The X-Project

Jay teaches Yvette a card game. Those blue eyes know more than she lets on.

"Yanno," he sighed, feeling a bit on the tired side. "Ah ain't really good at cards." He sorted his cards, smirking at the pair of twos he had in his hand. Keep those for later, he thought, pushing them behind the ones he needed to get rid of. "Ah didn't even know ya played cards. Poker seems more like yer type of thing. Little innocent girl swindling you outta house and home. Could make a movie of that."

"When I was little, we were having to go to the cellar when there was the bombing. My cousins are teaching me," she explained. "And then Angel and Jean-Phillipe is showing me the American card games, for when we are having the evacuations." She frowned a little, more concentrating on holding the cards than because of what she held. "It is the simple thing to do when you are not so busy, yes?"

"It is, but there's a lot of other things to do too when you're bored, or not busy. Whatever." Jay's smile was faint and he placed a three of diamonds down on the pile, on top of a ten of diamonds. "Okay, see there what Ah did?"

She nodded, understanding, and plucked a card from her hand, laying down a Jack of diamonds. "You are following the suit, yes?" she asked, to clarify. "And what is happening when you have no more of the suit?"

"Yup, that's right." He offered her a smile despite the churning in his stomach and tapped the pile. "Then you pick up another card. Jack's are a miss-a-turn, so Ah miss a turn and you get to go again."

"Okay." She pulled out another card, this one a five of diamonds, and placed it on the pile. "How are you feeling, Jay?" she asked, conversationally.

"Ah'm all right. Feelin' a bit bleh." He cleared his throat and nodded to the pile, placing a king of diamonds on top. "Okay so if you put another king on top of mah king, you can change the suit, get it?" he asked.

"Got it," she replied, glancing up at him. As always, her strange eyes were hard to read, giving the impression of blindness when she was in fact studying him carefully. She placed down a king of spades, awkwardly picking up a replacement card with her long fingers. "It is not the usual thing, for you to be sick, yes?" she asked. "Are you seeing the doctors ?"

Jay almost placed his hand over hers, but instead, kept it at a safe distance. "No, no. You don't have to pick up another card. The point is to get rid of your cards from your hand. So you just put the king down and it's my turn," he explained. Pulling out a four of spades, he placed it on top of the king. "Do Ah look sick?" he asked, placing his elbows on the table. "Ah haven't seen the doctor yet. Just thought Ah'd wait it out, yanno."

"Oh." Yvette put the card back. "You do not look well," she observed. "Your wings are all..." She waved her free hand to indicate their droopiness. "Not up." She placed an ace of spades down.

"Ah feel weird," he admitted. "But it ain't anything worth mentionin' yet. Ah'll go see Amelia or Jean when Ah have time. Maybe it's just somethin' Ah've caught." Or some sort of side effect of the pills he' d been taking. "Nice move by the way," Jay noted, placing an ace of hearts over top. "You're gettin' good at this."

Her eyes glowed with pleasure at the praise. "You are the one who is saying I am the, how did you say? Card fish?" She considered her hand, sighed, and placed down a queen of clubs. "My luck is not always so good, though," she continued, and indicated the pile. "I now have to be picking up the card, yes?"

"No, that's the queen of spades and if ya put that down, then Ah'm screwed." He placed his pair of twos down, leavin' the new suit of hearts over top, the clubs underneath. "Now you pick up four cards and it's card shark, Ah think."

She frowned. "But Jay," she said, hesitant. "I was putting down the queen of clubs, not of spades." Carefully she turned the cards he'd put down over until she revealed her card again. "See?"

"Oh," Jay said, pursing his lips and rubbed his eyes. "Maybe we should take a break huh? We've been playin' for awhile and Ah'm kinda tired now." The cards were fuzzy, hell, his whole vision was blurred and he stood up to get himself some water.

"Jay? Are you being all right?" They'd only been playing twenty minutes, and Jay was usually such a bundle of energy. "Perhaps you should be thinking of seeing the doctor, yes? You do not look so good."

"Yeah Ah'll be fine," he said, giving a brief dismissive wave. "Ah'm just gonna go lay down. Ah'll see 'em later," he said, distracted byhis vision and ran a hand along the wall, bracing the corner as he left the kitchen.

Yvette watched him go, eyes dimming slightly. Jay was not well at all. Which wouldn't normally be a huge thing, only this was Jay. He had the same healing power Kyle did. He never got sick. Collecting the cards together into a neat pile, Yvette made a decision. Jay would be angry at her later, but this was too important. She set the cards on the coffee table and quietly let herself out, heading purposefully back to her room.

She had an email to write.