[[December]] dark night, warm light

Awoken by the shrill noise of an alarm clock, Shibani peeled open his eyes to an unusually dark room. Normally by the time he woke up, the light from the plants would be pouring through the space between his bedroom curtains. Instead, the room was nearly as dark as when he fell asleep the night before.

‘If the alarm is going off, it should be much brighter right now, shouldn’t it?’ Shibani thought curiously to himself. Rolling out from under the piles of blankets, he patted over to the bedroom window and slowly pulled the curtains back. Where normally he would see a warmly lit cavern, there was instead only a faint pink glow.

‘Geez, it’s that time of year already? I swore all the plants were still awake yesterday…’ He scratched his head, glancing at the calendar on the wall. ‘Man, it is December… Definitely dormant season. Maybe I slept longer than I thought,” he laughed to himself. Absentmindedly pulling on warmer clothes, Shibani shuffled downstairs and out the door.

The snow on the ground reflected only a hint of the soft glow of the crystals back into Shibani’s eyes. While it was easier on his poor, tired retinas, he almost preferred the snow blindness of the lighter time of year. At least then he wouldn’t worry about bumping into another bunny he couldn’t see on his way to Dan’s mochi shop. Or, well, he still would… Whatever. He shook his head, coming up on the building he’d been finding himself in more and more often lately.

Shibani wasn’t entirely sure why he was heading to see Dan, it’s not like the light was some big mystery he needed his friend’s help solving. There really was no question about what was happening; this was just the natural progression of the year. The plants that regularly provided the majority of Burrowgatory’s natural light had gone dormant for the winter, leaving only the crystals along the cave ceiling to pick up the slack. The city of Burrowgatory itself even had a system that adjusted the brightness and operating hours of the street lights to compensate for the lack of visibility.

Walking through the door of the shop, Shibani thought to himself about how beautiful it actually was. Sure, the bright lights of the remainder of the year were perfect for spending time outdoors, but this time of year was wonderful for relaxing inside, his favorite hobby. There was a serenity to the pale pink lighting, and the city seemed much quieter, much… Sleepier. He yawned.

“Dan? You’re not up here, greeting your dearest customer!” he called, not immediately seeing his friend. After a few clacks of sandals on the hardwood floor, Dan appeared in the doorway behind the counter.

“What are you doing out of bed so early? I thought you’d be there at least another 6 hours,” Dan chuckled, lighting a candle nearby. “Especially with how dark it is, I figured there’s no way you’d be awake at a decent time.”

Shibani laughed along and leaned on the counter. “Honestly I thought the same thing. I thought for sure we had a few weeks left of daylight.” He pulled the candle towards himself, softly inhaling the scents of sandalwood and vanilla.

“I mean, it’s been about like this all week, I don’t know how you haven’t noticed. … Well, I know how you haven’t noticed,” he laughed softer this time, a bit distracted by Shibani’s face across from him in the otherwise dimly lit room. The warm, bright light of the flame reflected in Shibani’s kind eyes, and bounced off his rosy cheeks. Dan leaned in to smell the candle with him, smiling to himself. The darkness of winter really was beautiful, wasn’t it?