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The door of Vulpix’s den was flung open in a blast of cold air and lazily drifting snowflakes. Riolu came stumbling in from the snowstorm bundled up in layer upon layer of scarves and jackets shivering from head to toe. He could be heard grumbling something about going on a mission to kill Articuno for bringing winter early, shuffling out of his soggy boots and chilled clothes once he’d wrenched the door shut.
“Ri?” Vulpix poked her head out into the entryway of her den, watching with concern as her mate shed his insufficient winter layers. “I was wondering when you’d get back. It took you much longer than usual…I worried that something had gone wrong on your expedition.”
“I’m fine,” Riolu grunted as he wrangled off a scarf caught on his ears. “Just catching hypothermia, that’s all, no biggie.”
Placing a paw over her mouth, Vulpix padded closer, recoiling as she stepped in a puddle of melted frost from one of Riolu’s shoes. “Is it really that cold out there?”
Riolu paused and faced Vulpix with an extremely unamused expression. “There’s literally a snowstorm outside. Yes, it’ really that cold.”
“I suppose I haven’t felt it since I’m a fire type,” Vulpix speculated. A warm smile graced her face. “I have an idea for how to make you feel better. I’ll be right back.”
The little fox trotted off, leaving Riolu to wrestle his way out of his winterwear alone. Huffing in frustration, he fought with another one of his scarves, trying to untie its knot and feeling that he would accidentally strangle himself in the process.
Elsewhere deeper in the den, Vulpix had taken out two clay mugs from her cupboard and brought them to the stream that flowed through the kitchen. Normally, a gentle but steady flow of spring water would be passing through the trough she’d carved out, but tonight all that was left was a long vein of shallow ice.
Experimentally tapping at the frozen stream, Vulpix took a deep breath and unleashed a Flamethrower attack, thawing the water in seconds. Grinning triumphantly, she dipped both mugs into the fresh, heated water to fill them and set them aside.
Reaching deeper into her cupboard, Vulpix retrieved something she’d been saving for an evening just like this one: a jar of crushed cocoa beans. She poured a set amount of the powder into both mugs, stirring each with a wooden spoon and giving both a short burst of flame from her mouth to ensure their contents were plenty hot.
Back in the entryway, Riolu had freed himself of every garment save for his red bowtie. Wrapping his arms around himself, he exhaled a shaky breath and stiffly walked back into the kitchen. Waiting on the countertop for him were two steaming mugs of a brown drink. Glancing around but finding no sign of his mate in the room, he took one of the mugs in his paws, relishing the warmth radiating from it banishing the numbness in his fingers.
He knew better than to recklessly drink something Vulpix had heated up herself; he knew better than anyone else just how hot her inner fire burned. Blowing on the beverage’s surface and watching the patterns of foam his breath left, he wandered into the main part of the den. Vulpix was piling a few small logs of wood in their cobblestone fireplace. Riolu hurried over to offer his help; thoughtful as it was for Vulpix to assemble the materials for a fire, it was challenging for a four-legged creature like her to balance such tall objects.
Vulpix happily accepted Riolu’s help, holding his mug of cocoa for him while he arranged the final log. Though he’d warmed up slightly from the minimal work, Riolu was still vaguely shivering. He eagerly reached for his hot chocolate back if only to return feeling to his paws again.
“Pl-please, go ahead and do the honors,” he gestured to the fireplace. “I’ll go get your drink.”
Nodding after him as he left for the kitchen, Vulpix blew a stream of red-hot flame out of her mouth, igniting the logs instantly. A dancing fire crept its way up the wood, enveloping it and giving off waves of comforting heat. Vulpix basked in it, truly in her own element, and settled down in front of the fireplace.
“Oh, thank Arceus,” Riolu cried in relief when he re-entered and saw the blaze.
The fighting type came running, balancing two mugs of hot cocoa, and plopped down as close to the fire as he could. He hastily handed Vulpix her mug and took a sip from his own, leaning into the heat and soaking it up. He could finally feel the chills leaving his body and his teeth ceasing their chattering.
“Thanks, Pixie,” he sighed out. “You’re the best.”
Vulpix closed her eyes and hummed happily, shuffling nearer to Riolu and taking a long drink of her own hot chocolate. “I figured you needed a fire after being out for so long. That mission with Skitty must’ve been tough if there was a snowstorm.”
“We were in a cave for our expedition, actually. Had no idea it’d started snowing until we came out later.”
“She got home alright, didn’t she?” Vulpix asked, concerned for the young Skitty’s safety.
“I made sure of that,” Riolu promised her. “That’s…part of why I was so late getting back, actually.”
Smiling from ear-to-ear, Vulpix leaned her head against Riolu’s thigh. “You may act tough, but it’s stuff like this that proves you’ve got a great big heart under all that blue fur.” She reached up and playfully poked him in the chest.
Blushing and huffing, Riolu grumbled, “Yeah, yeah, love you too…” Clearing his throat, he wrapped one arm around Vulpix and hugged her closer. “The fire was a nice thought, but you didn’t have to make it, you know. I have my own fire to keep me warm right here.” He ran his free paw through the curls atop her head.
Humming with laughter, Vulpix pulled herself up into his lap, snuggling against him. She wrapped her many tails around his back like a warm, fluffy blanket. The two sat in warm, comfortable silence, lapping at their hot chocolate until their mugs were lukewarm and empty.
As the night wore on and Articuno’s snowstorm howled outside, the two of them were cozy and safe in their den. Riolu laid himself down on the floor, keeping Vulpix close to share the warmth. Though they never made it to their nest before they fell asleep, the fire’s heat served as their blanket, keeping them rested through the evening.
Thus ends the third day of Christmas.