The Raccoon and His Boy - A Varian x Reader story

XVIII

Alright folks, as was mentioned in the last chapter, it's time for our favorite alchemist's birthday! Technically, Varian's birthday is never mentioned in the show, but the fanon date is March 24th, a.k.a. the first time he appeared on TTS. In an ideal world, this chapter would be published on that very date, but there was no way I was going to wait a year to continue the story, so I did my best to place Varian's birthday on the correct date in the chronological order of the story.

(And I know that there's been a lot of fluff so far, but don't worry, the plot is about to really take off, so buckle up!)

On another note, thank you all so so SO much for over 1K reads. I know that, compared to other stories, 1K isn't really that much, but it still gets me so excited to think that my story is good enough to get to that kind of number. So thank you everyone for every contribution to this story, be it voting, following, commenting, or even just opening it up and reading. 

Anyways, I won't keep you in suspense any longer. On with the show!

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"Y/N, what are you still doing up?" you heard Dad ask from behind you. He started making his way over to you when you didn't respond, not even turning around, but Star hissed to get him to leave you some space. She knew just how stressed you were, even if Dad didn't. "You have to go to bed, sweetie. You've barely slept these past few days."

You shook your head, not looking up from your sketchbook. "I can't sleep."

Dad sighed. "I still don't understand what you're so preoccupied with."

You clenched your teeth and scribbled over the last sentence you'd written. "Varian's birthday is tomorrow," you reminded him. "And I still haven't found him a gift. I can't go to sleep until I do."

"You won't be able to think of something nice for him if you're barely staying awake."

You sighed lightly. You knew he was right – the bags under your eyes were practically tangible, and you still needed to take Varian out to his ideal birthday outing, as promised – but something in you wouldn't let you stop. "I'll be fine," you insisted.

"Alright," Dad said. He started pacing his way back to the staircase when he stopped again, watching you write in your sketchbook. "You're almost out of space in there, I see."

You hummed in confirmation, not fully focused. You only really registered Dad was still talking to you when he asked you a question, and you were forced to ask him to repeat it. "Do you want to go buy a new sketchbook sometime soon?"

"Oh... I guess, sure."

Dad smiled. "Alright, well... Good night, Y/N."

You finally lifted your eyes up from the paper to watch Dad make his way up the stairs to his room. His comment about your sketchbook had sparked a thought in you, and you had to wait a second to process before you turned back to the book of bound paper. Slowly, you raised your hand and started flipping back through the sketchbook, examining the many drawings you'd added in since you got the sketchbook last summer. And in that moment, as you flipped the pages as if walking down memory lane, you knew exactly what to give Varian for his birthday.

<<< 💫 >>>

Surprisingly, when you woke up the next morning, you barely felt tired. Yeah, you'd gone to bed soon after your conversation with Dad, but you'd still expected to be sleepy in the morning. You weren't complaining, though, and you promptly slipped out of bed to get the day started.

Nothing in your closet seemed appropriate enough for today, and it took you almost ten minutes to settle on a long f/c dress with a corset holding the waist in a bit, but after adding a tiny pair of pearl earrings and the crystal necklace Varian had given you, your outfit finally felt right for his birthday.