[text | action for housemates]

[exeggutorhead]

[Action]

[Another year in Johto a month ago...and now, another birthday. Which is a strange thing to think about. Up until a few years ago, he hadn't even known the date of his own birth, hadn't even thought to wonder what it was. Back in Amestris, a homunculus' birth isn't something that anybody really wants to remember or celebrate, after all. But here? People have found it out, wheedled it out of him...people have remembered it, asked after it, thought that the fact that Envy was born was something important.]

[And for two years now, he's awkwardly accepted the couple of gifts and the well wishes he's gotten, but it had still felt strange to even acknowledge. But now, the third year he's known about the day...it feels a little more natural. He actually remembers what day it is without being reminded, and if any of his patched together little family brings it up, or does something for the occasion?]

[Well, maybe this year he'll react a little less like a cat who's just encountered a vacuum cleaner for the first time.]

[Text]

Hey, I've got a question for anyone who feels like answering. When you do things for somebody's birthday, what is it that you're celebrating about them? Is it that they managed to survive an extra year or that they were born in the first place or just because parties are fun or what?

What is it about a birthday that makes it something important?

Comments

[text]

[toothaches]

i think its how people say theyre glad some1 is in ther life

[text]

[exeggutorhead]

yeah?

that's pretty good, I like that.

[Action]

[foolishwren]

Hey hey heyyyy!

_{[As soon as Envy's done posting his deep philosophical birthday questions to the network, the obligatory Funny Voice (tm) happens behind him and then a couple of arms snake around his middle and do that obnoxious thing where she picks him up but only like an inch off the ground.]}

It's the birthday boy!

[Action]

[exeggutorhead]

[Envy should probably expect things like this by now, but sometimes she can still catch him off guard. He lets out a 'whoof' of air as he's picked up and immediately starts trying to squirm loose.]

[But there's a laugh in his throat, even as he shouts in indignation.]

Hey! Hey, I don't remember 'getting picked up' having anything to do with birthdays!

text;

[shiro2hero]

It depends on the person. Sometimes people just want to take the day and have fun, and other people don't want to celebrate at all.

text;

[exeggutorhead]

yeah, makes sense. I used to be the latter

I'm more asking about why other people celebrate somebody's birthday instead of why the person themselves does

text;

[cardboard_boss]

We celebrate someone's birthday because they're a year older. Some would say wiser. A lot of people have strong memories and experiences over their life. We celebrate that they're still alive and able to share those experiences with others.

[Maybe some of Kaz was rubbing off on him, since he didn't usually get sentimental about birthdays or talk so much.]

text;

[exeggutorhead]

I hadn't thought about celebrating the memories part. I guess that makes sense

[And...hm, he kind of likes the idea, come to think of it. Celebrating the memories that belong to him, and not the ones from the life that had come before.]

text

[meowbel]

[And you just crawled right up into Mabel's terrority! Watch out Envy]

It's all of the above! Sure, it kind of sucks that you're another year older but you gets lot and lots of presents! Oh and cake! You definitely can't forget that!

text

[exeggutorhead]

[Oh he recognizes that 'Gear number, it's that girl from the sweater party. NOT SURE HOW MUCH HE SHOULD WATCH OUT HERE...]

Cake and presents I can get behind. especially chocolate cake.

although I guess when you're my age the actual year older part starts to matter less

I'm not actually sure EXACTLY how old I am, I just round up

Action

[a_sin_for_him]

[This whole birthday thing is still rather new. But Lust has come to appreciate the symbolism of it. She still remembers they very long and passionate conversation she and York had on the whole subject.]

[And when Envy's rolls around - nearly forgotten, because she can barely even keep track of her own and they fall so closely together - she has to acknowledge it. He's her brother. As much a brother as if they'd been born to the same families.]

[And because it is Envy, she goes to a little extra effort to tailor her 'gift' to him. So at one point, when Lust finds him in the kitchen, she sets out on the table a terrible looking homemade cake.]

Happy birthday.

[And doesn't she look so proudly pleased of her atrocity?]

Action

[exeggutorhead]

[The look on Envy's face when he sees that...cake...is absolutely worth the effort she put in to make it.]

[It's an expression caught halfway between alarm at the creation on the table (does she expect him to eat it right here and now and can he find a way to not??) and happiness that she'd remembered the day.]

That's....thanks?

text

[veggie_vamp]

Parties are always awesome, but birthdays are like - OH MY GHOUL, YOU EXIST??? That's SO COOL! You celebrate that this person is, like, there!

text

[exeggutorhead]

yeah, that's what I like to think of them as

it's nice to have people glad that you're alive

Text;

[schachmeister]

I always felt birthdays are a good time for reminding people how grateful you are that they are in your life. You never know when they might be gone, after all.

Text;

[exeggutorhead]

You know...that's a good way to put it. especially here.

[Envy's been in this world long enough to lose more friends than he can count. Although...he thinks he recognizes this number, that kid who didn't know about Halloween. He hasn't been here that long, has he? Not long enough to be that jaded about the disappearances yet, at least. Hmm.]

when you put it like that, I wonder if it'd be a good day to remember people who've gone, too. doing something on their birthdays in their memory, I mean.

[ Text ]

[11121_assumption]

If you find out, let me know.

[ Text ]

[exeggutorhead]

feeling grim, huh?

mostly the answers are about celebrating the person's life, being happy that they're around and all.

[Text] If you'd rather plain text let me know

[cyan_maid]

Huh.
You know, I've never actually sat down to think about it.
But personally, I believe a birthday is an excuse to celebrate the person in question - so probably the fact that they were born at all.
And it's important because of the person who was born, and their relation to their friends and family. If someone's my friend, I'm happy to celebrate the fact that they exist.

[Text] It's fine!

[exeggutorhead]

Yeah, that's what I figured.

I've heard a lot of people before just say that it's a 'good job for surviving another year' thing, and sure that's a big deal. but surviving's not that difficult here.

I like the idea of it being glad the person's around better.

text;

[heartdive]

i guess it kinda is all of that. parties are fun sure but the most important thing is that you're celebrating the day that they came into the world. it's about how important their life is to yours.

text;

[exeggutorhead]

that seems to be most people's thoughts on it

I used to think it all sounded pretty pointless, just some dumb excuse for a cake, but it's nice, being important to people.

[text]

[bloodisthicker]

You know... I never really thought about it that way. Then again, people who have done things that make them worth remembering to history occasionally have festivals in their honor, so really, it seems like a smaller scale version of that.

[text]

[exeggutorhead]

yeah, a smaller scale version where the person is still alive at the time. important distinction there

text+vague action??

[armoredsoul]

[Alphonse hadn't known the significance of the day--he's only had about one year of living in the house altogether, and the first chunk of that had involved Envy and Al acting like territorial cats at one another. Trading birthdays had not been high on the list of priorities.]

[But he is observant, and when he hears the well-wishes from around corners he feels...weirdly bad about not having anything ready for his half-brother. Which is why later in the day, Envy will find a cupcake on a paper plate just outside his bedroom, with a glass bowl turned upside down over it as protection from the Pokemon. It's had the frosting all scraped off, but at least it's Funfetti flavor, right?]

[A little while after that, he responds to the post.]

I guess it can be all of those things, or other things, too. Being glad they're in your life and having an excuse to spoil them, or letting them know you're important to them.

[exeggutorhead]

[Well that's...certainly a thing.]

[There is literally only one person in the house who would have a) made a cupcake to give to him secretly, b) thought ahead enough to cover it with a bowl, and c) gone to the trouble of actually frosting it and then scraping the frosting off. ALPHONSE.]

[Honestly he's not sure what the hell to think about any of this. The passive aggressive missing frosting actually makes it less frustrating to think about, because at least it wasn't a completely nice little gift. He wouldn't have had the slightest idea what to do with that kind of gesture. But he does eat the cupcake, after carefully determining that the frosting wasn't licked off. Mmm, funfetti.]

[Of course then that message abruptly makes things weird again.]

I guess so.

if you're looking for excuses to spoil or celebrate someone, their particular day is as good as any. why, even if they don't know it's you making the gesture, they'll know that someone thought they were just the most important person around

[HE KNOWS IT WAS YOU, ALPHONSE. YOU ARE LITERALLY THE ONLY PERSON. WRATH WOULD HAVE JUST EATEN IT.]

text;

[bertall]

I think for me it's always the first two, but if I had to choose only one, I think it'd be them being born? People... don't live for very long where I'm from, so you couldn't really celebrate their life or memory if they never existed in the first place.

It's... also really nice to see them happy on their birthday.

text;

[exeggutorhead]

I think I get what you mean

Humans live fairly normal lifespans unless they're in a warzone back where I'm from, but here? People vanish all the time. It's not the same as dying, but it's the same sort of...you want to celebrate their being here while you still can.

text; private

[pipers_son]

you know theres only one reason people ask these sort of questions
so
whos the lucky birthday boy or girl

text; private

[exeggutorhead]

damn you're too observant

but that would be me

[Action]

[no_ufo_ending]

<sub>[Guess what time it is, Envy.]

[It's birthday time.]

[Henry hunts down his long-haired best friend like a drowsy shark with a brightly colored bag clenched in its fins. Once he locates him, the horror protag who has been more or less all blood and rust up until this point tugs a small plastic kazoo out of his shirt pocket and toots a fanfare on it.]</sub>

Happy birthday, Envy.

[Action]

[exeggutorhead]

[Birthday time!!?]

[Envy grins wide at Henry's performance. Honestly, it's even better to see Henry doing something silly and dumb like blowing on a kazoo than it is to see the present. It's been a while since he's seen his friend act like that.]

I think I must be at least over three hundred ninety this year.