Smiling Critters One-Shots

Snow Bunny (Hoppy x Kickin)

A request for @ThePurpleAura

Fresh snowfall was falling all over Sunshine Valley, burying the green grass under a blanket of white snow.
"All right! Snow day!" Hoppy Hopscotch cheered. She and the other Smiling Critters weren't ones to waste a day like this, and she had been hoping to get out in the snow without a second thought, but the Critter she was staying over with, Kickin Chicken, who was wrapping up in a coat and yellow scarf, stopped her.
"Whoa there Hoppy! Don't you want a coat or something to keep you warm?" he asked.
"I've got fur, so I'm fine!" Hoppy replied.
"Come on Hoppy, you know what Bubba says about what could happen to you if you're unprotected from the cold! You could catch a cold!" Kickin answered.
"I'll be fine!" Hoppy said, before dashing out the door.

She found the other Critters already out there. They were all wearing coats, and in some cases, scarves. While Hoppy felt awkward about being the only one without a coat, she felt confident that she'd be fine with her fur. Kickin came out last, and felt bad for letting Hoppy out without a coat. She was always a handful, but he liked that about her.

In fact, now that he thought about that, he always had.

"Hey, Kickin!" DogDay called. "You joining us or not?"
"Wait up,guys! I'm coming!" Kickin replied, heading after the other Critters, only to be met with a well-placed snowball to the forehead. Bobby peeked out from behind a tree, giggling, before being hit in the back by another from DogDay, and so on until all the Critters were engaged in a full-blown snowball fight. Kickin ducked,dipped and dived as snowballs flew overhead, with Hoppy using her jumping ability to both dodge snowballs and rain aerial attacks down upon the heads of other Critters from the snow-capped trees of the nearby forest bordering the central battlefield. It worked well for her, however Bubba and Crafty saw her, and threw snowballs at her at the exact same time, knocking her off the tree. Luckily, the snow gave her a soft landing. She was just about to pick herself up and go for a open assault on all the Critters when Picky shouted "Snowstorm!"
DogDay noticed and alerted the others. Hoppy also heard him, but due to her being in the forested area, with the trees blocking her view, she couldn't see where the other Critters were, and by the time she got out of the woods, they were gone.
"DogDay? Bearhug? Crafty? Where are you?" Hoppy called out into the howling snowstorm. But no one answered.

The frostbite that came as a result of the snowstorm was starting to chill her bones. Even worse, it tired her out. The snow was falling thick and fast now, and Hoppy couldn't recognise her surroundings.
"Kickin, you were right...I should have listened to you," she thought, before tripping a snow-covered rock that she could hardly see, and rolled down a slope. As she rolled, snow built up around her body,until she was in the centre of a gigantic snowball,rolling down the hill.
"Oh man. Why is this happening? I know this happens in cartoons, but having it happen in real life is not fun!" Hoppy said, before closing her mouth to avoid swallowing any snow, feeling sick herself from the spinning motion of the snowball.

When it had finally ended, the giant snowball bursting when it hit a tree, Hoppy was totally covered in snow, looking like a snowman or (ironically enough) a snow bunny. She spat some snow out of her mouth that had fallen in, and felt that she was freezing like an icicle.

The frostbite was getting to the poor bunny now, and she suddenly sneezed her way out of most of the snow she was encased inside of in the process.
"I've caught a cold now," Hoppy said to herself. "I can't take the cold anymore!"
Absolutely frozen to the core, she collapsed, hoping for a Critter to find her.

"Hops!" a voice called out.
"Kickin?" Hoppy said, then called back to him a she realised the voice.
"Kickin!" she shouted. "Kickin, I'm over here!"
She continued to call out to him, until the yellow chicken she was hoping to see came into view. Seeing the state that Hoppy was in, he rushed over to her and scooped her up.
"You're so cold..." Kickin said, before hearing a honk from Hoppy's nose as she sniffled. "And you've caught a cold. Come on, Hoppy. Let's nurse you back to health."

15 minutes later, Hoppy was on the couch inside Kickin's house, wrapped in a blanket, shivering and holding and honey and lemon drink in her hand. It helped her with the cold, with Kickin near her.
"I...should have heeded your advice..." Hoppy said, her ears drooping a little in shame.
"Yeah...I will admit that I should have left you inside until you got a coat..." Kickin agreed.
"But I...I can't thank you enough for coming to find me. I was losing hope on whether or not one of the others would look for me," Hoppy told him.
"I was the only one," Kickin replied. Crafty didn't even know where you were, Picky and Bubba forgot all about you, and Bearhug tried to find you but eventually gave up."
"What about CatNap and DogDay?" Hoppy asked.
"CatNap thought you were done for once he got home, and DogDay the same, and I gotta admit, that snowstorm chilled me to the bone. But I... I still had faith in you and that you were still out there. I couldn't just leave you alone in the cold to freeze."
"Awww..." Hoppy said, hugging Kickin close to her.
"No, Hoppy, I mean it," Kickin continued. "I just really like having you near me. We fit each other so well, and the fact that you're a handful makes you even more fun to hang out with... I... I-" Kickin was suddenly cut off when he felt a gentle peck to his cheek.
He blushed, but returned a brief and awkward kiss, his eyes sliding to a close as they met with Hoppy's. He pulled away almost immediately, opening his mouth to utter an apology.  Hoppy didn't let him however, as she closed the space that was still between her and Kickin.

Their lips brushed together, then they met in a long, soft, sweet kiss. Kickin just took it in, but felt Hoppy falling backwards, prompting him to wrap his arms around her back to pull her up. When Hoppy wrapped her own arms around Kickin's neck, he kept them on her soft back.

When it finally ended, Kickin raised his head up as his eyes met with Hoppy's. Hearts were racing and cheeks were flushed.
"Kickin, thank you. I like you too," Hoppy admitted, snuggling closer to Kickin. Kickin smiled. She was so cute.

And so there they were, sat together, Kickin playing with Hoppy's ears while she traced her paws across his cheek. Their own company was more than enough to cure Hoppy's cold for the time being.

One-shot done! Hope you like it! Next up, the Smiling Critters stay over at a haunted house! Who will survive the night?