Hi all!

Sorry I've been away for so long. Months ago I had the idea to start writing some slice-of-life fics for ACNH since there weren't many at the time of developing my plans. So, I'm happy to present "Nookling Store Shenanigans Island Life Shorts." This will be a series of oneshots, or short stories, based on the random adventures of Timmy, Tommy, and many other familiar faces as they become accustomed to island life both in and outside of the store.

Oh, and readers can use their in-game name when reading "(Player)" to participate in them!

Enjoy~!

P.S. I DO NOT OWN ANIMAL CROSSING OR ANY OF IT'S CHARACTERS

ANTS!

!

/! !\

( o.o )

"Timmy-Timmy!" Tommy Nook sprinted downstairs into the shop, flailing about. He was on his way to fetch lunch when he suddenly came barreling back to the main floor. Tommy struggled to catch his breath as he approached the counter, frantically speaking to his twin brother but not making much sense.

"Huh? Calm down, Tommy-" Timmy Nook walked behind the counter to level with his distraught sibling. Tommy made an attempt to calm himself, taking a deep breath. "Now, what's going on?"

"Th-there's a problem!" He cried, becoming anxious all over again. "It's awful-!"

"How awful?"

"Just terrible!"

"H-How bad is it?"

"It's a real catastrophe!"

"Just say it!" Timmy yelled back, shaking Tommy by the shoulders. He had become quite anxious himself now. "TELL ME!"

"W-We... We have-!"

"What?! WHAT DO WE HAVE?!"

"A-ANTS! WE HAVE ANTS!"

"ANTS!? Wait- ...ants?" Timmy's previously horrified expression quickly shifted to a frown. "Are you serious?" He let go of his brother, allowing Tommy to fall to the floor. "I thought we were in actual danger!"

"Ouch," Tommy groaned, rubbing at his back. "Sorry... B-but, this is dangerous! I'm sure our customers don't want to come to a store infested with ants."

"What do you mean infested?" Timmy raised an eyebrow, helping Tommy to his feet. "Having a few ants doesn't mean there's an infestation."

"No no no, you don't understand." Tommy shuddered, now nervously dancing in place. "You haven't seen them-They're everywhere!"

"Alright alright, fine." Timmy placed a 'Be Back Soon!' sign over the counter before turning to follow his brother. "Show me where they are."

With a nod, Tommy led Timmy upstairs to the store breakroom. It was to the left of the stairway, and served as both their kitchen and living space. Timmy and Tommy's room was located to the right of the breakroom. And, their Uncle and Guardian Tom Nook had his own bedroom across the hall from them.

Insisting that Timmy go first, Tommy hung back behind his brother as he peeked into the doorway. Both were instantly met with hundreds upon thousands of ants. They covered the floor, walls, ceiling, windows, and even the molding around the doorway! They truly were everywhere.

"Oh no..." Was all Timmy could muster. The scene left him speechless and completely mortified. What caused this? There's so many... "This is bad."

"I told you! Oh, Uncle Nook's gonna be so upset!" Tommy whined, covering his eyes. "What are we gonna do?"

"Gah-! I don't know!" It was Timmy's turn to cover his eyes. "How did this even happen? It doesn't make sense-!"

Just then (Player) walked into the store, spotting the twins once they returned downstairs, who looked as if they were on the verge of tears.

"Oh (Player), you've gotta help us! ...help us!" Timmy and Tommy scrambled over before they had time to even ask what's wrong, speaking in unison. (Player) was surprised and very confused. What could they want?

"Please help us!" Tommy began, "We've got an infestation-!"

"Yeah, a bad one!" Timmy tugged at (Player)'s arm, while Tommy pushed them from behind.

"You've gotta come see! ...come see!"

(Player) was then led, just as Timmy was, up to the horrific display and their face showed nothing but pure shock. (Player) simply had no words for what they were looking at.

"We know-!" Tommy began.

"We're just as shocked as you are, but we don't know what to do!" Timmy finished.

The twins took hold of (Player)'s hands, "Please help! ...help!" They begged.

(Player) shook their head, not wanting any part of it. They had their own work to do around the island and it couldn't wait. They did, however, use their net to catch an ant for the museum.

"B-but, but-! ...but-!" Timmy and Tommy were stunned. Was (Player) really going to turn them away in their time of need?

Apparently so, because they backed away, grabbed what they needed from the store, left their Bells and went on their merry way without a word.

Looking from the door to each other, the boys began to panic once again; This time pacing back and forth in their best attempt to not lose control.

"O-Okay-Okay, we can figure this out." Said Tommy, doing his best but struggling to keep calm. "I mean, we've been through worse, right?"

"Have we-?" Timmy held his head in his hands, then groaned. "I don't remember anything like this ever happening in the store."

"You know what, it doesn't matter," Tommy huffed. "Let's just focus... What attracts ants?"

"Food, but we only sell (native fruit) and occasional dishes. We don't store either of those in the breakroom, though."

"That's right, we don't. But, that is where we have lunch."

"Yeah, but our bentos are pretty airtight." Timmy said, folding his arms. "Plus, we keep them in the fridge."

"Ants can get into a fridge, Timmy."

"No they can't, Tommy."

"Can too!"

"Can not!"

"Can too!"

"Can n- Ugh, you know what? Whatever!" Timmy exclaimed, throwing his arms in the air. "This is getting us nowhere..."

"Fine, let's rule out the fridge for now, then." Tommy released a heavy sigh, "Ruling out the fridge and food storage, that just leaves..."

Both twins gasped simultaneously, "The trash can! ...can!"

"Okay, that settles it," Timmy exclaimed, now sporting an expression of determination. "Let's go check the trash."

"Oh! Wait a sec," Tommy went to the cabinet to retrieve a net for each of them. "We might need these."

"Good thinking. Alright, let's go!"

Trekking up the stairs once again, Timmy and Tommy prepared themselves to approach the ant-filled space. After psyching themselves up and counting down from three, the boys leapt into action; screaming and swinging their nets wildly until no ants were left in sight.

"Phew!" Timmy heaved out, flopping down to catch his breath. "You know? That was... actually pretty easy... Guess we didn't need (Player) after all!"

"Yeah," Tommy said, already sprawled out on the floor tiles. Taking a second to look around, he noticed something still felt off about the room. "Hmm... Maybe too easy."

"Eh, I won't complain." Timmy shrugged. "We should probably check the trash now."

"Oh, yeah..." Tommy swallowed nervously. "That's right."

Timmy moved to hold both sides of the trash can lid. "Ready your net, okay?"

"Okay," Tommy nodded, doing just that. "R-ready."

"Alright, here goes-!" Timmy suddenly tore the lid from the bin, exposing its contents. Both flinched, but relaxed when no ants came. "...There aren't any ants in here."

"What? Really?" Tommy inched closer to peer into the fairly empty trash bin. "Oh, you're right."

"...Why would I lie?"

"I dunno," Tommy shrugged. "I just needed to see for myself."

"Hey, look." Timmy pointed to a small orange box inside. "Isn't that Uncle Nook's lunch bento?"

Tommy nodded, "Yeah, he said the lid cracked, so he decided to throw it away."

"Do you think he cleaned it?"

"No, why would he...?" Tommy's eyes grew wide with realization, as Timmy reached for the container. "No wait, don't-!"

Almost as soon as Timmy touched the bento millions of ants erupted from the case, out of the trash, onto every surface including the boys. They crawled in their fur and on their ears, tickling their bodies in the worst way imaginable, which sent the two barrelling back downstairs in a horrified frenzy.

"GAAAAHHHHH! ...AAAHHHHH!"

Timmy shifted nervously as he and his brother stood trembling outside of the storefront, addressing a familiar, fish-loving beaver. "Th-Thanks again for coming on such short notice! ...notice!"

"No problem! Thanks for calling us," CJ smiled as he turned to face Timmy and Tommy. "Flick was just mentioned wanting an ant farm not too long ago. Lucky for him you guys had all these in stock."

"Heh heh, yeah." Timmy laughed halfheartedly. "L-lucky us."

"And, you're sure I can have them all for free?" Flick asked, walking up to join the group. He was barely able to contain his excitement as the ants were loaded into a nearby truck. "I mean, I don't mind paying. No price is too high for these precious bugs!"

"NO- No, it's fine!" Tommy answered quickly. "It's really no problem at all!"

"Really," Timmy reiterated with wide eyes.

"Oh thank you-thank you-thank you!" Flick squealed, pulling the twin brothers into a tight hug and twirling around. "This is the best day of my life!"

"You're welcome! ...welcome!"

Flick released them before skipping back towards the truck. "Aww, I'm gonna name one Antoinette, and another one Antione, and another Antony, and another Antonio, and another one Anton...!"

CJ chuckled softly, shaking his head as he followed after. "Flick will take good care of them, so feel free to come visit whenever you want!"

"Of course!" Tommy waved. "See you!"

"Bye-bye," said Timmy.

Once CJ and Flick were in the truck and out of sight, both boys collapsed back to back.

"Yikes," Timmy sighed tiredly. "I never want to see another ant for the rest of my life."

"Same here," Tommy shuddered. "Never ever!"

"...Boys?" Tom Nook arrived from behind, walking up the path to greet them. "What are you both doing out here?"

"Um, we were selling some bugs to Flick." Tommy began. "We had a lot in stock, so it seemed like the best way to get rid of them."

"Great work you two," Tom smiled, patting them both on the head. "Oh, you two didn't stock today's shipment of ant farms, did you?"

They both shook their heads. Neither of them knew about it in the first place.

"That's a relief," He sighed. "The whole shipment has to be sent back due to recall. Apparently the cases are defective and break easily."

"Wait," Tommy paled. "W-wouldn't that let all the ants out?"

"Yup, but I wouldn't worry about it." Tom turned away to walk into the store. "Those boxes are sealed tight."

Timmy and Tommy turned to face each other in utter disbelief before fully falling back to lay on the ground. They never wanted to see another ant ever again, ever!

Had to re-upload this chapter to fix a minor error with the face at the top. (The eyes were missing...)

Thanks for reading! And, thanks to purin07 for leaving the first comment/review!