A New Morning

A warm, empty space. Different from before. Strixx lay in a quiet room.

When she opened her eyes, she saw a glowing figure—its features unclear, but it felt like a woman.

A gentle voice spoke. “You have a kind heart, far greater than you realize. The darkness within you is small—it doesn’t define you. I know you can rise above it. I believe in you… 

So, promise me, no matter what happens, you won’t lose yourself.”

Strixx nodded with a small smile. “Strixx promises!

Strixx will be strong.”

An image flashed in her mind.

Strixx alone might always be sad… but with Luca, she felt like she could do anything. “Strixx promised… Strixx will see the world with Luca… Strixx will keep learning…

 because Strixx loves this world so much… after all ”

“…Who are you Ms?” The figure gestured for her to come closer.

 As she did, Strixx was gently pulled into a warm embrace, resting on the figure’s lap. Soft pats brushed against her head.

“When the time comes, you’ll know.”

“You’re stronger than you think.”

“I love you.”

A soft kiss landed on her forehead. My ___ I love you so much

Strixx’s eyes fluttered open. Morning light streamed through the window.

Thank you Ms.Unknown… Beside her, Luca slept soundly.

Her gaze fell to the bandages on his hands. She reached out, fingers lightly brushing over them.

“Luca…” she whispered, with sadness in her voice.

A knock at the door broke the silence. Strixx got up and opened it.

Ms. Finecia stood there, smiling. Strixx no longer felt the need to hide beneath her cloak.

“You’re up early,” Ms. Finecia said warmly. “I just came to check on you. Did I wake you?” Strixx shook her head.

“No… Strixx was already awake.”  She lowered her head.

“Sorry… for yesterday. Strixx caused trouble for Ms. Finecia… and Luca.”

Ms. Finecia smiled and gently patted her head.

“Come, let’s make breakfast.”

Strixx’s face lit up with a bright smile. “Coming!”

Strixx followes Ms. Finecia, feeling more at ease with her than ever before.

I woke up to the morning light spilling through the window. As I looked around, I realized the room was empty. Strixx wasn’t there.

Remembering what happened yesterday, a wave of worry hit me. I hurried out of the room, calling her name.

I looked around, but she was nowhere to be seen. A wave of panic rushed over me. The only place I hadn’t checked was the kitchen.

Heart pounding, I hurried inside, my face tense with worry.

“Ms. Finecia, s—!”

When I reached the kitchen, I stopped. There she was—standing beside Ms. Finecia, carefully focused on something in front of her.

Ms. Finecia noticed me first and smiled.

“Luca sure is fired up today.”

Then, as if reading my mind, she added, “Don’t worry, Strixx isn’t going anywhere.”

Strixx, hearing that, turned red and quickly looked down, pretending to concentrate on what she was doing.

Feeling just as flustered, I scratched my head and blurted out, “I-I’ll go freshen up!” before quickly leaving the kitchen.

Ms. Finecia chuckled. “Alright, but come back soon—breakfast is ready!”

When I returned, I saw two pancakes on my plate—one fluffy and golden, the other flat and completely burnt.

Ms. Finecia nudged Strixx gently. “Go on, say what you have to say.”

Strixx hesitated before stepping in front of me, face flushed.

“Umm… Luca… Strixx is sorry for yesterday…” She fidgeted. “Please don’t leave Strixx alone… Let’s keep going on the journey together, so…”

I looked at her, feeling a warmth in my chest. “Strixx…”

She glanced up at me. “Strixx made… pancakes…” She mumbled. “Strixx never made anything before…”

I picked up the burnt one without hesitation and took a bite. It was, of course, terrible. But that didn’t matter.

I smiled. “Thank you, Strixx.”

Then, meeting her eyes, I added, “And what are you talking about? I never agreed to walk my own path alone.”

She blinked.

“Of course I’ll keep going with you. We’re partners, aren’t we?”

Strixx’s eyes widened before a soft, relieved smile spread across her face.

“Thank you, Luca…”

After we finished breakfast, Ms. Finecia looked at us with a gentle smile.

“Luca, Strixx, can you do me a favor?” We both nodded.

“Sure, Ms. Finecia.” She handed us a small parcel. “Can you deliver this to Mr. Vec for me?”

We glanced at the package, then back at her. “What is it?” I asked.

“It’s a fresh batch of my herbal medicine. I always send some to Mr. Vec.”

Hearing that, we both smiled.

“We’d love to visit him again!” I turned to Strixx. “Let’s go.”

With that, we set off toward the mountain, where Mr. Vec’s cottage stood.

On the way, Strixx kept her face hidden beneath her cloak as usual. She still wasn’t completely comfortable around crowds, but she wasn’t as tense as before.

As we walked beneath a large tree, we suddenly heard voices crying out. “Help! Someone, please!”

Two children came running toward us, their faces streaked with tears. “Please help us!” one of them pleaded. I knelt down. “What happened? Why are you two so panicked?”

One of the kids spoke between sobs. “Our friend, Bred… We were playing catch, and our toy got stuck in that tall tree. He climbed up to get it, but now he’s stuck and can’t get down!”

The other child wiped their eyes. “We told him not to climb, but he didn’t listen… Please, help him!” Strixx whispered beside me. “Luca… let’s help them.”

I nodded. “Of course we will.” As we approached the tree, I looked up. A small boy was clinging to a branch near the very top, frozen in fear. The two children pointed. “There! That’s Bred!”

I stepped forward, ready to climb, but Strixx gently grabbed my wrist. “Let… Strixx do this.”

Before I could respond, she dashed toward the tree. In the blink of an eye, she scaled it with ease, moving so fast it almost looked unreal.

She reached Bred, scooped him up, then jumped down, landing softly on the ground. I let out a breath of relief. The other two kids ran to Bred, hugging him tightly.

“You’re okay!” Then, they turned to Strixx, their eyes shining.

“Miss, you’re amazing!” “That was so cool! How did you climb so fast? And you jumped from so high and landed like it was nothing!”

Strixx seemed unsure how to respond, but she puffed up her chest slightly, looking pleased with herself.

I grinned, stepping beside her. “Her name is Strixx. And yes, she’s a superhero!” Strixx nudged me lightly. “Luca… what are you saying…?”

The kids gasped in excitement. “Big sister Strixx!”

“No, wait, we should call her Super Strixx!” “Nooo, that sounds weird!” As they argued over her “hero name,” I chuckled.

“Alright, alright, don’t fight. ‘Big sister Strixx’ is just fine.”

One of the kids turned to me. “Then what about you?”

I smiled. “I’m Luca.”

Their eyes widened. “Big brother Luca!” I nodded. “That’s me.”

Bred, now calmed down, introduced himself properly. “I’m Bred!”

The other two followed. “I’m Liney!” “I’m Kevin!”

I ruffled their hair. “Bred, Liney, Kevin. Nice to meet you all.”

As much as we wanted to stay and chat, we still had a job to do.

“Alright, we need to get going.” The kids waved as we walked away, Strixx giving them a small wave from beneath her cloak.

“Bye-bye, big sister Strixx!” As we walked, their voices faded into the distance.

Kevin: “Big sister Strixx and big brother Luca are so cool!”

Bred: “Let’s follow them!”

 Leney:  “Wait, we shouldn’t be following people…”

Bred:  “Come on, it’s fine! We just want to see more of big sister Strixx’s cool moves!”

By the time we reached Mr. Vec’s cottage, he was outside, watering his herb garden. Seeing us, he smiled. “Oh, young boy, young girl. Nice to see you again. What brings you here?”

I handed him the parcel from Ms. Finecia. “Ms. Finecia asked us to deliver this. It’s her new batch of herbal medicine.”

Mr. Vec chuckled. “Ah, Finecia is always so diligent. Thank you for bringing it.” Then, he glanced around. “Looks like you brought guests with you.”

Strixx and I exchanged confused looks. “Guests?”

Just then, three familiar heads peeked out from behind a bush.

“Bred, Liney, Kevin…!” They shuffled forward, looking guilty. “S-Sorry… We just wanted to see more cool stuff.”

Mr. Vec chuckled. “Cool stuff, huh? What exactly did they do?” Bred and Liney eagerly told him about the tree incident, while Kevin mumbled, “I told them not to follow…”

Mr. Vec laughed. “I see, I see. You’re quite the hero, Strixx.” Strixx fidgeted. “Strixx… is not a hero…!” He smiled. “Well, hero or not, come inside. I have something for you all.”

Inside, we sat around the table while Mr. Vec brought out a plate of fresh, juicy melons. Strixx stood up and helped carry the plates, earning an approving nod from him. The kids immediately dug in.

“So good!” “So sweet!” “So juicy!”

After finishing, the three of them stretched and stood up. “Thanks for the melon, Mr. Vec! We’ll go back to our game now!”

Laughing, they ran off, chasing each other outside. Mr. Vec shook his head. “Those three are a handful.”

I smiled. “But they’re honest kids.”

As we stood up to leave, Mr. Vec gestured for us to wait. He stepped outside for a moment, then returned with a small bag.

“Here, take this. Some extra herbs and a few of those melons from my garden.”

Strixx accepted it with a small bow. “And say hello to Finecia for me.”

With that, our delivery job came to an end. Along the way, we had a little adventure—where Strixx became a hero I guess?. And so, we headed back to Ms. Finecia’s home.