Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The Crew walked onto set, early as always. Some of them still had their coffee in hand, others didn't have time to get one and just had to contend with the adrenaline spike they had experienced when they realised they had overslept.

"Alright guys, get ready, check your scripts one last time, we'll start in 10!" Ao called out to them, while Ai directed some last steps to get the set fully up and running.

Curt sighed, fidgeting with some parts of his costume. He had simoultaniously looked forward to and felt weird about this episode.

Demon Slayer.

It wasn't like he hated the show, or had any big worries, he was just really unused to the feeling of wearing makeup, something that was needed for him being Demon Nezuko.

Den chuckled, looking over at Ivan. "So, ready for your transformation?" Christian tried to supress his laugh at the mention of that (and only half suceeded), Ivan just rolling his eyes but not giving them the satisfaction of a bigger reaction.

That costume was certainly...something, yeah, that was a nice way of saying it. When they had first been shown it, all of them had laughed at it. Even Ivan, until he learned that it hadn't been a joke, and he'd actually have to wear that somehow. At the first fittings, he had at least managed to compromise on an extra air vent being added, something Ao had quickly agreed to after Ivan got out of there looking like he had just finished a marathon. But even that still didn't change the fact that it was still giant and insanely complicated to operate, Ivan half-heartedly demanding that his character better get a Villain arc in the future for that.

Chilly was optimistic as always, a small bounce in her step as she adressed everyone with a smile on her face. "Come on guys, this'll be fun!"

Christian shrugged, a small smirk on his face as he turned to Chilly. "I think for that they'd have to dumb the Demons down to your level, Mrs. 'Thunder-on-Blue'."

Chilly rolled her eyes. "At least I'll try to be useful, and won't just be buffing a corpse!"

Christian laughed. "Hey, I'm hilarious, you are just sad." He quickly stepped back, dodging a slap from Chilly, who, despite all the teasing was still grinning.

Curt checked over his script one last time. He was the Host this time, so he had a bit less leeway then the others, but oh well, he'd be able to fuck around again next time.

It was something they had been told evrr since the very first episode. Sure, you've got the scripts, but if you have a good idea, improv it. And it had worked, the audience loving the chaos and dynamics that came with the groups ability to think on the fly and constantly make jokes about seemingly everything.

Curt quickly got pulled out of his thoughts when he heard Ao call out to him. "Curt! Come on, we're starting to film!"

He looked over suprised, and indeed, the others had already taking their positions, looking over at him expectantly, Ao and Ai looking a bit impatient, wanting to start.

Curt quickly put the script down, calling back. "Sorry."

And with that, he walked over and took his position, ready to start another episode.

Chapter Text

Finally, merch! People online had been asking about Merch from the show for a while, and finally, they had it! A plushie of the Crew's dog...Wavy Paws?

Indeed, confusion quickly spread as people started receiving plushies with a tag that said 'Wavy Paws', when they could've sworn the dog had been called 'Shady Paws' in the show. Quickly, the confusion spread online.

@I'minyourwalls
[Picture of Plushie with the tag saying 'Wavy Paws' being held clearly up to the camera]
Anybody else got a fucking bootleg? Like, what the fuck lol

@Azzyyourbestfriend
Just got mine, and it says that too. Wasn't the name 'Shady Paws'?

@birdieboy
Could've sworn it was.

@Chowder
They sent out bootlegs XD!

@Royal-Tea
@CurtRichy @Christianofficial @Ivan @Cypherden @Chillypanda Explain, why are people getting bootlegs 😂?!?

But, the crew decided to not be of any help, instead confusing them further.

@CurtRichy
Don't see anything wrong with them.

@Christianofficial
And you people call yourselfs Fans 😭😭😭??

@Ivan
That's official Merch, what are you talking about😅?

@Cypherden
People are really looking for any reason to get mad nowdays🙄

@Chillypanda
There's nothing weird about it, what do you mean?!

This, obviously, only heightened the confusion, people trying to question them.

@birdieboy
@CurtRichy What do you mean?!

@CurtRichy
What do you mean? That's our official Plushie.
@Chowder
@CurtRichy What about the name? The name's wrong!

@Ivan
@Chowder The fuck? It's correct, Wavy Paws, no spelling errors or anything.

@I'minyourwalls
@Ivan Wasn't it Shady Paws? I thought that was official?!?

@Chillypanda
@I'minyourwalls You sure you didn't read that in some Fanfic?

@Cypherden
@I'minyourwalls Fanon stuff can get popular, you sure you're not mixing something up?

@I'minyourwalls
No, no no no no, you won't fucking gaslight me like this lol!

@I'minyourwalls
[Clip of Den calling the Dog 'Shady Paws' in an official Episode]
I knew it! I fucking knew it! @CurtRichy @Christianofficial @Ivan @Cypherden @Chillypanda if the name was always Wavy Paws, then fucking explain!

Finally, Ao and Ai caught onto the online drama, and (after reprimanding the five of them for trying to gaslight their fans) put out an official statement.

@RecreyoOfficial
We would hereby like to apologize for any confusion that was caused by the recent merchandise-deliveries, as well as the immaturity of our actors.
The name of the dog had indeed always been 'Wavy Paws'. This was also given to the company making our merch, but due to a misscommunication, one of our actors had assumed the name to be 'Shady Paws', which she used in our most recent episode, which was filmed after the tags were already printed and the merchandise shipped. It was a mistake that we had assumed to be so small, that a statement wasn't neccesary, but we seem to have misjudged our fanbase on that regard, a fact which we hope you can forgive us over.

So, after a relatively positive receiving of the statement, as well as a poll which decided that the dogs name would be retconned to 'Shady Paws' (a couple people saying it just sounded cooler), finally everything was cleared up, and they could continue as before.

Chapter Text

Season 2 had been going for a while, and while it was sad to not have Chilly on the show anymore, her having stated her leave was due to a mix of private reasons and other projects, the fans slowly started to notice someone elses absense as well:

Shady Paws.

The beloved dog had been around for so long, but ever since season 2, Shady Paws just hadn't been in any episodes, to the point that it kinda started confusing fans.

@Chowder
Hey, weird question, does anybody know what happened to Shady Paws? He hasn't really shown up in episodes lately.

@I'minyourwalls
Waaaiiit, yeah!

@Christianslefteyeball
Maybe they just didn't need him for any more episodes?

@DarkDeceptor
@Christianslefteyeball But no official statement or anything? When Chilly left we got an official statement and closing interview, but for Shady Paws, who is arguably just as beloved as any of them, we get nothing?

@Jade(Recreyo'sVersion)
@DarkDeceptor As much as it sucks to think about, maybe Shady Paws just wasn't as important to the studio? I mean, one was an actress they had under contract and on payroll, the other was a dog.

@I'minyourwalls
@Jade(Recreyo'sVersion) A dog that was fucking loved by pretty much every fan! They know their fanbase, surely they wouldn't just try to get rid of him silently behind the scenes like that.

@Belleoftheball
@I'minyourwalls Unpopular opinion, but I watched Recreyo, and I never liked Shady Paws lol

@I'minyourwalls
@Belleoftheball Weird way to admit you're not a real fan stfu

And so, the confusion continues. Where is Shady Paws? Is he okay? Is he alive?

Finally, people got a chance to ask about Shady Paws in an Instagram Live Curt did. Curt was signing stuff and answering questions, when he saw repeated questions about Shady Paws. "Jesus, you guys are worried." Curt let out a small chuckle, putting the pen to the side for a moment to adress everyone. "So, for anybody worried about what's going on with Shady Paws, there should be an official Statement coming out within the next few days or so. Don't worry, he's alright, just, as sad as it is, not exactly able to continue filming with us." And with that, he continued signing as normal, the fans slightly calmed down from his assurance that Shady Paws was okay.

Finally, the official statement a lot of people have been waiting for came out.

@RecreyoOfficial
Due to recent concerns online, we decided to adress the whereabouts of one of the more beloved (and more bearable to work with) characters from the show, Shady Paws.
[Insert two pictures, one of Shady Paws happily running around on a lawn with a rope dog-toy in his mouth, and the second one was him sitting next to a tall, seemingly a bit older man who had his face blurred out for privacy]
Here is Shady Paws as you know and love him, or Benji, as he is called in real life. Benji was a dog from a shelter who had trouble getting adopted, and while nobody on our team had the time to fully adopt him, we set up a system with the shelter that we'd take him for times when we were filming, and bring him back when we weren't, something which turned out not be be as big of a problem as we had worried before, due to good routines, clear communication and care, as well as all the love Benji got from everyone.
[Insert a couple pictures of Benji with the cast, like Den and Chilly out on a walk with him, Christian playing with him, Ivan getting toppled over, Benji licking his face while he was trying to get him off of himself (and with what could be seen from the others, they seemed to find the situation too funny to help Ivan), and Curt and Benji napping together between takes on a beanbag that had been in some corner of the studio]
Benji finally got adopted into a loving household, and while his owner had originally agreed to let us continue to cast Benji as Shady Paws, due to reasons his owner has requested to keep private, he had to move, taking Benji with him.
Due to Benjis unique features and personality, it felt wrong to just replace him and go on like nothing happened. So, as sad as we are to see a beloved character fizzle out, it is simply for the best. We hope you see it the same, and thank you for your understanding.

Fans reacted pretty quickly, a mix of emotions.

@Royal-Tea
Omg, Benji is adorable, I'm happy for him🥲

@Sweetie-Pie
He was a shelter dog? That's soo sad😭, whoever gave him up probably felt horrible, how couldn't you with a dog like that.

@I'minyourwalls
Probably for the best, it would've just been wrong to give the role to anybody but Benji at this point😅

@PunkBitchforlife
As sad as I am to see him go, good luck Benji, I hope he's happy.

More and more replies came in like that, all some mix of sadness, understanding and happieness. They quickly started making posts, which included good-luck wishes, fanart, questions about a PO-Box (they wanted to send stuff to Benji and his owner), and so much more, quickly getting the #GoodluckBenji trending.

And somewhere out there, a man was sitting on the couch together with his dog, in the home they had recently moved into, touched by all the love from people who had known his dog before he had :).