#but it's worth the try for cheng xiaoshi

[heimonas]

I love how lu guang appears to be this very stuck up and strict person who always insists on not changing anything in the past just for him to go and do it repeatedly

[having-conniptions]

Honestly at this point I almost don't care if shiguang ever "officially" becomes canon. Because what's already canon is the undeniable fact that they love each other enough to sacrifice everything for each other. Cheng Xiaoshi taking a bullet for Lu Guang. Lu Guang rewinding time and going through everything that happened again (and again, and again, and again, probably) trying to find a way to save Cheng Xiaoshi. He even doubts his reasons for doing so, acknowledging that he probably can't change what happened. It doesn't take much reading between the lines to see that 1) getting to spend more time with him is worth it all and 2) he is not giving up on trying to save him no matter how many tries it takes.

And let's not forget their exchange when Lu Guang agrees to move into the studio. Cheng Xiaoshi asks if this means they'll be partners for life. Lu Guang tells him he can't promise forever but he'll stay as long as he can. Now, this sounds like straight out of a romance novel, but even without reading that as romantic, it speaks volumes about the way they feel about each other. Cheng Xiaoshi wants Lu Guang to stay forever. Lu Guang is determined to try.

[egoitsharu]

Theory one

In the new arc, Xia Fei and Vein are key pieces of a larger conflict that reveals a new level of complexity in time travel. Xia Fei could be a victim caught in a series of events brought about by Vein, who not only understands Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang's abilities, but could also be attempting to control or replicate them.

Vein could have been behind a tragic event in the past, involving the death of someone close to Xia Fei, which would explain his emotional connection to the case. His influence in Chinatown could be used to manipulate fate, making any attempt to correct the past end up causing greater damage.

The relationship between Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang could falter if their methods and moralities clash as they try to stop Vein. On one hand, Cheng Xiaoshi might want to save Xia Fei at all costs, while the more analytical Lu Guang might fear the consequences of breaking the rules of time.

This arc could also reveal the origin of their powers – perhaps an accident or experiment Vein was involved in, making it the catalyst for the entire story. The climax could be a confrontation where the protagonists must decide whether saving Xia Fei and facing Vein is worth the risk of altering time irreversibly.

[kurigohan0909]

on grief and the reversal of it (when timefuckery is thrown in)

newly released link click OP is reinforcing a thought i've been having over the last few days: on how it feels to be removed, or excluded, from the flow of time. how it feels to have experienced something no one has ever experienced, or to carry memories of things that have never happened. Except they did happen. They happened only to you, but there is no rationalising them or dealing with them in your present context.

It's interesting to think about how grief fundamentally changes not only you, but also your relationship with the person you're grieving; how the way you think about a person changes automatically once they are dead. I try to explore this in my recent haikaveh fic; how you start to memorialise a person almost against your will, how your memories and judgement of them become selective, and that curious thing that happens when you have to construct a 2-dimensional replica, so to speak, to fill a void where a 3-dimensional person existed.

And in Lu Guang's case? Even if he manages to reach a timeline where Cheng Xiaoshi's death is averted, will he be able to lose the grief he's carried around with him up until that point? Will the way he thinks of Cheng Xiaoshi be fundamentally changed? I recently thought about how you can spend so much time worrying about someone that you forget to love them, and how for Lu Guang, to whom time is no longer a meaningful concept, that effect must be so much more intensified. Sometimes I think about how he could have spent lifetimes' worth of stolen time with Cheng Xiaoshi, looping the same events over and over, but he could be so preoccupied with achieving his goal that he forgets to cherish that time. Maybe he's under the impression that that time doesn't really exist, since it won't eventually in the "good" timeline he's attempting to reach; but it does exist, as much as his grief will exist. Would it even make sense at this point to push through to the "good" timeline, given everything it would cost? Is it worth it to let Cheng Xiaoshi die dozens of times to ensure that he can live one time? Who decides that that one time matters more than the other times? Who decides what "counts" as time?

[gaoau]

priest's crown

good in yellow warnings — none. word count — 935

prev.

you have learned how to love Cheng Xiaoshi. you see him when you find dandelions growing in cracks on the asphalt. you feel him when you stand in the sunshine for too long. you think of him when something makes you smile. the way you reach for your phone to text him when you come across dogs on the street has made you consider you've played right into his hand.

he hands you your drink, ordered exactly the way he knows you like it, and settles down next to you on the bench. when his eyes wash over you and he grins so brightly, you still think it's completely unfair. this whole game he's way too good at playing despite not even knowing what he's doing.

you can't complain. Xiaoshi giggles to himself before falling quiet, suddenly deep in thought. the look on his face is one you have carved into your brain; eyes squinted, brows slightly furrowed, lips pursed. "can you…" he starts his sentence like he doesn't know how to speak, "can you make… a flower necklace…?"

nothing should surprise you at this point, but you blink at him with raised brows, trying to understand what he's asking. you know for a fact you weren't talking about flowers a second ago. this is what happens when you let him think by himself for a little longer than usual.

as you giggle, he tries to explain his thought process better. he points at you and simply states, "ring." you have to hold back the grin pulling at your lips out of sheer endearment. then he points at himself. "crown." he finds your eyes with the most sincere gaze you've ever seen, earnestly saying, "it's your turn again."

you can't help the laughter tumbling from your tongue. "are we making this a thing now?"

"you don't want to?" it really is unfair, you think, the way he pulls his lips into a pout and stares at you like a kicked puppy on the side of the road. you can't tell if he knows exactly what he's doing or if he's simply reacting sincerely, but you know you would rather die than be the reason he looks so dejected.

you try to salvage it the best way you can. a soft smile, a roll of your eyes, "flowers die, though," and a quiet chuckle.

"then i'll do something different."

you know Xiaoshi is stubborn. no matter what you argue, he'll try to do something different to make up for all the flowers in the world he wishes he could wrap around your fingers. so you don't argue and you wait for him to get off the bench or pull a gift out of his pocket or anything. he doesn't, however, and you worry for a moment he's already backing out of whatever funny idea he got.

it's strange. you've never seen him so distant and hesitant. his fingers fidget with the zipper of his jacket and his eyes dart everywhere and you can see the blush creeping over his cheeks to consume even his ears.

"Xiaoshi?"

he finally finds your gaze with a determined stare; it's either now or never, he thinks, he's come this far. you have plenty of time to react, but you barely do as Xiaoshi leans closer. too close almost, but you hardly care. so close, in fact, that the cologne you gifted him for his birthday wraps around you to make your head spin. his hand on your cheek is warm enough to lull you to sleep. his lips hover over yours as he glances nervously between your eyes and your equally nervous smile. you laugh, but when you don't pull away, he takes it as a sign that this is okay.

this will be okay. you both will be okay.

he kisses you so tenderly and you kiss back so eagerly that you think the way your fingers bunch up his jacket is enough to demonstrate how much you've waited for him. stupidly, maybe, but Cheng Xiaoshi is worth every second of your time and patience.

he's taught you how to miss him, you've learned how to love him, and now you're finding out as much of his topography as you can to carve it all into your brain.

Xiaoshi pulls away a few moments later—you can't tell if it's been a few seconds or five minutes, but you're breathless either way. his eyes cast down, the hand on your cheek slowly and shakily disappears. "we can… make this a thing… if you want…" you hear his words tremble, just as much as you can feel his second-guessing in his fingers.

you know Xiaoshi really well. you know the last thing he wants to do right now is take his hands off you. you make it easier for him, tugging him back towards you with a hand on his nape. you giggle, both out of joy and the tension in your muscles, "no, we can totally make this a thing. go ahead, let's make this a thing."

right before having him in your hands for the rest of your life. Xiaoshi grins so unbelievably bright that you think you never want to look at anything ever again. his lips are on yours again so you can learn more than you could ever need. your greatest accomplishment will always be becoming the reason Cheng Xiaoshi smiles like that.

[curapicas]

Oh look, the donghua is doing the heavy lifting for me and juxtaposing them on its own volition. (kind of a continuation of this)

Plot-wise, Li Tianchen's relationship with Lu Guang hinges basically on trying to manipulate and hurt Cheng Xiaoshi to do his bidding through hurting LG (worth noting this implies an understanding of such attachments, and the viciousness stems from a certain resentment of it + his twisted personality). I don't even remember if he's aware LG also has powers.

but tbh the funniest thing coming out of LTC vs CXS&LG is that, in a weird way, he was actually letting off his anger on the "right target", kinda? Technically? Of course I'm not saying LG deserves it nor that LTC was being anything but unhinged. But I do believe there's more than meets the eye (and probably informs the ways Lu Guang can be confronted on the narrative, more on that by the end)

Bc this show is competent, many characters have parallels with each protagonist, and LTC-LG are no different. There's a post I couldn't find that went on their reactions to their most precious people dying in front of them: whereas LTC loses all hope, LG has the means to go back, and thus doesn't even try to let go. Alas, they're both tacticians who, despiste meaning well for LTX and CXS, end up manipulating them into inaction/ignorance;

And they do so bc both feel adrift and out of options - but the show focus a lot on how powerless LTC feels about his life for it to not be a big factor. LTC fights so hard for a modicum of control that I don't even think it registers how he impacts LTX, meanwhile LG has so many variables stacked against him and his empathetic partner that he ends up prioritizing CXS' survival, even above their connection (he keeps to himself Emma's death, for example)

In the twins past, LG was the one that guided CXS into staying on task. And before that, he hid the photo even from the police. Tbh he'd never see it that way, but isn't this accidentally the best revenge for his stabbing? lol

Either way, LTC loses his hope, blames CXS and believes him to be what LTC hates the most, a nice guy who's secretly a jerk. Except. Who is actually closer to this description? A guy who can be polite but will stay passive if that affects CXS too much, to the point of lying about saving Chen Xiao's mom?

Curious to me he was also pretty straight forward in calling LG a jerk, and maybe it's just because LG botched his kidnapping attempt. But maybe he has pretty good instincts bc I don't think he even knows why he hates the man so much, lol. After all, for all Li Tianchen knows, everyone is a jerk who stands by and watch.

And maybe it makes him even angrier because he finally met someone who also has powers and is willing to call him "friend" and "play" with him. Considering his one friendship was with Liu Xiao, someone he's aware has plans, he might've even considered to have his own pet project on CXS. But the thing is, this person already seems to have a way more genuine friendship, and it's with LG.

Summary: LTC, if only he knew, would hate LG for not changing his past + being a guy who's very much capable of standing by and watch + having an actual friendship with CXS

DISCLAIMER: I think on his own right, Lu Guang values kindness in general. But LTC's vision is too black and white to even account for that.

While I'm on the topic of LG: while his passivity keeps him from being of any effective help to the twins, he's also keenly aware of the butterfly effect and that he could possibly make things worse instead, something CXS has been confronting throughought the story.

And yet. His objective is what ultimately makes us see this approach as instead of wise, more akin to the desperation of a grieving man - not unlike LTC who by the end of s2, gives up altogether of hope and follows the Big Bad. Besides, it somewhat clashes with the fact CXS actually does make a difference for the clients, be it by making the past more tender (Chen Bin's wife has sweeter memories, Dou Dou's life was actively made less worse) or the present better (lesbian noodles make up, Dou Dou's father and Qiao Ling reconcile), which is also something LG is aware of, since he agreed to deliver Chen Xiao's messages. So far I don't personally see a clean, objectively correct approach, thus I'm willing to bet it'll be whatever is diametrically opposite of Liu Xiao's, lmao

-kinda unrelated, but I've seen people mentioning an interview where Li Haoling-laoshi (aka the director) said he tweaked a little with Li Tianchen before s2, and he was meant to be (even more) obsessed with Cheng Xiaoshi, making this whole post even more hilarious

[mimicha-arts]

Starry, Starry night

This new picture for the upcoming episode has been released, let's talk about it. Please remember, I live in delusion.

There are several posters on the wall, and the one next to Cheng Xiaoshi - 星空，refers to the film with the same title. Starry, Starry night is a 2011 Taiwanese drama based on a novel by Taiwanese author Jimmy Liao.

Hsieh Xin-Mei used to live with her grandparents up in the mountains. Then she moves to the city to live with her parents, but her family situation is not very good, and she tries to hide from reality in the world of her own imagination. One day, a new student was transferred to her school - a boy named Zhou Yu-Jie. 

Despite the misunderstanding at the beginning, both of them are lonely and feel like outsiders in their own lives, befriending one another. When reality catches up, they try to escape to a world that belongs only to them, to see the stars. Do I have to tell you that this story is about grief and sorrows, "the end of summer", journey to adulthood, love across time and distance? About an accidental meeting and fate.

I think it's worth your time to watch, this film is very heartwarming.

You can read the full plot description on Wikipedia, although it will not convey the full meaning, since the film has many artistic images and interesting decisions that convey the story sensitively. If you want to watch it yourself, read no further. 

Spoilers … And References. And some beautiful moments that make me THINK.

1. Time 

One of the themes is time, the hands of the clock often tick in the background, and at some point the numbers themselves, which indicate train departures, not just stop - freeze.

18:42 - 18:50 - 18:55

Do I believe in coincidences? No.

 2. Journey 

Their path - an escape to their dream world - passes through a tropical wild forest. On their journey, they try, despite the difficulties, to find the right path to their dream.

Since s2e1, I've been thinking about how much the forest in the back of that vision, ED/OP, is a real forest, a real tunnel, not the symbolism of the "journey". But now, if such a choice is not accidental, I have received answers to my questions, at some point.

In fact, I lost my mind at the moment when they came to a fork in the road, they had to choose their path - they took the wrong path, and were forced to face the same choice, choosing a path, for the second time. Again.

But in the end, the path to the stars ends in a life-threatening situation where they have no choice but "return". Although they both know that this is the end for them, the end of their journey, and the end of their "summer".

3. Puzzles 

This story is about art, not about photography, but about paintings and puzzles. Puzzles literally act as moments of remembrance. Although these are not burning photographs, deep in her sleep, Hsieh Xin-Mei follows the image of Zhou Yu-Jie in the night forest, and the entire world also collapses when the end comes.

When Hsieh Xin-Mei woke up from her dream, Zhou Yu-Jie was no longer here.

The search for the missing part for the puzzle based on the painting "Starry, Starry Night" - is fundamental, literally the core to the plot.

The connection of everything, through the years. It's like a promise, it's like an eternal memory of that time.

There are more things I could write about, but I don't want to make this post too long… Just. There is always something about stories with a sunshine-like person, curious, breaking boundaries, talking non-stop, and about a person who quietly looks at the first one, listening to everything with a smile. And it becomes life-changing. I would like to remind you that these are just my thoughts, I'm having fun, maybe seeing something that isn't there. We will see anyway. 

But. For real. Put a detail like that into an episode and expect me to ignore it? No. Huh. 

I'm just overthinking once again, but Interesting choice :) 

[muninnhuginn]

just generally musing to myself what makes thematic and plot sense for the link clink ending after reading some other people's takes the past few days. no real conclusions here, just some thoughts tied together with a string.

I've seen arguments that what needs to happen is that Lu Guang needs to accept Cheng Xiaoshi's fate and move on without regrets. This idea that the past has to remain as-is and you have to move on is a thread that the show has played with quite a few times. It's written into the very rules underlying the dives. The most obvious instance being the earthquake arc, where Cheng Xiaoshi was unable to save Chen Xiao's mum, but he *was* able to deliver the messages and thereby help CX gain closure. It's laid out by Lu Guang that it *was* worth it to deliver the words, and Cheng Xiaoshi takes this conclusion with him when he confronts Emma. (Of course, the fact this lesson was given by *Lu Guang* casts a different shade over the whole affair. I don't think it can be entirely discarded, given LG even admits he's going against his own rules, but it reads more like something he's trying and failing to convince himself of.)

So, the past has to stay as it is. We see a few different approaches to this idea in s2 - of people refusing to move on and trying to change the past. Qian Jin wants to force his wife "not to cheat"; he wants to alter her behaviour because she didn't act as he wanted. Li Tianchen wanted to change how *he* acted back then, even if indirectly, because he sees himself as his mother's killer, and thinks this is the point at which his tragedy was locked into place. They both thought their 'tragedies' were down to a single event. It's not that simple.

Lu Guang wants to personally protect Cheng Xiaoshi by controlling all scenarios. Not exactly taking his will, but limiting his choices. There's probably a whole post to be made on how QJ/LTC/LG each approach the agency of the ones they want to protect, but that's not for now.

Anyway, Li Tianchen as the foil to Lu Guang. At the end of s2, he has in theory let go of Li Tianxi but in practice he's just burying himself deeper by following Liu Xiao. Trying to entirely shun the past so he can believe that he still has some element of control. Both LTC and LG are at the extreme ends of clinging on vs letting go and that means the correct answer has to lie somewhere in the middle. Not shunning the past, but accepting it, and using that resolve to move forward.

So, Liu Xiao. We don't have much on him but what we do have is his belief that uncertainties should become certainties. He's deterministic and set explicitly as the counter to Lu Guang, whose own aim is to change events rather than lock them into place. They both want to *control* all aspects, but for differing reasons. In fate vs free will, it makes sense that our protagonist is on the side of free will, but it's interesting that he's presented himself so much as the opposite previously. He and CXS haven't exactly switched places, but to the audience, they've definitely taken on traits of the other.

Liu Xiao's whole spiel about how all options will eventually lead to the same outcomes, with him set *against* Lu Guang, very much seems like it's a setup for a "defeat fate" type plotline though. It's hammered in that there is no escape, no other option. Are we expected to accept this? It doesn't seem so. It's something I'm struggling to reconcile somewhat with the earlier messages about accepting the past, but maybe that's not quite it. Maybe it's about control vs freedom?

Trust fall. Every dive with LG and CXS is an act of mutual trust where they need to act in tandem. Dives go astray when one party acts without the other. For CXS, this is about him acting against LG's instructions (texting Emma's parents, staying in the earthquake dive). For LG, this is about him withholding info because he doesn't trust how CXS will react.

Lu Guang needs to put his trust in CXS before his withholding of information creates an unresolvable rift. He needs to stop trying to control CXS in order to keep him safe. We saw how that spun out for Li Tianchen and Li Tianxi. LG needs to put the choice into Cheng Xiaoshi's hands and let him decide his own fate. It reminds me of how Cheng Xiaoshi laid everything out for Emma and let her decide whether to live. It was only outside interference that prevented her, but she did make the choice to survive. And she did it by remembering those small moments. By accepting that tragedy happens but there are still people that make it worth it.

For LG and CXS, they need to mutually trust each other and that's how they'll find their way through.

[miyamiwu]

Warning: Spoilers for Link Click seasons 1 and 2

Edit (Apr.21, 2024): This theory is now outdated.

Link Click theory: What if more than one person can possess the same body at the same time?

“I’m not the one who wanted to kill them. I’m just an agent.” “I was the one who killed those people… Besides, there’s no one in this world that can catch me.”

I initially thought that Red-eyes’ words here meant that it was actually Liu Min who wanted those people dead and that they were just the executor… And when “Liu Min” admitted to being the one who killed those people, in the last picture, you can clearly see that his eyes are red, which means that it was still Red-eyes in control.

But what if, instead of Red-eyes referring to Liu Min as the one wanting those people dead, they were actually referring to someone else? Someone who was also possessing Liu Min at that time but just wasn’t in the wheel at the moment.

Let’s call this person who wants people dead as Red-eyes #1, and the one who does the actual killing as Red-eyes #2.

“Killing innocent people? I’d never do something so worthless.”

I mean, just a while ago, “Liu Min” said that they’d never do something as worthless as killing innocent people. Perhaps they’re saying those people aren’t innocent and that’s why it’s not worth killing them, but what if… the one speaking here is actually Red-eyes #1. Red-eyes #1 didn’t kill them; they don’t find them worth killing. It was Red-eyes #2 who did all that.

Another scene that makes me think there could be two people with the ability to possess is this scene from S02E01:

“But you can’t fool her!”

The subtitles have translated it as “her,” but we don’t really know if it says “her” for sure. She/Her (她) and He/Him (他) sound the same in Chinese (tā).

But language aside, who is “her/him” even referring to?

Edit: Apparently, the Chinese subs on Bilibili really say “her.”

Right after this scene, we have “Qiao Ling” try to stab herself. When I first watched this episode, I thought the “her” was referring to Qiao Ling. “You can’t fool her” would then mean that Cheng Xiaoshi would definitely try to save Qiao Ling, thereby exposing that he can’t teleport at all.

But then comes S02E06:

We have a flashback of the “You can’t fool her” scene, followed by Cheng Xiaoshi thinking, “I still don’t know what ability she used to see through my lies.”

What ability? Wasn’t “Qiao Ling” just too smart? But Cheng Xiaoshi doesn’t think so… which brings us back to the question, who is “her”?

The last thing that really seals my theory is this:

People have theorized that while Cheng Xiaoshi was in Tianxi’s body, Tianxi herself had gone to possess Liu Lan, and by doing so, unknowingly brought Cheng Xiaoshi along with her.

Although I find it hard to believe that a young Tianxi could dare raise a hammer at her father, this explanation does make a lot of sense.

And so...

Two people really can possess the same body at the same time.

And it so happens we have twins in this story—which, in fiction, often hold similar/matching abilities. And maybe one or both of them have another ability aside from possession (like telling truth from lies). Even Lu Guang has two abilities (seeing and recording), so I don’t see why others can’t have more than one.

[uneducated-author]

I've had a pet theory for a while about Cheng Xiaoshi's parents with Qiao Ling's family. Qiao Ling is shown promising Cheng Xiaoshi that her father will loan him ten years worth of rent to be paid back at a later date, but that is a not insignificant sum of money. Wouldn't it make more sense to just, adopt the kid or take up temporary guardianship?

I know that it could very believable be that Cheng Xiaoshi didn't want to live with other parents because he's so fixated on his parents returning, but the fact that her father knew that before even meeting the boy is kind of suspicious.

Like, the other parents in that scene appear to have just found out that his mother and father are missing/have left, but Qiao Ling comes directly with an offer from her father that will let Chemg Xiaoshi keep the business running. Implying that her family knew and discussed the support they could extend to the kid ahead of time.

What if Cheng Xiaoshi's parents, before they left, gave her family the money that would cover the ten years of rent, to be 'given' altruistically to Cheng Xiaoshi. More sadly, what if when they were presumed missing, they were legally dead, and the money is either from their will or life insurance? So Qiao Ling's father is trying to protect Cheng Xiaoshi?

It would be so brutal for him to find out that the family that took care of him all along had some deeper knowledge about the loss of his parents and hid that from him, but it would be so interesting see why and how they left, because if they made preparations for their son to be taken care of, there must have been higher stakes.

[timetravellingtelepath]

Ninjago fandom! I thoroughly recommend Link Click to you all!

Time travel through entering photographs

Queerplatonic relationship (you can read them as gay or bros, like some of the OG ninja, *cough cough, looks at beautiful, kind Cole*)

Between two cute 22 year olds running a photography shop together AND SHARING A BUNK BED (like the OG ninja).

We've got sweetest sunshine boi Cheng Xiaoshi and polar opposite cool, methodical, mysterious and secretly traumatised boi Lu Guang. It's in English (I watched it in this, plus the songs are in English too), Chinese and Japanese dub, modern setting (but time travel to the place and time where the photograph was set).

IT IS SERIOUSLY IMPRESSIVE. NO JOKE. YOU WILL LOVE IT.

PLUS THE SOUNDTRACK IS EPIC.

Find it on aniwave, crunchy roll, probs wcostream, or whatever floats your boat.

I hyperanalyse shows (*ninjago, lol*) and Link click stunned me. It's gripping, well-paced to keep you on edge but make you sympathise deeply with the main and side characters (yes, the writers love their side characters!) and the craftsmanship awe-inspiring. Do check it out!

(Synopsis below)

Synopsis:

It is said that a picture is worth a thousand words. In this case, it holds an infinite amount of secrets. These are secrets that only Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang are able to find. In a small shop called "Time Photo Studio," the two friends provide a special service: using their extraordinary powers that let them enter photographs, they jump into pictures brought to them by clients in order to grant their wishes.

Through the eyes of the photographer, they live through the events surrounding the picture and try to decipher how to solve their client's request.

But every time they jump into a picture, they take a great risk. One wrong move and they could alter the future of the person who took the picture... and possibly countless other events too. So when the events they are forced to live through in these pictures start to become personal, it will take the utmost strength to push their feelings aside and focus on accomplishing the task they were paid to do.

S1 and S2 are out!

[ajwinter-is-a-nerd]

LCWEEK2023 - DAY TWO

Blue Butterfly

A Shiguang Fan Fiction

Prompt: Butterflies

Summary: Lu Guang prepares to jump into a photo of a blue butterfly. How many times will he have to jump to save Cheng Xiaoshi?

Rating: General Audiences

Unnecessary commentary: even though I knew what the Butterfly Effect was before playing ‘Until Dawn’, I can’t even hear the word butterfly without thinking of this game. Kinda wanna play it again now?

The bitter scent of iron clung to Lu Guang’s clothes, blanketing him in an aroma of despair. Cheng Xiaoshi’s last lingering touch still tingled at his skin. Purpling bruises pulled at his cheeks, but he ignored it without regard. He’d be healed as soon as he jumped.

Sighing, Lu Guang ran his fingers along his notepad. Some pieces he’d rewritten so many times they didn’t feel worth remembering. Rules he’d outlined to protect Cheng Xiaoshi, to keep him above ground.

The first, to only allow Cheng Xiaoshi twelve hours in the photo.

The second, to follow his rule and to not change anything.

The third, the past and future must remain untouched.

Lu Guang traced his finger along the third rule. How ironic that this rule was created by Lu Guang doing exactly this. To find out how to keep Cheng Xiaoshi alive, he needed a certain control of the parameters.

Flipping through the papers, Lu Guang studied the scenarios he could recall easily. The ones he’d returned to, what he’d changed.

‘The Wedding’. Lu Guang’s jaw clicked as he scanned the words below. They’d only ever done it in one timeline. They’d gone on an abroad trip. He should have known the fantasy was too surreal to last.

Shutting his eyes to tears, he picked up the photo of a butterfly. He’d told Cheng Xiaoshi you could only jump in a photo once. It was easier that way. Hopefully, one day, Lu Guang could share how many times he’d jumped to the first day they met. Maybe then they’d be old, sipping at tea and complaining about their hips. Lu Guang had certainly lived enough years to long for old age. But it would be empty without Cheng Xiaoshi.

Lu Guang tapped the photo against the desk. What would he do differently this time? How would he keep Cheng Xiaoshi’s heart beating? Which path of the butterfly’s wings should he take this time?

The first time, he thought the simple solution was for Cheng Xiaoshi to never see him again, but that was the timeline he’d died the quickest.

How many times would he have to hold back his proclamations of love? In so many time lines they’d danced the night away. Found sanctuary in each other’s hold. This timeline… he could see the trepidation in Cheng Xiaoshi’s eyes. The trembling fingers trying to break their space.

It tortured him that he needed to turn away.

Too many times their bond had been used against them.

His chest hurt. The air around him was frigid as his sniffles filled the silent room.

He missed Cheng Xiaoshi so much. Each time he passed in his arms, a piece of his soul was ripped apart. Each timeline they never shared a kiss felt like he was trapped under ice.

What if he ran up on that basketball court and told him they were destined to be together? That they’d save the world side by side? That Cheng Xiaoshi would save Lu Guang?

They’d become tethered the moment that they met. Knowing Cheng Xiaoshi, whether he believed him or not, he’d come along for the ride.

He traced the thick black outline on the butterfly’s delicate wings. He’d gotten a new Polaroid camera that day and wanted to test it out. It was just coincidence that the first subject he’d seen happened to be a butterfly. Akin to the butterfly effect itself, Lu Guang had no idea that click of the shutter would drastically change his life.

He could have never guessed that this photo would always bring him back to the day he met Cheng Xiaoshi.

Sobs and soft steps approached him, it wouldn’t be long until Qiao Ling came to comfort him.

Inhaling deeply, Lu Guang clapped his hands together.

I’ll see you soon.

[sookawaiidesu]

this isn’t cheating.. right?

cheng xiaoshi x gwen

an au where you’re a hopeless, but determined photography student in college who happens to run into one of your classmates, xiaoshi, who helps you with a last minute assignment.

———————————————————

in school, you were always the average student who’d just get by. not smart, but not dumb. never having any motivation for school, dreading every single day to come, always procrastinating, but always managing to get by with good grades.

you were never that popular, but you were never a loser either. as of right now in college, you’re basically the same old average student you always were. you don’t really have a main friend group and you just have friends here and there, along with one best friend. all of your friends make your days much better, making them have a little bit of worth despite all the dread you have everyday waking up for your scheduled classes. you can say you’re pretty well known, just like the average student of course.

gaining motivation is a hard thing for you. —which is why you often find yourself procrastinating many of your assignments to the very last minute. now here you are, sitting outside alone on one of the several benches around your college campus doing just that. it’s 2 pm and since you take morning classes, you’ve already been to them all. looking down at the canon camera in your lap provided by your photography class, you fiddle with one of the many complex knobs on the camera, spinning it back and forth. professor wu assigned a three part project due at 11:59 pm and you’re contemplating life right now, thinking about giving up because there’s no way you could even complete it by tonight.

this always happens to you; a professor assigning something days before the due date, you disregarding it for days and days, until you finally start reading the instructions the day it’s due.

no wonder she assigned this a week ago.

*bzz*

your phone vibrates in your pocket, indicating that it’s probably a message from your best friend, lia. you stop fiddling with the camera in your lap and grab your phone to see the following messages pop up on your lock screen.

lia: hiiiiii gwwweeeennnn :P

lia: you free to hang out?

you sigh at the messages because you know what’s about to happen. regret sinks in even more than when you were contemplating life just a second ago. lia’s a great friend, you two met in high school and you’ve stuck with each other through thick and thin. she knows of this procrastinating problem you have and how bad it gets because it’s almost like a routine, so she tries her best to help you but..

gwen: sadly no

gwen: catching up on some work.. as always… T_T

lia: aw, it’s okay we can hang next time

lia: but don’t tell me its the photography assignment i was telling you to do last week..

lia: you gotta stop doing this, it happens every time and you never learn gwen

gwen: ugh i know i know, i should’ve listened to you

gwen: i’ll figure it out somehow.. you know me ofc

lia: coughcough.. ..still should’ve listened..!!

lia: but you’re right, i do know you and somehow you always manage to find a way

lia: see you tomorrow then gwengwen

lia: and good luck~ ( you’ll need it )

you smile, long holding on the last message she sent to heart it then putting your phone back in your pocket. sometimes you feel like you don’t deserve a friend as sweet as her and despite how stubborn you are with this procrastinating problem of yours, she’s still always there for you, trying to help.

about to go back to fiddling with the camera in your lap, you notice a pair of shoes right in front of you as well as a sudden presence towering over.

you look up to see a familiar face smiling down at you.

cheng xiaoshi, one of your photography classmates, stands right in front of you, looking down smiling.

“hey gwen!” xiaoshi smiles and waves sheepishly, hoping he didn’t startle you.

“oh hi!” you say, caught off guard as you awkwardly smile and wave back.

“mind if i sit here..?” he makes eye contact with you, smiling, before looking at the empty spot next to you on the bench, then looking back at you for an answer.

you and xiaoshi have known each other since high school and you two were never really closely acquainted, since you didn’t really hang around the same crowds. though you knew that xiaoshi was a really friendly guy and not like your average snobby popular kid. he had a well earned reputation in high school that still stands now in college.

in high school you guys would pass by each other everyday in the halls where he would often wave to you, greeting you with a smile and a “good morning gwen!” loud and proud as you two would each walk with a couple of friends to the designated classes you were headed to.

a day never went by where he didn’t greet you good morning, unless you were absent of course. he couldn’t hide that it would disappoint him a little when he didn’t see you walking with your friends.

“yo, xiaoshi. you good bro?” one of his basketball friends shoved his shoulder playfully.

“huh?”

“oh nah, it’s nothing.” a bit taken back, xiaoshi laughs it off and shoves his friend back and they continue to roughly shove each other immaturely.

he laughs it off, but a little part of him in the back of his mind would always wander, wondering why you weren’t there, cheerfully walking with your friends.

“ah, sure go ahead.” you scoot to the side a little bit so the tall male has enough room.

———————————————————

unfinished cuz i gave up 0_0

hope ya like ur fic gwennie~!

[pastorfutureletthembe]

Could be but I hope Lu Guang knows better than giving false hope to CXS after the earthquake arc :(

We don't know what's the extent of Lu Guang's knowledge on season 2's events to be fair. He doesn't seem to know the twins, for example? Or maybe he did and that was why he tried to keep the childhood photo secret until he couldn't anymore. But a lot of information about the twins eludes him.

He absolutely didn't know CXS would be in the car when Emma got kidnapped. And the whole Emma plotline is a bit messy too. It's like the story is never the same, switch from one way to another. I'm pretty sure it comes out as a murder then a suicide as the shows goes on but I'm not sure. I don't think it would be narrative errors, only CXS and LG messing with the timeline.

In season 2, CXS seems to change many key points by the end of the show, reacting to LG's absence. Obviously, CXS is the one supposed to be kidnapped by Li Tianchen so Lu Guang really went and decided "nope not gonna happen! I believe in you CXS to somehow make it work."

Soooo I really don't know if Emma was supposed to live or die but, allegedly, she's in this situation because of CXS. No way to know if she would have ended her life after losing her job in the original timeline. Or if she ever got fired in the first place. Or if she actually went through to become the kind of innocent girl who comes to the big city to fuck her boss in hope to secure her place in society. Maybe this would have been enough to make her jump. We just don't know.

Truth be told, Emma is one of the most interesting characters in the show. And it is so for more reasons than one.

She's the perfect entry point to the show, her longing for her family introduces us to CXS's personal struggles and loneliness, and all of this presents the boys' powers.

This and, as a character, she embodies what the show really is about, and her story is very common for chinese people from what I've heard. Season 1 was actually very popular because it was about primordial chinese values and struggles. Some episodes are about true events that profoundly marked people in this country. Put time travel aside, it's actually a story about two boys struggling to pay a debt. It's about living to your parents' expectations. It's about the gap between rich and poor; and in one end of it you're barely able to buy food on a daily basis. It's about choosing the right partner to start a business. It's about family. In the end, I think she had to die as an active symbolism that the natural balance is off. What happens after her death is Lu Guang and Li Tianchen cheating.

Sadly, her character is just what it's worth: a tool. For the writers as well as for the baddies in the show. But I would have loved to see more of her (maybe in an alternative reality when CXS and she became friends). I also believe she has a strong impact on CXS, just as much as the earthquake. Because everything about how her life changed from the beginning is because of CXS's actions.

Cheng Xiaoshi is introduced as a passive character. Not a passive personality, far from it, but Lu Guang tries to make him into someone who doesn't create ripples into the river of time (which is basically impossible). Cheng Xiaoshi dives and Lu Guang drives. That's the time travel dynamic we're given and Qiao Ling, as clueless as she can be regarding their business, knows that Lu Guang calls the shots. Lu Guang has an easy role, of course, because he doesn't have to deal with consequences as directly as CXS. To him, the events already happened and there is no changing them. To CXS, the events ARE happening, to HIM. No matter Lu Guang's rules, Cheng Xiaoshi is compromised and thus not only because he lives the memories: there is an emotional contamination between his host's body and Cheng Xiaoshi's soul. Lu Guang is trying to teach CXS this distinction. CXS dives as if it's only business, like he doesn't really care, but he can get deeply involved, real fast. When this happens, he's reckless. He's in danger and can be a possible danger.

People can be appalled by Lu Guang's decision of letting Cheng Xiaoshi go through the earthquake trauma but, in all honesty, it needed to happen. CXS needed to learn his actions have consequences but that he cannot go through an unchangeable node. And he shouldn't. Hypocrite? Well, yes, but it's a reasonable lesson to learn when you have CXS's powers. Not to spoil LCLA, but this arc has exactly the same purpose: proving CXS that he's not playing superhero here, he cannot be doing this for himself, this is real life with real people and he needs to understand the purpose of his dives in order to be able to protect himself.

1) Lu Guang has nothing to return to, he's only diving forwards by taking the back door. Cheng Xiaoshi? Once he changes the past, chances are he won't be able to return to the time he's sharing with Lu Guang and Qiao Ling. 2) Cheng Xiaoshi has no right to decide what needs to happen in the past only to make it easier for people in the present. That's not healing. He lives through his host but he shouldn't give in to what the host wants, should keep in mind what needs to be.

Ironically, Emma's case required Cheng Xiaoshi to be passive and not ease her mind by reaching out to her parents, while the earthquake arc teaches him that it's okay to communicate his host's feelings. In the second case, everyone is at a dead end. Would that imply that Emma wasn't? Does it mean Emma's story wasn't supposed to end? Sending a message to her parents in the middle of the night didn't change anything related to their mission but it did change her path. If Lu Guang wants for her to survive, it either means she is alive in the original timeline or her role shifts from host to Cheng Xiaoshi's downfall.

Again, it's only a supposition but she could be the first nail to CXS's coffin, actively or passively. 1) He would take accountability regarding the role he played in her death. It could send CXS on a very dangerous path, one with guilt, depression and... We know the possible outcome for this. 2) The fact he puts her on Liu Min's path and therefore puts himself on Li Tianchen's radar would definitely be the trigger for his own death. If we project more in the future, we can guess it makes him visible by other power users such as Liu Xiao or Vein. Lu Guang wouldn't want that.

I cannot shake the feeling that Cheng Xiaoshi saving Emma was a needed correction that Lu Guang supported. The reason why he was trying to hide the case from Cheng Xiaoshi and, again, lie to his face about the truth, could be that he didn't want Cheng Xiaoshi to be hurt. He probably knew that if he involved himself with this case, someone will notice him/them.

True, Lu Guang was surprised/panicked when Cheng Xiaoshi's rescue mission almost succeeded but I think he's even more disturbed by the fact someone with ability stepped in the game. Death is supposed to be an unchangeable node but what if this death specifically happened only because someone other than Cheng Xiaoshi played a part in it? That would change things.

In the end, it is a bit difficult to trust season 1 finale when you know they took a different direction than initially planned. This character killing Emma could not be Li Tianchen. Or maybe the one possessing Qiao Ling was supposed to be Vein. The words "this is your punishment for breaking the rules of the games. Now the game has been reset" are ominous as fuck when you know what is probably coming in Yingdu Chapter.

You know what's kinda messed up when you think about it? At the end of S1, Lu Guang let Cheng Xiaoshi try and save Emma. And you're kinda thinking "wtf? That doesn't sound like Lu Guang at all" but then you get to S2 and you realize Lu Guang most likely knew exactly what was going to happen (at least I think so? Time stuff is a bit weird, so idk what all is similar and different with the timelines), so he let Cheng Xiaoshi try and save Emma, knowing full well that Cheng Xiaoshi wouldn't be able to because he knew what was going to happen next.

[mikakomori]

Link Click

Summary:

It is said that a picture is worth a thousand words. In this case, it holds an infinite amount of secrets. These are secrets that only Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang are able to find. In a small shop called "Time Photo Studio," the two friends provide a special service: using their extraordinary powers that let them enter photographs, they jump into pictures brought to them by clients in order to grant their wishes. Through the eyes of the photographer, they live through the events surrounding the picture and try to decipher how to solve their client's request. But every time they jump into a picture, they take a great risk. One wrong move and they could alter the future of the person who took the picture... and possibly countless other events too. So when the events they are forced to live through in these pictures start to become personal, it will take the utmost strength to push their feelings aside and focus on accomplishing the task they were paid to do.

[deep-sea-anemone]

So I heard you’re looking for people to scream about Link Click with? 👀 The way every single episode ramps up to 100 right before the end…and the FINALE… I am honestly still amazed at how good this show’s writing is.

What are some of your predictions for season 2? Personally I’m looking forward to getting more of Lu Guang’s backstory, a more comprehensive explanation of exactly how many people in this universe can time travel/how unique their powers are, and figuring out exactly what the heck happened to Chen Xiaoshi’s parents. Oh, and maybe they could introduce the mechanic of taking pictures while they’re in the past, so they could have more than just one chance to complete a mission? Anything goes at this point!

OMG YESS!!?!

I love everything about it but my favorite part is always those last 10 seconds of the episode when everything is super intense and then the music starts playing in the background and then that *tick tick tick* turns into the theme song. They just manage to do endings so well.

As for predictions...

[SPOILERS for people who haven't watched the show]

I 100% think Lu Guang is going to die. I love the idea of Cheng Xiaoshi having to go back to save Lu Guang through his photos. (I also think they'd be really dumb if they didn't take photos like every few hours just in case something happens to them )

Think about it- Cheng Xiaoshi has finally comes to terms with the fact that he can't change the past, BUT: he also knows that he has the ability to create alternate timeliness. SO, imagine the moral quandary he would have going back to try and change Lu Guang's fate while avoiding Lu Guang's suspicion all the while getting lectures about how they shouldn't change the past...yeah.

*Deep Breath*

NOW, what if past/photo Lu Guang catches wind of what Cheng Xiaoshi is trying to do? Do you think he'd try to stop him? Or just accept his fate? Is it a moral issue? The bridge scene made it seem like he was shocked that death could actually be avoided, but the only reason Sarah died was because she got possesed...so maybe he only acts/thinks the way he does is because he's accepted that you can't change fate and it isn't worth the emotional fallout to get involved.

I really hope we get more of Lu Guang's backstory. If my theory is right and we start going back through old photos of him, that would be a really cool way to see it, but just a flashback would be great too.

Regardless of what happens, I know it's going to be just as great-if not BETTER as this first season. I just can't wait.

Also can we talk about the art? Because it's just so damn beautiful and the music is so so good I have the op and Ed saved to my phone and I listen to it on repeat

👆 Also this scene was 🔥🔥