The snow around the permafrost always seemed to drift slowly to the ground all day in this time of the year. The cool lasted through the evening, frost biting at your already red skin. The sole of your shoe grazes the surface of the water. It ripples, distorting the vast image of the stars above. All was quiet in Rayashki. All the children asleep after a warm glass of milk and a bedtime story, and the adults finally resting after a long day in the cold, next to a warm, cackling fire.

Maybe you were the only one awake. Sighing quietly, you look to the waters. A few bubbles floated up to the surface…

You feel a few drops of water splashing onto you. There, in the place of the bubbles, was a pair of pearl-like eyes gazing curiously at you.

“Whatever are you doing up so late and alone, comrade?”

Sweetly, the accented voice spoke to you. Vila pushed a few strands of wet hair away from her eyes. The half-blodded rusalka’s tail waved around gracefully in the water, causing small movements. It’s been a while since you’ve last talked. She could barely look for you, with the hours of her day spent mostly on looking after the kids.