And Today of the Card Games Channel...
anonymous
May 8 2009, 16:27:44 UTC
Failure!anon appears in a poof of smoke and bad plot. While she is waiting for other lovely anons to make their contributions, she will post a fill to encourage them. She hopes OP and other anons don't mind.
“As I said, I refuse. The very idea is absolutely ludicrous.” Arthur’s clipped British tone barely hid his annoyance, but Alfred didn’t seem to be picking up on that.
“Aww, come on Artie, it’s a chance to be a hero! Not as awesome as me, mind you, but still, a ~hero~.”
Alfred drew out the last word, making sure to emphasize how important this could be for the uptight Brit.
“I don’t want to be anything like you, you bloody wanker!”
Lovino sighed and passed Matthew five euros, as the Canadian leaned over and whispered “Told you he’d snap in the next five minutes, eh?”
Lovino huffed and demanded for the fifth time that afternoon: “Isn’t brother back yet?”
The Italian brothers had grown closer in the last couple of years, and Lovino had in turn become even more protective of his younger twin. So much, in fact, that when he first heard that the cute boy had left somewhere with Ludwig - that sick potato bastard! - it had taken both Alfred and Arthur to hold him back from giving chase.
Realizing that he didn’t know where the mismatched pair had gone, Lovino proceeded to tell the others exactly what he thought of them and their inability to save his sweet and innocent brother. Japan had been the first to step out of the room, politely excusing himself after the third exclamation of “cazzo!”.
Matthew had quietly suggested that if Lovino had arrived on time, he wouldn’t have protested as much to his brother’s absence. Feliciano had forgotten to wear pants again, resulting in Ludwig having to give up his own to the smiling boy - giving everyone a beautiful view of his pasta patterned boxers, a gift from said boy, no doubt - before dragging the Italian out to “have a serious talk about proper meeting attire” and, hopefully, find a pair of pants. One look at Ludwig’s scarlet face was enough to keep the other nations from commenting.
Although Francis’ coughs ~had~ sounded suspiciously like choked laughter.
Nevertheless, it had been almost an hour, and neither the German nor the Italian were back yet. Not only did this mean that the meeting couldn’t proceed, it also meant that they were bored.
After Al had spent a good ten minutes drumming out “We Will Rock You” on the meeting table, Matthew put forth the idea of playing a game - after all, what better way to establish friendly relations?
Mercifully, this got Arthur to stop drumming, as the American shot up from his chair and suggested they wrestle (“it’s not as heroic as football, but hey, it’s still pretty AWESOME!”). China had been the first to protest the idea, glancing up at Russia smiling happily to his left, towering a good two heads over Yao.
Matthew gently explained to his brother that maybe a game with less physical contact was needed. Alfred grudgingly agreed when Francis suggested twister.
Undaunted, Alfred had put forth the idea of truth or dare. Arthur snorted into his tea cup and muttered something about the childishness of his former ward. When Ivan smiled sweetly and agreed that truth or dare was “good idea, da?” most of the other nations lost interest.
Francis quickly suggested strip poker.
Partly because Matthew felt bad for Russian always being left out, and partly because he wanted to appease Francis at least a little, the Canadian had turned to Ivan and asked “S-So, erm. Do you know any good card games?”
Ivan sat up a little straighter, causing Yao to inch away, and answered in a sing song tone “Of course I am knowing good card game, friend Matthew”.
“Is it a drinking game?”, Alfred inquired. Matthew thought he saw Arthur look up at that.
“It could be, I am thinking.”, answered Ivan, violet eyes aglow.
“I’m not playing anything this bastard suggests!”, Alfred declared.
“But it is game named after you, da?”. Ivan’s smile never left his face, but his eyes darken a little.
Re: And Today on the Card Games Channel...[2]
anonymous
May 8 2009, 22:58:46 UTC
Failure!anon apologizes; she has lost her inspiration in a black hole of despair and system failures, and is thus struggling to get back on track and catch herself a plot bunny. Thus, any audience suggestions are very much appreciated. _________________________________________________________________
“You could be a hero, Al”, Mat suggested carefully. If anything would work on his thick brother, it was this. Al thought it over, scrunching his nose and furrowing his eyebrows in a passable imitation of Arthur.
“Alright, I’ll do it! Let’s play!”
“You are wanting to know the rules first, da?”
Alfred blinked and Lovino swore again. “There’s no way in hell I’m playing with you jerks after what you let happen to my brother. Call me when the meeting starts again.”
The older Italian marched out, flicking open his phone on the way and yelling loudly (about what happened to people who played with his phone settings, like leaving it on Speaker and changing his background to the Reichstag) into it as soon as a sleepy “Hola?” was heard from the other end.
Arthur was the next to inch towards the door, noticing the way Francis was looking - read leering - at him.
“Arthur, where are you going-aru? The meeting’s not over yet- aru.”
Arthur cringed and slumped back in his seat, muttering about wanting a drink.
“Awww, come on Artie! A few rounds of this Duvet” - ‘Durak’, Ivan corrected - “thing, and they’ll be back before we know it!”
“Will it make you be quiet?”, Arthur asked, desperation lacing his voice upon seeing Al poised to begin drumming again.
“He will have to keep his hands still while holding ze cards, oui?”, Francis drawled, purposely thickening his accent. “So, what are ze rules of le jeu?”
Ivan explained, raising his voice to drown out Arthur’s curses at Francis’ butchery of his language. Matthew sighed; he should have known that they would be more interested in taunting each other than playing a nice, friendly game.
Ten minutes and one heated verbal exchange later, they were almost ready to start. Ivan had procured a pack of cards from somewhere; judging by the nude women posing on the backs, these were a souvenir from France. Arthur scoffed silently at this, but didn’t complain.
“Since we are having quite a few people, why not make the game be more interesting”, suggested the Russian.
“I’ve had enough interesting experiences today to last me well into next century”, muttered Arthur darkly, sharing a look with the wall to his right. Alfred looked away at that, making note to suggest professional therapy to the Brit… this fairy friend business was getting out of hand. He hoped it wasn’t hereditary.
Ivan went on as if nothing had happened. “We can split into two teams, da? Three against three. Each team vill be attacking only players they are against. We vill be havink more fun that way, I think”.
Trust Ivan to go from a game with one loser to a game with three.
“So, how exactly is this going to work though?”, asked Alfred, suddenly looking perplexed. “I mean, we only have five people. Of course, I’ll win no matter what, but just so it can be a fair fight, shouldn’t we invite someone else?”
Mat sighed and elbowed him sharply, causing Alfred to start and look around wildly.
“S***, it ~is~ hereditary- …oh, it’s just you, Mat.”
“Can we please hurry up-aru?”. Yao had finally finished texting someone at lightning speed, and was now playing with his Shinatty-chan keychain.
“Of course. I will be dealing, horosho?”
“What?! There is no way I’m letting you deal, you stupid red.”
Al’s repertoire of insults was truly breathtaking.
“And why not, friend?”
Glimpsing metal behind Ivan, Francis decided to take matters into his own experienced hands.
“I will hand out ze cards.”
“No, you bloody won’t. I don’t want to touch anything you’ve had your filthy paws on.” Arthur wandered back to his seat from a trip to the minibar (really, just a small fridge that Italy had insisted on having in the room), carrying a number of small bottles. Judging by his slightly slurred speech, he had already downed a few.
Re: And Today on the Card Games Channel...[3]
anonymous
May 9 2009, 16:38:46 UTC
Failure!anon will get to the actual card game soon :P __________
This meant two things. One, Arthur had given up on the meeting. Two, he was losing his well-mannered uptight demeanor, fast.
Incredibly, Alfred was the first to intervene, making a grab for the bottles. After a short but violent struggle with Arthur, the American emerged triumphant, dumping his spoils in the middle of the table. Arthur huffed and slumped in his seat, muttering about ungrateful children. In a desperate attempt to keep Al and Arthur on speaking terms - he still remembered how somber the Englishman had looked after Al left, and how his brother’s smile could barely cover the guilt and hurt in his eyes - Matthew reached into his pocket, pulling out a handful of change and throwing it on the table.
Well, it got Al’s attention, at least.
“Mat, what are you doing? That red bastard didn’t threaten you again, did he?”
Before his brother gave Ivan any ideas, Mat interrupted. “I was just thinking that we could decide on the teams this way, eh?”
“How do you mean, chou?”.
“Well, look here.” Mat selected five coins. “There are three two toonies and three loonies here, right? So-”
“Mat! I know Arthur’s a little loony, but we’re not, at least not yet!...Wait, you haven’t been seeing any fairies, have you?”
“I’m not calling you crazy, Al”, Matthew patiently explained, “It’s what the coin is called. A loonie.”
“Oh.”
“Anyways, what I was suggesting is that everyone close their eyes and reach for a coin. I’ll throw them randomly, so I won’t be choosing, but the two people who choose toonies - those ones with the golden band, Al - will be on my team, and the other three will be on the opposing one.”
“Do we absolutely have to close our eyes?”, Arthur inquired, grimacing at the Frenchman beside him.
“Otherwise the choosing is not being fair, no? We will be closing our eyes now, Canada”. Ivan’s tone left no room for argument.
Matthew looked around, making sure no one was looking. Wow, it was like everyone was listening to ~him~ for once. Feeling a little giddy, he shook the coins in his hands and dumped them on the table.
“Alright, everyone take one please”.
Alfred made a quick and heroic grab for the change, nearly colliding with Arthur across from him. Matthew was surprised to see the Englishman being so active, until he noticed that Arthur hadn’t been trying to take a coin but to get as far away from his seat as possible.
“Hands on the table, please, Francis.”, sighed Matthew. “Both of them.”
Francis shrugged and held his hands up, ignoring Arthur’s hiss of “sodding frog” and reaching forward. Instead of taking a coin, he quickly found Yao’s hand and gave it a soft caress.
“W-What are you doing-aru?!”, squeaked the Chinese man, pulling back his hand so fast he nearly elbowed Ivan. The Russian was sitting peacefully, coin in one hand and bottle of vodka in the other.
“Ivan, you probably shouldn’t be drinking that yet”, suggested Matthew.
“Oh, but I am making the game more fair, yes? Because Arthur cannot hold the drink, so I make it easier for him.”
“This isn’t a drinking game”
“Yes it is!”, piped up Alfred. “Whaddaya think I got those bottles for? Losers have to drink.”
“ ‘owever, I think that some people will be… a little tempted to lose that way, non”, asked Francis sweetly, glancing over at Arthur.
“Not if it means losing to you”, growled the Englishman.
“But you are on my team”, sighed the Frenchman dramatically, holding a golden coin up delicately.
“No, I’m bloody not.”
“But we ‘ave the same … loonie?”
“Then let’s select again.”
“Could we just start-aru?”, asked Yao, exasperated, tossing his dollar back to Matthew.
I love it so far! I was hoping someone would do Durak! And I love your idea of putting them into teams. This will definitely be interesting. Can't wait for more!
Re: And Today on the Card Games Channel...[4]
anonymous
May 23 2009, 03:30:42 UTC
Anon is sorry for the delay. She will do her best to continue, if people want. Also, she hopes for another author!anon to fill *puppy eyes*
_____
“Stop being so uptight, Artie, it’s just a game! Come on, you, Yao and Francis have gotten along lately, right? I know you wanted to be on my heroic team, but you have to suck it up and be a big boy!”
“I do ~not~ want to be on your pathetic team!”, snapped Arthur, a little too quickly.
Alfred ignored him and continued. “It’ll be you guys again me and Matty - you’ll be my sidekick, Mat, ok? - so let’s get this show on the road before-“
“I am thinking you have forgotten something?”, smiled Ivan, holding up a toonie. “The teams are three people, da?”
“What?! There’s no way I’m-”
“Just ‘suck it up and be a big boy’, why don’t you.”, said Arthur, the corner of his mouth twitching upwards as Alfred glared at Ivan. “There’s a good lad.”
“Trump suit is heart-aru.”
Five faces looked down in confusion to see that the cards had already been dealt.
**
Five minutes into the game, international tensions were rising. Francis had gotten to start, throwing out a four of diamonds and smiling at Ivan. Without a blink, the Russian man had thrown down another four, transferring the set to Arthur, who gave Francis a seething glare before dropping a six and seven down in disgust. Alfred jumped at the opportunity to throw in a seven of his own, which earned him a cold look and a queen.
It was then that Alfred started ranting about the British man’s unnatural devotion to his monarch. Just as Arthur threw his cards down with a snarl, Ivan reached across him and gave America a hearty slap on the back, which sent the enthusiastic blonde sprawling across the table and effectively forestalled the coming of Britannia Angel. Francis decided that it was safe to get out from under the table, where he had been ‘looking for a cufflink’ and the game resumed.
The next few moves went by with minimal casualties, barring Yao having to pick up a full set of fives - Aiyah! So many-aru! - until France placed a two of spades on the table for Ivan to beat. Of course, Alfred took this opportunity to throw a two down as well, to which Russia replied with an icy “you are forgetting that we are on the same team, da?”. Alfred grinned at him wordlessly as Yao happily threw his set of fives down and Ivan delicately gathered the cards, smiling to himself.
As soon as Alfred put down a two of trump, the Russian added his own set of twos to the table, flinging them sharply across and probably aiming at the American’s fingers. The gesture went unnoticed by the latter, who threw down his cards with a triumphant “Yeah! I won!”.
“What a surprise this is being”, smiled Ivan, pupils shrinking.
Soon, Arthur was out of the game, throwing down another queen and eyeing the bottles with dismay. Shortly after, Matthew was out too, and Ivan suddenly had suspiciously few cards, all of which were trumps. In a heartbeat, the game was over.
“Take that! We’re the hero team, kicking your asses now and forever!”, Alfred laughed, pointing to Arthur and Francis in turn.
“I guess it’s true that idiots are lucky”, muttered the Englishman, already reaching for the centre of the table. Within a few minutes, the Eurasian team had drunk their liquor and were ready for a second round.
Re: And Today on the Card Games Channel...[5]
anonymous
May 23 2009, 03:32:10 UTC
Two rounds turned into four, which continued on into eight, and soon no one was counting anymore. After a good two hours of playing, the score stood Team Awesome: 20 to team AmouR Unicorn: 30. Well, none of the members of Team ARU actually agreed on the name, but Alfred insisted that it was brilliant.
Despite the alcohol, a few things were becoming increasingly clear.
One: Ivan’s cards seemed capable of appearing and disappearing without a trace, as well as mysteriously changing to all trumps.
Two: Francis seemed to be able to produce Aces at any point in the game, leaving a tipsy Arthur to comment on the fact that he had already seen the Ace of Hearts played twice that round. Francis had suggested that if Arthur thought he was hiding anything in his clothes, he would be happy to refute his conjectures by removing the offending garments.
Three: Apparently, Francis hadn’t been hiding anything in his clothes but a few mysterious bottles and a rose. The silk shirt and dress pants now lay neatly folded in a corner of the room, rose perched on top.
Four: They would have to find an alternative to drinking soon, in view of Alfred happily taunting Arthur about his slurred speech. Any more alcohol for the Brit, and he would have to be tied down for the safety of Alfred and Francis, who quickly added a few comments about what the other’s flushed face and unsteady motions reminded him of.
“Alright, s-so maybe we should… uh… should get another thing to do, instead of the al- … alho… alcohol…”, suggested Matthew, stumbling over his words and blushing sweetly.
“Strip poker?”, Francis asked, for the third time that day.
And somehow, fifty minibar bottles had made this seem like a good idea to more than just him now.
____________________________________________________
“As I said, I refuse. The very idea is absolutely ludicrous.” Arthur’s clipped British tone barely hid his annoyance, but Alfred didn’t seem to be picking up on that.
“Aww, come on Artie, it’s a chance to be a hero! Not as awesome as me, mind you, but still, a ~hero~.”
Alfred drew out the last word, making sure to emphasize how important this could be for the uptight Brit.
“I don’t want to be anything like you, you bloody wanker!”
Lovino sighed and passed Matthew five euros, as the Canadian leaned over and whispered “Told you he’d snap in the next five minutes, eh?”
Lovino huffed and demanded for the fifth time that afternoon: “Isn’t brother back yet?”
The Italian brothers had grown closer in the last couple of years, and Lovino had in turn become even more protective of his younger twin. So much, in fact, that when he first heard that the cute boy had left somewhere with Ludwig - that sick potato bastard! - it had taken both Alfred and Arthur to hold him back from giving chase.
Realizing that he didn’t know where the mismatched pair had gone, Lovino proceeded to tell the others exactly what he thought of them and their inability to save his sweet and innocent brother. Japan had been the first to step out of the room, politely excusing himself after the third exclamation of “cazzo!”.
Matthew had quietly suggested that if Lovino had arrived on time, he wouldn’t have protested as much to his brother’s absence. Feliciano had forgotten to wear pants again, resulting in Ludwig having to give up his own to the smiling boy - giving everyone a beautiful view of his pasta patterned boxers, a gift from said boy, no doubt - before dragging the Italian out to “have a serious talk about proper meeting attire” and, hopefully, find a pair of pants. One look at Ludwig’s scarlet face was enough to keep the other nations from commenting.
Although Francis’ coughs ~had~ sounded suspiciously like choked laughter.
Nevertheless, it had been almost an hour, and neither the German nor the Italian were back yet. Not only did this mean that the meeting couldn’t proceed, it also meant that they were bored.
After Al had spent a good ten minutes drumming out “We Will Rock You” on the meeting table, Matthew put forth the idea of playing a game - after all, what better way to establish friendly relations?
Mercifully, this got Arthur to stop drumming, as the American shot up from his chair and suggested they wrestle (“it’s not as heroic as football, but hey, it’s still pretty AWESOME!”). China had been the first to protest the idea, glancing up at Russia smiling happily to his left, towering a good two heads over Yao.
Matthew gently explained to his brother that maybe a game with less physical contact was needed. Alfred grudgingly agreed when Francis suggested twister.
Undaunted, Alfred had put forth the idea of truth or dare. Arthur snorted into his tea cup and muttered something about the childishness of his former ward. When Ivan smiled sweetly and agreed that truth or dare was “good idea, da?” most of the other nations lost interest.
Francis quickly suggested strip poker.
Partly because Matthew felt bad for Russian always being left out, and partly because he wanted to appease Francis at least a little, the Canadian had turned to Ivan and asked “S-So, erm. Do you know any good card games?”
Ivan sat up a little straighter, causing Yao to inch away, and answered in a sing song tone “Of course I am knowing good card game, friend Matthew”.
“Is it a drinking game?”, Alfred inquired. Matthew thought he saw Arthur look up at that.
“It could be, I am thinking.”, answered Ivan, violet eyes aglow.
“I’m not playing anything this bastard suggests!”, Alfred declared.
“But it is game named after you, da?”. Ivan’s smile never left his face, but his eyes darken a little.
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Thus, any audience suggestions are very much appreciated.
_________________________________________________________________
“You could be a hero, Al”, Mat suggested carefully. If anything would work on his thick brother, it was this. Al thought it over, scrunching his nose and furrowing his eyebrows in a passable imitation of Arthur.
“Alright, I’ll do it! Let’s play!”
“You are wanting to know the rules first, da?”
Alfred blinked and Lovino swore again. “There’s no way in hell I’m playing with you jerks after what you let happen to my brother. Call me when the meeting starts again.”
The older Italian marched out, flicking open his phone on the way and yelling loudly (about what happened to people who played with his phone settings, like leaving it on Speaker and changing his background to the Reichstag) into it as soon as a sleepy “Hola?” was heard from the other end.
Arthur was the next to inch towards the door, noticing the way Francis was looking - read leering - at him.
“Arthur, where are you going-aru? The meeting’s not over yet- aru.”
Arthur cringed and slumped back in his seat, muttering about wanting a drink.
“Awww, come on Artie! A few rounds of this Duvet” - ‘Durak’, Ivan corrected - “thing, and they’ll be back before we know it!”
“Will it make you be quiet?”, Arthur asked, desperation lacing his voice upon seeing Al poised to begin drumming again.
“He will have to keep his hands still while holding ze cards, oui?”, Francis drawled, purposely thickening his accent. “So, what are ze rules of le jeu?”
Ivan explained, raising his voice to drown out Arthur’s curses at Francis’ butchery of his language. Matthew sighed; he should have known that they would be more interested in taunting each other than playing a nice, friendly game.
Ten minutes and one heated verbal exchange later, they were almost ready to start. Ivan had procured a pack of cards from somewhere; judging by the nude women posing on the backs, these were a souvenir from France. Arthur scoffed silently at this, but didn’t complain.
“Since we are having quite a few people, why not make the game be more interesting”, suggested the Russian.
“I’ve had enough interesting experiences today to last me well into next century”, muttered Arthur darkly, sharing a look with the wall to his right. Alfred looked away at that, making note to suggest professional therapy to the Brit… this fairy friend business was getting out of hand. He hoped it wasn’t hereditary.
Ivan went on as if nothing had happened. “We can split into two teams, da? Three against three. Each team vill be attacking only players they are against. We vill be havink more fun that way, I think”.
Trust Ivan to go from a game with one loser to a game with three.
“So, how exactly is this going to work though?”, asked Alfred, suddenly looking perplexed. “I mean, we only have five people. Of course, I’ll win no matter what, but just so it can be a fair fight, shouldn’t we invite someone else?”
Mat sighed and elbowed him sharply, causing Alfred to start and look around wildly.
“S***, it ~is~ hereditary- …oh, it’s just you, Mat.”
“Can we please hurry up-aru?”. Yao had finally finished texting someone at lightning speed, and was now playing with his Shinatty-chan keychain.
“Of course. I will be dealing, horosho?”
“What?! There is no way I’m letting you deal, you stupid red.”
Al’s repertoire of insults was truly breathtaking.
“And why not, friend?”
Glimpsing metal behind Ivan, Francis decided to take matters into his own experienced hands.
“I will hand out ze cards.”
“No, you bloody won’t. I don’t want to touch anything you’ve had your filthy paws on.” Arthur wandered back to his seat from a trip to the minibar (really, just a small fridge that Italy had insisted on having in the room), carrying a number of small bottles. Judging by his slightly slurred speech, he had already downed a few.
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Francis' cards... Oh lord, I can just see them all playing Durak with those cards... Bloody Brilliant!
The drumming, oh the drumming... I do the exact same thing - 'sept I drum with me feetsies when playing cards... XD
“S***, it ~is~ hereditary- …oh, it’s just you, Mat.”
Oh, Alfred.
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__________
This meant two things. One, Arthur had given up on the meeting. Two, he was losing his well-mannered uptight demeanor, fast.
Incredibly, Alfred was the first to intervene, making a grab for the bottles. After a short but violent struggle with Arthur, the American emerged triumphant, dumping his spoils in the middle of the table. Arthur huffed and slumped in his seat, muttering about ungrateful children. In a desperate attempt to keep Al and Arthur on speaking terms - he still remembered how somber the Englishman had looked after Al left, and how his brother’s smile could barely cover the guilt and hurt in his eyes - Matthew reached into his pocket, pulling out a handful of change and throwing it on the table.
Well, it got Al’s attention, at least.
“Mat, what are you doing? That red bastard didn’t threaten you again, did he?”
Before his brother gave Ivan any ideas, Mat interrupted. “I was just thinking that we could decide on the teams this way, eh?”
“How do you mean, chou?”.
“Well, look here.” Mat selected five coins. “There are three two toonies and three loonies here, right? So-”
“Mat! I know Arthur’s a little loony, but we’re not, at least not yet!...Wait, you haven’t been seeing any fairies, have you?”
“I’m not calling you crazy, Al”, Matthew patiently explained, “It’s what the coin is called. A loonie.”
“Oh.”
“Anyways, what I was suggesting is that everyone close their eyes and reach for a coin. I’ll throw them randomly, so I won’t be choosing, but the two people who choose toonies - those ones with the golden band, Al - will be on my team, and the other three will be on the opposing one.”
“Do we absolutely have to close our eyes?”, Arthur inquired, grimacing at the Frenchman beside him.
“Otherwise the choosing is not being fair, no? We will be closing our eyes now, Canada”. Ivan’s tone left no room for argument.
Matthew looked around, making sure no one was looking. Wow, it was like everyone was listening to ~him~ for once. Feeling a little giddy, he shook the coins in his hands and dumped them on the table.
“Alright, everyone take one please”.
Alfred made a quick and heroic grab for the change, nearly colliding with Arthur across from him. Matthew was surprised to see the Englishman being so active, until he noticed that Arthur hadn’t been trying to take a coin but to get as far away from his seat as possible.
“Hands on the table, please, Francis.”, sighed Matthew. “Both of them.”
Francis shrugged and held his hands up, ignoring Arthur’s hiss of “sodding frog” and reaching forward. Instead of taking a coin, he quickly found Yao’s hand and gave it a soft caress.
“W-What are you doing-aru?!”, squeaked the Chinese man, pulling back his hand so fast he nearly elbowed Ivan. The Russian was sitting peacefully, coin in one hand and bottle of vodka in the other.
“Ivan, you probably shouldn’t be drinking that yet”, suggested Matthew.
“Oh, but I am making the game more fair, yes? Because Arthur cannot hold the drink, so I make it easier for him.”
“This isn’t a drinking game”
“Yes it is!”, piped up Alfred. “Whaddaya think I got those bottles for? Losers have to drink.”
“ ‘owever, I think that some people will be… a little tempted to lose that way, non”, asked Francis sweetly, glancing over at Arthur.
“Not if it means losing to you”, growled the Englishman.
“But you are on my team”, sighed the Frenchman dramatically, holding a golden coin up delicately.
“No, I’m bloody not.”
“But we ‘ave the same … loonie?”
“Then let’s select again.”
“Could we just start-aru?”, asked Yao, exasperated, tossing his dollar back to Matthew.
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Oh, Arthur.
“Mat! I know Arthur’s a little loony, but we’re not, at least not yet!...Wait, you haven’t been seeing any fairies, have you?”
Oh, Alfred.
“Otherwise the choosing is not being fair, no? We will be closing our eyes now, Canada”. Ivan’s tone left no room for argument.
OH IVAN I LOVE YOU! XD
Failure!Anon, Reviewer!Anon does not think you are failure. You is internet owner, yes? You get extra internet for funny, no?
And Matt! Oh, Matt, I loves you. Especially worrying over Al and Artie.
<3~~~
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_____
“Stop being so uptight, Artie, it’s just a game! Come on, you, Yao and Francis have gotten along lately, right? I know you wanted to be on my heroic team, but you have to suck it up and be a big boy!”
“I do ~not~ want to be on your pathetic team!”, snapped Arthur, a little too quickly.
Alfred ignored him and continued. “It’ll be you guys again me and Matty - you’ll be my sidekick, Mat, ok? - so let’s get this show on the road before-“
“I am thinking you have forgotten something?”, smiled Ivan, holding up a toonie. “The teams are three people, da?”
“What?! There’s no way I’m-”
“Just ‘suck it up and be a big boy’, why don’t you.”, said Arthur, the corner of his mouth twitching upwards as Alfred glared at Ivan. “There’s a good lad.”
“Trump suit is heart-aru.”
Five faces looked down in confusion to see that the cards had already been dealt.
**
Five minutes into the game, international tensions were rising. Francis had gotten to start, throwing out a four of diamonds and smiling at Ivan. Without a blink, the Russian man had thrown down another four, transferring the set to Arthur, who gave Francis a seething glare before dropping a six and seven down in disgust. Alfred jumped at the opportunity to throw in a seven of his own, which earned him a cold look and a queen.
It was then that Alfred started ranting about the British man’s unnatural devotion to his monarch. Just as Arthur threw his cards down with a snarl, Ivan reached across him and gave America a hearty slap on the back, which sent the enthusiastic blonde sprawling across the table and effectively forestalled the coming of Britannia Angel. Francis decided that it was safe to get out from under the table, where he had been ‘looking for a cufflink’ and the game resumed.
The next few moves went by with minimal casualties, barring Yao having to pick up a full set of fives - Aiyah! So many-aru! - until France placed a two of spades on the table for Ivan to beat. Of course, Alfred took this opportunity to throw a two down as well, to which Russia replied with an icy “you are forgetting that we are on the same team, da?”. Alfred grinned at him wordlessly as Yao happily threw his set of fives down and Ivan delicately gathered the cards, smiling to himself.
As soon as Alfred put down a two of trump, the Russian added his own set of twos to the table, flinging them sharply across and probably aiming at the American’s fingers. The gesture went unnoticed by the latter, who threw down his cards with a triumphant “Yeah! I won!”.
“What a surprise this is being”, smiled Ivan, pupils shrinking.
Soon, Arthur was out of the game, throwing down another queen and eyeing the bottles with dismay. Shortly after, Matthew was out too, and Ivan suddenly had suspiciously few cards, all of which were trumps. In a heartbeat, the game was over.
“Take that! We’re the hero team, kicking your asses now and forever!”, Alfred laughed, pointing to Arthur and Francis in turn.
“I guess it’s true that idiots are lucky”, muttered the Englishman, already reaching for the centre of the table. Within a few minutes, the Eurasian team had drunk their liquor and were ready for a second round.
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Despite the alcohol, a few things were becoming increasingly clear.
One: Ivan’s cards seemed capable of appearing and disappearing without a trace, as well as mysteriously changing to all trumps.
Two: Francis seemed to be able to produce Aces at any point in the game, leaving a tipsy Arthur to comment on the fact that he had already seen the Ace of Hearts played twice that round. Francis had suggested that if Arthur thought he was hiding anything in his clothes, he would be happy to refute his conjectures by removing the offending garments.
Three: Apparently, Francis hadn’t been hiding anything in his clothes but a few mysterious bottles and a rose. The silk shirt and dress pants now lay neatly folded in a corner of the room, rose perched on top.
Four: They would have to find an alternative to drinking soon, in view of Alfred happily taunting Arthur about his slurred speech. Any more alcohol for the Brit, and he would have to be tied down for the safety of Alfred and Francis, who quickly added a few comments about what the other’s flushed face and unsteady motions reminded him of.
“Alright, s-so maybe we should… uh… should get another thing to do, instead of the al- … alho… alcohol…”, suggested Matthew, stumbling over his words and blushing sweetly.
“Strip poker?”, Francis asked, for the third time that day.
And somehow, fifty minibar bottles had made this seem like a good idea to more than just him now.
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OH GOD I AM LAUGHING SO HARD RIGHT NOW.
It really makes it better that they're all cheating bastards, too. XD
God, please for the love of all that is holy, keep it up!
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And oh, those cheating bastards...
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“Is it a drinking game?”, Alfred inquired. Matthew thought he saw Arthur look up at that.
Oh Arthur... XD
And Ivan is totally awesome... And I'm all for Francis' suggestion! Come on drinking Strip Poker!
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