"Inmate 516, you've got mail."
The warden banged his iron baton against the bars, the same baton he used as a walking cane. The metallic clang echoed through the prison hall, and the woman inside jolted awake.
Her body was bruised and scarred, skin marked with numerous tattoos. VI was inked beneath her left eye and her short, deep pink-to-red hair caught the faint light, shifting shades depending on the angle. Both her name and her prisoner ID were branded to her, and a fierce personality.
She glared up at the warden. A towering, cold-eyed brute nearly two and a half meters tall with grey skin and no hair in an Enforcer uniform.
"Is this some kind of new sick joke?" Vi spat.
He stared at her silently for a moment before replying, "No."
She blinked, her guarded expression flickering for the briefest moment.
Mail? Who would send her something here? Powder? Someone from the Lanes fighting back against Silco?
The warden's low, mocking chuckle pulled her out of her thoughts. She met his gaze again and all emotion returned to hate and defiance.
"Now there was a look I've never seen on you," he said, weighing the letter in his hand. "This little note must be real important, huh?"
"Maybe," Vi replied coolly, pushing herself to her feet.
He leered at her through the bars, his grin widening.
"Well then… maybe you oughta do something for me. If you wanna read it."
He scratched at his beltline suggestively, smirking.
In response, Vi lunged. She shoved her fist through the bars trying to hit him, teeth bared. The warden just laughed, safely behind the yellow warning line and waved the letter just out of her grasp when her fist opened, trying to reach the note in vain.
"Asshole!" Vi shouted angrily. "GAH—!"
The baton's butt end slammed against her stomach. She hit the ground hard, choking and coughing up bile, her hands retracting to hold her stomach. The warden's laughter died, replaced with irritation as he looked down at her.
"Take it," he said flatly, tossing the letter through the air toward her cell.
It fluttered between the bars and landed at the base of the cell.
But Vi lay there, still wheezing and body trembling as the pain radiated through her. Her eyes watered, blurring her vision, but she forced herself to breathe through it and pull herself together.
Finally, she crawled forward, hiccupping once as she looked up and grabbed the unfolded letter, hope and emotion teasing her heart before she even read it.
"H-Huh?"
It was blank.
Blank except for one, silly monkey scribbling on the top corner with a fish-headed man holding a bowl up high.
-------------
~Alley~
Jinx stepped across the metal pipes above him.
"I got scolded," she announced flatly.
She straightened her face and deepened her voice.
"Do you have any idea what you've done? Wounded Enforcers, Piltover in flames!"
Her impression of Silco ended in a giggle as she twiddled the Hextech gem between her fingers, letting it catch the faint lights.
"But he was really happy when he saw this. What is it, Mr. Know-it-all?"
"It's Hextech," Xander replied dryly, finishing the last bite of his food while his mask rested beside him.
"I know that!" Jinx groaned. "Come on, you gotta give me more than that!" She pointed accusingly at the empty wrapper next to him. "Don't wine-and-dine and dash on me! I even kept Silco from asking about you."
She dropped into a mocking tone again, waving her hands as she spoke.
"It's my psychotic puppy on a leash! Don't worry about it!"
Jinx mimed petting an invisible dog, then jerked her hand back, pretending it tried to bite her with an exaggerated shocked expression.
Xander just stared at her flatly. She met his gaze, puffed her cheeks, and then folded her hands innocently behind her back before hopping down from the pipes.
"They're devices that power other magical devices," Xander sighed, gesturing to the gem.
Jinx blinked, unimpressed. "That's the boring answer."
"Remember when your gang blew up the penthouse in Piltover as kids?" he asked.
She froze.
"That," he continued quietly, "is one of those little dangerous bombs refined to be stable and usable."
He pointed at the gemstone pinched between her fingertips.
"And how'd you know about the penthouse?" she shot back sharply.
"Well," Xander bobbed his head side to side, "that's kind of a well-known story."
He leaned back. "Anyway, we've got time to kill before Caitlyn returns with Vi. Caitlyn's going to use Vi to find the gem and Vi's going to be searching for you."
"Uh-huh," Jinx drawled. "And why did I have to send that note if she's already going to Jericho's first thing tomorrow?"
"We don't know when she'll get there or how long she'll stay," Xander said. "The note just... incentivizes her to stick around longer and prevent deviation. Oh- but…"
He trailed off, realizing something. Caitlyn would try to arrest Jinx the moment she saw her.
"Let me guess," Jinx cut in. "Little Miss Enforcer wants to arrest me for being a menace to society and snatch this shiny thing back." She tucked the gemstone into her belt pouch. "She might even- ooh- shoot me! How terrifying."
"Yep."
"Ugh… such a pain," she groaned, throwing her hands up. "Why can't I just shoot her and get it over with?"
"Because it will—"
"Shut up." Jinx turned sharply, her voice sharp and strained. "Just shut up. The only reason I'm listening to you right now is because I'm hoping my sister's actually alive."
"Will I be getting an apology tomorrow?" Xander asked dryly.
BANG!
Jinx's gun smoked again. Xander's hand shot up just in time to grab her wrist before the barrel lined up with his head. The trash pile beside him exploded inward, the shot leaving a neat hole through rusted metal.
"Maybe," she said with a twisted grin. "Maybe not."
Once her sister's free, this shit should stop, Xander thought, glancing at the smoking bullet hole.If it doesn't… then I'm out.
He exhaled, brushed himself off and stood. Jinx's bright blue eyes followed his movement as his grip lingered on her wrist. Not tight, just steady.
"I need a place to sleep."
Jinx blinked before placing her hand on her hip.
"Seriously…?"