Chapter Text
Weddings, Viktor decides as he talks with a dignitary from Demacia, are the worst. Yes, he's very happy for his baby sibling and he absolutely adores her and would move the heavens themselves for them; Jinx is so uniquely wonderful that Viktor actually agreed to be her man of honour, alongside Vi. All of this doesn't detract from the fact that Viktor despises weddings and the sheer amount of people who insist on talking to him, as if they have anything meaningful or interesting to say. Most of them don't. Point in case, Lacrytia Downhallow, minister of foreign affairs of Demacia, who is talking his ear off about her grandson's upcoming nuptials. Viktor simply does not care.
However, no matter how badly he wants to escape, Viktor knows that Silco will have his skin if he tries to sneak away, and Vander will be disappointed with him. Worse, Jinx will be upset, and Viktor has never been able to withstand their being upset. She is simply too good at making him feel guilty, a talent she uses sparingly but always with great results.
So Viktor smiles as Lacrytia speaks, hums at the appropriate moments, makes some inane comments when the occasion requires it. When the woman attempts to ask him about his personal life, he deflects with a small laugh and an excuse that he is simply too busy with his studies. Being the First Son of Zaun means that his privacy is always going to be intruded upon, but he doesn't need to give into the rat-infested rumor mill. The press already had enough of a field day during the election when someone had dug up his medical records.
"Viktor!"
The voice causes him to wince and he excuses himself from Lacrytia with a pained smile. Walking towards him quickly is a man he would much rather not be talking with at any moment of the day: Jayce Talis, Prince of Piltover, Zaun's sister state and unstable ally for most of their shared history. Jayce is not the heir of Piltover, but one of eight Princes that acts as the ruling body for the country, a concept which has always been mighty confusing to Viktor when he was learning the history of Piltover, but ever since meeting the man he has stopped questioning it. He has rarely ever met anyone as infuriating as Jayce Talis.
"Your highness," Viktor replies coolly as Jayce closes the distance between them. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"
Jayce, cheekbones sharp enough to cut steel and dimples showing as he smiles boyishly, wraps an arm around Viktor's shoulders and brings the two of them close to one another as they observe the large reception room where dignitaries and family members mingle to celebrate the nuptials of Jinx and Ekko. Yes, Viktor has never met anyone as infuriating, but he also has never met someone as beautiful. Jayce is a study in beauty standards: tall, well built, perfect brown skin made to have sunlight shining upon it, hazel eyes that crinkle at the corners when he smiles... Prince Jayce Talis is the perfect representation of masculinity and beauty.
Prince Jayce Talis, Viktor realizes in an instant as Jayce exhales, is also drunk as a skunk at the moment.
"I had a question," Jayce says, his breath smelling of the too sweet cocktails that Viktor tried to convince Jinx were unnecessary, "a very important one too!"
"Do, please, enlighten me about that very important question of yours then, your highness." Viktor speaks through gritted teeth, smiling politely and nodding as the minister of finances passes him by with her husband, both of them headed to the buffet. "If it brought you to me of all people, it is sure to be riveting."
Jayce's grip on his shoulder becomes tighter, not quite bruising but it won't take much more; Viktor's skin marks easily.
"I was wondering if you were born with that stick up your ass or if that was the result of an intervention? Even President Silco seems to understand what a party is."
Viktor goes rigid underneath Jayce's hand, although he doesn't expect the drunk man to notice. A thousand options rush through his mind as to what Jayce is alluding. Does he know about Viktor's top surgery? Does he know that Viktor is trans? It's impossible. When Silco had officially adopted Viktor, he had created a whole new identity for him. Perhaps some informant of Piltover's Princes has spoken with Viktor's doctors? But why? It makes no sense.
So perhaps it is a mockery of Viktor's poor health. The surgical interventions that Viktor has gone through in the last few years have been somewhat publicized, as he is the son of the president, but he isn't Jinx or Violet, he doesn't have as much attention on him than them. Still, it must be that. There is only that option that makes sense.
"I see you have poor tastes as usual," Viktor answers icily and moves so he is out of Jayce's grip. "I would suggest you keep your jests to yourself from now on."
Jayce laughs brightly, attracting attention, and Viktor sees Vi, talking to a woman that Viktor can't quite identify from so far, turn her head towards them. Her eyebrows furrow as she sees the two of them and he does his best to convey to her that he needs rescuing. He isn't quite sure how successful he is, considering she merely grabs her flute of champagne as she turns to the woman with her.
"Come on," Jayce laughs still and he lurches forward to try to grab Viktor's wrist as he is moving forward. "You can at least talk to me for a second!"
Sober Jayce is very apt and capable, his body a precise machine that speaks of perfection. Drunk Jayce? Viktor realizes barely a second before the catastrophe happens that it will happen.
Jayce's fingers do not close around his wrist. They close around the handle of his cane. In his inebriated state, Jayce doesn't realize it is not flesh he has captured, but wood, and he gives a tug. Not harsh, nothing that would hurt if it were an arm he had caught, but Viktor's cane is much less resistant to exterior forces than its owner. So Jayce tugs, the cane flies backward, hitting a piece of furniture as Jayce realizes his error and tries to rectify it. An odd sound echoes in Viktor's ears as he starts falling, his own forward movement suddenly unsupported and his body abandoning all hopes of staying upright. Eyes turn to them as Jayce's arm extends to catch him before he falls completely. The beating of his heart is unbearably loud as Viktor flails back, pain lancing through his whole body. His elbow connects with the soft flesh of Jayce's body and the man's hold on his waist tightens as the two of them fall backwards. Viktor feels himself being lifted from the ground and another arm wraps itself around him, plastering him against Jayce as they hit the ground. Viktor only feels the shock of it as it reverberates through Jayce's body. He barely has the time to move away from Jayce that he understands what the odd sound was: his cane hitting one of the legs of the table that bears the absolutely decadent wedding cake Jinx had insisted on. Unfortunately, he realizes that as the cake is towering over him, more than halfway into its glorious fall.
The next thing Viktor knows, he is covered in cake in front of an assortment of powerful people, as well as his family, and he hears the clicks of cameras going off. Wonderful.
"We sent you along with Caitlyn because you were meant to be a positive influence," Cassandra's voice is stern, not yet angry but Jayce knows that it's only a matter of public versus private audience. "Instead, you ridiculed your country and assaulted a disabled man who happens to be the only son of the President of Zaun. Would you care to explain how that happened?"
Standing in front of the Council of Princes, Jayce feels himself shrink ever so slightly. Technically, he has a seat next to all of them, but his position is still precarious and new: his mother is the one to fill the position while he learns the political trade. It was his father's seat, and while it is not always hereditary, the Council had voted that it should remain in the Talis family if they so wished it. Three years ago, when Jayce's father had passed, his mother had taken the seat while he finished his degree. Now, he has been inducted officially. He shouldn't be standing there, in the middle, being scolded like a child. And yet...
"I didn't assault him," Jayce protests. "I was trying to stop him from falling!"
"After snatching his cane away from him," Prince Salo says, full of disdain. Jayce and him have the tense relationship of people who cannot hate each other publicly and yet struggle to hide it. "It's a bad look to attack the favorite cripple of Zaun."
Jayce bristles at Salo's choice of words and is about to say something when Prince Mel cuts in. Of the Council of Princes, she is the only one that Jayce truly has fondness for. She is the only one who sat him down and told him he could refuse the position if he wished to.
"I would advise against this language, Prince Salo," Mel says pleasantly, charming smile hiding her sharpness. "It would do you very little good to keep speaking in this manner of Dr. Tajemný when he is a very well regarded figure in his country as well as in the academic community, including in Piltover. He is set to be the guest speaker of a conference in Piltover in six months, which has been put on hold due to the unfortunate event at the wedding. His absence from the conference would surely cost the city and the university quite a fair amount of money and traffic."
At that, Jayce startles. Viktor will not be coming to the Innovator's Conference? Because of the misunderstanding at the wedding?
"I'm sure Viktor will want to come," Prince Heimerdinger says, affable as he taps the table. Next to him, his dog looks up briefly before settling back down. "He was quite enthused at the prospect of being the guest speaker!"
"The communication from the Presidential House of Zaun says otherwise," Mel says as she clicks on her tablet, sending a video to the main projector in the room. On it, a young woman with brown skin and curly hair is addressing journalists and Viktor is standing a few feet behind her, his sisters by his side. Underneath, a red band informs Jayce that the participation of the President's son in any upcoming events is now unsure due to 'health concerns'.
"Did I injure him?" Jayce can't help but ask, guilt eating at him. He had done his best in the moment to catch Viktor in his arms in order to avoid the man being hurt upon falling, but maybe he didn't catch him properly?
"That's likely the only way they could phrase 'our president is beyond pissed that his son was harmed during his daughter's wedding and has now decided to forbid him from going out of the country ever again'," Mel says, a hint of sympathy in her voice. "Dr. Tajemný's health is complicated at the best of times."
"Whatever you intended," Cassandra says as she turns back to Jayce, her eyes piercing. He has never felt so small than in this moment. "It could now become a rather untimely setback for our nation. You must fix it."
Jayce would love to be able to do so. However, when he had tried reaching out to Viktor for an apology in the plane that morning, his university assistant had informed him quite sternly that, if he wished to speak to the President's son, he would have to go through the presidential channels, and not the academic route.
"Luckily for us," Mel says and taps something else on her tablet, showing an email she received on the large screen. "The President's husband appears to be trying to salvage our nations' collaboration and friendship."
Unease spreads through the room as Mel speaks of friendship between Zaun and Piltover. The last skirmishes between Piltover's Enforcers and Zaun's own militia are only from fifteen years ago.
Pushing past the clear discomfort of Salo and Hoskel, Jayce quickly reads the email Vander sent on behalf of his family and his husband's administration. In it, he talks of fortifying the bond between their nations, of reforging what has been damaged during the ceremony. It's strangely poetic, Jayce has to admit. From what he knows of President Silco's husband, the man used to be a boxing champion who retired to open a bar. None of these activities really scream diplomat or poet, but who is he to judge?
"So, Prince Jayce, you'll be flying back to Zaun immediately."
Mel's voice brings him out of his reverie. Wait, what?
At his clear bemusement, Mel hides a slight smile. A few paces behind her, he sees her assistant shuffle a few pieces of paper and start slowly making her way to her.
"I've arranged with Mr. Vander that you would be welcomed by Doctor Tajemný for the next two days. You'll be expected to give a few statements to the press, do a visit at a charity of their choosing, and hold yourself to the proper standard of what a Prince of Piltover really is. Is that clear?"
Small interjections come through from other members of the Council, but Jayce keeps his eyes on Mel. Out of the eight of them, she's the one who is the most adept at handling media and solving any kind of crisis. In her eyes, he reads the command of a Prince of Piltover, but beyond that he sees a friend trying to help him right his wrongs.
Finally, he turns his eyes around the room and meets his mother's eyes. Officially, Ximena Talis is not a Prince, not when he is the one with the title, but she acts in his name and represents him for most events; he has only started attending events again as Prince Jayce in the last few months. The first couple of months after his father had passed, when he had tried to juggle his education, the shroud of grief of his father's passing, and the position of Prince had been... disastrous does not begin to cover the reality of it.
His mother's hands are crossed on the table, her greying hair left out of the usual chignon she favors, replaced by a long braid that hangs over her left shoulder. She is calm, keeping her thoughts to herself, but she nods to him, imperceptible to anyone who was not raised by the woman. Jayce would know the very tremor of her hands.
"Very clear, Prince Medarda," Jayce finally answers and lowers his head.
Three hours later, Jayce is seated in a plane to Zaun looking through a file on Viktor Tajemný. Next to him, Dipti, his security officer, personal assistant and overall close friend, is biting into a sandwich, the sauce threatening to flee from the confines of its breaded prison. Wordlessly, he extends her a napkin before turning back to the file.
He knows of Viktor's background enough, especially when it comes to his academic career, but the personal things he is discovering entirely.
"He has a cat named Blitz?" Jayce asks, turning to Dipti. "Who names a cat 'Blitz'?"
Dipti half glares at him. "The son of the President of Zaun, that's who. And you know my cats are named Nappa and Livy."
"They are a special case," Jayce says with a grin. "Your cats are adorable."
Dipti gives in and smiles too, dropping the false outrage. "They really are. You want to see some pictures?"
As he coos over the pictures of Dipti's feline companions, he runs his mind through what he has learned of Viktor. Orphan of unknown origin, he was taken in by Vander and Silco when he was ten, officially adopted when he was fourteen, and has since lived as private of a life as possible. His two sisters, Powder and Violet, came in when he was sixteen, with Violet being eight years younger than him and Powder ten years younger. From the complicated family history, he knows that this late adoption was the result of the girls' parents having died in one of the last riots that had agitated Zaun fifteen years prior. The young woman whose wedding he had attended comes back to the forefront of his mind as Dee starts quizzing him on the file. Blue-haired, bright smile, dancing with her husband and then each of her fathers, exulting so much joy he could not have guessed that she had been the witness of a tragedy such as the Zaun riots. Bile rises in his throat as he realizes that this was also the last time Piltover's Enforcers set foot in Zaun. He should probably brush up on the history of their countries before landing.
Zaun is dark by the time Jayce lands. The time difference is slight, only an hour, but everything has been such a whirlwind that day that Jayce feels that hour settle into his bones. The last time he slept properly was before the wedding, which was technically the day before today. He had a short nap in the plane back to Piltover that morning, but that only managed to help him get rid of his hangover.
As he exits the plane, a man he guesses is about his age is waiting for them. He looks relaxed enough, not wearing a proper uniform, and Jayce can see piercings on his ears and lips, as well as tattoos on the hints of alabaster skin peeking through his black t-shirt. He has a wild mess of black hair and blue eyes that are a little too aware for Jayce's comfort. Next to him, Dee gives a low whistle.
"Well that's a nice piece of cake," she mutters. "Where was he when you were making a fool of yourself?"
Jayce elbows her lightly and she grins. The man's lips twitch in a smile and Jayce has a feeling he heard everything Dipti said.
"Prince Jayce Talis?" The man has the same accent as Viktor does. It's the first thing that really surprises him. Viktor's accent is one that Jayce has found remarkably unique ever since their first meeting three years ago. The man's voice isn't as charming as Viktor's but -- "Follow me please."
Jayce starts walking as Dee calls out a few orders for the rest of the security force assigned to Jayce. He gets to the man's level and is a little satisfied to find that he is taller than this stranger.
"Wasn't Viktor supposed to be welcoming me here, for the press or something?"
The man barely spares him a glance. "Doctor Tajemný is not as keen on media appearances as you are, your Highness. He is waiting inside the car."
Jayce wants to rebuke the statement on media appearances, but the truth is that in the last couple of months, the Council has insisted he indulges the press more, that he gives a few interviews and appears at multiple events. It's exhausting, but it is part of the position of Prince.
"So, who are you?" Jayce asks instead. "I've never seen you before."
"My name is Willem, your highness. I am Dr. Tajemný's personal secretary."
The introduction only begets more questions, as does the lack of visible security for Viktor, but they are in front of a sleek black car by then and Willem opens the door. Inside, Viktor is sitting with his back straight and his face forward, not even sparing a glance at Jayce. His right leg is encased in a thick, impractical looking brace, and his torso also sports one, much more aesthetically pleasing than the one on his leg, but still medical. Jayce is a little surprised to see the brace over Viktor’s clothing, but then he spots a sweater neatly folded over Viktor’s lap and he realizes that the man must have taken it off during the ride over.
“Good evening,” Viktor says evenly, but his eyes do not turn to Jayce. “I trust your flight was satisfactory.”
Jayce sits and nods wordlessly. Should he apologize now? He probably should. Why aren’t the words coming to him ? He feels utterly stupid.
“Prince Jayce,” Dipti leans in, her hand pressing on his shoulder reassuringly. “I’ll be in the car behind yours. If there is anything you require during the short trip to the Presidential House, don’t hesitate to text me or ask Willem.”
Once that is said, she closes the door and Willem slides into the passenger seat at the front. The car rumbles as it starts, and they are on the road. Jayce’s tongue stays tied the whole way through, anxiety ricketing through him as the silence between Viktor and himself grows exponentially.
Viktor is going to murder Vander. Why would he reach out to Piltover’s Council of Princes in order to smooth this over? In a matter of weeks, if not days, it would have been forgotten. Viktor doesn’t exactly matter when it comes to the political situation of Zaun, and Silco wouldn’t have had the last word on whether Viktor went to Piltover’s Innovator’s Conference. Viktor is a well-known researcher and professor, he is thirty-one, he does not require his father’s approval on whether he can leave the country or not!
“So you have said for the past twenty minutes,” Violet says as she lounges on Viktor's couch, eating a few candies that she found only she knows where. They have never been a household keen on keeping sweets, and certainly not ones from Piltover as Vi is currently snacking on. "Yet when Silco said you wouldn't go to Piltover until the Piltie Prince had apologized, you said nothing."
Viktor hates when his sister is right. He misses Jinx brightly in this moment; his youngest sibling would surely already be plotting revenge on Jayce. Unfortunately, they have left for their honeymoon with Ekko. She did tell him that she would ruin the prince's reputation, but Viktor had told them it wasn't necessary. Jayce had done that enough on his own.
"But why did Vander have to suggest something like this?" Viktor whines. It's unbecoming of a man his age; he doesn't really care. "Hosting that arrogant prick! Showing him around! I have more important things that require my attention."
"He wants the best for you, which is going to the conference, and also wants to protect the alliance and peace with Piltover." His sister's answer is one she is echoing back from Silco's earlier speech when he had lectured Viktor regarding his behavior at the wedding celebration.
"I knew you were eavesdropping."
She shrugs. "Jinx wanted to know how the situation would turn out. Didn't want to let them find out through the papers."
"She would have murdered us both if that had been the case," Viktor mutters and finally comes to sit next to Vi on the couch. He steals a few candies from her bag, wrinkles his nose as the artificial sweetness settles on his teeth. "Why are you even here?"
"You aren't going to believe me if I say moral support, isn't it?"
"It's eleven at night, we are well past when you would willingly offer moral support."
She groans and tilts her head against the back cushions. She looks painfully young in this moment, all of her twenty-three years exposed as she hesitates over her words. How he adores her, his brash, loud and confident little sister who used to wake him up when she had nightmares.
"Your prince-"
"He is not my anything."
"Whatever," Vi rolls her eyes. "He came to the wedding with a woman. I was talking with her at the reception before the whole... cake incident."
"Are you telling me you are interested in the prince's girlfriend?"
Vi grabs a cushion and hits him with it, careful of how much strength she puts into it. He laughs a little, her reaction amusing him greatly. It's always fun for him to tease his sister about her crushes.
"No you dimwit! She isn't his girlfriend. Her name's Caitlyn. She's the daughter of another one of the Princes of Piltover."
"And?"
"I didn't get her number before you went cake hunting," she sighs. "And I don't want to get it in a creepy way."
"So you want me to ask Prince Jayce if he potentially has the number of that young woman? Much less creepy."
She hits him again and he wheezes this time, the cushion catching on his back brace. He hadn't had time to remove it before Vi barged into his room.
"I'll see what I can do," he promises after a few more minutes of teasing. "I can't guarantee anything, considering he didn't speak to me a single time in the twenty minutes that it took us to drive back here, but I can at least try."
And if he doesn't want to give it to me or anything, I'll get Silco to find it, he adds mentally. Even if he is royally annoyed with his adoptive father, Viktor can at least do that for his sister.
Violet stays a little longer and they talk about Jayce, about all the public work Viktor has to do over the next two days, about Jinx's absence from their house. When she finally leaves, Viktor turns back to the file he has gotten on Prince Jayce Talis. Charming, beloved by the population of Piltover, a recent doctorate of Mechanical Engineering at Piltover's Academy... Before Silco had been elected, Viktor had seen his name float around, a promising academic with a bright career ahead. There is a small note about an injury three years ago, shortly after he had become a Prince, but there isn't much more beyond "knee reconstruction surgery". The internet is not much more helpful, although a few websites have entertaining theories as to what happened to the young Prince. He had been absent from all and any public appearances for about a month and when he came back, he had sported an injury to his left knee and had taken a year to walk properly once again. Viktor vaguely remembers mentions of that, but that had been during his first year teaching at Zaun's Institute. He had been quite absent from the political scene then. It intrigues him that there isn't much that is known however. The other Princes of Piltover have most of their personal lives splayed out in the various rags that are considered as news, even here in Zaun. Out of the eight, only Prince Jayce Talis and Prince Mel Medarda have a modicum of private life.
The injury does make Viktor wonder whether his reaction to Jayce's words was a little too strong. After all, if Jayce was drunk, perhaps he did not notice what he was saying? Of course, by then, Jayce should have apologized, so that renders the whole point moot. But Viktor replays the small video that Willem had compiled for him, in which Jayce interacts with a bunch of teenagers at his family's forge. It's a little too endearing, without talking about how Jayce's open shirt lets his chest hair peek through and his well-cared for muscles breathe, for Viktor to maintain the same level of annoyance at Jayce that he has had for the past day and a half.
"You'll stand on Doctor Tajemný's left," Viktor hears Willem instruct as he escorts Jayce to the place where the interview will happen. Vander was the one to select the journalist for this, and while Viktor hates every bit of this, he at least trusts that his father chose the right person. At the moment he is still sitting on one of the many benches that are scattered throughout the large park that is generously called "gardens" for the Presidential House. The photographer is still setting up for the first official photo, although Viktor knows that they will be taking a few candids throughout the interview itself. When he looks up from the book he was annotating, he almost chokes on the breath he was taking in.
Jayce is gorgeous. He has chosen to wear a white shirt with a deep burgundy coat and simple jeans, which should not be as effective as it is in making Viktor's insides flutter. He has always been weak to a well dressed man. There is the shadow of a beard on Jayce's face too, dark and inviting. He can't help but wonder if it would be tough underneath his fingertips.
"Good morning, your highness." Viktor stands up and hands his book to one of the assistants around him. He leans onto his cane and extends his left hand to Jayce, polite smile in place. "Have you slept well?"
Jayce looks a little out of it as he takes Viktor's offered hand in his own and shakes it. His eyes dart to the reporter, who is already looking towards them, and he takes a step forward, bringing himself closer to Viktor.
"I wanted to speak to you about-"
Jayce's whisper is interrupted by the loud click of the camera. Viktor only has to give Willem a look that he is already heading to the photographer. It's one of the few pleasures that his position as the First Son of Zaun brings him.
He turns his attention to Jayce once more. The man looks a little wild eyed now, attention flickering between the journalist and Viktor relentlessly.
"You were saying?" Viktor prompts, in the same hushed whisper. He can extend that grace to Jayce at the very least.
"I meant to apologize yesterday," Jayce says as Willem instructs the photographer to delete the picture. He is purposefully drawing attention to himself for this and Viktor has never be more grateful for his friend than at this very moment, as Jayce's other hand comes to rest on the one he is already holding. "I was drunk at the reception and behaved poorly. I shouldn't have said what I did, it was shitty and uncalled for. Of course you don't have to forgive me, but I would appreciate it if we could be at the very last civil to one another during my stay. I truly did not meant any offense and yet caused it. I acted stupidly."
Viktor nods, keeping to himself the way Jayce's earnest words are affecting him. It's rare nowadays that people can truly get to him, but he hadn't realized how heavily the thought that Jayce had been intentionally cruel had weighed him down.
"I can do civil," he affirms, and removes his hand from the hold it is in. "Your highness."
Jayce's answering smile is blinding.
The interview goes well. Jayce is clearly at ease with the press, although Viktor comes to his rescue a handful of times. It is strange, how easily Viktor can pretend he knows Jayce. He knows the man's favorite board game, knows about the music he listens to, and Jayce knows those things about him as well. Still, it remains pretending. Viktor doesn't know anything of substance about Jayce. He wonders if he ever will.
That afternoon, Viktor takes Jayce to the Zaun Education and Health Center. He’s sure Jayce must have read in his file that he was one of the driving forces behind the creation of it, especially of the charity that shepherds it. He remembers all too well the hungry winters when his mother could barely afford to feed the both of them after his father’s passing, the days he spent scavenging instead of going to school. He refuses to let any other child go through what he did.
It surprises him how easily Jayce blends in with the children there. They all distrust him at first, wary of this Prince of Piltover that walks their halls, but Viktor sees how Jayce allows them to question him, how he lets the youngest ones climb over his shoulders once he sits down. If Jayce had had any younger siblings, Viktor knows he would have been the favourite babysitter. His file only mentioned a closeness to Caitlyn Kiramman, a pseudo-sister.
“Who’s your friend?” Tanya, a twelve-years old girl Viktor has taken to tutoring in maths whenever he has the time, asks. She is sitting next to him, looking at Jayce with clear distrust. He doesn’t blame her for that: she never got to meet her older brother because of Piltover’s Enforcers. He doesn’t doubt her parents made sure she knew not to trust anyone from Piltover.
He takes a moment to answer, correcting a few of the exercises she worked on since their last meeting. He has her doing exercise far above her age range and she takes to it with ease. It is quite satisfying to see her thrive this way.
“His name is Jayce Talis, and he is a Prince of Piltover. You knew that already.” He finally looks at her and chuckles as her nose is wrinkled in annoyance. “Why don’t you ask what you want to ask?”
“Why are you friends with him?”
For a second, Viktor debates answering honestly. He wants to believe she wouldn’t say anything to anyone if he told her they weren’t really friends, but she is too young for that kind of responsibility. She is a child and even if the whole charade is exhausting, it would not be fair to expect a girl her age to understand the delicate balance that Jayce and Viktor are helping weave between their countries.
“Prince Jayce is a scientist much like I am,” he says, relying on a truth to keep his guard up. “Quite a brilliant one too. I understand that it is difficult for you to imagine that I could be friends with someone from Piltover, but you cannot lump all of them in the same bag, although it is very tempting. I choose to believe that Jayce would not stand for what happened in the past. That is enough to give me hope and to allow me to be his friend.”
So what if he is not entirely honest on that last part? From the little Viktor had read on the previous Prince Talis of Piltover, he knows they have a reputation for advocating for peace. Prince Arturio Talis was one of the strongest voices against the conflict between Piltover and Zaun in his youth. Viktor wonders if Silco had ever met with him, back in his revolutionary days. Although, perhaps it would have been Vander who would have met with anyone from Piltover.
It is not a total lie to say that Viktor hopes in any regard. He doesn’t know the man who is currently reading a story to a captive audience, head adorned by a plastic flower crown that a small boy gave him before hiding behind one of the volunteers. No matters how many files on Jayce Talis and his life Viktor reads, it doesn’t replace a real conversation, a proper introduction. Viktor wants to believe that Jayce is a better person than he has thought for the past three years.
“People say he kicked you to the ground,” Tanya points out. “Is it true?”
Viktor shrugs. “Not really. We fell and he caught me. It wasn’t anyone’s fault, besides gravity’s I suppose.”
Tanya looks at him curiously for a few seconds, before shrugging and turning back to the exercises he is correcting. Across the room, Jayce meets Viktor’s eyes and smiles cautiously. Viktor hates the way it makes warmth bloom in his chest.
“You’re quite good with the children,” Viktor compliments Jayce as they are walking out of the center. “I did not expect you to accept to be a tree to be climbed upon.”
Jayce smiles, easy and wide. He has a feeling Viktor’s compliments are not a common occurence, nor is it easy to surprise him. It is surprisingly gratifying to manage both in one statement. He is about to answer, to compliment Viktor back, when a loud noise resonates through the hallway. Suddenly, Jayce is shoved into a closet, Viktor with him, and it’s all he can do to catch the man before he is hurled against the back wall.
There is an uncomfortable shuffle as Jayce tries to help Viktor get situated properly and the man slaps his hands away. Jayce slides to the ground, sighing as he notices how little space there is between the two of them. His left knee twinges slightly, as it always does whenever it is disrupted. Next to him, Viktor hisses in pain as he lowers himself to the ground too, fingers clutching tightly at his cane. The silence grows between the two of them and Jayce hesitates for barely a second before the heaviness of it forces the words out of his mouth.
“Why do you hate me?”
Viktor looks at him, apparently startled. His eyes, those two golden irises that have been the bane of Jayce’s recent public appearances when it comes to relationships with Zaun, are wide.
“I do not hate you,” Viktor says, measured. “I was under the impression that you hated me.”
“Why would you even think that?” Jayce knows his voice is high pitched and he blushes, hopes that the dim light of the closet will cover his darkening cheeks. “I don’t hate you!”
Viktor’s gaze is curious now, searching for something in Jayce’s face. A lie, perhaps. He won’t find any. Jayce has always been relentlessly curious about Viktor, but each of his attempts at friendliness have been met with coldness and a well-established distance. They have had a few arguments since their first official meetings, but nothing that Jayce had ever thought could be mistaken as hate. He had thought he was quite evident, at least in the beginning, with how eager he was to speak to a fellow academic.
“Your highness,” Viktor says in the same tone as before, voice firm and yet kind. “The first time we met, we spoke for barely a minute before you turned to your guard and told her you needed to get away. I had barely finished introducing myself. I am sorry if you do not see how that could be misunderstood as you disliking me on sight.”
Jayce flushes, embarrassed at the reminder. The first time he met Viktor was on the first evening of a conference on biomechanics, a subject he had a passing interest in at the time, and Viktor had been scheduled on a panel the next day. They hadn’t met as scientists however; Jayce is quite certain it would have gone better if they had. It was barely three weeks after his father’s passing and he had just been announced as the new Prince of Piltover. Jayce had gone to that conference not as the doctorate student he was but as the new Prince. It was just a bonus that he was interested in the topic.
That evening had been entirely too difficult for Jayce. The few people he had talked to had all wanted to speak of politics, or of his father’s passing, and his skin had been crawling with the need to run, run, run. And then they had gotten to Viktor. Viktor, who was there as a newly graduated doctor in bioengineering, not as the son of the President of Zaun. Viktor who, when he had met Jayce, had simply extended his hand and introduced himself as Dr. Tajemný and had asked what he thought of the conference so far.
Viktor’s golden attention had been entirely too much for Jayce to handle. He had turned to Dipti and told her he needed to leave. Shame and guilt flood him as he realizes that his whole relationship with Viktor has been built on this one misunderstanding. He wonders if they would be friends now if Jayce had been a little less of a mess back then. He hopes he can still mend it.
“I didn’t say that I needed to get away,” Jayce finally corrects, voice as soft as he can make it. “I told Dee I couldn’t do this. My father had passed a few weeks before and the Council had strongly recommended I attend the conference… I am sorry that I was rude to you however. I did not think you had heard that.”
For a few more seconds, there is silence between them. It bears the heaviness of the confession, the delicate middle ground they have found hovering as Viktor formulates his answer. His breathing is even and slow, reassuring to Jayce as the anxiety of the confined space starts to creep up on him. Jayce follows the pattern of it to keep the worst of the panic away. He knows the tremor in his leg must give him away, but he can at least attempt to control parts of it.
Viktor’s hand lands on Jayce’s thigh, a weight not entirely unwelcome. “I did not realize that your father’s passing was so close to the conference. I should not have taken offense so easily. I was just… I suppose I was eager to speak with you that evening. You had navigated the attention of your country for years and Silco had just gotten elected and… I suppose I was looking for a friendly face.”
The explanation makes pain bloom brighter in Jayce’s chest. He puts his hand over Viktor’s and squeezes gently, surprised at how soft the skin beneath his own is. He doesn’t know if the words will find him, the ones that would make the pain that is so evident in Viktor’s voice go away, but he thinks he owes it to him to try.
“If it is of any consolation, I doubt I would have been of very good advice. My father constantly berated me for how little I cared about what would be my seat once he retired, and my mother was constantly worried sick that I would forget myself in my studies. Though, I suppose that she wasn't entirely wrong on that point; I had a tendency to work myself to the bone when I believed in a project."
"Had?"
At Viktor's gentle interjection, Jayce sighs and nods. "I haven't been able to work on any of my projects in months. I'm gearing up to be a proper Prince."
A thoughtful noise escapes his companion and Jayce turns to look at him, wanting to inquire about it, but the door opens then. Light floods the tight space and Jayce sees Dipti's amused expression and notices her molding it into a more serious one. He knows he is about to be teased within an inch of his life as soon as they are alone.
"Sorry for the manhandling, sir." She directs the words to Viktor, genuinely apologetic. "We feared a gunshot."
"I understood," Viktor says graciously, although Jayce can see the pain settling in as he attempts to stand up once again. "I assume it was not so?"
"Just one of the children with a firecracker. It's been handled."
"What does that mean?" Jayce stands up and turns to Viktor, hauling the man to his feet as delicately as possible. The other man is heavier than Jayce had realized before, with such a small frame, but it feels right somehow, to hold him and to have his body be a real weight again. Less like he's hanging onto an image of a person.
"I assume it means the firecracker has been put in some water and the offender has been reprimanded," Viktor answers for Dee. "Hopefully nothing more severe. It happens quite often around here."
"Willem's lack of surprise and reaction makes sense then," Dee says as she steps aside to let them pass.
Jayce listens to the conversation happening around him with vague curiosity. His hand lingers on Viktor's back, afraid that the man will tumble to the ground. He favours his left leg quite strongly, his grip on his cane tight enough that his knuckles are fully white, and his brows are furrowed. Still, he is gracious and gentle in his words, his pace not faltering despite the obvious strain.
Willem joins them after a minute and clearly comes to the same conclusion as Jayce. He opens his briefcase and takes out a bottle of pills, extending two to Viktor, and then gives him a small bottle of a red juice - it takes a moment for Jayce to see the label of cherry juice. Viktor takes both without a word, swallowing his pills before drinking the sweet juice. It leaves a red residue on his lips, making his pale skin all the more delicate, almost porcelain in comparison to the new brightness of his lips.
"Your highness?" Viktor looks at him, tilting his head patiently, and Jayce forces himself to run through the last few moments of the conversation. They are reaching the front door of the center and Viktor had just warned him about reporters that would be waiting there, before asking if he was feeling alright. Shit.
"Just fine," Jayce answers with an easy smile. "Your left, yeah?"
He doesn't have to move to be on Viktor's left. He simply retracts his hand from the man's lower back, fighting the blush that forms on his cheeks at not having let go throughout their walk, and steps a little closer. Viktor straightens up a little, their height difference lessening, but Jayce wants to object to it when he sees how strained Viktor's face becomes at the moment. He keeps his mouth shut. It isn't his place to worry about a Viktor's health and if anyone said anything to him when his knee causes him issues, Jayce knows he would probably snap at them. He would rather keep the gentle peace they seem to have reached. The very idea of returning to that hostile coldness makes his stomach twists.
When they step in front of the cameras, Viktor plasters a smile on his face, professional and well-trained. It doesn't look very natural on his face, simply because his eyes betray his desire to be anywhere else, but Jayce knows his own charisma can cover for both of them. He places his arm around Viktor's shoulders, feeling him stiffen slightly, and smiles broadly as they move through the crowd, back to the cars that brought them here. Behind them, Dee snorts.
Jayce next hears from the First Son of Zaun three weeks later, while he is in the middle of a meeting with Princes Mel and Shoola. It comes in the form of a text.
From: Unknown Number
Your article on the resonance of the hex crystals and their potential impact on clean energy was very interesting. I plan to discuss it with some students. Have you continued your research at all?
From: Unknown Number
I forgot to say: this is Dr. Viktor Tajemný.
Jayce stares at his phone for a moment, a little shell shocked at the fact that Viktor texted him. If anything, he was expecting perhaps an email. For some reason, Viktor had not struck him as someone who would text much. He is quite happy to be proven wrong.
"Jayce?" Mel interjects. "Are we boring you?"
The truth is that yes, Jayce is endlessly bored by this meeting. They are discussing how to best allocate the funds for the construction of the new dock and what will be necessary or not. The project hasn't yet left the Council chambers, no contractors have been reached out to, so it is purely a speculation. Jayce has never loved the theoretical part of anything: let him build and break, experiment until the formulas become concrete moments. At least when it comes to mathematics, he was interested enough to force himself to learn the formulas, but here, in the world of economics and politics, he found no interest to push himself through it.
"Of course not," he lies with an easy smile. "Personal matters, my apologies."
Mel's eyes flicker to his phone as he flips it so that the screen will be against the table. She looks at him suspiciously then, her eyes narrowing slightly, but she doesn't say anything.
Thirty minutes later, when she calls the meeting off, she stops him from leaving with a gentle hand on his shoulder.
"Are you alright, Jayce?"
He is grateful for Mel's presence in the council, for her steady guidance, for her friendship. Even before his father's passing, she had always been kind and interested herself to his studies. Embarrassingly enough, before his ascension to his seat on the Council of Princes, he had harbored a crush on the woman. It had fizzled out naturally and she had never said anything about his obvious attraction to her, something else to add to the list of things for which he is grateful.
"Just fine," he says again. He doesn't quite know why he doesn't want to tell her that Viktor texted him. It's too delicate, perhaps? He wants to explore this potential friendship on his own. "Sorry for being distracted."
She waves off the apology. "It was a gambit to get you to sit on this anyway. You should see with Cecil if he could take you with him on his project of expansion for the Academy. It will at least be closer to your interests."
A protest dies on his tongue as he realizes the kindness Mel is extending to him once more. She knows he would have never chosen politics, knows that he is much more at home in a lab tinkering. He wonders regularly if she regrets that he did not take her offer to refuse the seat. He knows he does.
"Thank you," he says instead. "But I would like to see this project through, to be able to tackle a full project as a Prince rather than bits every so often."
She smiles, her gold makeup scintillating against her black skin as she leans over to her own side of the table. She grabs a file there, thick and full to the brim with papers.
"Then get to reading," she tells him, the dismissal clear in her voice. "We'll meet again in a week, but feel free to contact me if you have any question. And don't forget Salo's gala at the end of the week."
After assuring her of his presence there, he fishes his phone out of his pocket, balancing it precariously on top of the heavy file in his arms. Viktor's messages are still there, not an hallucination despite how surreal it feels. He has Viktor's number now. He can text Viktor. He does so immediately after reaching his own office and dropping the file on his desk.
To : Viktor
Hi Viktor :) Glad you found it interesting!! I haven't had much time to work on it lately, but I still have my old notebooks and will sometimes read them over !! Kind of makes me feel homesick for the sciences lol. Let me know what your students thought! Also, how did you get my number??
From : Viktor
Ekko works with the secret service.
To : Viktor
Wait really?? I didn't know that!
From : Viktor
Yes, there is a reason it is the secret service, your highness.
To : Viktor
Haha, very funny. That's very cool! Your sister and him are back from their honeymoon then?
From : Viktor
They came back three days ago. They were very happy with their adventures. Though, my sister has taken to speak in a terrible Demacian accent whenever she is with me or our other sister. I believe she is trying to drive me insane very slowly.
To : Viktor
Isn't that what little sisters are for?
From : Viktor
I assume the young miss Kiramman and yourself have a similar relationship then?
Something in the back of his mind whispers to him that he should be careful, that it's a dangerous thing to be talking so much with Viktor, to let him in on Jayce's life like this. But Viktor is in Zaun, a world apart, and Jayce is starting to think Viktor understands much more than he would have ever thought. And really, what is the harm in all this? Their nations aren’t at war and they are, quite publicly, supposed to be friends. If he actually manages to befriend Viktor, it can only be beneficial, even if Viktor has no interest in politics directly.
To : Viktor
Cait forced me to come train with her when she wanted to be an enforcer and she kept kicking my ass repeatedly. I've never been so sore as those three months!!
From : Viktor
An enforcer uh?
Shit. Jayce can only guess that Viktor and his family aren't fond of Piltover's enforcers. Not that Jayce is very fond of them either; back when he had been an undergrad at the Academy, he had nearly been exiled after a failed experiment. It had been Prince Mel's kindness that had saved him, as his own father had not been allowed to vote on the matter. Jayce had had bruises on his body for days from the strength with which the enforcers had grabbed him.
To : Viktor
When she told me about switching to a more humane career, I've never been quite so glad, beyond for my own physical health tbh. It was a silly childhood dream of hers and her mother's opposition to it only made her double down on it harder...
That is definitely too much information that Jayce should not be sharing. It's not like Caitlyn would be upset with him for it, but Cassandra definitely would. Although, he rationalises as he bites his lower lip and waits for an answer, he perhaps doesn't care as much as he used to for Cassandra's opinion.
From : Viktor
Jinx wanted to "blow things up" as a child, so I understand your relief. Although, I am not quite sure we are out of danger on that one...
Jayce laughs, relieved, and picks up the file Mel gave him, starting his reading as he answered Viktor. He hopes this is the start of a proper friendship.