One from a storied line of monster hunters whose legacy dates back centuries. She doesn't quite look the part, but in the modern age holy swords, heavy armor and blessed banners aren't really all that practical and when the forces of darkness can be hiding around every corner it’d be foolish to wear your allegiance on your sleeve. Compounding the matter, the social implications are trickier in this day and age. Not every demon, warlock and dragon you meet is necessarily all that bad. Some vampires strike deals with blood banks rather than take innocent lives and some demons aren’t being coy when they say they just want to enjoy what the mortal realms have to offer. Many of the ones who really are that bad do a good job of insulating themselves too: you can’t just storm the lair of an evil lich and strike her down when that lich also happens to be the police commissioner. The hack and slash approach doesn’t exactly apply anymore and often righteous fury must be curtailed in the name of pragmatism.
As a result, in her duties Alex often resembles a detective or spy more than a traditional holy knight. Defeating the forces of darkness and uncovering their schemes is a matter of carefully sifting through evidence, studying behavior and tracking patterns far more than it is one of simply fighting monsters. Figuring out the best way to confront the fiend after they've been unmasked is often an equally daunting task.
Her method of smiting fiends is one adjusted to the modern age as well. Gone are the bulky arms and armor of old, instead paladins of today rely more on their magical blessings, manipulating the divine energies they channel to protect their allies and smite their foes. Physical training emphasizes athleticism, acrobatics and unarmed combat over traditional disciplines and while still encouraged by many orders, learning how to fight with a sword is more a matter of tradition than practicality.
She is on the school fencing team though, because of course the Academy would have a fencing team.Being a paladin doesn’t necessarily mean being nice though. Her reputation for perfectionism and pragmatism in all things comes with an equal notoriety for being cold, aloof and dismissive of those she doesn't think are worth her time, sometimes crossing over into downright mean with an icy, vindictive temper that sometimes gets the better of her. She’s prideful too. She argues it’s justified: her family is wealthy and prestigious (or at least it was… more on that later), she’s at the top of her class, athletic, pretty, popular and – oh yeah – literally blessed by the divine. Being better than her peers isn't a matter of ego, it's a solemn duty.
Her brethren knights would argue she’s just arrogant.
She’s not all bad though. She really is fighting to protect people from evil, after all. Her worst traits tend to be exacerbated by the stress of balancing school and her secret extracurricular activities and she’s a bit more relaxed if she’s not on a tough case. She also works hard to protect and work with the monsters in her territory that aren’t causing trouble, something a lot of her brethren knights might not bother with.