KING AGAIN — oneshot-y birthday thing

[BRENDAN]

a million dreams is all it's gonna take.

well, it’s that time of year again.

It’s been a while, hasn’t it? Brendan thinks it has; it genuinely feels like all those events from last year—like his foot, the badlands raid, yada yada—are from eons ago, like they haven’t even come somewhat close to being around his most recent birthday. So many things have happened since last year, and it’s wild for Brendan to think of as he sits on his bed, fiddling with one of the long staffs he owns, drowned in his thoughts.

Roosty lies near him, feathers all fluffed out and scooted in close. With one hand, Brendan carefully scratches the back of the rooster’s soft head, however the teen finds that his attention goes elsewhere.

He’s fourteen today——and, well, it’s also Christmas. He’s heard himself being called the "lucky child" for such a fact—and he guesses for a lot of people, yeah, maybe that is lucky—but he doesn’t really...understand what’s so special about his birthday. Sure, it’s on Christmas, but that’s all there is to it; anyone else can be born on Valentine’s Day or Halloween...shouldn’t that mean they’re lucky, too? That’s a whole lotta lucky people. As far as Brendan knows, shouldn’t luck be a rare and valuable thing?

it probably is, his mind supplies for him. Yeah. but that’s okay.

Honestly, most people—Brendan included—would call Brendan unlucky for all the junk that’s happened to him (as mentioned earlier: his foot situation, the badlands raid, yada yada). But those events have passed now, and it finally feels like life is settling down for him. Sure, there’ll be new obstacles thrown his way, but...he’s learning, he’s growing, and he’s getting better.

His left foot, for example——the pinky toe doesn’t really move...ever, but the hole is gone. There’s a scar where J hurt him, but that’s all it is now: A scar. Is Brendan still frustrated about it? Well...yes, he is; "frustrated" is honestly a bit of an understatement. Either way, Anyone would be upset—Brendan especially, the once-over-naive kid to the now-introverted-as-heck kid. (Well, he’s always been shy to an extent, really.)

With a small sneeze from the rooster beside him, Brendan quickly snaps out of his thoughts, hues falling down to the cute little thing beside him.

"bless you, bud," Brendan murmurs, gingerly patting the rooster’s back. He pauses for a bit, then softly adds: "hey, roosty, do I look fourteen to you?"

The rooster doesn’t even look up to examine Brendan’s features, and instead promptly finds comfort in just scooting in closer to Brendan. With his typical small and sheepish smile, Brendan bends down and lightly kisses the top of the rooster’s beak.

"love you too."

This is sincerely how Brendan wishes to spend his Christmas—and birthday. Alone, with the chicken(s), and not really being bothered by anybody else. As he sets down his staff, he figures that hey, maybe he’ll go out and practice with that a little, too. But that’s really the only work he wants to do today (he doesn’t like to consider taking care of the chickens as "work," because he loves them all too much to think like that).

It’s a good day to turn fourteen, he thinks.

(( literally 3am for me but merry Christmas fam ))

[Gray]

track to read ,, later today ig? my eyes would like to be shut now but my stomach wants food and I don't know which to appease
that's more information than needed isn't it

[HAYLEY]

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☁  this boy is a whole mood,,,,,,
track full of love and support [s]but hayley can't be here because she having a baby elsewhere at this time

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[Gray]

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GRAYSON HANSON
Sixteen & Trans Male & Residing in Flintlock Lodge
❝and ever since seventh grade i learned to fire-breathe❞

//tw for brief mention of death

There must be pros and cons to a Christmas birthday, though many of them don't really fit in to this new world order (like you and everyone around you being free from school and work, but likely having to follow old traditions instead of picking what you wanted to do). Theoretically you could get double the presents, though it was also pretty likely that whatever you got was for both, and there wasn't any other time of the year you were all that likely to get any. Not the same amount as Christmas and birthdays, anyway.

But things are different now, holidays aren't followed as closely and neither are birthdays. The latter really depended on how open you were with your birthday, though. Last year Torrin had thrown a party for Gray, the first proper one he'd been able to enjoy since his mother's passing. It felt wrong to celebrate in her house without her there.

But Gray liked the attention being on him, Brendan... didn't. From what Gray knew, Brendan didn't seem to share the date he was born with very many people. But the two boys had known each other since the younger was only twelve, and even though they weren't especially closely bonded, they were close enough that Gray knew when Brendan's birthday was. And close enough that he actually felt like trying to do something for him.

He wasn't any kind of artist, not by a long shot. He wanted to be, oh Lord how he wanted to be. Name some sort of art or craft and he's probably tried it, and he's probably sucked at it. But he was determined to be able to do something artistic, to carry on his mother's legacy. That something, right now, was knitting. He wasn't very good, but he was slowly getting the hang of it. In fact, he'd recently finished his project. Or finished a project for the first time, it was far from his first try.

It was a red scarf with fringe. It wasn't all that even, but it was better than all of his other attempts thus far. It was wrapped up in a faded gift bag with a cartoon chicken and cow on it. He hadn't been able to find tissue paper, so it was just sitting in the bag with nothing covering it. As he got closer to Brendan's door, he started feeling a bit self conscious about how poor his gift's execution was. Gray tried to tell himself that it was something, but he was largely unconvinced. Still, he knocked on the door. "Hey, Brendan? Got a little something for you."

[spoiler=MY CHILDHOOD SPAT BACK OUT THE MONSTER THAT YOU SEE | 12/08]General — biograhpy
▪ Grayson Hanson | Gray | Formerly Aria Rivendare
▪ Masculine presenting | Identifies as male | He/Him | DFAB
[size=7pt]— Almost impossible to tell his birth gender (get Pyre's permission before having y/c know)
▪ 16 years, 10 months | 2/6/22 | Ages primarily real time
▪ Member of the Moorland Riders | Residing in Flintlock Lodge | Ex-Ranger of the Flintlock Lodge

Physical — reference
♦ HUMAN | Health: 100%
— Gray is about medium height at 5'6", and very thin and lanky. He has gray eyes, and off-black hair cropped into an undercut, which has recently been cut a bit closer to the scalp than normal. Under his left eye he has a beauty mark, and there are a few scars on his medium-brown skin, and there are more under the slate gray bandanna, hoodies and jeans the gangly teen tends to wear. There are three pierces in his right ear, two in his lobe and one in the cartilage.
— minor injuries: n/a
— major injuries: n/a

Important Info — roleplayer
▪ In no way shows that he was born female, does everything possible to hide it (such as binding) and wears clothes meant for men. Without him stripping, it's pretty much impossible to tell that he isn't biologically male.
▪ Low-key history nut.
▪ Nearsighted.
▪ Has a blue pit bull puppy named Brianna.
▪ Opinions and motivations are Gray's and Gray's alone and are not shared by his roleplayer.

Personality — personality type
— DETAILED IS STILL A BIG WIP
— Articulate; contemplative; efficient; driven; incisive; intelligent; meticulous; orderly; perceptive; practical; rational; self-sufficient; shrewd; vigilant; witty, enigmatic; frank; neutral; placid; private; stoic, abrupt; aloof; assertive; blunt; calculating; coarse; critical; cynical; distrusting; judgmental; opinionated; pedantic; sarcastic; self-serving; unreliable; vindictive

Relationships — heartchart
▪ Val x Summer Rivendare | Adopted by Diana Hanson
▪ Pansexual | Panromantic | Monogamous
▪ Single | One crush
▪ ½ Graux | ½ Torrson
▪ Generally puts on a friendly front and cares for those around him, but still holds them at arms' length and is very hard to get close to. Very awkward when flirted with and doesn't really like it, but becomes quite flirty when drunk

Interaction — plotting thread
— Medium Physically | Hard mentally
— Still in training
— Prefers to fight with a machete, but can go hand-to-hand
— No kill/capture/maim without permission
— To attack, [member=2027]Gray[/member] and attack in underlined #708090
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[Shiloh !]

aa tracking for a bit later