Event: Celebrations

  Ushi leaned, taking up half of the couch, controller held loosely. “K, Mar, so you hit the right trigger... this thing here,” they lifted the controller a bit higher, showing the Floran, “And it makes you attack...”

  “Floran doesssn’t like fighting.”

  His character had... green... Was covered in leaves and was said to be connected with nature.

  “You’ll make a good healer then,” they tapped back to character, “this other character has buffs and debuffs, and plays songs! You liked it when pops played the healing song, right? Well this character’d let you do that.”

  Mar carefully flicks at the buttons to get to the musical looking lady and selects the character. The two play quietly for a bit, save for Ushi shrieking as random animals attacked them. Mar died a lot...

  But they both were smiling as they played.

  “Usshi, where’d you get thisss?” Mar thought it safe to ask now, their characters were safe in camp, making moral decisions.

  “Got it off a place that has a buncha’ games, and a friend got me it on my birthday.” Ushi was by now, taking up most of the couch, “speakin’ of Birthdays when’s yours little bud?”

  “Birth... birthday?” He’d heard the term before, but he hadn’t really understood.

  “Ya know, when you were born? Hatched? Grown? The day you popped up like a daisy and started having to breathe and eat on your own?”

  “Sssprouted. And... it wasss celebrated on the fessstival of no moon.”

  “That’d count as a Birthday, too.”

  Mar counted the days, setting the controller down so he could use his hands as a visual aid. “...Today.”
The game was aggressively paused.
  And Ushi was suddenly not on their huge part of the couch. All up close to Mar, hands on his shoulders.

  “TODAY? NOW??”

  Mar nodded, semi-terrified by the look Ushi was getting. But also excited. That was their planning face.

  “Forget games, Mar! At least this one, for now. We have to go get my mother!”

  So Mar was dragged off. And was invited to stay the night, to pick dinner. And offered to be taken out to pick out some gifts later. It was when Ushi took him out and to their friends that the “real” party started.

  Mar drank some... yucky but sweet stuff. Ate cake. And everyone watched the moon, speaking in slow, slurred voices.

  Till Mar jumped up, suddenly feeling like explaining. He started to go on about the festival. Demonstrating some of the dances he could remember, getting the others to join. And soon a little dance was started, Mar twisted around in the snow, getting more and more dizzy and ill. He shivered, even in the weird coat.

  But he was smiling big.