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Asra
Although Asra never really needs an excuse, this is kind of the perfect excuse for a lazy day. Anything that has to do with propriety and productivity is on hold. Time to be fantastically at the whims of whimsy.
Lounging. Napping. Daydreaming. They’re not getting up until noon, and don’t expect any real food until dinner. That’s when he goes to see his parents. Aisha still has his favorites memorized, and any new recipe has been added to the books. Even the familiars have a little cake for dessert. Asra never expects gifts, but Salim manages to find some strange, forsaken magical instrument that looks promising at blowing up the shop.
Afterwards, it’s time for board games, as well as a bit of tea and gossip. They want as many of their loved ones there as possible - maybe at the shop, maybe at the palace. Asra has spent so many birthdays alone, so truly this is the greatest gift. They don't want to be the center of attention, rather they want to bask in the aimless chatter of familiar company. If anything, they’ll probably doze off on the pillows for nap #4.
And please please please join him, as no day of whimsy is complete without a full set of cuddles. You’ve given him a home to return to and a heart to behold. Asra knows he wouldn’t be celebrating anything without you.
Julian
It does feel strange to take a day for himself, and unless you force him to sit down, he’ll probably end up doing some form of work. However, I think at the end of the day, Julian would sincerely ask to spend his birthday helping the community that helped him get to his next birthday, so there would have to be a bit of compromise. A day of work, and a night of play.
Send him off with a full belly of pancakes and a kiss on the cheek - those are his favorites. Throughout the day, I imagine the South Enders bringing him gifts - grandmas with jars of jelly and children with bouquets of wildflowers. It certainly brings him home with his eyes a little redder and his voice a little softer. Now, it’s time for Mazelinka and Portia to get a hold of him. Dinner - Nevivon style. Everyone is invited. Julian does enjoy everyone’s conversation and companionship, but it’s the return of his sister’s company that sparks the most joy in his heart.
Once home, Julian unwinds with a contented sigh and a long bath beneath the moonlight. He holds you beside the fire, nestling in your warmth and whatever affections you grace him. I think he’s spent so many years living in a whirlwind that he often forgets about his birthday, but now he has people in his life to remember for him, and that’s a notion that’s had tears in his eyes since daybreak.
Nadia
I don’t feel like Nadia spends her birthdays the way she wants to. It’s a public affair, as always. Party here, party there…. And an after party of writing ‘thank you’ notes until sunrise.
But what does she want to do? What does… she… want to do?
First, sleep. I don’t know how much her body will let her sleep, but a morning canoodle with her lover would be fabulous. Then, it’s breakfast with her family - particularly her siblings. Yes, she loves her parents, but nothing beats an unhinged morning gossip session over tea. Asra is probably also invited to this because we all know who’s pouring the hottest brew…
Nadia has never had a whole day to herself, and she supposes it would be nice to experience the country she governs for herself. Wrap her up in shawls and take her to the depths of the city. She wants to see everything her people see, taste everything they taste, as well as shop. ✨
Dinner is reserved for friends, for truly they are also her family. Meanwhile, desserts are reserved for her beloved. Ice cream by the docks, feet in the water, hair in the wind, and the comfort of familiar silence.
Muriel
My poor hut sweetheart! Do you not remember your birthday??
“I remember. I just don’t want to remember.”
I think Asra tried his best to always do something for it, but we know how resistant Muriel is to attention… I think most celebrations ended up being a dinner, where Asra brought Muriel’s favorite fish from a restaurant in town.
“I also wanted to try sneaking party hats on the chickens,” Asra admits to you, “but that might have been pushing my luck.”
I also get the sense that the colosseum had some not so nice birthday celebrations for their star fighter… No one can blame Muriel for his distaste over the day, but I also think that no one can stand to see it remain such a dismal day either.
“Love, it’s safe to remember now. Is there nothing we can do for your birthday?”
He can never say ‘no’ when you give him that look, and he can’t say that he doesn’t have any ideas for a birthday celebration. If you’re going to ask him to celebrate something with painful memories, then he needs to get away from the memories. Muriel does enjoy nature - all of nature - which includes the beach. However, he has no intent on cutting through town to enjoy it, nor does he wish to return to the docks.
“It’s been a long time since I swam to the ocean.”
I don’t know who’s having more fun - Muriel or Inanna… While excitement vibrates through every bone of the creature’s body, her master stands motionless in the tide, shirtless, allowing the waves to crash over him. The salty air springs the curls free from their braids, and you can tell from the drop of his shoulders that Muriel for once may be grateful for his birth into this world.
Portia
Nadia always gives her the day off, and she never knows what to do with herself.
Past birthdays have always been spent alone. She’d bake or garden or explore the city and bring back food to share with Pepi… It wasn’t an unpleasant loneliness, but nonetheless she was alone.
Now, she has friends, family, her brother… She even has a lover. While Portia finds that none of her plans for the day has changed, the company has certainly made them better. Baking with Mazelinka and Julian, exploring the city with Nadia… even Muriel and Asra chipped in with the gardening.
Portia is content. In fact, she’s beaming. Here, sitting beneath the windowsill… the moonlight streaming in… her beloved’s fingers playing with her hair... Portia can’t recall how many candles she’s sacrificed through the years to get this wish.
Lucio
Right now, he’s pouty. I think it’s because he feels a tad silly at how extravagant he’s made his past birthdays. Now, he realizes how much it screamed ✨insecurity ✨ because truthfully, he felt like he needed to make up for all that he missed in his youth.
“Birthdays weren’t always great,” he mumbles.
“Well, then how can we make this one great?”
He thinks for a moment. “Let’s go camping.”
Lucio didn’t always love luxury. Traveling was fun, and overall, Lucio enjoyed his sports. Honestly, the time away from the party, the people, the booze… he’s happy. He’s existing purely for the hell of it, for the love for it. He’s got his hands dirty, his hair tousled, and he’s refusing to put on a shirt despite the fact that it’s the middle of January.
“I got company to keep me warm,” he says, hauling both you and the dogs beside his bed roll. “Look, a shooting star!” He points to the sky. “That’s the candle I make my wish on this year.”