LOADING...OVERFLOW

[recollecters]

Hello and happy new year! A lot of poll results came in from R&D and we've almost fixed taste all the way. Horses are almost fixed, too. We've been working pretty much non-stop around the holidays to stabilize everything, so I hope this works! Just so you guys know, while we were working on fixing the original problems we received some alerts of residual effects outside of our usual domain. Don't worry though! Remember what I said a while ago? We're still moving more resources around into better defenses to protect the city from huge storms like last summer. We'll be taking care of that really soon and isolating the unknown problem. I wish I could tell you more, but we're all working overtime here to finish the final stages of a big project. No matter what happens you guys should be safe while we finish up, so just stay calm, okay? Don't get too reckless! Joanne Wiseman Technician 2nd class Retrspec Incorporated As of this post taste tier 4 has been icly regained; tier 5 will go into effect on Saturday, January 6th at 9pm EST and taste will be fully restored! Per the mod plotting post, you may use this post to obtain this month's freebie! This month's freebie can be earned by turning in a thread on this post that has 10 or more consecutive comments from you. Please feel free to use this post as a network mingle. Every toplevel can be considered a new post, and threadjacking is permitted. No NPC response will be given. Usernames are the character's full real AU names, not aliases or chosen nicknames or usernames, and seemed to have filled themselves in; nothing characters do can change or obscure their names currently.

Comments

4/OKAY I'M DONE

[hairstroke]

[ There's a delay before he finally responds to his cousin. HE SWEARS he planned on telling him eventually, he just wasn't ready to bring this up quite yet. God, he really should have made his messages to Mio private. Some "genius" he is... ]

Yes.

[ That's it. That's the message. ]

not here

[promisedyou]

[ She's laughing at this message though, she can't imagine how long it took him to figure out how embarrassing he was being. Rest in pieces, Leon...... ]

THAT MULTIPARTER WAS WORTH IT

[cardcaptured]

[Is this karma for keeping tabs on him on the network? YOU BET YOUR ASS IT IS]

You both are gross.

[OWCH, XIAOLANG.]

I'm not sure I want to know what happened here.

THANK YOU FRIEND ♥

[hairstroke]

[ OUCH INDEED!!! Way to sucker punch him. ]

WELL
Then I won't tell you if that's what you want

[ AKA he's just way too fucking embarrassed now... ]

[cardcaptured]

You've already done that, so it's not like it makes a difference.

[XIAOLANG YOU ARE FULL OF FIRE TODAY]

... did you always like her like-- that?

1/2

[hairstroke]

[ XIAOLANG YOU ARE BURNING HIM SO HARD, he's gonna need burn heal. ]

Give me a second.

2/2

[hairstroke]

[ THIS TIME he decides to be smart and switch the conversation to private mode ]

I'm truly embarrassed to admit this for a multiple number of reasons but, I think so?
It just took me a ridiculously long time to realize it.

[ He's red as he's typing this but he'll cave and tell Xiaolang since he trusts him. MAYBE THIS WILL HELP THE COUSIN REALIZE HIS OWN FEELINGS? WINKS ]

[cardcaptured]

[Need some aloe for those burns, Cuz-- but good, now these two know how to wield the full power of keeping shit private on Retrospec!!

... although they could have just spoken in Cantonese too, which... Xiaolang opts to do just to keep things extra secure between them never mind Leon went and taught Mio is already so THANKS FOR THAT]

I don't get it.

She was always bothering you, always... doing stuff to embarrass you. But yet, you still...

It doesn't make sense.

[Oh Xiaolang, you dear, sweet, innocent child. The world of adults can be a mysterious thing. He doesn't want to pry further, because, god, talking about feelings suck and UNLIKE LEON he doesn't want to get involved in his love drama, but...]

What is it that you like about her, anyway?

[hairstroke]

[ YEAH that definitely would have been a smart thing to do but he had to be certain because he's still embarrassed about sharing this information to the world. So in turn, he also switches over to Cantonese. LISTEN CUZ, HE'S SORRY! She's teaching him Japanese so it's only fair. ]

I'll be honest with you, I don't understand either. Because I agree with everything you just wrote. She's a frustrating person to deal with and her antics are beyond annoying.

[ What a romantic guy. ]

However

This might be hard for you to believe, but she has a lot of good points too. Mio can be kind and considerate and she does look out for others. She's very intelligent and I appreciate that ambitious side she has. As irritating as she may be at times, there's never a dull moment around her and she is fun to talk to.

She's a good person... once you dig deep enough.

[ He truly does think that she's a wonderful person but he's such a tsundere that he'll never actually say that out loud. Other answers he was too embarrassed to share are; she's beautiful and her presence is like a ray of sunshine in his life. Mio's a good influence in his life and he really does like being around her... ]

[cardcaptured]

[Xiaolang reads the message, really reads it, and sits back with a small frown. It was true. As much as Mio aggravated him, made his life a mess of embarrassment and awkwardness... he couldn't argue with Leon's points. Maybe it was a knee-jerk reaction to her acting a little too much like his older sisters that put him off of her, but she was always there to give him advice, or reel him in from getting too out of line. She was clever and crafty, always a step ahead of him and his cousin, so much so that it was kind of mind-boggling. Not to mention the gifts she had sent to him for Christmas...

Leon was right. She really wasn't the demon he always made her out to be. But he wasn't going to tell either of them that.]

... you made your point.

If she makes you happy, then that's... all that really matters, I guess. I don't care one way or another, otherwise.

[hairstroke]

[ When he hears the approval, he lets out a sigh of relief. One of the most important factors for Leon's dating life was for Xiaolang to approve of his significant other. It... didn't go so well last time with Clover until they broke up. He may give him a hard time, but the last thing he wanted to do was upset Xiaolang or make him feel uncomfortable.

Deep down, he had a feeling that like himself, Xiaolang liked Mio more than what he let on. Whenever he saw the pair together, they almost reminded him of siblings from their banter. Even though she teases him, he knew that she would be there for Xiaolang and give him some thoughtful advice. Which is another huge factor in Leon's attraction to her in the first place. ]

Thanks Xiaolang.

[ It's a short response but Leon is actually tremendously happy to hear that from his cousin. ]

Don't worry, though. If she messes with you, I won't hold back and I'll be certain to get on her case.

[cardcaptured]

[Well, Xiaolang was always going to feel uncomfortable about this, in one way or another-- it couldn't be helped. It was always weird when a third person stepped into a relationship like theirs, an intrusion, almost, but-- he was thirteen now. He had to get over it. It wasn't as if Leon cared about him less, just because he liked some other girl. And honestly, with all the time he had been spending with Sakura lately, it wasn't as if he wasn't guilty of leaving his cousin out of things too. (Although that made it seem like they were dating, which they totally weren't!!!! Not in the slightest!!!!)

At the very least, Mio was family too, in a way, so it wasn't as if it was a total stranger worming their way into their lives. So that was a plus... probably. That said--]

... that didn't really work all that well last time, though. [HE DOESN'T WANT TO SEE YOU IN CAT EARS AGAIN]

[hairstroke]

[ (Sure Xiaolang, we totally believe you. Tell that to everyone in this city.)

When he reads his cousin's next message, it's like a wound that opened up again and he could still feel the sting. RUDE! Listen, he's determined to never wear cat ears ever again. But then he'll most likely end up in something even more ridiculous than cat ears, tbh ]

That's

That's simply because she caught me off guard and on a bad day! I promise you, this time things will be different.

[ Except not and he's going to continue to crash and burn because of her. Rest in pieces, Leon... ]