Chapter Text
Over her years of travel, Vi had grown used to being the new kid in town, then the new woman in town. In some places it amounted to the same thing. Wherever they went, they were foreigners, to be seized up and evaluated. She was accustomed to the finger pointing and hushed whispers. Often they would not stay in one place long enough for people's opinion to even matter.
Yet in all their peregrinations Vi had never felt more like a stranger than she did now, among her own people, in her own hometown—if she could call Piltover that. Here she was known, she had a history, and so did both her fathers. It changed the quality of the gossip, and made her into an object of far too much attention for her comfort.
She had tried to convince Vander not to attend the ball. He was dreading this meeting too, so why bother with such a public display? Neither of them had forgotten Silco's address. She would have much prefered a morning call.
Vander had denied her and refused to explain himself. Vi suspected he was in a state of perpetual inner crisis ever since they set foot on Zaun's docks. Arguably even longer. She put up with all this for his sake and threw herself in the arms of the first person to ask her for a dance, but now that she had to cross the room alone, the dread of countless curious stares crept up on her once more.
She looked for Vander. He was with Silco, who was introducing Swain to Jinx.
Jinx, her sister—this little thing with round cheeks and grey eyes that Vi had left behind without understanding how long she'd be gone for—now all grown, delicate, lady-like, with eyes gone impossibly blue. Almost a stranger, in her own way, taking her hands in the dance, looking at her like she remembered her from a dream...
Vi hadn't found the words. Well, they had spoken, stumbled through a few lines of polite but asinine nothings. She hadn't found the proper words. Swain had told her to decide on what she would say ahead of time, to write it down, even as little as two sentences, just to get herself started. She'd dismissed the idea, figuring that Jinx would just...
Yes, maybe Vi had misjudged the situation. Despite Jinx's frequent letters, she was still picturing her as this small, bubbly kid who tackled her for hugs. So she'd figured Jinx would throw herself at her. That she would laugh away all the nervousness and angst. She was always so cheerful in her correspondence, after all.
Watching Jinx turn white as a sheet as the dance brought them together before hurrying away from her was not something Vi had anticipated. Now she regretted not listening to Swain. If she'd had words ready, maybe she wouldn't be at such a loss now.
'—Vi? Are we interrupting?'
Vi shook herself, belatedly realising someone had been calling her name. She turned and found herself facing Ekko, with a young woman at his arm.
'Oh— Ekko?' She blinked, looking the young man up and down and grabbing his elbow. 'Oh, how you've grown! I nearly didn't recognise you here for a moment.'
'You were quite out of it. Is your mind still in Noxus?'
'Stop teasing her,' the young woman at his side protested. She turned to Vi and said, 'Please excuse him. Ever since he's joined my family's research lab, he's become incorrigibly rude. It's entirely Jayce's bad influence.'
Vi laughed, waving the idea away. 'No, Ekko has always been like that since he was little. Rude and cute. But I guess the cuteness went away.'
'Ha-ha. Oh, I missed your humour,' Ekko deadpanned. Then, as if recalling his manners, he took a step to the side and said, 'Allow me to re-introduce you. This is Miss Caitlyn Kiramman. Caitlyn, this is my old childhood friend Violet Hund-Noyer.'
Vi smiled and bowed, biting down silently on the ache of being called an old childhood friend—one who hadn't been around to see Ekko grow up.
Miss Kiramman mirrored her bow. She was... uncommonly pretty. Her face was narrow, with sharp cheekbones and pouty lips. She wore no makeup and her hair was tied back in a simple ponytail, without ornaments. Not that she needed any. Her almond eyes, the colours of Demacian sapphires, were more than enough to distract Vi.
Her dress was likewise discreet in its design, but Vi was too worldly not to notice the incredible quality of the muslin and gold threaded purple silks. She made Ekko's green tailcoat look far shabbier than it really was, and probably made Vi look like an ostler dragged out of her stables.
Miss Kiramman didn't comment on Vi's dress, at least. When she leaned close, it was to whisper, 'I hope you can keep up the charade with us. Ekko came to my rescue and led me to you.'
'A charade!' Ekko said with a scoff. 'I'd prefer to call it an embellishment of the truth. I simply told Mrs. Kiramman that I promised Caitlyn I would introduce the two of you.'
'But you never promised such a thing.' Miss Kiramman said.
'Must you be so ungrateful?' Ekko quipped.
Vi scanned the room, confused. 'What were you rescued from?'
Miss Kiramman sighed and stared at her feet. 'A boor. My mother is determined to marry me off to one. She used to let me be, but since the explosion, she's pulled me from the lab and seems to have doubled down on the idea of marrying me off.'
'An explosion?' Vi asked.
She felt an immediate kinship with the young woman. The awkwardness of their respective situation brought them together, all thanks to Ekko, and Vi felt compelled to help. Maybe it could help her too, by pulling her away from her own family drama.
Ekko laughed. 'Yes, I suppose you wouldn't be up to date on all the city's gossip yet.' He placed a hand over his heart before pointing to Jinx, who was waltzing away with Swain. 'Your sister and myself are the only academicians in attendance tonight, and we're obviously both out of uniform. That's because there's a bit of a scandal around one of the labs going up in smoke. Usually that's Jinx's specialty, but not this time.'
'It was Jayce and Viktor's lab,' Miss Kiramman supplied. 'I was helping out with the research, and now that there's an investigation ongoing, well...'
'Academicians are the black sheep of this soiree.'
Vi tightened her grip on Ekko's arm. 'Wait a second now. Academician? I know Jinx works there, but you?'
Ekko's smile grew sad. He gave her hand a gentle tap. 'I know you're bad with letters, it's okay.'
'What do you mean?'
'I wrote you, joined my missive to one of Jinx's letters, when Silco's sponsorship finally allowed me to enrol. It was two years ago.'
Vi felt her face radiate with heat. 'I'm— I'm sorry I— We were on the move a lot and letters often arrived in clumps after being misdirected and—'
'Oh, don't worry,' Miss Kiramman said, her captivating eyes sparkling with mischief. 'Ekko has been far too busy to be saddened by lack of correspondence. He also has no ground to stand on, as he's got the worst time management skills of the entire student body.'
'What dreadful falsehoods from you, Cait. So unbecoming of a lady!'
Miss Kiramman laughed, her head tilted back, and Vi stared. If she was trying to distract Vi from her embarrassment, it was a complete success.
'So, you're all working together?' she asked.
'We were...'
Ekko gave a squeeze to his friend's hand. 'We will be, still. Your mother will see reason.'
It was miss Kiramman's turn to smile sadly. 'I suppose we'll see. I would be less concerned if she weren't so intent on pushing me into someone's arms. I mean, she took me to two political dinners just last week, and introduced me to three ambassadors and two tradesmen in that time. All single or widowed, and all more dreadful than the last. It doesn't bode well.' She turned to Vi and added, 'But that's enough with my problems, I must bore you.'
'You don't bore me,' Vi blurted out. 'Not yet. I think you could go on about your boorish suitors a while longer, Miss Kiramman.'
She laughed, tossing her head back again, exposing a slender throat, and Vi felt a pleasant rush of satisfaction and pride, to be the source of that laugh.
'And of course I'll keep your secret. Maybe I can be the one who asked Ekko to introduce us.'
'Now, don't go and steal my thunder,' Ekko protested.
Miss Kiramman gave him a pat on the back. 'Yes, the boy saviour strikes again. And Violet, I must thank you for your sacrifice.'
'It's no great sacrifice on my part, Miss Kiramman.'
'Please, call me Caitlyn!' she said, not picking up on Vi's awkward compliment. 'We met as girls. It's not like we're complete strangers.'
Vi stared at her, baffled. 'We did?'
Ekko rolled his eyes and grunted. 'Eat more fish. Your memory could use it.'
'What?'
'We played together after your father's investiture. When he was made Baron? It must have been a busy day for you, I can't blame you for forgetting me.'
Vi blamed herself for forgetting! What a terrible performance this evening was proving to be. Maybe she did need to eat more fish... And learn to be a better correspondent.
The music ended, and the brouhaha increased as people started looking for their next dancing partner. A flash of powder blue caught Vi's attention, and she tracked her sister's movements through the crowd. She was smiling up at Swain. Vi wasn't surprised, the man knew how to be charming. Still, she couldn't help the childish pang of jealousy that punched through her heart. Jinx ought to be smiling at her too.
She searched further afield, looking for her fathers, but they were nowhere in sight. Hopefully gone in search of some privacy to sort their own situation out.
Ekko made a sudden gesture, and gave Vi a meaningful look when he caught her attention. He glanced up at Caitlyn—she was rather taller than him, taller than Vi too—and then back at her. He jerked his chin silently towards the dance floor.
Oh.
Vi felt her ears burn, for a completely different sort of embarrassment. She turned to Caitlyn and said, 'Well, if we're to, erm... keep up this charade... maintain appearances and all that, to fool your mother and gain you some time, I mean...'
Caitlyn blinked at her. 'Yes?'
Vi gathered herself, recalling her manners. 'May I request the pleasure of a dance?' she asked, bowing.
It was Caitlyn's turn to blush, while Ekko grinned behind her.
'Of course,' she said, giving her hand for Vi to take. 'Anything, for the charade.'
'For the charade,' Vi echoed, like a toast.