The rains of Huailina are incessant in the off-seasons, leaving a pall of downcast darkness upon the few lands of the ocean world. The gloom, damp, and closeness of the darkening months as the world swings farther from its star leave little for a mind to do but molder in maudlin thoughts and considerations. For the majority of those living on the world, these days are a reminder that despite the prosperity allegedly going on, most don't get to see it. They're all trapped in circles, trapped with their thoughts, treading the waters they're all surrounded by. Trapped in an endless cycle of just barely keeping ahead of the debts and costs of life in the ferrostellar age. Eternity is available to them, but they're left... just circling. Trapped in the ennui of the era.

The dark hours aren't all that different than during the summer months, other than the rains. But Shir Scrabble feels them more than shi would otherwise. The rain forces hir to sit in the train even more than shi normally does, riding it from the tip of the Harbor Spur back all the way to the central spire instead of walking along the boardwalk as shi often prefers. It's months like these, and the depressive waits and long inactivity that leaves hir getting so plump as shi does. Depression eating, sitting and watching life after life pass hir by. Forced to do nothing but wait the hour it takes to transit the kilometers of rail to cross the enormous jutting of the artificial spur of land back to the main landmass and the dense central sprawl.

All it does is give hir time to breathe against the cooling glass of the rail car. Think about hir escapist writing. Think about all the opportunities shi simply cannot reach because shi never has the resources, the funding, the chances to get to them.

Best Not to. Not to think about that. Not to think about all of that depressing business. That way lay cognitohazards, the risks of getting picked up in the increased security sweeps desperately keeping a lid on the thinning veil that came with the darkening months. Now was the time when problems, no longer distracted by the bustle of the summer, crept out of the corners to wedge themselves into the populace. And shi wasn't a problem.

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This art was done for me by the lovely  Dorky.Wolfen as seen on their posting of this piece: Here!

(Itaku posting here: https://itaku.ee/images/946827)
(Sofurry Posting Here: https://www.sofurry.com/view/2186259)