I was left staring at the eggs, and after a few seconds, I just didn’t know what I was looking at anymore. Despite having two brains and five pairs of eyes, my mind just went blank.

“Kealyna?”

I heard Cellestra say my name, but somehow, it just didn’t register.

“Kealyna?” She asked again.

This time, her voice pulled me back to the present, and I felt cold shivers run down my back.

“Are you alright?” She asked with a whisper.

“I…” I started but immediately stopped. “I feel… strange, nauseous.”

“Oh, you poor thing,” Cellestra said quietly as she closed the gap and hugged me from the side. “You want something to eat or something?”

“It’s not that,” I said, shaking my head. “It’s my mind. I…” I shook my head. “It’s impossible to explain. I don’t even know what it is myself, just that something doesn’t feel right.”

“Shh,” Cellestra cooed. “Don’t worry. We’ll get through this.”

I closed my eyes and nodded slowly. When I opened them again and saw the result of my ability, my lower brain, which would normally work in sync with my other one in normal situations, was distressed in a way.

Seeing the eggs so vulnerable made my stomach twist. In spite of all my reservations, they were my offspring, even if they’d come from a skill. I wanted to do something, to offer them some protection.

I did the first thing that came to mind and summoned threads which I wrapped around them. When I was finished with that, my heart felt much more at ease. Satisfied with the additional layer of protection, I lowered myself, my pedipalps and front two sets of legs embracing the clutch.

Cellestra had broken the hug when I’d started my work, and right now, she was left staring, unsure what to do.

“Kealyna?” She asked, obviously confused.

“Huh?”

“You okay?”

“Yeah. I’m sorry. I’m feeling a lot better now.”

“Can I… look?” She asked, pointing at the eggs.

I nodded, never taking my eyes off of the wrapped spheres.

Cellestra knelt next to them and moved her hand over the silk, carefully examining the results of my struggles from earlier.

“What made you do that?” She asked softly.

“I don’t know,” I replied. “I felt like they were vulnerable, and I wanted to give them some protection.”

“That’s so sweet of you.” She then paused and looked into my lower eyes. “Do you know that that’s a normal thing to do for spiders?”

“Huh?”

“Egg sacs. Ever heard of them?”

“Well, yeah. Is that what this is?”

“Technically, I suppose this counts.”

I nodded and kept my eyes locked on the sac before me, when another, completely random thought entered my mind.

“Hey Cel, do you still have something to eat with you?”

“I do, want some?”

I shook my head.

“No, but I just wanted to know you had some for yourself. You know, in case we don’t visit my parents today. I’m starting to get the notion that’s rather likely.”

Cellestra put on a warm smile and stroked the length of my hair down my back in a comforting motion.

“That’s okay,” She whispered. “Just make sure you’re alright. Take your time and don’t rush things.”

“Yeah,” I said. “I’m just a bit worried about what my parents will think of all this… what Soranir and the city may think.”

“That’s a good point,” She said, looking at the clutch of eggs. “You can’t just go around and tell them it’s a skill. Then again, do they need to know? If they find out, you can just have them wondering, and if Soranir presses the issue, maybe involve Elysa?”

“I feel like I’m abusing that too much as it is, but you may be right. I don’t see any other way. In any case, I’ll have to ensure they are no threat to anyone, but for that, I need to know how to control them. I suppose I’ll find out in a couple of hours.”

“You know what?” Cellestra said. “Is it weird that I’m hoping they look the way you looked when you were smaller?”

“Not at all,” I said with a hint of a giggle. Cellestra always managed to lift my spirits. “I was one hell of a cute spider.”

“You still are,” She replied almost immediately, with giggling of her own.

I felt a smile grow, and there was nothing I could do to stop or hide it.

“Thank you. You know exactly how to make me feel better.”

“You’re welcome,” She said as she reached for the pillow, placed it down, and lay down on her back, staring at the ceiling.

At the same time, I was left staring at the eggs before me, waiting for time to pass,

“At least they won’t have to go through what I had to go through,” I quietly said. “Nature sure is scary, isn’t it?”

“What do you mean?” She asked before realization struck her like a brick. “Oh.”

“That was… a painful time. I mean, I had to do it to live, but in the first days I did things I never thought I’d do. I’m happy these spiders won’t have to do that.”

Cellestra nodded but didn’t say a word, simply allowing the quiet to fall upon us as time passed.

Eventually, she sighed, and I could feel it was one of boredom.

“Hey, Kealyna?”

“Hm?”

“Can I comb your hair?”

“Always,” I replied with a smile.

She eagerly got up and soon enough, I felt her movements as she undid my braids and fully combed the messy parts out of my hair, making me relax in the process. However, the thoughts about what others would think of all this would not leave my mind.

“Don’t worry too much,” Cellestra said. It was as if she could read my thoughts.

I sighed and nodded as she continued. She made sure to get through it thoroughly, before redoing my braids. Then, when she finished, she reached for her backpack and pulled out a book which she started reading lying down again.

“What’s that?” I asked curiously.

“It’s a book with information on alchemical reagents, and it has some of my notes in it. I imagined it might be useful to brush up on it a bit if I want to make potions and stuff later.”

“Not a bad idea. I’d love to know what your creations are worth.”

“I wish I knew,” Cellestra replied. “I’ve been told that especially healing potions are expensive, especially those of high quality, but I have no idea how mine hold up against those. I suppose we’ll need to check. It’s not like I can know their value.”

“Do you even have instruments to make potions?”

“Not enough. I mean, the best I can do is salves at the moment. Couldn’t really take glassware with me.”

“Sounds like we’re due for another trip to the city soon. I wonder if there is anyone that specializes in this.”

“Of course there is. There are two dungeons near this city. A hundred percent there is a place that sells vials and other glassware, or a place where you can get potions. They will have them too.”

“And the herbs that you need? Found any?”

“I’ve seen a few around the forest, and then some more inside the dungeon. I also collected some of the leaves from those giant walking trees, but I have yet to study their properties.”

“And how do you study those?” I asked curiously.

“Create something with them, and simply test it on… things.”

“Want to use me as a test subject for that?” I asked mischievously. I was being lighthearted about this, but in a way, I was serious too. There was little that could happen to me, and I’d be extremely resistant to possible toxins, though, I guess that would also mean I wouldn’t be a proper means of testing.

“I can, if you want, but I’d need to test it on other things too.”

“I just realized that as well.”

“How are they doing, by the way?” Cellestra asked, pointing at the clutch of eggs I was still embracing.

I took a closer look and noticed that in the little bit that I could look through the ‘shells’, there was a hint of movement inside. Not only that, in my thermal vision, the eggs had gradually started to rise in temperature.

“I think it’s almost time. Thank you for keeping my mind off of things.”

“Always,” She replied with the warmest of smiles.

She flipped a few more pages before stashing her tome away, and sitting down next to me, taking my hand in the process. My nerves were suppressed considerably, and together, we watched until the first egg showed a crack.

I wanted to reach out and help, but Cellestra stopped me as I reached out. Soon, I saw a leg from within stab, and eventually, break through the outer membrane. When I saw it, it was white and similar to mine and I felt my heart racing at the sight.

“They’ll be fine,” She assured me. “Just let them hatch naturally.”

I nodded, knowing she was right, and I had a hard time suppressing my inner feelings of wanting to do something. After all, I knew how difficult it had been to get out of one of those eggs.

But I did as she advised and simply waited.