Work Text:
While Sebastian was decorating with his hard work, he grew lightly anxious and in wonder of where you could be. You were out exploring, with his permission of course, because he wouldn't want to keep his little starfish trapped in his shop forever with him. He sighed softly as he forced rusty nails he found into the walls, he has cut up different designs and put things together he found as decorations around the blacksite. Anything for you, it wasn't the best looking but it definitely was made with love, and that's what made it so special to you. You could feel all the dedication he put, all his time in for you. He glanced back at the vent, waiting for you to come inside.
"...Don't prick yourself with those nails now. One poke and you're a dead fish, a fish sleeping with the fishes." And of course... what little party would be complete, without p.AI.nter? On that little desk, looking so polite yet mischievous.
"Ah, pfft. I've got it. Been through worse... very obviously." Sebastian said, earning a hum from p.AI.nter. He bit down on his lip, thinking he should go out and search for you himself. Something wasn't sitting right with him. Then, he let out a long sigh of relief seeing you climb into the room and stand up.
"You-...you... you little-...shrimp..." He said to you, it wasn't angry, but he wasn't really smiling, either. You glanced up at him, then lowered your head and lightly chewed on your thumb. You thought you were in trouble, probably had to go to time-out again.
"Be easy on the kid." p.AI.nter complained like it was your loving uncle.
"Yeah, yeah." Sebastian slithered over and grabbed onto your sides gently, lifting you up from the ground and pressing a big kiss to your cheek. That definitely made you smile and giggling, trying to hug his head.
"You need to stop that... I'm going to get grey hairs worrying about you..." He said.
"Sorry, 'bastian...." You said sincerely. He shook his head and set you down on the ground, patting the top of your head.
"You're here now. That's all that matters." He nodded a bit to himself. You kept chewing on your thumb, then glanced over at the different shaped objects wrapped in found paper around the blacksite and useless document pages.
"I've noticed you've been eyeing those quite often today." He brought his hands together, tilting his head a bit and smiling softly.
"You're such a good guppy for me... you want to open them?" He asked you. You nodded your head quickly, waddling over to them and finally placing your hands on one.
"Good, good. Open them up. Happy birthday, my sunset..." He said with so much warmth.
"Thank you, 'bastian!!" You smiled brightly and excitedly started tearing open a few of the presents. He didn't have much, but that was okay to you. He searched as many rooms as he could for the past couple weeks, in search of only the best things that suit his precious pearl. Things left behind from the bodies of those expendables. You got things like an oversized sweater with a jellyfish on it that could be fit like a dress, a couple plushies that were fixed up before being wrapped, a real rarity which is a pacifier though sadly a small one, a little walkie talkie that you could probably talk to Sebastian with when you were out, and something that you weren't able to put down and stared at. A wooden toy car, though one wheel was obviously broken and tried to be put back together, you still adored it.
"How do you even find all these things...." p.AI.nter glanced at each one of them.
"Luck." He simply responded and bent down to get closer to your level, smiling brightly.
"Is that one your favorite?" He asked you. You nodded quickly and had such a firm grip on it. Your bottom lip trembled and you started to form tears in your eyes. Sebastian quickly straightened back up and frowned, getting lightly panicky.
"Oh--oh! Are you okay? I tried to--" He looked down at you wrapping your arms on him, trying to hug him.
"I think they're grateful." p.AI.nter observed.
Sebastian stared at you for a bit, feeling a pang in his chest. He placed his hand on your back.
"Oh, my bubbly little one...." He said, letting you sniffle against him. He sighed, then watched as you sat down on the ground and roll the wooden toy a couple times on the surface.
"..Hey, kid. I didn't forget you." p.AI.nter said, grinning. You looked over at it and your eyes reflected the color that was displayed on the screen. It drew something so uniquely beautiful for you, a landscape from its memory.
"You like it?" It asked. You nodded quickly, grinning and putting down the toy, waddling over to it.
"Alright-y. I'll print it out for you. Then, you can hang it up on your bedroom wall."
"Like we don't have enough..." Sebastian said, looking down at the ground, but because his bedroom was under the flooring, the secret room below his shop room.
"..Not that I don't appreciate it, the walls were quite blank." He said and looked back up.
"Hah." p.AI.nter let out a soft chuckle.
"...Well... I don't have... any proper things for you to eat... like a cake... or cupcakes... but..." He looked around in his pockets, and the pockets wrapped around his tail.
"I did... find as much sugary sweets as I could." He said, setting them in a pile for you.
You waddled over to the pile, your eyes lighting up.
"You spoil this kid rotten...." p.AI.nter hummed.
"Of course. That's my kid." Sebastian said. You picked up a candy, looking up at Sebastian and offered him one. He blinked a bit, then tilted his head lightly.
"No--darling... that's yours." He said.
"I want my papa to eat it with me... I love my papa..." You said, and his smile faded a bit, slowly taking the candy from you.
"....." He stared at it, uncertain what to say.
"...If that's what my guppy wants." He grinned warmly at you. You nodded quickly and took a piece of candy from the pile, and even set one by p.AI.nter, though it really couldn't eat it.
"Thanks, kid." It grinned in amusement.
Sebastian watched you for a bit, as you sat against him, eating some of your candy and nuzzling your cheek against him. He looked at you like you were a coin in a treasure chest. That's exactly what you were to him. He soon enough reached on the desk for a used, unscented candle, beginning to light it.
"...You know... I'm going to say this because it's a special day... it's going to sound... not so pleasant, but... I wanted to attack you the first time I met you. I wanted to... I thought you were weak, the way you couldn't defend yourself. The way you kept coming back, it irritated me." He said. p.AI.nter glanced around, not sure where he was going with this.
"...Every time you came back though, I slowly got attached to you. The way you cried and asked if you could have medical supplies because of the anomalies, cuddling up to my tail and sobbing terrified on it. The way you kept getting lost around here, and mostly the way you brought me drawings you made. The way you smiled and giggled, and I took offense to the way you said I looked funny... that I was a funny person." He stared at the burning flame.
"...Then I realized you were just like one of us, and you were different from the rest. The way that fellow expendable handled you and tried to harm you, yelling with his voice echoing. When I swatted him away and acted like the feral creature I am, putting a hand on you to protect you, I wanted nothing more to keep you by me against my tail like you always did. I wanted to protect you, because I knew you were a scared little guppy in a world of losers like them. You became my guppy. You may have lost your memory, but I'm your family now. And today is the day I first met you. and I will always--always, do anything for you. I will always love you. Until the day I--...." He stopped himself against, not wanting you to think about that.
"...Always." He lowered the candle for you.
"Make a wish. Anything your heart desires. And I promise you--it will come true." You gazed at him, never taking your eyes off him to look at the candle. You made a soft noise in response. He meant the absolute world to you--he was your universe. This was your home.
"Guppy... baby..." He spoke quieter to get your attention. You glanced at the candle, thinking about it. You wanted to be with him safely for the rest of your life. He was the best papa you could ever ask for, and y ou blew out the flame.
"....Taa-daaaa!....?" p.AI.nter said awkwardly, glancing around a bit.
"...He's right though. Glad to have you, kid. And the way you ask me to draw puppies and babble to me about your day." It said. You against buried your face against Sebastian gratefully, feeling the tears in your eyes forming again.
"Now, now, my birthday pearl... it's all okay... happy birthday, my ocean melody..."