Chapter Text
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prrrr....
"...D(@&¥) it. Thumb in the way again."
Shoving the poor excuse for a photo into one of her coat pockets, the frog woman raises her camera back up to one eye.
"Stop having fat thumbs and it wouldn't be such a problem, Croak-Face."
At the mocking insult, Ribbit slowly turns to her brother and gives him a fake smile, poorly hiding her annoyance.
"Shut up, Energizer Bunny."
She faintly hears the rabbit man snort, but she doesn't think too much about it. She's too busy trying to focus on keeping her (fine, I'll admit it... very fat) thumbs out of the way.
Confident the shot is now in full view, she traces her camera up toward the top of the snowy slope- and instantly shudders at a fresh memory. It'd been years (how many now, even?) since she had attempted to ski, and just minutes ago she was comically reminded of how much she sucked at it. Even here in the circus, she was no better off than she had been as a human.
While she was just trying to keep a firm, awkward hold on her ski poles and stay standing upright, the others excelled. Kaufmo could slide at a decent speed. Ragatha and Gangle were both great at weaving around the scattered trees like they weren't even obstacles. Even rage-quitting Zooble and crazy old man Kinger had picked up on the proper technique of confidently staying on the skiboards...
And then, of course, there was Jax, who was a master at it all.
He had glided down the snowy hill with ease in that annoying show-off way of his. Expertly leaning right and left to avoid any and all obstacles, he repeatedly went at a speed that made Ribbit dizzy. So when he'd come to a stop and sprayed an extra bit of snow over an impressed Ragatha for the fourth time in a row, the frog woman was well over this part of the adventure.
And now said annoyance was sitting beside her and smirking at her. Just like always.
Stupid Jax... he's always been better at sports than I was, she mentally whined with a jealous eye roll, thankful her camera hides it from view. Well, and with Ragatha around, he's gotta act like a moron even more than he already does. Ugh. Men.
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"Ooh, I got a good shot of Gangle missing that cedar!" she exclaims, excitedly showing her lackadaisical brother the printed photo as she sits beside him. "It's got perfect contrast and everything!"
She expects a 'well done' or at least a impressed nod in agreement. Instead, her brother's eyes go half-lidded, making her wince. She knows that look like the back of her green hands.
"You're having way more fun taking pictures than you did skiing, aren't ya, Miss Fried Legs?"
"No, never~," she sarcastically snips back, her own eyes going half-lidded. "And I told you not to call me that."
"Hence why I'm calling you that."
Ugh. Correction. Big brothers.
As she wipes off her lens with her mittened thumb, her peripheral vision catches him stretching out his legs. All at once, he wiggles his bare toes and smiles. A real smile- making Ribbit wince a bit in guilt.
I shouldn't rag on him too much, she decides with pity. I'm sure it does feel good to do whatever he wants again sports-wise after-
She cuts herself off and makes herself enjoy the moment with him. In fact...
"Want to take a selfie?"
He snorts at her bubbly invite and pulls his legs close to him- that smile on his face warming her straight to her core.
"Do I have a choice?"
"No. Now shut up and scoot closer."
He rolls his eyes but instantly obeys, shifting to sit close to her. He attempts bunny ears on her, but a quick elbow to the ribs stops him in his tracks.
The siblings beam up at the camera and-
Click.
FLASH!
prrr...
"Okay, how in the h(€!!) did you manage to get your fat thumbs in the way again?"
Gawking, Ribbit gives him a playful shove.
"At least my fat head doesn't nearly block my own sibling from being seen!"
His smirk drops into a look of serious concern. He tilts his head, leaning closer to her. Suddenly, his eyebrows rise.
"Wow... you're right," he finally muses outloud. "You really do have a fat head."
The frog woman starts to shove his face deep into the snow for being annoying, but she controls herself. Especially when he sighs in that content, happy way that makes her feel happy and content too.
Taking her eyes off him, Ribbit looks out over the area- and an even happier grin returns. Crisp white snow litters the ground, so bright it almost hurts to look at beneath the clear blue sky. There are tracks of different sizes and shapes sprinkled throughout it, but mostly it's untouched. Squared in the middle of the vast landscape is the log cabin, light brown with light smoke spilling from the chimney. Her favorite part is the snow-capped cedar trees peppered along the expanse, and in the far distance are even a few faded cartoon mountains.
If she didn't know any better, she'd swear it all almost (just almost) looked real.
Caine really outdid himself this year! She can't help but think in awe. Each year the landscape gets better and more immersive! And this is coming from a girl who's never been too fond of winter!
"So... you think next year you won't suck so bad at skiing?"
At his jab, Ribbit turns to glare at him. Jax's golden eyes are shining with an infectious light- and a growing fondness he only ever looked at her with.
"Probably not," she admits, pulling her knees to her chest. She snorts and shutters. "Unless by some miracle I become more coordinated in the span of a year."
"And that'll never happen," he jokes, scooting closer to her. In a moment of tenderness, he takes off his coat and slips it around her shoulders, giving her a warm side hug. "At least you take great photos."
"That's all I got going for me," she jokes back, immediately taking off the offered coat and putting it back around his bare shoulders. A smirk of her own appears as she narrows her eyes his way. "Other than my arm in swinging snowballs. Imma crush you guys later."
"In your dreams, Peanut."
Smiling widely, Ribbit slowly stands up. Her back and legs are a bit sore from too many failed attempts to stay steady on flimsy skis, but she pretends not to notice.
"Wait, where are the others?" she asks curiously as she peers back toward the now-bare slopes. "Now I don't see anyone-"
"Including Kaufmo?" Jax annoyingly finishes as he stands up and elbows her. He wiggles his eyebrows her way and waves his palms in the air with fake innocence. "Your little-"
Face hotter than fire, Ribbit yelps and scrambles toward him. She's incredibly annoyed that she has to stand on her tiptoes just to slam two hands over her irritating brother's mouth. God, some things will never change.
"Would you shut up?!" she growls through her teeth and under her breath. She frantically looks around them- her eyes wide with a hilarious mix of anger, panic, and embarrassment. "He could hear you!"
Her brother just rolls his eyes and gently pushes her hands from his mouth, failing to see the urgency. No surprise there.
"Oh right, I forgot," he mocks, looking up in fake thought- clearly happy he's getting the reaction he wants. "You aren't ready to 'confess your love' for him or whatever the crap you write in your diary."
His startling revelation makes her jaw nearly hits the snowy floor. Forget angry; now she's simply pissed.
"Okay, first off," she begins bitterly, counting off on her fingers, "what were you doing in my room?!"
"Oh, you know," he gives a bogus stretch and flashes her a smirk, "being little ol' me-"
"An annoying big brother?!"
"Heh. Exactly."
The frog woman huffs through her teeth and slams a hand over her face. She gets a bit of loose snow from her mitten in her mouth, but she's too angry to care.
"Second of all, little girls have diaries. Adults have therapy journals," she hisses as if it were obvious, ignoring the deppening blush taking over her face. "And reading them without invitation is an invasion of privacy!"
Her mature defense doesn't have the reaction she had hoped. Jax just busts out laughing, nearly buckling at the knees with his over-the-top cackling. God, he's quickly getting that pesky 'older sibling' complex I can't stand.
"Well, first of all," he mocks her tone and starts to count fingers himself, "there's no such thing as privacy when you have siblings, Ribs. You know this. And second off, do therapy journals often have stars and planets doodled in them?"
She smugly crosses her arms and rolls her eyes- forcing herself not to care.
"Were you expecting flowers and rainbows? Because you know that's not me, Beanstalk."
Rolling his own eyes, Jax breaks his stance and loops an arm around her neck. Despite her feeble pushing him away, he pulls her close to his chest to give her a gentle noogie and a soft, quick head kiss.
"Yeah, I know, Peanut."
Ribbit pretends to be annoyed as Jax finally lets go and she stumbles backward. She instantly seethes, though, as he plucks off her red snow beanie and holds the cap far above her. Knowing it's pointless, she tries to jump and reach it. Why does he have to be a good two feet taller than me even here in the circus?!
"Give that back, Jax!"
"Or what?" he teases, somehow holding the hat higher and crumpling it more. Suddenly, his eyes go soft as he eyes the object, nostalgia and sentimentality filling his face. "God, I missed this..."
The frog woman slows her hopping until she's standing before him. She feels her angry mouth twitch as she tries (and fails) to hide her own smile.
Yeah...I have, too.
But you don't need to know that.
"So glad my torment is your enjoyment," she pretends to snap as she starts jumping again. "Now please give it back!"
"You gotta throw a fit?" he eggs on. "Pout?"
Seeing she is getting nowhere, Ribbit growls in annoyance. She stops hopping and stomps a foot- hating how childish she is being. Worst yet, feeling.
As he smirks down at her, though, an idea comes to mind. No... I'll use your own crush against you.
She backs away, shoving her hands into her red coat pockets. Feigning a disinterested shrug, she walks forward.
"It's a shame. Ragatha made that for me, ya know," she muses as she peers over her shoulder- loving how quickly his ears twitch at the name. "She'll be sad to find out you're tearing it-"
Oof!
Not looking where she's going, the clumsy frog girl trips over an abandoned snowshoe and face-plants into the snowy ground.
Behind her, Jax explodes in laughter. When she slowly lifts her head and spits out the white powder, she groans upon hearing his guffaws only grow louder.
"Nice try, Flat Foot," he mocks as he bends down and gently helps her stand up. "You know as much as I do that Ragatha's crocheted stuff is nearly indestructible. Also, hope you had a nice trip."
Her eyes half-lidded to reveal her annoyance, the frog woman wipes the snow off her face. As she turns and bends down to swipe the powder from her bare legs, she hears Jax doing something behind her but pays it no mind. She does, however, hear him clear his throat. Oh God, what now?
"But if it's that important to you, here's your hat back."
She nearly leaps out of her skin as Jax slams the red cap back onto her head- this time full of compacted snow. It rains down her back, sending fresh chills throughout her body.
"You- you- UGH!" she stutters and yells at the top of her lungs. She heaves as her brother snickers and darts away from her soft punches to his shoulder. "Why are you like this?!"
"Two words. Big brother laws."
"That's three words, genius," she spits, shaking the freezing snow off her back. "I'm shocked you could even read and let alone comprehend my journal."
"Diary."
Resisting the urge to slug him, the frog woman starts to walk forward. Jax instantly loops his arm around her neck again, but this time just pulls her close as they walk. Passing by the forgotten snowshoe and the embarrassment hole her whole body had made in the snow, the rabbit snickers again and rubs his invisible nose against the side of her head.
"Your head really is fat, you know."
"At least it's not an empty lot like yours-"
Pop!
Just before them, Caine appears into thin air, startling the siblings backward. Jax loses his balance, lets go of his sister, and stumbles back over the snowshoe, crashing into the ground. Ribbit starts to laugh but stops the second she sees the rabbit sit up and rub the back of his head in pain.
She worriedly rushes to his side and softly examines him for any real injuries, her hands gently rubbing over the back of his head. She has barely looked him over when Jax gently shakes his head and pushes her gloved hands away, his golden eyes and appreciative smile saying one thing. I'm okay, Peanut. I promise.
Completely oblivious to the fact he'd accidentally knocked the rabbit man backward, the ringmaster before them just waves his arms in excitement.
"THERE you both are!" Caine booms loudly as the frog woman helps her brother stand up. "I've been looking EVERYWHERE for you both-"
"Why?" Jax instantly hisses, wiping the snow from his backside as Ribbit helps dust him off. "Where else would we be but here?"
"Well, the others are all gathered by the cabin," the showman answers, waving his cane toward the log building. He enthusiastically shakes with joy. "The awards ceremony is about to begin, and-"
"Great," Jax sarcastically mocks with an eye roll. "We've all been waiting for that all day-"
The ringmaster gasps, fingers gripping his lower jaw in shock.
"Really?" he yells in amazement, hovering way too close to the rabbit's face and nearly making Jax stumble backward again. His voice climbs in giddiness with each word- and unfortunately, he zooms in even closer to the sibling pair. "Because so have I! The awards are crafted from top-tier material, and I've concocted far more categories than last year! Everyone will get a medal, and-"
"Okay, okay! We get it!" Jax finally cries, giving the ringmaster an annoyed push backward. He softly grabs his sister's hand and weaves around the ringmaster, pulling Ribbit behind him. "We're heading there now-"
"Oh, no need!" Caine announces- and with a snap of his fingers, the three of them teleport before the log cabin where the others stand.
After getting her bearing, Ribbit takes a moment to run her eyes over the gang- instantly perceiving they are all just as annoyed or disinterested as Jax is.
Zooble and Gangle are standing off to one side and making small talk, making Ribbit smile. At least they're chatting instead of just blushing in each other's presence. One step above me and my flirting, I guess.
Kaufmo is sitting on the ground, tracing bored circles in the snow with one finger while his chin rests against his other hand. The frog woman feels her heart race and her eyes flutter. Gosh, he looks so cute with his blue earmuffs! Gotta include that in my dia- er, journal.
Even Ragatha is pursing her lips and having to put extra force behind her 'oh yes, this is interesting- tight smile. Oh, you know it's bad whenever RaggaMuffin can bearly hide her annoyance well.
Eyebrows pinched, Ribbit peers around until she sees Kinger staring at something only he can see, per the norm. He is standing by a small pine tree- which Jax devilishly smirks at and dashes over to hide behind. He hits against the low branches to knock the snow off, but hilariously, the plan only backfires when the snow rains down on the rabbit. Hiding her mouth behind her hand, Ribbit giggles under her breath when the chess piece asks a frustrated and flabbergasted Jax what happened.
"Gather round, my winter wonder winners!" Caine suddenly claps his oversized hands loudly, beckoning them close. A microphone appears in the air, which he catches with ease. When he speaks, a small feedback squeal rings out with his already loud voice. "We've got awards to hand out!"
Ribbit barely hears some of the others grumble as the ringmaster snaps his fingers again and a podium appears with three different leveled tiers. A small gold symbol is engraved at the base of the top tier, then a silver one in the middle, then bronze with the shortest tier.
Huh, I thought everyone got an award this year, she can't help but think. At the memory of her on the bunny slope, she writhes. Though I'm sure even Caine, in all his creativity, couldn't come up with a suitable award for my loser self.
"This podium is for the top winners of the main category tonight," Caine explains into the mic, hovering above each tier before sweeping over the group. "The rest will be handed their winning medals for their categories."
"Can we hurry this along?" Jax calls out as he approaches Ribbit's side, resting an elbow on her shoulder. "I've got a cat to shave after this."
When Caine tilts his head in confusion, Ribbit instantly elbows her brother's side.
"Don't be rude," she hisses under her breath.
"Don't be Mom," he hisses back.
The ringmaster still looks befuddled, but shakes it off as he digs into his red and black coat pocket. He pulls out a slip of paper like it's a grand reveal and turns to Bubble, his trusty sidekick ever floating at his side.
"To begin, let's give Bubble a round of applause!" the ringmaster acknowledges, humbly clapping himself. "He's done a fabulous job collecting data for me to form these categories."
Caine's lone claps seem painfully loud as everyone stands in silence. Eyeing the group, Ribbit slowly starts to polite clap, earning an annoyed side-eye from her brother.
"Now, give me a drum roll, would ya, Bubble?" the showman encourages with a grin. As the sphere opens its huge mouth and drumming sounds out, Caine clears his throat and reads from the top of his paper. "The gold medal for best skiing goes to..."
He looks up dramatically and points his cane toward the rabbit of the group.
"Our very own Jax!"
Grand, uplifting crescendo music starts to sound around them, bouncing off the snow and echoing even louder. They all watch and give lighthearted claps as the pompous rabbit smirks and struts his way up the podium.
Bubble hovers close by and, sticking out his tongue, produces a gold medal necklace. Invisible hands slip it over the rabbit's head as Caine hovers beside him.
"Would you like to thank the audience tonight?" he asks into the mic before Jax rashly takes it from him.
"Thank you, thank you all," Jax crows loudly and waves gracefully. He points specifically to Ragatha and winks. "Stick around, and I might just sign autographs later."
Taking the mic back, Caine scans his page again.
"The runner-up goes to... Ragatha!"
Beside the frog woman, the ragdoll gasps and makes her way to the second tier. Jax loudly leads the claps and whistles as she stands before him.
"Oh, wow! I didn't expect to win!" Ragatha answers into the mic. "Thank you!"
As the ragdoll curtsies, Ribbit bites back an annoyed groan. She wants to believe it's frustration at the disingenuousness of the gesture- but she knows deep down it's really jealousy.
Rags, I love ya, but you're doing that irritating thing again where you're pretending to be shocked but really aren't, the frog still can't help but think as the silver medal is slipped over the doll woman's head. You were keeping up with Jax the best earlier, so duh, you'd win. No need to be 'humble' now.
"Third place," Caine announces, capturing her attention again as he looks at his paper, "goes to... Miss Gangle! Come on up here, my ravenous ribboned record holder!"
At the news, Gangle blushes and makes her way up to the last tier, everyone giving her a considerate round of applause. As the ribbon girl stands awkwardly on the bottom podium, Ribbit glances over at Zooble. She knows he's trying to hide the pride in his eyes as he uses all four of his hands for the first time to clap the loudest.
"Wow," Gangle finally gawks, sounding genuinely surprised into the mic as she eyes her medal, "third place-"
"Still not better than first!" Jax rudely reminds her, shaking his gold medal around.
Everyone ignores him when Caine beams down at them like a proud parent.
"Let's give our winners one last round of applause!"
"Go Gangle! Go Ragatha!" Ribbit purposely cheers around the claps, relishing the irritated look on her brother's face as she whistles loudly. She can't help but smile a bit wider as she takes her camera out and gets a great picture of the three of them, though.
As Bubble sticks his tongue back in his mouth, both he and Caine fly over to hover before the last remaining members of the group.
"Now, now- no one get jealous or upset," the ringmaster warns with a finger wag. "You all did a fine job on the slopes today-"
"-Aside from Miss Fried Legs!"
"-But I felt each of you were landslides in other categories," Caine adds, ignoring Jax's interruption. Suddenly, a huge grin overtakes the ringmaster's face. "You can even say you won by an avalanche!"
As a ba-dum-tss rimshot rings out, everyone groans or cringes at the lame pun- all except Kinger, who bursts out laughing.
"Good one, Caine!" the chess piece answers, wiping at an eye. "Perfect joke while in the Sahara!"
Seeing that the king is serious, Ribbit poorly stifles a giggle.
"The winner of the 'Most Curse Words Recorded on a Ski Slope' award goes to Zooble!" The floating jaw suddenly announces, clapping as he personally conjures a pink medal and slips it over the toy-like character's triangular head. "You were the only nominee of this category, so congrats on the for-sure win! Any words to share?"
Eyeing down at his medal, Zooble snorts into the extended mic and causally smirks.
"See you a($$)holes next year."
"Ooh, nice job living up to your award there, buddy!" Caine commends before hovering over to a still-sitting Kaufmo. He summons a blue award and snap! It slides over the clown's head. "And for you, our dear Kooky Kalon Kaufmo, you won the 'Best Ski Lift Safety Handler' award! Thanks for keeping everyone safe!"
As the clown eyes his medal in boredom and shrugs, Ribbit bites her lip and resists the urge to melt. It matches his earmuffs! Ugh- so cute!
"And for our last two winners," Caine continues as a purple and red medal appear, his eyes dancing with excitement between Kinger and Ribbit, "you both were the only nominees in your categories as well! Kinger, you-"
"Well, this got boring fast," they all hear Jax say as he jumps over the podium. He struts through the snow and waves the others to follow him. "Let's go make hot chocolate before the snowball fight."
"Ooh yes!" Ragatha quickly agrees as she hurries by his side, holding up the edges of her dress. "It looks like there are a ton of different toppings to pick from! Marshmallows, sprinkles, whipped cream! You name it, it's there!"
"Even cherries?" Gangle asks curiously as she bounces off the podium. Her smile grows all the more as Ragatha excitedly nods.
"That does sound good after being out in the cold," Kaufmo agrees as he trails behind them, making Zooble nod in agreement and Kinger blindly follow suit.
For a moment, Ribbit watches the group walk away. A stiff wind blows through, and she shivers- the very idea of the warm drink sounding amazing.
She smiles and rubs her arms, beginning to follow them before she pauses. She looks over her shoulder and sees a silent Caine hovering softly in place. His eyes are wide with a deep confusion and rejection she feels through her whole body as he looks between the two awards in his hands and gulps. He clutches them close to his chest, tears starting to form.
She bites her lip for only a moment- and her mind made up, Ribbit darts after the group.
"Wait!" she calls out loudly. As the others turn and eye her curiously, she gestures back towards the ringmaster. "Kinger and I didn't get our awards yet-"
"So?" Jax snaps, breaking through the crowd to stand before it. He shakes his head and softly grabs her hand. "Quit being a dork and come on."
The frog woman quickly shakes her head and gently pushes his hand off hers. Before he or anyone else could agrue, she quickly spins on her heels and goes to stand directly by Caine. Blinking up at the ringmaster, she makes her eyes sincere with interest and her voice loud.
"What did Kinger get? I want to know what he beat me at, haha!"
Caine stares down at her in shock, yet his eyes fill with appreciation at the same time.
"Well, Kinger won the award for 'Most Bugs Captured and Saved From Frostbite,'" the ringmaster answers, shyly holding out the purple medal. "Or the 'MBCASFFB' for short."
As the chess piece cuts through the snow and shuffles forward with his stocky body, he takes the medal and attempts to slide it on. Unfortunately, it gets tangled around the cross on the top of his head and simply hangs down over his face, which the king merely leaves in place with a shrug.
When everyone stands still with either confused or mocking looks on their faces, Ribbit forces another round of applause.
"Yay, Kinger!" she pointedly cheers, her eyes bouncing between a still-hurt, downcast Caine and the group. "You deserved the... uh, what's the name of the award again?"
"The MBCASFFB Award," Kinger answers her, tilting his head and making the medal swing left. "What award did you receive, Ribbit?"
"I dunno, but I'm excited to find out!" she responds before turning back toward the ringmaster. She smiles warmly at him, happy when he turns to face her and his eyes look a little less sorrowful. "What have I somehow won at?"
"You, dear Ribbit, have won the 'Best Dressed' award," he responds, his voice far softer than before. He slides the last of the awards over her head, the medal resting against her chest. "Your matching red scarf, hat, coat, and mittens made for an easy choice'-"
"And now a matching award!" she adds with a wider grin.
He extends the microphone hesitantly her way, but Ribbit pays it no mind at first. She takes the medal off to admire it closely, loving how the red material contrasts against the white snow background. Rubbing a thumb over the surface, the frog woman smiles as the heavy, reflective medal shines back at her. Her eyebrows squinting, she gasps.
"It even has my name on it!" She can't help but raise her eyebrows in surprise. "You really did go all out on these awards, because this is really cool!"
She looks up at Caine, who is watching her with wide eyes. He doesn't say anything as he tilts his head and smiles.
In a moment she admits is petulant, Ribbit suddenly grabs the mic and cheekily smirks at the others.
"Hear that?" she calls loudly, making the microphone squeal again as she holds up her medal. "All your outfits suck!"
"Stop, Rib," Jax immediately barks with a growl. "You're being ridiculous."
"Aw, no need to be jealous, bro," she responds coolly, her half-lidded eyes smirking even more than her mouth. "Just 'cause I got Best Dressed and you-"
"No, stop acting like these stupid awards mean anything," he hisses vilely, ears flattening against his back. "It's all complete crap."
Shocked at her brother's callous words, the frog woman lets her medal go and crosses her arms. She can feel Caine start to deflate like a balloon beside her.
"No, it isn't, Jax."
"Yes, it is."
"No, it isn't!"
Giving a rude tsk, the rabbit peels off the medal around his neck and chucks it toward his sister. The snow almost conceals the shiny gold surface as it lands with a soft thud.
"Here then. Have mine," he snaps as he starts to strut away. "We'll all be inside when you're done being immature."
Immature.
Feeling her blood boil, Ribbit narrows her eyes his way. She starts to open her mouth, but instead bites her tongue and lets the group hesitantly walk off.
Ignoring their low whispers of shock or disapproval, Ribbit bends down and picks up the rejected medal. Rubbing her hands over the surface, she snarls and rolls her eyes.
"If he doesn't want the top award, then fine," she says out loud, more to herself than Caine. "All my red needed was a pop of color anyway."
Placing it safely back over her head, the frog woman watches the two medals rest side by side. The blue sky reflects in one; her slowly smiling face does in the other. Finally, she looks up and beams at the ringmaster, surprised at how much she means her words.
"Thank you, Caine."
The showman just blinks, seeming shocked at her words and behavior. His eyes fall on the others walking away before looking back at her, more confused than ever.
"Um... you're welcome-"
"Hey, Rib!"
Heart fluttering at the voice, the frog woman quickly turns and sees Kaufmo standing in the cabin doorway. He wears a smile she can feel more than she can even see, and a cozy warmth strikes her core despite the freezing air.
"You better hurry if you want any whipped cream. Between Jax and Zooble, it'll be gone soon!" the clown playfully warns her as he waves her forward. He pauses as his cheeks turn red. Or maybe that's just Ribbit's imagination. "Plus... enjoying the drinks won't be the same without you."
His words make her eyes double in size.
Is... is he saying he'll miss me?! Kaufmo will miss me?!
"I-I'm coming!" she calls back eagerly, watching with excitement yet sadness as the clown nods and slips back into the cabin.
Grinning so hard it hurts, the infatuated amphibian starts to take off toward the building, but halts to look over her shoulder. A part of her really doesn't want to leave Caine, but that cold wind makes being outside nearly unbearable now. Plus... hot chocolate. Double plus... sitting by Kaufmo!
"I'll catch you later, Caine!" she finally calls- and as she turns, she smiles at him and waves her medals. "Thanks again for the awards!"
As he watches her race across the landscape, Caine feels his jaw tense in thought. He barely notices as Bubble floats beside him, nor when another cold wind blows through.
He's too focused on this odd warmth in his chest he's never felt before. It's confusing, new, and heavy- yet he decides he likes it.