MPC 56X (35): Snowed In

MPC 56X: Snow Problem, Right?

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"This k-k-k-kind of thing is-s-sn't s-supposed to happen h-h-h-here!" Of course, as a Seattle native, the young man Chester green was plenty acclimated to cold temperatures and even harsh winter storms. Still, that didn't make them any more fun or bearable... emphasis on that last word. "Y-you're just havin' a g-g-great time, aren't you?" On paper, Chester lived alone, which meant he shouldn't have been hissing to anybody that was able to understand him. Of course, Chester had to make sure to choose a pet-friendly apartment since he was just an animal lover at the end of the day, meaning he was talking to one of the non-human roommates.

Specifically, it was a small polar bear who was lying on Chester's rug, fast asleep and perfectly relaxed.

Of course, the digimon was only one of Chester's non-human house guests. So, as much as he wanted to lay under four different blankets and moan about the heating being out, he had to wake up and check on the other animals. The good news for him and for them was that they were all animals who could be kept in temperature-controlled environments, meaning that since the power was still on they were all probably just fine. Still, the responsible thing to do was look. There was nothing to worry about, of course. His python was safely in his warm hide, and the temperature outside its terrarium read nice and high. The same remained true for the hermit crabs, the tetras, and the frogs. That meant the only living thing in the apartment who was freezing their rump off was Chester himself. So, after confirming the safety of the other animals, he wandered back to the living room and stood over the IceBearmon snoozing away. Somewhat spitefully, he scolded the bear, "Yeah, laugh it up. This is your idea of a perfect day, but I'm shivering like it's the arctic." The bear continued to snore, unresponsive. Chester didn't give up, though. He responded by slightly pushing the side of the bear's body with his foot and continuing, "I know you can hear me. Go ahead. Laugh it up."

The bear continued to snore... but he also cracked a sly smile. I knew it, Chester congratulated himself, not that he gained anything from being right. You're too easy, Shiro. You know how I knew? You don't actually snore. I'd definitely know if you did. Ya took a gamble and lost, buddy. Of course, Chester wasn't really and truly mad at Shiro, even if he was kind of rubbing it in his Tamer's face. His true source of anger was this God-forsaken cold, not to mention being trapped in his apartment. Sure, he had stocked up on supplies, but Shiro was an active type. A day indoors was not his idea of a good time. Ten feet of snow. Unbelievable. Of course, Chester was four floors up, but no one had set up a trampoline at the bottom, making that option of escape inadvisable to say the least. Climate change is a drag.

After a little rumination, Chester addressed the immobile ursine again. "Hey, I'm gonna go back to bed, wrap myself in a blanket cocoon, and watch a little TV. Join me if you feel like it, and keep being a lazy trip-and-fall hazard if you don't." Shiro kept on snoring. "Yeah... that's what I thought you'd say." With a somewhat indignant huff, Chester marched right back into his bedroom where he did everything he'd said he would, even closing the door behind him since he'd expected not to get company.

Chester laughed a little as he realized it: Other people have digimon. I have a Pokemon.

Right about then there was a knock on the door, which startled Chester because he lived alone - or, rather, because he didn't live with someone who understood the concept of knocking on the door. And yet, who else could it have been but Shiro? There's no way a human walked inside and strolled right past Shiro without either of them reacting loudly to the presence of the other. So... Chester raised an eyebrow curiously and stammered through his shivering, "C-come in?" before wondering to himself, Wait, can he even use a doorknob?

The answer turned out to be, 'yes, but not very well.' Chester watched something on the other side struggle to figure out the exact pushing and turning combination required to make that barrier swing open. When it finally did the bearling seemed surprised. He'd had both his two front paws around the doorknob (leaving visible scratches all over it), and he barked, startled, as his body began to fall forward. Still, he'd managed it. "I... didn't know you could do that," Chester admitted, sitting up.

As Shiro lumbered inside, Chester noticed he was holding something in his mouth: a mug. A steaming mug, even. "Shiro, you didn't!" Shiro had to tilt his head almost 90 degrees to keep the mug almost level enough to avoid spillage. Luckily, or perhaps unluckily, that ship had apparently sailed. Even though Chester didn't see anything spill out on its way to him, it was nevertheless not very full. As Shiro stopped padding by the side of the man's bed, the Tamer reached down and plucked the mug from the maw of the bear, something Shiro didn't fight him on.

It was hot chocolate. 

Chester was extremely skeptical that this would taste at all good, given it could only be prepared by bear paws, but he brought the mug to his lips to humor his friend... and he didn't regret it. It was warm, tasty, and overall really hit the spot. "Whoa," betrayed Chester's surprise, but with sincere gratefulness he continued, "Shiro, I needed that. Thank you so much." The bear cub reared up on two legs again, lay his front paws on the bed and very easily used them to help pull his whole body up onto the bed with Chester.

There Chester, who was already buried under blankets, watched Shiro step over him to curl up on his other side, letting Chester have some of the IceBearmon's heat. Shiro even lay his head on top of the blankets over Chester, resting his shin just beneath his Tamer's collarbone. Boy, that felt nice... Chester pulled the blankets down just enough for Shiro's chin to instead fall on his shirt if the bear didn't lift it, and Shiro didn't. In fact, Shiro's two forelegs reached out and grabbed his Tamer around the midsection.

Despite that Chester was a bigger creature, Shiro managed to pull Chester into himself with superior physical strength, not that he had to fight Chester's resistance. The young man was glad for the companionship and warmth. "Hey. Shiro." Shiro made eye contact without lifting his chin, though that ended once Chester held the mug out toward the IceBearmon's face. That got Shiro to lift his chin just high enough to use his tongue to lap up what remained of the hot chocolate left by Chester. The Tamer's free hand idly combed through the fur atop Shiro's head, which earned a low rumble. "You're really just an overgrown teddy bear with ice breath, aren't you?"

Shiro didn't show any indication he'd heard, but when the mug was empty he did pull his muzzle out and lay his head back on Chester's chest. Oh, well. At least he wasn't cold.

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Word count: 1,337