Louisa's POV
When I woke up the next morning, I saw Mr. Weasel lying next to me, pressing his body firmly against me.
His furry little body felt so warm in the chillness of morning.
The dim light was pouring through the window and the fire in the furnace was out.
I rubbed my eyes and heard the sound of chopping coming from outside.
I jumped out of bed and stretched my arms.
After a whole night of sound sleep, I felt so refreshed and ready for a brand new day.
Mr. Weasel woke up as well.
He didn't look very happy, though.
"I can feel my legs now," he said with annoyance, "They're so itchy."
"The wounds are closing. When new flesh grows, it's normal to feel itchy. I'll change the bandages for you." I said and held him on my lap.
He stayed there put like a stuffed toy and let me unwrap the bandages on his legs.
"It's getting much better!" I checked his wounds and said with great relief.
I dashed some more Fenugreek potion on his wounds and wrapped it up carefully.
"The scars will look ugly on me." Mr. Weasel was anxiety-ridden.
"Your fur will grow back. It'll cover the scars," I patted his head and said.
Mr. Weasel got on my shoulder and wrapped my neck around.
He rubbed his triangle head on my face. It was so fluffy.
"I'm hungry. I want to eat chicken." He licked his lips and said.
"I can't find any birds in this forest," I frowned.
"We can go to the Mountainside Village. There're a lot of hens," he said.
"They belong to the farmers. You can't just take them away. The farmers need them for eggs," I said.
"I like eggs!" I can see the sparkling light from Mr. Weasel's eyes.
I thought to myself for a while and said, "OK. Maybe I can trade some eggs with cured hog meat."
Mr. Weasel asked, "Why do you want to cure the hog? It's already dead."
"Curing is a process to preserve food. I need to get some salt," I replied.
"We preserve food, but we only dig holes and bury it underground. In winter, when there's no food, we can dig them out," he said.
I said, "I don't know where we can get salt. Do you have any ideas?"
"There's a sea at the edge of this forest. But it's far from here," Mr. Weasel said.
"I'll go there and get some," I mumbled to myself.
Then, he buried his head in my hair and shouted, "It's dangerous in the forest! I don't want to see that flying crazy man again!"
I covered my ears and said, "You've made your point. You don't have to talk that loudly. I can hear you."
"Sorry, woman," Mr. Weasel apologized.
I walked out of the room and saw Darren chopping firewood in the yard.
He saw me, wiped the sweat on his face, and asked, "Good morning, Lisa. Did you have a good night's sleep last night?"
I smiled at him and said, "Yeah, I slept very soundly last night. Thank you."
His thin but lean torso was covered with the ragged hog's skin.
I need to make him some clothes. Maybe I can get them from the village mentioned by Mr. Weasel just now. I thought to myself.
"I want to look for some salt to process the hog meat. Can you come with me?" I asked.
Darren looked worried and said, "You mean you want to go to the salt marsh? It's kind of far away from here."
"Mr. Weasel knows the way. If we get salt, we can make some smoked ham. Hopefully, we can trade it for goods in the Mountainside Village," I said.
Darren scratched his head and said, "OK, but we need to move fast. We go there and come back when there's still sunlight. As soon as the sunlight is gone, the vampire will come out."
"Let's go! Let's go!" Mr. Weasel exclaimed excitedly.
Our excursion trip started out smoothly.
We walked in the dense woods with Darren leading the way. I picked fruits, berries, and herbs along the way, throwing them into the basket on my back.
Mr. Weasel was exhilarated like a child. He wrapped over my neck and then sat on top of my head, talking non-stop about his family.
I understood that Weasels normally have a fairly large family. But Mr. Weasel's family was particularly large.
He had got a lovely wife, six adorable children, a dozen cousins, and numerous aunts and uncles (including two annoying ones). Apparently, he could identify all of them and tell me their stories.
Occasionally, we would come across one or two wild rabbits in the woods.
He begged me to catch them for him, claiming that he had to have them or he would faint.
I asked Darren if he could get one for him, but he refused.
"We have to hurry up," he said.
Mr. Weasel yelled at Darren, "But I'm starving! You're so mean!"
"Is he swearing at me?" Darren frowned and asked.
"No, he's just grumpy for being hungry," I replied.
Darren said, "Weasels are always hungry. They sometimes kill more than they can eat. They can't control it. It will bring us troubles."
As he was talking, he walked towards me.
Mr. Weasel buried his head in my hair and hid behind my neck.
"The bad warlock is coming! Ah, he's going to eat me!" he said.
"Darren's a friend. Act your age, Mr. Weasel." I turned my head and said.
I didn't notice the rock on the ground and tripped over it.
As I was about to fall, Darren held me in his arms.
"Be careful, Lisa," he said.
"Thank you, Darren. Sorry, I wasn't looking on the ground..." I said awkwardly.
I felt that I was so stupid and useless.
"Are you tired? I can carry you on my back." He lowered his head and looked at me.
"No. I can walk on my own, Darren. I was just a bit distracted..." I said.
Darren shifted his sight to Mr. Weasel and narrowed his eyes.
His rare hazel-colored eyes were filled with anger.
He grabbed Mr. Weasel's long waist and lifted him up in the air.
"Ahhh! No!" Mr. Weasel screamed.
Despite his objection, Darren didn't let him go. He looked at Mr. Weasel in the eyes and said, "You're being very naughty, Mr. Weasel. Now, you have to stay with me for a while and leave this nice lady alone."
"Ahhh! I don't want to be with him! HUman woman! Help me!" Mr. Weasel struggled violently in Darren's arms.
"Don't hurt him. His legs are still recovering." I tried to take him back from Darren and said.
But Darren held Mr. Weasel in his arms and refused to return him to me.
He looked up at the sky with concern and said, "We have to pick up speed, Lisa. I sense a bad storm is coming. The rain will make it even more difficult to walk. We can't make it before it's getting dark."
I nodded and said, "OK. But can I hold him...?"
Darren looked very determined and said, "He's safe with me. Don't worry." Then, he turned back and walked ahead.
"HUman woman! Help me! Or I'll bite him!" Mr. Weasel shouted, stretching his neck and looking back at me.
I had to run after Darren and said to Mr. Weasel, "If you bite Darren, I'll never talk to you! Behave and let Darren hold you just for a little while. He's my friend. He won't hurt you."
Mr. Weasel looked up at Darren and then turned his head to me.
After all his attempts of breaking away failed, he gave up and put his head over Darren's arms obediently, looking very miserable and helpless.
He was just a poor old weasel who couldn't do anything.
I knew I had to come up with something to comfort him.
So, I picked up several blackberries from the basket and put them in my palm.
Then, I offered them to Mr. Weasel.
"Would you like some berries?"
He turned his head away from me in disgust and said angrily, "I hate berries. And I hate you, hUman woman!"
As I got snubbed and was about to retract my hand, he started to gobble the berries in my palm.
"But since I'm hungry, it's better than nothing," he grumbled.
After he finished all the berries in my palm, he licked his lips while looking around.
Then, he snorted and said, "Aha, we're almost there! The salt marsh! I always like the smell in this place!"
I took a deep breath and smelt the salty humid air in the gentle breeze.
Then, I saw it from the corner of my eye -
That's the glistening and sparkling flashes coming from the tops of spartina plants.
The salt!