Tactibab Ambush

The pink bab crouched behind the sturdy snow fort, blending seamlessly with the pile of snow that had been shoveled to clear a path for the other babs and their noisy babblings. Despite his small size and unassuming form, he himself was no babling. His fluffy pink and cream-colored tail stood stiff and alert, poking out above the fort like a brightly glowing beacon, as if a sign were attached to it reading, "Pinku is here, proceed with caution."

He had bundled himself up in layers—two scarves, leg warmers, and a winter coat so thick and fluffy that all he needed to do was tuck his snout into the warmth of his ruff whenever the cold got too biting. His coat was a perfect insulator, keeping the chill at bay. That morning, he'd woken up hours before dawn to construct his fort, packing the snow tightly, stacking it high enough to hide him completely. Yet, despite his careful efforts, the excitement bubbled up inside him. His pink tail, too eager to stay hidden, poked out like a beacon against the pristine white of the snow, a cheerful giveaway to anyone who was paying attention.

Pinku watched as the other babs padded past, some with bablings in tow who struggled to take more than a few steps before they were distracted by a fresh pile of snow, diving in to jump and roll around. Their parents hurried after them, nipping at their ankle nubs in an effort to get to warmer places. For others, their parents joined in, laughing and playing with their bablings, indulging in their joy. Watching these scenes filled Pinku with a warm, nostalgic feeling, reminding him of his own childhood—his father, Puck, building snow forts with him, the two of them pummeling each other with snowballs until the cold would eventually force them back inside to their home.

So lost in the memories, Pinku barely noticed Aremis passing by, barely managing to duck behind his fort just in time. Beside him was his snowball arsenal, ready for deployment on the unsuspecting orange bab. His tail twitched in excitement, and he placed a paw over his snout to stifle the giddy giggles escaping him. The plan was perfect—Aremis wouldn’t suspect a thing.

Aremis trudged through the snow, bundled up in his own cozy winter clothes—scarf? Check. Leg warmers? Perfect. Coat? Warm and snug. Fluffy coat? Extra cozy. His thoughts, however, were far from the cold around him. The pre-order for his favorite author’s new book had just opened, and if he was lucky, the first hundred copies would be signed. The thought of snagging one made his heart race. Maybe, just maybe, he'd even get an advanced reader copy! He sighed dreamily, imagining the excitement of holding that book in his paws. And once he had it, he'd be able to share it with Pinku…

But just as he was lost in his daydream, something caught his attention—a faint sound that made his fluffy ears twitch. He froze, instinctively pausing his step, his eyes scanning the surroundings. The sound was too familiar to be ignored. His gaze swept across the snowy landscape, but everything seemed peaceful, nothing out of place.

However, as Aremis squinted against the snow blindness, something caught his eye—there, nestled behind a snow fort, he saw what appeared to be a tail. At first, it might have been a babling’s tail, but the more he looked, the more he noticed the tail’s excited, twitching movements. It wasn’t just any tail.

"Is that... Pinku?" Aremis called out, his voice tinged with both surprise and amusement as he walked closer to the fort.

From the other side of the fort, Pinku froze, his tail quickly disappearing and flattening against the cold ground. Drats! His trap had been uncovered. Through the small peep hole in the fort, he saw Aremis approaching cautiously, calling his name again—this time with a bit more hesitation, just in case he was mistaken. But Pinku knew that there were few pastel mantibabs in town, and even fewer that looked like him. The jig was up, and Pinku had to act quickly.

With a mischievous glint in his eye, Pinku raised a paw slowly, using the peep hole as his target.

"Pinku, what are you—" Aremis started to ask, but was cut off when a snowball collided with his snout.

"Oh, I see how it’s going to be," Aremis retorted with a playful challenge, shaking the snow off his face. "Don’t say I didn’t warn you!"

Pinku peeked his head up, ready to defend himself. "But you didn’t—" He was cut short as a snowball came flying back at him, striking his shoulder.

"Oh, it’s on now!" Pinku yelled, narrowly dodging another snowball as he ducked behind his fort, throwing one of his own—and missing by a mile. After all, Pinku was a bit of a clumsy bab, and his aim was... less than perfect.

The snowball fight erupted into full swing, with babs and their parents joining in, snowballs flying in all directions. Pinku motioned to Aremis, who was stuck out in the open, now pelted not just by Pinku’s snowballs, but also by rogue snowballs from other babs. Snow clung to Pinku’s coat in patches, and he was starting to feel the sting of the cold as snowballs hit him from all sides.

"Come here! My fort will protect us!" Pinku called, laughing as he rushed to meet Aremis, both of them ducking behind the fort’s walls for cover.

The fort’s protection was short-lived, however. A massive snowball hit one of the walls with a loud thud, causing a crack to form in the structure.

"Man the walls, Pinku! We’ve got to repair the fort!" Aremis shouted, gleeful as he hurried to patch up the damage. Pinku, ever the brave defender, threw snowballs out from behind the fort to provide cover. But in return he took heavy fire, his fur quickly covered in snow as he fended off incoming attacks from other babs, kantis and skullcrackers alike.

Aremis worked furiously to patch up the wall, packing snow into the cracks and smoothing it down. He kept low to the ground, dodging the snowballs flying overhead. Eventually, Pinku slipped down beside him, his fur speckled with snow and small ice chunks, his face flushed from the cold and exertion.

"It’s rough out there," Pinku said, brushing sweat from his brow with a paw, briefly revealing his pale pink eyes before quickly hiding them again. "I think we need backup." As he spoke, he began gathering snow between his paws, forming a fresh pile of snowballs just as Aremis worked to repair and reinforce their fort.

As if on cue, more crederians joined in the fight, rallying to their cause. The snowball production line was in full swing, and Pinku took advantage of the extra hooves and paws to catch his breath and warm up after being on the receiving end of several snowball assaults. He quickly resumed his role as fort defender, tossing snowballs and reinforcing the fort as best as he could.

The game raged on for hours, with crederians coming and going, snowballs flying in every direction. By the time the game wound down, the moon had risen, and Pinku and Aremis were left, breathless, covered in snow, and laughing at the chaos they'd just participated in. The book Aremis had dreamed of was all but forgotten.

As parents gathered their bablings and began heading home, the young ones testing their parents' patience one last time with their antics until their parents gave them a nip, Aremis noticed Pinku looking like he might just fall asleep in the snow; A poor idea for any good crederian’s health.

Aremis nudged him with his snout, and after a few gentle prods, finally Pinku slowly rose to his paws, yawning.

"Why don’t you stay over tonight?" Aremis offered, his voice warm with an invitation. "I’ll make us hot cocoa, and we can order out."

Pinku’s sleepy eyes perked up, another long yawn escaping him. "Hot cocoa and pizza?" he asked with a grin.

Aremis couldn’t help but smile back while trying to hide an infectious yawn as they began to head home, where hot cocoa, pizza, and cozy cuddles would await them both.