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Bijou had never been particularly fond of her birthday.
It didn’t mean anything for a long time. She hardly knew when it was, it was so, so long ago. The only reason she knew what day it was was because it was on her file in the prison. Apparently Godkind had been tracking her since her very beginning and one of them remembered the date.
How thoughtful of her tormentors.
Bijou never intended to do anything about it. She didn’t like the reminder of how old she was, of the centuries of utter torture followed by imprisonment, which was its own kind of torture.
Bijou had never known peace from the moment she was created.
She didn’t know why she was created. Didn’t know what cruel being decided she should exist. If she ever found out, she’d like to slap them for creating her in such a horrid way.
But… Then came the escape. The handful of people she could rely on, that didn’t go mad from her very presence. Bijou wasn’t sure if it was the demon blood in most of them, nor if it was the maddening powers trapped inside the Archivist, but whatever it was, she was grateful.
Bijou also hadn’t really known love for almost all of her entirely too long existence, it had always been others hurting her for their own personal gain, coveting her for what value they could find in her shards. Any time a human got close, tried to be nice, it was either a trick or they were driven mad just by being near her.
Love… Love was new. Each of her fellow escapees had their own ways of showing love, as did she.
They…. They made it look so effortless, loving each other. Cuddles from the dogs, sweet words and touches from the demon, quiet and understated acts of love from the Archivist…
They loved her too. They loved her so much, Bijou knew that much. Could feel the spike of joy when she entered a room, even when the others were tired or had a bad day. Could feel contented happiness whenever she joined them for cuddles or movie nights. Could sense just how happy they were just to have her around.
Was constantly reminded of how much they loved her every time she walked down the hallway and saw a night light in every wall socket so she’d never have to be in the dark again.
A simple thing. A small thing, that meant the world to her.
Her friends loved her, so she really shouldn’t have been surprised when her birthday came up.
It was a pretty calm ordinary day, Bijou was dozing off on the couch, halfway on top of their leader. Shiori gently ran her fingers through silver hair with one hand, the other holding her book. Shiori never made a big show of her affection, but always made sure her girls knew they were loved.
Bijou was no exception, if anything she made an effort to be more affectionate with her. She asked Shiori why that was once and she hand waved it, but her emotions were answer enough. She wanted Bijou to feel safe and cherished after a lifetime of constant fear and pain, she had no one her entire existence, unlike the others, and Shiori wanted to make up for it.
Shiori was kind like that.
Which is why Bijou shouldn’t have been as shocked as she was when Shiori cleared her throat and asked a certain question.
“So, your birthday’s coming up… Got any ideas on what you want to do for it?” Shiori asked quietly, casually.
That woke Bijou up, eyes darting up to meet the gold of the Archivist’s. Shiori was looking back at her intently, clearly expecting an actual answer.
“...I dunno. I… I don’t know much about birthdays, or what you’re supposed to do for them…” Bijou frowned, avoiding eye contact.
“I guess I should’ve expected that kind of answer…” Shiori sighed softly, not ceasing the gentle touches as she leaned her head back, humming with thought.
“I’m guessing you probably wouldn’t want anything too crazy or public, that’s the main reason I’m asking. Once the twins and ‘Reese realize your birthday’s coming up, they’re probably gonna go a little nuts trying to make it as good as they can.” Shiori warned with a soft chuckle.
“Oh… Yeah, I… I can see how that’d happen. I… I don’t wanna be around a ton of people.” Bijou nodded slowly, leaning into the gentle touch a little more at the thought.
“Alright, I’ll be sure to tell them that. Small gathering, probably at home? We could just have a nice stay-in day, play some games, watch some movies, whatever you want.” Shiori suggested with a smile, hand shifting to gently hold the gem’s cheek.
“You deserve some happy memories.”
…Bijou couldn’t put her finger on why that sentiment made her want to cry. She didn’t, just leaning into the touch, eyes fluttering closed and gemstone a confused mix of happy violet and a sad baby blue.
If Shiori noticed, she didn’t comment on it. Just held the gem a little closer and got back to reading, leaving Bijou to stew over what had been said.
Surely her birthday wasn’t that big of a deal, right…?
It had been about a week since their conversation. It hadn’t come up again for a little while, though Bijou noted how the twins and Nerissa had started being extra nice to her in the past day or so. Not that they were ever anything but kind to her, but it was getting a little excessive…
Bijou had a feeling as to why. It was kind of obvious honestly, they were clearly preparing for her birthday. In spite of what she told Shiori, Bijou had a feeling the girls were planning something bigger.
It almost made her feel… Well, a little guilty, knowing they were spending so much time on her. Surely there were better uses for their time than this? It wasn’t that big of a deal…
Bijou was making her way to the living room to grab her Switch when she heard the twins talking in hushed tones. Not quiet enough to actually be stealthy, but an effort was clearly being made.
“Ogey, we gotta figure this out!” Mococo’s voice harumpf’d, sounding far more serious than Bijou had heard her in a while.
“Yeah, Shiori said nothing big or public, but we gotta figure out the perfect present!” Fuwawa’s voice, sounding determined.
Bijou dared to peek around the corner and saw the twins sitting on the couch with a notepad between them, covered in a mix of Mococo’s chicken scratch handwriting and Fuwawa’s more legible one, a few crossed out and scribbled over.
“What do gems like? Polish? We- We could get her a polisher!” Mococo nodded with a big smile.
“Moco-chan, I don’t think she’d like that… She probably wouldn’t want anything that reminds her of… Bad stuff. Remember what she said about people polishing parts of her?” Fuwawa gently tried to course-correct.
Bijou flinched at the reminder. Tried to ignore the memories trying to surface of being left in pieces and watching greedy humans polish parts of her before her very eyes to sell them later. It was nauseating, watching humans rip apart her insides and dolling it up to charge even more money for it.
“Oh… Yeah that’s bad. Um… Okay, what would Biboo want? Maybe some plushies?” Mococo suggested instead, drawing Bijou out of that thought.
“Good idea, Moco-chan! We could also get her some more of those manga she likes, but we’d have to sneak in and see which ones she has so we don’t get duplicates.” Fuwawa nodded, jotting them down on the paper.
“Yeah! We gotta make it the bestest birthday ever!” Mococo nodded seriously, tail starting to wag behind her.
…Bijou watched with an ache in her ‘heart.’ They were trying so hard to make sure her birthday was a good one, just like Shiori said they would.
They loved her. They all did.
What a strange thing that was, huh?
“...What’cha doin’?” Bijou decided to stop hiding, walking into the room and trying to act like she hadn’t been eavesdropping.
“NOTHING!” Mococo shrieked, diving onto the table to hide the notepad and nearly knocking a few cups on said coffee table over.
“...Moco-chan…” Fuwawa sighed in disappointment, pinching the brim of her nose.
“Do I even wanna know?” Bijou giggled, the heaviness in her chest growing a little lighter at the twins usual shenanigans.
“Nope! Top secret!” Mococo nodded emphatically, unsubtly stuffing the notepad in her jacket pocket.
“Okay agent woofers, whatever you say.” Bijou joked, her smile only widening at the way it made Mococo’s tail start wagging.
“It’s Mococoeh!” Mococo giggled, trotting over and throwing her arms around the gem in a big hug.
“Oh, sorry, agent Moco-puffs, got it.” Bijou continued joking, only to giggle louder at the pout on the blonde’s face.
“You’re silly today.” Fuwawa pointed out with a chuckle, tail wagging behind her.
“Well Mocococo was being silly first!”
“Mococoeh! Not Mocococo!” Mococo pouted even more, ears pinning back.
“Oh sorry, my mistake, Mococococococococo-”
“Okae that’s it!” Mococo huffed and lightly and playfully bonked their foreheads together, causing the gem to laugh, only to make her let out a squeal when the demon dog picked the gem up and spun her around.
“Call me Mococoeh!” Mococo demanded as she kept spinning the gem who was starting to giggle uncontrollably.
“Okay Moco-Coconut-”
“HAEH?! That’s even worse!” Mococo huffed, pausing in the spinning to hold the gem out, still a foot or so from her feet touching the floor.
“You’re gonna knock the cups over, Moco-chan.” Fuwawa sighed with a helpless smile.
“She started it! She’s guilty of being a meanie!” Mococo pouted, idly swinging the gem around a little and earning her more giggles.
“Oh nooo, what’s my punishment for such a crime?” Bijou giggled, trying to catch her breath after all the laughing she just did.
“Mm… Cuddles!” Mococo nodded seriously, flopping back on the couch with the gem still in her arms, earning her another loud squeal followed by laughter.
“Oh no, not affection, that’s my one weakness! How will I live with such a punishment!” Bijou grinned, making a dramatic pose.
“I’m sure you’ll manage it.” Fuwawa giggled, scooting closer to get in on the rapidly forming cuddle pile.
…Bijou thought over what she had walked in on, the clear affection and care the twins held for her, the love in every little thing they did. She’s not shocked that love came so effortlessly to these two, they’d known it their entire lives, even in the cell they had each other.
And now, Bijou had them too.
…
“Yeah, I think you’re right.”
If there was one person in the house that loved without restraint, it was their resident demon. She had a heart the size of the moon and the affection to match. She was the only one of them with a family to return to when she escaped, yet she stayed with them anyway, that was evidence enough of how deeply she loved them all.
Bijou wasn’t unused to the demon’s affection, but how much it ramped up as her birthday approached was certainly… Something.
“Let me get that for you, darling.” Nerissa cooed as she reached up for the game the gem had been reaching for that someone had put on the top shelf for some reason, a hand on a small shoulder.
“I could’ve gotten the stool…” Bijou grumbled at the blatant reminder of her lack of height.
Having your legs broken repeatedly does wonders for stunting one’s growth after all.
“Nonsense, no need for a stool when I’m right here!” Nerissa grinned, pressing a quick kiss to the crown of her head. A little thing that Bijou was used to at this point, at least she told herself as much.
She opted to ignore how it made something in her chest jolt.
Bijou tried to think nothing of it. Nerissa loved lathering each of them in kisses and hugs all the time, nothing new there.
Bijou put the game in and turned to take her place on the couch, only for something in her chest to jolt again when she was met with the sight of Nerissa sitting there and patting her lap.
Bijou didn’t hesitate for more than a few seconds before she took the offered seat in the demon’s lap, feeling arms curl around her stomach and a chin resting on top of her head.
“So what are you playing?” Nerissa rumbled, sounding perfectly content right where she was.
“Y-You’re the one who grabbed the game… But, uh, Hollow Knight.” Bijou replied in more of a squeak than anything else as the game booted up.
“Oooh, sounds fun.” Nerissa hummed, fingers idly drumming against the gem’s stomach.
The game started, and Bijou tried to focus on that rather than the soft warm body pressed against her own. Bijou didn’t have much body heat normally, so she could feel Nerissa’s warmth seeping into her skin, down the geodes that served as her muscles, down to her bones…
Okay, maybe she was exaggerating, she wasn’t sure she even had proper bones to begin with. Bottom line is she was getting warm like this, and not just her face.
Still, with time, Bijou focused more on the game, relaxing in the demon’s hold as she tried to fight a few bosses.
“Aw man, what the beep! That was cheating!” Bijou bemoaned as the death screen greeted her.
“I’m sure you’ll get it next time, Biboo.” Nerissa chuckled softly into her ear. Bijou tried to suppress a shiver as she made the trek back to the boss room. She was starting to do better, getting close to beating it-
A gentle touch to the wings on her back made her jolt and press the wrong button, wasting a spell. They were cold, metal as they were, but Nerissa didn’t seem to care, idly trailing her fingers over them.
“Have you been taking care of your wings, darling? They seem duller than usual.” Nerissa said conversationally, as if Bijou wasn’t fighting for her life both in and outside of the game.
“I- I’ve b-been busy…” Bijou squeaked out, trying to keep her focus on the game and not on the warm fingers trailing across her wing. It didn’t quite flutter under her touch, it couldn’t, but it twitched slightly. Nerissa either didn’t notice or found it amusing considering the giggle that escaped her.
“Silly Biboo, you have to take care of them. I would offer to preen them for your birthday, but I’d do that any normal day. Wouldn’t make for a good present, now would it?” Nerissa chuckled, daring to press a soft kiss to the wing instead.
That got a reaction, the wing jerking slightly alongside Bijou herself, earning her another death screen.
“N-Nerissaaaa….” Bijou whined, face and gem both a bright pink.
“What?” Nerissa grinned, clearly knowing exactly what she was doing.
“Stop torturing the poor girl, ‘Reese.” Shiori’s voice chimed as she walked into the living room, promptly taking a seat in one of the other chairs with a book in hand.
“I’m just making sure the birthday girl feels loved, what’s wrong with that?” Nerissa only grinned wider at that.
“It’s not her birthday yet, you got a little time to think up an actual gift.” Shiori pointed out with a knowing smile.
“Oh, I’ll have to think up something good to make our little gem a pretty pink again~” Nerissa giggled, earning her a squeak from said gem.
“Dork.” Shiori commented with a roll of her eyes.
“Yeah, well, I’m Advent’s dork, good luck getting rid of me.” Nerissa hummed happily, hugging the gem closer.
“I… I hope we never do.” Bijou admitted honestly.
“Aww, I love you guys too!” Nerissa smiled brightly, pressing another kiss to Bijou’s forehead this time.
“Careful, you’re gonna make her die of heatstroke.” Shiori joked with an amused smile.
“Oh don’t give me that look, she likes it, right Biboo?” Nerissa asked with a grin.
…
“Yeah, I like it.” Bijou mumbled.
There was always something refreshing about just how loving and affectionate Nerissa was, even if it was bad for her ‘heart’ at times. It made Bijou feel safe, wanted.
And that’s all she had ever wanted.
Bijou woke up the morning of her birthday to the sound of hushed whispers and shuffling feet. She let out a soft groan, eyelids fluttering open at half-mist, squinting in the morning light.
Unsurprisingly, the noise was her friends, gathered around her bed, the twins and Nerissa holding a few gift boxes and Shiori holding a TV tray with breakfast on it.
“Good morning ‘Beebs, happy birthday.” Shiori greeted warmly, a fond smile on her face.
“HAPPY BIRTHDAY!” Mococo half-shouted, earning her an elbow to the side from her sister.
“She just woke up Moco-Chan, don’t be so loud!” Fuwawa scolded her sister, receiving a pout in return.
“Do you want us to sing you happy birthday now or later?” Nerissa asked with an amused smile.
“...Sing me happy birthday? ‘Wuzzat?” Bijou drawled with a yawn, slowly sitting up.
Her friends went silent for a few moments, sharing a few looks with a hint of sadness in the air. Apparently Bijou should know what that means…
“She was asking about us singing you the happy birthday song, it’s a common human tradition for birthdays.” Shiori explained as she set the TV tray of breakfast on the gem’s lap. Bijou could sense slight anger in the Archivist, probably on her behalf for being denied something as simple as even knowing what the birthday song was.
“Oh… You- You can do that if you want I guess?” Bijou shrugged, trying to flash a reassuring smile.
And so they did. Bijou vaguely recognized the melody from one time they were at a restaurant and someone else had a birthday, she recalled seeing them curling into themselves in embarrassment at a public scene being made about it, but… That’s not what she felt here.
Bijou’s gemstone was a happy violet color, warmth in her ‘heart’ at such a silly little thing. It was just another sign of how much they loved her, and that made her happy.
“You wanna open your presents after you finish your breakfast?” Shiori prompted once the singing was done.
“Yeah, I’m curious about what you guys got me.” Bijou tilted her head, before promptly trying to eat her waffles as quickly as she could. Forget curious, she was excited for this. Part of her felt slight trepidation at them spending time and money on her, but more than that, she was happy. It was a rarity made commonplace, and that was incredible.
They decided to move to the living room for this, Bijou finding herself in the middle of the couch with the other four bracketing her on either side.
“We thought super hard about what to get you, we made a list and everything!” Fuwawa exclaimed, setting one of the two presents the twins had in her lap.
“Mhm mhm! Open it, open it!” Mococo added with a big grin, tail wagging up a storm behind her and making her whole body wiggle.
Bijou smiled and carefully unwrapped it, smile only growing when she saw it was exactly what they had decided on; another volume of one of her favorite manga’s. She’d wager the other one is a plush of some kind.
“Thanks you two, this is really cool!” Bijou tried to act shocked, she’d rather not spoil their fun by letting on how much she already knew.
“Here’s the one I picked out!” Mococo thrust the other box into her hands with a big grin. Bijou couldn’t help but giggle at that, unwrapping and opening this one as well.
Inside was a cute looking dog plush wearing sunglasses with a big smile on its face, fur a similar shade to the blonde’s.
“Aww, thanks guys!” Bijou smiled at the two, hugging the soft plush to her chest.
“It’s so if you ever have bad dreams when we aren’t around, you can hug this and remember we’ll always be there for you.” Fuwawa elaborated.
“Mhm mhm! So we can guard your smile no matter where we are!” Mococo nodded with a big smile on her face.
Oh. Oh.
Bijou felt the start of tears in her eyes. She tried to will them away, but she couldn’t really will away the ache in her chest at such a simple yet sweet gesture.
“Thank you two, so much… That’s so sweet of you!” Bijou tried to keep her voice steady, baby blue mixing with violet in her ‘heart.’ Hopefully the twins didn’t notice…
“It’s what you deserve!” The twins said in sync, both moving to hug Bijou tightly. Bijou tried to keep the tears down as she hugged them back, voice coming out in a warbled giggle.
“L-Love you guys too.” Bijou tried to say steadily, hugging them just that little bit tighter before letting go.
“Alright, who goes next? Rock paper scissors?” Nerissa suggested, turning to Shiori who was sitting beside her.
“Rock paper scissors- Shoot!”
…They both picked scissors. Nerissa barked out a laugh at that and Shiori just rolled her eyes.
“Yeah yeah, mind out of gutter ‘Reese. Rock paper scissors- Shoot!” Shiori chuckled, and this time Nerissa won.
“Sweet! Here Biboo, I hope you like it!” Nerissa smiled, handing over her own gift.
Bijou carefully unwrapped it, only to freeze when she got a sliver of it open and got a peak at what’s inside. She opened it much quicker after that, excitement in her eyes.
It was a box containing a nice-looking figurine of the main character of Hollow Knight alongside two other figurines of two other prominent characters, Quirrel and Hornet. She turned to look at Nerissa with eyes filled with wonder.
“I may have gotten the idea from you-know-when. I hope you like it, Biboo!” Nerissa smiled brightly, throwing an arm around the gem.
Bijou promptly surged forwards and hugged Nerissa with her own big smile, gemstone a bright violet.
“Thank youuu! This is so cool!” Bijou giggled, only to let out a little squeal when Nerissa scooped her up entirely, giving her a good squeeze.
“I’m glad you like it!” Nerissa giggled back, nuzzling their noses together and grin widening at the pink swirling to the surface of her ‘heart.’
“You plan on letting her go in the next three business days, ‘Reese?” Shiori chuckled with an amused smile.
“Nope, she gets extra cuddles on her birthday.” Nerissa nodded seriously, settling the smaller girl in her lap again.
“Does she at least get to open my gift?” Shiori let out a soft huff that didn’t really sound all that upset.
“Hm… Maybe.” Nerissa giggled, moving to wrap her arms around Bijou’s stomach and freeing up the gem’s arms to hold the gift bag.
“There’s a few things in here, fair warning.” Shiori smiled at her as she set the bag in Bijou’s lap.
Bijou had a feeling that whatever was in here was going to actually make her cry considering who was gifting it to her, but she was going to try and soldier on.
The first thing she pulled out was palm-sized, seeming to be box-shaped. She carefully pulled away the tissue paper wrapped around it, only to be greeted by a small music box with a daisy engraved on the lid.
“I looked it up, and your birth flower is daisies, so I got you a music box that plays Daisy Bell, it’s a really old and cute love song. I figured it’d help if you ever struggle with sleeping.” Shiori explained with a smile.
Bijou glanced down at it, slowly turning the crank. A gentle melody began to flow from it, soft and sweet-sounding.
“...What’s the song about?” Bijou asked softly, looking wide-eyed at the small box in front of her as the music played.
“Ah, well… The lyrics go-”
Daisy, Daisy, give me your answer, do~ I’m half crazy, all for the love of you~
It won’t be a stylish marriage, I can’t afford a carriage~ But you’ll look sweet~ Upon the seat~ Of a bicycle built for two~!
“That… That does sound sweet, yeah. How… How much did this cost? This looks custom-made.” Bijou glanced up at Shiori from her seat.
“Telling you that ruins the surprise. Now, there’s one other thing in there.” Shiori chuckled, though she seemed a little antsy about this next gift.
Bijou reached in, finding a bigger present than the last by a rather significant margin. She pulled it out, slowly pulling away the paper-
Only to freeze.
It was a photo book, the cover featuring a picture of all of them together. Bijou’s hands shook slightly as she turned the pages, finding it full of pictures of all of them post escape, pictures of the twins running around the backyard for the first time, pictures of Bijou’s first time trying ice cream, pictures of them huddled together for movie night…
Bijou slowly looked up at Shiori with wide eyes.
“You deserve to keep some happy memories.” Shiori offered simply, a gentle smile on her face.
…
Tears welled in Bijou’s eyes. This had to take a long time to collect and save all these pictures, it… It was thoughtful, and kind, and- And-
“We all love you, ‘Beebs.” Shiori spoke softly.
That opened the floodgates, tears streaming down Bijou’s cheeks. Soon she was enveloped in four pairs of arms, all holding her closely, filled with warmth and love.
Love.
Bijou had never been loved before. Had spent centuries suffering in silence, ripped apart and coveted, locked away…
She had issues. She was hard to love, but they did it so effortlessly and without restraint.
“...I l-love you guys…So, so m-much…” Bijou warbled out, voice shaking terribly.
“Love you too Biboo.”
“Me too!”
“Me three!”
“Good luck getting rid of us, ‘Beebs.”
…
“I hope I n-never do.” Bijou whispered in response.
Bijou had never been particularly fond of her birthday.
But, like this? Surrounded by those who made the ghosts in her head more bearable, who loved her without restraint?
…Maybe her birthday wasn’t so bad after all.