The Last Spade

by otakubynature

Cardverse. Alfred is in his last year of school when he suddenly receives the mark of the King of Spades. He leaves his everyday life behind and begins training to be a royal under the supervision of a certain green-eyed gentleman employed at the castle. USUK/UKUS. Rated M for language, sexual content, and later chapters.

8. Chapter 8: Careless

Matthew swung his scythe in front of his body as another blow knocked him backwards. A icy, burning sensation exploded across his body, and he stumbled to his feet, quickly trying to ignore the searing pain across his face and body. Matthew turned and continued his flee from his pursuer, but she was reading his every move. Somehow she was able to predict all of his stealth and invisibility spells. The scariest thing was, however, that she wasn't trying to drive him away; she was mercilessly trying to chase Matthew towards the Clubs castle. Every time Matthew briefly fled in the direction of the castle, the merciless assault would end, but the moment he began to try and make his escape away from the looming royal towers of Clubs, she would attack relentlessly from the shadows, pelting Matthew's body with disorienting blows and painful magic.

Nevertheless, Matthew continued his flee away from the Clubs palace, his lungs burning and his muscles spent. The more he moved, the more he became aware of how incredibly injured he was. He had no time to check, but he could feel countless open wounds and bruises on his limbs with every step, and his face was wet with what he assumed to be blood. As he pushed through the thick, wintery brush of the Clubs landscape, the shadow was right on his tail, constantly firing attacks that Matthew was doing everything to dodge.

Just when he was wondering if the attacks were beginning to subside, Matthew felt a blast from his back. A fiery pain flooded his senses, and soon, he felt his line of vision grow dark.

.

.

Alfred tossed lightly between the cool sheets of his bed, slowly stirring from his sleep. As his eyes slowly opened, he looked around his bedroom. His room was still dim, but he could tell that dawn was just beginning to light the sky. His attention was then pulled to the gentle sound of breathing beside him. Arthur was under the covers, curled up right beside Alfred. He was still clad in his clothes from the previous day, and with just a few buttons undone for the sake of comfort, his Queen's mark was barely visible. Arthur's breathing was slow and even, and his comfortable expression suggested that he was in the depths of a very peaceful slumber. One of his arms was draped across Alfred's chest, but aside from that, it was apparent that Arthur hadn't moved much in his sleep. He was far from disheveled, in fact, if he wasn't so busy admiring him, Alfred would have felt a little jealous.

Today was the morning of the Spades' royal wedding. The two royals had spent the last two days frantically preparing for the ceremony, and practicing the ancient script of their vows, and by the evening before, their nerves had finally begun to the best of them. After they had completed all of their preparations, they had met after dinner to spend some time together. At first, they were just wandering through the castle talking about no subject in particular, but later they had settled down to talk in Alfred's room. Once they had realized how late it had gotten, Arthur was originally going to return to his own room, but because they both felt particularly reluctant to separate, he ended up sleeping in Alfred's room.

Traditionally speaking, the Queen was not supposed to sleep in the King's chambers until after the wedding had taken place, so Arthur had promised the night before that he would leave early in the morning before anyone noticed. So they ended up talking late into the night, entangled in each others arms.

Alfred looked at the clock near his bedside. He knew that soon the palace staff would be coming to their separate chambers to wake them, and Arthur needed to be getting back to his room. Alfred reached down and gently brushed some of the bangs from Arthur's forehead. Arthur shifted slightly and let out a content sigh, but remained within the depths of sleep. Alfred smiled a little. In all honesty, he really didn't want to disturb the Queen who looked so comfortable, however he knew that once the sun rose, they would be hearing a knock on the door.

"Arthur?" Alfred whispered the sleeping Queen's name, but he did not stir.

"Arthur..." Alfred leaned closer to the sleeping Queen and gently brought his hand to the side of Arthur's face. When he still did not wake up, Alfred smiled and leaned forward, gently pressing his lips to Arthur's.

"Mm."

Arthur let out a short moan beneath Alfred and slowly moved his lips to match Alfred's. Alfred pulled back to look at Arthur, and felt his heart skip. Arthur was looking up at him with a warm and loving smile on his face. It was a smile that Arthur reserved for Alfred alone, and it still managed to take his breath away. Arthur let out a short laugh and placed his hand on Alfred's cheek before he let his voice out in a whisper.

"Morning, love."

Alfred's heart pounded warmly in his chest as he smiled at him.

"Morning."

"I could get used to that, you know."

Alfred blushed a little at Arthur's statement and shifted back away from Arthur.

Arthur laughed.

"Really? You kiss me awake, and now you're embarrassed?" Arthur shifted himself closer to Alfred so that he was almost on top of him. Arthur lowered his voice back to a whisper. "If you're going to do something, Alfred, don't do it halfway." Arthur leaned down and kissed Alfred and let his hands wander across Alfred's body. Alfred instantly melted into Arthur's touch and his mind was quick to go blank, he pulled Arthur closer to him. Arthur moved his attention to the side of Alfred's neck and Alfred spoke before all reason slipped from him.

"Ah. Arthur..."

"Hmm?"

"...you have to go back to your room."

Arthur slowly pulled away, a disappointed look on his face. Arthur sighed and shifted off of Alfred.

"Your loss."

Alfred smiled.

"Don't look at me like that. What are you going to say if Yao or the staff ask why you're in here with me?"

"I fell asleep in here accidentally?"

"You weren't supposed to sleep in here at all..."

Arthur briefly rested his head on the back of his hand.

"Would you have preferred if I slept in my own room?"

"No! I—" Alfred interjected a little too quickly. Arthur's mouth curled into an entertained smile, as Alfred tried to collect himself. "...I'm not saying I had a problem with it. But you could get into trouble."

Arthur cocked an eyebrow at Alfred's statement.

"Really, Alfred? Pray tell; what are they going to do to me? Lecture me on my wedding day?"

Alfred thought for a moment.

"You have a point. But still—"

Arthur raised a hand to stop Alfred mid-sentence.

"I'm kidding. I understand. Besides, it was me who told you I would be out of here by dawn." Arthur leaned forward and rested his face on Alfred's shoulder. "...I just wanted to stay here for a few more minutes, that's all."

Alfred's eyes widened, surprised by the sincerity of Arthur's statement.

"...Are you nervous, Arthur?"

Arthur shrugged and rolled his eyes.

"As much as I would like to say no, we both know the actual answer."

He was right. The night before, they were both more than a little nervous, which had led to their current predicament. Not really wanting to be left alone with their own thoughts, they spent the night talking over light topics and holding each other.

Arthur abruptly sat up and got out of bed.

"I'll be heading back to my room, then."

Alfred sat up and grabbed his glasses off of the side table. He too, slid out of bed to fall in step behind Arthur.

"I...guess I'll see you in a few hours then?"

Arthur paused at the door, actively buttoning his shirt closed. He smiled at Alfred.

"Of course. I'll see you in a few hours." Arthur leaned forward and gently kissed Alfred on the cheek as he opened the bedroom door. "See you."

Arthur quietly slipped out of Alfred's room into the dim hallway and closed the door behind him.

Alfred stood alone in his bedroom by the door, alone with his thoughts. Their wedding was scheduled for early afternoon, so in just a few hours he would be married. Alfred's heartbeat quickened a little. He was excited, sure. He was more than happy to be marrying Arthur. But he was nervous. After the wedding, the general public would be seeing their faces for the first time. He wondered if the people of Spades would be accepting of how young he was. He was still just barely nineteen. And then of course, there was what came after the wedding ceremony...

There was a quick knock at the door. Just when Alfred was about to reach for the door and ask if Arthur had forgotten something, it opened. Yao entered the room, and practically jumped to see Alfred standing there.

"Your Excellency! Goodness, you scared me..." Yao placed his hand over his heart, as the surprise slowly began to fade from his face. "I was coming to wake you...but I see that you are already up." Yao then furrowed his brows. "It's rather unusual for you to be up this early. Is everything alright?"

Alfred laughed dryly and scratched the back of his head as he moved away from the door.

"...Just nerves, I guess."

"Ah."

Yao nodded, understanding.

"There isn't a royal in all of Cards who is not nervous on their wedding day, Your Excellency. I understand entirely. But no need to be so nervous. While the royal weddings in Hearts and Diamonds are public spectacles, here in Spades, the main ceremony is private. The only people who will witness the wedding will be You, Arthur, and me."

Alfred felt a little better after being reminded of this. He was right, this was definitely better than being wed in front of a bunch of strangers. There would be a celebratory ball in the evening, but it wouldn't be anything that he wasn't already used to. He let out a small relieved sigh.

"You're right."

Yao smiled a little.

"Remember, after the main ceremony, you will go out on the balcony to be seen by the Spades citizens. While exercising the proper security, the palace front courtyard will be open to the public, so any Spades citizens who want to come are welcome to do so. Because of this, expect to see a crowd when you come out; we have no idea how many people will be coming to witness. This will be the first time that you and Arthur will be presented to the public after all. But this will be a joyous occasion. I'm sure the people will be very pleased, so please rest easy."

Alfred nodded, trying not to dwell on just how many people would be coming to see him.

"...Alright."

Yao clapped his hands together.

"Well then, let us prepare. We have much to do for the ceremony this afternoon."

.

The hours that followed were so packed that Alfred barely had any time to think at all. After a very brief breakfast he took in his chamber, Alfred was fitted with his clothes for the wedding ceremony. They were very similar to the clothes he wore for his coronation; a cobalt suit adorned with the country's symbol, and a long royal cloak that trailed behind him. He was also required to wear his crown for the ceremony, which was something he hadn't worn since his coronation. The metal crown was heavy, but he was quick to forget he was wearing it. He reviewed the ancient script that he and Arthur would recite together, as well as his own vows. The vows for Spades royal weddings are mostly set and not to be revised too much, but both Alfred and Arthur had altered their vows slightly to suit them accordingly. By the time that Alfred had finished reviewing everything for the ceremony, it was only a half hour before it was set to take place.

Alfred paced nervously outside of the throne room, waiting for Arthur to arrive for the ceremony. There were royal knights lining the hallway standing at attention, waiting for the ceremony to take place. Alfred was going over the necessary spells for the ceremony in his mind in a restless attempt to distract himself from the sounds of the crowds outside the castle. Alfred had not dared to look, but the fact that he was already able to hear hundreds of muffled voices coming from the front courtyard was beginning to make him feel nervous again. Alfred rubbed his hands on the material of his pants in an attempt to get rid of the sweaty feeling and resumed pacing slowly. The heavy fabric of his ceremonial garments slowed him down as the sapphire-colored cloak flowed behind him.

Finally, Alfred heard the echo of footsteps coming towards him. He turned to look, and his jaw nearly fell open. Making his way towards him was Arthur, in full royal attire. He was dressed in garments nearly identical to Alfred's, but Alfred felt the air that Arthur gave off was completely different than his own. Everything about Arthur seemed to scream 'royalty', and Alfred really couldn't believe that Arthur wasn't noble by birth. For a brief moment, Alfred's mind went completely blank as Arthur approached him.

Arthur stopped just inches from Alfred. Alfred frantically tried to find the adequate words to tell Arthur how breathtaking he looked, but the words refused to assemble in his brain properly.

"Hey," Alfred said quietly, kicking himself for being unable to come up with more eloquent words.

"Hello." Arthur said, seemingly having some difficulty looking away from Alfred himself. Though Alfred was too distracted to notice.

"...Ready?" Alfred said, offering his hands to Arthur's. The Queen took them with no hesitation.

"As ready as I am able to be," Arthur whispered, leaning a little closer to Alfred. The King was surprised to feel that Arthur's hands were shaking ever so slightly. Arthur wore a thick wall of composure today, but at his core, it seemed he was just as nervous about today as Alfred was. Alfred tightened his grip on Arthur's hands warmly, gaining some confidence to know that he and Arthur were standing on common ground.

"Don't worry. Everything will go great, I promise."

Arthur looked into Alfred's cerulean eyes and nodded. Slowly, the light trembling in Arthur's hands seemed to subside, and Arthur leaned forward, resting his forehead on Alfred's shoulder. Alfred let Arthur stay this way for as long as he needed it. They were about to go forth with a day that was no doubt going to strenuous for both, especially for Arthur, who was the grandson of the previous Queen. He wanted Arthur going into this day as relaxed as possible.

Alfred gently stroked the back of Arthur's hands with his thumbs, and lowered his voice to whisper in Arthur's ear.

"...You look fantastic."

A few seconds of silence passed before Arthur tightened his grip on the King's hands.

"As do you."

Arthur pulled away from Alfred's shoulder and released his hands, a light blush tinting his face.

At that moment, the doors of the throne room creaked open. Yao appeared in the doorway, wearing his own set of ceremonial garments. He smiled, seeing the pair of royals standing close by. He looked from Alfred to Arthur, then spoke.

"Everything is in order. Are we ready?"

The pair looked at each other then took a deep breath. They turned back to Yao and nodded.

"Yeah."

"We are ready."

Yao smiled and bowed.

"Excellent. Let us proceed."

The pair followed Yao into the throne room, and the heavy, ornate doors closed loudly behind them.

.

The throne room was an especially calming place on a day like today. The heavy doors and cold stone walls muffled the sound from the outside completely, and the high, stained-glass windows scattered diamonds of blue light across the room. The trio of royals made their way down the long walkway to the end of the throne room, and stopped in the round open area right before the thrones. Yao stood before them, and spoke in a loud and formal tone, that echoed throughout the empty throne room.

"As Jack of Spades, I would like to commence the Spades royal wedding ceremony." Yao turned to Alfred.

"King Alfred of Spades. If you would call forth the heart of Spades."

Alfred took a deep breath.

"Yes, Jack." Alfred closed his eyes and began reciting a spell.

While the Spades royal weddings were always private, the marriage takes place before the Spades' heart; the magic system that supports Spades. While it is usually never moved from the dungeons of the castle, for the wedding alone, it is moved to the throne room to be ceremoniously sworn upon. This is a tradition that all of the countries of Cards used to practice, however, now only the country of Spades continues this practice. Unlike the other countries, magic is still a very vital part of royal marriages, and thus, the Spades' heart aids in this.

Alfred finished his incantation, and felt a burning sensation over his heart and core. Slowly, the large, blue orb of light began to rise from the floor before the three royals, bathing the throne room in soft blue light. The soft, ticking echo of a clock emanated from the the Spades' heart as it floated in place, and Alfred let out a quick sigh of relief, knowing that he had pulled off the spell successfully. Yao stood beside the Spades' heart and spoke.

"We are here on this day before they very heart of Spades itself to bind the souls of the King of Spades and the Queen of Spades in marriage. As the current Jack of Spades, I agree to verify and oversee this royal marriage and its permanence. May your vows be known throughout all of time." Yao turned towards Alfred. "King Alfred. Please offer your vows to the Queen."

Alfred turned to Arthur, taking his hands in his own. During his rehearsal, he had struggled to remember the lines of his vow, but in this current moment, the words seemed to flow naturally from his lips.

"Queen Arthur of Spades:

As King of Spades, my heart is yours, and likewise my life is yours.

I love you for all that you are, all that you represent, and I bind my heart and soul to you.

I promise to love you loyally until the end of my time

With all of my magic, may I become your sword; I will be by your side, protect you, and defend you for all of the days of my life."

For all of his seriousness, a brief, warm smile tugged at the corners of Arthur's lips before he returned to his serious expression. Yao turned to Arthur.

"Queen Arthur. Please offer your vows to the King."

Arthur took a deep breath, and spoke.

"King Alfred of Spades:

As Queen of Spades, my heart is yours, and likewise my life is yours.

With these words, and all of the words in my heart, I bind my heart to yours

I vow to love you for who you are, and for who you have yet to become

With all of my magic may I become your shield; I will be with you, support you, and guard you for all of the days of my life."

Alfred's heart pounded warmly in his chest as he squeezed Arthur's hand's a little tighter. Yao spoke again.

"King Alfred of Spades, Queen Arthur of Spades.

Do you swear to love and honor each other,

through times of darkness and in times of light

to love each other loyally and lend strength to one another

and swear your lives to each other until death parts you?"

Without breaking their eye contact, Alfred spoke.

"I swear."

After Alfred's answer, Arthur too, spoke.

"I swear."

Yao nodded and continued.

"Well then, Your Excellencies. If you would please exchange the rings."

The pair released their hands and retrieved the rings that they had been given several days prior. The thick, platinum rings were almost identical, set with a large sapphire and accented with the country's symbol. Alfred carefully slid the ring onto Arthur's finger. Once done, Arthur returned the same gesture for him. A complex happiness overtook Alfred as Arthur slowly slid the ring onto his finger.

Once the rings were exchanged, they took each others hands again. They took a deep breath before the two royals spoke in unison.

"Let these rings become a symbol, in visible form, of the unbroken circle of both our love and lives,

so that wherever our souls may go, we may always return to our shared life together.

May these rings become our bond, and represent our intertwined fates and combined power.

I swear my love before you and all of Spades

I bind my heart and soul to yours until the very end of time itself,

In this life and, all which comes after.

I swear this upon my heart, and upon the heart of all of Spades itself."

Shortly after they finished speaking, the Spades' heart released more light, and the faint ticking sound from within the heart temporarily grew louder. However as soon as it happened, it faded back to it's original state. Yao spoke.

"The Spades' heart has accepted your vows. Your marriage is now a permanent and obsidian link in the history of Spades. Thus, it is my joyful responsibility to officially acknowledge your union as the King and Queen of Spades. You may now seal your vows and marriage with a kiss."

Finally, Alfred let a smile spread across his face. As he leaned forward, he briefly saw a smile on Arthur's face before he gently captured his lips.

Alfred recited the Spades' heart reversal spell, and the glowing ball of power slowly retreated back to the belly of the castle dungeons. Yao clapped his hands together and stepped forward, a smile on his face.

"Excellently done, Your Excellencies! Congratulations! That was lovely."

Alfred let out a light laugh, already feeling much better than he had that morning.

"Thank you Yao."

Yao quickly turned on his heels towards the throne room door.

"Come now, Your Excellencies. Now that you are wed, it is time for you to finally be presented to Spades!"

Alfred and Arthur turned to look at each other and slowly followed behind Yao. Once outside the throne room, a small group of royal guards began escorting the royals through the castle towards the balcony. The door to the second floor balcony was only a short walk away. As they made their way towards the door, they could already hear the noise of the crowds from inside the castle. Once they reached the double doors, they all stopped. Yao paused at the door.

"Whenever you're ready, Your Excellencies."

Alfred turned to look at Arthur who was wearing a calm, unchanging expression. Alfred wrapped his hand tighter around Arthur's.

"...Ready?"

Arthur lightly squeezed Alfred's hand and took a deep breath. Finally he nodded.

"Yes."

Alfred looked back to Yao.

"Open the doors, Jack."

Yao nodded, and slowly pushed open the double doors leading to the balcony. Sunlight poured in from the open doors, and the sound of the people went from muffled, to almost deafening. Slowly, the pair of royals stepped out onto the balcony. Alfred was amazed with what he saw.

The courtyard was completely full of people, cheering and waving the spades flag. And it wasn't just the courtyard. People flooded out the gates of the castle and even seemed to stretch to the horizon. Thousands of people had come to see them. And what was most surprising was their reactions. Alfred had been terribly worried that the people would not be accepting of a set of such young royals, but as soon as he and Arthur stepped on to the balcony, the opposite seemed to hold true. The balcony was two levels up, but he could clearly make out the faces of several of the people They were smiling and cheering. Some were throwing blue flowers, some even appeared to be crying in happiness. They were young, and old; both children being raised up on shoulders and elders clinging to loved ones. And the cheers. They were filled with adoration, and love; some chanting 'congratulations', some yelling 'long live Spades'. There wasn't a face on the horizon who seemed displeased with the new King and Queen of Spades.

Alfred turned to look at Arthur, who was looking out at the crowd with a relieved smile. He turned to look at Alfred, and the King was taken aback. Arthur looked so relieved and happy, that he thought he even saw a few tears welling up in Arthur's eyes. Alfred's heart filled with happiness. Right here, in this moment, was everything that he had secretly hoped for. Arthur was happy, Spades was happy, and right here beside him was his love, holding his hand. He was so taken aback by the crowd and Arthur's expression that he had almost forgotten what he was supposed to do on the balcony. Alfred placed his thumb under Arthur's chin and tilted his face towards him. Arthur readily complied and let his eyes slide closed. The pair leaned forward and kissed on the balcony as cheers erupted from the crowd.

The two royals were escorted back inside the castle after waving to the crowds for several moments, and as soon as the balcony doors closed back behind them, the pair turned to each other in disbelief. They walked to a nearby window and watched as the crowds slowly began to recede. In Spades, there are usually festivals held starting the day of the royal wedding, so most people would be celebrating all throughout the week. They looked at the thousands and thousands of people as they began to recede back through the castle gates. Alfred turned to look at Arthur.

"They loved you." Arthur turned to look at Alfred. Alfred smiled and continued speaking. "I think she would be very proud of you."

Arthur thought of the previous Queen, the grandmother that he had admired so much. He averted his eyes back to the crowd.

"Thank you. I hope you're right."

.

The pair temporarily retired to their own separate rooms. There were still several hours before the royal celebration ball would be held later that evening, and Alfred had insisted on shedding his ceremonial garments to put on his normal castlewear. Both Arthur and Yao had followed suit as preparations for the ball began to get underway in the largest ballroom.

Just as Alfred had been finished tugging on his palace jacket, there was an urgent knock at his door.

"Your Excellency!" Yao's voice came from the other side of the door, in a loud and urgent tone.

"It's open, come in." Alfred called towards the door. The door quickly swung open and Yao appeared in the doorway. Alfred's hands stopped where the were on his jacket mid-button and looked at the Jack. There was a fearful and urgent expression on his face, and he was out of breath as if had run there. Alfred froze. That wasn't good.

"Yao...what's wrong?" Alfred said, fear beginning to stir in him as well.

Yao breathed heavily and tried to resume his calm exterior, but to no avail.

"...It's Lord Matthew..."

Alfred's heart dropped to the pit of his stomach. A thick silence hung in the air for a few seconds, but felt like it dragged on for hours. Yao spoke again.

"...At the castle back entrance...He's..."

Alfred did not wait for Yao to complete his sentence. Alfred bolted from the room, past Yao, and sprinted down the hall. He heard Yao calling after him, but he did not slow. Alfred mumbled some spells under his breath that increased his speed ten fold as he sprinted through the castle down to the castle's back entrance. When he finally got there, he stopped in his tracks. He saw him. Standing near the castle's back entrance being held up some castle guards was Matthew. Alfred blinked back tears of horror. Matthew was in an almost unrecognizable state. The color was completely gone from his completion, and the entire left half of his face had deep, purple-colored burns and was covered in blood. His glasses were shattered and hung low on his bloodied nose. There were deep cuts, wounds and bruises across all of his limbs, and especially large bloodstains on his shoulder and stomach. He was slumped and shaking, barely able to stand if it weren't for the guards holding him up, and one of his shoulders was limp in a way that suggested that he wasn't able to move it.

Alfred's voice felt stuck in his throat as he looked at the horrific state of his brother, but soon he felt his feet carrying him forward as his voice ripped from his throat.

"Matt!"

Alfred's voice echoed through the hall as he ran towards his brother. When he reached him he grabbed on firmly, taking the brunt of supporting his brother's weight away from the guards. Alfred quickly barked some orders at some of the other nearby guards.

"What are you doing?! Go get help!"

Two of the guards bowed and took off deeper into the castle. Matthew shakily looked up at Alfred, his eyes slightly glazed over. His whispered voice came out in a dry, broken tone.

"...Al...?"

Alfred nodded, trying to smile at his brother through his own fearful tears.

"...Yeah it's me."

Matthew's eyes squinted weakly as if he was trying to focus his blurred vision.

"...did I make it...?" Matthew took a shaky breath as if he wanted to cough, but didn't have the strength to. "...did I...make it back...?"

Alfred felt his heart breaking to watch his brother in this state.

"Yeah, you made it, Matt."

Matt smiled weakly before his strength completely left his legs. Alfred slowly lowered to the ground with his broken twin in his arms.

"Matt!" Alfred called his name as he watched his brother's eyelids start to flicker shut and his eyes began to roll in the back of his head. Matthew's skin had grown eerily cold, and Alfred began to feel true fear stirring inside him. He spoke again, the lump in his throat causing his voice to quiver. "Matt hold on, we're going to get you help..."

Matthew weakly grabbed Alfred's shoulder and struggled to hold his head up to look at the King. He opened his mouth to speak. At first, no words came out, but then his dry voice came forth.

"...The girl who...poisoned you..." Matthew whispered as his strength began to slip.

"...serves Clubs."

.

Matthew lost consciousness and stopped responding. Shortly after, Yao, accompanied by guards and royal doctors rushed into the room. Matthew was carefully lifted into the care of the doctors and nurses and was swiftly rushed away towards the infirmary. Yao went with them. Alfred remained kneeling where the guards had taken Matthew from his arms. His mind felt rushed, and a heavy feeling was pulling at his gut. He slowly looked down at his hands which were covered in sticky, dark crimson fluid. Alfred's eyes widened as the gravity of the situation began to set in. Matthew is going to...

Alfred was just about to complete the thought, when he heard a voice call out to him from down the hall.

"Alfred!"

The King turned to see Arthur running towards him, alarm on his face. He wasn't wearing his usual coat or tie, which suggested he had been in the middle of changing when he got the news. Alfred felt relieved to see Arthur, and soon as he reached him, he stood and embraced him. Alfred immediately felt the tears begin to well up in his eyes again, the relief of seeing Arthur melding with the fresh memory of his brother's state.

"Arthur...!"

"It's alright, Alfred. Calm down." Arthur said soothingly, rubbing the King's back. He pulled away gently to look at Alfred's face. "Matthew...is he in the infirmity?"

Alfred nodded sadly.

"They just took him there now...I don't know, I..." Alfred looked down. "I've never seen him so weak...he looked..." Dead. But Alfred didn't dare say those words aloud. Not yet. Arthur seemed to pick up on what Alfred had implied. He took Alfred's hand in his.

"Come...For now, lets go to the infirmary. If I am familiar enough with his injuries, I may be able use some healing magic. But we must hurry."

Alfred perked up a little at Arthur's suggestion. Magic. Arthur had healed him many times before, and he was very good at it. Alfred nodded.

"Alright. Let's go."

The pair hurried to the palace infirmary. A few guards stood at the door, but as soon as they saw the approaching royals, they bowed and moved aside. The pair quietly entered the infirmary. Alfred readily remembered the white walls and the small of disinfectant from the last time he had been here with Arthur. There were several royals nurses running about, fetching bandages and bottles containing strange liquids as the pair made their way into the room. Everyone was speaking in hushed but urgent tones, A dire feeling hanging in the air. Yao saw them from across the room and crossed to meet them.

"Your Excellencies..."

Arthur spoke up immediately.

"Is he stable?"

Yao lowered his head sadly.

"Not yet. The doctors have temporarily prevented his condition from getting worse, but we are still not sure how long that will last. It is apparent that Matthew was in a battle utilizing magic for a very lengthy amount of time."

Arthur's eyes narrowed slightly as if he was thinking for a moment.

"Is the head doctor with him?"

"Yes."

Arthur pushed past Yao without another word. Yao looked to Alfred, offering an apologetic expression before speaking.

"Go be with your brother, Your Excellency...please."

Alfred nodded and followed after Arthur deeper into the infirmary.

The royal doctor was an older gentleman with white hair and small glasses propped on the bridge of his nose. He was examining Matthew's shoulder when the pair of royals came over. He looked up and bowed.

"Your Excellencies,"

Alfred immediately went to Matthew's side and looked down in horror. He was still unconscious, and wore a pained expression. The doctors had since begun to clean some of the dried blood off of his body, but having done so, they had revealed that much of Matthew's upper body was covered in a rainbow of dark and putrid looking bruises. Arthur's eyes flitted from Alfred's saddened expression to the doctor and spoke.

"Have you checked his magic output levels?"

"No, Your highness, not yet. We've just called for one of the palace sorcerers to..."

Arthur closed his eyes and mumbled some incantations under his breath as a soft blue light overtook Matthew's body. Arthur frowned and released the incantation and spoke.

"...His magic levels are severely low. That must be why he isn't self-healing." Arthur looked at Matthew with a sad expression. "He really must have been fighting for a very long time." He turned back to the doctor with a stony expression.

"As of now, what are the serious wounds afflicting him, doctor?"

The doctor sighed wearily and grabbed a nearby notepad. He scanned it and began reading it aloud.

"So far...broken clavicle. Three fractured ribs. Partially collapsed lung. Potion-induced chemical burns on face and upper body. Dislocated right shoulder. Fractured hip bone. Several lacerations to skull and back." The doctor paused and looked up. "And he has lost a lot of blood. If he had been a normal person, he certainly would have died."

Alfred froze where he was beside Matthew, the fearful expression still on his face. Arthur looked at him out of the corner of his eye than looked back at the doctor.

"Do you think he would be receptive to healing magic?"

The doctor nodded slowly.

"Yes, at this point we have nothing to lose."

Arthur nodded and took a deep breath before turning to look at Alfred. He took a few steps closer to him and spoke in an even tone.

"Alfred," He paused before continuing. "Several of his injuries are extensive beyond the point of standard healing magic. I won't be able to heal him completely, but I might be able to make his condition stable, and maybe accelerate his healing process by several days. Weeks, even. Is that alright with you?"

Alfred nodded quickly. Arthur offered a small smile and turned back to the doctor.

"I am going to preform light-oriented healing magic to try and coax his magic levels to return to normal. If you would please step back."

The doctor bowed.

"Yes, Your Highness."

Arthur turned to Alfred.

"Alfred, step back a little."

Alfred slowly stepped away from his brother's side and watched in anticipation. Arthur's face grew serious as he mumbled a long incantation. A soft blue light took over Matthew's body. Alfred watched in amazement as several of the smaller cuts and lacerations on Matthew's body closed. The bruises seemed to lighten in color, and the large burn across the side of Matthew's face improved by several shades. The light dissipated, and Arthur let out an exhausted sigh. He slowly walked around to the side of the bed. He gently reached out and moved some of Matthew's curly bangs off of his forehead, observing the burn marks before speaking with a complicated expression on his face.

"His condition should stay stable for several hours. Hopefully that will be enough time for his own magic system to start responding again." He turned back towards the doctor. "But please spare no medicine nor treatment. I don't know when his magic levels will return to normal, and until then, he needs to remain stable."

The doctor bowed deeply.

"Yes, Your Highness. Thank you, Your Highness." The doctor then hurried off collect some of the medications and magical and herbal topicals from some of the castle nurses. Just as he left the room, Yao entered the room again. Upon seeing Matthew, he looked at Arthur.

"You've healed him, Your Highness?"

"As well as I was able to. He still needs immediate care, if he has any hope of making a recovery."

"Yes, of course." Yao said. He gestured towards the door. "Come, let us allow the doctors to do their work."

Arthur took a step towards the door before looking back at Alfred. He was still standing at his unconscious brother's bedside. His blue eyes were bearing into Matthew, a dark expression on his face. He was visibly lost in thought. Arthur came to Alfred's side, speaking in a gentle tone.

"Alfred...let's let the doctors work for now." He paused. "He'll be alright."

Alfred slowly let his eyes fall from Matthew and nodded shallowly.

"...Yeah. Alright."

Alfred slowly followed Arthur, and the three royals left the infirmary room.

Yao gathered them in the hushed corridor outside of the medical wing of the castle. Yao let some silence hang in the air before he turned towards Alfred.

"Your Excellency. Did Matthew say anything before he lost consciousness?"

Alfred was staring ahead, making eye contact with no one in particular. There was a long pause before Alfred nodded gravely.

"He said the girl who gave me Heartlocke poisoning serves Clubs."
Both Yao and Arthur sucked in air at the revelation, but Arthur appeared particularly upset. Yao spoke slowly, in a calm, yet angered tone.

"The girl who poisoned you was a servant of Clubs after all..." He took an eager step towards Alfred. "Did he say anything else? Was it a royal?"

Alfred shook his head grimly.

"That was all he said. He lost consciousness immediately after."

There was silence for a moment, then Arthur spoke.

"Do you supposed that this girl is also the one who attacked Matthew...?" Arthur asked, noting how the burns on the Ace's face were most certainly caused by magic. Yao shook his head at a loss.

"We cannot be sure of that until Lord Matthew wakes up, but it certainly has a high possibility." Yao frowned. "Clubs attacking both His Excellency and Lord Matthew...is this an active declaration of war?"

A hush fell between the three royals. Alfred shook his head in disbelief. He couldn't believe it. Just a few moments ago, he was having what was measurably one of the happiest days of his life. He had married Arthur. The people had accepted them. The whole country of Spades was bathed in celebration. But now, his brother was beaten beyond recognition. Clubs was responsible. And now the possibility of war that he had been dreading seemed all but inevitable now. Yao spoke, noticing the change in Alfred's disposition.

"In any case, we will not have any true answers until Matthew awakens. We will have to wait until he recovers." Yao cleared his throat. "I will speak to the palace sorcerers about monitoring both Matthew's magic outputs and inform them of this growing threat. You two, just rest until the ball this evening." Yao began to walk away, but paused before Alfred. He reached out his hand, placing it on Alfred's cheerless shoulder. "We are with you, Your Excellency. Matthew will surely recover, and we will find who has done this."

Alfred offered a sad smile.

"Thank you, Yao."

Yao offered a consoling smile, and with that he left, down the halls to the belly of the castle.

Arthur turned his attention back to Alfred, whose smile had fallen once more. Arthur took some steps towards the Alfred, wrapping his arms around him. Alfred was quick to return the embrace. Arthur immediately began to notice that Alfred was trembling a little. For all of Alfred's positivity and external confidence, this was the first time Arthur had seen him so close to tears. Arthur knew that there was little he could say to console the King given their situation. When they finally pulled away, he brought his hand to the side of the King's face. He looked into Alfred's downcast, azure eyes and spoke in the gentlest tone he could.

"Is there anything I can do, Alfred?"

Alfred closed his eyes and shook his head. He wrapped his hand around Arthur's and gently pulled it from his face, holding it in his own.

"...I just want to be alone for a little while."

Arthur thought for a moment, then nodded.

"Alright."

Alfred had never specifically requested to be left alone before, so Arthur figured he must truly need space if he was asking for it. Arthur leaned forward and kissed Alfred on the jaw.

"I'll be in my room if you need anything."

He offered Alfred's hand a gentle squeeze before letting go, and making his way deeper into the castle, leaving the King of Spades to be alone with his thoughts.

.

Arthur stared out the window of his bedroom overlooking the royal gardens. The weather was uncharacteristically good and the sun was shining brightly on this mid summer day in Spades. Normally, Arthur would have been elated to have such a vibrant day to remember as his wedding day, but currently, his mind was running amuck with the dark events of the day.

Arthur was situated at the table by the window in his room. He had had a pot of black tea brought up to his room so that he could still take his afternoon tea. The slightly bitter taste usually helped to calm his nerves, but much of his cup remained full and had grown cold. He couldn't pull his mind away from Matthew's physical state.

There was a soft knock at the door. Arthur pulled his attention from the rose garden below his window and looked towards the door.

"It's open." Arthur called toward the door.

The door opened, and Yao appeared in the doorway. Arthur started to stand up, eagerly.

"How is Matthew?" Arthur wasted no time in immediately asking Yao questions.

Yao walked across the room to Arthur as he spoke.

"He is still stable, but no improvement yet. The doctors are still working on him."

"I see." Arthur settled back into his seat and returned his eyes out the window. His mind was quick to return to thoughts of the King. "And Alfred?"

"He is waiting outside the infirmary. I just finished seeing him. He is...distressed."

A painful feeling tugged at the Queen's heart. Arthur did not pull his eyes from the scene outside the window and spoke in a level tone.

"I see."

Yao pulled out the other chair opposite of Arthur. He observed Arthur in silence for a moment before speaking.

"Your Highness...are you alright?"

Arthur let silence hang in the air before he whispered out his response.

"...This is my fault."

"What?"

"I'm the one who gave the order for Matthew to go to Clubs." Arthur's eyes bore into the garden below as he spoke, and he clenched his fist on the table. "I should have waited for him to complete more of his training...or even sending him as a unit with guards as opposed to alone—"

"Your Highness." Yao quickly cut the Queen off. "No one could have predicted any of this."

"But it still happened." Arthur turned from the window to look at Yao. His green eyes were filled with guilt as he spoke.

"This is the very thing that I was most afraid of—what if I'm not fit to be making these choices? To have lives in my hands?" Arthur ran his hand through his hair in frustration, creases forming on his forehead as he looked down at the table before him. "What if Alfred's brother dies because of me?"

"Your Highness." Yao raised his voice and Arthur looked up at Yao. The Jack spoke calmly. "Matthew is alive because of you."

Arthur stared at Yao, dumbfounded.

"...What?"

Yao continued.

"I've just come from speaking with the doctors, and if you hadn't intervened with your healing magic, Matthew would indeed be dead right now. Because of you, he is stable, and his magic has a chance of full recovery."

Arthur's frame visibly relaxed a little.

"...Really?"

Yao nodded before he continued speaking with a comforting smile on his face.

"And the information that Matthew brought back with him is exactly what we asked him to find out. Please, Your Highness...don't doubt your competence so much. You are acting exactly as you should, and you are doing just fine. Trust me; as your Jack, I would tell you if you were doing something unwise." Yao paused and looked down for a moment. "Because you and Lord Alfred are still quite young for royals, my role as an adviser has been temporarily heightened, but trust me when I say that you are doing just fine."

Arthur offered a smile, feeling a little better.

"Thank you, Yao."

The Jack smiled as he slowly stood from his chair.

"The Ball will be beginning in a few hours. I will send up some of the maids to help you get ready." Yao turned on his heels and started towards the door. "I'll go tell the King that it is time to get ready as well. Guests will be arriving before we know it."

Yao turned and bowed before exiting Arthur's room, leaving the Queen alone once more.

Once the door echoed closed behind the Jack, Arthur's thoughts began to intensify once more. He felt a little better about their situation, but he still felt terrible. Would Matthew even be able to recover? And Alfred. Did Alfred blame him for Matthew's state?

Arthur shook his head, attempting to dislodge the negative thought, and stood from the table. The ball would be starting soon. He needed to prepare.

.

The sun had just sunk below the Spades horizon when the ball was about to commence. Arthur made his way down the hall towards the ballroom, admiring the countless candles and sapphire decorations that lined the main hallways leading to the castle's largest ballroom. He could already hear the countless voices of the nobles and guests talking in the ballroom. The orchestra had also already begun to play. Arthur quickly turned down a side hall and entered the small, royal waiting room that the pair had always met in before coronations and official festivities. As Arthur closed the door behind him, he surveyed the small room and quickly found Alfred, leaning against the wall, looking out at the dimly lit royal garden. He was clad in his best royal suit and looked absolutely radiant. However, the melancholic look painted across his face genuinely didn't suit him. Arthur walked closer to the King, and Alfred was drawn out of his thoughts. He looked over at Arthur, a more relieved expression on his face.

"Arthur..."

Arthur stopped right in front of the King and offered the best smile that he was able.

Some silence passed between them before Arthur finally broke the silence. His eyes scanned over Alfred.

"You look very n—" Arthur paused when his eyes fell on Alfred's tie; the only thing about him that was visibly ruffled and out of place. Arthur frowned. "You tied that yourself, didn't you."

Alfred looked confused for a moment before he looked down at his tie. The saddened expression melted away a little and he let out a short laugh.

"I couldn't help it, I was in a hurry!"

Arthur rolled his eyes and smiled a little.

"Come here."

Alfred leaned a little closer to Arthur and allowed the Queen to take the tie into his hands. Arthur's fingers moved quickly, undoing the blue strip of fabric and tying it into a neater tie. He spoke softly.

"What would you do without me?"

Alfred shrugged.

"Walk around with no tie?"

Arthur shot Alfred a how-dare-you-even-suggest-such-a-thing look, and Alfred laughed again. His broad smile quickly began to fall again, however. He spoke again.

"...I really don't know."

Alfred's voice was quiet, and the Queen wondered if he were talking to him, or to himself. Arthur looked up at the King, his expression pained once more. Alfred quietly spoke again.

"Have you heard anything about Matthew?"

Arthur returned his eyes to the strip of fabric as he finished tying the new, neater knot.

"He's still stable. But we won't know anything else until morning."

"Oh." Alfred's response was uncharacteristically short, and Arthur let his eyes meet the King's again as his hands fell from the tie.

"Alfred?"

The King slowly wrapped his arms around Arthur, holding his body close to him. Arthur said nothing, but returned the embrace without hesitating. As they stood in the quiet, empty room, Arthur slowly spoke.

"Are you nervous?"

Arthur felt Alfred shake his head.

"Not about the ball, no. I'm used to them by now."

"I see. That's good." Arthur slowly released his hold on the King and looked into his eyes. They were filled with hurt, so Arthur tried to speak as gently as possible. "Alfred, I know it will be very difficult, but try not to think about it too much. I'll be with you throughout the whole ball, but just tell me if you're tired, alright?"

Alfred nodded.

"Alright."

One of the side doors to the room opened, and Yao made his way into the room.

"Your Excellencies!" Yao paused at the door. "Are you ready to begin the ball?"

Arthur looked at Alfred, who was wearing a forced, yet very convincing, smile. He spoke.

"Yeah, let's begin, shall we?"

The royals walked into the grand ballroom. The large room was decorated in the most regal fashion, the large crystal chandeliers overhead were illuminated in thousands of candles. There was an orchestra playing music along the far wall. The large glass windows were open, overlooking the main inner gardens. And there were countless guests in formal wear, walking about while talking and drinking.

Yao turned to face the couple.

"For now, mingle about the guests and thank them for coming. I'll speak with the staff to make sure everything is in order, and I'll find you when the orchestra is ready to begin the traditional first dance."

Yao bowed and slowly made his way into the ballroom, and the pair of royals were left to begin their Wedding Ball.

The royal couple walked about the ballroom greeting the countless nobles that had attended the Spades' royal ball. Many of them were patrons and supporters of royals for generations, and simply wanted to be acquainted with the faces of the new royals. Arthur was on especially high alert. The last time they had attended a ball, Alfred had accidentally taken a potion from a stranger when he wasn't looking. And while he highly doubted that Alfred would ever repeat something that reckless, it didn't stop him from scanning everyone and everything that came near him or Alfred.

As they made their way through the ballroom, something caught the King's eye, and he pulled Arthur in the direction if it.

"Wait, Arthur...what is all that stuff?"

Arthur came to Alfred's side and glanced in the direction that he was looking. Near the entrance of the ballroom on a long, marble table, there was a mound of decorative boxes and flowers. He raised his eyebrows.

"Oh. Those are our wedding gifts." The pair stepped closer to the mound of wrapped gifts as Arthur spoke. "The people who attend these celebrations often bring gifts for the royal couple. Most of these are from people in attendance, but some are sent from far away." As the pair scanned the table, Arthur pointed at a large, red box, making his point. "See that one there? It must be from King Ludwig. It has his royal seal on the side of the box."

Alfred looked at the seal and smiled.

"Hey, you're right!"

Arthur smiled at Alfred, happy to see that at the current moment, he was very distracted. Alfred looked down the table.

"That must mean that Kiku sent us a gift too—" Alfred's sentence stopped short as his eyes settled on a new item. "...Wow."

Arthur turned to look at the object of Alfred's interest, and he too, was awestruck.

At the edge of a table sat an enormous flower arrangement. The arrangement stood taller than Alfred, and was far wider than the pair standing shoulder to shoulder.

"Who do you think sent that?" Alfred said, trying to fully take in the enormity of the bouquet. Arthur briefly looked around the side of the flower arrangement and reached for a card that was attached to it. He opened it and cocked an eyebrow. Arthur looked up at Alfred questioningly. The King blinked, confused.

"What?"

Arthur nonchalantly waved the card around in his hand.

"You certainly are popular with Queens, aren't you?" Arthur opened the card and held it out in front of Alfred, revealing that the card had the Queen of Diamond's royal seal on it. Alfred's face lit up.

"It's from Lili!" Alfred remembered the small royal, and how he had met her during their last trip to Diamonds. Arthur sent a small, accusatory look at Alfred's reaction before the King immediately spoke up. "Wait—Arthur, I told you it's nothing like that!"

"I know, I know. I'm kidding." Arthur set the card back down among the flowers. "...I think."

Alfred knew that Arthur was half-joking. But half of his statement felt serious. With resolve, Alfred stepped forward and slowly curled his hands around Arthur's waist. Arthur looked up, a little flustered.

"...What?"

Alfred dropped his voice to a whisper and smiled.

"Don't worry. You're the only Queen in all of Cards who has my heart..."

Alfred leaned forward and gently kissed Arthur's lips. It was very brief, but it was just enough to stir butterflies in both of their cores. As Arthur's eyes fluttered back open, he looked thoroughly convinced.

"Alfred..."

"Yeah?"

"They're staring."

Alfred glanced around the room and noticed that quite a number of the guests had their eyes on the royal couple, happily watching the events taking place. Alfred blushed and quickly let his hands fall from Arthur's waist.

"Oh."

Arthur smiled at the embarrassed King's endearing behavior and spoke.

"How did you and the Queen of Diamonds even become friends?"

Alfred scratched the back of his head and shrugged.

"I don't know...she's small and quiet...in all honesty, she kind of reminds me of—"

Matthew.

Alfred's thoughts immediately flew back to his brother, and his smile quickly fell. Arthur instantly knew who Alfred was talking about, and felt bad for having asked. Just when Arthur was debating what to say, he saw Yao pushing his way towards them through the crowd of guests.

"Your Excellencies," Yao paused when he reached them. "The orchestra is prepared to begin the waltzes. Are you ready to open the ball's first dance?"

Arthur looked from Yao back to Alfred, who was still visibly a little distressed. He spoke gently.

"Alfred...would you prefer to wait a bit before we begin the first dance?"

Alfred looked back up at Arthur and offered a smile.

"No, I'm alright. Let's start the dance."

Arthur saw right through Alfred's terribly forced smile, but nonetheless, nodded.

"Alright." Arthur turned back to Yao. "Tell the orchestra that we are ready."

"Yes, Your Highness." Yao bowed and hurried off towards the orchestra. Arthur turned back towards Alfred spoke.

"Are you sure Alfred? We can wait a little longer if you'd prefer..."

Alfred took Arthur's hand in his as the pair slowly began heading towards the center of the ballroom. He gave a gentle smile.

"I believe I've been promising you an official first dance for quite a while now, Arthur." Alfred stopped in the center of the ballroom, as the guests began to clear the floor for the royal couple. He brought Arthur's hand to his lips, kissing the area just below his ring. "...May I?"

Arthur sucked in air, knowing Alfred had absolutely no idea how incredibly attractive he looked in this moment. The Queen finally found his words again and smiled.

"Of course. I've been waiting."

Arthur placed his other hand on Alfred's shoulder, and the King in turn placed his hand on Arthur's waist. Once the orchestra began playing, the pair began their dance.

The Spades' waltz was a straightforward dance with eight steps. Arthur remembered how much trouble Alfred had with the dance when he first began his lessons. But now, Alfred was executing the dance with grace and precision. Alfred had a smile on his face, and he seemed to be enjoying himself, but every now and then, there would be a flicker of sadness that would run through his blue eyes. When the dance finally came to an end, the crowd of guests applauded. The new song began, and this time, many of the other couples began to take the dance floor. Arthur, however, began pulling Alfred away from the dance floor. When they were finally out of the way of the other dancing couples, Alfred spoke.

"What's wrong? Don't you want to dance anymore?"

Arthur turned to look at Alfred. The King's eyes were filled with concern, wondering if he had done something wrong. Arthur thought for a moment. He knew Alfred was offering to dance for Arthur's sake and not his own. There was no way that Arthur would be able to enjoy himself when he new Alfred was still feeling so down.

"Of course I would love to dance again, Alfred." Arthur paused and leaned a little closer to Alfred. "But I'm feeling a bit tired. Would it be alright if we rested for a bit?"

A relieved expression grew on Alfred's face. He nodded.

"Yeah, sure! That's fine." Alfred laced his fingers with Arthur's as they walked closer to one of the grand ballroom's far walls. "We can sit a few dances out. I'm actually kind of tired myself."

Arthur smiled, glad that Alfred had admitted how he was feeling. They were both very mentally exhausted from the events of the day. Arthur got an idea and spoke up.

"Alfred."

The King stopped walking and turned his head towards Arthur.

"Yeah?"

Arthur leaned close to Alfred's ear, dropping his voice to a whisper so that only he would hear.

"...Want to skip out?"

Alfred sent Arthur a surprised look before glancing around the room, nervously. He looked back at Arthur and spoke equally quiet.

"Really? Can we? I mean—I kind of want to, but are we even allowed to?"

Arthur laughed a little.

"It's our ball, Alfred. We can leave whenever we like. And besides..." Arthur looked briefly around the room. "Everyone is enjoying themselves so much, that I doubt they'll notice we've left for quite some time."

Alfred looked about the ballroom. Arthur was right, everyone was dancing and talking to their hearts' content. Even Yao could be seen at the far end of the ballroom, chatting with a group of people while laughing genuinely. Alfred returned his attention to Arthur, and offered a smile.

"Well then...shall we?"

Alfred offered his arm to Arthur, who linked his hand through it, and the pair quietly disappeared from the ball, no one being the wiser.

.

The pair walked through the halls of the castle, passing into the areas that had been closed off from guests. The sound of the music and people gradually grew fainter, and soon, the echo of their footsteps on the marble floors was the loudest thing they heard. Arthur led Alfred down a side hall before he spoke up.

"So...where are we going?"

"Away." Arthur turned his head to look at Alfred. "The main palace kitchen is currently in chaos because of the ball, so lets use the smaller kitchen near the bar and wine cellars."

The pair turned down a few more dim hallways before arriving at the castle's bar. Alfred had never purposefully been in the room before, since in Spades, he is not yet of legal age to drink. However, once in the room, he wondered if he should frequent the quiet corner of the palace more often. Much of the room was covered in deep mahogany, and the decor was warm an inviting. Behind the bar there was an array of shining glass bottles holding what must have been hundreds of different spirits, and a small kitchen was connected in the room just behind the bar.

Once in the room, Arthur gestured to the table.

"Sit down, I'll be right back." Arthur turned and quickly retreated to the room behind the bar. Alfred sat at the polished wooden table and stared down at his reflection on the table's shiny surface. Arthur was only gone for a few brief minutes before he returned holding a tray with an array of different items on it; a teapot, a plate of biscuits, and several small glass jars. Upon reaching the table, he immediately placed the plate of biscuits in front of Alfred.

"Here, eat something. You didn't have lunch." Arthur's statement was actually only a guess, but when Alfred slowly nodded, he knew he had guessed correctly. Alfred picked up a biscuit.

"Thanks." Alfred had been so worried about Matthew that he wasn't hungry enough to have lunch, but as he began eating, he gradually began realizing how hungry he had been. As he reached for another biscuit, he noticed Arthur opening one of the glass jars. Its contents seemed to be dried plants that Alfred had never seen before. Alfred spoke as he reached for another biscuit.

"What is that?"

Arthur began placing spoonfuls of the dried plants into the black teapot.

"Something to help you feel a little better."

Alfred stopped chewing.

"Not more potions, Arthur...after the last time I had a potion at a ball, I'm really not up for any second attempts..."

Arthur looked up and cocked an eyebrow at the King.

"Even from me?"

"Well...I mean..." Alfred wore a complex expression, knowing Arthur would never do anything to harm him, but he was still hesitant. Arthur's eyes flitted back to the work in front of him.

"Relax; this is just tea. It has various relaxing properties in it, but no magical properties whatsoever."

"Oh."

Arthur walked over to the bar to grab the kettle which had been warming since they had entered. Alfred leaned over and peeked inside the teapot and looked at the various dried flowers resting in the bottom of the pot.

"What's in this, exactly?"

Arthur returned with the warm kettle and began pouring the water into the teapot.

"The main property is a species of flower known as Chamaemelum nobile. I also used a few different types of lavender, and the rest is just my main tea base." Arthur finished pouring the water into the teapot, then set the kettle aside and closed the teapot's lid. "Three minutes."

The smell of the tea began to waft through the room with a floral, almost apple-esque fragrance. It was strangely soothing. Arthur pulled up a chair beside Alfred and took a biscuit from the plate. Amid the silence and the scent of the tea, Alfred slowly began to feel more relaxed. At least more at ease than he had felt during the ball. He laughed a little to himself.

"I wonder if I'll actually make it through an entire ball one day..."

Arthur shrugged as he finished chewing.

"I wouldn't. Even when I was still just a noble I usually ducked out about halfway through."

Alfred thought for a moment, trying to picture a younger Arthur leaving royal balls early. It was a little difficult to picture. Among all of the nobles and manners, Arthur always seemed so at home. Even today, it looked like he really was enjoying himself at the ball. Alfred looked back up at Arthur, feeling a little bad.

"Seriously though, Arthur. You didn't have to leave the ball for my sake. If you want to go back to the ball for a while, I really wouldn't mind—"

"Alfred." Arthur cut the King off and looked at him. "Why would I go back to the ball when the most interesting thing there is right in front of me now?"

Alfred felt heat rush to his face at Arthur's statement. Arthur stood and began preparing some teacups.

"I think we are both very mentally exhausted from today's events, Alfred. I think a break from everything will do us both some good."

Once Arthur determined that the tea had steeped long enough, he poured a cup for both Alfred and himself. He held out the cup to Alfred.

"Here."

Alfred took the cup in his hands, feeling the warmth through the cool, china cup.

"Thank you. Um..." Alfred's eyes flitted down to the cup before looking back up at Arthur. "...sugar?" Arthur frowned a little before letting out an exacerbated sigh. Alfred perked up. "Nevermind, nevermind! I don't need any!"

Arthur gently grabbed a nearby jar of the shining sweetener and brought it over with him as he sat down with his cup.

"There's nothing wrong with putting sugar in your tea." He pushed the small jar of sugar towards Alfred with a mild, judgmental look. "I don't get it, but there's certainly nothing wrong with it."

Alfred laughed, picking up on the accusing edge to Arthur's voice.

"Just because I don't have masochistic tastebuds like you, doesn't mean you need to say it like that!" Alfred proceeded to put a few spoonfuls of sugar into the beverage before slowly taking a sip. Normally, Alfred really didn't care for tea, since most of the tea Arthur prepared was bitter for his tastes. However, this particular tea had a very gentle flavor. It was a warm flavor, and he instantly knew Arthur taken great care in making something suited to his palate. He turned to Arthur and smiled.

"It's good."

Arthur let out a small relieved sigh and returned the smile.

"I'm glad to hear it."

The pair sat in comfortable silence for a while as they drank their tea. Once Alfred finished his, Arthur spoke.

"Are you feeling a bit better now?"

Alfred thought for a while. The beverage had indeed made him feel calmer. However, his thoughts still focused on his brother. His smile fell and a dark expression returned to his face. Arthur looked at the King, deeply saddened to see him this way. The feelings of guilt began stirring in Arthur's core once more as he stared down at the table in front of him.

"...I understand entirely if you're mad at me, Alfred." He paused." But I want you to know that I take full responsibility."

Alfred turned to look at the Queen beside him, confusion beginning to cloud his blue eyes.

"Arthur, what are you talking about?"

Arthur took a deep breath then dared to look at Alfred.

"I'm the one who sent Matthew to Clubs. It was my order. No one else." Arthur looked down again, unable to maintain eye contact with Alfred. "It's entirely my fault that this happened to Matthew at all. Because of my miss, Matthew has..."

"Arthur." Alfred cut Arthur's statement short as he quickly reached out and placed his hands on Arthur's shoulders. "Arthur, look at me."

Arthur slowly brought his eyes back up to meet Alfred. He was braced for anger, but Alfred simply looked hurt and concerned.

"That's absurd, Arthur. None of this is your fault. You have no blame."

Arthur was shocked. Of all of the reactions that he was prepared for, this was not one of them.

"But..."

"None." Alfred firmly cut Arthur's words short once more. His grip tightened on Arthur's shoulders. "I would never place blame with you for this. No one places blame with you for this. And if anyone did, I wouldn't stand for it. It is not your fault." Alfred's grip slowly loosened and his eyes grew dark once more. "If anyone deserves blame here, it's me."

Arthur's eyes widened in surprise, not expecting this turn. Alfred continued speaking, his voice low and aimed at no one in particular.

"With every passing moment I feel more and more disgusted with myself; if I only I hadn't taken that potion to begin with. If only I had thought more..." Alfred's voice grew audibly frustrated. "I fell for something so simple...so stupid...!" Alfred looked up at Arthur, tears welling in the backs of his eyes. "...It's my fault. All of this. It's all my fault."

As Alfred's hidden emotions finally spilled forth, Arthur finally realized it. Both of them had been solely been blaming themselves. Arthur had never once blamed Alfred for this, and yet he was being crushed under the weight of a guilt that he didn't deserve. Arthur took Alfred's face into his hands, realizing the tables had turned.

"Alfred...this isn't your fault either." Alfred's sad eyes looked up at Arthur as he continued. "We can't...blame ourselves over this, Alfred. We'll only loose sight of what is important. What we need to do now is react as best we can." He paused, dropping his hands from the King's face. "This may have been a series of unfortunate mistakes, but the only ones who are truly at fault are the ones who poisoned you, and attacked Matthew." He paused. "So please do not blame yourself."

Alfred nodded, and leaned forward, resting his forehead on Arthur's shoulder.

"...Alright."

The pair sat in silence as many of their feelings of self-blame slowly began to subside. For the first time in their reign, they had both become painfully aware of the magnitude of their position. However, a new resolve had taken root in them, prompting them to never let something like this happen again.

After talking for several hours, the pair left the bar room, and retired to the upper floors of the castle. Much of the ball had ended by now, but the orchestra could still be heard as they walked up to the upper floor of the castle. They finally reached the King's chambers. Just as Alfred opened the door and stepped inside, Arthur stopped at the doorway.

"Well then, good night, Alfred."

Alfred looked back at Arthur, surprised.

"Wait...where are you going?"

"I'm retiring to my room."

"But...It's our wedding night, aren't we supposed t..." Alfred's voice trailed off, embarrassment keeping him from finishing his sentence.

Arthur smiled sadly.

"I think it'd be better if we called it a night for tonight. While neither of us would like to admit it, Matthew's condition is heavy on both of our minds. I think if we were to do anything more tonight, neither of us would enjoy it very much."

Alfred stood in silence. Arthur was right...he knew that, but there was a mild disappointment in him nonetheless. He nodded.

"You're right."

Arthur leaned forward and kissed Alfred a few times before leaning away.

"Good night, Alfred."

Arthur turned and was about to walk away, when Alfred reached out, catching Arthur's wrist in his hand. Arthur turned back around, surprised.

"What is it?"

Alfred fought with his thoughts for a moment, embarrassed, but not wanting to be left alone.

"Will you at least...stay with me until I fall asleep?"

Arthur's heart and expression softened at the King's innocent request. He slowly stepped toward the door.

"Alright."

Arthur followed Alfred into his chamber, and for the second night in a row, they fall asleep in each others' arms.

.

.

"Al..."

A familiar voice called to the King through the murky darkness. Everything was dark and blurred beyond recognition.

"Al...wake up..."

The voice came again, and soon, the images before Alfred's eyes came into focus. He looked forward, and saw a familiar shape standing over his bed, shaking him slightly. Alfred's eyes widened. It was Matthew. But younger. Vastly younger. As his eyes focused on him, he smiled.

"Al, you're up!" He stopped shaking him and smiled. "We're going to be late for school if you don't hurry; Mom and Dad already left for work."

Alfred's eyes widened further. Mom and Dad? Was this back from before they finished middle school? Alfred sat up in his bed and looked around. The wooded attic was light and pristine, as it had been far before their parent's deaths. Alfred turned to face his twin again. The young Matthew wore a confused look on his face.

"Al, are you ok?"

Alfred reached out and gently grabbed his twin's sleeve.

"Is that really you, Matt?"

His twin smiled.

"Of course it's me. I'm always here with you, Al."

Suddenly, the familiar attic room fell away from around the two. Before Alfred was aware of what happened, he was standing in a cold and cloudy field. Thin mist hung around the field, and murky green clovers covered the ground in every direction. Alfred looked around, but his eyes locked on his twin, who was now standing several yards away. Alfred tried to move towards him, but found his legs wouldn't move. Suddenly, he saw the clovers begin to creep up over Matthew's legs, slowly beginning to swallow him whole. Alfred's heart began to pound in fear.

"Matt!" He called out his twin's name, but a gust of wind muffled the sound. Matthew smiled sadly as the clovers began to swallow him further, as their dark green color eerily turned crimson.

"Don't worry..." Matthew's voice echoed gently just before the dark plants consumed his frame completely. The field fell away and everything was swallowed in darkness. The only thing that remained was a final echo of Matthew's voice.

"I'll always be with you, Al."

.

Alfred awoke with a start, breathing heavily. He looked around and found the familiar surroundings of his room in the Spades castle. It was still dark out. Sweat had collected on his forehead, and he reached up and rubbed his face, the memory of the dream still hauntingly present. Arthur stirred beside him and opened his green eyes to look at him.

"Alfred..." He sat up a little upon seeing Alfred's state. "Alfred, love, what's wrong?"

The King looked over at Arthur, his heartbeat slowly attempting to return to normal.

"Just a...nightmare..." Alfred whispered dryly. He frowned, the memory of Matthew being swallowed up by the red clovers still fresh in his mind. He rubbed the sweat from his forehead, and blinked, attempting to dispel the image from his mind. "...Sorry. I didn't mean to wake you."

Arthur reached up and brushed some of the damp bangs from Alfred's forehead.

"Shh. It's alright. Come here."

Alfred settled back into bed beside Arthur, who leaned closer and gently kissed the side of his face before shifting a little closer to him. Arthur was quick to fall back into slumber, but sleep continued to evade Alfred.

I'll always be with you, Al.

Matthew's statement in his dream haunted him until the sun was just beginning to rise, and he could no longer stay in bed. Alfred quietly slipped from the bed without rousing the sleeping Queen. He absentmindedly grabbed his palace jacket and put it on before he opened his bedroom door and headed down the quiet hall. It was still quite early, and there was very little activity in the castle. Alfred navigated down to the main floor without encountering anyone. His pace quickened. The sinking feeling in his gut had not gone away since he had awoken from his dream. By the time he could see the infirmary at the end of the hall, he was practically sprinting. He threw the door to the infirmary open, and swiftly entered into the room. He headed into the back-most part of the room, where his brother had been placed the day before. Alfred froze where he stood.

Several of the doctors had gathered around Matthew's bed. They were mumbling urgently to each other, some rushing to retrieve various medical instruments, others rapidly scribbling notes and flipping through books. As Alfred entered the room, they immediately stopped and looked up, hopeless expressions on their faces.

"Your Excellency..." The head doctor slowly said, a grim expression on his face. The silent, sinking feeling in Alfred's gut quickly evolved in to a droning panic in his mind. Something was very wrong. Alfred quickly stepped forward and pushed some of the doctors out of his way as he walked towards Matthew's bed. As he finally laid his eyes on his brother, his heart dropped to the pit of his stomach.

Matthew was still laying unresponsive in the infirmary bed. But he looked worse. His breathing was infrequent and shallow, and his complexion had returned to a ghostly state.

"Matt!" Alfred rushed to his brother's bedside, fear taking root inside him once more. He lowered himself on his knees to be closer to his twin. "Matt, come on..." Alfred's voice shook slightly as the gravity of the situation fell upon him. He reached out and placed a hand on Matthew's only to find it eerily cold. The head doctor slowly spoke.

"Your Excellency...he is no longer responding to magic or medical treatments."

Alfred slowly turned to the doctor, who was wearing a firm, saddened expression. Alfred looked at him, expecting him to go on, but knew there was nothing more to say. Alfred returned his gaze to the dying Ace, his line of vision beginning to cloud with tears.

"Matt...!" Alfred shook his brother's shoulder. "Matt!" Alfred called his name again, only to hear Matthew's breathing grow more labored. Alfred clamped his eyes shut and tightened his grip on his brother's shoulder.

"Matt..."

The world seemed to fall completely silent around him. He couldn't hear anything; not the doctor's sad murmurs, not the sounds of the infirmary, not even Matthew's breathing that was growing even more infrequent. The only thing that he heard was a grim voice in the back of his mind.

.

This appears to be the improper time.

I deem this to be the improper time.

This is not the time that it was supposed to happen. This is not the time it is going to happen.

Yes...this is the incorrect time.

My family is not going to die again.

.

No one knows what spell took place on that day. The castle seemed to violently shake on it's foundation, and the infirmary was filled with light. It was quickly followed by the tolling of bells and a loud ticking sound. For a brief moment, Alfred felt as though he was being crushed by a heavy weight, and there was a deep, fiery feeling throughout his heart. Everything lasted for what felt like hours, but at the same time, only a few seconds. Then everything subsided. Everything in the infirmary fell quiet. The painful sensations slowly left Alfred, only to be replaced with the sad feeling that had been stirring since he saw Matthew. Then he heard a gentle voice.

"...Al?"

Alfred's eyes widened. It couldn't be. Alfred looked up in disbelief as shock took over his expression. Laying in the bed, staring back at him was Matthew; completely alert, and looking completely unscathed. Even the deep burn that had been present on his face just a moment ago was completely gone. Alfred's mouth fell open.

"M...Matt?"

The Ace smiled and sat up a little.

"Yeah," Matthew responded nonchalantly.

Alfred let out a relieved and nervous laugh, before the emotion became to much.

"Matt!" Alfred leapt forward and threw his arms around him. Matthew laughed.

"Ow, easy, you don't want me hurt again, do you?"

Alfred pulled away and sat on the bed right next to his twin. He couldn't believe it. Not only was Matthew awake, but all of the burns that were all over his face were gone without a trace, the bruise that stretched all the way up to his neck had returned to a normal fleshy color, and based on how he had lightly returned Alfred's embrace, he could now move his arm that had been discolored and limp just moments before.

"Matt!" Alfred said again, looking at his brother in disbelief. "You're...you're ok?"

Matthew nodded.

"I feel so much better." Slowly, he squinted a little and looked around his surroundings. "...Have you seen my glasses?"

Alfred continued to stare at his twin, dumbfounded, as he felt around for the table behind him. He retrieved Matthew's glasses and handed the to him.

"They're...uh. Still a little broken..."

Matthew took the glasses from Alfred and slipped them on, then squinted a little as his vision was confronted with the mostly shattered lens.

"I can tell."

Alfred let out another relieved laugh. Matthew was fine. Completely fine. But...how was this possible? Had the dying Matthew he had seen just a few seconds ago been nothing but a mirage?

"It's remarkable..." The pair looked over in the direction of the voice, and found the doctors staring at Matthew in disbelief. "He's completely healed..."

The head doctor gestured to the others.

"Don't just stand there with you mouths agape. Quickly, we must check all of his magic levels and vital signs. Go get the instruments!"

Several of the doctors scattered in different directions, the infirmary erupting into chaos once more. Alfred turned back to look at Matthew, wiping his eyes from the tears that never truly came forth. Had the nightmare simply been a dream? Or had it been a premonition? Either way, somehow, Matthew was alive and alright right now. He slowly spoke, trying to keep the emotion from leaking into his voice.

"I'm...so glad you're okay, Matt..."

Matthew smiled before his face illuminated in realization.

"Al!" Matthew reached forward and urgently grabbed his twin's arm. "Al, I have to tell you about what happened to me in Clubs...how I was attacked, and by who..."

Alfred eyes widened. In all of the chaos, he had completely forgotten. Now that he was awake, Matthew would be able to tell him what had happened in Clubs.

"That's right...tell me—"

Just then, the door to the infirmary burst open, and Yao came into the room, followed by Arthur. Yao looked around, until his eyes fell on Matthew. Arthur's eyes widened as his eyes fell on the pair of royals.

"So it's true..." Yao said as he quickly made his way towards the bed where Matthew was. Arthur fell in step behind him, as Yao spoke again.

"You've fully recovered, Lord Matthew...!" Yao looked at the Ace up and down, not believing how healthy Matthew looked. "But how...?"

Arthur rushed past Yao to Alfred's side. His was voice full of confusion.

"Alfred...did you use your magic?"

Alfred turned to look at Arthur.

"...Yes..? Or maybe...no? I don't know, I don't remember meaning to..."

Arthur's eyes flitted around as if he were trying to process something. His eyes widened in realization for a moment, then he spoke calmly.

"Alfred...do you have your royal arms on you?"

The King frowned, as he thought for a moment.

"My pocket watch? No, I don't think s—" Suddenly, Alfred froze. Wait. He did have it. In his haste, Alfred had thrown on his palace jacket. And inside, he always kept the pocket watch. Alfred reached into the coat's inner pocket, and immediately felt the familiar shape. He grabbed it, but as he took it out, he immediately loosened his grip on it.

"Ow, ow? It's hot..." Alfred looked at the watch in his hand, that seemed completely normal aside from the fact that the golden watch was abnormally warm. At this statement, Arthur's eyes darkened a little. All three of the other royals instantly picked up on the change in Arthur's demeanor. Alfred leaned a little closer to the Queen.

"Arthur? What's the matter?"

"You used time magic." Arthur's statement was blunt, and it almost felt a little accusatory. Alfred blinked.

"What?"

Arthur turned his attention to Matthew, making note of his extremely healthy condition.

"...I was wondering how Matthew could look so healthy now when last night his condition was barely stable...Even with the best healing magic, he wouldn't be better by now...but now it all makes sense." Arthur turned to the King. "You didn't heal Matthew, Alfred. You've thrown him back in time to before he was attacked."

Silence fell among the royals. Yao's eyes had widened thoughtfully while Matthew looked a little scared. Alfred stared forward, trying to wrap his mind around what Arthur had said. He had used time magic on Matthew? He didn't even know that was a possible spell. Yet somehow he had cast it without thinking about it. Suddenly, Alfred turned towards Arthur, his mind settling on a single fact.

"But...Matthew still remembers being attacked."

Arthur raised his eyebrows in surprise and turned his attention to the Ace.

"Is that true, Matthew?"

The Ace nodded eagerly.

"Y...yes. I remember everything that happened to me..."

Arthur's expression became even more irked at this statement. Arthur stared forward at nothing in particular.

"...Somehow, you were able to keep Matthew's mind and his body separate..." Arthur lightly shook his head in disbelief. "I've never heard of someone preforming such complex magic...ever."

Yao turned to Arthur and spoke gently.

"...Your Highness. I understand your concern over the complexity and type of magic that was used to revive Lord Matthew. I truly do. But we have far larger problems to address." Yao turned to the Ace, a serious expression on his face. "Lord Matthew. You truly remember everything that happened to you in Clubs?"

Matthew nodded.

"Yes. Absolutely."

Yao let out a relieved sigh.

"Good...would you please tell us in great detail...what happened?"

Matthew nodded. Alfred looked at Arthur, who still seemed disturbed by the magic that had been used, but he quickly reverted all of his attention to the Ace. Everyone sat on edge as Matthew slowly began to tell the story of what had happened to him in Clubs.

"...Everything was going really well...I was able to go into Clubs without any problems. I used the proper invisibility spells, I completely muffled my presence when I made my way through small towns...I even made it to the Clubs capital far ahead of schedule...And then...that's when I saw her."

Alfred sat forward a little.

"'Her'?"

Matthew nodded.

"The Clubs capital isn't like ours. There's a village in the capital, but the castle is far to the North, in the Northern-most part of the capital. It's surrounded by dark forests, and I had to walk for about an hour before I reached the castle. And that's where she was." Matthew took a deep breath before he continued. "She had long blonde hair, and very pale skin. She always wore a smile on her face, but it was cold...and dark. She had a dark colored ribbon tied in a hairband." He looked up at the royals. "She perfectly fit Al's description. At first, I thought I would just observe her...she was easy to see; she was standing right outside the Clubs castle." Matthew paused and his expression darkened. "Almost like she was...waiting. And even though I was using my best invisibility spells...she saw me."

Arthur's eyes widened.

"She saw you? Even though you were using active magic?"

Matthew nodded.

"She saw me. And she immediately started coming towards me. I tried running away since I already had the information I needed, but...that's when she attacked." Matthew looked up at Al with pleading eyes. "I've never seen someone use magic so violently, Al. She used both dark arts and advanced magic..." Matthew reached up and touched the area over his eye that had been burned. "...Even potions. I'd never even heard of someone using potions offensively in battle..."

A heavy silence fell over the room as what Matthew was saying sank in. Arthur slowly spoke, deep in thought.

"Who was she, Matthew?"

Matthew turned to the Queen and shook his head.

"I'm sorry...I don't know. I wanted to find out more about her, but I barely escaped with my life..." Matthew hung his head, a sad expression on his face. "I'm sorry. I don't know. But this I do know: she has incredible magic ability, but she's not a royal."

All of the royals reacted in shock. Alfred slowly spoke.

"She's...not a royal?"

Matthew shook his head.

"I could feel it. She's just a normal person." Matthew looked sad again. "I'm sorry. I wish I could find out more..."

Yao quickly spoke up.

"Do not apologize, Matthew. You did very well. You were sent to find out if this girl served Clubs, and you found out even more than that. Well done."

Matthew slowly smiled sheepishly as Alfred patted him on the shoulder.

Arthur, who had been standing thoughtfully, finally spoke.

"...So what now? We have evidence that a servant of Clubs had actively attacked both the King and Ace of Spades. Are we to take this as a declaration of war?"

A hush fell over the royals. Yao turned to Alfred.

"Your Excellency. We truly do have enough reason to engage in war...what is your input?"

Alfred looked a Yao. War. Something he really did not to be in. But a servant of Clubs did purposefully attack him...and Matthew. Alfred glanced at his brother, who looked equally worried. Matthew almost died because of them. But was that reason enough to throw all of Spades into a dangerous battle with Clubs? Alfred looked at Arthur. The Queen looked pensive, and very on edge. Alfred swallowed and turned back to Yao.

"I..." Alfred began, trying to decide what to do.

Suddenly, there was an urgent knock on the infirmary door. Yao turned towards the door.

"Come in," he called towards the intrusion. The door quickly opened and a palace sorcerer entered the room. He looked troubled, and he bowed quickly at the royals.

"Your Excellencies!"

Yao took a step forward.

"What is it, sorcerer?"

"Our magic sensors have picked up a...terrestrial anomaly. An impact of sorts. A large one. On Spades soil."

All of the Spades perked up instantly, and Yao took another step towards the palace sorcerer.

"An anomaly? What do you mean by that?"

Arthur rose and walked towards the sorcerer, doing nothing to hide his stress.

"Are you saying we've been attacked?"

The sorcerer flinched back at Arthur's question, thrown off by the Queen's lack of composure.

"We don't know yet, but..." The sorcerer gestured towards the door. "Come, quickly. There's no time to waste, Your Excellencies."

The royals turned to look at each other, before they fell in step from behind the sorcerer. Matthew rose from his bed to follow behind them, and Alfred instantly turned around.

"Matt, are you sure you don't want to stay here—"

"I'm fine, Al. This concerns me too."

Taken aback by Matthew's unusually headstrong answer, Alfred slowly nodded.

"Okay. Let's go."

The four royals quickly left the infirmary, and made their way down to the dungeons below the castle.

The royals were led to the largest room in the dungeons that had the table map of Spades. Many of the other sorcerers had gathered, and were discussing countless possibilities over dusty magic books and tinkering with unusual magic devices. Once in the room, the four royals immediately went to the table map, where the four thin beams of light were emitting from the Spades capital. The sorcerer gestured to another portion of Spades.

"If you'll look here, you will see the anomaly that we speak of."

The Spades turned their attention to an area in the of the Northeastern part of Spades on the map, and saw it. On the table map, there was an area that was covered in a murky black spot. It was small on the map itself, but judging by the scale of the map itself, the spot was easily the size of a very small town. Arthur leaned closer to the map.

"It's almost as if...there's no magic there at all..."

"What do you mean?"

"Cards is supported entirely by magic. It courses through the land and the four magic systems is what divides the countries..." Arthur pointed at the black spot. "This...looks like there is no magic here at all..."

"How is something like that even possible?" Alfred shook his head. "A piece of Cards can't just disappear...especially not Spades, Our magic system is stronger than anyone's!"

"I know!" Arthur raised his voice, his stress apparent. "I know, but...this doesn't make any sense...I've never heard of anything like this occurring before..."

The royals stood in silence for a while, staring at the anomaly, before Alfred broke the silence.

"Any chance the table map and our magic instruments are broken?"

Arthur let out a defeated sigh.

"Highly unlikely, but I suppose it's possible..."

More silence fell over the room before Matthew's eyes widened. He stepped closet to the table and spoke.

"Hey, Al...isn't that...Valden?"

Alfred's eyes widened as he frantically turned to look at the portion of the map. His heart dropped. Matthew was right. Although it was just barely outside of the edge of the city, he would recognize that portion of Spades anywhere. The small North-Eastern town that hugged the border between Spades and Clubs. Alfred took a deep breath.

"You're right..." Alfred slowly spoke as he stared at the map. "That's Valden. That's our hometown..."

Arthur and Yao looked up at the twins. Arthur looked deeply concerned, but Yao was the first to speak.

"You're right...that is terribly close to the town where you used to live..." Yao turned back to the map, scowling. "What is this...do you think this is also something done by Clubs...?"

The whole room was quiet for a moment, before Alfred finally spoke.

"Well, if no one here knows what this...anomaly is...then let's go find out for ourselves."

Yao was quick to chime in.

"His Excellency is right. We won't find anything out if we just stay here. I recommend going to the outskirts of Valden to see what is amiss."

Matthew slowly stepped forward.

"Me too...?"

Yao looked to the Ace.

"Yes, you as well, Lord Matthew. After your most recent excursion, I think it's be best if we do investigations in groups for a while."

The four surveyed the map and magic outputs once more for good measure, then, with resolve exited the dungeon to prepare for their trip to Valden.

.

Valden was only about an hour or two away by vehicle. After several medical checks to make sure Matthew was truly alright, the royals packed for a short overnight trip and boarded the royal vehicles to make their way towards the city of Valden. Matthew rode in the first vehicle with Yao while Arthur and Alfred rode in the one behind them. The King of Spades thought pensively as they began to ride towards their destination. Valden...he hadn't been back to his hometown since he had received his mark of the King and was taken away by Arthur and Yao. He knew that his old school, as well as his old farmhouse lied on the outskirts of the main city. He only hoped that whatever had caused this 'anomaly' had spared his childhood home. Busy with his own thoughts, it took him slightly longer than usual to realize that Arthur was also unusually quiet. Alfred looked over at the Queen beside him, and found that he was staring out the window, wearing a complicated expression on his face. Alfred spoke up.

"Arthur, are you alright?"

The Queen of Spades did not take his eyes off the scenery outside the window, but nonetheless, responded.

"...Just thinking."

"Oh." Alfred wasn't unused to shorter answers from Arthur, but something about his tone suggested that he was deeply bothered by something. Alfred spoke again, reassuringly. "Don't worry, Arthur. I'm not really sure what this terrestrial anomaly is, but I'm sure once we get there we'll be able to tell what it is."

"That's not what I'm worried about."

Alfred blinked, immediately focusing on the word 'worried' in his response.

"Then...what is it, Arthur?"

Arthur finally turned to look at Alfred, his expression stern.

"I'm concerned about the time spell you used on Matthew."

Alfred paused. The time spell he used on Matthew? Alfred was puzzled; of all of the things at hand, he was definitely not expecting that to be the brunt of Arthur's worries.

"What do you mean? I know the last time I used a time spell you got really upset, but that was because it messed up the magic readers at the castle... but this time it didn't! I truly wasn't trying to use it, but it really saved Matthew."

Arthur was silent, but his expression looked as if he was weighing something in his mind. Alfred began to feel upset as Arthur's silence continued on. He raised his voice.

"Are you saying that I should not have saved Matthew? I...I don't know why you're so against me using time magic...It's a type of magic unique to Spades royals alone, and even you can use time spells, so why—"

"You don't understand, Alfred." Arthur raised his voice to match Alfred's on impulse, but he quickly readjusted his volume, using a serious, even tone. "Yes, I can use time spells, but I truly never wish to use them." Alfred looked at Arthur with a growing confused expression. Did he really not want him to use time spells? Arthur finally let out a defeated sigh and continued speaking. "Alfred, I never instructed you about using time spells. And for good reason. I assumed you wouldn't regularly be using them. I was prepared to have a longer discussion with you about them if we ever engaged in war but..." Arthur paused, weighing whether he should tell Alfred, then finally resolved, knowing that he had to tell him. Arthur swallowed, and slowly spoke. "Alfred, when you use time spells, it steals time from your own life."

Alfred stared at Arthur, astonished by what Arthur had just told him. From his own life? When Alfred finally found his words again, he slowly spoke.

"You mean...every time I use a time spell, my life gets...shorter?"

Arthur nodded slowly.

"Not only do you lose time off of your life, the time you lose is often very...disproportionate."

Alfred felt his heartbeat quicken at this second revelation.

"What do you mean, 'disproportionate'?"

Arthur sighed.

"That first time spell you used when you went to Eavesworth? You may have only used that spell for a few seconds, but I imagine that spell took days...maybe even weeks off of your lifespan."

Alfred's eyes widened at the memory of using that first time spell and how exhausted he had felt afterward. Now it all seemed to make sense. Arthur picked up on the change in Alfred's disposition and spoke again.

"This time, you are fortunate due to the fact that you only altered time for Matthew alone rather than all of Cards. But you still disrupted time by about two days for him...there's no doubt that you were affected." Arthur looked down a little at his hands that were folded on his lap. "I doubt the effects are anywhere near as detrimental as they would have been had you reversed two days for all of Cards, but still...in the future I want you to truly think before you use time spells."

Alfred felt terrible. Before, he had never given much thought to the Spades-exclusive magic that he had overwhelming access to. Now, he felt awful, and honestly, a little scared. How much of his life had he already lost to using those two time spells alone? Months? Years? His expression was telltale of his current emotional state, as he spoke quietly, trying to appear calmer than he was.

"I'm sorry." Alfred looked at Arthur, sincerity in his eyes. "I really am. I didn't know time spells did this...and I really didn't know I was using a time spell when I saved Matthew."

Arthur quickly spoke up, revealing far more worry than anger.

"That is what is so scary, Alfred. You have far more power than you even realize you have. So much that you aren't always able to control it." Arthur took Alfred's hand into his own, looking at him with a pleading expression. "I don't want your own magic to be what destroys you. Please. Be more careful with your magic. You have to learn to control it."

.

They arrived at the outskirts of Valden without any trouble. They had the vehicles stop just outside the city limits and got out. They didn't want to draw any unnecessary attention with the royal vehicles. And since they had been wed, many people in Spades now new what they looked like. To assist in their mission, they were all clad in common clothes as opposed to their palace uniforms. Matthew was also prepared to assist with their cause. As soon as they reconvened outside of the vehicles, Matthew held out his hands and began mumbling a short spell. Blue light briefly bathed the other three royals in light before it slowly faded away.

"This spell will allow the three of you to go undetected. No one will recognize you as the royals, and they should pay you no mind." Matthew lowered his hands back to his sides. "With this, we should be able to conduct our investigation as quickly as possible without detection."

Alfred and Arthur nodded and Yao stepped forward.

"Lord Matthew and I will head further into the city to collect information from the locals to see if there is any disturbance among the people." Yao turned to Arthur. "Your Highness, do you have a magic output sensor?"

Arthur produced a small ornament from his pocket that was covered in a shining silver material. It had a large blue stone in it that seemed to emit light. Yao smiled and continued speaking.

"Good. If you two would please go investigate the area with the magic output anomaly. With both of your advanced magic, I'm sure you'll be able to find out what is taking place." Arthur returned the small device to his pocket and Yao spoke once more. "Once we have completed our tasks, we will meet at the Zaffre Inn on the North side of Valden. That is where we shall stay for the night."

"Alright." Alfred replied, eager to find out what had happened to his hometown. Matthew quickly spoke up, having remembered something.

"My spell will only last until late evening. After that, the effects will rapidly begin to drop off. Please... make sure you return to the inn before then."

"Understood." Arthur said, seeming to match the King's resolve.

"Alright then," Yao said. "Let's meet again in the evening then."

And with that, the four royals split and went in their own separate directions towards the city of Valden.

Valden had been exactly how Alfred had remembered it. He had not been back in the small city in a little over a year, but he hadn't realized until now how much he had missed it. Unlike Eavesworth or the Spades Capital, Valden was a smaller, quieter city. It had small cobblestone streets and trolley cars, and unlike the larger cities in Spades, much of the buildings were constructed with wood as opposed to stone. It was surrounded by rolling, open fields as opposed to the deep, lush forests that surrounded much of Spades, and even in the town, there was a soothing, earthy scent to the city.

Alfred had fallen in step behind Arthur who was looking down at the device in his hand, tracking the area with abnormal magic output. Like Matthew had said, no one in the town seemed to pay them any mind, much less notice them, so they were able to cut through the city itself to get to the outskirts of Valden.

"Does it feel good to be home?"

Alfred turned his head to look at Arthur, who had asked the question without looking up from the device. Alfred smiled and shrugged a little, shoving his hands deeper into his pockets.

"This place really isn't my home anymore, Arthur." Alfred paused for a moment, taking a deep breath in, enjoying the nostalgic scent of the city. "But it is nice to see this place again."

Arthur glanced over at Alfred, a small smile on his face.

"I see."

Arthur seemed pleased enough with Alfred's response, so Alfred decide to volley a question back to Arthur.

"So...have you ever been to Valden before?"

Arthur nodded as he returned his eyes to the device in his hand.

"Oh, yes. Countless times."

Alfred quickly whipped his head back to look at Arthur.

"Seriously? When?"

Arthur looked back up at the King.

"Well, most recently...when we came to retrieve you." Alfred rolled his eyes and sighed impatiently. Arthur smiled at the King's reaction and continued. "But my father was a merchant remember? We mostly went to port cities that could be reached by the Sea of Cards, but Valden was one of a few cities we regularly traveled inland to visit for trade." Arthur returned his eyes to the device. "Valden is one of the largest farm communities in Spades, you know."

Alfred's eyes lit up.

"Did you guys trade at the Market Square? The one with the big fountain in the middle?"

Arthur slowly turned to look back at the King.

"Yes...how would you know?"

"My parents were farmers, they took stuff to trade there almost every day! I usually went with them on weekends." A glint of realization illuminated the King's eyes as he excitedly leaned closer to Arthur. "Hey, do you think we ever met?"

Arthur smiled at the idea, and leaned a little farther away from the King's enthusiasm.

"Not likely...that's a rather big trading square..." Arthur paused and made a slightly sour expression. "Rather, I can only imagine what you were like in primary school..."

Alfred frowned.

"What do you think I was like in primary?"

Arthur stopped walking for a moment.

"Loud and dirty?"

Alfred frowned a little then looked down, feigning sadness.

"...I mean, you're not wrong, but still."

Arthur laughed a little and the pair continued walking.

"Well, that was a long, long time ago, Alfred. And I don't really remember meeting an obnoxious child with glasses."

"You shouldn't. Because I didn't wear glasses until my first year of high school."

Arthur tilted his head at Alfred in surprise.

"Really?"

"Yeah." The pair continued to make their way through the city, and as they turned down a different street, Alfred spoke, curiosity getting the better of him."What were you like in primary?"

Arthur shrugged.

"I suppose just normal child. No doubt I was certainly far calmer than you were as a child." Arthur thought for a moment. "Besides, Alfred. Even if we had met, we are nearly four full years apart. I doubt we would have had much to discuss as children anyway."

Alfred turned his attention up to the blue, cloud filled sky overhead. He smiled a little.

"Even so, I think I would have liked you anyway."

Arthur turned and smiled at Alfred.

"I guess we'll never know."

.

The pair made their way through the city using the less crowded streets on the outer ring of town. Valden was a small city, so they were able to make their way through under an hour. As the scenery around them changed from city buildings and cobblestones to farm houses and dirt paths, they knew they were getting to the Northwest outskirts of Valden where the anomaly was supposed to be. As they made their way along a dirt path past some farmland and rolling hills, Arthur looked down at the device in his hand, the blue gemstone still shining.

"So far, the magic outputs for the land are normal."

Alfred looked down at the device as well.

"Maybe the reading at the castle really was wrong?"

"I'd certainly like that to be the case..."

Suddenly, the blue stone on the device began to dim and flicker. Alfred looked closer.

"Wait. What's causing that?"

Arthur looked up and stared in horror at the scene in front of him.

"That's what."

Alfred looked up, and horror replaced his expression as well.

Out in front of them, stretching several meters into the distance, was dark, scorched land. It was black and gray, almost monochromatic, and the earth was completely devoid of life. The land had sunken in, as if the entire area had just wasted away. The pair of royals slowly walked forward as the light from the blue stone in the device flickered away completely. However, the pair never noticed. There was no sound at all. No rustling of plants, no birds, just the echo of an empty wind. Alfred looked around, an uneasy feeling growing.

"What is all of this?"

Arthur walked forward and knelt to the ground. He ran his hand along the soil which was fragile, and quick to break apart in his hands. It was almost as if a great fire had taken place, but there was no ash or lingering scent of smoke. Arthur reached for the nearby shape of a flower. The instant he touched it, however, it's form disintegrated into a fine, weightless, black powder. Arthur brought his hand closer, watching as the black powder disappeared completely.

"There's no magic here." Arthur said, horror creeping into his voice. "There's no life here at all. There's no Spades here...at all."

Alfred stepped closer to Arthur, feeling fear and uncertainty rise within him as he looked around at the area.

"How can that be? What could even cause something like this?"

"Negative magic..." Arthur mumbled as he stared at where the black powder hand been on his hand. Alfred turned to look at the Queen.

"What...? What do you mean by 'negative' magic?"

"I mean exactly that." Arthur turned and looked at Alfred, confusion in his own eyes as well. "Even I'm not truly sure; as far as I knew it was only a theory...something that had never been measured, but..." Arthur took a deep breath as he turned back to look at the dead land around him. "All magic creates something. Whether it be life, matter, or an effect. But there are...theories that suggest that there is a type of magic that is purely for destroying. Magic that creates nothing but reverses existence..." Arthur turned back to Alfred. "But it's never been practiced, or even proven to exist. There are some who believe that it can even be a natural phenomenon that would occur if there were no magic system to support a land."

Alfred frowned and shook his head in confusion. He finally spoke up.

"But...Cards is a land that is supported entirely by magic...how can something like that even exist here? Especially in Spades where magic is more prominent here than anywhere else?"

"I don't know..." Arthur stood up and stepped closer to Alfred. "But for now, I don't want to stay here much longer. Let's collect the information we need and leave this place."

The pair used the small magic device to determine that there was, indeed, no magic in the scorched area at all. After a few more calculations to determine that the affected area was about 1000 meters across in both directions, they quickly left the area, unsettled by being in an area not supported by magic.

.

They walked until they could no longer see the affected area. It was mostly hidden by natural slopes in the land, and there were no houses nearby. They truly wondered if the locals had noticed it was there at all. Once they were away from the area, Arthur looked spoke.

"Well...it's still only afternoon, but I suppose we could go and see if Matthew and Yao are at the inn..."

"Yeah..." Alfred stopped walking. "But...Arthur. Since we have time anyway...there's somewhere that I want to go. Can we?"

Arthur stopped walking and looked over his shoulder at the King.

"Sure. I don't have a problem with it. But where are we going?"

Alfred smiled softly.

"I just want to check up on a place."

.

Arthur fell in step behind Alfred and the pair made their way down a dusty stone road. It was a short, half hour walk from where they had started, but as they approached, Arthur recognized the structure. On the expansive plot of land sat the little farmhouse that used to be the Jones residence. Alfred walked closer to the house, and Arthur followed behind him.

"It's still here..." Alfred mumbled as he walked up to the front porch. He smiled to himself. "Well, of course it's still here, I wasn't expecting it to be gone...I guess it's just weird that I'm back here." Alfred turned to look at Arthur. "In all honesty, after you and Yao came to take me away, I never thought I'd be back."

Arthur smiled.

"This is your childhood home Alfred. And while your position and schedule will rarely allow it, you can come back to visit if you so wish it."

Alfred was comforted by the words. After all of the castles, palaces and royal events he had attended, it was nice to be in a place so familiar and ordinary. Alfred walked up to the door, and twisted it. Locked. He assumed as much, there was no way that when Matthew left for university he wouldn't have locked up the house. Alfred thought for a moment, remembering the proper spell for locks, and mumbled the short incantation. He twisted the doorknob slowly and stepped into his old house.

It was just how he had remembered it. There were the sofas in the front room where he remembered countless evenings of sitting with his parents and Matthew in the evening time before bed. Just past that was the kitchen with the old wooden table where he remembered sitting and working on homework with his twin, or sneaking a bite when his mother was making fresh fruit pies. There was the familiar stairwell that led to the upstairs room and the attic, and of course, the countless windows that looked out on their yard. Alfred took in the familiar scent of the house he had known all his life. Strange, how he had almost forgotten the scent. He smiled.

"It's good to be home." Alfred paused, and looked at Arthur slightly flustered. "I mean, the castle really feels the most like home now, don't get me wrong, but..."

"I understand."

Alfred blinked. Something about the way Arthur had said that made him feel as though he really did understand.

Alfred walked to the back of the kitchen and looked out at the back area of the large plot of land. He looked back at the Queen of Spades, his blue eyes shining.

"Arthur, come look at this!"

The Queen crossed the room to come and stand beside Alfred. The King pointed out the window.

"See that line of trees at the end of the yard? Teardrop Oak trees. Remember how I said I had fallen into a hole at the base of the tree on a rainy day?"

Arthur smiled, remembering the story Alfred had told him the day after they had met.

"I remember that story...didn't your father have to come rescue you?"

"Yeah! Matthew wasn't strong enough to pull me out, so he had to run into the fields to get my Dad to come help. I remember he was so mad, and once he carried me back to the house, the look on Mom's face was just..." Alfred trailed off, his smile falling a little at the bittersweet memory. He looked over at Arthur. "Well...it was a really rainy day."

Arthur immediately noticed the change in Alfred's demeanor. Although he wanted to ask what had happened to Alfred's parents, he felt that there was no elegant way to ask something so painful.

"It was in an accident."

Arthur looked up at Alfred, whose statement had answered his question. Alfred turned his attention back outside the window and continued speaking.

"It was a morning in late-spring. Matthew and I were in middle school and had just made our way to class, and my parents were about to take a batch of spring crops to market." Alfred swallowed as if he was remembering something very difficult. He slowly continued. "On their way, one of the streetcars lost control. It went around a curve too quickly. The trolley came off the rails and..."

Alfred didn't finish his sentence, the ending not needing to be said. Arthur stood closer to Alfred, instinctively wanting to comfort Alfred. Alfred looked at Arthur and gave a forced, sad smile as he continued. "There were a lot of casualties, but in the end, my parents were the only ones who died."

Arthur looked down.

"...I'm so sorry, Alfred."

Alfred shrugged and continued.

"After they died, I knew I had to be strong. Matthew was really depressed and devastated for a long time after their death, and since I'm the older twin, I felt I had to be strong for the both of us." Alfred paused a little and bore his eyes out the window. "So just a few days after their funeral, I began working after school. At first it was just on the farm and for the local general stores, but once I got old enough, I started working night shifts in the pubs in town...I was planning on taking more jobs to support Matthew in going to University." Alfred looked down and smiled as he briefly traced his hand across the center of his chest. "And then of course, I got my mark." As he let his hand drop, he tried to force another smile. "If they were here now, I'd like to think they would be proud of me."

Arthur spoke gently.

"I'm absolutely sure they would be."

Alfred turned and looked over at Arthur and smiled warmly before he closed his eyes and leaned forward, gently pressing his forehead to Arthur's. As they stood there for a quiet moment, Alfred took in Arthur scent, which he realized in that moment, that he had also come to associate with the word 'home'. Alfred sighed and brought his voice to a whisper.

"God, they would have loved you."

Arthur looked at Alfred as if he had just given him an exceptionally large compliment.

"Really?"

"Absolutely." Alfred gently pulled away. "Especially my mother. I can easily picture her getting along with you and probably even spoiling you. She would—" Alfred's eyes widened, realizing that it might have been a poor choice to talk about all of this with Arthur, who had never met his mother. Arthur however, seemed far from upset, and he even looked happy at the suggestion. He gave Alfred a soft smile.

"That would have been lovely." Arthur let some silence hang in the air before he felt it was appropriate for him to explain his own situation as well. Arthur smiled sadly. "I've told you that I never knew her, but I never explained why." Arthur took a deep breath.

"My mother was noble by birth due to my grandmother being the reigning Queen of Spades. However, my father was a common sea merchant. It goes without saying that their relationship was...very discouraged. But my mother apparently felt smothered by noble and royal expectations...and she truly loved my father, so they ran away together, cutting her ties with my grandmother." Arthur paused before continuing. "My mother was...weak. Physically. She was very frail." Silence hung in the room before Arthur finally continued. "She died in childbirth. Giving birth to me was too much for her body, and she passed away shortly after I was born."

Alfred frowned at Arthur's revelation.

"Arthur, I..." Alfred looked down. "I'm sorry."

Arthur shook his head.

"Her death is very difficult for me to mourn. After all, I never knew her. But my father talked of her so much, it really made me wish I had met her. My...childhood without her wasn't sad though. My father took me all kinds of places on his ship, and he cared for me enough for both him and mother."

Arthur's face fell. "Then he passed away too. I remember that day very clearly." Arthur looked up at Alfred. "We had a small cottage in the port city of Linemell...just south of Eavesworth. It was a small house, but big enough for the two of us, and we traveled so much, we didn't stay there very often anyway." Arthur's expression darkened again. "It was just a week from my eleventh birthday, and I had fallen sick. Father had to work though, so I stayed at the house and he said he would finish his trading in time to make it back for my birthday." Arthur paused. "But he didn't come back. There was a terrible storm off the coast of Spades, and his destroyed ship and his remains were found the day before I turned eleven."

Alfred's heart ached for Arthur. He was much younger when his parent died, and he had to do it all alone. Arthur continued, seeming to regain a little composure.

"The day after I got word of my father's death, palace guards came to my house saying that the Queen of Spades wanted to see me." Arthur shrugged casually. "And the rest is history, I suppose. The Queen informed me that my mother was her daughter, and that she wanted to look after me. And that day I was moved into the castle."

Alfred nodded. He was very familiar with the rest of the story. Arthur had bonded with the previous Queen almost immediately, and it was very apparent that Arthur had adored Queen of Spades more than anyone. He had spent much of his time studying the royals, roles and all of Spades under her. It was even the previous Queen that had spurred Arthur's love of literature, magic, and Spades. Alfred paused for a moment. He didn't know the details surrounding the previous Queen's death.

"And...the Queen?" Alfred asked gently.

Arthur looked confused for a second, then his expression softened dramatically.

"Nothing so dramatic. She died of old age. She was a great elder, but she was worn from stress and time spells, and she died a few days after the previous King of Spades died. Many like saying that she died of a broken heart." Arthur looked down a little and sighed. "No matter how little mind he payed to her, she truly did love him, and she was devastated when he died." Arthur leaned forward and rested the side of his face on Alfred's shoulder. Alfred blinked. It was unusual for Arthur to so openly display a need for comfort, but that only made Alfred feel all the more willing to give it to him. Alfred wrapped one of his arms around Arthur, holding him close.

"Thank you for telling me, Arthur."

Arthur didn't say anything in response, but allowed Alfred to hold him. He slowly spoke.

"Although I don't like to admit it, it's hard for me to talk about these things. Not even Yao knows about much of this, and he watched me grow up in the castle." Arthur leaned a little more on Alfred. "But I would be more comfortable if you knew me better than anyone else."

Alfred felt a wave of warmth wash over him, as he almost physically felt how much Arthur trusted him. But this also came with a very sad realization. Somehow, Arthur was very used to having the people he truly cared for die. He certainly had felt a wall when he was first getting to know Arthur, and he now wondered if it was because Arthur was constantly braced to face another death. But now that Arthur trusted Alfred enough to discuss vulnerable topics like both his love and what he had lost, he gave off a complex air as if he were caught between wanting to be close and still being prepared to let go if he had to.

Alfred was unsure of what he could say in order to convince Arthur that he didn't need to be so afraid of loosing him. However, unable to come up with the proper string of words to convey what he wanted to say, so he took Arthur's face into his hands. He leaned in close and gently placed a kiss on Arthur's cheek. It was far too gentle to have been purely romantic, and Alfred hoped that in some way, he might have been able to convey how much he adored Arthur, and how much he always wanted to be beside him.

The sunset was just beginning to filter orange light into the old farmhouse. Alfred slowly released Arthur and glanced out the window.

"Whoa, the sun is already setting. I guess we should head back before the spell Matthew used wears off." Alfred turned his attention back to Arthur to find that he was still looking at him. But unlike usual, there was no veiling of his emotions. His face was easily readable in an expression that Alfred had never seen on Arthur before. He looked...lovestruck. Hopelessly so. However, Arthur was very quick to regain his natural composure and he glanced away from Alfred, a light blush tinting his cheeks.

"Yes, let's return to the inn."

The pair walked back through the old farmhouse towards the door, and Alfred looked over his shoulder one last time before closing the old, wood door behind him. Alfred held the knob and re-locked the door with his magic. He looked over his shoulder at Arthur.

"Sorry this took so long, I really didn't think we'd be at the house this late."

Arthur shook his head.

"Don't be. I'm glad we got to talk like this."

Alfred turned to fully face Arthur and he smiled.

"Me too." Alfred stepped down from the porch and held out his hand towards Arthur. "Well then. I'll escort you back, Your Highness."

Arthur looked at Alfred with an entertained smile on his face and shook his head.

"You're such a sap," Arthur said, placing his hand in Alfred's.

Alfred smiled and interlaced his fingers with his.

"Only to you."

.

The pair found their way to the Northern part of Valden, and were able to quickly find the Zaffre Inn before the sun had completely set in the sky. Once inside, It was easy to find the other two royals. There was a small waiting area adjacent to the lobby. Matthew and Yao were seated at some plush chairs and were discussing quietly to themselves when Yao saw the pair enter. He stood and waved a hand to catch their attention.

Alfred and Arthur walked towards the pair and immediately started talking.

"Did you find the area that gave the strange readings?"

Arthur sat in one of the armchairs, his expression darkening at the memory.

"I did." He shook his head. "It was awful. There is a whole area of land that has no magic in it whatsoever. It's like it's not even Cards."

Matthew's eyes widened at the revelation, and thin creases began to for on Yao's brow. Alfred came and sat on the arm of the chair where Arthur was sitting, and spoke.

"Yao, have you heard of negative magic before?"

The Jack's eyes widened.

"Negative magic..?" He turned to Arthur with alarm on his face. "Your Highness, is that what you think has caused this?"

Arthur gravely nodded.

"That's the only possibility I can think of. I've never heard of anything else completely draining or destroying life magic. Especially in a place like Spades."

Silence fell over Yao, as he thought long and hard. Alfred turned to his brother.

"Were you able to find anything out, Matt?"

Matthew looked over at his twin.

"A little, yes. We talked to hundreds of people, but no one mentioned anything unusual or out of the ordinary. However, we did meet one gentleman in one of the market squares..." Matthew paused for a moment, squinting at the memory. "He was just an old farmer. He said that he lets his livestock graze in the Northwest portion of Valden's farmland, and that yesterday, he thought he saw a wide, burned area." Matthew looked back up. "He said he assumed that a wildfire had taken place, but considering how damp and lush Spades has been this year, it's a little hard to believe."

Yao nodded at Matthew's recap before he spoke up himself.

"Aside from him, we were not able to gather much information from the people."

Arthur looked from Matthew to Yao.

"So what happens now?"

Yao turned to the Queen, as he and Matthew rose slowly from their chairs.

"Matthew and I are going to go out and collect information once more. Now that it's evening, we might be able to get more information from a different crowd at local bars and eateries." He paused, tugging on a jacket for the Spades night air. "If we are able to find out anything new, we'll let you know. In the meantime..." Yao reached into one of his jacket pockets and produced a tarnished, gold-colored key. "Here is the key to your room if you would like to rest. This is a small in, but I did reserve the best room." He placed the key in Alfred's hand. "Matthew and I will be staying in the two rooms across from yours. We should be back by midnight."

Alfred took the key from Yao.

"Thanks."

Matthew pulled on a jacket as well as he turned to his brother.

"The food in this inn's bar is really good if you're hungry."

"Thanks Matt. Be careful out there."

Matthew nodded and fell in step behind the Jack of Spades, and soon, the pair had disappeared out the door.

.

After a short dinner in the Inn's bar room, Alfred and Arthur made their way up to their room which was on the third and uppermost floor of the inn. After finding the corresponding room number, Alfred slipped the key into the door and entered the room. Upon looking around, it was a large and attractive room, with soft plush flooring, a large bed in the center of the room, and a private bathroom attached. As they walked in, Arthur took note of their overnight bags that were laying by the bed.

"Yao must have brought those up for us..." Arthur looked at the bags, then off towards the window that was covered with deep blue curtains, save for where a thin sliver of the dimming sky was visible. Arthur appeared wistful and lost in thought as he stood in the center of the room. Alfred took a few more steps into the room and stopped a short distance away from the Queen.

"Are you alright, Arthur?"

Arthur turned to look over at the King. Alfred was looking at him with a gentle concern in his eyes, and he was standing a few feet away, patiently waiting for Arthur's response. As he looked at Alfred, Arthur slowly felt a wave of affection pass over him that he wasn't used to. He smiled warmly, and in a rare burst of honesty, Arthur's true feelings tumbled forth from his mouth without hesitation.

"I'm always alright if you're with me, Alfred."

Alfred's eyes widened at Arthur's statement before a genuine smile spread over his face. He took steps across the room, and stood right in front of Arthur. He slowly took Arthur's hands in his own, applying a comforting pressure. He looked into Arthur's emerald eyes, positively beaming. Slowly, his smile fell a little, as he felt a spark run through him as he stared into the emerald pools.

"Arthur..."

"Yes?"

"Can I kiss you?"

Arthur smiled at Alfred's request and leaned closer to the King. He dropped his voice off to a whisper.

"You don't have to ask my permission, Alfred."

The King smiled and leaned forward, as the pair let their eyes slide closed. Alfred brought his lips to Arthur's in a kiss so soft and gentle that Arthur couldn't believe it. When Alfred lightly pulled away, neither was able to open their eyes for a few moments afterwards. Alfred eagerly leaned forward and repeated the gesture a few times, each kiss sending a warm fluttering throughout the pair. Alfred pulled away ever so slightly.

"...I love you" Alfred whispered, his lips grazing past Arthur's. Arthur's breath hitched as he leaned forward again, their lips connecting in a stronger kiss. The kisses that followed seemed to pick up in fervor. As the kisses steadily grew longer and more passionate, their hands began to wander, and short moans began to slip past Alfred's lips in between short gasps for air. Arthur hands slid up Alfred's torso and began slowly undo the buttons on Alfred's shirt. Heat began to rush to Alfred's face, the warmth radiating against Arthur's cheeks.

"Ah...Arthur..." Alfred whispered, briefly breaking their kiss. "...are you sure you—" Arthur silenced Alfred, eagerly leaning forward kissing him again. Arthur tugged on the fabric of the King's shirt demandingly, the pair stumbling backwards onto the bed in the process. Alfred fell forward, hovering over Arthur. The Queen of Spades instantly reconnected his lips to Alfred, leaving a trail of kisses down the side of Alfred's neck as he busied himself with the buttons once more until the Kings mark was full visible. Arthur leaned away from the King, looking at the intricate mark that trailed across the King's chest. He traced his hands across the mark as Alfred leaned forward, kissing Arthur ravenously. Alfred's own hand came to rest on Arthur's abdomen as he slowly began pushing the fabric of Arthur's shirt higher. Arthur let out a soft moan at the new contact, as Arthur's whole body curved against Alfred's, his want very apparent. As the kisses grew more and more desperate and hungry, they broke away, both panting heavily. Arthur opened his mouth to say something, but stayed so close that he was murmuring into Alfred's mouth.

"Are you ready..?" Arthur's voice came out dry and hungry, his green eyes clouded in a deep lust that Alfred hadn't seen before. Alfred hesitated for a moment, then let out a low groan as Arthur rolled his hips up into Alfred's. Arthur smirked against Alfred's lips at his response and he repeated the action again. And again. Alfred led out a shaky sigh against Arthur's lips as Arthur continued, growing very aware of how hard he was. As Alfred let out another short groan of pleasure, Arthur sucked on Alfred's bottom lip, rolling his tongue against it in his mouth. Arthur reached his hands to the button on Alfred's pants.

"Arthur..." Alfred let out another moan of pleasure before a level of protest entered his voice.

"Arthur, wait—"

Arthur paused immediately and looked up at Alfred.

"What's wrong?"

"Uh..." Alfred's blue eyes flitted around briefly as if he was weighing words in his mind. He was panting lightly and his eyes were full of want, and yet he had stopped completely. Arthur looked at the King, confused before Alfred slowly spoke.

"...I've...never actually..."

Arthur blinked as it all finally came together in his mind.

"You're a virgin." Arthur said bluntly.

Scarlet color rushed to Alfred's face.

"No! I mean—technically...but I—"

"Have you ever slept with a man before?"

"...No."

Arthur sat up slightly and blinked, genuinely surprised.

"Have you ever slept with a woman before?"

Alfred looked down and fidgeted with the sheet under his fingers.

"...I've...kissed girls before back in school, but I've never..." Alfred trailed off, the rest of his sentence not needing to be said.

Arthur stared at Alfred, dumbfounded. He knew so much about Alfred, but this was one thing about Alfred he had definitely not foreseen. Alfred was by far one if the most gorgeous people Arthur had ever met; a beautiful face, the sculpt of a god, and the warm sort of spirit that attracted absolutely everyone around him. Arthur had assumed, even in schooling, that Alfred had had his fair share of partners. He assumed countless people had practically thrown themselves at Alfred throughout his life. He could easily have anyone he wanted.

Arthur let out a short laugh, and Alfred sat back on his haunches, visibly mortified.

"Fuck, you're laughing at me..." Alfred groaned and covered his face with one of his hands, the warmth of his embarrassment searing into his palm.

"I'm not, honestly..." Arthur smiled and leaned forward, taking the King's face into his hands. "I'm not laughing at you, Alfred. I'm sorry." Arthur gently brought his lips to Alfred's, who seemed to eagerly accept his apology. Arthur gently spoke. "Don't worry, I'll take care of everything for you..." Arthur leaned forward, his lips grazing past Alfred's as he dropped his voice to a whisper. "All you have to do is feel good, alright?"

Arthur kissed Alfred warmly, the tone having changed slightly from just a moment ago. Arthur had not expected that he would be the one to take Alfred's virginity, but he intended to to make it amazing for Alfred. Once Alfred began to readily return the kiss, Arthur slowly pulled away and rolled over for a moment, reaching into one of his bags by the bedside. He rummaged around for a bit before removing a small vial. Alfred watched and spoke to Arthur.

"What is that?"

"Oil. Neither of us are going to be very comfortable if we don't use anything at all." Arthur rolled back towards Alfred. "Come here."

Alfred eagerly moved to Arthur as their lips connected again. This time, there was no restraint on Alfred's part, as he kissed Arthur just as hungrily and desperately. Alfred boldly moved his fingers to unfasten the buttons on Arthur's own shirt. Arthur in turn had returned his fingertips to the fastener of Alfred's pants, and within moments the pair had shaken themselves free from their clothing, no barrier between them any longer. Alfred stared at Arthur, his eyes slowly drinking in everything that he had denied himself from for months. Arthur was slimmer than Alfred, which was easy to see just by looking at him, but he was also very fit from the sword work he did when he wasn't practicing magic. He was beautiful, and the dark, Queen's mark tattooed over his heart contrasted every inch of his strikingly pale skin. Then his eyes traced down to Arthur's cock, which was blushing and standing at full attention, matching his own. Alfred swallowed at the sight. A light blush tinted Arthur's face. Not used to being stared at so intently, Arthur quickly leaned forward and reconnected his lips with Alfred, who was willingly distracted. As they kissed, Arthur opened the vial, allowing the oil to run over his fingers. As Arthur brought his hand lower, he broke his kiss with Alfred, who immediately turned his attention to the side of Arthur's face. Arthur slowly spoke.

"Pay attention...at some point, you're going to be doing this..." Alfred had connected his lips with the side of Arthur's neck and had taken a particularly sensitive bit of flesh between his teeth and was busy leaving a mark. Arthur sighed into the feeling, at this moment not caring if Alfred was paying attention right now. They would have plenty of time later. Arthur shifted his hips and slowly pushed a digit inside of himself. He tensed up at the intrusion. It had been a while. He slowly pushed farther inside, before sliding the finger in and out, stretching himself in preparation for what was to come. He curled his finger until he finally found that spot that felt so amazing. Arthur let out a moan. He began to mercilessly prod the gland, his moans gradually growing until he had Alfred's full attention.

Arthur pushed the gland until he started to feel himself getting close, then retreated his fingers. He knew that Alfred wouldn't be able to last very long, so he willfully allowed himself to get as close as possible. Arthur readily leaned forward and took Alfred's length into his hands, stroking the remaining oil onto his shaft. Alfred shivered at the contact, his hips bucking lightly into Arthur's hands. Arthur retracted his hands, and Alfred felt slightly disappointed, but that didn't last very long. Arthur laid fully back onto the sheets, spreading his legs on either side of Alfred. It wasn't Arthur's ideal position, but he desperately wanted to be able to see Alfred's face for this. Arthur looked up at Alfred, his heart pounding in anticipation.

"You know...what to do, right?"

Alfred shakily nodded. He leaned forward and positioned himself so that his cock lined up with Arthur's entrance, then took a deep breath. Alfred slowly pushed inside of Arthur, gradually being engulfed by a blissfully tight heat. A low groan passed from Alfred's lips as he pushed farther in. Arthur let out a short moan and winced. Alfred was larger than Arthur had anticipated, but Arthur's tight muscles stretched and contracted until Alfred was all the way in. They stayed still for a moment, Arthur adjusting to Alfred's size. Alfred trembled above him.

"Arthur..." Alfred moaned lowly. "Arthur, you feel amazing..." Alfred's breath hitched in the back of his throat. "Can I...move?"

"Hold on..." Arthur said through gritted teeth, willing his body to relax further. After a brief moment, Arthur tentatively shifted his hips, allowing himself to slightly push Alfred's length in and out of him.

"Ah, Arthur..." Alfred moaned at the new form of friction.

Arthur smirked, enjoying the look of protest on Alfred's face. He rolled his hips again, earning another moan from Alfred. He continued to tease Alfred, shifting his hips up and down, ever so slightly. Alfred took in shaky, ragged breaths, and moaned softly as if he was doing everything possible to keep from moving. Arthur smiled at Alfred's honest obedience.

"Okay, you can move."

Alfred led out a sigh as he finally allowed his hips to move, gradually sliding his cock in and out of Arthur. Alfred moved slowly, trying to restrain himself from immediately pounding into Arthur for fear of hurting him. It was torture. But it felt amazing. As Alfred slowly rocked himself in and out of Arthur, sounds began to slip from Arthur as well.

"Alfred," Arthur moaned, shifting his hips downward on Alfred's cock, encouraging him to go faster. Alfred picked up his pace, panting harder, in a useless attempt to hold back the moans of pleasure that were beginning to slip past his own lips. As he began moving faster, Arthur's sounds grew louder like music, each intimate note causing Alfred's hips to buck in increasing speed. Finally, he hit that spot inside of Arthur.

"Alfred...!" Arthur writhed beneath Alfred, his moans growing uncontrollable. "Fuck, yes, right there...!"

Alfred tossed all caution aside, finally allowing himself to succumb to everything he had been holding back. Alfred drove into Arthur, at long last tasting the pleasure that he had been denying himself for months. Alfred pumped harder, the head of his cock driving mercilessly against Arthur's prostate until Arthur was gasping in frenzied ecstasy, clawing at the sheets beneath him. Arthur felt himself getting close at an embarrassingly fast rate, but he didn't care at this point. He soon felt the familiar clench in his stomach with every moan that escaped Alfred's lips. The pleasure and the heat and friction all became too much, and with an absolutely profane moan, Arthur came, releasing thick ropes his seed all across Alfred's abdomen. Alfred was not far behind. As Arthur's muscles tightened and contracted around Alfred, he was quickly pushed over the edge. His hips bucked roughly, and with a final rough snap of his hips, he tossed his head back as he came harshly inside of Arthur.

"Ahhh, Arthur..." Alfred sighed as he rode out the wave of his orgasm, and finally he collapsed on top of Arthur, completely spent. As they both came back down from their high, Alfred slowly pulled out, turning his attention to the Queen panting below him.

"Arthur..." Ignoring the sticky mess on their torsos, Alfred pressed his body closer to Arthur's. "Arthur are you okay...?"

Arthur's cheeks were flushed and his breathing was slowly returning to its gentle rate. Arthur's eyes focused on Alfred and he smiled. He turned his head and gently kissed Alfred's lips before peppering the side of his face with kisses. Alfred leaned into the contact and sighed happily, knowing that Arthur had enjoyed it. Arthur spoke.

"Did it feel good?"

Alfred wrapped his arms around Arthur.

"Fuck, yeah."

Arthur lazily pressed a kiss to the side of Alfred's face.

"Good."

The pair lounged in bed together; tired, but equally content. Arthur gently stroked the Alfred's back, and Alfred in turn leaned forward, kissing anywhere that he was able to reach. The King easily could have wished for them to lie there forever, but all too soon Arthur slowly sat up, much to Alfred's dismay.

"...Where are you going?"

Arthur looked down at Alfred nonchalantly.

"To wash off."

Alfred was quickly reminded of the mess and nodded, feeling a little disappointed to feel Arthur shift away from him.

"Alright." Alfred said, rolling onto his side.

Arthur looked down at Alfred, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

"...Want to assist me?"

Alfred's eyes darted back up at Arthur. Arthur smiled, already knowing he wouldn't need to hear his answer, and as he turned to slip from the bed, Alfred was right behind him.

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"Arthur..."

A high-pitched, familiar tone rang out in Arthur's mind that roused him from his sleep. He slowly opened his eyes to the dark inn room around him. He slowly sat up and looked around, gradually growing alert. The room was quiet. The only sounds were from wind blowing against the strong, wooden window panes. Arthur looked down at his side. Alfred was still deep in slumber, burrowed beneath the down comforters. He tossed in his sleep for a moment before settling into a new comfortable position, closer to Arthur's side. He let out a contented sigh and mumbled briefly.

"...rthurrr..."

Arthur smiled bashfully at the idea of his appearing in Alfred's dreams. Just when Arthur was about to lay back down to resume his sleep, the voice came again.

"Arthur..."

Arthur looked around the room completely alert. He knew that voice. But who was it? It was distorted and haunting. But gentle. Loving, even. Arthur quietly slipped from the bed, using extra care not to wake the sleeping King. As expected, Alfred was a relatively heavy sleeper, and did not stir. Arthur looked around the room, seeking the source of the voice.

"Arthur..." The voice seemed to now come from beyond the room. Arthur was hesitant at first, but he felt as though he knew that voice. Arthur quickly dressed, and slowly slipped from the room, silently closing the door behind him. He quickly navigated the darkened hallways of the inn, following the voice. There was something terribly familiar about the voice, and it tugged at a deep part of his heart. He made his way all the way to the front entrance of the inn. Silence. The voice had stopped calling. Just when Arthur was about to turn and return to his room, he heard it clearer than before.

"...Arthur, dear."

That's when he saw her. Arthur burst through the door of the inn into the Spades night air and stared. There was no mistake. There she stood. In the middle of the hushed, empty street in all of her glory. As if time had not touched her at all, she offered a smile towards Arthur as radiant as the first day they had met each other. Arthur's voice refused to come forth from the shock, but soon, his voice finally came forward in a trembling, whispered tone.

"...Grandmother...?"

The previous Queen of Spades nodded, the warm smile growing on her face. She held her hands out towards Arthur. A wave of emotion came over Arthur and he ran to her eagerly, wrapping his arms around her as if he were a child. She let out a gentle laugh as she returned the embrace.

"Oh, how I've missed you, Arthur dear..."

Arthur pulled away to look at her. The gentle creases that formed on her eyes and mouth when she smiled were exactly as he had always remembered them. Arthur let out a short laugh of disbelief, tears welling in the back of his eyes, but never spilling forth.

"What are you...how are you...?"

The previous Queen shook her head sadly.

"Arthur...I am not supposed to be here at all..." Her gentle smile fell a little. "The dead...have no place among the living, my dear...I just needed to see you."

Arthur thought for a while before his mind settled on one single explanation.

"Magic...?"

The Queen offered a sad smile before nodding a little. She offered a hand to Arthur.

"Come. Let us talk."

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The pair of Queens slowly walked through some of the grassy brush that lay at the edge of town. There were a few scarce wildflowers in bloom and Arthur spoke up.

"This reminds me of the times you used to advise me during walks through the gardens."

"Yes, I remember it like it was yesterday...you were so eager to learn..."

Arthur offered a small smile at the memory before it fell again. He had no idea what sort of magic his deceased grandmother had used, but no doubt it was limited. He turned to her.

"Grandmother...haven't you any more advice to offer me? I feel like...I may never be able to live up to your legacy..."

The elder Queen turned to face Arthur.

"Arthur dear...you mustn't try to become a Queen like me. Build your own legacy, rule Spades as you see fit." The Queen paused and thought for a moment. "...However...if I am to offer you one last piece of advice...do not be fearful to use the power at your disposal...do not be fearful of engaging in war."

Arthur stopped walking. The elder Queen took a few more steps then looked back over her shoulder.

"You...would support me in engaging in war?"

The elder Queen's expression grew stony and serious.

"There are times you must protect what is most important. There are times when war is the only way, Arthur."

Arthur froze. A deep, sinking feeling immediately began growing in the pit of his stomach. The elder Queen looked at Arthur, concern growing on her face.

"Arthur dear...? What's wrong?"

"...Who are you?"

The elder blinked, creases forming on her aged face.

"What...?"

Arthur looked up at the grandmother, a dark and angry expression on his face.

"Who...are you?"

The elder Queen offered a consoling yet hurt expression.

"What ever do you mean, Arthur?"

Arthur's eyes bore into her, his anger heightening.

"I know the previous Queen better than anyone. And she detested bloodshed. She was pacifistic to the core of her soul, and she believed there were always alternatives to war." Arthur took in a shaky, angry breath before calmly speaking. "So who the hell are you?"

The elder Queen's hurt expression slowly fell from her face and offered an apologetic smile. Silence fell among them before the elder spoke again.

"I'm sorry, Queen of Spades."

Instantly, the elder Queen's appearance began to melt away in a melding of color and refracted light. Slowly, a new appearance took form; a young woman with long brown hair clad in a regal, green dress. Pink flowers were woven into the side of her hair, and her eyes were almost as green as Arthur's. She offered a sad, but determined expression before her soft voice came out.

"I did not want to do this..." Slowly, her eyes turned alarmingly cold. "...but orders are orders."

Arthur's eyes widened, and he felt every muscle in his body tense. He had never met her before, but he could immediately identify who she was.

"Queen of Clubs..." Arthur hissed under his breath. How could he have fallen for such a simple plan? He had been blinded by the affection he held for his deceased family and from that, he had been weak. Arthur moved to cast a spell, but found his body was refusing to move. The woman spoke.

"You are on Clubs soil, Arthur."

Arthur's eyes widened in alarm. He glanced back at the town out of the corner of his eye. The town was quite a distance away. He had indeed accidentally crossed the border into Clubs, where all magic and luck is skewed in their favor. He looked back to the Queen of Clubs. The icy resolve did not fall from her face as she spoke.

"...I'm sorry."

Suddenly, the world around Arthur became clouded in dark colors. After-images and illusions swam across Arthur's line of vision. He tried his best to stay aware of his senses, knowing that this was illusionary magic, but despite his best efforts to stay aware of reality, everything grew clouded and dark until he wasn't aware of anything anymore.

Not even himself.

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Alfred blinked awake in the dark room at the inn. He rolled over and squinted through the darkness to look out the window, and found the full moon still high in the sky. He rolled back onto his side and closed his eyes, his hand seeking out Arthur's warmth. He felt around for a moment, then his eyes opened.

"Arthur?"

Alfred slowly became more aware and looked beside him. Arthur was not in the bed. He looked around the room. Arthur was nowhere to be seen. Alfred reached the bedside table and clicked on the lantern to the dimmest setting. In the process, he grabbed his glasses off the small table and slipped them on before scanning the room. All of Arthur's things were still there, and he hadn't left a note or anything. Alfred settled back into the bed and waited, groggily.

I'm sure he just went to walk around for a little while. I'll wait for him to come back before I go back to sleep.

And Alfred waited.

And waited.

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Little did he know, he would have to get used to Arthur not being by his side.

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Author's Notes:

-YAAAY! I made it in time to post this by Christmas! Ten points to Gryffindor! (actually, I'm a Ravenclaw, but that doesn't pack the same punch)

-Sorry for the delay in updating! This chapter was twice as long as normal (over 27,000 words because I have trouble determining when to stop writing ^^; ), so it took a while for me to write and edit this in a timely manner ^^ I hope you'll accept this chapter as a bit of a Christmas present from me to you! :D

-Phew! I looked at so much research to write those vows! (Seriously tempted to recycle them for my own wedding should I ever decide to wed, but of course, I would need a country to rule over)

-I borrowed some inspiration from some of the British royal weddings where the royal couple would be married inside the castle, then kiss on a balcony so that the local peasants can get some fanservice :3

-Helpful Note! The tea Arthur made for Alfred is Chamomile! Chamomile, when brewed in tea, has scientifically been proven to help battle feelings of depression and anxiety. It is by no means a treatment on it's own, but if any of you lovelies are anxious bundles like myself, I recommend adding a cup to your daily regimen ^^

-"Zaffre" is a shade of blue. Just a fun fact from a girl who took way too much color theory ^^

-It appears that time magic has a hefty price tag...

-AAAA I have so little experience writing smut scenes, my apologies \(*_*)/ I hope you readers found it palatable at least! I really need more practice writing scenes where characters do the do, bear with me ^_^;

-What is going to become of our heroes? And our dear Arthur?

-Thank you so much for reading the Last Spade thus far!

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Are you enjoying this story? If you like it, the best way to tell me is to leave a review! They really do fuel my writing and encourage me to keep going!

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