A/N: Joining the long list of people who have done Gamer!Issei fics, hopefully I can do the trope justice! You can expect this to be fairly lighthearted as far as the story goes, I'm slowly training myself to not instinctively tread into grim-dark territory haha. The Gamer system won't be a Sacred Gear or anything like that, he'll still have the trusty Boosted Gear and Ddraig with him every step of the way. Just a little short chapter to start things out, let me know what you think!

Issei Hyoudou was a perfectly normal, if somewhat innocent, seven year old boy. He loved, in order, his parents, playing in the park, his recently-relocated and totally male best friend Rin, and the thought of being a hero. However, there was one thing that separated the otherwise ordinary boy from his peers. In the wake of his best friend leaving to England seven months prior, the usually quite happy young boy had been extremely distraught. On an average day, he would have left for the local park in his home town of Kuoh, Japan to play with his peers. On this particular day, he would have borne witness to a certain old man who would have opened his eyes to the beauty of the female form. Going to the park on this fateful day would have changed young Issei Hyoudou's whole life, leading him down a road of isolation due to his perversity that would have resulted in his untimely, albeit temporary, death nearly a decade later.

On this particular day, little seven year old Issei Hyoudou did not go to the park. Instead, the young boy sat in his room by himself, the door having been shut the moment he had come home from school. Issei was as lonely as he had ever felt, and it was rather obvious to his parents that something had to be done to get their precious son out of his rut.

Miki Hyoudou was a woman approaching forty years of age, though her ever-present smile and well-kept figure would have certainly hidden that fact well. She and her husband Gorou had tried to have a child twice before Issei, both times having resulted in a heart-breaking miscarriage for the couple. During the third pregnancy, the Hyoudou's had been so tense and scared that Gorou paced in front of a Shinto shrine, praying for the healthy birth of their child. In response to their prayers, Issei Hyoudou had been born healthy and hale in the middle of a thunderous April storm, named in honor of the honesty of Gorou's prayers to the Gods of Takamagahara.

On this particular day, Miki Hyoudou was not smiling, and she certainly felt every one of her thirty-some years. Her baby was clearly depressed, and nothing could possibly stop the stubborn mother from attempting to fix it. Gorou was still at his job, having worked at the same accounting firm since she had met the man. He made a comfortable living, and provided everything that the small family of three could ever want, but sometimes Miki wished he could take a step back from his corporate life and spend more time with their son.

Hearing his mother's gentle knocking at the door, Issei sat up, taking his head out of his hands. "Can I come in, sweetie?" His mother was clearly concerned for him, and for a moment Issei felt a stab of regret; his sadness was no reason to upset his darling mother. Instead of answering, the young boy stood from his bed, walking across the room to open his door and flinging himself at Miki in as powerful a hug as his little seven year old arms could manage.

Though he was too buried in her arms to see it, Miki smiled radiantly, silently stroking her son's hair as she waddled with him still attached to her chest back to their bed. Taking a seat, she stared at her young son, conveying as much love and trust as she possibly could without speaking. Issei picked up on the message, snuggling back into her arms as he began to cry.

"It'll be alright, sweetie. I know you're upset that Irina left, but I promise you it'll be okay." She whispered softly to him, still holding onto Issei. The young boy mumbled something into her chest that she couldn't quite hear, so she gently pushed him away, looking at him expectantly.

"It hurts, mom." Oh, her sweet, innocent child. Miki framed his face in her hands, pulling him back in and planting a loving kiss on his forehead. "I know it hurts, Issei. Seeing our friends go always hurts, but one day you and Irina will be all grown up, and I'm sure you can see each other again, okay?" Her tone was as gentle as always, calming down the despondent young boy in her arms.

"I know what we can do to cheer you up, sweetie. Go put on your jacket and your shoes, let's go to the mall." At this, Issei perked up slightly, wiping away some of the snot and tears with an errant swipe of his long-sleeved shirt that had Miki groaning in exasperation. At a pace that beggared belief, the young boy swept around his room like a whirlwind, picking out a red rain-jacket to throw over his black tee shirt and putting on the same pair of well-worn Adidas sneakers that had seen so much action in the local park.

"I'm ready, mom!" He nearly shouted, having gone from sobbing to fully dressed in under a minute, as most children are wont to do. Miki simply chuckled, fixing her son's slightly askew collar and zipping up his jacket all the way. The two walked out of the young boy's room as Miki grabbed her keys. Entering the attached garage next to their home, Miki and Issei got into the family's trusty Toyota, and after a moment to check the gas, the two were off to the Kuoh Mall.

The mall was rather vacant for a Friday afternoon, with only a few dozen people loitering around and perusing the various shops. The mother and son moved at a brisk pace, Issei's much-shorter legs pumping furiously as they made their way to their destination.

It was a local game store, tucked away between a McRonald's and a furniture store. There were other stores in Kuoh, many belonging to larger brands, but for as long as Issei could remember, something simply felt right about going to this particular video game store. The bell rang as they opened the door, and an incredibly tall man greeted them at the polished wooden counter. He wore a comfortable set of dark brown slacks, as well as a slightly wrinkled white dress shirt and matching brown vest. His hair was of a medium length, an untamed mane of dark brown hair with a golden fringe of bangs. The man was smiling kindly, greeting the two as they walked in.

"Welcome to Scapegoat Games, what can I get for you two?"

A/N: Like I said, just a little teaser to start off the story! Will be switching between this story and Asmodeus, An Astounding Ardor so expect approximately 5k words per week for each story, at least until I run out of steam or something lmao.

Next Chapter: Time-skip five years! Issei enters middle school! Issei develops Gamer Powers! Issei meets a grumpy dragon!