Main Pairing: USUK

Rated T. Cardverse and Omegaverse.

I own nothing. No copyright infringement intended.

Alfred sighed as he leaned his head back against the headrest. His neck and shoulders were quite sore and his legs were cramped - there was not enough space for him at all. Planes were so uncomfortable -however, it wouldn't be too long until they arrived.

Alfred was on his way to England - he was going on a trip for school, but for the first three days the students were allowed to do whatever they wanted. Alfred had signed up for the optional tour around London. He was pretty excited.

At the moment, however, he really had to go to the bathroom.

They touched down in London. Alfred and his six other classmates, along with their professor and a chaperone. Their professor was called Mrs. Violet. The chaperone was Mrs. Violet's wife. Alfred still wasn't used to seeing lovey-dovey affections in public. Or maybe it was just because he'd never actually seen a lesbian couple before. Whatever the case, he was mildly uncomfortable, and one glance at his classmates told him they were feeling the same way.

"Professor Violet?" Alfred spoke up, always the brash one. "How were we getting to the city again?"

Mrs. Violet smiled at the kids. "When we're here, you can just call me Violet. Kay? We'll all have lots of fun. There's a coach bus scheduled to pick us up in just a few minutes. After that, it'll be a two hour drive to the first site."

"In the meantime," Violet's wife, Garnet, spoke up. "Why don't you kids all find a quick somethin' to eat? We'll be goin' straight to the tour and won't get back to the hotel until later."

Alfred set off on his own, hands in his pockets as the others discussed where to go. He stopped at a Subway inside the airport and grabbed a quick sandwich and pop. He sat at one of the tall tables, just relaxing.

When he saw the other students heading back, he hopped down from his stool and followed them to where Violet and Garnet were waiting. They herded the kids onto the coach bus. Alfred settled himself in the back, by a window, and plugged his headphones in. He wasn't feeling particularly social that day. Not enough to go situate himself with the group of classmates he barely knew the names of. He had tried to convince one of his friends to go with him, but none had been able to.

Alfred fell asleep before they arrived at the city. He didn't see the message he got on his phone - from Matthew - in fact, he accidentally deleted it when he dropped his phone. He was shaken awake by one of the girls. She smiled giddily down at him. "C'mon, Alfie, we're here!" She seemed keen to wait on him.

Alfie?

"Oh..." Alfred said. "Guess I fell asleep." the girl giggled. Alfred grabbed his bag and his phone off the floor, groaning at his sore shoulders and neck. Walking today would be murder.

Alfred stood, stretching. "Where're all the others, exactly?"

"Oh, they went ahead," the girl said, blushing slightly. "I said I'd wake you up."

"Ah." Alfred said, examining her. "You're... Carly?"

"Katie," the girl corrected. "Don't worry. Carly and I look a lot alike and you don't know me very well! But, um..." Katie looked down, twisting her foot around. "I'd kinda like to get to know you more," she said softly.

"Come on," Alfred said, offering her his hand with a grin. "Maybe we'll be partners."

Katie's eyes lit up. She took his hand and Alfred led her out of the bus.

Violet was giving the others instructions when they arrived. "Make sure none of you wander off into any restricted areas. Please stay on this street - there are plenty of buildings to explore. Try to stay with a partner at all times. It looks like one of the groups will have to be a group of three. Otherwise, meet me and Garnet back here in three hours, okay? If there are any problems, we've all exchanged cell numbers."

"Katie!" another girl screamed. True to Katie's word, Carly did look a lot like her. "We're partners. Kay? Kay. Oh, hey Alfred!" Katie gave Alfred an apologetic look as she was dragged off by her friend."

Alfred gazed down the street. There were quite a few interesting looking places around. But one in particular caught his eye - a huge, ancient building. It looked like a church.

He headed towards it, barely aware that he had even made the decision to start moving. Hadn't he planned to find a group? See what the options were before choosing where to go? But this place - it looked so mysterious, Alfred just had to find out what was in there.

The doors were slightly ajar, and heavy. He slipped through them and off of the street. As soon as he entered the small room, all noise faded from outside. There was complete silence.

Alfred was disappointed at first - he was expecting a huge building decorated with marble and pillars and such. But as he looked around the room, he saw another door, off to the side and in the shadows that he hadn't noticed before. Excited, he went through it and found himself in a huge chamber.

Light filtered in from numerous small, high windows. The silence was even more absolute here, thick and somehow peaceful. Most everything there was covered in a thin layer of dust. And it was definitely an old cathedral.

On the other side of the room, a cut out of the wall revealed a staircase leading upwards. Light entered the room from there too, though Alfred saw no windows in the walls of the stairway.

He went up. And up. And up.

After he got up the staircase, he found an empty, stone lined room with wide oak doors on the other side. He had come this far - Alfred went to examine them. In the stone before the doors, and in the frame all around, there were carved symbols, strange ones that Alfred had never come across before.

He rested a hand on one of the tall, tall doors. It was solid, he could tell, and heavy. Heavier than the doors leading into the building. He pushed a little. The door moved.

He put both hands on the door and shoved. He slipped into the room, shutting the door behind him. As it shut, he swooned, feeling dizzy, but shook it off fairly quickly. He was disappointed - the room was once again, completely empty except for a small door on the other side.

But wait - there were windows! Had Alfred really traveled to another side of the place already? The windows were strange - they were tiny, and not covered with glass - the air in this room was cool. He looked out of one of the windows.

He was much higher up than he should have been, unless the back of the street fell off into a cliff, which he was fairly certain that it didn't. Alfred backed away from the small window and turned to go back.

But the doors were gone.

He wondered if they were disguised doors, painted to look like there was nothing but wall there - an escape route, perhaps? But as he shoved against where the doors used to be, he knew... this wall was nothing but solid stone, and there was no way he was getting through it.

Alfred was completely baffled. How could such large, solid doors be there one moment and gone the next? It didn't make any sense. Unless it had something to do with his dizzy spell - but that didn't make much sense either.

He tried the other door, and it was unlocked. It led to a narrow staircase leading down, so Alfred went down it, trying not to feel claustrophobic as his tall frame barely fit into the tunnel. The door leading out looked the same as the one above it. Alfred pushed through - and into an entirely different section of the church.

Alfred wondered if this was why some places were off limits - was it because they were turning the church into a hotel? They'd been doing that with plenty of old castles lately - and this place had old fashioned lamps on the walls, a long carpet lining the center of the floor, paintings on the walls - why they had gas lamps instead of lights Alfred had no idea. Maybe they were trying to make it authentic? He hoped there'd be someone here who could help him back to the older section.

Suddenly, Alfred caught a sharp, clean scent in his nose. He sniffed, breathing it in... it was heavenly. It affected him in strange ways - suddenly, he felt strangely possessive, powerful... he wanted to dominate. What, he wasn't sure, but the feeling was there...

Just as abruptly, the scent began fading away. Alfred shook his head. "Pull yourself together, man," he muttered. That was strange. Did they have some sort of awful drug here that made people feel weird? Alfred wanted to get out of this place.

Alfred went to pull out his phone and call Violet... but then he realized. His bag and his phone were no longer with him. He had had them before he went through the doors, but not after. Now Alfred was really starting to freak out.

Then the sweet scent came back. But it was accompanied by another one, a ...softer one, almost. It did things to Alfred's body that he would be ashamed of if he was thinking straight. And when the two people rounded the corner, he didn't even think. He was on top of the soft one before you could say Alfred, pinning him against the wall. He nuzzled into the boy's neck, completely giving in to instinct.

The guy's companion grabbed him by the hair and dragged him away. Alfred cried out painfully as his head was slammed against the opposite wall by a small asian man.

"Yao!" the other man called. "Do not kill him."

The man holding Alfred hesitated. Alfred twisted out of his grip and backed away, tripping onto his back. He rose a hand to his head, where a bit of blood trickled down.

"Okay, so maybe I deserved that one," he said. "I'm sorry, I don't know what came over me, I just - could either of you possibly direct me back to my friends? We're on a tour, and I split off from them and kind of ended up here. I'm really sorry about... what just happened, I-"

Alfred looked up, seeing the other two clearly for the first time. The smaller one, the asian one, was wearing strange blue robes, and the soft one was wearing an old English style waistcoat and a trench coat. All shades of blue. That was kind of weird. They were looking down at him suspiciously.

"You are from the other world," The soft one said.

"Okay, I really have to stop referring to you as 'the soft one' in my head, so could you tell me your name?" Alfred said. He decided to ignore the strange clothes for now.

The man puffed himself up. "Soft? Who are you calling soft?"

Alfred shook his head tiredly. "No it's... your scent? That's weird, how'd I know that it was your scent... but it's soft, sort of. His kinda reminds me of rain. Or fall. It's really crisp and clear. Yours is softer. Like old, faded spices or something."

Yao looked at the other. "It reminds me of tea," he said. His asian accent was strong.

"I am Arthur," the soft one said. "Queen of Spades. Who are you?"

Alfred shook his head again. "Wait - Queen? But you're not a girl."

Arthur glared down at Alfred. "I am perfectly aware of what gender I am, stranger. It is simply a political position."

"Oh." Alfred said. "If you say so. My name's Alfred. Alfred F Jones."

Then all of what Arthur had said clicked in.

"Wait - Queen of Spades? I've never heard of Spades before. It is like a micronation?"

"No," Arthur said curtly. "It is a country. Count yourself lucky that I'm not leaving you to rot in prison. I am going to help you."

"Your Highness -" Yao said.

"That is enough," he interrupted. "Alfred. Come with me. You have much to learn."

They left Yao behind as Arthur brought Alfred through twists and turns until he was completely lost. Then Arthur opened a door, out into a deserted courtyard full of gardens and bright flowers. They sat in chairs overlooking the countryside.

"Alfred." Arthur spoke softly, his voice nearly carried away by the wind. "You need to understand something."

"Uh huh?" Alfred said.

"Do not interrupt," Arthur glared. "You can save questions for the end. I just... I do not even know how to begin this..."

Alfred waited in silence until Arthur gathered his thoughts.

"You are no longer in your own world."

"How is that-"

"I said do not interrupt!" Arthur said, eyes flashing. Alfred became defiant. Who was this omega to tell him what to do - wait, omega? What the crap was an omega?

"Arthur, what's an omega?"

Arthur blinked, surprised. "You know about those?"

"No, not really, just -"

"I will explain that when we get to it," Arthur said, brushing it off. "Just listen. You are not in your world anymore. You are in Cards. I do not know how. Or how you got into the castle. But... here things are different than in your world. That much I know."

Alfred nodded, trying to refrain from asking all of the questions bubbling to his mouth. It was difficult.

"Spades is my kingdom. There are four countries. Spades, Hearts, Diamonds, and Clubs."

"Wait - hold up," Alfred said. "Four countries - Spades, Hearts, Diamonds, Clubs? That's it?"

"Yes. There is also the places where the Jokers go, but no one knows where that is. Or how to get there."

"Jokers too?"

"Yes."

"And you're the Queen of Spades. Is there a King?"

Arthur hesitated. "Usually, there is a King and Queen for every country, along with a Jack. However, out King died, and we have not been able to find a suitable one since."

Alfred was surprised. Was this a dream? "This is exactly like a deck of cards."

"What?"

"In my world, we have a game we can play - well several games, that all use the same thing. It's a deck of cards - flat little rectangles of paper. And there's four different types - Spades, Hearts, Diamonds and Clubs. And in every type, there's a King, a Queen, a Jack, and an Ace, and all of the numbers. And there's Jokers too."

Arthur nodded. "Whoever made those things must have been here once."

"Once? Like they got back?"

Arthur eyed him. "Possibly."

Alfred rubbed his head. The cut had long since dried up, but he felt terribly sticky. "So Cards is this world where you live. And there's four countries. And no way for me to get home."

"Well, there should be. There is a legend about a pair of ancient oaken doors, carved with sigils - ancient magic - that-"

"I saw those doors!" Alfred said excitedly. "That's how I got here! I went through them and ended up in a really high tower, near that door where you found me."

"That is your ticket back, then." Arthur said.

Alfred hesitated. "When I was still up there, I tried to go back. The doors were gone."

"What?" Arthur seemed so upset he stood up. "They moved?"

"Yeah."

He scowled. "The only reason they would ever move would be if someone else came through. The doors were in Hearts before you came. But... two in one day? The last person who came through was a good sixty years ago."

"I didn't see anyone following me, either," Alfred added, trying to be helpful.

Arthur moaned, sending chills through Alfred's spine. "This could not have come at a worse time."

"What do you mean?"

Arthur sighed, sitting down again. "Cards is on the brink of war. Spades is desperately searching for a King. It is only a matter of time before we're attacked. Every day Clubs retreats farther and farther into itself - they are acting suspicious. Diamonds too - though I suppose I never really trusted Diamonds anyways. Bloody frog," he added under his breath.

Alfred suddenly clamped his hands over his nose as the wind started up. Arthur looked at him curiously.

"It- your scent -" Alfred said, blushing. "I'm so sorry, I don't know why it affects me so much! I've never met anyone that smelled as strongly as you and your friend - not in a bad way, I mean," he added hurriedly.

For some odd reason, Arthur blushed. "Oh, erm... I can explain that."

"Can you?" Alfred asked desperately.

"I did not realize that it was not the same in your world. But here, we have... a sort of caste system. But it's not according to wealth. It doesn't necessarily affect anything except a person personally. But the caste system goes like this: Alpha, Beta, Omega. That was why I was surprised you knew about omegas."

Alfred's brain slowly processed this new information. "But what does that have to do with -"

Arthur blushed even darker. "Bollocks - It is a bit difficult to have to explain it, I do not know how parents manage with their kids. But, erm. It is like, here, we have this primal part of us, like wolves or whatever animals do this. And alphas are the dominant ones, omegas are the submissive ones. Betas are somewhere in between. Some alphas are more alpha than others, some omegas are more omega. The betas can vary, more alpha, more omega, or right in the middle. Betas are the most commonly misclassified. But judging by how you have been... acting," here Arthur swallowed. "I would say you're an alpha."

Alfred was startled to learn this new information, but he definitely wasn't surprised at which one he was. Of course he was the dominant one - he was the hero, right?

"The caste system basically helps us, erm, mate," Arthur informed him. "Alphas are most commonly paired with omegas, but betas can pair with either. There's a bunch of rules and everything. Social expectations, I suppose."

"Oh." Alfred's own face was beginning to heat up. He could practically smell the embarrassment coming off of Arthur.

"Your Highness," a voice said. Yao had returned.

"Yao," Arthur sighed. "Finally."

Yao smirked. "Your face is as red as a fresh heart leaf, your Highness," he teased. "Come. There is business to attend to."

"Alfred," Arthur said. "This is Yao, the Jack of Spades. For now, you should find Li Xiao. He will help you around. I will expect to see you at dinner. Tell Li Xiao to find you some proper clothing... so you do not stand out too much."

With that, Arthur and Yao left.

How the heck was Alfred supposed to find this Li Xiao?

He wandered back down into the castle. The first person he came across was an omega girl that smelled like daisies. "Excuse me," he said. The girl blinked at him.

"Hey, do you know where I could find Li Xiao? Only your Queen Arthur or something told me to look for him."

The girl looked startled.

"It's a long story," Alfred said.

"Li Xiao is this way," the girl said. She was asian too. "I am Lien Chung."

"Oh," Alfred said. He didn't know what else to say.

When they arrived at a certain room, Lien gestured to the door. "Li Xiao is here," she said. Then, "I must leave now. I have business." She scurried away.

Alfred knocked on the door. The person inside quickly responded. He looked as startled as Lien had.

"Hello, my name is Alfred," he began. "Arthur told me to find you. I came from another world and I'm kind of confused. And I'm supposed to find suitable clothes before dinner tonight. Or something."

Li Xiao nodded. He didn't even question it. "Come inside."

Li Xiao's room was simple, but had a touch of asian influence. Alfred could tell. The man walked through another door and came back holding a number of clothing items folded over his arms. Every single one was some shade of blue.

"I have a question," Alfred said as he accepted the clothes. "How come everything you wear is blue? Is it a royalty thing, like only the royal people are allowed to wear this colour?"

"No," Li Xiao said. "We do not have those sort of petty privileges. Usually. However, each country here has their own signature colour. It is a part of how we identify people we do not know. And, I suppose, it gives us a sense of pride."

"So Spades is blue," Alfred nodded.

Li Xiao got his hint. "Spades is blue, yes, and sometimes a bit of purple. Hearts is red," he said. "It is a bit obvious. Diamonds is gold, but they all wear varying shades of yellow and orange. Clubs is green."

"Huh," Alfred said, lifting the clothes up so he could see them. There was a light, light blue button up shirt, along with a darker vest and a long sort of trench coat. His pants matched his tie. There was a tie!

"These clothes are kind of like they're from old England," Alfred mused. "Arthur was wearing stuff like that too... but Yao wasn't. It's like a mix of completely different cultures here."

"What?"

"Nothing."

Alfred needed a bit of help figuring out the vest, but he got it eventually. He even tied the tie correctly. As he fingered his clothes, he noticed the two decorative spades just over halfway down the side of the coat.

"Come," Li Xiao said. "I will clean your injury."

"Huh? Oh..." Alfred said, feeling his forehead with his fingers.

"Do not touch!" Li Xiao scolded, slapping his hand away. "You will get an infection. Infections are not good for the brain."

Alfred fiddled his hands, not liking being told what to do. It was strange - he wasn't usually quite this rebellious. But apparently, being an alpha brought that out of him.

It was still strange to think that, just a short while ago, he had still been in England, flirting with pretty girls and thinking about homework. Now he had to worry about a kingdom without a king and controlling his primal urges. He hadn't thought about it too deeply until now. He wasn't on Earth. He didn't know how to get back. Alfred thought about Professor Violet - would she get in trouble for his mistake? And Matthew... oh, Mattie would be terrified.

"What is wrong?" Li Xiao asked. Alfred was pulled back to reality. A single tear was traveling down his cheek as the man rubbed his head with a washcloth, removing the dried blood. Alfred quickly wiped it away, displacing his glasses.

"Nothing," Alfred said. "I'm not crying."

"I can smell your grief," Li Xiao said. "Do you wish to talk about it?"

Alfred shrugged in a small way. "I'm just thinkin' about where I came from. My brother's probably gonna be really worried when he finds out I'm missing. If I can't get back to him... We haven't always had the closest relationship, we live in different countries, but still. He'll be heartbroken."

Li Xiao nodded. "I am sure his Highness has asked Lord Yao to find a way to get you home. Yao is an expert in magic."

"Magic?" Alfred spluttered. "I have to worry about magic too, now?"

Li Xiao frowned. "You do not have to worry about it," he said pointedly. "Come. I am sure that they are preparing for dinner now and you do not want to be late if his Highness has requested you."

Li Xiao escorted Alfred to the dining room - and indeed that was what it felt like, because Li Xiao was stiff and formal and only talked if Alfred asked a question. After a little while Alfred gave up trying.

Arthur and Yao were already in the dining room, heads together over a table and discussing things softly. Alfred narrowed his eyes. Were Arthur and Yao...

Arthur looked up then, noticing Alfred. "Alfred," he said. "You look sufficiently..."

"Blue?" Alfred joked, trying to cover up his earlier emotions. "Yeah, Li Xiao helped me with the whole clothes situation." he adjusted his vest. "It's kinda different than I'm used to."

"I am sure," Arthur said curtly. "Over dinner, we will discuss your situation in more depth. You must excuse me."

Yao was rolling up some of the papers the two had been studying. He gave Alfred a suspicious look before disappearing through a back door. Arthur hung the lamp they were using back on the wall, sighing. A hand went to the back of his neck and he rubbed it unconsciously. Abruptly, Arthur turned and exited the same door Yao had.

Alfred was left alone in the dining room.