- 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

[fortunefail]

[He'll continue to try and play the game on his own. The more he plays, though, the more frustrated he gets. It's like the game is taunting him, giving him all blocks but the one he actually needs.

Don't mind him, mashing at those buttons in irritation.]

[sketchingideals]

...ah, Yuan? I don't mean to tell you what to do or be rude, but getting frustrated with a video game doesn't always bring the best results. [J-Just giving some advice here, you don't have to listen to him at all!]

[fortunefail]

I know that! [But he will damn well get frustrated if that's what he wants.]

[sketchingideals]

Sorry! I was just trying to give you some advice... [Not that it's advice he knows from personal experience. He really doesn't get overly frustrated with video games, since he has a good amount of patience. Tori, Michiru, Alade and Jebbi, however...]

[fortunefail]

Right. [Nobody said he needed advice. He is doing just fine, except for the fact that blocks are piling up again.]

[sketchingideals]

[Yeah, Yuan. You might actually need advice there.

But Jeb quiets down again, just seeing what Yuan will do. If Yuan's gotten this far, maybe the frustration won't mess things up for him too badly!]

[fortunefail]

[Good. Some peace and quiet is exactly what Yuan needs. Left, right, rotate twice, right... (Did the screen just flicker? That must've been his imagination.) This one goes in the center, clearing two lines at once...

Just when Yuan's made some proper progress, the screen flickers out and the faint music dies. Alas, the Game Boy's batteries are no more.]

No!

[sketchingideals]

[Jeb looks over to Yuan and the blank screen of the Game Boy.] It probably needs new batteries. [He looks thoughtful.] I wonder if there's any way to get rechargeable ones here. That would probably save you a lot of frustration.

[fortunefail]

[Just his luck. Vaguely, he wonders if this explains the little red light that sprung up beside the screen a while ago.]

I suppose that explains the additional cord. [He picks up the adapter and weighs it in his hand. He'd need an outlet for this to work, but the store has none.]

[sketchingideals]

Oh, neat! It has an adapter! [Can you tell that he... really knows a bit about Game Boys? Because he really knows a bit about Game Boys.]

[fortunefail]

[Yuan can tell, all right. That means he can ask Jeb some questions about this thing.]

So if I use this adapter, will it need any batteries?

[sketchingideals]

[See? It's a good thing Jeb stuck around!]

No, it won't need them. If you have a place to plug it in, it should work just fine with outlet power.

[fortunefail]

Hmm... [And, again, the store has none. He turns the Game Boy over in his hand, staring at the little cartridge in the back. Maybe, just maybe...]

Can it do more than just this... Tetris?

[sketchingideals]

If there are other games than Tetris here, yes! If you find any, you just take the cartridge for Tetris out and but the one for the other game in! [...] But make sure you don't lose the Tetris cartridge!

[fortunefail]

All right. [He didn't see any other cartridges, but they may appear later. Or perhaps they're just hidden somewhere in the piles of trinkets and gadgets.]

I suppose you have a lot of experience with this thing?

[sketchingideals]

Well, a bit of experience anyway. Game Boys were really popular when I was younger, and video games have always been a popular past time in my home.

[fortunefail]

[Video games... Video... That makes sense, considering it's all displayed on a screen.]

Can this device only display games, or can it show other things as well?

[sketchingideals]

Well... I think I remember there being a camera accessory for it, but playing games is mainly what a Game Boy's for.

[fortunefail]

[... Right. Game Boy. He should've guessed.]

I see.

[sketchingideals]

...video games can be really great to play after a stressful day, too.

[fortunefail]

[But Yuan's day has been stressful because of the video game.]

That depends on what sort of game it is.

[sketchingideals]

Oh! You're right about that, I'm sorry. Some games are more stressful than others.

[fortunefail]

Obviously. [Tetriiiisss!!!]

[sketchingideals]

[A...haha.]

Well, you must enjoy Tetris to some extent, right? That can be a really hard game, and you kept going! [He was watching you, man. BUT NOTHING CREEPY.]

[fortunefail]

That's because I don't give up easily.