Post by Aria on Oct 26, 2007 17:01:32 GMT -5
((HAHAHA. I had this random idea while sitting at work... and just like the STARVING ARTEEST that I am, I've sacrificed my lunch hour to bring you another short story. ;-; I'm so modest.
...No, seriously. XD I already ate and was bored out of my mind, so I decided to FINALLY include Spades in a story. Her own little on, in fact. Again, it's sorta long for a short story, but meh. MEH TO YOU.
*clears throat* I didn't ask for permission, so if you want your cameo taken out of the short story, go ahead n' request it. Though I'm sure at least ONE would have allowed me too. x3
Now, on with the tale!
“Awww, sorry sweet thang.” The voice crooned in a slow southern drawl, pulling the well-chewed bones towards herself. Large, too large, were her paws for the smaller body, the sure signs of puppyhood. Sure signs that she’d grow to be much thicker as well as generally larger than the slim pups that surrounded her.
“Three Kings…” the voice sounded again, “Nice, ver’ nice… but no match for four aces, mm?” The visible brown eye sparkled with underlying malice.
“Aw c’mon, you cheated!” One protested, brows furrowing though hazard-sign marked ears would droop, unsure.
“Oi! Too right, ya mongrel! I know that y’had three bloody aces in yer last hand, an’ don’t you think ‘bout lyin’ ter meh!” The accent was thicker, blatant with obvious indignation.
“Sweetie…” Spades practically purred, a difficult thing for a puppy to do, though she managed it flawlessly. “There’s no way n’ cheatin’ with this many players.” Her eyes darted to each glowering face, though she already knew how many were sitting around the small laundry basket they used as a table. Oh, there were, though she hadn’t REALLY cheated. Poker was a game of wit, something you used specific talents for.
And, with that logic, wasn’t Card Counting a simple…talent?
Patch gave a whine, “Bu..But… that was my late night snack.” He looked mournfully to the pile of bones which was covered possessively by Spade’s large paw.
Lundon reproached him, “Ey, ey! Real men don’t cry! Get a’hold of yourself, mate… Don’t let ‘er know you hit were it hurts.” He lifted a paw and tapped his stomach pointedly.
Nuke was just glowering at Spades, eyes narrowed to the point of being glistening slits. Without a word, he stood up and stormed off, muttering under his breath about painful ways of hurting particular pups.
Aria, surprisingly, was sitting there. She was directly across from Spades, leaning on the upturned laundry basket, bored and yawning. “I told you to fold, Lundon.” Granted, she had lost plenty of biscuits, rather than bones, but she still had a healthy pile next to her non-chalant cheek.
“Don’t you start on me! It was your bloody idea to play with this..this…REDNECK.”
Spades seemed unabashed, simply collecting the cards and flicking them between each of her paws, allowing the bones to gleam in the high noon sun. Acting as if she were an actual dealer in Vegas, she smirked. “…Up for another game, Blood Sausage?”
Aria had muttered under her breath, “It was YOUR ‘bloody’ idea”, getting up and picking her biscuits in her maw, having wondered about the game. Actually, she survived better than those who claimed to be experts on the game. Well, that was because she had played cautiously.
A few paces away, she heard the mutt’s sultry request, only to hear Lundon break into uproar of British slang and a flailing of arms. With a hearty and forceful ‘GOOD DAY TO YOU’ he stomped off as well, leaving Spades alone.
Too easy. They were just too easy. She was confident that if she didn’t have her certain ‘abilities’ that she’d be able to smoke ‘em at any card game still. It was as if they all wanted to give up their bones and biscuits. If it wasn’t their poor playing, it were the little tell-tale signs which tipped her off to good and bad hands.
Lundon particularly, was a surprisingly good Card Shark. If he could only resist the urge to tilt his british-urchin-hat (she had no idea what else to call it) up with a paw and scratch between his ears if his hand was particularly difficult, he’d be almost as good as her.
HA! Who was she kidding? Nobody matched her on this pathetic Farm. True, she knew better than to think these things, and reeled in her ego. A big ego led to big bets, which led to even bigger losses.
The mutt knew that well enough.
Picking up a sack and shoving the bones into it, the pup clenched the opening within her maw, keeping her newest treasure safe. She had no real need for so much, though the biscuits looked tempting. But, if she saw something later that a pup had, and she wanted… well, one would be surprised what charm and bones could do.
Looking over her shoulder, she snickered at the still-visible retreat of the pups she had gambled with, marking within her head the names and faces. She wouldn’t forget them, or their little signs. That Aria girl…
…oh yes. She had her own thoughts on her. Hm. What to say? What to do? What were the sheer ODDS? No, she’d stow that specific information later. It didn’t suit her now.
So lost in her thought, she didn’t notice running into a different pup, though it was the other who had slammed into her. She simply hadn’t been paying attention. Her larger size caused her only to take a step back, but the force threw the poor thing onto his back.
“Aw, you okay sugah?” She asked, words muffled by the sack she carried it. Though she acted concerned, she didn’t care enough to really put it down. Not for some random puppy. Still only a month on the farm, and Spades had yet to meet every single pup.
“Uhhhh…” His eyes swiveled, almost in a circular pattern, his head wobbling. What a large head it was, his forehead rather expansive, his overbite noticeable, as well was his over-sized nose. “Um…” He looked up at her, confused.
‘Oh lovely. Y’gone n’ knocked his brains clear out his head, girl.’ She chided herself, mentally of course. “Yello? Ah asked if you were okay?”
“…I think?” He questioned, looking to her for confirmation.
Another snide remark sounded in her brain. ‘Darlin’ somthin’ tells me you don’t think at all.’
Oh. How… interesting.
Dropping the sack from her mouth instantly, she was upon him, a rather sincere looking grin on her muzzle as she reached behind her. Reaching the back of her fluffy and thick-furred neck, she pulled out the pack of travel-sized cards. “Hey, why don’tcha get up there n’ play a game with me?”
She had suddenly just noticed the still-wrapped sucker in the pup’s clenched paw. Oooh, it was a tempting shade of deep red. Probably cherry. She loved cherry. The tidal wave of greed rushed through her, and she helped him sit up. “Let’s play an easy game.”
Dipstick simply perked his head, “I like games!”
“Ah’m sure you’ll love this game, sugah. It’s called… High card, low card.” Her eye gleamed, the other hidden beneath the heavy lock of fur.
“My name’s Dipstick!” He introduced happily, staring at the cards as if waiting for a magic trick. As if on cue, he then asked, “Are you a magician?”
Shaking her head, she began to shuffle the cards. “Hmmm. Let’s say, High card wins. N’ no, Ah ain’t a magician.” She corrected him, “N’ my moniker is Spades.”
“Spades.” He repeated, mindlessly watching the cards shuffle about from one of her paws to the other. “Uh, what do we win?”
Hm. This game WAS based on luck, but it was easy enough for his feeble mind to handle. So, she glanced around. Grinning and taking up a chunk of something in the grass, she held it out to him.
“Ooooooooooooh.” His mouth was an ‘o’ or would be if it weren’t for his overbite. “…What is it?”
Spades held the colorful and waxy chunk out, nodding, “It’s…Uh… Gold.” Well it was yellow, the crayon having been left out into the sun; the wrapper having worn and peeled off of it long ago.
“OH WOWWEE!”
“Mmhm.” Well that had been easy. “But, you need to put up somthin’ on the stakes too, Dipstick.” She smiled pleasantly, “Why not your sucker?”
He perked, “Oh, sure!” He placed the sucker delicately next to the ‘gold’ Spades had placed down as well. Glancing at the offered pack of cards, he tried to take the whole thing.
She quickly corrected him, AGAIN. “No, no, Just the top card.” Watching with eager eyes as he took it, she watched him drop it to the ground, displaying an…ACE!?
The femme’s eyes darted this way and that, as she reached into the deck and drew a King. Well. That was a shock. She quickly placed her card down, watching Dipstick’s reaction. She was shocked that he didn’t suddenly cry out in jubilation, and just stared at the cards, then up at her, curiously.
“…Do…Do they fight or something?”
The sheer stupidity, as well as the volumous innocence in that statement almost threw the mutt off of her feet. DID THEY FIGHT!? What did he think- no, no, she had to remind herself. He didn’t think. And that could work to her advantage.
“See? Ah got a King, n’ you got an Ace.”
“Oh.”
“So that means…” She stopped her mouth, looking at him and his curiously innocent gaze. Spades could lie to him. She could lie to him right then and there, and he would be none the wiser. But did that make it right? She had done some mighty horrible cheating in her time, but…
“Yuh?” Dipstick asked, still waiting on the answer.
“So… that means… That Ah…”
Moments later, Dipstick was drooping and walking away, trying to ignore the sound of a crinkling wrapper as Spades shoved the lollipop into her mouth. Too easy. This place, this Dearly Farm was just a roost full of PIGEONS waiting to be plucked. Sure, she felt a little bad about lying to the lad, but he’d learn the rules of cards soon enough. There was going to be a revolution of sorts, if she had anything to do with it.
Wondering if she had any place to hide her booty, carrying it by the ties, letting it dangle around her neck she continued to enjoy the pilfered lollipop. Hey, she even let him keep the melted up crayon as a nice gesture. He didn’t seem interested in it, something about a gift…
Well, the sucker HAD said ‘For Aria’ on it, though Spades hadn’t noticed in the least. She had been too eager to have at it. After a moment, her tongue curled and withered beneath the sucker in disgust, instantly spitting it to the ground.
“UGH! Cinnamon? Ah hate cinnamon!”
End.
...No, seriously. XD I already ate and was bored out of my mind, so I decided to FINALLY include Spades in a story. Her own little on, in fact. Again, it's sorta long for a short story, but meh. MEH TO YOU.
*clears throat* I didn't ask for permission, so if you want your cameo taken out of the short story, go ahead n' request it. Though I'm sure at least ONE would have allowed me too. x3
Now, on with the tale!
“Awww, sorry sweet thang.” The voice crooned in a slow southern drawl, pulling the well-chewed bones towards herself. Large, too large, were her paws for the smaller body, the sure signs of puppyhood. Sure signs that she’d grow to be much thicker as well as generally larger than the slim pups that surrounded her.
“Three Kings…” the voice sounded again, “Nice, ver’ nice… but no match for four aces, mm?” The visible brown eye sparkled with underlying malice.
“Aw c’mon, you cheated!” One protested, brows furrowing though hazard-sign marked ears would droop, unsure.
“Oi! Too right, ya mongrel! I know that y’had three bloody aces in yer last hand, an’ don’t you think ‘bout lyin’ ter meh!” The accent was thicker, blatant with obvious indignation.
“Sweetie…” Spades practically purred, a difficult thing for a puppy to do, though she managed it flawlessly. “There’s no way n’ cheatin’ with this many players.” Her eyes darted to each glowering face, though she already knew how many were sitting around the small laundry basket they used as a table. Oh, there were, though she hadn’t REALLY cheated. Poker was a game of wit, something you used specific talents for.
And, with that logic, wasn’t Card Counting a simple…talent?
Patch gave a whine, “Bu..But… that was my late night snack.” He looked mournfully to the pile of bones which was covered possessively by Spade’s large paw.
Lundon reproached him, “Ey, ey! Real men don’t cry! Get a’hold of yourself, mate… Don’t let ‘er know you hit were it hurts.” He lifted a paw and tapped his stomach pointedly.
Nuke was just glowering at Spades, eyes narrowed to the point of being glistening slits. Without a word, he stood up and stormed off, muttering under his breath about painful ways of hurting particular pups.
Aria, surprisingly, was sitting there. She was directly across from Spades, leaning on the upturned laundry basket, bored and yawning. “I told you to fold, Lundon.” Granted, she had lost plenty of biscuits, rather than bones, but she still had a healthy pile next to her non-chalant cheek.
“Don’t you start on me! It was your bloody idea to play with this..this…REDNECK.”
Spades seemed unabashed, simply collecting the cards and flicking them between each of her paws, allowing the bones to gleam in the high noon sun. Acting as if she were an actual dealer in Vegas, she smirked. “…Up for another game, Blood Sausage?”
Aria had muttered under her breath, “It was YOUR ‘bloody’ idea”, getting up and picking her biscuits in her maw, having wondered about the game. Actually, she survived better than those who claimed to be experts on the game. Well, that was because she had played cautiously.
A few paces away, she heard the mutt’s sultry request, only to hear Lundon break into uproar of British slang and a flailing of arms. With a hearty and forceful ‘GOOD DAY TO YOU’ he stomped off as well, leaving Spades alone.
Too easy. They were just too easy. She was confident that if she didn’t have her certain ‘abilities’ that she’d be able to smoke ‘em at any card game still. It was as if they all wanted to give up their bones and biscuits. If it wasn’t their poor playing, it were the little tell-tale signs which tipped her off to good and bad hands.
Lundon particularly, was a surprisingly good Card Shark. If he could only resist the urge to tilt his british-urchin-hat (she had no idea what else to call it) up with a paw and scratch between his ears if his hand was particularly difficult, he’d be almost as good as her.
HA! Who was she kidding? Nobody matched her on this pathetic Farm. True, she knew better than to think these things, and reeled in her ego. A big ego led to big bets, which led to even bigger losses.
The mutt knew that well enough.
Picking up a sack and shoving the bones into it, the pup clenched the opening within her maw, keeping her newest treasure safe. She had no real need for so much, though the biscuits looked tempting. But, if she saw something later that a pup had, and she wanted… well, one would be surprised what charm and bones could do.
Looking over her shoulder, she snickered at the still-visible retreat of the pups she had gambled with, marking within her head the names and faces. She wouldn’t forget them, or their little signs. That Aria girl…
…oh yes. She had her own thoughts on her. Hm. What to say? What to do? What were the sheer ODDS? No, she’d stow that specific information later. It didn’t suit her now.
So lost in her thought, she didn’t notice running into a different pup, though it was the other who had slammed into her. She simply hadn’t been paying attention. Her larger size caused her only to take a step back, but the force threw the poor thing onto his back.
“Aw, you okay sugah?” She asked, words muffled by the sack she carried it. Though she acted concerned, she didn’t care enough to really put it down. Not for some random puppy. Still only a month on the farm, and Spades had yet to meet every single pup.
“Uhhhh…” His eyes swiveled, almost in a circular pattern, his head wobbling. What a large head it was, his forehead rather expansive, his overbite noticeable, as well was his over-sized nose. “Um…” He looked up at her, confused.
‘Oh lovely. Y’gone n’ knocked his brains clear out his head, girl.’ She chided herself, mentally of course. “Yello? Ah asked if you were okay?”
“…I think?” He questioned, looking to her for confirmation.
Another snide remark sounded in her brain. ‘Darlin’ somthin’ tells me you don’t think at all.’
Oh. How… interesting.
Dropping the sack from her mouth instantly, she was upon him, a rather sincere looking grin on her muzzle as she reached behind her. Reaching the back of her fluffy and thick-furred neck, she pulled out the pack of travel-sized cards. “Hey, why don’tcha get up there n’ play a game with me?”
She had suddenly just noticed the still-wrapped sucker in the pup’s clenched paw. Oooh, it was a tempting shade of deep red. Probably cherry. She loved cherry. The tidal wave of greed rushed through her, and she helped him sit up. “Let’s play an easy game.”
Dipstick simply perked his head, “I like games!”
“Ah’m sure you’ll love this game, sugah. It’s called… High card, low card.” Her eye gleamed, the other hidden beneath the heavy lock of fur.
“My name’s Dipstick!” He introduced happily, staring at the cards as if waiting for a magic trick. As if on cue, he then asked, “Are you a magician?”
Shaking her head, she began to shuffle the cards. “Hmmm. Let’s say, High card wins. N’ no, Ah ain’t a magician.” She corrected him, “N’ my moniker is Spades.”
“Spades.” He repeated, mindlessly watching the cards shuffle about from one of her paws to the other. “Uh, what do we win?”
Hm. This game WAS based on luck, but it was easy enough for his feeble mind to handle. So, she glanced around. Grinning and taking up a chunk of something in the grass, she held it out to him.
“Ooooooooooooh.” His mouth was an ‘o’ or would be if it weren’t for his overbite. “…What is it?”
Spades held the colorful and waxy chunk out, nodding, “It’s…Uh… Gold.” Well it was yellow, the crayon having been left out into the sun; the wrapper having worn and peeled off of it long ago.
“OH WOWWEE!”
“Mmhm.” Well that had been easy. “But, you need to put up somthin’ on the stakes too, Dipstick.” She smiled pleasantly, “Why not your sucker?”
He perked, “Oh, sure!” He placed the sucker delicately next to the ‘gold’ Spades had placed down as well. Glancing at the offered pack of cards, he tried to take the whole thing.
She quickly corrected him, AGAIN. “No, no, Just the top card.” Watching with eager eyes as he took it, she watched him drop it to the ground, displaying an…ACE!?
The femme’s eyes darted this way and that, as she reached into the deck and drew a King. Well. That was a shock. She quickly placed her card down, watching Dipstick’s reaction. She was shocked that he didn’t suddenly cry out in jubilation, and just stared at the cards, then up at her, curiously.
“…Do…Do they fight or something?”
The sheer stupidity, as well as the volumous innocence in that statement almost threw the mutt off of her feet. DID THEY FIGHT!? What did he think- no, no, she had to remind herself. He didn’t think. And that could work to her advantage.
“See? Ah got a King, n’ you got an Ace.”
“Oh.”
“So that means…” She stopped her mouth, looking at him and his curiously innocent gaze. Spades could lie to him. She could lie to him right then and there, and he would be none the wiser. But did that make it right? She had done some mighty horrible cheating in her time, but…
“Yuh?” Dipstick asked, still waiting on the answer.
“So… that means… That Ah…”
Moments later, Dipstick was drooping and walking away, trying to ignore the sound of a crinkling wrapper as Spades shoved the lollipop into her mouth. Too easy. This place, this Dearly Farm was just a roost full of PIGEONS waiting to be plucked. Sure, she felt a little bad about lying to the lad, but he’d learn the rules of cards soon enough. There was going to be a revolution of sorts, if she had anything to do with it.
Wondering if she had any place to hide her booty, carrying it by the ties, letting it dangle around her neck she continued to enjoy the pilfered lollipop. Hey, she even let him keep the melted up crayon as a nice gesture. He didn’t seem interested in it, something about a gift…
Well, the sucker HAD said ‘For Aria’ on it, though Spades hadn’t noticed in the least. She had been too eager to have at it. After a moment, her tongue curled and withered beneath the sucker in disgust, instantly spitting it to the ground.
“UGH! Cinnamon? Ah hate cinnamon!”
End.