Piltover
Her heart was hammering in her chest.
Meeting Vi. She never thought it would really be this way. She always imagined that it would be in the morning, her dressed down in casual clothes, and just her, trying to talk.
But. At least, she had some people who would help soften the blow.
Swords, Shields, and Cake was there. Margaret was there, urging her to call her Mother now. Anatoly was of course there now, since Piltover wasn't Zaun. Hopefully he didn't make a huge blunder, but knowing him, he would. Even Moe and Joe were there.
Margaret started it with a knock on Vi and Caitlyn's door. Powder-Jinx was standing behind Moe and Joe, so no one saw her at first again. Get it together, PJ. She tightened her grip on the pretty purse that came with the outfit she was supposed to wear. She felt the jingling of all the jewelry now on her, and her hair was still all colored up as blue, done up in a fancy crown with only ringlets on the side now. All of this should have made her feel brave, but today, it made her feel like a little girl playing dress up. Please, Vi.
"Hello?" That was Caitlyn's voice. "May I help you?"
"Yes. My name is Margaret Laurent. I am here to speak to Vi."
"Regarding what?"
"Her sister."
"Jinx? What do you know about Jinx?"
Vi's voice, she had come to the door.
"I am here to tell you that she is well and alive, and wants to see you again."
"Jinx? You know where Jinx is, she's alive? Where is she? We'll go right now to see her, where is she?"
"Oh. Calm down, it'll be okay. She isn't far. I am here to help prepare you for news."
"I don't want to hear about news, I want to see my sister!"
Yep, that was Vi.
"Look, you need to calm down in order for me to tell you anything. If you want to see your sister soon and have some time to spend with her, I need you to relax."
"Let's hear her out," Caitlyn said toward Vi.
Another deep breath. Here it comes. You can do this. This is a positive thing and I am a positive person. Ugh, that affirmation is not working right now! I'll just stare at my hands. Count the lines.
"Your sister faked her death in order to become someone that could be around you, without messing up your life. She is now legally exempt from being arrested or charged here for today and tomorrow, so do not worry about her."
"How could you manage that?"
"Powder-Jinx lives in our sacred village which holds different protections when we visit Piltover with pre-emptive warning."
"Powder-Jinx? Is that what she's going by now?"
"Yes, she is. She also likes PJ for short. She honestly goes by that more."
"PJ." Vi's voice softened. "How did she end up in your village?"
"She wanted to become a better person and build something new, but she needed help to do that. More than you know. Our village helped her find the way. She became a part of it in the process. She is very dear to us, and we are here to support her."
Okay, PJ. You got this. You can do this. She watched her guards Moe and Joe move and saw Vi. Same old red hair still. Practically stunned to see her. Don't run to her, don't run to her, don't run to her.
Vi ran to her, bringing her in close for a hug.
PJ couldn't help herself but to hug back. "Vi." Okay, what Shields said. What was it? "I got better for you. I became a better person for you." She didn't answer back. "I'm not exploding people?"
"Powder, I thought you were dead! For two years! Don't ever do that again!"
"I had to change for you." PJ saw Shields show up beside her.
"Oh, Powder. Jinx. PJ. Whatever fucking name you want!" Vi shook her head. She couldn't say anything, she was crying too much. "Look at you, what happened to you?"
"I . . . I cleaned up," she said, speaking with her accent. "I joined the Laurents village, learned their customs, and started bettering myself for you. You don't have to worry about me anymore. I can see you, without dragging you down."
She hugged her extra close again. Vi's grip was so strong, without Anatoly's extra power, she would have definitely been hurting her.
"Vi? I have something for you." She bit her lip instinctively as she handed her the invitation.
Vi looked confused, but took the invitation. She was still hanging on with one arm, she wasn't letting go. Caitlyn was at her side taking out the invitation and straightening it out for her to read.
Vi's eyes got really wide. "You're what?"
PJ just tried to smile. "Surprise?"
"What is it?" Caitlyn asked looking at it. "Oh."
"You're getting married?" Yep, that worried anger was surfacing. "To who?!"
PJ gestured toward Anatoly as he approached. "He's the son of the village chief, Anatoly."
Yeah. Vi did not look well. "You? You're marrying my sister?"
"Yes," Anatoly said openly.
"You think that you can marry my sister? Are you old enough to marry my sister?"
"We are the same age," Anatoly looked offended.
"We? As in we?" Vi took her hand and gestured between them.
"No, we. As in me and Powder-Jinx. We are of legal age of adulthood."
"Vi. Calm down, it's okay," Caitlyn tried to say.
Vi was not falling for anything though. Her eyes glared at Margaret. "What do you do, marry them off as soon as they are considered an adult or something where you are from?"
"No, Vi. Stop," PJ urged her. "It's okay."
"It's okay? You're getting married! I know that you are an adult now, Powder-Jinx. But. Even I am nowhere near wanting marriage. You are still soo young, why are you rushing?"
"Oh. Father will be gone in a year or two," Anatoly told her.
"Yeah, okay, why pick Powder-Jinx? Why not pick someone who was born in your village?"
Please. Anatoly. Do not mess this up.
"I don't like Raven," Anatoly said to her. "I like your sister. She's beautiful."
And he messed it up.
"Anatoly, quiet now," Margaret warned him.
"No, Anatoly, keep going," Vi insisted.
"Well? It's just important that I pick someone I am attracted to."
He was inserting his entire foot in his mouth.
"Oh huh, yeah, and why is that, Buddy?" Vi pressed.
"Well. The more attractive, the easier it will be to have children."
"Oh that's a hop, skip and a jump if ever I've seen one," Caitlyn said.
"Yes. We should have at least three in five years, but definitely one before father dies. It will make him feel better."
"It'll make him feel better?" Vi fully wrapped both hands around Powder-Jinx. "You know what would make me feel better? These fists across your face, stay away from my sister!"
Yeah, sure, like this was supposed to go different? No, no, be positive. "Vi. I am a better person there."
"Not with him you aren't."
"Yes she is, because I paid for all of her treatment to make her better!" Anatoly yelled at her. "Have you not noticed anything? The other woman clearly did."
"Anatoly, please let me handle this," Margaret insisted as she sighed. "He has never left our village before, I am sorry about the curtness. May we speak inside?"
Vi went in, but basically holding Powder-Jinx in almost a chokehold, like she was going to run away. "There's no way, there is just no way."
Ugh, freaking Anatoly. What was she supposed to say to that? Well, it's not like I would fake it well. She would have figured it out it wasn't based on love.
Everyone came in.
"Hello. I am Shields," Shields said to Vi. "I am a mind healer. Next to me is Swords. He is a mind medicine doctor."
They were striking zero so far, maybe Shields could pull out a miracle.
"And I care cause . . .?" Vi had a rude look.
"Give the sister the sheet," Anatoly said to Swords.
Sheet? "What sheet?"
Vi plucked the sheet from Swords and looked at it. Stunned. "Powder?" That voice was not Vi's hard voice.
No. "No, not that sheet!" No, those idiots. "Vi." Oh no. It had to be. The mind sheet. The list of stupid 'symptoms' and crap.
Vi was going from mad to starting to tear up.
No. "I'm getting better. I am." Idiots. No. Don't cry. Don't cry. "Vi. I'm okay."
Vi pulled her into both her arms tightly again. "I didn't know. I mean I did, I could tell something was wrong, but I didn't know all this, I'm so sorry."
"She is getting better," Shields helped her out. "My specialty is mind healing and I have been working with her for two years. She has come a long way."
"I don't understand," Vi said.
Shields told her a little about her part, as well as the medicine that helped. She told them about her strengths and accomplishments so far, as welll as her weaknesses. She even explained why she had a hyphenated name, to help accept all of herself.
Did anyone else know how it felt to hear about all the things that were wrong with her, shared to the people who were the dearest? Even with that extra strong dose of medication, she felt like falling apart.
Then? Vi let go and looked at her. "You're just so quiet and . . ." She reached out and touched one of the ringlets. "You cleaned up very pretty, Jinx."
She grabbed Vi's hand. "I am trying."
"I can tell," Vi said. She looked toward Swords. "Do you have a list of her medicine?" He gave her a little list and a bottle, prepared for them to ask. Vi gave it to Caitlyn. "Well?"
Caitlyn looked at it for a second. "I don't know these. I could ask other doctors about it."
Great. Vi knew it now. What was the worst thing on the list that would worry her most? To Ekko, it was clearly the voices. Would hearing Mylo and Claggor be it? Would something else?
Vi looked back toward her and actually gave her a small smile. "Powder-Jinx." She touched the top of her head. "I need to take a second to discuss some things with Caitlyn, okay? Don't go far. It's just one room over, okay?"
"You don't have to do that," Powder-Jinx told her. "I'm not lying, I really did get help. I didn't plan on getting it in that way. I never even heard of someone that could . . . but the village is really special."
"Oh, I never meant the psycho thing," Vi yelled suddenly. "Really, Powder-Jinx, I never meant it when I said that stuff about mom and dad and seeing you turn into a psycho!"
"Okay, it's okay." Oh, this was so hard. Vi was always so strong, and this whole thing was breaking her. You have to be the strong one for her today. She went back to her old accent. "We pick on each other, it's what sisters do, you know? Don't get overdramatic, Sis." She rolled her eyes for good measure.
"Like I said," Shields reminded Vi. "A lot has tampered down."
"But she isn't cured yet?" Vi asked.
"There is no real cure for me," she told Vi. The more impossible the situation got, the easier it got to speak to Vi. Made sense. "Basically, Sis, it's like this. I'm in the fight, I'm not standing on the sidelines, but I'm winning this fight because I got my Sword and my Shield."
There, now it was sinking in. Vi smiled.
"There's only relapses here and there," Anatoly said helpfully. "If it didn't change her much, I wouldn't bother with it. I need a pretty wife, not a pretty crazy wife, and I've been satisfied with her now."
And there he went, shoving his foot right back into that mouth.
"Powder. Jinx." Vi looked back toward her. "When I got arrested, you were still pretty young. I didn't really give you any lessons about relationships or anything. Didn't even have one myself, but?" She gestured toward Anatoly. "He is a no. No for dating, hugging, or anything more than a casual hi or a punch to the face. He is an idiot, a moron, and a self-absorbed bastard." She grabbed Powder-Jinx's hands.
"Vi, you don't get it."
"Look, if you wanna date, that's fine, but date someone better than this guy. He's not, not, not good for you. You're smart. You know this."
Yeah, it was obvious. "You know? I know you don't like it. I know he's . . ." Ugh. "It's for a greater cause?"
"I don't care the greater cause. No," Vi said to her. "Why?"
"This is where I am better. It's where my armor is, hello?" Powder-Jinx started getting a little rougher.
"So what, you are going to get kicked out, is he threatening to-? Oh, of course he is!" Vi turned her anger back to Anatoly. "You're threatening to take away her Sword and Shield, aren't you? Unless she marries you?"
No, no, no! That was too close, that was too close! It's not happening!
Powder-Jinx got in the way between him and Vi as she got punched in the back of the head by Vi. "Don't touch him!" Never, never, never. She would never be trapped! "Don't touch Vi." She hugged him, but whispered in his ear, "or you know I will kill you right here and now and let the village burn alive."
She looked back toward Vi. "The village is my home, if I turned him down, he would still help. I would be fine, but there are things you don't understand. Village secrets that I can't tell you yet, and if I marry him, it'll save a lot of lives. I'll be a better person for it. Isn't that what you want?"
"But why you? Why does it have to be you?" Vi asked.
Be honest. "He likes my eyes? I don't know why but ever since I came to the village, he was crushing on me."
"No. The answer needs to be better than, 'I was chosen because I was pretty to him', PJ!" Oof. She was angry.
"I'm using my potential for good, just like you really wanted."
"Look? I do want you to do good. You are becoming a better person and helping others, and I can see it, and that's great. You are missing a very big piece in this whole engagement thing," Vi said to her. "Happiness. There's no way you are going to be happy with that guy."
Happiness? "Happiness isn't needed to save people or help others." Not in that case.
"Happiness isn't what?" Vi just looked at her, stunned.
"The greater good counts more," she said. How was she going to get Vi to get this without exposing everything? "Look. You need to make peace with the fact that I am getting married soon. If you can act nice for the evening, then we can go out tomorrow. Tomorrow's my last day here."
"Just me and you?"
"Mainly, sure," PJ said. "I think it'd be great to spend some one on one with you again." It would give her a chance to slip in and explain about the liquid.
"Yes, that sounds excellent," Margaret agreed. "Anatoly and I will look around and explore Piltover, while you guys have a nice day yourself."
"Yes, but don't go into the dirt of Zaun again, just stay in Piltover, I implore you?" Anatoly requested of her.
"I know. I'll stay in Piltover," she agreed. "Oh. Ekko might come to see you soon. There was a rat problem, and it's better if you don't go down right now."
"You've seen Ekko?" Oh, now Vi's wheels were turning in a new direction. "Did you give him his invitation? You invited him?"
"In a way." She had been too out of it, and out of time, but Shields said she did. "I will see you tomorrow, and then soon, in my hidden village that is only accessible to people during certain events." That would sound suspicious, but Margaret had used the exact same words with her, so it didn't, but Vi should pick it up.
"Like. Weddings." Okay, Vi got it. "Are you sure about this?"
"Sure I'm sure. I have to do my part in it all."
"But, happiness does also count in your life," Vi said to her firmly. "I want you to be happy."
"Gah. You just want the world of me," Powder-Jinx joked. "Happiness follows making others happy. Anyhow. We should get going."
"Happiness doesn't follow after making others happy, who told you that crap? You do things to make yourself happy. You still invent, don't you?"
No. She only wished. "Inventing leads to mess. Disorganization. And. It made me bad, making weapons and such. So, I'm not allowed to."
"But you create, it's what you do. You don't have to build weapons."
"I know, and I would. But." She shrugged, barely keeping it together. "I'm not allowed."
"It leads down the road to bad things," Shield told Vi. "She doesn't get tempted to build anything bad if she doesn't build at all."
"And Ekko didn't say anything about that?" Vi asked.
Yeah, she couldn't hide it. "I don't know if he knows about that. Shields said she told him a lot of stuff for me. You see. I had a minor break. She did most of it by the time I woke up."
"I'll find out then. Don't do anything stupid, just to help," Vi said as she looked toward Anatoly. Her anger definitely increased. "This is more arranged than anything, so did you two kiss yet?"
"Oh. No," Anatoly said. "We are saving all of our firsts for the wedding and wedding night."
The brains on this guy.
"Good. Keep it that way," Vi said threateningly to him.
"Oh, where are my manners?" Caitlyn interrupted. "Does anyone want something to drink?"
"Cait, I need to talk to you," Vi said toward Caitlyn. "Sit down. Make yourself at home. We'll be back."