Episode 1: Starlight Forest and Yellow Star Shorts

The night of Lumina Forest, a mysterious primeval forest where moonlight pours down like a silver net, is always much more dazzling and lively than the day. When soft fluorescent dewdrops form on each leaf and the night fog wraps around the surface like a soft carpet, nocturnal animals that had fallen into a deep sleep during the day on the branches of old trees wake up one by one. Among them, on the slopes of the ‘Millennium Moonlight Oak Tree’, the oldest giant tree in the forest and the heart of the forest, ‘Oli’, a little owl showing off its soft gray-brown down inside a cozy tree nest, woke up with its round golden eyes blinking.

“Ugh… night has already come!” Ollie spread his two small wings wide on both sides and yawned widely. The soft yellow light coming from the pine cone lamp gently illuminated Ollie's round face and the cozy moss bed. But Ollie's morning routine - to owls night is morning - included a very special and unusual ritual that could never be found in other ordinary owls. Ollie walked to a corner of the nest, to a closet made of soft birch bark, and carefully took out his most prized treasure.

It was a pair of cute little suspender shorts made of dark cobalt blue sturdy natural cotton with bright yellow stars like the Milky Way in the night sky. These shorts had a warm story unique to the Ollie family. From the time he was born, Ollie was a little smaller than other baby owls, and the down on his belly was unusually thin, so he would shiver and suffer from a terrible cough and cold every time the cold night wind blew. Mother Serena, who was heartbroken watching the young cub suffer all night, carefully requested Arachne, the silver spider craftsman of the forest, to weave moonlight silk thread and cotton batting together, stitch by stitch, to hand-make special overalls and shorts to warm the baby's belly.

As Ollie looked at the swollen tips of her mother's wings while she was sewing, she made a promise to herself. These pants are not just clothes, they are mother's warm heart. Ollie took turns putting his two plump, short legs into the crotch of his shorts. Suspenders with cute yellow acorn buttons were draped over both shoulders, and the plump, feathery buttocks were twitched from side to side to adjust the fit. Flutter-! The small silver bell attached to the right pocket of the shorts made a refreshing sound and shook cheerfully.

“It’s perfect! The yellow stars are shining brightly today too.” Ollie patted his stomach in satisfaction while looking at the clear dew mirror hanging on the wall of the nest. At that time, a squirrel with pointed brown ears and a fluffy tail stuck its head out, accompanied by a rustling sound on the thick oak branch outside the nest. It was ‘Benny’, Ollie’s childhood friend and the self-proclaimed best acorn taster in the forest.

“Oli! Are you wearing those weird shorts again today?” Benny sat down on a tree branch and chuckled, clinking the acorn leather pouch on his shoulder. “How strange, Benny! What a nice, sturdy piece of clothing this is, isn’t it? These are the only shorts in the world that my mom carefully sewed with starry silk thread for fear that my stomach would get cold in the night breeze in the forest!” Ollie put his wings on his waist and pouted his mouth.

“But Ollie, you’re an owl! Why on earth do you need pants when your whole body is covered in fluffy feathers? Do you know what the great horned owls living in the branches of the big pine tree said when they saw you yesterday? They said, ‘An owl that can’t even fly, and it walks around with a yellow cloth wrapped around its butt’, giggling like a buzzard!”

“Hmph! Great horned owls don’t know fashion. All they need is a bunch of feathers, right? How soft and cozy your butt is when you wear these pants! Plus, there are pockets so you can put your treasures in as much as you want. Now, look at this!” From the left pocket of his shorts, Ollie took out a shiny rainbow pebble he had picked up from the stream during the day and proudly held it out.

“Wow… the rock really shines like a rainbow? It’s still more useless than an acorn!” Benny's eyes widened as he touched the pebble, then took out a large shiny golden acorn from his leather pouch and shook it. As the two friends were arguing over a pebble and an acorn on a tree branch, a soft night breeze rose from the thick branches overhead, accompanied by the sound of loud wings flapping. Puddeuk - Ollie’s mother owl, ‘Serena’, with snow-white feathers and silver fur on her chest, landed lightly.

On mom's toenails, Ollie's favorite sweet chestnut raspberries and dewy honey were wrapped beautifully in small lotus leaves. “Our Ollie, you wore yellow star shorts beautifully today too, didn’t you?” Mother Serena gently stroked Ollie's head with her beak.

“Mom! Benny keeps teasing me and saying that owls don’t wear pants. The great horned owls also make fun of me and say that I only wear pants even though I can’t fly.” As Ollie complained with a sullen expression as he was snuggled into his mother's fluffy winged arms, his mother smiled quietly and looked at Benny and Ollie alternately.

“Bennie, in the forest there are squirrels that climb trees, moles that dig in the ground, and otters that swim in the water. How boring and desolate this forest would be if everyone lived the same way. It is not at all strange to wear slightly different clothes and look different from others. The heart that loves oneself completely without being intimidated by the gaze of others is the brightest star in the night sky.” Benny smiled shyly at his mother's warm words, covering his nose with his fluffy tail.

“Hehe... I think it’s true after hearing what you said. To be honest, Ollie’s yellow star shorts can be recognized at a glance even from a distance at night, so you don’t have to worry about getting lost.” “Really? My shorts are the most noticeable thing in the forest!” Ollie quickly regained his strength and flapped his wings and stuck out his belly. Mother Serena put a ripe red raspberry wrapped in a lotus leaf into Ollie's beak. As the bursting sweet and sour juice filled his mouth, a thrill of happiness surged through Ollie's entire body.

“Now, have a Benny too. You need to fill your stomach to have fun dancing at the firefly festival by the pond tonight.” “Thank you, ma’am! It’s three times sweeter than an acorn!” Benny was also nibbling on a raspberry and wagging his tail. However, after his mother entered the nest, Ollie, who stood alone on the edge of a tree branch, still had a small, unspeakable shadow in a corner of his heart. Ollie has not yet been able to fly in the night sky. Usually, little owls around Ollie's age have already completed their flight training, fluttering between tree branches and soaring into the night sky, but Ollie's wings were slightly smaller than those of other owls, and when he stood at high places, his toes would shake and he would get dizzy.

Moreover, I had a vague fear that if I jumped while wearing shorts, the wind would rush through my pants crotch and I would plummet upside down like a balloon. ‘Will I be able to fly soaring through the wide blue night sky with the wind? … ? How amazing would it be to fly freely through the Milky Way wearing these yellow star shorts... … ’ Olli stood carefully at the end of a tree branch, raised his head, and looked up at the night sky. Stars were pouring down like tens of thousands of silver diamonds on the deep blue velvet sky. The cold night breeze blew, gently tickling Ollie's cheeks and the hem of his yellow star shorts.

The silver bell in my pocket rang like a small container being handed over. “Oli! What are you deep in thought, standing there blankly? There’s a firefly festival eve dance party by the pond tonight! If you’re late, you’ll lose all the seats in the front row!” Benny shouted, climbing down the oak tree trunk with the agile movements characteristic of a squirrel.

“Ah, Benny! Don’t leave me, come with me!” Ollie fastened the suspenders on his shorts tightly over his shoulders once again and started running across the branches on his chubby legs. The sound of both feet stepping on tree branches without flapping feathers created a cheerful rhythm. As he was going down the tree, Leo and Kyle, big horned owl cousins ​​who were training to hunt on an upper branch, folded their wings and blocked Ollie's path. The two brothers, with their sharp beaks and magnificent wing feathers flashing, smiled mischievously as they looked up and down Ollie's shorts.

“Hey, Little Ollie in shorts! Are you hiking today again with your strong legs instead of flapping your wings? It’s a shame for birds of prey to crawl up trees like a squirrel instead of flying in the sky like an owl!” Leo showed off his sharp claws and teased me mischievously. Kyle was also fluffing his feathers and giggling next to him.

“That’s right! Are you wearing foam wings? Those thick shorts are so heavy that you look like you’ll just be crawling on the ground for the rest of your life!” But Ollie never gave up and pulled up the waist of his yellow star shorts. An unquenchable, proud flame burned in his golden eyes.

“I’m not crawling, but I’m bravely exploring the paths of the forest! Those who fly high in the sky don’t know the faint scent of evening primroses on the ground, the treasure pebbles hidden in the crevices of rocks, or the whispers of small insect friends sleeping behind the blades of grass!”

“That’s right! Don’t make fun of us Olly! You guys don’t even have an acorn bag and you always act so proud!” Benny energetically helped by tossing acorn shells at the side. When the acorn shell hit Leo's toes, he was startled and flapped his wings.

“Hmph! You talkative little guy! Anyway, look forward to a dance competition at the festival! Can an owl that can’t even fly dance properly?” Leo and Kyle laughed as if they were dumbfounded, then flapped their wings violently and soared into the night sky. The brothers' large wings flapped, creating a gust of wind, and oak leaves fell like a shower. Ollie smoothed the feathers blowing in the wind, tightened his grip on his suspenders, and clenched his fists.

“Just wait and see, brothers! I won’t fly with just my wings. I’ll surprise the whole forest with the rhythm of my feet and my hips!” “Yeah, Ollie! Your shorts dance is the best in the forest! Let’s go!” Benny took the lead and ran down the moonlit moss path. On a path passing through a hill with huge roots of an oak tree, an old hedgehog named ‘Pip’, with sharp silver thorns bristling from a crevice in a moss-covered rock, put a magnifying glass on his nose and stuck his head out.

“Oh my, who is this? Isn’t it Ollie, the little fashionista from our forest!” Grandpa Pip chuckled as he looked at Ollie's shorts through a magnifying glass. “Hello, Grandpa Pip! I’m on my way to the Firefly Dance Festival by the Pond tonight.”

"Hehe, that's very special. I've seen all kinds of birds and beasts in this Lumina forest for a hundred years, but I've never seen one like you wearing cool shorts that emit starlight even in the dark. Hunter owls only like dark fur to hide in the night sky, but a truly courageous person proudly reveals his existence to the world. Now, if you get hungry, go and share it with a friend." Grandpa Pip handed Ollie and Benny two pieces of sweet homemade ‘acorn dew jelly’ carefully wrapped in leaves.

“Wow! It’s grandpa’s acorn jelly! Thank you!” Benny wagged his tail and took the jelly and put it in his mouth, and Olly also carefully stuffed the remaining jelly into his left pocket of his shorts. The sound of silver bells rattling in my pocket rang out even more clearly and cheerfully.

“Thank you, Grandpa! I’ll show you the best butt dance of the festival!” Ollie puffed out his chest and bowed bravely. Even though my wings were still clumsy, it was okay. The ground in the forest that I walked on with my feet was hard and warm, and my reliable friend Benny and my beloved neighbors were breathing together by my side. With the sound of silver bells fluttering, the heart-pounding night adventure of Ollie, a little owl who dreams of fluttering his own dazzling wings as he travels through the forest on two legs rather than wings, has just taken its powerful first steps.