Disclaimer: I do not own Animal Crossing, the "New Horizons" game, or any of its characters. It's been far too long since I posted a ReddNook story, and some of my friendos from my main fandom actually asked for this. Made after too many freezing mornings in my room.

Freezing with a Side of Arson

Two little tanukis trembled under their massive fluffy throw blanket, the sounds of their chattering teeth filling the apartment's living room.

Timmy held onto his brother, trying in vain to pick up what little warmth the other twin produced. His tail curled tight around his legs. Brown eyes squeezed shut as little fists sank into his brother's thick winter jacket, nails blunted to not rip precious fabric, and little whimpers burned in his throat. The tanuki nestled in further in the blanket cocoon, and shivers wracked his body.

Tommy was no better. The other twin was focused on playing a little game on his handheld game system he had bought with his allowance, but his claws shook violently with each passing moment. His tail was tucked tight around his feet under the blanket. Part of the blanket bunched around his shoulders, but with the opening in the little bundle, chilly morning air sank through the layers of fabric and settled on the soft brown fur underneath.

Both of their mouths clacked with the harsh chatter of their teeth.

"Oh Nookie… why couldn't we just turn on the heater…?"

Across the living room, near the hallway where all their rooms were, a freezing kitsune paced back-and-forth. Several layers of jackets covered the orange kitsune, wrapping him in a large ball of fabric. At least two pairs of sweatpants covered the poor kitsune from the waist down. Fluffy socks, all yellow with the green leaf of the Nook company decorating the sides, covered pacing feet. With each lap back-and-forth, Redd muttered to himself under his breath.

"Can't turn on the heater because it costs too much… Freakin' cold as… When I get my claws on him…"

Timmy looked up towards his other uncle. "Un-un-un-cle-cle R-r-redd? Do we ha-ha-have any more bl-bla-blankets le-le-left?"

Redd paused in his walk, and Timmy watched as the gears whirred in the kitsune's head.

Grumbles left the bundled-up kitsune as he lifted a hand and ticked off his claws. Nothing audible reached Timmy's ears, and after a long pause, his uncle spoke.

"Nope. No more blankets or jackets." A heavy sigh blew out of the fox as his tail flicked to the side, a sign of annoyance. "Unless I run down to the Able Sisters' shop, which won't have any jackets or warm pants left because everyone's freezing in this weather, we don't have anything else to keep us warm."

A groan left Timmy as he buried his head against his twin's arm.

"H-h-h-hey! W-w-wa-watch it!" Tommy cried, sad music coming from his game system. "I ju-ju-just ju-jumped off the l-l-ledge right bef-f-f-ore I got the Sh-Sh-Shine!"

"You wa-wa-watch it!"

"Don't start fighting, kiddos," Redd called out. "It would warm you up, but Tom won't be happy if he comes home and finds you both covered in bruises and scratch marks."

Both twins perked up instantly.

"It co-co-could wa-war-warm us up?!"

"…warm us up?!"

Redd stood stock still as the twins slowly looked to each other. Before either could throw a punch, the kitsune clapped his gloved paws together. "Alright!" he shouted, quickly getting the twins' attention. "I give up on being a responsible parent. Timmy, how confident in you in your lock-picking ability? I say we crack open the thermostat and turn this house into a sauna!"

Both tanukis looked at each other before looking back at Redd.

"But Un-cle-cle-cle Tom said not to touch the thermostat!"

"…touch the thermostat!"

"He isn't sitting in this apartment freezing his tail off like we are!" Redd paused, tapping a claw to his chin. "Well, to be fair, he's trying to see about ordering in extra heating supplies for the island and working on the paperwork for that… but you get my point!"

Before either tanuki could say a word, Redd butted in. "I'll fully take the blame if the heat costs extra." He smiled, stooping over slightly as he knotted his hands together. "All we gotta do is crank the heater to max, let it run for a few hours to get warm, then kill it back to its original setting before Tom comes home. We can do that, can't we?"

The twins looked down at their blanket cocoon before looking back to Redd.

"Yep, let's do it."

"…do it."

Redd whipped around on his feet and darted into the kitchen as the twins threw the blanket off of them and climbed down from the couch. All three of them bolted for the thermostat in the hallway, eyes glittering with desperation as they eyed the lock around the case of the thermostat…

"Alright, kiddos, time to put those lock-picking skills to the test. Timmy, you first, and Tommy, you wait on standby."

"Got it, Uncle Redd!"

"…Uncle Redd!"

Redd dropped to his knees, falling to all fours as one of the twins climbed onto his back. Little paws shifted on the center of his back, and the kitsune tucked his head down to allow for more room for the little tanuki to move around.

A few beats of silence passed, several sounds of struggles coming from Timmy as he fumbled with the lock and toolkit. Even Tommy, who usually argued with his brother on how to properly do things, held his breath in anticipation.

"Ennh… ENNNNNH… Uncle Redd, I don't think I can do it."

Redd cocked his head to the side. "No problem, kiddo. You did the best you could. Tommy, you're up next!"

The tanuki hopped off his back before another similar weight climbed on. Tommy grabbed the lockpick kit from Timmy as they traded spaces, and not a peep of argument left either of them as Tommy began working with the lock.

A few clicks and a moment of tense silence before…

Something hit Redd right between the ears as Tommy danced on his back. "Yes! Got it!"

Groans came from the kitsune as he clasped his head with his paws.

Tommy hopped down, and the two little tanukis shuffled close to their other uncle, concern decorating their little faces.

"Sorry, Uncle Redd."

"…Uncle Redd."

Redd breathed as he lifted his head back up. The space between his ears just beyond the top of his head stung like crazy, but triumph washed away most of the pain. "It's fine, kiddos," he breathed, heaving himself to his feet. "Alright, time to turn this place into a heat spot that'll make the sun lime green with jealousy!"

Excited gasps came from the twins as Redd made to twist the knob on the thermostat…

The moment the kitsune turned the knob, a message popped up on the little screen.

Redd's eyes narrowed. "'Please authorize changes. Scan thumbprint…' What?!"

Timmy and Tommy looked at the thermostat in horror, the sinking feeling inside of them evident on their faces, as Redd jammed his thumb against the miniscule scanner. A loud beep followed, and when Redd dissolved into grumbling and muttering, both tanukis looked to each other with ever-growing terrified expressions.

"We're going to freeze to death!"

"We're gunna be tanuki popsicles in a few hours!"

"Not today we're not!" Redd interrupted, whipping around to face the twins. His eyes looked off to the side, and his claws twitched quickly as he ran through calculations. "So, the thermostat is off-limits… I can't break in without Tom knowing, and I don't know how to hack through tech like that, so that's not an option."

Suddenly, Redd straightened and his face brightened like a lightbulb. He paused, ears flicking. "Wait… Tom said we couldn't touch the thermostat… but he never said anything about not using the fireplace… right?"

Realization dawned on all three of them at the same time.

Claws scratched against the floor as the three of them tore back to the living room. Hands, still shaking from the cold and in a mad frenzy to get warm, snatched up firewood from the iron holder next to the fireplace. They threw blocks of wood into the small space, crowding around each other to get as close as they could to the thought of a roaring fire…

"Matches! We forgot the matches!"

Redd stood up so fast that the twins fell over. They looked toward the direction their uncle took off in, the direction of the kitchen, and straightened themselves as bangs and clatters echoed throughout the kitchen.

"Gotitgotitgotit!"

The kitsune slid across the tile floor, socks scrambling against the floor. His legs pushed him forward, and in a moment, he was back between the twins, bouncing the matchbox in his palm as he desperately fumbled for a match.

Whines came from the twins as they jostled their uncle's arms.

"Come on, Uncle Redd!"

"…Uncle Redd!"

"I'm goin'! I'm goin'!"

Finally, the kitsune managed to slip out a match. Happiness lit up all three faces as Redd flicked the match against the side of the box, bringing the smallest flicker of fire to life. Gentle claws guided the flame to the firewood pile.

The match touched the wood…

All three of them watched as the flame ate up the rest of the match without setting fire to the wood.

Redd blew out the match before it could touch his claws. A hopeless moan came from both Timmy and Tommy as they buried their heads in their hands.

The kitsune's ears dropped as he looked to both twins, embarrassment and pity painting his face. His mouth moved, already making to apologize to the two tanukis.

Then he remembered what he had.

"Hold on a sec, kiddos…" Redd stood, slinking off to the hallway closet where the four of them kept household supplies. "I think I know something we can use to help get the fire going."

Both of the twins paused in their mourning. They watched with wide eyes as Redd hurried over to the long hallway, disappearing behind a wall. Rounded ears perked up with the shuffle of contents in the supply closet.

After a minute, Redd came back around the corner, a massive grin on his face and a can of cleaning spray in one paw.

Timmy and Tommy looked to each other, confusion all over their fuzzy faces. "Um, Uncle Redd…" Tommy piped up. "How are we going to get warm by cleaning?"

Timmy clapped both his paws over his eyes. "Please don't make us clean the whole house from top-to-bottom!"

"What? No, we're not doing anything in this cold!" Redd gestured to the side of the spray can. The smile on his face broadened, and he hunched over to better show off the can. "There's just something about this spray can in general… Like the fact that it's highly flammable…"

Four brown eyes brightened up instantly. Then the two looked to each other as the weight of common sense settled on their shoulders.

"Um… Uncle Redd, are you sure this is going to be safe?"

"…going to be safe?"

Redd spread out his paws, strutting over to the fireplace. "'Course it is! I know how to handle a measly little fire, and all we need to do is get it going. Then we can put the spray away and sit right in front of the fire and get warm."

He put the spray down, grabbing the matchbox and lighting another match. "Besides," he said as he picked up the spray. "It'll be a teensy-weensy, little fire. What could go wrong?"

Pure white snow crunched under Tom's paws. Flurries of snowflakes tickled his nose, and with a tiny shiver, the tanuki used one of his full paws to tuck in his snow jacket.

What a blizzard this weather was proving to be!

He had known the second he had woken up that morning that he needed to put in orders for island-wide heating units. When he had put together the island package, the Resident Representative and most of the island members arrived over spring and summer, and Tom's biggest concern at the time had been keeping everybody cool.

Now, it was winter. Their first winter.

Admittedly, the tanuki shouldn't have underestimated the weather and its power.

Tom paused in his walk home, adjusting the folded jackets in his arms. He had grabbed what little the Able Sisters could spare, and even though the sisters had stayed up the night prior and made as many jackets as they could, there had been a shortage of them by the end of the morning, and Tom was grateful for the few jackets they had held onto for his family.

And speaking of his family…

The tanuki eyed the door to the Cranny, checking for any signs of damage. Nothing obvious yet…

Fabric bunched against the door as Tom pushed the clothes onto one arm. Claws dug around for the house keys in his pocket, and after a moment of struggle, Tom hooked the key out of his pocket. With a simple turn, he unlocked the door and stepped into the shop.

He locked the door behind him, eyes still studying his surroundings.

Nope… nothing wrong in the main shop area…

The tanuki readjusted the jacket pile. Booted paws stomped against the welcome mat, shaking the snow off the sides, and the key to the shop disappeared back into his pocket. He headed up the stairs to the upper apartment level, a hum burning in his throat as he unlocked the apartment door with a different key.

And then the door swung open to reveal the chaos inside.

Clusters of flames licked at the carpets. A blanket, the end of it dripping with fire, hung down from the still ceiling fan. The fireplace roared with such a huge fire it was a miracle the apartment hadn't already burned down.

And there were the culprits themselves.

Timmy and Tommy were in the kitchen, screaming and hollering in fear as they kept their eyes glued to Redd. The kitsune threw a full bucket of water onto the fireplace, barely doing much to put out the flame. Before anyone knew it, the fire grew stronger, consuming the life-giving oxygen it needed and creeping out of the fireplace.

Well… this was better than he had expected his "no touching the thermostat" rule to turn out.

With a swift motion that shouldn't have been as natural as it was, Tom threw the jackets onto the couch and picked up the fire extinguisher by the apartment's door. A quick unhook of the hose, pull the clip, position it correctly-

Pure white spray erupted from the fire extinguisher, and Tom pointed the nozzle at any bit of flame that caught his eye. By the time the tanuki was finished with extinguishing everything, foam covered every inch of Redd and the fireplace.

Silence settled over the small living space as Tom hooked the extinguisher's nozzle back to its clip.

Eyes blinked under a thick layer of foam. "Oh, hey, Nookie. How was work?"

"…Actually, it went a lot better than I had expected it to go, yes yes." Tom sighed, only for a small smile to take the exhaustion's place. "How was your day, hm? I see it was quite interesting, that is, if the state of the living room is anything to go by…"

Redd shrugged his shoulders and bobbed his head from side-to-side. "I mean…" He paused, body language making it look as if he was weighing his options. "It could have been better, but it also could have been worse."

A soft laugh left Tom as he set the extinguisher back down by the door.

Timmy and Tommy inched around the corner they had been hiding behind, guilt lining their faces. They trotted into the living room, paws careful to step around the burned parts of the carpet, and stopped in front of Tom. Little paws tucked behind their backs.

"We're sorry for the fire, Uncle Tom."

"…for the fire, Uncle Tom."

Tom warmed instantly. His larger paws settled on both of their heads, patting both of the tanukis' soft, fluffy foreheads. "It's okay. Though I believe that next time we should probably let me take care of the fire, hm?"

"So… am I off the hook as well?"

Brown eyes looked up, and an eyebrow lifted. "I don't think the twins would have been able to make such a big fire without help. I know you helped them, yes yes."

Redd lifted a finger to argue back, his mouth already dropped open, but then the kitsune shrugged and dropped the pose as if he had thought better of it. "…Yeah, I helped them get the fire going."

Tom stayed quiet for a moment. Then, the tanuki lifted his paws off the twins' heads and clapped them together. "Alright, time to clean up the damage from the fire, yes yes!"

All three of the other family members let out groans so loud it echoed off the walls.

"Now now, you should have thought of that before you tried to do something so dangerous," Tom chastised, waving a finger. "The Cranny could have been in a much worse condition, and we can't quite leave foam all over the floor."

More groans followed, but Redd marched off to the master bathroom to wash off, and Timmy and Tommy followed behind their other uncle until they reached the supply closet. The two little tanukis trotted back into the living room, cleaning wipes and sprays in their paws, and got to work.

Tom carefully stepped around them, heading for the thermostat. A heavy sigh left him as he took another quick glance at the grumbling twins. With a nod of his head, he punched in a higher temperature into the thermostat and pressed the pad of his thumb against the little scanner.

Shouts of utter joy came from both the living room and the master bedroom. The older tanuki craned his neck to look around the corner of the hallway, and saw both the twins pressed against the heater vents in the living room.

A small smile cracked on Tom's face as warmth filled his chest. He shook his head, chuckling as he slipped back into the living room.

He would never tire of saying it: no matter how wild his family got, especially if they were trying to find their way around rules, he still wouldn't give them up for all the Bells in the world. And if a slight dip in Bells meant that they would feel as warm on the outside as they made him feel on the inside, then Tom was happy to take the loss.

Well, as long as it wasn't a whole day's worth of blasting the heater. That was a little too out-of-budget…

Song Inspo: "positions" by Ariana Grande.

GHJK I'm living farther up North than I have in my whole life, so I'm in for a bit of a rough winter. Goodness, there may be some more ReddNook fics with winter themes and maybe some grumblings about the lack of heat…

Nonetheless, I hope you all enjoyed the story! Thank you so much for reading and supporting!

XD