A/N: And here we go! It's time for the actual casino games to begin! No reason not to put in some big bets when you're a secret millionaire, after all. I apologize for the delay in uploading this chapter, but it's a long one to make up for it 😊
Things will take quite the…interesting turn…later on down the road, as you'll soon see. I think you'll enjoy my little surprise.
This'll probably be the last chapter in the vacation arc, as I can't really think of much more that's around the area and I don't want to drag this arc out for too long.
Also, keep in mind that most if not all communication between Mike and the ghosts is through telepathy and not actual speech. Otherwise people would be staring at Mike and thinking he's crazy for talking to seven imaginary friends or something :P
Chapter 55 – The First Vacation Part 3
"I'm feeling the Roulette first," Mike decided. He had exchanged around 1000 dollars for casino tokens and was now confidently strutting over to the aforementioned table. "Think a few balls on the wheel would be a good way to start the night."
"Is that the one where you put money on a number or category and if it matches you win?" Cassidy asked, bobbing up and down in the air in excitement.
"That's pretty much the gist of it!" Mike replied as he approached the table. There was already quite a few people there, all of whom were eager to make their next bet.
"Good evening, sir," the croupier politely greeted him. "You're just in time for the next bet."
"Ooh! Ooh!" Fritz exclaimed, ignoring the dirty looks he was getting from the other ghosts for getting the first bet in. "Put it on red, dad!"
"50 dollars on red to start the evening," Mike agreed as he plopped down chips on the table. The croupier nodded and spun the wheel. The ghosts watched with bated breath as the ball spun ever closer to the wheel. With a barely audible thunk, the ball landed onto one of the slots as the wheel began to slow down, revealing…
"Awwww!" all the ghosts groaned as the wheel stopped, clearly showing the ball on Black 23. "Dammit…" Fritz muttered as the croupier snatched away the chips Mike had placed on the table.
"No biggie," Mike shrugged. "Since we don't have a lot of time between bets I'm going to take the first one I hear, but try and give everyone a chance. Nobody likes a hogger."
"Try 19-36, dad?" Susie suggested. Mike put another 50 dollars on the wheel and the croupier spun it again. This time, the ball landed in Red 23, much to the delight of the ghosts. "I won!" Susie cheered as Mike collected his winnings. "Whoo!"
"Nice work, but we're only just getting started," Mike cautioned. "Let's see what happens when I put in a little more." He took out another 50 dollars' worth of chips, making the total value of the bet 100 dollars. "Things get so much more exciting when there's more at stake, after all."
For the next few minutes, the ghostly children each offered up a bet suggestion for the roulette wheel. There were cheers whenever the bet yielded victory and groans of disappointment whenever it missed the mark, but to the growing consternation of the kids, however, the majority of their bets ended up failing, with only Susie's early bet and Jeremy's suggestion of Even numbers garnering any fruit.
The hardest loss by far was when Mike bet 300 dollars on 13-24 at Liz's suggestion. The skeptical look on Mike's face made it clear that he didn't expect this particular bet to go anywhere, a suspicion that was confirmed when the ball landed in Black 2.
"Wait, you actually bet 300 dollars on that?" Liz spluttered as the croupier snatched away the chips. "I was just joking!"
Mike shrugged before putting another 100 on Black. "Meh, I mostly did it just for shits and giggles," he explained, before frowning slightly. "I mean, I'm not bothered by the money we're losing, but I'm a bit surprised at how bad our luck's been. We've been betting mostly on half odds, so I would've expected us to win more than this."
As if proving his point, the roulette ball landed on Red 16.
"You know what," Mike threw his hands up in the air, "I'm getting tired of roulette after losing so many times so I'm going to just put this bet here for shits and giggles."
He took out another 300 dollars' worth of chips, the last of the money he had brought to the table. "Fuck it!" he declared. "Put this shit on zero and double zero!"
Everyone (living and dead) gasped and the crowd around him broke into excited whispers. "You're crazy, man!" someone exclaimed from the background.
"Well, I've lost every roulette round here except for 2 so I might as well try this because why the fuck not?" Mike retorted.
"Are you sure this is a good idea, dad?" Charlie asked nervously.
"Probably not, Charlie, but it's Vegas, so I don't give a shit," her father blithely replied as the croupier spun the wheel. Everyone gave the wheel their full attention as it spun, and spun…
…and the ball landed neatly into the green 00 slot.
The crowd burst into an uproar as the family's jaws all dropped towards the table. "Wait…" Mike finally recovered after several seconds. "…are…are you for real? I…I was just fucking around! I…I actually won a bet off putting money on 00?"
"That you have indeed, sir," the croupier smoothly replied, though everyone could tell that he was just as shocked by Mike's win as everyone else what. "Your winnings come out to a total of 5100 dollars."
Mike shook his head in disbelief as he collected the chips. "What the fuck," he muttered. "What in the actual fuck…"
"Don't argue, dad!" Cassidy interrupted as she hugged him from behind. "You won, and you won big!"
"Welp, at least I have a ton of money now that I'll probably lose all over again in some other game further down the road," Mike snarked as he departed from the table. He knew better than to continue testing his luck like that. "Where to now?"
"The slot machines!" Jeremy suggested. "Those things look really cool!"
"Slot machines it is," Mike agreed as he made his way over to one of the extravagant money traps. "This is probably the simplest thing in the entire Casino," he explained. "Just put in some money, spin the wheel, and whatever the hell happens happens."
As a demonstration, he put in 50 dollars into the machine and pulled the lever. The slots spun for several seconds before landing on a fruit, a 7, and a bell. "You have to match things to win."
Gabe peered down at the pay table, tilting his head in curiosity. "So Bar and 7 get you the biggest win, right?" he asked.
"Yeah, but don't be fooled though," he warned, "the machines are designed so that it's VERY rare to get a Bar or 7 win. And again, everything in a casino is designed so that you will lose more than you will win."
"House advantage," A sour look crossed Charlie's face. "It's kind of unfair."
"Maybe," Mike shrugged, "but it's not exactly a known secret. And in the end, it's the people's design to gamble their money away. Now then," he looked over at the casino machine, "who wants to run a few slots?"
Susie raised her hand. "Can I go first this time?" she asked.
Mike smiled at her, which the girl took as an invitation to approach the machine. "Grab the lever and we'll put together," he instructed. "One…two…three…"
Father and ghost child pulled the lever down together and everyone watched as three cherries lined up. "Better than nothing," Mike commented as a few chips rolled down. One at a time, each ghost child took Susie's place as their father's partner, giving everyone an equal chance to participate in the fun. However, unlike the roulette table, there were no major events this time around, so Mike never won or lost more than a few coins. This was made up for by the fact that there was a lot more diversity in the types of slot machines than for the other games, and the kids enjoyed playing on the different types of machines even if Mike lost a couple hundred dollars in the process.
"I could have sworn I saw a Pokémon themed slot machine a few rows back," Cassidy speculated as Liz and Mike won three hundred dollars off a lucky spin. "I don't know if I'm just seeing things, though."
"I think my favorite one is that Greek or Roman style that we played a few seconds ago," Jeremy commented as Cassidy decided to go see if she was right or not.
"Nah man, my favorite slot machine was the pirate-themed one!" Fritz declared as the others rolled their eyes.
"To the surprise of absolutely nobody ever," Liz dryly replied as Cassidy returned, the latter looking somewhat disappointed that she had been wrong.
"I'm just amazed at how lucky we are to be able to actually play these, or at least help Dad play these," he said as Mike decided to call it quits on the slots. "If you think about it, we're the first kids to ever be able to play in a casino in Vegas."
"To be fair," Mike replied wryly as he began walking away from the machines, "you guys are ghosts, and I don't think the price of dying at an early age is worth it. Especially when it comes with the added bonus of getting brutally murdered by a sociopathic asshat and getting stuffed in fursuits for 30 plus years. Unless you're a masochist or something like that."
"You don't say?" Charlie answered, her tone just as dry. By now, the family had been together long enough that they could comfortably talk about their past and even derive some black humor out of it.
"What's a masochist?" Jeremy asked, having never heard the word before.
Mike cringed a bit as he realized his mistake. "You don't want to know," he muttered as they left the Caesar's Palace. As fun as the casino had been, everyone agreed that a change in atmosphere was in order. Since Mike was saving his Bellagio casino night for tomorrow, the New York, NY was chosen next by popular vote.
"Damn!" Fritz whistled as he looked around the inside of the casino. "This place really looks like we're inside a modern city!"
"I wonder what the actual city looks like," Liz remarked.
"You can look it up later, cities like New York are way too big for me to just give a blanket description," Mike replied as he made his way over to the casino section. This time, however, he ignored the Roulette table and the slot machine.
"What are you going to play, dad?" Cassidy asked.
Mike grinned. "I think it's time for some good old Blackjack!" he declared as he approached one of the tables. "Something that's a little more…interactive…compared to the things we've been doing so far."
"I think I saw a few of those tables over at the Aria," Charlie commented, "but I didn't really understand what was going on. Something about 21?"
"Ah, 21, the magic number!" Mike proceeded to explain the rules of Blackjack and how the goal of the game was to get as close to the number 21 as possible through the cards without going over. It was definitely more complicated than either Roulette or slots, and more than one ghost ended up asking questions. Still, Mike was able to give them a basic understanding of how the game worked. The man tossed 100 dollars' worth of chips to the dealer, who proceeded to deal Mike two cards. Mike looked at the two cards, a 6 and a 2.
"You would hit that hand, right?" Susie asked. "Since there's no way you can lose with another card."
"Yeah," Mike confirmed as he rapped the table with his knuckles. "And there's no way you're gonna win with just an 8." His eyes lit up as he got a Jack. "18, not bad. I'll stay." The dealer gave himself a card and flipped his last one over, revealing a total of 20.
"Aww, damn…" the man muttered as his money was taken away. "And I actually had a good number too."
Liz winced. "Unlucky…" she mumbled.
"Tell me about it," Mike muttered as the dealer snatched away the chips. He tossed in 200 dollars this time, and to his delight the dealer gave him an ace and a king. "Yes!" he whooped as he saw that the dealer had an 8. "Blackjack!"
"Blackjack?" Susie repeated.
"If you get an ace and a 10 card at the beginning, you automatically win unless the dealer also has a blackjack," Mike explained as the dealer gave him 300 dollars. "It's the super version of getting a 21."
"And I'm guessing if the dealer has a Blackjack then everyone instantly loses?"
"Yep," Mike confirmed as he was dealt another hand. It was a 4 and a 10, and this one drew a lot more argument between the ghosts.
"He should hit!" Fritz argued. "You saw how easy the other guy got a 20, he needs a higher number or he's gonna lose!"
"And what if he gets an 8 or higher?" Gabe challenged. "If that happens, he's screwed!"
"He's gonna lose anyway if the dealer gets a higher number than him," Cassidy retorted. "I'm with Fritz on this one, dad needs a good solid number to win!"
"What's the dealer's face-up card again?" Liz asked.
Charlie looked over at the dealer's side of the table, where a 9 of spades was laid face-up. "A 9," she reported.
Liz sighed. "Then I say hit. The dealer already has a 9, his number's probably already higher than dad's."
The kids couldn't argue with that logic and reluctantly agreed. Mike hit the table…and received a King. "Well, shit…" Mike muttered.
"You were kinda screwed from the start there, dad…" Susie consoled him.
"Yeah," Mike admitted. "Nobody wants to get a number between 13 and 16 in Blackjack. At least with really high numbers or really low numbers it's obvious what you want to do. With middle numbers you have a good chance of fucking yourself over."
The ghosts nodded in understanding as the dealer gave out the next hands. Mike played a few more games of Blackjack, each time allowing a different child to play the game through his actions. The kids enjoyed puzzling and arguing over the more ambiguous hands, but many of them soon found the game repetitive and Mike took that as his cue to end his run at the Blackjack table.
"Hit me," Mike commanded as he looked down at his final hand, a 4 and a 7. To his delight, the final card was a 10. "Hah!" he declared. "A great way to end the evening."
The dealer smirked. "I wouldn't be too sure of that, sir," he smugly replied. The man flipped up his hidden card…revealing an ace along with his queen.
Mike nearly spat out the drink he had ordered. "Aww, come on!" he complained as the dealer snatched away his chips.
"That's bullshit!" Fritz protested.
"Booooooo!" Cassidy made a thumbs-down gesture.
"That's the casino for you," Mike muttered as he got out of his chair. "The house always wins."
"Indeed, good sir," the dealer chuckled. "Have a good night."
Despite the disappointing finish, Mike smiled at him. "Same to you."
"I can't believe that there's entire tournaments dedicated to this game," Gabe exclaimed as they left the table. "I mean, don't people get tired of playing the same thing over and over again?"
"Maybe it's an acquired taste," Mike answered. "I know a few friends who were really into it in college. I like the game well enough, but it isn't my favorite. Now, poker on the other hand…I could play that game all day."
"Poker?" Liz tilted her head.
"I'm saving that for tomorrow," her father replied as he suddenly yawned. He looked at his watch and his eyes suddenly widened. "Eleven o'clock already?" he exclaimed. "Jesus, time flies." He let out another yawn. "Do you guys mind if we pack it in for the night?" he asked. "I'm still recovering from my massive buffet food coma and I want to save some energy for gaming tomorrow night too."
"It's up to you, dad," Charlie assured him. "We're happy to go along with whatever you want to do."
"Tell you what," Mike decided. "While I go to bed early, why don't you guys go out and explore the rest of the city like you explored the Grand Canyon?" he suggested. "You didn't really get the chance earlier and something tells me you guys aren't as tired as I am."
The ghosts' eyes lit up and they started chittering excitedly. "That's a great idea!" Fritz exclaimed.
"Well then, get to it. You've got a whole night to explore one of the craziest cities in the world." The ghosts all hugged their father and flew out in the same pairs they had arranged in the Grand Canyon, each of them giving Mike a thank you of some kind as they left. Mike smiled as he watched them go before hailing a cab for the Aria.
"Enjoy your night, you guys," he murmured quietly to himself as he slipped into the cab and it drove into the night.
The Next Morning…
Mike groggily hit the alarm clock in the suite as he blearily opened his eyes. The first thing he noticed was that the other ghosts were in the bed along with him. Many of them had positioned themselves next to him and Cassidy had even crawled on top of him. All of them were fast asleep, and even as tired as he was Mike could tell that they were recovering from thorough exhaustion.
"They must have really gone nuts with the whole exploring thing last night," Mike thought as he absentmindedly stroked Charlie's spectral hair. Then, he let his head fall back onto the pillow. "Fuck it…" was his last thought before he closed his eyes, "…I need a late sleep just as much as they do."
It wasn't until several hours later that all of them finally woke up. Susie jolted a bit when she saw the time. "10:30 already?" she gasped. "God, we stayed up LATE!"
"How long DID you guys stay up?" Mike asked as the others rubbed away the last traces of sleep from their eyes.
"I don't remember," Jeremy mumbled, "but it was definitely a lot later than most kids have their bedtimes."
"Somehow that doesn't surprise me," his father replied dryly. "Right, now that you guys are up, I have a little assignment for you while I check in with Melody and some of my friends real quick. I want you guys to look up the rules for Poker, especially the order of Poker hands. I'm going to be spending our second night mostly playing Poker, and it's important for you guys to know the rules of how hands work and so forth.
The kids proceeded to look up the rules for Poker as he had instructed while the man quickly texted Melody and a few of his friends to see how things were going. Judging by the happy texts that Melody sent back in reply, she was doing quite well for herself. In particular, she and Bonnet seemed to have hit it off immediately, and Melody found it almost impossible to feel any negative feelings for long – there was something about the pink bunny puppet's presence that immediately cheered Melody up the moment she saw her.
"She's so adorable!" Melody cooed as Mike heard Bonnet's giggle over the phone. "I almost want to make more of her!"
"But then she wouldn't be one-of-a-kind anymore," Mike counterargued good-humoredly.
"I suppose you're right," Melody admitted. "By the way, thanks again for letting me use your workshop. There's a lot of things I can do because of it."
"No problem, Melody. I'm glad it's helping you out."
"I can't really thank you properly from here, so all I'll say right now is good luck and go kick some ass at the poker tables!" Melody declared.
Mike chuckled. "I'll try my best, Mel. Have fun with Bonnet."
He hung up and dialed the Marshalls' number. Mike spent another couple of minutes talking with Ryan. His kids had heard about their vacation from one of the ghosts, and both were enthusiastic about the idea that their friends were taking the very same vacation that they had showed them the first time. "Hope you guys have a lot of fun!" Ryan had told Mike. "I'd say take a lot of pictures, but…"
"That'd be kind of hard for obvious reasons," Mike snarked.
"Eh, you guys will remember the good times easily, I'm sure," Ryan replied. "Did you guys hit the casino yet?"
"Yep, but I'm saving the poker rounds for tonight," Mike answered back.
Ryan sighed wistfully. "Ah, those were the days…remember when he had that tournament back in college? That was one of the most intense things I've ever seen, and we weren't even allowed to gamble anything back them!"
"Well, we'll see if I've still got the edge when night rolls around."
"I'm sure you do, Mike. Kick their ass!"
Mike chuckled and gave Ryan a quick fare-well before shutting off the phone. By the time he had finished making their calls, the kids were done looking up the rules for Poker. "This is some seriously complicated stuff," Fritz muttered. "So, a full house is three of a kind plus two of a kind, right?"
"Yeah," Mike confirmed. "It's pretty high up there in terms of poker hands."
"I think I'll have to actually see a game to understand what's going on," Jeremy muttered.
"You will," his father promised. "There's a reason why Poker is one of my favorite casino games out there. But that's for tonight. We have other things we need to do for now."
It turned out that in the excitement of guiding his kids around, Mike had completely forgotten to do some shopping, both for his friends and for the family's sake. The man was honestly a bit embarrassed that he had forgotten something so basic, so the next few hours were dedicated to scouting around the many shops in the Las Vegas casinos and buying things that piqued either the ghosts' interest or his own. The ghosts had also discovered many interesting locations during their exploration last night that they had wanted to show their father. Following the guidance of his kids for a change, Mike enjoyed the observation decks of the Stratosphere (which provided one of the best panoramic views of Las Vegas in the entire city), the dolphin habitat and artificial volcano of the Mirage (which had the most gold on a building that Mike had ever seen), and the Shark Reef Aquarium of the Mandalay Bay, amongst other sights and locales. Mike had fortunately brought along a bathing suit, so he was able to enjoy some of the water attractions at the Mandalay Bay. It was a bit of a disappointment for the ghosts that they couldn't enjoy the water park like they could a sled or a raft (since they couldn't get wet and there wasn't really anything that they could anchor themselves to), but at least they could anchor themselves to the other tubes floating on the lazy river for the sake of a relaxing ride if nothing else.
"Oh, I almost forgot to tell you!" Liz blurted out once Mike was done. "We tried anchoring ourselves to the roller coaster at the New York, NY hotel. And it WORKED!" she giggled happily. "We can use anchoring to go on roller coaster!"
Mike's eyes widened. "Really? Wow!" he declared. "Suddenly that makes plans like going to Disney World and amusement parks a LOT more viable!"
"I wasn't even sure if it was gonna work," Gabe added, "but after testing it last night I can say for sure that we can use anchoring on roller coasters and stuff like that. I'm honestly wondering why I doubted it for so long, since I know we can anchor to other fast-moving things like cars."
"It was so much fun!" Cassidy exclaimed. "We got to see the inside and the outside of the casino in a whole new way and seeing the city from the roller coaster was so amazing! Can we go to Disneyworld soon? Please?"
"I'll have to work out the details of that kind of trip later on," Mike replied with a smile, "but I don't see why we can't arrange something like that further down the road." Cassidy's response was to kiss her father on the cheek and float away with a giggle.
"Why Disneyworld, though?" Fritz asked. "Isn't Disneyland supposed to be closer?"
"Yeah, but Disneyland is smaller," Mike explained. "Disneyworld has like four parks in it and a lot more stuff outside of them. Not to mention Universal Studios is pretty close by. But that's a topic for another day."
"You've bought a LOT of stuff, dad!" Charlie noticed. "Three bags?"
"But of course!" Mike grinned. "This is the first time I've been out of Hurricane in God knows how long, just for myself and you guys. I'd have to be an idiot not to buy some souvenirs to celebrate the occasion. I'll wait til we get back home to show you them, I want it to be a surprise."
After a quick drop-by at the Aria to leave the presents at the suite, Mike escorted his kids over to the Bellagio for the Cirque du Soleil show that he had promised his kids. The O show was heralded throughout the world as "infinity and elegance of water's pure form," and the family would very soon learn why. Everyone was blown away by the performance, enthralled by how the actors combined synchronized swimming with ground aerial acts to create a dazzling spectacle that all of them would be sure to remember for a long time to come.
"That was so cool!" Susie gushed once the performance ended. "I've never seen anything like that before!"
"Man, if I weren't dead right now, this would almost make me want to be a circus performer as an adult," Fritz commented approvingly.
"We've seen natural wonders, we've seen man-made wonders, now we've seen artistic wonders," Charlie noticed with reverence in her tone. "It's certainly fitting."
"Did you guys notice if there was a story of some kind in that show?" Cassidy wondered as Mike left the solemn grace of the Bellagio theater to the loud bustle of the casino. "I got too caught up in the show to notice."
Mike shrugged. "There probably was, but for things like this it's more about the actors and performances than the story. And it's no surprise at all that you guys were blown away by this; I've heard that some of the actors in this show are former Olympic athletes."
The kids' eyes bulged. "No way!" Gabe exclaimed.
"I don't know if it's true or not, but if it is then that goes a long way to explaining why this show is top tier," Mike replied as he headed over to yet another buffet restaurant, this one inside the Bellagio itself. Normally the man wouldn't have ever considered eating at buffet places two days in a row, but Mike had gotten a lot of exercise that day by walking to every single location that they had visited that morning. He had also eaten only a small meal that morning for lunch, so he was practically starving at this point.
Fortunately, since they had already eaten at a buffet location once, Mike and the kids had a general idea of how to enjoy the massive meal this time around. The man arbitrarily came up with an order for the kids to partially possess him while he ate, and this time there were no arguments over who wanted to eat what and when. Mike also challenged the kids to try something different than what they had last time, which the ghosts had no problem agreeing with. Thirty minutes later, everyone had enjoyed a delightful and massive meal for the second time in a row.
"Eating like this again so soon can't be healthy," Gabe commented as they left the restaurant. "Not that I'm complaining."
"I can't tell whether this restaurant was better or the other one was," Jeremy remarked with a contented sigh.
"Well, I sure as hell am not going back to experiment," Mike snorted, earning a couple of snickers from everyone else.
"Is there anything else we need to do?" Charlie asked.
Mike grinned. "Nope, it's time for the one thing I've been waiting for all day. Poker night! And from what I've heard, there's no better place to play Poker than the Bellagio."
"I'm not sure we'll be able to help you play," Jeremy muttered. "I can barely understand the game as it is."
A sly look crossed Liz's face. "You know," she began with a look of innocence that everyone could clearly tell was fake. "Maybe we could peek at the other poker hands to help dad out."
Mike shook his head. "Any poker player with half a brain will keep his cards face-down on the table as much as possible," he shot down the idea. "Besides, I don't like the idea of cheating for something like this. Kills all the satisfaction out of the game."
"That's fair," Liz conceded as she and the others followed Mike back out into the casino area. It took a while for Mike to find the Poker room in the Bellagio, but once he found it he wasted no time and slipped into one of the seats.
"You are currently the big blind, sir," the dealer informed him. "20 dollars."
"All righty," Mike tossed in a chip towards the middle. "No problem with that." The dealer dealt out the cards and Mike peeked at his. When he saw what they were, he had to fight the urge to break his poker face in disgust. "Oh, for fuck's sake…" he snarled.
"What is it, dad?" Susie asked.
"I just got the worst poker hand possible," Mike explained with a growl. "A 2 and a 7, different suit. Can't make a straight, can't make a flush, can't do jack shit with this garbage."
"Uhm…maybe you can make a two pair?" Charlie weakly suggested. "Maybe even a three of a kind?"
Nobody made any move to propose an early bet, so the dealer flipped three cards over – a Q, an ace, and a 9. "Fuck this," Mike tossed the cards onto the table. "Fold. Not wasting my time and money over a lost cause."
The rest of the players either folded or raised bets depending on their confidence, and the game ended when one of the other five players raked in a small pot of money. It seemed that nobody was overly confident in their ability to win that round, considering that the total pool was only around 300 dollars and the winning hand was only a pair of Queens.
"That didn't seem all that exciting," Fritz commented in disappointment.
"That's cause everyone's hand was shit," Mike replied. "When somebody gets good hands, THAT'S when things get interesting."
He tossed in 10 dollars for the small blind and the dealer dealt everyone two cards. When he saw what his cards were this time around, he barely managed to repress a grin. "Ah, here we go!" he declared. "MUCH better than before."
"An queen of clubs and a 9 of diamonds? What can you do with…OH." Gabe realized. "You can make a straight."
"I can indeed," Mike replied. "But CAN make a straight doesn't mean WILL make a straight. Let's see what the dealer has to say about this."
The dealer flipped over three cards: a king of spades, a jack of clubs, and a 4 of hearts. This time, it seemed the players were a lot more invested in their hands than they were with the last round. "Raise 200," someone pushed in a few chips.
The next player tossed his cards down onto the table. "Fold," he muttered.
Mike smirked. "I'll match," he pushed in 200 dollars of his own. The other players began muttering to themselves, and in the end only one other person matched while the others folded.
The dealer flipped the next card. A 10 of hearts. Mike was able to keep his cool enough to hide his victory, but the ghosts began to chitter excitedly around him. Mike now had a straight, which meant his chances of winning this round were very high indeed. But could anyone else beat him?
The man who had raised the stakes to begin with didn't bother hiding his grin. "Raise another 500," he declared. Mike calmly matched the bet while the third player did the same, and the dealer flipped over the last card. A five of spades.
The opponent's face didn't change, but Mike could have sworn that he had seen the man's eye twitch for the briefest of seconds. Mike was tempted to raise 200 to see if he could force him to fold or raise on a bluffed hand, but he decided to be merciful and checked instead. Once he had done so, the dealer asked everyone to show their hands.
"Dammit," the man muttered as he tossed down a six of hearts and a seven of hearts. "I was hoping to get a flush with the last hand but then everything went to shit."
Mike shrugged. "Sorry, man," he said sympathetically as the third player revealed his hand. It was a pair of fours, meaning a triple in total. Mike couldn't help but be impressed at the realization that the silent third player had proved to be the better threat.
A triple wasn't a bad hand at all. But it wasn't good enough. Mike finally allowed himself a satisfied smirk as he revealed his 9 and Q. "I believe that makes me the winner."
"Well that's disappointing," the man said as he got up from the table. "I think I'm going to retire for today. I've lost enough money as it is."
"Good game," Mike offered his hand. The man smiled wryly, shook it, and left.
"At least he was a good sport about it," Jeremy commented as the rounds continued.
The next few rounds were relatively dull, at least from the ghosts' perspective. There weren't any major pots or particularly strong hands, or if there were, Mike apparently didn't think he had a good enough hand and elected to fold out of them instead. Money exchanged hands and people occasionally ordered a few drinks as the game played out in front of them.
All of that changed with the arrival of a new player into the room.
From the outside, he didn't seem like much. A man with dirty-blond hair and brown, almost maroon eyes, wearing a suit to match the color of his hair. While the man was admittedly handsome, his looks were marred by his facial expression, an innate expression of contempt as though everyone in the room were beneath him. There was something about the man that struck Mike as very wrong. The man sat down at the table, placing what was easily over ten thousand dollars' worth of chips. He looked up, looking Mike straight in the eye.
And suddenly, Mike understood everything with a cold feeling of clarity.
For a split second, the room vanished around him, leaving only a cold void. All that was left was the man…or rather, the true identity of the monster underneath the façade of human flesh.
The demonic bear creature in front of him reminded Mike all too much of Nightmare with his vicious fangs and claws and his burning red eyes, but there were noticeable differences too. The nightmare's hat and bow were purple instead of yellow, and his entire body was colored a dirty gold instead of Nightmare's all-consuming black.
"I SEE THAT YOU RECOGNIZE ME FOR WHAT I TRULY AM, MORTAL," Nightmare Fredbear hissed, and Mike was surprised by how different his voice sounded compared to that of his brother. In contrast to the guttural, deep, unholy growl of Nightmare, Nightmare Fredbear's voice was soft and almost tranquil. In another context, Mike could have even considered it as comforting. But here, the disconcerting effect only added to the menace that Nightmare Fredbear emanated. "BUT THAT ISN'T REALLY MUCH OF A SURPRISE, CONSIDERING THAT YOU HAVE ALREADY BEEN ACQUAINTED WITH MY BROTHER."
"What are you doing here?" Mike managed to grind out through his teeth.
"WHY, THE SAME THING THAT EVERYONE ELSE IS HERE, OF COURSE!" Nightmare Fredbear laughed. "LAS VEGAS IS THE CITY OF SIN, AFTER ALL. WHAT BETTER PLACE FOR A DEMON IN DISGUISE TO ENJOY A RARE NIGHT OF FREEDOM?" He bared his teeth at Mike. "I WOULD SUGGEST THAT YOU KEEP YOUR LITTLE GHOST BRATS AWAY FROM MY SIDE OF TABLE," his voice suddenly dropped to a snarl. "I DON'T REACT WELL TO CHEATERS."
The darkness suddenly lifted, and Mike found himself back in the Bellagio's table. He couldn't believe that more than one Nightmare was allowed free reign on Earth, though there was some comfort in the fact that Heaven probably wouldn't allow Nightmare Fredbear to do anything to his family now that they had already passed Nightmare's test. One look at the horrified, angry, and fearful expressions of the ghost kids and Mike could tell that they all knew exactly who had joined them in that moment. Liz's eyes were glowing bright green, and she looked as though she were debating whether or not she should change into Scrap Baby form.
Nightmare Fredbear's human form grinned. "I do so enjoy a good game," he commented as the next round began. "Be sure not to disappoint me."
"One moment," Mike got up from the table and left. He returned few seconds later with just as much chips as Nightmare Fredbear. He gave the disguised demon a look of challenge. "Bring it," he snarled in his head.
And just like that, it was as though an unseen switch had flickered on. By some sheer coincidence, everyone at the table suddenly seemed to have working hands and were more willing to raise bets when they would have previously folded. To add to the intensity, every time Nightmare Fredbear raised he would toss in 500 to over a thousand dollars on his hands. It didn't matter how good or bad those hands were – money was power, and he had the power to dictate the course of the game. Only Mike was able to keep up thanks to his own large pot of wealth.
The next round began, and the dealer dealt out cards to everyone still in the game. Mike picked up his cards to see a 9 of spades and a 4 of spades. He could definitely work with that.
"I raise 2000," Nightmare Fredbear growled as he pushed the chips into the table. Almost immediately, the player next to him tossed his cards to the center of the table.
"I can't bet something that huge this early into the game," he exclaimed as the other players besides Mike folded as well.
"I can," Mike coldly replied. "Match 2000."
Nightmare Fredbear grinned sinisterly as the dealer revealed the first three cards. A seven of spades, an ace of clubs, and a 2 of spades. "I raise another 1000," Nightmare Fredbear declared as he tossed in more chips. Mike matched the bet, and the dealer flipped over the next card. A three of clubs. The ghosts didn't dare make a sound for fear of drawing Nightmare Fredbear's attention over to them, and even the other players watching couldn't help but feel a sense of overwhelming unease at the intensity between the two players.
"Raise 1000 again," Nightmare Fredbear challenged.
"Match," was Mike's answer. The final card was revealed. An ace of spades.
"Another 1000!" Nightmare Fredbear pushed in the chips.
"I'll match that," Mike agreed as he tossed in the chips. The dealer ordered them to flip over their cards. Mike smirked as he revealed his two spade cards, revealing his flush. The onlookers ooh'd a the impressive hand, but his satisfaction faded when he saw the vicious grin on Nightmare Fredbear's face.
"Not a bad showing, there," Nightmare Fredbear admitted. "A pity that it means nothing in the end!" He threw his cards down, revealing an ace and a 3. A full house. "What a shame…to come so close only to fall so far."
To everyone's surprise, Mike's own face showed nothing but contempt and a burning determination. "That was a lovely attempt to cripple my morale," he mocked. "Too bad it was also equally pathetic. Here's some news for you, jackass. We're only just getting started."
"Good!" Nightmare Fredbear hissed. "I'd be very disappointed indeed if you broke down after a single defeat."
The game continued on, but by now it was a dead certainty that this was a game between Mike and the disguised Nightmare Fredbear. The two of them played a twisted and vicious game with cunning buffs and brutal hands, and between the two of them they soon knocked out every other player except for them. Mike was able to get some of his money back thanks to beating Nightmare Fredbear's two pair with a three of a kind, but neither Mike nor Nightmare Fredbear was able to gain a significant advantage over the other.
As the clock struck 11, Nightmare Fredbear's face contorted into a sneer. "I grow weary of this game," he snarled. "Why don't we make a…gentleman's agreement, Schmidt? All in, both of us. Right here and now." The ghosts all gasped in shock, and some of them even shook their heads at Mike as if trying to dissuade him from taking that bet.
"But what if you don't have enough money to match each other's all-ins?" the dealer began, but the demon cut him off.
"Do you not see our piles, you myopic imbecile? Does it really matter what the exact numbers are? Do you really want to waste everyone's time trying to sort through all this drivel?"
While Mike was irritated at the demon's tone, he had to admit that Nightmare Fredbear did have a point. He didn't exactly look forward to counting out every single chip any more than his opponent. "I'll agree only if I get to see the three cards first. Only an idiot would charge in without even bothering to see the entire hand first."
He half-expected Nightmare Fredbear to mock him, but to his surprise the demon simply nodded. "Understandable," he agreed. "Deal the cards."
The dealer did so, and then flipped over three cards: a king of hearts, a six of diamonds, and a seven of diamonds. Nightmare Fredbear immediately his entire pot into the table. "All-in, as we agreed."
"As we agreed," Mike repeated, and with a sigh he pushed his own pot into the table as well, ignoring the shocked gasps of his ghost kids. Between the two of them, there was easily over a hundred thousand dollars' worth of chips in the pot, a pot truly worthy of a grand finale.
With no more bets to be made, the dealer flipped over a king of spades. Mike could have sworn he had seen a flash of scarlet in the demon's eyes, but he made no comment about it. The dealer flipped over one final card: a four of diamonds.
Nightmare Fredbear began to roar with laughter, disconcerting the crowd that had gathered to watch the game. He flipped over his two cards, revealing two kings. The ghosts' faces all fell when they realized that Nightmare Fredbear had gotten a four of a kind. Defeating him at this point would be almost impossible.
"You have failed, Schmidt," the demon hissed. "All this time, all this effort, all for nothing."
But Mike's smirk didn't fade away. On the contrary, it only grew larger. "You know," he said almost conversationally, "the thing about arrogant bastards like you is that it is so very satisfying to take your pride and break it into pieces. So why don't you take your kings…and go fuck yourself."
He slammed his cards onto the table, and everyone's eyes widened in shock. A three and a five of diamonds. Putting all his hopes on the final card, Mike had snatched victory from the jaws of defeat with his sudden straight flush.
The ghosts all began to cheer as Nightmare Fredbear stared at the two cards. Mike started to collect his winnings, but then stopped slightly once he noticed the motionless demon. Was he about to erupt into a rage at his loss?
To his surprise, the demon began to laugh again. At first, it was a soft chuckle, but then it escalated into full blown laughter. More than one person began to wonder if the "man" had suffered a mental breakdown at a loss this huge.
"I always wondered what my brother saw in you that night," Nightmare Fredbear finally said after several moments of trying to collect himself. "He told me you were something special indeed. And now that I have seen what makes you so interesting for myself, I freely admit that he was correct."
He got up from the table and offered his hand to Mike. After several seconds of staring at it suspiciously, the man reluctantly shook it. "Thank you, Schmidt, for a most entertaining evening. I will have quite the tale to tell my brother when I return home," And with that he departed from the table and out of sight. Something told Mike that even if (for some ungodly insane reason) he tried to follow Nightmare Fredbear, he would not find the demon again for the rest of the night.
He barely had time to think anything more as the ghosts immediately swarmed him, all cheering with delight and satisfaction. "You did it, dad!" Cassidy cheered. "You won! You won!"
"You're amazing, dad!" Susie hugged her father tightly.
"Did you see the look on that bastard's face when you kicked his ass?" Fritz snickered. "That was hilarious!"
"That's our dad!" Liz praised. "So good at what he does that he can even kick a demon's ass!"
"All right, all right, settle down kiddos, I'm tired enough as it is," Mike calmed them as he departed the table with his winnings. "Jesus, I'm exhausted. That was one of the most intense things I've ever done in my entire life, and there weren't even any high stakes like what you hear about in those deal-with-the-devil stories."
"Are we gonna do anything else tonight, dad?" Jeremy wondered.
"I'll save a small number of chips for a few rounds at one of the craps tables and then we'll call it a night afterwards. What do you say?"
"Sounds good to me, dad!" Charlie agreed, along with the other ghosts. But none of them truly cared anymore about whether or not Mike won a few dice rolls.
The only thing that mattered to them now was that their father had challenged another demon in the middle of his vacation and won. And the kids would forever remember this day as the day that Mike cemented his status as the biggest badass ever. A perfect way to end their glorious first vacation.
/
A/N: What an exhausting chapter to write. Seventeen pages on Word, if you can believe it.
I bet none of you guys expected me to throw in a Nightmare animatronic into the mix, especially one that WASN'T Nightmare himself. Apart from enjoying a night out in Vegas (and enjoying the sin, debauchery, gambling, all that good shit that makes Vegas known as the City of Sin for a reason), Nightmare Fredbear was curious to see if Mike deserved the praise that Nightmare had given him. Even if it the actual game itself was heavily luck-based, I think it's safe to say that our favorite yellow bear monstrosity got his answer.
And that's the end of the vacation arc! I really enjoyed writing it, and I hope you guys did too! And for all you fans of the Rockstar animatronics, don't you worry, because that is the next major plot arc for sure.
Hope you guys enjoyed!