Happy beginning-of-the-Halloween-weekend, my dolls! As a Halloween treat from me, here is the end of the Bayley's Birthday arc of Bayley's Universe...with an added surprise at the end of the chapter. I hope you all enjoy this. =)
With the success of returning back to her normal age earlier that afternoon, Bayley excitedly went about calling Sami, Becky, Paige, and Finn to let them know about when her birthday party would be. After getting replies back that they would all be able to make it, the brunette did her best to hold in her excitement about her coming party. Since this was the first time she was ever going to have friends attend her birthday party, the ponytailed Gem just wanted things to be as perfect as they could be.
'I know that Dean, Seth, Aunt Naomi, and Uncle Jimmy will make my party great, but I hope my friends will have fun at it,' Bayley thought as she sat and watched one of her favorite cartooons. Shaking her head, Bayley then thought 'No, come on now, don't get worried! Worrying is what got you in the mess we just got out of. Just be cool, and everything will be fine.'
...
Saturday came, and with it came Bayley's birthday and her birthday party. Waking up that morning, the brunette Gem was greeted with the smells and sounds of breakfast being made. A smile starting to tug at the corners of her mouth, Bayley climbed out of bed and bounded down the stairs to the main level of the house. She had only just gotten downstairs before hearing...
"HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BAYLEY!" Seth, Naomi, Jimmy, and Dean all yelled as they stood in wait for the younger Gem at the bottom of the stairs.
Jumping in place as she accidentally summoned her shield, Bayley laughed a bit as she willed her weapon away. Smiling as she looked up at her guardians and her aunt and uncle, Bayley said "Wow. You all sure know how to surprise someone on their birthday."
"Oh, come on, runt. You know you liked our surprise," Dean grinned.
"Yeah, I did," Bayley grinned back. "I mean, I may have summoned my shield, but I liked how you guys surprised me."
"Good to hear," Dean said as he ruffled the younger brunette's hair.
"Today's your big day," Naomi smiled. "How are you feeling this morning, boo?"
"Not...all that different, to be honest," Bayley said. "I know today I'm turning 13, but...I don't feel any different. Is that bad?"
"No, not at all," Seth stepped forward. "It's not a bad thing at all that you don't feel any different about turning 13 today. It just probably means that you're ready for what comes with turning a year older. And, I don't think that's bad."
"You think so?" Bayley asked. Seeing the two-toned Gem nod his head, Bayley smiled and said "Thanks, Seth. I guess I just feel a bit nervous about today. It's the first time I've ever had anyone come over for my birthday party, so I'm just a bit nervous about that. I hope my friends will all have fun today."
"I'm sure they will, baby girl," Jimmy smiled. "With your cool aunt and uncle and Seth and Dean here, they're going to have a ball."
Laughing at what Jimmy said, Bayley said "Thanks, Uncle Jimmy. I just can't wait! I'm just so excited for you and Aunt Naomi to meet my friends. I'm sure you guys will like them once you meet them."
"Of course we will, boo," Naomi smiled. "They're your friends, after all. And, if what Seth's been telling us about them is true, I'm sure they'll be just as nice as you are."
"They are!" Bayley excitedly chirped. "First, there's Becky. She helped me out when I first started going to school. And, then there's Paige. She's been telling me a lot about some movies that she's seen that I should try some time..."
As Bayley went on and talked about her friends with Naomi-even after she had gotten her breakfast and began eating-Seth and the other Gems shared a smile over just how happy Bayley was. And they had a feeling that she'd be even happier with the birthday party they were going to have for her later in the afternoon.
Later That Day; In The Afternoon, To Be Exact
Bayley still thought it was pretty weird that Seth and the others had sent her away to the store. While she had a feeling that it was all so that the older Gems could work on her party planning, it still seemed weird. But, now that she was heading back home, she could start to see just why the others had sent her away: As she came back home, Bayley saw what looked like Seth and the others all gathered outside with Sami, Becky, Paige, and Finn all there too, standing around a cloth-covered picnic table that had balloons at the ends. Surprisingly enough, Bayley could see that Josh and Emma were also with the gathered group. Since it seemed like nobody had noticed her yet, Bayley tried to sneak up on the group. ...This plan didn't seem to work as the next thing she knew, everyone looked her way and all said...
"SURPRISE! HAPPY THIRTEENTH BIRTHDAY, BAYLEY!"
Grinning widely as she ran the rest of the way over to where everyone was gathered, Bayley all but leapt into the open and waiting arms of Seth while everyone else either laughed at the display or Aww'ed at how cute it was.
Pulling away from the younger brunette, Seth smiled. "I'm guessing you like what we've done for your party."
Nodding her head, Bayley said "Of course I do! You and Dean and Aunt Naomi and Uncle Jimmy are all here, and all of my friends are here too! I think this has gotta be one of my favorite birthday parties you guys have ever thrown for me."
"We're glad to hear that, Bayley," Seth said. "Now, come on. Everyone's all waiting to give you the presents they got for you."
"OK!" Bayley chirped.
The whole of Bayley's birthday party wasn't entirely long, but it was filled with fun that the birthday girl was happy to have. From the games that she played with Sami, Becky, Paige, and Finn to the food she and most of the others ate-Dean and Jimmy made some pretty tasty food, and Emma even made a really delicious chocolate birthday cake-to the presents she got, Bayley just couldn't help the immense swell of happiness that rose within her; even after her party ended and all of her friends had gone home, Bayley was still beaming widely as she sat on the couch in the living room, hugging the plushie Michelangelo from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles she had gotten from Emma.
"Well, I guess it's about time we take off," Naomi said, standing beside Jimmy in the kitchen area with Seth and Dean.
"Really? It's time for you two to leave already?" Bayley asked, turning to look over to the older Gems.
"Yeah. We're sorry, boo." Naomi knelt down as Bayley walked over to join the group. Giving the younger Gem a hug, Naomi said "But, it's alright. Like every year, we had fun here, and it was great meeting all of your friends."
"And everyone liked meeting you guys, too," Bayley said. "I just wish you guys could stay a bit longer. I really hate that this is the only time of the year I get to see you guys."
"Don't worry, baby girl," Jimmy said, resting a hand on the brunette's head. "We'll try to come visit again soon."
"Yeah. Sooner than Bayley'll think," Dean mumbled, which earned him an elbow to the side from Seth.
"I hope so." Bayley pulled away from Naomi. "I can't wait until you guys come back."
"We can't wait either," Naomi smiled. Taking hold of Jimmy's hand, Naomi said "We'll see y'all later" as she waved at everyone.
"Bye, Auntie Naomi! Bye, Uncle Jimmy!" Bayley said as she waved at the older Gems with Seth and Dean doing the same.
Once Naomi and Jimmy had left, Seth said "Alright, Bayley. Time to get ready for bed."
"OK, Seth," Bayley said. Walking over to Seth and giving him a hug, Bayley said "Thanks again for throwing me such a great birthday party. I really enjoyed it."
"No problem, Bayley." Seth hugged Bayley back. "Just seeing you enjoy yourself was the best thing about it."
"And, I did," Bayley said as she hugged Dean. "I'd better go get ready for bed." Dashing away from the other Gems, Bayley grabbed her Michelangelo plushie and ran up the stairs to her "bedroom", the memories of her birthday party still fresh in her mind.
...
Holding Naomi's hand as they walked away together, Jimmy said "You know we were supposed to tell Bayley about us this year."
"I know, Jimmy, I know. I...I just couldn't." Naomi ran a hand through her braids. "After everything that happened with Bayley, I just didn't know how she'd take the news."
"Probably fairly well, I reckon," Jimmy grinned. "After all, it's us and Roman. Knowing Bayley, she would've been so surprised."
"I know," Naomi smiled. "Don't worry. We can tell her next year. Maybe sooner than that, if the occasion presents itself. Promise."
"That's my girl." Jimmy's grin softened into a smile as he pulled Naomi into his arms and gave his fellow Gem a hug akin to the ones Bayley would greet them with. Feeling a warmth spread through him and seeing a light blue glow start to envelop him and the braided Gem, Jimmy smiled as he planted a kiss on Naomi's forehead as the glow completely enveloped the pair. This glow now enveloping the two, their forms could be seen melding into one as the person left standing in the field the two Gems once were in was Roman, arms outstretched, eyes closed and with a smile on his face.
Looking down at the white and blue Gems embedded in the palms of his hands, Roman thought 'Soon, Bayley. Soon, I'll tell you all about me. And what I really am' as the moonlight caught the surfaces of the Gems and the stones glimmered in the night.
And (like I said above), thus ends the Bayley's Birthday arc of Bayley's Universe. While I didn't really go into the most detail with Bayley's birthday party, I feel like I hit some of the high points on just what would come in a 13 year old's birthday party...and, what a nice birthday party it was. =) Now, I hope you guys all liked the surprise at the end of Naomi and Jimmy being Gems that fuse into Roman. I had Garnet on the mind as I was writing them (plus, I actually tossed around the idea of Roman actually being a fusion of Naomi and Jimmy with xXLadyRachelXx...thanks for the idea here, dear), so I feel I did fairly well introducing my first fusion into this. ^^ Now, until my next arc, don't forget to R&R please. =)
(I don't know for sure if I'll be able to start my proposed Halloween-esque arc for this like I planned, what with Halloween coming so soon...so, if anything, I'll probably just move on to my next arc soon (...that I'm still ironing out details of...it might or might not be spooky(ish) in nature, still undecided).)
