Snow

Merry Christmas! May your day be filled with wonder.

I held the gift at eye level. The orb swung gently from the constant rumble of the ship’s drive. A single snowflake glimmered at the center, its crystalline edges and lacework perfect. The structure refracting the circuitry sparking along and obscuring the back of the orb. The orb was cold to the touch. Snow, actual snow. I hadn’t thought to see it.

I glanced at the note scrawled on the outside of the package. To be opened on Christmas. How long had mum started it to arrive today?

Grasping the ball, I twisted it the lid was secured by two wires pressing against the edge’s. Pressing against the edges and interrupting the pattern. She hadn’t, had she?

Rising from my bunk I left my quarters to inspect the hallway beyond. Bare metal unsoftened by even a trace of a rug. It would do.

I grasped the ball tightly as I tugged at the cap which slipped off with the zing of electrodes surging to life. The child seeped over my fingers, dampness draping over them. The dead air whistled about as whatever program she had concocted interfaced with the ships systems.

Doors opened up and down the hallways as heads bobbed out to be greeted with a white dusting. Snow.

I held out my hand and watched as a perfect snowflake landed on it. A weather-tech for a mother had it’s benefits even in space.

Tucking the orb into my pocket I speed off to join the others. The storm wouldn’t last long before the ship sucked the moisture back into the water purification systems, but for a moment I was home.