It was not exactly a surprise to wake up next to Ace again.
Neither of them had bothered with the pillow wall last night, seeing as Felix had no issues barging right through it the night before. Combined with the cozy night in, the chill of the mansion, and the fact that Ace ran warm like a furnace, it would almost have been stranger had Felix not found himself curled up around his friend come morning.
He had still apologized profusely – again – only to be assured that it was "completely fine" – again. But this time, Felix found that he actually believed it; if there was anyone comfortable with casual affection who wouldn't read too much into Felix's sudden need for sleep-cuddling, it was Ace.
They went about their morning routines in companionable silence, and Felix was leagues more calm than last morning as he and Ace eventually made their way down to breakfast.
That flew out the window as soon as an excited Vanessa barged into the breakfast room. The bride-to-be instantly descended upon Ace, presenting him with a choice in the day's itinerary: a spa day with the bridal party or a round of golf with Felix and his uncles.
Fortunately, Ace only took one look at Felix's panicked face – seemingly making out the telepathic message of "for the love of God don't leave me with Bernard" – before smiling and lying through his teeth that he'd love some pampering and gossip but he had already promised to be Felix's caddie.
Plans were made for the golfing group to meet up in front of the manor in thirty minutes to head to the course. Fortunately, nobody realized that neither Felix nor Ace were aware that this week would involve golf.
While they were rummaging through their wardrobes for something to wear, Ace struck up conversation.
"So golf, huh?" Ace said. "I wouldn't have guessed you played."
"And I wouldn't say that I do," Felix said. He inspected a polo shirt and figured it was as good as any in the absence of actual golf clothing. "It takes too much time and the small talk is abhorrent."
Ace chuckled and tossed a pair of capris on the bed. "I see the problem. Luckily we have all the time in the world and you've got me to handle the small talk."
Felix smiled into the closet. Lucky indeed.
Ace ended up borrowing one of Felix's shirts and they managed to hunt down a maid to fetch Felix's tennis shorts from the laundry room. And because of Ace's reassurance that they'd make it in time even with the detour, Felix only panicked a moderate amount about that fact instead of going batshit insane like he usually would.
In the end, they were ten minutes late (“fashionably late”, Ace had argued) but still ended up being the first ones ready. Standing in the estate's parking lot and waiting for the others to arrive, Felix could take a moment to relax while Ace curiously fiddled with the clubs and zippers of Felix's borrowed golf bag.
Felix noticed that his shirt was a little too big over Ace's shoulders but otherwise he looked great in it. It made Felix remember all the times they had shared clothes in the Entity's realm, back when they were desperate to get any kind of variety in the predictability of the trials.
They had been so close back then. How had Felix ever allowed them to drift apart after their escape? Even though he had been busy with work and his breakup, that was no excuse to neglect his friends.
"I've gotta confess, I have no idea what all these different clubs are even for," Ace suddenly spoke. "I'll probably be the shittiest caddie in golfing history."
"That's not your fault – I'm the one who dragged you along," Felix said. "I'm sorry about this. I know you would rather be at the spa."
"Well, normally, yes," Ace said. "You offer me a choice of a sport I know nothing about and a day of luxury, I'll pick the latter eleven times out of ten. But if it's a choice between spending time with you or the charming – yet grating – women of your family, I'll happily bear the burden of this golf bag."
Ace nudged the bag with a grin and Felix smiled, a weight rolling off his chest. "Thank you."
"Don't mention it, sweetheart," Ace said with a smile before going back to messing with the clubs.
Felix glanced around in confusion, but nobody but the two of them were there to hear the pet name. Ace must have been getting into the lovey-dovey act in advance.
═════════════ ♤ ═════════════
When they were finally sitting in the limo on their way to the golf course – which was all kinds of ridiculous, but it was the only car that would fit the whole group – the groom immediately started making the dreaded small talk with Felix and Ace.
"Do you play golf?" the groom – Alexander, Felix recalled from their introduction two days ago – asked Ace.
He seemed genuinely curious instead of judgemental, and making it a point to speak in English was already earning him brownie points in Felix's book. Maybe Felix should have made more of an effort to talk to him before.
"Oh, God no," Ace laughed. "I don't have the patience for it – not like Felix here."
Ace ran a hand over Felix's shoulder and Felix tried not to lean into the touch.
"I'm just here for moral support," Ace said.
"Vanessa is the same," Alexander said. "I know she finds it boring, but she still comes with me sometimes. And she takes pictures of my swing."
Felix realized that this was the first time he had heard anyone speak positively about his cousin. In the midst of all these awful wedding activities, he had almost forgotten she possessed any redeeming qualities.
"That's so cute," Ace said. "You guys really are adorable together."
Alexander beamed. "Thank you!”
Felix thought the compliment sounded cheesy, but since the groom was clearly eating it up, he kept his mouth shut and let Ace handle the talking.
“It’s good to have you with us today,” Alexander continued. “It’s nice that you’re still coming along, even if you don't like the sport.”
"Yeah, well," Ace gestured to the bags on the other side of the limo, "I just hope I don't throw my back out carrying all this stuff around."
"Oh, don't worry,” Alexander said. “I called to book us golf carts in advance."
Ace's entire face lit up. "Alexander, you're the best."
Yeah, Felix decided. The groom really wasn’t bad at all.
═════════════ ♡ ═════════════
When they arrived at the country club, Ace volunteered to retrieve his and Felix's golf cart, allowing Felix to head down to the driving range for some much-needed practice.
The first few of Felix's swings were absolutely awful, making him glance around self-consciously to make sure nobody saw. But he pushed through the embarrassment and tried to get back into the zone – and even after so many years, it didn't take long for the muscle memory to kick in.
While recalling the familiar motions and the ball gradually getting closer to where he had aimed, Felix couldn't help reminiscing about the past.
His father was the one who taught Felix how to play. They spent many summers of Felix's youth on the course or the driving range, Felix's father instructing him about his swing and praising him when he succeeded. His father had also tried to push him to join groups of strangers or people his age – no doubt counting on 18 holes’ worth of forced socialization to chip away at Felix's social anxiety – but hadn't pushed after Felix kept declining. Felix had wanted golf to be something he shared with his father, and after his passing, it had been difficult to find the motivation to pick up his clubs again.
The sound of tires burning gravel snapped Felix out of his thoughts and he startled mid-swing as a golf cart came rushing down the hill to the range.
The other golfers gave strange looks to the speeding cart, but Felix couldn't help but smile as he recognized the designer sunglasses and manic grin behind the wheel.
The cart screeched to a stop next to Felix's mat.
"This is so much fun," Ace grinned.
And despite the golf etiquette breaking and slight concern for his well-being with such an unpredictable caddie, Felix felt giddy over Ace's obvious enjoyment.
"I suppose I don't need to ask which one of us is driving?" Felix asked.
"Nuh-uh, you drove us all the way here from Coburg. This is my time to shine!"
"I seem to recall you don't have a driver's license."
"Irrelevant. Now get in!"
Felix chuckled. "It's still twenty minutes until our tee-off. You'll have to wait."
"Boo," Ace huffed.
While Felix went back to practicing, Ace told him about the arrangements for the game. They would be splitting into two groups, with Felix playing with the groom, his best man and the fat uncle – Ace's words, and Felix only snorted and gently corrected him (“his name is Günther”). Ace seemed excited for the game; probably because he would get to drive like a maniac as Felix's caddie and because Bernard was in the other group.
Apart from the five of them, Agnes' pool boy would be joining their group as fat uncle's – err, Günther’s – caddie. Thus the other group would consist of Bernard, his son, as well as Felix’s third uncle Johann and his wife.
Feeling a little more confident about the day, Felix finally switched from practicing with his irons to his driver club. He placed his ball onto a tee and shuffled back on the mat – trying to ignore how nerve-wracking it was to feel Ace's eyes on him while he lined up his shot.
Felix ended up managing a decent drive – a little too much fade, but he got a clean hit – and Ace whistled lowly.
"You didn't tell me you were good at this," Ace said.
Felix shifted and tried not to let the praise go to his head. "Wait until we get to the actual course to make a judgment.”
Ace quieted down while Felix prepared for another shot. When that one was almost equal to the last and Felix even got some of the fade under control, Ace made a disbelieving huff.
"Seems my judgment is just fine. Didn't you just say you haven't played in a long time?" Ace said, an eyebrow quirked in accusation.
"I haven't," Felix said. "I try to go to the range a few times each summer, but it's been years since I played even half a course."
Ace hummed. "Maybe it's a good thing we were roped into this, then."
Felix doubted that, but he stayed silent and focused on his next shot.
…And maybe he put even more force into his swing, just to hear Ace's delighted cheer when the ball crossed the 250 meter mark.
═════════════ ♧ ═════════════
In the end, Ace turned out to be right: golf wasn't such a bad idea after all. Because for the first time since his father's passing, Felix found himself having fun on the field.
Ace drove just as recklessly as Felix had anticipated, pushing their golf cart to its limits when speeding down the hills and driving off the designated paths. And even though Felix clutched the handlebar for dear life whenever the car tilted dangerously to the side, more often than not he found himself laughing right alongside Ace's excited whooping.
Between the driving, Ace made a running commentary about Felix's and the others' game. Mostly, said commentary consisted of praising Felix even through terrible plays – like when Felix hit a stray branch that rocketed his ball in the complete opposite direction of where it was supposed to go.
"Wow, you actually managed to hit that thin branch! Nice precision aim," Ace grinned, effectively preventing Felix’s embarrassment.
If Felix had expected Ace to mostly lounge around in the cart while he and the others played, he could not have been more wrong. Despite Ace admitting that golf had never interested him, he made an incredible effort to learn; asking Felix about the different clubs and rules and etiquette, seeming genuinely interested in the answer.
"What's this club called?"
"What do those white pillars mean?"
"What about the red ones?"
"What's a mulligan?"
"What does handicap mean?"
"How do you even know where the damn hole is?"
And he learned. When Felix's next ball bounced out of bounds, Ace was immediately tossing him another one from the golf bag.
"That was just a practice shot," Ace said with a wink.
And in no time, Felix was asking for the wood-tree and five-iron and Ace effortlessly handed the right club to him. He also knew to avoid the green with the cart, fixed divots in the fairway when Felix duffed, and stopped talking as soon as someone was focusing on their shot nearby.
He also made bets – because of course he did, it was Ace.
"I bet you ten bucks – err, euros – that it's going in the bunker," Ace murmured when Günther was lining up his shot.
Felix smiled. "I don't have any cash on me."
"Fine, a backrub or something then," Ace shot back.
Felix didn’t even have to think twice. "Deal."
Günther narrowly avoided the bunker and Felix had never been so disappointed to win one of Ace's bets.
But when Ace shrugged and faced him with a grin while gesturing for Felix to turn around, he realized that maybe it was for the best. This way, Felix only had to deal with the embarrassment of strong hands working into his tense shoulders through the shirt, instead of getting free rein to the firm muscles of Ace's back and the sweat he could see pooling in the nape of his tanned neck.
═════════════ ♢ ═════════════
While waiting for their turn between holes, Ace and Felix mostly made chit-chat with the groom and his best man. They only caught glimpses of Bernard's group behind them. Said group’s game appeared to be going much slower, and based on the amount of beer cans Felix could spot in his least favorite uncle's golf cart, he wasn’t exactly surprised.
Through talking with Alexander, they also got confirmation that he did seem to be genuinely infatuated with Vanessa. He joked that even though she had become somewhat of a bridezilla with the wedding so close, she was normally a sweetheart. Not only that, but her social media career was apparently quite successful, having a large following and putting in a lot of work into editing her photos and videos.
It definitely made Felix feel a little bad for assuming that his cousin was just doing it all for attention – and especially for thinking she was marrying for money and not genuine love. Of course, he would rather die than confess any of that to his future cousin-in-law.
═════════════ ♤ ═════════════
The hours rolled by surprisingly fast and soon enough, Ace was driving them up to the 18th green. Right as Felix stepped out of the cart with his putter in hand, he suddenly had an idea.
"Do you want to make the final putt?" Felix asked Ace.
"Wha – me?" Ace exclaimed, clearly confused. "I barely even knew what a putter was three hours ago, I sure as hell don't know how to use one."
"Would you like me to teach you?" Felix asked.
"I –" Ace hesitated, glancing at Alexander.
"Go ahead," the groom encouraged. "We don't mind. Right, Günther?"
Günther merely grunted and waved his hand in a "go ahead" motion.
"Oh, what the hell," Ace grinned. "Do your worst, coach."
They waited for the others to finish their putts before Felix went over some of the basics with Ace. He demonstrated his grip and helped Ace line up the shot, with Ace staying quiet and uncharacteristically focused the entire time. Felix could see that Ace's body was tense and his grip ended up all wrong, but he didn't have the heart to correct him –
Ace's putt was about 30 degrees too far to the right and had enough force to almost make the ball roll off the green entirely.
Ace winced and looked up at Felix with a strained grin. "Oops."
Felix gave an encouraging smile. "Practice shot," he reminded.
That got a chuckle out of Ace. "You're right. Let me try that again."
Ever the trooper, Ace walked over to prepare for his next putt. But this time, when Felix saw him repeating the same mistakes, he had to intervene.
"Sorry," Felix said. "Can I…?"
"Of course!" Ace said. "In case you didn't notice, I desperately need the help."
Felix nodded and stepped behind Ace to get a better feel for his putting stance. He corrected Ace's grip and instructed him how to place his feet, showing him how to keep his wrists locked to control the momentum.
And it wasn't until he was guiding Ace to making practice swings, with one of his hands on Ace's wrist and the other on his hip, that Felix realized just how intimate the position was. He was plastered to Ace's back practically from head to toe, leaned over Ace's shoulder to murmur advice.
If the roles were reversed, Felix would probably have passed out from both giddy excitement and utter mortification.
As it stood now, Felix merely cleared his throat and took half a step back so the position wasn't quite so indecent. "Now give it a try."
Ace gave an acknowledging nod – making Felix thank his luck for the lack of a flirty comment – and shuffled into position by the ball. Felix kept the hand firm on Ace's hip, needing to steady both himself and Ace's swing.
Ace's shoulders moved and with the familiar clack of metal hitting composite rubber, Felix watched as the ball went in a perfectly straight line towards the hole, only coming about half a meter short.
"Nice job!" Alexander said.
"Perfectly lined," the best man agreed. "Just a little short."
"Well, it's an improvement, right?" Ace turned to face Felix, his questioning eyes searching Felix's for approval.
Approval which Felix was all too happy to give.
"You did great," Felix said. "Now just repeat it and we'll finish the round with a bogey."
Ace smirked and sauntered over to the ball. "Will the third time be the charm? Place your bets, gentlemen!"
The group chuckled before allowing Ace silence to focus. Felix was surprisingly tense while he waited for the stroke; objectively, it wasn't the hardest putt to make, but he had seen many experienced players choke on even shorter ones. With Ace's lack of experience it could go either way, but Felix so badly wanted him to succeed –
And with a clank and whirr, the ball tumbled into the hole.
The groom whooped and Ace turned to Felix with the brightest, most brilliant smile Felix had ever seen. It made the air leave his lungs and his heart skip a beat, and he wanted nothing more than to close the few steps of distance between them and pull Ace into his arms to kiss his smiling lips –
"Good game!" the best man said, snapping Felix out of it. "Nice putt, man."
The other players proceeded to shake hands amongst themselves and with Ace. Meanwhile, Felix was left reeling from his thoughts.
He had wanted to kiss Ace. Hell, he probably would have kissed Ace, had the others not intervened.
Would Ace have let him?
Felix was in a daze as the party shook his hand and started gathering their things. He barely registered the best man and Ace making plans to go to return to the country club for a drink while they waited for Bernard's group.
A firm hand landed on his shoulder and Felix looked up to see Alexander.
"Sorry, I –" Felix started, embarrassed over holding the group back.
"That's alright," Alexander assured, his hand falling away as he turned to look at Ace laughing with the best man. "Why haven't you taken him golfing before?"
"Ah." Felix scrambled to think of an appropriate lie. "I didn't think he would like it."
"Hmm," Alexander said. "I’ve learned that asking someone how they feel is better than just assuming.”
Felix's palms were starting to feel sweaty and he just nodded mutely. It was like Alexander knew about their situation, about how Felix constantly studied Ace to give him even the slightest clue to what the other was thinking –
"Regardless, I think he'd enjoy anything as long as it was with you," Alexander said.
Felix frowned and tilted his head in question. That was along the lines of what Ace had implied earlier, but how did Alexander sound so certain?
"The way you look at each other reminds me so much of me and Vanessa," Alexander clarified. "Last night, she was saying that she's never seen you smile this much."
Felix flushed at the knowledge that not only were his relatives gossiping about him, but his little crush might not be as discreet as he had thought. "Ah… really?"
Alex grinned and nudged him in the side. "Just make sure to invite us to the wedding."
While Felix was busy choking on his own tongue, Alexander merely laughed and slapped him on the back before returning to the others.
At the incessant beeping that was Ace abusing their golf cart’s horn, Felix finally rejoined the group. While they drove back to the country club, he listened to Ace crack jokes about Felix’s expert golf tutelage and tried to ignore his own nagging thoughts about how it was starting to seem like they might be selling the whole couple thing a little too well.
shamelessly inspired by this one cartomancy fic on ao3, have some silly riconti fluff ft. a tiny bit of background harringsmith.
word count: 2.9k
[Riconti] All in the cards
"And the nine of spades for worry and despair –"
"What!? But Quentin's nine was great riches or some shit!" Steve protested.
"Yeah, well, Quentin doesn't steal other people's flashlights," Meg said pointedly.
Mikaela huffed and paused laying out the cards. "Quentin's nine was a diamond; the symbol for fortune and success," she explained. "The spade tells of hardships and obstacles."
"Okay, fine, do the next one!" Steve said.
Mikaela flipped the next card over, and Ace tuned out her explanation to look back at his own group. "What the hell do you think the kids are up to?" he asked.
"No fucking clue," Ash snorted. "At least they're having fun."
"I think she's reading their fortunes from the cards," Felix chimed in, not even looking up from his book.
"What, like tarot cards?" Ace asked.
"Yes. Some psychics use the normal deck of cards instead," Felix said. "Élodie showed us once in the Pariahs."
"Pfft, right," Ash said. "Self-proclaimed witch or not, she's just pulling their leg with that one."
"Sounds like a bunch'a hoo-haa to me," Bill muttered an agreement around his cigarette.
"Right, because being resurrected by an eldritch god on the daily is more believable than fortune telling," Tapp deadpanned. "Even Ace carries around five good luck charms at any given time."
"Hey now, you leave Lady Luck out of this," Ace protested. "And don't think I haven't seen all of you burning salt pouches before a trial –"
"Hell yeah!" Steve exclaimed loudly from the other side of camp, effectively interrupting them. "My luck's about to turn around, just you guys wait!"
"The ten of clubs doesn't actually mean –" Mikaela tried.
"Nuh-uh, you said it's for dreams coming true!"
"And traveling," Cheryl said. "Like being thrown into Japanese shrines and Russian forests every day?"
"But my dreams," Steve whined.
"It probably just means you'll find a purple flashlight or something, not that your dumbass head on strat will stop getting you killed," Quentin sassed.
"Are we really missing out on poker night for this?" Ash complained, gesturing to the teens.
Ace somewhat agreed; this wasn't quite what he had expected to happen when Quentin asked to borrow his deck of cards. He had thought the kids just wanted to play poker for some juicy items or offerings – games which Ace had been banned from after swindling a dozen skeleton keys from an unsuspecting Dwight – or build a house of cards, or play makeshift UNO, or do other, normal things.
Not have the group huddled together as a dead-serious Mikaela read their futures from Ace's worn pack of dollar-store cards.
Ace stood from his seat. "I'll go see what I can do, gentlemen."
That earned him some murmured agreements from the group and an encouraging grin from Ash. Felix, however, glanced up from his book to give a skeptical look.
"Be nice," Felix said.
Ace placed a hand over his heart and mock gasped. "Felix! I am always a paragon of virtue and justice."
Felix quirked an unamused eyebrow which Ace pretended not to notice. Instead, he strode away from his group of grumpy old men – who were even more grouchy than usual, having been robbed of their only form of entertainment.
"Hey, kids," Ace joined the others and sat down next to Steve. "What's with the commotion?"
"Mikaela is doing card readings for us!" Steve said.
"Uh-huh," Ace said, looking at the girl skeptically. "Clearly, the cards have hidden abilities I didn't know of."
"It's called cartomancy, Ace," Mikaela explained patiently while shuffling the deck. "It supposedly goes back even further than tarot reading. Cards have long been thought to have powers of divination."
"I got them from Target," Ace deadpanned.
"What!? You said you won them from a sultan in India!" Meg exclaimed.
"And they were also stolen from a casino in Vegas, and gifted by a gorgeous duchess in San Marino, and –" Quentin listed.
"Yes, well, the cards have had a long and fulfilling life!" Ace said. "I don't see how that gives them any insight to ours."
"Hmm," Mikaela said. "Then you'd let me do a reading for you?"
Before Ace could protest the idiocy of the idea, the kids were cheering on.
"That's a great idea!" Cheryl said.
"Perfect way to shut up a prejudiced old coot," Quentin shot Ace a smirk.
"Ooh, we should do one about his career to see how much else he's bullshitted!" Meg said.
"Now, hold on just a second –" Ace protested.
"What? You chicken?" Steve grinned.
"No," Ace said automatically. The kids were looking at him expectantly, so he huffed and gave in with a, "Fine, deal me in, Red."
"Is there a specific aspect of your life you would like to know about?" Mikaela asked.
"Such as?" Ace asked.
"Well, considering the circumstances, career success or family might be difficult," Mikaela said. "But I know how to do readings for the near future, or warning signs, or things like friendship and romance –"
"Romance!" Ash hollered from further away.
Ace turned to glare at his now laughing friend, only to see that despite their earlier complaining, the entire group was observing with mixed looks of both intrigue and amusement. It acutely reminded Ace of his friends' second favorite hobby after poker games; knocking Ace out of his comfort zone and chuckling while he floundered to regain his usual arrogance.
"We can go with romance," Mikaela said. "I haven't done that reading in a while."
"Is there a card that means 'love life is as dead as Steve after a failed dumb tech'?" Quentin asked.
"I almost had it last time!" Steve protested.
"It was a Myers, and he had tombstone!"
"Ace?" Mikaela asked.
And if the two teenagers right next to Ace could casually bicker about one of them getting brutally murdered with a large kitchen knife, then so help him, Ace could withstand a little fortune reading.
Ace schooled his expression into a nonchalant smile and waved his hand in dismissal. "Yeah, sure, tell me about how the cards think the Hag is the love of my life or something."
Mikaela ducked her head to shuffle the cards, though Ace barely caught her eye roll before the brim of her hat covered it. She fanned out the cards in her hand, extending them to Ace.
"So, how exactly does this work?" Ace asked.
"You pick three cards that speak to you," she explained, not seeming to realize just how ridiculous that notion was. "Either all at the same time or one by one; whichever feels more natural."
Ace chose the cards at random, knowing that if he spent some time looking at them, he would spot the subtle marks he had left to give him an edge in various games. He couldn't let the others figure out his secret; not when everyone was staring so intently.
"There," Ace said, holding the cards awkwardly between them. "What now?"
Mikaela discarded the pack and took the cards from him to place them one by one on the ground. There was nothing but tense silence from their audience and it made Ace fidget in his seat.
"Lamest magic trick ever," Ace joked.
"Come on, let her focus!" Cheryl complained.
Mikaela closed her eyes and held her palm over the first card, before finally flipping it over to reveal the four of spades.
And everyone around Ace gasped.
"A spade!" Meg whispered and looked at Ace in worry.
"What? What does it mean?" Ace said.
"Most of the numbered spades symbolize conflict or trouble in our relationships," Mikaela said. "The four of spades in this instance can mean the end of a relationship either due to illness or a broken promise."
Something clenched in Ace's chest; old memories and new fears twisting together, until he shook his head with a forced chuckle. "Well, isn't that a cheery outlook on the future."
"It's not the future," Mikaela said. "The first card tells about the past, while the middle is the present and the third one the future."
"So, in the past…" Cheryl trailed off.
Ace didn't like the sympathetic looks shot his way and definitely wasn't a fan of how close the words hit to home. So many burned bridges, when he had promised the world and never been able to pay back even a single dollar –
"Come on, who hasn't had a messy break-up or two?" Ace shrugged with a grin. "What's the next one gonna say, 'it might rain today'?"
"Let's see," Mikaela said, quickly flipping the second card. It seemed she was just as eager to move on from the awkward tension.
"A heart!" Steve exclaimed. "That's a good one, right?"
"Indeed," Mikaela said, visibly relaxing. Ace almost felt bad being so dismissive before, because she clearly put a lot of herself into these things. "The six of hearts in a reading like this means a new relationship or romantic interest."
When Meg turned to Ace this time, it was with a wide, expectant grin. "Like a crush!?" she asked.
And Ace suddenly felt a little hot under the collar. He barked out a fake laugh, buying himself some time to formulate a comment. This card thing was turning out to be a spectacularly bad idea, but how was he supposed to know it would actually work –
"That's absolutely hysterical," Ace said, wiping an imaginary tear from his eye. "I don't know if the cards got the memo, but this place doesn't exactly lend itself to romance."
Well, Ace knew firsthand that depended on who you asked. Sometimes all it took was the right person coming along to make the best of a bad situation.
"So? Who is it?" Steve asked, nudging Ace in a far too friendly manner.
"Come on, you all can't seriously believe this," Ace huffed.
"Yeah we do," Meg said. "Spit it out! Who are you crushing on?"
"Come on Megan, if I was in love, don't you think you would know?" Ace asked. "I've never exactly been subtle about romance."
"Hmm, true," Meg considered. "Like when you tried to get into the Trapper's pants in the middle of a trial."
Ace nearly choked on his own spit while the camp erupted into laughs and a few pointed "What the fuck"s.
"That was one time and years ago," Ace hurried to clarify. "Not to mention I only offered in order to buy your sorry ass enough time to get the gate open!" he jammed an accusatory finger in Meg's shoulder.
"Sheesh, alright!" Meg rolled her eyes and shrugged off his touch. "No need to get so defensive."
And sure, that's what she would think, but Ace really hoped it was clear that he didn't go around propositioning people at random – or at least not anymore.
"So no crush?" Steve asked, clearly disappointed.
"The card probably just means that Ace is a massive flirt," Quentin said.
Ace bit his cheek to stop himself from blurting out that it had been a long time since he had even flirted with just anybody, thank you very much.
"Alright, and now for the future – oh," Mikaela said, clearly surprised by the king of hearts that was revealed as the last card. "That's… very specific."
"Huh? What does that one mean?" Cheryl asked.
"It…" Mikaela squirmed in her seat. "The placement of the card is about the future of Ace’s love life. The red suits symbolize light while the heart specifically is compassion and benevolence. The king is seen as an experienced or more successful man."
"Right…?" Ace said. He wasn't sure what she was getting at; was Ace supposed to be more compassionate in order to find love or something?
Mikaela looked firmly at the ground as she finally said, "It means that in your romantic future is a kind, blond man."
And just like that, everything went deadly silent. Even Kate's guitar strumming and Jane's gossiping on the outskirts of the campsite had stopped, though Ace hadn't even been aware that the women had been listening.
The energy in their shared space shifted from amusement to shock as people turned to look at the one person Ace would have wanted to keep out of this. He didn't dare look up from the cards, locking eyes with the king of hearts who stared at him with a stupid smirk and Ace was definitely going to ruin that smug paper face with Nea's markers later –
The sound of a book slamming shut jolted Ace out of his thoughts. He finally looked up to see Felix stand from his seat with a sigh, placing the book on the log.
And then, he met Ace's eyes with the same infuriating little smirk as the king on the card.
"I tried to warn you," Felix said. "I learned firsthand that cartomancy isn't to be trifled with."
Élodie chuckled next to Jane – a story Ace would have to ask about later – while Felix calmly walked over to Ace through their group of friends still gawking at him.
He unceremoniously sat down next to Ace, so much closer than they'd ever dared to be in front of the others, and Ace had to use all of his willpower to not just bury his face in Felix's jacket and breathe in his comforting scent and whine about his own cards betraying him –
"Maybe you should do card readings more often," Felix told Mikaela conversationally in the complete silence of the camp. "Seeing as it makes people finally shut up."
And that was apparently the cue for everyone to erupt into noise.
"It meant Felix!?"
"No fucking way!"
"Wait, Felix is into dudes?"
"Into Ace?"
"Holy shit, I had no idea!"
"Speak for yourself, I knew something was up!'
"That's why you've been so shifty!"
"I can't believe those two are actually dating!"
"Silence!" Adam commanded and everyone immediately quieted down. Using his teacher skills to their full potential in shutting up a bunch of brats, Ace thought somewhat hysterically. "Give Ace and Felix a chance to speak," Adam said.
Expectant looks landed on them and Ace turned to Felix in alarm. It was all happening so fast – they sure as shit hadn't planned anything like this, and Ace thought the last thing Felix would want was for everyone to find out.
But a warm arm wrapped around his waist and Felix's reassuring smile melted right through Ace's worries. Still, there was a tinge of concern in Felix’s expression as he studied Ace; probably worried because Ace had been quiet for all of two minutes – which must have been a personal record – and shit, this was really okay, Felix wanted this, wanted the others to see –
"Finally!" Ace heaved a dramatic sigh and slumped against Felix's side, his head flopping to lay on Felix's shoulder. "God, you have no idea how hard it was getting to hide this. Though the fire's cozy, this place is seriously lacking in privacy; zero out of five stars, I'll leave a very angry review on Tripadvisor."
Felix chuckled and placed a kiss on the crown of Ace's head, in the middle of his messy hair. It made Ace grin like an idiot and butterflies danced in his gut just like every time he got to indulge in Felix's affection – which he would get to do any time he wanted, now, and that was amazing.
"So you are dating," Cheryl said. Her eyes were wide in disbelief but there was a smile on her face.
"For a while, now," Felix said, pulling Ace just that much tighter against him, maybe unconsciously. "We wanted to keep it between just the two of us because it was so new, and then continued to do so because… ähm…"
"Because you're all a bunch of nosy fucking gossips," Ace finished for him.
There were a few chuckles from around the campsite, and David in particular just snorted and muttered something that sounded suspiciously like 'idiots.'
"Yeah, you got something to say, King?" Ace prodded.
"Nah, mate," David said, then added with a grin, "Just surprised you managed to keep yer trap shut for once."
"Oh, trust me, it wasn't easy – I mean look at him!" Ace said, gesturing wildly to all of Felix. "He's gorgeous, and funny, and brilliant –"
"Ace," Felix chastised quietly.
"And he's mine," Ace finished, wrapping himself around Felix in a tight hug and fake-glaring at all of the others. "So none of you get any ideas. That means you, too, Sunshine," he shot Kate a smirk.
"Don't serenade Felix in the moonlight, got it," Kate grinned, playing along.
"Well…" Felix started, clearing his throat and gently dislodging Ace from around him. "If you're quite finished with the theatrics, I'd love a reading from Mikaela too."
"Oh!" the girl exclaimed. "Of course! Um… about your relationship, or…?"
"I think you should read my next trial," Felix said. He turned to Ace with a soft smile, his hand clasping Ace's between them. "There are some things about the future I don’t need cartomancy to see."
Ace's stomach lurched and his heart beat with giddy excitement; a feeling familiar from moments before any high-stakes casino game in his old life.
But seeing the secretive sparkle in Felix's eyes and feeling a calloused thumb rubbing circles over his knuckles while they listened to Mikaela read the cards, Ace knew that no jackpot he had won would ever compare to this. Whether or not he believed in the cards was irrelevant; in one way or another, he knew that their message was true.
Because even if the circumstances and world around them were far from ideal, Ace had never felt as hopeful for the future as he did with Felix by his side.
I feel like Cheryl and Jeff could be pals (version with and without speech bubbles)
Take a Cheryl and Jeff thing that I’ve slowly been working on for almost 2 weeks, my motivation to do full digital drawings has kind of died so I’m tryna get back into it, haven’t done something like this in ages
Drew a few doodles of @questionedturkey character Eli :] seeing him reminded me that I also have a DBD OC named Eli which is pretty weird 🤔 his design was WAY too similar to hers so I switched it up a bit :]
Deathslinger x doctor or deathslinger x oni? Headcanons or fluff for whichever one you choose, I don’t mind :) (happy birthday to your blog!)
oh it’s been a long time since i’ve written sparkslinger! thanks for requesting <3 i made this as a continuation to my previous fic of them, i hope that’s ok!
word count: 1740
Caleb X Herman: Accidental martyr
Since starting his arrangement with Herman, Caleb had to admit that his time in this neverending hell had become a lot more entertaining.
Whether it was getting roped into questionable experiments, late nights drinking cheap whiskey in the saloon, or his own sporadic visits to the old hospital, being around the doctor was a great way to alleviate the boredom between trials.
Unfortunately, that often came at the cost of Caleb’s sanity.
This moment was a prime example of such an occurrence. After Herman had showed up to their latest encounter with a torn jacket and fresh wounds, Caleb was practically forced to play doctor to make sure the man didn't succumb to his injuries.
That didn't mean he had to be nice about it, though.
“Figures ye’d be cocky enough to try to take the bitch out on yer own,” Caleb snarked.
He attempted to clumsily dress one of the numerous gashes marring the doctor’s shoulders; the Entity’s handiwork, no doubt.
“What can I say? I’m a man who likes to push the limits—shit!” Herman hissed out a curse when Caleb tightened the bandage a little too forcefully.
“Don’t do it again,” Caleb growled, masking the uneasy feeling in his chest with anger.
Herman waved off both the threat and concern with a simple "Yes, yes, now get on with it" and Caleb went back to his mediocre job of caring for the wounds.
Since that first night in the saloon, they’d never talked about whatever this was between them. And that suited Caleb just fine; he was a man of few words, and if anything, he should thank his luck that the blabbermouth he kept for company hadn’t deemed it a subject worth discussing.
Apart from a few snide comments of Herman getting his ass kicked by the Entity, Caleb didn’t bring up the incident again.
And he’d probably have forgotten about it completely, if he hadn’t happened to pick up some spare parts from Autohaven a few days later.
“Are you alright?” Philip asked as soon as Caleb arrived at their designated meet-up spot.
“Just dandy,” Caleb drawled, inspecting the Wraith’s latest haul of scrap from the junkyard.
“You don’t have to act tough, Caleb,” Philip insisted, clearly not getting the hint.
Caleb whipped around to give the other killer a properly disgusted look that he hoped conveyed just how little he appreciating being coddled like a damn child.
“It’s okay; we’ve all been there. I understand,” Philip said, giving a look of sympathy that made Caleb’s skin crawl.
“The fuck you on about, boy?” Caleb spat.
“The Entity,” Philip said.
The Wraith flinched at his own words, quickly glancing around to make sure nobody was eavesdropping.
“It… punishes us when we’re not brutal enough or efficient enough,” Philip said, lowering his voice. “And after your leg—there have been rumors, you know.”
Caleb felt the anger bubbling up. Not only did he hate people bringing up his brief time of injury and subsequent uselessness in trials, he also had an inkling of just who had been spreading these specific rumors.
“What kind’a rumors?” Caleb asked.
“You’ve been going to the hospital a lot to treat your wounds,” Philips said. “Herman even had to borrow ointments from Sally, since you’ve been coming in so often.”
Caleb’s eye twitched as he tried to reign his temper. Herman knew damn well that Caleb was insistent on keeping their whatever-it was a secret, yet he seemed to happily gossip to anyone he came across.
“‘Scuse me,” Caleb said. “I’ma need to have a chat with the good doctor.”
When Caleb slammed open the door to Herman’s office, the man didn’t even flinch.
“I’d prefer if you didn’t break my furniture,” the doctor merely offered, not even looking up from his book. “I could hear you stomping here from across the hospital.”
“You,” Caleb snarled, grabbing Herman by the collar. “What did you do?”
“You’ll have to be more specific than that,” Herman said, infuriatingly calm even when face to face with a very dangerous and very angry gunslinger.
“Why does Phil think I’m gettin’ beat up by spider-bitch?” Caleb spat. “Why does Sally know I’ve been comin’ here and you need a bunch’a salve for it?”
“Oh,” Herman said, finally getting his point. “That’s not something you should worry about.”
“Try me,” Caleb snarled, tightening his grip around the man’s jacket collar.
“It might be easier to talk without the strangulation,” Herman countered, his voice strained from the pressure on his neck.
Caleb released his hold but didn’t back off, crowding the man against his office chair.
“Then talk,” Caleb commanded.
“Very well,” Herman said. “As you may or may not know, our Eldritch overlord closely monitors our performance in trials. However, if said performance isn't up to par, it isn’t afraid to take disciplinary measures.”
“So ya didn’t fight it, it fought you? That what yer sayin’?” Caleb asked.
“In a way, I suppose,” Herman said, still annoyingly secretive.
“So what’s that gotta do with me? And stop fuckin’ horseshittin’,” Caleb said.
“Well, in a nutshell,” Herman paused, as considering how to phrase the message simply enough for Caleb to understand. “There was word of the Entity being more agitated than usual. I concluded it was only a matter of time before it chose you as its target, and as a precaution, I deliberately attempted to draw its ire.”
If Caleb was confused before, he was even more so now. The doctor had… volunteered to be the Entity's pincushion? And for what?
“Why?” Caleb asked, hesitantly stepping back from the man and his unknown motives.
“You’re my patient,” Herman simply answered.
“Oh, like these sorry fuckers?” Caleb said, pointing at a human heart sitting neatly in a jar on the desk. “You wanna cut me up yerself, that it?”
“...No.”
“Then what? Ya get off on bein’ tortured?” Caleb prodded, angry at still not getting a real answer. “Well, what is it!?”
“I don’t know!” Herman snapped, slamming the book shut.
It was the first time Caleb had seen the doctor lose his composure, and on reflex he reached for the empty holster on his hip.
“I’ve spent over a decade studying the human psyche, and I don’t know,” Herman said, moving to stand up. “I have no illusions of morality, yet seeing you in agony over your leg—”
“I was fine!” Caleb rebutted.
“The thought of inflicting more pain on you was simply out of the question. So I offered myself up in your stead, until you were recovered. And then I… just kept going.”
“Hold on,” Caleb realized. “You’ve—for all this time!? It’s been, what, months?”
“Fifty-three days, according to my calculations,” Herman said, so matter-of-fact.
“You’re fuckin’ bonkers,” Caleb said. “That shit ends now! ‘M not about to let you deal with my punishment!”
Herman was silent, for once, and Caleb could see his jaw clenching and unclenching. There was a sudden realization that Herman probably felt the same way that Caleb did, a few days ago when he saw the man badly hurt.
Protective.
The anger slowly released from Caleb’s body, and he took a step toward the doctor in a silent peace offering.
“I’ma big boy, doc,” Caleb said. “Been through shit none of yer experiments even come close to. I'm not fuckin' made o’ glass."
"I realize that," Herman said, sighing. "It wasn't my intention to patronize you."
"Pfft, like that ain’t your goal most days," Caleb shot back, the good side of his face drawing into a smirk.
"Well," Herman said with a dry chuckle. "Not in this particular instance."
An apology was left unsaid, but Caleb didn't want one. Still, he kept unwavering eye contact, waiting for a promise that never came.
"And?" Caleb asked when neither of them were budging.
Herman sighed in annoyance, most likely peeved at having been out-stubborned.
"I will make sure it doesn't happen again," Herman reluctantly assured.
"Good," Caleb said, and then inexplicably felt unsure about where that left them. "So, uh… we good, or…?"
Herman smiled. He usually just grinned, or giggled or laughed like a psychopath, but now he looked stupidly handsome with a smile stretching over his lips and making his eyes crinkle at the corners.
"Splendid," Herman said.
Caleb could only withstand another few seconds of looking at the damn smile before his patience ran out.
"Get over here," Caleb said, tugging the doctor closer by his lapels and into a kiss.
They didn't do this often, and feeling the warm, chapped lips against his own, Caleb couldn't help but think what a damn shame it was. After the injury to his jaw that felt like a lifetime ago, Caleb didn't think he'd be doing much kissing for the rest of his days, but Herman never seemed bothered by it.
Large hands settled on his hips and Caleb could feel the dormant energy lying underneath, electricity always at the doctor's fingertips. It was absurd to think that their hands, constantly used for killing and more often than not caked with their victims' blood, could be used to hold each other this gently.
Realizing he was getting alarmingly sappy from nothing more than a kiss, Caleb pulled away from the liplock and reluctantly stepped away from the doctor's embrace. He adjusted his hat in an attempt to hide the reddening of his sickly pale cheeks.
"Alright, now come on," Caleb urged, cocking his head in the direction of the door.
"Are we going somewhere?" Herman asked.
"Yer comin' to Glenvale where I can keep an' eye on ya," Caleb said. "Don't trust ya not to break a promise."
The words came out harsher than he meant to. Luckily, Herman didn’t appear to take it personally, instead going to grab some of his things without any further fuss.
"If you wanted a romantic getaway this badly, you should have just asked," Herman teased.
"Shut up," Caleb said half-assedly.
Watching Herman pocket a jar of an unknown substance, Caleb suddenly remembered something crucial.
"Oh, one more thing," Caleb said.
"I'm all ears.”
“Tell Sally to keep ‘er fuckin’ trap shut,” Caleb snarked.
He received a fit of maniacal giggles in return, and Caleb realized that the sound that once grated on his nerves now brought a sense of belonging.
He still didn't know what this was between them, but he'd be damned if he let it go.
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