[Synopsis: Pretty much just a bunch o' cute space beans snuggling and stuff like that with one another, and that's basically it. This one is about 15% plot and 85% fluff. Better brush your teeth ten times over after this one, I made it that freakin' sweet.]

[Location: The Skeld]

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It'd been a long day of tasking for the crewmates and slaughtering for the Impostors over the several rounds the gang had played throughout the day, but it was finally time to hang up their task lists and settle down for the evening.

TheGentleman's room was only illuminated by a single lamp. He was wearing his night robe reading a book, sitting comfortably in his lounge chair...Said piece of furniture was wide enough to fit another one, or maybe even TWO people on it on either side of him, but he always seemed to be the only one using it.

"TheGentleman?"

Had the novel his eyes were trained on been more compelling, he'd have grumbled at MrCheese to not bother him at the moment. But in all honesty, it was a bit dull for his taste, so he folded it and looked up at his business associate standing in the doorway...He had a pair of fuzzy blankets folded up in his hands, as well as a few pillows on top of that.

"What are you up to, MrCheese?"

"Well...Engineer is working on fixing a f-few of the heating systems on the ship tonight, and i-it's gotten a little chilly," he stammered, beating his invisible arms a little to warm himself. "And, uh...Well, I'm also kinda lonely, so I was wondering if I could....stick around here and...stuff?"

TheGentleman chuckled lightly.

"MrCheese, I know you well," he replied. "And I happen to know what you're insinuating. There's no need to prevaricate."

"Oh..."

He deflated a bit, prepared to be verbally escorted out.

"Ah, I won't turn you down if you need some company. This novel is as stale as week-old bread, anyways, so I haven't much else to do."

"R-really?"

"Of course!"

MrCheese perked right back up again and headed over to where TheGentleman was sitting, positioning the pillows behind them, hopping up onto his associate's right side and pulling the blankets overtop of them.

"Ha ha, come here, you...!"

The black crewmate promptly pulled him closer and playfully rubbed the top of his head, conducting a decent amount of static electricity in the process.

"Hey-! That's not fair!"

Despite his protests, MrCheese couldn't help but giggle, TheGentleman quickly following suit as he finally let go of him...When they both calmed back down from their fit of laughter, they leaned back into the chair and snuggled down into the blanket a bit more.

"Man, TheGentleman...Life doesn't get much better than this, does it?"

"No, I must admit it doesn't," he sighed contently. "...I know I don't say this often, but...You're not just any business associate, MrCheese. You're one of the best people I've ever had in my life. You still are...You don't care about my status, or material possessions...You care about who I am. I'd never met anyone like that before you came along."

"Heh heh...Well, I'm glad I was able to be that person for you."

MrCheese huddled up closer to his associate, now sufficiently comfortable. He might have started to fall asleep right then and there had another voice not sounded off from beside them.

"E-excuse me," it stammered. "Is there, um...room f-for one more, p-perhaps?"

There was only one other person on board the Skeld with a thick British accent, so they both already knew who was standing there even before they turned their heads to face him.

"Uh, MrEgg?" MrCheese addressed. "What are you doin' here? No offense, but we're kinda having a moment."

The pink crewmate adjusted the thick scarf wrapped around himself and hid his visor into it, looking rather ashamed of himself.

"I-I see...Sorry. I'll go..."

"Hang on, MrEgg," TheGentleman said to him before he got the chance to turn around. "Are you cold tonight as well?"

"...Maybe," he nodded sheepishly.

"Well, I don't have a problem with you joining us. I know how sensitive you are to cold temperatures...MrCheese. What say you? Would you mind MrEgg squeezing in with us?"

The crewmate in question wore a skeptical look on his face.

"Hmmm...Well...Maybe...? I dunno..."

Despite them having ended their war over TheGentleman long ago and even becoming friends themselves, MrCheese wasn't sure he was comfortable with MrEgg intruding on their quality time together. He'd rather not be given a reason to rekindle their hateful rivalry, especially when he knew just how much it'd bothered TheGentleman when it was still a thing.

"Look, MrCheese," the black crewmate said gently. "Do you remember how I said that you were the first real friend I ever had?"

"Yeah..."

"Well, to be frank, I was the same thing for MrEgg as you were to me! Except he...well...He had the opposite predicament of being the wealthy high-class fellow that everyone wanted a piece of, if you know what I mean."

"Oh...Y-yeah, that's right, isn't it? I remember when he told Player about all that back on that one trip to Polus..."

"Our business association is a thing of the past, MrCheese. Now I consider our dear MrEgg as more of...how do I put this...the younger sibling that I never had, but always wanted."

"Oh. That so, huh?"

"Indeed it is. Isn't that right, MrEgg?"

The pink crewmate wore a touched smile on his face, and nodded lightly.

"You don't have anything to worry about, MrCheese."

"Weeeeell, okay. You can cuddle with us," he finally accepted, wearing a reassuring grin. "Come on, get yourself cozy."

MrEgg bounced a bit where he stood before sitting down on TheGentleman's left and settling into one of the pillows against the back of the chair. The latter pulled a section of the blankets loose from their toasty cocoon and tucked him into them, making sure he was warm and snug.

"There we go. All bundled up...The cool night air stands no chance against our fluffy shield, now does it?"

"Nope, heh heh," MrCheese chortled. "Specially for MrEgg. He's got a scarf."

"Very true," TheGentleman nodded. "And I do say, MrEgg. Said article makes you look positively posh."

"Y-you think so?" the crewmate in question asked.

"Indeed I do. The burgundy color provides a complimenting contrast to your pink suit."

"Ha..." MrEgg blushed. "Well, I mainly got it to try and keep myself a little warmer on our Polus expeditions, so I wasn't really concerned about how it looked. I'm flattered you think so, though...Thank you."

"You're quite welcome, old chap."

MrEgg nestled into the covers a little more, and as if on cue, all three of them yawned at almost the exact same time.

"...MrCheese, would you mind turning off the lamp?" TheGentleman asked. "I'd do it myself, but I'm rather stuck in the middle."

"Sure thing, TheGentleman."

He extracted a hand from the covers and snapped the light off, shrouding the room in soft, comfortable darkness. The crewmate pinned in between his two comrades held them both close as they settled down.

"Sleep well, you two."

"Goodnight, TheGentleman," both of them said at the same time, earning a light chuckle from him.

It wasn't much longer until all three of them had nodded off, and were dreaming away of the bright future ahead.

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"Holy Mother 3, dude! You're actually winning!"

"If there's one game I know I'm good at, it's this! I've been playing Super Smash Bros ever since I was five, and I've yet to be bested at it! Even from a pro-gamer like you!"

"Guess you've got some hope for...*yawn*...victory after all, bestie...!"

GAME!

Fox wins!

"Man, Player. I thought I had you," Veteran told him, still somewhat in awe at his best friend's unanticipated win. "Guess Ganondorf was a bad matchup against him."

"Hey, you almost had me, I gotta admit...You at least did better against Captain."

"True..." Captain yawned again. He'd been the first one eliminated in that round, and had been observing the fight from there. "...Guess Kirby couldn't handle it."

"You look kinda tired, Captain," Player pointed out. "What time is it?"

Captain took a peek at his clock.

"Eleven...twenty? It's kinda blurry..."

"Wow. Time flies, don't it?" Veteran remarked, letting out a yawn himself and stretching his bean-shaped form. "Yeah, I'm about ready to call it a night myself."

They backed out of the fight menu, quit the game and put it away...It didn't take long for their initial fatigue to catch up to them; by the time all of that was done, they felt about ready to collapse.

"Hey, uh...dude?"

"Yeah, Veteran?"

"...I don't think Captain's goin' anywhere tonight."

They both looked at their white-clad companion; he was already fast asleep on Player's bed, curled up into a ball and hiding his visor in his folded hands.

"Oh..."

"You want me to take care of it? I can probably get him to his own room if we wake him back up."

"Nah, just...Let him stay here," Player replied, sitting down on the mattress beside him and patting his head. "He's tired."

"Well, where are you gonna-"

Before Veteran could finish, Captain rolled over to face his red-clad buddy, reached out and pulled him close, nuzzling against his side.

"...sleep...?"

"Huh..."

Player tried to pry Captain's hands off of him so he could move them back onto the mattress, but he only held him tighter and whimpered, obviously not wanting to let go...The red crewmate sighed deeply.

"...Guess I'm stuck like this."

"Seriously, dude?" Veteran remarked as he raised his eyebrows.

"Yeah. One time won't hurt. Besides, look at him."

They both looked down at Captain as he huddled up closer to his friend and curled back up again, mumbling something in his sleep.

"Hmm...bestie..."

"You can't say that's not sweet," he told his best friend as he patted the top of Captain's head again. "Hey, uh, Veteran. I never pulled the sheets off the bed here. Would you mind grabbing a couple of the blankets from the closet for us? I heard that Engineer is going to be fixing some of the ship's heating systems tonight, so it'll be a little cooler in here than usual...I'd do it myself, but, uh...Obvious reasons."

The smallest indication of a frown appeared on Veteran's face as he fetched the extra covers from Player's closet and headed back over. Player promptly unfolded them and draped them overtop of himself and the white crewmate beside him.

"Sleep tight, Captain," he whispered as he took Captain's hat off and placed in on the bedpost behind him.

"Uh...Dude?" Veteran spoke up.

"Yeah?"

"Hope you don't mind, but...Is this spot taken?"

He pointed at the empty space on the mattress on the opposite side of Player that Captain was on...Player laughed a bit before responding.

"All yours, Veteran."

As soon as he got his answer, Veteran beamed, lifted the covers up and cuddled up close to his best friend.

"Alright, ha ha, broggles!"

"What?"

"Short for bro snuggles."

"Oh my God, that's not a word, Veteran..."

"It is now that I made it one."

Player rolled his eyes as Veteran settled back down.

"Hey, thanks for lettin' me bunk with you guys. You're the best friend I could've ever asked for, y'know, dude?"

"Well...Just like you said a while back. It takes one to know one, doesn't it?"

"Ah, c'mere, you."

Veteran pulled his friend's beanie over his visor in a playful manner, effectively blinding him.

"Hey!"

Player giggled in spite of his protests, and readjusted his hat so he could see properly again...After that mini-fiasco was over, he nestled into the pillows and covers again, looking off to one side, and then the other, at two of the people that cared about him most.

"...Thanks for always being there for me, you two. Not really sure what I'd do without you."

Captain couldn't manage a verbal reply, but even in sleep, it still seemed like he could hear Player talking, and he cuddled up closer to him.

"Neither would I, Player..." Veteran told him, yawning one more time before shutting his heavy eyes again. "...You ready to hit the hay?"

"Yeah...G'night guys."

"You too, man..."

"...Nighty night," Captain murmured indistinctly as the room grew quiet...All three of them were fast asleep in barely a minute, and the only sound that could be heard in their quarters was that of their own low, steady breathing, which lulled them to sleep even more.

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...

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Engineer yawned as he tightened the last bolt with his wrench. The heating systems would automatically start up again on a low setting at midnight, and the somewhat chilly Skeld would be at normal temperature again by tomorrow morning.

"What time is it...?"

He checked the clock on his phone...It was ten minutes to twelve. He'd been working on the systems for almost two hours past his usual bedtime, and he felt like he was going to collapse at any moment as he trudged back to his and Gnome's shared quarters.

He very quietly and slowly opened the door, figuring that his girlfriend had gone to sleep a long time ago. But he was surprised to find their night table lamp still on, and Gnome sitting on the edge of their bed. She had her nightie on and was holding a cup of tea, and the minute she saw him open the door, she got back onto her feet and made her way over to him.

"You're still awake, Gnome...?" Engineer rasped.

"I just wanted to wait until you got done," she smiled. "...I made you this."

"Oh...Thank you, Gnome, I really needed that."

He gingerly took the cup of tea from her hands and sipped it...Gnome always made the best tea. Not even TheGentleman had the upper hand on her in that craft.

"Did you get any for yourself?"

"Yeah. I finished mine while I was waiting for you...Glad you're finally done."

"Heh...S-so am I," he blushed, taking another sip.

"When you're done with that, why don't you get into your pajamas and we can get to bed, okay Engie? You probably need the rest."

"Yeah...I'm about ready to conk out."

"You need me to help you get into your PJs?"

"Well, uh, heh heh...I think I can manage, but thank you," he replied, finishing off his tea. "You just get comfy under the sheets. I'll be right with you."

"Take your time if you need to."

She removed the comforter and sheets from the bed and settled down onto her pillow as Engineer got into his own night clothes...It was barely even one minute later that he was coming over to his side of the bed and lying down beside her.

"You know something, Gnome," he said to her as he huddled down under the comforter. "I-I never really saw myself in a relationship a year or so ago. I never really had much luck with romance...And then you came into my life and turned all of that around, just like that. You helped me through a real rough spot...Words are never going to be able to describe just how much you mean to me."

"~Ohh, Engie..."

She scooched closer and reached her hands out towards him, giving her significant other a very gentle hug and making him blush.

"I love you so much."

"You too, Gnomey..."

She giggled in response to the pet name.

"Hee hee...'Gnomey.' That's a new one."

"Yeah...I-I dunno, I figured 'Engie and Gnomey' sounded kinda cute."

"I think so too," she cooed as she planted a kiss against his cheek, making it turn even more red. "...You ready to cuddle up and go to sleep?"

"Sure am..."

They both hunkered down into the covers some more, each of them closing their eyes and letting out one more yawn...Gnome gently stroked the top of Engineer's head as the two of them slowly drifted off.

"Sweet dreams, Engie..."

"...They will be with you here."

"~Awwww..."

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ganondorf is actually pretty bad in smash tho. the only reason captain lost to veteran with kirby is because he's a noob. XDDD

I've been getting so into this fluff, sometimes I forget that I'm also the same person who used to write a lot of fight scenes and is still working on a detective noir series. XP

What did you think? Saccharine enough for ya? Lol