18 Years Prior

"Tobio? Can I come in?"

Sitting in the middle of his parents bed, Kageyama didn't answer.

"Tobio?"

Kageyama wiped a runny nose on his sleeve but didn't give any other response.

"Please, My King?"

Kageyama's lip wobbled and he felt tears well up again. He buried his face in his arms. "Don't call me that!"

There was the sound of a door opening and then the feeling of another person beside him.

"Mind if I sit with you," Suga asked, voice gentle.

Kageyama shook his head without looking up.

The Queen let him sit in silence for...he didn't know how long-long enough for the light in the room to filter from early afternoon to an orange sunset.

Finally, Suga spoke. "It wasn't your fault, Tobio. No one blames you."

Kageyama shivered miserably. "They should though...I'm the reason they're...that they're dead."

"Oh, Tobio," Suga breathed and Kageyama felt warm arms wrap around him. He unconsciously leaned into them. "Just because the assassin was after the King doesn't make it your fault."

"It does," Kageyama whispered. "If it wasn't for me being King, he never would've been here. He'd never have killed them!"

"Tobio," Suga said, shifting so Kageyama could crawl closer. "No one else is ever responsible for the choices of others. Not the assassins choice to wield a blade nor your parent's choice to protect you."

"But it was my choice," Kageyama said miserably. "Everyone...even you and Mom told me I shouldn't have Claimed my title yet. That it was unsafe….But I did it and now, they're dead." Tears were now flowing freely and Kageyama's chest hitched painfully. "I don't deserve to be King."

"Tobio," Suga admonished, voice still soft. "Don't say that. Of course, you do. It's your destiny."

Kageyama shook his head, burrowing deeper into Suga's chest. "No, I'm not going to let anyone get hurt because of me ever again. So, if that means I never get to be King then...then I just won't."

Suga sighed, holding onto Kageyama tighter. "Things aren't that simple, Tobio. Just rest for now. Get some sleep. I promise I'll be here when you wake up and we can talk more in the morning."

Kageyama nodded because, now that he had stopped crying, his body did feel really heavy.

But Suga was wrong about the other part. Kageyama wasn't going to change his mind. Kageyama would either find a way to be King and make sure no one got hurt or he'd never be King at all.

ooooooo

Kageyama was pretty sure that this dinner would go down in history as the most tense meal ever safely consumed by people.

After the disastrous introduction in the greeting chamber, King Yuta had sent off the rest of his entourage-including the Crown Prince-to check in at the stables. This also came with the discomfiting realization that the King had brought a number of Hyakuzawan Knights to "compete in the tournament, of course".

The Suits of Cards and their guest were now most of the way through the longest dinner of Kageyama's life. So far, no one at the table had yet to manage more than three sentence conversations and most of those had been started by King Yuta himself in a way too cheery voice. The Hyakuzawan King seemed to be the only one really enjoying the meal, everyone else only chewing on a few bites before awkwardly scraping their food from one side of the plate to the other. Kageyama hoped that Spades' chef would understand it was the company not the meal that was ruining their appetite.

"More wine, Your Highness," a voice interrupted and Kageyama looked up to one of the few comforts of the evening.

As the official manservant to the Spades Suit, Hinata had flitted around serving the table in what had to be the worst uniform ever to exist. To be fair, the black velvet vest and plain black trousers would have been fairly normal-maybe even elegant with the gold threading and carefully stitched golden spade breast emblem-but the whole ensemble was destroyed by huge poofy gold sleeves that came up almost to Hinata's ears.

It was ridiculous and unflattering and Kageyama really wanted to kiss him.

But, that would probably-um, definitely be inappropriate considering the timing so all Kageyama did was quirk a lip up and hold out his glass.

Hinata held up the wine goblet and was somehow able to maneuver around both the table of food and the sheer volume of sleeves to pour him another glass...which was actually kind of surprising, considering Kageyama knew how clumsy Hinata was just on a day to day basis.

Beside him, Suga cleared his throat and none too gently elbowed him in the ribs.

Kageyama looked up to see that everyone-even King Yuta-had finished their dinner and that the plates and food had finally been cleared from the table.

Kageyama almost bolted out of his seat, holding up his glass so quick it was amazing that no wine spilled out. He winced and, with a little bit more grace, brought his knife to hit against the glass, a bright cling! bringing the room's gaze to him.

He very consciously tried not to swallow as he felt his mouth dry. In the back of the room, Hinata caught his eye and smiled.

Kageyama breathed

"Spades is honored by your presence," Kageyama began, reciting the same words he was required of every year. "We hope that this year, as in years previous, will show the fruits of our labor not just from the Suit of Spades but of all our honored guests as well."

King Yuta held up his glass in silent acknowledgement.

"Now, that the Opening Feast has reached its end and we are all," Kageyama cleared his throat, "humbled and brought closer by a shared meal, we can move on to the Gathering of the Suits."

The entire room shifted uncomfortably, gazes settling on the Hyakuzawan King. The Gathering of the Suits was the much more formal and pretentious title for what basically everyone else called the Suits' meeting, where the monarchs had their first official chance to talk in private before the tournament began the next day. No non-Suit member had ever been allowed to the meeting before.

Of course, the tournaments had never had an uninvited royal guest either.

Suga cleared his throat and looked at the King. "Do you-"

"It seems it's time for me to turn in for the night," King Yuta interrupted. He smiled in a way that was more predatory than friendly. "After all, a good guest knows not to overstep his welcome."

Tsukishima stood up with a tight smile that blatantly ignored the irony of the King's last statement. "Please, allow my Suits' official manservant to show you to your room."

Hinata stepped forward, dropping into a respectful bow before the Hyakuzawan King. Something in Kageyama's chest tightened.

"Thank you for your hospitality." King Yuta stood, allowing Hinata to guide him out of the room.

The door fell closed behind them with all the comfort of a guillotine, leaving only the Cards Suit.

There was a beat of absolute silence before-

"Well, shit," Kuroo swore. "What the ever loving fuck is he trying to play at?"

"Intimidation for one," Tsukishima answered smoothly. "I believe it's safe to say our question of when Hyakuzawa would act has now been answered."

Kenma glanced up, cat-like eyes landing on Tsukishima. "You think he' going to use the tournament to reveal his King of Hearts."

Tsukishima nodded. "It would make sense tactically. A large public area with a large number of Cards' most loyal citizens. It would make denying a Claim of Kingship rather difficult."

"And speaking of Claim," Iwaizumi said, glowering darkly. "Are we going to talk about the Fates cursed glove he was wearing? I thought the idea was he'd chose an ally not tattoo it on his own hand."

"That was the idea back when we thought he was merely trying to supplant the Kings," Tsukishima corrected. "Now that we know he's planning a full scale takeover, it wouldn't matter if he holds both the Hearts and the Hyakuzawan kingship. He's probably not expecting Cards to exist long enough for it to matter."

"We could kill him," Yukie suggested calmly, speaking up for the first time. "He's surrounded by not only all four Aces but also the best knights in Cards. It wouldn't take much, even with his small group of knights."

"We can't," Akaashi said suddenly at the same time as Suga's "That would mean war."

The Queens looked at each other before Akaashi inclined his head, letting Suga take over.

"Killing the Hyakuzawan King while he's here as a peaceful yet uninvited guest would be a very clear act of war," Suga explained. "And one where we'd undoubtedly be seen as the aggressors."

"Does it matter if we're probably going to war anyway," Lev asked, confused. "We know what he's planning. Who cares if it looks like we started it instead of him?"

"The people," Yahaba answered softly. "Trust me, a war's a lot easier to stomach if you believe you're fighting for the right side. Something much more difficult to convince if we kill another country's leader in cold blood."

"Plus there's Nohebi to consider," Tsukishima added. "Technically, they're both Cards and Hyakuzawa's ally but if we go to war, there's no clear indicator which side they'd choose." Tsukishima's lips thinned. "Though, as mentioned, looking like we're randomly killing neighboring monarchs certainly wouldn't help our case."

Bokuto scratched his chin. "What if no one knows Cards killed him?"

"Assassinate him in secret," Kuroo asked, tilting his head and considering.

Bokuto grimaced. "Not really my first choice, but yeah, you think it would work?"

The room looked over to Tsukishima, who was frowning in thought.

"Hyakuzawa does believe our Ace is dead," Tsukishima admitted slowly.

"Wait, what," Kageyama demanded. This was definitely the first time he'd heard that.

Excepting Suga and oddly Kenma, the rest of the group looked to be in similar states of concern and confusion.

Tsukishima waved his hand dismissively. "An assassination attempt that they believed succeeded. Nothing to worry about; the Ace of Spades is fine."

The room relaxed, almost as if an invisible weight had been removed

"Why didn't you mention it before," Iwaizumi asked.

Tsukishima shrugged. "Our Ace wasn't even injured and the entire thing is what finally helped me unravel Hyakuzawa's full plan. There were other things on my mind at the time." Tsukishima shook his head, delaying further questions. "The important thing is that having the Ace of Spades kill King Yuta still puts Cards at too much risk. While the Hyakuzawan King believes the Ace dead, I doubt any others do. Having King Yuta die under mysterious circumstances in the home of a known assassin is basically the same as announcing the culprit in the middle of the town square."

Iwaizumi sighed heavily, sitting back in his chair. "So, we're back to square one. Any more ideas?"

"We need to figure out when he's planning on revealing the fake mark," Kuroo said immediately.

"I'll have our Ace watch him and notify us if the King seems ready to," Tsukishima suggested. "We should be fairly safe the first few days. Since he seems to want to do this publicly, he'll likely wait for the biggest crowd possible" The Jack of Spades paused, considering. "He might even wait until the official Closing. It would be the safest option-guarantees a large crowd but still gets him out quickly before too many questions are asked."

Tsukishima trailed off, talking more to himself than the group at large.

Suga cleared his throat, effortlessly drawing the room's attention. "The only thing we can do now is wait….Which, if you think about it, is the only real option we had even before King Yuta arrived so we're really not in much worse of a place now." Suga brightened slightly. "If anything, this helps us by giving us a more definite assumption on when he'll act along with an opportunity to gather information."

Suga took a moment, letting this slowly sink into the room. "As Tsukishima said, King Yuta is unlikely to act either tomorrow or the next day so we still have time to come up with a better plan. Right now, instead of worrying as a collective, I propose we take a break to recoup and get some sleep. We can talk more during tomorrow's tournament."

Ever since he was a child, Kageyama always thought it was amazing how Suga could size up a room and ease everyone's minds while somehow not dismissing their fears.

The rest of the Cards' Suits as one seemed to realize how late it had gotten-looking up at the clock before rolling shoulders and stretching arms as the days of horseback riding caught up with them.

Kuroo nodded decisively, taking in his and the rest of the Suits' states. "Alright, I agree. Let's take a break from tonight and give the Ace of Spades I chance to spy. But tomorrow, after the knights tournament, we need to come up with a more definite plan." He glanced around the room with serious assessing look in his eye that left no doubt on who was the country's top military strategist. "Cards can't wait much longer."

ooooooo

As soon as he had properly showed King Yuta to the guest suites-a beautiful set of rooms, facing the castle's lake-Hinata practically sprinted out of view, back down the hall and into a dark cramped nook hidden between one hall and the other.

In the dark, Hinata fumbled around and really hoped Yachi had already had time to hide a set of clothes from when he passed her the note during dinner. His fingers hit cloth and Hinata mentally cheered, finally tearing off his fancy royal servant uniform with the way too burdensome sleeves. At least the clothes Yachi brought-regular servants clothes unfortunately, instead of the black Ace of Spades' suit-would be much easier to spy in than his current monstrosity.

And Hinata was absolutely sure that both him and Tsuki were on the same page with spying on the visiting King.

Now if only the clothes Yachi brought could have maybe a few less buttons-where did she even find this?

Finally, with Hinata more or less put together, he pushed out of the nook and ran down the hall and-

Right into someone's chest.

Hinata groaned, looking up.

Prince Hyakuzawa Yudai blinked down at him.

Realizing who it was, the Prince smiled. "We've got to quit meeting like this."

Hinata let out a laugh that was only slightly strained while mentally counting his blessing that Yachi hadn't had time to grab him the Ace of Spades black suit….or come to think of it, that he wasn't still wearing the Spades' manservant uniform as that wouldn't be any easier to explain.

"Um, sorry, to ask this again," the Prince started. "But what are you doing here? Spades is pretty far away from Hyakuzawa's capital."

Hinata licked his lips, brain scrambling for an excuse. "I'm working...I...I travel, remember?"

"R-right." The Prince blushed and Hinata belatedly remembered what it was the Prince thought he did for a living.

"Do you….do you have many clients in Spades, then," the Prince asked, face gradually going more red with every word and glancing down at Hinata's clothes before sharply back to his face.

Hinata followed the gaze down to his shirt and just bit back a very heartfelt sigh at the rushed and misaligned buttoning he'd stumbled through in the dark.

There really was no good way to explain his way out of this, was there?

Hinata took the path of least resistance and resolved once again that Tsuki was never finding out about this.

"Yeah," Hinata answered, smiling brightly. "Not as many as some of the other Card Kingdoms, but I tend to stop by for every festival."

The Prince nodded, maybe a bit too quickly. "And do you...er, like Spades?"

"It's the best," Hinata answered sincerely.

He tilted his head, studying the Prince. "How've you been? Finding out what makes a good King?"

The Prince shifted uncomfortably and Hinata wondered if that had been an awkward question, giving the tension between Cards and Hyakuzawa.

"I-I don't know how well I'm doing," The Prince admitted. "I tried standing up to my uncles a bit more and...well, it didn't go too bad. I think they were more surprised than anything. Some people...some people are harder to talk to than others, you know?"

Hinata nodded slowly, catching the brief and probably unintentional look the Prince threw at King Yuta's room.

"Maybe..." Hinata paused, wondering what was a good servant-ish thing to say. Well, truthfully, a normal servant probably wouldn't be having the conversations that Hinata seemed to stumble into. Screw it, he'd just do what he always did and say what he was thinking.

"Maybe that just means those are the battles you need to fight harder on," Hinata said. "It's like...uh, you know with the knights tournament how sometimes there's that one competitor who gets beaten in like the first round every time and then, everyone's always so down on them?"

The Prince nodded.

"Right, so," Hinata continued, quicker now that he was on a roll. "You're like that!"

"I'm a bad knight," the Prince asked, confused.

"Yeah," Hinata agreed. "But, you don't always have to be. So, back to the tournament, right. A lot of times the bad knights quit right after the tournament and no one ever hears about them again. But then, sometimes, they come back the next year and they're awesome! And everyone's like 'Wow, look at how hard they worked! They must've been training like crazy!' and then, they're like super good and everyone's rooting for them and then, they normally rank high in the end."

"But that only happens sometimes," the Prince broke in.

Hinata nodded. "'Cause the rest of them quit. You're not going to be like that. You're going to be like the other knights, who work hard and are amazing! Because that's what you said before-you said the people were important to you and you were going to fight for them, right?"

"Right," the Prince agreed. "I mean...I am? I mean-"

"You are," Hinata interrupted. "And that's what'll make you a good King-cause you're not going to give up. Like how in the first tournament, the knights who keep working know that losing fights doesn't mean the fights aren't important or that they'll never win." He grinned. "It just means they need to try again and harder."

The Prince blinked, rocking back on his heels with a contemplative look in his eyes.

"...you know," the Prince began. "You're really...well, your really not like any of the other common people I meet."

Hinata laughed. "Yeah, I should probably work on that."

He gave the Prince one last smile and a bow. "I've got to go back to work now. See you later, Prince Yudai!"

With that, Hinata hurried down the hall and around the corner, intent on finding an opening in the ceiling to spy on the King's room.

As he turned the corner, he heard Prince Yudai call out, "Wait, I still didn't get your name!"

Hinata winced and made a mental note to avoid the Prince while he was dressed as a servant. He was already in hot water as it was.

ooooooo

"We need to talk," was the first thing Yahaba said when he slipped into Iwaizumi's rooms later that night.

"Do we," Iwaizumi asked. "About King Yuta? Why? Did you figure something else out?"

"What?" Yahaba frowned. "No, not about that. About Oikawa. Why isn't he here at the meeting? Why did you decide to leave him in Hearts?"

Iwaizumi's heart stuttered painfully in his chest but he tried to ignore it in the face of Yahaba's increasingly confusing questions. "What are you talking about? Why would Oikawa be here? This meeting is for Suits only."

Yahaba leveled him with a flat glare that the Jack normally reserved for Mad Dog. "Because, he's our King. Obviously."

Iwaizumi felt his jaw drop open and he hastily covered it up with a spluttered. "W-what? Of course, he's not! He's-"

"Oh, please." Yahaba rolled his eyes. "You bring in a complete stranger with a conspicuously bandaged hand. Insist he stay in the palace. Actively involve him in financial decisions. And encourage me and Kyotani to get closer to him. It doesn't exactly take a Jack to figure it out."

Iwaizumi laughed ruefully. "That obvious, huh?"

"For your Jack and Queen? Extremely," Yahaba answered dryly. "Now, back to the important question: Why isn't he here so we'd actually have a better chance of cutting off all of this fake King nonsense?"

"It's not that simple," Iwaizumi said, sitting down heavily on his bed.

"Clearly," Yahaba continued. "I already assumed you hadn't gotten him to Claim it yet to keep him safe from the Hyakuzawan assassins. But, now, that we know King Yuta's ready to act, I think it's time."

"I didn't even think about Hyakuzawan assassins," Iwaizumi said, his voice tight. "Shit, they'd kill him if they knew."

"Yeah, I thought that's-" Yahaba shook his head. "Wait, if that's not why, then why hasn't Oikawa Claimed his title?"

"He doesn't want to be King," Iwaizumi answered, face expressionless.

"He doesn't...He has to be King," Yahaba near yelled. "That's what the marks are there for! It's destiny. It's fate. It's practically the only thing that can keep us from being invaded by Hyakuzawa! What do you mean he doesn't want to be King?!"

"Oikawa disagrees," Iwaizumi said flatly. "He doesn't believe in destiny or fate and I...I didn't tell him about Hyakuzawa. Oikawa said he wasn't right to be King and he wouldn't listen-he never listens when I try and-"

"Why didn't you tell him about Hyakuzawa," Yahaba interrupted suddenly. "If anything will convince him, it's that."

Iwaizumi sighed. "I thought we had more time. Also...well, you know Oikawa, he's stubborn and headstrong and hates being controlled but...he loves Hearts more than anything. I can't-I didn't want to tell him and force him to be King just to prevent war. Because he'd do it. I know he would. He'd sacrifice his entire life for even on citizen, let alone the kingdom. But...that wouldn't mean he'd believe he's right for it. He's not...he doesn't believe in fate. If we forced him into it, he'd do it but he'd never think he was right for it...Not really. And it would kill him from the inside out and...and I...I just couldn't…."

Iwaizumi trailed off, without really knowing how the sentence would end. Yahaba was staring at him with the same expression he had for particularly interesting financial calculations.

"Wow," Yahaba said slowly. "You must really love him."

Iwaizumi turned bright red. "What? No, I don't! I've only known him for a month!"

Yahaba shrugged. "Well then whatever you're trying to call it, you've got it bad." The Jack rubbed the back of the neck. "I guess it doesn't matter now anyway. King Yuta's already here and it's not like Oikawa could ride all the way from Hearts in time for the festival, even if he left right now. I suppose we're stuck."

"I should've told him about Hyakuzawa," Iwaizumi muttered, glaring at the ground.

"Maybe." Yahaba hummed. "But you had your reasons and no one expected King Yuta to act so soon." Suddenly, Yahaba let out a short bright laugh. "Honestly, it's kind of reassuring."

"What," Iwaizumi grumbled.

Yahaba smiled. "Knowing that even the great Ace of Hearts is still just as stupid as the rest of us when it comes to feelings. It's good, keeps you humble."

Iwaizumi rolled his eyes with a huff, looking up just as Yahaba started to the door.

"Wait a second," Iwaizumi called. "That reminds me. How long have you and Mad Dog been a thing?"

This time, the laugh that Yahaba let out was much louder and much longer.

"About a year," Yahaba answered when he finally calmed down. "I didn't think you'd noticed yet."

"Oikawa told me," Iwaizumi said before frowning. "He said...he said that you can't get that mad at someone unless you want to kill them or kiss them."

When Iwaizumi looked up, Yahaba's mouth was turned up in a fond sort of smile.

"Well," Yahaba said. "I imagine he'd know all about that."

ooooooo

Hinata yawned-wide and sudden-before immediately covering his mouth and glancing down to make sure no one had heard.

Other than a brief check in with Tsuki and changing into his regular black uniform, Hinata had been keeping an eye King Yuta through the entire night and now into the morning. After coming off a previous night of guarding Kageyama, the Ace of Spades would fully admit that he had passed tired and was now veering into exhausted territory.

And it wasn't even like King Yuta had done anything interesting. He currently seemed content in merely watching the tournament-which had just finished the jousting competition and was now setting up for archery.

The Hyakuzawa delegation-minus a few of their knights and the Crown Prince, who had decided to enter the tournament-were set up in a hastily assembled though extravagant tent that was now designated as the Royal Guests section. It was just next to the slightly larger platform reserved for the Cards Suit.

Hinata was perched up in the shadows between the two sections, still carefully watching the Hyakuzawan delegations for any unexpected moods. It was most likely a pointless task as even King Yuta was probably not bold enough to try something in the middle of a public arena, surrounded by knights and easily excited spectators. Especially, since the tournament wouldn't even be a good time to reveal his false mark-not compared to the tonight's later Knight's Banquet or the even larger Tournament Closing and Ball that took place respectively on the next two nights.

Hinata shifted, hearing the wood of the new tent structure creak under him. He might try to see if one of the other spies were available to swap with him. He was getting close to the point where he was about ready to drop on his feet.

Another yawn was building its way in his chest and Hinata quickly put his hands over his mouth trying to stifle it. It still rattled through, though luckily not as loud.

In his crouch, Hinata relaxed slightly and mentally decided that yeah, it was probably time to swap shifts.

SNAP!

Before Hinata could react, the end of the wooden beam broke under him and there was a horrible whooshing feeling before he hit the ground hard-just managing to cushion his landing into a roll to prevent a broken bone.

He shot to his feet, glancing around panicked as he heard a shuffle inside the tent.

Crap!

Hinata didn't have time to move before a head poked out of the tent, followed by the full body of the King of Hyakuzawa.

King Yuta's eyes immediately landed on Hinata, his entirely black outfit conspicuous against the bright green tournament grass.

Time slowed and Hinata saw a moment of surprise and honest puzzlement come across the King's face before it smoothed out into a smirk.

"Well," the King began, "now, what exactly is Spades' spy doing outside my tent? Could it be that-"

"There you are!"

Both Hinata and King Yuta turned as Kuroo came up behind them, casually throwing an arm around Hinata's shoulders.

"You already missed the jousting competition," Kuroo told him, seemingly ignoring the King completely. "We were worried you'd miss the archery one, too, if you didn't hurry your ass up."

Across from them, King Yuta narrowed his eyes. "Oh, are you suggesting that the...notorious Ace of Spades is simply here for the tournament and he thought the best seat would be spying right outside my tent? Curious, that."

Kuroo snorted. "Don't get conceited, Yuta. We're also right next to the Suits' seats. Where else would you expect the Ace of Spades to watch from?" Kuroo tilted his head, eyeing the King of Hyakuzawa with a speculative glint. "Interesting you'd assume he's spying on you, though. Cards normally doesn't spy on our friends. We're still friends, aren't we, King Yuta?"

King Yuta smiled blandly. "I certainly hope so."

"As do we all," Kuroo returned, voice just as dry.

"You must forgive my confusion," King Yuta continued. "I simply thought it was...strange to find the Ace of Spades here since I had always heard that he never showed interest in the tournament before. Why I heard he doesn't even participate in the Aces' Match." Yuta hummed. "I wonder if anyone else would find it strange to see the Ace of Spades suddenly so interested in the knight's tournament."

Kuroo shrugged. "Probably not, seeing as the Ace of Spades is competing in the Aces Match this year."

Hinata was suddenly really glad that the mask covered his entire head because he was pretty sure his jaw drop would be a fairly good indicator that he didn't know what in the Fates, Kuroo was talking about!

Idly, Kuroo scratched his jaw as Yuta stared at him. "Oh, huh...I guess you wouldn't know that yet, would you, Yuta? Sorry, I forgot you weren't at the Suits' meeting yesterday when we talked about it. We were planning on surprising the people with the announcement at tonight's meeting." Kuroo smiled. "I guess it's alright that you know early though. You know, since our kingdoms are such good friends and all."

This close, Hinata could see the way that Yuta's jaw clenched before the King reigned it in to form a demure smile. "Of course. I'm glad to hear we'll be treated to such a spectacular match tomorrow. I wish you both luck."

The King sighed loudly, glancing out from their tiny alcove and back onto the field. "Well, as much fun as this little talk as been, it looks like I better get back to my seat before the archery competition starts. My son would be so disappointed if it looked like I wasn't there, supporting him."

"We hope you enjoy," Kuroo responded pleasantly. "We should be getting back to our seats as well. Excuse us."

Kuroo and Hinata both waited until Yuta had nodded his head in farewell before Hinata found himself practically manhandled in the direction of the Suits' stands.

"Sorry," Kuroo whispered, once they were out of earshot. "I couldn't think of any other way to get us out of that without a public incident. Fuck, but that was close."

Hinata nodded and almost opened his mouth to reply verbally, but quickly closed it before his voice gave him away as surely as his uncovered face would.

Kuroo noticed the tiny gesture and hummed. "Silent one, eh? Well, Ace of Spades, may I just say it's an honor to finally meet you. And, hate to apologize twice in a row but well...too good an opportunity to miss."

Before Hinata could ask-or, well, gesture-what the other Ace meant, there was a flash of red in Kuroo's eyes and Hinata felt a sinking kind of comprehension as he found himself regarded under the power of the Ace of Diamonds-strength and weakness assessment.

"Huh," Kuroo said, eyes fading back to normal. "Strengths are high in speed, agility, flexibility, and….eyesight? Well, that's an interesting one." Kuroo hummed. "Low in basic sword strength."

Hinata was terrible with swords, it was why Keishin trained him to use knives.

Kuroo winked at him, mouth pulled back in a smirk. "Sorry, but then again I have been waiting to meet you for years and I just saved your ass, so even?"

Hinata didn't have time to answer before Kuroo was pulling him forward, pulling the door open for the private stands of the Card Suits.

"Hey, guys," Kuroo called out. "Look, who I found on my way back from the latrines."

Hinata looked up and for the first time found himself-his real Ace of Spades self-under the eyes of the entire Cards Suits.

"H-" Suga started to say his name before stopping himself and turning it into a noise of surprise at the last second. "What are you doing here?"

Hinata didn't answer, instead taking a moment to quietly asses all the different reactions from the rest of the Suits.

Out of habit, he looked at Kageyama first, who was regarding him with a conflicted kind of curiosity-though nothing that seemed like recognition which made Hinata feel something between relief and resignation. Akaashi, Yahaba, and Iwaizumi all looked more assessing, Iwaizumi obviously trying to size up how he'd be in a fight. Yukie seemed to be of a similar mind, though she did send him a smile when he caught her gaze. How she caught his gaze was still a mystery since the mask did a good job of covering where he looked. Bokuto and Lev's expressions were both edged with an honest, open glee at finally getting a chance to see the Ace of Spades in person. Last, Suga, Tsuki, and Kenma were all looking at him with expressions caught between questioning and worry.

"Found him in between ours and King Yuta's tent," Kuroo explained. "And, trust me, the King didn't look to happy about it."

Now, all the expressions had changed to some degree of concern.

"What happened," Tsuki broke the silence, clearly directing the question at Hinata.

For a second, Hinata hesitated, wondering if Tsuki expected him to respond out loud. Instead, Tsuki glanced pointedly at his hands and Hinata understood.

He brought up his hands, using the old spy signals they were taught as kids to sign for "roof", "break", and "fall".

"The roof of the tent broke and you fell," Tsuki translated correctly, ignoring the looks of confusion from everyone else.

"You fell from the roof," Suga broke in, alarmed. "Are you hurt?"

Hinata shook his head, giving the Queen a thumbs up.

"Did anyone see you fall," Tsuki asked.

Hinata shook his hand, repeating the gesture for "roof" and adding "after".

"The King found you after," Tsuki nodded. "Good. Is the break obvious? Will anyone be able to tell how it broke?"

Hinata shook his head and Tsuki relaxed.

"I think I found them both fairly soon after it happened," Kuroo said and Hinata nodded in confirmation. "I explained that the Ace of Spades was heading here rather than spying on King Yuta." Kuroo's face fell into a rueful look. "There is one small thing, though, that we might have to change…"

"What is it," Suga asked at the same time as Kenma narrowed his eyes suspiciously.

"Well," Kuroo began, drawing out the word. "It looks like this year, the Aces' Match will have a fuller and more interesting line up than usual. Sorry, couldn't think of any other reason the Ace of Spades would be at the tournament."

There was a moment of silence were all head swiveled to look at Hinata, who fought down an urge to hide in the nearest shadow.

Finally, Tsuki spoke up in a deceptively bland voice. "Hmm, that will be interesting."