#Vi never put Caitlyn before the Undercity | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

ahhhsami · 1 month ago

Text

What makes Caitlyn so compelling this season? An analysis.

Season 1 Caitlyn is why Season 2 Caitlyn is so compelling. This may sound funny, but let me lay it out as to why I believe this. As someone viewing media, we are only privy to what the creators show us. They determine our journey, just as they determine the characters'. But why does this matter when it comes to Caitlyn Kiramman? It matters because we didn't truly know her character in Season 1 and neither did her closest companion during that time, Vi.

Season 1:

Fish Out of Water We're introduced to Caitlyn who is a rookie Enforcer. She's figuring out who she wants to be in a field that is new to her. She's not a rich kid protected by her influential family name, at least not when she's part of the force. It's foreign and she's adjusting, but obviously struggling as seen by her treatment by other enforcers and Marcus. She's following her innate need to help and follow her perception of justice. An idea that she still doesn't fully grasp herself. And before we know it, she's thrust into the Undercity. This is when she truly becomes a fish out of water. She's in a place she's never been, surrounded by people that she doesn't understand, with a woman who defies every belief she'd been taught, and has no control whatsoever. We see Caitlyn completely out of her element. Thrown into the fire. We do get some glimpses of who she is when in Piltover such as her winning over a woman with ease in the brothel, her confidence in her own abilities when shooting Sevika's arm, and her compassion to Huck when saving Vi. But these are just glimpses and we as a viewer are still parsing together what exactly makes Caitlyn Caitlyn.

Not Like Other Girls I've mentioned Vi in the previous section, but would like to go into more depth about her influence on our understanding of Caitlyn's character through Season 1 as well. Vi as a whole is completely foreign to Caitlyn. She's brash, impulsive, sarcastic, straight-forward, rough around the edges, and even rude. She doesn't care about how others perceive her. But she's also loyal, kind, and street smart. She defies Caitlyn's own understanding of someone from the Undercity and forces her to change how she sees Zaun as a whole. But that also means Caitlyn is completely caught off guard. She's found herself in a position where she isn't in power. She's put into her place when she makes insensitive comments, she's on the back foot when Vi tells her she's hot, she's brought into a brothel where she's witnessing things she most likely has never before, and walking the streets that she's only heard awful stories about. And then Vi continues to surprise her by her commitment to do what's right. She's committed to catch her sister because she knows it's right. They both believe that they are aligned in what they seek. Both aligned even though they're from two completely different worlds. Vi isn't like other girls to Caitlyn (and Caitlyn isn't for Vi, but this is about Caitlyn).

Innocence and Naivety Caitlyn's flashbacks show that she's curious, fiercely committed to succeed, and also innately empathetic. But it also shows us that she feels she doesn't fit in. She feels like she's on the outskirts even though she's growing up with privileges most will never be able to experience. She doesn't follow what her mother and father want. She finds friendship in Jayce who is much older than her. We're painted a picture of what Caitlyn is when she's young, a picture that reinforces what we're seeing with Caitlyn as a fish out of water in Zaun. Reinforces how she acts around a spitfire butch such as Vi.

So why does this all matter? It matters because we didn't know Piltovian Caitlyn. We didn't know the Caitlyn we're now seeing in Season 2. And just like Vi, we're learning more and more about this woman and we as a collective audience are being taken on a journey to either enjoy her as a character even more, or for some, dislike her because our perceptions of her have been broken.

Season 2:

Piltovian Caitlyn is Piltovian. She was raised steeped in their culture and has ingrained viewpoints of the world around her due to their societal standards. But she's not a normal Piltovian. She's one of stature from House Kiramman. Her family has sway in every facet of Piltover, but also over Zaun in many ways. This isn't the thing that truly matters in this analysis though. What matters is that at her core, she is Piltovian and she knows how to navigate the landscape there. She's in her element. She knows exactly how to carry herself, how to present herself to those around her, how to speak to Piltovians, and also how to get what she wants when she needs it. The confidence we had only gotten glimpses of in Season 1 are now at the forefront because she has regained her power and status of being Piltovian.

Casanova Kiramman Caitlyn Kiramman can get who she wants and has. This defies our initial perception of her not fitting in and also her lack of confidence when being flirted with by Vi. Season 1 led us to believe she was awkward, but in all reality, when she's in Piltover and able to be in control, she's able to draw in the women she wants. Once the growing pains were over from early childhood, it's evident she was able to find confidence and date the women she wanted. This becomes even clearer with her relationship with Maddie. Maddie idolizes Caitlyn, whether that be because of her wealth, status as a Kiramman, her looks, her leadership, or her commitment to justice, she reinforces that Caitlyn is a catch for anyone that is from Piltover. And once Caitlyn is back home, she knows that. I strongly believe that Caitlyn had found physical comfort in others but wasn't able to find mental and emotional connections with people in Piltover. They saw her as the rich girl and she allowed them to see her as that. But with Vi that's different. Vi got to see her at her worst, mentally and emotionally. This meant that her relationship with Vi progressed in the opposite way compared to her previous relationships. It started as intrigue, to attraction, to bonding (a splash of trauma bonding), to truly loving and caring for her. It didn't get physical until later on. But just as Vi didn't know Caitlyn fully, Caitlyn didn't know Vi fully. So the couple and audience were thrown into a fragile, tenuous relationship that was never going to flourish at the place it were then. And because Caitlyn is in Piltover, it allows her to easily regress back into a physical relationship (the one with Maddie) that lacks the mental and emotional connection she so strongly is seeking.

Control Caitlyn Kiramman has been searching for control her whole life. As someone in a rich family that has to fit certain roles and expectations, she didn't have control of many facets of her childhood and then even early adulthood. Sure she defied her parents and became an enforcer, but as soon as it became too dangerous in their eyes, it was taken from her. She didn't have control while in the Undercity. Then lost even more of her control as she mourned her mother's death and sought vengeance. And then when she thought an opportunity had arose, she instead was puppeteered by Ambessa. Where she has had control is in her relationships with women. She's able to cater those to her needs, but in doing so has never found what will truly make her happy.

Conclusion

So why do all of these things matter? It matters because we're finally seeing Caitlyn for all that she is. She's soft and kindhearted, but at the same time she's determined and committed to justice. She's timid and awkward, but at the same time she's confident and well-spoken. She's patient and empathetic, but at the same time she's impulsive and calculated. She's all of these things and none of these at the same time. There's layers to her and just as a real person, not all of those are good. She's complex and to achieve such a feat with a character is extremely impressive.

The writers have been able to lead us to perceive this character one way and shattered our perceptions. They made us fall for a woman that was out of her element and then question a woman that made debatable decisions. They showed us a character that seemed put together, but was broken at the same time. They created a character that can be loved and hated within the same breath. And that's only possible because of our understanding of who Caitlyn was in Season 1. That is why Season 2 Caitlyn is so damn compelling. Because of the journey we've been taken on by the writers, animators, and every other person that worked on Arcane.

PS: For people who were devastated or had a hard time with Caitlyn and Vi parting ways, what I've laid out here is exactly the reason why they needed to separate. Neither of them knew each other fully, only knowing the best parts of the other. So when that bubble was burst and they both started seeing things that they didn't like, their fragile, quick to burn relationship scorched them both. BUT as they understand themselves (especially Caitlyn) they will surely be brought together stronger than ever.

#long post #arcane #caitlyn #caitlyn kiramman #arcane spoilers #analysis #thanks to anyone that actually gives this a read #caitvi #piltover's finest #violyn #arcane season 1 #arcane season 2

230 notes · View notes

peoplesgraves · 26 days ago

Note

Could you do a yandere Caitlyn kiramman from arcane X fem reader?

Resolve

Yandere Caitlyn Kiramman X Fem Reader

“You know if you weren’t so stubborn this wouldn’t have-“ Caitlyn cuts herself off upon seeing the pouted glare you sent her way, probably supposed to be intimidating but Caitlyn has to bite back a fond smile as how cute it truly is. She hated to see you all laid up in bed, wrapped up from the injuries you’d gotten from a particularly close escape attempt.

“I was just trying to escape the psycho enforcer who seems intent on making my life miserable but it seems like the universe hates me as much as you do.” Your words practically drip with bitterness and had it been anyone else Cait would be just as cruel back but this was you. The zaunite who’d enraptured her, so how could she say anything pointed when you were right.

Not about her hating you, Cait could never hate you no matter how many times you ran or attempted to put her down for good to secure your freedom. She had been acting a bit crazy lately though, truthfully she’d been out of her mind ever since meeting you in the undercity when Vi took her to that hole in the wall… ’establishment’ to get information from an old friend. Leaving her all alone at your flirtatious mercy.

But ever since Jinx’s attack on the council she was even more feral. Back then she’d been content visiting you any free chance she got and paying lavishly for private visits up topside, hoping to win your heart honestly. Though after losing her mother, her hope and most of her heart, now she wanted, no needed you all the time. Needed you under lock and key at her place where she could keep you safe.

Cait sighs calming her bubbling anxieties at your rage and the general tension of her home, your home. “I wish you could understand, I only want to protect you” she brings a hand to you, pushing stray hair behind your ear and caressing your cheek. She shouldn’t relish in the pained wince when you attempt to lift an injured arm to swat her away, but she does just a bit. Hoping this would soften your attempts to escape just a bit and hoping the care you’d need from her over the coming weeks would soften you to her too.

“Understand?! I thought you were different. I thought you understood! Understood that we were different than you’d been told, that we were people just like you but you’re just like all the rest. Thinking your name and being from topside means you can do whatever you want to us…” your voice breaks and Cait feels her heart shatter along with it. “To me!”

She rests her forehead against yours like she used to, back before, back when the both of you thought maybe you could love her back. “I do understand, I know you’re different” your eyes meet hers and you feel a glimmer of hope, Caitlyn can see it in and she wants so badly to see that light forever. “But the undercity isn’t. That’s why you belong here, with me”

You let yourself go limp and Cait lets you fall from her arms, back onto the bed. Lets you curl into yourself as much as you’re able and sob until you both shake. No matter what she wouldn’t leave you and she wouldn’t let you leave her. Cait would prove every word she’d spoken to you and she would be deserving of being the light in your eyes as you were hers. Once she’d made the undercity worthy of you, she’d let you return as long as she was near. Her love for you would carry her and all of piltover through, not even Jinx would sway her resolve this time.

#yandere arcane #yandere arcane league of legends #yandere league of legends #Yandere lol #yandere Caitlyn #yandere Caitlyn kiramman

156 notes · View notes

viridian-fields · 19 days ago

Text

I've been doing a lot of thinking about this theory that Caitlyn gave up her council seat to Sevika. This idea is based on the following:

Sevika now occupies the seat that Cassandra used to sit in

Certain council seats are inherited

Caitlyn used her influence to put Sevika in the Kiramman seat

I'd like to posit an alternative theory.

There's no question that Sevika now sits in Cassandra's old seat, so I'll simply acknowledge that and move on to the second point.

Certain council seats are inherited

I can understand why people make this assumption, but for me it remains uncertain. My primary disillusionment with this idea comes from Salo and his reactions to Caitlyn being present at council meetings after Cassandra's death.

Here Mel replies that Caitlyn is a witness who can provide valuable information. She doesn’t say Caitlyn is entitled to be there.

Cait doesn't claim that she has a right to be on the council, but asserts her authority as an officer. She uses her family name, sure, but neither she nor anyone else mentions any pending appointment to a council seat.

If the council seat is Cait's birthright why would Salo challenge her like this?

We don't get a lot of time with Caitlyn and her parents, but they never mention Caitlyn's future as a councillor. Cassandra says only "You're a councillor's daughter, your actions reflect on the entire body".

So what do we actually know about how council seats are assigned? We know that the council can add or remove members by unanimous vote (Jayce and Heimerdinger). We know that Mel is a Noxian who likely did not inherit her seat as her family isn't from Piltover. We also know that the council always had seven members before Jayce. Which makes me wonder - whose seat did Mel take over? Why wasn't that seat passed on to that councillor's heir if the seats stay in certain families?

I spent some time analysing what I could about the other new council members at the end of s2 - and I can't rule out that at least some of them could be heirs or house/clan members of the deceased councillors. Certainly Bolbok's seat seems to have passed to another of his kind, and the new occupant of Hoskel's seat could be a relation based on looks and clothing style. Unfortunately we do not get a look at the new owner of Salo's seat. However there are at least two vacant seats that are not hereditary (Mel's and Jayce's) so if Caitlyn did inherit a seat there would be no implicit need for her to give it up since there were so many other vacancies. There is also Heimerdinger's 8th (non-hereditary) seat which remains unoccupied.

So are these seats inherited or are they just generally appointed to members of influential houses, hence there being some semblance of continuity? I can't say for sure.

I do think that Caitlyn not being on the council is her own decision though, whether she gave up an inherited seat or declined to be considered for one when new councillors were being appointed.

Which brings us to my second nitpick about this theory…

Caitlyn used her influence to put Sevika in the Kiramman seat

Caitlyn knows that Sevika was Silco's right hand. She watched Sevika grievously wound and attempt to kill Vi. She had a brutal fight against her when she and Vi went after Jinx. She may have heard from Vi of Sevika's betrayal of Vander years earlier. Caitlyn has never seen any other side to Sevika. If Caitlyn were choosing a Zaunite for the council it would not have been Sevika. It would've been Ekko.

Ekko had built a haven for refugees and a competent resistance force against Silco, was a trusted community leader, and - like Sevika - had come to Piltover's defence during the battle against the Noxians and Viktor. To Cait, he would've appeared reasonable and compassionate compared to Silco and Sevika's ruthlessness and cruelty. She saw that Ekko had a desire to enact positive change in the undercity and had demonstrated a willingness to compromise and work with Cait and Piltover to do so. Sevika tried to kill Caitlyn and Vi. Ekko saved their lives.

So what actually happened after Caitlyn ended martial law and reformed the council? Apart from declining a seat for herself, I think she pushed for Zaun to be given a seat at the table, and then deferred to Zaunites to choose their own representative. Ekko either didn't want it, or didn't have the influence to win out over Sevika. I imagine Sevika being present and a leader of the Zaunite resistance movement for the months that Ekko had been zapped to a different timeline would've made the difference there. And perhaps Zaunites preferred Sevika because she is strong, ruthless and uncompromising. Who better to defend you and safeguard your interests against the untrustworthy Pilties?

tldr

It's unclear whether Caitlyn was entitled to a council seat and gave it up, or if she simply declined to be considered for one.

She likely was instrumental in advocating for Zaunites having a seat at the table

…but Sevika would not have been her choice. Sevika being there is the will of Zaun. Not Caitlyn.

Thoughts?

#arcane #arcane s2 #arcane season 2 spoilers #arcane speculation #arcane caitlyn #caitlyn kiramman #caitlyn arcane #sevika #sevika arcane #arcane sevika #arcane s2 spoilers #ekko arcane #ekko #arcane ekko

83 notes · View notes

avelera · 3 days ago

Note

Hi I just wanted to say that you have the best Arcane takes/meta and literally never miss!! I swear I’ve reblogged at least five of your posts so I can save them for fic references. Out of curiosity, what’s a take/analysis you’ve wanted to talk about but haven’t been asked before?

Thank you so much! And hmm, that's an interesting question. A lot of the meta I have in my head about Arcane is less ship-y stuff, so I assume it won't be as popular, but I think a lot about the metaphysics of the show (like how Hextech works, where the Anomaly came from, how the decline of normal looking people in the background indicates the hyper polarization of their society in S1, or how Jayce isn't the one who cared all that much ideologically about Hextech weapons, it was Viktor's belief that he was supporting, etc etc.).

I think in general, S1 is easier to write meta about because there's a lot more setup and a lot more exposition. S2 is more about wrapping up all the Big Events set into motion by S1. Also, admittedly, the writing is a bit tighter too in S1.

I will say one theme I haven't seen mentioned elsewhere that's a bit stronger in S1 is how Piltover + Zaun together become more powerful.

This manifests itself in several ways:

Shimmer + Hextech = Most of S1 is marked by the arms races between Shimmer and Hextech between Zaun and Piltover. It's an arms race that in both place, is leaving normal people behind. Though Hextech seems more benign, the prosperity it brought to Piltover allowed the Council to ignore the problems facing the undercity in favor of foreign markets. (Ironically, Hextech did more damage to the undercity than it ever did good, which is a tragedy in particular for Viktor.)

But, when Shimmer and Hextech are combined is when you see the greatest amount of power generated. It's part of a larger theme of how these two cities at odds would be stronger if they worked together, for better and for worse.

Vi + Caitlyn = Vi and Caitlyn are an individual example of how the strengths and weaknesses of Piltover and Zaun balance each other out, if both societies would just allow it. In something of a Romeo + Juliet story, albeit with a happier ending, we see how both Vi and Caitlyn work surprisingly well together and strengthen each other, in a partnership that puts lie to the idea that these two sides are irreconcilable.

Jayce + Viktor = In a parallel to Vi and Caitlyn, we see another Piltover/Zaun partnership that is one of the strongest and most productive of the series. It further shows how Piltover and Zaun are not natural enemies, but instead have the potential to compliment each other to achieve great things, if they only allowed it. Of course, their partnership also has moments of received prejudice to overcome, and it's not always smooth sailing, but time and again we see that it is a tragedy when Jayce and Viktor are kept apart. They are better off together, just like the city would be, so long as it can overcome the allure of foreign power and its own prejudices.

That's kind of a high level one, but thank you for the chance to talk about it and I'm so glad you're enjoying the meta I've written so far!

#arcane #arcane meta #jayvik #caitvi #hextech

45 notes · View notes

bwat5-blog · 6 days ago

Text

Jinx: The Best Version

**Spoilers For Arcane**

In the vein of my earlier post about Caitlyn and Violet's reunion, I wanted to take a moment to celebrate this moment for Jinx. Because at the end of the day, my belief that this character deserved for us to see more of how this went down, doesn't take away from the absolutely epic impact of what we were given.

Jinx is a complex character to say the least, and while all of the main characters are fighting their own inner battles throughout this story, her pain is uniquely hard to watch. We meet this kind and curious little girl, and watch as her mind is torn apart by the world around her as Powder sinks below the waves, and only Jinx is left.

But it's her journey to find out who Jinx truly is, that makes her such a special character. We see her torn between being the shattered ghost of Powder and Silco's terrorist daughter, until she has been stretched so thin she pleads with her own sister to take her life. She is only able to begin her path toward healing, when a certain slightly feral street urchin enters her life.

Her time with Isha starts her down the road to finding who she really is. As Vi comes to see the good in her, and she is able to separate herself from the monster Silco turned her into, although it is through unimaginable loss and pain, that darkness is finally scoured from her. So in the 11th hour, when someone she believed had given up her comes to save her life, she is ready to listen.

**It had to be Ekko. I love Vi, she is my favorite character, but Jinx had to be saved by someone who wouldn't put their love for her before the truth. She knew Vi was going to be in her corner, no matter what. So in a moment where she sees nothing left in her worth loving, someone like Vi who she knows won't give up on her regardless wasn't the person to get through to her**

Vi and her forces are being overrun by the shimmer hulks (no idea what they are called just my best guess), Caitlyn is stabbed, standing alongside Mel against Ambessa herself, and "chaotic humming in distance" as the show so expertly subtitles it draws their attention.

The Queen of Zaun leads her people to war:

Arriving on her base WHICH WAS APPARENTLY AN AIR BALLOON Jinx arrives in a blast of music and colorful explosions, leading the firelights and her people to war. We see her bright colors, hear her loud music, she even treats us to one of her signature smirks while a glitchy grin ghosts over the screen, but this feels entire different. This is not the keening tension of an unstable mind. For perhaps the first time, it feels like the trappings of "Jinx" are hers to command, not ropes around her neck. Bearing the symbols of those she loves and has lost, she opens fire saving the topsiders who have hated her, and saving her beloved sister. All while Ekko and his warriors descend from on high, and the people of the undercity who refused to fight for Jayce, have rallied behind one of their own.

Finally, we see her not only reunited with VI, but at peace with one another as they are now, even in the midst of this terrible battle. And in what could be her last moment among the living she stands for her beloved sister who had always stood for her, making sure the last person close to her lives.

"There's no good version of me"...

"Everyone who gets close to me dies"...

At the end of her story for this show, the young girl who tortured herself for the deaths of her family carried them with her into battle, leading her people wo once feared her, and saved the life the person who would never give up on her. And it is this version of her, the best version, that I believe sails off into blue, ready to write her new story.

#arcane season 2 spoilers #arcane season 1 #jinx arcane #vi and jinx #powder #arcane

43 notes · View notes

chronicsyd · 6 months ago

Text

the way i gotta be defending Caitlyn and Vi out here sometimes is Fucking Ridiculous! and the culprits bashing them are almost Always Jinx stans with ABSOLUTELY ZERO MEDIA LITERACY SKILLS to the point where I question if you even paid attention to what the show was Trying to tell you.

For Example:

NO, Caitlyn did not "brainwash" Vi; Caitlyn saved Vi's ass by letting her out of Stillwater in the First place, stays with her after being stabbed and traded her (probably) custom made rifle for the ailment to save Vi's life because she's a good person. Any other Enforcer would have probably left Vi to bleed to death for running off in the first place (if any other Enforcer were crazy enough to let Vi's ass out of Stillwater to begin with) Vi likes Caitlyn because she's good natured despite growing up with literally All the privilege in the world

With her marksman skills, Caitlyn could have Easily put a bullet in Sevika's head, but she doesn't. she aims for the shimmer device powering her arm, using a non-lethal way of taking her out (unlike a certain Other blue haired fanatic)

Caitlyn wants the cycle of violence to stop. she makes her objectives Very clear: Locate Jinx, Dismantle Shimmer, Neutralize anyone still loyal to Silco. with the grief over her mom she could have said she wanted to kill Jinx, but she doesn't. Neutralizing people still loyal to Silco, who mind you are still HORRIBLE people who, Like Silco have taken advantage of struggling people for power. and by dismantling Shimmer she's actually helping Zaun to recover from SILCO'S oppression and exploitation of them (remember people like Husk? the Children in Silco's shimmer facilities?).

NO Caitlyn did not maliciously interrupt Vi and Jinx's reunion in episode 6. Yes she and Vi did see the blue smoke but it's Very evident that Vi didn't tell Caitlyn what the hell it meant and just took off, and because she's faster than Caitlyn, Caitlyn spent the minute (or longer) of Vi and Jinx's reunion just catching up to her. she only looks up and see's the pair when she runs up the steps and stops, but Jinx had already heard her at that point and looked over, not giving Caitlyn enough time to make herself scarce before pulling out her machine gun. Vi Also didn't tell Caitlyn that Jinx works for Silco, despite having known that fact since her fight with Sevika.

Caitlyn didn't Force Ekko into agreeing with her. She even Says, "You'd be well within your rights to keep it, I wouldn't blame you." She offers a perspective that could help Both Piltover and the Undercity and Ekko trusts her on the condition that he's the one that gives the gemstone to the council (That is until Marcus and Jinx get in the way)

Caitlyn Tries to go about getting peace diplomatically, she doesn't manipulate the councilors into doing anything (despite them all being manipulative assholes themselves)

Manipulate: "control or influence (a person or situation) cleverly, unfairly, or unscrupulously." JINX is the one that does this when she kidnaps Caitlyn and Vi and forces Vi to shoot Caitlyn.

Caitlyn did not choose to be born into her family's power and wealth, and that's not something you can blame her for. was she ignorant to what people in the undercity have faced? Yes but that's because she's been cooped up her entire life, surround by people with prejudice towards the Undercity and never set foot into the undercity until she was with Vi, you can't blame her for that either.

Vi was a 15 year old CHILD who saw her adoptive family die right in front of her eyes. she was exhausted and overwhelmed by her situation. and her younger sister (who she had told to stay) had said she was basically responsible for it, Vi's known to lash out when she's upset and angry. and when her brain catches up to what she did, she's horrified and leaves to calm down and not to do Anything else drastic. but when she tries to go back when Silco shows up, Marucs kidnaps her. hating Vi for this is stupid.

"Vi runs back to Caitlyn when she left to go find her sister!" Vi heard a Gunshot and saw that Caitlyn was being held at Gunpoint. Vi had NO IDEA that Jinx was even watching the entire interaction go down, the shocked look in her eyes when she picks Caitlyn up off the ground is evidence enough of that.

NO Vi isn't selfish for not wanting to shoot Caitlyn. for one, being asked to shoot someone is ludicrous enough but Vi IS allowed to care about other people, which is why she proposes that the two leave as a substitute to what Jinx is asking of her. yes leave Cait behind, but she wouldn't be Dead (you'd think that Vi's seen Enough people she cares about in her life being dead but according to Jinx stans, Apparently Not!)

Being upset at Vi in S2 is Ludicrous because we have Zero context for Any of these scenes that we have gotten. we don't know Any of the specifics of her becoming an Enforcer, why she's saying "my sister is gone.", why she's fighting Jinx, ANY of it. Geez.

(See, this is why we need the "Why is the curtain blue?" discussions because apparently some of y'all don't know how to think. And No, I'm not just bashing Jinx's character, I actually really like Jinx's character but her fans are some of the most annoying people to interact with sometimes...)

#arcane #netflix #vi arcane #caitlyn kiramman #jinx arcane #jinx stans suck #long rant #caitlyn defender #vi defender #league of legends #you can get mad #but i don't care #media literacy #media literacy is dead #im frustrated

96 notes · View notes

tigers1o1 · 5 days ago

Text

Arcane s2 spoilers

“But Caitlyn lost her mom but but but she redeemed herself by betraying and battling ambessa but she let jinx go but shes not a bad person but shes-“ no.

She IS a bad person. More than that, shes a WAR CRIMINAL. She GASSED the people of the undercity and then when her stupid ass political decision turned out to be a stupid ass political decision, she got the ones that DIDNT get gassed to join her fucking army and die for a cause they never asked to be a part of. She lost her mother, yes, but she was a grown ass adult when she did. Vi and powder were orphaned before they turned 10. I am not downplaying the grief of a loss that monumental but.

Dawg she used her mother’s greatest act of charity against her own people. Caitlyn gassed the undercity bc she wanted vengeance against a single, mentally unwell teenager.

“But but she lost an eye and was almost publicly executed and her actions speak louder than words and” yeah dawg? She became a DICTATOR. Thats kinda what happens to dictators??

Sure, shes your little blorbo, your little meow meow that did nothing wrong. But to me, shes a fucking nepo baby that was racist the whole fucking show, disrespected her mothers wishes after her mother was murdered, committed a war crime, became a dictator, started a war and then got what was coming at her. She did not show remorse for what she did to the citizens of the undercity, she never admitted to seeing them on equal footing. Sure, her influence is probably what put sevika on the council and maybe that would have gone more in depth if the writers didnt have to cut a bunch of stuff, but putting a zaunite in a position of power is not an apology for putting all of zaun in danger multiple times and seeing them as animals the whole show.

She is not a good person. No one in that show is. Thats the POINT.

#sorry for the minor crash out #people are being stupid on tiktok and its pissing me off #tigers rambles aimlessly #arcane #arcane lol #caitlyn kiramman #arcane caitlyn #caitlyn arcane #league of legends #arcane league of legends #caitlyn league of legends #jinx #jinx arcane #arcane jinx #arcane vi #vi arcane

40 notes · View notes

mights-quills · 4 days ago

Text

i was talking to my butch today and i realized something. the love triangle in arcane should have been the opposite. vi should have gotten with a zaunite love interest. and i can back my opinion up.

to me there’s something flawed with where the relationship starts that could have always gone sour but the series didn’t even attempt to work on it. it resides in the intersection of theme and character.

in first season the topside and undercity conflict was framed as the main antagonist, the systems, and how the characters work within those systems reveals their character. superficially, cait is the classic trope of the good cop, the one good cop who actually cares. meanwhile vi is the hardened anti hero who had to hide her caring nature to survive a cruel world. but in relation to the oppressive system around them caitlyn is an enforcer of the status quo and vi is the marginalized, with the status’ quo boots on her neck. their navigate this system and their roles in it ( specially cait’s) is in direct conflict with their goals and morals.

caitlyn’s role transforms in the second season, from trying her best under a broken system to second main perpetrator of state violence, personally responsible to critical harm to a community. there’s very little to no coming back from that. it would require accountability, remorse, it would require of cait tangible change. instead, cait still lives in piltover, in the heart of the privilege and still wielding the power of her name even if her chair in the council is not hers anymore. cait loses very little ( one eye, spoils of war that could have happened to anyone in the heat of the fight ) and still gets rewarded the happy ending, the girl she loves in the city she loves, as if it was no harm done.

the addition of maddie to me is like salt to a wound, the narrative takes vi for granted, as if she will always wait for cait, no matter what awful crime against the lower classes cait commits. vi almost loses cait but cait would never lose vi.

love triangles have to mean something, to chose a love interest is to choose a life path, a moral frame work, a destiny. cait makes her choice before maddie enters the game making maddie’s existence meaningless. the real influence over cait is ambessa and the mother wound.

vi deserves to have choices, options, some form of autonomy that’s not just waiting for cait. vi should be the one in a love triangle, perhaps some girl from the undercity with shared struggle, maybe a gentle thing, maybe someone who yearns for more. someone who shows her a different path. that mirrors cait’s arc during that season.

it would come to the creators what to do with the ending but it would simply put vi in a less undignified position of endlessly waiting for people to choose her and having herself the option to choose.

#anti caitvi #vi arcane #arcane theory #arcane meta #maddie nolan #maddie arcane #caitlyn kiramann critical #this is mostly just putting them in equal googi

31 notes · View notes

wingedshadowfan · 1 month ago

Text

⚠️arcane s2 act ii spoilers⚠️

listen to me and listen well. i'm gonna analyze the caitvi breakup scene conflict in detail (and tell y'all why caitlyn is not the villain y'all paint her out to be)

first of all, caitlyn has every reason in the world to hate jinx and want her gone. there are more neutral reasons like the fact caitlyn is a police officer and jinx is a threat to piltover and zaun's law and order, any material property she can reach and basically everyone around her bcuz she's insane, unstable and more than capable of causing damage. then there are deeply personal reasons: jinx tried to blow up caitlyn and vi on multiple occasions, kidnapped caitlyn (god knows what she did to her before vi joined the tea party, but other fans have pointed out cait was so traumatized she went from not exhibiting any fear of jinx before to shuddering when seeing her after), tried to get vi to kill caitlyn, killed her "father" silco on accident, blew up the council, killing caitlyn's literal mother among others and causing injuries and damages. caitlyn at this point might even believe jinx is the one who organized the massacre at the statue reveal ceremony. she even acknowledges how easily jinx's actions and the trauma they've caused her have undone a lot of the work caitlyn has put with the help of vi by her side into seeing zaunites as people despite the way she was raised. all of her anger at jinx for this, for taking her mother, for all the pain she's caused, even her fear make caitlyn desparate. she starts taking more drastic measures in order to catch jinx like using more violence/threats towards innocents, which is the one thing vi tries to address with her. caitlyn promises she won't change. but she already has, as an unconscious and natural reaction to what she's experienced.

earlier, caitlyn doesn't offer vi the police badge just bcuz she's mentally stripped vi's zaunite identity from her and now sees her as a topsider and one of "the good ones" (i bet she's started to do that too, as alluded to by maddie's words abt caitlyn saying vi went after silco alone, but caitlyn does this just so she can compartmentalize better and separate her lover vi here next to her, from her mother's killer jinx who's taken so much from her in zaun), but also bcuz she needs vi's help to get through zaun and find jinx. as she's just lost someone, she badly wants to be able to keep vi close, on her squad, in her line of sight, in order to protect her and make sure nothing happens to her on the potentially deadly task of finding and eliminating jinx. (i want to add smth else here: notice how vi feels guilt for failing to keep others safe and feels responsible for protecting the people around her, so she tries to distance herself from them, like not letting powder go with the big kids, and fights short range, keeping enemies close to her and away from her allies so they can't get hurt. caitlyn does the opposite, she's a long range sharpshooter so she tries to keeps her loved ones as close to her as possible under her watchful gaze, far from her enemies.) it's never implied she wants vi to be a cop forever, or perform any such duties outside of this jinx mission. she's still at fault for not understanding what putting on the uniform would mean to vi - a betrayal of her family, her home, everything she's ever known and loved until now, which vi isn't ready for and caitlyn can't rightfully ask of her. yet vi doesn't say that to caitlyn (and continues to not say anything when their squad of misfits starts gassing up the undercity) and takes it because she sees no other way. she knows her chances alone against jinx aren't looking good.

vi can't bring herself to kill her sister (despite the fact that she's mostly gone, incredibly dangerous, unstable and could've easily killed vi and caitlyn - even accidentally, like she killed silco) and doesn't want her to die either. we can even look at what caitlyn thinks needs to be done with jinx and what vi thinks needs to be done with jinx as a cultural difference betw the two bcuz in zaun where survival is essential, family is everything, you're bound together by what you've been through and you need each other to survive so you don't just cut family off, you don't judge them harshly, leave them or turn them in, but in piltover where that's not the case, there are laws and people who serve to enforce them like caitlyn so if you're a bad person who's done bad things, there's a way for you to be dealt with. vi doesn't realize she wouldn't be able to kill jinx or let herself feel that way bcuz of the amount of guilt she harbors for "creating jinx" and the responsibility she carries for jinx's actions (smth she internalized bcuz of vander teaching her that as a leader she's responsible for whoever chooses to follow her) - again, jinx stealing the hexcore, kidnapping/torturing cait, almost killing the two of them, blowing up the council, etc. so she offers to deal with jinx herself, which caitlyn doesn't want, knowing first hand what jinx is capable of and maybe even suspecting vi's weakness before vi can - caitlyn even says that she's scared that if either of them goes after jinx alone, she'll return in a box. and instead of listening to her own feelings and telling caitlyn about them, vi again decides to "toughen it out" and pull through with it. she tries to seem stronger, more ready and certain when she tells caitlyn to take the shot, but her fear of being faced with having to kill jinx becomes even more evident in the fact she basically indirectly asks caitlyn to do it for her so she doesn't have to.

when the fight breaks out, the danger is very real. sevika can take caitlyn down easily as she's a long range shooter, not a close combat fighter. while cait's fighting tooth and nail, jinx and vi are dancing around each other the way teen girls fight compared to other fights they've had (jinx hitting with her wrists, vi stumbling, etc). they're not fighting to the death bcuz they don't want the other to die. when vi finally pins jinx, who's seemed quite normal until now btw, as if she's finally in her right mind (like smth in that mind can be salvaged), vi notably hesitates. a lot. and before she does anything or moves so caitlyn can shoot, isha jumps between vi and jinx with a gun to vi's head. and here's where i need y'all to be fucking for real. the fear and anger caitlyn must've experienced in that moment are what made her completely lose it, i bet she fully had an out of body experience. now, caitlyn isn't a great shot, she's an excellent shot. if she shoots the gun out of this kid's hand, she saves vi from her brains being blown out of her head. if she misses, worst case scenario, she takes this kid's hand out. she takes the fucking shot to save vi's life, a calculated risk even if she does it rather on reflex. we even see how the bullet flies way closer to vi than to the kid because she's self correcting potential aim errors away from the kid.

now that the kid isn't pointing a weapon in vi's face anymore, instead of pulling the kid from jinx and hauling ass so caitlyn can shoot again safely (see: bcuz she doesn't want jinx to die), vi stands up and starts telling caitlyn not to shoot, even getting in front of her. caitlyn is verbally but not really mentally responsive to her surroundings in this moment, that's how gone she is. her vision tunnels onto jinx and she tries to keep shooting until sevika pulls the lever and we exit combat. vi reasonably confronts caitlyn for shooting at a kid (after caitlyn stops hitting the wall like a woman gone), which she only does because of her fear for vi and fear of jinx (and what she might do next, or if they let her get away) because she feels betrayed, since caitlyn just told her she wouldn't change. she did changed - she became more brutal, but she'd already changed long ago, when she lost her courage, her mother, her progress and when she came to love vi.

and now it's caitlyn's turn to confront vi. vi didn't have the guts to tell her she can't kill jinx, that she can't wear the uniform, that she's not okay with gassing zaun up, and even encouraged her to shoot, so cait was under the impression that this was it. that they were going to end jinx for good. when she says "i thought you were different but you're not", of course she might mean she thought vi was "better" than other zaunites, but i think perhaps even more than that, she means she thought vi had also been changed in the same way by the trauma jinx had caused caitlyn, that she'd finally let go of her hope powder was still somewhere inside jinx and realized how truly destructive and dangerous jinx is and how that necessitates killing her. while vi is immunized against the terrors, caitlyn has never experienced anything like this in her life, which is why she doesn't understand why vi doesn't understand, why she wants jinx to live despite everything.

while vi doesn't seem to understand, she's ready to try to. she's let her guard (and gauntlets) down, she's open and attempting to talk to caitlyn who has shut off completely and refuses to even look her in the eyes (which is one of the primary ways in which caitlyn connects to people). vi tries to stop her from leaving and caitlyn strikes her, as hard as she can, purposefully hitting her in her stab wound which she helped vi recover from herself - almost as if condemning their past relationship and everything they've been through. not only does that physically bring vi, someone used to taking hits, to her knees - it completely incapacitates her and breaks her heart. she can't even follow. she's officially lost the last good thing she had, the one person who cared about her.

both of them are left feeling betrayed and hurt. some of these conflicts could've been avoided by simple communication, others were by design of who they are and where they come from.

39 notes · View notes

strawberry-shortcakey · 1 month ago

Text

my defense of Caitlyn in wake of season 2

Defending my wife rn

Lets get right into this mind you my spelling and punctuation are like non existent so yk

Starting off with the thing i feel people seem to not really understand is whats happening is shes being tugged in like 5 different directions struggling between her obligations to her family name the kiraman family is matriarchal this rests on her entirely she wants to maintain her mothers legacy yet theres the undeniable rage fueled by her mothers death and her feeling of failing all of piltover the feeling that if she had killed jinx before there wouldnt have been so many lives lost she feels ultimately responsible for everything in her life which makes that rage overpower her i mean most of the council civilians enforcers who she had been around her WHOLE LIFE. she feels all that weight in her heart and on her mind much like vi due to her trauma generalizes the people of piltover and enforcers cait blames zaunites and i feel its unfair to give vi a pass and not caitlyn shes trying to hold onto her morals she fights for avoiding innocents getting hurt until the memorial attack where it turns into more than an attack by jinx now an attack from multiples causing her to lose that part of her morals and the last pull is for vi caitlyn loves vi thats something i have never doubted for even a second i mean seriously she puts so much at stake for vi. People don't seem to see that her bringing vi before the council in season one couldve ended poorly for her it couldve reflected horribly onto her family if the council had decided not to hear her out. And on top of all of that shes trying to hold it together. We see her cry a few times but she doesnt ever really let it out i mean shes putting herself under that pressure part of her character has always been that she hates when things are just handed to her as we see in her scene with grayson when she gets upset at the mere idea of her parents paying off grayson to let her win and we confirm that stayed into adulthood when jayce offers her that job for him and shes offended at the mere idea and i feel part of her feels if she shows that pain shes in things are gonna be handed to her out of sheer pity something that would likely fuel her rage further and further.

Next topic is her being willing to kill isha if it meant killing jinx. Now i understand the shock of this how it feels “out of character for her” but it really isnt yes she has been openly against the idea of people getting hit in the crossfire but in her mind its 1 innocent for multiple innocents including her own mother. she also isnt the first character to directly or indirectly result in a child's death and she didnt even succeed so yk but anyway every single councilor is responsible for countless deaths of undercity children and families heimerdinger honestly the most responsible because yk like 200 years of ignoring the undercity and can i also just mention vis switch up on her opinion season one jayce kills a kid when fighting at the shimmer lab and vi has the mentality “you did what needed to be done one life for like 100” yet when caitlyn finds herself in that same mindset vis all “whats wrong with you you're evil now” so uh yeah not an attack on vi just trying to expand on it throughout this i will make comparisons on how we excuse vi but attack caitlyn and why i think thats really telling of how people see her as a character only there for caitvi romance plot!! But anyway caitlyn had every fucking right in that moment mind you she also was running on adrenaline something that i feel a lot of people don't understand in that moment its often impulse you do the first thing to come to mind she was just fighting off sevika shes in that do or die mindset its kill jinx or people die people also don't understand how deep caits trauma around jinx runs we don't know what she was put through during the time between her abduction and the like final scene of season 1 also just yk the entire show. jinx is her personal trauma.

Now onto the caitvi argument in the tunnels lets loop back to the state of mind she was in shes pumped on adrenaline rage and fear. She feels a deep sense of betrayal much like jinx does when vi “picks cait over her” its that feeling of “oh so you care more about someone who deeply hurt me and a random kid than me.” that only fuels her rage/pain that is making her less and less of her core values. caitlyn gets on the defensive she makes a generalization Something once again we see vi do to caitlyn earlier with the oil and water speech which no doubt left a hole in caits heart something that will stick with her dare i even say that plays a part in why she no longer sees zaun and pilover as two sides of the same coin the person who helped her learn something so crucial suddenly saying “actually we are different piltover is all the same you're all horrible. We can never get along, you are not an exception” which no doubt shattered that view and helped cement the separation in her mind. The key difference is that vi didnt get physical cait pushed her and hit her with the rifle but like i said she's on the defense. Also ive seen people saying “oh well cait knows how shes traumatized by enforcers” to caitlyn that trauma is equal to the trauma of what jinx has done to her and honestly it is caitlyn has lost almost everything to this for the sake of what started off as her dreams of justice her need to prove herself has been what she feels like is the sole cause of the downfall of piltover. Which is why i truly believe caitlyn is still herself that the development to her character logical and her actions fully explainable and defendable

Little added thing it’s after getting compared to jinx that she hits vi I mentioned how that’s literally her main trauma jinx killed her mom and ruined her life I’d hit someone with a rifle over that too.

And thats all ive got for now lmk if i should cover more!! And i will be adding as arc 2 and 3 release!

#piltover's finest #arcane #strawb #caitlyn kiramman #lesbian #caitvi #vi arcane #caitlyn x vi #jinx arcane #Defense #caitlyn arcane #Caitlyn did no wrong #Caitlyn isn’t evil y’all #professional yapper #yapping #long post

36 notes · View notes

venomwrites · 27 days ago

Text

I went back and forth on posting this but does work as a stand-alone for a hypothetical missing fight and I have posted all the other ones here. These are all an attempt to get us to the beats of cannon in the same timeframe, but not have it feel rushed.

They can all be found on Ao3: The Cycle

Vi, rightfully, is furious.

She wakes spitting venom and lashing out. Caitlyn has tried very, very hard not to think about the moment Vi is fully cognizant. She is certain Vi is going to yell at her, probably about Jinx. She’s just not sure which part of it she’s going to yell about. But Vi zeros in and spits about the arrest. And even though Caitlyn has sworn she is not going to rise to the bait, the arrest is the one thing she did not do. Caitlyn has enough of her own sins Vi can yell about. Caitlyn snaps and Vi snarls and then she just—just leaves. Leaving Caitlyn with an ache in her chest and a low in her gut that screams for something more.

Caitlyn ignores the urge firmly.

Until she needs something from her room.

Part of her prays Vi is going to be gone when she gets there. It’s only a matter of time before she flees. Caitlyn knew she would look at her with hatred when she woke up. She knew but it’s like anticipating a stab. The anticipation makes it hurt all the more. She needs to relax into the pain. Breathe into it. She’s had a long time to drink in Vi. To memorize her scars an features, to think on her actions. Vi has been unconscious the entire time. They are on different levels . Again. At one point that was her worst fear when it came to Vi. Now the image of her body washed in antiseptic with machines breathing for her is permanently brand by behind her eyes. It still aches when she opens the door and the room is predictably empty. The only sign anyone was here is the dangling tube Vi ripped out of her arm.

“Shit—“

But not the bathroom.

“Shit. Shit--“ the swearing continues, low and angry. Caitlyn hears the toilet paper spin through the door, “fuck.”

“Vi,” she raps on the door, “may I come in?”

“No!” the answer is snarled though the door.

“No?” Caitlyn repeats, “Vi, the bleeding is not going to stop,” the toilet paper roll stops spinning, “it’s me or my father. Which do you want?”

What is she still doing here?

“Fine!”

Caitlyn opens the door easily. Vi is standing in front of the toilet closet, ball of toilet paper in her hand. There’s red spotted paper everywhere. Red across Vi’s stomach. Caitlyn has sworn things will go slow, she will give Vi everything she needs. But her heart clenches at the splatter and before she can stop herself she’s in front of Vi, shoving her shirt up to check the bandage. Vi jumps back at the touch like Caitlyn has burned her. All the fears Caitlyn had about being the one to touch her come roaring back as Vi puts several steps between them. Her face is twisted, lip curled. She looks like a snarl made human.

“Sorry,” Caitlyn says quickly, “I thought—“

“I didn’t tear those!” Vi snarls, “I’m not that useless.”

“I never said that!” Caitlyn shoots back.

“Your face did!” Her tone pitches in volume, “I guess you were too busy arresting my sister!”

“She surrendered!” Caitlyn screams right back.

“I bet you just loved that!” Vi continues, ignoring Caitlyn’s very fair point, “how many wet dreams have you had about her surrendering?!” Caitlyn reels with the accusation and something cruel sparks in Vi’s eyes, “So you got your satisfaction because Caitlyn Kiramman always gets what she wants in the end and us Undercity scum are just left following in your wake!”

Caitlyn screams.

She can’t help it. t’s like she’s been holding her breath this entire time. Maybe since her mother died. Certainly she’s been holding it while Vi lays and dies, while she brings endless trays to Jinx and tries to sort out the entire mess she’s gotten them into. She’s reshaped the world with her grief, brought them to the brink of war. And somehow that is easier to reconcile than the helplessness of watching Vi lay there. Of hearing the truths from Jinx’s lips. It rips from her chest in one brutal noise that echoes around the bathroom.

She hasn’t screamed in here since Jinx clawed her fingers around her mouth and cut the sound off.

This one just echoes around the vast space. Over the blood soaked tissues and the woman in front of her who Caitlyn loves but doesn’t love her back. Who thinks she is horrible and doesn’t know that Caitlyn has been fighting her way back this entire time. That the mere memory of Vi’s love is enough to carry her through. But she cannot say that. She cannot force the apology from her lips so she just howls.

She grips the lip of the sink afterwards, panting like she’s run for miles. Like they are back on that battlefield and she is dragging Vi away. She is vaguely aware of Vi standing there staring at her. She drags her eyes up to the mirror. Vi’s remain locked on her. Confusion has wiped across the rage. Whatever response she was expecting from Caitlyn, apparently her screaming was not it. Caitlyn tries to collect herself as Vi watches her in confusion. Unsure of what to do. Of course she is unsure, it’s the first time she’s been upright for any stretch of time. Caitlyn does not know how she is standing. The blood loss is not helping matters.

“I apologize,” she says, collecting herself, “you’re right. May I see your arm?”

Vi thrusts it out wordlessly. Probably to get out of the bathroom as quickly as she possibly can. Caitlyn doesn’t blame her. Vi has angrily ripped out the catheter. Caitlyn’s actions have once again torn at her. Caitlyn guides her elbow over to the sink and opens the medicine cabinet to pull out the hemostatic gauze. Things go almost automatic. She places it on the crook of Vi’s elbow and curls her arm around it. It’s like moving automatically as she undoes the wrist brace with one hand and puts it aside to wipe clean. She wets regular paper and wipes the blood from Vi’s wrist, careful not to get anything else wet.

Then she remembers Vi is watching her.

“Sorry—“

“Stop apologizing,” Vi cuts her off, “you—seem better at this,” her eyes narrow, “Ambessa give you time to have hobbies?”

“My father is a doctor,” she reminds Vi.

“Bullshit, I’ve seen your patch jobs, Cupcake,” she says, “this is new.”

Caitlyn checks the pad, pleased with the progress before she returns he hand to Vi’s elbow to keep it up. Instead of the smooth, familiar skin of Vi’s elbow, her hand meets Vi’s own. That snaps her back into the present. Vi is awake. She can hold up her own elbow. Caitlyn has just gone on automatic given how many times she has cleaned Vi up. Vi is considering something. Her eyes drag around the bathroom and she peers over Caitlyn’s shoulder. The entire time her elbow remains around the gauze, arm lifted above her heart. Her eyes lock onto Caitlyns.

“You’ve been taking care of me?”

“Yes,” Caitlyn says, “I’m sorry I know this was an overstep. I wanted to make you as comfortable as possible. You’ve been under the care of doctors. Not my father.”

“And this?” She says, jerking her head to the bandage.

“I thought you wouldn’t like a stranger touching you. Or you would like that less than if I did,” Caitlyn says, “we worked together,” she tries to justify, “so I thought I was the better option.”

Vi looks away. Caitlyn hates that she cannot look at her. All this time she only wanted Vi’s eyes to be open. Now she wishes desperately they could look at her. What right does she have to want anything from Vi? She turns to the wrist brace and focuses on wiping it clean. She can do this at least. While Vi gathers her strength to yell at her like Caitlyn deserves. She dries the brace with one of the cloths by the sink and offers it to Vi. She can ask someone else for help. Then she can come back and yell some more. Caitlyn can at least let her have that.

Vi offers her wrist instead.

“Yeah, you’re right,” she says quietly, “I would have hated that.”

Caitlyn focuses only on Vi’s wrist as she tries to do the brace up without touching her. Vi’s arm wiggles and she immediately flattens her hand along the join, supporting it. Like when Vi was limp. She looks up to see something satisfied on Vi’s face at the contact. Caitlyn feels her own face get hot as she tuns back to the wrist in her hand, easing the brace on it and doing it up. Vi straightens her arm fully and lets Caitlyn wind the gauze the rest of the way around the injury.

“Why?” Vi blurts out abruptly, catching Caitlyn off guard, “I was unconscious, why did what I want matter?”

She’ll go to the ends of the earth for the people she loves.

“What you want always matters,” she says, “I know I haven’t been the best at showing you that lately. For that I am sorry.”

Vi stares at her in total confusion. Suddenly everything between them seems to fall away. It’s like they are back in the bedroom, Vi in her red jack and her in her purple dress. Vi is staring at her like she has reached into a place she did not even know existed. It sends a warm feeling through Caitlyn’s chest. Surprising someone as brave as Vi, someone who tries to plan for the worst case in every scenario. But still tries anyway. Caitlyn’s never impressed anyone like that, not in a way that means something. Vi doesn’t leave the bathroom when Caitlyn finishes. Instead she joins her next to the sink. They both lean against it silently, but close enough to feel Vi’s warmth.

“So that scream—

“I don’t know what that was,” Caitlyn starts.

“How long you been holding that in?” Vi asks.

Caitlyn sighs.

“Probably since my mother’s funeral,” she admits.

Vi nods.

The feel of her thigh next to hers catches Caitlyn off guard. Vi doesn’t look at her, doesn’t acknowledge that she’s moved closer. But something warm curls through her belly. She has spent so long touching Vi in a practical way. A chaste way. Now Vi is not limp, not choiceness. And she chooses to press her thigh to Caitlyns. To stand next to her in the bathroom. Instead of doing what she wants to do and run off to see her sister. Some part of her wants to be here with Caitlyn.

What will you do if she chooses me?

It’s hard to be loved like that.

“That’s a long time,” Vi says finally.

Caitlyn nods. Vi opens her mouth and then closes it, blowing out a breath. The question hovering.

“She’s as fine as I’ve seen her,” Caitlyn says, “I got her to eat every third day at minimum. We talked.”

Vi’s eyes go wide and hungry.

“You talked?” She says, “with words?”

“Yes,” Caitlyn says.

Vi looks like she cannot comprehend what is being said.

“Bullshit,” she says but there’s no anger there, “what did you talk about?”

She loves you.

Do you love her?

Will you still love her?

“How your sister almost blew me up when I ruined your job in Jayce’s lab,” she says instead.

“Wait, what?!”

Caitlyn inclines her head. Vi’s disbelief mirrors her own. It helps given how annoyed Jinx looked. Apparently she is not the only one who cannot wrap her head around the idea. Surely the pair of them have to be right and Jinx is just—too smart for her own good. Vi turns fully towards her, breaking the contact and staring at her in disbelief. But she knows exactly what she is talking about. Caitlyn can practically see her flipping though her memories, trying to pinpoint the moment.

“I dropped something from a box.”

A surprised laugh leaves Vi’s lips. A sound Caitlyn wasn’t sure if she would ever hear again. Especially with her speaking. She can see the recognition plain on Vi’s face. Recognition and warmth and something more. Something Caitlyn can’t quite put her finger on. But something she wants to see more of in those alert grey eyes.

“That was you?” She nods, “you scared the crap out of me, Cupcake,” Vi says.

The nickname cuts through Caitlyn’s core Cupcake. She likes it so much when Vi calls her Cupcake now. She really is turning into such a sap. Caitlyn knows it has nothing to do with the nickname. It has to do with the way Vi’s eyes light when she says it, the way her mouth twists like she’s proud of thinking of it.

“Then I guess we’re even,” she says. Vi goes silent. Considers her with those sharp grey eyes of hers, “About that an—“

Vi touches her knee.

“Yeah,” Vi cuts in, “think we’re even.”

She will never, ever be worthy of this love.

But she will spend the rest of her life trying to be.

“I need to go take care of some things,” she says getting to her feet.

Vi watches her with some confusion. Caitlyn hates to break the contact. But she knows her time is running out. Vi trails her out of the bathroom and watches as she goes into the closet and puts a fresh shirt in front of her. Vi is already in her boots. Caitlyn goes to the door. Everything in her wants to stay in that room with Vi gently touching her knee. But this is not about what she wants. She has taken enough. Vi would willingly give her the world without a second thought. Caitlyn refuses to let that happen.

“I know it may be too soon to speak about the upcoming battle,” she says, “but if you need to find me I will be at the Hexgate with all the guards.”

Vi inhales sharply.

“When will you be back?” She asks, voice tight.

“I don’t know,” Caitlyn says.

She reaches into the bedside drawer and produces a small bottle of white tablets, placing them on the table next to Vi.

“These should help with the pain if you are moving around too much,” she says.

She walks to the door.

Vi’s eyes are hot on her neck. There is so much Caitlyn wants to say. So much she wants to repeat. She wants to tell Vi everything, make her understand the answer to Jinx's question has always been 'I will love you anyway'. But this is not about her. And Vi has given enough. So Caitlyn gathers up the part of her that wants to beg Vi to please not go far. Or to please come back. Or to please stay, since she just got here. Since Caitlyn loves her more than she knew she could. But right now that is not what Vi needs. She needs what some part of her has always needed. She needs to go get her sister.

"Don't pull or lift anything heavy," she says instead, "nothing more than opening a door."

Then she opens her own and walks away.

#caitvi #caitlyn kiramman #vi #arcane #vi x caitlyn #caitlyn x vi #arcane spoilers

25 notes · View notes

thebigqueer · 22 days ago

Text

"Violets, even among sweat" - Caitvi - One-Shot

Summary: Cait and Vi spend a few hours at a bar in Piltover after the war. Word Count: 4574 Notes: TWs for alcohol and past alcohol abuse. Also the fic is sensual but not sexual. Read on AO3

“What would you like?” Cait asks, placing a hand over Vi’s on the counter. “Tonight is on me.”

Vi looks around. It’s the first time she’s been to one of the Piltover bars, and she has to say, the scene doesn’t strike her as exciting the Undercity’s. Sure, it’s populated and there’s good music playing, but something about this place just doesn’t feel… familiar. She feels like she’s been dropped into some alternate universe, where the colors are less vibrant and the air feels heavier on her shoulders.

But that’s a feeling she’s starting to get used to. Ever since the war, nothing’s truly felt the same. And she knows nothing ever will, not really.

Caitlyn’s quiet for a moment, her good eye piercing Vi, making her skin prickle. Vi tries to look away, but that’s not really something she’s ever been good at; Caitlyn’s gaze has always held Vi on a leash.

Now the bartender stands before them, so Vi juts her head towards him. “Go ahead.”

Caitlyn’s frown doesn’t relent, but she turns to the bartender anyway. When he’s gone, Caitlyn fixes her attention on Vi again.

“You know,” she says, “if you’d told me you weren’t going to drink, I wouldn’t have brought you to the bar. I don’t want you to feel pressured.” There’s a hint of a smile on her lips, but Vi can see her gaze shivering nervously, like she’s trying to see through a cloudy glass.

Vi shrugs, then rubs her finger against Cait’s hand. It feels strange, being able to touch her now after months of being haunted by her. “You seemed like you needed it,” she says, then makes a show of stretching out her arms and cracking her knuckles. “And I was in need of busting out a few moves on the dance floor, anyway.”

This seems to relieve Cait of some of her initial stress, and the smile on her lips widens. “You? Dance? I’d like to see this.”

“You don’t think I could handle that dance floor?”

“I just didn’t think you were the dancing type.”

“You don’t know me at all, then.”

Cait laughs, and the sound of it makes Vi's chest bubble with warmth. The bartender returns with Cait’s drink and slides it over to her, and she leans forward to take a sip. But the entire time, her gaze is locked on Vi. When she lifts her head again, she sighs. “Can I ask you something?”

There’s that stone in her eye again. A solid determination, an ambition to get answers. Vi’s always found her persistence to investigate both endearing and the most obnoxious thing about her. “Am I going to like the question?”

“Probably not,” Caitlyn says, then takes another sip, almost as if trying to steel herself. A silence builds between them, a silence so solid that even the music pulsing around them and the blades of lights can’t cut through. Caitlyn fixes her gaze on Vi again. “What happened to you in the time that we were… separated?”

Vi’s stomach leadens, and suddenly she’s even more glad she decided not to drink. She raises an eyebrow. “‘Separated’ is an interesting way to put it.”

Cait reaches for her hand again, this time desperation heavy in her touch. “Vi.”

Vi sighs and leans back in her seat, fixing her gaze on Caitlyn. “I don’t think you’re going to like hearing the truth.”

“There’s a lot of things I don’t like hearing,” Caitlyn says. “That doesn’t mean I won’t be able to take it.” She tilts her head and raises an eyebrow. “Besides, protecting my feelings has never been one of your priorities.”

Vi looks again at Cait’s hand on hers, warm and heavy against her knuckles. Not until now, she thinks.

But at the same time, as Vi looks into Caitlyn’s good eye, images of the past few months rage through her: blood soaking into the ground of the pit, both hers and her opponent’s; lights flashing against the bottom of a glass as she got another round at the bar; bruises on her knuckles pulsing the next morning after a long night of brawling. All that time spent festering her anger with everything - with Jinx, with Silco, with all of the stupid Topsiders who made her think they’d actually ever cared about the Undercity. And with Caitlyn especially.

How badly she wanted to make Caitlyn hurt just as much as she’d hurt her. How badly she’d wanted to see her beg for forgiveness.

Vi takes a deep breath and holds it for a moment. Then she releases. “Things changed when you left,” she murmurs, taking her eyes off Caitlyn. She can’t bring herself to speak with that electric gaze trying to pierce right through her. “I became angry.” She tilts her head away, shying away from Cait’s reaction as she adds, “I started brawling.”

Caitlyn’s eyebrows rise in surprise, and she makes a grunt of shock. “That explains why you looked like that when we saw each other at the camp.”

Despite herself, Vi smirks at her. “You can pretend to hate it as much as you want, but I saw you staring at me.”

Cait’s eye rolls.

“I started out pretty good,” Vi continues. “You should’ve seen me. Had a straight winning streak for a good while. And I thought it was helping - trying to punch my way through my anger. I thought that rage was what was fueling me. Sometimes when I was in that pit, I’d imagine my opponent was you, and… sometimes that would just work.” Vi shakes her head. “But I think that anger was only making me weaker. Suddenly all I could see was you, everywhere. When I was waiting for the match to start, I thought it was you in the audience. When I was at the bar, I thought it was you inviting me to dance. When Loris was taking me back night after night, drunk off my ass, it was your eyes staring at me from every corner.” Vi closes her eyes, holding herself in the memory of that pain. It feels like she’s running her fingers over a still-healing wound; even with Cait here now, in front of her, touching her, the ache of those nights still presses on her. Vi scoffs without amusement. “Loris even told me at one point I was so drunk I thought some rando guy at the bar was you. And I punched him.”

She means the memory to be more funny, but Caitlyn releases a slow breath, as if pulling out a knife out of her skin. And Vi can’t really blame her; it really wasn’t that funny when she woke up the next morning with nausea heaving in her stomach and a headache pounding against her skull, with no memory of the night before and the weight of the Kiramman flag draped over her a constant reminder of everything she’d lost.

“I started losing the brawls after that,” Vi continues. “I don’t know. I guess you’d started to feel less like motivation and more like another weight on me, another person I’d failed.” Vi shakes her head. “I blamed myself a lot after that. For losing Powder. For not letting you take the shot at Jinx. For letting you convince me to be an Enforcer at all. For letting you convince me to turn on my own people. All I could think about, walking those streets and seeing your face plastered on my walls, was how I’d let it all happen.” Vi’s eyes tighten as she tries to breathe through the pain. “Who knows what would’ve happened if you’d taken the shot… Would we have been here at all? Would you have actually gotten a hit on Jinx? Would I have forgiven you for taking her, even after I told you I was okay with it?” She heaves a sigh and opens her eyes, and her gaze falls to the floor. “I don’t know. Maybe if I somehow convinced myself that Powder wasn’t still in there, I’d have let you take the shot. But there was no true way of knowing that, so I don’t really regret it. But it’s something I think about a lot.” Vi meets Caitlyn’s eyes again. “All the choices I made to get here.”

Cait’s eye shivers again, the blue of it almost chameleon in the blinding lights of the club. When another ray of pink light slices over her, Vi is suddenly thrown back into the present, and the irony of the moment almost makes her laugh. Vi, talking about all the shit she did to herself just a few months ago, while upbeat music plays around them and couples grind on each other and people laugh, celebrating the end of the war. It’s almost comedic.

Cait’s mouth opens and closes, trying to catch a sentence out of the floating words of the people around them, but nothing really makes it out. Through the dim lighting, Vi can see a tear glisten in her eye.

Maybe it’s mean of her, but now that she’s confessed all this, some part of her is glad to see that pain there. It’s a reminder to Vi that Caitlyn’s human after all, not just the commander she played.

“Can I be honest, though?” Vi asks. Cait’s eyebrows pull inward. Vi takes a deep breath and picks at a scratch in the wood counter. “That night that we separated in the sewers… I know I told you I was trying to protect the kid. But I think I was trying to protect Powder. I thought I saw her in there.” And, suddenly, the memory of her sister dangling from her grip strikes Vi: her eyes glowing purple in the light, the weight of her and Vander making Vi’s shoulder flash in white hot pain. The desperation in her sister’s eyes, but also a resignation, as if she’d accepted her end.

Vi remembers how strange her sister looked then, looking up at her with those wide, bewildered eyes. She wasn’t quite Jinx, not with that eerie peace in her eyes - but not quite Powder, either. She was someone new, someone who’d grown into their fate. It was a beautiful combination of both of them - a glimpse into the sister that she could have become, maybe in a different timeline.

There’s no good version of me, Jinx had said. But she was wrong, so wrong; Vi saw nothing but goodness as she looked down at her sister, smiling up at her as she and Vander fell into the blue abyss below.

Vi looks up at Cait now, and she’s surprised to see Cait’s hand reaching out to her face. Her thumb brushes over Vi’s cheek, right over the tattoo over her cheekbone, and with a start she realizes she’s crying.

“I’m glad I didn’t let you shoot,” Vi whispers, leaning into her touch. “I was right.”

Cait doesn’t say anything, just holds Vi’s face in her hand. She closes her eyes and leans further into her touch.

Vi never thought she’d get the chance to touch Cait so intimately again. To trust her to hold Vi. But here she is, doing just that, because what other choice does she have?

“I don’t even think ‘sorry’ could cut all the… shit I put you through,” Cait rumbles, her thumb brushing against Vi’s chin. “But I really am, Vi. I’m sorry about all of it. I should have known better than to ask you to take on the task of being an Enforcer. I shouldn’t have let my anger blind me.” Caitlyn’s eyebrows furrow. “I was just so… so frustrated that she could take my mother away from me like that. I took that rage too far.” Cait bows her head. “I see that now. The consequences of holding onto that anger.”

Vi holds her hand against the back of Cait's cupped against her cheek. She runs her fingertips along her knuckles.

“You know what makes me feel so stupid, though?” Cait asks, shaking her head in bewilderment. “When Jinx was in the cell, she told me she didn’t even know it was my mother. God… how ridiculous I felt at that moment. Ambessa convinced me I was chasing justice… but I was just chasing revenge, and that too, a trivial revenge. I realized, then, that if my mother knew the things I’d done - used her maps to hurt the people of the Undercity, aligned myself with some selfish warmonger, imprisoned people under her name - she would have been so disappointed in me.” Cait scowls and shoves out a breath. “I can’t believe how blinded I’d become. I went against everything my mother ever taught me. I hurt everyone, just because I was hurting.” She looks back at Vi. “I’m so sorry, Violet. I’m sorry about the person I became. I’m sorry for hurting you. You don’t have to forgive me, but just know that I am.”

Vi is quiet for a moment, taking in the sight of Cait. Without thinking, she reaches out for the loose hair framing Cait’s face. It’s grown so long in just the past few months. Vi remembers when it barely used to fit in her ponytail; now it whispers against the back of her neck with every bob of movement.

For some reason, the thought of Cait’s hair makes Vi think of Jinx again. How easily she flowed when she was fighting at the Hexgates, like she was finally in control of her body. How free she was from those heavy ropes.

Vi moves her touch to Cait’s shoulder, rubs her thumb against the space at the crook of her neck. “One thing I’ve realized,” she says, tilting her head, “is that sometimes forgiving is the best way to let go. I think it’ll take time to get back on our feet, but at least we have time now. That’s better than nothing.”

Cait’s lips quirk into a smile, but it quickly falls away. She turns her head away from Vi’s touch and looks at her drink, but makes no move towards it; she only takes her hand away from Vi’s face and swirls the straw in the glass. She lets go of a deep breath, one that shakes as it comes out.

“I just… I don’t know how I’ll ever atone for the things I did,” she says. “It’s going to be something I live with for the rest of my life. Knowing I became a puppet in the very suffering I thought I was fighting against.” Cait shakes her head. “I don’t believe I deserve forgiveness.”

Vi’s eyes fall to her hands, which have begun fidgeting in her lap. Cait closes her eye and sighs.

“I don’t think everyone’s going to forgive you,” Vi says, placing a hand over Cait’s fingers. They still under her touch, and Cait looks up to meet Vi’s gaze again. “And I wouldn’t blame them. But what matters, Cait, is the choices you make moving forward. You can’t change the past, but what you can do is show them - the Undercity, the Topsiders, everyone caught in-between - that there’s a future for all of us. If there’s anything I’ve learned in the past few months, it’s that the choices we make are what make us who we are. You can be self-pitying as much as you want, but the only thing that can change the person you were is the choices you make moving forward.” Vi lifts Cait’s chin. “And I know you’ll make good choices.”

Cait smiles at her, but Vi can tell from the way it barely reaches her eye that she doesn’t truly trust her words. She doesn’t say anything, though. She brings Vi’s hand to her face and leans her cheek against her palm, then gazes up at Vi with that solidifying gaze of hers. Vi knows that if she had been drinking, just the sight of her would sober her immediately.

“Now you’re making me think,” Cait says, “about all the choices that brought us here. All the circumstances that had to happen for us to meet.” She reaches out with her other hand and pulls Vi’s hair forward, watches the red of it flash in the light. With a start, Vi realizes just how long her own hair has gotten, too. “Maybe there’s a world where even one choice we made would never have led to us meeting. Maybe there’s a world where none of this would have happened.”

“Then I’m glad I’m not in that world right now.”

To Vi’s surprise, Caitlyn blushes. Another storm of bright lights flashes against Cait’s features, and with that, the world begins to crash in again. The music thrums underneath Vi’s stool, and she can feel it pulse through Cait, too. Even in this headache-inducing light, somehow Cait has never looked better - the light almost glows from within her.

The sight of her here, at this bar, makes Vi’s chest tingle. She’s reminded of those nights at the clubs in the Undercity, trying to drink Cait away, yet still seeing her in every flash of a face. How badly she wanted just one dance with her. How intangible she was then.

And now, here she is, full and real and breathing under Vi’s very touch.

“You know how you can start to make it up to me?” Vi murmurs, leaning in closer.

Cait’s eyebrow twitches nervously, and she tilts her head. “How?”

“Dance with me.”

The nervousness disintegrates just as fast as it came, and amusement takes its place. “Dance?”

“Yes, dance. The thing you do with your legs?” Vi trails her hand down Cait’s arm, making sure to touch each and every bump of her sweater, until she reaches Cait’s fingers and holds on tight. Then she stands and tugs Cait towards her, and to her excitement, Cait follows.

“Is this the part where I get to see you bust out your infamous dance moves?” Cait shouts over the music as Vi leads her through the crowd around them. It’s funny, Vi thinks, how suffocating all these bodies felt just months ago when she was in the Undercity; now, they feel familiar, like she’s returning home. Ironic, considering she’s anything but home.

Vi only turns around to face Cait when she finds an empty-enough space and smiles up at her. “No,” she says, looping her arms around Cait’s neck. “This is the part where you show me your infamous dance moves.”

“I never claimed that I have dance moves,” Cait says, looking around nervously. But there’s an amusement lingering in her eye, too.

“Then just follow my lead.” Vi pulls herself closer to Cait so that their noses are almost touching and she can feel Cait’s heart beat through her sweater, almost touching her own chest.

Cait lets her hands rest against Vi’s hips, and for some reason, this touch alone makes something white and hot erupt in Vi’s chest. It’s not the first time they’ve touched each other - in fact, it’s actually probably the billionth time they’ve touched - but something about Cait’s hands on her, feeling her fingertips against her bare skin, makes Vi’s vision turn blurry. Scratch what she thought about Cait making her sober; if anything, she only makes her feel even more drunk.

Vi watches Cait for a moment, savoring the realness of her body on this dance floor. She leans forward slowly and lays a kiss on her neck, then her jaw, then her lips. Cait’s grip tightens on her waist with each kiss, and in response, Vi kisses her harder. Her hands find their way up Cait’s neck and into her hair, up to the band holding her hair in its ponytail. When Cait takes her turn to kiss Vi’s neck, Vi starts playing with the band, tugging it further with each kiss until it finally spills, like the cleanest, purest water rushing through a waterfall. She swears she can almost hear the soft roaring of water as it comes down.

She tilts Cait away, and is pleasantly surprised to see the look of irritation on Cait’s face at pulling her away. “Your hair is so long now,” she murmurs against her lips.

“So is yours,” Cait says.

Vi runs her hands through Cait’s waves, feels the locks spilling through her fingertips. It runs all the way to just past her shoulders at its full length, and Vi can feel it tickling her lips as she leans in to lay another kiss on Cait’s neck.

Then she leans her head against the space between Cait's neck and shoulder. She just wants to sit here for a moment, let herself be immersed in Caitlyn. Cait’s hands still at Vi’s waist again, and they hold each other in the music for a moment.

“What happened to you while we were separated?” Vi asks into her skin.

The silence that follows makes Vi almost regret asking. But Cait’s grip doesn’t relent on Vi’s waist, only digs in deeper, like she’s tethering herself.

“I became angry.” Cait lets out a soft breath, and Vi straightens herself to look at Cait in the eye again. “You know how the story goes.”

Another blade of light slashes against Cait’s face, right across her eye patch, and ignites her skin from within. Vi squints at her now, trying to soak in every detail that she can, but her mind wanders to those drunken nights at the bar. She remembers that rage that ignited her every choice, from demanding another round to glaring at any bar patron who even dared to look her way. But more than anything, she remembers the flashes of Caitlyn in every body, the way her ghost haunted her from behind curtains and from people’s smiles and from the shadows of the strobing lights at the bar.

But now, here Cait is, live and in the flesh.

And Vi doesn’t feel angry anymore.

Cait’s gaze softens guiltily as she watches Vi, which only sends ice prickling through Vi’s chest. So she offers a slight shake of her head and smiles gently, and lays another kiss against Cait’s neck. Cait’s skin hums, and Vi takes this quietness to run her hands down her body, from her shoulders to her waist to her hips, making sure to savor every dip, every particle of heat that she can. She looks up to see Cait’s expression, and her stomach heats at the sight of her, whose lips are slightly parted as she breathes through Vi’s touch, her eyelid lowering as desire takes a hold of her. Vi takes this as her cue to glide behind Cait, and she pulls her body gently into her embrace, listens to her heartbeat thrumming through her spine. Vi tries to lean her chin against Cait’s shoulder, but she’s too tall and being on tippy-toes would feel awkward, so she opts to just lean her forehead against her shoulder blade. Even in the midst of all the sweat around them, Vi can only smell violets around her.

Cait relaxes into Vi’s embrace. She shifts the weight of her head so that it lies against the top of Vi’s hair, and Vi smiles. She starts to sway, and Cait’s body follows her lead. Cait brings her hands to cover Vi’s over her waist, her fingers digging in for any space between Vi’s cupped fingers, and Vi holds on tight.

They move softly like that for a bit, wrapped around each other. Nevermind that it’s a fast-paced song; Vi feels too encaptured in the moment to care about the fact that they’re moving too slowly. She breathes Cait in, takes her time in holding her. The pit of her stomach feels warm and golden as Cait’s body presses against her, as they slowly find the rhythm to the music. Then, to Vi’s surprise - and perhaps delight - Cait guides Vi’s hand beneath her sweater and lets it rest against her bare stomach. Vi can feel the lines of Cait’s muscles curving gently underneath her as she breathes, and she can’t help the jump in her eyebrows when Cait’s breathing hitches at her touch.

“In public?” Vi murmurs against her, smiling into the back of her neck. “Didn’t know you were like that, Kiramman.”

Cait’s head turns towards her, and from behind her neck Vi meets Cait’s eyes. There’s a slight irritated furrow in her brows, and when she spots the amusement in Vi’s eyes, her good eye rolls. “Just shut up and hold me.”

Vi bites her lip to keep from snorting. “Yes, Commander.”

She spreads her fingers out, tries to feel every single fiber of Cait’s warm skin underneath her fingertips. She closes her eyes and kisses the back of Cait’s neck while stroking her thumb against Cait’s ribs, and Cait sighs into her touch. Then Vi takes a different course - one arm keeps its place locked around Cait’s waist, while the other hand glides down Cait’s body, leaving the comfort of her sweater. The hand trails down Cait’s hip, down her thigh, and Vi takes her time feeling the heat of her leg. She loves the way Cait’s thigh spills into her palm, like it was made for her grip. Cait’s breathing hitches again and she leans her head farther back against Vi’s shoulder. Vi can’t ignore the way her neck arcs in the light, pale and clean - too clean. Maybe an invitation, maybe a muscle reaction. Maybe both.

So she shifts Cait’s hair to the side and kisses the empty space. She can’t reach her throat, not from this angle, but that doesn’t stop her from trying to trail her lips as far as physically possible. And even though it’s loud right now, Vi’s ears echo with the slight moan that slips from Cait’s throat, and she can’t help but to smile again.

“Vi?” Cait murmurs, and Vi pauses her kissing to listen. She’s quiet for a moment, the kind of quiet that the music can’t cut into, and Vi takes her hand from Cait’s leg and wraps it around Cait’s waist again; she just wants to hold her now, to feel her as close to her body as she can as she waits for Cait to find her words.

“Thank you,” she finally says. “For staying.”

“Where else would I go?” Vi asks. And as soon as she says it, a heaviness falls over her. It’s a question she’s been thinking a lot about the past few weeks. Where else could she have gone? Maybe with Ekko and the Firelights. Maybe back to her dingy apartment. But none of those places would feel like home, not after everything that went down, not after all the people she’s lost.

Then again, Cait’s house isn’t exactly home, either.

But Cait is. And right now, that’s all that matters.

“I’m not sure,” Cait admits. “But thank you. For choosing to stay.”

Vi breathes against Cait and closes her eyes as she presses her face into her shoulder again. A sudden wave of sleepiness takes over her - not exhaustion, but a warm comfort, and all she wants to do is lay her head down against Cait for the rest of eternity.

“Don’t worry,” Vi murmurs. “You’re not getting rid of me that easily, Cupcake.”

#arcane #caitvi #piltover's finest #vi #caitlyn #my writing #caitvi fanfic #caitvi fanfiction #vi fanfic #vi fanfiction #caitlyn fanfic #caitlyn fanfiction

16 notes · View notes