Strax kept one hand resting on Zi Bai's hair for several seconds after giving her a name. The change in her was easy to notice. The woman who, only moments earlier, had seemed to support every word with almost rigid care now displayed a different kind of calm, as though she had finally found a stable point to lean on. She was still strong, extremely strong, and the aura she carried still resembled the oppressive presence of the old Apocalypse, but now there was something more human in her posture.
It was not fragility.
It was belonging.
Strax noticed it, released a small breath through his nose, and slowly withdrew his hand, already mentally reorganizing what he needed to do from that point onward.
"I will ask Monica to prepare a room for you," he said in a practical tone, like someone who already considered the decision settled. "If you are going to remain in Asgard for a while, there is no reason to keep improvising."
