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[attr="class","SScontent2temp1"] There was something enchanting about the snow. Jackson couldn't quite put his finger on what it was but he thought it was the quiet that came with it. As the world was blanketed with a layer of white, everything grew still. The trees no longer bared leaves to rustle in the wind, half of the animals were tucked away in burrows and den to sleep through the winter and time was left on hold for a few short months. If there was one thing that Jackson wished for above all others it was for time to sit still for just a moment, just long enough for everyone to catch their breath. The winter provided that sense to him, if only suspending reality instead of putting it on pause.[break][break]



When he'd left the house he'd left Aloyna sleeping peacefully in a deep cocoon of blankets in their room. There was a time when that thought, comparing her sleep to metamorphosis, would have brought a smile to his face simply because she did wake like a butterfly, gentle and beautiful, stretching and waking each of her wings before taking flight for the day. He'd long since lost joy in such musings, though they still lurked in the back of his mind. This morning, instead of curling up to her and waiting for her to transform, he took to the cold outdoors in order to ensure warmth inside, something much more practical.[break][break]



He'd armed himself as his heavy feet padded through his home, collecting an item of clothes here and an axe there. Smith was still curled into a ball, his tail tucked up near his nose, as Jackson made his quiet retreat from the house. He'd dressed warmly in layers of flannels and denim and wool. His gloves bore only his fingers to the frigid air outside, as he'd rather face the cold that lose his dexterity. His first few steps outside were the worse, the blast of winter settling against his warm cheeks and stripping them until they felt as though they were burning against the cold. His fingers felt brittle and stiff by the time he'd trekked the mile to the wood and another quarter in.[break][break]



There was already a downed tree here, one he'd cut down maybe the week before, and Jackson set to cutting it down and splitting the logs he separated from the trunk. It was mindless work, but that was something Jackson had always cherished. Work that didn't require any thinking allowed him time for his mind to wander or for his mind to still, either option as welcome as the other. Today though, it whirled around the coming holiday and the remainder of the winter. It relished in the thought of a warm fire and coffee in a tin cup once he'd made his way back into the house.[break][break]



He was so immersed in his thoughts Jackson had barely heard Aloyna approaching, if it hadn't been for Smith's yip echoing in the trees he wouldn't have registered the soft padding of feet through the snow as theirs. His breath was uneven for a moment as his work ceased, rushing into the air in heavy, warm fog but Jackson smiled as she approached and made herself a seat from the logs he'd already split, patting the akita solidly on the flank as Smith made it to his side. He nodded in response to her question.[break][break]



"Your toes were cold when I woke up and you know what that means..." His response was simple but the teasing grin that spread across weathered lips hinted at something more as he followed suit and shifted the logs to make himself a seat by her side. "Ice bugs." he told her solemnly in between breaths, his hands buried in Smith's fur to keep warm now that they'd stopped moving. "We've got to melt them or they'll take over the house." He shifted his weight and stuffed his hands into his pockets as the dog left his side to sniff out what was left of the felled tree.[break][break]

 

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