I spent the night sleeplessly, unable to calm the anxiousness in my heart as I watched over Marian's unconscious form. Arya had long since gone to sleep as she found it harder and harder to stay awake the later it became, eventually falling asleep and leaning on my shoulder. I'd carefully placed her in the bed next to Marian, though I'd weaved together a bundle of silk that she could cling onto so that she wouldn't disturb Marian if she began to cling.

Since I was unable to just watch without some part of my body shaking, trembling or otherwise moving I began to weave clothing, something that was much easier thanks to Thread Manipulation. I started off with a new set of underwear as well as a strange robe that was somewhere between a kimono and a hooded robe for Marian as she only had the uniform I'd taken her in, something that wasn't the most comfortable.

Once I'd finished that, pausing every so often to check on Marian, I started working on a new set of clothes for myself. I hadn't really had the time to go shopping as I'd wished since me and Arya were so busy not only due to finals but because we were preparing for our trip to the Yin-Yang clan. My carapace covered fingertips were moving dexterously as I used them on thread that seemed to float around me, before I suddenly ceased as I noticed Marian stirring in a way that was different from what she had been doing until now. The unfinished cloth fell to the ground unraveling as I ignored it and made my way to Marian's side.

Marian tossed and turned before she suddenly became still, her eyes fluttering open, revealing vibrant and deep red irises quite different from the dull amber they had once been. Marian's entire face seemed to light up as she saw me hovering over her, her lips forming a gentle smile as her arms reached out and wrapped around my neck. "Thank you." she said her voice drowsy and eyes blinking rapidly.

My head cocked to the said at her sudden and unwarranted thanks, it must have had something to do with whatever she had been experiencing while she was unconscious as the thought of her thanking me for rendering her into that state seemed unlikely. "For what exactly?" I asked as I leaned closer to Marian.

"Choosing me, loving me, being my daughter, there is plenty." She said trailing off as her eyes closed once again and her arms fell slack as she seemed to fall back asleep. Somewhat worried I gently shook her while saying her name promptly causing Marian's eyes to once again open, revealing the vibrant ruby irises once again.

"Morning Vell, what time is it?" Marian asked as if the previous exchange had never happened, and to her it might have just been part of a dream so I didn't blame her, instead just shaking my head. "I don't know, the sun is just peaking over the horizon I think, but you passed out on me earlier, I was so worried."

"Mhmmm." Marian hummed. "I guess that means I was dreaming just barely. It was about you, kind of. You and I worked together to create something, I can't remember what though." She paused for a moment as she looked into my eyes. "I do recall it being a vibrant red though, like the most beautiful of rubies."

I couldn't help but think that there was some correlation between her dream and whatever change she had gone through, but for the moment I was simply happy that nothing had seemed to change about her. "Surely it couldn't have been the most beautiful ruby." I said as I leaned in so the two of us were practically kissing. "Because no ruby could match your luster."

It was honestly one of the cheesiest lines I'd ever said, yet it evoked the reaction I'd been looking for as Marian blushed, her face turning away as she tried to hide her embarrassment. I stifled a giggle as I stood up and grabbed the clothes I made for her last night. "I imagine you'd like to clean up?" I said while motioning to her from the doorway.

Marian stood up, stretched and yawned, only now noticing that she was completely naked, something that shouldn't have caused her any embarrassment, yet somehow did as she approached, lightly hitting my arm. "Not only am I naked, but to tell me I need a bath, that's quite rude." she said, her expression pouting.

I smiled in response and entangled one of my hands into hers before suddenly lifting it up. "I don't think any such thing." I said as I purposefully leaned in and smelled her skin before sticking my tongue out and licking her. Essence Sharing made the fluids of others a desirable energy source after all, and while I was hesitant for some of the more extreme potentials, sweat was something I had no problem with. "Your musk and taste are something unique to you, how could I dislike it?"

My reaction only caused Marian to become more shy and embarrassed, the reaction she'd likely been trying to elicit from me. My smile widened as I let our arms fall back down, Marian's embarrassed heat being clearly transmitted to me as I guided her into the hot spring area and made sure she knew how to use everything.

Despite the fact that I wanted to stay, I wanted to give Arya her things while Marian was still around, but not in the room, as I couldn't be sure what kind of reaction might happen. While I was confident in my ability to deal with the Unworthy Burning Yang, removing it from someone else was not a task that I wanted to attempt if I didn't have to.

It cost me quite a bit of effort to wake Arya, she was not only a heavy sleeper, but was weak in the mornings as well. Eventually I managed to rouse her and explained that Marian had recovered though there were some physical differences, notably her eyes, hair and the age she seemed. Not only had her eyes become vibrant red, but her hair had lost the orangish-yellow tint and was now also a deep crimson. As for her body, it wasn't like she was succumbing to age or anything, but time took its toll on even the healthiest of beings, and while I thought Marian had always been beautiful, it seemed that she had returned to her prime, none of the weathering associated with the passage of time remained.

Arya was rather interested in the phenomenon but since Marian was bathing I told her that she should wait until she'd come out. In the meantime however, I pulled out two gift boxes, the first being a white jewelry box the second being a much larger and longer box. I presented the jewelry box to Arya first. "I have two gifts for you, this one being on the more practical side, despite the fancier appearance."

Unlike Marian, I didn't think Arya had ever gotten jewelry, and even if she had, I'd never seen her wear any. Nevertheless Arya was stunned as she slid the lid off of the box and revealed a set of white-gold jewelry inlaid with sparkling blue sapphires. I helped her attach both the earring and choker necklace before sliding the ring onto her left ring finger.

"These are a connection between me and you, so that we can talk no matter the distance between us." I showed her how to use it and demonstrated its function by creating a layer of silence around me and using my choker to speak to her. We exchanged a few short sentences as she got used to it before I removed the silence. "Marian has a set as well that either you or I can contact if something arises. All of the pieces are self-repairing and environment-proofed as much as I could do, so you don't need to worry about maintenance or removing them unless you desire to."

I then presented the longer box. "This is a gift I've been working on for you for quite awhile, so I hope I managed to do it right."

Arya took the box, the weight of which must have surprised her, as her arms struggled for a moment as she took it. There wasn't a moment of hesitation as she opened the box to reveal a compound bow of what seemed to be made from a pure white wood and silver. The materials were actually a stupid long list of several different materials composited together. On top of that I'd used the technique of inscribing enchantments extremely small so I could place more on, and since the bow was much larger than the jewelry I could fit much more complex and efficient enchantments that didn't have to rely on our connection through the strange Threads the prince could see to fuel it.

There was also a quiver and twenty arrows, but it wasn't like that was the only way to use the bow. One night I recalled a memory of Velen's in the form of a dream. At the time he was wielding an energy rifle, something that required no ammunition and could fire endlessly so long as power was supplied to it.

In conjunction with the idea and Seshat's Library allowing me to view the blueprints of those and other similar weapons, I'd created a bow that could fire bolts of pure mana if no arrows were loaded onto it. When I used it, the arrows were completely black with purple flames, and though I hadn't released the mana arrow since I wasn't skilled in archery at all, I had the feeling it was extremely dangerous.

Since Arya had mana that was both the opposite and counterpart of mine, I was excited to see what kind of arrow she would create. That said, the mana arrow wasn't super efficient so it was better to use physical arrows and infuse them through the bow instead, but it was a cool gimmick and I imagined something that would come in handy eventually.