A/N: Day 15 - Callum's bday! Woot woot! Happy belated my guy, hope you all enjoy this!

Chapter Summary: Rayla forgets to get Callum a birthday gift. So she resorts to asking help from their friends in order to think of a good gift to get him. Turns out they all have dumb ideas.

Word Count: 2,365

Time & Effort

"His birthday?"

Claudia perked up at the sudden question, removing her eyes from her book as she stared at Rayla. "What about it?"

Rayla rolled her eyes as she sighed. "It's coming up, isn't it!" she reminded, waving her arms around. "And I've been so busy with my diplomatic duties, I forgot 'bout what to get him!"

Claudia put her book down whilst wearing a smug smile. "Ahh, I see, so this about how you messed up and want to steal my gift idea?"

She frowned. "No. I'm not stealing anythin'. I just… I need help coming up with somethin'!" she claimed. She threw herself into the chair across from the older girl and released an irritated groan. "I can't believe after all these months, I've been fretting 'bout it, and now I almost forgot!" She angrily slammed her face against the table and sighed.

"Hey, at least you didn't completely forget," Claudia pointed out, wearing a weak smile.

Rayla glanced up at the girl with a scowl. "Not. Better."

Claudia shrugged. "Debatable."

The Moonshadow Elf pouted as she lowered her head. "I'm such a terrible girlfriend." She shook her head as she fisted her hair. "How could I be so wrapped up in everythin' in our relationship and our work, but also forget to get him a gift?" she shouted.

"If it makes you feel any better, I only got him a new sketchbook," Claudia admitted with a smile.

Rayla waved her hand dismissively as she muttered, "Eh I already got him that. Everytime we travel I pick up a new one wherever we go."

Claudia frowned. "Wow, way to shoot down the excitement of my gift," she deadpanned.

The elf rolled her eyes. "Relax, he'll love yours. He always appreciates new sketchbooks," she assured her. "But me? I've practically gotten so many gifts over our travels that another gift might just seem normal to him. I've got step up!"

The two dwelled in silence thoughtfully, carefully crafting a creative solution to the younger girl's problem. Then, Claudia's face lit up. Rayla excitedly turned to her in joy, expectantly waiting for her answer. "You could always make him something!"

Rayla's face dropped to a frown.

"I'm going to Soren."

::::

"A gift? Yeah I got him one ages ago," Soren claimed, swiping at Rayla with a heavy strike.

She blocked the blow with ease as her eyes went wide. "Seriously? Ya were prepared for once?" With her blades crossed, she slowly started pushing against the head guard, forcing his footing a few steps back. "I don't believe it," she accused, alongside with her forceful push, sending him back a few feet. She rushed, with her blades switched to their hook forms, she slashed at his feet, anticipating his jump she readied her foot and kicked him square against the chest.

After landing on his back with a hard grunt, Soren flipped himself onto his feet and readied his blade. "Ouch, and what! Why? How come that's so hard to believe?" he asked, swiping his blade at the elf.

"Because you once forgot your sister's birthday?" Rayla shot back, dodging his barrage of swings. Once he threw a heavy left swing, she blocked it with both her blades, shooting him a look. "Nevermind that, what'd ya get him?"

Soren smugly smiled, a look that was very reminiscent of Claudia's—she guess they really were siblings. "I'm not telling you!" he defended. "I mean," he tilted his head, "not unless you beat me."

Rayla smirked as she narrowed her brows. "Deal," she gritted threw her teeth. She followed through by hooking her blades onto Soren's sword, and dragging them down to their ankles. She hopped into the air dropped kicked him square against the chest. Soren flew back a few more feet, flying right out of the ring and landing right on his back. As Rayla landed on her feet, Soren's sword clattered near them, whilst she retracted her blades into their handles. As Soren propped himself up on his elbows, Rayla crossed her arms at him, smugly smirking as she shifted her weight to her right hip. "Now, 'bout that deal?"

Soren groaned as he heard the uproar of laughter erupting at the benches. His collection of crownsguards, all doubling over in fits of giggles and amusement, admiring their captain's failure. "I'm going to double your shifts," he blankly claimed. Their faces dropped into horror, earning a smile from him. "Thank you," he smiled. "Now, as for the deal?"

Rayla's face perked up as she walked over to Soren, pointy ears wide open for listening. "Yes, yes, yes," she eagerly hurried, "What did ya get him?"

Soren wore a proud smile as he helped himself up to his feet. Pausing as if for dramatic effect, he raised his hands and shook them with pizazz, whispering, "A collection of feather pens."

Rayla's face scrunched up in confusion. "Feather pens? Quills?"

"Yeah!" Soren excitedly pitched. "I know he likes writing too, and I figured he'd like a cool collection of some rare feathers from some pretty rare creatures across our country!"

Rayla's face tightened in suspicion. "And… did ya hunt these rare creatures?" she skeptically inquired.

Soren's face transformed into shock. "What? Hey, I'm not Claudia, I wasn't the one going around killing animals or whatever!" he quickly defended. "They're collected after they've already passed. Trust me!" That only made Rayla's suspicions grow. "Alright, fine, or not, the point is, I was not involved in killing and I do not know if anyone else is—I just got my man a present. That is that!"

Rayla's suspicions faded as she merely shrugged. "Eh."

"Eh? What's 'eh' about that?" he asked.

"I mean, I've already got him quill collections before, rarer ones from Xadia, along with fancy pencils and such," Rayla casually mentioned, shrugging once more. "He liked 'em. But he burnt through pencils quickly, and the feathers were reserved for letter writing, which he entrusts me to do because he likes my handwritin' more." She frowned as she thoughtfully glanced down. "I can't just get him another collection, he'll be so bummed out that that's my best effort for his birthday!"

Soren blankly stared at Rayla. "Wow… months of gift planning only for his girlfriend to say my gift's a bummer."

Rayla winced at his comment as she said, "Sorry! I-I didn't mean that! I meant coming from me, he'll love it from ya!" She threw her hands up and added, "Meanwhile I've gotten nowhere all morning!"

Soren rubbed the back of his head as he pondered an idea. "Ah! What about making him a gift? King Ez always did that for our birthdays, Callum loved his crafts—he'll love yours too."

"That's brilliant!" Rayla exclaimed.

"Really?"

"Yes! I'll just go ask Ez!"

::::

"So… you interrupted my meeting, to tell me you forgot my brother's—a.k.a. your boyfriend's—birthday?"

Rayla's body shrank at each word as she kept her gaze lowered. She didn't like how Ezran was also seated at his throne, holding his position of power respectively as he disappointedly loomed it over her. She managed to glance up at him, and frowned at his smug face. Maybe it was just humans in general that liked to look that smug.

"First off, I didn't forget his birthday," she defended, "I forgot to get him a gift. Second," she raised her finger, "that was so not a meeting! Ya were practically just havin' a lunch date with Queen Aanya—"

"We were discussing the trades between our kingdoms," Ezran quickly corrected.

"Without the rest of the council of your kingdoms? Or Xadia's council?" Rayla inquired. "Thought that our bi-weekly meetings were supposed to consist of all ambassadors and royal heads?" she cocked her head and crossed her arms at the king, proudly jutting out her hip as she smirked.

Ezran's face fell into a deep blush, causing some chuckles to emerge from the guards at his sides. He shot them glances, only leaving them to stifle their laughter poorly. Rayla grinned. Of course, as much as respectable and worthy of kingship Ezran was, he was also still thirteen. He definitely had the emotions of one too.

"Alright, alright, fine it was a date," Ezran relented, rolling his eyes.

Rayla squealed as she shook in her spot. "Oooh, ya're so telling me 'bout this later!" she demanded, pointing an excited finger his way. Ezran's face dropped into a frown. "Anyways, I need to brainstorm 'bout a gift I can get Cal!"

Ezran sighed. "Ray, he'll love anything you give him."

"Yeah, if we were still just dating," she pointed out, "but we're not! We're way past 'just'! We are!"

Ezran raised a confused brow as he glanced to his guards, who merely shrugged in confusion. "Uhh, yeah, you are?"

"Exactly! Which means no basic or regular gifts!" she explained, "I-I can't get him sketchbooks because I've already done that countless times, I can't get him pens or pencils, or quills, because I've done it dozens of times! What gift can I get the boy who's been by my side for so long, that shows that I can give the same effort back?" she asked with a desperate look on her face.

The guards and Ezran exchanged hesitant looks, obviously afraid of the elven girl's outburst. They shrugged as Ezran cleared his throat. "Well… if effort's your concern, I usually make my gifts! Callum told me he appreciates the effort and thought a lot and that's what counts!" as he said this, the guards' faces went sheepish, obviously reluctant to add something. It went under Ezran's nose but was very much noticed by Rayla.

So obviously Callum was just being a nice brother and just saying that.

Which obviously meant Rayla couldn't do that. Rayla was by no means, an arts & crafts kinda girl. She was an Assassin. Assassins didn't exactly make birthday gifts. So that's why she's strictly avoiding the handmade process. She didn't have an artistic bone in her body. At least not one good enough for Callum's birthday.

"—why I made him collection of all his childhood drawings!" Ezran excitedly declared, shooting Rayla right out of her thoughts.

Confusion struck her. "What?"

"Yeah! I just collected all the childhood drawings he's either made for me or left behind in his travels, and I binded them into a book! I did it myself, because I like to get hands on when it comes to personal stuff!" Ezran explained, wiggling his fingers as if by means of demonstration.

Rayla thought about Ezran's gift and smiled. It wasn't actually that bad. It still possessed the artistic integrity Callum appreciated and nodded back to his previous works. Which was something Rayla could definitely do. Something with sentimental value, but also craftsy. Something that will wring on his heartstrings, for both artistic and personal reasons.

She could do it.

::::

"Oh…" Callum uttered slowly. "You… made me… a…" he pensively held his words, glancing over to his friends for assistance. Soren and Claudia exchanged a look of equal confusion before shrugging their answer, and Ezran winced as he shook his head. Callum turned back to Rayla, his eyes faltering at how innocent and proud she looked for giving this to him. Something she claimed to be handmade, done all by herself.

It was blatantly obvious no doubt.

He held up the bundle of what he knew to be a violet coloured wool and massaged it with his fingers, slowly stretching and spreading it as he tilted his head, trying to wrap his head around what he was holding in his hands. It was still unfolding, but it also was folding into itself. There were holes in its design. At first he thought them to be for aesthetics, but he quickly realized there was no set pattern after the first four enormous gaps. After his sixth unfold, his eyes widened as it sunk in.

"You made me a shirt!" he shouted, smiling in surprise. "Wow! It… it looks good!" he nodded, smiling over at his girlfriend. His expression quickly dissipated as he noticed her pout. It hit him immediately. "This isn't a shirt… is it?"

Rayla sadly shook her head.

"It's…" his face winced as it clicked inside him. "It's a scarf… isn't it?"

Rayla sadly nodded.

"Hey…" he placed his hand on her shoulder. "It's fine," he assured her, "I get it, it was your first attempt—"

"Sixth," she corrected softly.

He heard seethes and stifled snorts escaped from behind him, causing him to shoot glares at his friends. They quickly shielded their expressions, gesturing themselves over to a vacant patch of grass far away from their picnic table. He turned back and moved his hand down to hers, placing it above as he caressed it softly. "Ray, I… I love it!"

"Don't do that," she quickly retorted, crossing her arms. "I… I just wanted to make ya somethin' with emotional value for once. And… I thought… since ya always have your mum's scarf… ya'd like another… just… y'know, if ya ever want wear another."

Callum smiled at her, shaking his head with a sigh. "Rayla, every gift from you has emotional value. Because it's from you," he pointed at her, getting a smile to rise out of her. "I don't care what you get me, because I know you spent time and effort in getting it! Like every single time you just happen across a gift during our travels, you thought about it and got it for me because you know me."

Rayla's head rose as a small blush formed on her cheeks. "Thanks Callum." She sighed. "Sorry to be such a baby on your birthday."

He snorted, waving a dismissive hand. "Nah," he pecked her cheek and pulled her into a hug, "you're fine. Besides I really appreciate your efforts!" He dragged out his emphasis, but Rayla knew what he was doing it jokingly. She supposed the thought and efforts really did matter. "Just… never make a scarf again…"

She rolled her eyes and slapped his shoulder. "Knock it off!"

She was definitely just going to buy him another scarf next time.

A/N: Okay, so this was fun to do. I've always considered Rayla to be a not so craftsy kinda girl, so I figured along with her not being able to cook, her arts and crafts skills fall alongside those struggles. But boy can she still kick ass. I had fun writing, but I apologize for delays! If you don't follow me on tumblr, my friends and I were busy this week doing a Stranger Things marathon, a sort of recap before watching season 3. I had fun, loved it, and am now back into this ship month!

I hope I'll be able to at least get day's 16 and 17 up tomorrow. Then eventually catch up on Saturday or Sunday.

Anyways, next prompt for me is moonlight kiss, College AU everyone! Because I'm a sucker for making it, and y'all are enjoying it!

Until next time,

- Bleh