Arcane: Placebo

Children of Zaun

T̶h̶e̶ ̶̶̶̶o̶̸̶n̶̷̶e̶̷̶ ̶̶̶w̶̶̶h̶̴̶e̶̵̶r̶̷̶e̶̸̶: ̶

̶F̶e̶a̶t̶u̶r̶i̶n̶g̶:̶ ̶

̶H̶a̶p̶p̶̴̶e̶̸̶n̶s̶ ̶a̶r̶o̶u̶̶̶n̶̴̶d̶:̶ ̶

̶H̶e̶r̶e̶ ̶w̶e̶ ̶g̶o̶!̶

̶-̶-̶-̶-̶-̸-̶-̶-̶-̶-̶-̶-̶-̶-̶-̶-̶-̶-̶-̶-̶-̶-̶-̶-̶-̴-̸-̷-̸-̷-̷-̵-̸-̷-̴-̶-̷-̴-̸-̷-̶-̶-̶-̶-̶-̶-̶-̶-̸-̸-̸-̸-̵-̸-̵-̴-̷-̸-̶

Rain poured over the dark streets of Zaun, drowning the screaming, and the orders barked from the Enforcers as they gave chase

She didn't do it

The Enforcers ran past their fallen comrades, the ones that had been beaten by a hand and a blunt object

It wasn't her. They framed her

As weathered boots journeyed deeper into the night, the blood from the wounds slowly mixed with the water

Why couldn't they just leave her alone?

Frightened and confused, Powder was escaping, but she wasn't alone, nor was she the one that was running. No, she was being carried away by someone. By her wounded brother

Why did he have to pay for it?

Powder held onto him tightly as they ran. She saw the look in his face, that fierce determination to get away, to keep the monsters away from her

But she knew the truth

Behind all that bravery...was fear, was pain

And still, he carried on, dodging their traps, jumping over platforms, refusing to let them take her away for something that she didn't do

Because she didn't do it

She saw the Enforcers stealing, not her

But of course, who would possibly believe her over them? 

Well...her brother

Only when Y/N turned to the left and reached a hallway did Powder pay attention to what was happening. She was pushed tightly against her brother, being held closely as he sat down against a wall

Y/N pushed his knees close to his face as he held Powder, but was quick to shush her. Before she could even question what was going on, she heard the footsteps, she heard the screams, so Powder buried her head in her brother's shoulder and prayed that they wouldn't be found

Maybe it was the rain that made things difficult to see

Maybe it was the shadows of the blue night that gave them the shelter they needed

Or maybe they just got lucky

 Regardless, she found herself sobbing once they were finally alone

Y/N: Shh, shh. It's okay, sweetheart. They're gone now...

The little girl, however, failed to find comfort in their new safety

Powder: B-But what if they...what if they come back?

Y/N: Then we'll hide again, and they won't find us. Ever

Powder felt his warmth despite being bathed in the rain that kept falling on them. That small light, that kindness, she held on to it, and it only grew stronger when she felt him hold her tighter

"As long as I'm around, you'll always have someone to protect you"

...

...

A blue trail parted the crimson skies as a single rocket had been fired into the Council's tower

History would tell that there's only one culprit of such an attack

But in reality,  there were two of them, and even after the deed was done, they held the smoking weapon that ripped the peace away

"There is no going back"

"ₜₕₑy ₕₐd ₜₕₑᵢᵣ cₕₐₙcₑ"

"ᵀʰⁱˢ ⁱˢⁿ'ᵗ ʷʰᵃᵗ ʸᵒᵘʳ ᵖᵉᵒᵖˡᵉ ⁿᵉᵉᵈ"

"ɎØɄ ₣₳łⱠɆĐ"

And so, it became too much for one of them

Jinx saw her brother drop to his hands and knees, collapsing onto the metal floor beneath them. She saw how his breathing became heavier and more unstable until finally, it happened

He broke into tears

The same experimental liquid that had saved his life had also claimed its price, and it was his mind

"It's all wron̷g̵"

It's all̵ ̸w̴r̸o̸n̶g̶

"̶I̵t̵'̶s̸ ̶a̷l̵l̷ ̷w̸r̸o̶n̷g̴"

"It's all right"

"It's all right"

"It's all right"

̶I̵t̵'̶s̸ ̶a̷l̵Ⱡ ₩ⱤØ₦₲"

"It's all right"

"ł₮'₴ ₳ⱠⱠ ₩ⱤØ₦₲"

"It's all right"

As his veins glowed a subtle purple, Jinx could see it all

The conflicting ideas, the impulsiveness...the pain and absolute uncertainty. Hardly the bedrock of hope the world around him needed

And much like the rain drowned the Enforcer's screams, the chaos drowned all his attempts to regain his composure

If anyone could understand the effects of a broken mind, it was Jinx herself

It reminded her of Powder, of that little girl who was terrified of the monsters and the world that just kept making more, and how she would only feel better when in the embrace of someone that could protect her

Only this time, she decided to be the one to provide the light to chase all that darkness away

She decided to give him some that nobody truly gave her. Peace

So she dropped to her knees in front of him, making the crying young man look at her and suddenly, he was being held tightly. She made him rest his head on her shoulder and whispered the same words that once brought comfort to her

"As long as I'm around, you'll always have someone to protect you"

Y/N continued to cry, yet he returned the embrace as he felt the warmth of the young girl cutting a swathe on the chaos

She didn't let go of him. She wanted to let him know that despite every, she wouldn't leave his side, much like he had done for her

In the end, life had forced Y/N to choose between securing true peace for the first time since Zaun's conception or saving the ones he loved

So he made his choice

But with that choice came sacrifices

Jinx never understood why he chose her over everyone else when it was clear that it brought him so much pain to do so, to go against all but one of his promises for her

He turned his world upside down, just for little old her

But what she could do, was to make sure that this choice would not go to waste

She promised