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Lux pulled her hood tighter as she walked through the Zaun market. The loud din of sellers and customers debating prices filled her ears. Some sellers stepped up to her quickly trying to sell gas masks, mind control blocking helms, and “Ionian spirit trapped items”.
Lux politely turned them down, as she weaved towards the mechanics alley. Which went off of the main market into a side alley.
Lux pulled out the list of things she had noticed Jinx was running low on. Looking back up she sighed as she saw how packed the alley was. She wasn’t surprised, but she hoped this trip wouldn’t last longer than the matches in the league Jinx was participating in today.
Granted the matches weren’t over anything major today, just some land dispute between House Ferros of Piltover, and Glasc industries. Well not major in the sense very little was at stake, as it was merely a foot of land being disputed over.
Lux shook her head and proceeded forward, beginning her much harder weaving through the crowds of mechanics alley.
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This had all started 2 days prior when Lux had found out Jinx’s birthday was in a week.
‘Why didn’t you tell me?!” Lux had bemoaned after looking at the upcoming important dates for the League.
“I really haven’t celebrated my birthday, Blondie.” Jinx had waved her off, before she could further question.
And Lux wouldn’t let that stand. She had always been spoiled for her birthday, and so for once she wanted to give someone else that treatment. She would make sure Jinx would have an amazing birthday.
Though Lux was also surprised, something as chaotic as a birthday wasn’t something Jinx did every year. Especially since thinking back over the date news of whatever new calamity had bemoaned Piltover usually reached Demacia, but on this date Jinx didn’t seem to do any special kind of chaos, just her normal chaos.
She quickly went about preparing though, and spent the next few days to get a list ready for Jinx’s birthday. In the end the list was about 3 pages with all of Lux’s Ideas for different things.
She had decided to go today, because Jinx would be participating in a league match. Granted, trying to navigate Zaun without a guide was hard as she hadn’t lived there long enough to understand the layout yet. She hit a few dead ends, but eventually she had eventually found the market.
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She turned and walked back out of mechanics alley. She had gotten the last item on the list she had constructed. The bag was heavy, and she needed to stealthily use some magic to help lighten it.
She began to walk back the way she came in, and passed stalls that again tried to sell her useless junk. She weaved through the crowd that was bottlenecking the entrance. Once through the bottleneck, she stepped back towards the way she came from, when she felt a tap on her shoulder and she turned around.
She turned around and saw three thugs. The likely leader of the trio was the one that had tapped her shoulder. All three had weapons, the leader a knife, and the two others guns.
“May I help you?” She cocked her head innocently, and kept on fist closed with magic ready to grasp from it.
“Yeah schnoz here says you don’t smell like Zaun.” He gestured to the man on his left “Which also judging by your little shopping haul….You got money.” He brought the knife up to her throat.
“I don’t have any more money on me.” She slid a step back meeting his eyes with defiance.
“I don’t think that's true, and we don’t want your pretty little head getting hurt. Do we?” He nodded at his grunts who raised their guns “So hand over the gold.”
“I told you I don’t have anymore on me.” The man's scowl deepened, but then turned, and he shook his head, a cruel smile crossing his face.
“Well we tried the easy way.” He nodded at the grunts and they aimed, but Lux outdrew them in a sense, and threw out her light binding, and she ran.
She rushed around a corner, and then she heard shouting from behind her as she moved through the crowd quickly. She dashed into an alley, and ducked behind a dumpster.
She quickly caught her breath, as her heart pounded, and just as it started to calm she heard footsteps.
“Nice try, little miss Mage! As I told you Schnoze got a good nose!” Lux clenched her teeth as they walked closer. The area was too cramped for Lux to use any big attacks or really any good attacks that would keep them down.
She breathed trying to calm down a bit more to think rationally. They got closer to her hiding spot, she ran through her spells she could use. They’d expect the light binding, and with how the alley was it was unlikely running would help her a lot this time, but maybe it could?
“There you are.” Her eyes shot up, and she quickly got her shield up which deflected two shots fired.
Using them ducking in case of blow back she rolled forward past them, and threw out a singularity. It hit them head on and she followed it up with a binding as they were blinded. She rushed down the alley throwing up her shield again as she timed when the binding would wear off. She slid sideways as she hit a dead end, and ran down the alley adjacent. She heard the leader laugh as she hit another dead end.
“Cornered mage bitch!” He held a maniac grin “That light fucking hurt you know!?” The two behind him were still rubbing their eyes. Lux looked over their shoulders and decided unless she went for the kill here she was screwed. There was enough room, and she’d probably not hit anyone else.
She began to channel her final spark, when a blue orb appeared in front of her, and she stopped channeling, and relief washed over her as her favorite blue haired maniac popped out.
Jinx blew hair from her face as she looked around and her eyes landed on Lux.
“Blondie, why didn’t you tell me you wanted to go out? I would have stayed to help show you around more-”
“Hey we were talking here! So stay out of this b..b…” Lux felt a smirk crossed at the moment their eyes managed to fully clear. Jinx eyes merely narrowed.
“Were they trying to mug you babe?” JInx looked over her shoulder at Lux who nodded, and Jinx let Pow-Pow roar to life.
They tried to turn and run, but it was far too late. They had been caught in Jinx’s sight, and hit the ground before they knew what hit them.
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A few days passed after the incident, and Lux managed to get everything ready. On the day itself she managed to get everything set up thanks to Jinx causing chaos in Piltover. As she finished, she heard the door to the living area of the warehouse she and Jinx called home open. She quickly turned around smiling wide, and throwing her hands wide.
“Suprise, and Happy birthday Jinx!” Lux moved forward and hugged Jinx.
Jinx just froze.
“Happy Birthday…Jinx?” Jinx moved looking up at the banner Lux had hung up. Lux released JInx, and frowned.
Jinx's smile was gone. Jinx walked past all of it and opened the door to her tinkering room, before she turned around to look at Lux.
“My birthday isn’t a good day Lux.” Jinx's tone lacked its hint of humor, and was lower than she had ever heard Jinx speak.
“It doesn’t need to be celebrated!” Jinx's voice turned into hiss, but it didn't feel directed at her.
“Jinx, that's not true! Your awesome and your birthday deserves to be-”
“I became a jinx when I was born!Honestly Blondie I’m shocked you're still here, and haven’t left!” Jinx stepped closer, and spit the words.
“Your not a fucking jinx to me!” This only earns Lux a cackle in response.
“Yes I am. It just hasn’t kicked in for you yet! Watch blondie I’m gonna fuck it up and blow it up between us! Because that’s all I am fucking capabale of doing! Taking people and making them worse!” Lux's heart broke for Jinx, and before Jinx could keep going Lux threw her arms around her again.
“I’m not gonna leave you are not capable of making me hate you, and you haven’t made me worse. You’ve shown me how I can be my full self..” Lux pressed her face into Jinx’s neck. “No matter who I’m with.”
Jinx's breath hitched, and then her body shuddered as sobs came.
“Your too sweet blondie…You're too good for-” Lux pressed a finger to Jinx’s lips.
“No more self-deprecating talk. Those voices, and people who tell you that you aren’t worth the trouble are liars, and anyone who does has to answer to me.” That final part came out with a protective anger.
“You promise blondie?” Jinx's smile started to return.
“As long as we breathe Jinx. I will always be there to deliver payback to those who lie to you about who you are.” Lux sealed this promise with a kiss, and Jinx returned it.