You Never Did Mention Shananagins - Huntlow🌻

Birthday - Willow

- I really don't have much to say about this chapter but this was fun to write. All the chapters are. But I really liked this one. Light swear warning. Happy reading :) -

We all chattered on the car ride home, everyone with their pile of clothes. Hunter and I sat in the back of the car as usual.

"Hunter?" I turned my head to him and he looked right back at me, curious.

"Do you have a birthday?" I asked.

"A what?"

"A birthday."

"I don't know what that is."

So I guess that was a no. It occurred to me right then that he really didn't have any birthday, because he was a grimwalker. No one gave birth to him so he didn't have any birthday to celebrate.

"A birthday is just the day you were born. You celebrate it as the years go on to acknowledge you getting older."

Hunter waited before speaking. He was thinking hard.

"I've never celebrated... anything in the palace."

"Did Belos at least tell you when you turned a different age?" I asked.

Hunter shook his head. "I mean, every year someone would acknowledge that I was a different age but it would be when they were just stating it. There was no party or celebration."

"Ah okay." I said. I sort of felt bad. Everything he had went through in the emperor's coven and he still was barely acknowledged on days that mattered to most people.

We had all been through shit but his entire life had been exactly that.

I gripped the lava lamp that sat in the bottom of my plastic Tar-got bag. Hunter deserved to have a birthday.

When we got back home, everyone got out of the car. I grabbed Camila's sleeve and she turned to me. "Willow? Are you okay?"

I nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine! I just wanted to ask you about throwing a small birthday celebration for Hunter tomorrow."

"Oh!" She exclaimed. "Is it his birthday tomorrow? Ay, cuando me volvi tan olvidadiza?"

(When did I become so forgetful?)

"Oh, no no." I said. "We were just talking and well, he's sixteen and has never been celebrated for anything, once. Not even a birthday."

Camila nodded. "That's actually a really nice idea, Willow. Very thoughtful of you."

She smiled at me. Very thoughtful.

It was around 1:30 in the afternoon when we got inside the house. The first thing I did was go upstairs and safely tuck the lamp under the rest of my things.

Someone knocked on the door behind me and I turned around. It was Amity and Luz.

"Hi!" Amity exclaimed with a wave. I waved back. "Hi?" I said confused.

Luz shut the door and they both sat down in front of me. What was happening?

"Sooo have you made any new shocking revelations in your life since we last talked?" Luz asked. She laid on her stomach and kicked her feet up in the air.

"No?"

Her face twisted for a moment. I looked at Amity who was picking at the dark nail polish that sleekly covered her nails. This obviously wasn't her idea.

"Not like. Not like a crush or anything?" Luz asked. Pushy.

I narrowed my eyes at her and stayed silent. "Why?"

"I'm just curious, I wanna know about my friends. And the people they like." Luz said.

I sighed. "I don't like anyone. So we don't need to go through the trouble of a whole interrogation."

"This isn't an interrogation!" She yelled. "It's just a friendly chat!"

"Luz brought me in here because she said she, 'had a hunch' that you liked Hunter" She said.

Like Hunter? Hah! I don't- ... Hm.

I rubbed my eyes, lifting my glasses to my forehead as I sighed.

I picked at a loose string on my shirt nervously. "It's not obvious or anything right?" I asked.

Luz jumped up and exclaimed in some sort of weird excitement. "Yeah-Yuh! I knew it! Who called it Amity? Me! I called it!" She yelled.

I let out a laugh and Amity looked between Luz and I and started laughing to. We just laughed for a while.

When we stopped, I let out a wheeze. "Y'know Luz, you sure are serious about this. You didn't need to make a big deal out of it." I said.

Amity agreed with a nod.

"Sorry. I'm a sucker for a real life rom-com."

"My life is not a rom-com, and never will be." I replied sternly.

"She knows that." Amity said, elbowing Luz. "Right Luz?" She said between gritted teeth.

"Hah! Of course I know that." Luz said. Then with a glance at me she said, "I just wanna see my friends happy. And if that means getting you two to see the obvious, I'm gonna make it happen!"

She looked so determined.

I affectionately rolled my eyes. Even if I picked oracle magic I don't think I ever would've been able to predict that by the time I was 15 I would be spending my time in the human realm, with a crush on Emperor Belos' right hand man.

Well, used to be right hand man. But it didn't matter anymore.

There was another knock at the door and Luz yelled. "Come innnnn~!"

Camila cracked open the door and smiled at us. "Sorry to interrupt your congregation but could you girls distract Hunter in some way? He and Gus are in the basement right now and that's where the boxes of party decorations are. I just need fifteen minutes."

"Sure!" Amity said.

"Thanks, you can have ice cream later if you distract him well." Camila continued, then she gave us a nod and closed the door.

"I'll do it!" Luz said, standing up. "The best way to distract someone is to annoy them!" She glanced at me.

"Unless you wanna seduce hi-" I jabbed her leg and she fell over before she could finish her sentence.

Vee and I sat at the table in the kitchen. she brought out a puzzle and we started putting it together. Someone came stomping up the basement stairs and we both turned our attention there.

Luz came up into the kitchen, carrying a big white machine. Hunter followed behind her.

She plopped the machine down onto the table and hit the top of it proudly. "You wanted to learn how to sew? I'm gonna teach you how to sew!" She said.

"Actually you asked first but I'll go along."

I pretended to pay attention to the puzzle as I gazed intently at the two of them.

Despite not having asked for it, Hunter seemed incredibly eager to learn how to sew.

After a little while, Camila snuck out of the basement with a box in hand. She gave me a thumbs up.

I gave a subtly tap to Luz who stood up. Hunter looked up at her startled, the sewing needle just grazing his finger.

"Okay! You've learned so now you have fun! Bye!" Luz said, patting Hunter aggressively on the head.

- I'm gonna end it here because I've decided to move my plan to the next 2 chapters just to be mean. :3 Also because I'm trying to get ready for my second day of the competition. Thank you for your support ad your time! -