What does the Snow Need?

HEEEEEELP!

Hm? Who said that?!

*Meowww!*

Huh? Thought I heard a voice coming from around here...

Snow...man? Well. Weirder things have happened. Okay. You okay? You look a little...disconnected.

Oh. Right. Yeah let me move the cat out of the way for you.

*Meow.*

Well, I'm glad you're safe now, but I'm afraid your body is totally, as you put it, bung-diddly-ungus.

Well, I can't leave a good deed unfinished, can I?

One new body, coming right up.

...Okay. Well then my work here is done, then?

Something the matter?

Well it certainly doesn't seem normal...

Someplace warm... How about we try the hot springs?

...But won't you melt?

Fine, fine! Okay! Let's go!

Oh. Right. You can't walk. Okay, I'll carry you, but I hope my body heat won't cause you to melt.

WOWEE ZOWEE! The water sure does look all nice and comfy womfy!!! PUT. ME. IN.

You're sure you're not gonna melt?

MHM! Yup! Yeah!

All right, if you say so...

I mean... Eventually I'm gonna melty welty to the point even a hand-having person like you can't put me back! It is said, that when a snowman truly melts, when his train pulls into sublimation station... The life inside them has moved on, and the snowman is ready for his next life!

......

Which is why THIS snowman is 100% ready to get a little melty. I DO NOT FEAR DEATH.

Now hold on a second...

BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR IT'S SO COLDDD! OOOH NOOO! WHYYYY MEEE!

All right, all right. We can go in. But the second you start to melt, I'm pulling you out.

Mmm. Mmm. MM!

You sure you're okay?

Sweet blissy wissy... Take me away...

......

HEY! You're melting!!

You okay?!

That felt soooooooooo goooooood!

Whew. Great. That sure was a close one, though. You feeling any better?

Yes bath? No cold. No bath? Yes cold.

So, to answer your question: BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

Well if the bath didn't help, then maybe it's something else?

About that, when we were in that bathy-wathy just now, something did popcorn into my noggy-woggy!

What was it?!

It was a memory from when I was alive! I mean, as a human! I'm technically alive right now.

When you were human?

Oh, right. Of course you wouldn't know. When people from Itoise die, they go up, up, wayyyyyyyy up! Then they come down. As snow. If you make a snowman with the dead people snow, you get me! A snowman with a people soul.

...Right... So you think the memory and the cold are related, then?

Maybe! Or maybe I'm just really quirky, who knows!

Do you know any other snowmen that are inhabited by the souls of the dead?

NOPE! Just me. Most snowmen are, like, "Hoobie doobie I'm a snowman!" And don't care about souls and stuff!

Which makes you special. Huh. If only there was some way I could help...

GOOBIE JOOBIE DOO! I got it! You can take me somewhere even hotter than a hot spring!

Even hotter than a hot spring?

TELL ME THE HOTTEST PLACE YOU KNOW. NOW.

A...volcano?

A volcano?! Wow! With a name like that, I bet it's absolute paradise!

Okay, but it's extremely hot. You're gonna melt in minutes hot.

JUST TAKE ME TO THE VOLCANO. BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

Okay, okay. Nadara Volcano it is.

You sure about this? We just got here and I'm already sweating up a storm...

Which means you must be--

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm MM!

HOW could you be enjoying this? You're already melting!

It's soooo warmmmmm... I could just melt...

You ARE melting!

Okay, we can't stay here much longer. You remember anything yet?

NNNnnope. I think we're gonna need to go a little hotter.

I know! If you could just put me in that festive looking water over there it'll all come back to me!

...You mean the lava? No way! That stuff is dangerous!

Lava! I loooooove lava! Lava me tender! Lava me true! Lava me a tiny dip in your glowy pool! If I jump in, you'll get to see an all new Mr. Snowman! Don't you want to see a new Mr. Snowman?

You're gonna be Mr. Puddleman if you go anywhere near that stuff.

PLEEEEEEEEEEEEEASEE!!! I'M BEGGING YOU!!!! If you don't throw me into that lava RIGHT NOW. I may never remember who I was! BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

You might, you might not. Either way you're gonna melt.

Does this look like the face of a snowman that cares?! LET ME HAVE SOME OF THAT LAVA LOVIN'.

Fine! Just for a second, then I'm pulling you out!

Weeeeeeee!

Look at all that steam!

Lavaaaa... Lavaaaa... Lava me some lavaaaaaaaa!

It's so warm... I could simply melt... Hehehfiohoiaihf...

CRAP! I left you in too long!

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm That hit the spot.

Look at how tiny you are! Any smaller and you're a puddle for sure.

We should get back to Itoise and fix you up!

WAIT! I'm rememberembering something!

Save it! We gotta fix you before you melt for good!

Okay! But the snow in Itoise is all wet and cold and brrrr and no. Kunlun Mountains have that sweet, sweet powder stuff that snowmen crave.

You know best. Kunlun Mountains it is!

Globby gloobie goo! And a thankee tanky to you!

Huh. You were right. The snow here is different. Now let's get you back into shape, eh?

Big and round please!

*pat pat* How's this?

Hehehehehe THAT TICKLE WICKLES!

So you were saying you remembered something back at the volcano?

I sure diddly did! It was all warm, and that made me feel nostalgic. Nostalgia is like remembering, but for feelings! Put two and two together and I bet I'm all chilly willy because I lost something warm!

Speaking of which, BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR A BRRRRRRRRRDY BURRRRRRRRRRR

Hmmm... So there was something in your past life that was warm, and you miss it. Is that right?

Yup! That's literally-diterally what I just said!

...Do you remember anything else?

Nope! Just that it was important and it was warm. It was warmportent.

O-Okay. Well I'll do whatever I can to help you find it!

Aw shucks! You're the bestiest friend a snowman could ever, ever have!

Right. But before we do that, I need to get you back in shape!

You know what would make this go quicker? ROLLY POLLY PARTYYYYY!!! Just roll me around the snow and I'll get bigger and bigger and BIGGER! MAKE ME BIGGER!!!

Sounds easy enough!

WELL IT'S NOT. You have to pay close attention to balance! Ancient snowman proverb: Too much rolly and not enough polly will make a snowman all bowl-ly... ...Listen. I don't write the proverbs, okay?

Got it. Equal amounts of rolly and polly.

Hey, not bad!

Yeah! This is way better than your previous attempt! WAYYYYY better! WAY WAY WAY better!

Another 50 years or so and you'll be a first-rate snowmanhandler!

Is that really what they're called?

*MEOOOOOOOOOW!*

Hey, did you hear that?

There's a cat getting attacked by a monster!

Oh no! You gotta save it from that big, scary monster-man!

On it!

That was close.

Hey, this is the cat from the village!

*Mawmaw.*

AHA! It WAS the kitty cat from before! Teheheeheee Hey! Stopheheh STOhehehe Shsheiehehe STOP TICKLING ME. Hold on...What is this... Feely weely?

Woah, hey!

*Mawmaw.*

You again?! We gotta stop running into each other like this...

Did I just...rememberbember september something?!

Hey there kitty cat. Do you know who I am?

Did you remember something?

Well... It turns out... Me and the kitty were like bestest friends!!!

Really?!

Or maybe we were family? I dunno, but when the kitty is near I feel all...nostalgic.

I get the feeling the cat knows.

This place is loaded with monsters, so why don't me, you, and the cat finish this chat back in Itoise.

Let's a GOOO!!

Haha! It sure does like you!

Teehee cat no scary. Me like kitty.

I'm gonna guess the cat was playing with you in order to get you to remember. That's why it was in the mountains, it was looking for you.

Awww kitty cat, were you lookin' for Mr. Snowmanny-wanny boo-boo goo-goo meow-meow maw-mew moo--

*Mew.*

Awww do you like Mr. Snowman? I bet you dooooo!

*Mewmew.*

Hey. Just a guess here, but... Maybe the cat is the warmth you were looking for?

What?!

I mean, you stopped shivering!

WOWEE ZOWEE! You're RIGHT! In fact, I'm not cold at all! I'm positively radiant! Does this mean cats are hotter than lava?! No. This feels different. I'm warm EVERYWHERE now.

Maybe it's cause it wasn't your body that was cold... Maybe it was your heart?

So, have all your memories come back, then?

MMMMMMM no. I thought I saw something but it was all hazy-wazy. But being with kitty makes me feel all warm and fuzzy-wuzzy! So I don't really care!

*Mewmew.*

Haha! The cat definitely feels the same.

Gosh! I sure hope so! But I'm glad I got to feel this warm and fuzzy-wuzzy before my soul passes on. I mean, when I cease to be a sentient pile of snow and return to being JUST snow.

Aw Mr. Snowman!

Thankey dankey wanky spanky Mr. Snowmanhandler of the year!

Seriously! That can't be what they're called!