2395/Arcade Day

Arcade Day
Date of Scene:	09 July 2020
Location:	The Arcade
Synopsis:	AJ and Roy hit the arcade for a little R&R after a lot of training recently.
Cast of Characters:	Roy Harper, AJ Strong

---

Roy Harper has posed:
Training is good, and spending the summer training on and off in the Arrowcave is certainly one way of spending one's school break. But even Roy needs a break from training every so often and to get away from the rigorous workouts that he puts himself through. Now that AJ knows the story and is part of the team, he's got a way more open look into just how often Roy is out on the streets patrolling and spending time training. It's probably surprising that he got as much schoolwork done as he did this year, but that is largely thanks to AJ's influence.

It's been a long morning of working out and training and then taking a look around the city but now it is time for cutting loose a little, and so Roy has tugged AJ off to the arcade for a little R&R which of course means uh, shooting more things, and racing games, because, well, it's still Roy after all.

AJ Strong has posed:
AJ is surprisingly eager to keep his days busy, and has been more than willing to go out on patrol with Roy, he had even remembered to bring his own suit, lord knows where he got it but he has one in black and silver. However, the chance to kick back and relax isn't something he's going to pass up either, especially in an arcade that has food, because that's just magic to him. He watches Roy on the racing game, chewing away on a bunch of pretzel bites with liquidy cheese sauce for dipping. "I think you're going to need to teach me how to drive."

Roy Harper has posed:
"I can teach you how to drive," Roy agrees easily. Currently his race car is whizzing around the track, passing other drivers and avoiding obstacles with the practiced ease of someone who is pretty familiar with this game and the track, even if the obstacles and the other drivers add a degree of unpredictability to the whole situation. He weaves in and out, gaining speed and passing another one of the drivers. He drives a lot like he rides his motorcycle through the city -- fast, very fast. "Those smell good," he notes, the pretzels close enough that he can smell them.

AJ Strong has posed:
AJ laughs as he leans on the back of the chair of the racing pod next to Roy's. "You're too good. No crashing, no explosions. Booooring. They are good." His voice drops a little in volume. "Would be better with a beer." He smirks as he dips one of the pretzel bites into cheese and holds it out by Roy's mouth where he can just snap it up without needing to take his hands off the game.

Roy Harper has posed:
"I mean, I can probably go faster," Roy says speculatively, "Then I'll probably crash or at least hit something and blow it up." He grins a little bit, but doesn't take his eyes off the screen. When the pretzel bite comes near though he leans over and grabs it with his teeth, waggling his eyebrows at AJ before chewing, all while keeping up with the race, though he does slow down a little bit as his attention is somewhat divided even if his hands don't come off the controls. He smiles a little wryly and says, "Yeah, probably," in agreement. But he's been good. Aside from the beer that he had when he gave one to AJ that one time, Roy really hasn't had too many drinks. He's been trying.

AJ Strong has posed:
It's probably harder to notice the effect Roy has had on AJ than the other way around. A bit of loosening up, less straight-laced and a little more willing to have fun. He's never going to be a bad boy, but he's definitely not quite the naive kid he was a few months ago. "Or a chocolate shake. I bet they have shakes." His eyes are drifting over to the concession stand again, pursing his lips. "Want one?"

Roy Harper has posed:
Roy steers the car into a straightaway and grins, "Chocolate shake sounds good." He glances over his shoulder in AJ's direction then beyond him to the concession stand. "Yeah, get me one, too." He grins, taking his hand off the controller to fish around for his wallet. His driving becomes a bit more erratic as he tries to do that with one hand and find his wallet with the other. Unfortunately, one of the other drivers swerves and he can't compensate fast enough. His car gets slammed into the wall, flips, and explodes. He laughs. "Well, I guess that's one way to make the game more interesting."

AJ Strong has posed:
AJ winces at the wipe out. "Ooo.. Well, at least you get a chocolate shake out of the deal. But I'm sure there's a lesson about safe driving in here somewhere, I'm just missing it." There's a smile from AJ as he accepts Roy's money, setting his pretzels down on that empty seat he was leaning on and heads over to the stand. Luckily it's a short wait and he back in a matter of moments, already slurping away on his shake as he holds out the other for Roy, eyes going right back to the screen to see if he's recovered.

Roy Harper has posed:
"Yeah -- keep your eyes on the road and don't eat and drive," Roy says with a grin. Of course, that doesn't stop him at all from accepting the shake when AJ returns from concessions with it. He's already back in the race though he's not made up his lead quite yet. He takes the shake and takes a sip from him, once more driving somewhat one-handed though he holds onto the shake and the wheel with his left hand this time, giving it a little more stability as he begins to pick up speed. At least he doesn't try to do that on his actual bike.

AJ Strong has posed:
It's a struggle for AJ not to mess with Roy and instead just cheer him on as he regains his lead, besides he has a shake now, and pretzels, which is oo much to deal with standing so he plops down into he unused seat next to Roy. No one's waiting so it's not as if he's hogging the game. "So this is where little Roy blew all his pocket change, huh?"

Roy Harper has posed:
Roy Harper should perhaps be grateful that AJ has a shake and pretzels to keep him occupied so that he doesn't attempt to incite another crash. He's rapidly regaining his lead now, even with the shake, which he lifts to sip during the straightaways. He grins over at AJ sidelong and says, "Pretty much. I spent a lot of time down here. Ollie didn't mind it since at least he knew where I was, and pretty much knew I wasn't going to be picking any pockets here or risking getting thrown out." He smirks just a little bit.

AJ Strong has posed:
"What, no quarter on a string tricks to get free plays? I'm almost disappointed. Almost." AJ mutters around a sip of his shake, though he cranes his head to look over at one of the DDR machines, then back to Roy's screen. "Well, at least I know one of your weaknesses now, I can lure you places with video games."

Roy Harper has posed:
"Nah. Not here, anyway. Somewhere else, maybe," Roy admits readily with a little shrug of his shoulders. He laughs then and asks, "So what kind of games do you like to play? We should do one you like next." He follows AJ's look over toward DDR and he raises his brows. "DDR? Really?" Curious.

AJ Strong has posed:
"Um.. I don't really.." AJ actually blushes a little. "I mean, I couldn't play them for so long, and I've been so busy I just.. never.. and I feel like I'm just going to stink anyway. But I like watching you play." He shrugs at Roy's question. "I dunno, seems different, like I should be able to do it real easy, especially with my um.." He wiggles his fingers, its a crowded enough place that he's not going to say anything out loud. "But that'd be cheating."

Roy Harper has posed:
Roy Harper blinks a little in surprise and says, "Whoah really? Okay.. we need to fix that then." He promptly crashes his car, ending his last life of the race and climbs out of the racer, taking his shake with him. "Come on.. we're going to start with DDR and then we're going to try a bunch of games and we're going to find the one that you like the best." He is now on a /mission/.

AJ Strong has posed:
AJ blinks owlishly at Roy as he sips his shake. "Wait.. what?" Another pretzel disappears into his mouth, luckily it's the last one which does happen to free up a hand. He looks forlornly down at the empty food container then over to Roy. "Fine, if you want to torment me, I guess I like you enough to let you."

Roy Harper has posed:
"It's not torment! It's fun! Don't you want to do all the things you haven't gotten the chance to do? Now is the time! Seize the day! Or at leas the controller," Roy says with enthusiasm as he heads over toward the DDR machine and takes up a spot on one side, setting his shake down on the console as he pokes around through the songs and things. He flashes AJ a grin.

AJ Strong has posed:
"Only because you're my favorite person." AJ says it a bit like he's being forced, even if he's smiling when he says it. He makes a detour to a trash can to throw out the pretzel container before following over to the DDR machines. "I think I've seen people do these before." He takes one more sip of his shake before he sets it down as well, bouncing on his toes a little as he checks the pad beneath him.

Roy Harper has posed:
"Yeah so like the music plays and the on the screen are the symbols you gotta jump on in the order that they come up, so if it's two green whatsits you jump here, and if it's the blue ones you jump there.. or step there, or whatever.. I have no idea but I've watched people do it," Roy says with a grin. That's never stopped him from trying something before and it certainly doesn't seem to be stopping him now. He picks a song and lets it start up.

AJ Strong has posed:
"So.. music and jumping. Literally the two things I'm best at." AJ says, crossing his arms over his chest as he looks at Roy. "I think this might be the start of trouble." Indeed, as Roy selects the song, AJ is already bouncing on his toes. Even with no doubt not to terriblesong they're starting with, AJ's rhythm and general twitchiness is already proving to be something of a natural ease at this particular game. "I thought you would have chosen something with shooting."

Roy Harper has posed:
Roy grins over at AJ and says, "Yep," enthusiastically. The song gets started and Roy's all out of sync, laughing as he's trying to keep up with it, but once he gets behind he has to actually stop to try and get back on track. He's only starting to kind of get the hang of it by the time the song is more than halfway through. He's concentrating so hard that he doesn't even answer until after some time after AJ makes the comment. "This is about finding what's fun for /you/ not me. I know what games I like.. besides, who knows, maybe this'll be my new favorite." He grins broadly.

AJ Strong has posed:
It's not a perfect performance out of AJ, but he definitely seems to have a natural knack for this game. "Or aout finding one I can pretend to stink at then get someone to bet against me, then take them to for all they're worth." He laughs, actually making a joke about hustling someone at DDR. "I just thought you'd start with something you knew you liked, not that I'm complaining, this might be something I can actually beat you at."

Roy Harper has posed:
"So your plan is to become a DDR shark?" Roy asks with a grin over at AJ, once more managing to get out of rhythm. He has a sort of natural athletic grace and good timing and reflexes but he's just not used to applying them in this sort of way, and it's going to take him some practice before he gets any good at it. He laughs then and says, "Well you're definitely beating me this round." THe round comes to an end and there's a brief pause before the next song begins.

AJ Strong has posed:
"It's like playing a song from hearing it, you have to feel the rhythm. There's usually cues in the music if it's about to change tempo, too." AJ shrugs. "The rest is just bouncing in the right direction." He laughs softly, though he definitely seems to be enjoying himself. "DDR Shark, huh? Well, I guess I'll have to make a living some how when I graduate."

Roy Harper has posed:
"Uh, sure," Roy says. He has no musical talent whatsoever, and it's clearly showing because he does not at all move naturally along with the music the way that AJ does. That doesn't mean that he isn't having fun with it though. He hops and jumps and steps and turns in time with the music sortof and manages to score some points even though it's very clear by the time that the round is done that AJ is the winner of this game. "We can add it to the list of possibilities," He laughs, coming to a stop and grabbing his shake to take a swig before hopping off the machine so the next players can get on to play.

AJ Strong has posed:
"Right next to professional layabout and bullshit artist." AJ grabs his drink, hopping off the machine with a grin as he falls in step with Roy. "I'm just curious if I could manage to be one of those artists that just put a red dot on a blank canvas and somehow bullshits my way into selling it for a million bucks or something. I'm mostly sure the secret is hitting the right level of eccentricity in your act. Weird enough that people find it amusing but not so weird as to make it uncomfortable."

Roy Harper has posed:
"You could play the cello but have like a paint sprayer on the end of your bow that spritzes the canvas as you play music," Roy suggests as he wanders away from the DDR machine and heads over toward one of the other cluster of machines. "Hm.. old school? Pac Man?" He grins and heads over in that direction, leaning up against the machine to let AJ give it a try. "Then you pick the next one."

AJ Strong has posed:
"Oooo.. like crossing art forms, I can charge people to watch the performance then auction off the piece at the end." AJ laughs and bumps shoulders with Roy. "I've played Pac Man." AJ states as he steps up to the machine. "Years ago." He grimaces as he drops a few coins to get it started. "Why, this is your thing, I don' mind you picking."

Roy Harper has posed:
"See?" Roy says, tapping the side of his head. "I might have zero artistic talent but I can think of ways to exploit something to get twice as much out of it." He laughs at the shoulder bump and says, "So you shouldn't have too much trouble with it then." He grins as he finishes off his shake, stepping aside to drop it in the bin before coming back and leaning against the machine, arms folded while he watches AJ. "Because it's fun if it's uh.. interactive? Not just me dragging you around torturing or boring you?"

AJ Strong has posed:
"You're not torturing me, and you're not boring me. You're sharing something you enjoy with me. That's what relationships are.. I think." AJ smiles but keeps his eyes on the screen. He's.. not doing well. All that natural skill at DDR seems to fade n PacMan, he lets out a sigh when he ends up stuck between two ghosts.

Roy Harper has posed:
"Alright," Roy says with a grin, "Just makin' sure." He gives AJ a little shoulder bump as he doesn't fare quite as well with Pac Man and says, "Come on. Let's do some skee ball then and see if we can win a terrible crappy prize. Maybe we can get matching terrible crappy prizes before we leave." And with that, he's off again, tugging AJ along with him.

AJ Strong has posed:
"Skee ball I can do." AJ sounds markedly confident with that statement. "I'll probably be even better now." He smiles as he lets Roy drag him off in that direction, snagging his shake before he's dragged too far away. "Matching crappy prizes? That sounds like a weird couple thing. Not that I'm complaining."

Roy Harper has posed:
"Good! We can make it a contest, then, and see who wins," Roy says with a broad grin. Because a little competition makes it even better, right? Then he nods sagely and says, "Yep. It's totally a weird couple thing. We're a weird couple. Things are gonna happen occasionally." He walks backward a few steps and waggles his eyebrows and then turns back toward skee ball.

AJ Strong has posed:
"I like being a weird couple." AJ grins, following to the skee ball and digging in his pocket for some quarters he drops on the console between the lanes. A couple go into the machine to release the balls. "I think the last time I played this was at some weird kid's birthday party."