Luck Be a Lady (Feat. Black Severin and Keira Robinson)

[DSX93]

"You're god damn right. Just remember who owns you."

"There's nothing in this world hard enough that could knock that out of my head."

Sugar. Sweet, sweet sugar! Followed by the realization that he was doing a little too much. But this, he had some better footing on. Keira typically saved this kind of talk for when they were alone. It was just easier to process everything that way. Something he certainly understood.

And just as she'd said a moment ago, they were the stars on this dance floor. Tonight was something special for them, and the others around them could feel that energy. Hell, it was more than plain enough, just looking at them. Terrell was more at ease looking around. He didn't really care who was watching or listening, or for how long they were doing either, or even if they were doing both. Hell, he was proud that he was able to have moments like this in public.

There were a few in the crowd who didn't care for it, but fuck 'em. This was a powerful occasion, and it was making a brother emotional. He had to let it out. That said, the rest could wait until later. It was time to hit the casino.

Terrell was normally not a betting man. In his previous life -- the one he'd lived up until seven months ago -- he would have only glanced in the direction of the casino. And that would have only been so he would know which direction to avoid. But their feelings were in tune here as well: He was feeling really good about tonight.

They were already on the way when they crossed paths with a very well built

who was walking the floor with a tray of drinks balanced in each hand. An anachronistic sight, but nobody was complaining.

Hers was an "overqualified" level of built, unlike the others that were walking around. She would've looked more in place inside of an LAW ring. And he wouldn't have been surprised to learn that she was signed. Some wrestlers work odd jobs to go along with this one.

"Drinks for the stars that just lit up the dance floor?"

Alias: Alicia Lepo.

Real Name: Lucielle Jeannette Camara Verninac Pardo Costa. A blast from Terrell's past, but he didn't know that. Not with her in that getup. She knew who he was, however, even through the mask and with all of the muscle that wasn't there when they last saw each other. It was, what? About fifty, sixty pounds that had been packed on? All oh so delectably placed too. But she didn't let her eyes eat on that candy for too long. It was scant enough for him to have missed it, but perhaps Keira's eye would be sharper?

"What kind of drinks are we talking?"

"Pink Lemonade Twist."

"Ey! Get in!" He chirped, happily grabbing a glass. "You want a glass, Kei?"

[ThurmanMermanPlx]

Terrell was quick to pick up on Keira's re-emerging self-consciousness - which was nothing new but always valued - much to her relief. In private, none of this would have been the slightest concern, and in fact would more than likely have been multiplied tenfold (if not with intimate confessions, than with actions). And in public, a degree of intimacy was to be expected, especially when it came to the love lives of quasi-celebrities that the pair of them were, what with them doing naughty-like wrestling broadcast to millions of fans.

But it was rare that they went farther beyond what one might expect to see of an everyday couple on a dinner date (well, sexy wrestling action aside, but there was a different layer there with it being work and all that Keira easily separated it in her mind as an entirely different situation). Here, Keira was rather unaccustomed to this level of public affection, and the stares they had been drawing were beginning to drive up her nerves.

It was hard to explain; she certainly wasn't embarrassed, exactly. Hell, given some of the things she'd done in public by now, both inside the ring and out, it would be difficult to truly embarrass her. But this level of affection was a side of her that she would say, for lack of better words, was for Terrell's eyes only; no one else deserved that privilege.

But, as she was relieved to see, he'd picked up on her intent almost immediately. He certainly didn't seem as bothered by the attention they'd garnered - and why would he, when he'd spent most of his life denied this kind of attention? - but ever the gentleman, he quite obviously began scanning their surroundings, likely an attempt to locate that casino, or at least a pointer in the right direction. She'd make up for cutting their sweet talk short later.

Her own attention was captured by the scantily dressed bunny girl hopping directly up to them. Keira held back a whistle as she looked the girl up and down. Slowly. She spent more than one additional second with her eyes lingering on the woman's chest... she was all but spilling out of that top. Was she that big, or was her outfit too small? Probably a little of both... but at best guess, the outfit was small by design. Keira was able to mask her gaze by pretending to observe the liquid in the glasses. Hopefully.

Despite her bust, Keira didn't miss the girl's own gaze lingering on her man for more time than one might consider normal. At least, that's what it felt like to her, but she could have been imagining it... she was rather distracted herself, after all.

"Pink Lemonade Twist."

"Ey! Get in! You want a glass, Kei?"

Thankfully, she came with a built-in distraction. "Hell yeah I'll take a glass. All that dancing is more tiring than it looks!" Thanks. She let out a small laugh at her own expense; the dancing itself hadn't really been all that exhausting, but the worrying about it that she'd done made up for it.

[DSX93]

And just like that, the night got a lot more interesting. After the way things went down back in high school, Lucielle was certain that she would never have any further interactions with the Hughes brothers. Especially Devon, though it would be entirely her decision in regards to him. But if she were, she would have expected to come across that dog instead. A wrestling promotion that spans the entire globe in its scope, with almost nothing but beautiful women in its employ?

But she wasn't complaining. Let the good fortune continue; may she never see his face again.

And speaking of beautiful women, let's look at Keira Robinson here, while she's standing there, drooling. She didn't think that Terrell had the sense of adventure that a place like LAW requires, but it looks like he just needed to find the right girl. Maybe she really should have given him a shot back then.

She had a foot in the door to a restart now, though. And her interest extended to Ms. Robinson too -- Terrell barely looked at her, which was starting to cause some offense until something occurred to her: That had to mean that Keira was throwing down in the sack.

Three way? Lucielle had never gone there before. But what the hell, she'll stick around. If that's where the night leads, she'll go along with it.

"That's the spirit!" She encouraged as Terrell handed Keira the glass in his hand before grabbing another, for himself this time.

Sensing what she was actually saying, he'd affirm, "You did great, my Lady."

"My Lady"? Yeah, she's putting it on him good.

He clinked his glass to hers, and...Man, this was delicious! He made a mental note to have a bottle of the stuff sent up later, after they'd returned to the hotel. The room service was free, so why not?

"Where can we can find the casino, Ms...?" He waited for her to fill in the blank. This was a habit of his, learning the names of people providing a service when he conversated with them. The guy working the cash register at Gamestop, waiters at restaurants...He used to be one of them, so he made it a point to be nice. Show that he gives a damn.

"Lepo. Alicia Lepo."

Her delivery felt like something out of

And timed so perfectly that it made him wonder if that was an intentional reference. It was, but indirectly so: She just knew that she was referencing something she'd seen years ago that stuck.

"Follow me."

Alicia took point, treating the lovers to

A bare, toned back. And a big, round rump hanging out of her leotard, covered in pink tights that might as well have been a second skin, and what happened to be one of Terrell's weaknesses: Fishnets. The heels did their job here, angling her steps in such a way that every single one was producing movement that was impossible to ignore.

Jesus Christ, this woman's got ass! He was trying his damnedest not to look too hard, but seeing Keira drinking her in made him feel better about it. And in a weird way, this would actually add to the sentiment of tonight, reminding him of when they crossed paths with Daeva Asphodel. Shenanigans that might have made a mess of another couple, but proved to be a reaffirmation of their agreement to how they'd approach the business.

The bunny girl would take a second's look over her shoulder. With an innocent smile on her masked face, like she was just making sure they were keeping up. Riiight.

"Are you a wrestler too?"

Terrell had to say something. Strike up some conversation to distract himself from this distraction.

"Yep!"

Knew it.

"Why do you ask, Mr...?"

"Severin." The dork in him did have it in his head to do the Bond intro himself, but his reticence here had a purpose: A subtle establishment of a boundary. "You get a feeling for it after a while. Got a few friends who have side hustles or know people with side hustles."

"Been at this for a while, huh?"

"Seven months for me."

"Looks like they treat you well in LAW."

"The money's good. There's a ceiling for the men, though. But that's a conversation for another time."

"It's funny you say that: I've been in talks with some people about putting a talk show together. We're thinking of calling it 'Into The Rabbit Hole'." She turned her head to take another glance between the two. "Maybe you could be our first guests."

Not too long after that mention and offer made, the three would arrive at the

Something that looked every last bit what he'd expect of the most prohibitively expensive reaches of Vegas.

"Ho-ly shit."

"That's exactly what I said. Were you looking for anything particular, or...?"

Since he didn't have any particular destination here himself..."Where are the Roulette tables?"

Terrell knew that Keira was joking, but what the hell. He'll let Lady Luck take the wheel.

"Just ahead. I have to go reload the trays," Which had been picked clean along the way. "But keep going straight, and you can't miss 'em. Good luck!"

Alicia would take her leave, but had every intention of returning. After her match in the Gambit had fallen through, she'd been offered big bucks just to do this. It would still help draw eyes to the event, they said. So why not draw those eyes to what was going to be the Madison's biggest moneymaker outside of the wrestling?

[ThurmanMermanPlx]

Keira accepted the drink gratefully, swirling it around in the glass for a moment. She realized immediately after the first sniff just how thirsty she had gotten. Something sweet and fruity with just a little kick was just the solution.

"You did great, my Lady."

"Oooh, so complimentary!" Keira cooed, lightly scratching his chin with her free hand as their glasses clacked together; and just like that, the growing tension had relaxed again. Perhaps all she'd really needed was a refreshing drink.

At Terrell's prompting, Alicia Lepo - as she named herself - began to lead them towards the casino. Keira ogled her booty a bit more freely than she had with her chest with no danger of eyes catching her doing so; it was just as barely contained as her bust, and her walk only drew attention to that fact. Of course, the bunny outfit was not a famous staple for its ability to conceal skin, but Alicia seemed to be intentionally turning hers up to eleven in any way possible. She certainly had the figure to pull it off. Keira found herself wondering... was that what she looked like from behind, walking in this dress? It wasn't quite as form-fitting, but it was tight enough.

Keira distracted herself with another sip of her glass at the perfect moment; Alicia chose that moment to peek behind her. Terrell, too, had to find a way to keep himself focused, and that turned out to be with conversation. It was only a mild surprise to find out that Alicia herself was a wrestler; the question came from out of the blue, but it seemed like there were more of them around the world in general these days. Not to mention, given this whole event was at the behest of their promotion, there were bound to be more veterans of the ring floating about than average.

The mention of an upcoming talk show piqued her interest, but was almost immediately overshadowed by the massive, grandiose casino they'd just arrived at. Gold and gaudy. The kind of place that was not shy about letting visitors know it would be using their winnings to further gaud-ify the decor. It was perfect.

"Thanks again for the drink," Keira said, raising her glass in mock toast as Alicia pointed them on their way. Then she turned back to her man with a grin. "You know I was joking about the roulette, right, T? I'm not opposed to doing it, but just know I think I've used up all of my lifetime's worth of luck reserves."

[DSX93]

"You know I was joking about the roulette, right, T? I'm not opposed to doing it, but just know I think I've used up all of my lifetime's worth of luck reserves."

"Been feeling the same way all this time, and look at us now. Maybe it's some ebb and flow kind of thing at work." Although he'd grown up in a Christian household, within a large, religious family, Terrell himself had never been very spiritual. But as an agnostic, he was open to the idea. And things have been working out in such a way to make him that think that maybe there really is something to all the mumbo-jumbo.

With that said, he wasn't about to put it all on the line on that first bet. Two thousand dollars. A good first bet, with what he's making every week.

"Alright! Come on, Red 9! Come on, Red 9, you old faithful!"

It was his favorite handgun in Resident Evil 4. He rolled the ball in his fist like he would a pair of dice, threw it in...

And two thousand turned into twenty thousand!

"Yes!"

The Red 9 never let him down, even without the stock.

Black 21. Because he's black and twenty-one years old. He even put twenty-thousand down. He had to take a quick breath after that one. After emptying his mind of all thought, particularly those of losing all of that money on one roll, he shook the ball in his hand and threw it in.

And wound up sixty thousand dollars richer, baby!

Black 6. Chosen because Keira's hair is black and she's six years older than him. Assigning some meaning to his choices has been working out for him, so he decided to keep that ball rolling too. He quadrupled up on this one. All in. It was at this point that he was beginning to draw a crowd. The extra eyes poked at his nerves, but with Keira as the inspiration, he felt good about this roll.

Shake it up. Throw...

The adrenaline was pumping, and the hyper focus slowed the world like he'd just entered Bullet Time. It felt like the roulette was taking forever to stop. But years later, it would.

Black 6! He'd won under a quarter of a million dollars! And you bet your ass that your boy did

, prompting applause from the onlookers.

His gut told him to slow his roll for this next one. Red 25.

Shake it! Throw it!

"Come on. Come on!"

Round and round it would go, until...

It would land in black.

That's ninety-six thousand dollars down the drain.

"Shit!"

Oh, thank Christ that he listened to his gut! After the roll he was on, ninety-six thousand somehow didn't feel like that big a number to lose. But the moment would still give him pause.

"Would you like to continue, sir?"

Shit, should he? That was closing in on half of what he won!

Probably not.

Yeah, the smart move is to walk away. He still has some nice stacks to carry here.

[ThurmanMermanPlx]

"The universe does truly have an odd way of doing that." A beat, and then, "You know what, sure, what the hell. I'll choose to believe the universe is pushing us on the upswing."

Terrell put a hefty two grand on the table for his first bet. The move had her biting her lip; sure, she had been the one who suggested and encouraged it, but she expected him to start far smaller... five hundred at max. But the uncertainly lasted only a moment before she blew it off; they were here for a good time, and screw it, if he was going to go big, she may as well ride the wave.

Cautious optimism exploded into cheers as his bet multiplied tenfold. A cool twenty grand gave them plenty to play with... until Terrell dropped entirely all of it on the very next bid. At this point, Keira could only shake her head with a grin of disbelief. This was how it worked in the movies... but certainly not what she'd expected in person.

And then her jaw dropped when that 2 changed to a 6!

"Shit, T, what a roll!"

It's a good thing he's chosen to pick his numbers himself, she chuckled to herself.

Her voice betrayed her normally cool and calm demeanor, the excitement in the heat of the moment (and maybe a bit of having to be heard over the noise in the rest of the room) raising her voice a pitch or two. And just like that, she was into it, sucked completely into the atmosphere. She found herself still hoping he didn't drop everything, but then again... so far he'd had a knack for it.

The cheers they'd been shouting had attracted an actual crowd around their roulette by now. But their eyes weren't a concern to her now; she was invested, damnit! And judging by Terrell's intense stare, so was he. But of course he was; neither of them had, to her knowledge, ever had sixty thousand dollars on hand at any given moment, let alone throwing it all back in the hopes of landing a larger fish.

The scream Keira let out as the ball landed once again in his square could have blown out eardrums had the room not already been so high volume. But if Terrell had been bothered by it, no one would know by the way he danced around. He was on the top of the world, and Keira was just happy to be along for the ride, clapping gleefully at his show.

And he kept rolling! He was on a streak, and Keira agreed: there was zero reason to stop now! The roulette slowed...

...And Keira was reminded why she'd never gambled in the first place, as their luck broke the wrong way and all that glee drained out in an instant. She hung her head, hands in her hair, unable to bite back a curse.

"Ugh, fuuuck all the way off, though, for real!"

If there was one silver lining, it was that Terrell had chosen this roll to hold back a bit. They'd only lost 96 grand, and still had turned a paltry 2k into a substantial increase. Still a hefty payday. And yet, for some reason, Keira couldn't shake the feeling that it was the fact that he broke his streak of all-in bets that ended up costing him... Nothing but a superstition, she knew, and yet...

Terrell himself looked ready to pack it in, too. No surprise there. They still had enough to take several vacations and still have some leftover. They were set. With this in their back pocket and their wrestling paychecks, they could live comfortably for a long, long time. Which meant there was only one thing left to do.

Keira put a hand on his shoulder and planted a kiss on his cheek. "Own it." She paused to let it sink in before elaborating; they were here for the now, stars of the show, everything else be damned. "If we're out 2k, we're out 2k and had a hell of a time blowing it. We came with nothing, we lose nothing by giving it one more shot. Ebb and flow, remember? We're on the upswing now. Crunch time. All-in. Get me?"

[DSX93]

"Own it."

There it was. Those two words that had been such a motivating force for just about his entire time in LAW. Delivered with a kiss to pull him the rest of the way out of his head.

He turned to her. Own it how?

"If we're out 2k, we're out 2k and had a hell of a time blowing it. We came with nothing, we lose nothing by giving it one more shot. Ebb and flow, remember?"

"Yeah." Ebb and flow. When she felt like her luck ran out, he picked it up. He just lost a big roll; it was back in her court now.

"We're on the upswing now. Crunch time. All-in. Get me?"

And she's giving it back to him. Ebb and flow, just like he said. This was Terrell's second chance: He didn't heed the advice she'd given him about wrestling female opponents, and because of that, another man went on to make history. Another man's wearing gold that could've been around his waist.

He nodded his head, turned back to the table, and brought his hands together with a resolute clap. Eyes turning to and fro, suddenly very aware of all the onlookers who weren't there minutes ago. He took a breath, and raised his pointer finger. "One more roll, all in like my Lady said!"

The pop that got! It was almost like he was in the ring. But this is good. He could use that energy. Especially when the dealer told him that the odds were ten to one. Holy shit, that made him pause!

Kickstarted his heart. Got sweat forming at the brow. Had something doing flips in his guts -- fuck it! He started thinking. Really thinking, clearing his mind the best he could of that fear of failure to make room for some combination of black or red to a number that he could tie to something.

There was one perfect thing.

"Black 8."

It was when they first met: At night, on the eighth of April. A night that would end up being so much more significant than even his nervous self had predicted at the time. More than either of them had.

There was no better choice to make. Terrell shook the ball, reared his arm back to throw...and that's when he had one more thought. He turned to Keira with it sitting in his open palm. "Blow on that for me, my Lady?"

It wasn't dice, but damn, if it didn't feel fitting anyway. Her breath was like the rabbit's foot. Knocking on wood. Kuwabara, Kuwabara.

"Alright, let's get this money!"

And with that, the ball would make its final roll, in even slower motion than before...

[ThurmanMermanPlx]

The roar of the crowd had dulled to a dim murmur as Terrell watched roughly half of his winnings stolen away in an instant. That was the thrill, the ebb and flow of the game. A few stragglers wandered away in search of the next big hype. Most, however, remained, waiting to hear Terrell's answer before letting their attention be stolen by some other high roller. And perhaps Keira's coaxing may have had a hand in it, at least for those close enough to hear over the noise.

"One more roll, all in like my Lady said!"

And once again, the spectators erupted into cheers, whistles, and claps. Nothing like they had at that winning two-hundred-grand roll, naturally, but enough to show their appreciation for his willingness to satisfy their hunger.

Keira flashed him a grin and a nod, her own heart resuming its rapid beating with rising anticipation. He'd made the choice to continue; the next important step was what number he was betting it all on.

"Black 8."

It hadn't occurred to Keira that the numbers and colors he'd been selecting had any important significant relevance; not until that roll. She didn't even need to ask to understand why Terrell went with '8' as his hail mary. April 8th. Their night. He was betting on her now, just as he had then.

It made her heart soar - but it also, illogical as it was, made her desperately hope that he didn't bust. The last thing she wanted was for that negative association to be formed.

Terrell made to throw the ball... and paused. He looked her way, holding the ball out to her in his palm. "Blow on that for me, my Lady?" It was no dice, but what the hell; as far as she knew, lady luck wasn't picky about shape. With a grin, looking deep into his eyes, she parted lips and breathed a light gust of air over the marble.

With that done, Terrell finally let the ball go. Time slowed to a crawl, like a scene in a movie; not literally, but it felt like ages as Keira sat there, eyes on the marble, spinning and bouncing around inside the wheel while it decided where it felt like coming to rest. The crowd behind them cheered; they'd gotten their thrill, regardless of the outcome. All that was left was to witness the final result.

Eventually, time resumed a normal pace, just in time for the roulette wheel to slow down. The marble's path shifted, rolling into a red tile and bouncing over the barrier, landing two tiles over. Keira's breath hitched as the ball rolled into a third red tile, but still with enough momentum to secure forwards movement over that little golden speedbump.

And where the journey would ultimately lead to was...

Black 8.

[DSX93]

Terrell had put his all into that throw. Not physically -- all of his heart. His spirit -- the man was doing all of the hoping and praying on the inside. Doing his very utmost to will the ball into that all too important spot. This can not fail! It just can't! Even when those couple drops of sweat fell from his brow and into them, his eyes would not blink as the ball ran its course.

The whole table went quiet, even with him breathing deep to still the trembling that was threatening to overtake him. He had never been so terrified, so desperate for something to go right in his life. Twenty-one, going on twenty-two long years. And that ball just kept going. And going. And going. Like somebody was just trying to torment him...

"Oh my God, man."

Come the fuck on now!

Until finally...No.

No!

So close! So close!

One more. Just one more!

Black 8.

The crowd erupted into thunderous applause, and in that moment, Terrell had gone from anxiety so thick, it could be cut with a knife to feeling more alive than he ever had before! Higher than he's been from the hardest hits from the best weed he's ever smoked!

He'd just bet one hundred, forty-four thousand dollars and turned it into one million, four-hundred and forty thousand!

One million! Four-hundred! Forty thousand!

"LET'S GOOOO!" Terrell threw his arms into the air, yelling as loudly as he could manage. "LET'S! FUCKIN'! GOOOOOO!"

And he'd make sure the dealer knew, before he was even asked: "You ain't even gotta ask, sir: I am done! I'm cashing out -- got celebrating to do, investments to make!" Invest in what? He doesn't know. Yet. But the growth that happened here was just the beginning.

The newly minted millionaire turned and swooped Keira up into his arms in one smooth motion. "This is what I'm talking about! You and me, straight to the top, baby! WOOOO!"

[ThurmanMermanPlx]

"AAAAAAAAAAHHH!!"

The excited ear-splitting screech that Keira let out drowned out whatever cheers had bloomed from the crowd still gathered around the wheel. Her arms mirrored Terrell's, flying into the air as she hopped in place, full of energy she didn't know how else to release. The action spilled whatever was left of her lemonade twist, but she was completely oblivious. Then she grabbed his nearest arm, wrapping both of hers around it as she pulled it close to her body, still vibrating with excitement.

"Oh my god, T! Oh my god! You did it!"

She let him go afterwards, finding it incredibly difficult to sit still; with her own shouts dying down into speech, the pop of the spectators became more apparent, their whistles and clapping just as deafening in her ears.

She barely had time to register it, however, before Terrell spun around and scooped her up in a spinning hug. "This is what I'm talking about! You and me, straight to the top, baby! WOOOO!"

She didn't even have time to process being startled. She just embraced him in return. "The flow's been in our favor, all we had to do is ride it!" She lowered her voice, just to standard volume but enough for only Terrell to hear her over this crowd. "Nice bet, T."

Keira shot a look towards their host; she'd never known how casinos paid out so much, and was curious while she had the opportunity. Did they have the money on hand? Were they about to be handed a check? ...Or carnival tickets they had to go cash in, like one of those children's casino restaurants?

Whatever the case, having a million bucks in their pockets had her feeling suddenly antsy. She and Terrell could both take care of themselves in a fight, but why risk it? "What say you we take our spoils, get some refills, and go celebrate somewhere a little more... secluded, if you know what I mean."