A whole, lonely week passed without anything happening. Then, as Clover was about to get ready for bed, she heard a voice in the distance outside the cabin she lived in. Despite the wooden walls that separated them, she could hear this voice quite clearly as it sang almost joyfully :

"Lalala, lalala, chop the wood to light the fire!"

The girl immediately rushed to the door to see who was outside…

Of course. It was that Beast again, standing in the darkness outside her home, near her front porch.

"I told you he wouldn't come back", he said instead of a hello.

"He… he will come back… one day…" Clover whispered, trying to focus on finding her father's soul among all those imprisoned within the creature's body. Surely she could find it ; she knew it so well…

"Stay in denial if you wish", the Beast said, turning around to leave.

"Wait!" the girl stopped him. "I need to see if -"

"See what?" he interrupted her, looking at her over his shoulder. "That I came back to you while your father didn't?"

"…You never took his soul, did you? It's not here with the others..."

The monster fully turned to Clover again and tilted his head to the side.

"I told you I didn't do anything to him, didn't I?"

If this monster didn't take her father's soul, then… what happened? Was the Beast right all along?

Before she could ask him any more questions, he left her field of vision, singing all the way and his voice filling the entire forest.

Food supplies were getting low and Clover's vegetable garden wasn't doing very well in the cold soil. However, she remembered how her father would create traps for small woodland animals. If her own garden couldn't provide enough for her, she would take what she needed in the forest.

She could make a few snares and place them in different spots in the woods nearby. This should be more than enough to feed her. And if her father came back, they'd just set more traps to get more food.

Though, as the girl set out into the cold morning air, the Beast's words echoed into her head.

You'll never see your father again, he said. And he sounded so certain of it.

She warily entered the forest and looked for the perfect spots to place her snares. The tip of her nose already felt like it had been replaced by a shard of ice but she ignored it. She had more important things to think about, such as not starving.

Clover slowly advanced into the woods, careful not to make any sound that could scare the animals away. As she put the first trap into place, she couldn't help but wonder : did her father abandon her like the Beast said? Each passing day made it more and more believable.

As she walked away to find another place to set the second trap, she kept looking over her shoulder, half-expecting to spot the monster lurking in the shadows. However, it seemed he wasn't there today either. She hadn't seen him since the second time he talked to her.

Worst of all, she hadn't heard the voice of another human being since… since that one day.

She set up the second trap with trembling hands. Each one of her breaths turned to steam in the air.

It felt so strange, having to do all of this alone. Ever since they arrived in this place, she thought her father and herself would stick together to survive…

Once all the traps were set, Clover went back home and lit a fire. At least there was still enough firewood for a few months.

Even though the girl still had plenty of firewood, she figured it would be a good idea to train herself to chop down trees. This should keep her busy enough not to think too much about her situation. Being alone with her thoughts was the last thing she wanted at the moment but no-one else was around…

She went to the edge of the forest but did not step in it. She chose a young tree that looked easy to cut down and swung her axe as she had seen her father do so many times.

Her father who had-

No, she couldn't allow herself to think about it. She had to focus on the task at hand. Clover swung the axe a couple more times, doing her best to make each strike more precise and more powerful than the last.

Then, she heard the Beast's voice singing the same tune than before ; only it felt more appropriate now. Once he got close enough, she could feel his presence. After taking a look at the forest before her, she finally saw him, a pair of glowing eyes in the darkness behind the trees.

"Hello, Beast", she said, lowering down her axe for a moment.

Any company was welcome, even his.

"Good evening, child", he replied.

"My name's not 'child', it's Clover. What are you doing here?"

"This is my forest, Clover. I've been in it since long before you arrived. I should be asking you what you are doing here."

"…Fair enough", the girl shrugged before resuming what she was previously doing.

She was getting the hang of this. Soon, the thin tree trunk fell to the side, only slowed down by its neighbours. She felt quite proud of herself in that moment. That is, until the Beast spoke again.

"Like father, like daughter", he commented.

"Can we… not talk about him for now?" she asked. "Why don't you help me transport this home instead?"

"If you are to live alone here forever, you should get used to do all your tasks alone. And I'm not your servant."

Clover sighed and started cutting off the branches of the fallen tree and assembling them in one pile.

Being in the Beast's vicinity felt like having a crowd watching her and yet all she could see was him standing there, half-hidden in his forest.

"So, which one is yours?" she asked, her arms full of the branches she just collected.

"What are you talking about?" he asked back, tilting his head to the side quizzically.

Clover wondered if he ever got these impressive antlers stuck on things in the forest.

"You've got all those souls, but which one is really yours?"

"You should not meddle in things you cannot understand, Clover", the Beast stated.

"If you won't help me or answer my questions, why did you even bother c-"

"I only wish to make sure you are still alive. If my presence in my own woods bothers you…I can leave you to your thoughts. Alone."

And with that, he disappeared ; the girl dropped all the branches she was holding and shouted in direction of the forest :

"Wait! I- I didn't mean to -"

His voice, seemingly coming from nowhere in particular, interrupted her :

"By the way, one of your traps caught an animal. You should check it out before another creature eats it."