Pre-chapter Conversation
"Yes!.!.!" Izzy cheered as he ran around the studio with a wide grin. "You couldn't finish the fic in time! It's Christmas and you're still writing! Gwahahahaha!.!.!"
The camera turned to me and Iggy, who were playing on our brand-spanking new DSes. We only looked at the happier-than-usual brunet before turning back to our screens, all four of them (Sorry, I just had to say that).
Man, what a pain. Iggy typed to me in our Pictochat room.
No kidding. I replied, using my stylus to write. But still, it sucks that I couldn't finish it on time. I drew a crying face.
Oh come on, Dad. Don't blame yourself. My partner's brother comforted. There's plenty of Christmas stories out there that haven't been finished on time and even got posted late.
°Sniff° You mean it?
You bet! Iggy answered, drawing an animé style happy face.
"Hey! Are you two paying attention? I just owned you both! This story hasn't been done yet, so you're late!" Izzy shouted happily. Iggy and I gave him an irritated look before going back to our DSes.
I wish we could do something to shut him up. Iggy typed to me. I snapped my fingers.
°CLANG!°
"Joy to the world! For I have massive marshmallows in my pants!" Izzy slurred before falling backwards. An anvil had just landed on his head.
Your wish has been granted. I wrote to Iggy.
Thanks! Iggy answered back with another animé happy face. I looked at the camera and quickly scribbled a message on my DS before walking up to it. I held my system up to the camera.
Enjoy the first part of this two part ending to the fic! I then wrote a new message before holding it up to the camera again. Sorry I couldn't finish it before today, but hey, better late than never, right? I shrugged before waving.
.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Otto's Christmas Quest
Chapter Three
The Electrifying Rematch
Part One
"Rough day?" Ray asked his son as he dragged his feet inside the Shore Shack.
The sky outside was bathed in different colors, indicating sunset. Like the other businesses in town, Christmas decorations filled every corner of the restaurant. Of course, the green garland, fake candy canes, and Santa hats paled in comparison to the Rockets' house. Aside from Tito and Ray, the place was empty.
"Like you wouldn't believe." Otto groaned as he made it to the counter.
"What happened to you, cuz?" Tito asked, noticing the boy's bruises.
"I want you to do one thing for me, Dad." Otto said, ignoring the chef.
"Ok…" Ray said, raising an eyebrow at Otto. "What?"
The redhead reached over and pulled his father towards him.
"NEVER let me wait til the last minute to do Christmas shopping!.!.!"
"Is that why you're such a mess?" Tito asked.
"Yeah…" Otto nodded, letting go of Ray. "Me and Twist went to the mall to get something for Lars, but it was a zoo and everywhere was sold out!" He buried his hands in his arms. "I can't get the perfect present for him!.!.!"
"And where is Twister, anyway?" Ray questioned.
"On his way to the airport." The skater answered, lifting his head.
"The airport!.?" The two adults exclaimed.
"Yeah. Turns out Keoni's flight is coming in today, not tomorrow."
Ray and Tito grimaced after hearing that.
"Ouch. The place is gonna be a madhouse." Tito commented.
"It won't be any worse than the mall was." Otto said.
"Oooohhhhh…" A new voice groaned. Everybody turned to see somebody slowly rolling inside on roller blades.
It was a boy, whose body was hunched over. He was panting and dripping sweat. It looked like he was about to drop at any moment. He was wearing a black helmet and pads. He was also wearing a green shirt and a pair of purple shorts. A bullhorn was hanging by a strap off his left hand.
"My brother's a slave driver…" He moaned, rolling past the counter. The trio grimaced when they heard a loud crash. They all ran around the counter to help the boy.
"Are you alright, bruddah?" Tito asked, helping him sit up.
"Ugh… I've been better." The boy replied, taking off his skates.
As he stood up weakly, Otto noticed that he looked about two years younger than him and was about as tall as Sam. He had tanned skin that was slightly lighter than Twister's. The next thing he noticed was that the teen had Link from the Legend of Zelda series pictured on his shirt. It was obvious to the redhead who this was.
"Hey, you're one of those weird brothers, aren't you?"
The teen looked up and gave Otto a scowl. He took off his helmet, revealing puffy black hair.
"Weird!.?" He shouted, digging into one of his pockets. "How dare you?" He pulled out a purple cap that had a purple I inside a white circle in the middle. "I'm Iggy, the younger half of the Yaoi Brothers! Don't forget it!" He put the hat on and gasped when he got a good look at the older boy.
"Hey, you're that Otto guy, aren't you? The one my brother and I helped get together with that other guy, what's-his-name?"
"Lars, and yeah, I am." Otto nodded.
"I thought you looked familiar." Iggy said. "The resemblance to Knuckles the Echidna is uncanny."
"Uhhhh…"
"Never mind." The gamer sighed, wiping his sweating head. "Man, I'm thirsty and tired…"
"Well, why don't you sit down and we'll fix you something." Ray said, leading the teen over to the counter.
"Alright, but it's gotta be something that'll give me a lotta energy. I'm wiped."
"No prob, cuz. My Cup of Happiness pick-me-up will give you tons of energy!" Tito said, grabbing some fruit.
"Good…" Iggy breathed, putting his gear next to his stool.
"So were you shredding out there?" Otto asked, sitting next to him. "I thought you and your brother weren't into extreme sports." He grinned and added, "I could always teach ya some tricks if you want."
"Uhhh… Thanks…I think." The brunet said as Tito turned on the blender. "All that Izzy and I are into is blading. Of course, I'm the better skater out of the two of us." He pointed to himself proudly. He then added, "Although I crash a lot…" He chuckled sheepishly. "Izzy's always busy running the arcade. Anyway, I wasn't out there practicing, if that's what 'shredding' means."
Otto rolled his eyes at the younger one.
"Then what were you doing?"
Tito poured a pinkish liquid into half of a coconut, stuck a straw in it, and handed it to Iggy.
"Here ya go, cuz." He said.
"Thanks." Iggy replied, handing him some money for the drink. He turned to Otto. "I was skating around town promoting a tournament my brother's throwing. He's giving a massive prize to the winner!"
"So you guys actually got popular enough?" The redhead asked.
"Yep. Everybody knows us." The younger boy nodded, taking a sip. As soon as the fruit medley went down his throat, his eyes lit up with newfound power. "Woah! This stuff is great!" He greedily drank the remaining contents and held up his cup. "Keep 'em coming! This tastes good!"
Tito laughed.
"That's why I call it the Cup of Happiness, bruddah!" He said, taking the coconut half.
"Anyway," Iggy started, turning back to Otto. "We should really thank you guys."
"Huh? Why?" Otto asked, raising an eyebrow.
"When everybody heard that you and Lars got together due to us helping Lars out, tons of people came to the arcade. Business has never been better!" The other boy shouted happily. "…Then again, we had just opened the arcade when he came, trying to learn how to play, so business has always been good… Everybody's been coming to get together with the ones they liked. Me and Izzy are hailed as the number one matchmakers in Ocean Shores!"
Iggy grinned.
"So what've ya been up to? Where's your boyfriend?"
"Home, I guess." Otto replied with a shrug. He then sighed. "I've been trying to get him the perfect gift all day, but no place has what I need."
"Ouch. That's rough. It sucks that ya waited til the last minute, but I guess it happens."
Tito handed Iggy his cup, which had been refilled. The kid drank it all in one gulp.
"Well, I better get going." He said, handing Tito the money for the beverage. He put on his skates and helmet. "Good luck with getting him that gift." He grabbed his bullhorn and skated towards the exit.
"Thanks…" Otto said.
"Hey, come to the arcade sometime. Izzy's been dying to know how you guys are doing." Iggy went outside and turned on the bullhorn. He then took a deep breath before speaking into it.
"COME ON DOWN TO THE YAOI BROTHERS ARCADE FOR THE FIRST ANNUAL CHRISTMAS TOURNY!.!.!" He roared. Otto, Ray, and Tito covered their ears to drown out his voice. "THE GRAND PRIZE IS A FREE NINTENDO DS!.!.!"
Otto's eyes widened after hearing that.
"WHAT!.?.!"
"Huh!.?.!" Ray and Tito yelled over the noise.
"THAT'S RIGHT FOLKS! A FREE NINTENDO DS! IF YA WANNA COMPETE, COME TO THE YAOI BROTHERS ARCADE!.!.!" Iggy then skated off, repeating his message.
"Yes! I can finally get Lars' present!" Otto cheered.
"What!.?.!" The owners of the restaurant yelled, still rendered deaf.
"All I gotta do is beat some kids at a couple of games and it's mine!" His eyes widened. "Wait a minute! I don't know what they're gonna play in the first place! What am I gonna do!.?.!"
"What!.?.!"
Otto sat there, thinking about how he was going to do this.
"There's gotta be somebody that could help. But who?"
He sat there for a few more minutes when a name came to mind.
"Sammy! That's it! I can ask Squid to compete for me! But did he get home from work yet?" He got up and started running. "I'll see you guys later!" He waved at Ray and Tito before leaving.
"What!.?.!"
Meanwhile…
"Uhhh… Are you sure this'll get Otto to sleep with me?" Lars asked, looking inside the bag he was holding. He and Reggie were walking along the strand towards the Shack.
"Of course it will!" Reggie answered. She was also holding a bag. "Once he sees you in that, he'll go crazy! Plus, we got him that new skateboard and repair kit. That'll only make it easier!"
"If you say so…"
"Hey, thanks again for helping me with Sam's gift. How'd you know that he wanted an extension for his computer's memory?"
"He's Squid. What else is he into?" The brunet shrugged. He then looked up and noticed Otto running towards them. "Otto!.?"
"What?.!" The girl looked and gasped. "Quick! Hide 'em!" She put her bag behind her. Lars did the same as the redhead ran up to them.
"Uhhh… Hey Otto." He said, waving at his boyfriend nervously.
"Hiya handsome." Otto said, planting a quick kiss on his lover's lips. When he separated, he started running in place. "Sorry we can't continue this, but I gotta run!" He then blasted off towards the cul-de-sac like a, well, rocket.
"What was that about?" Reggie asked Lars, who only looked after his boyfriend with a lustful gaze.
"I don't know, but he sure knows how to kiss…"
"Ugh…" She slapped her head.
.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Otto dashed up the hill until he reached the very top, where his house was. Taking only a moment to breathe, he ran over to Sam's door and knocked repeatedly.
"Sam! You gotta help me!" He shouted desperately.
He banged on the door for a few more minutes before the blond, tired from working, answered.
"Otto, what're you—"
He couldn't finish for the redhead had grabbed his hand and started pulling him outside.
"Game tournament, Yaoi Brothers, DS!" Otto rambled as he dragged Sam down the hill.
"Where are you taking me!.?"
"Didn't you hear me!.?" Otto yelled as he increased his speed. "We gotta hurry and sign you up!"
"Ow!.!.!" Sam yelped as he crashed into a low tree branch. "Sign me up for what?.!"
.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
After dragging Sam through the streets, and arguing with him about the plan, Otto and the blond stood in front of the Yaoi Brothers arcade. It was currently dark. The arcade looked exactly the same as they remembered it. The entire building was made to look like a castle from the classic game Super Mario Bros. It was seven stories tall. Next to the entrance was a pole that had a green flag waving from the top. A skull was pictured on it.
Above the entrance, which was a pair of electric sliding doors, was a neon display that read, "Yaoi Bros. Arcade." It was flashing different colors, creating a gorgeous reflection in the water nearby. Below the display was a banner that read, "1st annual X-mas tournament today!.!.!" Christmas lights and fake snow decorated the entire establishment. Plastic candy canes were placed on either side of the entrance. A light display shaped like a Christmas tree was placed near the roof.
"They really went all out, huh?" Sam asked.
"Looks like it." Otto replied. "Come on! Let's get inside before they stop taking entries!"
Both boys ran inside the establishment.
After walking through the front hall, which was lined with posters of various video games, they reached the main area of the arcade. Normally, this area was full of coin operated games that were stationed around a giant gold statue of Shadow the Hedgehog. Today, a stage with a screen nearly as big as the statue was the major addition. Also, even more decorations filled the place than outside. Fake snow made the whole room look like the North Pole. A Christmas tree was placed in each corner. Gold and silver garland (man, I seem to be using that one a lot, huh?) lined the walls and ceilings. Mistletoe hung from every arch and machine.
Sam and Otto made their way through the massive crowd that was assembled in front of the stage. Once they passed the anxious gamers, they reached the sign-up table. A man dressed in a referee's outfit was sitting behind it. A clipboard and pen were lying in front of him.
"Hey dude, can we still sign up for this thing?" Otto asked the official.
"Yes, but you better hurry. There isn't much time left before the deadline." The judge replied, handing Otto the pen. Panicking, the Rocket quickly scribbled down his and Sam's names on the sheet. Sighing with relief, he gave the pen back.
"Thank you." The ref said. "If you'd like to wait, the competition will begin shortly."
"Whew. That was close." Otto said, turning to Sam.
"Yeah." The blond nodded. "I wonder how the tournament's going to work."
Shortly after he said that, all the lights in the room turned off, bathing the room in darkness. The only light was coming from the trees and game machines. A few moments of murmuring among the crowd passed before a spotlight turned on over the stage. It revealed a guy that was about Lars' height. His back was turned on the crowd. He was wearing a yellow shirt and orange baggy shorts. He had a tan that was nearly as dark as Otto's. His shoulder length black hair wavered in the light as he spoke.
"Prepare for trouble!"
A few seconds passed before a second spotlight turned on over the stage, revealing Iggy, who was standing next to the other male. His back was also turned away from everybody. It seemed that both of their arms were crossed.
"Make it double!" He said.
"To protect the world from boredom!" The older boy continued.
"To unite all gamers within our nation!"
"To denounce the evils of closed-minded people!"
"To extend gay love to the stars above!"
"Izzy!" The taller one turned around with a clenched fist. His shirt had Bowser pictured on it.
"Iggy!" The younger brother turned around, holding his hip with his right hand.
They both pointed at the crowd.
"We're the Yaoi Brothers, gamers extraordinaire!"
"Surrender your bigotedness now or prepare to fight!"
"That's right!" They both ended, winking and giving everyone a thumbs-up.
The audience, minus Otto and Sam, cheered at the performance as the house lights turned back on. The two skaters gave the brothers a freaked out expression. It seemed that they had forgotten about the siblings' motto.
"Welcome to the arcade!" Izzy said into the nearby microphone.
"And a Merry Christmas to everybody that decided to come!" Iggy supplied.
"Thanks to the successful business we've been having the past few months, we're able to hold this, our first annual Christmas gaming tournament!"
The crowd roared.
"So let's get down to business!" The elder Yaoi Brother continued. "Now the rules are—What the!.?" He shouted upon noticing the blond in the crowd. "YOU!.?.!"
Everybody in the audience parted, creating a circle around Sam and Otto. The former looked around before pointing at himself.
"Me?" He asked the brunet with a look of utmost confusion. Izzy's eyes grew cold.
"You…" He hissed, pointing at Sam. He hopped off the stage and stormed up to the duo followed by Iggy. "You dare to show your face around here after what happened this summer?"
"What do you mean? What'd I do to you?" Sam asked, keeping that look of confusion. Izzy slapped his head in response.
"What do I mean!.? You got some nerve!" He spat, shaking a fist. "You handed me my first ever defeat!"
"Defeat?" The bespectacled one blinked. "Ohhhh! I remember now! When I beat you in Double Dash, right? You still remember that?"
"That loss has been on my mind every single waking moment." Izzy answered, bowing his head. "I couldn't sleep at night. All that went through my mind was that final race. I went over it bit by bit, trying to figure out what I did wrong, what I did that caused me to lose. But nothing came up. I had raced flawlessly, gave it my all. By all means, I should've won that last race on the Rainbow Road track."
Otto blinked.
"Rainbow Road?" He asked the irate brunet.
"Yeah Rainbow Road. What's it to you?"
"That's the same track Lars challenged me to on that day."
The brothers gasped.
"Really? What happened? Which one of you won?.!" They both asked excitedly. The crowd around them groaned in exasperation. It was clear they were expecting blood. Otto blinked and rubbed the back of his head.
"Uhhhh… Lars beat me." He admitted, blushing.
"Yes!" Izzy pumped his fist as he turned to his brother and held a hand out. "Pay up! I told you he was gonna win!"
"Yeah, yeah…" Iggy grumbled, reaching into his pocket. He pulled out a twenty dollar bill, which Izzy snatched and put in his own pocket. Otto blinked again before glaring at the brothers.
"Hold on! You betted on which one of us would win!.?.!"
"Yep." They replied like it was no big deal.
"Ugh…" Otto groaned, slapping his head.
"Uhhh… Can we get back to me?" Sam asked.
"Huh?" The others faced him.
"Oh right. I almost forgot." Izzy said before his cold glare came back. "You destroyed my reputation. Before I moved here, me and Iggy were known as two of the greatest gamers ever to participate in sanctioned tournaments. And yet, in that one day, everything I worked so hard to accomplish was destroyed! On every gaming message board, all everybody could talk about for the past few months was that I, Izzy, the older of the Yaoi Brothers, lost against some nobody from a seaside town!
"And now you, my rival, have the audacity to show up in my arcade and enter my first ever tournament like you own the place!.?.! Hell no!" He pointed at Sam. "I challenge you right now!"
"What? Now? But what about the tournament?" Sam questioned, taken back by the dark haired boy's sudden challenge. He then blinked. "I'm your rival?" Izzy chose to ignore that question.
"How about this?" He started, smirking evilly. "You, me, Iggy, and Otto will play a two-on-two match in one of my favorite games."
"Huh!.? Why do we have to play too!.?" Otto and Iggy demanded.
"Shaddap!" The elder brother shouted before turning back to Sam. "If you win, I'll give you the tournament's prize, a DS with a copy of Feel the Magic."
"WHAT!.?.!" Those participating in the tournament roared, voicing their protests.
"Wait, 'Feel the Magic?' What's that game about?" Otto asked, raising an eyebrow. Everybody gave him a weirded out look. "What?.!"
"Whaddya think it's about?.!" Iggy snapped. The older boy stood there thinking for a bit before gasping.
"Ohhhhhh…" He nodded in understanding. His eyebrow went up again. "They got games about that!.?"
"Mainly in Japan." The other male answered.
(A/N: Despite the suggestive name, I'm pretty sure Feel the Magic isn't about that, so don't quote me on it.)
The crowd continued to roar at the quartet.
"SILENCE!.!.!" Izzy yelled, turning back to the blond. "So whaddya say?" He held out a hand. "Do we have a match?"
"Ummm… Errr…" Sam stuttered.
"Better hurry up. Either lose to me now or lose against those guys—" Izzy gestured towards the screaming crowd with his other hand. "—before you even come close to winning the DS."
"What do you think, Otto?" The shorter of the two rivals said to the redhead.
"Well, I need that DS now… And who knows how long this tournament will last?" Otto thought it over before putting on a determined expression. "Let's do it!"
"You heard him." Sam told the taller brunet. "I accept your challenge." He shook the other male's hand.
"Wait, the DS is for him?" Izzy pointed at Otto, who nodded.
"Oh, I get it!" Iggy gasped in realization. "It's for Lars, isn't it? That's what you've been looking for!"
"Right again." Otto confirmed with another nod.
"Oops… If I knew that, I would've given it to ya…" Izzy mumbled to himself. He shook his head and smirked. "Well sorry to disappoint you, but I'm gonna win this little duel."
"Don't count your chickens before they hatch, dude." The redhead retorted with his own smirk. The brunet growled in response. "By the way, what track are we racing on?"
"Heh, heh, heh…" The elder brother snickered. "Who said anything about Double Dash?"
"Huh?" Otto felt the color draining from his face. "W-we're not playing that?"
"Of course not!" Iggy shouted. "Even if it is the most popular game in town—Though how the hell does it remain popular after being out for like a year?—racing gets boring after awhile!"
"Right." Izzy agreed. "We're playing an entirely different game." Otto gulped in response.
"Hey! That's not fair!" Sam protested. "That's the only game he's ever played! He'll be at a disadvantage!"
"Oh well." The older Yaoi Brother shrugged. "Ya shoulda thought about that before accepting my challenge."
"But—" Otto tried.
"Come on! Let's get to the game!" Izzy interrupted, moving towards the elevator, followed by his brother. Before entering, he turned to the referee. "Make sure no one bothers us."
"But what about the tournament?" The official asked. "The National Gamers' Association won't like this sudden turn of events."
"I'll worry about them. Your job is to do whatever I say while you're here, and I say don't let anyone enter this elevator. Got it?"
"Yes sir." The man nodded.
"Good." Izzy joined his brother inside. Otto and Sam followed, despite the heavy feelings in their stomachs. It felt like somebody put a massive weight in both of them. Suddenly, they weren't sure of their victory anymore.
As they entered the elevator, the two extreme sports enthusiasts wanted nothing more than for it to get stuck, just so that they didn't have to face off against the brothers, who most likely wanted to play a game they can easily beat the blond and redhead in. Izzy pressed the button for the fourth floor, causing the doors to close. The elevator shook and vibrated as it lifted the two teams to their destination.
"The fourth floor, huh?" Iggy said to his brother. "That's the fighting game floor." He then leaned in close and whispered, "You're not going to use that room, are ya?"
"Of course I am. That's why I had it built in the first place!" Izzy hissed. "So that I can get some well-deserved revenge." He sniggered at the other two boys, who were also whispering to each other.
"So it's a fighting game we're playing, huh?" Sam commented.
"Uhhh Squid, I don't think I can do this." Otto said, getting second thoughts. "I have no clue what we're gonna play."
"Come on! Don't give up! Remember who you're doing this for!"
"Who I'm doing this for?" The skater repeated. "I know exactly who I'm doing this for. I'm playing so that I can get Lars his Christmas present!"
"Huh?" The Yaoi Brothers said, turning towards him after hearing that.
"That's right!" Otto yelled at them, clenching both fists. "I'm doing this for the guy I love! This is my last hope to get a DS and I'm not about to let you two ruin things for me! Go ahead and throw whatever you want at me! I'll take it and dish it right back at ya doubly as hard!"
"Heh. Admirable, very admirable." Izzy chuckled. "We'll see if your determination pays off in the end."
"Oh it will."
The elevator shook to a stop and opened.
"We'll see about that."
The quartet walked out of the elevator. The room consisted of several doorways, each decorated with mistletoe. Couches and vending machines were placed by every archway. Curiously, one wall in the room was bare. Nothing was standing by it. The two brothers walked up to this wall. Izzy put his hand against it and pushed. That part of the wall sunk in. The owner of the arcade retreated his hand, causing a whirring sound to be heard by everyone. To the great surprise of Otto and Sam, the wall slid to the right, revealing a secret room.
"Well, shall we enter?" Izzy said, turning to them. He and Iggy walked inside. Otto and Sam went in after them.
The lights inside the room turned on. A big screen TV was seen standing by the right wall. On either side of it was a speaker that looked like it belonged in a movie theater instead of a small room. Across from it was a platform that had danger strips lined along the bottom. Wires were connected to it. Four posts were pointing towards it from the ceiling. They were lined up horizontally and were parallel to designated spots on the platform. In front of the platform was a pedestal. Standing on top of it was a Gamecube. Connected to it were four controllers. It was also connected to the TV.
"Hey, are we supposed to play while standing on that thing?" Otto asked, pointing at the platform.
"Yep." Iggy answered.
"But where are the chairs?" Sam asked.
"There aren't any." Izzy replied. "This room is designed to test one's endurance. So I hope you don't get tired standing."
He walked onto the platform and grabbed the first controller. Iggy followed and took the second one. Giving each other an unsure look, Sam and Otto stepped on and grabbed the third and fourth controllers respectively.
"Now what?" Otto said to the brothers.
"System activate!" Izzy shouted, ignoring his question. The TV turned on and showed a blue screen that had a single bar in the middle.
"Initiating voice recognition protocol." A female voice said. The bar on the screen moved as it spoke. "Please state the password."
"Yaoi rules, yuri drools." Both brothers answered. An hourglass appeared onscreen as the computer processed the response.
"Hey Squid, what's yuri?" Otto asked.
"Judging by their password, it must be the opposite of yaoi." Sam replied, shrugging.
"Let's see… If yaoi involves guys getting together, then yuri must involve…" The redhead gasped and turned to the brothers. "You're straight and you hate that sort of thing!.?"
"Of course we do!" Izzy shouted in disgust. "That stuff's totally perverted!"
"Yeah! How would you like it if we thought something like that about Reggie?.!" Iggy added.
"Believe me, you wouldn't be standing if I caught you thinking something like that about my girlfriend." Sam growled.
"Yeah!" Otto agreed. "That's my sister you're talking about!"
"Password approved. Welcome, Yaoi Brothers." The female voice said. Everybody turned to the monitor as the hourglass disappeared and the screen glowed green.
"Initiate Game Program Alpha." Izzy ordered.
"Initiating… Enjoy your game." The voice complied as the screen faded.
Seconds later, the Gamecube logo appeared as the platform began to hum.
"Woah!" Otto and Sam yelped as they felt the vibrations.
"What's that all about?" Otto asked when the vibrations ceased.
"Don't worry. You'll find out in due time." Iggy answered, snickering.
Soon the logo left the screen and the game loaded. When the title screen appeared, the auburn haired one read it out loud.
"'Super Smash Brothers: Melee?' That's what we're playing?"
"Diabolical, isn't it?" Izzy asked, chuckling evilly.
"Hardly!" Sam laughed. "This game's a piece of cake to play!"
"It is?" Otto asked.
"Yeah! The controls are simple, so anybody can pick up and play it! I thought they were going to make us play something harder for a second there!" The blond chuckled.
"Oh yeah!.? We'll see who's laughing once this is over!" Izzy yelled, pressing the start button. The menu screen appeared and he immediately went into VS. mode. He then went to the options. "A twenty stock match on Pokémon Stadium. Agreed?"
"Fine." Sam nodded. Izzy proceeded to set up the rules of the match.
"Uhhh… Squid?"
"Yes?" The one in the glasses turned to Otto, feeling that he was about do a lot of talking.
"How does this game work?"
'How did I know?' The blond sighed, getting ready to speak.
"Here's how it goes." Iggy said, saving Sam the trouble. "As ya know, Smash Brothers is a fighting game. We each pick a Nintendo related character and throw down against each other on a battlefield, also Nintendo related. The match set up that my brother and your friend agreed on is a team match in which we all have twenty lives each. We'll be fighting on the Pokémon Stadium stage. Are you following?"
"Kinda…" Otto answered.
"The object of the game is to knock your opponents out of the field twenty times. This is done by attacking your opponent in any way possible. That includes using your character's moves, as well as various items that'll randomly appear."
"Woah! We get weapons in this?.!" The redhead asked excitedly.
'God, what a casual gamer.' Izzy thought, crossing his arms impatiently.
"Uhhh… Yeah…" Iggy replied strangely. "Anyway, as we take damage, it'll be easier for us to get knocked out."
"Then what's the point!.?" Otto demanded.
"The point is to outlast the other team, duh!" Izzy answered for his brother. "Now, are we gonna stand around talking, or are we gonna play!.?"
"Hang on!" Sam yelled at him as he turned to Otto. "Are you sure you're up to this? It may be easy to play this, but it's also easy to mess up." The taller boy nodded.
"Chill Squid. I'll be fine. Let's start this thing. I'm really anxious to take him down a notch!" He replied, glaring at the elder Yaoi Brother, who only smirked in response.
"If you're that anxious to lose, let's pick our characters."
Izzy left the options screen and went to the character select screen. Twenty-five icons were displayed. Pictured on each one was a different Nintendo character. Due to his experience during the summer, Otto only recognized a small fraction of the characters. At the bottom of the screen were four slots. The left half of them was red while the opposite half was blue.
"Survival." An announcer's voice said. Due to the speakers, the room shook slightly.
"Hmmm… Now who should I pick?" Izzy said in a teasing manner.
"You're the one who was complaining about waiting too long, bro!" Iggy shouted at him as he made his choice. The younger Yaoi Brother chose to play as the titanic brute, Bowser. The evil spiked turtle appeared in the right red slot as the announcer called his name.
"Oh alright, ya party pooper." The older brother pouted as he made his choice. He picked Ness, the psychic boy from the game Earthbound. The capped child appeared in the left red slot as the announcer said his name.
"Ha! You're picking a little kid!.? This'll be nothing!" Otto scoffed.
"Uh, uh, uhhhh…" The taller brunet shook his left finger in a condoling manner. "Have you ever heard the old saying, 'Big things come in small packages'?"
"He's right, ya know." Sam whispered. "He picked a pretty powerful character."
"Hmph. There's no way I'm gonna lose." Otto bragged, that Rocket confidence shining brighter than any Christmas light he's seen today. He gulped as he got ready to pick his character.
He wasn't exactly sure who to play as mainly because he's never seen any of these characters fight, so he had no idea if their moves would help him in battle. He decided to play it safe with the Mario characters. Of course, he suffered the same problem there as well. He may have played a game that featured them, but it was a racing game, not a fighting game or whichever genre the Mario games were considered.
So, with a simple shrug and a silent prayer that he and Sam would win, he picked the red-clad plumber, Mario, one of the very same characters he used to race against Lars all those months ago. As the game's announcer said his name, he appeared at the right end of the screen. Sam made his choice faster than everyone else. He picked to play as that lovable scourge of parent's purses (at least in 1998-99), Pikachu. As soon as the electric rodent appeared onscreen, a low growl filled the air.
'Pikachu…' Izzy hissed inwardly, shaking a fist. 'Since day one, that thing has been a constant plague on my life.' He glared at Sam, who was discussing his strategy with Otto. 'I'll personally destroy him for picking that thing.' He cleared his throat in an attempt to keep a straight face. Truth was, he wanted to punch Sam for insulting him like this, but he kept his cool. 'Just wait until he experiences the extra feature of this room.' He smirked.
"Alright, if everybody's ready, it's time to duel!" He yelled, punching the air. It was silent as the other three looked at him weirdly. Turning to them, he sighed as he put down his fist. "What now?"
"That was lame." Otto voiced the others' thoughts.
"Yeah." Sam and Iggy agreed.
"I never get to have any fun…" Izzy sulked, lowering his head.
"We're about to fight them and you say you never get to have fun!.?" His brother demanded.
"But I can't be cool and animé-like about it…" The older brunet said, pressing the tips of his pointing fingers close together (he put the controller down before doing this). The others slapped their heads.
"Quit your whining and press Start already!" Otto ordered.
"Yeah! We got loved ones to be with, ya know!" Sam added.
"You guys can start the match too!" Izzy snapped, picking up his controller. The redhead turned to the blond, who blinked in realization.
"Oh yeah!" He chuckled, rubbing the back of his head. "I forgot about that!" He laughed sheepishly as the others raised an eyebrow.
"Oh screw this! I'll start the match!" Otto shouted. He gulped as his right thumb lowered towards the tiny button in the center of the controller. "Here goes nothing."
He pressed the button, causing the screen to fade out.
To be concluded…
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Mid-chapter Conversation
Part One
"Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way!" Izzy sang in a drunken daze. "Oh what fun is it to ride in a one horse cabbage!"
Iggy and I looked at him with eyebrows raised before turning back to our chat session.
I think you may have hit him too hard. The younger brother wrote. I glared at him.
YOU'RE the one who wanted him to shut up! I replied with an angry face.
Heh, heh. Sorry. He wrote, adding in a smiley face that was sweatdropping. By the way, I thought you said this was gonna be the last chapter. What happened?
I shrugged before telling him, To be honest, I didn't think the chapter was gonna be so long. After all, I still gotta do your and Izzy's battle against Otto and Sam. Gotta give the people what they want without taking too much of their time.
Iggy raised an eyebrow before asking, What makes you think the readers want action? Don't they want to see Otto and Lars make out?
I glowered at him. Please don't turn into Izzy. It's bad enough I have to listen to HIM on a daily basis.
Right. Sorry. Iggy apologized, scratching his head.
I walked up to the camera and wrote on my DS before holding it up.
Merry Christmas, folks! With any luck, I'll be able to get the last bit of this story written up and posted before New Year's!
I was about to walk away before I stopped and scribbled a quick message.
Thanks, deana for the reviews. I'll try to write as much detail as possible when I get to that scene. Also, I'd love to write a sequel to Maurice is Missing, if only I could get an idea.
I waved before writing another message.
Til next chapter!
