'When it comes time to play the game: you make your own moves, you up the ante, and once the chips are down you must make or break or else lose everything.'

'Organization XIII…a group of creatures created from absolutely nothing given form to cause mayhem and to gather a heart to become whole again,' those words ran through Luxord's mind as he sat in the chair in Where Nothing Gathers. The words the Superior had said just lingered on in his head; however they held no long lasting impact since he had heard it many times over ever since he joined the Organization. He was the only one in the room following the meeting between the group's members, and he wasn't too eager to go out and do any missions at the moment. Just being told what to do wasn't enough to get him going, he had to get excited, something to get his legs moving and that did not happen all that often.

So, for the master of time, there was only one thing left to do: he decided to pull out his handy deck of playing cards in an attempt to enlighten his slowly rising level of boredom.

"Of course, the game is more fun when there are other players involved," Luxord said, pulling out a two card from the hand he had. A hand made of a five, a two, a king, and a queen, and an ace…he chose a two first because he had two ideas of what to do to spend his day: either stay in the Castle That Never Was and enjoy a free day or go out to a random world and cause mayhem. The first was sounding way too easy for him, but it was also the most relaxing of course. The other option sounded too obvious and desperate, not a good one on his part.

Nonetheless, he made a choice. "I suppose I can stay at base for the day. Discard." He tossed the two out of his hand and it fell to the floor below his throne. The next card he decided to pull out was the rarer queen, an image of a basic female figure decorated in thick lines and dress. Seeing this card reminded Luxord of a very interesting event that he had participated in the other day in a world called Wonderland.

He had been wondering Wonderland in search of a worthy player to play a game, and he came across a girl. A young one, blond hair and wearing a blue dress. This girl was on some sort of trial with a fat queen who was decorated with hearts and seemed to be in charge of soldiers that looked like playing cards. The queen was being rather unfair and while Luxord knew that this girl tried her best to prove her innocence there was no way she was going to win against this ogre of a queen. Her sentence was rather cruel and barbaric in Luxord's eyes: beheading.

"Now, that was such a sour ending to that farce, no other way to describe that trial as a farce, but I decided to join in and play along," Luxord said with a chuckle, his accent prominent. He went to the flashback…

'The girl was about to be dragged away when I had stepped in, appearing from the portal I was using for traveling. Of course, the queen was more than a little incredulous to my sudden appearance to say the least. She raised her scepter and had pointed it at me, shouting at me words I would not repeat in a crowded room, and I simply raised my hands and removed my hood. The girl, named Alice, hid behind me like I was a sudden knight in shining armor. I am anything but a savior but I was willing to play the part for my entertainment. "May I say, this is by far the most inexcusable trail I have ever seen."

The queen, still overzealous at capturing me, ordered her card soldiers to surround the girl and I with their spears pointed at us. "You here for this culprit, are you? How brave of you to enter my castle without MY permission and think you can leave just as easily!"

I didn't think she was very smart just by looking at her, stubborn and mean, so unbefitting for a queen, but oh well, I conceded that she wasn't going to be nice so I played the first hand. "You want the girl; by all means you can have her-."

I heard Alice gasp and the soldiers moved in on us, but before they got within arm's reach of us I summoned my own cards, the same in size as the Queen's, and they surrounded Alice in a square, "In the event that you win the game."

"Game…what game?"

"Simple if you ask. Play five random cards, we each draw one, and who ever holds the highest wins the duel. The one with the most wins out of five, gets Alice. Agreed?"

Remembering the look upon the Queen's face upon making his game was beyond priceless, and he secretly made sure that even if she refused his game she would lose more than just Alice, but any ounce of pride she had.

Needless to say, she accepted the challenge, but on one condition: "If you lose, cur, it's off with your head!"

Of course, I had a feeling she'd do that, so I decided to up the ante even further. "Then, for my head, you should offer something in return should I win. Something like…that crown upon your brow."

The queen put her little hands on her crown, and for a second I believed she would refuse the offer, but as stupid as she looked, she took the bait. "Alright then, your head or my crown! Let the game begin!"

I summoned five random cards from my deck, the unfolded out in front of me, standing with their fronts to me. The cards were an Ace, a Queen, an Eight, a Five and a Three, quite a lovely piece of work this hand brought me. Of course, all I had to do was win three times and the match would be mine no matter what. I felt confident in this hand.

The queen summoned five cards from the sides of her throne and ordered them to do the same as mine. The match was on.

The white rabbit readied his horn, "On three…one…two…three!" He blew his horn, and we turned our cards over.

I had used my Eight, she used a Four of Spades.

"Looks like you've lost that round, Your Majesty," I had said with a smirk, and I had to hold down a hearty laugh at her face puffing up and red in the cheeks with anger. So unbecoming of a queen.

"Silence! Any taunting and it's off with your head!"

I hid my smile behind my hand at her attempt to threaten me. "Of course. Next round."

Like before, the rabbit readied the trumpet and counted down. "Three…Two…One!"

Our cards turned, I decided to choose a more careful approach. I used the Queen, while the Queen used her second card. I was rather surprised at the result: Queen of Hearts." I shook my head, "Seems that was a draw. Next one."

"Wrong!"

"Hm?"

"Since we're playing in MY castle, it's MY right to have a rule breaker! And the rule is, in the event of a tie, hearts always win!"

I saw that coming in another form, but as the match had just started, I decided to humor her and risk not being disqualified. "Very well. The round is yours."

Going out of his flashback, Luxord looked back at the hand he was holding, and while he had been surprised at the Queen's sudden childish rule, he liked the fact that she was willing to do anything to remain in control, despite it making all a tie at the moment in the game. His queen had lost, no hard feelings, but the next move was even more ridiculous than even the last one.

Card number three was drawn, and I had refrained from using the Ace I had in my possession. Always keep an ace for back up, which was a rule I always followed.

I used my Five, she had used a Six of Hearts. I lost?

"I lost again, Your Highness." I hid my disappointment in the card I drew, while the fat queen jumped up and down with excitement, knowing full well that victory was one round away along with a pair of heads being sliced at the guillotine, mine included. I had two more cards: the ace, and the three. My luck was going sour, and so were my chances of winning. If I could feel it, I would have been worried at that moment.

Still, I was going to take the chance of a lifetime.

The rabbit readied his horn again and the countdown went. "Three…Two…One!"

I turned over the Three, hoping against hope and a collective breath was held around us.

The result was shocking: my Three beat her Two of Clubs.

The Queen must've kept her breath held, since it was deep blue at the moment the result came back that we were tied once again. The next round, unless it were to be a draw, would decide the winner.

I silently gave my thanks to the card that won me the round, while I kept an eye on the Ace. It was my key to victory, and now I had to use it. "I'm ready."

The Queen raised her scepter, ready to call for her soldiers to grab Alice and I should I lose, and the rabbit called down the countdown. "Three…two…one!"

The Queen waited for me, and without losing my poker face, we turned over our cards—

My Ace against her Five of Diamonds. I had won.

"Well, well, well…"I had said, hiding my relief. Aces always won, and mine just did, to my relief. "I won."

"Too bad the Queen didn't think that way. She threw a rather theatrical temper tantrum, calling my victory cheating, it didn't count, or so on and so forth. However, it didn't matter. She had to honor her end of the bargain. Instead, she offered to destroy me and Alice instead of honoring her word. Figured as much," Luxord remembered, remembering how easily it was to take Alice and leave the castle as quickly as he had appeared there.

But he had not left without his trophy. With a grin, he held the proof of his victory with his free hand: the Queen of Hearts' crown.

"Amazing that Alice had taken it off that pompous woman's head when she became preoccupied with me," Luxord thought with a smile. Alice had been brave, and as per his part of the bargain he let Alice go, dropping her off somewhere outside a rabbit hole in a park. He had been certain that Alice would yell at him for using her as a pawn in his game, but to his surprise she didn't. Guess the fact that she got away with her head still between her shoulders was good enough to let it go.

Luxord three the queen card he held in his hand away, remembering Alice's thanks before she went away into the park, and Luxord felt like it was just another day at the office. Well, now he had a new trophy to show off to the other members of the Organization.

"Maybe I'll challenge them to a game," he thought with a chuckle. Life is a game, best enjoy it while he could.