Mile stared at Miu's neck. The faint vibration was almost invisible to ordinary eyes, but Mile's keen senses caught a dim golden glimmer radiating from behind the chubby cat's brown fur. A small compass-shaped metal pendant made of aged copper suddenly spun rapidly before its needle finally locked firmly onto Awan Hitam to the north.
"Miu ... why is your pendant warm?" Mile whispered, slowly reaching her fingers toward Miu's necklace.
Srrft!
With a lightning-fast movement that was extremely rare for a lazy cat, Miu immediately rolled over and covered his chest with both front paws.
"Meow!" he cried sharply, staring at Mile with his round eyes widened, as if warning his owner not to do anything reckless or touch him.
"Milea. Finish your juice," Mama Dari scolded from where she was still sitting beside her.
The Head Fairy's fingers moved quickly to cover Miu's pendant with the edge of her silver robe, hiding its increasingly blazing golden glow. Mama Dari's face slipped back into its untouchable cold-mask mode.
"The party is almost over. It's time for you to go back to your room and tidy up those books lying everywhere," Mama Dari continued, standing gracefully as she adjusted her monocle.
"But, Mama! The compass on Miu's necklace lit up!" Mile cried, jumping to her feet, desperate for an explanation. "I saw it with my own eyes! The needle pointed toward that dark gray cloud that smells like rusty iron! Based on my detective theory—"
"Milea Nanira," Mama Dari cut in, her voice booming yet low enough to make several fairies nearby fall silent at once. "There is no theory and no analysis. That compass is just an old toy Mama put on him, and it's broken. Don't argue. Go to your room at once!"
Mile pressed her lips tightly together, not daring to argue, and moved forward a few inches in a clear sign of restrained protest. Mile's keen intuition told her one thing for certain: Mama Dari was lying. Mama Dari's left hand, hidden behind her robe, was trembling slightly—a sign that the most respected Head Fairy of all was deeply anxious.
"Mama's scared ... but scared of what?" Mile wondered to herself.
Without arguing again, Mile picked up Miu, who was lying resignedly on the cotton-candy grass, then dragged her feet toward the Cloud Palace corridor. In her arms, Miu gave a soft purr, as if trying to soothe his chatty owner.
That night, the Cloud Palace suddenly fell into an ominous silence. Moonlight still cast a silvery glow over the walls of soft pink chewing gum. In her room, Mile couldn't sleep. She sat cross-legged on her cushioned bed, with Miu fast asleep in her lap, purring softly like a broken toy.
Very carefully, Mile's small fingers slipped beneath Miu's thick fur and grasped the copper pendant. The moment she touched it, warmth spread across her palm.
"This isn't an ordinary compass ...." Mile whispered to herself. Her hand felt over the delicate engraving on the back of the pendant. There, two highly unfamiliar initials were carved: N & M.
Suddenly, the compass needle began to tremble softly again, emitting a thin line of light that pierced through Mile's bedroom window and stretched straight toward Hutan Awan Gelap in the north.
Mile's eyes immediately lit up with unbearable curiosity. Her know-it-all nature and adventurous spirit were blazing tonight.
"This compass doesn't belong to Miu," Mile whispered with a clever smile. "I'm sure it belongs to someone ... and they're calling me from over there!"