The weather outside Castle Elid was sunny and warm, the sky marked by a scattering of fluffy clouds. The heat felt somehow soft, unlike what Emily was accustomed to in her own world—the prickling scorch of Earth's sun was strangely absent. Whether this was down to the nature of this world or the protection of the Stoneshell, Emily had a feeling that she would not need to worry about sunburn. Some consolation for a naked girl on a long journey.

Once the initial shock of stepping out into the open wore off, Emily walked calmly, arms swinging at her sides, boots crunching on the dirt path. The feeling of sun against almost every inch of her skin was a new but not wholly unwelcome sensation. It was a very surreal, dreamlike experience, overall, though a knot of tension remained in Emily's throat and would spike every time there was a bend in the road, lest another traveler appear behind it.

After some miles, Emily realized she hadn't eaten anything since arriving in this world. Her stomach growled fiercely, and she placed a hand on it, feeling weak and light-headed. "I'm starved."

"Ah yes," said Aria. "Flesh requires food. Let me see... over there, a Starvine bush!"

Emily's eyes followed Aria's gesture to a small bush by the side of the road, its branches heavy with clusters of big, gleaming purple berries. She raised a skeptical eyebrow. "Are you sure they're not poisonous?"

"Certainly not!" Aria scoffed. "Don't you have Starvine berries in your world?"

Emily shook her head.

"Then you're in for a treat, my dear Emily! They were one of my favourite things to eat, back when I had need of food."

"I don't know," replied Emily, "I've never eaten anything that glowed like that before..."

"The glow is what gives them their divine sweetness!"

Emily's stomach growled again, and that decided the matter. She plucked a berry from the bush and rolled it between her fingers. It was smooth to the touch, and once plucked, its steady glow became a pulse.

"Oh how I envy you!" cried Aria, staring intently at the berry between Emily's fingers. "What I would give to taste a Starvine berry again..."

Emily took a cautious bite. Sweetness burst onto her tongue, followed by a tart, spicy quality with an earthy undertone. "This is delicious!" she said, before finishing off the berry in a second bite. She could feel energy spreading to every part of her body.

Purple berry juices dripped down Emily's chin and stained her fingers as she wolfed down another three berries. As she was reaching for a fourth, Aria stopped her. "Too many Starvine berries can make you sick."

"I'll take some for the road, then," Emily replied, plucking another berry. "Just... oh, I guess I don't have anywhere to put them."

"I'll carry them for you," Aria said, taking the berry from Emily and dropping it down the front of her gown.

"I miss being able to do that," Emily replied, glancing down at her bare breasts.

With Emily's hunger sated, the two travelers continued their journey. In the late afternoon, the wind started to pick up. At first, the sudden coolness of the light breeze was refreshing, but as the wind continued to strengthen, it whipped Emily's hair into a wild inferno. She found herself constantly blinking and spitting, swiping away the long strands every few steps.

After one such futile swipe, she caught sight of the hairband still encircling her wrist. Swiftly, she gathered up her chestnut-brown locks and twisted them into a hasty bun, snapped into place with the tie. Finally, her vision was clear and her face free of constant tickling. But with all her hair piled up on top of her skull, the sensations of the wind against the skin of her shoulders and neck were a fresh reminder of her nudity.

"What a marvellous device!" Aria said, and it took Emily a moment to realize that she was referring to the hair tie. "How it grows and shrinks in your fingers!"

Emily chuckled. "It's great for windy days like this, but it does make me feel a tad more... exposed."

Aria's soft laughter blended with the howl of the wind.

Some time later, when the wind had relented and the pair's shadows were growing longer in the approaching dusk, Aria pointed out a dark shape on the horizon. "Someone approaches!"

Emily squinted at the distant shape, which was slowly growing larger. It appeared to be a horse-drawn caravan. If she looked really closely, she could just about make out the shadow of a man sitting at its front.

"That looks like the traveling merchant we've been awaiting," said Aria. "What luck! Emily?"

In a flash of pale skin, Emily had darted backwards and was now crouching behind Aria's marble form. "I can't let him see me like this!" she squealed.

"Oh, yes, of course," said Aria. "I will stay rooted to this spot and you may hide yourself behind me." Aria spread her arms out at her sides, causing her marble gown to drape. "We'll explain the situation and have you in a dress and cloak in no time!"

"Thanks Aria," said Emily, blushing as the caravan came ever closer, its wheels and the clip-clop of horse's hooves now audible.

Before long, it was possible to make out the details of the traveling merchant's face. He was an older man, though still quite handsome, with a head of gray hair and a neat gray beard which framed strong brown eyes set into a lined face. A curious air came over his complexion as he approached what to him must have appeared to be a marble statue curiously placed in the middle of the road.

A shiver ran down Emily's spine. She'd been embarrassed once she'd learned that the statues in the castle were alive, but that had been tempered somewhat by the strangeness of the situation and their relative inhumanity. Now that a flesh-and-blood human being was almost in spitting distance, this embarrassment was renewed and magnified tenfold. Here she was, completely naked in the middle of a country road, about to ask a strange older man for a dress she could wear. But first, she would need to get his attention.

"Hi there!" Emily squeaked, standing on tip-toes to poke her head over the much taller Aria's arm. She waved her arms over her head, and this seemed to catch the man's attention. "Please! Don't come any closer!"

The man made eye contact with Emily, and it was all she could do to keep herself from ducking back behind Aria and curling into a fetal position. Even though only her head was visible to the merchant, she could feel every inch of her exposed skin as he held her gaze.

"G'd afternoon, ma'am," the man said, speaking in a slow drawl. "How may I be of service?"

"Hail and well met!" said Aria. "Might you be a traveling merchant?"

At this, the merchant almost leaped off his seat. "A talking statue! What in the world?!"

Emily smiled at his shock. Clearly talking statues weren't all that much more common in this world than in her own.

"My name is Lady Aria of Castle Elid," said Aria. "Many years ago, I was cursed by a mage to inhabit this body of stone for all eternity. I wish you no harm."

The man scratched the back of his head and sat in contemplation for a while. Then his face broke out in a grin. "Those mages, right bastards the lot of 'em. I met one in the last town who wasn't happy with the price I gave him for his home-grown cabbages. Enchanted my coin purse over it! I had pieces of silver jumping around like grasshoppers! Lucky it only lasted a day..."

Aria contemplated the dirt. "Yes, it is a profession often undertaken by those of a capricious nature."

"You can say that again!"

A moment of silence passed as the man silently observed the sad, contemplative talking statue and the human girl hiding behind her. It could hardly have escaped his notice that both were quite beautiful. "It's a pleasure to make the acquaintance of two lovely ladies," he said. "The name's Brevin. I'm a traveling merchant."

"Excellent!" cried Aria, the melancholy disappearing instantly from her marble features. "Might you have some ladies' garments among your fine wares? My companion Emily is in need of a new wardrobe."

Brevin stroked his bearded chin. "I have a fine selection of outfits to dazzle the eye and delight the skin. If Miss Emily would be so good as to step this way, we can pick something out."

Emily blushed. "Well, uh, actually... the thing is..."

Brevin dismounted the front of his cart and stood a few feet from Aria, cocking a curious eyebrow.

"My companion is in desperate need of clothing because she does not currently have any," said Aria.

Emily smiled weakly, blushing again. She rose up slightly more on her toes, just enough to expose a single bare shoulder.

"Oh!" exclaimed Brevin, eyes widening. "Begging your pardon then. I'll go fetch some things from the back and hand them over."

"Thank you!" Emily squealed.

"It's a pleasure doing business," said Brevin. "Heh, you ladies sure are lucky I came along. Just bought this stock too."

"An act of Providence," said Aria.

Brevin disappeared around the side of the caravan, his footsteps muffled on the soft ground. Aria turned her gaze towards Emily, a sweet smile carved into her marble face. "What wondrous luck!"

Emily sighed, the tension in her body releasing slightly as she leaned against Aria's cool stone form. "Keep yourself between us. He seems kind, but I don't want to flash him."

"Of course." Aria puffed out her chest and spread her arms wider than before. "You won't have to worry about your modesty for too much longer."

Sounds of clattering and ruffling echoed from the other side of the caravan, interspersed with Brevin's low muttering. These were followed by footfalls, and Brevin re-emerged with a large pile of fabrics. It was all Emily could do to stop herself from salivating at the sight. He placed the bundle on the ground and took a few steps back before turning around. "I've brought a few options for you to choose from. At least one should be both your size and to your liking. I'll not look while you fetch the garments, ma'am."

Emily peeked out from behind Aria, her eyes darting between the pile of clothing and Brevin's back. "Thank you, she whispered, before scampering out from behind her statue friend, snatching up the bundle, which was almost too big for her to get her arms around, and backtracking in a half-crouch. Brevin did not budge.

"Let me know when you're decent," Brevin said. "Take all the time you need."

The feeling of soft fabric against her skin was immensely comforting after Emily's hours of nudity. It was with some reluctance that she released the bundle of clothing and laid it out before her.

Brevin had brought her a selection of shifts, corsets, petticoats, dresses and cloaks of different colors. After contemplating her options for a moment, Emily decided to keep things simple and picked out a white shift and a dress of deep burgundy.

Slipping the shift over her head, Emily felt an immediate sense of relaxation. Though she was still in a strange land, far away from home, the sensation of fabric against her skin brought some sense of normality.

The shift was fitted, but not overly tight. The hemline came just past her knees and its long sleeves almost covered her hands. Back in her own world, she had regularly worn full outfits that showed more skin than this, and it was a mere undergarment.

Apart from its rich color, the burgundy dress was simple and plain, with a hemline that almost trailed on the ground, coming to rest against the tops of Emily's boots. Feeling slightly overdressed, but giddy at the prospect of further covering her poor, overexposed flesh, she picked out a matching cloak to complete the outfit. She would leave the hood down for now.

Step one, get some clothing. Check. Now she could focus on step two, finding her way home. Thoughts of the adventure ahead of her, with her mysterious and elegant friend Aria by her side, stirred something in her blood. Now that she was properly attired, she would face the world of Thessolan head-on.

Emily stepped out from behind Aria and did a small twirl to show off her outfit. "What do you think?" she asked.

"Beautiful," said Aria. "Your outfit makes me long for the days when I too wore colorful clothing."

"You can look now, Mr Brevin!" called Emily, a beaming grin overtaking her face.

Brevin slowly turned and smiled as he saw Emily properly for the first time. "A perfect fit. You're a vision, Miss Emily."

"All thanks to you!"

"Just doing business." Brevin walked past Emily, still enraptured with her new outfit, and gathered up the clothing she hadn't chosen, his careful merchant's eye noting what was missing. "Now, that will be two silver for the dress, one for the shift and one silver eight copper for the cloak. Four-eight is your total."

Emily's face fell. A small voice in the back of her mind had been nagging her about the problem of money, but she'd done her best to ignore it in her desperation to get clothes. She darted over to Aria and looked her pleadingly in the eyes, but was met with an embarrassed and apologetic grin.

"I... have not had much occasion to deal with money," Aria said softly. "My sister always handled those matters for both of us."

"But you have some, right?" Emily whispered sharply.

Aria shook her head sadly.

"You said we would buy a dress and cloak from a traveling merchant!"

"Ah, yes, I did say that, didn't I?" Aria adopted a thoughtful posture, with a hand on her chin.

"How did you expect to get money?! Surely you could see that I didn't have any! I'm not even from this world!" Emily was red in the face, gesticulating wildly, and the tall statue seemed to shrink at her anger.

"Well... uh... I suppose I didn't think it all the way through. I'm sorry, Emily."

Emily took a deep breath and gripped the bridge of her nose between her fingers, which usually helped to calm her down. "It's fine. We'll figure something out. Brevin seems kind. I'm sure... I'm sure he wouldn't just take the clothes back."

Emily turned around and approached Brevin, who had been waiting by his caravan, staring into the distance. He was clearly trying to give the impression of not having heard the ladies' discussion.

"Mr Brevin," Emily began, her heart pounding in her chest. "First off, I would like to make it clear how much I love these clothes. They are a perfect fit, well-made and clearly of high-quality material. I am certain they will last me a long time. And they must, for they are the only clothes that I have."

Brevin nodded but remained silent, a curious squint appearing on his face.

"Unfortunately, neither I nor my companion have any money. We have just emerged from Castle Elid, perhaps you've heard of it. My companion, Lady Aria, was cursed to roam its halls for centuries, and it is only through the recovery of—hey!"

A forceful stone elbow nudged Emily, almost knocking her over. Emily looked angrily at Aria, who had suddenly appeared by her side but was struck into silence by the severe look on the statue's face. Where moments before there had been a sheepish grin, there was now only a stony scowl of resolution.

Cold marble brushed against Emily's ear. "Say nothing of the Stoneshell," Aria rasped, in a tone that sent shivers down Emily's spine.

Dumbfounded and quivering, Emily shut her mouth tight. Brevin raised a curious eyebrow.

"Mr Brevin," Aria began. "As my companion has related, we have no money. Indeed, before we made your fortunate acquaintance, the only possession we had between us was an old pair of boots, found abandoned. We are two ladies in distress, in dire need of charity. Without your gift of clothing, poor Emily would be force to wander the land of Thessolan entirely naked, at the mercy of nature."

"She has boots," retorted Brevin, eyes pointed down. "And not a bad pair."

"Please, good Brevin, see it in your heart to do an act of kindness to a lady in great need. Only your charity can defend her honor. The gods will surely smile upon such a selfless act."

There was a long pause, during which Brevin attempted to hide the beginnings of a knowing grin. Emily felt she might be sick.

"Listen," said Brevin. "I've got a wife back home and twelve hungry children to feed. Maybe you don't understand that so well, statue, but we of flesh and blood need to eat. I can't part with nearly five silver of goods out of charity!"

Emily blushed and looked down at her burgundy dress, cursing herself for choosing such a beautiful and probably expensive color. "I can take something cheaper!"

Brevin eyed her. "That lot's near the bottom of the barrel already. And you've messed on it!"

Emily followed Brevin's accusatory stare to a purple mark on her dress and blushed furiously. The Starvine berries!

"I'm sorry!" she cried.

"It's fine, just return them," Brevin replied. "Out of the goodness of my heart, I won't change you for cleaning."

"That's very kind of you," Emily said, trying her best to sound sincere. "Listen, what if I give back the cloak and dress and just take the shift?" She had grown quite enamoured with the dress and cloak and would be sad to lose them, but the shift alone would be a more than adequate covering.

"You're still asking for me to give you one silver! Half my children will go without their supper!"

"You can't just send me away naked!" At this, Emily fell to her knees, begging and pleading, her eyes wide and desperate. "Please, I need something to wear! There must be some way..."

"I won't be taken in by your wiles, if that's what you mean," Brevin snorted. "My Dolores is the only one for me. Stand up, woman, you're dirtying my wares!"

Emily gasped at the implication, which took a moment to sink in. "What? No! I wasn't suggesting that! I'm not that kind of girl!"

"Running around the countryside with no clothes on, people might think otherwise."

"Does it look like I want to be naked?!" Emily was on the verge of tears.

"Well.. I s'pose not." There was a softening in Brevin's tone.

Emily continued to haggle with him, racking her brains for some way she and Aria could pay for the dress. She offered to travel with Brevin and work for him, feeding the horses and running errands, but he was quite uninterested. "That statue'll weigh down the cart."

Eventually, Emily ran out of ideas and could only plead again for Brevin's charity, for him to part with at least the shift.

"I can't do it," he said with an air of finality. "But I won't make you go naked. I have something in the back, I've just remembered. A piece of clothing left in my caravan by a stowaway I chased out just yesterday. That item didn't cost me anything, and I won't be able to sell it. I can give you that, and we both walk away happy."

Emily wiped a tear from her eye. "That sounds wonderful. Thank you, Mr Brevin."

Twenty minutes later, as the caravan was disappearing into the distance, Emily cringed at the memory of those words. In his vagueness, Brevin had neglected to mention that the stowaway had been a gnome and the item of clothing a pair of threadbare gnome britches. "Quite a fat gnome," Brevin had said, but that wasn't much of a consolation. Changing into the new "outfit" had been a slow and mournful process.

Emily now stood on the road with her arms folded across her bare chest and the britches stretched over her hips. The gnome had been squat, so the legs barely made it down to her mid-thigh and the waist was very low-rise. Though the britches were quite large for a gnome, Emily could not force their top button closed, and curls of hair poked out indecently.

Aria gave her a sympathetic look. "At least we shan't be the cause of his children's hunger."

Emily pouted, dearly missing her long burgundy dress. Wearing that, she had felt like a plucky medieval maiden out on an epic adventure. In her current outfit, she just felt like a slut. Too-tight shorts were better than complete nudity, but not by a lot.

As Aria and Emily trudged down the dirt road, the trees that dotted the plains became more and more frequent, until they found themselves in a dense wood. The waning sun painted the horizon in shades of lavender and gold. Birds cawed and rustled in the distance, preparing for evening, and an icy gust raised goosebumps on Emily's exposed skin. The faint sound of running water indicated that they were approaching a river.

The britches offered little protection from the cold, and Emily wrapped her arms tightly around herself, shivering at every gust of wind.

"We should find a place to camp for the night," Aria said. "Though I cannot feel this cold, I see it is having a strong effect on you."

"Really missing that cloak right now," Emily replied, her teeth chattering.

"Let us walk a little farther," said Aria, pointing ahead at a dark silhouette. "Look, we're coming to a bridge. On the other side, we'll find a clearing and make a fire."

Emily was about to ask how, exactly, Aria intended them to make a fire, and to remind her marble companion that, where she was from, the ability to make a fire in the woods had not been considered an essential life skill. But before she could figure out exactly how to articulate it, she was stopped in her tracks by an extraordinary sight.

Towering ahead of Aria and Emily stood an enormous, hulking humanoid figure, taller even than Aria and made even more menacing by the fading light. The creature had lumpy blue skin and wore a brown loincloth. Its right hand rested on what looked like an uprooted tree trunk. Its massive yellow incisors glistened, and it focused a pair of beady black eyes on the two travelers.

A scream died in Emily's throat, and she could feel her heart thundering against her chest. Her eyes darted to Aria, desperate for an explanation.

But Aria's expression was more annoyed than frightened. "It's a troll," she whispered. Then, projecting her voice forward, she shouted, "Greetings, Forest Troll! We are humble travelers, who desire only to pass through these lands. We wish you no ill will."

The troll's voice was deep and sonorous, booming as though it came from the depths of the earth. "I am the guardian of this bridge. Those who would cross must pay the toll."

The annoyance in Aria's countenance intensified. "Typical troll," she whispered to Emily. "They all do this—find a bridge, or a gate, or a chokepoint, and harass travelers for tolls. Terribly bothersome."

"It's more than bothersome, Aria!" Emily hissed back. "In case you've forgotten, we don't have any money!" She wiggled her scantily clad hips as a reminder.

"Oh, they're not usually after money," Aria said dryly. Then, addressing the troll, "What is your toll, Forest Troll?"

"Your most treasured belonging."

Emily's pulse quickened. What did she have that this troll could possibly want? All she had was her scanty outfit.

Aria leaned in close and whispered, "Remember, Emily, do not part with the Stoneshell."

Emily felt, or imagined she felt, a warm spot on her chest, where the pendant rested, as though it were agreeing with Aria. She nodded solemnly.

"I have no possessions," Aria said to the troll.

The troll regarded her for a moment, before saying, "Then you are free to go."

"Oh," Aria replied, clearly taken aback. "Th—thank you."

The troll stepped to one side, and Aria passed him and stepped onto the bridge. But when Emily attempted to follow, the troll stepped back, blocking her path. "The toll, please." He was so close now that she could smell his foul breath.

"I don't have any possessions either!" said Emily. "No, money, nothing, not even a shirt!"

The troll's beady eyes leered down at Emily and she pulled her arms tighter across her chest. "You lie. Pay the toll."

Aria turned around, a panicked look on her face, and peered around the troll's bulk to look Emily in the eyes.

Emily mouthed the words "I know", annoyed that Aria seemed to believe she would give away the Stoneshell so freely. Its power and importance had been deeply impressed on her. If she gave it up, the Castle Elid curse would return, and then what would happen to her friend Aria? Emily couldn't face this world alone.

Maybe the Stoneshell was her most treasured belonging. She couldn't let the troll know that. He wanted something from her, but it didn't have to be the necklace. There were far less important things she could part with instead.

"Will my socks pay the toll?" Emily asked, pushing onto her toes with one foot to display the gray fabric. "They, uh, belonged to my late grandmother."

The troll shook his head.

"What about my boots?" she asked, already crouching down, her hands on the laces of her left boot.

Again, the troll shook his head.

"Really?" Emily asked. "These boots are very precious to me, they were a gift from my father. And they're essential for this journey, that's for sure. My feet are going to be really sore without my trusty boots!"

"That is not the toll."

Emily's adjusted her arms to better hide the Stoneshell pendant from view. "Are you sure?" she asked the troll, shooting a worried glance at Aria. If the troll wanted the necklace, they may be in for a fight.

"Your most treasured belonging," began the troll, speaking slowly, "is that."

An outstretched troll finger brushed against the fabric on Emily's hip. Aria sighed with relief, but it was all Emily could do to repress a scream. He was completely right, of course. Though far from an ideal covering, the britches had upgraded her from naked girl to half-naked girl. "I—what? Really? That?!" Emily stammered. "But—but—I need it! It's... it's all I've got to wear..."

The troll's blue tongue flicked across his incisors. "That is why it is the toll."

Tears pricked at Emily's eyes, and she bit her lip to keep them in. It had been a bad enough letdown, going from her dress and cloak to these wholly inadequate shorts, and now she was going to lose even that? She couldn't bare her nethers to the world again, not so soon after finally giving them some privacy.

The world seemed to stand still as Emily contemplated her fate. The troll appeared to have endless patience, and Aria had had plenty of practice standing motionless for a long time. But Emily was getting cold, especially standing still like this.

Slowly, she brought one arm away from her chest and reached down to her hip. Her hand was shaking as she brought a thumb between the britches and her skin. But before she completed the movement, before she stripped, a crazy idea occurred to her.

The troll blocked her path, but he was standing with his legs wide apart. He was larger than Aria, but not double her size. Emily recalled something Aria had said to Brom in the castle, about falling on anyone who tried to attack the two of them on the road. A desperate plan to preserve her modesty was coming together in her mind. She would need to act quickly and decisively, keeping the element of surprise on her side.

Slowly, carefully, Emily pulled her other arm away from her chest and placed her other thumb beneath the waistband of her britches. She stood in a slight crouch, unsupported breasts hanging forward, drawing the troll's eyes. Blushing, she slowly began wiggling her hips, pushing the britches down very, very slowly. This would buy her time.

"Aria," she said, still wiggling, and keeping her voice very calm. "Be careful when crossing the bridge. I wouldn't want you to FALL." This last word was punctuated with a knowing stare, and after a moment of confusion, Aria appeared to understand.

"It wouldn't do to FALL in. Not right NOW!"

As she spat the final word, Emily yanked her britches back up and sprung forward, arms pumping at her side. She dove between the troll's legs, headed straight for the bridge. A crash and a roar sounded behind her, followed by a surprisingly fierce battle-cry from Aria and the sound of stone slamming against skin.

Emily kept running. Her boots pounded against the wooden bridge, one after the other, and the sound of rushing water filled her ears.

Then there was a sickening crack, and the floor gave way beneath her. Emily screamed as she fell.

The water was cold, shockingly cold, and it was dark under the bridge. Emily thrashed in the water, fighting her way up to the surface. As her head breached the water, she inhaled a sharp, cold breath. The current had carried her out from underneath the bridge, but the river bank was not far.

In the last light of the setting sun, Emily hauled herself to shore, grabbing fistfuls of grass and pulling herself out of the cold water. She lay on the shore for a moment, breathing heavily, before the light was blotted out by an enormous shadow behind her.

Too tired, cold and shocked to run anymore, Emily twisted her body to look up at the troll. His massive hand held something aloft—the gnome's britches, flapping the breeze.

"The river takes its toll if I do not," said the troll.

The cool breeze that whipped across Emily's backside was further confirmation that her plan had failed.

"Let me help you up," said Aria's voice, her marble face appearing in Emily's vision. "I'm sorry, Emily, he was too strong for me."

Emily reached out, grasped a cold marble arm, and pulled herself up. Then, looking around, she asked between chattering teeth, "W—where did he g—go?" For the troll had disappeared back into the night, along with Emily's gnome britches.

"His job was done," said Aria, eyes flicking down involuntarily and causing Emily to blush. "Let's see about that fire."

Cold, wet and wearing only a waterlogged pair of boots, Emily nodded vigorously. "I'm f—freezing!"

A pleasant clearing came into sight a few yards from the river, and Aria made quick work of finding and piling up firewood. Emily removed her waterlogged boots and socks and placed them in front of the pile, shivering, rubbing her hands on her upper arms and jumping up and down to keep warm. "H—how do we s—start a fire?" she asked Aria.

"Use the Stoneshell," Aria said.

Emily grasped the Stoneshell pendant and looked at it quizzically. "W-what? How?"

"Just hold it out and think of fire," Aria said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

Emily was still skeptical, but more than that, she was cold. "Ok—kay then," she said, holding the pendant over the pile of firewood. "Uh, one... f—fire... please?"

There was a sudden whoosh, followed by a thunderclap, and Emily jumped back as the pile of firewood burst into flame. "Holy—"

Aria clapped her hands in glee. "Aha! The power of the Stoneshell is truly a sight to behold!"

"You can s—say that again," said Emily, spreading her frozen body out in front of the crackling flames. "This is amazing."

"The Stoneshell is a magical source of heat, light and fire. It can summon any of these at the bearer's will, while also protecting the bearer from their effects," said Aria.

Emily's eyes widened. "After we left the castle, I had this inexplicable feeling that the Stoneshell was protecting me from getting sunburned," Emily replied, inspecting the still-pale skin of her arms.

"The bearer has a special bond with the Stoneshell. It was communicating with you on an intuitive level."

"Neat." Emily lowered herself onto a moss-covered log a safe distance from the fire. "Does that have something to do with the curse?"

"That is its second and more recent power. The spell that entrapped me and the other statues bound us to the Stoneshell. In its weakened state, without a bearer, we too were weakened. As goes the Stoneshell, so go the stone statues."

"The statues!" Emily exclaimed, feeling a sudden pang of guilt. "I remember seeing statues trapped at the bottom of the Labyrinthine Pool. Now that the curse is lifted, what will become of them? With all the excitement and attention back at the castle, I totally forgot to ask!"

Aria smiled sweetly. "Do not worry, you have done your part by becoming the new bearer and lifting the curse. It is Brom's quest to rescue those poor souls. I daresay he and Jivaro are already hard at work designing a complex system of ropes and pulleys."

"That's good to hear."

A long moment of silence passed. The fire crackled and Emily turned the Stoneshell pendant around in her fingers, while Aria stared off into the trees.

"I would never give it up, you know," said Emily. "The Stoneshell, I mean." She gripped it tightly as she said this, feeling every bump and curve.

Aria said nothing.

"You were very insistent about that, both with Brevin and the troll," Emily continued. "I suppose you were afraid that I would want to trade the necklace for those clothes or give it to the troll so I wouldn't have to give up something I was wearing."

As Emily spoke, she could see Aria slowly angling herself away, intensifying her gaze into the forest.

"The sunburn thing isn't all that the Stoneshell communicated to me," Emily said, reclining on her arms. "I understood, from the moment I put it on, that it bound me to you and the other statues, and that if I were to give it up, the curse would return, perhaps even worse than before."

At this, a sob escaped Aria's marble throat, her shoulders shaking. Emily stood up and placed a hand on her shoulder, causing her to turn her head.

Droplets appeared newly carved below Aria's eyes, merging to form rivers and flowing down her face. "I—I was afraid," she stammered.

"Aria," Emily said, puffing herself up and blushing a little as she did so. "Look at me." She took a step back, while keeping a fingertip on Aria's shoulder.

Emily gestured at her bare body, side-lit by the fire's flickering flames, adorned only by the stone seashell that rested just above her breasts. "I'm wearing this necklace. And I'm going to keep wearing it, even if this world never gives me anything else. Not because of its awesome fire powers, but because you're my friend, Aria."

Aria sniffed, smiling weakly. Emily, blushing ever more as she stood before Aria's gaze, opened her arms and wrapped them around the statue in a very tight, but quite cold and uncomfortable hug. "I do hope this world does decide to give me something more to wear though," she added. "The sooner the better."

As Emily separated herself from Aria, she was hit by a wave of fatigue. The nervous energy that had sustained her since she first arrived in Castle Elid and began her naked adventure was finally waning, and she felt a weariness in her bones unlike any she had previously experienced. Since the last time she'd slept, Emily had experienced two full days—one normal, slightly frustrating day at her job, and a second, incredible, bizarre one among talking statues in the magical land of Thessolan.

Eyelids heavy with sleep, Emily stumbled towards the softest-looking patch of grass she could find near the fire and collapsed.

"Rest well, Emily," came the sound of Aria's voice. "I will keep the fire going and watch over you."

It was well after dawn when Emily stirred again, stretching and groaning herself into wakefulness. She recalled having a long and vivid dream, about statues and castles and trolls and—

"Good morning, Emily," said the stone face hovering above her own. "Did you sleep well?"

Emily blinked a few times and took in her surroundings. She was outdoors, with trees overhead, looking up at a smiling face made of marble. The sensations of grass tickling her back and a slight breeze across the skin of her front reminded her that she was naked. There was nothing dreamlike about that.

As memories of the previous day rushed into her head, Emily pulled herself up to a seated position. The clearing made for a beautiful scene in the early morning, accentuated by a chorus of birdsong. A wispy plume of smoke rose from the charred remains of the fire.

"I gathered some breakfast for you," said Aria, presenting Emily with a multicolored array of berries.

Surprised by the ravenous of her hunger, Emily wolfed down the berries without a second though. None was quite so good as the Starvine she'd had the previous day, but all were pleasant in their own ways and left her well sated—and a little sticky.

Aria accompanied her back to the river, where the troll was thankfully nowhere to be seen. Emily waded in, immersing herself completely in the water. It washed away the berry juice and bits of grass and dirt that had stuck to her as she slept. She dove down, submerging herself completely, and broke the surface again, joyfully flicking her hair back with a shower of droplets.

Rejuvenated by the water, she returned to the bank and walked back to the clearing, wringing her hair out and enjoying the sun's soft rays on her skin, which was soon dry.

"I'd better get dressed," she said wryly to Aria, eyeing the boots next to the remains of the fire.

"Yes, then we shall resume our journey." Aria didn't appear to catch the joke.

Emily pulled on her socks and boots and nodded to Aria. "Let's go."

It was a strange sensation, soft fabric encasing her feet while the rest of her body remained stark naked. The vulnerability of it caused her to take a moment to arrange her hair over her chest while wishing it was also long enough to cover her butt. Hopefully, she would find a permanent outfit before that happened.

The travelers left the clearing and continued along the winding path through the forest, leather and stone crunching leaves beneath them. The trees and other foliage grew denser around them. Birds sang above and the occasional squirrel darted in front of them, briefly eyeing them with its beady black eyes.

"How far away is Lirethel?" asked Emily, after they'd been walking in silence for some time.

"A month's journey by foot, along this path" Aria replied. "But it has been many centuries since I last undertook the journey, and the path may have changed. I do not recall this wood."

"A month!" Emily exclaimed. "If only there was a flight we could catch."

"A... flight?" Aria asked.

Emily was in the middle of explaining air travel to Aria when she suddenly felt a queasy sensation in her stomach. It was her intuition telling her that they weren't alone. She glanced around anxiously at the forest and drew her arms around her body protectively.

"Is something wrong, Emily?"

Before she could voice her unease, a loud cracking noise jolted her. At once, she felt something press around the ankle of her left boot.

She looked down to see a rough-hewn rope encircling her boot, the end of which disappeared into the trees. "What—"

A forceful tug at her ankle cut off Emily's words. Her stomach flip-flopped and the world turned upside down as she was jerked into the air. "Ahhh!"

"Emily!" Aria exclaimed, looking up in horror.

Several grizzly and dishevelled figures stepped out from behind the trees, each one brandishing a dagger or club alongside a nasty expression. Their eyes flicked between the living statue and the naked girl hanging upside-down from their trap, paying extra attention to the latter. Emily could feel their eyes moving up and down her suspended body.

"Well, what do we have here?" a tall, lanky man sneered, twirling his rusty dagger. His ratty hair and stained clothes matched his filthy expression. "A moving statue and... a little snack. How lovely."

Emily winced as one of the bandits reached for her, grabbing onto the chain of the Stoneshell necklace, while making sure to brush the outside of his rough hand across Emily's clavicle. She could smell his foul breath. "Look at this! A little treasure."

Aria's eyes flared. "Release her," she commanded, her voice deepening.

The bandits hesitated for a moment, glancing at each other. Their leader, however, seemed unpeturbed. "And if we don't? What can a statue do?"

The statement barely left his lips when Aria lunged at the bandit examining the Stoneshell. Her hands curled into hard stone claws, which she dug into his face. The bandit cried out and fell, his dagger skidding into the underbrush.

A second bandit slammed his club into Aria's marble back, and two more rushed to his aid. Their leader screamed orders mixed with obscenities and the whole scene descended into chaos.

"Use the Stoneshell, Emily!" Aria cried, clawing through bandit after bandit.

Aria's timely reminder of the necklace's fire powers snapped Emily out of her shock. "O-one fire, please! A big one this time!" she stammered, waving her arms in the direction of the bandits.

An enormous ball of flame erupted from the Stoneshell pendant, causing the bandits to cry out in pain and surprise. They fell away from Aria as the flame struck her before dissipating, leaving her marble form unharmed. "More!" Aria cried.

"Fire!" Emily commanded, and a second fireball exploded from the Stoneshell, this one aimed directly at the bandit leader.

All the blood vanished from the leader's dirty face as he watched the fire approach, managing to cower out of its way just in time for it to pass over his head, but not without singing his hair.

The bandits scrambled as Emily summoned two more fireballs, and soon their leader was shouting for them to retreat.

"I'm hit! I'm hit!" screamed one bandit, his tunic ablaze. One of his fellows roughly pulled the tunic from him and tossed it aside before both disappeared into the forest. Screaming and cursing, the rest followed suite, and the forest was soon quiet and peaceful once more.

Emily used one final blast of fire to burn through rope that held her up by the ankle. She landed on grass with a thud, winded but unharmed.

"Emily! Are you alright?" asked Aria.

"F—fine," Emily replied, breathing heavily, blood slowly moving down from her head and back to the rest of her body. "Th—that was... that was insane! What about you, Aria? Are you okay?"

"Rusty daggers and flimsy wooden clubs are quite inadequate to mark my marble exterior."

Emily lay still for a moment, looking up at the singed end of the rope slowly swinging above her. She had just fought off a large group of armed bandits with a magic necklace that summoned fire! What a rush!

"Here, Emily, one of the bandits left this behind," Aria said.

Emily sat up and saw Aria holding a green tunic out to her, smoke still rising from it. "Yes!" she exclaimed, pumping her fist in the air.

The tunic was made of a coarse, rough fabric and lacked sleeves. It had been quite badly burned at the bottom, and must not have belonged to a very tall bandit, for when Emily slipped it over her head she found that its singed hem didn't even reach her bellybutton. She grimaced and tugged at it ineffectually.

"This garment conceals the Stoneshell nicely," said Aria.

"There are a couple of other things I wish it would conceal," Emily replied. "If only I still had those britches!"

"I'm sure we will find you some more, dear Emily."

Emily sighed, looking down at the hair between her legs. "I wish I shared your optimism." She had found herself in a world where fighting off hordes of bandits was apparently an easier task than finding an outfit which covered all of the essential parts.

Sometime past noon, the forest started to thin out, and a wooden sign appeared at the side of the path, indicating the presence of an inn nearby. "The Wheel and Wand," Aria read. "Perhaps we can enquire there about some britches for you, Emily."

"Unless another gnome has left their property lying around, I don't think we'll get anywhere without money," Emily replied. The idea of walking into a crowded inn in her current state filled her with dread.

"Oh come now, Emily, not everyone is so heartless as that traveling merchant. I'm certain this inn will be full of kind and giving people who will be only too happy to aid a beautiful maiden in distress."

Emily blushed.

"The land of Thessolan is not all bandits, trolls and stingy merchants, I assure you."

A growl sounded from Emily's stomach. "Hopefully their kindness will extend to some lunch."

The Wheel and Wand inn was nestled between two mighty oaks at the side of the path. Its sign, an ornate wooden wheel intertwined with a shimmering wand, creaked softly in the wind. As Emily and Aria approached the entrance, the sound of boisterous laughter and music wafted out, along with the warm scent of roasted meats and freshly baked bread.

Emily took a deep whiff and sighed pleasurably, her hunger growing more acute in the presence of such delicious aromas. But the sound of laughter and music made her shy, reminding her of her bottomless state. She had half a mind to turn away from the inn and continue down the path.

Aria sensed her hesitation. "Stay close to me, Emily. And remember, you bear the Stoneshell."

Though the memory of her fiery victory was still fresh, Emily didn't feel terribly powerful just then. With one hand on her crotch and another over her bottom, she bade Aria to lead the way into the Wheel and Wand.

Aria pushed open the wooden door, and the two travelers entered the inn, keeping close. The place was dimly lit, with long wooden tables filled with patrons singing, eating, and playing games. Tankards clinked, dice rattled, and the atmosphere was one of merry chaos. A few eyes glanced at the two women as they entered, without immediately noticing anything odd about them.

As they slunk towards the bar, Emily could feel more eyes turning towards her. She tried to walk calmly, standing close enough to Aria to hide herself from the crowds, but couldn't stop her heart from pounding in her chest. She briefly caught the eyes of a woman at one table, who quickly looked away from her to exchange scandalized whispers with the rest of her table. At another table, a young man with a lute strummed a playful note and winked at her. Emily clung tighter to Aria while attempting to shrink from the prying eyes.

Behind the bar stood a fresh-faced young man, portly and around Emily's own age, who looked at the two travelers with a perplexed expression. "We've a policy, ma'am," he said to Emily, pointing at a sign behind the bar, which read:

NO SHIRT
NO SHOES
NO SERVICE

Emily blushed deeply and pressed herself against Aria.

"My good man," said Aria, locking her stone eyes on the young man's watery ones, "I think you'll find that my companion to be entirely compliant with your policy. She is wearing both shoes and a shirt."

The man's perplexity deepened as he glanced between Emily and the sign. "Hmm. I s'pose, technically, that is correct. However, I cannot have young ladies airing their nethers, however lovely, in this establishment."

Emily looked down at the bar, her face burning. "I... I... don't want to either!"

"That would seem to contradict your actions," the bartender replied.

Aria scowled at him. "My companion and I were accosted by bandits earlier. We managed to escape physically unharmed, but had to leave most of our possessions behind, including Emily's skirt, which was torn from her as we fled."

Emily nodded fiercely. "D—do you have something for me to cover up with?"

The bartender made an expression of sympathy. "Begging your pardon, madame, that is quite awful. No wonder your face is white as marble! And please forgive me, Miss Emily, for casting aspersions on your propriety. I will see what I can find."

The bartender hastily vanished into the back, and Aria winked at Emily. "Told you."

While Emily and Aria had been engaged with the bartender, the chatter behind them had been slowly growing in volume. A large, burly man with a thick beard and an eyepatch now walked towards them, sloshing tankard in hand and quite unsteady on his feet. Other, smaller figures hung behind him in the shadows.

Emily looked resolutely forward, towards the bar, but soon the burly man stood beside her. He thumped his tankard down on the bar and turned his gaze towards her, letting out a low whistle. "Looks like the wind has blown in a delightful nymph from the forest," he growled, slurring every second word.

Emily pointedly ignored him, reaching out to grab Aria's upper arm. The man grunted and muttered something, and then Emily felt her heart jump into her throat as a rough palm came to rest directly on her bare butt.

The burly man squeezed and leaned in to Emily, and she could smell the booze on his breath. "How's about a little kiss, nymph?"

Anger and fear surging through her, Emily violently bucked her hips to shake off the horrible man's hand and staggered away from him, hands clenched into fists. She felt a warm spot against her chest, and before she quite realized what she was doing, a pillar of flame erupted from the Stoneshell.

The man screamed and jumped backwards, tripping over a barstool and landing heavily in a tangle of limbs on the floor. The bricks behind him were blackened, and a banner hanging from the ceiling had caught alight. The inn erupted into chaos, with patrons jumping up and down and dousing small fires with their tankards of ale.

Emily glanced around desperately, her eyes eventually settling on those of the bartender, whose normally pleasant face had twisted into a scowl. He was carrying a broomstick, with which he firmly batted at the flaming banner above their heads, extinguishing it before the fire could spread.

"OUT!" he screamed, locking eyes with Emily. "Poorly dressed ladies I can excuse, but not when they set my patrons on fire! Get out! Now!"

Chased by the broomstick-wielding bartender, Emily barely noticed as Aria guided her by the hand out of the inn, the heavy wooden door slamming shut behind them.

Once they were a safe distance away from the inn, Aria and Emily took shelter under the boughs of an old oak tree, its gnarled branches offering them a semblance of privacy. Emily's breaths came in ragged spurts, her face ashen with shock.

Aria's eyes were full of concern. "Are you alright, Emily?"

Emily looked herself over. Though it had been unleashed in close quarters, the Stoneshell's fire had not burned her. The same could not be said of her tunic, which had been reduced to a couple of charred scraps of fabric hanging loosely about her shoulders. The Stoneshell pendant now hung free from her short-lived torso covering. "I didn't mean to do that," she said. "I just—that man—I felt really threatened—and violated!" Emily shuddered at the memory of the unwanted touch.

Aria placed a hand on Emily's shoulder. "I understand, Emily. It was a natural reaction to vile behavior."

"But the fire! I didn't want to hurt him! Well, not seriously, anyway. And I definitely didn't want to burn the inn down!"

"The Stoneshell is closely connected to your emotions, Emily, and fiercely protective of you. It is a powerful artifact, capable of immense destruction. You must learn to control it."

Emily frowned, eyes locked on the Stoneshell. "How do I control something so powerful?"

"With time, you will better understand the interplay between your emotions and the fire. I will help you to the best of my ability." There was a distant look in Aria's eyes.

"I don't want to hurt anyone, Aria," said Emily. "Not unless they really deserve it. And even then..."

"The Stoneshell chose you for a reason, Emily. You are strong enough to bear it... and to bare it, for that matter." Aria gave a brief, musical laugh.

"Hilarious," Emily said flatly, wrapping her arms around herself as the last scraps of burned fabric fell from her shoulders.

"Thank you, I was rather pleased with that little wordplay." Aria smiled with self-satisfaction, completely missing Emily's sarcasm. "And don't worry, we'll—"

"Find me something to wear, yes. Well, I'd like to find something that covers me properly and lasts more than an hour."

"Someone's coming!" Aria hissed.

Emily crouched down into a covering fetal position as heavy footfalls approached. It was the bartender, huffing and puffing and wearing a less angry expression than they'd last seen on his face. A length of brown fabric was slung over his shoulder. "Miss Emily!" he said, coming to a stop ahead of the tree and taking a moment to catch his breath. "Beggin' your pardon for earlier, I had the wrong end of the stick."

Emily exchanged confused glances with Aria.

"One of my customers, Mrs Gadley, took me to task for my harsh treatment of you. She explained that old Gregg One-eye had been inappropriate with you and that your outburst was in self-defense. While I'd still prefer to keep any new fires out of my inn, I couldn't live with myself sending you off in the altogether like that. So please, have this cloak."

Scarcely believing her luck, Emily released an arm from her fetal clutch and took the cloak offered to her. It was made of rough, thick fabric and quite large.

"Please accept this lunch as well, ma'am," the bartender said to Aria, handing her a picnic basket. "Say, are you... why, you're made of marble!"

"The doing of mages," Aria replied. "I was flesh once and I hope to be so again."

"Aye, that is your quest," said the bartender, before turning to leave. "I wish ye both well."

"Thank you," said Emily, drawing the cloak to herself. The fabric was coarse beneath her fingertips, but this was not unpleasant—the cloak felt real and solid. Once the bartender had departed, she drew it around her shoulders, luxuriating in its warmth. It smelt faintly of hay and wood smoke.

The ends of the sleeves draped past her hands and the hem trailed on the ground. The cloak did not have a clasp, so Emily had to hold it closed at the front, but this was a small price to pay for full body concealment. The cloak had a hood she could lower over her face, to hide completely from the world, which she promptly did. "Let's go, Aria," she said. "It's a long way to Lirethel."