Chapter Text
“Fold,”
“Raise five thousand.”
Sliding his fingers along the edge of his cards, a two of hearts and a seven of clubs, Kanae hums a soft, breathy sound from his throat.
“Hmm, I see.” His voice drops to a devilish purr, “Kuu-chan, do you have good cards?”
“Don’t call me that,” His opponent scowls, delinquent posture as he reaches over to draw two, “As if I’d tell you . Start taking this seriously or I’m gonna make you eat shit.”
The pack of students crowding the duo ‘Ooh’ , lifting hands to cover whispers into each other’s ears. Kuzuha wears the red and black of Shinsoku High, sleeves rolled up to his elbows and tie hanging loose from his neck. Mixed in with the dark tones are the simplistic whites of Kanae’s palette - clean and crisp checkered beiges and the occasional blues of Nijisanji Highschool.
Kanae’s eyes curl into friendly crescents, though the smile he wears is anything but friendly. He flexes lithe fingers, light rippling off sheen nails as he accepts his next cards from the impartial dealer.
Silence descends over the park as the two Poker Princes appraise their hands. Kanae eyes the Vampire over the top of his cards, cat-like slits soaked in grey and flecks of blue. Lips splitting into a fanged, predatory grin, Kuzuha flicks his gaze up to meet Kanae’s.
“Your move. Or you gonna call it quits? You a coward?”
The air seems to drop by ten degrees.
Primly, Kanae draws his head to the side, delicate features framed by the gentle fall of flaxen strands.
“I’m afraid the one running is going to be you,” He leans forward into Kuzuha’s space, holding his cards close to his chest, “All-in.”
Craning away from the other boy, a confused sound spills from the Vampire of Shinsoku, something between a high-toned question and a scoff.
“Are you scared?”
A trail of sweat rests in a bead at Kuzuha’s collarbone. Ten thousand chips each on either side of the picnic table, gleaming even under an overcast sky.
“Never,” He snarls, surging forward to butt heads as he slams his cards down, “Can’t be helped, I’m going all-in .”
Two kings - it should be a simple win for Kuzuha, but poker is a test of luck.
Swallowing a gulp, the dealer turns up two cards on the table.
“Kanakana, are you crazy ?”
Kanae swipes a tongue over his lips, chasing the flavour of warm coffee.
“You remember what happened last year when Deron-sama destroyed that Kataribe girl-”
Kanae groans, eyebrows knitted together into an uncharacteristic frown, “I know . She went missing. But Deron-sama is only legendary for her beginner’s luck. That’s it .”
Shiina bites her lip, next to her, Sasaki stomps her foot.
“If you lose, our reputation will sink!” She snaps, “This feud is frickin’ pointless .”
Punctuating her point, she slams a hand down on Kanae’s desk so violently that his near-empty to-go cup quivers. “It’s just for ego -”
“Then tell me why it’s been going on for years .”
Both the girls stop short. Sasaki, wide-eyed, withdraws her hand to pick at the hem of her panda hoodie, while Shiina reaches to pinch her sleeve between thumb and forefinger.
“It’s dangerous, Kanakana,” She eventually murmurs, “The schools around this part of the city play with high stakes. You’re a transfer so we can’t expect you to know-” She hesitates, but regains herself when Sasaki bumps her hip to urge her on, “The things you could be asked to do if you lose - nobody here wants to see that.”
There was nothing to possess but an inane pride, like children fighting over a toy neither of them want. A petty quarrel for bragging rights, with a human for a trophy.
To put it that way would make anyone sound immoral.
“But you don’t know the other guy,” He replies, steady and calm as ever, “Even if I lose - which I won’t, by the way - he’s too innocent.”
Sasaki snorts, “ Innocent . In this town? Right. I bet he’s played in underground rings.”
A city that hinged it’s very existence on poker, on blackjack, on platoon, on slots - on chance . The worst altercations were decided by the grandest bets, all answers came on the delivery of the right kind of card. Hypocrites addicted to prospects dictated by probability, from the elderly to even young highschoolers with nothing but themselves to gamble away.
“Well,” As he leans his head in his palm, tilting it just so, his shadow seems to stretch, swallowing the room in the beguiling silhouette of Lady Luck’s favourite prince.
Sasaki and Shiina wither under the intensity.
“Haven’t you?”
Two aces.
Hands shaking, his claws scratch lines into the wooden slats of the picnic table, teeth biting furious little holes into his lip.
“Four of a kind,” The dealer chokes out, “Aces.”
There’s a furious uproar from the pack of students crowding around them, but Kuzuha’s world is decisively silent, eyes fixed on his opponent’s cards laid bare on the table.
“You’re fucking kidding me.”
He drags his glare to the boy sitting before him, doused in monochrome by the greying clouds. Piercing the sky like a needlepoint, a white sunbeam halos Kanae in an ethereal outline, angelic, if not for the diabolical grin on his perfect face.
Head tilted upwards in something pious, Lady Luck’s favourite prince crows,
“Be a good dog, won’t you, Kuu-chan? ”
Kuzuha has never felt so small.
This is the absolute worst.
≫ Originally written Jan 10, 2022.