Spotted Eagle Mountain To the outside, the dead leaves laid on the lawn

She thought she would be relieved to hear that Stag was doing well, but for some reason it only reminded her how much she was missing. She knew he would grow to be strong, but she had always imagined her there with him, encouraging him and teaching him all the ways of the world. Mahler was perfectly capable of doing the same, but the knowledge didn't lessen the burn of regret in her chest any. Of course he does, she said, hiding her true feelings on the matter. Her former co-leader wasn't privy to such things anymore. She softened some anyway and added: I promised I would visit him, and then this— she shook her head and looked away. Yet another reason to be in Mahler's debt; he had saved her life so that she could keep her promise and see her son again. 

She was surprised and irritated to learn where she was. Of course she was in the cursed hollow. She would come here to die. Thankfully it wouldn't have the chance to take her life like it had taken everything else. Not yet anyway. She sighed and looked away, clearly unhappy with his words. 

Her unhappiness was only intensified as he spoke again. She wasn't sure she could make a trip through the mountains yet. Soreness still hummed through every muscle in her body, and just the thought of standing and walking from the cave was more exhausting than she could handle. She struggled with whether to tell him the truth or tell him to go and then figure out what to do after; true to her obstinate nature, she eventually settled on the latter. I'll be fine, she assured him, though without the conviction she desperately tried to convey. Go home. I'll come visit Stag once I'm okay enough to make the trip. She had no idea if she actually would be okay, and part of her wondered if she was making a mistake. But what was the other option? return home with him? The idea formed a knot of anxiety in her chest. Her pride balked at the idea but more than anything, she worried about how confusing it would all be for Stag. She had no intention of staying in Mahler's home once she was better, so then what? She would have to leave her son all over again?