onebetter: (true joy)
James Griffin ([personal profile] onebetter) wrote in [community profile] daybreakacademy2019-08-14 12:11 am

A Birthday Boy

Who: James, Keith and the people invited to James' birthday party (Toki, Ana, Adelaide, Nana, Ruby, Nadia, Allura & Yuya!)
When: August 13th (Keith part), August 18th (Party)
What: James' birthday (spent at home in Arizona) & James' Soleil birthday party, spent at a Café de la Lune in Soleil.
Warnings: None for party, mentions of NSFW in Keith & James', though anything explicit will be moved off-comm.

[ All people listed above will have received a text message on August 15th. ]

Hey there!
I'm currently out of the country, but my birthday passed recently and I'd like to celebrate with my friends a little once I return home. Are you free on August 18th? I'd love to get a group together and go down to Café de la Lune for the afternoon. It'll be my treat.

No worries if you're not free that day, but I'd love to see you there!


[ On the actual day of, everyone will find that James has reserved the biggest table in the café so everyone can fit comfortably. He's already ordered a few pastries for everyone and is more than willing to order more. James is pretty much beaming. Also his toad is here. Just sitting on his shoulder. Occasionally being fed bits of cake from a special toad-reserved spoon. ]

Thank you all for coming! If I'm honest, I actually had a bit of trouble making friends when I came here. That was new to me. I'm all the more happy to have met all of you. You made me look forward to coming back to France after vacation.

((Feel free to post open top levels and just chit-chat with one another / interrupt conversations, as it tends to happen at group tables. Also no pressure to tag in, anyone who doesn't will just be seen as having been busy that day and not as having skipped his party, haha.))
marmoron: prescar (Look bub)

[personal profile] marmoron 2019-08-15 10:44 pm (UTC)(link)
[He scoots up on the seat to make room for James to sit behind him on the bike.]

Well, hop on, birthday boy. I'll get you out of here.

[It's a flippant response to a more depressing conversation about feeling isolated, but the last time they talked about it had almost erupted into a fight about the secrecy clause. Keith forcibly bites back what he could say -- would like to say -- and simply shifts the gears on his bike.]

Do you have to stay with your parents tonight?

[It's phrased with deliberate nonchalance -- as much as he can force, actually, if only to try and mask the hidden request for James to hang out with him for more than an hour or two.]
marmoron: marmoron (relaxed)

[personal profile] marmoron 2019-08-16 12:08 am (UTC)(link)
[There's a strange disconnect between James holding him tightly and knowing that the guy wants to keep his existence and place in his life a secret. It leaves a faintly bitter aftertaste in his mouth, though he can't necessarily place why. It's not like he's dying to meet his boyfriend's parents or gain their approval. And why would James want to tell them he's now dating a werewolf that could've gotten him killed in the Outlands? It's just....

A little lonely.

Inexplicably. Even though he shouldn't be because James is staying the night with him.

Keith bites his lower lip as he faces the road and kicks up the engine.
]

Alright. Hang on tight.
marmoron: marmoron (tired smiles)

[personal profile] marmoron 2019-08-16 04:27 am (UTC)(link)
[Riding around on his dad's old bike feels good when it's just the wind and open desert and the whole world feels like it's just the two of them and the wilderness again. It's a bit of a long ride, made a little bit longer because Keith can't really resist pointing out all the hidden spots that he used to love and by the time they pull up to the house, he can't help smiling a bit.

He parks, cuts the engine and hops down from the bike, yanking off his helmet immediately. He runs his hand through slightly unruly hair and grins up at the beautiful sunset. A flash of blue light comes from inside the cabin, then a husky bounds over to greet them both. Keith kneels down to undo the collar to reveal a familiar face.
]

Rented a P.O box at the post office in town. No way a mailman would find this place.

[He scoops Cosmo up in his arms, then turns to face James.]

The house needs a bit of repairing, but I got the cabin fixed up alright. [He grins a little sheepishly.] It's not much.
Edited 2019-08-16 08:58 (UTC)
marmoron: by request of the icon creator, pls do not take (chilled out zen)

[personal profile] marmoron 2019-08-18 10:09 pm (UTC)(link)
[Keith hands Cosmo over to James to hold.]

Well congrats. You're the first person I've ever brought back. [A beat.] And probably the only person to be excited about being in the middle of nowhere.

[It's all stated fairly lightheartedly as Keith opens up the trunk on the motorcycle to fish out a couple of plastic bags.]

Just gonna take this stuff inside then I can show you around the house if you really want to see it. You comign with or wanna outside for a bit?

]He gestures towards the tree with the swing tire hanging from a branch.]

Tested that yesterday. It won't break if you want to sit on that or something.
marmoron: by request of the icon creator, pls do not take (warmer smiles)

[personal profile] marmoron 2019-08-18 11:08 pm (UTC)(link)
[Keith grins at the two of them, slinging the bags over a shoulder.]

Alright. I'll be back. Keep James entertained while I'm gone, buddy.

[And with that, he turns towards the shack, grabbing the key from his pocket to unlock the door. It's far from an ideal living space, but he's got all the necessities set up, in no small part thanks to the wolf helping him teleport all the heavier objects around. He leaves the plastic bags on the kitchenette counter, moving only the perishables like milk into the mini fridge for now.

It's only a few minutes before he steps back outside again and closes the door behind him.
]
marmoron: (what emotion is this)

[personal profile] marmoron 2019-08-19 12:28 am (UTC)(link)
[A disgruntled Cosmo gives himself a good shake and then instantly teleports in front of Keith who only barely manages to keep himself from falling over by being pushed backwards against the door.]

This is gonna be a problem if you get a whole lot bigger, buddy.

[But that said, Keith shakes his head and carefully carries the wolf in his arms while Cosmo wriggles and licks at his chin. Keith heads towards James and the house.]

Just warning you, it's a little messy.

[He fumbles around his jacket pocket for a moment before producing another key. He unlocks the front door, swinging it wide open. The door creaks on its hinges quite loudly -- evidently it needs to be oiled pretty badly, but there's a long narrow hallway that's immediately visible along with a living room to the right and a dining room to the left.

The wooden tiling has rotten through in places, and it's clear that in Keith's absence more than a few arthropod and arachnid species have made this place their home. Though some kind of cleaning attempt has clearly been made, there's still a few stray cobwebs and some remnant of musty air from a lack of proper ventilation.
]
Edited 2019-08-19 00:30 (UTC)
marmoron: marmoron (tired smiles)

[personal profile] marmoron 2019-08-20 12:59 am (UTC)(link)
[The living room's sparsely furnished with some spots on the floor that're lighter than the others where furniture used to be but was moved. Notably, it's missing the largest couch, but there's still a smaller two-seater nestled in the corner by the fireplace, a couple of shot guns mounted on the wall and a dusty bookshelf with a fairly old looking judo trophy on display.]

Yeah.... dad was pretty proud of this place. [He smiles a little fondly, as he pauses by the bookshelf.]

Used to say we had the biggest backyard in the world.

[He brushes his thumb along the handrail heading up the stairs, then rubs his fingers together to wipe off some of the peeling paint chips.]

... you wanna see my old room?
marmoron: by request of the icon creator, pls do not take (teeny fraction of not hate)

[personal profile] marmoron 2019-08-20 06:11 pm (UTC)(link)
[At that Keith merely half smiles, more to himself than anything else, as he heads up the stairs. Some of the steps creak when weight is put on them, but seeing as Keith's been up and down the stairs a bunch of times already, he's not too concerned about anything collapsing.]

Okay follow me.

[At the top of the stairs there's a shorter hallway ending in four doors. Keith reaches for the door closest to him on the left and enters. His room's on the smaller side and mostly occupied by a desk, bookshelf, a cabinet for clothes and a bed. The bed's been stripped of all its sheets, leaving a mattress and a bed frame, but if James looks closely there are race cars carved into the bed posts. Faded posters of what looks suspiciously like the spaghetti monster and cartoon depictions of Cthulhu are taped on the wall. On the desk, there's an empty terrarium and the bookshelf appears to be filled with kiddie detective novels and picture books of animals.

Keith puts Cosmo down to open up the window to let in some fresh air and sunlight. The view from his window faces west, giving them a clear view of the sun setting over the desert landscape. Cosmo immediately goes pawing for something under Keith's bed and returns with a homemade slingshot. Keith laughs when he sees it, but turns to James expectantly.
]

... well this is it.
marmoron: marmoron (restig bitch face pt3)

[personal profile] marmoron 2019-08-20 07:01 pm (UTC)(link)
[The comment gets a blink of surprise. It's not what Keith was expecting to hear. Some comment about being a nerd maybe, but it's hard to think a kid that liked spooky stories about Cthulhu is adorable.]

Pretty sure I was mostly kinda weird.

[He says, kneeling down to try and grab the slingshot from Cosmo.]

... but thanks? I guess. [Still a little doubtful. Cosmo teleports away from Keith to go hide behind James' legs, tail wagging. He straightens up again to look out the window.]

It always looked like the sun was rolling off the edge of the world from here. But you could see all the stars at night. It was weird watching this from the city when I got moved. Suddenly I couldn't see a damn thing.
marmoron: marmoron (chilled out with the fam)

[personal profile] marmoron 2019-08-20 07:31 pm (UTC)(link)
Well... who wouldn't miss the largest backyard in the world?

[Keith turns his face towards James, half smiling.]

I missed riding my bike out here a lot. Used to be the only thing that'd help clear my head after a bad day.
marmoron: by request of the icon creator, pls do not take (team leader)

[personal profile] marmoron 2019-08-20 07:45 pm (UTC)(link)
[Keith rolls his eyes a little at the teasing, but turns more to give James his full attention.]

Learn how to ride a bike and we could race some time.
marmoron: (what emotion is this)

[personal profile] marmoron 2019-08-20 07:50 pm (UTC)(link)
[A huff.]

You don't trust me to teach you. I see how it is.

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