Meet My Mother

Emir explained his backstory, telling her everything she should know about the Order, his and Lyra's relation to them, and how he discovered Aether.

Just as he was about to get to their current situation, Mariane interfered with a raised hand.

With her brows furrowed and brown eyes bloodshot, she exclaimed:

"Stop! Stop… Just give me a moment to process all of this. I'm scared that the next thing you'll be telling me is that all of what happened to my shop is because of the Order."

Her face scrunched up even more as she watched him clap his hands, acting as if what she said was exactly right.

"No… No way. Emir! You can't be telling me that the entirety of my life's work was snuffed out as an example to scare you. Please!" She pleaded, her voice strained, even though for the past fifteen minutes she hadn't said a single word.

Stopping his playful actions, he donned his neutral face.