#five16

"One day, you'll be okay. For now? It's okay to hurt."

// she wishes vi's words were comforting to her at all, in the state she's in. vi in general is a sore spot and she feels especially weak to be letting her get to her like this. she doesn't feel comforted by her presence, if anything, it's like she's wrapping her fingers around her throat and squeezing - until she will never draw breath again.

caitlyn heaves, blinking through wet eyes. " vi. I don't have the time to be feeling hurt. " , she scrambles, staring down at her hands. she'd rather be feeling cold and empty than the guilt that's scratching at her gut right now.

" everything- is falling apart. and everyone depends on me. all of that's easy for you to say. " , she wipes at her eyes, then takes a deep breath. it calms her, slightly.

" I apologize. this is.. unbecoming of me. " , she whispers, shaking her head. caitlyn doesn't know how to express her worries, especially to someone who she knows wouldn't approve of anything she is doing. somehow, she craves for the person in front of her to not be vi, but to be ambessa, because she would actually know the right thing to say.

❝ is that really you, vi? ❞ the shock hit his face like a bolt of lightning. was this going to be routine? every time they were apart for a while, it felt like they'd come back together and one of them would show up looking like a whole new person. and in her case, it wasn’t exactly a good thing—not this time.

he took a careful step back, keeping the healthiest distance he could to save his nose from melting off.

❝ ehhh, you know you smell like you rolled around in a pile of gutter rat shit and piss for weeks, right? goddang, and here i thought your sister messed me up. ❞ he laughed, but it lacked the usual richness—an uneasy edge hidden underneath the self-deprecating humor.

he hesitated for a moment, the playfulness on his face fading as genuine concern took over. he was naturally compelled to ask, ❝ nah, but are you good though? ❞ he asked softly, his previous teasing swept aside to something real. she needn't keep whatever it was away from her own brother.

Bright blue eyes fluttered open as a sharp, involuntary hiss escaped her lips as the icy touch of the damp cloth sent a jolt through her overheated body. The shock was immediate, her muscles tensing as if trying to brace against the unwelcome sensation. Her hand shot up, trembling slightly, and she tried weakly to shove the cloth away.

❝ Ugh, what the hell? That’s freezing — get it off me,❞ she mumbled, her voice hoarse and breaking apart, an attempt at sounding tough despite the weakness behind it. The effort didn’t hold; her arm dropped limply back to the bed, unable to fight gravity or the bone-deep fatigue weighing her down. She squeezed her eyes shut again, as if closing them could block out the piercing cold and the burning pain coursing through her.

Her whole body felt unbearably heavy, every muscle dragging like it was pinned beneath a crushing weight. The fever raged through her, turning her skin to fire, while the deep, aching throb of her injuries refused to relent. The clash between the searing heat and the biting cold only heightened her discomfort, leaving her too exhausted to fight, too overwhelmed to find relief. A shaky breath escaped her, more a sigh of frustration than anything else. Even in this miserable state, a flicker of stubborn defiance lingered in her tone.

“ i wish i didn't, but i know too much, ” she says with a frown, hands on the the bridge, looking out to see. she can't help but wonder if there was somewhere out there SOMEONE had the answers to all their problems. there had to be someone out there that did things right. she wishes she could find them.

emery looks down at her hands, s p l a y i n g fingers on the stone before finally forcing herself to look back to violet. “ i know you don't trust me. and i get it. but i want to do more. i need to do more, ” she expresses. sincerity bleeds into every word as she tries to alleviate the inevitable distrust. and she couldn't even blame her. but at this point, she knew far too much to stick to her subtle forms of rebellion. she was in a position to HELP, and she wanted to do that. regardless of her own risks. at this point she didn't care anymore. “ let me prove myself. i'm on your side. ”

Send in 📜 and I’ll use this incorrect quotes generator using your muse and my muse.

Marcus: I am going to need you to swear- Vi: Fuck. Marcus: Marcus: ...swear as in promise.

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Marcus: Thanks for opening my message and not responding. Vi: All good bro, any time. Marcus: Fuck you.

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Vi: Would anyone know any good vendors for professional-quality brass knuckles? Marcus: I know you’re serious, but you say the scariest shit sometimes.

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a hand shifts to his face, massaging his temples with his thumb and pointer finger in attempt to avoid merely turning this into an argument that went no where. they didn't have time for that. they didn't have time for much, but particularly not for this. “ then stay angry, but direct it somewhere else, ” jayce replies between his teeth. his tone uncharacteristically h a r s h , as he drops his hand and looks to her. while the past version of himself would likely step back, defuse. reason. he couldn't do that anymore. they were well past reason and civility.

“ you're angry. i understand. but we do not have time for it. if we make it through then you can be as pissed as you need to, ” he says, looking vi directly in the eyes as he takes a step forward. “ but right now? rein it the FUCK in. save it for the war. ”

breathing heavily, the duo makes it around the final corner and all but collapse in the alley. he leans his back against the d i n g y wall of zaun as he tries to catch his breath, one hand resting on his hip while the other is wrapped t i g h t l y around the strap of a tattered bag. the reason for their heavy breathing, and scraped up bodies, that he knew would be worth it. as he catches his breath he smiles, holding up the bag as he looks across to violet. “ we got it. we should have all we need now to ... ” he begins, his tone triumphant until realizes things aren't exactly to plan.

It's been a long, hard night. Most nights are hard, obviously, but this one bears specific mention. She feels like she's getting close to something. It's in the way her muscles tremble after she exercises, the feeling of copper in her mouth after running through the undercity for another hour and a half. Never toward or away from anything - just working on her stamina. Working on herself.

Stamina that was well put to use. She doesn't know which baron they had been under. All that really mattered was that they had Shimmer, and they were planning to sell, and she wasn't in the mood to have the local ambience tarnished by another round of purple stuff for the junkies.

Especially not considering she'd had to tangle with one of them. It had been a shock she hadn't appreciated, and though she had come out on top, it was only barely.

She hadn't actually looked at the sign on her way into the Last Drop. If she had she probably would have kept moving, but her situational awareness is shot with her head resting on the bar and her arms folded protectively around it. As long as she isn't noticed, she should be fine.