Work Text:
Farmer Peridot of Superior Farm stepped out of her cottage to observe the new dawn, and the first day of summer. She ran through her mental to-do list: first she would sell the product from the last spring harvest, then go fishing for the carp Rebecca needed for her stew before going to the mines. This was going to be a busy day.
A spray of water hit Peridot in the back of the head, and she turned around. With the glow from the TV screen, she could make out Lapis standing behind her.
‘What are you doing?’ She asked.
The colour drained from Peridot’s face. ‘I was just… testing Steven’s new modifications!’ She made a show of inspecting the console which was already warm from overuse. ‘Yes, yes, everything seems to be in order.’
Lapis sighed. A few days ago she had flown Steven over for one of his regular visits, but this time he had brought over a present. He had called it the GameStation 5. She didn’t quite understand how it worked, but according to Steven it was like being able to interact with a TV show for fun.
‘I haven’t seen you in three days.’ Lapis said, placing a hand on her hip. ‘Is this what you’ve been doing all this time?’ She gestured to the TV.
Peridot’s eyes widened. Three days? No, that couldn’t be possible; she had only started playing earlier that day. Then she noticed the night sky outside, and the ache in her muscles from sitting still for so long. Even with her massive intellect, Peridot was unable to think of a plausible excuse. She hung her head in shame.
‘I can’t help it. This…’ She searched her vocabulary for an appropriate term. ‘…program has proven to be highly addictive.’
‘Steven called them video games.’ Lapis corrected.
Peridot snapped to attention. ‘There are more?’
Lapis thought for a moment. ‘No. How does that thing work, anyway?’ She asked, to change the subject.
Out came that smug smirk that Lapis didn’t know if she loved or hated. ‘Well, you control a resident of a small human settlement with the goal of establishing a monopoly over your peers and eventually crushing them under the weight of your agricultural empire. At least, that’s from what I’ve been able to gather.’
Lapis looked at the pixelated farm on the screen, then back at Peridot. ‘…And we can both play?’
Peridot held up a second controller, too excited for words.