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1. Cassandra
“Caitlyn, it’s the third this month.”
The girl froze at the doors of her mother’s office. “I’ve no idea what you are talking about, Mother. I was simply strolling through the main entrance.”
The matriarch of House Kiramman lifted her brow. “Did you now, dear?”
The sixteen-year-old girl shrugged, playing completely obvious.
Her mother’s sigh was heavy and she shook her head disapprovingly. “You need to stop bringing home strays, Caitlyn. It damages your reputation and mine. A councillor's daughter can't just... mingle with such activities much less with some nobodies, do you understand me?”
“I’m not-”
“I can sense your scheming, Caitlyn. I am your mother.”
“I-ugh. Fine, I suppose, I’ll be more careful next time.” She started to close the door.
“Perfe-Caitlyn!”
A cup met with a table rather loudly, making Caitlyn flinch with giggle. She closed the door before her mother could scold her more. Instead, she put her pointing finger to her mouth, guiding the other girl carefully to her room to not draw any attention to them. She held her hand tightly, refusing to let their fingers separate.
“Your mother will be furious, Cait!”
“Let her,” she shushed the blonde.
“But-”
“I have to show you my ceiling! You’re going to love it! And then, the gardens, c'mon.”
2. Jayce (ft. Viktor)
Caitlyn had planned this perfectly. She'd waited until Jayce left to get them some lunch before she shifted closer to his partner. It was an unexpected visit, but she was glad that she caught Viktor present at their lab and even got a moment without Jayce with him. And yet, she had a feeling Viktor rarely was anywhere else.
“So, Viktor-” She knocked the tips of her fingers into the table.
“You’re up to something, Miss Kiramman?”
“I-Yes-I’ve told you already, it’s Caitlyn.” She cringed at the way he pronounced her family name, and it was not because of his accent. They've known each other long enough to get past formalities and she refused to have Jayce's partner be a stranger to her. “I have a favour to ask of you.”
“Oh?” He stopped tinkering with the crystal to look at her.
“It’s about Jayce,” she revealed, noticing how his eyes dilated at the sound of Talis’s name. “Well, next week it’s his birthday, as you probably know very well, and well, I thought you might’ve wanted to help me organise this little party I had in mind.”
His chuckles seemed cold. “Me? And a party? Miss Kiram-Caitlyn. I don’t think I’m the right person to ask of this.”
“I mean… I would’ve invited you either way. How could I not? Viktor, Jayce’s already behaving like he’s about to share with you his family name. Which technically he's already doing.” She ignored the way he shot her a shocked look. Jayce had revealed to her that his last name made it easier for Viktor to find better doctors, and it wasn't a secret Viktor needed a lot of specific treatments. “Of course, you would have to be there. I just thought you might’ve wanted to be more invested in it since I kind of… hoped I could use his flat for it?”
A little more colour has appeared on his face after the remainder of their established relationship. “And you’re asking me for the help with it, because?”
Caitlyn leaned in his direction and dropped a little volume in case somebody was listening. “Well, he gave you the key, didn’t he?”
“I would gravely overstep Jayce’s trust if-”
“If you organised a surprise birthday party for your boyfriend?”
“...Eh… Yes?”
“Oh, please, Viktor! It will be so much fun. We’ll invite your assistant, other staff, Professor Heimerdinger, some friends from the Academy, Mrs Talis, my parents, and maybe even Councillor Medarda! Jayce’ll love it, you know he will.”
Much to her surprise, a frown appeared on Viktor’s face. The scientist contemplated the proposition, even more unhappy than at the beginning of the subject. “With all due respect… I…” He breathed deeply before continuing. “Alright. I’ll help you.” He bowed his head. “It’ll make Jayce happy.”
He said it with such unexpected sadness in his voice that Caitlyn couldn’t help but feel sorry for whatever she had said wrong. “If it’s really so uncomfortable for you, I can think of some other gift-”
“No,” he cut her off. An awful grimace was present on his face. “I’m just… Never mind. What will you need aside from the key?”
Still unsure, Caitlyn thought it over once more. “I’d cover everything, you just need to make sure he has plans for that day and bring him back when the time comes.”
3. Jayce 2.0
“Releasing a prisoner on my orders, aren't we now, Cait?”
A sigh left Caitlyn’s lips as she stared uselessly at her friend from the couch in the living room. “She led me to directly Silco.” More or less.
“I sure hope she did, because we had no such luck,” he revealed, looking rather miserable.
“Without a doubt, turns out brute force on a few factories doesn’t solve a thing, huh, Defender?”
Jayce’s mouth closed shut, his gaze lowered. He opened it, staying silent at first. Then, he placed a firm hand on her shoulder. “Some schemes aren’t worth it.”
“Oh, like that one time, you and Viktor snicked into Professor Heimerdinger’s office-”
“Caitlyn.”
A giggle died in her throat, as she cleared her throat. “And Vi?”
“She left.”
Of course, she did. Caitlyn wasn’t even surprised any more. And still, all the things Vi said were running through her head like a bullet train, stuck in one place and nothing could stop them. What could’ve been if she made different decisions? Perhaps Vi could’ve stayed. Perhaps Jinx could’ve been arrested. Perhaps her mother wouldn’t have been disappointed in her.
“You should’ve seen my face,” Jayce mused with a chuckle. “Sheriff asked me if it was something he could assist me with. And I went like… we’ve got it covered. Like shit, we had.”
“I needed her help. And there wasn’t much time, and you were, as I can recall… Otherwise busy.” She moved her eyebrows suggestively.
“Very funny.”
4. Ambessa
She had some doubts. That afternoon when she was given the title. That night when everyone celebrated the new person in power. One that would bring them security. One that would bring them justice. One that would bring justice to her mother’s murderer.
She remembered the whole situation as through a fog. The ringing in her ears and the dull pain in her head not letting her focus completely. She remembered the drums of the hits to the chest. First Ambessa’s, then her soldiers, then Maddie’s.
“A wise wolf is a living wolf, Commander,” Ambessa had told her that night.
“Your daughter is missing,” Caitlyn pointed out. “So is Jayce and I don’t… I don’t know what to do now.”
As if she didn’t hear what the young woman had said, Medarda’s fingers tightened around her shoulder. “That is what I am here for, young one. With my advice and greatly trained people, we’ll break the Undercity from the bottom up to make things right.” The gleam in her eyes was too dangerous for Caitlyn not to miss.
“I trust you,” she spat out, but deep down she bit her tongue to say something else.
“And that’s your first wise decision. My congratulations, Cailtyn Kiramman.”
She watched her walk away. She watched as the people smiled at her, their looks full of hope. And determination, her oldest enemy.
She had to wait with her scheming to work out Ambessa’s hidden intentions. Some plans were a matter of time.
5. Maddie
Staring at that wall had become a ritual of sorts. Caitlyn did this, more or less aware of her surroundings. She stared right at the middle. Right at that damned picture of the monster she wanted to hunt down. She breathed heavily, partly imagining herself strolling through Zaun, every breath heavy and quite loud, courtesy of the mask filtering the poisoned air. The Grey-
She flinched when the sound of the knocking intruded into her brain.
“Enter,” the command was firm, but not harsh.
The opening revealed almost the last person she wanted to see that night. “Hi.”
“Hi,” she answered nonetheless. Maddie stepped lightly into the room, standing between Caitlyn and Jinx.
“Long night, huh?”
“Like every other,” Cait averted her eyes, not wanting to be called obsessed. She was not. She was just furious.
Whatever that was, the thing Junior Officer Nolan wanted to tell her. It was probably already forgotten as she stood there awkwardly, looking around. They both knew the room well enough, not to need to do it to memorise every inch of it.
“I… I was waiting for you-”
“I know,” a sigh. “I’m sorry. Go to sleep, Maddie. I’ll join you soon, alright?”
The eyes of the Head of House Kiramman were focused on the right edge of the map. She needed to think. About Zaun, which was currently under heavy guard.
About her mother, who thought that the people of the Undercity deserved to breathe.
About Ambessa, who was given access to too much knowledge of Piltover than needed.
About Jayce and Mel, who had suddenly disappeared.
About Jinx, whose head on a fucking silver plate was the only thing she desperately desired at that moment.
About Vi, who betrayed her-
She was ready to break the whole arm when she felt fingers on her cheek.
She blocked the thought, though, realising it was only Maddie. Maddie, who had stayed at her side when her partner had left. The same Maddie currently staring at her, but not in the same way she did at the blue-haired wretch. That Maddie had soft features. A lovely smile, a gentle one. Meeting her eyes was a challenge. It was unclear to her, whether the girl could read her mind or was just very sympathetic towards her. Maybe both. She didn’t know her that well.
Vi, on the other hand-
Caitlyn placed her palm atop hers.
“It’s late. You’re supposed to lead tomorrow’s patrol in the Academy District…”
“You mean today’s? Cait, it’s like midnight.”
“Oh.”
“Oh.” The teasing was loud and clear even with the blood pulsing through Caitlyn’s ears, making her head hurt. “C’mon, Commander.” Her hand ran from the cheek to the neck, right along the shoulder and down to the palm, locking their fingers together. “You’ll scheme more later.”
“I am not scheming, Madeline.”
“Could’ve fooled me once before, Caitlyn,” she shrugged, smirking leisurely. A finger booped on the Kiramman’s nose. “And now? Nuh-uh.”
Caitlyn rolled her eyes at the harmless bickering. If Vi had been there with her-
1
“You look like a scheming mastermind behind the greatest heist of one of Piltover’s richest banks.”
If she didn’t know any better Caitlyn would’ve laughed at the joke. So, she could only snort. “And that makes you what? A pup on my lap for me to pet?”
“Yeah, yeah I’m- wait.” The arms previously thrown on top of her shoulders suddenly left their place. “Did you just call me a lap dog?”
“You’ve called me a mongoose once.”
“Because you are one.” Vi made a few steps with her arms now crossed around her chest. She propped her tights against the table to look Caitlyn in the eye. “But seriously, you wanna talk?”
“No,” she turned off the device of her family’s history. “Everything’s perfect.” She brought the papers closer to her girlfriend. “The statue I commissioned for the Academy is almost ready. I’ll be giving a speech during the official presentation of it, and looking at the past experiences… Would you be interested in the House Kiramman’s Head Security Officer post?”
Her eyebrows went up, as the woman was caught off-guard. “You kiddin’ me?”
“I’d bet my eye on it, but I suppose we are ahead on that matter.”
Not expecting it, Vi gagged on her saliva, almost spatting at Caitlyn, again. “Damn it, Cupcake, that was a nice one.”
“I’m learning from the best.” After giving her lover a faint smile, her gaze returned to the visualisation of the new piece of sculpture which will decorate the Academy Grounds. A way for her to honour her brother figure and his partner the great visionists who never get to truly share their revolutionary skills to build a better future.
Caitlyn will make sure none of them will ever be forgotten.
“The golden boy would be proud of you,” Vi said softly. “He already had been long before... y'know.”
“I never got to truly say goodbye to him.” Just like with her mother.
The pinknette’s dry laugh was short. “Yeah, I know that feeling.”
In the blink of an eye, Caitlyn reached to grab her hand tightly. “I know, Vi. I know,” she whispered, squeezing her palm. Their experiences may have been similar, but still, such an abyss existed between them—one that would never disappear.
“Want me to go to Mrs Talis with you?” She leaned forward to bring their foreheads together.
“I… Yes. I would appreciate it, thank you.”
“Anytime.”
They spent some time in that position, just enjoying each other’s warmth.