[ the thing is, erwin has been fascinated by picking up new cultures and new ways to exist. in part to fit in among their new surroundings, in part to satisfy his burning curiosity. holidays aren't really, you know, a high priority when you're barely scraping by to begin with, and he hadn't previously had too much interest in them, if he's honest, even now that they're here, but a celebration on this particular day is, well, it's sure a thing, huh.
'a thing' in that erwin zeroed in on it as soon as he saw someone talk about it on the network just based on the time of year, and then he did some math between calendars and realized, well, you know where this is going.
well, the general idea, not the exact circumstance.
their apartment is cozy. it's almost as overwhelming now as it was the first day they moved into it, but it's been long enough they're used to it. it's definitely lived in—potted houseplants, things that just are and have no practical use, knicknacks, the books erwin borrows from the library, an incredible amount of fluffy blankets and pillows even though the place is plenty warm enough with just one or two, and any number of small fiddly hobbies that have been taken up as erwin gets more used to his artificial arm and they both take on the maintenance for it now that its original creator has returned home.
all this to say is that today, On Levi's Birthday, there's a small potted evergreen on the windowsill with some flashy baubles on it and (literal) fairy lights erwin has done a couple of favors to get ahold of, with a couple wrapped presents settled on the table near it. the presents aren't a surprise, probably, owing to it being levi's birthday and they no longer live with a constant lack of everything, but the tree's a little questionable. 'just a seasonal decoration,' erwin had claimed. right.
more importantly, though, is the fact that as soon as they get home from the shops (presumably they went to go get the ingredients for dinner, what with the whole birthday thing and all), erwin plucks a sprig of some kind of ??plant?? from his breast pocket and dangles it over their heads, leaning down to steal a long, lingering kiss even though he's still holding whatever counts as a fairyville grocery bag with the other hand. probably a basket. ]
I've been looking into some of the other seasonal festivities lately.
[ his birthday has been a non-event for almost his entire life.
his mother tried to make it special, of course, even though they had nothing. after she was gone, though, that was it. what's the point of celebrating your birthday by yourself—and in such a filthy, joyless place no less? eventually he had a couple of friends who managed to find out when it was, and then they were gone, too.
after that, there was Erwin, who probably managed to suss out when it was before Levi mellowed out enough to admit it himself. maybe it annoyed him a little at first, when Erwin would acknowledge his birthday or even give him a small gift; he softened to it every year, though, and to Erwin. and when Erwin was gone, he was far too broken to give a shit about his own birthday.
he'd celebrate Erwin's birthday—for some definition of 'celebrate'—alone, every October. his own would come and go two months later. it didn't matter.
having Erwin inexplicably back means being able to celebrate things like birthdays again, though it almost seems silly when every day already feels like a gift. he doesn't understand what the tree is for, but he knows Erwin has learned all kinds of things since they've been here.
who cares, honestly? it's beautiful. he loves it, just like he loves everything else Erwin does.
when Erwin pulls a plant out of his shirt pocket out of nowhere and holds it above both their heads, he doesn't understand that, either. he doesn't have much of a chance to ask, though, because suddenly Erwin is kissing him; it catches him by surprise, but this kind of thing is always a good surprise. he slips his arms around Erwin's waist while he gladly returns the kiss, and once Erwin begins to explain himself he smiles, glancing briefly back up at the mystery plant. ]
I see. You know you can do that whenever you want, though, right? You don't even need a stick.
I know. But it seemed like a very charming tradition. Normally it's pinned up in a doorway, but I didn't have the time to put it up. Basically, if you catch someone under it, you get a kiss.
[ he sets down the basket and looks at levi, tilting his head slightly, then smiles and kisses him again just for the sake of it. ]
As for the tree, I found out there are worlds that have an elaborate holiday on the same day as your birthday and as you can see, I couldn't resist. I'm still trying to work out what the tree symbolizes because there are a lot of conflicting texts about it all, but the 'spirit of giving' seems to be a constant.
[ this is a tradition that he might find kind of obnoxious in any other circumstance—doubly so if it's tied to his own birthday—but it so happens that he's in a very happy and very committed relationship with the only person he's ever wanted, and if this plant being taped to the ceiling means that he receives more kisses from said person, then what the fuck could he possibly have to complain about?
nothing, that's what. he can only benefit from this—provided it's in the privacy of his own home, of course. he's happy to return the second kiss and will continue to do so as many times as the weird ceiling plant grants him. ]
I hope you didn't find out about that the hard way.
[ he's mostly joking; if someone else tried to kiss Erwin he's pretty sure he would hear about it.
he glances over at the tree when Erwin brings it up; it really is beautiful regardless of what it may or may not symbolize. the thought of continuing to enjoy it every year for his birthday—of enjoying it together—makes him smile. ]
I'm sure you'll figure it out. Maybe it's just some other guy's birthday?
[ truly, how could anyone complain about their partner setting up obvious and visible excuses to kiss more often? it's charming in its own way, as is erwin's clear enjoyment of learning about other worlds and the things that matter in those places, often things he never thought could matter to anyone because there are always more important things to worry about.
it's another way that despite what others may say, and despite what happens around them, this place is still a luxury in comparison and erwin is more than happy to benefit from that.
his mouth twists into a smile and he shakes his head. ]
No, nothing like that.
[ and when levi smiles, erwin once again ducks to give him a kiss, again just because he wants to, and then straightens. ]
It could be. Probably someone important if such a large percentage of the world celebrates it. I am interested in what kind of person that may be, but I have a feeling they may be viewed so positively for reasons that may not make sense to us. A lot of things have been pretty mystifying.
[ it's not like he's not going to understand the appeal of a guy like jesus, but it will be a pleasant surprise when he finds out what that whole vibe was. not the religion part, but the being nice to people part. that's pretty great.
(he'll figure it out later. he's too busy right now.) ]
[ it sure would be a shame if he had to kill someone on his birthday.
anyway, casual hypothetical murder aside, he couldn't even begin to guess what kind of person would receive such a wide-reaching celebration, either—and if Erwin doesn't know, then he sure as shit doesn't know. as far as religion goes, his only real exposure has been to the wall cult, and those people were freaks.
pass. ]
Whoever they are, I'm sure they have very little in common with someone like me.
[ he takes hold of Erwin's real hand and leads him over to their couch to sit briefly before they start to cook whatever the hell they're making for dinner. ]
If you keep that thing in your pocket like that, isn't that just cheating?
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
someone saw people talking about christmas and got nosy in the library smh
'a thing' in that erwin zeroed in on it as soon as he saw someone talk about it on the network just based on the time of year, and then he did some math between calendars and realized, well, you know where this is going.
well, the general idea, not the exact circumstance.
their apartment is cozy. it's almost as overwhelming now as it was the first day they moved into it, but it's been long enough they're used to it. it's definitely lived in—potted houseplants, things that just are and have no practical use, knicknacks, the books erwin borrows from the library, an incredible amount of fluffy blankets and pillows even though the place is plenty warm enough with just one or two, and any number of small fiddly hobbies that have been taken up as erwin gets more used to his artificial arm and they both take on the maintenance for it now that its original creator has returned home.
all this to say is that today, On Levi's Birthday, there's a small potted evergreen on the windowsill with some flashy baubles on it and (literal) fairy lights erwin has done a couple of favors to get ahold of, with a couple wrapped presents settled on the table near it. the presents aren't a surprise, probably, owing to it being levi's birthday and they no longer live with a constant lack of everything, but the tree's a little questionable. 'just a seasonal decoration,' erwin had claimed. right.
more importantly, though, is the fact that as soon as they get home from the shops (presumably they went to go get the ingredients for dinner, what with the whole birthday thing and all), erwin plucks a sprig of some kind of ??plant?? from his breast pocket and dangles it over their heads, leaning down to steal a long, lingering kiss even though he's still holding whatever counts as a fairyville grocery bag with the other hand. probably a basket. ]
I've been looking into some of the other seasonal festivities lately.
[ sure, it's not the pose in the art, but that can come later on. more than one kiss is allowed, you see. ]
no subject
his mother tried to make it special, of course, even though they had nothing. after she was gone, though, that was it. what's the point of celebrating your birthday by yourself—and in such a filthy, joyless place no less? eventually he had a couple of friends who managed to find out when it was, and then they were gone, too.
after that, there was Erwin, who probably managed to suss out when it was before Levi mellowed out enough to admit it himself. maybe it annoyed him a little at first, when Erwin would acknowledge his birthday or even give him a small gift; he softened to it every year, though, and to Erwin. and when Erwin was gone, he was far too broken to give a shit about his own birthday.
he'd celebrate Erwin's birthday—for some definition of 'celebrate'—alone, every October. his own would come and go two months later. it didn't matter.
having Erwin inexplicably back means being able to celebrate things like birthdays again, though it almost seems silly when every day already feels like a gift. he doesn't understand what the tree is for, but he knows Erwin has learned all kinds of things since they've been here.
who cares, honestly? it's beautiful. he loves it, just like he loves everything else Erwin does.
when Erwin pulls a plant out of his shirt pocket out of nowhere and holds it above both their heads, he doesn't understand that, either. he doesn't have much of a chance to ask, though, because suddenly Erwin is kissing him; it catches him by surprise, but this kind of thing is always a good surprise. he slips his arms around Erwin's waist while he gladly returns the kiss, and once Erwin begins to explain himself he smiles, glancing briefly back up at the mystery plant. ]
I see. You know you can do that whenever you want, though, right? You don't even need a stick.
no subject
[ he sets down the basket and looks at levi, tilting his head slightly, then smiles and kisses him again just for the sake of it. ]
As for the tree, I found out there are worlds that have an elaborate holiday on the same day as your birthday and as you can see, I couldn't resist. I'm still trying to work out what the tree symbolizes because there are a lot of conflicting texts about it all, but the 'spirit of giving' seems to be a constant.
no subject
nothing, that's what. he can only benefit from this—provided it's in the privacy of his own home, of course. he's happy to return the second kiss and will continue to do so as many times as the weird ceiling plant grants him. ]
I hope you didn't find out about that the hard way.
[ he's mostly joking; if someone else tried to kiss Erwin he's pretty sure he would hear about it.
he glances over at the tree when Erwin brings it up; it really is beautiful regardless of what it may or may not symbolize. the thought of continuing to enjoy it every year for his birthday—of enjoying it together—makes him smile. ]
I'm sure you'll figure it out. Maybe it's just some other guy's birthday?
no subject
it's another way that despite what others may say, and despite what happens around them, this place is still a luxury in comparison and erwin is more than happy to benefit from that.
his mouth twists into a smile and he shakes his head. ]
No, nothing like that.
[ and when levi smiles, erwin once again ducks to give him a kiss, again just because he wants to, and then straightens. ]
It could be. Probably someone important if such a large percentage of the world celebrates it. I am interested in what kind of person that may be, but I have a feeling they may be viewed so positively for reasons that may not make sense to us. A lot of things have been pretty mystifying.
[ it's not like he's not going to understand the appeal of a guy like jesus, but it will be a pleasant surprise when he finds out what that whole vibe was. not the religion part, but the being nice to people part. that's pretty great.
(he'll figure it out later. he's too busy right now.) ]
no subject
[ it sure would be a shame if he had to kill someone on his birthday.
anyway, casual hypothetical murder aside, he couldn't even begin to guess what kind of person would receive such a wide-reaching celebration, either—and if Erwin doesn't know, then he sure as shit doesn't know. as far as religion goes, his only real exposure has been to the wall cult, and those people were freaks.
pass. ]
Whoever they are, I'm sure they have very little in common with someone like me.
[ he takes hold of Erwin's real hand and leads him over to their couch to sit briefly before they start to cook whatever the hell they're making for dinner. ]
If you keep that thing in your pocket like that, isn't that just cheating?
[ (he does not care if it's cheating.) ]