Scott seemed genuinely pleased to receive so many of his tools back. Not that Charlotte had intended to keep anything from him. It simply hadn't occurred to her that the human couldn't easily replicate any of his tools when needed. After all, the axe She'd taken from his old nesting area was functionally similar to the one he'd crafted. The original did have a cleaner edge and seemed to be made of surprisingly pure metal, but she figured that was more a factor of the material he'd found than intentional construction.

Of course, thinking back to how he'd explained that humans specialize in different areas, it was clear the original axe was probably made by someone who specialized in axe making, and Scott could not replicate the quality here on his own. It may even go further than that, with one human specializing in finding the material and another in crafting the axe. The potential behind that level of specialization, in many ways, echoed Charlotte's own method of creating appendages for specific tasks. Even though they lacked the ability to change their bodies to best suit the task, focusing an entire mind and body on the job might narrow the gap in their respective potential for accomplishing many feats.

Then, there were the odd metallic rectangles. The first appeared damaged beyond repair by Charlotte's investigation, but the second seemed functional.

To Charlotte's surprise, when Scott opened the tool in a specific manner, the screen illuminated, not unlike what She was capable of with her home. Though it seemed odd that in her exploration of the first device, she'd found no source of bioluminescence, so the illumination source must be some clever tool user trick. She definitely wanted to know more!

However, before Charlotte could ask her question, Scott's mannerisms changed again. His excitement seemed to drain out of him, and he tensed as if suddenly stressed. When he looked at Charlotte, his eyes and mouth were set in a way that expressed a level of hostility She hadn't seen from him in some time. Perhaps She's damaged this tool as well? Did it have some importance beyond the other tools? That would explain his excitement a moment ago. However, rather than make unfounded assumptions, it seemed best to allow Scott to express whatever was concerning him and see how She could accommodate his needs.

However, when he spoke, it wasn't the tool he was concerned with. "Charlotte... When you were at our camp... Was there another human there? What...what happened to our mom?"

Ah, of course. As evidenced by Scott and Alice, these humans have a strong pack bond mentality. If the corpse at the camp was their mom, they would likely be concerned with whatever happened to her. At least Charlotte could alleviate their ignorance, presumably giving them the comfort of knowing.

-

Scott wasn't sure what he feared more, that Charlotte had found their mom at the campsite or that she hadn't. But right now, his mind was too much of a whirlwind to focus. He just needed answers. After a slight pause, Charlotte spoke. "Yes, there was indeed..."

With a surge of fear, Scott held up a hand and shushed the spider woman. "Quiet! I don't want Alice to overhear!"

The spider monster tilted its head as if trying to comprehend but lowered its voice as instructed. "Yes, there was the corpse of a human at the camp when I first encountered it."

That surprised Scott. "Wait, did you say corpse?"

Charlotte nodded. "Yes. The body was still warm, but all metabolic functions had ceased."

Scott closed his eyes... "I should have been there..."

But then, a darker, more sinister thought occurred to him. Looking up, he voiced his accusation. "How do I know you're not lying?"

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Charlotte tilted her head again. "What is lying?"

Scott narrowed his eyes as he examined Charlotte for any signs of deceit. She might be lying, and this could be part of the act, but somehow, that didn't seem likely. Before now, the only one she really seemed to communicate with was her hive. Perhaps the idea of lying was utterly foreign to her. After a moment's consideration, he decided it didn't matter. It's not like he could prove anything, and they were entirely at her mercy. With a sigh, he accepted that whether she was telling the truth or lying, he had to take her at her word.

But then something else occurred to Scott. Why wasn't the body there when he got back? Looking back up at Charlotte again, he decided it was best to just ask. "What happened to...our mom's...body?"

Charlotte tilted her head as she answered. "I brought it back to my...hut."

Scott did not like the sound of that at all. After another deep breath, he asked a simple but terrifying question. "Why?"

He'd expected the spider woman to show some remorse, or at least hesitate, but she did not, simply answering as matter of factly as if he'd asked her how her day was going. "I intended to eat it."

Scott closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Conceptually, he could accept that. After all, to her, they were just animals in her territory. He didn't stop to ask if any of the small animals he'd eaten had been intelligent, had he? Still...

However, something in Charlotte's wording bothered him. "You intended to eat her? That...means you didn't?"

Charlotte tilted her head to the other side. "Mostly no. After discovering you were intelligent tool users, I decided it was more important to learn everything I could about you, so I studied her body to learn what I could."

He supposed that was better than eating her, but that left the question, "What do you mean by studied?"

Charlotte's head tilted again. Usually, Scott found the behavior almost endearing, but right now, it infuriated him for some reason. "I examined the body closely, inside and out. To learn everything I could about your physiology, only consuming small samples to learn about the chemical makeup of your bodies."

That made Scott a little sick, but he fought it down. He didn't... he didn't know how he felt. "You dissected her."

Charlotte started to speak, probably to ask what "dissected" meant, but Scott held up a hand to stop her. "Listen, I don't... I don't want to hear anymore. Do you still have her? Do you still have our mother's body?"

After a moment, Charlotte nodded. "Yes."

Scott took a deep breath. "I want her back."

Charlotte simply nodded. "Certainly. I can bring the remains of her body here if you'd like."

That stopped Scott cold again. The idea of Alice watching as a hoard of spiders brought in the remains of their mom piece by piece flashed through his mind. "No, wait. I'll...I'll come get her."

But what could he do with Alice in the meantime? He couldn't bring her with him. Could he still trust her with this...this thing that mutilated their mother? Of course, the more logical part of his brain told him that Charlotte didn't mean any harm. She only acted out of ignorance, and ironically, she was even trying to resolve said ignorance. But that logical thought was a very small thought in a maelstrom of confusion, anger, disgust, and sadness. Still, it wasn't like he had many options. He could bring her with him and traumatize the poor girl for the rest of her life, leave her unattended, or trust Charlotte again.

After a moment, Scott let out a long sigh. "Okay... You're going to have to watch Alice again. If she gets hurt in any way, I'll..." What would he do? What could he do? Realizing he was just standing there not speaking, he finished with, "I'll never forgive you..." It felt like such a lame threat, but there wasn't much more he could think to say.

Then, realizing how much more he would have to ask for and hating it, he added, "And I guess...I'll need a guide..." It was kind of disconcerting to realize just how much he depended on Charlotte these days. He wasn't sure how he felt about that realization...

However, rather than seem slighted or defensive, Charlotte simply nodded. "You can follow one of my hands. I'll watch over Alice while you're away."

Scott nodded, then glared at her. "Do not tell her about our mom!" Then he called over Alice. She bounded up to him without a care in the world, and he forced himself to smile at her. "I gotta go take care of something for a bit. But Charlotte here will look after you while I'm gone."

Alice scrunched up her face. "Why can't I come with you?"

Scot smiled just a little more genuinely and a little more sadly. "Listen, I have to do this alone, but I won't be gone long. Just make sure you're careful while I'm gone, okay?"

Alice looked like she was going to argue but then changed her mind and nodded. "Okay... Just don't be gone too long!"

Scott smiled and ruffled her hair. "I won't be."

With that, Scott turned and followed the waiting spider off into the forest.