[SE] lickety-split

JACK

Rolling his eyes hard even at the sound of a pool party, Jack shrugs his shoulders. "On the one hand it feels wise to keep an eye on shit if it's bein' offered up in public. On the other, you're right - I don't see it goin' well," he mutters, patting his pockets for his cigarettes and drawing them out, along with his matchbook. "Who knows, though - we might not even have a choice in it," he mumbles around a smoke. "Biggest pool in Caido is right there." Jack nods towards the ocean in the near distance.

Using his magic to hold the brisk sea breeze at bay to let him light his cigarette without worrying about the teardrop of flame snuffing out, Jack inhales deeply and flicks the match away. "Nova?" he repeats, raising his eyebrows and nodding a bit in consideration. "She's also likeable, if you're into bein' choked by rainbows, so maybe she's got that goin' for her." His expression remains serious, though, and he knows what he says next probably isn't going to land well. It doesn't make it any less true, though.

"Sometimes you gotta let 'em fail, kid," he says, exhaling a stream of smoke through his nose. "She ain't gonna realise the world's bigger'n more dangerous than her unless it shows her. Tellin' her ain't enough."

As for learning how to throw a fight and win, Jack can only give a smirk of acknowledgement at that, offering out his cigarette for the boy if he wants it.