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DoubleDog set his head in his owner’s lap with a canine sigh and shut his inquisitive eyes, no treats for him then…

Jack’s eyes lit up with a touch of mischief and his smile grew, “Three things; a book, a box, and a baby. Baby is mine before you get too concerned, my friend is spectacular with children and volunteered to watch mine. Now the book and the box on the other hand are too remain pretty secret until my friend shows up with them.” he sipped his tea and gave Elle an apologetic glance.

“What about you? What made you almost run into my table? If I’m allowed to ask.”

                   she shrugged, unbothered by the secrecy. everyone was allowed to keep things to themselves, especially from strangers who almost trip over their table in a coffee-shop.

“More like I’m just pointing out that you know far less than you think you do and that irritates you. All this questioning just feels an exercise to get rid of that irritation.” He thanked himself immensely for putting himself through the mental training needed to keep himself from shivering even a bit when she continued speaking behind his ear. It was always this sort of banter with her. As many villains as he had fought in the past, she was probably the smartest. It was another thing that annoyed him about her. She had an incredible intellect and yet here she was using it for her own selfish gain.

Flaire let out a huff and actually turned his head to look at her at this point. The motion caused his wings, which she had tied down, to let out signals of pain but it was minor at best. “Everyone. Changes. If you think I’m going to say that people only change for the better then I should feel really bad about getting captured by someone that dense. Change is always going to be a matter of perspective. It’s just my job to help guide that change to something better. Something that helps as many people as it can.” Idly he began to open and close his hands. Whatever she’d used to dull his powers had to have some sort of limit, right? He hoped so at least. He still had to get her to a cell after all.

“If they actually changed enough to be able to put me out of a job? Well then that would just be a great day for me.” A smirk lit his face before dying down once more. “If someone innocent were to die then that just serves to show that the one who needs to change is me.” His voice may have lost the bickering tone, but it maintained a immense amount of determination.

His eyes followed her closely as she walked around him. He took in every detail of the movement almost subconsciously. Years of fighting criminals did that to you, after all. At her questions this time, he was genuinely confused at this point. “Are you implying that this is to test me?”

                  ❝ i know that there's a lot i don't know !! how many of my ilk have fallen due to such arrogance ??  ❞ she tried to hide it, but his words had struck a nerve. to assume she thought she knew all. please !!  she may be arrogant, but she had the skills to back it up, or to get out of the situations she may cause because of it.  ❝ i am not so foolish as to think i know everything. that is a child’s mistake, and one that often leads to them being kicked from their home. ❞ she scoffed, recalling a similar but vastly different situation in her own life, and her own start down the path of villainy.

                     in response to his vehement reply, she casually waved her hand, a look of annoyance morphing her expression under her mask. ❝ yes, yes, change is inevitable. are you going to use that silly saying involving a vending machine as well ??  ❞ blonde waves swayed as she shook her head.  ❝ again, i′m not so foolish to think i know everything, that people only change for good. but how often do they really ??  their change can hurt you, so why let them get to that point ??  ❞ her words carry an undercurrent of bitterness, a shadow of hurt.  ❝ wouldn’t it hurt you, to no longer be needed, even for the most mundane of tasks ??  ❞ her last question carried a noticeable tint of curiosity, honest curiosity.

He glanced at the cup, one eyebrow arching in concern, “You can chill here if you’d like, just don’t spill your tea. DoubleDog likes to think he’s part vacuum whenever things fall on the floor.” He gestured at the dog by his side, the little beast watched Elle intently with its two toned eyes, as if trying to assess her. The dog wore no leash.

“My name is Jack by the by, and no its not a date.” he giggled, and motioned towards the empty chair across from him,“Just a friend with something to give me.”