Chapter 427: Fox Training

In the past, Astrid was bright. Bubbly. Sociable beyond all reason.

Wherever there was noise, wherever there was laughter, wherever there was activity—Astrid was there, right in the middle of it all, her seven tiny tails wagging with enthusiasm.

And she wanted everyone to join her.

"Mama! Mama! Come play with me!"

Nadia looked up from her diplomatic papers, exhaustion already creeping into her features.

"Astrid, sweetheart, Mama has work to do. Important work that helps people."

"But you’ve been working for hours!" Astrid tugged at her mother’s sleeve. "You need a break! Come on, let’s go to the garden! I found a really cool bug!"

Nadia sighed. "Maybe later, my little fox."

"You always say that!"

And off Astrid would run, straight to Fauna’s workshop.

"Auntie Fauna! Auntie Fauna! Guess what?!"

Fauna looked up from her research papers, already knowing what was coming.

"What is it, little whirlwind?"

"I found a really cool bug! Come see it with me!"

"Astrid, I’m in the middle of something very delicate—"

"But it’s the coolest bug! It has like a million legs! And it’s all sparkly! You have to see it!"

Fauna glanced at her papers, then at Astrid’s eager face, then back at her papers.

"Maybe in a little while—"

"PLEEEEASE?"

An hour later, Fauna would find herself in the garden, looking at a moderately interesting beetle, while her papers sat abandoned on her workbench.

And then there were her sisters.

Charlotte, Anya, and the others never stood a chance.

"Charlotte! Let’s play tag!"

"I’m busy reading—"

"Reading can wait! Tag is more fun!"

"Astrid, I really don’t—"

But Astrid was already grabbing her hand and pulling her outside.

"Anya! I found a new game! You have to play!"

Anya, ever the strategist, tried to negotiate.

"How about we play one round, and then I can go back to—"

"TEN ROUNDS! Let’s play ten rounds!"

And so it went, day after day.

Astrid meant no harm. She was just a child—an innocent, loving, overly enthusiastic child who couldn’t understand why everyone didn’t want to spend every moment with her.

But it was exhausting for everyone else.

And Mika noticed.

He always noticed everything.

So, one day, after watching Astrid drag their exhausted sisters through yet another marathon play session, he approached Nadia.

"She’s not going to stop on her own, you know."

Nadia looked at him, surprised by the observation from such a young child.

"I’ve tried talking to her." She admitted. "She just doesn’t understand. She thinks everyone loves spending time with her as much as she loves spending time with them."

"Because she’s the cutest, most responsible, strongest oldest sister."

Mika said flatly, quoting Astrid’s frequent self-praise.

Nadia chuckled despite herself. "Exactly."

Mika thought for a moment.

Then he smiled.

A small, knowing, slightly mischievous smile.

"I’ll handle it."

—

A few days later, Mika found Astrid in the garden, chasing butterflies.

"Astrid!"

She spun around, eyes wide with surprise. Mika never called out to her. She was always the one chasing him.

"Mika! What’s up? Do you want to play? I was just chasing butterflies but we can do something else if you want!"

"Oh! Oh! We could build a fort! Or climb a tree! Or go rock hunting—"

"Actually." Mika interrupted smoothly. "I have something more interesting in mind."

Astrid’s eyes lit up.

"More interesting than forts and rocks? Tell me! Tell me!"

Mika sat down on a nearby bench, patting the space beside him. Astrid immediately bounced over and plopped down, practically vibrating with anticipation.

"You know how I’ve been watching those nature shows lately?"

Astrid nodded eagerly. Mika loved his documentaries.

"Well, I saw this one about hunting. Not regular hunting—the old kind, with hunters in forests tracking animals."

Astrid leaned in, fascinated.

"And these hunters had these amazing animals with them. Foxes. Beautiful, smart foxes that would help them track down prey."

"They would train them using special whistles—different sounds for different commands. Sit. Stay. Track. Attack."

He paused, letting the image sink in.

"And I thought...that’s really cool. I want to try it."

Astrid nodded vigorously.

"Yeah! That sounds awesome! But...where are you going to get a fox?"

Mika looked at her.

Directly at her.

A smile spread across his face.

"Why would I need to get a fox from outside..."

He said, his voice dropping to something warm and almost teasing.

"...when I already have one at home?"

Astrid blinked.

"And not just any fox."

Mika reached out and gently touched one of her tails—the fourth one, the sensitive one, making her shiver.

"This fox has seven beautiful tails. The most beautiful tails I’ve ever seen."

Astrid’s heart nearly stopped.

"So why would I go looking for an alternative..." Mika continued, his eyes locked on hers. "...when I have such an adorable fox right here by my side?"

Even back then, even as a child, Mika knew exactly how to manipulate a situation.

How to say the right words.

How to get exactly what he wanted.

Astrid didn’t stand a chance.

Her heart raced so fast she thought it might jump out of her chest.

Mika wanted her. Mika thought she was adorable. Mika wanted to spend time with her, doing something he had chosen.

"YES!" She shouted, grabbing his hands. "YES, YES, YES! Let’s do it! Train me! Make me your fox! I’ll be the best fox ever! I promise!"

Mika chuckled.

"Good."

And so it began.

Every day, Mika would take Astrid to a quiet corner of the garden.

He had read books on animal training—far more advanced than any child should have been reading—and he applied those principles with frightening precision.

"Sit."

Astrid sat.

"Good fox."

Head pat.

She beamed.

"Paw."

She offered her hand. He took it gently.

"Excellent fox." Another head pat. She melted.

"Roll over."

She flopped onto the grass and rolled, giggling.

"Wonderful fox!" He scratched behind her ears. She practically purred.

And when she did well, there were rewards.

Head pats. Compliments. Sometimes even kisses on the cheek that made her entire face turn red and her heart do backflips.

When she didn’t follow commands quickly enough?

Mika’s expression would shift. Become stern. Disappointed.

"That wasn’t very good, Astrid. My fox should listen better."

And Astrid would feel such a pang of distress that she would try twice as hard next time.

It was a reward and punishment system far more sophisticated than any five-year-old should have been capable of designing.

But Mika was not any five-year-old.

And Astrid, completely enamored, never questioned any of it.

She thought they were playing.

She thought he just wanted to spend time with her.

She thought all the training, all the commands, all the conditioning—it was just a fun game between them.

She had no idea what he was really doing.

Until the day everything changed.

Charlotte had made a friend outside the family—a shy, timid girl who didn’t do well with loud, energetic people.

They were planning to go to the market together, just the two of them.

Astrid, of course, caught wind of this.

"Charlotte! Where are you going? Can I come? Can I come? I want to meet your friend!"

Charlotte immediately tensed.

"No, Astrid. You can’t come."

"But why? I’m great with new people! I’ll be super friendly! She’ll love me!"

"Astrid, she’s shy. She doesn’t do well with...with..."

"With what?"

Charlotte hesitated. "With...a lot of energy."

Astrid’s face fell for a moment, but then her stubborn streak kicked in.

"That’s okay! I’ll be calm! I promise! I’ll be the calmest person ever! You won’t even notice I’m there!"

"Astrid, no."

"Pleeeeease?"

"No."

"But CHARLOTTE—"

The argument escalated.

Astrid grabbed Charlotte’s arm, refusing to let go. Charlotte tried to pry her off.

Their sisters heard the commotion and came to see what was happening.

Soon it was a whole scene—Astrid being dragged away, Charlotte getting frustrated, everyone trying to mediate.

And Astrid, stubborn as always, refused to give in.

She knew that if she just kept pushing, kept insisting, kept being difficult—everyone would eventually give in. They always did.

She was winning.

But then—

A whistle.

A specific tone. A particular frequency. One she had heard hundreds of times during their training sessions.

Her body moved before her mind could process.

She dropped to all fours.

Right there in the hallway.

In front of everyone.

She stared at her hands—now on the ground—in complete shock.

What was happening? Why couldn’t she stand? Why was her body acting on its own?

She turned to see the source of the whistle and Mika stood at the end of the hallway, his expression calm. Controlled. Satisfied.

He lowered the whistle from his lips.

And in that moment, Astrid understood.

It wasn’t a game.

All those weeks of training—it wasn’t playing. It wasn’t bonding.

It was conditioning.

He had been systematically training her body to respond to his commands. The rewards. The punishments. The consistency. The repetition.

He had turned her into an actual fox.

A fox that would do whatever its master commanded.

The entire family stared in shock.

Charlotte’s mouth hung open. Anya’s eyes were wide. Even the adults, who had come to see what the commotion was about, looked stunned.

Mika had done what none of them could.

He had gained control of Astrid.

And then—improbably—the shock on their faces shifted into something else.

Approval.

Relief.

Even admiration.

Fauna gave a small thumbs up from behind a pillar.

Yelena nodded slowly, impressed.

Nadia just stared, reevaluating everything she thought she knew about her youngest.

Because Astrid needed this.

She needed someone who could rein her in.

Someone who could make her stop when she wouldn’t listen to anyone else.

And somehow, impossibly, Mika had become that person.

"Astrid." Mika called, his voice calm but firm. "Come here."

And Astrid crawled to him.

Her body moved on its own, despite her mind screaming, despite her pride wailing, despite everything.

She crawled across the floor until she reached his feet, then sat there, looking up at him with a mixture of betrayal and something else—something that looked almost like worship.

Mika reached down and patted her head.

"Good fox."

She wanted to be angry.

She wanted to scream at him for manipulating her.

But his hand felt so good on her head.

His praise felt so warm.

And despite everything, a small part of her—a growing part—whispered that maybe, just maybe, this was where she belonged.

By his side.

Under his care.

His fox.

—

From that day forward, things changed.

Whenever Astrid got too overbearing, too hyperactive, too much for anyone to handle—Mika would whistle.

And she would come.

She would drop whatever she was doing and crawl to him, her body obeying commands her mind couldn’t override.

"It’s not fair!" She would whine, curled up in his lap while he stroked her hair. "You tricked me. You manipulated me. This is too much!"

And Mika would just smile, continuing to pet her.

"Shh. It’s okay. You’re my good fox."

"I’m not a fox! I’m your big sister!"

"You’re my fox who happens to be my big sister."

"That doesn’t make any sense!"

But she would stop struggling. Stop complaining. Settle into his lap with a contented sigh.

Because despite everything being with Mika like this felt right.

Felt safe.

Felt like home.

And over the years, he used it less and less, especially since the incident left her acting quite reserved.

Mostly when she was about to have a fight with her sisters, or when she got too worked up about something.

A quick whistle, a few moments in his lap, and she would calm down completely.

Eventually, she forgot about it.

The conditioning became so ingrained, so natural, that she didn’t even notice it anymore.

Until tonight.

Until that whistle echoed in her office, and her body dropped to all fours before her mind could even process what was happening.

Until she realized—

She was caught.

Completely and utterly caught.

In the trap he had set for her years ago.

And there was nothing she could do about it.