Nine of Hearts: 'Stray Cat'
"You've got a Card, don't'cha?"The bartender asked, looking curiously at the oddly lithe man who had just plunked down on the stool.
"Maybe. What's it to you?" He responded, a smirk on his face but no smile in his eyes.
"Not a thing. I've one as well, so I can tell. Helps me know when to close the bar in case shit'll hit the fan." The tender said, lifting his shirt to reveal a simple pistol, looking for all the world ordinary save the 3 and Diamond engraved in the grip.
"Well, well. Guess I should reciprocate." The man on the stool pulled his from its holster on his hip, twirling it on a finger. It looked even more ordinary than the 3, could've passed for a slugtosser if it weren't for the diamond Heart and coal-black 9 branded on the barrel.
"She's nothing special as far as shootin' goes." He continued. "No trick shots, no barn-blasting...While it's accurate, it won't go anywhere save where I aim it. Only thing it does is this." He holstered the gun, before unbuttoning the top few buttons of his shirt and pulling it aside. Just beside the center of his chest lay a heart, surrounded by 6 smaller hearts. The faint outline of two was just visible, completing the circle of hearts.
"The gun gave me this power. Shoot me in the arm, the leg, the head, I won't die, won't even bleed. But a shot to the heart, and it hurts. What's more, one of these-" He pointed to the smaller hearts- "disappears. Once they're all gone, one more shot and I'm gone for good.
"Just a Stray Cat, that's all it is. And I've already exhausted two of my lives." He grinned, almost evilly. "Still got seven more, though."
-Supachibi
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