—-
You've decided. Souvenir winning's the name of the game, and it's a game you intend to win! Because Kaina deserves to be surrounded by warm fluffies!
Hmm. It might be worth getting her to cuddle Lupe with you at some point. Didn't she express an interest in petting Lupe's ears? Maybe create some custom-made pets for Kaina too! What kind of pets would she like? Bird-girls? Maybe some lizard-girls with fat, scaly tails? Or some more puppies to cuddle and molest!
Food for thought.
All these happy, lewd thoughts fill your head as you walk up to the nondescript stall manager to go win some oversized plushies for your love.
"One at a time, pay for tickets here. Hey, do you like, have mods or something?" The stoned-looking arcade worker drones out, only briefly glancing up from her phone.
"No?" You say, a bit startled by the question. And this girl's bored attitude. How rude!
"Good because like, arcade policy is that, like, people with mods aren't allowed to play these games. Because it's, like, unfair or something. Here. Darts. Throw them at, like, the balloons to win prizes and stuff."
Sheesh, this arcade really needs to pay its workers better. Or maybe hire more enthusiastic workers, this girl's seriously ruining your buzz. As it is the smile on your face is a bit strained now as you accept the cupful of darts this uniformed corporate drone offers you.
The game's a pretty traditional one, popping inflated balloons pinned to the back wall of the booth with darts. There's a timer too; pop all the balloons in a set amount of time and you get to win a price of your choice from the stuffed animals at the top of the booth. Simple, easy, right?
Not really. This game's pretty transparently rigged. The multicolored balloons pinned to the back of the booth aren't entirely inflated, which means it's harder to pop them. Furthermore, the actual darts you were handed? Those are totally dull, the tips are basically blunt. The weight distribution on the darts is also all kinds of funky and wrong, there's no way that these will fly the way you want them to unless you really put some force behind them.
You actually catch a slight smirk on this arcade vendor's face as she watches you eye the darts! Oh, that cheeky devil, she gets her jollies watching customers get totally frustrated because of these rigged games, doesn't she?
Well. You'll show her.
You clench your fist around a dart and throw it… And it goes wide. Curses.
You throw again, and again. Thwip, thwip. Darts hit the backboard, blunt tips sinking into plywood. Some balloons pop, but some of the darts actually bounce off the rubber. Upon seeing that, you up the strength of your throws…
… But it's not enough to beat the timer. The buzzer sounds, the clock ticks to a halt, and you frown. There's still a good chunk of the board to go! Out of a hundred balloons you've only popped around two-thirds! The rest are still half-inflated, taunting you!
Gosh, this game's rigged pretty hard, isn't it? You're modded yourself, you've made a few unobtrusive alterations to your biology to boost your physical capabilities even in your civilian mode. And you still couldn't win this game 'fairly'!
"Too bad, so sad, try again later," the arcade worker mocks. You feel your eyebrow twitch out of irritation.
Okay, you were understanding earlier, but this behavior's just obnoxious. You just want to win a stuffed animal for Kaina! What's so wrong with that? Why's she got to be such a meanie-pants?
Kaina saves this girl from your wrath by stepping in front of you.
"Those aren't regular rubber balloons," your love points out calmly.
"Yeah they are. Special kind of rubber," the arcade worker shrugs, tries to hide her little smirk. She fails. Hey, you totally saw how smug she was looking! And from Kaina's disapproving frown, your love totally caught that smirk too!
"… This game is obviously rigged," your love continues, the little furrow creasing her brow deepening. She's frowning now, a small but stern frown.
"Complain to my manager, why don't you. Are you done? Because there are people behind you. Like, waiting in line or something."
"… I'd like to try to play this game as well," Kaina says, offering her credchit.
The nameless arcade worker shrugs, scans Kaina's credchit, and presses a button to reset the booth. "Alright, sure. Here you go. Darts. Hit the timer when you're ready."
"And to clarify, I get to pick any prize I want once I win?"
"If you, like, win? Sure," the arcade worker shrugs.
"Okay," Kaina nods.
And then she gets to throwing. Her arm becomes a blur as she starts rapid-firing darts like a human machinegun. Thwip, thwip, thwip. Pop, pop, pop. Rubber shrapnel from popped balloons litters the booth's floor as blunted darts sink right into the backboard, aimed with perfect accuracy.
… Hey, your love's really overpowered, isn't she? This is a game where you were having trouble, and here she is just going to town like it's nobody's business.
You hold your hands up to your chest, mind awash with glee as you watch the girl you love go to town on this game. Beside you the obnoxious arcade worker's smug attitude falls away. Her jaw goes slack, her eyes go round as she watches Kaina demolish this rigged game.
With one final pop Kaina destroys the last balloon, right as the timer sounds. Your love blows out a little breath, lowers her hand, turns to face you and this rude vendor.
Kyah~!
Your love is so cool!
"I won. I'd like my prize now," Kaina demands.
"… Sure."
Kaina shifts to face you, now. "Alice, what stuffed animal would you like?"
… Eh?
Wait, did Kaina just… Oh, she just stepped in to try to help you out, didn't she? She saw the opportunity to win a prize for you and she seized it, didn't she? The two of you were totally operating on the same wavelength then!
"The stuffed penguin looks nice, doesn't it? I saw you eyeing it earlier!"
It is, indeed, just a big, pink ball of feathered fluff. So cute.
"… Mmh. That, please," Kaina pauses as a thought comes to her mind. "… Also, what other games does this arcade have?"
The nameless, obnoxious arcade vendor whimpers as Kaina turns to face her now.
Your love really is the coolest when she's being intimidating!
Hee.
You were thinking you'd have to encourage her to help you clean this entire arcade out. Guess you didn't have to~!
--
It turns out you need an entire cart to haul your loot out of the arcade. You hum as you push your wire-meshed cart onto the street. It's just laden with plushies. Blue whales, cute fluffy puppies, kitties, birds of all kinds and in all sorts of colors. Enough fluff to fill an entire bedroom!
Yeah, you and Kaina made out like bandits. You even got to meet this arcade's owner! And watch him cry! You didn't think a grown man could cry that much!
Half of the animals in this cart were actually foisted on you in an attempt to get Kaina the heck away from the arcade. Because she seemed pretty darn determined to stay until she cleaned out all the rigged carnival-style stalls! And she was making pretty good headway too! She just demolished her way through all of those games.
Shooting hoops? It was a breeze! Ladder crawl? No sweat! Ring tossing? She made it look easy. It didn't matter what kind of optical illusions the games employed, or how much they were rigged, Kaina just kept on winning~!
It got to the point where the arcade staff had Kaina step through a metal detector to prove she wasn't cybermodded at all! That's how much she ticked the staff off with her ridiculous physical feats!
"Uwah…"
You find yourself grinning from ear to ear as you watch your love cuddle the first stuffed plush she won, that oversized pink penguin. She's squeezing it to her chest, nuzzling her face in the soft fluff. Ah, so cute~!
"Alice, is it really okay for me to have all of these stuffed animals?" Kaina asks shyly.
"Of course! You were the one who won them all, weren't you?"
"… But I wanted you to have fluffy things too…"
Aw~! So thoughtful! Well, you have all the fluff you want back at home. Your cat-eared maids provide that for you. It's not like you really need stuffed animals. But you'll happily keep anything Kaina gives you as mementos to look fondly upon!
… You seriously need to get Kaina maids of her own at some point, don't you. Maybe you can bring Lupe along for one of these dates. Or maybe you can invite Kaina back to your place to pet Lupe! Or just invite Kaina to come live with you, that's the simplest solution, then you can both be surrounded by all the fluff you want...
"Well, maybe I'll take one of these stuffed animals for myself," you concede, reaching into the cart you're pushing to grab a random plush. "As a souvenir, you know?"
"A souvenir?" Kaina asks.
"Well yeah, that's why I wanted to win these stuffed animals for you in the first place! You kind of preempted me on that front though," you laugh.
"Ah. I'm… I'm sorry," Kaina blushes.
"Don't be! I had a great time! It was fun watching you clean that entire place out~! It's too bad they kicked us out, you were seriously on a roll!"
"… Mmh," Kaina nods. "… So. What now?"
That's a good question. Now you're just waiting in the street outside the arcade. Lupe's on her way with the car to take you elsewhere for the next portion of your date. The night's still young, it might be a bit early to turn in for the night. So many possibilities, so little time.
Ooh, you can't wait to continue the rest of your night with your love~! These are the happy thoughts that course through your mind, filling your brain with wonderfully fluffy chemicals and feelings. Just spending time with the girl you love so dearly's a blessing in and of itself~!
Terminus City being Terminus City, however, circumstance quickly forces your thoughts quickly turn elsewhere.
It's really amazing how quickly things can devolve into violence in this city, even with the presence of three senior Magical Girls, three junior Magical Girls, and one of the most militarized police forces in the entire world.
One moment, you're standing comfortably on the curbside with the blonde girl you love, just waiting for your limo to come pick you up. The scene's nice, domestic even. It might be slightly chilly outside, but the presence of your love's enough to warm you up! Her nice smell, the way she ever so slightly presses her arm against your own, nudges her shoulder against your own, the warmth of her jacket around your shoulders...
The next?
Pandemonium. The sound of gunfire fills the air. Tires screeching against asphalt as two cars round the corner, engines roaring at full tilt, cyber-modded gangers screaming obscenities at each other as they trade bullets.
Ugh, of course.
Only in Terminus City can things go to pot so quickly. Of all the stupid times for the two-bit gangers in this city to get rowdy, it has to be now?! When you're on a nice date?!
Kaina tackles you to the ground, shielding you with her body as the cars speed by. You wince as your back scrapes against the rough pavement, as the loud noises continue to perforate your ears in the background. You hear more screeching, the sound of tires swerving. The awful crunch of metal hitting concrete, loud bangs, almost like an explosion.
The impact of one of the cars hitting a nearby building is so powerful it shakes you right through the sidewalk. You look up, seeing Kaina mouth something. Her words filter into your ears moments later.
"Alice, are you alright?" Kaina asks, looking a bit frantic.
"… Yeah," you nod, heart hammering in your chest. Not because the situation's scary, of course.
It's because Kaina's first instinct was to shield you and protect you~! Ah, the feeling of being protected by Kaina…! Having her so close to you~!
It's not enough for you to ever be grateful to these stupid schmucks for interrupting your date in such a violent fashion of course but even still…!
Finally, Kaina lets you up, pulling you to your feet with her slim, strong hands. You survey the scene, and let out a sigh.
Whoever these morons were, they've really done a number on this street. The place is a wreck now. Both of the cars have crashed, one into the wall of a nearby building. The other swerved out of control, it's on its side now. From the way it's mangled, it must've rolled a few times before coming to a stop. Unconscious, broken bodies litter the street. The broken bodies of the idiot gangers who decided to get into a car shootup, and a few hapless pedestrians who were unlucky enough to get caught up in the mess.
Just another charming incident to remind you that yes, Terminus City really is a horrible place to live, crime-infested as it yet remains. Sure, the crime rates have gone down, but not enough to prevent incidents like this. From the gang colors on the smouldering vehicles… One vehicle's painted in shades of green, the other in shades of black and red. What, the Jade Tigers got in a shootout with the Zealots of Samnas?
Great. Just great. Screaming, moaning, plenty of injured people. Just another clip for the news to show…
And one date that's looking like it's just been horribly derailed. There's no way Lupe can pick you up on this street now! More importantly, Kaina's looking pretty stressed!
"…" Kaina starts, jerking her hand away from you as she takes a tentative step towards the scene. Your love looks… Weary now. Resigned, and a bit shaken. You flinch as you feel her draw on her mana, the endless reserves of magical energy that collects around her slim body.
… She's not seriously thinking of helping these people, is she?
Oh, who are you kidding, of course she is. She's Infinity Princess. Saving people is what she does. She's about to transform and go help these people however she can, isn't she?
"… Alice, I…" Kaina begins to say, fumbling through her words. She glances from you, back to the carnage-laden street, back to you. "… I… I haven't been completely honest with you. And I… I..."
Something occurs to you then, seeing how hesitant Kaina is. She doesn't know that you know she's Infinity Princess. This is... Basically a confession, isn't it? She's about to confess, then transform, then go save some worthless meat sacks. In that order. Oh dear.
... Poor Kaina. Caught between duty and love like this.
Hmm...
--
(20/170 Essence, 55 Regen)