Vi
Now I knew that the people I thought I'd lost while in Piltover would grow and change while I was away. I've already seen proof of this in both Powder and Ekko, but I was honestly surprised with Miriem.
I didn't know her super well beforehand so all I have to go off of is the things I've heard rumored about her and the few meetings we had, which isn't much. I may be way off, but before I was arrested, she seemed closed off and kind of abrasive, rude to an extent, but also caring enough to attempt to save strangers (me and my family).
The two times we met before that night at the warehouse, she was adamant that she could hold her own, and she went as far as to tell us off when we tried cornering her in the bar. She seemed to hate the idea of having anyone help her, and she was for sure standoffish.
But now, I see that she was probably acting that way because of the obvious abuse and neglect of her father. Her true personality was most likely there, only buried under what she had to become to survive in such harsh circumstances.
It's apparent at the moment that she's not like that at all, not anymore at the very least.
She's accepting and encouraging the help of her followers to her cause, the group she built and felt responsible for. She is an inspiration to these people, she makes it her job to not let them get discouraged, and she builds them back up when they're down.
She still has the tendency to hold the weight of the world on her shoulders, and she takes on too many responsibilities, but I can see that she could have had more, she's been letting some of the stress go to other people rather than taking it all on for herself. It's admirable how much she cares for others.
She cares so much for both Powder and Ekko, the children she's basically been raising on her own since they were nine when she was only eighteen. I can see it in the look in her eyes when they bicker and goof around, she loves them.
The compassion they hold, the strength and confidence, the determination. That's all thanks to Mira, I can tell she's helped in boosting their self-esteem. When I last saw them, they were kids, scared and cowardly, just starting to be taken more seriously. They were still learning, they were still doubting themselves because they weren't to the level of us older teenagers yet.
They've come a hell of a long way, and there's no doubt in my mind that it's because of Miriem.
Ekko, the scrawny child who used to hole up in his father's shop instead of coming with the rest of us when we offered to train him, has grown strong and capable. He's still tinkering with his gadgets and building machines in his shop, but he's more involved in the community he's a part of. He leads missions and makes plans to overcome the destruction of the Undercity.
Ekko's no longer the awkward kid with acne and missing teeth too big for his mouth. He holds himself in a completely different manner, he's cool and so sure of his actions. He deals with relatively stressful situations with care and thought, he values the safety of his people and bases his decisions around their wellbeing.
And Powder, who Mira calls Jinx occasionally (she said she started using the term in an endearing way as a way to take the blow and pain of Mylo's words away entirely, to take away her self-doubt and replace it with confidence), has changed in more subtle ways.
She's still bubbly and energetic as ever, but she's gained a sense of humor, unlike the one she had before. She's still obsessed with dangerous weapons and takes pride in the ones she built herself. She's not obsessed in a way that may seem manic, but rather just super passionate.
She's grown into her body, and her appearance, while not a priority to her, has certainly changed. She's not the type of person to give any fucks about what others think of her and that is 100% reflected by her personality and style.
And the Firelights. I can't necessarily say that it's changed because it wasn't a thing when I was last down here, it's a recent addition to the Undercity that started while I was away and oblivious. However, I can say that I'm proud of what's happening here.
When I last saw the Lanes, the city was starting to fall apart more than it already had. There was little to no hope of there being a neutral middle ground, which the Firelights now serve as. They make it 100% clear that their end goal isn't going to war with Piltover, as Topside isn't completely responsible for the neglect of our society. But they also make it known that they aren't with Silco in his "reformation" of Zaun. His motivations and ways of change are unethical and fucking awful.
Thus they are the holy middle ground that we didn't even know we needed.
They're working to shut down the source of what gives Silco such power and control over the citizens of the Undercity; Shimmer. But they're also not opposed to fighting enforcers if they choose to go starting shit down here again.
They're busy every day working on ways to possibly dethrone Silco and his influence on our people so that real Undercity reformation can begin. The whole mission of the group, their motivation and determination, it's unbelievably admirable, and seeing the way they function up close is inspiring.
Let's chalk all of this up to a lot happening while I was stuck in a fucking cell in Stillwater.
There are always people working in the Firelight's base, even though Miriem told everyone that for the next few weeks, there won't be any missions going on, which means we have downtime. There are certain people who continue working even with the announcement that they don't have to. Whether that be by continuing to train to keep up their strength, working on machines and weapons 'just in case', or even improving upon inventions and innovations to make our lives easier.
The place is always full of bustling Firelights; teens sat with their friends or running around on adventures, families hanging out in the courtyard to get some fresh air, and lone wolves doing whatever they want to do for the day.
It's amazing to watch, from above in Mira, Ekko, and Powder's home, how while all of the people are doing their own thing, they seem to work and operate in harmony. It's hard to put into words, how they are all completing totally separate tasks, yet they function like a bee hive, working around or with one another to accomplish things as little as getting a toy down from where it's stuck in the branches of the beautiful tree.
Today, we don't have much planned. Very little actually. Powder and Ekko want to wind down the old fashion way; playing board games like how we used to do in the basement of The Last Drop. Powder also wants to drag me along for some girl time with Mira and Caitlyn.
Speaking of, when Mira and Caitlyn first met, it was rocky at the beginning. It was actually two days into Caitlyn and my arrival; while on her way down from her house, Mira almost ran into Caitlyn who was walking to the cafeteria for breakfast.
Miriem knew who she was, of course, we had told her so she was aware of the full situation, but seeing the girl still in her enforcer uniform after being told she refused to change, let's just say that the blonde was pissed off.
The argument they had went along the lines of Caitlyn trying to introduce herself and apologize for being in the way, Mira interrupting and saying she already knew who she was and cutting to the chase by asking about her stay so far, Cait saying she was doing fine and that she was really impressed with the Firelight's, Mira asking her if she really was doing fine because 'if you really were wouldn't you try to make an effort to contribute at least a little, at the very least change your fucking clothes to show that you aren't about to flee and tell your topside friends about us?
'This isn't Piltover anymore sweetheart, we don't have to show our worth through pointless uniforms and superficial badges of hierarchy. Not to mention you're making everyone here uncomfortable by acting as a figure that we've always had to protect ourselves against, the look you're sporting right now is directly related to those who have always been hostile and aggressive toward our people. So, I'll ask again, how has your stay been so far?'
I don't hold Mira's cold attitude against her, you have to be cautious and Caitlyn's actions, while maybe not seeming like that big of a deal to herself, are disrespectful. I do however think she could have gone about the whole thing differently, preferably in a more civil manner (and I'm not usually one to suggest civility, but come on.)
Mira has only ever acted approachable and respectful to me since we got here, and I feel like if she really wanted to put in the effort to not have this hostile conversation in the middle of the courtyard where prying eyes are watching, it would have been so easy to accomplish for her. I think it's more a matter of letting her followers see that she's in a way standing up for them, which I can respect.
In the end, Caitlyn did end up changing into the clothes offered to her but kept her pistol strapped to her leg, to which Mira sighed but let go. The next two days were spent relaxing in the time off.
This morning, Mira plopped down at the table Ekko and Powder dragged me to for breakfast with a sigh, then lays her head down on the table.
"You okay there?" Ekko asked, nudging her foot with his own, knocking my own in the process. Mira only groaned in response.
"She's hung over you ass," Powder slaps away the hand Ekko tries to poke her with for calling him an ass and continues talking. "I saw her talking with Sevika last night, Silco had a shipment of Shimmer exported through Piltover last night that 'Vika wasn't told about soon enough for us to take down-"
"Meaning Mira is now beating herself up about not being able to do anything about it," realization dawns on his face as he says it. He frowns and opens his mouth as if to say something only to be shut up when Mira picks her head off the table to send him a glare.
"Dude, I know you're thinking about all of the people this is going to affect, but you know that even with Sevika's information, we aren't able to catch every shipment he sends out anyway. Things like this are going to happen, it's all a part of the process of defeating him-"
"But they shouldn't have to be!" Miriem yells, soon after grumbling about how much her head hurts.
"Yes, but when we do find a way to put a permanent end to him you'll have a Reverse Shimmer™ to undo the effects of shimmer. One way or another the addicts are going to be cured and it doesn't matter if we have to save a couple more people because we were unable to intercept a couple of his shipments. Those people won't be harmed for much longer with the way things are going now, so don't worry too much about it now, we'll be able to fix it later anyway." Never in my entire life had I ever imagined Ekko would sound so wise, but here we fucking are.
"I know... I just can't handle knowing he's continuing to screw up people's lives as much as he did mine, and that I was unable to stop it. I wouldn't wish my pain on anyone else, yet he's still out there giving Shimmer to unsuspecting and innocent people. I mean, hell, Shimmer has begun to devastate Piltover too, and I've been nearly powerless to stop it. It just sucks."
The look of utter anguish on Mira's face sends a sinking feeling in my stomach, and while I have the urge to somehow comfort her, to tell her it'll all be okay, I don't even know what I could say or do to help. I don't know enough about what's been happening down here recently to properly reassure her that things will turn out fine. I'm left here with a sense of grief for her.
"I know I don't know you well enough to be certain, but I have a feeling some food will cheer you up," I say, and if there's a tinge of hope in my voice, that's nobody's business but mine. "We haven't eaten yet and I've spent too long eating nothing but dingy prison food, you up for a trip to Jericho's? We can see if he's heard anything about Silco lately."
"Actually," by the expression on her face, I take that as a no- "that would be wonderful. I just need to get out of this place, having nothing to do or plan for the better of the Undercity, I'm feeling a little useless at the moment."
Powder jumps from her seat. "While we're out we can stop by the pawn shop to see if there's any new barrels I can use for the gun I'm making!"
"That," Miriem follows suit and gets up from the table to follow after my jumping sister, "we can do."
Ekko and I watch as they take their Hoverboards up to Mira's house, most likely grabbing some money and a bag.
"Powder has always had an odd way of cheering her up, but I've never seen her that quick to accept help before," he turns to me with an unidentifiable look in his eye. "You've known her for so little time, but it's nice to see her opening up so easily to someone new," he grabs my hand and tugs me up with him, "usually she's slow to trust new people. I guess you're just someone she's heard so much about that she feels she knows you in a way."
"I wish I had the opportunity to hear about her as much as she's heard about me. It's like she knows everything about me and I know virtually nothing about her."
"Well, that's kinda exactly it. She's a sort of private person, having an egotistical manipulative bitch for a dad does that to people. Just give her some time, she's an amazing person once she lets you in."
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Just a filler chapter to get the ball rolling after leaving this story untouched for so many months. (P.S. Half of this chapter was already written when I came back to it an hour ago) After I watched Avatar: The Way of Water, I started writing a fic for that in my free time at school and basically forgot about this story... sorry about that.
Anyway. I've been seeing a lot of votes on this book even in my absence, so you've basically convinced me to continue writing it (Leadrewapic09 I'm looking at you <3).
Thank you for all of the love and feedback so far, don't forget to vote and comment if you liked this chapter, and please hold me accountable for my promise to continue writing. DM me and remind me if I haven't posted a chapter in a while, and spam me if I go as long without updating as I did before this chapter.