Of course there are seasons.
Spring has babies and autumn has leaves. Winter has snow and for the most part everyone stays at home, all rugged up, and we eat from the bountiful produce reaped during the year. Even the poorest of people have plenty, and for some the darkest days of the year are called “the fattening”.
Summer is the worst, and also has a nickname, “the shedding”. While in winter you can simply pile on jackets and blankets, in the summer, with its relentless heat, there is a limit to how many clothes you can remove. Nakedness occurs in varying degrees.
We also have a fifth, irregular season, The Grimming. It doesn’t appear on any calendar in advance, nor does it appear to be triggered by the sun or moon. But we all know it when it comes, there are tell-tale signs that are beyond dispute: short-tempers, grumpiness, grizzliness, irritability and the like affect humans and animals as well. Divorces are well up. The wind is up, the trees groan, and “acts of God” are plentiful. And the colors of the world become muted and dull, affecting artists doubly. It tends to last a moonth or so, and for many it is a time of hibernation and contemplations at home, no matter what the regular season or what needs to be done. A few revel in it, their true natures coming to the fore, and those grimy people become known as such. The Liftening is when the consensus is that things feel like they are getting better. Newspapers mostly call it correctly. It is a time for very muted, slightly grumpy, minor celebrations.
If you die during The Grimming, your soul will linger until the darkest day. And if you happened to be born within that malignant period, the least of your worries is that you are more likely to be named Raven than Joy.
