Happy Birthday, times twelve
All the Britorias kids’ birthdays ♥
01-09-2024, 09:43 PM
Another year had come and gone. Another year of days filled with play and laughs, smiles and love. A year of lessons and bonding, a year of growth and exploration. A year of family. Artorias looked around the Great Hall, decorated with the flowers they had harvested from the castle gardens before the turn of the season and colorful swaths of cloth acting as streamers. Winter in Auster meant it was the birthdays for pretty much all of the Carpathians; it also meant their eldest litter were not full grown adults and their youngest were yearlings, moving into their adolescent years. It was a time of celebration and love, cherishing who his children were becoming. One promise Artorias had vowed when his first pups were born and one he swore he would uphold for all his days—none of his children would ever know a birthday like what his first birthday had been.
After verifying all of the decorations were set and the big birthday breakfast had been made and laid out across the table for the whole family to feast, Artorias was satisfied things were set for the kids. He waited beside the family table at the head of the hall, the canvas-wrapped and ribbon-tied gifts for their second litter hidden just out of sight beside his mahogany throne. One by one he began to set the presents out in front of each of his children's usual places for them to find when they came up to the table. Now everything was ready for them! Once Briar came to join him in summoning their children, Art gave his beloved wife an excited grin and a quick kiss before lifting his head to the sky and calling for the Carpathian horde to come get their breakfast—and for his youngest to get their first birthday surprises.
01-13-2024, 12:37 AM
She had been hard at work preparing a feast of a breakfast that morning and while she hardly ever liked getting up this early, their children's birthday surprise was more than worth it. She knew that this was only their second year doing this, but she quietly hoped that this was a tradition that would stick. The fact that their oldest was now a whole two years old and their second were a year old... it was so surreal and exciting all at once. She laid out all kinds of foods across the large table where they usually had their family meals–a wide variety of cooked meats, eggs, berries, and roughly shaped biscuits left barely any empty space left across the center of the table. Just as she finished setting the table, she saw Artorias placing the gifts at their second litter's usual places and she smirked a bit at the few of them that were wrapped but were still very obvious in what they were. Solaire's gift was especially humorous since there was very little that could be done to disguise a gift like that, but it was adorable that Artorias had tried to wrap it all the same.
With the decorations, food, and gifts all in place she settled in next to Artorias, returning his grin and kiss with some of her own. She could never really shake the bitter sweet feeling she had at these events, but truly she was just happy that they were able to do this for their kids. She and Art both had their own soured birthday memories growing up so it was important to them both that every one of their pups was celebrated and had a chance to feel as special as they already were. She leaned into Artorias' side as he howled for their children and she waited eagerly for them to arrive, her tail wagging gently behind her.