"Lady (Y/n)!" Lady Catherine shook her awake.
"Huh?!" she sat up, panicked, the blanket sliding off her shoulders and back. "What is it?!"
"I'm sorry, we wanted to let you rest, but you have to see this!"
Despite not being fully awake, she quickly followed her to the lounge area and gasped when she saw bouquets of flowers of every color on every surface of the room. There was a big pile of letters on the coffee table, being sorted out by Lady Gwendolyn while Arnold was drinking a cup of tea, sitting back on the couch opposite to her.

"Lady (Y/n)!" Gwendolyn stood up when she saw her. "How are you feeling?!"
"All good, thank you." she smiled, showing her healed hands. "What is all of this?"
"They're for you."
"Excuse me?" she blinked twice.
"All these flowers and..." she separated the two piles of letters she's made and gestured to the biggest one. "All these letters are addressed to you."
"...What?!" she exclaimed, her eyes wide open.

"Yes!" Catherine beamed. "Not one person wasn't talking about you after what you did at the ball last night."
"Your popularity skyrocketed overnight." Gwendolyn added.
The Lady was too stunned to speak, she covered her mouth with the tips of her fingers. She looked at Arnold, who avoiding looking at anyone. She could easily figure out at what cost her reputation improved.
"Arnold, how-?"
"I gotta go." he mumbled as he stood up, grabbing the couple of letters that were addressed to him.
"Arnold."

He ignored her and left without another word. She felt a twist in her heart. This wasn't what she wanted. She cursed herself, her mind telling her that she should've came up with an alternative solution. Something that wouldn't have required anyone to get the short end of the stick. But she knew that, even if such a plan existed, she wouldn't have changed what she did. For she let her feelings take over her, and she would do it again if it was to stop this futile duel. Then should Arnold and the count be blamed for this? She didn't want to, she didn't want to blame anyone.
"Oh don't mind him." Catherine waved a hand. "He's been like this since this morning."
She sighed. There was no use thinking about it now. This was the present situation and she now had to work around it, along with working to put the young marquis in people's good graces.

"He left the ball early, didn't he?"
"Why yes, a bit after you did actually." Catherine nodded. "We tried to cheer him up, but he lashed out at us too and left."
(Y/n) pursued her lips.
"But don't be too troubled. You know him, his ego is just hurt because he's not getting all this attention, he'll calm down eventually just like always."
"But this is of an entirely different level..." she whispered before asking. "Did you hear from the servants?"
"Yes!" she nodded with bigger eyes, like she's been waiting for this question. "Like I said, everyone talked about what you did- Positively, of course! About half of the people believe it was all just for show, that you weren't actually injured. But the other half was awestruck!"

"A nickname that often came up was Brave-Bloody-Bare-Hands." Gwendolyn added. "A mouthful, but they liked the rhyme."
(Y/n) frowned, her gaze wandering.
"You don't like it?" she tilted her head.
"That's not exactly the image I wanted people to have of me." she rubbed her face with a light groan. "I didn't want anyone to have an image of me! A simple noble Lady like me isn't supposed to be in the spotlight!" she groaned, letting herself sit back on the couch. "But I suppose I only have myself to blame."

"There is also a rumor..."
She looked at Catherine, who was now hesitating to speak.
"Please, you know what I think about rumors."
"I-I know, but we thought you should know about this one..." her and Gwendolyn exchanged a look.
"Is this about dark magic and witches?" she frowned.
"No- Well, there was some of that too. But it's not what we're talking about! Some have called you, and I quote, 'the real new Ruler of Spades'."
(Y/n)'s eyes widened. She stared at the two ladies with such intensity that they looked away.
"Those are just rumors- As a joke! They said it as a joke."
"Then I shall not bother myself to even acknowledge them." she sternly said with a huff.
The two ladies were worried. They knew that a rumor could easily grow into something bigger.

"'The ruler'..." she shook her head. "If anyone is to replace our King, it would obviously be Arnold!"
"We know that's what you think." Gwendolyn glanced to the side.
"He's of the highest rank, and he's from a very prestigious family!"
"But his attitude..." Catherine slowly shook her head. "I know you have a point but, you must know that he is no king."
"Not yet!" she pointed. "He's young. With the right mentoring, and if he just focuses on what matters, I know it in my guts he will be a great king." her eyebrows furrowed. "He just... He just needs help."
There was a moment of silence. She sighed and began to gather her letters.
"Now, I have to read and reply to all of these."

Most of the letters were telling her that the sender wished her well, that they were very impacted by what she did. Although the way they addressed the incident ranged from one extreme to the other. Some talked about it like it was a vague, summarized story they saw in the papers, but they mostly read the title and looked at the picture of her grabbing the sword, for they were unable to recall anything she said, but they were still very impressed and deeply impacted. Others told her it was a 'wonderful soliloquy' and they wished her a good future in theater. Both of these instances bothered her.
Some called her a witch. She would put the letters aside as soon as she read that word. If it wasn't so risky, she would've thrown them away.

What really made her perplexed were the few love confessions, from people she hasn't even been introduced to. There were also a lot of invitations and although this would work with her plan to make connections, not only were there just too many of them (she wouldn't have any time for herself if she accepted them all), but, from the way those invitations were worded, she was invited with the goal to only provide more entertainment.

We are certain that our afternoon will become much more exciting with the addition of you as a guest.

She frowned, feeling a twist in her stomach. She hoped that, if someone ever said that to her face, she'll be able to keep her composure.
She noticed that there were no letters from the Kings or Queen. But it made sense. At the end of the day, she did cause a scene during an official event of the Shuffling. Although yes, she wasn't the one who started said scene, all the attention has turned to her in the end. Thinking about it this way, she felt embarrassed. She was okay with not receiving any word from them. After all, she spent most of the evening with the personal company of the King of Hearts, that was plenty enough for her...

Thinking about it again, she wondered if it was all a dream. Holding hands with a king, she never thought this would ever happen again. At her very first royal ball nonetheless! When he was healing her hands, she finally got a good look at him.
"He's pretty handsome..." she whispered.
Realizing what she just said, she shook her head and went back to reading her letters.

One of them surprised her. It was from the Duke of Hearts, Molly's father.

Last night, the people of the Shuffling have bore witness to a certain aspect of your character. An aspect that clashed with my perception of you. I would like to formally apologize over some tea.

She wasn't sure what to feel. She didn't know him well enough to know if he was being genuine or not. She made a note to take priority of his invitation over others.
Another letter was from Mr. Dear! She saved that one for last. Although the lettering was as elegant as ever, the wording itself was a bit more...personal. As she read, she could clearly hear his panicked voice in her head.

My Fair Lady (L/n)! I heard about what happened at the ball last night! I'm terribly sorry that I wasn't there! If I was, I would've knock some sense into the both of them boys! I plead for us to meet as soon as possible so that you could tell me all about it. For I have things to tell you about as well. But please make sure you're well rested before! I await news from you eagerly.

She laughed as she read. What a sweet man, she thought. And she was curious about what were those things he wanted to share with her. Has he talked to the King of Diamonds? She gasped at the thought with a smile on her face. When they parted ways yesterday, she actually wished he would relate to her what happened. So she was very happy. She also put his invitation as priority.

She replied to all of the other letters with the most proper, polite, and emotionless response she could come up with. She wrote the same message numerous times, declining a few confessions and a lot of invitations using as little negatives as possible. Checking her documents to strategically chose whose invitation she should accept, she ended up choosing a few, filling up her schedule. Sadly, Mr. Dear also said in his letter that he would be busy today. Which was a shame, (Y/n) didn't want her day to be all business. But she said she hoped they could meet the next day then.

First, she went to the Duke of Hearts. When she got to his quarters, he wasn't there to welcome her and so she had to wait. She was given tea and food but she hasn't touched anything of course, although the snacks did look appetizing. With a few maids standing in each corner of the room, she shifted awkwardly in her seat. She would always converse with her servants, so she felt bad not speaking to the maids. She believed that if she did, she would be judged for it. Finally, the Duke walked in.
"My Lord." she stood up and curtsied, a gesture he returned, to her surprise. "It's an honor to be invited."
"Thank you for coming Lady (L/n). Please, have a seat."
She sat down as he took a seat on the couch opposite to her. For a brief moment, she debated with herself if she should look him directly in the eyes or not. Thinking about last night, she decides to.
"As I said in my invitation, I would like to formally apologize for the hasty judgement I made." he bowed his head.
"You were only trying to protect your daughter, my Lord. I completely understand."
"I would like to hear what happened between you two from your lips, if you wouldn't mind."
"Of course."

She told him how she met Molly in more details, although she still didn't say anything about Clarabelle missing. In fact, she didn't even mention the darling duck. Just in case she was supposed to stay in her quarters.
"And did you find why she was upset?"
"Sadly no, but that wasn't my priority at the moment. I just wanted her to feel better."
"In order to do that, wouldn't it have been better to know the reasoning behind her feelings."
"I tried of course, but she wouldn't say. I didn't want to force it out of her."
"You and Mr. Dear, correct?"
She felt her heart drop, hoping her expression didn't change much. How did he find out about him? Molly must've sent a letter to him as well. It made her wonder if the Duke gave Mr. Dear the same treatment. Probably not...
"Ah, yes." she nodded. "He had found her a short time before I did."
"Did it ever occur to you that he was the one that made her upset?"
"I did actually." she smiled. "That was my first assumption on the matter. But then both him and the young Lady Molly assured me that wasn't the case."

The Duke hummed and took a sip of his tea. In this short moment of silence, she wondered how much he knew.
"My daughter told me about the two friends she's made two days ago." he said. "And she seemed very eager to see you again."
(Y/n) suppressed a smile.
"She doesn't have a lot of friends, and you can understand why I would rather she doesn't spend time with grown adults, unless of course they are people of great importance."
She simply nodded.
"Therefore, although I am glad we cleared up this misunderstanding, I must ask you to-"
Suddenly, a voice behind one of the doors cut him off, along with rapidly approaching footsteps.
"M-My Lady please, your father is having a meeting-"
A door slammed open, making the two adults flinch and turn over to see the young Duchess of Hearts, she looked pissed. She saw Lady (Y/n) and her face lit up.

"Lady (L/n)!" she rushed towards her. "I knew it was you!"
"Mi-My Lady." she stood up and curtsied.
The child stopped in front of her upon hearing this.
"Miss Molly!" she pointed with a frown.
"Uh..." she glanced at her father before nodding. "As you wish, Miss Molly. It's an honor to see you again."
"Same!" she hugged her.
The lady couldn't help but chuckle, she patted her head.
"Molly."
Her father's stern voice made her gasp. She stepped away and faced him, standing straight.
"I've told you many times to not interrupt me when I'm with guests."
"But...Lady (L/n) is my friend."
Said lady looked at her with big eyes.

"You do know of...her reputation, do you not?"
(Y/n) knew that he wasn't referring to her specifically, rather her kingdom.
"I know she's nice and fun to be around. Same with Mr. Dear." she looked down, nervously fiddling with her dress. "May I... May I spend time with them? Clarabelle likes them too!"
That surprised her father.
"You...You know about Clarabelle?" he asked, his voice smaller than before.
'Is he...flustered? He must really love her.'
"Yes. I do hope she is been doing well by the way." she turned towards Molly.
"She's doing great! And now she smells extra good thanks to you!"
"Oh but it was your idea, Miss Molly. I don't deserve your praises."
"The idea was mine, but the execution, that was all you!" she pointed at her.
(Y/n) chuckled.

"Then I thank you very much."
"Ah! Do you wanna see her? We could go for a walk together!"
She had a feeling this was code for 'let's get her to secretly meet her swan lover', which only made the words she was about to say hurt more.
"Oh, I would be more than happy to, Miss Molly." she said with an apologetic look. "But I have plans for today, I won't have the time to play with you."
Molly looked sad for a moment, but she quickly recovered.
"That's okay." she said. "We have the whole Shuffling for that."
"We do, but I'm afraid the last word is your father's to give on the matter."
The two ladies looked at him. The Duke suddenly felt like an outsider to this conversation and he wondered how it happened. He cleared his throat.

"As long as I know where you are and with who. Then I shall allow it."
(Y/n) smiled and Molly's face lit up as she giggled.
"Thank you father! Thank you!" she jumped up and down.
"Molly. A true lady doesn't jump like that. You're not a kangaroo."
"Ah. Sorry..." she unwrinkled her dress and stood up straight.
"Thank you very much, my Lord." (Y/n) bowed.

"Now Molly, please go back to your room."
"Okay father!"
He raised an eyebrow.
"Ah. Um, very well father." she curtsied.
He nodded, satisfied. He waited until she had left, then stood up, looking into (Y/n)'s eyes.
"I must speak bluntly now: if any harm comes to my daughter on your watch, there will be consequences."
"That goes without saying, my Lord." she smiled with a nod. "I was a daughter once too, I know of the power a protective father can hold."

(Y/n) has attended a few other gatherings, each of them were a bit harder to get through each time. As previously mentioned, she was invited with the not-so-hidden goal to provide more entertainment. And sadly enough, she didn't accept the most genuine invitation. She was hoping she could have a serious conversation with these people, but they weren't interested in that.
For example, she attended a big gathering for tea time in the Western gardens, organized by a very influential duchess from the Tarok Kingdom, owner of several businesses. This was a perfect opportunity to talk about the prospect of doing business with the Kingdom of Diamonds via the Spades' grand port. Lady (Y/n) tried to subtly shift the conversation, but these people were more experienced than her when it came to the art of conversation, and they all silently agreed to never follow her on any topic. All they wanted from her was the story of what happened at the ball (even though most of them saw it all with their own eyes), or make jokes at her expanse and her homeland's.

"My my, Brave-Bloody-Bare-Hands really wants to talk business." the Duchess chuckled. "Come on now my dear, this is tea time. Let's just relax and have fun."
She became tense, having been put on the spot.
"Have you never been invented to tea time before?" she looked at her with concern, which (Y/n) believed was fake, since it made people laugh.
"N-Not by people of such high standing like you, my Lady."
"Awww! She's nervous!" she turned to the other people in the conversation.
"How sweet she is, the poor thing!"
"The lost look in her eyes is simply adorable!"
(Y/n) felt a twist in her stomach. She wanted to leave, punch her pillow and go back to bed. But she just smiled, and acted like she was in on the joke.

She did reach her limit when the royal jester from the court of Hearts came in "unannounced". Not only did he show up, but other entertainers too, such as acrobats, magicians and more.
"I am happy to inform the Duchess that her tea party has been selected, by me, for a surprise extra dose of fun!" he exclaimed.
"Oh! What a plaisant surprise!" the Duchess clapped.
But (Y/n) didn't believe this was a happy coincidence, with the glances that people were giving her, including the duchess. This must've been in reference to what happened at the banquet. After all, the duchess was one of the witnesses to her ridicule. Feeling a bumbling anger rising in her throat, (Y/n) excused herself and left. She found a bench, a bit secluded from the center of the party, and let herself fall back on it with a huff. Everyone could still see her, which otherwise wouldn't be a good look, but thankfully they were too distracted by the performers.

All according to Barnaby's plan. He's heard about this Lady of Spades from Wally, and upon talking about it, the two of them shared a suspicion that she had a bigger role within the High Council that she was leading on. So when the duchess secretly hired him to do one of his happenings, he decided to create an opportunity for them to talk alone by bringing more of his mates along. He was good at reading people, so he trusted that he could get to know the lady more, even with just a few words.
He approached her, her back was turned to him. As he walked closer, he could see the slight hunch of her back, her hands clenching, and the deep breaths she was taking. She was clearly angry, but was she trying to hide it, or to calm down quickly so she could go back to the party? These two possibilities would mean very different things about her character. He stopped beside the bench.

"Good day, milady." he tilted his hat.
(Y/n) flinched, successfully suppressing a squeal, and looked at the tall dog man.
"H-Hello."
"May I ask, why are you sitting all the way over there all by your lonesome? Don't you wanna join the party?"
"I'm just...a little tired." she smiled. "I've had a busy day so far."
"Mmh, what a shame." he sighed. "And here I thought I could enjoy the company of one of the best comedic partners I've ever had."
She pursued her lips, her eyes narrowed for a split second. He knew this callback would struck a cord, he wanted to see her genuine self.
"I apologize, but I'm not really in the mood to be laughed at at the moment." she said with a stern voice before facing forward.
'There it is.' he thought.

Although he still found what happened at the banquet really funny, he felt bad for the ridicule she's gotten because of him. He wanted to tell her he was sorry, that he didn't mean to mock her. Rather that he found her obliviousness charming. But he knew words from a "jester" wouldn't mean much to her. Although with how she greeted him along with Wally, maybe he was wrong with that assumption.
"Laughed at?" he tilted his head.
"Yes." she huffed. "I'm sure you're used to these sort of things – but even then, it's normal, you are a jester – But I certainly am not."
"I see, then I apologize for offending you." he bowed with a hand over his heart.
She looked at him, her eyebrows furrowed. She felt she's shown too much resentment to the poor man who was just doing his job.
"It's fine... I'm sure that, from an outside point of view, it could be viewed as funny." she looked down.

"Do you not like being the center of attention perhaps?"
"Not when it's to be the butt of the joke."
"I understand. You want to be taken seriously as a Lady."
She swayed her head from side to side before scooting to the side, giving him some room to sit down.
"May I confide in you?"
Barnaby blinked twice, he didn't expect that.
"Of course." he took off his little hat and sat next to her. "I'm all ears." he fluttered his big blue ears.

The lady glanced around, making sure no one was looking or within hearing range, before leaning a bit closer.
"I actually don't mind not being taken seriously, I'm okay with that." she said. "What bothers me is that we are not being taken seriously. We are already in the middle of a grave situation, we made time to come here – our first public appearance in almost a year now – and all the people here can think of is make snarky remarks, provoking the young Marquis, use outdated stereotypes and giving out stupid nicknames!"
Barnaby leaned back as she became angrier with each word. It was then that (Y/n) realized that she's gotten ahead of herself. She cleared her throat and turned away from him.
"I'm sorry..."

"...Is it really such a bad thing?"
She looked back at him, he leaned back in his seat, facing forward with his arm resting on the back of the bench. His expression was more relaxed, more serious.
"If people don't take you seriously, that means they're underestimating you. Then you can catch them off guard. Let them think they're better, put them in a sense of security. Fly under their radar and they'll be flabbergasted when they see what you can really do."
She narrowed her eyes. Hearing no response, he glanced at her and chuckled when he saw the look on her face.
"What? Did I grow cat ears without me knowing?"
"No... It's just... It sounds like you're speaking from experience."
He raised an eyebrow, his smile growing.

"Aaaah c'mon milady! Now you're taking me too seriously." he waved a hand. "I'm just the King's jester who's got a lot to say."
"The King's, huh..."
She recalled how close the two of them seemed to be when she first saw them. With this subtle redirection of the flow of their conversation, Barnaby expected her to then ask about the King next. The standard 'what kind of person is he?', 'is he nice?', 'is he single and looking?'. But the Lady surprised him once again.
"What is your name? I'm sorry, I just realized I didn't know. And I didn't have the time to ask you."
"It's alright milady." he bowed his head with a hand on his chest. "The name's Barnaby. Stands for Barnabyestein."
"Really?"
"Nah."
"Oh!"
The two of them laughed. He felt proud to have finally gotten a laugh out of her.

"Well thank you Barnaby." she bowed her head. "You're very wise."
"Heh. Not really the term most people use to describe me."
"That might be because they're too busy laughing at your jokes, not taking you seriously."
They shared a knowing look and smiled. Barnaby has seen enough from her, and now he felt bad. He glanced back at the party.
"My Lady, I'll tell you a secret." he leaned a bit closer. "I was actually hired by the Duchess to come here. No doubt she did so in the hopes to recreate what happened between you and me at the banquet."
"I figured as such..." she glanced to the side, her eyebrows furrowed.

"It would seem they don't take either of us seriously." he smirked. "What do you say we catch them off guard?"
He saw a spark in her eyes, but she shook her head.
"I shouldn't. It would only reflect badly on the people of Spades."
"Oh but you won't have to do anything." he puffed up his chest. "You'll just have to follow my lead."
"...For the sake of curiosity, what is it that you're planning?"
He stood up and put his small hat back on with a huff. He then explained his plan to her. It made her gasp. It was simple, but oh so effective. She also noted that there really wasn't any need for her to even be aware of this plan, and yet he was letting her in on it. It made her heart warmer.

Only now was the Duchess beginning to wonder where 'these two' were . Luckily, they were coming back just as she started to look around.
"Well everyone, look who has secretly excused themselves from the party." she said, catching everyone's attention. "Were you rehearsing for a new comedy sketch perhaps?"
The guests laughed. (Y/n) forced out a giggle.
"Actually, I was sharing my newest song to Lady (L/n). And the conversation became more poetic when we began sharing our favorite poems."
"Oh my! You know poetry my dear?"
"Of course. I read a few in my free time." she nodded, ignoring the subtle insult that it was normal for a jester to know poems (which it was, jesters would sometimes write songs and poems) but not her.
"Well I'm glad you're finding time for yourself in the middle of your kingdom's crisis."
(Y/n) forced out another chuckle.

"Actually," Barnaby tapped his chin. "I am suddenly reminded of a few lines from the best poet in the world."
"Again?" (Y/n) asked. "Well do share! The ones you've told me were so beautiful!"
"The best poet in the world?" the Duchess' raised an eyebrow with interest.
"They must be, such a way with words they have. But he refuses to tell me who it is."
"Well, my Lady, where is the fun in that? And does it really matter? A poet should be remembered for their words, not their name."
"You speak truth, jester. And besides," the Duchess glanced at her. "if one is truly knowledgeable in the art of words, then they should be able to know who the artist is with only a few lines. Do share, jester, let's make it a fun little game."
"As you wish, my lady." he bowed then stood straight, clearing his throat.

My lover asks me: "what is the difference between me and the sky?" The difference, my love, is that when you laugh, I forget about the sky.

An 'aww' resonated throughout the audience, then people started debating who the author of the poem could be.
"Could this be a trick question?" (Y/n) asked. "Is it actually you who came up with such lovely words?"
Barnaby laughed.
"If it was, my Lady, then I wouldn't be a jester!"
"Well then I am at a loss." she sighed. "Who is this poet?"
The Duchess scoffed out a laugh.
"I'm surprised, my dear. Are your poetry books in the Spades Kingdom outdated perhaps?"
"Do you know who it is, milady?" Barnaby raised an eyebrow.
"I would prefer to hear everyone's guess before saying mine."
A few people suggested poets from across the land, but each time, Barnaby would shake his head. The Duchess laughed.

"Well milady, that leaves y-"
"Quickly jester, spare these poor souls and give them the answer." she waved a hand. "Lest they perish under more pressure."
"Oh please Duchess, tell us!" a few people pleaded. "If you really know!"
"Of course I know." she held up her chin.
"From just two sentences?" (Y/n)'s eyes widen. "That's incredible!"
"Indeed." Barnaby nodded. "What gave it away?"
"Isn't it obvious? The simplicity of the words, the eloquence of its wording, the way the syllables sound together."
"Oh wow Duchess!" the others guests praised. "Are you perhaps a poet yourself?"
'Are we hearing the same thing?' (Y/n) thought, sharing a glance with Barnaby. 'It must have something to do with the fact that everyone here is of a lower rank than her...'
"I do like to dabble in poetry in my spare time." she held up her chin.

"Well I thank the Duchess for her great insights." Barnaby bowed. "I'm sure my mother will be honored when she hears this."
Gasps, then a deafening silence. The guests all looked at the Duchess, who became as pale as a sheet. Lady (Y/n) however kept her eyes on the jester, for she knew she wouldn't have been able to control her laughter if she saw the look on that woman's face.
"Your mother?!" she acted surprised. "I thought you said..."
"Well yeah, my mother, to me, is the best poet there ever was." he beamed.
"Aww, that is adorable! Then does that mean mean that you've met his mother, Duchess?" she looked at her with an innocent look.
"Um..." she cleared her throat. "Well, she must've published her writing. That's where I know her from."
"She hasn't." Barnaby bluntly said.
It seemed that the Duchess was retaining a shout, based on the way she flexed her throat. But he acted oblivious, as he does.

"Well then." she said in a pitch higher and a speed faster than usual. "I... I must've misheard."
"Oh." (Y/n)'s eyebrows furrowed.
Barnaby burst out laughing and, as if he gave the cue as a jester, everyone joined, including (Y/n) though she tried not to laugh too hard. For she certainly would. The Duchess took out her fan and began to fan herself so she doesn't appear as red as she was turning right now. Sadly enough, because she was of the highest rank here, she quickly shut everyone up and moved on. Not much consequences will come from this, but she certainly won't forget it, and it was a nice change of pace for (Y/n). The tea party continued and the Duchess shared a few words with Barnaby when no one was watching.

"You snake." she harshly whispered. "You tricked me."
"I'm a dog, milady." he shrugged. "And a jester at that, I'm just doing my job."
"This was not your job."
"Oh? Did it involved the Lady of Spades? I pray you will tell me next time, that way I can just refuse your offer right away, and save us all such...awkward situation. That's the kinda thing miscommunication leads to." he nodded to himself.
She scoffed, her left eyelid twitching.

"When I'll tell your king of the humility I've suffered through because of you..." she smirked.
"Go ahead, let's see which one of us he'll believe." he smirked back.
She gave him a dark glare, but he knew she was unsettled.
"...They told me you weren't no ordinary jester."
"They were right. I'm particularly hilarious."

Barnaby and Lady (Y/n) haven't talked much after that. Although, when it was time for him and his troup to leave, after he said goodbye to everyone he locked eyes with her and bowed a second time. She wasn't sure how he felt about this whole situation, but she liked to believe it was a bonding experience that brought them a bit closer. After a few more gatherings, (Y/n) finally went back to the Spades quarters. She let herself fall back on the couch, rubbing her face and groaning.
"I feel like I've run lapses around the whole estate!" she whined.
"You were probably as busy as a king." Lady Catherine chuckled.
Like they were reading her mind, one of the servants served her a cup of coffee.
"Thank you." she exhaled as she sat up. "Okay. How was everyone's day?"

And thus began the Spades' daily debrief meeting. Each council member took a seat on the two couches. All except for Arnold, who stood in front of everyone.
"Before we start. I have something to say." he spoke first, tense, looking down. "This um... This morning I left in a rush, without even saying good morning. It wasn't...very polite. I shouldn't have done that."
(Y/n) noticed that he was quickly glancing at her as he spoke. It made her smile softly, her eyebrows furrowed.
"It's all right."
His shoulders relaxed upon hearing her words.
"How was your day today?"
"Uuurh! The worst!" he let himself fall back onto a chair. "I knew everyone would make fun of me so I ended up not going anywhere!"

"Huh?! How can you say that when Lady (Y/n) had to suffer through an entire day of-"
"It's okay Gwendolyn." said lady waved her hand up and down. "Good for him for having the privilege to simply not go to where he's invited. My calendar is...simply full, for the, next few days..." her voice trailed off, feeling tired again just thinking about it.
"So I spent the whole day with my uncle's friend," Arnold continued. "at least he didn't even say a word of it!"
"Oh, how kind of him! It's good that you get along."
"He's...fine." he glanced to the side.
"Well, me and Brahms were in a bit of a similar boat." Catherine said with a sigh. "All that everyone wanted to talk about was you, my Lady."
"Same for me." Gwendolyn nodded.
"Some even asked if you were a witch."
That made everyone frown, especially Arnold.

"Oh gosh." (Y/n) rubbed her temple. "Magic users can see that I'm not a witch! Right?"
"Right. And I'm not sensing an ounce of mana in you." Arnold nodded.
"Unless you're a very powerful witch." Gwendolyn pointed out.
"Please stop entertaining the idea that I am a witch!"
"You do live closest to the Dark Forest."
"Zip it." Arnold pressed.
"Just because I'm the closest doesn't mean I'm close by any mean. And even if I was, that doesn't mean anything. Now can we please drop it?"
"...Sorry." the lady looked down.
"Okay." she exhaled. "Let's keep going."

Each member of the council talked about their day in more detail. For once, (Y/n) had the most to say, but she was asking the most questions when it was other's turn.
"Well. It would seem like the incident of the ball is the talk of the entire Shuffling." she concluded.
"For better and for worse..." Catherine sighed.
Arnold looked to the side, clenching his fists.
"Don't worry guys." (Y/n) smiled. "You're forgetting an important detail here..."
Everyone leaned a bit closer, including her.
"This happened under the watch of the King of Hearts, during an official event of the Shuffling no less."
"But no one is blaming him though..." Arnold frowned, one eyebrow raised.
"If he's a good host, he has to take some of the blame. He even apologized to me for letting this happen. I bet you he'll do everything he can to make sure everyone forgets about it at the next event!"

"Wait. He apologized to you?"
"Yes when I left the ballroom he went to me and apologized." she quickly clarified. "Anyway. See? It's fine, we just need to wait it out and-"
"The King of Hearts talked to you?!" they all exclaimed.
"In person?!" both Catherine and Gwendolyn suddenly got a lot closer to her, making her lean back with a 'woah!'. "Alone?!"
"Y-Yes?!" she exclaimed, feeling threatened.
"Oh my gosh. Tell us everything!" Catherine's eyes sparkled.
"He was a really nice polite and handsome man and that's it!"
"Handsome?!" her smile grew bigger and she squealed.
This was the reason why (Y/n) kept what happened with the king a secret. She knew this would happen. Gwendolyn loved drama and Catherine loved romance, combining their forces, they could easily squeeze answers out of her. Arnold stayed in his seat, frowning. He wasn't a fan of the subject matter.

"W-Well that kinda goes without saying!" (Y/n) exclaimed, her face getting redder by the minute.
"You think he's handsome." Gwendolyn bluntly said.
"He's a king! He has to be charming! Look he just took me to a healer and he apologized and that was it! I swear!"
"Is that really it?" she raised an eyebrow. "Wasn't he absent from the ball for a loooong while?"
"He sure was!" Catherine nodded.
"Okay! The sorceress offered us both a cup of tea!"
"So you talked?"
"Not that much." she looked away, her whole face now red.
"So it wasn't just the two of you?"
"Catherine, go kiss your future husband! You're in clear need of romance right now!"
The lady gasped and blushed. Arnold cackled loudly, slapping his knee.

[The poem Barnaby told was actually written by Nizar Qabbani. I really liked that it had a structure similar to a joke, I thought it was a neat little detail for someone like him x)]