HELLO LADIES AND GENTLEMEN AND VARIATIONS THEREUPON. HAPPY JALTER FRIDAY 3.

This is a smaller fic...and I'll admit, I'm sick so my editing is not as thorough as I'd like. However, I'll have another look at it over the weekend. Enjoy this small appetizer in the meantime.

So this was a request posted from a comment on my archive of our own. For the record I have limitations for requests, where they are turned into commissions, however, this was one simple and I was given pretty much all creative liberties.

The request was simple, hurt/comfort with Jeanne Alter comforting Ritsuka. To be fair to the ship, I've written a fair bit of hurt comfort going the other direction, and while there is some hurt/comfort going from Jalter to Ritsuka in my work, it's never quite the centerpiece of the work. So this was an opportunity I was supposed to balance the scales as it were lol.

"Perfectly balanced...as all things should be."

Anyway, as an update, editing for the next part of my Jeanne Alter summer fic is well underway. I still am sitting on two completed Jeanne Alter one-shots that aren't published yet, and one of the reasons I was more okay with doing a request, was because those have been delayed a bit. I am getting feedback on one, and the other has an oomf in line to do something special with the content. I'm also working on some fantasy AU fics, an 86 fanfic, and a Star Wars fanfic, and I've at least plotted some more Artoria and Emiya for everyone else who finds my work because of that ship XD.

As always I'm AGeekyWriter on most platforms, feel free to follow me over on X where I retweet Jalter art, fail miserably at flirting with cosplay girls cause I'm a lonely baka, and where I give updates about all my work fanfiction and my original works. I'm also on CheapSeatCritics podcast on YouTube where me and my friends talk about movies and shows to a very unnecessarily thorough degree.

After Singularities…Before Catastrophe

###Ritsuka Fujimaru###

He knew how important the role he played was. But at the same time, he knew how much of it could've been remedied if he had just been a half-decent mage. Not a lowborn lowbred one. So he was expecting some degree of backlash when Chaldea finally managed to re-establish contact with the mage's association.

It was to be expected.

He was the one bound by contract to all the heroic spirits that Chaldea had mustered.

Jeanne Alter was waiting for him down the hall.

She blushed, pouting at him with folded arms. "You're running late," she commented.

It's not like I'm excited to see what happens next.

She grabbed him by the hand and dragged him along behind her. "The sooner you finish, the faster you can get it over with." She pushed her lips into a line and led the way, navigating them through the corridors for the both of them.

Ritsuka chuckled a bit following behind her. "Did Da Vinci send you?"

Jeanne Alter ignored him for a few more steps. "S-she asked…" She answered in a manner that hadn't filled him with the full confidence of her answer. But he accepted it all the same. He was grateful for her presence all the same.

But you volunteered.

"You don't have to be here." He tentatively grabbed her hand and squeezed it.

She shook her head, "No…I…want to."

It was a comfort.

And in far contrast to what he faced that afternoon.

Jeanne Alter lurked near the entrance pretending not to be interested. She was doing a good job of it mostly. Trying to focus on any of the monitors are technical devices in use. And when she wasn't doing that, she was looking at her Chaldea-issued phone. But he watched her enough to know she was paying keen attention.

Ritsuka was standing just behind Da Vinci, watching, waiting for his turn to speak. Or if they would invite him to speak. The longer the meeting dragged on, he got the distinct impression that he wouldn't get that chance to talk.

"And now we are left to converse only with you, Da Vinci, a servant without a proper master."

Proper.

His fingers curled behind his back.

"With respect-" Da Vinci tried, "I worked with Dr. Roman extensively and-"

"Who was only raised to acting director since all the senior staff members were either killed or incapacitated. The point of it still stands." There was a pause.

A female voice spoke next, "We don't want you to misunderstand Da Vinci, we are grateful for your help documented before the grand order took place. But given your position of power, green lighting a nobody in place of working around the clock to bring Team A back out of recovery was not a wise move."

Nobody.

Ritsuka pressed his mouth into a tight line, fingers curling a bit tighter behind his back.

Da Vinci clicked her lips together. "We were attacked, and furthermore the ray shift had already begun when the first singularity was about to be addressed. If Ritsuka hadn't been in the room, Mash would've been transported on her own, without support."

He was grateful for Da Vinci, and he knew it was going to be bad.

"A proper master would've solved the issue quicker and more efficiently."

"These reports of him befriending his servants like you. When you all should be perceived as not so much more than tools and means to an end."

Ritsuka breathed out slowly and he could feel his fingers shaking behind him, in their tight and firm grasp. It was all stuff he'd been prepared to hear in one form or another. But it was grinding away at him slowly. Or rather he tried to have been ready to hear it.

Then it changed.

"Dr. Roman might even still be alive if it weren't for his inadequacy."

He squeezed his eyes shut.

Worthless, useless, master.

Even Da Vinci winced at that, turning to eye Ritsuka for a moment.

He kept his expression to a tight neutral, his mouth twisting. "If there is nothing else, I'm going back to my room."

"We are not finished." A voice went.

Ritsuka's mouth twitched, "I am. Feel free to actually read the reports…" He turned and stomped back out, his vision blurring as he did.

He'd missed that Jeanne Alter's shadow was no longer lingering near the door. And he'd missed her joining Da Vinci's side in his place.

###Jeanne Alter###

Persecution?!

Jeanne Alter ground her teeth together feeling her nostrils flare at the sight. Ritsuka had mentioned of course that the current mages Chaldea had finally established contact with after the Grand Order, had disliked him. But she saw what they were really doing. They weren't even acknowledging his presence.

It made her blood boil and she thought about reaching out to wherever they are and burning them alive, damn the consequences that followed.

She knew more than anyone else what it felt like to be persecuted. It was, in one way, the cause of her birth. Her fingers balled at her sides, shaking with anger as she forced herself to look away. Jeanne Alter had chosen to leave.

That stupid idiot's smile was something she worked to preserve.

Then, the Roman comment came out, and something in her snapped. She formulated her words carefully and coldly as she watched Ritsuka leave the room.

Jeanne Alter pushed Da Vinci a little more to the side. "AND WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?!"

The mages all turned to look at her with impassive expressions.

Spiteful weak little humans-!

Da Vinci grabbed her hand and tugged her back only a half step, to stop her from trying to reach out to the projections.

"You must be Jeanne D'Arc Alter." One of them said calmly.

"You're fucking right I am! And you will be speaking about our Master to our Master, with some goddamn respect!" She paused only to take a breath, being sure to look every one of them in their cold eyes. But even still in doing that she realized how cold it was., how indifferent they seemed.

If it hadn't been for their berating of her master, it might've been a surprise.

It was also in those eyes, that she realized they'd gotten a file on her too probably.

It means they probably have a bunch of dumb ideas to spout about me too.

She ground her teeth together not caring.

"He is no mage-"

"SO WHAT?! No one else was here to step up to the role of our master!" She pointed behind her towards the door Ritsuka had left through. "HE did!" Her mouth twisted and she looked at Da Vinci, still holding onto her wrist.

The caster sent her a patient look, but it was then it started forming a smile.

Approval?

Jeanne Alter felt her smile widen at that. She turned to focus fully on the group's holo images. "If you are wondering how he commands us, it's because he fucking earned our loyalty and respect. Something you still are failing to do. You are only alive to complain about him, because of him!" Her mouth twisted, "And for all your wisdom, you fail to see that disparaging him is disparaging us by extension."

They for the moment appeared unreactive. For that Jeanne Alter leaned into it, deciding to be aggressive. Talking about Ritsuka in the manner she felt he deserved. She did so until she was out of breath.

Until her goddamn throat was growing sore.

"Weren't you the cause of one of those singularities-"

"AND I would have still tried to end your goddamn pathetic race if not for him!"

She huffed out breath and squeezed her eyes shut starting to reach the end of her rope too. Ritsuka had been right to walk away too, she realized. Her heart went out to him replaced with worry.

I need to check on him.

"Jeanne?" Da Vinci spoke up from beside her and grabbed her wrist again.

She turned to look at the caster with her amber eyes, mouth twisting. "What?"

"Go, we can take it from here."

She realized a few more servants had gathered around them behind her. Her face felt flushed and she pressed her lips into a line, turning away. She'd just been yelling and rambling and couldn't remember half of what she'd said.

Someone is bound to have made a record of it too.

Edmond and Archer Emiya spoke after her. The former, of course, matched her aggressive tone, which bordered on a threat.

Emiya seemed to take a role similar to Da Vinci, meaning to keep things from escalating so far but still made his displeasure known.

Da Vinci seemed content to let it play out and did little to stop the proceedings. However, like Emiya, she was far more tactful when compared to the other servants who were speaking up. Both she and Emiya had evidently long experiences with the mage's association that Jeanne Alter couldn't begin to understand.

And those were just the first two, as she pushed her way through a crowd of faces she could see the same determination in the eyes of others. The same passion and anger. It delighted her in a way. To know she had found kindred spirits over defending Ritsuka.

Her cheeks still burned red, and Jeanne Alter left with a huff and slammed her forehead into the white sheen metal wall right outside her room.

Stupid.

She grit her teeth together, squeezing her nails into her skin and scalp.

Stupid ungrateful, bastards!

Yet despite her anger, she felt a well of concern. The thought of her master being persecuted angered her even now. It was enough to want to make her head right down to the sim room and pulverize things until she could get it all out, or they physically dragged her out of there.

But even more than that, she was worried.

Quietly she went farther down the hallway, navigating herself to the outside curve of the facility where the endless snowstorm continued to fall outside. Her metal heels quietly clinking along the metal floors on the path carried her to his room.

Her lips were pressed into a tight line for a moment, staring at his door when she got there. She stared at that metal door in anger. It took her a few seconds more, her armored knuckles were slow to reach the metal as she rested her hand along the metal. "Master?" She called gently, not wanting to sound demanding.

But the worry in her heart spread to an ache in her chest when she heard no answer. She forced out a slow relaxed breath, trying to calm herself down too.

This time she knocked and spoke louder. "Master," She tried again. "I know you're in there…can I come in?"

It was then, she realized she normally brought something with her when coming to see him. Coffee, Tea, a stupid scrapbook of ideas, sweets she'd had tried her hand at making. All excuses of course…but she still wasn't sure what to do with their relationship status.

It's too late now.

She'd come to check on him, and there was no escaping that fact. No drawing of excuses that she'd like to do when their roles were reversed. Her eyes fell to the base of the metal door, imagining what it would be like to see underneath it as if it were a normal house door. The sort of thing she would never get to see because she was a servant.

"Master…I-...I want to come in."

There was still a long pause, but this time she could hear movement drawing closer. She peered upwards and took half a step back.

The door opened and she might've smiled at seeing him. If not for the red puffiness around his eyes. Those normally blue eyes, normally calm, and a source of strength for her whenever she saw them, were now formed with red cracks going through them. His hair looked messier than normal, and his clothing looked wrinkled.

His cheeks were tear-stained, and he'd made no move to try and wipe it away.

"Jeanne," Ritsuka greeted, his voice hoarse.

Her heart leapt into her throat and that ache filled her.

"I gave them a piece of my mind." Jeanne Alter offered, hoping it might make him smile at the double meaning of it. Only it seemed to make it far worse as she saw him wince a little. In turn, she felt her heartache worsen.

Now they'll think he can't control us too.

She forced herself to take a breath.

Who cares! STUPID UNGRATEFUL BASTARDS!

Her armored gauntlets dispelled into blue particles of light, as well as all the other armors and metal on her figure. It left her in those black and red robes. "Sorry, I am late…" She tried again hoping it was better, gentler. "I…should have thought about coming to you first…"

Ritsuka was quiet as he watched her; those blue eyes were intense with their emotion and she was almost stumbling on what she should do next. He made no move either towards her or showed signs of wanting to stop her from coming in other than standing in his doorway. That ambiguity and non-committed expression had only made her worry far worse. He was the one that was always chipper.

However, in his silence she found her resolve steeled, and her lips pressed together into a line for a moment before finally she smiled gently. It was obvious what he needed in that moment, her anger needed to be put on hold.

Wordless, she reached out and her fingers brushed his cheek.

His face twitched at her touch, and then slowly he breathed out and closed his eyes as her fingers brushed the top of his cheek.

Her heart stuck in her throat. "You're hurting…" She managed.

"Yeah…" His voice seemed to grow even more hoarse.

With her other hand, she gently pushed him back into his room. She followed a few steps after him, the door hissing closed behind her. Jeanne Alter gently dusted off his shoulder with her knuckles before gripping him to keep him close to her. "You were right…" She whispered, "I shouldn't have gone…" Tentatively grabbed his bicep and pulled herself closer, wrapping her arms gently around him.

"...Yeah…"

Even if he was right to tell me to stay away…

She breathed out slowly against his collar. "But now I know… I needed to see…needed to hear."

"...Yeah."

Her fingers tightened on him, squeezing him against her as much as she could muster without accidentally tapping into her servant strength.

For a long moment, she was the only one showing affection. She pushed herself against him, determined to draw out anything. She squeezed her eyes shut and could feel her own eyes stinging. "D-don't shut me out," She whispered. "I…I'm sorry I didn't come right to you…or I didn't follow after…"

A silence dragged out a little bit longer between them. "Sorry," he eventually managed.

Slowly, she felt his arms wrap around her too, and him leaning down just a little push back against her just as much. He leaned on her a little as if she were succeeding in coaxing him back down to relax.

"I've got you," She whispered. "Those fucking useless pissant mages are worthless to us anyways."

At her comment, she felt him huff again, but this time it was something closer to a laugh than it was a noise of dismissal. For the moment, it was more than enough to abate her worry for just a little longer. To know that he wasn't completely lost to her, that the cheerful version of him she was proud of and used to was still in there.

"Don't listen to them," She pleaded.

"But they are right-" He whispered.

"No, they aren't! Not about a single goddamn thing!" Alter could taste froth in her mouth again. Her body seemed to tense up and relax in his arms, forcing herself to not get bitterly angry at them again.

It would only make him worry more.

"They don't know anything. You said it yourself! How could they when they can't be bothered to read all those stupid detailed reports that you filled out." She clung to him tighter. "I know how much time it took for you to complete them. I know…how hard it was too-"

Jeanne Alter cut herself off. "I…"

I'm bad at this.

She forced herself to breathe slowly, and kissed the underside of his chin, "It…wasn't your fault." Jeanne Alter finally settled, burying her face against his shirt. Her fingers were shaking, "Believe me?" She asked him.

Ritsuka was quiet, and it was that quiet that was starting to scare her.

He was the one always there to support her no matter what. "I-it wasn't your fault." She repeated, her fingers digging into his clothes. "There was no one else. There is no point in listening to their short-sighted scenarios where things could be better. Things weren't better. You were unprepared, and took the challenge head-on anyway."

His tense body finally seemed to start to relax, and she felt his arms around her, squeezing her closer.

Jeanne Alter leaned up just a little and kissed his neck. "It wasn't your fault."

"I could've lost you." He finally whispered into her neck.

She shook her head, shuddering. "N-no. You wouldn't…you won't. I wouldn't let them-"

"If I were a better mage I could be more proactive-"

"Dr. Roman made his choice Ritsuka. He put his faith in you, and you alone. Don't twist it." Her fingers were firm around him. "And a better mage would see us as disposable. Mash would've been lost at finding someone worthy as a role model. Who else would she look up to?" Her mouth twisted around that idea. "A better mage would be like those stuck-up fucking ingrates that hide behind reports, traditions, and…"

She swallowed.

Her eyes welled, and she dug her fingers into his skin as if to emphasize her point. "A better mage wouldn't have given me a second chance." It was an easy detail to miss since he wasn't there. But she saw the way all the others looked at her. Even when they were forced to speak to her, she could see how little she mattered to them.

The thought of Ritsuka being anything like that, scared her anew.

Jeanne Alter needed him, and right now he was the one that needed her.

"I wouldn't be here if not for the way you are. Perhaps neither would Edmond, Mash…or many others." Her voice now turned to a whisper. "So don't listen to them." She kissed the side of his cheek. "Don't listen to them." She whispered more firmly.

His breaths grew heavier along her, and she could feel the arms slowly tensing as they seemed to press her closer.

She liked being pressed against him.

Jeanne Alter let out another relaxed breath. "Don't listen to them," she repeated. This time she nuzzled into his collar and kissed his jaw.

He only hummed at her.

So, she did the only thing she could think of when the roles were reversed. When she had nightmares or bad days. Ritsuka had often gone out of his way to pamper her or make her feel loved despite the horrible feelings she walked around with sometimes.

It took a while, and in the meantime, she whispered sweet things into his ear. How much she loved him for the way he was. How glad she is to have spent time with her. And she took every opportunity to stifle the negative thoughts those bastards had put in his head.

At some point, her hair and neck started to feel damp. His tears were silent but ever-flowing as if he were still trying to fight them back. It was another pull at her heart because she knew that feeling too.

That simple want to not be vulnerable.

Eventually, they slowly untangled, and she sat them both at the edge of the bed.

Her fingers squeezed his hand and she wiped at his cheeks again and scooted closer. She pressed as close as she could so that their legs were touching side by side. Jeanne Alter also interwoven their fingers, gently squeezing them. Then she tugged at him again so he was resting his head on her shoulder, his face against her collar and neck.

Talk to me.

This time his reaction to hold her back was quicker. His arms wrapped around her and his weight pushed against her.

She had to push back just a little to make sure they wouldn't fall over. Eventually, she resettled him again so he was resting on her thighs, his face squished against the midriff of her clothes, and his arms wrapped around her hips.

"Sshhh. It's alright Ritsu, I got you." She hummed gently and kissed his head too, cradling him in her arms and lap.

The fingers along her back pulled tighter and his face pressed more firmly against her.

She rocked them a little, even if it was only his head she was rocking back and forth.

Please talk to me.

Jeanne Alter brushed her fingers through his hair, gently combing it. She curled a little, resting her bosom on him. It was a little embarrassing, but not as horrendously as it had been at the start of their relationship. He was grateful he couldn't see her still blushing furiously all the while as she got used to it.

But it was comforting to him, and that mattered far more right at that moment. He'd mentioned how comforting it was just to be near her and back when he'd said that, she'd shouted at him for being ridiculous, even though by then, she knew full well how comfortable it was for her to be around him.

She didn't know how long they were like that together.

"I still can't believe he's gone." His voice was even more hoarse and jaded than before.

Her fingers continued along his hair, "Neither can I…" She curled over him again, there was a tenseness in her expression that he couldn't see. It was a risk leaving his words out in the open without a response. She took a long breath and settled on what she wanted to say. "He was special to all of us. But you and Mash most of all." She huffed out a few chuckles, "Unlike you though…he was always nervous around me…right through to the end…"

He was special to them.

"I…only wish I got to know him as well as you did."

Slowly, she could feel the tense grip of his fingers starting to wane, relaxing on her skin.

"Thanks," He whispered.

She started to let relief feel her, sensing an end to the worst of it. Tentatively, she kissed his temple. "I've got you." She whispered again.

Ritsuka hummed at her, "Thanks…"

Jeanne Alter's fingers paused in his hair to cradle his head more snuggly against her. "I'm sorry too-" She cut herself off. "For…making things worse."

Once more, much to her relief, she heard him snort. "No, they deserved whatever you said to them."

"Oh, they deserved far worse for demeaning you humanity's hero and savior. My hero and savior." She straightened up. "I'll have you know I was very close to reaching out with my flames and burning whatever the hell they were using to talk to us."

He turned in her lap to look at her. His face was tear-stained, and his hair was a mess, but those blue eyes were gentle once again. They had that comforting spark she was used to.

And this time she didn't care if he saw her relief.

"That would have certainly made things worse dear." He smiled a little and laughed. "But I suppose it might've been well worth it."

Her relief became overwhelming and she leaned over and kissed his lips. It was chaste, quick, and filled with all the emotion she could muster in such a short exchange.

One hand slung itself around her waist, the other, brushed her cheek when she kissed him, and again when she pulled away.

He was smiling up at her.

"You…really had me worried this time, darling." Jeanne Alter admitted, trying to laugh a little at the end, and it came out nervous.

"I…still feel horrible." He spoke honestly, he nodded once. Then his small smile widened looking up at her. "But I feel better thanks to you."

"Good." She said quietly.

It means I did something right at least.

His fingers snuck under the edge of her clothes. Then, tucked between his thumb and index, he rolled it back just enough to kiss her skin beneath the belly button.

Her fingers on his head still in her lap tightened. They both felt the way she suddenly tensed at the more sensual touch.

"Pervert," She muttered, feeling her cheeks warm.

"Only for you," He whispered against her skin.

There was a small twinkle in his blue eyes when he looked up at her. The urge to kiss him again filled her. To reassure him. And reassure herself while she was at it too. So she did, feeling no reason to resist the urge.

This time, however, his hand was not hooked around her midriff. It grasped the nape of her neck to keep them together longer.

She smiled into the kiss to match his fervor, her short white hair still long enough to fall gently around both of their faces for those seconds.

When they parted a line of saliva trailed and snapped between them, and they were both gasping for air.

Her amber eyes flicked between both of his blue ones, and she grinned again when he used that hand tucked onto the hem of her clothes to tug her back, tightening around her chest. He turned inward again and kissed her belly button.

She giggled.

And when he started suckling on her skin her knees pressed upwards against his back, and she pulled against his hair and they both toppled further onto the bed.

In between the mess of trying to get free of their clothes, she'd forced him to pause so that he could look at her smiling at him.

Don't listen to them.

"I love you the way you are Master-Chan."

She held him at bay just to make sure he acknowledged her words. His smile was still a bit solemn, but he kissed her wrist and knuckles as he leaned away from her only just for a second, his thumb brushing under her bosom, fingers working to grasp her breast.

Her breath tensed, and she closed an eye while looking up at him.

"I'm better… really." He promised bowing his head and kissing the skin of her navel once again, just above the hem of her blackened and red skirt. His other hand brushed against her thigh, above her stockings.

Despite her body's shudder, she nodded at him once.

It was only until later when she was resting on top of him in their tangled heat, blowing out heavy breaths that she got a little more serious.

The blankets were now wrapped over them as if to keep their heat tucked in with them. Her bow glistened as she traced a finger up from his chest, and past his collarbone, to his jawline and chin.

His arm around the curve of her back tucked her closer, squishing her chest against his.

She lifted her head from his chest and then firmly grabbed his jaw so that he was looking right at her.

"Better now?" She asked.

He blinked and cracked up with some laughter. The sweet melody calmed her even more to relax on top of him. "Loads, better now."

She pouted at him, "Good~" A sort of devilish smile came across her lips, the one he knew to associate with her more sadistic thoughts, and more brutish parts of her personality.

He wasn't quite afraid of it, but he knew better than to just dismiss that look as some passing nothing.

Just as she intended it to be.

Jeanne Alter leaned in and stole another prolonged kiss from his lips. But when she was finished the grip around his jaw tightened. Her skin glistened, her grin turning wider. "Oh, my sweet darling Ritsu~" She sang gently.

The way his body seemed to stiffen beneath her only steeled her resolve and this particular angle she intended to use.

"Y-yes dear?" He managed, and she could see a bead of sweat forming his temple.

She pressed their naked forms as close together as she could manage, angling close to his lips once again. "You don't value the opinion of strangers more than me, do you?~" Her amber eyes glowing with intensity.

Slowly she felt him relax beneath her as if he seemed to gather himself. He probably saw the question for what it was, and she was fine with that. Jeanne Alter knew she was doing little to hide the way she really felt. She wanted him to know she was worried. She wanted him to know that she would care.

"I really don't." He answered honestly, smiling up at her. He propped himself up just a little with his hand behind his head. "I just…it hurts sometimes…"

Jeanne Alter slowly relaxed her sadistic grin, her grip on his jaw loosening as she felt the palpable honesty.

"I mean… it nearly cost my life many times. Yours, and all the others…just to make sure we won." His mouth twitched, "It hurts knowing I gave it my all…and it still wasn't enough to save him."

Her expression softened and she nodded. "It doesn't take away the fact of the matter, Master-Chan~" Her hand that had been gripping his jaw and mouth slid away, cupping his cheek. "You are the best mage in the world."

Ritsuka huffed a little at that. "Not by any standard metric you know?"

"But my opinion is the most important, remember?" She grinned at him. "And honestly, ask anyone here at Chaldea, if they don't say the same thing, you can damn well believe that they will say something close." She kissed the underside of his chin.

He shook his head smiling. "Well, I wouldn't be much of a hero if I lost to a bunch of snide underhanded misunderstanding remarks would I?"

She kissed him again. "That's right, you aren't allowed to lose." Jeanne Alter kicked her feet up a little beneath the blankets and slid on top of him so her face was directly over his. "I'm glad we understand each other so well."

He squeezed his eyes shut when she came to kiss him. When they parted she made him look her in the eye.

Her fingers gripped his shoulder, her amber eyes softening. Jeanne Alter huffed at him, giving an affirming nod. "Don't you ever dare lose."