Another Day, Same Thing {Jon}

Ruby was glad that Jon had spoken to the members of the Pard about messing with her. She was getting tired of it but didn't want to say anything for fear of it getting worse. Thanks to an accidental slip of the tongue, the issue had been addressed and, she hoped, taken care of. If they hadn't, one word to Jon things would get settled. A small smile came to her lips as she thought of Dom. One word to him and things would definitely get taken care of. He would protect her as he protected their Raj.

Shaking her head, she looked around for the aforementioned Raj. She'd asked to speak with him again so that they could finish up a previous conversation. Said conversation had been done during yesterday morning's breakfast when Dom suddenly entered. She bit her lower lip slightly, wondering if she should talk to Jon about things with Dominic. He knew the male better than she did and maybe she could gain some insight on the leopard that was now hers.

She was dressed simply. A pair of sweatpants and a loose shirt. After all, it wasn't like she had anything uber important to do today anyways.

While the job of a Private eye might seem all dangerous and ninja like to some people Jon himself knew how annoying the whole thing could be. Like now, he was stuck filing his own paper work because the kid he had just hired needed to take time off to go on a family vacation or some crap. If it was up to Jon he would have made the kid stick around if only to make some money. So he was up to his elbows in old files when Ruby wandered into his office.

He glanced up huffing slightly to get some sort of air flowing across his face. "Hey there kiddo. Why don't you give me a hand here." He tugged himself to his feet leaving his desk long enough to snag a bottle of water from his mini-fridge. He popped the cap open and basically poured half the bottle down his throat before shaking his head rapidly. "How's today going for you so far?" He made his way back to his desk turning and leaning against the edge trying to get the muscles in his back to relax a little.

As he waited he downed the rest of the bottle and tossed the empty container towards his waste bin. He rolled his shoulder and glanced back to Ruby. Frowning he sniffed the air slightly. "You and Dom starting rolling around together? You smell an awful like him right now." He crossed his arms over his chest waiting for his answers.

Ruby nodded slightly at Jon and moved further into the room. She sighed softly and took a seat across from him, her eyes scanning over the papers all over his desk. The female had no idea how it was that he managed to be a PI and run a Pard efficiently. Then again, she supposed that was the reason he was in charge instead of someone else. Jon had that presence that he could handle everything without fail.

"It's going. Haven't gotten any issues or anything. Surprising to be honest with you," she said with a small smile. His next question caused her to freeze. Lowering her head a little, she sniffed herself and noticed that she did, in fact, smell like Dominic. Glancing back up at Jon, she offered him a small smile before figuring out how to answer his question.

"I'm not sure 'rolling around' is the correct term...I, uh, well, Dom and I are in a relationship now. We got to talking the other day when you and Adam were out. And..yeah."

He nodded eyes resting on the floor of his office.Thankfully he had bought a steam cleaner after the whole rough and ready tumble with Devon. Bad enough that certain members of the pard knew he had acquired a Shiva(mate) but he didn't want anyone with a keen noise to wander in and know that this is where it had happened. It was good to hear that everyone was sticking the law he had laid down the other day. If he so much as heard any mutter he'd put his foot down yet again.


Hearing Ruby sniff herself he glanced back up. After a moment he grinned. "Oh really? You guy finally got tired of dancing around each other? Thought it was gonna take forever for the two of you to wise up." A smug look graced his face and he looked at ease. "Congrats I guess. Just don't make Dom scream in the middle of the night alright? I need my beauty sleep and all that." He grinned again before nodding to the boxes he had crammed into a corner when he got here. "I need to put the files in order according to the dates on the paper work." He rubbed at the back of his neck, "Its whats been taking me so long."

Ruby arched a brow as he mentioned dancing around each other. She hadn't noticed just how apparent it was that she and Dom liked each other. She'd been trying so hard to hide it, but it was now clear that her good job hadn't been so good after all. That made her a little upset but she would get over it in no time. After all, it wasn't the biggest issue she had at this moment. Hell, at that moment she didn't really have any issues.

Her cheeks flushed as Jon said not to be making Dom scream in the middle of the night. That hadn't exactly been on her mind before, but it was now. The thoughts raced through her mind quickly before disappearing. She nodded a little bit as Jon said what he needed. "I suppose I could lend you a hand with that," she said, nodding a little. Moving towards the boxes, her head tilted a little bit and she sighed heavily. So...should we get started?"

He waved a hand around at the look being host his way. "Don't worry kitten. I'm the only that noticed." He tapped the side of his nose. "Perks of being Raj and all. Gotta know whats going on in my own pard after all." Made sense to him to know exactly what everyone in his pard was up to. Not like their numbers were huge or anything. He made way to the boxes lifting one up easily and setting on the floor in the middle of the room.

He lifted the top off of the card board box and placed it on his already messy desk. Reaching in he grabbed a handful of files and put it next to the box top. Picking up the first one he showed it off to Ruby. "The tap has a name and a date. I need them to all be in order. Recent ones on top." He gestured over to the rest of the boxes. " I only had half a stroke of genius. Only sorted the boxes by type of case but never got beyond that. Someone needs me to reopen a case it's gonna take a month full of sundays to find the right file." He placed the small stack of files into Ruby's hands.

"If you start on that box I can take another one. Then I might be able to get home for dinner on time. It'll be the first time this month." He patted the top of her head and offered a smile before wandering over and grabbing another box to start off on. "I should probably hire someone to help out. Part time work and all."

An unknown held breath made its way from Ruby's lips as Jon said he was the only one who knew. Well, that statement wasn't completely true. Ace had spotted she and Dominic together the other day and no doubt had gone around to run his mouth. That was just something that she wouldn't care about. If everyone knew about her and Dom, then no one would bother her. And if they did, he would handle it if Jon wasn't around. For that, she was grateful. She supposed it was part of the relationship package among other reasons.

As Jon explained what he needed her to do, she nodded and took the box he handed her off to the side. Sitting down, she carefully emptied the box before beginning to sort through everything. Jon had a huge load of cases for a PI but she supposed that was what made him so good. He'd had a lot of practice and knew how to handle various situations. She started first by year, planning on moving to dates afterwards. Best to get some semblance of order before taking it full on. A slight smile came to her lips as he patted her head. At least he hadn't ruffled her hair again.

"Well, I'm always around and up to nothing if you need a hand around here. As long as cooking isn't in the description, I'm fairly well equipped to do other jobs. Besides, not like it would be that hard to get ahold of me either," she said, pointing out the obvious. Despite the fact that things would most likely get better at the Pard lands, the red head needed something to do. To find a way to spend her time. After all, it wasn't like she could spend every minute with Dom. He had a job to do as well.

"Mental note to self. Don't let Ruby cook." He gave himself a slow nod before grinned over at the leopard now sitting in the middle of his office floor. Out of habit his eyes drifted to the door of his office before shaking off his train of thought. Now wasn't the time for those kind of thoughts anyhow. "I was going to bring Devon to the house. Make him an official part of the pard." He pulled out his own stack of files and started sorting though them.

He settled behind his own box eyes flicking over to Ruby. "It'll most likely be tomorrow or the day after. Depends on how fast Dom can get me information about him." If it was just him he wouldn't have done such a background check on Devon but since he had a pard to consider everything was being considered. "So don't make any plans for the next couple of days ok? I want everyone there when I do bring him by."

Ruby's eyes glanced up from the files she was sorting to give Jon a little grin at his comment. While she was a whiz with the microwave and toaster, attempts at the oven were usually dangerous and ended up with someone getting hurt. At his mention of Devon, her entire head lifted to look at him, arching a brow slightly. She hadn't been expecting to meet the male so soon. Then again, if he was Jon's mate, then she supposed the sooner the better.

Hearing that Dom was the deciding factor with how soon things were done, the panwere nodded a little. She knew that the clouded leopard worked at a decent pace and would no doubt have information in the next day if not sooner. "No plans. Check." That was all the girl really knew to say. She didn't quite know what to think about Jon having a mate, but it was something that she and the rest of the Pard would have to get used to.

Most of his attention was focused on the files in his hand and it took a long moment before he bothered speaking again. Not that he couldn't do more than two things at once but he figured he really didn't want to mess this up and have to go behind himself and redo any of it. After getting everything sorted into years he gave a sigh glad he had only been in Venice for a handful of years and nothing longer. This would have taken forever if he had been in business any longer than he was.

"How is training going?" He lifted his eyes from the paper work to look at Ruby. He had asked the other day but with the rest of the pard there and not excatly liking the tiger part of Ruby he could see that she might have been willing to tell the truth about what was really going on. He didn't know much about the Chang or the streak. Having Ruby training would give him a little more insight into the group. If he ever wanted to form an alliance with them that would come in handy.

She was lost in her thoughts as she filtered through all of the files, arranging them as he had asked. She had all of the years seperate which just left the months. Well, the dates more so. She sighed a little bit and closed her eyes, trying to block out the headache that she felt coming on. It was something she didn't need right now. When headaches came, temperment came. And with temperment came shifting to her tiger. The beast was still an omega and wasn't able to complete control shifting when it came to emotions.

Shaking her head a little, her eyes rose as the Raj spoke. She allowed herself to ponder the question, trying to figure out just how to answer him. "They're going alright. Mei's very relaxed for being Streak. I mean, from what I know they're normally snobby and very critical about purebloods. I was surprised but Mei has been treating me like I'm no different than the rest. It's been really good," she said, giving Jon a sincere smile.

With one box finished and out of his way Jon laid bak on the carpeted floor stretching out as much as he could. He was rewarded with the sound of his spine stretching and cracking. This is why he a filer, so he wouldn't have to do this sort of thing himself. Sighing he rolled over to his side and pushed himself up to his feet. Seeing a slightly pained look on Ruby's face he offered his hand and tugged her to her feet. "Lunch break kiddo. Don't wanna fry your brain with all those words." He grinned and darted out of her striking range if she decided she wanted to hit for that.


He nodded arms folding over his chest. While he was thankful that Mei was helping he wasn't sure how he felt about how she seemed to be the only one that was helping Ruby. He knew that the Tigers were uptight but Ruby was pard way before getting her Tiger and if they wanted to keep everything civil they'd better be avoiding Ruby rather than making smart comments. Bad enough he had to deal with the leopards that did that he didn't want to have to go to Amber and complain about the treatment of his pard member. "So no one's said anything? They just keep outta your way?" He nodded to the door making sure to grab his keys before they headed out.

Once outside the door he locked it and turned up the collar of his jacket. His eyes swung back and forth checking out the traffic on the streets before offering his arm to Ruby and pointing the Irish Pub across the street. He knew for a fact they cooked a mean burger. He had lunch there often enough to know that by now.

A laugh escaped her lips as she allowed Jon to help her to her feet. They hadn't been working long, but both of them had finished one box. It would take a while for Ruby to figure out how Jon managed to be a PI and the Raj all at the same time. In her mind, it was nearly impossible, but she was sure that she would come to terms with it soon enough. Well, she would figure it out soon enough or so she hoped.

Adjusting her clothing a little, she looked up at Jon's question and gave a little nod. "I believe so. Mei and I don't train on the tiger lands just in case. The only time we really go there is when we're on break and even then we usually go sit in a diner somewhere," Ruby said, a small smile on her lips. She was grateful for tall that Mei had done. From helping with the training to making sure that she was left alone with the others. It was highly appreciated.

Ruby took his arm as they walked, eager to get something in her stomach. She hadn't eaten since breakfast and already it was dinnertime. The panwere wasn't sure just where the day had gone, but figured that when one worked, that was what happened. The day just disappeared.

He had to admit he liked the idea of the two kitten training some where outside of Streaks lands. Not that he though the Chang would allow something to happen but more why tempt fate more than you had to right? The less time the Panwere was on Tiger land the less tempted some of the high born cats would be to mess with the leopard. He kept the sigh on the inside as he took Ruby's arm and lead her to the pub across the street.

The traffic was light enough that they didn't even have to pause as they strolled across the street. Mid of the work week not even close to lunch time? It made sense that the street was almost empty. Just how he liked it, get food before the masses of people all came out at once. Once he got to the door he let go of Ruby's arm and opened the door for him. Only when they were seated did he attempt to start another conversation.

"So. You and Dominic huh? How's that going for you? Hasn't been that long has it? " He vainly tried to remember the last time him and Adam and been out of the house together. He blinked when he remembered it had something to do with possible rouges but for the life of him couldn't remember if that was a couple of days ago or a week ago.

She was surprised that the silent walk wasn't awkward. In truth, she found the silence to be a comfortable one that she actually enjoyed. With a soft sigh, she walked in step with Jon. Her eyes squinted a little bit as they stepped out into the light. The light inside the building hadn't been as bright as the one out here and it wasn't even high in the sky. She silently complained about it.

Giving a small smile to Jon, the panwere entered the pub and moved to take a seat. She waited in silence and was glad that the wait wasn't long until Jon began to speak again. As the topic of Dom came up, Ruby couldn't stop the smile that spread across her lips. She was thankful that her cheeks hadn't flushed up at the mention of his name. She remembered clearly when that happened.

"It's going. Slowly but surely. Still have the whole first date thing to do, but yeah...It's only been about a week." She went quiet as a few thoughts moved through her head before she gave Jon another smile. "He's been making sure that no one bothers me at the Pard lands. When we're together at least. It's nice having him look out for me," Ruby said, a small smile on her face.

He leaned back on his chair one arm resting along the back of the booth as he listened to Ruby talk about Dominic. She seemed happy enough he'd give that much. Which was nice to see after the whole getting infected by Tiger thing. Seemed like she wasn't happy all the time like she had been. She wasn't the type to mope around or whine that was true but she hadn't been the kid he had met when he took over the pard.


He gave a nod while keeping certain thoughts to himself. Dominic had been quite the ladies man, he was sure if the bodyguard had made the effort to start dating Ruby he wasn't going to ruin it by sleeping around like he had been before. Unless their relationship was going to be an open one. He blinked himself away from that train of thought as the waitress appeared with menus. He ordered a draft beer and grabbed up the menu allowing Ruby to pick something to drink.

When the girl had wandered away with their drink order he glanced back to Ruby over the top of his menu. "I still wanna hear about it if anyone gives you trouble. Dom might have your back but I need ta know these things no matter how little you think they might matter." He needed the heads up if someone was planning something. He didn't think any of his Alphas would try to throw him over- hell Dom,Adam and Jason were his biggest fans, but he still wanted to keep his eyes open.

Ruby had decided on a simple water for her drink due to the simple fact that caffeine would only serve to make her tired. Sure, a temporary high, but that wouldn't last long. It never did. As her water arrived, she offered a smile of thanks. Taking a sip, the liquid was cool as it slid down her throat and moistened the dryness that she was feeling to be there.

As she wandered off and Jon spoke again, the panwere gave him a smile. "Don't worry, I will. If I don't say anything, I'm sure Dom will. Besides, they're more likely to listen to you than Dom, even if he's high in rank," she said. No matter what happened, if it wasn't for Jon, she would still be getting harrassed. She was grateful that after her second infection she hadn't been thrown out. Instead, she'd been able to stay and got help from one of the tigers.

"Well I'd like to think they'd listen to me before him. Or anyone else matter of fact." he gave a little blink as he twisted the mug around so he could pick up it up by the handle. If his pard listened to something Dominic said over him there'd be some issues he would need to sort out.He took a sip of the drink resettling himself against the booth eyes going back to the menu before picking out a dish that was basically just a huge burger and some fries.

When the girl wandered back he placed his order he remained silent long enough to takes Ruby's order as well. Once the waitress was gone he picked up one of the napkins and started to slowly ball it up as tight as he could. "So what's Dom up to right now anyhow? He looked way to happy when I saw him leave the house. I swear he better have not taken pictures of me sleeping with that leopard." He got a slightly evil look on his face as he spoke. He wouldn't put it past Dom to not only take picture but put them on a Christmas card as well.

Ruby nodded a little bit and grabbed the glass of water that she had before taking a sip from it. The liquid was cool as it made its way down her throat and gave a small smile. She knew that Dom wouldn't try to overthrow Jon as the two of them seemed to enjoy each other's company and doing such a thing would destroy that. Not to mention, she wasn't sure that Dominic even wanted a leader position. If he did, chances were that he would find somewhere else to make it rather that to overthrow Jon. Her leopard just didn't seem like that kind of shifter.

At his next question, the panwere gave a slight shrug of her shoulders. "Honestly, I've got no idea. I saw haven't really seen him since yesterday," she said, giving the Raj a small smile. She knew that Dom was the one that had done the leopard prank and would have no doubt taken pictures. It was only a matter of developing them which she wasn't sure he would do or not.

He leaned forward paying careful attention to how Ruby reacted to his words. If something was even being whispered about he wanted to know. It seemed like his worries were all over nothing though as Ruby smiled and nodded. She wasn't a good enough liar to be able to cover the scent of a lie so he let the whole thing drop, not that it had been much a thing to begin with. He glanced to the side thinking deeply as Ruby mentioned she hadn't seen the now leopard. He was no doubt up to something.

Shaking his head and pushing the thought to the back of his mind Jon looked forward once more. Not like there was anything he could do if Dom was out and about looking for trouble. He'd find out eventually. Even as he opened his mouth to make another comment he paused noticing the food was now making it's way to their table.

He knew these guys had really good service but he wasn't expecting to see the food that fast really. He leaned back letting the plates be set down between himself and Ruby. "So what did you get anyhow?" He leaned towards the end of the table snagging the bottle of ketchup to smother hid fries in.

Ruby ran a hand through her hair as a soft sigh escaped her lips. She had to wonder what Dominic was up to, but figured that whenever he showed up she would know something. At least that's what she thought. Shaking her head a bit, her eyes wandered around the pub, trying to see if anyone else she knew was around. After scanning the visible areas, she turned back to Jon only to see their food arriving.

As her food was set before her, she nodded a thanks before turning to Jon. "Bacon cheeseburger and french fries of course," she stated, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. She pulled her plate closer to her and snagged the ketchup from Jon before making a decent pile of it upon her plate. Picking up a french fry, she dipped it in the ketchup before popping it into her mouth. "So, other than work and this Devon kid, what else have you been up to," the panwere asked, tilting her head a little.

He snickered not even bothering to muffle the sound as he worked on making a small pool of ketchup appear on his plate next to the french fries. He grabbed one up and tugged it though popping it into his mouth while wondering if the burger he had ordered was really medium rare like he asked. A quick peek and a stab with his knife showed the the burger was still lightly bloody like he liked it. He wiped his hands off and picked up his burger before hearing Ruby's question. "Outside of work and Devon?" He paused thinking it over, " Nothing really .

Well it wasn't totally true he didn't want to bother her with trouble he had caused. He was a big boy and could deal with it. She didn't know he was spending extra time on Streak lands when Amber let him and she wouldn't find out unless she got nosy. Which she didn't have any reason to do. Years of lying came in handy just then and his face was peaceful as he dug into his burger. "Just trying to find extra help at the office till my temp comes back from his family vacation. Nothing to big."

Ruby began to eat her burger as she waited for Jon to speak. She arched a brow as he said nothing, not quite sure if she believed it or not. The look quickly faded and was replaced with a neutral one. Rumors had been going around that the Raj had been up to something, though no one was saying what it was. She wouldn't bother him with it because she didn't know the names of people that were talking. If he wanted to talk, he could.

The panwere nodded slightly at his next words. "Well, like I said, I don't have much to do so I wouldn't mind lending a hand," Ruby said. She needed to keep herself occupied or she would get lost in her thoughts again. It wasn't the best thing for her, but it was bearable. Her thoughts weren't a happy place and it was hard to change her mood after that. Shaking her head, she took another bite of her burger and pushed such thoughts out of her head.

He nodded licking the pad of his thumb before getting a better grip on what was left of the burger in his hands. "Hope you mean it cuz I'm going to hold you to that now. Least till my help comes back. I'll even let you decided if you wanna stay on past that. Hell knows I need more help than I have. Gonna end up passing out in my car on the way home one day or sumthing." he bite into the burger again wondering slightly at the look that was now on Ruby's face.

"Something on your mind Rubs?" He finished his own burger tossing a piece of the bun onto the plate before grabbing up his drink once more. He liked to think that if the pard was still messing with her about the tiger thing she'd say so he could only guess that look had a different meaning behind it.He glanced at her from the rim of his glass before taking a deep gulp and sitting it to the side once more.

She smiled and nodded as she continued to eat her own burger. "I wouldn't have offered if I hadn't meant it," she said. She mulled over what he'd said about staying. It wouldn't be a bad idea. If she worked for him it would mean that she wouldn't have to risk pissing off one of the other clans by screwing up. At his last statement she looked up and gave him a slight look. "Just make sure you have someone with you when you decide to do that. Don't need you dying on us," she stated, her tone serious as were her eyes.

As he asked if something was on her mind, she remained quiet for a bit as she finished her burger. Taking a sip of the water she'd been giving, she sighed softly. "I don't know. I've got a lot of things on my mind. From relearning everything for my tiger to making sure that the leopard stays dominant. I don't know, my thoughts are a bit of a jumbled mess lately," Ruby said, shrugging a bit.