Felix is stuck in a never-ending cycle of job applications, rejection letters, and the crushing weight of existential dread. When a job offer magically appears in his inbox with a salary so ridiculously high it could pay off his student loans and bu...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Felix paced back and forth in the training room, his mind buzzing with anticipation for the next trial. Cain had left him alone for a few minutes, saying he needed to prepare something, but Felix couldn't help but feel like something was off. Or that he would find Cain slumbering on a couch again. The room was too quiet, too still, like the air was holding its breath, waiting for something to happen.
He rubbed his hands together, trying to shake off the unease. The memory of that tiny ember flickered in his mind, a reminder of the power he'd tapped into earlier. The warmth lingered, and he could feel the wisps of the magic curling in his hair. But there was something else there, too—something he couldn't quite put his finger on. A feeling, almost like... someone was watching him.
"Alright, so what's next? I'm supposed to make it rain or summon a talking cat?" he muttered to himself, half-expecting the room to respond with something even weirder. It probably would, just to spite him.
Just then, a soft rustling sound caught his attention. He whipped around, eyes scanning the room for the source. "Great, now I'm hearing things," he sighed, rubbing his temple. He was gonna get him and his sister a full day care-package, luxury spa for all the shit he was doing.
Slowly, he turned toward the sound, half expecting to see a rat–well, maybe not, but maybe a stray cat that had wandered in?
Instead, he found himself staring into a pair of luminous, amber eyes. A small, silver fox stepped out of the shadows, its fur shimmering like moonlight on water. It tilted its head, studying him with an intensity that sent a shiver down his spine. It looked far too knowing to just stray off here. In his room, specifically!
Felix blinked, wondering if he was hallucinating. "Okay, now I know I didn't summon you. What the hell?"
The fox didn't move, just stared at him with an unnerving calm. Felix crouched down, squinting at it, waving his hand around to see if it would dissipate into smoke. "You're real, right? Not some kind of stress-induced mirage?"
For some reason, it looked at him a bit judgmentally. Why do the animals here keep doing that?
"Uh... hi?" Felix managed, his voice wavering slightly. "Did Cain put you up to this, or are you just here to make sure I don't blow anything up? Don't tell me that creepy ass lady put you in here..." He hoped to never encounter her again.
The fox huffed, almost like it was amused by his rambling. Then, to Felix's utter astonishment, it sat down at his feet and stared up at him expectantly, as if waiting for something. He tried to check his pockets. No food.
"Alright, let's try this again," Felix said, crouching down again to get on the fox's level. "You're not just here to look cute, are you? You've got some kind of magical purpose, don't you? Yeah? Yeahhh."
The fox's ears twitched, and it gave another soft yip, this time sounding more like an affirmative. It just agreed with him. Right. Felix blinked, trying to process what was happening. He'd seen a lot of strange things today, but this? This was on another level. Well, not really, but you know. He reached out cautiously, expecting the fox to bolt. But it didn't. Instead, it stepped forward and nudged his hand with its nose. The touch was warm, and Felix felt a strange sensation in his chest, akin to the magic he did earlier, and the soft glow spread from where the fox had touched him.
