Unchained

Chapter 33 - Evelyn

Jinni tripped on her way out of the portal, falling onto the concrete hard. She picked herself up, muttering incoherently in annoyance. Looking towards the glass doors of the Hotel, she shuffled inside, walking over to the receptionist with a half smile on her face.

"Uh, hi..." She grimaced, "I'm here about the lost and found, I left my phone here a night ago."

Jinni mentally kicked herself at how little confidence was in her voice as the woman looked up at her from her computer with an annoyed expression.

"Do you still have your keycard?" She asked with a sigh.

Jinni nodded and reached into the pocket of her hoodie, pulling out the card and sliding it over the counter. The receptionist sighed again as she swiped it through a reader before grabbing a small black rectangle out of a drawer beside her.

"If you could please input your pin."

Jinni quickly typed it in, proving the device belonged to her by showing the receptionist a selfie she tried taking. The woman rolled her eyes and shooed her away, muttering "teenagers" under her breaths. Jinni glared at her as she strode quickly out of the hotel putting the phone into her pocket. She crossed over the road, heading into a small park where she planned to meet Evelyn, sitting down on a bench and pulling the phone back out to play on it while she waited.

About 10 minutes passed and a small glow appeared behind Jinni, transforming into Evelyn as she fell out of her own teleport, clutching her side in pain. The golden glow that usually surrounded Evelyn was tinged with red and the girl glared at it for a moment before it disappeared. Standing, she dusted herself off, swearing quietly at the patches of dirt on her knees. Evelyn looked up and around seeing Jinni sitting on the bench a few meters away. Fixing her skirt, she flips her braid over her shoulder and struts towards her girlfriend, the usual clicking of her heels muffled by the grass of the park.

Reaching Jinni, Evelyn tapped the girl on the shoulder and Jinni jumped up in shock, turning quickly to face the person who had interrupted. Realising it was Evelyn, Jinni blushed and looked at the ground. "H-Hi-" She managed to stutter out. Evelyn huffed and tucked a loose piece of hair behind her ear. "Please don't make this any harder than it already is by being you usual, adorable self Jinni," She grumbled, crossing her arms.

"Oh, sorry-" Jinni looked down at the ground then back up at Evelyn. "So why did you want to meet?" She asked, curious as to what Eve had to say after what she'd done.

"Because of this." Evelyn activated her quirk briefly, the usual golden glow that signified her quirk tinged with red and cracked with black. "And... because of last night" Evelyn's voice cracked as she thought back to what had happened, her glow disappearing.

"Eve...I honestly have no answers. I just began to take notice of it today." Jinni began to steel herself and her feelings. "As for last night...I...Eve I do love you still. That won't go away in an instant. But I was scared and angry...hurt."

Evelyn reached out to comfort Jinni but pulled back, not wanting to overstep Jinni's boundaries. Clearing her throat, she tried to explain. "What I did, I wasn't even aware I was doing it. It was like I was possessed by a darkness and I couldn't see or hear anything. I.... I had a nightmare.... a bad one where you lost your light and became this shadow creature and I was helpless to do anything. I can understand why you were scared and hurt but-" she pulls the ring out of her pocket, looping a couple of her fingers through the chain, letting the ring swing in front of Jinni "Finding this on the floor hurt me more. I gave this to you as a sign that I would always be there for you and protect you but you didn't even stick around long enough to find out what happened."

"I was in it too. The nightmare. I was trapped in darkness, I wanted to leave it to hug you and I did but then-." Jinni shuddered, remembering how Evelyn had attacked her, how she'd looked, unhinged, and the dark hand that had hurt her in her nightmare. "I don't know why it happened and I can't tell you how my fears affected it because I haven't figured out what they are but this, this connection we have that my quirk created, it's hurting you and I-" Jinni fought back tears. Stepping towards Evelyn, she cupped her cheeks. "I want you to know, I'm safe now. The person who got me here, he has a place that I can stay in, just until I figure out what's going on."

Evelyn gripped one of Jinni's wrists tightly, searching her eyes for answers.

"Please, don't go Jin. Let me help you." Evelyn whispered to her painfully.

Jinni smiled sadly and stood up on her tiptoes, kissing Eve's forehead. "I love you so much Evelyn. It'll be okay in a moment."

"What do you-" Evelyn's eyes widened as she realised what Jinni was about to do. Before she could pull away, Jinni activated her quirk, reaching into Evelyn's mind and erasing the visions from both of them. She changed the memory to make it seem like Jinni had surprised Evelyn in a way that caused her to attack Jinni but that they were both okay and Jinni just needed some time to heal. Evelyn had come to meet her to say goodbye before she left and to give Jinni the promise ring.

Once she'd finished, Jinni exited Evelyn's mind, watching her partner's eyes turn white as the alterations took effect.

Evelyn glowed briefly and the red and black disappeared, the memory change altering how the nightmare had affected her quirk. As Jinni continued to stare at Evelyn, her eyes went back to their normal green and her fearful expression was replaced with a sad smile that mirrored Jinni's. She leaned down to meet Jinni's lips in a soft kiss, wiping away the tears that had started falling down her cheeks.

"It's okay Jin, I understand, please don't cry." Evelyn undid the clasp of the necklace and looped it around Jinni's neck. "Take this, keep it with you and if you need me, I'm only a call away love."

She pulled Jinni into a hug, burying her face in her hair. "I love you Jinni," She mumbled, holding her close, "And when you come back, I'm showing you the Bunker." Jinni pulled away at that, lightly holding Evelyn's hips.

"You have a bunker?"

Evelyn grinned. "It's top secret and it's all ours. Unless Ace decides to visit. But it means we get to be us without other people around."

Jinni chuckled, "Sounds good. We'll have to make use of it when I'm back."

Giving Evelyn another smile, Jinni let go and ran a hand through her hair, glancing at the time on her phone. "I should uh- I should really get going. I promise to keep safe though."

Jinni leaned up to give Evelyn a quick kiss before stepping away, knowing if she didn't go now, she'd end up staying. "I'll catch you around Reynolds." she shouted over her shoulder as she strode away, heading back across the road towards the alleyway next to the hotel.

Evelyn half smiled at Jinni as she watched her go, waving. "Not if I catch you first, Katima." She shouted back. Evelyn crossed her arms, running her hands along them, a sense of dread overcoming her thoughts as Jinni disappeared from view. Shaking her head to dismiss them, Evelyn teleported away, heading back to her dorm in UA.

Walking into the alley, Jinni sent a text to Kurogiri; which quickly prompted a portal back to the hideout.