birthday # 1 of 10 missed on eos...

[carbungle]

♥ Who: Noctis, Pyra, and… you?
♥ Where: Noctis, Pyra, & Prompto's house
♥ When: August 30
♥ What: A birthday shindig!
♥ Rating: I assume PGish


As someone not especially inclined to throwing big parties for himself, Noctis would have been satisfied by just a chill hang-out with his family at most. Pyra seems to have other ideas about what counts as an appropriate level of celebration, so he's more or less given her free reign to plan out the evening dinner and get-together. The result is very… Pyra.

An invitation to join them would have been sent out or given via conversation to:
-Noctis' friends and family, of course
-anyone in Noctis' communicator contacts
-friends of friends
-....people Pyra just felt like inviting

Really, it's a good thing that the house is quite large, because it's more or less a free for all.

The Decor

Not too fancy, as the house has a mostly-muted decorative style, but there are splashes of colour scattered about. Sylleblossoms in blue, red, and white pepper the house in vases, streamers along the doorway, even some balloons out front. It's meant to be colourful and fun without being too much work, which is Noct's ideal gathering.

The Food

The general theme of the party's cuisine was for the most part "healthy, but sweet". Catered by Affurgato, so of course it's all fresh and delicious! There is lots of meat (adamantoise/turtle and fried tuna slabs especially, among options from the cafe) and lots of dessert snacks and finger food. There's even homemade pocky sticks, of various flavours. Vegetables are available, but mostly in separate dishes or things like fresh fries/mashed potatoes with loads of butter. What kind of monster would make the birthday boy eat vegetables!? (you are welcome to try) Any standard replicator drinks can be provided, and there's also some wine for the adults.

There is also a handmade cake not from the cafe, but from Pyra, with the motif of a carbuncle on the top.

The Atmosphere

1) Dress code is comfy/casual! Dress however you please.

2) People are welcome to bring pets with them. In fact, people are encouraged to bring pets, on the condition that Noctis gets to see and/or pet them!! (please shower him in cute things.) There's space in the yard for them to romp around if they need more room than the house can offer, provided they don't trample the garden.

3) In the main area there's a music playlist playing video game tunes from Noct's home, via his Eos smartphone.

4) As party games, people are encouraged to play Pin The Cat Ears on Noctis! ...You would think this would come with a cutout of him, but since paper is hard to come by in town, you should instead just literally put cat ears on Noctis. Bonus points if you can keep them on him long enough for selfie proof. Another option is to do your very best Noctis impression. What do you get for "winning"? Well, that's up to Pyra. Maybe you'll win some laughter, at least…

Special note! At some point during the party, Noctis will be mentioning that surprise! This little celebration is also meant to be shared with Pyra, as they totally missed her birthday. So wish her a happy belated as well :)

Comments

the birthday boy! ota!

[carbungle]

( a. out of the house )

[In the early afternoon of his birthday (after a nice sleep-in), Noctis is gently kicked from his house so Pyra can get some work done for the party, or at least do some baking. Given some time on the town to himself, he'll grab some lunch at Affurgato and then head to a nearby VR cafe to do one of the following:
-Big Bass Fishing
-King's Knight

These games can be more fun with partners, so if anyone wants to play, he's down for a round or two until he has to go home.]

( b. the center of attention? )

[Once the party is in full swing, Noctis will find himself a comfortable spot to park himself on the couch where he's easy to find, for presents and conversation. He'll also be mingling a bit when he gets bored of just sitting around, and will of course be hungry for all that tasty food.]

( c. a subtle escape )

[Parties can be stressful when you have some underlying social anxiety, surprise! So Noctis will likely escape to hang out in the garden for a while at some point, under the guise of needing some air. He's hanging out with Umbra the very good boy, and possibly feeding Somnus' hawk some loose adamantoise meat. Come join him for a quieter moment away from the party.]

C ✨ 🎁 🍅 🎉

[astralera]

[ Era doesn't bring Hythlodaeus with her to the party, unsure of how many or who would be attending and not wishing to overwhelm her little egg. Carbuncle and Echo accompany her instead, with the later draped across her shoulders and the former rushing over to greet Noct once they reach the relative quiet of the garden.

She settles down beside him, folding her legs under herself and letting her skirts pool around her. ]

Hello Umbra, Horus. [ Era offers each animal a small smile before turning to the young man next to her. ] Happy birthday, Noct.

[ Then she'll just pull a large bag out of her bag and hand it over for Noct to take. When he opens it he'll find his very own 18" plush Tomato King.

Her smile may be innocent but the glint in her eyes is most certainly not. ]

[carbungle]

[He's quick to offer up a smile in return, Horus perched on his glove, though with Era's arrival and the offer of the bag he launches the hawk into the air to circle a bit so his hands are free. Carbuncle naturally gets a friendly greeting as well, and a scritch if allowed.]

Thanks. And thanks for coming, too.

[Seems he's in a pretty good mood today. Whether or not that sticks is up for debate- after he opens the bag and pulls out the contents his expression looks torn between a grimace and a smirk. Tomato...]

...Seriously?

[iustaegis]

[ When he escapes to their modest garden of blue, white, and red sylleblossoms, as well as the pink juniberries, she follows soon after. Umbra’s tail wags at her presence, and Horus, perched upon a branch, turns his head to blink his sharp, yellow eyes at her.

He might hear her approach before he feels the weight of the cat ears upon his head. A warm smile carries in the greeting that follows as she kneels down, arms wrapping around his shoulders from behind for an embrace. ]

Noct.... [ She holds him there, her voice quiet and small, but her warmth and her arms encompassing and tender. ]

Happy Birthday.

[ She drapes herself forward, just enough to press her lips upon the right of his neck for a quick, meaningful kiss. ]

I’m so glad you’re here.

[carbungle]

[He hears her, but he's in the middle of rinsing his hands in the mercat's little water pool in the corner after feeding Horus, so he can't turn until she's already ambushed him. Cat ears again... she got him. He finds himself smiling anyway- the whole party's very silly, but nonetheless he's enjoying it. It's nice to relax for a while with his friends and family.

He leans back against her embrace.]

Same to you... on both counts.

[And then he sets both (very wet) hands on her arms to smear the water across her skin in a most unromantic manner.]

FISHING ADVENTURE

[scourgingstars]

[noct, you will never guess who else is spending more time in and around affurgato. go on, guess.]

[The favorite uncle has apparently decided right now is a little busy for his taste, quietly attempting to slip away while Noctis is leaving. And we certainly can't have that.]

[carbungle]

[Yeah, that's a no-go. Certainly not today. And as much as he likes to appear as invisible as possible, Ardyn is not a small person and isn't as easy to miss as he'd want.]

Where do you think you're going?

( b. the center of attention? )

[kingkingcxiii]

[The last birthday party Regis remembers his son having was much different than this and much less fitting, if he is honest. What three year old cares about gifts of gems or coins from those who are just trying to win his affection? How many times had he and Clarus had to remove something from the young prince's hands so that it didn't end up in his mouth instead?

Thank the Astrals, parties here are not like that. They are what parties should be. Simple gatherings of friends and family with not a bit of formality to be found. Regis deeply wishes there was a way he could take home a picture of someone trying to pin cat ears to Noctis' head, though. Oh, how he would love to see the reactions people of his time would have to that!

His hands are empty as he approaches Noctis which totally means no embarrassing gifts will be given right in front of everyone, right?]

Happy birthday, son! I hope you are enjoying yourself.

[carbungle]

[Oh yes, totally natural of him! Not that Noct would have an issue with trusting his father regardless; he knows Regis Lucis Caelum to be many things, but a source of embarrassment is generally not one of them, besides the fashion thing. And he's mostly gotten used to that here.]

Hey, Dad. No complaints so far, and I'm taking that as a good sign. Sure beats the birthdays at home.

[He's far less suited to the royal spectacle than others of his line or entourage might normally be.]

A

[dontcallmebro]

[Oh wait. He remembers that dude. The one who with the overprotective retainers who wants to drive cars.] Didn't know you sometimes come here.

[And what's that game he's playing? Knight's Knight? Cloud's played it before and it's actually kind of fun. And he wouldn't mind having joining Noct. A part of him is reluctant to ask because saying "Please play with me" is hard. So he'll try to ask another question to test the waters.] You play game this often?

[carbungle]

[Noctis turns to look, and- oh, hey. Blond dude, motorcycle man. Was there a name? He doesn't remember a name.]

King's Knight? Yeah, all the time. Gotta hold my top score. [Some men are proud of real accomplishments, and then there's Noctis.] You wanna go a few rounds?

c

[shroudedsecrets]

[ Even if she and Noctis are only acquaintances, it would seem remiss to turn down an invitation from Pyra. Of course, Prompto lives there as well, and it's a chance to see his home proper, Affurgato is catering. Kova comes along, because pets are welcome and he so often does accompany her otherwise.

Appropriately, Honerva also brings with her a gift that he might have already opened; a metal pin, welded to the shape of a baby black chocobo. Now he can match Prompto.

The garden is a quieter respite from the party itself, though for the moment, she only lingers at the door, ears lowered and gaze distracted as she takes the view in. There are quite a lot of a certain flower present and while... facing them is actually another reason for her to be there it doesn't necessarily make it easy to do so. ]

[carbungle]

[Noctis is playing a lazy game of tug-o-war with Umbra at the moment, sitting in the grass near the blue sylleblossom patch. Umbra pauses the game at her approach, sitting up to wuff softly, and Noctis turns to find her there.]

Oh, hey.

b

[this_loser]

[How about a birthday butt pat? And then an arm slinging around his shoulders.]

Happy birthday, buddy! Feel old yet?

[carbungle]

[Noctis half-smirks at the tease, nudging an elbow lightly against Prompto's side.]

Not as old as you for once. How'd that work out in your favour, anyway?

[All because he'd shown up a month late...]

I B extremely late

[firstbump]

Ardbert managed to get Seto to stay home for this because there simply wasn't room for the good boy. He's said his hellos, mingled, and eaten, even briefly getting to greet Noct and ask how he's doing. Finally, there's a moment in the party where Ardbert can break free from the crowd to speak to Noct.

He's grinning from ear to ear with something behind his back when he approaches Noct and plops on the empty seat beside him, thrusting out the small rectangular box with a simple red ribbon around it. "I know I've already said it, but Happy Birthday!"

eyyyy

[carbungle]

"Oh- hey, thanks." Noctis blinks down at the box, taking it a bit hesitantly like he can't believe it's for him. "You didn't have to get me anything, you know..."

C.

[pinkmin]

[Vianca was there. She wouldn't miss it. Maybe she'd even helped with some of the decorations, who knows! But it probably wasn't surprising to find that she'd already been out in the garden, nestled quietly near the blossoms. It was very nice to see so many people there that were happy to appreciate Noctis on his day, but parties were still phew. They were a lot.

And they were also probably more fun without having to mind younger company. Vianca didn't mind excusing herself here and there so no one felt like they needed to look after her.

She looked up from where she was sitting when she noticed someone else coming out into the evening. Birthday Boy! (And very good boy.)]

Noct, hello.

[And here is her hand, already out for the good boy pets.] Hello, Umbra.

[carbungle]

[Umbra whuffs softly and noses against her hand, accepting pets with a thumping tail. Noctis of course greets her with a pleased smile.]

Hey to you too. Having some fun?

[At least it's not a big party? He's not sure how many people she knows, but someone small and quiet isn't always great at busy parties (at least not in his experience), so this might not be too overwhelming.]

pyra | ota

[iustaegis]

a. do your best Noctis impression
O...Okay! [ Pyra lifts up her hands as if ready to cheer you on, smiling brightly and enthusiastically. ] Give it your all.

Ready? Go!

b. surprise late birthday to her!
[ --This, she did not plan for. She did not plan for, she could not plan for, because she does not have a birthday. Furthermore, the birth date she had chosen at Noctis' insistence to have one is in spring! Or was it summer... Either way, she wouldn't have guessed he'd have turned this around to celebrate her as well. Not that it matters much, seeing as she will be receiving no presents or cake.

And even if she were to have a cake...

As she gazes at the one set out on the table for Noctis, which is more than respectable in size for the reigning champion of King's Knight, she becomes momentarily lost in thought. Distracted, she can't help but murmur to herself: ] Mm... I'm not sure this cake would fit enough candles...

c. garden
[ Pyra can be found within their modest, backyard garden with one of Noctis' messengers, Horus perched upon her arm, or tending to the array of blue, white, and red sylleblossoms or vibrant pink juniberries. She'll greet you with a smile and a wave to come sit with her upon the deck, either offering you a flower or a chance to interact with the falcon left behind by Somnus. ]

d. wildcard
[ HMU PM, drinksteapots or Jade294#6977! ]

b

[this_loser]

Candles are just a suggestion. You just need enough of something to make a wish on, right?

[How many did she need, anyway?]

Happy late, late birthday, by the way?

[iustaegis]

[ At Prompto's presence, she gives him a welcoming smile. ]

I suppose you're right... About the wishes. Although isn't there a rule-- you have to do them on your actual birthday?

b / wild

[shroudedsecrets]

If I had known it was meant to be a celebration for you as well, I would have come more prepared.

[ Honerva is here at the party because of the invitation, of course; and a few other reasons besides. Kova is here as well, when not meandering for free affection lingering by her feet, as he is now. She'd had a look at the garden earlier, trying to brace herself for what might come later, but for now she can't help but pick up on Pyra's distraction instead. ]

[iustaegis]

[ Ah, she came! And she looks so lovely, too. ]

T...To be fair, it's not actually my birthday. [ --And it's not even the date she had picked out for a birthday, either! Nevertheless, she smiles warmly at Honerva. ]

c.

[pinkmin]

[What do you mean this was a double birthday party. Vianca had attempted to prepare for more than one September birthday but she hadn't known there were going to be belated Pyra festivities! This kind of surprise really wasn't fair! Noctis!!!

So she had sort of spiraled in the quiet space of the garden, because birthdays were already hard enough to figure out what to do about even with advanced notice. She just wasn't good at these things! Once she saw Pyra though, she shyly made her way over with an apologetic duck of her head.]

Um... Pyra?