a fourth miracle

[mirakill.livejournal.com]

[ A girl is sitting... mid air, legs crossed, as if seated amongst the stars. She's pretty devotedly shuffling a deck of cards, every which way she can. ]

I've decided I'm bored with chess. It has its elegance, certainly holds to the test of time, but I'm not above holding appreciation for newer games.

[ After all, she'll be playing it with more modern people. ]

You.

--Yes, you. Do I look like I'm speaking to anyone else?

Play a game with me, won't you? A simple game of drawing a card.

[ Mid air, she spins, holding the deck away, wrist downward, palm facing her. In a circle, around her, the cards float mid-air. The cards shuffle themselves in a circle around her-- no matter what you do, you can't see the face of the cards, just the backs. Illusion magic. ]

This is a game of luck. Draw a card jack or higher, and you win.

Draw lower, and you lose. The loss condition is that I ask a question and you answer.

[ By the way she talks about it, it feels more like a game of Russian roulette, deceptively safer-sounding. ]

And if you draw the joker, that's a loss upon loss. But the odds are against that, isn't it? I promise, magic aside, the odds are as fair as if they were laid out on a table.

Well? Will you play, and feed my boredom momentarily?

Comments

[enduringwinter.livejournal.com]

[oh Bern... This is still a very suspicious look because really? That simple? He has a hard time believing it.

After another moment, he reaches out to take a card (unsure)]

[mirakill.livejournal.com]

[ And what did you draw, my good sir? ]

[enduringwinter.livejournal.com]

[he frowns at his card before revealing the ten of diamonds. So close to a face card. So close]

A question, then.

[mirakill.livejournal.com]

Why do you return to the plane?

[enduringwinter.livejournal.com]

[...]

To see a friend.

[and he'll just be returning your playing card now]

[mirakill.livejournal.com]

[ Takes. ]

If you care to play again, I have another question I'd like to ask. And who knows? You may win this time.

[enduringwinter.livejournal.com]

Winning just means I walk away without having to answer a question. There's no reason for me to play again if that's the case.

[mirakill.livejournal.com]

Winning means you can ask me any. When did I say there was no victory clause?

[enduringwinter.livejournal.com]

Hmph.

[there's a mildly suspicious look but he takes another card anyway. This time, the eight of clubs]

[mirakill.livejournal.com]

What makes it important to see that friend here? Not of your world, or...?

[enduringwinter.livejournal.com]

I can only see him again here. [again, he returns Bernkastel's card before turning around]

If that's it, I'll take my leave.

[mirakill.livejournal.com]

Death?

[enduringwinter.livejournal.com]

[he stiffens slightly and that should be enough of a clue for Bern that, yes, said friend was dead]

I don't see how that would matter to you.

[mirakill.livejournal.com]

I'm getting a feel for the heart of this kakera. This universe.

Why its existence is so important, and where to start is with the people.

[enduringwinter.livejournal.com]

And then what? [a pause] You're not going to answer until I win, are you?

[mirakill.livejournal.com]

You answered my question with your silence, even though a card wasn't drawn.

Fair to say if I answer yours with silence, you'll get nothing.

So draw, if you really wish to know. [ Luck will be in his favor, with the power of miracles. ]

[enduringwinter.livejournal.com]

[he doesn't look amused but he draws a card after a second. This time, he manages to land a jack of clubs]

... Here. [and hands the card back to her. Who knew card games could be so irritating(?)]

[mirakill.livejournal.com]

And then I figure out why they bleed together, and for what reason. That is the game I play.

[enduringwinter.livejournal.com]

[a long pause] A fondness for mysteries, hm...?

Well, good luck with that 'game' of yours then. [and this time, he really does head off somewhere else on the Plane]

[mirakill.livejournal.com]

[ She watches, before vanishing.

You've just landed on her 'interesting, look into him' list. ]