"If you're going to upset, do it somewhere else." After he had eaten his lunch, Quinn stood outside, pacing, while muttering to herself. She had been there for a full hour know, just thinking to herself. When she didn't respond, Jhin clicked his tongue.
"I'm serious Quinn. Do you pay this much attention to your prisoners?" Suddenly she stopped, staring at the ground.
"You've only been caught once, as far as we know. Now that we have you in our clutches," she intertwined her hands together."We can't just let you go." After that, Quinn left Jhin alone, where once again, he thought. This time he was left much longer than usual. It was nice to have silence for such a long period of time, with no guard, no Quinn, and no Sona to deal with. Everything was tranquil, and it was like that until dinner, when Jhin was given the same meal as before. He expected to Quinn come back after dinner, or some guard to escort him down the endless corridors, but no one came. He sat there longer and longer, the hours dragging by as he ran out of ideas to think of. Finally, when what he guessed was midnight, there was a knock on his door. Jhin was under his covers on his bed trying to sleep when it happened. The knock was soft and quiet, as if it were suppose to be hidden. Jhin slowly got up and walked over the metal door, putting his ear on it to listen. Another knock came, even quieter, and the peephole slid open. On the other side was the pale, soft face of Sona Buvelle.
"Sona?" he hissed quietly, confused of why she was here. She let out a scared whimper, he hand shaking with what looked to be a key. As she inserted the key, Jhin raised his eyebrow. This wasn't exactly what he was going for when he asked Sona to help him out. He imagined her helping him during the trial, or to tell Jarvan or Quinn to let him go, but this worked too. The door swung open, revealing Sona in a long blue nightgown. Jhin stepped out of his cell, feeling a cool breeze echo through the hallways. He looked left then right, seeing no living soul in sight."Where are the guards?" He whispered to her, still looking for anyone that may be hiding. She pointed down the left, down a hallway that was opposite to the door. He could slightly hear voices, cheerfully talking to each other. Jhin stared toward the voices, expecting someone to come walking this way. Sona nudged his shoulder, causing him to look back at her. She had a stack of clothes with a comb on top, which she offered to him. He took the clothes, eyeing them curiously.
"Go," She mouthed, although her mouth seemed disfigured as she "spoke". Jhin wanted to hug her, or help her, or show some sort of thanks to her, but all he did was run. He ran like it was no tomorrow. His footsteps were muffled by his socks, as he made his way through the maze of the Capitol. When he reached the front door, he slowly opened it, peering outside. Everything was quiet, with only a few people and guards roaming around. Jhin slipped outside, hiding his best in the shadows. He needed a place where he could change, so that he could blend in with the other citizens. He sprinted towards the big wall that surrounded the city, which ran behind people's houses. Walking along it, he found a row of houses, which back's were covered in darkness. With speed and grace he slipped the shirt and pants onto his already existing ones. When he had them on and was combing his hair, he realized that the clothes looked expensive. They were dark purple with gold lace linings, made of the softest silk . He admired himself, or at least what he thought himself to look like, and sighed. Now was the make or break moment. Still sticking to the shadows, Jhin walked onto the stone path, passing citizens taking a nightly stroll. After walking for a bit, his nerves started to calm down. He realized how beautiful everything looked at night, the stars shining above, and the few lanterns shimmering light down on the ponds. The people walking were dressed in neutral pinks and purples, similar to his outfit. Jhin also noticed an abundance of carriages and carts running around, some leaving the city walls and some not.
"I need to get past those walls," he thought to himself, as he rested his back against a pillar. He recalled seeing many guards around the entrance, as they guarded the gates very closely. He would need an I.D of sorts, so they know that he wasn't some stranger. Jhin saw a line of carts, waiting their turn to leave the city. He walked up to one, with a man driving it, and luggage piling up on top.
"Excuse me sir," he said, trying to alter his voice as best he can. The man looked down at him, his thin white beard blowing the breeze."May I ask where this carriage is going?"
"Heading out of the city," he said, turning his head back to face the line. Jhin sighed at the man.
"Well yes, I know that, but anywhere particular? I need a ride to-"
"I don't take hitchhikers so beat it!" The man's voice had raised into a yell, causing a bit of attention to draw to the two.
In a hushed voice, Jhin said,"Then do you know where I can get a ride?"
"Stupid fella," the man chuckled to himself, causing Jhin's nose to wrinkle. He really didn't want to deal with this man."There are service carts everywhere. Not everyone is importing special luggage to Shurima like me," he said, smiling proudly.
"Shurima you say?" Jhin said, rubbing his hand on his chin. Shurima was a place Jhin had not gone to, let alone wanted to go to. It was hot, sandy, and usually very dangerous. But what Jhin really needed to do was locate his gun, go to his client, get his reward, and head straight out of Demacia."Thanks…"Jhin murmured, leaving the old man to his ways. To his delight, there were service carts that were willing to take Jhin to his so wanted destinations. To his dismay though, all of them required money, which he did not currently have."Sona couldn't have left some money in these pockets?" Jhin cursed to himself, get anxious again. It was a matter of time that Quinn noticed him missing, or that a citizen noticed his face. He needed money, and he needed it quickly. He saw across the way a few performers, dancing and singing gleefully in the night. They had a few hats and bowls laying around them, which were being filled up with gold and other coins. He knew he couldn't just go up and take one of the hats, but what he could do was follow that boy. Just behind the performers was a teenage boy, taking some bags filled with money into a house that the performers stood in front of.
"Perfect." He snuck around the small crowd, entering the back door of the small house. Inside was completely black, Jhin having to feel around to guide himself. He stopped suddenly when he heard coins hitting a table, as if being poured out. A light turned on in the room in front of him, and the sound of more coins rang through the air. Taking a deep breath, Jhin opened the door. He saw the boy sitting on a chair, shuffling coins through his hands, leaving the bags on the table.. His ears perked up when he heard the door open.
"Marco's, I told you I'm-" the boy stared to say before Jhin put his hand over his mouth. The boy screamed, but it was muffled, and thankfully it was muffled enough. Putting a hand over his mouth, and an arm around his neck, Jhin successfully choked the boy into unconsciousness. He took off his original prisoner clothes that laid under his other clothes, and tied the boy's hands and feet, placing them behind the chair. He tightened them as much as he could, so that is would be very difficult for the boy to untie them. Laughing silently to himself as he did, Jhin took off both of his socks and stuffed them into the boy's mouth. It was an odd yet effective strategy, making even Jhin laugh a little bit. Taking the money, Jhin snuck out of the house. One thing led to another, and Jhin was in a service cart, which now waiting in the line to the entrance. When his cart finally reached the guards, the driver showed his I.D and the big, stone gates opened, freeing Jhin from his custody. He was free.
It didn't take long for he and the driver to reach to small trading center at which Jhin's own carriage had crashed. He told the driver to park a little away from the trading post so that he couldn't see anything. Making a short walk, Jhin indeed saw the crashed carriage still right where it had been. Sneakily has he could, he lifted up bits and pieces of the wreckage. No matter how hard he looked, he could find no evidence of his belongings. Not even his servant's supplies. Letting out a groan he realized he had thought everything too easy, thinking all he needed would still remain in the carriage.
"Some scavenger must have pillaged this carriage already, and is probably selling my things." Jhin thought to himself, staring at the entrance to the trade center. A sudden thought hit him that Whisper might be long gone, where he would never get it back. It was just a gun, but it was sentimental to Jhin. Taking a deep breath he entered the trading center.
Inside was less busy than it had been earlier today, where Jhin was hiding from Quinn and Valor. Lanterns were everywhere, lighting up people's faces as they continued to sell or were packing up for the night. Jhin walked through the aisles of stalls, people trying to get his attention. He saw jewelry, food, carpets, appliances, weapons, and more. It was a great selection to choose from, and Jhin made a mental note to himself to come visit again."If I'm not being hunted down…" he thought with a grim smirk. Suddenly, Jhin's pant leg was tugged on, causing him to fall flat on his face on the dry soil. Angry and embarrassed, Jhin looked up to see the terrified face of his servant. On closer inspection, his belongings, including his gun, were sitting right next to him.
"What do you think you're doing," he hissed, brushing dust off himself."I could be severely hurt!"
"I'm sorry sir!" He squeaked, standing up himself."I waited here for you, I knew you'd return!"
"That's not the point!" He said shaking his hands. He leaned over a picked up Whisper, who was brightly polished. Jhin almost fell again from the sheer joy of holding Whisper in his hand once more. It had been too long for him. The boy handed him his bag of other supplies, including a sack full of money.
"So, how do we get back?" he asked, face bright and ready.
"What do you mean, we?" Jhin said, a devious smile on his face. Of course he was going to take the boy back to his client who had supplied him, but it didn't mean he couldn't have fun with him first. He saw the boy's face palen, all the brightness draining away.
"Funny one, sir," he said in a shaky voice. It appeared that he had had a rough time in the small trade center.
"I mean you didn't even bother to come looking for me, I'm hurt." Jhin put the back of his hand to his forehead, striking a dramatic pose.
"But I waited here!" Jhin sighed now, seeing the boy was taking it too seriously for his taste.
"Stop whining and follow me, or I'll leave you here for real." With that, the two of them walked out of the city, to the carriage that awaiting them both.