Morning.
Logan opened his eyes. The Spirit Blossom Gang's hideout had a really effective air purification system—lately, the air quality around their turf had climbed to the point where it could rival Piltover's, and breathing it in felt genuinely comfortable, like his lungs had been scrubbed clean.
If there was a downside, though, it was definitely there: the purifier burned through resources like crazy. They had to keep topping it up with Shimmer and swapping out filter cartridges, and when it ran, it made this rumbling, thunderous noise.
Still, Heimerdinger and Ekko said the third-generation purifier would reduce operating noise, lower the volume, cut consumption, and make it viable for busy districts without disturbing people.
Logan yawned. He'd slept well, and he was about to get up. He reached out to tug the blue blanket aside—
—and immediately felt the person on top of him shift. The hand draped across his waist tightened, clamping down like she was afraid he'd slip away.
Zaun really was getting colder by the day. Who knew—maybe they'd even see snow this winter.
Down in the far south of Valoran, close to the Shurima Desert, winters got bitterly cold, but snow was rare. Rare didn't mean impossible, though.
The moment Logan pulled the blanket open, a dense spill of blue spread across his chest—hair, everywhere. He carefully gathered and smoothed it, then gently moved someone's small head aside so she rested on the pillow instead of on his chest.
Then he caught a leg that had been hooked over his thigh—bare, smooth, peeking out from under her sleep dress—and eased it off, laid it down, and tucked the blanket back over her properly.
Only then could Logan "escape" the bed.
If he was being honest… yeah. Waking up early to work was absolutely not as comfortable as staying curled up under the covers with Jinx and sleeping in.
When it got cold, she liked to hide her head under the blanket. And Logan ran warm—his body heat was high, and he apparently smelled nice—so at night, Jinx never stayed still for long.
But Jinx liked holding him, and Logan liked holding her too.
The clean, sweet scent of her hair after a shower… the sugary warmth she gave off when he hugged her… the way her soft little body would burrow into his arms—
He liked it. And the feeling was mutual.
Really, he'd been completely caught.
At the very beginning, what Logan felt for Jinx had been fear and heartache—fear of her manic, explosive personality, and heartache for everything she'd been through in the twin cities.
He hadn't wanted to get too close to her.
But as one thing after another happened, slowly—quietly—that feeling changed.
Now, Logan shook his head with a helpless little laugh. He reached out, lightly combed his fingers through her hair to neaten it, then bent down and pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead.
The result was immediate: even in deep sleep, Jinx frowned, grabbed the blanket with both hands, and yanked it up over her head like a shield.
Logan didn't mind. He stepped out the door—
—and found Isha hiding outside, grinning at him.
"You saw all of that?" Logan smiled back. Kids were always like that—never afraid of the cold, packed with energy like it didn't run out.
Isha beamed and nodded hard. "Ee-ya!"
"Come on. Let's go make breakfast. Isha—today I've got a lot to do, so this afternoon you hang out with Jinx, alright? I should be back tonight." Logan held out his hand, took her little hand, and headed toward the kitchen.
Isha followed obediently. Whatever Logan said, she always responded.
Of course she'd seen what he'd just done in the room. She couldn't speak, but the look on her face said it all—
Dad and Mom, you have to keep being happy together forever!
…Something like that, anyway.
Which did make Logan wonder: to Isha, was Jinx more like a sister… or more like a mom?
Logan wasn't sure.
If Jinx was "just" a sister, the way she cared for Isha was so meticulous and constant that most older sisters could never manage it.
But if Jinx was really a mother figure… her age didn't line up at all. She was only about ten years older than Isha. What kind of mom was only ten years older than her own kid?
Still—if you were asking about Logan, then to Isha he definitely felt more like a dad.
And if that was the case… what did that make him and Jinx?
And later, how was Isha even supposed to address people?
Whatever. Maybe it didn't matter. Isha could call him Dad, call Jinx her sister. Jinx could call him her husband, and call Isha her kid—
Thinking that way, Logan couldn't help but smile.
In the kitchen, because he was going to be busy today and didn't have much time, he decided to make a simple breakfast.
He'd just picked out what he was going to prep when a woman's voice sounded behind him.
"Logan, today is your first day in office."
Vi leaned against the doorway, fruit in hand. She took a big, casual bite, then spoke around the mouthful.
Then Vander appeared too, standing in the kitchen entrance. His massive body blocked the doorway almost completely as he boomed, "Everyone's waiting on you, Logan."
"Has it even started yet?" Logan turned around, holding a piece of produce. He thought for a second. Fine—he'd use this.
Jinx liked sweet things. This tomato-like ingredient would suit her.
If he simmered it into a meat soup, she'd definitely love it.
"You—" Vander shook his head, both exasperated and amused. But when he saw Logan ignore him and focus seriously on making breakfast, with little Isha busy at his side helping, Vander's eyes gradually softened.
"Your sister's got a damn good life," Vander said quietly, standing behind Vi.
Vi snorted, chewing her fruit. "She's lucky? Sure. But it's more that Logan's just… decent. Swap him out for someone else—who the hell would put up with all her little moods?"
Vander looked surprised and dipped his head toward Vi. "I thought you didn't like Logan."
"When did I ever say I didn't like him?" Vi rolled her eyes. Having finished the fruit, she dusted her hands off, rolled her neck, and said, "I'm more aware than anyone what she'd turn into if he wasn't here. And I'm more aware than anyone what Zaun would turn into without Logan."
Vi had accepted it now—accepted that Jinx wasn't Powder.
Time changed a lot.
She changed. Powder changed. Vander changed. Even Zaun itself had changed.
If an entire city could change, then the people living inside it changing too wasn't exactly strange, was it?
And because of that, Vi really didn't hate Logan.
Because… if Logan disappeared, Jinx would lose it.
And nobody wanted a sister who'd completely snapped.
"The daily bickering and yelling?" Vi turned, hands in her pockets, and strode past Vander with her usual cool swagger. "That's just how Logan and I get along."
She left him with one last line:
"I'm taking a team to the site. We've still got a ton to do today."
"Alright. I'll go with you." Vander chuckled as he watched her back, then followed.
Ten minutes later, Logan finished breakfast. He patted Isha's head and told her to go call Jinx to eat later.
Isha nodded, clearly planning to wait and eat together once Jinx got up.
And Logan walked out the door.
"Boss."
Manzu's voice sounded from nearby.
Logan nodded at him, then headed to the entrance of the Spirit Blossom Gang's hideout.
At that moment, all the gang's core members were gathered there: Ekko, Viktor, Zeri, Singed, Marsen, Scar, Willa.
And then there was Silco's side.
Sevika stood with a group of chem-barons who'd gotten the news, and they faced the Spirit Blossom Gang like two distinct factions. When Logan appeared, Sevika gave him a short nod, while the chem-barons' expressions were… complicated.
Among them were two people Logan recognized well.
One was Renni.
The other was a white-haired woman who also bowed her head respectfully at him.
Both of them were in legitimate industry—neither ran pure gangster operations. Even if they stopped playing the underworld game entirely and went straight, they could still make money.
So: one of them now had factories helping Silco process Shimmer for industrial use.
The other dealt in ore and minerals.
Among Zaun's chem-barons, those two were part of the reformist camp.
As for the other two chem-barons—a yordle-looking one, and a man in a tall hat—they avoided Logan's gaze.
One of them sold Shimmer liquor—call it what it really was: drugs.
The other ran human trafficking.
They'd taken plenty of hits lately. Their businesses were ruined. The only thing they still had left was their lives.
Logan didn't care.
Because even if they hated him now, there was nothing they could do.
Zaun's reform had reached a point where it couldn't be stopped.
His alliance with Silco—six months of pushing together—had made the momentum unstoppable. Zaun's people were united, and the existing power structure was already in the Spirit Blossom Gang's hands.
The crowd parted, opening a path.
Logan walked straight to the very front and lifted his chin, squinting up at the sky.
With the air improving, Zaun could actually see the sun more often now.
And today, the sun was out.
A beam of light fell across the space in front of Logan. He spread his arms wide.
Sevika stepped forward holding a piece of clothing, draped it over him, and helped him put it on.
Logan gave his shoulders a shake, smoothed it down into place, then turned back toward everyone with a smile. He raised his hand and said brightly:
"Let's go. Today is our first day in office!"
"Yes!"
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