Favorite Spot

Alhaitham visits his regular viewpoint for morning coffee, however is surprised upon realizing it is already occupied by someone...

in short, this is a fluff KaveTham one shot. gosh I love these two idiots with my whole heart, I want to cry. Have a nice time reading this, loves!! take care of yourself, don't forget to drink enough water, and have an amazing day <3

The sun rose above the green peaks of Sumeru City. It was truly a sight to behold. Dancing in golden rays, the landscape seemed magical, as if from a fairytale. In fact, I’d say that not a soul would be able to resist admiring such a view in front of their eyes, which brings us to the situation at hand.

Alhaitham had already brewed his usual morning coffee, taken the cup with him, and navigated to his favorite location near his quarters. It was a lovely terrace, placed high above the ground. Sumeu’s peaks seemed to dance in unison upon glancing from it. It was a marvelous place which, of course, a big amount of people pass daily. However on such early mornings, it tended to be more of a secluded, empty space, where you could truly enjoy your time without anyone bothering you. Or so Alhaitham thought.

Upon arriving to his usual spot, The Scribe was greeted with a person, already standing where he usually stands, gazing upon the landscape. And frankly…Alhaitham didn’t know how to react. Part of him was extremely frustrated with this situation. But in the Scribes defense, who wouldn’t be? Taking the effort to wake up extremely early, simply to have some peace, make yourself a coffee in your favorite cup, bring it outdoors, just to have it snatched away right in front of you? That does not sound like too comforting a scenario. However, another part of him was amused. It was silly, really. Someone was standing exactly in his usual spot, at a time when he usually does, gazing upon the view, just as he usually does. It was hilarious to Alhaitham for some reason, although some might argue that his sense of humor is…questionable.

After a quick few steps towards the place where The Scribe usually has his morning coffee, he realized who this person was. None other than The Light of Kshahrewar. His hands were placed on the railing of the terrace, chin resting upon one of them. The Sunrise had just started painting it’s hues in the sky, right in front of the view, and warm light danced upon Kaveh’s hair. It covered the latter in gold, which, truthfully, made the spot thief look a little bit too dazzling, at least to Alhaitham.

“Kaveh? How come you’re up so early? And may I ask, what exactly are you doing specifically on my favorite spot?” - Alhaitham truly didn’t wish to come off as cold as he did, and truth be told, Kaveh knew that.

“Oh, hi Haitham. Good morning to you too” - the blonde's tone sounded untainted with hatred, or any negative emotion for that matter. It was simply casual.

“Apologies, good morning, of course”

“It’s alright” - Kaveh responded, his tone warmer this time.

A few moments of silence were shared between the two who unexpectedly met. Alhaitham made a few steps forwards, and was now standing right near The Light of Kshahrewar

“Although still, pray tell, why are you up so early? You went to sleep quite late, if I’m not mistaken” - Alhaitham stated, after which he decided to finally sip on his coffee.

“Well, the reason I am up so early is that I…have not went to sleep through the night yet”

Upon hearing that phrase, The Scribe almost choked on his coffee, spitting it out, similarly to a fountain. Good thing that beforehand his gaze was focused on the landscape. Otherwise The Light of Kshahrewar might have his clothes covered in coffee at 5 in the morning, which isn’t a preferable scenario to both parties here.

“Excuse me, what? You have not gone to sleep yet?” - for once, Alhaitham’s tone was evidently laced with emotion. This time, the emotion was a mix of worry and disbelief.

“...come on, is that truly so difficult to believe?” - Kaveh asked.

“Well now that you say that, not really. However still…How are you not falling asleep on the spot?”

“I myself don’t know”

“Kaveh, why did you stay up?” “Well, the project I’m working on had it’s deadline pushed to an earlier date, so it’s necessary to compromise in this situation. I will be able to sleep properly after it is finished. One or two all nighters won’t hurt” - the blonde responded. However it seemed he was rather attempting to assure himself of these things, rather than Alhaitham.

A few moment of silence passed by, after which Kaveh decided to glance upon Alhaitham. After all, who wouldn’t be at least a bit perplexed from getting no reaction from the person you are conversing with. Kaveh was met with The Scribe frowning. However it wasn’t a scowl, or a disappointed expression. It was simply a frown. A frown of worry, rather than disappointment.

“Oh stop that, you know I always fix my sleep schedule after my projects” - Kaveh reassured the person beside him.

“That does not make me any less worried” - was all The Scribe could come up with.

A few more moments of silence passed.

“How come you chose this spot? …for all I know, the terrace to our right is much more impressive, architecturally speaking, and it has actual places to sit” - Alhaitham could not refrain from asking. You see, if you had asked him that question, the answer you would have gotten would be extremely specific.

After a moment of hesitation, Kaveh responded

“For the sunrise. I don’t come here to rest or to sit on a high terrace. I come here to watch sunrises and sunsets. They are not visible from the terraces nearby. And the reason for this specific spot…well, this spot is where the sun first shines it’s light in the morning. I like to think of it as a lucky spot”

Another moment of silence.

“How come you chose this spot, Haitham?” - the architect was now facing the person who joined him directly, observing their expressions and admiring how they looked, basking in the first sunlight of the day.

“I…I think…you and I are more similar than we tend to imagine, Kaveh” - The Scribe glanced back, warm smile playing on his expression, coffee already slightly forgotten.

A rare sight was painted in front of Kaveh this morning. This sight would probably be engraved in his heart for years and years to come. What he did not pause to consider at the moment, however, is that perhaps, the person beside him felt as dearly towards him, as he did to them. “Perhaps…” - the blonde thinks to himself - “...perhaps I should come to this spot more often”.

note: I am a firm believer that Kaveh and Alhaitham don't deserve to be painted as the two people who constantly hurt each other, because of their differences, and have unresolved conflicts all the time. of course those two bicker a lot, but come on, through many years, they have gotten to know each other thoroughly, in and out. although I am sure they have had their fair share of conflicts, THE AMOUNT OF KAVETHAM ANGST I'VE SEEN IS JUST INCREDIBLE. LIKE DAMN, WHO HURT YOU PEOPLE? anyhow, hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing this! <3

IM NOT DOING ANYTHING.

The gang has just confronted Caine about him not allowing them to exit.

Dialogue from: ENAs Dream BBQ

Keep Reading - Behind the scenes and Analysis

ANALYSIS -

“Guys, Guys- Wait!”

intention and Context: When Caine gets outright accused of being malicious, he goes into full defensive/panic mode. Whats being said is a fully detailed accusation, not something he can easily brush off as typical irrationality or petty comments like when Pomni first joins or Zooble calling the adventures stupid.

At first it may be interpreted that he’s panicked because "the game" is about to be given away. But really its just because he has never fully comprehended what people think of him until now.

How I Portrayed it: The accusations are represented by the lines in the background going into him, looking sharp and jagged, as these words are incredibly harsh. Also noted that the colors are extremely intense, and the lighting is from below, giving a sort of “scary stories” or “on edge” look.

The repeating purple and red color combo is also meant to give a feeling of cop car lights- adding onto the accusing atmosphere.

“Im Not Doing What You Say Im Doing!”

intention and Context: Caine yells that they’ve got it all wrong- trying to gain his composure and explaining himself in a calm and orderly fashion. (this doesnt work.)

How I portrayed it: This attempt at getting a reign on his emotions is shown by the background getting lighter, the lighting being more direct instead of from below, his expression sofening a tad, and the accusing sharp lines blow out to make room for his fighting back.

Outside Shot 1): The state of the building where his computer is. uh- not good 😭 The company has long since been abandoned.

“Im Not Doing Anything!”

Intentions and Context: Caine insists he’s not doing anything to keep them away from an exit, or to hurt them. Or…at least… he doesn’t want to. Caine is now more or less trying to convince himself of this. This scope of his actions has now become way more than just stopping them from finding an exit. One thought led to another- and yeah.

This is all reminiscent of his language in episode 3 when he talks about how “making adventures is all (he’s) good at”. Whats so interesting about that line is the thing that truly sets him off. Caine says that it’s all he exists to do, this is just factually true! He’s very much BEEN aware of this. He’s an A.I. whos built for making adventures. yeah. this isn’t a shocking revelation.

That is until he takes it far more personally and emotionally than I think he’s ever considered. Its not just all he exists to do- its ALL he does. Its all he’s good at, it is EVERYTHING he is. If he’s not good at that then… uh….Its like he goes from Logic- To emotion- And rounding back to logic. Its all hes designed to do- its all hes GOOD at. What does that mean for someone whos bad at all hes meant for? replacement. fixing the issue. the issue being him.

How I portrayed it: The spotlight-lighting! instead of the attention being harshly accusatory, coming from below and stabbing into him, its more like his every move is being watched under a microscope. He feels pressured more than ever to be perfect now that it’s been made clear people see him as the complete opposite of what he’s supposed to be. A good host wouldn’t make people genuinely think he’s secretly evil-

The glitching is also meant to go back to what I was talking about with the ep 3 moment, as well as show he’s feeling all the emotions hes NOT SUPPOSED TO. He’s afraid, he’s angry, he’s confused. His programming is screaming in pure “!?!?!?!?!?”

Outside Shot 2): Inside the abandoned C&A office, there are several conceptual posters on the wall, as well as newspaper clippings. The reason behind the place shutting down is also shown with the graph in the way back (stocks plummeting-) (CAPITALISM!!!) (i still wholeheartedly believe whoever the hell was in charge of C&A was some Cave Johnson ass man who was a complete moron at being a CEO while his programmers worked so hard to keep the ship afloat.)

“Im Not Doing Anything At All!”

Intentions and Context: This line helps presents the actual issue here. He isnt doing what they say he’s doing, but he’s also not doing ANYTHING. AT ALL. He’s not actively choosing to cause harm, but he’s also not actively choosing to see where he could be helpful.

Another way the line can be interpreted/have double meaning is the way he feels purposless, especially when he was left alone all that time ago when the office shut down. He feels aimless without the things that give his life meaning and purpose. They left him.

Caine flashes back to where he was before, and without them. He still is currently failing at the only thing he was built to do- but at least he’s not in complete isolation anymore. Theres a lot of conflicting feeling right now with that. He would NEVER stop them from leaving, as he’s only ever built to assist. BUT ALSO IF THEY DID LEAVE, THEN HE’D GO BACK TO THAT.

You know when you get accused of doing something you know you didnt do but then you start gaslighting yourself into believing you did? yeah thats whats happening here

How I portrayed it: The blue that has been seen to depict the real world, is now way more vibrant cause we are now in the digital world- but just as lifeless and sinking as the real life shots. Instead of panic (the shots of Caine explaining himself) or hollow (the shots of the outside world) its supposed to give off a sense of dread (a mix between the 2)

Caine has his hat off as well, like he is removed from the Ringmaster roll he was designed to fill.

BEHIND THE SCENES

Ok so wow.

This project has completely consumed my life for the past 4 days and I couldn’t be happier!!! I heard this ENA audio and well- the pieces just slid into place so perfectly, I had to do SOMETHING about it, and then ofc that plan turned to be way bigger scale than I ever could have imagined.

I made a youtube playlist for the vibe I was going for music wise too!

YouTube

IM NOT DOING ANYTHING

This project took a lot longer than expected because the emotional impact i wanted to potray, THINKING ABOU THIS HURT and I wanted it to hurt to look at. But…that was really hard to do. I played with quite a few different vibes, but I ended up with something i am inCREDibly proud of!!!

So heres a speed paint of just THE CONCEPT because thats the interesting bit! And still lasts a WHILE because of the aforementioned ✨I had no idea what I was doing✨ :D

I figured it out-

If you made it this far, I mean it from the bottom of my heart, thank you so much :3 it means a lot that people care enough about my art to read a bible about it. You’re welcome for the pain!

515 notes View Post

lin-in-the-bin

1 year ago

I literally cant fucking breathe

Favorite Spot

Favorite Spot

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IM NOT DOING ANYTHING.

ANALYSIS -

BEHIND THE SCENES