Ezreal stares into the mirror as he shifts through different poses. He hides a red rose behind his back, revealing it every time as he strikes a new pose.

“The name is Jarro Lightfeather, Sentinel of Light, protector of the people of Demacia! At your loyal service… no, that… that wasn’t it. Lemme try again…,” he says, putting the rose behind his back again and straightening his back. He takes another deep breath in, closes his eyes and tries again.

“The name is Ezreal Lightfeather, Sentinel of Light, no wait, that isn’t… that’s not it either.”

Frustrated, he sighs and resets his position. He closes his eyes once more, takes a deep breath, and straightens his back.

“The name is Jarro Lightfeather, Sentinel of Light, loyal protector of the people of Demacia! At your service.” He says, taking a bow and revealing the rose from behind his back, before throwing it against the mirror.

The rose hits the reflective surface, leaving a petal stuck to it as the flower falls down to the floor as a result of gravity. Ezreal looks back up at the mirror and is surprised to see the reflection of Lux standing right next to him. He gasps, standing upright, and turns towards her, immediately stumbling over his words.

“Erm, uh… Lady Crownguard! I, ah, didn’t expect to see you in my room! Or hear you enter, for that matter,” Ezreal says, nervously chuckling. “Did you… You didn’t see that whole… performance, right?” he asks.

Lux smiles as she witnesses Ezreal struggling to find the right thing to say.

“I only saw you rehearse your entrance speech in front of the mirror once, Ezreal,” she lies. “Though worry not, ‘Sir Lightfeather’. I am positive that the people of Demacia will love you and your entrance! They will surely similarly fall for your charm as I have,” she says with a teasing wink at the end.

Ezreal hastily grabs the rose that is now lying motionlessly on the floor, desperately trying to hide the blush that has crept on his face.

“Oh, dear Ezreal. Your attempt to hide the stress is adorable. But you’re not as subtle as you might think or hope. It’s part of your charm!” Lux says with a chuckle. “You know you don’t have to keep up the strong façade for me, right?”

There’s a moment of silence as Ezreal stands frozen in place, bent forward, still reaching for the rose on the floor as he attempts to regain his composure.

“You’re right. Apologies, Lady Crownguard,” he says as he stands up again and turns around to face her. His blush hasn’t faded, and instead, he finds himself avoiding eye contact from embarrassment.

Lux chuckles. “Silly Ezreal. Have you already forgotten that we’re on a first-name basis? Please just call me Lux.”

“Yes, sorry, you’re right, Lady Cro-… Lux. You’re right, Lux!”

She shakes her head as her smile grows wider.

“Poor thing...,” Lux says as she places her hand on Ezreal’s shoulder. “You’re so very on edge. Want me to do something about that, perhaps?”

Ezreal looks at Lux confusedly. He can’t deny that his nerves are growing to the point that it’s playing tricks on his mind, and there’s still plenty of time before he has to make his grand appearance in front of the crowd.

“What are you referring to, Lux?” he asks. “I mean, I wouldn’t mind. I am indeed quite worked up - maybe more than I should be.”

While Ezreal is talking, Lux turns around and locks the door behind them. 

“Just a safety measure,” Lux says. “Don’t want anyone to intrude on us while I’m practicing my magic, right?” she continues with the lightest hint of sadness in her voice. “There’s this new light technique I’ve been experimenting with, and it might be just what you need.”

There’s a second of hesitance, and watching Lux close the door behind her like that only increases the doubts in his mind. But then he’s reminded of how much magic use is frowned upon in Demacia - frankly outlawed - and relaxes. 

“Sure. Just tell me what to do!”

Lux smiles and walks up to Ezreal, pushing him down into a chair. 

“Just sit down and watch this,” she says, grabbing her staff. 

“Alright, if you say so…” Ezreal responds, paying close attention to Lux’s movement.

Lux smiles and closes her eyes, concentrating for a second, before summoning a lucent orb which she proceeds to send flying through the room. It seems to hover around aimlessly for a few seconds as if she isn’t fully in control of the orb, but shortly after it comes to a halt mid-air as she points her cane at the orb.

“What… what is that?” Ezreal asks confused while looking at the orb of light. It’s glowing warmly, almost invitingly so. 

“Shush, Ez. Don’t speak. Watch.” Lux says with a commanding undertone. It’s not what he’s used to, usually she’s very soft and kind. But this time she seems to carry a certain determination. 

Lux continues to point her staff at the lucent orb as it hovers silently, after which she proceeds to move the tip of her cane, pointing it in Ezreal’s general direction. The orb immediately copies the movement, slowly but surely flying closer to Ezreal’s face, before coming to a halt and hovering in front of his eyes.

As the orb floats closer and closer, Ezreal can’t help but notice just how [i]pretty[/i] the orb is. At first, it was hard to tell, after all, it was still slightly unstable. Finding its shape and glow. But now that it’s stabilized, now that it’s come a bit closer, he can finally see clearly.

The color is sharp and mesmerizing. The glow is all-encompassing. It’s like everywhere he looks into the orb, he sees something new. A new tint, a new shade, a new vibrance. The deeper he looks into the orb, the more he fails to realize that he can’t look away.

Lux smiles as she notices that the magic is taking hold. “There you go. Good boy, just look deeply into the orb. Watching it shift and swirl, glow and pulse…”

Ezreal finds himself nodding absentmindedly. He’s hearing all of Lux’s words, but still, they seem irrelevant. His focus is required elsewhere… the orb reserves his focus. It’s gorgeous, and the longer he stares, the more he finds that everything else fades away.  

“It’s nice to look at, isn’t it?” Lux asks while she moves behind the boy, sitting limply in his chair, utterly enthralled by the floating orb of light in front of his two eyes. “Easy to get lost in as it draws in all your attention… draws in all of your thoughts”

She grabs Ezreal’s shoulders and gently massages them, kneading them carefully while she keeps her focus on the lucent orb to keep it in place, swirling and glowing continuously. 

The light reflects in Ezreal’s eyes, which are glazed over and empty. 

“Y…yeah… nice to… look at…” the boy says, feeling how the orb slowly siphoned his thoughts. He’s unable to look away from the lucent ball of light as it dances between his eyes. All the worries and stress he had from the big event on stage, in front of all the inhabitants of Demacia, have all gone.

Lux smiles. “It is, isn’t it? No need for any of those big thoughts. No need for any of those anxieties. Instead, you can simply stare into the orb for a bit, as it drains you from all stresses. Feels nice, doesn’t it?” she says, continuing to rub Ezreal’s shoulders carefully.

He struggles to find the energy to respond, instead simply nodding. 

“Yeah, it does. There you go. Nice and blank for me.” Lux continues. “But I’m sure you wouldn’t mind being even more blank and mindless, right?”

Another nod from Ezreal indicates that he does in fact want to be more blank and mindless, prompting a smile from Lux. 

“Good. In that case, [i]focus. [/i]Really focus on that orb. Watch it closely… closer… deeper…”

Following Lux’s words, Ezreal can’t help but obey as he stares deeper into the orb. As she’s guiding his vision, he notices how the orb begins to change. The pulsing calms down, shifting inwards. Deeper inwards… further… until suddenly…

Lux snaps her fingers, and at the snap, the orb pops. As the orb pops, Ezreal gasps lightly and immediately slumps forward. His breathing calms down and his posture shifts into one of deeper relaxation.

“There you go. No more worries, no more stress. Nice and empty, right?” Lux says. 

Of course, Ezreal can’t find the energy to respond. He’s too far gone into his blank state of mind, enjoying the emptiness for a change. His mind feels like it’s being pulled apart, fragmented, and slowed down.

Lux finally lets go of Ezreal’s shoulders as she leans down and whispers in his ears. “Now, listen closely… I know you’re stressed about your speech… but you’re a clever boy. You’re smart, resourceful, and handsome. I have the utmost faith in you, Ezreal.” 

A light smile appears on Ezreal’s face as he hears her words of reaffirmation. 

“Your name is Jarro Lightfeather, Sentinel of Light, loyal protector of the people of Demacia! At your service. Got it?” she continues. 

“Yes… miss Crownguard…” Ezreal responds.  

Lux rolls her eyes and she carefully gives him a poke in the back, prompting Ezreal to wake up.

“Yes, Lux,” she says.

“Yes, Lux,” he responds with a chuckle.

