Placedale has those terrible cold, wet winters. The kind where you get one heavy snowfall that turns into months of slush, refusing to go away until spring comes. The roads are icy in the mornings, wet and messy in the afternoons, and full of invisible slicks in the evenings. One needs to dress heavily, dress in layers, and make sure everything can take at least one good splash before soaking straight through. Balina Mahigan might try to maintain that her thick fur is enough for most weather, but the first time a passing bus goes through a puddle next to you, you learn that maybe a heavy coat is worth wearing, after all.

If there was one real benefit to that mishap that reshaped the head moof's feet last year, it's that the hoof-paw shape she has now is much easier to fit into a standard set of lupine boots. Even in a society where most folks just go barefoot, a good set of waterproof boots can be absolutely essential in winter, and having to get them custom-fit was a complete nightmare. It may seem like a little thing, but when it's five below and you're trudging through six inches of slush, the little things can matter the most.

Art: mei5683