The Scientist's Strings

I've always seen them, the golden strings that connect people. Some are thin and dim, others are almost blindingly bright. They can lead from almost anywhere to—well, almost anywhere else.

Whether it was a dim string from one man's fist to another's face—there were a lot of those down at The Last Drop—or a beautiful, constantly winding one wrapped around two people destined for love, they were all perfectly visible to me.

I've asked others about it many times, but it seems they're only visible to me. I like to think of it as my own special "gift". Like the world and all its inhabitants are all wrapped up in a spectacularly woven present, just for me.

"Uh, you alright kid?" My vision suddenly cleared as I was pulled from the confines of my mind, allowing me to see the man standing before me once again.

So I wasn't seeing things, huh.

He was. . . should I say beautiful?

Thousands of strings stretched from the man, sparkling a dazzling light that made the very air around him appear as though it were a tapestry. I was honestly a little jealous.

I coughed a bit to clear both my throat and the awkward atmosphere, "Yeah, sorry. What can I help you with, sir?" He raised an eyebrow at my words.

What's his deal?

"I was just wondering if this shop sells to 'topsiders'," he made a gesture to the building right behind me.

The emphasis he put on the word "topsiders" showed his clear distaste for it. Now that I look at him, his clothes are a bit too clean for him to be from around here. 

"Yes, sir. Our trinkets are just as good as anything you'd find in Piltover." I bowed and put a hand out towards the shop, "Please, come in."

I ran to hold the door open, which landed me behind him, a good position to signal to my friend behind the counter. Everyone calls him Little Man, but he was my best friend so I had the privilege of shortening it to LM. 

We made a secret language composed solely of hand signs so we could do "covert ops" together. Our "covert ops" usually consisted of messing with Vi and Powder, but it was helpful nonetheless.

The slight thought of my sisters put a smile on my face as I used a sign for "money bags" and pointed at the man I still had yet to ask the name of. LM flashed a smirk as well and gave a thumbs up.

Immediately making up for my faults, he asked, "Good morning, is there anything I can help you with, Mr . . .?"

The man—who had been staring at the many trinkets in the shop—made a slightly surprised expression, "Talis. But please, feel free to call me Jayce. And no, nothing in particular. But I will take this and this, oh and this . . ."

He began to grab everything on display, struggling to carry it all until I offered him a box from our last shipment. He simply accepted it with a polite nod and enthusiastically went back to shopping.

After what felt like an eternity, he was finally finished with his bingeing and made his way to the register. LM charged him three times the normal price and tried to send the man on his way but he stopped before exiting.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a few extra coins. Turning around, he arranged the coins as one would to perform a coin toss, then flicked them at us.

"These are for showing such manners, gentlemen," he left for good this time, a soft smile gracing his lips.

Ah, so that's why he seemed surprised when LM and I talked. Whatever, his ignorance is our bliss, haha.

We caught the coins mid air and shouted, "Thank you so much, sir!" It was almost creepy how perfectly in sync we were.

Without even waiting for the door to close, LM turned to me. "Let's follow him. If he has money to just throw around like that, there must be some good stuff at his house."

I wasn't too surprised and responded blankly, "And how exactly do you plan to get to this "good stuff"?"

"I already got paid so don't plan on getting anywhere near it, we'll just tell Vi and the rest and they'll get their pay." He had a cheeky smile plastered on his face as he rubbed his fingers together.

I replied to his words sharply, "You really plan to put my sisters in harm's way like that? Hell no. Like you said, he was just throwing money around. He should at least be upper class in Piltover. Going after the loot of someone like that will land them serious jail time if they're caught."

LM thought for a moment before replying, "Come on man, that's only 'if' they get caught. And I get it, no matter how nice he seems, if he sees a bunch of slum rats rummaging around his place he'll be pissed."

He took a breath before continuing, "Buuuuuut, just imagine the pay out. Have some faith in your family, dude. And if you're really that worried then you can go with them, keep a lookout or something. You could use the extra cash for a new guitar anyways." He inched closer with every sentence, nudging my shoulder repeatedly.

"I don't know-"

I was quickly cut off, "Also, if you don't come with me to follow this guy then I could be in danger too, you know? And if you don't follow me and I somehow make it back, then I might let it slip that you've been making all those wonderful songs."

My eyes widened, "Y-you wouldn't!" I could feel my cheeks getting hot.

He slung his arm around my shoulder, "Oh but I would, and will." God, that sly smile—so damn punchable.

My shoulders slumped as I gave in, "Fine." 

LM raised his arms in celebration as I mumbled under my breath, "And here I thought we were friends."

LM, who was already at the door, turned to look at me and said, "We are, and what are friends for if not following each other into imminent danger? Now let's go, Lile!"

I puffed my cheeks as I ran out of the door after him.

Now, where did this "Jayce" guy go?

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 

[Author Notes]

-Short first chapter, hope you liked it. It's gonna be a long and probably pretty slow ride so no need to buckle in. The main reason I love Arcane is the character work, they all feel real and so does their pain and happiness so that'll be the main aspect of the show I focus on.

-Lile is not reincarnated or anything, just smart.

-Tell me about any inconsistencies you may have found in pacing, grammar and such. I love to hear what you think.

-I initially planned to stockpile chapters, but the Arcane hype is dying down already so I figured I'd go ahead and release this.

-Yes, Lile is Vi and Powder's brother. No, there won't be incest. But there will be baddies to be obtained in the future.

-There will be a lot of original content starting from the end of Act l. I already have 7 original characters made for the arcs that will take place over what was a five year time skip in the original.

-This story likely won't be too friendly to those who haven't watched the show. But if I bring up something that you aren't familiar with, don't worry, I'll explain it at some point.

-Have a good Thanksgiving everyone!!