A tree as a best friend sounds on the lonely side to Tayrey, but she's not about to start poking at that. Could be that Elsie is perfectly happy, or that she has very good reasons to avoid spending too much time in town. Something she can understand all too well.

'Sure, I'd like to be friends, Citizen Elsie!' she says brightly. 'It's a good thing, having friends in a new place like this. Maybe you could show me your tree, sometime?'