Chapter Text
The trip to Lazarus had been long, but thankfully uneventful. After everything that hapened in Paradise City, both Zora and Jawn appreciated the peace after the chaos of the city. The pair used the long stretch of time together to get to know each other as there really wasn’t time for deep, meaningful conversations in the ciy when your life was constantly in danger.
Zora regaled Jawn with tales of her time in Salvation, and what she did to earn her title as Zora the Savior. She told him about Elizabeth and how they met. What it was like leading Salvation together, how Zora would defend and bring people in and Elizabeth would magnage the logistics of their camp.
Jawn told Zora about his Mom and Dad and what it was like leading Lazarus without them. He opened up to her about his first kill, and how he's avoided unesecary killing since. Zora responded, saying that during Salvation she only really killed in self defense, but once she came to the city that changed.
During the hours together, Zora found herself trusting and beginning to become even more attached to Jawn. Not just for survival, or a means to an end like they first met. From relying on each other to stay safe in the city, to Woogie being willing to sacrifice himself in his final moments, only wishing for her to protect Jaw and find his daughter. Even if his final wish to save Zora was in vain, it led to something even greater. In that moment, hearing Woogies grief driven desenct, Zora could only see herself. Woogies story was so painfully familiar because it was her own. In his journey for the ones that he loved, the city had turned him into something he and never wanted to be. And in that moment, Zora realized that if she continued down her path of grief-driven revenge, she would do the same.
From there on, it was Jawn and Zora together. They eventually found a way to cure her, due to the hard work of Saps, who had a major breakthrough after getting a sample from a slowly devolving Magic. It was just in the nick of time too, for as the days had gone on since getting infected Zora had become weaker and weaker. Only holding onto the hope of being able to escape to Lazarus with Jawhn. After getting Zora cured, the pair knew that they had to get out of the city quickly before anything else could happen. They felt bad about leaving their friends in the city, but it had already taken so much from them both, that they were ready to have something good again. So they traveled to the beach and took a small raft to the mainland. From there they began the long hike to Jaw’s camp.
When the pair finally got close enough for the scouts of Lazarus to see them, jawn faintly heard them shout and began to spread the news that he had returned back to the camp. He knew that some people might be hesitant, especially since he had left to get supplies and returned with a whole person. He knew Zora’s natural intimidating vibe due to her subdued and often prickly personality would be off-putting to some. He could tell she was nervous about this happening, too. With the hours they had spent together while traveling, he had picked up on a few of her tells.
When she was nervous, she tended to either mess with her lighter or the end of her braid. Which had definitely seen better days since Paradise City. He was always surprised at how well Zora was able to`take care of her hair in the city.
He playfully bumped her shoulder and said, “Hey! Don’t be nervous! Theyre gonna love you, I promise.”
“Easy for you to say,” She replied sarcastically with a smile. He smiled back. He had always thought Zora was pretty, but when she smiled was the best. He knew it was her sun like smile that would win over the people of Lazarus just as it did Jawn. Maybe even more than he was ready to admit to Zora.
Zora looked over at Jaw as they walked towards Lazarus. She could see that the closer they got, the more relaxed he seemed to become. She knew that Jawhn could tell she was nervous, and he had comforted her. It was still something she was getting used to. Having someone care for her enough to comfort her, and know when she's nervous. It had been a while since she had a connection like that with someone. The last person she felt remotely close to after Salvation had been Squiddo. However, during the hours of travel, she really began to connect with Jawhn even more. He had already gotten past so many of her walls, but he just kept going. Ones that she hadn’t even let Squiddo past. There was still her scars, which she had worked to keep hidden from Jaw by sleeping in her jacket, or wrapping a blanket around her shoulders. She knew she should tell him, but she knew she wasn’t ready to be that vulnerable yet.
Instead she told him stories of Elizabeth and Salvation, which actually lifted a weight she didn’t even really feel. She hadn’t talked about Salvation in so long, that having someone to talk about it with was comforting in a way she hadn’t experienced in so long. She could feel the strengthening connection between her and Jaw, and the potential for it to go a certain way, byt she pushed those thoughts away. After Elizabeth and everything she had done in a desperate attempt at revenge or to control what was happening around her, she didn;t think she deserved love, romantic or platonic, like that again. As they got closer, Zora found herself messing with her braid again, getting lost in thought about her worries over whether Lazarus would like and accept her. She knew she could be off-putting and made people uneasy. It had been so long since she had been a true protector, so she was nervous if she was still able to live up to her past. Her spiral was again interrupted by Jaw. Who nudged her shoulder and smiled at her. Her hand fell from her braid, and sat again at her side as the pair walked.
Jawhn followed that by brushing his hand against hers, subtly asking to provide a physical lifeline for her. Zora hadn't had a physical connection with someone like this in so long. And though she was scared, she had found that over the hour of travel with Jaw that she had missed a physical human connection even more. So she hesitantly brushed her hand back. A response to an invitation. Their hands linked, and though it was new and untested, it felt right. They ventured closer to the front gate and for the first time since Jawhn said they were getting close to Lazarus, she didn’t feel scared.