This year, Carter had agreed to forgo a day off and help man the tent at the fest. Besides the pamphlets and brochures that are neatly laid out on the table before him, the boss has also set up a giant urn full of hot chocolate for both volunteers and guests. Beyond the tent roof, snow slowly drifted down from the grey sky. Despite the snow, the air was mild and it seemed like everyone was out: couples holding hands, parents with small children, and teens grouped together chatting happily.   This year they'd lucked out. The booth had a clear view of the frozen surface of Aoss Lake. Carter rested his feet on a large warm soapstone¹, casually watching the two groups down at the edge of the lake. Both moved animatedly, but the sounds of chisels and flashes of icy magic indicate that the group to the right were sculptors taking part in this year's sculpting competition. The other group are skaters. The most skilled quickly lace up their ice skates and glide out across the ice. However, soon they are joined by families with children who spread out across the surface of Aoss Lake like water breaking from a dam.

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  The Frost Fest is local holiday that takes place annually in Aoss Lake, Spades and is something of a tourist attraction due to its mix of winter activities, location, and holiday atmosphere . The festival takes place the day following The Crystalline Ball and is very similar to a county fair in both atmosphere and actives. The town council sponsors events and games, while local organisations use the day for marketing and outreach purposes. On the day of the Fest, a small booth city sprouts on the shores of the lake and the local groups running these booths provide games, small prizes, and other goodies along with information about their organisation or business.   Through the day, town sponsored events occur along the lakeside. The most popular of these is the ice sculpture competition, where both local and distant sculptors use both magic and hand tools create amazing and even reality defying ice sculptures. Other events include figure and speed skating competitions, The Snow War (a town wide snowball fight), performances by local musical talent, and a fireworks display come nightfall.