"... Don't let anyone else see her," Maria said, listing her points with her fingers, "keep her disguised at all times, and keep her out of any mages' sight."

After Xhez showed Maria her memories, the woman had remained silent for a long time before beginning to talk about how Rin could keep Xhez safe. The adventurer took that as an indication that Maria had come onto her side, for now, at least.

Though, she hadn't said anything about what exactly she'd seen.

"But," Rin replied hesitantly. "If... If you, you know, if you see things her way now, can't we just explain to everyone that Xhez is different? I think people would be willing to give her a chance if they just knew."

"No," Maria shook her head. "Some people would, but others would only see an opportunity. A sprite's hairs are valuable, Rin. Just one strand can produce water for almost a month after being separated from its host. Even if you could convince people not to think of her as a monster, they'd still want to kill her for her hair."

"B-But, what if Xhez just sold her hair, on her own, or something? Cut deals with them."

Xhez had the answer to that question.

"My hair does not grow back, Rin," Xhez said. "I would rather not get rid of it, please."

"Oh, sorry," Rin said.

"Listen," Maria said, "I... I understand where the two of you are coming from, with this thing Xhez wants to do. However, you need to understand that every time you walk out of your room, even if nothing happens, you are putting Xhez in danger. Now, that doesn't mean you have to keep her there, but it does mean you can't tell anyone about what she actually is. Understood?"

Xhez nodded.

"I understand," the sprite answered. "I saw them. The hairs of my sisters being sold in the streets. I would like to not end up that way."

"Good," Maria said, and with that, she sighed and stood up. "Rin, I need a moment. We won't be training for today, just... Come back tomorrow."

"Yeah. Sorry to drop this all on you."

"It's fine," Maria replied and just like that, Xhez jumped back in her bag, and Rin walked out of the room, carrying it in her hands.

"... Well," she said, looking around to make sure no other students were here. "That went... Kinda good, I guess."

"Yes..." Xhez said from in the bag, and she was quiet for a bit before she added, "I saw many interesting things in that woman's memories, Rin. Her spirit is a very sad one."

[... Is that so?] Rin thought as she looked down.

"Come on," she said, changing the topic. "Let's get back in my room, and, uh, I'll read you more about Libera until we calm down a little. How does that sound?"

"I'd like that."

---

{Lyn}

Lyn looked at herself in the mirror for the fourth time since she'd decided she was ready. But, she couldn't help it. She hadn't done anything like this in a while. Between the black dress she had on, which she hadn't worn in years, the makeup she'd actually bothered to use tonight, and the heels she had on that actually turned walking into an exercise in balancing, she felt completely out of her element.

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"Um..." She muttered. "No, maybe I should let my hair down... Goodness, why am I so nervous?"

She didn't understand what it was that had her heart beating so fast tonight. In theory, going out to eat with Jay was something she'd done enough times to feel like it was normal. Maybe it was the fact that the woman had invited her to what was probably the only actual high-class restaurant in town.

Or, maybe it was how she'd invited her, with that charming smirk of hers that Lyn couldn't get out of her head. Regardless, as she decided she'd wasted enough time getting ready, Lyn walked of her bathroom, picked up her purse, and went into the living room. Here, she turned on her old radio, sat down on the couch, and let her head rest against it as she waited for Jay to arrive.

[Gooood morning, citizens of Ilyrum!] The man on the radio spoke. [Boy, do I have some news for all of you. Just last night, the Prime Minister of Cradle has announced plans to build another International Railroad, leading to Cardana. This is biiiig stuff! Cardana, notoriously, has been closed off to both Libera and Cradle for over a century! If we can open up avenues of communication with them, who knows what could happen!]

Lyn barely heard a word of that though, as something thudded against her window.

"Hm?" She looked up, and she saw her messenger bird there, holding a letter.

[Wait, what?]

She got up quickly. Running over to it, she opened the window up and took the bird in, where she grabbed the letter and sat back down on the couch.

Her hands trembled as she unfolded it, and when she saw the words, "Hi, mom", tears came to her eyes.

Someone knocked on the door, and Lyn briefly put the letter down as she jogged over to it, trying not to trip and fall in her excitement. She pulled the door open and found Jay standing in front of her, wearing a crop top and jeans, with some flowers in her hands.

"H- oof," Jay recoiled as Lyn all but threw herself on top of the woman. "Uh, Lyn?"

"Ah, sorry, sorry," Lyn pulled back as she couldn't stop smiling. "It's just... Rin got back to me. I was so worried for her, she hadn't talked to me in so long."

"Oh, shit, really?" Jay asked, surprised. "What did she say?"

"I haven't read the letter, I only just received it, but..." She looked back at it, where it lay on her couch. "I-I'll read it when I get back home. Sorry, I was... Just happy."

"No, no," Jay waved her concerns off. "We can take a moment and you can just read it right now. It's okay."

"Are you sure? If you're hungry, I wouldn't want to starve."

"No, no," Jay smiled at her. "Lyn, I just wanna spend time with you. Whether it's here, or at the restaurant, or wherever, it doesn't matter. I would, though, like to drop these, if you don't mind," she said, gesturing at her flowers.

"Okay... Thank you, Miss Jay," Lyn bowed a little. "Come in, come in."

The two went over to the couch, where Lyn sat down and grabbed the letter. Jay sat next to her and Lyn gestured for her to get closer. Jay wrapped an arm around her, and Lyn leaned in a little as she began to read the letter aloud.

"...Hi, mom, I'm sorry I wasn't able to..."

The relief she got from the letter made Lyn's chest feel several times lighter. She'd tried not to worry too much about her daughter, but considering what had happened to Tristan, she couldn't help but fear the worst. Still, reading this now, even though it did confirm that something had gone wrong, at least Rin was still safe up there in Libera.

"She's a tough kid," Jay said as Lyn finished reading. "More than most people give her credit for. Trust me, I think she'll do just fine once she gets the hang of things."

"Yes, I... I believe the same, but, still," Lyn folded the letter up. "It's nice to have confirmation. Anyway, sorry, we should get going," Lyn hurriedly got up but, Jay put a hand on her shoulder lightly.

"Lyn, I'm in no rush. Take your time."

"I know, I know... Thank you, Miss, ehm, Jay," Lyn smiled up at her. "You're always so kind to me."

"You make it easy to be," she shrugged.

The two walked out of the house then, as Lyn planned out her response to Rin in her mind.

"Oh, by the way," Jay said. "You look absolutely stunning, I didn't know you owned anything like this," Jay said as she looked Lyn up and down.

Lyn blushed a little, looking away.

"I forgot I did," she muttered. "I... I haven't had a reason to dress up in a while."

"Oh, and what's the reason now?"

"Well, it's not every day you invite me out like this. I mean, you know, *out*, out, I suppose."

"Aw, was this all just for me?" Jay asked with a smirk.

"Of course," Lyn shrugged. "You're a woman worth impressing."

And, on that note, the two walked down Dren's streets, with smiles practically painted onto their faces.