A Piltover Academy Student in Demacia (Lux/Jinx)

Chapter 2: Warnings

"In actuality, I fear that reaching an agreement about the arrival zone will be more difficult than Jayce expects. I'm worried that we've overestimated... are you asleep?" Viktor asked.

"Huh?! No! No, I'm listening," Powder said, startled awake by the question. The silence in the library had proven to be too tantalizing, and her sleep-deprived brain fought vigorously to return to its much-needed slumber. "Just didn't get much sleep last night, that's all. New place and all that."

"Yes, I admit that I got very little sleep myself. Not for that reason," Viktor said, shaking his head as Powder grinned. "Lady Laurent's home is comfortable enough, but everything is so unlike Piltover. Was it the same at Lord Buvelle's estate." Powder shrugged, eliciting a stare from Viktor. "Or perhaps it was something else that caused your sleeplessness?"

"Yeah, it was all the shit with Lux," Powder admitted, sighing. Ever since their first meeting, Viktor had proven willing to help her in many things: the issues she had with other students, the rare problems she had with projects or assignments, or simply lending his ear as a fellow Trencher to commiserate with when topside nonsense became too much to stomach. But when it came to more personal matters such as relationships, it was Vi who had always been her confidante; but Vi was thousands of miles away, and she couldn't rely on emotional support at the speed of a letter, especially when she couldn't even expect a response for weeks.

"Have you considered meeting with her? Perhaps the two of you could clear the air?" Viktor suggested.

"Yeah, we, uh, actually did meet yesterday. It... didn't go so hot," Powder said, grimacing. "Please, please don't tell Jayce, ok? The last thing I need is him freaking out at me even more over this shit."

"Not a word," Viktor said. "What happened between you two that caused this rift, if you don't mind me asking?" He added after a moment.

"It's... a really long story, Vik, and I'd rather not get into it right now," Powder said, sighing. "Besides, the more I tell it, the more I start to think that I'm being a whiny brat about the whole thing."

"Mm, perhaps that is true; after all, I do not have all the details. But I have known you for long enough to suspect that it is not the case," Viktor said, giving a tiny smile; it was the Viktor equivalent of a large, open grin.

"It's just... why is this shit so hard?" Powder said, flopping onto the library table. "Vi's only had like two arguments with Cait ever, you and Jayce hit things without any issues. I just don't get why when it's me, everything gets all messy and stupid."

"Trust me, Powder, things between Jayce and myself were far from perfect at the start," Viktor said, shaking his head. "Or I suppose 'before the start' would be even more accurate."

"Hm?" Powder rose her head, interest overpowering her weariness. Both Viktor and Jayce had been extremely reluctant to talk about their relationship, both to Powder and to others; even Caitlyn claimed to get very little information out of Jayce, though what she did find out she'd rarely share (because of course she wouldn't, it was Cait, after all; she'd sooner face torture than betray a friend).

"Yes, I'm afraid the original blame for our rocky start falls upon my shoulders. I was... somewhat blind to Jayce's feelings in the beginning. After all, to me, he was just a student on the verge of expulsion, a foolish man who had bitten off far more than he could safely chew. I viewed our association only as it existed at the surface level: a junior inventor placed on warning for unsafe experimentation, and the dean's assistant sent to babysit him and ensure no further work was done with such volatile materials," Viktor said.

"Wait, you were trying to stop Hextech at the start?" Powder said, shocked by the very notion.

"For a short time, yes," Viktor said, shrugging. "However, it did not take Jayce long to convince me of his dream, and soon we were both breaking academy regulations and furthering his research. It was somewhere during that time, I believe, that he first started to think of me in... well, a non-scholarly fashion, you might say. I saw his interest, but I was unwilling to admit that I felt the same way. I was unable to accept my own feelings for what they were until we presented our findings before the Council. He called Hextech 'our dream,' and... that's when I knew I couldn't ignore it any longer. Of course, by that point Jayce had spent months trying to suppress and work past his feelings, and so by the time I was in a place to reciprocate, he had decided that it would be a poor idea for us to pursue a romantic relationship; too messy and risky to our work, he said."