"Well, Korra, trying to sell you my goods, I'd say take all the time you want. But...," the old man spoke, looking around. "We are not inside Scoresby's Goods & Wares. This is no place for people to live, and don't take this the wrong way...you look like you haven't had a decent meal in days. I'm sure Marlen wouldn't mind cooking an extra serving."

A bit confused, I looked down at myself. Sure, putting on a bit of fat didn't sound like a bad idea, but it wasn't like I'd been starving for months. I wasn't all skin and bones, so...was it the way I pounced on the dried meat? Most definitely.

"Th-that sounds good, Mr. Scoresby. Too good, in fact. Though, don't worry; I have plenty to eat."

"Oh, really, do tell?"

He didn't know? I would have thought that as a local...

'Wait, is there something wrong with the vines?'

"S-see, those vines," I said, pointing up into the treetops. From the branches up there, they cascaded down, swaying in the light breeze, never reaching the ground - except in a few rare spots.

"You must have been really desperate to try those, girl."

"No! I mean, yes, I was hungry, but it was the squirrels who told me about the vines, and in fact they don't taste bad."

"The Esulmor Squirrels?"

"Yes, we have come to...some sort of agreement."

"An agreement?" Scoresby chuckled with a raised eyebrow, shaking his head. "Beast talkers, unbelievable. Well, seeing as you're sure you won't starve here, I won't try to convince you to come with me. To leave you here otherwise would weigh on my mind. However, I'm afraid that's what I'll have to do if you choose to stay. You see, time is not very kind to us merchants - what I buy in one place is best sold as quickly as possible in another. Which is to say, as regrettable as it is, I'm gonna have to head out, Korra."

"I...I see..."

"Are you sure you don't want to come with me, girl? Castiana really isn't such a bad place."

Scoresby sounded earnest about it, and I really wanted to believe him - actually, I kind of did. It was just that whenever I imagined myself surrounded by all those people, their eyes on me, my heart would pound like crazy, with dread gripping my guts.

"You said two weeks?"

Scoresby gave me a somewhat disappointed look, sighting. "Yes, twelve days, and that's if Marlene doesn't come with me to see Millie. She wouldn't go through Esulmor even if she had a knife put to her throat."

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While frustrating, it was understandable. If I were her, I would choose the albeit longer but safer New Road around Esulmor, too. But for me, that would mean waiting here, most likely for another twelve days, maybe more.

'Wait a minute, twelve days?'

Doing some mental gymnastics and a little bit of math, I tried not to sound like a complete idiot. "And if she came with you, when would you pass through here again? Another week after that, like in six days?"

"I'm afraid it would take longer. At least another fortnight. I'm a merchant, girl. I got more places to travel to, you see."

Pretty sure that the [Eleaden Standard Language] didn't translate the term “fortnight” quite right, given that the old man meant twelve days, or two weeks of six days, I was glad I asked. Twelve days was less than fourteen, and should it come to the worst, I would only have to wait here for twenty-four days. That didn't sound so bad, right? Just a bloody long break to pull myself together which I so very much deserved.

And so, I made my decision.

─◇─◇─◇─

"Are you sure about this, girl?" the old man asked me for the umpteenth time, already sitting in the driver's seat with the reins in his hands.

»Leave beast here. Go.« Lyl'ra neighed, harnessed, and more than ready to pull the wagon. »Go!«

Hearing her, I could not help scowling at my own lack of courage. While she was anxious to get out of Esulmor, I was terrified at the thought of leaving the forest.

"I wouldn't say sure, but...I need more time, Mr. Scoresby."

"Well, they say that time can heal all wounds. I hope that will be the case for you, Korra."

"Me, too."

"All right, let's not drag this out. Best of luck to you. You're gonna need it."

"Thank you...for everything."

Scoresby smiled, gave me a parting nod, pulled the collar of his coat up to his neck, snapped the reins, and bellowed not too loudly: "Giddyup."

»Finally,« Lyl'ra cheered and set off without hesitation. Before long, a wagon drawn by two scalehoof mares disappeared among the trees, leaving me there once again alone.

'Well, what now, Korra?' I asked myself, looking around at the forest and the ruins of the Esulmor Edge Inn.

Despite the ceaseless twittering of birds overhead, the crumbling moss-covered walls suddenly seemed eerily quiet. No neighing of mares to listen to, no humans to fear. Exactly what I wished for to get my shit together. Just me and the forest. A forest full of bloody dangerous beasts that saw me below their level to deal with, or little pesky animals that were impossible to have a decent conversation with.

'I mean, I barely talked to the other freaks in the cellar either, so...'

So, it wasn't like I wasn't used to not having anyone to talk to.

Then why the bloody heck did I already miss being able to speak to someone who saw me as a person? This was supposed to be the perfect place to lick my wounds, so to speak - a mossy paradise, blanketed in white flowers, with fresh water and juicy greens to eat. Bloody heck, just the thought of leaving it all behind when it took me so much trouble to explore this place made me want to cry, YET I couldn't shake the feeling that if I were to stay here just a few days longer, let alone a month, I would only be heading closer to what I feared becoming the most, a feral beast.

"Fuck me and shit it all!" I cursed under my breath, and before I knew it, I found myself running down the road after Scoresby's wagon, hoping I wasn't too late.