New protagonists Iris and Sam are introduced, focused on the missing Star Seed needed for the Town Spruce lighting ceremony. They trace a Solstice Blue ribbon clue to Leo, an ice sculptor, who has mistakenly frozen the Star Seed inside a large block of ice, believing it was an artifact meant to stabilize his sculpture against structural vibrations. Sam suggests retrieving specialized, vibration-dampening moss from the delivery runner Holly to safely extract the seed, linking their quest to the ongoing efforts near the Spruce.