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Tristan had invited his friend Ayabliss to the arcade, and he was rather excited, to tell the truth. He'd put two ten dollar bills into the change machine and gotten the quarters--and now he was eager to try and defeat the last level of pac-man. He never had before, Blinky (the red one) always seemed to get him, if it wasn't Clyde or Winky. He was hoping Aya would be able to help him beat it.

There were other games, too; even a grabber game where you could win stuffed animals. He'd never tried it, tending to stick with the only game he knew. He thought he might try something new, though; games were always more fun with a friend. He couldn't wait for Aya to arrive!

Tristan didn't notice Aya come in, he didn't notice the zorua near him. He was intent on his game, stirring Pacman towards three dark blue ghosts. The other one had already turned back to pink, he'd already eaten it. Stupid ghost.

The three in question quickly changed colors, and he was dashing off in the opposite direction, hoping to get away and finish the level before they--he cursed. He'd have to put in another quarter to continue where he'd left off. "Yeah," he said, looking up. He smiled at him. "I lost the game," he explained. "Want to play something else? Maybe a two player game?"

Tristan did as Aya said, putting his hands over Aya's. He smiled at the taller boy. "Okay, see those ghosts? We have to stay away from them. I think the red one's the fastest, his name's Blinky, and then there's Inky, Pinky, and Clyde." He pointed each of them out, patiently. "We have to get all the yellow dots to beat the level, and we've got two lives. Sometimes if we get a high enough score, we'll get another life, but that won't be for a while."

He didn't mind this, the being close. It was kind of nice. Although, he did wonder why Aya had accepted his challenge at the park, if he didn't know how to play. Maybe he'd just wanted to impress him! That must have been it.

Tristan wasn't sure how to react to the sudden purring, nor the nuzzling--so instead of reacting to it, he struggled to focus on the game. "I don't know about that," he said. "I don't really get along with everyone. There was a time I hated everyone, actually, after my parents threw me out. I found a new family though, and at first I hated them. I wanted to go back to my real home, you know? I hated them, and I couldn't see anything good about the situation. But there was good. I couldn't see it, but I do now. It makes me a lot happier, knowing there's people who care about me."

He paused, frowning up at the zorua. "Are you even paying attention? You nearly died!"

Tristan winced. Nothing he could have said would have made that situation better; he couldn't imagine losing his family, not like that. He could at least see them, even if they no longer acknowledged him as theirs. He went red at the kiss, promptly being eaten by the blue ghost. "You distracted me!" he complained. How were they ever going to reach the last level, at this rate? He'd already lost twice today, and they hadn't gotten past the second level.

"I'm glad we met too," he said. "It's nice having a new friend to spend time with."

Aybliss used fluster, it was super effective!

So effective that it momentarily distracted Tristan from the game completely. He forgot what he was doing, what the rules of pacman were, and even the names of the ghosts. "Er. Yeah, I think you have the gist of it," he said. "Just keep away from the ghosts, they kill you." Yes, that was a proper summary of the game. The ghosts killed you, so stay away from the ghosts.

"After you die, do you want to play another game?" Something less dizzying, hopefully!

When Ayblis died, the minun was almost relieved. He bent down, moving out from between the zorua's arms. "The racing game?" he echoed. He'd never tried it. He went to sit in the seat in front of the game. "Er, I'm not really sure I can keep on the road," he admitted. He'd never played this sort of thing! Not even the motorcycle one they had at the supermarket, that you could move and pretend you were really driving.

"How do I play?" he asked, looking up at Aya. "Can you show me?"

Tristan's eyes widened at the invitation. He hesitated, for a long moment, seeming to be considering the situation. Was Aya teasing him? Flirting with him? How was he supposed to react to this sort of behavior? And why... Why did he like it? It was different, certainly. Did he bring attention to it, or pretend he was oblivious to it?

He sat down, putting his hand on the game's controller. "So, what do I do?" he asked. He put a quarter in and waited for further instructions. Maybe afterward, they'd find another game--maybe one he knew how to play!