Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Down the corridor,” Grayson says in her rough, though not unkind voice, “last door to the right. And do me a favour, young Violet,”

Vi raises one of her eyebrows while she tries not to flinch at the use of her full name. She doesn’t even like it when her family calls her that but the Sheriff of Piltover? That’s so much worse. 

“Try to be kind. Young Kiramman has had a rough couple of days so she might be snappish towards you.”

The young girl scoffs, “So she can be a pain in my ass but I have to play nice?” She crosses her arms in front of her chest, already done with this entire stunt, “Great.”

Surprisingly, Grayson doesn’t fall for the bait. She merely huffs, more to herself than Vi. 

“Considering that you and your little group are particularly at fault for her stay here, I think she has every right to be a little crass.”

“Then why do I even have to go talk to her in the first place?” She isn’t whining per se, voicing her complains does not count as whining. ”She probably won’t accept my apology anyway.”

All of this is just. so. stupid. 

“That doesn’t mean that she doesn’t deserve to hear it,” Grayson gently persists, “And now go. The sooner you get it done, the sooner you can leave.”

Well, Vi can’t argue with that logic, although she makes sure to groan extra loudly as she turns around and begins her own personal walk of shame. She knows that Grayson is right but that doesn’t make it any less humiliating. 

Groveling at some Piltie princess’ feet and begging her for forgiveness? No one in the undercity is ever going to let her live this down if they find out. And they will find out since Mylo, that stupid blabbermouth, knows that she’s currently topside. All of this just to keep the rest of them out of trouble.

The worst part is that Caitlyn Kiramman is probably completely fine and only staying this long in the hospital so her councilor mom can gain some sympathy points. 

Then again, Vander must know more than she does and he wouldn’t have made her go all the way topside if it was nothing. 

“You’re going to visit the Kirammans and apologize.”

Vi blinks slowly once. Twice. She waits for the punchline of the joke but nothing else follows Vander’s insane request. 

“You want me to apologize to some rich Piltie councilor for blowing up one shabby lab?” He’s got to be kidding. “Why? It’s not like they can’t afford to buy ten more of those. They probably wouldn’t even have noticed if the enforcers hadn’t made such a big deal out of it.”

“You’re not apologizing to Cassandra Kiramman,” Vander sighs and for the first time, Vi can see his age in his wrinkled brow and tired eyes. “You’re going to apologize to their daughter, Caitlyn.” 

Vi frowns, “Daughter?” She didn’t know the Kirammans had a daughter. “Why the hell should I talk to their daughter?” 

“Because Sheriff Grayson has told me that she’s been in the hospital since your little stunt topside.”

She stops pacing, her feet rooted to the old carpet as her blood runs cold.

Shit. 

Vi shivers as she remembers the serious look on her father’s face. No matter how much she disagrees with this, she’ll make sure to see it trough. At least it increases the odds of Powder and the rest of her siblings getting out of this without any further consequences. 

Even if it means begging Caitlyn Kiramman for forgiveness. 

“Wasn’t even my fault,” she mumbles to herself while knocking her shoulder into the door leading to Kiramman’s room. “If whoever was working there could have just secured their shit a little bet–”

She stops dead in her tracks as she passes the threshold and enters the hospital room. It looks glamorous with its pretty windows and high ceiling, more glamorous than any room Vi has ever been in down in the Undercity. She’d gag if her attention wasn’t immediately drawn to something else. 

The figure in the middle of a way too pompous bed (considering this is a stupid hospital) is turned away from her, a clean, white blanket pulled all the way up to its chin. Honestly, it looks like whoever is lying there is doing their best to hide from… something, or perhaps from everything.

Suddenly, Vi feels nervous. 

“Uh,” she starts to stutter out, only now realising that maybe she should have rehearsed this beforehand, “are–”

“Go away.” Oh, wow. Posh. Very posh and positively miserable. Shit. “I already told you I’m not hungry. Just leave me alone.” 

“I’m not a nurse. I’m here to… uhm,” How does she even begin this conversation? “Are you Caitlyn Kiramman?” 

The figure in the bed doesn’t move and for a second, Vi debates whether it would be okay if she just turned around and left. But Grayson is probably still waiting at the end of the corridor, as if the city doesn’t need its sheriff to actually do something useful. 

She takes a deep breath and takes a step closer towards the bed, “Listen, I’m here to apologize. About that accident the other day?” Silence. “It was my… it was me and my friends who kind of, uh, broke into that place?” 

It’s so awkward talking to a lump of blue hair but Vi doesn’t have another choice so she takes a deep breath and continues. 

Just get through it and leave.

“Anyway, we didn’t know that there was some dangerous stuff in there and we didn’t mean to cause any harm. Obviously.” No reaction, still. “So… I’m sorry,” she finishes lamely and waits. She waits for… something. Anything. 

Isn’t she worth an answer at least? Typical Piltie.

“So yeah, that’s–”

“Get out.” 

Vi grits her teeth, her hands balling into fists at the dismissive tone from the other girl.

“Come on, at least let me-”

“I said leave,” the girl repeats, though her voice has gone from sad to angry. It does little to keep Vi’s own rising temper at bay. 

“You won’t even let me say my piece?” Her words have a cutting edge to them, though there is nothing she can do about that. “Didn’t expect anything less from some spoiled Piltie prin–”

Her insult is interrupted by the sound of rustling sheets and high-pitched yelling, “I said leave! Haven’t you done enough to me?!” 

With a still half-opened mouth, Vi finds herself staring at the heavy breathing form of Caitlyn Kiramman - or most of her, considering that there is a thick bandage covering half her face, including her left eye. 

Fuck, fuck, fuck. What the fuck has she done?

She doesn’t respond straight away as her eyes roam the girl’s form. She’s dressed in a simple, clean, white gown. Nothing fancy, nothing pretty and yet Vi suddenly feels self-conscious about her own appearance. She’s well aware of the specks of dirt, blood and whatever else covering her clothes, as well as her hair. It’s nothing like the long, pretty flow of blue that’s framing Caitlyn’s face quite nicely. 

“I…” The words die in her mouth. There are tears forming in the girl’s eye and she looks seconds away from falling apart right there in her fancy bed. “I’m really sor–”

“Don’t .” The venom in her words is enough for Vi to take a step back. “Do not say that you’re sorry again when you’re not.”

“I am!”

“I don’t believe you. What is it you said? Piltie princess?” Caitlyn scoffs, her hand coming up to rub aggressively at her good eye. “Oh yes, I’m sure you’re very sorry that you were caught. That’s the only reason you’re here, isn’t it?” There is a pause but Vi can’t find any words to stop her rant. “So just… leave me alone. I don’t want to speak to you.”

It’s the dismissal that Vi has been waiting for. She can just turn and leave, be done with it. She can leave and never has to see Caitlyn Kiramman again. It’s what she’s hoped for. 

Then why can’t she bring herself to do just that?

“I…” Leaving doesn’t feel right. Leaving feels wrong. 

In the end, that choice isn’t hers to make. 

The door behind her flings open, causing Vi to spin around. She’s met with the imposing statue of a man in a doctor’s coat, his short and styled hair a perfect match to Caitlyn’s. Vi feels her stomach sink as the realization kicks in. 

“Who are you? What are you doing in my daughter’s room?” 

“I’m here to talk to her,” she manages to stammer out, “To apologize for–”

“I want her to go! You too!” Caitlyn sounds nearly hysterical at this point, “I want you all to just leave me alone!”

Grayson, thankfully chooses that moment to appear behind Mr. Kiramman and save her from any further embarrassment, “I apologize, young Kiramman. We’ll take our leave immediately to let you get some rest.”

Vi is still turned away from Caitlyn but judging by the way her father tenses as he looks at his daughter, she figures that the sheriff’s words were chosen rather poorly.

“I don’t need rest, I need to get out of here!” Her voice sounds watery. It shouldn’t bother Vi. 

It does. 

“Caitlyn–”

“No, you and mom just don’t want me back home because I look like a freak now!” 

It’s clear that this conversation isn’t for her ears anymore and Grayson must agree because she reaches for her and gently begins to pull her out of the room. Vi is helpless to do anything but look back and stare at the hunched over figure on the bed and the man who is desperately trying to comfort her with hushed words that she can’t make out.

Grayson closes the door and gives them the privacy they need. 

They begin to walk away from the room in silence, Vi with her head low and way too many thoughts swirling around in her head. 

She doesn’t even attempt to speak until they are almost at the entrance of the hospital, “She didn’t want my apology.”

Saying it doesn’t give her the satisfaction she hoped it would. Nor does the thought of never seeing Caitlyn Kiramman again. 

The gentle clap on the shoulder Vander gives her upon returning doesn’t feel deserved because Vi hasn’t accomplished anything but make the Kiramman girl’s day even more miserable. 

She tells him as much but her father persists with a soft, “Still, you’ve done the right thing, kid,” as he rummages around the bar. When Vi fails to answer, he quietly prepares her a drink - sadly, without alcohol - and gestures with his head towards the door in the back. “Why don’t you go and tell your siblings that there won’t be any further consequences for them?”

Her eyes go wide as his words sink in. No way. 

“Are you serious?” 

“Grayson just told me that the charges against the four of you are being dropped.”

It doesn’t feel… right. A thought crosses her mind, causing Vi to frown, 

“Aren’t the Kirammans out for blood? "We–" She sighs. “We fucked up their kid real bad, Vander. She’s…” There isn’t any way to finish that sentence without making Vi want to throw up.

“I know,” her father answers solemnly, “and from what I’ve been told, they are furious. Rightfully so, I might add.” Vi sinks further into herself on the tall bar stool. “But they also know that the four of you are just kids and not completely at fault for what happened Topside. Besides, sending you to Stillwater won’t help anyone in this situation.” 

“So, that’s it? We just get away with it?” 

“Aren’t you happy about that?”

Vi mulls it over for a moment. “I don’t buy it. No way they aren’t looking to throw some Trenchers in jail, no matter what age we are.” When has Topside ever shown mercy to them?

“Look, I’m not saying that there won’t be any further consequences,” Vander says at last, dropping the old rack he’d been using to clean the counter, “but for now, you don’t have to worry about being picked up by enforcers and neither do your siblings.”

A heavy silence stretches between them, uncomfortably so. Vander looks… almost guilty of something. 

Vi narrows her eyes, “What is it?”

He takes a deep breath, seemingly bracing himself for her reaction to whatever he is about to say.

“I’ve been talking to Sheriff Grayson.”

“Duh.”

“Not just about the incident. We think that this situation might be a good reason to start talking.”

She can hear that he’s being intentionally vague and it’s causing a heavy feeling in the pit of her stomach. “Talking?”

“I think this animosity between Piltover and the Undercity has been going on for too long and Grayson agrees. Maybe it’s time that we started working more closely together.” 

The statement hangs in the air, suffocating Vi. 

He can’t be serious. He can’t be. 

“Negotiating… with Piltover?” Her question is laced with barely hidden amusement, fingers drumming on the newly cleaned bar counter. “Yeah, that’s a good one, Vander. You nearly got me there.”

“Vi.”

She feels like the floor is being ripped out from under her because yes, Vander is serious.

In Vi’s mind, she’s decidedly too old for a panic attack, although her body doesn’t seem to agree as it enters fight or flight mode.

“They killed my parents!” Her screams echo in the empty bar as she jumps up from her seat, hands uselessly pulling at her hair in an attempt to keep her grounded, “You watched them do it! How…”

“Vi–”

“How can you even think about working with them?! What kind of traitor–”

“Enough!” Vander rarely raises his voice in general, and if he does it’s never directed at her. Sufficient to say, it’s enough to shut her up. “I understand that given everything that’s happened in the past, this decision might be difficult for you to accept.”

Vi scoffs but stays quiet otherwise. 

“You have to trust me on this, kid.” She wants to trust Vander’s gentle voice, she really does. It’s just so fucking difficult. “We can talk about this some other time. The bar’s about to open.”

She takes the dismissal for what it is and makes her way to the door that leads downstairs. 

The past days seem to catch up with her all at once and Vi barely has the energy to ruffle Powder’s hair when she excitedly greets her before slugging her way towards the bed.

She figures she can tell them about the charges being dropped later. 

Vi doesn’t know how she ends up here. 

Topside and its wide streets that all look alike are so confusing, it’s a wonder she only gets lost two times. Not to mention that she had to reroute her path several times to stay clear of groups of enforcers patrolling around. 

Just because she isn’t a wanted criminal doesn’t mean that a trencher is going to be welcomed topside. 

As to why she’s here… Vi has no answer to that question. 

The imposing gates of the Kiramman mansion tower above her, making her feel even smaller than she already does between Piltover’s giant luxurious buildings. No matter where she looks, everything reminds her just how different this place is to her home, despite them being sister cities. 

Vi frowns as she takes step closer towards the iron bars decorated with what she assumes must be the Kiramman crest. She huffs to herself because of course this family has its own sigil, pompous bastards that they are.

A sigh involuntarily rips itself out of her throat. Thinking like this isn’t going to help with her plan, half-assed as it is. There is still a clear goal in the front of Vi’s mind. 

The metal of the iron bar is cold under her hand. She gives it a slight pull to test if the gate lets itself be opened. No luck. 

Of course. The sun set hours ago, why would the gate still be opened? 

Frustrated, and still a little confused on why she felt the need to make this long and apparently unnecessary journey, Vi rattles the cold bars one more time before kicking it for good measure. 

Stupid, stupid idea-

“Who is there?”

She freezes, her leg half outstretched in an attempt at letting off steam through another kick as her eyes zero in on the figure standing on top of the staircase that leads to the entrance of the mansion. 

With how dark it is outside, the source of light shining from inside the opened door illuminates the person’s back in an almost ethereal sort of way, even more so with how elevated they are on top of the giant staircase. 

It does little to help the sudden rush of cold that sweeps over her entire body. 

“I…” Fuck, what is she supposed to say? 

I’m the person who more or less maimed your daughter, can you give me a minute of your time? Oh, and can you please get her so she can hear this too? 

“Either you tell me who you are and why you’re trying to break into my property in the middle of the night or I’ll let the enforcers handle this.”

It’s enough at least to jumpstart Vi’s ability to formulate words, 

“Is Caitlyn still awake?” 

Even from down here, Vi can see how the figure tenses at the mention of the young girl. A second passes without any reaction, then she takes a step forward to reveal a woman that is decidedly not dressed for the middle of the night but rather like she’s about to head out for work. 

“What is your business with my daughter?”

Right, of course. Vi can’t take a break for once. 

She sighs before addressing Councilor Kiramman as directly as she dares to, “I’m here to talk to her again. I’ve wanted to apologize for what happened in that lab explosion.” 

It’s definitely a stupid idea to just blurt it out like that but she doesn’t really have another option right now, not when she wants to get the chance to talk to Caitlyn again. She has to explain herself, “It was an accident and–” 

“You.” If Vi thought that Vander can be scary with nothing but words, she’s not prepared for the force that is Cassandra Kiramman staring down at her, “How dare you to–” The older woman is momentary lost for words as she wildly gestures with her hands, “to just show up here and demand to see my daughter as if you have any right to be near her after what you've done to her.” 

Normally, Vi would be ready to argue, just like she has done with everyone since that shitshot of a job went down. A rich, snobby councilor deserves her attitude the most. 

But the way Councillor Kiramman’s voice cracks at the end of her sentence as she talks about her daughter makes Vi bite the inside of her cheek so hard she tastes blood. She didn’t imagine that a woman of her status, a councillor no less, can even sound so… defeated. 

“I’m sorry,” she manages to croak out at last as her throat begins to tighten, “I never wanted to hurt–"

“Leave.” Her tone does not allow for any room to argue, ”Immediately. We might not want to press further charges against you and your group but that does not mean that you are welcome here. “ The older woman shakes her head, “I do not understand how you could have the audacity to come here. Unbelievable.”

The last part is muttered so quietly that Vi is sure that the councilor isn’t even talking to her anymore as she turns around and walks back inside the mansion. For such a slim figure, the woman sure as hell can slam a door closed. 

The resounding sound makes Vi  flinch as the source of light gets cut off and bathes her in darkness once more. She isn’t sure how long she stands there and looks at the Kiramman crest before her gaze snaps to the wall to her right. 

For a second, she debates climbing it and actually breaking into the place but one ill-fated run in with an angry mother is enough for the night, no matter how badly Vi wants to talk to the other girl again. 

Whatever, she thinks as she turns around to start the journey back to the undercity… where another angry parent probably waits for her, great. This is causing her a bigger headache than it needs to, especially since she’s technically done with this entire ordeal. 

Maybe it’s better to just leave this be. She’s clearly caused enough harm as it is and there is no way to undo it. She should forget about it and move on with her life. 

After all, with how different their lives are, she’s probably never going to see Caitlyn Kiramman again.

Chapter Text

Life in the lanes has been a fight for survival ever since Vi can remember. What little the people down here have is always in danger of getting taken from them, be it through the hands of a fellow citizen or cruel enforcers just looking to amuse themselves for a short time. 

Therefore, the sound of gunshots echoing in the night is nothing new or surprising at this point. 

What is surprising, however, is when they can be heard in broad daylight, without the veil of darkness covering up the potential crime - and this close to the edge of the city no less.

Vi came here to be alone for a bit since this part of the Undercity normally has no one trailing around it this early in the morning. The local street gangs won’t show up for another few hours at least. It should have given her plenty of time to clear her head. 

Yet, there it is: the distinctive sound of a gun being fired, loud and clear in the dirty air around her. It makes Vi’s eyebrows furrow in confusion.  Not only is it unusual for someone to be here but the gun they are using sounds… different? 

Unlike the cheap guns she usually has the displeasure of hearing, this one sounds, somehow, expensive.

It’s probably an incredibly stupid idea, approaching an individual who feels confident enough to fire a gun in broad daylight but she’s intrigued. Besides, as long as she’s careful, the person doesn’t even have to notice her. 

With careful steps, Vi makes her way towards the source of the noise. She keeps close to the dirty walls of the (mostly) abandoned buildings until they come to an end, giving way to an almost open space that only ends where the dirty water begins. 

It’s much more difficult to remain hidden with only a few abandoned crates and small mountains of trash as cover but Vi makes due with what she has. The sound of the gun (and splashing water?) is now incredibly close and once she comes to a halt behind a couple of stacked boxes, she takes a breath. 

She waits until her heartbeat is as calm as it’s going to get before slowly leaning to the side to peek around her hiding spot. 

Vi nearly chokes on her own spit as her eyes take in the scene in front of her. 

Blue hair is the first thing she notices - and not just any shade, but a very specific one that has haunted her for the past 3 weeks. 

That’s not possible. 

And yet, there is undeniable proof in front of her in the form of Caitlyn fucking Kiramman shooting at a row of hastily lined up bottles. She’s wearing what must be lowkey clothes for her but the pristine black pants and blue jacket still make her stick out like a sore thumb in her dirty surroundings.

She has her back turned to Vi, the row of bottles standing right on the edge of the makeshift shooting spot she’s built herself, the still dirty water of the Undercity glistening behind them. 

Vi doesn’t know what’s wrong with her lately. Her curiosity should be sated with this discovery and she should turn around and leave Kiramman to whatever nonsense she’s up to. 

A Piltie down here. She must have lost her mind. 

But Vi doesn’t turn around, doesn’t leave, doesn't forget about the other girl who looks like she’s progressively losing her cool with how quickly she’s firing her rifle. She can’t be sure though because from her position, Vi doesn’t have a clear view of the girl’s face. 

As quietly as possible, and with the rational voice inside her head loudly protesting, she slowly sneaks her away around the edge of the open space, making sure to stay as hidden as possible until she’s made up enough ground to at least see the side of Kiramman’s face.

She looks fucking pissed. 

The girl’s eye is narrowed, her focus completely on the targets a good distance in front of her. The long rifle she’s holding looks kind of ridiculous in her hands, except she’s making it work somehow.

Vi holds her breath as she watches Kiramman raise said rifle back to her shoulder, feet firmly planted on the ground as she takes aim once more. A second of silence shrouds the world, followed by the loud crack of a shot when the blue-haired girl pulls the trigger. 

Vi watches the bullet fly past, way past , the bottle on the far right before hitting the water behind it with a loud splash. With a weird feeling that spreads through her chest, she takes note of the fact that none of the bottles seem to have been hit so far. 

Before her thoughts can address this revelation, she’s being pulled back to the present by Kiramman letting out a scream of frustration. The rifle is raised above her head, almost like she wants to throw it. 

The girl seems to reconsider this idea a second later and her arms fall back down, her hands letting go of her gun in the process. It clatters to the ground with such a loud thud that it makes Vi flinch. She tries to pull her head back to hide once more but her shoulder knocks against the stack of crates she’s been using to shield herself. 

It rocks to the side once and before she even can attempt to stabilize it, the top crate tumbles to the ground. There must have been some empty bottles inside because the sound of glass shattering is unmistakable and pretty fucking loud. 

Fuck.

“Who's there?!” 

Kiramman’s panicked voice cuts through the air as the girl whips around to face a now only partially hidden Vi. A heartbeat passes in which she tries to decide if making a run for it is wiser than a confrontation - but then she sees the other girl crouch down and reach for the abandoned gun, her hand going past it a few times before slim fingers finally wrap around the butt and Vi decides that she’s not risking getting shot by a Piltie of all people. 

She steps out from behind the remaining crates, hands in the air as she shouts, “Calm down, I’m unarmed!”

It takes a moment but then she can see recognition flicking in Kiramman’s eye. Slowly, she gets up from the ground and faces Vi fully, rifle half-raised but still aimed at the ground between them at least. “...you? What are you doing here?” 

Vi wants to answer, she truly does but this is the first time she has the chance to look at Caitlyn Kiramman without a blanket covering up half of her and she’s momentarily lost for words. 

The girl is weirdly tall for her age, however old she is. She can’t be that much older than Vi but she still towers a good few inches above her from the looks of it. Since she had approached Kiramman from the right side earlier, she hadn’t seen the bandage still wrapped around the blue-haired girl's left eye until now.

It doesn’t look as bad as it had back in the hospital but Vi can’t shake the feeling that, with bandages like this, Kiramman should still be resting in bed - or at least not run around the Undercity shooting her gun.

“Answer me,” the girl basically demands in her snobby accent, back so straight that Vi thinks she must have a stick up somewhere . “Are you stalking me or something?”

As bad as she feels for everything that has happened, she isn’t about to be talked to like she’s a stray dog. “Oh please, don’t be so full of yourself. As if I’d ever want to stalk someone like you.” 

The effect of her words is immediate and as subtle as she tries to be, it’s still obvious that Kiramman tries to turn her body in a way that shields the left side of her face from Vi. Just like before, it makes it a little more difficult for her to breathe. 

“That’s not what I–” She sighs. Way to go and put her foot in her mouth once again. “Nevermind, just… what the fuck are you doing here? It’s like you want to get robbed.”

“That isn’t any of your business,” Kiramman huffs, her earlier insecurity seemingly forgotten as she looks at the still unmarked row of bottles. A second passes. ”I need to practice and my parents seem to be under the impression that I can’t do anything anymore.”

“And running away to the Undercity is your way of showing them?”

“At least no one bothers me here.” A beat. “Well, until now.” 

Vi stares at the other girl in disbelief before shaking her head. Fucking Pilties. “You’re lucky that it’s only me who found you. Seriously, it’s not safe down here, especially for someone like you.”

For a moment, Kiramman seems unsure before she quietly mumbles, “I have a gun.”

By Janna, Vi really tries to be civil but this girl is making it so hard. Wordlessly, she glances at the bottles, none of them hit. Before she can say anything, Caitlyn’s tense voice cuts through the tension once more, “It’ll be enough to scare them off.”  

“You’re joking, right?” When silence is all that greets her, Vi finally snaps. “Did that explosion make you lose your common sense as well or have you always been this naive?”

It’s the wrong thing to say and she knows it immediately. 

Kiramman’s hands visibly tighten around her rifle as white, hot rage flashes across her face. “You mean in addition to losing my eye and half of my hearing?” Her voice is quiet, words hissed out between clenched teeth, “No, I can assure you that my cognitive abilities are the only thing that still work like they used to.” 

Vi feels like she’s been slapped across the face. She opens her mouth but nothing comes out except a choked-off noise that does nothing but send the blue-haired girl into another fit of rage as she starts pacing around. 

"You don’t even get what you’ve done. My parents are right, I am useless.” One of her hands rubs her good eye to the point that Vi is scared she might damage this one as well. “Useless as the daughter of a councilor, useless as a friend since I’m the reason they threw the only one I had into prison.” She storms over to the row of bottles, kicking one of them into the water below as her voice rises in pitch, “Useless at this! ”

Vi’s mouth has never been more dry as she responds, “I don’t think you’re parents think you’re usel–”

Kiramman spins around, eye wild and looking like she’s about to pounce. Vi takes a step back, just to be sure.

“What do you know about it?! You have no idea what you’ve done to my life!” 

“I’m sorry, okay?! I really am!” She doesn’t like how panicked her own voice sounds, “I didn’t mean to hurt you. It was supposed to be a simple break-in, I swear. Why would I want to do this on purpose?”

The question seems to take some of the wind out of the other girl’s sails, her shoulders dropping. She sighs and Vi fucking hates that it sounds wet and broken . Caitlyn Kiramman looks fucking broken and as much as Vi tries to deny it, it’s her fault. 

“Doesn’t matter if it was intentional. It happened and now I’m–”

“You’re not useless, stop saying that.”

“Sure,” the blue-haired girl hisses, “That’s why my mom doesn’t want to take me anywhere anymore when all she ever wanted was–” She stops herself and takes a deep breath. “It doesn’t matter. None of it does anymore. Including this.”

With that, Kiramman turns and with quite a bit of force, throws her rifle over the edge of the ground she’s standing on. Vi watches in horror as the light of the early sun catches the crest decorating the butt of the gun moments before the brownish water swallows it whole. 

“What are you doing?!” She runs towards the water, coming to a halt right next to the other girl and staring at her in disbelief. “You’re never getting it out of there again! You can’t touch the water or you’ll get sick.”

For a moment, Kiramman’s gaze is fixed on the spot where her rifle disappeared. Then, she turns around and begins to leave her makeshift shooting range. “Doesn’t matter,” she mumbles with her back turned to Vi, “I don’t need it anymore.” 

With that, she exits the open space and Vi can do nothing but watch as Kiramman disappears between the old buildings, leaving her alone in her self-caused misery.

Fuck.  

It takes her about a minute until Vi realizes that Caitlyn Kiramman, daughter of Cassandra Kiramman, member of the council of Piltover , is currently making her way through the Lanes on her own - a realization that is promptly followed by her legs breaking out into a full-on sprint. 

She isn’t sure how exactly she’s going to find the other girl in the maze of abandoned buildings but sticking to the main path is her best shot for the moment, given that Kiramman probably took the easiest route through the Undercity.

Turns out that Vi doesn't have to worry about catching up with the other girl because the moment she finds herself between the walls of the buildings, Kiramman is already in her sight - and not alone. 

This is really fucking bad. 

Vi doesn’t even try to be quiet as she runs up to the blue-haired girl and some boy that turns out to be fucking Deckard once she gets close enough to see his face. Of all the people that could have shown up–

“Deckard,” Vi snaps when she comes to a halt right behind Kiramman. She does her best not to sound out of breath. “You’re here awfully early.” Which means that he isn’t without his usual gang, thank Janna. 

“Vi,” the boy scoffs, although his gaze is firmly locked on the other girl. “I’m not in the mood to talk to gutter trash like you right now.” She rolls her eyes. How original. “Why don’t you run along? Me and my new friend here have some things to discuss.”

“My new friend and I,” she hears Kiramman mutter and if she wasn’t busy trying to appear as nonchalant as possible, she probably would have strangled the girl because how can someone be so stupid ?

“Yeah, that’s not going to happen.” She steps around her unwanted companion to shield her from the older boy. “Just let us pass and we’ll be out of your oily hair in a moment.” When it doesn’t seem like he’ll let them go, Vi tries to appeal to what little honor the idiot has, “Come on, Deckard. Were you really about to rob a half-blind girl?” 

She hears Kiramman take a sharp breath behind her but other than that, the girl thankfully stays quiet. 

“It’s easy money, isn’t it?” Deckard’s grin is crooked and ugly, showing off his disgusting teeth. “A much better plan than whatever you pulled topside.” 

Vi feels her eye twitch, hands already balled into fists. As much as the comment is justified, she isn’t about to be belittled by fucking Deckard of all people. His IQ is lower than the air quality down here. 

“Move,” she demands with a cold voice, “I’m not going to ask again.”

The boy takes a step closer until his stile breath hits her face. “How about you make me?”

With everything that has been happening lately, all the stress and guilt weighing her down, it doesn’t surprise Vi that her fist connects with the side of Deckard’s face almost immediately, sending him plummeting to the ground. 

Like Vander loves to say, she’s always been a hot-head. 

The punch must have taken the boy by surprise because he splutters like a fish out of water, blood already starting to drop from the cut above his eyebrow. He stares up at her and snarls like a caged animal but Vi doesn’t give him time to get up and retaliate before she reaches for Kiramman and drags her into the closest side alley. 

Deckard’s angry voice echoes around through the narrow street as he yells after them, “You’ll regret this, you little bitch!” 

Vi tries her best to ignore just how right he might be. 

She’s so far in her own head that she forgets about the grip she still has on the other girl until Kiramman unceremoniously yanks her arm free with an annoyed huff. Stopped in the middle of the alley and with her arms crossed in front of her chest, the blue-haired girl glares at her. “You didn’t have to hit him so hard.”

Vi just got into a fight for her and this is the thanks she gets? Great. She shakes her head before replying in a sickly sweet tone, “My mistake. Next time I’ll wait until he pulls a knife on you.” 

That, at least, seems to shut Kiramman up. She bites her lip as her eye takes in their surrounding. The girl only speaks up when she seems content with what she finds, “I can take it from here. You can leave.” 

Fat chance, Princess. 

She tells her as much, “If you think that I’m letting you wander around here on your own–”

“I’m perfectly capable of–"

“You’re not!” Vi growls, her patience having reached its limit. “This isn’t Piltover, okay? Things work differently down here and you,” She gestures towards Kiramman’s entire get-up, “You stick out and people are going to notice. That guy back there? He’s nothing in comparison to some of the other guys you can run into, especially when you don’t know the safest route.” 

She waits for a snarky come-back that doesn’t follow. “Just… let me get you back to your train–”

“Bathysphere, actually.”

“You love correcting people, don’t you?” It comes out much more teasingly than snappish but when Kiramman only shrugs in response, Vi figures that it probably is for the best to not pick another fight right now. “Please? It’ll be much quicker and far less risky this way.”

Silence. Vi prepares herself for another argument, when,

“Fine.”

Thank Janna.

Thankfully, the rest of the way to the bathysphere is less complicated. Vi makes sure to keep Kiramman as hidden as possible, forcing them to wait behind corners until the more… aggressive people she knows are out of the way.

They get a good amount of sharp looks and unnerving comments but no one else tries to stop them. 

She doesn’t even care about the breath she lets out when the bathysphere finally comes into view or how much it shows the other girl that Vi has been nervous for the better part of their journey.

“Finally,” she sighs when she comes to a stop a good distance away from the entrance, feeling safe in the knowledge that Kiramman can get by on her own from this point forward. This wasn’t the way she wanted to spend her early morning. 

“Well, I guess I have to thank you,” the girl reluctantly says, hands fidgeting in front of her stomach. 

Vi gives her a tired smile, overcome by a sudden sadness at the prospect of watching her leave. She doesn’t even know why and it unnerves her. Still, she does her best to act normally as she responds, “No need for that, Kiramman.”

“Please, don’t call me that.” 

Her eyebrows furrow in confusion. “What am I supposed to call you then?”

“I have a name.”

This girl. 

“Alright, noted.” She takes a step back and takes a mock bow in an attempt to lighten up the mood. It doesn’t work. “Until next time, Caitlyn.” 

Something in the girl’s gaze just before she starts to walk away from her, makes Vi think that there won’t be a next time. It makes her feel… something. She can’t describe it. 

Nor can she explain why she opens her mouth once more to call after her, “Hey!”

Kiram– Caitlyn turns to level Vi with a look and it’s enough to empty her head. She isn’t even sure what she wanted to say in the first place, which leaves her with no option but to blurt out the first thing she comes up with, “I really don’t believe that your parents think that badly about you.”

“Yeah, well.” Caitlyn’s mouth twitches upwards in an almost smile that makes Vi’s heart sink before it settles into something far more solemn. “Like I said, you don’t know anything.” 

It’s the second time today she’s being dismissed by Caitlyn Kiramman - and somehow, it makes her feel just as empty as the first.

Chapter Text

If someone had told Vi a few months ago that the sight of Sheriff Grayson visiting The Last Drop would become a regular occurrence, she would have laughed in their face - because how absurd is that idea? 

She’s not laughing now while she watches Vander and said Sheriff sit down at a table in one of the corners of the room to talk business, whatever the fuck that means. She had hoped that sulking around the bar would have been enough for Vander to send Grayson away but that didn’t happen. 

Vi watches the two of them for a few minutes before the sight of Vander talking so civilly to an enforcer is too much to bear. She slams her glass on the counter, satisfied with how his gaze snaps to her for a split second before she storms through the door that leads downstairs. 

She knows that she’s acting childish but if Vander expects her to just accept this dumb plan of his, he’s very mistaken. He might have forgotten what topside did to them but Vi hasn’t. One mess-up on their side isn’t going to erase all the wrongs they’ve had to suffer through over the years. Scratch that, over decades. 

By the time she joins her siblings in the living room, she’s mostly calmed down. Mostly. 

“You look like a ray of sunshine,” Mylo greets her, his shit-eating grin in place as always. Vi simply huffs in answer before throwing herself in the armchair. It makes a horrifying noise and she wonders, not for the first time, how much time it has left before falling apart. 

She wonders how much time all of them have left. 

“I’ll take it that the sheriff is still upstairs?” Claggor, Janna bless him, has always been more empathetic when it comes to Vi’s bad moods. He isn’t okay with this either, none of them are, but he’s much more open to at least hearing Vander out. 

Vi groans and throws her head back to stare at the ceiling. “Yeah, they are still talking.”

“This is such grompshit! We blow up one room and suddenly we have to play nice with enforcers? What about the countless times they destroyed our shit?” As annoying as Mylo can be sometimes, Vi can’t help but agree with him. 

Powder, who has been lying on the couch so far and tinkering with one of her (hopefully disarmed) bombs, perks her head up. “Maybe it’s just a deal so we don’t get punished? Couldn’t that be the reason?”  

“No,” Vi replies, shaking her head, “The Kirammans had already said that they wouldn’t press charges before Vander and Grayson started talking.” 

Before Vi has a chance to think about any other reason why Vander would do this, Mylo is already butting in, “Which I still don’t buy. No way that Powder blows up a councilor’s daughter and they just don’t give a shit? They hate their kid or something?”

Vi’s stomach twists in the most unnerving way as a posh voice echoes in her head, My parents are right, I am useless.

“I already said it was an accident!” Powder and Mylo are already bickering by the time Vi blinks herself back into the present. “I didn’t know that those weird, glowing stones were going to blow up and–”

“Hey, I’m not mad about it! That was, like, the coolest thing you’ve ever done.”

“Mylo,” Vi warns her brother in a low voice but he either doesn’t hear her or, more likely, doesn’t give a shit about the fact that he’s starting to piss her off. 

“Seriously, it was awesome - and we’re apparently not even in trouble for it! One less topsider we have to worry about messing with us in the future.”

“Come on, Mylo.” Claggor nudges his brother’s shoulder with his own. “Do you really think a councilor’s daughter would have become an enforcer? She’s probably going to follow in her mother’s footsteps anyway.” 

Mylo shrugs, his lanky legs coming up to rest on the table in front of him. “Maybe. Who knows what’s going on in Piltie brains. Point is, her aim is probably going to be shit if she ever picks up a gun.”

“Can you shut it?!” 

The room falls dead silent and Vi knows she’s fucked up. Her outburst was way too loud and sounded way too fucking upset. The fate of some privileged Piltie should not bother her this much and they all know it. 

“Since when do you care so much about some snobby topsider?” Of course, Mylo is the first to point it out. “I thought she was a total bitch to you when you went to the hospital to apologize?”

“Maybe she was a total bitch because she lost an eye and is like, partially deaf or something.” 

Claggor cocks his head to the side, eyes wide in surprise. “Oh shit, really? Where did you hear that from?” 

Right, that information isn't something Vi told them after her visit to Caitlyn. Because she hadn’t known about it back then - and so far, she hasn’t told her family about the run-in she had with the other girl a few days ago. Mylo is already obnoxious enough with his remarks, she isn’t about to give him even more ammunition. 

“Something I overheard Grayson say earlier,” she quickly says in an attempt to cover her ass. It works well enough; at least no more questions follow. “Whatever. I don’t even care about that stupid Pilite.”

“Sure, you don’t.”

“Fuck you, Mylo. Maybe just don’t act like we did something amazing when we almost killed someone. That Piltie girl did nothing to us and she didn’t deserve what happened to her.”  

That, finally, shuts her brother up. He looks like he wants to argue but settles for crossing his arm in front of him and practically sinking into the couch while mumbling something under his breath. 

Vi pointedly ignores him, instead leaning towards Powder on the opposite couch. Her little sister has grown smaller and smaller during the conversation and the last thing Vi wants is for her to feel bad about this. The entire debacle topside hadn’t been her fault, she just did what Vi told her to do. 

“Hey.” She gently taps Powder’s leg with her foot, causing her little sister to look at her. “Don’t beat yourself up over this, Pow. You couldn’t know that this would happen, even the Kirammans think so. That’s why they are not pressing charges. They probably blame the person who was in charge of that lab a lot more.” 

Powder gives her a small smile but Vi can see the dullness in her eyes and it breaks her heart. Her little sister blaming herself for something that is most definitely Vi’s fault is one of the worst things to come out of this. 

Wordlessly, she joins Powder on the couch. It only takes a split second before the smaller girl is curled up against her and Vi is glaring at her annoying brother. Stupid Mylo for bringing this up yet again. Stupid Grayson for making them talk about it in the first place. 

Stupid Caitlyn Kiramman for being at the wrong place at the wrong time. 

Benzo’s shop has a distinctive smell to it that Vi can’t quite describe. 

It’s oil and rust and something comforting that makes the small room seem like some sort of safe haven. She doesn’t spend much time in here, with Ekko mostly meeting them at Vander’s where there is much more space but she’s always felt at ease between these walls. 

It gives her the courage she needs to approach the counter. 

Benzo has his back to her, busy rummaging around in his stuff. Vi takes the second she has to take a deep breath before she taps her fingers against the old wood a couple of times. It’s not loud but in the otherwise empty room, it echoes quite a bit. 

“Just give me a minute and I’ll be with you– Vi?” 

The man glances behind him and freezes, eyebrows raised. Vi gives him a small smile, motioning for him to continue with his work. “Hey, Benzo. Take your time, I can wait.” 

She’s honestly got nowhere else to be at the moment, having told Powder and the rest of her siblings not to expect her back for some time. Dodging the resulting questions had been a fucking nightmare but for whatever reason, Vi is determined to see this stupid plan through. 

That is, as long as Benzo is going to come through.

“What are you doing here, kid? I thought Ekko was–” 

“Yeah, he’s with Powder and the rest. I’m actually here to see you.” Benzo hums, waiting for her to continue. She scratches the back of her neck, building up the courage to ask, “I was wondering if you had like… uh, well, something like a magnet you could borrow me?”

“A magnet?”

“A big one,” she quickly specifies with a crooked smile, “One that can like, get something out of the water.” 

The older man gives her a long stare and Vi can’t even blame him for looking mildly suspicious. Her last plan had backfired spectacularly and almost got them all arrested. Not to mention the damage it had done to… other people. 

It still hurts. She’s supposed to take care of her siblings, be someone they can look up to, and now not even people who know her best believe in her. 

The sigh Benzo lets out is long and makes Vi squirm but he doesn’t dismiss her instantly. Instead, he leans forward, arms resting on the counter and squints at her. “And for what exactly do you need a magnet like that?” 

“...personal reasons?”

Stupid answer. 

Still, it makes the older man laugh under his breath. That’s progress, or at least Vi hopes it is. 

“Please, Benzo. I promise you’ll get it back tomorrow.”

Benzo looks deep in thought for a moment before he shakes his head and Vi’s heart sinks. Of course, he’s not going to trust her after everything that’s happened. Why should he? She can’t even blame him after she’s managed to screw up that badly and–

“Give me a moment, I think Ekko has something that could help you lying between all of his stuff.”

Vi is too stunned to speak as she watches him disappear in the back of the store, only finding the words to reply by the time he’s already joined her at the front once more, “Seriously? Just like that?”

Benzo puts the magnet down in front of her before throwing her a confused glance. “What do you mean, kid?”

"No further interrogation? Vander would have wanted to know everything.”

“Yeah, well, that old bloke is too suspicious for his own good,” the older man replies, chuckling quietly before giving Vi a warm smile. “And I know that you didn’t take lightly what happened topside. Learning from our mistakes is the best way to move forward.”

Vi tries to swallow down the sudden lump in her throat but her voice is still scratchy when she mutters, “Yeah.”

The magnet gets pushed towards her by one of Benzo’s large hands. “Then I trust you to keep your promise and return this by tomorrow. Besides,” He slightly leans forward like he wants to tell Vi a secret, “Don’t think I didn’t notice that you kept Ekko out of trouble when I know that he gave you that tip in the first place.”

“It wasn’t his fault,” Vi says in what she hopes to be a nonchalant tone, “Didn’t want to drag Little Man into something he had no control over.”

“Still, I thank you for it.” With that, Benzo pushes himself away from the counter and turns back to whatever he’d been working on when Vi first arrived. “Make sure to attach it to something that can hold its weight. And be careful with the transport, it’s quite heavy for a skinny kid like you.”

“Ha ha, very funny, Benzo,” she deadpans and then promptly drops the damn magnet on the floor when she miscalculates just how heavy it actually is. “Motherf–”

“What was that?”

“Nothing! Sorry, Benzo.” It takes some awkward fumbling that she’s glad Benzo doesn’t see before she has her arms tightly secured around her new possession. “Thanks for this. I’ll see you tomorrow!” 

“Stay out of trouble, kid.”

It’s a stupid fucking plan.

It’s a stupid fucking plan because Vi is an idiot who never truly thinks before jumping headfirst into a plan. 

That’s why it takes her more than four hours of her life she’s never going to get back, not to mention the time she wasted finding something to attach the magnet to that can actually hold its weight without breaking apart. 

Vander has told her about fishing once but given how pisspoor the water quality is down here, Vi has never seen the appeal of it. Waiting hours until some fish is dumb enough to fall for the bait and sometimes not catching anything at all? Sounds great. 

Point is, Vi isn’t a fan of fishing - and this experience sure as hell does not contribute to changing her opinion. If anything, it causes quite the opposite. 

Still, it’s a success in the end. 

Four hours and an eternity of boredom later, Vi is staring down at Caitlyn Kiramman’s fancy-as-shit rifle. 

It’s beautifully crafted, she must admit, with the Kiramman family crest decorating the butt of the gun and the smooth steel of the barrel reflecting the shiny water in front of her. Vi knows that selling it would make her a small fortune down here and for a fleeting moment, she’s tempted to do just that. 

Caitlyn doesn’t want the rifle back, right? She’s the one who threw it away in the first place. She also made it quite clear to Vi that she doesn’t consider herself capable of handling it anymore. 

But then the girl’s dull eyes and broken voice flash through Vi’s mind and the reminder of the pain she caused feels like a punch in the gut. She can’t sell this, not even with the knowledge that Caitlyn might not want it returned to her.

Besides, selling something as fancy as this would only raise questions Vi doesn’t want to answer. 

She groans and kicks one of the few remaining bottles that survived whatever gang had been coming through this place into the water. Why is she doing this again? All this struggle for a girl who most definitely not going to appreciate the effort Vi put into this? It’s ridiculous. She should just throw the gun back and be done with it. 

Vi makes sure to wrap the stupid thing in an old blanket and keep it close to her chest as she makes her way back home. 

Has she ever mentioned that Mylo is fucking annoying? 

“What’cha doing back there?” 

“None of your business, asshole. Go back to losing.”

“Powder’s cheating, I swear it! No one gets that lucky playing cards!”

“You’re just real bad at it, idiot.” 

Powder’s snarky remark, as warranted as it might be, gets Vi to turn away from the table and look at her bickering siblings. Mylo looks like he’s seconds away from flinging his card deck, which is stacked, at her little sister's head. 

“You–”

“Mylo, cut it. She’s better than you, just admit it.” 

Her brother glares at Powder before he huffs and dramatically flings his cards on the table. “Whatever. Game’s boring anyways.” His eyes snap to Vi and she immediately recognizes her mistake. “Now, what are you doing?”

Her first instinct is to cover the piece of paper she’s been hunched over with her arm, an action that Mylo notices instantly. His toothy grin screams trouble as he saunters over to her, hands in pockets and eyebrows wiggling. 

“My my, you’re not writing, are you?” 

Vi flips him off, well aware that it’s only going to antagonize him even more. Still, the ass deserves it and he’s not going to let this go either way. “Can’t you leave me alone for like ten minutes?”

Powder, that traitor, chooses this moment to form some messed-up alliance with her brother and promptly corners Vi from the other side, eyes wide and curious. “What are you doing, Vi? You’re acting so secretive about it.” 

There is no escaping this, so damage control seems like the best option. Vi sighs and drops her head back, though she refuses to uncover her half-written paper. “I am writing something, okay? It’s not important.”

“Seems awfully important, the way you’re trying to hide it,” Mylo counters before he tries, like the idiot he is, to pull Vi’s arm back. It earns him a strategically placed kick to the shin that makes him hiss in pain and her little sister giggle.  

“Get off my case. Who are you, Vander?” She turns her attention to Powder to ruffle the smaller girl’s hair lovingly. “It’s really nothing important, Pow. I’m almost done with it. We can play cards afterward if you like.” She leans forward to loudly whisper in her sister’s ear, “I bet I’m a bigger challenge than Mylo.”

“I can hear you!”

“Good.”

Her brother mutters something distinctly insulting but Vi can’t quite make it out. Then, in dramatic fashion, he whirls around and throws himself on the couch face first. Powder and her share a silent look before promptly bursting into laughter.  

Her little sister gives her one last look, eyes darting down to the covered paper. She seems to realize that Vi isn’t going to give in and follows her brother, gently patting him on the back and suggesting that they play something different. 

Vi watches them for a moment, heart full and content for once. 

She loves her family, every single one of them, no matter how much of a pain they can be sometimes - and she’s going to make sure that they are safe, no matter the cost. 

With renewed vigor, she turns back to the paper, pen steady in her hand and a plan in her head. 

Grayson is still there by the time Vi enters the bar. 

She looks like she’s in the middle of saying her goodbye, already standing while Vander is still sitting down with his pipe in hand. He looks at ease, a small smile on his lips that is mirrored by Grayson’s own. 

Vi frowns but does her best not to gag at the sight. Considering that she’s about to ask the woman a favor, she should probably try to at least be civil. 

The sheriff notices her first and turns towards her before Vi has made it halfway across the room. She makes for an imposing figure, especially in that stupid uniform of hers. Still, she gives Vi the same smile with which she regarded Vander a few seconds earlier. 

“Young Violet, to what do I owe this pleasure?”

She sees Vander turn his head and blink at her in confusion, right before his eyes turn just a bit harder and he gives her a look that screams, Do not cause any trouble. Vi rolls her eyes and ignores him.

She can play nice if she wants to. 

“Hey, hope you guys had a good talk?” See, nice and all that shit. 

Grayson nods her head and hums thoughtfully. “We did.”  Her gaze falls to the awfully wrapped object Vi is carrying. “Is there something I can help you with?” 

Suddenly, she feels a little self-conscious. It isn’t her fault that it looks so shitty. Wrapping a rifle is a damn nightmare and she’s tried her best while trying to hide what she was doing from the rest of her nosy siblings.

“Yeah, actually. I was wondering…” Vi trails off, unsure how to best approach this. Vander is watching her, a silent question written across his face. A question she really does not want to answer later but probably won’t get around. Best to just push through it. 

“Could you give this to Cait– Kiramman!” She feels her cheeks heat up, the blush that spreads across her face most definitely obvious to the two adults. “Uh, the Kirammans, I mean. Could you give this to the Kirammans next time you see them?”

Before she can embarrass herself even further, Vi holds the package out for Grayson to take. The older woman does so, if slowly, almost like she’s trying to figure out what Vi’s plan is - or if she’s handing her a bomb. 

Seconds pass and Vi can see the moment the sheriff realizes what she’s just been handed. Her eyes widen, if only a fraction, and her mouth opens in a silent question. However, no words pass Grayson’s lips once she seems to find her composure. Instead, she grips the wrapped rifle tight and gives Vi another nod. 

“Of course. I’ll make sure that young Kiramman receives it. I’m sure she’ll be thrilled.”

Vi barely stops herself from muttering a dry, “I doubt it.” She doesn’t know how much Caitlyn has revealed about her struggles to the older woman and while Vi is many things, she isn’t a snitch. 

“Thanks,” she says at last, doing her best to act like her heart isn’t in her throat. She’s almost made it, and that without having to answer any questions. She’s thankful that Grayson isn’t the most talkative type and apparently satisfied with reading her body language which clearly shows that Vi isn’t in the mood to explain herself. 

The sheriff bids her and Vander goodbye and exits the bar without any further comment. It leaves Vi with barely enough time to throw out a hastily, “I’ll be downstairs!” and jog through the door before Vander can rope her into a dreaded conversation. 

For whatever reason, he doesn’t try to get her to talk about the conversation with Grayson, not even later that night when they are sitting at the table, eating the leftovers of yesterday’s meal. He throws Vi a few glances now and then but otherwise remains quiet and she is eternally grateful for it. 

It gives her time and space to think about the day and everything she has done. Part of her is proud about coming up with this plan and successfully executing it. It hadn’t been easy and she isn’t known for being the most patient, so Vi is pretty happy with herself for seeing things through. 

The other part is asking herself just why she went through so much trouble. The added note especially seems like a stupid idea in retrospect. There is no way Caitlyn is going to answer it. She’ll probably rip it up without reading it once she realizes who sent it. Fuck, she’s probably going to throw the rifle away as well - and that after Vi spent like an hour cleaning the thing to make sure it doesn’t stink like crap. 

She doesn’t even know why she’s thinking about it that much but even way into the night, Vi is still turning around in bed, unable to sleep. Every time her eyes close, she sees blue. 

The pillow she groans into does little to muffle her frustration. It’s time she let this go. She’s done everything she can to make amends with Caitlyn. If anything, she’s done way more than what was expected of her. She doesn’t need the girl to tell her that she forgives her, which is good because there is no chance in hell that that is ever going to happen. 

Just like she’s probably never going to get an answer from the other girl, which is fine. Vi is absolutely fine with it. 

She gets an answer three days later, almost choking on the sandwich she’s been eating when Grayson approaches her, two crossed keys decorating the spotless envelope she silently hands Vi.

Chapter Text

“This is a stupid idea,” Vi mumbles to herself, well aware that her statement would hold more weight to it if she wasn’t already in the middle of said stupid idea - which includes climbing the wall to the Kiramman estate and effectively trespassing on the property of a councillor. 

And not any councillor, no. The councillor whose daughter she blew up. 

So, yeah, stupid idea indeed. 

It doesn’t matter that this isn’t even her idea but that of the girl who has requested, no, demanded, that Vi come to her. And like the moron she is, Vi is following that request without really thinking about how much trouble she could get in.

Perhaps Mylo is starting to rub off on her. 

It’s a hassle to scale the wall but Vi is used to worse and manages to land safely on the other side without further complications. She takes a deep breath, using the short break to look around the garden of one of Piltover’s most wealthy families. 

Even at night, the sheer variety of flowers and plants is almost overwhelming. 

They definitely have someone who takes care of this, she thinks to herself - because no matter how hard she tries, she can’t imagine Cassandra Kiramman strolling around and wasting her precious time with something as benign as watering flowers. 

Vi shakes her head. Time to snap out of it and move on. 

She is careful not to trample on anything that looks like it was planted there on purpose, tiptoeing around until she comes to a halt on the side of the building, which takes forever, given how comically large the Kiramman estate is.

The moon illuminates the wall in front of her well enough to analyze the best possible strategy for this. Vi takes a moment, eyes flicking from one potential path to the next. Once she’s satisfied with her chosen route, she steps forward.

The moment her fingers come into contact with the wall, reality sinks in. She’s about to break into the Kiramman mansion.

She’s about to break into the Kiramman mansion. 

Granted, she’s kind of following a request - again, demand - but it’s still an incredibly foolish idea. If she gets caught… Vi shudders. Best not to think about that too closely. Standing around down here isn’t going to help matters either way, so she might as well just go all out. 

She takes a deep breath and begins her ascend. 

It’s easier than it looked from the bottom but then again, Vi has been climbing the buildings of the Undercity since she can remember. What is one piltie building against that? She gets it done in no time and then she’s right in front of a closed window. 

Vi frowns, unsure about how to continue. Should she knock? Should she come up with some sort of signal? Imitating a bird could work but how can–

The window gets pushed up and Vi nearly loses her footing. Her heart plummets as she feels herself beginning to fall backwards. 

By Janna, she’s going to break her neck trying to break into Caitlyn Kiramman’s damn house. 

Just as Vi’s eyes are about to close, something catches her by the front of her shirt and pulls her forward. The scream that wants to tear itself out of her mouth gets swallowed down in the last second and then her body makes harsh contact with a way too hard floor. 

Slowly, she sits up, rubbing the spot on the back of her head that took the brunt of it. 

“What the–” A hand gets clamped over her mouth and Vi does her best to fight her first instinct that tells her to bite down. 

"Shh!" The figure behind her sounds more annoyed than worried, “Do you want them to hear you?” 

After a long moment, Vi finally gets the chance to breathe properly when the person pulls their hand back and steps around her. They come to a halt right in front of her, looking down where Vi is still pathetically sitting on the hard stone. 

Even under the dimmed light of her bedroom, Caitlyn Kiramman manages to look like a textbook stuck-up Piltie. The fancy, purple eyepatch that has replaced the thick bandages from before does little to help with that assumption.

They continue to stare at each other for a few more seconds before the other girl huffs and offers Vi her hand. She thinks about slapping it away but considering what she’s already put herself through to get here, it would be foolish to throw it away now. 

She takes the offered hand, momentarily surprised at how rough Caitlyn’s skin feels under her fingers, and lets herself get pulled up. Face to face - well, almost, considering that Caitlyn has a few inches on her - Vi takes the opportunity to really look at the other girl. 

She’s clad in the attire that she wore when they crossed paths in the undercity, something that causes Vi to frown. Why on earth she’s dressed like that in the middle of the night is anyone’s guess but Vi also doesn’t know why she is here in the first place.

Caitlyn’s note had been pretty vague about… well, everything. 

“So,” she starts when the silence becomes too much for her, “Why exactly am I here?” It’s not that she isn’t happy…ish about the response from the other girl but she must admit that it left her with more questions than answers. 

Caitlyn doesn’t respond straight away. Instead, her gaze roams over Vi’s entire frame. She does her best not to squirm under the sudden attention. She has nothing to be ashamed about and if that girl even dares to make fun of her clothes, she’s going to–

“Your handwriting is atrocious.” Vi splutters like a fish out of water at the blunt statement but Caitlyn barely pays attention to that before she carries on, “I almost couldn’t make out what you were saying. Does it always look like that?” 

“I…” Shit, is this supposed to be an insult? It doesn’t feel like Caitlyn has that intention, the girl sounds genuinely curious more than anything. “That’s a pretty rude thing to say, you know. But yeah, that’s my handwriting.” She shrugs. “Don’t really get the opportunity to write a lot where I live. We mostly handle things in person.”  

The other girl looks at her thoughtfully before nodding to herself. “I see. Well, you should consider starting a journal. That could be of help.”

What are they even talking about?

“And give my brother the chance to read about my deepest secrets? No, thank you. I think I’ll pass.” 

Caitly seems to perk up at that, “You have siblings?”

“Uh, yeah. Three, actually.”

Once again, the girl nods. Vi has no idea what’s going on. She isn’t sure what she expected to happen but it certainly isn’t this. She’s not uncomfortable exactly but there is a heaviness in the pit of her stomach that makes breathing just a bit more difficult. 

“Listen, not that I don’t enjoy getting some advice about shit I don’t need but is there a reason why you ordered me here? Because I got–”

“I did not order you here. You had every chance to decline.”

“Uh hu, it certainly sounded like that.” 

“That wasn’t– never mind.” Caitlyn scrunches her nose, frustration plainly written across her face. “I apologize. You don’t have to stay if you don’t want to.”

Vi sighs deeply. She stuffs her hands in her pockets to discreetly pinch herself. Why does she love to put her foot in her mouth at all times? “Just tell me why I’m here, so I didn’t break into your house for nothing.” 

“Technically, it isn’t a break-in if I invited you,” the girl across from her points out in her posh voice. It makes Vi huff out a quiet laugh. 

“The wall I climbed over to get here would disagree with that. What happens if your parents find out that you invited me here?” 

“Never mind that. They already went to bed.” Caitlyn steps away and walks over to one of her many cupboards and starts rummaging around in it. It gives Vi the chance to take in the rest of the room. 

It’s fucking huge - and not only in comparison to the space she shares with the rest of her siblings at home. She doesn’t think that she’s ever been in a bigger room in her entire life, most definitely not one that is only meant for one person to sleep in. 

The space between the polished floor and ceiling is gigantic, effectively making her feel even more small. The bed easily has enough space for two, maybe three people to sleep in without landing on top of one another and the covers look soft enough to sink through.  

Vi loves her home, wouldn’t trade it for anything. It’s her family’s space and they made it their own - but looking at how this piltie girl lives, wealth seemingly bleeding out of every corner of this place, it’s hard not to get jealous. 

Sister cities, they all say. Right. What a load of grompshit. She’s never felt more like a stranger. 

Without noticing, Vi has started walking away from the window and towards the middle of the room. 

“Careful!” 

Caitlyn’s warning hiss makes her stop in her tracks, eyes snapping from the bed to the other girl. Vi follows her gaze to her feet where some kind of bulletin board covers most of the carpet. It takes her a moment to recognize the pictures and newspaper articles for what they are. 

“Why do you have this?” 

“I’m trying to figure out why Jayce’s lab blew up,” Caitlyn explains in a voice that sounds way too much like an adult. She joins Vi where she’s still looking down at the aftermath of explosion, captured in more than a dozen pictures. “They just threw him in jail and won’t hear him out. I have to help him.” 

Vi doesn’t know what she’s supposed to say to that, if she is supposed to say anything. 

Thankfully, Caitlyn keeps talking without any sign of stopping, “It doesn’t make any sense. There shouldn’t have been anything in there to cause this kind of destruction. If only Grayson would talk to me about the evidence but no, she–

“Is this why I’m here? To be your witness?” Strangely, Vi isn’t pissed about the other girl’s bizarre plan. She should be, considering that she’s been summoned here like some kind of criminal - which, technically, she is alright - but something about the way Caitlyn is talking about this keeps her from getting angry. She isn’t sure what - and then it hits her.

This is the most animated she’s ever seen the girl. 

Caitlyn isn’t trying to appear as small as possible, isn’t curling in on herself or hiding away. Truthfully, she’s mostly ignoring Vi at the moment, her eye flicking back and forth over her board as if the answer is hidden somewhere between the pictures. 

On anyone who wasn’t some stuck-up, privileged snob, this dedication would be kind of cute. 

Vi frowns at her own thoughts, almost missing the way Caitlyn turns away from the board to look at her once more. “What did you say?”

“Am I here to tell you about,” She vaguely gestures towards the board, “This? Because I don’t know if I’m allowed to talk about–”

“No, that’s not why you’re here,” the other girl interrupts her and now she’s beginning to look a little nervous. 

“Then why am I here?!”

“Be quiet!” 

Being verbally chastised isn’t helping with her rising temper. Caitlyn clearly has no problems talking about how she feels, at least when she’s speaking to Vi. So why can’t she just spit it out already?

“Either you tell me why you wrote me that letter or I’m leaving.”

“Fine!” Now, Caitlyn is the one being a little too loud but the girl collects herself before Vi can point it out, continuing in a much softer voice, “I want you to take me back there.” 

Vi’s mind blanks. What?

“You… what?” 

Caitlyn’s eyebrows are furrowed in confusion as if she doesn’t understand why Vi is staring at her like she’s grown a second head. “I want you to–”

“I heard you just fine. But… why ?” Vi runs her hand through her hair while she tries to stay calm. “Why would you want to– to go back to the undercity? Wasn’t it enough that you almost got robbed the first time you went there?” 

“Well, I didn’t know what I was getting into the first time,” Caitlyn explains like it’s the most obvious thing in the world, “I have had time to prepare myself since then.” 

“Right,” Vi scoffs. 

“I’m going crazy in here!” 

Her sudden outburst leaves both Vi and Caitlyn herself momentarily stunned. They look at each other with wide eyes. The silence drags on until the other girl clears her throat and takes a step back.

Vi hasn’t noticed when they had gotten so close to each other. 

“My parents won’t let me leave the house. I can’t help Jayce from in here, I can’t get a moment to myself and I can’t–” Caitlyn stops for a moment, hands balled into fists where they rest at her sides. “I just want to do something, anything. And you,” She points at Vi, “Owe me.”

Vi really, really wants to argue because Caitlyn’s idea is fucking insane - but for whatever reason, she can’t open her mouth. 

“One trip is all I ask for. I don’t care where we go, I only want… please.” And all of a sudden, all she sees is someone desperate to get away from everything. “I won’t ever bother you again after this. If it’s money that you want, I can–”

“I’ll do it.”

She is so unbelievably stupid. 

“Oh,” Caitlyn breathes out and Vi watches as the tension visibly drains out of her body, “I thought it would take more to convince you. I took some money from my mother’s purse, just in case.”

“You… robbed your mother?”

“Borrowed.” The other girl looks entirely too nonchalant about this. “It’s not like she’s going to notice - and if she does, I have a backup plan.” 

Of course, she does. Caitlyn apparently has a plan for everything.

“Well, not like I got any other choice,” Vi quips with a crooked grin, “Though I must admit, giving me guilty conscience? Bold move, Kiramman. Didn’t think you had it in you.”

“Caitlyn,” the girl grumbles, looking at least a little guilty about the whole thing. Though not enough to stop being a know-it-all. “I told you to call me Caitlyn.” 

“Yeah, yeah. Just wanted to make sure that you got a little spirit left in you. You’re going to need it down there.” Vi doesn’t know how to approach the next topic, so awkwardly pointing at her own eye will have to do. “You might wanna leave the eyepatch behind. Will make it easier to pass as a trencher.” 

If the people of the undercity ignore everything else about the girl, like clothes, voice, hair, personality. 

“No,” Caitlyn says and something in her voice leaves no room for argument. 

Vi doesn’t like how insecure the other girl looks in the blink of an eye. Scars are nothing to be ashamed of where she lives. If anything, it is proof of how resilient one is, how much they have endured and are still kicking around. 

She wants to tell Catilyn as much but Piltover probably doesn’t share the same sentiment. 

“So… when are we going to do this?”

The deflection works and Caitlyn straightens her back before strolling towards the still open window. “If we leave immediately, we’ll have plenty of time before the sun rises.” 

“You wanna do this now?”

“Of course. I’m already dressed for it, aren't I?”

Sweet Janna. 

Vi is so fucking screwed. 

They are going to die before they even make it to the Undercity.

Getting out of Caitlyn’s room had been easier than Vi anticipated. Apparently, sneaking out is nothing new for the girl and she had done the majority of the climb with her eye closed. It had been just the tiniest bit impressive. 

Now, however, they are at an impasse - because the bathysphere isn’t running at night and that leaves the two girls at the edge of Piltover, staring down at dirty buildings just barely visible through the smoke. 

“Didn’t think about this part, huh?” 

Vi tries not to sound too smug but it is pretty funny to watch Caitlyn Kiramman absentmindedly nibble on her lower lip while her eyes scan the multiple (dangerous) paths they can take to get to the undercity. 

“I don’t understand why it’s not operating at night. What about the people who have to commute because of work?”

“You really think Piltover hires undercity street trash for its fancy jobs?”

Caitlyn frowns at that and for a moment, Vi thinks that they are going to get into an argument. The girl has no idea about the inequality that her people have to face, how can she when all she does is live in her absurdly big mansion? And if she tries to defend Piltover, they are going to cut this trip short and move on with their lives. 

They don’t argue. Instead, Caitlyn sighs and goes back to staring down the edge of her city. 

“I know the easiest path, just follow me,” Vi suggests, moving towards the spot where their descent should start. She stops once she realizes that the other girl doesn’t follow.

“I…” Caitlyn lets out a breath. “I don’t think I can do that.” She points at her eyepatch, a sad smile on her lips. “Not with my current depth perception. It’s all kinds of…”

“Fucked?”

“I would have gone with ‘wrong’ but sure, that too.” 

So, this is how it’s going to end? Hell no. 

“Alright.” Vi walks up to the girl until she’s close enough to see the curious, and slightly suspicious, look on her face. Then, she turns around and crouches down. “Hop on.”

“Excuse me?! I will not!” She doesn’t answer Caitlyn’s outburst, which only rattles her up even more, “You’re going to kill us both!” 

It’s a shame that the other girl can’t see Vi roll her eyes. “Please, I used to do this with my little sister all the time. Trust me, I can carry you and your attitude.”

“How dare you–”

“Do you wanna get down there or not? Because the way I see it, climbing on my back is your best shot.” Vi turns her head to glance at Caitlyn where she’s glued to her spot. “I wouldn’t offer this if I wasn’t sure I could do it, Caitlyn. Come on, live a little.”

The almost pained look on the girl’s face makes her laugh, which in turn makes Caitlyn glare at her even harder. They have a silent stare-off and Vi isn’t about to ask her again, it’s already embarrassing enough that she’s hunched over on the floor for this girl. Either Caitlyn makes a choice or they are done here. 

“If you kill us, I’ll haunt you in the afterlife.”

“What kind of threat is– oof!” 

If anyone in her family members could see her right now, with Caitlyn Kiramman climbing on her back and clinging to her like a baby, Vi would have to leave the city. Scratch that, she’d have to leave the country. 

She sends a silent prayer to the sky that no one sees them until they safely make it down on solid ground. 

“You seem weaker than I thought,” Caitlyn helpfully supplies once Vi manages to push herself off the ground and stand up. 

“Well, you are heavier than you look,” she snarks back even while making sure that the girl’s legs are secured around her waist. “Put your arms around my shoulders and hold on, alright? Just don’t let go.”

“I wasn’t planning on it. Make sure not to drop me.” 

It’s not going to happen because Vi has been doing this since she was old enough to think - but part of her wonders how satisfying the look of shock on Caitlyn’s face would be if she lost her footing and sent them both tumbling into their doom. 

For now, she settles for the choked-off scream the girl lets out when Vi begins their descend with a little more speed than necessary. 

Chapter Text

They don’t die on the way to the undercity, much to Caitlyn’s obvious surprise. 

Vi does her best not to give the girl clinging to her back a heart attack by being more careful than she’s ever been when taking this route. It takes forever but this way, she avoids a constant, posh nagging in her ear. 

Caitlyn, to her credit, doesn’t speak at all during their descend. Her body language is enough to convey what she’s feeling, the way she holds onto Vi just a little bit tighter when they reach a particularly difficult spot telling her that they need to slow down or take a short break. 

In the end, Vi is able to safely put Caitlyn down in one of the many side alleys of her home. 

“There you go,” she says, not able to hide her smug tone, “What did I tell you? Nothing to worry about, Princess.”

Instead of showing her some gratitude, the girl glares at her. It makes Vi snicker and that, to her delight, pisses Caitlyn off even more, a scowl carved into her face. “Are you incapable of using my name? Why insist on these ridiculous nicknames?” 

Vi shows her teeth when she matches Caitlyn’s glare with a grin of her own, “Because it pisses you off.”

“Ridiculous,” the girl grumbles and moves past Vi, shoulder-checking her on the way and while it doesn’t make her stumble, she’s momentarily surprised about the strength Caitlyn has. 

Then again, the gun she fished out of the water had been quite heavy. 

Caitlyn stops at the end of the narrow alley and turns back to look at Vi in obvious expectation. “So, where do you suggest we should go?” 

Right. She’s supposed to be some sort of guide for the other girl. 

“Uh,” Vi looks upwards, thinking about what to do. There aren’t a lot of spots they can visit in the middle of the night and with Caitlyn being… well, Caitlyn. She mulls it over for a moment until she’s left with only one option that seems safe enough. 

Because no matter what the girl wants, she’s not risking the possibility of having to tell Cassandra Kiramman that she got her daughter even more hurt. In that case, Vi might as well just swim to Stillwater on her own. 

“I got an idea.” She comes to a halt next to Caitlyn and peeks her head out of the alley, making sure that no one is around before proceeding to tell the girl, “Stick with me. Don’t talk to anyone even if they approach you. Let me handle everything, okay?” She glances at the eyepatch one more time. “I still think it’d be better if you took off–”

“No.”

Vi sighs. “Fine, come on then.” She thinks about taking Caitlyn by her arm to keep her close but decides against it. “And try to keep up, yeah?”

The street in front of the arcade is blissfully empty. 

Truth be told, their entire journey here has been much more pleasant than Vi had expected it to be. 

They barely saw another person on the path Vi made them take and the longer they hadn’t been bothered, the more Caitlyn had seemed to perk up. By the end of it, she’s almost jogging and Vi has trouble keeping up with her stupidly long legs. 

Seriously, who has legs that long? 

“We’re here,” Vi announces at last and comes to a halt in front of the door leading inside. Caitlyn, who has been in front of her, almost barrels right past it. She comes to an abrupt halt and turns to Vi, frowning. 

“This?”

“What? You gonna judge a book by its cover, Princess?”

By now, the girl should know that pouting only spurs Vi on even more.

“Whatever. Let’s just go.” 

Despite what Topside might think, the people down here aren’t animals. Vander has raised her to be a gentlewoman and Vi makes sure to hold the door open for Caitlyn, grinning when the girl raises her eyebrows in surprise. “Ladies first.”

Okay, Vi has to admit: with the power out, the place looks like shit and she wouldn’t blame Caitlyn if she started accusing her of trying to lure her in here to get murdered. Or if she just started screaming bloody murder. 

Surprisingly, the girl does neither. 

It takes a moment but then she takes a step into the space Vi has come to think of as a second home. Most of the time she spent here was in the company of her siblings and the memories every single one of these games hold are very dear to her. 

She wonders why she allows Caitlyn to be part of it, even if only for a night. 

“Before you judge,” Vi starts, despite the girl doing nothing of that sort, “Give me a moment. It’s not ready yet.” 

She disappears behind the counter of the gun range, momentarily confused about how to even turn this place on. That’s normally Powder’s job. Thankfully, it doesn’t take a genius to figure it out and within a few minutes, the arcade lights up in its neon bright colors. 

The sound the machines make when powering on is quite loud and Vi perks her head up from where she’s been crouching down just in time to see Caitlyn flinch. The girl’s eye grows wide as she pulls her arms close around her midsection, seemingly slumping into herself. 

Vi jumps over the counter in record time to run up to her. 

“Hey, what’s wrong?”

The girl’s breathing is much more irregular than it had been a few seconds ago but she still lifts a hand to wave Vi off. 

“It’s fine,” she insists like that is believable, “I’m just not–” It looks like Caitlyn is about to deflect and Vi isn’t sure if she’s earned the right to comfort her in any way. It doesn’t stop her from slowly reaching out, hand hovering over the other girl’s arm in some sort of pseudo touch. 

Whatever it is, it gives Caitlyn the push to continue, “I’m not the biggest fan of loud noises after…” She trails off and points at her left ear with a sad smile. “I know it’s stupid but–”

“Nah, I get it.” Unsure what to do, Vi decides to take a step back and stuff her hands into her pockets. “Powder had this entire phase–”

“Powder?"

“Uh, right. My sister,” she clarifies with a nervous laugh. “She had this phase where she’d start crying whenever she heard a loud noise because some assholes decided to blow up a firecracker right next to her. Burned her leg and all.” 

Why am I telling her this? Powder is going to kill me if she ever finds out. 

“So, yeah,” Vi finishes lamely, shrugging her shoulders. “I get it. And for what it’s worth,"  Which probably isn’t a lot. “I’m sorry. About the hearing thing. That must suck.” 

“You have no idea,” Caitlyn replies drily but her body does relax a little, like Vi’s crazy rambling actually helped. “It’s not that bad, really.” Yeah, Vi can smell a lie that bad from ten streets away but she’s going to let her have this. “Some days just…”

“Suck."

“Yeah, they suck.” 

“Caitlyn Kiramman using that kind of language?” Vi’s grin is all teeth as she wiggles her eyebrows. “Didn’t think you had it in you.” 

“Well, you don’t know me, do you?”

Vi cocks her head to the side and thinks. Caitlyn isn’t wrong. She doesn’t know the girl and before this day, she’s never had the urge to know any piltie. Why should she waste her time with someone who is just going to look down on her because of circumstances she can’t control? 

No one who judges Vi for her home deserves her time. 

But Caitlyn isn’t judging her, not for that at least - and she has to admit, getting insulted over something as benign as her handwriting is much more pleasant, especially when the girl doesn’t even seem to realize what she’s doing. 

“No,” Vi concludes at last, “I guess I don’t.” 

And to her surprise, she kind of wants to change that. 

Mylo can never ever find out about this. 

“So, what do you say? Wanna change that?” Vi points to the gun range behind her. “How about a little game? Every round you win, I tell you something about myself. Every round I win, you do the same.”

Caitlyn’s face lights up, a sparkle of confidence in her eye before she seems to remember something important and her expression falls. Vi figures that before the accident, she probably wouldn’t have won a single round. 

Now, however…

“That’s not fair,” the girl argues, though without any real bite to it. “You know that I lost–”

“You just have to practice! Get used to the - what is it you said - depth perception?” At Caitlyn’s weak nod, Vi continues, “That’s something you can get better at, isn’t it? And it’s much better to practice with this,” She walks over to the counter and picks up the toy gun, offering it to the other girl. “Than with a real rifle. You got nothing to lose here and no one to make fun of you if it doesn’t work.” 

Caitlyn’s gaze flicks between Vi’s face and the offered gun a few times before, at last, determination sets in. She approaches Vi, head held high like the little piltie she is, and takes the toy from her hands. 

Her hands caress the barrel a few times before she gently throws it from one hand to the other. Vi has no idea what she’s doing; maybe getting used to its weight? 

Sweet Janna, she’s got a competitive one on her hands, doesn’t she? 

Without taking her eye off the gun, Caitlyn asks quietly, “You won’t make fun of me if it’s bad?”

Vi frowns. “Why would I do that? Besides, you’re probably still going to beat me. I’m shit at this.” 

It’s not a lie and she isn’t saying this to make Caitlyn feel better. Guns have never been her strength and it shows when Powder is wiping the floor with her ass whenever she gets roped into playing this game with her. 

The other girl doesn’t respond straight away and Vi is scared she’s going to decline the offer. She would understand it, of course. She had seen the way Caitlyn had been struggling when they met by the water, how not being able to hit the targets had completely derailed her. 

It makes her breathe a sigh of relief when the girl nods to herself and fixes Vi with a look. “Fine. Let’s do this,” she declares, holding out her hand. Vi huffs in amusement at the antic. 

“You wanna shake on it?”

“Of course. We have to,” Caitlyn explains, voice serious and with no room for argument, ”Otherwise, it can’t be considered an official agreement.”

This girl is such a loser. 

“Dork,” Vi accuses her. Regardless, she takes the outstretched hand and squeezes it. “Game on.” 

True to her word, Vi really is shit at the game. 

“You’re doing this on purpose!”

“I swear I’m not!”

“No one is this bad at shooting. Are you the blind one here?”

“Wow, okay, low blow. I can’t even say anything bad or I’m the asshole!”

Caitlyn grins at her and it’s the first time Vi has seen her genuinely smile. It reveals a toothgap that for whatever stupid reason, makes her swallow hard. Maybe suggesting this had been a bad idea after all. 

But then Caitlyn hits three targets in a row and squeals in the most adorable way. 

It doesn’t matter that it’s taken them more than ten games for it to happen. It doesn’t matter that there have been games where Caitlyn hasn’t hit anything and looked like she was about to throw in the towel. 

Nothing matters when she hits the fourth target and wins the final game. 

“Well, look at that,” Vi says, shooting a smile at the other girl. “Not too bad, don’t you think?”

“It wasn’t a bullseye but it’s a start,” Caitlyn admits, her critical words contradicting the way she’s visibly vibrating in excitement. Vi understands that this isn’t the real thing, not even close, but it’s better than nothing. 

And they have to start somewhere. 

“Whatever. A win is a win. So, what do you want to know?”

They have been very polite with their questions so far. Well, at least Vi has been. The few hours she’s spent with Caitlyn have been enough to show her that the girl isn’t really one for subtlety. Or forced politeness.

She’s been particularly interested in her siblings. Vi’s first question has revealed, to no one’s surprise, that she is an only child. 

“Why did you break into Jayce’s lab?”

Jayce - Caitlyn’s best (and only) friend - who, from Vi has come to discover, has taken the brunt of the blame for the accident; thrown into jail and currently awaiting trial, which could lead to him being exiled. 

Yeah, Vi had almost stopped playing after hearing that one. 

“We– I mean I heard about him buying tons of stuff down here for way too much money,” she starts to explain, careful to keep things vague. She’s not about to throw Ekko or anyone else to the wolves, no matter how much she wants to explain herself. “Seriously, he got like, majorly scammed and didn’t even bat an eye.”

Caitlyn nods thoughtfully at that. “Sounds like Jayce.”

“So, I figured that he’d have more where that came from. Shadowed him until I knew where he lived, or I thought he lived. And then…”

And then it all went to shit and someone almost died. 

That someone is currently watching Vi with a stare so intense it makes her want to squirm. But to her surprise, there isn’t any judgment in Caitlyn’s gaze, only curiosity. Like she wants to understand every single detail about that day.

Vi’s thoughts drift back to her bulletin board. Maybe this is an interrogation after all, even if Caitlyn doesn’t realize it.

“It was supposed to be a quick job. But then my– I found these weird glowing crystals or whatever they were and–”

“What crystals?”

Vi blinks at Caitlyn in confusion. The girl looks like a dog that has smelled blood, eye wide and fingers tightly gripping the toy gun in her hand. It’s a little disturbing, as much as it is captivating. 

“Uhm, the blue ones? We dropped one on the way out and the entire place blew up. Grayson didn’t tell you? Or Jayce?” 

“Mother won’t let me see him. She says he’s the reason I’m like this and that I need to stay away from him.” Caitlyn crosses her arms in front of her chest, deep in thought. “Crystals. He’s never mentioned them, has he? He might have. What is it he said, Hex… something. When did he–”

“Caitlyn?” Vi doesn’t really want to interrupt but the girl looks like she’s about to spiral into one theory after another. 

“Hm? Yes?” Caitlyn’s focus shifts back to her, right before the girl cringes and drops the gun, hands coming up to angrily rub her temples. Vi doesn’t think much of it until a pained groan reaches her ear and has her stepping forward.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah.” A beat. “No. It’s my head. It hurts.” Her fingers dig into her hair, almost pulling on navy-blue strands and Vi has to fight the urge to ease the grip. “My dad says it’s an expected side effect of the accident. I guess the bright colours in here are a little much for this long.”

“Oh,” Vi says lamely, shame pooling in the pit of her stomach. Side effects. Fuck, it just keeps getting worse. “Well, I guess that means we should start heading back, right? Better not cut it too close or your parents might wake up and notice you’re gone. Wouldn’t want to get into an argument with your dad.”

Caitlyn huffs. “Don’t be ridiculous. My dad wouldn’t do anything. It’s my mother you should be scared of.”

“Uh…”

“Shooting is a Kiramman tradition, you know.”

Yeah, they are going to head back immediately.  

They are not heading back topside immediately. 

Instead, Vi finds herself standing in front of Jerichos at an ungodly hour with an utterly confused Caitlyn behind her. 

“This isn’t the way we took earlier.”

“No shit.” 

It’s a gamble but Vi knows that her friend starts working very early this time of the week thanks to the crazy delivery times his suppliers have - and she has noted Caitlyn’s stomach grumble more than once these past hours. 

Tentatively, she raises her fist and taps on the wooden planks. It gets her the reaction she expected.

“What are you doing?!”

“Relax,” she answers, shooting a grin over her shoulder. “What, you still don’t trust me?”

Caitlyn grumbles but doesn’t say anything, not until the planks blocking the shop get pushed up and scare the living shit out of the girl. Or maybe it’s the giant guy that stands behind them, a frown on his face that turns into a bright grin once he spots Vi.

“Jericho! I hope I didn’t wake you or anything. I know it’s delivery day.” Her friend shakes his giant head and laughs, a gesture Vi returns happily. “I was wondering if you could whip something up for me and my guest? Only if it doesn’t inconvenience you, of course.”

She’s barely finished her sentence before Jericho already has his back to her, giant knife in hand as he starts chopping up meat. Maybe her home doesn’t look as fancy as Piltover but the community down here sticks together. 

It gives her the opportunity to buy food in the middle of the night and it doesn’t get much better than that. 

Her companion, who has been suspiciously quiet until now, finally finds the courage to step up to them and join the conversation, “What are we doing here? I thought we wanted to go back.”

“We will,” Vi assures her. “Right after we get you some food. Don’t think I haven’t noticed how loud your stomach has been all night. Is the fancy topside food not to your liking?"

Caitlyn’s reaction immediately tells her that there is more to it. The girl avoids eye contact, nails scratching the back of her hand until Vi is concerned that she’ll draw blood. It’s strange but she waits for the girl to speak up on her own.

“I’m not hungry. Your friend doesn’t have to work this early.”

Like they are in some stupid comedy, Caitlyn’s stomach chooses this moment to growl once more. Vi simply raises her eyebrows at the obvious lie but the girl stubbornly refuses to take her words back. 

“Jericho doesn’t mind, I promise. He’s always happy to help out.”

“I’m serious. I don’t want to eat.”

“Why?” Vi is aware that she’s pushing it but for some reason, she’s incapable of letting this go.

“I just don’t, okay?! So can you drop it already?”

Alright, a very sensitive topic then. She’s certain that Caitlyn’s anger is only partially directed at her and it shows in the way the girl immediately slams her mouth shut, embarrassed and angry all at once.

“Okay,” Vi gives in after a moment because she can’t really force Caitlyn to eat something, as much as she might want to. She turns her head to address the man still working on the food, “Only one portion then, Jericho.”

He makes a noise but otherwise doesn’t bother trying to get in between the arguing girls. 

Smart man.

“Fine, stay hungry then. I, however, have to eat something before I can haul your ass back topside. Is that fine?”

Caitlyn looks way too relieved about Vi dropping the topic. So much in fact that she doesn’t even comment on her foul language or subtle insult. “That is acceptable, yes.” Then, she pushes her way past Vi to approach Jericho’s food stall, her hand rummaging around for something in her pocket. 

Vi’s eyes grow wide as she watches the girl pull out coins, a lot of coins, and put way too many of them on the counter. 

“For your trouble, Sir.” 

Oh yeah, she can see the daughter of a councilor in her, though not even in her wildest dreams did she expect any piltie to be that generous.

“I can pay for my own food,” she argues but Caitlyn immediately waves her off.

“Consider it payment for the entire trip.”

I didn’t do this for the money.

Vi wants to continue arguing but she still feels bad about pushing Caitlyn to eat something when she obviously doesn’t want to. She doesn’t need topside’s pity donations, never has and never will - but this once, she figures, she can let it slide. 

Jericho, for one, seems absolutely fucking thrilled. 

“That looks horrible. Are you sure it is safe to consume?” 

Vi rolls her eyes at Caitlyn’s unwanted and unwarranted critique. The girl doesn’t seem to care that her concern falls on deaf ears, rambling on even as Vi shoves another piece of delicious meat into her mouth. 

“Is his food stand even allowed to operate? It looks like it would never pass–”

“Caitlyn?”

“Yes?”

“Shut up.”

“...alright.” 

They continue walking in silence, though Caitlyn doesn’t seem hurt by Vi’s blunt words. She shouldn’t be, considering that she’s been anything but gentle with her comments the entire night. 

“Jayce says that I can be a little rude sometimes,” the girl admits after a while. “I don’t really have that many friends, especially ones that are my age.” 

“I figured,” Vi says with a mouthful of half-swallowed food, snickering at the way Caitlyn’s face twists into a scowl. 

“That’s disgusting.”

She doesn’t bother swallowing before snapping back, “What happened to not being rude?”

“I’m not being rude, I’m stating a fact. Swallow before you speak.”

“Yes, Lady Kiramman.”

Vi glances down at her almost empty bowl before offering it to the other girl. Caitlyn looks at the food for a second before she shakes her head, a silent denial. “I just said it looks–”

“I know but I can see your mouth watering from here and for someone who apparently hates the food, you sure stare at it quite a lot.” The bowl gets pushed closer to the girl’s face. “Just try one and I’ll stop bothering you about it.”

Oh, she wants to. Vi knows she wants to but something seems to keep Caitlyn from giving in, be it pride or whatever has her so hellbent on not eating in the first place. So, she figures some added stakes won’t hurt her chances. 

“Try one and I’ll start writing a journal.”

Caitlyn opens her mouth but no words come out, the girl too caught off guard by the callback to their earlier conversation. It only takes a moment for her to catch herself though. “I thought you said you couldn’t do that because of your nosy brother.”

“I’ll think of something. Come on, just one.”

“Fine,” Caitlyn relents and Vi tries to keep the smug satisfaction off of her face as the girl takes the bowl. “If I throw up from this, I’m telling on you to my mother.”

There are worse threats - but there are less scary ones as well. 

But Vi isn’t worried because as much as it looks like the spawn of hell, Jericho’s food has a reputation in the Undercity for being nothing but delicious. That, of course, doesn’t account for piltie taste. 

She watches in anticipation as Caitlyn takes one of the remaining pieces into her hand, frowning at the sauce that stains her fingers. It’s almost adorable how slowly she brings it to her mouth before tentatively taking a bite. 

“So,” Vi prompts after the girl fails to respond in any sort of way, “What do you think? Good enough not to rat me out to Councilor Kiramman?"

Caitlyn glares at her but otherwise doesn’t dignify Vi with an answer; not that she needs to. 

The way the girl finishes the rest of the bowl in record time is answer enough for her. 

Vi isn't panting by the time she sets Caitlyn down on Piltover ground. 

“Here we are,” she says, her breathing totally normal and not at all labored from having to carry the tall glass of water all the way up here. They really have to think about a better way to go about this the next time. 

Next time? What am I thinking?

There probably isn’t going to be a next time. Caitlyn only asked for one trip and even though it was a success, at least from Vi’s point of view, it doesn’t mean that the other girl wants to repeat it. 

Why is she even thinking about this so hard?

“Need me to escort you the rest of the way to your fancy mansion?"

“No, I think I should continue on my own from this point forward,” Caitlyn suggests after a second, “Just in case my mother is already up and patrolling the grounds in search of me.” 

“Alright, cool,” Vi says because that’s absolutely fine and not at all disappointing, nope. It means she’ll be in bed sooner and sleep off whatever has her in such a funk at the moment. Maybe she’s getting sick. 

Before she has the chance to be on her way, Caitlyn approaches her one more time, hands wrung together, her nerves practically coming off her body in waves. “I… I wanted to thank you. I know you probably had something better to do than waste your time with this but I truly appreciated it.”

Vi wants to tell her that no, she didn’t really have more important things to do except maybe get kicked in her back by a sleeping Powder - but for whatever stupid reason, her throat is too raw to get the the words out. Instead, she shrugs her shoulders, a quiet, “No problem.” leaving her mouth.  

Caitlyn looks like she wants to do or say something else but the light of the moon isn’t enough for Vi to get a good read on the sparkle in her blue eye. Before she finds the courage to ask, the girl takes a step back. 

“Get home safe, Violet.”

Vi is in the middle of nodding when she freezes. “How do you know my name?” She’s certain that she didn’t sign the note for Caitlyn with her full name, she’s sure about it. 

“Oh. Uhm, Grayson told me when she gave me your note.” The girl cocks her head to the side, curious. “Is that a problem?”

“No, no,” Vi is quick to assure her, for whatever reason, and then silently tells herself to get a grip. “I’m just not the biggest fan of it. Doesn’t sound as cool, you know?” She doesn’t want to tell Caitlyn that two of the only three people who ever called her that are dead and that every time she hears it, she wants to scream. “Vi is fine.”

“Very well.” If the girl suspects that there is more to the request, she doesn’t show it. “Make sure you get home safe, Vi. I’d hate to be the reason for you to get hurt."

Well, it’s a little too late for Vi to say the same, is it? 

“Have a nice day, Caitlyn."

Vi is almost at the spot she wants to begin her descent from when Caitlyn calls out to her one last time, “Vi?”

“Yeah?” She turns her head to look at the other girl in the distance.

“For what it’s worth, I really like your name. It suits you.” 

With that, Caitlyn disappears into the night, leaving her standing at the edge of Piltover with her mouth half-opened and brows furrowed.

Chapter Text

Somehow, meeting Caitlyn becomes a regular thing. 

Grayson visits the Last Drop a few times a week and every time she does, she has an envelope with her that she subtly hands Vi when neither her father nor her siblings are paying attention. She pretends to be disinterested whenever the sheriff hands her another letter, although Grayson’s knowing glances tell her that the older woman can see right through that particular facade. 

Whatever . Let her believe what she wants to. At least it makes the sheriff's frequent visits just a tad more bearable. 

Every letter is precise and to the point, telling Vi when to be at the edge of the city. She hasn’t been back to the Kiramman estate since that first night. Caitlyn tells her that it’s safer that way because she can’t keep the dogs inside the house during the night too often without raising suspicion.

Vi almost choked on the food she got from Jerichos - which has become some sort of tradition, including Caitlyn paying for it and then stealing half of her bowl because she refuses to get one for herself - when the other girl dropped that little detail on her. 3 fully grown Dobermans to be precise, who are not very friendly to anyone but the Kirammans, apparently. 

So yeah, Vi makes sure to wait near the bathysphere when Caitlyn tells her to.

It’s inevitable that the rest of her family eventually notices that something has changed. 

She simply had hoped that it wouldn’t result in a line of questioning during dinner - and from fucking Mylo, of all people. 

“What’s with you lately?” 

She’s been absentmindedly slurping on her kind-of-stale soup and only registers her brother’s question when he repeats it with an additional breadcrumb thrown against the side of her head. 

“The fuck you want?”

“Nothing. I’m just curious.” Mylo leans back on his chair, tipping it backward until he’s balancing on only two legs. “You haven’t complained about that tall enforcer lady showing up here for like, what, two weeks now? You haven’t complained much in general. It’s odd.“

“Not everyone is such a whiny baby like you, punk,” she snarks back instantly. Vi doesn’t mind entertaining her brother’s antics but she’s still incredibly tired from her visit with Caitlyn last night. She barely made it back home in time to sneak into bed before her siblings woke up. 

“Kids, please. Can we not do this at dinner?” 

Vander sounds even more tired than Vi and she feels momentarily bad for being difficult after he’s had a hard day working at the bar. Then, she remembers that Mylo started it and feels less bad. 

“Sorry,” she says nonetheless because de-escalating the situation only works in her favor at this moment. She is about to go back to her soup when out of the corner of her eye, she sees that Powder has already finished her portion and is scraping her spoon over the now empty plate. 

Vi nudges her arm and slides her own plate in front of her little sister. “Here. You can have the rest. I’m not really hungry anymore.” Then, because sometimes she just can’t help herself, she adds, “Seeing Mylo’s ugly face ruined my appetite.”

“Vi!”

“Fuck you!”

Her father and brother yell at the exact same time, causing Vi to snicker. She can see Claggor and Powder desperately trying to suppress laughter of their own. When her breathing has calmed down, she turns to her brother. “I’m kidding. Sorry, Mylo.” 

“Yeah, yeah.” Her brother tips his chair back a few times before leaning forward again to glare at Vi in a very non-intimidating way. “Make sure to take a few extra punches for me next time we get into a fight.”

“You got it.” She throws him a two-finger salute for good measure.

“No one is getting into any fights,” Vander’s low voice interrupts. “Isn’t that right, Vi?”

“Of course. Wouldn’t dream of it.” 

She holds her father’s stare for a few moments before he sighs and shakes his head. “I’m happy that you seem to warm up to the sheriff’s presence here, Vi. She’s only trying to help us.” 

Vi doesn’t dignify him with an answer. She’s not about to ruin their dinner by getting into an argument. 

Beside her, Powder is happily eating - drinking, really - the rest of Vi’s soup. Thank Janna that she actually isn’t all that hungry. Late-night Jericho lunch breaks with a stuck-up piltie make sure of that.

The first time Grayson arrives without a letter from Caitlyn, Vi shrugs it off and goes about her day. It’s to be expected that they can’t meet every time the sheriff comes to visit and if she’s being honest, she can use the extra hours of sleep.

She pointedly ignores that something deep inside her is a little disappointed about the lack of news. 

When Grayson returns the following day, she still doesn’t approach Vi. She does, however, throw a quick glance in her direction when she passes her on the way out. Later that evening, Vi tells herself that what she saw in the older woman’s face wasn’t worry.

Even if it was, why the hell should that be a reason for Vi to be worried? Caitlyn probably just got tired of their nightly meet-ups because that’s how topsiders are. They take and take and take and when they grow bored with something, they throw it away. 

Yeah, Vi is not worried in the slightest. 

When Grayson walks up to her after a week of no sign from the other girl, Vi thinks about refusing to take the letter that’s being offered to her. She truly thinks about it… for about two seconds and then she reaches for it, snatching it out of the sheriff’s hand and hastily putting it into one of her pockets. 

Vander should be proud of her; she’s been trying to be less impulsive lately and ignoring the older woman’s knowing smirk is definitely a milestone for her. Without a word, Vi turns around and leaves the room. 

She should try to get in a quick nap before the upcoming night.

Caitlyn doesn’t show up. 

She doesn’t show up, no matter how long Vi waits, and it pisses her off spectacularly. How dare that girl waste Vi’s time like she is some stupid lapdog? If she doesn’t want to see her, then that’s fine. But why would she write her that letter in the first place? 

After mulling it over for a moment, Vi comes to the conclusion that it doesn’t sound like Caitlyn. The girl is naive as hell, sure, and has a stick up her ass in the most entitled sort of way - but she isn’t cruel. 

Which means that something probably must have gotten in the way of her meeting Vi. 

Maybe her parents caught her trying to sneak out? Maybe she got sick? Or maybe she did decide that Vi wasn’t worth the time after all?

Okay, this isn’t helping. 

Vi huffs in frustration and kicks a loose stone over the edge of Piltover, contemplating what to do next. She can go back home and crawl into bed even though she is anything but tired. She can just go to Jerichos by herself. Or, she could do something else. 

It’s a really bad idea but…

Screw it, she won’t be able to sleep or rest without knowing why Caitlyn hasn’t shown up. So, idiotic idea it is. 

Vi realizes on her way back down that she has a lot of those ideas lately and somehow, Caitlyn Kiramman is always the root of it.

The thought that Caitlyn’s Dobermans might be roaming through the garden crosses Vi’s mind the exact moment her feet touch the grass on the other side of the wall; which is decidedly too late. 

Frozen in place, she holds her breath and waits. In her mind, she is calculating if she can outrun and more importantly, outclimb 3 giant dogs before they can get to her. The odds are decidedly not in her favor. 

She could always throw the bag of food at them and hope that the smell of meat distracts them long enough for her to make her escape. 

Thankfully, she doesn’t hear any commotion in the dark garden and after waiting for another minute, Vi allows herself to shakily exhale. With quick and light steps, she crosses through the garden and comes to a halt under that familiar window. 

Why am I doing this again? 

It’s kind of scary, Vi thinks; that pull that Caitlyn seems to have on her. She can’t describe, much less explain it. It’s not purely guilt, not like it had been in the beginning. Vi knows that she still has a lot to make up for but that isn’t her driving factor anymore. 

Her driving factor is something else. She doesn’t try to think too much about it. 

It’s a little harder to scale the wall with one of her hands holding the bag of food but eventually, Vi finds herself in front of Caitlyn’s window. The small glimpse of hope she’s harbored so far disappears when she notices the lack of light inside the girl’s room. 

Still, she gently taps against the window with two of her knuckles. It gets her the reaction she expects, which is none. Vi presses her face close to the window, her free hand curled just above her eyes to shield them from the moonlight and make it easier to peek inside the dark room.

There is no movement, no sound. For all that she knows, the room is empty. Vi groans quietly, her head tipping forward until her forehead is pressed against the cold glass. She waits a few more minutes, just to be sure.  

Nothing. 

Great. 

No point in sticking around when Caitlyn isn’t there; or when she isn’t welcomed. Vi ponders the idea to leave the greasy bag on the windowsill but that would look creepy, and she’s already been weird enough for one night. 

With barely suppressed annoyance and a stupidly heavy heart, she leaves her spot by the window and climbs back down. For the most part, she truly hopes that Caitlyn simply doesn’t want to see her and is fine otherwise. The little corner in her mind that wants it to be something else and makes her feel like a horrible person gets pushed aside.  

Vi lands on the soft grass with a dull thud. When she lifts her head, she finds herself staring down the barrel of a gun. 

Fucking shit.

She’s been caught off guard to such a degree that she doesn’t even bother opening her mouth to plead her case. Her lips part but except for a panicked wheeze, nothing comes out. She does, however, slowly raise her hands in the air from where she’s still on her knees. 

Granted, almost anyone would be intimidating while pointing a deadly weapon at your face - but Cassandra Kiramman looks especially frightening; and not just because of said rifle. The light of the moon reflects in her narrowed eyes as they stare down at Vi. 

It takes a moment but then she can see recognition flash over the older woman’s face. The rifle gets lowered almost immediately until it’s pointing at the ground in front of Vi’s feet instead of her still frozen in shock face. 

“You.” 

Vi didn’t really pay attention the first time they spoke but Caitlyn definitely got her accent from her mother, as well as her striking blue eyes… and her cheekbones. Alright, time to snap out of it. 

“What are you doing here? I suppose I don’t have to explain to you that you’re currently trespassing on my property.”

“I… uh, well.” Vi stammers her way through a few words before falling silent, eyes glued to the gun in the other woman’s hand. Caitlyn’s words are ringing in her ear, loud and clear: shooting is a Kiramman tradition, you know . 

“Do speak up, child.” Councilor Kiramman doesn’t sound angry per se, but more… annoyed? Expirated, maybe? Like this isn’t the first time she’s patrolled her garden in the middle of the night to look for intruders. “I’m not going to shoot you. Now, get up.”

With her body more or less on autopilot, Vi obeys. It’s at that moment that she becomes aware of the paper bag still in her hand and she isn’t sure if she’s supposed to drop it or not. Councilor Kiramman’s gaze follows her own, causing the older woman to frown.

“What is that?” 

“Food,” Vi finally, finally manages to blurt out. Then, she realizes that one word doesn’t exactly explain anything. “It’s food. For Caitlyn. She…” She trails off when the older woman’s stare becomes too much to hold, muttering the rest of the sentence to the ground, “Likes this dish a lot. I figured she might want some.”

“You’re here, trying to break into my home… to bring my daughter food?” 

Okay, if she phrases it like this, it does sound ridiculous - but there is no point in lying now. 

“Uh, yeah.” She is so screwed, it’s insane. “I haven’t heard from her in a while and I wanted to make sure she’s–”

“She’s what? Alright? Happy?” 

Oh, now Vi can see the anger. Scratch that, she can see white-hot fury. She wonders if she can make a break for it and get away before Councilor Kiramman can raise her gun to shoot her. 

Well, in for a penny, in for a pound. Vi straightens her back. 

“Yes, I wanted to make sure she’s fine.”

The older woman clearly doesn’t expect such a reply, judging by the way she leans back, as if Vi’s words have affronted her. It’s almost amusing, or it would be if she wasn’t so fucking scared. 

“How have you come to know my daughter? I recall that your last meeting did not end with you two on good terms.” 

Lying to a counselor seems like a really bad idea but what exactly is the alternative? Oh you know, nothing interesting. I keep bringing your daughter to the Undercity, the place where she nearly got robbed the first time she went there. 

Yeah, that’s so not happening. 

“I wrote her a letter some time ago,” Vi begins to explain after a moment spent in deep thought. “Apologizing for, like, everything. She wrote back after a while and we’ve been kind of talking ever since.” 

“Talking?” The older woman asks, suspicion lacing her voice. Vi nods once, not daring to say any more for the moment. “And meeting with each other, yes? Given that you,” She pointedly looks at the bag from Jerichos, “Know that she enjoys this… kind of food.” 

It’s not the smartest choice to grow defensive over the food that comes from her city and how disgusted Councilor Kiramman seems to be by it but Vi is already on edge, and lashing out is her favorite way to deal with it. 

“It’s not poison, you know? Just because it’s from my city.” Her voice is strong and steady, which is funny because she feels like she’s two seconds away from collapsing under the intense staring match she has with the older woman. “It’s actually quite delicious.”

“Mhm.” Councilor Kiramman narrows her eyes at Vi. “I will have to take for your word for it. What I am curious about is how my daughter has come to try this particular meal.”

Shit, shit, shit. Think of something right now. 

“I brought it with me topside one time and couldn’t finish it.” 

Does that sound believable? Vi thinks it does but that woman reminds her of a fucking hound and she’s clearly out for blood - and she still has that stupid rifle in her hands. 

But Cassandra Kiramman doesn’t look like she wants to tear her apart. She looks curious. And Vi is probably hallucinating but there is a glimmer in her eyes that seems almost… hopeful. 

The entire situation is just very fucking confusing. 

It only gets weirder when the older woman addresses Vi again, “And my daughter ate this?”

“Uh, yeah. Not all of it though. She never gets– lets! She never lets me bring her a full bowl.” Sweet Janna, she has got to get it together. “But she often eats around half of it.”  

Caitlyn's mother regards the bag in her hand with a thoughtful look. “I see.” 

And then Vi’s brain gives up on trying to get a grasp on the situation altogether because Councilor Cassandra Kiramman is reaching for the greasy, barely held-together paper bag in her slightly trembling hand. 

Vi can do nothing but hand it over while trying to keep her eyes from popping out of her skull. 

“I’m going to make sure that my daughter receives this. You may go.”

“I– I may go?” Vi asks in disbelief because she had been sure that even if the older woman didn’t end up shooting her, she’d at least call the enforcers on her for trespassing. “I’m not in trouble?”

“Oh, I am fairly certain that you are the trouble and I am telling you not to drag Caitlyn into it.” Councilor Kiramman shakes her head and just for a fleeting moment, she reminds Vi of Vander when she or her siblings did something stupid. Nothing more than a tired parent. “But you made all this effort to bring her this and I will honor that.”

“Okay…” Vi isn’t buying it but who the hell is she to argue against her own case? 

With a quickness that catches her by surprise, the older woman turns away from her. Before she can get too far, Vi calls out to her, “Is Caitlyn alright?” She’s been worrying all night and needs an answer or she’s probably not going to get any sleep. 

Councilor Kiramman doesn’t turn around, not even her head. When Vi hears her answer, she’s glad she didn’t, “No, my daughter isn’t alright. I fear she might never be again and you are partially to blame for that.” 

Vi feels like she might throw up. 

“I’m sorry,” she croaks out despite her completely dry throat. “I really am.”

“I know you are. It doesn’t change all that much, does it?” 

No, she supposes it doesn’t. 

The older woman is almost at the bottom of the stairs that lead towards the front door when her voice rings out one more time, “Child,”

“Yeah?”

“Do use the door the next time. I do not want to have to be the witness to another avoidable injury.” 

What the fuck?

“Yes, ma’am.” 

Vi is still glued to the same spot long after the door to the Kiramman estate opens and closes, leaving her alone in the chilly night. The wind, harsh and biting, has nothing to do with the ringing in her ears.

When she walks up the stairs that lead to the bar the following morning, Vi immediately feels the tension in the air. Her siblings are standing in the open doorway, looking into the seemingly empty space of the big room. 

“What’s going on?”

“The sheriff is here,” Claggor explains without taking his eyes off the scene playing out in the other room. 

“So?” Vi asks, coming to a halt beside her little sister. She ruffles her unkempt hair and smiles at the angry scoff she receives. “She’s here pretty often these days. What about it?”

“She’s not alone."

Well, he could have led with that information. 

“Who is with her?”

“Not sure,” Mylo chimes in, his head basically through the door as he, very obviously if she might say so, tries to eavesdrop. “Powder thinks it’s the deputy. Whoever it is, he sounds pretty pissed off.”

Vi frowns. “About?”

“Everything.”

Great. Just what she needs after that rollercoaster of a night. 

“Didn’t expect to see you up this early.” Mylo has pulled his head back to give Vi a crooked grin. “You’ve been sleeping in a lot these days."

Deflection is definitely the best strategy for this. “Have I?”

“He’s right.” Perfect, now even her little sister is bothering her about it. Maybe it’s payback for messing up her hair. Though you can’t really mess something up that hasn’t been right in the first– “Are you alright, Vi?”

She smiles at Powder before the thought that she’s a pretty shitty sister overwhelms her. “I am fine, I promise. You have nothing to worry about.”

Her little sister’s piercing eyes are almost burning through her and Vi knows, she knows, that Powder suspects that something is up with her. “Are you–”

The question gets interrupted by loud yelling in the other room,

“This is ridiculous! How can you even consider negotiating with these– these animals?!” 

Oh, fuck this. 

“Vi, maybe you shouldn’t–”

Whatever Claggor wants to say, as right as it might be, gets drowned out in the ringing inside Vi’s ears as she marches into the room. Who the hell has the audacity to come to their city and say these kind of things?

Whoever it is, he’s about to get an earful. 

It takes until she rounds the bar to see the source of the commotion. Grayson and a similarly dressed man are standing next to each other, looking at Vander where he’s sitting at one of the tables. 

Grayson looks as calm as ever but that man…

He looks like trouble. 

Vi comes to a halt a few feet away and the guy’s angry gaze snaps to her. He looks seconds away from tearing this place up with the baton he’s carelessly waving around like it’s nothing more than a toy. 

Like a weapon like that hasn’t been aimed at Vi countless times before. 

She holds her hand out, silently ordering her siblings to stop behind her when she hears them approaching. Vi doesn’t want them anywhere near that man. It doesn’t matter that he’s with Grayson. She can see the hate in his eyes clear as fucking day. 

It’s very much recognizable in his voice as well, 

“There you are.”

“Marcus, this is hardly appropriate–” 

“We put one of our own into a cell when it should have been you four rats.” That man, Marcus, points his baton at them. More specifically, he points it at Powder. “You did this. All of you. And I’m going to make sure that you’ll pay for it.”

“That’s enough, deputy!” 

Grayson reaches out and pulls Marcus back by the collar of his uniform right before Vi gets to him. Her fists are already raised, ready to show that asshole what threatening Powder will earn him. Marcus is lucky that Vander catches her before she catches him. 

“Don’t even think about it,” he warns Vi, his giant hand easily enveloping her upper arm. “This isn’t how we deal with disagreements, kid.”

“He just called us rats!” Vi tries to jump forward with little success but that doesn’t mean she can’t spit at the man who is staring down at her like she’s nothing more than gutter trash. “And he threatened Powder!” 

“You little–”

Marcus gets cut off by a not-so-gentle squeeze from Grayson. He huffs, reminding Vi of a little child not getting the toy he wants. The sheriff pays his tantrum little mind, already in the middle of addressing Vi,

“And I can assure you, young Violet, that he’ll be reprimanded for this.” 

She’s never heard the older woman sound this angry. It makes Vi want to believe that she is truly going to do something against the obvious bias her deputy has against the Undercity - but she knows that in the end, men like him rarely face consequences for their actions. 

Until she’s proven wrong, Vi will continue to doubt that this will be any different. 

“I think it’s best if we take our leave,” Grayson says, only then letting go of Marcus. He immediately marches towards the exit, slamming the door closed on his way out. “I deeply apologize for the deputy’s behavior. I will address it.”

“Make sure that you do.” 

Where Vi speaks with anger, Vander does with sadness. He sounds tired and she misses the time when he would have lashed out harder than she had to protect himself, to protect them, to protect the city. Now, he’s all talk and no bite and to a certain degree, Vi gets it. 

It doesn’t make it any less frustrating. 

Vander keeps ahold of her until Grayson has left. She closes the door much much more gentle. Vi yanks her arm away the second she feels his grip weaken and takes a step back, eyes fixed on the exit the two enforcers walked through moments ago. 

“He’s going to be a problem,” she comments drily. 

Beside her, Vander sighs. “Yes, I agree. He’s very… animated."

“He’s an absolute ass.”

“Thank you for the insight, Powder.” Vi almost snickers at the groan in Vander’s voice. Almost. “Not that you’re wrong about that. But there will always be people like him and trying to fight them is not the answer.”

Vi doesn’t need to turn her head to know that he’s looking at her. “I’m not about to stay silent while he points his weapon at one of us.”

How can he even suggest it? Her entire life, Vi has been told to protect her family with everything she has, no matter what it takes - and now she’s supposed to throw all of those lessons out the window because one asshole enforcer is swinging his baton around? 

I don’t think so. 

She can feel that Vander wants to say more and Vi is more than ready for the resulting confrontation but her father only exhales loudly and turns away to get to work behind the bar. It’s not the end of their argument; they simply put it on pause. 

Vi doesn’t look forward to picking it up again - but the look on Marcus’ face had told her everything she needed to know. This wasn’t the last time he’d pay them a visit. 

And it’s only a matter of time before things are going to get ugly.

Chapter Text

Every now and then, Vander loves to get all philosophical and shit. One of his favorite topics in those moments is how many people don’t appreciate the things they have until they are taken away from them in one way or another. 

Vi never understood that, given that she is thankful for just about everything she gets. Be that food, a new toy for Powder, or some coins she finds on the streets. As far as she knows, she has never taken anything for granted.

But right now, walking through the Undercity at night by herself, Vi finds herself understanding what her father speaks about in those moments – because while she has never minded spending time alone, it does pale in comparison to how she usually spends her nights these days. 

Or how she used to, at least. 

Because ever since her very strange run-in with Cassandra Kiramman, Vi has done just about everything to avoid even thinking about Caitlyn. In the days following her getting ignored by the other girl – (she refuses to think about it as being stood up because no) – Vi’s worry has slowly given way to anger. 

By the time Grayson had subtly tried to give her a new letter, she had simply huffed and stormed past the woman; and if she had been a little snappish at dinner that evening, it had everything to do with yet another small meal and nothing at all with stupid Caitlyn Kiramman. 

So, rationally thinking, she shouldn’t care about being on her own tonight. And she doesn’t. She really, really doesn’t. Who cares about rich, snobby Pilties anyway? Vi certainly doesn’t. 

The reason she can’t go to sleep at night, the reason she’s wandering through the Undercity on her own right now, is something totally different. 

Whatever that reason might be, it has her on edge as she casually strolls through the mostly abandoned streets of her home – and apparently, it has her a lot more distracted than she usually is because the sounds of hastily approaching footsteps only reach her ears when it’s too late. 

Vi barely has time to turn her head before a fist connects with the side of her face, sending her crashing to the ground with a pained groan. Her arms come up to protect her face just in time to block the incoming kicks. 

She wants to get up, wants to launch herself at the nearest person and just full-on pummel them into the dirt; but there are at least 3 people surrounding her and the second she even attempts to lower her arms, someone’s foot is aiming straight for her face.

In the end, Vi can do little else but take the kicks until her attackers apparently grow bored of aiming for an unmoving target. Their laughs echo in her ringing ears, taunting her in a way that makes getting up and taking a few more kicks in the process almost worth it. 

She blinks open her eyes and looks up. The sight she’s met with makes her blood boil because Deckard has no fucking reason to look so smug, given that had to basically jump her with his little group of assholes to get the upper hand.

“Told you that you’d regret it, bitch.” His grin is so disgusting that Vi has to actively fight the urge to throw up; or it might be the multiple kicks she’s received to the stomach. 

She coughs a few times, happy to note that there seems to be no blood mixed in her spit. Small victories. Then, she turns her head to address the still smirking boy, “I wonder how much longer your teeth have before they fall out.” 

It’s an incredibly stupid thing to say and if Vander ever finds out about this, she’s never going to hear the end of it – but oh, how satisfying it is to see the glee fall from Deckard’s face, replaced by pure anger. 

“You fucking–” 

This time, Vi isn’t even angry about the harsh kick that makes her ribs hurt. It’s fucking worth it; and it gives her the opening she needs to reach out, grab Deckard’s outstretched leg and pull as hard as she can. 

She hears his sharp intake of breath moments before a satisfying thud! tells her that his back met the dirty ground. His loud cry tells her that it must have hurt quite a lot. 

Good. 

Deckard’s friends, momentarily distracted by his angry cursing give Vi the few seconds she needs to push herself off the ground and make a fucking run for it. She ignores the burning pain in her side and ribs, the angry throbbing of her eye and makes sharp turn after turn until she’s sure that she lost the group.

She isn’t sure if they ever followed her to begin with. 

Still, Vi makes sure to hide behind an awfully smelling dumpster for way longer than necessary, just to be sure. 

Honestly, if Deckard and his goons are still after her, hiding inside the arcade is probably the first place that they are going to check. But after coming to the conclusion that going home looking like this is simply not an option, Vi is left with little choice. 

Besides, she has home-ground advantage here and the first person bursting through the door is going to get a metal plate to the head. 

Vi flinches where she’s perched up on the counter of the shooting range, one hand holding a small, dirty mirror while the other one is gently examining the damage Deckard’s punch caused her face. 

The skin under her right eye is swollen and has turned an angry shade of red already, not to mention the painful sting that shoots through the entire side of her face every time she so much as pokes at it. 

Fuck, she’s going to have a black eye; which means come morning, Vander is going to kill her.

She’s so absorbed in her own thoughts, trying to come up with a plan that doesn’t involve her being grounded until the end of time, that she doesn’t hear the door opening until the sound of quiet footsteps has already invaded her space. 

So much for throwing something at the first person who dares to bother her. 

In the end, it’s most definitely for the best that Vi doesn’t do that because when she whips her head around – and only slightly hisses at the pain in her entire stupid body – she isn’t met with Deckard’s ugly grin. 

Instead, Caitlyn Kiramman is rooted to the spot close by the entrance, her good eye opened wide in shock while the other one is covered by her normal eyepatch. Even in the dim light, Vi can’t help but be momentarily distracted by the striking blue that she totally hasn’t missed this past week. 

Missing a Piltie? Right. 

The momentarily jolt of excitement that shoots through Vi’s body quickly gets overshadowed by the rising anger inside her. What the hell is the girl doing here? Even worse, why does she have to show up right after Vi got the shit beaten out of her? Her clothes are even dirtier than usual, not to mention her swollen eye and aching ribs. 

It might be the embarrassment or the mounting frustration that has silently been brooding under the surface for days that has Vi sneering at Caitlyn when she finally addresses her, “Finally decided to waste some of your precious time on your favorite circus attraction?” 

That finally seems to snap the other girl out of her frozen state – but instead of giving Vi any sort of explanation for the events of the past week, Caitlyn completely ignores her remark and makes a beeline for her, one of her hands already outstretched. 

“You’re hurt.”

After nothing but radio silence, this is the first thing out of her mouth? 

Vi very subtly lets the girl know that her touch is not welcomed by swatting the hand away as soon as it's in reach. “Great observation,” she snarks. “Ever thought of becoming a detective with those skills?”

The frown on Caitlyn’s face almost makes her laugh because how can this girl possibly be confused about Vi’s anger after ignoring her for such a long time? She slowly retracts her hand but makes no move to step away from the counter and Vi. 

“You’re upset,” she comments at last; and wow, another keen observation. She’s on track to beating Mylo and setting a new record for the most pointless sentences in a row.  

“What makes you think that?” Vi hates that she sounds closer to whining than anything else but this night has been shit so far and she really hadn’t anticipated dealing with Caitlyn on top of it all. “Why would I be angry after being ditched and almost shot point blank by your mother?”

“She never would have done that. The only time she shot at someone was when–”

“That’s not what you should focus on!” While Caitlyn’s rambling has become more endearing than annoying, Vi isn’t in the mood to entertain the girl’s quirk at this moment. Her entire body hurts and her feelings aren’t that much better off. “You ditched me, Kiramman.”

Caitlyn’s stupid pout is not cute at all and only pisses her off even more. “I told you not to call me that.”

“Yeah, well.” Vi angrily wipes at her nose, groaning in annoyance when she spots fresh blood on her hand wraps. Fantastic. “I told you not to waste my time. Guess we both are shit at following simple instructions.” 

She can see Caitlyn bite the inside of her cheek as she, at last, takes a step back and gives Vi space to breathe. “I didn’t mean to stand you up.” Her hands are wrung together in front of her, making her look especially nervous. “And I didn’t exactly ignore you.”

Vi can’t help but scoff. “Sure you didn’t.”

The long look Caitlyn gives her suddenly makes her feel like she’s another file on her weird bulletin board and Vi quickly turns her head away before the girl can see her blush under so much attention. 

There isn’t an immediate answer, which is very unlike Caitlyn. She loves putting in her two coins, even if it’s very much unwanted. It gives Vi the slightest bit of satisfaction

At least, until Caitlyn’s quiet voice takes all the wind out of her sails with three simple words, “I was sick.” 

Frowning, Vi turns to look at the girl. “What?”

“I was sick. It wasn’t anything bad, just a fever, but ever since,” She subtly points at her eyepatch in explanation, “My parents have been especially serious about anything remotely wrong with me. I didn’t get a second to myself.” 

“So, why did you ask to meet?”

“Because I thought I was fine at that point but a few hours before I wanted to sneak out, I got a migraine.” Caitlyn flinches like even thinking about the pain is enough to make her uncomfortable – and fine, maybe Vi feels a little bad for her.

“Father said it’s completely normal because my body is still getting used to all the changes but it was really bad and he insisted that I sleep in their bedroom that night.”   

Well, Vi has been hoping for an explanation that didn’t include Caitlyn getting sick of her and now that she has heard it, she feels like an absolute ass for being so snippish with the girl. Still, 

“You could have told me.” It’s a stupid thing to say because how exactly was Caitlyn supposed to do that except for–

“I apologized for any inconveniences I may have caused you in my last letter but Sheriff Grayson returned it to me, unopened.”   

Well, shit. 

If this were a chess match, Caitlyn would have put her into checkmate about four moves ago. Alright, it might be time for an apology. Again. 

“Fuck, I’m sorry for–” She cuts herself off the second Caitlyn pushes herself back into Vi’s personal space, eye fixed on her beaten up face. “Uhm, hello?”

“Can I take a look at your eye now?” 

“What?” 

“Your eye. It looks awful.” There she is again, classic Caitlyn. “As does your nose. Are you aware that you’re bleeding?” 

Vi rolls her eyes, immediately groaning when the bruised skin protests upon being even slightly stretched. “Yeah, I’m aware. Thank you for pointing it out, detective.”

She’s also aware that anyone else would have gotten a not-so-gentle shove at this point but for whatever reason, Vi doesn’t stop the other girl’s gentle touch as she starts to examine the damage Deckard caused. 

“How did this happen?” Caitlyn’s mumbled question is so quiet and almost inconceivable that Vi isn’t sure if the girl is even talking to her. 

“Got jumped by a bunch of dickheads. Don’t worry, I made sure that they regretted it.” Is she slightly exaggerating? Maybe. Not like Caitlyn is ever going to find out. She half-heartedly pulls her head back. “It’s really not that bad. I’ve had worse.” 

Caitlyn observes her for a few moments and Vi is almost convinced that the girl believes her when she very swiftly pokes her right where one of the guy’s kicks had made her ribs hurt. Vi curses as the pain makes her almost double over. 

“What the fuck?!”

“You’re lying to me.”

“So you decide to make it worse?!” With a loud huff, Vi attempts to jump off the counter. “You’re certainly something–”

Two very firm hands land on her hips just as Vi is about to slide down and keep her locked in place. Caitlyn’s lips are set in a straight line, the look on her face telling her that the girl is not playing about her silent request for Vi to stay still. 

“Let me take care of this.”

“Uh,”

“My father is a doctor,” the girl points out, even though Vi already knows this. Their first meeting, and every little detail surrounding it, is more or less seared into her brain at this point. 

“If we don’t clean this cut,” Caitlyn gently taps the bridge of Vi’s nose a few times, “And ice this eye and your ribs, it’s going to be much more painful than it has to be.” 

It’s in this exact moment that Vi realises that this is the first time Caitlyn touches her. Sure, she has carried the girl on her back numerous times and received quite a few shoves for ill-timed comments but this? 

This is different. 

Vi isn’t the biggest fan of physical touch, given that most of them happen during fights. Only Powder and the rest of her family has her permission and, more importantly, her trust to touch her. 

She isn’t sure why she’s so fine with giving Caitlyn even a fracture of that trust but the girl has reached into her pocket and pulled out a fancy-looking handkerchief with which she’s currently carefully cleaning off the blood under Vi’s nose and it feels wrong to stop her now. 

It also feels kind of nice to be taken care of by someone other than Vander for once. 

Not to mention that it's sort of funny (and not adorable) how the tip of Caitlyn’s tongue is poking out from between her lips while she’s concentrating on her task.

Vi doesn’t mention how every now and then, she can feel that Caitlyn’s hand misses the intended spot and goes wide and how her face seems to fall every time it happens. It doesn’t matter to her. 

“You really don’t have to do that,” she mumbles when the girl’s attention becomes too much for her. “I can take care of myself, you know.”

“Mhm.” Caitlyn clearly isn’t listening, too focused on the task at hand. Vi thinks about speaking up again but ultimately decides that a few more minutes of this aren’t going to kill her. 

Eventually, the girl appears satisfied with her work and puts the handkerchief into one of Vi’s hands. “Use it if your nose starts bleeding again. Now,” She starts to look around in search of something. “You don’t happen to have a fridge with ice in here?” 

Vi laughs loudly and fuck, her ribs are really starting to give her a bad time. Maybe icing them isn’t the worst idea. Too bad that this isn’t a fancy place and no, they do not have a fridge. 

“Yeah, no luck. This has to be enough for the moment.” 

The displeased look on Caitlyn’s face tells Vi that her answer isn’t going to be accepted. The girl finally allows her to hop off the counter, her hands steadying Vi’s landing, which is totally unnecessary.

She only sways a little upon landing.  

“Then we have to go somewhere.”

“Yeah, good one,” Vi muses, only to be met by silence and a serious glare. “Hell no. Where do you want to go? We don’t have fancy hospitals down here. Besides, this is nothing. You’re overreacting.”

“Your eye looks like shit.”

“I’ll live.” She brushes off Caitlyn’s hands and crosses her arms in front of her chest. “And just because your dad’s a doctor doesn’t mean that you–”

“Know about how serious an eye injury can be?”

The silence that follows is fucking deadly. Vi wants to snap at the girl because that isn’t what she was getting at and it’s unfair for Caitlyn to bring it up but unlike all the times before, the girl doesn’t look at her with any sort of accusation. 

No, the only emotion she can make out is concern and Vi has no idea how to respond to that. 

In the end, Caitlyn saves her from answering by simply barreling on as she loves to do, “I’m not leaving you alone until we get this iced. I don’t care if it takes all night.” 

Vi has no doubt about the sincerity of those words and, for a second time that night, knows when she’s beat. She lets out a long sigh and starts to run through her options. There really only is one that makes sense but… 

“If I promise I’ll take care of it, will you leave me alone?” She’s fairly certain that she already knows the answer to her question even before Caitlyn opens her mouth.

“No.”

Knew it. 

“Fine, let’s get this over with.” 

She takes a step towards the exit of the arcade, ready to lead them outside. Within a second, Caitlyn is back at her side, one of her arms wrapped around Vi’s waist while the other one guides Vi’s left arm over her shoulder. 

“Seriously?” No answer. “I’m not dying, Caitlyn. I can walk on my own.” 

The girl doesn’t make any move to let go or step away. If anything, the hold around Vi’s waist gets just the slightest bit firmer. 

“The faster you cooperate, the faster you’ll feel better.” 

Oh, Vi knows she’s going to regret this. 

The walk through the Undercity is slow and painful. Halfway through, Vi comes to the conclusion that allowing Caitlyn to carry most of her weight might have been the right idea, not that she’s going to tell the girl so. 

Her ego is most definitely bruised enough for one night. 

They have just rounded a corner (which means Caitlyn has rounded the corner and pulled Vi along), when a thought crosses her mind, “How the hell did you get down here on your own?”

So far, Vi has always carried her and Caitlyn has never made a move to stop her. 

“Why do you think I showed up so late?” The girl points out like it’s the most obvious thing in Runeterra. 

Vi doesn’t try to fight the grin that spreads over her face. “You did all of that just to see me?” The other girl mumbles something under her breath that she can’t make out. “You were worried about me, weren’t you?” 

“I certainly was not.” To emphasize her statement, Caitlyn makes sure to pinch Vi’s side. 

“You so were. Aww, I’m flattered.” 

It’s dark and the lightning down here is absolute shit but Vi swears that she can see the girl blush. Even without the reddening of her cheeks, Caitlyn’s words have little bite in them as she whispers a quiet, “Shut up.” 

Vi doesn’t. 

The Last Drop is quiet when they enter. 

Vi makes sure to have them walk through the back entrance as quietly as possible because the prospect of having to explain her bruises to Vander is bad enough as it is but explaining Caitlyn? 

Yeah, that conversation gets a hard pass from her. 

If only the girl next to her would get the fucking hint. 

“So, this is your home?” Caitlyn asks, not even attempting to keep her voice down.

“Can you keep it down? If my dad wakes up, we are both dead.” 

“Sorry,” the girl whispers, taking in their surroundings as she allows Vi to guide them to a table in the corner. “I’ve never been to a bar before.”

“I never would have guessed.” Vi falls into the chair with a long groan, immediately slapping Caitlyn’s hand away when it tries to steady her. “I’m fine. There should be a first aid kit under the bar and some ice through there.” She points at the door that leads to the small back room where Vander keeps the more expensive drinks.  

Caitlyn doesn’t say anything before she turns and gathers everything they need for this improvised doctor’s appointment. Vi still thinks it’s ridiculous but even she can’t ignore how her ribs have started to hurt more and more during their journey here. 

If it makes the girl happy, she supposes she can suffer through this.

When Caitlyn returns, she has the first aid kid in one hand and a wrapped-up cloth in the other. She hands it to Vi with a firm, “For your eye.” 

"Yes, doctor,” she snarks but immediately follows the request and puts the cold fabric against her eye, trying her best to stay still and not flinch away from the pain.

Her good eye follows Caitlyn’s movements as the girl puts the first aid kit on the table and rummages through it, eventually pulling out the antiseptic and a small tissue, which she douses in it. 

When she turns back towards Vi, she looks a little sheepish. “This is going to–”

“Hurt like a little bitch, I know.” She throws Caitlyn a quick wink, delighted about the flustered cough it gets out of her. “Not my first time getting patched up. Just go for it.” 

“Very well then.” 

Getting all her cuts cleaned and disinfected hurts more than Vi is ever going to admit and if she has to grit her teeth extra hard to not show Caitlyn just how painful it is, then so be it. After all that talk, she can’t be caught crying over this. 

To her credit, Caitlyn does her utter best to be as careful as possible. She never lingers too long on any wound, keeping the touches fleeting and gentle. The cut across the bridge of Vi’s nose stings especially bad and she has to sharply inhale to keep herself from cursing. 

The band-aid Caitlyn puts on the freshly cleaned cut is a little over the top, however.

Sometimes, the girl’s fingers brush an uninjured part of her face and Vi has to ignore the tingling sensation they leave behind.

Once Vi’s entire face feels like it’s on fire – only because of the antiseptic, of course – the other girl finally leans back to examine her work. 

“Happy?” Vi grumbles. 

“You still look awful.” 

“Thanks.” 

Caitlyn puts the antiseptic and now bloody cloth down. “Now, lift your shirt.”

Vi blinks at her in disbelief, mouth half open. “W– what?”

“Your shirt,” the girl repeats casually, pointing at the item in question. “I need to take a look at your ribs.” 

“Yeah, no way.” 

The frown on Caitlyn’s face returns full force. She blinks at Vi, apparently confused about her reluctance to disrobe and god, social cues really aren’t her strong suit. “Why?”

“I’m not taking off my shirt!”

“We have to ice–”

“You can take your ice and shove it up your–"

The new, much deeper and much angrier voice that fills the room has both girls snap their mouths shut in an instant, “And what exactly is going on here?”

Fuck, fuck, fuck. 

Vi closes her eyes and says a silent prayer to Janna before she dares to turn her head and look towards the other figure in the room. 

There, in the dim light of hastily lit lamps, stands Vander. He’s dressed in his sleep attire: long, wide pants and an old shirt that is barely clinging to life. Not that Vi pays it much attention. 

No, the perplexed and oh yeah, furious look on his face requires her entire focus. 

She’s so unbelievably screwed.

Chapter Text

“And what exactly is going on here?”

The way Vi sees it, there are two options for her to choose from. 

Option one, she can stay and deal with a probably (most definitely) furious Vander who is not going to give her nearly enough time to explain herself and is probably (most fucking definitely) going to ground her for life.

Option two, she shoves Caitlyn aside and makes a run for it. She can hide out at Benzos or behind that horrible-smelling dumpster she used as a cover from Deckard. She isn’t sure how long she’d have to hide from her father but maybe having Caitlyn take the immediate brunt of his anger will help calm him down. 

Like the absolute idiot she is, Vi chooses option two. It’s because of her hurting ribs and not because the thought of leaving Caitlyn out in the rain does weird things to her stomach. 

“Vander!” Vi does her best to sound as cheerful as possible and not like she just got caught strolling around the Undercity with the Kiramman heir; not to mention while looking like she’d gone twelve rounds with an angry Gromp. “What are you doing here so–”

“You better tell me what I just walked in on or you’ll spend the rest of your teenage years scrubbing this floor until it’s reflective.”

Okay, so he isn’t buying it. At all. 

Think. 

Vi can do this. She has talked herself out of worse things before, both with Vander and other, much more scary people. As long as she chooses her words carefully and doesn’t jump the gun on it, she’ll be– 

“Hello, Sir.”

Once again, Caitlyn Kiramman apparently couldn’t give less of a fuck about what the sensible thing to do would be. It only takes her a few seconds of stillness before she turns away from Vi and walks towards the tall man standing in the middle of the room, her hand already outstretched in anticipation of a handshake. 

It’s really bad and Vi should panic because she is about to get grounded for life but Vander’s perplexed stare at the girl’s bold move keeps her from completely losing it. His eyes dart between Caitlyn, now standing right in front of him, and where Vi is still sitting frozen in the corner. 

Eventually, he must realize that Caitlyn isn’t going to back down, no matter how much he might glare at her. Vi isn’t very surprised by it. Anyone who can survive living with Cassandra Kiramman and her stare of doom must have no fear of–

“My name is Caitlyn,” the girl formally introduces herself once Vander takes her offered hand, “You might know my mother. She’s–”

“Oh, I know who she is,” her father cuts her off, although his voice has taken on a much more collected tone. Traitor. “And I know that you should not be here. What I don’t know is why Cassandra Kiramman’s daughter is currently in my bar.” His gaze snaps back to Vi. “And what the hell happened to you?!”

Before Vi can even do as much as open her mouth, Caitlyn is already blabbering away, 

“She was attacked and refused to get help so I had to intervene. Her cuts have already been cleaned and disinfected and her eye has been iced but I am concerned about the state of her ribs. I haven’t gotten the opportunity to take a look but judging by her walk and posture, I have–”

“Okay, okay.” 

Vander’s hands are up, signaling for Caitlyn to slow down. It really shouldn’t be funny and it isn’t because Vi is still screwed but watching her father try to catch up with Caitlyn’s train of thought is hilarious. 

“I appreciate that, Miss Kir–”

“Caitlyn, please.”

“...very well. I appreciate you taking care of Vi but I’d still like to know why you are here in the first place. I doubt that Councilor Kiramman allowed this little trip of yours down here.” He looks between the two girls and sighs deeply. “And I doubt that this is the first time this has happened, am I correct?”

That question finally makes Caitlyn acknowledge Vi’s presence. The girl glances back at her, face uncertain as she struggles for an answer, “Well–”

“It’s my fault, okay?” Vi can’t stay quiet any longer. Slowly, she pushes herself off the chair, ignoring the stinging pain in her upper body as she does so. “I’m the reason she’s down here. If you just let me get her back Topside and come back, we can talk about what my punishment will be. And what happened with Deckard.”

Vander is shaking his head before Vi has even finished her sentence. “Nice try.” He points at the empty chair just as Caitlyn turns away from him and approaches Vi. ”Sit your ass back down and ice those ribs. I’ll escort Caitlyn back home and then you and I are going to have a talk.”

Vi fights against the urge to roll her eyes, both at Vander’s words and at the other girl’s silent demand to return to her chair. She complies but not without muttering a sarcastic, “Oh, great.”

Too bad that her father has the hearing of a murk wolf. “What was that?”

“Nothing!” 

Not wanting to escalate the situation any further, Vi resorts to sulking in silence while Caitlyn ushers her back into a sitting position. It doesn’t last because as soon as she has leaned back, the other girl is already up in her business with the wrapped-up cloth in hand, “Now lift your shirt.”

“No.”

“I have to ice–”

“I can do it myself, Caitlyn.”

“My father–”

“–is a doctor, blah blah. Doesn’t make you one, does it?”

Caitlyn’s frown momentarily distracts her from the imposing figure of her father who is watching their conversation in silence. She breathes out heavily through her nose, a sign that Vi’s reluctance to take off her shirt is completely baffling to her.

By Janna, what is it with this girl? 

“Just give me the stupid thing and I’ll ice it while Vander takes you back home, okay? I swear I’ll do it properly. I’m not that incompetent, okay?”

“I don’t think you’re incompetent,” Caitlyn replies quietly; and okay, maybe that’s true but she’s still refusing to give the cloth to Vi and it’s starting to piss her off. “This way you’ll be in less pain.”

“But I’ll be uncomfortable as shit.” 

“Why?”

“Because I don’t want to take off my fucking–”

“Girls!” For once, Vander’s booming voice interrupting them feels like a small blessing. “Caitlyn, give Vi the ice.” The girl doesn’t. Instead, she stubbornly stares at Vi, her hand clutching the cloth. Behind her, Vander is pinching the bridge of his nose. 

At least he gets the full Caitlyn experience. 

“She’ll wake her brother up if it hurts too much. Right, Vi?"

I’d rather run headfirst into a brick wall. 

“Sure.” She nudges Caitlyn’s shin with the tip of her boot. “Come on, give it here. I swear I’ll take care of it. You should really go back home before your mom wakes up and freaks the fuck out.” 

Finally, Caitlyn gives in and hands over the wrapped-up ice. She still looks like she’d rather turn around, tell Vander to mind his own business, and continue to badger Vi until she does give in and take off her shirt. 

“Once the ice has melted, you need to replace it.” Vi nods. “At least two times.” Another nod. “If it hurts too much, you need–”

“By Janna, Cait, I will live. Go.” 

The girl blinks at her, mouth half-opened in a silent Oh that leaves Vi confused. Before she can ask a question, Caitlyn turns away and walks towards Vander. Which… okay, Caitlyn being weird. In other news, grass is fucking green. 

Vander gives her a curt nod and turns his attention towards Vi once more, “The bathysphere should be in operation already, so I’ll be back soon.” 

The words are both comforting and a clear warning that Vi better prepares herself for the lecture of a lifetime. The one she got after blowing up the lab will probably feel like a light scolding in comparison – because this time she willingly put Caitlyn in danger. 

“Okay,” Vi replies quietly but her gaze is already back on the other girl. More importantly, it’s fixed on the slight redness dusting Caitlyn’s cheeks. Maybe it’s just the glow of the lights in the room but it almost looks like she’s blushing.

Huh. 

Maybe she’s actually ashamed of the entire situation and is just really good at hiding it behind her Caitlyn…ish personality. 

No matter what’s going on with the girl, she’s still polite enough to turn her head and give Vi a small smile. “Bye, Vi.”

And with how nervous she looks in the dim light of the room, what else can Vi do but respond with a gentle, “Bye, Cait.” 

There it is again, the odd reaction and blush that spreads over Caitlyn’s cheeks. Vi doesn’t get the chance to analyze the girl’s strange behavior. One moment, they are looking at each other – or rather Vi is looking at her and Cait is staring at what must be a very interesting part of the wall – and the next, Vander is ushering her out the door.

She isn’t sure how long she stares at the spot Caitlyn was standing in but by the time the cloth in her hand is wet and dripping with what used to be the ice, Vi figures that it’s been a while. 

With a long and pained sigh, she gets up to get more ice – and to prepare herself for what’s going to happen once Vander returns. Well, at least her siblings aren’t awake to spectate her mystery. 

“What the hell were you thinking?”

After icing her ribs and lying down on one of the more comfortable benches in the bar, Vi had spent her remaining time alone preparing for the verbal beatdown she’d receive once Vander returned by himself.

By the time he had walked through the door and sat down next to her, Vi had mostly been okay with the angry lecture he most definitely had been preparing during his trip Topside and back. 

What she hadn’t prepared for was the calm, soft-spoken disappointment so clearly evident in her father’s voice. 

It leaves her at a loss for words; and not only because speaking would disrupt the ice she’s currently balancing on her ribs. Matching Vander’s anger is easy with her temper, she’s been mastering it for years . 

But disappointment? Yeah, Vi has never been able to figure out how to respond to that without breaking down. 

“Vi.”

“Wha’?” 

There is a lull in the tense conversation and Vi refuses to make eye contact with the man, instead choosing to stare at the ceiling. With how she’s still lying down, it’s much easier to not turn her head anyway. 

After another moment, she hears Vander sigh deeply. His large hand comes into her field of view and Vi watches in silence as he takes the cold cloth. 

“How much does it hurt?”

“It’s fine,” she grumbles even though they both know she’s lying. “You don’t have to worry. Just… go and yell or whatever it is you wanna do.” 

“Come on, sit up. I want to take a proper look at you.” He gently nudges her with his hands until Vi reluctantly sits up and allows him to examine the cuts across her face. “I have to say, Caitlyn did a fine job taking care of it.” 

Vi snorts. “Well, you heard her. Basically bullied me into it.” 

“Yeah, I saw.” With the barest of touches, Vander angles her face upwards. “The two of you seemed well in tune with each other.”

“That was–”

“Don’t bother coming up with any elaborate lie. Caitlyn already told me everything.” 

Oh, that’s just perfect. 

This is it then. She’s never going to be allowed to leave this place again until she’s an adult. The thought makes Vi clench her teeth until her jaw hurts as she fights back the angry tears threatening to build in the corner of her eyes.

Vander’s next question is the final straw for her suppressed emotions, “Since when are you so reckless?” 

She pushes his hands away from her face, spitting the words at him, “You made me feel like shit about what happened to her! You and Grayson. I know I screwed up with the break-in and when I saw an opportunity to make it better, I took it.”

“By taking the Kiramman heir to the Undercity? What if something had happened to her?”

“She wasn’t even there when Deckard attacked me.”

At that, Vander frowns. “Then why did she say it was her fault you got attacked?”

What?

Vi shrugs because who the hell knows what’s going on in Caitlyn’s mind? Maybe she thinks taking responsibility for everything will get Vander off her back. 

“No idea. But they jumped me before she even showed up.” She bites the inside of her cheek and explains, “Listen, I know I messed up, okay?” Her hands are wrung together as Vi tries to get her thoughts into a straight line. ”It’s just…” 

“Yes?”

“What was I supposed to do? I showed up at her place and she demanded I take her down here. She lost an eye because of me. I couldn’t exactly tell her no .” 

“You could have,” Vander calmly insists. “You should have. I understand you wanted to make up for what you and your siblings did but this wasn’t the way to do it.”

Vi crosses her arms in front of her chest, huffing. “Yeah, well, I doubt Caitlyn would have cooperated. She probably would’ve gone to the Undercity by herself.” 

With a short laugh, Vander remarks, “I noticed she’s a little peculiar.”

For whatever reason, his comment rubs her the wrong way. Sure, Caitlyn is a little weird but once you get used to it, it’s nothing bad. It’s actually kind of refreshing, someone from Topside who doesn’t beat around the bush and simply says her mind, even if it comes across as rude sometimes.  

“She’s not that bad.”

“Mhm, I figured you’d say so.”

Vi squints at him. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing, but you can be lucky that the girl seems quite taken with you.” With that, her father gets up and motions for her to follow. “Let’s get your ribs wrapped and you into bed. You need rest.”

“Wait, wait.” He can’t say something like that and then just move on without a care. “What do you mean she’s ‘quite taken with me’?” 

Who the hell talks like that anyway except for Pilties? 

“I mean her rather stubborn insistence that you were only following her plan and shouldn’t be punished. Luckily for you, she was very adamant about that. Even when speaking to Councilor Kiramman.”

Vi can practically feel the color drain from her face. “You talked to her mom?”

“What do you think? I brought back her daughter at the break of dawn. Did you expect me to let her sneak back in through the window like you always do?”

By Janna, did Caitlyn tell him everything? Or maybe her mom was the one who informed him of the things Vi had admitted back when there was a rifle involved in the conversation. 

“So…” She trails off, waiting for Vander to continue. 

“Yes?”

“How much trouble am I in with them? The Kirammans.” 

While her last run-in with Caitlyn’s mom went much better than Vi could have ever hoped for, she isn’t sure the woman is going to forgive her for purposefully letting her daughter run into danger. 

Vander lets her stir in her own panic for a second before concluding, “You’re fine. Caitlyn will have to deal with her mother’s anger.” He gives Vi a pointed look. “And you’ll have to deal with mine.” With that, he starts walking towards the door leading to their rooms. “Now come.” 

After that night, she doesn’t think disagreeing with Vander again is the right call. So, reluctantly, she begins to trot after him. But even her admittedly overdramatic limp doesn’t save her from her father’s next statement. 

“Councilor Kiramman and I agree that this was the last time the two of you are going to be allowed to meet for the foreseeable future.”

Vi comes to an abrupt halt. He can’t be serious. 

“What?!”

“Vi–”

“I can go Topside if you don’t want her down here.”

“You’re still grounded,” Vander interjects.

“Yeah, I know. But you and Sheriff Grayson meet all the time and–”

“Vi.” With his hands on his hips, her father turns to stare down at her. “Sheriff Grayson is a seasoned Enforcer, trained to handle dangerous situations, not a disabled kid who doesn’t know how to look after–”

Fuck no. 

“Don’t talk about her like that!”

“I–”

“No! You’re just like her mom and every other person in her life.” 

She doesn’t care that she’s shouting, that she might wake up her siblings with her outburst because she’s tired of getting the same reaction from every adult around her. 

“Do you know why Caitlyn wrote to me? Why she begged me to take her to the Undercity?” Vander doesn’t get a chance to answer before Vi continues, “Her parents treat her like she’s incapable of doing anything on her own anymore. She feels fucking trapped in her own home and no one gives a shit!” 

“Enough!” 

The distant memory of their conversation about working with Grayson comes crashing into Vi. Back then, Vander also shut her down; told her they would talk about it some other time and then they never did. 

Not this time. 

“She can handle these trips. I look out for her.” She holds her father’s furious stare, only a little scared. “And she can take care of herself as well.” 

It’s too bad that no one ever listens to her when it matters and she has to watch with a heavy heart as Vander shakes his head.  

“I’m done talking about this. We are going to take care of you and then you’ll sleep. You won’t leave this place for the next week and if I catch you sneaking out for any reason, you’ll be stuck here for the year.” 

It’s so fucking unfair but what else can she do except swallow every other argument that would surely get ignored as well and follow her father as they make the way to his room. 

She refuses to talk to him even when he asks questions about her pain while wrapping her ribs. The slight sting is nothing in comparison to his exhausted eyes when he finally allows her to climb into bed and curl into herself. 

For whatever stupid reason, she dreams of dark blue. 

“Vi, get up!”

When Vi wakes, it’s to the urgent poking of Powder’s scrawny fingers in her side – which, given how sore her entire body feels, isn’t the most comfortable feeling. 

“Pow,” she groans, turning to bury her head deeper in the pillow. “Can you gimme, like, 5 minutes? I promise I’ll explain what happened to me in a moment but–”

“You gotta go!” Now, her little sister is more or less shoving her. “Quick!” 

Still at a loss, Vi blinks open her eyes to look at the other girl on top of her bunk bed. The panicked look written across Powder’s face feels like a bucket of ice-cold water being dropped over her head. 

“What’s going on?”

“The Deputy is looking for you,” she rushes to explain, almost stumbling over her words in the process. “Vander is trying to hold him off but he’s going to be here any moment. You‘ve got to hide!”

None of that makes any sense to Vi and she’s barely managed to sit up and utter another question before the door to their room gets fucking kicked open and the Deputy enters the room, followed by two fully equipped enforcers with their batons drawn.

Shit. 

“Take her,” the man instructs and the two enforcers waste no time approaching the bed to no doubt pull her down from it. They don’t seem to care that another person is blocking them and Vi feels a white, hot flash of utter panic shoot through her. 

“Pow, get out of their way,” she urges her little sister as she tries to push herself in front of her. 

Powder, as expected, does little to cooperate. “They can’t take you, you’ve done nothing wrong!”

At this point, the rest of her family has also entered the room. She can see Claggor by the door, nervously biting his fingernails. Beside him, Mylo looks like he’s moments away from flinging his body at the nearest enforcer, screw the consequences. 

Right behind both of them, Vander looks just as ready to commit murder – and Vi knows that if he chooses to pick this fight, someone is going to get hurt very badly. 

For the moment, her father seems to try and resolve this with words instead of fists, “You have no grounds for this arrest, Markus.”

The Deputy doesn’t even spare him a glance, too busy staring at Vi. 

“There has been yet another break-in Topside last night and the witness’s description of the thief fits your kid perfectly. Not to mention her track record.” His sneer nearly makes her gag.  “It’s more than enough for an arrest.” 

Vander’s eyes narrow. “Does the Sheriff know about–” 

“The Sheriff has more important matters to attend to. Having to deal with Trenchers is beneath her anyway.” He nods at his men, signaling them to get on with it. “Take her. Take the other kid too if she’s so desperate to stick with her sister.” 

This fucking asshole.  

Vi manages to get in front of Powder and push her down onto the bed sheets before the girl can agree to anything of that sort. With a lot of trouble and protest from her aching body, she jumps down and lands in front of the enforcers. 

“I have an alibi,” she pleads her case, only to immediately be shut down by the Deputy’s cruel laugh. 

“Oh yeah, I’m sure your family was with you all night.” While talking, he pulls out a pair of handcuffs. “That’s not gonna be good enough, kid. Especially with all this.” He vaguely gestures at what Vi assumes to be her bruises but might as well be her body in general. “Rough night, I take it?” 

Vi bites down on the inside of her cheek until she can taste blood. Her eyes dart to Vander, silently asking him what to do but he appears just as lost on how to proceed. She feels like this asshole isn’t going to believe her when she tells him that she was with someone else and giving away her hand might screw her over anyway. 

What do I do? 

In the end, looking at the scared faces of her siblings, Vi makes her decision. 

She steps towards Markus, meeting his obnoxious smirk with a straight face. “I’ll go with you.”

Immediately, the room explodes with the loud protests of her siblings but Vi quickly gestures for them to shut the hell up. The last thing she wants is for any of them to get into trouble as well. 

While Markus puts the handcuffs on her, much rougher than he needs to given that Vi is fucking cooperating with him, she gives her father a long look, praying that he understands what she’s asking of him. 

It’s a gamble, one that might end up biting her in the ass and gifting her a one-way trip to Stillwater but it’s her best shot. This guy will never listen to anything her family has to say. They could give him concrete proof of Vi’s innocence and he’d just burn it. 

Thankfully, her father seems to understand her perfectly. He gives her a single nod and silently mouths, “I’ll take care of it.”

Then, he pushes his way past Markus and Vi, quickly giving her shoulder a reassuring squeeze. He’s at the bed just in time to catch Powder and stop her from throwing her little body at the deputy in a fruitless attempt to stop him. 

“You can’t let them do this!” 

Her sister’s desperate cries are nearly enough for Vi to give it all away but she has to be patient. They are at a disadvantage. This is how they have to play this game if they want a real chance to wing. 

She wants to tell Powder that everything will be alright, even if she doesn’t really believe so herself. She wants to tell her brothers that she’ll be back soon and that they don’t have to worry – but the second the handcuffs click into place, Markus has a hand in between her shoulder blades and pushes her out of her room and up the stairs. 

“I’ve got you this time, Trencher.”

Vi prays that he’ll choke on his smug tone before the day is over.

Chapter Text

With everything Topside always being extra fancy and expensive, their jail cells seem to be such shitholes on purpose; or at least that’s what Vi had thought when they had shoved her into this small box of concrete. 

Which had been fucking hours ago.

She’s been sitting on a tiny stone bench ever since, waiting for something to happen; or someone to show up. But other than the Enforcer standing guard outside her cell – and, honestly? where the fuck is she supposed to go? – no one has bothered to do so much as walk by. 

Not even the damn Deputy had returned, though Vi is happy about that. He’d been a giant pain in the ass all the way Topside, mostly muttering to himself or his men and only paying attention to her when he was in the mood to throw insults at her head.

At least his threat of throwing her in a cell with some other criminal, who ‘might be able to teach her some manners in a way a Trencher understands’ hadn’t come true and Vi had done her best to not openly show her relief about the prospect of being on her own. 

With a long sigh, Vi allows her head to drop back against the cold wall, her eyes slipping close. Someone will have to come here and tell her what’s going to happen eventually. She just hopes that those plans don’t involve a trip to Stillwater. 

Where the fuck is Grayson when you need her?  

Surely they can’t put her in actual jail because of this? Marcus has no evidence because, well, Vi is innocent – and Vander is going to prove it. He will, despite his voice having little weight up here. 

It’s Vander. He always finds a way when she needs him to. #

The pain in her ribs rips her out of her thoughts. Vi hisses and, after a quick glance at the Enforcer who still has his back turned to her, slowly lifts her shirt up just an inch or so; just enough to see the ugly purple that decorates her lower abdomen.

Fuck. 

Even with all the icing and shit Caitlyn told her to do, it still looks quite bad. Not to mention that sitting in this stupid cell for hours on end has done little for her aching body in general. They could have given her a blanket or something but apparently it’s their goal to make whoever is in here as miserable as possible. 

The sound of a door slamming open makes her drop her shirt and sit up straight as hurried footsteps echo through the long hallway towards her cell. The man that comes into view looks like he’s just seen a ghost, face pale and eyes wide.

He barely spares Vi a glance before addressing the enforcer standing guard, “Open the cell.”

She can’t see the guy’s face as he responds but the confusion is clear in his voice, “The Deputy said that no one is allowed to go in there until he returns.”

“Yeah, I couldn’t give less of a shit what the Deputy said,” comes the reply and alright, now he sounds like he’s on the edge of having a full-blown panic attack. “And you won’t either when you see who is waiting for her at the reception.”

Huh? 

“Now open the cell before we both lose our jobs!”  

The urgent tone is enough to kick the other enforcer into action. He reaches for his keys, momentarily fidgeting with them while he looks for the right one – and then, at long last, the door to Vi’s cell gets opened and both men step aside. 

She squints at both of them, silently debating whether this is some well-played trick to make it look like she tried to break out and they had to beat the living shit out of her in order to prevent it. 

Would be typical for enforcer assholes to–

“Get your ass out of there already, girl!” Despite the guard’s hostility, he makes no move to approach her. All he does is stand in front of the bars and glare at her like she’s to blame for whatever situation has him this panicked. “Come on!” 

Cautiously, Vi hops down from the bench and steps through the cell door. The enforcer that has insisted on her release motions for her to walk ahead, pointing at the still-opened door at the end of the hallway. 

She’s barely made two steps towards freedom before the man is right beside her, talking away, “You make sure to tell her that we didn’t do this .” His finger points at her black eye. “Okay? I didn’t do anything wrong and I’m not gonna take the fall for the Deputy’s personal vendetta against your kind.” 

“Right,” Vi mutters, still trying to wrap her head around what the man just told her. 

Her? Who the hell is waiting for me outside? 

Apparently, it isn’t Vander. Or Benzo. And the enforcer wouldn’t act like this just because one of them showed up here anyway. 

Vi’s silent question gets answered moments later when she steps through the door and gets a look at the reception area. Manning the chair is another enforcer – nothing more than a boy, really – who also looks like he’d rather be anywhere else. 

When she finally gets a look at the person in front of the desk, Vi immediately understands everyones’ panic because Cassandra Kiramman looks like she’s ready to commit bloody fucking murder right there in the middle of the enforcer station’s lobby. 

Now the only question is what the hell the woman is doing here in the first place – because she can’t be here just for Vi, right? 

“Councilor Kiramman,” the enforcer next to her greets the older woman, his voice having gone from borderline hostile to over-the-top pleasant. “Here she is.”

And then the woman’s eyes are on her, the sharp blue instantly reminding her of Caitlyn. Okay, not the time to think about the other girl when her future freedom might be on the line at this very moment. 

Effortlessly, Councilor Kiramman rounds the desk, looking like she’s gliding across the polished floor.

“Violet,” she greets her and Vi stops herself from making a face. The woman is apparently the reason she’s out of that jail cell, she can suffer through being called that. “Have any of these men hurt you?”

“With all due respect, Councilor, we–”

“Have I asked you?” The older woman shuts the enforcer’s answer down before he can get it out. “Talking isn’t going to do you any favors. You should consider yourself happy when you still have a job at the end of the day.” 

Holy gromp. 

Watching as the colour drains out of an enforcer’s face almost makes getting arrested worth it. 

Almost. 

“Now, Violet, please answer my question.”

Vi makes sure to catch the eyes of the man beside her and hold his gaze for a few heartbeats before she turns to address Councilor Kiramman, “No, ma’am. I had a run-in with someone last night. That’s where all the injuries come from.” 

“Very well.” Blue eyes scan her up and down until Vi feels herself getting nervous. It doesn’t matter that the woman is currently on her side, she’s still absolutely terrifying. “Caitlyn has told me as much but I wanted to make sure. Come, your father is waiting outside.”

That seems to be enough for the guard to spring back into action. He clears his throat loudly and, surprisingly, holds eye contact when Councilor Kiramman turns her head to regard him. 

“There are serious claims regarding her involvement in a break-in last night. I’m following orders–”

“Whose orders, exactly? Because, to my knowledge, Sheriff Grayson has been talking to Jayce Talis all morning. Who ordered this arrest?”

“The Deputy.” 

Vi doesn’t think it’s possible for a grown man to look any smaller.

“I see.” A tense silence follows the older woman’s words until she seems to take pity on him and turns away. “I’ll be talking to the Deputy later. Until then, I’d like the badge numbers of the men that were present at Violet’s arrest.”

The man frowns at the Councilor’s back. “Why?”

“There have been numerous witnesses reporting a horrifying way these men handled said arrest.”

“Councilor, these reports from Trenchers shouldn’t be–”

Wrong fucking move, buddy. 

Before Vi can do something reckless like spit on the guy, Councilor Kiramman has turned back around, her hand raised to silence the guard’s words in an instant. “That’s quite enough. The badge numbers from these men, now .” Her eyes are cold as she stares at him. “And yours as well.”

What else can the guy do but silently comply while Vi gleefully watches him. It’s not enough, it will never be enough, given everything these assholes have done to her and her home – but watching a few of them experience something that might resemble consequences is still a nice thing to witness. 

After being handed the piece of paper that must contain the badge numbers in question, the older woman doesn’t spare the guard another glance. She turns her attention to Vi and motions for her to follow. 

“Let’s go. I believe we’ve made your father wait long enough.”

Vi very much agrees. Except for the verbal beatdown the older woman unleashed on an enforcer, the prospect of seeing Vander has been the highlight of her day. Councilor Kiramman starts walking, prompting Vi to fall into step behind her. 

Just like that, she walks out of an enforcer station without anyone trying to stop her. No one sneers at her. Not one tries to yank her back. In fact, every enforcer around them does their best not to look at Vi.

The feeling is incredible. 

What is even more incredible is being almost immediately enveloped in a hug the second she steps outside. The comforting smell of smoke and wood envelops her and Vi closes her eyes to soak in the warmth of her father as he cradles her close to his broad chest. 

“I was so worried about you.” 

“She has assured me that no one hurt her during her stay here,” Councilor Kiramman explains, picking up on the fact that Vi isn’t in the mood to do anything but hug Vander back. 

“Thank you, Councilor.”

Vi steps out of her father’s arms at that, turning to look at the other woman. “Yeah, thanks for that.” 

“Of course. I do apologize for taking so long. Council meetings are rather long and tedious.” Councilor Kiramman dusts off invisible dust off her skirt. “And I believe that is where I should return to now. I promise that I will address this with the Deputy as soon as possible.”

Her words cause Vi to frown. “You walked out of a council meeting for this?”

Ah, there it is: the exact look Caitlyn regards her with when she thinks that Vi said something totally stupid. “Would you have preferred for me to wait until we’ve concluded business for the day?”

Just like her daughter. 

Before Vi can answer, movement in the corner of her eye catches her attention. She barely has enough time to turn her body before a figure fucking crashes into her at full speed, promptly knocking the air out of her. 

“Vi!”

It takes her a few moments to realize that she’s never hugged Caitlyn before. She’s carried the girl on her back, sure, and has earned herself an annoyed shove or two but hugging? No, that hasn’t happened so far.

It’s happening right now. Well, technically Caitlyn is the one doing the hugging while Vi is frozen to the spot like an idiot – and by Janna, does she smell good. 

Vi isn’t very fond of those over-the-top floral smells that people up here love to douse themselves in because they give her a headache but the faint hint of vanilla and something so uniquely Caitlyn has her eyes fluttering in an instant.

It’s almost enough to distract her from her aching ribs that did not approve of the way the other girl barreled into her with full speed, though it doesn’t hurt enough for Vi to pull away. 

Caitlyn has to be the one to do so eventually with one of her hands still wrapped around Vi’s forearm – and the second she does, she immediately starts babbling away,

“I was so worried when your dad showed up at our house earlier. I wanted to come here immediately but father said that it might be the best course of action to get mother involved in it. This way, I didn’t have to give an official statement about it before you could get out.”

Doesn’t she have to breathe at some point? 

“Is everything okay? How are your ribs? Marcus didn’t hurt you, did he? He’s such a sleazy–”

“Caitlyn!”

Her mother’s outburst finally snaps the girl out of her rant. She turns to look at the older woman but refuses to let go of Vi. Just before she can start talking again, loud footsteps indicate the arrival of someone else. 

The entire group watches in silence as Caitlyn’s father comes to a halt in front of them, his upper body hunched over as he attempts to regulate his heavy breathing. Vi has to suppress the urge to snicker. His fancy clothes clearly aren’t made to run in.

She throws a quick glance at Vander, who watches the spectacle in front of him with raised eyebrows. He probably didn’t expect to have to deal with the entire Kiramman family at the same time. 

Eventually, the panting man manages to straighten his back and look at them with a strained smile. “I did not expect you to be this quick, sweetie.” 

The sigh Councilor Kiramman lets out is long but it lacks any actual frustration. The fondness is clear in her eyes as she addresses her husband, 

“What part of Caitlyn being grounded gave you the idea that she should be allowed outside?”

“Darling,” Mr Kiramman says, voice gentle and placatory, “She made several good points why her presence here might be required.”

The older woman’s straight face lacks any sort of emotion as she states, “So you folded.”

“Oh yeah. Instantly.” And now, his smile is bright and happy. “Like a piece of paper.” 

“Tobias…” 

“I really thought you might need my testimony if Marcus was being a dick about it,” Caitlyn chimes in, head held high. It’s kind of cute how she tries to make herself look older when talking to her mom. 

It’s also kind of sad.

“Language, Caitlyn.”

“Well, what’s done is done.” Mr. Kiramman steps in between the two women, his hands raised in a calming gesture. “And it seems that we made the right choice coming here.”

“How so?” Caitlyn’s mother asks, frowning.

The man’s eyes land on Vi. “I’d really like to take a look at young Violet over there.”

Okay, that’s enough.

She feels sort of bad about telling any of them off but she can’t stand to hear her full name be spoken by someone who isn’t her family one more time. 

Still, she can try to be polite about it. 

It’s what Vander probably expects of her. 

“Actually, I’d appreciate–”

“It’s Vi. She doesn’t like people calling her Violet.” Caitlyn fucking Kiramman and her stupid, considerate, heart-warming know-it-all attitude. “I told you that already, father.”

“My apologies, sweetie.” The man approaches his daughter to give her shoulder a loving squeeze before he looks at Vi once more. “Might I take a look at your injuries, Vi?”

“Uh, we don’t really have the money for that, so…”

“It would be free of charge, of course. We’d just have to go back to our home, I have everything I need to check those bruises there.”

Vi is rapidly running out of reasons to say no. Her eyes flit to Vander who has been watching the exchange in silence, gaze locked on the other man like he’s trying to figure out his true intentions. 

Looking at Mr. Kiramman, Vi can’t really picture the guy as some evil mastermind. The only question she has is how his warm personality could possibly match with Councilor Kiramman’s odd one. 

“Well, I am still kind of grounded.”

Vander shakes his head. His deep sigh reveals his exhaustion, as does his strained voice as he explains, “Not if it concerns your health, Vi. If Mr. Kiramman offers to help, I think we shouldn’t decline.”  

“That’s settled then,” Councilor Kiramman states with finality. “I should return to the meeting I walked out of before Hoskel gets away with his ridiculous notion.” 

She catches her husband's eyes and some silent conversation must take place between them because Mr. Kiramman starts snickering after a moment – and it might be the sleep exhaustion but Vi swears that she sees the older woman’s lips fleetingly twitch upwards. 

“Very well, darling. Don’t worry. I’ll take care of the girls.”

Councilor Kiramman looks at her daughter, stating with a firm voice, “Don’t trouble your father too much, Caitlyn. I’ll be home for supper."

Chilly. 

Caitlyn, for her part, matches her mother’s energy perfectly, back straight and head held high. “Goodbye, mother.” 

With that, the older woman takes her leave in the direction of the council building. Vi watches her go, debating whether or not to yell after her to thank her for the help one more time – but the tense grip Caitlyn has on her arm causes her to stay quiet. 

There is no reason for her to make… whatever is going on there worse. 

The moment Councilor Kiramman is out of view, her husband turns abruptly to face the rest of the group once more. 

“Mr. Vander,” He gives the man in question a smile. “Would you like to join us? Caitlyn and I were in the middle of cooking dinner before this spontaneous trip.” 

Her father looks at her, cocking his head to the side before asking, “Do you want me to come?”

“What about the others?”

“At Benzos.”  

Well, as long as her siblings are safe… Vi would really like to not be separated from her father again in such a short span of time. Once a day, and by stupid enforcers no less, is more than enough. 

Even if it’s much more pleasant in this instance.

“Yeah, I’d like you to come,” she mutters out at last, quiet and reserved and just the tiniest bit embarrassed because she’s supposed to be the strong one out of her siblings. At least none of them are here to witness it. 

“Splendid!” 

Vi wonders if Caitlyn used to be as cheerful as her father before the accident. It’s not that the girl is totally miserable, not anymore at least – but her current behaviour mirrors her mother much more than her father’s. 

Give it time. 

A gentle tug brings her back into the present. She feels Caitlyn’s hand slide down her arm until their fingers are tangled together. 

“Come on,” she says and begins pulling Vi along, “You’ll feel much better after father has taken a look at you.” 

The sudden and all-consuming heat creeping up her cheeks stuns her enough that Vi can do little but blindly follow the girl as she begins directing them towards her home. She isn’t blushing because why the hell would she do that?

The day has simply been exhausting. She’d been arrested, for Janna’s sake. Who wouldn’t be tired? 

That’s totally it. 

Who cares that her heartbeat has also skyrocketed and that her hands feel awfully sweaty? Caitlyn certainly doesn’t. She keeps her fingers intertwined with Vi’s the entire way to the Kiramman estate. 

And if the girl doesn’t pull away once they are past the threshold, why should Vi do it? She's probably doing this to get them to her father’s study as quickly as possible. 

Besides, it does feel kind of nice. 

Whatever.