dgray_man | Fanfic: Cards

Title: Cards
Genre: Humor I guess
Characters: Allen, Cross, Mother, Baba
Summary: How Allen became acquainted with cards and cheating

Another resounding crash echoed throughout the cottage as Allen Walker dropped yet another plate. The owner of the cottage, a short fearsome old lady, tapped her walking stick in irritation and glared at the boy’s master.

“Marian! How many plates do you want to see that imbecile wreck before you’re convinced he can’t move that damn arm?!” Martha yelled, spit flying. Then she hollered for her servant, Baba to clean up the floor. (Once again.)

General Cross just continued to look apathetic. He wasn’t going to bother about Martha who was still screaming at him. Nor was he going to bother about his apprentice apologizing continuously to that giant of a servant.

I need to make him recover his mobility quickly. I can’t waste anymore time.

“ARE YOU LISTENING TO ME?!!” Martha finally shrieked.

The General moved his hand over his ear. “Stupid old woman.” He muttered.

“What?” Martha said, while holding her walking stick above her head in a menacing manner.

“You got any poker cards?” General Cross asked.

“I dumped them all.”

“Oh, because you don’t want to remember all the times you lost to me. I understand your pain.” General Cross commented in a mock sympathetic tone.

A small vein twitched on Martha’s forehead.

“Baba!” She shouted and threw her purse at Baba. “Go get a pack of cards.”

“Cards?” Allen said aloud, wondering why General Cross would need them.

“Yeah, Poker cards, my idiot student. You’re going to learn how to play poker.”

******************************************

Poker. Allen thought as he saw four people sitting around a square table with their cards, money and beer.

He then let out a sigh that could have easily been a year’s worth.

The only help that Poker gave me was how to use my left hand properly. Allen thought as he wiped another beer mug with a rotten piece of rag.

Not that it was a bad thing, since it’s a lot easier to work with both hands.

“Hey squirt!” One of the men at the square table shouted. “Another pint of slug!”

“O…Okay!” Allen replied, his train of thought just crashed into a wall. He hastily filled the mug he was holding and brought it over to the table.

The customer took it without a word of thanks.

“Going to play another round?” The customer taunted his companions. His companions eyed each other in fear.

“Get someone else.”

“Yeah, you just took a week’s worth of my wages.”

Allen saw the pile of cash on that one customer’s side. It was quite a lot. Not enough to clear his Master’s one day’s worth of debts but it was definitely quite a hefty sum.

Gambling huh? If I wasn’t so unlucky, I might actually consider using gambling as a way to earn some money.

“Your luck’s gonna run out sooner or later.” A man commented as he sat at the table.

“Oh yeah, you wanna try?” The “super-lucky” one asked, smirking.

There was a buzzing among the on-lookers and soon the table had four players.

Allen decided it was time to continue cleaning the dishes when he got knocked over by one of the previous losers who got cleaned out.

“Watch it, squirt!”

“Ow…”

“I’ll deal!” The “super-lucky” customer took the pack and shuffled. Then Allen noticed something that the others couldn’t see since he had fallen right behind Mr “Super-lucky”.

While shuffling, Mr “super-lucky” had flicked his wrist so deftly and quickly that one usually would have overlooked. A few cards slipped into his long sleeves.

Eh?

“You don’t have to shuffle so much.” One of the players exclaimed impatiently.

“Sorry, bad habit. It helps me know the cards, if you know what I mean.”

Allen saw everything after that, during the dealing, switching of hands and shuffling. Mr “Super-Lucky” was in fact Mr “Super-Cheater.”

************************************

Allen brought a pack of cards with him to work. Whenever he had a break, he would try the movements. It wasn’t easy so when Mr “Super-Cheater” came to rip more money off the other customers, Allen would just watch and memorize the movements.

Then one day, opportunity struck.

“Hey, we need one more player!” Mr “Super-Cheater” shouted. He was ready to just randomly pull someone from the crowd of onlookers when Allen Walker sat down in front of him.

“You’re the bar boy…”

“If you don’t mind, I could play. Sir.”

The “Cheater” scoffed. “I hope you have the wages.”

“Of course. I don’t wish to lose them so please go easy on me.” Allen smiled and rolled down his sleeves. The “Cheater” winced along with the other players. There was a demon behind that fake gentlemanly smile. They could feel it.

“Black Allen” was born.

**********************************

Omake

Cross: Where did you get so much dough?

Allen: I earned it.

Cross: Stolen?

Allen: No.

Cross: Please tell me you didn’t do anything like selling yourself.

Allen: OBVIOUSLY NOT!!!!

Cross: Then?

Allen: I gambled.

Cross: I thought you were the manifestation of misfortune itself.

Allen: I cheated.

Cross: … You cheated.

Allen: Yes.

Cross: And won.

Allen: Yes.

Cross: Oho…and no one found out?

Allen: Uhh… Yes?

Cross: Excellent. Very excellent. I’m glad you’re my apprentice.

Allen: ??

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Fanfic: Cards

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