Ruggie and Food (pt5)

Deuce says that he would want Ruggie to be with him if he were ever on a deserted island because Ruggie is good at fishing and picks a lot of the grass and things around the school, so getting food wouldn’t be an issue if Ruggie were there.

Ruggie says that he goes fishing in Crane Port from time to time, so it is possible that he is supplementing his locally-harvested dandelions and herbs with locally-caught fish.

Floyd says that Ruggie went fishing during preparations for Port Fest, catching a few and bringing them back to his dorm.

Ruggie says he never gives away his food both Idia and Deuce agree that Ruggie probably wouldn’t be willing to share food even if they were on a deserted island, but we have seen that this may vary by situation: in Book 4 Ruggie takes home “all the food that was about to hit its sell-by date at the cafeteria and the school store” for the specific purpose of giving it away to children in his neighborhood.

Jack explains that whenever school lets out for a long break, Ruggie stocks up on all the food he can get to share it with local children back home.

During his dream Ruggie receives free food from a vendor who refuses Ruggie’s offer of money in thanks for how Ruggie’s grandmother would feed them back when they were a child. When Ruggie arrives at the school one of the first things he does is share the food he has received with another student.

When given more food than he can eat by the vendors in the dream he says he will be sharing it with his father and grandmother, and the school he attends is revealed to allow both students and visitors alike to eat all the courtyard fruit they want, even if they are not enrolled. 

Explaining the school of his dream Ruggie says, “You know the three hyenas that served the King of Beasts, one of the Great Seven? Before they got connected with the king, they used to go hungry all the time. So here, we share food with anyone who’s hungry in honor of the hyenas’ spirit of solidarity.”

Even in his dream Ruggie struggled with food scarcity as a child. He explains, “I had a one-track mind for food back then…those days were rough. And that’s why I always take it seriously when I see other people who are hungry.”

Ruggie is shocked to learn that the world of his imagination was all a dream, saying, “You’re telling me all the food I’ve been eating wasn’t real?! I got ZERO calories from eating all those donuts I loaded with toppings?!”