Prompt: Belated Birthdays

[Story Listing]

Featuring characters owned by PT Piranha; Greg owned by Tutty The Fruity

This is a commissioned prompt for PT Piranha for the month of November 2020. If you would like your own commission, consider subscribing to my Patreon; custom commission prompts start at 25$ a month!

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Greg Middleton had a lot on his mind all of a sudden. It had been a strange few months for the waifish, transgender boy; he had died, gone to a strange dreamscape version of his hometown, UnunenniGlen, alongside others who had shared a grizzly fate like him; contracted to solve errant wishes as part of an elaborate plan to preserve the continuity of time, developed unbreakable bonds with his new friends; discovered new truths about himself; found a girl who he bonded with and could devote his whole being to; put out the whitest mixtape known to mankind; and at the end of it all, broken a timeloop and thwarted the machinations of an ancient god.

With so much happening, it completely slipped his mind that he was about to turn twenty-one! That meant he could legally drink soon! It was all very exciting, and perhaps a little spooky, but he was determined to get everyone together for one last get-together before they were sent back to the world of the living. He had a feeling things would go better than the barbecue he tried to hold at the start of their shared time in the Glen...

Clutching a set of meticulously prepared, hand-crafted invitations, he hurried around town, a construct of their collective imaginations, looking for anyone with a pulse to throw an invitation and an enthusiastic greeting at. Sure, he could've simply imagined up a bunch of invitation copies, but he always favoured the more personable, hand-crafted approach; he made sure to prepare individualized letters for everyone.

Greg strolled to a stop, taking in the view of a more urbanized sector of Ununenni Glen. Designer boutiques lined the roads. Tall buildings pierced the skies as part of the city backdrop—a handful of them looking decidedly phallic—and the alleyways looked pristine and shiny. Even the dumpsters seemed well-maintained!

...Wait, there was something odd about that one particular dumpster. Something gleamed oddly within them. Greg studied them, pausing with a squint. Two strikingly-gold lights shone out in the darkness from under the lid.   "...Violet??" Greg had a good memory for recognizing people, and he couldn't forget that strange girl with the golden irises that Vincent introduced him to.

CLANG! His guess seemed to be on the mark, as the slightly ajar lid to the dumpster slammed shut. It wasn't very discreet. Greg hurried over to the dumpster.

"Violet! I have something for you!" Greg flourished one of the envelopes towards the lid of the dumpster. There was a pause, before the dumpster opened just a crack; Greg took this invitation to slide it in like he was mailing a postcard.

"Thanks." A girl's voice muttered from within the dumpster. The lid slammed shut again, followed by the rustling of paper.

"Are... are you okay, Violet?" Greg cocked his head. "There's a big hotel we've all been using as a group... i-if you're down on your luck, you could imagine having a big wad of cash! I don't think inflation is anything to worry about."

"I'm fine. I'm not homeless." Violet clarified in a typically terse manner. "Just hanging low for a bit, keeping a low profile. You didn't bring Marx with you, right?"

"O-oh, no, I-I already talked to him. He already wished me a happy birthday... before giving me a high five." Greg smiled weakly. "My palm's still burning..."

"Yeaaaah he does that." Violet sighed. "He's stalking me about a... birthday present..."

Violet trailed off, a pang of realization hitting her.

"Eh? Marx didn't tell me it was his birthday..." Greg rubbed his chin. Greg was often just a little slower on the uptake... but he caught on, his eyes lighting up.

"It's your birthday?" Greg gasped. "But it's my birthday! Do we have the same birthday!?" Greg's cautious manner of talking gave way to jubilant excitement.

"Shh! Not so loud! They'll hear you!" Violet hissed, raising the lid just enough to glare daggers at Greg; her pale skin and elfish ears made themselves apparent, along with her long, vibrant pink hair, somewhat matted down by the dumpster.

"Eh? But... I-I don't get it." Greg blinked. "You're avoiding your buds? On your birthday?"

"Something like that." Violet grumbled. "They always make a huuuuge deal of it, and every year they find some way to up the ante. Last year Kana tracked down some dragonform fireworks and they nearly razed a nearby forest. Can you imagine what they'll pull if they could literally imagine anything they wanted?"

Greg stared. He rubbed his chin.

"...I-I dunno, I... I must admit I don't have as... vivid an imagination as the others." Greg chuckled anxiously.

Greg approached the dumpster, gripping the lid and raising it to get a better view of Violet.

"Hey, wait a sec-"

"So how old are you gonna be, Violet?" Greg tilted his head, in deep thought. "...oh, wait, you're an elf! So you gotta be some really big number! Can I take a guess?"  "W-what??" Violet blustered, her pale cheeks reddening. "That's not-"

"Three hundred and eighty five!" Greg pumped his fists together. He stared into Violet's eyes expectantly; a long, awkward silence followed.

"..."

"Am I close? Warm, cold?" Greg bobbed his head left and right.

"...Do I look like a shrivveled up hag?" Violet simply squinted her eyes.

"...W-well, no, but... elves age differently, I thought, so-"

"Oh, right, I remember. You're the same one that put all those dumb ideas into Vincent's head." Violet's mouth flattened. "Like how we live in the North Pole, and build toys in workshops for a """Santa Claus"""." Violet enunciated that with extreeeeeemely sarcastic air quotes.

"...you don't?" Greg's expression went blank.

"No. Not even close." Violet clicked her tongue.

"...ohhhh. Well now I just feel like an assumption-making ass." Greg's eyes lowered bashfully.

"Nooooooooo... well, really, maybe a bit, but... augh, I mean, mrggrh...." Violet massaged her forehead; now she felt like the asshole in this situation.

"Okay. Answering your question... how old I am? Gee, I dunno. I kinda don't keep track of that stuff." Violet muttered noncommittally. "Like, twenty-ish? I guess some folks at home held parties every decade, but..."

Violet rubbed her neck, glancing to the side. A conflicted expression rose to her face.

"...less said about those days the better." She grimaced. "I guess we're just about the same age. Give or take a year."

"Ah... I-I'm sorry." Greg clasped his hands together, squeezing them together. "I'm turning twenty-one. I-it's a pretty big year... I'll be an adult. And I'll get to do adult things, like... like drink alcohol. And gamble. A-and... do the weed legally now."

Greg blushed slightly, recalling an experience he had with another newcomer to the Glen.

"Hey Violet, I got an idea." Greg's eyes lit up. "I'm holding a party later, and-"

"Yeah I know. This is my invite, right?" Violet rustled her piece of paper. "...Thanks, by the way. I don't think I mentioned that."

"O-oh, yeah, no problem." Greg nodded. "I was just thinking... if we both have the same birthday, why don't we... share the party?"

"..." Violet went silent. She seemed to be giving the idea some thought. Greg continued to reassure her.

"I-it sounds like your friends just want you to enjoy yourself on your birthday, but... i-if they come on too strong, I can take some of the heat off you. I'm... basically indestructible." Greg chuckled.

"I heard. Something about a fist fight in the sauna? That destroyed the sauna...?" Violet wondered quizzically.

"O-oh, you... heard about that?" Greg grimaced.

"Yeah. Twice. You could hear it for miles." Violet stated matter of factly.

"Ah... eheh..." Greg blushed.

"I mean, d-don't get it twisted, I don't really mind my friends spoiling me a bit on my birthday. I just kinda end up... humouring them." Violet muttered. "I dunno if I really deserve it, it's just..."

Violet lowered her head again, sighing heavily; this time Greg detected that something was wrong.

"Is... is everything okay, Violet?" Greg asked cautiously.

"Just kinda brings up bad memories of home..." Violet muttered, lowering slightly into the dumpster. She took a deep breath.

"I ran away from home. Everyone in my village were, like, really good summoners. Naturals at it. Except me, I... wasn't as gifted."

"Eh?" Greg blinked. "B-but I saw your tricks when we met! They were something else, I'd never see anything like it!"

"And you haven't seen what the people in my village were capable of. All with a flick of the wrist. I need a staff to do half of the things they can do, and I... I dunno, I got it in my head that like, maybe I wasn't working hard enough, that I was spoiled, that I..."

"You didn't deserve good things?" Greg wondered with pained anticipation; Violet sighed, and nodded in response.

"I know it's just a negative feedback loop. Vincent's usually good at keeping me centered. But... sometimes it's hard to avoid falling back into old habits, and I'd rather just... chill for a bit."

"...Ah... well..." Greg lowered his head to think about it carefully.

"Is it okay if I joined you?" Greg asked.

"...You... you want to hang out. In the dumpster. With me." Violet blinked.

"J... just until you feel better." Greg smiled warmly. "And then maybe we can take your mind off of things with... with a nice party we can share. With your friends, my friends... our friends."

"...that... sounds nice." Violet smiled. "Okay. I guess there's room for one more. Get in quick, before someone sees you."

"O-okay!" Greg nodded, bouncing up to move the lid aside and crawling in himself. Greg gasped as the lid slammed shut after him.

"Wow, this is... the nicest dumpster I've ever been in." Greg cooed. "Must be brand new."

"I did imagine it up just now..." Violet shrugged. "I wouldn't want to go mucking about in human trash."

"Hehe. Pretty sneaky sis~" Greg chuckled.

"Eh? We aren't related. Don't make it weird." Violet muttered. She didn't understand that reference at all.

"O-oh, that's... nevermind. Forget I said anything." Greg swallowed.

Spending one's birthday in a dumpster—even a nice, decidedly empty dumpster—probably wasn't part of either of their plans today. But now both Greg and Violet had something to look forward to today.

Sometimes all you need is a friend and a peptalk.