YAY! MY FIRST ATTEMPT AT A LIGHT-HEARTED STORY! I JUST HOPE I DON'T BOTCH IT TO BADLY! OF COURSE IF I DO THEN I'D JUST HAVE TO TRY AGAIN.

"Got any queens?" Bow asked Katt.

Katt looked at her hand, two queens, a king, and three tens. She took the two queens and handed them over.

"Katt, how many times do I have to tell you when you have two of a kind you can put them down?" Bow asked, slapping a hand to his head.

"Oh yeah!" she exclaimed then added, "Can I have 'em back?"

"Yeah, sure, but don't forget this time."

They were sitting in the bar over in TownShip playing a card game that had been going on for far too long. While the bar was a nice place to eat or drink while playing card games it was slightly ruined by the fact that the place was nearly wrecked. When TownShip had landed on Gate it had messed up most of the insides of (i.e. the things not nailed down where tossed everywhere.) buildings and had even caused some structural damage. Luckily Rand had volunteered to help repair the destruction. Now the only thing that there was to do for Katt was sit around all day because Rand had no intention of having her help.

"Do you have any twos?" Katt asked.

Bow handed her a two and she put it in her hand.

"Aren't you going to put it down?" he asked.

"Why would I do that? I only have one of them."

Bow slapped his hand to his face again, "How about a new game?"

Katt agreed eagerly, she liked playing cards despite the fact that she really didn't know how too, "What are we gonna play?"

"Poker." Bow said slyly.

He dealt them both five cards and leaned back to study his hand.

He threw a couple gold pieces into the middle of the table. Katt looked up at him, unsure of what he was doing.

"Bow, you dropped some money."

"We're going to play for cash, if you want to continue you put the same amount of gold in."

"Ok."

She threw in an equal amount of gold. She looked at her cards and smiled, she had a jack, a queen, a pair of two's and an ace. No way could Bow beat her ace.

"Ok, ready to show our hands?" he asked.

Katt nodded and put down her hand. Bow put down his hand too. He had a pair of 3's and three 5's. Katt reached over and started to take the money.

"What are you doing?" he asked, "You didn't win that hand."

"But I had an ace and you only had 5's and 3's!"

"Yeah but that wouldn't matter unless we had no pairs. I had three of one kind so I won!"

Katt scratched her head, "But those numbers are smaller!"

"But I had a triplet while you only had a pair!"

Finally Katt gave him the money, partially because she really hadn't played any games besides war that she understood. Several hands went by and Katt could feel the pouch she kept her money in getting lighter.

"Here, we go!" Bow said staring happily at his cards and throwing in some money.

Katt reached in her pouch and felt around, "Uh, Bow. I don't have any more gold."

"Hmmmm… Alright then, how about we play some… strip poker!"

"What's that?" Katt asked confused."

When you lose a hand you have to give me an article of clothing."

"Umm... I guess so." She said, taking off a glove and tossing it into the middle.

Bow put down three aces and a pair of twos. Katt put down a pair of jacks and a pair of sevens with a king to the side. Bow took the glove and slipped it on his hand. He dealt out another hand and Katt put her other glove in the middle. Bow put down his hand and showed four kings and an ace. Katt showed three twos and a pair of threes. Bow took the other glove and put it on his other hand.

"What are you guys doing?" Ryu asked as he came in through the front door, "And why are you wearing Katt's gloves?"

"We're playing strip poker!" Katt stated proudly.

Ryu slapped a hand to his head and sighed. Meanwhile Bow was taking the time to deal from the bottom of the deck.

"Alright let's start the next hand."

Katt untied one of her boots and put it into the middle then picked up the cards. She groaned as she saw that they were the same ones as before. When Bow put down his cards she saw that they were the same too. He took the boot and put it on the ground. As he shuffled the deck she removed her other boot.

"Bow, how long are you planning to play this game?" Ryu whispered in his ear while Katt was tugging at a knot that wouldn't undo itself.

"Until she says she wants to quit." He grinned back.

Ryu pulled up a chair to watch the game proceed.

Bow dealt out the cards and looked at them. They both put down their cards and Bow won again. Katt took the wrappings from her feet and knees and put them down. Bow gave her the cards and laughed. He won that game and the game after that where the prize was Katt's belt. Katt silently applauded herself for wearing a shirt underneath her jacket. She took off the jacket and tossed it in the middle.

"Bow, really, you should stop. Don't make her lose everything. Why don't you just have her put down money like you."

"I can't, she lost all her money already."

Ryu just barely held in his laugh. The two players put down their cards and without fail, Bow won.

Katt's face was starting to turn red as she saw Bow put his money into the middle.

"Ryu, could I borrow your jacket?" she asked smiling.

He handed it to her and she went to the bathroom. She returned wearing his jacket and placed her shirt on the table.

"Oh no! What are you doing!" Nina demanded, walking into the bar, "Katt! Where are all your clothes!"

"We're playing strip poker!" She answered with a smile.

"How many extra pairs of clothes do you have, Katt?" Nina asked.

"Err, none." Katt answered feeling her face go red again.

Bow dealt the hand, as Nina kept talking and laid down his cards. Katt put hers down too while she talked to Nina. Bow took the shirt and added it to his pile of earnings.

"Bow! How could you do this to her? Ryu! How could you let him do this to her?" Nina yelled.

Katt scratched her head, "What did they do."

Katt looked at the table and slammed her hand down on it, "I lost again!"

Bow put more money on the table and Katt looked at him puzzled.

"I don't have anything else, Bow."

"What about your staff?"

Katt reverently laid her staff down on the table and looked at her cards carefully. She put them down and looked at Bow's. He won again.

Katt banged her head down on the table as she realized that now she had nothing left to bet with.

"Ow." She said, finally stopping. Nina was standing behind her with her arms crossed.

"I hope you've learned something today. Never play cards with Bow." She said with a venomous glare at him.

She led Katt out of the bar and back to her room. Ryu and Bow got up to leave too, gathering up Katt's things.

"How did you win all the time anyway?" Ryu asked.

"Easy, with this." Bow answered, pulling a deck from his sleeve.

"You know if either Nina or Katt knew about that then you'd be as good as dead."

"Yeah, but you're not going to tell them." Bow laughed.

"You're right but it still wasn't nice."

"At least she learned a valuable lesson. Never play cards with Bow."

The next day Katt and Bow were back in the bar playing poker.