Chapter 2
“Violet Vanderson! What are you doing out at this ungodly hour? Why aren’t you with the others?” Vi heard a voice ring from behind her.
“Shit.” Vi muttered. Turning around on the sidewalk, Vi saw the shorter woman with a crossed look on her face. “I was… going on a stroll…to… clear my head? Yeah, clear my head.”
Babette approached the taller girl, looked her over, and sighed. “At least you’re not hurt. That’s the last thing we need. How would you take your father’s place in the Lanes if you were dead?”
Vi cringed at the thought of her adoptive father. Vander. Dead. Because of her.
Vi awkwardly laughed it off and rubbed the back of her neck. “Yeah, you’re right, Babette. Anyway, I should get home. Don’t wanna freak Powder out even more.” Babette nodded. “I’m guessing another late night out for you?” Vi gestured toward the call house Babette had been standing in front of.
Babette sighed. “I’m sorry, kid, but sometimes, you gotta make sacrifices even if others don’t appreciate it. Just remember, I’m doing this for us. For Vander.”
“Hm,” Vi turned around and began walking again. “See you when I see you, I guess.”
About thirty minutes later, Vi arrived back at her dingy apartment complex. After walking up several sets of stairs, she unlocked her hollow apartment door and peeled off her jacket, throwing it onto the couch. Deciding she was too tired to deal with whatever Powder might throw at her (literally and figuratively), she followed her jacket and fell onto the couch.
“Well, at least she’s not dead on the street.”
“Mylo!”
“Ow! What was that for?”
“Hey Mylo, why don’t you go back to your room and shave off the pubes on your face that you call a mustache?”
“I’m gonna-”
“Can it! She’s tryna sleep.”
Vi heard distant voices that seemed to try to whisper but were really just shouting at each other.
“Hey, I think she’s waking up.” Claggor said as Vi began to stir.
Slowly, Vi dragged her hands down her face and wiped the sleep out of them. “What time is it?” She asked in a groggy voice as she propped herself on her elbows, yawning and stretching out her back from sleeping on such a lumpy and unsupportive piece of furniture.
“Just past seven,” Claggor replied, looking down at the wristwatch he built.
“Oh, Mylo was able to find Babby’s secret stash of cash, ooh that rhymes, so that means we can stock up on the goodies at school. I’m gonna buy a bucketload of those chocolate chocolate chip muffins and charge them as double to those stupid middle schoolers.” Jinx cackled.
“Pow, that money is for emergencies only. I doubt scamming middle schoolers counts.” Vi walked over to the coffee pot that Claggor had just made. “Why don’t you sell them something else? Maybe those fidget spinners you stockpiled?”
“Ooh! Good idea! I’m gonna tell Ekko that the arcade’s on me tonight.” Powder rushed back into her room and slammed the door.
“Um Vi…” Mylo started.
“Hm,” Vi hummed as she poured her coffee and sipped the black substance.
“You look different… like buff… really buff.”
Vi looked down at herself. The only thing covering her upper body was a wife-beater tank she stole from Mylo. She noticed thick muscles littering her arms, and every time she moved, they would flex. She flexed subtly and saw her abs imprint against the tank. The veins in her arms were more pronounced, subtly tracing the contours of her muscles as they tensed.
Vi would never have called herself weak-looking before, years of boxing making sure of that, but her physique now was at a completely different level. Having replaced her lean shape with a more defined look (ripped, in Vi’s words), Vi could only imagine the look on Mylo’s face.
She smirked as she looked up. “What? You haven’t noticed? Looks like someone’s tryin’ to compensate. I’ve told you to come to the gym with me before.”
Mylo scoffed. “Yeah, I know, but I literally saw you yesterday, and you looked much more… scrawny.”
“Thanks, Mylo.”
“Hey, you guys ready to… Vi? What happened to you?” Claggor and Jinx walked into the room.
“Woah, sis. Since when have you been hitting the gym?”
“I- you know what? Never mind, let’s go.” Vi grabbed her jacket and backpack before holding the door so everyone could exit.
What the hell is happening to me? It has to be this stupid spider bite. Vi looked down at the bump, which was still evidently there but a third of the size it was yesterday and no longer throbbed.
Vi knocked on the locked door to her fourth period class. “Fuck, not again.” She muttered as Mrs. Medarda gave her a look before opening the door.
“You’re late. Again.”
Sighing, Vi began to respond. “Sorry, Pow- what is this?” Vi looked at the kids in new spots around the class.
“Since you were late, Ms. Violet-”
“It’s Vi.”
“Well, because of your delay, you missed the new seating arrangements. You will be sitting next to Caitlyn in the back row.”
Damn.
Vi nodded and begrudgingly walked back to her seat. Caitlyn, sitting as properly as one could, looked directly at the teacher and acted as if she hadn’t seen Vi as she sat down. Vi internally scoffed as she subtly eyed her seating mate.
Caitlyn Kiramman. The richest girl-no-the richest student in the entirety of the new Piltover-Zaun high school. Having maintained perfect grades her whole life and on a fast track to law school, she was a stellar example of what came from Piltover’s elite. There wasn’t a single splotch of red on Councilor Kiramman’s daughter’s record. Not only that, but she was the school’s track star, one of the most popular girls in school, and regarded as the prettiest by many. The exact type of person Vi despised.
“Now that everyone is here,” Mrs. Medarda began. “I would like to preface this by clarifying that these will be your permanent seats for the remainder of the school year. Whoever you are next to will be your partner in whatever project I will assign in the near future. Now, open Pride and Prejudice to chapter four and begin annotating.” After Mrs. Medarda finished her lecture, she returned to her desk and opened her laptop.
After digging up the worn-out book in her bag, Vi searched for a pencil, pen, or anything that produced even the faintest mark. Vi’s hands rummaged through the chaos of her bag. Her fingers brushed against a crumpled gum wrapper, the cool edge of a forgotten coin, and the soft fabric of her gloves—but nothing useful. With a groan, she glanced at Caitlyn, who sat poised with a pristine copy of the book and an elegant pen, already scribbling down words.
“Pstt, Kiramman,” Vi whispered. When the girl didn’t answer, she did it again, louder this time. “Pstttt, Kiramman. I know you can hear me.”
“What, Vi?” Caitlyn hissed back, not looking up from her book.
“Can I borrow a pen?”
Caitlyn looked at her suspiciously. “How do I know you’ll give it back?”
Vi bit down a scoff and glared at the girl. “You really think I would steal a pen, especially right in front of you? You think that low of me, huh?”
Caitlyn sighed before unzipping her pencil bag, its surface a polished navy blue embossed with an intricate silver crest—custom-made. She opened it with a practiced motion, revealing a collection of perfectly aligned pens, pencils, and highlighters, each secured in its designated slot. Grabbing a dull blue pen, she slid it across the table, stuck her head back into the book, and started scribbling on it again.
Vi muttered a thanks and opened her book.
After grabbing her food tray, Vi headed to her table in the cafeteria. Noticing she was the first on there, she took the opportunity to finish some AP calc homework. After switching between scribbling something down on her paper and shoveling food into her mouth for a couple of minutes, the room started to fill up. Jayce, Caitlyn, and their friends were sitting at the table across from her and making a ton of noise, causing other tables to glare at them, though Caitlyn seemed to only talk to Mel and Viktor.
Vi looked back at her homework and tried to pick up her pencil, but her metal fork seemed stuck against her palm. “Not again.” She groaned, pulling it off, but her web fluid was caught to it and yanked it back against her palm again. This time, she really pulled it, and it came off… but was hucked across the room, hitting none other than Jayce Talis on the back of his head.
“Who did that?!” His shout boomed across the whole room, causing it to go deathly quiet. Vi, not wanting to put any attention on herself, pulled her hoodie over her head and looked down at her food. Jayce let out a chuckle. “I should’ve known it was you, Vanderson. You zaunite freaks always wanna start something.” He grabbed her by her hood, dragged her off her seat, and tossed her on the floor.
“What the hell, asshole?!” Vi shuffled to her feet and backed away from Jayce. In the background, Jayce’s friends were cheering him on.
“Don’t try to lie to me now, you slumshit parasite. You wanted my attention. You got it.” Jayce came face to face with the harsh glare of the shorter girl. He tried pushing her back, but she didn’t budge.
“Jayce. Stop. It was clearly an accident.” Caitlyn’s posh voice buzzed through Vi’s ears as she turned to look at the girl. Jayce took this opportunity to swing at Vi. Time seemed to slow as Vi felt a tingle go through her body. Turning back, she saw the punch coming straight at her head in slow motion. Quickly, she ducked below it just as he was about to hit her.
“Jayce-” He swung again. This time, an uppercut, and again, Vi dodged it. Jayce turned his attention to her stomach. His punch came fast, a straight jab to the gut, trying to knock her on her back. But again, Vi was quicker, jumping over him and landing a couple of feet behind him. Trying to hide his shock, Jayce grabbed a tray one of his buddies held out to him and began swinging. Taken by surprise, Vi didn’t move fast enough and was whacked across the face, causing her to fall to the ground. Crouching over, she spit out blood that began to spill from inside her mouth.
Having enough of Jayce’s shit, she got up and immediately socked him in the face. Before he had time to fall, Vi grabbed his arm and pulled him forward, punching him in the gut and causing him to lurch forward. Not being able to breathe, he leaned against Vi for support, but she shoved him off of her, and he fell to the ground, cradling his stomach.
Vi took a breath before looking up, seeing the entirety of the cafeteria looking at her, shocked. Ekko, Mylo, Claggor, and Jinx stood by the doors, frozen, their jaws slacking. Vi turned toward Caitlyn’s table and saw all of them looking at her with the same expression, mixed with malice in their eyes—except Caitlyn, who was still shocked but looked at her with curiosity crossing her features. Jayce was still on the floor, clutching his stomach and whimpering.
“WHAT IS GOING ON?” Marcus’ voice roared as he slammed open the doors. His eyes, full of anger, looked toward the scene before him; seeing the culprit, he glared at her with disgust. “Violet Vanderson, of course,” He let out an airy chuckle. “principal’s office now.”
Sighing, Vi walked toward him, not before nudging Jayce with the front of her shoe. She smiled awkwardly at her friend and siblings as Marcus grabbed her by her upper arm and pulled her with him.
“Ms. Violet Vanderson, this is the fifth time I’ve seen you in my office, and it is only October. Why is that?” Principal Grayson set her eyes on Vi as she sat in the chair in front of the Principal’s large oak desk.
Vi scoffed. “This time, it wasn’t my fault. He swung at me first. I just finished it.”
“And the other four times? Those weren’t your fault either?” Principal Grayson laced her fingers together on top of a folder on her desk.
Vi shook her head and bit down another scoff.
“You are Vander’s eldest daughter. The Hound of the Undercity’s successor. What would he think if he saw you like this?”
Glaring up at Grayson, Vi couldn’t help but sneer. “Well, he’s dead, so I don’t know.”
“That is not the correct answer. You did so well last year: top 5 in your class, and I hardly ever saw you here. Now, it feels like this has become a regular thing. Vi, if there’s anything I can help with, please do not hesitate to ask. I owe it to you… and Vander.”
“You don’t owe me anything. I’m not some charity case. Can I go now?”
Principal Grayson sighed. “Yes, you may, but you will be serving after-school detention for the next week. And, you’ll be lucky if Mrs. Talis doesn’t press charges for giving her son a black eye and broken nose.”
“Serves him right.” Vi said as she walked toward the door.
“Violet, these are the years when a woman changes into the woman she will become for the rest of her life. Just be careful who you change into. Jayce Talis might’ve deserved what happened. But just because you can beat him up, doesn’t give you the right to. Remember, with great power comes great responsibility.”
Vi opened the door and looked at Grayson. “You know, Vander used to say the exact same thing.”
Principal Grayson couldn’t help but flash a small smile. “Well, I always did admire his taste in wisdom—and troublemakers."
Vi chuckled lightly. “See you soon, Principal.”
“I hope not.”
“This was quite the day, wasn’t it?” Mylo let out a wistful sigh. “First, I bombed my math test, got snitched on for smoking weed (now have a three-day in-school suspension), watched my sister beat the shit out of the biggest shithead in school, and now I’m smoking weed again. Look at that.” He leaned his head against the brick wall.”
“What goes around comes around, huh?” Ekko chuckled.
“That’s for damn sure.” He looked towards Vi, who took a long drag from her blunt. “You’re quiet today, Vi. What, did Princy Gray give you one of those speeches again? About living up to your potential and blah, blah, blah.”
Vi snickered. “You hit it right on the head every time, Mylo.”
“What’d she say now?”
“This time, she actually quoted Vander.”
“Oh shit…” Ekko said, shock covering his face. Mylo’s too. “She really meant it this time.”
“That’s for sure. She’s done with your shit.”
“Yeah, but-”
“Vi?” A posh voice interrupted. “Is that you?”
“Shit! Go! Go!” Mylo pushed Ekko, and they ran toward the street that let out at the back of their alley.
“God damn it,” Vi muttered as she saw the tall stranger continue to walk in the shadows. “Who the fuck are you, and what do you want? Come into the light before I make you.”
“Uh, sorry.” The figure walked into the light and Vi saw dark blue hair meet dark blue eyes. “It’s Caitlyn, Caitlyn Kiramman from English.”
“Kiramman? What the fuck do you want?” Vi dropped her blunt and quickly stomped on it with her foot.
“Uhm, well- is that Marijuana I’m smelling?”
“So what if it is? You gonna snitch?” Vi crossed her arms.
“What? No, I am not, but it is quite bold of you to smoke on school property in broad daylight.”
“I don’t need a lesson, Kiramman. What do you want?”
“Right, sorry.” Caitlyn blushed shyly. “I just wanted to say sorry about Jayce’s actions. What he did was wrong.”
“Wow, a piltie discovers empathy… shocker. And why are you apologizing for him? He’s a big boy, isn’t he?”
“Yes, but I just wanted you to know I don’t stand with what he did. You already have enough problems in your life. He doesn’t need to give you any more.”
“You sayin’ I got problems, cupcake?”
“Cupcake?’ Having realized what Vi had just said, her eyes widened. “What! No, no, forgive me, I did not mean it like that. Just with, you know… Vander… I just-” Luckily, Vi interrupted her because she had no idea what she would spew out next.
“Thanks, Kiramman… for your support, I guess.”
“Right, of course,” Caitlyn began taking steps back. “Have a good day.”
Vi grunted in response as Caitlyn walked away.
On her way home, Vi saw an ad hanging to a street pole that caught her attention: THREE MINUTES IN THE RING FOR THREE THOUSAND DOLLARS. Vi grabbed the paper from its nailed position and looked more closely at it.
Spend three minutes in a boxing ring for a reward of $3,000! You must wear some costume variation and have a name for yourself. Win your match, and the money is yours! *Caution: all injuries sustained during the fight are liable to you, and by agreeing to sign up, you may not take any legal action against us for damages.
“This is fantastic,” Vi muttered. Looking down at her new physique, she smirked, shot a web to a building, and swung away, still holding the advertisement.