The stranger finally steps into my vision as I blink away the blurriness, and I tense at the imposing image before us. She's tall and slender, with dark braided hair draping out from under her toboggan. Her dark clothes are also soaking wet, though she seems less bothered by it as she walks without hindrance. Three long, old scars run up the side of her face to her piercing blue eyes, her face neutral and betraying no allegiances. 

"She needs to eat something warm," the woman ignores Dani's question as she removes her own jacket and heads up the stairs of the cabin to the small loft bedroom. "Blankets and a fire won't be enough." 

"You didn't answer my question," Dani growls, trying to rub warmth into my arms as I wrap myself in the quilt on the couch. "Who are you? Why did you save her?" 

There's shuffling upstairs as the stranger gets dressed in dry clothes, and soon, she comes back down the stairs in a similar attire. "Who I am is of no importance," the stranger answers. "I jumped in because I could." 

Dani blinks, shaking her head as she glares at the woman. "That's not-"

"Your friend is going to die," the woman interrupts, pointing towards me as I feel my lips go blue. "You have to remove all of her outer clothing and passively warm her. Do you know how to?" 

"I know how-"

"Then I suggest you get started." The stranger turns toward the cabin door to leave, but Dani stops her once more. 

"God damn it, answer my questions!" 

The woman pauses, her hand on the knob, and I can see her shoulders heave in a silent sigh. She slowly turns around, her eyes cold as her eyes flick to me before addressing Dani. 

"Fine," she says. "I will answer three of your questions." 

Looking unsatisfied, Dani gulps but nods. "Fine. Are you with the Widows?" 

"No." 

Dani's brows furrow at how quickly she answers. "Why have you been watching us?" 

The woman is silent as she stares at Dani, giving her the same cold, calculated look Dani used to give me when I first got to Cottonwood. 

Dani frowns as the woman remains unresponsive. "I know you've been watching us. Cass saw you at the barn during our first days here, and it was you who was following our friends earlier." 

The woman's jaw clenches, and again her eyes flick to me as though awaiting permission to speak before she finally answers. "Curiosity got the better of me," she eventually says. 

"I'm going to need you to elaborate on that answer a bit more," Dani growls. 

"I needed to ensure that you were not working with the enemy before I moved on." 

"The enemy...?" Dani glances away, deep in thought, before she pauses, her eyes snapping back to the woman before us. "Atlas?" 

The woman's shoulders tense at the mention of the company, giving Dani the answer she needs. Dani opens her mouth for a flood of more questions - many of which I want to ask as well - but the woman holds up a hand, stopping her. "You are on your third question," she reminds us. "Any more than that will seal your friend's fate." 

Dani glances back at me, worried at my shivering, and she nods. "Our friends you were following, where are they? Are they safe?"

"That's two questions."

"Just answer them!" Dani's voice cracks with desperation, and the stranger's eyes narrow at her outburst. Dani gulps, her hands tense on my arms. "Please..."

The woman watches us carefully, and eventually, her eyes soften as she sighs. "They were safe when I last saw them. They heard the infected in the area and doubled back to your domicile. Now," the stranger straightens up as she approaches the door to the cabin, "if you'll excuse me, I shall be taking my leave. Once your friend is able, I suggest you do the same. The home you are staying in is not as safe as you mistake it to be."

As the stranger opens the door and prepares to step out, Dani calls out once more, and even in a half-delirious state, I can sense the annoyance in the tension of the woman's body. 

"Hold on a minute," Dani says as she drapes her jacket over my shoulders, rubbing them vigorously. "I have one last question."

"D-Dani..." I manage, my muscles tensing. "L-l-let... h-her g-g-go..." Finally managing to grasp her hand with all the strength I can muster, Dani glances back at me, startled, before worry once again creases her brow, and she glares back at the woman. 

The stranger glances over her shoulder, her eyes sharp. "You must not value your companion's life as much as you let on."

Ignoring her, Dani asks, "What's your name?" 

The woman pauses, a vague sense of surprise crossing through her mask of cold indifference before she straightens up. "You may call me Circe." 

Dani watches the woman with a stern, distrusting glare as Circe simply stares back. Without a word, Circe exits the cabin, closing the door behind her with a soft click.

Dani watches Circe through the window as she wanders through the snow until she disappears in the treeline. 

"D-D-Dani..." I mutter, tugging on her sleeve and wrenching her from her internal debate. 

"Sorry," Dani mutters, kneeling before me as her red-tipped fingers work at untying my bootlaces. "I'm..." she sighs. "I hope you don't mind getting a little cozy." 

Unable to question what she means, Dani gently sets to work on removing my boots and socks, laying them carefully by the fire to dry. However, once she starts trying to lift my shirt, my arms snap in front of me in weak protest. 

"Cass, please," Dani sighs. "That Circe lady is right, the fire won't be enough and you won't be able to get warm in wet frozen clothes."

My mouth refuses to form any sort of protest, and already the heat of embarrassment floods my face. It takes a lot of careful and awkward coaxing, but eventually, I find myself dressed down to my undergarments and curled up in Dani's lap under a heavy moth-eaten blanket. If she's bothered by my frozen prickly skin or wet hair tucked under her chin, she doesn't say anything about it. Instead, she focuses on keeping me talking for quite a while while she idly continues to rub warmth into my arms and back. Eventually, the stiff movements of her arm gradually relax into comforting, familiar circles as she gives me the go-ahead to drift to sleep, muttering something into my hair as I drift away.