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The season of fall. A beautiful shift of the air and landscape. Leaves begin to shrivel and litter the sidewalk. And the lovely chill of winter is slowly creeping upon the inpherno.
One fucking curve ball to this fun ambiance of fall was the every year middle finger that was mating season. As if inphernal biology could not be any weirder. Mating season was always during the beginning of fall for one month, and then the three months of hibernation would come crashing in right after! Boombox was afflicted by both these things back to back, the seasons never seemed to give a phuck about his DJ career.
So after a long lonely mating season, he now lay here feeling too sluggish to leave his living room. His twin sized bed had been sitting in his unkempt bedroom for almost a month now empty. He tried to to get comfy multiple nights, but alas it was no use. Besides that tiny bed wouldn’t fit fivepeople!
A common thing among those inphernans affected by the winter season was to co-hibernate. It’s like carpooling, but with sharing your house for the three months of winter! Boombox had only co-hibernated twice before with Skateboard & Coil, this season was meant for an inphernals body to rest and gain back the massive energy used throughout the rest of the year. Throughout the winter season inphernals affected by hibernation instincts grow extremely lethargic and sleep like they are in long term naps.
Not to mention the aspect most hate, the fact they only wake up for a little bit some days to gorge on any food before passing back out. Grocery prices, specifically non-perishable food, rose heavily this time of year because of the increase of hunger among a handful of the populace. Which in hindsight Boombox finds is a dick move. Currently he was scrambling to count his own food supply and clean up his apartment a little.
Most apartments in Crossroads are at best snug, but with BB’s income he has what most would call a shoebox of an apartment. Granted he did get one on the first layer, and next to the shopping district! But at the cost of having a bathroom that feels like a storage closet and a very questionable ceiling fan. Currently the raccoon inphernal was moving as fast as his sluggish body could, the winter haze already beginning to make his brain feel so misty.
He had just come back from a long morning at the laundromat, and walking outside had felt like hell’s freezer. But it was a long time coming after a straight month of not leaving his own house. Needless to say it all was stanky,and he had to wash a lot of blankets in preparation. All the blankets and pillows that the DJ owned were thrown down on the living room floor, and perfectly layered around the couch cushions and the bean bag.
Currently the raccoon inphernal was sifting through his pantry taking a stock of his food. Overall, according to his thorough analysis, he has too many cans of beans. A loud wracking at the front door sent Boombox scrambling and nearly tripping over his own fluffy striped tail. He dusted himself off, as he passed by a mirror in his entryway and looked himself over.
It's really just a habit, and kind of dumb in this circumstance. After all he is wearing a sweater and pajama pants, yet they are his fanciest. These ones even have lining! He let out a startled squeak as another knock sounded with much more force.
“Sorry, Sorry!”
The minute the door opened the support phighter was scrunched back against his own wall, as if the tidal wave of freezing air blew in all of his waiting guests. The fastest of the new arrivals whizzed by in a green and pink blur. Boombox’s visor blankety sat in little circles as he puckered his lip in confusion, but just as quickly he snapped out of it and kicked the door shut feeling his own body shudder at the cold air.
“BB!”
The aforementioned raccoon let out a squeak of surprise as someone barreled into him, then clacking their head together only for him to be familiarly smacked by a red and checkered helmet. He smiled a warm smile he hadn’t been able to in a while as he melted into the arms of the taller skater. Boombox buried his face against the fluffy cow inphernal and that fog that had been weighing him for the past month thankfully cleared at the familiar scent of cherries and vanilla.
“Hey Skate, you seem energized?”
The DJ’s inference was proven very very wrong when the helmet wearing inphernal pulled back to show for once his eyes from behind his normally draping bangs. The bags under his citrus gaze were deep and almost worse than Boombox’s own shadows. Skate only giggled despite BB internally cringing at himself.
“Yeah man, soo energized I can barely keep my eyes open. Good to see your brain is still functioning before the winter brain takes us.”
Skate let his tail whip around, and he set a duffle bag of his things down on the floor. Vinestaff and Slingshot both greeted their host, and the cat planted a kiss on his cheek.
“Hi BB, sorry bout Shuri, he and Vine are just getting over a cold.”
Vinestaff nodded at her brother in agreement before covering her mouth as she let out another sneeze. BB hurried to walk her over to the mess of pillows, and he helped take her bag.
”Th-thanks BB, sorry that you have to hear me and Shuri sniffling now!”
Vinestaff said in exasperation. He only shook his head in reassurance and he pressed more blankets around the mantis siblings. Shuriken was trembling from the residual cold of the outdoors, and he could only nod at the raccoon in appreciation. Skateboard turned was fiddling around with the remote already trying to find a movie to play in the background. The rustling of bags caught his attention, and BB went back over to the entry way to help the feline inphernal with the handfuls of plastic bags filled with groceries.
“Geez Sling did ya buy the whole store?”
Slingshot gave a tired smile at his boyfriend, truly he had missed hearing Boombox’s voice. It has been a rough season so far and he has been panicking trying to take care of himself, and get things prepared for the winter months. His siblings can get pretty bad from the cold and easily sick, so Sling is usually seen scrambling to and from the store getting medicine. Silently he thanks whatever gods above that he was not born a subspecies that is affected by hibernation.
“It’s better to be prepared, B. And knowing how Skate gets during his snacking sessions I thought it's better than being woken up one morning to an empty fridge.”
“Always thinking ahead ain’t ya? What would we do without you?”
Sling grinned over to him as they carried the food into the DJ’s kitchen. Now his kitchen is nothing to write home about especially compared to Sling’s own cafe kitchen, but the fridge works and the oven sometimes turns on! Better than nothing. BB helped pluck the cans and other goods from the bags and sort them on to the shelf.
The apartment is silent, but not like the agonizing lonely one he had been dealing with all alone for the past month while he ached for his two lovers. Instead Boombox could hear the buzz of the tv, the loud snores from Shuriken, and the sugary sweet humming from Slingshot. A quiet filled with life that BB had missed so much. It eased a nervous thing in his chest that the support phighter didn’t even realize he was feeling.
“Boombox?”
“hm?”
The raccoon inphernal didn’t even realize that Sling had walked over, nor had he felt those strong arms wrap around his soft middle. Boombox let out a pleased purr and laid himself back against the baker’s comforting hold. Slingshot huffed out and stroked his clawed hand through BB’s long grey wavy mane.
“You were tipping over, BB. Go lay down. I can handle the food.”
Boombox almost objected, but part of his mind that had been so foggy before reared itself again. His body was feeling heavier, and though his visor still functioned perfectly to allow him to see it was like his vision was already darkening like the sky over Crossroads currently. He nodded slowly and Slingshot held his arm. Boombox objected in embarrassment, feeling his face heat despite the cold still nipping at his nose.
“I'm okay Sling..I can walk heh.”
The cat inphernal did not heed him and shoved him down into the heap of inphernals already in the messy floor nest. Boombox squeaked at him, but the cat swiftly retreated back into the kitchen. The raccoon reluctantly began to get comfortable, and he was not very surprised to see the other three guests already knocked out. Shuriken was snoring loud enough to rival that of the warden's growls and draped over his sister.
Fittingly Vinestaff had earplugs in her pointed white ears, and she had wrapped her arms over her smaller sibling. Both of their little bug abdomens stuck out from the blankets and he could see the pink flower that made its home on her buggy butt was wilted. BB moved some more blankets over their lower halves, which seemed to please Vine as she shifted in her sleep to shove Shuriken's face down to muffle him. If he suffocates it would not be the raccoon's fault.
Boombox looked over to Skateboard and sighed, the boarder had fallen asleep with his helmet on and was sprawled in the most awkward way that BB personally has ever witnessed.
‘It looks like something out of the gameshow ‘Hole in the wall’.’
At his own thought he chittered a giggle before reaching his hands out and beginning to unfasten the red helmet
“Ah!”
Boombox startled when Skates hand shot up to grab his hands. For a moment Skate looked startled, but calmed at seeing it was only BB.
“Sorry Skate, just wanted to help you get more comfortable.”
The ash grey furred inphernal made a non comittal noise, most likely half awake and not very happy at the thought of the helmet being removed. The musician only shushed his partners grumbling, and slowly he undid the headgear and pulled it off to reveal the lovely mess of hair and the two stumps on either side of Skates head. Skateboard looked away in a nervous manner biting his lips as well. Boombox only sighed as he set the helmet off to the side and pushed aside those messy locks, to look at his equally tired lover.
”It’s ok, Skate. Nothin to be scared of. We see you and love you. Let’s get some rest ok?”
The cow inphernal chuffed and let his usual relaxed smile fall back looking up warmly at BB. The boarder reached up to his partner’s visor and plucked the headset from the horns, to reveal the scars over Boombox’s eyes and face. BB looked towards the sound of Slingshot entering the bedding, and the cat tapped his shoulder to let his partner know where he was. Slingshot helped maneuver Boombox around so he didn’t bump his siblings awake, and he wrapped both his lovers in his arms.
BB couldn’t see it but he heard it in the warmth of Sling's voice, and he let himself succumb to that consuming haze of sleep he had been dreading.
“Sleep tight, you two. I'll be here when you wake up.”
Maybe this time of year was not so bad.