Closed Post: The only way to learn is by playing

[futaille]

There has been a seismic shift in the pinball status quo and Grantaire unwittingly brought it just by mentioning the game at the wrong time. Or the right one, really. Watching Magnus play was honestly kind of amazing, but it also was a very fast shift in fortune, especially with tales of Alex even beyond that. And if Grantaire wanted any hope of keeping any Rs at all on the high score list long-term, he needed to refine his game. (Sometimes it's easier to be spurred on by someone clearly ahead of you than someone coming up behind.)

So he is, of course, in the game room one dark (and Dark) evening, working on improving. Of course, as always, his plans are fully subject to change when previous offers come back to the forefront.

Comments

[futaille]

He does laugh now. "It warns you like that when it's close. If you do go too far, the flippers turn off and you lose the ball."

[lightbearinglord]

"Mn." That would be an undesirable outcome, of course. Lan Wangji refocuses, all of his attention on the game; the frown disappears, leaving his face smooth and calm as he plays. After a stretch of easy saves, he again taps the side of the cabinet. The machine does not move quite so obviously this time, but it still tips slightly. The display informs him that he has accumulated another tilt warning. He pauses, balancing the ball on a flipper, and says, a bit darkly, "It is too sensitive."

[futaille]

He shrugs easily. "I don't think it's quite calibrated for cultivators. Just relative weaklings like myself."

[lightbearinglord]

Lan Wangji indulges briefly in the amusing thought of introducing this game to the Cloud Recesses. Most Lan cultivators have, at the least, above-average arm strength. He can picture his uncle's outrage at the distraction of it all. Lan Jingyi's education would become unsalvageable. "The handstands are to blame," he says as he sends the ball flying again.

[futaille]

"The clear and obvious lesson to take from this, then, is that I need to do more handstands."

[lightbearinglord]

"I have been teaching Magnus." Once more, his attention is trained on the cabinet and on honing the timing of the flippers. There will be nothing close to a high score from this game, but he would like to glean as much from the learning experience as possible.

[futaille]

"And I am sure that Magnus is a very diligent student."

[lightbearinglord]

If there is the slightest upward twitch at the corners of Lan Wangji's mouth in answer to that, Grantaire will never be able to prove it. "You would not be?"

[futaille]

He can't help but laugh a little. "I think the next person to call me diligent would be the first."

[lightbearinglord]

"Then you do not want my instruction in the art of handstands." As he says this, Lan Wangji finally loses the last ball of the game. He takes it in stride without any visible disappointment.

[futaille]

"I think I can manage well enough without those particular lessons. That said, that was impressive for a first game."

[lightbearinglord]

Lan Wangji, who has no particular metric for what constitutes an impressive game of pinball, merely watches the high scores scroll past, mildly dubious. "It is impossible to win, then? One must play until the inevitable loss."

[futaille]

He shrugs. "Like life, in a way."

[lightbearinglord]

Lan Wangji considers this, serious but unperturbed. Grantaire has a point. Then again, he thinks for the second time of his recent conversation with Claudius in the kitchen. There is an inevitable loss, but then one begins again. With that in mind, he presses start again. "To second chances."

[futaille]

He grins and turns again to watch. "To second chances."

[lightbearinglord]

It most likely comes as no surprise that Lan Wangji performs somewhat more admirably from the beginning this time around. He descends into unimpeachable concentration, perfectly still aside from the flicker of his fingers on the buttons. He manages, regrettably, to accumulate one more tilt warning in his efforts to redirect the ball -- but then, at last, he pulls off an appropriately-calibrated nudge the next time he tries. The machine truly is unreasonably sensitive, but at least now he knows how to coax it without aggravating it.

[futaille]

Grantaire watches with interest, unable to stop smiling. "I am absolutely going to credit this to my unimpeachable coaching."

[lightbearinglord]

"I would have performed much more poorly if I had not observed you before I began," Lan Wangji says. It's essentially an agreement. He has locked two balls now, and although he isn't entirely certain what the outcome will be when he locks a third, the goal is obvious enough that he is pursuing it singlemindedly.

[futaille]

"Exactly." He then notices what Lan Wangji is up to. "Oh, this is going to be good."

[lightbearinglord]

Rather than responding to Grantaire's comment, Lan Wangji returns the entirety of his attention to the game. He catches the ball on a flipper, bounces it at a precise angle such that it returns, and then rockets it directly into the final locking position. There is only the very slightest look of surprise on his face, a minute widening of his eyes, as the multiball begins, largely because there is no time to be surprised when he must contend with the consequences of what he has wrought.

[futaille]

"And behold! Multiball! Unequivocally my favorite part."

[lightbearinglord]

Again, Lan Wangji does not answer. The reason for this should be clear: he is occupied. It would be foolish, at this point, to try and track each ball's movement around the cabinet. That would lead only to distraction. It is like the second siege of the Burial Mounds. When one is beset by an unreasonable number of foes, it is possible only to react to each one as it approaches. He fixes his gaze on the flippers and sends each approaching ball flying crisply away.

[futaille]

"You know, I had a sneaking suspicion you would be good at this when it came up. I'm pleased to know my oracular skills remain unabated."

[lightbearinglord]

"I am not the only cultivator here." The challenge of this multiball is proving enjoyable, actually. Lan Wangji will inevitably begin losing these balls eventually, but not quite yet.

[futaille]

"True," he says easily, "but you're the only one I've seen playing pinball, so clearly it's my gift of prophecy."