Cole's smirk had vanished when she rebuffed him. Her tone seemed cold and callous, and he couldn't help but wonder how much of it was her lashing out and how much was genuine. Maybe she had misunderstood his words, maybe not. He frowned slightly and followed her to the tent, but a spark hit his mind when she said 'assignment.' To Cole's knowledge, only three vocations used the term in that context. Military Personnel, Students, and Police. She didn't have the bearing of ex-military, and the context didn't fit for college, which left...<i>'No</i>..' he thought to himself. Ezra was too wise to allow a cop into her circle of trust. Besides, the evidence was too circumstantial. A single slip of the tongue was not enough to build a case. He'd need more to confirm his suspicions, and in any case, the queen's order to look after Cat was still in effect...<br/><br/>Still, that wish would be rendered null if it turned out Cat was a direct threat to Ezra. The first and primary element of the oath was the queen's protection.<br/><br/>Distantly, Cole had a worrying thought. He had been in similar situations before, and if there was even a chance of betrayal, he had killed those responsible. He had acted on less evidence in the past... so why was he giving Cat the benefit of the doubt? Was it the queen's order? Was it his own sense of obligation to return the favor she had done for him? ...or was it that deep down, he didn't<i>want </i>to believe she was the enemy. He shelved these thoughts and continued on with Cat in silence.<br/><br/>Cat mentioned drugs probably being involved in the ritual, to which Cole wasn't surprised in the slightest. Vision quests and such were things he had read about, and even Coyote had mentioned something about them during their brief job together. He would be fine with whatever Elise chose for him, gracious enough that she even tolerated his presence. Only the ride along gave him pause, and only because he had no idea what would happen. Even he didn't know how a Djinn would react to spirit walk. It wasn't as if he had other Djinn to teach him, and even then, how many of them could possibly say they had done it. Mixing Darksider properties was unpredictable. Old magics were... territorial.. at times. Still, the old woman wouldn't have let him in if there was a risk. She seemed in the know, and despite how Cat and her seemed to conflict, Cole saw a lot of her in Cat. He smirked slightly that that notion, reminding himself to<i>never</i>tell Cat how he saw similar spitfire tendencies in the two of them.<br/><br/>When she asked him to make sure she didn't get carried away, he blinked. "...As in... literally carried away?" he looked around, as if checking potential entry points in the tent again, then looked back to her, "Or do you mean that you might behave in a manner you'd regret?" He paused, wondering if there were many tribe practices where one might unconsciously strip naked during a spirit walk. For some reason,<i>that</i>was the idea that seemed to stick in his head the most. He closed his eyes and tried to shake the thought from his mind and stay on task, "I'll make sure you're safe." It was the only real assurance he could give under the circumstances.<br/><br/>Cole looked around at the other tribe members gathered within the tent. As they peered at him from the eyes of all manner of animals of the wild, Cole looked right back with eyes of ruby. He was not loved by all here, and that was fine by him. He was an outsider and would be respectful of their customs and traditions... but the look he returned to those who glared at him with hunger or hate was clear. His eyes gave one unspoken promise, 'Do<i>not </i>confuse my respect with fear.'