By the time they reached the animal shelter, the softness of the afternoon had already begun to settle into something quieter. It wasn't gone, just… folded away.
Like both of them had silently agreed it was time. Time to "close" that window of normalcy they had allowed themselves. Time to come back to dealing with a supernatural System whose goals seemed to be complicating their love life and threatening Magnus's survival.
The shelter smelled faintly of disinfectant and fur, the familiar mix grounding in a way that was hard to describe. A few animals stirred at their entrance — tails wagging, heads lifting, soft noises of recognition — but it wasn't chaotic. Not yet anyway.
Alex exhaled softly.
"…Alright," she said, more to herself than to him. "Back to work!"
Magnus nodded. "Yeah."
No hesitation this time. No dragging their feet. They split naturally.
Alex headed toward the storage area, already pulling out her phone as she mentally ran through inventory — food supplies, water, space, contingency plans for a sudden influx of extra animals that absolutely were not part of the shelter's usual capacity. Because of what happened that morning.
Magnus watched her go for a second. Then turned. And sat down on one of the benches off to the side.
"…Alright," he muttered under his breath. "Show me Jordan Hale's detailed stats."
The System responded immediately. A faint flicker. Then a transparent screen slid into view.
[Name: Vanessa Jordan Hale | Level: 8
Interest: 21% | Popularity: 85% | Sexual History: 41 times (6 known partners)
Relationship: Friend / Conquest Target (Conquering)
Core Detailed Stats:
Trust: 20% | Arousal: 10% | Submission: 0%
Personal Insights:
– Hobbies: Track training, sports analytics podcasts, urban hiking
– Guilty Pleasures: Bingeing true crime docs, picking fights with Alejandra "Alex" Reyes, late-night ice cream runs, smoothies
– Type: Guys her dad would disapprove of (spite choices) or genuine, sincere guys with leadership capability (actual type)
– Kinks: Adrenaline-fueled encounters, light restraint, post-win dominance shifts]
Magnus stared at the screen. Then blinked. Twice.
"…Huh," he muttered under his breath.
His eyes flicked up instinctively, landing on Alex across the room as she crouched near a storage cabinet, already counting supplies with focused efficiency. Back to the screen. Back to her again.
A beat.
Then a short, disbelieving laugh escaped him.
"Well," Magnus called out, "between the two of you…"
He leaned back slightly, rubbing the back of his neck. "Jordan is definitely more twisted."
That got her attention immediately.
Alex straightened, turning toward him with narrowed eyes. "Why? What did you find?"
"For starters," Magnus said, still staring at the screen, "one of her guilty pleasures is picking fights with you—"
"I knew it!" Alex snapped, pointing at him like he'd just confirmed a lifelong suspicion. "All those times—she was doing it on purpose!"
Magnus snorted. "Apparently, yes."
She crossed her arms, pacing once like she was replaying every argument they'd ever had. "That—ugh—she is unbelievable!"
"Do you want to hear the rest?" Magnus asked.
Alex stopped mid-step. "…Yes."
And so, he filled her in on the rest of the information.
While they were going over Jordan's types, they heard it. A distant bark echoed from outside. Then another. And another. Both of them turned toward the entrance.
Magnus winced slightly. "…Right on time!"
Alex sighed, already pushing herself back to her feet. "Of course they are."
A moment later, the first few strays filtered in — hesitant at first, then more confident as they caught sight (and smell) of food. And just like that, things got chaotic.
"Hey—no—don't—!" Alex started.
Magnus was already moving. "Hey—sit down! You—back off! You—get in line! Stop fighting each other or none of you are getting any food!"
That's what he heard himself saying, but for Alex and the rest of the animals…
It came out as a series of barks, yips, meows, and hisses, depending on who he was addressing.
One of the larger dogs froze mid-step, ears twitching before slowly lowering itself to the ground.
A cat hissed from the side. Magnus turned, reflexively hissing back. The cat blinked. Then, grudgingly, backed off.
It looked ridiculous. It sounded ridiculous.
"…I'm never getting used to that," Alex muttered, but to her credit, she somehow managed to hold back laughter and focus on the task at hand.
Between the two of them, they managed.
Feeding. Redirecting. Managing.
Every now and then, Magnus would pause mid-sentence — because yes, they were still talking — to snap out another command, a bark here, a low growl there, keeping the fragile peace intact.
By the time things settled into something resembling order, both of them were slightly out of breath.
And then, the conversation about Jordan naturally slid back into place. Like it had never really stopped.
"…It still scares me a little," Alex admitted, quieter now as she leaned lightly against him, "how much your System knows about people."
Magnus nodded. "I know! That's why I try not to look unless I have to."
Her fingers slipped into his, squeezing gently.
"This was necessary," she said. Then, more thoughtfully, "And… yeah. This confirms it."
He glanced at her.
"Jordan has serious daddy issues," she finished.
"…That feels like an understatement."
"And her kinks," she continued, eyes lighting up slightly now, "we can use them to our advantage."
Magnus blinked. "…We can?"
"Yes."
He stared at her. "You're going to need to explain that one."
"She has a competition next week," Alex said. "Right before your quest timer ends."
Magnus nodded slowly. "Yeah…"
"If she wins—" Alex waved a hand. "Actually, no. Forget 'if.' She's going to win. It's Jordan."
"…Okay."
"After she wins, that's our opening. Adrenaline high. Emotional peak. That lines up perfectly with…"
Magnus frowned. "I don't know… it really doesn't feel like it's going to be that easy."
"It's not. I didn't say it'd be easy," she shot back. "Just that it's doable."
A pause. Then, more measured:
"Between now and then, you focus on raising her trust in you. You can see that now, right?"
He nodded. "Yeah."
"And get her to lower her guard around you."
"…And you?"
She smiled. A little too innocently.
"I'll handle something on my end."
"…What something?"
"You don't need to know."
"Alex!"
"Plausible deniability," she said lightly. "You'll need it."
"That only makes me more worried—"
"Jordan's right," she cut in. "You're terrible at lying. And worse at keeping secrets."
"Hey—!"
"And if I tell you," she continued calmly, "she will find out before I can try anything."
Magnus opened his mouth. Closed it.
"…I'm not agreeing with you because I can't keep secrets," he finally said. "I'm agreeing because Jordan is terrifying."
"I know."
A small beat. Then:
"You know," Alex said suddenly, quieter now, "I think I figured out something."
"Hm?"
"Why I said what I said. In your vision."
Magnus stilled.
"…Yeah?"
"If she had been hurt," she continued, "burned by all that coffee — it would've been serious. Serious enough to take her out of the competition."
The pieces clicked into place. For both of them.
"And that," Alex finished, "would've ruined everything on our end, on top of being really bad for Jordan."
A beat.
Then she smiled, brighter this time. "So… now that we know what we know, it's a good thing you were able to prevent that accident. If Jordan had been hurt, the whole monthly quest would've taken a hit."
Magnus felt it. That strange, echoing sense of déjà vu settling into place.
"Yeah," he said quietly. "Lucky us, but…"
He hesitated.
"…I can't help thinking," he went on, "what if it only happened because we were there?"
A beat.
"What if we caused it?"
Alex turned to him immediately. "Don't."
He frowned. "I'm just saying—"
"Magnus." Her voice was firm now. "Don't go there!"
He stopped.
"…You'll drive yourself insane," she said more gently. "Some questions don't help. They just spiral."
He exhaled slowly. "…Yeah."
A brief moment of silence passed between them before Alex spoke again:
"Also, I said what I did earlier because I was prioritizing your survival over Jordan's possible need to visit a hospital for non-lethal burn treatment. I'm saying this now as—" she paused, as if the words she was about to say were unfamiliar, "—as someone who cares about Jordan: I'm glad you were there when the accident happened and had the powers you did. You saved Jordan… and probably others today. Thanks to you, she wasn't hurt. Thanks to you, she's safe!"
She met his eyes. "You did good today. Don't let anyone — not even yourself — tell you otherwise."
Magnus stared at her, stunned.
Alex let out an exasperated laugh and pulled him into a hug.
He blinked. Then slowly, he wrapped his arms around her — and let himself believe what she'd just said.
And for now…
That was enough.
***
By the time they left the shelter, the sky had dipped into that soft early-evening blue where everything felt just a little quieter, a little more deliberate.
Their earlier date already felt distant. Slightly unreal.
The chaos with the strays. The worry about Jordan. Filed away. Not because they weren't still concerns — but because something more immediate had taken priority: Dinner with Brooke.
That had been the agreement: meet, talk, get a feel for each other… and then decide where things went from there.
So that was what they were doing. Walking hand in hand a few blocks toward Brooke's favorite pub.
"…You good?" Magnus asked, glancing sideways.
Alex didn't answer right away. She squeezed his hand once, thoughtful.
"Yeah," she said after a second. "You?"
"…Define 'good,'" he muttered.
She huffed a quiet laugh. "Nervous?"
"Always," he said. Then, after a beat, "But not like I really have a choice here."
That earned a small smile. "You complaining about threesomes now, Chane?"
He shot her a look. "You know what I meant." A beat. "And you sounded like Jordan just now."
"Good," she said easily. "That was the point. She scares you — in a useful way. Keeps your brain from wandering into places it shouldn't."
Before he could protest, she squeezed his hand again.
"I get what you mean, and I appreciate it," she added, softer. "But until we have an actual alternative… we focus on what works."
He exhaled, tension easing just a little. "…Yeah. Okay."
A brief pause.
Then Alex let out a small, amused breath.
"Huh. I never noticed."
"What?" Magnus glanced over.
"Our last names," she said. "Well, yours and my dad's."
He blinked. "What about them?"
"Locke and Chane," she said, a faint smile tugging at her lips. "You know, lock and chain."
Magnus squinted at her. "Wow. I expect that level of corniness from myself or my mother, not you!"
"Blame Jordan," she shot back. "I was just remembering this morning."
"Sure. Deflect responsibility. Very on brand."
She hit his arm lightly.
"But hey," he added, a little more quietly, "if my last name helps even a little with your feelings about… that whole situation, I should probably call my mom — and maybe even my grandparents — and thank them."
"Ugh," Alex groaned. "Who's being corny now?"
She hit his arm again — lighter this time.
Then, after a beat, "…But thanks."
They walked on.
Another half block passed in comfortable silence before the building came into view.