- That night it's Po who can't sleep, and since Katsa doesn't ever really seem to need rest, he suggests they might as well be on the move; they pack up their sacks and head into the forest. Around midmorning they happen upon a ghastly sight: the queen of Monsea, Po's aunt Ashen, being hunted and killed by Leck and his guards.
- Katsa sees Leck loose the arrow that kills her, but even as Po is instructing her to shoot him, she finds herself confused by Leck's words. "Oh what an accident" (23.14), he calls, adding "My wife! My beloved wife!" (23.16).
- Again, remember: Katsa saw Leck shoot Ashen. And Po is yelling for Katsa to shoot Leck. But Katsa lowers her bow instead, saying, "But it was an accident" (23.19). Spooooo-ky.
- Po finally manages to convince Katsa to cover her ears and run back into the forest with him, at which point Leck and his guards start shooting at them.
- When they finally reach a safe spot, Katsa is still confused, and when she finally figures out what happened, she's mortified. She's utterly defenseless against Leck—he can manipulate her mind like pulling taffy. Holy cannoli. Talk about frightening, right?
- She wants to go back and shoot him, but Po convinces her it's not wise for her to go anywhere near Leck. Period.
- In their short interaction with Ashen, Leck, and the guards, Po learned that Ashen was killed because she tried to escape with Bitterblue—which means that Bitterblue is out here in the forest somewhere, hiding.
- He also learned that Leck wants him dead, but he wants Katsa alive, and Katsa realizes why. She'd be more of a killing machine for Leck than she had ever been for Randa, because she'd have no will of her own in his presence. This thought causes her to hand all of her weapons over to Po, so he'll at least stand a chance against her if Leck manages to take control of her again.
- Po tells her it won't come to that, but still they decide to focus on finding Bitterblue and keeping their distance from Leck and his guards. At least for now.