Ruggie couldn’t understand why you were adamant about visiting his hometown for Christmas. He told you countless times that you wouldn’t like it there, but his words didn’t affect you.

The hyena sighed as he waited for you by the magic mirror. As soon as you came into sight, he nearly dropped to the ground. “(Y/n), why do you have so many suitcases with you? We will be back in a few days.”

You chuckled and shrugged, muttering an unapologetic apology.

“So, what’s in the bags?”

“My luggage.” You simply stated and headed towards the mirror, leaving the deflated hyena to carry your bags.

When you reached his hometown, you realized that Ruggie wasn’t joking about the poor state. As you scanned the dilapidated buildings, a group of children ran up to your boyfriend and tackled him to the ground.

“RUGGIE! You’re back! We missed you!” They spoke in unison, earning a chuckle from the older hyena.

“Ruggie, who is this?” One of the kids asked as she cautiously approached you.

“Hi, my name is (Y/N). I am Ruggie’s girlfriend!” You smiled and gently patted her head.

As soon as the kids heard the word ‘girlfriend,’ their excitement got out of control, and they bombarded you with questions. Ruggie opened one of his bags to divert their attention from you and loudly asked, “Anyone hungry?”

Within a second, the cubs surround Ruggie. While he was distributing the food, you watched him with a soft smile. After the older hyena gave away most of the food, the two of you headed to his home. To your surprise, his family welcomed you with open arms.

For the next few days, you spent most of your time with Ruggie and the neighborhood kids. When Christmas came around, you dragged your luggage out of the house.

“(Y/n), what are you doing?” Ruggie asked as he took one of your bags. “You want to go back to NRC?”

“Of course not!” You answered and glanced at him. “Hey, Ruggie, mind calling all the kids here?”

He raised his eyebrow but complied with your request. In a matter of seconds, all the kids in the town surrounded the two of you. Smiling, you opened your suitcases to reveal toys – plushies, action figures, game boards, dolls, and various other items.

“Merry Christmas, everyone!” You grinned and signaled the cubs to pick out their favorite items. As the kids thanked you for the toys and hugged you, Ruggie stared at you in shock.

Once your bags were empty and the last of the children had left, Ruggie threw his arms around you and thanked you. Still in shock, he wasn’t sure what else to say.

“By the way, Ruggie,” you whispered, pulling away from him, “there is one more gift left.”

You held out a neatly wrapped box in front of him. “Merry Christmas!”

He gladly accepted the present, but instead of opening the gift, he pressed his lips against yours. Unbeknownst to the two of you, two pairs of eyes were watching from afar.

“My dear husband, we may have found our daughter-in-law.”