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Sleep was important to Ruggie. So when he opened his eyes because of the sudden chill that hit him, he felt robbed of his precious minutes of sleep. Savanaclaw wasn’t the coldest place to be, but nighttime brought about cooler temperatures that had the hyena curling up under his blankets.
And currently, his blankets were not around him. A whine lodged into his throat as he sleepily pried open his eyes in search of his blanket. He turned, only to be half-scared to death as the Prefect’s peaceful face came into view.
Ruggie’s heart started beating wildly as he basically jumped backward right into his wall. What were they….? Little pieces of lucidity started to return to him amidst the sleepy haze. Right. They had that deal with Azul and their dorm was being seized. And his housewarden had pushed the responsibility of their temporary quarters onto him. Which led to their current arrangement.
He snorted, before lowering his hackles. Well, he couldn’t be all that mad when they were looking absolutely adorable wrapped up in his blanket like that, could he? And especially not when they wrinkled their nose as Ruggie prodded a finger at their cheek. How surprisingly trusting even in their sleep. There was no harm in letting them catch a few more winks while he got ready, right?
But Ruggie found a slight…problem when he tried to get out of bed: their legs were tangled so closely together that he most certainly would wake them if he wasn’t careful. Luckily, he was a seasoned thief. He’d gotten out of scrapes worse than a sleeping herbivore before. With a few groans out of the Prefect and a shift so they were buried deeper into Ruggie’s pillow, he was finally out.
He made an immediate beeline straight for the Savanaclaw bathrooms. They were communal bathrooms and they filled up quick in the mornings, so coming early was a must to get them all to himself. He quickly brushed his teeth, washing the sleep out of his system entirely with the cold water before donning his dorm uniform.
When he made his way back, he was surprised to see that they haven’t budged an inch from where they were sleeping before. He let out a chuckle before sitting on the edge of the bed.
“Prefect~” Ruggie gently placed his hand on their shoulder, shaking lightly. “Ya gotta get up now, it’s mornin’ time.”
What he certainly wasn’t expecting was for their hand to shoot out only to grab his arm and tug. He let out a yelp as his back hit the bed, their body landing squarely on top of his.
“You’re so warm, Ruggie,” Their hoarse whisper sent a shiver down his spine.
He snapped himself out of it by pushing at their cheek, “C'mon, little birdie. Leona-san’s gonna be real mad if ya don’t wake up on time. Today’s the big day, right?” And something in Ruggie’s chest sank when he thought about the fact that this was the very last day that he and the Prefect would be sharing a bed. He frowned; because why would he be sad, again—?
“But I’m sleepy ‘n you’re comfy,” They whined softly as they buried themself deeper into his shoulder. He pushed his head back to make room as he felt soft breaths hitting his skin; leaving goosebumps in their wake.
He swallowed, “After the stunt you 'n the gremlin pulled last night? 'Course you’re tired, shishishi~”
He remembered the absolutely annoyed look on Leona’s face as they made a clamor right inside his room. And he also remembered the pleading look Leona sent him, trying to get him to get them out. Well, one of the perks of living in a big family was that he wasn’t bothered by the racket. So he could’ve slept just fine. But a pampered prince like Leona? He cracked within an hour, agreeing unconditionally to their plan; much to Ruggie’s delight.
There was a non-committal grunt before they tightened their grip on him. He sighed before attempting to sit up slightly, “Let go already, I don’t got all day, y'know.”
“Give me a kiss first.”
Ruggie’s ears twitched as he blanked slightly, “What?”
“A morning kiss,” There was a small sigh as if they were exasperated that he didn’t understand what a kiss was. In reality, he was just trying to wrap his head around the fact that they wanted a kiss from him- “Like a prize for waking up.”
Ruggie wasn’t sure which way to spin this. Was this just a joke, or were they being serious about this? He couldn’t tell, especially without being able to look at their face.
“I'll…” He hesitated before his voice took on its usual teasing tone. “I’ll give you two if ya sit up.” He hoped that they’d say “no way” and push him away. Then he could give them his signature laugh, and they could go on their merry wa–
What he wasn’t expecting was for them to suddenly sit up— so suddenly, in fact, that he almost got head-butted in the chin— with their bleary eyes blinking expectantly at him. And that coupled with the fact that they were precariously perched on his lap was not helping him recover his face any quicker.
“My prize,” They simpered; a sly quirk to their lips. And Seven’s above, Ruggie was doing all he could to not just give in to their whims. There was an order to things that they clearly weren’t following! How was he supposed to just kiss them when it barely dawned on him that he liked them in the first place!
“That was a joke,” Ruggie tried for a smile; tightly-lipped as it was.
But they surprised him yet again when their hand stubbornly cradled his chin, “It’s just a kiss. Are you scared or something?”
“’M not a chicken,” Ruggie muttered before leaning in to give them a kiss on the cheek. “There.” He ignored the way his tail went stiff behind him and the too-loud beating of his heart.
“And the other one?” They tilted that bedhead of theirs to the side. “You said I’d get two.”
Great Seven. He felt like he would do anything for them at that moment. Still sleep-warm and his own scent wrapping around them like a blanket. The expectant look in their eyes and the mussed-up state of their hair that Ruggie just wanted to help fix…
Ruggie had half the mind to use his magic before he got too carried away; quickly mumbling, “Laugh with Me” under his breath. Their body jerked up and away, mirroring his movements.
“You think I’ll give ya the second one that easily, little birdie?” Ruggie bluffed, nerves still thrumming under his skin. He just hoped that he wasn’t flushing as warm as he felt.
“That’s not fair,” They pouted, and Ruggie made them do a little spin just to see their lips jut out more.
“All’s fair when my stomach’s still hungry, shishishi~” Ruggie marched out of the door with them still in tow. “Now get cleaned up and if ya don’t got morning breath, maybe I’ll kiss you properly this time.”
With those words he released his magic, making a break down the hallways and praying that they weren’t chasing after him. Because if they were, then he wouldn’t have an explanation for the way his ears twitched wildly nor the unrelenting heat on his face that flushed his skin.
Ah, what was he supposed to do now? He was smart enough to know that this meant he liked that twittering little human a lot more than he initially thought. He smacked his own cheeks lightly. Well, look at the bright side. At least he knew to look forward to giving them a kiss sometime in the future.