Warriors of Poseidon 02 - Atlantis Awakening

goose-down jacket isn't doing it. I think we gave them enough time to play footsie, talk about what happened, or whatever they needed to do. Let's get the Atlantean to patrol for a while. Maybe he can at least use his super-magic water powers to melt the snow and make a hot tub or something."
     
    The tiger nudged her with its large head, then paced forward and shimmered back to human shape. The sight still awed her. Natural magic would never become ordinary to her through repeated viewing.
     
    "You whine a lot for a kickass rebel leader, woman," Jack growled at her, the timbre of his voice still carrying a hint of his animal form. In either shape, he was pure predator.
     
    "Yeah, whatever. And I still want to know where the extra pounds go. You're five hundred pounds, give or take, in tiger form, and, what?" She cast a measuring gaze from his head to his toes, probably four or five inches over six feet. "Maybe two fifty in human?"
     
    "Two sixty, the last I checked," he drawled, one eyebrow raised. "Your point?"
     
    She scrambled to catch up with him as he headed for the cabin. "That is my point.
    Where does that extra two hundred and forty pounds go? If we could figure out how you do that and bottle it, we could make a fortune."
     
    He slowed down until she matched his stride, although she had to take two steps to his one. "Quinn, I have no idea what you're talking about. Bottle what? Make a fortune how?"
     
    "Weight loss secrets!! Somebody uses our patented "Tiger Super-Magic Pounds Off"
    formula and magically transforms her body so that she weighs fifty pounds less," she explained, biting the inside of her cheek to keep from laughing out loud.
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    He exploded, right on cue. "Are you nuts? First off, they'd have to be a shape-shifter.
    Second—"
     
    The laugh escaped; she couldn't help it. He just looked so damn irate. He whipped his head to the side and glared down at her. "Great. Great. We're patrolling for vamps, after we just put down half a dozen Weres, and we've got what has all the makings of a suicide mission to face in a few hours, and you're making jokes," he grumbled.
     
    Pain swept through her, washing out any trace of the laughter. "Don't you think I know what we're facing, Jack? Don't you think I'm doing everything I can think of to keep from falling apart? That's my sister and my niece or nephew whose lives depend on our success. Don't think I've forgotten that for even a second." To her utter humiliation, her voice broke on the words. "Sometimes a little stupid black humor is the only thing that keeps me sane."
     
    Jack put an arm around her and awkwardly hugged her. "I'm sorry, Quinn. Sometimes I forget that our fearless leader is also a girl." The kindness in his voice threatened to break through the shield she'd put around her emotions, and she was terrified that if she started to cry, she might not stop for a long, long time. So she resorted to her usual defense—toughness.
     
    Stepping away from him, she started walking faster. "Yeah, well, try to keep up, little kitty. And if I ever hear you call me a girl again, I'm going to break your furry balls for it."
     
    "Thanks for the warning," he said drily. "I'm rather fond of my balls, furry or otherwise."
     
    They tramped toward the cabin in silence, continuously scanning the ground, skies, and trees for any threat. After several minutes, Jack cleared his throat. "So. Alaric. Do I need to take him out for you?"
     
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    She stumbled, taken completely off-guard by his obviously sincere offer. "No, I don't need you to try to kill the Atlantean high priest for me, Jack. I think they might take that rather badly. Create some kind of international incident, probably."
     
    He shrugged. "Like I care about politics."
     
    "Very funny. Cut it out, Jack. I'm not a girl, and I can take care of myself," she grumbled at him.
     
    He stopped, caught her arm, and yanked her to a stop. She looked up at him, startled, and was shocked by the feral rage in his suddenly slanted tiger eyes. "You're my partner, Quinn, and no, you're not a girl. You're very much a woman. You already know I'd kill for you—or for our cause. Maybe you ought to know that I'd also die for you. If this priest is giving you a hard time, you say the word, and I'll do my best to make sure he never does it again."
     
    Before she could think of a response,