Jacks And Jokers

7: The Thieves

The acceleration of the train caught me off guard. It never ceases to amaze me the rate at which the train picks up speed. Within a few minutes we reached the Kings. When we got close enough to see the color I was even more bedazzled then in the queens. The splendor, energy, and beauty was surpassed by no-one. All of my fear given to me previously melted away. We were to dine with the highest in our country, and be back before sunset.

As we got off the train I was hit by the aroma. The smell in the air was exquisite, and more fresh than any I'd ever experienced. The color was blinding, and the energy intoxicating. Everyone was dressed extravagantly, with no doubt that everyone was beyond rich.

When I finally caught up to Izy I started a conversation. "This is beautiful!" I exclaimed to Izy. She just looked at me with awe in her eyes and a large grin on her face. 

"I think all of them but us are Kings... and Aces I guess." I chuckled at her excitement, although I was feeling just as good as her. "And the smell... Mmm... It's phenomenal!!! I wish I could live here." She sighed, with me rolling my eyes. I knew she would make it to the Kings, again, if twos could make it that far. If she did I just hoped she she'd visit me wherever I was going, wether it be the Aces, Twos, or elsewhere if the system was as crazy I thought. 

We walked around the kings for a while going to stores and getting one to two free souvenirs from a few shops. I mainly got simple stuff like a frog carved from some green stone with some jewel for blood red eyes. It made me a little uneasy, but I knew that was just my irrational paranoia. Heck I thought I'd been seeing random people on the street! Schizophrenia was taking hold. 

"John!!!" She was holding a case with a necklace in it, "I love it!!! Do you think it would look good on me?" It had the same green stone as the fake frog I held in my right hand, and some white, see through stones. The cashier, or work assistant (I don't know which) spoke behind me.

"Why not try it on honey? It could look great on you!" He said, almost matching Izzy's bubbly personality. "Here, hand it over and I can take it out and you try it on." She handed it over and he started fumbling with the lock on the small case. "Ah, you have exquisite taste. This is jade and diamond!" I looked at the frog in my hand and looking at Izy's  necklace realizing the frog was probably jade as well. He finally took it out of the case and handed it to Izzy. "Try it on!"

She put it on and smiled looking at me "How does it look?" Is this the right time to say she is the most attractive person I've ever seen? The jade and diamond made her golden-brown eyes shine, like a thousand stars. Almost as much as that dress she got in the Queens.

Now that I finally saw the necklace fully I noticed that the jade was in a tear drop shape with diamonds around the perimeter and a silver chain to keep it on her neck.

"You... I... Um... It looks... great on you!" She barely noticed my stammer while she took off her necklace and and looks at it. She puts it back in the case and the man nods. We leave, my new frog in hand and her necklace, well, on her neck. Our next stop? The kings palace for the yearly celebration of the sorting.

"Oh my gosh I'm so excited for the visit with the king!!! What do you think he'll act like?" 

I want to say, Ostentatious. But I just settle for, "Nice." I can't ruin her day. 

"Are you ready to meet the smartest person in the country?!? Like how cool is that!!!" In order to be the 'King' you have to be smart, get plenty of the points from the bracelet, and have everyone love you. I honestly think they just have a smiling mask. As we got closer to the "Palace" the pungency of vanilla grew, lavender almost disappearing. I don't see why they call it a palace, everything here is already practically living a castle! Right when that though hit my mind I saw it.

It was huge. Actually that word does no right to describe this place. The whole lawn had hedges around it reaching up to about 15 feet. How they kept it so perfect that tall up was beyond me. But the length!!! It was about a mile to the left and right! It must've taken hundreds of people to manage this hedge this well. Then I see the gate. It's a golden colored silver. After a few awe stricken moments the gates swing open, so we enter. 

The yard inside the hedge was just as complex as the city itself. Flowers sporting all colors of the rainbow bordered the walkway leading to the castle with huge animalistic trimmed bushes scattered elsewhere in the yard. The first of which being a frog. Who had time for this? No, wait, he had servants didn't he? How could I forget that?

We get inside with the image of flowers and leaves ingrained in my brain. I'm immediately bombarded with the sight so bright and disorienting I about pass out.

"WELCOME TO MY PALACE!" I hear a voice resonate making my newfound headache worse. "I'm the King and I welcome you to this year's last sorting celebration!"