One was suspicious. It was plain to see when Nine or Five were secretly planning something; they were hardly inconspicuous, but everything seemed too calm. Two had insisted that they should do something for his 'birthday' despite his protests, but everything seemed quiet. Nobody had even mentioned the topic and he was suspecting something was up. Something was always up.

That's how he found himself standing outside the workshop. He hadn't the slightest clue what to do or say. He was afraid he'd sound desperate. Nonetheless, he knocked on the door. All movement from behind the door stilled suddenly, and the door creaked open ever so slightly. Two peeked out from behind the door, looking up at One with surprise.

"What are you doing here?"

One didn't really know what to say. He stood there, lamely, as Two waited for a response. He swallowed, thickly, and opened his mouth.

"What are you planning?" He asked. He tried to make it sound as cocky and condescending as possible, but it sort of came out as a whisper. Two raised an eyebrow, clearly interested by this confrontation. He stepped out from behind the door and closed it behind him.

"Why? What makes you think we're planning anything?" Two responded. Normally, that would be enough to prove that they were hiding something, but he said it with such sincerity he almost backed down.

"You seemed very adamant to celebrate my...ahem, 'birthday'." He lifted his hands to make 'air quotes'. "Since it seems like I can't stop you, I decided to come and see what you'd have planned." He stated in a matter-of-factly tone. Two smiled slyly.

"So you are interested in this?" He asked, with a knowing expression. One frowned. "Not in the slightest," He deadpanned, "I just want to make sure you don't go overboard. It's embarrassing enough that you're set on celebrating." He shifted, uncomfortably.

Two smiled softly, placing a hand on his shoulder. "I promise, we won't go overboard. I know you like your privacy." He promised. One shook off his hand, still looking unconvinced. Two knew he couldn't say anything to convince the older stitchpunk, so he slinked back into the workshop, shooting One a quick glance, before closing the door, leaving him stood there. He stood in silence, contemplating the situation, before moping off.

Meanwhile, Two listened to make sure he was out of earshot, before turning to Nine and Five, who both held an expression like a deer in headlights. Two nodded slightly, indicating One had left, before Five let out a sigh of relief as he placed his hammer on the workbench.

"For a moment, I thought he was going to find out what we were doing." He said, stretching his arm joints and inspecting their work in progress. Nine took the time to flop down onto the cot that was pushed far into the corner of the workshop. "Are you sure he'll like this?" He asked, concern painted over his features. It seemed like an odd gift to give him.

Two sat down beside Nine, with a satisfactory smile. "I know he will. Did I not explain why?" He tilted his head, looking up at the younger stitchpunk. Both Nine and Five shook their heads simultaneously.

"Well...back when One and I were the very first of our kind, we had yet to venture out into the world. I doubt our Creator wanted to let us go so soon, and One certainly wasn't eager to run out into that wreckage." He gave a soft chuckle.

"So we spent some time in the First Room, with the Creator. He had many, many hobbies and, when he wasn't busy planning the creation of the rest of you, we'd beg him to play the piano for us."

His gaze flickered over to the pile of wooden pieces on the floor, that were now beginning to take the shape of something bigger. It was a big, flat box shape on legs at the moment, but once Two had found the remaining parts, it would become so much more.

"I don't think One would ever admit it to the rest of you, but he always wanted to play. Of course, that was hardly possible considering the size of the thing. We could sit on each of the individual keys and he'd still be able to play Beethoven. Come to think of it, I think that was a game we used to play..." He trailed slightly, before laughing.

"So this'll give him a chance to play..." Nine stood up, giving the work in progress a pat. Two nodded. "That's the general idea, yes. I asked Six if he could copy some sheet music onto a smaller piece of paper for us, so he'll have something to play." He got to his feet. "I think it's time to get back to work. We don't have long." The other two nodded silently in agreement, before getting back to work.


One awoke the next morning to the sound of shifting. His optics flickered and his mouth opened, ready to verbally lash out at the person who was disturbing him at such an ungodly hour in the morning.

Two was sat on the edge of his bed, staring out the window. One assumed he'd been sat there a while, waiting for him to awake. It was a slightly chilling thought.

When Two noticed that One was somewhat awake and looking very confused, he beamed. "Good Morning, One." He said, giving no indication of explaining just why he had been sat on the end of his bed. "Hurry up and get up already!"

One stared at him darkly. "And why should I?" He was obviously in a foul mood now because of this entire situation, but Two merely rolled his optics, before gesturing to a small calendar that had been fixated onto the stone wall. Six had been kind enough to draw smaller calendars for those who wanted one and had even included birthdays on them as well. (Despite being quiet, he found the whole idea to be very exciting.)

One stared at the calendar blankly, trying to register the information. Two watched him, waiting for the point where the penny dropped. After a few moments, his scowl had turned into a neutral expression, then a slightly surprised one, before settling down into an indifferent one. There it was.

"It's...!" Two prompted him, with a grin.

"...my birthday." One sighed, swinging his legs out over the side of his bed. Of course Two would invade his room for some stupid birthday. He figured there was no point resisting it; the old inventor was very persistent in very strange ways. Hopefully, the old fool hadn't gone overboard...

Two, himself, got to his feet and coaxed One out the room. There had better not be any shouting or surprises. He was feeling more anxious as they made their way to the main hall. He felt like he was on a walk of shame; why was this so embarrassing for him?

It was easy to mistake One as an attention hog of sorts. In actuality, he liked having authority and control over any situation, rather than attention. Sure, he was a little flamboyant in his fashion sense, but that in itself was also a matter of asserting his authority.

When they finally reached the main hall, One could see a few stitchpunks were missing. The stitchpunks that were in the hall, made an effort not to look up. One knew they were doing it on purpose, but he was grateful in a way. The only one who did pay any attention, was his hulking guard, Eight, who also had Six trailing behind him.

Eight gave him a friendly pat on the back. "Happy Birthday, boss." He muttered, and Six nodded. One could've sworn his entire body malfunctioned in that second, but he found himself being grateful towards the guard. If there was anybody he appreciated a 'Happy Birthday' from, it was Eight. The two headed off to other side of the hall, leaving the two older stitchpunks alone.

"That wasn't so bad now, was it?" Two nudged One in the side, and One huffed. Two merely laughed in response, before adding, "Oh yes, Happy Birthday, One." One wanted to whack him in the shoulder, but instead he followed the inventor, shaking his head.

He was right, though. This wasn't as bad as he thought it would be. Two had obviously forewarned the others, and they were making an effort to keep it as normal as possible. That alone could've just been his birthday present and he'd happily accept that. Unfortunately, it didn't seem like Two was going to.

"Where are we going?" One asked, as Two led them further towards the back of the hall, behind the mountain of books. "It was impossible for Five, Nine and I to move your present to your room; that would be a job for Eight, later, so we decided to hide it back here." Two stopped, suddenly, before turning around to face One.

"Here, why don't you go and see. I'll be over with the others in the meantime." And with that, he trundled off. One watched him leave, before turning his attention to the looming shadow behind the books. He peered out behind the books to find...

He could've sworn he felt something inside his body drop like a rock.

A piano?

He crept out from behind the books and approached the small piano with caution. There was no doubt that this was handmade, most likely by Two, Nine and Five. Damnit, he told Two not to go overboard with this! But he couldn't help but gaze wistfully at the piano. It was incredibly well crafted, he'd give him that.

He sat down, seeing as the piano came with it's own stool, before lifting the lid. Beneath the lid was a stack of paper with a small card on top. The stack of paper was sheet music to some classic tunes, courtesy of Six, he could tell. He ripped open the card and read the inside.

It merely had 'Happy Birthday' scribbled inside, but around it were the signatures of the others. It wasn't anything fancy or over the top, but it was...nice. He had a sudden thought of the others using Six's finger to write their number and he almost chuckled out loud. He set down the paper, and turned his attention back to the piano.

The keys were solid white and shining in the dim light of the hall. It looked so enticing, but if he were to play any notes, he'd surely draw the attention of the others. The last thing he wanted were the others crowding around him.

Whatever. It was his birthday. He could have this.

His fingers gingerly grazed over the keys, before pressing down firmly, releasing a solid note. It sounded lovely. It took him back to his days in the Scientist's workshop. That old piano that stood in the corner, covered in dust. How he longed to play it himself, and now, he had that opportunity.

Before he knew it, his fingers were dancing over the keys, tapping out a random tune. He didn't realised how wrapped up he'd become in the instrument, until Two cleared his throat in an attention-seeking manner. His head snapped up to see the inventor standing a little ways away from him. One put his head in his hands, waiting for the playful jab that Two had ready.

"Do you like it?"

One looked up suddenly. Two was smiling at him gently. He limped over, and took a seat beside the leader, inspecting his latest work.

"Do you like it?"

"..."

"I like it very much. Thank you." He mumbled. Two couldn't stop the grin spreading across his face. He leant to the side and rested his head on One's shoulder. "I'm glad you like it. I thought very hard about it." One visibly stiffened.

"You didn't have to do this." He muttered. Two tutted, and smiled shyly. "I thought you'd appreciate it." He drew back, before pressing a small kiss to the leader's cheek. One choked slightly, and Two stood up to leave.

"The twins have invented a new game to play, so I'm going to join them. Are...you coming?" He held out his hand. One stared at his hand cautiously, before sighing defeatedly and taking it.

"I'll watch, if it's all the same with you."

"Of course."


I couldn't help myself, the 1x2 feelings were too strong, I'm sorry.