[ well, aventurine thinks, he doesn't disagree with that. game 52 had been a solid book's worth of rules loaded up onto aventurine's watch, and he had taken his time to review each and every clause the house had seen fit to put into circulation. it isn't as if aventurine doesn't think there's an ulterior motive, and no house worth their money would have published a set of rules without having their own set seething somewhere in the background like a living, prehensile shadow, but the face value of a card never changes despite the game you play: to get anywhere you want to go, you must win.

this young man has the confidence of youth, with the brazen, careless ease of a man used to writing cheques with his mouth that his fists can cash. it pique his interest ashe begins to walk them to the staging area for the bathrooms, low-heeled shoes clicking along polished, marble flooring. ]

I did. I woke up beneath a luxuriously angry cat. That was fun. [ aventurine says, with a polite little laugh, all languid ease, ] As far as my day has been so far, it's been better than expected. What do you mean, however, that the House has ways of hiding from us? In your month here, have you caught the trail of their shadow?