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Characters: Finley and Fenrir ft. Luka
Series: Black Army Mischief Maker
A/N: The first story for Finley’s birthday! Her actual birthday was the 12th but I didn’t get this finished on time. Enjoy a little slice of the Godspeeds.
Tagging: @plumpblueberry​ and @christmaswarlock​
and @ikerev-appreciation​ It’s Fenrir’s Appreciation Week and I’m appreciating him and his daughter this week.
“Slow down, Bug. The shop is open all day long.”
Fenrir’s words fell on deaf ears. His now five-year-old daughter barreled down ahead through the street. A chorus of Happy Birthdays came from all around, as everyone in Central Quarter knew what today was. The vendors and bystanders alike gave a warm greeting as if cheering on a parade featuring only her had rolled into town.
He couldn’t fault her for being so excited. As many times as Finley had asked and been told to wait, waking up in the morning to news that she’d get what she wanted for so long had catalyzed this ball of energy.Â
The artist at the tattoo and piercing parlor, Dante, had been forewarned about this event, and had even gone as far as putting up a banner above the chair that had been prepared just for her. “We’re doing two on each lobe, right? That was the final verdict?”
Finley sat in the chair, kicking her feet and radiating with happiness. “Yeah, I wanted one like daddy’s, but he said no. So, I can get two here and here,” Finley said, pinching both her ears between her thumb and index finger.
“You can get it when you’re older.” Fenrir ruffled her still messy hair. He’d barely gotten her dressed properly before they’d left. Next year, he’d wait till after breakfast to tell her about any surprises.
“You really wanted a helix piercing at only 5 years old? That one is really painful,” Dante replied, trying to dissuade her from it. Grown men and women would cringe and cry out in pain with that one.
Her head tilted to the side as she gave him a confused look. “I’m not afraid of it hurting.” She meant every word and showed no hints of fear. Hardly a day passed where the girl didn’t hurt herself in one way or other, running into doors, walls, people, or just getting ahead of herself and falling. Finley simply popped back up and never let it bother her.
Dante and Fenrir both chuckled at her resolve.
Finley never flinched as the needle pinched into her ear. It stung for a moment but not enough to faze her. This might have been the stillest that Fenrir had seen her since she started crawling. Always on the go and never wanting to miss a single thing. His heart ached with bittersweet feelings. How had five years passed already?
Exiting the parlor with the elated girl, Fenrir dug out a few coins from his pocket. “Alright, bug. You can pick out your treat.” This part of the day was a tradition now, for the third year now. With the big party coming later and an ungodly amount of her favorite foods and a chocolate cake, he had to limit the intake of food that she ate during the day.
She rarely had a typical sugar crash, but she’d eat herself sick if he let her.
The young Godspeed took off into her favorite sweets shop. Slipping past the woman and her daughter to get a peek into the case of delectable treats, the conversation piqued her interest.
“I’m sorry, sweetheart but I can’t afford that. We can make something at home for your birthday.” The mother’s dejected voice kept to a hush as she crouched before her child that had an equally crestfallen expression. She brushed her thumb across her cheek to comfort her before taking her hand and leading her from the store.
“Hello Miss Finley. Here for your birthday treat?” The owner of the shop knew her well. A regular customer year-round but he’d marked his calendar of her birthday because he’d gotten to know her so well. She always made an impression and he adored her like a grandchild.Â
Finley stood up on her tiptoes to peek over the counter. “Can I have whatever they were looking at? Was it a cake?”Â
The older man slid the small cake back to the edge of the counter. “This is it. You want a whole cake?” An odd request. He’d never known her request something so big, especially on this day.
Her head bobbed in response and she dropped the few coins that she had on the counter as the door chimed signaling another customer. Without hesitation she took off with the entire cake. “Thank you!” She called over her shoulder.
“Wha- Finley, didn’t ya want Luka to bake you a cake?” Fenrir had waited outside, chatting to a friend of his that happened to be passing by. Both Godspeeds were popular among the citizens of Cradle. It was hard to go anywhere without finding someone they knew.
“Wait! Hey, wait!” Finley called to the pair up ahead. Her shout turned many heads but finally, the mother and daughter stopped as the girl caught up to them. The cake felt heavier with each second that she held it. “Here, this is for you!”
The mother was stunned for a moment but gave a warm smile. “Oh, sweetie, we can’t accept that. It’s too much for us to pay for.” She could hardly glance at her own daughter, unable to see that flash of hope disappear again.
“That’s okay. I already paid for it. It’s your birthday, right? It’s my birthday too.” Finley offered the box to the girl, grinning widely at her. She practically pushed it into her arms. “I turned five today! What about you?”
Her green eyes lifted from the box to Finley, voice bashful and raspy. “Six.” Her lips tugged up into a soft smile.
A light laugh passed her lips and Finley clapped her hands together. “That’s so cool! You’re a year older than me! Exactly one year! My name is Finley.” Her happy chatter seemed to brighten the mood surrounding the mother and daughter.
“Maria.” Her head turned up to look at her mother. “Can we keep the cake?”
“Mhmm! Mhmm! Everyone needs a cake on their birthday! Luka always makes me a biiiiig-” Her arms stretched out to exaggerate the size, nearly smacking a man walking by. “Big cake! But you don’t have a Luka, so I want you have this one.” Her tone dipped in reverence to the fact that this other girl couldn’t have Luka’s cooking and baking.
The mother glanced between the two girls, unsure of whether to accept or not. “Maria, I’m not sure-”
“Bye, Happy Birthday!” Finley shouted before she took off again. They couldn’t give back the cake if they couldn’t find her. Happiness flooded over her. Maria didn’t need to be sad on her birthday, that wasn’t what birthdays were about. “Daddy!”
Fenrir scooped her up, having paid the last bit of the bill as the coins Finley had left hardly covered the price of a full cake. “That was very nice of you, bug. You’re a good kid.” He couldn’t be prouder of her. Yet, he wasn’t surprised. Finley loved giving gifts to others, to make them smile and feel happy.
“That’s because I’m your kid!” Finley pressed both hands against his cheeks and kissed his nose. “Though I’m ready to go back home. I have something important to do!”
“Oh, and what’s that?”
Her finger hovered in front of her lip and she shushed him. “It’s a secret.”
Fenrir had to check on what exactly this secret mission entailed. He greeted the soldiers as he passed but kept a sharp eye on where his child was intent on going. He stopped in the doorway to the kitchen.
“Luka!” Finley threw her arms around his leg and squeezed him tight.
The Jack continued to chop up the potatoes on the counter but cast a curious glance at her. “You’re back early. I thought you’d be out all day.” His chopping filled the room for a moment as she was strangely quiet.
“I met this girl and bought her a cake cause it was her birthday.”
“Okay?” Luka’s amber eyes flickered to Fenrir and then back down to Finley. He couldn’t figure out what that had to do with her death grip on his leg.
Finley gave a sigh and rested her chin against his thigh as she looked up at him. “I was sad for her because she gets to eat a yummy cake, but it won’t be as good as yours. I’m glad I have you!” How did others survive without Luka’s cooking? She shuddered at the thought of being without him. She grinned up at him. “So, I wanted to come back to tell you that I love you!”
Fenrir couldn’t contain the laughter at the surprised expression that crossed Luka’s features. She’d given up the rest of her day out to come tell Luka about how much she cared for him and all he does, even if she didn’t quite say it all out loud. Even on a day that is completely about her, she showed compassion and gratitude for others in her life. He couldn’t have asked for a better kid.
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