A Shared Burrow

Much like the cherrubuns only recently joined the succubuns underground, as was Cocoa rounding out his first year in Burrowgatory. And with new guests came the new tradition of Cherubmus. Last year, Cocoa was still a bitty bun, only months away from setting foot into the bustling  cityscape.

In their year, he's learned how to live amonst the other succubuns and more so with the cherrubuns who now called the burrow their home. While many of the succubuns are newly introduced to the cherrubuns, they were just a normal everyday thing for him at this point.

Unlike many other new buns, Cocoa didn't have much of a helpful hand to get them started upon arriving in Burrowgatory as an adult almost a year ago. Sure, he grew to have friends and couch-surfed for a few months - in fact, he only got an apartment and a steady job near the end of summer - but there wasn't a mentor or someone to teach him about how to navagate.

Interestingly enough, he'd spend a good amount of time with the also-new cherrubuns in their gardens. At the very least, it was a comfortable place to sit and think in peace. All of the cherrubuns that he met were also more than kind when a few rough days came and went.

But Cocoa was more than excited to learn that their anniversary would now be celebrated together at Cherubmus all together. Well, perhaps not entirely together to begin with. This is the first holiday together for all buns in Burrowgatory, including him. But before the festivities can truly begin, Cocoa would have to decorate his tiny - but new and very loved - apartment.

While Beans, his favorite little loafki, did his best to relax in his favorite spot by the window, Cocoa would begin the hard work of cleaning up the apartment. Sure the place wasn't really able to hold more than a few buns and even less dolls in one spot, but he wanted to make it work for the small amount of friends who he had gathered over the past year.

Not to mention, he would be breaking out the crafts and making his own wreath!

He was pretty excited about making one too. A few pieces of holy holly managed to land in his capable hands, while the rest would be made out of folliage found in Burrowgatory. A perfect metaphor for the holiday - a perfect mixing of both sides of buns down here.

A few of the cherrubuns were excited to cultivate one of their holy plants down here. He remembers sitting in the open space of the garden with a few excited cherrubuns exstatically explaining and showing off how they weaved the branches together. Urging him and any other succubuns visiting to try it for themselves. Not everyone was as excited as Cocoa was, and he was glad to shared what he learned with some of his craftier friends.

The motion was pretty repetitive, but simple enough for someone like them to master. With the apartment quickly cleaned, Cocoa would find a spot on their secondhand couch and gather up the branches they had to try and make something even half as beautiful as the cherrubuns had made in the garden.

All of them had been so friendly and encouraging, he just wanted to be able to show that he learned something from them. Most were a simple text away, and he was excited to show off his mixed wreath to them the next time he visited as a thanks for being able to take some of the holy holly with him.

Beans moved to find a comfortable spot as the TV played low in the background. Carefully, they weaved the branches in and out between one another. It was a bit difficult at first, and frustrating if any slid out of place. But over a few hours time, Cocoa was able to get a base set up to be decorated. The branches weren't anything as beautiful as what the cherrubuns grew, but it was green and lush with some spots of pure white leaves poking through.

The tips of his fingers felt as if they'd blister by the end of it, but he was left with a perfectly rounded wreath, decorated with some golden twine weaving in and out and tied together at the top with an admittably subpar bow. Still, words couldn't describe how proud he was of it. Going from the garden where his hands were guided by the cherrubuns, to creating his own without the need of their help.

Maybe next year, he will have perfected it enough to be able to make some for his own friends.

With a smile, Cocoa set up a few photo ops for his new wreath. Beans would begrudgingly have to deal with having it put around his head at least twice before Cocoa found a place to hang it on his wall over the TV. One last selfie with it hanging, with a few gold streamers clung to the wall with tape and a text that read, 'Merry Cherubmus everyone!'