Flamelord

March of the White Rabbit: A Roll-Your-Own Magical Girl Roleplay

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It was once again time for Alicia’s report to Beacon. And yet again, the conference room was full of various members of both the local branch as well as Ascendancy when she stepped into the room. However, unlike last time, the discussion in the room was civil. Fan-Fan had transformed her metallic hand into an impromptu 3d-map of what seemed like a building, with Elora explaining to Hudie and Suki about some new method of surveillance or deterrence. Similar discussions rang in other corners of the table, but one end was unusually quiet: it was where Rachel was listening to the Cardinal’s report.

“-deployed tomorrow, while the Swedish and Finnish chapters have agreed to lend emergency squads to arrive in two days.”
“Do we need an interpreter for them?” Rachel asked, and glanced to look at Alicia. She silently gestured for her to take a seat next to her.
“No. All members can speak English fluently,” Isthar answered, and also noticed as Alicia approached them.
“Very good. Send Emma and Lotta thanks on my behalf.” Rachel turned to Alicia afterwards, her fingers clasped as her hands rested on the table before her.
“Paladin Seraph, I believe you attended the meeting Lightning had arranged for the locals as a representative of Beacon at Penrose Park.”
Ishtar faintly smiled. “Could you please report on what happened there? Did you come to some kind of agreement?”

Stepping into the room, Alicia looked around at the various conversations that were ongoing when she arrived. It seemed that they were working hard to prepare for what was to come. Moving past them, she made her way over to Rachel so they could discuss what had happened at the meeting.

“Of a sorts,” she replied as she came to a stop next to Rachel and Ishtar. “We did learn how Wonderland plans to invade so hopefully we can pre-empt them. We’re going to do some scouting and see how many magical girls we’ll have for the operation before settling on the specifics of the plan.”

A pause, then she moved on to the trickier part of the meeting. “There were also a couple of complications. Firstly, one of the local shop owners, Brittany, was seemingly abducted by Wonderland along with another local magical boy. So we’re going to need to rescue them while stopping the invasion.” Her face then twisted into a frown. “The Ebon Mint also claimed that they could support our efforts, and wanted to negotiate a deal for the ownership of physical territory in Penrose.”

She relayed what had been agreed upon with regards to the Mint negotiations at the meeting. She had a feeling that this would go over ’well’.

Rachel furrowed her eyebrows at the mention of Ebon Mint. However, she opened her mouth only to close it afterwards. Isthar nodded, looking concerned. Finally, the Inquisitor spoke.
“It seems the Mint has changed their ways, if they are willing to compromise to the degree you have mentioned.”
“I suppose they feel threatened by Wonderland,” Isthar chimed in.
“So they are picking the lesser of two evils.”
“Not so bad for them with the claimed territory. Still, if even Penny agreed to this…I suppose we will only have to see if Mint’s intelligence will hold true. Or anything else they claim.”
Isthar sighed. “In any case, we should prioritize these eggs. We can’t allow them to be deployed in Penrose.”

“Maybe. The Mint’s whole thing is making deals. When’s the last time you saw them not twist one to their advantage?” While Alicia preferred to think the better of people, after all that had happened there was no reason to give the Mint the benefit of the doubt. The only question was how long it would take.

After a moment she echoed Ishtar’s sigh. “But yes, we’re going to need to decide who we’re sending and if we’re going to have any contingency plans just in case.”

“I have a couple of suggestions,” Rachel spoke up, and laid out various documents and maps on the conference room table.
“First off, a division of defense and offense. I considered the possibility of a surprise assault once we had made our move, and thus secured some insurance in advance. It was difficult, but I have successfully called for emergency reinforcements from other chapters in Beacon. Combined with the local members, this will be about a force with a strength of 50 or so in total. Paladin Seraph, as you know the strategic layout of Penrose the best due to your experience, you will be the one to decide on their deployment.”

Isthar spoke up. “I suggest either splitting them into smaller units at regular intervals That way we can ensure the chain of command is sustained.”

“As for the strike into Wonderland, I suggest bringing in select Ascendancy agents, including…” Rachel grit her teeth, and took a deep breath.
“...Myself. The rest would provide leadership support for the defenders. Are there objections, Pala-ngrh…Alicia?”
Ishtar blinked in surprise. “Oh, you wish to cooperate with this plan in person, Inquisitor?”
“Well, this is a special case, and…It is far too important of an operation for me not to lend my expertise. Not that I don’t trust the capabilities of our local chapter champion here.”

Alicia nodded along as Rachel laid out their preparations so far. “I’ll look into it,” she agreed as she was placed in charge of deployments. It was a large task, but she appreciated the trust. After all, Rachel had been here long enough to get an understanding of the city layout herself. They didn’t explicitly need her knowledge for this sort of thing.

She lifted an eyebrow as Rachel voiced her intention to take to the field of battle in Wonderland personally. “Of course. Hopefully this goes a bit better than my last big plan.” Not that the attack on Mariette's base had ended ‘badly’, per say, but it hadn’t been a conclusion she was satisfied with.

“Good,” Rachel answered succinctly, though Alicia could tell she was hiding her awkwardness. “I’ve considered bringing Fan-Fan, Tsuki and Hudie along for the strike.”
Isthar put a finger to her chin. “Does that sound good to you, Alicia? Or do you think we should send other people in?”

Humming in thought, Alicia considered the dangerous situation they were going into. “I wonder if we should bring Violette, if she’s feeling up for it. Who knows what Wonderland will have waiting for us on their home turf.”

“Yes, we can bring her in as well,” Rachel responded, and gave a little smile. “We can keep her as a direct intelligence relay to Elora, who will be staying back.”
When Isthar stifled a giggle afterwards, the smile was quickly replaced with a frown.

“What is so funny, Cardinal?” She asked with a flash of her glasses, and Isthar rolled her eyes.
“Oh, I was just amused by how you have lightened up since we’ve begun operating in this city.”
Rachel adjusted her glasses. “Well, we won’t have much time for frivolities. We got work to do.”
Isthar nodded. “Yes, we need to prepare for the arrival of the new additions to our ranks.”
“Anyway, that should cover our deployment plans for now. Anything else we need to discuss, Paladin Seraph?”

“I think that’s all for now,” Alicia said with a shake of her head. “We’ll probably need to figure out how we get Wonderland to back off for good at some point, but I suppose that can wait until after we’ve given a brake check to their invasion plan.”

Ishtar nodded with a kind smile. “Very good. I think that wraps up this meeting then, girls.”
“Make sure to prepare yourselves mentally,” Rachel added as she picked up the documents on the table. “And that also means…Taking regular breaks.” The rest of Beacon attending the meeting gave her a surprised look. Rachel scoffed. “Yes, you heard me. You need to be mentally prepared by resting properly. In fact, I’ll demonstrate!” She reared back a fist, aimed at Alicia, and…held a coupon out as she averted her eyes. “...Would you like to have a cup of coffee with me, Alicia? I have this special offer at the Pit Stop, so…” It was clear she wasn’t used to this kind of social interaction.

Like the others, Alicia was not expecting Rachel’s sudden pivot in topic. All of which seemed to be a cover for her to invite her co-worker out for some off-the-clock recreation time. Well, the execution left something to be desired but she wasn’t about to reject such a positive step forward. Though something about the restaurant did nibble at the back of her mind…

“Sure, I’d be happy to,” she agreed with a nod, letting Rachel hold on to the coupon for now. It would be helpful to get to know Rachel a bit better, and to see what she was like when she was off the clock.

“Thank you. So, let’s depart immediately. Tsuki, please file these,” Rachel said, and walked out of the room, handing the documents to Tsuki on her way.
Isthar sighed. “She’s trying too hard…” Alicia could hear her mutter amidst the noise of the meeting room clearing.

Glancing over, Alicia shot Ishtar a sympathetic look. Still, trying too hard was better than no effort at all. They were taking baby steps, that was all. Then she followed after Rachel, not wanting to end up too far behind.

Afterwards, having transformed back into her civilian form, Rachel led Alicia to the Pit Stop, where she took a table by the window, and soon brought two cups of hot coffee: one for her, and one for Alicia.
“Here you go. If you want to add cream or sugar I can fetch some for you.”

Sitting at the window table, Alicia took the coffee with a receptive smile. “Some cream would be nice,” she replied to Rachel’s offer. She would wait until the girl had returned before striking up conversation. “So, is this where you usually hang out when you’re not on the clock?”

Rachel didn’t answer at first when she went to retrieve the pitcher, and afterwards sat down rigidly.
“It’s understandable you’d think that, but the truth is…It’s not.” She poured some cream into her cup, and handed it over to Alicia. “I haven’t made much of a habit simply doing nothing-I mean, engaging in casual conversation. I’ve always put my work before everything else, but I realize I also need to engage more with my co-workers.” She took a sip of her coffee.
“So, Alicia, how are you doing?” She asked, sounding a bit tense.

Adding some cream to her coffee, Alicia stirred it a bit before taking a sip. Not bad, though not the best she’d ever had. Rachel’s comment was the exact opposite of surprising really. She did give off that impression of only focusing on her job.

“I’m doing alright,” she replied. “Obviously things are pretty hectic with all of the Wonderland stuff, but overall I would say things are looking up. I can’t see any more trouble in the short term, unless another out-of-context baddie arrives. How about you?”

Rachel took another sip before answering. “Stressed out, as you can imagine. I figured it would be another clean sweep, just a couple of months and we'd be done. But Penrose has surpassed all my expectations. However, that also had me realize that I’m going to burn out if I keep up the pace I’ve had. Maybe I could think of something to take my mind off of things. Like a hobby. Do you have any hobbies?”

Alicia took a sip of her coffee to hold back a chuckle. Yeah, that sounded about right for Rachel. She wasn’t all that deep a person. “I’d comment on that but I don’t want to jinx us,” she replied. With how their luck was, it was a legitimate concern.

“Well, it’s not really a hobby but I do like helping around the community center. You know, helping other girls with their training and keeping up on their schoolwork. Stuff like that. Otherwise, I like doing pencil art, listening to music, and playing video games. Normal young adult stuff, I guess.”

“Yes, for a given value of normal,” Rachel answered, and sighed as she leaned on her arm. “Still, I didn’t think you’d be interested in pencil art. How long have you been practicing?”

Another sip led before the answer. “A couple years now?” Alicia offered with a hum. “I took an art class back in college, and it was one of the things I enjoyed doing. I didn’t really stick with art when I was in school, but it was a nice thing to keep around in my free time.”

“I see,” Rachel answered, contemplating Alicia’s words. “You know, maybe I could start doing some art as well. Maybe not drawing or painting, but sculpting could be enjoyable.”

Alicia nodded in agreement. “Sure. Try things out, see what you like. And don’t be afraid to do things you aren’t sure you’ll like. You never know what will catch your interest.”

Rachel gave a slight smile at Alicia’s encouraging words. “You’re right, Alicia. I will give it a try.”
For a while after, the two continued conversing on casual topics, until it was time for Rachel to leave.
“Thank you for sharing this coffee with me, Alicia,” she said as she stood up from the table. “I hope we will get to do this sometime again.”

Finishing off the last of her coffee, Alicia rose to her feet as well. “Of course, I’d be happy to,” she assured Rachel. She was never going to object to spending time with a fellow Beacon sister. For now though, it was time for them to go their separate ways. They both had a lot to do.

March of the White Rabbit: A Roll-Your-Own Magical Girl Roleplay

Things were continuing to move along. Alicia nodded to Kayli as she pointed out that her magic could probably counteract the effects of Wonderland's mind warping effect. "It would be useful, but we shouldn't rely on it being the case," she cautioned. For something so uncertain, it was wiser to err on the side of caution rather than optimism.

That was when news of what had happened to Brittany came in, followed on its heels by the further news that Alex had been taken with her. "Well that's a problem," she added. Still, it was an odd choice of target if it was for some larger purpose. Brittany's wares were useful but she was not the sole source of magical goods within Penrose. Perhaps they wanted information from her and Alex, though Alicia found it hard to think that the latter had much of use in terms of what they knew of Wonderland's goals. Meanwhile, some small part of her felt deja vu.

While some focused on that, her attention drifted to Aurora. An eyebrow rose, though she was pleased to hold back a twitch of annoyance. For all that had happened Penny was still her friend, and her trust towards Chloe's associates extended about as far as her general trust of the Ebon Mint. That was to say, not at all. "The point of coming here was so we would have more privacy from Wonderland. If you feel whatever information you have can't be shared freely now, and to only some of us, then I guess it isn't important enough to tell me either."

Her mind working, she turned to the problem at hand. Regardless of whatever it was that was to be shared, they still needed to move forward. "If Mariette can poke around to try and find him then that would be the best option. She has a lot more access than the rest of us do. Ideally we can launch a rescue mission and hit the eggs at the same time, with one serving as a distraction for the other." She looked over the room. "I think we have a general plan in mind. Once we've gathered more intel on Wonderland and figured out who all will be participating in this, we can iron out the remaining specifics. Sound good?"

March of the White Rabbit: A Roll-Your-Own Magical Girl Roleplay

It seemed Alicia might have been overly hasty in her earlier assessment. Or perhaps being here loosened lips that would otherwise have remained sealed. Because now it turned out that there was a sizable group who were interested in going on the offensive against Wonderland after all. For a moment she felt like she was experiencing deja vu, though she couldn't put her finger on exactly why right now. She did give Mariette a look at the mention of mind control magic though. That stuff might have been resolved, but she had not forgotten the headaches that she had caused.

Any thoughts she had were immediately blasted out of her head by the sudden intrusion of Nykannis. While she wasn't as hard to parse as Magical Dream Princess since she didn't have as many verbal ticks, man was she a narcissist. She also felt like she was the missing a joke, but that feeling was not one she spent long on. For now she merely shuffled Nykannis into the same bin she kept people like Chloe. AKA 'don't trust further than she could throw them in untransformed form'. In theory she'd agreed to keep the city safe, but who knew how many unspoken asterisks were attached to that.

She waited until Nykannis had finished before speaking aloud. "Wow. I think I'll be okay if I never have to interact with her again." she observed. A not unreasonable sentiment based on Ronin's response to the rant as well.

Now it was down to the specifics of their plan. "We'll need to split up for a simultaneous attack," she said once they were back to the matter at hand. "If Wonderland is potentially going to be overwriting our minds then we'll need to be fast. And if we focus all our efforts on one egg at a time then that gives them the opportunity to relocate the eggs we aren't currently focusing on, leaving us back where we started."

Looking around the group who were will here, she paused before going on. "I think it makes sense to take care of the eggs now, then go after these people Penny has collected intel on. We throw the Queen's operations into chaos, opening up the opportunity for us to go at her directly. If she doesn't come at us first." And honestly the Queen reacting and exposing herself would work just as well. They would just need to see how things developed along the way and adapt accordingly.

Staring Back With Chrome Eyes

Planting a flag of tentative interest. The idea seems interesting, I just need to settle on a character

March of the White Rabbit: A Roll-Your-Own Magical Girl Roleplay

With Connie offering a location and Mariette seemingly okay with it, the move was made with all due alacrity. Alicia wasn’t too worried about being spied upon in the immediate moment, but she went along with the crowd and their own worries. Mariette was the most paranoid one here, so if she was okay with the location then Alicia saw no reason to object.

Finding a place to seat, she listened as the conversation resumed. Her gaze was quick to focus on Binky with the proposal she floated, causing the Paladin Seraph to shake her head. “Assume the laser is off the table,” she replied firmly. To be honest she wasn’t sure if it had the accuracy they’d need for the task they were requesting, but even if it did she wasn’t confident she could get approval to use it outside of ‘last resort’ circumstances.

That was when things got really interesting, as Penny revealed she had captured a prisoner during the attack. It sounded like she had had a lot more success than the rest of them, and had a plethora of information to provide for their efforts. “Thank you Penny. This is definitely helpful.”

Then it was back to the ‘fake city’ plan or whatever. Alicia still favored a firm offense, but she knew she was in the minority there. With locations and names they could throw a serious wrench into Wonderland’s operations, so she would need to see what she could do on her own. She didn’t have much to add in terms of the other plan, so she would let the others hash things out and chime in if more was asked of her.

March of the White Rabbit: A Roll-Your-Own Magical Girl Roleplay

"No," Alicia replied succinctly, immediately shooting down any idea of a date with Chloe. That was definitely not happening, not after what she'd heard from Penny. And doubly so with Chloe being a Mint Broker. That was just a guarantee of misery for her. So there was little hesitation on her part to nip that in the bud.

Truth be told, she didn't hold out much hope for the deal in a long term sense. This was still the Mint they were dealing with, and 'fair' wasn't really something that could be applied to their dealings. But the terms proposed so far were decent enough, and as long as she was reasonable in turn then she'd be able to say 'I told you so' to everyone else when this inevitably went bad. Maybe that was very petty, but based on every other time this sort of thing had happened it was a reasonable prediction to make.

Of course Penny was harder to placate, though it didn't cause everything to break down immediately. Probably because Chloe teleported out and the conversation shifted to moving their planning to a more secured location. Glancing over to Aurora and Binky, Alicia shook her head. "Getting the HQ blown up once was enough for my taste." She paused for a moment as she thought, before adding to what she had said. "Beacon does have a community center that isn't really used since the city evacuation went down. I'd need to see about buffing the anti-spying magic there on short notice, but it is a possibility. Or somewhere Mariette would be comfortable with would probably work too." Mariette was the most paranoid one here after all, so if she was comfortable then it was probably a good bet that Wonderland would have trouble spying on them.

March of the White Rabbit: A Roll-Your-Own Magical Girl Roleplay

Doing her best to keep up with the main conversation, Alicia didn't react as Mariette arrived. Her eavesdropping on the meeting was basically a given, regardless of whose side she was on. At least she had some interesting information to provide. "A reality that assimilates newcomers into it? That's unique.". It would make any direct attacks difficult as well, depending on how quickly that asserted itself. Mariette's other piece of information was useful too, though it didn't really seem like the sort of thing that would let them use her as bait. But it was something to keep in mind.

She glanced over as Penny shut down any possibility of a deal, not that she was about to judge her for that. She'd already made her own lack of trust clear after all. Looking over to Lily, she shot the other girl an apologetic wince. "It's hard to give someone a chance when their entire MO is based on manipulation."

Before she could go on, an unexpected person spoke up. Alicia certainly hadn't expected to see Binky again, much less for her to be involved actively in such a way. She glanced around the meeting as Binky vented, her arms folded over her chest as the focus fell upon her for a moment. "Of course I want to save the city. But every time I've made one of these deals with shady people, they always try to take advantage of it for their own ends and do bad things later once their personal backside is out of the fire." There was a lot of stuff said afterwards involving Justine, which Alicia didn't really feel like chiming in on.

Which brought them back to where they started as the negotiations resumed. Admittedly Alicia had no problem with other patrons also signing on to the deal, and it wasn't as if she could stop them even if she wanted to. She could just do without Chloe side eying her every so often. Kayli's suggestion was a good step in the right direction at least. But to be honest, killing wasn't the main thing on her mind right now.

"I don't think you could get your bosses to agree to everything I would want from the Mint," she observed. "But with everything that's been said so far, assuming the Mint actually follows it, it wouldn't be...terrible." That said, her hopes of that being the case weren't particularly high. 'Mint' and 'Trustworthy' weren't words she'd use in the same sentence even on a good day. She just wasn't looking forward to being proven right.

March of the White Rabbit: A Roll-Your-Own Magical Girl Roleplay

While things had progressed since Alicia had dipped out to make her wish with Kayli, not all that much had actually changed. Some people were still considering how to evacuate the civilians from Penrose, while others were discussing cutting the problem off at the source. There was plenty Alicia could have said, but reminding them of how the Ascendancy had evacuated cities before didn't seem all that productive at the moment given the attitudes towards that organization.

An eyebrow rose as Chloe went on, her claims dubious even without lie detection. She had no doubt that the Mint had some people in Wonderland, but exaggeration seemed to be in full force here. But what else was new. The trust levels were still at 'as far as a normal human could throw her' right now, as far as Alicia was concerned. The fact that the scientist was willing to vouch for her was...something. She supposed.

As it was, the gravity seemed to be moving towards herself and Penny as Chloe moved to negotiate a deal that would allow an open Mint presence in Penrose in exchange for the information that she had. Selling any deal with the Mint was going to be difficult at best, of course, to say nothing of her own personal distaste for the idea. "The Mint is a business in the loosest sense. It gives you what you want in the moment then ensures you give it what it wants from then on, until it has no more use for you. If you're lucky." she noted.

Such things should not be a surprise, yet it seemed that there were some people there being swayed by Chloe's offer. She hoped it was just fear, rather than a genuine belief that the Mint broker was dealing fairly. "We've survived crises before without the Mint swooping in to offer a solution on a silver platter for a 'modest' fee. I think we can do it again."

March of the White Rabbit: A Roll-Your-Own Magical Girl Roleplay

Penrose Park was not too different from the last time Alicia had been here. Once more the magical girls of the city gathered to talk about a crisis, though this one was a bit more imminent and obvious than the last one. Would that be enough to ensure that things went better than the last time? Alicia chose to be hopefully, if prepared to have her opinion proven wrong.

It was still an eclectic assortment of people, that much had not changed even if the faces were different. With the contingent of other girls from Beacon who had chosen to attend, Alicia surveyed those who had chosen to visit as she stood there clad in her magical girl outfit. That much had not changed, though her stature had risen much since then.

She nodded in agreement with what Lily said. "We're here to help out against Wonderland as well," she confirmed. She didn't see a need to go through an explanation of what had happened in Bolorton and why things were different now, and would keep it that way unless pushed by someone else.

Alex went on, voicing a desire to have some way to mass evacuate the city in a hurry should Wonderland attack. Alicia couldn't judge the viability of his idea, since she wasn't that much of a technical sort. Someone else would need to figure it out. "Wonderland is a sizable organization. If we can determine where they're producing those toy soldiers and machines, or find where they're gathering their troops for their attacks, we could set back any invasion they might have planned."

March of the White Rabbit: A Roll-Your-Own Magical Girl Roleplay

It was another day in Penrose. Though the threat of Wonderland loomed in the distance, that did not stop the more mundane magical girl affairs that one had to deal with. Hunting monsters, studying to keep up with classwork, and such things. These would not wait, for the world still moved on even with the threat of imminent invasion.

Alicia did her best to assist in activities such as these, whether personally or through her responsibilities as a leader. She was still determined to show that the Penrose Branch could cut it without needing the Ascendancy here, even if circumstances seemed to have conspired against her once more. She would like to say that she was surprised, but she wasn't. Not really. In spite of this she continued to do the best she could to help those under her care and to keep the city safe.

Needless to say, the message from Lily was unexpected. Her mind flashed back to a similar meeting held in that same park and how that turned out, since it did feel like a bit of deja vu. Nonetheless, the decision was made already. Even if Lily did not find much of a response, Beacon would be expected to be there. That meant they would have to go.

Moving through the headquarters, Alicia soon arrived in the Ascendancy's section so she could talk to Rachel. "I suppose you've already seen the message on Glimmr from Lily?" she began. "I just figured I should let you know that I intend to attend the meeting on Beacon's behalf."

Rachel was at her desk, sifting through work on a laptop when Alicia came in, and stood up to greet her. "Ah yes, Elora did mention something about it. That girl…Lily, correct?" She gave a small smile. "Earnest, but naive. Nonetheless, her contact network is impressive. It makes sense she would attempt a rally of the locals." When Alicia announced her intent to attend, she nodded. "That is fine. Occasions such as this are best for the local branch to handle. Besides, if the Ascendancy were to appear we'd simply get glares and nothing constructive would be done."

Alicia paused, blinking in surprise. Truth be told, that had been easier than she expected. "Huh. Really?"

Though she would not throw skepticism upon the decision that had been made, her experiences so far made her desire further elaboration. After all, she had expected further resistance to the idea of cooperation at all, regardless of who it was against. "Does this mean that the decision to be neutral in Wonderland's invasion is out the window now?"

Rachel squinted at Alicia's confusion. "Yes, really. What, do you want the statement as a written notice?" She sighed, and rubbed her forehead. "Wonderland broke their agreement with Beacon, but the situation still has plenty of "red ribbon" behind it, as Lux would say. So Headquarters is willing to provide more assistance now, but can't declare war on Wonderland, even if they should." She grit her teeth. "That's just how it is around here; we're so mired and set in our ways of properly handling things to the point it's often too late and we're simply picking up the pieces." She scoffed. "Pisses me off."

Alicia was silent as she listened to Rachel explain the developing situation as well as her own frustrations. There was something uncharacteristic in it by the standards Alicia had developed when interacting with Rachel, and she couldn’t help but react a little.

”Congratulations,” she said after a moment, doing her best to hold back a smile. ”You’re starting to sound like the rest of us.”

Letting Rachel mull that one over, she turned and began moving towards the door. ”I’ll let you know how things go.”

Rachel did not like Alicia's insinuation, and grit her teeth. "And you're starting to sound too conceited, Paladin Seraph! I'm nothing like the rest of you local branchlings!" She sat back down, waving her away. "Fine, just go already."

Having already annoyed the other girl enough, Alicia did not push further as she left the room. She had a meeting to go to after all.