Chapter Text
Caitlyn walked through the streets of the Undercity alone. She told Maddie she needed her to stay behind and guard the mansion, take care of Tobias if he needed anything. That was the excuse. Caitlyn knew well enough the enforcers posted outside of the gates were enough of a deterrent and her father was still plenty capable of caring for himself.
She just needed to be alone. It was a personal mission. No one else needed to know.
Caitlyn lost track of time with her duties as the commander. She knew it had been far longer than a few weeks since she hit and left Vi in the ventilation system. Just how much time passed eluded her. It could have been months or years. All of it was time lost.
If she wasn’t over her head in paperwork, missions, and commanding every little detail of martial law, Caitlyn was awake most of the night just thinking. She didn’t know how many of those nights ended up being all night. There were very few things that crossed her mind in those moments. Her mother, Jinx, her father’s wellbeing after the loss of his wife, Jayce… Vi.
She heard Vi’s cries, the way she begged her not to go, begged her to stay and they could work it out, as she climbed the ladder. Caitlyn wished in the far back of her mind that Vi would have gotten up and followed her. At the time, she was almost glad she didn’t. Almost. At the time she was so livid that Vi couldn’t follow through.
‘It’s her blood in your veins.’
She shouldn’t have said that.
‘Then why are you the one acting like her?!’
The more Caitlyn thought and relived that moment in her waking nightmares, the more she realized that maybe, just maybe, Vi was right. She was the one acting like Jinx during those moments. She was the one who willingly put a child in danger.
Caitlyn knew she was an excellent shot, but the anger… well, that sure clouded her judgement. She even shot Vi’s gauntlet, a miss of her actual target. Even as a warning shot, it should have been the floor.
She was so, so shortsighted in those moments.
So now, she walked alone in one of the few areas not occupied by any enforcer detail. It made it a far rougher area than any area that held occupation.
Caitlyn wanted to tear down the banners of her marked rule of Piltover and Zaun. She wanted to tear apart the carefully hung posters of her face on the walls of buildings.
Commander Caitlyn Kiramman
She hated the title deep down. It made her sick. The stone face behind closed doors or in the streets while she checked on her forces was all she could muster to keep every other feeling choked down. The fake smiles for the press and their cameras for the propaganda that littered every street was all she could do to keep from breaking.
Commander Caitlyn Kiramman didn’t falter. At least not when anyone else could see.
Only Maddie saw it once. She woke up to her poorly muffled sobs late one night. Caitlyn told Maddie it was just particularly stressful day and that she had a nightmare of the council building being blown up, her mother along with it. She never spoke of the real reasons. She never said her nightmare was Vi’s echoing pleas and sobs. She never said anything about the regret and guilt that churned in her stomach and made her nauseous.
Never again did Caitlyn let Maddie witness it.
Caitlyn turned her attention down the street she was on. The commotion was enough to forcefully yank her from her spiraling thoughts.
Her fingers itched for the rifle poised on her back. She forced herself to not reach for it. It would just make her look far worse than she already did in Zaun if anyone paid her half a mind. Instead, she carefully moved towards the sounds of people yelling and cheering.
Caitlyn looked at the flyer posted beside the door to the building. A fighting ring.
The Unstoppable Hound’s Daughter
She furrowed her brow. No picture, just a logo of two hounds mirroring each other.
The Hound’s Daughter. Caitlyn squeezed her eyes closed. Vi.
“Shit.”
Caitlyn removed her rifle and tucked it away under a nearby dumpster to retrieve when, if, she made it out of the crowd. She had to see for herself.
Carefully, she pushed the door open. No entry fee at least meant she could enter without being seen. It was only a matter of time before someone noticed the uniform. One enforcer against at least a hundred of rough, brawler type Zaunites. She wouldn’t stand a chance and part of her decided she didn’t care.
‘Commander Kiramman Dead’ had almost a nice ring to it. Especially after she was able to see the woman standing over a fallen body in the pit below.
Vi dyed her hair black. She had grease smeared over her eyes, cheeks, neck, and shoulders. She clearly tried to conceal her identity, but Caitlyn would recognize the tattoos on her arms anywhere. The Hound’s Daughter was, without a doubt, Vi.
“You shouldn’t be here… Commander.”
“You’re right.” Caitlyn looked up at Loris. “I was just leaving.”
“I’d make it quick if I were you.” He cocked his head towards the pit. “She’ll be making her way up for her earnings any minute. The last thing she needs is to see you.”
She nodded and before she turned to leave the building she whispered, “take care of her.”
Caitlyn hurried out of the building in long strides before the crowd that came to specifically watch Vi had the chance to start shuffling out themselves. She quickly retrieved her hidden rifle and made a quick retreat.
The walk back was going to be long, even if she ran. Her mind would be nothing more than a torturer.
Caitlyn’s breathing increased until she was near hyperventilating.
Look at what you’ve done. You left her there. You left. You didn’t look back. You left!
Caitlyn grabbed her rifle from her back and shot off a round at the closest wall. She lowered her weapon with a bitter laugh at where her bullet was lodged: right between her own eyes on another propaganda poster plastered on the wall she shot at.
She kept her rifle in her hand and approached the wall. Caitlyn dug her fingers under the poster and tore it down. She let it fall from her hand to the dusty ground, face up, and left it there for any Zaunites in the area to walk on.
_________________
Caitlyn made it a habit, a bad one.
Every week she would come up with some kind of excuse to leave the Kiramman estate alone. She would slip into a back alley near the fighting ring, ditch her rifle under a dumpster, and pull on a dirty cloak she hid there. Once Caitlyn pulled the hood over her head, she quietly slipped in to watch Vi land and even receive punches, kicks, thrown elbows, whatever it took to win.
A worse habit she developed was silently following her and Loris to a nearby bar after the fights. The first few weeks of watching and following weren’t spectacular. Vi won every fight, she always had several drinks after.
Caitlyn decided that the weekly routine wasn’t going to change after two months. She eventually limited herself to a weekly patrol in the name of maybe catching Jinx wandering around the unoccupied area. Still, she constantly watched for Vi instead.
Once again, however, she found herself near that fighting arena. She looked at the doors and shook her head. The cheers let her know who was likely winning.
Until it fell absolutely silent.
Caitlyn nudged open the door to quickly look around at the shocked faces. Vi finally lost a fight. Caitlyn sighed and backed away from the door to let it close. She quickly made a retreat before she was caught with her rifle on her back.
“What did I say about being here?”
Caitlyn stopped by the alley the voice came from. “The area is unoccupied, Loris. It’s the only place I can think of where Jinx may be hiding.”
“You’re not here for Jinx.” Loris stepped from the shadows of the alley. “If you were, you wouldn’t be alone.”
“You weren’t at the arena.”
“I stopped going about a month ago.” He folded his arms and looked in the direction of the building. “She cussed me out, shoved me away, told me to get lost. That was after she threw a mean punch at another guy at the bar.”
“She lost tonight.”
Loris simply hummed. He clearly knew it was bound to happen sooner rather than later with her massive spiral into alcoholism.
“I…” Caitlyn sighed. “I shouldn’t have left her there. I shouldn’t have accepted Ambessa’s promotion. I should never have hit her.”
“A little late for that, don’t you think?”
“It’s extremely late for it.” She looked back towards the arena. “You owe me nothing. I don’t expect you to do as I ask. However…” she looked back to Loris. “However, I simply request that you at least try to make sure she doesn’t die.”
“Easier said than done with that one.” He let out a deep, saddened sigh. “I check in on her from time to time. I’m sure she’s trying to drink and fight her way to an early grave. There are easier, faster ways, but even in her state… the woman won’t go down without a fight.”
Caitlyn looked to the ground. Of course Vi was progressively getting worse. Maybe if she wouldn’t have stopped slipping into the arena, Caitlyn would have noticed. Maybe she could have tried to intervene, even if it likely wouldn’t have worked. Again, she failed.
“If the worst does happen, you may return to the ranks. I’ll see to it that you have a job, including reinstatement of your previous rank when you left. If that does happen, your presence will be all that I need to know of it.” Caitlyn steadied herself with a breath. “I won’t want to hear you actually say it. Have a good evening, Loris. I trust that you still know how to contact me if needed.”
“Likewise… Commander.”
______________
Caitlyn didn’t return to Zaun for a couple months. She left her peace with Loris. If she could trust anyone down there with Vi, it was him. He was a great friend to her in the past. Caitlyn saw their bond firsthand. To know Vi wanted nothing more to do with him hurt.
Caitlyn still knew Loris would watch over her regardless.
She sat up in bed quietly and looked to Maddie. That was something else she needed to deal with sooner rather than later, even if she already broke it off and made it clear that all their relationship was going to be was occasional and casual sex moving forward. It was clear Maddie still saw it as more with the way she would fall asleep next to Caitlyn.
Those nights Caitlyn would return to her own room after she was asleep. Only in private would she let herself cry. Caitlyn sometimes pulled Vi’s old jacket from the depths of her closet to simply feel the worn leather.
That night was no different as she made her way to her room. Caitlyn grabbed that red jacket again and sat on the edge of her bed.
That day was going to haunt her for eternity.
Caitlyn remembered in detail how she helped Vi with the uniform that morning. She remembered how much Vi complained about the beret and instead tucked it under her belt against her back. Caitlyn knew she wasn’t winning that fight and let it go. She remembered going through the air ducts after the chem barons in the hunt for Jinx.
Caitlyn remembered the kiss. She remembered the way Vi’s lips felt against hers and how perfect the moment was.
And then she remembered fight and how Jinx got away. She remembered the rage she felt, the grief of letting down her mother again.
The worst part of her memories was the way Vi’s hand slid down her arm to hold her hand. The rest she hated.
Caitlyn quickly got to her feet and nearly ran to the bathroom.
Her stomach turned at the memory of the way Vi’s abdomen gave way under the butt of her rifle. What little she consumed for dinner came back up when she remembered Vi’s hurt, broken sobs as she climbed the ladder. Her body heaved again when she swore she could hear Vi pleading with her as if she was right beside her.
‘Caitlyn! No… don’t leave! We can work this out! Cait!’
Caitlyn gripped the edge of the toilet so hard her knuckles turned white. She whispered apologies over and over into the toilet bowl between her own broken sobs.
It was a dumb idea. She knew she probably needed to think it over more like she did with everything else. Instead, as she brushed her teeth after flushing the toilet, Caitlyn decided she was going back to Zaun and she was going to find Vi.
They needed to talk.