AN: And since I had two chapters written, you don't even have to wait for this one. Cheers!
...
The queen scowled as she flounced back toward her throne. Something wasn't quite right. Her right-hand servant, the Ten of Clubs; something was... different. She couldn't quite place her finger on it, but it was unsettling.
He had tended to her every need, meticulously as always He had acted with his usual respect and sense of duty. He had even looked the same – well groomed, strong posture, pleasant but neutral expression.
But no, there was something different. He seemed...
That was just it. She could feel the difference, but she couldn't quite tell what it was, nor what was causing it. But she was determined to find out.
"Number Nine," she barked.
The nervous-looking Club flinched as he turned toward her with a bow. "Yes, my queen?"
"Send for Agent White."
...
It had been a month since the first time he had seen those bright green eyes. A month since a low-ranked Diamond who worked the game room floor had changed Ten's life.
For she had, he realized, in fact changed it. On the days he saw her, on the days he saw that smile, there was a buoyancy that seemed to accompany him throughout the rest of the day. He felt profoundly disappointed on the days that their paths did not cross, but all it took was the memory of her beautiful green eyes to make his heart beat a little faster. Even on his worst days – the days when the queen was mired in fury and ordering off people's heads, or the days when people's fear and avoidance started to wear on him, seeing her could turn it around.
But for all of that, they had never spoken. He had never even heard her voice. The looks, the smiles. They were dangerous enough without conversation.
But tonight, he was determined to find her, to talk to her. Tonight was different.
It was a Tea Party. It meant that another new tea was about to come on the market. The queen always celebrated such a breakthrough with an extravagant party. Attendance by all courtiers and cards was mandatory.
Almost everyone in the Casino used Tea. Some needed it, their regular fix, but most simply used it socially and well-diluted. But the tea party was a different kettle of onions. It was a night when excess was expected and acceptable. Tea would flow freely and in large quantities all through the night. The celebrated emotion tonight was Exhilaration, which meant that the party would likely be a boisterous one, but Lust and Desire, along with Bliss and Excitement were popular staples that appeared at most of the queen's soirees, and would likely be widely partaken as well.
Ten enjoyed the Tea Parties, not so much because of the feel-good teas, but rather that social lines seemed to dissolve once the teas started to take effect. For one night, he was accepted, just another reveler. For one night, he was not the greatly-feared Ten of Clubs. Everyone partied with everyone and few left the tea parties alone.
She recognized him before he recognized her. Even without his courtly robes, which he had switched out for a simpler black on black suit, emblazoned with a Ten of Clubs, he still looked much the same as always. She, on the other hand, without her croupier wig and heavy makeup, was almost unrecognizable. She wore a tight-fitting, short Diamond-motif dress in shades of silver and red. Her hair, which hung freely in loose waves down her back, was a golden light brown. Her face, the heavy croupier makeup replaced by lighter natural tones, looked almost angelic.
Had it not been for the brilliant green eyes that sought his dark ones out, she might have walked right by without him realizing who it was. Instead, she paused and swiped two drinks from a passing server's tray, and approached, her eyes sparkling. And Ten found that he was holding his breath again. That, and gaping like a codfish.
She giggled slightly as she neared him, and that sweet flush of pink entered her cheeks again. She had probably had some tea already – she was definitely being far bolder then before. She extended a hand, holding out a fluted glass to him. "Drink?" Her voice was soft and sweet, and he loved the sound of it instantly. It matched the warmth in her eyes and the sweetness in her smile.
It took Ten a long moment before he recovered enough to take the glass from her, his fingers grazing hers slightly as he did so. Her skin felt soft, and his fingertips tingled at the sensation, as though a minor electric current had flowed through them. He wondered how it would feel to truly touch her skin, to run his hands over her body, over the expanses of creamy skin.
He needed to stop. Stop thinking like that before he truly embarrassed himself. His trousers were already feeling tight, without even having had a drop of Lust or Desire. How did this girl have such an effect on him?
She was still gazing at him, he was still staring at her. But now she was looking a little self-conscious. "Are you alright?" she finally ventured.
Ten nodded, with great effort finally pulling himself together. "I'm fine," he managed. "You..." He swallowed hard. He had never had so much trouble talking to someone in his life.
She laughed gently, and procured a small vial from somewhere in her dress. "Need some of this?"
Ten mutely accepted the bottle she pushed into his hand, before glancing at the yellow liquid. The bottle was unlabeled, but he knew well enough what it was. "Courage?" His voice was barely a whisper.
"Might help," she whispered back, and winked.
He placed his glass down on a small table and undid the cap. His eyes fixed on his Diamond, he tipped the bottle to his lips. It tasted like orange, but with an almost spicy aftertaste. And as he swallowed it down, the warmth of it spread through his body, and he felt his heart-rate finally slow and he breathed more freely.
"Better?" There was that beautiful smile again.
Ten nodded. "Thank you, Kate."
The reaction was instant. Her eyes widened and she took a step back, uncertainty for a moment replacing the flirtation in her eyes. "You know my name," she said finally. "You're the one who was asking about me."
Ten cursed inwardly, but nodded. "I wanted to know." His eyes sought hers, full of his own emotion.
After a long moment, her eyes brightened again. "So you know my name. What's yours?"
He opened his mouth to respond, but at that moment a cluster of Diamonds descended on their location, all chattering and laughing.
The Six of Diamonds saw Kate, and in a split second had linked arms with her. "Come dance with us!" she demanded, dragging the Four of Diamonds away from Ten. Kate shot an apologetic glance back at him as she was pulled away, before disappearing into the crowd.
Ten sighed and leaned against the wall, picking up his abandoned glass. He swilled the purplish liquid around for a moment, before raising the glass to his lips.
…
Over an hour had passed before Kate found him again. By then the effects of Courage were gone, but moderately high on Exhilaration and Bliss, Ten found that his nerves, instead of overwhelming him, just added an exciting flutter of electricity in his chest.
He grabbed her by the arm, and the electricity seemed to spread from his chest, down through his arm to the palm of his hand, and he reveled in the feel of the contact.
He saw another cluster of Diamonds heading in their direction and knew he had to act fast. "My name is Cruz," he told her, and was rewarded by Kate's brilliant smile.
"Cruz." She smiled. "I like it."
The electricity in his chest flared at the sound of his name coming from her mouth, causing his heart to start pounding again. But the Diamonds were almost upon them. He knew they were going to pull Kate away again.
She had spotted them too. She quickly leaned forward and whispered, barely audibly. "Meet me on the roof, west corner, in an hour." Then she gave him a peck on the cheek and swirled away to join her friends.
Ten swiped another drink from a passing server, his heart nearly bursting out of his chest, his body practically quivering. He raised the glass almost to his lips, before changing his mind and placing it down on a table.
He didn't need any more Exhilaration. He was pretty certain he was feeling the real thing.
…
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