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They were preparing themselves for the battle's first anniversary gala. Neither of them wanted to go, but Caitlyn’s duty as a war hero and leader of House Kiramman led her with little options to skip it. Vi, her loving and caring girlfriend, could have stayed at home, but decided to be her emotional support even if she was going to be surrounded by stuck-up Pilties that try to downplay the Zaunites' part in the war.
Vi wore a light brown suit with an emerald button up, leaving a few buttons undone. Both the suit and the shirt were adorned with gold details. Her hair, now longer, was braided over her shoulder.
Caitlyn, for her part, wore the same emerald tone as Vi’s shirt, the color of her House, also adorned with golden motifs. Over her white shirt, framing her figure, she wore a light brown vest with the Kiramman keys embroidered in gold.
As with every time she had to make a public appearance as the leader of her House, a position for which she still did not feel worthy, she would carry something of her mother’s with her. She had asked to have one of the earrings Cassandra always wore repurposed into a pendant that could accompany her.
Vi was behind her, carefully holding the pendant in her hands, trying to work the clasp to put it on her. “Do you have to get the extra complicated lock?” she teased, trying to ease her nervousness.
Caitlyn chuckled and answered without turning around, “You know I can’t risk losing it”.
She was lifting her hair to leave her neck exposed to Vi when she heard the click of the lock opening, and suddenly she was on her knees, but instead of the soft rug of her bedroom, she hit the hard concrete of Piltover’s ground.
She couldn't hear anything over the ringing in her ears. Her eyes stung, and she struggled to focus on her surroundings. She tried to take a breath, but every gulp of air burned her throat and lungs. When she finally managed to see what was before her, the brightness of the Piltover coast opened up. Just like the last time, the figure of Ambessa Medarda was ascending the stairs toward her.
No, not again, she thought. Ambessa was dead. She couldn’t face it again. She had to act fast. She looked back and, as expected, saw Maddie, but this time she wasted no time. She threw her arms back, grabbing the rifle to pull it with enough force to snatch it from Maddie's hands, but the rifle didn't give up; instead, the traitor's body fell over her, knocking her to the ground.
Caitlyn scrambled and struck Maddie's head with her elbow, who fell beside her. She lunged to grab the rifle that must have fallen, but she couldn't see it anywhere. She felt frantically around the floor, but something didn't fit, the floor wasn't hard or cold, it was soft, plush, and warm.
She blinked, trying to clear her vision of the tears blurring it from the irritation, but when she fixed her gaze again, she only saw the rug she knew so well from her room. She turned her head in search of Maddie, but only saw Vi getting up, bringing a hand to her head and looking at her with concern.
Caitlyn didn't understand what was happening. Her whole body was on alert, ready to fight whatever was necessary, but there was no risk, no threat, only her and Vi in their bedroom.
“Cait, are you okay?” asked Vi, full of worry.
Caitlyn frowned at the situation. It was all making sense slowly. She had never been in Piltover; she had been in their room the whole time. Then, what had she grabbed? Who had fallen over her? Who had she hit?
Her eyes widened horrified at the realization. It was Vi, all the time, it had been Vi. “Did… Did I hit you?” was all she managed to get out through the knot in her throat. Her nerves were still raw from the sensation of being on the verge of death.
“I’m fine. How are you? You scared me, you just fell to your knees”.
Caitlyn was still trying to focus, trying to understand what had happened. Her breath was still heavy, the ghost of the gas lingering in her mouth, her heart continued to race, and she could feel the cold sweat clinging to her entire body.
“I don’t know, I was back at the battle, back to the moment when…” the rest of the sentence got stuck in her throat. She had talked with Vi about it, of course they had talked, but this had been too vivid, too close to the certain death she was sure awaited her in that moment.
Both were still on the floor; Caitlyn on her knees leaning on her hands in the same pose she had stayed in while she thought she was looking for her rifle; Vi, for her part, was beside her, half-sitting, propped up on one arm, turned toward the Piltovan. It was the Zaunite who sat up fully and reached out to caress her cheek, brushing away a tear Caitlyn didn't know had fallen.
Caitlyn leaned into the touch, relying on the security and comfort that Vi gave her. The Zaunite used her hold to make her look into her eyes.
“You are not there”.
“It was so real,” choked Caitlyn.
Vi guided the same hand she was using to caress her cheek to Caitlyn’s nape and pulled her into a tight embrace. She cried for a short time with Vi holding her close. They stayed in that position until Caitlyn’s breathing and heartbeat normalized and the security of her girlfriend’s embrace made the feeling of panic vanish completely from her body.
Now with a cooler head, the Sheriff reviewed the memory in her mind and frowned. She pulled back just enough to look Vi in the eyes and be the one to caress her cheek. Her girlfriend leaned into her hand by instinct.
“You haven’t answered me.” The Zaunite just frowned. Guilt crept up Caitlyn’s throat. “Did I hit you?”
“Yeah,” Vi answered with a little shrug, even a little shy. “But got to be honest, not one of your finest moves, Cupcake”. She teased with a smirk.
“Darling! I am so sorry. I…” She pulled her hand away from Vi to try and center her thoughts. “I thought… I promised myself that I would never…” she blurted out, trying to calm the discomfort that had taken over her body. She had begun to gesticulate with her hands.
“Hey, hey.” Vi put a hand over hers. “It's okay, I am fine. You know it takes more than a desperate elbow to stop me”.
“But it should never be me! Not again!” Caitlyn said, desperate at the way Vi was downplaying the matter.
“It's not the same. We already talked about this. That sucked, but it’s over. You are you now, you know? And you are here with me, that's what is important”.
“But that doesn't allow me to…”
“Stop it,” Vi interrupted her. “Please,” added the Zaunite with pleading eyes, and Caitlyn couldn't help but soften. “You haven't done this on purpose. You thought you were at the battle. But you are here, with me, and I need you to stop hating yourself for every mistake and let me love you.” She finished her speech smiling lovingly.
“Okay,” conceded Caitlyn, and hugged her girlfriend again.
They remained embraced on the floor for a while until Caitlyn realized how they were dressed and that they were probably already late for the gala. God, she was exhausted. She just wanted to get into bed and keep holding each other. She didn't want to put up with Piltover’s most absurd elite talking about something they didn't live through.
“We have to go, we are probably late”.
Vi looked at her, studying her for a moment. “Are you sure you want to go?”
“Oh, I am completely sure that I do not want to go, but I do not have any other choice”.
“I can give you choices,” answered the Zaunite, winking with a smirk. Caitlyn snorted and pushed her shoulder playfully. “But you know, if you go, I go”.
Vi stood up and offered a hand to help her. Caitlyn took it without hesitation and let herself be helped up. She went to the bathroom to freshen up and wash her face. Upon her return, Vi was waiting for her with her mother's earring pendant in her hand.
“Turn around.” Caitlyn looked at her hesitantly. “Here.” Vi took one of her hands and brought it to her waist. “Just hold on to me”.