Submission (#353) Approved

Today was the first snowfall of the winter season on Pleiades, and Luminites from all across the galaxy were outside running and jumping through the blankets of white.

Highroller opened the door of the comfy and warm log cabin they and Aubergine were staying in for the holiday.
Instant regret.
They winced, sneezing as the cold breeze brutally attacked them. They recoiled and quickly shut the door, turning to Aubergine behind them with a paw on his hip.
"It is way too damn cold." Highroller said flatly, rubbing their paws together. Aubergine scoffed in slight amusement.
"If you think it's cold now, just wait till we get later into the season. Besides, you'll be warmer once you actually get movin' out there. Look, you can also finally wear that scarf Old Sport got for ya." Aubergine replied, grabbing a red wool scarf from off a coat hanger and tossing it to Highroller. "Cmonnnnn, you'll be fine."
Highroller rolled their eyes at him as they wrapped the scarf around their neck and shoved the door open. They just sort of stood in the doorway, looking out at the fields of snow before them.
Aubergine loudly cleared his throat and nudged them lightly with his tail. "What's the hold up? It's just snow. You never seen snow before or somethin'?" He asked jokingly. Highroller shook their head.
"As a matter of fact, I actually haven't. Back when I worked at Sagev we always moved locations to warmer planets whenever winter came around. Turns out a lot of our patron's species went dormant in the cold, so there was no point in staying where there wasn't going to be much— if _any_ business."
Aubergine crossed his arms, apparently not expecting an actual answer. "Well, no time like the present I suppose; C'mon then, let's get a move on, yeah?"
The lanky purple Luminite slipped past the smaller red one, bounding on all fours into the snow. Highroller was hesitant at first, but gathered their courage and took their first steps in the snow. The cold, wet ground felt odd against their paws as they stepped in, trudging through the blankets of white. Highroller then broke into a run, lowering on all fours and leaping into the air as high as they could, then diving into the snow. They did this over and over, eventually catching up with Aubergine who was waiting for them and observing their initial reactions. Now sat in front of him, they looked up at Aubergine, their stern poker face slightly softened and their tail of stardust wagging.
Aubergine smiled back at them, his tail now wagging slightly as well. Seeing Highroller display even a sliver of emotion was *very* reassuring to him.

After essentially taking them in, Aubergine was worried if he was really fit for the role. Could a broken soul fix another?
Behind Highroller's tired eyes he saw a part of himself; once alone and vulnerable, manipulated and corrupted. For years they took shelter behind that blank, deadpan expression and ridged, unwavering upright posture.
But over time, Aubergine noticed changes in the other Luminite. There were times where around him, Highroller's stony guise would break. Often times it was small things, such as an excited perking up of the ears or an inquisitive look.
Regardless of how small or insignificant they may have looked to an outside observer, Aubergine knew that it meant he was doing *something* right, and that Highroller was being given the ability and chance to heal.

The two Luminites continued on their way through the snow, periodically stopping to let Highroller roll around a little bit.
They traversed the blankets of white, passing by more of their species playing and bounding through the snow.
Eventually, amongst the crowd of fox-like creatures, Aubergine found who he was looking for— Tangerine!
"Ah, there you are, Old Sport!"
He rushed over to the orange short-furred Luminite, brushing shoulders with him.
"Oh fuck, hi Aubergine-" Tangerine stammered slightly, seemingly a bit taken by surprise at the purple Lumis appearance. "And you as well, Highroller."
Highroller gave him a blank look in response.

Such a greeting (or lack thereof) was an improvement nonetheless, as in the past upon being acknowledged by Tangerine, Highroller would give him a glare and sort of hide behind Aubergine.
Nowadays, they were content to simply give him a somewhat softened look in response.

With the two larger Luminites in conversation together, Highroller decided to slink off into the snow and past the crowds. They were curious at what they'd be able to find. It *was* basically their first time experiencing winter after all.

Reward	Amount
FIRST SNOW	1
QuBits	10