The day began with the usual work, and for everyohe atmosphere was charged with happiness. In short, every perso had that invincible feeling. Eae of them was basking in joy as they watched the pany achieve secutive successes. Triumph was a catalyst for the future projects looming on the horizon.

  -Wele, boss,- one of the members of Lux Toons greeted with a certain happiness, a mix of awe and reverence.

  -Anna, gratutions on the musi's success. You and Guillermo created a fantastic story, your animations were captivating,- Billy respoo Anna Szymanska, who had fouride in projects that turned joyful circumstances into profound moments. She was an expert at taking a cept and turning it into a moral tale, with a style that was beginning to resemble watercolor. She had quickly bee one of the most valued animators for Billy.

  -You were fual in the whole creation process. You wrote most of the script and helped bring to life the settings I couldn’t visualize,- Anna replied, her eyes filled with pride and admiration, never doubting Billy’s ability to create something as precise as a surgeon's stitch. He always gave just enough to take the right step.

  -I heard you have a new proje your hands,- Billy remarked.

  -Well, we’re w on Cowboy Bebop, though I’ve run out of clear ideas for now. I think I add some shio my animation iain parts that need a 3D touch, but soon I’ll be joining the Narnia project, as they wao tribute my skills. I do have a project. Joe Murray, Craig McCra, Shem , and Butch Hartman are developing the series Fraeins: Spy of the Supernatural,- Anna expined.

  Billy followed Anna, listening ily to the fresh ideas being brought in. Now, eveher panies offer them jobs, people prefer Lux Animation because it has bee the cradle inal ideas. Many who had e from Disney knew how hard it was to get noticed for series work. The Fraeins spy series was aimed at kids aged 7 to 15, dealing with the hidden and the strange, and how order is maintained by keeping everything under s—a bit of a cliché, but the edic brilliance of the creators was what would bring it to life. Now the sketches, drawings, and storyboards had a certain polished style, ohat Billy himself had chosen, surprising everyoh how refi was.

  -They’re now handling both a main story and side stories, more work than before,- Billy ented.

  -We’ve worked to give the cartoon structure so that the main story is easy to follow and keeps the kids more ected, allowing them to piece the story together themselves. But we haven’t fotten the importance of creative freedom, so it doesn’t bee too plex,- Shem , a brilliant animator, responded. In previous projects, he had created characters as effortlessly as pulling a rabbit out of a hat.

  -It’s a great series. Produce 25 episodes, enough to be satisfactory. However, I’d like the vilin to be something more than an ordinary human or a mild-mannered person. Perhaps a taboo figure or some entity—something with more depth,- Billy suggested.

  -We’ll do what we ,- Craig responded, knowing they were on the right track. Their responsibility now was to sustain the series while juggling their projects, which were many.

  -Do that and more. I have faith in the series you’re creating. Send the package to Anna when it’s ready,- Billy added, making his exit, carrying just twe scripts to his desk, filled with various ideas from the animators. Of course, he still had to tih the story that kept swirling in his mind—the 55th chapter of Hunter x Hunter and the 133rd chapter of One Piece, the arrival of the Straw Hats at the Grand Lihese were benchmarks for the kinds of stories that were now gaining fans from every er.

  For One Piece, he had incorporated numerous subplots involving Trafalgar Law, Kid, and Jimbei, who would bee tral figures in the saga. With many powerful sedary characters and great masters lurking in the shadows, he had created a true love for animation. Now the franchise boasted at least 150 characters, while for Hunter x Hunter, he had simirly brought about improved drawing quality, with more characters tributing to the story and addio each character's dimensionality at a breakneck pace.

  ***

  Monica was delighted, wearing a dreamy expression on her face as she arrived in San Jose that m. After people pleted a short film about the produ she was w on, she felt more rexed and took some time to enjoy food and drinks. Perhaps it was a dream she o recapture, a respite from the workload of stantly preparing for a role she didn’t feel ready for, but gave her all heless. In her free time, she focused on perfeg her speech. The way she spoke was critical.

  -Darling, I’m at our apartment,- she texted with a long sigh. Her life had taken an ued turn i five months.

  She picked up the script for Life is Beautiful. It still bore the notes her ag coach, hired by Jim Waiit, had scribbled in the margins. He was incredibly strict about depth and uanding the character. He adhered to the traditional method, requirio ie the role into her routine. Pying a woman from half a tury ago came with yers of plexity.

  Her ph.

  -Winona, how wonderful to hear from you. I’m afraid I’m in San Jose and will be here until the weekend, as Billy is filming some ses in San Francistil Monday,- Monica said.

  -I had pnned for us to go to a party together! Now I have to go alone!- Winona replied, disappointed.

  -What about Drew? She’s always up for these kinds of events,- Monica said, knowing the young blonde’s reputation as one of Hollywood’s party mags—a lifestyle that was both peculiar and profitable.

  -I want to go, but she always ends up disappearing with some guy or a friend I didn’t even know she had,- Winona replied, somewhat begrudgingly.

  -e to San Jose. We’ll drink wih Anne; she’s a good friend and I’m sure you’ll like her. And Billy will be w all weekend… probably won’t rest until April 15th, with all the deadlines approag,- Monica said, preferring San Jose over L.A. This city was 100% Billy’s—filled with restaurants, hotels, sports teams, and shops. It was said, as a joke but not far from the truth, that every hundred meters there was something of Billy’s. He had the city in the palm of his hand, driving its eic growth through the panies he was steadily fortifying.

  -I don’t want to travel.-

  -e on, it’s easy… you fly in, and you help me run my lines for the uping roles. Plus, we’ll visit the maaurants Billy owns. All of them are delicious, including some Italian spots I’ve personally tested and approved. Say yes!- Monica pleaded. Winoated but finally agreed. The flight wouldn’t take more than two hours, and she wouldn’t need mu terms of clothes for such a quick trip.

  -Alright, but pick me up at the airport, and I expect a surprise,- Winoed, giving in to Monica’s persuasive words. The pn to visit San Jose seemed better than a party… with award season over, it was better to y low for a while.

  ...