It was a perfectly normal, completely ordinary day in Goiky.
The Battle for Dream Island continued. The world continued to spin. Things continued to happen. The contestants continued to go about their usual routines. Things were... *fine*. Sure, there've been a few curveballs thrown their way. Sure, they were now in completely (mostly) new teams, being forced to start all over again on the whole 'teamwork' and 'cooperation' thing. Sure, there may be some malevolent force working behind the scenes, a force that not even Two could deal with, that seems to pose an existential threat to themselves and their way of life. It's *fine*. They've been through worse. They've been at this for over a decade now. They've been completely under the mercy of faceless, soulless voters. They've been stuck in metal boxes. They've been thrown into completely unknown, completely hostile situations. They've been through it all, and they've endured through it all. Doesn't matter if everything gets knocked down, doesn't matter if their sandcastle is destroyed by a proverbial tsunami. They just keep on pushing through. They *always* push through. It's kinda their only option, considering the fact that even something that's usually as potent and inevitable as death can be easily reversed with just the pressing of a few buttons. Things can get bad, things can get worse, but ultimately things will go back to normal, things will return to the usual. That's just the way of things.
And *while* things are ordinary, you might as well enjoy it.
CloudYAY, however, were *not* able to enjoy it. From the very start, there were quite a few problems to tackle before they could even feel fine amongst each other, let alone feel good about their chances against the other teams. For one, there's the whole issue of leadership. Golf Ball immediately asserted herself to be the one in charge, and everyone immediately ignored it. As much as they wanted her to just go away forever and move on, she's *really* stubborn about the whole thing; whenever she wasn't wallowing in her sorrows deep down in her Factory, she was constantly shouting at everyone, *wondering* why everyone doesn't want to be near her, let alone talk to her and figure things out. As much as they just wanted to throw this issue to the side and focus on more important matters, this one was just a little bit too big to ignore. As much as they didn't want to admit it, GB could be a useful set of hands. Well, feet. She's quite adept at a number of things, not to mention her vast repository of technological wonders that haven't seen the light of day in 2,763 years. It's just such a shame that she can't see *anybody* other than herself at the helm of things, that she continues to insist that *everything* be done her way, and her way only. That's not even mentioning the fact that their current team leader doesn't have any arms, one of their members is a *very* prolific criminal, the fact that they now have a controversial figure joining in on their side, and so on, and so forth.
Winner tried their hardest not to think about it. They already put so much effort into fitting in, in being a well-adjusted, reasonable member of their team regardless of who's in control. They do whatever is asked of them, do what they think is right for them, and chip in with their own suggestions whenever they see it to be necessary. But that's all they wanted, really. They just wanted to be seen as a productive worker, a cog in the well-working machine. Nothing less, but *certainly* nothing more. They've seen what it's like to pursue greatness, to pursue something more than oneself, and they know how much it can consume someone's very soul. They saw it happen to their former friend, they're seeing it happen to Golf Ball, and they could see it happen to themselves, if they aren't careful in managing their expectations, their hopes and dreams.
They've stopped by Golf Ball's Factory every once in a while, trying to see things from her perspective. Though the rest of CloudYAY didn't want to do such a thing, Winner knew how important it was to empathize and understand one's audience. They were more than willing to go down the steps, go through the labyrinth of steel, follow the *very* stringent rules set in place, and, perhaps most importantly, actually *listen* to her.
