Kerii went to bed filled with more questions than she had the night before. Something was clearly off with Orchidia Forest right now, and frankly, she didn't think anyone should be going in there, magical or not. Nothing about this had a clear explanation yet. All that was left was theories. Due to how widespread these odd plants were, she doubted this was the work of a single mage or a potion. If it was one person, then they must have immense magical prowess to both do this and go unnoticed. That being said, several people would also be more likely to leave a trail, unless they were just really good at covering up for one another. A potion, or a poison more specifically, could be plausible as well. Honestly, she had no idea which theory she believed more. She simply did not have the knowledge Inspector Nilan and the scientists had.

With endless theories swarming throughout her head, the elf eventually drifted off to sleep. She woke up bright and early with her insatiable curiosity begging for another request from Inspector Nilan to be released. Giddy with excitement, she got ready for the day and hurried out the door. She hadn't even bothered to brew herself a cup of coffee. But, much to her dismay, when she arrived a the guild, there was nothing from him to be found. There wasn't a request put out by a scientist either, or really anything mentioning the odd plant life in Orchidia at the moment. Although she really wanted to do something in relations to that, that didn't mean she couldn't take a request. So, the elf decided on doing one for a sweet old lady she had met on a previous request. This time though, she was the client, and needed help with her son, Mitya Noran.

Supposing that this request would be rather interesting, Kerii took it off the board and strode over towards Mitya and Rynah's apartment. Walking into the complex, she could smell cookies baking. As she got closer to the apartment, the scent got stronger, and it eventually led to a door that was creaked open. The elf knocked on the door before pushing it open further to see the familiar old woman sitting in an armchair. "Oh, I remember you!" Rynah said, slowly getting up. "Come in, let me make you some tea." The elf walked in and shut the door behind her. The woman began to fill the tea kettle. "You know, I always used to make tea for my dear Mitya when he was younger. Even as a boy, he liked it even better than hot cocoa. We would often chat and play little games as we drank together... Gosh, it seemed like only yesterday. He has grown up so much, but he's sadly not the same person he was when he was younger." At first, Rynah seemed rather happy while reminiscing, but realizing what kind of relationship she used to have with her son, her eyes began to well with tears, and before she knew it, started sobbing.

WC: 515/1000

Kerii rushed over to Rynah and tried to calm her down, but she just continued to cry and worry about the state of the relationship between her and Mitya. It was deteriorating, and despite how deeply she loved her son, he only seemed to be growing more distant. Eventually, she blurted out, "I'm afraid he'll send me to a retirement home!" Admittedly, Kerii didn't know much about Rynah's health, but two years ago, she seemed fine. Her memory was going a bit, but it didn't seem to be anywhere close to dementia. Of course, Kerii had only seen Rynah a little over two years ago. Perhaps it was almost nearing three, but it looked like she hadn't changed a bit.

"Don't worry, you won't get sent to a retirement home," Kerii reassured her. The woman sniffed and wiped away her tears. "I think I should write a letter to him... but my arthritis is flaring up a bit at the moment. Would you write it for me while I dictate it?" Rynah pleaded. The elf nodded her head. "Of course! Let me just get some stationary..." "Oh, it's over this way!" She went to get a pen and paper and handed it to Kerii. Then, she began to tell Kerii what to write. Of course, the subject was mainly about not being sent to a retirement home, but Rynah riddled it with several sentimental stories. Surely, it would tug at Mitya's heartstrings. It already made Kerii feel emotional, and she didn't even share those experiences. Once she finished writing the letter, she delivered it to Mitya at his bar. Once he read it, he too broke into tears and rushed back to the apartment.

Upon arrival, Mitya and Rynah gave their sides of the story, and worked everything out. "Why do you want me to go? Is it something I did?" Rynah asked. "No, Mom! It's nothing like that! I just wanted you to have a better home than this musky apartment." "I don't care where I live. I just want to be with my son." "I'll come visit you at the retirement home, I promise." The two kept arguing back and forth, trying to prove their point. The way Kerii saw it, both Rynah and her son were affirmative in their beliefs, but she expected Mitya to cave in sooner or later. There wasn't any mediation Kerii had to do anymore. Mitya eventually recognized that she was just sitting there, waiting for further instruction of a reward. He piped up and said, "Oh, you can go. The owner of the bar will be able to pay you." Rynah then rushed to the kitchen. "Wait!" she exclaimed. She brought back some cookies and handed them to Kerii. "Take this with you, as my little thank you gift." Kerii thanked the old lady and left to go get her reward. When she bit into the cookie, she felt a familiar brief rush of energy flow throughout her body. After getting her monetary reward from the bar, she headed back to the guild hall.

WC: 515+512=1027/1000