Flumptober 2023

October 30th - Angst/fluff

A continuation of The Cold/Monsters from earlier :D

I might actually name these and then put the prompts down below right here so that y'all kind of know what you're getting into? Maybe? And also to keep track of them better?

We'll see. It does mean that I'll have to repost alllll of these, so that might be a hassle.

Ah well, you didn't come here for my random brainstorming _xD

Fair warning, it's a long one. I got a little carried away lol, I just love these two so much xD

- - - 

When Jimmy returned to consciousness the next morning, the feeling of the warm bed and the comfort of the soft blanket covering him immediately banished any suspicion of dreaming. The bed was so comfortable that Jimmy was reluctant to get up, just wanting to stay right where he was forever, but the guilt of being a burden to Tango, who was so generously hosting him, overcame him, and he forced himself to get up.

 As he stood, Jimmy noticed a chair by the door, all by itself. Taking a closer look, the canary noticed that the chair held a bundle of fabric and a small slip of paper. Curious, Jimmy tip-tapped over and picked up the paper. It was a note from Tango, reading: Good morning. This is a change of clothes that you can wear while I wash your wet ones. -T Smiling thankfully at Tango's continued generosity, Jimmy quickly changed into the offered clothes, hefted his wet ones in his arms, and left the bedroom in search of his host. The cabin wasn't overly large, but there were a lot of closed doors that Jimmy was afraid to snoop through. Thankfully, the soft sounds of humming saved Jimmy from the embarrassment of fruitless searching, and the golden-winged one followed it into a quaint little kitchen. 

There, Tango was stirring a soup pot while it simmered on the stove. From his position in the doorway, Jimmy took the opportunity to examine his host closer, as he hadn't been awake enough to do so last night. Other than the fire hair and the red eyes, Tango's ears were longer and pointer than a normal human's, and his teeth looked sharp. His legs, though partially covered by long black pants, resembled those of a deer, but instead of fur, ash-colored, almost scaly skin covered them. His legs ended in two small, delicate-looking, cloven feet, possibly hooves, which tapped and shuffled in time to the tune Tango was humming. A long thin tail with a tiny flame at the end flickered and swayed behind him as he hummed. When the tune came to an end, Jimmy knocked gently on the doorframe to let Tango know of his presence. 

The man with fire hair turned and waved, gesturing for Jimmy to enter. "Good morning handsome. You sleep well?" Tango greeted, smiling warmly in welcome. Jimmy flushed at the unexpected compliment, his feathers fluffing up bashfully. "Y-yeah. Best sleep I've had in a while. H-has the blizzard stopped yet?" He stammered. Tango smiled slightly at the canary's flustered nature, but let it go to save him any more embarrassment. "Nope. It's still raging." The fire-haired imp answered, striding over to the window and pulling back the curtain so that Jimmy could see for himself. 

The canary's wings drooped in dismay at the sound of the howling wind and the multiple sinister shadows visible from the window. "I'm so sorry. I said I'd leave as soon as the blizzard was over, I didn't think it'd last this long." Tango shrugged, closing the window and walking over to where Jimmy had placed his wet clothes bundle. "Storms up here are abnormally powerful. Most only last a couple of days, but I've had one that lasted a week and a half." He said, picking up the wet clothes and dumping them in a washbasket for later. 

Jimmy shot him a skeptical glance, sitting down in a chair next to the door. "You're joking." Tango shook his head. "Mm mm. The stupid blizzard killed everything in a two-thousand-block radius, almost including me. The cold alone couldn't kill me, but my farms were shot. I almost starved." Jimmy nodded, slightly chastised as he fidgeted with one of his feathers. "Looks like you're stuck with me, heh." He muttered with a bitter laugh. Tango shrugged, leaning against the doorframe. "I don't mind. It can get quite terribly lonely up here at times, so I welcome any and all company." Jimmy looked up, his eyebrows furrowed in slight concern. "Why do you stay up here, if it's so lonely for you?" He caught himself and bowed his head in apology. "Sorry if that's too personal, you don't have to answer-" "Because it's safer for everyone else." Tango interrupted, quieting the canary. Jimmy stayed silent, waiting to see if the imp-like man would elaborate. 

After a moment, Tango continued. "The cold temperatures up here regulate my body heat. Usually, just a touch to my bare skin causes something to burst into flame, whether I want it to or not. I've accidentally burned down a couple of villages. I've hurt people... it's better if I stay up here so that no one gets hurt." Tango explained, avoiding Jimmy's eyes. The canary smiled sympathetically, resting his head in his hands. "I get it. But y'know, it would be nice if you had some actual company." Tango smiled sadly, nodding. "Yeah. It would be nice." 

There was silence for a moment, then Jimmy nodded suddenly as if he'd decided on something. "Alright then. If it's okay with you, I'd like to stay here for a little longer, even when the blizzard ends." Tango jerked in surprise, his fire hair and tail flaring up with the strong emotion. "What?" He exclaimed, his red eyes wide in shock. Jimmy shrugged, shuffling his feet as his wings fluffed up bashfully. "I mean, you're lonely, right? I don't really have anywhere I need to be, and... well, I like this place. Feels like home." He mumbled, his face turning pink. A bright grin spread over Tango's face as Jimmy's words processed, and the fire imp had to be very careful not to burst into flames. "You can stay as long as you want to. Thank you." He finally said once he'd gathered himself a little bit. 

Jimmy looked up and relaxed at the blatant joy visible on Tango's face. "No problem. Don't want you to be miserable up here, that'd be a poor way to repay my generous host." Jimmy teased, lightening the atmosphere. Tango snorted, crossing his arms. "Please. While being alone for too long sucks, it takes way more than that to get me down." He shot back, and Jimmy grinned mischievously. "Oh really? Like what?" He teased. Tango smirked. "The freezing cold, the effort it takes to make warm food, the annoyance of water freezing all the time, the mobs clawing at my door all night. Still wanna stay?" He challenged. Jimmy's smile didn't waver. "Too late, you said I could stay, you're stuck with me now." The canary proclaimed smugly. Tango's smirk softened into a genuine smile. "Wouldn't have it any other way, handsome. Now, are you going to help me with breakfast or not?" 

- - - 

I did warn you x,D

Congrats to all those who made it to the end :D

I'm gonna skip the last prompt, cuz no inspiration yet, so this is officially the last Flumptober oneshot 

Again, I might go back and do some of the prompts I skipped if inspiration for a particular one strikes.

Definitely going back and naming all of them at some point, so stick around if you wanna see that.

Thank you for reading!

- Vee

Word Count: 1290 words