Notes:
I wasn’t in my A game when writing this chapter :( This chapter was just for Alfred to confide in Francis.

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

After getting the Diamond court settled in, Alfred and Francis took a small walk through one of the gardens so that they could catch up with each other. There wasn’t that much that had happened to Francis during his last visit apart from the usual stuff he had to put up with in his Kingdom. He recently taste tested a selection of century old wine, oversaw the latest addition to his sea fleet, was a judge in a high profile fashion contest, commissioned a new college for the Art society, and continued to enchant any lovely lady or man who caught his eye. Basch did an excellent job as always as the Jack, his strict nature and his attention to detail almost put Yao’s own personality to shame. Queen Erika’s presence continued to ease her people’s worries, she was always visiting the farmers on the outskirts of their kingdom to thank them for their efforts, performed her royal duties in her unique and graceful manner, and continued to support numerous charities. The Diamond Kingdom sounded as if it was doing very well, as always and Alfred commended Francis for his ongoing success.

“And what about you, mon ami?” Francis seemed keen to know how Alfred had been faring. “I have heard a few interesting stories of late, including how you didn’t take with a certain young lady.”

“Oh that?” Alfred chuckled nervously as he ran a hand through his hair, not realising that the news of his and the Hamilton girl unsuccessful hook up would reach the Diamond Kingdom. “I wasn’t interested and neither was she, thank god. I mean, I didn’t want her in tears so I was glad we both come to the same conclusion.”

Alfred tried to laugh it off but Francis was gazing at him with a hint of curiosity. “I see, but why? I mean, why didn’t you take with her? Was she not your type? Was she too dull? Or... is there someone else?”

Alfred almost tripped over himself and he coughed loudly, Francis taking a note of the reaction. “W-what? Of course not. She and I were just not interested in each other.”

“Really?” Francis didn’t seem convinced. “You turned down a fine lady just like that for no other reason? I’ve spoken with her once and even I could not resist her charms.”

“Yes,” huffed Alfred, folding his arms and pouting. He forgot that Francis had an annoying habit of trying to stick his nose into his private life.

Francis smiled mischievously. “Forgive me Alfred, but I just can’t help but notice that something is different about you. What have you been doing since our last meeting?”

Alfred paused for a moment and wondered if he should tell Francis about Arthur and the garden. Yao didn’t believe him and assumed that these strange trips of his were nothing more than stress. He knew that it was an insane story which was why he decided to investigate himself, but maybe Francis would have an idea. He was a King after all, and maybe he might know something. That and he just happened to be a really good friend.

He ushered Francis into a small part of the garden where they sat down upon a white bench, far away from prying eyes and curious ears. “Promise you won’t think I’m insane or joking,” pleaded Alfred.

That made Francis raise both his brows. “Ok,” he agreed casually, leaning back as he folded his arms and crossed his legs.

Alfred took a deep breath and started from the very beginning. He told Francis of how he woke up one night and found himself in a room that was not his with a man he didn’t know. How he thought he fell asleep during a planning meeting but instead returned to the same room with the same man, learning that he couldn’t interact with anything in that room and learnt that the man’s name was Arthur. He assumed it was some strange dream until his third visit during an argument with his staff over floral arrangements, when Arthur revealed he was growing a beautiful garden surrounded by tall stone walls. That nearly every single day he’d go there for an hour or two and when he returned to the palace no time had passed. He even spoke of the strange little girl, who was probably the one sending him there, the strange dreams and the silver door bound by chains. He told Francis everything he knew, hoping that the Diamond King would have some idea what was happening to him.

He was half expecting for Francis to pull an amused face, to snicker or at least smirk at him for his bizarre tale, but Francis just sat there and listened. It appeared he was now deep in thought but he looked confused more than anything, and it looked like he didn’t have any answers for Alfred. Did he believe him though? Or was he just going to humour him? Once Alfred was done explaining everything he waited for Francis to say something, anything to at least confirm to Alfred that he wasn’t insane. Francis sat in silence for a while, as if he was soaking in everything that had just been said to him.

“It’s... a very interesting story,” he said at last.

Alfred’s heart sank at the not so encouraging response. “You don’t believe me?”

Francis shook his head. “No, no, I mean who am I to say if it is true or not. You don’t look like a madman and from what I’m hearing you’re running your kingdom well, and you don’t sound like you’re lying... I just find it almost hard to believe.”

At least Francis sounded sincere and wasn’t trying to patronise him. Still he had hoped Francis would have some idea what this all was, despite how he acted like an old flirt half the time, he was actually a very wise person. Even the other Kings, though they’ll never admit, sought his advice when it was needed.

“However...” Alfred raised his head up hopefully when Francis spoke. “I believe I recall someone mentioning to me about... no, no, they can’t be connected.”

“What?” Alfred scooted closer, hoping it was something of value.

“Well... I can’t quite recall who told me but... I remember someone mentioning something about a silver-...”

“Door?”

“No, no... what was it? A silver chest... yes that’s it, a silver chest.”

Alfred fell back against the chair. A silver chest? Not a silver door? It didn’t sound like they connected at all, apart from the material.

“I can’t remember who told me, but it’ll come to me eventually,” promised Francis with a shrug.

Alfred still felt glum. “I was hoping you’d know something about this, about why this is happened to me. I don’t know who else to ask and I hoped you’d have some sort of clue.”

“I wish I did, but I’ve never heard of someone disappearing without anyone noticing and ending up in some fantasy garden and meeting a man, who I might add sounds like an uncouth person. And if it is indeed this strange little girl you speak of, why don’t you ask her-...”

“I did,” groaned Alfred, “but she won’t tell me. She says if she does then I won’t be able to do what needs to be done.”

“What needs to be done?”

“I have no idea what she’s on about.”

“No... I mean... I could’ve sworn I heard that phrase before.”

Alfred looked up once more. “You have?”

Francis thought hard but he couldn’t seem to think of where he heard the phrase before. “Argh, my memory has been terrible lately,” he sighed, “but Alfred, if you are indeed going to find the way to stop going there-...”

“No! I mean, I don’t want to stop going there.

Now Francis looked really confused. “How... come? I thought you said you were going against your will?”

“I am, but I don’t want to stop going,” confessed Alfred with a sheepish smile. “I mean I’m not hurting anyone, it’s like a I get a few extra hours in the day and going there actually puts me in a better mood. Plus there is another reason...”

“And that is?” Francis was looking intrigued.

Alfred didn’t realise he was blushing a little as he explained. “The man who lives there, Arthur, I kinda want to meet up with him for real.”

Francis was trying to contain a grin from spreading across his face and he leaned a little closer. “And why is that?”

“B-because he’s my friend and it feels weird that I can’t... you know... shake his hand, or poke him when he makes fun of me, or give him a pat of the back when he needs it, or give him a hug-...”

“Or kiss him?”

“Or kiss him-... NO!? Don’t put words in my mouth, you jerk!”

Francis laughed and slapped his own knee. “Sorry, I couldn’t resist. It’s just that you looked so enchanted when you speak of this Arthur.”

Alfred tried to force his cheeks to stop glowing red. “I-it’s not like that, he’s just a really good friend!”

“Just a friend?”

“Yes!”

“Well I hope to meet him someday I judge for myself.” Francis once again pushed his hair out of his face. “Anyway as your friend, all I can say is if you need any assistance regarding this strange phenomenon I’ll be more than happy to help. I don’t know if you’re being teleported or what, but I think if we bump heads together we can figure it out. It sounds like fun anyway.”

That was at least reassuring to hear. Francis didn’t at all think he was making up a tall tale, though he did admit he found it strange to believe and who could blame him? If it had been the other way around even Alfred would find it hard to swallow, he was just thankful that Francis wasn’t questioning his health.

“However,” said Francis suddenly, “as a King I would advise you refrain yourself from telling the other Kings about this. Ludwig is a no nonsense type of fellow and you know what Ivan is like, and even though you say it’s harmless there is always a chance it all might take a dark turn, and if it does you best be prepared.”

This was some solid advice. Ludwig was someone who couldn’t tolerate such bizarre things and Ivan would use this as an opportunity to make him look bad. He couldn’t see how visiting Arthur could make things worse, but he took Francis’ advice to be prepared. It still didn’t give him any answers, though apparently Francis had heard that certain phrase before, the one the girl always told him.

“So, this mysterious girl? She’s the one who sends you there, apparently? Why though?”

Alfred shrugged. “The only clue she gave me that she simply wanted to fulfil Arthur’s wish and I don’t even know what that could be.”

“A wish? How cute, I wish someone went to that effort to grant one of mine.”

Alfred smirked at that comment but wondered why indeed was the girl going to such lengths to grant a wish for someone who didn’t even know her? After talking about it some more within the small garden and confident that Francis believed in him somewhat, Alfred took Francis to his office and showed off the whiteboards filled with everything he had recorded about the whole thing. It did look messy at first glance so Alfred had to connect the dots for Francis, explaining every single thing once again in greater detail. It took a good ten minutes until he finally finished. Francis did commend him for keeping track and for prioritising the Kingdom above all else, though he could help but notice a few things that Alfred had failed to mention before.

“You called a Joker?”

“Yeah,” admitted Alfred, “and what a waste of time he was.”

“I take it was Gilbert?” Francis rolled his eyes. “Out of the pair of them I swear he enjoys messing people about more than I enjoy a glass of vintage merlot. I take it he confused you more than he did help?”

Alfred nodded. “The only thing he revealed to me was how the last Queen of Spades mysteriously died.” He couldn’t help but shiver as the memory of that shrivelled corpse resurfaced in his mind. “And he revealed it in a way that left me with a sleepless night!”

Now that caught Francis’ attention. “She died mysteriously? Hmm, according to the archives your father shared with me she died of a natural causes, no?” Francis had actually seen the research that Alfred’s father had done regarding the mystery of the Queen of Spades, so he actually knew a few things, including everything recorded about the last Queen. He was probably the only person alive who knew so much regarding the mystery.

“Not according to what the Joker told me, and Joker’s never lie.”

Francis couldn’t disagree to that even if he wanted to. “That’s interesting... how did she die?”

Alfred really didn’t want to go over it but he knew he had to in order to give his friend the full story. He told Francis every gruesome detail, from her agonising screaming to her rotting flesh, trying not to picture it so graphically. It was enough to make poor Francis gag.

“I’m surprised you didn’t get any nightmares.”

“I did! No thanks to that blasted Joker.”

Francis held back a smirk and put his thinking cap on. “Interesting though, if that was indeed how she died, why was it covered up?”

Alfred had no answer to that. “Maybe because the Kingdom would freak if the learnt how their Queen really died.”

“It’s irresponsible,” huffed Francis suddenly, “this could’ve been a vital clue into the mystery surrounding your missing Queen and some people from long ago decide to pretend it never happened? There should’ve been an investigation, not a cover up.” Francis went silent for a moment. “There was nothing about this mentioned in your historical archives, if your father had known about this it might’ve clued him in on something.”

Alfred was a little surprised to see how angry Francis was all of a sudden as he was usually so calm and composed. Then again he had known Alfred’s father and he knew first hand at how hard he worked to solve the mystery of the Queen. To learn that a possible vital clue had been hidden away without his knowledge must’ve felt devastating.

“Hiding your history, no matter how grotesque, is irresponsible and is an insult to the future generations, it’s the only way we can learn from our past and prevent future mistakes.” Francis stared at the whiteboards and sighed heavily. “I’m not sure if it could’ve helped in your father’s research, but it still was something that was worth noting. What kind of idiot would hide that?”

“Well... I know now,” sighed Alfred as he planted his hands on his hips, “and if it does clue me in on why we no longer have a Queen, then I can overlook the nightmare fuel.”

Upon saying that Francis suddenly appeared both amazed and shocked. “You mean you’re actually looking for a Queen now?”

Alfred had almost forgotten that the last time he spoke with Francis he had told him he wasn’t interested in finding a Queen, and during that time he had changed his mind. “I might as well,” admitted Alfred, “like you said, I can’t go to sail without a navigator.”

Francis was overjoyed and couldn’t resist hugging Alfred, much to his protests.

So they sat in that office and talked until the sun was close to setting, discussing what Alfred’s father knew, what Alfred knew himself and what new leads this piece of information could lead them to. It re-enforced a curse theory that Francis originally came up with, even though there was no such curse should affect the lineage of the four Kingdoms which was why that theory was often overlooked. In the notes that Alfred’s father recorded he had asked the Joker if it was indeed a curse and the Joker responded with, “depends on how you look at it.” Alfred rolled his eyes, knowing now that a Joker was no real help. Still Francis took note of it, reminding Alfred that Joker’s will never give you the answer you want unless you ask the right question. He could only assume that whilst they looked at it as a curse it might not actually be one, they just had to figure out what made it look like a curse.

They went on and on until Yao knocked at the door to remind them that dinner was ready, and berating the pair of them for leaving such a mess in the office. They continued to chat as they headed to the dining room, even during their meal the two Kings talked, pausing every now and then to speak with Erika as so not to exclude her and make her feel left out. They debated back and forth, tossing new theories and ideas as to why the Spade Kingdom has no Queen, with Alfred barely touching his food as he was so engaged. They kept going until Erika excused herself to retire for the night and even then the two Kings talked and talked until at last Francis suggested something.

“Could your mystery trips to this garden of yours be connected somehow?”

Alfred tilted his head out of confusion. “To the Queen mystery?”

Francis shrugged. “Maybe? Who knows, it was just an idea. I don’t recall your father mentioning anything about being transported to a strange garden during his time... I just thought they could be related somehow.”

“I.. actually never thought about that,” mused Alfred.

Could his trips to the garden have something to do with the Queen? They didn’t seem related... or maybe Arthur knew something? Maybe he knew something about the missing Queen or maybe he knew why there wasn’t one. He was so knowledgeable about many things and he actually claimed to know a few things about curses, maybe he had an idea as to what happened to the Spade Queen. He had to remind himself to ask him during their next visit.

It eventually grew late and both Alfred and Francis called it a night, with the young King’s mind full of new ideas and thoughts regarding the mystery of the missing Queen and it’s possible connection to Arthur. He was also glad that Francis was helping him, his advice always helping calm the troubled waters in his mind.

Notes:
I know, two chapters without Arthur... he’s back in the next one ;)