AAOOOSC! #10

On one fine day in Pittsburgh, Marc-André Fleury is at his house. He is humming happily while cleaning up his living room because he and his buddy and Penguins mascot, Iceburgh, planned to have a game day. Not a hockey game day, a board game day!

“This can go here…!” Fleury yanks the remote control from between the cushions of the sofa and places it neatly on the coffee table.

“This is not suppose to be here…” He then grabs an abandoned doll of his daughter and thrusts it into the coat closet near by.

“Here are the games…” Fleury plops a stack full of board games onto the coffee table. “Let’s see if I got ‘em all.” He begins sifting through the board games.

“Monopoly, Break The Ice, LIFE, Connect Four, Battleship, checkers, Hungry Hippos, Sorry…” He nods his head. “Yeah, got ‘em all!”

Then the ringing of the doorbell echos through the living room.

“Oh, he’s here!” Fleury leaves the board games on the table and jogs over to the front door, which is not too far.

He opens the door with a huge smile. “Hey there, Iceburgh!”

Iceburgh waves his hand as a way of greeting him.

Fleury then scans him front head to toe; he notices that there is something off. “Say…, when did you get a new jersey? When did the Pens get a new jersey?”

Iceburgh stares down at the black and red jersey he is wearing. He then points to it and does some hand motions, communicating to him.

“Oh...I get it…!” Fleury nods his head after the mascot is done with his explanation. “Your other jersey got dirty while eating, okay….” He then makes an odd look. “How the heck can you dirty a jersey by just eating ice cubes?”

Iceburgh does some more motions.

“Oh, it got wet, not dirty. Alright, well, come on in!” Fleury does a swinging arm motion, signalling Iceburgh to hop into his house. He ambles into his living room and sits on the sofa, waiting for the mascot to catch up to him.

Iceburgh slowly sits next to him and then stares at him.

“So…” Fleury reaches over to the stack of board games; he brings them onto his lap. “Which game do ya wanna play first? I got your favourite: Break The Ice…!” He pulls out the box titled “Break The Ice” with a growing smile.

Iceburgh shakes his head. He then points to another box stuffed in the pile.

“You wanna play Monopoly?’” Fleury tentatively holds up Monopoly after placing Break The Ice down. “I thought you didn’t like that game. I creamed you last time we played.”

The mascot does some meaningful hand motions.

“Alright, if you say so…” Fleury sets the other board games to the ground with a sigh.

He then opens up Monopoly on the table and begins setting up the game.

“What do you want to be?” Fleury pushes the little silver pieces toward Iceburgh.

Iceburgh quickly takes the thimble.

“Thimble, eh? You always go for the top hat. Interesting…” Suspicion begins to grow inside Fleury. “I’ll take the car as usual-- It would’ve been nice if it was a Lambo though.” He pushes the tiny, silver car to his side and dumps the unwanted pieces into the box.

Fleury continues unfolding the board and setting up the bank.

Then, Iceburgh then taps his shoulder, grabbing his attention.

Fleury looks up from the pile of colourful money that is in his hands. “Yeah, Iceburgh?”

The mascot does some hand motions.

“Sure, go eat! Help yourself to all the ice cubes the freezer can produce!” He chuckles as he turns back to counting the money.

Iceburgh gets up and shuffles into the kitchen.

“Remember to not break the freezer like last time!” Fleury shouts into the kitchen. He then sighs. “That was not fun,” he mutters to himself.

A few minutes later, Iceburgh comes back into the living room nonchalantly and sits himself down on his spot on the sofa.

“Is the freezer still working?” Fleury sits up and looks at the mascot; his eyes go wide.

He spots Iceburgh holding a plate of whole fish in his hands; he is happily tossing fish into his mouth, one by one.

“Fish?” Fleury asks in disbelief. “Since when did you eat fish?”

Iceburgh does some hand motions with one hand; he continues eating the fish.

Fleury begins rising to his feet in bewilderment. “First the jersey, then the thimble, and now fish? This is not like Iceburgh!” He immediately leans toward the mascot and hastily grabs onto his shoulders. “Who are you and what had you done with Iceburgh?!”

He then feels someone soft tapping his shoulder from behind.

Fleury slowly straightens up and turns around to see who is behind him.

It is Iceburgh himself, wearing the home Penguins’ jersey, chomping on ice cubes; he waves to him with one hand.

“Wha-wha-wha…?” Fleury vigorously glances back from Iceburgh, who is eating ice cubes, to Iceburgh, who is eating fish, then back to Iceburgh, who is wearing the black and gold jersey, and then to Iceburgh, who is wearing the black and red jersey, again. “What is going on?!” he finally cries out to the ceiling with his hands on his head in distress.

Iceburgh sits his ice cubes on the coffee table and calmly explains to Fleury through his hand motions.

“So...this is your friend from the AHL team of the Pens, the Wilkes-Barre-slash-Scranton Penguins, named Tux?” Fleury points to the mascot that is sitting on the sofa.
Iceburgh nods his head.

“And you thought it would’ve been funny to prank me by him taking your place?”

Iceburgh places his hands on his beak and nods some more.

“Ah, buddy, you got me good!” Fleury lets out loud bursts of chuckles. “Come here!” He grabs Iceburgh into a hug. “You just pranked the King Prankster of the Pens!”

Tux then lumbers over and joins in on the hug.

“You too, Tux,” Fleury adds on, scuffing his head.

Tux nods his head; Tux and Iceburgh then high-five each other over Fleury’s head without him noticing.

“Alright, so who’s up for some games?” Fleury asks as they pull away from their hug. “Board games,” he adds.

Iceburgh and Tux both agree with a nod of their heads.

The three of them sit back down with Fleury in between them.

“And Iceburgh, here’s your favourite.” He hands him the top hat piece.

Iceburgh nods his head as a way of saying thanks.

“I just know you too good, buddy!” Fleury then turns to Tux. “And I’ll know you just as well as Iceburgh soon!” He taps the tip of his beak.

Tux nods his head and claps his hands in tiny motions.

“Alright then--” Fleury turns to the table, which is displaying the game of Monopoly read to be played. “--let’s start!”

So Fleury, Iceburgh, and their new friend from the AHL, Tux, played Monopoly happily ever after.


The End.

Notes