As days went by, the girl was getting significantly better. By the third day, the girl was completely healthy despite her thin frame. Her hair was trimmed and combed neatly everyday so the split ends and damaged hair was that of the past. Her sunken eyes were now somewhat full and the dark circles were gone with nights of long rest. Comparing her now and how her condition was in the beginning would be like looking at years of growth that only took over a week.

It took a few days to obtain a long tube as the doctor prescribed, but it was achieved after Japlir took it upon himself to make one out of sheets of metal. It was thin enough to fit down the girl’s throat and open enough to fit liquids down. It took awhile to figure out what kind of liquids they could supply the girl’s stomach but got some help from the doctor.

The girl was still lifeless as ever and stared blankly until her eyes dried and Wilpen had to manually make her blink. Every day, afternoon, and night Wilpen carefully fed the girl through the tube and a makeshift funnel. You would think the girl was Wilpen’s own daughter if you witnessed just how much care Wilpen put into the girl.

Everyday life went by slowly as Wilpen took care of the Inn and the girl. Japlir would visit as much as he could despite his work piling at the smithy. He wasn’t sure what was happening but something was brewing and he was hoping it wasn’t a war.

It was the third month of the girl’s arrival where she had moved on her own. No one had witnessed it firsthand, but Wilpen drew the conclusion that morning.

Wilpen had entered the girl’s room to “wake” her up, which was sitting the girl up to get her ready for the day. That morning, though, the girl had been sitting up and staring out the window. At the sight, Wilpen’s legs gave in and she cried at the doorway.

The most that girl could move was her torso and she would occasionally turn to face Wilpen. Wilpen, in her excitement, shared the news with Japlir who hadn’t visited for long because of work.

They marveled at the girl’s sudden ability to move again, although minimal. It was a miracle, to say the least. A piece of her humanity was returning faster than expected, and it didn’t stop there.

Just two days later, the girl had moved her arm to stop Wilpen from feeding her. Wilpen almost flinched and dropped the feeding straw but the girl’s arm had fallen limp like it had never moved. Wilpen teared up at the thought of the girl recovering at such a fast rate like the doctor had suspected.

Small things like this were becoming more evident to the girl’s recovery and Wilpen’s heart soared at the thought. All Wilpen’s efforts weren’t going to be in vain and she would soon be able to watch the girl live her life.

A week after, the girl was able to move her legs but not start walking just yet. The girl was moving like a broken doll forced to stay seated. She looked around with blank eyes and kicked her legs to feel around. 

Day by day she made fast improvement and a month after she first sat up in bed, she was standing and almost walking around. She could only walk with the assistance of Wilpen like that of a child learning how to move their body. Wilpen’s heart soared watching the girl’s recovery and as the days passed she felt a sort of fondness for the girl—as if the girl were her own child.

By the girl’s third month at Wilpen’s inn, the girl was finally able to feed herself and drink water. Wilpen was shocked at the girl’s fast recovery and noticed the drastic change in her appearance.

The girl no longer had sunken cheeks and the darkest circles under her eyes. Her hair was no longer dry and splitting but smooth and shiny. The girl managed to gain some figure to her body that once rivaled a skeleton’s. And the ends of what was left of her arms were almost completely healed minus the final layer of skin that still needed to grow.

Even Doctor Ivors was completely perplexed at the development; he still wasn’t able to explain the situation with both magic and science. The mages that he did know were just as left in the dark as he was. Even fellow doctors didn’t believe Ivors’ words.

In the second week of the third month, Wilpen entered the girl’s bedroom to see the girl standing in the center. The girl pressed her amputated arm to her chest and the other attempted at rounding her back to bow deeply to Wilpen. After her bow, the girl turned to a piece of paper on the bedside table that said:

Greetings, Miss Wilpen, thank you for taking such considerate care of me in the time of my stay. Much appreciated, Porlifi.

Wilpen had fallen to her knees and cried her heart out and held tightly to the ends of Porlifi’s dress. Porlifi knelt down to press her head to Wilpen’s and hummed in response to the elder’s tears.

“Good morning, Miss Porlifi,” Wilpen greeted through tears.