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“HOW ABOUT WE PLAY A GAME, A GAME?”
“Oh? What kind of game?”
“AN OLD LIGHTNER FAVORITE! TWO TRUTHS AND A LIE!”
The mage dispelled the magic they were casting and looked down at the Royal Fool. The little imp was bouncing on the balls of his feet as he looked up at the cat with his usual excited grin.
“I’m not sure I know of this game, my friend. Care to explain?” They asked, sitting down on the floor.
“OH IT’S EASY, SO EASY, MY DEAR FRIEND SEAM! I WILL SAY THREE THINGS, AND ONLY ONE OF THOSE THINGS IS A LIE, A LIE! YOU GUESS WHICH ONE IS FALSE, THEN IT’LL BE YOUR TURN TO SAY THREE THINGS! WE GO BACK AND FORTH! AND WHOEVER GETS THE MOST RIGHT WINS! UEE HEE HEE! WANNA PLAY, WANNA PLAY?”
“Oh alright, alright already. Settle down, won’t you? For once, Jevil. Please.”
With a laugh, the little imp jumped and landed in a sitting position. His J-Shaped tail swayed back and forth.
“OK OK! I’LL GO FIRST!” Jevil cleared his throat and finally stopped his shouting. “Ok, ok! I can’t hear from my right ear. It’s canines I fear. My tail comes off. Which is the lie, the lie?”
Seam didn’t think twice before answering. “Your tail comes off is the lie.”
“WRONG!!” To prove his point, the jester pulled his tail right off and showed it to Seam. “See? See? Doesn’t even hurt!”
The mage took hold of the tail, still obeying its master’s orders to move in the way he wished. They inspected the item.
“It’s armor?”
“It can be, it can be! Your turn!” Jevil took his tail back and reattached it to himself.
“Wait, what was the lie?” They asked, only just realizing they didn’t know which one was the truth.
“Your turn, Seam!” The little imp repeated, his grin full of mischief.
“Oh fine...Hmm...How about...Ah! Got it. My favorite color is Purple. My favorite tea is CatNip. I love naptime. Which is the lie?”
Jevil’s tail came up to his mouth and he chewed it in thought. He let out these over exaggerated “Hmmm” s and “Ummm” s as he fake-thought it over. Seam rolled their eyes. “Jevil...”
“Uee hee hee! Easy! Your color of choice is orange, orange! Not purple!”
“Too easy for you, then. Alright, your turn.”
“Uee! Okay! I hate math. I hate history. I hate grammar. Which is false, false?”
“Easy. You love math. You love everything that involves numbers.”
“CORRECT! You know me so well, so well!”
The plush cat smiled as he watched the little jester’s head rock left and right, the bells on his hat ringing rhythmically.
“My turn, then. I hate your ramblings. I love your ramblings. I tolerate your ramblings. Where is the lie?”
Seam watched Jevil’s eyes go from circles to empty spades as he realized what his companion just said. They grinned and laughed as the imp tackled them. The two jokers began to play-wrestle. Seam had the upper hand in physical strength, and pinned down the little man with one paw. Jevil pretended to struggle, clearly having fun with this new little game they played.
“Where’s the lie, Jevil?” Seam asked, his voice filled with mirth.
“The lie is you love, love my ramblings!”
“Wrong!”
Jevil stopped his wriggling and turned his head 180° to look at his companion. His eyes changed to full clubs. “What...?”
“You heard me. Your turn,” they replied, letting go of their funny companion.
Jevil stood up, his body rotating to be realigned with his head. He stared at Seam, the cat keeping a cheery expression. They watched his eyes change shape one more time.
“Ok...Uh...Well...” Jevil became rather bashful, putting his hands behind his back and staring at his shoes. Seam tilted their head in curiosity to what their funny little jester was going to say. “Err...”
“Come on, Jevil. It’s your turn.”
“Uee heeeeee...W-Well...I love the taste of moss. The kings are my boss. And...And...”
“...And?”
“J-Jevil loves Seam with all his heart!”
The imp looked away, tugging his hat to cover his blushing face.
Seam felt themself grinning again. They leaned in and gave the bottom of his chin a tiny smooch. The jester became stiff as a board, limbs pointing straight down, and his ears and hat tips pointing up. They watched his eyes glowing as big full hearts.
“The day you call someone a boss is the day you start making total sense.”
Jevil fell down on his back, hands folded across his torso. Somehow, he had a white daisy in his clasped hands. To top it off, his tongue was lolled out.
“My turn, then,” the mage continued, sliding to be next to their companion’s corpse. “I love you. I detest you. I think the world of you.” The little fool let out an incomprehensible noise. Seam brought a paw to their grin, trying to hold back their snickers. “Come on. This is a giveaway.”
“Mmmmmrrrrahhhhaaaammmmm...”
“Jevil, come on, you have to guess,” they teased, poking him with a claw. The little fool gave a response in the form of holding up two fingers. “Heh heh heh, you got it.”
The court jester stood straight up and beamed at them. “YOU MEAN IT, MEAN IT?!”
“With all my soul.”
Jevil let out a loud squeal and hugged his companion tightly. He rubbed his face against their cheek and let out a loud purr that must’ve come straight from the gut. The mage lifted him up.
“I suppose we ended in a tie. As usual. What say you?”
They weren’t expecting a response from Jevil. Once he started purring, there was no stopping him until he’s done. They carried their companion to their shared dressing room. They had a show to rehearse for.