Jope yells. “Fifth bracket is up! An hour and fifteen minutes. Go get ‘em!”

I look up, and see Mark walking towards me. “Declan? Looks like it’s you and me.”

I nod. “Sounds like a plan.” I follow him to our table, and sit down, shuffling my cards. He smirks as he sits down. “Good luck.”

I narrow my eyes dramatically. “You too.” He cuts my deck, and I cut his.

We deal our hands, and start. I auickly notice that his deck is structured a lot like- no, scratch that, is- a popular pro deck. It’s not original like mine, which I built from scratch and card packs, so it has a solidly set counterplay. Lucky for me, my deck fits the bill, so I manage to 2-1 Mark, despite his deck being much better than mine.

He looks up, flabbergasted. “I’ve never seen a deck like that before! What build is it?”

I shuffle my cards gregariously. “My own. I made it myself. It’s too bad it counters yours. Sort of unfair.”

He nods. “Yeah, I can’t believe it. Oh well, good game.” We shake hands, and the I submit my score to Joseph. He whistles again. “You’re on fire tonight, boye.”

I laugh, scratching the back of my head. “I guess I am. I haven’t had this much luck before. A series of bad luck and bad matchups for most of my opponents, and bad play in Ben’s case.”

I hear Ben cry out in mock agony, but I ingore him. “I must be pretty high up.”

Joe scrolls on the computer, and then looks up at me. “You’re one of two players not to have lost a set yet.”

My mouth gapes wide. “What? No way.”

He pats me on the shoulder. “Brackets screwed everyone except for you and the girl over there. Looks like it’s you and her for round six finals.”

Kade, Jamie, and Ben, who have walked up behind me, collectively inhale. “No way, dude! You’re in!”

I turn around, starstruck. “You guys wouldn’t believe me if you weren’t here, would you? Heck yeah!”

As others come up and input their match results, I watch as Joseph puts together a scoreboard. As he puts it up, I notice my name in second place:

Frederick, Declan: 10 wins, 3 losses

I nod, proud. I shift my eyes up a tiny bit to look at first.

Litany, Mallory: 10 wins, 0 losses

I fight to keep from crying, half joy and half fear. “This girl hasn’t lost a single game!”

My crew stand behind me, equally as suprised. “No. Way.” Jamie manages to squeak out weakly. “That’s a monster if I’ve ever seen one.”

I look over to her table, where she sits silently shuffling her cards. I steel involuntarily as I notice her inky dark hair falling gently down her back to rest on the red hoodie draped over the back of her chair.

Nathaniel hollers. “Alright, sixth round is on! You have two hours! After this, seats will be determined! Good luck, players!”

Ben slaps me on the back. “Go kill them, tiger.”

I grimace. “If I can.”

Manouvering over, I sit down opposite her. She doesn’t say a thing, simply sliding her deck forwards, towards me. I take that as a sign that I’m supposed to cut it, so I do, swapping the top, middle, and bottom sections around. She slides it back to her side, and shuffles it a bit more before drawing seven cards. I watch her intently as I shuffle my own deck. I offer it to her to be cut. As I do, I try to make eye contact.

Blazing green eyes greet mine with an intensity I wasn’t expecting. I hold for a few seconds longer, as she cuts my deck swiftly, sending it back to me with a rough push. Her pale lips part for the first time since I’ve sat down. “Play or draw?”

I blink once, confused, then realized she’s giving me the choice to play first or draw first. I shake my head. “Shouldn’t we randomize it?”

She sighs, and leans back, reaching into her hoodie pocket, and brings out a toonie. “Have it your way, Declan.” She leans back towards the table, poised to flip it. “Call it in the air.”

As she flicks it and sends it spiraling up, I call out my usual. “Tails.” It lands heads up in her palm, and she smacks it onto the back of her hand. “You won. Play or draw?”

I sigh, drawing a hand of seven cards. “Draw. You first.”

As we play through the first few turns, I keep my lips tightly sealed, as hers are, nary a word passing between us. She plays defensively, building up her own health. I play a more utility-style deck, drawing more cards, and playing more mana.

As she starts her fourth turn, I glance up. Her eyes are focused on her cards, a gaze like steel. If looks could kill.

I cough. “Hey, uh, Mallory, right?”

She grunts as she places a card down. I continue. “Have I seen you around town?”

She folds her arms, passing her turn. “What does it matter?”

I untap my mana, and draw a card. “No matter, I’m just wondering. Your red hoodie looks awfully familiar.”

She blushes slightly as I rearrange my hand, the coloration in her cheeks easily noticeable thanks to her pale complexion. “So what? It’s not the only red hoodie in town.”

I play a large creature, hoping to scare something important out of her hand. “True.” I wave my hand, passing the turn to her.

She draws a card, and plays a large creature to rival my own. I prop my chin up on my hand. “I think that’s not the whole story, though. I think I’ve seen you one too many times this week for it to be a coincedence. So, Miss Litany, I ask again. Have I seen you at all this week?”

She drops a spell to toast my creature, and I cringe, sweeping it off the battlefield into my graveyard. She looks at me coldly. “How about a wager?”

I return her gaze. “I’m listening.”

She passes the turn to me. “If you win the set, I’ll tell you everything you want to know. If you lose the set, however, you’re going to do as I say for the next week.”

I’m too taken aback by her proposition to play for a moment. Collecting my thoughts, I idly reorder my hand. “That’s a bit lopsided.”

She smirks. “Too scared, I can tell. It shows in how you breathe, how you walk, how you-“

I cut her off, glaring at her over the rim of my glasses. “You’re on.”

She looks at me suprised, and then grins evilly. “You’re stupid if you think you’re winning.”

I shake my head, drawing a card. “You’ve lost me too much sleep this week to not take the bet. I won’t leave without the whole story.”

I play a few small creatures. She tries to counter one with a particularly nasty effect, but I counter her spell. She scoffs. “Don’t get your hopes up.” I then play a spell to deal some damage up front, and end my turn.

She untaps, and then draws. She plays another mana and then attacks with the big monster. I block with a weak creature, and she passes turn.

I pick up, and mentally curse. Another mana...! This is bad. Unless I can bait out another card like the counter, I’m screwed. I attack with the nasty dude, his effect allowing me to pick up a card. It’s just what I needed. I smirk, and play it. “Alright, chew on this.”

She coughs. “I’m sorry, what?” She slaps a counterspell down on my card. I laugh. “Nice waste, amateur.” I sweep both cards off the field, and play the card I’d had in my hand this entire time. “‘Finest Hour: All friendly creatures gain double strike and first strike until end of turn.’ Eat it.” I tap all my small fry to attack. Since she’s attacked with the big guy, and I baited her counter, she can’t respond, and takes a huge chunk of damage.

I look at her smugly, expecting to see a look of shock on her face, and instead I see a smug grin staring back at me. She flips her hair over her shoulder. “Are you done?”

I nod, confused. “Go for it.”

She draws, and then plays a card, sacrifices her big guy, and gains health equal to twice his toughness. That pushes her back up to optimal health range. I nod.

She plays another creature, a small one, a card I haven’t seen before, and then passes turn.

I flip the card around so I can read it, and my jaw drops. “This card is overpowered! Isn’t this banned?”

She smiles innocently. “Nope. And I have three others in my deck.”

I pick up, looking a bit more scared than before. I play the card I picked up, a draw three card, and then look at the cards I drew. I don’t want to play any of them right now, so I attack with all my guys again. She uses her card to block, and it dies. I groan. “Uh-oh.”

She swaps it with a token from her side deck, a hulking monstrosity called the Terranasaur. I pass turn, groaning. “That’s broken.”

She laughs, tapping it to attack. “You’re just a whiner. Ten damage.”

I sacrifice my small fries to tank a bit of the damage, and log the rest. I’m dangerously low, and my side of the board is empty. My hand pauses on the top of my deck. I sweat slightly. If I don’t nail this card draw...!

I pick up.

Another mana card.

Damn.

I toss my cards on the table. “I forfeit first game.”

She laughs. “Not doing so hot, are you, chump?”

I grit my teeth. “Hey, hold it. I’ve come back from worse than this.”

She places her hand beside her mouth and whispers. “I had one non-mana card in my hand at the start of the game. If I can roast you with a crap hand, imagine full power.”

I shake my head, presenting her with my freshly shuffled deck. “Cut.”

She does, chuckling. “Prepare to eat floor and die.”

I mutter. “Just you watch.” I draw my first hand. It’s no good, almost unplayable. I shuffle it back in. “Mulligan.”

She crows, looking triumphant. “You take a mull when your life’s on the line? You’ve got balls, I’ll give you that.”

I draw my second hand. Still crap. I sigh. “Mulligan.”

Shuffling again, I draw one less than my hand should be sized. Mallory giggles. “Come on, slick.”

I survey my hand. I don’t have too good of a hand, but I can’t mulligan again for fear of bad hands down to zero cards in hand. I fold it into a pile. “This is good. I take draw.”

She shrugs. “Fine by me, dead meat.” I look down at my hand, feeling my cheeks flush. I can’t lose to a girl, or this one of all girls!

She plays a mana, and then passes her turn. I pick up. A decent draw, but it could have been better. I play a mana, tap to summon a monster, and then end turn.

It goes on like this for a while, as she plays a creature and I do inversely. We each don’t attack for fear of what the other will do to us when our guard is dropped.

She passes turn to me once again, and I draw. It’s just what I needed. I play the spell. “Cutting Words: Damage cannot be prevented this turn. If a source you control would deal damage this turn, it deals double that damage instead.”

She looks shocked. “You call my Terranasaur dirty? You pile of crap!”

I chuckle threateningly. “I tap all my creatures to attack.”

She looks flustered as she swivels her cards in response. “I block this with him, and he dies...”

I end up wiping her entire line while losing about one or two weaklings. I sneer. “Tables have turned, huh? I guess you’re regretting the bet now.”

She shakes her head. “Just you wait...” She picks up her next card, and cringes slightly. I tilt my head to the side, staring at her emerald eyes in mock concern. “What’s wrong?”

She snarls at me like a cornered animal. “Shut up! I just need to think.” She ponders for a while, and then plays a spell to give herself health. I counter it with a card I’d been saving. She curses under her breath. “You’re a jerk.”

I smile sweetly. “I know.”

She passes turn with a dismissive wave of her hand, and I tap all my creatures to attack once again. She takes more than enough damage to drop her to zero. She shuffles all her cards together. “You win game two. Don’t worry, this doesn’t mean anything. I’ll still win.” A worried look crosses her face.

I shuffle my deck as well. “Hey, stop stealing my lines. I think we both know who’s going to win.”