[tri OOM] Odaibananigans with Barry and Cisco

[angry_friendship_wolf]

When Yamato opens the door to the safehouse and ushers Barry and Cisco through, it's not as busy as it usually is, but there are still a few people milling around the main room of the apartment.

Sora and Jyou are both at the kitchen table, Sora carefully working on a flower arrangement while Jyou reads through a medical textbook and scribbles notes. Nearby, on the couch, with a laptop resting on his knees, is a boy who looks almost identical to Yamato, minus a few years and with much more boyish features.

Yamato carefully shuts the door behind them. "Welcome to Chez Chosen, I guess," he says, crossing to the kitchen table to pick up his digivice and clip it to his belt.

Comments

[run_barry]

"Exactly," Barry says with a nod to Yamato. "I'm friendly to everyone given a chance."

Kind of like a puppy.

"Works for me," Barry says to Taichi's suggestion, stepping onto one of the platforms. "C'mon, Cisco, let's see what you got. I'll even let you pick."

[makes_the_toys]

"Oh, I'm gonna bring it," Cisco declares, stepping up onto the machine and setting up the game.

Knowing he'll never win on speed, Cisco goes for style, picking out a song that has a lot of steps to it.

Barry may be the fastest man alive, but Cisco knows the guy can still be a klutz sometimes.

[angry_friendship_wolf]

"You've got this, Barry," Yamato says, settling at Barry's side, just next to the machine. "It's exactly like footwork in a fight, and you've got no problem with that."

"Just go with the flow and let your inner Dancing Queen come out," Taichi says to Cisco from the machine's other flank, very seriously. "Remember, you are the Dancing Queen, young and sweet, only seventeen."

[makes_the_toys]

"I can da-nce, I can jiiive... " Cisco hums along, bopping his head waiting for the game to start.

When the colored arrows start scrolling on the screen Cisco starts to move. Holding onto the handrail behind him, Cisco balances while hitting nearly every step as the song plays.

[run_barry]

Barry gives Yamato a thumbs-up, then focuses on the screen as the music starts up.

Unlike Cisco, Barry doesn't use the bar, balancing on his own and working his hands and arms along to the music as well.

They definitely look like a couple of nerds trying to bust a move, but they also both put in an impressive effort as far as keeping up with the arrows and hitting the steps.

By the end of the song it's very close, but Barry squeaks out the win.

"Yes! Oh man, I did it!" Barry cheers, throwing a hand up towards Yamato for a high-five.

[angry_friendship_wolf]

Yamato slaps his hand against Barry's, flashing a quick grin. "Good work, aniki."

"You're still the dancing queen," Taichi says to Cisco solemnly, clapping a hand on his shoulder. "Even if there are a few dancing traitors to the crown over here."

[run_barry]

"Thanks," Barry grins, stepping down off the game proudly.

Shooting a smile at Cisco and Taichi, Barry says, "It was a good dance off. Cisco was definitely closer to beating me here than I was winning with the panda."

Giving Yamato's shoulder a pat, Barry waves him towards the machine.

"You're up now, man. Let's see those moves."

[makes_the_toys]

Cisco doubles over, hands on his knees panting for a moment from the effort.

"I Am the dancing queen," he says, the declaration just a little wheezy as he tries to catch his breath.

He steps off the machine and gestures at the platform.

"It's up to you now, though," Cisco says to Taichi. "Avenge me."

[angry_friendship_wolf]

As they step onto the machine, Taichi scrolls through the songs, eventually picking one of the more difficult and complex ones, rolling out his shoulders as he gets ready.

When the song starts, neither of them grips the rail, using their arms as they dance, and as it goes on it becomes apparent that they're running roughly neck and neck. Both of them are hitting nearly every step, and on the rare occasion when one of them makes a mistake and drops behind, the scores always even out a second later when the other makes an equivalent mistake.

By the time the song finishes, their scores are exactly equal, as they both turn their heads to throw glares at each other.

[run_barry]

From the sidelines, Barry's excitement progressively grows as he watches the pair dance and those scores run neck and neck.

He's bouncing in place, springing up and down in anticipation as the song gets closer and closer to it's end and the scores stay so close right up until the end.

"Whaaaat? That was awesome!" Barry enthuses, blown away by the tie.

[makes_the_toys]

"Yooooooooo, I have never seen that in my life!" Cisco exclaims, pointing at the pair. "A TIE, are you serious?"

His excitement turns suspicious and he gives each of them a critical look.

"For real now, are psychic mind-powers one of your Chosen things?"

[angry_friendship_wolf]

"If we had psychic mind-powers," Yamato says, "we wouldn't use them to draw at DDR."

"We'll settle this on another game, Yama, don't worry," Taichi says. "I'm going to end up winning."

"Really, Yagami. Fight me."

"Oh, oh, you wanna fight here, in the middle of the arcade? Fine."

For all that, they don't seem to be in a bad mood about it. Even Yamato's glare keeps breaking into a smile.

[run_barry]

Barry laughs at the three, especially Yamato and Taichi.

"Alright, alright, someone choose a tie breaker," he says, then amends, "A game, no fighting in the arcade."

[makes_the_toys]

"You might," Cisco argues. "Maybe you don't have control over it. Maybe you're mind-synced like Elliott and E.T. Getting drunk, screaming, dancing a revolution, it's possible."

[angry_friendship_wolf]

"I mean," Taichi says, rubbing the back of his neck. "We're partner-linked with each other, just like Yamato is with Gabumon and me with Agumon. But I don't think we can sync up a DDR match with that."

Yamato folds his arms, thinking very seriously. "Tiebreaker should be a racing game. There's definitely at least one four player racing game around here."

[run_barry]

"You guys are just really well matched," Barry says. "You've both got the skills."

Nodding at Yamato, Barry looks towards Taichi and ask, "Racing work for you?"

[makes_the_toys]

"See," Cisco declares, then holds both pointer fingers up against his temples, "Borg."

It makes perfect sense, really.

"Heyyy, we do a racing game you and I can break our tie too, Yama," Cisco points out.

[angry_friendship_wolf]

"Story of our lives," Taichi says to Barry, with a melodramatically long-suffering tone. "On the macro scale of all our competitions, we're running equal. Yamato's ahead of me in swimming races, chess and Go, and cooking; but I'm ahead on soccer shoot-outs, card games, and foot races. We keep running equal in endurance contests, dancing, and dice games. We'll be dead before we break the stalemate."

Yamato rolls his eyes at Taichi, nudging a hand against Cisco's shoulder. "We can. I think you'll win out over all of us on racing games, though, kid," he says easily.

"I guess racing games work for me, too. Can't promise I'll put in that good a performance," Taichi says.

[run_barry]

"Sounds like you guys keep things fun and interesting," Barry says. "You two keep running against each other you both might go on forever."

When the other three come to a consensus Barry nods.

"Alright, I'm game too, let's go."

[makes_the_toys]

"I mean, my racing skills are pretty on point," Cisco brags, "but you're not too shabby either and this guy probably, too."

Cisco throws a gesture at Taichi, certain the race is going to be both competitive and a lot of fun.

"We'll all probably dust Barry, though," Cisco adds with a cheeky grin.

[angry_friendship_wolf]

"Until Yamato decides we should have a biting contest to the death or something," Taichi says, wrinkling his nose. "It could happen at any time."

Yamato ignores that, giving Cisco another nudge.

"I'm sure Barry will do just fine," Yamato laughs, patting Barry on the shoulder. "It's not like he doesn't have the reflexes for it."

[run_barry]

"Hey," Barry says to Cisco, wounded. "You just watch."

He turns to laugh at Taichi, shaking his head.

"That sounds like an ultimate tie-breaker, I'm sure it'll be awhile before he takes it that far. He loves the rivalry thing, you know," Barry says to Taichi.

[makes_the_toys]

"Sometimes I wonder if Barry even has a license," Cisco says suspiciously. "I mean, have you ever seen him drive? Or heard him talk about driving?"

Hearing Taichi, Cisco nods, "I could see that being a contest he would choose."

[angry_friendship_wolf]

"I don't love the rivalry thing, shut up," Yamato mutters. "Hell, we can have that contest right now. Three vs one, I know my teeth are sharper than any of yours."

"It's not exactly a fair contest," Taichi protests, wrinkling his nose.

[run_barry]

"Oh that's right, you hate it," Barry says, nodding his head to the reminder, then giving a smirk at Yamato.