Nick sat, reclined in his chair, as he peered out the large glass pane. Outside were the people of Zootopia, who were bearing themselves against the chill of gusty overcast weather and the ice cold sting of the light rain as they were soldiering on; to wherever their individual agendas were taking them. If it was not for the thick winter jackets that the mammals were clad in and so desperately clung to as they attempted to wrap themselves in as much as possible, Nick could easily deduce the windy climate from the trees that lined the sidewalks.
The smaller ones swayed about their bases in the wind's vain attempt to rip them from the ground that they are rooted in, while the branches of the larger ones flailed violently. The commotion causing what shriveled up leaves were left to break loose from their stems and become lost in the air as the wind tumbled through the long straight streets of the city.
With each sporadic gust, leaves lying on the ground would be picked up and would join the debris already afloat in the atmosphere. All of this bustle, though, commenced in silence to the fox that was watching from behind the thick glass of the window pane. The only evident sound of the outside world is the moan of the wind against this pane and the light rain that pitter-pattered against it.
The rain was less noticeable, except for the drops that streaked down the window and for the vehicles that wiped the water off of their windshields at a slow tempo that matched the speed of the rain falling from Heaven above.
Those same vehicles whose headlights began to turn on as dusk set in above the city. Similarly, one by one in a sporadic fashion, the street lamps would warm up into that distinct soft yellow glow that is characteristic of sodium vapor lights, and flood the streets with radiance. To the observant fox, the glow of the lights deceptively provided warmth. But one step out into the winter would tell him otherwise.
With his right hand, he lifted his cup of coffee to his lips. As he brought it up to kiss the opening in the lid, he was reminded of the fragrance that had gone lost to his nose since his arrival. It smelt of cinnamon and nutmeg. He decided to try the seasonal flavor the barista offered.
As he finished his sip, Nick diverted his gaze to the bunny that sat across the small round table from him. She has her hand loosely intertwined with his left one. She had been absentmindedly fiddling with the golden band that rested upon his finger as she stared out into the bookstore. The coffee shop the two of them sat in was only partitioned from the bookstore by a handful of wooden railings and a drastic change in theming to suit the brand of the coffee shop. This allowed Judy to view the entire space uninterrupted. The tables lined the wooden partitions. They were only big enough to accommodate three chairs, but this was not an issue for the fox and bunny.
She quickly observed that the store did not solely sell books, but it carried a small supply of puzzles and trinkets and board games. In smaller supply, it carried CDs and even some vinyl records. On the opposite side of the store was a small children's area. In the center of the space was a large Christmas tree that stood as tall as the room. Nearly making its way to the ceiling. Among its ornaments, the tree adorned photographs of various children with wishlists attached. Shoppers were making donations through the store and the foundation that sponsored these children.
The rabbit's ears were picking up all the sounds of the store as they turned every which way. They heard the sounds of the coffee shop. The brewing of the coffee, the sound of the grinders and hissing and screeching of the espresso machine. She also heard the opening of cash register drawers and the beeps as books were scanned and placed into bags.
Despite all the sounds being broadcasted over the space, she found her ears tuned to the children's area. She always loved the sound of kids laughing, and screaming, and playing. It reminded her of home. But among all of these sounds was the one she enjoyed the most. The sound of their joy and excitement as they crowded in to meet the man in the big red suit with white trim, who wore a pointy hat. The kids all crowded around Santa Claus in an attempt to get as close as they could. Old Saint Nick is a polar bear this year, like most years. Something Judy took notice of. The polar bear Santas seem to be the most popular with the children of the City. He seems to be the image of what Santa is supposed to resemble.
She gladly took advantage of her bunny hearing. When she and Nick had arrived, he had been telling various Christmas tales. He told everything from the Nativity to the famous Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer. These tellings brought back memories of her and her family sitting around a big TV in the main room of the borrow as they watched the claymated renditions of these stories. They would sit and enjoy popcorn and enjoy the rare occasion of drinking a soda. Soda is expensive, especially to a large family of farming bunnies. So the opportunity to have one of these sugary beverages was a privilege saved for special holidays. It was and still is a tradition of her family to watch these every year. Even the few years she could not make it home for Christmas, she would make Nick sit down and watch them with her in the comfort of their living room.
Later Santa moved onto inviting the children, one at a time, to sit on his lap and tell him what they most desired for Christmas. Amongst all of these sounds was one unifying sound. That sound being played over the store's PA system. The Little Drummer Boy and other joyful holiday songs reminding them of why they celebrate. The music singlehandedly seemed to glue the atmosphere together into the lively and loving way in the cozy space of the bookstore. It could make the day of even the hardest of scrooges.
In the midst of all her musing came the most important of all these sounds.
"Hey Carrots, come on." The sound of Nick's voice nearly startled her. She blushed slightly in her embarrassment of her reaction. "It's time to go. That is if you want to make it to your parents' house on time."
"Your dad said he'd hang my tail above the mantle if we got in late, and I think he was sincere this time." He continued with mock fright in his voice as he dramatically clung to his tail.
"Oh, yeah" Judy responded as she recomposed herself. "Then stop playing with your tail over there, you goofball, and let's go."
They grabbed their coats that were draped over their chairs and put them on as the braced themselves for the mad dash to their car.
"Last one there is a frozen fox-cicle." Judy said as she hustled out the entrance.
"Oh, you're on." Nick shot back as he scrambled to put his coat on and made chase.
Well, this was supposed to be a Fall thing, but I guess it turned into a Winter thing, and then a Christmas thing. This was inspired by an experience of mine some years ago. We were visiting family in Pensacola. It was a particularly cold, damp and breezy day. We were out doing stuff and found ourselves in a Barnes and Noble. I was sitting there sipping on coffee, much like Nick and Judy here, and just taking it all in. The atmosphere was extremely cozy and almost magical. If that could not put someone in the holiday spirit, then that one is a lost cause. So I wanted to express what I was feeling on that day. And I chose to do so in this plotless one-shot.
The soda thing was inspired by my mom. One of the stories she likes to tell us about how her side of the family was poor growing up. Soda was a luxury they could not afford on a regular basis. So it was a special thing that my grandma would buy. Sometimes it was an off brand, sometimes not. Just depended on what was cheapest at the time. They would do this for whenever one of the Christmas specials like Rudolf would come on. Even the Charlie Brown specials. So I wanted to incorporate that in some way.
Lastly, this is not set on the timeline of my other stories, but it wouldn't conflict with them if it had.