(SEMI-OPEN) You say it's your birthday; It's my birthday too, yeah
What: Lortel & Megumi's joint birthday party!
Who: Pretty much their entire CR pools combined + the whole HSR cast?
When: End of Week 1 of Take Aim & Give (April 2026)
Where: The John Jay hall of Columbia's dorms
Warnings: Probably none, it's teens having a birthday party and the people who love them. (or at least, like, peripherally know them.)
party planning HERE!
Plugging in some details from planning:
1) Decorations: A triple combo of Sharon on illusionist duties with Yuji and Caelus scrounging up actual party goods like hats, noisemakers, and those candles that never go out!! Caelus will also repair a music player and bring a few CDs for ~ambiance (the ambiance is upbeat dance music).
2) Food: Mostly Caelus, he makes the cake! We have no other real food details, so if your character is the type to bring snacks, feel free to pitch in!
Additional stuff:
Neither Lortel nor Megumi is ... much of a partier, but they'll have prepped some stuff that the others did not, or helped out where they could! So there will be some party games available as well as the decor/food/music, which will consist of whatever they were able to scavenge from throughout the rest of the dormitory: a very beat up old game of Twister, an incomplete set of Jenga supplemented with any old nonsense (e.g. a perfectly mummified banana, several pencils, a strangely rectangular rock, the foot of a couch, a shot glass, etc.), Trivial Pursuit 2012 Master Edition (where did Megumi even find it?), and probably a few packs of cards; other party games like popular drinking games (never have I ever, truth or dare, charades, telephone) are always available at your own risk.
There's also some arts and crafts, particularly to make cards for the birthday kids or anything for anyone you like! There's paper, paints, markers, glitter, glue, anything you might need.
Though neither of the teens will have supplied it, you are welcome to bring or scavenge your own alcohol.
The teens' nightmares—a huge black tiger named Mikan and a large gray wolf named Haiiro—will likely also be wandering around the premises, if you like cats and/or dogs and are the type to ignore the lame ass party to play with the WAY BETTER pets instead. (And like, who doesn't want to let pet cat and or dog? Live your dreams.)
Who: Pretty much their entire CR pools combined + the whole HSR cast?
When: End of Week 1 of Take Aim & Give (April 2026)
Where: The John Jay hall of Columbia's dorms
Warnings: Probably none, it's teens having a birthday party and the people who love them. (or at least, like, peripherally know them.)
party planning HERE!
Plugging in some details from planning:
1) Decorations: A triple combo of Sharon on illusionist duties with Yuji and Caelus scrounging up actual party goods like hats, noisemakers, and those candles that never go out!! Caelus will also repair a music player and bring a few CDs for ~ambiance (the ambiance is upbeat dance music).
2) Food: Mostly Caelus, he makes the cake! We have no other real food details, so if your character is the type to bring snacks, feel free to pitch in!
Additional stuff:
Neither Lortel nor Megumi is ... much of a partier, but they'll have prepped some stuff that the others did not, or helped out where they could! So there will be some party games available as well as the decor/food/music, which will consist of whatever they were able to scavenge from throughout the rest of the dormitory: a very beat up old game of Twister, an incomplete set of Jenga supplemented with any old nonsense (e.g. a perfectly mummified banana, several pencils, a strangely rectangular rock, the foot of a couch, a shot glass, etc.), Trivial Pursuit 2012 Master Edition (
There's also some arts and crafts, particularly to make cards for the birthday kids or anything for anyone you like! There's paper, paints, markers, glitter, glue, anything you might need.
Though neither of the teens will have supplied it, you are welcome to bring or scavenge your own alcohol.
The teens' nightmares—a huge black tiger named Mikan and a large gray wolf named Haiiro—will likely also be wandering around the premises, if you like cats and/or dogs and are the type to ignore the lame ass party to play with the WAY BETTER pets instead. (And like, who doesn't want to let pet cat and or dog? Live your dreams.)

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He's trying to be a good sport, though. If he truly didn't want to be here, he'd have bailed long ago. But Lortel had made it clear that she wanted to celebrate together, and honestly, with the way his actual 16th birthday went, he could use some memories of it that don't suck.
So he can be found wherever -- letting you in at the door and thanking you for coming, or grabbing some napkins to mop up a spilled drink before it inches too close to the cake, or shuffling the Trivial Pursuit cards, examining a couple of the questions, and then looking around the room as if trying to determine exactly how many of the people here would even have heard of the Macarena. ]
...okay, this one's probably a no-go.
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[ for once—
—she's in no real shape to play host, does not try, and does not make herself try. the odds are embarrassingly high that someone would try to get her to sit down, anyway, and that would be worse.
Lortel isn't as dressed down as she's been the rest of the week, though not back to her usual impeccable standard yet, either. just neat and comfortable, the somewhat off-brand elements being a knee-length skirt and house slippers, of all things, her hair braided over one shoulder.
Mikan, her nightmare, comes and goes, sometimes at her side as a steady presence beneath her hand as he's often been throughout the week, sometimes acting as a massive, curled up and purring literal catbed for Haiiro, and sometimes letting himself be lavished in scritches by the other guests, tail flicking this way and that.
ply her with food and she's likely to gently turn you down unless you insist—unless it's the cake Caelus made, which she will take with a smile.
she thanks as many people as she can for coming, even those of Megumi's friends she doesn't know well (or at all), though eventually her energy will start to flag. ]
We have games, and music, and very nice decorations, [ she'll smile, warm, ] though we really ought to have prepared more food...
B. speaking of games
[ there are so many options, here. so many terrible, terrible options. Twister gets a pass completely. Jenga seems ... entertaining, but like a bit of a lost cause. (is that a banana?)
Trivial Pursuit wins her attention. mostly incredulous attention. she'll end up both very absorbed and deeply indignant: ]
Why is there only one category that doesn't rely on being from Earth?! [ HUFF PUFF THIS IS SO UNFAIR!! she doesn't like a game where the rules are rigged against her from the start, who knew.
she'll also grab one of the packs of cards. not to play—she ends up doing card tricks and sleight of hand, which she's apparently pretty good at. ]
Want me to guess your card?
C. arts n crafts / wildcard
[ only towards the end of the party, when she thinks the others are less likely to notice what she's up to—hopefully—does she sneak away to try to find time to make a card for Megumi.
if you do sneak up on her, you may find her seriously contemplating whether or not to add glitter. ]
(ooc; secret third thing? other party game, dancing, compulsory jenga?! hit me, the world is our oyster.)
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wildcard.
Aventurine presents her with two boxes and a large gift bag of two more— although judging from the ribbons (they are color coordinated it seems) only two of them are really meant to be actively opened unless she wants to do otherwise.
Whenever she gets around to opening them, she'll find a dress and shoes. ]
Eventually, you'll find time to go on a date together, right? Hopefully this will help you in having a good time then. You'll just need to find a cute venue. Hit me and Sharon up if you need help, I think we can figure something out.
[ As for the other two boxes? ] Those are technically for Megumi, but it doesn't feel right to gift him a suit and shoes for his birthday.
[ The set is more for Lortel to have something to dress Megumi up in since Aventurine knows the young sorcerer personally couldn't care less about things like this. So, it's only appropriate his outfit be gifted to Lortel, as well. ]
gifts!!
Aventurine has no idea! Still, he'll do his best.
For starters, Megumi's first gift is something for his nightmare (kind of?), which he already knew was going to be some kind of wolf-dog when it became apparent that their nightmares shift. Behold a massive dog bed big enough for the nightmare (and Lortel's, too, maybe), and for Lortel and Megumi to have a giant cuddle pile sleepover if they want. (How Aventurine managed to pack it down so tightly is anyone's guess, and he doesn't seem to want to go anywhere near having to put it back in its packaging once it's opened. Megumi is on his own after that.)
The next gift is more practical (it's going to most likely be black, but if you want a different color go for it.) ]
You'll be able to move around more freely when you're out and about without having to sacrifice warmth.
[ Megumi is pretty action oriented, especially when things get wild here, so Aventurine thinks it'll be pretty useful to him, especially since he doesn't exactly consider Megumi graft at making sure to take care of himself. Something easy like this should help.
And, finally, because it wouldn't be Aventurine if he wasn't teasing Megumi in some way, have (another) cute little friend. ]
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So tonight, the usual center of entertainment is simply an onlooker, and he's surprisingly quite good at keeping a low profile when he wants to. Honestly, this is a group of teenagers having a birthday party, anyway, and most of the attendees are within the age group. He might as well be a chaperone, as much as he hates to admit it. Getting old sucks.
He won't approach anyone for small talk beyond wishing the birthday teens well wishes, although he won't rebuff anyone, either. For the most part he's there for anyone's needs even though he is most likely half asleep for the latter half. (he might even be fully asleep if you give him long enough to pass out if this is an evening birthday party. He had to do a lot of hunting for the gifts he got the teens, especially Megumi's pullover. Somehow everyone wants the practical stuff when the apocalypse hits, go figure. It did make procuring the shiny fancy stuff a lot easier in comparison, though, but no one ask him how long it took to find that — all these gifts were hunted for well before a birthday party was announced. That's just how Aventurine is when it comes to gift-giving.)
He might actually pass out with the two nightmares if they don't leave him in a heap on the floor to go play with other people, because who doesn't love a big kitty and big puppy?? Floor's fine, though. (Where is Aventurine's nightmare, anyway? It's strangely absent!) ]
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[ This is, after all, a post-apocalyptic hellscape! Everyone has their worries, everyone has to scavenge just to get by...the most important thing about this celebration by far, at least to Megumi, was to just be around people he likes and have some better things to associate with turning sixteen than a catatonic blood-soaked haze.
But at least Aventurine knows where his priorities are. It is a nice fleece, definitely a step above some of the random stuff he's salvaged from the closets of various college students.
And the bed, rather than getting crammed back into the packaging, is immediately getting set up in a nice spot with a good view of the room for the nightmares to enjoy right away. (He'll worry about moving it to wherever it's going to go permanently later.)
And the last... ]
You know I don't really have keys to worry about here, right? [ Most of the keys to the various rooms in the dorm were presumably lost with their owners. They've more been getting by with a lot of breaking into rooms initially and then everybody respecting each others' space and knocking.
...he's smiling faintly, though, so he clearly isn't that bothered by this being less practical. ]
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but not in the apocalypse. not here. she's running her thumbs over the fine fabric, perfect and intact, gossamer and utterly lovely, as he explains his intent. Her eyes track up to his face as she recalls something she said to Megumi the day they started dating, months ago:
Hm... it's too bad we can't ask an illusionist to prepare something for us, like at the party.
and she remembers, too, the way that Megumi had dressed up for their date; that hadn't come from him, after all. well, the impetus had, if not the actual coordination.
altogether, it's...
Lortel has to bite the inside of her lip as she carefully replaces the gifts he got her back in their boxes, and set them aside. this is so she can pull him into a hug, radiating a gentle affection down their tether. ]
It would be at least our second, [ she'll joke, though it's a faint thing. ] Aventurine, this is so thoughtful. Thank you.
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Are we setting up a shooting gallery?
[ yep, that's where her mind went ]
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Well, lookie here! It's the name girl herself. And you completely nailed it, it is a shooting gallery. Wanna give it a go? Knock 'em all down and you'll get something good.
[ despite it being a plastic gun, she handles it like it's the real deal by swapping it between one hand to the next before offering it to the red-head with a wink. ]
Don't worry, the bullets in this thing aren't real. Just cute little darts for cute little people.
Pre-party… (Sunday, Aventurine, Kamui)
Speaking of clothes, it wasn't just party clothes and tailoring materials they picked up at the mall. Since more people from Caelus's universe showed up, they also went to pick up everyday wear for the newcomers. … And Kamui, because this silly
kittenboy has been constantly wearing worn-out clothing!! Caelus, Aventurine, and Sunday eventually had enough, which is why they all also picked out clothes that might look nice on little Kamui. It's a whole assortment for every situation.Fast forward to the current situation. They're all gathered in the boy's room now, the three older brothers taking turns to hold up various clothing to check how they look on him. They're already done going through Kamui's new everyday clothes, so it's time to put together a wonderful outfit for the party. If they have anything to do with it, Kamui will be as adorable as possible!! (He's already naturally cute, but you know… There are ways to highlight it further!) ]
Hmm. I really like white and lavender colors on him.
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He's busy smoothing out a nice lavender dress shirt, making sure it looks as good as new, which it technically is seeing as how it was found in the mall and only needed a bit of light cleaning. Once that's done, he holds it out to see if he has the committee's approval. ]
Here try this on with the white v-neck cardigan in wool. With some proper slacks and dress shoes, you would look quite stylish.
[ Or look a little too much like Sunday himself...He's only got the one aesthetic and hasn't thought to branch out of it ever. ]
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He can probably go a little more casual? Lortel is usually a high end dresser, but I'm guessing she will be forced to give herself a break. Black jeans would be a nice compromise and maybe more comfortable for him.
[ they found a nice pair of slim fit black jeans, so Aventurine thinks it's a good choice. He's not going to subject Kamui to wearing white pants of any kind in this place (unless the teen actually wants to,) as someone who has worn white pants in this environment.
highly unrecommended. ]
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He approaches Megumi after a while, holding out a gift bag. Inside, there's a walkman CD-player, batteries, and several CDs, all which he got from rummaging through some very old antique shops. ]
Happy Birthday, Megumi. I was not sure what your favorite genre of music is, so I tried to get you one of everything. If anything, it should at least broaden your musical palate. I apologize I could not include any of my sister's albums.
[ He's still working out how he's supposed to record them since playing them on the piano is not quite the same as having her sing along to the notes. Not everyone can hit the notes that she can either, what with her being a Halovian and having such a unique voice that exists without equal...or so he tells himself. The best option he still has is playing them through the murmur to really convey the layers of complexity in her music. ]
A.
Anyway, Sunday does hold out a wrapped gift to her. Inside is an ornate antique wind-up music box with a ballerina inside. ]
It is a pleasure to meet you, Miss Lortel, and happy birthday. I do hope it is not too juvenile of a gift. I felt rather drawn to it when I saw it in the shop.
[ He also didn't know what else to get her and defaulted to things his sister would have enjoyed. She always prefers cute, heartfelt gifts as opposed to anything mass produced and thoughtless. ]
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all that said, he's grateful to everyone, but that doesn't fully take care of his slight nerves. or rather, not nerves, but more bemusement, accented with a flush of color for the complimentary words from caelus. ]
Thank you.
[ his head turns from caelus to sunday as the other speaks though, tilting as he peers at the shirt, accepting it because it would be rude not to and, honestly kamui does not think much (at all) about what he wears. if not for everyone here, he would've worn what he had until it shredded to nothing or someone else pointed it out or both. ]
Ah, thank you.
[ he seems to only have this one thing to say, until aventurine speaks and kamui pauses in his unbuttoning of the lavender shirt, peering up. black pants do seem safer. even not-white things, kamui is very good at getting dirty though never on purpose, even when he tries actively not to! nodding, he goes to the dresser and picks out the black jeans in mention, careful to just drape the shirt over one arm to not undo all of the smoothing sunday did for it! ]
I'll just be a second.
[ and off he disappears into the bathroom, emerging as promised quite fast, still in the process of rebuttoning the shirt -- it's a bit big on him but somehow it still works. he doesn't notice that he's one-off on his buttoning, and one wonders why he did not just undo the top and pull it over his head. with his focus on that, he asks what he's been a little worried about ]
...is it really okay that I go? I've...I know [ am tethered to ] Fushiguro-san but...
[ he trails off, pausing in his (failed) buttoning to look up at all of them and get some sense of their thoughts. ]
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I'm glad you came. And actually, yes, I do.
[ she takes the gun, looking it over curiously. she's never had to use one; fantasy isekai land has none, and here in Manhattan she's only seen a select few actually wield them, bullets being a somewhat precious resource. all this to say she only has a rough idea of how to use it—
—but, grinning, she'll motion for the other girl to join her and step back. ]
Provided by the cutest girl at the party, of course. How far back should I stand? I've never shot one of these things before.
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Once Kamui finishes putting on his new party outfit, Caelus couldn't hold back his smile. The awe is evident across his radiant expression, igniting through their tether. He smiles further when he notices the imperfections, thinking to himself, it's really precious… But Sunday is a perfectionist and might rectify that in seconds. Wrinkles!? Uneven buttoning!? Caelus holds back his laughter, covering his mouth, already expecting it to happen.
Ah, but the Trailblazer doesn't want Kamui to get the wrong idea about why he's smiling so much. So, he coughs a little to adjust his sore throat (it still hurts to talk), then speaks as honestly as possible. ]
… You're too cute. I like it.
[ To give Kamui a more casual touch, as well as protection against the cold weather, Caelus approaches and wraps a pastel blue scarf around the younger boy's neck. It complements the gentle lavender of the shirt very well.
Yes, they all did great on this outfit! ]
As for Meggy, don't worry. I'm sure he and Lortel will be thrilled to have you around.
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A moment please–
[ Going to start with the buttons, fixing them up and making sure they look neat and tidy before straightening out Kamui's collar for him. He then drapes the cardigan over it and tries to make Kamui look a bit preppy but not overly so. More like a schoolboy in his after-hours. He doesn't need his shirt buttoned all the way to the top like Sunday, who is avidly against showing any skin. He even hikes the sleeves up to make Kamui look a bit more relaxed, though he is tucking the shirt in all the way. Relaxed doesn't mean sloppy.
Lastly, Sunday will slide down on the ground to start adjusting the hems of Kamui's jeans for him, using some safety pins on the inside so they won't drag and get dirty. If there were more time, Sunday would offer to simply sew it for him since he's good at hand-stitching for basic tailoring and clothing maintenance. ]
That will have to do for now. At least you no longer look like you rolled out of bed recently.
[ He steps back to carefully assess their work. ]
Some boots would tie together the ensemble if you want something less formal than dress shoes. Nice black leather ones that will not crack under duress. I can polish them for you.
[ There's got to be a brush somewhere in the pile. Sunday knows he did snag one of those earlier as well. ]
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Thank you for coming, [ she'll say, polite, taking the gift with a dip of her head and a warm smile. ] A friend of Megumi's, or Caelus? He did say he'd invite... [ she laughs ] Well, when it's him, "his friends" could mean quite a lot of people. What was your name?
[ she'll open the gift while chatting, and it does indeed catch her attention. there's a soft feeling on her face, hard to describe, as she lifts the gift out of its box. when she winds it up, she smiles a small but deeply sincere smile when its soft and pretty chimes play, if only for a moment. it even works... ]
I never had one of these as a girl. [ it's a soft comment, and she won't elaborate. the way she keeps the flat of her hand pressed to its lid when she closes it, though, certainly suggests a deep fondness for the small, thoughtful gift. ]
This is terribly kind. Thank you.
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but it is, also, his party. his chance to celebrate turning sixteen without...
well. with, perhaps, different memories to attach to the date. warmer, happier ones. ones where he's surrounded by people who love him. by people who can remind him ... that he's wanted here.
not for his value. not for his name. just for being Megumi.
so here's Lortel, catching both his hands as he goes to take care of another mess; smiling, she'll bring them to her face and press a kiss to his fingers. ]
What would you tell me if I were busy cleaning, I wonder...
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Moving over to the various shoes they've found, Aventurine picks out a round-toed boot with a chunky undersole and heel design. It'll help dress down the entire outfit without making it too casual, he thinks, although he'll come to poke at Sunday's head playfully with him crouched down trying to hem the jeans. ] These boots should keep them from dragging, so you don't need to hem so specifically.
[ he sets the boots down next to Sunday and in front of Kamui before going to place a gold barrett in Kamui's hair to help keep some of his bangs out of his face. ] Too casual to bother slicking your hair with product and everything, so this should do.
[ It's a gold barrett that is actually in the shape of a cat paw. As Aventurine retreats , though, to step back and get a better look he suddenly smiles and turns away again. ]
Right, well, this looks nice on you, but I don't exactly anticipate you to love wearing this everyday going forward, either. You're a good sport, though, and to make sure you keep staying warm, I got you a little extra something that has nothing to do with the party!
[ After a moment, Aventurine will turn around again and present a jacket that looks similar to Caelus's trailblazer jacket. It's definitely not the same, but the uncanny similarity is still there as well as a very compatible style with what Caelus wears. Its main focus color is purple instead of yellow like Caelus's, and Aventurine thinks they will look quite good together when wearing the jackets.
Aventurine is well aware that Kamui has an intense lliking and admiration towards Caelus, so when he found a techwear jacket with a very similar style to the Trailblazer's, he couldn't help but see where it might be something Kamui would actually like to wear rather than just tolerate it because other people are fussing over him to wear new clothes.
Aventurine shakes the jacket out, holding it out for Kamui to come get as soon as he's free from Sunday, and to show off to them all in the meantime. Of course, this is up to Kamui if he likes the jacket enough to take it. They can always find something else, but something tells Aventurine this is a good choice, even if they're supposed to be doing party dressup. It just seems like a good time to present it now. ]
What do you think?
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I'm grateful. You've already done a lot. I don't think the boots need polishi-- oh.
[ he loses his train of thought as aventurine adds the clip, the shape of which kamui misses though he does catch the glint of gold. the slight sweep of his bangs out of his eyes reminds him how long they've gotten, but he hasn't even thought of trying to cut his hair his whole time here. and he opens his mouth to say one thing before closing it, surprised by the jacket. it's not hard to see the similarities to the one caelus wears, and the way he accepts it from aventurine is as though it is something very precious.
it slips on even over the cardigan and shirt, perhaps due to the cut, or perhaps just due to kamui's narrow shoulders. he ends up peering down at it, craning his neck a little to look at his own shoulder and then the other. ]
I really like it -- all of it...thank you.
[ if there's something still sort of awkward in how kamui interacts, it's not for any reason other than being a bit overwhelmed always by shows of kindness. despite not lacking in it, he's always sort of caught off guard. it's only now that he realizes he did not even put his shoes on yet! so he pads back the little way to slip them on, leaning over a bit to adjust the laces. as he does this, he adds, thoughtful, ]
I keep trying to think how I can repay all of you, for letting me stay here...and being so kind. But I haven't thought of anything...so I hope if I can help at all, you might ask me.
[ although he knows no one expects 'repayment', he can't help but think this way. in a sense, it feels a bit silly since he has no idea what he can offer aside from a very keen sense of hearing and smell, but what he says is true: if there was even the smallest thing he could help with at any point, he would be happy.
one nice thing right now: the constant and heavy scent of blood and flowers kamui had been carrying with him up through the end of march since arriving in january, has lessened for now, instead just the lightest residue of hydrangeas at the end of a summer. ]
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and besides, more friends would just mean more trouble, more chances for her curse to intertwine and rip everything to shreds. while it turned out her sister wasn't here after all, the false alarm was enough to snap her back to reality. keep people close, but not too close. anyhow, the bluenette turns on her heel before she struts, mumbling out her steps before coming into a complete halt—pivoting again. ]
Here. And don't ask which one you oughta hit first. Binky, Fuzzylumpy, Nam-Nams, and Mutley have been doing some serious monkeying around. All guilty.
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For a while, Caelus remains silent as he observes Kamui's busy room. Sunday's fussing, Aventurine's doting… Kamui's meekness. His radiant smile could only melt, memorizing the scene to the best of his abilities. He hopes that he'll never forget this scene. At the back of his head somewhere, he's always been afraid of losing such precious memories. It's happened before, after all. But this time… his camera drone, Cheese, is never too far away anymore. He wordlessly presses a remote in his jacket, allowing the drone to capture the moment for him.
Of course, Cheese is coming to the party, too. Caelus wants to print some photos for Megumi and Lortel later on. ]
You're… already doing a lot, Kammy. You always help with chores… Some of us don't, and just sleep away all day.
[ GENERAL JING YUAN!!! … But it's fine, they willingly let him sleep. The General is old (ancient, even…) and easily tired out. The man is likely catching up on all the long years that he's been deprived of sleep. Besides, if someone asks him a favor directly, he always goes through with it. ]
But… I'll let you tag along on my material hunts sometime. It's easier to look with more eyes present.
[ Caelus feels good about asking Kamui now, since the boy is looking much better health-wise these days. It's a huge relief for him and everyone at the hotel. It was always so sad to watch the young boy struggle with his prolonged condition. Anyway, ugh…! The Trailblazer can't hold back from blushing as well, all because of Aventurine's touches. A gold barrette? A purple jacket that looks like his? Who wouldn't feel something if they were in his position? Kamui… almost looks like his boyfriend now or something. Is this intentional???
Help, Sunday. Caelus wants a distraction!! Maybe give Kamui anything to do later? He wants to feel useful; surely the Halovian can relate to that feeling! ]