The morning sunshine was both delightful and welcoming. Pierrot and Helena were squatting amidst the garden, squeezed between ripe plants and trees of their respective colors. All of their hands–three in total–plucked many fruits and vegetables, which ended up in a wooden basket.

“Don’t you want to separate them?” Pierrot asked. 

“These are for trading, so it’s fine.”

Trading? Was she planning to go outside today? Pierrot thought to himself.

 “Just make sure none of them are squashed on top of each other.”

Helena stood up as she finished her sentence, both hands ready to carry the basket once more. 

“Let me carry it.”

“It’ll be hard with only one arm.”

“I’ll manage.”

“No, no, no. I insist.”

Within those hours that they had been interacting, they knew how stubborn each other was. No side would let go until they compromised on something. So, with that in mind, Helena circled around Pierrot until she stood on his left side. She picked one side of the basket with her right hand while Pierrot picked the other side with his left hand. Now, their hand suspended the basket in the air, slightly leaning towards Helena because of their height difference, but not a problem nonetheless. 

“How about this?” she asked, tilting her head to the side towards Pierrot. 

“It’s perfect.”

They moved a few meters and settled down again once an apple tree came into sight. It wasn’t the only apple tree in Helena’s garden, nor was it the biggest. They just walked towards it, as simple as that. Apples adorned in their red skin were hanging from its branches. 

Pierrot assumed Helena wanted to get them. So, standing on his tiptoes, he tried to reach them. Just as he was about to stretch his arm upward, Helena took a step forward and, in the most unexpected way, kicked the tree with all her might.

The impact shook the whole tree. As if that weren’t enough, Helena did it again, this time with a shout akin to that of a war cry. 

“Raghh!”

Pierrot witnessed the scene. To think such an elegant and demure lady could create a noise like that, he looked at her in awe. But once she took an apple that had fallen down and presented it to him with a smile that rivaled the shining sun above them, he couldn’t help but bask in that radiant beam. Soon enough, his lips turned into a smile too.

She began to sweat a little. “Wait, I’ll get some more.”

Another kick was being prepared, but this time, Pierrot stood by her side.

“Can I help?” he said.

“Of course.” Helena nodded. “Then, on the count of three.”

Once the number hit one and the word “kick” left Helena’s mouth, both of them did it together. A few apples fell down. One of them hit and bounced off Pierrot’s head. 

“You should take one,” Helena said. 

“You sure that’s okay?”

“I insist.” 

She handed an apple which he took in his palm. 

“It’s good for your health.”

“I appreciate it then,” Pierrot said right before taking a bite. Each chew released juice that sweetened his palate. 

“I think we’re finished for now. Just need to–”

For a second, Helena looked into the distance. She appeared to be hesitant about something, though Pierrot couldn’t really pinpoint it. 

“What’s wrong?” Pierrot asked. 

“Emm, remember when I said something about trading?”

Pierrot nodded. 

“How to explain it? Like, yeah, it’s trading, but not really meeting up with people and exchanging goods like that.”

Her words jumbled after one another. Those were so clear in her mind, but trying to utter them coherently was a different case, not to mention the existence of an audience now. Still, Pierrot waited. Patience was one of his virtues, and he didn’t want to interrupt her who was trying so hard to explain what was in her mind. 

After a while, Helena sighed. 

“Emmm, what I’m about to say is, I need to go outside but not really outside. It’s just close enough to be at the edge of the forest.”

Forest.

Pierrot had gotten an answer to one of his questions without needing to ask. 

That was pretty easy to guess, though, considering the vast greenery that surrounded this garden now. It seemed more like a cage, now that he thought about it. 

Helena then pointed at the basket sandwiched between them. 

“I need to put this in the specific spot. In a few days, someone will change it with some food and clothing, sometimes even more.”

Clothings–that explained the shirt he was wearing now. 

“....And who is that someone?”

Helena became fidgety again. “T-to be honest, I don’t know. But I’m sure it will be fine! It’s something I’ve done for years, so you can trust me.

“Anyway.” Helena picked the basket with her own two hands. She wasn’t struggling at all. “It’s nothing too serious, but I’ve to go through the forest for a while. You can go back, Pierrot. It might be quite tiring.”

Again, treated like a guest.

That thought entered Pierrot’s mind once again. He made a fist with his left hand. For some reason, that expression irked him in some way. He didn’t know why, but to say the least, doing nothing bothered him more than anything. 

“So I guess I'll see you in the evening, then?”

With the basket in her hands, Helena was about to leave. 

A second later, Pierrot didn’t let her do that. 

He had his hand grasping the side of the basket. Eyes were staring directly at Helena. 

“Let me come with you.”