I've come to wish you an unhappy birthday

[exceptfebruary]

WHO: Katurian Katurian and Julian Day
WHERE: Katurian’s house
WHEN: April 12th sometime
WARNINGS: nothing in particular but look who's involved
SUMMARY: Calendar Man remembered Katurian's birthday.
FORMAT: Quick! Pretend the intro isn't totally prose but in brackets



[Calendar Man had known Katurian’s birthday since the first time they spoke. Finding out where he lived was a matter of ease.

There were some on the Network he’d spoken to that had interesting conversations, some who could get under his skin, and a couple who he was even friendly with. But with Katurian he didn’t know what to expect, only that, for some reason or another, Katurian actually seemed to actually care. He’d even apologized, though didn’t specify what for.

Katurian Katurian unnerved Julian.

Julian arrives quietly at his door, a medium-sized black box with white ribbons in hand. He's barefoot in simple grey clothes with a black hoodie - the hood is up, covering his tattoos. It's a casual visit, and he is a wanted criminal. Nothing particularly flamboyant.

He raps his knuckles on the door. ]

Comments

[goryteller]

[Katurian is the one to answer the door -- a fate he relishes given that he has two roommates he wants desperately to keep out of trouble and a wanted criminal (nothing particularly flamboyant) waiting at his front doorstep with a box.

He doesn't recognize Julian immediately. It seems so out of place, so wrong that he would be visiting him at his home. But it takes mere moments for it to click, for Katurian to realize that the man at his door is Julian Day.

He steps outside and slams the door behind him.]

What the fuck do you think you're doing?

[exceptfebruary]

[ He barely reacts to the slammed door, just the slightest of flinches and a cold smile. He's calmed by the certainty the day gave him. It doesn't matter if Katurian is angry - even if he called the police, Julian knows he is supposed to be there. ]

It's April 12th. I always remember a date. [ He holds up the box, gently. ]

[goryteller]

[Julian's christmas gifts are still fresh in his mind. Explosions. Beasts. He stands in front of the closed door, a statue in a landscape, and he feels that sense of palpable danger thrumming in his veins.]

Thank you.

[Meek. Accepting.

--And then the energy comes. He reaches for Julian's shoulders in an attempt to drag him away from the front door, in an attempt to press him up against the side of the building.]

[exceptfebruary]

[ Julian does nothing to protect himself, taken completely by surprise. The gift drops from his hands, the box smacking against the ground. Something metal clangs together with clack and a crack.

He gasps, the certainty starting to slip away. He never is good at the physical. ]

You broke it.

[goryteller]

[At another time, Katurian would have given in. He would have released his grip and let apologies tumble from his lips, oh no, he didn't mean to, please. But for these last few months, he's been a little bit different. He tightens his grip on Julian's shoulders, pressing him against the building.]

That's fitting, isn't it?

[His voice is anger laced with mania. He whispers.]

Because if Network chatter is any indication, you have a piss-fucking-poor track record of giving gifts.

[exceptfebruary]

Ah.

[ Calendar Man was no stranger to violence. Inside or outside, it always seemed to come back to him. He doesn't expect it from Katurian however, and watches the man carefully even as he winces from the pressure on his shoulders. ]

Today isn't a holiday, just your birthday.

[goryteller]

[He loosens his grip, but doesn't let go. He thinks about Andy and April, those people he vowed to protect, and how because Julian can find him, he can find them too.

But while Julain doesn't know what to expect from Katurian, Katurian doesn't know what to expect from Julian. A man who craves to be remembered. It would be a lie to say he doesn't almost feel kinship with this mysterious man who never quite kills, who carves days of joy in his image.

He doesn't like it. (He thinks.)]

I don't celebrate my birthday.

[exceptfebruary]

[ Julian keeps his eyes on Katurian's face, but he's keenly aware of the broken present at their feet. It was important. Perhaps not tomorrow, or the next, but it is important today. ]

A birthday should be remembered. You do not have to celebrate it. Just acknowledge it.

[goryteller]

[With his hands still on Julian, he extends his foot to nudge the fallen present.]

What is it?

[exceptfebruary]

A gift. [ It's got a bit of styrofoam but not enough, evidently. The delicate metal instrument inside didn't take the fall very well. Julian knows this, but presents were to be opened and not told. ]

It is not dangerous.

[goryteller]

[He doesn't quite believe him, but there it sits. Unopened. Beckoning.]

Stay where you are.

[He releases his shoulders and kneels down by the box. It sounded like metal when it hit the ground. Not a body part. Probably.

He turns it on his sides, gently. He examines it.]

[exceptfebruary]

[ Julian doesn't move from the wall, but relaxes slightly.

The box, when opened, contains a small armillary sphere. Old, a bit worn. Probably from an antique shop. The armillary sphere, of course, includes a disk for the constellations of the zodiac. ]

[goryteller]

[After a while, he decides it likely won't explode and opens it, his hands shaking just slightly.

He doesn't recognize what it is, but he recognizes the shape from deep in his memory, from old pictures in textbooks and museums. He runs his fingers over the metal and then he picks it up, gingerly lifting it from the styrofoam.

With the armillary sphere in his hands, he looks up at Julian, doing little to hide his puzzlement.]

[exceptfebruary]

[ Satisfied that he probably won't be slammed back into the wall, Julian lightly brushes off his shoulder. His face is blank, untelling. ]

The center is the Earth. The circles around it represent the heavens. [ Pause. ] Ultimately, the heavens is where the calendar comes from.

[goryteller]

[He slides his thumb and forefinger across the surface rings, feeling the bumps and grooves.]

To remember you.

[exceptfebruary]

If you wish.

[ Calendar Man remembered each and every gift he had ever received, as well as each and every gift (including "gifts") he had ever given. The former were few and cherished. ]

[goryteller]

Why did you give this to me?

[The anger in his voice has dissolved into quiet uncertainty. His hands are delicate with the gift.]

Just-- Just because it's my birthday? Because it's my birthday and you remembered it?

[exceptfebruary]

Yes. Birthdays are special days. They should be marked. [ He pauses. He needed to make this clear. He doesn't consider himself a kind man, but birthdays were special. Particular. ] A birthday is important to the one that it belongs to. The world - the City doesn't need to have it marked. Just the recipient.

[goryteller]

You don't mark the birthdays of every person in the City. Or on the Network.

[exceptfebruary]

True. Only a few.

[goryteller]

And I'm one of the few.

[He eases the gift back into the styrofoam without dropping his gaze from Julian.]

Why?

[exceptfebruary]

[ He... hesitates. His fingers almost immediately go to his lip before he stops and lowers them. Julian speaks carefully, word by word. ]

I remember those who remember me.

[goryteller]

[He watches him for a beat, searching for meaning in the other man's expression.]

Thank you.

[He glances down at the gift.]

I'm sorry I pushed you.

[exceptfebruary]

[ There it was again.

Calendar Man isn't one for large emotional gestures, so his surprise is marked only by a blink and his mouth opening just a nudge. He stares at Katurian for a moment, calculating. ]

I am a wanted criminal.

[goryteller]

I've spoken with worse. [He shrugs his shoulders, his eyes down.] Your lashing out has a purpose, twisted though it may be. And that doesn't include posing a danger to me, does it?

[Now, he glances up. Prying.]

[exceptfebruary]

No. [ He looks away, just to the side of Katurian. ] Not today.

[goryteller]

Not ever.

[The emphasis holds a warning. He stares.]

You're not going to hurt me or any of the people I care about. Because if you do, if you do either of those things, I'll be forced to act on it.

[exceptfebruary]

[ His eyes catch Katurian's again and they flicker between them. He can't quite sympathize, but there's the element of a threat, a determination that he recognizes - and one that's feels slightly different than a hero's. ]

And what will you do, Katurian Katurian?

[goryteller]

[He raises his index finger to his lips and blows just slightly, a quiet shhh. A secret.

He doesn't blink.]