Champions of Zaun

Chapter Four

Jinx was annoyed. While admittedly that wasn't unusual for her, it was rare that she was annoyed with Puppy. She'd argued with him for several minutes, but he'd finally just asked her to leave so he could talk to Ekko. It had felt like a dismissal, and she absolutely did not like being dismissed. In the little hallway between the kitchen and the store, she walked past the fool boy who'd once been her friend, not even glancing at him, and resisting the urge to break his neck. Puppy wouldn't like her doing that, and while she was annoyed at him, she also didn't want to make him mad at her.

"Puppy! He says that he loves you, and the first chance he gets he dismisses you!" Critical voice sneered as she entered the store. She flinched at the words. She'd be lying if she said they didn't hurt.

"Are ye alright, sweetheart?" Cassie asked, looking up from some bookkeeping she was doing on the countertop as soon as she saw her.

"Fine," Jinx grumped. The rotund woman walked over from behind the counter and gave her a swift hug, and Jinx clung to her briefly. She really liked Cassie; other than Lux and Puppy, it seemed Cassie was the only one who cared about her. She could hear Puppy and Ekko talking, with Puppy berating Ekko for seeing her dismissal as some sort of endorsement of him, then the kitchen door closed as well, putting too many barriers in between, even for her hearing.

Cassie gently touched her chin and turned her face, so she could have a look at her stitches. She hummed appreciatively. "He did a right fair job stitchin' ye up, lass, but it'll scar somethin' fierce. Would ye like me to take ye over to the Apothecary and see if she can do somethin' 'bout it?"

"Nah. They'll heal. They always do," Jinx said dismissively.

"Even the scars? These'll be scary large, child," Cassie asked a little doubtfully.

Jinx just nodded.

"Alright, I believe ye. But then why are ye so grumpy, darlin'?" Cassie quickly held up her hands in apology. "If ye don't mind me askin', of course!"

Jinx briefly glared at the door in the back of the shop. "Because he... he dismissed me!"

"Yer beau?" Cassie asked, surprised.

"Yes!" Jinx knew she was pouting, and she didn't care. It felt good to pout!

"You pouted a lot when you were little, kiddo. Are you sure that's what you want Cassie to see?" Nicer voice asked. She didn't answer him; she just pouted a little harder.

Cassie rolled her eyes. "Men! Always thinking they'll do better if there's no womenfolk 'round, and usually it winds up bein' the exact opposite. Let's send the ones with all the common sense away, so we can just muck about and fail to achieve anythin'!" she said in a joking manner.

Jinx stared at her in surprise for a second, then she bit back the laughter bubbling up in her throat.

Cassie grabbed her hand and dragged her towards the shop's front door. "Come with me."

Jinx didn't object, following Cassie until they were outside, where the older woman let go of her hand. She motioned for the two of them to walk down the market street, and Jinx shrugged and strode alongside her, both of them mingling with the large crowd of Zaunites that could usually be found in the market during the day.

As they walked along for several blocks, multiple people saw her and stared, which she was pretty used to, of course. Even back when she was Silco's daughter, people would stare. What she still wasn't used to, even after several months, were the people who smiled and waved at her, much less the one girl in her early teens who walked up with a gemstone necklace in her hands, then motioned if she was allowed to put it around Jinx's neck.