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Astro mumbled sleepily as he rose and stretched out his arms. It was the only time during the day where they really got any movement- in his room. He normally just tucks them all under a blanket, embarrassed of how the others might perceive him. He rubbed his eye and yawned. What did he have to do that day? Being a main Toon came with a lot of responsibilities… Right- oh no… He groaned softly, today was a very special day. The mains were all going on an excursion to some location that Astro happened to forget. Outside… yay. With the Christmas Toons tucked away for the year and not being quite time for the Easter Toons to blossom up, the founders get sponsorships for little outings. Helping out at children’s hospitals or other foundations. Today it was something outside- Astro remembered that much. They sighed and rose from their bed. His paws slipped into his slippers (haha, fitting) below. Then they frowned, they couldn’t wear their slippers, they were going outside. So Astro drifted to his closet and picked out a shirt, socks, and… should he wear pants? Shorts should work. But how cold was it? Astro hadn’t a clue. He could ask Austin, though he would feel awkward leaving his quarters in only a shirt (even though he would have his blanket.) They pouted slightly as they battled this inner debacle until a knock to his door frame drew his attention.
“Hey, buddy… Thought you’d be down for breakfast? Slept in again?” Austin stood there, casting a shadow from the hallway light.
Astro looked down, “Mm, no. Not this time. I have been trying to decide on my attire today.”
Austin was patient, he entered the room and knelt beside the Toon. “I’ll help you get ready, if you want. Having a slow day?”
“Mm-mm, not a slow day. I do not know how the weather presents today- should I dress warmly?” Astro wondered, looking to Austin for assistance.
“Um, well, I like the chilly weather so I don’t tend to bundle up but someone like Sam will put on a winter coat on a day like this. It’s not that bad, I think?” Austin’s contradictory answer made Astro’s insides squirm- he just wanted to know how cold it was going to be!
Astro selected a pair of pants that they could tuck their shirt into. They were black and highwaisted with a snap button. They wouldn’t settle around his paws; crucial for a day where he had to wear shoes. Astro was clumsy by nature, even if they pretended they weren’t. Their spacy nature caused them not to be very aware of their surroundings, they didn’t want to trip. A prime example of that inattentive habit was when Astro caught the last syllable of something Austin was saying. “Huh?”
He was used to it, not the slightest bit offended. He repeated, “We’re doing the big trash pickup today, if you remember. Gigi and Tisha are coming along as special guests.”
“How many people will be there?” Astro cautioned, more concerned for Austin than himself. They were well aware of how his handler dealt with crowds. Austin often insisted that Astro shouldn’t be worried about him, and that it was his job to take care of them. But Astro didn’t care about what his job was, he only cared that his best (human) friend felt alright. They looked out for eachother, because why wouldn’t they?
Well aware of why Astro inquired about such data, Austin grumbled, “I’ll be fine, it’s outside.” Then, after a bit of hesitation, “Hundreds, probably.”
Astro hummed, “We will be spread out, won’t we?” They attempted to offer some solace to Austin.
“You’re right,” his mouth hinted at a small smile. Like a trade, Astro offered one of his own. Austin chuckled, shaking off nerves, probably, and fit Astro’s cap on his fuzzy head. Astro equipped his blanket and they went out to breakfast.
The bright fluorescent lights of the facility were always overwhelming for the duo. During the early days, Astro had complained about them to Austin and he had confided in them that he felt the same. For that reason, Austin wore his bangs heavy and Astro wore his cap so that it almost stifled his vision. They figured out things to make things manageable, for the both of them. Honestly unnecessary, Austin called it. Kindness, Astro knew it to be. The other mains were already in the kitchen, along with the other two tag-alongs for the day. Gather them all up early, he supposed. It might be practical, considering Gigi might get into shenanigans with Flutter and Tisha might wander off to clean who-knows-where. Sprout was by the stove, serving eggs onto a plate held by Shelly. Sam stood nearby, perched against the wall with their arms crossed. Like they were waiting for something to go awry- for Sprout to burn something and start a fire. Veronica and Shanon sat in some of the Toon-sized chairs beside Vee, Dandy, Gigi, and Tisha; rather awkwardly if Astro made a comment. Devan was rubbing Pebble’s belly off to the side.
“Look who finally rolled out of bed,” Sam commented with a snarky tone. Whether it was mocking, or joking, Astro was unsure.
Veronica perked up, “Oh! Austin! Hi!” she tucked part of her hair behind her ear. Astro knew she had some sort of workplace crush on Austin, but they were decently convinced he was completely oblivious to it.
“I didn’t even know you were clocked in! You always come in so quietly!” Shanon giggled.
Austin rubbed his arm anxiously, “Yeah, I was just making sure we were all ready to go…”
Devan stood, “Well, I’m glad we’re all well prepared for today!” Astro’s attention shifted from the handlers to his fellow Toons. Another thing they were guilty of, focusing in on little details and completely missing the big picture. When he paid so much attention to human interactions, he would forget that his castmates were there at all. When he turned, he found Dandy rushing towards him. Astro was enveloped in a hug and squeaked in surprise. Austin told him that when he did that, he sounded like an insect or maybe even a frog. Apparently frogs squeak. Finn was happy to tell Astro about that even if they zoned out.
“Morning, Astro! Aren’t you just ECSTATIC for today?! We’re going outside!” Dandy, who always managed to surprise Astro with his strength, twirled him around.
He caught a glimpse of Vee rolling her eyes, “Dandy, this experience is hardly exclusive. We go outside,” they explained bluntly.
Dandy placed him back down, Shelly giggled with Gigi and Tisha. Pebble circled him, he felt dizzy. “I know that, VEE! But I’m a FLOWER!” He emphasized the word theatrically, Astro’s best friend was always one for dramatics; he WAS the star of the show, after all. “I’m GOING to be EXCITED when we go OUTSIDE!” The lead was practically bouncing off the walls.
“And it’s winter,” Vee disclosed, unamused with the whole display.
Dandy sighed, “You just wouldn’t get it!” It called out, “Sprout gets it! Don’t you, Sprout?”
“Wuh? Huh? I get what?” Sprout cracked an egg directly onto the kitchen floor. “Oh.”
The Toons started to laugh as Sam groaned.
While they were preparing to leave, Astro struggled with their shoelaces besides Sprout. He wished they gave him velcro shoes instead- no matter how childish that may sound. “Actually I hate going outside in the cold.” Sprout suddenly said. The sound almost startled Astro. Sprout wasn’t the most talkative Toon, he really only spoke when necessary or when he was with Vee or Cosmo. Or when they had kids to entertain. Or when someone got hurt. Other than that, though, he never spoke with Astro unprovoked.
“Uh- what?” Astro responded because he didn’t quite process what Sprout said.
Sprout held brief eye contact, a glance. “Y’know, what Dandy said earlier… He likes going outside- even when it’s cold. I don’t.”
“I think ‘like’ is too weak a word to describe how Dandy feels about going outside,” Astro grinned.
Sprout huffed in amusement, “I agree. Not- not that I agree that I like going outside- I agree that his excitement surpasses ‘like’-”
“I got that,” Astro chuckled lightheartedly.
“D’you want help? I hate to see ya struggle.” Astro became flustered, Sprout noticed that he had a hard time tying his shoes… How embarrassing.
They mumbled, “I suppose…” feeling defeat.
“Don’t beat yourself up, it’s no problem. Why don’tcha just use your hands?” Sprout kept his voice low, probably so as not to draw attention to them.
Astro tensed, “I don’t use my hands for anything.”
To that, Sprout only hummed in acknowledgement. After one shoe was properly tied, Sprout asked, “You gonna be warm enough?” It made sense that he would ask that, considering he was all dressed up, himself. Sprout had on a frosting colored pair of overalls with sprinkles on the ruffled cuffs. He had on a white sweater underneath it and a matching set of light green gloves and boots. He tied the outfit together with a sky blue and white striped scarf. It had a cloud on the end of it. “Are ya just gonna stare at me or are you gonna answer my question?”
“Uh- wuh? Sorry- I spaced out- didn’t even notice I was- um… staring.” Now, he did SO totally notice. Sprout kneeling infront of him while Astro was examining every part of the strawberry’s outfit choice. He might have just died of abashment on the spot. “Am- am I going to be warm enough? I am not sure, I do not know how cold it is.”
“Sam says it’s frigid.” Sprout stood. A thought crossed Astro’s mind, for however long Astro was staring at Sprout: Sprout was staring right back at Astro with that patient, observational expression. Oh! How he felt like he was going to swoon where he stood! (He… wasn’t even standing…) “Take my scarf.”
Now Astro was staring up at Sprout, “What? But you will be-”
He held out his arm to help Astro up. “I have another one, this’ll go better with your color-scheme anyway.” With no room for argument, Astro slipped one of his hands out of his blanket and allowed Sprout to assist him once more. He removed the scarf and tenderly wrapped it around Astro’s neck. “Is that okay?”
“Fine,” Astro squeaked out, his voice barely more than a whisper.
Sprout, apparently satisfied with his work, nodded with his arms crossed. “Stay warm today, be safe, and don’t be afraid to take breaks, alright? You can give my scarf back when we’re home.” And with that, he trailed off to wherever Sam was waiting for him, leaving Astro with a newfound fuzzy feeling all around his face. Whether it was the scarf or the natural rosiness of his cheeks, Astro didn’t know. But he knew that with this little blessing from Sprout, Astro was bound to have a good day.