Sucrose and Nahida hadn't seen each other again since the Vimara Village incident. At least, in the real world: ever since then, Nahida visited Sucrose in her dreams once in a while. Once in a day, actually; she visited her every night. Not that Sucrose minded, though. Quite the opposite, she was happy to see her. That was the only place where she could be not with Lesser Lord Kusanali, not with the Dendro Archon, and not with the God of Wisdom; there, she was with just Nahida. And Nahida, among her loose hair and the fact that she showed more emotions, especially happiness and affection, in contrast with her stoic real-world version, she seemed like another person. On her hand, Nahida was the one who spent the most time with the most natural Sucrose, the one with her ears raised.

They usually were in a flower field created by Sucrose. At the beginning, it was only an endless space of flowers of every color, but as Sucrose ameliorated her control over her dream, the flowers also began to adopt different sizes and shapes, some of which she had not managed to create in real life yet. She now used her dreams as a blank canvas in order to get an idea of how she wanted her genuine paradise world to look like.

The first time, since Sucrose had already stopped sleeping with her gloves on, Nahida could see the scar on her left hand. Far from being surprised, she smiled and mentioned how happy she was to see that Sucrose had begun to accept herself. Sucrose, on the other hand, was surprised by Nahida's statement:

"You knew? But how?"

"I have my means to know, remember?" Nahida said. "Perhaps I'll show them to you someday."

Sucrose did remember; it was just that she wasn't expecting that Nahida would be able to know about something which had happened a long time ago. However, and now that she thought about it, if Nahida knew about her accident, perhaps she also knew who was the person who came to her aid. When she asked her about it, Nahida just gave her an elusive answer:

"Do you really need to know?" she said. "It's not like you'd be able to thank him even if you wanted to."

Nahida wasn't wrong, as Sucrose knew that she ought not to make any contact with Mondstadt for the time being. Despite this, Sucrose was about to say that she wanted to know it anyway, although she ultimately decided to let it go. Since Nahida had accepted her offer of using her dreams to vent her emotions and just be herself, she didn't want to trouble her by being insistent. Therefore, she never asked again.

Nahida didn't always come alone: sometimes, an Aranara from Arake's family came along with her. Sucrose was always glad to see them, even if she had done so recently during the day, especially Arakom with the children in Vimara Village. Since Nahida wanted Sucrose to rest and stay calm during her dreams, she only allowed those Aranara she had forged a bond with to visit her, and only one at a time; no exceptions whatsoever. Whenever one of them came, Nahida was more composed compared to when they were just the two of them; despite this, she was still more joyful than in the real world.

Sucrose also enjoyed the company of her Aranara friends. Even though they were all siblings, and even though they all shared the same appearance, albeit with a different color, each one was their own individual, which was as clear as day. Besides the fact that each one sang a different melody, each one also spoke about different topics and in a different manner: Sucrose listened to the adventures of brave Arake the red, the movements in the forest from tranquil Araki the orange, the games with the children from effusive Arakom the yellow, and everyday life in Vanarana from insightful Arakuan the green. Sucrose had still not gotten used to seeing Arakuan wearing Dori's pince-nez.

However, she had not seen panicky Araon the blue yet.

"It seems that Araon is afraid of looking you in the eye after having left you behind with the Jadeplume Terrorshroom," Nahida explained.

"Really? But I never thought such a thing," Sucrose said. "I should look for him and clear up this misunderstanding."

"Nara Crows should better desist," Arakuan commented. "Nara Crows wouldn't achieve anything; Arakom lives with his own fear."

Sucrose didn't back down. "Even so, I don't want to leave this unresolved without even trying."

"In that case, allow me to act as a mediator," Nahida interceded. "I'll try to convince him to visit you next night."

"If Nara Crows is so determined, then Arakuan suggests Lord of Dendro to just bring Araon here: it will be the same result, but snappier."

"Is that so? Then I'll do just as you say."

The night after, Nahida appeared in Sucrose's dream holding a paralyzed by fear Araon in her arms, just like she had said. As soon as she put him onto the ground, Araon quickly hid behind Nahida. Araon was shaking while he peeked at Sucrose from behind the little girl.

"Lord of Dendro, please… Araon doesn't want to do this," Araon pled, his voice trembling.

"Now, now, Araon. You said you wanted to apologise to Sucrose, did you not?" Nahida smiled. "You won't be able to have a clear conscience if you don't do so."

From Sucrose's point of view, it looked like a mother was trying to encourage her frightened child to apologize for his misdeed, which was, in a sense, true, since Nahida was their creator. She looked at them smilingly.

"B-but what if Nara Crows doesn't want to forgive Araon?" Araon quivered. "What if Nara Crows wants to eat Araon?"

Nahida turned towards Araon, crouched down, and spoke to him gently. "If she tries that, then I'll eat her myself."

Sucrose chuckled; she knew that Nahida was just saying that in order to encourage Araon, just like a mother teasing her child. Araon moved away from Nahida and, slowly, hesitantly, doing that peculiar sound the Aranara did with their steps, approached Sucrose. Sucrose sat down so she wouldn't tower so much over Araon. She looked at him gently, with a soft smile. Then, Araon spoke:

"A-Araon is very sorry for leaving Nara behind," Araon whimpered. "Nara Crows, please don't eat Araon…"

Sucrose reached out both her arms and grabbed Araon. The blue Aranara froze. That's it; he was going to be eaten. Araon was too frightened to even scream for help as Sucrose moved him closer towards her. Far from his imagination, Sucrose pressed Araon against her chest, and hugged him like a plush.

"Why are you so stubborn about me eating you?" Sucrose said softly. "I just want to be your friend."

Araon could feel Sucrose's heartbeat. Its soft, constant, soothing sound made him feel relaxed. All of his fears slowly vanished without him even realizing.

"Nara Crows… is soft and warm. Just like sibling Arakom said."

He pressed himself against Sucrose's chest and cuddled up on it. He was now at ease. An intense feeling of accomplishment ran throughout Sucrose; her efforts in trying to gain Araon's trust had begun to pay off. Trying her best not to become overexcited, she carefully repositioned herself so that she could put Araon on her lap. Nahida approached them, and sat down as well.

"Do you see now, Araon?" she said. "'Nara Crows is a good Nara'. Everybody says so."

"Yes, Araon can see it now: Nara Crows cares a lot about her friends." Araon nodded. He raised his head and looked at Sucrose in the eye. "Can Araon come to visit Nara Crows in her dreams again?"

"Of course," Sucrose replied warmly while petting Araon's head. "Whenever you wish."

And thus, three weeks after the Vimara Village incident, when she had seen Araon for the last time, Sucrose was happy to think that she was finally going to be visited by all five Aranara siblings in her dreams. All five of them.

"Hold on, aren't you supposed to be six siblings?" she suddenly realized. "Who's the sixth?"

"Nara Crows hasn't met sibling Araperke yet?" Araon asked.

No, she hadn't; she had never had the chance yet. In fact, she had even forgotten for a time that they were actually six siblings, instead of five. And now that she remembered about him, she wanted to meet Araperke, the last sibling. She asked Nahida whether she could bring him next night, to which Nahida solemnly shook her head.

"I'm sorry, Sucrose, but I stipulated that only these five are allowed to come to visit you, without any exception," she explained. "If you make a rule, and then begin to apply exceptions to it, it will appear like you aren't taking your own terms in earnest enough. It will be like if you tried to build a ship by just pulling wooden boards together."

What Nahida wanted to say was that if one does not seal the gaps properly, a hole will appear on them. And then another. And another. And many more until the only possible fate for that ship was to sink. And Nahida, despite being open-minded and understanding, was first and foremost a ruler; therefore, she wanted to ensure that her ship, the nation of Sumeru, wouldn't sink because she wasn't looking over it thoughtfully. It almost happened once; she was not going to let it happen again. Sucrose understood that it was impossible to make Nahida change her mind.

"Okay, then. But can I at least visit him in the real world?"

"You can, but I don't think you should," Nahida answered. "Araperke lives in the furthest opposite end of the forest, Apam Woods. That is the deepest area of Dharma Forest, Sumeru's rainforest. Even if you've become quite experienced at navigating through the forest, that place is still too dangerous for you to go. And besides…"

"And besides?…"

"And besides there are still some fungi there that haven't migrated to Mawtiyima Forest. The danger of a possible new Withering appearing there is quite high. That's another worrying matter for you, as well as the reason why Araperke hasn't come to visit you in the real world either, although he yearns to do so: he must keep watch on those fungi."

Therefore, it would be best for Sucrose not to go to Apam Woods for the time being, even though she wanted to meet Araperke so much, especially now, since it seemed that he also wished to meet her. Sucrose wondered how Araperke felt, being the only sibling who had not met her yet after all that time.

A week after, the night of that very same Thursday in which Collei's stay had been arranged to be extended, Nahida came on her own. Both of them sat on a field full of small flowers surrounded by others as humongous as the mushroom-trees in Mawtiyima Forest. That night, Sucrose brought up the subject of the new Withering for the first time. Since Collei had mentioned it as the reason for her extended stay, she was curious to know about what Nahida had discovered during that month. To Sucrose's surprise, Nahida's expression became solemn, and she let out a long sigh; it was as if she was resigning herself.

"Initially, everything we investigated only served to confirm our first theories," Nahida explained. "However, a few days ago we discovered something of great importance."

"Of great importance?" an interested Sucrose repeated. "And what is it?"

"It's about how a new Withering is created. Some Aranara who were keeping watch on a group of fungi saw how underneath one of them a stream of black mud suddenly erupted, covering it completely. You already know the rest.

"Furthermore, Araperke, who was among said group and is quite sensitive, said that he felt like the ground was shaking just before it occurred. If that was no coincidence, we can assume that the cause is moving underground."

Sucrose struggled to contain her excitement. That was, without a doubt, a crucial discovery, which brought them closer towards the truth. Even so, she knew that she had to remain calm and not let her emotions get control over her; otherwise, she would wake up.

"And not only that," Nahida went on.

"There's more?"

"We have suffered a few more attacks during this time. Just as I had suspected, the target of this new Withering are children. I was able to check their minds before they were treated; everything was just the same as with Kavus, Sudabeh and Iotham."

"You mean the pitch-black darkness and the faltering voice?"

Nahida nodded firmly. Then, she reached out her hand. In it a sheet of paper appeared from thin air, which she gave to Sucrose.

"I still haven't managed to grasp everything," she admitted. "However, I've been able to formulate a fairly solid theory from what I've gathered."

Sucrose read the contents of the sheet:

My lor… I heed,

accomplished it…

gate of dreams… seek.

…rana guide me.

Sucrose read it again. And again. And several times again. It was not because she didn't understand what it said, but because she needed time to assimilate it calmly, a calm she was unable to maintain. Their surroundings began to fade away; she was losing control over her sleep. Then, all of a sudden, she felt that something had climbed onto her lap. It was Nahida.

"I know, Nahida, and I'm trying, but this is beyond me," Sucrose said, growing ever more restless. "What I don't know is how you can be so calm about this."

"Does that mean that you have figured the answer out?" Nahida guessed.

Although Sucrose didn't know even half of Sumeru yet, she did not need to in order to reach a solid conclusion: that thing, that cause, that menace, was seeking out something in the forest, and it was using fungi as a means to its end. And in Sumeru's rainforest there was but one place related to dreams and which name ended in '-rana'.

"Vanarana."

Nahida's nod told her that she had guessed right. Sucrose was becoming even more anxious, her breathing was short and ragged, her dream was whitening. Nahida tried to calm her down by giving her a hug.

"Don't give in to despair," she said. "It's actually not that bad."

"Not that bad? How can you say that!?" Sucrose shouted. "The Aranara are in danger!"

"Not as much as you think." Nahida corrected her. "Think about it: where exactly is Vanarana of the Aranara?"

"Why are you asking me that now!?"

"Just answer the question."

Sucrose sighed. "In the plane of dreams."

"Correct. Now, knowing this, why do you think that the Withered Monsters attack those who have the ability to dream?"

Sucrose needed some time to think before giving an answer. "To find Vanarana of Dreams?"

Nahida nodded firmly. "Correct again. Whatever is behind this new Withering incident cannot access the plane of dreams on its own; therefore, it cannot target the Aranara. And the only method to reach Vanarana of Dreams is by playing the Rhythm of the Great Dream, the melody of the Aranara."

"Is that why it targets us instead? Is it looking for the melody in our dreams?" Sucrose theorized.

"Indeed," Nahida confirmed. "And, right now, there is only one person who both has the ability to dream and has been in Vanarama of Dreams: you, Sucrose. As long as you stay safe from the Withered Monsters, so will be Vanarana from the menace."

"But I don't know the melody,"

"True. You lost consciousness when you fell down from that cliff," Nahida recalled. "However, you were present when the Aranara sang it. It might be possible that, even though you don't know it, the melody might have been etched in your subconsciousness, and that could be enough for the menace."

Nahida wanted to be prudent regarding Sucrose. She, being the Dendro Archon and having the ability to enter in the dreams of others, she was also able to shield and protect her own. Therefore, the menace could not use her to reach Vanarana of Dreams even if it managed to get a hold on her. Its only possibility was with Sucrose.

Sucrose had mixed feelings when she heard it. On the one hand, she was relieved to know that Vanarana was safe; although, on the other hand, she was worried to know that its safety depended entirely on her own. At least she was no longer as nervous as before; she managed to regain control over her sleep, thus avoiding waking up. She let out a long, heavy sigh, not knowing whether it was from relief or anguish.

"To tell you the truth, Sucrose, I didn't want to tell you this," Nahida confessed. "However, the Aranara insisted that you needed to know. In the end, we agreed that I would tell you everything if you ever brought the subject up."

Now that she thought about it, Sucrose recalled that Nahida had said 'a few days ago' before. Hence, they had seen each other for several nights after that event had occurred, and many more would have passed had she not asked Nahida about it. She tried not to take it the wrong way; Nahida must have had her reasons:

"May I ask you why?"

Nahida closed her eyes and took a deep breath before answering Sucrose. "I believe in you: I know that you avoid the new Withering to any extent, and also that you now know how to defend yourself if it ever manages to catch you. It's just…" She rubbed her hair while she gathered strength to continue. "I feared that you would become obsessed about this and shut yourself away in the palace."

Sucrose grumbled, yet she didn't say anything. She recalled how scared she had gotten the first time, when she found out that she was a target of the new Withering; in fact, she had even considered doing so back then. It was thanks to the fact that she was not allowed to go out on her own that gave her the courage to keep going out. Therefore, she understood why Nahida didn't want to tell this to her.

"What do you think I should do?" she asked.

"Just the same as you've done until now: keep clear from the new Withering, and as further precaution, fungi." Nahida said. "As for its cause, just leave it to me; I'll take care of it."

It wasn't a bad idea. That way, Sucrose could keep living her new life which had been granted to her in Sumeru. Just focusing on her job as Dori's alchemist. No worries, no obsessions… No way.

"It's not right for me to just sit idle and act like nothing's happening," she objected. "Isn't there anything I can help with?"

Nahida, taken by complete surprise, gazed at Sucrose with wide eyes. "I'm really glad that, far from being scared, you're willing to help out," she said. "However, we would be handing you to the menace on a silver platter. And I cannot allow that whatsoever."

"Even so, I still want to do something; I want to help my Aranara friends. Besides, are you forgetting that I'm an alchemist?" Sucrose pointed out proudly. "There are many ways I can help out without even leaving my atelier."

"Have you perhaps already thought of something?"

"Well… not really," Sucrose admitted shyly.

Nahida chortled.

"But I'm sure that I can help with something!" Sucrose insisted, embarrassed. "I just need some time to think about what!"

"I believe you, I believe you," Nahida apologized. "But seriously now, if you promise me to stay clear and safe, just like you have done until now, I'll gladly accept your help."

Sucrose promised it. Nahida held out her hand, but when Sucrose was about to shake it, she jumped onto her and hugged her.

"I care a lot about you," she whispered to her ear.

Sucrose was completely taken aback. She remained still for several seconds, but since Nahida wasn't letting go, she hugged her back. They remained like that for a while, until Nahida finally let go.

Now that Sucrose was also part of it, Nahida gave her more details about the group in charge of dealing with the new Withering and finding its cause. It consisted only of very few people: Nahida herself, Tighnari, Cyno, and now Sucrose as well. The reason why Nahida wanted such a small group was because she didn't know whether the menace was sentient or not, and in case it were, she wanted to ensure that it remained unaware that they were looking for it.

"Moreover, I'm also honestly worried about that black mud," she continued. "For the moment, it has only affected fungi, and it vanishes once they are defeated, but if this mud turns out to be the same as the one from Liyue's Chasm, then we might be in dire straits."

"Why is that?" Sucrose asked worriedly.

"Because that mud contaminates and corrupts everything; moreover, it's fatal to human life, regardless of whether you have a Vision or not."

Nahida wanted to take any possible precaution against this unknown menace. That black mud Nahida was referring to was fraught with danger, and any wrong step might cause an uncontrollable situation which could lead into a disaster. If that mud spread through the rainforest, it would be catastrophic.

"And you can't use your means to know to locate its whereabouts?" Sucrose inquired.

"No, I can't. I tried to, but it was in vain. The black mud has most likely something to do," Nahida explained. "Thus, we have no choice but to rely on conventional methods. However, since the menace is moving underground, it's proving to be more difficult than finding a pinch of salt among the sand in the desert."

Therefore, they were at a stalemate. Sucrose crossed her arms and closed her eyes. Their surroundings began to fade away once again, which disquieted Nahida.

"Sucrose…"

"Don't worry. I'm just thinking," Sucrose reassured her.

She needed to concentrate in order to properly arrange everything she knew; that's why her dream had lost clarity.

To begin with, there was an unknown menace which was trying to reach Vanarana of Dreams. In order to do so, it needed the Rhythm of the Great Dream, and since it could not attack the Aranara, it attacked people with the ability to dream instead, in hopes of finding the melody within their dreams. With the aim of keeping itself concealed, the menace moved underground and attacked fungi with the purpose of gaining control over them, and thus it used them to do the attacks on people instead. That's how the new Withering came to be.

Why fungi in particular, Sucrose did not know. What she did know, however, was that the fungi seemed to be aware that they were in danger, and so, most of them had migrated to Mawtiyima Forest. She asked Nahida whether she already knew why they had moved there in particular. Nahida nodded:

"The power of the forest is more intense there, enough to prevent the menace from getting closer. It seems like the fungi know this as well, so they have migrated there in order to stay safe."

In Mawtiyima Forest there had never been any Withering, neither back then with the original one, nor now despite all the fungi around. However, that place was now suffering the problem of fungal overpopulation, a problem which was only worsening. The last time Sucrose visited the Hilichurl cave a few days ago, she was sad to discover that the cave was now infested with fungi and there was no sign of the Hilichurls.

"Hey, hold on a minute!" Sucrose spoke. "The first reported case of new Withering was the one in which I was attacked, right?"

"Yes, that's right. Why do you ask?"

"Because some fungi had already migrated to Mawtiyima Forest some time before that. Or am I remembering it wrong?"

"No, you're right again. Actually, that was what I was investigating when Arake told me about you, and then I paid you a visit." Nahida explained. "That's the last piece of this puzzle: I can't figure out why the migration had already begun quite some time before the first Withered Monster sighting, or when did it exactly begin, for that matter. Everything else falls perfectly into place."

The only theory Nahida had come up with in that regard was that the menace might have actually begun its deed of attacking fungi much before the first reported case. However, without any evidence, or even a single lead, that theory was nothing more than just speculation. As for the menace itself, their only lead was that whenever it moved around, it caused tremors, although they were so small that they were almost imperceptible. Sucrose was now thinking about that part: if she could come up with something which measured the intensity of such tremors, it would be easier for them to pinpoint the location of the menace.

"Nahida."

"Yes?"

"I think I finally know how I can help."