A few days pass after the incident and we move camp to a different location. We don't go too far, just into a cave that’s hidden by trees. During the few days, Pixie was right, I manage to fully heal. Which means today, I get to start training.

Our new campsite is perfect for training. Outside the cave is a small clearing for a fire and some logs to sit on. The trees that surround us are very thick and keep us well hidden. Inside the cave, we keep our tents and rest there. It’s also where I’ll start my training.

Once we’ve eaten and cleaned up our mess, I look over at Pixie excitedly. “When do we start?” I ask.

She looks at me and chuckles. “Let’s head inside and then we can start,” she answers, leading me into the cave. “First things first, do ten push-ups.”

I look at her confused. “Ten push-ups?”

She nods. “Yes. Do you know how to do a push-up?”

“I know how to do a push-up. But why?” I ask.

Pixie sighs. “In order for you to be able to fight well, you need to build up strength.” She walks to stand in front of me. “Now give me ten push-ups.”

I huff and get down into position. With my hands out in front of me, I go down and do one push up. Pixie is apparently not satisfied because she stands next to me and pats my butt.

“Your butt should not be sticking up in the air,” she states. “Your posture is wrong.”

“How am I supposed to do one then?” I look at her.

She takes off her cloak and tosses it aside. “Hands need to be shoulder-width apart,” she gets down into push-up position to show me. “My back and legs are straight, hips aren’t sagging down, and I’m on my toes.” She stays in that position but lifts one hand up to gesture to her posture. “As you come down, arms get closer to your body, face close to the ground, elbows close to your side, and then you come back up the same way.” She demonstrates and then looks at me. “Like that. Now you try.”

I get back down and copy her position. It’s a lot harder to even hold than I expected it to be. To make sure it’s correct, I look up at Pixie and she nods. I take a deep breath and go down shakily. Once I’m there though, I can’t get back up and just end up on the ground.

“I don't think I can do ten push-ups,” I confess.

Pixie chuckles and nods. “I noticed. Stand up. We’ll do something else. As training continues, you’ll start to slowly build up muscle. I want you to practice as often as possible. Understand?”

I nod quickly and stand up.

“Good. Now let’s try some hand to hand combat,” she suggests. “Show me a fighting stance.”

I’m not too certain how to do a fighting stance, but I know from watching Dae Sung that you’re supposed to put your hands up. I put my fists up and look at Pixie. She walks over to me and puts her hand out in front of me, open-palmed. I put mine out as well.

“When you make a fist, do not put your thumb inside of it. Keep it out and let it rest on top of your other fingers. Like this.” Pixie makes a proper fist and shows me. I copy.

“Why can’t my thumb be inside?” I ask.

Pixie looks at me and then shows me her fist with the thumb on the inside. “If I go to punch someone with my fist like this, I’ll break my thumb before I do any damage to the other guy. And you do not want a broken thumb,” she explains.

I look down at my hands and switch back and forth from the proper and improper fist. Nodding, I look up and settle with the correct one. It feels more comfortable anyways. After learning how to make a fist, I get back into my fighting stance.

She looks me up and down and then gets into her own fighting stance. “Everyone can have their own stance, just as long as it protects you. Show me a punch.” Pixie commands.

I know how to do this. I jump around slightly and then throw my body into a powerful punch.

“No! Strength does not equal power! Throwing your whole body into one punch can be dangerous. You need to learn the correct form. The power behind a punch comes from the hip!” Pixie corrects me and then demonstrates. “Look at my arm. Even though I’ve just finished punching, it’s not completely straight. Do not lock your arm after a punch. Someone could easily break your arm that way.”

As it turns out, I really know nothing about fighting. The whole day consists of me learning how to punch and stand properly. Pixie says a good foundation is the most important. Once I have the basics down, I can move on to more advanced skills. That’s the part that I’m waiting for. We stop as the sun sets so that we can eat.

I walk out of the cave and towards the smell of food. It seems to be almost ready. I sit next to Min Su and lean on him.

“Hey Hyung,” I smile.

He looks at me and gives me a half-smile while petting my hair. “Hey, kiddo.”

“I started training today. But it was a little boring. All I did was learn basics,” I tell him.

“Good for you,” he nods.

Sensing his sour tone, I stop leaning on him and help Dae Sung with the food. I grab Min Su’s plate and cut up his food. I want to feed him today. Once I’m done cutting it up, I head over to him and hold out a piece to him.

Min Su looks up at me and then away. “I don’t want it,” he shakes his head.

“Hyung, eat.” I insist. “You always told me it’ll make me big and strong.”

“I said no!” Min Su shouts all of a sudden and stands up. “I don’t want to become big and strong! I am big and strong!” He knocks the plate out of my hands and pushes me down, walking away to his tent angrily. What did I do wrong?

I watch as Dae Sung quickly follows him into the tent. Sighing, I hug my knees and sit there. That was mean. I can just barely make out the sounds of the older two talking until Dae Sung speaks up.

“Min Su! Stop this! That was uncalled for!” the older shouts.

“You have no right to tell me what to do! You can still use both of your arms!” it sounds like Min Su is about to cry. “Just leave. Me. Alone.” He finishes, walking out of the tent and off into the woods.

“Min Su! Don't! That’s dangerous!” Dae Sung calls after him.

“I don't care!” the younger yells.

Pixie walks over to me and holds a hand out to help me up. I take it and sit down on the log next to her. She hands me my plate and pets me.

“I know it’s hard not to, but don't get upset by your hyung’s actions,” she tells me. “He’s very discouraged right now.”

I just nod and eat. Dae Sung joins us later and eats as well. Instead of eating all of his food, he leaves some. Maybe for Min Su?

After we clean up and before Pixie tends to our wounds, Min Su comes back. Dae Sung stops him from going into their tent and shows him the food. The younger still tries to deny it but gives in when his stomach growls. He lets the older feed him and then they go into their tent together. I follow to watch.

Pixie goes in and tends to Dae Sung’s wounds first. She unwraps his head and puts those herbs on the wound. Afterward, she wraps it back up and smiles.

“It’s almost healed. If you’d like, you can train with us tomorrow,” she says.

Dae Sung smiles and nods. “I would like that.” He gets up and lets Min Su sit.

Pixie unwraps his arm, much easier this time, and puts the herbs on him as well. The whole time, Min Su just stares at his arm. He’s clearly upset and it doesn’t seem like this is helping his mood.

“I hate this,” he finally speaks up. “Why can’t you heal me faster? All this talk about having a healer in our party and you can’t even heal this?!”

Pixie glares at him. “You need to calm down. I told you, I’m not a healer,” she states.

“Then let’s find one! I’m tired of being the useless one that has to get fed everyday! Everyone else gets to do training and here I am! What do I get to do? Watch! That’s what! I’m tired of it!” Min Su shouts. “What kind of pixie are you, if not a healer?! You have healing magick!”

I am so confused. Even though I have a lot of questions, I stay quiet and just watch them.

Pixie sighs. “Every fae has healing magick. Though, the strength of it depends on the type of fae. I am not a healing pixie. In fact, I’ve never had the chance to find out what kind of pixie I am.” She looks at him and Min Su stares back. “If you really insist, we can travel to the Elven Kingdom. Many fae reside there and I’m sure we can find you a healer there.”

Min Su nods. “Please… I just don't want to be useless anymore.” He sounds so defeated.

Pixie nods and finishes tending to his arm in silence. “Alright. Not tomorrow, but the next day, we will head out for the Elven Kingdom,” she concludes.

“Why not tomorrow?” Min Su challenges.

Pixie shoots him a look and he seems to deflate in defeat. “I’m training tomorrow. Even if you aren’t able to do anything, you can watch and learn that way.”

Min Su stays quiet and nods. Once his arm is wrapped back up, he waves Dae Sung over for help in getting undressed. Pixie and I leave the tent. She starts to walk towards the trees.

“Hey, Noona?” I stop her.

She looks at me and raises an eyebrow. “What is it, Blondy?”

I sigh and look at her. “Will you sleep in my tent with me? You don't have to sleep outside. Plus I think I sleep better with someone next to me? Usually, it’s with my hyungs, but I also trust you. I just… I really don't wanna have another nightmare,” I ramble.

Pixie walks over and runs her hand through my hair. “Of course. I understand all too well,” she smiles at me. What does she mean by that? Before I have any more time to think, she pulls me into a tight hug. I hug back. This is nice. “Let’s go to bed now.”

I nod and run to my tent. Smiling, I take off my tunic and toss it in the corner of my tent. Pixie enters at that moment to see it land.

“Pick that up and fold it. I just bought that for you,” she commands, pointing to it.

“Fine,” I huff and fold it, setting it down in the same place. Normally when I sleep, I take off my pants as well, leaving just my braies. But with Pixie in here, I hesitate and just hold onto the side of my pants.

She looks over at me and chuckles, then turns around as if understanding my hesitation. I quickly take them off and lay down. She stays turned away from me as she takes off her cloak and sets it down. I watch her curiously. I’m also reminded of how many weapons she actually has as she starts to take them all off and set them next to my clothes. Afterwards, she turns and lays down next to me.

“Are you comfortable like that?” I ask. “That’s a lot of clothes still.”

Pixie smiles. “Are those good intentions? Or are you just trying to get me to take my clothes off?”

My face heats up at the question. That was not what I had in mind. “Noona!” my voice cracks. “I just want to make sure you’re comfortable!”

She laughs at the break in my voice and pets me. “I’m just teasing you. I’m comfortable like this. You have to remember that I can sleep in a tree,” she says.

“Oh yeah,” I nod and smile as I put my hands behind my head. Suddenly, I’m reminded of the men who tried to kill me and I turn on my side towards Pixie. “Hey, Noona?”

Pixie hums and glances over at me. “What is it?”

“Those men that were after me. They said that I was a criminal and that they were gonna execute me in the name of the King,” I tell her. “Who’s the King? And what does he want with me?”

She stops and stares at me. “The King called you a criminal? But you’re only 14. Aside from a little stealing, you’ve done nothing wrong. Right?” she asks.

I just shrug. “I don't know. Ever since the pillage on my home, men show up at random and try to kidnap me. I thought it was just ‘cause I was an easy target and that they were gonna sell me to creepy old men or something.”

Pixie looks to be at a loss of words. She doesn’t speak for a long while as she gathers her thoughts. “If you’re wanted by the King, then I’ll definitely protect you. That asshole is the reason I don’t have a family anymore,” she says.

“‘That asshole’?” I repeat.

“Don’t say that. It’s a bad word. I’m older than you, so I’m allowed to say it,” she scolds.

I huff. “That hardly seems fair. I’m old enough to say that!” I pout.

She chuckles. “When you don't squeak every time you talk, then maybe we’ll see about letting you use more sophisticated words like that.”

“You’re mean,” I tell her.

She shrugs. “Oh well.”

I huff again and push her shoulder. She chuckles and pulls me closer, then wraps her arm around my neck. She flexes several times and jerks my head around each time.

“Stooop!” I whine and hit her arm.

Pixie laughs and lets me go. “Alright. Now go to sleep,” she smiles and rolls over onto her stomach, head resting in her arms, to sleep. I lay next to her and drift to sleep.

Morning arrives and I stir awake to find myself hugging Pixie’s arm. She’s already awake but hasn’t moved. I let go of her arm and sit up.

“Morning Blondy,” she says as she pets me. “Ready for some training?”

“Yeah,” I nod and stand up. Grabbing my clothes, I start to get dressed. Pixie grabs her things and exits the tent. As she leaves, it dawns on me that I didn’t have a nightmare last night. I smile and finish getting ready. Then, I make my way outside.

Once outside, to my surprise, I see Min Su standing with Dae Sung. After last night’s fight, I didn’t think he’d want to watch us train.

“Today, we’ll start with the basics again. If Dae Sung catches on quickly, then we’ll move on to combat again,” Pixie states. “If the sun allows for it, we might find your fighting styles too. Let’s go.”

We head further into the cave and start the same as we did yesterday.

“Alright. Push up position. Now,” she commands.

We both get down and hold ourselves up. I wait for Pixie to correct Dae Sung, but she doesn’t.

“Down,” she says.

Just like yesterday, I struggle to go down. Hyung, on the other hand, goes down no problem. Pixie makes us hold the position before speaking again, “Up.”

Once again, Dae Sung comes up easily while I can’t even lift myself back up. I end up falling over and sighing.

“Get into position again and just hold yourself up. While Dae Sung does some push-up, we’ll work on your arm strength,” she states.

I get back to the way I was and hold myself up. Looking over at Dae Sung, I can see that he isn’t struggling at all and is just waiting for Pixie to tell him what to do.

“Since you already know how to do a proper push-up, I want you to do as many as you can. Show me how strong you are,” Pixie tells him.

I notice Hyung smile. “That’s what I was waiting for,” he speaks. As he starts his push-ups, I watch and keep count. With every up and down motion, I note all the muscles that flex. I didn’t know he was that strong. While I’m already struggling just to keep myself up, Hyung doesn’t seem to start struggling until 20 in. At 25 push-ups, he holds himself up and takes a quick break before quickly doing five more. After that, he stops and looks at Pixie.

“How was that?” he asks arrogantly.

She nods. “Good job. You can both take a quick rest now,” she says.

Finally, I lay on the ground and just relax. I have no muscles at all. Watching Dae Sung do all those push-ups made me realize how weak I really am. That just means I have to work harder though.

Dae Sung gets up and sits next to Min Su. I watch as the older keeps Min Su in good spirits as they talk. I wonder what they’re talking about?

After a short break, Pixie comes back and has us get into a fighting stance. I watch as she looks Dae Sung’s stance up and down but says nothing about it. “Throw me a punch,” she says instead.

Neither of us gets corrected as we do so. Even though I started training a day before, Dae Sung already knows everything. He doesn’t get corrected at all and he even learns fast. At this rate, I’ll fall behind again. Once we go over the basics, Pixie leads us outside to stand in front of the trees. She picks up some rocks and hands us three each. Then, she suddenly waves Min Su over.

“Give me your left hand,” she demands.

He does so and she places three rocks in his hand as well. “What's this for?” he asks.

“You’ll see,” she answers and turns away from him. “Starting from Dae Sung, I want you to aim at the tree in front of you and toss the rock at it.”

“What’s that gonna do for us?” Dae Sung challenges.

Pixie chuckles. “It lets me see how good your aim is.”

Daesung lets his arm hang and shuffles the rocks around in his hand. "I don't know about Wang Ki, but my aim is perfect," he laughs and hops slightly. Min Su can't help but laugh with him.

Pixie shakes her head. "Boys," she sighs.

Did I just miss something? I'm so confused.

Ignoring my confusion, Dae Sung just huffs and steps up. He throws the rock as hard as he can at the tree and misses. I can’t help but giggle. So much for perfect aim. He shoots a quick glare to shut me up and throws another one. That one does hit. But since the next one misses, I can assume it was just a lucky shot.

My turn! I step up and then suddenly remember something. “Noona! Can I grab my slingshot?” I ask excitedly. She nods and I run off to my tent to grab it. As I hurry back, I load up one of the rocks and get back to my place. Once there, I aim, shoot, and hit! I don't miss a single time and look at Dae Sung. "Who's got perfect aim now?" I tease and stick my tongue out at him.

Looking over at Pixie, I hope for some praise. She says nothing and instead picks up three more rocks and hands them to me.

“Do it again, only aim for that tree now,” she points to the tree to the left of us. “Don't move from this spot.”

I nod quickly. I totally got this. Once again, I load, aim, and release. Not a single miss. I look over at Pixie again for praise but her arms are crossed. Is she not happy with my results?

When she catches me watching her, she comes over and pets me. “Good job,” she says. Then, she turns to Min Su. “Now hit that tree with the rocks using your left.”

Hang on. Hyung is right-handed. Why is she making him throw with his left? I mean, I guess he can’t exactly use his right side but why make him use his left? Nonetheless, he throws the rock and it misses by a long shot. You can tell he doesn’t use his left very often because each throw is way different from the last.

“Keep practicing with your left. I want you to be able to use both sides by the time you are healed,” Pixie states.

Min Su nods and bounces in place. He’s clearly much happier to be able to do something other than just watch. It shows in everything he does. Every action is done with more bounce and the smallest hint of a smile. I guess this is better than nothing.

“Dae Sung!” Pixie calls out. “Come with me and we’ll work on your fighting style.”

“What about me?” I ask.

“Work on your strength and aim. I’ll be with you later in the day,” she replies as she walks away with Dae Sung.

Since my aim is already great, I get down into push up position and just hold myself up. Min Su sits in front of me and chuckles.

“If you bend your knees and let them rest on the ground, you can do a push up easier,” he advises.

“Really?” I ask. Then, I let my knees hit the ground and do one push up. “This is a lot easier.”

We both laugh and he pets me. “How many can you do now?” he asks.

“Let’s find out,” I reply and start counting. With the new way, I’m able to ten no problem. I struggle more after that. At 15, I stop and sit with Min Su.

“You’re weak,” Min Su laughs. “But if you keep doing them like that, then you’ll eventually be able to do them normally. The way that Pixie wants. It just takes practice is all.”

“Alright, thanks,” I nod. “Hey Hyung.”

“Hmm?” He looks at me.

“I think everything will be okay. We’ll get you healed, you can train, and your arm will be as good as new. Don't you think? It’s magick, so like, things work better that way,” I give a small laugh. “After that, we can all train together! Noona hasn’t steered us wrong yet, don’cha think?” I smile at him.

Min Su nods and pats my leg. “Just remember that things don’t always go our way,” he warns. “Plus, everyone makes mistakes. Human or not.”

“What makes you say that?” I wonder.

“Just in case,” he replies. “Keep building up your arm strength though. She obviously has a reason that she wants you stronger.”

“Other than the fact that I’m a weakling?” I remark.

Min Su hits my arm and laughs. “Yes. Other than that. Now get to it!”

“Fine, fine,” I reply and keep building up my strength. Repeatedly, I hold myself up, do ten push-ups, and rest. In no time, half the day goes by and Pixie comes back out with Dae Sung.

“Alright, Blondy. Your turn. Let’s go,” she commands.

I hop up excitedly and follow her into the cave. As I look around, I notice all her weapons are laid out on the ground. Her cloak is off and sat down next to my tent.

“So what am I gonna be doing?” I ask.

She turns to me. “Well, I have an idea on what fighting style you’d be most comfortable with. From evaluating your knowledge in hand-to-hand combat and seeing how much better you performed in the aim test, I’ve come to a conclusion,” she states.

I raise my hand. “Hold on! You’re using big words. Please dumb it down. I’m only 14,” I say.

Pixie pauses and stares at me. She chuckles slightly. “You’re already 14. The more you hear the way I speak, the more words you learn, the more sophisticated, or smarter, you’ll sound. I’m sure you can figure out what I said just by thinking a little bit.” She runs a hand through her hair and watches me. “I know you’re a smart boy. I can tell that you think about a lot of things. You just need to put your thinking into practice. Think, predict, make judgements, and do better things. You can do anything you put your mind to.”

I’m at a loss for words at the sudden moving speech she gives me. Looking at her, I nod. Just by those words alone, I can tell that Noona really cares about me. I’m happy that she’s joined us.

“Now. Onto your fighting style,” Pixie gets back to the topic at hand. She turns around and picks up a bow, then faces me again. “I think you’re best suited as a ranger. The only problem is your strength. To be able to pull a bow back, you need strength in your arms. Not only do you need it for that, but also to hold the arrow in place as you aim. It’s just like what you would do with your slingshot.” She pulls the bow back in an example of how it’s supposed to look.

“So, a ranger?” I ask, looking from the bow to her. “Can you explain more what that means?”

She nods. “Of course. A ranger is not an up-close fighter. Their weapons of choice usually consist of either bow and arrows, crossbows, javelins, or any other weapons that you can use at a distance.” She stops, probably not sure how to explain it any better.

“Okay!” I smile. “I understand now.”

Pixie seems relieved at my comment. “Good. Here.” She hands me the bow. “I want you to try and draw it back as if you’re nocking an arrow on it.”

“Okay.” I take the bow and look at it. “How do I hold it?”

“However it feels most comfortable,” she answers. “Unless of course, it’s way off, then I’ll correct you.”

I nod and take a second to just get a feel for the weapon in my hands. After a short while, I take the wooden part in my left hand and hold it out in front of me. Using my other hand, I grab the string.

“Use two fingers to draw back the bowstring,” Pixie corrects.

Taking her advice, I put two fingers onto the bowstring and attempt to pull it back. It barely moves. I laugh at how weak I am and try again. Taking a deep breath, I pull on the bowstring. Once again, barely anything happens and I look at her. “Noona!” I whine.

She laughs. “You’re doing great. This is more or less what I was expecting.”

I huff. “This isn’t fair!”

“Oh quit being so dramatic. As we keep training, you’ll build up muscle and be able to draw the bow back soon. When you can finally do ten push up, we’ll see how well you can do it then,” she states.

I nod and look at the bow. The wood used, while it is bendable, it’s very strong. It isn’t a type of wood I’ve seen before though. Just the feel of the bow is very comfortable in my hands. I like it a lot.

“You can keep it,” Pixie says suddenly. “I can tell you like it by the way you stare at it. When I was a little older than you, I made that bow. I had trained a whole year before the girls took me out into the woods to pick out everything needed to make it.” She looks away and nods as if remembering the time.

Looking at the bow, I smile. This was Noona’s first weapon. She made this. That just makes this bow even more special to me. I definitely want to be able to use it now. I look up at her and grin. Soon, this will be my weapon. I’ll make sure of it.

As if seeing the determination in my eyes, Pixie smiles and nods. “Let’s keep training and soon you’ll be able to use it.”

“Okay,” I reply. “I’m ready.”

“Good. That’s what I like to hear,” she nods. “Now put that bow down! We’re gonna train some more! It’s not just your arms that are weak. You’re weak everywhere! I want you to run to that tree and back 30 times! Let’s go! Now! Start!” she commands.

I’m startled by the sudden demands and run off. This isn’t so bad. I can run. Hopefully, I can run there and back 30 times though.

As I run out, I spot Dae Sung and Min Su talking to each other. They both look up and see me. I wave, touch the tree, and quickly run back. I notice them laugh but I ignore it.

“Faster, faster!” Pixie yells out.

I run as fast as I can. On my fifth trip to the tree, as I turn to run back, my foot slips and I end up face planting into the dirt. Dae Sung gets up to help me, but I get up faster and keep going. I’m fine. I do ten more rounds before I really start to feel out of breath.

“This is torture!” I shout.

“I can promise you it’s not,” Pixie’s voice sounds almost cold with that statement. “If you’ve got the breath to yell, you’ve got the breath to run! Come on! Five more!” She yells back.

Five more trips and I stop in front of her. I put my hands on my knees and pant to try and catch my breath. I feel her place a hand on my back and pat it.

“Good job Blondy,” she says. “You did good today. Keep it up.” She turns away from me. “Now everyone rest up. Tomorrow, we start our journey to the Elven Kingdom.”

I plop down onto the ground. Everyone gathers around this spot to chat.

Min Su speaks up. “When are we leaving tomorrow?” he asks.

“I was thinking that we start leaving around midday from now on?” Pixie suggests. “That gives us time to clean up, train for a little, and have a quick bite to eat. It might take a bit longer, but I think it’ll be worth it.”

“How far away is it anyways?” Dae Sung wonders.

Pixie chuckles and looks at them. “It’s very far. Deep into the woods and hidden well. Since the war on magick started, the Elven Kingdom made sure that it was much harder for humans to find them.”

I turn my attention to them. “There’s a war?” my voice cracks but I’m too tired to care.

Pixie looks at me and nods. “Yes. There’s been a war going on for six years. Ever since that Tyrant became the King, all of magickkind have had to hide in fear that they’ll be found out and killed. Only small villages, far from the castle, have been able to keep peace with the others. But it’s only a matter of time before the war catches up with them too.”

“Six years…” I repeat with a sigh. “Sounds like Loki’s been having too much fun.”

“This isn’t a joking matter, Wang Ki!” Pixie snaps. “People are dying! Humans and Magickkind alike. I fear for what this world will be like when you’re my age!”

Looking up, I lock eyes with her. I can see it in her eyes. All the fear, pain, and worry. She isn’t this way because she wants to be. She’s this way because the world made her change. This is a world where it’s survival of the fittest. You need to either get strong and defend yourself, or you die.

“How did you survive four years on your own like this?” she asks.

I stand up and watch her. “Sheer stupidity and luck,” I answer. “Thank you for saving us. I’m sure one day I’ll have the chance to repay after you’ve finished training us.” I head for my tent.

Pixie grabs my arm and stops me. “I just want you boys to be careful. If you don't understand the world around you, you could be killed without even knowing why.” She looks at me. “Are you fully human? It’s the only explanation I can think of that would make the King go after you.”

Dae Sung speaks for me. “We’re all human. No one in our village was magickal at all.”

“Then why was our village attacked?” I ask. “This doesn’t make any sense to me. If we’re all human, what did the King want with our village? Why did he kill my mom?!”

“Ki, calm down,” Dae Sung holds my hand. “We’ll figure this out. I promise.”

I take a deep breath and nod. Looking at Pixie, I see her watching Min Su. “Min Su hyung? What are you thinking about? You haven’t said a word about this.”

Hyung snaps his attention to me. “Uh, just about my Appa. I remember seeing him get killed that day…” he nods sadly.

“What about your mom?” I ask.

“I never knew her, she died giving birth to me,” he answers and looks at Pixie. She seems to understand and nods.

“Well, right now, we should all head to bed. The sun is setting and we will need energy to start our journey tomorrow,” Pixie comforts everyone with a head pat. “We wake up at dawn for training.”

We all nod and head to our tents. I stop and look at Pixie. “You can stay with me again, Noona,” I tell her.

She looks at me and nods. “I would like that.” Pixie smiles and follows me into the tent. We both get ready for the night and lay down. Since I’ll probably end up that way anyways, I snuggle into her side and smile. I hear her let out a small chuckle as she puts her arm around me and pulls me onto her chest. This is much more comfortable than Dae Sung’s.

“Your chest is comfier than Hyung’s,” I point out.

“That’s because I have boobs. Don't touch them or I’ll break your fingers,” she threatens while petting me. “Get comfortable though.”

While the pets are comforting, her threat makes me confused about how to feel. Nonetheless, I do as I’m told and lay on her comfortably. Just like that, I feel myself drift to sleep.