Disclaimer: I do not own any of the official Digimon stuff.
I've noticed that in most of the reviews I received that Rei turned up quite often as the name for Takuya and Izumi's daughter, so that will be used. And I would like to thank Space Digiwarrior X for coming up with the name for the son.
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FAMILY VACATIONLast Day in Vegas
Izumi sat on one of the beds in the hotel room looking over the family's vacation plans. She and Takuya had been married for over twelve years and were happy and with two children. They were currently on a family vacation in the USA. At the moment, the four of them were in Las Vegas, staying at the MGM Grand Hotel. Takuya had taken the kids down to the swimming pool, leaving Izumi for a while alone in the room. She sighed silently to herself and wondered how the rest of her family was doing.
* * *
"Hey Dad, I did it!" shouted a browned-haired boy.
"Great job, Declan!" Takuya called out to his twelve-year-old son, "You walked the entire river pool against current!" Takuya sat on a lawn chair by the hotel's river pool wearing nothing more than a pair of red swimming trunks. He couldn't help but smile as he watched his son swim around in the pool clad in a pair of black shorts with red stripes on either of the sides. Declan was his and Izumi's first-born child. They first learned about him back when they were in London. They found out that Izumi had been pregnant while the two of them were on their honeymoon. It was during an ultrasound test that they found out for sure. That was also how their son's named turned out to be English. Declan resembled Takuya in almost every way. His hair and eyes were the same color as well as several other physical traits. However, his personality was something else to be thought about. Declan wasn't as hotheaded as Takuya was years ago. He was generally more calm about things than anyone else in the family.
"Hey Declan, where'd your sister go?" Takuya asked, "Shouldn't she be with you?"
"She decided to go with the current," said Declan, "Hey, here she comes now."
Takuya watched as his ten-year-old daughter drifted down the river pool towards them in a rented inner tube. "You better get her," he said to Declan, "We don't want to get caught in a long buffet line."
"Sure thing, Dad," said Declan, "Hey Rei! We're going back in!"
"Do we have to?" asked Rei.
"Not unless you want to stand in line for an hour waiting to get cold food," said Declan.
"What's wrong with ice cream?" asked Rei.
"I meant as in supposedly hot food," said Declan.
Rei quickly got out and wrapped a towel around herself. Rei had the same hair and eyes as her mother and almost the same personality. The only difference was that she had a bit of Takuya's personality in it, as well.
Declan hopped out of the water and tugged at his swimming trunks so that they wouldn't stick to his body. He removed his goggles, which were given to him by his father, and dried himself off as best as he could before putting on his sandals. Rei quickly dried herself off as best as she could and put on a T-shirt, shorts, and her sandals.
"We ready?" Takuya asked as he pulled on his T-shirt and put on his sandals.
"We're ready," said Declan as he grabbed his T-shirt off the chair and held it in his hand.
The three of them went back inside the building, dropping their pool towels off in the bin by the pool entrance. They headed back up to their floor where Takuya used their keycard to re-enter their hotel room.
"Mom, we're back!" called Declan as he entered the room and took off his sandals.
"Already?" said Izumi as she got off the bed.
"Yes we are!" said Rei.
"You guys smell like chlorine," said Izumi.
"I call first dibs on the bathroom!" said Declan.
"No, I call first dibs on the bathroom!" said Rei.
"Too late, I called it," said Declan.
"No fair! You had it first, last time!" argued Rei.
"No, that was you," said Declan.
"Lemme through!" said Rei.
"No!" replied Declan.
"Yes!"
"No!"
"Yes!"
"No!"
"Yes!"
"Rock-Paper-Scissors!" said Declan as he held out his fist.
"Deal!" agreed Rei as she followed her brother's action.
"Rock-Paper-Scissors!" shouted the two kids. Declan had two fingers held out while Rei's hand was held open.
"Scissors beats paper!" said Declan, "I go first." He tossed his T-shirt into a plastic bag before heading into the bathroom, closing and locking the door behind him.
"He always wins," Rei huffed as she sat down to wait for Declan. While she waited, she grabbed a fresh T-shirt, some clean underwear, and a new pair of shorts. Meanwhile, Declan had tossed his swimming trunks and goggles into the sink, which he had filled with warm water. He took a quick shower and dried himself off. He wrapped a towel around his waist and dried out his hair. He washed out his trunks and goggles as best as he could before draining the water out of the sink and coming out of the bathroom.
"Okay sis, it's your turn," said Declan.
"Finally," said Rei and she went inside.
Declan walked over to the window and hung his swimming trunks on the clothesline above the radiator to dry. Sitting down on one of the beds, he flopped down and closed his eyes. Declan enjoyed the feeling of soft sheets against his skin. It was sort of his own little way of getting away from everyone else.
"Declan, better start getting dressed," said Izumi, "It sounds like your sister is done."
"Alright, I'm on it," said Declan. He grabbed a his favorite T-shirt from his drawer and slipped it on. It was the same T-shirt that Takuya had worn back when he and Izumi were still in the Digital World. Declan seemed to like it, so Takuya had given it to him. The boy grabbed a pair of clean boxers an pulled them on before tossing his towel aside. Then he snagged a pair of khaki shorts and put them on before putting on his leather belt.
Rei came out of the bathroom just as Declan was putting on his socks. Rei was wearing a purple T-shirt and white shorts. She also wore a purple vest, which was given to her by her mother.
"Your turn, Hon," Izumi said to Takuya.
"Okay," said Takuya. He gave his wife a peck on the lips before grabbing some clothes and walking in to the bathroom.
"Mom, sometimes we wish you and Dad wouldn't kiss each other in front of our eyes," said Declan as he laced up his sneakers.
"Why are you complaining?" asked Izumi, "You kiss Sakura whenever you're given the chance."
"That's my business alone!" shouted Declan. Sakura was Declan's girlfriend, who also happened to be Kouji's second daughter.
Takuya soon came out in a red T-shirt and blue jeans. "I'm going to change before we head down," said Izumi as her husband approached.
"Sure," said Takuya as he watched his wife disappear into the bathroom. A moment later, Izumi came out in a baby blue T-shirt and white pants.
"You look gorgeous, as usual," said Takuya as he got up and took Izumi in his arms.
"Ahem!" Declan said loudly, "As much as I enjoy knowing that our family isn't getting a divorce any time soon, I really don't need to see it."
"We better get going before the buffet line up REALLY gets bad," said Takuya as he put on his watch and grabbed his wallet.
"Good idea," agreed the others. All four of them quickly put on their shoes along with a few extra accessories. Rei inserted the clip she received for Christmas from her parents into her hair, as well as a small beaded bracelet. Declan pulled on his red wristbands, put on the pouch that he used to carry money and such, placed the Kingdom Hearts necklace (the same one Sora wears) Sakura had given to him on his birthday around his neck, and snapped his goggles onto his head.
The Kanbaras went downstairs to the casino and walked to where the buffet restaurant was. "Good, we're not too late," said Takuya, noticing that the line wasn't all that long.
"Dad, it's 4:45. I don't think they've even finished serving lunch yet," said Declan.
"How many?" asked the lady behind the desk.
"Two adults and two children," answered Takuya. While he paid, Izumi, Declan, and Rei went ahead to try to keep their spot in line. Takuya caught up with them momentarily.
"How much longer do we have to wait?" asked Rei.
"You wanna see for yourself?" asked Takuya.
"Yeah!" said Rei, cheerfully.
"Okay, Princess. Hold on tight," said Takuya. He squatted down and lifted his daughter off the floor.
"We're not that far," said Rei.
Declan climbed the railing to get a better view. "We've only got about fifteen people ahead of us. Twenty, tops," said the goggled youth. He hopped back onto the floor as the line began to move.
Five minutes later, the entire Kanbara family found themselves seated in a booth against a wall. Takuya and Izumi sat on one side of the table while their children sat on the other. A young man in either his late teens or early twenties with brown hair came up to them.
"Hi, my name's David. I'll be your server. Would there be anything you'd like to drink?" he said.
"I'll take a lemonade, please," said Izumi.
"Yeah, I'd like an iced tea," Takuya ordered.
"I'd like some orange juice," said Rei.
"I'll take an orange soda," said Declan in his usual carefree tone.
"Okay, your drinks will be here shortly. Feel free to go to the buffet whenever you like," said David before walking off.
"I'm going first!" Declan and Rei said as they both tried to climb over one another to get to the buffet first.
"You coming?" Takuya asked Izumi.
"I'll stay until you guys come back," said Izumi.
"Alright, we'll be back shortly," said Takuya has he gave his wife a kiss on the cheek, "Come on, you two. There's plenty of food for everyone." He gave Izumi a loving smile and went after their two children. Izumi couldn't help but laugh a little as she watched her husband chase after the two little devils.
Just then, David returned with the drinks. "There you are," he said.
"Thank you," said Izumi.
* * *
"Declan, get back here!" Takuya called as he tried to grabs his son's T-shirt.
"Dad, it's a buffet. You're supposed to get more than you can eat," said Declan.
"That's true, but it doesn't mean you can go crazy!" said Takuya.
"What? I've got enough," said Declan.
"You call THAT enough?" Takuya asked. Declan's plate was overloading with food from the buffet.
"You can never have too much of a good thing," said Declan.
"Decky," Takuya began, but his son cut him off.
"Dad, I told you a million times already! Don't call me Decky in public! It's embarrassing! It makes me look like a total pratt!" said Declan.
"Sorry," said Takuya. The Kanbaras quickly filled their plates with food and returned to the table.
"Okay honey, your turn. Go get yourself something to eat," said Takuya.
Izumi nodded and went off to the buffet. She returned a moment later and took her seat next to her husband.
"So tonight's our last night here?" Rei asked as she placed a piece of broccoli in her mouth.
"Hey Dad, can we go down to the arcade one last time before we leave tomorrow?" asked Declan as he put a piece of chicken in his mouth.
"You'll have to ask your mother about that, first," Takuya said, casting Izumi a small glance.
Declan swallowed his food before saying to Izumi, "Please Mom? I just want to see if I can get that big prize behind the counter."
"Decky, that thing won't fit in the car," said Rei.
"It's Declan!" the boy corrected his sister.
"I suppose we can let you," Izumi said hesitantly.
"Oh yeah!" Declan said.
"Within a certain spending limit," finished Izumi.
"Aww, crap," said Declan.
"Decky…" Rei began.
"It's Declan!" said Declan, "Alright, fine. Scheiße!"
"You know something, Izumi? I'm starting to regret ever letting Declan take all those language classes," said Takuya, "We can't even understand half of what he says, anymore."
"I remember when you took that class to learn Italian just for me. Remember, Taku?" Izumi asked.
Takuya remembered. He had a shaky start that year, but he ended up at the top of his class. Mainly because Izumi had helped him through his studies, even though it was meant to be a surprise.
"How could I forget?" asked Takuya.
"Anyway, I'm going out for seconds," said Declan as he pushed his empty plate aside and got out to get some more food.
"I'll come with you," said Izumi.
"Mom, I'll be fine," said Declan.
"If you say so," said Izumi.
"Mom, I'm not five anymore. I can take care of myself," said Declan. And with that, he walked off to the buffet.
"He's definitely got my genes," Takuya joked.
"Nah, he just has your appetite," said Izumi.
"And several other traits," added Takuya as he placed his arm around his wife.
After dinner, the Kanbaras went ahead with Declan's wishes and took him to the arcade. The boy was so eager to get there he was more hyper than a five-year-old on sugar.
"Declan, calm down," said Takuya.
"Sorry, Dad," said Declan. As they walked, Declan reached into his cargo pocket and pulled out a bunch of ticket receipts and a separate sheet of paper, on which he had done a bunch of calculations to determine the total number of tickets he had already won.
"How many have you got?" asked Rei.
"I'm just short two hundred tickets," said Declan as they entered the arcade.
"Play skee ball!" said Rei, "You're good with that!
"Yeah, but the payout's not that great," said Declan.
"How about that whack-a-mole-or-mouse game?" suggested Rei, "I like that one."
"DEAR GOD, NO!" Declan practically shouted, "The payout is low and it's way too easy!"
"Be nice to your sister, Declan," said Izumi.
"Yes, Mom," said Declan.
"Don't roll your eyes at me, young man," said Izumi.
Damn, how does she do that?! Declan thought to himself.
"Here's one I'm sure you'll like," said Takuya. He motioned his son over to one of the machines. Declan, sighing, walked over to where his father stood and looked at the machine.
"Basketball throw?" asked the boy.
"You're good at sports," said Takuya.
"Guess it couldn't hurt," said Declan as he fished around in his pouch and inserted a few tokens. He picked up one of the basketballs, took aim, and threw it. The basketball dropped right into the net. Declan kept on picking up balls and throwing them with the utmost accuracy, scoring every time. When he was done, he had won a total of twelve tickets.
"Satisfied yet?" asked Izumi.
"No, I still need more," said Declan as he stuffed the tickets into his pocket. He walked over to another machine, inserted a token into the gun-like launcher, and cocked it. He took careful aim for one of the top pockets and fired. The token sailed through the air and landed right in the target.
"One hundred tickets! Take that!" said Declan, triumphantly. He quickly inserted another token and took careful aim. He pulled the trigger and let it fly. The token landed on the bottom and was swept into the fifty-ticket pocket. After firing one last token, Declan had more than enough tickets to trade in for the item he wanted.
"What are you going to do now, Declan?" Rei asked her older brother.
"I think I'll play a few games before I cash these in," answered the boy. He quickly fed his tickets into the machine and took the receipt and stuck it with the rest before going on to the other machines.
"So Declan, dare I ask which machine you're going to play first?" Takuya asked.
"My favorite," said Declan as he walked up to the Silent Scope EX machine. He slipped in a few tokens and gripped the sniper rifle in his hand.
While Declan was playing, Takuya was over at the crane game seeing if he could win his daughter a prize. Unfortunately, he wasn't quite succeeding, despite the fact that he had been an expert back in Japan.
"Good lord, even the machines back in Japan are easier than these," Takuya muttered to himself. He was soon able to snag a stuffed bear for Rei, which the girl soon fell in love with. They quickly went back to Izumi and Declan to see that the boy was no long sniping enemies, but was now shooting undead creatures.
"Mommy, that game scares me," said Rei.
"Don't watch then, honey," said Izumi.
"I'll keep an eye on Declan," said Takuya.
"Okay. I'm taking Rei back up," said Izumi, "We still have to finish packing for tomorrow."
"See you in a bit, hon," said Takuya as he planted a small kiss on his wife's lips before half of his family went back up to their room. He returned his attention to his son.
"Whoo, yeah!" whooped Declan. The boy's attention was occupied with House of the Dead 3 and Declan was using both guns to shoot down the oncoming undead.
"You know son, sometimes I wonder why you like shooting games so much," said Takuya.
"They're fun," said Declan.
"How many more tokens do you have left, anyway?" asked Takuya.
"Last time I checked, twenty, which should let me play five more games," answered the younger Kanbara.
"Well, hurry up, son," said Takuya, "We still have to help your mom and sister pack up for tomorrow."
"Right, we're leaving tomorrow, aren't we?" asked Declan.
"We're checking out early tomorrow, so I want you to get some extra sleep tonight," said Takuya.
"Dad, I'm not a little kid. I know when to go to sleep," said Declan as he shot off two more zombies' heads.
"Need a hand?" Takuya asked.
"Sure," said the younger Kanbara, "You can put in some tokens every time I need you to, that way I don't have to put down the guns."
"Declan, you're as stubborn as I was," said Takuya.
"What can I say? I was born into a family with low standards," retorted Declan. The boy quickly finished off his tokens and then went to cash in his ticket receipts for his prizes.
"What would you like?" asked the person behind the counter.
"I'd like item number 487, please," said Declan. The man behind the counter scanned the barcode on the item and went into the back room. A moment later, he returned with a large box and set it down on the counter.
"Anything else?" asked the man, "You've still got ten left."
"I'll take two Jolly Ranchers," said Declan. The person behind the counter placed two pieces of the candy onto the countertop and the boy quickly pocketed them before grabbing the large box walking over to where his father waited.
"You got it, Declan?" Takuya asked.
"Yeah, I got it," said the boy.
"Let's head back, then," said Takuya.
"Okay, Dad," replied Declan as the two of them left the arcade, "Well, it took our whole stay here, but I finally got what I wanted." Declan stared at the box, as if he were trying to see through the cardboard.
"Remember son, you're not opening that thing until we get home," Takuya reminded Declan.
"I know, Dad," was Declan's response, "At least I finally got the boom box."
The two of them quickly returned to their room to find that most of the things had already been packed.
"That was fast," said Takuya.
"You two were down there for a whole hour after we left," said Izumi.
"What can I say? I'm a good gamer," said Declan.
"Get to bed, kids. We've got to get an early start tomorrow morning," said Izumi.
"Okay," said the kids. Rei changed into her pajamas while Declan discarded all but his boxers and pulled on a T-shirt. Then there was a brief moment of fighting over the bathroom before the two of them finally got into bed and fell asleep.
"They sure fell asleep fast," said Takuya.
"Well, it has been a long day," said Izumi as she got into bed.
"Well, tomorrow's going to be an even longer day," said Takuya has he got under the covers and wrapped his arms around his wife, "G'night, Izumi."
"Good night, Takuya," said Izumi as her husband planted a gentle kiss on her lips before they fell asleep.
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That's it for chapter 1. Please read & review.
Next chapter: the Kanbaras hit the road for their next destination! Comedy ensues.