Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

“You wanna talk to this criminal even though the captain told you to stay out of it.” Even though she was technically talking to Caitlyn, she didn’t actually look at her. Her attention was captured by the entirety of the Stillwater prison. She had never been here before and her curiosity was getting the best of her.

“Yes, now stay close! I have a feeling this really isn’t the place for you to get lost in alright.” Cait waited for her partner to actually look at her face, which did take a few seconds, but after she saw how serious she was she nodded slowly.

“Good, now let’s go.”

The two walked into the intimidating building, though one of them had a much more serious face compared to the other. They both approached a giant desk in the center of the first room with a large man sitting there who probably was the equivalent of both secretary and security in the prison.

Caitlyn stepped forward to speak.

“I need to speak with one of the inmates.”

The warden stared her down and gave a glance to the obviously distracted enforcer before lifting and eyebrow, “Oh, folks in here aren't usually very talkative.”

Caitlyn took a step forward pushing her voice out to be more clear and show that she was serious, hopefully it would also distract him from Hayden. “This one was hit by friendly fire. He's got reason to talk. Must have been sent in today?”

The warden’s eyes tilted away as he came to a realization, “Oh. Inmate 2135… Yeah, I'm, uh, afraid that's not possible.”

“Why not?” Both of the girls asked at the same time, making the warden glance back at the other again, but Caitlyn coughed to keep his attention on her.

“Uh, well, there's been... an incident.”

“What kind of incident?”

“The...not so pretty kind.”

“You don't understand, I have to talk to him.” Despite not meaning to, her voice sounded desperate.

“Oh, you'll be able to. As soon as he can move his jaw again.”

“Who assaulted him?”

[-]

Both ladies were traveling down the elevator, Caitlyn feeling more anxious than she would like kept glancing at the levels they passed, while Hayden just seemed to stare at the passing numbers the entire time until they finally reached the -40th floor. They stepped out slowly, Caitlyn’s arm all that kept her partner from walking ahead.

While traveling through the hall they could hear thudding, though both stayed quiet as they approached the first cell, apparently where the assault-er was being held.

Caitlyn peaked inside first while Hayden felt it was best to stay a few feet back, much to the other’s relief. Though when she saw the pink haired girl punching a wall, she couldn’t help but stare until she turned around.

“Who the hell are you?”

Caitlyn didn’t answer as she started speaking through the bars. “I took a look at your file. There's no record of you or your crimes. What are you here for?”

“My sunny personality.” As the inmate spoke she started to pace the cell.

“You attacked an inmate. Why?”

“Why not?”

“He was a witness in an ongoing investigation.”

“Hmm, bummer.”

She let out a sigh before turning away and starting to walk back towards Hayden. “This was a waste of time. Come on Hayden.”

Instead of turning to walk with her the other stayed where she was, letting the inmate finally notice her, since she was more focused on Caitlyn beforehand. She shook her head because of course the enforcer had some kind of back up, why wouldn’t she have.

“Couldn't have put it better. Hey, give Silco a kiss on that winning eye of his, will you?”

That made Caitlyn stop and turn back around with another sigh. She then looked at her partner who was still just staring at the inmate, so she went back to the cell.

“Silco? The industrialist?”

“Okay, this is getting old. Can you just send in whoever's gonna kick the shit out of me, so I can get on with my night?”

Caitlyn made a face as she went over her options. It was obvious that this woman knew something, but this way of questioning wasn’t working in her favor.

She stepped over the recommended pink line. “Does this mean anything to you?” She gestured to Hayden who stepped forward and pulled open a book to show the pages full of her recent investigation.

The inmate slammed against the cell making both girls step back and gasp. Her eyes kept going back and forth from both of them.

“Where did you get this?”

“My question first. He worked for Silco?”

“Uh, they all do. How can anyone not know that? Where did you find this?” It was obvious that her attention was primarily on the book, making Caitlyn more suspicious.

“There was an attack.” She then held out her hand for Hayden to give her the book, which she did letting her put it back in her own bag. The only reason she had it was because it kept her occupied on the way to the prison. “This is evidence. I need proof if I'm to believe what you're saying about Silco.”

The inmate scoffed, “I could get it for you. Just not from in here.”

Though neither girl was paying her anymind Hayden took a step closer to the cell.

Caitlyn let out a small laugh. “In what mad world would I trust someone like you?”

It was obviously the wrong thing to say since it upset the inmate. “Someone like me? You enforcers are all the same. Just asshole criminals in fancy uniforms. You know what? Find Silco yourself.”

“I will, thank you.” She started to walk away this time, not even calling her partner but still expecting her to follow.

“Hmm... Undercity's gonna eat you alive.” The inmate changed her position while still leaning on the bars, this time noticing how close Hayden still was, but not seeing the way Caitlyn seemed to stop and think about her options.

“What do you want?” The question made Cait turn around and see Hayden was just watching the other inmate.

“Hayden?” She called and her partner tilted her head back to glance over her shoulder.

“I’ll stay and wait.” And somehow it seemed as though Hayden could read her mind, so she just nodded and got back on the elevator.

“Wait for what? Think I’m gonna break out while you two go get the warden?” The inmate sneered but Hayden just slowly backed away, while making sure to keep her eyes locked on her, until her back hit the other wall and then she slid down until she was sitting.

“Nope.” Was her simple answer and the inmate furrowed her eyebrows.

“The floors here aren’t exactly spotless you know.”

“Yeah, but I don’t like standing a lot unless I’m moving. But I also told Caitlyn that I wouldn’t get lost. So I’m sitting down.” She tilted her head slightly to see the rest of the cell, but it was too dark and obviously messy.

“You… aren’t like the other one are you?” She was going through her own head trying to figure out what type of tactic this could be. She’d never seen an enforcer be so… Normal? Nonchalant? Simple?

Hayden grinned and her head tilted more. “Thank you for noticing. I also noticed something! And it wasn’t just your desperation to figure out how we got our information.” She shook her head before looking back down the hall where the elevator was, not caring about the way the inmate was just staring at her. “Obviously something in Cait’s book is personal to you. But what I noticed is the way you’re looking down on us simply because we’re enforcers. I’m assuming you’ve had some bad experiences in the past.”

The inmate scoffed and finally backed away from the bars. “You can say that. But that’s probably to be expected. You didn’t assume I walked myself in here did you.”

Hayden nodded as if she understood but the inmate rolled her eyes. She didn’t and she probably never would.

“Yeah but the way you talk seems like you feel their actions are unjustified, like they’re all wrong, and as you put it, asshole criminals in fancy uniforms. And since there isn’t actually a crime named on your record for you to be here, I can’t help but wonder if you might be right or not. From your perspective of course.”

The inmate gave her a confused look but before she could say more the elevator finally made a noise to signify Caitlyn was back. The inmate just turned around and waited for what she assumed was another beating, while Hayden finally stood back up.

No one spoke as Caitlyn then unlocked the cell, and then sighed. The inmate just stared for a few seconds as she then turned and walked away, before she looked back at Hayden who smiled and then followed behind her, which made her follow too.

[-]

After Vi got a chance to change all three of them went out to get a good view of the undercity.

“I heard the bathysphere has a nice view. That could be a good way to get a lay of the land.”

While Caitlyn was confident in her suggestion, Vi only pulled up her head and turned back to the cliff she was on, “Too risky.”

“What…” And both Caitlyn and Hayden ended up watching her jump over. When they got close enough they could both see the other girl jumping and flipping over buildings. Hayden’s eyes widened in excitement as she immediately tried to follow, though she was a bit wobbly. Caitlyn threw their tickets before doing the same.

Hayden couldn’t help but laugh at their pace compared to Vi who was way ahead.

“Well, at least I’m doing better than you!” That just made Cait scowl but when she almost slipped she stopped and went back to focusing on her balance and just trying to keep up.

[-]

It took a minute before Caitlyn actually could catch up to Vi, but as soon as she did an outfit was thrown into her arms making her grunt.

“Welcome to the lanes.”

“You almost got me killed.”

“My little sister could do that when she was 7. All us fissure folk can. Don't you want to blend in?” She then started to walk past her.

“Tell shortstack sorry but I was only able to get two outfits.” At that Caitlyn’s eyes narrowed.

“You mean Hayden?”

“She’s short isn’t she. Anyway, I’m kind of surprised you made it here first. She looked more of the type.” She chuckled and Caitlyn started to look around them.

“She was… in front of me just a… damn it!” She face palmed herself making Vi look back at her with her hands in her pockets.

“Trouble in paradise? Is she slower than expected?”

“No she… she probably got distracted. But we don’t have time to look for her, let’s just go. She always seems to find me again after a while.”

To her surprise Vi actually did look concerned at that. “This is the Undercity, it isn’t exactly the safest place to just ‘get lost’ in.”

“Well I’m sorry but do you know where she is? Because she gets lost multiple times a day, we wouldn’t just happen to find her.”

Vi gritted her teeth before scoffing. “Just, keep your eyes peeled for her. If she’s in that uniform she won’t blend in anywhere.”

Chapter Text

Hayden sighed as she sat on the edge of a random building. The view was great. Obviously it wasn’t better than her view from her own roof, but that was because Piltover would naturally look better. But from here it didn’t seem as though the undercity was so bad.

After a few minutes of coming to terms with how everything looked she nodded to herself and then looked at the people below. No one looked like her, and if she could guess based on Vi’s reaction to enforcers, no one would want to have anything to do with her… except maybe get into a fight.

She sighed before jumping off a few ledges to get back to the ground. After she got used to the feel of it, the building hoping wasn’t so bad, it was actually a lot of fun. It gave her a bit of an adrenaline rush to do something she knew was dangerous and she probably wouldn’t have been able to do back home.

Not that she specifically wanted to, she hated getting in trouble. She already had enough attention on her for how ‘scatterbrained’ she was, she didn’t need to do more.

Once she safely reached the ground she started heading to the right, keeping herself near alleys and walls, but not really going through them unless she was sure they were empty. When she got a view of the undercity, she also paid close attention to the most and the least crowded areas she could find, and her safest place to go would have to be the small area she saw where there weren’t many people at all. Even if she did run into someone there, she could handle them herself without others overhearing and getting involved.

Which did remind her that she would have to find Caitlyn again. She isn’t even sure when they got separated, all she knew was that Caitlyn was moving so slow. Which was unusual since she normally did great when they practiced field work and rough terranes. Maybe it was because she was so unfamiliar?

Hayden didn’t spend too much time thinking about why Cait was so slow because she finally reached the area she was looking for. She had no idea what she might find here, but at least she didn’t have to stay near shadows and alleys anymore, she could just walk and look around herself for a bit. Long as she paid attention to the noises around her, she shouldn’t get caught by anyone. And maybe if she was lucky she could find something to blend in with… Though it probably wouldn’t be very clean if she found it on the ground, it would be better than nothing.

As she walked through the small area she noticed that there were lots of twists and turns, and some of the turns she made were extremely narrow, but Hayden didn’t care, as long as she could fit through, she took it. That also was the reason why she kept going in and out of run down and destroyed buildings. If the door wasn’t locked, then she didn’t see a reason not to explore. She never knew what she would find, and the mystery was the best part.

She was casually walking through another narrow street when she heard the sound of something unfamiliar. It was a weird hissing noise, and while she knew that meant someone was near, it also meant she had to investigate.

Yes, she may have been separated from her partner and their informant, but she still had a job, to get back the gem. And maybe if she plays her cards right, she could get her own informant. Or at least finally talk to someone, since she hadn’t run into another person for a while.

She casually walked towards the direction she heard the noise, making sure she was completely calm and wouldn’t be noticed. As she got closer she heard the sound of footsteps, and she soon found herself standing outside of a run down building with a shattered window. As she got closer she made sure not to step on the glass, before she peaked inside just to end up seeing a girl putting together some type of machine at the back of the room before just standing in front of it. Hayden almost called out to her before the girl suddenly took action.

Hayden’s mouth actually dropped as she watched the girl with two long braids and a seemingly slim physique just brutally fight (what she now assumed was some type of game machine). It was enthralling to say the least. She had never seen anyone fight so passionately or so fiercely before, and the way the girl just seemed to dodge every hit too… there was no wonder her score kept rising on the board that was right next to her.

It was obvious that the other woman was taking out some kind of pent up anger, but Hayden didn’t think it was a problem until she screamed and gave a final punch. After that she seemed out of breath before looking up at the board only to see her score in second place. Though Hayden was still a distance away, she could still see the flash of irritation before the girl shot at the game suddenly, making her tie the noise she heard earlier to the gun in that girl’s hand.

Hayden took a small breath, unsure if she would be able to talk with this other woman who was obviously still upset, but now that she wasn’t preoccupied anymore, she doubted that she could still get away without being noticed. Hayden kept her eyes sharply on the figure in front of her as she took a step forward, this time actually stepping on the glass, making the girl turn and aim her gun at her in less than two seconds.

Hayden’s hand twitched, the urge to pull her own gun out just as quickly, but she resisted. That would probably escalate the situation when she didn’t need to, she only wanted to talk. She raised both of her hands as a way to show she wasn’t here to harm the stranger, while the blue haired girl’s eyes narrowed, and her hand didn’t move from its place, keeping the gun aimed steadily at her head.

“Who are you and why are you here?”

Hayden had the strongest desire to look around the room, but she didn’t and maintained her eye contact with the other woman.

“Hello, my name’s Hayden.” She spoke clearly and slowly, making sure she was staying still and didn’t make any sudden movements. She had no idea what was going through the woman’s head, but her eyes narrowed as she seemed to look Hayden up and down.

The enforcer had to stop herself from grimacing, she was still in her uniform. While she had come across a few torn clothes, none of them actually were her size so she left them, she didn’t see a point in bringing them with her. Which meant that if this girl hated enforces as much as Vi did, then she wasn’t gaining any favors for herself.

“Well Hayden…” The girl took a step closer, her eyes shifting between looking curious and angry, though Hayden was more surprised by how calm she suddenly was, compared to moments ago on the machine.

“Are you one of those enforcers that work for Silco?” She asked slowly and her tone was accusatory, though her statement made Hayden’s eyes narrow herself. There were enforcers that worked for Silco? That wasn’t right? Why?

There was a sound, making her eyes snap right back to the other girl’s who had plucked her gun, because her eyes had wandered while she was thinking.

“That depends… Do you work for Silco?” Her question seemed to confuse the other, so Hayden assumed that she did. She took a deep breath, and lifted her hands a little higher.

“Can I come inside, or do I have to stay here standing at gunpoint?”

The woman sneered at her and Hayden blinked in surprise, not expecting such a reaction.

“Why are you here? Did Silco send you to ‘check’ on me? Does he think I can’t do it? Is that what this is about?” Her hand had started to tremble without her noticing, but Hayden did, her eyes now locked onto the gun instead of her eyes. That also meant she didn’t notice when the other girl’s attention was no longer focused on her. She was shaking her head as if hearing things that Hayden couldn’t.

Her first instinct was to say she didn’t work for Silco, but if she was working under the assumption that this woman did in fact work for Silco, it would work against her. Though she also had a feeling that lying would come back and bite her in the ass.

So, she decided to improvise, and she worked best with the truth.

“Shut up!”

“Well, I’m lost.”

Both eyes snapped back to each other instantly, neither expecting the other to speak, and their actual words were just as surprising.

Hayden’s mind was moving faster than she anticipated. They both spoke at the same time, meaning that the other girl couldn’t have been yelling at her to shut up, since the last person that spoke was her. So she had to be talking to herself. But that wasn’t as if she was answering her own question, because ‘Shut up’ isn’t a normal response to ‘Why are you here’ that left Hayden with the assumption that while she was talking to herself, she wasn’t exactly talking to herself.

While they stared at each other, she could also see that the girl’s brain was moving just as fast. She didn’t know what she was thinking about, but she knew she didn’t like the way that her eyes narrowed. It wasn’t an accusatory look, or just suspicion, it was in anger. Why was the other angry? She didn’t know, all she said was that she was lost, which was true. But the next thing she knew, she was quickly tilting to the side to dodge some type of bullet.

She let out a squeak when she looked back at the female, and saw she was still aiming at her and she looked even more upset. Her own heart rate picked up as she hoped she didn’t need to either run with her back facing this woman, or have to fight her. She just watched what she could do, and while Hayden didn’t think she was weak, she also didn’t think she was too aggressive either. Her intentions were always to subdue, not to attack. And when it came to running away obviously the other would know the area better too so even if she did run, she would get lost and probably caught anyway.

What could deescalate things here? She wasn’t sure, mainly because she didn’t know what set her off in the first place. She was walking a thin line that she knew nothing about. She didn’t know this city, the people, and especially not this girl. And to top it off, she was completely alone. (Which was her fault, but didn’t change the fact that this situation was terrible. Though she had the strongest feeling that if Caitlyn was there, they both would’ve been shot at multiple times. She could be a lot more… blunt and headstrong than necessary at times.)

“I’m sorry.” Was the first thing that spilled out of her mouth. There were tons of things that she could apologize for in this specific instance, most of them relating to the privileges of her own life and the struggles of those who lived down in the undercity, but there were still several that she could think about for this specific instance.

The girl seemed to tense up, though her expression started to shift, between uncertainty, anger, and confusion. It couldn’t linger on one emotion too long, and Hayden stayed still as the other girl worked it out.

“Why… are you sorry?”

Hayden’s eyes wandered again, mainly out of habit. She had been making too much eye contact, which was something she didn’t do often, and it was starting to make her uncomfortable. She didn’t fail to notice how blue the other woman’s eyes were, or just how her emotions were felt so rawly that they practically bled through her eyes either. To her, that kind of eye contact felt invasive.

“I’m sorry that I intruded on your personal time, when you obviously came here to be alone, I’m sorry that you’re going through something that’s so frustrating to you that you can only take your anger out like this. I’m sorry that you weren’t given the same chances I was, that when someone walks up behind you that you have to pull out a gun, I’m sorry that you can’t feel safe when you look at this uniform, I…”

It was quick, much quicker than she anticipated, but the other girl was in her face within seconds. If Hayden wasn’t letting herself ramble, this might not have happened, but she couldn’t help it. There were so many differences between Piltover and the undercity, between the people who lived above, and those who lived below. She couldn’t ignore that, and she felt guilty. She hadn’t made this situation herself, but she didn’t try to fix it either. She wasn’t truly aware until today, but that wasn’t a good excuse, it was just ignorance.

She closed her eyes as she felt the gun press under her chin. It wasn’t like she could actually do anything right then. She wasn’t a fighter, not like this.

“You know…” When she heard the woman start speaking she opened her eyes and sucked in a breath with how close they were. She was never this close to anyone… she wasn’t entirely sure since she didn’t have friends, but being inches away from someone’s face couldn’t be normal. Maybe this is how people were in the undercity?

“When someone is aiming a gun at you, and you have your own, you’re supposed to pull it out to defend yourself.” Hayden let out a gasp as she felt the other woman pull her gun out of it’s holster, before aiming the second one on her temple.

Hayden tried her best to keep her breathing even as her heart rate kept rising. Training did not prepare her for this at all. She couldn’t close her eyes because of the way the other girl was staring her down. It seemed the anger in her eyes was gone, all that was left was just curiosity. She wasn’t sure if that was a good thing for her or not since she now had two guns on different places of her head. Her arms stayed limply by her side, not even attempting to save herself. She wouldn’t be fast enough, she knew it.

After a few more tense seconds, the other woman slowly backed away and back through the window. While one gun stayed aimed at her, the other she used in a waving motion, inviting her inside. Hayden took a deep breath. At least she was still alive for now.

Chapter Text

As Hayden made her way inside of the broken building (through the window no less) she couldn’t help but just look around. It wasn’t like anything she had seen before. There were places to play games in Piltover, but they were always neatly taken care of, this place was so different and

“Colorful.”

The woman narrowed her eyes while watching her look around. “What did you say?”

Hayden slowly looked back at her, confused since she didn’t realize she spoke out loud. After two seconds she understood though.

“This place…” As she started she walked towards one of the walls before brushing her hands over it. While it was covered in dust, she could still see the artwork underneath. It was messy and wild, but she liked it. The woman kept one gun trained on her at all times, but as long as she didn’t shoot at her then Hayden didn’t mind too much. “It’s really colorful, I’ve never seen anything like it before.” She missed the way that the other woman rolled her eyes before responding.

“Of course not, you’re from boring old Piltover.” She took a few steps closer too, trying to see exactly what she was looking at. It was just a random monster face she had made as a kid, nothing really special. Nothing deserving the attention that this enforcer was giving it.

She couldn’t help but think this had to be some kind of trick, or trap. Her grip on the gun tightened, but she still didn’t pull the trigger.

“Yeah, that is true… Did you make all of this?” Hayden asked, finally moving from the wall to a random broken piece of wood on the ground with a spray painted hand on it. It must’ve fallen off one of the figures from the shooting range machine when the enforcers came in.

“Obviously not. It’s an old game house.” Her sarcasm was noticed, but not spoken about. Hayden just shook her head.

“Not this place, I meant the art.” Hayden looked back at her, holding up the broken hand to show her.

“Oh.” The woman didn’t even notice that she started to lower the gun, probably a sign of her lowering her guard but Hayden didn’t speak on it. Honestly, the woman’s reaction time was probably faster than her own so it wouldn’t have made a difference anyway. “No… but I helped.”

“You’re really talented then.” At that the woman’s hand with the gun completely dropped to her side and she just stared, not knowing how to respond to something like that. Hayden in turn offered her a smile before going back to looking around.

“I know-I know that.”

“I am not being weak.”

“I already know I can’t!”

Hayden could hear her, and now she was sure that the woman wasn’t specifically talking to her. Maybe she had some form of psychosis or schizophrenia. She didn’t want to assume, but it was hard to ignore, but she also didn’t want to bring it up because it might make her upset again.

“What’s your favorite?” She asked, hoping to catch her attention without invading her space or doing something wrong. The other girl seemed to catch herself from yelling before looking back at her. Hayden resisted the urge to flinch with how weird the expression was. Her face looked blank, and while she still didn’t know anything about this woman, it didn’t feel right for her.

“What?”

“Well, it looks like there’s a few different games in here, so what’s your favorite? Is it that big one you were punching?” Hayden really hoped that she came across as friendly, but she then assumed the worst when her expression changed again to anger. Though when her head turned behind her she knew it wasn’t aimed at her at least.

“She just asked me a question!”

Hayden bit her lip as she just waited for a response. The woman then turned her head back in her own direction.

“You’re asking me right?” At that she offered a nod and the woman nodded in return. Her eyes raked over the room and Hayden could practically see her going over memories in her head, and a small part of her wished that she knew what they were. Her eyes finally stopped on the shooting range that she was standing next to.

The woman lifted her gun and aimed it at the game. “That one.”

Hayden could already feel her curiosity taking over. “How does it work?”

At that question, a small grin appeared on the strangers face and Hayden wondered if she would regret asking. It wasn’t like she could take it back as the woman then walked over and then perched herself on the platform that was right in front of her.

The woman leaned a bit close, though not as close as she was when holding two guns to her head luckily before asking, “You wanna see?” Her voice was low and extremely playful, and Hayden felt herself nodding while she just stared. Everything about this woman screamed dangerous, but honestly, she just wanted to see why she was so excited.

She then watched as the woman threw herself back behind the platform. She looked over just to see her messing with a bit of the wiring below, and it took her only about 20 seconds to pop back up with a smile and then the machine started. She hoped back over, now holding a gun that was different from both the one she had before, and the one she took from Hayden. Hayden’s eyebrows furrowed as she wondered why, but the woman just game a cheeky laugh before she then aimed at the game with a more serious expression. She took a deep breath before she started firing at the game.

Hayden felt like holding her breath while watching, this woman was extremely fast, and each of her shots were exactly on point. She couldn’t even blink because she would miss something, and the way the woman was entirely focused and looked completely into it was weirdly beautiful to her. Then again Hayden always did love when people looked or felt passionately about things, it’s one of the reasons why she would listen to Caitlyn ramble about her cases for long periods of time.

She didn’t even notice when she had started to reach out to the woman, not until she was suddenly shot in the hand with the fake gun and the woman glared at her. While there wasn’t a bullet lodged in her hand it did still hurt.

“What’re you doing?” As she asked Hayden pulled her hand back and gave it a small rub, but couldn’t help but notice that she didn’t seem as threatened as before… probably because she already knew that Hayden didn’t have a weapon anymore.

“Sorry, I guess I just got distracted again…”

After a few seconds of silence she asked, “Again?”

Hayden tilted her head before she nodded. “I told you I got lost, remember? My partner was with me and then I saw a really pretty view of the undercity,” her eyes wandered around the room even though she wasn’t really looking at it, she was reminiscing. “It was beautiful… and then my partner was gone. So I started looking around in less populated areas, and then I found you.” Her eyes trailed back to the other woman who was still staring at her.

Her mouth was opened as it looked like she was mouthing some words, but Hayden just assumed it was personal.

“You’re really lost?” She asked softly and Hayden just nodded.

“Are you… scared?” Her voice was worried and she would’ve gave a small laugh if the woman didn’t seem so vulnerable.

“Not really. I get lost a lot. When I was younger I used to get terrified when nothing around me was familiar…” she let her arm trail up and down the platform before taking a short breath and letting herself chuckle this time. “Now I just take advantage of the chance I get to explore. Whenever I’m not lost I feel like I’m on a leash. Like there’s a collar around my neck that I can’t escape. Sometimes… sometimes, I wonder if I could just stay lost forever.”

She then shook her head. “But that’s just a random thought. I wouldn’t actually go through with it. Where would I go anyway? Would it be worth worrying everyone?”

The woman made a grunting noise and then dropped the toy gun. Hayden’s eyes trailed from it to her hand, which was now offering her gun back. She took it slowly, though the furrow of her eyebrows showed her confusion.

“It’s not like you’re gonna use it, even if you have it.” She said while lifting an eyebrow and Hayden knew she was right as she put it back in her holster.

“Thank you.” The woman seemed to twitch at her gratitude before she turned around, though Hayden was able to catch a glimpse at her gritted teeth and sour expression.

“You’re too trusting.”

“I guess I am, sorry.” At that one the other woman made a noise between a grunt and a bit of a growl, or maybe she was just clearing her voice? Hayden felt a shiver go down her back after hearing it.

“How can I?”

“She needs help, obviously.”

“I know, I know! I can talk to him after.”

“No, I am not forgetting.”

“Alright!” Hayden sucked in a gasp when the woman seemed to zone back in and talk to her instead of whoever she was just hearing.

“I’ve decided to help you.”

“That’s nice of you.”

“It is, isn’t it. Don’t get used to that down here toots.”

Hayden nodded, she had a feeling this woman was insulting her, but she accepted the help either way. It’s not like she knew where she was to help herself anyway.

“Stay close and don’t get lost.” The woman spoke and they were suddenly walking out the building through the broken glass. She seemed to take a few steps ahead before she then stopped and made a split decision to grab Hayden’s hand.

She looked back at the other who was just looking at her in surprise. “If telling you not to get lost worked, you probably wouldn’t have gotten lost in the first place.” She said with her own little laugh, Hayden just nodded obtusely and followed along.

It was a weird feeling for her, having her hand be held. Her brain started racing, trying to tie it down to something that she just wasn’t grasping.

Chapter Text

——
“Don’t let go sweetie. You don’t want to get distracted do you.” Her mother was always sweet and caring. The one person she could always turn to when she needed help. The one who always found her when she was lost.

“No mama.” Hayden could always be found next to her mom, never straying too far, always connected by their hands.

——
“You can’t hold her hand everywhere, she needs to walk on her own.” Her father spoke one day when they were walking her to school. It was her 3rd week of second grade and he wanted her to walk on her own.

Her mother made a face but still let go of her hand. Hayden made a small whine of a noise but otherwise didn’t say anything. She could see the way the adults around kept giving her parents and her looks. Her dad just couldn’t take it anymore.

——
“I wanna be an enforcer!” A 10 year old Hayden was tired of people saying she couldn’t do anything or be anything.

“Really sweetie? Are you sure?” Her mother was looking at her with the same look that other parents would give her when she didn’t act right. She furrowed her own eyebrows and took a step back, feeling hurt her mom would give her that look.

“Yes! I wanna help people and be a protector! I can do it! I promise!” She felt desperate, if her parents didn’t believe in her, then who would?

Her mother looked back at her father who also had a worried expression on his face. He then slowly nodded and her mom looked back down at her. Hayden bit her lip while watching her mother kneel to her own level before reaching her hand out to rub her cheek lightly. Hayden melted into the soft touch. Her mother stopped being as affectionate a while ago, hoping it would make her less ‘clingy’ as her father put it.

“If you’re sure, then we’ll do everything in our power to help you get there.” Her mother smiled and Hayden beamed up at her.

“But once you’re there you can’t turn to us for your problems alright?” Her father added, but Hayden was already excited so she just grinned and nodded.

“Yes papa!”

——
“Just stay here, I’d rather not have to look for you because you don’t know how to listen.” One of her early coworkers, before she met Caitlyn. That’s when her leash started.

It had been established early on that if you didn’t ‘pay attention’ to her she would disappear. Apparently it was her partner's responsibility to make sure that didn’t happen. Hearing that just felt insulting. She could be responsible for herself… telling other people it’s their job to keep track of her was the quickest way to make sure no one wanted to work with her.

——
“I think it would be best if you worked guard duty at the office.” Marcus looked down at her, believing she wouldn’t get distracted there. He was wrong.

Although she was only supposed to be standing in front of the building door, she ended up leaving her post, but that was only because one of her coworkers asked for help.

(She realized after a while that her coworker did it on purpose and just got a laugh out of the fact she couldn’t do a simple job and had to get scolded again.)

——
“I’m running out of options here. Just… do something else.” That’s when she knew it didn’t matter what she did, she couldn’t even be useful at her own job.

——
As an enforcer, Hayden wanted to help people, but who was she really helping? It seemed everywhere she turned she was a burden to someone. The only people who wanted her were her parents… and at times she wondered if they resented her, because she absolutely resented herself.

Why couldn’t she just… focus? Do something right? Stop asking so many questions? Why was she so different?

——
“This is Caitlyn Kirraman, she’ll be your partner.” It didn’t take her long to realize that she was made Caitlyn’s partner to punish the other girl. Marcus didn’t seem to like her much. But after a bit she realized that being with Caitlyn wasn’t so bad. Once they got used to each other at least.

Cait didn’t yell or get mad at her, and she talked to her like a normal person. For the first time, the tightness in her chest, the metaphorical collar around her neck, seemed to loosen. Not by much, but it was bearable.

——
She knew they weren’t friends, they were just partners. It’s hard to be friends with someone who’s always obsessed with work… but Hayden liked it.

Especially with how distracted she was, the other woman’s ramblings were entertaining and while she could get intense, she still listened all the same.

Besides, if Caitlyn could put up with her wandering and short attention, then she could listen and add her input in her rants about work.

——
“Your teammate has been let go. I’ll reassign you later.” Her mouth felt like lead. What? Caitlyn was fired? And she had to be reassigned? But no one else wanted to deal with her, that was a fact. That’s probably why he said later, so he could put off dealing with her. The leash tightened again.

——
Death was something Hayden wasn’t closely familiar with, even with her job. Then again, she never really got the chance to see criminals either.

So hearing that her coworkers died in an exploding building was a shock to her. Though it wasn’t much else. She didn’t see the deaths, and she wasn’t ‘close’ to anyone besides Cait… but Caitlyn was shaken up and was serious about this.

And even if they weren’t exactly friends, they were still partners, and when Cait asked if she would help, she didn’t hesitate to agree. It didn’t matter if she was fired too, she was gonna stand by the only other person who seemed to at least tolerate her.

Chapter Text

Being dragged around reminded Hayden what it was like when she was younger. Flashes of memories of when people made an effort to hold her hand and help her out while keeping her grounded in the moment.

Instinctively she held the woman’s hand a bit tighter than necessary and did her best to keep up, even though she was walking faster than her. The woman glanced back at her for a second without stopping, before she looked ahead again.

“My name’s Jinx.”

“What?” Hayden didn’t expect to suddenly put a name to her face, honestly she thought she would just get by without learning her name.

“Your name’s Hayden, my name’s Jinx.” At that Hayden nodded, but Jinx seemed to slow down until she stopped in place. She started mumbling to herself for a few seconds, but it was more and more obvious she was getting frustrated.

“It’s something I can…”

“Stop! I can handle this.”

“No, I’ll get back to it later.”

“No, no, he wouldn’t.”

“I won’t let that happen.”

“I can’t even try!”

In the moment Hayden wondered if she should try to talk to Jinx, or maybe distract her somehow.

“I have to tell him.”

“Hey Jinx?” She asked softly, and the woman’s head snapped towards her quickly. Her eyes were so uncertain and confused that Hayden felt guilty for simply not knowing how to help her. She took a deep breath, and in a spur of the moment, she decided to open her arms to offer a hug. That used to make her feel better as a kid, maybe it would still work now?

But then again, Jinx wasn’t a kid, and Hayden was a stranger. Maybe it would be patronizing and she would just upset the other by accident. Before she could even apologize for offering, Jinx practically slammed into her open arms making her gasp and take a few steps back to center herself.

It’s a tense second before Hayden realizes that hugs only work when both people are hugging, so she slowly but surely wrapped her arms around the other woman, noticing that Jinx’s body melted a bit from what she was going to assume was stress.

She bit her own lip and tilted her head up so she wouldn’t end up accidentally crying herself. When was the last time she was hugged? Before she started training to be an enforcer maybe? That was only a few years ago. It felt nice, being held in someone’s arms made her suddenly feel wanted and cared for in a way that she forgot she could feel.

Her inner turmoil was cut short when she heard a sniff from the woman in her arms.

“Are you… feeling any better?” Hayden asked softly, and Jinx stayed still for a moment more before she nodded.

“Please, please, don’t let go.” It was a whimper, and it shot through Hayden’s heart. She had seen this woman confused, angry, hurt, but right here she just seemed desperate, but desperate for something that Hayden wasn’t sure she could give without knowing.

“I… I won’t.” And in that moment she pulled Jinx closer if it was possible. Both of their arms holding onto each other as if they were a sudden life line that didn’t exist before now, and in a way they were.

It didn’t matter that Hayden was Piltover, or that Jinx was from the undercity, they were two individuals who needed comfort and could find it in a small hug between strangers.

It took 3 more minutes of silence before Jinx slowly pulled away. She took a few steps backwards from their hug, making sure to keep her eyes on Hayden, just observing her. She didn’t really know what to make about her suddenly offering a hug, but she couldn’t complain since she had really needed it.

The enforcer’s arms were still reaching out a bit before she put them down. A sudden thought passed through her as if Hayden also didn’t want to end the hug, and her eyes looked a bit foggy too, there weren’t tears running down her face or anything, but it was obvious that she was a bit emotional over it all the same.

Jinx sucked in a breath before tilting her head up to look at the sky, and going over her options in her head.

“I need… to do something.” She bit her own lip while still looking up, but she could feel Hayden’s eyes on her. Her gaze felt so different from being looked at normally. When Hayden looked at her, Jinx felt seen, but in a way she wasn’t exactly sure about being comfortable with just yet.

“I’m so sorry. I can come find you afterwards if you’d like?” She asked and she sounded hopeful even to herself.

Hayden looked at her for a few more seconds before looking down. Of course Jinx had something better to do, she couldn’t be expected to drop everything and help her, it’s not like she even knew where to look to find Caitlyn.

“It’s alright. I think I’ll manage.”

Jinx’s throat closed up and she let out a slightly choked noise at the feeling. She didn’t want to cry, not over this, not over someone she didn’t know, not over some enforcer who she might never see again.

But why? She had a chance to be needed and she blew it. She couldn’t help it as tears started streaking down her cheeks, and she heard a gasp.

“Jinx? Are you okay?”

She couldn’t answer the question, it wasn’t something she could do right then. So, she turned around and ran, she made sure to quickly use her surroundings to get away from Hayden in a way she was sure the other couldn’t follow unless she knew the land, which she didn’t.

The only person she could go to right now was Silco. Her brain was a mesh of rambled thoughts, to raging and rampant emotions. Today was such a mess for her. First her failed hextech weapon, then she lost to Vi, and then she couldn’t even help Hayden.

‘What are you even good for?’ She heard him, but she didn’t even have a response so she just stopped where she was to let out a shrill cry before breaking down. She was weak.

Chapter Text

Hayden gasped when she saw tears running down the blue-haired girl's face.

“Jinx? Are you okay?” She asked while reaching out, maybe hoping to pull her into another hug or anything just to offer some kind of comfort to the crying girl. Sadly before she could Jinx turned around and quickly ran away.

Almost instinctively, Hayden went to chase after her but the other girl suddenly made use of the crates and walls around them to jump onto some railings and onto the roofs before she could catch up, and before she knew it she had lost her. She stood in place just gaping at the empty space in front of her.

Honestly, Jinx was her only real chance at figuring out how to stay out of sight as an enforcer or even having any clue about finding Caitlyn. Of course she didn’t want to burden the other girl, but realistically she really should’ve taken her offer for her to come back after she finished her business. Hayden raised both hands to her hair and pulled it in frustration.

At that moment everything was finally hitting her and she could tell because she could suddenly feel the tears. First, she let herself get separated from her partner, then she almost died, then she found out there were enforcers working with Silco, then she had an emotional moment with the same person who tried to kill her, and then she accidentally chased off that same person leaving her all alone again. Adding to all that she felt guilty about making her cry too.
It hurt, it really hurt being alone like this. She wasn’t used to reflecting on how she felt often, but she couldn’t deny that today was extremely overwhelming for her. It didn’t help that there was still a possibility for her to get mugged or beat up because of her uniform.

She stood like that for a while before she released her hair and wiped her eyes roughly. Crying wasn’t gonna help her. She decided her best course of action would be what she did the first time when she was lost, if she could get to a higher vantage point then she could view everything below and figure out the best places to hide. And at least she still had her gun if push came to shove and something bad happened.

She wasn’t as quick as either Jinx or Caitlyn, but she still received training, she just preferred to use it as a completely last resort type of thing.

[-]

Silco sighed as he turned around in his chair after Marcus finally left the room, “Ah, he's faltering.”

He placed his face in his hands before he continued, “You need to weaponize the Hextech soon. Once we've cracked their prize, topside will have no power over us.”

Jinx, who was sitting above him on the building's support beams had her eyes closed as she remembered what happed earlier before she had even encountered Hayden. “I can't do it. Just…” She raised her hand before waving it away dismissively, “ give it to the doctor.”

Silco made sure to look up at her for her to understand him. “You're the only one I can trust with this, Jinx.”

The teen only grimaced and squinted her eyes closed, “I keep... seeing them.” There were slight tears in her eyes as she thought back again, “That day.”

He just stood up before fully turning around and looking at her. “Fear haunts us all, child.”

[-]

Silco and Jinx were both standing in some of the more shallow parts of Stillwater. He stood in front of her before starting his speech, “I almost drowned in these waters.”

The beginning already brought up familiar ramblings she had heard so many times before so she twisted herself a few times to show her disdain for it again, “You told me a million times.”

“Vander wasn't the man you thought he was.”

“Right, he was like a brother to you, and he turned his back and blah, blah, blah.” She changed her voice to mock him and prove her point that she knew the story and didn’t see why she needed to hear it again.” Did I miss anything?”

Silco gave a small snicker of amusement at how impatient she was. ”I've got a new one for you.” He carefully let his hand run through the water before raising it and letting the liquid slip through his fingers before making a fist around it, “That day, I let a weak man die.”

Jinx stood still as she watched her father figure then dive below the surface of the water for a few seconds before he reemerged and wiped the water from his face a few times.

“And another was reborn.” He made sure to look at her as he spoke, “Betrayal, that pain that feels like it'll eat you from the inside out, can either break you or forge you into something greater. You need to let Powder die.” She stared up at him and it was obvious that she was at least partially nervous about where this could be going, but she trusted him.

“So the fear of pain will no longer control you.” He offered her his hand to her and Jinx slowly approached him before taking his hand just as there was a rumble of thunder in the distance.

“You're strong now. Just like you were always meant to be. Jinx is perfect.” He then slowly took her into his arms and brought her close before lowering her into the water while she made sure to focus on him until she was completely submerged.

Chapter Text

Hayden bit her lip as she looked around herself. It was dark.

She was more than aware that it had been hours since she split from Caitlyn and Vi, and of course, she also knew how time worked, but she really had hoped to find them again by now. It was even more unfortunate for her because Zaun was lit up by bright colors and signs, but she couldn’t risk staying in that light. She had to slink around dark alleyways and stay hidden. It was scary, and while she knew it would be, she never actually felt afraid like this before coming down here.

She never truly had a reason to feel scared, while Piltover might’ve had a few criminals every now and then, they never seemed to be anything serious. Zaun was another story entirely. It made her wonder if she really did have what it took to be an enforcer. What’s worse is that she’s gotten into several confrontations at this point, and each one making her fear more and more that she might need to use her gun. Each of these confrontations were one-on-one and she was able to catch the other person off guard and only needed to knock them out before quickly relocating herself to a different alley.

Even after all of that, she kept pushing herself. If she didn’t she worried about shutting down. She had been constantly on the move and highly stressed, she was one rest stop away from passing out instantly and leaving herself vulnerable to everything around her.

At this point, she was just traveling blind and she wasn’t sure how much of a risk it would be to try and take shelter somewhere. Even if it was run down and broken, maybe she could find a usable closet to hide in for sleep or something.

With that in mind she kept going, trying her hardest to remember the way to where she saw fewer people and more run-down buildings. She hadn’t looked down from above for a while, but it was too dark so she didn’t feel very confident trying to climb any buildings near her, so she would have to try her best to remember whatever she could.

She wandered through a few more alleys before she heard a drop from above. She slowed down but made sure not to stop or to look up. There was the possibility that someone was minding their business and going about their day, but if they were following her then she shouldn’t act suspicious.

She was pretty deep and by this point, she had accepted the fact that she no longer knew where she was, and she was aware of that for a while now. She had just hoped that if she kept going she would eventually find something familiar or maybe run into Caitlyn and Vi. She had no such luck though.

The noise from above quieted down so Hayden believed that her first assumption was right. Whatever that was had nothing to do with her. With that cleared in her mind she went back to her regular pace, but she only made it a few steps before there were a few consecutive thumps behind her, each coming from above and slowly getting closer to the ground before they landed behind her.

She felt as though she had no choice but to stop in place, but she quickly placed her hand on top of her gun handle, unsure if this would really be the time she would need it.

That seemed to draw a chuckle from the person behind her, “We both know you aren’t gonna use that thing now are you?”

The familiar voice had her turning around as fast as she could, and she was greeted by Jinx standing there with her hands both in the air along with a lifted eyebrow. “Don’t shoot.” She spoke mockingly but Hayden didn’t care. Her hands quickly pulled away from the weapon and she took a few steps toward the other girl.

“What, aren’t you gonna say anything? Are you annoyed that I came for you after you said you didn’t want me to?”

Hayden quickly shook her head and held up her own hands hoping to fix the misunderstanding. “No, no, Jinx I said that because I just, I didn’t want to burden you.” She looked down at her feet, unable to stand the way Jinx was just watching her.

The blue-haired girl made a small noise that she couldn’t tell was either in agreement or in shock. It didn’t matter at the moment though.

“I was wrong though,” She started and while she wasn’t looking Jinx started to look her over and took in how much Hayden seemed to be fidgeting in place as she spoke.

“It’s been getting later and later, and I’m no closer to finding Caitlyn, and I, I…” She stopped as she took in a shaky breath, wondering if she was actually gonna share all this was the other. She and Jinx don’t actually know much about each other, and as far as she knew, Jinx worked for Silco. But, Jinx was the only person she had at the moment so she didn’t care.

While Hayden stuttered Jinx just stared at her waiting for her to continue.

“I’ve never been lost for this long, and in such an unfamiliar place, I was so scared, Jinx.”

Jinx’s eyes widened, no one ever spoke like that down there. It was how weak people spoke, it was how Powder spoke in the past. Suddenly she couldn’t help but feel as if Hayden was like she was before Silco, desperate and needing someone, anyone. She took a deep breath before she opened her arms the exact same way Hayden did earlier for her.

It took the young enforcer longer than Jinx did before, she approached her open arms slowly before allowing herself to hug the other. Jinx carefully wrapped her arms around her and she could actually feel her this time. During their first hug, Jinx was focused on getting any kind of comfort she could, but now she could feel how small Hayden really was. While they seemed to be the same height, Hayden didn’t seem to have much muscle on her. While Jinx could come across as small and weak for her size, she was more than capable of fighting and she was proud of the fact she did have a fair bit of muscle herself. But Hayden didn’t. How could she even protect herself? Her hold tightened around the other and she looked back at the other only to notice the way her breathing was slowing down suddenly.

“Hayden?” She called her quickly and the other gasped before quickly making eye contact with her. Jinx could see on her face how tired she was and she wondered how she made it this long. “Come with me.”

The other girl made no move to resist as she followed the blue-haired zaunite.

[-]

Hayden barely paid attention as Jinx lead her all throughout the undercity, even when they finally got out of the alleyways and back to the main streets with all the flashing lights. She was just way too tired to do so.

Every now and again Jinx would look back at her and chuckle, “We’re close to my lair, you can sleep there.” Hayden simply nodded as they continued on until they seemed to have reached their destination.

“I know you’re tired, but do ya think you can climb a bit?” As Jinx asked she looked up at the unfamiliar buildings, and then back to Jinx’s hand she was offering, and after a few seconds she nodded before accepting the help.

Most of their entry was a blur, and as soon as they were inside Jinx barely had time to lay a blanket down before the young enforcer fell asleep on the floor.

“Awe, she didn’t even wait a bit to talk with me…” She only watched her for a minute before turning, her cheeks slightly pink but she easily ignored it. It wasn’t like people went around leaving themselves vulnerable around her, it was weird. “Well, I’ve got work to do anyway.” With that, she walked over and picked up the hextech and her other tools from where she left them before and moved them so she could work at her desk.

[-]

“You… you have the hex gem…” Hayden ended up waking up in the morning to constant noise, so out of curiosity she wanted to see what Jinx was doing. She wasn’t sure of how she was supposed to feel as she thought over a million implications of what this now meant about the blue-haired girl, none of them good.

“Is that what this thing is called? Hmm… it’s a stupid name.” She chuckled before lifting up said gem to look at it before then turning to Hayden.

As Jinx spoke the other girl’s eyes never left the gem so Jinx closed her hand and gave her a weird look. Hayden shook her head before biting her lip.

“Jinx were you the one who…”

“Who what?” Jinx backed away and Hayden could practically see all the doubt running through her mind. She stayed quiet as Jinx started talking to herself again, hoping that she wouldn’t somehow become the girl's antagonist.

“She’s not gonna do anything like that.”
“She’s harmless, she, she needs me.”
“She can’t even get around the city!” With that last comment she added a laugh.

Before she even thought about it Hayden folded her arms and gave Jinx an indignant look, “I would’ve figured it out eventually, it was just getting a bit late.” As she spoke Jinx’s eyes snapped back to her. Hayden stiffened and the two ended up just staring for a minute until Jinx broke out into a grin.

“Yeah right. And even if you did figure out how to get around the undercity, you’d still have to find your partner.” She walked closer again and then leaned into her face while Hayden’s eyes widened and she pulled back again. “What’s a small thing like you to do?”

“Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it.” In her head, it sounded like she heard Jinx saying she would take care of her but that was obviously wrong. Hayden couldn’t help the way her face heated up. Jinx was extremely close and it didn’t help that she was also pretty. She tried to avoid eye contact, but Jinx wasn’t having it as she then placed a hand under her chin and slowly turned them to face each other.

“You know I’ve never seen someone who looks like you…” She started and Hayden wondered what she meant. She’s seen enforcers before so she sees the uniform, and her features aren’t uncommon in any specific way, so how?

“You look at everything in such a strange way. As if you never expect what you see. As if you never trust your own eyes. As if you’re always seconds away from reaching out to grab what’s right in front of you.” She chuckled and let go of her chin, but to her luck, Hayden didn’t turn away and kept staring.

“You’ve probably gotten in trouble for it before… but with me, I won’t let that happen.” She backed away slowly before turning around to pay attention to something else, not missing the way Hayden had leaned forward slightly when she started to pull away. Her smile was wide as she then went back to working on the gem.

“As long as you stay here, you can touch whatever you want babe.” She didn’t turn back around as she spoke, instead, she just picked up her goggles she had sitting on her table and continued on.

She worked for a bit longer before she got bored of doing so. Her gaze wandered from her desk to around the room, looking for a specific someone. She quickly found her looking into a box and pulling out a few of her old inventions and bombs. They weren’t failures, but she didn’t have a use for them since she had improved upon them. She noticed the strange look that was Hayden’s face but she couldn’t understand why.

Maybe she wondered why they were hidden away? Jinx rolled her chair over and as she approached the young enforcer she turned in her direction and put down the specific bomb she was looking at.

“What are you thinking about over here?” She asked while rocking back and forth.

“Ah, it’s just that uh, these designs and everything all seems so familiar…” She trailed off and Jinx furrowed her eyebrows before shaking her head.

“Sorry babe, but I think I would remember meeting someone like you before.” She chuckled before looking back in the box and then back to Hayden.

“If there’s anything in there you wanna keep you can have it.” Hayden quickly shook her head. She had absolutely no use for them, and she wouldn’t want to carry around things that were so… incriminating.

“No no, I couldn’t, besides I’m terrible with weapons. It took me forever to even learn how to use a regular gun.”

“I could teach you.” Hayden’s breath hitched for a second at how nonchalant the other sounded while making that suggestion.

“Jinx there’s no need for you too…” She stopped when she noticed the curious face that Jinx was making, she actually looked like she was being serious and suddenly Hayden felt her face heating up.

“I’m actually pretty hard to teach.. ah, as I’ve been told I mean. So don’t worry about it.” Hayden mumbled before looking back down hoping it wasn’t obvious that she was embarrassed though she wasn’t completely sure why.

Jinx on the other hand huffed before rolling back over to her desk. She looked at the gem a few seconds before glancing back at Hayden who was just staring at the empty space around them where the large fan was below.

That’s when an idea came to mind and she stood up.

“Hayden!” Her sudden shout made the other girl jump in place making her laugh.

“You’re so jumpy, but anyway, how would you feel about going out?” The other girl looked around them for a few seconds then shrugged.

“Great! I know just where we should go!”

Chapter Text

“Hey Jinx, before we go anywhere can I please get a change of clothes. I don’t think it’s good for me to walk around in my uniform all day,” She noticed the way Jinx was just staring at her so she then quietly added, “Also I feel a bit stiff after sleeping in my uniform too.”

Jinx just stared as the other girl looked over her clothes while shifting her shoulders and twisting a bit to prove her point, though all it did was make her chuckle. “Well maybe, don’t sleep on the floor.”

Hayden gave her a confused look while looking around the room, “I don’t see many options here.”

“True.” Jinx giggled before walking towards her and standing in her face. Once again like the night before, Hayden shifted her eyes so she wasn’t looking directly at Jinx, no matter which way the blue-haired girl moved so she then scoffed before pulling away.

“Whatever, it doesn’t matter though, no one would bother you when you’re with me.”

“Jinx please, I just, don’t feel safe.” She couldn’t help but think back to Vi’s original feelings towards her and worry. While Vi did seem a bit violent, she also came across as rational enough, but she doubted everyone in the undercity was like her. That also reminded her of the fact that the only reason Jinx seemed okay with her was that she assumed that she worked for Silco. Technically she didn’t say that so she didn’t lie, but she also hasn’t told Jinx the truth either. It made her feel a bit guilty.

Jinx grumbled to herself for a few moments with Hayden just waiting until she suddenly groaned and then went right back into her face. “Don’t you trust me!?”

Hayden was easily caught off guard and ended up staring at her with wide eyes before she was able to look away quickly. It immediately reminded her that Jinx is a very unstable person and that while she feels safe with her she probably shouldn’t. She just gave a small nod to her question since she wasn’t sure what else she could say or do.

Jinx didn’t seem happy with her nod as her face turned to a scowl and her eyes got that far away look that Hayden established with when she heard noises.

“She wouldn’t lie to me, she wouldn’t.”

“Shut up!”

“That doesn’t matter!” Jinx seemed to get more aggressive as she spoke, and then her arms quickly rose, and instinctively Hayden froze in place. It turned out that Jinx was just reaching up to grip her hair, but she also seemed to freeze with wide eyes while just staring at her. It was quiet for a few seconds.

“You tensed up,” Jinx spoke in a much softer tone, but she sounded more hurt than anything else. “And you won’t look at me anymore.”

“I-I’m sorry, staring for too long just makes me uncomfortable, it’s not you specifically or anything.” Hearing Jinx sounding like that made her feel bad.

“You don’t actually trust me do you?” Her voice didn’t change.

“Jinx, please…”

She let out a sad chuckle as she finally backed away again, but Hayden grabbed her hand and pulled her back.

“Stop! Just, stop please…” She could see how tense the blue-haired girl was while she was holding her hand, but she didn’t try to pull away. They stayed like that for a few seconds until she heard a sniffle which made the guilt hit her even harder.

“This is too much for me okay? I don’t know where I am, I’m confused, and nervous, and I want to trust you, I really do, but everything I see tells me I shouldn’t.” The girl in front of her seemed to deflate in on herself but she continued, “And you’ve been nice to me, but that’s also hard for me to understand. No one treats me like this okay? No one genuinely talks to me or asks for my opinions or asks if I trust them.” She finally let go of her hand and pulled it close to herself while closing her eyes. Her body felt like it was tensing up the more she spoke like this, is this what opening up felt like? She didn’t like it much.

“I have to do what I’m told and if I mess up then it’s already expected, and if I do it right it’s not a big deal. Heck, even the partner I’m looking for right now mainly tells me not to get lost, and when I do she just waits for me to come back. I bet you she isn’t even looking for me. But you… You did Jinx. Even after I said it wasn’t necessary, you found me and you’re trying to help me, and I don’t know okay? You’re a criminal, I know that, but you’re like… my own hero.” Her eyes went wide and her face flushed as she processed her own words, “Ahh wait, no, that was-”

Jinx grabbed her face suddenly and guided them to face each other, and though Hayden didn’t expect it she could still tell Jinx wanted them to look at each other. Once they made eye contact, Jinx let out a small breath.

“Can you… say that again?” She asked softly as if she actually wasn’t sure what she heard, but while staring into her eyes Hayden could tell. Jinx looked so confused and a small part of her looked afraid. She took her own deep breath before repeating herself as requested.

“You’re like my own hero..”

“Again.”

“You’re like my own hero.” The blue-haired girl’s hands slipped from her face and Hayden watched as she slowly closed her eyes and whispered much quieter than the other times.

“Again please.”

“You’re like my own hero Jinx.”

Adding her name to it seemed to be too much as she stopped breathing before she just dropped down onto the floor.

“Jinx!”

She was able to fall into a sitting position, but when she looked back up at Hayden, she had small tears running down her face, her eyebrows were furrowed, and she still looked confused.

Hayden didn’t hesitate to drop onto her knees and level with her so she could wipe away her tears. As she was doing that Jinx grabbed one of her wrists, “How? How could I even… I’m not… I’m…” It was quiet and then her head turned toward the side where the couch was, before she looked back at the girl in front of her, “I’m a Jinx.”

Her eyes widened as she realized what that implied. Does that mean she named herself Jinx after someone called her that? And the voices she hears reinforced it as if reminding her? Hayden wasn’t by any means a psychology professional or anything, but she knew that was bad.

“Jin- no, listen. You aren’t a Jinx. I don’t know much about you okay? But I know that much. And from how I see it, you’re my hero because you did what no one has ever done for me. You came back.” She finished wiping her tears and then helped her stand back up.

“Normally I’m the one who has to go back to people and most times I’m looked down on or laughed at for leaving in the first place, but you came to me just because you wanted to. You haven’t laughed at me for getting lost… Well, you did hurt my pride a bit, but you weren’t wrong so…Uh, wait…” She stopped and took a few seconds to remember her place before she interrupted herself.

“Yeah, you haven’t laughed at me for getting lost and you brought me here, you talk to me like we’re the same or something and I never feel like you’re looking down on me. I wouldn’t ever have thought I could meet someone like you.”

Jinx sniffled, “The people you follow sound terrible.”

She allowed herself to think back on a few of them and she swallowed a bit thickly, “Yeah, they are.”

Jinx grabbed her hand and pulled her to her desk. “I have a few spare clothes here that are for if I mess up whatever I’m wearing when I work.” She then pulled out a pair of long gray pants and a blue crop top with a white skull on it.

“I don’t normally wear this stuff but…”

“Um, I don’t think I want to wear a shirt like that.” Hayden folded her arms and practically glared at the shirt.

Jinx looked at it confused, “What’s wrong with it? I’m sure it’ll fit, don’t worry.”

“That’s not the problem…” She just continued glaring at it and it took Jinx a second before she made an ‘oh’ face.

“I don’t have any tops that aren’t like this but…” She then went to some other part of the room while Hayden didn’t move.

“This one is a bit longer than the others, and I think you’re a bit shorter than me so it should be longer on you too.”

She held up an old shirt that was a bluish-gray and it seemed to be hand cut along the middle.

“I used to wear this a lot back when I still thought I was the same person as before… But when I finally realized that I had changed and I wasn’t the same, I allowed myself to change my look too.” Hayden couldn’t help but notice that Jinx seemed a bit sentimental as she spoke and handed the shirt to her. It wasn’t a full shirt like she had hoped, but it was longer than her other options so she just nodded and accepted it. Jinx did turn around to give her some privacy.

“Okay.” Once she was done Jinx turned back around and smiled.

“There, and it’s only a little bit of tummy.” Although she knew Jinx was just being a bit playful, the comment still made her flush, but she then shook her head. Jinx had made a genuine effort with what she had available, and she was the one who complained about her uniform in the first place, so she should be grateful.

“Thank you.”

“That’s nothing sweetheart! Anyway, now that you’re dressed, we can finally go. I can’t believe how distracted we got.” It was a bit strange to see how easily Jinx’s mood could shift, but it was also interesting to her. She surely kept people on their toes.

“Yeah, let’s go…” The other girl didn’t pay any mind to how Hayden trailed off while wondering where someone like Jinx would even take her in the undercity. It didn’t matter much overall since right after that, Jinx grabbed her hand and quickly led them out, wherever they were going would just be a mystery to her until they got there.

Chapter Text

Jinx moved a lot faster than she did the night before as she dragged the young enforcer around. They seemed to get to a place called “The Last Drop,” when Jinx gave her a grin, and Hayden would’ve been lying if she said she wasn’t concerned.

It was fast, much faster than she could process, but Jinx dragged her inside of the building and then across the room to the bar and sat down. Hayden was a bit too disoriented to sit down as fast as the other so she just stood behind her for a few seconds.

“Chuck!” The other guy was just as surprised as Hayden if his gasp was anything to go by. Then to Hayden’s surprise, she pulled out the hex gem and started rolling it around on the table. She then glanced back at her and the seat next to her. Hayden blinked before she sat down slowly and turned back to the ‘Chuck’ guy who was looking between them nervously.

“Thieram, uh, my name’s Thieram.”

“Nice try Chuck.” She then gestured for her usual drink but two instead of one, which made him glance at Hayden who was just watching him. He didn’t have the nerve to ask who she was so instead he just focused on making the drinks.

As he poured Jinx started with her questions, “What’s all the hubbub?”

Hayden wondered what she was talking about, but she couldn’t help but think about the several times Jinx would stop to look around at certain places or groups of people on their way here. Hayden didn’t know where they were going so she didn’t question anything, but thinking back, it was a bit curious.

“Uh. Boss wants us to grab someone up.” He answered nervously and Hayden’s eyes narrowed at him while Jinx stayed casual and continued playing with the gem.

“Someone? Anyone? Who are you grabbing?” As she asked he set the first drink in front of her before working on the next one.

“Some girls. I mean, I mean not... I'm not grabbing girls. Oh, other than the... those ones... I guess.” He worked quick and soon there was another in front of Hayden, though she looked at it a bit confused. Was it alcoholic? Jinx didn’t seem the type, but she couldn’t be sure.

“Focus. Who are they? Why wasn't I invited to the party?” As she asked she played with the gem and Hayden could see her drop it in her drink. She couldn’t help but be reminded of Caitlyn and Jayce both rambling about how important and significant the gem was, and yet to see Jinx just playing with it like a toy, it was different for her. It wasn’t like she had a significant attachment to it, honestly, she was more interested in seeing what else her companion would do with it.

“Uh, I don't know. They... they got in a fight with Sevika. They did a number on her.” At the mention of a fight with ‘Sevika,’ Jinx did look intrigued and Hayden watched her a bit more than him. She then lifted the gem from her drink with her straw before dropping it in again.

“Oh really? Which number?” It was obvious that she was just messing with him, and while a part of her thought it was rude, she also couldn’t help but enjoy it. She smiled before finally taking a sip of her drink, which turned out to be some kind of juice to her luck.

She missed the way Jinx grinned when she saw her smile.

“It's like a saying... “ Hayden couldn’t help but give a small giggle though she tried to hide it with a light cough, though she knew it did nothing.

He wasn’t ready when Jinx suddenly pulled him into a hug, but Hayden didn’t miss the way she quickly strapped something to his back, “You're doing great, Chuck. Here, for your troubles.”

She then started to walk away but then grabbed her drink with one hand and Hayden’s hand with the other to pull her along. Hayden watched with wide eyes as she saw the bomb, but before she could question the other girl it went off, and luckily (for her sanity at least) it was only a paint bomb. She let out a sigh before she casually let herself be dragged upstairs.

“Hey sweetheart, I need to find out some information, do you mind?” Jinx asked her once they reached the top, and Hayden shook her head no, it wasn’t like she knew what they were doing anyway. Jinx grinned before she proceeded to pull her into a dark and spacious-looking office. The first thing she noticed though, was all of the familiar drawings around and on almost everything.

“Great! Now I need you to copy me alright?” She asked and then she pulled her to a wall where there was a low hanging support beam and then she watched as Jinx pulled herself up with ease and then maneuvered her way up until she was high up and above the desk.

Hayden’s eyes widened. She wasn’t sure if she could, but she definitely wanted to try. She moved much slower than Jinx, but she did copy most of her moves correctly. Though when she finally reached the top where Jinx was the other girl just grinned and patted the spot next to her. Hayden was careful as she scooted over and once she was settled she couldn’t help but admire all the doodles and art around her.

“I need you to stay up here and be as quiet as possible. Can you do that?” When she asked Hayden automatically looked down at the desk below them. It wasn’t that she was afraid, but she wasn’t the best at this type of thing.

“Why?”

“Well, I need answers to my questions, and Silco isn’t exactly here at the moment, so I’ll just wait. Someone will come here eventually.” She did have a point.

“I’m not the best at being still, you know.”

Jinx tilted her head and grinned, “I suspected as much anyway, it’s fine for now, but I’m assuming you’ll know when you should.” After that Hayden watched as Jinx jumped down with a conflicted face. She didn’t understand but she would trust her when she said she would know, and hopefully, if she didn’t then Jinx wouldn’t blame her.

“Oh!” She watched as Jinx started rummaging through a few drawers in the desk before she pulled out two metal gas masks. Hayden furrowed her eyebrow but had no time to ask before the blue-haired girl threw one up at her. Her reflexes kicked in as soon as it came flying towards her face so she could catch it but she then looked back at Jinx with wide eyes.

The other girl was looking up at her with a grin, “Look at that, I guess there is something you can do after all.” It was a joke, Hayden could tell it was a joke, but that didn’t stop her mouth from dropping in shock. While she’s dealt with insults before it gave an entirely different feel coming from Jinx, and it wasn’t even a bad one, she didn’t know how to describe it.

“That’s a new look, it suits you.”

Hayden immediately closed her mouth and her eyes so she didn’t have to see whatever expression the teasing girl was making. Her body heated up and she wrapped her arms around herself as she thought. Is this what friends are really like? Because this was embarrassing! And yet… She peeked down at the other who was still smiling up at her with her feet now resting on the desk like she owned the entire office.

And yet she couldn’t help but hope she could enjoy this feeling more. Being close enough to someone that they wanted to tease her? Being able to share vulnerable parts of herself? Getting to see so many new things without being scolded for her curiosity? Things she had never done before she could do with Jinx.

A part of her, not even that far down, hoped that they could stay together. Even if Jinx worked for Silco, it wasn’t like she had seen her do anything really bad right? Maybe she was just a low priority thug… though she really didn’t give off that kind of feeling, she seemed like someone close to him. Was it wrong to feel this way? To deny the facts staring her in the face? She saw the gadgets in her hangout, she saw all of Jinx’s scribbles and art everywhere. They’re even all over the bars she was sitting on and the gas mask in her hand. But she didn’t want to acknowledge it, she didn’t want to think about what they implied. Because if she did, would she be able to stay with Jinx? How would she face Caitlyn? Or even go back to work?

Everything in her mind was getting so muddled and it was all because of a random girl she met in the undercity.

Chapter Text

It was a while before Hayden had any idea about what Jinx meant when she said she would know. She found herself much more comfortable on the beam and was simply lying back on it while fiddling with the gas mask to see if she could figure out how it worked. She didn’t know much about mechanics but it still was interesting enough to keep her attention. She didn’t stop until she heard heavy footsteps approaching the office door making her suddenly look down at Jinx, but her chair was facing the opposite direction from the door and she wasn’t looking up at her. She had to assume this is when Jinx wanted her to be quiet and still.

She bit her lip before sitting up just as the door opened and in stomped a huge lady with a mechanic arm. There was pink stuff dripping from it and Hayden was reminded of something she heard about in passing from some of the other enforcers who went down into the undercity more often. Shimmer. It was a drug that was often passed around down there that enhanced a person’s physical abilities. That was as much as she could find out without being suspicious.

“We lost her.”

Suddenly Jinx turned around in the chair holding some kind of chart that Hayden had previously seen laying on the desk. The other woman stared at her in surprise before going to step forward, only to trip over one of the wires that she had watched Jinx set up a bit earlier. Immediately after that gas started filling the room and Jinx put on her gas mask, Hayden took that as her sign to do the same. The huge lady tried to shuffle forward and take the mask from Jinx, but the blue-haired girl just sat there and gave her a small finger wave in amusement as she passed out.

Once she was out cold Jinx looked up at Hayden and gave her a wink before looking back at the stranger. Against her will, she felt herself blushing again, but she wondered if she was supposed to come down at this point. She started to move back when she heard a thud and saw that Jinx had started to raise the lady up, only to suddenly drop her when she looked back up and saw Hayden had started to move. She shook her head and the young enforcer understood she had to stay put a while longer.

She ended up watching as Jinx carried the lady to the chair, tied her up, and spun her around until she slowly regained consciousness, which luckily didn’t take long after the gas dispersed. Though Jinx was a bit impatient and did slap her, Hayden was going to pretend that she didn’t.

The woman glared up at Jinx who was casually sitting on the desk with a mocking smile before she took a deep breath.

“I feel like you and I got off on the wrong arm.” She pulled the chair the woman was tied to closer with her feet and ran her fingers down her cheek. The other woman was obviously disgusted as she turned her head since it was the only way she could resist. Jinx pulled the knife that was sticking out from her mechanic arm before trailing it across her chest.

“Maybe we should try the other.”

The woman gave a small chuckle, “No need. It's your sister.” As she spoke Jinx pulled the knife back in a threatening position before she froze. Hayden couldn’t see what expression the other girl was making but she assumed she wasn’t happy. She felt her chest constrict with worry while watching since she was trying her best not to move or get noticed. “She's back. She's looking for you.” While the woman started off like that she smirked as she continued, “It's not what you think. She's with some girl enforcer. Guess she replaced you.”

Hayden’s brain froze just as Jinx gave a sharp breath then quickly stabbed the chair next to the woman’s head who didn’t even flinch. “You’re lying!”

The woman laughed again, “Why bother? Her back in town, it's only a matter of time before you implode and Silco finally gets the message that you're about as good for our cause as you were for your family.” Slowly Jinx pushed the chair away before letting out a small hiss and Hayden wondered if she was going in her own head again. She didn’t like it, what this woman was trying to do, what she was implying, and she really didn’t like how her own heart was racing as her brain started connecting dots she really really really didn’t want to connect.

“Jinx.” The woman added it easily, using her name as an insult, further cementing it in Hayden’s mind that it isn’t her actual name but something she adopted after being called it. Her hands gripped at her chest hoping to stop the feelings that she didn’t know how to control or what to do about. When she heard Jinx give a small sob she felt tears prick her own eyes before letting out a quick gasp when the other girl sneezed suddenly and threw the chair back which made the woman grunt.

This time it was Jinx who gave a sarcastic laugh, “Ten outta ten, toots! I think I know just how to deliver that message.” She got close to her before spinning her chair around while the woman could do nothing but sneer at her until she got dizzy. When Jinx suddenly stopped the chair, the woman couldn’t do anything while Jinx pulled out her gun and snapped it on the side of her head making Hayden let out a squeak at the sound.

The amused smile she kept on her face while talking to the woman fell as she then made a fist and banged it on the table suddenly. Hayden jumped before she started making her way down, not caring if Jinx wanted her to or not.

Once she was back on the ground Jinx was just staring at the floor with a hurt expression.

“Jinx?” She didn’t want to keep calling her that, but it wasn’t like she had another name to call her by. When Jinx heard her name though, she looked back up and recognition flashed across her face.

“Oh! Babe, yeah, I…” She stopped before rushing to her and she grabbed her face in her hands. “Why were you crying?”

Hayden froze and averted her eyes, but Jinx didn’t budge. “I just… didn’t like the way she was speaking to you…” It was true, she hated it, and the thought of someone making Jinx cry like that really hurt, but there was also the fact that she realized that she was going to be partially responsible for bringing up any family trauma Jinx would experience.

It was only too obvious to her who Jinx’s sister traveling around with some ‘girl enforcer’ was, and she felt guilty. That also explained why Vi looked so invested in Caitlyn’s book full of Jinx’s doodles on crime scenes. She couldn’t deny the fact that Jinx stole the hex gem and killed the enforcers on shift during progress day. Jinx was the one she and Caitlyn came down here to find in the first place. Knowing all of this just made her feel even more guilty as more tears started falling while Jinx held her face so carefully.

“No, no, no, don’t cry! Sevika’s terrible all the time, don’t think about what she said. She’s just a liar anyway.” She started to wipe her tears away with her thumbs, but sadly Jinx’s words didn’t help because she knew to an extent that the woman wasn’t lying, and after spending time with Jinx, she could already see the millions of misconceptions that would develop if they met under the wrong circumstances.

She wasn’t even sure how to start explaining things to Jinx so she just slowly pulled away to wipe the rest of her tears and gave her a shaky smile. Jinx stared at her face for a few seconds longer before turning back to the unconscious woman with a glare. “Don’t worry sweetheart, I still have to leave a message anyway, and I’ll get a little revenge for both of us while I’m at it. You can just wait by the door.”

Hayden didn’t hesitate and while Jinx didn’t specifically say to go outside, she decided that she didn’t need to see the blue-haired girl’s way of getting revenge. She stood by the door for a few seconds before she then sat on the top step to wait. She didn’t want to think anymore, thinking just made her hurt more and only lead to more questions she didn’t want to have to answer. She closed her eyes to allow herself to fall asleep, at least that way her brain wouldn’t be as annoying.

[-]

Hayden was shaken awake suddenly and looked up only to see a forlorn-looking Jinx. Immediately she perked up and asked what was wrong but the other girl only shook her head and offered a hand to help her stand.

“I know that I left you last time when I had something to do… I’m sorry.” Hayden blinked as she wondered where the sudden apology came from but she nodded.

“I shouldn’t have left you like that… but can you come with me this time? I really need to… I need to check something…” She was shaking, Jinx’s body had started trembling as she asked and Hayden’s eyes widened as she quickly threw her arms around her, not even stopping to think like she did the first time she gave her a hug. Jinx slowly wrapped her arms around her as well and let out a small whimper. Maybe everything that Sevika woman said was finally hitting her now that she dealt with her revenge. If this did have to do with Jinx finding Vi, then not only would it benefit her, but she really didn’t want to think about what could happen if she didn’t go and Caitlyn acted like her usual headstrong (blunt) and justice driven self.

“I’ll go with you, don’t worry.” And besides, she really didn’t want to leave the other girl yet anyway, she wanted to stay with her as long as possible.

Chapter Text

Hayden followed Jinx as she went back to her hang out only for her to grab a metal rod and then leave right after. She thought it would be best to follow in silence so she didn’t ask any questions, but after a certain point of them just walking together, she took a chance and grabbed Jinx’s free hand. The other girl only gave her a glance and a small smile before continuing on. The reminder that she wasn’t alone at the moment seemed to do her good as she didn’t have the same permanent frown on her face as before, but she still looked sad. Whatever memories she was going through couldn’t be any good.

Eventually, they had to let go when Jinx stared up at the tall tower in front of them. There appeared to be stairs nearby, but Jinx’s attention wasn’t on them, it seemed to be more on the parts of the building that was protruding outward. Hayden could understand that she wanted them to climb to the top, (which made sense to her because it was probably faster for the girl) so she let Jinx go up first before doing her best to follow. She definitely wasn’t perfect and she seemed to slip a few times, but Jinx was surprisingly attentive to her and was able to help her each time. And each time she offered help, Jinx seemed to smile a bit more, though once they reached the top her smile completely dropped as she looked back at the rod in her hands.

Hayden just watched as she then slowly walked to the edge of the building and the enforcer’s eyes widened as she closely followed behind her hoping that she didn’t do anything rash. In the end, she just pulled the bottom of the rod out before raising it up in the air which showed that it was just a torch and she sucked in a sudden breath. Slowly she backed away from her companion as she could see that this was an emotional moment for her and she wasn’t sure what she could do to help otherwise.

The young enforcer found herself completely captivated by Jinx and all the emotions she could feel coming off of her. It reminded her of when she watched her fight against the game thing when they first met. While she didn’t give it much thought at the time, she truly didn’t feel like she could look away, and she felt the same way at this moment too.

After a while, the flare stopped and she could see Jinx resign within herself as it trickled out, but as soon as it stopped she grit her teeth before throwing it over the edge hatefully.

Hayden took a careful step forward, “Jinx…” She started just as the other had pulled out the hex gem, but before anything else could happen another voice spoke.

“Powder?”

Both of them turned slowly to see Vi’s silhouette as she approached.

“Vi?” Jinx asked slowly and Hayden brought her hands to her mouth to stop any noises from interrupting, no matter what she wanted to say, this wasn’t the time.

The small question of her name was all it took for her to rush at Jinx and pull her into a careful hug, “Oh Powder!”

The other girl slowly let go of the hex gem as she went slack in her sister's arms. It wasn’t like the hugs Hayden had shared with her, this one was much more hesitant and she wondered if Jinx would hug her back, but after a few seconds she did so with tears in her eyes.

Vi placed her hand on Jinx’s face while talking to her, “I'm so sorry, Powder. I... I tried to come back. I promise I did. But I... I got arrested.”

“Marcus?” Jinx asked in a small voice.

“I don't know. I... It doesn't matter. I just... I never thought I'd see you again.” She pulled her into another hug and Jinx just let it happen.

“Are you real?” Hayden could feel her own heartbreak at the question and stifled a small noise that threatened to come from her, she could feel her own tears again just from watching them reunite. She couldn’t imagine how long Jinx had suffered from hearing voices and hallucinations, wondering what was and wasn’t real. Not knowing if her sister was alive or not. It would’ve been torture.

Vi pulled back a bit so they could look at each other and she had her own tears in her eyes, “Yes, of course.” She placed a hand over her chest to prove her point, “It's me, Vi, your sister. I-I’m-I’m here. I'm right here.”

Jinx let out a soft sob as tears started streaming down her face and Hayden had to look away because she hated seeing her cry like that. “Things changed when you left. I changed.” The way her voice waivered really stuck with her and she closed her eyes, hoping to give the two some kind of privacy without actually walking away.

“I know, Pow-pow, I know. You did what you had to do to survive.” She let out a short breath, “Me too. It's okay. What matters is we're together.”

Maybe if Hayden was watching still she might’ve noticed or even heard Caitlyn approaching, but she didn’t, not until Jinx quickly pulled out her minigun and aimed it at her partner, “Who’s she?”

Hayden’s eyes widened as she could see Caitlyn eyeing Jinx, “Who are you?” This was the worst way this could happen, the absolute worst way imaginable. She knows Caitlyn and she is not the type of person she would willingly let interact with Jinx, especially when the other girl was in such a vulnerable state. She could feel her pulse start to race from a sudden burst of adrenaline, and she wanted to both run away from this confrontation and also freeze in place at the same time.

Vi quickly tried to placate her sister and kept her arms open and out facing both of them, “It’s okay, she’s a friend.”

“Sevika wasn’t lying? You’re with an enforcer?” She didn’t notice as she kicked the hex gem, but both Hayden and Caitlyn did. It took her only a few seconds to connect the dots.

“Your sister is Jinx?” Caitlyn’s focus was fixed now and it wasn’t helping anything.

“Caitlyn, just… listen, we can work this out.” It was obvious Vi didn’t want anything to escalate.

“This is a trick! You're playing me!” Her voice shook as she spoke and Hayden took a step forward though no one noticed her since their attention seemed glued to each other. “Shut up! I'm in no mood.” Jinx quickly changed the position of her minigun and Hayden realized she actually had to do something before this got out of control. While she understood by this point that Jinx did hear others when she got overwhelmed, she knew Caitlyn didn’t know that, and there was a possibility that Vi didn’t either depending on if Jinx had those symptoms before she was arrested.

“We didn't say anything.” Of course it was Caitlyn, Hayden wasn’t surprised.

“I wasn't talking to you!” Her gun was quickly aimed back at Caitlyn and this time Hayden just felt her body move. She quickly placed herself between the gun and her partner, hoping that maybe Caitlyn wouldn’t accidentally upset her even more.

“Hayden?!” Caitlyn’s call of her name quickly made Jinx’s eyes snap to hers and she could see a million questions go across her face before her eyes hardened and she lifted the gun higher but kept it trained on her.

“Haha! Of course! You’re with them aren’t you!” Hearing such a pained laugh come from the other girl quickly brought back all the guilt Hayden was trying to deny before, and it felt worse knowing that Jinx didn’t understand and probably assumed she had planned this all along. She closed her eyes tightly and shook her head giving her only a second to open them again to look at the girl she’s spent the past few days with.

“Jinx, it isn’t like that, I promise you it isn’t.” Her voice was lowered but that didn’t seem to deescalate anything like she had hoped. Her hands tightened into fists because she knew there wasn’t much she could really do besides attempting to talk to her ‘friend’.

“Hayden, what’s going on?” Caitlyn looked her over before she interrupted again and Jinx sneered.

“Oh really! Then what is it like then? I would looove to know!” She went to step closer and Hayden felt her heart stop. The hateful way Jinx was staring at her hurt, it hurt a lot more than she expected. Luckily Vi blocked her way making her glare up at her sister.

“Powder, it’s okay,” Vi raised her hands slightly to show that she didn’t want to hurt her and that no one meant any harm.

“Stop calling me Powder, It’s Jinx now, Powder fell down a well.”

“You’re not a Jinx, God I never should’ve-“

“Stop talking to me like I’m a child!” She quickly trained the gun directly in Vi’s face.

“Is that why you came? For this stupid stone?” She gave a pathetic laugh.

“No, I don’t even know what that is…”

“You’re a class act sister! Sister thought I missed her, but you wouldn’t miss her.” Her voice took a sharp edge as she gripped the trigger, but Vi then pushed it away completely.

“Powder, I'm here for you, only you. You can fire that thing if you want but I’m not going anywhere. I’m not going to abandon you again.” She slowly brushed her hand down Jinx’s arm and it was obvious she had an effect on the younger girl.

Jinx seemed to look Vi up and down a few times before she started to get overwhelmed again. “Everyone shut up! I need to think.” She took only a few seconds before her gun then trained back on Hayden.

“Then why! Why did you lie to me?!” Hayden tensed up quickly and it suddenly felt like there were more people staring her down than there actually were. She let out a shaky breath.

“Powder…” Vi tried to get her attention back but that didn’t seem to help.

“Not now…” Jinx was trained on Hayden who started to tangle her hands together nervously. It felt like their first meeting all over again. She didn’t know what to do or say to stop her from shooting.

“I never meant to lie to you, Jinx. I really was lost. Caitlyn was the partner I was looking for, you helped me find her.” She gave a weak smile, but the glare the blue-haired girl gave her showed that she didn’t feel the same way, though the glare slowly traveled from Hayden to Caitlyn.

“You…” Jinx's eyes glazed over again and Hayden stood still waiting for her reaction.

Caitlyn was approaching her from behind and had tried placing a hand on her shoulder, but that quickly snapped Jinx out of whatever she was thinking.

“Don’t touch her!” It was quick, faster than any of them expected, but Jinx reached and pulled Hayden away from Caitlyn and then stood opposite of both Vi and Caitlyn with Hayden behind her.

“Jinx…” Her voice was soft as her eyes brimmed with tears. Jinx still cared about her, even if she lied and didn’t tell her the truth, Jinx still wanted to protect her. She placed her hand on Jinx’s arm to reassure her about Caitlyn when Jinx quickly turned around suddenly with her mini gun aimed in the sky making the enforcer drop her hand and take her own step back.

“Did you hear that?” No one said anything as there was a quiet noise coming from some pipes above them before a floating figure came out of a pipe. Jinx quickly fired on it and then she didn’t hesitate to push Hayden further back and away just as more figures appeared and she started to fight alongside Vi. Caitlyn's attention was locked on the gem, and she quickly dove for it before grabbing it just as it started to go over the edge. Hayden decided her best course of action would be trying not to die in any crossfire. She hid behind a crate with Caitlyn who crawled back over while Jinx aimed at almost anyone within her sights. Sadly when Caitlyn went to move, Hayden didn’t have time to react as her partner was quickly knocked out. She went to hopefully protect the other enforcer when the woman who knocked her out used smoke to hide and get away. When the smoke finally cleared Hayden was crouching there and Jinx had her mini gun trained on her.

Both of their eyes went wide before Jinx had to suddenly dodge an attack from above. Hayden quickly moved from the crates after she deemed it unsafe and finally pulled out her gun. She had an extremely hard time focusing on any specific figure because they all were moving so fast and they had the advantage of flying along with their green lights and loud noises that kept catching her attention from each side. She had hoped to aim for someone but her gun was quickly knocked from her hands by a staff from one of the figures flying past her and she grit her teeth but before she could lunge for it again she was hit in the head suddenly.

Chapter Text

Jinx was alone in her space and struggling to calm down. She made continuous grunts and groans as she struggled to get to her desk to deal with her scarred leg as the memories of what happened replayed in her mind. She threw down her gun and threw herself into her seat. As she was by herself and feeling a bit overwhelmed of course that’s when she started hearing Mylo chastise her.

‘You lost them, both of them.’
Jinx let out a growl as she threw her hands from her head, “I didn’t lose them! They took them!”

‘They were both with that enforcer, they care about her.’
Jinx looked towards the mirror and only glared at its cracked and broken reflection while grabbing her head again trying to think better, “They were there for me!” She tapped her chest while making her point before grabbing her stapler gun off the table, “Vi came for me! not that enforcer.”

‘And Hayden?’
“S-she, she came for me too. I asked her to.” She ran her hand down her face and closed her eyes tightly, hating the sting of betrayal she was denying.

‘She worked with that enforcer. Remember her name?’
Jinx looked back at the mirror, her frustration growing at the question. “Why would I remember her name!” She grunted and moved back to actually deal with the cut on her leg, she gave herself the first staple and grunted deeply.

“Well, she’s just some stupid topsider!” She stapled herself again and let out a groan in pain before she checked the mirror again, the cracked reflection not changing and only mocking her. She growled before her next staple and even let out a little laugh then another staple before she started panting as she was almost finished. Her pants slowly turned into her thinking as it finally clicked to her.

“Caitlyn.” She took the last staple before she started to cackle this time, much louder and way less stable. Once she stopped she leaned back in her chair, just sitting there numbly until she heard a familiar noise. She opened her eyes and saw a firefly going around, she stared lazily as she aimed her fingers at it before pretending to shoot it, “Pow.”

[-]

(This would start after Ekko integrated both Vi and Caitlyn. He kept them in a separate room from Hayden.)

She could tell when she was being moved from one area to another which wasn’t too far away, but once they got there she was sat down in a chair. She still didn’t resist or talk while she felt the people around her tie her to it before the bag was pulled off and she let out a small noise and squinted from the sudden light.

Hayden had been quiet since she was taken, unlike usual. She just couldn’t process everything that was happening. One second they were with Jinx and were reuniting with Caitlyn and Vi, the next they were fighting people she didn’t even know! She heard of the firelights from some reports but she had never been in an actual conflict with them. Then again they were from the undercity, and she was currently in the undercity. She guessed she should’ve expected something like that sooner or later.

“Why were you with Jinx?” A white-haired man was glaring at her but she couldn’t help but let her eyes travel her surroundings and she saw that both Caitlyn and Vi were there as well. Vi also seemed to be glaring but Cait looked worried, Hayden couldn’t even guess what was going through her partner’s head at the moment.

“She was helping me.” At that, the man gave a scoff his glare darkened making her look away, unsure what she said wrong. “It’s true!”

“She sure helped you a lot, not only did she drag you around the undercity, you both were in the last drop a while, and those are her clothes correct?” Hayden glanced down at her outfit, just remembering she wasn’t actually wearing her uniform and she bit her lip, she really wasn’t sure about anything that was happening, but Caitlyn was here and it was probably best to stay as honest as possible.

“They are. I asked for clothes to replace my uniform, I was worried about people’s reception to me.”

“Oh yeah, because being seen around with Jinx is so much better…” The man seemed bent on antagonizing her so Hayden looked back at him before giving her own glare back, it wasn’t very intense but she just wanted to make a point.

“Listen, I’m not sure what you know or don’t know, but if you ask me questions and want me to answer, stop going against everything I say. I’m not lying, I just want to get out of this situation as soon as possible.”

This time Vi let out a sigh before walking up to the young man. “She’s right, you need to give her a chance.” The guy rolled his eyes before Vi tilted her head towards Hayden and he just nodded. Then Vi was the one standing in front of her to ask questions.

“Weren’t you and Caitlyn down here looking for Jinx because she was the criminal you wanted to find?”

Hayden couldn’t help it as she looked away again feeling guilty, “Yes.”

“Then why were you guys together like that? Why didn’t you come find us once you knew you had her?”

Hayden couldn’t stop herself from feeling defensive, “I didn’t know she was the one we were looking for at first! I didn’t! I was lost and I had found her and asked for help. She only agreed after she realized that I couldn’t hurt her and that I was alone and scared! She had even promised to help me find my partner.”

“And when you found out?”

Hayden’s head dropped to the ground and she wouldn’t lift it again.

“When did you find out?” Caitlyn asked and she felt even worse, knowing that Caitlyn was depending on her and she let her down, but she couldn’t help it. Jinx made her feel different and she liked being around the girl… but that didn’t change the fact that she was a criminal.

“I knew when I saw her spray-painted designs on all of her stuff, I just refused to believe it. She… was nice to me, I didn’t want to lose that.”

It was quiet again.

“This… Isn’t her fault, she isn’t usually around others often and she let her emotions get the best of her-”

Hayden grit her teeth at Caitlyn’s defense of her, it hurt hearing her partner speak about her like that, and she couldn’t help the swell of bitterness that started but soon died out right in her chest. Caitlyn wanted to help, she didn’t want her to be seen as an accomplice or charged with fraternizing with a criminal. But she couldn’t help but think about Jinx, the girl who specifically told her that she didn’t have to worry about her habits when she was with her, who didn’t seem to judge her awkwardness when it came to her. Why was Jinx so… confusing.

“No matter how you look at it she has some connection to Jinx. We can use her to-”

“Absolutely not, she’s my partner!”

“Well she’s the only leverage we have! Besides, I don’t trust her!”

“She’s a person, not leverage for you to use against a murderer!”

“She seemed pretty cozy with said murderer to me!”

“Enough!” Vi silenced them both before looking down at Hayden who stayed quiet and didn’t lift her head at all.

“We’ll just take her home. She doesn’t need to be caught up in all of this. Before you take the gem to your council friend, just drop her off, and she won’t be a problem right?”

“That’s… true…” Caitlyn mumbled and Hayden felt her eyes burn, she came down here for her and now Cait wants to abandon her? Just because she asked Jinx for help? How was that fair? Was this truly their limit? The point when she finally got fed up with her and would move on while leaving her behind?

“Fine.” The man grunted before walking out the door, “I’ll be waiting to head out.”

Vi walked over to finally untie her while Caitlyn stood in front of her. “I don’t know what you’ve been through, but I think it’s best you forget all about this…” Vi mumbled once she finished and Hayden raised her head to look at Caitlyn who only sighed.

“I shouldn’t have brought you down here, I’m so sorry.” Was it possible for her heart to break more? She quickly rubbed her eyes to stop any tears from falling while Cait bit her lip before Vi nudged her for them to come on.

“I understand.” She mumbled before following the two ahead of her, she wouldn’t even be given the chance to say bye to Jinx, and that made all of this feel even worse. Jinx didn’t deserve that.

Chapter Text

Hayden followed behind the group quietly, not once interacting with anyone, even when they were surrounded by the firelights and Caitlyn asked about them. She noticed when Cait glanced back at her but all she could do was turn her head and pretend that she didn’t. Obviously she missed the way Vi grabbed Caitlyn’s hand in reassurance.

“She’ll come around, this is for the best.” It was a mumble but Hayden still heard it and she hated the stab she felt. Did they expect her to feel grateful they were taking her away from something she was dragged into?

There was a distance between Vi and them once they got onto the bridge and Hayden saw from her peripherals the way Vi seemed bothered by it. Soon she stopped, which made them stop as well.

“Vi?” The young man, Ekko, called to her but she stood silently for a few seconds while not looking at them.

“I can’t leave her again.” Each of them knew exactly what she meant.

“You can’t change her,” He seemed sure and Hayden didn’t like it. What did he know? Jinx wasn’t as bad as he made her out to be.

“I have to try.” She sounded desperate and while Hayden felt slightly bitter about not getting to help Jinx, she also knew the girl deserved her sister. Maybe this was a good thing? Even if she wasn’t involved.

Ekko sighed before walking up to her, “Don’t get yourself killed,” He easily pulled her into a hug and there was a light chuckle, “No promises.”

As soon as they let go Caitlyn went in for a hug and it seemed more close than the previous one. Hayden sighed sadly before turning back to the front. At least they got to say goodbye to each other.

“It’s been real cupcake, thanks, for everything.”

Cait and Ekko watched as Vi turned around and headed back down the bridge, while Hayden only wrapped her arms around herself in a hug. This wasn’t fair, and she felt so much more lonely than she did before, even with the other two still there.

Once they started walking forward Hayden trailed behind them this time, but she knew both of them were eyeing her to make sure she didn’t do anything. It hurt to know Caitlyn also didn’t trust her anymore.

After they walked a bit forward bright lights beamed on them as a voice came from ahead, “Halt.” Marcus stepped forward while Caitlyn pulled out her badge and started talking.

“Sir, I have proof. Silco’s behind everything.” Marcus lowered the gun aimed right at them and approached. Hayden took a few steps back as they were distracted, she didn’t want to be noticed by her boss. Technically, unlike Caitlyn, she wasn’t fired… though she probably would be. She also couldn’t help but remember Jinx’s point about enforcers working for Silco, she just didn’t feel safe around them and in that bright light like that.

She took a few more steps back as Ekko and Caitlyn spoke quietly about the gem before Ekko cursed and finally pulled it out to show him. Before anyone could say anything, Hayden watched from a distance as Marcus didn’t hesitate to shoot Ekko, though if the sound of metal was anything to go by it didn’t kill the boy. After that the other enforcers started to approach while aiming their guns.

Hayden’s eyes went wide, was this real? Were they about to be killed by their old boss and coworkers? Without even thinking she took even more steps back. Marcus trained his gun on Caitlyn who lightly put her hands up before he reached down and grabbed the gem. Next thing she knew, Vi was running toward her while calling Caitlyn’s name, the older girl didn’t even look at her while doing so.

Marcus glanced in the direction of the voice and saw figures from a distance but they were too far away to make out clearly. He seemed nervous when he looked back at Caitlyn but he didn’t move his gun.

“I told you to leave this alone… and you brought Ms.Winmeer into this as usual.” Before he could fight off his nerves to actually shoot a bunch of firelights came from across the bridge. Vi stopped running to watch them in confusion the same way Hayden stared at them as they passed by her.

To everyone’s surprise they started flying around and landing on the enforcers before Hayden and Vi watched them explode from their distance away. Hayden let out a gasp and couldn’t stop herself from falling to the ground in shock. Why? How did this happen? All of the people ahead were probably dead from something like that. Vi didn’t hesitate to run forward into the chaos and the yells right past her but soon after it was all smoke and silence and Hayden had no idea what happened.

As she sat there unsure of what to do next, she soon heard humming from behind her. She turned her head and blinked when she realized it was Jinx. Did she… cause this? Why would she…? All of this death? It was one thing to be told she killed many people, but to see it? Her eyes swelled with tears and she didn’t bother to stop them this time as Jinx came up to her and stopped in front of her. For a few seconds she stared down at her with a cold glare before her expression changed and she bent down to her level. Hayden wanted to pull away or even just ask her why, but the blue-haired girl simply wiped away her tears carefully which took her breath away. After that she offered her cheek a light rub before standing back up and walking past her, leaving her there.

That was all it took to confuse the young enforcer again and to thrust her into deep feelings of shame and guilt for the affection she had for the literal criminal. She watched as Jinx kept going up the bridge as the smoke slowly cleared away to show the damage she caused, but she didn’t seem bothered by it in the slightest as she just walked by before coming across the gem and grabbing it.

She seemed fine until she saw Vi helping Caitlyn up at least, it was as if something inside of her snapped and she pulled out her mini gun and started shooting at them with a scream.

“Jinx!” Hayden yelled out hoping to stop her but the other girl couldn’t hear her, her attention was taken quickly by Ekko coming up on his board to attack her. In his movement, Hayden had to quickly dodge the stray bullets Jinx was firing at him, but all she could do was watch in fear as the boy took the gem and threw it at Vi and Caitlyn before yelling at them. The young enforcer could only watch from the opposite side of the bridge, she wasn’t able to see either of their faces because of how far they were, but she could tell they took a few seconds before they turned around and left. Hayden felt helpless as she knew she couldn’t stop either of the two from fighting, even if she tried to get close, she would probably die from a stray bullet or accidental head trauma (or maybe it would be on purpose since Ekko didn’t like her).

Hayden closed her eyes as she didn’t want to watch, she wasn’t even sure what she should want from this fight. What if they killed each other? If Ekko beat Jinx then… would she lose her? But she is a criminal who should at least be locked up right?

But if Jinx beat Ekko? She would probably kill the boy… and he had a whole group of people to look after… and she would probably go after Vi and Caitlyn next.

She was conflicted but she knew that she shouldn’t be, it was such a terrible feeling, and the sounds of their fight didn’t help, all it did was make her feel worse. Once it got quiet for a few seconds she took a chance too look back at them only to let out a cry when she barely had a second to see a bomb go off and the smoke quickly covered herself and most of the bridge. She closed her eyes and covered her mouth with her arms as she tried her best to wait patiently for it to clear at least enough for her to see what happened. She didn’t want either of them to die, she couldn’t bare with it.

By the time it cleared enough for Hayden to know the outcome she felt sick. Jinx laid still on her back, with her body bloodied, bruised, and burnt. Ekko wasn’t around. Hayden didn’t hesitate to run towards the girl and lift her head onto her lap while trying to check for a pulse. Her hand wasn’t able to pick it up, so in her desperation she lifted her body and placed her ear to her chest, hoping more than anything that the girl was still alive. It was faint and barely anything but she could hear it, but from what she knew, it was unlikely that the girl would survive. Tears ran down her face as she didn’t let go of the girl, not wanting to leave her like this. Even as she heard people approaching from both sides, it no longer mattered. Apparently enforcers work for Silco and they just tried to kill them, her partner already gave up on her, and now the person she wanted to consider a friend was dying in her arms.

She didn’t move, even when the unfamiliar and yet desparate voice called from behind, “Jinx!”

Hayden turned around as an older man ran toward them and by his appearance she could tell this man was Silco. She didn’t hesitate to hand her over, and he looked between the two, as if he wanted to glare at her but also couldn’t help but be overcome with worry over the girl now in his arms. Hayden looked down at the ground as she tried to wipe her tears, but accidentally rubbed dirt and a bit of blood on her face from holding the other girl.

He didn’t have time to ask questions as he saw more enforcers approaching quickly. “Grab that girl.” He muttered before picking up the girl in a bridal carry and taking her away. The two men with him easily grabbed Hayden, who didn’t bother resisting them as they dragged her along.

Chapter Text

“I’ll only ask you this once.” Silco had her seated in his office, she wasn’t restrained in any way, but there were two giant men in the room. One next to her and the other by the door. He obviously didn’t see her as a threat, but he also did take her gun so that was understandable.

“Who are you?” His tone was threatening and Hayden felt herself shrink back. He might not’ve had a very large frame, but he was still intimidating. She tried her best to avoid looking at his eye, knowing herself she might’ve ended up staring at it instead of listening to him.

“I-I’m Hayden Winmeer.” She clenched her hands together tightly, resisting the urge to ask about Jinx before she was allowed to.

“What is your relationship with my daughter?” He asked it simply while leaning forward in his chair with a glare, but Hayden looked at him in complete surprise. Daughter? She just assumed that Jinx was his best worker, but she didn’t know they were family. Then was Vi also his… no, she hated Silco… This was too confusing.

“We’re… friends. She was,” she let out a sigh and closed her eyes tightly, “helping me.”

Silco was quiet before he slammed his hand on the table making her eyes pop open. “Since when was Jinx friends with an enforcer.” He spat out the last word like it was poison and Hayden could already tell that he already had a deeply negative view of her.

“Tell me Ms. Winmeer: What the hell happened on that bridge? And don’t leave anything out.” She could tell that it wasn’t a request, and no matter how strange she felt about it she knew she would have to if she wanted to live through this.

[-]

After explaining everything to Silco she finally asked if the girl was okay. He seemed irritated that he wasn’t aware of her before now, along with the fact that he said Jinx was alive. Hayden wanted to ask him if she could see her before she realized that maybe she shouldn’t. He decided to give her mercy and set her free, but she assumed it was only because he had other things on his mind. So she took the opportunity to go to Jinx’s lair and hope to find her there. She did get lost a bit, but eventually, she found it and just went in the way that Jinx showed her the last time.

She tried to wait but she ended up passing out eventually, her exhaustion obviously catching up to her after the day and night she had.

Sometime later she woke up to the sound of someone creeping around. The only person she could assume it was would be, “Jinx?” She called while sitting up and rubbing her eyes. She heard a mumble of a few curse words before she could actually place the girl who was standing in front of her desk. Hayden narrowed her eyes while the other girl avoided looking at her.

“I… didn’t mean to wake you.” It was mumbled and Hayden barely heard it but that didn’t stop her from getting up and slowly approaching the other girl who didn’t move and still refused to look at her.

Once she was standing directly behind her she waited for the other to turn around, she wasn’t gonna force her, there were so many things she thought about while waiting for Jinx. The possibility that she might have scars, how likely it was that she would’ve needed shimmer to heal, how Jinx might actually hate her for trying to leave. In all honesty, she didn’t even care if Jinx did hate her, she was just happy to see the other girl up and breathing. She knew Silco had said she was alive, but seeing it truly brought her relief.

After a minute Hayden started to fidget nervously, wondering if she made a mistake and if she was actually just making the other uncomfortable, but as soon as she had that thought the other girl turned around and quickly grabbed her hands. “I can hear you fidgetting.” Jinx offered a playful smirk, but as Hayden stared at her all she could read was pure insecurity and she had a pretty good guess why. Her eyes went from their pretty shade of blue to bright pink… Shimmer, along with a few noticeable scars on her face.

She let out her own shaky breath before she squeezed Jinx’s hands in reassurance and gave her own smile. This seemed to calm her down, if only slightly for a few seconds before she shook her head and pulled away. Hayden looked hurt, wondering if she made a mistake. As if she could tell Jinx glanced back at her before turning away again to glare at the floor.

“Don’t look at me like that…” Jinx mumbled while Hayden gave her a confused look.

“Like what? Did I do something wrong?” She laced her hands together uncertainly and Jinx watched her before shaking her head and then groaning, not sure how to explain what she meant.

“You can’t look at me, not like that. With those wide eyes of yours, you stare at me as if I haven’t done anything wrong. As if I haven’t changed.” Hayden took a deep breath as she listen before the next words hit her, “As if I’m not a monster.”

That did it as she threw her arms around Jinx into a hug and she had no plans of letting go. It was as if she had completely forgotten the night before but she didn’t care to remember either. This girl almost died in her arms and she had to be saved by shimmer. It’s not like she knew everything Jinx went through to get healed, and maybe her eye color wasn’t the only thing that changed.

“J-Y-you aren’t a monster… not to me at least.” She stopped herself, finally remembering that Jinx wasn’t the girl’s real name. “Listen, I don’t know what happened okay? But I do know that I’m so happy that you’re okay… and that you still seem to care for me…” she mumbled the second part as she hugged Jinx a little tighter before continuing.

“Whether you changed or not doesn’t matter to me, you’re still the same girl that helped me when I was lost, that took me in when I almost passed out in an alley, that wiped my tears when I was crying. You’re still my…” She felt bad saying it after everything that happened, and even against her will, she remembered watching the explosions happening, knowing so many people died in front of her and she didn’t do anything to stop it. She tensed up as she stopped for a moment, but then Jinx finally looked back at her and made eye contact again and she was blown away. The girl needed to hear it, she was desperate too, and seeing her like that reminded her of how right after all of those horrible things she did, Jinx came up to her and wiped her tears and caressed her face.

“You’re still my hero.” This time there were tears coming down Jinx’s face and while they were slightly discolored Hayden didn’t hesitate to wipe them away. That seemed to break the girl as she was pulled in much tighter than she expected as Jinx started mumbling next to her ear.

“I promise to protect you. I promise, I promise, I promise.” The young enforcer had tensed up at first before she relaxed and accepted Jinx completely.

“I believe you.”

[-]

After that Jinx seemed to calm down a bit and she got to work working on some sort of weapon at her desk. Hayden had taken to just watching her. The responsible part of her was both telling her that she was wrong for staying with Jinx, and also wanted her to ask what she was making, but the rest of her didn’t care anymore. Why was it wrong? Jinx cared about her and her opinions more than anyone else ever did, and she would be heartbroken if she left. Besides, it’s not like anyone else actually wanted her either… Not even Caitlyn. And what did she care what Jinx was making? If Jinx didn’t involve her, then she wouldn’t involve herself.

Since she decided not to ask about her work she took the time to build up the courage to ask a different question.

“Is your name Powder?”

The blue-haired girl froze from what she was doing and then turned to her with a glare making her freeze as well. She watched as her expression suddenly changed from a glare to something warmer, as if she just recognized who she was looking at. She walked to her and Hayden had to do everything in her power to not flinch or move back, it was only easier since she was staring her in the eyes and it didn’t feel as threatening. Once she was close enough Jinx took both of her hands and raised them until she was holding them to her own cheeks.

“Sweetheart please understand, my name is Jinx.” Hayden felt breathless looking directly at Jinx like this. She felt like she was reading all of the hurt feelings she had in her heart and Jinx was being open with her, even after she knew Hayden had lied to her. She couldn’t deny the girl’s request, “Okay.”

The small bittersweet smile that she got in return broke her heart, but the way Jinx turned one of her palms and placed a light kiss there caused it to speed up right after. “Thank you lovely…” She then slowly let go of both hands before going back to where she was before. Hayden couldn’t help but bring both hands to hold them close to her heart. This girl was a murderer who didn’t give a second thought to her victims, someone Hayden should despise completely, but here she is, being treated so carefully by her and falling for her, it all felt unreal.

Chapter Text

Jinx suddenly stopped working and just sat in her chair silently for a few moments which made Hayden start to worry. She got up to approach her before the other girl started laughing, and it didn’t sound stable at all, she sounded like she was in pain. She watched as she shook her head while slowly calming down before pushing herself away from the table suddenly.

“J-jinx?” She called to her and the other girl dropped whatever was in her hand before turning to face her.

“Sweetheart, I have a request…” She started before coming toward her. Hayden’s eyes traveled to the desk the other was just at and she could see the rocket-like weapon that was just lying there. Once she looked back at Jinx she couldn’t hide her suspicion, but she also couldn’t help how her eyes softened when Jinx looked so hopeful.

“Help me, please? You’re someone I can trust, right? I can trust you right?”

Hayden could feel her judgment clouding the more she just stared at the blue-haired girl. The only person who actually had any understanding of her beyond just tolerating her. Jinx made her happy, in a way she never experienced before and probably would never experience again.

“I’ll help you.” It was a quiet declaration and it felt like her mouth moved on its own but she couldn’t bring herself to care as she watched relief flood into her ‘friend’s’ eyes as she was then handed a blindfold that she didn’t even notice the other girl holding.

“Can you trust me too?”

It felt strange to hear the question again, but in what felt like a much different context than the first time. She took a deep breath and gave a small nod before she carefully took the blindfold and put it on with Jinx’s help.

“J-Jinx?”

“Yeah, lovely?”

While she flushed lightly she didn’t let herself get distracted, “Please don’t be too reckless.” This all felt like she had it planned, and while she was taking it upon herself to trust Jinx she also knew that she had no idea of what was going to happen, and obviously Jinx didn’t want her to know either, so it probably wasn’t good.

She couldn’t see it, the way that Jinx’s eyes narrowed and a shadow seemed to overtake her face. She walked closer to her and wrapped her arms around her in a deep hug before speaking in her ear.

“I just need to handle a problem.” Hayden couldn’t stop the shiver that she felt go through her, which made her face heat up but she could only offer a slow nod in response.

“O-okay.”

“Wait here for me alright? I’ll come and get you once I set a few things up.” She slowly started to pull away and Hayden’s eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

“Then why do I need to keep the blindfold on?”

“It’s better this way, okay? You still trust me right?” Jinx’s voice was soft, she was already sure of the answer she would get this time. It was obvious since they just went over it.

“Y-yea, I do.”

“Great. You might be the only one…” The last part was mumbled and just made Hayden feel even more guilty about everything, even though she wasn’t the cause of Jinx’s mistrust, she still had to be a part of it.

[-]

“Jinx, Jinx what is this?” Silco demanded while looking around for the girl, he was tied to a chair so he couldn’t move.

“Be quiet, you’re a guest.” It was whispered in his ear, and before he could turn to look in her direction a gag was quickly tied to his mouth making his eyes widen and then narrow in confusion when his daughter walked in front of her.

“Not everything will always go the way you expect it to…” She sneered before she started to work around him, only allowing him to watch as she set the table around him. He took note of the dolls and decorations but he knew nothing would happen unless Jinx unbound him so he stayed still. At least until Jinx left and brought in a blindfolded Hayden and carefully lead her to one of the empty seats that was decorated in splatters of paint and a few hearts and her name.

His eyebrows furrowed as he tried to speak through the gag but all that came out were muffles.

“J-Jinx, what was that?” The enforcer asked but said girl only shushed her quickly and helped her slowly sit down in the chair.

“Nothing to worry about babe, just part of the problem I was talking about earlier.” Her words didn’t seem to help Hayden calm down as she still seemed tense but she nodded nonetheless.

“Everything’s almost done! I just need to get one more person. I’ll be back, don’t go anywhere okay?” Jinx let out a chuckle before she left a chaste kiss on Hayden’s cheek making the girl gasp and turn quickly to the direction that she heard the other leaving from.

Silco could do nothing but stare in disbelief as the girl he saw as a daughter left them there. The enforcer wasn’t even binded in anyway, the only part of her that was restricted was a piece of cloth covering her eyes, which she could easily take off. He was sure she would do so almost immediately. But after a few minutes she didn’t remove it.

The girl stayed in the chair and while she did squirm around and at times reach towards her face, she would just as quickly drop her hands back to her sides or try to fold them to keep them still. At times he even heard her muttering to herself that everything was fine and that Jinx would be back soon.

His surprise over the girl faded once Jinx finally re-entered after some time, carrying her sister on her back with ease, most likely due to the shimmer. She placed her down at the other end of the table and then proceeded to tie her there.

“Jinx? Is that you?”

Jinx didn’t answer for a few seconds, caught up into her task, but then her head turned and she seemed to be listening to something else before she then looked at the still squirming enforcer and let out a soft sigh before walking over and placing a hand on the girl’s cheek while looking at her fondly.

“Yeah, it’s me. Everything’s okay, don’t worry… Guess what! My problem is almost over! I-I’ll solve it tonight, I’m sure of it… I’m so sure…” Jinx trailed off before she clenched her teeth, seemingly in annoyance at whatever she was hearing this time. “Shut up.” She growled lowly and Hayden put extra effort to not flinch at how close it was.

“T-that’s good then. Can I take off the blindfold yet?” Her hands raised to reach for the tie, but Jinx’s eyes widened and she quickly pulled both of them back down.

“No!” Her eyes had flashed pink but of course Hayden couldn’t tell, but her expression obviously showed how scared she was anyway.

“I-I… I-I’m sorry sweetheart, I didn’t mean to yell. Please leave it on for a little while longer? Actually…” Jinx bit her lip as she pulled her hands away and then grabbed a piece of fabric she set aside just incase.

“Could I cover your mouth too?”

“W-what? I-I don’t think that I-”

“Only for a while! And if you really need to I won’t stop you from taking either of them off… I just ask that you wait until I tell you too.” It was silent for a few moments, before Hayden finally nodded.

Why was she so inclined to give in? Everything about this situation seemed wrong. Especially knowing there were others here too, were they also blindfolded and gagged? What was Jinx planning? Did it have anything to do with that weird rocket thing she was making before?

She had some many questions, but as she felt her blue-haired companion slowly and gently tying the fabric across her mouth she knew they wouldn’t be getting answered anytime soon.

Chapter Text

Hayden didn’t like it, the strange feeling of suspense and uncertainty. Jinx wouldn’t hurt her, at this point she was sure, but she had now seen with her own eyes how willing Jinx was to hurting others. If she had to see the other kill someone again… then again she was wearing a blindfold. A part of her wondered if she was being considerate, knowing that Hayden wouldn’t want to see what was around her, but then again that could just be wishful thinking.

Did Jinx really care about her or was she just using her? She shook her head, that wasn’t right, she knew Jinx cared, that was just her anxiety speaking. Jinx didn’t need her to start doubting her right now. But it was hard not to when she was blindfolded in an unfamiliar place.

After a while though there were some noises coming from the side that sounded like human grunts. Hayden quickly turned her head but obviously she still couldn’t see. Right afterwards she heard Jinx start to speak in a low but echoing voice. She couldn’t even pinpoint where it was coming from.

“Really thought I buried this place, but I should’ve known better,” It sounded like steps? Was Jinx on stairs?

“Powder?” So Vi was there too?

“Nothing ever stays dead.”

“Are we alone?”

“For now. Maybe forever.”

“Wanna know a secret? Silco thinks he made Jinx, with all his rants and his hard-won lessons. ‘Excise your doubts, Jinx.’ ‘Be what they fear, Jinx.’ Like everything was the same as when Vander left him. But he didn't make Jinx. You did.”

“I'm sorry, Powder. I never meant to leave you.”

“You never left. I always heard you. Shadows in the streets, prickles on the back of my neck. Your voice. Pushing me. Picking me up when all the colors were black. You're the reason I'm still alive.”

Hayden felt guilty and wrong. This didn’t feel right. None of it did. She didn’t even understand why she was here, all of this felt too personal for her.

“I spent so many nights in that shitty prison. On the freezing floor, hungry, bloody, counting the hours. The only thing... The only thing that kept me going was the thought of getting back to you.”

“Are we… still sisters?” The question itself made Hayden’s heart clench, but it also made her feel even more intrusive. She shouldn’t be here, this is something they should be working out alone.

“Nothing is ever going to change that.”

“I always knew you'd come back.” Jinx slowly started to turn her chair to face the table.

“What's going on?”

Once she was situated Jinx stood above her with the lighter, before she threw it across the table lighting all of the candles and letting her see everything finally.

“No.”

“He took everything from us. Right here, he stabbed Vander in the back. Just like he planned to do with me.”

“All the time saying you abandoned me when he knew the truth.” Silco mumbled something through his gag, “Liar.” She spat out the word coldly.

“Mm. We're missing someone.” Jinx walked off behind Vi as she took the time to look around, seeing the dolls, the familiar items, and to her surprise a blindfolded and gagged Hayden.

“H-Hayden?” She called out and the girl tilted her head in her direction with furrowed brows but didn’t do anything else. From where she was sitting Vi could see she wasn’t tied up.

“Hay-” She was cut off when Jinx returned and dropped a platter on the table.

“I paid your girlfriend a visit this morning.”

Vi let out a few worried breaths at the same time that Hayden tensed up, Caitlyn was here as well?

“What did you do?” Her question was desperate.

“I made her a snack.” Her voice was light as she shuffled with the platter top.

“Huh? No!” She looked away just as it was lifted with deep breaths, only to turn back when Jinx started speaking again. “Sheesh. I'm not that crazy.” On the platter was only a cupcake with the hex gem on top. She then threw the lid and went back behind her only to bring in a barrel with Caitlyn also gagged and tied up inside.

“Powder! Leave her out of this.” Jinx stared at Vi from where she was behind Caitlyn before lightly shaking her head. After a few seconds, she moved away and walked back next to her sister.

“Now, where should I sit? That’s your choice really.” Jinx then placed a gun in her hands.

“Make her go away. Please. Send her on her way and…,” Caitlyn let out a loud grunt, “And you can have Powder back.”

“I-I, I-I can’t.” Jinx scoffed and then took the gun from her to aim at Caitlyn’s head.

“No! Powder, listen. We... we can just go. We'll leave and never come back.” Jinx gave a small gasp before asking softly, “Where would we go?” But right after she heard something and started shaking her head, “No, no, no. She's not saying that… she wouldn’t either.”

At her second point, her head turned to where Hayden was sitting. Her arm reached out lightly as if she only wanted to touch her and remind herself she was still there, sitting and waiting for her, but her arm flinched back when Vi continued quickly.

“It's true, we'll put this behind us. You'll never have to see him again, Powder.”

Silco obviously was against this as he mumbled more surely this time, making Jinx look over at him.

“What do you have to say about that?” She walked over and removed his gag, and he didn’t hesitate. “Her name is Jinx! She's lying. You'll be with her a day before she realizes you aren't that girl anymore and turns her back on you.”

Jinx taps her chin with the gun, “Mm-hmm. You aren't lying? You wouldn't lie to me. Not again.” Vi shakes her head, “I'm not lying. I'm on your side. I promise.”

Jinx quickly shot one of the dolls at the table, “Shut up! We're talking!”

Against her will Hayden let out a squeak since the sudden thump of ‘something’ hitting the table surprised her, and she felt her heart racing, not knowing who or what was shot. Not being able to see was getting to her.

Everyone’s eyes turned to her, though she couldn’t tell. Caitlyn let out some distressed noises once she saw her partner, and Jinx quickly walked back over to her.

“Powder… Why is Hayden here?” Vi asked lowly, but Jinx only rubbed her shoulders and leaned down to speak in her ear.

“I’m sorry about that, I didn’t mean to surprise you. If you want to take them off now, I won’t stop you…” She stared as Hayden shakily reached to take off the gag, but before anyone else could say anything Silco started again, hating how much Jinx honestly cared for this one enforcer.

“The topsiders offered me everything. Independence, a seat at the table. All in return for you. They can all burn. Everyone betrays us, Jinx. Vander. Her. Even that enforcer. They will never understand. It's only us. You're my daughter. I'll never forsake you.”

Hayden had entirely removed the gag but kept the blindfold on, she didn’t know what was happening around her and wasn’t sure what she would see. She was afraid.

“Drop the gun!” Caitlyn freed herself and grabbed the machine gun before aiming across the table at Jinx. The other girl stood up straight as her hand tightened on her gun. Vi let out a breath, “No. Please.”

After a few seconds of silence (for everyone else) Jinx abruptly aimed her gun directly at Caitlyn only for her to fire the machine gun past her head. “No! Stop!” Vi yelled out at the same time as Hayden did.

“Drop the gun.” Caitlyn said it again this time more seriously and Jinx stared at her while lowering her arms before she looked back to an obviously shaken-up Hayden who was covering her ears from the shots over her head as well.

Caitlyn went to aim again, “Wait! She's my sister.” “Vi, she's too far gone.” Jinx let out a seemingly nervous chuckle before dropping the gun and putting her hands up. Vi let out small noises, while watching as Caitlyn didn’t lower the gun again, “No, no, no.”

Jinx let out a small whimper before she went through a range of expressions before she smirked with a chuckle and charged around the table at her, “Look out!” Vi yelled but it wasn’t a quick enough warning as Jinx reached the taller girl and hit her with the machine gun knocking her out.

“You see, now finish it.”

“Damn it! Powder, wake up! Remember who you are! I know you remember!”

Neither of the two seemed to care about how Jinx was reacting to their words, even flinching away and looking around herself in confusion.

“Picture Mylo! Claggor!”
“Stop.” Her voice came out small and light, a plea that only Hayden seemed to pick up.

“Vander!” “Shut up! Don't listen to her!”

With all the yelling and commotion Hayden knew it wasn’t going to have a good effect on her… friend. She couldn’t help but rip the blindfold off and barely had time to register everything happening around her in the dimly lit room.

“Dad!” As Vi was yelling, Silco was struggling in his binds and Jinx was holding her head while wandering in small steps as if she was trying to get away from them or something they couldn’t see. “Mom!”

“Stop! Stop!” Hayden yelled at both of them, but neither of them listened and Hayden got up, hoping to approach the girl, only to look back at Silco as his grunts got louder.

“Me!”
He had finally gotten his hands on the gun and Hayden’s eyes went wide, “No!” She yelled just as he went to aim for Vi, but at the sound of her yell Jinx looked up just as she heard the click of the gun and immediately started firing in that direction.

Hayden dropped back down in her seat with a stunted gasp while Jinx took a few seconds to realize what just happened and calm down from it. His chair spun around and he dropped the gun as he could only stare ahead of him in shock. Hayden’s hands quickly covered her mouth, he was a terrible man, but he was Jinx’s father figure, she knew Jinx didn’t mean to do something like that.

Seeing the way the girl gasped out in disbelief before rushing over to him proved her point, Hayden’s eyes welled up knowing that Jinx wasn’t okay, that whatever she hoped to happen here didn’t happen.

“No!” “Oh. Oh, no, no, no.” She held his face in her hands to keep his focus on her while apologizing, ”I-I'm sorry, I’m so, I’m sorry” She stuttered through her cries as he weakly stared back at her.

“I never would have given you to them. Not for anything.” She let out a sad noise while staring at him desperately, hoping he wouldn’t go. “Don't cry. You're perfect.” His eyes fluttered closed in her hands and she couldn’t stop herself from quietly breaking down, before coming to her own conclusions.

She stood up numbly as Vi stared at her, “Powder? It's okay. We'll be okay.”

She got up and walked over to stand behind the Jinx chair next to Hayden, and placed her gun in it to turn it before staring down at it. That’s when Hayden was finally able to notice that the only other chair available was the one that said Powder. Her eyes widened as she realized what that meant and she understood why she told Vi it was her choice where she sat earlier. She bit her lip and watched as Jinx slowly sat down and looked back at her sister.

“ I thought maybe you could love me like you used to.” Her eyes looked away distantly, “Even though I'm... different.” She sounded defeated as she talked about herself and Hayden let out a sad noise of her own, but Jinx didn’t look at her this time. “But you changed too. So... Here's to the new us.” She got up and grabbed both her rocket and the gem.

“Jinx, what are you doing?” Hayden asked desperately, but she only got a glance before Jinx walked out of the room while heading up to the roof, just as Caitlyn started to wake up.

When they all saw her aiming outside they could all assume what she was doing, but none of them could stop her.

Jinx cried as she thought back on her memories of Silco, of Hayden’s words, of how she isn’t what she used to be anymore, all of it building inside of her as she finally fired her rocket with a scream.

Hayden let out a strangled gasp and sat back in her chair completely as blue overtook everything around them. The destruction that would cause… she couldn’t even think. Didn’t she have any morals? How did she let Jinx get to this point? Honestly what right did she even have to cry when she let this happen? When she encouraged Jinx the way she had.

She blinked back her own tears of self-hatred as best as she could before she let out a sudden gasp when Jinx was right in front of her. The girl stared at her expression as Hayden took in the heartbreak and the discolored tears on her face. She closed her eyes, already knowing what Jinx was asking her, but she gave a small nod anyway and let herself be whisked away by the girl she knew she had undoubtedly fallen for.

Chapter Text

• Jinx made a small makeshift bed in her lair for Hayden and sometimes they cuddle there together. Before that she would sleep generally anywhere she passed out at because she didn't like sleeping regularly because of nightmares but when she did sleep or pass out she was still a light sleeper. Hayden learned that quickly whenever she would try to get out of bed or give her a blanket when she fell asleep while tinkering with something.

• Hayden doesn't get lost very often anymore, not because she doesn't wander off but because whenever Jinx notices her getting distracted or moving away from where she's supposed to be going she secretly follows her quietly. She lets the girl explore however she wants but as soon as she sees her look confused or worried she pops out and helps her. She's often rewarded with Hayden looking at her in awe and she can't help but feel proud of herself for always being there for her partner. Sometimes she literally puffs up with pride and it's adorable. Hayden reaffirms her as her hero.

• Hayden slowly warms up to picking on Theirem. It's a slow process, first Jinx convinces her to make small jokes at his expense (probably his name being Chuck), and then have her take things he's looking for. Sometimes he would see her and her hesitation but Jinx's glare keeps him quiet as the other girl works on her "prank".

• Hayden also is a lot more open laughing when she finds something Jinx does funny, whether it's morally okay or not.

• Jinx sometimes disappears to go cause chaos and she always asks Hayden to stay in her lair with a kiss to the forehead and food to hold her over til she gets back. Jinx actually really appreciates having someone to regularly return to. Obviously she was close with Silco, but unless he was worried about her or she had a mission, he just let her do whatever and roam where she wanted. Now she knows Hayden is always waiting for her and sometimes it just fills her with a giddy feeling and when she comes back she practically tackles Hayden onto the little bed for cuddles.

• While they have a makeshift bed in her lair, they don't always stay there because Hayden does get slightly nervous about the edge, whenever she's really bothered by it Jinx takes her to Silco's place and they crash there for a night or two. (This might not work after Silco died because of memories. She might just kick a random person out of their apartment temporarily til they go back to the lair. Why get a place they would rarely use and have to stock themselves when they can just crash somewhere already furnished and stocked.)

• Jinx takes some time to work with Hayden on actually using her gun. Hayden did feel extremely uncomfortable when Jinx tried to get her to use her other weapons (especially the machine gun because of the memories with Caitlyn and Jinx). Jinx stays very patient and she can tell Hayden knows how to use a gun, she just doesn't like using it and tries to work around it, which isn't practical in the undercity. She eases her into using it and explains everything slowly and carefully, not wanting to overwhelm her partner at all. Whenever Hayden does something right, Jinx gives her a hum of approval and Hayden lights up and gets excited to do it again. It works well for them.

• Anytime they're out and something intense happens, Hayden now always has her gun drawn and aimed at the other party along with a glare on her face. One time someone made a comment about "Jinx training her enforcer dog." Jinx asked her to head home alone for the first time that day and Hayden never saw that person again.... And Jinx came back apologizing a lot and trying to reassure her that she wasn't a pet to her. They definitely cuddled that night.

• Jinx takes some time to get used to Hayden's small tics. They aren't a problem, but when they're just sitting in silence (which isn't often mind you) then Hayden might start tapping her feet or fingers on a surface. Or whenever Hayden starts fidgeting with her hands, Jinx at first would assume she had something to say to her or a problem, but once she understands sometimes she just needs to expel energy or pent up feelings and that's how she does it, it makes it easier for her to understand. Sometimes it even calms her down, the little noises reminding her of the presence of her favorite person.

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• Hayden asks Jinx to do her hair like hers. It takes Jinx time to get used to the different hair texture and how to actually deal with curly hair (which is much more high maintenance than she expected since it’s not super long like hers) but once she gets the hang of it, it becomes a small hobby of hers to braid her hair just because. They get to be close and it’s something for her to focus on outside of her gadgets and it lets her just give all her attention to Hayden.

• Jinx tends to be extremely expressive on the regular, she would groan loudly or sigh out loud to get other attention because at times she feels like she needs to do that just to be noticed. But with Hayden, she already gives most of her attention to Jinx so she notices when she gets frustrated by the smallest things like her furrowed eyebrows that are a bit deeper than usual or her sucking her teeth when she’s slightly irritated at her work. It surprises Jinx at first but it really makes her feel seen and noticed in a way she didn’t know she desired.

• They’re both very bad at secrets, at least from each other. Even when they just want to surprise the other it’s so hard for them. They can always tell when something’s up with the other and that they’re hiding so all it takes is a neglected look from Hayden or her isolating herself a bit and Jinx is word vomiting everything she was planning just so Hayden wouldn’t think she stopped caring; and all it takes from Jinx is a well timed pout and Hayden can’t help but give in instantly.

• Jinx likes making little toys for Hayden to play with, like obviously Hayden would use whatever she has available or on hand to distract herself or keep herself entertained, but something about Jinx specifically making something for her to just fidget with makes her heart flutter and leaves her more than a little embarrassed, and Jinx can’t help but feel proud of herself for making Hayden something she genuinely uses often and cares for.

• Eventually Jinx takes Hayden back to the game room just to show her around and to see the other games there. What she didn’t expect though was for Hayden to admit that she found her mesmerizing with the first two games she saw (the boxing one and the shooting one), it ended up making Jinx feel more confident and distracted so she started to show off (forgetting about showing her others). Of course she also used it as an opportunity to show Hayden some moves and to help her practice shooting, but Hayden was much more satisfied watching the other girl more than practicing. They definitely spent most of the day there and while Jinx was definitely exhausted afterwards she was still glowing with pride.

• Jinx would end up letting her curiosity get the better of her and she would ask about Hayden’s family. The girl was willing to let them go just to be with her so she assumed they might’ve treated her badly. It would make the ex-enforcer sad and she would mention how they weren’t bad parents but they also couldn’t view her as her own person and as she got older they tended to focus on her flaws more than anything else and it always hurt her but she tried to hide it because she knew they meant well. Jinx would feel guilty for making her partner feel sad and would try her best to comfort her. This would probably end up being the first time they actually cuddled together.

• Hayden would want to try so many things around Zaun. It’s a new area with so many new experiences and with Jinx she feels safe and she isn’t being held back by anyone or anything and Jinx would always encourage her in anything. But sometimes Jinx gets flashes of fear for Hayden. She didn’t grow up down there, she isn’t as familiar, she could get hurt. For example, Hayden finds the constant parkour and roof hopping thrilling, and she tends to block out a lot of her surroundings when she’s doing it. Jinx is always nearby but when Hayden makes a jump that looks a little too wide or a tiny bit too high, she feels her heart stutter. But then Hayden’s on the other side waving her over with a bright smile and she only hesitates for a moment before joining her. Jinx doesn’t want to hold her back, she doesn’t want to be like everyone else. But she can’t stop these feelings and she’s also worried that one day her fears might actually happen and she’ll have let it happen. She’s extremely conflicted.

• Jinx has her moments where she tries to process things by distancing herself, or she gets afraid that she’ll somehow hurt Hayden and it’s always when she’s feeling extremely low and depressed, but she also absolutely refuses to drag her partner into those feelings. She’ll make excuses to her about how she’s feeling or where she’s headed off to, and Hayden will get the feeling she’s lying but after watching her for a moment she ends up letting her go to do whatever she needs to. But when she comes back Hayden is always waiting patiently for her and Jinx will break down and admit she lied and she feels guilty and sorry about everything and Hayden just calmly reassures her that it’s okay and that she’s still here and that she knows she would never hurt her.

• Continuing the last point there was one time that Jinx blew off some steam and got a bit sidetracked and didn’t return for two days. She came back to a sleeping Hayden who was curled up and definitely had cried herself to sleep if the tear streaks were anything to go by. That’s when she made a promise to herself about always coming back the same day. She hated the idea of making the other girl cry, especially all by herself.

• It’s still extremely hard for Jinx to understand that she’s not the only person with abandonment issues and insecurities in this relationship, but she’s trying.

Chapter Text

Jinx stared through a window at the girl she’d been looking for over the past 3 days. At first, she assumed Hayden had gotten lost, she wasn’t sure how that would’ve happened, but she searched the entire undercity and couldn’t find her partner anywhere. But when she started questioning people, she soon found out that Hayden was taken. The people she asked said she went willingly but Jinx didn’t believe that. She couldn’t. Hayden wouldn’t just leave her.

And the proof was right in front of her, Hayden was staring at the wall in front of her while continuously going through different emotions, shifting from nothing to sadness, to anger, and starting over again in a cycle. That’s not how someone reacts after willingly going somewhere.

She took a breath before creaking open the window and that was all it took for Hayden’s head to snap in her direction and her hand went to her side, only for her to stiffen when she realized she didn’t have a gun. Jinx’s eyes shifted around the room as she let the other girl process the fact that it was her as she climbed inside. It was extremely simple and plain…. And she didn’t have any weapons there. How was she supposed to protect herself if someone dangerous came in?

“How have you been sweetheart?” As soon as the question was asked Hayden had already ran across the room and threw herself into a hug. Jinx chuckled and wrapped her arms around her as well. She knew her partner wouldn’t have just left her. A smile took over her face as she gave her a few small pats on the back before pulling away.

“Alright, now who do we have to deal with for taking you away? I know you’re probably exhausted so I have a few ways to handle this fast. In fact I brought-“ her hand reached to her side only for Hayden to grab it and shake her head.

“Wait Jinx-“ the blue-haired girl stared at her in confusion, “They’re my parents.” Her expression didn’t change.

“So? They took you away Hayden. They need to know they can’t mess with you or us.” Her eyes hardened as she reached into her side bag and pulled out the personalized gun she had designed for the ex-enforcer a while ago.

“Here, now if we move fast-“ She had gone to hand the weapon to Hayden but the other girl simply let it slip from her hands, she didn’t make any attempt to grip it. That immediately stopped Jinx because the girl always was careful with gifts from her. She called them all special. So then why?

“J-Jinx… you aren’t expecting me to-to…”

The taller girl slowly bent down to pick up the weapon before pushing it into Hayden’s chest more firmly, and the girl grasped it but more out of shock than anything else.

“Like I was saying-“ she tried to move on but Hayden only stiffly shook her head.

“No.”

“What?”

“I’m not killing my parents, I-I can’t! You know they aren’t terrible people they just-“

“They took you away from me!?”

“I came back myself! Someone told me they wanted me so… so I came back and…”

Hayden felt so guilty and couldn’t keep her voice up as she saw Jinx visibly flinch at the admission. The girl took a few steps back to be closer to the window.

“W-what?” Her voice was quiet and vulnerable which made Hayden immediately shake her head again.

“I wasn’t supposed to stay! I was gonna explain to them I was fine and-and happy with you but they just think I’m wrong and can’t think for myself, just like before and I-“

“So why can’t I kill them!” Her voice cracked with the scream and Hayden’s head snapped to the door. Did they hear that yell? Did they hear the arguing already? Did they call enforcers?

“Jinx they’re my parents!”

“So you’re fine with them keeping you here and keeping you away from me? Or-or is that what this is about already?” Hayden stared at her confused but Jinx grabbed her wrists to pull them closer face to face, so Hayden could see the fear and anger in her pink eyes.

“Is this your way of getting away from me? Would you rather stay here with them than stay would me? It’s all just an excuse isn’t it!” Her breathing picked up and Hayden tried to pull away while gathering her quickly shifting thoughts to keep up with Jinx. This had to be the voices right? Jinx didn’t actually think she would just-

“P-please, Jinx, it hurts.” She didn’t want to say it but it was true. Her voice came out in a weak whine, but it was enough to have Jinx’s eyes go wide and her to let go immediately and pull back. By this point, she had already moved back so much that she bumped against the window. Hayden didn’t get a moment to say anything else before Jinx practically jumped out of her room, obviously the shimmer in her veins attributed to her ridiculous speed while doing so.

Hayden slowly sat down on the floor where she was standing, not even bothering to look at her wrist which had definitely bruised at least slightly. She could only focus on the tight feeling in her chest. One she hadn’t felt in a while. Jinx left here there. She was alone again. That thought was all it took for her eyes to start watering again, and it only took a few seconds before she started to sob.

Chapter Text

As soon as she got to her hideout she screamed and started throwing around everything in her reach. It didn’t even matter if a random gadget or two went over the edge or not. She was angry and frustrated. Even if Hayden wanted to leave her, how could she! How could she just leave! And-and-and

“You really are just a walking disaster ruining families wherever you go.” Jinx froze in her spot as a sudden sense washed over her. She felt sick.

She let out a gag as she fell to her knees and gripped her head, “No, No, No, No! I don’t! I don’t destroy families-I didn’t, I-“ Even through her denials Mylo’s voice didn’t stop.

“It wasn’t enough to kill your own family, now you want to take away Hayden’s too?” His laugh echoed in her head and she kept shaking her head but she couldn’t refute any of it. Eventually, she cried herself to the point of exhaustion and by then, the thoughts circling in her head were her own, the frustration she originally aimed at Hayden easily turned into self-loathing.

Why did she leave her there? Hayden… didn’t want to stay with her family, so why did she leave her? That was stupid of her and now Hayden hated her. She hated her and was never coming back to her. And how could she even suggest killing the girl’s parents? What was she thinking! Why did she always lose her cool so quickly whenever Hayden was involved… but her parents deserve to die for trying to take her away-

But she shouldn’t have said that to her! She should have handled it without her knowing, or-or just took her back and left them alone, or even just threatened their lives so they wouldn’t try it again. She should’ve never told her they had to- She was so stupid.

Why did she leave her? Why? She knew Hayden didn’t want to be away from her for so long, her hug proved it, and even through her heightened emotions she could understand that… but, but, she wanted her to hurt like she had been hurting. Jinx had spent so long searching for her in fear and worry, and finding out Hayden went willingly was too much for her. But that was wrong, she shouldn’t have done that, she shouldn’t have left her. Why did she leave her? Hayden hated being alone so why would she leave her there? Hayden had a fear of people giving up on her so why did she leave her? Hayden made it clear she didn’t want to stay so, WHY. DID. SHE. LEAVE. HER?

As she laid on the floor drained from all her crying, silent tears still found their way down her face as all she could do was whimper to herself against the onslaught of constant berating she felt she very much deserved in her mind. She laid there curled up until she ultimately fell asleep with only one thought that finally dominated the rest.

How could she fix this?

Chapter Text

Hayden had been sitting on the floor in the same spot for over half an hour before she heard a knock on her bedroom door.

“Hayden, sweetie, are you okay?” Her mother's voice came into the room before there was a groan that she recognized as her father’s.

“Dear, I think she was just having another meltdown. She’s fine, we made sure there’s nothing she could hurt herself with in there.”

No matter how many times she said she didn’t want to hurt herself they never believed her. They now thought she was simply a bomb waiting to blow up at the slightest things. If she told them Jinx was here they probably would think she was hallucinating too. She closed her eyes and tried to tune out their voices. She doesn’t hate her parents, she couldn’t. They tried so hard to help her and care for her, and a big part of her just feels guilty. She left them. She left them with no explanation and now she’s what? In love with an actual criminal? She could understand why they thought she had gone crazy. Most times she even contemplates the idea as well. But she was fine. They never understood that she was capable of making her own decisions and knowing what they entail. She wasn’t a baby. She didn’t need to be coddled or protected… maybe she wanted to be protected by one person in particular but….

Which didn’t matter anymore because Jinx left her.

With that thought now at the forefront of her mind, she shifted onto her side and curled herself up into a ball before looking down into her hands. She was still holding her gun. She started to aimlessly trace the design drawn on the weapon made just for her. She had loved it, she still loved it, but the idea of using it on her parents- for Jinx to even suggest that was- it was too much. She clutched the weapon to her chest as close as she could, hoping to get some form of comfort from the cold metal, but wasn’t surprised when she didn’t.

Jinx gave up on her, just like Caitlyn did, just like her parents did, just like everyone else. Then again…. Her parents never actually gave up on her since it barely felt like they ever truly trusted her to begin with. Well, with her being locked in her room they probably thought this was their only way to keep her, but she hated it. She hated it there, she wanted to go back and be with Jinx. The girl who accepted her, and not only that, she helped her adjust, helped her fit in, went out of her way to make her comfortable.

…It wasn’t Jinx’s fault, it was her fault for leaving in the first place. Her eyes drifted back down to the gun as she loosened her grip on it. Was this going to be the last thing of her partner that she got to keep? Her parents took away everything else she had come here with, she wouldn’t allow them to do the same with her gun. It was too special, too personal. Thoughts of protecting her last piece of Jinx were all she had as she slowly drifted off

[-]

She awoke to the feeling of someone trying to remove something from her hands. She barely gave herself time to blink away the sleep in her eyes as she shifted and pointed her gun at the offender.

“Hayden! Where did you get that?” The desperate voice of her mother cut through nearly all of her drowsiness as her eyes quickly opened and realized she was pointing her gun at her father. She quickly pulled it behind her back and just stared at him.

“Hayden you don’t know how to handle that, give it to us. It’s not a toy, it’s dangerous.”

She stared back at him with an incredulous look. “I know what a gun is, and I know how to handle one. I was an enforcer not even 2 months ago!”

“And obviously that was a mistake! You go on one job to the undercity and then you what? Fall for a criminal? We should’ve never let you take such a dangerous job! Or you should’ve stayed at the desk, none of this would’ve happened-“

“I was never happy at the desk, and I’m sure as hell not happy now! Why won’t you two-“

“Don’t raise your voice at your father! We know you’re dealing with a lot of big emotions right now but that’s no excuse-“

She was-she was talking to her the same way she did when she was an upset 7-year-old. She’s not a child! Why can’t they-why did they refuse to see her as- was it so unbelievable that she could take care of herself? Maybe she didn’t make good decisions but they were still hers to make, right?

“Mom! I’m not a CHILD!” It was a high-pitched stressed out scream, and Hayden knew she felt so worn out. She just woke up, she could not handle this right now.

Her mother’s eyes softened as her father pulled back and she walked closer. Hayden’s eyes went wide as she shook her head and clutched her gun behind her back. She knew what was going to happen. She always tried to-to silence her and never would listen because when she yelled it meant she was “overwhelmed” or “too upset” never that she wasn’t being heard, never that she just wanted them to hear her.

“Baby it’s okay. We know you’re not a child. We just want you to calm down.”

Seeing the woman kneeling on the ground in front of her was too much. She wiped her eyes with one of her hands, “Mom please, s-stop this. I c-can’t-I-I-“

“Shhh, shhhh, sometimes everything can become too much and that’s okay. Why don’t you pass me the gun and we can talk out all those confusing feelings.”

Her tears wouldn’t stop as she grit her teeth. She wasn’t-she wasn’t confused! She was upset! Rightfully so! Right? She didn’t deserve to be treated like a child, right? Jinx never treated her like that, which always meant the world to her…. But her parents loved her so wouldn’t they also just want the best for her?

“No, no, no, no, no, no, no-“ she closed her eyes and held both her hands up to her ears to block out her mother’s voice. She didn’t notice as her mother went to reach for the gun in one of her hands, but a sharp noise quickly caught her attention. It was the sound of a very familiar gun shooting her window lock, which wasn’t even locked to begin with.

Her breath hitched as she slowly allowed herself to hope as she looked out the window and saw the girl who she desperately wanted to see.

Jinx easily pushed the window open and slid into the room, taking note of the two silent and gaping parents along with Hayden sitting on the floor.

“Hey sweetheart. Did you miss me?”

Chapter Text

“Hey sweetheart. Did you miss me?” Jinx hoped her voice portrayed how terribly sorry she was for leaving her. She already regretted it, but coming up to the window, hearing Hayden crying desperately while her parents tried to coddle her, it made it all the more clear why Hayden told her she felt like she was on a leash when they first met.

Jinx made sure to keep herself still as she only stared at her partner. She couldn’t let her eyes wander to her parents because who knows what she would do about the emotions bubbling inside her at the fact they made her Hayden cry.

The crude voice that mentioned she did the same thing yesterday was promptly ignored in favor of keeping eye contact with the other girl.

“Jinx.” Her voice cracked as she whined out her name and her hands dropped back to her sides before the hand holding the gun was clutched tighter and she practically lunged across the room into her chest.

Jinx took in a deep breath and allowed herself to ease her arms back around Hayden who was clearly doing her best not to fall apart again. She kept her gaze on the ceiling for two reasons. She didn’t deserve to cry, this could’ve been avoided if she had taken Hayden back yesterday. And also, if she didn’t look up she would end up glaring at the other two in the room.

“I’m so sorry lovely. I shouldn’t have left you yesterday.”

Hayden shook her head and slightly pulled back to speak when she was interrupted.

“Yesterday? You were here, in our house yesterday?” Both of the young adults turned to the older woman, one pair of eyes narrowed, while the other were wide. She barely took a second to look her over before gasping, “You-you’re the one who gave her that gun! You’re Jinx, aren’t you?!”

Hayden’s father jumped back as her mother stood up and attempted to glare back at Jinx but it didn’t hold any of the same venomosity.

“You think we’ll let you get away with corrupting our daughter! Hayden! Get away from that girl, she’s no good for you.”

Jinx’s hold around her arms tightened again, and Hayden could see her practically winding up, so she easily took her hands and shook her head. Jinx’s jaw clenched but she easily turned back to the window and stepped outside of it, slightly pulling Hayden along.

“Hayden!!!” Both of her parents screamed as they watched her following the known criminal, but only her mother reacted and jumped to grab her sleeve before she slipped away.

“Hayden, why are you doing this? We want you safe and taken care of, and we can do that here! Whatever she’s telling you is wrong, she lies, she’s a criminal Hayden, you know that!”

“But she listens to me, she hears me, she sees me, she found me. That’s more than I can say about anyone else.”

Her mother’s hold loosened and that was all it took for Hayden to completely pull away and disappear out the window with Jinx. “No!” Even her desperate reach afterward was too late. Her husband came up behind her and pulled her up into a hug. There wasn’t a doubt in either of their minds that Hayden wouldn’t be coming back again. At least not willingly like she did this time.

But what shocked them both was how calm she was when she left, she felt resigned to leaving them as she did, and what she said… made sense. It was exactly what she was crying about them doing, and she apparently found someone to do what they never did.

Chapter Text

“You’ve gotten in trouble for putting your hand in the cookie jarrr…” she mused before sighing. “I have too so I know what it feels like.”

[-]

“Stay away from her!” Jinx quickly retrained her minigun to Caitlyn’s head.

“Powder!” Vi yelled and went to grab her shoulder to stop her but Jinx dodged her and went closer to the other two.

“Excuse me? She’s my partner!” Caitlyn sounded completely miffed but she looked at Vi who shook her head and she stepped back.

“She deserves better than you!”

Hayden couldn’t help but stare at her confused.

“I won’t let you lock her in another cage.”

Realization dawned on her as she realized what Jinx was talking about. Her body heats up as she didn’t expect something like that in this type of moment.

“What are you talking about? She doesn’t have a cage!” Caitlyn was getting frustrated but Hayden shook her head.

“Jinx, it’s okay, she isn’t the problem.”

Jinx ignored her “If that’s really how you think it shows how much you’ve neglected her. I bet you haven’t looked for her once since she’s been here!”

Caitlyn looked upset but she stopped herself because she couldn’t refute that, Hayden bit her lip and tried not to let her feelings show.

[-]

“Stay away from her!” Jinx pulls a gun on Caitlyn while trying to protect Hayden.

Hayden was weirdly touched but so confused.

“She’s my partner!”

“You think I don’t know that! But she deserves better than you!”

Vi is absolutely confused.

Why does Jinx feel so close with this enforcer?

“I won’t let you lock her in her cage again.”

Hayden is surprised because she realized what this was about. Caitlyn is more confused and frustrated.

“What are you talking about? She doesn’t have a cage!”

“You would think that right? She’s from Piltover, she’s not a criminal, why would she be locked in a cage?”

“The fact that you’re so unaware shows how you’ve neglected her.”

“Neglect? What is this even about.”

“Stay away from Hayden, or else.”

“Hayden, what is happening?”

Hayden is conflicted. Her eyes are wide, probably watery. Her hands are clutching her chest, and she looks like she’s going to fall over. She’s staring at Jinx.

“Why? I’m not, I came here to…”

“It doesn’t matter! I just… can’t stand the thought of you going back to suffer. You don’t have to leave, you don’t! You can stay with me!”

“She has a family! Her mother and father, her job, me!” Caitlyn sounded desperate, as if she could see that Hayden was faltering.

Jinx’s expression changed so fast and into one that was angry. Her gun was back on Caitlyn again and she was trying to think of a reason not to shoot.

Hayden comes from behind and grabs her arm, giving her a pleading look.

“Please don’t. I can’t, I need time to think.”

“Time?”
“N-No that’s that’s fine.”
“It’s not like that.”
“She wouldn’t!”
“I said-!”

Hayden didn’t hesitate to place her hands on Jinx's shoulders. Ignoring her expression, her anger/frustration, and the fact that she’s holding a gun. Taking too long to think causes problems.

“Stop. I just need to think for a moment. I… care about you Jinx. More than I thought possible, and I don’t want to lose you. Just give me a few minutes.”

Jinx stares at her while the space is silent. Neither Cait nor Vi know what to say. After a bit, Jinx slowly nods, her eyes just as wide, but with a sense of certainty in them. It makes Hayden let out a breath of relief while the other girl’s eyes are wide.

“Hayden you can’t think like this! You have a life and people who care!” She struggled against her restraints while Jinx’s hand tightened on the gun, but as soon as Hayden placed her hand on top of her she stopped.

“Jinx cares too. And I can’t just… leave her. And it’s not like my life before was all that great, no one cared what I did or said… but Jinx does. And she isn’t embarrassed by me, or treats me like a child who doesn’t know anything. And the undercity is so different from what I’m used to, it’s amazing!”

Caitlyn stared at her devastated. They were partners, and that didn’t matter anymore. “And what about us?”

“Don’t! Cause you were fired! And I was gonna be alone anyway! Do you know how I felt when Marcus said I would get a new partner? I was terrified. I didn’t want to go back to always having to stay behind, only doing paperwork, being ignored, treated like I could only do things wrong, and always laughed at. It was gonna happen, and it was gonna be your fault!”

“My parents did that, not me!”

“And yet you never cared as to why! You tell me I have parents who love me so I should go back, but you do as well, and you ignore them all the time!”

“Hayden!”

“I’m staying with Jinx. Just because Vi doesn’t know where she’s needed, doesn’t mean I don't.”

Jinx looked as if she had stopped breathing when Hayden looked at her, which made her worry that she did something wrong. Her fear seemed to grow as she watched Jinx’s eyes water, but soon the lithe girl was quick to pull her in and hug her as tight as possible.

“I promise to protect you. I promise, I promise, I promise.” She mumbled into her shoulder and Hayden had tensed up at first before she relaxed too and accepted Jinx completely.

“Shortstack I don’t think…” Vi spoke while looking at Caitlyn, she looked so heartbroken. She was having a hard time trying to fit everything together from what she was aware of.

From what she saw they barely interacted with each other. In the prison it seemed like Caitlyn just told Hayden what to do and Hayden either did it or told her she wouldn’t. And then when Hayden went missing, Caitlyn barely seemed to react besides, “She’ll come back”. And while she did bring up a few moments of time with her, she never seemed invested in getting her partner back or anything.

So why did she look so devastated now? Why did she talk to Hayden as if they were close friends or even more? Was there something she was missing? She took her eyes from Caitlyn to continue speaking while looking at Hayden this time, though she was only met with Jinx’s glare. Her eyes widened as she wasn’t expecting such a thing to happen.

[-]

It was tense and loud as Hayden just stared at the chaos around her. It was terrible. They shouldn’t be in this position.

Her eyes narrowed at Jinx who was just staring at her, though it was impossible for her to hide how her eyes softened when Jinx looked so hopeful.

“Help me, please? You’re the only person I can trust right? I can trust you right?”

“Jinx she’s an enforcer! You can not trust her!”

Silco was adamant and Hayden could feel her judgement clouding the more she just stared at the blue-haired girl. The only person who actually had an understanding of her beyond just tolerating her. Jinx made her happy, in a way she never experienced before and probably wouldn’t experience again.

“I’ll help you.” It was a quiet declaration and it felt like her body moved on it’s own but she couldn’t bring herself to care as she watched relief flood into her (friend’s?) eyes as she was then handed a blindfold.

“Can you trust me too?”

Having experienced this before she didn’t hesitate this time to give a small nod and carefully took the blindfold and then put it on herself with Jinx’s help.

“J-Jinx?”

“Yea, sweetheart?”

“Please don’t be too reckless.”

She couldn’t see it, the way that Jinx’s eyes narrowed and a shadow seemed to overtake her face. She walked closer to her and wrapped her arms around her before speaking in her ear.

“I just need to handle a problem.” Hayden couldn’t stop the shiver that she felt go through her, making her face heat up but she could only offer a slow nod in response.

“O-okay.”

Chapter Text

If Jinx brought Hayden with her to one of her jobs, the girl would be horrified by what she saw. The pure carnage and destruction that her lover is capable of… people don't just hurt others for no reason. Who would do something like this? It's beyond terrible?

That's all she could think until Jinx looked back at her in the middle of the chaos. Those eyes are mirthful and bright with a hint of insecurity as they hope this didn’t cross the line and that this didn't push her away. That they could still be- whatever they might be.

Hayden closes her eyes for a second, though it feels longer, and she smiles. It's a shy smile, one that only Jinx has had the privilege to see. It's embarrassed and personal because Jinx makes her feel so many things in such a small amount of time. Everything else around them is irrelevant, Jinx looked to Hayden because that's who matters to her, and Hayden's heart can't help but flutter knowing that.

The first time Jinx murdered someone directly in front of Hayden it was the scariest thing for her. It seemed to come out of nowhere. They were together and Jinx separated for only a moment, but that moment was more than enough time for someone to come over and question her. They were asking her about seeing her as an enforcer before, and while they were being a bit confrontational, Hayden resolved to try to be cordial until Jinx returned. She did not expect Jinx to shoot their hand as soon as she saw them reach for her from a distance. The sudden blood froze her in place as the blue-haired girl approached and they cried out in pain. Jinx was quiet as she came over and looked at her lover, a simmering rage that the ex-enforcer truly wasn't familiar with radiating off of her. 

She asked what they were talking about, and it took Hayden a moment to get herself together but she eventually did and quietly answered her. She didn't even get a chance to suspect anything as the very next second, Jinx shot the man again but this time in the head. In fear, Hayden clung to Jinx not able to understand what happened but her eyes stayed glued to the body. Jinx took a moment to calm down while letting Hayden hold onto her, the action helping her ground herself as well. 

Eventually, once Jinx realized Hayden was basically traumatized, she had to (first spiral a bit) before trying her best to apologize and explain herself. Some comfort, the apology, and physical touch altogether? Hayden forgave her easily of course. How could she be upset looking into Jinx's eyes and seeing nothing but concern and love there? 

Neither of them realizes it's happening, but Jinx slowly conditions Hayden to become desensitized to her life. Murder and terrorism are her norms, but even though she knows Hayden looks past that to see her, she always catches those glimpses of the ‘Piltover Influence’ as she calls it. When Hayden can’t help but pull away from certain things, topics, or sights. Jinx doesn't like it, she doesn't want her lover to ever pull away for any reason. So she has to work on it. Death is normal in Zaun, that's a fact. Just walking around can get her familiar with that, Jinx knows she probably came across at least a few corpses when she was lost before.

Crime is common too, and the best way to show that is to let it happen to them. Leave something out; it's stolen, Stay too close to certain areas; you get mugged (They can handle it of course. Use your gun Hayden, it's okay.) Look away from your drink; you get drugged. 

And the easiest and yet the saddest one, it's all too easy to turn Hayden away from Piltover both culture-wise and systemically. Piltover hurt Hayden, Jinx knows that, so whenever she brings up how it hurt her too, she always has her lover's undivided attention. Hayden listens and agrees with her problems with Piltover and while she does not endorse the terrorism, She grasps some understanding of why. But she can't see it. She can't see that sight again, Jinx is the only reason she could move on from that night on the bridge. It was too much for her. Jinx doesn't see it that way but accepts it. Best 2 out of 3 she supposed.

Chapter Text

It hurt to know Jinx didn’t want her any closer, but she understood. This was a moment between Jinx and her pseudo-father figure. She sat quietly on the shore of the riverbank while lightly running her hands through the dirt as she watched her partner from a distance, mourning the man many only saw as a villain. It was hard knowing she wanted to support the other woman but also give her the space she needed to grieve properly.

As she sat there, her mind flitted through the past few days and the consequences of choosing to stay with Jinx after that extremely uncomfortable and traumatizing tea party. There was nothing left for her back in Piltover, at least nothing that she wanted to return to nearly as much as how she wanted to try and hold the distraught girl she met a few days ago, together. Even though she might miss her parents and she might have essentially given up on her dreams, in the end, all they ever did was hurt her. Her parents with their constant ignorance, and her dreams hurt simply because she knew they would never come true. It didn’t seem like anyone actually thought she could do any part of her job; the idea of Haywire Hayden helping someone was ridiculous.

At least with Jinx she felt like they both needed each other. Hayden needed someone to not just see her as a burden to push to the side, and Jinx… she desperately needed someone to truly stay with her and show her she isn't just her namesake. She might not know much about Jinx's past, but she could understand that it wasn't very good, and then losing Vi and Silco right after almost dying wouldn't have helped her mental state at all.

Hayden tightly clenched her eyes together before letting out a deep breath and opening them again. That’s… not a good way to view their relationship. That didn’t sound… healthy, but then again, it’s not like she had much experience with relationships, and she doubted Jinx had much either. It was fine, it would all be fine, they would make it work. It might take a while for Jinx to cope with this, and maybe, just maybe, Hayden might need a moment to dwell on the thought that the girl she chose to stay with may or may not have blown up the council… the very council she basically worked under not even a week ago. But she was fine, and hopefully they would figure it out together.

As Hayden slowly released the handful of dirt she was suddenly gripping, she did her best to untense her muscles that she hadn't even noticed tightening. Maybe she wasn’t as okay as she wanted to be, but this was Jinx’s time so she would deal with her thoughts later. That thought was enough for her to go back to waiting as silently as she could until the other girl resurfaced.

Jinx took her time in the murky waters before finally coming back over, and the defeated look in her eyes did nothing to settle the sour and twisted feeling Hayden had in her gut.

“Let’s go.” Jinx's voice lacked any emotion and Hayden stood up for only a second before throwing herself forward to give the other woman as tight a hug as she could manage, not giving any mind as she was getting wet in the process. Jinx hesitated for only a moment before sagging into the hug and burying her face into her shoulder. It didn’t come to either of their attention that they both were slightly shivering in each other's arms, the emotional weight of the past few hours hitting them both as soon as they felt the slightest bit of care after everything that happened.

Hayden was finally the one to pull back to look over Jinx. She was soaked and miserable, but there was something there as she stared back at Hayden that the older girl knew wasn't there when they first arrived. She went to speak, maybe to apologize for her loss, or to tell her she was there for her, or to say anything at all, but her voice caught and she furrowed her eyebrows before letting out a soft sigh. She decided to just take Jinx’s hand and slowly guide her away from the river.

She didn’t need to say anything; they both knew they were all the other had now. Hayden wasn’t leaving Jinx, and Jinx wouldn’t leave Hayden. It only took a few steps of her slightly pulling the other before Jinx started to walk beside her without being guided. The silence was fine for them as they just appreciated each other for being there.

Chapter Text

They had to lie low. There were posters around everywhere of Jinx, and while there weren’t anywhere near as many, there were a few of Hayden as well. Though they were all wanted posters, they couldn’t be more different. Jinx’s were vilified and terrifying to look at, while Hayden’s was an actual picture of her from some years ago. She looked ashamed in the image and wasn’t even staring at the camera. Annoyingly enough, the ex-enforcer could remember the exact incident that led to that image. 

Her parents had finished scolding her right after she had wandered off ahead and they couldn’t find her. It didn’t matter that she was 15 at the time and was more than capable of getting back home, even if she did get lost in Piltover. They had freaked out and took that photo as soon as they had gotten back in the case, “they lost her and needed to report her as a missing person.” She wasn’t happy that this turned out to be how they used that picture. Especially since she thought it was clear she was staying with Jinx by choice, and not lost or kidnapped or anything else they might have been saying. It wasn’t clear if Vi or Caitlyn ever mentioned it, given the likely chaos of the tea party's aftermath.

Hayden still wasn’t completely sure how she felt about leaving her entire life behind, but she would not regret picking Jinx.

They lived in Jinx’s lair together, and usually left it only when necessary, but throughout the past 2 weeks, either they went out together, or Jinx went out alone. 

Currently, they were both putting on their cloaks as they planned to leave to get something to eat, and Hayden felt more used to their system by now. They had to stay close to each other, but wouldn’t talk until they got where they were going; that’s why they went over everything they needed before they left. And if anything came up at all, Jinx would handle it; Hayden would only interfere if she had to protect herself. That had only happened once so far, but that was still something Jinx occasionally grumbled about.

It happened when they just so happened to be walking underneath a broken pipe path. There was some sort of yell or whine that they heard above them, and there was barely enough time to look up before a figure landed directly on top of Jinx.

Hayden blinked, and only through her recent self-conditioning was she able to not call out her partner’s name. That could cause more trouble compared to just helping her up. Besides, after a moment she could easily see it was just a kid who fell, and that’s not a big concern.

Hayden offered a hand to both Jinx and to the small girl at the same time as 3 bulky figures started to slide down the nearby pipes to surround them. The little girl shrank back, but Jinx didn’t hesitate to take the hand to pull herself up, but the movement made her hood fall.

One of the guys only had time to flinch in recognition before Jinx switched from nodding at her partner to quickly and simply shooting all 3 of the goons without hesitation. Hayden didn’t bother watching at all as she offered her hand to the child again.

The girl looked up at her for a moment before her gaze shifted to the falling men, then to Jinx, all with wide eyes. Jinx blew off her gun while eyeing the girl as well, the two sharing eye contact before Jinx started to swing it around menacingly.

The girl flinched back and suddenly grabbed Hayden’s hand to accept the help.

“Are you okay?” Hayden spoke slowly and quietly, but the child stared at her for a few seconds before her eyes drifted to the side where the wall covered in wanted posters was. Almost all of them were Jinx, but a scant few had her face too.

The blue-haired girl gave a scoff, but Hayden gave her a look and Jinx pouted slightly before turning away from them both. The girl looked between them a few more times silently, and Hayden turned back to Jinx questionably, as if she would know what could be wrong with the child.

The other girl rolled her eyes before gesturing to Hayden to come over with her gun, and Hayden sighed but ultimately followed.

Jinx took a moment to stare at the kid before finally speaking with a lazy drawl, “I think you’re smart enough to get who we are, so, if you ever need to curse a sibling, or a family, or a society, there’s my card.” She snapped at the posters before holstering her gun and taking Hayden’s hand to guide her away. The ex-enforcer quickly shifted to lift Jinx’s hood with her free hand and the other girl raised an eyebrow at her, which made her freeze once she realized.

“I know you would’ve pulled it up, but I was just faster, that’s all.” She mumbled her own excuse and Jinx chuckled but still dropped the topic while squeezing her hand before releasing it. The no-talking rule was back in effect then… which meant that even though both of them noticed their small follower, they weren’t bringing it up until later.

[-]

Hayden at least had the decency to let Jinx set down her weapons and take off her cloak before she brought up the topic she had a feeling Jinx wouldn’t bring up.

She let out a breath as she started to take off her own cloak and laid it on one of the many less-used objects her partner had propped up in her lair. “That little girl followed us the whole way to the market and back.”

Jinx gave a noncommittal hum and started to stuff the bits of bread and poorly wrapped food in one of the cabinets she had made for storage. “Yep.”

Hayden stood in place, swaying lightly while nervously watching the other. She wasn’t really sure where this conversation would go despite her hopes, “She didn’t say anything though.”

“Nope.”

“I wonder if she’s okay after running from the Baron’s men for who knows how long.”

“Not our business.”

“Jinx… she’s a kid.”

“There are tons of kids down here, sweetheart. They live through all types of stuff. Either they get through it well enough, or they don’t.” Jinx slammed the cabinet door shut unintentionally at the moment, which gave way to a sudden silence that lasted for only a few seconds. Eventually, Hayden continued tentatively, taking notice that Jinx was still facing the cabinet despite finishing already.

“I like kids…”

“Yeah, well, it’s not like we can just take the brat in. Who knows what would happen to her for being with- us.” There was a little hitch before she added “us” though both of them knew what she meant, but didn’t speak on it.

“But it doesn't seem like she has anywhere else to go.” She didn’t want to admit it, but Hayden sounded a bit desperate even to her ears. She just really didn’t like the idea of them making the active choice to ignore a kid who was following them. Even while knowing they’re wanted.

“That's what happens to kids down here. I thought you knew this by now.” Jinx's voice was hard and Hayden stopped again, but this time she felt her shoulders drop before she turned to look away from the other girl herself. Her eyes shifted to the large fans, she found herself walking over and sitting down, something she was more familiar with Jinx doing when she wanted space or was feeling really down.

“Okay.” As soon as the other acknowledged dropping the argument, Jinx stood up from her crouched position under the desk. She stayed still for a few moments while opening and closing her hands a few times, and then finally letting out a deep sigh and turning to face her partner… who happened to be surprisingly sitting on one of the propellers of her lair.

“I thought you were scared of the ledges?” 

“Well… when your girlfriend teases you constantly by going onto these things whenever you try and get her back for messing with you, you start to be less afraid and more annoyed. Besides, maybe I’m feeling a bit brave today.” 

Jinx walked over slowly, keeping control of her own breathing so she wouldn’t give away how her nerves immediately spiked at the word and weren't going back down. Once she was next to the girl, she quickly joined her and swallowed. “Girlfriend?”

Hayden froze for a moment, but this time she let out a breath and tilted her head so she was looking Jinx directly in the eyes. Hayden only initiated eye contact when she was trying to be as honest with Jinx as she could be. “Yes… or I hope so?”

Jinx sucked in a breath and basically held it as she kept staring at the girl in front of her.

“Breathe, Jinx.”

The reminder was necessary, as she then let out the rush of air she was holding in. Hayden gave a small mix of a chuff and a laugh, though she did look away and started to shift her one hand against the hem of her shirt… the other was gripping the ledge right next to her that was connecting them to the middle part. “Could I maybe get an answer too?” She asked softly, but Jinx’s eyes had already shifted to both of her hands.

“Yes.” She finally breathed out her answer, and her eyes went back to meet Hayden’s again, who let out her own relieved sigh and gave her a shy smile.

“I guess you really are being brave today.”

“So brave, but please can we get up now? I was being dramatic and brooding, but I don't like it actually.” Her voice had gone up in pitch, and Jinx lasted exactly 3 seconds before she burst out laughing.

Hayden stared at her with a mix of feelings: offended, upset, but also a bit delighted. It was the first time she had seen Jinx laugh like that… even after she basically moved in with her, she had been rightly depressed for the most part, while occasionally being teasing or cheeky, but mostly pretty solemn. She wanted to appreciate the moment… and yet, “Jinx!” She glared at the other girl who only stopped laughing after hearing her name, but she still had a smirk on her face.

“Okay then, girlfriend, I guess we can get up now.” 

“Good- Jinx!” Despite her intentions of getting up herself, she wasn’t given any chance or warning before she was scooped up and then immediately carried over to the bed and unceremoniously dropped onto her mattress in barely a second. The mattress was only a few feet away from Jinx’s main working/tinkering area since the other girl refused to sleep on the fan, despite Jinx’s many, many assurances that it was safe

“What was that for?!”

“We both know you would’ve been super slow and scared the whole time. So you’re welcome.”

Hayden just stared at her with wide eyes, but Jinx continued to smirk down at her. “I take payment in any and all kisses.”

That made Hayden blink a few times before she flushed and then threw a pillow at Jinx as hard as she could. The girl caught it in her hands and raised an eyebrow, which just made Hayden drop her face into the bed and groan. Jinx chuckled before dropping down right next to her, but looking up above them as she let her girlfriend settle.

“You know… You weren’t like this before, what, do you always wait until someone moves in with you before revealing you’re a secret menace?”

“Newsflash lovely, everyone else already knows I’m a menace. You’re the one who didn’t read the fine print when you decided to stay with me.”

“Oh really?”

“Yep.”

“Well, I guess it’s too late for me now.”

“Absolutely. You’re stuck with me forever.” 

Hayden hummed in acknowledgement before leaning forward and kissing Jinx on the cheek. “I think I’m okay with that.”

“Oh.” This time, Hayden was the one to start laughing at the clearly overwhelmed yet still pleased expression Jinx had, but the girl gave her only a few seconds to laugh before hitting her with a pillow, multiple times.

“Jinx!”

Chapter Text

Hayden woke up later than Jinx the next day, but one thing she noticed immediately was her girlfriend’s somberness.

The girl was quietly sitting at her desk, fiddling with her toys, but without any actual interest. Her eyes followed her own movements more out of habit than passion, and Hayden bit her lip because she immediately knew that Jinx wasn't feeling okay.

They were walking through the Undercity again, but this time with a very specific destination in mind. Most of the morning was spent quietly beforehand, Jinx lacking much energy and seemingly wrapped up in her head again. The blue-haired girl tried to tinker for a bit, but Hayden could see she wasn’t actually interested in doing so; she lacked any enthusiasm in whatever she was making and was simply going through motions.

So she suggested they go for a walk, and Jinx quietly asked if they could visit The Last Drop.

As if Hayden would ever deny her a request like that. She would've felt offended if Jinx didn’t look like she wasn’t even sure if she wanted to go there or what she was even expecting.

That broke Hayden's heart, and so she encouraged the girl and hoped Jinx would find whatever she wanted when they got there.

The bar was basically abandoned, but neither of them expected any less. This was probably the third time they had visited since the tea party, but that fact hadn't changed.

Hayden followed behind Jinx quietly as the girl ambled her way up the stairs, moving slowly, as if memories were catching her at every step. She wished she could help her with whatever she was thinking, but Jinx knew she was here and if she wanted comfort, she was more than used to getting it when she wanted by now.

Once they reached the top, Jinx stood at the door for a few seconds. Hayden held her breath and waited until the girl finally pushed open the door softly.

“Oh.” It was a quiet remark made as she walked into the room and there actually was something different. Right on the table was a huge prosthetic arm… a familiar prosthetic arm at that.

Hayden watched Jinx closely to try and figure out what her reaction to the news of Sevika coming here would be… But Jinx just stared at it for several moments before letting out a loud scoff and kicking the chair closest to her with a scowl.

“Jinx?” She called her name softly, maybe hoping to gauge where her head was currently. Jinx's head snapped to her, eyes sharp, aware, and even slightly glowing, but Hayden kept her gaze soft.

Jinx blinked a few times, her hands raising from her sides, almost reaching for her head, but then she dropped them and let out a deep sigh. “Silco wasn't only important to me, I guess.” She murmured it out, but it was still clear to Hayden in the empty room. She offered her hand, and Jinx didn’t hesitate to grab it and step closer to her again, just holding it close for however long they both stood there grounding Jinx. She wasn’t alone, and that's what mattered.

“Do you think she'll come back anytime soon?” Hayden asked softly once Jinx looked more stable and wasn’t holding her hand as if she was holding on for her own life.

“I doubt she would go without her arm for too long. She'll be back.” Hayden looked at Jinx carefully. The other girl seemed okay again, so she risked pulling away, and she let her.

“And us?”

“We can wait.”

“Okay.”

[-]

This was the third time they came here since the incident, and each time Jinx had very different reactions based on what she was feeling. So when Sevika came into the office all slow and clearly irritated, Hayden kinda anticipated it. Even when the older woman started talking to Silco's chair, it wasn’t like she hadn't watched Jinx do the same barely some days ago.

Jinx teasing Sevika instantly, though… she didn’t expect that. Especially knowing the mood the girl was in earlier, but maybe Jinx also was aware that Sevika and herself were just the ones left behind at this point.

“Jeez, lady, you crazy?” Jinx laid on the beam lazily as Sevika instantly threw the screw at her and nailed her braid. “Talking to dead people.”

Hayden let out a gasp from her spot next to the girl, which made the older woman glance between the two of them with a scowl.

“You brought your pet enforcer with you to help finish me off?”

Jinx gave a noncommittal hum as she pulled the screwdriver from both her braid and the wooden beam. Her head lightly bumped against Hayden's leg, a small show of affection, before she started slowly sliding herself down from her position. “Haven’t I done you enough favors?”

She fully dropped down and landed on the table in a curled-up position. She wrapped her arms around herself as she stared at the empty chair in front of her.

Hayden felt her chest tighten as she watched the woman Jinx continuously described as an ogre stare the other girl down with clear hate in her eyes. She didn’t even feel comfortable looking at her girlfriend anymore as she gave her full attention to the woman picking up a glass bottle behind her.

She swallowed thinly, but placed her hand on her gun. She wasn’t sure what Jinx wanted from this woman or why they waited for her… but she refused to let her get hurt, especially not when she was in such a vulnerable state. Whoever this woman was, she was way too focused on Jinx to even remember there was another girl there as well.

Too bad for her.

“Same time every day. Big baby couldn’t do it himself.”

Hayden didn’t even realize how intensely she had wound herself up until the older woman slowly dropped her glass and let out a sigh. Her hand didn't move from its place on her pistol, but her shoulders did drop, and she closed her eyes for a few seconds to take some breaths.

Jinx was okay. She didn’t need to shoot this lady, and by the sounds of it, she probably wouldn't have to anytime soon.

“Couldn’t do much himself.” Jinx gave another hum just as Hayden felt ready to continue observing the scene below. “About now, he’d have me all over the Lanes running his collections.”

“Building his weapons.”

“Making his deals.”

“Exploding his enemies.”

Listening to the two women below speak about Silco in such sad and yet clearly nostalgic tones was depressing for her as well. Hayden let out her own soft breath before leaning all the way back so she was just staring at the wooden roof and continued to listen.

“He dips out, the whole world flips over.” There was a small growl she let out, right before Hayden heard a shift, and she quickly sat back up to see Sevika throwing a chair with a frustrated shout. She stared at the sudden wreckage before looking back at the older woman again. She even noticed Jinx was watching her too as the woman breathed out heavily.

“All his plans. Everything we built.” She took a few wandering steps forward, “The hell we supposed to do now?” She turned back to face Jinx sitting on the table.

Jinx had grabbed her broken prosthetic arm and swung it around. Close enough to startle the woman, but in such a lax and uninterested fashion that the woman didn't feel the need to retaliate.

Hayden stared down at her girlfriend. As far as she knew, they'd both been pretty aimless the past few weeks. All she wanted was to stay with Jinx, to be there for the one person she felt like could understand her… but Jinx herself hasn't cared about much else since the tea party. The girl has shown a lot of care in also staying with Hayden, but even after only being with her girlfriend for such a short amount of time, she knew Jinx thrived when she had a purpose. Even more so when that purpose was for someone or something else.

Hayden knew she couldn’t give Jinx a purpose because all she wanted was to be with her. As long as they were together she was fine. So if Jinx suddenly made up her mind on what she wanted, then she wanted to show she would be there with her. She jumped down behind Sevika, a stable and secure landing on her two feet, and she watched as Jinx's eyes shifted from their lazy indifference while looking at nothing to making direct eye contact with her.

Her heart hammered as those pink eyes stayed locked on her own, and Jinx finally gave her answer.

“Watch it all burn.”

Her eyes went wide and she let out a small, “Oh,” but they both held the contact for much longer than necessary.

Sevika gave out a scoff. “Is that okay with your little pet enforcer over here?”

Both of their eyes dragged back over to the woman, but it didn't last long as Jinx quickly looked back at her silently, before raising a single brow in a question.

Hayden took a moment to realize she really needed to answer, but once she did, she still didn’t know how to untangle the many conflicting thoughts she had. But in the end, she had two main concerns.

She was an enforcer; she had a duty to protect the people, and Jinx's idea would absolutely hurt too many.

But she was also Jinx's girlfriend, and she had to support her. ( And she wanted to do so as well.)

It was getting close to a minute of silence, and she shook her head to get rid of her fighting thoughts before stomping her foot and then walking over to the table where Jinx was. She opened her mouth to finally answer, but her eyebrows furrowed, and then she glared at the girl, only a few inches from her face.

Jinx went from questioning to confused pretty fast; she even spared a glance at Sevika in her nervousness before immediately looking back at Hayden in front of her.

“Who am I?”

“What?”

“Who am I, Jinx?”

“Hayden?”

She leaned closer and shook her head. Jinx's eyes quickly dropped to her lips before jumping back up to her eyes.

The ex-enforcer sucked her teeth before pulling back to a reasonable distance.

Jinx was still quiet but staring at her in shock.

“Would you just let anyone get in your face like that? Any old enforcer would be acceptable? An enforcer pet who just does your bidding?”

As she spoke, she watched Jinx's mouth drop, but she could see that the girl was finally starting to understand.

“You're my girlfriend.”

“Yes, yes, I am. I chose you, Jinx, and I'll keep choosing you. Alright?”

The other girl nodded slowly, the same second Sevika gave a low whistle.

“Never thought I'd see the day you would be put in your place like that.”

Jinx scowled and rolled her eyes, “Don’t get used to it.”

Hayden, whose heart rate had finally started to calm down, and she felt the weird adrenaline rush she had given herself giving way to realizing how bold she just was, gave a breathless and awed giggle.

She never spoke up to someone like that before… Especially not someone she cared about. She would always just go along with anything, but when she was just going to tell Jinx she would stick with her, she couldn’t help but think back to Sevika's words and found herself a bit irritated.

She felt frustrated many times before, but she never thought the people around her would actually care or do anything, so she didn’t bother bringing up her problems… but Jinx was helping her open up, it was just unfortunate that the first time she had to speak up for herself was for something like this, though.

But she felt a bit happy and in awe of herself. It felt good to make her point and actually force her girlfriend to understand.

“You good there, sweetheart? You're looking a little flushed?”

Hayden focused again around herself, only to realize they were alone and Jinx was right in front of her. She smiled before quickly leaning in and finally kissing her girlfriend. Her arms quickly grabbed her sides as Jinx gasped into the sudden kiss, but returned it just as fiercely.

Neither cared much for breathing during the kiss, so when they inevitably broke apart, they were both panting to catch their breath.

“What's gotten into you today?” Jinx barely got the words out, but Hayden just chuckled lowly before resting her head against Jinx's shoulder.

“This is just me showing you how much I appreciate you. Don't think about it too hard.”

Hayden watched as Jinx mulled over the words and still stared at her a bit confused, but she soon let out a sigh and took her hand. “I think that's enough excitement for one day, though. Let's head back.”

“Okay.”