"It's dark out," she insisted, "and I'm fast." She flashed him a coy smile, her eyes lifting. "Besides, if something goes wrong, I'll just scream again, and you'll come beat them up for me. Problem solved."
She pondered for a moment, drumming her fingers on the floor. "Hm. I guess I'll die," she said, looking back down at him. "And that'll be on your conscience."
"Hmm. Right. I'm sure that your guilt will leave you peaceful and undisturbed for the rest of your life. Go ahead and take that chance, and don't come after me when I scream," she said, standing up and walking towards the ladder.
"I don't think it's a good idea to go alone. You should know better, too." His tone was stern, but he wouldn't stop her if she really wanted to.
She hesitated, looking down at the forest floor. "I don't really want to go," she said. "But I kinda have to, I think. All the medicine and bandages and rope that I have is in there. If one of us were to get hurt, there wouldn't be much that I could do."
"I could find it if it makes you feel any better. That, or I can accompany you," he suggested leaning back a bit.
She paused, her expression thoughtful. "You're welcome to come," she said hesitantly, "but we'd have to go down the tree instead of the ladder. We can't just leave it hanging after we leave."
He noticed her reluctance, and was silent for a long moment. "I'll let you go by yourself. I was worried the same thing would happen again, but I'm probably just paranoid."
She placed a hand on his shoulder reassuringly, smiling over at him. "I appreciate your concern, but I'll be okay. I'm a tough girl; I put this shirt on all by myself and everything." She checked to make sure that the coast was clear, and tossed the ladder down. She stepped down on the first rung and looked up at him. "I'll be alright," she said again. "Don't worry. Pull the ladder up after I get off, okay?"
"Alright. Be quick." He got on his knees. "Also, putting on a shirt isn't considered is an accomplishment."
"Maybe not for you," Poppy responded as she descended. She touched the ground lightly, looked back up at him for a moment, and then ran into the forest and disappeared.
Francis went back into the tent, laying on his stomach. He didn't fall asleep, he just sat there and waited.
After about half an hour, Poppy sprinted into the clearing, her pack on her back. She didn't even wait for the ladder, she just began climbing the tree at an incredible speed. Her arms wrapped around branches and she got to the top in seconds. She stepped onto the deck, and sat down, breathing hard. "Jesus... Christ..." she said, placing her pack down.
"There was... a tracker in the bag. They didn't see me, but they were around. I threw it across the water... and ran," she said, trying to calm her breathing.
"Did they take anything from it? Anything important?" He got on his knees, shuffling to look over the edge.
She shook her head. "I don't think so," she said. "I haven't really had a second to look. I had to hide from them for a bit."
