A/N: Here's Chapter Three of "Naegi Family Tickles!" Please read, review, and enjoy!
The Ultimate Detective and The Ultimate Hope Gaiden: Naegi Family Tickles!
Chapter Three: Koto!
Kiki sat patiently at the table, humming absentmindedly when her mother and eldest brother walked inside and sat down at the table.
"Hi Mom!" Kiki greeted before she smiled at her little brother.
Kyoko smiled returned "Hello, sweetie." Kyoko suddenly frowned before she apologized "I know I didn't say it right when you came in, but I am proud of you for standing up for your brother."
"Thanks, Mom!" Kiki replied as she wondered "I wonder when Dad's gonna be done cooking dinner. I'm starving!"
As Kyoko rolled her eyes, Makoto came in with dinner plates loaded with several scrumptious delicacies and teased "Well, wait no longer, dinner is served!"
Kiki's mouth watered as she exclaimed "Yum! That looks delicious, Dad!"
"Glad you think so, Kiki!" Makoto chuckled. "Say, where are the twins?"
"Hm…must be around the house somewhere." Kyoko mused. "I'll finish setting the table, then I'll check on Kiri. Why don't you go and find Koto?"
Makoto nodded as he carefully set the dishes at the center of the table before he walked out of the dining room
Now let's see…where did Koto go…?
"Koto? Koto?" Makoto called as he walked down the hallway. "Now where could that boy have…ah, there you are!"
Makoto smiled as he peeked his head into the twins' room and saw his youngest playing Super Smash Bros. on the N64 he and his sister shared.
Koto turned his head and greeted "Hey, Dad! I'm just about to play with the AI. Kiri and I haven't unlocked the Mushroom Kingdom stage, and she'll go crazy if I unlock it before she does!"
Makoto sweatdropped as he deadpanned Or you could unlock it together, like your Aunt Komaru and I did as kids… Letting out an amused sigh, Makoto smiled and sat down before he grabbed the nearby controller and offered "Or I could play with you for a match. Playing against the AI can get boring after a while."
Koto grinned and exclaimed "Oh you're on, and I'm gonna beat you, Dad!"
"Challenge accepted!" Makoto grinned as the character select screen appeared. "Good luck, son. You're gonna need it!"
"Yeah right, Dad. Kiri and I have been playing this for hours! No war am I gonna lose to you!"
Makoto rolled his eyes as they picked their characters and Koto selected a stage.
"Three, Two, One…GO!"
"MARIO, WINS!"
Koto threw his controller on the floor and pouted while Makoto smirked smugly.
"Man, how did I lose?!"
"Hey, cheer up, sport!" Makoto teased as he ruffled his pouting son's hair. "I've had a lot more experience playing these games, so I'm just more likely to win. And look, you got to unlock the stage you wanted before your sister, just like you wanted."
Koto continued to pout as he grumbled "Who cares? It's embarrassing to lose to your dad…"
"Hey, no need to be a sore loser. People won't want to play with you if you get all grumpy when you lose."
Makoto prodded his son playfully, though he failed to elicit even a ghost of a smile from Koto, reminding him of whenever he pouted as a kid.
Whenever I got like this, Mom used to… Makoto grinned slyly before he gently grabbed Koto by the ankles and tugged the boy's feet onto his lap.
"Hey! Dad! What's the big ide…?"
"You never know how your friends might decide to punish you for bad behavior." Makoto teased as he spidered his fingers up and down Koto's bare soles. "They might decide to tickle, tickle, tickle you!"
"Daaahahahahahahaaaad! Stooohohohohohooooop!" Koto giggled as his feet twitched against his father's fingers. "That tiiihihihihihiiicklesss!"
"Hey, I'm going easy on you, buddy." Makoto pointed out as he continued to tickle his son's feet. "Imagine how much worse your friends might tickle you if you're grumpy all the time." Makoto stared at his son's toes before he moved his hand to scratch underneath them and continued "Like this! Coochie coochie coo!"
"Ahahahahaha! Noohohohohohohohoooo! Eeeheheheheheeeee!" Koto giggled as his ticklish toes wiggled against his father's fingertips. The boy burst into laughter as he surrendered "OKAHAHAHAHAAAY! I'LL STOHOHOHOHOOOP BEING GRUMPY! JUST STOP TIHIHIHIHIHIIICKLING MY TOOOHOHOHOHOHOOOOOES!"
Makoto grinned and eleased his grip on Koto's feet, allowing the boy to tug them away as he caught his breath.
"Learned your lesson?"
"…Yeah, I learned my lesson…"
"Good." Makoto nodded and explained "It really is important to know how to accept our defeats. This might have been a simple video game, but if you can't be gracious in your video game defeats, you won't be able to take the really painful losses in life."
"…Okay, Dad…" Koto accepted after a brief sigh.
His stomach then started to growl, making the boy blush in embarrassment as Makoto smiled knowingly.
"Come on," he offered as he stood up. "Dinner's just about ready, so why don't we go to the dinner table?"
Koto smiled as he nodded before he followed his father out of his room.