saltburnt inbox.

[trailborn]

WELCOME TO THE SALTBURNT NETWORK

USERNAME:
ELSA

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Comments

[trailborn]

[]

Hello?
How come you know about that? Lucky guess?

Yes, tell me

[commentary]

Not at all. [ thinking about what Melissa told her, ] I mean, yes! I'm a very good guesser.

[ how long will this little lie hold up? not very long, probably. ]

Okay, so: it's a fruit, but it's used as a vegetable for cooking. Chances are they'll be using it here eventually. Here's what it looks like.

[ Insert photo pulled from the interwebs, ]

Pretty unusual color, right?

[trailborn]

[suspicious, but...]

Yes and it's huge! Does it taste as interesting as it looks? Where does it grow? Tennesee didn't have nothing like that

[girl who doesn't know how google works treats fellow girl as google]

[commentary]

That depends. It can be used in interesting dishes, I think. Not so interesting on its own.

You know, I'm not sure? I just assumed it was grown pretty much everywhere, like other vegetables and fruit. That's how it is in my world and time, of course. I should look into it.

Do you have a favorite fruit back in Tennessee?

[trailborn]

I'd like to try it.
Explain what you mean by world and time. Do these things [phones] we're using exist for you?

Peaches and blackberries. My family lived in the pines and we had so many berry bushes you could feed five families and still have more. The bears loved them.

[commentary]

Should we ask the staff to make a dish for us? And then we can sit together and get to know each other.

[ you guys, making friends is SO easy ]

You must have the best peaches and blackberries in the world. [ and since she brought up animals, ] What are the bears like?

[trailborn]

Yes, let's meet.

I dont know about the world, but I won't ever forget how they taste.
Never seen one before? We had black bears. Daddy wouldn't really hunt them. They're big and mind their own business.

[commentary]

It's a good thing to remember.

Do they? I think I like black bears.

[ At the same time: can't relate. ]

[trailborn]

I've seen some wildlife here, mostly birds. Some foxes.
What have you seen?

[commentary]

Me too. Bugs are even easier to spot.

I've also seen a cat here or there, to hunt down the mice, I think. And I heard someone owns a tiger. Can you imagine?

[trailborn]

I've never seen a tiger.

[not even in books, her schooling focused on the bare minimum for women.]

I'd like to see one. In person not in a book or on my phone. I heard they have a zoo here and I've never heard of such a thing.
Keeping wild animals inside seems wrong.

[commentary]

That depends, I think. There are many places that are keeping them safe. But they have to have the right conditions for the animals, I agree.

Would you like to go with me? To the zoo?

[trailborn]

Yes. I'll meet you there.

🎀

[commentary]

[ then they went to the zoo and it was cute as heck ]