Work Text:
Caitlyn was on a boat back to Piltover from Stillwater Prison. Unlike her ferry trip to the island, she now had a companion with her. A companion who hasn’t said a single word to her since they left Stillwater. A companion that’s been scowling at everyone and everything since they’ve left Stillwater - yes, even Caitlyn. She hasn’t even said thank you to Caitlyn yet. A companion with pink hair and shaved on one side. A companion with piercings and tattoos up the backs of her arms and on her neck. A companion that was all pure and hardened muscle.
Caitlyn tried not to think about that too much.
According to her file, her name was Violet but she preferred to be called Vi. That suited Caitlyn just fine since Violet was a name that evoked feelings of love and sweetness and Vi was as far away from both sweet and lovely that a person could possibly get.
“You’re crazy for getting me out of prison,” Vi said, breaking the silence, shucking into her new jacket the warden gave her when she left Stillwater. He had given her a whole new set of clothes. Well, old. Probably very old but it was new to Vi.
Caitlyn was sure she was crazy as well. Her mother would’ve called this stunt dangerously foolish and maybe Lady Kiramman was right. Honestly, what had possessed her to break out a criminal - a very violent criminal if her file was anything to go by - like Vi out of prison? Why did she do it? Just so she could survive the Undercity? Caitlyn was sure she could do that without Vi’s help. And there’s no guaranteeing that Vi would help her anyway. She could just run from Caitlyn the second the ferry docked back on the mainland.
“You want Silco, I want Silco,” Vi continued. “When we find him, I will kill him.”
“There will be no killing. Silco will get a trial,” Caitlyn said.
Vi regarded Caitlyn with a cold stare. Caitlyn didn’t like that look - like she was prey and Vi was the predator. She wanted to run for the hills but Caitlyn refused to be intimidated by this woman.
“He will get a trial,” Caitlyn repeated sternly, satisfied that her voice didn’t waver at all.
Vi continued to stare at her but this time her face slowly split into a dangerous smirk.
Caitlyn’s pulse quickened. She was reminded that Vi was dangerous when her eyes landed on the woman’s hands - hands that had apparently beaten other prisoners to the point of them landing in the prison’s infirmary but she refused to be cowed by this brute of a woman so she braced herself for a fight.
But then Vi was grinning from ear to ear. “Relax, enforcer lady. I’m not me when I’m hungry. All I need is a big, juicy….” She paused and closed her eyes, inhaling through her nose. “A big fucking steak,” she sighed, licking her lips and opening her eyes again. “I’ll be more cooperative if I can have some real fucking food for once.”
Caitlyn did not relax. “My name is Caitlyn, not enforcer lady,” she replied. “I can’t help you with the food though.”
Vi pouted and it looked so out of place on someone like her that Caitlyn had to do a double take to make sure she wasn’t seeing things. If Caitlyn were a lesser woman, she would think that Vi looked… adorable pouting like a five year old child. But Caitlyn was not a lesser woman and Vi pouting childishly was decidedly not adorable.
“Where are we going anyway?” Vi asked after a moment’s silence.
“My place,” Caitlyn replied.
Vi’s grinned, playful and teasing. “To your place already? Damn, you move fast. Maybe take me to dinner first,” she said, raising an amused eyebrow.
Caitlyn ignored her. “You stink,” she stated instead, “and I refuse to travel with you when you stink worse than the sewers. You need a bath.”
Vi shrugged. “Sorry for not being on my best stink but I haven’t had a shower in ages.”
Caitlyn frowned. “Why not?”
“The warden is a sick fuck. He’s a big fan of having chats with his cane. And, he’s uhh, ehh… I don’t know what the word is but one day, he’ll be nice to you for no reason and then the next, he will have you locked up in solitary.”
“The word you’re looking for is capricious,” Caitlyn said, aghast at this news.
“Yeah, that. One day, he just decided I didn’t need to shower,” Vi said with a scowl. “In fact, he hadn’t let me out of that cell for a while. Very little food, no yard time, no nothing.” Vi’s scowl was replaced with a bitter smirk. “The warden could never take me on by himself though. Always had to have two other coppers with him.”
Caitlyn stared.
The abuse this woman suffered… it was horrible. She may be a criminal but that doesn’t mean she should be treated like she was less than the dirt underneath Caitlyn’s boots. And it was a cop that did this to her. They were there to protect the prisoners from each other. They weren’t there to abuse the prisoners themselves. It cannot go on. Maybe she will have a word with her mother about this and she can get the guard fired. Caitlyn didn’t like using her mothers status like this but in this case, she didn’t care. The guard was clearly a problem that needed taking care of.
She suddenly felt sympathy for Vi. “I’m sorry this happened to you,” she couldn’t help but say.
“Aww, does the topsider care about the dirty criminal rat from the Undercity? I’m touched. Truly.”
And the sympathy was gone.
“Forget it,” Caitlyn said, turning away. “We’ll be at the docks soon.”
“K…. K… K for….,” Vi trailed off with a thoughtful expression on her face as she looked up at the giant estate which had a big K emblazoned on wrought iron gates out front. “Hmm.. K for somebody important, I bet.” Then Vi clicked her fingers, realisation dawning her face. “You’re a Kiramman.” When Caitlyn just nodded, Vi let a low whistle. “Nice castle, princess.”
“Come on,” she said. “It’s a good thing there’s hardly anyone here. My parents are out. The chef might still be here but other than that we will only have to worry about one servant. Still, please be as quiet as possible. I don’t want you seen.”
“I suppose you wouldn’t. I’m just a big, stinky criminal and you’re an elegant, rich somebody. Your parents would most likely burst into flames at the very thought of someone like me hanging out with someone like you,” Vi said darkly, narrowing her eyes. “You don’t want to be seen associating with me. Too shameful, huh?”
Vi wasn’t wrong in that her parents - especially her mother - would be scandalised to know that a criminal walked in their home but Vi was wrong in that she thought Caitlyn cared. Caitlyn couldn’t care less.
“You misunderstand,” Caitlyn said. “I don’t care what my parents think about who I hang out with. That’s my business, not theirs. However, they don’t know I’m doing this. If they found out about this, I would be in serious trouble.”
“Why? You’re an enforcer, aren’t you? Was this not authorised by the Sheriff?”
Caitlyn didn’t like having to play this card so early because she got the sneaky feeling that the only reason Vi was still with her was because she was an enforcer and as such, she’d have resources at her disposal that Vi otherwise wouldn’t have to find Silco or to uncover the corruption that she knew existed in Piltover that had something to do with Silco.
Vi was for sure just going to leave now.
“I’m not an enforcer,” Caitlyn reluctantly admitted. Her pride was still hurt after what had happened and she didn’t like to think about it too much. “I was relieved of duty earlier today so this wasn’t by the numbers.”
“You got fired?” Vi’s eyebrows practically disappeared into her hairline. “You, the princess of Piltover? Shit, what did you do to fuck up so badly?”
“I didn - ” Caitlyn sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose before continuing, “Look, what matters is that I broke you out of prison.”
“Yeah, you did,” Vi said, letting out low whistle. “A topsider risking her pretty little neck for someone like me? Unheard of. Either you find me attractive or you want to find Silco that much you’re risking a prison sentence yourself. I bet it was the former though.”
“So a thank you would be nice,” Caitlyn said, ignoring Vi's quip.
Vi was silent for a moment, looking at Caitlyn with an indiscernible expression until she finally said, “Thanks for breaking me out of prison.” And to Caitlyn’s surprise, Vi gave her a small smile. Her gaze was hard and her tone was steely but her smile was grateful.
Again, sympathy rose in Caitlyn when she remembered that Vi had spent the last eight years in prison. Being beaten, starved…. Caitlyn could only imagine just how badly Vi wanted to get away from it all. Not for the first time, Caitlyn wondered what Vi did to end up in prison. It must've been something bad if there was no record of her crime but still, whatever she did, it didn't warrant such abuse.
“You’re welcome,” Caitlyn responded, giving her a small smile in return. “Stillwater is a horrible place to end up in.”
And, again, Vi had to break the moment: “Yeah, I knew you broke me out of prison cos you found me so irresistibly hot,” she said, giving Caitlyn a wink.
To Caitlyn’s absolute horror, she could feel her face burst into flames. She quickly turned away and marched up the path to the estate, not worried at all that Vi wouldn’t follow her.
Because Vi was laughing the whole entire way up to the door.
Caitlyn managed to bring Vi into her home without anyone seeing her. She quickly brought Vi through the mansion, up some stairs and down some corridors until they came to her bedroom. After she had shut the door, she turned to see Vi looking around Caitlyn’s room, spinning in a slow circle as she did.
Caitlyn’s giant web of connections had been packed up by a servant yesterday on the orders of her mother because now that she wasn’t a police officer anymore, 'why should Caitlyn bother with police business when you can now focus on something more honourable like a career in politics?'
Caitlyn had no idea where her mother had put all her thoughts on the great conspiracy but it didn’t matter. Caitlyn had also kept a notebook, detailing everything she knew about Silco and this monkey bomb person and Shimmer because she knew her mother would pull a stunt like this eventually.
And then it just dawned on Caitlyn what all this might look like to Vi. The mansion with all it’s fifty rooms for only three people. The gardens neatly cared for. Her bedroom - no, her whole house - resplendent and flawless. Marble floors washed and pristine at all times. Statues carved by the best craftspeople in the world. The gold thread that existed in every carpet, every blanket, every tapestry. Every decor a symbol of wealth and status.
Vi would not like this place.
Caitlyn expected Vi to say something about all this but she didn't. Caitlyn supposed she didn't need to because when Caitlyn looked at Vi, there was that ever present scowl on her face. Caitlyn could read her thoughts loud and clear. Caitlyn sighed, frustrated more than anything because she was doubtful that this….. arrangement will work. That Caitlyn could be distracted for just one second and then Vi would be gone. She wanted this to work because as far as she’s concerned, Vi is her best hope at finding Silco and uncovering whatever conspiracy is going on. Caitlyn wanted to get to the bottom of this so badly. She just hoped that Vi did as well.
Vi walked over to the couch by the window and sat down and then she reached for the notebook that was on the small table next to it. Caitlyn’s eyes nearly bugged out of her head because the notebook wasn’t just filled with the details of her investigation, it was also filled with all her private thoughts.
“Hey! That’s private,” Caitlyn said, rushing forward. She shot out a hand to grab the notebook from Vi but Vi shot up from the couch, holding her notebook out of Caitlyn’s reach. “Vi, come on…”
And now Vi was flipping through her notebook.
“Vi, please, I worked really, really hard on gathering all that intel of the great conspiracy. Give it back to me.”
“I can tell,” Vi said as she sat back down, slowly flicking through the pages. “You’re really obsessed with Silco.” To Caitlyn’s surprise, there wasn’t a note of ridicule in her voice. “If you’re not an enforcer any longer then why do you care so much? It isn’t your problem any longer.”
Caitlyn picked up her notebook and went over to put it away in her desk. “Crimes are being committed. People have died. Corruption is everywhere. I will always care about that whether I’m an enforcer or not,” she responded, turning around to look at Vi. “Whether it concerns Piltovians or Zaunites, I fight for the common good.”
Vi was silent as she stared at Caitlyn. Her deep grey eyes bore into Caitlyn’s blue ones and Caitlyn felt exposed like as if Vi was reaching into her very being. Like Vi was searching for something.
Caitlyn sighed. This woman, honestly. What is it with her and staring? “Will you please stop staring at me?” Caitlyn asked, feeling the heat of Vi’s gaze.
Vi shrugged. “And you think Silco is at the heart of this conspiracy?” Vi asked. “Why?”
“The monkey bomb photo. There was an attack at the square and whoever did it left behind a drawing of a monkey bomb. A couple of hours earlier, there had been an attack on one of Silco’s airships,” Caitlyn said. “When I went to investigate, it turned out he had Shimmer in the hold. Someone had wanted to get rid of it - I don’t know who - but someone else had fought them off. A similar monkey bomb drawing had been left behind. Whoever this monkey bomb person is, they work for Silco. And it’s obvious that Silco is smuggling Shimmer out of the Undercity. Not just that but there was technology stolen after the attack on the square. Silco is planning something. Something big.” Caitlyn wasn’t sure why she was telling Vi all this.
Her best friend that was almost like a brother to her, Jayce didn’t even really seem to believe her when she told him her misgivings and hunches the day before. Even her own parents don’t believer her. And the enforces don’t and definitely not the Sheriff. Caitlyn has been dismissed by everyone so why wouldn’t Vi?
“You’re probably right,” Vi said.
“I’m sorry, what?” Caitlyn asked, completely caught off guard.
“I have a feeling you’re right,” Vi said, shrugging.
“Why do you say that?”
“Because Silco wants control. Power."
“But how?” Caitlyn asked, breathless. “How is Silco able to do all this?”
“You mentioned in your notebook that you think enforces are being paid off to let these things happen. It’s very likely - enforces and Sheriffs both. They probably have deals going on with Zaun.”
“The sheriff? Marcus?”
Vi shrugged. “Possibly. All I know is that a few years back, the guy - ” Vi stopped, swallowed and looked away, lips pressed hard like as if she was trying not to cry. There was something heavy in her gaze… a sadness beneath that cold exterior. Caitlyn wondered who this guy was. Someone important, clearly. Where was he now? Dead? Or did Vi not know?
“Anyway,” Vi said, clearing her throat, looking at Caitlyn again but the cold hard mask was back. No sadness, no vulnerability - it was like Vi had flipped a switch. Emotions on and now emotions off. “Anyway, the guy that looked after the Lanes had a deal going on with the sheriff at the time. We both stayed out of each other’s way. It was a little bit safer for us trenchers because the enforcers didn’t beat the shit out of us at a whim but it also meant that Grayson could conduct her business down there without any obstructions.”
“Grayson?” Caitlyn screeched. She couldn’t help herself. Grayson, her idol, had had a deal with Zaun. Her mind went into overdrive: what was Grayson doing? Why? Is she the reason why Silco is where he is now? Was she paid off by Silco? But why? Why would Grayson - ?
Vi broke through Caitlyn’s frantic but justifiable overthinking: “Grayson was alright. She wasn’t aiding criminals. What I’m saying is that Marcus could have a deal going on with Silco.”
Marcus.
There was something wrong with that man and Caitlyn suddenly realised why.
“No, no, he definitely does. Otherwise, how else is Shimmer smuggled out of Zaun?” Caitlyn said with a sinking feeling.
It all made sense now.
Shimmer being smuggled out. Marcus firing her when she began to snoop around after the blast that took her out for a couple of days. How everything related to Shimmer and the explosion at the square was classified as low priority.
Because Silco is pulling Marcus’s strings. And for what?
So he can stay Sheriff, Caitlyn realised.
She was happy that Grayson was clean but she was absolutely aghast at the news that the enforcers were corrupt. And it was just a conspiracy theory that Marcus was paid off but it made sense. All of it. Was there anybody else that was being paid off? Politicians? Just how far did Silco’s reach go?
“Thank you for telling me this,” Caitlyn said earnestly, giving Vi a small smile.
“What use is it?” Vi scoffed. “We don’t have evidence.”
“That’s why I broke you out of prison so we can get Silco together.”
Vi only hummed in response before hopping to her feet. “All this talk of Silco and shady shit is making me hungry. Also, I feel like you’re gonna need to deep clean your bedroom soon unless you show me where you solid gold bathtub is,” Vi said.
Vi took a long time in the bathroom. Longer than what was perhaps necessary but it was understandable considering her treatment back at the prison so Caitlyn didn’t bother her. She did have the urge to go in and check to see if Vi was still in there but she restrained herself. It was a foolish thought when they were two stories up. How could Vi escape?
In the meantime, she got some food from the kitchen. She wasn’t all that hungry because she ate before she went to Stillwater but she figured that Vi must be starving or, at the very least, starving for something that wasn’t prison slop. She didn’t really like the thought of being nice to someone like Vi but she asked the chef to bring a surprise to her room anyway. She didn’t know what Vi liked but, after eating prison slop for eight years, she figured that Vi would eat anything.
After what felt like ages, Vi walked out of the bathroom with nothing but a towel wrapped around her waist. Caitlyn had seen naked women before but none, not a single one could compare to Vi. She was a marvel of a woman. Sculptured, beautiful and with almost everything on display for Caitlyn to see. The well-defined muscles in her arms and shoulders, her abs, the tattoos wrapping around her shoulders and up her neck…. Caitlyn’s mouth went dry just like it did when she first laid eyes upon the intricate artwork that graced Vi’s sharp, taut muscles.
“You’ve never seen tits before or what, princess?” Vi asked.
Caitlyn began to splutter, “What? Of c-course, I have. I have a pair of….. my own…..” Caitlyn trailed off, her eyes following the lithe shape of Vi’s torso, her arms and the way her tattoos seemed to slither with each movement. Those hands that could probably break Caitlyn… she suddenly wanted them on h -
Vi grinned, rakish. “You like what you see?”
She broke out of her thoughts and spluttered, hastily staring up at the ceiling, “What! No- I mean - yeno - look, can you please just put some clothes on?” Caitlyn could feel the heat rising in her face. She was absolutely embarrassed that she had been caught staring.
“Why? We’re all women here,” Vi said with a laugh, clearly enjoying Caitlyn’s discomfort.
“It’s called modesty,” Caitlyn retorted.
“Then I apologise, princess,” Vi said and Caitlyn could see out of the corner of her eyes that Vi gave a bow. “Prison doesn't know the meaning of modesty.”
Vi disappeared back into the bathroom before reappearing a few moments later with some clothes on.
“So I can’t stare at you and I can’t walk around naked,” Vi said, flopping back onto the couch. “What else can’t I do, princess?”
“I think they’re both reasonable requests,” Caitlyn replied. “What, did you just walk around naked all the time in prison?”
Caitlyn instantly regretted asking the question.
Vi smirked. “Seems to me you like to think about me being naked.”
Caitlyn did not take the bait. Vi was just riling her up on purpose.
Thankfully, there was a knock on the door. “Your food has arrived,” came the voice of Jen, the house chef. “Shall I just place it in front of your door, young madam?”
“Yes, please,” Caitlyn responded. There was some shuffling outside her door and then Caitlyn could hear the sound of footsteps disappearing. She went to open the door, picked up the platter of food on the ground before closing the door again.
Walking over to Vi, she placed the food on the table beside the couch. “This is for you,” she said, stepping back and gave a nod to Vi. “It’s not a big steak but….” Caitlyn trailed off as she watched in equal parts horror and awe as Vi absolutely demolished her very simple meal of salmon, eggs and avo on toast.
It was there one second, gone the next. Caitlyn got the impression that Vi would’ve been more than happy to eat literal bugs straight off the wall by the way she just polished off her plate in a matter of seconds.
“ This is some good shit,” Vi said, leaning back into the couch, “but nothing beats Jericho’s sweet and salted slugs.”
“That sounds absolutely disgusting,” Caitlyn stated. It sounded worse than disgusting. Caitlyn couldn’t even imagine it and if she tried, she was sure she would retch.
“Don’t knock it till you try it.”
“Never,” Caitlyn said. “Anyway, it’s my turn to have a wash.” Before Vi could say something lewd as Caitlyn was sure Vi was going to do, Caitlyn pierced Vi with her eyes. “Don't say anything and d on’t you even think about running off.”
“Or what? You’ll shoot me?” Vi said. It was said so casually that Caitlyn, again, was caught off guard. Like the thought of people wanting to hurt her was so normal that Vi just didn’t care anymore. Like someone wanting to shoot her was just an inconvenience.
“No,” Caitlyn said after gathering her wits and making sure that her voice wouldn’t betray how she actually felt about that thought, “but I will drag you back to Stillwater myself if I have to. Don’t test me. I will do it.”
“You think you can take me down?”
“I know I can.”
“A lot of people have said that to me in the past and they’ve all ended up with a broken something and I would hate to break your pretty face.”
“Won’t happen,” Caitlyn said with as much confidence as she could but it was hard when Vi was staring at her again with that dangerous smirk plastered all over her face. Like she was a lion, getting ready to rip her prey apart.
Caitlyn simply wouldn’t be intimidated - especially in her own home - so she braced herself for a fight, her pulse quickening. She wished she had her rifle but that was locked up in the safe in her mother’s office along with every other weapon the Kiramman family owned. She will have to do something about that before she headed down into the Undercity.
Vi suddenly laughed as she held her arms up before meeting Caitlyn’s gaze head on. “Don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere.”
Caitlyn was rightfully skeptical.
After all, Vi had no real reason to stick with her now that Vi knew she wasn’t an enforcer any longer. What use was Caitlyn now? Caitlyn was sure that Vi was gonna run off the second she closed her bathroom door but what could Caitlyn do?
“I mean it,” Vi said with a scowl, her voice dropping low. “I hate Silco more than you could possibly ever know.” Hate dripped from every word. “I reckon two people going after him is better than one.”
And Caitlyn believed her.
“Where do you want to sleep?” Caitlyn asked. “The bed, the couch or - ”
“Your solid gold couch sounds fine,” Vi interrupted and, like she owned the place, Vi got up and went over to Caitlyn’s giant four poster bed and grabbed one of the many pillows and a blanket before she unceremoniously plopped herself back onto the couch. She stretched her legs out and fluffed the pillow a little bit before she got herself comfortable, pulling the blanket over her body.
“Goodnight, princess.”
A few moments later, Caitlyn stepped out of the bathroom to find Vi asleep. She was surprised to see that Vi was still on the couch but more than that, Caitlyn also saw the scowl that graced Vi’s features and the hand that was fisting the sheet tightly to Vi’s body.
Even in sleep, Vi was just as tense and as coiled as she was when she was awake.