[After a few minutes of messing around in the kitchen, he comes back out with a class full of milk, and... a plate of something? It smells terribly savory.
He puts the milk down on the desk for Lalli, and then pushes the cake out of the way. In its place, he puts
It's a smell Lalli instantly recognizes though, and he's hit by a wave of nostalgia. When this is the primary protein source you grow up on, you don't easily forget it.]
You...actually got this? For me?
[He's so surprised because he hadn't seen any sheep at the barnyard.
Surprised and touched though. He definitely is touched here.]
[On the other hand, emotion share week is a great week to actually get what's going on inside Lalli's head, since he doesn't really talk about feelings that much. Though in this case, the gratitude and fondness for Riku is probably obvious even without sharing emotions.]
It's alright, that's enough for us.
[He looks down at the plate for a moment, collecting himself before he speaks again.]
Sheep are a primary food source where I'm from. They're easy to raise, and we can use their wool and milk too. Unless you're super-rich, you're going to be eating fish or sheep probably.
I didn't realize it was uncommon to eat in other worlds.
[And he didn't know how much he missed a familiar meal.]
[He feels bad for Lalli, but not in a pity way. He just... feels bad Lalli doesn't have a lot of opportunities to experience things other people take for granted, even him.]
Happy birthday, Lalli.
[He doesn't think he really needs to make any comment on what explanation Lalli willingly gave him.
[Lalli can't find words to speak at the moment, and he doesn't trust himself to say anything properly right now anyway. He doesn't want to make this awkward by having his voice crack.
So instead, while biting down on his lip slightly, he nods. The gratitude radiating off of him might help get the message across too. He's not sad, not really, Riku actually has helped him forget the honestly-sad part of his 21st birthday. He's just a little emotionally overwhelmed right now.
So he's going to grab a cookie and shove it in his mouth, to give him an excuse not to talk for a moment.]
[It's good this isn't KH1!Riku, no being an ass here!
Lalli nods again, and he will use the silverware to cut into it and eat. It tastes like home and Lalli is going to vibe in nostalgia until Riku comes back. There's some homesickness in there too but it's well outpaced by happy feelings of memories of home.]
[Some satisfaction leaks off him when he comes back and gets to feel Lalli have a great time with the lamb. Maybe a little relief is there, too.
The knife he has is big, but dull, like a butter knife, because no killing. He gives Lalli room to eat the lamb while he stands beside and tries to cut the cake without, like, you know.]
[He's not being sarcastic here either, the taste does genuinely remind him of home. And it makes his chest feel warm with appreciation and fondness for Riku too.]
[He leaves Lalli at the desk to go around the little wall where the bed is. It's not under the bed because he's too scared Lalli is going to crawl up into his room and under his bed and find it. Instead, he opens the standing cabinet and takes something out to bring it back around.
STOP HE CAN'T WRAP, so it's wrapped sort of badly in nothing but the wrapping paper, but anyway. He hands the pliable, not sturdy thing wrapped in nothing but very plain wrapping paper out to Lalli. He's feeling incredibly embarrassed.]
You're supposed to get presents on your birthday. Don't laugh. I didn't know what to get.
[He won't laugh. Not because he never laughs- even if it is actually really hard to get even a snort from him- but because this is so sincere and touching that Lalli can't possibly make fun of it.
Lalli looks at Riku for a moment, clearly surprised by this. But then he carefully opens the wrapped present, trying his best not to rip the wrapping too much.
And then he sees the blanket and. Immediately puts it on, complete with the hood going over his head.]
...thanks.
[Thank god this is happening during emotionshare week, so Riku can actually feel how much Lalli means that 'thanks'. Bad with words, overwhelmed with feelings, but he now feels safe while wrapped in that blanket.
It's his new favorite thing. He's never taking it off.]
[Lalli is cute. Relief rocks quietly under the surface of Riku's feelings. He didn't think it was terribly, but he was a little worried Lalli wouldn't know what to do with it.
But Lalli likes being under the bed, and Lalli likes cats (and acts like one), so he made his best guess.]
No problem.
[Taking the hood by both ears, he gently straightens it on Lalli's head. There.]
Better watch out. You won't ever get rid of Kissa now. She'll be sleeping on you all the time in that thing.
[It is straightened on his head, and the ears flop down in a way that is absolutely adorable.
Suddenly Lalli feels a little shy, because Riku is right there and it makes Lalli feel seen. The shyness and appreciation are all churning in him and making him feel antsy.]
She will have to fight for her space, because I'm going to keep it wrapped around me.
[He's telling the truth too, he's not letting go of this thing anytime soon.]
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He puts the milk down on the desk for Lalli, and then pushes the cake out of the way. In its place, he puts
a plate of lamb chops.]
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It's a smell Lalli instantly recognizes though, and he's hit by a wave of nostalgia. When this is the primary protein source you grow up on, you don't easily forget it.]
You...actually got this? For me?
[He's so surprised because he hadn't seen any sheep at the barnyard.
Surprised and touched though. He definitely is touched here.]
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Yeah.
[He's feeling a tad flustered by how touched Lalli is since he did not... truly understand the gravity of how much it'd mean.
Weeks without emotions were so much easier!!]
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It's alright, that's enough for us.
[He looks down at the plate for a moment, collecting himself before he speaks again.]
Sheep are a primary food source where I'm from. They're easy to raise, and we can use their wool and milk too. Unless you're super-rich, you're going to be eating fish or sheep probably.
I didn't realize it was uncommon to eat in other worlds.
[And he didn't know how much he missed a familiar meal.]
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Happy birthday, Lalli.
[He doesn't think he really needs to make any comment on what explanation Lalli willingly gave him.
He understands.]
We'll get you home for your next one.
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So instead, while biting down on his lip slightly, he nods. The gratitude radiating off of him might help get the message across too. He's not sad, not really, Riku actually has helped him forget the honestly-sad part of his 21st birthday. He's just a little emotionally overwhelmed right now.
So he's going to grab a cookie and shove it in his mouth, to give him an excuse not to talk for a moment.]
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Instead, he reaches across for a cookie himself. It's the crunchy kind that can be snapped. He puts it in his mouth as he turns back for the kitchen.]
Let me get a knife for the cake. You can try the lamb, if you want.
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Lalli nods again, and he will use the silverware to cut into it and eat. It tastes like home and Lalli is going to vibe in nostalgia until Riku comes back. There's some homesickness in there too but it's well outpaced by happy feelings of memories of home.]
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The knife he has is big, but dull, like a butter knife, because no killing. He gives Lalli room to eat the lamb while he stands beside and tries to cut the cake without, like, you know.]
Is it any good?
[He doesn't have to ask, but still.]
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Mmm. It tastes just like how I remember it.
[He's not being sarcastic here either, the taste does genuinely remind him of home. And it makes his chest feel warm with appreciation and fondness for Riku too.]
You really remembered everything, didn't you?
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It wasn't that hard to remember. You only had a few things you wanted.
[Tada. Now Lalli also has a sliver of the chocolate cake.]
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[The implication being that he didn't expect him to remember everything.]
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[Sometimes even things you'd really wish they would forget. Then they bully you. But it's fine.]
But... I kind of did get you something else you didn't ask for, too.
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[He likes having friends, this feels so much better than the relative solitude he's so used to having.
(Wait until everyone he cares about dies again.)]
The sparkler, right? That was nice too.
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No, something else. Hold on.
[He leaves Lalli at the desk to go around the little wall where the bed is. It's not under the bed because he's too scared Lalli is going to crawl up into his room and under his bed and find it. Instead, he opens the standing cabinet and takes something out to bring it back around.
STOP HE CAN'T WRAP, so it's wrapped sort of badly in nothing but the wrapping paper, but anyway. He hands the pliable, not sturdy thing wrapped in nothing but very plain wrapping paper out to Lalli. He's feeling incredibly embarrassed.]
You're supposed to get presents on your birthday. Don't laugh. I didn't know what to get.
[When Lalli opens it, he'll find a blanket.]
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Lalli looks at Riku for a moment, clearly surprised by this. But then he carefully opens the wrapped present, trying his best not to rip the wrapping too much.
And then he sees the blanket and. Immediately puts it on, complete with the hood going over his head.]
...thanks.
[Thank god this is happening during emotionshare week, so Riku can actually feel how much Lalli means that 'thanks'. Bad with words, overwhelmed with feelings, but he now feels safe while wrapped in that blanket.
It's his new favorite thing. He's never taking it off.]
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But Lalli likes being under the bed, and Lalli likes cats (and acts like one), so he made his best guess.]
No problem.
[Taking the hood by both ears, he gently straightens it on Lalli's head. There.]
Better watch out. You won't ever get rid of Kissa now. She'll be sleeping on you all the time in that thing.
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Suddenly Lalli feels a little shy, because Riku is right there and it makes Lalli feel seen. The shyness and appreciation are all churning in him and making him feel antsy.]
She will have to fight for her space, because I'm going to keep it wrapped around me.
[He's telling the truth too, he's not letting go of this thing anytime soon.]
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This makes him chuckle some. But after that, he lets Lalli be Lalli in the hooded blanket.]
She might do that.
[He's feeling a bit shy, too. Mostly because they can all share feelings. GOD.]
I'm glad you like it.
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[Lalli's never been that great at words, but at least his emotions show that he's being genuine.]
You should eat too.
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I will. Eat your, uh... lamb chops [this sounds laughing in an endeared way] and cake. I'll try some too.
[He will try some of the cake!! Good god it's chocolatey.]
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Good. Food's best when it's shared.
[Shared with specific people, but Lalli's not saying that part. Not many people get that courtesy, usually he's stealing food from others.]