Hacking #07: Video Games (Closed)

[technologic]

Characters: April and Aleph
Setting: Floor 14
Format: Whichever, though starting with brackets.
Summary: In which April tries to be a good girlfriend and tries to cheer Aleph up after what has happened over the past day or so.

[Despite April's general lack of social skills and tact, she did like to make people she cared about happy. And even April could tell that Aleph wasn't happy, so of course she felt that she needed to do something about this.

Which is why later that day, Aleph will end up being dragged to the media room by April, who is looking equal parts determined and nervous about this.] ... I also made some food too, and it's none of that cafeteria stuff.

[and she'll point at said food in a basket when they walk into the room.]

Comments

[alephbet]

You're doing better.

[technologic]

Hmm? You think I am?

[alephbet]

Yeah. You got a B on that one, and it's a hard song.

[technologic]

Mmm, that's true... [Pause as she thinks for a few moments.] ... Okay, my goal on this is to get an A on a song. Even if only barely.

[alephbet]

I know you can do it. Let's see what the shuffle brings up next.

[technologic]

Right! Mm, let's see... ['Critical Cases' is the next one, which is a more rock song and not as fast. Though it's got a bit more of a complex beat, which means more steps than before.]

[alephbet]

[Aleph gets another A+ and absolutely no one was surprised.

[technologic]

[And April still got a B, but a higher B this time!] ... How did you get so good at dancing?

[alephbet]

It was one way to exercise. I used to live in a gym, we didn't have a lot of books.

[technologic]

Aha, I see. That does make sense, and dancing is one of the more fun ways to exercise too!

[alephbet]

Being a gladiator tends to give you a healthy paranoia for wasting time on recreation...

[technologic]

Huh, it does? Why?

[alephbet]

If you could be training and you don't, and that makes the difference between your winning or losing the next battle, you could easily die.

[technologic]

... Oh. That... that sounds like it sucks.

... But, at least now you don't have to worry about that? I mean, I don't know how dangerous things are now back home, but you could relax a bit more, right?

[alephbet]

Right. I'm stronger than I was then and things are a lot more peaceful.

[technologic]

Right! So now you can have fun anyway you want, and that would include dancing too.

[alephbet]

Did I ever tell you I won part of a portal to Makai in a dancing contest?

[technologic]

Wha...? [She blinks at him, and then laughs with a shake of her head.] Ehe, no, I don't think you did!

[alephbet]

I did. I wasn't even in the contest from the beginning, I just jumped in in the middle and still won.

[technologic]

[Yep, she's certainly laughing now.] Well, that's one way to win a contest! And did the people running it know they had part of the portal?

[alephbet]

I think they just were using it as decoration. It did look fancy.

[technologic]

Ehe, well, good thing you won! Would've sucked if someone else won it and it was stuck as some sort of table ornament instead.

[alephbet]

It would have been pretty silly, too.

[technologic]

Pretty much. And it would've led to an awkward conversation if you had found them. 'Hey, your table ornament is actually part of a portal to Makai, can I borrow it for a sec?'

[alephbet]

What if they'd painted it some terrible color to match their furniture?