- 90 [Action]

[fortunefail]

[Yuan had headed to the general item store early in the morning, with the intent to search for new gadgets and appliances. Over the past year, he's taken quite a liking to tinkering with otherworldly technology, especially the electrical kind. He doesn't do anything too grand with it- he just finds it oddly therapeutical to take things apart and then put them back together, drawing blueprints of them as he goes. His trip was rewarded when his eyes fell on this little beauty, complete with batteries and a special adapter that could plug it into electrical outlets. Yuan's not entirely sure why you'd need two different power sources, but that's just another thing to examine when he takes it apart. There's just one problem.

Curiosity got the better of him and he decided to try it out in the store, to see what exactly this thing does. He found a cartridge with the word "Tetris" on it, which fitted perfectly into the slot on the back. One thing led to another, and five minutes later he found himself completely absorbed in the game.

How much time has passed since he started playing? He doesn't even know. He does know he decided to take a seat on the ground at some point, to make himself more comfortable. He also knows he needs to beat this level.]

Left... Left... Now turn! Good, now I just need- No! There is no place for a square! Damn, damn, damn!

[Yes, there is a grown man playing Tetris in a corner of the item store, now completely blind to his surroundings.]

Comments

[childofthefullmoon]

[Estelle is looking around the store, minding her own business, when she hears some faint but very strange music coming from a nearby corner. The girl blinks curiously and searches for the source of said music, eventually leading to her peering over a stack of boxes and catching sight of some blue hair. Hm.

The curious princess then winds her away through shelves and such to eventually come up behind the man she's never seen before. Estelle pauses, and looks on, for it seems this man is thoroughly engrossed with a little gray box. He's even speaking to it? Quietly she steps up behind Yuan and leans in to peer over his shoulder.]

What are you doing?

[fortunefail]

[He's in big trouble now. The lines have been slowly building up and Yuan's been unable to get rid of any of them, because he kept accidentally blocking the remaining openings. But if he can just get one of those L-shaped blocks, he might be able to salvage this whole thing. He starts biting down on his tongue in sheer concentration.

He doesn't even notice Estelle approached him until she speaks up, pulling him back to reality. He starts, his concentration broken, and he whips his head around to see who the hell just sneaked up behind him like that.]

Where did you come from?! I was just- [... Uhoh. He looks back to the screen just in time to see the entire thing 'lock up', leading to a saddening Game Over message.] Damn! Now look what you did!

[childofthefullmoon]

[Estelle jumps a little and blinks when he suddenly whips around yells at her. The girl tilts her head in confusion.]

Um... I'm sorry?

She's not really sure what she did but she's still sorry?

[flameoroku]

[Roku is gonna be eavesdropping on Yuan then. He's been watching him play for a little bit now, not exactly sure what he was playing, but apparently something with blocks? a game?]

What are you playing?

[fortunefail]

[The straight line goes in that opening, the L-shaped block can be rotated and then fit into a corner... Oh, someone is asking him a question. He can't afford to look away from the game for too long, but a glance out of the corner of his eye tells Yuan enough. It's a complete stranger.]

... It's called Tetris.

[flameoroku]

Tetris? [This complete stranger is going to be joining Yuan in the sitting and watching him play this Tetris now.]

So the point of the game is to stack blocks?

[everyonesconfidant]

[Hiro had wandered into the item store while simply walking around around Luceti. His eyes sure do brighten up when he sees that vintage Game Boy in Yuan's hand...]

Wow! That's a bona-fide, old-school Game Boy! I didn't think the item shop would have something like that! [Beat.] What'cha playing?

[fortunefail]

["Game Boy"? ... Oh, right, that's what it says on the device. In retrospect, that should've tipped Yuan off on the gadget's main function. Luckily, by now he's learned that you can actually pause the game by pressing that button labeled Start. So that's exactly what he'll do.]

It's a game called Tetris. [From the way this kid is talking about the Game Boy, Yuan gets this sudden paranoid feeling that he may ask if he can have it. If so, the answer will be "no".]

[everyonesconfidant]

Oh, wow, you're going really old school there! Having fun? It seems like you are.

[crisisrain]

[Raven doesn't have any elaborate reason for being in the store, it just stocks some interesting things sometimes so it's worth keeping an eye on. It's not hard to hear that legendary tune playing however. So he'll sneak up behind Yuan to peer over his shoulder at the device.]

Hey! I didn't know they had games like that here! Whatcha playin'?

[fortunefail]

[fdskljfd why do people keep sneaking up on him? Either these people are all secretly from Mizuho, or this game is really causing him to let his guard down. Either way, there is a man invading his personal space right when he's close to finishing a horizontal line-up.]

Be quiet for a moment. I just need one more block to... [He trails off, realizing there's really no point in informing the stranger of the status of his game.]

[the_tv_is_a_lie]

[Hope you don't mind one more person shocking you out of your tetris spiel, Yuan -- namely, this bowlcut. :| He peeks over his shoulder.]

I didn't know you played Tetris.

[fortunefail]

[Oh no, it's someone he actually knows. This is awkward. He'll just hit the Pause button before opening himself up to this conversation.]

... You're familiar with it as well?

[sketchingideals]

[Oh, it's been a while since he's seen Yuan, hasn't it? ...oh wow, is that a Game Boy he's playing? He hasn't seen one of those in a long time! It brings back at least a couple of fond memories...

And it's because of those memories that Jeb wanders over to Yuan, watching over his shoulder with interest. He doesn't mean to be rude or creepy, really! It's just been a while since he's seen a Game Boy in action. Eventually...]

If you put that block over there, you'll clear a line. [...oh no, now Yuan knows he was watching! ...but he was just wanting to help...]

[fortunefail]

[Yuan was vaguely aware that someone was watching over his shoulder again. A few moments later, he duly noted in the back of his head that it was Jeb. He just couldn't be bothered to acknowledge the boy. He's reached level 10 and things are getting a little hectic. When Jeb finally speaks up, his face contorts a little.]

Hm. [Why do people insist on giving him advice? He's trying to clear this thing on his own.]

[powdersup]

[She just came in here to find some hair care products TAHNO KEEPS STEALING HERS - okay no but she's in here for that... until she hears said grown man loudly cursing. She recalls her encounter with the Hulk not that long ago and is a bit wary, but really, he might be hurt or something.

...And he's crouched over in a corner doing... something?

Reading?

...]

[fortunefail]

[Nope, he is holding a little plastic box and pressing the buttons on it fervently. Whatever he's doing, it's really caught his attention.]

Come on...!

[seethrul]

[Completely blind to his surroundings, you say?

Even if right at that moment, a petite girl has just accidentally knocked over something heavy that falls with a crash onto the floor?]

[fortunefail]

[Blind to his surroundings, yes, but still not quite deaf. When he hears the crash nearby, he gives a start of surprise and the Game Boy slips from his hands. It's a good thing he was sitting, so it doesn't fall too far of a distance and survives the landing without a scratch. The Game Boy's well-being is the last thing on his mind, though, as he glances around to see what the hell that noise was.]

later on in the day, then?

[shiningbinds]

[When Yuan finally comes home, Kratos will have made dinner for both of them. ...no homo.

But that chicken stew and biscuits shouldn't look that terrible looking, now should it?]

Yuan. I expected you home sooner. [Teasing a little? Maybe.]

Yes!

[fortunefail]

[Yuan makes a note of the scent that's lingering in the air and realizes he stayed in the store until far past dinnertime. Hm. He should probably get some food into his stomach before continuing his Tetris struggle.]

I got held up in the store. [He strides right past Kratos and into the kitchen to get some of that stew, leaving the Game Boy on the dining room table as he passes it.]

[corrinesbell]

[There's no mistaking that hair for Yuan's, or those curses either. Giving in to the inevitable interrupted shopping trip, Sheena wanders over to his corner in stealth mode so she can peek over his shoulder.]

Y'know, I don't think they can hear you.

[fortunefail]

[He draws in a sharp breath of surprise when Sheena speaks up. Those damn Mizuhoans. Always with the stealth.]

I'm perfectly aware of that, thank you.

[knightofratatosk]

[Emil had just been looking for some new plates after a couple of them had met an unfortunate end thanks to Caius wanting to help with the dishes. He HAD been intending to mind his own business, but when he hears a familiar voice seemingly talking nonsense towards the back of the store, curiosity compels him to go see just what on earth is going on back there.

And he finds... Yuan, playing some sort of video game. Huh. Of all the people he expected to be into that sort of thing, Yuan is probably the LAST person on his list.]

... I didn't know you liked video games.

[fortunefail]

[And of all the people Yuan wanted to meet right now... Well, Emil isn't exactly the last on his list, but he isn't high up, either. The pause button is hit in a moment's notice (he's learned his lesson by now) and he looks up to meet Emil's gaze unblinkingly.]

"Like" is an awfully strong word. [He's... reserving judgment until he's played more of these things.]