Chapter Text
It was a frigid morning. The fissures had always been warm with the billowing fumes and general stench that permeated the air. The air of Demacia couldn’t be further from that, with boundless forests, grasslands and lack of factory waste, the air was clean. And cold.
Early morning bird songs could be heard across the village, signaling the start of a new day. A sound that pried Jinx from her warm sheets and out to work. Regretfully she rose from her crude bed to see Isha sleeping peacefully beside her. A sight that never ceased to put a smile on her face.
She quietly removed the blankets from her half of the bed ever so carefully to not disrupt her daughter and made her way out into the cold. It was still early with the sun only beginning to rise, but it didn’t bother her. She didn’t get much sleep these days, not to say she ever had. The only thing that gave her comfort at night was the little brown-haired girl beside her, and even then, sleep was fitful and dreams were haunting.
As cold as the air was, it was fresh. Her lungs felt clear and there wasn’t a permanent haze hanging over her. She took a deep breath to clear the nightmares which had just released her. The cold air filled her, and it almost burned as she held it down. With a large exhale she saw her breath whisp away into the breeze, hopefully taking the nightmares along too.
Today was the last day of their stay in High Silvermere. They were staying on the outskirts, away from the grand building and unfathomably wealthy households. Jinx always thought the Pilties were disgustingly rich, but they had nothing on the royal families of Demacia. Between the grand manors and massive castle which spread along the mountains of High Silvermere, one could wonder how there was any money left anywhere else in the world.
She made her way around the streets she had become familiar with over the past couple of weeks to the first job of the day. She had been working as a craftsperson of many principles ever since arriving on the Shores of Demacia. She had designed tools with functions more advanced than Demacia had ever seen; mechanical wonders with the durability to be useful. Though much to her surprise they weren’t nearly as popular as she was hoping. But as she spent more time in Demacia she realised it was less about how useful they were and more about superstition and the generational fear of magic. So, despite her available wares she often had to spend most of her time doing odd jobs just to stay with a roof over their head and enough food for each day.
The day went by quickly, with Jinx going between a few sites and helping various people. She liked the feeling she got from this work, no killing. And no more dead family. “Don’t Jinx it” she heard Mylo’s voice quip. The voices were quieter than before but still clung to her consciousness, and they never passed up an opportunity to torment her.
With the end of her booked jobs she made her way back to their shack to pick up Isha, the day was not over yet. When she arrived she was greeted quickly by a very excited little girl running full speed at her into a big hug.
“How you doing kiddo?” Jinx asks softly. Now this was what she was living for. This is what she fought for. After a long embrace Jinx moved back to let Isha talk.
Isha signs “I was so bored” with a pout.
“I know but I can’t have you wandering around town now can I?”
“I could come with you!” she signs with a grunt.
“You helped me yesterday, and ya little body shouldn’t do too much heavy work. Plus you wouldn’t want to be tired early today right?”
Isha thought for a bit. She did have a point. Isha did get tired after helping her out and she really wanted to be awake for tonight. It was her favorite time of any stay in a town. Helping at the local orphanage. It had been at Isha’s request they started offering free services at the local orphanages in every town that they stayed, something Jinx was happy to oblige in knowing the satisfaction it gave her daughter.
“Alright... But can we get going now?” Isha signed with renewed eagerness.
“Yup, let me just eat some grub quickly."
So after a short meal and Jinx practically being pushed out the door, they arrived at the dilapidated orphanage. Jinx was disgusted with the state of the building, knowing the pristine city which lay just a couple kilometers away. It was so bad that Jinx had to spend most of her time repairing damage to beams that were rotted or furniture that had seen far better days.
As they walked it Jinx spotted a familiar sight, the golden hair of a woman she had seen working before. Though she wasn’t like the others, she almost looked like a princess with pristine hair and clean clothes that looked expensive. But Jinx hadn’t paid much attention to her, she was here to help, not ogle. No matter how beautiful they were. So she got to work, hauling timber, repairing what she can to help the building last. She wasn’t about to let these kids lose what home they had.
It was after a long day of manual labour Jinx said her final goodbyes to the friendly and ever-so-grateful staff. She was also handing out handcrafted toys to the children. She always loved the look in their eyes receiving something new.
“Here ya go kid, made it myself” she said, extending a small metal poro made from scraps to a young boy. He reached out to grab it, excited but also weary of the somewhat intimidating woman who was giving it to him. It was then a loud bang interrupted her as the door was kicked in and three rough-looking figures entered the room. The boy jolted back, startled by the loud noise and foreign people. Jinx didn’t recognise them at first but soon realised she had seen their kind before. Mageseekers. The Demacian organisation created with the sole purpose of eliminating mages across the kingdom. Jinx immediately went to find Isha who was thankfully nearby with one of the other kids. Slowly, she moved away and over to her, ready to leave at any moment. She couldn’t risk anything. Not anymore.
The three figures stepped forward with presence. They looked around the room and zeroed in on a young girl, no older than Isha. They looked ready to kill, a sight Jinx knew better than anyone.
The front figure loudly called out “I, Tyrath Heldren, by order of the Crown and Lord Eldred of the Mageseekers am ordered to scrub the world of this wretched mage before me.” He knew no one would challenge him. He was on order of the crown; it would be suicide to intervene. He raised his auto-bow at the petrified child and smiled. Another tainted demon removed from the face of Runeterra. Though before he could pull the trigger his attention was grabbed by the shouting of a young woman.
“You can’t! She’s just a child for gods’ sake, can’t you see the insanity of it all!” The blonde woman screamed as she walked over to him. Now this was a turn he had not anticipated. His smile, which had momentarily left, returned more devilish than before. He walked towards the woman and leaned in speaking softly “Miss Crownguard, if I were you I would not intervene here. We know what you are and believe me I would have you joining this one if it was up to me. Your family has kept you safe until now but one wrong move and you’re gone, Luxanna.” His words had left her frozen, like a snake and it's prey.
Now, with the momentary interruption concluded he returned his attention to the child. He would not falter this time. He rose his weapon again and took the shot.
He hadn't noticed the momevent in the corner of his eyes before shooting. But now his sights were now filled with the figure of Luxanna Crownguard. Who now had a bolt in the chest.
Fiddlesticks.