𝙈𝘼𝙎𝙏𝙀𝙍 𝙊𝙁 𝙉𝙊𝙉𝙀

She nodded as Sammy looked up from Jack’s lap. He whined and didn’t move for a moment before Cassidy gently picked him. “It’s lovely to see you too. Maybe we can do it again?” she asked hopefully, holding up her dog and gently kissed him on her cheek, and he barked and whined again.

Jack reached out a hand to pacify the pup, nodding at the owner in the process. “Definitely! It was fun,” she said with a grin. “Maybe next time we can skip the first bit where you feel the need to beat up some bloke though,” she teased. After a wave, she was out the door and turning into an alley so as not to be seen, she orbed off.

Cassidy nodded, understanding the fuzzy part-it sometimes happens to her after every full moon. “Failure for the Australian Army?! But why?!” she asked, confused. “They could probably beat nearly everyone they…no, wait…” Cassidy stopped talking as she thought about it and tried to picture it in her head, which ended up with her giggling. “I’m so sorry…” she said through her giggles. “I just pictured the emus fighting…I can’t…”

Jack had herself a laugh at the picture too, before adding, “Just goes to show how perseverance can sometimes be the ultimate weapon.” A slight faraway look suddenly shown on her features, and then she smiled politely as as she extricated herself from beneath the doggy. “Apologies, but it appears I’ve lost track of time and am needed elsewhere. It was lovely to see you two though,” she offered.

She nodded as she listened to her list off things she knew about animals, eyes widening. Cassidy didn’t know that much about animals, but hearing it from her felt like she was in a class or a seminar. “Wow, that’s a lot of stuff,” she admitted honestly. “The emus were the only animals to go to war against the military of humans? Did they win?”

“I’ve got the sense that’s not even all of it, but some things are a bit fuzzy,” Jack noted, before nodding her head at the question. “Oh yeah! For the longest it was listed as an Emu win on articles and stuff, but they’ve since changed it to a Failure for the Australian Army, which I suppose makes it bit less of a laugh for most people.”

Cassidy giggled as she leaned down and placed many kisses on Sammy’s face, who barked once and licked the side of her face. “I will, I will,” she promised as her dog barked in agreement as well. “I’m just glad that’s he’s all calm for once, aren’t you boy?’ she cooed with a huge smile. “Know anything else about animals?” 

“Of the top of my head?” she asked, scrunching up her face as she gave a quick think. “I know that koalas have fingerprints that pretty much resemble those of a human, that when startled seal pups will curl into a ball and roll away from danger, that pandas don’t have sleeping spots, they pretty much just sleep wherever they fall, and that emus are the only animal in recorded history to go to war against a human military and win.”

“You must’ve been,” Cassidy agreed, reaching over to scratch her dog’s ears. “Because I’ve never heard of that up till now.” she admitted, smiling softly at Sammy’s tail wagging quite happily. 

“Aye! Look at that, your marmy mood’s all done up with,” Jack pointed out with a grin. “Though to be fair, there’s very little that could stand up to the sight of a pupper being adorable,” she added, glancing back down at her furry friend. “If you want to do it at home or anything, just remember to make sure you’re in a place where he feels safe to just lay down, and that the hug is tight, but not uncomfortable. Then just give it a minute or two, and wah-lah!”

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“Me. I’m the murdery looking one,” Kieran said flatly as she glanced over at Ren, then up to see just the top of Jack’s head over her own knees. “Alright, ease up. It’s not like she’s been orbing in and out of your private room or anything, and I’m sure once have a mature dialogue about boundaries, the orbing will be kept to a minimum. Besides, I hate to break it to ya, but she’s going to have live somewhere, and since I have like billion empty rooms, might as well be here.” 

Taking a moment to maneuver herself into a proper sitting position, she crossed her legs in front of her as she looked from Jack to Ren, and said, “From my understanding, there aren’t a great deal of Paladins to begin with. Mainly because the stasis spell can only hold so many at any given time. It makes sense for them to have double up on charges or maybe even have more.”

“Why does she ne-” She cut herself off, knowing that this was definitely not worth it because Kieran seemed to be dead set on adopting the Paladin into this house. Ren didn’t live here so she didn’t have a say anyways. “Whatever.” She sulked in her seat as Kieran continued with her explanation about Paladins. 

The fire witch eyed the Paladin, wondering why she got assigned one - or however it was decided that she received a Paladin in the first place. Was it also because she was friends with Kieran that they just so happened to share one? Crossing her arms, she buried her nose into her knees as she sulked on her own because she was not going to help Jack settle in if she was actually moving in with Kieran.

Jack had the good sense to remain mostly quiet as the Talking Book tried to talk down the Murdery one down to just the Assaulty one. “Oh! I’m great with boundaries,” she exclaimed. “I can always avoid orbing directly into any specified room or - or - or if you’d rather, I can only orb into a specified room. So long as I have a way to get to ye quickly, I’m honestly up for whatever,” she said. At the offer staying at this house, Jack’s eyes went wide. “Wow! I don’t really recall having had my own room before. From the times I can recall, I always just kind of made my way back to the place where we were kept in stasis and just kind of existed there until called,” she said with a shrug.

“Yeah, there can actually be no new Paladins until one of us decides to retire and we get our replacement to take our slot,” she added. “I wouldn’t be surprised if it later turns out that I’ve got more than just the two of ya to worry ab- Why are you sniffing your knees?” she abruptly asked the fire witch. “Do they smell funny? Do you want me to take a look? If it’s an infection or something I can take care of it for you,”

“A hack?” she repeated as she watched Jack calm down her dog, who kneeled over and laid on her lap without no fuss at all. Cassidy’s mouth dropped-she’d been trying to figure out how to do that since she got him, and for Jack to do it so easily…”How…how did you calm him down like that?” she asked, shocked as she passed her the coffee. “I’ve been trying to do that since I got him!”

Jack just glanced up from the comfortable dog on her lap up to the owner with a big grin on her face. “I think I was a vet tech at one point, I definitely recall a lot of animal information so if that wasn’t right, then maybe I was a farmer...?”

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Somehow managing to get herself back upright, Kieran hopped up on the edge of the couch and allowed gravity to plop her down on the other side. Looking up at Ren from where she was effectively now a witch pancake on the couch, with her legs propped up on the back, she just said, “You’re going to have to get used to her being around one way or another. She’s either sticking around because of me, because of you, or because of both us. No use in fighting it. We should just call her and then work on housebreaking her instead.”

Nodding, she let Ren do the counting and then called out, “Jack!”

“I honestly don’t know why I would have a Paladin.” She muttered before dropping her hand next to her. “But fine. We’ll fucking call her.” The fire witch counted down to three before calling out their Paladin’s name. “She fucking better not be mine.” She could already imagine that impending headache she will get if she had to deal with this Jack person. “Do you think she was this annoying when she was alive?”

“That’s a very good question, but unfortunately I don’t have the brain bits to provide an accurate answer,” Jack answered as she made her way over to the couch from where she’d orbed into the foyer. “What I can- Stop screaming it’s just meh!- what I can tell you, is that I heard both of your voices come in crystal clear, which means the Murdery looking one doesn’t have to actually try to murder meh for getting close to the Nice Talking Book one.” She announced.

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By this point, Kieran had given up on trying to keep from laughing. She was currently doubled over, after having began when Ren jumped at the sound of Jack’s voice, and now she was slowly but surely sliding her way down the back of the couch to the floor. “Oh- I- I’m sorry,” she tried to say, “I’m sorry, Ren, but-” She got caught in another bout of giggles, before finally stopping at least to catch her breath proper. “Okay, okay, for real. I’m sorry, but I did warn you this would happen if we didn’t do as instructed,” she noted.

After a few deep breaths, she sat upright resting her back against the couch, and added, “I actually have no idea if you can block out a Paladin or not. It would kind of defeat their entire purpose if you could do that, and even if a spell exists for it, it would probably above the range of what I’ve been able to do by getting around my parents’ bindings.”

Rolling her eyes, clearly unamused that Kieran was laughing at her expense, Ren sat back down on the couch with her arms crossed and a leg lifted onto the couch. “She can’t just be orbing in and out whenever she fucking likes.” She repeated as she threw a glare at the blonde who seemed very unfazed by the anger emitting off the fire witch - which pissed her off even more.

“I mean, to be fair, I kind of can,” Jack replied, a look of ‘matter-of-fact’ on her face matching her tone. “The whole point is that I require access to my charges twenty-four-seven in case of emergency, or so that we can work something out in regards to the Nexus, or if they get hurt - or wait, would fall under emergency too? Would everything fall under emergency?” Jack thought about this for a moment, before shaking her head and just saying, “I’m heading back out there. Call meh!”

Cassidy waited till the barista rang up everything, while Sammy just started running around her leg, tangling her up with his leash. “Sammy…’ she said with a simple shake of her head, staring down at the dog. “That’s not how that works, you.’ she paid for the drinks and picked up her pet, who started to wiggle out of her arms. “Apparently he’s so excited that he wants to run around this place.”

“Ooh!” Jack exclaimed, a thought coming to mind, “There’s a bit of a -what do people call them now....- Oh! A hack. There’s a bit of a hack with samoyeds. Their breed was used so often back in the day to help the owners keep warm that if you just-” she set her drink down and scooped the pup from her arms and snuggled it as she sat on the ground “-snuggle up to it, after about like a minute they will just...” Jack trailed off as the pupper seemed to almost keel over and lay on her lap “...revert back to living heater mode.”

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There was a rather undignified snort as Kieran failed to fully stifle her laughter at just how easily the blonde paladin had managed to get under Ren’s skin. The older witch was quick to sober up at the mention of the Nexus though, and found herself leaning against the back of the couch as she crossed her arms, a look of concentration on her face. “If I recall right, the Paladins are brought out from stasis with the breaking of the fourth seal. Now, four out of twelve isn’t really close, per se,” she began to pace back and forth along the length of the couch as she spoke, gesturing vaguely as she went, “But some of elder witch circles have always been rather archaic in their thinking that we’re better than other supernaturals, so I’m not really surprised that they only implemented this when the seals would begin to require a witch. Granted, four seals is still four. seals. And when dealing with the Nexus there’s no such thing as preparing too soon-” She stopped mid-rant as she realized she’d been thinking out loud and rambling as a result.

Clearing her throat, she stopped and looked over at Ren sheepishly as she said, “Yeah, so not quite close, but still much too close for any comfort.” She let out a small laugh at the question. “She probably would, if for no other reason than to make sure we didn’t pass out or something.”

“I don’t think breaking any seal is good news.” She muttered under her breath, folding her arms in front of her. Recent attacks on the town weren’t exactly a welcoming act she wished to repeat; they were lucky that they put out her fire before it spread like wildfire. “Why is witchcraft so fucking dark all the time? Like who the fuck said sacrificing anyone was a good idea? Fuck the ancestors.” She ranted quietly to herself as her friend also rambled away about the seals. “Are we stupid for living so close to the fucking Nexus or are we part of some grand scheme to protect it.” Other than the fact that there was a high density of supernatural beings living in the area - most were attracted here because of the Nexus, but Ren wouldn’t mind if they lived elsewhere. 

“Is there a way to block Paladins from orbing in? Because she clearly doesn’t care that she’s breaking in and entering… without actually damaging any entryways.”

Upon arriving at the Nexus, it became very obvious that things were still not quite settled. Jack kept her distance, but couldn’t help but watch the almost imperceptible wisps of magic that were essentially carrying off other Paladins to their designated locations. Briefly thinking back to her possible charges, the blonde found herself wondering what she could’ve done to get such an angry one, but then figured it was best to have a charge upon being awoken. It was never pleasant to come out of stasis, confused by the world around you, and on top of that, finding that you were yet to have a charge assigned to you.

Feeling enough time had elapsed, and having not heard a thing she headed back to the house. “Ladies,” she began, even before fully manifesting before them. “I need a call. Otherwise, I’m just gonna claim ya both and call it a day,” she said.

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“Do you even remember who you are?” Kieran followed up behind Ren’s question, a slight tinge of pity to her tone. From what she knew about Paladins, the guild hunters that volunteered often did so with the knowledge that eventually the life they knew would be gone from their minds. Kieran wasn’t so sure she wouldn’t still say ‘yes’ if offered a similar choice… She turned her attention to Ren, “It would appear so,” she began. “Seeing as how our new guardian angel here hasn’t been able to tell us which one of us she’s actually here for -and I don’t know what to think about the fact that you just threw me under the responsibility bus on that one- it’s very possible she’s here for us both.” Glancing back at the blonde she said, “Paladins can have multiple charges, can’t they?”

“I just figured that.. you’d be the more important one?” She frowned, “I just have fire magic so I’m not that special.” Ren had assumed her powers were pretty common as it drew from the natural elements so it would be surprising if she had some part of this bigger picture. “Us both? Wait, you really think she could be my Paladin as well?” Her nose scrunched at the thought of being stuck with this blonde woman.” 

She scrunched up her face at the nice one’s question before begrudgingly admitting, “Well, no. Not exactly, but I recall the name I last went by which is close enough. So, call me Jack! Cause I’m a Jack of all trades...and a master of...very few.” She took a step back as they began to discuss the probability that she was meant to guard them both -which was brilliant thinking because it hadn’t occurred to her either, but it was certainly a possibility.

“If I may, there’s a quick way to test this theory. I’m going to head pop back over to the Nexus real quick, and you both can call out my name. I’ll see who I can hear, ‘kay bye.”

Cassidy had to think abut that one. “Hickory coffee is almost like tea,’ she said, trying to remember what she’d read online one. “It’s not like tea, it’s more of a rich, nutty flavor that is so good, especially when my mama used to make it.”

She found herself nodding along at the explanation, before turning her attention back up to the board.  Not able to make heads or tails of whatever was before her by the time they reached the baristas, Jack simply said, “I’ll take whatever has the most caffeine content...with an extra shot of espresso.”

Ren stood from her spot, “And why does it have to be Kieran specifically?” She was not liking how this conversation was going, and while she knew her friend was capable of protecting herself and others; it was her job after all, but this conversation made it sound like she’s the key to preventing the Nexus from being released altogether. “Wait.” She turned back to Kieran, “The next three seals targets witches?” She should really have paid attention when she was told about the dangers of breaking the Nexus seals. 

Jack looked like she was having a hard think about the burny witch’s question, before saying, “I....don’t really know, to be quite honest with you. I mean, prolonged stasis tends to jumble my brain bits quite a bit as it is, but when it comes to our charges, it’s not something that is consciously assigned to us by anyone. It’s dictated by magic itself. All I know for sure, intrinsically, as if it’s woven into the very fiber of my being, is that I’m meant to protect her, at all cost.”

Her face seemed to crumple a bit at the next question. “Unfortunately, yes. I don’t have the specifics of what the rituals entail, but the entire reason for the Paladins’ creation was by witches for witches, though I’ll be happy to report that we’ve expanded our scope over time and have charges from all magical walks of life.”

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Kieran couldn’t help but find herself almost amused by the blonde woman’s actions, even scoffing a bit when she mentioned Kieran having too many walls. “You have no idea” she grumbled under her breath. The witch took a bit of a step back when the blonde woman came directly up to her and began to reach out, but was stopped by her back hitting the couch and starting to smart again. A grimace crossed her features before a general warmth spread out over her entire body, and the aches seemed to vanish.

“Oh wow…I really could’ve used your company on so many different occasions,” she said aloud before she could stop herself. Taking a moment to catch her breath, Kieran looked her gaze with the woman before and said, “I thought Paladins were just a myth?” Confused green eyes shot over to her best friend as she asked, “Right?”

She whipped her head to face Kieran, incredulous that she was way more calm about this stranger than either of them should be. But her irritation disappeared when Paladins were mentioned. “Paladins?” She frowned, “They’re just.. stories that we tell kids. Like genies. They’re not supposed to be real.” At least that’s what Ren had grown up listening to, but this woman already raised a few points that would lead to that conclusion. “How.. What? Are you a Paladin?”

“Ding, ding!” exclaimed the blonde. “You guys are very smart. Smarter than me, even. Up until the nice mentioned it, I’d completely forgotten what the word for what I am was,” she admitted with a laugh. “Aye, we’re normally not meant to be around. If I’m here it’s  because we’ve reached a specific seal on the Nexus that’s been broken, and all Paladins in stasis have been awakened to and sent to find their charge. Which, as I mentioned, is meant to be someone that can help ensure the Nexus remains unopened.”

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Kieran was up and between the two in a flash. The last thing she needed right at this moment was to have to arrest Ren for murder or arson or some combination of both. “Okay, alright. Ren, take it easy. She wouldn’t have been able to get past the wards on the house if she had any ill intent, so there’s no need for fire…especially in close proximity to highly flammable things like my couch, my wood floor, and, you know, myself,” she pleaded, before turning back to the stranger.

“That thing you just did to appear, it was orbing wasn’t it?”

Ren glared at the intruder for a moment longer before letting out a scoff. “I still don’t trust her.” She growled as she turned to take her seat back on the couch. There was no guarantee if she would accidentally set the place on fire - depending on how this conversation went. 

“Ah! Wards around the house! That’s brilliant!,” Jack exclaimed, before turning to look at the firey one, “That’s brilliant, innit? Not many witches make use of ‘em like they should.” She then furrowed her brow a bit as she said, “Okay, questions. Uh, I don’t really know who here is what, though-” she paused to touch the tip of her index finger to her tongue and then held it out as if trying to figure which way the wind was blowing “-yeah, uh-huh, sensing heavy on the witch side.” Dropping her hand, she proceeded to pat around her coat as if looking for something, answering, “Yeah, orbing. Haven’t done it a while though. Surprised I didn’t wind up stuck in a wall...you have a lot of walls here kid.”

Without much preamble she walked right up to them, and though there was a slight moment of indecision, she went up to Kieran and said, “Apologies for being forward, but something tells me you could really use this right now.” And without further word, she brought up both of her hands to gently cup her neck as they began to glow.