A small birthday party
The next morning, Father wasn't present at the breakfast table. It seemed he returned early.
Both my brother and I couldn't see Father off, which was a bit disappointing. However, my mood lifted when my brother suggested, 'Let's have Lucienne's birthday party in the afternoon' during breakfast. It wasn't going to be extravagant—just bringing cake and sweets to my room for a slightly luxurious tea time. A larger celebration might make me uncomfortable and feel burdensome, so this seemed just right.
Although my proposal for staying up late and chatting was rejected by Lulu.
"Lucy is forbidden from staying up late~. Proper sleep is essential for growing up and good for your health, you know?"
To this remark from Lulu, my brother surprisingly backed down easily.
Hmm, what's with that?
While I do want to get along well with my brother, he seems to dote on me a lot. Lulu is fond of me, too, treating me like a kitten, but my brother, being an only child until now, may be genuinely happy to have a sister.
"No studying in the afternoon, okay?"
I nodded in agreement to my brother's words.
＊ ＊ ＊ ＊ ＊
And in the afternoon, my brother arrived with a few maids. He gave them instructions, and they swiftly set up the room. Adorable curtains hung from the ceiling, and vases with colorful flowers decorated the room. The table was filled with irresistibly cute sweets and cakes.
I sat on the sofa, observing the preparations. Once the maids finished, they bowed and left quietly.
'It's basic, but it should be fine like this,' my brother nodded.
He then took a seat on the sofa. Instructing Lulu to join, he sat down next to me.
The array of sweets on the table was small, with each item bite-sized, thoughtfully chosen so even I could enjoy them in small portions of various types.
"Lucy."
"Lucienne."
"Princess."
"Princess."
Lulu, my brother, Linnea, and Melty called out to me. When I looked up, everyone had smiles on their faces.
"Happy birthday~"
"Happy birthday."
"Happy birthday."
"Congratulations on your birthday!"
Everyone greeted me in unison.
"Ah..."
As I tried to say thank you, my words got caught in my throat. Warm tears streamed down my cheeks.
"Lucy?!"
"Lucienne?!"
In a panic, Lulu pressed a handkerchief to my cheek, and my brother fumbled, visible beyond my blurred vision.
Celebrating a birthday was something special. It was a celebration of being born and of living up until now.
Lucienne had never experienced this before.
To celebrate my own birthday.
Thank you for being born. Thank you for raising me this far. Happy birthday.
I had never received such words before.
I didn't even know my own birthday. Yet, here I was, being celebrated. It felt like I was being told it's okay to live, and that alone made me incredibly happy.
"Lucy, are you okay?"
"Did something not suit your taste?"
While Lulu and my brother worried, Linnea and Melty, with knowing smiles, watched from the side.
"I'm happy."
I managed to speak with a throat that threatened to choke up.
"...I'm really happy. Thank you..."
Lulu and my brother exchanged glances, then smiled with relieved expressions.
"You're welcome."
"We're glad you're happy."
Lulu wiped away my tears.
"Come on, we have cake and sweets. Stop crying and let's eat."
That was Lulu's way of caring for me.
I closed my eyelids tightly for a moment.
...Yes, let's enjoy rather than cry.
When I opened my eyes again, the tears had stopped.
"Let's start with the cake."
My brother served a piece onto a plate from the cake in the middle of the table. Lulu took it, cut a bite with a fork, and offered it to me.
Having learned table manners, I didn't need Lulu to feed me.
...But today was special.
As I opened my mouth, the cake entered. When I closed my mouth, the fork was gently pulled away.
Delicious cake with a rich layer of cream, a soft and airy sponge, and the delightful blend of sweet and tangy fruit aroma and flavor.
"Is it good?"
I nodded in response to Lulu's question. Lulu smiled and offered the next bite, which I eagerly accepted.
"You should try some other sweets too."
While I was still savoring the cake, my brother arranged various sweets on another plate. I knew I couldn't finish them all, but that realization brought me joy.
As Lulu fed me cake, he commented, "Lucy, you can't eat that much," and my brother added, "Just eat what you can."
Although I wanted to taste every sweet, given my appetite, it seemed impractical to indulge in them all.
"Oh, right! Lucy, let's share, okay? That way, you can try more."
I agreed with Lulu's suggestion.
"Yeah, let's split them in half."
Lulu used a knife to divide the sweets on the plate in half. On closer inspection, it appeared like I was getting smaller portions, as if each sweet was being cut into bite-sized pieces for me.
"Here you go, enjoy!"
Lulu offered the sliced sweets. My brother looked a bit envious as he watched Lulu. I took a bite of the offered sweet.
"...Mm, it's delicious."
Lulu also took a bite of the same sweet. On the side, Linnea placed a teacup on the table, and Melty poured the contents from the pot into it.
...It was black tea.
Next, a generous amount of milk was added.
Linnea smiled and kindly informed, "It's milk tea."
Lulu took the teacup, caressed it as if checking the temperature, and then handed it to me. I timidly took a sip.
...It was delicious.
The pleasant aroma of black tea and the creamy texture of the milk complemented each other well. After indulging in sweets, the mild sweetness of the milk tea without added sugar or honey felt soothing. I usually avoided tea for the sake of my stomach, but today seemed to be a special occasion.
"…Yummy."
I murmured, and Linnea said, "Feel free to have more." Lulu advised, "Don't drink too much; you'll get full quickly. Enjoy it moderately," and I nodded in agreement.
With the teacup in hand, Lulu continued to feed me more sweets.
… This is so luxurious.
"Oh, by the way, this is a birthday present."
My brother handed me something wrapped in a beautiful bag.
Lulu took the teacup from my hands, so I accepted the gift.
It wasn't very thick, rather flat, but quite large.
"Can I open it?"
As I touched the firm texture, I asked and got a nod in response.
Carefully untying the pretty ribbon, I opened the bag and found three books inside.
Each looked like a picture book with vividly colored illustrations. When I opened one, unfamiliar characters were written on the pages.
"That's Northern language. The one in the middle is Southern, and the bottom one is Western. I thought they might be useful when studying other languages, aside from the official one."
I gently stroked the beautiful illustrations.
"Can I really have them?"
It was the first time I held a book.
In this world, paper made from animal skin or plant materials wasn't cheap.
Moreover, with such beautiful illustrations and hardcover binding, the price would likely be considerable.
"Even though it might seem mismatched as a gift since I used them, I thought they might be helpful for your studies."
"No, not at all. I'm so happy. I'll study hard and learn to read them."
"Yeah, do your best."
Just the fact that he prepared a gift for me on such short notice made me extremely happy, and the fact that it could be used for studying was truly appreciated.
For learning characters, simple picture books were ideal.
"Lucy, here's mine."
Lulu handed me a box.
"You're giving me one too?"
"Yeah. Come on, open it."
Encouraged by Lulu, I untied the ribbon and opened the box.
"How cute."
Inside was a stuffed animal—a lovely teddy bear.
It had a bright chestnut-colored fur and round black eyes.
Instead of a ribbon, there was fabric wrapped around its neck.
"This little one is just like Lulu."
The fabric wrapped around its neck like a scarf was the same black fabric Lulu used to cover his face before.
It was the perfect size for me to hug with both hands.
"Yeah, when I'm not around, it gets lonely, right? When I'm not here, think of it as me and give it some love."
While Lulu was generally by my side, there were times when he was called by Oliver or had to step away for other tasks.
Indeed, I felt a bit lonely during those moments.
But with this little one, I wouldn't feel as lonely.
"Yeah, I'll take good care of it. Thank you, Lulu."
What should I name it?
Since I received it from Lulu, I wanted to name it after him.
Lefebvre Nicholson.
Since Lefebvre is Lulu, let's take Nicholson from his full name.
Yes, this little one's name is Nico.
"I'll name it Nico."
As I hugged it tightly, the fluffy fur touched my cheek.
"Nico?"
"It's short for Lulu's name, Nicholson."
"Oh, I get it now."
Lulu affectionately tousled my hair.
"Yeah, it'd be great if you always had that stuffed animal with you."
I nodded in agreement.
"Sure, Nico will be there too."
"Making a new friend is nice."
My brother smiled warmly.
At just five years old, stuffed animals might be like friends to me.
...Friends, huh?
I gently stroked Nico's head.
From now on, this will likely become a part of my everyday life.
A happy, everyday life.
＊ ＊ ＊ ＊ ＊
After about two hours into the birthday party, Lucienne began to doze off and eventually fell asleep. It seemed she had reached her limit, not having taken her usual nap today. Cradling the stuffed bear named Nico, Lucienne didn't collapse forward thanks to the support of the plush toy but rather leaned against Lefebvre, who was beside her. To avoid waking Lucienne, Lefebvre gently lifted her, carrying her to the bed. She slept soundly, showing no signs of stirring.
Lefebvre covered her with sheets, drew the curtains of the canopy to block out the outside light, and then returned to his original position.
"Well, if Lucienne has fallen asleep, let's consider today finished," Aristide said in a lowered voice.
Lefebvre nodded, and Linnea and Melty began tidying up the tea set and the arranged sweets on the service wagon as quietly as possible.
In response to Aristide's proposal to leave the room decorations as they were for the rest of the day, both Linnea and Melty agreed.
"By the way, Lefebvre. That's not just an ordinary stuffed animal, is it?"
Aristide, who was sipping tea from the remaining teacup, looked at Lefebvre.
"Hmm? Good observation."
"I faintly sensed a magical presence from it."
Indeed, there was a faint magical aura emanating from the stuffed animal Lefebvre had given to Lucienne.
"You see, I've made it so I can sense the stuffed animal's location."
As Lucienne's leg injury was healing, her range of movement within the mansion's grounds would soon expand. While Lefebvre intended to stay close to her as much as possible, it was impossible to be there every moment. In case Lucienne wandered off somewhere in the mansion, having the stuffed animal with her would allow Lefebvre to know her whereabouts.
"So, that's why you suggested having the stuffed animal."
"In any case, let's have Lucienne keep the stuffed animal."
That way, we can always know where Lucienne is.
Aristide nodded with a subtle expression, and both Linnea and Melty agreed quietly.
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