"A favor," Art echoed with his own smile; a weird sketchy favor sounded like a fair enough deal, if they were going to be running into each other. Which, he suspected, they would be, especially if Bella Scrimgeour was spending time at the casino living in Irvingly.

The dealer handed out their cards; Art's hand was mediocre, but he would probably be able to improve it. "This doesn't make us friends, you know," Art said, "Just so we understand each other." He couldn't add 'saving Bella Scrimgeour from herself' to his list of regular activities, that would go poorly for everyone involved.

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set by MJ <3

Bela peeked at her card and then back at Arthur Pettigrew. Her hand was not as good as last time's, but it was not terrible; Arthur Pettigrew's hand could either be much worse or much better, and she had the chips to take the chance that they were worse. She pushed two sickle's worth forward, a far cry from her starting bets from her first hand.

"Of course we're not friends," she said, a bit dramatically. She smiled conspiratorially at Arthur Pettigrew before motioning him to make his move. "I can't be friends with someone who's this terrible at cards."

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— MJ is MAGICAL —

"This isn't even real gambling," Art said, pushing forward his own bet; it was three sickles' worth, because she seemed less confident this go-around. Art raised his eyebrows at her. "You want to talk things with real stakes, get me to a boxing match."

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set by MJ <3

Bella was already calculating the cost of her bills, groceries, and the little entertainment she afforded herself. With an additional three sickles, she might even be able to justify another trip to the casino—or as Arthur Pettigrew has just suggested, a boxing match.

As unwilling as she was to admit it, the idea of two men smacking each other around for a few minutes was both amusing and a little hot, hence the tugging at the corner of her lips she was unable to subdue. "Do they serve drinks at boxing matches?" she asked, matching his raised eyebrows. If so, she knew where she'd be going to get her drinks from Arthur Pettigrew once she won this hand!

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— MJ is MAGICAL —

Miss Scrimgeour looked like she was thinking about boxing matches the same way Arthur had thought about boxing matches when he was younger, before he got into gambling. He decided it was better not to prod at that.

”Depends on the boxing match,” Art said, ”You’ll have to check them out.”

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set by MJ <3

"We'll see," she said, already planning a mental trip to the bulletin to see when and where one might take place.

The dealer flipped over his own card. It was not ideal, but Bella still had a chance: if the next card was either two of the four suits, she might have a match capable of beating Arthur Pettigrew. There was always a chance they could draw, she thought idly to herself as she pushed forward three sickles. She did not want to bet less than him, because she would look weak; still, she felt her heart skip a beat as she risked a nearly half a week's worth of wages from when she worked at the Hog's Head. Back then, the loss of this sort of money would have seen her homeless.

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— MJ is MAGICAL —

This card wasn't good for him; Arthur held onto his same hand and gestured for the dealer to flip over the other card as he pushed forward his own chips. He was banking on Miss Scrimgeour's lack of confidence to carry out the victory for him; she didn't have much of a poker face, yet.

"I'm going to have to start thinking of favors," Art said cheerfully, because trash talk was an important component of cards.

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"I would think there are not many things a man your age would need a young woman's help for," she commented, her focus on the cards rather than the words escaping her lips.

The dealer flipped the card over. It was not one of the two suits she needed.

Bella did not frown, but she felt the muscles in her face tighten up. She was down five sickles in this hand already. If she bet anymore, she would likely leave the table at a loss if Arthur Pettigrew won the hand. On the other hand, folding now would ensure that she lost what she'd already won—no chance for a winnings. She was the type of person who enjoyed taking risks, but it was a part of herself that she was all too aware of, and that meant she had the choice to not take the risk.

But she didn't. She pushed a final sickle forward, let out a breath, and waited for the dealer to turn over his card.

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This suit actually was good for him, and Art took the card, trading in one of his own more unfortunate cards to the dealer for it. He might actually be able to pull this off.

Arthur pushed his own sickle forwards. "You never know when an odd little favor can come in handy," Arthur said. He looked expectantly at the dealer, who flipped the last card over - it wasn't helpful for Art, and he ignored it, splaying his cards out for Miss Scrimgeour instead.

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set by MJ <3

Bella first looked over Arthur Pettigrew's cards, and then with a pout splayed out her own. A loss—by one single card. Neither of them had good hands, and it was by luck alone that Arthur Pettigrew had managed to win her sickles. She sat back in her seat and crossed her arms over her chest, her gaze finally meeting his. "So what kind of favor did you have in mind?" she asked, lips pursd, "Or is this a 'knock on my door in the middle of a night because it's an emergency' kind of favor?"

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Art was relieved to have won; not least of which because this meant he could justify staying here longer. "Oh, probably the latter," Arthur said, which was true - if he'd won a weird sketchy favor from Miss Scrimgeour, he was only going to cash it in when he actually needed it. "So I'll see you around?"

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Bella groaned internally, but did not let him see her disappointment. She had no reason to stay, and he was staying, so now she had to return home without winnings and hope that her room-mates would not question her about her absence. She was also not pleased about Arthur Pettigrew's response, not because she hated owing favors but because she was going to live in anticipation until the day he cashed in her favor.

"I suppose you will," she said, and stood up to leave.

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— MJ is MAGICAL —