When the first snow fell, many feral fluffies quickly learned to find warmth or die. In places like the Dakotas or Maine, the environment was too hostile for the average stray, and they all died. In more urban areas, fluffies were driven towards human habitation which naturally generated heat.
Fluffies would sleep under cars, keeping warm with as the engines slowly shed heat. In the mornings as people started their cars back up to go to work, the noise scared fluffies. Often abandoning foals. Only to return to red paste when they were emulsified by the departing vehicles.
Fluffies would find their way into basements searching for warmth from heaters. There were two primary hazards. One being suffocation, as gas heaters with old ducting would leak some carbon in basements, not enough to pose a risk to human health. An invisible pool of gas pooled on the floor of basements with poor air circulation, causing fluffies to suffocate in their sleep.
The other was fire. Fluffies would fall asleep against the warm metal during the day only for the heat to become too much and ignite their fur when homeowners turned their heaters up during the evening. Fluffy combustion became the leading cause of housefires, surpassing grease fires, for the first two years following the introduction of fluffies to the wild. Insurance companies required houses with basements to have them inspected for holes or face hefty fluffy premiums.
Finally, in many major cities such as New York. There is a system of municipal steam heating where pipes steam are piped under streets to melt snow and heat buildings. It is highly effective and cost effective put posed a new issue with the introduction of fluffies. Strays would often form massive fluffpiles over the steam vents to stay warm. This was highly effective but soaked their fur through with warm water.
When the ferals inevitably grew hungry and ventured away from the vents in search of food, they died of hypothermia rather quickly. The few smart enough to return to the vents starved or resorted to cannibalizing foals. By late winter of the first year, animal control found these were the best location to scoop up large herds that miraculously didn’t become fluffcicles or starve.
These herds had developed a unique culture, much like the extremophiles that lived on the ocean floor near volcanic vents. The heat brought with it all forms of life. In alleys where there were vents. These kept the less visible herds alive.
Fluffies pulled over cardboard boxes to shelter from the wind. The carboard with moisture and heat quickly started to mold and grow mushrooms. Creeping vines from apartment fire escapes reached down towards the warmth. Both the wall grassies and mushrooms made excellent nummies. The rot and mountains of poopies attracted vermin. Roaches made nummies for the fluffies that could catch them as well.
The relatively abundant supply of fresh food encouraged stallions to give mares more enfies. They did not need to worry about finding enough food for tummy babbehs and milkies during cold times. They could still forage trash cans if they truly needed it.
The filth also attracted danger as well. The rotting cardboard grew mold which made fluffies sick, they did not understand why. Entire families would succumb to black mold after weeks of coughing up blood. The filth also attracted rats. In the city, they were as big as fluffies and would run off with newborn foals in the night to feed their own young. The mares, soaked through with steam, could not chase the rats to get their babies back.
Once in a while the homeless found these nests and used them as a steady supply of food. They would come and pick one, promising it a new home only to break its neck when out of sight, then cook it over a barrel fire. The fluffy fur made excellent padding for makeshift pillows and excellent firestarter as well.
The fluffies that didn’t get picked would all cry but get chastised if they followed and told to be good and wait if they wanted a new daddy. The fluffies would stay in their little steam camps. Hoping for the homeless to return to adopt them next. Crying every day that they waited.
For people walking by, the wind cut down the alleys in a sharp whistle, they always felt like they could hear something unnerving in the wind. The alleyways were haunted all winter with the wailing of sad mares.
Currently Working on Dakota’s Christmas Story
Burning off ideas to clear my mind by writing them down atm.