Nobody wins in war.

Vander. Hound of the Underground. Arcane

[houndxxunderground]

❛  shoot .   Jinx  non-fatally  shoots  Vander.

Loud & Deafening (non verbal) prompts:

This wasn't the way things were meant to go; talk to Grayson and smooth things over the way they always had. Simple and straightforward and it had worked for years to keep order in The Lanes.

But Grayson hadn't always had that asshole Marcus with her. It had been a set-up to meet them at Benzos that night, not on Grayson's part though. She had always been trustworthy and was caught off-guard as much as he was when a score of enforcers circled the store. He hadn't fought back for her sake, but it didn't make it any easier to reconcile when he was thrown into the cell in Stillwater.

How many years had it been? Six, maybe seven - he had tried his hardest to keep track in the dark prison. But the guilt had rotted at Vander every day. He had never told Vi and Powder where he was going, or Mylo. Claggor knew, but he had sent the kid away before the enforcers arrived, thank Jana.

And then came the rumours; that Silco had one of the girls from the Last Drop running with him and his chem-barons. The other was running things at the bar with the boys, trying to keep the Lanes ticking over with Benzo's help, at least that was the extent of the rumours filtering into the prison until the day arrived when he was finally released from the shithole. He had an inkling this early release was Grayson's doing, and he would thank her, but he had more pressing things as he quickly made his way down into the depths of Zaun and towards the areas he knew were Silco's territory ... or at least had been years ago.

Surely Powder would stick to Vi and the boys? It made no sense for her to be working for Silco ... but Vi? She had nearly handed herself over to the enforcers to protect Powder. If she thought she was doing the right thing, it was feasible for her to be manipulated by his former comrade.

Rounding a corner towards the docks, the fog mixed with the air pollution and gave everything a haziness. There might have been a silhouette at the far side of the dock, but it could have been his eyes playing tricks on him. Vander felt the pain before he heard the crack of the gunshot and he quickly dove back around the corner for cover. Being large and hulking was a benefit in fist-fights, not in a scenario where he was being shot at. Shit. Bullet was lodged in his right shoulder; that was gonna be a bitch to fix later.

"Hang on, I just wanna talk." To who? Silco if he'd hear him out; he would swallow his pride if it meant helping Vi. Footsteps drew closer and closer, echoing around along with the sound of water lapping at the piers. Standing to his full height, Vander kept his left hands over the new wound and got ready to face whoever was rounding the corner after him; whether it be Silco or one of his goons. Dues to Silco, he wouldn't have shot him - would have waited for him to draw closer and then stabbed him.

The person that walked out of the gloomy fog was none of those people and Vander felt his chest tighten.

"... Powder?"

[forgedofoaths]

Someone had to be the first to break, and when Silco had found that letter, he'd realized that it had to be him.

Why were they fighting each other when they both wanted the same thing? Why were they fighting each other when they should have been fighting Piltover together as a united front for their people?

But how bold it was to walk into that bar after what had happened all of those years ago, and without his people as backup, too. Without any weapon except the knife in his boot. As if he had any weapon at his disposal that could take down a man like Vander.

In truth, Silco expected anger. He expected anger, harsh words to drive him back into the pits of hell where he'd been lurking because he hadn't wanted to be found. Perhaps even a blow or two aimed his way to send him scrambling back out of the door. Instead, he was allowed to take his usual seat at the bar as if he'd never been gone at all, and he was allowed to share quiet words with the barkeep while those around them slowly and warily eased back from their silence to their own quiet conversations that petered out as they left until it was only he and the man he'd once considered his brother-in-arms.

Long fingers curled around the cup as Silco watched Vander through his apology, a no doubt difficult apology to give. They had both done wrong in a fit of youthful foolishness, had both hurt not only one another but others. For a time, he was quiet, allowing the apology to settle, formulating his own response, his own apology.

"I'm also sorry. In my desire to see our cause through, I acted impulsively. It set many things in motion, not least of all the destruction of our relationship and the near-destruction of our work. Many people, good people who only wanted what we wanted, died. People we loved. People we swore to protect. People we swore to lead into a better future, who trusted us..." Soft-spoken, his gaze lowered to his drink, a fingertip tapping against the side of the glass.

"We have both done wrong."

[houndxxunderground]

It was more measured reply than Vander had thought possible; more than he'd ever allowed himself when turning the years over and over in his head.

He had always been a stubborn and hard-headed bozo, even Felicia had made that clear to him so many times. But it was a hell of a thing to swallow as he leaned against the bar and processed Silco's quiet words. "I should have sent that letter to you, not left it where I did ... maybe then we wouldn't have missed out on so many years."

So many years of being on bitterly opposite sides. Eyes scanning over the scars he was the cause of, Vander let out a bone-weary sigh and poured himself a drink, leaving the bottle on the counter between them. They had both done wrong and lost folks they cared about, including each other.

He was well aware the circles Silco ran these days, and he was sure the other knew of his escapades just as equally. Two different stances on Zaun's way forward. But maybe there was a middle ground? Because for the first time in years they were face to face and seeing each other; not hearing happenings on the wind.

"I know it was a big ask for you to come here, and I can't tell ya how much that means to me." A long swig of the strong drink; more for the anchoring of his own nerves than anything else.

How did they find a way forward from here? From the man who had his hand in every underhanded happening in the Lanes, and the guy folks looked to as an unofficial leader. "How do we move on? To put that behind us and help Zaun instead?"

Another swallow of drink, and a knowing glance over the rim of the glass. Turn the clock back a lifetime and that same seat was where Silco had sat while Felicia chose the jukebox song. Scribbling away and putting his brains to work. "- you always were better with the plans."

[ohisms]

𝐋𝐎𝐔𝐃  &  𝐃𝐄𝐀𝐅𝐄𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐒𝐈𝐋𝐄𝐍𝐂𝐄    (a  series  of  nonverbal  prompts .   mature  themes  present ,   ‘ my ’  muse  belongs  to  the  one who  posted  the  meme  -  send   “ + REVERSE ”   to  reverse  the  prompts .)

→     𝐈 .    GENERAL

❛   hush .   raise  a  finger  in  a  gesture  to  silence  my  muse . ❛   sit .   gesture  for  my  muse  to  sit  down . ❛   door .   hold  a  door  open  for  my  muse . ❛   tap .   tap  my  muse  on  the  shoulder  to  garner  their  attention . ❛   hunger .   give  my  muse  something  to  eat  /  drink . ❛   cook .   present  my  muse  with  home - cooked  food . ❛   brush .   work  a  brush  /  comb  through  my  muse’s  hair . ❛   read .   silently  read  a  book  alongside  my  muse . ❛   hand .   hold  out  a  hand  for  my  muse  to  take . ❛   dressed .   help  my  muse  put  on  an  article  of  clothing . ❛   note .   give  my  muse  a  note  saying :   [ content ] . ❛   amplify .   turn  up  the  music  in  the  car .

→     𝐈𝐈 .    ANGST

❛   patch .   help  my  muse  patch  up  a  wound . ❛   night terrors .   hold  my  muse  after  they  wake  up  from  a  nightmare . ❛   company .   silently  sit  with  my  muse  to  comfort  them. ❛   hospital .   my  muse  is  told  that  yours  is  in  the  hospital . ❛   revelation .   show  my  muse  evidence  of  a  lie  they  told . ❛   indulge .   find  my  muse  drinking  to  cope . ❛   downfall .   find  my  muse  collapsed  on  the  ground . ❛   console .   comfort  my  muse  as  they  cry . ❛   nurse .   give  my  muse  company  in  the  hospital .

→     𝐈𝐈𝐈 .    AFFECTIONATE

❛   wink .   wink  at  my  muse .  ❛   wrap .   wrap  an  arm  around  my  muse’s  [ shoulders  /  waist ] . ❛   caress .   gently  caress  my  muse’s  face . ❛   tousle .   mess  playfully  with  my  muse’s  hair . ❛   chest .   place  your  head  on  my  muse’s  chest .    ❛   comb .   comb  fingers  through  my  muse’s  hair . ❛   grasp .   run  to  my  muse  &  jump  into  their  arms . ❛   lean .   lean  on  my  muse’s  shoulder . ❛   tender .   kiss  my  muse  on  the  [ forehead  /  cheek  /  nose ] . ❛   abrupt .   kiss  my  muse  out  of  the  blue . ❛   chaste .   chastely  kiss  my  muse . ❛   good morning .   kiss  my  muse  the  morning  after . ❛   volumes .   gaze  at  my  muse  in  a  way  that  silently  says  ‘i love you’ .

→     𝐈𝐕  .    VIOLENT

❛   strike .   [ slap / punch ]  my muse in the face . ❛   gun .   wield  a  gun  at  my  muse . ❛   twist .   twist  my  muse’s  arm  behind  their  back . ❛   throttle .   aggressively  wrap  your  hands  around  my  muse’s  throat . ❛   parch .   burn  my  muse  with  a  hot  object . ❛   take down .   forcefully  bring  my  muse  to  the  ground . ❛   gouge .   wield  a  sharp  object  at  my  muse . ❛  shunt .   shove  my  muse  backwards . ❛  stickup .   yell  at  my  muse  to  put  their  hands  in  the  air. ❛  shoot .   [ fatally  /  non-fatally ]   shoot  my  muse . ❛  stab .   stab  my  muse with a  [ knife / other object ].

→     𝐕 .    NSFW

❛   surprise .   send  an  unexpected  nsfw  image  to  my  muse . ❛   pin .   push  my  muse  against  a  [ wall,  table,  other ] . ❛   go down .   go  down  on  my  muse . ❛   choke .   intimately  wrap  your  hands  around  my  muse’s  throat . ❛   belt loops .   pull  my  muse  closer  by  their  belt loops . ❛   skinny dipping .   go  skinny  dipping  with  my  muse . ❛   rip .   tear  a  piece  of  clothing  from  my  muse’s  body . ❛   mark .   leave  a  mark  on  my  muse’s  body  [ specify where ] .

[houndxxunderground]

@zaunitesnake from here.

Vander had seen a lot of unexpected things walk through the door of The Last Drop over the years. From Mylo and Claggor racing in from a job gone wrong, Vi with another black eye to contacts in the Lane seeking aid of some kind.

Nothing had ever left him speechless. He had seen it all.

Until Silco walked through the door and silence fell around the other's clipped and purposeful footsteps on the worn floor. So many different options ran through his head in those long moments; was this an ambush? Were Silco's forces gonna rush through the door after him. A glance to the door the kids were behind as Vander slowed his cleaning of the glass in his hand.

The attention of every patron in the bar was riveted to them and he knew it. The tension choked the dim room until the letter was slid across the counter. Here I am.

The man who hadn't wanted to be found had come here openly. The same man Vander had been too ashamed to meet face to face; the letter in their old work-haunt had been a guilty way of addressing his own wrong doing.

A drink and quiet words slowly slipped between them, a low murmuring buzz from the others in The Last Drop until they left one by one and it was two old former friends left in the bar. They would try. Try to bridge the gap years had built between them; grudges and bitterness and rotten guilt mixed with grief. But Zaun was bigger than that. Silco was better than that and Vander was in awe of the other man as he agreed.

"I done you wrong Silco, an' I'm sorry for that." The words were heavy and hard to find, but years overdue. So late that their meaning might not matter anymore. "I said the dirt was on both our hands," he gestured at the faded letter. "- but the blame and blood was on me ... I'm sorry."

[proxnotxaxfool]

' no shit. '

reno didn't even deign to do a cursory piss-take glance around the bar at vander's words. he wasn't blind. and he wasn't an idiot - his folks didn't frequent this place. he could quite literally count on one hand the amount of times his father had walked through the doors, and truth be told the turk couldn't ever recall his mother gracing the place with her presence.

that was why he'd chosen it to down a few bitter glasses before picking his way through the lanes. lifting his glass again, reno waved it, watching its contents slosh around the inside of the tumbler before setting it back down onto the counter.

' liquid courage - been a little too long since i checked in. and my ma expresses concern with anger. yer askin' me more questions than an enforcer. '

[houndxxunderground]

"Cause you're more dangerous than an enforcer, Reno." Vander offered a shrug with those words, not minding how blunt the answer landed.

He knew the abilities of the enforcers, could chat to Grayson and get the lay of the land. But a Turk was infinitely more dangerous than an enforcer. They melded into the background, mixed among the ordinary folks and the mark never even knew they were being watched. Smoke and shadows.

"Says a lot about your lady mother if you're afraid of her anger." Vander had never meat Ida Tummelt, but hew knew people who knew people who knew the woman. Baldur on the other hand, he had spoken to on a scarce few occasions. Steadfast man, trustworthy and resolute in his beliefs.

"Another? On the house." Pulling one of the stronger spirits from the back shelf, Vander placed it on the counter.

[houndxxunderground]

Bring my muse medicine when they are sick -- Viktor, who failed and stayed in Zaun and works for Silco now, bringing Vander medicine, maybe or maybe not under Silco's orders, when Vander is sick :]

Non-Verbal RP starters:

The illness spread through the Lanes in a matter of weeks, enough to fear-monger among the locals so much that the narrow streets were eerily quiet.

Kids and adults alike were laid low by the wracking coughing fits and the high-fever. It happened every couple of years; a new sickness seeped into the under-city and worked its way through the already-downtrodden people of Zaun. And Piltover never offered any aid.

But Vander was lucky enough to have robust health; able to shake off anything with little effort. Until this latest sickness got a claw into him. Word travelled fast in Zaun and he had already heard rumours coming full-circle about him being ill. Of course the whispered gossip was far more dramatic; he was bedbound, unable to walk or run the bar. On death's door.

Not quite that bad yet.

Hearing the door of the bar open, Vander stood up with an effort; it was supposed to be locked. He gave a groan and felt like all his joints ached, and he was both too hot and cold at the same time with a cough that shook his broad shoulders. The kids were staying at Benzos until he managed to shake off this illness, so he was expecting to see Vi or Claggor in the doorway - guiltily coming back to check on him.

But it wasn't the kids.

"Viktor?" His voice was hoarse and felt like glass shards in his throat. Cringing at the effort, Vander stayed at one end of the bar and nodded at the door. "Not open I'm afraid, half the Lanes are sick."

The younger man limped forward with an understanding nod, and left a small box on the bar counter before retreating back towards the door. Eying the lad, Vander was confused; this was the boy who had studied in Piltover, only to return to the Lanes. Latest whispers he'd heard had it that the academic was working for Silco. And just as that thought occurred, he noticed the handwriting on the small box of pills.

Blisters and Bedrock.

"Viktor ... could you ask him to visit the old mine office? He'll know the place." The dusty place where the note still lay on the table, the pickaxes lying idle against the walls and the coats mildewed from misuse.

@versus-written

[houndxxunderground]

So, where do we go from here? - Viktor

Random Sentence Starters:

That was the very question.

Vander stood among the strange contraptions; liquids bubbling, machines beeping, tomes of notes scrawled in the same handwriting and a clinical metal table in the centre of all this.

It was empty and gave him the shivers to his very bones. There was something about that massive table that made him think it was intended for horrendous things.

Turning around at Viktor's question, he shrugged his shoulders heavily. "Silco said this man knew you, before he moved to Piltover." Being back on speaking terms with his once brother-in-arms was a new sensation of relief that Vander was still trying to come to terms with, let alone the realisation that his estranged friend had a terrifying scientist at his dispense.

"I really don't care what you do with this place Viktor, so long as it doesn't cause pain for any locals." Vander rounded the huge metal table again and again until he had to tear his eyes away from it and look to the poor creature in her tank. Rio. The name was imprinted into a metal plate at the base of her tank.

"But, can anything be done to help this poor creature?" The scientists had experimented on her, or so Silco said, but now she floated suspended in a tank of liquid, eyes blinking every so often. "Or to put her out of her misery?"

@versus-written

[proxnotxaxfool]

don't let the shit in the door then.

reno bit his tongue hard, knowing that another smart retort might find him out of his ear and the last drop was far too much of a lifeline to lose. it was the meeting point and melding pot of zaun; rumours were born her and truths were whispered beneath the soft lull of the jukebox.

it was intel. and his livelihood depended on his ability to sort through the chatter and find the useful tidbits.

' my folks. ' lifting his glass to his mouth, reno took a long gulp before setting it back on the counter, ' think it's only fair that i check in once in a while, no? '

[houndxxunderground]

"Oh," How very noble and respectful of the lad. Looking around the bar, from one of the hazy smoke-filled room and back to the other, Vander nodded slowly. Ida and Baldur didn't usually frequent The Last Drop.

"I reckon that's fair enough, your parents are good folks." They were, and it was a pity they'd found themselves living in Zaun, having to move from Piltover. It was the dream in reverse really; most folks wanted to cross the bridge and live in the City of Progress, not the other way around. Not that the Tummelts had had much choice in the matter.

"Your parents aren't exactly regulars here ... good of ya to visit them, but they're not here. I meant why you're here, Reno?"

[plotbunnie]

Nonverbal RP Starters

I’m finding it difficult to find memes for nonverbal characters ( be they mute, or just not fond of talking ) so I thought I’d make a few!

Neutral

☝️ Tap my muse on the shoulder

👉 Point to something for my muse to see

🤙 Bump into my muse

😊 Sit down next to my muse

🤨 Sit down across from my muse

📓 Push/Slide [an object] across a table to my muse

✍️ Pass my muse a note

🙄 Roll their eyes at my muse

🚪 Tap on a table/door/wall/chair to get my muse’s attention without speaking

Aggressive

🐺 Growl at my muse

😬 Snarl/show teeth at my muse

😠 Death Glare at my muse

🙌 Push/Shove my muse

👊 Punch my muse

👖 Kick my muse in the shin

👠 Stomp on my muse’s foot

😵 Knee my muse in the gut

💀 Knee my muse in the groin

🔪 Point a weapon at my muse

🖕 Flip my muse the bird/a similar gesture

👔 Roughly pull my muse down by the collar

💢 Bang on a door/wall/table to get my muse’s attention- angrily

Angst

👩‍⚕️ Put pressure on my muse’s wound

🌡 Push my muse down to give them medical attention

🥣 Bring my muse soup/medicine when they are sick

🤢 Hold my muse’s hair back/Rub my muse’s back while they are sick/throwing up

👐 Hold my muse when they are badly wounded/dying

👁 Wake my muse up during a nightmare

🐱 Hold my muse after a nightmare

😭 Hold my muse when they are crying

😢Touch my muse’s shoulder while they are crying in secret

💧 Wipe away my muse’s tears

💥 Try to calm my muse during an overwhelming emotional moment

⛈ Find my muse after some kind of trauma

Soft

👕 Tug on my muse’s sleeve/shirt/skirt

🐈 Lean against my muse’s side

🤝 Hold my muse’s hand

🤗 Pull my muse into a hug

🐕 Rest their head on my muse’s shoulder/knee

🐶 Nuzzle my muse with their nose [specify a location]

✋ Touch the back of my muse’s hand

🤝 Reach for my muse’s hand to hold it

👗 Fix/Straighten my muse’s clothes

😴 Stand by the bed to see if my muse will let you under the covers with them

🛌 Crawl under the covers with my muse

🥪 Set a plate/tray/bowl of food down for my muse

😚 Kiss my muse on the cheek

Playful

🌸 Put a flower in my muse’s hair

✨ Playfully shove my muse’s shoulder

💃 Pull my muse onto a dance floor/up to dance

🤞 Come up beside them and tap the shoulder opposite where they’re standing

😈 Jump out of the shadows to scare/startle my muse

😛 Stick their tongue out at my muse

😱 Make a silly face at my muse

🤭 Tickle my muse

👃 Poke my muse’s nose

💪 Pick my muse up

Sensual/Sexual

💘 Pull my muse in for a rough kiss

💕 Pull my muse in for a tender kiss

💞 Pull my muse in for a messy/desperate kiss

💖 Lean in to give my muse a sweet/chaste kiss

❤️ Lean in to give my muse a tender kiss

🔥 Pull my muse down by the collar/by their clothes - in a sexy way

😉 Pull my muse in by the hips

😲 Smack my muse’s butt

💋 Kiss my muse’s neck

👌 Push my muse down and give them a massage

👙 Pull [an article of clothing] off my muse

👀 Push my muse down on the bed

👄 Pull my muse onto the bed

[houndxxunderground]

❛ Where could the gem be? ❜

Random Sentence Starters:

Cleaning out his pipe, Vander slowed his actions ad the quiet words and looked to Reno.

The spy didn't meet his gaze, but he wasn't talking to anyone either. There was no one sitting near his end of the bar, and Reno wasn't exactly the chattiest of patrons. But he wasn't asking for no reason either. Especially with that every-so-innocent sing-song sigh.

Tapping the bowl of the pipe on the counter, Vander wiped away the bits of burned tobacco that came out, raising an eyebrow at Reno.

"You lose your jewellery?"

[madeofthreads]

This was a rare opportunity in Powder's little mind. Vander worked hard, not only as the barkeep of The Last Drop, but as the peacekeeper of Zaun! When she and Vi lost mumma and pappa... she had been so little then.

The kind of little where she really had to think about her parents. Even then, the memories were... all kind of fuzzy. More times than not she had to ask Vi about them. But with Vander? She had lived with him now as a family for longer than she had lived with her birth parents. During the years where she could remember so much more.

Like how busy Vander was all the time. He always, always made time for family, but Powder watched with her big eyes how often he was on his feet working the bar and forging new connections and setting up 'meetings for adult ears only'.

Someone watching his pride and joy? That simply didn't happen. Plus she had a point to prove now, that she could be trusted with something that in her eyes was VERY important.

"HMMM." Powder hummed, indulging herself in a bit of ego. As a treat. "Maybe not as much brains." she conceded with a teasing kind of smile, a little miffed that Ekko wasn't there to hear her jab at him. "But pretty close."

Her eyes did lower a little as she plucked a loose thread from his favourite shirt. "I'll try not to make another dud." Again. Like always. Her inventions all fizzled, but she wasn't going from any textbook at all. Education in Zaun? Whatever parents passed down, maybe a little more if a smart-family fell on hard times and found themselves across the river.

[houndxxunderground]

"Ah, of course not ... maybe you can teach Ekko a few tricks then, bring him up to speed with you?" There was an amused smile pulling at his mouth as he watched Powder thinking over this plan. They were two little run-arounds alright, her and Ekko. Brains too big for the Lanes.

"Hey, I don't wanna hear that, okay?" Scooping the little girl off of the bar counter and into his arms, Vander shook his head and fixed one of the many clips in her hair. "You don't make duds and if anyone says that to you, then they'll have me to deal with."

"Can't invent something without having a few prototypes, just ask Benzo." The fact the little one was already so good at tinkering with mechanics and creating her traps and bombs was beyond him. He had never been good with things like that. Brute force and ignorance were his strengths, not schematics and plans.

[versus-written]

Vander was so deep in his own grief and wariness… it seemed like every attempt to pull him out would inevitably sink him down deeper. Like a swamp that held a cold grip on his mind.

What the Doctor had done… well. Viktor could not deny that it was horrible. It was a marble of science, yes. But it also had a victim in all of it. An unwilling one. Vander had never agreed to this.

“I would not call you a monster.”, Viktor hummed, standing beside and a little behind Vander, watching the mirror image of this man. The beast that struggled in the community.

Looking at his own mirror image, Viktor suddenly lifted his hand, pulling off part of the blue robe that covered his body. Revealing the metallic whirring structures beneath that made up almost all of him now. How the Arcane surged through his veins now. How the bolts of his brace were fused to him.

“I was turned into this too. Against my will. There was shock, at first. But now I came to… appreciate my new form. I know it is not the same. But I hope you can find progress in your… new evolution. Because what else is there you can pick? To remain caged in your own mind forever? Ignore this power and let it run rampant without your input?”

[houndxxunderground]

The beast reflection moved in tandem to him; a horrible mirror image. Arms too long to be human, dark fur, those different eyes and the green glow that spilled from the vials planted into the muscles of his back.

It had gone on for so long, that Vander had built a wall between what the man had done to him and the tiny refuge of fantasy he had crafted for himself in this corner of his mind. Live among memories of happier times. Not ghosts of those gone.

But in the reflection stood the other man too and slowly it came back to him where he had seen the man's face before. Years ago in this very bar. The boy from Zaun who had managed to become an assistant to one of Piltover's councillors. Viktor. But he had changed so much; his frame was taller and straighter, but not flesh and blood either. "I'm sorry that happened to you."

And Vander was; the boy he had known had always been quiet and kind; a great mind but hindered by his own body's limits. Leaning against the countertop, he met Viktor's eyes in the reflection and the truth came tumbling out; the fear that caught in his chest. "- he still has control though. The one who done all of this." The fur, the claws and the machinery that was dug into flesh and muscle. "It's like a switch he can use and all I can see and smell is blood ... people will die."

[proxnotxaxfool]

it hadn't been his fault and that was a hill reno would die on. alvis was the cocky shit who had decided to go topside and steal a motorcycle. not easy to do and he'd give dues where they were deserved, but alvis had seriously lacked on the escape aspect.

glancing up to the ceiling of the bar, reno pointed and mimicked the older man's gestures, ' i don't follow shit from up there down here, ' and then pointed at the floor, ' unless shit from down here, causes shit up there. '

reno reached out for the glass, hand hovering below its base as vander kept it just out of his reach. leaning his weight on his elbow on the counter, the turk held vander's unyielding gaze, ' agreed. '

[houndxxunderground]

"Glad to hear it." Waiting for the answer, Vander smiled and lowered the glass into Reno's grasp. "Jus' don't be following any shit in here."

He was smarter than that, too streetwise to follow anyone straight into The Last Drop. It'd be suicide; the folks of the Lanes didn't like their bar or its patron being threatened.

"What does bring ya down this way so?" Picking up a few washed glasses, Vander set about drying them and sorting them away, always keeping an eye on the Turk for some hint why he was here after months of being a no-show. "- anything I can help with?"

[versus-written]

Viktor hummed at that. Through enough? Vander had probably been through more than enough. He had gone through death and came back out… different. Not by his own doing, no. The Doctor had done that with him. Something Viktor could empathize with.

“That is what I want, too. And I think I achieved the first step towards it. Deep down in the Fissures.”, Viktor told the other man, stepping half in front of him, to get Vander to look at him.

“I would like you to be a member of my community. I think you would have yet enough to give – and you deserve to rest. To see the peace and independence  Zaun deserves sprouting from its very Lanes. But you will have to come with me for that.”

[houndxxunderground]

"It won't work, trust me ... I've tried." This boy didn't know what he was talking about. His intentions were pure and for the better of the people, but Vander himself had been that boy once upon a time, and all it had brought was death and Piltover's boot onto Zaun's throat.

"Piltover won't allow it." It had brought the deaths of his best friends on that bridge, all in the name of peace. This community would be found by the Enforcers and stomped out. It might last a few weeks or even months, but the upper city would see it as a threat inevitably.

"He made me into a monster," the gravelly growl underpinned those sad words and Vander turned to look at the mirror behind his bar. Instead of his own reflection, there was something else. One blue eye and one green. A snout. Claws where hands should have been. "A monster has no place in a peaceful place."

[versus-written]

The regret and grief clung to Vander. It was a cage he had made for himself, for fear of failing again. Out of sheer horror someone else could end up hurt just being close to him. Viktor could understand that. He himself had demanded that Vander in his current form was leashed at night – and watched over.

 “You can’t stay here, like this, Vander.”, Viktor insisted. His hand stayed at the man’s shoulder. Gentle, yet he would not back down from this.

“This here is a prison… and one that won’t hold you. If you bury yourself here, your emotions will grow above what you can handle.”

A warning of the impending threat.

“You have always been of a big stature… but what your body currently is… I can’t risk you getting overwhelmed by pent up emotions. It would be too much and demand too many sacrifices, if you lose yourself. Please. Just walk with me.”

[houndxxunderground]

"Haven't I been through enough?" The voice that came out was his, but deeper and with gravel. More growl.

It was a rare selfish thought that fell out on a trip of shame. Others had it far worse. But for once maybe he had had it bad too? Watching his kids killed and trying to save the one still fighting for her life ... only for his to end.

Maybe it would have been better if had ended then. Not for that man to take him away and poke and prod and tear him apart for years.

"I just ..." the record player sprang into life on its own, all the way across the bar, playing that song Felicia had always loved when she was overthinking something. Looking down at this man with his strange metallic sounds and lilting voice, Vander sat heavily on the bar stool. "- I just wanted peace."

For Zaun, for everyone. For the Lanes. His kids. Himself.

[proxnotxaxfool]

taking a drag from his cigarette, reno held the smoke in his lungs for a beat before perching his elbows on the counter, tipping his head back and blowing out a few smoke rings. how very astute of the man, and he was right; reno was neither working nor not working.

he dealt in information. and that meant there was no downtime. off the clock? sure. but he still had eyes and ears. he still saw faces, heard whispers on the wind - and it was amazing just how much that went on down here in the shadows had a bearing on what happened up there in the manicured perfection of piltover.

' have i ever not been civil within these walls, vander? ' reno cocked a brow, whipping a hand up and holding a finger aloft to stop the other man when he saw him draw in a deep breath,

' and we are not gonna talk about that one time with alvis - he stole, i found him, so really he started it. '

[houndxxunderground]

"And you were told back then it was never to happen again. Don't care what happens out there or up there," Vander pointed at the roof of his bar, in general towards the direction of Piltover far, far above them. "- you aren't to follow it in here, or any of your colleagues who might not be so well informed."

Mustering Reno with those even, but stern words, it was only then he deigned to refill the other man's glass. He knew the guy tread a thin line not a lot of people had an insight into; top-siders reduced to living in Zaun.

"This place is a no-go for work Reno," he held the refilled glass above the bar, just shy of the spy's reach, gaze meeting his. "- we're agreed on that?"

[proxnotxaxfool]

from a firebrand youth, breathing life into and steering a daring revolt that died on its ass on the bridge of progress, to a barkeep with four adoptive kids. hell, anyone else would get whiplash from that sort of change in direction.

and yet loyalty remained - hmmm.

shoving his empty glass forward on the counter, reno gave a tight smile, setting down a few solid silver cogs next to it as payment for his last drink and payment for the next one.

' a spy? ah now that's just bein' mean, vander. can't i just decide to come visit home on my rest days, hmm? '

bit tongue in cheek to work with the sheriff and then not want him down here because of the uniform he'd chosen to wear. grabbing the battered pack of cigarettes from his pocket, reno teased out a cigarette and flicked the flint on his lighter - holding it out and offering the flame to vander for his pipe.

' never said i was here for work, now did i? '

[houndxxunderground]

"And you never said you weren't either." Leaning forward, Vander let Reno light the plug in the bow of his pipe and let it burn for a second before he puffed on the pipe and let the smoke out his nose.

He was the Tummelts' oldest lad. It was rare enough for someone from Zaun to be able to eke out a living across the bridge to the other continent in uppity Piltover ... but to have a family do the opposite was unheard of. Vander had never learned why Ida and Baldur had decided to leave Piltover behind, or maybe there wasn't any choice in it. One had been a researcher and the other a military man until both ended up in Zaun.

But this lad was still an in-between for their family; caught in a strange position between Piltover and the Lanes. The empty glass was placed on the bar and Vander didn't move to refill it just yet. "You know I've got time for you Reno, your folks too. But if this is Turk business, don't want it near my bar or people ... I figure we've got a civil understanding on that?"