//------------------------------//
// Of a New Season 
// Story: Three More Things! 
// by Tatsurou 
//------------------------------//

Jackie shook his head ruefully as he entered Section 13.  Jade was at home 'sleeping off' the insanity, with Hsi Wu and her cousins taking care of her.  Viper had to head off for 'a job' of some sort, which left him more or less to his own devices.  Having just merged back from being split, Jackie found himself with a bit too much nervous energy, and as such had decided to see if Captain Black had anything interesting going on.  Despite his continued reluctance to consider himself a 'secret agent', he'd gotten too used to it to really turn his back on it entirely.
As he approached Augustus' desk, he saw his friend looking ruefully frustrated.  "Something wrong, Augustus?" he asked in concern as he stepped in.
"Oh, Jackie," the Captain spoke up, shaking his head.  "No, not...wrong, per se.  Just...awkward and frustrating."  He leaned back in his chair with a sigh.  "Jackie...you're on friendly terms with Valmont, aren't you?"
Jackie hesitated.  "Well, I don't know about 'friendly'..." he began evasively.
"I'm not censuring you, Jackie," Augustus reassured him.  "Valmont has always been very personable, and easy to get along with.  It's part of what made him so successful and dangerous.  I'm just asking if he'd greet meeting you socially pleasantly, or if he'd rather not see you."
Jackie rubbed the back of his head.  "Well...his step-daughters are friends with Jade and the girls, so...we do meet socially on occasion..."  He chuckled nervously.  "Though I wish his eldest was a bit less friendly..."  Seeing Augustus' raised eyebrow, he explained, "She's a little...enthusiastic regarding...certain things, and is a bit...too eager to offer Jade advice in that regard.  Frankly, I feel Jade's growing up too fast as it is."
"...ah," Augustus observed awkwardly, plainly having no idea how to respond to that, but having understood Jackie's point.  To pass the time while they both let the awkwardness fade, he began shuffling some papers.
"Why do you ask?" Jackie asked finally.  "Is something up with investigating him?"  Here he found himself conflicted.  On the one hand, despite his intentions he found he liked Valmont as a person, and between that and seeing him doing well as a family man he didn't want to see him getting in trouble, especially if that disrupted his family.  On the other hand, he was a criminal, and in his mind criminal activities had to be pursued by the law.
"You could say that," Augustus admitted ruefully.  "I've been instructed to cease investigations into Valmont specifically as a criminal, and establish a liaison with his organization."
"Buh-wha?" Jackie gasped out in surprise.  "Why?"
"Several reasons," Augustus explained morosely.  "First off, given his work to 'reform' the Demons Sorcerers so they work with the modern world as opposed to trying to conquer it, he's considered useful to the Veil Authority, and in that regard his criminal connections are an asset."
"Politics, then," Jackie mused sympathetically.
"That, and he's apparently one of the most powerful beings on the planet, magically speaking, short of the members of the Jade Council, meaning that if he decided to actively fight law enforcement instead of passively ignoring it, it's doubtful he could actually be contained or locked up unless he allowed it."
Jackie blinked in surprise.  "You mean...literally the only thing that can truly keep him in check is his own conscience?"
"Pretty much," Augustus allowed.  "Oh, there are various ways to counteract his abilities, the normal checks and balances of magic...but the cost/benefit analysis from the political and legal perspective says it's prohibitively expensive to actually try and arrest him, and it's better for all involved to just let him declare his ill gotten gains and pay taxes on them."  Augustus chuckled a bit as he looked at another paper.  "Which he's always been quite conscientious to do, unlike Al Capone."
"Well, I guess that explains it," Jackie allowed uncertainly.
"It's not so bad," Tiger said from his shoulder.
"Not so bad?" Kitten demanded from the other shoulder.  "He's still a criminal kingpin!"
"And there's always going to be crime," Tiger countered.  "Because economics is driven by profit, and everything that can be used to keep crime in check can be profitably used by criminals to evade it.  So short of crime being eliminated completely, better to have someone like Valmont at the top who isn't going to let it turn into anarchy, and prefers to keep profits up and casualties down."
"...good point, but it's still not pleasant," Kitten allowed.
"Never said it was," Tiger agreed.  "But as long as there's crime, best to have someone like Valmont in charge of organizing it, rather than someone like Shendu."
"Also, Lucifer Morningstar personally asked me to change strategies regarding Valmont," Augustus continued.
"Wait, what?" Jackie demanded in surprise.  "A member of the Triumvirate came here?"
"Not officially," Augustus corrected.  "He's unsurprisingly quite good at being circumspect...but apparently he has long term plans involving Valmont for the betterment of the world as a whole, and wanted us to play along.  Which is why I'm hoping you'll act as liaison with Valmont's organization."
Jackie frowned, rubbing his chin thoughtfully as he let that all sink in.  "And...how will that work?" he asked carefully.
"Basically, you just meet with him socially, and pass any messages between the two of us that need to be passed unofficially," Augustus explained.  "You're known to be friends with me, and you're friendly with him, so you have every excuse to meet with either of us, or even arrange for us to meet."
"So you're able to work with his organization without actually 'cooperating with criminals'," Jackie translated dourly.
"Exactly," Augustus confirmed.  "Can I count on you, Jackie?"
Jackie sighed ruefully.  "Like I'd say no," he allowed.  "But I'm not a secret agent."
"No, you're an archaeological criminal expert with the blessing of Bastet, nephew to the world's most famous Chi Wizard, Uncle to the Chosen One, and caretaker to three ki-lin," Augustus pointed out with a teasing smile.  "That's much worse."
Jackie groaned and buried his face in his hands.  "Bad day..."
"Haven't heard that in a while," Augustus mused thoughtfully.