Chapter Text
“You’ve been keeping an eye on her.”
Jackie wasn’t surprised that Harvar didn’t react to her sudden appearance, much less to her accusation. He was never one to freely show his emotions after all. If he even had any, she thought wryly. She took a seat across him as he continued to observe Kim and Ox where they were a few tables down the café.
“You don’t trust her.” It wasn’t a question. Jackie was initially unsure about her suspicions, but after a week of discreetly watching Harvar watch Kim, she’d realised that he now regarded her with a sort of wariness bordering on outright distrust. Sure, Kim and Harvar never did get along too well, and she often had the impression that the only reason Harvar tolerated her meister was because Ox had romantic inclinations towards Kim, but he’d never expressed anything close to hostility before. Before the incident at Baba Yaga’s castle. Before he found out Kim was a witch.
Jackie found that she felt oddly betrayed by his caution.
Harvar worked his jaw but stayed silent, and Jackie narrowed her eyes at him. She’d never found him difficult to understand despite his emotionless countenance, though she chalked it up to their similar personalities. They were both quiet, studious students that placed great emphasis on duty and responsibility. The fact that they were both weapons with similar backgrounds that had eccentric, sometimes ridiculous meisters, might have contributed to the unspoken camaraderie between them. A supposed camaraderie that she was wondering if she’d imagined.
However, this time she was struggling read him and the visor hiding his eyes didn’t help. Jackie allowed the belligerent silence to stretch for a moment, before letting out an exasperated huff.
“What are you playing at, Harvar?”
“Speak for yourself.” Harvar gave a derisive snort. “You’re right, I don’t trust her ─ either of you, to be honest. She’s a witch and you’re her sympathiser. I might have respected Ox’s decision to bring the two of you back with us, but it doesn’t mean I agreed with it. And right now, your meister is the most relevant threat to me ─ she’s been spending too much time with Ox.”
Jackie gaped at him, and for a moment, felt like she might burst into tears. She forced herself to take a deep calming breath before speaking. “Kim’s just really grateful for what he’s done for her, and is now more open to the idea of a relationship between them. She’s not a threat to him. She not a threat to anyone!” Jackie reasoned in the steadiest voice she could muster.
“After treating Ox with disdain for as long as she has, Kim suddenly decides to reciprocate his affections? Someone as wilful and materialistic as Kim? Don’t give me that bullshit.”
“What are you talking about?” Jackie snapped. “You saw what happened at the castle. You saw how Ox was so accepting of her, and that’s all Kim ever wanted from anyone! Acceptance! What’s wrong with wanting to stay with somebody who was still willing to believe in her at her lowest? You’re being absurd, Harvar.”
“She has you, doesn’t she?” Harvar sneered. “The girl who turned traitor for a witch, and that’s not enough acceptance? Or is that what she’s trying to do? Seduce everybody who’s trying to get into her pants and make them think she’s harmless before─”
The slap, and the resulting shattering of Harvar’s visor as it fell, resounded across the small establishment as Jackie’s hand moved even before she was aware of what she was doing. Not that she regretted it, so overwhelmed with rage as she was. Jackie sensed the stares of the other customers and felt Kim react with shock through their soul bond but was so upset she couldn’t deign her a response. “How dare you,” she hissed to Harvar as he recovered from the blow, snarling. “How dare you imply such crude things of her! Kim is my best friend and a good person ─ I can almost literally feel her soul! And yes, I do have feelings for her that she doesn’t reciprocate, but she’s never taken advantage of them and I trust her with my life. So, don’t you dare speak of her that way! She deserves to be respected for how hard she works to be more than what others seem to think she can be, and I intend to help her every step of the way. Because I know all she’s trying to do is to prove to herself that she’s more than just her birth right.”
“A sentiment I think both of us are very familiar with, Harvar Descoteaux.”
With one last watery glare at Harvar, Jackie stood to leave. She caught sight of the broken visor and was momentarily compelled to apologise. Not now, she thought exhaustedly as she blinked back angry tears and swept past the other tables without a backwards glance, the guilt can eat at her later.
***
Jackie left behind a shocked silence in the café, before Kim rushed to follow her, not without shooting her own glare at Harvar. The other customers stole glances at him as he slumped down in his seat, and the small space was immediately filled with curious mutterings.
“Aren’t those two from the EAT class?”
“What do you think happened?”
“Harvar totally got owned.”
“I’ve never seen Jackie so angry before!”
“Could you hear what they were talking about?”
“It was probably some lover’s spat or something, didn’t know they were dating.”
“What did you say to her?” Ox occupied the vacated seat and glowered at him. “I mean I got the gist of it but…you really seemed to have upset her. And yourself too, from the looks of things.”
Harvar pinched the bridge of his nose and exhaled. He wasn’t usually so affected by others, the things they did or said but this time…this time, he acknowledged that it was his fault. And the last thing she said really struck home. He sighed and eyed the shattered remains of his visor.
“I fucked up.”
***
It had been a few days after the spectacle at the café, and word of it had spread like wildfire. Jackie would have been more worried about the news reaching the ears of the people she cared about, but it wasn’t as though any of their classmates would have missed the strained silence between them and the unfamiliar iciness of their interactions. She felt like she was getting the worse end of the stick though, as she usually preferred not to draw attention to herself and the sudden scrutiny of her actions made her feel like she was going to combust.
Which she did. Twice.
That asshole with his stupid extra visor, Harvar, seemed like he couldn’t be bothered.
Well, by the attention at least. Jackie felt like he almost seemed…hesitant when he spoke to her. Apologetic even. But who knew. Apparently, she hadn’t known Harvar as well as she thought she did.
She stewed in that thought as she tried to work on her assignments in the sitting area of the small apartment she shared with Kim. Surprisingly, it was Kim who’d suggested renting a place of their own, grumbling about needing more privacy and who had found them this apartment. It was cheap enough to rent, and had two rooms, a bathroom, a kitchen and a small sitting area. It was lovely, and comfortable and everything Jackie could have asked for. Well, maybe it could have had thicker walls but it was still home in this city away from where she grew up.
It was her home.
The door slammed open and she jolted out of her thoughts.
“You’d never believe what happened today.” Kim shrieked as she stormed in and Jackie glanced over her agitated form for any signs of injury.
“That bastard, Harvar.” Kim continued without waiting for an answer as Jackie felt herself tense up. “Coming up to me saying something about being sorry, about not being fair to me, about judging me on being a witch instead of on just my horrible personality. How he’s decided he can trust that I didn’t harbour and ill will towards anyone, especially Ox, but he can’t really trust me with Ox’s heart yet. Yet! What? It’s not like he’s Ox’s keeper! And I didn’t ask for his heart, he offered it! And I do not have a horrible personality! Ugh, fuck, I’m so angry! Jackie, I need some ice cream. UGH.” She ranted as she flopped down on the couch, and covered her face dramatically as Jackie bit down her smile.
She knew that Kim really was as angry as she said she was, but Jackie also heard what she didn’t say. Harvar had, for a lack of a better word, apologised or at least attempted to. And he never apologised if he didn’t mean it, so that was something and Jackie pondered over that bit of information as she walked into the kitchen to retrieve a tub of ice-cream and a spoon.
“Well, I’m assuming you didn’t take kindly to his apology.” Jackie responded neutrally as she handed the frozen treat to her meister, perching herself on the armrest of the sofa.
“Fuck no. It wasn’t even an apology, he said the whole thing in that stupid matter-of-fact way of his. So I told him to stuff his half-assed apology together with that stick he’s got up his ass.” Kim attacked the ice-cream viciously and scowled. “He didn’t even have the decency to be offended or anything. Just walked away like I told him the sky was blue. You know, it’s like his face is paralysed because if he’s ever showed any emotion before, I sure haven’t seen it.”
This time Jackie allowed a chuckle, and her mouth curved into a soft smile. “Hmm, I’ve seen him smile.” She frowned, and amended her statement. “Well, I thought it might have been a smile, but now that I think about it, maybe not.”
“Hmm.” Kim hummed in response, looking at her thoughtfully and Jackie was starting to get a little self-conscious at her appraisal. “You know, I think if you were there he wouldn’t have been such an asshole. I mean, he’s always an asshole, but maybe he’d actually have sounded more contrite. Feels like he's always been sweet on you. Ugh, Jackie, why weren’t you there when I needed you?” Kim groaned. “I could have possibly gotten a real apology. From Harvar. A real one.”
“I was doing some homework.” Jackie replied absently as she thought about what Kim just said. Maybe she hadn’t just been making assumptions about their quiet friendship after all. Not that Harvar was totally forgiven or anything.
Well, she supposed it was time for an apology of her own, then.
***
A week later found Harvar receiving a package from her; a pair of orange aviators to, he supposed, make up for the visor she’d accidentally broken and a note.
“I’m only sorry for breaking your things.”
Harvar chuckled, as Ox stared bemused.