fall deeper in love with you since then.”

Sona’s heart began racing as she interpreted his signs.

“At first, I tried to hold it back. I didn't want to ruin the friendship we already had. But then, I saw that our feelings may have been mutual.”

A squeak came from Sona as she covered her mouth with her hands. “You knew?! You knew all this time?!”

Jhin averted his gaze. “I expected this reaction, and I still don't know how to respond to it. Ehm… How do I say this… I didn't want to assume your feelings, so I kept telling myself that it was just me and my own feelings.”

Sona then started typing into her phone. “And to think I thought you had feelings for someone else this past week. I am stupidly embarrassed.” She crouched on the floor and dug her head into her knees.

A quiet chuckle soon turned into laughter. “You really thought I had feelings for someone else? Why else would I visit the flower shop so frequently, especially those times when I went to buy just one flower?”

“Work, maybe,” she signed while still hiding her face.

“When I could have gone to any other flower shop in town?”

“Shut up.” She lifted her head to type into her phone. “I want to crawl into a hole and live there forever.”

Jhin kneeled in front of Sona after recovering from his bout of laughter. “Then how would you see the rest of what I want to say to you?” He patiently waited for Sona to meet his eyes, her own hesitant but asking him to continue. He chuckled before signing again. “I wanted to convey my feelings to you before it was too late. Before I finally decided to tell myself to give up.” He pointed to his masterpiece above them. “Everything about you is so beautiful and elegant like the orchids, from the way you talk about flowers to the way you dance to your music.”

Sona playfully slapped him on the arm for the last part, shaking her head with a smile on her face and earning another laugh from him.

“My feelings for you have never wavered, and I've always loved how sincere you were in our conversations—like the blue hyacinths. But my heart would never forget you. I couldn’t forget the way you left my heart longing for you. Just like the forget-me-nots.”

“And the daffodils?” she asked, pointing to the golden flowers that adorned her hair.

“Oh, those.” Jhin cupped Sona’s hands in his and gazed into her eyes with a loving expression. “The daffodils weren't meant to represent unrequited love, if what I assume you were thinking earlier was correct. I wanted to say that the sun always shines brighter when you are around. Even when it storms or overcast, you brighten up my day.” He brushed a lock of hair away from Sona’s eyes. “I suppose what I want to ask is, would you like to go out with me?”

Sona, overwhelmed by joy, nodded and threw her arms around his neck, holding him tightly in her embrace. Happiness wasn't enough to describe the feelings that wanted to burst out of her. But she was so happy. So ecstatic. Their feelings were mutual after all. She felt his arms wrap around her back, holding her tightly. They lingered a moment longer before releasing each other.

The clicking of her keyboard filled in the silence as she typed a message. “If I rejected you, what were you going to do with the painting?”

“I was going to ask for your consent to hang it up in the gallery. I wouldn't have, if you felt uncomfortable about it.”

“I'm more impressed that you thought about different scenarios.”

“Well, with a confession like mine, I had to take them into consideration. But I'm glad it turned out for the best.” Jhin kissed the back of her hand before helping her stand up. “So, how would you like that dinner to be our first date?”

Sona snorted and typed into her phone again. “Were you planning on the dinner to be a date?”

He admittedly shrugged. “Only if it turned out you reciprocated my feelings. Otherwise, I would've taken you out as a friend.”

She rolled her eyes with a smile and linked her arm with his. “Then what are we waiting for? We should get dinner soon.”

“Gladly.” They walked out of his apartment, Sona leaning her head on his shoulder while Jhin nuzzled his cheek against her hair.

  Guests immediately noted the gentle aroma of flowers when they entered Jhin’s gallery, attracted by the burst of color beyond the glass windows. They wandered around the gallery, looking at Jhin’s artworks in awe. A few repeatedly stepped back and closer to examine the techniques and strokes. In front of each canvas was an open glass box that contained a vase of flowers used for the painting, the flowers neatly arranged to compliment each other, and a plaque that stated the meanings of the flowers.

The bigger canvases lured crowds to their beauty, but the most crowded was “Butterflies”, which displayed a vase of white orchids, blue hyacinths, forget-me-nots, daffodils, and two pink ambrosias in the center. The guests approached the vase to read the meanings, but the ambrosia’s was missing.

Where was the artist responsible for these gorgeous paintings though?

Jhin stood among the crowd beside Sona and Lestara and watched the guests marvel at his work while guiding the two around.

“It's so clever how the artist stained the petals. It almost looks natural.”

“Doesn't it? I especially love how he uses roses frequently in his works. I've been following his Insta since he started posting his flower series.”

“No way, he has an account? Send me the name, I want to see more stuff he made!”

Sona elbowed Jhin. “Your Insta is going to flood with comments and new followers later. How do you feel about that?”

“A little overwhelmed, but at least my art will be known more,” he signed back. He placed his hand on his chest and exhaled. “I'm nervous to make a speech though. I'm not good with crowds.”

“You'll be fine!” Sona held his hand and gave it a little squeeze to reassure him. “I'll be near you when you do.”

“Thanks.” Jhin squeezed her hand back.

Lestara cleared her throat. “I think I'm going to leave you two alone for a bit. I'll be wandering around the gallery, dears.” She chuckled, walking away to another painting with a little wave of her fingers.

Jhin and Sona flushed red in realization Lestara was watching them this entire time. They couldn't bring her back by the time they recovered. She was too far and preoccupied with a conversation with another guest, Soraka. They decided to move on to the next painting, hand-in-hand.

“I wonder why there's no price tag on that one,” a young woman with golden hair mused. “All the other ones do.”

“Eh, maybe the artist got lazy and didn't even bother,” another young woman in an apparel jacket muttered.

“Come on, Jinx, there's no way the artist got that lazy. I mean, look at all these artworks! How could he miss a price tag if he painted these with such careful detail?”

The other listlessly shrugged with a crooked, lazy smile. “I dunno. Art’s not really my thing, Lux. I'd rather go play with some fireworks.”

Lux rolled her eyes with a sigh. “Alright, my little pyromaniac. Let's keep going.” She pulled Jinx to another painting, Jinx protesting but compliantly following along.

Sona raised a brow at their conversation and turned to Jhin. “You're not selling “Butterflies”?”

“I wanted to keep it. It holds a special meaning to me, after all.” He brought Sona’s hand up to kiss the tips of her fingers. “How could I sell a piece that depicts the feelings and memories I've had with someone I love?” He and Sona softly laughed to themselves as they pressed foreheads. The beeping of his watch caught his attention. “It's time for the speech. Wish me luck.”

Sona signed to do his best and gave his hand another squeeze afterwards as they made their way to his “Butterflies” piece, where most of the guests now gathered to hear the speech.

Oh, this was more people than he thought there would be. He gripped Sona’s hand tighter before letting go and walked to the front. “Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Khada Jhin, the artist of this gallery. I thank you for attending the grand opening, and I was very pleased to hear that everyone enjoys what I've painted.”

“And he says he has stage fright,” Lestara joked under her breath to Sona.

A giggle shook Sona’s shoulders. After he finished his speech, she joined the crowd to applause Jhin for his hard work and effort.

“I am open to questions, if anyone has any. Otherwise, please feel free to look around more.”

A smaller crowd drew closer to Jhin as the rest dispersed to the rest of the gallery or to find the exit. Sona stepped closer to Jhin, now half an arm’s length away, to remind him of her support.

“Is Khada Jhin your real name, sir?”

“No, it is just an alias. But it's a name I've come to think of as a second name, so I don't mind being called that.”

“What inspired you to start your flower series? They're all so gorgeous!” Lux asked excitedly.

Jhin glanced at Sona, whose eyes smiled at his gaze. “It's more of a case of ‘who’. A longtime friend of mine gave me the inspiration I needed to try something new. A different vision. It's thanks to her that I was able to become this successful.”

“Is she the lady that's on your big painting right here?” Jinx asked.

Straightforward, that girl was. Jhin cleared his throat. “Yes, she is. She has become a special person in my life, and that is why I dedicated my final masterpiece to her.”

“Is that piece available for purchase, by any chance?” someone asked.

“No. This is a piece that holds a special place in my heart. I have no plans on selling this one.” A few murmurs of disappointment sounded from potential buyers, but he didn't care. This one stayed. “Please feel free to look at my other works, however. I assure you they are just as good, and they will be available for delivery starting the week after next.”

“So where’s the lucky girl in that painting?” Sona turned to see the barista across the street with the two bakers behind him. Oh gods. They were doing this on purpose. Her ears turned red when she turned back to Jhin, who gazed at her lovingly and reached out to hold her hand, intertwining his fingers with hers.

“She’s right here… my friend who has become much more to me, now my significant other.”

Gasps and sounds of endearment sounded from the crowd.

“That is what the ambrosia means.”