Work Text:
Wiggle hummed idly at her ‘desk’, which was more a shelf nailed to the wall and a chair, drafting lyrics. It was roughly one in the morning, but as occasionally true, Wiggle found herself completely unable to sleep no matter how she tossed, turned, or even twisted. She chose not to stress about it too much, and continued to work until she'd exhausted herself enough the initial resistance would seem puny. Speaking of puny, she had about a page of lyrics, with another line being hesitantly scrawled.
If I rhyme ocean with lotion, will I be lynched? I probably shouldn't risk it for that.
She erased half of the page, rereading what she had left.
There are too many lines about eyes. This is just WAY too many. I need to pick literally anything else. Any other comparison.
She erases the other half, choosing for it to be an opportunity to start fresh and unburdened by concepts like ‘prior lyrics’ and ‘continuity.’ She shoved the feeling of being slightly miffed she had gotten positively nowhere down into the darkest depths it would go.
Hmm... should I even write a pop song? Maybe I could branch out. I could write a... Footsteps were behind her, interrupting her thought.
She turned around to see Gramble in her doorway; arms out, eyes shut tight, and drooling a little. He stumbled more than he walked forwards into her hut, almost immediately getting caught on the bedframe and tripping onto her bed.
She sat there mildly guffawed but entirely unsure what to do in this scenario. He laid there, in her bed, with no resistance, his trip across town seemingly done with. She sighed, standing up before bending back down to grab out a blanket from underneath her bed. Wiggle carefully laid it out across his sleeping form, going still when he stirred a little, but continuing to tuck him in when he didn't wake.
She smiled down at him sleeping soundly, watching him curl slightly into the blanket while sighing. Jeez, he didn't even take me out to dinner first...
She shook her head before turning back around to continue her work, but spotted a blur of something unusual in the corner of her eye. She turned to the doorway, and Floofty was standing there with a clipboard and a furrowed brow. She paused for a moment, before smiling with a small wave, absolutely no idea why they were there. They gestured with a beckon that Wiggle obliged.
Voice low, they inquired, “Ms. Wigglebottom, do you have any idea how you are affecting my study?”
She also kept her voice quiet and relatively without flair. It was quite late, and she'd rather not wake everyone up... again. “Study? Darling, I haven't the faintest clue.”
They folded their arms behind their back, clipboard coming with. “I am running a sleep study on Mr. Gigglefunny's somnambulism, and simply allowing him to take over your hut will skew the data.” Somn-whatsit? The gears in Wiggle's head turned, although slowly as this was not the first sleepless night in a row. “Oh. Did you want to wake him up? He's a little unmoving right now.”
Floofty peeked over her shoulder, noting Gramble tucked into bed sleeping soundly. “Hm, that he is. I suppose that marks the end of tonight's episode.” They unfolded, noting something on the clipboard. Wiggle considered taking a looksie for herself, but was already surprised at their amicability with her so far. She did not want to push her luck, for the sake of everyone's peace and mind.
They sighed. “It's best to just leave him be unless you decide to sleep tonight. However, keep this in mind if this happens in the future.”
Wiggle furrowed her brow at the comment about her own sleep patterns, but chose not to press further. “Does he know you're doing this?”
Floofty shook their head. “It is unintrusive, I do not see the need. Mr. Gigglefunny will be thankful in the future regardless if he knows or not.”
Wiggle nodded. “Are you trying to cure his sleepwalking?” Wait, how is walking into my hut “unintrusive?”
“Treat is the better term. If the data can better understand his patterns and how to prevent them, it will have served its purpose.”
Wiggle hummed, mouth speaking before her brain did. “Aw, that's quite nice of you darling.” Didn't think you would look out for anyone other than yourself... even if that comes in the form of watching them sleep every night.
Floofty turned their head, expression unreadable. “This is simply science. Niceties are not my intention.”
Wiggle smiled reassuringly. “Still, it's a nice uhm...” She tried to wrestle her brain into sticking the landing of this sentence. “... side effect, of your research. To help him.”
“The purpose of science is to serve grumpuskind, and currently, grumpuskind totals at 13.” Floofty sighed, corners of their mouth upturned though not quite a smile. “Regardless, I must be off to process the numbers. Your contribution will be noted.”
And Floofty had walked away to their hut. Wiggle lingered for just a moment, wondering, processing any and all of that, before returning to her own.The light was still on, the paper was still singing its harrowing swan song to her, and Gramble Gigglefunny, someone she has barely spoken to if at all, is sleeping in her bed. A premonitory feeling tells her to savor this moment, but get used to it. Watching his chest rest and fall, she almost gets the appeal of Floofty's study. It's oddly calming, she feels like she could do this for hours.
Maybe she'll have to ask about it again sometime. But first, she'll have to face the flurry of emotions from a grumpus who woke up in a strangers bed.
In the morning, anyway. For now, she will simply watch. Speaking of, was Gramble always that cute? Maybe it was the deprivation getting to her, but he looked oddly adorable tuckered out and wrapped up in bed. She never had gotten a very good look at him before, he was rather reclusive, but she found herself pleasantly surprised. His face only illuminated by hints of moonlight and Wiggle's light on her desk, highlighting the little line of drool dripping down his chin. He resembled a teddy bear, matted with sauce but cute as a button.
She forced herself to look away and sit down, to stop staring at her unwitting visitor. Slumping her face into her paws to avoid continuing to think about how he was perfectly accentuated by fluff, how his markings brought out his buck teeth, and just how unforgivingly pretty he looked in her bed. Let alone how she simply wanted to climb in with him and hold him so gently until the sun-
She held a paw up and waved it around as if clearing the thought, trying to get her train of a brain off of these tracks.
She just needed something productive, quiet, and distracting as sleep was not an option. Maybe she should prepare a little jingle for when he wakes up.
She'll try to minimize the staring in the meantime.