Chapter Text
- Approximation -
To live and work in the beautiful and prospering city of Piltover was one thing I never thought it would happen. Just another sign, that you could achieve anything, if you just wanted to. Everything was better up here. The streets clean and tidy, the people polite, sometimes a bit strange too. Like avoiding confrontations with someone like me. I didn‘ t care at all. I was happy to be here. Not to talk about the income they payed. It was incredibly high. Starting to work at the docks wasn‘ t the best thing, just like the dozen other jobs. But when I got the chance to work at the Academy, I thought it was my personal jackpot.
My assignment was to take care of the deliveries and to help with all the work that needs to be done, such as maintenance, even gardening and the like. That meant to run around in the endless hallways of the Academy and carry things. Lots of things. Letters, light or heavy boxes, even clothes sometimes, or food. The scientists often seem to forget about the necessary things in life. They tend to forget a lot of things. But never their work.
Most of the time it was a nice job. An easy one. Better paid, but sometimes an ordeal for my feet and my back, which tend to ache more and more, the closer it gets to the evening. I didn't mind that I was an outsider. Nobody was really unkind to me, but it could be felt that the others weren't necessarily looking for my company.
The Academy was far the largest building, I’ve ever seen. More like a fortress. Self-contained, independent, sublimely, imposing. From it’s upper premises, quarters for their members, the offices, lots of classrooms, down to the laboratories, the storage rooms, even a large kitchen and a refectory. Lower floors were for the staff mostly. Like my little bedroom. Small, appropriately furnished, but it was mine. And I was proud of it. Never had much things to care about anyway, so it was fine.
The daily routine was a bit boring though. Breakfast, work, a longer break for lunch and a walk in the gardens maybe, more work, even more work and the end of work … sooner or later. Then grabbing something to eat and sleeping.
The hardest thing was to find my way through the endless hallways and stairwells. I couldn’t count the times I got lost and delivered things almost too late. The first days I had a young clerk showing me around. She didn’t like it. Perhaps she thought of it as a test of patience and obedience. She failed from my point of view. Definitely. That girl found her job done way too early and left me still confused. Somehow I got along without her help. Just took some time and the interruption of a few working people to ask for the right way to go.
I liked working in the beautiful garden, being outside in the sun, breathing fresh and clean air and working with something that was sort of alive. It was a nice change, but on the sly I was on the lookout for an opportunity to go to the laboratories. It was the most interesting place, with the most interesting people. At least for me. Even if I was often not noticed, or completely ignored. That place began to attract me magically. I started my work in the morning, checking the orders, looking for a walk to my favorite place.
Sometimes I secretly switched them so they would take me to the right place.
It was like stepping into a whole new world, unlike the sun-drenched, perfect one outside these doors. Well, sometimes it was a mess … but still a fascinating one. Huge rooms, some were modern with enormous glass windows to enable a look at the busy city of Piltover. Others more dark and mysterious. Often with hundreds over hundreds of folded, or rolled scrolls neatly arranged on a working desk. With papers on and under the desk, next to it, scattered all over the place, creating an impression of an unorganized mess in the whole room. Impressively large chalk boards, full of formulas, cryptic symbols, letters and numbers, written in haste, or in a beautiful, clear script. I entered Labs with unidentifiable fluids, evidences, test tubes, glowing and sometimes strong smelling. Glasses with strange contents, I had no idea what they were good for and in some cases, I didn’t even want to know. Each room so different and unique, like the men and women working in them. They were all fascinating to me, even the chaotic ones. I was overwhelmed by all the new impressions and a little proud that I was now somehow a part of this.
It was one special lab, that I was looking for. A barely illuminated room. Large, like all the others. When I first walked into place, the chalk board caught my eye. It was scribbled all over with numbers, equations, math formulas. Things I hadn't the faintest idea what they meant. Attempted solutions had been crossed out, rescheduled and discarded again and in a wild irregularity notes had been pinned all over it. Books arranged in huge shelves on the walls next to the board. Some seem to have been read often, some were just old and dusty. A serving trolley standing in the corner with drinks and food, which had remained almost untouched. It was the place of the assistant to the dean of the academy. He was a withdrawn, young man, mostly preferring to be alone, silent and always immersed in his work. At least that’s what I heard from others. But I found his room often abandoned and I started wondering what kind of scientist he was if he never worked in his laboratory, never invented anything, never built anything, or whatever else these people are doing.
Then suddenly, he was actually there. Like other days, I knocked on the impressive door, but did not expect an answer and entered without waiting. A few seconds later I could hear an absent “Come in”. Unsure, if I had done something wrong, I moved on quietly and placed some letters on a desk. His back was turned to me. With one hand he leaned on a cane, probably thinking, brooding and then suddenly eager making notes on the blackboard, only to wipe them away afterwards. I could have sworn, he hadn’t even noticed me.
“The morning post, Sir” My voice was quite. It was obvious, that he didn’t want to be interrupted. His eyes were steady on the board, chalk in his hand. It was dead silence, apart from the constant scratching when he hastily continued to write. Unsure, what to do, I stood there maybe a few minutes and watched him. A slim figure, in the dim light of a single lamp. Silently waiting for the morning rays of the sun, to light up the room, his thoughts, or his life.
“Errm … a good day for you then, Sir.” I decided to move on, better get going.
The next times, when I entered the lab, it wasn’t much of a difference. It was sobering.
One morning I went there again. I still didn't bother to wait for an answer when I knocked on the door and entered simply. Carrying a box, I tried to scurry across the room as quietly as possible and dump my load on one of the empty tables. As so often, Mr. Unapproachable stood in front of his blackboard and noted down his latest findings. And once again, he paid no attention to me at all.
"Good morning, Sir", I started as usual, not really expecting an answer. “Here is the delivery you've been waiting for. I was told it’s urgent."
Indeed, it seemed to really matter to him because he turned to me. For once, his thoughts didn't seem to be anywhere else as he smiled gently, picked up his wand and slowly walked over to me. It was the first time that I could really look directly at him.
Somehow I had imagined him to be different. I found his face looked gaunt. And he was pale. Maybe he was just overtired. Too much work, too few breaks, too little sun, definitely not eating enough. Even so, I thought that he was quite handsome. He had such fine, almost aristocratic features. My gaze caught on his eyes, which sparkled gold in the semi-darkness when he looked down at me. I eyed him with undisguised curiosity, which he noticed of course and raised an eyebrow in question. Judging by his smile, it seemed to amuse him.
"Is something wrong?" He asked in a calm voice. The sound was pleasant. Quiet and gentle, deep, with an unfamiliar accent in it. Inevitably my pulse quickened. Realizing how stupid my stare must be, I came back to my senses. Blood rushed to my cheeks and I bowed my head in embarrassment.
“You have to sign this”, I replied quickly and handed him a clipboard with a delivery note. Actually, he didn't have to sign it. It would have been enough if my superior had put his mark under it. However, I found it was a good distraction for my awkward behavior.
Whether he thought it was strange or not, without hesitation he took the board from my hand, pulled a pen from his shirt pocket and signed it. His name was written in beautifully curved letters on a line at the bottom of the note. Then he turned his attention to the package and an almost childlike excitement befell him. Gently, he stroked his fingers over the parcel before picking it up with ease, balancing it in one hand, and turning away.
I stared at his signature. "Viktor," I read softly.
He stopped in his movement and glanced over his shoulder.
"Yes, my name is Viktor."
Again I felt stupid. Of course, I had read the name before. Still, I had just secretly called him Mr. Unapproachable.
"Viktor," I repeated again, still feeling like a fool. "It's a nice name." My smile was sheepish.
He seemed surprised and his eyes twinkled with amusement. "Oh. Thank you. And you are?"
"Um ... I am Nei. Actually, Aneissa Lynn Sparks, but Nei will do. Everyone calls me Nei," I babbled on and added maybe a few more details of no interest.
He seemed to think it was funny. Either my name, or the way I suddenly addressed him. Maybe it was the look on my face, or he was just in a good mood in general. I didn't know, and I was far too surprised because I suddenly found myself talking to him.
"I'm pleased to make your acquaintance, Aneissa Lynn Sparks." The dry way he pronounced my name, the barely perceptible teasing in his tone, made my heart leap.
"Nice to meet you, too. Is there ... anything else I can do for you?" At that moment, I wanted nothing more than to keep talking to him. I wanted to buy a little more time, just stay a little longer. Viktor seemed to consider for a moment, but then slowly shook his head.
"No. Thank you very much. I have everything I need."
Disappointed, I dropped my shoulders and pressed the clipboard to my chest. This was clearly the right time to leave. Now! Reluctantly, I turned around and left him alone with his work again. Outside the door, I gasped briefly and forced myself to calm down. How ridiculous had I just made myself? Annoyed, I hit my forehead with my hand and groaned. Why would he want to talk to me? I wanted to, yes ... but him? He had his colleagues, Heimerdinger, everyone in the Academy. All presumably excellent conversationalists who were clearly more educated than me. I was just an insignificant employee, a small errand runner. The most you could talk to me about was the choice for lunch, or the weather, or an order. Now I felt completely stupid. With a deep sigh, I made my way back and still couldn't wait to get back there.
Unfortunately, I was unlucky. Days passed before I had the opportunity to see him again. To make matters worse, my thoughts often revolved around only one subject and developed into a girlish crush. Unreal, silly and above all unrequited. I was young and inexperienced in these matters, but I was aware that it was incredibly naïve to let the mere sight of a man upset me so much. A man who was neither interested in me nor had ever really spoken to me. That was simply not my way. This had to stop immediately! It was time something brought me back down to earth. To my chagrin, Viktor took over personally. He did greet me casually sometimes, but that was all.
Not more than “Hello”, “Goodbye”, or “Thank you”.
No “Would you like to have a drink with me?” at all.
He was as aloof as ever. His research had obviously reached a point where he couldn't use any distractions. If at all, he only glanced over his shoulder when I entered. His mind seemed to be elsewhere and he was unwilling to direct it to anything but his work. In any case, his thoughts were not with me. Sobered, I left the lab again, trying to figure out where my place was in all of this. A simple employee. Inconspicuous. Marked by a life far from the luxuries here at the academy. I was supposed to do my job and not let daydreams encourage me to do something stupid. I had work to do!
Over the next few weeks, I actually remembered that. I avoided Viktor's lab as much as I could, and it helped a little. It was amazing how quickly the time passed. I threw myself into work and took on so much that there was no room for superfluous thoughts. The advantage was that I was gradually becoming familiar with every corridor in the academy. I discovered shortcuts and made the acquaintance of some people who provided welcome distractions. However, I couldn't stop others from talking about Viktor. There were many curious eyes and ears that eagerly picked up gossip and immediately spread it.
It had not escaped my notice how his laboratory was expanding. New things were added, strange devices, more space for his experiments, and Viktor disappeared even more often than usual. It was heard that he spent a lot of time in the city. He had a friend with whom he shared his research results. I had plenty of opportunities to look around his lab by myself. Although I had not the slightest idea of the strange devices and constructions, they were peculiarly fascinating to me. I forced myself not to spend too much time there, but to leave the room as soon as I had finished my job.
Except for one early morning when I stepped through the door and was hit by an explosive wave shortly after. Bright light blinded me, I felt dizzy, and staggered back a few steps. It was over as quickly as it had begun. Dazed, I shook my head and when I could see clearly again, I spotted Viktor in front of one of the work tables. His chair was on the floor, broken and he was groaning as he pulled himself to his feet.
With a few steps I was with him.
"Are you alright?", I asked anxiously, wanting to come to his aid. However, I stopped before I reached him. It felt like I hadn't seen him in ages, and I was on the verge of throwing all the distance I had carefully built up over the edge again. It was just a little accident in the lab after all. Probably something like that happened every day.
He was doing fine. Except for his bruised ego, because something didn't work out!
Viktor did not answer my question, but hit hard with his fist on the wooden plate in front of him. I winced in shock.
"Why isn't it working? It just won't stay stable! That doesn’t make any sense!" Cursing loudly, he turned around and froze. He blinked a few times and finally seemed to take notice of me. "Aneissa ... I ... didn't realize you had entered."
"I know. You never do," I commented without thinking. Probably my words sounded a bit too sharp and horribly bitter. I gave him only a quick glance out of the corner of my eye. To avoid him, I instead looked at the damage done. Scattered on the ground were the remains of a structure, broken and in some cases completely shredded. I picked up some of the rubble and put it back on the table. Perhaps he could still salvage some of it. For the chair, however, any help came too late. An impractical seat anyway. One leg was cracked and the backrest had gone.
"I'll bring you another one in a minute." Before I could turn around, I felt his grip on my elbow.
"I'm sorry," he spoke low and much more gentle. "I don't notice many things when I'm working, I'm afraid. Guess it’s the curse of science." He looked so terribly tired, frustrated by his failure. His remarkable eyes were bleary and exhausted.
Now I was worried after all and pushed all good intentions aside.
"You need a break, Sir. If you keep this up, you'll eventually blow up the entire lab."
He shook his head and ran a hand through his hair as he looked at the mess he had made. "I can't stop now. There's just one little thing missing. One tiny detail. I ... I ... just don't know what it is!"
"You won't find out either when you finally collapse from exhaustion. Give yourself a little rest. Sometimes the right ideas come when you're not expecting them," I tried gently. I really didn't want to lecture him. I had no right to do that.
He seemed to be seriously pondering my words, leaning on his cane and looking more fragile than ever.
"Rest," he repeated dejectedly, "I can not rest until I have the solution."
"That's nonsense. How about a walk in the garden? And a bite to eat?" it blurted out. "I bet some people would be very displeased if a scientist was found dead in the lab. Miserably starved to death."
He forced a halfhearted smile but finally nodded. "You're right," he admitted surprisingly. "Then I will take a short break."
With a few moves, he let the core piece of his research disappear into a massive metal box and left the lab with me. Closing the door, he looked at me and asked, "Would you accompany me to the gardens? Take my mind off things. Otherwise, I will just go back to thinking about work."
Pleased, I grinned at him and didn't even try to suppress the fluttering in my chest.
"Would be my pleasure. I'm sure my errands can wait a while."
It was still early in the morning and the sun's rays had not yet managed to overcome the walls of the academy. Only the tops of the highest trees already enjoyed the warming light. This place had been created artificially, but the gardeners and architects had done a great job. Generously laid out with winding paths and enough places for undisturbed recreational breaks. A small, green island in the middle of a fortress. Except for the quiet splashing of the fountains and the occasional song of a bird that greeted the morning, one could hear nothing at all so early. It was a place to clear my head. One of my favorite ones, especially in the morning. You had it all for yourself.
I had led Viktor to a secluded bench on the west side and he had sat down on it, exhausted. With his hands propped on his walking stick between his knees, he stared up at the sky through the green of the trees. For a moment I couldn't help myself and looked at him silently. Motionless as a statue, tired, dejected, but beautiful nonetheless. I pulled myself back into the here and now.
"Hmm ... please wait a moment, don't go away." With my hands, I motioned for him to remain seated. "I'll be right back."
With irritation, he turned his gaze on me and smiled slightly. Instead of answering, he just nodded and I hurried away, towards the kitchen.
A few moments later, I had really hurried, I stood in front of him again and presented him a plate with some fruit, cheese and bread. The things I had been able to organize easily from the kitchen. My care made him laugh. A soft, delicate chuckle which pleased me even more than the fact of sitting here in the garden with him. Viktor actually ate a little, picked out the fruits and looked at the cheese a little skeptically until he took a bite and realized that it didn't taste as bad as he had feared.
Almost without speaking a word, we let the time pass. Only when the warm rays of the sun reached our heads and dazzled us, he broke the silence.
"It's really very beautiful here. I haven't taken the time to visit the garden in a long time. Thank you for that." He gave me a genuine smile.
I grinned contentedly to myself. Apparently I had the right idea. The peaceful surroundings were soothing. "And you haven't even thought about work. At least I hope not," I teased him.
"No, actually I haven't. Hmm ... maybe very fleetingly. For a tiny moment. I hope that's forgivable."
Now it was me who had to laugh. "Well, if this doesn't work, I'm going to have to resort to more radical means."
I couldn't help but continue to look at him from the side with my head slightly tilted. He seemed noticeably more relaxed. Perhaps I had actually distracted him a little from his worries, at least for that brief moment. The sun made his hair glow in vivid tones and the fine smile on his lips gave the impression that he had gathered new strength.
"Radical?" he repeated, amused. "What would that look like?"
"I don't know yet. First we'll wait and see if regular breaks help you accomplish what you set out to do."
"So you have made it your business to take care of me?" His expression was emphatically neutral, but his eyes continued to twinkle with amusement.
"Would that be so bad? Someone has to make sure that the great thinkers of the academy develop something meaningful. I'm sure the council would welcome you leading Piltover to the kind of progress the rich big shots crave. Everyone would welcome it." I bit my lip and searched his face for signs of whether I had said something wrong.
He was silent for a moment and looked up at the sky again. “That would be a huge step. However ... it is not necessarily my intention to make Piltover more prosperous. It would be helpful ... certainly. They would give us more resources. More money would make work a lot easier. We would have more freedom, less pressure. And then we could use it to make life safer for people. It would all just fit together. The workers in the lanes could safely manufacture the things that make Piltover the town it wants to be. A city of progress. And now I see another chance to do so. "
“With us … you mean … you and your friend? You work in town right now, don’t you? With a friend? Not in your lab?” I asked carefully.
He nodded. "Yes, unfortunately he made a mistake and was expelled from the academy. But his research is remarkable. And courageous. Perhaps too brave for some of the old hands here. They fear his findings. Fear progress. Kind of ironic. Piltover, the city of progress. They're merely treading water and drowning in their own conventions. I, however ... I have hope again. It was wrong to send Jayce away. He has given us something bigger than anything I've worked on before. He's the best thing that could have happened to us."
I listened silently, taking note of how much admiration he expressed for his friend. Somewhere in the back of my mind, a voice whispered that it could be more than that. He could feel more than friendship. My heart inevitably contracted at the thought Of course I resisted the urge to ask.
"It sounds like you two have a big plan. An admirable one. I guess that means I'll take extra good care that you don't overwork yourself. After all, you do want to achieve your goal. We all want that, Sir."
He nodded and rose. "There's no need to be so formal. Say Viktor, no Sir. Otherwise, I feel like something I'm not."
A respectable scientist? A genius creator? An obsessive one? An enchanting being?
"Gladly, that will make it easier. It's hard to put someone in their place ... for their own good, of course ... when you have to address them in such a high-flown manner."
"Ha! You're right." He laughed up at that. "Then I will have to be careful in the future."
With an implied bow, he took his leave. "Until next time, Nei."