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Caramele already felt the ache in his bones before the sun even rose.
He knew what season it was, what month it was. The land and pine forest surrounding the castle was blanketed in snow, still steadily falling over everything and bringing that painful nip in the air that Caramele never had a taste for, even when he was alive.
It forever would inconvenience him that his birthday was in winter. At least his only comfort was that spring would be arriving soon. An odd comfort for a Graveborn, considering all Caramele ever heard was how winter was the Graveborns’ season.
But it wasn't his season. It never had been. Spring and Autumn always were…
These thoughts were in the back of his mind as he cracked open one blueish green eye, the swirl of lights dim and unfocused as he tried to gauge what time it was. It was still dim outside, so it could have been seven or eight in the morning. He had no damn clue.
With a groan, he rolled onto his back, already missing his stomach down position, and stretched. A few bones and joints in his back and shoulders cracked, making him grunt in discomfort before relaxing again.
For a moment, he just glared up at the bed’s canopy for a moment, his eyes hooded and a frown on his face as he grappled with the significance of the day.
Today was the day he was finally thirty. Thirty. The age he would have taken in an apprentice to train before retiring from his circus at forty.
Alas, he had died at the whimsical age of twenty-five and was resurrected, so it had less significance. Most Graveborn stopped keeping track of things like birthdays and such, preferring their ‘resurrection days’.
Not Caramele. Keeping track of his age was a form of structure, of control in a way. In a faction where lost memories were currency and commonplace, Caramele kept his memories and personal secrets close. He had to. He knew one too many people who got fucked over by a supposed ally when a good deal with a price came along…
Infuriating.
… Speaking of infuriating…
Caramele’s brows furrowed, and he turned his head to the side to see the other side of the bed empty.
Empty? At this time in the morning? Odd, considering Vedan would usually be hogging all the blankets and trying to invade Caramele's side of the bed, either for cuddles or more space to splay out. But no, it was… empty.
Caramele immediately sat up, hissing a bit as his back popped from the stretch before he threw the covers off and swung his legs over the side of the bed. What the hell was that idiot count doing? Vedan being up this early usually meant bad.
The sudden movement made the barrow wraith stumble as the fluid in his reanimated body rushed from his head, leaving him lightheaded for a moment before he stormed to the chair in the corner of their room where he kept his morning clothes.
A simple shirt and pants, nothing fancy or time consuming to wear since there weren't any plans for the day. There better not have been any plans for the day-
Once he was properly dressed, he sped walked from the master bedroom down the hall, listening intently for the vampire. The first place he checked was the study, to see if Vedan had gotten up 'early' to work on his reports and decryptions. When he opened the door and saw it was empty, he clicked his tongue with an annoyed sound as the warning bells in his head got louder. Downstairs then?
He was quick to race down the stairs as quick as he could without falling. But he missed the third to last step, as always, and nearly fell down the last two before he reached the landing and made a beeline for the living room. Maybe the count couldn't sleep and was drinking blood tea or something.
But Caramele rounded the corner to find… nothing. No vampire in his favorite armchair, and the fireplace cold and unlit.
Panic began to kick in. Caramele hated not knowing where anyone in his 'barrow' was, and he hated when Vedan or the girls left without updating him on where they were going or being sent.
When he just began to panic and look around for any evidence that Vedan had indeed left, a crash was heard from the kitchen area. The barrow wraith was moving before he even finished turning his head, storming towards the back part of the manor with growing concern. The closer he got… the stronger the smell of smoke and burning food got. How had he not noticed that before-?
Slamming open the door, Caramele stepped inside and was hit in the face with a wave of smoke, instantly making him recoil with a disgusted groan as he surveyed the damage with an expression of pure shock.
The kitchen island counter was covered in flour and battered covered baking sheets and bowls, eggshells and butter wrappers, and empty cartons of milk. Which Isabella probably wasn't going to be happy about...
Some of the baking sheets looked downright unsalvageable, charred and blackened with the contents burned beyond recognition. Others had misshapen lumps of what Caramele could only assume were failed attempts of whatever the hell Vedan was trying to bake. And on one of the other counters sat the most pitiful cake Caramele had ever seen. Lopsided with the pinkish-red icing practically sliding off, haphazardly decorated and covered with sprinkles.
For a moment, just a moment, Caramele wanted to both laugh and smile. His chest warmed dangerously at the sight of the cake, his lips twitching into a reluctant grin as he realized just what the Count was trying to do. Clearly, an impossible endeavor for the vampire, but one he was braving regardless.
And lo and behold, there was the Count himself dragging himself out of the back pantry with more flour and another, smaller bowl looking downright murderous. No, not murderous. Exasperated. Annoyed. Caramele's grin widened into one of downright glee when he saw the mess the vampire made of himself. Covered head to toe in soot marks and splotches of powdery white, clearly losing the fight with the kitchen appliances.
That annoyance immediately shifted to surprise and dread when Vedan saw Caramele, dropping the bag of flour and the bowl with another loud reverberating clang as he went stock still, like a caught deer.
Finally he managed to hiss out lowly, "You're not supposed to be awake yet-"
"Neither are you!" Caramele retorted, unable to keep the laughter out of his voice as he approached carefully. He gestured to Vedan's disheveled state, not bothering to hide his amusement as he asked, "What even happened? What are you doing?"
Vedan scowled, growling as he turned his head away from Caramele -deliberately away from the mess on the counters, the barrow wraith noticed- and glared at the wall with his arms crossed. Caramele just chuckled, fighting the urge to keep teasing him as he relented, "All right. Don't tell me what happened. Just- Here."
Caramele walked over to the sink to grab one of the cloths there and get it damp, keeping an eye on the vampire to make sure he didn't bolt. Vedan didn't look at him as he walked back, still glaring at the wall with a visible pout as he ignored the shorter man. But when Caramele reached up and gently wiped away a patch of soot off Vedan's cheek, the glare softened. The count leaned into the gentle touch, letting his partner wipe off the streaks of flour and powdery black without a word as he tried to act indifferent.
He was failing miserably.
By the time Caramele finished with his face, Vedan was sporting a faint blush, clearly embarrassed he had gotten caught at all trying to do something nice for someone, especially something so domestic. But Caramele just hummed, his grin softening to a smug smile before he prompted, "So… was there a reason you didn't just have the servants do this? Or just ordered…" He glanced at the misshapen cake across the room, and decided, "… whatever you're trying to-"
Vedan interrupted him with a scoff and an almost offended whine, "Oh, don't do that, you cruel man." He gestured to the cake, clearly frustrated as he pouted again, "I was trying to do something nice for you for your birthday."
"Uh huh." Caramele drawled, reaching up to guide Vedan's face towards him as he asked softly, "And you decided to nearly burn down the kitchen instead of having servants at least help, because…?"
The count scowled even though he leaned into the barrow wraith's hand, looking torn between storming off like he did whenever he was upset and actually providing an answer. Then he rolled his eyes as he made an exaggerated sharp exhale, replying through grit teeth, "… I didn't want you to think I wasn't putting in effort for it."
Caramele blinked slowly, raising an eyebrow before clarifying, "You mean you were trying to hand make something for me so I didn't feel like you were throwing money at me?-"
"Yes, that's what I said!" Vedan snapped without any real irritation. Just that exasperation that made Caramele fight to keep a smile off his face. But the feeling quickly faded when Vedan sighed and pulled away, making an agitated hand movement as he continued almost miserably, "It doesn't help you don't even like your birthdays! You don't like jewelry or expensive clothes, or parties or anything extravagant! It's not like I can throw a celebration and make you swoon!"
That did make Caramele roll his eyes with a sheepish smile. It was true, unfortunately. He wasn't exactly the easiest person to please on his birthday. When it came to expenses, he was a nightmare for the count to plan anything for. Usually Vedan settled on small outings to bring him and the girls to for his birthday, because Caramele enjoyed those more than whatever ideas for a ball or over the top gifts Vedan would conjure up.
It was the opposite for Vedan's birthdays. As a former blacksmith, Caramele had knowledge on how to craft fine and delicate items, and as a count's lover, he had access to many high quality materials he hadn't when he was alive. So often, he would hand make a batch of custom trinkets and jewelry throughout the year for the vampire to hoard and preen over while the grand parties he would throw for himself went on around him. For those, he would wear whatever fancy outfit Vedan had commissioned for him and stand by for appearances silently while the count regaled the Graveborn aristocracy that were invited; just because it made his partner happy.
Easy for Caramele to please Vedan on his birthday. Nearly impossible for Vedan to figure out anything for Caramele. That was just how it had been the last few years.
Until now apparently.
The barrow wraith sighed as he grabbed the hand gesturing angrily and held it with a soothing stroke of his thumb, relenting with an amused expression, "No. It's not. I would probably try hiding behind the curtains if you tried throwing a grand ball for me."
Before Vedan could go on another annoyed tirade at that, Caramele tugged him down to kiss his cheek and effectively silence him. The vampire immediately flushed and swallowed thickly, settling for a soft glare while his lover just grinned, "Thank you for the cake."
Having his efforts recognized seemed to at least calm him somewhat, the count visibly seeming more tired than frustrated as he groaned and relaxed the tension in his body. His voice lost most of its scathing tone as he rasped, "Ugh. You're welcome." Caramele preened as Vedan returned the kiss, leaning down to peck the barrow wraith's forehead before hissing one last jab, "Infuriating man."
Caramele made another of his pleased hums as he watched the vampire wind down, turning his attention back to the cake with clear curiosity. "… So this one was the one you deemed worthy of icing?"
Vedan immediately tensed, turning and glaring at the red frosted cake with growing frustration again before grumbling, "… It was the only one that wasn't burnt. But I didn't… cut the tops properly. I suppose. I tried fixing it, but-"
"Is it edible at least?" Caramele interrupted before Vedan could obsess over the imperfections again.
The count scowled half-heartedly at the interruption, following the barrow wraith closely as he examined the misshapen treat, "I mean… Of course it is. It wasn't burnt looking, and it felt fine enough when I was frosting it."
Caramele gave him an unimpressed look, acknowledging with a raised brow, "You don't sound certain."
Before Vedan could respond, the shorter undead grabbed a nearby discarded fork to get a forkful off of the bottom. Holding a hand under it to keep it from falling, Caramele took a bite while his partner watched.
Immediately, a pleased sound escaped the barrow wraith, and he looked pleasantly surprised. It was… well, it tasted like a regular bakery cake, the icing sweet and sugary. Though Caramele couldn't help but notice the obvious iron taste in the batter and frosting.
"Mh. Did you put blood in the batter?" He asked around his full mouth.
Vedan seemed relieved Caramele didn't recoil or seemed grossed out, responding almost haughtily as he finally, finally had something resembling a smile, "Well, of course I did. You thought I'd make something I couldn't eat too?"
Caramele scoffed, unable to hide his smirk as he got another forkful and presented it to Vedan. The vampire leaned down slightly to accept it, his fangs clicking slightly against the metal before pulling away with an equally surprised sound. Caramele watched the relief and smugness grow on the other undead's face, and sassed sweetly, "Is it acceptable for you, your Grumpiness?"
At that, Vedan humphed as he savored it for a moment, before admitting with clear pride, "It actually is."
"Well, you are just full of surprises." Caramele teased, setting the fork down, "The girls are going to love it, I'm sure."
The count hummed in agreement, absentmindedly wrapping an arm around the barrow wraith's waist as he examined the shockingly not-failed cake, "Oh, without a doubt. Once they get back from their trip with Niru and Shemira, they'll be delighted to try some."
"… Wait, what? Why aren't they resting?" Caramele turned to him, his tail beginning to swish in agitation as he noticed Vedan avoiding his gaze again, "I understand why you're up in the middle of the day now, but why are they!?"
"Last minute birthday shopping?" Vedan offered with a sheepish grin, shrugging as the other frowned. "They wanted to make sure you had things to unwrap for today. Isabella insisted."
"… Did she now."
"She did."
They stared at each other for a moment before Caramele grumbled and broke eye contact first, drawling exasperated, "Well, at least it'll just be a few gifts. Not like they're getting party decorations or anything."
… Caramele noticed Vedan looking strangely guilty at that, now completely avoiding looking at him. Caramele's jaw dropped in shock, his tone hard as he warned lowly, "Vedan. They're just getting some small gifts, right?"
Vedan made a nervous sound, admitting quickly, "Eh, some gifts, some decorations. Niru and Shemira were going to help with the planning-"
"You didn't."
"I did." The count relented in defeat, holding his hands up placatingly as he explained, "But it's just a small gathering! Our close friends and acquaintances, no one else!"
Goddamnit.
Caramele scowled as he weighed the options of scolding the vampire or just giving up and letting the day play out.
… When he glared at the cake again, he couldn't find it in himself to be angry at the fool. So instead, he groaned, shaking his head as he turned to start cleaning up the mess on the kitchen island as he muttered grouchily to himself. Vedan raised an eyebrow but smirked, moving to help the barrow wraith with a low hum as he stacked bowls and baking sheets.
"So… does this mean I won't get scolded today?"
The shorter undead sighed before pointing a spoon he picked up at the smirking vampire, hissing without any real heat, "You're lucky I'm in a good mood. Now help me clean this up before they get back so I can help."
"You? Help decorate your party?" Vedan sounded playfully appalled, nudging him gently as he passed, "Not on my watch. We're going to do this somewhat properly. Which means you're going back to bed once we finish cleaning."
At that, Caramele 's expression turned into an unamused scowl, and Vedan grinned wider as he continued firmly, "And we are not telling Isabella that I accidently spoiled the surprise."
"… You're lucky." Caramele repeated with a huff, stacking bowls and utensils on the baking pans as Vedan began humming a too happy saccharin tune, most likely to spite him. Caramele exhaled heavily realizing it was an exaggerated version of 'Happy Birthday', and briefly, absently weighed the pros and cons of throttling the smug bastard.
Vedan was so lucky Caramele loved him. Then again, Caramele was probably even luckier... After all, who else could say they had a vampire planning their birthday in the middle of the day?
He was so getting him back for this.