#jinxcdd

@jinxcdd played: ⚠

𝗚𝗔𝗠𝗘 𝗡𝗔𝗠𝗘: SEND ⚠ TO FIND MY MUSE AT THE END OF A BLOOD TRAIL

Children's stories always seem to have a theme of FOLLOWING. Follow orders, follow the breadcrumbs, follow the song, follow the yellow brick road. It's woven in young. Pairing that with natural human curiosity? ( Because evolution has, effectively, made any human instinct obsolete that would otherwise have the slightest bad thing should scare them away like other animals. ) IT IS TO BE EXPECTED SOMEONE WILL FOLLOW A TRAIL. Even a red one, splattered against concrete, leading to a morbid conclusion. The need to know and morbid curiosity gnaws and chews, driving people forward.

It isn't Chishiya that's injured. HE STANDS - AN ANGEL OF DEATH OVER THE CORPSE. All pristine white despite the blood and gore and horrors of this world, moon reflecting off of him. Or perhaps like a ghost, something both there and not quite there, something that might vanish the moment you reach out to brush your fingertips across it. Why he's there and how he got there aren't clear. KNOWING CHISHIYA, IT LIKELY WON'T BECOME ANY CLEARER. His expression is impassive, dark eyes voids that threaten to swallow if you stare too long.

" I guess he couldn't withstand this world. " Chishiya breaks the quiet, making it clear he knows that the other has crept into the scene. ( Not that he thinks she would try to HIDE it unless it would be beneficial. ) Two living, one dead, and eerie silence in the night - something often faced in this world. This wasn't a game, but Chishiya's rather certain that the man had recently been at a game considering how fresh the wound on the leg was - a day old at most. BUT IT WAS SHALLOW, NOTHING THAT WOULD KILL SOMEONE. " People think if they survive this, they'll be fine. But sometimes the despair kills them off even when the games don't. "

If the shoe fits…

"Well, no. I didn't say tha—"

a yellow sunrise.

It all happened so fast.

She was just minding her own business, slightly agitated and rapping her fingers against the counter as the store clerk went to go and get her merchandise. Meanwhile, Jinx had decided to tag along, when all she would be doing was picking up an order.

A rifle, to be precise. One that the black market traders had managed to pilfer from the enforcers, a little sneak peek into the engineering capabilities that they had topside.

But for some reason, the nitwit behind the counter had kept her waiting for over ten minutes as he rummaged around in the back. Treating her as if her time wasn't precious, and that she could simply sit on her hands and wait around for them to get their wares in order.

Ridiculous. Still, she willed herself to keep it together, jaw tense, frown threatening to turn into a wolfish snarl as she buttoned her lip. The rapping of her fingers grew faster, and faster still, listening to Jinx complain about how long they would have to wait.

Then the front door opened behind her.

She heard the door chime. Was halfway in turning to glance over her shoulder when she heard the telltale 'click' of a trigger being pulled. Jinx had gone strangely silent, before she felt a shove at her ribs and her world being thrown off of its axis.

Jinx, what are you--

Eyes wide and ablaze with fury, she had no time to think, no time to give way to logic or reason as she tumbled down onto the floor, the acrid smell of blood hitting her nostrils all but forcing her to leap into action. She scrambled onto her hands and knees, pushing herself back up as she flipped over, catching a glimpse of Jinx in the heat of the moment, blood spraying out from her shoulder.

Her hand reflexively went for her sidearm, tearing it out of its holster. Everything else was all a matter of instinct, and rage, as she took aim and fired. She barely even registered their face standing in the doorway as little more than a target.

"Jinx--JINX!!"

Blood still rushing inside her ears, abject rage and adrenaline quickly gave way to panic, a looming sense of dread forming a pit in her stomach as she dropped her gun on the floor. Jinx. What the Hell was that girl thinking? And why?

She crawled over to Jinx, desperately cupping a hand to her face, gauging her skin for color and warmth, and any signs of life... Alright. She was alright, though she was still in a fair amount of pain. Looking between her face contorted in agony and to where she had been shot, it seemed that the bullet had only grazed her shoulder.

And the assailant. Once she could feel herself breathe again, chest rising and falling, pins and needles burning a hole inside her lungs--she looked over to them, their mangled corpse now blocking the entrance. It was one of Silco's goons, just another face in the crowd. She wouldn't have even gone to the trouble of remembering him, if it wasn't for the fact that she had cleaned him out during their last game of cards.

All this over a few lost coins? Pathetic.

"... You. Get out here, NOW!" She swallowed thickly, gritting her teeth and she cobbled together what little composure she had left, shouting for the store clerk who had no doubt heard the shots going off, one after the other. She would make them be useful whether they liked it or not. Not only for making them wait, but for forcing them into a corner.

"Get whatever clean bandages you can find. And alcohol. Anything less, it will be your head. I guarantee as much. Now MOVE!!"

"I..." Why was it suddenly a struggle to find words?

"I took the Sheriff at his word--he said she was gone. How was I to think any differently? But rest assured...I'll have a talk with him about lying... He should know better than to lie to me."

Of course Silco knew that Jinx could see through the facade; he was terrified.

but more importantly at this very moment, – ❝ could you possibly listen to that music any louder? ❞ she yells over the booming music and has half the mind to doing something that'll cause that stereo to be permanently handled. nevermind the fact that sevika has chosen jinx's safe haven. she's trying to think and that music and whatever the hell the kid's doing (she assumes isha is dancing … or something) is all distracting her.

"Didn't say you'd win though"