Continued from Chapters 51 and 64
Serendipity, the bunny Celestial of fortune and happenstance, floated through the expanse of the Celestial realm, not using the "ground" division as was her "normal" habit. Kicked back and relaxed, Serendipity often didn't have a care in the world. As was becoming more and more common lately, however, her most peaceful reveries were short-lived.
"Serendipity! Finally, I've found you!" Karma's voice rang out, and the bunny Celestial in question made quite a show of flailing through the air, rapidly changing the colors of her fur and eyes. She looked out and saw the wolf-shaped Celestial quickly running on all fours toward Serendipity.
"Karma!" Serendipity held her fore-paws out and changed to be Karma's own colors: a soft magenta fur and more striking magenta eyes.
Karma ignored this gesture and stopped near Serendipity, one of her fore-paws slightly held up from the ground in caution. "Serendipity, there's trouble in Zootopia."
"What, again?" Serendipity rolled her eyes. Karma nodded her muzzle towards a display she brought up and zoomed in on a specific part of the Earth, then a specific part of Zootopia.
"One of your followers is tracking an accomplished assassin," Karma said, concern lining her voice, "when they duel, your follower will definitely die."
"My 'follower'?" Serendipity queried, squinting her eyes. Suddenly, her muzzle scrunched up in distaste. "Oh, is that... is that Jack Savage? Ugh..." Serendipity blew a low-effort raspberry with her tongue and then perked up a bit. "Oh! That's Nick and Judy over there!" She moved the display wildly to show the fox and bunny in question, who were busy keeping the perimeter of a particular venue secure.
"Serendipity!" Karma's teeth bared. She snapped the display back to the white and black bunnies. "Can you focus for just one minute!? Jack's life is in danger!"
"So?" Serendipity's eyes half-lidded. "You save him if you care so much."
"I... can't," Karma winced. "Jack is not as skilled as Kuro Inaba, the assassin. And, despite his murderous work, Kuro does deserve to win because he's trained way harder than Jack in fighting styles. My paws are tied; I'm already on thin ice with Order after my earlier Zootopia snafu..."
"Oh well," Serendipity shrugged, shaking her head with her eyes closed. "Better luck in Jack's next life, maybe."
Karma snarled, beginning to pace circles around the disinterested-looking bunny, who was laying on her back in midair with her paws behind her head. Serendipity opened one eye to barely watch Karma's pacing. "Jack praises you every chance he gets! How can you be so... so flippant!?"
Serendipity rolled over in midair and let all of her limbs hang downward and half-closed her eyes. "Uh, Karma, I dunno if you've noticed, but that's kinda how I am."
The canid Celestial stamped one of her fore-paws. "Serendipity, please! Save him!"
"Why do you care so much about this bunny?" Serendipity wondered, looking incredulous.
"He doesn't have enough time left for me to explain! Just... please, for me?" Karma's expression began to grow worried. Reading this, Serendipity's face softened as well, but then she tried to look bored again. She altered her display of that particular area of Zootopia, assessed the situation, and made one small gesture with her fore-paw at it.
"There, that's all I'm doing," Serendipity folded her arms defiantly.
"What... did you do?" Karma couldn't see that anything had changed.
"I caused a wind to blow briefly in the direction of that pier over there toward Nick and Judy," Serendipity explained. "Nick should be able to smell gunpowder, which is unfamiliar to him, so he'll probably investigate or get backup or whatever." Serendipity shrugged. "We'll just see how it plays out."
Owing to a swift sequence of events, Jack's lover and fellow agent Skye ended up finding the warehouse where Jack was getting his rabbit rear handed to him, and put three bullet-holes into Kuro Inaba.
Karma winced and Serendipity rolled her eyes as both heard Chaos' unmistakable laughter over how the events played out in some corner of the Celestial realm.
"Guess Destiny won't be seeing who she thought today," Serendipity said somewhat musically.
"Thank you..." Karma let out a huge sigh and bowed her head, then her brow furrowed and she glared at Serendipity.
"What!?" Serendipity held her paws out. "I did what you asked! The bunny guy is safe. Yaaaay." Serendipity mockingly clapped her paws. Karma began to pace around the floating bunny again in irritation.
"What is it with you, Serendipity?" Karma spat the words out. "Other Celestials would love to have one bit of the attention Jack gives you. He's always praising you."
"Uh, yeah!" Serendipity rolled her eyes. "It's actually kind of annoying. I've only actually helped him once, or uh, I guess twice if you count now. The first time was when they had him off in a mission he was meant to die on. I thought it would be random and fun if he and his fellow agent, which he totally hated, would get together and finish it."
"Skye, his arctic fox lover?" Karma inquired. The bunny nodded; she seemed a bit embarrassed at the revelation that another canid and lapine had been brought together from her meddling.
"Yeaaah..." Serendipity giggled, moving her eyes away from Karma's gaze. "They kinda did get together after that. So that was my bad... but then he started praising me over every little thing. That kit is just like naturally stupid lucky! Even for a rabbit! But no it's 'Thank you Serendipity this' or 'You're so awesome Serendipity' that. He once praised me when he managed to catch a sandwich he accidentally knocked off a counter!"
"What's so bad about that?" Karma struck an aloof, proper pose, tilting her muzzle up while keeping eye contact. "You've been with him and given him what he feels is the best part of his life!"
"I dunno... I think it's kinda nicer when they're more subtle about it?" Serendipity shrugged. "I actually helped Skye once. She was working on tinkering with one of their super-spy gadget thingies, and I made a problem light blink once or twice for her. She noticed and thanked 'her lucky stars'." Serendipity adopted a midnight blue color scheme with yellowish eyes and floated around. "And wouldn't you know, her lucky stars make a constellation of a bunny!"
Karma's muzzle scrunched and she huffed in annoyance. "I would appreciate even portion of the praise you get. When people mention me nowadays it's almost entirely negative. 'Karma'll get you! You'll get yours!' or 'Karma's such a female dog, isn't she'?"
"Well, isn't she?" Serendipity tilted her head.
"It's a slur, silly," Karma huffed.
"Oh come on, it's just some doofus mortals," Serendipity sucked at her teeth. "The Celestials know you're better than that. I know you're a nice puppy..." She tried a warm smile.
Karma sighed and shook her head. Serendipity found her colors changing to Karma's once more, but they snapped back to some random orange and green arrangement when the canid Celestial noticed.
"Uh, anyway," Serendipity looked away slightly. "Why don't you tell me why you were so adamant on saving that goober Jack?"
"Didn't you see the Big Picture today?" Karma looked disapprovingly at Serendipity.
"I try to avoid that," Serendipity groaned. "It's so boring."
"Well, maybe you shouldn't skip it when it has a bit about Zootopia," Karma said with a hint of anger. "Especially when it might end up impacting our..." Karma drew closer to Serendipity and whispered conspiratorially, "you know, our 'favorites'..."
"Oh, Nick and Judy," Serendipity said without even pausing to think.
"Yes, but don't tell anyone!" Karma hissed. "You know Celestials aren't supposed to play favorites!"
"C'mon, we all totally do," Serendipity giggled.
Karma sighed. "The point is, had Kuro lived, he would have killed Mayor Vince Mousawitz, and without Mousawitz, Pearline Swinton would have come into power with no contest."
"Ugh, politics! Blah..." Serendipity yawned.
"Well, if I could stretch your attention span by a few more seconds, I'd tell you why that's important!" Karma snapped. "What does Judy want to do soon?"
"Ooh, I know!" Serendipity raised her hand. "Propose to Nick!"
"Right, and so that would be inter-species marriage," Karma said. "Guess what Swinton is against."
"Oh, oops," Serendipity made a guilty face.
"I want those two to marry on their own terms and not be forced to do it because of some sort of political deadline... I feel that they should have their agency of their reward; they deserve it," Karma sighed, gazing down upon the two speaking amicably with Jack and Skye.
"Totally," Serendipity nodded. She twisted her muzzle this way and that. "Sorry for being, uh... so 'me', I guess."
"It's all right; everything worked out," Karma walked in her customary and symbolic circles, and laid down.
"Not gonna go back to your place?" Serendipity giggled.
"I'm tired from dealing with this minor crisis," Karma explained. "And you."
"Fair enough..." Serendipity waited until Karma closed her eyes then floated closer, laying on her back. Her colors almost instinctively went to match Karma's once more.
"Don't think I can't feel you there," Karma warned without opening her eyes. Serendipity flinched a bit like a child with their hand caught in a cookie jar, but didn't separate from Karma. Instead, she snuggled in closer to the fur she laid on. Karma sighed. "Fine."