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Upon seeing the Powder of this universe, Ekko freaked out. Reasonably so.
So, first: he’s thrown into a freaky, goopy kaleidoscope, where time and space and basically everything is all out of whack. On top of this, he goes in knowing exactly what his world is like: it’s shitty for the most part — whether he wants to see the good in it or not. The Undercity is gross and grimy and filled with mostly drug-addled criminals, when it could be so much more. Above all else, his Powder is gone. Lost in whatever she’s become now; a schizophrenic, insane terrorist who’s long gone and unable to be saved. Trust him, he’s tried. And by the fourth time, he gave up.
His Powder—Jinx has long, twin braided hair. She cackles and takes up whatever space she wants.
It wasn’t that hard to realize that this was not his Jinx—the Jinx of his universe.
She had space buns, an outfit that just was not Jinx, and Powder’s attitude. Her demeanor was small, quiet steps instead of loud, stomping boots. No weapon on her that he can see, and she wasn’t not trying to kill him. Not just that, but she looked like Powder, sounded like Powder, and Ekko is not that stupid. Maybe he had no right to throw the closest object he can grab at her, but he did it anyway.
Look at how far they’ve come in such short time. Or, physically: close.
Powder and Ekko had managed to sneak away from the party, from the people, and get up to the rooftop. He’s got a cup of punch next to him; the one she declared was theirs instead of specifically his, because she left her own inside the bar.
He’d done this before, with Powder. His Powder. When they were kids and could only come up late at night, when Vi had to watch over them, and Mylo and Claggor would tag along, and Ekko had to suggest the idea like he wasn’t just asking to hang out with Powder. It was simpler times.
The Undercity was never this beautiful, then.
Covered in plants and vines and color, for once. Bright lights, happy people. Children that could walk the streets and roam off from their parents without having to worry about anything happening to them. The Undercity looking like the Firelight’s hideout. What Ekko made in his own universe, spread to the whole city. This is what Ekko wants, and that’s what makes it so hard to accept that he has to leave.
It might’ve been wrong to let Powder kiss him. This whole thing is a pipe dream, on his end. His Jinx will never give him anything like this, so he goes for the Powder that will? That’s crazy, right?
All thoughts of considering his own insanity quickly fade once Powder pulls away, that little look in her eyes that reminds him of why he let her kiss him in the first place. It’s sweet, it’s kind, it’s everything he wants and everything he can’t really, genuinely have. Powder’s hand is soft to the touch, warm on his cheek, albeit slightly calloused from whatever tinkering she does and has done.
Her smell is sweet, like the rest of her. She smells like lavender, kind of. Something fruity, and he wouldn’t be surprised if he’s smelling her shampoo with how close he is. Something else, too. Something specifically Powder. Not Jinx, but Powder. The smell of punch comes from her lips, and he knows that because he tastes it on his own. From what he drank, from what lingers on her lips.
Powder’s eyes are on his lips, and he’s lost count of the amount of times he’s seen her looking at him like that tonight.
And when Ekko lets himself look at her lips in return again, he can’t stop himself from another kiss. Because she’s so close, filling every single one of his senses with something sweet. For once, she’s not running around with bombs on her hip right along with her gun, smelling of gunpowder and sweat and… whatever Jinx smells like. She’s sweet.
This one is slightly more well done than the first, only because they’ve both got the gist of what they’re doing, now. Neither of them are exactly well-versed in the art of kissing.
And it doesn’t go much deeper than this. Surface level kissing. Ekko gets a little bit greedy and attempts to lean in a little bit more, but Powder balances that out quickly by leaning her head back to match. He only finds his voice after they pull apart.
”…Sorry.”
”Don’t be,” Powder murmurs, voice at the same level as his own. Her lips glisten with… actually, he’s not sure who’s saliva it is in particular, just that it’s there.
Her hair is down. Short, and down. He’s never seen it this short, and her bangs are a little choppy, but she seems to like them that way. He doesn’t compliment it; not because he doesn’t like her hair, but because the tiny apology is the only word he could find after the kiss. He does, however, lean a little out of her personal space, and reach up to tuck a couple strands behind her ear. Her lip gloss is gone entirely, which is not his fault — it rubbed off on her cup throughout the night.
If Powder hadn’t turned away — hadn’t curled back up into him, in his arms — he would’ve been staring all night. Analyzing the features that his Jinx won’t let him get close enough for without a fight involved. Admiring the makeup she did. Revering the little things — the shape of her nose, her cheeks, her eyes. Beautiful blues he hasn’t seen so soft since they were little. Not even that night on the bridge compares. He’d say lips, but he’s already done that. And he wouldn’t just stare, for now. He’d treasure the memory, lock it in a box for safekeeping until he could be back in his own universe, have the thought take up his brain to the point he couldn’t work. And he’d think about her. Think about this Powder, about his Jinx, about what could’ve been. He’ll think, and this time — unlike all the others — he’ll remember her features in detail.
Powder can tell he’s in thought about something, she just doesn’t know what it is. So she figures she’ll make a little movement to knock him out of his head.
She reaches over for the cup of punch, grabbing it and swirling it around in the cup before taking a swig of it. “…What are you thinking about?”
Ekko rests his hand on her lower back, finding it a better spot than her upper arm. “…Nothing.”
“So we’re lying again,” Powder jokes with a tiny shrug. They’re past the kiss, now. Powder doesn’t really want them to be, and neither does Ekko, but they are.
A silence falls between them comfortably. It feels odd to hold Powder like this, just because it’s been so long. And he’s still hung up on the fact that this is not his Powder, nor his Jinx.
“…Are you thinking about…?” Powder trails off, quietly referring to the debacle he’s in. Ekko hums in response, because it’s better than admitting he’s thinking about her. And it’s true, anyway. He’s always thinking about the situation he’s in, save for when she kissed him and his mind was practically wiped clean and shiny for a second.
Powder doesn’t say anything for a moment.
But when she does, it hits Ekko a little bit. “…You don’t have to be so put together, y’know.”
”…Who said I was put together?” he jokes, poorly so.
”You know what I mean.” Powder nudges his side with her elbow. “You don’t have to act like you are.”
”…Can’t be easy. What’s going on with you,” Powder continues after all of four seconds.
Well, she had a point. Imagine seeing everyone you love or have loved, together and happy the way you’ve always wanted it. All of this, just to return to his own universe, the correct universe. The fact that he’ll have to grieve all over again, because seeing these people alive and happy makes him remember how much he misses them, makes the grief start early. These people he’s been mourning in silence for Gods only know how long. In front of his eyes, within reach, warm and safe. ”It can’t be easy on you, either.”
Those are the words he settles for, because it’s truthful ones. He was rough on her in the beginning. Hurting her nearly physically, upsetting her when he found out that here — Vi was dead. And she’ll have to think about the fact that the only kiss she got from the boy she loved was not from the specific version of the boy she loved.
”We’re talking about you, here,” she mutters under her breath, fidgeting with the skirt of her dress.
They both need a topic change. But for now, it’s just quiet again.
”…Did you like my big entrance?” Powder asks, and Ekko chuckles.
”…Yes. Yeah. I liked your big entrance.”