[Video / Action ] Backdated to the evening of Feb 1

[mypartnerintime]

[Video]

[Two years of Wonderland. And a year without Chloe, that closes on February first, without any fanfare and fuss. So far.

Max is on the roof, sitting cross-legged right at the edge. There's a bunch of stuff next to her: an ashtray, a guitar, a box of fireworks, and a worn notebook whose cover is decorated with a variety of stickers. The items peek into view of the camera as Max shifts.

Her face is lit with the soft glow of sunset. The sky is awash with its gentle hue, the large clouds a burning, orange color, pulling long shadows in the air. It clashes with the dull white snow on the roof- the world caught somewhere between the brightness of afternoon and the darkness of dusk. The golden hour.]

Hello. [She runs the tip of her finger along her cheekbone, her gaze shifting self-consciously between the horizon and the camera.] So there's this funky section on our devices that stores all the old messages and recordings... kinda like the internet. And I do mean literally all. You can bounce way back and find some of the things you broadcast before.

I just hit two years- in Wonderland age- and I sort of wanted a dose of blast-from-the-past. Just to see how much things have changed.

So here's a good old fashioned dare: show me one of your old network posts. Something that's funny or you're proud of. Or that really changed who you are. There's so much saved up and I kinda wanna skip to the good parts. As Socrates once said, "The unexamined life is not worth living."

[She grins at the screen. Sure it's a cheesy dare but... it does sound fun to her.]

Max out.

[Action]

[She'll spend the whole evening on the roof, willing to chat with whoever comes up. Then, close to midnight, she sets off the fireworks. The rockets and showers of light bathe Wonderland in shifting colors, and it goes on for a whole minute, turning the night into a spectacle.

She watches with melancholy and satisfaction, letting the sight distract her. It's comforting that the vastness of Wonderland, the dark of the sky, the thick silence- that these things are broken for a while by light and the gentle thud of distant fireworks. That this small, insignificant thing in the middle of their adventure is nonetheless captivating and lovely and marks this one night differently. In memory of Chloe.]

Comments

aaaction!!!

[trabryu]

[ Mondo's been falling back into the habit of smoking lately. Dammit, he was doing really well without it for quite a while, too... The recent event sure has taken quite a lot from him, despite himself refusing to acknowledge it. So this is how he copes ー rooftop smoking.

Tonight is no different, he opens the door expecting nothing but-- ]

...!

[ --he's welcomed by an explosion of colours in the vast, dark sky. It melts down and showers the surroundings before fading off, before another one goes. It's beautiful, for the lack of a better word. How long has it been since he last saw a firework display? The only times he'd get to see one would be during summer festivals... and he can't really recall when the last one he went to was. It shouldn't be too long ago, and yet it feels like eons.

Enraptured by the view, it takes Mondo quite a while to realise that there's another presence there. The person, too, seems to be appreciating the view quietly. Was she the one who set it off? He isn't sure, and it's kinda hard to see with how dark it is out here. Not that it really matters, because either way, he's not planning to bother her. He'll stay at one corner to light up his cigarette, taking a good huff as he continues to enjoy the fireworks. ]

aaaction!!!!!

[mypartnerintime]

[Max continues to watch, head tilted back to take in the full show, hands tucked into her jacket pockets. The fireworks light the roof intermittently- one moment plunging them into dark, the next highlighting the roof in various colors.

The fireworks end at just the right time- it feels a little short, but any longer and it might've been monotonous. Max continues to stare at the sky for a few seconds before finally turning away. The light of her Oregon cellphone comes on to sweep across the dark roof, where she catches sight of Mondo, the light of his cigarette a pinprick in the dark.]

Hey.

[She calls out in greeting. She'd be lying if she said she's not a little wary about the stranger on the roof.]

action

[trabryu]

[ Ah, it's over. It was nice while it lasted ー a good companion to his ciggy time. Might've chosen the right time to go up the roof today.

He immediately looks back down when a flash of light sweeps past him, noticing that the other person is approaching him. Crap, is it about the cigarette? ]

Oh. Hey. ...My bad, this bothered you?

[ Being wary is his habitual routine, but not this time. He's in a completely relaxed state with the nicotine altering his moods, even more so with the sight that he's just seen moments ago. ]

Video

[singloversing]

Oh my god, I'm pretty sure I like, don't have good parts? I-I can't stand looking at my old writing.

[More accurately, he can't stand the thought of someone else looking at his old writing.]

Video

[mypartnerintime]

I'm sure you have great stuff. [Not that she has any real idea, but. Come on. It's never as bad as you think it is. Right?] There's a quote, uhh... Something about the fake artist being overconfident and the real artist being hella self-conscious.

Video

[singloversing]

I guess? I don't know though. Literally everything I have ever done is embarrassing. None of it is really favorite-worthy and none of it is really creative or well-composed.

[He's thinking about all of this way too hard.]

[action]

[punful]

[He kind of just wanted to see her in person. It's been a little while since they hung out, after all, and he knows that these Wonderversaries come with a...pretty complicated mix of emotions.]

[The first of the fireworks startles him, since it's just a lot of sudden noise very close by. But alright, it's fine, it's just fireworks. They're nice to look at, even if the noise is a bit much for him.]

[He stands back and watches for awhile, letting himself just sort of enjoy it. Once there's a gap in the fireworks, he walks over to her, making a bit more noise than usual so he doesn't sneak up on her.]

hey, max.

[He takes a seat next to her.]

nice night for fireworks.

[action]

[mypartnerintime]

[She glances over at him. She seems distracted, barely registering his presence before she turns back to the show, head tilted back.] Hey. Yeah.

[Another firework explodes far overhead, lighting up their faces in the night.]

...I hope I didn't wake anyone.

[action]

[punful]

[She's lost in thought, it seems. That's fine. Hell, he's always been alright with just sitting in companionable silences.]

living in wonderland, i think you kinda learn to sleep through anything.

[He leans back on his hands, watching the fireworks.]

[video]

[deadshapes]

[This is an interesting idea. Mae kind of likes it.]

Can it be something that's just kinda nostalgic?

[video]

[mypartnerintime]

[She shrugs.] Honestly, yeah. The only real criteria is that it's something you want to share. [And Max would be interested to see any video, really, nosy girl that she is.]

[video]

[deadshapes]

Okay. I think I got one. This is from a few months back...

[It takes her a minute to find it, but like Max says, there seems to be some kind of categorization that happens regarding their...user IDs? She's pretty sure they don't actually have IDs attached to these phones or anything, but something is keeping track of things in here.]

[She finds it after awhile and provides a link.]

Uh, so like...I don't know if I've talked to you before or if you know me. But this was like, the first time I kind of...took initiative here in Wonderland, and did something. Like not just for me. It was kind of Clem's idea, though. And she helped set the whole thing up. And she's gone now. And--a couple events back, she died, and it was awful, and we never got around to like...talking about it. So now she's gone and it's never gonna happen, and I guess just...I want the stuff we did instead of the stuff I'm never gonna get to do.

Or...something. I dunno. This stuff makes me feel weird.

action

[worldtamer]

[Because there's no parent to tell Niko to go to bed at a more reasonable time, the child finds themselves climbing up onto the roof that night just in time to see the sudden explosion of bright colors in the sky.]

Oh, wooooooow! Look, they've got fireworks here too!!

[Yes they do Niko, and it's pretty cool...]

action

[mypartnerintime]

[Max turns at the sudden exclamation. While she wants to comment on a kid being up so late, she knows that it's pointless in Wonderland. She smiles at them.]

Fireworks galore.

[And used safely, too! She thinks.]

[worldtamer]

Did you set them off yourself? ... Is there a holiday today?

[Because that's when fireworks happen, don't they? But Niko doesn't know what day it is...]

Action!

[shslliar]

[Kokichi's been feeling a bit guilty lately. Survivor's guilt, that is. How cruel of Wonderland to take him away right after the event, only to return him after suffering through the Killing Game and watching his classmates die. But that doesn't matter here, does it? Maybe they might come to Wonderland someday...]

[Still, he can't sleep. He goes to the roof to stare at the stars unhindered by the giant bars of the End Wall. He wasn't expecting to find a girl setting off fireworks here.]

Woah...

[He finds himself staring as the fireworks explode. It's a bit bittersweet, how he gets to enjoy this instead of someone else from his class, but they're still pret]ty.

Action!

[mypartnerintime]

[Max glances at him, nodding in agreement, before turning back to look at the fireworks again.]

It's beautiful.

[Kind of a lame comment, but... moments like these don't really need comments anyway. Another firework bursts overhead with a pop, sending a spray of red and gold sparks through the air, and the whole of Wonderland takes on pink highlights for a moment.]

[shslliar]

[Kokichi smiles back as he walks up and sits next to her. So many pretty fireworks...]

Man, I haven't seen fireworks in forever...

video

[sciencelizard]

I've, uhm, almost b-been here two years too. It's weird to think about, right?

[But Max did ask for a specific thing, and she came prepared before she answered, with a link.]

That event was, uhm... one of my favorites. Even with the candy monster going around. I also, uhm, found one more I was thinking about, since he uh... l-left recently.

[Aka her and Ford's legacy, which she also sends.]

video

[mypartnerintime]

[Max lets the first video play out, grinning at the excitement in Alphys' recorded voice.] I remember this! Summerweek, right? It was really fun. I dressed as a ghostbuster... [And Chloe was a ghost. Good times...]

Did you ever end up going as Mew Mew? [Not a sentence Max ever thought she'd say. She appreciates anime and all that, but... Mew Mew Kissy Cutie sounds like something she'd probably avoid.]

She starts loading up the second video. This one- Oh, it's Ford. And she remembers this video, too- mostly because of the knife-wielding tentacle box.]

You two were close, right?

[She already has an idea, but she's being polite.]

video

[sciencelizard]

I d-did! I, uhm, I still have some of the pictures you took of me and Undyne... my mirror stole them for a while, but Undyne got them back.

[They're some of her best memories here. And Ford...]

... But, uhm, yeah. I miss Ford. He was one of my very first friends here, except for the people who, uhm, were from the Underground.

[Action!!]

[mettatonvevo]

[Night time always finds Mettaton wandering through the entirety of Wonderland. When he's fully charged and Mini isn't taking up his time (or his mirror), he has to find entertainment elsewhere. This night he finds himself wandering to the roof. Perhaps he'll try to figure out what, if any, constellations Wonderland has this night. When he comes up however he sees Max sitting out there, a few minutes to midnight, surrounded by fireworks.

It's good to see her. It feels like it has been a long time.]

Max!

[He walks over and promptly sits down next to her, no questions asked if his presence is wanted at all.]

How are you doing, sweetheart, it's been ages since we've talked!

[Action!!]

[mypartnerintime]

[Max feels like a firework-wizard right now, sitting in a ring of boxes and trying to figure out if they're set up properly. Or if they'll, you know, set her on fire. It's in the middle of this appraisal that Mettaton slides in quite surprisingly. Not that she minds his company at all.]

Hi Mettaton. [She gives him a biiig smile. He looks good. But he usually does. By contrast Max looks plain in her winter outfit- as she also usually does.] Yeah, it's been eons. How've you been? Still taking the world by storm?

action;

[backpacking]

Nice.

[ Ellie appears on the roof some distance back, taking in the fireworks with an almost wistful smile. ]

Congrats on the two years. [ She offers, unsure, really, if it's appropriate or not to congratulate someone on two years of what is essentially just being kidnapped. ] It's cool you're celebrating in style.

[ Maybe she'll do the same for her three-year, which... isn't too far off. ]

action;

[mypartnerintime]

[Max turns to look at Ellie, then back around to watch the fireworks.]

Yeah. Not bad if I say so myself.

[Two years of not dying. Of not going crazy- though it might've come close. That's gotta be some sort of achievement, right?]

Though that's not really what the fireworks are for.

[She admits this easily enough to Ellie, where she'd be hesitant with many others.]

Still, I'll take it.