#🖋️ corinna

[solitaireships]

Home Away From Home

And now another entry in my attempts at fixing Arcane, a fic focused on Corinna and Mel right after the events of season 2! Mel's a character who has so much empathy and care towards others, but she never gets to be comforted herself, and that's what I wanted to do here. She deserves to be cared for, and she deserves to know she never has to be alone

Rating: Teen

Genre: Hurt/comfort

Words: 2081 words

Divider by saradika

Content warnings: references to surgery and severe injury, references to familial death

The days after the battle for Piltover are a blur for Corinna. Her role in the battle was small, all things considered, and she had fewer losses than most. Mel and Jayce, though, have both suffered far more than anyone should have to. Everything Jayce worked for with Hextech is long gone now, and so are the last remains of his partnership with Viktor. The doctor’s they’ve spoken to about his leg haven’t had good news either, though they said that the surgery he got today should be able to help attempt to undo the damage that had been untreated for months.

Mel’s better at pretending to be okay than he is. But Corinna can see through the gaps in the mask, even if Mel’s good at hiding them. After everything that she went through for the last months with the Black Rose, her new magic, and now losing her mother, it’s a wonder she’s able to get through everything. There are whispers too that she’ll be wanted back in Noxus, both for her mother’s funeral and to take over the family that had once exiled her. 

Corinna both admires her strength and worries about it— there’s only so much that one person can take on their own, and she doesn’t know how much longer Mel can last. It’s true that she’s opened up to both Corinna and Jayce, but she still always seems like she’s holding back. She can never fault Mel for it, especially knowing what she does of her family, but still she wishes she would let them in more. Especially now of all times, with everything she’s going through, Corinna worries about her seeming hesitant to talk about what happened to her.

That’s part of what brings Corinna to Mel’s house after her time with Jayce at the hospital. It’s a relief knowing that his surgery went well, though she knows that he dreads having the external fixator they set him up with for the next months. At least he should be up and walking again in another week or so, though she knows he’ll still need some help supporting himself then. All that matters is he’s getting better, and that’s what she hopes to tell Mel as she makes her way into her house.

“Hey, Mel? It’s me,” Corinna calls as she closes the front door behind her. 

She doesn’t see any sign of Mel in the entryway, and she’s not in the living room or her gallery either. If anything, it looks like all the rooms are barer than usual, though it’s hard for Corinna to place exactly what’s missing.

It’s only when she makes it to Mel’s bedroom that it hits her what’s happening.

Mel is there, but she’s in the middle of packing a trunk full of her clothing. Most of the sleek white dresses she usually favored are left in the closet, though Corinna catches hints of blacks and reds in the trunk. The shelves and drawers around them have been cleaned over, a lot of what used to sit atop them seemingly having been packed away too. 

Mel freezes when she sees Corinna. She must not have wanted her to see this. Maybe that’s why she had suggested Corinna go to the hospital to be with Jayce on her own, saying they could come back later. 

Corinna stares blankly for a moment, heart aching in her chest to the point where she can barely think. Eventually she manages to say, “You’re leaving?”

“I don’t want to,” Mel says. “But I don’t have a choice. I need to go back to Noxus.”

“But you were going to leave without telling us.”

“I know how it looks, but I can promise you I wasn’t going to leave without saying anything,” she explains, coming to meet Corinna where she stands by the door. “I would never do that to you and Jayce. I just… I needed to get ready to go before either of you could tell me not to.”

Mel’s voice breaks a little near the end as she takes Corinna’s hands in hers. She holds tightly to them, brushing her thumb down the back of her hand. It’s rare to see her looking so fragile, so close to letting the mask fall and revealing what’s beneath the surface. It only makes the feeling of heartbreak consuming every part of Corinna’s mind stronger. 

“I’m sorry,” Mel says. 

“Then don’t leave. Then you’d have nothing to be sorry about,” Corinna pleads.

“My mother is gone, and I'm her only heir left. And that's not to mention that I’m different now than I was before, and I still don’t fully understand how I’ve been changed,” she replies. “Piltover is different too, my love. And I don’t know that it would welcome me in the same way anymore— not after everything that my mother did. This can no longer be my home.”

“So you’re going to Noxus?” 

The empire is hardly known for being the most hospitable of places. It’s a nation of conquerors. It rewards the strong, and looks down on any they see as showing a sign of weakness. Corinna hardly thinks it would be the best place for her after everything she’s been through— it would only encourage her to bury whatever she’s going through more than she already is. And maybe it’s partially Corinna’s own bias against Noxus, but the thought of Mel going there alone when she’s been through as much as she has makes her stomach twist into knots.

“It’s the only place I have left,” Mel says. 

Corinna finds that hard to believe, but she doesn’t say that out loud. The last thing she wants to do right now is argue when that might only serve to push Mel away. So instead she says, “And there’s nothing I can do to convince you to stay?”

“I’m afraid not.” Mel takes a deep, shaky breath. “I’m so sorry, Corinna.”

“I… I don’t know what I’ll do without you,” Corinna says, her voice shaking. “The months where you and Jayce were gone were hard. I don’t really know how I managed to get through them, and I— I don’t know if I can do it again. Not after getting you back.”

“Jayce will still be here.” It’s an argument even Mel doesn’t look fully convinced by, but one she seems to be trying to use for herself too. To convince herself that even if she has to hurt, Corinna and Jayce will be okay. 

“But you wouldn’t be,” Corinna replies. 

When Mel looks at her, it’s as if Corinna’s words were the final push to send her into tears. At first Corinna almost doesn’t recognize what’s happening. Mel’s shoulders tense, eyes narrowing. Then the tears start forming in her eyes, spilling down her face as a sob quakes through her. “I know. I’m sorry.”

It strikes Corinna that this is the first time she’s ever seen Mel cry. She wonders how often she’s wanted to do something like this— to let everything out instead of keeping it all buried beneath the surface. But this is the first time she's ever been hurt enough that her walls crumbled, letting the flood gates open and the tears start flowing.

Seeing her like this hurts. She hates to see Mel upset, hates knowing that she’s been pushed to this point. She hates knowing that there’s nothing she can do to keep Mel here with her and Jayce. 

But Corinna puts aside her own hurt at the situation. Being upset won’t change things, and Mel needs her for as long as she can still have her. So she wraps her arms around Mel, pulling her close. Mel rests her head on Corinna’s shoulder, and already she can feel the tears that stream down her face.

“Piltover is my home. You and Jayce— you mean more to me than I can put into words. I don’t want to leave you,” she says between sobs. 

Corinna strokes a hand down her back. “I know, baby. I… I know it doesn’t seem like it, but things will work out. They will somehow.”

Mel doesn’t say anything, but she draws herself closer to Corinna, burying her face against her. She shakes in Corinna’s arms, body wracked by each sob that pulls itself through her. She clings to Corinna as if that will be enough to keep her here in Piltover, and Corinna wishes that it would be enough. That they could stay like this, that they could talk about every horror that Mel was forced to endure, that they could work through everything as partners. That they never would have to separate.

There has to be some way to keep Mel in her life. Corinna can’t bear the thought of being apart from her, not when they only just got to be together again. It hasn’t even been a week since Mel returned from her encounter with the Black Rose, and everything has been a blur since. 

Corinna runs through options in her head as she rubs her back, hoping that will soothe her. Mel can’t stay here, and she knows there’s nothing she can do to make her stay. She’s inherited her mother’s role in Noxus, and now the prodigal daughter of the Medardas has to return. And countless other things have changed— both in Piltover and in Mel. There’s no going back to how things used to be. 

But maybe, she thinks, they could adapt to their new circumstances. 

“Mel,” Corinna says, “what if Jayce and I were able to come with you?”

Mel looks up at her, sniffling. “What do you mean?”

“Jayce and I could come with you to Noxus,” she says. “At least in theory— we’d have to make sure he’d actually be willing and able to travel right now first. But if you can’t stay, we could see about coming with you. We could be like your home away from home.”

“I can’t ask you to give up your lives just to come with me,” Mel objects, though Corinna can see how desperately she wishes she could.

“You wouldn’t be asking us to do that, I’m suggesting that we could,” she replies. 

Besides, she knows there’s not much left for Jayce in Piltover either. He lost everything with the destruction of Hextech, and she knows the guilt hangs over him like an anvil about to drop. Both he and Mel have lost a lot, and Corinna wonders if some time away might help both of them figure out how to move forward. And they could do that together instead of having to separate, leaving Mel alone to deal with every horrible thing she’s been through the past months.

“Maybe we could talk to him about it tomorrow? He’d like if we went to visit him today, but he’s still kind of out of it from the surgery,” Corinna says. 

“Okay,” Mel says. She leans forward for a quick kiss with Corinna, not much more than a brushing of lips against each other. “We shouldn’t go yet. He can’t see me like this.”

“He would understand,” Corinna promises. 

She knows that Jayce was cautious around Mel when he first got back to Piltover, but he’s better now. She knows that the trauma he went through while he was away will stick with him, just like how it’s stuck with Mel. But he’s started to ease his worries, Mel’s presence seeming to reassure him that she cares for him. If anything, him seeing how affected she was by the idea of possibly leaving them would further soothe his doubts. 

“Maybe. But I shouldn’t be like this in public,” Mel says. 

“Then take all the time you need. But I’m here for you until you’re ready.”

Mel takes a breath, eyes closing as she tries to calm herself. Corinna can practically see her trying to put herself back together, fitting each piece back into place as she stands in her arms. 

She cups Mel’s cheek in her hand, brushing away some remaining tears with her thumb. “We’ll figure this out, baby. I promise we won’t leave you to deal with all of this alone. You deserve so much more than that.”

“Thank you,” Mel says. “I… I never could have imagined having the honor to be loved by someone like you.”

“You have nothing to thank me for,” Corinna replies. “And you have no idea how much of an honor it is to love you too.”

[solitaireships]

This is so gorgeous! Thank you so much, I love it 🩶

@solitaireships happy new year, i was your secret santa! theyre at one of corinna's shows or smth

[solitaireships]

Stealing this concept from twitter but when Jayce was really little he used to always wear a wizard hat his mom made him to school, and people would bully him for that. But Corinna complimented him on it one day and started asking him about magic which is how they ended up becoming friends and realizing they lived on the same street

[solitaireships]

Happy Valentine's day! I decided that the theme for my Valentine's day fics this year would be Arts and Sciences, so here's a short and sweet fic about their first Valentine's Day together! This fic is mainly focused on Mel and Corinna though, with only some mentions of Jayce. idk if Valentine's Day canonly exists in Runeterra but idc, it does now

Happy Valentine's everyone, and thank you to @strawbeaniie for running this event!

Rating: General

Genre: Fluff

Words: 1090 words

“I’m here!” Corinna calls as she steps into the atrium of Mel’s apartment. It always stuns her to think that she’s in a relationship with someone who’s home is big enough to have a formal area for greeting visitors. But she supposes that opulence like this is to be expected of the richest woman in Piltover.

Mel is quick to greet Corinna as she comes in, a smile on her face. Corinna’s smiling despite herself too— this isn’t just any visit for her to spend time with Mel, this is the beginning of their first Valentine’s Day dinner.

“Welcome in, darling,” Mel says, taking Corinna’s hands as she gets closer. “You’re the first to arrive.”

“Well, you know how Jayce is when it comes to hextech,” she replies. That and he has a tendency to forget about things at the last minute. She doubts that he would have forgotten about their first Valentine’s Day with Mel, especially since he’s always been good at remembering their dates in the past, but he’s no doubt buried himself so deeply in his work that he’s lost track of the time.

“I do,” Mel agrees. “And I also know that this makes a perfect opportunity for the two of us to enjoy some time together.”

“Lead the way then, Councilor Medarda,” Corinna says with a teasing grin.

Mel responds with a smile of her own before leading Corinna further into her apartments, towards one of the balconies with a view of Piltover.

“Dinner should be ready in a moment. I had assumed Jayce would run a bit late, so I made sure the catering staff knew there wouldn’t be any rush on preparing everything,” she explains as she leads Corinna along. “But before that, I’d like to show you your gift.”

“You didn’t have to get me anything.”

“Of course I did. The flowers and chocolates you sent this morning were lovely, and so was the letter you included with them. It’s only right that you get a gift in return.”

Mel’s right under most circumstances, but it’s harder to agree it’s necessary now. Corinna knows that Mel has the money to give expensive gifts, but that never makes her feel better about how much she spends on her and Jayce. That she’s arranged a catered dinner for them tonight should be more than enough gift wise, but she knows there’s no arguing with Mel on the matter. She’s nothing if not a dedicated girlfriend, and the idea of not getting something nice for her partners on Valentine’s Day would be unthinkable. 

Still, Corinna has to worry about how big her gifts for her and Jayce are as Mel leads her onto the balcony. Usually this is where Mel does her painting, but today there aren’t any works in progress drying beneath the sun. Instead there are two easels with covered works on top of them. 

“You painted something for me?” Corinna says. 

She should have expected something like this. Mel’s art is one of the things the two of them bonded over— both being creative, just in different ways. And while this means Mel at least didn’t spend exorbitant amounts on her and Jayce’s gifts, this instead spending who knows how much time on each of the paintings. 

“And one for Jayce,” Mel says as she approaches the covered painting on the left. “Though his gift can wait until he gets here. But since you’re already here for yours…”

She pulls the cover from off the top of the painting, revealing her work. It’s a striking painting, clearly done with loving brushstrokes that blend together in an assortment of cool toned colors. Blues and purples are the most prominent, but they all come together into what Corinna realizes must be a portrait of her. It’s almost hard for her to recognize at first— she’s never seen herself as beautiful, but this painting presents a breathtaking view of her. Every one of her features is carefully rendered, stylized to take on an almost ethereal quality. She’s facing towards the left, a smile on her face and with a golden halo resembling the laurels she wears behind her. 

It’s a stunning work. Every piece Mel’s ever completed is. If she weren’t in politics, Corinna’s always thought she would make a wonderful professional painter. But it’s one thing to admire the assorted landscapes and scenes Mel’s done before, and another to see herself painted as though she’s worthy of all the hours it must have taken to complete this, rendered almost as though she’s something to be worshiped.

“Oh, Mel,” is all Corinna can think to say. She looks at her, trying not to get choked up. “Do I really look like that to you?”

“Are you asking if I think that you’re beautiful? Because I do,” Mel says. She makes her way over to Corinna again, cupping her cheek in one hand. “You, my love, are one of the loveliest, kindest people I’ve ever met. I had hoped to capture just how gorgeous I think you are with this, though it was only from memory.”

“You have a very good memory.”

“It’s easy to remember someone as beautiful as you,” she replies.

Corinna thinks it would be impossible not to feel flattered by that. It’s not as if this is the first time someone’s called her beautiful, but it’s different to see how she looks through Mel’s eyes. It’s easier to believe in what others might see in her when presented with a compliment in this way, especially coming from Mel. She’s as talented at weaving pretty words as Corinna is, a skill that’s always necessary in politics. But she’s more reserved with her genuine affections than most would expect, and that only makes everything she’s saying now all the sweeter.

“I love you,” Corinna says. “I can’t even begin to thank you enough.”

Mel smiles. “I love you too.”

Her lips are soft against Corinna when they kiss, and Corinna pulls her closer with a hand on her hip. She’ll need to kiss Mel countless more times to feel like she’s done enough to thank her for her gift, but she can’t deny that it might make a nice addition to her office at the theater. 

“Now,” Mel says, “would you like to see if dinner’s ready for us?”

“I’d like to do whatever you want to do, sunshine,” Corinna replies. 

“Then follow me,” she says, taking Corinna’s hand once again. “And I’ll be sure you have a perfect rest of your Valentine’s Day.”

[solitaireships]

We're getting close to Valentine's Day, and what better to celebrate with than a cute cuddly prompt from @strawbeaniie's Valentine's prompt list! Of course it had to be for me and Jayce since he's the cuddliest man alive, and this is about him and Corinna waking up together for the first time since they started dating

Rating: General

Genre: Fluff

Words: 724 words

Corinna’s surprised by how rested she feels waking up in Jayce’s bed. Sleep has never come easily to her, and it’s rare for her to wake up feeling like she slept well, yet somehow she feels good when she wakes up. As she rolls onto her side, she thinks it must be that this is the first time she’s waking up after sleeping next to Jayce.

He’s still fast asleep, back turned to her and one arm dangling off the edge of the bed. The two of them have been friends since they were children, but nothing they’ve done in the years they’ve known each other has felt quite as intimate as this. She can see the rise and fall of his breathing through the dark, his bare back exposed to her so she can just barely see his muscles.

Corinna loves Jayce. She’s known that longer than they’ve been together. She can’t imagine what her life would be like without him, not when he’s been everything to her for so long. And now she can’t help but imagine what it would be like to wake up next to him every day for the rest of her life.

Corinna inches across the bed as carefully as she can, trying not to wake Jayce up as she positions herself behind him. She hugs him close, burying her face against the back of his neck and placing one hand on his chest. She hopes he’ll like waking up like this, cuddled up next to her. He’s always been so fond of physical affection, even in little ways. When they were kids, he used to reach for her hand whenever they were walking to or from school, so casually affectionate that she almost didn’t know how to respond. But by now she knows that every touch from Jayce is a reminder that he loves her. That he never wants them to be apart. 

She doesn’t know how long they lay like that, her eyes drifting closed as her body relaxes in time with Jayce’s breathing. But eventually he grumbles, stretching in her arms and drawing Corinna fully back to consciousness as he stirs.

“G’morning,” Jayce mumbles, his voice intoxicatingly rough.

Corinna responds with a kiss to the back of his neck. “Good morning.”

Jayce grunts as he rolls himself over, facing Corinna. He looks at her with a lazy smile on his face, hazel eyes settling on her. “I think I like waking up with you.”

“I think I like waking up with you too,” she says. She rubs his back with one hand, enjoying the feeling of his arms wrapping around her. 

“Maybe we should wake up together more often,” Jayce suggests. 

“We could sleep at my place tonight. Maybe get dinner before that too,” Corinna says.

“I don’t know.” He presses a quick kiss to her lips, snuggling up closer against her. “It’s going to be pretty hard to get me out of bed today when I could be cuddling with my girlfriend instead of working.”

She laughs in response, but can’t deny that the idea of staying in Jayce’s arms all day is a pleasant one. “You know you wouldn’t be able to keep yourself away from your work for that long.”

“But you are making a very tempting case for never leaving bed again,” he says.

“Hmm. Well, there’s nothing stopping us from cuddling a while longer. I could always pick up some food on my way into the theater this morning.”

“And Viktor will only complain a little if I’m a couple minutes late.”

“As long as it’s only a little.”

Jayce grins, running a hand through Corinna’s hair. “He could complain a lot and it would still be worth it for every second I get with you.”

It’s hard for Corinna to think of what to say in response to that. She could write affectionate exchanges all day, but when it comes to her own love story, she finds it hard to find the words to show how much she cares for Jayce. So instead she responds in a way that he’ll always understand, squeezing him tight and letting their legs tangle together beneath the covers. The world can wait for them both to go about their days. For now, all that matters is the way they feel cuddled up together. 

[solitaireships]

Jayce and Corinna were both bullied when they were kids, so they’d go everywhere together to try to make sure the other had someone on their side

[solitaireships]

Corinna and Jayce pre-relationship where Corinna is constantly sitting there going “what are we”

[solitaireships]

The reason Jayce is little spoon despite being a 6 foot 7 giant of a man is bcs if he’s big spoon there is 50/50 chance Corinna will wake up in the middle of the night and discover she’s been trapped under him

[solitaireships]

Gingerbread Home

Here's the first of the Christmas fics I've been working on! We're leading into them with some Arts and Sciences stuff, partially inspired by something I saw on twitter about Ar/cane characters making gingerbread houses. I didn't really agree with what they said for Jayce, but I did like the concept of the thread enough so here we are!

Rating: Teen

Genre: Fluff

Words: 1039 words

Divider by strangergraphics

“Corinna, dear, could you pass me the gumdrops?” Mel asks, finishing applying a bit of icing to the top of the gingerbread house they’ve been working on.

Corinna picks up the bowl, passing it up to Mel as she does her own work at icing around the windows. “There you go.”

“Thank you.” As Mel starts picking gumdrops out of the bowl, lining them up in a neat row at the top of the gingerbread house’s roof, she looks down at where Corinna’s working. “Hmm, I like the accents around the windows.”

“I figured they’d help it look a little more sophisticated.”

“You figured correctly.”

“Either way, though, I’m pretty sure we’re making the best gingerbread house to ever exist,” Corinna says. 

It is an impressive one, after all. They’ve been working on it practically all day now, with Jayce getting them started by putting together the actual house. Corinna’s used to him going all out with gingerbread houses— going back to when they were kids, she can remember him trying to build gingerbread skyscrapers. While not as ambitious as a building as tall as he is, this year he managed to put together a large, two story gingerbread house that could practically double as a dollhouse. And while Jayce is excellent at applying his engineering prowess to putting together the house itself, he’s left the gingerbread house decorating to Corinna and Mel. 

If Corinna’s honest, Mel’s doing the majority of the work. She’s an incredible painter, and it seems her artistic abilities extend to cookie art. It’s fun getting to help her, even if they’re not just doing it just for the sake of it. Mel’s hosting a Christmas party this weekend, and as much as Corinna dreads an evening stuck with Piltover’s rich and powerful, it’ll at least be nice having something she and her partners made at the center of the event. 

“Ugh, dammit,” Jayce mumbles under his breath. 

“Everything okay?” Corinna asks. 

“Fine. Just not nearly as good at art as you two,” he replies, frowning down at the gingerbread people in front of him. 

Corinna comes around behind where he sits at the other end of the table, taking a look at his work. He's been busy with decorating gingerbread people while Corinna and Mel have been working on the house, saying he needed something to keep him occupied while they worked. There are five gingerbread people in front of him, only two of which are actually decorated. The first has thick, dark lines of icing that are presumably supposed to be locs, with a white dress trimmed in gold. The second is the one he was working on, with hair that starts brown before turning a dark shade of pink. He was in the middle of drawing what looks to be a pair of glasses, though the right rim ended up being a little too big around her frosted eyes. 

“Aww, Jay, are you making gingerbread versions of us?” Corinna asks, grinning at him. 

Jayce sighs, putting down the icing so he can tilt his head back and run a hand through his hair. Mel comes around the table to look now too, a smile lighting up her face as she sees Jayce’s efforts. 

“I’m trying to,” he says. “I don’t get how you’re able to be so precise with these damn things.”

“Mel’s the one who’s actually precise. I’m just good with ideas and broader stuff,” Corinna says. 

“And I think that gingerbread me and gingerbread Corinna are absolutely adorable,” Mel notes. She places one hand on Jayce’s shoulder. “They look lovely.”

“Thanks. And sorry about messing up the glasses,” he says. 

“It’s no big deal. If anything, it adds to the charm,” Corinna says. 

“I’ll make sure everything lines up better for the rest of it,” Jayce promises. “Ugh, I still need to work on ones for me, Cait, and Viktor.”

“I’m sure if nothing else, gingerbread Jayce will be just as sweet as you are,” Mel says. 

“Ha,” Jayce says drily. “Just make sure you leave a couple of the mini candy canes for me. I need them for Viktor and my canes.”

Corinna leans down, giving Jayce a quick kiss on the top of his head. “You’re so cute. And I’m sure that the rest of your little gingerbread people are gonna be perfect.”

“Thanks,” he says. 

“But we’ll leave you to your art so we can finish up their house,” Mel says. She brushes her hand along Jayce’s shoulder as she passes by him, heading back to the other end of the table. “We will be taking pictures of your finished work with it, though.”

“Only as long as those pictures don’t end up on social media,” Jayce argues. 

“I don’t see any reason why everyone shouldn’t be able to appreciate your work.”

“They’ll be appreciating it already with any pictures of the house, they don’t need to also see my terrible cookie art skills.”

“Be nicer to yourself,” Corinna chides. “But I’ll make sure that she doesn’t put it on any official socials, at least.”

“I knew I could count on you, Cori,” Jayce says with an appreciative sigh. 

“Mhm. I will be relentlessly complimenting you for all of them once you finish up, though,” she says.

He grins in response. “Well, I wouldn’t say no to you praising me some.”

Corinna laughs. “I’m sure you wouldn’t. But you’re gonna need to finish them up first so I can do that.”

“Yes, ma’am,” he replies teasingly. 

Corinna gives him one last quick grin before she returns with Mel to finish up the gingerbread house. There’s a joy in the act of creation, that’s what got her into writing in the first place, but there’s something even more special about being able to create something with the ones she loves. 

Maybe that’s a part of getting into the Christmas spirit for her. It’s not just about the gifts, the lights, or anything else. It’s getting to do something she loves with the people she loves, with this house and the cookies Jayce is working on practically being a product of their love. And this is far better than any gift that she could find under the Christmas tree. 

[solitaireships]

Homecoming

I'm going ahead and starting my quest to make the writing for Mel and Jayce from the end of this season better, so we're gonna be doing this in chronological order, starting with Corinna and Jayce's reunion! And me trying to come up with a better explanation for why he was Like That in the scene in the council room with Mel + letting him work through it a little so we can have something nicer there. Warning for spoilers for the show, even though I am rewriting parts of it!

Rating: Teen

Genre: Hurt/comfort

Words: 2297 words

Divider by saradika

Content warnings: talk about the end of the world

It’s by chance that Corinna passes Jayce’s apartment when the lights are on for the first time in months. She was on her way to a cafe nearby, one that she didn’t frequent nearly as often with Jayce no longer around to meet her there for coffee. But as she looks up to where his apartment is, left untouched since he and Mel had vanished, she sees for the first time in months that someone is there.

Corinna makes her way up to the apartment on autopilot. It’s been hard keeping faith these last few months that her partners would ever come back. No one knew for sure what happened to either of them, though Corinna had tried to see if Ambessa could tell her anything. She had to believe that both of them were okay, that they had been lost somewhere but would one day make it back to her. As the weeks went on, though, it became harder to believe that was true. She doesn’t know how she managed to make it all this time with both of them so suddenly ripped from her life as things only seem to be getting worse and worse in Piltover. 

But now it seems like Corinna’s faith that things would work out wouldn’t have been for nothing. Maybe it’s not Jayce, maybe someone broke into his apartment since they knew it’s been unoccupied for months. But for now she lets her hope carry her forward.

The front door is left slightly open when Corinna gets to it. As she steps into the apartment, she calls out, “Hello?”

The kitchen by the entrance looks like it's been ransacked. She had cleared out most of the perishable foods when it became clear Jayce wouldn't be coming back any time soon, but someone's gone through and eaten as much of what was left as possible. Corinna doubts that stale snack foods are the most appetizing thing in the world, but whoever came through here must have been desperate. She can hear motion from the bedroom as she steps further in, leaving the door open behind her just in case. She walks towards it carefully. As much as she wants to believe she’ll get there and see her boyfriend, she knows that she needs to be cautious.

But when the door to the bedroom swings open in front of her, it’s as though the weight that’s been crushing her for the past months has finally been lifted.

“Jayce?” Corinna breathes out.

He looks different, but Corinna would recognize him anywhere. His clothes are a mess, dirty and torn, and his hair’s gotten much longer. He’s grown out a beard too, with that seeming to draw even more attention to the couple of scars he’s gotten on his face. Corinna’s heart seizes in her chest at the sight of the brace on his left leg and how he seems to put more weight on his right leg when he turns to see her. But those brilliant golden eyes of his are still the same, even with the dark circles hanging under them.

“Cori?” Jayce asks, his voice rough, like he hasn’t used it often lately.

Corinna moves without thinking, closing the distance between the two of them to pull Jayce into a hug. She tries not to let herself cry— this is a happy occasion, even if it seems like something horrible must have happened to him— but it’s impossible not to let a few tears slip out.

“I missed you so much,” she says.

“I missed you too,” Jayce says as he wraps his arms around her. His grip around her is tight, as if he’s half worried that she’ll disappear if he lets her go. 

With his arms so tightly around her, it’s hard for Corinna to miss the feeling of something hard against her back. At first she thinks it must be the rune stone from Jayce’s armband, though she thought he wasn’t wearing it. She pulls back just a little, still mostly being held tightly against Jayce, but enough that she’s able to take his arm and bring it around to see his left wrist. 

She was right that he’s not wearing his armband anymore. It’s strange not seeing it on him, but what’s far stranger is what’s in its place. The rune stone that had been embedded in the leather band he always wore is now buried in his skin. Deep red marks are etched in his skin around it, forming patterns that almost look like webbing. 

“Oh, baby, what happened to you?” Corinna asks. She runs a finger down his wrist, feeling where flesh is interrupted by the cool feel of a gem. At least touching it doesn’t seem to hurt him, though she can’t imagine what happened to cause this. 

“It doesn’t matter,” Jayce says, resting his forehead against Corinna’s. 

“It does if you got hurt,” she says. “You were gone for months, Jayce. I had no idea what happened, or if you were even alive, or—”

“It was months?” he asks. 

“Yeah.” Corinna sighs, brushing some of his hair back with one hand. “Not knowing what happened to you or Mel was about to kill me.”

“Mel’s gone?”

“She disappeared around the same time that you did. It… it was terrible losing you both. Maybe since you’re back we can try to find her together? I looked everywhere, and even asked Ambessa if she knew anything, but nothing’s turned up yet.”

Jayce is silent. It’s hard for Corinna to tell what he’s thinking, but it’s obvious whatever is going through his head can’t be good. She doesn’t know how to get him to talk to her. Normally conversation between them comes easily. But whatever happened to him these last couple of months must have shaken him. 

“Can we talk more in bed?” Jayce asks after a moment. 

“Whatever you want.”

Corinna untangles herself for Jayce’s arms to sit down on the edge of the bed. She waits for him to get settled next to her, laying down so his head rests on her lap. She and Mel used to tease him that he’s like a giant dog that’s convinced he’s a lapdog, always seeking out an opportunity to be cradled in their arms. He wraps his arms around her middle, laying on his side so that he's facing her and letting his eyes drift closed for a moment.

They cuddle quietly together for a while. Then he says, “I saw the end of the world, and it was my fault.”

All Corinna can manage to respond with is, “What?”

“I went to the hex vault with Heimerdinger and Ekko— his new prodigy, or something— and we found one of the wild runes I told you about before that Viktor had been looking into. It was giant, Cori, and I— I don’t know. It feels like forever ago at this point. But something happened, and the three of us were basically drawn into it,” Jayce explains. “I don’t know where the others went, I don’t know if they’re even still alive. But where I was… it was a nightmare.

“Everything was destroyed. Piltover, Zaun— I’m pretty sure everything outside of them too,” he continues, his voice cracking. “There was no one there. Everyone was dead or turned into these— these mechanical puppet things. There were shells of people out there, but nothing alive. And it was all because of Hextech.”

Corinna’s silent for a moment. If nothing else, she’s sure Jayce is telling the truth of what he saw. Him being gone for the past months was without question real, and he’s not the type to lie, especially not about something like this. But it’s still unbelievable, sounding more like a play that she’d write than something that would actually happen to someone. And Jayce of all people shouldn’t have to go through something as horrible as that. 

“You’re sure it was Hextech?” Corinna eventually asks. 

“Yes, I’m sure. I saw the thing that I made there— the things I spent my life on. I’d know it anywhere,” Jayce says. “And I… I also knew Viktor there, even though he was different. More machine than human. He was controlling everything somehow. And it’s my fault because I used the Hexcore to try to save him.”

“You can’t blame yourself for that. You were trying to help your friend, you couldn’t have known any of this would have happened. Or could happen,” Corinna says. 

“Maybe. But I still need to fix what I started. I don’t know if I’ve done enough yet.”

Another moment of silence comes over them. Corinna feels like whatever he means by fixing things has to be something big, but she doesn’t know what. All she can do is hope whatever it is, he’ll be able to come back to her at the end of it all. 

“Well, no matter what, you know I’m always here to help you,” Corinna says. She squeezes his shoulder with one hand, toying with his hair with the other. “You’re back home, so that’s one step done. We just need to find Mel now, and then… stop the apocalypse while also trying to prevent a war between Piltover and Zaun and stopping Noxus from potentially taking over.”

It feels as ridiculous to say out loud as it is to think about. There are still countless massive things on their plate, and she of all people shouldn't be one of the people trying to fix these problems. She's not a politician, she's not a fighter, she's not anything special. But at least now Corinna can start hoping things can get better instead of worrying she's lost both of the people she loved most. 

“There’s something else we need to talk about,” Jayce says.

“What else?”

“When I was in the wild rune, I could feel magic everywhere. And it felt… familiar. Not just like Hextech, but like— like Mel,” he says. 

“You think Mel has some kind of magic,” Corinna says. 

“I know she does.” Jayce rolls onto his back, looking up at her. “She might not be the person we thought she was.”

Corinna frowns. “What are you talking about?”

“Mel’s the reason that I didn’t die in the attack on the council. I don’t know what happened, but she— she did something, and it saved us,” he says.

“And that’s a bad thing?”

“It is if it means she could have saved everyone but just saved me.”

“Jayce, you know Mel. I’m sure if she could have done something to save everyone, she would have. But maybe it’s something where she just didn’t know what was happening, or there was some kind of limit to what she could do, or… I don’t know, something.”

“Or she just wanted to protect her investment,” Jayce replies drily, his eyes narrowed.

“You’re not an investment.”

“Sure I am. She only took an interest in me because of Hextech anyway.” He sighs, rolling onto his side again to all but bury his face in Corinna’s stomach. “Ugh. I was an idiot. I don’t know why I didn’t think of this sooner.”

Corinna is quiet for a moment, running her fingers through Jayce’s hair. Whatever happened to him while he was away, it must have done something bad to him. This isn’t the kind of thing he would have said before, and it’s hard to tell where this is coming from. Maybe being alone for as long as he was did something to him, maybe it’s some kind of response to everything that he saw there. If anything would make him doubt Mel, it seems the apocalypse is a fair enough reason for concern.

But Corinna can’t bring herself to share that distrust. Maybe Mel does have magic, and maybe she was hiding that from them. But she’s still the woman that Corinna’s grown to love. If she was keeping secrets from them, it had to have been for a reason, and she won’t give up on her so easily. 

She also won’t be giving up on Jayce, though. Not when she just got him back to her. The months apart would have been unthinkable before— they’ve practically been inseparable since he first arrived in Piltover. Corinna doesn’t know what’s going on right now, but he doesn’t seem like himself. The last thing she’s sure either of them needs is to lose the other again.

“You’re not an idiot,” Corinna says. “But I think you might be stressing yourself out more than you need to, Jay.”

“You weren’t there,” Jayce says.

“I wasn’t. But I know you, and I know Mel. If you say it feels like she has some kind of magic, I believe you. I just don’t think that she was keeping it from us for a bad reason. If she just wanted to use you, I really doubt that she would’ve been interested in me too, or that she would’ve told us some of the stuff about herself she did.”

He’s quiet for a second. Then he sighs, rolling onto his back again to look up at Corinna. “You’re probably right.”

“I hope so.”

“I don’t— shit. Nothing makes sense anymore. I don’t know what I’m supposed to think about anything.”

“Well, will staying here for a while and resting help?”

“Maybe,” Jayce says. “I need to shower too. I probably smell and look awful.”

He does, but Corinna’s been able to push past that with how relieved she is to have him back. “We’ll do whatever you want, baby.”

Jayce takes Corinna’s hand in his, guiding it up to his lips to press a quick kiss to the back of it. “Thank you for being here for me.”

“And I will be until the end,” Corinna promises. 

[solitaireships]

Crying bcs I was joking on twitter that someone should draw me and Jayce as this one pic of someone drawing their ponysona cuddling with Obama for some reason and my friend @moonflower-song actually did it. Everyone say thank you Merc

[solitaireships]

🎩 and 👕 for whichever of your beloveds of your choosing! ☺️💕💞

Answering with Mel!

👕 - Does your f/o lean more casual or more formal?

For sure formal, Mel loves dressing up. She likes wearing some more revealing things, but she’s always keeping it very elegant and sophisticated even then

🎩 - What’s an outfit you’d like to see your f/o wear? What’s your f/o’s favorite outfit that you or your s/i wears?

Ok I’m going with more modern AU stuff bcs I struggle enough imagining outfits for characters but coming up with Arc/ane/League compliant ones are harder so

Mel would look good in this (shout out to gcldquartz on twitter mentioning this in a thread) and with some bubble braids

And I think Mel would like seeing Corinna dressed up like this, with a kinda of business look that’s still cute

[solitaireships]

I was talking about this on twitter last night but in a modern au, Corinna can’t stand the smell of weed bcs it gives her bad headaches/breathing issues but Jayce uses it to help with pain relief for his leg. He avoids smoking around Corinna, instead usually using edibles. He makes some banger weed brownies and then some standard brownies for her (and carefully label which is which to make sure no one ever accidentally eats the wrong one)

[solitaireships]

Header credit | Divider credit

A collection of fics focused on my polyship for Jayce and Mel! This includes stuff that's within the timeline of me trying to fix things and give them a happier ending and general ship fics with them

Homecoming

After months apart, Corinna stumbles upon Jayce having newly arrived back to his apartment. They talk about everything that he's been through, and what might come next

Read it here

Gingerbread Home

A modern AU Christmas fic. Corinna, Jayce, and Mel make a gingerbread house together

Read it here

[solitaireships]

Jayce getting a tattoo to represent Mel and Corinna on his chest (he wants it to be close to his heart like they are)

[solitaireships]

2 and 5 from the snuggly ask? (@snowpuffclovers)

Answering with Jayce and Mel!

2) How do each of you ask for a hug or cuddles?

Corinna will usually just try to get close to one of them as some kind of silent indication that she'd like affection. It takes Mel a little while to pick up with that, but between being friends since they were kids and Jayce being one of the cuddliest people in the universe, he's always instantly able to pick up on things there. He will try to be physically close with Corinna and Mel pretty much as much as possible, and usually for him he just kind of comes up and wraps his arms around one or both of them as a way to show he's interested. Sometimes he'll also outright ask, but usually he just kinda drapes himself over them lol. Mel then will normally just take one of our hands or basically try to position herself in bed or on a couch as a sort of invitation for cuddles

5) Can you describe how you usually cuddle?

Jayce is the number one little spoon fan in the world so we'll start with that. He likes getting to be held, and he likes getting to hold hands while spooning too. Corinna and Mel will take turns with who's in the middle versus who's on the end, but I think Corinna usually ends up sandwiched between them. She likes either resting her chin on his shoulder to talk to him or burying her face against his back to try to go to sleep. Then Mel likes to hug Corinna from behind when she's in the middle and give her kisses on the back of her neck