A Penny for a thought by Alex

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  Alex wasn't feeling it today. A mixture of different moods filled her.

  Happy because she scored some good loot from that weird-looking minecart, but also frustrated by how those… humans treated her.

  They were so disrespectful!

  Still, she couldn't deny there was a tiny bit of guilt for what she did to them. But she'd been too angry to care. So she went for it.

  It's not like she started it, right?

  Steve would understand… right?

  She paused. Maybe telling Steve wasn't a good idea.

  Steve always reminded her to treat the vilgers kindly back in the Overworld. Even when she pushed for more aggressive progress, Steve stood firm on his decision.

  But those she killed weren't vilgers—they were humans. Smarter than vilgers, and far more annoying to deal with. They had weapons, unlike Vilgers who were defenseless when there Iron Golem were down.

  Not to mention, their weapons kind of hurt. Well, it was her own fault for not wearing armor, but she didn't find herself needing to. She hadn't really taken that much lethal damage to begin using armor.

  She had a feeling that if she told Steve what had happened, she would see that look he had always given her when she messed up so badly, even for him. Or worse.

  Still…

  She just didn't get it. Not even now.

  What was the point?

  Why not take advantage of the vilgers?

  They're dumb, easy to manipute, and profits would shoot up faster than Steve's old sugarcane farm. But no matter how much she tried to convince him, Steve never budged. Not an inch.

  It's not like it was hard to zombify the vilgers, then to purify them to get discounts. All that was needed was a potion and a golden apple, and boom! Profit, like it never happened.

  Then again, there wasn't really a need to argue. Steve had already built a bunch of automated farms and had established many good trades with vilgers. They basically lived in a utopia now with food, materials, gear, and basically everything arrived in a matter of days with zero effort.

  The only real danger was when a creeper sneaks up behind you. Alex recalled she nearly died more times than she liked to admit because of that. Her clumsiness may have added to that, as it was embarrassing to admit even to herself.

  But deep down, those days had become… boring.

  Wither? Done.

  Ender Dragon? Done. Many times to even count.

  Warden? Big, scary, blind thing? Done. It wasn't as hard as it was at the start.

  And many more. They had done it all.

  SHE had done it all.

  She'd faced all of them with nothing but a bow in hand.

  So, being stuck in this pce, a brand-new realm? It stirred something inside her she hadn't felt in a long time.

  Excitement.

  The desire to explore a brand new realm. Filled with endless possibilities and a journey that neither she nor Steve has ever seen!

  Steve has already explored every biome and realm that existed before her, which spoils a lot of her fun. But now, they had the same start, meaning both were unaware of what y before them. No maps, no tricks. He didn't know what was coming, and neither did she.

  That was the fun of it.

  That was what she missed: the freedom to explore without being in someone else's shadow.

  Not that Steve ever made her feel that way on purpose. He never acted superior. It was something she found annoying at times. She fondly remembered the times when he taught her redstone. Helped her get started when she was lost. Always willing a lend a hand.

  It was a bond they shared, and she treasured it greatly.

  But in her mind? He was the expert. The guy who's done it all before her.

  While her?

  She was still pying catch-up. Despite all the achievements she made, the same as his. It never fulfilled her.

  It felt like she was a baby vilger, and he was the big one with all the trades and goods.

  It made her feel… less.

  But here? In this new pce? New realm?

  Here, she could carve her own path. Her own name.

  Finally reaching the top of the cliff, Alex looked over the nd with a grin.

  This realm will remember the name Alex.

  She'll make sure of it.

  Grrrrrowl.

  Her stomach growled.

  Her face went bnk.

  "…Right after I find some snacks." She decided, after spotting a herd of Grimm down the cliff. Without a word, and a water bucket in hand, she jumped.

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  AN: Honestly, this is more of an interlude than a chapter, given its short word count. Still, I haven't got the right mood to write a full-length chapter of this fic; however, I did have a motivation to write this bit, due to how bored I was.

  Nevertheless, that wasn't the only reason. It was quite fun to write this bit, cause I like to add some characterization to Alex.

  Basically, Steve came out in 2009, right? And Alex around 2014? (Courtesy of Google). Anyways, basically, Steve is older, more experienced than Alex. He had already done everything he could at that time before Alex spawned into the world. This in turn made Alex feel less inferior than Steve in one way or the other. This bit just shows what her goal was into this realm.

  But what about Steve?

  Well, who knows what that guy is thinking? Maybe facing Salem if he finds out and sees her as a boss to kill--