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There were many aspects of human culture that were quite fascinating to Drek’ar, but his favorite one was a concept called ‘play’. As a soldier and master strategist from another galaxy, he would hardly engage in what would be considered play or anything fun, but a crash landing on Earth and a hand extended with the offer of peace and friendship afforded him the opportunity to throw himself into the strange, but quite stimulating practice.Corestrike, of course, was easily considered one of the things he played the most. While many people watching his matches and the few reporters who asked would be puzzled as to how his way of the game could be classified as ‘play’, he considered the thrill of utilizing his skillsets for the arena and going up against many a worthy opponent to be a great deal of fun. However, as the recent season had come to a close and he had finished with his morning training, he found himself with more or less nothing fun to do. This was not to say that Drek’ar wasn’t also aware of the other forms of play he could engage in of course, but one can only read the same few books of poetry that they had before trying to find something else to do.When he was able to walk around the city that afternoon without being heckled by passersby on the streets, he took careful observation to see some other variations of play in action. One form of play of particular note was some sort of device that seemed to be quite popular, especially amongst the younger people. However, when he tried to ask some of them about it, the casual clothing he wore did nothing to dispel their fears. Most of them were too frightened to really speak to him and quickly ran off before he got the chance to ask, but he was at least able to catch its name.As such, presently, Drek’ar sat on a couch in Atlas’s townhouse, carefully maneuvering the newly acquired device— a ‘Switch’, it was called —in his large, claw-tipped hands. He hummed to himself, gently fiddling with the buttons and circle sticks of sorts on the multi-colored pieces that had come with the Switch itself. The physical layout of the Switch was not dissimilar to certain virtual systems used to navigate various starcraft and military simulations, but how to turn it on…“Hello!”Drek’ar turned his head towards the greeting, his snout almost grazing a familiar face as his reptilian eyes met wide, curious ones.“Ah, hello Juno,” Drek’ar greeted with a nod, “How are you?”“I am good!” Juno replied, her words warm and genuine, “And you?”“I am just fine,” he said, his eyes sliding to the Switch that he held in one hand.“What are you doing?” Juno asked, her eyes roving over the Switch with the same scrutiny he had been a moment ago.“I am trying to turn it on,” Drek’ar said as he delicately tapped the black screen with one claw, “and it seems that I am not having the best of luck in figuring out how to do that right now.”“Hmmm…” Juno hummed, asking, “Do you need some … help?”“Perhaps I do…” Drekar muttered, running a finger along the side of the Switch before it caught on something.The both of them perked up as the black screen lit up with an image of the device, but with the multi-colored pieces sliding themselves onto the side of the Switch.“Ah, there we go,” Drek’ar said triumphantly as the sticks clicked into place, Juno giving a small cheer as the screen lit up with red before going to varying lines of pixelated text.“Ohh …” Juno lilted, her round face scrunched up at the screen, “That looks … hard.”As the blocky text-filled displays flashed before his eyes, Drek’ar felt inclined to agree.During the much slower process of his setting everything up for the Switch, Juno had wandered off out of boredom before coming back with a half-empty tub of cotton candy ice cream and a big spoon. The globs of ice cream seemed to disappear in the vast cavern of her mouth as she shoveled it into her mouth, occasionally sticking out a rather large spoonful for him to eat. He chose to acknowledge that she was willing to share the treat this time rather than the fact that some of her residue was still coating the spoon as she spoon-fed him; there had been much worse things in his mouth in his time.At some point well into the fine-tuning of the settings, Juno suddenly shot up in her seat and exclaimed, “I know who can help!”Before he could respond, let alone ask, Juno had already dashed away and up the stairs, regrettably taking the tub of cotton candy ice cream with her. The scattered voices and stepping he heard from the ceiling above him, however, indicated that she would be back down rather quickly and with company.“-and you’re sure that it’s a Switch?” a louder voice rang out from the stairwell as two sets of smaller feet descended.“Yes, I’m sure, Luna!” Juno answered, cradling the ice cream in one arm and dragging another person along with the other as she reentered the room.Juno’s companion hopped down the two stairs that led into the space and promptly gasped the instant her orange-tinted eyes spied the device Drek’ar had in his hands.“No way, he does!” Luna exclaimed with a wide beam across her face, turning to him with bright, glittering eyes, “When’d you get a Switch, Drek’ar?”“This afternoon,” Drek’ar said, a fond rumble vibrating in his chest, “I am almost done configuring its settings now.”“Aww, I could’ve done that for you if you’d asked!” Luna said, hopping onto one cushion of the couch and narrowly avoiding his tail, “It’ll be done way sooner.”“I do not doubt that little one,” Drek’ar chuckled as he turned the Switch towards Luna, “Perhaps you could look over what I have done so far, to make sure that it is running smoothly.”Without another word, Luna took it from his hands and rapidly started clicking and maneuvering around the system, not pausing even when she took a lollipop out of the pocket of her overalls and started to suck on it.“You know, I didn’t think that you’d be into video games,” she said as she blazed through it, further asking, “You have a preference for using the deck?”“Not really,” Drek’ar answered, continuing, “And I wanted to at least try this out as some people find it quite fun.”“Like you do, Luna,” Juno piped up enthusiastically, sitting on the other side of Drek’ar and licking what was left of the ice cream off of her spoon, “And now Drek’ar can play video games with us too!”“Say, do you think you’d play Mario Party?” Luna said as she handed the Switch back to him, looking expectantly for an answer.“I hope so!” Juno said, turning to Drek’ar with a hopeful gaze, “It would be lots of fun.”“I do not see why I would not,” he answered, offering what he hoped to be an enthusiastic grin.“Yay!” The two girls cheered, both of them hopping off the couch and running back up the stairs as Luna shouted, “We just need to get our stuff too! Give us like three minutes!”“Okay. Three minutes, then.” he repeated, setting the Switch to his side and moving the now empty bin of ice cream to a side table on the couch before the leftover bits could drip on the surface.In the midst of this all, Drek’ar found himself with the familiar, yet not entirely similar feeling of anticipation coursing through him. Although the comparison could very well be made, it did not feel as… exhilarating as when he or one of his teammates scored a goal in Corestrike or bested an opponent in the arena. It was definitely some sort of fun to some extent, but even if he couldn’t quite put his finger on how he felt at that very moment, he couldn’t deny that the enthused commotion of the past few moments did much to lighten his already elevated mood.However, this energy also seemed to have roused one of his teammates from their fairly restless slumber— if past trends were of any indication. Soundlessly, a lean, lithe form tip-toed down the stairs, his casual wear creased and wrinkled from sleep. He combed one hand through some of the hair matted on the side of his head as he yawned, then turned towards Drek’ar and wiggled the fingers on his free hand in greeting.“Good afternoon, Rune,” Drek’ar said, “Did the little ones wake you up?”Rune simply shook his head, “I already woke up.”“Was your nap good?” he asked cordially, less out of habit than genuine interest.Rune hummed nonchalantly before shrugging, “I've had worse ones.”The man made to flop himself onto the nearby lounging chair, eyeing the Switch by Drek’ar’s side and commenting, “I didn't think you’d have one of those.”“Luna told me much of the same earlier,” he said, the tip of his tail thumping onto the cushion, “I just thought to try it out.”Rune’s perpetually glowing eyes narrowed inquisitively, his expression slightly scrunched into one of questioning curiosity before it melted back into tired neutrality, “Alright.”The quiet silence that followed was quickly broken by the excited clamors of the two girls dashing down the stairs with their respective devices in hand. Before long, the room was filled with a cacophony of quick-paced commentary, light-hearted teasing, and the occasional groan of frustration. Juno was more or less dominating the rest of the competition —which was as much of a surprise to her as everyone else— while Rune had taken up the role of Drek’ar’s unofficial ‘guide’. This, as well as Juno’s insistence that she wasn’t good at the game, certainly increased Luna’s very vocal objections to not only the contrary but to every other disputable call.The jovial and lively group hardly noticed as the mid-afternoon faded into early evening, only pausing when they heard an audible growling noise just after they had finished another game.“Okay, I get that the loss sucked for ya, but come on now,” Luna quipped with the smugness of one who did fairly well, swinging her feet back and forth on top of an ottoman pushed closer to them.“That wasn’t him …” Rune started, pausing in his seat crisscrossed on the ground directly across from them before he continued, “ … or rather it didn’t come from his mouth.”“Ahh … yes.” Drek’ar muttered under his breath, a bit embarrassed at the fact that he didn’t notice the pang of hunger in his gut earlier, “I am … quite hungry.”“Me too…” Juno agreed, the vibrations of her voice and movements rumbling through him as she flopped herself onto his back while he lay sprawled on the rugged floor.“Could we get some then?” Luna asked, turning to Rune, “There’s a noodle shack that does take-out and their noodle are the best!”“Yeah!” Juno agreed while idly drumming along his upper back with her hands, “And their dumplings are good too!”Rune hummed thoughtfully to himself, turning in Drek’ar’s general direction, “Are you feeling like Chinese?”“I do not mind it,” he confirmed, “I have had it before and I found it good, so I am fine with having it again.”“Alright then, I guess we’re getting take-out,” Rune said as he took out his cell phone, the words immediately evoking a loud cheer from the girls that made to quickly descend upon him.Even amongst the din of their flurry of yelled orders, Drek’ar could hear the handle of the front door before it was opened. When the door gently opened and shut, however, he relaxed as he would recognize his other teammate’s distinct footfalls anywhere.“What’s this I’m hearing about take-out?” a voice called out in its fondly familiar rich timbre, the bearer walking through the doorway with two bags of groceries in one hand.“Atlas!” Juno shouted as she unplastered herself from a fairly flustered Rune and made her way to cling to the newcomer, pressing her body into his side.“Why hello to you too, Juno,” Atlas replied as he gave her a gentle pat on the head, still steady on his feet despite the tackle of a side hug, “And what are the rest of you up to?”“Getting some food,” Rune replied, a fluid motion seeing him get up from the floor and stretching out his limbs, “I can put your usual order in if you want.”“It’d be much appreciated,” Atlas agreed as he shuffled with Juno’s full weight clinging to his side, “And could you also order some egg rolls? I’ll cover those myself.”“Sure,” Rune said as he put it in, “And I’ve got your order already too, Drek’ar.”“Thank you very much,” he grunted in the midst of the cracking in his back, tail, and joints as he stretched out spread-eagled on his stomach.“Hey Atlas,” Luna called as she made her way over to her brother and made to reach towards the plastic bags in his hand, “Did you get any more of that hot chocolate?”“It’s hardly the season for it yet,” he answered as he pulled the bags out and away from Luna’s inquisitive hands, “Besides, we still have some left over.”Before Luna could quip back, Juno peeled herself from his side, asking, “Did you get ice cream?”“No.” Atlas answered, peering down at Juno with a look of probing scrutiny, “Did you eat it all again?”“No, not just me…” Juno said, shuffling back towards Drek’ar somewhat guiltily, “We… ate all of it, actually.”“I also partook of it,” Drek’ar commented as he maneuvered into a sitting position on the ground, “The ice cream was quite delicious.”At the unreadable look on his teammate’s face, Drek’ar quickly added, “I apologize if you did not mean for us to eat it all.”“Yes, we are very sorry!” Juno chimed in, nodding furiously in apologetic agreement.“I see…” Atlas murmured, “I suppose I’ll just have to buy some more ice cream—”“Atlas-”“—as well as some hot chocolate the next time I go out.” Atlas finished, looking pointedly at his little sister as she curtly nodded her satisfaction at the compromise.“Thank you!” Juno exclaimed with a bubbly grin on her face, unceremoniously plopping down into the space next to Drek’ar on the ground, ‘whispering’ conspiratorially to him, “Don’t worry, I will share some with you as well.”He couldn’t help the deep rumble of laughter that bubbled out of him at how genuine the girl’s words were, his reptilian smile all teeth and his eyes crinkled with amusement, “I appreciate it, Juno.”“And you better share some with me too!” Luna exclaimed as she made her way over to where she sat and took up her Switch again, “Or you could at least leave some.”“Do not worry, Luna.” Drek’ar assured, still chuckling a bit, “I will make sure she leaves some ice cream for you.”“Alright, the order’s in. Should be here in about fifteen minutes,” Rune announced before he took the groceries from Atlas, a chorus of thanks following him into the kitchen and out of sight.“That’s enough time for a few minigames,” Luna mused, the words both a suggestion and question as she set it up.“It seems that it would be,” Drek’ar affirmed as he too prepared his Switch for the proposal.Juno had already stretched her body across the floor to nab her Swtich, eagerly waiting for the game to start as Luna set it up. Before they made to start, all three of them were brought to a pause at the sound of a warm, affectionate chuckle. They looked up to see Atlas with an almost uncharacteristic close-lipped smile on his face, his eyes alight with mirth as he said, “I’m glad to see that you’re enjoying yourselves.”This sentence evoked a gentle close-lipped smile in his teammate’s direction as Drek’ar took in the different, but not at all unwelcome warmth growing in his chest.“Wanna play with us?” Luna asked, looking up at her brother, “We have an empty slot.”“Please, Atlas?” Juno chimed in, pleading, “It’ll be more fun!”“Come and join us,” Drek’ar said, patting the ground next to him and gesturing him closer, “The more company, the merrier the game.”Atlas blinked, briefly overwhelmed by the barrage of requests as he began to answer, “Well-”“You can borrow mine,” Rune spoke from behind him, his teammate unfazed and well-accustomed by how he habitually crept up silently, “Play a game and have some fun for once.”After a few moments of hesitation, a conflict visibly playing out in the creases of his brow smoothed out in conclusion, the man relenting, “I suppose I can afford to play a game or two.”Drek’ar’s pleased rumble was speedily drowned out by Juno’s excited squeals as she eagerly pulled Atlas down to the floor and Luna slid over and leaned against her brother’s body, one free hand animatedly moving as she rapidly explained the basics. Rune brushed Luna’s eager hands away as he handed over his own Switch, pulling it out of a wispy pocket of shadow, and made to join the group as he took a seat on the ground.While the rest of them waited while Luna reconfigured some of the settings, Atlas’s words gave Drek’ar pause. He pondered them, taking them apart and examining them in his mind. He supposed that he did feel as if he was enjoying himself and quite a lot at that, but he also enjoyed himself while he played Corestrike or toyed around with a particularly tantalizing verse of rhyme. This newer sensation was notably different from either of those things, as there were no expectations of his performance as he had in his former life, no losers like any standard game of Corestrike, and no real goal or task that had to be carried out in any capacity; he could simply be in the company of others.“Hey, we’re about to start!” Luna said, glancing up at him expectantly, “You ready?”Drek’ar took in the sight of everyone’s faces alight with anticipatory excitement and then that feeling he had been grasping at for so long that day finally clicked into place. He could have fun and he could do it with others who would want to have fun with him. This realization was eclipsed by a raw, undiluted joy encapsulated into an immense gratefulness that squeezed in his chest and almost choked up his throat.With his eyes aglow and giddy warmth in his heart, he gave his heartfelt reply:“Ready.”