The chewing stopped. Dean looked at the doppelgänger before him wide eyed. His head sagged to the point where his hair covered his eyes. Shoulders shaking . . . Right before he burst out laughing. And he continued laughing. And laughing. Dean was holding his sides and gasping for breath as he calmed down, wiping a tear from his eye as he tried to regain his composure. [color=8dc73f][b]”Aaaah, oh man . . . you other mages can be so damn wound up sometimes.”[/b][/color] he paused for a moment and frowned. [color=8dc73f][b]”Shoot, I swallowed my gum.”[/b][/color] The earth mage grumbled, acting more the fool then he already was. Being covered in protective charms and wards would do that especially if they were drowned out by the shear presence of having a spirit like Golem around. Dais spirit just looked down at him impassively and shook its head in a way that made some pits of gravel and dirt fall on the geomancer. Dean didn’t seem to really mind and just brushed himself off. [color=8dc73f][b]”You think I was threatening to duel you? With where we are now? And who I have that I can call on besides me buddy here?”[/b][/color] He knocked a fist on one of Golem’s solid arms the size of a pickup truck. [color=8dc73f][b]”Those aren’t me making threats.”[/b][/color] Golem’s astral form then shifted. It’s enormous hand moving unit it’s palm held Shieldtown in its grasp. [color=8dc73f][b]”Golem however doesn’t like when I’m threatened. And he isn’t bound to me.”[/b][/color] A devious grin began to spread across Deans face. [color=8dc73f][b]”Meaning my death wouldn’t stop him from making some very poor decisions.”[/b][/color] It was around that moment that he pulled out the card Archer had given him, holding it up to his face to reveal it to the Mage before him. [color=8dc73f][b]”And to top it off, for better or for worse, I have friends in some very high places that like my continued stewardship.”[/b][/color] Was Dean running his mouth a bit? Not quiet. He hadn’t shown a single indication of his methods of casting, preferred tactics, or even his actual relationship with Golem. What he was doing was revealing just enough information without any specific details. Leaving present company having to make guesses. Simply put. He was being annoying. Which he [i]excelled[/i] at. [color=8dc73f][b]”Your a ‘[i]regular[/i]’ that was snooping around my house for some reason and looking in through the third floor. Not that respectful of you. The fact that you look like another one of my guests who’s situation is very delicate does not help your case.”[/b][/color] To be fair a Duel would be a pain. Not that he wouldn’t do well given everything in his favor, he just didn’t like having to exert himself. Though knowing that Wolf probably had some form of munitions trained on the [i]Stranger[/i] gave him some peace of mind. Like he would fight fair if it came down to one. Fighting fair was for the dead and stupid.