Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Her head had started screaming at her every day, making it impossible to sleep. That night, she had decided to change her routine. She went down to the bar, taking a seat in the spot reserved just for her, the spot only Jinx could occupy.

"So, everyone in my life one day just... poof! They vanished" she laughed, quite drunk, talking to whoever was listening at the moment. "The problem is those bastards decided to come mess with me whenever they wanted, like my head was some kind of hotel or something. Ha!"

She kept drinking through the straw, maybe that was actually what was getting her drunk so fast.

"Must suck" said someone else, sitting beside her.

Jinx leaned her elbow on the bar and rested her head on her hand, looking at her new drinking companion. She had never seen him at The Last Drop before, he wasn’t a regular customer nor one of Silco’s subordinates; plus, he seemed her age, looked like a foolish guy and quite blurry from the alcohol.

"Yeah, it sucks" she confirmed, finishing her drink and standing up to go back to her room.

But the floor moved on its own. If she walked to the right, the whole bar shifted to the left. She felt arms around her.

"Let me take you, you drank too much" she heard from the same idiot.

And then everything went dark.

When she woke up, she couldn’t recognize where she was; it wasn’t anywhere near home, anyway. She got up with a terrible headache that forced her to hold her eyelids with her fingers.

"I thought you’d never wake up" someone in front of her said. Her vision was still blurry, but definitely clearer than yesterday. "I can’t stand the thought that you don’t even remember anything. What do you say we do it again?"

Jinx wrinkled her nose in disgust.

"Do what again?"

The guy smiled, biting his lip, and that’s when Jinx finally noticed she was naked.

"You’ve got to be kidding me…" she growled, looking for her clothes on the floor.

She wasn’t a stranger to sex; she wasn’t a kid anymore and hadn’t been for a long time, but she had never felt particularly drawn to anything that required emotional or physical involvement with someone.

"Come on, you really don’t remember even a little?"

Once again, the guy moved closer to her, trying to caress her bare shoulders. Jinx felt a shiver, twisted his wrist, and left him on the floor.

"If you had been any good, I’d remember" she spat from above.

He frowned, annoyed. Jinx got dressed, even finding her gun right inside her pants. It was clear the guy hadn’t even bothered to disarm her before, what an idiot.

The guy grabbed her forcefully by both wrists.

"You don’t think I’ll let you go that easily, do you?" he growled. "You’re Silco’s little pup; he’ll pay well to get you back in one piece."

Jinx tilted her head with an arrogant smile. She kneed him in the stomach, and when he let go to double over, she shot him right in the back of the head.

"Blah, blah, blah" she put the gun away, poking his face with the tip of her shoe. "Told you, you weren’t good enough."

And she jumped out the window, disappearing into the streets of Zaun, with the sun barely peeking behind her.

The job Silco had given her was simple, so simple that any idiot with half a brain could’ve done it. Well, any idiot except Sevika, who had failed the first time she went alone.

"I didn’t need you to come" the woman growled.

"Your magnificent performance didn’t go unnoticed" Jinx said sarcastically, chewing on a piece of wood and spitting the remnants on the floor. "Silco isn’t happy, and it’s your fault and your stupid metal arm."

The targets moved below them, and Sevika had to pull Jinx behind the concrete railing so they wouldn’t be discovered.

"Just shoot them already" muttered Sevika. "I want to get out of here."

"Clearly, you don’t know me, grumpy."

Jinx jumped, crossing the railing and falling two floors below, right in front of the men. She carried a new weapon prototype on her shoulder that, once activated, unleashed a rain of pink and blue bullets, riddling her enemies with holes. They didn’t even see it coming.

Sevika jumped down beside her.

"You love drawing attention, don’t you?"

"It’s part of my spark" her face formed a smug smile that quickly faded.

And she vomited. She had thrown up right on Sevika’s boot.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!"

"Too much spark" Jinx assured, then looked above her head, "or maybe it was too much height."

Sevika didn’t even try to hide her disgust, shook her foot, and walked back to The Last Drop, making sure that next time Silco dared to send Jinx as her partner, she’d keep three meters away from her.

Everything had to be wrong. There was no way that whatever this meant was actually happening. It had to be a mistake.

Jinx grabbed the home pregnancy test and threw it onto the pile of five others she had taken.

The damn tests had to be wrong because it had been just once, just one damn time, and she didn’t believe that idiot with a hole in his head had been stupid enough not to protect himself.

Now he was dead, and she was screwed.

"I think I’m pregnant" she announced to Silco, standing in front of his desk. He merely raised his eyebrows as the tests clattered onto the wood like a stack of dominoes. "Well, actually, I’m pretty pregnant."

Silco didn’t even ask how it happened; he always knew Jinx was more than capable of taking care of herself, more than capable of shooting anyone who pissed her off, though he never imagined her coming with news like this, as if it were no big deal. Sevika watched from the couch in the office, surprised, but now she understood why her favorite boots ended up in the trash.

"What are you going to do?" Silco asked, sitting up straight in his chair.

"Are you seriously asking me that?"

Silco didn’t answer; it was clear the decision was hers. Jinx hated making decisions; to her, the result was always the same: a mess.

"I don’t know."

Sevika rolled her eyes and stood up.

"Get rid of it" she blurted.

Silco didn’t move, nor did Jinx; it was as if Sevika’s words had frozen in her mind.

"I’d have it just to spite you" Jinx sneered.

She didn’t want to give Sevika the satisfaction of doing what she suggested, but she couldn’t deny she had considered it. This definitely wasn’t in her plans, and having a tiny, smelly being running around her room and The Last Drop wasn’t exactly something that filled her with joy, and judging by Silco and Sevika’s faces, they weren’t thrilled either.

"Make a decision" Silco pressed, standing up to leave his office, followed by Sevika. "This could change everything."

Jinx stared at the door as it creaked shut.

Of course, it would change everything—hadn’t the “pregnant” part been clear enough? She had to make a decision, this time a good one, one that wouldn’t screw up her life more than it already was.

She leaned back against the desk and looked at her stomach.

"Are you supposed to be in there right now?"

She spoke to whatever was growing inside her, but there was no answer.

She exhaled, emptying her lungs.

"And now the boss and his “right hand”" she smirked at her own bad joke, "want me to make a decision about you. Don’t they realize that putting a life in my hands is the most dangerous thing they can do?"

Nothing. The office was even quieter than usual.

She poked her stomach with the tip of her finger. There was no way something could be living in there so damn peacefully while she was pulling her hair out trying to decide the course of their lives from that moment on.

She threw her head back, staring at the ceiling and the beams crossing from one side to the other.

"It’s a terrible idea…" she whispered. "Nothing good comes from being around me, and you’ll inevitably be stuck to me like a leech, no matter what. There’s no way this will end well, there just isn’t."

She placed her hand over her belly, searching for any sign of life she could detect, but it was too early for that. Still, a shiver tensed her muscles, and she clenched her fist over her cold skin.

She had made a decision.

"I have a feeling I’ll regret this."

But whether she would or not, only time would tell.

They weren’t happy, of course they weren’t happy. Sevika, especially, had cursed every god she knew, and Jinx could swear she almost did it in alphabetical order.

But the decision was made, and there was no turning back, even though Sevika insisted it was madness to have two Jinxes running around the bar, especially near her.

"You’ll take care of her" Silco ordered, not even looking up from the documents he was scrutinizing so carefully.

"What?!"

Both of them jumped from their seats to stand in front of him. He had to be joking—was his bad eye keeping him from seeing how terrible a team Sevika and Jinx made?

"She knows nothing about pregnancies, and neither do I" he concluded.

"And do I look like I do?!" Sevika barked.

Jinx let out a mocking laugh.

"You can help her somehow, you’re also a woman" Silco excused.

"Are you sure about that?" Jinx mocked again, taking two steps back before Sevika could reach her.

Silco stood up, slamming his hands on the desk.

"Like it or not" he said authoritatively, "you will handle this." He pointed at Jinx’s stomach and then looked at Sevika. "I don’t want anyone to find out; no one can know. The last thing we need is pointless threats, understood?"

"You don’t need more threats when she could kill me the moment you turn your back" Jinx hissed through her teeth.

"Don’t push me, girl. Now more than ever, I’m tempted to do it."

Silco rubbed his eyelids, irritated. Dealing with them was already hard enough; he couldn’t believe he now had to deal with three.

"The important thing now is dealing with the father" he sighed. Jinx stayed still. "Does he know?"

"I don’t think we need to worry about him" she said, sitting in the chair in front of the desk.

"I don’t want loose ends, Jinx."

"There aren’t any" she assured, playing with her fingers on the armrest. "Let’s just say that right now, he doesn’t have a head for news like that."

Silco let out a heavy sigh. No need to ask—if she was that calm about him, it was because she had already put a bullet or two in him.

After that, things didn’t get better. In fact, they got much more complicated because Jinx had to deal with the extra weight and the deformation of her body, and that didn’t make her happy—it put her in a really bad mood.

She was more restless than usual, pacing back and forth inside the bar, annoying Sevika and the customers with her paint bombs. It was her way of demanding Silco let her go outside.

"Either you send me out, or I’ll blow everything up" she threatened.

"I’d like to see you try" Silco replied.

And she did. She really did.

Half the bar ended up in flames, which Sevika had to put out. Silco learned his lesson: don’t challenge the hormonally imbalanced girl.

After the little incident, Silco started sending Jinx on simple missions where he knew there would always be an escape route and where explosives weren’t necessary. But of course, that was Jinx’s decision because if she wanted to, she could burn everything down.

But after a few more months, she couldn’t do it anymore. Even though her body was still agile and strong, it wasn’t easy to pull off the same stunts as before. She was aware of that, though she wouldn’t admit it to anyone.

That day’s mission would definitely be one of her last, much to Sevika’s relief, who was tired of hauling her around and dealing with her mood swings, which usually ended with a bullet in her prosthetic arm.

They waited several minutes on the rooftop, minutes that felt like an eternity to Jinx because she couldn’t even lie flat on her stomach. She hated her new body and was starting to regret the decision she had made.

The men below came into her sight; all she needed was a clean shot to take them both down in a second. She placed her finger on the trigger and pulled it, but her aim was off, alerting them instead.

"Shit" Sevika cursed. "What the hell was that?"

"I don’t know."

The older woman jumped off the railing, snapping both men’s necks before the situation could escalate. Jinx stepped back, leaving without her.

She reached her room and stood at the center while the fluorescent lights lit up her face. She raised her hand, gently touching her swollen belly with the tip of her finger.

"What the hell was that?"

Something inside her had fluttered right when she fired, causing her to miss. But how was she supposed to explain that to Sevika? Not that the ogre deserved an explanation.

Just when she thought it had all been her imagination, the tiny flutter came again, slow and spaced out.

She placed both hands on her belly to feel it more clearly. There it was again, like the ticking of a clock, persistent and gentle.

"Are you scolding me for thinking it was a bad idea to keep you?" she asked. "Does being inside me mean you can read my thoughts or something?"

One last flutter, then everything calmed down.

Sevika stormed in, stomping her feet.

"Explain what the hell happened back there" she demanded. "If I hadn’t been fast enough, I’d be dead. Isn’t that why I drag you along, to prevent that?"

"I'm surprised you think I’d miss the chance to let you get killed." Jinx sat down and looked at her, exhausted. "Now, if you don’t mind, I was having an important conversation here."

"Yeah, sure, with the voices in your crazy little head."

But Jinx didn’t say a word as Sevika left, kicking everything in her path.

Refusing to continue working for Silco kept her more on edge, anxious, and irritable. Her stomach felt heavier, too heavy, actually. So, she had to stay still, even if she didn’t want to.

And that left her at the mercy of the voices—the damn voices that had taken their sweet time to appear. Screw them.

Suddenly, they were there, whispering in her ear. One day it was Mylo, the next it was Claggor, and then Vi.

“You bring bad luck, you’ll only get him killed, like you did to us,” they repeated over and over.

"Shut up! He won’t end up like you! He won’t!"

But really, who could guarantee that?

The hardest part came when labor started. There was no way to get her out of the bar, not even from her hideout where she had stayed since the contractions began.

Silco called his most trusted doctor—not Singed, because Singed, as brilliant as he was, was nuts, and the last thing Silco wanted was to deal with a potential experiment in Jinx’s room.

They had to remove everything that could serve as a weapon from her. He was the only doctor Silco kept alive, and now more than ever, he didn’t want to lose him to one of Jinx’s rage fits.

Chaos.

It was something that characterized Jinx, but she never imagined feeling it in her own flesh. The pain chaotically intertwined with horror and the sensation of being torn apart. Clearly, this was the part she hadn’t considered when she decided to give that creature a chance, and now she was paying the painful consequences.

But the pain was momentary; what came after—that was here to stay.

Jinx panted heavily as she watched the tiny bundle of flesh that had come out of her body squirm in the doctor’s arms.

"It’s a girl" he announced, holding her out to Jinx.

But Jinx recoiled.

She scooted up on the bed, pressing herself against the wall behind her, and didn’t even bother to lift her hands to take the baby. She stayed still, staring at her like she was some kind of ghost, a tiny problem that would only grow bigger once held in her arms.

The doctor handed the baby to Silco and left after whispering something in his ear. Jinx hugged her knees, staring blankly beside her, completely ignoring Silco’s persistent gaze.

"He said she needs to eat" Silco commented, sitting at the edge of the bed.

No response, not a single movement. Silco sighed heavily.

"If you don’t want her, I can still pull some strings" he continued. "This will never have happened."

"Killing her would only make you a worse person" she muttered, burying her face further into her arms.

"I meant giving her to someone else, a family who could take care of her and keep her far from here."

Jinx glanced at the baby and then up at Silco.

"I don’t think she’d like that idea."

"She has no idea what’s going on, Jinx. She doesn’t even know you’re her mother."

Ouch.

Even if he was right, something wouldn’t let her just release the baby into the Lanes like fresh meat. No one out there could teach her how to survive better than Jinx herself, and despite what she felt at that moment, she didn’t want to see her die.

It had taken too much work to bring her into the world just to let her last less than a day in it.

"At least you could make her shut up" Jinx spat, "I’m trying to think, and Mylo yelling in my ear is already too much."

"I can’t. That’s not my job."

The man placed the baby at the foot of Jinx’s bed and left without saying another word.

Did he really think leaving her alone with this was okay? It wasn’t his decision to make, and while he had offered options, Jinx wasn’t in the right headspace to think while that tiny thing cried nonstop in her room.

That idiot Mylo had settled beside her; the others had stayed unusually quiet, but not him. He was determined to keep yelling in her ear.

“See? See? Nothing good comes from you! Nothing good! Just give her to someone else before she ends up throwing herself off a cliff because of you.”

"Shut up…" she muttered, pressing her hands tightly against her ears.

This time, Vi took Mylo’s place.

“If you couldn’t be a good sister, what makes you think you’ll be a good mother?”

"I… I don’t…"

Mocking laughter echoed around her. The chaos in her head drowned out everything around her, leaving nothing but darkness and violent flashes of the people she loved, now spitting in her face.

"Stop, stop it already…"

“You’ll get her killed if you don’t do it yourself first.”

"I SAID SHUT UP!"

She grabbed the gun hidden under the mattress and fired three shots into the air. Everything finally went silent.

Silence. Too much silence.

She lifted her hands from her head, frantically searching for the baby she had forgotten was still there.

She leaned over the bed, looking closely, checking for wounds from a stray bullet, but no, there were none.

Just a pair of big, glassy amber eyes staring back at her in terror. Jinx sighed in relief—for a second, she had feared the worst.

The baby pursed her lips.

"No, no, no, wait."

And started crying again.

"Shit."

She looked around, searching for someone to help, but there was no one. She was alone. Besides, who would help her? Mylo? Ha. She had shot at him three times; he wouldn’t show up for a while.

She had no choice left, except the one Silco had given her. Pretending none of this happened was starting to sound sensible—she’d be at peace, and the baby would have a good life, away from her.

Away from her.

She cautiously approached, as if the tiny ball of flesh would lunge at her throat. She looked at the baby’s wrinkled eyelids from crying so much and the brown locks framing her face.

Her trembling hands lifted the baby from the bed and brought her to her chest.

"Don’t you know how to stop crying?" she asked, staring at her. "You hurt me enough already, and now you’re telling me I’ll have to endure this forever?"

This time, the baby stopped crying, focusing on Jinx.

"There it is, you do know how."

But no response, no grimace, nothing. Just staring at her, analyzing her face, her eyes, her madness.

Jinx frowned, uncomfortable.

"So, you were the one kicking my guts every night" the baby wrinkled her nose. "You don’t seem so tough now, huh?"

And then the tiny ball of flesh in her arms smiled.

There it was, that pinch in her chest. Silco was wrong; she did know who her mother was.

She was screwed.

Chapter Text

Hearing her cry was a nuisance.

She did it day and night without stopping; and, to her damn luck, the only one who could calm her down was Jinx, but she didn’t even want to get close to her.

She watched her over her shoulder while the baby slept in her bed. Many times, she simply preferred not to sleep just to avoid approaching her. Occasionally, she would just peek to make sure she was still breathing and then go back to her own business.

Because she might be a killer, but not of her own daughter.

Holding her gave Jinx chills—not even because of the voices that incessantly screamed in her ear, but simply because she couldn’t do it. Her stomach turned, forcing her to run out.

"Are you planning to let her starve?" Silco asked, entering the room with a frown, quite fed up with the baby’s crying reaching his office.

Jinx remained focused on building her new gadget, turning a deaf ear while bouncing from one corner of the worktable to another.

"Jinx!"

Silco slammed his hand on the wood right beside her. The girl froze, keeping in check the psychosis that seemed ready to fly out of her head.

"If you’re so worried, why don’t you just take her?" she said. "I need to concentrate, and she’s making too much noise."

Silco pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to gather patience.

"Sevika has a job today" he announced, "delivering a shipment of Shimmer. I want you to go with her. Guard the cargo."

"With Sevika?" Jinx complained. "She hates working with me, has this crazy idea that I’ll kill her the first chance I get." Silco raised his eyebrows at her. Jinx huffed, rolling her eyes. "If I wanted to, I already would’ve done it."

"Go with her" he ordered. "You need fresh air; getting out of this place might clear your head."

"My head is clear; being blurry is a different issue."

"I need you to think about what you’ll do with her" he gestured at the baby with his eyes.

Jinx glanced at the little thing squirming between the sheets, making barely audible sounds from exhaustion.

Silco picked her up.

"I’ll make sure someone feeds her" he sighed, exhausted, "again."

Jinx averted her gaze as he passed by her side.

"You’re supposed to do it yourself" he added before leaving. "It’s okay if you don’t want to; no one will blame you for it."

No one would dare, in fact.

"But if you don’t feel capable of doing… this, consider leaving her in someone else’s care."

And he left, leaving the room in silence.

Capable? She was capable of many things—that had been clear since the people she loved became voices inside her head. She had proven to the world over and over how capable she was.

But… being a mother was something entirely different. Something brutal and insane, much more than she was.

Jinx didn’t have a single ounce of maternal instinct; she had made that clear to everyone, including that baby. She didn’t feel particularly attached to her, and that was eating her up inside.

She wasn’t even a child she had bothered to name.

What did it matter? If she agreed to Silco’s plan, she wouldn’t have to rack her brain thinking of what kind of name would suit her, what kind of name would perfectly match her brown locks and those huge golden eyes that, since they came into the world, had burdened her with a responsibility that terrified her.

It wasn’t her fault. She had told her, told that baby that nothing good would come from her company and the decision she had made. She had warned her; it wasn’t her problem that she didn’t listen.

And the fact that she was the size of an olive at the time had nothing to do with it.

The damn Firelights had ruined the job Silco had left in her hands. They interfered just as Sevika was about to finish delivering the special Shimmer shipment. And that was messed up because Jinx knew that she’d be the one dealing with Sevika’s shitty mood afterward.

"It’s too much Shimmer" the leader announced. "Search downstairs. Burn everything!"

Of course, everything would burn—but not because of them.

Boom.

The explosions had gone off, and breathing in the smoke once more after them brought back memories of her days before getting pregnant, before being forced to leave all that behind for her sake and her little olive’s.

Two of them had already fallen; only the leader and one or two who really thought they could take on Jinx remained. Sevika and most of Silco’s men were immobilized by Firelight tech, but Jinx was too fast, too fast for them.

She found herself face to face with the group’s leader and his stupid owl mask.

"Wearing masks" she spat, glaring at the darkness in his eyes behind it, "is for cowards" she pulled out two more bombs. "Personally, I prefer that they know it was me who put a bullet in their head."

And she threw them, but not at him, at the two by his sides.

The owl-masked boy lunged at her, dodging bullets from her gun, but not fast enough because Jinx knocked him back down with a blow.

She was full of energy, and he paid the price.

The last Firelight standing poured gasoline over the cargo and lit a torch. Jinx grabbed her wrist, hitting her until the mask came off.

She froze.

"Vi…?"

But no, it wasn’t her—not even close. Just an impostor, because Vi was dead, right? At least that’s what Silco had told her.

The young woman had enough time to drop the torch, setting everything on fire and snapping Jinx out of her trance. Jinx felt the heat of the flames rising up her boots and shot the young woman cleanly, killing her.

The leader was forced to retreat as his tech to keep Silco’s men prisoner began to wear off.

Besides, there was no point in staying—his objective had been completed, and he had taken down two or three of Silco’s subordinates; the problem was that revenge had started to shift its path toward Jinx.

"We lost everything!" Sevika cursed. "I lost people back there!"

"There are always casualties in war" Silco excused.

"She’s a problem" Sevika spat, as if Jinx weren’t standing right next to her, though Jinx didn’t really care what she thought, "and now, with that brat…"

Silco shot her a sharp look.

"Go fix it" he ordered. "No excuses."

Sevika left without another word; his glare was enough to keep her in check. Silco turned his attention to Jinx.

"What happened?"

Jinx hesitated, hugging herself.

"She had pink hair" she answered, "one of those damn Fireidiots."

Silco let out a heavy sigh, standing up.

"She’s dead, you know that."

"Yeah, yeah, I know" she grinned, hiding behind irony. "Sisters, right? Even after death, they can still drive you crazy."

She let out a laugh that was cut short by the creak of the door.

Jinx’s smile vanished when an unfamiliar woman entered, carrying her little thing sleeping peacefully in her arms. The woman tried to hand the baby to her, but Jinx stepped back, turning her back and digging her nails into her arms.

Silco signaled for the woman to place the baby on the couch and leave quickly.

Jinx sat in the chair across from the desk, burying her face between her knees.

"What about her?" she asked, wrinkling her nose.

"Since you couldn’t take care of her, I hired someone who could" Silco sighed. "What’s wrong with you?"

"I… I don’t know" Jinx replied, slumping. "I can’t get close to her; I can’t look at her or touch her. I feel like if I do, everything will fall apart… everything will go to hell." She dropped her legs to sit properly. "And then there’s… them, in my head, yelling at me all the time that I can’t do this… That she’ll end up dead."

Silco reached out his hand to her, and Jinx took it, standing in front of him.

"You can’t let them cloud your judgment. We all have ghosts. What happened today can’t happen again" he said, as Jinx looked away. "I do this for everyone, Jinx. For the sons and daughters of Zaun. They deserve more than the scraps from the topsiders" he lifted her chin. "Your daughter deserves more than that."

Jinx stared at the baby.

"I don’t even know if I’ll keep her."

"You still have time to think about it. But don’t take too long—the more days that pass, the more attached she’ll become, and it’ll be impossible to let her go."

"I know, but first I have to fix the mess that…"

"No" Silco interrupted. "Sevika will handle everything. You go rest."

Jinx pulled away from his grip, displeased.

"I don’t need rest."

Silco glanced at the baby on the couch.

"Do it anyway."

The truth was, ever since that cheap Vi impersonator showed up, the “real” one had been in her head, bothering her with violent, unstable visions, shouting over and over again.

“Powder! Powder! POWDER! You bring bad luck!”

Until she got tired of shouting and sat beside her to whisper in her ear.

“Stop pretending to be something you’re not, little sister. We both know you’re not cut out for this; motherhood isn’t your thing. You wouldn’t recognize maternal instinct even if it exploded in your face!”

Jinx sat in the darkest corner of the room, covering her ears from the cruel words of her supposed sister.

“You’re weak, too weak.”

"I’m not weak!" she replied, dragging the words out.

“Of course you are! Even Silco knows it—that’s why he sent Sevika to clean up your mess.”

"No… he doesn’t…" she banged her head with both hands. "He doesn’t think I’m weak… He can’t think that! SHUT UP!"

The mocking laughter kept murmuring in her ear.

The baby, who had been sleeping on the bed, woke up abruptly, letting out a sharp cry that sent chills down Jinx’s spine.

“So, so weak, little sister. But her… she makes you even weaker.”

And then she disappeared, as if she had closed the door on the other voices for a while. Vi had left, but the idea she had planted in Jinx’s mind stayed.

Weak?

No way, she wasn’t weak. Screw her stupid dead sister and everyone who thought she had become weak because of that brat.

She stood up, peeking over the bed, watching the baby squirm between the sheets with her incessant, annoying wails.

Forming a bond with her was driving Jinx crazy (even more than usual). She hadn’t even tried, and it already seemed impossible.

She couldn’t understand how her own mother had done it.

How had she looked at a tiny ball of flesh like the one in front of her and managed to feel… love? How had she clung to her until her last breath?

Her mother had been able to sacrifice her life for her daughters. Would Jinx be able to do the same? To put that thing’s life before her own.

Before anyone’s.

As soon as the baby felt her gaze, she stopped crying and followed her with her eyes, despite the look of disgust on Jinx’s face.

Where the hell had her mother found that damn maternal instinct? Or maybe that crap didn’t even exist?

Maybe she simply wasn’t able to recognize it.

Just like Vi had said.

She knelt beside the bed, getting a much closer look at her own tiny bundle of flesh, the one that had come from her body just days ago, right there in that same place.

Jinx tilted her head.

What made her so wonderful that everyone wanted one just like her? She couldn’t talk, eat, or even sleep on her own. Jinx simply couldn’t understand how something so small could cause so much commotion.

Much more than she ever did, even.

The baby turned to look at her, squinting, then smiled, babbling as if trying to reach her.

But Jinx panicked and backed away, falling onto the floor.

A shiver ran through her body from her toes to her ears. She had never been so scared in her life.

Was that the weakness Vi had talked about? Because if it was, she didn’t want it.

Sevika barged into Silco’s office, clumsily slamming the door open with her hands quite full. She dropped a wooden box onto the desk, scattering all the papers Silco had been reading for a while.

"What’s this?" he asked, peeking into the box, only to be met with the glassy eyes of Jinx’s little thing.

"She’s gone" Sevika spat.

Silco frowned.

"What do you mean gone?"

"I mean she’s gone. Not here" she replied impatiently. "And the brat’s been like this for a while now."

Jinx had returned to the streets, to the Lanes, where she belonged—and she couldn’t feel better.

Breathing fresh air again, feeling connected to her own body—it felt like being born anew. It was much better than working with Sevika or dealing with annoying Firelights.

She wasn’t gone for long, but it was enough time for those idiots from other gangs to start thinking they had the right to assume she was dead or something.

Maybe they thought one of her own bombs had taken her out.

Ha!

It didn’t take more than a bit of paint, a few signs, and several explosions to let Zaun know that Jinx was back—more alive than ever.

Before even taking the first step inside The Last Drop, Sevika had already grabbed her by the hair, dragging her straight to Silco’s office.

"Where the hell were you?" he asked.

Jinx crossed her arms and blew the strand of hair hanging in front of her face.

"Drawing" she replied.

"There were several explosions in the Lanes" Sevika added. "Looks like you had fun."

"A little fun never hurt anyone."

Except for the guys she blew up—they definitely didn’t have fun.

Jinx scanned the office after watching Sevika leave, cursing under her breath.

"Looking for something?" Silco asked, sliding the box with the sleeping baby across the floor with his foot. "Really? A box?"

"But she’s alive, isn’t she?" Jinx shot back. "If I left her sleeping anywhere else, she’d probably fall off."

"And you couldn’t wait until morning to leave her with someone else?"

Jinx shrugged. Silco rubbed his eyelids, close to losing it.

"Now explain this to me" he slid a report across the desk. "Half a dozen Enforcers?" He stood up, pushing his chair back and facing her. "Half a dozen Enforcers dead? Dead! You didn’t even keep your chaos within the Lanes! Do you have any idea what you’ve done?"

"Actually, yeah" she replied, pulling a small blue gem from her pocket. "Happy Progress Day!"

She tossed the gem into his hands with a triumphant smile. Silco leaned back against the desk behind him, and Jinx hugged him tightly, burying her face in his chest.

"The explosions down here distracted the topsiders" she murmured without letting go. "I stole it from one of those rich kids’ labs. I’m sure it’s enough to even the score. Sevika could never pull this off."

Was all the trouble worth it for that stupid gem? Hard to tell, but at least she had proven to everyone that she wasn’t weak—and nothing, no one, would change that.

Silco did everything he could to keep the Enforcers at bay, far enough from Jinx, as much as possible, despite her signing every chaotic job she did.

That morning, Sevika found her at the bar. She had barely slept, still obsessed with understanding the experiments being done in Piltover, and if that kept her away from the baby she had only brought into the world, even better.

"What the hell are you doing?" Sevika asked, snatching the glass Jinx was about to drink from.

Jinx glanced at the bar and then sneered at her.

"What do you think?"

"Don’t be an idiot, the last time you drank, everything went to hell."

Jinx flashed an ironic smile.

She didn’t need the reminder—there was a tiny being waiting for her in her room that reminded her every day.

"It won’t happen again" Jinx spat. "Besides, it’s just juice, genius."

"Silco won’t keep cleaning up your messes like they’re nothing" Sevika growled, sitting beside her with a space between them. "Make it easier for him and get rid of that kid."

Jinx played with the straw.

"And who am I supposed to give her to? That sweet lady who takes care of her every day?"

Her expression turned into genuine disgust.

"She plays the mother role better than you do."

Jinx lifted her head, staring ahead to ignore Sevika’s accusation.

"I know. She took her a while ago, and she… didn’t make a sound. She didn’t seem bothered by her presence."

"Then the problem is you."

"Is there no way to shut you up, snake?"

Sevika gave a mocking grin and stood up.

"Get up, we’ve got work to do."

One of the many idiots who had decided to betray Silco during Jinx’s absence was the target; because, clearly, that kind of thug feared a five-foot-two girl more than Sevika.

Inside the abandoned building, they fell one by one like flies. It didn’t take much effort; Jinx’s new and improved weapon had done all the work.

"Check upstairs" Sevika ordered.

Jinx climbed the stairs, not even bothering to stay quiet. It was more fun if they tried to run.

She heard a thud in one of the rooms and didn’t even stop to look; she fired everything she had until the door fell, slamming onto the floor.

The man on the other side let out a strangled gasp from the floor, stretching his hands in front of his face.

"No, no, no, please, don’t kill me!"

Jinx aimed right between his eyes with a twisted smile.

"Please…"

The girl glanced at the woman beside him, kneeling and begging for the life of the man who seemed to be her husband, with two children hidden behind her back.

"Please, Jinx" the man pleaded. "Spare me, I swear I did it to protect my family. They said that if I didn’t betray Silco, they’d kill them. Please…"

Jinx placed her finger on the trigger and then looked at the children beside her. She clicked her tongue, firing just beside the man’s head. She leaned in, pressing the gun to his nose.

"If you even think about doing it again, I won’t hesitate with you or them. I don’t care that they’re kids."

And she left, kicking up dirt on the floor.

"What happened?" Sevika asked.

"Nothing. It’s empty, let’s go."

But sooner rather than later, she would regret showing mercy. Because days later, a Gray bomb was released inside The Last Drop.

The attack had shattered the stained glass behind Silco’s desk; Sevika barely managed to pull him out before he collapsed unconscious. The man had incredible resistance to the gas, but not enough if the bomb exploded right in his face.

Jinx came running as soon as she noticed the chaos. She hadn’t even been close when it happened, too busy dealing with some bratty Firelights a few alleys away.

She looked at Sevika and Silco struggling to catch their breath, but no one else.

Her sanity wavered when the bar door collapsed from the damage. She squinted, searching around, but no, there was nothing.

She wasn’t there. She was nowhere to be found.

Sevika swallowed hard, unable to meet Jinx’s gaze. Was she still inside? None of those bastards had even bothered to think about her. None of them.

Jinx dropped her weapons to lighten the load; she had to be much faster, more agile. She entered, breaking one of the windows.

The Gray was everywhere, filling the building, barely letting her see her own feet. The air grew denser and denser; there was no way anyone could survive too long breathing it in.

Especially not someone with lungs that small.

A shiver ran down her spine, and she quickened her pace. Shit.

She made it to her room as best she could and searched through the bed sheets, but found nothing; that child was nowhere to be found.

Hidden among the blankets, she found a cloth doll stuffed with sand with a note pinned to its back.

“I won’t hesitate with you or her, I don’t care that she’s just a child.”

She crumpled the yellowed piece of paper in her hands while her sharp nails tore through the doll, letting the sand fall to the floor.

Someone had signed their own death sentence. Because Jinx didn’t have the sharpest maternal instinct in the world, but at the end of the day, the instinct was there.

And they had made the terrible decision to take her daughter away from her.

They wanted to dominate the Lanes, like half of Zaun; or maybe they wanted to deliver a low blow to Jinx, who had certainly earned herself plenty of enemies. Whatever it was, they had to keep the child away from it, because even if her mother was chaotically twisted, that wasn’t her fault.

But the undercity was like that—if you weren’t careful, it sank its teeth into you and tore your throat out. Jinx knew that; it pissed her off to think she had dragged her daughter into it.

They must have thought it wouldn’t be hard to take the child away from her since she barely paid attention to her.

They hadn’t thought it through enough.

Jinx headed to the bridge connecting to Piltover, where no one usually went to avoid the Enforcers, but that’s where they had summoned her, and she wouldn’t take a single step back.

They tried to attack her from all directions, but none were fast or agile enough for her and her inseparable weapon.

Jinx was already lethal on her own—they should never have made her angry, and even less so by involving an innocent child who was just beginning to discover the world.

Her world. The world her mother dominated.

One of the thugs tried to run; Jinx shot him in the leg, and he fell to the ground. When she approached him, she could see the terror on his face. In other circumstances, she would have found it amusing, but right then, she had no time to waste.

"Where is she?" she growled.

"Who?" the man spat, trying to hide his fear with a mocking grin.

Jinx’s lips twisted in fury, and she drove the heel of her boot into his wound. The man let out a strangled scream.

"I don’t have time for this" she said again. "Tell me where she is!"

The pain overwhelmed him, and he ended up talking.

"N-Near the tunnels leading to the mines, there’s an abandoned house there" he stammered. "That’s where they have her. Now leave me alone."

Jinx narrowed her eyes and fired. She had definitely left him alone.

"This is insane!" the woman snapped. "Did you really kidnap Jinx’s daughter? Jinx’s?!"

"Shut up! Don’t you get that this is our only chance to gain control of Zaun? I’m sick of being just another one of Silco’s lackeys!"

"But Jinx spared our lives!" she argued again. "We should have just run away! Left all this behind!"

"I’m doing this for our kids!"

"And what do you think she’ll do for hers?!"

The door burst open. Out of the mist rising from the ground came a shot aimed directly at the wall behind them.

Jinx entered with her gun raised; the shot had served as a warning.

"If you shoot again, she dies!" the man trembled.

Jinx held her stance without wavering, arm straight, aiming directly at his head.

The baby’s cry caught her attention. The woman was holding her, a gun pressed to the child’s ear.

"Drop the gun!" the man ordered, pointing his own weapon at Jinx to regain her focus; but Jinx didn’t move. "I said drop the gun!"

She still didn’t flinch, her indifferent gaze showing not a hint of fear—at least not for herself.

Desperate, he grabbed the baby roughly, snatching her from his wife’s arms. He held her under her arms; the baby curled up, looking even tinier than she already was. She raised her eyes to Jinx and began crying again as soon as she saw her.

He pressed the gun to the baby’s temple, his grip steadying when he realized Jinx had started to hesitate.

"I said drop your damn gun. Drop it, or I’ll blow her head off!"

A shiver ran down Jinx’s spine. For the first time in her life, she was scared.

She placed her gun on the floor and raised both hands over her head, never taking her eyes off her enemy, except to glance occasionally at the child he held like an inanimate doll.

She felt an urge—a terrible urge to kill him in the most painful and twisted way possible.

"If you want to get out of here alive" he said, "along with her, I have certain terms I want Silco to follow to the letter. Control of the Lanes is the first."

Jinx smiled bitterly.

"What the hell are you laughing at, bitch?"

"You hesitated."

He had taken his finger off the trigger. It was a brief second, no more than a few millimeters, but it was enough.

Jinx kicked up her gun, caught it mid-air, and shot him.

The gunshot echoed through the house, too loud, especially for the child caught between them, feeling it brush past her ears. She let out a terrified scream followed by incessant crying, struggling wildly to free herself from the grip of her captor, who now lay dead on the floor.

Jinx picked her up, holding her close to her chest. She checked for any injuries and brushed aside the brown locks that had fallen over her forehead after all the chaos.

The baby snuggled against her chest, reclaiming and treasuring her mother’s warmth.

Jinx huffed. It was a vulnerability for her—she bitterly understood that now. There was no way out of it anymore.

The woman beside her let out a whimper filled with terror. Jinx glanced at her from the corner of her eye, not even bothering to reload her gun.

"Forgive me…" the woman begged, "I never wanted to hurt her, it was all his idea…" she looked at her husband’s lifeless face and clutched her children tightly. "I know you have every right to kill me—I would if I were you—but… please, from one mother to another, don’t make me leave them alone. They would never survive out there without me."

Jinx looked at the baby in her arms and understood what she meant. She had fulfilled her mission; her place was no longer there. She holstered her gun and left the house.

She heard a “thank you” behind her and clicked her tongue.

"I knew you’d make me weak."

Weaker than she ever imagined.

The baby lifted her tiny hand with fragile movements, grasping Jinx’s collar with her little fingers. A shiver ran through Jinx.

No, there was no way out of it anymore. There never would be again.

Chapter Text

Motherhood was shit, fucking shit.

Because suddenly she was awake at three in the morning with that little piece of flesh clinging to her chest.

She was in agony, her back breaking in two; still, it hurt less than not doing it. No one said it would be easy, and even if they had, she wouldn’t have believed them.

The baby didn’t care about her suffering; she felt whole, complete, finally united with her mother (as it always should have been). She wanted to stay there, with a desperation Jinx couldn’t understand, as Jinx made an inhuman effort not to fall asleep during the sleepless nights.

She looked at the small, round thing in her arms, watching her hunger subside with shallow breaths. She poked her cheek with her fingertip, but there was no response from her; she kept her eyes closed and her fingers curled against Jinx’s skin.

Jinx ran her finger down to the baby’s hand, prying her tiny fingers open. She noticed the size difference, still unable to believe how small she was; so, so tiny that even her whole hand couldn’t cover a single finger.

So tiny and so fragile, so prone to falling into the Underground City’s claws and being torn apart by them.

She knew that the moment she took her eyes off her, someone would surely take advantage of her vulnerability again, using her like fucking bait.

She wouldn’t allow it.

The baby pulled away from her chest, searching for her gaze. Jinx furrowed her brow.

"Can we go to sleep now?"

The baby smiled, clearly meaning “no.”

Jinx threw her head back, letting out a groan of exhaustion, and picked up the baby, resting her head on her shoulder.

"I've never asked anyone for anything, but please, go to sleep now" she pleaded.

The baby curled her body, closing the distance with her mother, snuggling into her arms. Jinx’s heart raced as she felt the baby’s warmth pressing against her skin.

“You won’t be able to protect her forever.”

There it was again, Mylo’s idiot voice buzzing in her ear. Took him long enough to show up.

She tightened her grip on the baby’s back.

No, she wouldn’t let it happen again; she wouldn’t let anyone else lay a hand on her. The next person who dared would pay dearly.

The underworld wouldn’t threaten her again, not while she was there to protect her.

"You said you’d keep her under control!"

Marcus slammed the desk, but Silco didn’t flinch. He turned his deadpan gaze to him, tossing one of Jinx’s bombs covered in Firelights graffiti.

"As I understand, those brats have been causing havoc everywhere" Silco remarked. "It wouldn’t be surprising if they were behind the building damage and the Enforcers’ deaths. They’re never satisfied, just anarchists, that’s all."

"It won’t be that easy this time" Marcus insisted. "Jinx made sure to leave her mark on the whole explosion. I can’t shift the blame onto the Firelights."

"You better figure it out. I want attention away from her, got it?"

"And if I’m no longer interested in playing your stupid game?"

Silco narrowed his eyes, about to give his men an order when the sound of the baby crying broke the silence—distant, almost foreign, but enough to make him uneasy.

He slammed a bag full of coins onto the desk, trying to cover the noise, even raising his voice.

"Never forget that weaknesses can be exploited" he said, locking eyes with Marcus. "Keep doing your part. You have your culprits and" he pointed to the coin bag "a gift for the affected families, from a concerned citizen."

He raised his chin, signaling one of his goons to escort the captain out. Marcus left reluctantly, but what he had heard definitely left him with more than one doubt.

Jinx rummaged endlessly through boxes of her old stuff. The baby cried desperately from a makeshift basket.

Silco had made it clear this would be the last time she let the baby sleep in a wooden box, even if the baby could sleep anywhere.

The basket was padded and warm enough for her. And if anyone dared to ask, Jinx would say she only did it because if the baby didn’t stay quiet, there was no damn way she could keep making “toys” for Silco.

Inside the box, she found the first weapon she had worked on when she started living with Silco. An old gun with poorly drawn bunny ears on the handle. She had named it, like everything she created— a childish name, just like she was back then.

Not that it mattered anymore.

She tossed it back into the box with a sour expression. Whatever, it never worked anyway.

"Jinx!"

Silco stormed into the room, cursing under his breath. Jinx didn’t even look up, still digging through the box.

"Why haven’t you done anything to shut her up?"

"Because she doesn’t want to" Jinx replied, head buried in the junk. "I tried everything, and… ah, here it is!"

She pulled a stuffed rabbit by one ear and held it in front of the baby’s face, soothing her cries.

"My sister loved this ugly doll" she said, "but it’s the only kid-friendly thing around here."

Jinx tilted the rabbit’s head to catch the baby’s attention, smiling faintly at the sparkle in her eyes.

Silco swallowed hard.

"Don’t let it happen again" he warned. "Marcus almost found out. I don’t want this reaching Piltover. We have too many enemies there who would see this as an advantage over us."

Jinx remained kneeling by the basket, her gaze darkening.

She could barely get the baby to stop crying; she had to keep her quiet and alive.

Being a mother was hard, but being a mother while being a wanted criminal was even harder.

She had enemies everywhere: Piltover, Zaun... she wasn’t sure she could even trust Silco’s people entirely. Those thoughts haunted her.

Ha! Even her own mind was her enemy.

What a fucking nuisance.

"I don’t think I can protect this baby from all this shit…" she muttered.

Silco froze.

Those words, those fucking words, he had heard them long ago from Felicia, his own mother. He couldn’t believe history was repeating itself, not like this.

He looked at the baby clutching the doll in her tiny hands, snuggling with it.

"You’re Jinx" he said, "you can."

Jinx watched him leave without saying another word, then turned her attention back to the baby.

"I knew you’d be a little problem for me" she whispered, "but I never thought you’d be one for him too."

She stood up, searching her desk for the Hextech gem she had stolen from that pretentious little scientist’s lab.

"So it all comes down to this stupid little rock" Jinx mused, scrutinizing it. "Who’d have thought it’s got more power than size, huh?"

She began reading the scientist’s notebook for the fifth time.

"Wow. Suuuper… boring" she huffed, rolling her eyes. "But if what it says here is true, then this… powers it, the gateway to the creepy realm."

She placed the blue gem inside a small device made from scrap metal and activated it. The device whined before a burst of light sent her flying. She grabbed the baby, shielding her with her body, when a second explosion went off in the same spot, leaving her room a wreck covered in blue streaks.

Memories of that day, when she lost everything, violently surged through her mind.

"No, no, no, this…" she frantically checked the crying baby in her arms for injuries "was a mistake… a mistake."

After Silco’s last failed plan, the Firelights had stayed quiet for weeks. They didn’t want to draw attention and risk exposing themselves or the sanctuary where they sheltered anyone in need.

But that day, they had called a meeting, an important one that would determine their small anarchist group’s future.

"We have to do something. Silco has stayed quiet since the Piltover explosion; he must be planning something big."

"It’d be suicide to waltz into The Last Drop" another Firelight objected, "especially if she’s there."

"But we have to find out what they’re planning. It’s the only way to stop them again."

"No one’s going into The Last Drop" Ekko stated. "We’re not risking being seen, and I’m not putting any of you in danger. But you’re right, we need to find out what they’re planning, so I’ll go."

The crowd fell silent.

"I’ll find out what’s going on without being seen. I know that place better than anyone, better than them even, and I won’t let Jinx stop me this time."

Most agreed, some even offered to go with him, but Ekko refused. He knew he’d do better alone—there was no way he’d be caught.

Though deep down, he hoped to run into Jinx. He had unfinished business with her. He was never one for cold-blooded revenge, but he could make an exception.

That night, Ekko snuck through the Lanes to The Last Drop, not even stopping for breath.

The bar was closed, with a few of Silco’s men on guard, because no one was stupid enough to sneak in there. But Ekko knew the pipes, ducts, and shortcuts of the building too well to be seen.

He landed inside Silco’s office. It was empty.

He searched drawers, cabinets, piles of papers but found little. What the hell had they been up to all this time? It was impossible to believe Silco had kept things quiet for weeks.

The baby’s cry, which he hadn’t even noticed, snapped him out of his thoughts.

He peeked into a corner by the couch. There, among frayed blankets and in the basket Jinx had made for her, the baby was crying desperately because the new doll her mother gave her was on the floor.

Ekko couldn’t believe it; he hadn’t noticed her at all.

He looked closer to ensure it wasn’t a hallucination or some twisted trap from Jinx’s mind. But no, she was very real—so real that when she saw his owl-skull mask inches from her face, she let out a terrified wail.

Ekko jumped back.

"You’ve got to be fucking kidding me…" he murmured, taking off the mask, but the baby kept crying.

He picked her up under her arms, holding her up to his face.

"Where the hell did you come from? What are you doing here?"

The baby curled up in his hands, still crying. Ekko didn’t know what to do, but if he didn’t calm her soon, she’d cause trouble.

He looked around and found the stuffed rabbit under the couch. He placed the baby on it and waved the toy in front of her face. She stopped crying, reaching for it with a smile.

Ekko swallowed hard.

Who was she? Whose child was she? And most importantly, how the hell did she end up in Silco’s office? What did she have to do with him?

He looked at the baby’s expression again, a spark of familiarity igniting in him, though he didn’t know why. He was more confused than when he arrived. Whatever the case, he couldn’t leave her there alone, at the mercy of that bunch of scumbags.

The door opened, letting in a sliver of light from outside. Ekko put his mask back on, meeting the baby’s gaze.

The woman who entered let out a gasp—it was the caretaker Silco had hired for when Jinx wasn’t around. Ekko looked at the baby one last time, assuming the woman was her mother, and without asking more questions, slipped back into the ceiling ducts, leaving as fast as he could.

But that sparkle, that flicker of familiarity in her expression, was burned into his memory forever.

That same night, Silco and Jinx had left the bar as soon as the starry mantle fell over them. Silco needed to keep Jinx focused; she had been quite distant since the explosion in her room had happened.

During the nights, Mylo came back to haunt her and laugh in her face, and that had kept her more distracted than usual.

He took her to that river that held so many memories, so many betrayals and broken bonds.

“I almost drowned in these waters,” he said.

“You’ve told me that a million times,” Jinx complained. “Vander betrayed you, he wasn’t the man you thought he was, blah, blah, blah. Did I miss anything?”

Silco twisted his lips into a smile.

“I need you to turn the Hextech into a weapon soon, there’s no time left before Marcus hesitates and ends everything we’ve built.”

Jinx stepped back, hugging herself and disturbing the calm waters around her.

“I can’t…” she said, “since then, I can’t stop seeing them, what happened that day…”

“You must stop letting fear control you, girl,” Silco reached out his hand to her. Jinx took it, standing in front of him and looking at her reflection in the water. “For me, this place meant the death of a weak man and the birth of someone else, someone strong and capable.”

“Yeah, but you don’t get it… she almost…”

Jinx bit her lower lip.

What would have happened if the first explosion had been as strong as the second? What if she hadn’t been quick enough to protect the girl with her body?

She would be alone again.

“You must let Powder die so Jinx can protect her,” Silco asserted, caressing her cheek. “You’re strong, just as you always should have been. Jinx is perfect. It’s time to show the world what she’s capable of.”

And he helped her submerge into the river, losing her in the darkness of the night.

Months later, Jinx’s little bundle of flesh started to move. There was no one who could stop her.

She crawled all over the damn bar, Silco’s office, and her mother’s room. They had to install railings everywhere, secure enough so she wouldn’t fall.

Jinx swore she wouldn’t be so careless, until she found herself hanging onto the child’s clothes with one hand while holding on for dear life with the other, to avoid falling into the void along with her. That day, she learned not to underestimate her own daughter’s boldness.

And that the railings would be more necessary than she had wanted.

The child, in fact, found it amusing, and when Jinx fell on her back to the floor, exhausted from the scare, she started laughing on her chest.

“You’re not afraid of anything, huh, little trouble?”

But it was different in the bar. Usually, they let her wander around when it was closed, after the customers had gone home and only Silco’s thugs, who were already well aware of the child’s existence, remained.

Jinx had to keep a close eye on her, not just because she knew well the kind of scum around, but because if the child didn’t notice her nearby, she would start crying wherever she was.

The last time Silco called her to his office and left the child supposedly under Sevika’s “care,” she had ended up crying on the bar, where “good old Chuck” (as Jinx called him) had placed her so no one would step on her.

Sevika couldn’t sleep for the next three weeks—Jinx made sure of that.

In Silco’s office, it was different. Jinx didn’t have to keep an eye on her. It was possibly the safest place at home, and she knew it.

“After our dear friend Firelight’s visit months ago, we had to reinforce security. That cost me a lot of money, you know?” Silco stated to Sevika. “If it happens again, one of us will lose our head, and it won’t be me.”

Sevika growled under her breath. That night, she was in charge of guarding the bar in his absence. She trusted too much in the woman’s ability to watch the child and in the fear everyone had of Silco’s domain.

“Did you hear that, leftie?” Jinx spat from the ceiling beams and jumped down to stand in front of Sevika. “Next time a Firelight gets near her, I’ll make you swim in the river.”

Silco pinched the bridge of his nose, exhausted. Dealing with both of them in the same room was torture.

He felt the baby tugging at his pants, looking up at him from the floor.

“Jinx,” he called her, unable to deal with more for one night.

“Yeah, yeah, I know.” Jinx grabbed the child by the back of her clothes. “Alright, little meatball, time for bed.”

Sevika grimaced after watching her leave the office. She didn’t know much about babies, but she was sure that wasn’t how you carried one.

Not that Jinx’s little problem cared; in fact, she found it funny and eventually got used to it.

Despite the months that had passed, Jinx still struggled to process that when she returned to her room, she wasn’t alone anymore. She had been right when she told her little olive that she would inevitably be stuck to her like a leech.

She picked her up, placing her neck in one hand and the rest of her body in the other, observing her closely.

They didn’t look much alike. If someone had to guess, they wouldn’t believe she was hers, except for the expressions she made—that was definitely part of her genetics. Maybe even the freckles on her nose that were just starting to show color, but nothing else. Not the blue hair, nor the indigo eyes, not even the paleness of her skin.

She felt quite offended—after everything she had suffered to bring her into the world, she barely had a trace of her being.

“Maybe you’ll be a mess,” she told her, “like me.”

The child smiled, not understanding what her mother meant. Jinx couldn’t even return the smile when the voices in her head sighed near her ear.

“Now the Firelights know.”

“Shut up.”

“It won’t take long for the others to notice, and they’ll come after her like vultures.”

Jinx tried to keep her composure so as not to scare the child.

“No one knows she’s mine.”

“Then how did they find her the first time? Where did that idiot get the information to take her? You have a disadvantage, Jinx.”

She glimpsed the silhouette of her dead brother from the corner of her eye, his empty eyes staring at the child over her shoulder.

Jinx shivered.

The idiot was right.

The baby raised her hand to touch her cheek, catching her attention. Her confused gaze locked onto her.

Jinx frowned and cradled the child in her arms.

“You shouldn’t worry about that,” she said, tapping the tip of her nose with her finger, “I’ll take care of it.”

She realized the child needed a name—because everyone had one.

She hesitated, understanding that this would possibly be the most important decision of her life, and that from that moment on, things would never be the same. Because once she gave that child a name, Jinx would never be able to turn back.

She would be hers forever.

The box of old things fell to the floor, scattering everything around.

That old gun that never worked slid in front of her feet, and then she understood.

The gun had never worked, but she always carried it with her to feel safe, to intimidate others—she felt it gave her some kind of protection.

She thought that child would be her downfall, her weakness. But the truth was, she had made her much stronger than she already was. Just like that gun had done for little Powder.

The child snuggled against her chest, ready to fall asleep in her mother’s arms. It was easy for her—maybe simply because hearing Jinx’s heartbeat soothed her, or because she recognized her scent, her touch, and the rhythm of her breathing.

They were connected, bound by an unbreakable bond, and no matter how much anyone wanted to tear them apart, they would always find their way back to each other.

No matter what.

And to hell with the world if it didn’t like it.

“We’ll show everyone who we are, you’ll see… Isha.”

The next day, Sevika teased her about it. Jinx knew it would take time for her and Silco to get used to the little slippery ball having a name—a real one.

But honestly, she couldn’t care less.

“Did you really name her after one of your stupid gadgets?”

“Got a problem with that?”

Sevika shrugged.

“Do whatever you want,” she said. “She’s yours anyway.”

She knew that’s how things would be from now on. That child had a name now. Her mother had given her one.

Now, more than ever, she belonged to her. Only to her.

Chapter Text

For a year and a half, Jinx made the Firelights’ lives impossible.

She had taken it personally—very personally. She couldn't stand the thought that the “bird-brained” leader had managed to slip past Silco’s security just to get to Isha. To Jinx, it was obvious that they already knew the girl was hers, and they wouldn’t rest until they had her in their grasp, using her for their own gain.

Damn idiots.

She hated the Firelights—all of them—but especially the leader. He was an arrogant, pretentious bastard. Just the thought of him laying his hands on her daughter made her blood boil.

“Fighting the Firelights is no longer relevant,” Sevika objected. “They’re just a bunch of kids who think they’re anarchists.”

“That bunch of kids slipped past your security,” Silco said, exhaling cigar smoke through his mouth. “Maybe getting rid of them is for the best. They’re smarter than they look and just as annoying as flies on food.”

“You hear that?” Jinx shot a deadly glare at Sevika. “Next time we let even one of them walk away alive, I’m putting a bullet through your good arm.”

The woman clicked her tongue.

“It was just a coincidence that their leader found the brat,” she said. “There’s no proof, and it’s impossible for them to know she’s your daughter. No one besides our people knows.”

Jinx curled her lips.

Who the hell cared if there was proof or not? Jinx wanted to tear them to pieces.

Silco spoke before she could take her anger out on Sevika.

“We’re not taking any risks. If they find out, they’ll have leverage over Jinx—over us. Make sure that doesn’t happen.”

Sevika grunted and opened the office door, but she barely managed to step out before nearly bumping into Isha’s caretaker, who carried the child in her arms.

The moment the little girl saw Jinx, her eyes lit up, and she kicked against the woman’s grip, struggling to be set free so she could reach her mother.

Because yes, Isha had started walking.

Not only walking—running. And that was so much worse.

At first, she could only stumble clumsily against anything taller than her—furniture, walls, or her mother’s legs, her favorite spot. Usually, she would crawl toward Jinx and then climb up her calves until she was standing beside her.

She loved hugging Jinx’s legs.

Whenever Sevika scared her so much that she didn’t know where to run, she would hide behind her mother. And usually, Jinx would end up making Sevika back off. One sharp glare was enough to keep her away, and that, to Isha, was incredible—her mother was her own personal hero.

And honestly, who would be stupid enough to challenge a mother protecting her child? Especially when that mother was Jinx.

The first time Isha started walking was more unexpected than Jinx could have ever imagined.

Because she had no idea how a baby who only knew how to crawl across the floor suddenly started moving on their own.

She wasn’t familiar with it, and she had no intention of being. She just figured she should let it happen.

That day, Isha was in the care of the usual woman. She stood by the couch, watching as her mother argued with Sevika while they left Silco’s office. Isha called out to her hundreds of times in nonsensical sounds, but Jinx didn’t stop—she had gotten used to the fact that the girl didn’t like it when she left.

“Isha!”

Jinx heard the caretaker’s voice and turned around.

And then, she saw her.

She saw her tiny little bundle of flesh—the one who had barely been able to keep her eyes open when she first came into the world—walking toward her in wobbly steps. With teary eyes and outstretched hands, Isha crashed against her mother’s legs.

Jinx stood frozen, feeling her daughter clutch onto her, sobbing into her clothes. Her tiny hands gripped her pants tightly.

She really didn’t want her to go.

Jinx crouched down, holding her by the shoulders. Her daughter’s big, glassy eyes locked onto her face before she threw her arms around her, burying her face in the crook of her neck.

The young woman couldn’t say a word. Was this how a tiny child suddenly started moving on their own?

Was this how it felt…?

That day, she didn’t set foot outside The Last Drop. She stayed by her side, watching her.

Things got complicated after that. Because no one tells you how to be a first-time mother to a growing little tornado who has an overwhelming attachment to you.

Isha hated it when her mother left. But there were situations only Jinx could handle, so sometimes she had to sneak out of the room while the girl was asleep. Isha was left in the caretaker’s watch, but all day long, until her mother returned, she would search for her in every place she was allowed to be.

When Jinx was home, it was different—Isha was… uncontrollable. She ran around on wobbly legs, climbing onto anything her feet could fit on.

She loved hiding in small places. And she loved that her mother always found her.

Because Mom always found her.

That was the easy part—saving her from falling three meters to the ground was the hard part.

Because yes, Isha adored climbing anything she could, but the problem was that she didn’t always know how to get down.

If Jinx took her eyes off her for even a second, she would already be hanging off a beam or a grate on the wall. And when she realized she was stuck, she would start crying. And now, Mom had to climb up and get her.

Best case? She waited. Worst case? She just let herself fall because her arms couldn’t hold her up any longer.

She wasn’t too worried—she knew Mom had good reflexes.

Other times, Jinx had to pull her out of paint buckets or stop her from spilling them over herself—because last time, she left blue footprints all over Silco’s office. Sevika wasn’t happy about that.

Isha knew she had to stay away from the bar during the day when customers were around—Mom had warned her.

But Isha was curious—too curious. She often spied on the customers from the corners, fascinated by the sounds, lights, and strange smells that made her wrinkle her nose.

The problem was when chaos broke out in the bar, and she got so scared that she ran off without knowing where she was going. More than once, Jinx had to chase after her to make sure no one saw her—because no one could see her.

That was her only real concern. Isha cried less when Jinx was near, and her mother always knew what she needed—whether she was hungry or tired, it was easy to tell by her expression or just instinct. Either way, she never got it wrong.

Especially when all Isha wanted was to be in her arms.

She adored being held by her mother, even when she was working.

Jinx often carried her, stuck to her chest like a tiny koala. Isha was so used to it that no matter how much her mother moved, she didn’t even flinch.

Jinx didn’t mind. Isha was quiet—too quiet.

But that wasn’t by choice.

The doctor who had delivered her had told them.

“Did you have any complications during pregnancy?” he asked.

Jinx raised an eyebrow, lips twisted in irritation.

He cleared his throat. “The thing is… the girl will never be able to speak.”

Jinx’s heart stopped.

“What the hell are you saying?” she demanded.

“There—there could be many factors. Or maybe no explanation at all,” he added quickly, fearing for his life. “Or she may have experienced a traumatic event.”

“She’s not even two. She never leaves this place. What goddamn traumatic event are you talking about?”

“Something that terrified her… even at a young age, it could’ve left such a deep mark on her memory that it completely affected her ability to communicate—at least verbally. She does respond well to auditory stimuli.”

The room fell silent as the doctor left, followed by Silco. Jinx’s gaze darkened.

Isha turned to her mother, tugging at her pants, raising her arms.

Jinx frowned and picked her up.

“Time for bed, little trouble.”

That night, Jinx didn’t sleep with her. She stayed awake in that old hideout she used to share with Vi, Mylo, and Claggor—the same place where that pretentious Violet would train for hand-to-hand combat in the streets of Zaun, always coming out victorious.

She turned on the machine and started hitting the robot: two punches, two kicks, again and again, over and over, until she was exhausted, until she was too tired to keep screaming and let out her rage.

“How did you find me?” she asked into the air, trying to catch her breath and wiping the sweat off her face.

“It wasn’t hard to predict that you’d come here,” Silco replied, stepping out of the shadows.

“What do you want?”

“Isha woke up. She hasn’t stopped crying.”

“So?”

“We can’t sleep.”

“You came personally just to tell me that?”

“If I had sent any of my men, they wouldn’t have found you. If I had sent Sevika, you’d have sent her back without both arms.”

Jinx snorted with a bitter smile. They stood in silence for a moment.

“It’s my fault,” Jinx suddenly admitted. “It’s my fault she can’t talk.”

Silco took a step forward, narrowing his eyes.

“I never thought that day… that shot—” she continued. “At that moment, I didn’t care that she was so close to the bullet. I only thought that if I didn’t act fast, we were both going to die. It’s my fault she can’t talk, that it’s impossible for her.”

But no matter how much she tried, she couldn’t cry.

She was angry, furious with herself.

“Then fix it,” Silco said, locking eyes with her. “Learn sign language and teach her. That’s the only way she’ll be able to communicate with you. Solve it.”

When Jinx returned to the room, the first thing she felt was the little girl running to cling to her legs. Isha was crying, terrified—Mom always left when she was sleeping, but she never left her alone at night, never in the darkness of the room.

Jinx knelt in front of her and wiped her tears.

Isha frowned, wanting to say something. Jinx could feel it.

She hugged her tightly, this time burying her face against her daughter’s small body.

“I’m sorry… But I can fix it,” she whispered, her voice breaking. “It’s something I can fix.”

After all, she was the one who had broken it.

Trouble had erupted in the Lanes. Everyone was talking about it, especially in the bar, but no one dared to say names.

Rumors spread like poisonous gas, especially after those girls, as everyone called them, had made a scene with Sevika.

“The sister,” the woman growled as she barged into Silco’s office. “She’s back.”

Silco turned in his chair, his ever-implacable gaze suddenly filled with terror.

“Back from the dead?!”

Vi had returned, and that could mean nothing good—for Jinx or for Isha.

Silco did everything he could to keep Violet’s presence away from Jinx and the child. The last thing he needed was for the long-lost sister to try and take them both away, especially after learning of Isha’s existence.

And while he sent Sevika after her, he paid a visit to Marcus.

“Explain to me how the sister came back from the dead.”

“I wasn’t going to kill her. She was just a kid back then.”

Silco slammed his fist on the desk, making the commander’s daughter flinch.

“Then how the hell did you let her escape?”

“One of my subordinates—she does whatever she wants. When I find her—”

“Find them!” Silco ordered. “I want them out of the Lanes.” He glanced at the little girl. “We don’t want any accidents, do we?”

But he had underestimated Jinx’s curiosity and her insatiable appetite for getting into trouble.

And after her little chat with “Chuck,” she knew that her next target would soon be arriving at Silco’s office, which was conveniently empty at the time.

“We lost her,” Sevika growled.

“Who?” Jinx spun around in the chair.

Sevika hesitated—Silco’s best-kept secret was in danger.

Jinx released a cloud of shimmer throughout the room and placed a mask over her face, giving her just enough time to watch Sevika fall unconscious.

She had never liked the woman, and this time, she suspected that she was hiding something really big—something that, one way or another, involved her. Because they hadn’t wanted to tell her anything.

Sevika woke up tied to Silco’s chair.

“You and I got off on the wrong arm,” Jinx grinned. “How about we try the other one?”

She ran a sharp knife over Sevika’s arm, leaving a shallow cut.

“That won’t be necessary,” Sevika said. “It’s your sister. She’s back.”

Jinx staggered back, stunned.

“She’s with an Enforcer. I’m sure that the moment she gets here, you’ll collapse, and Silco will finally realize you’re not even fit to take care of that brat.”

“You’re lying.”

“See for yourself.”

Jinx grabbed the Hextech gemstone from the desk.

If Vi really was back and was with an Enforcer, was their goal to get their hands on that stupid stone?

Isha tugged at her pants to get her attention. Jinx slipped the gemstone into her pocket and knelt down to her level.

She couldn’t let some damn Enforcer get near her daughter—not even if her long-lost sister was with her. She had already had enough trouble with the Firelights.

“Listen to me, little trouble, I need you to stay here,” she told her. “Okay?”

Isha furrowed her brow and shook her head stubbornly, hugging her tight.

Jinx knew there was no way Isha would accept it so easily, but she wouldn’t risk her life.

Enforcers were known for leaving children orphaned… and parents without their children.

And Jinx would never forgive herself if something happened to her.

She pulled her away just enough to meet her gaze again.

“I’ll be back soon, I promise.”

Tucking a few strands of hair behind Isha’s ear, she stepped out of the room.

But just like Silco, Jinx had also underestimated her daughter.

She had underestimated how much Isha hated being away from her mother—
And how easy it was for her to get into trouble.

Vi had told her that as soon as she lit that blue flare and pointed it at the sky, she would find her. If what Sevika had said was true and not just another attempt to mess with her like she always did, then Vi would have to find her.

This time, she really would.

She raised the flare and let out a blue blaze that slowly dissipated into clouds of the same color.

She felt the weight of her past pressing down on her shoulders, the voices of those she had lost screaming behind her. It had been a long time since she had felt that. Isha had kept her too busy, too distracted, too... happy.

—Powder?

Jinx trembled at the sound of Vi's voice.

Was it really her? Was this really happening?

—Vi?

Violet pulled her into a hug.

—Are you real? —Jinx asked.

—Of course I am, Pow-Pow. It’s me. Your sister. I’m real. I’m right here.

—T-Things changed when you left… I changed, more than you could ever imagine.

Beyond how ruthless she had become with her enemies, Jinx immediately thought of Isha and how Vi would take the news. How could she even begin to tell her everything that had happened over the years?

—Whatever happened, we can forget it. We’re together now.

—It’s not that easy to forget…

Isha had managed to reach the platform where her mother was. She had followed her, and Jinx hadn’t even noticed—she had been too distracted in that moment.

She was about to run toward her mother when she saw the strange pink-haired girl hugging her. Who was she? What was she doing with Mom?

She heard someone else approaching and hid behind the stairs that led up to her mother.

—Who is she? —Jinx asked, raising her weapon, not even noticing her daughter's presence.

—Your sister is Jinx?

Caitlyn didn’t flinch at the young woman’s evident hostility.

But Isha did. Even if her mother wasn’t aiming at her directly, the eye of the gun was pointing in her direction.

—So Sevika wasn’t lying. You’re with an Enforcer.

—Powder, I can explain.

—Don’t call me that! —she shouted—. I’m Jinx now. Powder fell into a pit.

Her mother’s eyes seemed wild, almost unhinged. Isha had never seen her like this before.

—You came for that stupid stone, didn’t you? —Jinx asked again.

This time, Mylo stood beside her.

"Of course she did. Did you really think she came back for you after what you did?"

—SHUT UP!

—P-Pow, I don’t know what you’re talking about…

Vi was confused. She couldn’t understand why her sister was acting like this, but she couldn’t abandon her. Not this time.

—You’re a great actress, sister —Jinx growled, aiming the gun at the older girl's face.

Isha didn’t understand what was happening. She didn’t know why her mother was so angry at this person, nor what would happen if she pulled the trigger. She couldn’t yet grasp the meaning of death.

The only thing she knew was that Mom had forbidden her from going near those weapons, and now they were closer than ever.

The air filled with a high-pitched whistle, coming from the pipes. The leader of the Firelights emerged from one of them, soaring on his hoverboard.

Those bastards were back.

They attacked from all directions. Vi and Jinx stood back to back to fight them off, but they were outnumbered.

Jinx started shooting into the air. Her target was the leader. Eliminating him would make everything easier, but it wasn’t as simple as she had thought.

He was fast. Too fast.

Caitlyn fell unconscious, and that’s when Isha started to feel real fear. This wasn’t like one of the many bar fights she had seen before, because this time, Mom was involved.

She tried to get to her, climbing the stairs, but Jinx was too busy to notice her daughter crying in terror in the middle of the crossfire.

One of the Firelights got behind Jinx, and she knocked him to the ground, but he didn’t give up and managed to wound her leg. Blood seeped through her pants. Isha saw her mother was hurt and tried to step out of her hiding place to reach her.

Jinx struck the man again, keeping him down.

Her sharp, vicious gaze suddenly softened when she noticed Isha standing right in front of her, watching everything—her eyes swollen from crying, her face filled with genuine terror.

How the hell had she gotten up here?

The little girl looked at her mother and at her bleeding wound. Jinx could barely breathe. She had never seen her daughter so afraid.

But Jinx wasn’t the only one who noticed the child. The Firelights’ leader had seen her too.

As one of them carried Vi and Caitlyn away, unconscious, another managed to distract Jinx, pulling her attention away from Isha—and away from the barrel of her gun.

Ekko leaped onto his hoverboard and grabbed Isha in his arms, taking her away from Jinx.

When Jinx turned back to where her daughter had been, all she found was empty space. She frantically searched for her. She saw the Firelights taking her sister—and the damn leader taking her child.

Isha desperately tried to get away from him, calling out in incomprehensible sounds, but Ekko never loosened his grip.

He thought she was just as terrified of Jinx as any other child would be.

But the truth was, Isha was only afraid of him—and of never seeing her mother again.

—Isha… —Jinx choked out.

Rage consumed her.

She lunged at them with a strangled scream, but a black smoke bomb exploded right in her face.

And when it cleared, there was nothing.

No Firelights. No Enforcer. No Vi.

No Isha.

—Isha…?

Nothing. No response, not a single sound.

Not even the cries of her daughter fading into the distance.

They had taken her baby.

—SHIT!

Ekko thought he had done the right thing, even if the child in his arms wouldn’t stop struggling and crying, trying to break free.

He couldn’t leave an innocent child at the mercy of Jinx’s madness.

What he didn’t understand was that what Isha desperately wanted was to be back in her mother’s arms.

Isha couldn’t get down from the strange flying machine that soared over a city she had never seen before. She was terrified and distressed.

She was too far from home. Too far from Mom.

How would she find her now?

What Isha didn’t realize was that Jinx would search for her to the ends of the earth if necessary.

Because Mom always found her.

Chapter Text

Before the havoc in the Lanes, before everything went to shit.

Jinx knew she had something to fix, even if Silco hadn’t told her to do it. Sooner or later, she would realize she desperately needed to communicate with Isha, because the girl would grow up, and there would be no way to soothe her with just her presence.

She had to fix it.

Because she was her mother, and that was her job.

But… honestly, she had no idea where to start. How was she supposed to do it overnight and all by herself?

There were times when she felt cornered, and looking at Isha only brought her more pain.

Silco had noticed. He saw how Jinx racked her brain trying to understand motherhood, trying to understand Isha.

He had gotten where he was by being brilliant and distrustful—especially of his own people. Chembarons had never been trustworthy, and he knew that well.

No one in the Lanes was an idiot, and Silco was smart enough to understand that merely listening to enemy plans was no longer enough—he had to see them, too.

And the day he intercepted a plan against him, spoken in sign language, he knew he had made the right decision.

Betrayal became unthinkable after that because Silco made sure all his most trusted people learned to interpret gestures more than words. He didn’t need ears everywhere as long as he had eyes.

"What’s this?"

Jinx examined the book with a raised eyebrow. It was worn and looked decades old.

"Sign language. Memorize it," Silco ordered.

The young woman frowned at him as he left the room, then carelessly sank into the couch to flip through the book. Some pages were too faded to read, but others showed scribbles with words and drawn hands, letters and phrases, movements and gestures—it was an entirely new world for Jinx.

She turned the book upside down, studying it from every angle as she tried to make sense of it. It wouldn’t be hard—Jinx was brilliant. But like everything else, the beginning would always be the hardest part.

She threw her head back, placing the book over her face, and let out a loud groan, exhausted.

She felt Isha’s tiny hands climbing onto her, the girl scrambling up her chest, her knees digging into Jinx’s ribs. Jinx winced in pain but said nothing—she was used to it. Isha placed both hands on Jinx’s cheeks to get her attention.

Jinx removed the book from her face and looked at her daughter, who seemed worried, as if checking whether she was still alive. The girl squeezed her cheeks and frowned.

Jinx raised her eyebrows.

She really wished she knew what her daughter was trying to tell her—what she was thinking, what silent words she was holding inside.

She sat Isha on her lap, resting her against her chest and wrapping her in her arms.

"The boss left this for you," she said, opening the book in front of her. "For both of us. With this, you’ll be able to tell me everything you want, absolutely everything." She ruffled Isha’s hair. "You know? I’ll be able to understand you."

Isha looked at the book with a wrinkled nose, then back at her mother.

"Don’t worry, shorty. I’m sure it won’t be that hard."

And they read it together all night.

Jinx read each word aloud while demonstrating the signs so Isha could repeat them.

Her priority was teaching her the basics first—so Isha could tell her when she was hungry, or sleepy, or if something hurt.

Isha was still very young, but she was brilliant—just as brilliant as her mother—and she was hungry for knowledge. But her bedtime had already passed long ago, and Jinx noticed when the girl started forcing her eyes to stay open.

"Just one more page, okay? Deal?"

Isha nodded.

Jinx felt her heart tighten as she turned the page.

It was a section specifically for family members. Many of the words were covered in scribbles and ink stains—the word brother was completely unreadable. Jinx figured Silco had never thought he’d need to learn it.

Then she reached that sign, and she swallowed hard.

"Mom…" she read, her voice trembling.

Isha tilted her head, looking at the drawing in the book, then turned her insistent gaze to Jinx.

"Yeah, kid. That’s me."

Isha looked back at the page and mimicked the sign—her hand stretched out, thumb touching her chin.

But Jinx crumbled when the girl pointed at her and repeated the gesture. A sharp pain stung in her chest.

That was her voice calling her insistently in the silence of the room.

That was the voice telling her she was her mother.

Jinx sighed, closing the book.

"That’s enough for today, little trouble. Time to sleep."

Isha curled up against her chest. Jinx tried to move, but she didn’t want to wake her up again.

She looked at her peaceful expression. She wanted to hold on to the tranquility now drawn on her face—wanted to treasure it forever.

When Isha came into the world, Jinx had been so afraid—afraid of hurting her, of her getting hurt, of not being enough, of not loving her enough, or of loving her too much.

But none of that mattered anymore.

From the moment the girl had called her that, Jinx felt her love for her overflow, flooding everything around her—flooding every inch of the room, leaving no space for anything else. Not for fear, not for the hallucinations that screamed at her less and less.

She wanted to do everything for her—to give her the life she never had. Now more than ever.

"I’m going to do whatever it takes to make sure no one ever hurts you."

Jinx cradled Isha in her arms and held her tight.

Maybe, just for tonight, they could sleep right there.

"What were you doing with Jinx?"

Vi was handcuffed with her hands behind her back while Ekko looked down at her. She seemed genuinely stunned to see that behind the owl mask, it was him.

"Her name is Powder" she replied. "I had just found her when you and your thugs showed up."

Ekko gritted his teeth.

"Are you working for Silco?"

"Go to hell" Violet spat. "It’s me, idiot. Vi. The one who pulled you out of the trash and washed you when you were covered in grease."

"How am I supposed to trust you? You suddenly show up, after I believed you dead for years, with a piltie and parade her around the Lanes."

"Were you spying on us?"

"I needed to know if I could trust you or not."

"And for that, you just decided to attack us outright?"

"Ha! I wonder where I learned that from."

"Well, you didn’t learn very well. You still hit like a kid."

"And you still block with your face!"

Vi lowered her gaze, freed herself from the cuffs, and launched herself at Ekko, hugging him.

"I missed you, little man."

Ekko returned the hug, tears in his eyes.

He had missed her too.

He led Vi outside, where a massive tree stood at the center of the sanctuary. Violet was fascinated—it was incredible what the young man had achieved during the years she had been in prison.

"When Vander died, Silco flooded the Lanes with shimmer. We took refuge here, gave people hope."

"I should have been here…"

"You would have lost your mind."

Vi remained silent for several seconds.

"I have to find her."

Ekko stopped her before she could leave.

"Powder is gone, Vi. Only Jinx remains now, and she’s with Silco."

"No! She’s still in there, I can…"

"No, you can’t."

Isha’s cries caught both their attention. The little girl was on the ground, struggling against the grip of a Firelight girl. Neither Vi nor Ekko paid her much attention—Violet hadn’t even noticed her when rescuing her, and Ekko assumed it was normal for her to be scared. Neither of them really connected her to Jinx.

"Jinx does this…" Ekko commented, looking at the mural beside them, filled with drawings of those they had lost. "She kills innocents for fun. She’s with Silco by choice, not by force."

Vi clenched her fists.

"No, she’s not like that. I know my sister."

"You saw it in the attack, Vi… she changed. And she’s not coming back. Not anymore."

She couldn’t believe it—she couldn’t believe that her small, innocent sister was the monster they claimed she was, the monster she had seen shooting Firelights indiscriminately on that platform.

"Release Caitlyn."

"The piltie? Are you serious?"

"We can trust her" Vi assured.

Ekko snorted, wrinkling his nose, and signaled one of his companions to bring her from the small prison.

"I’ll help you send her up. That’s it."

The Firelight brought Caitlyn over. The young woman had stopped struggling as soon as she saw the outside world and the majestic tree towering before her.

"It’s beautiful…"

"If it were up to your people, it’d be in ashes. You hunt us like animals, and Silco pays you to do it."

"It’s a misunderstanding…" Caitlyn tried to explain.

"A misunderstanding?" Ekko looked truly offended. "Then what is this?"

He pulled the gem from his pocket. Vi looked confused, but Caitlyn was alarmed.

"What is that?" Vi asked.

Caitlyn sighed.

"With that gem, anyone could build Hextech devices… in the wrong hands, it could be very dangerous."

Ekko studied her carefully.

"We could use it to defeat Silco."

"That’s not the solution. If you do that, the violence will never end" Caitlyn objected. "Let me take the gem to the council. I have a friend there who could help me—help all of us."

Ekko remained silent. The young woman’s words seemed honest, but his resentment toward the world above was far greater. He had grown up learning to distrust everyone—except himself and his closest allies.

"Ekko, we have a situation."

Scar approached him, pulling him away from the girls.

"It’s the kid you brought from the attack. Something’s wrong with her—no one’s been able to calm her down."

Ekko clicked his tongue and turned back to Vi and Caitlyn.

"I’ll let you take the gem, but if you dare betray me…"

"She won’t" Vi assured.

Reluctantly, Ekko handed over the gem, and the two women left, guided by another Firelight.

Ekko followed Scar to where Isha was.

The sanctuary had a designated space for caring for orphaned children, with people dedicated to providing comfort and support to help them process their trauma.

Isha was there, crying in a corner—completely inconsolable and terrified. She wouldn’t let anyone near her.

The young Firelight who had been trying to console her approached Ekko with an exhausted expression.

"She’s been like this since you left her here" she said.

"I thought you’d be able to calm her down. You’ve done it with all the others."

The girl huffed, offended.

"But she’s different. She doesn’t want to be with anyone, and we don’t even know if she’s hurt or hungry—she just keeps crying."

"She’s small, but not that small" Ekko observed. "She must be able to say a word or two."

"No, she hasn’t said a thing" the young woman replied, frowning. "She just cries. Though, I suppose it’s understandable after seeing Jinx do what she does best…"

Ekko swallowed hard, approaching Isha and crouching to her level.

Isha tried to back away but couldn’t—she was completely cornered. Her glassy amber eyes locked onto Ekko’s, silently pleading for a way out.

The boy tilted his head. Something about her seemed familiar. But the truth was, it had been over a year and a half since he had last seen her. Zaun wasn’t that small, and unfortunately, many children had been rescued since then. If he had seen her before, that memory was buried deep in his mind.

"It’s okay, kid" he said. "You’re safe now."

Isha frowned when Ekko tried to reach out to her.

She was terrified—of course, she didn’t feel safe. Isha would never feel safe in an unfamiliar place, especially if her mom wasn’t nearby.

Mom wasn’t…

Isha’s lips trembled, her heart breaking all over again.

"No, no, no, wait."

And she started crying again.

"Shit."

Ekko tried to calm her, only to realize his companions had abandoned him to deal with her alone.

"Does something hurt?" He tried reaching for her again, but the girl let out a sharp cry, making him pull his hand back. "Are you hungry? Thirsty? Cold?"

Nothing. No answer. Just a terrified gaze and bitter tears.

"If you tell me what you want, I’ll do whatever it takes to bring it to you, I promise" he pleaded, "but please stop crying."  

Isha frowned, her lips trembling, and lifted her hand from her chest to stretch it out in front of her face, placing her thumb under her chin.  

She stared at the boy insistently, hoping he would understand, but Ekko didn’t. In fact, it didn’t even cross his mind that she was asking to see her mother that way.  

Seeing no reaction from him, Isha gave up. She was upset, very upset. Only Mom could understand her.  

Only Mom could calm her at that moment. She really wanted to go back to her side.  

Isha’s stomach let out a loud growl, making her cry even harder. The last meal she had was before she had gone after Jinx, and that had been almost a full day ago.  

"Come on, kid, I’ll take you to eat something, okay? " 

He took her by the wrist, but Isha’s distrust was stronger. Noticing she couldn’t break free from Ekko’s grip, she bit his hand to make him let go.  

Ekko let out a strangled cry. She didn’t have many teeth, but she had managed to wound him before running away.  

"Was she raised by wolves or something?" he grumbled and ran after her.  

Isha bolted toward the tree, momentarily overwhelmed by the brightness outside, the colors around her, and the strange people flying in those machines that had taken her far from her mother.  

She looked around desperately, searching for an exit, but there was none.  

A small explosion sounded next to her, something like a balloon popping. Isha crouched on the ground, covering her ears.  

Tear-filled eyes lifted until they landed on the mural painted in front of her. Her gaze locked onto Powder’s eyes—the girl drawn there looked exactly like her mother, with the same indigo eyes and blue hair.  

Isha tried to climb onto the platform, desperate to reach her, to hold on to the only thing nearby that gave her the comfort of her mother.  

But just as she was about to make it onto the stage, she slipped—falling straight into Ekko’s arms.  

"You’re really fast for someone with such short legs." 

Isha tried to escape again, but Ekko grabbed her by the fabric of her clothes.  

"Relax, little whirlwind, you don’t have to run from anyone here. We won’t hurt you."

Isha pointed at the Powder in the mural and then looked back at Ekko, making the same sign she had done before—the one she kept insisting on, over and over:  

Mom.  

Ekko tilted his head, still not understanding. But his desire to calm her down was stronger than his confusion. He grabbed one of the stuffed toys from the stage and offered it to her: a small plush bunny with blue patches.  

"Would you take care of him for me?" he asked in the gentlest voice he could manage. "I think he’s really lonely up there. Maybe you can keep him company."  

Isha pulled her hands away from her chest and snatched the toy from him. It reminded her a little of the one Mom had given her.  

"You’re not going to bite me again… are you?"  

Isha looked down at the ground. She didn’t usually act like this, not even with Sevika.  

Then again, Sevika knew exactly how far she could push the child before Jinx put a bullet in her arm.  

The little girl felt slightly ashamed. Now that she thought about it, he didn’t seem like a bad person.  

Ekko lifted her into his arms and carried her to the dining hall. It was a small, rustic room with a long wooden table at the center, where more children sat, laughing and joking with each other while they ate.  

The boy set her down on one of the chairs. Isha was stunned—she had never seen so many children before. They never entered the bar, and she never left home.  

Ekko placed a plate in front of her with small-cut vegetables.  

"Can you eat something?" he asked, crouching beside her.  

The children around them leaned in, peeking over Ekko’s shoulder to look at her with curiosity.  

"Can’t she eat by herself?" one of them asked.  

"Why is she still crying?" asked another.  

"Let her adjust. It’s normal for her to be scared" Ekko replied.  

Isha clutched the stuffed bunny tightly. She was starving, but she was used to eating with Mom—not sitting at a table, usually on the bed or at Silco’s desk.  

She lifted her gaze and caught sight of a head of blue hair in the distance. She jumped down from the chair and ran after it, straight into the kitchen.  

She wrapped her arms around the young woman, dropping the plush bunny to the floor. But when the woman looked at her, Isha stepped back. It wasn’t even blue hair—just a piece of fabric tied around her neck.  

It wasn’t Mom.  

"What’s wrong, sweetheart?" the woman asked. "Are you okay?"  

No. She wasn’t okay because Mom wasn’t anywhere.  

She ran out of the dining hall, and by the time Ekko went looking for her, she was gone.  

The boy searched the entire sanctuary, up and down, without finding her. He was starting to worry when he saw a pair of small shoes sticking out from a hidden nook between the tree roots.  

"You’re good at hiding, huh?" he said, peeking in. But Isha ignored him, curling up and hugging her knees.  

Ekko knew he couldn’t pull her out by force—she was already scared enough.  

He picked up the plush bunny and shook it at the entrance of her hiding spot.  

"Come on, kid" he said, "he’s starving too."  

Isha crawled out and took the stuffed toy, walking back to the dining hall with one hand clutching Ekko’s pant leg.

The Firelights children used to sleep together in a shared room. Ekko led Isha there, where the other kids were jumping from one bed to another, hitting each other with pillows and letting themselves fall onto the mattresses.  

Isha was too scared to see it as something fun. She tugged at Ekko’s clothes, pointing at the door they had entered through.  

"This is where you’ll sleep" he told her, crouching to her level. "There are other kids, and there are always adults nearby taking care of them. There’s nothing to worry about, you’ll be able to sleep peacefully."  

Isha shook her head furiously, but there was nothing more Ekko could do for her.  

The problem was that Isha wasn’t used to sleeping alone. Even when she had to because Jinx was out on a job, Isha knew that Mom would come back—inevitably. At some point during the night, she would feel her warmth surrounding her.  

Because that’s what Jinx did once she lay down beside Isha—she held her tightly until she fell asleep.  

That night, Isha woke up crying when she realized that Mom wasn’t coming this time to cradle her against her chest.  

The caretaker on duty tried to calm her down so the others could sleep, but it was impossible.  

She asked one of the kids to run and fetch Ekko. The boy arrived in a flash, finding Isha sitting on the bed, clutching the stuffed rabbit and sobbing inconsolably.  

"You should take her out of here" the woman suggested. "Let her distract herself for a bit. The darkness and loneliness won’t do her any good."  

Isha lifted her hands toward Ekko. The boy swallowed hard.  

Her eyes had pierced straight into his soul, sending a chill through him, as if the world might crumble around him if she kept crying—if he didn’t take her into his arms and try to comfort her.  

What the hell was that supposed to mean?  

"I guess it’s still too soon for her to sleep alone" he said as Isha wrapped herself around him, sobbing into the crook of his neck. "I don’t understand…"  

"She misses her. She misses her mother" the woman replied. "Like any child would. It’s the same with all of them at first. She seems extremely attached, so give her time. She’s too young to understand why her mother isn’t here."  

Ekko tightened his grip. He trembled at the mere thought that this little girl’s mother might be dead—killed by Silco, the chembarons, or even Jinx herself.  

One more reason not to forgive her.  

He carried Isha out of the room, taking her to a small space nestled between the thickest branches of the tree, just large enough for him to lie down.  

He let Isha fall asleep on top of him, her brow still furrowed, tears still clinging to her lashes.  

Isha still needed to be pressed against her mother’s chest, to feel her embrace and her warmth. And that was something Ekko couldn’t quite understand.  

"Don’t worry… we’ll find your parents. They must be very worried about you."  

Oh… she certainly were.  

Because another thing Ekko didn’t quite understand was that, twisted and chaotic as Jinx was, she loved her daughter madly and would burn the entire city down to get her back.  

And… he was as good as dead if he stood in her way.  

Because Jinx had spent the most agonizing hours of her life without the faintest clue where Isha was.  

The only thing she knew was that she would be searching everywhere for her—because Isha couldn’t stand being away from Mom.  

And Jinx couldn’t stand being away from her.

Chapter Text

How the hell had everything ended up like this?

How the hell was she now returning to her empty room with a damn wound on her leg and without her daughter?

She threw the gun onto the worktable as drops of blood stained the floor red.

"You lost her."

"I didn't lose her! They took her!" Jinx roared.

She grabbed an industrial stapler and pressed it against her skin, sealing the wound with pieces of steel.

"I knew you wouldn't be good enough!"

"Shut up! Vi was there too! With an Enforcer!"

Mylo was wearing down her patience. She pressed another staple into her skin, letting out a scream.

"Now they have both of them, and it's all your fault."

"It wasn't my fault!" she growled. "Those stupid Firelights and that damn Enforcer, they ruined everything!"

"She wasn’t dead. Silco lied to you."

"He lied…"

Ever since she had learned of Vi’s return, Jinx had been more distant with Silco, trying to ignore how much he had lied to her and everything he had kept from her.

That, of course, was until the situation overwhelmed her, and she ended up wrapping Isha in her claws.

Silco was in his office, trying to inject Shimmer into his own eye, but he had lost practice. He needed Jinx more than he liked to admit.

"Let me help you with that. You might hurt yourself."

Jinx snatched the device from him, straddling him and gripping his face.

"Where have you been, Jinx?"

"Oh, you know! Here and there… chasing the dead," she growled. "And you know what? They weren’t so dead after all!"

"Marcus didn’t tell me anything. I didn’t know she was in Stillwater."

Jinx drove the syringe into his cheek, eliciting a cry of pain from the man.

"But you found out she was back and didn’t say anything. You lied to me!" She dug her nails into his skin. "And now, because of you, they took Isha too!"

"What?!"

Silco’s eyes widened, stunned, as he pushed Jinx away from him.

"What the hell are you talking about? How the fuck did this happen?"

He looked distressed, shaken, and angry. Some heads would roll that night.

"Those idiot Firelights!" Jinx spat, throwing the syringe device to the floor. "I don’t know how she managed… to follow me. They took her in the middle of the crossfire. I couldn’t even track them!"

Jinx collapsed onto the floor, leaning her back against the desk leg and hugging her knees.

"I spent hours looking for her, but those bastards just vanished."

Silco walked around the desk, glancing at the young woman’s wound and the way she tried to hide the tremble in her hands.

"What if she needs something?" Jinx murmured, heartbroken. "They won’t understand her."

Saying it out loud only made the horror claw up her throat. Isha was helpless, wherever she was. Her little girl was defenseless without her protection.

She felt anxiety scratching at her chest, and suddenly, she couldn’t breathe.

"What if…?" she sobbed, her voice strangled. "She can’t… She can’t…"

That idiot Mylo sat in front of Jinx, looking at her with empty eyes.

"She can’t even talk. Ha!"

"Shut up…"

But, as always, he didn’t. He kept mocking her.

That little piece of shit, even after death, still sneering in her face, and the only thing she could do was cover her ears with her hands.

"They won’t be able to tell that Isha needs her mommy."

"Don’t you dare say her name!"

"You’ll never see her again. They’ll do horrible things to her. You deserve this!"

"SHUT UP!"

Silco knelt in front of her, pulling her hands away from her ears.

"Don’t let fear control you, girl," he murmured. "We’re going to get her back."

Jinx threw herself at him, clutching onto his chest—she couldn’t take it anymore. She hated looking weak in front of Silco, but he was the only emotional support she had left.

The day after that—after Isha’s abduction—news had reached Ekko and Silco’s ears: the Enforcers had organized a raid on the bridge leading to Piltover. Their target? Recover the Hextech crystal now in Vi and Caitlyn’s possession.

Silco had ordered Jinx to retrieve it before the Enforcers could, but Ekko had a similar plan: to warn Violet before they arrived because he knew well that Caitlyn was already an easy target for Marcus and that they wouldn’t hesitate to go after an ex-convict like Vi.

And that night, their encounter was inevitable.

Because for Jinx, the gem meant a chance to finish the weapon that would help her bring Isha back. And for Ekko, the gem meant nothing but destruction.

Jinx sat atop a construction site, watching from afar as Vi and Caitlyn said their goodbyes. She smirked at the thought that, by crossing that bridge, that damn Enforcer rat would walk straight into her own downfall.

She moved the spyglass lens across the bridge. She searched every corner.

But she found nothing.

"She’s nowhere to be seen."

"No, I already know that, you idiot."

Jinx knew the Firelights would be there, because Vi was with them, because they were all in this together, because even her own sister had betrayed her.

"She should be with them… where is she?"

"They already got rid of her."

"Shut up! She's alive."

She has to be.

A gunshot rang out below—Jinx saw Marcus aiming straight at the Enforcer’s nose.

But Marcus having the gem would only make things harder.

She mixed her firelight bombs with the fireflies that flooded the bridge and made them explode.

Vi managed to shield Caitlyn from the blast, but the Enforcer had been injured, watching as Marcus fled the scene with a piece of metal embedded in his arm.

Violet looked around when she heard a familiar song being hummed by the shadow of her sister emerging through the mist.

"Dear friend across the river…"

Her cold gaze landed on the dead, as if they were nothing more than empty bodies.

She grabbed the cylinder containing the gem, coming face to face with her sister.

Her mind told her that Caitlyn, just like all the Enforcers, wanted to hurt her. That she had been part of the Firelights’ sinister plan to take her daughter away, and now her sister was on their side.

She growled, furious, and raised her weapon at them, unleashing a storm of pink bullets.

Vi managed to throw Caitlyn to the other end of the bridge to keep her from getting hurt, just as Ekko came charging at Jinx from behind.

That damn hoverboard, that weapon—was he… the leader of the Firelights?

Impossible.

Ekko managed to snatch the cylinder with the gem only to throw it back to Caitlyn, tilting his head with a stern look, signaling for them to get out of there.

Vi gave her sister one last glance before leaving, turning her back on her.

Jinx stared at Ekko.

So he had not only decided to take the opposite side, but he had also taken her daughter. Had he planned this from the very beginning just to make her pay for her crimes?

But using an innocent child?

"Look who it is! The Boy Savior!"

Jinx spat, venomous.

Ekko smiled.

Was he seriously challenging her? After taking her daughter? Could he be any more cynical?

Jinx shook her head with an incredulous smile and readied her weapon.

Ekko lunged at her as she fired.

The boy managed to knock her to the ground in one swift blow, pinning her down. He was caught in her blue eyes, which seemed to plead for something her lips would never say—especially not to a Firelight, not to someone who was just another among the many who had abandoned her.

Something she would never do to Isha.

Even if it cost her life, she would fight until the end to prove to Isha that she would never abandon her.

Jinx just wanted to get her baby back, but Ekko didn’t know that.

Because to Ekko, Jinx was nothing more than a twisted, sadistic criminal. But when he saw her beneath him, staring up at him with Powder’s huge, pleading eyes, something inside him connected to her… and to Isha.

That look… that same look, in a different color and with more tears in it—he had seen it before, in that little girl sheltered in the sanctuary.

But it was impossible. Impossible in every sense.

He backed away, pulling himself off Jinx, and flew off on his hoverboard.

Jinx got up as best as she could and started shooting at him, but she couldn’t stop him.

Once again, the chance to get Isha back had slipped right through her fingers.

She let out an agonized scream into the air.

The following days were not easy for anyone at The Last Drop. Jinx let her negative emotions overflow, growing more violent and unstable, always taking it out on whoever crossed her path—especially Sevika.

And that was because the woman had dared to suggest stopping the search for the girl after the first week without her.

"She was just a distraction," she had said. "Maybe this is for the best, for everyone."

Jinx shot her in the leg after that, and Sevika should have thanked Janna that it wasn’t in the head.

The hallucinations had also become more persistent. Her brothers tormented her, over and over again. They wouldn’t even let her sleep—not that she tried much anyway.

She spent days and nights searching for the Firelights’ hideout, the one where they surely had Isha.

And, while the girl was indeed safe, Jinx had other thoughts running through her mind.

The Firelights were her sworn enemies. She had sent more than one of them to their death, and she was sure they wouldn’t spare Isha just because she was a child. They would do anything to make Jinx suffer.

Jinx was convinced they knew Isha was her daughter, and that… had sealed Isha’s fate forever.

"She’s probably not even alive anymore."

Jinx had started getting used to Mylo’s voice hissing in her ear.

But even though she acted deaf to him, the truth was she couldn’t stand it.

She couldn’t stand the thought of Isha suffering, of something terrible happening to her.

Of her being…

She shook her head, trying to drive the thought away.

She deserved it. She knew she did. Because Jinx had done the same to them, because she had taken from more than one of them the people they loved most.

But… her daughter wasn’t to blame for that.

She didn’t… she didn’t even know what her mother was capable of.

Isha only wanted to go back to her mama, because to Isha, Jinx was everything.

And to Jinx, without Isha, she was nothing.

Mylo and Claggor’s voices had grown much crueler, narrating possible fates for her daughter—possible and terrible ones.

The room was riddled with bullet holes from all the times she had tried to shut them up, but they never left. They stayed there with her.

Jinx was agonizing.

She didn’t know if Isha was okay, if she was cold or hungry, or if she was as scared as Jinx knew she must be. Because Isha didn’t know the world beyond the walls of the bar, she didn’t know anyone else—she was a child who only knew the world her mother had shown her, and now her mother wasn’t there.

At first, Jinx thought she didn’t have a maternal instinct, and now she hated having one, because that was what wouldn’t let her live. That was what flipped the switch in her brain, drowning her in fear and filling her head with doubts.

How the hell were those stupid Firelights supposed to know what she needed?

It was driving her insane. Even more insane.

Silco wasn’t at ease either. His men had searched every corner of Zaun without finding anything, and he was losing patience.

More than once, he had kicked them out of his office after hearing the same damn thing as before:

"Not a trace of the brat."

"Keep looking, you animals!" he would yell before slamming the door in their faces.

Silco’s men scouring Zaun had put everyone in the Lanes on edge, especially after the incident on the bridge. They feared another war was looming, and that Piltover was ready for it.

"It’s a terrible idea," Sevika objected.

"It’s the only one we have."

Silco shifted his attention to Jinx.

"Sending an entire shipment of Shimmer as bait?"

Jinx nodded.

"They’ll have to come after us, and then…"

And then they could take a hostage who would lead them to the hideout.

Jinx hated taking hostages. She never left anyone alive. But as the days passed, she was desperate.

In the end, the Firelights fell.

They tried to stop a plan that had been designed to be stopped from the very beginning.

Jinx left four of them alive. She picked one at random and forced the other three to their knees in front of him.

"You’re going to take me to your stupid hideout," she ordered, pressing the gun barrel against his temple.

"I’d rather die."

"I can arrange that."

And without even looking, she shot one of the other three survivors.

The Firelight bit his tongue, and Jinx pressed the gun against his nose again.

"Two left, and I have very little patience," she threatened. "You’re going to take me to your hideout, or I’ll keep doing this until there’s not a single one of you left."

Jinx sent Sevika back to Silco once the Firelight agreed.

She didn’t want anyone getting in the way.

She was more than capable of getting her daughter back on her own.

After walking behind them for a while, the gun breathing down their ears, they arrived at a system of enormous ducts that led to the refuge.

How had she never noticed them before?

She saw a light at the end of the dark corridor. They had arrived.

The three Firelights tried to attack her, but Jinx was faster, and they ended up dead at her feet.

She wasn’t planning on leaving them alive anyway.

She kept moving through the duct, her metallic footsteps echoing.

Announcing with her gloomy voice the humming of the fate that awaited those hiding on the other side.

"Dear friend across the river, my hands are cold and bare..."

As soon as the Firelights heard her entering, they rushed to attack her, while many others focused on protecting the most vulnerable.

Jinx had a cold, sinister gaze. She didn’t even need to look in every direction she was being attacked from—her reflexes had prepared her for this.

She was enjoying it. More than she had imagined. She delighted in watching them fall like insects.

Like the damn insects who had taken her daughter.

The children's caretakers gathered the whole group to lead them somewhere safe, away from the gunfire. Isha was among them.

But chaos was inevitable—it was what Jinx did, after all—and soon the Firelights' shouts warned that they were in danger.

"Move! Move!"

The shots rang out fast, light, without a single pause.

Jinx didn’t even flinch. She didn’t care where she had to shoot; she just had to take them down, one by one.

"Shit, it’s Jinx!" shouted a Firelight from the other side of the corridor.

Isha froze.

Was it Mom? Had she come for her?

As best she could, she broke free from the young woman holding her hand and ran straight into the eye of the storm.

Then she saw her.

That was her mother. Shooting mercilessly at those attacking her.

The same Firelight girl managed to intercept her before she could reach Jinx. Isha, desperate to run into the arms of the mother she hadn’t seen in weeks, began to cry, begging to be let go.

Jinx, hearing the unmistakable sound of her daughter’s crying, turned her attention toward them—along with the barrel of her gun.

It was her. It was really her. Isha was alive and being held by one of them.

"Get away from her!" she growled, but the young woman didn’t move. Jinx fired a shot next to her face, grazing her cheek with the bullet.

"I SAID GET AWAY FROM HER!"

She was ready to fire again when she saw Isha’s expression. The girl had crouched on the ground, covering her ears.

It was just like last time.

Shit... How had she overlooked that?

Since that incident—when she had lost her voice—Isha couldn’t stand loud noises.

That’s why Jinx had always kept the explosions away from her. She had realized her daughter’s phobia when, after one of her many outbursts, the bomb she threw into the void made Isha hide under the bed and refuse to come out until Jinx crawled under there with her.

Gunfire didn’t bother her as much, unless it was too close. On that platform, when they took her, the girl had been so focused on getting back to her mother that her phobia had taken a back seat.

But this time, the bullet had passed right by her.

Jinx lowered her gun, her brow furrowed, her heart shattered.

She felt a direct blow to her jaw and collapsed to the ground, her gun flying from her hand. Ekko lunged at her, pressing his weapon against her throat.

Isha started crying again, trying to run toward Jinx, sobbing and begging them not to hurt her mother.

Ekko glanced at the child for a split second—the exact time Jinx needed to kick him off.

Jinx got to her knees, trying to catch her breath and reach for her gun, when she felt the small arms of Isha clinging to her neck. She had managed to break free from her captor.

The young woman felt her daughter's sobs dampening her skin and breathed again. She took in her scent—that unmistakable scent of her—and the way Isha had the habit of twisting her tiny fingers into her braids whenever she hugged her like this.

Ekko stood up, and all the Firelights pointed their weapons at the young woman. Jinx pressed Isha against her, hiding her face against her chest and covering her ears.

She raised her gun toward Ekko.

Jinx hated him because he had taken everything she loved in the world. But...

If she hated him so much, then why was her grip trembling as she aimed at his chest?

She glanced at the other Firelights who had her in their sights. If she fired, she’d be done for.

The problem was that now, Isha was also in the line of fire.

The girl pulled away from her grip and tugged at her mother’s arm—the one holding the gun. Jinx looked at her, confused, as Isha pleaded with her eyes not to hurt Ekko.

She had to be kidding... After everything he had put her through?

Jinx stood up, cradling Isha against her chest, keeping the gun pointed at the boy with her free hand.

"Jinx, let her go... don't hurt her," he finally spoke.

Jinx frowned. What the hell was he talking about?

"We don’t want her to get hurt. Stop hiding behind an innocent. She’s just a kid, for fuck’s sake!" Ekko sounded desperate. "Even you aren’t that much of a coward."

"Go to hell."

Ekko tried to take a step forward, but Jinx stepped back.

"Stay back! You won’t take her from me again."

"What the hell are you talking about? Let her go, she could get hurt. She’s just a kid—I won’t let you take her to your fucking horror lair, you have no right to ruin her life!"

"Fuck off."

"Jinx, listen, we’ll let you leave, but let the girl go. Don’t hurt her."

"How the fuck could I ever hurt my own daughter?!" she roared, tightening her grip on Isha. "You were the ones who took her! And I’m the villain here?! Idiot! You kept a child from her mother for over two weeks!"

Ekko froze.

Jinx hadn’t expected him to be surprised. She truly believed they already knew.

But now it didn’t matter. Because all the Firelights had just found out, and they feared for their damn lives.

Ekko finally focused on Isha—the way she clung to Jinx’s chest, desperately gripping her clothes, how she had stopped crying.

She wasn’t even worried about what would happen next. Because as long as she was with Jinx, she feared absolutely nothing.

What the fuck had he done?

Jinx looked at Isha and the peace she was being forced to break.

"Forgive me, little trouble, I know you hate this, but I have to get you out of here."

She pulled a small bomb from the stock of her gun and threw it in front of her, filling everything with pink and blue smoke before vanishing into the ducts without looking back.

Without looking at Ekko, who held his companions back from following her.

She ran as fast as her legs would allow, climbing wherever she could with just one hand, until she felt safe.

She collapsed in a dark alley, sitting behind large wooden crates.

Her breath came in gasps, and the child looked up at her from her chest.

Isha made a few slow signs, getting used to communicating with her mother again.

Her movements were still clumsy, but Jinx understood them perfectly.

"Don’t cry, Mama."

Jinx’s heart shattered in two. She buried her face in her daughter’s neck and kept crying.

Isha had never seen Jinx cry; she couldn’t understand why Mom was so sad when they were finally together again.

The thing was, Jinx had spent so long believing she would never see her again, that she would never hold her in her arms again.

She was relieved to have her daughter back, but she hated the thought that, from now on, everything would always be like this.

"Jinx!"

Silco practically jumped from his chair the moment he saw the young woman enter the office.

It had started to rain, and she was covered by a piece of tarp, completely soaked, her boots puddling water on the floor.

"I was about to send people to look for you, girl. What the hell were you thinking when you sent Sevika back?"

Jinx remained silent. Silco pulled the makeshift cloak off her shoulders, revealing the little girl dozing in her arms, her thumb resting between her lips.

Silco raised his gaze to meet Jinx’s face.

"You did it."

Jinx smirked, rolling her eyes.

Did he really doubt her?

The little girl stirred in her embrace, her sleepy eyes landing on Silco, and to the man's surprise, she stretched her arms toward him, lips pursed.

Silco swallowed hard and tried to step back, but Jinx insisted with a look.

He took Isha by the arms, and the child wasted no time wrapping herself around his neck.

For a moment, little Powder surfaced in his memories. He glanced at Jinx with a frown, leaning against the desk behind him, pretending the child’s affection wasn’t making him nervous.

"How many Firelights did you kill?" Sevika asked.

"Not enough" Jinx growled.

Sevika shook her head with an ironic smile.

"That’s going to be a problem very soon" she said.

"I don’t give a damn."

Isha let out a yawn, forcing Silco to pull her away and hand her back to her mother.

Sevika smirked, though apparently, only she noticed it as Jinx left the office.

The young woman returned to her room with a peculiar feeling in her chest.

For the past few weeks, she had hated coming back to an empty room, a room without Isha. But this time, she finally felt whole again.

Isha clung to her mother’s chest, looking up at her with a frown. Jinx knew exactly what that meant—she had done it since she was a baby. And looking at her like that, curled up, seeking warmth and comfort against her skin, of course, she was still a baby.

Her baby.

Isha had spent nine months in her mother's womb and more than two weeks separated from her; it was evident that the place where she now felt safest was in her arms, feeding from her breast.  

At least just for that night, the first night they were together again.  

Isha clung to Jinx's clothes, seeking comfort, but she couldn't fall asleep.  

Jinx stroked her hair, humming that melody to lull her.  

That damn lullaby their mother used to sing to her and Vi when they were little.

"Dear friend across the river, I'll take what you can spare…"

Isha loved the sound of Mama’s voice.  

She had never heard her hum before, but she liked it. She felt safe with her.  

Inevitably, she ended up falling asleep in her arms.

"I ask of you a penny, my fortune, it will be…"

Jinx looked at her hand.

The Hextech gem glowed with an intense blue.

She had seen her stupid sister’s face—and her dull little girlfriend’s, too. She had managed to pull it from the cylinder before Ekko took it weeks ago, during the bridge explosion.

Violet hadn’t come looking for her since then, and either way, it wouldn’t have been easy for her to get it back.

Jinx had been forced to take it to the Firelights' hideout in case she had to negotiate for her daughter’s life. But it hadn’t been necessary.

She looked at her little one, still clinging to her chest, her fingers curled against her skin, just as when she was only a newborn.

She remained just as helpless, just as in need of her mother's protection.

Just as fragile.

Now, it was official—the rumor would soon spread, and all of Zaun and Piltover would find out sooner or later.

"I ask you without envy, we raise no mighty towers, our homes are built of stone…"

Soon, Vi would know too.

"So come across the river, and find the world below."

Jinx now had one single, powerful weakness.

One that could end up destroying her.

Chapter Text

There was no way he could forget that night on the bridge.

Jinx’s pleading gaze beneath her weapon, the way she seemed to yearn to keep living, even though he assumed she was already dead inside.

What was it that kept her fighting for her life?

When he saw Jinx’s bright blue eyes locked onto him, a shiver ran down his spine.

That moment when that helpless girl had first looked him in the eyes, tears tracing down her amber irises, cut through his memories—the expression, the sensation, the feeling was exactly the same.

That night, he wondered how two gazes that were so physically different could feel so familiar to each other, so connected.

Ekko didn’t understand it back then, but now he did.

"How the fuck could I ever hurt my own daughter?"

He felt a sting in his chest, the same one he had been feeling ever since he heard those words come from Jinx herself.

Did she really have a daughter? Had she really crossed that line?

Worse yet, how was he supposed to feel about it? Because he simply couldn’t begin to understand the emotions now hammering inside his chest.

Remembering the little girl clinging desperately to Jinx’s clothes, ceasing her cries and her fear just by being in her arms, chilled him to the bone.

He knew that if he was still alive, it was only because the child had begged Jinx not to put a bullet through his chest.

He wouldn’t have blamed her if she had.

He had pushed his luck long before he even realized it. Now he understood that it wasn’t the first time he had crossed paths with Isha… and that if, that night in Silco’s office, it had been Jinx who found him with her daughter in his arms, his fate would have been different.

He had fucked up. He had really fucked up.

And now, half of his comrades were dead because of it.

What an idiot.

Nothing around him made sense.

Ekko let himself fall onto the bed, massaging his eyelids.

How had he ended up tangled in something like this?

His gaze shifted to the rabbit Isha had left on the mattress, and he picked it up, smiling bitterly.

They didn’t look alike in the slightest, so how could he blame himself for believing she was just another victim of Jinx’s chaos?

A collateral casualty that had turned him into the collateral damage of her story.

Because he missed her. He really did.

Jinx might be his enemy, but now his perspective on her was changing—because she had changed. Was it possible that Jinx’s very nature had been altered by that tiny being she had carried in her arms as she fled?

No way. It wasn’t that easy to believe. Not after everything he had seen Jinx do.

A murderer… being a mother? He had to see it with his own eyes.

He had to see her again.

He had to find the answers, and there was one in particular that was eating him up inside:

What about the child’s father?

How had Jinx ended up tangled with someone? With who?

Why did that bother him so much?

Well, maybe because the last thing he needed was for the idiot father to show up wanting to rip his guts out, too.

He’d like to see him try.

Whatever it was, he had to do something.

Though, ever since he had seen Jinx again—and especially since he found out she had a daughter—his thoughts had been anything but clear.

So, days later, he tried to enter The Last Drop. Just like he had the last time.

Because, clearly, Ekko never learned from his mistakes.

Or at least, he was ignoring his own common sense just to fully understand what was happening with someone who had once been his best friend.

He moved through the pipes and ventilation ducts, bypassing the bar and even Silco’s office, until he reached Jinx’s room.

It wasn’t late enough for them to be asleep. In fact, they were wide awake, building a fort with sheets, fabric scraps, and frayed cushions.

The fluorescent lights illuminated the smile of a Jinx different from the one he knew. Ekko felt a tingling sensation travel from his stomach to his chest.

He moved a few inches closer to get a better look, but the grate beneath him gave way, and he fell straight to the ground.

Jinx stood up abruptly, pulling Isha behind her.

Her eyes darted toward her gun, resting on the worktable just behind Ekko.

The boy got up, hands raised above his head.

“I’m not here to fight you.”

Jinx eyed him warily, analyzing him carefully. He wasn’t armed.

“Then what the fuck are you here for?”

Ekko glanced at Isha, who was hiding behind Jinx’s legs.

“I’m not sure.”

Jinx raised an incredulous eyebrow.

Ekko crouched to Isha’s level, keeping about two meters of distance from Jinx, and pulled a stuffed rabbit from his jacket pocket—the one the girl had left at the shelter.

Isha’s eyes lit up when she saw it. She tried to run toward him, but Jinx stopped her immediately, keeping her behind her.

“What are you trying to do?” the young woman asked.

Ekko could see the distrust in her expression—he understood it—but he also sensed hostility. Was he really willing to risk his life just to know the truth?

“I’m not trying anything,” he replied. “I just thought she might miss it.”

Jinx raised her eyebrows. Ekko sighed.

“I’m not here to take her away from you. I wouldn’t dare hurt her. I swear.”

For a brief second, Jinx saw her old friend through Ekko’s eyes. That foolish boy who could stand up to any Piltie but wouldn’t hurt a fly.

When she got Isha back, Jinx made sure no one had harmed her, which Isha confirmed, saying that Ekko and the other Firelights were her “friends,” even though she had been scared of them at first and was annoyed that they couldn’t understand her.

But no, they would never have hurt her.

Jinx loosened her grip.

Isha ran to Ekko, snatching the toy from his hands before rushing back to the fort she and her mother had built.

She took the bunny her mom had given her and placed it next to her new one—right at the entrance of the fort.

Jinx frowned slightly, smiling.

Ekko observed Jinx. Her expression had softened, her whole demeanor had changed. It was as if her entire world shifted just by looking at that child.

He cleared his throat.

“I guess I owe you an apology,” he muttered.

Jinx didn’t respond. After all, several Firelights had died that day too.

She wasn’t going to apologize—they had deserved it.

“I didn’t think that you…”

“You didn’t think.” Jinx interrupted. “Maybe that’s your problem, Savior. Now get out.”

Jinx turned to go back to Isha, but Ekko took a step forward, putting her on alert again.

“I never imagined she was your daughter,” he continued. “It’s just… you don’t really look alike, and…”

Bad idea.

Jinx shot him a sharp glare.

“I-I mean…” Ekko tried to backtrack.

“Better not say anything at all.”

Jinx was sure that if she hadn’t shot him in the leg yet, it was because of Isha.

And because her gun was too far out of reach at the moment.

Isha ran to her mom, tugging at her clothes to get her attention, and showed her the new stuffed rabbit. Then, she made a clumsy hand gesture:

“Friends.”

Jinx swallowed hard and knelt down to her level.

“Why don’t you take him inside the fort, shorty? I’ll be there in a second.”

Isha nodded with a smile and hurried back inside the structure next to the bed.

“She looks different when she’s with you,” Ekko noted.

“Yeah, that’s what happens when you kidnap a child under two and take her away from her mother,” Jinx snapped. “She wasn’t even used to leaving this place.”

“She… didn’t go outside?”

“No, idiot. Do you think it’s safe for half of Zaun to find out she exists?”

“I’m sorry, I thought…”

“That u was protecting her?” Jinx mocked. Ekko realized how ridiculous it sounded from her perspective. “She doesn’t need you to protect her. That’s what she has me for.”

Ekko took back the step he had advanced. He looked around but found no trace of the supposed father figure he had imagined all this time.

“She has you and her father, right?” he asked. “I guess he must be the kind of guy Silco would approve of.”

Jinx narrowed her eyes. He was testing her patience.

“Since when do you care who I sleep with?”

“I just want to make sure no one else is coming after me because of this.”

Jinx scoffed, shrugging.

“Don’t worry, little man,” she said. “He stopped being a problem before she was even born.”

“You killed him?” Ekko asked quietly, avoiding the child’s ears.

Jinx raised her eyebrows with an indifferent expression.

Isha ran in and out of the fort, carrying a pile of scrap metal that Jinx had let her use to pretend she was making her own gadgets—just like Mom.

A rusty, pink-painted bolt rolled to Jinx’s feet. She picked it up and handed it back to her daughter with a smile.

Ekko furrowed his brows.

“If he’s dead, then… you’ve been doing all this alone?”

Jinx kept her eyes on Isha.

That was for the best.

“With the life you’ve always led, didn’t you realize the world would be too dangerous for her? Especially your world?”

“I did,” she replied, standing up.

“And you still decided to have her.”

If Jinx could have killed him with a look alone, she would have done it right then and there.

“Don’t try to lecture me on parenting,” she spat.

“I just mean… I never thought you’d be the type to change diapers,” Ekko shot back.

The hostility still lingered in his voice. After all, years of resentment and war couldn’t be erased in just a few days.

“And I never thought you’d be the type to kidnap kids,” Jinx retorted.

After a few moments of silence, she took a deep breath, watching Isha play inside the fort, illuminated by a few colorful lights.

“I did consider it…” she murmured, still watching her. “Not having her. It was the first thing that crossed my mind when I found out I was pregnant, before I even told Silco.”

Ekko turned to her. In that moment, they were no longer sworn enemies—at least for now.

“And then I realized that if I did, there would be no one left in the world who could love me unconditionally, without judging me…” she continued, her voice trembling. “It was a selfish reason, I know… At least, until she was born.”

Ekko turned his gaze back to Isha.

"She was born loving me. She didn’t even know me, and she already loved me, and that’s when I realized just how screwed up I was, and how terrifying life was going to become."  

She took a deep breath. Ekko swallowed, shifting his gaze to the floor.  

"Silco loves Jinx, Vi loves Powder, even you prefer her. Only Isha loves me. She doesn’t care if I’m Jinx or Powder, she loves me because I’m her mother, and that’s all that matters to me."  

""Isha"?" 

Ekko finally realized that in all this time, it was the first time Jinx had said her name.  

"You had her kidnapped for days, and you didn’t even know her name?"  

"It’s not easy to learn sign language, especially in a city forgotten by the world. I did what I could."  

"You wouldn’t have had to if you hadn’t taken her."  

"Don’t blame me for thinking an innocent girl was in mortal danger after seeing her caught in the crossfire."  

"She was trying to get to me, and she would have if not for your stupid teammates."  

"She shouldn’t have been there in the first place. Hell of a job as a mother."  

"Shut up! She followed me, I didn’t know she had, I would never have taken her to a place like that."  

The way their voices rose caught Isha’s attention, and she quickly emerged from her hiding spot, tugging at her mother’s clothes again.  

As soon as Jinx looked down at her, Isha stretched her hands up toward her.  

Jinx cradled her in her arms, avoiding Ekko’s persistent gaze, which held an undeniable curiosity about seeing more of her as this child’s mother.  

At least the hostility between them had eased.  

Isha nuzzled her face against Jinx’s chest, gripping the collar of her shirt. Jinx hesitated, trying to ignore what her insistent daughter was asking for.  

When the child felt her mother’s resistance, she pursed her lips, wrinkling her nose in frustration.  

"Isha, not now" Jinx muttered through clenched teeth.  

But Isha was persistent, and she wasn’t used to being ignored by her mother. So, she started crying uncontrollably.  

Jinx searched for a blanket to cover herself, but they had used all of them to build the fort.  

"Shit…" she growled.  

Ekko cleared his throat, took off his jacket, and held it out to her, looking away.  

"Don’t even think I’m putting that on."  

Ekko twisted his lips into a wry smile. He hadn’t imagined himself in this situation either, much less with her.  

"You could just say you took it off me after giving me the beating of my life for kidnapping your daughter."  

Jinx wrinkled her nose, but she had no other option. Isha wasn’t going to stop, and the longer she waited, the louder her crying became.  

The young woman let out a frustrated grunt and rolled her eyes before nodding.  

Ekko cautiously draped the jacket over her shoulders, fastening it around Isha.  

"She’s manipulative" —Ekko noted as Isha immediately stopped crying once pressed against her mother’s chest.  

"You have no idea" —Jinx scoffed, sitting down and looking at her. "If she asked me to, I’d give her the whole world. No matter how many heads I had to cut off in the process."  

Jinx lifted her gaze to Ekko.  

"If you’re going to kill me, you might as well do it now" she said. "There’s no way I can defend myself, not like this."  

"I couldn’t do that to her."  

"This isn’t going to change anything."  

"Of course not."  

Ekko watched the child’s tiny hand peek out from under the jacket, clutching Jinx’s collar.  

Isha still needed her mother, and those moments of comfort and connection between them, the deep bond they shared, were palpable. And he had stolen them from her for days.  

"My eyes aren’t down there, kid."  

"Shut up" he grumbled, looking up at the ceiling. "I was just thinking about how much damage I could’ve done to her if you hadn’t come for her. I really am sorry."  

"You would have gotten what you always wanted, Savior" Jinx spat. "She would’ve grown up and, one way or another, she would’ve forgotten her mother. But me..." she sighed, "you would’ve killed me."  

There it was. She had said it like it was nothing. Like it couldn’t destroy her.  

It didn’t matter anymore.  

"I’m sorry" Ekko repeated.  

"Just shut the hell up. She could pay the price for your loose tongue, do you understand?"  

Ekko bit his lower lip.  

"About that…" he hesitated. "I heard a rumor that… it’s out" Jinx’s eyes widened as she snapped her gaze to him. "In Piltover."  

"Are you fucking kidding me? Why didn’t you tell me sooner?"  

"I had to make sure I was still alive first."  

"Idiot."  

"Just make sure they don’t hurt her."  

"I don’t need you to tell me that."  

Ekko turned away, glancing at her over his shoulder.  

"She’d be welcome with the Firelights" he said. "If you ever need to hide her from the world above… She’d be safe with us."  

And he left the same way he had fallen in, leaving Jinx with a bitter feeling in her chest.  

Trust them with her daughter’s safety? She couldn’t see that as an option anymore, even though Ekko had offered. Not after everything she had done to get her back, not with how much she still hated them.  

But the truth was, what worried her more was the fact that Piltover had found out about Isha’s existence before anyone else.  

A shiver ran down her spine as she remembered the night her parents died, and what the Enforcers were capable of.  

What those monsters would be willing to do to rid themselves of the threat that Jinx represented to them.  

Unconsciously, she tightened her embrace around Isha. The child let out a small whimper, shifting in her arms.  

Jinx looked down at her, brushing the brown strands of hair from her face.  

"Sleep, little trouble… You’ll be safe tonight. I’ll protect you" she whispered. "We’re in this together, forever."  

The child smiled, her bright eyes gleaming.  

"No monster will get you while I’m here."

For the past few weeks, ever since they had lost the Hextech gem to Jinx, Vi and Caitlyn had been gathering evidence to incriminate Silco for everything that had happened: the damage to the bridge, the reckless release of Shimmer in the Lanes, the deaths of dozens of Enforcers, and many other crimes attributed to him.  

"We can finally present our case to the Council" Caitlyn announced as she entered the room. "Today. If we're lucky, we might make them understand that Silco is behind it all."  

That afternoon, both of them stood before the Council, backed by Caitlyn’s mother, and facing Jayce’s doubts, as he had begun to fear for Piltover’s safety due to his negligence over his own experiments.  

"Councilors, my daughter has a unique perspective on our situation" Cassandra declared.  

Caitlyn nodded in gratitude, stepping forward alongside Violet.  

"I’ve spent time in the Undercity. I’ve seen how the people down there starve, suffer from disease, and are devastated by Shimmer. They live in constant fear of what violent leaders might do to them if they fail to prove their loyalty to Silco."  

"And what does this Silco want from us?" Jayce asked.  

"Independence."  

"But he doesn’t work alone, does he?" the young councilor inquired, placing Jinx’s bomb—the one Silco had handed over to Marcus weeks before—on the table. "Do you know who this belongs to?"  

"It’s Jinx’s" Vi said immediately. "She… she’s the one with the gem."  

"She caused the bridge disaster, the one we’re still cleaning the blood from!" Jayce exclaimed. "There was only one survivor that night. We can’t keep going like this. Jinx is an imminent threat to Piltover."  

"Y-You don’t understand" Vi tried to object, "she’s being manipulated, Silco is the one who—"  

"Silco and Jinx work together."  

Marcus entered the room, his arm still bandaged from the wound he had sustained the night of the explosion.  

"I apologize for the interruption, councilors" he said, "but I believe I have information that may be of interest to you."  

He walked past the two young women, meeting Vi’s sharp glare.  

Clearing his throat, Marcus continued:  

"Jinx is an uncontrollable brat. She’s dangerous and completely insane" he spat. "But like everyone else, she has a lot to lose."  

Vi focused her attention on him.  

"Silco has a weakness, and that weakness is Jinx." Marcus picked up the bomb from the table, examining it closely, severing his ties with Silco once and for all. "And Jinx’s weakness is a little girl she gave birth to nearly two years ago."  

The room fell into complete silence. Vi’s grip on Caitlyn’s hand trembled.  

"W-What…?"  

Violet’s face had gone pale.  

It wasn’t possible—it couldn’t be. Had her sister, her little sister… had a child?  

No.  

She grabbed Marcus by the collar of his shirt.  

You’re lying!" she growled.  

"I would never lie about something that could save us from destruction" he spat. "And though Silco hid it well, there’s not much Jinx can do now to keep that child out of the storm’s path."  

Caitlyn had to pull them apart, leaving Marcus with a smug smirk on his face.  

Violet clicked her tongue and stormed out of the Council chamber.  

Caitlyn hurried after her, grabbing her arm.  

"What are you doing?"  

"I have to find her. I have to know if it’s true."  

"We can’t just leave things like this, we need to—"  

"Cait!" Vi cut her off. "She’s my sister."  

Yes, she was her sister—the one who had been alone through all the hardships of bringing a life into the world.  

She sank to the ground, leaning her back against the wall and clutching her head in both hands.  

"Ever since we were kids, I promised her I would always protect her… that no monster would ever get to her while I was there."  

Caitlyn furrowed her brows, stepping closer.  

"And now a real monster came, and I just ran" Vi spat. "I left her alone on that bridge. I left her at the mercy of the Firelights, of Silco, and now of the Council. She’s out there alone, taking care of a child I… I didn’t even know existed."  

Caitlyn remained silent, kneeling beside her and pulling her into a tight embrace.  

From that moment on, everything would be different.

Now that Piltover knew, it wouldn’t be long before the rumor began spreading in Zaun as well. They had to be much more careful, more distrustful, more ruthless.  

Sevika threw Isha’s caretaker onto the floor in front of Silco’s desk. The man watched her from his chair, while Jinx sat on the desk, one leg dangling over the edge, completely at ease.  

The woman looked up in terror as she heard Jinx playing with the trigger of her gun.  

"It was you, wasn’t it?" Jinx spat, her gaze ice-cold. "The one who leaked the information to that idiot who took her the first time."  

The woman lowered her eyes to the ground. Jinx pressed the gun’s barrel against her temple.  

"Jinx" Silco stopped her.  

The young woman glanced at him before turning her attention back to the caretaker.  

"Poow!" she mimicked a gunshot, waving the weapon and making the woman tremble.  

Sevika rolled her eyes.  

"So, Marcus was behind all of this from the start" Silco growled, "wasn’t he? What did he offer you?"  

"To keep her" she answered. "Once you two ended up in Stillwater, I would get to keep the child."  

Jinx furrowed her brows, shooting her a piercing glare.  

She leaped off the desk and struck her across the face with the butt of her gun, sending her to the floor.  

"From the moment I saw that girl, all I wanted was for her to have something better" the woman muttered from the ground, spitting out the blood that dripped from her mouth.  

Jinx raised her gun again to hit her once more.  

"Back then, that poor baby only knew that her own mother wouldn’t go near her because she couldn’t stand to be around her."  

Jinx froze mid-movement. Her breathing turned erratic as she clenched her teeth.  

It was true that Silco had hired her to care for Isha when Jinx hadn’t even been able to look at her.  

But saying it like that...  

"That poor baby… thought her mother didn’t love her, that she hated her."  

...it sounded just as awful as it had been.  

Jinx tightened her grip around the gun and let out a low growl as she pointed it at her again.  

Silco stood from his chair, crouching in front of the woman.  

"Did you really choose to put your life in the hands of an Enforcer? Are you an idiot? " 

"I did it for that child’s sake" she spat, trying to mask the fear welling up in her eyes, and then looked at Jinx. "She’s not to blame for you being her mother and everything that comes with it."  

“She’s right,” Mylo mocked in her ear.  

"Shut up" Jinx ordered the voice in her head.  

She took a deep breath and let out a scornful chuckle, tapping her chin with the gun’s muzzle.  

"So, you really were stupid enough to think she would end up staying with you" she sneered, crouching in front of the caretaker. "There’s something you’re not understanding here."  

She aimed the gun at her once more.  

"I brought her into this world. Like it or not, I am her mother."  

She cast a sidelong glance at Silco. He nodded, stepping back behind his desk, ignoring the woman’s pleading stare. Jinx forced her to meet her gaze, shoving her face with the gun.  

"And you… are nothing more than a filthy, traitorous rat."  

Sevika had to step back when Jinx fired, avoiding the blood splattering onto her clothes.  

"The Council is requesting a meeting to reach a mutual agreement" Silco announced. "Marcus will represent Piltover."  

Jinx nudged the corpse’s head with the tip of her boot and looked up at Silco with a sinister grin.  

"The idiot outdid himself."  

Silco scoffed with a sour expression.  

"He thinks he’s safe behind those fools on the Council."  

Jinx spun the gun between her fingers before holstering it back into her pants.  

"We’ll have to show him he’s not."

Isha knew that Mama had to leave again because she had come back into the room with that sharp, serious look and had started rummaging through her worktable, gathering a bunch of things Isha didn’t understand the purpose of.

She tugged at Mama’s clothes. When Jinx turned her attention to her, snapping out of her trance, the little girl pointed toward the pillow fort on the other side of the room.

"We won’t be able to play today, little trouble."

Isha pursed her lips in frustration and clung tightly to Jinx’s waist.

The young woman crouched down to her level.

"You’ll be sleeping alone tonight" she said, as gently as possible. "You can do that, right?"

Isha shook her head firmly. She made clumsy gestures:

"I’m coming with you."

Jinx stroked her face.

"Not this time, shorty. And I don’t want you to follow me."

Isha whimpered, lips quivering, staring up at her with glassy eyes as silent tears fell to the floor.

Jinx’s heart broke. She sometimes forgot how much she hated seeing Isha cry genuinely, not just from some occasional tantrum.

And when Isha watched her leave, that was when her tears were the most real.

"Come here" she said. Isha wrapped her arms tightly around her neck. "I’ll be back in the morning, I promise."

And she walked away, leaving a hollow space in her heart.

Marcus had been clear about the terms of the meeting: no weapons, no ambushes, just the Hextech gemstone and a single representative. At sunset, by the direct entrance to Piltover.

Jinx scoffed. Of course, the advantage had to be his.

"Figured Silco wouldn’t have the guts to come on his own."

The truth was, Jinx hadn’t wanted him to.

Marcus had threatened her daughter. Whether he had done it to punish Silco or not, anything that involved Isha affected Jinx directly.

"And what about your little girl, Jinx? It seems your sister is quite eager to meet her."

So now she knew, too.

Shit.

But Vi was on their side—she was with them, with those damn Enforcers. Sooner or later, she would end up putting Isha in danger. Jinx would have to take care of her later.

"Spit it out already. What do you want?" the girl demanded.

"The Council wants the gemstone. I want the Lanes."

Jinx let out an ironic laugh.

"What makes you think the people down here will follow a damn Enforcer rat?"

"The same way they started following Silco—with Shimmer. And now, with Hextech, it’ll be easy to keep them in line."

"You didn’t come to negotiate shit" Jinx realized.

"No, I really didn’t. I just wanted the chance to watch one of you fall to Piltover."

He drew his gun and fired, hitting her right in the side.

Jinx collapsed to her knees, badly wounded, barely able to hold herself up as she pressed against the bleeding wound, trying to stop the hemorrhage.

Marcus stepped closer, lifting her chin.

"Remind Silco that weaknesses can be exploited, will you?" he smirked. "Though I think I’ll do it myself when I see him… to give him the news of your death. And take that little girl from his arms."

Jinx clenched her teeth, struggling to keep air in her lungs.

Isha was the only thing running through her mind at that moment.

Isha, her beloved Isha…

Marcus began searching her clothes for the gemstone, but all he found was one of Jinx’s homemade bombs—now latched onto his uniform.

"Not in this, nor in any of your damn lives, will you touch my daughter," she bellowed, holding him by the collar of his clothes so he wouldn't run away.

And she pulled the safety pin, activating the bomb just a few centimeters from her.

"I’ll be back in the morning, I promise."

Chapter Text

The smoke from the explosion had spread across the entire bridge.  

And there it was: Marcus’s lifeless body, covered in burns that made it clear there was no way he could still be alive.  

But just beneath him… a long blue mane, streaked with soot.  

He knew he shouldn’t have let her go alone.  

"Jinx!"  

Silco ran to scoop her into his arms. Her face was covered in ash and dirt, her side still bleeding, and her skin as cold as a corpse’s.  

But even if faintly, she was still breathing.  

The Hextech gem slipped from her bloodstained fingers.  

Jinx’s furrowed brow clung desperately to the last memory of Isha. Maybe that was the reason she was still alive, fighting with the last breath stuck in her throat.  

Silco’s frantic gaze faltered when Jinx whimpered in pain in his arms.  

"Jinx! JINX!"  

But there was no response. None.  

Her breath seemed to fade into the air along with the man’s sanity.  

—Isha… —Jinx whispered, barely a breath.  

A shiver ran down Silco’s spine.  

And though his legs trembled, he carried Jinx across half of Zaun, searching for someone who could save her life.  

Because he couldn’t lose her. Not ever.  

"You have to save her!"  

Singed turned in place, watching as Silco laid the young girl on an iron slab in the center of the room.  

"Her injuries are severe" —he noted.  

"Do you think I don’t know that?" 

"Sometimes, death is the more merciful option" Singed added. Silco shot him a murderous glare.  "I need to know what you’re prepared for… Could you bear losing her?"

There was no way he would even consider letting her die. He hadn’t with Powder. He wouldn’t with Jinx. Least of all now.  

Because if he couldn’t bear the thought of losing her, then neither could Isha. She would be left devastated, waiting for her, unable to understand why her mother never returned to her side.  

Why one day, she simply decided to leave her behind.  

She still needed Jinx. There was no way she could survive the Lanes alone, even if he took care of her, even if he protected her just as Jinx had asked him to.  

It was impossible.  

"She is not going to die, doctor" he vowed, pressing a kiss to her forehead. "She can endure this."  

She couldn’t die. She couldn’t leave her daughter alone, not when she needed her most.  

"I understand… Then we need to be clear about this. The process will be complicated, so for the sake of your own sanity, I hope you realize you have two options."  

Singed picked up a syringe filled with a peculiar yellow liquid and nodded toward the door.  

"That is the easy way. Or…"  

He raised the syringe to eye level.  

"Do you expect me to leave her here alone?" 

"I expect you to let me do what I can to save her."  

Jinx whimpered in pain before falling unconscious again.  

—Time is everything —Singed insisted.

With the supposed nanny dead, Isha had been left in Sevika’s care.

And she wasn’t happy about it. Sevika was too grumpy and liked to scare her by baring her teeth when she was upset. Plus, she never wanted to play with her. Everything was always so boring.

The little girl had a pile of scrap metal scattered on the floor in front of the couch where Sevika sat. She was supposed to be drawing on the metal pieces, but in reality, she was just scribbling on them with fluorescent colors.

Silco opened the office door, met with Sevika’s exhausted gaze.

Isha’s eyes lit up the moment she saw him. She rushed over, bumping into his legs, peeking behind him, searching everywhere.

She tugged at his pants, looking up at him with wide, curious eyes, making the clearest sign she knew:

"Mama."

Silco felt a knot tighten in his stomach.

Sevika stood up as soon as she noticed his darkened expression. Their eyes met. Now she understood what had happened.

The woman pressed her lips together, a bitter taste in her mouth, her saliva going down her throat like it was laced with thorns.

Isha glanced outside the office again, waiting impatiently for her mom to jump out and surprise her.

But she didn’t.

Silco remained motionless, listening to the small footsteps of the child desperately searching for Jinx.

With no success.

Isha took a step back, still staring outside, and blindly reached for Silco’s hand.

He looked down, meeting Isha’s gaze—one that was beginning to show fear.

He took a deep breath and lifted her into his arms, letting her bury her face in the crook of his neck. He glanced at Sevika, who, surprisingly, also seemed troubled.

"Take care of it" he ordered. "None of this leaves this room until it’s resolved."

He carried Isha back to Jinx’s room, sitting her on the bed with her tiny feet dangling off the edge.

The little girl raised her teary eyes to his composed expression, pursing her lips to keep them from trembling.

"Mama."

She insisted, her eyes shining with hope—a hope that slowly dimmed as she caught the same doubt reflected in Silco’s gaze.

Because how could he explain it? How could he tell her that her mother, the one she had been waiting for, was fighting for her life at that very moment?

A chill ran down his spine. Even he didn’t know if Jinx would make it or not, and that uncertainty was eating him alive.

Isha wouldn’t be able to bear knowing it. He himself barely could.

But being consumed by his own emotions kept him from fully understanding hers.

She couldn’t grasp where her mother was or why she had broken her promise to return at dawn.

Because Mom had promised to come back in the morning. And she never broke her promises.

Isha was so sure of it that she had barely slept through the night. Instead, from the first hour of the day, she had sneaked into Silco’s office (giving Sevika a good scare, as it had taken her hours to find her), just to watch the sunrise through the stained-glass window.

Because surely, Mom would return once everything was bathed in light.

But she didn’t.

Tears welled up in Isha’s eyes at the thought that maybe her mother would never come back for her. That maybe she would never see her again.

Did she not love her anymore?

Silco exhaled sharply, placing his hand on the child’s head.

"She’ll be back. Don’t worry."

Even though he knew he couldn’t promise that, a big part of him clung to the belief that she would. Sooner or later.

Isha was too young to comprehend what was happening. The circumstances were beyond her understanding.

She just wanted her mother. Her whole world revolved around that. Just her and Mom, and nothing else.

Isha sniffled, rubbing her nose, unable to look at Silco again.

An uncomfortable weight crept up his spine. He cleared his throat and, having no clue how to ease her crying, took a step back, ready to leave and return to Singed.

But Isha jumped off the bed, clinging to his sleeve with a deep frown.

"Stay."

Silco raised an eyebrow.

"I can’t. You know how to be alone. It’s not the first time. Your mother will be back soon."

The little girl shook her head, rubbing her tears into the edge of his coat.

"Kid, I have other matters to handle right now."

Isha lifted her hands toward him, opening and closing her fingers, asking to be carried.

Silco looked around, feigning ignorance, but Isha pursed her lips, her brows furrowing as fresh tears pooled in her eyes.

Jinx made this seem so easy.

"If I stay, will you stop crying?"

Isha nodded.

"Fine."

There it was—a two-year-old successfully manipulating the most powerful crime lord in Zaun.

Isha grabbed his hand, wiping her tears, and led him to the fort she had built with her mother.

The little girl crawled inside first, gesturing for him to follow. Silco entered after her, awkwardly dragging himself in.

For an improvised fort, it was surprisingly well-built. He expected nothing less from Jinx. Of course, she wouldn’t want Isha to be trapped under a pile of pillows if the fort ever collapsed.

Especially knowing her daughter.

A string of colorful lights ran through the interior, adorned with a bunch of hanging drawings. Drawings that Isha had made for Jinx, without a doubt, because they were nothing more than scribbles without much form, bursting with vivid colors.

She had a unique style, yet one very similar to Jinx’s. One that reminded Silco of Powder.

An ironic smile tugged at his lips.

The truth was, he had never found himself in a situation like this before. When Powder came into his life, she had been much older than Isha, and part of her had forced herself to act like an adult, ready to defend herself from the outside world.

Isha was the complete opposite.

Her mother had put so much effort into protecting her since the moment she was born that she had never needed to worry about doing it alone. If anything, she was too young to understand it.

While most children in Zaun lived in such deplorable conditions, Isha didn’t. Because Isha’s mother was Jinx, and Jinx would always take care of that.

Even after the incident with the Firelights, Isha lived unaware of the dangers of the world because they had never been a threat to her.

But… if Jinx died, who would keep her safe?

No matter how much Silco turned the question over in his mind, he knew he wouldn’t be able to fill that void, no matter how hard he tried.

Because the only real fear Isha had, the only danger she faced, was not being with her mother.

The little girl grabbed the plush rabbit Jinx had given her and ran to show it to Silco, stumbling along the way.

He managed to catch her before she fell face-first onto the floor, but the fright still stuck in his chest.

Before she could start crying, he sat her on his crossed legs, taking the rabbit in his free hand.

"Is this the one your mother gave you?"

Isha nodded, holding back tears, and hugged the rabbit, resting her head against Silco’s chest.

The movement sent the Hextech gem tumbling from his pocket.

Silco looked at the jewel with a bitter expression.

All of this, all because of that damn stone.

Isha waved her arm, irritated, pointing at the gem.

"Dangerous."

She signed, her eyes disapproving.

Mom had told Isha that, under no circumstances, was she to go near that blue stone—or any of the devices she built.

They were dangerous. Of course, it had upset her that Silco had brought it so close, the very thing her mother had worked so hard to keep her away from.

Silco smirked, impressed.

"You’re right" he said. "Smart girl, just like your mother."

The office door swung open abruptly.

Finn—that idiot chem-baron with the metal jaw—took a seat across from Sevika.

"Silco doesn’t want to be disturbed" she spat.

Finn glanced around, surveying the room.

"It’s obvious he’s not nearby. He must be handling something important, huh?" he grinned before swallowing hard at Sevika’s cold stare. "Either way, I didn’t come to see him. I came for you."

Sevika raised an eyebrow.

He scooted his chair closer to the couch, shortening the distance between them.

"You’re a terrifying woman, I’ll give you that. Always focused on your business. Except this time, it’s not your business—it’s Silco’s and Jinx’s."

"Is your plan to get to Silco through me? I’ll give you credit, Finn, just when I think you couldn’t be any dumber, you outdo yourself."

Finn chuckled, settling deeper into his chair and brushing his hair back.

"Let’s cut to the chase, then. We both know he’s losing control. Jinx throws a tantrum, and you’re the one left cleaning up her mess."

Sevika glared at him from under her brow.

"The Undercity is in chaos. Ever since the Enforcers incident, people are starting to doubt whether he can keep his little blue pet under control."

Sevika remained silent. She knew Jinx was reckless and ruthless, but they had done everything possible to keep her destruction hidden—at least, the parts that involved Isha. The Enforcers situation had been unavoidable either way.

"Some strange rumors have been floating around between the Firelights and our spies among them, you know?" Finn mused, grabbing the cigar Silco had left on the table. "Something about… a recent attack on those brats’ hideout. Ever heard of it?"

Sevika leaned back into the couch.

"I don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about. The Firelights would say any bullshit to turn us against each other."

"Yeah, that’s what I thought too." Finn lit the cigar. "Especially when they mentioned something about… a girl? Crazy, right?"

Sevika’s stare never wavered, even as her chest felt like it might explode.

Everything had gone to shit.

"I doubt Silco would be dumb enough to tighten his own noose" Finn pressed. "Or is it more like… “a bullet”?"

"I have better things to do than waste time on your nonsense."

"Yeah, yeah, I get it." Finn stubbed out the cigar against the wooden table. "Just consider this—Silco’s days are numbered. There are bigger fish than him."

And then, he walked out.

"And what about your little girl, Jinx? It seems your sister is quite eager to meet her."

The pain was unbearable, her vision blurred, and her limbs paralyzed. She could barely make out the pale lights and the cold metal slab where she was restrained.

She saw Isha standing before her, clutching the rabbit she had given her, her large golden eyes brimming with tears.

"Isha…?" she barely managed to choke out.

She tried to reach her, but the leather straps wouldn’t let her move an inch.

A guttural scream tore from her throat as she felt the needle piercing her vein once again.

Her vision of Isha wavered, revealing Vi standing behind the girl.

"I'm sorry, Powder" she said, her voice distant. "But I told you, you wouldn’t be able to do it."

Violet picked Isha up in her arms, letting the rabbit drop to the floor with a thud.

"I'll take her to Piltover with me" her sister’s hallucination assured. "She’ll be better off there than by your side."

"No, no…"

The enforcer's face appeared beside her own.

"What a pity, you seem to be in so much pain" the voice blended with Singed’s. "I'm sorry, but the pain will only get worse from here on."

Singed drove the next Shimmer-filled needle into her neck. But despite the excruciating pain, Jinx never looked away from the hallucination taking her daughter away.

"It's a shame you won’t get to see her grow up" Violet mocked, stroking Isha’s hair before turning her gaze to the girl. "Though I bet she won’t even miss her mother."

Jinx shivered as the vision of Caitlyn approached Vi, reaching out to take Isha into her arms.

"No… Don’t touch her!"

Caitlyn hugged the child against her chest.

"One day, she’ll make a fine Enforcer, capable of bringing death to her own mother."

"No, no, no…" Jinx gasped. "NO!"

She felt the Shimmer fusing with her thickening blood, her pulse racing, before darkness overtook her once more.

Cutting off Silco’s Shimmer supply sounded like a brilliant idea when Vi proposed it to Jayce. If they destroyed the factories, there would be no way for the kingpin to keep controlling the people—his empire would crumble.

And only then could Vi get her Powder back because a part of her still believed she was in there somewhere. Now, she understood that the hostility and violence everyone spoke of weren’t just madness—it was instinct, an instinct that compelled Jinx to protect her daughter.

Yes, that had to be it.

But even the best-laid plans crumbled in the face of Silco’s ability to turn the Undercity’s hatred for Enforcers to his advantage.

"You had no choice. He knew what he was getting into."

Vi spoke, noticing that one of the many victims of their attack had been just a child.

Jayce lifted his gaze toward the corridors. The vast majority of the factory workers were nothing but kids.

He finally understood the abyss between the childhoods of Piltover and Zaun, and his stomach churned.

Vi shared the sentiment. Even growing up in Zaun, she and Powder had been spared from that life thanks to Vander. But when he died, many lost hope of having anything better.

Was that the kind of life her sister’s daughter was destined for if Silco remained in power?

There was no way she would allow it. She wouldn’t let it happen.

"We’re done here" Jayce announced, snapping her out of her thoughts.

"No, we can’t just leave it like this" Vi countered. "Your Council friends won’t do anything to change things."

"Don’t you get it? This isn’t the way—it never was. They were right. War will only bring more destruction."

Vi clenched her fists inside the gauntlets, which seemed far too heavy for a single person yet moved as if they were weightless in her hands.

"No, you don’t get it!" She gestured toward the child’s body. "Next time, it could be my sister’s daughter. I won’t let that happen."

"I'm sorry, but those are the consequences Jinx has to pay for her crimes."

Vi pressed her lips together, activating the gauntlets.

"I knew you didn’t have the stomach for this. You’re just a coward who chooses to look the other way when someone from below dies."

"Take them off" Jayce ordered, pointing at the gauntlets.

"Make me. Or kill me." Vi challenged. "I won’t let Silco take my family from me again."

And with that, she walked out of the ruined factory.

Jinx was nowhere to be found.

Silco’s frantic gaze swept across the room—he had finally managed to put Isha to sleep, and now he couldn’t find her mother.

He grabbed Singed by the collar, slamming him against the worktable.

"What have you done to her?!"

"I saved her life."

Silco took a step back, loosening his grip, allowing Singed to catch his breath.

"Shimmer is a magnificent substance, but it might have some… side effects. Nothing to worry about—her body adapted quite well to them" he explained, turning his back as he rinsed the surgical instruments. "Though I suppose her resilience stemmed from something else. She kept mentioning a name in her dreams and hallucinations… one I had never heard in the Lanes before. What was it, again…?"

Silco fixed his attention on him. Singed glanced sideways with a concealed, disdainful smile.

"Ah, yes… "Isha," I believe. Does that ring any bells?"

Before Silco could even mask his reaction, Sevika burst into the lab.

"The factory was attacked" she spat as soon as she entered. "Renni’s son is dead."

Silco narrowed his eyes.

And you interrupted me for that?"

"It’s just that…"

The door slammed open again. Finn entered, followed closely by Renni, who was cradling her son’s lifeless body in her arms.

"Are you going to do something about the piece of shit that murdered my son?" she sobbed, overcome with rage.

Silco gestured for Singed to leave. The last thing he needed was to be accused of letting the doctor experiment on a corpse on top of everything else.

"Let me guess: Jinx will handle it" Renni spat again.

"We all mourn your son’s death" Silco assured. "At least you have the solace of knowing he died for our cause."

"Died for our cause? Tell me, where the fuck is Jinx now?" the woman growled. "Everyone’s been talking about her lately. I bet she’d be willing to sacrifice a lot for your damned cause."

"Watch your words."

"You better watch your back, old man" Finn cut in, stepping forward. "We thought you had it all, that you were the right one to keep this place standing. But the moment your little pet starts having pups, you let your guard down."

Silco gritted his teeth, clenching his jaw. He grabbed Finn by the collar, slamming him against the wall.

The younger man didn’t even flinch. He simply lifted his gaze to Sevika.

"You’re finished, Silco."

Silco felt his nerves tighten at the sight of Finn’s gaze locked onto the woman standing behind him.

"I still believe in loyalty" he growled.

Sevika unsheathed the blade from her prosthetic arm and slit Finn’s throat.

Silco let the body slip from his grasp, turning to Renni.

"Get out, or your son won’t be the only thing you’ll have to cry over."

Renni fled in terror.

"They won’t be the last to try" Sevika noted, kicking Finn’s body out of the room. "They know. They know about the brat."

"We’ll have to find another way to protect her.

But how could he protect her from two cities closing in around her?

Because now that Jayce’s original plan had failed, the boy was looking to negotiate with Zaun’s leader.

It was his last option before a senseless war broke out. Before more lives were lost.

"A Nation of Zaun? Access to technology? Trade?"

"You want peace, don’t you?" Silco inquired.

"And you’ll halt Shimmer production?"

"We’re working on it."

Jayce gazed at the horizon beside him for a moment. Nothing disturbed Silco’s poised expression.

"Hand over Jinx to me" Jayce said, turning his attention back to him. "And the girl who is supposedly her daughter."

For a second, Silco’s gaze faltered, his brow furrowing.

"Jinx works for me. The crimes she committed are more mine than hers."

"We both know someone has to end up in Stillwater for this to sit well with the Council."

"And what does the girl have to do with any of this?" Silco asked. Jayce bit his tongue, avoiding his gaze. Silco finally realized. " You want something to keep Jinx in check…"

"The girl will have a better life than any child in Zaun."

"A better life? As bait? Using her to keep her own mother imprisoned?"

"It would only be a precaution in case Jinx ever tried anything against the Council."

"And you people are supposed to be the good guys?"

Jayce grunted, offended.

"It’s for the greater good. Give me both of them, and you’ll have your "Nation of Zaun.""

He placed the document in Silco’s hands and walked away.

Silco sank to the ground, leaning his back against the concrete railing.

"Brother" he murmured, gazing at the clouds that would soon darken with the night. "The boy agreed to everything. He didn’t even hesitate. But… at what cost?"

He shook his head, exhausted.

"Now I understand. I understand everything. Is there anything so undoing as a daughter?"

Vi couldn't just stand by while Piltover gave up on its attempt to overthrow Silco’s empire.

She couldn’t simply surrender and forget everything as if nothing had happened. As if she hadn’t just been hit with all this news like a bucket of ice water.

"Everyone out" Sevika ordered the moment she saw the older sister enter the bar.

Vi lunged at her without giving her a second to react, but Sevika was ready—she had been waiting a long time for this rematch.

The gloves Vi wore made things difficult for her. It was clear someone had helped her get them, but Sevika didn’t care much—Shimmer would level the playing field.

Vi pinned her against the jukebox, pressing her throat with the glove.

"Where is she?" Vi demanded.

Sevika spat out a loose tooth with a grin.

"Jinx? No idea. She’s slippery."

Vi tightened her grip, baring her teeth and drawing a wince from Sevika.

"The girl!"

Sevika hesitated, but if Vi already knew, there was nothing left to hide.

"Shit, should I be congratulating you?" she mocked.

Vi landed one last punch, knocking her unconscious.

Jinx appeared behind her with a sinister look.

"Bravo, sis."

And struck her sharply on the back of the neck.

By the time Vi woke up, she was tied to a chair, surrounded by darkness. She could barely make out a few shattered beams, broken windows, and damp ground beneath her feet.

"Finally awake" Jinx’s voice wavered from the distance.

"Powder?"

"Powder, Jinx… is there really such a difference between the two?

"Powder, I… I’m so sorry for everything that happened. For everything… I wasn’t there for."

"But you were. You were there. Your voice kept me alive… until I didn’t need to hear it anymore. The silence was much more comforting once she arrived."

"That girl…?"

"That girl."

Vi swallowed hard.

"I’m sorry I left you alone with him… with all his insane ideas about you…"

Jinx spun the chair to face her sister.

"Want to hear a secret? Silco thinks he created Jinx. With all those ideas you mentioned, he believed he was making me stronger by cutting away all my doubts. But the truth is, he didn’t create Jinx. You did."

"No, no, forgive me. I never should’ve told you that you were bad luck. I should have… I should have been there."

"Should have…? No. It was better this way."

"You don’t know how hard I tried… I really tried to get back to you. It’s what kept me alive in that damned, dark cell. I swear."

A heavy silence filled the space, until Jinx spoke again, her voice trembling.

"Are we still sisters…?"

"Nothing could ever change that."

Jinx lit the candles on the table in front of Vi. Across from her, bound and gagged just as she was, sat Silco.

"He took everything from us. Here is where he stabbed Vander in the back" Jinx spat. "Just like he plans to do to me."

Silco raised his eyes to her in confusion.

"I heard you. I heard you!" Jinx exclaimed. "I heard you talking to that Council guy. He promised you everything in exchange for me" her voice cracked, "in exchange for Isha…"

"“Isha”...?" Vi stammered, barely processing what was happening.

Silco tried to object, but Jinx turned her focus back to Vi.

"He wants to take her, hand her over to the ones up top, just like I thought you and that Enforcer would do" she said, laughing nervously. "But we won’t let him, right?"

"Powder…"

"Oh! We’re missing someone, almost forgot."

Jinx grabbed a metal tray from the other side of the table.

"I visited your girlfriend this morning, right after hearing this traitor."

"W-What did you do to her…?"

"A little snack."

Jinx lifted the cloche, making Vi turn away in horror.

"Ugh. I’m not that crazy."

She dragged Caitlyn to the table.

"Powder, don’t bring her into this" Vi demanded.

"You brought her into this. You brought her here" Jinx accused, shoving a gun into Vi’s hands. "Now you get to take her out of our lives. It’s the only way…"

"I can’t do it…" Vi murmured, looking back at Jinx. "But we can end this here. Never come back. Just you and me… well" she swallowed, "and Isha, of course."

Silco managed to free the gag from his mouth.

"She’s lying to you!" he objected. "She’ll abandon you again."

"She wouldn’t…" Jinx whispered. "Not again…"

"The topsiders did offer me everything in exchange for you, that’s true" Silco admitted, "but they can go to hell. We’re alone in this. You’re my daughter. I would never let you go."

Jinx furrowed her brow, with her heart in her hand.

"Drop the gun!"

Caitlyn had broken free from her restraints and was now pointing one of Jinx’s own weapons at her.

Jinx set the gun down on the table.

"Cait, please. She’s my sister…" Vi pleaded.

"She stopped being your sister a long time ago." Caitlyn raised her weapon.

"She still has a daughter!"

"Typical of the Enforcers, isn’t it?" Jinx sneered bitterly. "Leaving orphans wherever they go."

She smirked with disdain, and like a flash of magenta light, she moved through the chairs, leaving the young Enforcer unconscious.

Caitlyn had tried to shoot her, but Violet’s voice stopped her.

"Powder, stop! Remember who you are! Think of Claggor, of Mylo, of our parents—of your daughter!"

"Stop…" Jinx pleaded, trying to quiet the screams in her head.

And then… everything turned to dust.

Because Silco had aimed right at her head, and she… she couldn’t lose her again. She couldn’t lose her sister again.

"No…"

Jinx finally realized what she had done. She rushed to Silco, kneeling in front of him.

"No, no, no… I’m sorry, I’m sorry…" she sobbed, desperately trying to stop the bleeding from the bullet wounds.

"I would never have given you to them" he said. "For anything."

"I’m sorry, I’m so sorry…"

Bitter tears, tinged pink, streaked down her cheeks.

"You did it for that little girl… Don’t cry…" he murmured, with the last breath he had left. "You’re a great mother… You’re perfect…"

And then he was gone.

Gone forever. And now she was alone, protecting Isha.

Because someone had to. Jinx had to.

"I really thought…" she began as she stood up "that you could still love me like before, even though I’m different… But you changed, too."

"Powder, everything will be okay…"

Jinx took the Hextech gemstone from the center of the table.

"This is for our changes, sis."

Silco had insisted on building that damn missile. Days and nights, Jinx had worked on it until exhaustion. But now that Silco was gone, there was no way to show him one of the many projects she had been so proud of.

"We’ll show them, we’ll show them all."

The missile tore through the sky, leaving a shimmering blue trail behind it. Then, it ended in a deafening, chaotic explosion on the other side—its roar blending with her own agonized scream.

Jinx staggered backward when she heard the wooden floor creak behind her. She raised her gun, her gaze meeting a pair of wide, tear-filled golden eyes.

"Isha…?"

Isha stepped back as Jinx tried to approach her. Her gaze was fixed on the explosion in the dark sky, terror clouding her eyes.

The girl stared at Jinx—closely, carefully.

Her eyes were no longer blue.

Mama’s eyes were different.

They weren’t Mama’s eyes anymore.

She wasn’t Mama anymore.

"Isha…" Jinx’s voice broke into a pleading sob.

But the girl stepped back again. Terrified.

Isha had never been afraid of her before.

Isha had never feared her.

Jinx felt the world crumbling over her head, felt her heart shatter, felt her breath slip away.

She felt that damned hollow void in her chest spreading to her stomach.

And at last, she understood.

There was nothing more undoing than a daughter.

Chapter Text

Isha had heard the commotion downstairs, inside the bar.

It was impossible not to—Violet and Sevika had gone way overboard.

It wasn’t the first time fights had broken out among the customers, and Mama had told her not to stick her nose in, but when the lights went out because of the energy clash between Vi and Sevika, she had no choice but to run out.

Wandering in the darkness, she swore she had seen Mom’s blue braids slipping between the beams, and she followed.

Before she could reach her, she heard what seemed like the best sound in the world: Mama’s voice.

"Bravo, sis."

Isha ran as fast as her little legs allowed, but by the time she reached the bar’s main hall, Mom was already gone.

Only Sevika remained, lying on the ground with her mechanical arm split in half, oozing a bunch of pink liquid.

The woman let out a pained groan from the blows, and Isha jumped back.

The little girl looked around, searching for her mother, but it was just the two of them. She crouched next to Sevika, shaking her with all her might.

The older woman gritted her teeth, regaining consciousness and struggling to sit up, pressing her back against the wall to keep from collapsing again.

She looked at Isha and her huge amber eyes, filled with tears.

“You have a disgustingly problematic family,” she spat, biting her tongue to distract from the pain.

Isha tugged at Sevika’s good arm.

"Mama."

She signed, silent tears streaming down her face.

Sevika had never bothered to learn sign language, but inevitably, the signs Isha used the most had stuck with her.

Especially that one.

“She’s not here, kid,” she said.

Isha insisted with her gaze and her furrowed brow.

“I guess we’ll have to go find her,” Sevika sighed.

Because she knew Jinx had survived, but it had been a while since she had heard from either her or Silco.

She got up as best she could, using the crumbling wall for support.

And she walked out of the bar, with the child clinging to her clothes.

Leaving her at home wasn’t an option, because Isha was stubborn, just as stubborn as her mother.

Sevika let out a huff into the air.

She really didn’t understand why on earth they had left her in the care of the brat of Jinx.

Her breathing was ragged, just like her pulse.

She was waiting. Waiting for Caitlyn to show up and stab her in the back.

But it never happened. What she found behind her when she turned her gun was even worse.

“Isha…?”

She looked at her daughter standing in front of her, hands clenched over her chest and knees trembling.

Jinx took a step forward—the same step Isha clumsily took backward.

The girl had arrived with Sevika, without even noticing her surroundings, having no idea what the three of them had lost that night.

She was only focused on the distant figure of her mother, who was making her way across a wooden platform.

She let go of Sevika to run after her, but just when she was a few steps away, Jinx fired the missile into the sky.

The blast was too much for Isha—the blue light of the explosion, the destruction, the chaos that followed.

She was so scared she stopped moving, standing right there, in that very same spot.

She looked at Mom’s back, hoping that as soon as she heard her cry, she would come to protect and comfort her. But Mom didn’t move.

She took a tiny step forward, and the wood creaked.

Jinx shot her a shattered, cold stare—so cruel, so empty.

Magenta, not blue.

Raw, resentful, and without love.

Jinx’s wide, pink eyes wavered the moment she noticed her daughter standing in front of the gun’s barrel.

Tears dampened Isha’s wounded gaze. Jinx felt a sharp pain in her chest. She let go of the gun and sank to her knees on the splintered wood.

“Isha, it’s okay…” she murmured, her voice choked. “It’s me.”

Isha pressed her hands against her chest, furrowing her brows.

“Isha…” she pleaded.

Normally, the little girl would have run straight into her arms, especially after all that time without seeing her. Especially after believing she would never come back, that she would never see her again.

But she didn’t.

She remained still, staring at someone who looked so much like her mother—but there was no way it could be her.

Isha took another step back, unaware of the uneven ground beneath her feet, and fell onto her back, bursting into tears.

Jinx tried to move toward her, to help her up, but Isha whimpered in fear and scrambled away.

Jinx froze. She couldn’t comprehend how much her heart ached in that moment.

“Isha… no…”

But there were no words she could say. They simply didn’t exist.

Isha’s crying wasn’t just from pain—Jinx was sure she hadn’t even paid attention to the fall.

Isha was terrified of her, of what Jinx now represented in their lives—what Jinx had always been to the world, and now was to her own daughter, too.

Isha struggled to her feet, her clothes covered in dirt, and ran to hide behind a wooden plank leaning against the railing of the structure.

Jinx listened to her sobs, powerless to do anything.

Helplessness consumed her, overwhelmed and frantic with guilt for being the cause of such pain in her daughter.

In her baby.

Sevika stepped beside her, her gaze unsteady. It was clear she had come across Silco’s body.

Even Violet, marching alongside Caitlyn back to Piltover, had exchanged a weary glance with her rival. They would cross paths again—that was certain. But this time, victory belonged to no one. It was nothing more than a Pyrrhic victory that had taken far more than it should have.

The woman looked at the little girl, hidden in the space between the wooden plank and the ground.

“Would you take her back to the bar?” Jinx asked.

Her exhausted eyes never left Isha.

Sevika moved the wood away from the child. For a brief moment, Jinx hoped Isha would run back to her, seeking refuge from Sevika, just like she always used to.

But she didn’t.

As soon as Sevika crouched to her level, Isha clung to her, burying her face in the crook of her neck.

The woman was now the only comfort, the only familiar face the little girl could recognize in the darkness and chaos.

Jinx understood that bitterly.

Her daughter didn’t recognize her anymore.

Had she stopped being her mother?

Vi had told her she could fix anything.

Right before she broke everything.

And now, she was holding the lifeless body of the last father figure she had left in the world.

The tears were there, but they dissolved into the river’s water.

She frowned at him. She needed him now more than ever—because she didn’t know how to fix what she had broken with Isha.

Jinx, wrecking her own life.

Because that night, she hadn’t just lost her father.

She had lost her daughter, too.

What was she supposed to do to win back Isha’s love?

Who gave Silco the right not to be there to tell her what to do?

How dare he…?

How dare he leave her alone…?

She hugged him one last time.

And then, she let him go.

She let him go… forever.

Jinx stepped into the office, soaking the floor with her drenched clothes. Sevika was there, staring blankly at the desk.

“Where did you bury him?”

She wasn’t going to ask anything else. She already knew the answer to a question that would only bring more pain.

Death was a close friend to anyone raised in the Lanes.

A friend that had decided to come for him sooner than expected.

“I sank him,” Jinx replied, her gaze dry. “In the same waters where he had already died once.”

Sevika swallowed hard and leaned back on the couch, staring at the ceiling.

“She’s in your hideout,” she said. “Ran straight there as soon as we arrived.”

Jinx remained motionless.

“She doesn’t know,” Sevika said again. “That he’s dead.”

“Leave it that way for now.”

“Wasn’t my place to tell her anyway.”

The room felt empty. So, so silent.

Isha’s shadow was barely visible inside the fort they had built together.

Jinx took a deep breath before moving forward.

“Isha…?”

Her daughter’s figure remained still at the sound of her voice.

Jinx took light steps toward the entrance of the fort and peeked inside.

Isha let out a sharp cry, retreating until her back hit the wall.

There was no greater pain than that for Jinx.

Not even being completely infected by Shimmer could compare to the agony of knowing her mere presence tormented her daughter.

She understood. She understood it well.

She herself felt like a different person. She knew she had changed.

But she also knew that if she hadn’t, she would have left Isha alone, at the mercy of everything and everyone. Vulnerable to falling into the Lanes.

And even though it hurt her to the very core, she would rather care for Isha from the shadows.

She would rather lose her love… than lose her entirely.

She collapsed onto the couch, staring at the ceiling for hours. Hours in which Isha refused to leave the fort.

But instinct dominated her, blinded her, wouldn’t leave her alone.

She knew Isha must be hungry—she was always hungry.

So, while the little girl was distracted with the hidden treasures inside the fort, Jinx placed a bowl of vegetables and fruit at the entrance.

Then, she returned to her spot, smiling when she heard Isha eat.

She kept her gaze fixed on the fort, her head resting against her hand, her elbow propped on the worktable. She paced back and forth across the room, careful not to let Isha notice her too much, afraid of scaring her again.

But she couldn’t stay still—she simply didn’t want to. Her natural impatience was toying with her sanity.

She huffed, stretching out on the couch. Her exhausted eyes shifted toward where Isha was.

She rested her hands on her stomach, a wave of nostalgia swelling in her chest.

Was this the price she had to pay for loving her?

Pain?

The lingering memory of what her life had been since the moment Isha came into it kept her motionless.

From sleepless nights feeling her twisting inside her guts to the mornings when, still so tiny, so, so tiny, she would kick on the bed, demanding her love.

Demanding her.

Was this her karma for rejecting her when she first came into the world?

She had been stupid back then, and scared.

Scared of what now loomed inside her chest: unconditional love for her daughter.

Because even if Isha ended up hating her forever, Jinx could never stop loving her.

Even if it destroyed her.

Having Silco by her side had made life easier—motherhood easier. Because even if she failed, he would always be there to fix it.

But Silco was gone.

And she had to fix it.

Alone.

By the time night fell once more, Isha had already fallen asleep inside the fort.

Curled up on Ekko’s jacket.

Jinx twisted her lips in displeasure.

The girl had formed some sort of attachment to that awful thing.

No matter how many times Jinx had tried to hide it from her, Isha would always manage to find it. By the time Jinx returned home, the little girl would already have it back inside the fort.

She had been tempted to throw it away, but the last time Isha couldn’t find it, she had the biggest tantrum of her life.

It was obvious the girl didn’t understand why Mom wouldn’t let her keep Ekko’s jacket (even Jinx struggled to grasp why it bothered her so much), so she would cry, completely frustrated.

But Isha wasn’t the only one frustrated in that moment.

Jinx was too.

Genuinely, the girl had pushed her patience to a dangerous level—not for Isha, but for Jinx herself.

Because Jinx wasn’t used to Isha’s tantrums. Or any child’s, for that matter.

She felt like she was doing everything wrong. She reached a dead end where she simply tried to ignore her daughter’s demands, exhausted.

It had been a difficult phase for both of them. Because Jinx was too dumb to understand emotions, even if she was a genius in engineering.

She was an idiot when it came to matters of the heart, and Isha had a lot of that.

But ignoring her daughter’s cries stopped being an option when she realized that, maybe, Isha felt even worse than before when she sensed her rejection.

So that time, she swallowed her screams of frustration and took a deep breath. She held Isha in her arms, sitting her on her lap, and waited for her to calm down.

Even if she started kicking in distress, Jinx remained still with a firm grip. Until Isha began to quiet her sobs and rested against her chest.

Isha wasn’t a spoiled child—she simply loved being held and feeling safe with Mom.

Of course, this time, Jinx couldn’t do that, because Isha didn’t want to come near her at all.

The young woman slipped into the fort, carefully picking her up in her arms, trying not to wake her. She carried her to the bed, tucking her in just like she did every night.

And, as always, in her sleep, Isha clumsily raised her hands until her tiny fingers brushed against her mother’s face. She didn’t even open her eyes—she did it out of pure habit, simple routine, because it was her way of making sure Mom was there to protect her in the darkness of the night.

Jinx knew that. But she didn’t care. For now, that was enough.

Isha curled up again under the blankets, bringing a finger to her lips.

Jinx frowned.

She lowered her head until her forehead pressed against Isha’s temple.

“I’m sorry…” she whispered.

She brushed the tip of her nose against her daughter’s brown hair.

And she kissed her temple.

It was a sweet, lingering kiss, but it also broke her heart. Because if it had been up to her, she would have never left her.

Jinx had never kissed her daughter before—because no, that wasn’t something people did in the Lanes. It wasn’t a common display of affection, not one she had been raised with.

But she had felt the need to do it. And now she hoped it would be enough to show her how much she loved her.

That night, it rained. The thunderstorm had knocked out the colorful lights that illuminated the room.

The roar of the lightning outside echoed through the hollow darkness.

Isha startled awake and, realizing the darkness around her, began to cry.

Jinx didn’t even stop to think that the girl was still afraid of her. Her visceral maternal instinct was faster, and she ran to her.

Isha hated lightning, she loathed it—Jinx knew that well. And the darkness had always scared her, which was why the room was lit at all hours by the string of colorful lights.

Jinx felt Isha’s little hands raised, searching for her blindly in the dark. She lifted her under the arms, pulling her close against her chest so the girl could rest her head on her shoulder.

“Shh, it’s okay,” she whispered, rocking her gently. “I’m here. You’re safe.”

The darkness helped Jinx, keeping Isha from bothering to look into her eyes or see how much she had changed. She simply stayed there, clinging to her mother only because she recognized her warmth and the strength of her embrace.

And that was enough to soothe her nightmares and whatever fear she felt.

Jinx hadn’t been able to sleep all night. On one hand, the nightmares of what had happened with Silco haunted her. The pain in her body as it tried to adapt to the Shimmer was relentless. And she couldn’t stop looking at Isha—not even for a second.

She kept thinking about what would inevitably come for her.

Because the Council had been blown to pieces, and they knew it had been her. They knew she had Isha. And they wouldn’t just stand by.

There was no way. Sooner or later, Isha would be in danger.

And she had to save her.

“The Chem-Barons are fighting for control of the Lanes. Wannabe street thugs are battling over… scraps,” Jinx spat. “It’s just like when Vander was gone. Only this time… you’re not here to fix it.”

She looked at the empty chair behind the desk, swallowing back tears.

“Because… someone put all those holes in you…” she sobbed. “And now I really screwed up—I really did—and you… you’re not here to scold me for it. What the hell am I supposed to do now?”

She climbed up onto the rafters, lying across them. Waiting, somehow, to hear his rough voice giving her the answers.

Sevika entered the office without paying much attention to her, slamming the door behind her.

“I can’t believe you’re dead, and I’m the one still cleaning up your mess,” she growled.

“Oh, heavens, ma’am, have you lost your mind?” Jinx sneered, her tone sharp.

Sevika reacted on impulse, hurling a bottle of liquor at her, missing.

“Talking to the dead?”

“What the hell are you doing here? Am I next on your deranged kill list?”

“Haven’t I done you enough favors?”

Jinx jumped down suddenly, perching herself on the desk, her back to Sevika.

“He’s gone, and everything went to hell overnight,” Sevika muttered bitterly.

She had just come from a meeting with the Chem-Barons, trying to clean up the disaster Jinx had left in her wake. Without much success, apparently.

“After what happened to Renni’s kid, everything got way too messy,” she said. “Now they all think they can do what he did.”

“He never managed much on his own,” Jinx cut in. “We always had to do the dirty work for him—build his weapons, blow up his enemies, and still…”

“All his plans, everything we built… what the hell do you expect us to do now?”

Jinx stayed silent for a few seconds.

As long as Isha wouldn’t come near her, there wasn’t much she could do to stop feeling dead inside.

If you asked her, the world could go to hell.

She glanced at Sevika with a disdainful grin.

“Watch it all burn.”

Jinx returned to the room after clearing out the nearby streets of any thugs who might be a threat to her daughter.

The problem was, she never imagined that Isha would wake up much earlier than expected. Or that she would wake up alone.

Isha hadn’t found Mom, but she was convinced that, during the night, she had held her when the thunder had woken her. She was sure it had been her mother—the mother she remembered.

She grabbed Mom’s stuffed rabbit and headed down to Silco’s office and the bar, but everything was empty. That’s when the fear started to creep in.

But Mom had to be somewhere—she had to be close. So, she went looking for her.

Out in the Lanes… the ruthless Lanes.

“Isha?” Jinx called out, searching every corner, but there was no sign of her.

“No, no, no, not again.”

She ran straight to the alley behind the bar—only to be met with a brutal blow to the face.

“Finally, crawling out of your hole, little rat.”

Renni slammed her against the wall, gripping her by the throat.

Jinx knew all the Chem-Barons well, but this was definitely the first time she had come face to face with one this close.

“Now that Silco’s gone, killing you will be less satisfying, but no matter—I’ll try to enjoy it,” the older woman spat. “You’ll pay for my boy’s death.”

“That wasn’t my fault, I wasn’t even there,” Jinx objected.

“No, but Silco let it slide.” Renni tightened her grip. “They were there because of you.”

Jinx struggled to pry the woman’s heavy arm off her throat, but just then, one of her men drove a punch into her stomach.

Jinx lifted her head with a breathless grin.

“Well, maybe he shouldn’t have been there in the first place,” she spat, trying to grab the gun from her waistband. “That was your fault, idiot.”

Renni’s man kicked Jinx in the arm, sending her gun flying. They slammed her back against the wall, pinning her by the wrist and neck.

“I know you’ve got your little pup hidden away, bitch,” Renni murmured close to her face. “But I’m going to find her.”

Jinx swallowed dryly, feeling a small sense of relief—at least she hadn’t taken Isha.

But then… where was she?

Ekko’s gun sliced through the narrow space between Jinx and Renni’s faces.

The masked boy struck the two men at Renni’s side, knocking them out before retrieving his weapon.

Jinx drove a punch into Renni’s stomach and broke free of her grip, but Renni managed to slip away into the darkness of the alleyways.

Jinx grabbed her gun, holstering it again.

“What the hell are you doing here?”

“You’re welcome,” Ekko replied, his tone sarcastic and slightly offended.

“You’re far from your tree, Firelight.”

“My people heard the Chem-Barons are after you,” Ekko said, ignoring Jinx’s natural hostility when it came to him. “I just came to make sure Isha was okay.”

Jinx remained silent.

“Where is she?” Ekko pressed. No response. “Jinx!”

“I don’t know.”

“What do you mean, you don’t know?”

“I can’t find her. There’s no note. Nothing… and Renni didn’t take her. I don’t have a single lead on where she is, and just when I was about to start looking, well, you saw what happened.”

“Shit,” Ekko cursed. “This is exactly why I told you that you could leave her with the Firelights. Now she’s lost, and whoever finds her could use her against you, and she’d end up…”

He trailed off when he noticed Jinx’s silent expression. She was staring at the ground, her gaze unsteady and trembling.

Everything—finally, everything had exploded.

“This is all my fault,” she admitted. “She’s terrified of me. Of Jinx… If only Powder was still here, she… she’d be a great mother. But without Jinx… there’d be no one to protect her. Right now, I have no idea what she needs.”

Ekko bit his lower lip, scratching the back of his neck, slightly embarrassed for blurting out the first thing that came to mind.

“She doesn’t need Powder or Jinx. She needs her mother,” he said and climbed onto his hoverboard. “Let’s go.”

He motioned for her to hop on.

“Not a chance.”

“You’ll never find her on foot.”

Jinx pursed her lips, rolling her eyes, then stretched her hand out to him—reluctantly accepting.

“Don’t think I’m gonna tha—”

Ekko pulled her up onto the board.

They flew over Zaun’s streets, scanning the city from above for any sign of Isha’s whereabouts.

“Wait!” Jinx interrupted.

And she jumped before the hoverboard had even stopped.

There, lying in one of the alleys, was Isha’s stuffed rabbit.

Jinx felt a knot in her stomach crawl up to her throat and burst out in a hoarse scream:

“Isha! Isha!”

Ekko jumped down after her.

“Jinx!” he called.

A few feet from the rabbit lay one of the girl’s shoes. They spotted a wooden door on the ground and went in.

The corridor ahead of them was massive and barely lit.

“I don’t know this place,” Ekko noted.

“I do,” Jinx admitted without much concern. “I’ve never been here, but I know who it belongs to—Babette.”

Ekko swallowed hard. That Babette?

“This isn’t a place for a kid,” he said, worried.

“I know it’s not a place for a kid!” Jinx shot back, quickening her pace.

They kept moving forward, the corridors gradually becoming brighter. Ekko cleared his throat.

“I heard what happened with the Council.”

“They wanted Isha,” Jinx replied, eyes fixed ahead. “So I blew them up. They deserved it.”

“I figured Silco would be capable of something like that.”

“You don’t have to worry about him anymore,” Jinx said, her throat tightening.

“I heard.”

An uncomfortable silence filled the air.

“I did it,” Jinx let out. “I killed Silco.”

Ekko stared at her, shocked.

“He wanted to kill Vi, and I… I don’t know, everything went dark, and then he was dead.”

Ekko stopped abruptly, forcing Jinx to halt as well.

“I didn’t think that…” the boy tried to process.

“I don’t care what you think,” Jinx cut him off. “All I want is to find my daughter and get the hell out of here before someone else tries to kill me.”

She felt the sharp edge of a knife slicing her cheek before it embedded itself into the wall beside Ekko’s face.

Renni stood behind her, wearing a strange metallic suit around her torso. It seemed to move with Shimmer—it was obvious this was some kind of variation of the suits worn by the guards protecting Silco’s Shimmer factories.

Jinx had to dodge a second attack, this time propelled by the Shimmer running through the suit.

“See what I mean?” Jinx spat sarcastically. Then she turned her attention to Renni. “Do you ever give up?”

The woman grinned, baring sharp teeth.

Jinx drew her gun and fired at her, but none of the bullets pierced the suit. Renni charged at her, slamming her against the wall. Ekko tried to help but met the same fate.

Then, Isha’s cry echoed through the corridors.

Renni looked at Jinx with a sinister smile. The girl trembled.

“I’m really going to enjoy watching you see her die in your arms,” Renni growled.

“Shut your damn mouth.”

Renni left Jinx on the floor and went after the child, who was hiding in Babette’s office, with the yordle watching over her.

Isha stared in terror at the mechanical monster coming for her. Babette pulled her close when Renni raised her Shimmer-enhanced weapon toward them.

Jinx burst through the door like a bolt of lightning, deflecting Renni’s attack toward the ground and breaking her arm.

Isha’s pupils dilated at the sight of her mother.

With every clumsy attack Renni threw, Jinx dodged it effortlessly, trails of magenta light streaking through the air from her eyes.

Isha hesitated.

Those were the same terrifying eyes as before, but… there was something different in them this time. Something unlike last time.

This time, Mom’s eyes shone with a resolve to protect her.

Isha’s heart pounded as she watched her mother fight the metal monster.

Ekko rushed into the office, managing to get Babette and Isha out, pulling them away from the danger, though the child kept her gaze fixed on the spot where her mother remained.

Jinx struck the back of Renni’s knees, making her collapse. The weight of the suit was too much, even for her.

Renni looked up at her from the ground.

“Come on, finish it already,” she demanded.

Jinx raised her gun, aiming it between Renni’s eyes.

“Now you understand… You would’ve done the same if it had been for her.”

Jinx furrowed her brows.

And she fired.

As she stepped out of what remained of Babette’s office, she felt a light push against her legs.

Her expression faltered.

Isha had wrapped her arms around her knees.

The girl rubbed her tears against her mother’s pants. Jinx held her breath to steady herself, then crouched down to Isha’s level.

She took her face in her hands, searching for any wounds.

“You okay, squirt?” she asked, trying to mask the terror she felt at the thought of scaring her again with her gaze.

Isha mimicked her mother, clumsily cupping her cheeks. She tilted her head, never looking away from her eyes.

Jinx hesitated.

But Isha had noticed—the vast difference.

Magenta, not blue, but filled with love. Unconditional love for her.

She threw her arms around her mother’s neck and never let go again.

“We didn’t kidnap her, I swear,” Babette suddenly said. “She fell through the back entrance and made her way to my office on her own. She was scared, looking for you, I suppose.”

Jinx stood up, Isha still clinging to her neck, her legs wrapped around her waist.

Babette swallowed hard, offering a sad smile.

“You’ve grown a lot, darling,” she said. “I never imagined she was the girl everyone’s been talking about.”

Jinx felt the blow to her chest. The rumor had spread like dirty water through the streets.

“You’ll have to be more careful from now on,” Babette added. “A dead Chem-Baron means bigger problems for you.”

“I know,” Jinx grumbled.

Babette smiled as Isha wriggled in Jinx’s arms, pressing herself even closer to her mother.

“What that child needs most is to feel loved and protected by her mother. Silco was willing to sacrifice everything for you, and I can see you’d do the same for her.”

“I’d give my life for her.”

“‘Give it,’ darling?” Babette corrected gently. “No. Live it. Live it for her, with her.”

Ekko had left. Isha and Jinx were back home, with one more dead man added to the count.

Jinx knelt in front of Isha after setting her down at the edge of the bed.

"That was too much excitement for one day, don’t you think?"

Isha nodded, patting the mattress.

"Yeah, I’ll sleep next to you tonight," Jinx replied, stroking her daughter's face. "Isha… are you not afraid anymore?"

She hated asking again, hated reopening the wound, but she had to be sure.

Isha shook her head, then touched Jinx's chest—right over her heart—with the tip of her finger and made her seemingly favorite sign again.

"Mama."

Jinx felt her stomach twist. It felt like an eternity since she had last been called that.

"Yeah, squirt. I’m your mama," she said, holding back tears. "And nothing will change that."

But the tears were heavier than Jinx’s willpower, and she let them fall.

Isha frowned, worried.

"Hurts?"

She asked, thinking maybe Jinx was still injured from the fight.

Jinx shook her head with a damp smile.

"Well, a little," she admitted, pointing to her chest—right where Isha had touched.

The little girl tilted her head, troubled.

Jinx let out a teasing chuckle.

"What am I going to do with you?"

Since the moment Isha came into the world, she had never been able to answer that question. She had no idea. She just let everything happen and kept moving forward.

But everything about Isha hurt so much.

It hurt so much it burned her skin and crushed her bones.

If she had known it would be this agonizing, would she have made a different choice?

Isha looked at her with wide, curious golden eyes. Then she jumped off the bed and ran to the fort, only to come back seconds later.

She took a piece of bandage—the kind Mom used to heal her wounds—and pressed it against Jinx’s clothes, right where "it hurt."

"Hurts?"

She asked again, eyebrows raised.

No. She wouldn’t have done anything differently. The choice would have been the same.

Jinx pulled her into a hug, burying her face in her daughter's neck.

"It still hurts a little. But it’s okay because I don’t think this pain will kill me." she murmured, her voice thick with sobs. "I love you… I love you so much it hurts."

Jinx might have changed, but her love for Isha never would.

It could only grow bigger.

Chapter Text

She remembered that feeling very well.

Like that night when she had decided to leave Isha in Sevika’s care at the bar after Silco had called her to his office.

“I know, I know,” she rolled her eyes. “You’ve repeated the instructions to me a million times. Can I go now?”

Silco looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

And before he could say anything else, the commotion in the bar suddenly died down, giving way to the sound of Isha’s crying.

Jinx didn’t even look back at Silco; she simply ran off in search of her daughter.

She arrived with her gun raised, aiming straight at the heads of the brave ones who hadn’t run out the bar’s door.

They had their hands up and their eyes fixed on a single point: the small ball of flesh sitting atop the bar counter.

Jinx glanced at Isha from the corner of her eye, let out a huff, and reholstered her gun, returning the souls to Silco’s thugs, who, that day, were lucky enough not to end up with a bullet in their flesh… or bone.

Isha looked up at her mother, her eyes glassy, her lip trembling, ready to continue crying. She lifted her hands toward her, opening and closing her fists, just as she always did to force her to pick her up.

Manipulator—there wasn’t a better word to describe her.

Jinx smiled, picking her up and cradling her against her chest.

By then, Isha wasn’t crying anymore. It didn’t matter what had happened or how much commotion had erupted again—she didn’t care in the slightest. After all, she was with Mom.

Yes, Jinx remembered that feeling very well.

One that, sooner than she had expected, changed completely.

Because Isha wasn’t going to be a baby forever, no matter how much she had wished otherwise. And now that the girl had recently turned five, things were… complicated.

Jinx couldn’t keep her away from The Last Drop, which she had decided to keep standing despite Silco’s loss and the void he had left in them.

Isha remembered.

She remembered his bitter scent, his raspy voice, and his gleaming dark eye staring at her sternly. She remembered his rough touch and the kindness with which he held her when Mom wasn’t there.

Mom cried when she remembered him— Isha noticed. No matter how much she tried to hide the tears, one or two would suddenly fall without warning, landing at her feet. Even when Mom tried to pretend otherwise.

He was Mom’s dad. Or at least that’s what Isha thought, and that’s what Sevika said. Because when she asked Jinx directly, she would just change the subject.

Mom had told her that Silco had gone to take a very long nap and that maybe, someday, far in the future, they might see him again.

Isha never understood why he was so tired that he had to take such a long nap, but she didn’t ask anymore—because she didn’t like seeing Mom cry.

Jinx killing Renni three years ago had brought heavy consequences for both Isha and herself. Because even though The Last Drop was still standing, and several of Silco’s thugs had remained loyal to Jinx, the young mother had been forced to stay hidden.

The Chem-Barons had an entire year after Renni’s death where they wreaked havoc across the Lanes, seized more territory than they were entitled to, and grew their own hypocrisy.

Sevika had taken the lead in Silco’s name, assuring everyone that Jinx and her brat had simply vanished into thin air.

Even though she had them hidden right under their noses—because (in Jinx’s own words), all the Chem-Barons were nothing more than a bunch of idiots with too much power.

And so, for three whole years, Jinx and Isha kept their heads down, doing their best not to go out or draw too much attention, even though it was killing Jinx inside. After all, the young woman had a chaotic and unstable nature.

Still, she knew that because of it, she could keep Isha safe.

And that was enough.

Though they didn’t always have to hide—there were certain nights, special ones, when they could go out and have a little fun.

Isha’s favorites were the ones when the rain was so heavy that it forced all the Zaunites to seek shelter. That way, she and Mom could run through the alleys, jumping in puddles and getting completely soaked.

If there was something Jinx loved more than anything else in the world, it was seeing Isha smile. That’s why she always tried to make her happy, no matter what was happening outside, no matter how much she tormented herself wondering how she would protect her.

Because yes, at night, Jinx would lie down next to Isha, stroking her hair and staring at her as her thoughts drifted far, far away, where she found hundreds of scenarios in which the Chem-Barons or the Council managed to snatch her away from her arms.

It was inevitable to overthink it. It was inevitable that it was at night when she worried about it the most. At night, when everything was quieter than usual and the darkness embraced her.

She had to protect Isha. No one else would. Just her.

And, wrapped in those horrific thoughts, Jinx clung to her little daughter's body and kept herself warm in her embrace.

The bar had already emptied out. Inside, only Sevika’s thugs and a few more drunks remained—men who most certainly wouldn’t remember a thing by morning.

Isha had insisted on staying outside the office when her mother went in to talk to Sevika. Because the girl was curious—too curious—and Jinx knew that would end up getting her into trouble one way or another.

But there wasn’t much she could do to stop Isha from being that way. It was her nature, no matter how much it unsettled Jinx.

Being curious in any other world would have been a blessing, something that would surely take the girl far. But in the world of the Lanes, it could get her killed. And that was what scared her mother the most.

“They won’t take long to find you—you know that,” Sevika spat, sitting on the office couch.

Since Silco’s death, despite having taken “his place,” the woman had never dared to sit in the chair behind the desk.

She still held the same respect for him as always. Jinx noticed, but she never said anything. She’d sooner let them cut her tongue out than compliment Sevika in any way.

“They won’t. We’re fine like this,” the young woman protested.

“The Chem-Barons haven’t stopped searching for you. I’ve heard that the ones up top are starting to look for you too.”

“I’m surprised it took them this long.”

“They must have had their reasons,” Sevika replied. “And I don’t think they’re good ones. Any of the Chem-Barons could be easily bought off by them. You need to understand that.”

“Then we’ll have to get rid of them.”

Sevika snorted.

“That’ll just make their people come after us,” she growled. “Besides, we need them on our side for the war that’s coming.”

“There won’t be a war.”

“Tell that to Piltover and the weapons they’ve surely built over the last three years.”

Jinx clicked her tongue, a shiver running down her spine.

Putting Isha in danger within the Lanes was one thing—but putting her in the middle of a war was something entirely different.

The Lanes were her territory—no one could match Jinx within them. But a war with Piltover, even if it was just a fuse waiting to be lit, was something she had to avoid at all costs—for her daughter.

A loud noise rang out outside, in the bar.

Jinx rushed out of the office, closely followed by Sevika, who feared what was coming.

Isha was sitting on the floor, completely soaked in alcohol. She seemed to have fallen between two barstools, which were now sprawled across the ground.

The girl didn’t cry—because Mom never showed weakness in front of the thugs, and somehow, she had adopted that habit too. But Jinx could see the dampness in her eyes and the look on her face that told her she had been scared enough.

The young woman strode toward the man closest to Isha—one of Sevika’s newer thugs, one who had clearly not yet learned the number one rule of the bar.

Don’t mess with the kid.

“She slipped!” he rushed to say. “I-I swear she slipped!”

Jinx ignored him completely, drawing her gun.

“Isha, ears,” she ordered.

The little girl covered both ears with her hands.

And then Mom shot the man in the leg.

Silence filled the bar after the deafening gunshot. No one dared to say a word. In fact, no one even moved to help the guy writhing in pain on the floor. Because even if Silco was gone, Jinx had proven she was more than capable of keeping them all in check without him—especially when it came to her daughter.

That was how it had been since she brought Isha into the world.

And no one would change that.

Jinx crouched in front of her daughter, gently pulling her tiny hands away from her ears.

“You okay, kid?” she asked.

Isha nodded, holding back her tears.

Jinx smiled at her daughter’s bravery and helped her to her feet, ruffling her hair.

The two of them returned to their room, where Jinx sat Isha on the bed, pulling off her soaked clothes.

“You reek of alcohol, little one,” she teased. “You’re way too young for that.”

Isha smiled, playing along with her mother’s jokes.

“He pushed me.”

She signed the words with a few well-practiced gestures. She was upset.

“I know,” Jinx replied.

She stood up to look for some clothes in the boxes at the foot of the bed.

Isha jumped off the mattress and ran over to her, tugging at her clothes to get her attention.

“Mom, will you always shoot everyone who hurts me?”

Jinx squinted, tilting her head, confused.

It was a question Isha had never asked her before, even though she was a very inquisitive child. If she had stopped asking what clouds tasted like, it was only because Jinx had told her they probably tasted like rain.

But Isha’s questions were always innocent, sometimes even amusing.

This one, however, stirred something strange in Jinx’s chest—because, even if Isha didn’t remember, shooting anyone who dared to lay a finger on her daughter was something she had been doing since the day she was born.

“What’s with that question, kid?”

Isha shrugged, lowering her gaze.

Jinx turned toward her, lifting her chin so she could look into her golden eyes.

“I’ll kill anyone who dares to hurt my girl.”

Isha felt a tingle run through her body, and she smiled. Then she climbed back onto the bed, kicking her legs over the edge of the mattress.

Jinx let out a melancholic smile as she watched her.

Yeah, Isha had grown more than she would have liked to admit. It wasn’t that she minded her growing up—it was just that she didn’t want her to grow up too fast. Not like all the children in Zaun were forced to.

Not like she and Vi had been forced to.

She knew that in the Lanes, it was nearly impossible to give any child a full, happy childhood.

But she longed to do it for Isha, despite everything.

If it had been up to Jinx, she would have kept her locked away in that tiny bubble of happiness forever.

But, like any other bubble, that one could burst at any moment.

And she was very aware of that.

Things got complicated after the incident at the bar. The guy who got shot had decided to open his mouth—he sold himself out to the Chem-Barons. Jinx regretted not having shot him in the face in the first place, but now there wasn’t much to be done about it.

The Chem-Barons knew she was hiding in The Last Drop. Each of them acted on their own and in secret because they were supposed to reach an agreement before attacking, and of course, Sevika would never agree when it came to Jinx.

But that’s how power worked in the Lanes—someone always ended up stabbed in the back.

The young mother had been forced to take Isha to Babette’s. Even if it wasn’t a place for a child, it was the only place left where she didn’t have to swallow her pride to keep her safe. Besides, it was precisely the last place they’d think to look for her.

Jinx tried to give the Chem-Barons as little importance as they deserved, but she wouldn’t push her luck when Isha’s life was at stake.

“Wait here,” she told her, kneeling to her height. “I’ll be back as soon as I get rid of them.”

Isha looked at her, distressed.

"Will we be able to go home?"

Jinx swallowed hard, forcing a smile as she poked the girl’s nose with her fingertip.

“I’ll make sure of it, flea. Don’t worry.”

Isha pressed her lips together and wrapped her arms tightly around her mother’s neck.

Jinx stalked the streets and alleys surrounding The Last Drop. And just as Sevika had said, the place was crawling with rats.

The young woman slinked through the darkness, leaving behind rows of bodies that dropped like sacks of dirt. One after another, they didn’t even see her coming—she was too slippery, more agile than usual.

Silent and lethal.

Jinx made sure not to leave anyone alive—she couldn’t afford to fail, not when her daughter’s safety depended on it.

By the time she was done and finally looked up from the streets, the sun was beginning to rise.

“Shit.”

She rushed to where Isha was, bursting into Babette’s office without even bothering to catch her breath.

She revealed her blue mane, pulling off the grayish cloak from her head. Isha looked up. The girl was sitting behind the desk, drawing on a few crumpled sheets Babette had given her.

Bright golden eyes shot her a sharp glare. Jinx took a step back.

She remembered once looking at Silco the same way—was the bastard getting his revenge from the afterlife?

The girl jumped off the chair, waved goodbye to Babette, and brushed past her mother on her way out of the office. The yordle tilted her head, signaling Jinx to follow her.

“Are you mad?” the young woman asked, trailing behind her through the corridors.

Isha didn’t even stop to look at her. When they reached the outer door, the girl came to a halt, waiting for her mother to pull a cloak identical to hers over her head.

“Don’t be so hard on me, kid. I did my best to get back sooner.”

Isha huffed, holding back tears.

“Did you think I wouldn’t come back for you?”

The girl let her silent sobs escape. Jinx hugged her, letting her hide her face in the crook of her neck.

“I could be dying, and I’d still come back for you,” she whispered.

After a while, she stood up, catching the girl’s attention as she raised her little arms toward her.

“I’m not carrying you all the way home, flea.”

Isha pleaded with her eyes—the same look she had been using to manipulate her since the day she was born.

The one look that was always enough to make Jinx’s heart falter.

“You’re lucky you’re so damn cute,” she huffed.

And she picked her up.

Isha rested her head on Jinx’s shoulder, closing her eyes and clinging to her clothes with her tiny fingers.

She truly hated when Mom left. No matter how many times she told her she’d come back, no matter how much older she got—she really, really hated being away from her.

Jinx knew that. And she had never had the heart to deny her a hug or her warmth after being apart, even if it had only been for a few hours.

The young woman stopped abruptly when she realized that her daughter’s breathing wasn’t the only thing she could hear pounding against her ear.

She barely had time to take a breath before a rain of bullets came down on them. Jinx darted behind a stack of crates, shielding Isha with her body.

Someone had followed them. And she hadn’t noticed.

“Shit…” she growled.

Jinx managed to place Isha in a blind spot, where she’d be safe—at least until their makeshift barricade gave out.

She peeked outside, scanning for the shooters.

Isha’s trembling fingers clung to the fabric of her clothes.

Jinx caught sight of her daughter’s terrified eyes.

Which damn Chem-Baron those men belonged to was the last thing she cared to know—she just wanted to keep her daughter safe.

For a moment, the bullets stopped. Isha tried to cry, but Jinx placed her index finger against her lips, hissing to keep her quiet.

“Stay here and cover your ears,” she murmured, her voice as low as her throat would allow.

She tried to stand, but Isha stopped her, clutching onto her sleeve. Her grip trembled—more than it ever had before.

Jinx hesitated. This was her damn fault—her daughter was caught in the crossfire.

Again.

“Everything will be okay,” she whispered, trying to soothe her. “I need you to stay safe, alright?”

The moment Jinx stepped out of hiding, bullets immediately flew toward her. She led them away from where Isha was.

The surrounding walls helped her conceal herself as she took the shooters down one by one.

Until her daughter’s cry snapped her attention back.

One of them had taken advantage of her distraction and gotten too close. Isha had made him back off when she bit his hand as he tried to grab her, but that only enraged him further.

“Isha!”

Jinx rushed toward her, slamming the butt of her gun into the man’s face to shove him away from the girl. When he hit the ground, bleeding with a shattered jaw, she shot him in the forehead.

She spun toward her daughter, scanning her frantically.

“Did he hurt you? Are you injured?”

Isha shook her head, her glassy eyes wide. Jinx pulled her into a relieved embrace.

The rain had started to fall.

The Chem-Barons wouldn’t stop. She had to start accepting that bitter fact. They wouldn’t leave them alone. They would never leave Isha alone—her daughter would always be in their sights.

Unless she wiped them all out.

And Sevika could go to hell if she didn’t like it.

A chorus of heavy boots shattered puddles of filthy water—they were coming from every direction. There weren’t many places to run. They’d be here any second.

Jinx glanced at the pipeline above them and set Isha on her feet, adjusting the cloak over her head—though she no longer knew if she was shielding her from the cold, the rain, or the danger closing in around them.

A horrible pang struck her heart as she accepted what was coming.

“Isha, listen to me,” she cupped the girl’s face, making her look at her. “You need to climb up here. Follow this duct until you see an opening with light.”

Isha shook her head, pulling away from her grasp. The footsteps were getting louder.

“Follow the green paint marks if you feel lost. Go to the Firelights’ hideout. Look for Ekko—you remember him, don’t you?”

Isha nodded hesitantly, trembling.

“Good. Now go, climb up.”

But Isha took a step back.

"You’re not coming with me?"

She asked, eyes brimming with tears.

“I have to lead them away from you. I’ll come find you once I’m rid of them.”

"I don’t want to go alone."

The girl pleaded, her voice thick with fear.

“As soon as you reach the Firelights’ hideout, you’ll be safe. Ekko will protect you.”

Otherwise, Jinx would kill him.

But Isha wouldn’t budge. She didn’t know what scared her more—venturing into the dark, foul-smelling duct alone or leaving her mother behind at the mercy of all those bad people who wanted to hurt her.

"No, Mama. Come with me."

Desperate tears were already streaming down her cheeks.

A crash around the corner made them both flinch, and Isha’s crying grew louder.

Jinx peeked over the edge of the structure—they were closing in.

“Isha…” she took her daughter’s face in her hands. “I need you to be brave, can you?”

"I want you to come with me."

“I will come back for you.”

"Will you find me?"

“I will always find you.”

She lifted her daughter, helping her into the pipeline. Isha hesitated for a moment, then pulled out a crumpled piece of paper from her pocket and handed it to her.

A bitter taste of familiarity filled Jinx’s mouth.

She had once pulled her out of there.

And now she was sending her back in.

Willingly.

Irony was chewing her up and spitting her out.

Still, she’d rather leave Isha in Ekko’s care than serve her up on a silver platter to the Chem-Barons.

A chill crawled down her spine, making her shudder at the thought that had haunted her for years:

Isha would never survive the Lanes alone.

She had to. For  Janna, she had to.

The Chem-Barons’ men reached Jinx, who was already waiting for them. And every single one of them paid dearly for forcing her to part with her daughter.

It took her a long time to shake them off and slaughter the majority, but in the end, she managed.

She made it to a second pipeline, a few streets away from where she had left Isha.

Now, exhausted and wounded, Jinx climbed inside to follow and find her at the Firelights’ refuge.

By the time she crossed the last exit, the Firelights met her with their weapons raised.

Jinx tossed her gun ahead of her, kicking it forward with the tip of her boot and raising both hands over her head.

She felt humiliated.

Was she really coming back in complete submission to the nest of these insects?

In truth, she didn’t care much—or at least that’s what she told herself—as long as Isha was safe.

The moment Ekko noticed Jinx standing at gunpoint, he stepped forward to stop them, much to the Firelights’ disapproval.

“Seriously? Walking straight into the lion’s den?” Ekko asked sarcastically. “We thought you were dead.”

“You’re not that lucky.”

Ekko scoffed with a smirk, then looked past Jinx.

“Where’s Isha?”

Jinx let out a tired smile.

“Cut the jokes, Ekko, I’m not in the mood.”

“What are you talking about?”

Jinx’s expression turned completely pale.

“She should be here. With you.”

“How would she be?”

“I told her to follow the ducts here. She should be here,” Jinx insisted, her voice beginning to crack.

“Why would you send her alone through the ducts?”

“Because we were attacked, I didn’t have another choice. Shit.”

Jinx grabbed her weapon from the ground and climbed back into the duct.

Ekko hurried after her.

“She must still be lost somewhere around here,” Jinx guessed. “She has to be here.”

Agony started clawing at her throat, and she began shouting Isha’s name, her cries soon joined by Ekko’s.

But nothing.

No response, no footsteps, no movement.

Only complete, deadly silence.

“Why did you send her to the hideout?” Ekko asked.

“I figured it’d be the last place they’d look for her.”

“You two were gone for three years—I thought that would be enough for them to take their eyes off you.”

“Well, guess not.”

Jinx let herself slump against the metallic wall of the duct, dazed and desperate.

“Shit!” she choked out in a strangled cry.

Ekko had no words—truthfully, he felt just as desperate as she did.

Jinx ran a hand through her bangs, barely resisting the urge to yank at her hair to keep her panic at bay.

That was when a strange metallic gleam caught her eye.

She lunged for it, picking it up only to freeze in place.

Because Jinx knew exactly what it was—she remembered it with every fiber of her being.

It was a Piltover badge.

A badge worn by Enforcers.

“No way…” Ekko muttered. “How did they get here?”

Jinx couldn’t answer.

Her legs gave out, and she collapsed onto her knees.

The crumpled piece of paper Isha had given her before leaving slipped from her pocket.

With heavy hands, Jinx unfolded it.

A clumsy drawing of the two of them filled the page, and written in uneven letters, in pink ink, were the words:

“I love you, Mama.”

Jinx couldn’t hold back the tears, clutching the paper against her chest.

A piece of paper that had become her greatest treasure.

A piece of paper that was now all she had left of her most precious thing in the world.

Her bubble had burst.

Chapter Text

The night sky was painted blue by that explosion, while the rubble of Piltover’s Council Chamber was stained a brilliant and biting red.

Three councilors had died due to Jinx’s reckless attack and her missile, loaded with years of accumulated hatred and resentment for a city steeped in despair.

The Council represented everything Zaun despised, everything Silco loathed, everything Jinx had rejected all her life and now abhorred for treating his daughter as nothing more than a bargaining chip.

As if, to all the Pilties, Zaunite children were nothing more than that—objects to be used.

Caitlyn kept her gaze lost on the casket where Cassandra lay. She looked as if she were merely asleep. The young woman’s eyes searched for one last breath, one last gesture, something to bring her mother back, a sign that she was still there.

But as the lid slowly shut before her eyes, she understood that she wouldn’t. Never again.

Everything had happened so fast. In an instant, in a single second, she had lost everything. She was adrift in a frantic, dark sea.

If only she had pulled the trigger.

Caitlyn’s stern expression never faltered. Her soul was burned, her hands trembled, but she never cried.

"She still has a daughter!"

She could hear Violet’s hoarse voice shouting, while her mind wandered erratically through all the ways she could take revenge on her mother’s killer—each one worse than the last, yet all of them making her bones tremble.

Until her thoughts focused on a single idea, as if she had decided to weave all the threads into one point.

An eye for an eye. A tooth for a tooth.

A mother for a daughter.

She clenched her fists.

It went against all her principles, against her very morals; but if Jinx had dared to take her mother away, why would Caitlyn be the worse person for doing exactly the same?

Did morality really have a place in vengeance?

Even if Caitlyn would never have the heart to murder an innocent child in cold blood—no matter how much she hated the girl’s mother—she wanted Jinx to feel firsthand what was consuming her. She had to make her taste loss.

The true loss of someone you love.

"An invasion would mean putting innocent people in the crossfire. We would cause more harm than we already have on our shoulders."

Mel stood beside Caitlyn, both of them standing over the ruins of what had once been a gathering place for the councilors.

"Jinx has proven to be elusive," Caitlyn stated. "You can't expect us to leave our fate to chance. My mother already paid that price."

"We could offer a bounty for her," Mel suggested. "Make the Zaunites turn her in."

"No," the younger woman cut her off. "We’ll make her come to us."

Mel stared at her in sheer terror.

"Caitlyn, you’re not thinking of—"

"Before he died, Marcus gave us the answer," Caitlyn replied, pulling away from her grip to stand in front of her, separated only by what remained of the Council’s circular table.

"Caitlyn! This isn’t what your mother would have wanted—"

"She’s dead!" Caitlyn slammed her fist against the table. "And Jinx has to pay for it."

Mel took a breath, noticing that the remaining councilors seemed to agree with her. Salo, in particular, looked extremely pleased with the idea, as did Ambessa.

"What’s your plan?" the dark-skinned woman finally asked.

As she stepped out of what remained of the Council Chamber, Caitlyn felt a tingling at the nape of her neck. The last time she had crossed those doors, the last thing she had seen upon leaving was her mother’s gaze, and now she found herself face-to-face with Vi and her weary blue eyes.

Violet had no idea what to say. She hadn’t been able to hear the plan brewing inside the minds of the councilors, nor did she particularly care to. She felt unbearably guilty for Jinx’s actions, for the way things had ended up involving Caitlyn.

“You were right, Cait,” she said, breaking the silence, forcing down the lump in her throat. “Powder is gone. Only Jinx remains.”

Caitlyn filled her lungs with air. Her feet wanted to flee, to pull her away, to stop her from spitting out the foolish words that were about to escape her lips.

“I’m sending Enforcers to find her,” she announced, catching Vi’s resigned expression before taking her hands. “You could help us.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Join us.”

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Violet took a step back. “You know what people like them did to me, what they took from me!”

“People like me,” Caitlyn corrected. “Your ‘sister’ took my mother from me.”

Vi lowered her gaze, swallowing dryly as she squeezed her eyes shut.

“I can't do it.”

Caitlyn had expected that answer, but a stubborn part of her still hoped she could change Vi’s mind. She pulled her badge from her pocket, placing it in her partner’s hand and closing her fingers around it.

“I won’t force you, but Piltover is crying out for justice. They’re crying for blood,” she murmured. “You could show that not all of Zaun supports Jinx.”

She tried to muster a weary smile, but it never fully formed, choked by the pain in her chest. Then, she turned and walked down the corridor.

Dealing with her mother’s death, with the Council breathing down her neck to find a solution to Piltover’s crisis, and with the mistake she had just made with Vi—it was consuming her.

She carried so much, and she felt so weak, yet she was forced to stay standing.

She felt a light but firm thud on the back of her head.

“Caitlyn Kiramman dragging her feet?” Jayce smirked at her condescendingly, waving a rolled-up newspaper in her face.

“Was that necessary?”

“I called you from about three meters back, and you didn’t hear me.”

Caitlyn averted her gaze, her chest tightening. Jayce placed a warm, firm hand on her shoulder and motioned for her to step inside the lab with him.

Caitlyn took a seat on one of the stools in front of the worktable, trying to ignore Viktor and the glowing mass he was desperately wrestling with.

Another victim of Jinx’s chaos.

She gritted her teeth. Anger clawed its way up her throat, and she had to spit it out before it got stuck there forever.

“I had a chance,” she said suddenly. “I had her in my sights, and then…” She sighed, clenching her fists on her knees. “I remembered she had a daughter, and I… I didn’t know what to do.”

Jayce didn’t respond. He remained in absolute silence, sitting beside her.

“When I close my eyes, all I see is darkness,” she continued. “And in that darkness, I see my mother’s face… when they found her.” She paused for a long moment. “And Jinx laughing. Laughing right in my damn face.”

Her blank expression twisted into something filled with hatred.

“I want to rip that laughter from her throat forever. I want to make her pay, take everything from her… all of her happiness.”

The young man took a breath, glancing at his motionless friend.

Everything was Jinx’s fault. She had to pay for her crimes.

“You have every right to hate her,” Jayce said at last, placing his hand on Caitlyn’s shoulder once more. “And I think I know where you’re going with this.”

The young woman fixed her gaze on a single point on the floor, refusing to confirm anything until she had considered all the options, all the consequences.

“She’s just a child,” Caitlyn murmured, trying to hold onto reason.

“Maybe that’s true. Maybe she’s not to blame for any of this. But there has to be a price for Jinx.”

Jayce seemed attached to the original plan he had proposed to Silco. Having Jinx’s daughter meant having power over Jinx—a power they desperately needed.

Giving the girl a decent life among Piltover’s families seemed like a fair enough reward.

Caitlyn swallowed hard.

“Vi can’t find out,” she warned. “She’d never allow it. But I have to do something—Jinx can’t go unpunished. Do you understand?”

Jayce nodded. Then, he cleared his throat.

“And do you have any idea how you’ll do that? Jinx won’t be easy to track down after this, and she’s already proven how dangerous she is.”

“I know we need to be prepared for her counterattack.”

“It’ll be the most violent one yet.”

“Your Hextech should be enough.”

“No. Not this time, Cait.”

Jayce looked convinced. And as he watched his friend’s devastated expression, he spoke again.

“After the attack on the Shimmer factory, I realized Piltover needed an advantage over Zaun, in case… a war broke out.”

He stood up, rummaging through the scattered documents on the worktable until he found a stack of blueprints marked in white ink, spreading them out in front of Caitlyn.

“Viktor and I started developing a new technology that could protect Piltover from future attacks.”

“They look just like Silco’s factory guardians.”

Jayce nodded, a hint of pride in his expression.

“The design is rough, but by using Hextech to replace Shimmer, we can make something powerful enough to contain Jinx’s assault.”

“Well? Do you have prototypes?”

Jayce shook his head, rolling the blueprint back up.

“It was something we were just starting before all of… this happened,” he sighed, running a hand through his hair. “If you want an arsenal full of them, we’d have to do it with the Council’s approval—they’d never allow it. I could build a few on my own, but… it would take time.”

“How much time?”

“A few… years.”

“You’re joking. I don’t have that time, Piltover is demanding justice,” Caitlyn snapped. “I want justice! You expect me to give Jinx the chance to escape?”

“I expect you to give her the chance to let her guard down,” Jayce interrupted. “After her terrorist attack, she’ll be on the defensive. She’ll expect us to come after her, after her daughter—it’ll be nearly impossible to enter Zaun and find her.”

He took Caitlyn by the shoulders.

“Let her lower her guard while we prepare to take her down. That way, she’ll never see it coming. She won’t have a chance to run.”

Isha remembered what Mama had once told her.

Back then, they were still safe in their usual hideout, inside the fort that had to keep getting bigger and bigger because Isha, though still small, wasn’t that small anymore.

Jinx had returned late from a mission—one that Sevika had insisted she had to handle. The girl had agreed, more to prove to herself that she still had her spark than to help Sevika.

When she came back to the room, everything was upside down.

Isha was crying in the middle of the mess, hugging the two plush rabbits that had helped her chase away her sadness since she was little.

Mama stood in front of her, hands on her hips. She wasn’t even sure whether she should scold her or not—honestly, she was more curious to figure out how a child her size had managed to turn an entire room upside down in just a few hours.

She had to admit she felt slightly proud.

Isha finally noticed her mother’s presence and threw herself into her arms, wrapping her arms around her waist.

"I couldn’t find you. I couldn’t find you anywhere."

She sniffled and clung to her again.

The young woman let out a breath with a resigned smile and knelt in front of Isha. The child held onto her arms desperately.

Jinx understood well that Isha couldn’t stand being away from her—it had been that way since she was a baby. But she couldn’t blame her. After all, from the moment she was born until now, they had only ever had each other.

She pulled her away slightly, still holding her in her arms, and looked at her with a soft smile.

"You don’t need to look for me," she said, wiping her tears. "When you can’t find me nearby, just wait for me—I’ll come find you, no matter where you are."

Isha lifted her hands from her chest and asked a single question.

"Even if we’re very, very far apart?"

"Even if we’re worlds apart."

And she kissed the tip of her nose.

This time… Isha had left Mama behind.

The moment she heard the echo of gunshots behind her, mere seconds after parting from her, she was tempted to turn back. But she had seen Mama’s eyes just as she helped her climb into the vent—the look that came with the touch of her hand letting go of hers.

A look that pretended not to be terrified.

It wasn’t common to see fear reflected in Jinx’s eyes—her very nature usually prevented it. The problem was that, by letting Isha go, she had left everything up to fate—to goddamn luck.

Jinx hated leaving things to chance, especially when it came to her daughter’s life.

Isha pulled the hood tighter around her face and crawled deeper into the duct. The damp floor reminded her of the alleyways she walked at night, always hand in hand with Mama. Where, no matter the cold or the darkness, she felt safe.

For as long as she could remember, her mother had always made sure she was safe, helped her chase away fear when it was too overwhelming, and stayed with her in loneliness.

This time, Isha had to keep going on her own.

The air current felt like a soft touch against her face—soft and cold, like Mama’s touch.

Because Jinx’s skin was always cold, possibly from the Shimmer running through her veins. But when she held Isha, when she wrapped her tiny body in her arms and pressed her against her chest—that was the warmest place in the world.

Silent tears slipped down the little girl’s face, vanishing into the darkness beneath her steps. She was terrified of being alone. She was terrified of being far from Jinx.

She knew Mama would come for her, no matter where she was, but right now… more than anything in the world, she just wanted her to hold her.

She had to be brave—Mama had asked her to be. And she didn’t want to disappoint her.

The fork ahead nearly froze her in place. Mama never let her wander Zaun’s streets alone, and the ducts were barely lit by the sunlight filtering through their cracks.

She was too scared to decide which path to take.

With trembling hands pressed against her chest, she stepped backward, panic creeping in until she fell onto the muddy ground.

She lifted her gaze above her head.

Bingo.

The duct’s ceiling had smudges of green paint, just like Mama had told her. A small ray of hope lit up her eyes.

Now, she just had to reach Ekko.

She only hoped he would remember her, because the truth was, the only thing the girl had to rely on was her blind trust in her mother’s instincts.

She vaguely remembered Ekko’s face, but what Isha truly treasured was the sound of his voice. She remembered the voice of a boy calming her in the darkness of an unfamiliar place.

That had to be him.

And if he was just as she remembered, then surely he would keep her safe until Mama came for her, right?

She trembled with every step, the air growing more humid, carrying a peculiar earthy scent. Isha wrinkled her nose—she must be close now.

Just as her eyes were beginning to adjust to the light, she felt hands wrap around her waist and lift her off the ground.

Was it Mama?

Had she gotten rid of the thugs that quickly?

The girl turned her head, ready to embrace her—only to be met with a pair of emotionless, arrogant blue eyes.

No. She wasn’t Mama.

The stranger watched her without any emotion, holding her away from her body as if she feared Isha might be just as dangerous as her mother. Isha didn’t recognize her—or the uniform she wore.

Jinx had kept the existence of the Enforcers far away from Isha’s world. Because keeping her safe from Zaun’s everyday dangers was one thing, but letting her understand what the Enforcers meant to everyone else—what they meant to her—was something entirely different.

To Jinx, it was never necessary for Isha to know about them if she would never have to face one.

Isha tried to break free from the woman’s iron grip, but all she managed to do was knock the girl’s badge to the ground—not that she even noticed.

She was terrified. She didn’t want to be taken away from the vent. She didn’t want to stray from the path Mama had given her.

Because if she went too far…

If she got too far away…

Mama wouldn’t be able to find her.

"Jinx! Jinx!" Ekko called her, abruptly pulling her out of her thoughts. "Did you hear what I said?"

Jinx rolled her eyes.  

"Something about… " she stopped short, looking at Heimerdinger. "Where did the furball come from?"  

The yordle wrinkled his nose, offended.  

After he had been expelled from the Council, he had ended up at the Firelights' refuge thanks to Ekko. The rest was history, one Jinx wasn’t particularly interested in knowing.  

"He mentioned you found a badge" Heimerdinger said, clearing his throat.  

Jinx held it out to him with a look of disgust toward the object.  

"I know this emblem well" Heimerdinger continued, analyzing it. "It belongs to House Kiramman."  

"Kiramman?" Ekko questioned.  

"The only Enforcer who could have lost it, Caitlyn Kiramman" the yordle sighed, handing the badge back to Jinx. "Her mother died in the accident you caused three years ago. " 

Jinx’s gaze drifted over the badge before she frowned.  

"Whatever" she scoffed, standing up, ignoring the sting in her chest she had just felt, "I'm just wasting time. I have to go find Isha."  

"You won’t be able to do it alone" Ekko objected. "Heimerdinger mentioned that tomorrow is the memorial for the Council members’ death anniversary. We can create a distraction, use it to rescue Isha. If you go now… they'll be waiting for you."  

"I'm not an idiot, Ekko" Jinx protested. "I know this is all a damn trap. But I'm not leaving her alone in that place, I don't care about anything else."  

Ekko grabbed her arm, stopping her.  

"What happens if you die?" he asked. "Do you think anyone else would risk their life for hers just like that?"  

"You would."  

Ekko’s heart stopped for a second—was she placing a responsibility on him that… he had already taken upon himself?  

Of course, he would do it. He would try to save Isha's life over and over again.  

He would rescue Jinx's daughter even if it cost him his own life.  

But he wasn’t going to admit it, not here, not now.  

"Isha wouldn’t be able to bear losing you" he said, his voice steady.  

"I'm not planning to die" Jinx assured him, "I'm not leaving her alone."  

"Just wait a little longer. Wait until tomorrow" Ekko pleaded.  

"What if she doesn’t have until tomorrow?"  

That was when Mylo’s rough, hollow voice rang in her ears, forcing her to pull away from Ekko’s grip.  

“She doesn’t have until tomorrow! They'll kill her before you get there!”  

Jinx covered both ears with her hands to block out the tormenting mix of voices, distorted and harsh.  

“You’re an orphan because of the Enforcers. What do you call a mother who loses her child for the same reason?”  

His mocking, grating tone made Jinx’s hair stand on end, and just as she was about to scream at him to get lost, she felt Ekko’s warm touch wrapping around her wrists.  

She lifted her gaze and met his brown eyes.  

Ekko gently pulled her hands away from her head, never breaking eye contact as he looked at the turmoil written all over her face. 

It had been three years since the last time he had seen her, since the last time he had any contact with her or Isha, and not once had he stopped thinking about the girl.  

He couldn’t fully grasp Jinx’s anguish, but he understood it.  

"If I die" Jinx murmured, her voice trembling, "don’t you dare leave her unprotected."  

"Jinx… " 

"I need you" she interrupted, "more than I’m willing to admit."

But no matter how much she needed help, Jinx couldn’t keep waiting. She couldn’t leave Isha in Piltover for even one more day. Heimerdinger had told her Caitlyn was probably keeping the girl under some kind of “house arrest” in her mansion because sending her to Stillwater would be too much for someone so young. And Jinx didn’t want to find out what Caitlyn was capable of doing—or not doing—to her daughter.  

Her baby was lost in a city she hated. There was no way she could stay calm about that.  

When she reached the Kiramman mansion, an ominous feeling drummed in her chest. Had her actions been guiding her to this moment all along?  

Screw irony.  

She sneaked toward the back windows and slipped inside through one of them—just as she had done when kidnapping Caitlyn had once seemed like a good idea.  

She crept through the hallways, dimmed by the night, when she spotted a massive portrait of Cassandra, draped in a thin black cloth.  

She swallowed hard, recalling Heimerdinger’s words. She had killed Caitlyn’s mother.  

The Enforcer had every reason to hate her—Jinx had to admit that. But Isha wasn’t to blame for any of it.  

"Drop the gun" a voice said behind her.  

Jinx spun around, finger poised on the trigger.  

But all she found was her daughter’s terrified face.  

Two Enforcers held her hostage. The red-haired woman cocked the gun she had aimed at Jinx, while the other—a burly man with a thick beard—kept Isha immobilized.  

Jinx let the pistol slip from her grip and kicked it toward them with the tip of her boot, raising both hands above her head.  

Caitlyn stepped out from behind and grabbed her wrists, shoving her against the wall and cuffing her hands behind her back.  

Isha shrieked as she watched her mother being restrained by the same woman who had taken her before. She tried to run to her, but the male Enforcer held her back with no effort at all.  

"What will happen to the girl?" he asked.  

Caitlyn glanced at her out of the corner of her eye.  

Isha's fierce eyes met hers—she had her mother’s boldness, that much was clear, despite being so small. If she followed the same path as Jinx, someone would end up killing her.  

The girl was too innocent to understand that. 

"Find her a good home. She’ll have to forget about her mother sooner or later."  

Jinx growled, but fighting back now would only distress Isha more, and that was the last thing she wanted. Every instinct in her screamed not to let her daughter’s anguish grow any further.  

She had to stop it.  

She softened her gaze when it met Isha’s.  

"It’s okay" she said, forcing a smile to comfort her. "Everything will be fine."  

Caitlyn dragged her across the square in front of Piltover’s Main Tower. The sun had started to rise, and a crowd had already gathered, waiting impatiently for what was coming.  

This year, the memorial for the fallen Council members would be held in an open space.  

A place where anyone who wanted to could watch Jinx pay for her crimes.

Caitlyn had kept the flame of vengeance burning inside her all those years—years in which Violet had been so focused on finding her sister that she hadn’t even noticed.  

Caitlyn’s ineffable desire for destruction seemed to even surpass the feelings she harbored for Vi, whom she kept ignorant of everything that was happening.  

Because Violet truly had no idea that her sister was about to be publicly executed as "punishment" for her misdeeds.  

Caitlyn threw Jinx right into the center of the plaza. The younger girl lifted her gaze, her hands cuffed behind her back.  

The spectators looked impatient, their eyes burning with anticipation.  

Jinx’s breath trembled in her chest as she realized that everyone there wanted her dead.  

Caitlyn crouched in front of her, lifting her chin with the tip of her shotgun.  

Magenta and blue met, and if they could have, they would have killed each other in that very instant.  

"You knew it would end this way, and yet you still came," the Enforcer said.  

Jinx didn’t waver, never succumbed to desperation. She narrowed her eyes with a disdainful smile, mocking her.  

Annoyed, Caitlyn struck her across the face with the butt of her weapon.  

Jinx let out a taunting chuckle and glanced at her sideways.  

"Does it make you feel strong?" she spat, wiping the blood from her mouth. "You’re nothing but a pathetic coward."  

Because even at this point, despite having her handcuffed and at a disadvantage, Caitlyn was still holding an innocent child hostage—her winning ticket.  

Caitlyn struck her again, this time turning her face in the opposite direction. Jinx grinned, her teeth stained red.  

The crowd seemed exhilarated.  

"They want blood," Caitlyn said, grabbing her by the collar. "Your blood."  

Jinx could swear that if it weren’t for the Shimmer in her veins, she would have passed out a while ago.  

Either way, she would never give an Enforcer the satisfaction of seeing her beg for her life. 

"It’ll be hard to clean up afterward," she mocked, fixing Caitlyn with a murderous glare. "You won’t be able to erase the stain so easily."  

Caitlyn growled, letting her drop to the ground, then cocked her gun and aimed it between Jinx’s eyes.  

Jinx lifted her gaze, showing no fear.  

She held on to the one thing that had kept her grounded, the one thing that had kept her alive until now—the memory of her daughter. 

Isha, her defenseless, innocent Isha.  

Caitlyn pulled the trigger.  

And a second before the bullet could reach Jinx, the shotgun was knocked aside by another attack, causing the projectile to only graze her cheek, drawing a thin line of blood. 

Jinx’s handcuffs snapped in half.  

"Shit, it’s the Firelights!" one of the Enforcers shouted.  

Jinx scanned the sky, spotting the swarm of green lights flickering like fireflies among the clouds—until she locked eyes with Ekko.  

The boy launched himself at Caitlyn again, knocking her away from her weapon, and extended his hand to pull Jinx onto the hoverboard.  

The other Firelights set off small explosions across the plaza to scatter the civilians. The green smoke began to drive the crowd away. 

"I should’ve known you’d do something this stupid," Ekko complained, glancing at her from the corner of his eye before handing her pistol back—the one he had managed to recover from one of the fallen Enforcers. "Find her."  

He descended a few meters, giving Jinx a chance to land amid the chaos.  

"Let’s burn the city down, Savior" she told him before leaping off.  

Jinx ran through the smoke and the heat thick in the air, the noise of screams nearly deafening. She had to find Isha before the girl got caught in the chaos.  

She spotted Violet striking Ekko a few meters away, the boy watching her, ready to defend himself. If Vi’s loyalty had shifted toward Piltover, then he could turn his own in Jinx’s direction—to the child they were trying to get back.  

A smoke bomb exploded beside the blue-haired girl, drawing her attention.  

What she saw next left her paralyzed.

A squadron of enormous Hextech-powered robots carved their way through the battle. They stood at least three meters tall and could destroy a concrete wall with a single strike.  

Jinx swallowed hard.  

Damn it, Sevika had been right.  

Piltover had prepared to welcome her exactly as she deserved.  

Scar fell in front of one of the machines, which raised its metallic arm toward his face. Jinx fired to stop the attack, drawing its attention.  

But the bullets weren’t enough.  

The robot turned violently. Jinx managed to dodge the strike with a leap, landing behind it, right next to Scar. Badly injured, he pulled a bomb from his clothing and handed it to Jinx. 

She scrambled onto the machine as best as she could, wedging the bomb into its gears and blowing it to pieces.  

Scar thanked her with a silent glance. Jinx said nothing more.  

For a moment, all the chaos around her seemed to fade into silence when she saw Isha being carried in Caitlyn’s arms toward the Main Tower.  

Jinx rushed after them, reaching the highest part of the structure.  

As soon as Isha saw her mother, safe and sound, her eyes lit up. Caitlyn kept her still, holding her firmly by the shoulder.  

"She has nothing to do with this. Let her go," Jinx demanded. "I was the one who launched the missile at the Council."  

"You made me lose everything," Caitlyn shot back. "I should do the same to you."  

The explosions below only made the little girl tremble. The Enforcer stepped back toward the edge of the ledge, intimidated by her adversary’s seething expression.  

Jinx froze when she noticed how dangerously close Isha was to the edge.  

"I killed your mother!" she shouted. "The girl isn’t to blame for that!"  

"The only real punishment for you would be losing your own daughter," Caitlyn growled, "because even death wouldn’t be as painful."  

Caitlyn was furious, consumed by rage. How had Jinx managed to turn everything in her favor? Now Piltover was drowning in chaos—because of her.  

She dug her nails into Isha’s shoulder.  

Jinx furrowed her brow, her deranged gaze teetering on the edge of madness.  

Another explosion rang out, this one much closer. Isha clenched her fists and shut her eyes tightly.  

Jinx knew her daughter was terrified—not just of Caitlyn, but of her inability to tolerate loud, unpredictable noises.  

She couldn’t hesitate any longer. The more time passed, the more trapped she felt.  

"Isha," she called from her position, then shifted her attention from Caitlyn back to her daughter. "Cover your ears."  

And she fired—just as Caitlyn did.  

The problem was that, as Caitlyn braced herself, she instinctively threw Isha backward.  

Jinx lunged for the child, a magenta flash bursting from her eyes.  

Caitlyn’s bullet had struck her arm, but she couldn’t care less.  

She landed flat on her stomach, gripping the little girl who had nearly fallen into the abyss with both hands.  

The bullet lodged in her left arm was killing her with pain, but she wouldn’t let go—never.  

Because the one hanging there now was her daughter, her baby.  

Her baby was in danger, and she was desperate to save her.  

"Don't let go!" she screamed, choking on her own agony. "I've got you, I’ve got you!"  

Jinx’s expression turned to horror as she felt Isha slipping from her grasp.  

The girl plummeted a few meters—before being caught in midair by Ekko.  

Jinx exhaled shakily, watching the young man land safely, the child clinging tightly to his neck.  

But Caitlyn wasn’t done. She rolled Jinx onto the ground, ready to attack again. Jinx shoved her back with a kick to the stomach.  

If Caitlyn was furious, Jinx was livid.  

Because she had almost watched her daughter die—because of her.  

This wasn’t about Piltover anymore. Or Silco. Or the Council.  

Now, it was personal.  

Jinx lunged at Caitlyn, kicking her down again. She grabbed the gun that had been knocked away when she saved Isha and aimed it directly at Caitlyn’s forehead.  

For that brief moment, the chaos outside had narrowed down to just the two of them.  

Firelights, Enforcers, and Zaunite and Piltover civilians alike—all stood in total silence, watching the scene atop the Tower’s peak.  

"Drop the gun!"  

Jinx turned toward the source of the voice.  

Vi stared at her, stern, hurt—disappointed. Her Hextech-powered gauntlets were active, ready to strike if Jinx dared to pull the trigger. 

Was she really defending the woman who had just kidnapped her sister’s daughter?  

Was she really betraying her like this...?  

Jinx didn’t even try to explain. Whatever she felt for her sister—it wasn’t love anymore.  

Rictus’ spear struck Jinx’s weapon, ripping it from her hands.  

Ambessa had finally decided to intervene.  

But Jinx had no fight left in her.  

She cast one last look at her sister—then leaped over the ledge, using the columns to descend.  

Vanishing into the night with the rest of the Firelights.

As Jinx landed inside the refuge, she finally noticed that Isha’s grip around her neck hadn’t loosened one bit. In fact, she was trembling.  

The little girl didn’t want to let go of her mother again—what if, by doing so, they were separated once more?  

What if they took her away again?  

Jinx knelt down, gently placing Isha’s tiny feet on the ground and easing her away.  

She used both hands to brush aside the strands of chestnut hair from her daughter’s face, just as she had done since she was a baby.  

The child fixed her enormous golden eyes on her.  

“Mama, was I brave?”  

She asked in a small, hesitant voice, holding back tears.  

Jinx furrowed her brow, genuinely stunned.  

Her daughter—her little girl—had been forcing herself to be braver than any child should ever have to be.  

Not even when she had been on the verge of losing her had she allowed herself to feel afraid.  

Jinx swallowed the tightness in her throat and let out a silent sob.  

Isha reached up to her face. Jinx felt the tiny fingers wiping away her tears.  

“Don’t cry, Mama. I promise I’ll be even braver next time. As brave as you.”  

Jinx couldn’t say anything—she wasn’t capable.  

Her heart had shattered.  

She let out a choked cry, holding Isha close.  

The little girl wrapped her arms around her mother’s neck. Jinx tightened her grip, pressing her face into Isha’s small shoulders. 

“You don’t have to be brave anymore, okay?” she murmured in a hushed voice. “Mama’s here, and she won’t let anything bad happen to you again.”  

Never again.  

She would burn the whole city down first. Again.  

Isha lifted her gaze over her mother’s shoulder, her teary golden eyes locking onto Ekko’s smile.  

The young man cleared his throat, quickly erasing the expression to play it off.  

But those eyes—those golden, knowing eyes—kept staring at him, sending a shiver down his spine, filled with memories.  

The memory of that night in Silco’s office, when he had first laid eyes on her and felt inexplicably drawn to her. And later, after that terrible misunderstanding, when he had been the only one she would allow near her—refusing the presence of any other Firelight.  

Isha had always looked at him like that.  

Just as she was now.  

Ekko knelt on the floor, just behind Jinx. She allowed the little girl to approach him, knowing her curiosity was unstoppable—and Ekko had already earned that privilege.  

“You’ve grown, little whirlwind,” he smiled, a pang in his chest.  

The last time he had seen her, she was still a baby, one who needed to cling to her mother’s chest just to stop crying.  

Now, she seemed so much bolder.  

Isha tilted her head, frowning.  

That voice—his voice…  

Isha remembered it. She remembered it the same way she remembered her mother’s—a voice full of warmth, love, and calm.  

Ekko extended his hand. The child took it.  

A vague memory surfaced in her mind.  

Back when she had been with the Firelights, Ekko had always held her hand to soothe her. 

Now, that feeling was coming back—the same comfort, the same emotion.  

Isha threw herself at him, wrapping her arms around his neck.  

A deep familiarity flooded them both—security for Isha, unconditional affection for Ekko.  

She was home again.  

And neither Ekko nor Jinx would let anyone take her away ever again.  

They would set the world on fire for that girl.  

For their girl.  

Chapter Text

The sensation had gotten stuck in her throat, shrinking all the other thoughts and emotions she might have experienced throughout the day.

Heimerdinger inserted the dissection forceps into the wound on her arm, pulling the dented bullet out from within her flesh.

"You have an incredible regeneration ability," he noted, observing the metallic object and how Jinx's tissues slowly began to heal.

Jinx huffed through her teeth.

After everything that had happened, she couldn't tolerate a former Piltover resident putting his hands on her, but Ekko had insisted, and she didn’t want to give Isha another reason to worry.

"Too much curiosity for such a small body," the girl spat.

Heimerdinger had been struggling to deal with Jinx’s haughty attitude for a while; in fact, he wasn’t used to it—because no one who knew him had ever dared to disrespect him in any imaginable way.

The yordle twitched his mustache and grabbed an alcohol pad, carelessly pressing it onto Jinx’s wound. A small lesson for the irreverent young woman.

Jinx let out a sharp scream.

Isha, who had been sitting a few meters away, waiting for them to heal her mother, jolted upright and positioned herself in front of Heimerdinger with a severe gaze.

The child didn’t want anyone else to hurt her mother, and right at that moment, he was doing just that.

Jinx looked at her, a vulnerable smile appearing on her face.

So fearless, so brave, despite her size.

Isha turned back to her mother, refusing to let melancholy take hold of her, and raised her hands toward her.

Some things never change.

No matter how brave she wanted to appear before the world, she would always need her mother, and deep down, Jinx truly wanted it to be that way.

The young woman sat her on her lap; it didn’t take even a second for Isha to end up resting against her mother’s chest, digging her nails into the fabric of her collar.

Jinx lowered her finger to Isha’s, prying them away from the tight grip she had around her neckline. Her hand, only slightly larger than when she was just a newborn, tangled around her slender finger.

So small, so, so tiny…

And yet… she could make her feel so much fear.

Isha was a weakness she never wanted to accept, one that terrified her to have. A weakness that, sooner rather than later, took hold of her—of her heart, of her very being.

She loved her so much. So infinitely that she would be capable of anything for her. To make the world bloom for her or to burn it down if she lost her.

She pulled her closer, pressing her nose to her forehead before kissing her, then rested her chin on top of her head.

No matter how much time passed, Isha would always be her baby.

Even if her legs now dangled over hers and she could no longer completely hide her body within her mother’s arms, even if her brown locks were longer and her expressions more varied.

Even if she was beginning to understand the evil that lurked in the world, even if she was starting to fear her surroundings more, still…

She was still her baby.

Ekko entered the room, and to Jinx’s surprise, he wasn’t alone—Sevika was with him.

The boy had gone to The Last Drop specifically to gather several things that Jinx and Isha might need during their stay at the Firelights’ refuge. Because yes, Jinx had agreed to stay for a while—at least until the danger outside eased a little for both her and her daughter.

She just wanted a bit of peace, a few days to rest from the constant escape from death.

But Sevika wasn’t there to approve of her longed-for vacation, and when she caught Ekko leaving Jinx’s room through the ventilation duct, she forced him to take her to the young woman’s location.

Ekko had realized that the war between Silco and the Firelights was increasingly being abandoned—Piltover was undoubtedly the primary target.

Sevika threw a bounty poster with Jinx’s face at the young mother’s feet.

“I told you it wouldn’t take long for them to start looking for you,” she growled. “The Lanes are plastered with this trash. Looks like your little stunt in Piltover a few hours ago is already paying off.”

“The Enforcers swarmed the streets,” Ekko continued. “As soon as we got out of Piltover, they must’ve tried to catch up to us. They put up the posters in the meantime.”

“Now all of Zaun knows that the pilties are paying for your head,” Sevika cut in, raising her voice. “It’s time to move, Jinx.”

Jinx felt a hiss crawl up her neck, a flicker of a hallucination on the verge of bursting into her psyche. She clenched her fist, prying Isha’s grip off her finger.

“I’m sure this is enough to rally allies in the Lanes,” Sevika stated with a faint hint of hope. “They’ll follow you, Jinx. They’ll follow anyone who can stand against Piltover.”

“I don’t want anyone following me.” Jinx adjusted Isha in her arms. “I only went to Piltover to get her back. That’s it.”

Sevika had heard what happened. She’d caught wind of the rumors—how a small group of Enforcers had been spotted sneaking through the pipelines with a Zaunite-dressed child. She never imagined it was Isha until that small battle broke out with the ones above.

“Jinx!” Sevika stepped forward. “We’ll never get another chance like this! We can finally break free from the damn yoke of the topsiders!”

“I don’t give a shit! Get it through your head—I’m not your damn revolutionary lapdog!”

Isha whimpered at her mother’s sharp tone, clutching tighter onto her clothes. Her golden eyes shone with distress.

Jinx furrowed her brow. She wasn’t going to change her mind, even if her sudden shift in mood had been triggered by her own daughter.

Ekko let out a sigh, stepping forward. He unhooked the stuffed rabbit Jinx had given Isha from his belt and handed it to the girl.

Yeah, that had been the first thing he looked for in Jinx’s room as soon as he arrived.

Isha eagerly took the toy, tucking it under her arms, placing her hands near her lips, still curled up in her mother’s embrace.

Jinx and Ekko both smiled as they watched the little girl yawn against the young woman’s chest.

“I’m not a revolutionary. I’m not some damn war leader,” Jinx murmured, her voice cracking, before looking at Isha. “I’m just her mother.”

Isha met her gaze with a crystalline glance from the side. Jinx gave her a tender smile.

The girl rubbed her face against her mother’s chest. It had been years since Jinx had nursed her, but this was a habit Isha had never let go of, especially when she needed the comfort of her mother—because after doing so, Jinx would wrap her in a blanket and rock her to sleep.

That was more than enough to give her the peace and security she needed to rest without worry.

“Get some sleep, little trouble”, Jinx whispered, kissing the crown of her head. “I’ll be here when you wake up.”

“Jinx,” Ekko called, exhaling deeply.

“I’m not putting her at risk, Ekko,” she interrupted sharply, trying not to make too much noise, her voice choking in her throat. “She’s just a kid. Fuck.”

“Doing nothing will put her in even more danger,” Sevika added, also keeping her voice low to avoid waking Isha—because she knew that if she did, the enraged mother would lash out at her.

“I’ve already put her in danger her entire life. I don’t want to do it anymore.” Jinx looked utterly exhausted. “All I want is to have some peace with my daughter.”

Sevika huffed, pinching the bridge of her nose.

Before Jinx had accepted being that child’s mother, convincing her wouldn’t have been difficult. But ever since the young woman had embraced her motherhood, she had done nothing but put Isha above everything else.

The things that had unfolded around her weren’t always consequences of her actions but rather the result of the entire social landscape around them.

“There are rumors that the Enforcers might come back down,” Sevika muttered, almost unwilling to continue after seeing Jinx’s murderous glare. “If they bring those things to Zaun…”

That same hiss from before spat at her nape, this time accompanied by Mylo’s hollow voice.

“If they bring those things down here, not even you could do anything about it.”

Jinx’s fingers tightened around Isha’s small body, as if afraid she might disappear from her arms at any moment.

But she said nothing. She focused entirely on convincing herself that, right now, Isha was safe—that they both were safe—and that her daughter was still there with her.

Sevika stomped off, slamming the door behind her. The loud noise made Isha flinch, stirring in her mother’s arms with a faint sound and a furrowed brow.

She opened her eyes, distressed. Jinx smiled down at her.

“It’s okay. I’m still here.”

Isha blinked sleepily, offering a small, closed-lip smile before snuggling back in to continue sleeping.

Ekko remained silent. What else was there to say?

Jinx had sought battle her whole life, driven by hatred and resentment. The old Jinx would have done whatever it took to fight the pilties. But now… she just wanted to leave it all behind. She wanted to do it for Isha.

Jinx kept her furrowed gaze fixed on the girl.

Ekko stepped closer, kneeling beside her, immediately catching the young woman’s wary stare.

He didn’t even look at her. Instead, he untied Isha’s shoes and gently slipped them off, making sure not to wake her so she could rest her feet.

Jinx raised an eyebrow.

“You know you can lay her down on the bed, right?” Ekko said. “I’m on watch tonight, so you two can sleep here. You need it. Want me to help you carry her or…?”

“No,” Jinx cut in, hugging the girl tighter. “I want to stay like this a little longer… Just a little longer.”

Because if she didn’t, her world would fall apart.

Ekko made his way to the door, noticing the trembling grip Jinx had on her daughter.

“She’s safe here, Jinx. No one’s going to take her from you.”

The young woman exhaled sharply through her nose, not giving much weight to his words.

“I mean it,” Ekko added. “I’ll make sure of it.”

Early in the morning, long before the other Firelights had woken up, Jinx got out of bed. Still drowsy, she carefully uncurled Isha’s tiny fingers from her clothes and sat at the foot of the bed.

She watched her sleep peacefully, tucking her hair behind her ear, tracing her delicate features with a gentle touch.

She wouldn’t let them take her away again. She would never leave her.

Isha was all she had, everything to her. Jinx wasn’t even sure if Isha understood the immense love her mother felt for her, but she did everything she could to show her.

To show her that, without her, she would die.

Jinx adjusted the blanket over her small body, covering her as best as Isha would allow—because the moment she felt wrapped up, she kicked the blanket down to her feet.

Jinx huffed with a smile and covered her again, this time kissing her temple to soothe her and keep her still.

The little girl smiled in her sleep, and only then did Jinx sneak out of the room.

The Firelights’ hideout was beautiful—she had to admit it (even if not out loud). The corridors wove between the concrete structures, intertwined with wood and the leaves that fell from the massive tree at the center. The last rays of moonlight filtering through made it all seem almost unreal.

A chill ran down Jinx’s spine as she reached the mural covered with the faces of those she had lost. Of those she had killed.

If Silco hadn’t taken her in, would she have ended up here… with Ekko?

Her heart pounded.

He didn’t even know she had killed his entire family. Maybe it was better that way—the last thing she needed was for him to hate her for that too, as if she hadn’t already done enough to earn his resentment.

If Ekko ever found out… would he be able to forgive her?

Isha wouldn’t exist either. Everything would have been different.

Would life have been easier? Would it have hurt less?

A cold shiver prickled her skin, forcing her to wrap her arms around herself.

Life would have been different, no doubt. But it wouldn’t have hurt any less.

Because the pain stopped the day Isha was born.

She clenched her fists, locking eyes with the Powder drawn on the mural.

“Can’t sleep?”

Ekko’s voice startled her as he approached.

“What are you talking about? It’s already morning.”

“Uh… I’m pretty sure that as long as the sun isn’t up, it’s still nighttime,” he teased.

Jinx rolled her eyes. Ekko smirked, gazing at the mural alongside her.

“When I brought Isha here, every single day, without fail, she’d look at that painting. I never understood why, but now I do.” He glanced at Jinx. “She was just looking for her mother.”

Their eyes met.

A nervous jolt shot through Jinx, like a cold breeze slicing through her skin—but the wind had long since stopped.

A tightness in her chest. A step back. Ready, desperate to run.

Ekko turned his attention back to the mural.

“I never should’ve… taken her from you.”

Jinx lowered her gaze to her fidgeting fingers and sighed.

“That was years ago, golden boy.” She forced a smirk. “Besides, if you hadn’t, you and I would still be enemies, and sooner or later, she would’ve been left alone… because I’d already be dead.”

A heavy silence stretched between them. Then Ekko cleared his throat.

“You and I… we’re still on different sides,” he admitted, his voice quiet. “As long as you keep carrying Silco’s legacy, once the war with Piltover is over…”

Ouch.

“I know,” Jinx spat.

“This is just a—”

“A temporary truce?”

“I’m just settling a debt. For taking Isha. That’s all.”

“Ha! So should I start worrying that you’ll slit my throat in my sleep?”

“No! I would never—”

“Then what, Ekko?” Jinx took a step back, anger bubbling up. “Do you really plan to leave Isha an orphan one day? To turn her into one of your stupid Firelights?”

“I… I wouldn’t…”

Jinx bit her tongue, but she couldn’t erase the irritation from her face.

Then, she let her shoulders drop, exhausted from repeating the same pattern.

Over and over again.

“I thought… I could trust you.”

“Jinx—”

“Forget it.”

Jinx stormed back into the room, fuming, so blinded by anger that she didn’t even notice the door was already open—unlike how she had left it earlier.

She collapsed onto the mattress, instinctively reaching out for Isha, desperate for comfort. But the bed was empty. The sheets were a mess.

“Isha?”

She jumped to her feet. She searched under the bed, behind the door, next to the furniture—nothing.

“You’ve got to be kidding me, you’ve got to be kidding me,” she gasped, panic rising in her throat. “This can’t be happening again.”

"There you go again. You lost her. How long until you lose her for good?"

Mylo sat on the bed across from her, his head tilted at an unnatural angle. Jinx could swear she saw a grin on his gray, lifeless face.

“Shut up. I can’t shoot you in here.”

"Why not? Afraid the little man will get mad at you? He already admitted you’re nothing but a cockroach in his way. If it weren’t for Isha…"

“DON’T say her name!” Jinx snapped. “Don’t you dare put her name in your stiff, rotting mouth.”

She bolted from the room, trying to leave Mylo behind, but he followed her down the corridor as she frantically searched the hideout.

"Grow up already, Jinx. Face reality. You’re not fit to take care of that girl. Sooner or later, she’ll get hurt because of you or…"

“Don’t you dare,” Jinx growled, coming to a dead stop.

Behind her, Mylo’s hollow grin widened.

"Or she’ll end up dead."

Jinx spun around, gun raised straight at Mylo’s face.

Her wild, bloodshot eyes barely registered what was actually in front of her—a young Firelight who had simply been passing through by chance.

The girl fell to her knees, covering her head in terror, as if her life depended on whether or not Jinx decided to pull the trigger.

Jinx’s breath came in ragged gasps. She clutched her head with both hands, fingers still wrapped around the grip of her pistol.

She gritted her teeth as the buzzing and hissing began—dozens of empty, mocking voices laughing at her.

"You should’ve let Silco give her to someone more capable of being her mother. Letting her grow attached to you, knowing what could happen to her—that was cruel, even for you."

Mylo’s voice slithered through her mind one last time before fading away.

Her heart pounded. Her insides twisted into knots.

There was no reality in which she could ever agree with Mylo. Just as there was no reality in which she could live without Isha.

She had to keep looking.

Slowly, she backed away, letting the Firelight girl breathe again, and then she ran.

The panic in her chest clawed its way up her throat.

What if Sevika was right? What if the Enforcers had come back for Isha?

She couldn’t believe this was happening again. Not here. Not now.

They were supposed to be safe.

She left her alone for one second…

“Isha!” she screamed into every corner of the hideout. “Isha!”

…just one second.

She tore through every door, every gap, every tiny hiding place—but she couldn’t find her.

Again… she couldn’t find her baby.

How was it possible for her worst nightmare to come true so often?

Did Janna really hate her that much?

Was this her karmic punishment?

To lose Isha, over and over again?

Before the suffocating weight of her anxiety could crash down on her, Isha’s arms wrapped around her waist, her small face barely reaching Jinx’s stomach.

Jinx’s ragged breathing didn’t slow, not even when Isha pulled away with a bright smile, her hands moving excitedly.

"Mama! Did I win?"

“What are you talking about? Where were you?” Jinx dropped to her knees in front of her, gripping her by the upper arms. “What were you thinking? Why didn’t you come when I called you?”

Isha’s smile faded. Her eyes welled up with tears.

“I was so worried! Don’t ever do that again! Don’t ever—”

Jinx finally noticed the look on the girl’s face.

She realized her mistake.

Her expression softened.

No… it wavered.

She had never spoken to her like that before.

“Isha…”

The little girl tore herself from her mother’s grip, tears spilling down her cheeks, and ran straight toward the center of the hideout—where Ekko was organizing the next patrol for the Lanes.

She latched onto the young man's legs, pulling him out of his work immediately.

Jinx stood just a few meters away, her heart shrinking as she watched Ekko pick Isha up and hold her close. The child clung to his neck, gripping him fiercely.

Ekko met Jinx’s gaze. After everything that had happened that morning, the last thing he wanted was more conflict. But Jinx didn’t look angry. If anything, she looked deeply remorseful.

She exhaled quietly, resigned to the fact that Isha had found comfort in someone else’s arms.

Mylo had been right.

Hours later, Ekko found Jinx in the dining hall, sitting at one of the tables farthest from the entrance, her head resting on it as she watched the ice swirl in her drink.

A memory of Powder surfaced in his mind. For a moment, he realized she hadn’t changed completely.

He pulled out the chair beside her and sat down without making much noise.

“She’s in my room, reading or something,” he said. Jinx shrugged. “You could go and—”

“He was right,” Jinx cut him off, not bothering to specify who she meant. The last thing she wanted was to explain herself. “I should’ve let Silco take her away, to a family who could raise her the way she deserved. Not the way I barely managed to.”

Ekko stared off into nothing. In a way, he felt relieved that the first thing Jinx wanted to do when he approached her wasn’t put a bullet in his neck.

“You did raise her on your own. You should give yourself some credit,” he said. “Especially considering the kind of world you live in.”

“Exactly. Why did Isha have to go through any of this? Shit, her life has been at risk since the day she was born, all because of me.”

She buried her face against the table.

“I was selfish for keeping her. I should have… I should have let her go. But…” Her voice grew quieter. “When I saw her there, so defenseless, looking at me like the whole world wanted to swallow her whole and I was the only one who could stop it… I don’t know, I just… I just wanted her. I wanted her all to myself.”

“Jinx, I’ve seen you risk your life for her. Do you really think anyone other than her mother would do that? What part of everything you’ve done for her seems selfish to you?”

Jinx turned her head just enough to glance at Ekko from the corner of her eye. Then she hid her face again in the safety of the wooden table.

“She just wanted to play…” she sobbed, her voice breaking. “I’ve never talked to her like that before… never.”

Scar appeared at the dining hall’s entrance, tapping the doorframe with his knuckles to get Ekko’s attention. They had to head out that afternoon to patrol the streets, make sure the Enforcers weren’t getting too close to the hideout—especially after they had to close off the main entrance and open a new one to throw them off when they nearly got caught capturing Isha.

“You’re not going to fix this from here. You took on this responsibility five years ago—now face it. No one said it would be easy.” Ekko stood up and smirked wryly. “I’m sure it’ll be easier than taking on an entire army of Pilties by yourself.”

With that, he left, Scar following close behind.

Jinx returned to the room, the lump in her throat rising and falling. Isha was on the bed, pretending to read a book Ekko had lent her, but in reality, she was just admiring the pictures.

As soon as she saw her mother enter, she ran to hide under the bed. She wasn’t scared—more than anything, she was sad. Jinx knew that, but it didn’t make the weight in her chest any lighter.

Isha’s favorite game had always been hide-and-seek. No matter the place or time of day, Mom always played with her. The little girl couldn’t understand why, all of a sudden, her mother had gotten so upset with her for playing.

Did she not want to play with her anymore?

Either way, Isha definitely didn’t like it when Mom yelled at her.

Jinx let out a heavy sigh and closed the door behind her, then sat on the floor beside the bed.

“I’m going to stay right here, okay?” she said.

And she lay back, sprawling across the wooden floor, staring at the ceiling.

She tried to push Mylo’s words out of her head, but trying only forced her to relive that time when she couldn’t even look Isha in the eyes without feeling the crushing weight of responsibility. When even holding her for a second felt like the whole world would come crashing down.

If she had accepted Silco’s offer the day Isha was born… if she had never even seen her hungry for love… if she had let her go… would Isha have been happier?

Jinx glanced at her little girl, who hid her face behind her hands curled against the floor.

She would have gone looking for her.

Without a doubt, she would have gone looking for her.

Even knowing—since the moment she was pregnant—that there would always be someone ready to stab them in the back, Jinx would have taken every wound for her.

But… why did it have to be that way?

Why wouldn’t they just leave her alone? Didn’t she have the right to live peacefully with her daughter?

She swallowed against the tightness in her throat and spoke before she lost her voice.

“I shouldn’t have talked to you like that. You didn’t do anything wrong. I’m really sorry.”

It was true that Mylo had played a big part in her losing her sanity, but that wasn’t an excuse. Isha wasn’t to blame for her ghosts.

“I want you to know that, even if you don’t forgive me, I’ll still be here for you. No matter what happens or how you feel about me, I will always be your mother.”

Jinx noticed Isha’s little fingers relaxing. It was like she was giving her a chance to take another step forward.

She took a deep breath, filling her lungs.

“You know, when you were born, you scared me so much that I don’t understand how I’m practically on my knees now, begging for your forgiveness.”

Isha’s gaze locked onto her mother.

“Maybe it’s because, in the end, my greatest fear came true, and… you really did weaken me. Or maybe you made me stronger. I still can’t tell which one it is.”

Jinx turned to look her daughter in the eyes.

“You’re my greatest weakness, Isha, did you know that? You make my blood run cold, my breath disappear, and my bones break. You make my heart stop when you’re not here and race when you are. You are everything to me.”

She flashed one more smile and jumped up onto the bed.

After a few seconds, Isha crawled out of her hiding place. Jinx caught her by surprise, scooping her up and pulling her onto the bed with her. She wrapped her up in her arms and legs, tickling her with her nose.

Isha burst into laughter, tears spilling from her eyes as her mother held her tight.

Jinx stilled for a second, pressing against the little girl.

“Can you forgive me?”

Isha sat up, kneeling on the mattress as she looked down at Jinx.

She nodded, then asked innocently,

“Mama, can we keep playing hide-and-seek?”

Jinx smiled.

“Yes, kiddo. Just let me know it’s a game next time, okay?”

The little girl threw herself at her, knocking the air out of her lungs and forcing a pained groan from her lips—one she tried to disguise.

Isha raised her hand without letting go of her mother and made a sign, stretching her fingers while keeping only her middle and ring fingers folded down, then pressed her tiny hand against Jinx’s chest.

The young woman took a deep breath, holding back her tears.

“I love you too, little one,” she replied, gently stroking the back of her neck.

The door to the room echoed with two knocks before a young Firelight entered, only to be met with Jinx’s deadly glare.

“Ekko wants to see you,” he said, then left before her eyes could kill him on the spot.

Jinx threw her head back with a groan.

“Come on, shorty.”

Isha took her mother’s hand, following the young man closely toward the center of the refuge. Jinx was quite certain that Ekko would pay dearly for interrupting her reconciliation with her daughter.

But Ekko wasn’t there.

Before she could react, the young man who had led them struck Jinx behind the knees, sending her crashing to the ground. He disarmed her and tossed her pistol to a second Firelight woman standing in front of her, who immediately grabbed Isha by the arm.

The little girl shrieked, struggling to break free and run back to her mother.

Jinx swallowed hard. Amid the movement of their attackers, she caught sight of familiar tattoos—ones eerily similar to those used by the chem-barons, especially the one belonging to Finn, whom Sevika had killed years ago. How was that possible? Had they been infiltrated among the Firelights all this time?

Jinx scanned her surroundings. More Firelights stood among the branches of the great tree, paralyzed with fear. She had noticed since arriving that most of those who had taken refuge here weren’t fighters—that many had never even raised a weapon against another person. Only a few actively protected the community. Ekko was one of them, and several had left with him that afternoon.

And the others…

Her gaze locked onto the ground behind the group of thugs disguised as Firelights. A pile of bodies lay motionless.

…They were dead…

“When we found out Zaun’s new gold mine was staying here, we couldn’t contain our excitement,” the young man said, circling Jinx at a slow pace. “We’d been hiding out here, passing information to the chem-barons, but this…” He smiled, clicking his tongue against his teeth. “This is so much better.”

They outnumbered her—at least a dozen of them. She was alone, unarmed, and her own pistol was now pointed directly at her daughter’s head.

Isha sobbed, reaching out toward her mother, pleading for her to come and save her.

“I heard the baby gets scared of loud noises,” the young man beside Jinx mocked. “How ironic. Is that your fault?”

“Really?” sneered the woman holding Isha still. Then, without hesitation, she fired a shot into the air. Isha trembled, her shoulders curling inward. “Ha! The rumors were true. A weapons expert with a daughter who can’t even handle gunfire.”

“Enough!” Jinx warned.

“Don’t try to threaten us, bitch,” the man spat, grabbing her by the throat. “No one here is going to help you. They’re all cowards!”

Then he threw her back to the ground.

“What do you want?” Jinx demanded, never taking her eyes off Isha.

“To have some fun while we wait for them to come for you.”

The man glanced at the woman, and she fired another shot into the sky—this time with the gun pressed against the little girl’s shoulder.

Isha sobbed uncontrollably, completely terrified. Jinx felt a desperate impulse tearing at her throat and tried to run to her, but the man didn’t let her, throwing her to the ground again. The woman reloaded the gun, ready to fire once more.

“Wait, wait!” the mother pleaded, swallowing her pride for her daughter’s sake. “Please, stop, enough… Please.”

She was angry, but she was also desperate. Her love for her daughter outweighed her pride—it outweighed everything.

“Well, well! I never thought I’d see the fearless Jinx begging for something,” the woman mocked. “Make her shut up, or you’ll be carrying her corpse in your arms yourself. Either way, the one they want alive is you.”

Jinx clenched her jaw so hard she nearly cracked her teeth, then took a deep breath.

“Isha,” she called, with such overwhelming calm that the little girl had to stop crying.

“Yes, that’s better. They’ll pay more for her if she’s alive.”

“She wasn’t born to make anyone rich. She’s not some damn bounty to be collected,” Jinx spat. “She’s my daughter! My daughter, you sons of bitches!”

The thugs’ laughter was cut off by a powerful buzzing sound echoing from the ducts surrounding the tree.

The gunshots had drawn attention.

Ekko shot through the air straight toward the man beside Jinx, landing a sharp punch to his jaw and dropping him to the ground.

Jinx lunged at the woman in front of her, leaving a trail of magenta light in her wake. She wrenched the pistol from her hands, yanked Isha away, and held her tightly, pressing the child’s face against her body, covering her ears with her free hand—then shot her captor straight between the eyes.

The remaining thugs tried to flee, but Ekko’s group intercepted them, leaving them disarmed and defenseless.

When the chaos settled, Ekko landed beside Jinx, scanning her and Isha from a distance to make sure they were unharmed.

Jinx knelt, taking her daughter’s face in her hands, searching for any wounds that needed immediate attention. But there were none—only a tear-streaked face and a terrified gaze. The little girl clung to her, unable to stop crying.

“It’s okay, it’s okay. You’re safe now,” Jinx murmured. “Mama’s here…”

Something in the young woman’s chest felt like a warm embrace—one she soon passed on to the child.

“The chem-barons are ramping up their attacks,” Ekko noted, clearing his throat. “Seems like they’re willing to use any means necessary to get to you.”

Jinx glanced at him from the corner of her eye, still holding Isha close.

“What about the Enforcers?”

“They won’t take long to show up either. We need to be ready.”

Jinx stood up with Isha in her arms, but her body gave out under the strain of the beatings, and she collapsed. Ekko caught her mid-fall.

“You need to rest. I know you’ve been forcing yourself to stay on high alert,” he insisted. “But I’ll say it again, Jinx—no one is going to take her from you while I’m around.”

Jinx lifted her gaze and met Ekko’s determined eyes.

He really did seem worried about her.

She managed to stand again, adjusting Isha in her arms.

“Taking your nickname a little too seriously, huh?” she teased. Then, after a few seconds of silence, she found just enough courage to whisper, almost inaudibly—

“Thanks, Ekko…”

"Never before have the leaders of Piltover been forced to meet in the city's dungeons! Is it clear now that our enemy isn’t just that deranged girl?" Salo scoffed. "Thanks to Hextech, we barely survived her attack. I never imagined Caitlyn’s plan would fail so catastrophically."

"We didn’t know Jinx had allies" Shoola stated.

The dungeon doors beneath the Council Chamber swung open with a torturous clang. Caitlyn entered with heavy, deliberate steps.

"Jinx has proven to be a persistent nuisance and a danger to Piltover."

"How dare you—" Salo began to object, but Caitlyn cut him off, continuing without sparing him a glance.

"Now that we know she has allies, we can’t hesitate any longer. We need to act before all of Zaun rises against us."

"And how do you propose we do that?" Mel inquired.

"I’ll lead an assault team into Zaun" Caitlyn went on. "We’ll have three objectives: find Jinx, dismantle Shimmer, and neutralize any remaining agents loyal to Silco."

"And what’s going to stop you from ending up with Jinx’s gun pointed right between your eyes this time?" Salo spoke again, his tone mocking.

Caitlyn shifted her gaze behind her.

Vi stepped out of the shadows, wearing the Enforcer uniform she had resisted for so long.

"We will keep the girl alive" Caitlyn declared. "Jinx will have no more chances. And no one left who is loyal to her."

Violet’s distant stare locked onto Caitlyn. She had seen firsthand the danger her niece faced by her mother’s side. If protecting Isha meant selling her soul to the devil and eliminating Jinx once and for all—she would do it.

She would do it for her. For Isha.

Though Vi hadn’t accounted for the fact that Jinx would fight back with everything she had.

With an entire arsenal, if necessary.

Because Isha was hers, and no one would ever take her away.

Chapter Text

Loyalty was something scarce in the Lanes—Jinx was well aware of that.

She bitterly remembered that Silco had died for trusting the wrong person, for loving the wrong person, for loving her.

If she wanted to avoid the same fate, she had to be more careful, because loving Isha less wasn’t even an option.

She had returned to the Lanes after several days inside the Firelights' refuge.

She decided to trust Ekko to watch over Isha that afternoon. The girl trusted no one else and didn’t like being with anyone other than Ekko or Jinx—and occasionally, Sevika.

Jinx was certain she couldn’t leave her daughter with just anyone. But despite the unease Ekko usually caused her, she knew he would never harm Isha. He wasn’t just anyone.

"You and I… we’re still on opposite sides."

It was true that Ekko kept that thought constant in his mind, despite what he was willing to do for her or for Isha. She was fairly certain that everything he did was for the girl—if it weren’t for Isha, Jinx would have already died at his hands, or he at hers.

Jinx had an important matter to attend to—one that involved spying on Sevika.

It wasn’t something she usually did, but she needed to find out if she could still trust the woman or if power had clouded her judgment. Now that Sevika knew her new hideout, the last thing Jinx needed was for her to bring a fresh batch of goons commanded by the chem-barons who wanted her head on a silver platter.

So, she followed her to the meeting with those empty-headed "leaders," sneaking through the shadows of the building, listening to everything while keeping her weapon raised, ready to shoot the moment she heard what she assumed Sevika had planned for her.

"Fighting over territory is a waste of time," Sevika remarked, standing before them. "That’s exactly what the ones above want. Piltover will come crashing down on us soon—we need to be ready, to unite."

Margot wrinkled her nose in distaste.

"You expect us to ally with them?" she spat, looking at Chross. "I’d rather be Up There."

"Even if we joined forces, they outnumber us four to one," he replied, ignoring the woman’s biting remark.

"That may matter to them up there, but down here…" Sevika continued, "they know nothing about fighting in the Fissures."

"She’s right," Smeech interjected. "If we don’t get rid of the ones above, we’ll never last. But I have a different solution."

He threw a bounty poster onto the table.

"We give them Jinx—that’s what they want. We hand over the baby blue brat and her bundle of trouble."

Jinx tensed every muscle, her left index finger moving straight to the trigger.

Sevika slammed her only remaining fist against the table.

"I already told you. We. Don’t. Give. Up. Our. Own." she emphasized. "No matter what, Jinx is still one of us."

The young spy softened her expression, moving her finger away from the trigger.

Maybe she had been wrong.

Maybe not all of Zaun was her enemy.

Smeech grunted, stepping closer to Sevika.

"Think about it. You’ve lost your edge, just like Silco did before he died. Being near her is sickening. I’ll make you a deal—help us hand over the little blue girl, and I’ll craft you a new piece for that gap in your side, one of the finest quality. After all, a bird without wings is nothing more than a rat with an odd look."

Jinx fixed her silent attention on Sevika and her unwavering expression, then glanced at where her prosthetic arm was supposed to be.

After the fight with Vi, she had never fully repaired it—after all, skilled engineers weren’t exactly abundant in Zaun.

She holstered her weapon and slipped away before the meeting ended and the attention shifted to her.

She walked through the streets darkened by the fog, the grayish hood covering her striking hair. The alley walls were plastered with posters bearing her face—an exact depiction of how Caitlyn saw her.

She wasn’t entirely sure she really looked like that.

She curled her lips but didn’t pay much attention to it. She had to get back to the Firelights—Isha was waiting for her.

A sharp scream rang out above her. When she looked up, a heavy impact on her head sent her tumbling to the ground.

She got up, ready to strike back at her attacker—until her murderous, glowing eyes locked onto Isha’s face.

Jinx paled. Had her daughter just fallen straight onto her head?

How the hell…?

Someone was going to die tonight.

"Isha?" She hurried to pick up the girl, cupping her cheeks, searching for any injuries—bruises, scratches, or worse—but found nothing. Her body had literally cushioned the fall. "How did you get here?"

Jinx was making a tremendous effort not to run off and murder Ekko right then and there when she heard heavy footsteps coming from the pipelines Isha had fallen through.

Chross’s thugs had followed her daughter there.

A chill ran down Jinx’s spine. Not everyone had seen what the girl looked like—they only knew she was never apart from Jinx. If they had followed her, it wasn’t because she was Isha; it was because they needed more kids for the mines.

Not even dead would she let them take her baby to that place.

The men jumped down, surrounding them menacingly. Isha clung tighter to her mother, eyes filled with terror.

They assumed they could take her.

Jinx smiled.

They assumed wrong.

The young woman threw her head back, letting the hood fall. The thugs recoiled, looking as if they had just seen a ghost. Understandable—Jinx had been missing since Silco’s death, only appearing in the streets as a silent and elusive shadow.

"Isha, ears," Jinx ordered.

And in a second, she pressed the girl’s head against her chest with one hand while unleashing a burst of bullets with the other—leaving the three men dead on the ground.

Isha looked up at her mother. Jinx blew the smoke from her gun’s barrel, dispersing the pink haze left in the wake of the attack.

"You feel it, don’t you? Even without hearing it," the young woman said. "That… hum, behind your eyes. Because you know that, in an moment, everything goes… Poow!"

She grinned, as if reclaiming a part of herself she had abandoned years ago, and ruffled Isha’s hair.

"Best feeling in the world, kid. Let’s go."

She stood up, helping the little girl follow her.

Isha finally noticed the posters of her mother plastered all over the alley walls, and a shiver ran down her spine. She tugged at Jinx’s cloak to get her attention and pointed at them.

"Ah, that," Jinx remarked, barely giving it a second thought. "Yep, that’s me. Now anyone who wants to curse their sister, their family, or society itself will know exactly whose card to play, huh?"

Isha frowned.

"Aren’t you in danger?"

She asked, worried, her hands trembling slightly.

"I always am," Jinx replied, not realizing how casually she said it—only deepening her daughter’s concern.

Jinx crouched to the girl’s level and pulled the hood over her head—it dragged on the ground, too long for her small frame.

"It’s been like this since before you were born. I’m used to it. You don’t have to worry about Mama, okay?"

She took the girl’s hand, and they walked through the alleyways.

"Now, tell me… does Ekko know you’re here?"

They arrived at the arcade—the little hideout Jinx used to escape when she felt at her worst, the one she had built alongside Vi, Mylo, and Claggor when she was a child.

A relentless pounding of nostalgia unsettled her, but she tried to hide it. Little Powder would have been quite surprised to see her return to this place, accompanied by the girl she had given birth to—a girl who, inevitably, reminded her so much of herself.

Isha let her natural curiosity take over and ran off to inspect the place, admiring all the fluorescent details she knew her mother had put there.

Jinx smiled at her daughter’s restlessness and made her way to a shelf filled with uneven, worn-out drawers. She pulled out a pile of tools, using the remains of the robot Violet had once trained with as an infinite source of scrap.

Isha approached, intrigued, as Jinx placed all the materials on a workbench. Just like when she was a baby—climbing onto Jinx’s calves while she worked on Silco’s weapons.

"What are you doing, mama?"

"It’s…" Jinx bit her tongue "for Sevika."

Isha frowned, confused. And before she could ask anything else, Jinx beat her to it.

"I owe her" she clarified. "After all, it’s my fault she does everything with just one hand, you get that?"

Jinx felt bile rising in her throat. She wasn’t used to saying anything remotely positive about Sevika.

"Besides, I don’t think she’s as bad as everyone says. Like me..."

Isha shook her mother’s arm, displeased.

"You’re not bad, mama."

Jinx smiled, brushing a hand over her daughter’s cheek.

"Yeah, better to keep thinking that."

Jinx spent a few hours finishing her project. Isha had eventually fallen asleep on a half-tattered couch inside the arcade. Jinx had covered her with her cloak to shield her from the cold that had begun to settle in with the night.

When she was done, after admiring the results with pride, she looked at her daughter and smiled.

Maybe, with a lot of luck, one day they could spend their time just doing this—building useless junk and weapons used for fun, not for survival.

A pungent smell suddenly flooded the room. Rats began scurrying away from the dense gas that soon filled Jinx’s nostrils, making it hard to breathe. The burning sensation in her eyes grew worse, and as the suffocation intensified, she sprinted to the shelf, rummaging through the drawers until she found an old mask Violet had kept there for emergencies.

She rushed to Isha, waking her by pressing the mask over her face. Isha looked up at her mother, confused and scared. The mask helped her breathe better, but Jinx was still struggling, desperately trying to keep her lungs clear of the Gray spreading through the arcade like a massive, greenish snake.

She slung the newly built arm for Sevika over her back and picked Isha up. The little girl didn’t understand what was happening—she had never seen the Gray or what it did to people—but her mother had told her to stay quiet, to keep her eyes closed, and to stay very, very still. Because Mom was worried. And Mom couldn’t breathe.

Jinx climbed onto the ledge when she heard people stepping through the broken glass that served as a doorway.

Enforcers.

Jinx trembled. They hadn’t taken long to come looking for her again.

Damn it.

Before she could do anything else, the last Enforcer stepped through the doorway. Through the gas and the stinging in her eyes, Jinx made out pink hair and oversized gloves.

It was Vi.

Jinx’s heart clenched cruelly. Defending the idiot Enforcer Vi slept with was one thing—but becoming one?

Becoming one of them, one of the idiots who had killed their parents, who had turned Zaun upside down, who kept the city under their boot, who had nearly wiped out the last family she had left, and who now flooded the streets with the Gray?

It couldn’t be real.

Violet was beyond redemption. Not to Jinx.

She raised her gun, aiming for Vi’s head the moment she had her in her sights, just below her. As the gas ate away at her lungs, forcing her to suppress the convulsions wracking her throat, desperate to escape.

A searing tear slipped from her eye, falling onto Vi’s mask.

The older sister lifted her gaze. Jinx stepped back, wiping her tears and hiding behind another piece of concrete, holding the girl in her arms tightly. Isha felt her mother’s worry because her breathing had become more labored, and she clung to her clothes.

Jinx hissed as softly as she could, stroking her back to calm her. She had to move fast to get out of there alive—to get Isha out of there.

She spotted the power source for the old shooting targets she had as a child and activated them. Fluorescent lights flashed, and a loud noise disoriented the intruders. Caitlyn thought she saw Jinx for a second, but then lost her in the chaos.

The Enforcer let out a frustrated cry, firing at the moving objects in front of her.

The gunshot startled Isha, who could only curl up tighter in her mother’s arms. Jinx bolted for the back door. She wasn’t sure if the burning tears scorching her cheeks like embers were from the Gray or from the sight of her sister fully becoming an Enforcer.

She looked back, letting out an agonized scream and clutching Isha tightly.

She was disappointed, devastated.

Isha pulled away with a start, yanking off the mask from her face.

"Mama. Mama. Don’t cry."

The little girl pleaded, showing her face.

"Look, look, I’m fine."

"Isha…"

Jinx was about to take her little girl into her arms again when she suddenly felt her hair being yanked back violently, slamming her against the wall. Isha tried to run to her, but a second man held her back.

Jinx reached for her gun, but the first man twisted her wrist, sending the weapon flying far from her reach.

Her still-blurry vision barely allowed her to see what was happening. The only thing she was aware of was that Isha was close—crying for her.

"Baby blue" Smeech sang as he descended from his hiding spot. "You’re slippery, must be half eel. That means I can up my price."

Jinx kept struggling against the grip of the three men holding her down, kicking and gritting her teeth.

"They want you alive, but don’t think I won’t gouge your eyes out. That’s the downside of those who fight from a distance" Smeech extended the needle from his finger toward Jinx’s pupil. "Me? I like to do it up close. Never thought I’d see you crying. I wonder if Silco ever saw this side of you."

"Twice" Jinx answered, pushing her eye even closer to the needle. "When he met me, and when I killed him."

"You?" Smeech recoiled, stunned.

"It’s always me. Whether I pull the trigger or not, everyone who gets close to me dies."

A chill ran down Jinx’s spine as she glanced sideways at Isha. She wanted to be wrong. She wanted the words spilling from her mouth to be nothing more than empty threats to scare them.

"You know what’s funniest?" She turned her glowing pink eyes back to him. "You like to get really, really close..."

Smeech stepped back, moving toward Isha to gain the upper hand.

"This little bundle of trouble brought Silco to his grave, didn’t she?" he sneered, masking his fear. "And now, she’ll do the same to you."

He looked Isha over with disgust. The girl frowned, eyes quietly brimming with tears, sneaking glances at her mother.

"All this trouble, for this?" Smeech spat, grabbing the girl’s arm and shaking her in front of Jinx. The mother growled, thrashing against her captors. "Whatever. I want to end up in Silco’s seat, so I have to wipe out his bloodline. You get it?"

"Don’t you dare put your filthy hands on her!" Jinx threatened.

Smeech smirked, ignoring her. He raised his hand, ready to strike Isha, when a bullet from Jinx’s gun knocked him back.

Sevika stood at the other end of the alley, firing clumsily.

Her aim was terrible.

The distraction was enough. Jinx broke free from the goons, sliding across the ground, unstrapping the arm she had built for Sevika from her back, and tossing it to her.

Sevika caught it, throwing Jinx’s gun back in return. Jinx shot the thug closest to Isha while the girl covered her ears.

"Are you okay?" she asked. Isha nodded. Jinx glanced at the remaining thugs trying to attack her and loaded her gun. "Stay down."

Jinx faced the second man, despite him nearly matching her speed. He swung wildly, but she dodged with ease. On his final attempt, she swept her feet under his ankles, knocking him down, and finished him off with her gun.

By the time she was done, Sevika had already turned Smeech into a mess—with the help of the arm Jinx had built.

"What a surprise seeing you here" Jinx spat with a forced grin. "You could’ve let me handle it."

"The bastard never knew when to shut up" Sevika shrugged, nodding toward her new arm. "Didn’t ask for this."

"It was something I could fix" Jinx muttered, staring into nothing.

"You’ve got that look again. What are you planning?"

"To finish off what’s left of my family" Jinx answered with a grin.

Jinx and Sevika returned to the Firelights' refuge. Ekko arrived shortly after them, and the first thing he did was focus all his attention on Isha. It was clear he had gone out searching for her without success.

Jinx shot him a sharp glare.

"N-New refugees arrived" he tried to excuse himself. "I lost sight of her for just a second."

"Yeah, that’s how Isha works" Jinx replied. "She was in the Lanes, Chross’s thugs were chasing her. If she hadn’t been fast enough…"

"I’m sorry, I…"

The girl didn’t even let him finish the sentence before taking her daughter’s hand and walking away.

"Let it go, kid" Sevika said as she headed for the exit. "If you want to keep your head attached to your body."

The night was almost over. Isha was already exhausted but still had enough energy to run back and forth across the room, gathering her stuffed rabbits to lay them on the pillow and sleep beside them.

Mama sat on the bed, lost in thought. Isha stopped in front of her and tugged on her hand to pull her out of it.

"Mama, are you mad at him?"

She asked innocently. Jinx pressed her lips together.

"No" she answered sharply, clearly uncomfortable.

Her daughter had an incredible talent for asking questions that put her on the spot. Isha tilted her head, unused to her mother lying to her.

"But you look mad."

Jinx forced a smile, taking her daughter’s hands.

"Mama just wants to settle things with him later. You don’t need to worry about it."

Isha frowned slightly.

"Mama… don’t shoot him."

Her daughter's pleading gaze cut through her like a knife. Jinx squinted.

"Maybe…" she joked, looking away.

Isha scrunched her nose further. Jinx glanced at her out of the corner of her eye and smirked before grabbing her in a hug and attacking her with a flurry of kisses all over her face.

Isha burst into laughter.

Oh, Janna, how she loved hearing her laugh.

A soft knocking sounded at the door. Jinx left Isha standing by the bed, and while the girl finished tucking in her stuffed rabbits, Jinx opened it—only to come face-to-face with Ekko.

The guy really loved dancing with death.

"Isn’t it a little too late for you to be here?" she snapped.

"I just wanted to make sure Isha was okay."

Jinx crossed her arms over her chest and raised an eyebrow. The wall she had put up between them irritated Ekko.

"Believe it or not, I didn’t mean for her to run off" he exclaimed.

"I don’t care to hear your excuses. Let me sleep."

"No one’s stopping you."

"Good!" Jinx turned to go back to bed, slamming the door behind her. "Then get the hell out of—"

That’s when she saw Isha about to collapse.

Jinx caught her just before she hit the ground.

"Isha? Isha! ISHA!"

The girl was breathing heavily. Ekko ran to the young woman, who was kneeling on the ground with the unconscious child in her arms.

"She’s burning up" he said after feeling her forehead. "We need to get her to a doctor."

"Where the hell are we supposed to find a doctor in Zaun?"

Ekko swallowed hard, and then Jinx spoke again.

"I only know one—the one who… delivered my baby. But I lost track of him over three years ago. I don’t even know if…"

"Where?"

"He used to hide near the Fissures."

Ekko said nothing more and bolted out of the room. Jinx swore she heard the engine of his hoverboard seconds later.

The young woman got up and sat on the edge of the bed with Isha in her arms. Her entire body was burning with fever.

"Isha…" she called, but the only response was a weak whimper from the girl.

She removed the excess clothing to help her cool down. The little one was breathing rapidly, her mouth slightly open, struggling too much just to keep air in her lungs.

Jinx felt her insides clench with fear. She placed Isha’s head in the crook of her arm, trying to keep it elevated while holding her hand tightly.

"My girl… My baby… " she sobbed. "It’s okay, I’m here. Mommy’s here. Nothing will happen to you while you’re with Mama"

Heimerdinger rushed into the room. He froze at the sight of the barefoot child, limp in her mother’s arms.

"Before speeding off to the Lanes, Ekko told me to hurry here… What happened?"

"If I knew, do you think I’d be sitting here doing nothing?" Jinx snapped bitterly, then swallowed hard, becoming more aware of her tone. "I’m sorry… I don’t know. She just… collapsed."

She could barely contain the ache in her chest that climbed up to her throat.

Heimerdinger motioned for her to lay the child on the bed. With the help of cold compresses, he managed to lower her temperature. But Isha still wouldn’t wake up.

A few minutes later, they heard Ekko’s hoverboard engine again. The boy arrived with a man, practically dragging him along. He carelessly discarded the hoverboard and led the doctor into the room.

The man was stunned when he came face to face with Jinx. After all this time… He looked at the child on the bed, and a strange sensation filled his chest.

So this was the little one he had brought into the world.

He knelt beside the bed, examining Isha carefully before looking at Jinx with concern.

"Has she been in direct contact with Grey?"

"Yes…" the young woman answered. Ekko’s astonished attention snapped to her. "Some Enforcers found us, but she was wearing a mask. I thought that…"

"That’s actually what saved her life" the doctor sighed, standing up again. "Children are more vulnerable to Grey due to their smaller lungs and the shorter time they’ve had to adjust to it. What she’s experiencing are common symptoms of prolonged exposure to the gas."

"So…"

The doctor smiled.

"She’ll be fine. Just let her rest, keep her hydrated. She’ll get better, don’t worry."

Isha slowly opened her eyes and weakly reached out for her mother.

Jinx threw herself down beside her.

"I’m right here, flea" she said, letting Isha’s fingers brush against her face. "It’s okay. You’re going to be fine."

The doctor took the notebook he carried with him and smacked Ekko in the chest.

"I understand your concern, kid, but next time, don’t break my window, will you?" he said, annoyed. "I would’ve come if you had just asked."

Ekko shrugged, embarrassed, and accompanied Heimerdinger as they walked the doctor out.

That night, and the next three, Jinx stayed awake, persistently watching over Isha, alert to any abrupt change in the child’s condition. But the truth was, it hadn’t been necessary, because after the second night, Isha improved considerably.

The little girl didn’t want to worry her mother any more, even though Jinx assured her that wasn’t the case. But Isha knew—Mom wasn’t sleeping because she was taking care of her.

The fourth night was different. Jinx couldn’t sleep, even though Isha was sound asleep beside her. The constant thought that her sister’s stupidity had almost killed her daughter kept her from closing her eyes.

She was furious—she wanted to make her pay.

She got up and walked to the platform in front of the mural at the center of the refuge. The fresh air helped her keep her thoughts in order. She needed to start planning something big—a way to welcome her sister to the new Zaun.

"Is not sleeping a habit of yours?" Ekko asked.

"Is spying on me when I don’t a habit of yours?"

"It’s my turn on watch tonight. Maybe you’re the one who came to spy."

"What a stupid idea. Why would I do that? It’s not like I enjoy your company."

"At least we have something in common. I don’t enjoy having you around either. The only reason I’ve tolerated it is…"

"Isha. Yeah, I know" Jinx interrupted. "Being here, surrounded by bugs, isn’t my favorite part of the day either. But I guess that’s how your stupid "temporary truce" works. So when do you plan on wanting to kill me again, boy savior?"

"You say that like I don’t already have enough reasons to. You killed dozens of my people."

"We were in a damn war. What did you expect? That I’d shake their hands and thank them?" Jinx snapped, her tone hostile. "Besides, do I need to remind you that you were the one who kidnapped my daughter?"

"I already apologized for that!"

"It’s not enough! It will never be enough! Because you took her from me, and now she’s formed some kind of bond with you. And that disgusts me."

"Why would something like that—"

"Because you’re not her father!" Jinx cut him off. "And I don’t want her getting the wrong idea about you."

The tension was palpable, the silence deadly.

"Then keep her away from me" Ekko said, fully aware that Jinx could do it without a shred of remorse.

That was his damn problem. She had no remorse. She was impulsive and ruthless, and if she wanted to, she could destroy everything. Destroy him.

He hated that about her. Hated her chaotic nature. Hated her with every fiber of his being.

"I will" Jinx declared, with all the certainty left in her body.

Rage crawled up her stomach. How the hell did he dare tell her what to do with her daughter?

He had no right. None at all. Because Jinx knew damn well that everything Ekko had done for them, he had done out of guilt. That’s what drove him—guilt, the need for redemption. And that sickened her.

While she tore apart a city that wanted to crush her, he reinforced its foundations.

She loathed him. Loathed the way he played the hero in a story that never asked for him. Loathed knowing that the moment she left this place, they’d cross paths again—with a weapon between them.

"Always playing the hero. Ever since we were kids. Ridiculous."

"It’s not my fault you convinced yourself that your life was so miserable that no one should ever do something good for you."

"I would’ve rather burned alive than let you help me."

"Well, you already did. How does that feel?"

"You’re an idiot."

"And you’re insane."

"At least I don’t go around thinking I can save everyone like some naive little boy."

"Because you’ve never dared to help anyone but yourself. The only thing you know how to do is leave destruction wherever you go."

Ekko stepped dangerously close to her, leaving barely a step between them, standing his ground.

"You’re a goddamn headache" Jinx spat.

"And you’re a goddamn hell"

"Then step away before you burn too fast."

Jinx turned away. Ekko grabbed her arm tightly, forcing her to face him again.

His hand moved to her waist, pulling her closer to close the distance between them.

And then, he kissed her.

Jinx didn’t even close her eyes. She could feel the anger in it—like he was trying to erase her along with himself.

Ekko pulled away, his expression unreadable.

That boy really did love dancing with death. Loved it so much, he looked it straight in the eyes—her eyes.

Jinx’s chest heaved with her ragged breath.

She lifted her hands, grabbing his jaw firmly, and kissed him again.

Ekko pulled her even closer.

He definitely loved dancing with death.

The following weeks, they both remained distant. Nothing had happened—absolutely nothing. That was how it was supposed to be… for both of them.

Because no, it wasn’t love they felt. Not even close.

They didn’t even know what love felt like.

It had been a mistake, a slip-up, nothing to worry about.

The refuge’s tree had started having problems—or at least, that’s what Jinx had overheard in the corridor rumors. Not that she cared. She was too focused on carrying out her plan to eliminate her sister once and for all.

And when, at last, both Vi and the Enforcer had fallen into her trap, she knew the moment had come.

She led them through the old tunnels, into an abandoned structure with a massive mural of Janna carved into the stone.

"Jinx!" Vi shouted upon entering.

"You finally said my name right…" Jinx growled. "Look at you, flooding the streets with Gray, suffocating people."

"We use the Gray to clear the streets, to protect them."

"I never thought my sister would side with the people above."

"I never thought mine would leave children orphaned."

"Ha! But you’re planning to do the same" Jinx gritted her teeth. "Put my face on wanted posters so someone else can do your dirty work? Poison our air? You’ve changed a lot, sister."

"We are not sisters. You killed my sister. And I’m done taking responsibility for all your actions."

"Then try and stop me" Jinx declared. "But if you try to take my daughter… I’ll have to kill you."

Jinx leaped behind Vi, hoisting a new weapon onto her shoulder, ready to fire. Caitlyn moved to attack, but Sevika was faster, knocking her away from her rifle.

No one could interfere in the duel between the two sisters. That was Jinx’s demand.

The younger girl reloaded the rocket launcher, aiming straight at Vi, who dodged the blast just in time.

Vi charged toward her, fist raised, and shattered Jinx’s weapon, forcing her to pull out her pistol—but Vi managed to snatch that away too. Against her older sister’s strength, Jinx was at a disadvantage, but her agility far outmatched Vi’s.

They fought with the same goal in mind: Isha.

Jinx was desperate to protect her daughter, to keep her by her side, to eradicate the greatest threat she faced. Vi, on the other hand, wanted to take an innocent child away from the chaotic madness of her own mother.

The fight raged on, both landing blows with their bare hands, until Vi finally knocked Jinx down, ready to deliver the final strike.

"Go on!" Jinx taunted. "It was always supposed to be you…"

Violet raised her fist, activating the gloves again.

That’s when Isha came running out of the shadows. She had followed her mom, and was grateful she had because someone had to save her.

The little girl grabbed her mother’s pistol off the ground and rushed toward both sisters, positioning herself over Jinx and pointing the gun directly at Violet’s eyes.

"No!" Jinx exclaimed when she noticed the older sister’s blow had almost hit her daughter.

Isha looked at Vi, annoyed, ready to defend her mom from the strange woman.

Violet finally recognized her niece; it was the first time she had seen her up close. Despite not resembling her mother, the look she gave her at that moment sent a chill down Violet’s spine. She looked exactly like Powder—the Powder she remembered.

Isha placed her finger on the trigger, mimicking her mom after all the times she had seen her do it.

Caitlyn fired, throwing the weapon far away.

"NO!" Jinx screamed, fearing for her daughter’s safety. Isha clung to her mother’s neck. "Isha, I told you not to follow me! Go! Let go of me! Get out of here!"

But the girl didn’t loosen her grip no matter how much her mother struggled to pull her away from her body.

Violet watched the way the little girl held on to her fiercely. How was it possible? If Jinx really was such a bad mother, then why was this girl willing to give her life for her?

"Stay away from her!" Caitlyn ordered.

"Cait, she’s just a child."

"Move, she’s not getting away again."

"Cait!" Violet exclaimed after deflecting a second bullet into the ground. "She’s just a child! She’s her daughter!"

Jinx looked at Violet, covering Isha with her body in case a stray bullet made its way toward her.

Sevika, badly wounded, activated the bomb system they had previously set up.

"No, no, no, wait!" Jinx shouted, covering herself against the wall, pulling Isha’s small body under her to shield her from what was coming.

The place exploded in small bursts, releasing a strong gust of wind that sent both Vigilantes flying.

They were gone.

The vents had redirected the Gray toward Piltover, but Jinx still couldn’t quite understand what had happened between her and Violet. Was she really still… her sister?

She felt a sharp pain in her lower abdomen and then touched her thighs.

Blood.

How was that possible? She wasn’t even injured, at least not with any open wounds.

That’s when she realized the blood wasn’t coming from any physical wound.

"I need to take you to the doctor" Sevika said, noticing how Jinx’s face had turned pale.

Maybe it was just a blow that had been too hard. Violet had hit her stomach several times, and the gloves she wore were practically made to destroy concrete.

She convinced herself of that, that Sevika’s excessive worry wasn’t necessary, because all it did was cause Isha more discomfort.

The problem became more tangible when she vaguely heard the words of the man in front of her.

"Oh, girl... you’re pregnant."

Chapter Text

He was messing with her. He had to be messing with her.

They definitely had to be messing with her.

There was no way this could be possible.

Even though Jinx was aware of what had happened that night, after that kiss, she forced herself to keep it inside, to forget it just as she had told Ekko to do.

"This never happened".

Clinging to that made her feel better—to the idea that "nothing ever happened." But now reality hit her like a bucket of ice-cold water straight to the back.

During the four weeks that had passed since the incident, ignoring what happened had worked well. Of course, she practically didn't speak to Ekko when she ran into him in the hallways and barely let Isha get close to her. The upside was that, thanks to what was happening with the tree, the boy had been too busy to bother her more, and she was fine with that.

But now, with this new information... there was no way to pretend nothing had happened, right?

"Oh, girl... you're pregnant".

Pregnant. Shit.

Fucking pregnant.

Jinx stumbled back clumsily, fumbling for her daughter's hand while Sevika tried to catch her breath.

They had to be completely insane if they thought she would go through this a second time. There was no force in the world that could make her endure a third thing like Jinx.

She grabbed the doctor by the collar, shaking him violently. She had to confirm what she had just heard; she couldn’t leave it up in the air. Though Jinx was sure her poor hearing was due to age.

"Where the fuck are you going?" Sevika shouted when she saw the girl leaving.

Jinx didn’t respond. She didn’t want to, and she genuinely had no answer. She couldn't go home—the Chem-Barons were lurking—and returning to the Firelights' refuge meant seeing Ekko.

She’d rather swallow nails than see him at that moment.

Sevika stopped her, shoving her hard by the shoulder.

She wasn’t happy. Neither of them was.

"I asked where the fuck you're going," she insisted. "Make sure he's still alive first. Shit!"

Jinx felt a sharp chill shake every nerve in her spine.

After all the blows she'd taken, the bleeding, and the stabbing pain in her belly, there was really no way that... it could have survived. How could it? How could it have survived Violet and her devastating blows with the Hextech gauntlets?

Maybe it was for the best...

Jinx tightened her grip on Isha’s hand and moved around Sevika, looking for the exit.

Isha tugged at her mother's sleeve, pulling her gaze down to her.

"Mama, are you sick?"

The girl looked worried. She was small but not stupid. In fact, she was brilliant—just as brilliant as her mother—and that made it hard for Jinx to hide things from her. But this time, she chose to stay silent.

She looked ahead, her heart pounding out of her chest.

Shit, what had she done...?

"Jinx..." the doctor called her. She barely glanced at him from the corner of her eye.

The man was an ex-Piltie—you could see it on his face. Jinx had heard Silco say he had come to Zaun because he had more morals than he could carry or maybe because of the guilt weighing him down, forcing himself to descend into hell to help the miserable Zaunites.

Whatever the case, she didn’t want to be anyone’s damn charity project.

"The Shimmer in your body," he began, "could have repercussions on the pregnancy."

The man took a step forward, and Jinx eyed him distrustfully, like an animal ready to attack.

"I know Silco had an expert on that... on Shimmer. Maybe you can find him."

"The nutjob Singed?" Sevika spat.

"Why would I do that?" Jinx asked.

The middle-aged man sighed and looked at her.

"The bleeding wasn’t a miscarriage, so the baby is still there."

"No," Jinx interrupted sharply. "It's not a baby. Not yet."

"You're right," the doctor swallowed hard, "but the point is, it's still there. The issue is that because of the Shimmer or... the blows you took, you now have what's called a high-risk pregnancy."

"What the fuck does that mean?" Sevika cut in. "‘High risk’?"

"It means she could lose the baby at any moment."

"It's not a baby," Jinx retorted.

Isha tugged at her mother’s clothes again, and Jinx gave her a weary look.

"Mama… what’s a baby?"

Jinx frowned and swallowed dryly, kneeling in front of her. She tucked the little girl’s curls behind her ears, just as she always did, because Isha's hair constantly seemed to defy her—just like her immense love for her.

"You are," she answered with a smile. "You are and always will be my only baby."

At least, that was what Jinx wished, despite what was beginning to form inside her.

On the way back to the Firelights' refuge, neither Sevika nor Jinx had much to say. Jinx wasn’t too happy about returning, but it was the safest place they had, and although her pride was choking her, she would never allow it to put Isha’s life at risk.

"So, what the fuck are you planning to do now?" Sevika finally spoke up as they crossed the last tunnel. "The people out there expect to follow a fighter who leads them, not a vulnerable young pregnant girl."

"Shut up!" Jinx elbowed her in the stomach to shut her up and glanced around, making sure no one had heard them. "I already told you I’m not following your stupid revolutionary ideas."

"But... the Jinxers—"

"I don’t give a shit about the fan club you’ve put together," she interrupted, fed up. "As for this problem... don’t worry, it won’t last long."

"You’re not sure."

"Trust me, I am."

Jinx's magenta eyes drifted past Sevika. Ekko was further back, several meters away from them, studying the tree’s condition alongside Heimerdinger. Feeling her gaze, the young man turned his attention to her. Jinx felt a bitter taste in her throat.

Should she tell him?

How could she do that? It wasn’t as easy as it seemed, especially when it was something that would soon cease to exist. Maybe it wasn’t even worth trying.

"I hate to say it, Leftie, but you’re right," Jinx said suddenly. "I’m not sure, and I don’t want loose ends."

The young woman turned and crouched to Isha’s level.

"Flea, you’re staying with the grumpy one for a while. Don’t run off, okay?"

Isha pursed her lips. Neither she nor Sevika agreed with Jinx’s decision, but before either could protest, Jinx shot off toward the tunnels they had come through.

Taking the girl to Singed would be serving her up on a silver platter. Jinx preferred to avoid adding another potential danger to Isha’s life—at least for now, when she had no patience for it.

She knew how to get there. When the man had “saved” her with the Shimmer, she had walked out of the place on her own.

She curled her lips, displeased.

She wouldn’t use the word “saved.” The torture she had felt was almost incomparable, even to the pain of giving birth to Isha. But thanks to it, she had returned to her. She didn’t even want to imagine what would have happened to her daughter if she had died when the girl was only two years old.

Silco would have taken care of her, of course, but it wouldn’t have been the same. Isha needed her mother, regardless of what anyone thought.

She was just a baby who needed her mama.

Just a baby...

Like the being now beginning to form inside her.

Shit.

No. She couldn’t think about that. She couldn’t dwell on it.

She couldn’t stay pregnant. She couldn’t have this baby. She couldn’t even let Ekko find out it existed.

It wasn’t the time for them.

Not the time, not the life.

And the only thing she would achieve by bringing that baby into the world was the same suffering Isha had gone through. It wasn’t fair. It hadn’t been for Isha, and it wasn’t fair for another baby to go through the same thing.

To also have the terrible misfortune of Jinx being their mother.

Without realizing it, she had arrived at the hidden laboratory nestled between Zaun’s dark and damp alleyways. The place was surrounded by Shimmer addicts, waiting impatiently and desperately for scraps.

Jinx entered unannounced, unhurried, her steps barely making a sound. The man didn’t even flinch, but she got chills. She couldn’t blame herself—not after everything he had put her through.

“But if it isn’t Silco’s little ruin,” he stated from the other side of the room, not even bothering to turn around to look at her.

Chills. He really gave her chills.

Jinx tensed every muscle, tightening her grip on her weapon.

“You come here on your own, yet you still think about attacking me from behind?” he mocked, utterly unconcerned. “After everything I did for you.”

“Tortured me, filled my body with that damn drug, turned me into someone else,” she shot back.

“Silco wanted it that way. He wasn’t going to let you die. You can’t blame him—we’d all do anything for our children, wouldn’t we?”

Jinx narrowed her eyes, her finger hovering over the trigger of the gun still holstered.

Half of Zaun followed her like some damned revolutionary leader, but the other half was desperate to find her and take Isha from her—use her, hand her over to Piltover, exact revenge. The possibilities were endless for the number of people who had a grudge against Jinx.

And the girl had no idea which side Singed was on.

“To what do I owe your visit, child? You’ve been missing for a while. Your head’s worth a lot these days.”

Jinx gritted her teeth.

“If you try to turn me in, I’ll put a bullet through yours,” she spat. “They won’t hesitate to loot this place afterward. You don’t have many friends down here, especially now that you’ve lost Silco’s protection.”

Singed let out a dry, ironic chuckle.

“Then we have a deal, little one.”

Jinx exhaled, resigned.

“Tell me about the Shimmer in my body,” she demanded, getting straight to the point. “How does it work?”

“In short, the same way it does for everyone—it enhances your physical traits. I believe you’re aware of the abilities you’ve gained. You’ve bonded with it, and it with you.”

The young woman remained silent for a long moment. She had to do this—there was no alternative.

“And… what would happen if—” she swallowed hard “—I were pregnant? What would happen to the baby?”

For the first time, Singed actually looked at her. With a depth that was unsettling.

Jinx held his gaze, determined not to show the fear creeping up her spine.

The man set down the tools he had been cleaning on the worktable and took a step toward her. The girl took a step back.

“The possibilities are varied,” he answered. “The Shimmer in your body acts as a defense mechanism. It could react the same way with the baby, seeing as it’s a part of you.”

Jinx inhaled sharply.

Was that why Violet’s blows hadn’t killed it?

Singed spoke again, pulling her out of her thoughts.

“It could also reject it until it ultimately expels it from your body. Your case is extraordinary, unique, Jinx,” he stated with pride. “No one has ever adapted to the Shimmer like you have, so I don’t have precise data. However, knowing the nature of the drug, the second option is the most likely.”

“‘Reject it’?”

“The Shimmer’s defense mechanism will detect the baby as an intruder in your body and begin attacking it until it causes a spontaneous abortion.”

He said it with a chilling, almost casual lightness.

“If you want real advice, don’t get attached to that creature. It most likely won’t survive past twelve weeks,” he turned his attention back to the tools he had been working on earlier. “Maybe that’s for the best.”

“What the fuck are you talking about?”

Jinx was starting to lose patience.

“It’s just that, if it doesn’t, the one at risk of dying is you,” he said as if it were nothing. Jinx’s eyes widened. “Many organisms, when unable to eliminate the evil within them, opt to eliminate themselves. Like a cell undergoing apoptosis, the Shimmer will try to prevent the spread of ‘damage’—which, in this case, would be the embryo.”

The look in Singed’s eyes after that made her chest tighten. Jinx left the place before the nervous energy in her trembling fingers became too obvious.

She had decided to take the risk and go home. She had to bother him, talk to him, even if just a little.

Just a little.

She sat on the desk, staring at the empty chair in front of her.

“I’m pregnant,” she said. A sharp sting of nostalgia struck her chest, and she swallowed hard. “And… you’re not here to scold me for it. Or to ask me what the hell I think I’m going to do.”

She eyed the chair from beneath her lashes, taking in another breath.

“This time, I have no idea. With Isha, it was different. She seemed to have arrived at just the right time, but this… baby—” she growled. “It’s not the time. Not now. Piltover won’t take long to launch more attacks after my little prank with the vents and the Grey…”

She stayed still for a second, waiting for a reprimand—but nothing came.

“The chem-barons are after my head too. And there’s a group of followers that your idiot subordinate insists on rallying for your absurd cause.” She hugged her knees. “It’s not the time to have a baby. I don’t even know how I’m going to protect Isha from what’s coming for us—how could I do it with another one? Isha is important to me. I really don’t want to mess this up…” She looked at the chair. “Maybe that’s what I was to you…”

But, of course, there was no answer. And that, more than angering her, shattered her.

“I know it’s what you always wanted, and that Sevika is right, and I owe it to you—and I need to do something about everything that’s happening, you know, because of the murder and all that, but…” She let out a guttural sound. “If you care so much about me playing your stupid revolutionary game, speak now or I’ll assume… I’ll assume you really are gone. And then I won’t have any reason to stay here…”

The girl hugged herself as the empty chair spun slightly on its axis. She was alone.

She no longer had Silco. Vi wanted to take her daughter from her. And Ekko wouldn’t even look at her.

With everything looming over her… what was stopping Piltover from taking that unborn baby, too? Just like they had taken Isha. Just like they had taken everything else.

Jinx returned completely downcast to the Firelights’ hideout. Unconsciously, she searched for Ekko with her eyes—in the corridors, under the tree, or among the branches—but she couldn’t find him anywhere. She tried to give it less importance than her heart was desperately begging her to. She felt desperate for a bit of support, some comfort.

When she reached her room, Isha greeted her enthusiastically, wrapping her arms around her waist, just as she always did. But Jinx felt a strange shiver, as if every small movement that could take the life growing inside her might end up killing her as well. The young woman carefully pulled Isha away, but the little girl immediately noticed her mother’s peculiar demeanor.

"Grumpy wants us to fight, Mom." 

She said, trying to ignore the tightness in her chest that made her want to cry.

Jinx shot Sevika a murderous glare.

"Are you fucking kidding me?"

"How else was I supposed to entertain her?" the older woman defended herself. "The brat has spirit."

"Shut up. You're not going to keep filling her head with your pathetic ideas."

"You won’t be able to keep up this fantasy for long" Sevika assured her. "No matter how much you want to pretend Jinx is dead, that she died after the vents incident. It won’t last. Sooner or later, you’ll have to fight" she glanced at Isha. "Even she knows it."

"She’s five!"

"And yet she has more guts than you."

Sevika stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind her.

Isha tugged at her mother’s clothes, pouting. Jinx knelt to her level, erasing the bitter expression Sevika had left on her face.

"Guess what I found on my way here" she said enthusiastically.

The little girl bounced excitedly, a wide grin spreading across her face.

Jinx pulled two vividly colored beetles from her pocket, both writhing frantically between her fingers.

"We can finally have our little battle, shorty" she grinned.

Isha grabbed the larger beetle from her mother’s hands and took it over to where she kept the colored pencils she used for drawing. She began decorating the insect’s shell. Once finished, she proudly showed her work to Jinx.

"Well done. Are you ready?"

Isha nodded.

Jinx placed her daughter in the center of the room with both insects in her hands and shot her a conspiratorial smile.

"Ladies and gentlemen! You are in the wrong place!" she exclaimed as if a captivated audience were watching them. 'A round of hooks and legs for the most horrifying and bloodiest spectacle you will ever see!"

She paced slowly around Isha.

"In the gray corner, we have our undefeated champion, the diabolical, the miserable: Stink Maw! And in the other gray corner, the challenger, the rising star, the one so terrifying even his own mother fears him" she teased, ruffling Isha’s hair and making her giggle, "the cruel and vile: Scuttle Butt!"

Jinx hugged Isha from behind, whispering mysteriously into her ear.

"Two will enter, and then… who knows? Trainers, release your beasts!"

Isha let both insects go onto the floor, where she and her mother watched their tiny, not-so-convincing fight.

Jinx grumbled when her beetle flew out the window after being knocked over by Isha’s.

"Congratulations on your victory" she said, watching the little creature disappear into the sky as a greenish speck, just as she noticed Scar arriving at the hideout.

A sharp pang in her chest made her hesitate. If he was back, then Ekko was too.

Isha tugged at her mother to get her attention, but Jinx was consumed by impatience. She had to talk to him, seriously.

She jumped off the bed and kissed her daughter’s forehead.

"Think about what you want as a reward, shorty. I’ll be right back."

And she ran toward the entrance of the hideout.

She stopped dead in front of Scar, searching for Ekko with her eyes, but to no avail.

"He’s not here" Scar said, noticing the persistent look in the young woman’s eyes. "He left this morning, hasn’t been back since. He shouldn’t be long."

Jinx pressed her lips together and, without even thanking him for the information, walked back to her room.

Why did Ekko have to disappear at that moment? He better come back soon. He had to.

She would kill him if he didn’t.

Jinx fell silent when she opened the door and saw the entire room covered in paint stains and small blue handprints across the furniture and bed covers.

She looked at Isha, drenched in blue paint. Practically soaked.

"Isha… what…?" she barely managed to say.

"I look like mama!".

The girl exclaimed, moving quickly and excitedly.

Jinx stared, mouth slightly open, at the mess the little one had made, all for the sole purpose of dyeing her hair blue. Her golden eyes, shining with joy, eagerly awaited her approval.

Jinx’s heart shattered.

She crouched to the girl’s level and used the edge of her clothes to wipe the paint from her face.

"But you already look like me" she said, fighting the tremor in her voice.

Isha frowned, pointing at both of their hair and her own eyes.

"That doesn’t mean anything" Jinx assured her.

Isha looked down and then raised her tear-filled eyes to her.

"They don’t believe I’m your daughter."

"They… who?"

Jinx was furious. If Isha weren’t holding her wrist, she would have stormed out to hunt down whoever had hurt her little girl like that. Countless painful tortures crossed her mind before Isha abruptly pulled her out of her thoughts.

"The kids, mama, they say I don’t look like you."

The child’s eyes were starting to well up.

Jinx swallowed hard.

Children could be incredibly cruel when it came to speaking without thinking. Isha wasn’t used to it; she had only recently started adapting to being around more people since they began living there. Jinx couldn’t blame her for believing everything she heard, even if it wasn’t true.

"What do they know?" Jinx scoffed, lifting her daughter’s chin. "We look more alike than you think. I brought you into this world. You’re mine, got it? Completely mine."

Isha pursed her lips. That tiny gesture was enough to bring Jinx to her knees because she knew that if the girl did it and she wasn’t there to console her, she would end up crying.

And Jinx hated seeing her cry.

"Come on, let’s fix this" the young woman said, trying to keep the sadness at bay.

She took Isha to the bathroom, cleaning the paint from her hands, arms, and face with gentle care. Finally, she used a bit more dye to make her hair even.

Isha’s strands fell almost to her shoulders as she admired herself excitedly in the mirror.

"Do you like it?" Jinx asked.

The girl nodded.

"Good. Now you look a little more like me."

Isha hugged her mother tightly.

Jinx understood in that exact moment.

She was everything Isha had, and Isha was everything she had. They didn’t need anything else.

They didn’t need to make their little family bigger.

Because having that baby didn’t guarantee she would be less alone than when she had Isha.

Silco was gone, and Ekko had simply decided to stay away.

She hugged her daughter even tighter.

Her greatest treasure, the only one she needed.

Besides, if she kept that baby… she ran the risk of dying with it. And she couldn’t afford that.

Dying wasn’t an option. Not for her.

Because that would mean leaving Isha helpless and alone.

And that would never happen.

She had to take care of this little problem before it got any bigger.

"Back here again? Don’t you think it’s a little late?" the doctor looked at Jinx with a gentle smile.

"Get rid of it" she cut in bluntly. "Take that thing out of me."

The doctor barely had time to formulate his next question.

"Are you referring to the embryo?"

Jinx pressed her lips together, letting out a small grunt of affirmation. The man took a breath.

"I didn’t think you’d want…"

"Just do it" Jinx sat down in the only chair in the makeshift office inside the man’s home. "I don’t care how, I don’t care what you have to do."

"Have you really thought this through…?"

Jinx almost killed him with her glare. He cleared his throat.

"Do you know why there are so many orphans in Zaun?" he commented. Jinx shrugged, showing little interest. "The healthcare system in the Undercity is precarious, Jinx. And abortions are too dangerous; mothers can die in the process. That’s why many women prefer to just… abandon their children in the streets rather than risk their own lives. Are you really willing to take that risk?"

Jinx swallowed hard. It literally didn’t matter what decision she made; the possibility of dying was on the other side, waiting for her.

"If you’ve truly made up your mind…" the doctor started.

"I have."

He nodded with a dry throat, leading the young woman to a second room where a metal table stood at the center. He handed her the only medical gown he apparently owned.

He gestured toward the table with his head. Jinx lay down.

"It’ll be uncomfortable" he warned.

"I’ve been through worse."

"I’m aware."

Jinx grumbled. The doctor turned on the machine beside him, a tiny blackened screen that seemed to have survived years in that state, displaying a blurry, grayish image.

Was that…?

The doctor frowned as he observed the image but remained silent. Probably fearing for his life if he contradicted Jinx.

He pulled out a peculiar device from one of the drawers, and Jinx felt a shiver run down her spine.

But before he could even try, the man hesitated.

"It’ll be impossible" he stammered.

"What?"

"The embryo’s size is abnormal. It’s possible that the Shimmer has accelerated its growth. This method won’t work."

"Then use another damn method!"

"There is no other! If I try, I could kill you. Do you want to leave your daughter alone?"

Jinx felt the lump in her throat blocking any further words. The doctor sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"I already told you, I’m no expert in Shimmer, but if we go by logic, the fetus is growing at a faster rate than it should. Not only that, but your body seems to have created a barrier to protect it."

"The lunatic said I would reject it."

"You will" he analyzed with some concern. "What it’s doing now is a recognition process. It’s protecting it because it still perceives it as part of your body. Soon, it will see it as an intruder and eventually expel it."

"Then this is a waste of time" Jinx spat. "Sooner or later, my body will get rid of it on its own."

"Y-Yes…" the man stammered, noticing the coldness in Jinx’s words.

"Good. Perfect."

The girl jumped off the table and got dressed again.

She left without saying another word.

The following days weren’t any easier, neither for Jinx nor for Isha. While Jinx tried to figure out how to survive the being inside her that could kill her at any moment, Isha kept her constant attention on her mother’s distant attitude.

Jinx was visibly distracted, sad, angry. Of course, she tried to hide it from her daughter, but it wasn’t easy to bear the weight on her shoulders—not alone, at least—and it had been days since Ekko last came back.

That also kept her alert and downcast, not because she missed him.

Of course not.

But the thought of him just leaving without a word made her sick. She couldn’t believe he’d be such a coward, and he didn’t even know she was pregnant.

Unless he had heard and that’s why he decided to leave. Abandon her. Like everyone else around her.

Her heart clenched.

She didn’t care too much, but it hurt a little.

That morning, Isha had asked her mom to play hide and seek before breakfast, but mom said no. Surprisingly for both of them, Jinx was too tired—more than she ever thought possible.

She hadn’t wanted to read her bedtime stories the night before either. To Isha, it was inevitable to think that mom was mad at her.

Maybe because she painted the room blue? Or because her beetle won the last battle?

Because mama still loved her like always, right…?

Maybe she was mad at Sevika for what she said the other day—she had practically spat in her face, calling her a coward.

And mom wasn’t a coward; she was the bravest person alive, and Isha would prove it to her.

Mama would be happy if she did.

And all Isha wanted was for mama to be happy.

"Isha?"

Jinx entered the room with a bowl full of the girl’s favorite fruits, which she had managed to snatch from the dining hall.

"Are we playing again?" she asked the air when the little one didn’t come out to greet her. "Remember, you promised to let me know when it’s a game… Isha?"

"They took her!" Sevika burst into the room, dripping oil from the hole where her prosthetic arm used to be. "She followed me to the rally. They arrested everyone… They took her to Stillwater."

A relentless buzzing, a disgusting hum filled Jinx’s head. Empty voices tormented her—Silco, Violet, Mylo. But this time, it was her own deranged voice mocking her to the very end.

"You have to be someone else, Jinx."

Someone else. Someone stronger. Someone capable of protecting her daughter.

Getting to Stillwater had been much easier than they anticipated, despite being only three arms and four legs. Most Enforcers were idiots.

Idiots with too much access to firearms.

Jinx flipped the entrance switches, opening each and every cell inside.

She heard the heavy and light footsteps of the Zaunite rebels approaching her. And she hesitated.

But that wasn’t her style.

"Here I am! Your big fat hero!" she exclaimed in a mocking tone, ignoring her own fears.

They looked at her with a glimmer of hope, one that told Jinx they had been waiting for her. She remained still as they touched her shoulders in silent gratitude.

They… didn’t want to hurt her? They didn’t hate her? She didn’t have to defend herself like she always had?

What was that feeling?

There wasn’t much time to analyze it—because Isha wasn’t among them. She ran through the stone corridor, damp with mold and dirt. She felt the pressure in her chest after opening three more cells and not finding her.

Silence. Too much silence.

And then, the whimper of her daughter struggling against a closed gate.

Jinx ran to her, unlocking the heavy iron door.

Isha looked up at her. Tear-filled eyes and a terrified expression. Jinx smiled as relief flooded her chest.

There was her baby. Safe and sound.

"Your hiding spots keep getting harder, huh?" she tried to joke.

Isha clung tightly to her waist.

For a moment… for a brief second, she had believed that mama wouldn’t come for her.

Jinx knelt to her level, cupping her face to reassure her with her gaze, assuring her that everything was okay now.

Because Mama was there.

The girl cried, worrying her mother for a second, but as soon as she clung to her neck, Jinx felt the peace that only Isha could give her again.

The Enforcers came up the elevator toward them, armed and shielded as if they were fighting an entire army. They only managed to take one step forward before a deafening explosion forced them to stop.

The elevator doors were pounded on, making the entire place tremble. Jinx stood up in front of Isha, pulling the child behind her back.

Terrified, the little girl clung to her mother’s pants with trembling fingers.

A massive creature entered with a roar. It was a monster—or at least the closest thing to one—its furry body a grotesque fusion of flesh and chem-tech. A beast that, at that moment, threatened both her life and her daughter's.

The animal tore through the guards in front of them. Jinx shielded Isha’s face against her clothes, unwilling to let her witness something like that.

She raised her gun and fired, but as soon as the attack pierced the strange being’s skin, it regenerated instantly.

Jinx glanced at Sevika out of the corner of her eye, feeling her labored breathing burn her throat. The other woman met her gaze. She had never seen Sevika look so afraid.

She felt Isha’s trembling hands digging into her body with small, desperate nails.

The beast let out another roar and leaped forward, getting closer and closer.

Jinx’s first instinct was to look at Isha. The little girl looked back at her, terror painted across her face. That expression sent a chill down Jinx’s spine—she trusted that mama would keep her safe.

But mama had no idea what she would do to get them out of there alive.

Then, she felt a sharp pang in her chest, spreading through every nerve in her body. She looked at the dismembered Enforcers lying at her feet.

No matter what, she had to get her daughter out of there.

Even if she had to risk her own life in the process.

But… if she did that…

She hesitantly touched her abdomen with the tips of her fingers.

What would happen to…?

At that moment, she felt trapped between a rock and a hard place. Life itself and that damned creature in front of her were forcing her to choose between her unborn child and the little girl now clinging to her with tear-filled eyes.

There was no comparison. The baby inside her wasn’t even a baby yet, and she didn’t even want it.

She didn’t. She really… didn’t, right?

But Isha was there, waiting for her mother to save her, expecting her protection, just as she always had since the day she was born.

How could she choose between a creature that wasn’t even fully formed inside her and the child she had carried and nurtured all her short life?

Her little ray of light.

Jinx couldn’t let anything happen to her daughter. That was her priority.

She was her baby. Her only baby.

And she would save her at any cost.

She turned to Sevika.

“Get her out of here!”she ordered, motioning toward Isha with her gaze.

Sevika had to pry Isha off Jinx, lifting her into her arms and rushing toward one of the cells to avoid the beast’s attack as it lunged at Jinx like a predator pouncing on its prey.

The young woman took a deep breath, reloading her gun and jumping backward as she fired. It wasn’t enough to stop the monster, but it did buy Sevika enough time to get Isha out of there.

Jinx watched as her daughter was carried away, desperate to run after her. To return to mama.

If she had had any other option, Jinx would have run after Isha. She would have wrapped her in her arms, and they would have escaped together. But that wasn’t possible.

She couldn’t allow it. She wouldn’t allow that monster to make her daughter an orphan. She wouldn’t give it that satisfaction.

And despite her conflicting feelings about the creature growing inside her, she wouldn’t surrender her life either.

A life that was only just beginning.

But the truth was that the beast wasn’t giving in to anything, and Jinx was beginning to lose strength. Her body felt weaker by the second, and she was sure it was because of the pregnancy.

Another swipe of its razor-sharp claws—Jinx instinctively shielded her stomach, and the talons tore into the skin of her arm, forcing a sharp scream from her lips.

If it was going to kill her, she would at least take it down with her because she wouldn’t let it roam free in this world.

The world where Isha lived—because her daughter, her child, had to live.

The creature slammed her against the hallway wall. Jinx felt her ribs on the verge of breaking—she couldn’t even stand. She dragged herself into a sitting position, facing the beast’s glowing, furious eyes.

She thought of Isha and how much she would search for her afterward, how she wouldn’t understand that mama wasn’t coming back.

And she thought of her baby, the one nestled inside her, unaware of what was happening outside, oblivious to the fact that it was about to die along with its mother.

And she regretted it.

For the first time since learning she was pregnant, she regretted that death was coming for her so soon.

That it would take the life growing inside her as well.

The beast huffed against her ear. And just as she felt its warm breath and a sharp pain shoot down her back, a broken voice called out to her—using the name that hurt the most.

“Powder…?”

Jinx went pale.

Once again, she felt liquid trickling down her thighs, shocking her back to reality.

The beast recoiled, shaking its head violently as if repelled by the scent of blood.

Jinx didn’t know what she should be more worried about—the monster now running off into some distant hiding place or the blood that might mean she had finally gotten rid of the thing inside her.

Finally…?

No…

Despite not being sure whether she wanted to keep it, she hadn’t wished for its death either.

She didn’t want it. She didn’t want it to die.

Because it was hers too. Just like Isha.

Chapter Text

The vents had redirected the Gray toward Piltover. Amid explosions of color and a foul stench of pollution, the City of Progress had fallen into despair, thanks to Jinx.

After being hurled by the gusts resulting from the deranged young woman’s explosions, Caitlyn and Violet ended up reuniting with the rest of their tactical team just a few alleys away. The Enforcer let out a string of curses into the air, her frustration and fury palpable. She was losing her mind.

Jinx was driving her insane.

“SHE LITERALLY MOCKED US RIGHT TO OUR FUCKING FACES!” she shouted, her voice choked with rage.

The battle had been brutal. Between Isha and Sevika’s intervention and the explosion that had thrown them out of the fight, there was no way she wouldn’t feel bad about it. No way she wouldn’t feel pathetic.

So pathetic.

“What did you expect?” Loris suddenly spoke, taking a seat on a brick and pulling a flask of alcohol from the inner pocket of his uniform. “After you kidnapped her daughter, I’m surprised she hasn’t burned the city down again.”

He took a long swig from the flask, catching Vi’s attention.

“What did you just say?” she demanded.

“That Jinx is crazy,” Maddie hurried to respond.

“No.” Violet shot a wild look at Caitlyn, who had been silent ever since Loris had opened his mouth. “Kidnapped? After the attack on the memorial, you said they were trying to present a ‘desperate and twisted revolutionary image’ to make Zaun follow them, because that’s what Silco wanted and Jinx was following in his footsteps… without caring about the risk she was putting her own daughter in.”

Caitlyn remained silent, expressionless. She didn’t even seem remotely guilty.

Vi grabbed her arm aggressively.

“The girl wasn’t in danger because of Jinx… You put her in danger, didn’t you?”

“I did what I had to do.”

“She almost died, Caitlyn!”

The Enforcer furrowed her brow, and with a swift motion, she wrenched herself free from Violet’s grip, slamming the butt of her shotgun into Vi’s ribs.

Her last look was icy and cruel, utterly merciless. Leaving Vi with a pain in her chest that far outweighed the one in her side.

What the hell had she done?

Now she understood the ferocity with which Jinx fought, the aggression she had toward them, the determined look in Isha’s eyes as she defended her mother’s life. Jinx was only trying to protect her daughter from her and her stupidity—from Caitlyn and Piltover’s yoke.

For the following weeks, Violet tried to find Jinx, but she never succeeded. The Firelights had changed the location of the entrance to the refuge. The one she had once crossed with Caitlyn was no longer there, and there was no way she could find the new one on her own.

Jinx had committed unforgivable crimes, and Vi wouldn’t overlook them. But she had to make one thing clear: the girl was no longer part of this. This was only between the two of them now.

When Jinx returned to the refuge, wounded and shaken, the first to greet her with tear-filled eyes was her daughter.

“Shit, brat!” Sevika grumbled as she felt the sole of the girl’s shoe press into her face while trying to shake off the grip the child hadn’t released since they arrived. “I told you, nothing gets rid of your mother. She’s like…” She glanced at Jinx and the blood staining her legs and the arm wounded by the beast. “… cockroaches.”

Jinx knelt to receive her daughter’s embrace. Isha clung to her, burying her face in the crook of her neck.

The young woman felt the tremor in the girl’s grip. She, too, had feared never seeing her again, so she hugged her back with all the strength she had left in her body after that fight.

Isha pulled away for a moment, analyzing the wound on her arm. She rummaged through the trinkets she carried in the small satchel fastened to her belt—one very similar to her mother’s—and took out a bandage, clumsily wrapping it around the wound.

Jinx smiled. The Shimmer in her body would heal her anyway, but she found it adorable that Isha always tried to patch her up.

To heal her body, just as she had healed her soul.

“Does it hurt anymore?”

The little one asked, glancing back and forth between Jinx and the poorly wrapped bandage she had done her best to put on.

“No, shorty, it definitely doesn’t hurt anymore.”

Isha smiled, relieved that her mom was feeling better, and clung to her neck again. Jinx stood up with the girl in her arms, meeting Sevika’s darkened gaze.

“It’s still there,” the young woman quickly said, noticing the woman’s eyes locked onto the trickle of blood staining her legs. “That… thing is still there.”

“How do you know?”

“I just do.”

“It would’ve been better if you lost it… What the hell are you going to do now? We can’t be in the middle of a war with a damn baby growing inside you.” She glanced at Isha from the corner of her eye. “I’ve had enough with one already.”

Jinx said nothing, because for the first time, she genuinely agreed with Sevika.

Before the older woman could say anything else, a loud knocking drew both their attention. The Firelights had gathered around the tree. A shiver ran down Jinx’s spine as she saw the portrait of Ekko beginning to take shape on the mural.

“Maybe you should get the hell out of here,” Sevika warned, looking in the same direction. “The kid leader hasn’t come back since then. They’ve been looking for him, but it’s like he vanished into thin air.” She glanced at Jinx from the corner of her eye. “They’re starting to think he’s dead.”

Jinx swallowed dryly, gripping Isha’s fingers tightly.

The bastard left, abandoning her while she was alone and pregnant, practically on the verge of death. How dare he just disappear? Dead? No. He couldn’t do that to her. Not now.

That bastard.

“She must have something to do with this!” a Firelight shouted, pointing his whole hand at Jinx.

Only a few joined in agreement. Most of them had been in Stillwater and at the memorial attack—they saw Jinx as the revolutionary symbol she was becoming. But not all of them felt the same.

Many Firelights had lost loved ones to Jinx’s weapon and madness. They weren’t happy with her. They had tolerated her only because of Ekko and the respect they had for him, but now that the boy was gone, it was impossible to stay silent about the fear her chaos instilled in them.

“She is one of us!” Scar countered, stepping in front of Jinx. “You all know you’re under Ekko’s protection.”

“But Ekko isn’t here anymore!” another Firelight shouted. “Why should we protect our greatest enemy? She killed dozens of us!”

“Exactly!” a third added. “What would you think of her if Blossom and your baby were among the dead, Scar?”

Jinx frowned, spotting through the shadows the mentioned woman—Scar’s wife—holding their small daughter in her arms. Instinctively, she tightened her grip on Isha, as if she could understand the fear Blossom now carried in her chest.

The hostile Firelights stepped forward. Jinx gritted her teeth, reaching for the gun at her waist. Sevika moved to her side, stepping forward.

The resentment they felt toward her was palpable, so sharp that Jinx feared it might harm Isha in the process. She didn’t think the Firelights would hurt an innocent child, but if they found out she was at her most vulnerable… would she be able to protect Isha?

She was beginning to bitterly accept it—the refuge, without Ekko, was no longer a safe place for them.

Jinx looked at Scar and, with a silent gesture, walked away with her daughter in her arms.

Going back home felt strange, especially after spending weeks among the Firelights. Home was exactly the same as always: a mess.

Though, they had to give Sevika credit for keeping The Last Drop protected from Chross’s thugs. He seemed to be the only chem-baron interested, for some reason, in maintaining control over the Lanes—as if there was really anything left to control.

The truth was that ever since what happened at the memorial in Piltover, the Zaunites had started rising up in arms against those above, regardless of which side they belonged to. As a result, Piltover’s repression and tyranny had intensified. They indiscriminately took anyone who wanted freedom to Stillwater and left them there to rot in their own filth.

Jinx had been turning a deaf ear to all of it, living in the fantasy she had built within the walls of the hideout, oblivious to the outside world and its political problems. But the fact that they had taken Isha had crossed the line.

“What was that thing that attacked us in Stillwater?” Sevika asked, unable to suppress the curiosity that had been eating away at her ever since she saw Jinx return alive.

“I don’t know… I’m starting to think my hallucinations are coming to life,” Jinx replied as she tucked Isha in bed—the little girl seemed to have missed it during her time away from home. “But if I could trust my mind… I’d tell you it was Vander.”

“That’s impossible, you deranged brat. Vander is dead.”

“I know what I heard. He… called me Powder.”

Sevika swallowed dryly.

“It’s impossible… there’s no way.”

“After he died… did you see what happened to his body?” Jinx asked, almost afraid of the answer. Sevika hesitated before silently shaking her head.

“The chemical technology in his body—doesn’t it remind you of something?”

“Singed,” Sevika answered immediately. Jinx nodded without taking her eyes off Isha.

“Shit,” Sevika muttered, pausing for a few seconds before continuing, “And now that lunatic knows you’re pregnant.”

Jinx froze.

“He also knows this thing won’t last long. I just have to wait for it to die inside me.”

“And if it doesn’t?”

“And if it does?”

“And what if you die along with it?”

Jinx remained silent. She didn’t want to think about that—not while watching her little girl sleep so peacefully in front of her. She couldn’t stand the thought of leaving her alone.

Since Isha was born, Jinx had fiercely protected her from the hostile world looming over them, from the ruthless Lanes and their sharp claws. How could she now just abandon her because someone else had decided to take her life away?

“Then,” she said, still staring at the child, “you better take care of her, or I’ll come for you from the dead and take your good arm with me.”

Sevika stared at her, motionless. No expression. No objection. She just watched her in silence.

There it was—she had sealed a promise with Jinx, likely the same kind of promise she had once made with Silco.

Now that Ekko was gone, Jinx truly feared that if she died, Sevika wouldn’t be able to protect Isha—that Piltover would come for her and throw her into that damn prison again.

That they’d leave her there for the rest of her life. Because Piltover had already proven they were capable of that and worse, whether it was a child or not.

Especially if that child was Jinx’s daughter.

Having blue hair out there was no longer just an issue—it was a symbol.

A goddamn symbol of war.

If she had to start a revolution to keep her child safe, she would. Just for her.

Jinx didn’t want to fight a war that wasn’t entirely hers—she was tired of putting Isha in danger. But they had left her no other choice.

She would take the war to Piltover, make them fall, burn the city to its foundations.

She would do it for her daughter. She would do it to give her a better future. She would do it so that Isha wouldn’t have to live what she had lived—what had haunted her throughout her childhood.

Because her daughter deserved more than just the scraps from above.

“Lefty,” she called out to Sevika before she left. “I heard my sister has spent the last few weeks fighting in the pits.”

“So?”

“Is it true she’s no longer working with Piltover’s dogs?”

“Why? Are you thinking of making amends with her?”

“Of course not,” Jinx replied with a determined look. “Gather your little band of misfits,” she said, a sinister smile forming on her lips. “Let’s burn Stillwater to the ground.”

Isha wasn’t used to waking up at night, but that time, when she turned to hug her mother like she always did, she couldn’t feel her there. The girl jumped out of bed and hurried across the room. Just as she was beginning to panic, she spotted her mother sitting in front of the broken mirror on the other side of the propeller that served as a hallway.

Isha hugged her, startling her and pulling her out of her thoughts.

“Isha, what are you doing awake?”

“You weren’t with me,” the girl replied, almost as a reproach.

“I’m sorry, flea, go back to bed. I’ll be there in a second.”

Isha tugged at her clothes when Jinx turned her gaze back to the void.

“Are you sick, Mama? Is it because of the baby?”

“How… do you know about that?”

“I heard Sevika.”

Jinx rolled her eyes. Of course. The child’s curiosity was endless.

“It’s nothing you need to worry about, runt. Go to sleep.”

But Isha insisted.

“What’s a baby? Is it the same as Scar and Blossom’s thing?”

“Yes, it’s the same.”

“You have one of those?”

“Not yet. Not entirely.”

But Isha couldn’t quite understand her mother’s answers. All she knew was that Mama was sick, very sick, and that it made her sad and worried—a lot. And the little girl hated seeing her mother like that.

“Why don’t you throw it away? Do you need it for something?”

Isha tilted her head, thinking that was the simplest and most logical solution.

It would have been. Jinx would have done it—would have discarded it like nothing—if only that had been possible and if her damn body hadn’t decided to mess with her even more.

“Don’t think too much about it, flea. It won’t be a problem, you’ll see.”

But it was. It was a problem that was growing at twice the rate of a normal embryo—or at least that’s what the doctor had said when Sevika dragged her in after she had been unconscious for almost an hour following a sudden fainting spell.

“One month for you means two months for the baby,” he told her. “So, if six weeks have passed for you… the baby is at the development stage of a twelve-week-old embryo.”

“So the time has been cut in half…” Jinx noted.

That was bad.

Disgustingly bad. Because if that baby ended up killing her, she had even less time with Isha than she thought.

And now there was no denying that her life was fading as the pregnancy progressed. Because after that, the Shimmer in her body began detecting the embryo as an intruder and tried to expel it at all costs.

“Don’t get attached to that creature. It’s unlikely to survive beyond twelve weeks.”

That’s what Singed had told her. Even the doctor had agreed. Everyone had.

Everyone except the creature inside her.

Nausea, vomiting, dizziness, and pain were constant and persistent—far stronger and more horrible than she remembered, much worse than they had been when she was pregnant with Isha; so much so that Jinx began to assume it was her body's way of getting rid of that thing.

She just had to wait.

Soon, it would all be over, and she could pretend none of it had ever happened.

But the weeks kept passing, and that thing inside Jinx didn’t seem to be going anywhere. It wasn’t as if it truly made itself present; it was the symptoms that reminded Jinx she was pregnant.

Very pregnant.

And, thanks to Shimmer, her natural maternal perception had become even sharper.

Jinx knew the feeling well, the one that told her something was growing inside her, because she had already experienced it with Isha—though, of course, the little one had been much more restless. As soon as she could, she started moving inside her mother at all hours, at any moment.

Jinx hadn’t minded—it made her feel accompanied. At least "talking to herself" wasn’t so frowned upon when she had Isha there, with her.

But this perception, with this baby, was different. The creature barely made itself known; its movements were weak, almost nonexistent, and silent. And yet, Jinx could feel it—growing, desperately clinging to life. And that broke her heart.

Because she didn’t want it. She didn’t want it to make things more difficult, to force her to make decisions. She didn’t want it to make her protect it, to make her save its life.

She didn’t want to be weaker than she already was because of Isha. She didn’t want to give it her vulnerability.

No. That baby had to disappear on its own, had to decide to let go of its mother and leave slowly. It had to do it before it was too late.

Because Jinx didn’t feel capable of holding anyone else in her heart besides Isha. She didn’t feel capable of protecting anyone else. Especially not after the father of that creature had simply decided to abandon them long before even knowing of its existence.

She had never believed that of Ekko, but that was her reality. The boy had been missing for weeks. Jinx genuinely didn’t know if believing he was dead hurt less than the thought that he had voluntarily abandoned her.

But it hurt all the same.

Isha wasn’t happy either. She was very scared—she didn’t like seeing her mother in pain, no matter how much Jinx tried to hide it. And carrying an eighteen-week-old parasite in her womb was proving to be no easy task.

To Isha, Mom was very sick, and that worried her. It terrified her.

She was terrified of whatever Mom had growing inside her.

Isha just hoped her mother would get better soon, so she could be the same as before, so she could give her the same attention as always.

So she could go back to being everything to her.

After the weeks they had taken to prepare the direct strike on Stillwater, the long-awaited day had finally arrived. Zaun wanted to see Piltover burn, and that prison complex was the first thing they would bring down.

For the Zaunites, it was a symbol of oppression destroyed. For Jinx, it was one less threat to her daughter.

The girl wasn’t used to working in a team, and even less did she want to lead one. She had simply accompanied Sevika, willing to give her every bit of her knowledge on explosives and surprise attacks.

She would do whatever was necessary to bring down Stillwater. No matter what.

Isha would never set foot in that place again. No child would.

They had arrived in boats, one of the many preparations that had taken weeks to put together. They carried no lights, only the moon above them.

There were at least three dozen rebels, fervently following the pale, weary-looking young woman.

"You look like shit," Sevika noted as they both took cover behind a wall to avoid being seen by the guards.

"Shut up," the girl barely managed to articulate.

Sevika snorted. After all these years, she had almost forgotten what it was like to go on a mission with Jinx while she was pregnant.

Of course, after Isha, Jinx had slightly toned down her aggressive impulsiveness, though Sevika preferred not to push her luck. She had already learned well that annoying Jinx while she was pregnant was a terrible idea—and she couldn’t afford to lose any more arms.

One truth was that Sevika noticed the difference immediately. Isha’s pregnancy had been less harsh; it had dimmed her spark less. It was evident that this one was consuming her emotionally and physically.

Maybe Singed had been right—it would have been better to get rid of the embryo before it got rid of Jinx. Now it was too late, and the only thing the blue-haired young woman could do was fight not to die along with it.

They moved forward stealthily; security had been reinforced since the last time. Of course, Caitlyn and Ambessa must have felt like idiots after two people alone had taken down their guards with no trouble.

Sevika glanced at Jinx, who nodded before tossing a small bomb with a wickedly grinning face drawn on it down the corridor where the first Enforcers stood.

Boom.

The nails inside the grenade left the Enforcers at a disadvantage, and the attack began.

The other Zaunites emerged from their hiding spots and, with clubs, weapons, rocks, and other blunt objects, fought the Enforcers. Meanwhile, Jinx and Sevika were setting up explosives all over the place.

They freed the prisoners, who quickly joined the cause. Stillwater became a battlefield between uniformed guards and civilians tired of oppression.

Either way, they were on the clock because they knew the explosives planted everywhere would soon detonate. The last thing they wanted was to be blown to pieces along with everything else.

"Let’s get the hell out of here!" Sevika ordered the group still standing.

Just then, a massive spear embedded itself into the ground beside her and Jinx, blocking their path to the exit.

Ambessa and Rictus watched them from behind, the woman's face twisted with rage. She had let the other rebels escape with the sole purpose of focusing all her attention on the blue-haired girl before her.

"So, you're the famous Jinx" Ambessa spat. "I imagined you to be much more… intimidating."

Jinx growled, narrowing her eyes.

The woman drew the sharp weapon from her belt and aimed it at her.

"I won’t waste this opportunity. You have no idea what a headache you've been for me."

Jinx kept her arms hidden beneath the cloak draped over her shoulders, covering almost her entire body.

"Must be awful to have someone half your age outsmart your security twice" the girl mocked.

Ambessa clenched her teeth and lunged at her with a guttural roar. Jinx jumped to evade her—it had been a swift move, but it took more effort than she remembered. She felt Rictus’ arms wrap around her neck from behind, lifting her off the ground as her breath was cut off.

Sevika struck the man hard on the nose, forcing him to let go of her. Ambessa attacked again, but this time, the young woman slid across the ground, grabbing her pistol and firing.

The older woman dodged the shot with a quick flick of her weapon.

Jinx clenched her jaw. Time was running out, her body was beginning to fail her. There was no way she could win in a fair fight—not like this.

"You look like a frightened cat" the Noxian sneered, a superior smirk on her lips. "A cat carrying too much weight."

Jinx felt a chill run down her spine and instinctively stepped back.

"It doesn’t matter how much you try to hide it, girl. It’s obvious you’re pregnant. I don’t know if you’re just stupid. Isn’t one kid enough? I bet she’s waiting for you, hidden somewhere."

Jinx remained silent, biting her tongue. Ambessa adjusted her weapon in her hands.

"Sooner or later, you’ll have to choose" she mused, admiring the blade’s edge. "Between one and the other. All parents do. And it’s the hardest choice a mother can make." She tightened her grip. "So, I’ll make it easier for you. I’ll let that little bastard die along with you."

Jinx felt her stomach knot.

She was the first to directly threaten the baby inside her, without hesitation, without remorse.

It was one thing to wish the pregnancy wouldn’t reach full term, as long as she survived—but to hear someone else say it, to hear someone else threaten that tiny, unconscious creature… it made her blood boil.

Ambessa lunged at her again, and Jinx made a final effort to dodge. She moved like a magenta lightning bolt, positioning herself behind the woman before landing a sharp kick to her jaw, sending her crashing to the ground.

Rictus hesitated, and Sevika forced him back with a final punch.

Neither of them could win this fight. They were at a disadvantage.

But for just a few seconds, time was on their side.

They ran as fast as they could, throwing themselves to the ground just as the explosives detonated.

The cheers of the Zaunites echoed across the waters surrounding the crumbling structure.

The plan had worked.

They had won. Stillwater was no more.

Isha welcomed her mother with open arms.

She had stayed in the care of a few thugs who still held loyalty to Jinx, men who had seen in the young woman the revolutionary spirit that Silco had spent years searching for.

In front of them, Isha appeared indifferent to her emotions—just like her mother. But when Jinx came close, the girl was consumed by the moment and broke down in tears, clinging to her.

Yet this time, Isha's crying stopped abruptly.

Something wasn’t right.

Something was wrong with Mama.

Because when she hugged her like always, like she had her whole life… she felt different.

Mama felt different. Very different.

She pulled away and looked at her with a piercing, curious gaze.

Jinx had done a good job hiding the eighteen weeks the embryo had been growing inside her—tight belts, cloaks draped over her shoulders—but she couldn’t keep avoiding it any longer.

Whether the pregnancy reached full term or not, Jinx had to explain to her daughter what was happening.

Sevika glanced at her from the corner of her eye, too exhausted for what was coming next, and walked off to the bar.

Jinx led Isha to Silco’s office, sitting her on the desk and kneeling down to meet her gaze.

Those innocent golden eyes always searching for answers in her mother’s.

"Do you remember what you asked me a few days ago?" she asked, her voice trembling. "About Scar and Blossom’s baby?"

Isha nodded.

"You asked if… I had one like that."

Isha nodded again.

Jinx pulled the cloak off her shoulders and lifted her blouse slightly, revealing her abdomen.

"There is one." she said. "Right inside Mama."

Isha’s eyes widened in shock. How was that possible? She didn’t understand.

Jinx couldn’t help but smile, a bittersweet ache in her chest at her daughter's bewildered expression.

"You came into the world the same way, you know?" she sighed. "That’s how you came to me."

Isha looked at her mother’s belly, then back up into her eyes.

So… was what was making Mama sick something like her? Had she made Mama sick too?

Did this mean there would be someone else in their little family?

A… baby?

Isha grabbed her mother’s hands in a hurry.

“Mama, are we keeping it?”

She asked with a deep frown—it was clear she wasn’t happy. She looked more worried than anything else. Far too worried for such a small child.

Jinx smirked at her daughter’s innocence.

"Honestly, flea, I don’t even know if it’ll make it. Do you… want us to keep it?"

Isha shook her head furiously and threw herself into Jinx’s arms.

The young woman understood the girl’s fear of being replaced, even if that was impossible for Jinx herself.

Isha didn’t want to lose her place.

Her toys.

Her space in the bed.

Or the rightful spot she had earned in Mama’s arms.

Jinx went pale. Of course, she wouldn’t tell her that… that baby could take Mama away too.

As the days passed, Isha became more demanding.

She cried much more. So much more.

She clung to Jinx constantly and refused to let her do anything.

The poor girl had to carry the weight of her belly and the extra weight of the child wrapped around her leg every time she tried to walk away.

"Isha, could you please—Ah!" she let out a sharp cry, feeling the girl’s nails dig into her skin.

Jinx sighed, noticing Isha’s face buried against her clothes.

She stopped and gently pulled her away. The little girl looked up at her, lifting her hands toward her, opening and closing her fists, her amber eyes shimmering with unshed tears.

Jinx felt a whirlwind of nostalgia; for a second, she saw her baby—her first and beloved baby—sitting on the bar, longing for her arms.

But this time, carrying her was more complicated; the Shimmer, far from helping her, was killing her from the inside, because her second baby was clinging to life with desperation.

She was tired and weak, feeling as if her bones could shatter at any moment.

Singed had been right: her body was turning against her because of that child, and there was nothing she could do but wait patiently for her death or fight to stay alive over her own son.

Either way, she felt like shit, because in moments like these, she had to deny Isha the comfort of being held in her arms.

The little girl withdrew her hands to her chest and cried even louder when her mother shook her head in silent regret.

Jinx knelt in front of her and hugged her tightly.

"I'm so sorry, little one, I really am."

Isha stepped back, tears still streaming from her eyes.
"

You don't love me anymore?"

She asked, landing the first and most devastating blow straight to Jinx’s chest.

Jinx tried to articulate something, but the words crumbled in her throat before her daughter interrupted again.

"Mama won't love me anymore when the baby comes..."

Sevika had said it as a joke, and now Jinx wanted to cut out her tongue, which only seemed to be good for saying stupid things.

Isha looked at her mother, her tearful eyes accusing her of not loving her.

She felt so displaced, so unloved.

That wasn’t Jinx’s intention—not even close. She didn’t even have a real bond with that baby yet, so how could her daughter, the child she adored more than her own life, feel that way?

Jinx took the little girl’s face in her hands.

"Isha, listen to me. Since the moment you came into this world, nothing has been more important to me than you," she said with unshakable conviction. "Absolutely nothing. Nobody matters like you. And that will never change."

Jinx grabbed the blanket from the bed and wrapped it around the child, covering her from head to toe as if shielding her from her own fear.

Isha felt the familiarity and warmth of a bedtime ritual her mother always used to put her to sleep.

"Come here, little trouble," Jinx said in a sweet tone that masked the pain in her chest.

She picked up the girl and sat on the old couch, placing her on her lap.

Isha looked up from her mother’s chest when she felt the slight discomfort of her mother's swollen belly in a place that had always been hers.

Jinx cradled her daughter in her arms and gently stroked her cheek, guiding her gaze back to hers.

"There is nothing—nothing in this world—that could ever make me love you less," she told her, almost anticipating her daughter’s thoughts. "So please, don’t look at me like that. Like you think I’ve stopped loving you, Isha, because the truth is, it’s the exact opposite."

She tightened her embrace, burying her face in the little girl's hair.

"Not a day goes by that I don’t realize my love for you grows with every passing second."

Isha lifted her arms, wrapping them around her mother’s neck, crying into her chest.

"Shh, my little ray of light," Jinx whispered. "Mama will never stop loving you, no matter what happens… No matter if one day, she’s not here anymore."

Isha loosened her grip, settling into Jinx’s arms, looking up at her with golden eyes still damp but hopeful.

She was still too young to understand that her mother’s life could slip away at any moment. But even if that happened, Jinx would never stop loving her.

Her love could transcend death. It was that strong.

Jinx stroked her daughter's face with a smile, pulling the blanket over her again as if it were an extension of herself and rocked her gently.

Dear friend, across the river...

She hummed in a soft, tired voice.

Since she was a baby, Isha had loved hearing her mother’s voice.

From then until now, that song had always connected them—it kept her calm, made her feel safe, bonded in love with her mother.

Jinx loved lulling her in her arms. She loved the feeling of keeping her beloved daughter safe.

My hands are cold and bare...

And then, a new sensation washed over her.

That thing inside her had moved.

Shit. It had moved.

Jinx’s heart stopped, but her voice kept singing—only because Isha had started to fall asleep.

Once more.

This time, it was a kick. A tiny, almost imperceptible kick.

A kick that assured Jinx that it was listening, too.

Did it… feel the same way Isha did?

No. That song was only for her, for her daughter, and that child inside her… wasn’t hers.

It couldn’t be hers.

No matter how much its innocent little mind might believe that its mother was singing to it, too.

Jinx felt a crushing weight of guilt in her chest.

"No, little one, your mother isn’t trying to soothe you. She can’t allow herself to feel that kind of love for you. I’m sorry."

The thought trembled in her mind in a voice that didn’t even sound like hers, because she couldn’t bring herself to call herself the mother of the creature inside her.

Jinx knew full well that at any moment, that child, now twisting inside her, could die.

And she didn’t want to love something only to lose it.

She didn’t want it. She really didn’t want it.

She didn’t want to want it.

The fear paralyzed her.

"Jinx...?"

Her heart stopped.

Ekko had entered the room—so silent he was almost a ghost.

Jinx thought he was one. A wounded, bleeding ghost.

After more than two months missing… was he just another hallucination?

"A-Are you real…?" she asked.

Ekko nodded silently.

"How…? Where have you been all this time?"

"It’s… a long story."

Jinx’s eyes flicked to the strange device strapped across his chest.

Ekko took a step forward.

Jinx recoiled on the couch, clutching Isha tighter.

The child was shielding her body, hiding her secret.

"Jinx, I need to talk to you. It’s about—"

"I’m pregnant," she interrupted.

The boy froze.

Silent. Stunned.

Jinx carefully adjusted Isha, resting her head on her shoulder to reveal her belly.

The pregnancy was undeniable.

Ekko hesitated, his eyes wide with disbelief, then took a step forward.

"Jinx… you have to get rid of that thing."

Jinx went cold.

Nothing terrified her more than loving something that might soon disappear.

Nothing… except already loving it and being forced to make it disappear.

Chapter Text

Caitlyn stepped into the dark room, an extension of the dungeons hidden beneath Piltover. Her footsteps—firm, strong, and unwavering—echoed as she crossed through the gate.

"We kept you captive when the beast came for you," she said, coming to a halt in front of the scientist. "You were the one who summoned it. I thought we were close to seeing the end of Zaun's vile abominations… If you don’t want to spend the rest of your life in a cell far worse than those in Stillwater, tell me what you're planning and how Jinx was involved."

Singed smiled.

"Jinx… is undoubtedly the common factor in all the equations we seek to solve, isn't she?"

"Cut the nonsense." Ambessa stepped forward. "After what happened with the beast, the girl came back just to destroy Stillwater. It will take our people years to rebuild everything."

"Am I supposed to pretend I'm overwhelmed by the news?"

Ambessa grabbed him violently by the collar.

"You're involved in all of this," she spat, "just like she is."

Singed stared intently at the Noxian’s face.

"It's always the same look," he noted calmly, "when someone covets a weapon."

"That beast… no one had ever seen a beast as savage as that one."

"There is no beast more savage than that," Singed assured. He then took a deep breath and pulled away as Ambessa’s grip loosened. "It’s not its fault. It was once a man, but I couldn’t restore his humanity when I saved his life."

"You're saying it's uncontrollable," Caitlyn jumped in, then turned to Ambessa. "It’s useless. A weapon that can't be controlled is of no use to us."

"There is a way," Singed interjected, "to control the beast… to make it more aware."

The scientist stood up and stretched his shackled wrists toward the two women. Caitlyn glanced at Ambessa, then signaled one of the Watchers to untie him when the older woman nodded.

Singed exhaled in relief as he massaged his wrists, raw from weeks of confinement.

"I imagine you already know," he said. "That our little blue bird is with child."

Ambessa remained silent. Caitlyn's expression was a bitter mix of astonishment and horror.

"Jinx has always been a unique case—the astonishing ability of a girl to completely adapt her body to Shimmer and its magnificent effects. When the child inside her comes to term… its blood will be more valuable than you can imagine. Something new, incredible. A new kind of Shimmer, one never seen before, one that will grant us the power… to control the beast."

Singed walked around them until he reached the wooden table on the other side of the room. He picked up the locket that held a picture of his daughter and gazed at it longingly, caressing the image with his thumb.

"Jinx could be the solution I’ve been searching for. That child… could be our salvation. The perfect catalyst." He sighed. "A child… for another."

Jinx remained motionless.

For a second, she truly thought she had misheard. Maybe it was just another of her hallucinations.

"You need to get rid of that thing."

"That thing."

Thing.

Why did it feel worse when someone else called it that than when she said it herself?

He had just found out about the pregnancy—he hadn't even known for a full minute—and he already wanted to put an end to it.

Ekko stepped forward, unfastened the strange device across his chest, and tossed it onto the second cushion of the sofa, next to Jinx. The girl stared at it curiously as Ekko knelt in front of her to get her attention.

"I'll take you to the doctor. I'm sure he can still do something. No matter how far along you are, he has to be able to do something."

His words sounded desperate, his voice exhausted. Jinx couldn’t quite grasp what was going through his head at that moment. The only thing she could think was that, simply, the boy didn’t want to be a father.

She couldn't blame him.

She had been scared too when she found out about Isha. At least she had some vague experience with pregnancies and births, but Ekko couldn’t afford that same luxury.

"He can’t. I already tried," she replied.

"You… you already tried…?"

"I wasn’t happy about the news either," she assured, her tone slightly accusatory.

Ekko swallowed hard and looked at Jinx’s belly, how it protruded beneath the black shirt she had probably worn out of necessity. A whirlwind stirred in his chest. A spiral of emotions.

Was that inside of her… his?

Of course, knowing Jinx, it was obvious that if it weren’t his, she wouldn’t have even bothered to tell him. She knew he had to know because Ekko was the father of that baby.

A baby that had yet to feel the warmth of sunlight, and yet already had to leave.

Because neither of its parents was happy about its arrival.

No, neither of them had really been waiting for it.

Jinx and Ekko exchanged anxious glances—one of them had to solve this conflict, one had to take the first step.

Isha stirred in her mother’s arms, the little girl frowned, rubbing her face against Jinx’s clothes.

"My little bundle of flesh," the girl whispered, gently caressing the edge of her face. "I’m here. It’s okay."

Jinx tried to stand after noticing that her daughter had drifted into a much deeper sleep than just a simple nap in her mother’s arms.

Ekko immediately stood up, carefully taking Isha to keep Jinx from going through the whole struggle of getting up. The little girl, still drowsy, clung to the boy’s neck.

Ekko carried her to the bed, gently laying her down, helping her loosen her grip, and tucking her in with a tenderness that made it clear he had missed her far more than he had even realized while he was away.

The girl smiled in her sleep, and Ekko’s heart pounded.

Jinx shivered. He adored their daughter—he had proven it more than once.

Jinx knew that if one day she were gone, Ekko would take care of Isha. He would look after her as if she were his own. He would protect her with his life if necessary.

But then… why not to the creature in her belly?

What would happen if Jinx died, but the baby didn’t? Would Ekko turn his back on it? Would it be that easy for him to do something like that? To do something that was so incredibly difficult for her to do?

Why wasn't it that easy for Jinx just to ignore it? To ignore the fact that something inside her was developing rapidly, and that if she didn’t act soon, it would come into the world to consume her life.

Before she knew it, Ekko was already sitting beside her, the strange device—one of his many crazy inventions—resting at his feet. Jinx couldn’t stop looking at it, at the lights it emitted, at its peculiar shape.

Ekko, too, couldn’t stop looking at her—at the curve of her belly, at whatever it was that the two of them had created, growing inside her.

"How long…?" he finally asked, breaking the silence.

Jinx lowered her gaze to her stomach, tracing small circles over it with the tip of her nails.

"It’s growing faster than it should," she replied. "Almost twenty weeks. That’s how long."

"Have you… been okay?"

Ekko finally realized that his tongue had moved faster than his brain. He hadn’t even bothered to ask how she was feeling—he had gone straight for the jugular. As if what Jinx was going through wasn’t his fault too.

Jinx narrowed her eyes. What exactly was she supposed to tell him? That she had been feeling like shit ever since she found out she was pregnant? That this baby was killing her from the inside? That her dumb Firelight friends had kicked her out of the hideout? That she thought she would never see him again, and now that he was standing in front of her, she wished he wasn’t—because instead of making her feel better, he only made her feel even more conflicted about the baby?

"I thought I’d find you at the hideout," Ekko continued. "Scar told me you had come back home."

Jinx nodded silently. At least the guy knew what was going on in his stupid tree. Ekko moved a few inches closer to her, but Jinx stepped back, frowning at him.

She could feel it—how her insides were beginning to stir. She could blame herself for that; at that moment, she didn’t know how to feel about Ekko, and she was sure that tangled mess of emotions was affecting the creature in her womb.

Don’t even try, kid, he’s not waiting for you either.

"I need to go back, deal with what I left unfinished at home," Ekko said again, pulling Jinx from her thoughts. "I’ll find someone who can get that thing out of you. Don’t worry."

When Ekko stood up, a sudden impulse stabbed at Jinx’s chest.

Don’t go. Stay.

That’s what her insides were begging, but she couldn’t tell if it was her own desire or the baby’s—hoping to reclaim the love that its father had never had for it.

Jinx said nothing more as Ekko walked out the door. The feeling in her chest soon spread to her belly. A small movement.

Tiny. So tiny. So fragile.

Like the tap of fingertips against skin.

She tried to forget it. To ignore it. What for? It would disappear anyway—one day, that tapping would be gone.

And that was for the best.

She got up and lay down next to Isha, slipping under the covers beside her. The little girl immediately curled into her in an embrace, completely used to her warmth—to the routine they followed every day after Jinx returned from the missions Silco sent her on.

Because no matter what she had to do, Jinx knew that every night, no matter how late, she had to come back to sleep beside her little one. For the child’s sake, and for her own.

Because the world was just theirs—only for them. It was only Isha and Jinx in the desolate world of the Lanes.

It could only be them.

Jinx tried to drown out the tapping in her belly with the beating of her own heart and her daughter’s.

And, unwillingly, there it was—a third heartbeat joining the sound of the other two. That sound, Jinx couldn’t silence. It echoed through the walls of her insides, making itself known.

Telling its mother that it was there with her. That it, too, felt safe by her side.

She lowered her hand to her stomach. This was how Shimmer tortured her—it weakened her. It was killing her because she rejected the baby inside her, wanted to get rid of it, but couldn’t. And at the same time, it gave her the ability to feel every little aspect of that child—its movements, its breath, its heartbeat.

Her heart couldn’t feel any heavier. How could she get rid of it? How could she let it go after hearing its tiny heart pleading to live? How could she reject it after feeling it move inside her? As if it was trying to communicate with her—without words, without sounds—just like Isha, her beloved Isha, did.

How could she deny life to a being that so desperately wanted to have it, to be in its mother’s arms?

She looked at her daughter nestled against her chest. Isha had found the perfect position to hug her without her mother’s belly getting in the way. She didn’t seem entirely happy, but she was adapting.

For five years, it had been just the two of them. No one else.

Would Isha forgive her for bringing a third person into their little dream world without asking her first? Or would she hate her forever?

Her grip on the little one trembled when she heard a disgusting, familiar, mocking laugh behind her.

"You’re just a little girl who wants to be loved."

Mylo muttered, spitting out a painful truth Jinx thought she had left behind with Powder.

The hallucinations had lessened since Isha came into her life, but after the pregnancy, there was no way to silence them—it was as if the ghosts in her head knew exactly where to strike.

"You collect kids just to feel less empty."

"Shut-the-fuck-up," Jinx spat, dragging the words out through the venom in her throat.

The idiot was wrong. Isha wasn’t part of some collection—she was her baby, her most precious treasure, the one she would burn the world for, every damned city in it.

And the little mistake growing inside her definitely didn’t make her feel any less empty.

Yes, Mylo was wrong.

But that didn’t make her feel any less like shit.

Either way, Jinx had more important things to think about. Her attack on Stillwater had forced her to pause her search for that beast she was sure was Vander.

Not even in her most twisted dreams could she have imagined that was possible, but reality was proving otherwise, and the only person she could turn to for help in dealing with it—much to her dismay—was Violet.

Jinx had been on high alert since returning home; after all, she was an easy target, and Piltover wouldn’t sit idly by after she had so brazenly destroyed Stillwater.

That’s why she couldn’t leave Isha alone anymore—she had to take her everywhere. Because Isha would always be safest with her mother.

They both walked through the cold streets of Zaun, ready to face the Lanes that had long since ceased to be what they once were. Most of the Jinxers had worked to protect and glorify Jinx’s image, but not all of them truly cared about her well-being, and she knew it.

She preferred to keep her guard up rather than regret being too trusting.

They reached one of the most dangerous alleys in Zaun. Jinx looked up above her head—the steel staircases snaked toward the rooftop of the building where she knew Violet was staying.

Her sister had nothing better to do than drown in misery and alcohol—Jinx was well aware of that, even if she didn’t know exactly how she had ended up that bad.

So pathetic.

She didn’t care much to know why she had distanced herself from her Enforcer girlfriend, or why that had made her spiral so far down—farther than Jinx had ever imagined she would see her sister fall.

She felt like she deserved it, after everything she had done—after almost taking Isha away from her. It was the least she should be paying for.

She wasn’t happy about coming to her, but she didn’t have many options to help her find her half-monster father in the shadows of Zaun.

Before entering, Jinx knelt in front of Isha, pulling the cloak tighter around her head.

"Don’t leave my side," she told her, "and no matter what you see, don’t get involved. Not again, please."

Isha scrunched her nose.

"She scares me."

"I know, flea, but don’t worry, you’re with Mama."

"And with Mama, I’ll always be safe," the little girl finished, making Jinx smile proudly.

"Smart girl. Let’s go."

Isha clung to her mother’s hand. The door to the room opened without trouble—it didn’t seem to have any kind of lock. The place reeked of paint and alcohol—a lot of alcohol.

It reminded Isha of the smell of the bar in its better days, when she would sneak around it without Mama or Silco noticing.

Violet was completely unconscious on what was supposed to be her bed. Jinx pursed her lips, visibly disappointed by what her sister had become.

Isha tugged at her mother’s cloak to get her attention.

"What’s that?"

She asked, pointing at a bunch of bottles Jinx couldn’t recognize. If it was alcohol, it was probably the worst kind—because only something that adulterated could have put her in such a state.

"Explore, but don’t put anything in your mouth, got it?"

Isha nodded and stepped away from her mother’s grasp, also keeping her distance from Vi’s motionless body.

Jinx walked over to the broken mirror above the sink. There was black face paint smeared all over the place. The girl knew well enough what her sister had been up to—underground fights kept Violet’s mind occupied.

Far, far away from her own problems.

Jinx heard her sister’s groggy groans behind her. When Violet opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was the blue-haired girl looking at her with a forced smile.

"You’re looking great, sis," Jinx said with a wary air. The older sister lunged at her, and Jinx tried to stop her. "Wait, wait."

Vi shoved Jinx against the wall, gripping her tightly by the neck. Amid the commotion, the first thing Isha did was run to her mother, hiding in the space between her back and the wall.

Violet still seemed to be under the effects of alcohol and whatever other substance she had decided to take to forget what she had done, but she couldn’t deny that Jinx had also been a thorn in her side.

"I don’t want to hear a single word coming out of your mouth," the older sister spat, her fist raised.

Jinx could feel the air escaping her lungs. One of her hands clung to Violet’s wrist, trying to push her away, while the other held tightly onto Isha at her back.

Her eyes were starting to water, her vision turning dark and blurry.

And then she felt it. The baby in her womb, that child who had barely made its presence known, moved frantically as if trying to escape, as if pleading with its mother to get out of there. It was terrified—Jinx could feel its fear.

"It’s Vander," she stammered with the little breath she had left. "He’s alive."

"We both know that’s a lie!"

Vi tightened her grip, pressing the younger woman harder against the wall. Her fury was overflowing, as if the resentment from Powder’s accident all those years ago had suddenly resurfaced after being buried for so long.

"V-Vi… please," Jinx’s pink tears became clearer, and she could feel the tiny, trembling nails of her daughter digging into her arm. "Don’t make her see this…"

Violet met Isha’s golden, terrified eyes, barely visible beneath her mother’s cloak, and suddenly released her grip, as if she had finally become aware of what she was doing.

Jinx collapsed to the floor, just as the fabric around her shoulders slipped away, having come undone after all the struggling. She brought a hand to her throat, trying to soothe the pain and catch her breath. Her gaze reflected the fear she’d had—that her sister was capable of killing her right in front of her child.

Vi stood frozen, staring at her sister’s stomach, watching as it moved frantically with her erratic breathing. She took a step forward, but Isha was quicker. With all the courage left in her little chest, she stepped in front of her mother, ready to protect her.

Jinx could see the countless questions in her sister’s eyes, but she wasn’t willing to answer them—not even if Vi had been brave enough to ask.

"After he attacked Stillwater, I followed his trail until I lost it in the mines," Jinx finally said, shifting the focus to her main objective. "He needs our help. I can prove it to you."

"And you just let her leave?" Ekko asked.

"You expected me to stop her?" Scar shot back. "The girl carries a gun like it’s an extra limb—I wasn’t about to argue with her. Besides, she’s probably better off out there. We need to do some serious cleaning here."

"I know," Ekko responded, surveying their surroundings.

When he returned, Scar had only been able to tell him that Jinx was no longer at the shelter. But now that he knew why, he couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling settling in his gut, as if the whole world had suddenly flipped upside down.

"She’s pregnant," the young man blurted out of nowhere. Scar stared at him, stunned, but Ekko didn’t even look his way. "It’s mine."

Scar stumbled slightly, unsure of what to say.

"Uh… congratulations?"

Ekko scoffed, rolling his eyes, and leaned his elbows on the wooden railing surrounding the tree’s trunk.

"She needs to get rid of it," he said, angry and determined. "I can’t let that thing be born."

Scar stepped up beside him, glancing down at the ground below, where Blossom was rocking her baby daughter, admired by a group of children who loved to hear her sing.

"Are you that scared?" he asked, catching Ekko’s attention. " For the Fatherhood?"

"It’s not that," the younger man insisted. "It’s… something much more complicated."

Scar eyed him from the corner of his eye and took a deep breath.

"It’s not so bad, you know? Being a father."

A shiver ran down Ekko’s spine. He hadn’t heard that word spoken out loud in reference to him before. He had been avoiding it, clearly—especially after seeing Jinx pregnant.

He hadn’t had time to process what he had felt in that moment. His mind had latched onto the idea of getting rid of the child, never stopping to consider that the child was his. His son.

He hadn’t even had time to think about how Jinx looked, carrying a completely new life that the two of them had created.

"I can’t be a father. Not to that thing," he told himself.

"And to Isha?" Scar pressed. "We both know that, even if Jinx won’t admit it, you care about her."

"Isha…" Ekko sighed. "She’s the reason I’m doing this. She’s important to Jinx. To me… I’d do anything for that kid."

"Like any father would," Scar said with a knowing smile, making Ekko’s ears burn.

He wasn’t her father—Jinx had reminded him of that countless times. But he couldn’t just ignore how much he loved that little girl.

"You do realize Jinx is the one carrying this, right?" Scar pointed out. "She’s the one with it inside her."

Ekko only managed a frustrated nod.

"Are you sure you want to…?"

"Yes. I just don’t know how—"

"There have been rumors lately," Scar cut in, "about a ‘healer’ in the Fissures. Maybe, if both of you agree on it, he could help you."

Ekko pushed himself off the railing, ready to go find Jinx again. Scar grabbed his arm firmly.

"Think it through, idiot," he said. Ekko looked genuinely surprised. "In the end, that baby is yours. I just hope you don’t regret what you’re about to do."

The path through the tunnels was lined with peculiar fluorescent mushrooms that reacted to sound. Violet hadn’t spoken a word since they left her wrecked room—especially not after seeing the mural that several Zaunites had painted of her younger sister after the attack on Stillwater.

For the people of Zaun, having Jinx on their side was practically a blessing sent by Janna herself.

One that would save them from Piltover once and for all.

"This is where I lost him," Jinx said, running her fingertips over the claw marks the beast had left in the wood.

She glanced at Isha beside her, giving her a silent signal to move ahead. Isha nodded and skipped forward, hopping between the wooden railway sleepers. She clapped her hands every now and then, lighting up the path with the glowing fungi.

"This is ridiculous," Vi spat. "When will you admit that it’s just another one of your delusions? Or do you not want the kid to know how psychotic you really are?"

Jinx came to an abrupt stop the moment she saw the slight movement of Isha’s head. She had heard it. And that was something Jinx wasn’t going to tolerate.

Because no one—especially not her stupid sister—was going to taint the image her daughter had of her.

"She’s just mad at me because I kicked her ass," Jinx teased, leaning down to whisper in Isha’s ear. "Or maybe she’s just a little bitter over her terrible breakup."

The girl smiled at her mother’s characteristic sarcastic humor. Vi bit her tongue.  

"See? Psychotic."

Jinx clicked her lips.  

"Did my madness make me imagine that you joined the Piltidiots who killed Mom and Dad?" she spat. "Or that they almost killed Isha and me when they decided to “clear” the streets with Gray?"

"At least they didn’t have to see the psychopath their daughter became."

"Which one? Wake up, sis. I’m the heroine. I freed Zaun from Stillwater while you were unconscious at the bottom of a bottle. So walk away before I kick your ass again."

"Ha! In that state?" Violet pointed entirely at Jinx with her gaze. "You wouldn’t last a second without your hideous gadgets and cowardly tricks."

Jinx felt a direct blow to her pride.  

"What about those oversized gauntlets you didn’t even build yourself?"

Violet dropped the gloves to the ground. If there was one thing that united them both, it was their sickly ego.  

"You think I need them to—"

Before she could finish, Jinx had already turned her face with a clean punch.  

"There it is. One second."

Jinx turned around with a proud smile, just as Violet yanked one of her braids. The younger sister lunged at her after dodging the first hit, and Violet spun her around again, pinning her to the ground, holding her by the shoulders and enduring the kicks Jinx threw at her ribs.  

"Do you think everything you’ve done is justifiable?" Vi shouted, enduring her sister’s kicks. "Getting pregnant, bringing a child into a world you can’t protect her from. Going back into danger while pregnant again? What are you expecting? To use the girl as a human shield again?"

"And what about you, fat hands? They killed everyone we loved, destroyed everything, took everything from us" Jinx spat, trying to break free. "They took Isha to Stillwater. THEY LOCKED MY GIRL IN STILLWATER!"

Jinx landed a punch right on Vi’s old wound with the edge of her knuckles, making her let out a genuine cry of pain.  

"And you joined them just to try to do to her what they did to us. You were going to make my daughter an orphan, you traitorous bitch!"

Vi was left speechless, the blow of reality finally hitting her right in the face.  

Isha threw herself at her, trying to pull her away from her mother, but when she couldn’t muster enough strength, she bit Vi’s wrist, the one pinning Jinx down. Vi reacted instinctively, slapping her directly on the nose, sending her flying away from them.  

A deep silence followed, and then Jinx’s instincts kicked in as she saw her little girl hurt, noticing the blood staining the ground.  

Isha covered her nose with her hand to stop the bleeding, her watery eyes holding back tears. She wouldn’t show weakness, not in front of the stranger who always tried to hurt her mom. She had to prove how brave she was.  

Jinx shoved Violet off her and rushed to Isha, lifting her from the ground. She looked at the little girl’s face and saw the bleeding had stopped.  

"Kid, do you still have all your ideas in your head?" she asked with a motherly smile that instantly reassured the girl. Isha nodded. Jinx ruffled her hair gently. "Tough kid."

The girl resumed her path through the mine’s corridor.  

"Just don’t wander off!" Jinx ordered, using a motherly tone she almost forgot she had.

Vi stopped abruptly beside her.  

"That day, when they used Gray to “clear” the streets" Jinx said, not even bothering to look at her, "Isha was with me."

Vi felt a punch to the stomach. That was something she hadn’t known, had never considered—that the girl had been with her that day. She had never thought that hurting Jinx would also hurt the little one.  

"That night, she almost died because of it, she got a fever, passed out, I thought I’d lose her… because of you."

Jinx’s words were sharp, cutting like a razor’s edge. Drenched in resentment and pain.  

"I…" Violet tried to speak.  

"Don’t ever use my daughter as a topic of discussion again. I looked for you because last time we did everything alone, life screwed us both, and because Vander is your father too" she glanced at her from the corner of her eye. "But there are things you’ve done that I will never forgive you for, and I don’t give a shit if you think what I did was unjustified. The only thing I’ve done so far is keep my daughter safe. So don’t come near her again. Don’t ever lay your damn hands on her."

Jinx could feel Vi’s gaze fixed on her stomach, could sense the question clawing at her throat.  

"I acted on impulse, it was instinctive, I never meant to hurt her. I think I deserve to know a little more about her. At least, you could tell me if the father is around" Violet inquired. Jinx remained silent. "Or… if, at least, it’s the father of both."

Jinx raised her weapon to her sister’s face, glancing sideways to make sure her daughter hadn’t heard anything. But no, Isha was too distracted by the glowing mushrooms lighting up beneath her footsteps.  

"Her father doesn’t matter. She’s mine. She always was."

"Do you always have to make everything so complicated?"

"Look who’s talking, the one who just slapped my daughter in the face, bitch."

At that moment, another sibling fight could have broken out if not for the thunderous noise that made the entire place tremble.  

Isha ran to hide behind her mother’s back. The dull sound moved through the corridor, igniting the mushrooms they had left dark behind them.  

"It’s him, it’s Vander" Jinx announced.  

Yes, it was him. The beast inside him, driven by its thirst for blood. The blood Isha had left in her wake.  

"That’s not Vander." Violet stepped back, instinctively placing herself in front of both of them.  

"Yes, it is" the younger one insisted.  

Jinx placed Isha behind her. The girl clung to her clothes with trembling hands when the beast loomed before them with an intimidating roar.  

"Vander, it’s me! Powder!"

But the beast didn’t react, not entirely. Vi had to land a clean punch to push him back.  

"He’s going to kill you!" she exclaimed, forcing her to back away.  

Isha tugged at her mother’s clothes. Jinx knelt before her, using the little time Vander’s confusion had given them.  

“Mama, I’m scared. I want to leave.”  

"Shh, it’s okay" Jinx whispered, caressing her daughter’s face, trying to ignore that Vi was holding off another attack. "Stay with me. Stay with Mama."

Vi glanced at Isha from the corner of her eye; the girl was scared, trembling in her mother’s arms. The beast lunged straight at her, but Violet managed to stop it again.  

"Shit!" she roared, throwing it far away. "Jinx, get her out of here!"  

The younger girl placed the child behind her as the beast once again locked its fierce reddish eyes on her, and she raised her weapon straight at Vander.  

"Vi, it’s him, you have to believe me," she pleaded with a trembling grip.  

Violet was afraid to relent, but something inside her screamed that she had already failed enough, and she lowered her guard.  

What followed after the young woman’s scream toward her father was something Jinx never expected to see: the beast embracing her older sister with longing.  

Jinx stumbled with a feeling she thought she had lost, stuck in her chest. Violet reached out her hand to her.  

"What are you waiting for? He’s your father too."  

The feeling flooded her chest, and Jinx couldn’t hold back the tears anymore. She threw herself at them, letting herself be enveloped in her father’s arms, while she wrapped hers around Isha.  

For a second, everything was perfect.

Vander pulled away from his daughters; he couldn’t speak—his remaining humanity wouldn’t allow it. But the way his eyes remained fixed on them was enough for both to understand just how much he had missed them.  

Isha peeked out from behind her mother’s back, catching Vander’s curious gaze.  

Jinx smiled, kneeling beside the little girl, holding her by the shoulders, proudly showing her off to her father—the adorable little creature she had managed to bring into the world.  

"This is Isha, Vander" she said. "She’s mine." She hugged the girl, rubbing her cheek against hers. "All mine."  

The child burst into laughter as her mother showered her face with kisses.  

Vi felt a shiver run down her spine. She had never imagined she would one day see her younger sister become a mother. A loving one, just like their own had been.  

As Jinx stood up again, Vander leaned in to observe her belly. His enhanced vision could see it clearly—the tiny figure of the baby growing inside his daughter.  

That small being, nestled in its mother’s womb, bringing its tiny hand to its mouth in search of comfort.  

Jinx noticed Vander’s condescending gaze and returned it with a similar one.  

There was no easy way to explain that this child wouldn’t be there for much longer. That the tenderness with which Vander watched it grow would soon vanish. That it wasn’t even worth pitying.  

That this tiny being was no longer allowed to remain inside its mother’s womb.  

Footsteps echoed in the depths of the mine. Rushed, heavy steps—military boots. Vi recognized them immediately.  

"Enforcers... "

"You led them here" Jinx accused.  

"No! Shit. I don’t understand how..."  

Before they could do anything, three grenades rolled to their feet.  

Jinx grabbed Isha in her arms, shielding her with her body as the grenade exploded. Vander covered the three of them with his strong armor.  

Jinx watched in horror as the bombs didn’t release fire, but Gray.  

Fucking Gray.  

Her frantic gaze darted around, taking in how the gas filled the mine, filled the air her daughter was breathing.  

No. It couldn’t be happening again. If Isha breathed that gas again, she could...  

"Isha" she cupped the child’s cheeks. "Can you hold your breath for a few seconds?" The girl nodded. But Jinx was terrified—terrified of losing her little one. "Brave girl."  

The gas started invading the adults’ lungs. Jinx felt the lack of air, the sting in her tearful eyes, the pain in her chest... and the little one inside her, stirring restlessly.  

Her heart clenched. She could do nothing but watch as the lungs of both her children filled with that damned gas.  

Her desperation was palpable. The desperation of a mother frantic to keep her children alive. To not let them die at the hands of those bastards from above.  

She didn’t want to become another martyr. Another name for Zaun to worship.  

Because if Jinx was capable of anything as a mother, it was sacrificing her own life for her children’s.  

If she could have, she would have surrendered without protest, without a fight. She would have done anything to keep them safe.  

Anything to keep them alive.  

Even give up her own life to save theirs.

Chapter Text

The Grey flooded the mine. Jinx could hear Violet’s chest spasming; even Vander looked truly uncomfortable with the gas filling his lungs.

The young woman looked at her daughter— the little girl seemed like she couldn't take much more of the air in her throat. What could she do? What was she supposed to do? Just watch her little girl suffocate to death from that damn gas?

Jinx gently caressed Isha’s face, with all the tenderness she could muster to hide her terror. The tears welling in her eyes barely had a taste—overpowered by pain and fear.

The hatred. The fury. She could feel them burning in her chest like a wildfire. A fervent flame, impossible to extinguish.

They were hurting her baby again.

Her babies.

Two emergency masks dropped suddenly in front of her. Jinx looked up. Ekko had arrived.

The hoverboard glided weightlessly along the rocky walls. Reluctantly, the boy tossed a final mask to Violet. She may have been an idiot, but they had once been part of the same family, and it wasn’t Ekko’s style to let her die there—not at the hands of the Enforcers.

Jinx reached out for one of the masks when, as fast as the wind, a bullet tore through the gas cloud and destroyed it.

She didn’t hesitate for a second to take the second mask and place it on her daughter’s face. Isha began to breathe again, and relief nestled in the young mother’s chest. A relief so immense, it could only be matched by the hug the little girl gave her the very next second.

But Jinx was beginning to feel the weight of the air in her lungs—she dropped to her knees, overcome by the suffocation and pressure in her chest, trying to hold back the spasms in her throat so as not to worry her daughter too much. The Shimmer was doing its job too well—her resistance to the Grey had diminished, or maybe it was focused on protecting the baby in her womb. Either way, it wasn't good for Jinx.

Isha couldn’t bear it. She couldn’t stand seeing her mother like that. But for Jinx, everything was okay—because at least she knew her little girl was safe from the Grey and whatever effects it might have on her. The last thing Jinx saw was her blurred vision barely making out Isha’s tearful amber eyes and her tiny hands shaking her lifeless body.

And then she collapsed into Ekko’s arms.

The boy had just managed to catch her before she hit the ground. He took off his own mask and placed it over Jinx’s face. The young woman started breathing again, but she remained unconscious in his arms.

Isha shook her mother’s limp body desperately. Ekko gave her a warm look to reassure her. When the Enforcers began to draw near, Violet picked Isha up in her arms—the girl only agreed because Ekko seemed to trust Violet in that desperate moment.

And they left the mine, trying to avoid running straight into their attackers.

Jinx woke up with a start, after coughing out all the gas that had built up in her throat. She writhed on the floor, coughing until her chest hurt. Isha ran to her, wrapping herself around her neck.

The young woman hugged her tightly—with all the strength left in her body. Her little girl was in her arms again.

“You’re okay…” she sobbed in relief. “You’re really okay… my little girl…” The relief she felt upon seeing her firstborn soon seemed to fade slightly, and she froze, placing her hand on her belly. “My…”

She dug her nails into her skin as the stillness settled in. Ekko’s lifeless gaze stayed fixed on her. Jinx avoided his eyes, her breathing ragged, her chest full of dread. She couldn’t help it—she just couldn’t.

Had she… lost it?

She met Ekko’s gaze. What they had both wanted for so long had finally happened.

That thing was gone.

That… thing… was…

So why… did it hurt so much?

The emptiness in her stomach, the pain in her throat—everything blended into a whirlwind of emotions that stopped the moment she felt it again.

A tiny movement. A soft kick that brought her soul back to her body.

The young woman felt peace return to her heart. She felt it again—that baby, moving inside her. She wasn’t supposed to feel relieved. She wasn’t supposed to feel this relieved. But she couldn’t help it.

She looked away from Ekko and stood up again.

The boy had already been informed of what was going on with Vander and how much the so-called healer Scar had mentioned might help the older man. Like it or not, they had to take that journey together, even though Ekko still seemed upset with Violet after their last encounter.

The journey wasn’t too complicated—they knew the paths to the Fissures well.

The Firelights had quite a few allies along the Lanes, allies who didn’t necessarily belong to their group but had offered help more than once. The problem was that the only way to identify a friend was by whistling—a distant, sharp, short sound.
A signal Ekko used to tell the darkness filled with potential threats that he was a friend.

Even though it was unlikely anyone would attack them with the colossal beast following behind, Ekko preferred to be cautious—especially with a child and a pregnant woman traveling with them.

Even if that pregnant woman was Jinx.

So, every time they entered potentially dangerous territory, Ekko would whistle this tune of camaraderie, preventing a possible attack from allies who didn’t recognize him.

To Violet, it seemed brilliant and clever that Ekko had made so many allies throughout his life.

To Jinx, it was irritating. Not only did she have to hear it, she also now understood why the Firelights had been so elusive when Silco was alive.

The young woman stopped in her tracks when she felt her stomach rise to her throat.

And she vomited.

Off to the side of the path, but she still did it. Jinx stood back up, straightening as if nothing had happened.

Violet remained still, unsure of how to react—understandable, she had never been around a pregnant woman before. She vaguely remembered it with Felicia, but she had been far too young to understand. As young as Isha was now.

Ekko approached Jinx and tried to help her.

"I'm fine," she assured, brushing off the boy's hand.

"Yeah, it’d be the ultimate irony if it killed you before it was even born."

Jinx stared at him, stunned. He had no idea. He really had no idea that was a real possibility, that it was the reason she had to get rid of the embryo.

But if that wasn’t what was motivating him, then why did he resent that child so much?

Jinx glared at him when he tried to help her again and smacked away his hand.

"You’ve got sharp edges, huh?" he spat with sarcasm and resentment.

Before she could say anything else, Violet called out to them.

They had finally reached the long-awaited sanctuary of the Herald.

"Vi, I was hoping you’d come back."

"Huck, you... filthy traitor," Violet growled.

"Yeah, that was me at my worst. But the Herald gave me a chance to redeem myself," the young man said, somewhat embarrassed. "Everyone’s welcome here. But I do have to ask you to hand over your weapons. This is a place of peace."

Jinx grumbled, rolling her eyes, and raised her pistol toward him. Isha clung to her mother’s clothes, glaring defiantly at the strange man.

Vander groaned, overwhelmed, and Ekko stepped forward, setting his hoverboard and weapon on the ground. Violet followed, and Jinx had no real choice but to do the same.

They passed under the arch, entering the sanctuary. The huts and other shelters were oddly uniform in design, filled with food, tools, and Zaunites who looked genuinely happy. Jinx was left speechless, as were her companions. It felt like a place completely different from Zaun— the closest thing to paradise.

They followed Huck to the end of the hill, where they came face to face with Viktor, the “healer” everyone had spoken about.

"They say you can heal people," Vi said.

Viktor looked closely at Vander and understood immediately what they were seeking. He approached the beast and gently touched his forehead, getting lost in his thoughts for a few seconds.

When he stepped back, Isha glared at him. She didn’t trust him— not really— because mama didn’t either.

Viktor turned his attention to Huck, asking him to take Vander and Vi somewhere they could rest and eat.

Isha clung to her mother’s clothes as Ekko and Jinx exchanged glances, analyzing the insistent look from the strange man— a gaze that soon shifted to Jinx’s belly, making her uncomfortable.

"We want to get rid of that thing," Ekko said hastily.

Viktor remained silent for a few moments.

"I understand your reasons, boy," he said, "but getting rid of that creature won’t solve anything—not while it’s still inside its mother’s womb," he looked at Jinx. "I know what you’re afraid of. You can stay here if you choose."

"Are you insane? What we want is for it not to be born," Ekko objected.

"It’ll kill me before it does," Jinx added.

"I can’t do anything more for you."

"The part about ‘it might kill me while it’s still inside me’ didn’t quite register with you, huh?" the girl snapped sarcastically.

Viktor gave a slight smile.

"Powder," he said, silencing them. "Even if I wanted to do something to extract it from your body, the process would kill you. It’s already too far along to remove. The best thing for you is to wait until it’s born, and once it is," he looked at Ekko, "you can leave the baby here. Let the community raise it. You won’t have to face your fears anymore. Neither of you."

"How do I know I can trust you?" the dark-skinned boy asked. "That none of what you say will turn out to be a lie?"

"You don’t. But I’m your only option."

Jinx remained silent. What frightened her was dying and leaving her daughter alone. But Ekko seemed to have deeper worries he wasn’t saying, and now she felt even more conflicted about the being growing inside her. What did it mean for their lives? What was Ekko so afraid of?

After that, Viktor spent days helping Vander separate his humanity from the beast he was trapped inside.

It was a hard process—difficult at first, because Vander wasn’t putting much effort into it; the beast in him resisted fiercely, unwilling to let the sleeping man within fully awaken.

But if there was one thing keeping Vander’s humanity alive, fighting every day to break free, it was Isha. That little girl who kept caring for him and looking after him. Just like she surely would have done with Silco.

Because Isha knew Vander was Mommy’s dad, and if he was okay, then Mommy would be okay too.

It had been inevitable for the girl to grow attached to him. Isha’s boundless curiosity didn’t let her stray far from her grandfather—she kept an eye on him to make sure no one would hurt him. Because even if he growled or looked like he might attack at any moment, Isha could see the kindness in his eyes.

“This place… Do you really think it could work?” Violet asked.

“An underground utopia led by a lanky Mechanical Herald? What could possibly go wrong?” Jinx mocked. “Maybe when Piltover’s in ruins.”

Violet watched Isha joyfully running around with Vander. For the first time, she saw her niece acting like what she truly was: a child.

Not a fugitive, not a fighter, not the daughter of a wanted criminal. Just a child, full of innocence, who deserved to live a full and happy childhood. Like any other kid.

“What if we stayed to help them?” she asked, hesitant.

“Both of us?” Jinx looked at her, confused.

For the first time in years, Violet had willingly come to her to build something together.

Together again.

“Think about it, this place…” Vi continued, “it could be everything we need. Everything you need,” she glanced at her belly, then at Isha, “everything they need.”

Jinx shrugged, wrapping her arms tightly around her body as she sat on one of the tallest rocks in the meadow. Violet gave her one last look before walking back to Vander to take him to Viktor.

Isha ran to her mother, proudly showing off her face.

“What did you do to your face?” Jinx smiled, noticing the pink paint under the girl’s eyes, similar to what the Jinxers and other rebels wore. “Did Sevika teach you that?”

“Ekko.”

Isha answered with a grin. Jinx let out a sound of disgust and rolled her eyes.

Isha returned to play with the other children, who were curious about her—her clothes, her behavior. Because Isha, despite being Mommy’s little girl, was bolder than any other child.

Jinx took a deep breath, and a second later, the little one was in front of her again, covered in dirt and with a few scrapes on her knees. She was holding back tears—Jinx had noticed it. The girl had slipped in the mud and, before letting herself cry in front of the others, had hurried over to her mother.

Jinx frowned with a warm smile and held out her arms. Isha didn’t hesitate for a second and, unable to hold it in any longer, started sniffling, breaking into tears and burying her face in her mother’s chest.

“There, there, little trouble… you didn’t hurt yourself too badly.”

Isha wailed. Jinx bitterly understood that, with the pregnancy, the girl had become even more sensitive. She needed her mother’s attention now more than ever, and Jinx wasn’t going to deny her that.

The child was tough, but also fragile. So fragile that her mother was terrified the world might break her, the same way it had broken her.

But Jinx knew one thing for sure—

As long as she was alive, her daughter would never end up that way.

She wouldn’t allow it.

Isha rested on her mother’s lap, trying to stop crying.

“Shhh,” Jinx whispered, stroking her hair. “Mama’s here, my little one.”

Isha looked fixedly at her mother’s belly. Inside was a baby that had just reached thirty weeks, and there was no way to stop its growth now. Everything was happening so fast that Jinx could barely process it.

The creature inside her moved, and Isha lifted her head, surprised. Jinx couldn’t hide her amusement and burst out laughing.

“Don’t worry, flea, it’s still too small to come out.”

Isha kept watching the movements, not quite understanding how something could be alive inside Mommy’s belly.

“Does it hurt?”

She asked after noticing a slightly stronger movement.

Jinx shook her head.

“You were worse.”

The girl’s worried eyes caught on her mother’s teasing smile. Isha was genuinely starting to believe that when she was that small, she’d caused her mom a lot of discomfort.

Jinx took her daughter’s hand and placed it on her belly. Isha jumped at the first kick, but her mother’s smile reassured her.

This time, her curiosity made her brave—she pressed her ear against Jinx’s stomach. The creature inside moved a little more frantically, almost joyfully.

“Did I bother you like that too?”

“Worse. Much worse,” Jinx said, feigning distress. “There wasn’t a single thing in the world that could keep you still—day or night. You were a hurricane inside me.” She sighed wistfully. “And… this one seems to only be moving because it knows you’re here.”

Jinx felt a tightness in her chest. She had spoken more quickly than she intended, driven solely by the maternal instinct to explain to her daughter what was happening inside her body right now.

She didn’t even notice that, just a few meters away, Ekko was watching them, with that same emotion caught in his throat. One he couldn’t quite understand, desperately convincing himself that what he was doing was right—despite what his heart was screaming.

Time continued to pass—so lightly, it was barely noticeable. It wouldn’t be long before they’d spent over a month inside the sanctuary. Vander had shown improvement, and for everyone, that was enough.

Jinx had occasional fainting spells, some bleeding, and looked paler than usual, but she remained conscious, fighting tooth and nail to stay alive.

Because nothing in the world, not even death itself, would force her away from her daughter.

The young woman sat beside Vander. The beast looked at her with his small, deep, tired eyes. No one else was around, everything was quiet. That place was a paradise— A very peculiar one.

Even Isha seemed happy, far from the war breaking out outside, far from Piltover and its threats.

Jinx pulled the cloak tighter around her shoulders.

“You’ve met Isha now,” she teased. “Silco… adored her, you know? I know he’s not an easy subject for you. I wish things had turned out differently.”

Vander growled, as if in agreement.

Jinx drew something resembling a smile and lowered her gaze to her belly, hidden beneath the fabric, drumming her fingers on her thighs.

"You already know I’m pregnant," she said. Vander looked at her, completely still.

Jinx kept her eyes fixed on her hands. A flash of nostalgia, of familiarity, passed through her. One day she had told one of her parents about her first daughter, and now she was telling the other—someone she had believed to be dead.

The damn irony.

"It’s a girl," she added. Vander tilted his head; he didn’t need to speak, Jinx understood the question. "I just know... It wasn’t part of the plan, but I guess that’s how you live—week by week."

Vander recoiled. It was Felicia. He had seen his beloved old friend reflected in her daughter, living through the exact same hell.

A pregnancy, a child, a life at the center of an endless war.

Jinx hesitated. Only she and Vander knew it was going to be a girl.

That the creature inside her belly, that baby, would be a girl.

She had mixed feelings. Awful ones. Because she thought about little Isha and what might have become of her if she had chosen to abandon her.

Just like she was thinking of doing with this baby.

Jinx stormed out of the hut with heavy steps. She was angry. Fucking angry. Because the baby inside her had decided to become a tiny tornado inside her guts and nothing could calm her down, keeping her from sleeping.

For the first time in weeks, she felt like that thing inside her was bothering her on purpose. With all the damned intent of getting revenge, of making her pay for being such a bad mother.

Breathing was torture, and the only reason she still did it was because she didn’t want to leave Isha alone.

Not in that damned, decaying world.

She sat down in front of the wide meadow of yellow flowers, barely lit by the moonlight. There was nothing more she could do—what was even the point of trying?

“Trouble sleeping?” she heard behind her.

A young woman, part of the community, walked up to her side. She was also pregnant, very pregnant. She sat down clumsily beside Jinx, the blue-haired girl frowned, uncomfortable. She preferred to be alone, but there wasn’t much she could do now to send her away.

“I don’t mean to bother,” the young woman said quickly. “It’s just… I come here often when I can’t sleep.”

Jinx shrugged. She hadn’t asked.

“The girl with the dyed hair… she’s yours, right?” the woman asked. “She’s beautiful.”

Jinx showed her pride with a smirk over curved lips. Her companion lowered her gaze to the grass brushing her bare feet.

“I guess… they’d be the same age,” she said suddenly, catching a sharp look from Jinx. “I lost that baby right before he was born...” A chill ran through both of them. “That’s why I hope… that everything goes well with this one, you know?”

Jinx froze and stayed silent. How could this stranger be sharing something like that with her? She didn’t even know her.

Now guilt started rising in her chest. That girl was suffering from the loss of her baby—it was obvious how badly she wanted the second one to be born. Meanwhile, ever since Jinx had found out she was pregnant, she had done nothing but wish that the baby inside her would just disappear.

Maybe she was the least deserving of being a mother. Maybe she had never deserved it at all. But that’s how the world worked, and now her body had decided once again to create life.

Without her having any real idea of what to do with it.

It seemed like the baby had heard her thoughts (just like her older sister once had), because she started kicking wildly. Jinx grimaced when one of the kicks landed right on her rib.

The young woman beside her smiled.

“They get more restless at night,” she said, caressing her own belly. “They feel your emotions too, remember that.”

The young woman’s husband came over to take her back home. She gave Jinx one last smile.

“Talk to her,” she said again. “If you talk to her, I swear she’ll calm down.”

Jinx wrinkled her nose in annoyance. She didn’t want to admit it, but the truth was, with Isha, she had never gone through anything like this—because she talked to her all the time.

Isha… had always been her companion. Isha hadn’t hurt her this much—physically or emotionally.

She took a deep breath, gathering her courage and holding it tight in her chest. She placed her hands on her belly and allowed herself to feel the little one inside.

“I don’t know why the hell I’m doing this,” she said. “I’m not even sure you can hear me. But… can you please let me sleep already? I need to rest, you know? There’s a little girl out here who needs me.”

A sharp kick.

“I know, I know, I know you need me too,” she sighed. “The problem is I’m terrified you won’t let me live… that you won’t let me see my little girl grow up. How the hell am I supposed to love you knowing that you could separate me from Isha forever?”

She looked at her belly, still moving—more slowly now, but moving nonetheless.

“How… How the hell can I love you already… knowing you could take me away from Isha forever?”

Her heart shrank, so small from the pain.

It hurt more than anything in the world—not being able to be the mother Isha needed, the one this baby needed. It was clear as day: nothing weakened her more than those two girls. Nothing made her writhe in pain more than they did.

That she really…

Truly…

Wanted to stay with that baby.

But there was no power in the world that would allow her to… no way she could give birth to her and watch her grow.

No matter how much she wished for it with all her strength. No matter how much she begged Janna with all her voice.

She knew she wasn’t allowed to be that baby’s mother.

Not in this life.

And that destroyed her. Crushed her soul.

“I’m so sorry,” she sobbed, a knot in her throat. “Forgive me for being selfish and choosing my life over yours. It’s not what I’m supposed to do, but I’m not ready to go. Because if I leave… if I leave you two alone… who’s going to protect you and love you like I do?”

In this damn decaying world.

How would two little girls survive without their mother?

How could she dare to do to them what her own parents had done to Vi and her? She would never forgive herself. She never could.

Jinx cried so bitterly, with such agony in her chest, that she didn’t even care that the baby, finally—after so many sleepless nights—had gone still, completely still, as if to stop bothering her mother.

She hugged herself, unable to bear the pain rising from her body.

She heard Ekko’s soft footsteps approaching—there was no need to look, it was him. Jinx was an expert killer; she had learned to distinguish when enemies (or victims) approached her. And Ekko’s steps… she knew them too well.

The boy’s steady hand landed on her shoulder, and she felt a shiver.

“I’m sorry,” was all he could say.

Jinx wiped her tears; she hated being seen crying—especially by Ekko. She didn’t want anyone thinking she was weak, because it wasn’t weakness she was showing.

She didn’t want to accept how helpless she felt when she gave in to her role as a mother.

She didn’t like admitting that one of her weaknesses was sleeping inside the hut she had just left, while the other one was growing inside her.

“You should be asleep,” she said accusingly.

“I thought it was our thing not to sleep when one of us couldn’t.”

“You’re taking everything way too personally, kid.”

“I wish I didn’t, but…” he glanced at her belly, “now that’s impossible.”

Jinx went quiet. Ekko’s words echoed in her chest—and in her belly too, apparently—because the baby, who seemed to have fallen asleep, started moving again, frantically, as if nothing she’d said to calm her had worked at all.

Jinx threw her head back, exhausted. Ekko couldn’t help but look at her, at how her belly seemed to hold a bunch of tiny butterflies fluttering gently inside.

“Aren’t you going to say anything?” Jinx snapped.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“I know you’ve been spying on me ever since you showed up again, and you’ve never dared to ask me about—” she motioned toward her belly with her eyes. “I know you don’t want her.”

Saying it out loud hurt more than just thinking it silently.

“Jinx, that’s not…” Ekko trailed off. “Her…?”

“It’s a girl,” Jinx replied bluntly. “I’m not blaming you. It’s not like we planned any of this. The point is, you don’t want her… the problem is… she seems to want you.”

Jinx clenched her fists, her nails digging into her palms. Ekko stood completely still.

A girl. Damn it. A girl.

“And now, thanks to you, she won’t let me sleep for the rest of the damn night,” the girl’s tone was threatening and biting. “So do something and calm her down or I swear I’ll make your life hell until we leave this place.”

“How am I supposed to…?” Ekko finally asked.

Jinx went quiet for a few seconds, realizing what he had to do. Her ears turned red and she looked down at the ground.

“Talk to her,” she said in a barely audible voice.

“W-What am I supposed to—?”

“With your mouth, idiot,” Jinx interrupted, exasperated.

“I mean, what should I say…?”

“Just do it!”

Ekko sat down next to her, closing the gap little by little. He had no idea what he was doing, but he leaned over Jinx’s belly.

“Could you… stop moving just for tonight?” he whispered, with more tenderness than he ever thought he could express. “Your mom’s going to kill me if you don’t, and trust me… she’s very capable. Although I think you’d be happy about that, and maybe I deserve it.”

Jinx blew a strand of hair from her face, but the baby kept moving.

“Guess it’s not one of your talents, boy savior,” Jinx muttered, resigned.

“What are you talking about? It can’t be that hard to—”

Before he could finish, Jinx grabbed his hand and forced him to place it on her belly. Ekko could feel her—feel that baby kicking from inside her mother.

Those tiny kicks, made by little feet, feet as small as the baby inside Jinx.

His baby. Theirs.

“You think I can sleep like this all damn night?” Jinx snapped.

But Ekko didn’t answer, didn’t even look at her. He was too focused on what was happening under his hand to pay attention to her complaints. Jinx hadn’t even noticed what she was doing—she’d acted on impulse. Once she realized what she’d done, she pulled away from him.

“Forget it, I think I can sleep like this,” she said, getting to her feet, grumbling under her breath. “Shit… now I want something disgustingly sweet.”

And she walked back to the hut as fast as she could. Leaving him there—frozen like a statue.

A statue with tears starting to form in his eyes.

Now… how could he pretend he was capable of doing what needed to be done?

The next morning, everything remained exactly the same. It was so peaceful it felt almost unreal—occasionally boring, at least for Jinx, who had been used to a completely different kind of life.

She was always looking for something to entertain herself with, but the truth was, she’d already tried everything; of course, always followed by the miniature version of herself who never left her side.

And really, Mom didn’t like the idea of losing sight of Isha, no matter how harmless everything might seem. Jinx had learned well that the only reason they were still alive was because of her mistrust toward the world in general.

They had snuck up to the top of one of the huts, having managed to steal a basket of fruit and a telescope Isha had adored the moment she saw it in one of the shops.

“You’re as slippery as an eel,” Jinx told her, proud, when the girl recovered her weapon from among all the junk they’d stashed far from everyone. “I knew you’d do it.”

The girl smiled proudly, happy to be praised by her mother. She observed everything closely.

Jinx looked at Isha with a smile. No matter what she did, the girl was no longer a baby who just needed to be held to be protected. She was bold, curious, and tenacious.

Just like her, she feared.

“I’ve had a lot of time to think lately. Since the moment you came into my life, it’s like I put on glasses, except I can’t tell if everything’s blurry… or sharp.”

Isha looked at her mother with curiosity. Jinx pulled her close with a playful grin.

“Come here, let me fix that mess,” she said, pressing an unbearably loud kiss to her cheek.

She began combing her hair. After all, her strands had started to fall over her shoulders, and the girl didn’t want to cut them—not until she could have hair just like Mom’s.

Isha could feel the gentle touch of her mother’s fingers braiding her hair. Nothing in the world could have made her happier than that.

For her—or for Jinx.

Ekko watched them from below, catching their attention with a whistle that was incredibly annoying to Jinx, and tossed a small cloth bag into her hands before walking away without saying a word.

Isha opened it quickly. Jinx swallowed hard.

Candy.

Part of her wanted to jump with joy, the other wanted to bury herself underground forever.

He wasn’t helping her. At all.

A loud boom pulled her from her thoughts. She could only feel Isha’s arms wrapping around her waist. Jinx covered her ears as a second explosion rang out near the entrance—near them.

The army, a miserably blended mix of Pilties and Noxians, had arrived at the sanctuary.

Ekko stood under the hut where Jinx and Isha were, while Vi and Vander looked ready to pounce on the intruders at any moment.

“We do not seek to harm innocents, but you must hand over Jinx!” Ambessa declared with a firm tone.

Vi scoffed as Vander let out a guttural growl at the sight of Singed among them.

The scientist stepped forward, ignoring the presence of his former experiment who looked ready to gouge out his eyes, and looked at the young mother with a calm expression.

“Girl, the baby you carry inside will end up killing you sooner or later,” he said. “If you hand it over now, you might live one more day.”

“What the hell are you saying?” Vi objected. “If she does that, not even the embryo will survive.”

“We don’t care if it does,” Singed continued. “Its blood already runs through her veins, that… is the only reason we’ve come.” He turned his sinister gaze back to Jinx. “There’s a jar in my lab… waiting for that creature inside you.”

The young woman felt a shiver of terror crawl down her spine—just like Ekko.

The man was definitely insane. Completely unhinged.

How could he dare treat an unborn baby like a lab rat? How could he do it in front of her parents?

He was dead. So, so dead.

Jinx knew that no one, in that whole fucked-up, decaying world, would lay a hand on that baby.

Because nothing in the world, not even death itself, would force her away from her daughters.

Chapter Text

The collision between realities had been caused by the selfish human desire to understand far more than what was allowed.

And Ekko hadn't asked for it. He hadn't wished to be involved in it.

In fact, if it hadn't been for Heimerdinger, he probably would have ended up with Jayce right then, because they were enemies, because his people had done everything possible to eliminate Zaun. But they both had a common goal, one that seemed, for a moment, much more important than the superficial war between both cities.

Powder watched Ekko with uncontrollable curiosity climbing up her throat. It was clear that the time they had spent together hadn't been enough to calm her growing anxiety.

"What is she like...?" she asked, glancing at him sideways. "The girl you left in your reality."

"Unique," Ekko replied. "Chaotic. A real headache. Untamable. Irritable. She's completely crazy."

Clearly, the boy had to tell her most of what was going on, because a "Hey, I think I'm in the wrong dimension" wasn't an appropriate way to approach the crazy situation they were in. Of course, he preferred to omit the part where Jinx had a daughter with some random guy five years ago. Powder didn't have kids, and it might have been an uncomfortable topic for her, especially if part of the young woman might have had desires to be a mother.

Powder smiled with one eyebrow raised.

"You can tell from a mile away," she said.

"What?" Ekko asked, not paying much attention to her mischievous smile.

"How in love you are with her."

The boy finally looked at her.

"If you just heard what I said, right?"

Powder burst into laughter, doubling over with stomach pain.

"Yes," she replied, catching her breath. "But you also had that sparkle in your eyes."

Ekko remained silent, looking at his own feet. His shoes untied after the night of dancing. He could still feel the sway of the dance they ended up doing until they collapsed exhausted.

Powder took a deep breath, letting her own weight fall onto her tensed arms behind her.

"If you'd told me a few weeks ago that I'd meet the alternate version of my boyfriend, I would have told you that it was crazy, but now..." The young woman looked at him, he stepped back slightly, anticipating her movements. "I hope you get back home."

Her tone seemed slightly saddened. Ekko stood up, watching her with a condescending smile.

"And don't avoid them," she told him, without looking at him, knowing she wouldn't see him again. Not that boy, not in that reality. "Your feelings. You'll only make them grow bigger."

Ekko said nothing else. He couldn't say goodbye. Somehow, it made him sad, especially because that world was perfect, it was everything they had ever dreamed Zaun could be. What he had always dreamed it could be.

The problem, the only problem, was that neither Vi, nor Isha… nor Jinx were in there.

He returned to the lab and turned on the machine with a hollow feeling in his stomach. A knot he couldn’t get rid of in his throat.

But what came after that was something much, much worse than being in a world where none of them were there.

After losing Heimerdinger, and after keeping the Z-Drive, everything seemed to fall apart.

Ekko truly thought he couldn't sink deeper into the hole he was falling into.

He was so wrong.

Coming home, to the war that felt eternal with Piltover, to face his feelings for Jinx, for Isha, and for his own people; all of that would have been easier than what he had to face after his strange device sent him to a reality that wasn't his either.

In it, Zaun remained in ruins because of Piltover. More years had passed than those in Powder's reality. More than fifteen, surely. Ekko noticed it immediately, when his reflection didn't show the usual young man, but a man with more years etched in his expression.

He could also feel that something wasn't right. In his chest, a feeling of desperation drummed, a pain so intense that he could sense that the soul of that version of himself was screaming in agony.

He walked the dim streets of the night, the same Lanes he remembered, somewhat more depressing, abandoned, but in the end, his Lanes.

If it weren't for the age he appeared to have, he would think that was his own reality. The reality he had to return to. The one he had to fix, no matter the cost.

Because Isha was in it.

A commotion in the street caught his attention. He ran when he heard the typical babble the Enforcers made when arresting innocent Zaunites or those simply trying to survive in the cruel world of the Lanes.

His instinct overtook him, the Firelight within him acted out of reflex, and he ran to help his fellow countryman, only to confirm that, as he suspected, a group of Enforcers with slightly more ostentatious uniforms and much heavier armor were arresting a woman who was desperately trying to resist.

Her blue braids immediately caught Ekko’s attention, and the boy stood frozen.

Jinx...

There was no doubt, it was her. Her blue eyes fixed on him with a wild and reckless gaze. A look so characteristic of her.

Ekko tried to come out of his hiding place, to approach her to help; even if in that world they might have been enemies, he couldn't let them take her away by the higher-ups.

Before he could do anything, the Enforcers froze completely, motionless while they held her against the alley wall.

A young Enforcer, a girl with an apparent higher rank, made her way between her subordinates. Her blue gaze was so harsh, so cold, and she had a grim, victorious smile.

Jinx looked at her with soft, terrified, and hurt eyes. Ekko knew that look well, the one full of guilt. He studied the young woman who was now pointing her weapon directly between Jinx's eyebrows. He analyzed her so thoroughly that her face and every feature were completely etched in his memory.

"I finally caught you, like the slippery rat you are," the girl spat. "Mom."

Ekko tensed every muscle in his body. His breath came in short gasps, barely passing through his throat.

It couldn’t be possible that this young woman was Jinx's daughter. She wasn’t Isha, it was clear that she wasn’t. In fact, looking closely, Ekko could swear that she had identical gestures to his own.

So, were they telling him that, in that reality, he and Jinx had a daughter? It wouldn't be the first reality where they seemed to be together, but still, it was hard to believe.

In every reality except his own.

And it was even harder to believe that this girl, already almost an adult, would end up pointing a weapon at her own mother. The one, for some reason, she seemed to hate with every fiber of her being.

The girl put her finger on the trigger, Ekko tried to scream, but his throat couldn’t take it any longer.

The Z-Drive began to spin frantically. He couldn’t stop it, and part of him didn’t want to. He wanted to get out of there no matter what.

The device began to blur his vision, and the last thing Ekko managed to hear was a dry shot.

Ekko disappeared into a temporal void. He was trapped in a completely white canvas, one that began to show him alternate realities, each worse than the last, but all with the same outcome:

Jinx being killed by her own daughter.

When he finally arrived at the reality he belonged to, he tried not to make too much of it. He didn't need to, after all, in his reality, he and Jinx didn’t have a daughter. There was only Isha, and that was enough.

There was nothing to worry about.

Nothing, except...

“I'm pregnant.”

It wasn’t some sick joke like Jinx's usual pranks. It was happening, it was really happening.

And all he could think at that moment was the moment when that... young woman had shot the other version of who would have been her mother.

So, all he could say was...

"Jinx... you have to get rid of that thing."

Before it’s too late.

Jinx could feel her heart pounding rapidly. But her body wasn’t trembling out of fear or distress. No. She was angry.

She was furious. Really, truly angry.

She could feel the baby inside her, moving frantically, just like her thoughts. She understood that her emotions were overtaking her and that it was affecting the baby, but she couldn’t help it.

How was she supposed to hand over to the crazy doctor the little girl who had just been rolling with joy inside her as soon as Jinx saw the bag of candy Ekko had brought her?

Just for her, just for that baby.

How was she supposed to give up something she was forming inside her womb? Something she had created, something that had cost her so much effort?

Ambessa stepped forward when Caitlyn’s figure finally appeared among the Enforcers who were guarding them. Vi gritted her teeth, almost biting her tongue. Jinx stood up, placing Isha behind her, the cloak draped over her shoulders covering nearly all of her and her daughter’s bodies.

She felt a spasm in her lower abdomen that almost made her double over in pain, but she ignored it completely. She had to do this, she couldn’t show weakness. Not even when her body was turning against her.

Not when the lives of both her girls were at stake.

Singed stepped forward, standing next to Ambessa and whispering something in her ear. It was something Caitlyn didn’t seem to fully agree with.

“I offer you a deal, young lady,” Ambessa announced loudly, signaling her people to lower their weapons. “Hand over that creature, and we’ll let you live,” she said, smiling at Isha, which forced Jinx to solidify her stance in front of the girl. “And her too. Be smart. Will you really sacrifice the life of the daughter you’ve cared for over the years to protect the creature you’ve never even met?”

Jinx hesitated. A truce? Definitely an idea formulated by the insane scientist. Only he cared so little about the war looming over them. He had a different goal than Ambessa, Jinx was sure of it. A selfish goal that involved… putting her younger daughter on a laboratory table.

She couldn’t help but shudder.

Caitlyn seemed visibly upset, suddenly her main objective, her idea of revenge, was slipping out of her hands. Jinx felt slightly pleased by that, just by that. Piltover’s number one dictator was finally experiencing things not going the way she wanted.

And before she could savor the moment any further, a damn pain made Jinx bite her tongue until she tasted blood in her mouth.

“Shit…” she muttered through clenched teeth, catching her daughter’s worried attention.

“Mama, mama, are you okay?”

The little girl asked, frantically tugging at her mother’s clothes. Clearly, the girl didn’t fully understand what was happening, the gravity of things, or the danger they were in if they moved too much.

A gunshot rang through the air, hitting the ceiling above their heads. Isha covered her ears, terrified, and Jinx instinctively threw herself over her, covering her completely with her body the moment she heard the bullet shoot out from the gun’s barrel.

“What the hell?!” Ekko growled, stepping forward with a loud thud, fully ready to attack at any moment. Even without a weapon, after all, he could take one from those bastards. He had done it before, and he would do it again without hesitation if Isha’s life was at stake.

“Flea, are you okay?” Jinx asked, analyzing her daughter’s body, desperately searching for any injury. She breathed a sigh of relief when the girl nodded, her eyes only watery from the fear the explosion of sound had caused her.

The young woman stood again, this time with the gun pointing directly at Ambessa’s head. The army’s weapons aimed at her. Ekko felt his nerves stand on end.

“She’s got a child with her, damn it!” the young man exclaimed.

“Caitlyn, this is madness!” Violet spat, stepping forward and immediately being stopped by a group of Noxians who pointed their spears at her. “She’s pregnant! She has a daughter! Not even you can be this damn evil!”

Caitlyn grimaced, noticing Jinx’s belly from her distance, trying to ignore the accusing look from her ex.

“Flea, move,” Jinx ordered. Isha refused, clinging to her cape.

Jinx shuddered at her daughter’s disobedience —which she had already anticipated—, they were dangerously close to pulling their triggers. Her stomach contracted in pain again, a pain so intense it spread to her back. She could feel the blood trickling down her thighs.

She cursed. She cursed everything around her.

The pain had increased, it was unbearable. Worse than when she had brought Isha into the world. 

They had to be messing with her. Wasn’t everything going on already enough?

This wasn’t the time. How dare this little creature be so reckless?

“Isha, hide,” she ordered again, her voice strained. The girl refused again, she couldn’t leave her mother alone, but the desperation was starting to consume Jinx. “Isha! Do what I say!”

There it was, mom was using that voice she only used when something really worried her. Mom only spoke that way when she was so scared she couldn’t change the tone of her voice.

Isha could begin to understand her mother, how much she loved her, and the desperation she felt to keep her safe.

The little girl took a step back, looking for a place to hide from the bullets that could fall on them at any moment, and slowly released her grip on her mother’s hand.

“We don’t have to do this, Jinx,” Ambessa said again. “You just have to come with us, or we’ll have to kill everyone here, including the girl you protect so desperately.”

“You won’t lay a finger on the girl!” Ekko roared.

The young man was more than ready to act, he noticed Violet’s knowing glance. He understood what she was trying to do; he knew that look well from when they were kids. But he also knew they were at a disadvantage, and if their target was Jinx, they would go after her without hesitation.

Before they could do anything, a loud metallic crash echoed through the sanctuary, making the invaders step back, even the refugees.

“I’m afraid I must ask you to leave.” Viktor made his way through, positioning himself in front of Ekko. “I cannot allow you to harm a sanctuary of peace. No army is welcome here.”

Ambessa seemed to want to object, but something in Viktor’s gaze made her step back, something she had never faced before. The Herald didn’t hesitate; he seemed unaffected, capable of facing an entire army by himself.

The Noxian leader looked at Caitlyn and ordered her to retreat with her people. The Piltover commander reluctantly agreed, and both made their way back the way they had come.

Things weren’t over yet, but they managed to catch a break, one that Jinx needed more than anyone.

The young woman finally doubled over in pain, clutching her throbbing stomach tightly when she saw the hostiles retreating. She swallowed a scream in her throat. The pain was beginning to tear her apart from the inside.

Isha ran to her, trying to hold the weight of her mother’s exhausted body. Her amber eyes were flooded with worried tears. Had they hurt her? Had they hurt mama? Why was she bleeding? What was hurting her?

Ekko rushed to Jinx, supporting her by the shoulders to help Isha, before the young woman collapsed completely to the ground.

“Shit…” the young man muttered, feeling the soul drain from the fragile shoulders of the young woman.

Jinx locked eyes with his brown ones, he looked as distressed as she felt.

“This can’t be happening, not now,” the young woman stammered, her voice crackling. “It’s too soon…”

Ekko didn’t say anything. He had no words for what was happening. He just scooped the young woman into his arms.

Isha clung to the young man’s sleeve, insistently pointing at her mother. She wanted to know where they were taking her, what they would do with her, what was happening to her.

But Ekko was completely silent. The only thing on his mind were the thousands of possibilities that Jinx might not make it out of this alive. There was no way he could tell the girl.

Jinx didn’t even have the strength to try to explain things to her daughter. She hadn’t had time to explain what childbirth was, because she never thought she’d need to, never thought it would come to this, but now she felt uneasy about the uncertainty gnawing at the little one.

“Girl,” Violet called, kneeling in front of her and taking her by the shoulders. “Your mom will be fine, but you can’t be with her right now.”

Isha didn’t seem to care much about what Vi was saying. She wanted to be with mama, she wanted to go with her, and seeing her in Ekko’s arms, almost completely unconscious, was torturing her.

She tried to run to them, but Vi stopped her, this time showing her a pleading look that made Isha focus her attention on her.

“Vander will stay with you, I need you to take care of him. Could you do that?” the older woman said. “He’ll need someone brave to calm him down until it’s all over.”

Isha looked at her mom, and Vi insisted.

“She’ll be fine, don’t worry.”

The little girl finally agreed. And, for the first time in years, Jinx seemed to look at her sister with a look of slight gratitude.

Jinx had always been tolerant of pain; she had never given in to it, not even when faced with open wounds or broken bones. But what was happening inside her now was killing her.

Because she not only had to deal with the physical pain but with the fucking idea that, if she didn't make it out of there alive, she'd leave her little daughter all alone.

Isha alone, on a silver platter, to be devoured mercilessly by the Lanes.

Jinx hated being vulnerable, but it was far worse being vulnerable in an unfamiliar place, in a place where she didn’t belong.

There she was, enduring a second labor, trying not to scream too loudly so as not to scare Isha, who was waiting for her outside with Vander.

Chaos. Again, chaos.

And it was as horrible as she remembered.

The pain felt like an unbearable mix between the tearing of flesh and the breaking of bones, sharp pains that spread throughout every part of her body.

A torment that lasted an eternity, or at least that's how it felt to her, and probably to everyone else in the room.

Then everything, just like the sea after a storm, calmed down. The fucking pain that had been coursing through her since the womb ceased.

It gave way to an abrupt, deadly silence.

Jinx remained there, breathing heavily, staring at the marble ceiling that barely reflected the beginning of dusk.

So much calm. So much silence.

With Isha, it hadn’t been like this. Jinx remembered the day Isha was born, from the first second she expelled her from her body, from the first second the girl arrived into the world, the first thing she heard was her cry.

Why had this time been different? Why was everything so quiet?

She sat up to look at the woman acting as the midwife in front of her, and the shadowed expression on her face. Every bone in Jinx’s body, every nerve, was torn apart by an uncontrollable wave of pain.

"She should be crying..." Jinx spoke with forced naivety. "Why isn't she crying...?"

"The birth came too early," the midwife said in a desolate tone." She... was still too small for life."

Violet hesitated from across the room. Ekko didn’t even move.

Too small for life? Bullshit. No, Jinx wouldn’t accept that.

There was no way she would accept something like that.

So she ignored it, ignored the absurd explanation the woman gave her, because it was obvious she was wrong.

"Why the fuck isn't she crying?!" Jinx demanded again, her voice torn.

She managed to look at the little bundle of flesh in the woman’s arms.

Motionless. So still. So horrifyingly still.

Not making a single sound and with skin that looked almost grayish.

Jinx tried to get up from the bed, even though just a single movement could kill her from pain, but seeing the baby’s small, bare feet dangling carelessly from the midwife’s hold filled her with an uncontrollable desperation.

She had to run to her, she had to take her in her arms, because surely that would be enough.

The warmth of her mother should be enough.

She dragged herself between the blankets, no one stopped her. No one could. No one wanted to.

The midwife handed her the baby as soon as she was in front of her, not even hesitating. How could she deny a mother the chance to see her daughter for the first... and last time?

Jinx took her carefully, as if she could hurt her more with the clumsiness dominating her movements due to the pain. She watched as the tiny body filled her hands. She was such a small girl, too small.

So... painfully small.

Maybe... too small to survive in a fucked-up, cruel world.

Her features were so gentle and calm, as if she were just sleeping. Her body still held the warmth of her birth, a warmth that, to Jinx's agony, was fading with every damned second.

And she, even being her mother, couldn’t do anything to stop time, to prevent the fucking time from taking her daughter from her cold hands.

No matter how much she tried, no matter how much she begged Janna to keep her by her side.

"Wake up, little one," she begged, pinching her cheek, just like she did to wake Isha in the mornings. "Please... you’ve slept enough."

Please.

There was no movement, absolutely nothing, not even the faintest rise and fall of her tiny chest showing signs of breathing.

She pressed the frail face of the baby against her own, and from between her dry lips, the sobs began to escape, one so heart-wrenching that it shredded her throat.

She felt like a part of her had been lost forever with that innocent little one, a part of her lost forever in the still chest of that tiny creature.

And then she realized how terrible it had been to reject her long before she was even born.

“Maybe if you had wanted her from the start, she wouldn’t be d-e-a-d.”

She swore she heard Mylo whispering in her ear, staring at the baby’s body with his empty eyes. But she couldn’t even demand that he shut up. She didn’t have the strength for that.

Besides, he... was right.

Now there was no way to prove to the world that she truly, truly, wanted to keep that baby.

"Please..." she murmured almost to herself, rubbing her tear-streaked face against the baby’s cheek. "Please, Janna... Please... not yet. Don’t take her, not like this..." her voice trembled and broke through the sobs. "I beg you... I beg you, Janna!"

The scream ripping from her chest made the room shudder.

There was still so much she wanted to show her, she couldn’t let go of the torturous dreams where she lived peacefully with her two daughters.

They couldn’t just force her to give up on such a painfully beautiful dream.

How could they force a mother to accept the death of her little one as if it were nothing?

She hugged the baby tighter to her body. With all the strength she had left. With all the strength she had forced herself to have at that moment to be capable of holding her baby’s body in her arms.

Her baby. Her baby who was...

Ekko watched her motionless, his heart beating wildly every second. The atmosphere seemed to have grown denser. And in his head, he could only think of one thing.

She was a girl. Damn it. A girl.

No matter how much he wished, things hadn’t changed. Everything was exactly as he knew it would be, even though part of him really wanted everything to be different.

That his reality would be different, that in his reality, he could be the father of that girl without any regret.

He looked at Jinx, swaying on the edge of the mattress, pressing the little body of the baby to her chest. He heard her heart-wrenching screams and a pang in his chest made him shudder.

If he left everything as it was, if he let that little girl die in her mother’s arms, none of what he had seen would be a possibility for them. They could take a step forward. Forget everything, remember it as a bitter drink, another nightmare.

But… could he really do it? Could he really just stay there, doing nothing?

No… much to his regret. There was no way he could just watch.

The young man hurried to Jinx, taking the baby from her arms and placing her on the table that served as a desk in the room.

He had to try. He had to do it. Because staying there, doing absolutely nothing, would be even more painful.

He began pressing the still baby’s chest repeatedly.

Once. And again.

And again.

“Come on…” he pleaded with each movement “Please…”

He had done this before, with children and adults, because being the leader of the Firelights was never an easy job, and more than once, he had managed to revive the wounded. But he never thought he would have to do it with his own daughter.

His daughter, damn it.

Jinx watched the scene, barely realizing what was happening. A part of her was still lost in her wandering thoughts.

“What the hell are you doing…?” she articulated in terror, watching her daughter’s body being compressed by him “Stop...”

The girl mustered all her effort to stand and approach Ekko with slow, tired steps.

“Ekko, stop,” she begged, her voice barely holding together between each word “Please, stop, you’ll hurt her...”

He ignored her completely. He had to keep trying; he couldn’t stop now, even if Jinx’s paranoia started clouding his judgment as well.

Jinx lunged at him, hitting his back, desperately trying to pull him away from her daughter’s lifeless body. Her weak blows didn’t even faze him, but she really wanted to get him away from the baby.

“Stop, damn it!” she demanded through tears of agony “Enough! You’re going to hurt her! Stop!”

The young man’s desperate tears fell onto the baby’s cheeks. Tears he never thought he would shed one day. Not for that girl.

Why was he crying for her? Why was he so desperate to see her open her eyes? Why didn’t he want her lungs to waste her last breath in vain?

Jinx, for her part, couldn’t stop looking at her. Looking at that child, the one she had rejected for so long, leaving without even having been able to know the faces of her parents.

Please, little blue bird, don’t go yet… I still haven’t had the chance to love you enough. I still haven’t had the chance… to watch you grow.

And just when the young man seemed to have accepted the inevitable while Jinx wore her nails down trying to pull him away from the little one… the baby’s tiny cry stopped them both.

She cried desperately, possibly in pain... but alive. Her face had regained its color and movement returned to every little part of her body.

She was alive.

She had come back to them.

She stirred incessantly on the sheets she was half-wrapped in. Jinx leaned over her, her knees nearly giving way, her breath shallow, and she lifted the baby by her arms, fearing her tiny body would break.

The baby flinched at the cold of her mother’s fingers and the icy draft that had been part of the room’s atmosphere for a while. She looked even smaller than she was.

So small. So fragile. So fleeting.

Jinx cradled her in her arms, resting her head against her quickened chest, and slowly moved backward until she sat back on the mattress. Ekko stretched the blanket toward her so she could cover the baby’s naked body. Jinx wrapped the child carefully, gently stroking the blue hair that stuck out from the sheet.

Ekko tensed his shoulders when he noticed the baby was peacefully dozing, breathing normally, in her mother’s arms.

Jinx could feel the warmth her newborn soft skin was regaining, and the small, light movements the baby made as she finished settling against her mother’s chest between quiet whimpers.

Isha stormed into the hut, escaping the grip of the others and Vander’s watchful eye, driven by the desperation of hearing her mother cry for what seemed like a long time.

Jinx gave her a tired glance with a calm smile. She wasn’t going to scold her daughter; Isha had always been driven by the constant worry she felt for her. Despite Jinx being the adult between the two.

The girl hugged her mother when her gaze was caught by the tiny being beside her. Isha wrinkled her nose, looking at mom.

“This is a baby,” Jinx told her with a voice worn from crying.

Isha curiously poked her little sister’s cheek, the baby let out a faint whimper that made Isha pull back into her mother’s arms, then the baby smiled.

With her eyes still closed, but showing a small, gentle smile, full of naivety and innocence. Isha froze. Jinx chuckled softly and tightened her embrace around both.

Each of her girls, wrapped in each of her arms.

Her two little creations, completely hers. Two tiny things that she created, that she formed inside her body, now hugging her as if that were the best place in the world.

She rested the newborn’s head in the crook of her arm. Finishing wrapping her in the blanket, and the baby finally opened her eyes.

Magenta eyes, just like mom’s.

Isha looked at the baby with a frown, because the smallest one wouldn’t stop staring at her, analyzing her, and her curiosity.

“Mama, did this bother you when I was in your stomach?”

Jinx smiled.

“Yes. Doesn’t seem so rough now, does it?”

A wave of nostalgia hit her. She remembered Isha, being that small. That terrifying feeling of immaturity in her, the fear of not being enough to raise her alone, the terror of losing her in the process, just like it had happened with so many people she loved.

And there she was, her first baby, five years later, looking with curiosity and a sort of comedic distaste at the second, her newborn, the one just starting to discover the world.

Ekko stepped forward, and before Jinx could do anything, he took the baby from her arms.

“What are you doing...?”

“I have to keep my word,” the young man replied, feeling a tightness in his chest as the baby cried again in his arms, reaching for her mother. “I can’t let her get used to you... Or you to her.”

“B-But... she’s still too small, Ekko,” Jinx tried to object. “She won’t survive out there without me… without us.”

“Jinx... I have to do it,” he stumbled.

“No, you don’t. The danger is over. That means—”

“No...” Ekko interrupted. “I can’t let her be close to you.”

“What the hell are you talking about?”

Jinx tried to stand up before her first daughter’s anxious gaze. Because with every movement, the young woman winced in pain, a wince Isha couldn’t help but notice.

“Understand, sooner or later...” the young man continued, “she’ll end your life, I can’t risk you.”

Jinx barely took a step forward when the sharp pain hit her suddenly.

“Not even...” she whispered with difficulty. “I haven’t even been able to feed her... Ekko... please...”

“Forgive me, Jinx.”

And he left, letting the newborn’s crying, the one who had barely been in her arms for a few minutes, who had just begun to get used to the warmth of her mother... flood the corridor.

Isha tugged on her mother’s sleeve insistently.

“Can’t we keep her?”

Jinx stumbled. Days ago, Ekko had told her about the strange paranoia he had suffered. A crazed trip between dimensions and her ending up dead because of that girl. He hadn’t wanted to specify how it all happened, and at the time, Jinx herself had thought the baby wouldn’t survive long enough to kill her. She never imagined that what Ekko had seen happened after the youngest’s birth.

“No, bug...” Jinx replied, stroking the girl’s face with the same tenderness as always.

“But she’s yours.”

Isha insisted, noticing the sadness in her mother’s gesture. The same sadness she felt when she lost something very precious.

Ouch.

“Not anymore, not like you...” Jinx continued.

Isha tilted her head, not fully understanding what her mother meant.

“What’s different about her?”

She asked again. Jinx froze for a moment. There was no doubt, Isha’s questions always hit her like a reality check.

Her beloved and innocent Isha, was the one who kept her grounded, and at the same time, made her soar higher than anyone.

She kissed the little girl’s cheek eagerly and left the hut, telling her to wait with Violet. Her legs barely responded, but her own instincts were stronger.

The instincts she had discovered with Isha, and now, they gnawed at her heels every time she tried to run from them.

The nightfall would soon arrive, beginning to be felt in the humid atmosphere and the icy air. The baby in his arms cried desperately, writhing between the blankets. Clearly, she wanted to return to Jinx, she wanted to go back into her mother’s arms.

Ekko didn’t even want to look at her; he couldn’t. Even though he had seen her somewhat when he brought her back to life, it was different now because the child was aware that her father had just taken her away from her only source of possible love and protection.

The only person in that cold world, new to her, who seemed to love her unconditionally.

He had made a verbal agreement with Viktor, the Herald had been quite specific about where he should leave the little one once she was born, so she could be taken in by their community.

Viktor had promised that it would be enough to prevent tragedy. And Ekko seemed satisfied with that.

At least, that was before he held her in his arms. Why did things have to be so difficult?

He crossed a slightly wooded path, his Firelight instincts kicked in before his distracted mind, and he whistled, as if fearing that someone or something would attack him at that moment, even though he knew there was no safer place than that.

What an idiot.

Soon everything was silent. The girl’s crying, which he had practically grown accustomed to, stopped.

Ekko glanced at her out of the corner of his eye, stopping abruptly. Fearing that she might have vanished with a sigh again, but no, there she was, looking at him with her bright, curious little eyes.

And then, the tiny ball of flesh in his arms smiled at him.

She had recognized him. The unbearable whistle that her mother hated to hear and that she automatically associated with him. With her father.

Now Ekko was screwed because she finally had a face to connect with that word.

The baby waved her tiny hands until one of them ended up holding the boy’s finger. The warmth of her touch and the strength with which she held onto him made him doubt his own sanity.

It felt as though the girl was desperately seeking her father’s protection.

Ekko looked at her tearful, shiny, magenta eyes, just like Jinx's, with a gesture he had seen years ago in Isha. There was no doubt that they were both her daughters. Her living image in a much smaller version.

A version that longed desperately to be loved and protected.

A version that feared being abandoned so much.

Guilt flooded his chest, and he pulled his finger away from the girl, who immediately puckered her lips at the coldness of the act.

Ekko continued on his way. He couldn’t, under any circumstances, give in to her. Not after what he had seen, even if their gazes were completely different. That tiny being, the one who seemed like she wanted to burst into tears in his arms, was going to be a killer one day, and not just any killer, but a Enforcer.

A damn Enforcer.

The meadow Viktor had pointed out was right in front of him. A meadow full of yellow flowers, with a hypnotizing aroma that seemed to lull him along with the sway of the night breeze. He placed the child in the center, among the flowers that cradled her, and turned around.

The little one began making sounds to call his attention, begging him to come back for her, not to leave her alone because, like any other child, she was terrified of the darkness and the silence.

Ekko ignored her. He forced himself to do so.

But then the girl’s crying grew louder, and this time, he couldn’t overlook it.

He turned to see a group, part of the same community, cautiously approaching her, almost sleepily, with slightly vacant looks.

Ekko felt a chill when one of the women picked the girl up from the ground and cradled her in her arms.

The little one, instead of calming down, cried even harder, with all the strength her tiny, newly brought-to-life lungs could muster.

She was so scared and so alone.

Surrounded by strangers and so far from her parents.

"Damn..." The boy tried to take a step, resuming his path, but he couldn’t. "Shit."

And he went back for her.

Between forced and somewhat fake smiles, he made his way through the group, trying to lessen the discomfort that looking them in the eye caused him.

He observed the girl sobbing in the woman’s arms in front of him, and a peculiar feeling nestled in his chest. Something like an instinct he already knew that had been activated again.

He took her carefully, practically snatching her away, and turned, walking quickly back toward the center of the commune.

Jinx remained still, completely frozen.

"You didn’t give her to them... " she noticed.

She could barely contain the uncertainty gnawing at her soul when she came face to face with Ekko returning from his main destination.

The boy remained silent with a displeased grimace and passed her by.

"Where are you taking her?" she asked again, but he didn’t respond. "Don’t take her away from me!"

The desperation with which Jinx uttered those last words stopped Ekko in his tracks.

"I already told you..." the boy murmured, not even looking at her. "She will kill you. She will."

Ekko tried to resume his path, walking quickly, overtaking Jinx, who was struggling to stay on her feet. The girl had just given birth and was fighting tirelessly against the pain that, with every step, seemed to want to drop her to the ground.

"Ekko! You, little piece of shit! Don’t you dare take her away!"

But Ekko didn’t stop. Jinx, on the other hand, had to slow down as her legs began to give way.

A young merchant tripped over her as soon as the girl stopped abruptly, scattering a bunch of decorative gemstones in the air.

"Excuse me, miss! Are you okey?"

Jinx didn’t respond. She focused only on the anguish she felt as she heard her daughter’s cry grow increasingly distant, without her being able to do anything to reach her.

She stood up, staggering with difficulty. Looking down at the rocks scattered at her feet, their bluish glow marked the accelerated beat of her heart.

As the daughter of miners, she had learned, practically against her will, about them. The name of this specific stone echoed in her head, a name whispered by Felicia’s soft voice, eager to teach her daughters all the knowledge she had.

"Kyan..." she stammered, blending her own voice with the whisper of the memory of her mother.

"What...?" the merchant tried to say while picking the stones up from the ground.

"Kyan!" Jinx shouted with all the air she had left in her lungs. Ekko stood still. "That’s her name! And now that I’ve named her, you can’t take her from me! She’s mine!"

Ekko hesitated.

Naming a child in Zaun was as important as their birth itself. In Zaun, there were no last names or nicknames; all a newborn had was the love of their parents and their name.

First names carried more weight than anything else in Zaun. Ekko and Jinx knew this very well. A name meant belonging.

That’s why Jinx hadn’t named Isha until she accepted herself as her mother. That’s why Ekko had taken that child away from her mother before she had the chance to name her.

In Zaun, a child without a name belonged to the Lanes, a child with a name belonged to their parents, in this case, to their mother.

Ekko understood very well the importance that a first name held for them, as Zaunites

"You know the rules," Jinx said again, this time raising her gun to him, her trembling grip as she noticed that the boy didn’t seem willing to comply with her request. "You can’t take her from me if I’ve already named her."

Jinx truly felt capable of pulling the trigger if he didn’t give her back, and that was what she feared the most.

The baby had stopped crying by then, hearing her mother’s voice, now consumed only by the incessant desire to return to her embrace.

"I don’t care if you don’t want her. I don’t care if what you want is for nothing to bind us because we’re still enemies or whatever," Jinx spat, ready to revive the sharp enmity between them. "I’ll take care of her, just like I did with Isha. I don’t need you. She doesn’t need you."

Ekko felt a direct blow to his pride.

"She could kill you! Is your stubbornness so great that you’ve gone deaf?"

"Do you think she looks like a killer?!"

The girl started trembling at her parents’ argument.

"She’ll be a Enforcer! A damn Enforcer!"

The little one burst into terrified tears in Ekko’s arms. Jinx remained frozen.

"She’ll be a Enforcer. She’ll kill you," he continued. "No matter what you do... her fate doesn’t seem to change."

"That can’t be her fate. She... can’t be one of them."

"Jinx... I’m telling you what I saw."

He looked at the girl in his arms. The innocence she carried on her face. An innocence that seemed so foreign to the teenager he had seen.

An innocence that, if possible, he would have desperately wished to protect.

"No matter how much you love her..." Ekko sighed, his grip trembling, "no matter how much we love her... She’s only come into this world to end us."

Jinx took a step back.

Her love for that baby... could it overcome a generational hatred that had dominated her people, her family, for decades?

Her love, which had always forced her to do the impossible, could it help her keep her daughter safe? Even from herself? Even from her own father?

After everything that was happening around her...

Could she have the courage to love that baby?

Chapter Text

She remembered it all too well. Better than she would have liked to.

Every damn day of her life, it had been there—through headaches, whispers, and nightmares.

Yes, every damn day, of her damn life, she had remembered what the Enforcers were capable of.

"She’ll be a Enforcer. She’ll kill you. No matter what you do, her fate doesn’t seem to change."

That’s what he had told her, as if each word were a thorn scraping her throat. And she believed him.

She even believed him when he spoke of other realities—Ekko wasn’t crazy, not as much as she was at least, and his strange device seemed to confirm what he said.

And as much as it pissed her off to admit it, Jinx trusted him. She’d never say it, of course not. But the moment she decided to put Isha’s life in Ekko’s hands, there wasn’t a single person in all of Runeterra she trusted more.

That’s why she hated with every fiber of her being that she couldn’t doubt him.

As much as she wanted to, she couldn’t distrust his word—because it was Ekko who said it, and Ekko would never lie to her.

So she couldn’t not believe in him when he said her daughter would become a Enforcer.

Her baby… That baby, held in his father’s arms, would become a damn Enforcer.

One of those bastards who had taken everything from her.

She let her vacant gaze drift to Ekko’s, noticed the uncertainty in his pupils and the pain nestled between his brows. Then she looked at the little ball of flesh squirming in his arms.

Her crying seemed louder now, but Jinx could barely hear it.

She was looking for her mother. The girl knew it—she could feel it like a stab in her chest, begging her to hold her close.

“Then why did you save her?” Jinx asked, taking a small step forward. “Why didn’t you hand her over?!”

“I wanted to find another way!” Ekko snapped, his grip tightening. “For a moment, I thought… I thought I could find another way.”

Jinx frowned and stepped back, undoing the step she’d taken. It wasn’t like Ekko to waver—she’d only seen it with Isha… and that night on the bridge when he couldn’t kill her.

“And then I saw you,” he went on, “and I remembered what I already knew—what she’ll be capable of doing to you.”

The lump forming in Jinx’s throat barely allowed her to get out a complete sentence.

“What if we didn’t abandon her? If we kept her, maybe…”

Ekko shook his head.

"No matter what you do, her fate doesn’t seem to change," he repeated.

Jinx clutched at her hair, trying not to rip it out by the roots.

“Shit, Ekko! So what the hell are we supposed to do?!”

“I don’t know! You think I’m okay with this?! You think I’m a fucking rock?! That I feel nothing at all?! That all of this isn’t tearing me apart too?!”

For a second, Ekko had to look away so she wouldn’t see the bitter glint in his eyes.

She didn’t have to deal with it the way he did. Jinx had enough on her plate just forcing herself to accept the inevitable, just forcing herself to watch the baby she’d just given birth to disappear so she could stay alive.

Ekko knew her well—well enough to know that if he hesitated, even a little, Jinx wouldn’t hesitate to keep that baby with her, no matter the cost.

And he cared about the cost—because part of that cost was losing Jinx.

When hard decisions had to be made, someone had to take on the ugly part—the one everyone hated, the one not just anyone could handle. And Ekko had been pushed into being that person.

The baby let out a sharp cry—a much louder wail that made both of them flinch. Jinx recognized it instantly. She hadn’t raised Isha alone for nothing; she had learned to understand her little girl and every sound she made so deeply that it was etched into her instincts—what it meant when a newborn cried like that.

“I have to feed her, Ekko,” she said. “I’m not so fucking crazy as to let her starve.”

Madness or immaturity? Jinx had once been immature enough not to realize that this tiny pink lump expelled from her body had no one else—only her. That’s how immature she’d been with Isha, and every day since then she’d regretted it.

Because, if we’re being honest, Jinx was really good at resenting every mistake she’d ever made. So good that they’d surface now and then, just to haunt her.

But who could blame her? She was just a stupid girl playing at being a mother for the first time.

Ekko handed the baby to her. The moment Jinx took her in her arms, the child’s cries eased considerably. She was finally with mom.

In the warm embrace of mom.

With clumsy movements, the tiny girl brought her little hands up to her tear-streaked face. Jinx felt her stomach lurch.

Why was she making this so hard? She had practically seen her come back to life—the memory of her lifeless body still haunted her. She had felt such relief when she heard her cry for the first time and now… was she just supposed to pretend her heart wasn’t bursting with joy at holding her?

She gave Ekko one last look and went back to the shack where Isha waited, more impatient than usual. The little girl had stopped herself from running after her at first because, if she had, Violet probably would’ve needed just one arm to drag her back.

When Isha saw Jinx coming back with that thing in her arms, she froze at the doorway.

She understood that if that loud, reddish ball of flesh had come out of mom’s body, then they had to keep it. There were no other options.

Even if Isha didn’t fully agree with it.

Jinx crossed the threshold, and the baby began to cry again. Isha took a step back, and Violet bolted out the moment she saw the bitter expression on her sister’s face.

The young woman settled on the floor beside the bed, leaning her back against the side of the mattress. Isha jumped onto it, closely watching mom and the baby, who—sooner rather than later—started to overwhelm her with her crying.

With Isha, it had been easy the first time. Because even though Isha had always been a restless child, she had never refused to be near her mother, and the time Jinx spent feeding her had been almost sacred for both of them. A moment of connection between mother and daughter.

Even after having flatly refused to do it at first, Jinx truly enjoyed having her little one so close to her heart, so vulnerable in her arms.

So hers, and no one else’s.

But with the “new addition,” Jinx couldn’t say the same. Not because she didn’t want to—but because the girl didn’t seem to want it.

Jinx tried in every possible way to get the baby to latch onto her breast, but the rejection was almost immediate.

“Come on, picky little one, I know you’re hungry.”

Of course she knew—she was her mother, after all. And Jinx could swear she could hear her stomach growling from hunger.

She tried once more. For a second, she thought she had succeeded, but as soon as the girl’s skin touched her mother’s, she threw her head back and cried out in desperation.

Isha had to cover her ears after that. Couldn’t mom have made something less noisy?

The young woman felt a deep, wild desperation as she looked at the red-faced creature in her arms.

The fact that she was so small only made things harder. Why couldn’t she just understand that if she didn’t feed from her mother, she would end up starving to death? Why couldn’t she comprehend that the awful feeling in her stomach—forcing her to cry—would only stop if she allowed herself to nurse?

Something so simple… a baby could make it so complicated.

Soon, the baby’s cries began to blend into her dim thoughts, and Jinx felt herself slipping away from reality—until the hut’s door flung open.

The midwife came in with a forced smile. It was clear the baby’s cries hadn’t gone unnoticed outside. Jinx wasn’t a first-time mother, but she was starting to look like one.

“Are you all right?” the woman asked.

Jinx noticed something different about her—some peculiar marks on her forehead, and her eyes a bit brighter—but she chose not to dwell on it. She was far too caught up in her own issues.

“She won’t,” she said flatly. The midwife just raised her eyebrows, waiting for a clearer answer. “She just won’t. And… she’s starving.”

For a moment, Jinx’s voice sounded cracked, but it was easily drowned out by the baby’s wailing as she thrashed violently in her arms.

“Oh…” the woman finally realized, observing the baby nearly breathless from crying, and her conflicted mother trying to press her to her chest.

She stepped toward Jinx, very carefully—because even in that remote place, everyone had heard of her, of how skilled she was with weapons and how much she enjoyed killing people who bothered her.

“I see…” she said, studying them both more closely. “It happens more often than you think. Don’t beat yourself up, child, it’s normal. What’s important now is to find a wet nurse, someone who can—”

“I know what that is,” Jinx cut her off with a scowl.

How could she not? She had needed one when Isha was born. She’d had to kill her eventually, but still. Just the thought of repeating the same cycle...

"It’s because you’re not made to be a mother, we told you that already."

Mylo sat on the edge of the mattress, looking down at her with a dull, cold expression.

Jinx pressed her fingers against the blanket wrapped around her youngest daughter. Part of her wanted to finish him off. The other part was starting to think he was right sometimes.

“I think I know someone who might help,” the midwife began to murmur, tidying up some of the mess scattered across the hut floor. Jinx followed her with a distant gaze. “I hope she’s… well, anyway. I’ll see what I can do.”

She smiled at Isha before stepping out.

The baby writhed endlessly in her mother’s arms. She cried inconsolably, desperately—she was so hungry, and Jinx felt so helpless, unable to do anything to ease her discomfort.

At one point, Jinx completely lost awareness of where she was. She stared blankly into nothing, her eyes growing dull, her mind drowned out by the baby’s shrieking, her soul crushed by the inability to become the mother that little one was begging her to be—screaming.

"Just let go already, Powder. You’ll curse her too."

Mylo hadn’t left. He never did.

Jinx glanced at the baby from the corner of her eye, her cold stare barely able to make out the girl’s face through the fog of her psychosis.

A tiny hand—but bigger than the baby’s—started waving in front of her face.

Isha was trying to get her attention. The moment Jinx locked eyes with her, that golden hue grounded her again—and Mylo disappeared.

“Is she sick?”

Isha asked, pointing at the baby in mom’s arms. Jinx shook her head, barely regaining awareness.

Isha stared a few seconds longer at the noisy thing, frowning, then climbed back onto the bed, rummaging in the space between the mattress and the wall.

She emerged a few minutes later and stood in front of her mother. She hesitated for a moment, but her eyes said she hadn’t found another option.

She made a slight grimace. From behind her back, she pulled out the rabbits that both Jinx and Ekko had once given her to help calm her fears, and she waved them in front of the baby’s face.

Jinx froze.

“Where did you get those?”

Isha scrunched her nose, looking up at mom from beneath her brows, discreetly swinging her little satchel behind her back.

“So that’s what you use it for, you clever girl,” Jinx noted, masking a smile with a raised brow. “Do you always carry them with you?”

Isha shrugged, a little embarrassed. She wanted to seem braver, more grown-up and bold—just like mom. Even if, in mom’s eyes, she was still her first baby.

A tug on one of the bunny’s ears—the one Jinx had given her—caught both their attention. The baby had latched onto it, her eyes still teary and shiny, but her lips only trembled, releasing soft sounds.

Jinx was about to say something when the midwife came back into the hut without warning.

“I managed to get some formula,” she said proudly. “The other option… I had to discard it.”

The young mother took the bottle as the midwife handed it to her with a smile. She placed it between the baby’s lips and, to her surprise—and genuine relief—the girl began to suckle with an almost fascinating desperation.

The midwife seemed to breathe again, too—surely aware that Jinx wouldn’t forgive her for failing at what was supposed to be her job.

“I’ll get more for tomorrow,” she said, quickly stepping back outside.

The baby focused entirely on her food source and on her mother’s face—a cold expression watching her in pain.

She let go of the plush bunny, and Isha tried to hand it back.

“No,” Jinx said quickly, startling the girl slightly. “It’s yours. She won’t be with us for long—don’t let her get used to them.”

Isha stepped back, hugging both bunnies to her chest, and looked at the baby, confused. Did mama really not want to keep her? Why did that little ball of flesh seem to hurt her so much?

Maybe it was because she cried a lot and made too much noise. Maybe they just had to fix something in her. Maybe after that, mama would love her like she loved Isha.

Jinx stood up from the floor and placed the baby inside the crib Violet (behind Jinx’s back) had brought to the hut before the girl was even born. The little one had started to fall asleep and, the moment her head touched the pillow, she yawned and curled up under the blankets.

Isha tugged on mom’s clothes, pulling her out of the storm of thoughts that wouldn’t stop tormenting her. Jinx looked down just as the girl rubbed her eyelids to push away the sleep.

Night had fallen hours ago—at this point, the baby’s cries were probably the only sound left in the whole sanctuary.

Jinx, clearly touched by her daughter’s gesture, picked her up in her arms.

“Time for bed, little trouble.”

The young woman let herself fall backward onto the mattress, with Isha still pressed against her chest. She glanced at the still crib a few meters away, then felt Isha’s small fingers tapping her collarbone. Jinx looked at her with a warm smile.

“It’s too late for that, little one,” she said in a soft whisper. Isha let out a whine, curling tighter into her arms. “All right… just a little, and then sleep.”

Jinx exhaled in resignation—that was how the girl usually asked her to hum for her. Little taps, with the tips of her fingers, on any part of mom’s body within reach. Jinx was used to it, to that delicate bond they shared.

She began to stroke her daughter’s blue-and-brown hair, humming softly the song that had always been a lullaby for Isha. The girl unconsciously let her thumb rest between her lips, and Jinx felt a chill.

The curiosity and boldness Isha sometimes showed could make her forget how little she still was, and how much she still needed her.

How much she still needed her mom.

How much Jinx was always going to need her little girl.

The sound of something breaking at her feet made her sit up abruptly.

She barely caught sight of a female figure in the doorway. For a second, she thought it was Vi and her usual clumsiness, but no—this figure was smaller, more petite. She staggered with every step and muttered something under her breath.

Jinx stayed frozen, a flash of terror running down her spine. The first thing that came to mind were the two girls inside the room—two defenseless girls she had to protect.

At any cost.

Isha squirmed in her arms and Jinx barely managed to hush her in her sleep while reaching with her free hand for the weapon under the bed.

The figure stared at her, and then Jinx recognized her. It was that pregnant woman—the one who had decided to strike up a conversation with her a few days ago.

Her gaze looked sad and distant, her body frail, and her cracked voice murmured something over and over.

“My baby… She’s here… I heard her.”

Jinx felt a shiver.

Her bad luck had reached her, too.

She tensed every muscle in her body when she heard the baby make a small sound, as if about to wake up.

The woman turned her attention toward the crib, ready to continue advancing with shaky, hesitant steps.

Jinx pulled away from Isha, gently cupping her face to get her attention.

“Hide under the bed,” she told her.

Driven by a magenta flash of Shimmer and a familiar burning in her throat, Jinx launched forward to place herself between the crib and the intruder. She bit back a grimace of pain as she positioned herself in front of her, the blue of her weapon casting light on both of their faces in the darkness of night.

The woman, like the midwife, also bore strange marks on her forehead and had bright, desolate eyes—somewhere between green and gold—that, when fixed on Jinx, made her feel a nauseating emotion. One that was forcing her to lower her weapon.

“Why did you take her?” sobbed the woman in a shrill voice. Jinx stepped back, gun still raised, occasionally glancing toward the child behind her. “She’s mine. Give her back.”

When the intruder tried to lunge at Jinx, the first thing the young woman did was turn around to try to grab the baby, even if it meant dropping her weapon to the ground. But the woman stopped her, grabbing her by the shoulders and hurling her against the wall next to them, before Jinx could even get close to her daughter.

Jinx let out a choked scream when the impact nearly shattered her spine. How could that frail woman have so much strength hidden inside?

What the hell was happening?

The young woman with blue braids threw herself at her again, pulling her away from the crib. They both slammed into the floor, causing a crash that made the crib topple over to one side. The baby let out a frightened wail at the sudden movement, but her fall had been cushioned by the crib itself and the blankets inside.

She was just scared.

So scared her mother felt an urgent need to run to her.

Jinx tried to get up again, but the woman held her down. The young woman crawled along the floor, the weight of the other pressing on top of her, desperately trying to reach her weapon.

“Don’t you dare get near her!” the intruder threatened.

“Screw you,” Jinx snarled, struggling desperately to throw her off.

She couldn’t understand how the woman was overpowering her—even if she had just given birth too. That “almost” stranger had inhuman strength.

Jinx fixed her eyes on the bundle of flesh wrapped in blankets, squirming, trying to get her mother’s attention to make her feel safe—and she felt a tightness in her chest.

She had to reach her.

The woman finally moved away from Jinx, and she managed to grab her weapon from the floor. She turned around, gun raised, when she noticed the baby’s cries had almost completely stopped. The woman had picked up the child, cradling her gently.

She hadn’t come there to hurt her (which was a relief). Not the baby, at least—but it broke Jinx’s heart that her daughter didn’t seem the slightest bit upset by her closeness.

The baby squirmed slightly in the stranger’s arms, whimpering with almost-silent cries.

“It’s okay, little one,” the woman whispered.

Then she pulled her to her chest with tenderness. A tenderness that, Jinx had to admit, she herself hadn’t shown.

The young mother felt her stomach turn as the baby latched on, desperate and hungry, to the stranger’s breast.

Why had it been so easy for her…? Why, if her mother wasn’t her, but Jinx?

“It’s all right, sweetheart,” the woman continued, practically ignoring the girl beside her. “Let’s go home, so you can feed in peace.”

Home? What the hell was she talking about? She wasn’t going to take her.

She couldn’t even try.

Jinx took a step forward, but faltered when she saw the calm with which the girl was leaving.

And something made her step back, lowering the weapon.

Had she just decided to give up?

Ekko and Violet burst into the hut, having heard the commotion. They came face-to-face with the woman walking out with the baby in her arms, not even noticing their presence.

Neither of them said anything when Jinx turned around to help Isha out from under the bed, but Violet looked uneasy.

“What happened…?” Ekko asked, noting the chaos in the room.

Jinx lifted Isha from the floor, the girl burying her face into her mother’s neck as she tried to soothe her.

“I found your solution,” Jinx said bitterly, pointing toward where the woman had left. “Now there’s no way she’ll become a Enforcer. She’ll have a mother. She’ll be safe—just like us. We all win, right, Ekko?”

Her somber voice hit the boy like a blow. Violet wanted to ask something, but knew neither of them was in any shape to answer—especially not after Ekko walked out of the hut with steady steps, and Jinx let herself fall onto the bed with Isha hidden against her chest.

Nothing was easy after that, because even though Jinx forced herself to accept the new reality of her newborn, the truth was that there was no way to cope with the fact that the baby who had grown inside her for months was now simply being protected in someone else’s arms.

Someone who wasn’t even close to being her mother.

It drove her insane.

But Isha didn’t fully understand what was happening. She looked at mom annoyed, because she grumbled every time someone spoke or even breathed near her, but she couldn’t figure out why.

She also didn’t understand why that crazy woman had taken mom’s thing away from her. And why mom had let it happen.

So, every now and then (at least once a day), Isha would sneak over to that woman’s hut and peek through the little window when the baby was sleeping in her crib.

Jinx did the same in secret, and much to her own frustration. Usually, she just made sure the girl was still alive (or so she told herself), but every so often, she’d stay there for hours, until the baby woke up and she had to hide before being seen.

The third night was different. This time, she decided to stay—even when the baby woke up. Startled slightly by the shadow of her mother watching her from outside.

When she finally made out her face, the tiny ball of flesh lit up.

The grin she gave was so wide that her eyes squinted almost shut. She flailed wildly in the blankets—Jinx had truly never seen her that happy.

And that broke her heart.

“You’re not supposed to be happy to see me,” she whispered. “I abandoned you, you know?”

The little one tilted her head at the unfamiliar sound of her mother’s voice, and after a few more seconds, she smiled again. Wiggling her feet beneath the sheets.

The young woman sighed heavily, brushing her bangs back in a desperate attempt to contain her emotions.

At her movement, the baby raised both hands toward her, stretching them out as if trying to reach her somehow.

Jinx gave in to the gesture and slowly allowed the little one to wrap her tiny fingers around her pinky.

She felt a jolt in her chest, begging her to pick the girl up and run—grab Isha and flee with the two of them to the ends of the earth.

But she couldn’t… no matter how much she wanted to.

“She’s going to be a Enforcer, Jinx. Your beautiful baby is going to be a damn Enforcer! Ha!”

She heard Mylo say with a loud laugh that rang in her ears, and a cold shiver ran down her spine.

She pulled her finger away from the baby’s grip and turned around, walking away. Listening as her crying—pleading for her to stay, not to leave her—grew smaller and smaller.

Isha, who had secretly followed her mother and would surely give her a scare later when she wasn’t found asleep in bed, cautiously approached the window.

She wasn’t sure what she felt for her sister—if that’s what she was. In fact, she didn’t really understand the concept of what a sister was. She’d heard mom talk with Vi about what they were, but all Isha had gathered was that sisters fought… a lot.

She tilted her head, observing with her bright, curious eyes how the baby’s face turned red from crying.

She wasn’t entirely sure what that thing meant to mom—not completely—but deep down, she felt mom would be sad if something happened to her.

And turning red probably wasn’t a good sign.

Isha pulled the rabbits from her little backpack and placed them on the baby’s chest. For a moment, the crying stopped, and the baby clumsily grabbed both toys, her tiny hands struggling to hold onto them properly.

Isha raised an eyebrow. Didn’t she even know how her own limbs worked? What a dummy.

Then the older girl heard a peculiar sound—a sweet babble that caught her attention. The baby’s bright magenta eyes locked onto hers, and she smiled at her, just like the first time.

Isha felt something strange in her chest, something similar to when mom used to hug her.

She heard the footsteps of the adults inside the hut drawing closer and had to run off, leaving the rabbits in the baby’s clumsy arms.

If mom couldn’t take care of her, then she would.

Because she was her sister… or something like that.

Chapter Text

Violet hadn’t wanted to meddle too much in her sister’s affairs.

Yes, she didn’t understand much of what was going on, but if there was one thing she was sure of, it was that Ekko, without a doubt, was the father of that baby.

That baby she had seen leave the hut three nights ago, in the arms of a stranger.

Neither of the two parents had been discreet enough about the matter—they didn’t much care to be, anyway—and they occasionally forgot that Vi knew them both far too well.

Asking Ekko might have been easier, but Jinx was her sister and, regardless of the circumstances they were both going through, Violet felt a sense of responsibility for her.

Despite everything.

And after witnessing the stupidity those two kids had gotten themselves into, she couldn’t just keep staying silent.

So, after seeing her sister (for the third night in a row) run away from her own daughter, she decided to intercept her before she could step back inside the hut to go to bed.

"Are you really going to leave it like this? That baby is just as much your daughter as Isha," Vi said, using that maternal tone she used to mimic from Felicia when they were kids. "She needs you too."

The younger girl froze at the threshold of the door.

"But I don’t need her," she said.

Jinx felt a deep blow in her gut. Did she really not need her? Then why the hell did her chest ache every time she looked at her? Why hadn’t she been able to eat properly since that day? Sleeping was hard, and if Mylo had stopped messing with her, it was thanks to Isha.

"Is this about Ekko? If he doesn’t want her, you could just—"

"It’s not about Ekko," Jinx cut her off abruptly.

In some strange way, she couldn’t dump all the responsibility on the guy, but how the hell was she supposed to explain everything that was going on to Vi?

Jinx looked at her sister, one brow raised.

Violet wasn’t an idiot, but sometimes she lived up to the definition of “brute force,” and the last thing Jinx needed in that moment was to explain something that even she had trouble fully understanding.

"Just leave it," she sighed. "Don’t try to be the good big sister now."

Vi stepped away from the wooden post she’d been leaning against, just a few feet from the hut’s doorway. Jinx tried to take a step forward to leave before hearing another sermon.

"Ekko’s not... Isha’s father, is he?" Vi blurted out, stopping the younger one in her tracks. "I know it’s not my place to know, and you can spit in my face if you want, but don’t ask me to stop caring, even if it’s hard for you to believe."

Jinx tensed every muscle in her body for a second. The night breeze barely brushed her skin, and a shiver ran through her.

She hadn’t touched that topic even with her worst ghosts. What made Violet think she was that important?

Important enough to dig up the dead. Especially her dead.

She looked at Vi’s pleading gaze. Blue eyes, worried and anxious.

It had been so long… since she’d looked at her like that.

"No," she finally answered, in a dry, bitter tone. Vi stayed silent, biting her tongue. "I didn’t even know him. If that’s what you wanted to know." Violet tensed, and Jinx seemed to waver under her gaze. "I was drunk, he wasn’t."

Vi’s expression twisted somewhere between terror and disgust. Her heart started beating so loudly that Jinx could hear it.

Isha passed just a few feet away from them, without even noticing—clearly sneaking in through the window to pretend she hadn’t chased after her mother to visit her baby sister.

Jinx smiled slightly, proud.

"I don’t even remember it," she said. "And he’s already dead anyway. I killed him that same day."

Jinx’s utter lack of emotion about it sent chills down Violet’s spine.

She’d taken care of him… so there was nothing left to worry about, right?

Jinx inhaled so sharply that it hurt her chest.

"I just don’t want Isha to know that—"

"I know," Violet cut her off. "I won’t say anything."

The abrupt silence quickly became sharp, piercing, and deeply uncomfortable. Violet had to summon all the courage she had left to break it.

"I’m sorry… If I’d been there with you, none of this—"

"Isha wouldn’t exist, so don’t even think that," Jinx replied, dragging the words to make them clear. "She is absolutely everything that matters to me. Regardless of how she came into my life, I would never regret bringing her into this world."

Violet gave a small attempt at a smile, accompanied by a sigh of resignation.

"You’re a great mother, Powder."

Jinx looked at her, a genuine expression of surprise faded into one of mock disgust.

"Let’s not get emotional, sis. You’re starting to make me nauseous."

Violet let out a small laugh and approached her, timidly placing a hand on her shoulder. A strange sensation ran through them both.

One so cold it burned.

"Don’t force yourself to do something you don’t want to," Vi said, using that maternal tone again. And she looked off into the distance at the hut Jinx had left behind minutes earlier. "I’m sure she’s scared too… scared her mother doesn’t love her. And we both know that’s not true, because someone who didn’t love her baby wouldn’t show up night after night just to watch her in silence."

Jinx didn’t say another word as Violet walked away from the cabin.

The night was starting to feel eternal. Though, after everything happening around her, the nights had felt eternal for a long time.

Caitlyn slipped into the sanctuary unnoticed. She had seen Violet days before—and Jinx, too. Seeing that assassin pregnant had stirred a peculiar feeling in the pit of her stomach. Maybe something close to guilt. She couldn't quite understand it, so she preferred to ignore it.

What mattered was that she was there to study the terrain. She had heard Ambessa’s plans, she knew her objectives, but more importantly, she knew she had to start preparing her own tactics—because they wanted the beast, and Jinx’s unborn child.

But Caitlyn wanted revenge. She wanted justice. She wanted Jinx.

She walked between the huts cautiously, soon realizing with bitterness that the people living there weren’t fighters or soldiers—just people fleeing the war. It was nothing more than a refuge. A place of peace.

The silence sent chills down her spine. It had been so long since she'd been in such a peaceful place.

And then, an abrupt sound broke the stillness. A cry.

The cry of a baby.

Caitlyn rushed through the cabins until she came face-to-face with the one the cry was coming from.

She hesitated to go in, since it wasn’t her main objective, but she had to find out at all costs if Jinx had given birth.

Because that would change everything.

She stepped slowly into the seemingly empty hut until she reached the cradle near one of the windows, where she found a small baby with blue hair.

The child writhed under the blankets, crying, clearly uncomfortable—maybe from cold, maybe from hunger—but the cry was weak, barely perceptible.

The girl looked at her with the same coldness she reserved for Jinx. It was obvious now—the Zaunite brat had decided to give birth in recent days.

The baby’s hair was blue too.

Now Ambessa’s plans and Caitlyn’s could finally diverge. The woman wouldn’t interfere with her thirst for revenge the way she had been.

And if she delivered this child to the Noxian leader, there would be nothing in the world to stop the next phase of her plan.

Caitlyn picked the baby up by the arms, lifting her in front of her face, analyzing the child’s curious and innocent gaze with visible disgust.

She looked so damn much like Jinx it made her nauseous.

“You’re an incredibly coveted prize out there, you know that?” she murmured.

The baby puckered her lips. Caitlyn seemed to be gripping her too tightly and was starting to hurt her.

“Don’t even try it, cupcake.”

Violet appeared at the other side of the window. Her eyes locked on the baby, who had begun to whimper from the pain Caitlyn was causing, and she exhaled hard.

“Put the baby down,” she ordered.

Jinx’s watch over everything happening in and around the sanctuary had become routine.

She sat with her legs dangling carelessly from the edge of the highest platform, gripping a spyglass roughly in front of her eyes.

She could see the commune’s inhabitants in the distance—the Herald himself, Isha running around with other children… and that woman holding Kyan in her arms.

She watched as the woman fed her, sang to her, smiled at her, while her little ball of flesh lay calmly nestled against her chest.

Why didn’t she even seem to miss her, when she was the one who brought her into the world in the first place?

It had been the same with Isha. It made her blood boil to see her little girl being breastfed by someone else, treated with so much maternal affection by some random woman who thought she was her mother.

She admitted that, back then, she’d enjoyed (much more than she expected) putting a bullet through Isha’s caretaker’s head.

But this time it was different—because the new surrogate mother wasn’t a traitorous bitch from Piltover. She was just a grieving mother who had lost two babies and gone mad with the pain.

Jinx hated that feeling of… sorrow. But Isha had softened her, and now she felt disgusting empathy crawling up her spine.

Especially because she had nearly lost her own baby in the same way. She could feel the pain that woman must’ve felt when she saw her newborn lifeless and cold. A pain so unbearable that it drove her to detach from reality, desperately looking for someone who could replace the child she had lost.

A mother who needed a baby, and a baby… who needed a mother.

They were the perfect pieces of a puzzle Jinx had put together herself.

She clicked her tongue.

She shouldn’t care either way, because she had never really wanted that baby… right?

Right…?

She had to push those tormenting thoughts aside, because right now, there were other things to deal with.

“Vander’s in trouble. I have a plan, but you’re not gonna like it.”

Jinx moved her scope back to Caitlyn and Singed. She had to focus on them now. They had managed to sneak into the sanctuary. Violet had told her about the encounter she had with the Enforcer the night before, the enemy’s plans, and how Kyan had nearly been part of it.

Her sister mentioned some kind of “truce,” but deep down, part of Jinx genuinely hoped Caitlyn would betray Violet’s plan. She wanted a reason to blow her head off.

She hated her. God, how she hated her.

But she loved Vander—loved him enough that, just for now, she could suppress her desire to kill Caitlyn for everything she’d done.

She wasn’t going to forgive her, but she would wait to kill her.

Caitlyn took the first step to make the plan work, and Singed collapsed, unconscious.

Jinx’s grip faltered. For a second, she actually thought everything might turn out fine.

Until Noxus arrived.

Because after that, everything went to hell.

Vander had gone mad for some reason. He killed Rictus, and now for Ambessa, it had all become personal.

Suddenly, Jinx found herself in the middle of a goddamn battlefield.

Her first instinct was to find Isha. She jumped off the platform the moment she spotted the girl a few meters away.

“I told you to find shelter if things went bad!” she yelled, grabbing her by the shoulders. “What are you doing here?”

Isha looked at her with tear-filled eyes.

“I wanted to be with you. I’m scared.”

Jinx narrowed her eyes at the sight of her little one so defenseless and afraid, so confused by everything happening around her. Isha had never been caught up in anything like this before.

The girl understood there was danger—and that the only safe place for her would always be in her mother’s arms.

Isha tugged on her mother’s sleeve again to draw her attention.

“Don’t go, Mommy. Please.”

She was truly terrified. Jinx felt her stomach twist. Her poor daughter had been dragged into this mess because she was her mother.

She wished things could have been different—for both of them.

Jinx’s distracted gaze finally settled on Isha. Her deep, frightened eyes searched her face for comfort.

Jinx placed a hand on the girl’s cheek.

“Mommy won’t let anything happen to you,” she said softly. “I’ll stay with you. Always.”

A metallic scream startled them both. All the sanctuary’s inhabitants suddenly collapsed unconscious to the ground.

Jinx shuddered.

They all had marks on their foreheads.

Everyone—just like the woman who had taken Kyan.

And now she understood, with terror... the baby was in danger. Her baby was in danger.

She had to reach her.

The battle was consuming everything. Fire began to devour whatever lay in its path, swallowing it like a hungry predator claiming a helpless prey.

Jinx picked Isha up in her arms, pressing her hand to the back of the girl's neck to keep her from seeing the chaos unfolding around them. They had to find Kyan, had to reach the hut she was in—even if it meant digging through rubble. They weren't far, but the landscape looked desolate.

There were Noxian soldiers and Enforcers everywhere. Jinx could feel her chest cracking open, as if to release her panicked heart.

She was scared. More for her daughters than for herself.

Everything was in ruins. There came a point where the young woman didn't even know what part of the sanctuary she was in. She could feel desperation climbing up her throat.

She hugged Isha so tightly their hearts seemed to beat in unison. They heard Vander's dry growls in the distance, and the young mother tried to hide the trembling in her knees.

Then, like a faint whisper, a weak sound—she heard the baby’s cry a few meters away.

Isha was the first to jump from her mother’s arms and run toward the sound, pushing aside the cloth panels that had formed an arch over the cradle, somehow still shielding it. Jinx ended up tearing them away, while her older daughter waited impatiently behind her.

Inside the cradle, they could see the baby’s silhouette squirming frantically beneath a pile of blankets. Jinx pulled the covers away with the tips of her fingers, uncovering Kyan’s face.

The baby opened her huge, clouded magenta eyes, her tiny fists unclenched, and she stopped crying—just to frown and stare at her mother.

The relief of seeing that little round creature safe, silently begging her not to leave her alone again, settled deep in Jinx’s chest.

Isha peeked over her mother’s shoulder and tugged on her clothes.

“Is she hurt?”

She asked with genuine concern. Isha knew too—Mommy’s little one couldn’t defend herself.

She was too clumsy for that.

And it worried her that something might happen to her, because Mommy would be sad… and so would she.

Jinx shook her head, a half-smile forming on her face.

“Step away from her,” a metallic voice echoed behind them.

Jinx reacted immediately, placing Isha behind her, next to the cradle.

With both hands, she tried to keep her daughters at her back.

A mechanized figure stared at her with a blank face. It seemed to retain a sliver of consciousness.

“Don’t go near my baby,” the mechanical mannequin insisted, stepping forward.

Jinx recognized her immediately, with a certain ache in her chest. Around them, the Herald’s followers were rising from the ground like the dead returning to life—bodies that seemed lost, disconnected from this world, empty and soulless.

“Her baby.”

Even after what seemed like death, that woman still clung to the foolish idea that Kyan belonged to her.

Part of Jinx understood her—if she had become some terrifying metal mannequin and still had any shred of awareness, she too would search endlessly for her daughters.

But the thing was—those were her girls. Kyan was one of them. That baby didn’t belong to that creature who had once been a woman. Kyan wasn’t hers.

Kyan belonged to Jinx, just like Isha did.

She was her baby. Hers and no one else’s.

And no one in this whole goddamn world would change that.

She raised her gun to the creature’s blank “non-face.”

“No,” she growled, flipping off the safety. “You stay away from my babies.”

A bolt of electricity ran down Jinx’s spine. This time, she meant it.

This time, she was absolutely certain—so long as she had breath in her lungs, no one would touch her daughters. No one would harm them.

The machine let out a high-pitched screech, like a heartbreaking sob—and Jinx, stunned by the sound, pulled the trigger.

She turned to find Isha covering the baby’s ears with both hands.

The little one looked confused, but had stopped crying, her tears barely lining her eyes, her tiny fingers desperately clutching Isha’s wrists.

The girl had figured her sister, like her, was afraid of sudden loud noises.

Jinx’s heart clenched. She gently took her eldest daughter’s hands and pulled her into a hug against her chest.

How could someone like her have a daughter like Isha?

How could someone who had been a monster her whole life… have brought such a pure heart into the world?

Isha was without a doubt a light on her mother’s path.

Jinx glanced sideways at Kyan, who gave a soft whimper to get her attention. The young woman picked her up as delicately as her fingers allowed and held her against her chest.

She could feel the baby’s tiny body—still small enough to fit in both her hands—curling up against her, her little fingers clinging fiercely to her clothes.

Guilt sank into her chest.

Violet had been right. She was just as much hers as Isha, and she had left her unprotected.

So unprotected. So abandoned.

She dropped to her knees on the rocky ground and extended a free arm to Isha, smiling with teary eyes.

The girl leapt at her, wrapping herself around her neck. Jinx held them both tighter.

For the second time since Kyan was born, she had her entire world in her arms again.

And no one. Ever. Would take them away from her.

A crash from the other side of the sanctuary brought Jinx back to reality. Back to the battlefield.

“I have to get you out of here,” she whispered to them.

She looked up, scanning the surroundings, and picked up Isha, adjusting her collar with a motherly touch.

“Don’t leave Mommy’s side, okay?” Isha nodded. Jinx smirked. “Smart girl—just like your mom.”

She cradled the baby in one arm, her tiny body still not taking up much space. The child stretched before her mother could properly wrap her in the blanket and rubbed her face against her clumsy little hands.

Jinx smiled with a furrowed brow.

“You don’t even know there’s a war happening around you, huh?”

No, of course not. Just like Isha, Kyan didn’t need to worry about anything while in her mother’s arms.

Jinx knew she had to reach the edge of the sanctuary—had to escape at all costs. Getting her daughters to safety was the priority.

They could skin her alive, rip muscle from bone—whatever they wanted. She would endure it.

But she’d never endure seeing her girls suffer. She’d sacrifice her life to make sure they didn’t get a single scratch.

She looked one last time at Vander, and that beast he was slowly becoming. A flicker of humanity still lingered in his bloodshot eyes, but thinking too much about it would drive her mad—would trap her in a whirlpool of empty thoughts, would keep her from moving forward, from protecting her daughters.

She raised her weapon with her free hand, keeping Kyan’s face hidden in the blankets, never letting go of Isha’s small hands clutching her clothes.

Jinx slipped behind the walls, hiding among the rubble. She didn’t flinch or hesitate to shoot the enemy.

Isha knew that the moment Mommy switched off the gun’s safety, she had to cover her ears, while Jinx held Kyan tight to her chest to keep from startling her too much.

Just one more turn, one last hiding spot, and she could run.

And it wasn’t that she didn’t care about Violet or Ekko—but they could fend for themselves. Her little girls couldn’t.

It was her duty, as their mother, to do it for them.

She took a sharp breath. But when she stepped forward, a strange hand stopped her.

An Enforcer had caught up to her, grabbing her arm mid-motion. The man twisted Jinx’s wrist, making her drop the gun, and she let out a sharp cry that scared Isha enough to hide behind her.

“Finally found you, bitch,” he spat, shaking her violently, making Kyan start crying.

Jinx growled as the bastard gave a vicious smile to the baby in her arms.

“It’s her, isn’t it? I bet Ambessa’ll pay good for whoever brings her the grand prize in one piece.”

He reached toward the baby.

Jinx shivered when his filthy fingers brushed the edge of the blanket. Instinct kicked in—she jerked back violently.

He was touching her baby.

He wanted to hurt her. He wanted to hurt both her babies.

That same instinct made her try to break free, and he seemed to enjoy seeing Zaun’s great “revolutionary” criminal so helpless and vulnerable.

She saw it in his eyes—he liked making her feel weak.

Jinx spit straight into his eye. As he recoiled and loosened her wrist, she punched him in the face, sending him sprawling backwards. She grabbed the gun from the ground and fired.

She crouched in front of Isha to calm her down.

“Isha, look at me,” she said, making the girl’s golden eyes meet hers, trying to ease her distress. "Everything’s okay, all right? My brave girl trusts her mom, right?"

Isha sniffled and, with the most determined look she could muster in that moment, nodded.

Jinx heard hurried footsteps rushing toward her. She raised her weapon again, only to be met with Ekko, carrying Vi on his back—she was clearly injured.

The Enforcer was nowhere to be seen. The air seemed thick with betrayal.

But there was no time. Nothing more to be done.

They had to go home.

They laid Vi down on the metal table—the same one Jinx herself had once lain on. They had managed to reach the little shack deep in the Fissures, where the doctor—who had somehow earned her trust—waited.

The poor man was visibly overwhelmed when he saw the young woman come in with a gunshot wound in her side, accompanied by the same boy who had broken into his home months ago (shattering the windows) to bring him to Isha, and by Jinx, holding in her arms a baby who, by all logic, wasn’t supposed to be alive.

An uncomfortable silence filled the room after the doctor left Ekko and Jinx outside the small room to focus solely on Violet.

Jinx laid Isha down on one of the leather sofas decorating the doctor’s living room.

"You did well, little one. I’m proud of you" she whispered into her ear, with genuine relief.

At least they had managed to escape safely. At least they were safe.

Isha smiled after her mother kissed her temple, then drifted off to sleep.

The baby’s soft whimpers made Jinx straighten up again. She would soon start crying from hunger—Jinx knew it well. There wasn’t much to do; she had to keep trying to feed her.

She had to keep her alive.

Ekko watched Jinx, his gaze settling on the tiny creature squirming in her arms, trying to get comfortable.

"You still think we should get rid of her, don’t you?" Jinx spat.

Ekko looked away.

The young woman slowly walked over to the other sofa and set the baby down on it. She looked at Ekko, drew her gun, turned it in her hands, and held the grip out to him.

"Go on then, boy savior" she said, hiding the tremble in her voice. "Do it already. Finish her. End all of this."

Both parents stood beside the sofa. Ekko glanced at the baby from the corner of his eye.

The little one, after briefly furrowing her brow in confusion at the tension in the room, smiled.

She smiled with such innocence and joy that her tiny body bounced with excitement as her hands reached out for them.

Ekko looked away.

"I can’t…"

Jinx breathed again. She knew Ekko wouldn’t even be able to pick up the gun. She wasn’t testing him—she was trying to make him see reason.

The baby babbled softly. Jinx looked at her with a saddened expression and knelt by her side, bringing her face close to hers.

The baby’s smile widened the moment she noticed her mother so near. She turned just enough to brush her fingertips against Jinx’s cheeks.

"What are you trying to do?" Ekko sighed, unable to look at them. "We already talked about this… she—"

"She’s my daughter," Jinx interrupted. "She’s my baby. If I don’t protect her, no one else will. And if there’s no one to protect her… she’ll just die."

Ekko took a breath.

"And what about…"

The baby brought her hands to her mouth, never losing her smile. Jinx gently pulled them away from her lips.

"Let it happen," she said, heart in hand. Ekko tensed entirely. "If she has to kill me one day and there’s nothing I can do about it, then let her. If that’s what keeps her alive, I’ll accept that fate."

Ekko took a firm step forward.

"Are you insane? What about Isha?"

"Keep her safe, idiot," Jinx took a breath, trying to steady herself. "The only thing I want is for my two daughters to be safe, no matter what it costs me—do you understand?"

"I can’t just—"

"You’re their father," Jinx finally spat out, forcing herself not to choke on the words. "Your job is to keep them safe if I’m not around."

Ekko started to object, until her words finally echoed in his head. She was talking about both of them… Was she saying he wasn’t just Kyan’s father by blood—but also Isha’s?

"These two girls are everything I have in this world, Ekko," the young woman murmured. "They were formed inside me. They’re mine. If I have to sacrifice my life for them, I will," she looked at him with fierce resolve. "Even if you don’t agree."

"So you're just going to let yourself die? Just like that?"

"If that’s what keeps Kyan alive, yes."

"Kyan doesn’t have to take care of Isha! You do!"

"Stop being so fucking stubborn, damn it! You couldn’t do anything either—I gave you the chance and you didn’t take it," Jinx shouted, and Ekko focused on her. "You’re not a killer, savior. And I might be a killer and totally messed up, but I would never endanger my daughters’ lives. I’ll keep Kyan and Isha safe until I die," she stepped toward him harshly, jabbing his chest with her fingernails. "And you’re not going to stop me."

Jinx turned to walk away, but before she could, Ekko’s arms wrapped around her from behind.

"Why are you so stubborn?" he muttered through clenched teeth, tightening his embrace as Jinx stood in shock. "All I was trying to do… was not lose you."

Every bone in Jinx’s body trembled to the core.

The young woman was beginning to understand Ekko’s motivation.

He would rather lose himself in the darkness than lose her.

But Jinx, with a ton of pain in her chest, would rather lose herself than lose her daughters.

And now she understood that the relief she felt knowing Ekko was still alive wasn’t just because he could help keep the girls safe (her top priority)—but because, like him, she couldn’t picture her world without him either.

It seemed that Jinx’s world was starting to grow, little by little.

And she had to protect it…

At least now, she didn’t feel so alone.

Chapter Text

There were no words for what was happening in that moment—Vander had gone mad. Violet watched in horror, consumed by pain, as her father turned back into that beast she had fought to the death months ago.

She knew Singed had something to do with it, because she saw his silhouette fleeing the scene when everything went to hell.

In the end, none of that mattered anymore when Caitlyn shot her straight in the ribs. Her bright blue gaze seemed to thaw when Vi dropped to her knees on the ground.

The beast vanished—just like Vander. Just like the tiny sliver of hope Violet had forced herself to build within that burning sanctuary.

Kyan’s crying was starting to resemble a drill boring into her ears. The baby was hungry, writhing on the couch, painfully observed by her mother.

Jinx was kneeling beside her, trying to soothe her with light pats on the chest. Less than ten minutes ago, she had tried for the seventh time to breastfeed her, and the baby simply wouldn’t latch.

She even tried to pump milk, but she couldn’t manage it—her erratic body refused to cooperate in her duty to be a mother.

They’d been at the doctor’s home for several hours already. He had needed Ekko’s help to carry Vi to a room where she could rest until she woke up.

Jinx had asked about her several times, each one pretending the last hadn’t happened. Ekko had told her what happened—how Caitlyn had attacked Violet, and how he barely managed to drag her away from the battlefield before more soldiers reached them.

Jinx’s head was nothing but a tangle of thoughts and emotions. On one side, in the improvised clinic room, Vi was fighting to regain consciousness. On the other, her youngest daughter cried because hunger had overwhelmed her.

The baby’s little hand gripped her mother’s thumb tightly. Jinx closed her own hand around hers, and a shiver ran through her when she felt how unnaturally hot the girl’s skin was.

She stood up abruptly, scooping the baby into her arms and laying her against her chest so her head rested on her collarbone. The young woman brushed her own cheek against her daughter’s face to gauge her temperature.

A pit opened in her stomach when the abrupt memory of Isha, fainting in her arms with a raging fever from the Gray, crossed her mind. She couldn’t let it happen again—especially not when Kyan was barely a week old.

She ran to the room where Violet was and kicked the door open. The doctor stood up, startled, as did Ekko. They had apparently been discussing the older sister’s condition, while Isha kept watch over the unconscious young woman, because mom had asked her to.

“She’s burning up,” Jinx cried, distressed.

The doctor took the baby from her arms and carried her into the small room that served as his clinic. Jinx followed closely, with Ekko right behind her and Isha clinging to her mother’s arm.

“Have you been able to nurse her?” he asked, analyzing the baby carefully as she sobbed on the metal table.

Jinx’s skin crawled when the doctor began removing the baby’s extra clothes to prevent the fever from rising. She remembered all too well how cold that damned metal slab was—the kind of cold that burned your skin. She hated that her baby was feeling the same thing now.

She silently shook her head. A wave of guilt lodged itself in her throat.

The doctor looked up at her from beneath his brows and rubbed the bridge of his nose with regret.

“This is something I don’t entirely understand, girl,” he said. “But if I had to bet on something, I’d say the baby is going through a sort of withdrawal.”

Jinx swallowed hard, glancing sideways at Ekko. Growing up in the Lanes under Silco, surrounded by so many damned Shimmer addicts, had taught her a thing or two about what that meant—but how could a newborn...?

“You’re shitting me,” Jinx snapped. “She’s not a damned addict—she’s a baby!”

The doctor inhaled, turning his back to them as he rummaged through a cabinet full of amber glass bottles until he found one tucked in the back.

“You’re not the only mother I’ve treated, Jinx,” he said, this time unafraid of being killed by the girl. “And down here, in the Undercity, Shimmer affects absolutely everyone. Many mothers can’t stop using it, even while pregnant, and that, sooner or later, affects the baby.”

Ekko stepped forward unsteadily. He’d witnessed more than once what Shimmer could do to people—that’s why he’d created his own refuge. But this was beyond him.

“What happens in those cases?” he asked.

The doctor took several seconds to find the right words, trying not to disturb both parents—and the girl who watched her baby sister with worry—too much.

“They don’t make it,” he said at last. “In ninety percent of cases.” He looked at Jinx and saw how her gaze was beginning to cloud, so he continued. “But this case is different. This baby doesn’t have the same syndrome as those others. You had Shimmer in your blood, and you passed it on genetically. If she’s experiencing withdrawal now, it’s because her body isn’t yet capable of producing it on its own. And that’s because... you haven’t been able to nurse her.”

“What does that have to do with anything?” Jinx asked, confused and starting to panic.

“The baby needs a trigger to start producing Shimmer on her own. Until she does, the Shimmer you provide through breastfeeding will be enough to ease the withdrawal until she can do it herself—and remain stable for life, just as you have.”

“But she won’t...” Jinx swallowed hard, trying to take in everything crashing down on her. “She won’t latch...”

“Yes... that’s going to be a problem,” the man acknowledged, taking a deep breath as he placed the amber vial on the table, right in front of Jinx. “This is a Shimmer solution—one I’ve had to make more than once to ease those symptoms in babies like this. I never agreed with using it, but in this particular case, it’s literally what she needs, because her body simply isn’t processing it... and she could die.”

“Then what the hell are you waiting for?!”

“The thing is, Jinx,” the doctor interrupted, “the exact dose she needs is the one you can give her through nursing. For now, I’ll only give her the bare minimum to ease her pain... but you have to keep trying.”

Keep trying...

She had to keep trying—or the one who would end up suffering for her damn inability to be a mother would be her baby. That defenseless girl who wasn’t at fault for anything would end up being dragged down by Jinx, just like Isha had been.

The doctor pulled a syringe from one of the drawers and pierced the vial’s seal.

“What are you doing?” Ekko asked, watching him approach the baby with concern.

“I don’t have formula to give it to her that way. Besides, we need it to act as quickly as possible.”

Ekko looked at Jinx with a furrowed brow, and she could only nod, tightening her grip on Isha’s hand—who had buried her face in her mother’s clothes to avoid seeing the needle pierce her baby sister’s delicate skin.

“This won’t be pretty,” the doctor sighed, offering them a strained smile, fearing for his safety. “Should I remind you I’m the only doctor in all of Zaun...?”

He swiftly and gently inserted the needle into the baby’s thigh. The little one let out a high-pitched scream, followed by a wail that tore her mother’s heart apart.

How could her own ineptitude be pushing her daughter to feel the same thing she had felt when Singed decided to bring her back to life with that damned, cursed substance?

The man made a grimace at Jinx, gesturing for her to take the baby. The young woman cradled her in her arms; the baby kept crying, trying to find refuge near her heart, hiding her face against her chest. Her crying subsided slightly with the warmth of her mother, but it didn’t stop.

Ekko clicked his tongue and walked out of the room.

Isha ran after him, halting him by clutching his pants. She looked up at him with a frown, clearly upset. Was he abandoning them? Isha didn’t want Ekko to go away alone, because she knew Mom couldn’t do everything by herself, and no matter how much she wanted to help, it wouldn’t be enough.

Her baby sister was too much work for the two of them.

Ekko knelt in front of her with a smile.

“I won’t take long, whirlwind, I promise,” he said, stroking her hair.

Isha made a few signs, tears barely forming in her eyes. Ekko had taken it upon himself to learn sign language so he could understand her, doing so in those three years they had been separated while Jinx and Isha hid from the chem-barons and Piltover.

"Are you really coming back?"

Ekko felt a pang in his chest—those huge, curious eyes of hers had always stopped his heart cold.

“There’s no force in the world that’ll keep me away from you again, Isha.”

Jinx stepped out of the room with a bitter taste in her throat.

“You’re leaving?” she asked, as if it didn’t matter to her, even though part of her was silently torturing herself with the thought that maybe all of this was too much for him.

Ekko looked at the baby in her arms; she was still softly crying, already exhausted.

“You’re not going to let her starve, are you?” he said, slinging his bag across his torso “I heard there’s a ‘trader’ not far from here who can get anything in minutes. Maybe he can help us.”

"Those people only work if you give them something in return, Ekko,” Jinx scolded “I don’t think—”

“Relax,” he smiled “You forget I’m a damn good negotiator.”

A wave of nostalgia hit them both. Of course—Benzo had raised him that way.

What would he think of everything Ekko had been doing with his life? Part of him would probably praise it, the other... would have smacked him upside the head for rejecting his own daughter the way he did.

He had to make it right.

The winding path to the so-called trader felt heavier with each step. At times, it seemed Ekko had lost track of time (ironically so), but he knew the place wasn’t far and the path wasn’t hard.

If anything was holding him back, it was his own thoughts—because even though his body felt weighed down, he was moving at a good pace.

"I can’t be a father, not to that thing."

The words echoed in his ears—his own voice betraying him. His memories had turned against him.

He still recalled the look on Scar’s face when he’d said it, like it was just air from his lungs, as if the words held no weight.

Calling her a “thing” made the situation easier—because accepting it as a baby growing inside Jinx, a baby with his blood, something he helped create and bring into the world, would’ve made him doubt. Would’ve made him hesitate about the goals he was supposedly so sure of.

But after everything that had happened, after everything Jinx had thrown in his face, he was starting to understand that Kyan wasn’t that “thing” he feared so much—or at least, not yet.

She wasn’t to blame for what he had seen. She didn’t want to face her mother or hurt those trying to protect her. Kyan just desperately wanted her mother to love her. For him to love her.

Calling her “thing” so dismissively made it easier not to care for her.

He finally reached a shack that looked abandoned, with wooden planks patched over the roof to cover holes and leaks, a half-open metal door, and windows draped in threadbare curtains.

Ekko entered confidently, no sign of hesitation on his face (or at least that’s what he tried to project). He stepped up to the counter, resting one arm casually on it. The creature on the other side growled.

“Formula. Powdered,” Ekko stated, pulling slightly back from the counter “For a newborn.”

The monster made a grimace that could’ve been a smile. It moved to the back of the store and pulled out a metal can, placing it on the counterboard without lifting its clawed hand from it.

"Trade,” it growled.

Ekko pulled his owl mask from his bag and placed it next to the can. The creature cackled, and for a moment, Ekko thought he saw its fierce yellow eyes gleam.

“Not that,”it growled again “Something more valuable.”

“What the hell are you talking about, ugly?” Ekko snapped “It’s handmade, pure bone. How could that not be valuable?”

“You don’t mind losing it,” the vendor said in a guttural voice “You can make another. But if you don’t take this—” he nodded toward the milk can “you’ll lose something you can’t get back, won’t you?”

Ekko scowled—he was sharper than he looked.

“Give me something just as valuable or there’s no deal.”

The boy felt cornered. Something just as valuable as his daughter’s life? Something he’d truly hate to lose?

He searched himself, hoping he had something worthwhile. His hand reached into his pants pocket. The creature squinted its eyes with a triumphant grin.

He pulled out the watch he always carried—the same one Benzo had given him when he was just a boy.

A watch that, with every tick, grounded him in reality—brought him back to reason, always echoing Benzo’s voice in his memories.

For a boy who’d had to grow up too soon, holding on to the memory of the man who’d once been like a father to him meant everything. Losing that watch would mean losing the last piece he had left of him.

He clenched the object tightly in his fist.

Benzo had always meant the world to Ekko. They couldn’t just make him give up the last thing he had left of his father. Not like this.

"Memories aren’t stored in objects, you silly kid. They’re in the moments you lived with those people—that’s what really matters."

Benzo’s voice drifted through his memory like a gentle breeze.

The day he lost everything he had left of his biological parents because of Piltover, Benzo had handed him that watch with those very words that now settled in his chest.

Benzo’s memory returned to set him straight. Because losing Kyan was not an option, and the man would never have wanted that.

Now, Ekko had the chance to be, for that little girl and for Isha, the father he himself had lost so many years ago.

He could make Benzo proud—wherever he was.

He handed over the watch and took the can of formula, heading back to the little family waiting for him with anxious hope.

Jinx paced back and forth across the office, Kyan in her arms. The little one hadn’t stopped crying, and it had been over two hours since Ekko had left.

She had even tried nursing her again, but the baby had rejected her once more.

Her crying grew more and more desperate, as if with every whimper she was begging her mother to understand that she was starving. The worst part was, Jinx already knew—and that’s what was torturing her.

She knew her baby was hungry, desperately seeking a source of nourishment, and there was nothing she could do to soothe her.

Nothing except trust Ekko and wait.

Wait... how could she just wait when every second the baby cried out in hunger felt like her own heart was being torn apart?

She rocked the baby endlessly in an effort to calm her, but it was no longer enough.

“Why are you so stubborn, kid?” she muttered. “Shit…”

Isha walked over to her mother; the doctor had offered the girl some food and she had tried to give it to mom to help feed her sister.

Jinx gave her a tender smile at the gesture, brushing her cheek as she knelt in front of her.

“That won’t help, bug,” she said softly. “She’s still too little to eat that.”

Isha tilted her head, peering at her sister’s face.

Why didn’t she just eat already? Did she not even know how? Maybe mom hadn’t taught her yet, like she had with her.

The front door suddenly burst open. Ekko rushed in, sweat running down his temple. He could barely catch his breath.

It looked like he had sprinted the whole way back.

He pulled the can of formula from his bag and handed it to Jinx, unable to say a word.

The young woman let out a sigh of relief, took the can, and handed him the baby without a second thought.

“Hey, doc!” Jinx shouted, dashing into the other room. “How the hell do you prep this stuff?!”

Kyan went quiet for a moment, sensing the sudden change between her mother’s arms and the new ones now holding her.

Ekko looked down at her tear-streaked face and her swollen eyes staring up at him.

Then her tiny stomach gave a gurgle, making her cry out again in desperation.

Panic gripped him—if Jinx couldn’t calm her down, what made him think he could?

Isha tugged at his pants and mimicked rocking a baby in her arms, showing him what to do—at least what she’d seen mom doing for the past two hours.

Ekko tried to follow her lead, but he couldn’t get Kyan to calm down. He had to take a deep breath and summon the memory of Scar taking care of his daughter.

He tried to imitate him, because in Ekko’s eyes, Scar was a great father—one who would sacrifice everything to protect his child, one who stood strong even in times of war.

He held the baby with both hands, cradling her head in one palm and the rest of her body in the other, keeping her close to his chest.

Their eyes met—hers still teary and furrowed in frustration, one of her tiny hands resting against her trembling lips.

“Fussy little thing,” Ekko murmured as her crying began to subside. “You’ll feel better soon, you’ll see.”

Her eyes widened, listening carefully to her father’s voice. The hand that wasn’t near her mouth reached up toward Ekko’s face.

His heart swelled with joy—joy that, for a moment, drowned out the hunger. Because never, since she was born, had the boy spoken to her. Especially not with such tenderness and genuine sorrow.

Kyan gave a tiny smile that shook Ekko to the core.

Man, had he really been willing to erase her from the world? Her? Just a little bundle of flesh barely discovering her place in the world?

His throat trembled with the sting of bitter tears. He leaned in until her delicate fingertips brushed his skin.

“I’m sorry…” he whispered. “I’m sorry for everything…”

The baby made a soft sound that sweetened Ekko’s ears. He smiled as tears slipped past his control, landing on Kyan’s fingers.

Papa had finally spoken to her. Papa really did love her.

Isha stepped up and wiped Ekko’s tears with her tiny hands. He hadn’t been able to do it himself.

She looked at him in confusion. Why were Ekko and mom crying so much lately? Did something hurt? Were they hungry too, like Kyan? Or maybe…

The girl gently poked his chest with her finger.

“Does it hurt?”

She asked, right over his heart.

Isha knew that mom’s pain often came from that place, and she knew exactly what to do to make it feel better. The thing that always made mom feel better in seconds.

She dug into the emergency pocket of her vest and pulled out a bandage, sticking it over Ekko’s chest, then ran up and kissed his cheek. Just like she always did with mom.

Ekko looked at her, stunned, but Isha was unfazed and proud—her method was foolproof.

He rested Kyan in one arm and used the other to gently pull Isha to him, pressing her against his chest. He placed his chin on her head and wrapped them both in a strong embrace.

He would never be so foolish as to walk away from them again. Not ever.

Jinx cleared her throat. Isha pulled away with a smile and ran to her mother. Ekko handed the baby over, and she fussed a little as she settled into her mother’s arms.

Jinx cradled her against her chest and placed the bottle between her lips. She latched onto it hungrily, the speed of her sucking revealing her desperate need to be fed.

Both parents felt the relief in their chests—but guilt began to claw at Jinx once more.

If she had just been able to feed her from the start, none of this would’ve happened. Her daughter wouldn’t have been starving.

If only… she had been able to be her mother.

Isha tugged on her mom’s clothes to get her attention. Jinx snapped out of her dark thoughts and crouched down to her level, smiling as she looked at her. The little one tilted her head, glancing toward her sister.

“She won’t cry anymore?”

She asked with a furrowed brow. Jinx burst out in a playful laugh. She knew her eldest didn’t enjoy the baby’s crying, but tolerated it out of love for her.

“She still will, bug,” she said. “But not because she’s hungry.” Isha scrunched her nose in disgust, and Jinx pinched her cheek affectionately to make her smile. “You did the same, little trouble.”

The baby made a soft sound again, and Isha looked at her attentively.

“Wanna try?” Jinx asked.

Isha nodded, eyes sparkling. Jinx gestured to the couch, and the girl jumped onto it, sitting up as straight as she could. Gently, Jinx placed the baby in Isha’s arms. Kyan squirmed a bit at the awkwardness, but when she looked up at her sister, she was captivated, quietly drinking just as mom had shown her.

Kyan smiled with her lips still wrapped around the bottle. She loved being near Isha—because she remembered how her big sister had always cared for her when mom couldn’t be there.

When dusk began to ink the sky of the Undercity, Jinx made the decision to take the girls back home, because they could no longer stay at the doctor’s place until Violet woke up.

She had told Ekko to stay for when her sister regained consciousness, because she definitely wouldn’t be happy, and waking up in an unfamiliar place wasn’t going to make things easier.

Besides, Jinx knew there was a relatively big problem waiting at home that she’d have to deal with once she got there… and that was the fact that her personal ogre hadn’t even found out about Kyan’s birth.

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me…”

Sevika froze completely. Her throat burned with every breath, but the words still refused to come out of her mouth.

Jinx stood in front of her, beneath the doorway of The Last Drop. Isha was hanging onto her arm, while the baby slept peacefully in the other.

The woman walked up to her with firm steps, stopping just inches from her face. Jinx held her head high as Sevika’s eyes locked on the child in her arms, her tiny thumb resting innocently between her lips.

“Don’t say a damn thing,” Jinx warned.

Sevika growled through her teeth.

The last thing she needed was another brat to take care of whenever Jinx decided to vanish.

“Fuck, kid,” she spat.

She headed to the bar and grabbed a bottle of aged liquor from the cabinets behind, not even bothering to look for a glass—she drank straight from it like it was water.

“I heard what happened in the Fissures,” she said, taking a breath after the swig. “I knew you were over there. I thought you were dead.” She glanced sideways at Isha, then corrected herself with another swig. “I thought you both were dead.”

Jinx hesitated, for a second she’d assumed she’d have to be far more defensive, but it seemed Sevika couldn’t care less about the new member of their small, chaotic family.

Sevika scoffed, trying to ignore the persistent stares of mother and daughter, and walked off toward Silco’s office.

“She better be quieter than the first,” she spat without turning back, muttering, “Shit, I’d actually been sleeping well these past days.”

And she shut the door behind her.

Isha was thrilled to be back home, in the place where she had literally been born. She felt so safe in that space, full of colors and lights that had been placed there just for her. Because that room was a space that belonged to her and mama.

Now it seemed slightly smaller because their family had grown.

And while Isha was getting reacquainted with her surroundings, Jinx let herself fall onto the bed, releasing a sigh tinged with nostalgia.

Home felt so strange, so unfamiliar—so much had happened since the last time they’d been there. A part of her had feared coming back, because coming back meant facing her ghosts alone.

And ever since they’d left the doctor’s office, Mylo and Claggor hadn’t stopped haunting her. Pretending not to hear them had been the easy part.

The hard part came when she stepped into The Last Drop and Silco’s voice joined theirs.

“How will you care for her this time without me? I fixed your life when Isha was born. If she’s still alive, it’s because of me.”

The ghost of the man repeated it to her over and over again.

“If she’s still alive, it’s because of me…”

Isha leapt onto the bed, nestling into the pile of pillows and sheets just like she always did before going to sleep. From Jinx’s perspective, the bed looked smaller—or maybe her daughter had just grown so much more.

She placed the baby next to Isha, and with slight hesitation, the girl curled her arm around the smaller one and soon fell asleep beside her.

The young mother smiled sweetly. There was no room left for her—both girls had taken over the whole mattress, just as they had taken over her heart.

Not that she really felt like sleeping anyway.

Jinx walked over to the farthest tip of the propeller from her daughters. She ran her fingers along the worktable that had, for years, been her only safe place in that whole spot.

Memories of crafting weapons for Silco came flooding back.

“Those were good times.”

She heard behind her, like a whisper in her ear from the man who had once served as a father figure.

“They were just times,” she replied.

Silco’s shadow sat beside her; she couldn’t even look at him.

“Do you really think you can raise them alone? You always needed my help.”

“I’m not as alone as you think.”

Silco let out a cold, dry laugh.

“You mean the Firelight? He had to reward you to feel less guilty about everything he did. Don’t doubt he’ll leave too, just like the others.”

Jinx felt a spasm in her chest.

“He won’t, he…”

“He what? You know he couldn’t possibly feel that way about you. Not after seeing how his daughter suffers because of you—because you can’t even feed her. You can’t do something that simple, Jinx.”

“Shut up,” she murmured. “Shut the hell up…”

Jinx pulled away from him, sitting in front of the broken mirror in the room, trying desperately not to hear him. But Silco didn’t leave her side.

“If you can’t do it, she’ll die. Just like Isha almost did so many times.”

Jinx looked at her reflection. It seemed as if Silco’s ghost was braiding her hair, just like he used to when she was still a child.

Her soul ached. She knew the voices were tricks her mind played on her—it was something she had learned over time—but she still couldn’t stop them, couldn’t stop them from tormenting her.

She tore off the clips holding her hair and undid the braids to avoid looking at that twisted memory of Silco as yet another one of her damn ghosts.

Her bluish hair fell in strands over her shoulders and spilled onto the floor, covering everything in indigo. At least Silco was gone.

“Death has always surrounded you. But starving your own daughter? Shit, that’s horrible even for you!”

This time it was Mylo who appeared in the mirror’s reflection. Jinx’s furious gaze lit up pink and she shattered her brother’s face in the mirror with a clean punch.

“SHUT THE FUCK UP!”

She stared at her trembling, bloody fingers. She could feel her breath burning in her throat. The guilt she’d been feeling since Kyan’s birth finally made itself known among her mocking, cruel ghosts.

She heard small footsteps behind her and turned abruptly in her seat.

Isha was looking at her with tear-filled eyes, holding Kyan in her arms.

The baby was startled the moment her mother’s fierce gaze locked onto them, frightened enough to start crying in her sister’s arms.

Isha wasn’t scared—she was worried about Mom. With one hand and as best as she could, she tried to show her what was wrong.

“She’s hungry.”

Or at least that’ what the little girl assumed when her sister woke up crying in the darkness where Mama wasn’t with them.

Jinx crouched down to Isha’s height and took the baby into her arms.

Isha looked at her mother’s wound and quickly ran to get a bandage to wrap around her hand.

“Mama, does it hurt a lot?”

Jinx stayed still, staring at her clumsily bandaged hand.

Silco had been right.

But she didn’t want him to be. She wanted him to be wrong, because if he wasn’t, that would mean she had never truly been a good mother to Isha—and she never could be one to Kyan.

She had failed so many times that it felt like her soul was screaming in agony from the inside. She wanted the world to stop spinning so fast, she just wanted the world to stop so she could learn how to be the mother those girls deserved.

She gently touched the older girl’s cheek with trembling fingers.

“Will you ever be able to forgive me, Isha?” she whispered with a broken voice. “I haven’t known how to be a good mom to you… everything you’ve been through… it’s all been my fault.”

Isha tilted her head; Jinx lowered her tearful gaze to the floor.

“Mama hasn’t managed to make you happy enough… I’m so sorry.”

The girl cupped her mother’s face in her small hands, brushing aside her unruly hair instinctively.

“I’m very happy with Mama. Can I make you happy now?”

Jinx’s eyes narrowed, and she felt her heart clench in her chest. Isha really had no idea how happy she had made her since the day she was born. She had no idea that, thanks to her and her beautiful golden eyes, Jinx had changed to become a better person.

Just for her. Just for her little Isha.

She hugged her tightly, burying her face in her neck. Isha wrapped her tiny arms around her, letting Mom hear the strong beating of her heart.

“What am I going to do with you…?” she murmured, her voice choked. “My little girl, my ray of light, I’ve felt so many times like I was losing you that I’m terrified it might actually happen one day.”

Isha pulled away from her.

“I’m not going anywhere, Mama.”

She assured her. Jinx caressed her cheek with a motherly gesture. Kyan babbled between tiny smiles, waving her hands up to her mother’s face. The young woman wrapped Isha in her arms once more.

Those two girls had no idea how much their mother loved them. No idea what she would do to keep them alive.

They had no idea that the love Jinx felt was burning her from the inside.

It burned so much, and yet it warmed her heart.

She felt so weak when she was near them—and, ironically, it was when she had to be her strongest.

Jinx already knew it deep down, but this time, it was clearer than ever.

How destructive a mother’s love could be. How much it could tear her apart.

And that she would never trade it for anything.

Chapter Text

Hearing her cry was a nuisance.

She did it day and night without stopping; and, to her damn luck, the only one who could calm her down was Jinx.

And Jinx had tried everything to ease her daughter's sorrow, with no success at all.

Kyan was small and fragile—so fragile that the young mother felt she would break at any moment, and if she broke, Jinx’s world would fall apart with her.

"Are you planning to let her starve to death?" Sevika burst into the room abruptly, but the young woman tried not to pay her much attention. "Jinx!"

"Shit, ogre!" she finally exclaimed, desperate. "I’m doing everything I possibly can! You wanna try?!"

Sevika stepped back. Isha, who was only a few steps away from them, stared at her mother as Kyan’s crying began to lose intensity. Jinx softened her expression upon seeing both girls fearful at her bitter outburst.

Jinx rolled her eyes, exhaling with a huff.

"I’ve been trying for days to get her to latch onto my breast, but she only takes that damn formula—and there’s hardly any of it left. Ekko has tried to find more, but he hasn’t been able to. And if this keeps up, the stupid Shimmer withdrawal is going to hurt her again. If I don’t do something soon, she’s going to die," she explained, almost out of breath, "and… I don’t want her to die… I can’t let her die. But… I don’t know what else to do." She sighed. "If Silco were here, he..."

He surely would’ve known what to do.

Sevika stayed silent. She could see how the girl’s grip around the baby’s body trembled with every clumsy movement the child made, desperately trying to cling to her mother’s clothes.

A breeze of nostalgia swept through her from the soles of her feet to the tips of her hair. She still remembered the stupid, inexperienced young girl who had just brought life into the world—a girl who didn’t care about anything and who suddenly focused all her attention on a ball of flesh that depended entirely on her and no one else.

Sevika knew that when Silco was alive, Jinx had blind faith that there was nothing in the world he couldn’t fix; but after his death, the girl had to take a bitter dose of reality. Sevika knew Jinx had become much more aware of the consequences of her actions, and that those consequences would, one way or another, affect Isha.

A brat who had completely distanced herself from a reality that hurt her more with each passing day had forced herself to grow up—for her daughter’s sake.

And now she had to do it twice over.

"I know I’m not the ideal mother," Jinx murmured, pulling the woman out of her own reverie. "I wasn’t with Isha, and I’m not being one with her either, but no one ever taught me how to be one." Her voice began to break. "I don’t even fully remember my mother. How am I supposed to become something I never had? I’m doing all of this on my own, and I’m failing at every attempt."

No. Sevika knew how wrong she was. She had seen every damn trial and error—she had seen it all from the beginning. She had been there through all of Jinx’s desperate attempts to keep Isha safe from the world that, with every breath the girl took, tried to snuff out her life.

Jinx may have been stupid many times. Impulsive. Chaotic. Hopeless.

But never a bad mother.

A creak from high up on the propeller shaft caught both their attention. Isha was climbing to the very top, where she was sure Mommy had hidden the “toys” she had loved building most for Silco.

Jinx had told her they were too dangerous for her, but that had been ages ago (only a few weeks), so it made perfect sense to Isha that now she could show Mommy she was old enough to learn to use them.

Just like her. Because surely that would make her happy and proud.

"Isha!"

Jinx placed Kyan in Sevika’s awkward arm and rushed to the rescue of her first daughter. She began to climb the grates (with more difficulty than Isha, due to her feet being much larger than the girl’s), feeling a strange sense of familiarity in her chest.

Yes, it was just as she remembered.

"Isha! Don’t move, I’m coming!" she shouted. "Don’t you dare let go!"

But, just like before, Isha couldn’t hold her own weight and slipped from the grate, just as her fingertips had barely grazed the edge of Mommy’s hidden “treasures.”

Jinx lunged sideways to catch her in midair.

Because Mama had good reflexes.

They both hit the ground about two meters below, Jinx’s back slamming hard, making her grimace in genuine pain. But she couldn’t even pay attention to her own injuries (the Shimmer would take care of that); she immediately checked the child clutched to her chest.

"Kiddo, are you okay?"

Isha looked up at her, smiling. Jinx sighed in relief, letting her head drop back onto the floor.

"You're afraid of nothing, huh, little trouble?"

Isha laughed. Then, the objects she had barely managed to touch came tumbling down on them. Jinx shielded the girl’s body with her arms, rolling side to side on the ground to dodge the crashing projectiles.

The last thing to fall was a completely full gallon of blue paint that, upon impact, sprayed paint into the air, flooding the place in a bright blue.

Jinx sat up, facing Isha, struggling to wipe the paint from her own eyelids. Both of them were soaked in it, drenched in liters of the stuff. She looked at Sevika, who had managed to turn her back to the colorful blast just in time to shield Kyan with her own body. Only half of the woman was stained blue, as if she had decided to rest against a freshly painted wall.

Her gaze wandered around the room, which now quite literally looked as if the paint can had exploded just to leave everything in a chaotic indigo scene.

Isha shrugged, looking at Mom with a hint of concern—this had never been her intention, and even she realized she had gone too far.

Jinx turned her attention to Isha, one brow raised in silence. Her golden eyes stared at her from beneath the paint, like a scared kitten caught in the rain—the only thing of a different color in the sea of blue covering her.

Then the older girl’s shoulders began to shake, a dry sound barely escaped her throat, until she finally let out a loud laugh.

Isha’s eyes widened in surprise—this was the first time in her life she’d seen her mother have a laughing fit.

Jinx threw herself back, unable to contain the laughter, kicking at the floor from the pain in her stomach.

"Hey, lefty! You missed the other side!" the young woman teased, followed by a conspiratorial smile from Isha.

Sevika grumbled, shaking the excess paint from her hair.

Still with laughter in her throat, Jinx grabbed a clean towel and knelt before Isha, gently wiping her face.

"This time you outdid yourself," she said with a motherly smile, giving her nose a playful tug, "with how much trouble you can cause. Just like me."

Sevika handed the baby back with a sour expression, snatching the towel to clean herself.

Jinx looked at Kyan. A few drops of paint had reached her, speckling her cheeks and forehead. She wiped them away with her thumb, smiling slyly.

"You should tell her," Sevika said, after hearing the heavy sigh Jinx let out, and nodded toward Kyan. "She understands you more than you think."

And then she left, cursing about how many times she’d have to wash her hair before going out in public again.

The soft grunts from Kyan drew Jinx’s attention. The baby was starting to desperately shove her hands into her mouth. The young woman knew exactly what that meant, and it broke her heart all over again. Because when it happened with Isha, she only had to bring her to her chest and everything would be fine, no matter where they were. But Kyan was making her face the harsh truth.

Resigned, she walked over to the last bit of formula in the can, watching with anguish as it ran out—knowing there would be no more afterward. The thought of her little girl going hungry again tore at her gut.

"Please, Kyan…" she begged, setting the can back on the worktable, "I need you to try. You just have to eat."

The girl froze for a second, hearing the sweet sound of her mother’s voice, not quite understanding what she meant. Then she furrowed her brow and pouted.

"No, no, no… please, don’t cry."

But she cried anyway.

It started with soft sobs that she occasionally muffled with her hands, trying and failing to soothe her hunger.

The desperation was plain on Jinx’s face, her eyes torn as she watched the girl writhing in her arms, against her chest, so close to the thing that would ease her suffering and yet so far from it. What else could she do? Just give in to the idea that there was no other way to feed her? That she’d have to search under every rock for the same formula Ekko had failed to find to keep her daughter alive?

"She understands you more than you think."

There was no way Sevika had gotten soft over one of her daughters—and especially not over Jinx herself—to offer advice… or had she?

Whether she had or not, Jinx was out of options. And although listening to Sevika was the last thing she’d ever choose to do, this time she was truly desperate.

The girl collapsed onto the mattress, followed closely by Isha, who leaned over her shoulder curiously to observe her sister’s reactions.

She inhaled deeply, filling her lungs completely. Tears were beginning to form in her eyes, the anguish of seeing her baby hungry weighed heavily on her chest. It pierced her heart.

"I don’t even know why the hell I’m doing this," she muttered through clenched teeth, "I’m not even sure you understand me, and listening to Sevika is gonna give me nightmares for a week."

Kyan stopped crying, paying much closer attention to her mother’s voice. Jinx became lost in her bright, pinkish eyes. She imagined, for a second, that maybe that had been the same look she gave her the first time she spoke to her while still in the womb.

Because yes, that’s how that conversation had started. And Jinx was beginning to believe maybe the girl remembered it.

"Could you, please, just eat already?"

Kyan simply parted her lips slightly, captivated. It was the first real conversation her mother had had with her—well, if it could be called a conversation, because really, she was just listening attentively.

With an attention soaked in innocence. An innocence the desperate young woman longed to protect, to keep alive at all costs.

Because, oh Janna, how she hated the feeling that her whole world was slipping through her fingers.

Finally, the weight of Jinx’s emotions crashed down on her, and they turned into tears.

"I owe you an apology…" she whispered with a cracked voice, "maybe that’s why you just don’t want to be with me, you know? And it was so easy to ignore that I pretended not to see it" she smiled with ironic sorrow. "But now I get it… when you were born, I was so afraid of dying and leaving Isha alone, that a part of me must’ve blamed you for it… and I never said sorry."

Kyan’s eyes opened a little wider, as if she understood her mother’s feelings, as if a part of her accepted that if she hadn’t wanted to bond with her, it was because deep down, Mama hadn’t been too happy about her arrival.

And Jinx was beginning to understand that with bitterness.

"I’m sorry… please, forgive me… I’m so sorry that it’s my fault you’re starving now."

A warm tear fell on the girl’s cheek, making her flinch sweetly. Jinx smiled through her tears, touched.

Because she adored her. Truly did.

And she had no idea what else to do anymore, and accepting that her life would slowly slip away was definitely not an option.

Isha jumped off the bed and stood in front of her mother.

“Don’t cry, Mama. She loves you too. Just like I do.”

She said with a flurry of quick signs, and Jinx’s eyes filled with tears once again.

Such a pure heart. How had she been able to grow such a pure heart inside her? How could that heart love her so much? Love her more than any other living being in the world?

"Isha, do you… like that I’m your mom?" she asked, heart in hand.

"You’re the best mom in the world."

She answered without hesitation. Isha’s certain gaze struck Jinx straight in the chest, like a bud about to bloom and spread its fragrance through her whole being, coloring her soul.

The young woman pulled her daughter into one of the tightest hugs she had ever given her.

After wiping her tears in Isha’s hair, both looked at Kyan, who watched them intently and in complete silence.

"Please, Kyan. Do it for Isha, do it for me. Try," Jinx pleaded, sniffling. "You have no idea how much we love you…" she tightened her arms around the baby. "How much Mama loves you."

The little girl stared intently into Mama’s magenta eyes. Honest, tearful eyes. The eyes of a mother who didn’t want to watch her baby suffer from hunger any longer.

Eyes that reflected… how much Mama loved her. How deeply, truly, she adored her.

Kyan leaned against Jinx’s chest and nuzzled her nose gently into it, parting her lips slightly, just like she had done at the beginning. Jinx, blindly and with hope in her heart, guided her toward her breast.

And she latched.

As soon as the baby latched onto her mother’s chest and began to suckle, Jinx felt overwhelming relief, like the weight of the world had been lifted from her shoulders and crashed thunderously to the floor. She exhaled deeply and threw her head back, trying to muffle a cry in her throat. Her silent sobs came pouring out.

She had finally managed to nurse her.

At last, Kyan was eating. At last, her little one was drinking from her breast the nectar that would give her life.

Her baby was safe.

Jinx held the girl tighter, riding the waves of her own emotion.

"That’s it, my little one, that’s it," she cooed. "You’re safe now. You’re in Mama’s arms."

The soft sounds of the baby feeding felt like intoxicating, dreamlike relief. Jinx hadn’t forgotten that feeling, because it was one of the ones she cherished most from when Isha was that age.

And it was just as rewarding as she remembered.

That feeling of continuing to give life to the being you brought into the world. A being that was entirely yours, that depended on you—and from whom, Jinx had discovered, maybe you depended just as much, if not more.

Because a child who loses their mother becomes an orphan. But for a mother who loses a child, there is no terminology—she simply never stops being a mother. And that explained everything perfectly.

When she finished feeding her, and under the attentive, curious gaze of Isha—who seemed utterly fascinated to witness all this for the first time—she took the baby and laid her against her chest, gently patting her back.

Isha climbed onto her mom, resting her head on the free space of her chest, staring straight at Kyan, who smiled sleepily upon seeing her sister’s bright golden eyes.

The older girl jumped up again, running to the couch inside the room. Jinx turned Kyan around and sat her on her lap. The baby searched for her sister with an alert gaze. Isha immediately understood the game about to unfold and began darting back and forth across the couch, over it and around it.

Kyan shook with excited giggles, waving her hands and feet every time Isha made any movement, no matter how small. Until, at one point, Isha decided to hide behind the couch. Jinx could hear her mischievous giggle, but Kyan couldn’t understand why her sister had disappeared right before her eyes.

Isha took nearly a minute to come out of her hiding place—a minute that felt eternal to Kyan. Seeing no sign of her sister, she pursed her lips and scrunched her nose, her eyes began to fill with tears, and she rubbed her face against her mother’s chest, ready to burst into tears.

The older girl had to dart out of her hiding place like lightning after hearing her sister’s sobs, slightly disappointed.

She didn’t know how to play yet.

“She still doesn’t get that you didn’t vanish off the face of Runeterra, runt,” Jinx said, anticipating her daughter’s thoughts. “You were just like her with me, no matter how many times I tried to show you otherwise.”

Isha tilted her head. The hideout’s door creaked, followed by familiar footsteps that both Isha and Jinx recognized instantly.

Ekko’s tired voice came from the edge of the room.

“Jinx, I went everywhere and barely managed to get a single can.”

Isha looked up and immediately ran to him. The young man scooped her up, lifting her from the ground and setting her on his shoulders.

Jinx noticed the weariness on his face. She hated to admit it, but she knew how hard he tried for them. She knew how much the boy loved those girls. And she was starting to come to terms—with a bit of bitterness—that Ekko wasn’t a bad father, just that the circumstances had been against them both.

“That won’t be necessary anymore, Savior,” Jinx informed him, holding back a smile. “I did it. This picky little one finally… gave in.”

“Are you serious?”

Jinx raised an eyebrow.

“Would I joke about something like that?”

Ekko let the bag with the formula drop to the floor and walked over to her. Kyan kicked her legs on the young woman’s lap and reached out to Ekko, opening and closing her fists excitedly. He grabbed her under the arms and lifted her.

“You. Little rebel. You made us see our luck up close,” he muttered with a smile, bringing her close to his face.

A sigh of relief slipped from his lips. Jinx would never lie about something like that—if she said it, it was true.

Their baby was safe.

And that was a relief, because among her plans for the next day was stealing more formula from somewhere in Piltover.

Kyan let out a laugh upon seeing Isha on Ekko’s shoulders, then yawned, instantly infecting her older sister.

“All right, little bugs, bedtime,” Jinx announced, taking Kyan from Ekko’s hands.

The young man laid Isha in bed, followed by Jinx, who did the same with the baby. The young mother stroked both girls’ hair with a smile as they drifted off to sleep.

“Don’t think I can’t see you, boy,” Jinx commented, glancing at him. “Wipe that stupid grin off your face. You’re going to make me puke.”

“It was unconscious,” he replied quickly. “I didn’t even realize I was smiling.”

Jinx scoffed with an incredulous smile.

“You should go back to your tree, bug,” she teased.

“I was thinking of staying a bit longer, just in case… you know, you needed anything.”

The young woman wavered her gaze, looking away from him, ignoring (or at least trying to ignore) the relentless pounding of her heart.

“Don’t be stupid, Ekko,” she chided. “Go home, do whatever the hell you want. There are so many paths you could take now.”

“I know,” Ekko sighed, seemingly resigned, “but there’s only one I actually care about.”

Jinx stifled a laugh behind her lips to avoid waking the little ones.

“Oh yeah, kid?” she asked sarcastically, crossing her arms over her chest. “And which one is that?”

“The one that leads to you.”

Jinx felt the flutter in her stomach, and how her face began to redden, her magenta eyes locked entirely on Ekko’s steady gaze—a gaze full of determination and courage. Firm in its convictions. A gaze that had settled feelings she hadn’t even fully acknowledged herself.

Sleeping in the bed beside them was the fruit of those feelings.

Or what they thought wasn’t. Of confusion. Of nostalgia. Of pain and supposed resentment built over years.

Of something more.

Ekko stepped closer to her, closing the distance. His fingers searched for hers, entangling in a fragile grasp.

The boy rested his forehead on the young woman’s shoulder, to Jinx’s surprise. It was nothing more than a warm, simple gesture—but a pleasant one.

“I never told you…” he murmured, “how beautiful you looked when you were pregnant.”

Jinx narrowed her eyes with a nervous smile.

“What? Did you hit your head?”

Then Ekko wrapped his arms around her, more tightly than Jinx had expected.

“I’m sorry for everything I did, everything I put you through, everything I put them through,” he whispered, trying to keep his voice from breaking. “Thank you, Jinx. For bringing them into the world.” The young woman shivered. “For bringing them into my world.”

Jinx gently pulled away, pushing his chest with her fingertips, locking her eyes into his. She tried to step back, but Ekko took her by the waist, reaffirming his stance.

Jinx’s heart pounded wildly. She wanted to run, to flee like she always had—especially when it came to him.

Because when it came to Ekko, Jinx’s always-logical brain stopped making reasonable decisions—it focused only on him and his stupid, hopeful puppy-dog eyes.

And that broke her.

She hated being broken. She hated being shattered.

But no matter how broken she was, it seemed Ekko always managed to find every piece of her and put her back together.

Without any help.

Her illogical thoughts took over, her heart moved her, and her mind was filled with senseless ideas:

“Hold me tight, kiss me until I fall apart and nothing remains of me, because if I dissolve in your arms, I will have found my place in the world.”

Ekko delicately slid his hand up Jinx’s arms until it reached her face, tilting her jaw.

Jinx closed her eyes as she felt Ekko’s lips meet hers.

A soft kiss. So soft. So different.

Because she didn’t focus on the physical contact—but on the storm of emotions in her chest.

If what they felt wasn’t love—and if it wasn’t even close to it… then what was it?

What was it that, for the first time in her life, made her want to stay and risk everything?

Made her want to be swept away as if caught in the current of a raging river.

A sudden crash tore them apart. Sevika entered stomping her feet.

“Your stupid sister ran off again,” she spat. “Ever since she learned to move, she’s been a damn pain in the ass.”

Jinx and Ekko immediately jumped apart. Within seconds, they were three meters away from each other.

The eldest chose not to say anything else, and simply focused on the reason for her forced return to Jinx's hideout.

“There’s going to be a rally,” she said. “Tomorrow.”

“Not this crap again,” Jinx groaned.

“It’ll be with your friend Firelight,” Sevika added with a hint of malice.

Jinx shot the boy a furious glare, completely outraged.

“You’re with her?”

Ekko nodded, rubbing the back of his neck.

“For them,” he replied, nodding toward the girls, who remained undisturbed in their sleep. “Or have you forgotten everything that Enforcer did?”

“No. I still have nightmares about it,” Jinx continued, hugging herself. “About Isha falling into the void… and what would’ve happened if you hadn’t been there.”

Ekko swallowed hard, clearly uncomfortable.

“This started with Vander, but it continued with you—what you did to destroy Stillwater, what happened with the Herald—this whole damn war is right on our heels.”

“That’s why I’m running from it!” Jinx shot back. “I know she’s breathing down our necks… but if we move forward with this, if we make it more real…” She looked at Kyan and Isha with a sorrowful expression. “They won’t have anywhere left to hide.”

Ekko stepped forward, grabbing Jinx by the shoulders to hold her attention.

“They’re looking for Kyan, and they won’t stop until they find her,” he said. “And with Isha? The mere fact that she’s a weakness for you is reason enough to keep her in their sights. The only way to end this is to give them the war they want… and win it.”

Jinx looked away with a scowl, clearly unhappy. She loved creating chaos, and blowing up Piltover had been her biggest dream since she was a child, but she could no longer see things the same way. She was terrified of war taking everything from her… again.

“What makes you so sure we can keep them safe?” she asked.

“That I’ll use my life to protect them,” Ekko replied without hesitation. “Them… and you.”

Jinx locked eyes with him.

No. That wasn’t the answer she was expecting either. She didn’t want to keep losing more.

She didn’t want to lose the people she loved anymore.

And Ekko was also part of that small group.

Chapter Text

Leaving both girls at The Last Drop hadn’t even been a remotely considerable option for Jinx. Especially because there would be no one there—Violet had disappeared the day before, Ekko insisted the eldest was out looking for a way to get revenge on that Enforcer, but Jinx wasn’t entirely convinced.

And that was slowly eating her up, because Caitlyn was someone she couldn’t give a second chance to—not after everything she’d done.

Ekko guided the young mother and the girls back to the Firelights’ hideout. As soon as they glimpsed the other side of the duct, Jinx felt a chill; every previous time she’d crossed that threshold, she’d been running from something, and now things didn’t seem any different.

That was her life—that’s how it had always been. And she hated it.

Isha, for her part, seemed far more enthusiastic than her mother and Kyan, who was sleeping peacefully in her mother’s arms, blissfully unaware of what was going on around her.

And that was for the best.

Scar was the one who greeted them with more warmth than Jinx had expected, but seeing him there, standing with a calm smile, gave her a peculiar sense of belonging.

For just that brief instant, she almost felt at home.

Isha ran into Scar’s arms, and he lifted her into the air, spinning twice on his own axis. The girl burst into laughter only when he set her down on the floor and tried to hide his dizziness.

“For a moment I thought you wouldn’t come,” he said, watching Jinx’s natural distrust of her surroundings. “There’s no one here anymore who can hurt you,” he assured, catching her attention. “Ekko took care of that.”

The dark-skinned boy cleared his throat, avoiding Jinx’s insistent gaze at all costs.

Ever since Scar had been forced to let Jinx go while she was pregnant, and after Ekko’s return, things had had to change at the hideout—many had been cast out, their lack of loyalty a problem for the future, and they knew that.

Now the place was safe for Jinx and her daughters, thanks to the young man’s determination.

Kyan stirred in her mother’s arms, letting out soft whimpers, announcing to the world that she had woken up.

Scar peeked over to glance at the little one. He knew Jinx far too well to risk a wrong move.

The baby smiled, her eyes still heavy with sleep, looking up at her mother, then let out a yawn that made her scrunch her nose and rub it with the back of her tiny hands. Jinx took the girl’s hands with a motherly smile, just before she brought them to her mouth.

“Is she…?” Scar asked, looking at Ekko with some incredulity.

Kyan smiled again upon seeing her mother’s bright eyes and began to take in her surroundings (possibly searching for Isha), only to lock eyes with Scar’s curious gaze.

The man showed no hostility, just stood still watching her, but to Kyan, he was a stranger, and she wasn’t very comfortable with that—so she pursed her lips, on the verge of tears.

Scar stepped back, embarrassed; that usually wasn’t the effect he had on children.

Ekko let out a mocking laugh, immediately drawing the baby’s attention, and her distressed expression melted into a beaming smile.

Jinx was starting to get used to it: the affection Kyan had unconditionally developed for Ekko—she couldn’t blame her, after all, he was her father, and the little one knew it.

Besides, Ekko’s love for the baby was practically instinctive. So instinctive that sometimes the young woman didn’t understand where he had found the willpower and courage to choose to give her up… just to save her life.

She tightened her grip slightly around the little one.

If he had been just a little braver… If he hadn’t softened his heart… would he really have been able to live with that?

Isha tugged at her mother’s clothes with a sulky pout. When Jinx looked down at her, the girl stretched out a hair tie toward her.

“It broke.”

She said, lips in a pout, because one of her braids was now just a mess of loose strands.

Jinx let out a snort with a smile, placed Kyan in Ekko’s arms, and crouched down to Isha’s level. The girl immediately turned her back so Mommy could fix her hair.

Because Mommy always fixed everything.

Kyan smiled at her father, her overflowing joy reflected in her excited little movements as she latched onto Ekko’s pinky finger. The young man didn’t even notice when a peaceful smile spread across his face.

“I told you it’s not so bad,” Scar murmured, stepping closer to Ekko with a victorious grin. “This whole dad thing.”

Ekko just rolled his eyes but didn’t once pull his hand away from Kyan’s grip—because he knew if he did, she would start crying.

And Ekko hated seeing her cry.

Jinx watched the scene out of the corner of her eye while finishing Isha’s hair.

No. He really wouldn’t have been able to live with it.

Once ready, Isha turned to her mother, hopping with joy.

“Do I look like Mommy again?”

She asked. Jinx just smiled.

“You’ve always looked like me, little one.”

And that terrified her.

Sevika, apparently disgusted, finally stepped forward.

“We need to move,” she grumbled.

Ekko and Jinx exchanged complicit, teasing glances, then rolled their eyes, following Sevika and Scar.

The woman had had more interaction with him when the young parents had disappeared in search of the Herald and a fanciful solution to a problem they were now desperately trying to keep alive.

“The girls can wait here,” Scar instructed, pointing to one of the hideout’s largest rooms.

Isha vaguely remembered it—it was where she sometimes slept when Mommy wasn’t around, and where, when she first arrived at the Firelights’ refuge, they had cared for her until Ekko agreed to do it himself.

“No,” Jinx immediately objected.

Yes, she knew it was basically a nursery, and she knew the woman in charge well—the same girl who had refused to let go of Isha when Jinx stormed the hideout years ago, believing her daughter had been kidnapped. That girl still bore a mark on her cheek that surely reminded her of that moment every day.

“Do it, you crazy brat, rallies aren’t a place for two kids,” Sevika insisted.

Jinx rolled her eyes but had no choice but to agree.

Isha didn’t mind—she still hated when Mommy left or was far away, but age was slowly helping her understand that no matter how long Mommy took, she always came back.

Something Kyan didn’t quite grasp yet. Because as soon as Ekko set the baby down in one of the cribs and she touched the blankets, she started crying. She felt the absence of her father’s embrace, and it terrified her.

What if they didn’t come back for her? Kyan didn’t want to be left alone—not in that place full of unfamiliar faces.

Jinx stepped forward, trying to reach her to soothe her, to tell her Mommy wouldn’t be long, but Scar stopped her. If the girl saw Jinx, she’d keep crying until they took her along, and that would be counterproductive.

“She’ll be fine,” Scar assured.

Isha approached the baby and, to the adults’ surprise, took her hand firmly to get her attention.

“I’m here.”

The girl said as soon as Kyan looked at her. Maybe the younger one was still too small to fully understand, but Isha’s golden gaze and the calm, loving feelings she conveyed reached the baby, who immediately stopped crying.

“See?” Scar looked proud and patient at the parents’ incredulity.

Jinx gave one last look at her daughters before walking away toward the meeting that would soon begin.

She hated what she was feeling now—that guilt for leaving her babies alone, the anxiety of staying away from them. It was that damn maternal instinct that seemed to grow bigger and bigger inside her chest.

That instinct that screamed at her to turn back for them. Because only with her would her girls be safe.

Ekko and Jinx blended into the crowd gathered around the tree: Firelights, Jinxers, rebels, even former thugs of the deceased chem-barons, all waiting for the first rally in months, just days after what had happened with the Herald (a hope now lost for many).

At the top of the branches, Scar stood alongside other Firelights who seemed better informed than Ekko himself—after all, the young man had been far too busy being a father (or learning to be one).

“Once again, Piltover has worked its magic to leave us in the trash!” shouted one of the speakers. “In the rubble of all their crap!”

Cheers erupted. Jinx could only let her gaze wander; she barely knew a few of them, and if she did, it was because of the time she had spent among the Firelights and because more than one of those ex-thugs had once chased her when Isha had been their main target.

The irony. Now those who had once tried to kill each other were preparing to fight side by side. Even so, Jinx didn’t trust them—she didn’t trust any of them.

And no one could blame her.

Scar and another young Firelight dragged out what looked like a massive pile of metal covered by a thick, worn tarp.

“Months ago, during our attack on the councilors’ memorial, they showed us what they were capable of,” Scar announced, pulling the tarp off the metal pile, revealing a massive robot. “They created this, and they won’t hesitate to use it against us… again.”

Jinx paled, stepping back. She knew that robot well, Hextech-powered technology—something she had once faced when Caitlyn had kidnapped her daughter.

Something inside her began to burn as she remembered everything they had put her through—her and Isha—and what they would keep doing, what they might do to Kyan.

Imagining her little girls trapped in Piltover’s claws was far more terrifying than imagining them in the Undercity’s.

“We can’t stand on the sidelines anymore!” exclaimed a young Firelight beside them. “And if they’re coming with an army of these things, we can’t give them the chance to strike first!”

An army…

Jinx staggered. The last time she was caught in the middle of a war, she had lost her parents, and years later, her sister.

No matter how she looked at it, war had destroyed her life, and if it hadn’t been for Isha, she would have kept walking that same self-destructive path she had always envisioned for herself.

She didn’t want… she didn’t want the war to do the same to her daughters.

She didn’t want war to repeat history—her history.

For Isha and Kyan to meet the same fate as her and her sister.

Maybe this was how her own mother had felt, watching how she and Violet had ended up—seeing her little daughters fight to the death… Jinx knew she wouldn’t have the heart to bear something like that.

No mother would.

Her little Isha, her tiny Kyan…

Kyan…

That’s when Jinx began to feel the discomfort in her chest. It had been quite a while since she’d nursed the baby, and now she was suffering the painful consequences.

She crossed her arms over herself, trying to make her way through the crowd to get back to her baby.

“Hey, you okay?” Ekko asked, grabbing her wrist.

Jinx nodded.

“I need to go see Kyan.”

“Jinx, she’s fine.”

“I know, I know, but… I’m not, you get it?” she sighed. “Nature’s call, I guess.”

She shrugged, throwing him a teasing, carefree smile—typical of her. And before she could slip away, a sudden noise made them both flinch.

Kyan had managed to fall asleep for a while. Isha watched her closely, because the other kids in the nursery were far too curious—more than her—and she didn’t like that.

They got too close to her tiny sister, watching her intently, because even Scar’s baby was over a year old; Kyan was the smallest child in the whole shelter, and to the others, she almost seemed like a new toy.

“Why does she sleep with her hand in her mouth?” one of the girls asked, peeking over the crib.

Another child tried to pull the baby’s hand out of her mouth, but Isha stopped him cold, shaking her head with an angry frown.

“You’re being a great big sister,” praised the caregiver in a proud tone that made Isha straighten up with a discreet smile.

The truth was, she knew she had to take care of her, but it also came naturally. After all, she was Mom’s baby—just like her.

And that made them important.

Kyan started to whimper softly, wriggling in the blankets, then crying much louder. The caregiver came over to try to calm her.

“She’s hungry,” she said, glancing at Isha. “I’ll go get some formula.”

The girl watched her baby sister as her face turned red from the desperation of her growling stomach.

She had to find Mama.

Isha tried to slip away from the girl, but as soon as she took a few steps farther from her, Kyan’s cries grew louder. She had clearly been holding back because Isha was there.

The older sister came back over, taking her hands to try to soothe her.

“I’ll bring Mama. I won’t be long.”

Isha tried to leave again when Kyan let out a high-pitched wail that made her want to cover her ears.

“I really will come back. I promise.”

Isha knew Kyan was too little to understand her, but she also knew that if Mom had managed to do it when Isha herself hadn’t yet learned sign language—just by reading her looks—then surely Kyan could too.

Especially since the baby immediately calmed down when she made the promise.

Maybe Kyan was too young to understand her way of speaking, but at least she understood that her big sister adored her.

And that she would never abandon her.

Isha smiled and, with all the care in the world, kissed her forehead.

As she pulled away, the sudden noise that shook the tree reached them both like a muffled echo.

The caretaker gathered as many children as she could, while Isha lifted Kyan into her arms (driven by adrenaline and the urge to protect), and led them deeper inside, into the most reinforced corners of the shelter.

But Isha, who had stayed at the back, decided not to follow.

Because if she went with the caretaker, how long would it take for Mom to find them?

Kyan was still hungry, and after everything they had been through with her, Isha didn’t want her little sister to experience crying from hunger again.

The older girl knew Mom was the only one who could feed Kyan, and she had to find her so she could do it.

She stepped back silently and slowly, slipping through the chaos and the corridors.

The robot they had brought seemed to have some kind of “last defense” mechanism — it no longer worked, but it had managed to launch one final attack on the tree, setting a good part of it ablaze. Now everyone was either running to escape the fire or trying to put it out.

Jinx tried to make her way toward the nursery — Isha and Kyan were her priority. Ekko, for his part, followed at a distance, helping anyone he could along the way. They were his people, after all.

A massive charred branch fell on them, flinging Ekko away from Jinx, while she was left with one leg pinned under the enormous burning trunk.

Jinx let out a sharp scream. She was sure she had broken bones.

She tried to get up to pull her leg out from under the trunk, but it was impossible — she could barely feel it. How had she ended up trapped like that? She had always trusted her reflexes, and this time they hadn’t even warned her; her head was entirely focused on rescuing her daughters.

“Shit!” she roared, gritting her teeth against the pain.

She tried again to stand but froze when she heard a baby’s cry not far from where she was. She went rigid.

She knew that cry perfectly. She would recognize it anywhere.

She raised her eyes and saw Isha carrying Kyan in her arms.

Her world stopped. What were they doing there? So close to danger and so far from her.

Isha hadn’t even noticed her, too focused on all the chaos around them, desperately trying to protect her sister and find their parents, but unable to see them anywhere.

Jinx tried to shout, to call her by name, but her smoke-dried voice could barely be heard over the crowd’s screams.

Ekko ran to Jinx without even noticing the girls disappearing into one of the shelter’s corridors. He tried to lift the enormous branch, but it was much heavier than he’d expected (no wonder — the tree literally housed people inside).

“Go after them,” Jinx ordered, pointing to where Isha had run. “As soon as the Shimmer kicks in, I can get up. Just go after them.”

Ekko hesitated for a few seconds, but after seeing the insistence in Jinx’s eyes, he nodded.

Jinx let herself fall back to the ground, staring up at the ceiling, so much chaos… not even she had dared to go this far.

Not even in her worst moments, when she hated the Firelights with a passion, because she had always known there were children among them — and she would never have hurt children.

Especially not after having her own.

Her vision started to blur, and then she gave a crooked smile. What a ridiculous way to fall. What a ridiculous way to be defeated. Her, the one no one had ever dared face.

She’d let herself be distracted for just a second.

Just for a second, she had stopped thinking about her own survival to think about her daughters’ — and now she had a broken leg and her heart out of her chest, hoping only that Ekko was capable enough to keep them safe.

She closed her eyes, hoping that once she caught her breath, her strength — and the Shimmer that would let her heal — would return, so she could run after her girls.

She heard footsteps approaching and thought it was just people running from the fire or rushing to put it out. Then a metallic sound came, accompanied by a release of steam, and she felt the weight trapping her lift into the air.

She opened her eyes, coming face to face with that pink mane she hadn’t seen in days, the one she thought she would never see again.

Gradually, her breath weakened until her eyelids felt as heavy as iron anvils, ready to drag her into unconsciousness.

The older woman scooped her up with a tenderness Jinx had never thought she’d missed so much.

“Vi…?” she barely managed to whisper before slipping under.

Ekko raced through the corridors like a flash; a few turns back, he’d caught the distant sound of Kyan’s cry, and now that was all he could follow.

He stopped, trying to keep his mind clear. The smoke made his job nearly impossible; he could barely see and was terrified that the girls were breathing even less than he was.

“Get up, kid,” Sevika growled, grabbing him by the collar and handing him a mask they normally used for the Shimmer.

Apparently, once Sevika noticed his absence (and after making sure Jinx was in Vi’s care), she had gone looking for him.

She had never felt any responsibility for the brats running barefoot through The Last Drop when Vander was alive, but somehow now she felt she owed it to all of them.

To all the dead who had at least left one kid behind. Because she was the only one of their survivors: Silco, Vander, Benzo, Felicia.

They spotted Isha a few meters ahead. Ekko ran to her; the girl’s foot had gotten stuck in the floorboards.

“Kid, are you okay?” he asked.

Isha nodded, coughing from the smoke; Kyan’s cries had also quieted, making it all the more urgent to get them out.

Ekko took the baby and handed her to Sevika. The woman used her own mask to ease the baby’s distress.

“Take her to Jinx,” Ekko instructed. “I need to get Isha out of here.”

Sevika didn’t argue, just gave him a determined look. That boy had better get the kid out alive.

She hadn’t kept an eye on her for years just for her to die at the hands of Piltover or in the damned Firelights’ nest.

Besides, only Janna knew what Jinx would do to the world if anything happened to that girl.

She left as soon as Ekko slipped the mask onto Isha’s face.

“Easy, I’m going to get you out of here.”

He tried to pull the girl’s foot from the plank, but it was stuck fast; the only way to free her was to break the hole wider. So, with all his strength and the greatest care not to hurt her, he began to tear at the boards with his bare hands, despite the splinters and the dwindling air in his lungs.

The burning ash from the tree started filling the air, looking like tiny dancing flames around them, when a crack sounded overhead and the ceiling collapsed on them. Ekko threw himself over Isha, shielding her with his own body as burning debris fell onto his back.

The boy stifled a cry of pain through clenched teeth, pulling Isha tightly against him to shield her from harm. The girl clung to Ekko’s clothes with her nails, sobbing — it was the first time he had seen her so scared.

No wonder: Isha had gotten used to Jinx’s protection, to the safety of her mother’s embrace, and now her mother wasn’t here, only him.

Ekko ignored the pain of the burns and held the little girl tighter.

For Kyan, it was clear who he was, but he understood why things were more confusing for Isha.

Even though, for Ekko himself, their bond had been sealed the moment he first saw her reaching out her tiny hands to him as a baby, silently pleading not to be left alone.

Because she was afraid of loneliness, of the dark, and of loud noises.

A sharp crack sounded to the side, and Isha flinched again in panic. She was so terrified that Ekko could feel the tremor in her shoulders.

Jinx had never said it outright; in fact, even their relationship was confusing, even to them. But if Ekko was sure of anything, it was of what he felt for Isha, of what he was willing to do for her, and of what he wished she would call him when she saw him come home.

“Easy, little one, I’ve got you,” he murmured softly. “It’s okay, Isha. I’m here…” he faltered slightly, assuming her tearful eyes were from the smoke. “Daddy’s here, little one. You’ll always be safe as long as you’re with Daddy.”

Isha froze, wide-eyed. She felt Ekko’s embrace, how familiar it was, how warm it had always been — and at last, she understood: Ekko had always protected her, even if Mom didn’t like it. Isha had always been safe with him.

She had always been safe… in Daddy’s arms.

Chapter Text

Her surroundings were hazy, her vision blurred and her ears ringing incessantly. The headache forced her to keep her eyelids half-shut.

She could hear Violet’s distant voice—she was sure it was her.

“You must be able to do something. That’s it? Are you insane? What about the Shimmer in her blood? Why isn’t it healing her yet?”

Jinx turned her head, trying to keep the ceiling light from further hurting her pupils.

“It’s because of Kyan,” she managed to say, half-asleep. “My body is giving it to her, she needs it more than I do.”

Jinx tried to turn on the stretcher to let her legs dangle off the edge, but the pain kept her from moving further, and with a pained grunt, she lay back in her original position.

“Your leg’s still broken, it’s taking time to heal,” said the medic, who had also attended the rally. “The Shimmer is slower than usual—probably because you’ve been able to nurse your baby.”

Jinx didn’t reply. She tried to sit up again, but Vi placed her hands on her shoulders to stop her.

“Didn’t you hear? You can’t move.”

“My daughters are out there. I’m not going to sit here doing nothing,” Jinx growled, violently brushing Violet’s hands off her. “So get your fat hands off me.”

“I’m just trying to help,” the older woman said.

“How do I know I can trust you?” Jinx snarled, prodding the bullet wound in her side. “It was your stupid girlfriend who caused all this. Am I just supposed to pretend you forgot about her? You’ve been looking for her for days!”

Vi tried to reply, but before she could say a word, Sevika burst into the makeshift infirmary.

She was holding Kyan in her arms, a mask covering the baby’s tiny face. The child was crying from discomfort and from being with Sevika—someone she wasn’t used to. Ever since being held by Jinx, Ekko, and Isha, she no longer tolerated being with strangers.

And at that moment, she wanted her mother.

Jinx sat up through the pain, shooting Vi a look that warned her not to try stopping her again—she would keep getting up no matter what. Sevika handed the baby to her. The moment the child felt her mother’s gentler grip, her crying softened, though her lips still trembled.

Jinx carefully removed the mask as soon as she saw Kyan clumsily trying to push it off. Kyan’s teary eyes locked on hers the moment she was freed. Her brow was still furrowed in distress, but she was safe.

Jinx looked up at Sevika and gave her a silent, almost lifeless nod of thanks.

The next second, her gaze drifted around the room in confusion.

“Where’s Isha?” she asked.

Sevika didn’t answer—she had no clear answer to give, because she wasn’t even sure herself.

Jinx turned again on the stretcher, biting her tongue to endure the pain as she dropped her leg over the edge.

“Jinx!” Violet tried to stop her. “What the hell are you doing?”

The younger woman glared at her sister from beneath her brows, frowning with what little patience she had left.

“I’m going to find her. I don’t care if I have to crawl across the floor to get to her.” The determination in her eyes was unmistakable. “Mo-ve.”

The door opened again. Ekko entered carrying Isha in his arms. Two Firelights rushed over to help with his back wounds, but he refused.

Instead, he walked straight to Jinx. She felt her soul return to her body the instant she saw little Isha clinging to Ekko’s neck, her face buried in his shoulder.

“Isha…” she whispered.

The girl turned her head and looked at her mother. Her eyes lit up, and she jumped down and ran to throw her arms around Jinx, sobbing in terror into her neck.

“It’s okay, little one, you’re safe now…” the young woman murmured, burying her nose in her older daughter’s hair. “You’re safe…”

Sevika and Violet both breathed again. When had everything gone to hell?

Isha pulled back to look at her mother, who was gently wiping the soot from her face. Excited, she started signing—a gesture Jinx had never thought she’d need to learn.

“Daddy saved me.”

She signed suddenly, and the young mother had to swallow hard.

For a second, she was back in that cold night in a Zaun apartment. A stranger’s place, a stranger’s face. A “man” who never could’ve been a father to Isha. And the sound of the bullet piercing his skull still echoed in her ears.

“Who…?” she asked fearfully.

Isha stepped closer to Ekko and pointed at him enthusiastically.

“Daddy!”

She signed again, smiling brightly.

Jinx felt a hole tear open in her chest as her pink gaze locked onto the boy’s embarrassed face.

What was she supposed to do? Isha was too young to understand how she came into the world, and it wasn’t something Jinx ever planned to tell her. Never.

But the young woman also knew that one day, her daughter would start asking about her father. That looming moment had always terrified her—and now, it stood right in front of her.

Was Ekko really… just taking that weight off her shoulders with one simple gesture?

“Really…?” Jinx asked, forcing a smile. “Then… it’s good Daddy was there, right?”

Isha nodded with an even bigger smile. Violet cleared her throat as Sevika walked off in search of a “strong” drink to wash all this shit down.

“Isha, come with me,” Vi said, sweetly extending her hand. “Let’s find some blankets for Kyan, it’ll get cold soon.”

The girl agreed after Jinx nodded encouragingly. The young mother gave Violet one last warning glance and watched them disappear toward the back of the room.

“I needed to calm her somehow,” Ekko said quickly. “But if it bothers you, I can talk to her and—”

“Thank you,” Jinx interrupted, catching the boy’s surprised look. “Isha doesn’t need to know the rest of her story, and you’ve given her the chance to never know it. She sees you as her father. She always did, even if I didn’t agree.”

“You know I didn’t just say it to say it,” Ekko replied. “She is that to me—a daughter.”

Jinx stared at him silently, slightly confused, maybe by her own emotions. They overwhelmed her, and this time there were no voices explaining why. Just silence. She was lost in the brown eyes of the boy who’d been speeding up her heartbeat long before she knew what she felt for him. The boy now offering her, with open hands, the family she had once lost.

But Ekko and she were so perfectly imperfect—it hurt.

And that shattered her.

Kyan squirmed in her arms, rubbing her face against her chest and crying in desperation.

Jinx exhaled with a nostalgic smile.

Incredible—just like her big sister.

“Do it, I won’t look,” Ekko said "I'll find something to—"

Jinx cleared her throat to cut him off with a sarcastic smile.

“You ‘won’t look,’ seriously? Come on, Ekko,” she rolled her eyes. “The stork didn’t bring Kyan, you know?” she teased, looking up at him.

The boy turned red to his ears. There it was again—her trademark dark humor.

But the young woman knew it all too well: her little one was hungry. Probably had been hungry even before this whole damn chaos began. And she couldn’t just deny her the only source of nourishment she had.

As soon as Jinx latched her to her breast, the baby began to suckle desperately. A peaceful smile spread across the young woman’s face—there was no feeling in the world like it. Feeding her baby filled her with peace.

Isha returned to her mother and clumsily placed the blanket over Kyan to shield her from the cold night settling over them.

Jinx signaled Isha to climb onto the bed and rest her head on her uninjured leg. When she did, Jinx began stroking her hair and leaned her head back, letting the relief wash over her, dispersing the anxiety and pain she’d been enduring.

Isha turned to look up at her, searching with curious eyes for a comforting smile from her mother. Jinx smiled playfully and wiggled her tiny nose, making Isha giggle.

To lull her to sleep, the young woman gently brushed the bridge of Isha’s nose with her pinky until she drifted off.

Ekko watched in silence. Jinx could have every bone in her body broken and still smile at her daughters like that.

Just for them. Jinx was strong only for them.

And that was something he loved about her.

By the time night had completely fallen, Jinx’s bones had almost fully healed, the fire had been extinguished, there had been only a small number of injuries, and they hadn’t suffered any losses.

But the tree had lost a large part of itself. The Firelights were overwhelmed with sorrow; their home had been nearly destroyed.

Morale plummeted—Piltover had dealt a heavy blow without even meaning to.

Ekko was devastated. The boy stormed toward Violet, grabbed her by the collar, and slammed her against the charred trunk wall.

“Give me one good reason not to believe you’re part of all this,” he spat, furious. “Why were you looking for the Piltie?”

“I wasn’t looking for Caitlyn to join them, you idiot,” she snapped, shoving his hands off. “I was trying to find out what the hell they were planning. A goddamn war is coming, Ekko. It’s practically already here. I came to the shelter to warn you. When I got here, everything had already gone to shit.”

Ekko clicked his tongue.

“If I find out you’re lying…”

“I’m not!” Vi shot back. “I just want to protect my family! I did it for Jinx, for my nieces.”

Jinx, sitting at the edge of the mural platform, locked eyes on Vi—it was the first time she’d referred to the girls that way. It tasted surreal, given how hard she’d avoided acknowledging any familial tie to them.

She glanced sideways at the little ones—Kyan was lying in a basket specially made for her by her mother, while Isha ran circles around it to entertain her, and the baby giggled with delight.

Then she looked up above her head—the tree, once glorious and imposing, now looked dull, blackened. Part of it had been devoured by fire, while the other seemed to fight to stay alive.

A huge hole gaped among the scorched branches, as if the flames had bitten off leaves and limbs.

A flash of memory came rushing back. That night on the bridge, the fire from the war with Piltover—where her parents had died among a pile of other Zaunite bodies, as if Felicia and Connol were just any soldiers.

But they weren’t. They were her parents, her entire world, and Piltover had taken them away. Now it was all happening again. The horror of being the reflection of her mother to her own daughters ran down her spine.

She didn’t want to leave them alone.

And if she’d avoided the war, it was precisely for that reason. Dying wasn’t what scared her—dying and leaving Isha and Kyan to this damn, cruel world, that was what terrified her.

But this time, Jinx felt like she had no choice.

She had to take the risk—for them—to give them a better life. Was that what her mother had once thought? Was her mother trying to give her and Vi a better life too?

Now she understood it better. That relentless drive that made her believe she could do anything if it meant those two girls had another chance.

A chance that didn’t end in endless hiding, fires, poisoned air, sickness, hunger, and… death.

“Piltover won’t stop,” she said, catching the attention of Vi and Ekko, and even Sevika, who stood a few steps away. “They didn’t stop at anything—not with Stillwater, not with the councilors, not with the Herald… not with Vander. They’re going to keep coming… until they crush us.”

She jumped down from her perch and stared directly at her two daughters.

“We have to finish them before they finish us… and everything we love.”

Sevika straightened silently—was she finally beginning to understand what Silco had always wanted for the Undercity?

“You’ll need more than that to motivate a group of people who just lost their home,” Ekko said with some disappointment.

He, better than anyone, understood how she felt. But he couldn’t force his people to just forget what had happened and pretend it didn’t matter—because he couldn’t either.

“They’re drowning us along with them! Do you need more motivation than that?” Jinx shouted. “Piltover has stolen our air, stolen everything from us. And we’re sick of it. They’re ripping the life out of us—ripping the life out of our daughters!”

“‘Our…’?” Ekko stammered, barely above a whisper.

Jinx forced herself to ignore what she had just said and focused on Isha’s smile.

“All her life I’ve fought for her,” she murmured. “Now I fight for both of them. I want them to be able to breathe, Ekko. I want them to feel the sun on their skin. I want them to have, effortlessly, what you and I had to scrape out from the ruins of a desolate city.”

Violet stepped forward, swallowing hard to gather courage as she stood beside her sister.

“Call another meeting, little man,” she said. “We can’t wait any longer.”

(I recommend reading this scene with “Stand Up (From Harriet)” by Cynthia Erivo on loop):

At first light the next morning, as soon as the sun kissed the earth, the shelter courtyard filled with people. Some were more sympathetic than others—but in the end, they were all Zaunites.

There was murmuring among them, doubt flooded the air. This time, there was no speaker, no one willing to start what could be their last meeting.

“What the hell’s going on now?” one of Margot’s thugs complained, bracing for the worst. “They already made it clear all this shit is pointless. Let’s get out of here! There’s nothing we can do. You saw what Piltover can do! That was just one of their damn robots! They probably have hundreds!”

“We’ll never stand a chance against them! Their tech is way ahead of us!”

The uproar rose. People were scared. You could feel it—in their sweaty hands and uncertain eyes. It hung in the air. It pressed into the ground beneath them.

Many no longer wanted to fight. Others were ready to go to the bitter end. But all of them were afraid, because death was a path they might have to walk if they continued—and no one could tell who would and who wouldn’t.

Jinx and Ekko stood in the middle of the crowd, surrounded by Sevika, Scar, and Violet. The people began to split into opinions, arguing, pushing, letting fear and doubt carry them away.

“Why the hell do we have to do this? If we just stay where we are, we’ll stay alive!”

Ekko looked around. The children in the shelter peered through the charred bars of the tree. Their eyes still shone, yearning for a glimmer of hope, watching the adults with curiosity. They were waiting for the grown-ups to make a decision that rightfully belonged to them.

But the adults weren't in a position to make decisions. Even when everyone's lives depended on it.

The boy turned his attention to Isha. The girl was hiding behind his arm, watching the escalating chaos among the rally members. He could feel her trembling hands seeking refuge in him and realized that this was what he had to do for her.

Protect her. Protect them both.

Because if he was scared, Isha was even more so—just like all the other children. And if they didn't do something to protect them, no one else would.

Because Piltover had never cared about the childhoods of the Undercity.

"We'll do it for all the children of Zaun!" he shouted to draw attention. The crowd suddenly fell silent and parted around him so everyone could see.

"Because they deserve more than all the crap from above," he continued. He looked at Jinx, who stood beside him with Kyan in her arms.

"Our children deserve more than what we had when we were kids. We have to do it for them!"

An older Firelight stepped forward.

"Ekko, son, forgive me for saying this, but lately your decisions have led us to catastrophe. Look at our home, see how far Piltover has gone just to find her."

He gestured toward Jinx with his eyes. The crowd murmured again, voices rising, and a wave of hostility became more apparent.

"It's true! Since the councilors incident, Piltover has turned even more against us!" 

"Why are we paying for her actions?!" 

Many had succumbed to the despair of losing their home, clouding their judgment. They needed someone to blame, and Jinx was the perfect target. 

Kyan began to cry in her mother's arms. As soon as Isha heard her, she rushed to her mother, hugging her waist, ready to defend her if necessary. 

Vi also stepped forward to stand in front of her sister. 

"Jinx was our enemy; let's not forget that Silco was with the Enforcers!" the old man exclaimed. 

"Jinx is part of our people now!" Scar replied. "Remember where your loyalty lies!" 

The man tried to object again when a younger boy spoke up. 

"Don't forget it was she who freed us from Stillwater!" he said. "She got us out of there and then turned it into rubble!" 

"Only for revenge! She never cared about us!" 

"Yes! She's doing this only for her daughters!" 

"Like any mother would!" finally exclaimed a female voice, resonating louder than all the others. 

A brown-haired woman made her way to Jinx. When she stood before her, the blue-haired young woman recognized her immediately, and a chill ran through her.

"I know you have every right to kill me—I would if I were you—but… please, from one mother to another, don’t make me leave them alone. They would never survive out there without me."

Yes, she remembered those words very well.

That woman, and the two teenagers closely following her, were the family of the man who had kidnapped Isha when she was just a newborn—the day that bastard forced her to fire the shot that took little Isha's voice.

She felt a bitter taste, as if she wanted to vomit just by seeing her. She thought she'd never feel that again after sparing her life, but it seemed the world was too small.

And now she, Renne, was one of Zaun's most followed rebel leaders. Her life had completely changed; she had truly made use of Jinx's forgiveness.

The woman gave her a sly smile and turned to the crowd.

"Jinx has done everything to keep her daughters safe, and it's always been that way, believe me..." she smiled, embarrassed. "That's why I trust her!" she declared without hesitation, capturing Jinx's bewildered gaze.

Soft, doubtful murmurs were heard around them.

"As a mother, I would go to hell for my children, and I know she would do the same for hers. I've seen her do it. If Ekko and all of them," she looked at the small group in the center of the crowd, "trust her, it's for a good reason." She exchanged a smiling glance with Jinx. "I trust her word. My loyalty is with her! And so is my people's!"

The silence that followed was chilling, especially for Jinx, who was just beginning to grasp what was happening. She hadn't even had a chance to speak, and that woman already trusted her.

How could that small act of sparing her life years ago completely change the course of things?

Her good deeds... also had consequences.

"Ekko has never failed us," this time it was Scar who spoke, looking at the boy firmly. "Now we can't fail him."

Doubt still lingered among those present. And it was no wonder—death stared them in the face, and like any human being, they wished to run far from it.

"'Fear can do horrible things to people'," Vi murmured, catching her sister's attention. "'To some, it makes them brave; to others, it makes them cowards; and to the weakest, it forces them to kill'."

Violet repeated it as if it were a prayer. Felicia used to say it often, especially when things in the Lanes weren't going well or someone died at the hands of gang members.

In this case, fear was forcing them to remain still; they had no motivation. They were empty.

And Jinx couldn't allow it.

She couldn't let others' cowardice take away her chance to give her little ones something better. She couldn't fail.

She had to try. For Vander. For Silco. For her parents. For her daughters.

She placed Kyan in Ekko's arms and stepped forward, taking in as much air as she could, holding it in her lungs.

The crowd parted before her, awaiting her response, praying to Janna that it wouldn't be as chaotic as usual.

But Jinx simply recalled in her heart the forgotten song her mother had taught her as a child—the dry melody they sang in the mines to get through a day's work.

"I stand, walking with the earth beneath my bare feet. I carry one last bullet, in case I have to run. I do what I can, when I can, while I can." 

She murmured melodically, walking through the crowd toward the mural platform. Her gaze remained fixed on the ground, trying to remember the song's lyrics. 

"Crossing the bridge when the stars touch the river and the night embraces me, that's where I'll take my people with me." 

She pulled a flare from the bag she carried, identical to the one Vi had given her when they were children. She lit it, raising it above her head, releasing a blue flame that dissipated into clouds of the same color toward the sky. She continued walking through the corridor of people. 

"Together we go to a new home, across the river. Listen well, it's freedom calling." 

She kept singing, this time raising her voice. More than one, mainly the older ones, recognized the melody. Then, they sang along with her, in unison. 

"And I will continue my path forward." 

Because it was an anthem, a forgotten one, that began where Zaun began: in the mines. 

A song that had lifted the spirits of their fallen compatriots and that, during the first battle they had against Piltover years ago, they sang until they lost their voices. 

"Rise up. Take your people with you. Together let's seek a new home. Fight with all your strength until the day you die." 

Jinx reached the mural, and with her chest burning, she threw the flare through a hole in the tree. The blue smoke shot out through the opening above. 

The spirals formed by the wind resembled a flock of blue birds being expelled from within the trunk.

Blue jays. Just like Janna's. Just like everything that meant hope for the people of Zaun.

Jinx, heart in hand, turned to look at them. Her determined eyes locked onto the crowd watching her in anticipation.

The young woman said nothing, but as soon as she drew another breath, Renne stepped forward and raised her fist with a satisfied smile. Little by little, like the waves of the sea, the crowd followed her. Even Isha, who was perched on Violet’s shoulders.

Jinx could make out Ekko’s gaze among all the others. Proud eyes that looked at her with a shine of hope and excitement.

The Zaunites were ready to follow them into battle, and both Ekko and Jinx knew what that meant: if a Zaunite gave their loyalty to someone for a battle, they gave their loyalty until the end of their days.

Many of them had given their loyalty to Vander until he died; now, they were giving it to his youngest daughter.

Zaun had chosen its war leaders. Zaun had chosen who to fight for.

And Jinx had no intention of stepping aside—not this time. Isha and Kyan deserved more, much more. And she intended to fight to the end to give it to them.

Because Zaun was for them. And it always would be.

Chapter Text

The rumor about a "Revolution" was starting to spread everywhere—it had been inevitable. Piltover had ears in Zaun too; not all Zaunites were loyal like most, and many of them preferred to "be on the winning side" once the time came.

Caitlyn didn’t keep her people waiting once she found out that the symbol of said movement was none other than Jinx herself. She knew perfectly well that this day would come sooner or later, because Piltover had been launching attacks, and now the moment when Zaun would finally rise against them was breathing down their necks.

“When will it be ready?” Ambessa inquired, frowning.

Singed exhaled, exhausted.

“Greatness takes time,” he replied, trying to tolerate the woman’s impatience. “Viktor wasn’t willing to sacrifice the creature’s humanity, so the process got complicated.”

He stepped back, revealing the progress of his experiment. Vander was hanging among a mess of cables that injected Shimmer into every part of his body. He lay unconscious, with a furrowed brow, wearing a pained and sorrowful expression.

“His blood has marvelous regenerative properties,” Singed explained. “The problem is, the humanity still harbored within him keeps me from using it for our cause. Breaking the man... will take time,” Ambessa sentenced him with her gaze, and the scientist continued, “but not impossible.”

Caitlyn, who had been sitting in a corner watching everything, finally stood up and took a step toward them.

“What about Viktor?” she questioned firmly. “Can we trust him?”

“The boy’s mind was corrupted when he was attacked,” Singed sighed. “He’ll do whatever he thinks is necessary to ‘cleanse’ the world. We just have to point him toward Zaun.”

Caitlyn furrowed her brow. Up until then, her only goal had been to avenge her mother’s death. But after what she’d seen in the Herald’s sanctuary, her head hadn’t stopped spinning. Something much bigger was happening between Piltover and Zaun—something Ambessa only saw as a war advantage, and Singed as an opportunity to test his experiments.

Something that was starting to terrify her.

“What if the whole world ends up the same? Like the puppets that destroyed the sanctuary.”

“Don’t be naive, girl,” Ambessa replied quickly. “If Piltover and Noxus form an alliance with the Herald, no one will be able to stop us. Zaun won’t stand a chance.”

They could win the war with no effort. But… would it be something to be proud of once it was all over?

“Ambition has never been an excuse for cruelty.”

There it was—after years without hearing it, her mother’s voice finally echoed in her head. And… it didn’t sound proud.

“They’ll become puppets…” Caitlyn continued. “Everyone in Zaun—every man, every woman, every child, regardless of whether they’re rebels or not.”

“Oh? Now you care?” Ambessa raised a brow. “I thought the cost didn’t matter as long as Jinx fell. Isn’t that right?”

The victorious smile the older woman left with made the Enforcer tremble. Every one of her actions paraded before her eyes like a vivid film: the attack on the memorial, that little girl falling from the top of Piltover’s Main Tower, the use of Gray in Zaun’s streets, Stillwater, the Herald… Violet and the bullet in her side.

If she analyzed each of those actions in detail, she’d never finish counting the infinite things she let slide, the things she allowed Noxus to do, and… the things she had done with her own hands.

Actions that, without a doubt, Cassandra would never have approved of. She hadn’t raised her that way, and Caitlyn knew it. Or at least… she was beginning to remember it.

“Regret is human, girl,” Singed said, without even looking at her. “And like every other human emotion, it weakens us. You should avoid it. You can’t change what you’ve done.”

“I’m not sorry,” she replied, trying to downplay the conversation.

She didn’t even have the right to be sorry.

“Excellent,” Singed finally looked at her with a smile. “Because this isn’t over yet.”

Vander growled in his sleep, forcing the young woman to step back into a defensive stance, but Singed didn’t even flinch.

“Plan A will be ready in a few weeks,” the scientist confirmed, caressing Vander’s face. “Soon the beast will go after our main target, and there’s a good chance he’ll find her.”

“You’re sending him after Jinx?” Caitlyn asked.

“No,” Singed gave her a malevolent look. “He’s going after her youngest daughter.”

The young woman felt a direct blow to the chest. Was he going to send that monster after a baby? Had they really crossed that line?

“There’s no way he’ll succeed,” Caitlyn said. “I’ve seen what Jinx is capable of for her daughters—this war is the result of that.”

“Well, if Plan A fails, we can always fall back on Plan B,” Singed considered. “The important thing is to get that child at any cost.”

“What Plan B are you talking about? If A doesn’t work, all it will do is put Jinx on high alert. She won’t give any opportunity for another plan, especially if her people support her.”

A chill ran down her spine. Was it fear? Or was it that a part of her truly wished the mad scientist’s plan would fail? Because too many lines had already been crossed, and she was only just realizing it.

The man approached Caitlyn slowly, circling her.

“Miss Kiramman, have you ever analyzed the animal behavior of any creature that moves in a pack?” he asked. The young woman simply watched him warily. “When an offspring is separated from the group, the mother stays with it to keep it safe from the environment.”

Caitlyn frowned as her nerves spiked.

“Hunters use that strategy. I’m sure you know it,” Singed continued. “No matter how much you attack the mother, she will never abandon her child.”

“It’s a vile tactic, used only by cowardly hunters,” Caitlyn said quickly.

“Really? Because what happened in the memorial attack a year ago was the result of a similar tactic, wasn’t it?” Singed inquired. Caitlyn swallowed hard. “You used the child to get the mother’s head. Of course, you didn’t expect the pack to defend both. I don’t blame you. No one saw it coming.”

Caitlyn’s pulse began to rise. She felt her blood drag heavily through her veins, her stomach turning.

“What are you getting at?” she asked, unable to look at him.

Singed picked up Caitlyn’s weapon and placed it in her hands.

“That you become the hunter again, Miss Kiramman,” he said. “If we use that ‘coward’s tactic,’ as you call it, we’ll both get what we want. Ambessa gets the child… and you, get Jinx.”

Caitlyn stared down at her hands. The answer was right in front of her—the solution she had searched for for years, the peace she would finally feel in completing her revenge.

But what was the price she was truly willing to pay for it?

The months following the Firelights' tree fire were quite a challenge. Meetings were constant—one day held at the tree, the next at The Last Drop. Planning a war was no easy task.

At times, Zaun's rebels launched childish attacks on the topsiders, provoking the Pilties' annoyance. This mobilized the Enforcers, leading to small street skirmishes between both groups. The streets filled with Gray, gunfire, and riots until someone backed down.

The major assault was yet to come. It was an elaborate plan, but above all, dangerous, because Piltover had weapons and technology, and Zaun only had its spirit.

Of course, Jinx contributed significantly by creating weapons for her people, sharing blueprints of her inventions and secrets of the technology she had deciphered on her own; even so, Piltover held the advantage.

The truth was that, although she and Ekko did their best to support their own, they also needed to take time for themselves.

Especially for their family.

Neither of them was willing to miss a single second of the time they could share with their daughters, because deep down, they were terrified it might be the last.

They set up a specialized Zaunite weapons lab in the Firelights' refuge, right in the hollow left by the fire among the tree's branches.

Because if there was one thing Zaunites knew how to do, it was to seize opportunities, be reborn, and forge ahead in the face of adversity.

Jinx and Ekko spent a good part of the day there, supervising, assisting, creating. But come evening, regardless of whether they were in the middle of something important, they would dash out of the place and return to The Last Drop.

The bar had temporarily closed until the war concluded; it only functioned for meetings and as a gathering point for supporters of the cause.

Sevika was in charge, working (very begrudgingly) alongside Violet.

Isha and Kyan, for their part, knew perfectly how to manipulate their parents so they wouldn't leave them, because neither was accustomed to both having so much work outside the home. Occasionally, they visited the lab with them, but only when the work to be done was entirely safe; otherwise, they stayed at home under Sevika's care, as Violet spent too much time away.

Once, Isha pretended to be sick to prevent them from leaving and didn't separate from her mother's lap all day, while Ekko argued with the doctor because the man swore the girl was in good health, but her father disagreed.

Next, it was Kyan's turn. When the little one turned three months old, she discovered the sound of her own voice. That night, she spent hours "talking" (babbling, to be exact), not letting her mother sleep, who watched her with fascination and exhaustion.

Isha had fallen asleep hugging her chest, and the baby was on the bed, at Jinx's face level. The young woman kept one arm around the older girl and with the other stroked the chest of the energetic baby who had no intention of yielding to her mother's insistence.

"Kyan, please," Jinx pleaded. "Can we go to sleep now? Tomorrow we'll talk about everything you want, I promise."

But no, Kyan continued babbling with a smile, shaking her body to remind mama that as long as she was awake, she couldn't sleep either.

And Ekko paid the price the next day because Jinx wasn't in the mood to deal with anyone, and he had gotten right in her way.

Yes, for everyone's sake, they preferred to stay home that day.

The bar's door burst open, as usual, because Jinx was a fan of making a grand entrance.

Those present felt a chill; it hadn't happened in years, but the oldest of Silco's loyalists remembered what it was like to receive Jinx in their territory and be seen by her.

And Jinx loved that; at least she hadn't lost her touch.

"If we keep this up, we could launch a first attack, maybe a test run. I have a list of volunteers," Ekko said, taking a seat at the bar.

Jinx let out a wail, exhausted. Since the tree fire, they had spent nearly six months planning and building; she was starting to tire of not seeing the results of her own creations.

"Why do wars have to be so tedious?" she complained. "When will we start with the explosions?"

"We agreed to minimize civilian casualties," Ekko added. "This first attack should be a warning so the most vulnerable can get to safety."

Jinx rolled her eyes. She wasn't going to admit he was right (even if he was).

They heard hurried, small footsteps coming down the stairs, followed by a few heavy, slow ones.

Jinx looked up, her face lighting up as if the fatigue she carried had vanished in a second.

Isha made her way through the tables and the crowd until she reached her mother's arms.

"You should be asleep, little bug," Jinx smiled, hugging her tightly.

"I already told you it's impossible to get them to sleep when you're not here," Sevika grumbled, approaching with Kyan.

The girl was held under her arms with the woman's only good hand, carrying her as if she were just a doll. But Kyan didn't seem bothered by it; in fact, she looked entertained.

When the baby recognized her mother, she shook her entire body, stretching her little hands toward her. Jinx took her with a tender smile while Isha sat on Ekko's lap to play with the trash on the bar.

"She threw up all the milk," Sevika growled and tossed a bundle of clothes behind the counter. "That was my favorite cape, Jinx."

Ekko stifled the laugh desperately trying to escape his throat, attempting to hide it by taking a sip of his drink, but he couldn't; he could barely keep the smile hidden.

Jinx didn't even try to hide it. She burst out laughing in Sevika's face and then hugged the baby tightly.

"Well done," she whispered in her ear before kissing her cheek loudly. The girl let out a giggle, bringing her own hands to her mouth.

The door opened again, letting in the scent of the rain that had begun to fall that night. Violet stumbled in, glanced at the crowd for a second, and continued on her way to the old room she used to share with Powder and the other kids when she was younger.

"She's drunk," Ekko noted "...again."

Jinx sighed, resigned. She placed Kyan in Ekko's arms so he could seat each girl on one of his legs and followed Vi up the stairs.

The older sister tried to slam the door shut behind her, but Jinx managed to stop it.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" the younger exclaimed. "Every time you finish a meeting, you come back reeking of alcohol."

Violet collapsed onto the mattress.

"There's none left here, so I had to get it elsewhere," she replied nonchalantly.

"Are you crazy? I don't want the girls to see you like this."

Vi clicked her tongue and took a swig from another bottle hidden under the bed. Jinx snatched it from her, smashing it against the floor and forcing her to jump up when the glass shards scattered over her boots.

"Damn it, Jinx!"

"Wake up already, idiot! Do you think now, right now, we need you drunk all the damn time?"

"Easy for you to say!" Vi retorted. "You have Ekko with you, and your daughters. I have nothing left but this damn war!"

"You still have me!" Jinx exclaimed, freezing her. "You-still-have-me!" she emphasized, punching her sister's chest with each word. "And it's always been that way. But you chose your side... and I chose mine. And now that we're back on the same path, you just decide to... leave again!"

Violet turned pale, unable to move a muscle, unsure if she felt dizzy from the alcohol or her sister's words. Jinx sighed heavily, unable to look at her, and collapsed onto the bed.

"Still don't get it, huh, sis?," she murmured. "I'm always with you, even worlds apart."

The last thing Jinx felt was her older sister's warm embrace, wrapping around her shoulders. Vi buried her face in the crook of her neck. Her grip felt shaky, and her face was damp with tears.

Everything that had happened between them was finally taking its toll—it was beginning to carry much more weight, just like the love they felt for one another.

“You never gave up on me, did you?” Jinx asked. Vi shook her head silently, barely managing to move it slowly. “Then why are you giving up on yourself?”

Violet stepped away from her, wiping her tears with an ironically amused smile.

“You sound just like Mom.”

Jinx snorted, curling her lips into a smirk.

“You’d be surprised how much having two little balls of energy come out of you—with no emergency brake whatsoever—can change a person,” she said sarcastically, trying to lighten the heavy mood. “Now I understand Mom a lot better.”

Vi sat down beside her.

“I guess it’s always been like that, hasn’t it?” she asked. “It’s always been the two of us.”

Jinx nodded with a sound and gave her a crooked smile that Vi returned.

There was nothing in the world that could erase that feeling—the connection between two sisters who had been lost to each other for years, only to find one another again.

The bedroom door, which had been left slightly ajar, opened. Isha burst in like a tiny whirlwind. She was looking for Mom. She had spent quite a while trying to escape Sevika and Ekko after hearing the bottle smash against the floor.

As soon as she saw her mother was okay, the little eyes that had been scanning carefully for the source of her distress filled with tears. She scrunched her lips—something she’d done since she was a baby—and ran into her mother’s arms.

Jinx hugged her without hesitation. She knew her daughter well and understood the protective impulse she had toward her.

“It’s okay, bug,” she whispered, stroking her back while Isha buried her face in her chest. “Mommy’s fine, there’s nothing to worry about.”

Isha rubbed her nose against her mother’s clothes, soothing herself with the familiar scent—one that mimicked the smell of their room. A smell she had known since she was a baby, curling up against her chest while her mother worked on “toys” for Silco.

No matter how much time had passed, Mama always smelled like that: rusted metal, oil, and spray paint.

And she loved that smell—because it was the smell of Mama.

Violet peeked over, searching for Isha’s gaze. The girl looked at her from the corner of her eye, brow furrowed. She knew her mother had been upset with Vi in recent weeks—and if Mom was upset with someone, then Isha was too.

Vi was well aware of that, and of the poor decisions that had led her niece to look at her that way. But she was beginning to understand she had to make it right—it was time to recover the time they had lost.

She stood up from the bed and began rummaging through the drawers of a piece of furniture at the back of the room, under the confused gaze of Jinx and the curious eyes of Isha, who was now seated on her mother’s lap, snuggled against her chest.

Violet returned to them and knelt down in front of them, now at Isha’s eye level.

“Happy birthday, kid,” she said with a smile, stretching out a small rectangular box, clumsily wrapped.

Isha looked at her mother. Jinx lifted her eyes toward the gift, and that’s when the girl finally accepted it, her face lighting up with a smile.

“I thought you had more muscle than brain, sis,” Jinx teased, then looked tenderly at her daughter’s joy before muttering so softly it was almost only for herself: “Though I suppose the heart’s a muscle too…”

Isha’s birthday was coming up soon, and she’d made sure everyone knew it. She carried around little birthday cards she’d drawn herself and handed them out to everyone at The Last Drop.

One of the visitors, a former Silco thug, had given her a pipe, and another a magnifying glass he’d found among his things. That had thrilled Isha, because she loved collecting junk—just like her mother.

Vi, for her part, had given her a flare, very similar to the one she had once given little Powder. When the girl opened the gift, Jinx felt a slight shiver of nostalgia run through her. She had to stop Isha before she lit it out of curiosity inside the room.

“I hope you never have to use it,” Vi said uneasily, watching her with concern.

“It’s our job to make sure she doesn’t need to,” Jinx replied firmly.

The smile they shared was interrupted by a loud, heavy crash from downstairs.

Jinx bolted from the room with Isha in her arms, Violet close behind. Both came to an abrupt stop when they reached the bottom of the stairs. The blue-haired young woman immediately picked up the sound of her baby crying.

Ekko was crouched behind the bar, using it as a barricade, shielding Kyan with his body while the baby sobbed in terror against his chest. Sevika was helping the visitors out, doing her best to avoid the enraged monster that was hurling objects and destroying everything in its path.

“Vander…?” Vi managed to whisper.

Jinx stepped ahead of her sister—one arm holding Isha tightly to her neck, the other shooting at the beast to push it back. Ekko managed to escape from his hiding spot just before the monster demolished it.

The two young parents took refuge in Silco’s office, taking advantage of the creature’s momentary confusion. Jinx sat Isha in the chair behind the desk and handed her Kyan, who calmed down a little upon seeing her mother.

“We’ll be right back,” she said. “Don’t leave this room, okay?”

“Jinx!” Ekko called, looking through the office’s small window.

Vander had shaken off the daze and was now brawling hand-to-hand with Violet.

Jinx inserted the Hex crystal into her weapon and gave each of her daughters a final kiss on the forehead before stepping out of the office.

Vander looked furious, his eyes bloodshot. He seemed desperate, unable to recognize his surroundings or the people trying to stop him. Jinx fired at him, but it did no harm—his skin now seemed nearly indestructible. Violet tried talking to him, but the creature wouldn’t listen. It was four against one—and they were losing.

Still, they knew they couldn’t give up. They had to stop him somehow—because if they didn’t, he would reach the girls.

The chaos grew louder, the blows more violent. Everything seemed to be falling apart. Then, Kyan’s crying pierced the air from behind the door, and Vander froze.

He shoved through the debris and hurled Jinx aside when she tried to block his path, leaving her injured on the floor. Ekko and Violet suffered the same fate—the monster flung them against the display cases behind the bar, shattering the glass with their bodies.

The beast knocked the door down with a single swipe of its claw.

Isha leapt from the chair, holding Kyan tightly, and slowly backed away as the beast advanced dangerously toward them.

“Vander! Don’t you dare touch them!” Jinx screamed, dragging herself toward him in desperation. “Stay away from them!”

But there was no response from the creature. It was as if he couldn’t hear her. Jinx tried to stand, struggling, locking eyes with her eldest daughter in panic.

“Isha, run!” she begged, but the girl couldn’t move—she was frozen in fear.

Vander came so close his breath blew across Isha’s face, tousling her dyed hair. Kyan’s cries wouldn’t stop, and the sound seemed to disorient him.

Isha looked up at him, staring straight into his eyes. Despite her terror, she was ready to do whatever it took to protect her sister.

Vander was caught by those determined eyes. His mind faltered, his memories tangled. He backed away, shaking his head as if trying to dispel the pain and confusion. He growled—almost like a cry of despair.

Then, he looked up at them again, his eyes now calm, yellow-green, and with a guttural voice, he barely managed to say a word:

“Powder…?”

Jinx froze at the sound of her father’s voice and the flood of memories her old name brought back.

She looked at Isha again, and a flash of her younger self filled her mind. Her eyes didn’t lie.

That girl was the living reflection of her mother.

Chapter Text

Isha’s eyes lit up like two crystalline ambers when she heard Vander’s voice for the first time in months—right after believing they had lost him forever.

He called her “Powder.” Isha had heard that name before. She knew it had something to do with Mom, but she couldn’t grasp the whole story behind it. And deep down, she didn’t want to, because Mama looked sad when she was called that.

And Isha didn’t like seeing Mama sad.

Vander tried to take a step forward. Isha stood still, Kyan crying in her arms. Despite the goodness that had returned to his eyes, Isha knew her priority was to protect her younger sister. Putting her at risk in front of a volatile beast wasn’t an option—not while Mom and Dad were so far from them.

Vi lunged at the beast, grabbing him by the neck to pull him away from the girls. Vander roared, trying to speak to her, but the young woman was too focused on keeping her nieces safe. Jinx finally stood with difficulty and ran to the two girls. She scooped Kyan into one arm while clutching Isha tightly against her chest with the other.

Vi positioned herself in front of her sister, ready to shield her with her own body as Vander straightened up in front of them. The monster shook his head, trying to level his thoughts. A storm of voices attacked him, his gaze flickering between green-yellow and blazing red.

“Retrieve the girl. Eliminate the others.”

Singed’s voice repeated, mixed with that of a teenage Violet, endlessly calling his name.

Moments of his former life returned in fleeting flashes. His time at the bar when Felicia and Silco were alive, Benzo’s tasteless jokes, the laughter of Powder and Vi when they were just little girls. His days at the Herald, spending precious time with Isha, his first granddaughter—the one he remembered most clearly.

Isha…

That little girl who, at that moment, with her large golden eyes, was looking at him with terror. Even though, in the past, with those same beautiful and bright feline eyes, she had looked at him with curiosity, kindness, and always had a warm smile just for him.

He stepped back, groaning in pain, dazed, as if trying to say something but unable to.

“I…” he growled, “sha…”

For a moment, the whole place fell silent, waiting. That guttural voice had sent chills down their spines.

Isha pulled away from her mother’s embrace and tried to walk past her aunt, but Jinx managed to grab her by the wrist.

Vander shook his head again when he noticed Isha’s movement. The memory of Singed’s orders seemed ready to take control of him again.

Isha looked at her mother with pity for the monster.

“He’s Mom’s dad.”

Insisted the little girl. Jinx swallowed hard.

“No, bug. He’s… he’s not here anymore.”

Isha frowned. It wasn’t common for Mom not to believe her.

“He is. It’s him.”

Isha tried to break free from Jinx’s grip, but the young woman didn’t let go. Her fear that her daughter’s natural stubbornness would lead her away was too strong.

“Isha, come back here,” she ordered.

“Mama, believe me.”