Alfred stuffed his right hand in his pocket as he counted the number of people in the crowd he could pick out. First, there was Matthew and Katya were sitting in their usual spots, conversing with another. Carlos was behind him – was that Berwald on duty? – a few familiar cameraman, the advisors...

"Alfred, we're starting in three," Yao said, saving Alfred from himself. "What's that you're looking at – oh, I'm sure Katya and Matthew are just discussing how we're going to keep her in Spades this year. That's all."

"Yao, that was a half hearted guess, you know I didn't mean it," Alfred said, trying to not pout. When Katya, as Joker, had first been assigned to Spades two years ago, Alfred had hoped for a match between them and foolishly confided to Yao about it. Soon after, it became quite clear that neither of them were attracted to each other, and as a result Yao would lightly tease Alfred about his futile matchmaking attempts. "No need to tease me about it already!"

"Yes, yes," Yao said. "Still, it was quite amusing when you were willing to bicker with Ivan over it."

"Of course you had to be there."

"That's correct. I must watch out for you and Matthew at all times, as my lieges." Yao said. "Also, to ensure that you and Ivan don't punch holes through each other unsupervised – I thought you were trying to not pout?"

Alfred couldn't help but pout even more. "Yao, that's mean – aww, don't pinch my cheek!"

In response, his mentor only smiled indulgently. In the years since their parents' passing, taking the role of parent to both Matthew and Alfred had been difficult at first, but Alfred knew that no single person would have done a better job. "All right, all right. Well, we better take our seats. If you need anything, as agreed on, just speak as if you're speaking to the three of us, yes? But tonight the spotlight will be on them, not you."

"Not complaining about that." With a squeeze of hands, they parted to sit on their separate chairs.

"Good evening, all of Cards," Yao announced, starting his spiel unflinchingly. "I'm sure that many folks have been awaiting this Broadcast eagerly, as it's the special edition that'll allow us to get to know more of the candidates in close depth after the interviews that aired last week. The Deciding currently going on in Spades has no doubt attracted all your attention when we saw them three weeks ago as they left their homes for a lavish life – and the chance to win Prince Alfred's heart. Tonight, we will get more insight into the process and what they have been up to since we left them with a live interview."

"Joining us tonight is, of course, Prince Alfred, along with all of the remaining Chosen with us tonight." Yao said to a polite smattering of applause. "Your Highness, would you like to say a few words to start us off with?"

"Just a few, don't worry," Alfred said, garnering laughs from the audience and the Chosen, Arthur included. Only someone like him could shine so brightly underneath the spotlight. "I'm really thrilled for everyone to get an opportunity to get to know all of these wonderful men and women better tonight, as one of them will be the future Queen of Spades, so I hope everyone listens closely."

"Well said, my prince. No doubt you all are interested in who will become the next Queen of Spades, so we will be talking to each Chosen one by one, and see how they have been doing with our crown prince. And with that, I'd like to invite our first member of the Chosen, Leila, to the stage."

She seemed rather laid back on stage, her brown hair falling into a bob around her chin. She opened effortlessly, talking about the horse riding lessons she'd received, and elaborated on the things she liked in the palace, all the while glancing at the prince Alfred. Avie was skittish as well, her voice growing quieter as the interview progressed, her fingers constantly fiddling with the hem of her pink dress. Alfonso, ever the easygoing figure, effortlessly cracked a few jokes during his interview, to the point where Emma and Mark could barely hold in their laughter. Sakura was silently mortified, elbowing them as forcefully as she would go to try to keep them quiet, and Arthur did his best to pretend that they didn't exist.

Leon was animated as he talked, his voice raising a few notches, full of enthusiasm as he described the palace and the things he liked to do. Sakura managed to hold her own, even though she got rather flustered halfway when she was asked about her feelings about the prince, and Emma was so bubbly she nearly fell out of her chair as she kicked her legs back and forth, and Thomas did not feel shy at all talking about his impression about the prince, cheerfully discussing their first date together. Other than that, conversation pieces passed in blurs as Arthur slowly watched the microphone and spotlight move closer and closer to him.

Practically everyone said he was a perfect person, something Arthur wouldn't disagree with in a thousand years. Mark went as far as to compliment his dress sense, Emma said he was hopelessly attractive, blushing slightly as Alfred gave her a flattered smile. Marianne said that she admired his power over the country, which Emma and Leon exchanged an expression that Arthur couldn't catch, and a few of them were even asked whether they had been kissed. Sakura covered her face for a second before answering with a bright red face that she hadn't but she would have liked to, and after a handful of them, Yao turned to Alfred with an amused glance.

"Prince Alfred, really?!" Yao said, his expression teasing. "I wasn't expecting that from someone as bold as you." Laughter from the audience.

"I mean, they've only been here like three weeks! I'm not sure whether even I'm prepared to accept a kiss, what kinda guy do you think I am?" he replied, a cheeky smile on his face, but his hands nervously fiddled with his watch as he said it. In Arthur's opinion, it looked like he'd never even been kissed.

Almost too quickly before he could tease him in his head, the microphone was handed to Arthur.

"Sir Arthur Kirkland, is it?" Yao said. "You've come from the Hearts holding facility, yes? Is there a story behind it?"

He wasn't sure how to react correctly, so he decided to repeat the story he'd told on the edited interviews. "Yes, that's correct. I've been there since I've been small. As you know, some families choose to give their children to the holding facilities to try to increase the odds of getting into a Deciding. However, it wasn't the case for me, my family – at least, I mean my siblings. Our parents…aren't here anymore, so naturally they were responsible for my upbringing, and wanted me to have a happier standard of living." Taking a deep breath, he continued. "Being in the holding facilities by the time His Highness's Deciding occurred was a stroke of luck."

"Oh, I see. Do you mind to tell us more about them?" the question came tactfully, and Arthur felt himself start to relax.

"We had a big household. As our family wasn't particularly affluent, it was the norm, so I have five brothers and sisters. You can probably guess, but there's not a quiet moment without a fight, but I wouldn't trade them for anything.

Realizing it was possibly the nicest thing he'd ever said about his family – and on live television as well, Arthur quickly moved on. "There's Allistor, Dylan, Christian, Erin and Cormac. Allistor's the oldest, and Erin and Cormac are twins," Arthur said, feeling much more confident in a question where he wasn't confused by the answers. "Unfortunately, I'm the second youngest of the family. I'm seventeen – have my birthday in two weeks - so I was the only one eligible for a slot when the time came. Thanks to them registering me for the opportunity, I had a rather comfortable life, not worrying about common necessities. And I'm happy they got that as well," he smiled to himself, remembering the nagging that had gone with their family life.

He'd also managed to put in the obligatory comment about the holding facilities, so he relaxed even more. It was practically the same as the aired interview, so it might not even be that bad!

"Six children? That's amazing how you could manage to fit, what a remarkable family," Jack Yao said, his expression one of genuine surprise. "And what was it about a fight?"

"Well, I'm not exactly a pushover, and Erin always tells me I have an impressive temper," Arthur replied, feeling somewhat sheepish. "I don't like getting help from others, I think that's from my father, and I've been told I'm not exactly the friendliest person around." He'd decided to take a page from His Highness's book and use that self-deprecation to attempt to charm, but he couldn't gauge the audience's reaction before the Jack continued speaking.

"I see, I see. Though I must ask, Sir Arthur, did you make an exception for our prince in the month you've been here?"

Out of the corner of his eye, the blond could catch a glimpse of the prince. He looked like he was about to burst a vein laughing.

"Erm...not exactly," Arthur said. Excellent, there went all his bleeding confidence. "I must say, well, it was quite the opposite, really."

"Oh? Do tell!"

"I mean - our meeting was civil enough, but for some reason, he found my entrance hilarious to the point of bursting into laughter." What little enjoyment Arthur got was drawn by the way Alfred's smirk completely vanished from his face to be replaced by an expression of panic. "I chalked it up to, you know, jitters and things one gets when meeting someone new, however he gave a perplexing answer."

"And what would that be?" Yao asked, tipping his head to one side.

"He said that I was not what he expected," Arthur said truthfully. "I suppose it was mostly nerves back then. Regardless, I was obviously not very pleased, but we had a more...civil conversation, it seems as if we got off to a better start. I will confess that initially, it surprised me that he did not kick me out straight after that."The advisors sitting near the royals below the stage looked tense, a few were clearly not happy but a handful of them seemed amused. Next to him, he could hear some members of the Chosen snickering, and he turned slightly red.

"So, now you're on apparent good terms," the Jack raised his eyebrow meaningfully and Arthur had to laugh, "We must know, what did you do on your date?"

"Well, there was this place in the garden where we sat and spoke. Nothing particularly fancy, just words and us." Arthur carefully avoided adding any sort of downplaying words to his answer to avoid the same situation again. "I know it seems quite simple, but I really did enjoy the time spent with him. I-I mean, the simplicity of it all!" he blurted, trying to overlap what he said. I didn't want to say that out loud – what in the Fates was I thinking?

"So, what do you like the best about the palace so far? I mean, you've talked about the gardens, so is that your favourite place?"

"I would say so, yes." Arthur said. "Whilst I was studying in the holding facilities, I read a lot on the unique and rare flowers within the gardens, so that place has always been a point of interest for me. Erm, the other place I'm planning to visit more often is the library, where there are a lot of books. I quite like to read, and, er, was planning to continue my studies there whilst I'm still in the Deciding," he added on quickly, thinking back to Kiku's letter.

Yao laughed, amusement glimmering in his gaze. "You're certainly not short of ambition, Sir Arthur. In the same vein, do you have any ambitions of winning this, hm?"

"Well…I'm not sure about that." Oh no, I should have gone for the more inconspicuous answer, but... "I guess that's a question Al – His Highness has to answer himself in the end." He managed to catch himself just in time, thankfully, as there wasn't a collective rumble of surprise that would have swept through the crowd if he'd done so.

Unfortunately, it didn't seem as if the answer was very satisfactory, because Jack Yao pushed further. "That may be true, Sir Arthur, but we'd like to hear your thoughts on the matter."

Arthur swallowed, preparing to shoot back some teasing comment about his hero complex or his overly loud voice or even his multiple fumbles, trying to cover up the embarrassing slip, but as he caught Alfred's eyes behind his glasses, he could see the yearning for an answer, his opinion. The same sort of yearning that he'd showed last night.

And to poke fun at him, to hold back his true feelings, the ones that had started to grow in his heart, even if they were never supposed to.

"Prince Alfred's just…there aren't really any words to describe him as I know him now," Arthur began slowly, clasping his hands together and running his thumb over his knuckles repeatedly. "There's obviously a certain view you develop of him in the holding facilities, but the real person who you get to know is quite different. Kind doesn't even begin to describe his personality. True, he's very adamant in declaring that he's a hero of some sort, and may be a little tongue tied at bizarre times, but he's very sweet to everyone. He doesn't seem to think badly of people and cares about their plight, and I daresay he's more than capable for the role of King when he does ascend." Catching the Jack's pleased expression, he didn't dare to look at Alfred's face now, not when the embarrassing things he was saying were plastered onto the sets of televisions all over the continent.

"I haven't mentioned this during our previous conversations, but I'm honoured to be serving as his subject, no matter what the result of the Deciding will be." Arthur said. He felt as if his heart was going a million miles per hour, he was pretty sure his face was red, but he had to keep on speaking. "Whoever will be marrying him in the end - I'm sure that they're incredibly fortunate to win his affection and company."

"Thank you so much for your words, Arthur," the Jack finished, leaning over to shake his damp palm before moving on to the next chair. To his credit, he did not immediately wipe it off his white gloves. "We'll be moving on, up next is Sir David – how have you enjoyed the process so far?"

Arthur managed to not catch Alfred's gaze for the rest of the Broadcast, feeling the embarrassment rise in his cheeks, barely acknowledging when Leon had nudged him in the shoulder approvingly, quietly replaying the conversation he'd had in his head.

" Whoever will be marrying him in the end - I'm sure that they're incredibly fortunate to win his affection and company."

Arthur's smile had been genuine. If his words had been too, that meant that...

Alfred gnawed on a loose piece of skin on his thumb. I kinda wanna see him now.

"Hm? Alfred, are you slacking off again?"

"Nah, Lud," Alfred said quickly. He was literally in a middle of a call to Ludwig on the port, damn it, he should be focusing! "How's the Deciding going on your end?"

Ludwig, the King of Hearts, looked tense. His usually carefully done hair had fallen down into his usual attractive fringe, and his bedroom was empty, somehow feeling hollower without his husband. "We're progressing at a snail's pace, compared to you. To be honest, with Feli's blessing that he received two weeks ago, we haven't been able to plan a proper schedule like you three have. Only five eliminated, and not much else to report other than that. However, everyone here is more than capable of managing their own time correctly. They've come to accept that it's more a waiting game than something we can force out of our own volition."

"I see, I see. Though, would you prefer it be a romantic thing?" Alfred said.

The grimace on his friend's face was pronounced. "Alfred, I already underwent my own all those years ago, and it was strenuous enough. Rest assured, I do not need another one that will attempt to do the impossible in replacing my other half."

"Come on, Lud, it was just a joke! It's only been a few years, anyway..."

"Long enough," Ludwig groused. "There isn't much that would entertain you in terms of exclusive news, though. I am far more interested in your process. Though I have yet to watch the Spadian Broadcast this evening, Feli says that it was incredibly interesting. What did you think?"

"I can't help but feel they all spoke super high of me," Alfred mumbled, scratching the side of his face in self consciousness. "Like, way too high. I was kinda worried that they were going to be really mean, but I overestimated their meanness."

"Alfred, you do realise that the Chosen are there for you?" Ah man, that same exasperated tone that he'd only grown fonder of as time passed. "To say that it would be a disaster for them if they spoke ill of you at length would be an understatement."

"Uh, Lud, I kinda don't get what you mean-"

"No one would dare criticize you to a continent hell-bent on watching the most important Deciding we've had since your father," Ludwig said quietly, shifting on his sofa. "You're aware of this, but I understand that you're afraid of stating the obvious in order to not appear overly egotistical."

After all these years, with everything in between, Ludwig could still read him to the point where it was scary. "I guess you could say that," Alfred said, shrugging and doing his best to seem as if he didn't really care. "At least, the Deciding is the first way to signify my change from prince to king, right?"

"Not only that, but it's a way of demonstrating your effectiveness when it comes to tackling your duties, yes." At least he sounded somewhat impressed by his answer. "No one denies that the Deciding is extremely...loaded, at least for you. I've spoken to Francis and Vash about it at least once, and several times at dinner have we spoken about it here."

"Great, no pressure on me. I'm gonna guess the same thing's been going on around the entirety of Cards, too..." Man, he really needed a shot of that goddamn coffee. Unable to ignore the sudden dryness in his mouth, he took a big swig whilst Ludwig watched severely from the screen. If it had been any other guy, Alfred might have glared at him, but it was just his resting face, so to speak. "...Who am I kidding, it's happening everywhere! And why does it have to be mine that's so exciting!"

Ludwig sighed. "Finally, some common sense, Alfred." At his friend's sputter though, he snorted. "All right, I'll let up on you. But you do know, you could technically marry someone with noble birth had you not needed a Queen. Say, Vash, or Lovino, or even a certain Clubs King-"

"You're not finishing that sentence, Lud!" Alfred cried, growing even louder when he saw the grimace smile hybrid on his face. "Since when did you have the right to have fun?"

His friend's cheeks pinked, before he gave a tiny shrug. "I got married to someone who taught me to, I suppose. No, Alfred, you're not allowed to show me that expression either! Go find your own."

"Trying, trying!" There was a commotion in the background of Ludwig's screen, and to his pleasant surprise the Jack of Hearts and Ludwig's husband, Feliciano, popped in. His head was covered with a towel, but not much else was. It took him a matter of moments to rush over to the port and Ludwig with an excited cry. "Feli-"

"Alfred, Alfred!" Feliciano cried, his eyes sparkling. "Hi! How are you doing today? Ludwig, you didn't tell me he was going to call or I wasn't gonna take a nice long bath, even though it was a super nice one with a lot of nice smelling oils and I really enjoyed it! It's not fair if you're hogging his attention since he's the most wanted guy in Cards right now!"

As usual, he spoke with an infectious excitement and hand gestures so enthusiastic Alfred was slightly surprised his slender wrists didn't snap off. "Heh, Feli, it's okay, we were only talking for a little bit."

"Oh! Alfred!" Feli beamed, taking a moment away from chastising his husband. "How are you? Any pretty people yet? Have you picked anyone? I'm sure there were! From the Broadcast I could already see a lot."

"They're all pretty, sorta," Alfred admitted, unable to fight back a grin. "It's only been a month though, so not anytime soon. Yours took almost a year."

Feliciano hummed thoughtfully. "Mhm, that's true, but not only did the Hearts Fate choose me to be the Jack, but," he wrapped his arm around Ludwig's, "I'm able to be his husband every day of my life! So of course it was worth the wait."

"Liebling, not in front of Alfred..." Ludwig stammered, briefly losing his composure, though he didn't pull away. Clearing his throat, he continued. "Feli is correct, though. Don't rush it. If need be, you may always ask us for assistance for anything."

Alfred barely held back a smug grin. "So, Lud, I kinda forgot, but when did the two of you have your first kiss – hey, wait a second, there's steam coming outta your forehead-"