IT'S A COMMON MISCONCEPTION that everyone in Uppercity is better off, it's true, Luz and her family are definitely luckier than those in the Undercity but she still wasn't rich. Caitlyn Kiramman was rich, she was a part of the most respectable families in Piltover, her house made Luz's three-bedroom home look after a shed. Luz loved going to the Kiramman's house, the grounds were covered in beautiful flowers and green grass. At the front of the house were large double doors that towered over Luz. The Kiramman are very tall, despite Caitlyn being eight years younger than Jayce, they were practically the same height, Jayce being only a few centimetres taller. Luz had always been jealous of their height, her standing at just 153 centimetres, a whole ruler shorter than them. Jayce always told Luz that she would grow with age, that when she hit puberty she would blow them all away with her growth spurt but she doubted him. Their mother has always been a short woman, Jayce getting his height from their father, Luz already took after her mother so much, her hair colour and eyes almost identical to the woman's, she wouldn't be surprised if her height was just another one of the genetic traits that Luz stole from her mum. "Councilor Kiramman," Jayce placed his hands behind his back as the woman stood in front of him.

"Jayce," Cassandra said with indifference. Jayce smiled. Cassandra Kiramman is a strong woman, the leader of one of the most influential houses in Piltover. Caitlyn and her mother don't get along well but Jayce was eternally grateful for the woman, without her, Jayce wouldn't have been able to afford to go to the Academy.

"Is Caitlyn home? She asked to take a look at my research."

Cassandra looked past him, her sapphire eyes hardening as she spotted Luz. Cassandra had never been a fan of Luz's, she thought that Luz was bad company for Caitlyn, not disciplined enough to be considered a friend of the house Kiramman. Luz was too busy looking up at the roof of the mansion, amazed by the elaborate skylight that revealed the clouds that filled the sky, was it going to rain? She hadn't noticed them before. She looked down, her eyes following the marble pillars that were wrapped around with green vines and silver ropes, how could a pillar be so beautiful? She wondered, speechless by the decor even though she'd been inside Caitlyn's home a million times before. When her eyes finally reached the lady of the house, she noticed that Cassandra was glaring at her, Luz flashed her an innocent smile, uncomfortably trying to ignore the lady's displeased look.

"Caitlyn, dear!" Cassandra called out, looking up the grand staircase that led to Caitlyn's room.

Cassandra's voice echoed through the mansion, the sound bouncing off of the stone walls, then the sound of footsteps, "Yes, mother?" Caitlyn asked with her strong Piltovian accent, an accent that only the people from the 1% have, a reminder that even in the Uppercity, there was a divide between the higher and lower houses.

"Your friends are here," Cassandra said, distaste dripping in her voice as she eyed Luz.

"Oh!" Caitlyn grinned, "May I go with Jayce, mother?"

"To look at his research?" She asked, Caitlyn nodded, "Very well."

Caitlyn jumped exactly, "Thank you, Mother!"

Cassandra nodded before turning to Jayce, "I want to see your research when you get back, it's about time you update me on your progress."

"Of course—" Jayce said with an awkward smile, pushing his hair back, a nervous tell of his. It's no secret that Jayce hasn't made much progress with his research, he hasn't told anyone that but he also refuses to tell people about his research, claiming 'it isn't ready.' That's why Luz was so surprised when Jayce decided he was ready to show Caitlyn and Luz his experiment, when she asked what changed, he said that the items he got from the Undercity were the key.

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Jayce's apartment was just down the road from Caitlyn's mansion so the the walk was a breeze but after her trip to the Undercity, the last thing Luz wanted to do was walk. "You really went to the Undercity?" Caitlyn asked in disbelief. "What was it like?"

Jayce looked at Luz, smirking as he asked Caitlyn's question, "Smelly."

"Smelly?" She asked, her accent getting stronger the way it does every time she's full of emotions.

Jayce chuckled, "Yep! But it was a weird smell, not dirty, just off—"

"It was hard to breathe, but it wasn't because of the smell, the air down there is weird, it's like I was underwater and using a snorkel."

Caitlyn listened as the two siblings explained what the Undercity was like, her curious eyes shining as she craved to know more. Caitlyn has always been a curious girl, wanting to learn whatever she can about the world outside of her family walls. Jayce thinks that's why he and Luz get along with her so well, despite their different backgrounds and different interests, they share the same unrelenting curiosity, the need to know, while about different things, they were each searchers, in their own way. "Wasn't it dangerous?"

"A little danger is worth the risk, don't you think?" Jayce asked.

"But, what did your mother say when you asked, mine would have lost her head!"

"Oh—" Jayce hadn't told his mother, truthfully he hadn't planned to bring Luz along but when she found him packing, she wouldn't leave him alone until he agreed to take her. "I... I didn't tell her."

"I'm not going to tell her, so she won't know," Luz explained, hoping that if she keeps her mouth shut then maybe Jayce might take her there again.

"You're lucky, my parents know about everything I do! My mother wants me to keep up appearances while my father is too worried about me getting hurt because I'm 'still too young.'"

Luz frowned, she remembered her father, he was a lot like Caitlyn's father, he was a softer man who loved her mother like she was the air he breathed, not once did she see her parents fight. He used to call her Light, explaining that was the name he wished to give her but Ximena settled with Luiza. Jayce noticed Luz's face, her eyes glassy but still, the same way that her eyes are every time the topic of their father is mentioned. Jayce forced a chuckle, changing the topic, "I think the cashier boy had a crush on little Luz, he gave her a free book and everything."

"What?!" She asked, immediately drawn away from her thoughts. "He did not!"

"You are blushing," Caitlyn grinned.

Are they being serious? Luz thought that the only reason why the boy had given her the book for free was because he clearly up-charged her brother and had made enough extra cogs that it didn't hurt— but then again, why didn't Ekko up-charge her? Luz blushed as she realised that they were probably right, realising that the boy was the first person to ever have a crush on her.

Jayce shook his head as he grabbed out his keys, this time, easily finding the key and putting it in the lock. He pushed on the door but it was jammed. "Quick, we gotta go!" Luz heard a young girl's voice say through the door, her eyes widening as she realised someone was in Jayce's apartment.

"Hello? Who's in there?!"

Luz heard another voice, a boy's but she couldn't make out what he said. "Hey!" Jayce yelled out, trying to ram the door open. "Open up!" He kicked the door in a last desperate attempt to open it.

Luz took a step back, grabbing Caitlyn's hand as she watched Jayce yell at the people on the other side of the door. Someone had broken into his apartment. Her face paled as she realised someone from the Undercity must've followed them home, knowing that there was no way it was a coincidence that Jayce got robbed on the same day they went down there.

BOOM!

A loud boom shook the building, Luz lost her footing as she fell hard to the cold ground. Her ears rang as she looked around, the floor in front of her covered in debris. Caitlyn grabbed her arm, pulling her up, Caitlyn was lucky enough to miss the brute of the explosion. "Jayce!" Caitlyn screamed as she saw the man, passed out on the other side of the room.

Luz stumbled towards him, her head racing, making her a lot slower than Caitlyn. "No, no," she cried. Even with her blurred vision, she could still see the missing piece of the front door lodged in Jayce's stomach.

"Jayce," she sobbed, grabbing his head. He was unconscious.

Her head spun, the dizziness overtaking her vision. She closed her eyes, trying to open them again, but her eyelids were too heavy. Everything went dark, the last thing she remembered was Caitlyn calling her name as she slipped into unconsciousness, lying next to Jayce.

AUTHOR'S NOTE

I'm not too sure if Viktor will appear in the next chapter or the one after! But I'm so excited because he's my favourite character.

For anyone wondering, Luz is fine, she most likely just has a minor concussion, don't worry, I'm not the Arcane writers, I wouldn't kill off my main character!

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