(Untitled)

[crazyspacegirl]

Excepting the years she'd lost to the Alliance, River was pretty sure this was the worst birthday she'd ever had. It wasn't so much that she cared about being fussed over; it was just a date that probably didn't even correspond exactly to the anniversary of the date she was born on Osiris. It was just that she was sure there wasn't anybody to

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[plntfood]

Mathias is tired.

He's glad for Lucy's help, because he knows if he's this tired with her assistance, he would be beyond exhausted if he tried to care for Sam on his own. More than he's tired, though, he's sad and he knows River knows this, knows that she's sad as well, so when he comes into the kitchen and sits beside her, he doesn't say anything at first. Instead he watches her light the candle and blow it out, smiling faintly at Zoe's enthusiasm for the tradition.

"Happy Birthday," he says quietly. It isn't Zoe's he thinks, so it must be River's.

[crazyspacegirl]

"Xie xie," answered River, more grateful than she could say to have someone say the words, when she didn't even know how much she'd wanted to hear them. She gave Mathias a genuinely happy smile, rare in recent days.

"And sometimes your wish comes true," she told Zoe and Mathias both. "I was asking for a friend, and here you are."

[Xie xie = Thank you]

[plntfood]

Mathias smiles at that, even his exhaustion unable to temper the comfort it gives him. There isn't much right now, but there are things here and there that can make him smile and that is certainly one of them.

"Only on an island would that work," he says. "I left Sam with Lucy today, but were she here, I expect she'd wish you a Happy Birthday as well. And I think she would be happy to assist in blowing out the candle."

[crazyspacegirl]

"I guess you'll have to help me, since she's not here." River lit the candle again and moved the muffin to a more optimal location for Mathias to access it. "Maybe birthday wishes are transferable."

"Blow," commanded Zoe. She pursed her own lips and made an attempt in the candle's general direction, though it was just as well that she was too far away to affect it; River would rather not have a slobbered-on muffin, birthday or no.

[dr_robchase]

He felt bad. He felt bad because he had no idea what he was supposed to do. Chase had gone through enough shitty birthdays as a child to know what he didn't want, but he didn't know the other end of the spectrum. He leaned up against the doorway as he watched them with a fond smile, trying to figure out how to apologize for not being a better, more well-adjusted friend. "So, how old is it, now?"

[crazyspacegirl]

"Older than I probably look, but not nearly as old as I feel," River answered, only joking a little bit; she meant the words completely. "Twenty three. How did that happen?"

She understood the passage of time, but she had a hard time applying it to herself. She knew she was a different person than she'd been even on her last birthday, but she knew she was still just River, too.

Zoe had no interest in existential matters. She gave Rob the briefest of greeting waves and then turned back to the much more interesting candle game. "Blow," she demanded.

River didn't really feel like she had any choice but to oblige.

[dr_robchase]

"The same way I'm far, far older than thirty? The way that I like to deny it," Chase admitted ruefully, a soft smile on his face for River. He watched Zoe fondly and the candles, finally stepping into the room to offer an awkward extending of his arms. "Do we hug now? Would you like to?"

[crazyspacegirl]

"Older than thirty? I can't even imagine being that old." That was about all the teasing on the subject that River had in her; it reminded her far too much of Mal.

Made her need a hug, in truth.

"Sure," she said, and got up to collect.

[piemakerprince]

While Ned made no claims to be stealthy, the concrete floors of the compound made it easy to keep a quiet step, which he employed when he found River in the kitchen with Zoe. He stood in the doorway for a few moments, unwilling to disturb their moment together -- but Eli happily did that for his father, gurgling and babbling something into the growing wet spot on the front of Ned's shirt.

He walked in, giving River and Zoe both a smile as he pulled his son out of his baby sling. Having attended Zoe's birthday party, Ned assumed it was River's birthday they were celebrating, and he gave her a smile. "Hi. If I knew it was your birthday, I'd've baked a cake."

[crazyspacegirl]

"It's okay. I have a muffin. The candle doesn't know the difference." River never really expected cake, after all, even on her birthday. She just liked it. "Hi, Eli."

"Hi, Eli!" Zoe added a wave to her greeting. "Eli blow?"

"That's up to Eli," said River. She thought Eli was probably too little yet to care about candles, but that was entirely his own choice.

[piemakerprince]

"Eli can try," Ned said for Zoe's sake. He pulled out a seat next to Zoe, holding Eli up, and gave River a look -- it was one of the looks he'd come to realize came with parenting. The sort that led to an agreement to do whatever pleased the kids, and he trusted River to blow the candle out. "Ready, Eli? One, two, three!"

[crazyspacegirl]

It was hard to blow out a candle without appearing to blow out a candle, but River did her best. She was pretty sure Eli believed he'd done it himself, but she thought she caught a trace of suspicion in Zoe's face.

A little bit of skepticism would probably serve her well, River thought.

"I hope you made a good wish," she said to Eli. "At least good enough to hold you over until your own birthday."