Submission (#6135) Approved

Ziggy slips through the brush of Aluriza, the bitter cold nips at his nose and a small satchel at his side clinks with various specimen jars. Of course normally they would be padded for protection, but at the moment he was running rather late and would have to do with just being careful. Finally seeing the lights of a small hut glimmering in the distance a sigh escapes his lips. He’d made it.

He’s picked up the habit of knocking on the door despite it being where he’s housed himself for the past few days. It hasn’t quite settled into that feeling of home just yet and at the rate he tended to travel probably never would. That was alright though, the smell of the freshly painted wood still brings a smile to his face every time he passes through the doorway. A table filled with various trinkets and maps is cleared for the contents of his bag which are promptly and ever so gently poured out onto its surface. Several small critters rattle around in jars, gnawing away at berries or leaves the Xero had placed in their enclosures.

With a ru berry drink in one hand and a pencil in the other they begin to jot down notes and observations about each of these strange creatures. The way they move, eat and fight amongst each other is absolutely enrapturing to the point that Ziggy occasionally finds themself staring so intensely they’ve stopped writing altogether. His eyes gleam with a passion for his studies, and his mind is already racing for what he can share about his discoveries.

Just as he’s about to wrap up for the night a sudden thought occurs to him. He needs to take pictures! A second thought then comes, more of an observation than anything else. Ziggy has been doing this every so often, once the nights become long and the air grows cold. It had started as something to keep himself busy and inside where all the warmth remained, still, he’s always found the time to collect specimens, record some notes, take a photo and then release the animals back into the wild. A sudden nostalgia overwhelms the Xero for a tradition he didn’t even realize he has as he stands up and rummages through some of the items strewn about the room. His paws pull back an old scrapbook, filled to the brim with these photos and in each one, Ziggy can see their own reflection in the faces of the jars brimming with an excitement that never seems to fade. In each he could see an old candle, never the same, usually at least more than half of the way burnt down and the edges of a notebook brimming with writing.

A warm smile graces their face yet again as they set the book back down and go to pick up their camera, after all, they couldn’t stop this new found tradition now. And with that, another picture enters the scrapbook and Ziggy blows out the candle before taking a well deserved rest.