HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

[vrdr_mods]

[Visitors to the Velvet Room are in for an unusual sight.

Gorb balloons. Streamers. Banners that not only read, HAPPY BIRTHDAY, GORO AKECHI! but also...

CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR FRIENDSHIP!

This particular banner has cutesy illustrations of a normal Akechi and Falcon. Yes, really.

There are multiple, multi-layered cakes. One is an angel food cake, decorated to resemble Robin Hood. Then there's another cake, fashioned after Loki, with lovingly decorated dazzle camouflage frosting. Inside is a heavenly red velvet.

Lastly, there's a purely chocolate delight, patterned after Hereward.

There are even little Gorb cupcakes, designed to look like the myriad Akechis resident in the Velvet Room. Fresh brewed coffee and Jazz Jin mocktails await those who seek a beverage, and there's even some curry. How thoughtful!

So... care to mingle?]

Comments

[rookandhound]

Upon entering the Velvet Room that day, Wolf stood, staring uncomprehendingly, for several seconds.

... What? The fuck??

CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR FRIENDSHIP

Which... had to be some kind of invasive, really. "Did they even think to ask if people wanted this? What the fuck."

[wipingallout]

"Wolf!!"

Hamuko's probably the most enthused of anyone here - she has the general birthday goodies for most Akechis she hasn't met, but for Wolf? She knew what she wanted to get him.

"Is today your birthday too, if you celebrate? I have a couple presents for you!"

[rookandhound]

He turned around when addressed, eyes widening slightly-

rather like a deer, caught in the headlights of an oncoming truck.

"I... uh. Why?"

[rookandhound]

"No, I mean- Uh. I don't. Celebrate, I wasn't really expecting, you... I didn't say I wanted anything..."

[wipingallout]

"That's why it's a surprise! Here - the first part," Hamuko paused to fish trough her bag, pulling out two square frames - each of them had a print of the photo from the cherry blossom party, catching Wolf and Hoodmon in a nostalgic vibe - even with Wolf in the photo griping for all his worth.

"There's two here, one's for Rookmon too!"

[rookandhound]

She'd had it developed and framed. That... dumbass photo, with him yelling and obviously embarrassed- but...

He'd been about to ask why she'd bother getting him anything. It wasn't like anyone had needs, here. Everything could be acquired with ease.

But this was different, wasn't it? Not something he could've just gone out and got.

"What was the second?" was all he dared ask, for the time being.

[wipingallout]

"I don't know how sensitive your sense of smell is, but I sewed this," she explained, fishing out a small sachet bag with draw strings long enough to easily hang off of one's wrist. For now, it just had some mild but pleasant smells from vanilla bean pods and tea leaves.

"I remembered you mentioned how some places smelled certain ways, like blood or other things, and I thought - hey, sometimes the city can be a lot, it must get pretty overwhelming scent-wise the same way it can be for sound and sight! This little bag can be washed with any of your laundry no problem, and you can put anything in there to smell a certain way. It's your own little potpourri satchel!"

[gorobo]

Falcon should've left by now. He really should've.

But... then Wolf shows up, and something inside him stalls. Discomfort pulls at his hydraulics, a large part of him screaming don't.

Still, when the coast is clear, and he's sure nobody else is listening in, he carefully approaches the other.

"Ah... Wolf," he says, awkwardly, far too awkwardly, "hello."

[rookandhound]

He heard the approach, really, before Falcon announced his presence, tensed slightly-

But... not in a way that suggested anger. The shoulders hunched by half a degree, a breath drawn in.

"Hey," he answered, not quite knowing what else to say.

[gorobo]

There's silence for a moment. Awkward, awkward silence.

If Falcon had a heart, it would likely be beating at incredibly high rates right about now. He doesn't, however, so instead, the anxiety manifests in different ways. His circuits feels... charged. Actually, this conversation (if you can even call it that), feels charged. Extremely so.

They made up over text. Falcon's been... trying. It's hard, but he's trying.

This shouldn't be so hard. And yet.

"I've been-- thinking," he starts, haltingly, "about your offer."

Ruminating about it day and night. Spending multiple hours-- days in an anxious spiral. Lyssi can attest to it, if asked.

[rookandhound]

"Falcon," he replied, taking a halting step forward. "Look, I- I don't care if you- if you don't feel safe approaching that. It's fine. I just..."

He didn't look at the stupid banner. He didn't look at the stupid fucking banner.

Rookmon had been content, for the time, to let his partner handle this on his own, but when the boy faltered, seemingly failing to find the words that came next, he prompted, gently: "You missed him terribly, did you not?"

"... Yeah."

1/2

[gorobo]

2/2

[gorobo]

There's amoment of silence as Falcon contemplates his words. He looks away, unable to meet Wolf's eyes.

Falcon does not have a Rookmon to speal his words for him.

What he does have, is a Hereward, Robin Hood, and Loki, and now a Mephistopheles, each of whom encourages (or jeers at his cowardice) in their own way. He closes his eyes. Opens them again.

"... I... likewise," he says slowly. "I've missed our time. Together. And..."

He pauses again. Clenches and unclenches his fists, trying to keep steady, but oh so obviously anxious.

"... I wanted to ask you. If your offer still stands."

There. He said, it. He fucking said it. Oh fuck.

[rookandhound]

"Yeah, obviously. It's- not a condition, or anything. But any time you want to try, that offer's... not going away."

[gorobo]

"I- didn't think it was," Falcon says, more nervous than he'd like. He can't help it. This is about his very being. "Even so, I..."

He trails off, his face scrunching up a little. He looks a little like a feral stray who is only just starting to trust someone, and is debating whether to allow them to pet him. His eyes dart away.

Come on. Hereward encourages. It's no deal with the devil, Mephistopheles reminds him.

"... I've decided that I want to trust you," he forces out, before he can chicken out, then corrects himself. "That I- trust you. Over what Shido did to me. Over how Glitch 'patched' me."

[rookandhound]

Something in his chest tightened.

"I- okay. Okay! I... Well, just- say the word, I can make that arrangement and, uh. Have a look. Obviously I'll... promise to stay in constant communication with you and back out the moment you say stop and it can happen whenever-" the words came tumbling out in a nervous rush of his own.

"And I won't- implement anything you don't okay."

[gorobo]

"Yeah. Yeah. That sounds," terrifying. Horrific. Like his worst fear, and yet-- "okay. Fine."

As fine as it can get, probably. He... it's really, really fucking scary. This could fuck him up forever. Wolf could change him irreparably, and he wouldn't even know.

But it's Wolf. He doesn't... he doesn't know if he can trust it, not fully.

But there's nobody else capable of that he'd even think of trusting with this.

"I'd. Like to do get it over with as soon as possible." Before he loses his nerve.

[rookandhound]

"Alright. Just, um."

What could he even say that would make this less terrifying?

"Try to relax, I guess. I'm not sure how this will feel to you, but it's never once damaged anything, so-"

"Goro, I rather think he meant 'as soon as is possible once we're in a more private setting', and not 'right this very instant'."

A beat.

"Ah. Right. Yeah, that. would. make way more sense."

[gorobo]

For a moment, Falcon tenses, realizing he hadn't made himself clear-- wait, no, not in the middle of a crowd, not--

Thankfully, Rookmon intercepts Wolf, and he lets out a small, robotic noise of relief.

"Yes, I... meant it more like that. Let me just..."

He shoots a quick text at Magpie, letting him know what's happening. Having done that, he nods at Wolf and Rookmon.

"Right. Let's... go, then."

[rookandhound]

"Okay. Sorry, I guess I'm just. Nervous, too. I don't..."

He sighed, and followed. "I don't want to screw this up. It's important. You're. Important."