"Oh, okay," I said, heading downstairs after giving the remaining trio a little cry for help with my facial expression. As the door closed behind me, Vander and Vi were sitting down on the couch, leaving the single chair to me. The air felt a little tense. It was just like being in the council meeting room. I remember my mother trying to convince them to let her sell her smoking herbs to the undercity. My mother desperately begged Miss Medarda for permission. She wanted the business to boom so badly... after all, we needed the money. In the end, she got what she wanted but with strict conditions which I didn't understand at the time. Something about most of the money would go to the council. At some point, people from the undercity had made a special blend that my mother came to enjoy pretty quickly. Ugh... the smell of her favorite herb blend always made me gag. It smelled so terrible that she'd only do it at night and on the rooftop. I could smell it from the start of the bridge, making it end up as a message for me to come home. No matter how many times I'd leave and do whatever, no matter how badly I got hurt, she let me go. I guess she easily let me go this time as well.
"Take a seat," Vander said, making me lose my train of thought. Had I been standing at the foot of the stairs this whole time? "O-oh! Sorry..." I yelped, scurrying into the soft seat, sitting straight. Vander looked at me with a gentle gaze. After hearing him argue with Vi, I could tell he only wanted her to be safe. He truly loved her as his daughter, and he didn't want her being sent away to Stillwater or anything of the sort. It felt a little safer around him, making my guard go lower, and lower as the seconds ticked by. "I'm sorry for scaring you back there. Do you want me to call you anything else?" He asked softly.
His voice was in some sort of way calming, so I crossed my legs on the chair and shook my head. "Y/n is fine, thank you. You just surprised me..." I said, mumbling the last part. Vander nodded and leaned back into his seat, giving me a little smile saying: good. "Alright then, onto what I wanted to ask you: What are you doing here? It's dangerous for a child to be here- not to mention a child from Piltover. I know herbology is hard work and takes a while, but you should go home to your mother soon before she realizes you've been long gone." He suggested, fixing his posture a little. "I can take you home safely," Vander said, but I couldn't go back. Not with what she told me. If I came back I'd be sent to Stillwater for sure!
"No, but thank you," I replied, smiling at him. He looked at me with confusion. "...No?" He asked, making me nod. "The thing is- I can't go back. I don't belong up there. Not according to her, at least." My mouth muttered out the last part as my fingernail scratched my cheek. "To her?" Vi asked, leaning forward in her seat, now interested in the topic. "To my mother." That was the only thing I could say. Immediately, Vander had a look of shock but calmed himself. "Kid, I'll have to ask you to tell me the whole story. Is that alright?" Vander asked me. I looked at him and Vi for a long moment. Then, with a deep breath, I told him everything. The way her eyes bore into my soul, following the group, and finally, I showed him the gold and pearl smoke pipe.
Vander turned it in his hands and looked at it in awe. "This is... very valuable, kid. Keep it hidden." He told me, handing it back carefully in order not to break it. "Okay," I replied as I held the golden item, watching as it glistened under the light of the lamp. Then, my eyes turned to him curiously. "May I ask how you know about me?" The question rolled out of my mouth. From where I sat, I could practically feel the curiosity drip from Vi, it was amusing. Vander looked around the room for a moment, avoiding my gaze as he thought. Finally, after what seemed like an awkward five minutes, a few glances at Vi- I still wonder to this day how her hair is so full of volume- and then, he spoke. "Your mother," he started, causing my eyes to go straight to him expectantly. "she worked at the brothel down the road, and she always came here after her shift to have a drink and talk. Sometimes she'd go home with a man, sometimes a woman in an: 'Attempt to find true love!' she'd say." Vander paused. "After she realized there was a human being inside of her, she brought nothing but her smoke pipe and left. From the rumors, I got to know that Miss Opal had a baby daughter named Y/n, the father being unknown. She left everything behind just to give you a good life, so I wonder how she could send you down here if she desperately wanted you to live up North. Even though you did sound like a pain in the enforcer's asses." He ended, taking the time to breathe. I may have been hearing things, but I swear he chuckled a little while speaking the last part.
YOU ARE READING
Former Topsider (Vi X fem!Reader, probably discontinued)
Fanfiction"Who are you?" "Uh... Who am I?" "Yes! Who are you? And would you stop smoking?-" "A former topsider." "Huh?" "Mhm, exactly what I said." All characters belong and story lore to their rightful owners. With the character being in the story some thing...
