It was snowing. Small, black flakes twirled slowly down from the sky, blanketing the wiry grass in a layer of darkness. The snow that landed on the minimalistic, black houses melted quickly, depositing its core of ash. Kaylin watched it fall from behind the safety of her goggles and C class respirator, essentials if she ever needed to go outside. The thick, black fabric of her robes shielded her from the worst of the cold while her cowl protected her pitch hair from the snow.

She walked in the general direction of the crater, which happened to be the direction her school was in. She passed slowly between the houses, each one perfectly cubical excluding the decontamination hall which projected out the walls facing her. The jutting structures acted as a kind of airlock to help keep the majority of the ash from entering. Apart from that the buildings were featureless, not even a window to break up the smooth, flat walls and roof. Over the years the ash had piled up on top of the buildings to form an almost conical peak to the roof. From time to time the top layer would slough off in a cascade of meltwater and ash.

The snow was beginning to fall heavier now as she drew closer to the crater, yet it still seemed to loom in the distance, belching out the same black smoke, thick with ash. The grass crunched softly under her boots, the grey stems snapping rather than bending in the crisp morning air. The haze that hung over the town gave the impression of twilight, except darker. Despite that being appropriate for the current time in the day, the haze meant that this was the permanent light level for the entire day, with it only growing more noticeably dark as the sun set. The smog that polluted the town originated from the crater, the ashen clouds it unceasingly spewed forth rising out of the crater only to reach the cooler air outside and descend again, blanketing the town. The particles that rose too high gathered moisture from the humid air. That moisture then froze, crystallising around these impurities in the air causing the snow that was common and extremely frequent for this time of year. The ash even fell during the summer but at least the frozen version broke up the constant, repetitive onslaught.

She passed a man out shovelling the ash and snow from the front of his house, his eyes cold and focused beneath his goggles. The shovel he held in his hands was the same solid black as the buildings that surrounded him, as well as the ash that drifted gently down from the skies. That was no coincidence though, considering the main material with which they had to work with was the ash, compressed to different levels depending on the strength necessary for the job. With a resource as common and easily accessible as this it would have been foolish not to find a use for it and incorporate it into everyday life. There was, of course, the strange, rusted structures that ringed the crater. Huge, metallic, skeletal frameworks from buildings long since destroyed and decayed. A lot of work was going into salvaging the metal used in them for use in more resilient structures and tools but for everyday use the compacted ash did the job. There was nothing too taxing that could affect the houses anyway, and the climate was temperate enough that the main concern of the houses was simply somewhere to keep people out of the constantly falling ash. Ironic that to hide from the ash people encased themselves in shells of it.

Kaylin turned a corner and saw the entrance to her school, the outer door to the decontamination chamber still open with most of her class huddled inside. She picked up her pace, hoping to make it inside, when she saw Grant grinning at her. He pulled the lever and the mechanisms locked together, drawing the doors of the decontamination hall together. Kaylin swore under her breath, slowly approaching the door and waiting outside. She would have to wait for her whole class to get changed before the doors could open and she could get inside again. Grant was so annoying. He'd been like this ever since they were small and being stuck in this town together meant there was very little chance she'd be getting rid of him any time soon.

Kaylin leaned against the school, a foot resting on the wall behind her for support. The skeletal fingers of the trees raked the sky, their slender black trunks stained with years of soot. Most of them had already shed their leaves for this year, the crinkled masses drifting down streets. The majority of their sustenance came from the nutrient rich ash which was constantly being sprinkled around them hence the small branches but large and intricate network of roots. It was these roots, and the fact they spread to tangle with other trees, that kept the surface on the surface and prevented it from crumpling into the crater which they survived on.

Footsteps approached from off to the side and Kaylin snapped out her daydream, standing free of the wall. To her left Kaylin saw a girl approaching, wearing the same, heavy protective gear she was herself.
"Hey."
"Hey."
There was a quiet pause in the conversation with only their light breathing and the soft wheezing of the respirator. Kaylin wasn't sure if she recognised the girl or not and the respirator muffled her voice beyond recognition. It would be safer to wait until they were both in the decontamination hall rather than make guesses or assumptions.
"You ready for the trip today?" The voice was quiet, questioning. Kaylin silently marked a few people off the list of who it could be.
"I guess we have to be."
"Yeah." The two stood in silence, snow twirling down between them. The noise from the decontamination hall was dying down and Kaylin was getting cold, urging the doors to slide open. A short crunch answered her call as the mechanism locked into place, dragging the doors apart. Kaylin made sure she heard the click of the gear disengaging before heading towards the entrance. There had been too many accidents this year already, you could never be too careful. The other girl stepped back, gesturing for Kaylin to go in first.
"You've been waiting here longer." Her tone was... kind. Kaylin marked a few more people off the list. The girl checked around outside for any stragglers before stepping in and pulling the lever, hovering just inside to watch the last few snowflakes before the doors closed.

Kaylin began to carefully unwrap her cloak and cowl, shaking off the excess snow and ash. She hung them both on the hook with her name carved underneath and then tried to stomp the worst of the ash off her boots. It dropped off in clumps, falling through the holes in the grated floors. She turned, pulling off her goggles when she noticed the other girl had removed her cloak and was hanging it up. She was slender to the point of it bordering on becoming unhealthy and her hair was a thick swath of dark brown. Her name was Raymona, one of those quiet girls you always see in class but you never actually see her smile or talk to anyone. Underneath the cloak she wore a slim fitting, long sleeved black tshirt and skinny trousers. It wasn't that she didn't have an attractive body, it was just wiry as if still going through puberty. She slipped off her goggles and hung them up but kept her respirator on. The heavy doors couldn't keep everything out, especially with people trailing in ash on their boots and kicking it up, and even then the added layer of protection wouldn't hurt. Kaylin hung up her own goggles, offering a smile to Raymona, trying to convey the gesture with her mouth covered. Raymona glanced up into Kaylin's eyes before quickly looking away.
"We better hurry or we'll be late for class." Her voice was still muffled behind the mask but Kaylin could easily match it to the face. Raymona pulled the lever beside the inner door and they slid open, the still air barely disturbed. Kaylin stomped her boots once more before heading through after Raymona, following her to class. They walked silently the rest of the way. Kaylin felt her shoulders sag a little.

Kaylin's desk was near the front of the classroom and she shared it with Carlos. She'd been sitting there since the start of the year but they didn't get much opportunity to talk. They did, however, manage to write notes to each other at the bottom of their slates. They'd managed to sneak out to meet up a few times outside of school but nothing had really came of it.

The chairs were arranged in three rows of two, each pair sharing a desk. At the front of the class stood Mr Gregor, a rotund man with a tight fitting shirt and suit trousers barely containing his mass. He leaned back in his chair and it groaned in protest, creaking under the strain.

"Kaylin. Raymona. Nice of you to join us." He sat up abruptly, striking the two names off his slate. Kaylin kept her head facing down at her desk, only allowing her eyes to flick up momentarily to him before returning. His armpits were circled in sweat and there was no doubt his back would be the same. "Now we're all here I can finally begin." He stood, his stomach seeming to lag behind as he rose. He eyes were small and beady, drifting from one pupil to the next, carefully watching each one. "Everyone will be partnered with their desk partner. Do not leave your partner under any circumstances. Do not stray from the group under any circumstances. You will do everything I say, as I say it and with no delay. Is that clear?" The response was almost instantaneous and in unison, the class speaking with a single voice.
"Yes, Sir."

Kaylin cast a sideways glance at Carlos. He was staring at his desk, his hand fidgeting with something in his pocket.
"Good. Keep to my rules and everything will be just copacetic." He put his fingers together then gracefully interlocked them, cracking his knuckles. The sound hung in the air, the entire classroom waiting. He leaned against the desk, suddenly seeming to be lost in thought. Kaylin felt a thud as something hit the back of her chair and she bumped forward, letting out a grunt. She turned around to see Grant sitting directly behind her, his foot still swaying slightly from the kick. Beside him his friend Stephen smirked at her before lowering his head and neutralising the expression. She turned around again to see Mr Gregor staring at her.
"First you turn up late." He stood from the desk, his hands clenched at his sides. "Now you disrupt my class?" He slammed his fists down on the table, his calm demeanour suddenly replaced by a burning fury.

Kaylin quickly looked down at her desk but she had already made eye contact. She could feel his eyes burning into her, his huge fists resting on the desk in front of her.
"You better-"
"Sir, it was me. I'm sorry, dropped my stone, Sir." Mr Gregor turned to face Carlos and withdrew his writing stone from his pocket, holding it up for the teacher to see. "Must have bumped her chair when I was grabbing it." He took a step towards Carlos' side of the desk, splaying his hands across its surface as he leaned forward, his voice barely above a whisper.
"You dare interrupt me boy?" His voice trembled with a barely controlled anger, his eyes seething. "Give me the stone."
Carlos held his hand out towards Mr Gregor, the stone grasped in trembling fingers. The cane sliced through the air as it struck Carlos' knuckles, sending the stone flying from his grasp.
"Pick it up. And if I hear one more sound from any of you for the rest of the day..." He slid the cane back into the loop on his belt. The threat hung in the air and nobody moved. Kaylin didn't even dare breathe, her arms tense by her side. Even Grant wasn't smiling for once.