#aphcardverse

[askcardsuits]

Day 2: You Should See Me In a Crown - chosen one

For @aphcardverse-week

[ifindus]

Free day - fourth day of @aphcardverse-week

Had a go at designing a cardverse outfit for Norway ✨

[nsfhetalia]

Hetalia Event Calendar 2024

January

⭐ Australia' Birthday (01/01)

⭐ Monaco' Birthday (08/01)

⭐ Prussia' Birthday (18/01)

➡️ @asakikuweek2024 (24th - 31st)

➡️ @hwsevents (HWS Redesign Week: January 25th - February 7th)

February

⭐ Holy Roman Empire' Birthday (02/02)

➡️ @royalredbrosweek (4th - 11th)

⭐ Japan' Birthday (11/02)

⭐ Spain's Birthday (12/02)

⭐ Lithuania' Birthday (16/02)

⭐ Estonia' Birthday (24/02)

➡️ @fuchyeahaphestonia (APH Estonia Week: Feb. 25th - Mar. 2nd)

⭐ Egypt' Birthday (28/02)

March

➡️ @hwsevents (Mythtalia: 1st - 31st)

⭐ Bulgaria' Birthday (03/03)

⭐ Eyebrow day (03/03)

➡️ @geritaweek (16th - 22th)

⭐ South Italy and North Italy' Birthday (17/03)

➡️ @itararepairweek (17th - 23th)

⭐ Greece' Birthday (25/03)

April

➡️ @hongiceweek (1st - 7th)

💖💖 Fruk Day (08/04) 💖💖

➡️ @spaus-week (20th - 26th)

⭐ Hutt River' Birthday (21/04)

⭐ England' Birthday (23/04)

May

➡️ @engportevents (EngPort week: 8th - 15th)

➡️ @nedcanweek (12th - 19th)

➡️ @scotengweek (13th - 19th)

⭐ Norway' Birthday (17/05)

➡️ @hetalia-canukr-week (17th - 19th)

⭐ Cuba' Birthday (20/05)

June

➡️ @polpruweek (3rd - 9th)

➡️ @hetalia-aushun-week (3rd - 9th) ⭐ Denmark' Birthday (05/06)

⭐ Sweden' Birthday (06/06)

⭐ Portugal' Birthday (10/06)

⭐ Philippines' Birthday (12/06)

⭐ Iceland' Birthday (17/06)

➡️ @hetaberia-week (24th - 30th)

➡️ @lietcanweek24 (24th - 28th)

⭐ Seychelles' Birthday (29/06)

➡️ @amechuweek (June 30th - July 6th)

July

⭐ Canada and Hong Kong' Birthday (01/07)

➡️ @hwsamecanweek (1st - 7th)

➡️ @hwsfemmephenomenon (Digital Zine: Contribution applications open, from 1st to 31th)

➡️ @spamano-week (3rd - 9th)

⭐ America' Birthday (04/07)

➡️ @hwsasiaweek (8th - 17th)

⭐ Liechtenstein' Birthday (12/07)

⭐ France' Birthday (14/07)

➡️ @doomspiral (RusPru Micro-week event: 18th - 20th)

⭐ Belgium' Birthday (21/07)

➡️ @summertalia-event (21th - 27th)

⭐ Netherlands' Birthday (26/07)

➡️ @aphcardverse-week (Jul. 28th - Aug. 3rd)

August

⭐ Switzerland' Birthday (01/08)

➡️ @usukweek (5th - 11th)

➡️ @hetalia-rarepairweek (11th - 17th)

⭐ South Korea' Birthday (15/08)

💖💖 Rusame' day (16/08) 💖💖

➡️ @germanbrosweek (18th - 24th)

⭐ Hungary' Birthday (20/08)

⭐ Ukraine' Birthday (24/08)

⭐ Belarus' Birthday (25/08)

⭐ Moldova' Birthday (27/08)

September

⭐ Vietnam' Birthday (02/09)

⭐ Sealand' Birthday (02/09)

➡️ @nedportweek (22th - 28th)

💖💖 Nedport' Day (25/09) 💖💖

October

⭐ China' Birthday (01/10)

⭐ Germany' Birthday (03/10)

⭐ Portugal' Birthday (05/10)

➡️ @gerpru-week (6th - 12th)

➡️ @gereng-week (5th - 12th)

➡️ @hwsevents (PrUKtober: 10th - 17th)

➡️ @hetaween-event (22th - 31st)

💖💖 Hetalia' Day (24/10) 💖💖

⭐ Taiwan' Birthday (25/10)

➡️ @hetahorrorweek (25th - 31st)

⭐ Austria' Birthday (26/10)

⭐ Turkey' Birthday (29/10)

➡️ @gurotalia-week (October 31st - November 6th)

November

➡️ @hetafashionweek (10th - 16th)

⭐ Poland' Birthday (11/11)

⭐ Wy' Birthday (15/11)

⭐ Latvia' Birthday (18/11)

December

➡️ @hetalia-advent-calender (1st - 25th)

⭐ Romania' Birthday (01/12)

➡️ @nordictalia-week (1st - 7th)

⭐ Thailand' Birthday (05/12)

⭐ Finland' Birthday (06/12)

⭐ Macau' Birthday (21/12)

⭐ Russia' Birthday (30/12)

_______

Upcoming~

➡️ @lietpruweek (January 6th - 12th, 2025)

_______

PS. I'm not sure those Birthday' dates are correct, also there are many missing. Please correct me if there is anything wrong or if something is missing. Thank you 😋

Also, also...

Let me recommend:

@heta-on-the-books

@hetaliahappenings

@hwsevents

@hetaliacalendar

To help you by rebloging/boosting your event/ or other project.

[gybas-blog]

For @aphcardverse-week

Day 4: Free Day!

Commoners taking a photo

[rozenneknight]

@aphcardverse-week

Day 1: Royalty - Arranged Marriage | Coronation | Tradition

Ivan and Arthur have known each other for a long time. So finding out Arthur has been chosen to be the Queen of Spades and will soon be moving to the Spades Kingdom to be with Alfred… Well, Ivan is certainly not pleased🙃

[coralcatsea]

♠️ Spadian Star ♠️

Plot A: Prince Alfred sneaks out and winds up at his first concert, where he instantly becomes fascinated with the singer and guitarist, Arthur. He falls into a pattern of sneaking out to catch every concert, and whenever he sees the painted spade on Arthur's cheek he can't help imagining what it would be like if it were real.

One day, Arthur's shirt is grabbed a little too hard by an overexcited fan, causing it to rip and expose a true Mark of Spades. Alfred lets out an excited shriek and immediately starts making plans to have Arthur brought to the palace.

-or-

Plot B: The newlywed royals hold a celebration and hire a musician who ends up dropping out at the last minute. Arthur offers to fill in and Alfred discovers talents he never knew Arthur had.

Suddenly, his husband is even more attractive than before, and Alfred can't wait to ask him all about when and where he learnt to play and sing like that.

____

@aphcardverse-week

Prompt: Free Day because I couldn't choose between "I'm not supposed to be here" and "Hidden Talents".

[cheesetalia]

a snake with blue eyes

For @aphcardverse-week's Day 4: Free Day!

England/Canada, America/England | 10.4k words | warnings: cheating/adultery

Summary:

While Arthur is thrilled that the King of Spades has been discovered, the King himself takes less joy in being found. Alfred was happy with his life as a commoner. Maybe he hadn't had fancy clothes or even his own bedroom, but he'd had freedom. He could go where he wanted, do what he wanted, live the kind of life he wanted. Now he's supposed to waste his days sitting on a throne being the Queen's good little boytoy. Fuck that.

Can be read on the Archive of Our Own.

[itstokkii]

a done deal(s)

for @aphcardverse-week day 4: free day

in which nargiza, royal seamstress of the kingdom of clubs, makes deals with a stranger who doesn't seem to be from around here…

characters: turkey, uzbekistan, russia

shipping: turkey/uzbekistan

‧₊˚✧[🇹🇷🇺🇿]✧˚₊‧

"Intruder! What are you doing here? The Royal Guards of Clubs are quite ruthless, you know!" Nargiza quickly turned and brandished her fabric scissors, glinting in the afternoon light.

The intruder held his hands up in defeat, a panicked look on his face as he was thinking about how much longer he could balance himself on the window before she'd push him off the window, and he'd be discovered by the guards.

"Hey, hey hey! Calm down! Yeesh. I'm not here to kill you or anything! I just heard you cry about spinning straw into gold and wanted to help!"

Nargiza stared at him in shock before lowering her scissors carefully on a nearby table. With both hands free, she placed them on her face and let out a sigh.

"Don't make me laugh. You want to help me? How would you even do that? I am the Royal Seamstress. There is nobody in the Kingdom that can work the spinning wheel as fast as I can. Look at this!" She gestures towards the floor, up to her ankles with straw.

"I am locked in this tower, and meant to spin all of this into gold by morning...or I die." Her voice, initially booming with anger, quickly wavered. It seemed she was on the verge of crying, tears outlining her red, puffy eyes.

He wasn't like her, in the sense that he'd been hung, stabbed, or beaten to death over the years, yet he'd always wake up alive. He was immortal and free, never bound to the alliance of any kingdom.

She, and almost everyone else in the Four Kingdoms, weren't like that. But with this immortality came other abilities, of which would be the solution to her problem.

"You wanna know how I got to this tower, past the guards?" He whispered, as if he was about to tell her a secret.

"How?"

"Magic. I could help you spin all that straw into gold, and you'd be very much alive the next morning."

She angrily grabbed his fists. "MY LIFE IS ON THE LINE, AND YOU'RE WASTING TIME BY JOKING AROUND?!"

"I promise! Here, look." He hovered his hand over to the straw, picking up a handful before running it through the spinning wheel. Long, yellow strands of straw spun around the wheel, gradually changing into a color as golden as the sun.

Out came a spool of...golden thread. He hadn't been joking.

"Oh...Oh my goodness. You... What are you?!”

"Anyway, I believe I've caught your attention. Would you like me to-"

"YES!” She yelled, throwing herself at him and squeezing him for dear life, tears of happiness forming in her eyes. He was the answer to this! She could live, and continue her goal of saving up enough to move out of this cursed kingdom with her siblings. And he could do it just like that.

He lightly tapped her shoulder to let him go. "The way this works is like a deal. You need to clearly state your wish. Once I complete my end of the deal, you give me something of yours. How about..." His eyes scoped the room, looking for something she could give him before he looked at the silver bracelet on her wrist, encrusted with emeralds, the kingdom's gem.

"Your bracelet in exchange for my service." He said with a certain finality.

Nargiza stared at her bracelet. It had been "gifted" to her by the King of Clubs when she had been chosen as the Royal Seamstress. It certainly was pretty, but had been considering pawning it off to help save for starting a new life elsewhere. How bad could giving the bracelet to this sorcerer be?

She carefully slid it off her wrist. "And there are extra rules I should know about? No details omitted from this deal?"

"Nope." She then placed it on his hand, and he threw it into his satchel.

"Alright, then, sorcerer, please work your magic. I wish for you to spin all the straw in this room into gold."

"As you wish, miss."

He spun the straw, spools of gold thread piling up, as he engaged her in small talk-about her childhood, her family, her work.

‧₊˚✧[🇹🇷🇺🇿]✧˚₊‧

"Rise and shine, miss!" She jolted awake, straightened her hairbow, and stood up, brushing the dust off her apron as the door flung open to reveal none other than King Ivan.

"Good morning, your Highness."

He looked at the gigantic pile of spools upon spools of gold thread, picking one up to

examine it. He pulled the thread, and rubbed his fingers across the spool. Nargiza's heart pounded anxiously.

"Real gold. I'm impressed, Seamstress. It most certainly wasn't an easy task, no?"

"Perhaps not, but what the king demands is of the highest importance." Nargiza smoothly answered with a soft smile. After almost five years of working as a Royal Seamstress, she had learned how to walk on glass when around him, saying both what was true and what the King liked to hear. She had also learned to fake her smiles, no matter how frustrating or stressful the circumstance.

"Wonderful! Then surely you won't mind spinning some more?" Nargiza's heart dropped to the lowest pits of her stomach.

More?

The King guided her by the small of her back towards another room. This one was noticeably larger. If the previous room was of the size of a single person's bedroom, this could have been a drawing room. A single spinning wheel greeted her, along with the straw she was meant to spin.

"I expect the same results by the morning. See you then!" He waved as the door shut with a resounding CLANG, and then locked from the outside.

She waited for the footsteps to deafen before throwing herself on the piles and sobbing, angrily fisting straw in her hand and throwing it around. The crying and her fit of rage made her feel exhausted, so she wiped her face with her apron and chose to simply lay down among the straw. Soon enough, she had passed out.

She woke up to feel tapping on her cheek, along with a familiar, comforting voice.

"Hey, Nargiz," he said, "wake up, okay?"

She gently pulled herself up, rubbing her eyes to see the sorcerer, who had introduced himself as Sadik the day before.

"What are you doing here? You've done the deal already..." She asked, her voice tinged with sleep.

"I wanted to help you again. Your King is ruthless. How much does he pay you to be his personal punching bag?" She giggled at his slander of her King, easing a bit of stress off her body.

"How much...?" She did the math in her head. "Just enough for food, water, shelter, clothing, and my savings. Surprisingly, the pay is alright."

"Well, he still shouldn't be putting you through this. You deserve better." Nargiza blushed at his words. Someone aside from my siblings who understands...

"Your necklace for my service."

She gave him her necklace without hesitation.

"I wish for you to spin all this straw into gold."

"As you wish, miss."

This time, Nargiza tried asking him about his life, what he was, what kingdom he had traveled from. However, he simply stayed silent, choosing to focus on his work instead.

She had initially been looking at his clothing and the intricate embroidery, wondering if she could replicate that. His satchel looked plain, but it was in the design and construction that made it so unique, unlike the others she had seen in the Kingdom's markets.

Slowly, her eyes trailed up to his face. He had eyes lighter than hers, a warm brown that gleamed auburn when the sunlight touched it just right. He turned to look at her and smirked.

"You checking me out or something?"

"P-PLEASE DON'T MIND ME! FORGET THAT EVER HAPPENED!"

‧₊˚✧[🇹🇷🇺🇿]✧˚₊‧

"Well, what do we have here?" King Ivan's voice echoes across the walls. "This is why the Kingdom of Clubs is so well off. We have the best of the best working in this castle!"

She listened to his words intently, though with distrust and fear as she worried about what he had next in store for her.

"The best chef, the best maids...and the best, the most prettiest seamstress." Of all the things he could have said, Nargiza had never predicted it could have been about her looks. He guided her through different halls and passageways to another room.

"You're kind to everyone you come across, even though you want to rip them limb from limb sometimes. And you're just around my age!"

Where is he going with this...? She looked at the room, as grand as a ballroom, with another spinning wheel and straw.

The King chuckled. "I really should get to the point, shouldn't I? I can feel your impatience. You already know the procedure. Spin the straw into gold by morning. If you complete your task, not only will you be spared...but you will become my Royal Consort.”

She couldn't have heard that right. He played cruel tricks from time to time, this must have been one of them! Her head spun. She felt nauseous. Even so, she gathered the strength to ask him.

"Your...?"

He laughed. "Yes. My wife."

This was the first time in years she let the shock on her face speak for itself. The King smiled.

"Don't be so glum! If not marriage... you can always choose death."

And with that, he swung the door shut.

She spent the whole day sitting down in shock, or taking naps. At one point, she had tried to find paper and a pen-anything to explain herself to her siblings with as a postmortem letter, before finding nothing. It was now evening and there was no sign of Sadik.

It's rude of me to always demand he does my work for me, I suppose...

She looked outside the window, stars like diamonds popping out amongst the inky black sky. She closed her eyes and smelled the fresh, woodsy air. She figured that if this was the last time she'd ever see the night, she had to enjoy it as much as she could. I wonder if he can hear me... She thought. After a short pause, she began to speak out loud.

"Sadik...After I die, please tell my siblings I love them, and that I'm sorry for dying too early. Tell them to open the chest beside my closet at home, and to use everything in it carefully to leave this Kingdom. I don't...I don't know if King Ivan will come after them next. So...please..." Nargiza's voice cracked as she collapsed to the floor, trying her best to console herself and force herself to come to terms with her inevitable death the next day.

All of a sudden, she felt warm hands on her shoulders. He’s here.

"I'm sorry." He simply said. What else could he say to a woman that would lose her life to either marrying a King, or to decapitation?

"I...I don't know what to do," She rested a hand atop of his, "Either way I don't win! I don't want to die! But if I live, I live the rest of my days as his wife..."

Sadik sighed. "It'll be okay. I'll deal with that part as well. You will not be marrying that asshole. Do you have anything left to give me?"

She looked around and at herself, only to come up blank. "No...It's hopeless!"

"Well, you know what they say."

"What?"

"If you can't pay with money, then you pay with your body."

"WHAT?! NO!" Nargiza's eyes widened and she quickly backed away, her arms latching onto the wall across from him.

"Oh my god that came out a lot worse than it sounded in my head." Sadik awkwardly laughed, desperately trying to ease the tension. "I'm so sorry."

"I WAS LITERALLY CONSIDERING DEATH TO AVOID BECOMING SOMEONE'S BRIDE!"

"No, no! I mean I'll just turn all this straw into gold, and take you with me. We'll fake your sudden death, help your siblings leave the kingdom as well, and you'll get the life you deserve." He explained hurriedly as she looked like she was about to slap him.

She paced around the room. "I don't understand. You've just met me! Can I really trust you? What if-"

"If it worries you that much, I'll leave once all the arrangements are done and you're safe. You'll never hear from me again, and you'll be free. A deal's a deal."

"But why? For all it's worth, you could have simply stopped helping me on day one! Why help a stranger to such lengths?"

"I've taken a liking to you."

Her face flushed an angry red, becoming hotter with every second it took her to register what he said."

"I...I wish for you to spin this straw into gold. For the last time."

He smiled, his face also dusted a light red.

"As you wish, miss.”

‧₊˚✧[🇹🇷🇺🇿]✧˚₊‧

Morning came and the sunlight gleamed across an empty room, causing the spools of gold thread to shine and glow. No straw...and no Nargiza.

"Good morning-" King Ivan opened the door with haste, only to find spools of yarn and his bride-to-be gone.

Meanwhile, Nargiza read the newspaper in her living room, surrounded by her siblings and Sadik. The room, as well as the rest of the house is completely bare. Everyone had stayed up the whole night to pack all their items on several carriages. She cleared her throat.

"Search ordered by King to find his missing bride...The King has declared an emergency search of his missing bride to take place across all 12 provinces of the Kingdom of Clubs, effective tomorrow. Hm... Sadik, we only have to complete the letter of my death, right?"

"Yup, then we're straight out of here. Now, "fell to her death during a dizzy spell" or "shot through the heart by a mercenary?""

"I think the first one is more realistic, Sadik."

"Whatever you say, dear.”

———————————————————————

notes:

i saw a fanart where turkey seemed like a joker-type of character? no alliances to anyone, sort of a free wanderer...so I wanted to put that in here!

the story is based on rumpelstiltskin, with the original rumpel being sort of cruel and the villain of the story, this was sort of spun into "but what if rumpel was good(??)" usually I like sticking to source material as much as I can, but in this case, just this once...

[theboludaspring]

You Should See Me In a Crown

For the Cardverse week, @aphcardverse-week Day 2: You Should See Me In a Crown | coronation | celebration | chosen one AO3 link Characters: France & Switzerland & Liechtenstein (platonic).

Summary:

The impoverished Kingdom of Diamonds has a new king. Long Live the King.

1. It starts small. The coronation happens without much fanfare. The High Priest, a few old nobles, the small entourage of guards assigned to him, and Francis himself are present. It is not a celebration, but a simple closed-door ceremony to formalize power transfer. It doesn’t even last thirty minutes, and it is completely different from what eight-year-old Francis dreamed it would be.

Eighteen-year-old Francis is okay with that. He knows there is no money for anything else, his kingdom is starving, and holding on to the illusions of a foolish kid who wanted a huge party and chants all over his land is a waste. In these times, Francis only holds on to one thing. A memory, a promise– 2. “I’ll be king!” He says once, dreaming big like the kid he is. There’s a paper crown on his head, one that Madame has lovingly crafted for him, and the blue dress his mother made from scraps flutters in the wind. He feels like royalty, even if he doesn't have shoes and his stomach growls with hunger. Basch doesn’t respond; he rarely replies to most of their nonsense. But little Erika claps enthusiastically, her eyes brightening with hope. 3. Royalty marks cannot be forced; they appear by Divine Mandate. In kings, it is so normal for them to appear in their children that it is already considered hereditary. Francis is the atypical case. His mother was a prostitute, and his father a drunk idiot. He was raised among the streets and brothels, showered with love and praise by his beautiful mother and her friends. They taught him everything, from how to dress to impress to how to get rid of annoyances. They taught him to smile, be understanding, and also to stick the metaphorical knife (and sometimes not) in the exact place to hurt. In the eyes of his kingdom, or even others, he wasn't born in a place where a king could come from. Many probably don't consider him one. But he doesn't let that intimidate him. The mark is on his hand, the crown is on his head, and he knows that in the end, he has all the tools to survive and win. 4. The marks truly cannot be forced. And yet, he can't help but hesitate when Basch appears with the mark of the Jack. The moment Erika takes the crown of Queen, he laughs. One is a coincidence, two a miracle, but all three? No, the Heavens have nothing to do with the path they began to forge. 5. "I'll be king."

He says some years later, and it's not a dream, it's a fact. It doesn't matter what the nobles, the kingdom, or even the gods have to say.

The only thing that matters, the only thing he can focus on, is the blood-staining Basch's blonde locks and Erika's muffled sobs.

No child should go hungry. No one should be hit because of a loaf of bread–...

"I'll be king, and this will never happen again."

6. The game begins the moment the crown touches his head. He smiles at the people he will care for and rule for the next few years, for his entire life (until someone dares to take the crown from him, until he can no longer move to get it back, until his head is cut off, until the exact moment his people stop calling out his name–), and announces with false enthusiasm that it would be rude not to inform the other kingdoms about his coronation.

His people don't see yet what a jewel they have as a king, how willing he is to fight tooth and nail for what they deserve. In their eyes, in the eyes of all the kingdoms, he is nothing more than a foolish, conceited, and ignorant kid doomed to repeat the mistakes of his ancestors. They see weakness and incompetence. And he loves it. Eventually, he knows everyone will see what he is capable of, but for now, he will enjoy playing with their expectations.

7. They conspire, of course they do. Things are happening everywhere, and they have their hands in as many places as they can.

They smile, deceive, and manipulate. No one suspects the foolish king, the innocent queen, and the stoic jack. 8. It is Basch who surprisingly throws out the idea of ​​celebrating.

“What?” he questions just a moment later, his cheeks blushing at the surprised gazes of his two monarchs. “We deserve it.”

And they do, yes. The wheels have started to turn, and their plans are in motion, even if no one but them can see it yet. They are close, so, so close to fulfilling their goal.

That is all the motivation they need. Erika runs determinedly for snacks, and Francis takes all their papers with plans, ideas, and projects off the table.

In the candlelight in the small room they use for their secret meetings, surrounded by dust, papers, and little else, for a while, they relax.

In the morning, they will return to fulfill their roles. They will plan the greatness of their kingdom and the possible fall of the others, but for now, with paper crowns on each of their heads, they have fun and celebrate the creation of a different future.

[fumblingmusings]

Cardverse 2023

@aphcardverse-week

Day Three: Conflict - Forbidden Love | Espionage | Duel

The Queen is taking too long to find a King. When rumours start flying about Arthur and the head of the Queensguard, Alfred challenges the sources of the gossip to a duel. Arthur is not best pleased. Gen | USUK | No Warnings Apply

“You cannot spend your life chasing me.”

“Then tell me to stop.”

Arthur turned at the top of the staircase, a tight spiral with narrow slats for windows, allowing golden light and cold air to filter through. Alfred was two steps down, staring up at his queen with such a vulnerable expression that Arthur had to turn away. 

“You’re not being fair,” he said miserably. 

“And you are? Do you want me to leave?”

“It is torturing you, I can see it.”

“Don’t take my choice away from me. I want you, I love you. Don’t make me out to be some foolish child. I’m in love with the Queen. That’s not foolish.”

Arthur suppressed his shudder at the intensity with which Alfred spoke. Instinctively, he wanted to fall down those two steps with an indulgent sigh of 'I love you too'. Instead he held his hand out, palm forward, as if able to provide a physical barrier between him and Alfred. As if he did not want Alfred to take those last two steps and wrap his arms around him. 

Instead, the Queen's knight just stared at his charge, his love, with mournful blue eyes. Always stealing Arthur's breath away. 

“What will happen tomorrow, to us, if you lose?”

“Have some faith in me Arthur.”

“You have gambled with not just your life but mine, and Yao’s for supporting us, not to mention everyone in the Kingdom who will suffer from the turmoil! Who do you think will replace us?”

“I will win!”

“You cannot know for sure!” Arthur snapped. “And do not twist that to mean a lack of love, how dare you imply that.”

Alfred looked at his feet, then back up to glare at the Queen.

“Then after I win tomorrow, tell me to leave, and I will inform Yao of my resignation.”

“No,” spilled out of Arthur before he could stop himself, and suddenly those hands were cupping Alfred’s cheeks, his lips against the knight’s forehead. “Stay. Stay with me,” he begged, not caring one whit that he had changed his mind so abruptly. 

“Tell me why.”

“I cannot face being alone here. You alone make it worthwhile, I don’t trust anyone else. You’re my knight, where would I find… I need you.”

The Queen’s arms went around Alfred’s shoulders, as he stepped down to better bury his face into Alfred’s neck. Arthur’s shoulder shook.

“Hey, hey don’t…”

“Don’t leave me alone, not in this hell of a palace.”

“Never.”

Arthur then pulled back with a snort, leaving Alfred on the steps, snatching the warmth away. Arthur stomped up the steps, paradoxically graceful, until he reached his chambers and slammed the heavy door closed. Alfred was not allowed entry. He never had been.

Still, the Queen’s nervous voice came from the other side of the thick wood, muffled but undeniably frightened.

“You’ll guard me tonight?”

“Yes.”

“But you fight in the duel tomorrow…” he weakly argued. “You must get rest.”

Alfred swallowed a smile. “I will get another to guard tonight, if that is what you want.”

There was a beat of silence, Arthur clearly arguing between the immediate satisfaction of knowing that it was Alfred standing guard, as opposed to some other Queensguard that he half suspected was leaking information to anyone who was willing to buy the downfall of Spades. Arthur knew it was one of his guards that had let loose stories of Alfred and the Queen, stories which had grown loud enough to be both a slight to Alfred and Arthur’s honour. Stories that had led Alfred to impulsively challenge one major blabbermouth to a duel.

Of course, two seconds after the challenge had been made, the reality set in. If he lost, the Queen would be presumed guilty. It was not just his life at stake, but the Queen’s position, and with that, the entire kingdom.

What is a kingdom without a King after all, people would whisper. The Queen had ample opportunities to pick a partner, one that would please some people and not others, but he had not done so. Now, with a story of some forbidden love between the Queen and the Head of the Queensguard… well it all fit together so neatly.

Hence, fanning the flames of keeping Alfred at his door the night before the duel would not help matters.

“Go to bed Alfred,” Arthur whispered. From the other side of the door, Alfred fell backwards, head thumping against the heavy dark wood, listening. “I will not be able to sleep tonight regardless of who is standing outside. Go. Rest. Win for me tomorrow. For us.”

“When I win,” Alfred muttered, turning and whispering into the wood. He had no way of knowing if Arthur would hear, but he said it all the same. “I will be King, Arthur, I swear it. It’s the only way this will end.”

Arthur gave no indication that he had heard his lover on the other side of the heavy barrier. Instead Alfred stepped back, staring mournfully at the Queen’s door - the threshold he had never once crossed - then turned away, making his way down the stone steps. Like the Queen, Alfred would not sleep tonight. Unlike the Queen, it would not be due to fear. 

No, Alfred was not as honourable as the Queen he had sworn to protect. He wasn’t as stupid as what the Queen sometimes believed either. No, if he was challenging someone on pain of death and on the honour and legacy of the Queen, there was simply nothing Alfred would leave to chance. He would win. Simple as. 

By whatever means were available to him.  

[cawe-sama]

@aphcardverse-week day I!!

Coronation with the Queen of Cloves!

[askcardsuits]

Day 5: You Are the Peak and Art of My Universe. True love

For @aphcardverse-week

[hwsforeignrelations]

@aphcardverse-week // Day 1: Coronation

Alfred’s POV

Coronation Day

I took so many painkillers that morning I hardly registered the palace servants pulling my uniform on. A detail I do remember from that pruning hour was the sensation of being pulled towards to the ground by the weight of 51 metals pined to my chest. Symbols of my extensive career which sparked immense pride, but at that moment it wad hard to anything but one more burden to push through.

By breakfast the brain-numbing effects of twenty something pills waned. Mattie placed a tower of seven beautiful pancakes on my tablecloth (“My token of good luck,” he’d said with a pat on his shoulders a hug for Queen Arthur before scurrying out before more people began clogging the exits).

Standing set my nerves ablaze and made my tongue a swollen, coppery mess which made it infinitely harder to shape for words. My right knee, the lucky bastard unscathed by Clubian cannons, didn’t dare buckle under Yao and Arthur’s watch. It protested all the same, not quite listening when I commanded it walk without halt every step.

The ceremony proceeded without incident. I felt the cold weight of a silver crown studded with black diamonds, identical to Arthur’s but for the swirling “K” metalworked into its center, flatten my hair. I wanted to puff my chest outward to the cheering crowd of Spadian, to project a stronger image of a compete royal set. To maintain the public presence crafted from years working as the Spadian Army General.

The muscles throughout my body were sluggish, a victim to the drugs keeping a newly amputated leg from breaking headlines with “Loser At Large: New King Alfred Jones Eats Shit at Coronation”

Instead, my chest rose briefly - like a ballon swelling with air. Then someone decided they didn’t like the color and struck a pin through the fresh, deflecting it.

Arthur’s arm remained a solid beam throughout, so that when my foot went numb and I tilted off-balance it kept saved me my headline. Wouldn’t the hungry press love that juicy sell, I mused in bed the morning.

For Fuck’s sake, I wailed internally.

“I, Alfred F Jones, do solemnly affirm to support and defend the Federal Scribes of the Kingdom of Spades against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true alligence to the same; that I take this obligation with honor, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and dutifully discharge of duties of the office on which I am about to enter: So help me Oracle.”

The word “discharge” was less accurate than something along the lines of “I promise to retire if I go senile”. But hey, tradition was tradition.

Jack Yao and Queen Arthur smiled when I finished. I remember attending Arthur’s coronation many years past. The young monarch didn’t stutter a word of his Inauguration Speech, an individual obviously ready to take on his duties of state. It had been a relief to the youthful Alfred of the time, tired with the rest of Spades of the late Queen’s refusal to pass the ceptum when he’d been mentally unfit to rule for at least the last decade.

Traditionally, the King and Queen exchanged a ceremonial dance and handshake to seal their partnership.

My drugged, handicapped loins couldn’t begin to dream of five minuets of complicated footwork atop a new prosthetic leg. Instead, Yao took the dance with more grace than I could’ve exuted at the best of times. I preformed the hand gestures to Arthur’s.

He was incredibly handsome that day. Imbroidered silken waistcoat accentuated a slim waist, and the cream-colored cravat puffing out afixed by a sparkling diamond in the shape of a Spade danced with him under a clear blue sky. His smile was delicate and accentuated his crows’ feet and the speckling of freckles across his nose.

I wanted to kiss those beautiful freckles right there on the stage, for all of Spades to witness.

I retrained myself.

The next moment I froze when the expected handshake came in the form of a close-lipped kiss.

The crowd cheered and laughed at the unexpected break from tradition from their tradition-obsessed Queen. Yells and clapping filled the air with wonderful sounds of human delight and cheer, and my drug-inebriated brain was kind enough to leave the memory the next day.

[siffrins-therapist]

Monika received the Fated Mark that says she's chosen to be the new King of Hearts. It's a fate she doesn't want and tried to make a run for it. Now, it sounds like Kiku, Queen of Hearts, is up to something, but Monika has no clue if she can trust him, or if he'll discard of her once she's no longer useful.

Glad this one ended up shorter like I originally wanted, instead of me going, "Oh, I'll just write a 2000 fic" only for it to end up, like 12000 words long :') Searched around for cardverse stuff to figure it out and ended up yoinking a horror-fate idea from @/fireandiceland except this didn't end up all that horror-y. It's more angsty, tbh.

@aphcardverse-week

[gybas-blog]

For @aphcardverse-week

Day 5: You Are the Peak and Art of My Universe

true love | hidden talents | "We can't always get what we want."

[rozenneknight]

@aphcardverse-week

Day 1: Royalty - Arranged Marriage(implied) | Coronation | Tradition

It has been 5 years since Arthur left Clubs for Spades to meet Prince Alfred, and it has been 2 years since they have been wedded to one another. During that time, trust has been built between them and have shared goals and desires in improving their kingdom. Now the time has come for the two to be crowned King and Queen of Spades at last. However, not all is what it seems to be…