//------------------------------//
// High Score 
// Story: Synergy 
// by chillbook1 
//------------------------------//

“Come on!” groaned Sonata. “There's gonna be lines! Move it, slowpoke!”

“You twit! You’re going to yank my arm out of its socket!” Adagio struggled to keep pace with her sister, and outright failed to escape her grip. Though Sonata weighed approximately twelve pounds soaking wet and was built like a piece of spaghetti, she could be deceptively strong when she put her mind to something.

Adagio still wasn’t quite sure why she agreed to go with Sonata to the arcade. It was everything she despised in life: loud noises, obnoxious children, and rambunctious crowds. The floors would be sticky and would most assuredly ruin her shoes. Some running child would probably spill their soda all over her top. And, perhaps worst of all, there was no chance for a glass of red wine. So, all in all, Adagio had no reason to go and every reason to stay far, far away.

Or, more accurately, she had no reason except for her brainless sister.

“Explain to me why I’m here again,” said Adagio as Sonata dragged her ever-nearer to the arcade.

“Because you promised!” said Sonata. “I helped you wax your car and your legs and your—”

“Alright, alright! Fine, just stop pulling on my arm,” grumbled Adagio. “You’re going to rip my sweater.” Sonata relented her grip, satisfied with Adagio’s renewed agreement. The two strolled down the street, eventually rounding a corner and approaching a large building with a neon sign displaying the name “Starcade Game Center”. Sonata let out a childlike squeal of pure excitement before grabbing her sister by the arm again and dragging her into the arcade.

Immediately, Adagio regretted all of her decisions in life.

The room had no overhead lights, the only visibility coming from the many glowing arcade cabinets. As Adagio feared, the carpet was sticky, downright saturated with spilled soda from clumsy kids. The Adagio could barely hear herself think over the sounds of beeping video games and screaming yells of the sugar-fueled, sunlight-deprived arcade-goers.

“C’mon, Dagi!” said Sonata. “We’ve got games to play!”

“Or, here’s a thought, you could go play,” said Adagio. “And I could go find the quietest corner possible and catch up on some reading.”

“But Dagiiiiii!”

“Nata, here is $100.” Adagio handed her five crisp $20 bills fresh from her wallet. “Go get some quarters. Leave me alone.”

“Okie!” Sonata clutched her money and ran off to a quarter machine. Adagio sighed, then shoved her hands into her pocket and strolled around the crowded, bustling arcade. Despite the displeasure of being there, she did find herself smirking slightly. Though she was never the biggest hardcore gamer, she did play a bit in her past, particularly in the mid-80s and early 90s. She actually recognized a few cabinets. There was Galaga, Pac-Man, Time Crisis and the like. 

“Heh. Aria used to hate when we played,” muttered Adagio. “I always made her take the pink gun.”

She strolled past that particular cabinet and moved on, finding herself growing less and less irritated by the place. There was a certain nostalgia to the machines that surrounded her. So much nostalgia, in fact, that Adagio decided that maybe she’d play a few games. She found a nearby quarter machine and slipped in a $1 bill. She scooped up her four quarters, then looked around for something to play.

“Dance Dance Revolution!”

Adagio’s head turned on a swivel, her eyes locking onto the currently in-use machine across the room. There was a considerable line at the DDR machine, which confused Adagio. Dance Dance Revolution was always rather popular, but she didn’t expect it would hold up to this day. She crossed the room and took a spot in line, looking around curiously.

“What is up with this line?” said Adagio to nobody. 

“They’re going for the tickets.”

Adagio turned to the side, a boy occupying the formerly empty space. He was a bit taller than Adagio, with short, windswept black hair. He dressed like the “cool kid” of the arcade; skinny jeans, fingerless gloves, a silver ring in his lip, and a shirt with the logo for the rock band Androgynous Machine. He barely looked at Adagio, staring almost longingly at the machine ahead of him.

Adagio nearly swooned on the spot.

“Tickets?” asked Adagio, keeping her throbbing heart in check.

“You don’t know? There’s a contest,” said the boy. “First player to get a perfect score on Challenge Difficulty wins two tickets to see Androgynous Machine this weekend.” He glanced at Adagio, immediately looking back at the screen. “Name’s Nick, by the way.”

“Adagio, charmed,” said Adagio. “Seriously? What the hell is AnMach doing in this backwater town?”

“No clue, but I wouldn’t complain. You like em?”

“Love them. I may not look it, but I can thrash on occasion.” She was actually telling the truth here. Sonata had introduced her to the band some time ago, and she had bought every album since. “I was going to play for fun, but I may as well go for the gold, hm?”

“I don’t see why you wouldn’t. Damn, I wish I was in your place,” sighed Nick. “I’ve always wanted to see them, and they’re sold out. Not like I could afford them, anyway.”

“Can you dance?” asked Adagio.

“It’s what I do. But, what I seem to do even better is hurt myself.” He pointed at his leg; His right foot had no shoe and was in a cast. “I massacred my ankle during a performance.”

“That’s too bad,” said Adagio, genuinely sorry for him.

“Yeah… Well, good luck, ‘Dagio,” sighed Nick. “If I can’t win the tickets, I’d rather it be a cutie like you that takes it.”

Nick shoved his hands into his pocket, limping away. Adagio watched him leave, a sudden fire lighting itself in her heart. She was going to win those tickets if it killed her. It shouldn’t be too hard for her. She was a Siren, after all, and music was in her blood. Even if she didn’t have her pendant, she should still be able to ace a simple rhythm game.





“Game over!”

Adagio snarled at the arcade cabinet, as if it had personally offended her. She had gotten a C. Not good, not bad. Just average. Adagio Dazzle was a lot of things, but “average” wasn’t one of them. Her rhythm was off, her sense of timing rusty. This was the sort of thing she would’ve given Sonata a hard time for during their conquests for power. It was unacceptable.

Adagio rolled her eyes and took her spot at the back of the line. It was much shorter than before, thankfully, as it seemed that quite a few hopefuls gave up on the idea of winning the tickets. Luckily for Adagio, Sirens were nothing if not tenacious, determined creatures, and she wasn’t about to give up so easily.

A sudden weight thrust itself onto Adagio’s back, almost knocking her over. She would’ve panicked, if the telltale squealing and idiotic laughter didn’t give her attacker away immediately.

“Sonata, you nearly killed me!” growled Adagio, though she did hook Sonata’s legs to carry her in a proper piggyback. “What are you doing, anyway?”

“Just checking on you! I knew you’d have fun!” said Sonata happily. “There’s something here for everyone!”

“This isn’t for me. It’s for… Well, it doesn’t matter who it’s for.”

“Ohhhh. So it’s for a boy, then?” Adagio didn’t answer immediately, which told Sonata everything she needed to know. “And he’s cute, I’m guessing?”

“Shut up, you twit.” Not the most dignified of comebacks, but Adagio was put on the spot. Sonata could get under her skin in ways that few people could.

“So you wanna win DDR so he’ll go out with you?” reasoned Sonata. “But you’re not doing too hot, hm?”

“Look, if you blew through a hundred bucks already, I’m not giving you another cent,” said Adagio, snarling in annoyance. “So you can quit bugging me.”

“I didn’t run out of money, silly! I wanna help!” Sonata hopped down from her sister’s back. “What you need is a dance coach! I bet I can whip you into tip-top dancing shape!”

Adagio pursed her lips in thought. This could be the edge she needed. Each of the Dazzlings had their specialties; Whereas she excelled at leading their songs and Aria was excellent for backup vocals, Sonata always had a knack for rhythm and choreography. If Adagio ever wanted to win the game, she would need Sonata’s help. 

“Hm… That might be the best idea you’ve had in some time,” said Adagio. “Very well. I’ll let you coach me.” Sonata clapped her hands giddily, her brain alrighty racing with ideas on how to help her sister.

There was a large risk in getting Sonata involved; Adagio couldn’t let on why exactly she needed to win the contest. If Sonata found out that Adagio was planning on taking some boy to the concert, her, she’d be crushed. But Adagio figured it shouldn’t be too hard. Sonata wasn't especially attentive in the best of conditions, so what chance did she have in this smorgasbord of lights and noise?

Adagio made her way through the line for the second time, preparing for a sort of dry run. Sonata would watch her play, see what needed fixing, and then guide her to success. Adagio had to admit, it was a very well thought out plan, especially for someone like Sonata. 

The two Sirens reached the front of the line, inserted a quarter, and selected the appropriate song. Adagio took in a deep breath as the song began, then hopped onto the dancepad. She started off quite well, her focus unwavering. She did a twirl on the dancepad and locked eyes with Nick, who was making his way towards the DDR machine. As soon as she met his gaze, she felt herself blush and immediately made a misstep and ruined her run.

“Damn it!” hissed Adagio.

“Hey there, ‘Dagio,” said Nick as he approached. “And you must be the sister I've heard so much about.”

“Yup. I'm Sonata, and I'm Dagi’s dance coach,” said Sonata brightly. She looked Nick up and down, then spared a glance at Adagio’s blushing face. “What's your name?”

“Nick. Cool meeting you.” Nick folded his arms over his chest. “You were doing good before I came over here. What happened?”

“I was… Distracted.” Adagio cleared her throat, glancing at her sister. Luckily, Sonata didn’t seem to be really paying any attention. “Nata, would you kindly fetch me something to drink?”

“Sure thing, Dagi! Just keep practicing, I’ll be back in a jiffy!” Sonata darted for the concession stand, leaving Adagio standing with the target of her affections.

“You’re good, though. Just gotta stay focused,” said Nick. “You a performer?”

“Eh… I suppose you could say that. Used to be, anyway.” Adagio didn’t want to lie to the boy, but, at the same time, telling him that she used to brainwash high schools with her singing wasn't exactly a good look. “By God, am I rusty.”

“Well, just take it easy, will ya? No point in sweating the little stuff. Once you get into your groove and start having fun, things will come back to you.” Nick smiled at Adagio before turning away from Adagio. “Now, if you excuse me, there are some children who need to be obliterated in some Street Fighter. I'll see you around.”

And, like a whisper in the wind, he was gone. Adagio watched him go, damming her heart for finding this stupid human boy attractive. She hated this feeling of her heart thumping in her chest, her knees going weak. A simple boy shouldn't be doing this to her. Yet, here she was, about to throw yet another quarter at Dance Dance Revolution!

“So you’re sure you can't hang out?”

“Sorry, Benji, but my sister needs me. But, I promise, we can party some other time!”

Adagio couldn't hear much over the sounds of the arcade, but she definitely heard her sister’s conversation. She turned to see Sonata, walking back from the concession stand with two drinks in tow. Surprisingly, there was a boy walking alongside her. He was the exact type that Adagio expected to be at an arcade. Nerdy, clearly uncomfortable with the opposite sex. He was cute, in a strange way, especially the way he bared his braces when he smiled at Sonata.

“Alright, then. Text me?” he said awkwardly. 

“Well, duh! Of course I'll text you, silly!” Sonata’s tone was nothing if not absolutely genuine. She winked at the boy before departing to rejoin her sister. Adagio waited for her with a curious gaze, but didn’t speak at once. When it became clear that Sonata had no intention of explaining herself, Adagio decided to press a bit.

“Who was that?” asked Adagio, accepting the drink from Sonata. “You seemed to be talking quite familiarly.”

“Oh, that’s just Benji. He’s a friend,” said Sonata innocently. “I was playing Bloody Boxing 4 with him earlier before I came to check on you.”

“And you just gave some random boy your number?”

“He’s cool. I’m allowed to have friends, aren’t I?”

Adagio raised her eyebrow at Sonata’s strangely guarded response, but inevitably smirked. Looks like she wasn’t the only one with a crush. Adagio couldn’t really blame Sonata for that, considering her own situation.

“You are, indeed. Just warn him that I’ll eat him alive if he ever does anything to hurt you,” said Adagio with a smirk. “And that pales in comparison to what will happen if Aria gets her hands on him.” Sonata blushed slightly, pressing her fingers together nervously.

“I don’t think you should worry… He’s really nice…” She shook her head firmly. “Anyway… Dancing!”

“Dancing,” agreed Adagio. “What do you suggest?”

“Well, I noticed that you lock up at about halfway through the song, and I think I know why. See, you’re used to dancing with me and Aria, so you keep expecting one of us to give you a cue. But, since this is a solo performance, all you end up doing is missing the step and ruining your rhythm.”

“Wow. Have you always been this smart?” snorted Adagio. “That actually makes a lot of sense. But the question still stands; How are we going to solve this problem of mine?”

“Hm… Go. Do your run,” said Sonata, a devious glint in her eye. “I’ve got an idea.”

Adagio wasn’t especially looking forward to this idea of Sonata’s, because, historically, Sonata’s ideas were terrible. They almost never worked and, even when they did, things normally ended up going poorly for Adagio. But, currently, she didn’t have much of a choice but to follow her sister’s lead. Adagio approached the Dance Dance Revolution cabinet and cautiously inserted yet another quarter. She selected her song and prepared to be disappointed by yet another failure. To her confusion, Sonata stepped forward as well, standing just next to Adagio. 

“What are you doing, Nata?” asked Adagio.

“Don’t focus on the screen. Focus on me. It’s time to synergize!” said Sonata with a grin. “Ready to win?”

Sonata didn’t give Adagio a chance to answer before she started dancing. Realization dawned on Adagio, and she joined her sister in smiling. Sonata wasn’t making the same steps as Adagio was meant to. Instead, she acted as a background dancer, giving Adagio the cues she needed. 

Adagio jumped into action, dancing as if her life depended on it. She barely paid attention to the screen, instead opting to focus on her sister. Sonata had a very specific, very familiar rhythm to the way that she moved, and each step was felt by Adagio more than it was seen. The two were on the same wavelength, no doubt the result of thousands of years of performing together. Adagio didn’t have to look at the screen, just feel what Sonata was doing. Their synergy was incredible.

A crowd began to gather around the admittedly strange sight of the two sisters, but Adagio didn’t let herself get distracted. She stayed focused on her sister, feeling their rhythms become one. She hit step after step, Flawless beat after Flawless beat, until…

“PERFECT SCORE! YOU WIN!”

The crowd of onlookers applauded as Adagio literally jumped for joy. She grabbed Sonata up around the waist and hoisted her up, hugging her tightly in a very rare display of affection. Sonata’s giggles seemed to register in Adagio’s mind after a bit, and she hastily lowered her sister to the ground.

“You did it, Dagi!” cheered Sonata. 

“No, I didn’t, idiot.” Adagio smirked at Sonata’s confused expression. “We did it. I would’ve ran out of money before I beat that game if it weren’t for your intervention. So… Thank you.”

“I’m gonna go get an employee! This is the best!”

And, just like that, Sonata was gone. Adagio chuckled at her, not for the last time amazed at that girl’s seemingly endless well of excitement. Adagio turned away, her eyes peeled for the reason she went through this whole ordeal. Nick limped his way forward, parting the crowd and approaching Adagio with a grin.

“Nice moves, ‘Dagio,” he said. “Way to crush it.”

“Thanks. I honestly don’t think I could have done it without my sister,” admitted Adagio.

“Well, doesn’t matter, cause she was here for you now. Pretty cool of her.”

“Hm. I guess so.”

“So, you’ve got the tickets. Who do you plan on taking with you?”

There it was. Adagio’s opportunity. All of this was for Nick, anyway. Adagio had achieved her goal, and now it was time to reap the rewards. Sonata would understand, of that, Adagio was sure. But, just as she was going to offer her ticket to Nick, something stopped her. The words made sense in her head, but they refused to leave her mouth. As Adagio stood there, she realized that her decision was even more obvious than she originally thought.

“I’m going to take Sonata,” said Adagio. “I wouldn’t have won the tickets without her. It’s only fair that I take her with me.” Nick smirked, nodding in understanding. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a scrap of paper and a pen, which he started scribbling on.

“I figured as much. That’s pretty cool of you. Maybe we could meet up after the concert?” offered Nick. “Maybe grab a bite to eat?”

“That sounds wonderful, actually.” Adagio smiled, deciding that maybe the arcade wasn’t so bad after all. She accepted the scrap of paper from Nick, stowing his number in her pocket. “Now, if you excuse me, I have to go find the airhead.”

“Hold up! You didn’t put your name in.” Nick pointed to the game cabinet, which displayed a few spaces for the player to input their name. “You got the high score. Tell the world who you are.” Adagio studied the machine for a moment before inputting her desired characters and running off to tell her sister the good news.

High Score: NAT AND ADA