#but when he was sure that belos would replace him and amity gave him the whole.. nice speach thing HE WAS SO CLOSE. HE WAS THINKING ABT IT

[sepublic]

Eclipse Lake!

        AMITY YOU CLEVER GIRL I AM SO PROUD OF YOU!!!!

        When she squeezed the key, I thought she was going to break it, intentionally or otherwise, rendering it useless for Hunter anyway, kind of a parallel to Luz handing over the Portal to Belos only to destroy it… But it STILL IS, but different!

        Because instead of Luz and Belos BOTH losing, Amity and Hunter BOTH win! Just… GGYAAAGGGHHHH when Amity said she felt like she needed to ‘justify’ her own EXISTENCE, and the show recognizing that solidarity between her and Hunter! And Amity’s own experience coming into play as she helps Hunter, as she helps guide him and set him on the path… Inspired by Luz to reach out to him!

        And Hunter’s DESPERATION dear god… You can see how Belos is just kind enough that Hunter genuinely wants to be with him, he’s addicted to that validation! Belos keeps him hooked, terrified and fearful yes, but also dependent on him- Not just for magic but for LOVE, and that’s something even a new staff can’t replace! You clever son of a…

        AND HE’S JUST SOME DUDE?!?! He doesn’t LOOK like Philip underneath the mask, but I really have to wonder if Belos always looks like that… WOW, I love how the show manages to really humanize Belos, or at least make him feel that way; That he really is just some uncle, you can see how and why Hunter looks up to and him, how he clung to this dude! This dude who seems so clever and playful, and if he’s ever violent, it’s only because of that curse!

        This is the REAL Belos, right? God, the way the show highlights different forms of abuse, there’s the neglect, there’s Odalia being manipulative and passive-aggressive… And there’s Belos, who’s a lot more subtle, who may or may not have his real moments that keep convincing Hunter to stick with him anyway, because he doesn’t want to lose that! Surely that’s worth all of the drawbacks and the scars…!

        And AMITY, the say the word GIRLFRIEND so many damn times!!! And how Amity keeps insisting on how she needs to be a girlfriend, and I thought this episode would be PAINFUL, but no it was actually pretty heartwarming after all! Even that bittersweet resolution is still sweet, compared to Luz and Belos both losing, you have Amity and Hunter both winning, because they both deserve to!

        AND GGYAAAGGGGHHHH the Abused Child solidarity between Amity and Hunter, how she can understand what it’s like to have that abuse! How Hunter also recognizes it, and he really does want a friend… Because amidst that real desperation, which this boy CRACKED and broke, that cannot be healthy… As soon as Amity helps him, albeit after forcing her to? When Hunter has no more reason to fight, he genuinely thanks her… And it’s awkward because of the previous fight, and YEAH he forced her to-

        But he still thanks her! The thing with Hunter and his deals is that he’s always looking for a way out of pain, a way out of fighting and hurting others, a way for everyone to benefit, for things to work out… He just wants things to work out and this kid is TERRIFIED, he gave me major Lilith vibes here! But unlike Lilith, Hunter had Luz to soften him up initially, and Amity’s recognition so that Hunter could eventually ask for help…

        And GYAGH their smarmy little interactons, I love it so much! Hunter still being a snarky little shit, that BBYYEEEE, he’s so obnoxious! And that Captain, we never got a name for her, but I liked her! No name in the credits… Ngl when she started talking to Amity, I was already envisioning the fan content where they hang out together, but then she chose to murder Amity just for fun. Yeah, Eda, give that to her!

        OWLBERT! Poor Owlbert… Hopefully he gets healed too, I like Eda learning to negotiate with the Owl Beast more, this is some real Professor Hulk vibes… At first I was scared that the Owl Beast’s deal would be negative later on, that Eda would have to cede complete control afterwards- But then Eda said that King doesn’t want to hear about it, which means it’s harmless because NO MORE SECRETS, and I hoped for something cute! And it wasn’t exactly CUTE cute, but it was still a nice treat for the Owl Beast, albeit offscreen…

        I am RELIEVED from this episode, I was expecting a lot of pain! And we did, but we wrapped it up with comfort… Amity’s Palisman is named GHOST, I guess she already had one, and that’s why Odalia and Alador let her stay home? Too bad Ghost and Lil Rascal didn’t interact, and I wish we could’ve gotten to see the others make note of him, and Hunter’s bond. I am glad that Hunter recognized Amity as the ‘Baby Blight’, Eda recognizes his voice, and Luz DID tell her about the encounter!

        A bad, but sad boy… Aww Luz! And her little messages, and how Amity is still trying to figure out and apply that she doesn’t NEED to prove herself to Luz, her advice and wisdom and passing it on… Seeing other characters pass on their own development, that’s so dang cathartic and sweet! And she still manages to have some faith, and King, who knows Luz, helps Amity translate! And King and Amity and Eda interacting… King’s screams DO take the form of Weh, I guess all those Weh’s were foreshadowing to an instinctual battle-cry!

        Kikimora going UNHINGED was hilarious, and I’m disappointed we didn’t get to see a full mine-cart chase! She definitely gives me Lilith vibes in her desire for approval… Or just to look good, Kikimora might not value Belos so much, as she does the prestige. I don’t think she cares for him that much, if her main goal is to upstage Hunter, and she forgets about the Titan’s Blood… But with how she’s getting more and more unhinged, dang!

        Also, everytime they mentioned Rain… My first thought was immediately RAINE, as in Raine Whispers, and then disappointment! Our Willow content was short and sweet, but I still need more, I will replace my hierarchy of needs for a solid Willow plot! And we still need a name for Gus’ palisman…

        Kikimora really WAS Yzma and I love her paranoia about Hunter sabotaging her, and the best part is that she’s right! The look into Abomination magic, the Abomatons being cool… Actually Darius, maybe Alador ISN’T a hack, you can’t deny these aren’t cool! And I’m glad they’re still threatening and dangerous… I also love that lore/confirmation of Titan’s blood coming from the veins, and the veins deflect magic, because they’re designed to CONTAIN it! I wonder if the Slitherbeast was captured, to make room for Belos’ mining operations… RIP.

        Also, Philip alludes to companions he lost! I wonder if those companions will be relevant, but given their rather anticlimactic introduction by an off-handed, rather simple death, and maybe not. Still, I feel bad for Philip, but who knows- Maybe he discovers later on that they lived! It’d be sad if he was a Luz parallel, and his Eda, King, and Amity all died with the Fool’s Blood.

        But yes, I love the adversarial interactions, but the brief understanding, the ANIMATION… Amity’s strength and skill, Hunter getting used to his own palisman, I’m proud of them both! And Hunter, baby… The fact that you think Belos WILL react that negatively is not a good sign. And I love you Amity, for planting that seed in his head that a true loved one won’t make you feel like you need to ‘prove’ anything… And GOD her mentioning how she feels the need to ‘justify her existence’, because she’s just a tool to her parents!

        And Hunter recognizes that he can easily be thrown away, but at this point this is all he has! And Amity suggesting at the end that maybe it isn’t, and with that bit of kindness from her, technically forced… It might give Hunter hope? And the show reminding us at the end that he IS a kid, scared and desperate, Belos is the real enemy here- And him MAKING PROGRESS WITH HIS PALISMAN AND TALKING!!! WHAT IS THE NAME?!?!

        All in all I expected SO much pain from this episode, but instead, I got a lot more happiness and satisfaction! I’m glad… Though, I feel like what Hunter brought up about Belos being able to target the Owl House, it’ll come into play. Not as HIS threat he’ll carry through on, but as a general warning of Belos’ danger… And Kikimora saw Amity, Eda, and King interfere too! Will she go after them in Yesterday’s Lie later? Will she bring this up with Alador and Odalia, and will Hunter vouch for and defend Amity, since he has that power? Maybe even say that she HELPED him, because he owes that to her?

        Just… That conflict was NOT good but it was clearly out of desperation. Once it’s over, Hunter wants to get along, and he wants to show gratitude… And he’ll definitely think on what Amity said. God, like Lilith, it’s really complex in showing how nasty and dangerous they have to be, but as soon as they’re safe, you realize that they really were just being forced to act like this. This was SUCH a good episode, and actually balm for my heart!

        Which… Could point towards Yesterday’s Lie causing me PAIN instead! Also I guess that lake from the trailer we see… Luz is going to visit a regular body of water and mix it with the Titan’s Blood? Hunter has the Blood AND the key, the key might be more important as the device itself, honestly… Will Luz use a special body of water, or just any old one? Will she use a pre-existing lake of blood, now regular water? Will it be right beside the Owl House, THAT would be nice!

        If it’s a regular rift she can go through, back and forth, regularly- THAT would be nice, but it’d be dangerous if it only had a few uses left! Or maybe it’s infinite, but the previous lakes had been drained dry by someone else, of course Belos or other witches… To make the Portal? But yes I love the interdynamic plays of people not trusting each other, but also acting in best interests, but also being a bit kind, recognizing solidarity, how it all comes together in ONE big mess! I love Willow remarking on Amity’s progress, and Belos…

        …He says he’s been to the human world before. I wouldn’t be surprised- Maybe he’s used up Titan’s Blood in the past to visit. Maybe he’s just a regular human who stumbled in, an offshoot of the family Philip left behind? Or he DID visit, and he came back- And his ‘tests’ there, to see how wild magic and the curse interacted with this world… It came into play? Also as a fun fact, Eda saw what is obviously Dragon Ball in theaters like thirty years ago, so she watched it as a teen! That’s a fun thought… Glad she had all that enjoyment for herself!

        WHAT an episode, and I look forward to Yesterday’s Lie… But I’m also SCARED! And it seems our remaining shots are of Luz emerging from her own homemade rift, hopefully close to the Owl House… And Camila! Why do I feel like THIS will be a painful cliffhanger, this time followed by a full-on hiatus, much worse than what Agony of a Witch did for us and the wait for YBOS! Either way, see you on the other side, for the Season 2A finale!

       Poor Hunter… This kid really went from existing without Belos, to feeling like his entire existence is wrapped around the Emperor! Somebody free him from his cage, and return him where he USED to be, where he belongs! Back to the wild he misses, the freedom!

#the owl house #the owl house hunter #the owl house amity #amity blight #the owl house belos #emperor belos #the owl house eda #edalyn clawthorne #the owl house luz #luz noceda #the owl house kikimora #speculation #analysis #meta

[sergeantsporks]

Do You Want the Knife You Left In My Back, or Can I Keep It?

Rating: Teen and up, Gen

An injured Hunter wanders into Hexside. What was Luz supposed to do, just let him bleed out on the floor?

Ch1/?: Backstabber

Ao3

“The human must be truly formidable if the Emperor sent both of us to capture her.”

Hunter glanced back at Kikimora. “Nah, he was probably just worried that you’d mess it up, so he sent me to make sure it went smoothly.”

Kikimora studied her claws. “I know it was you that attacked me when I tried to bring the palisman to the Emperor. You and the human.”

Hunter whipped around. “Oh, do you want to talk about that now? Because I know that you knocked my airship out of the sky and tried to have me killed. So you have nothing on me. You tell the Emperor what I did, I tell him what you did.”

“The human really must be formidable if she managed to get the palisman from you.”

Hunter rolled his eyes behind his mask. “She’s really not. I was a little bit busy fighting you to worry about her.”

“Truly a strong foe,” Kikimora continued, “So strong she was able to overcome you.”

“What are you talking ab—”

A blast of magic hit him, and magical bonds snaked around his hands and feet, yanking on him and sending him to his knees. Hunter struggled and tugged against the ties, but they held firm. “HEY! Kikimora, what—”

Something sharp touched his back, right between his shoulder blades, and he froze. “She attacked us from behind,” Kikimora hissed in his ear, “She went for you, first.” Something slammed into his back, like she’d punched him. “She was brutal. Merciless.”

Kikimora twisted her hand, and Hunter felt a tingling shock, and then—

His world exploded. Heat flooded out from the wound, and Hunter heard a guttural, choking scream.

Oh, wait.

That was him.

Kikimora pushed him facedown to the ground, knife still in his back. “I killed her, of course. It was a tough fight, but to avenge a fellow coven member? Of course I didn’t give up until I succeeded.”

Hunter coughed, blood coating the inside of his mouth. “Kiiii…”

“That’s what happens,” Kikimora hissed, “when people try to replace me.”

She walked off, and Hunter just lay there on the ground, his mind fuzzy with pain.

He had to…

Ugh—

Hunter pulled out his staff, and inch by agonizing inch, used it to pull himself up, shaking. He twisted, reaching for the knife, but the movement just tore more, and the world blacked out for a second. He gripped his staff tightly, his knuckles white.

Kikimora could easily kill him in this state, if the wound itself didn’t kill him.

That meant the only thing standing between her and total control over the coven and Uncle Belos’ complete trust was… Luz.

Kikimora would probably go to the owl house first.

That gave Hunter the advantage.

Xxx

“Thorn vault!” Luz called, slamming her hand down on her glyph. The plant erupted outward, pushing her over Skara’s head to the goal. Skara jumped, but missed her by inches. “Ah! Not again!”

Luz touched down. “You’ll get it someday.”

“Unlikely!” Gus called from the bleachers, “I predict never!”

“Zip it, twerp!” Skara yelled back, “Just wave your flags!” She dusted herself off. “One more try?”

“One more try,” Luz agreed, “Amity, you ready?”

“Always!”

Gus screeched, pointing. “Luz!”

Luz whipped around in the direction he was pointing to see an awfully familiar staff moving slowly towards her.

And the person clutching it like a lifeline.

Amity raced towards Luz, skidding in front of her, an abomination already rising out of the dirt. “Stay back!” she warned Hunter, “I beat you once, I can do it again!”

Luz put a hand on her arm. “Wait! There’s something wrong!” She moved cautiously towards Hunter—he looked awful. Residue magic swirled around his wrists and ankles, and…

“Is that blood?!” Luz rushed forward to him, taking his arm. She stifled a scream at the jagged blade sticking out of his back, blood staining his white cape red. “Ohmygosh, what happened to you?!”

His chest heaved with ragged breaths. “Kikimora—never thought—this open—” He slumped against her. “After… you…”

“Find Viney!” Luz yelled to Skara, “Amity—”

“I’m not leaving you alone with him!”

“Okay, fine, Gus, get Eda!”

Luz lowered Hunter to the ground, holding him up so that the knife wouldn’t go further in. “Don’t die!”

Amity hovered over them. “What did you mean, ‘after you?’ Were you coming to hurt Luz?!”

Hunter coughed, blood flecking his lips. “I…”

“Amity, he’s in really bad shape! You can’t interrogate him right now!”

Hunter pawed weakly at her hand. “Kikimora… want… to kill… you… exposed…”

“Okay, okay, I get it. Big bad coven leader wants me dead. Now shhhhhh, stop moving around, you’re going to make it worse!”

Puddles landed next to her, Viney sliding off of his back. “Whoa! You must have been having the most intense grudgeby match of all time!” She knelt next to them, gently turning Hunter onto his stomach. “Oooo, that’s bad. You should have gotten the healing teacher, I don’t know if—”

Luz grabbed her arm. “No! No teachers! Please.”

Viney hissed, examining the knife. “This isn’t just a regular knife—there are some kinds of objects that are enchanted to be resilient to healing magic—in case you really, really want to make sure your enemy bites it.” She drew a circle with her finger, and the knife glowed golden. “This one isn’t too powerful—I can stop the bleeding and put a patch on all of the internal problems, but I can’t seal it up. He’ll have to heal on his own. Where did you even get this knife?!”

Hunter whimpered, and Luz grabbed Viney’s hand. “It doesn’t matter! Just do it, before he dies!”

“Okay.” Viney snapped her fingers, and Puddles shooed Luz to the side, offering Hunter a cloth to bite down on and gently holding him still with his talons. Viney took a deep breath, and the knife glowed again, floating out of Hunter’s back, the cloak floating away, too. Hunter let out a muffled scream into the cloth, and tensed, which just made the blood spurt harder out of the wound. Viney drew a circle over his back, and the bleeding abruptly stopped. Puddles coughed up bandages, and a needle and thread, and Viney nodded to Luz and Amity. “This isn’t going to be pretty. You might want to look away.”

Amity pulled Luz away. “Luz, what exactly are you planning to do now? Just dump him on the doorstep of the conformatorium and run away?”

“No way! What if Kikimora finds him first? We can’t just send him back, she is literally trying to kill him!”

“And he’s trying to catch you!”

“That doesn’t mean I’m going to let him die!” Luz took Amity’s hands. “Amity, you fought him too. You didn’t feel even a little bit bad for him?”

Amity looked away. “Maybe a little bit,” she admitted, “But… if you’re not going to leave him with his coven, what is your plan?”

Luz bit her lip, staring at the ground. “Iwasthinkingmaybehecouldstayattheowlhouse,” she mumbled.

“What?”

“I was thinking he could stay with me,” she said louder, “At the owl house.”

“What?! No way! Luz, are you crazy?!”

“Ooo, hehe, jury’s still out on that one, Amity, you know that.”

“I’m serious, Luz, you can’t let him into the owl house!”

“Look at him, Amity, does he look dangerous to you?”

Amity looked back to where he was lying limp on the grudgeby field, Puddles nuzzling his face. “… I guess not… but still, he doesn’t have to attack you, all he has to do is put a trap, or let someone else into the owl house to bump you off!”

“The only people out for me right now are him and Kikimora. And Kikimora is also trying to kill him. Sooooooo I’m not overly worried about it.” Luz gave Amity’s hands a squeeze. “C’mon. I think I can handle one stabbed guy in a fight, give me that much credit at least.”

“… Fine. But good luck convincing Eda, she doesn’t exactly have the most… friendly of feelings towards him.”

Speak of the devil, Eda flew over the fence on her staff, Gus hanging onto the end. “I heard a kid got stabbed! Luz, you didn’t tell me it was knife day at school, I would have come to watch!”

“Kni—okay, sure, that’s a thing. It’s not knife day, Eda. None of the students got stabbed.”

“What? So what happened?”

Luz pointed across the field. “Uhhhhhhhm, soooooooo?”

“No. Absolutely not.”

“Eeeeedaaaaaa, I haven’t even asked anything yet!”

“Okay, let me set parameters for your next few sentences, then. If you are about to ask me if we can, in any way, shape, or form, take care of the Golden Guard and his lovely new piercing, the answer is no.”

“But Eda—”

“No. Nada. Nein. You speak Spanish, right? No. Any other ways I can say it?”

“Eda, he needs help!”

“Dump him on his coven’s doorstep, ring the doorbell, and run away. We’re not taking care of him.”

“Eda, listen—”

“No, you listen, Luz. That kid is trouble—and not the fun kind. You try to be nice to him, and he’ll stab you in the back. He’s been Belos-ified through and through.”

“I thought the same thing about Lilith!”

“Yeah? Well, I didn’t. My sister’s too much of a nerdy dork to ever be really horrible. This kid’s a nerd, sure, but he’s not Lili. He’s dangerous, he’s desperate, and unlike Lilith, he’s working completely for Belos, not himself.”

“Eda, Kikimora’s trying to kill him!”

“Well, I hope they succeed at murdering each other, and maybe take Belos down with them while they’re at it.”

“It would be murder to leave him at the coven!”

“Guess I’m going to be a murderer, then. Add it to the list of crimes.”

“Wouldn’t you want him to help me if I was in his place? If you were stuck in the owl beast form, and King was trying to kill me, wouldn’t you want him to help me?”

“I sincerely doubt King’s murdering skills, and NO, I think I wouldn’t want you anywhere close to Belos.”

Luz gave Eda big puppy-dog eyes, and her mentor sighed.

“Buuuuut I guess I see your point. Gah. Fiiiiiiiineee. You can take him home.” Eda leveled a finger at Luz. “But you have to feed him, and water him, and clean up after his messes, and keep him entertained, understood?”

“He’s not a pet, Eda.”

“I said, understood?”

“Understood.” Luz hugged Eda. “Thank you!”

“Oh, and if he tries to hurt you, if he tries to sell us out to Belos? I will do Kookymora a solid and finish the job.”

#toh #the owl house #edalyn the owl lady #toh hunter #luz noceda #amity blight #toh fanfiction #my writing

[ordinaryschmuck]

What I Thought About "Yesterday's Lie" from The Owl House

Salutations, random people on the internet who absolutely won’t read this! I am an Ordinary Schmuck. I write stories and reviews and draw comics and cartoons!

Here it is! The midseason finale of The Owl House Season Two! An episode featuring Luz going back to the human realm, is hyped up to heaven about how painful it'll be for the audience, and features more anxiety by how Creepy Luz is a thing. And BOOOOOOOOY howdy were fans not ready for this. I'm sure as hell not ready for when I wrote this intro at *checks time* thirty minutes before watching the official premier. Yup, the words you're reading right now are from me in the past, when everything was still pure and simple. Whereas future me is still probably destroyed by the events that transpired. Isn't that right, future me?

Future Me: Actually, it wasn’t that bad. The ending hurt, sure, but other than that, it wasn’t too painful.

Wow, that is some neat input! At least, I think it was. I wouldn't know because I literally wrote that after watching the episode. With the words you're currently reading being written at *checks time* twenty-six minutes before the premier...this whole intro is confusing, isn't it, future me?

Future Me: Sure is.

Yeah, it's definitely confusing. In any case, let's dive into this spoiler-filled review as we find out together just how painful this episode was! Take it away, future me!

Future Me: Will do! Major spoilers ahead, folks!

Now, let’s review, shall we?

WHAT I LIKED

Luz’s Room: We only see it for a short time, but everything about it just screams Luz. The pile of weird-looking stuffed animals, the witch hat in the center of the floor, and the fact that she has bunk beds, a single child's dream (Or so I've heard). It's a small thing, but I love it.

Vee: Here she is! The character previously dubbed Creepy Luz who now turns out to be yet another new addition to the ever-growing list of characters that we, as a fandom, would give our lives for. Because holy s**t was Vee the best type of expectation subversion. Showing us all the ominous ways of how she basically took Luz's place made fans assume that Vee was an evil doppelganger. Turns out, she was just a tortured soul that was desperate to live a new and better life and lucked out in finding Luz's. What Vee does is...questionable at best, but seeing what she went through with the experiments Belos pulled on her, you understand why she would do it. And I personally love it's that same background information that makes Vee resentful of Luz of all people. Luz's life is a relative dream come true, and running away from that would be insane to someone who spent most of their existence through imprisonment and experimentation. It's an intriguing point of view, even though it's admittingly flawed given how it's mostly Camila that seemingly made Luz's life bearable. But the flaws don't matter. What matters is that you can see where Vee is coming from, and to me, personally, I think she's understandable enough to make me root for her to have some kind of happy ending. Whether as Luz or as herself, I'm hopeful to see Vee get some semblance of peace.

Camila: *Round of applause* Don't mind me! Just taking the time to love how all them sons of b**hes who thought Camila was a bad mom are now heavily invalidated. 'Cause, guess what? Camila is a fantastic mother, both to her daughter and her daughter's doppelganger! Allow me to walk you through the highlights:

How Camila looks like she’s not okay with the fact that "Luz" is clearing out her weird stuff, seemingly acting too different to the Luz she knows. Added to the fact that Camila doesn't like it.

How Camila drove Luz to camp whether than letting her take the bus

The fact that Camila takes that box of junk back in, not willing to part with the tin foil sculpture Luz made.

The way she was willing to play along with the game she thought Luz was doing, supporting her daughter's creative mind that Camila admits to being glad to see.

And, best of all, the willingness Camila had to help this poor creature, despite the lies it lived.

It's that last part I really want to touch upon, though. Because an action like that shows just how much Luz's heart comes from Camila. The kindness and generosity of helping this poor creature, who she has every right to run out on, proves how Luz learned to be everything she is today through Camila's own loving heart. Vee was scared and hurt, and the second Camila saw that she was then more than willing to help because of it. It's something that Luz would do, and it proves that even though Camila didn't exactly get everything right, she's still a great mom where it counts.

“A new life”: A perfect line.

Initially, it makes audiences think that it has everything to do with replacing Luz. It's only through future context that we know it's about escaping the s**t show Vee once lived through that it's clear she's talking about starting over. It hits us with intrigue on the first viewing, only to hit harder with the feels during a second. Really well-done.

Luz in the Mirror: A well-done surprise that makes fans curious about how this even happen in the first place. Kudos to you, writers.

The New Portal: I don't mind that they found a way to build this off-screen. Showing Luz and the gang slowly building a new portal would have been a little too tedious to watch, and it's so much better to just start this episode out with it. Besides, maybe we'll get the slow and steadier version now that we've seen how quickly building one might not have been the best way to go, given how fast that thing fell apart.

Luz Between Dimensions: I have no clue what the hell that place she was in is called, but it's awesome! The overall design of the realm is the correct type of unsettling, like it's oozing with mystery, but it's somewhere that you probably don't want to be in for too long. Whoever designed it deserves all of the credit because I don't want to even think about all the hard work that went into making this look as well-made as it was.

Luz Resisting to See Amity: What? Luz and Amity are adorable, and seeing Luz's immediate thought about seeing Amity makes my shipping heart scream with glee. Don't judge me!

Hiding Luz’s Dad’s Face: Well, that was a fun story while it lasted.

So, it turns out that Luz's dad really was a part of Luz's and Camila's life at some point, but not anymore. As for why remains to be seen, as we don't really know yet if we'll see him make an appearance. I'd say that the odds are high that he will, given how much of a point this episode made about keeping his face hidden. Shows don't usually do that unless the goal is to hype up some official reveal, and I can't wait to see what comes of it.

Luz Telling Herself to Count to Five: Hey, more evidence for how I relate to Luz! I know how it feels to be all panicky about a specific situation, and I only got better when I took the time to calm down for a bit. Sometimes, I even tried the "count to x" method that Luz used...it never worked, primarily because it made me feel worse when people told me to do it, but I still tried it! Plus, there's also some narrative foreshadowing when after Luz says five, the realm shows her Vee, or Number V, which is a pretty cool detail you'll notice on a rewatch.

Luz Helping Vee: I gave Camila praise for helping Vee in the end, but that doesn't abstain Luz from her own set of recognition. The second that Luz realized that Vee wasn't really a threat and is far from evil, our favorite human does what she can to help and even makes a deal where they're both happy. Because, of course, Luz is that perfect of a protagonist who is more than willing to help others in need. And it's why we love her so.

Looking for Magic that Eda Left Behind: A pretty cool idea that gives Luz and Vee a chance to bond and giving us an insight into Eda's past antics and misadventures in the human realm. Not much I can add to it, though.

Gravesfield: It's surprisingly not as jarring as I thought it would be to spend an episode in the human realm. I thought for sure, after all that time in the Boiling Isles, there would be something off about walking around a normal environment for a change. Turns out, it's almost easy to get used to. Or, for me, it is.

But I will say that there's this neat use of colors when comparing Gravesfield with the Boiling Isles. In Gravesfield, the coloring looks dulled down and standard, which is a stark contrast to the bright vibrancy of everything we've seen in the Boiling Isles. It's a subtle way of showing how things are different, aside from the major discrepancies we could come to expect. And I think that's why I appreciate it much more.

Eda’s Called Herself Marylynn in the Human Realm: Hang on...hang on...do you mean to tell me that the crack theory about Eda being Stan's ex-wife is actually true?

...

...What even is this show?!

Vee Making Friends with Camp Members: This shows the most apparent difference between Luz and Vee. Where we see Luz is already fearing the many ways that could go wrong with interacting with teens, Vee revealed that she adapted to her situation and had a chance to make friends. The implications of this are worth discussing another time, but for now, I'll say that it's pretty intriguing that we gain this much insight into both Luz and Vee through such a small thing.

Belos Wanting to Learn How Basilisks can Drain Magic: ...Didn't Raine say that Belos was taking away magic? If so, I think we can figure out how he's doing it. The question now is: Why?

Jacob (The Curator Guy): This guy was a riot. At first, Jacob seemed like a threat with the way he trapped Vee and was apparently stocking her, but the second he goes off about his conspiracy theories, it becomes clear what type of character he is. And was it a blast seeing how much of a crackpot this man is. It wasn't cool seeing him wanting to dissect the precious angel that is Vee, but I still chuckle about things like his "Flat Eather's Certificate." So while he's not that much of a threat, he's still fun to watch.

The Owl Beast was in the Human Realm: ...How did that happen? When did it happen? And how the hell did Eda get out of a situation like that?! Who knows, but it's still a shocking piece of news to learn.

Luz Telling Camila the Truth: Hey, she faced her fear after all! Although, the results aren't as pleasant as when Amity faced her fear two weeks ago.

Camila is a Veterinarian: ...One insignificant reveal...managed to destroy so many fanfics. I mean, we probably shouldn't have just assumed Camila was a nurse...but what the f**k else were we supposed to think?! Sorry for seeing the scrubs, and the first thing that came to my mind was "nurse" and not "vet."

By the way, that had to have been intentional, right? There's no way that Dana Terrace didn't think we'd assume Camila was a nurse. She'd had to have put off a reveal like that just to trip up her fans. And if that's the case, then that is a major d**k move...but that's why I mildly respect it.

Two Human Brothers went to the Demon Realm: Turns out we don't have to be in the Boiling Isles to learn more about it. Because now we have more information about how two humans were taken to the Isles with the help of a witch, thus setting up a grander reveal if it turns out that one of the humans was Philip and the witch was Belos. Because if that's true...then there's more of a history between those two than we thought.

Jacob has a Training Wand: This helps me believe that it's highly likely for Jacob to make a return and to have a power boost for when he does. After all, focussing all that attention on the training wand is way too convenient for it not to come up again in the future. Meaning we're most likely going to get more pain from Jacob if he shows up again.

Camila Beats the Crap out of Jacob for Vee: ...Writers, don't make me choose between Camila and Eda on who's the better cartoon mom. I know Eda's technically not a mom...BUT I STILL DON'T WANT TO CHOOSE DAMNIT!

Also, the sandal...just...

Why the f**k does Camila have a sandal in her purse? I don't know. Is it still funny that she does? Most certainly.

Camila and Luz’s Talk in the Rain: Ooooooooh, I was not ready for this...

I wasn't ready for the crying.

I wasn't ready for the hurt in Camila's eyes when she found out Luz chose to stay in the Boiling Isles.

I wasn't ready for Camila asking if Luz hates being with her that much.

I wasn't ready for Luz profusely stating how it was never Camila's fault.

I was not ready for Camila to tell Luz that she'll try to do better.

And I definitely was not ready for Luz to barely have enough time to promise that she'll come back.

This episode wasn't the twenty-two minutes of nonstop angst that I thought it was going to be...but this short scene more than make up for it.

Luz Tries to Stay Strong: Yet another thing she unwittingly learned from Camila. Camila tried to keep a brave face when Vee was with her and Luz, most likely not wanting to tear either of them down in the process. Luz does the same thing here as she avoids talking about the details of what went down in her sort-of journey back home. And seeing her clearly fake smile slowly droop into an uncertain frown, it uh...it definitely tore me up inside.

WHAT I DISLIKED

I want to say it's perfect, but there's one major issue that really bogs this episode down.

Continuity Error in How Vee Replaced Luz: Having Vee take Luz's place the same day Luz appeared in the Isles is a smart idea on paper...if it wasn't for the fact that it's impossible.

Because Eda closed the portal door the second that she saw Luz, meaning that there's no way for Vee to go to the human realm. It's a major plothole that makes no sense, and it might just be the first time ever that this series wasn't so closely knit with its story. Which ends up taking a dive in quality in the process.

IN CONCLUSION

I'd say that "Yesterday's Lie" is an A-. Everything about Luz, Vee, and Camila is incredible, combined into a story that ends in tragedy and uncertainty for the future. That plothole may drag things down a bit, but everything else is handled so well that I'm not lying when I say it's easy to forgive and forget.

(And that's ten episodes in a row without a single stinker. HOW THE F**K DOES THIS SEASON KEEP WINNING?!)

#the owl house #the owl house spoilers #toh spoilers #luz noceda #camila noceda #camila is a good mom ok! #toh vee #emperor belos #what i thought about #the owl house reviews

[gocrazygostupidtheories]

I am getting very, very desperate.

I know we all have the agreement that Belos is Philip Wittebane, and Hunter is a grimwalker whose bone was from Belos himself, but something about that bothers me.

Hunter and Belos are biologically related as uncle and nephew. Hunter is, supposedly, from a line of powerless witches, and is one himself, which is why Belos gave him a staff with artificial magic and took him under his wing. It is probably suggested that Hunter is an orphan, when Belos says this:

Emperor Belos: Please, be careful. Our family is gone because of wild magic. I can't let the same happen to you. Find me more Palismen.

Now with our new information about grimwalkers, many of us have theorised that Hunter himself is one, due to the book showing his exact eye colour, which we haven't seen anyone else have in the show, his nose, and tracks the record of his growth.

What I'm most interested in is the last part: the bone of the ortet. I'm assuming it's important since ortet is capitalised. The definition of ortet is:

The original single parent plant from which a clone ultimately derives.

Many of us are certain that Belos is the ortet in this scenario, bUT- though it doesn't specify if there are only certain bones allowed, so I'm assuming you can use any kind of bone, why would Belos go through the pain of taking out one of his own bones when he could have used bones from literally anyone else?

I'm assuming that the healing coven can heal, but they can't replace body parts. The only time I can recall seeing them is when Amity had to stay home due to a foot injury, and couldn't move. It still took that long for her to be back and moving, though she constantly had the healing seal on her broken foot. I am way too lazy to figure out how long exactly, but she broke it in Wing It Like Witches and was still stuck in bed in Young Blood, Old Souls. We saw her return in Escaping Expulsion. And even if they could heal them, we have seen characters with eye injuries throughout the series, and I’m assuming not for fashion choices.

It’s confused me that, if Belos is his creator, that he refers to Hunter as his nephew. Maybe they could in actuality be father and son, but let’s assume Belos, for once, is telling the truth about their dynamic: If Belos and Hunter are biologically uncle and nephew, so he couldn’t be Hunter’s ortet, since uncles are the brother of one's parent or the husband of one's aunt or uncle, and being the ortet would require the person to act as the parent or the original source, how does that work?

Unless Belos was self obsessed, he’d know not to use one of his own bones, for logical reasons. But, if so, how else could they be related?

Answer is: I’m not sure. But, I have possibly the worst theory yet. We can confirm that Belos and Hunter’s family line is dead due to magical causes, but it doesn’t mention what exactly happened to them after they died from whatever. What I’m trying to say is, an easy way to get bones would be from a dead body. Hunter and Belos are biologically related. Belos’ family are all dead. It would be a wonderfully screwed up concept if the ortet in this scenario was one of their dead family members. Maybe it could have been a mix of twisted love and sick curiosity. 

TLDR: the ortet’s bone needed to create Hunter came from one of his dead family members.   

#toh #the owl house #the owl house theory #toh hunter #emperor belos

[noirandchocolate]

Here’s an Owl House theory.  THERE’S SPOILERS FOR THE LAST EPISODE IN IT.  I’m SURE others have come up with the same or similar, but I don’t go in fandom tags very much so please nobody think I ‘stole’ this.  I’m posting less to impress other Owl House fans and more as a record for my future self of what I thought was going on in the show at this point.

So we know that Luz came through the door between worlds, and that there’s a doppelganger back in Humanland who wrote to her mom from camp and is now living in her house.  We know that mom doesn’t think anything at all is ‘off’ about Faux Luz, so there must not be anything wildly different about her appearance-wise.

We also know Philip Wittebane sort of tripped and fell into Magicland accidentally, but we know he disappeared or went back home somehow (it seems like he made the portal door in the first place).  Now, we know what Emperor Belos looks like, and he looks and (when he’s not masked and trying to be echoey and intimidating) sounds very very much like Philip’s silhouette and voice in the diary. 

We also know that Hunter looks rather like, but not exactly like, Belos.  We’ve been shown that Belos performs magic in a way that looks quite different to any other Witch, and we’ve been told Hunter isn’t able to do magic on his own without a staff--and that with the unusual staff Belos gave him his magic has the same red aura as Belos’s, but with a ‘traditional’ staff with a palisman his magic is yellow or golden.  In the last episode we were also shown a page in a book displaying info on a creature called a ‘Grimwalker,’ and that creature apparently has jewel-y maroon eyes like Hunter’s--which do NOT match Belos’s blue eyes.  (Their ears also don’t match exactly.  They have the same notch in the left ear, but Hunter’s are more horizontally pointy like Witch ears are, while Belos’s do come to a point but they’re noticeably smaller and more vertical.)

Hunter told Luz that he was ‘found’ by Belos, and that others in his ‘family’ have been unable to do magic.  However Hunter didn’t necessarily say he knew anyone else in his family (I don’t think, someone correct me if I’m wrong), so it’s likely he only knows there have been others in his lineage without magic because Belos told him that.

Okay theory time, everything behind here is pure speculation:

Belos isn’t Philip Wittebane.  He’s the Faux Philip that Philip spontaneously, ‘magically’ generated in Humanland when he fell into Magicland.  When Philip made the portal door and went home, Faux Philip was swapped into Magicland.  Faux Philip couldn’t stay in Humanland while Philip was there; there can’t be two of the same person on the same plane of existence.  Once a human has moved between worlds, there always has to be one of them on one side and one of them on the other.  And Faux Philip, now known as Belos, who has seen Humanland and who remembers it as being so much cleaner, so much more peaceful and quiet, very much wants to go home.

So what is a Faux person made of?  Well, we’ve seen Belos go all goopy and we know he feels better after consuming palismen--and that palistrom wood is one of the Grimwalker ‘ingredients.’  So, I theorize that Belos, in the long years of trying to go back to Humanland, has done enough experimentation to find out what sustains him: very magical things, things basically ‘from the Titan’ and the Isles, such as palistrom wood, and possibly Titan’s blood or galdorstones if he could get them, etc.  He isn’t made of those things like a Grimwalker seems to be, but they keep him alive.  And he’s needed more and more over time, because the original Philip Wittebane is long dead.  Belos should be long dead as well, but has essentially refused to give up on going home to Humanland and is keeping himself going with magical stuff, which works because he is indeed a creature of flesh but also one that was magically generated.

I further theorize that Belos knows the truth of his origins.  He knows he’s Faux Philip (rather than thinking he’s just a human who was banished into Magicland suddenly one day) and has at least guessed that if he goes home, something will need to be left behind in Magicland.  But his own original is dead.  Belos has guessed or knows that he, already being a Faux person, won’t generate a doppelganger.  It’s possible he had the portal door at one point, but didn’t find it until after Philip died and so he knows it won’t work for him because there’s no person there to swap with.  It’s also possible Belos found the door even before Philip died, and discovered he couldn’t go through it at all because Philip, the ‘real person’ in this scenario, was the only one who could initiate a swap.  (Maybe only humans can, naturally.  Otherwise, there’s a doppelganger Eda and even a doppelganger Lilith somewhere in the human world right now because they’ve both gone through the portal door and come back to Magicland.)

Anyway I don’t think Faux Philip could see the door right when Philip used it to come back.  When Luz tumbled back through the door with Lilith, her own copy didn’t appear right on the other side of the door, at least that we could see, and Luz has no idea she exists.  However if my theory is correct, Luz’s copy was just for those few moments swapped into Magicland.  Maybe Faux Luz appeared at a distance from the door on the Magicland side equal to the distance she currently was from the door on the Humanland side?  If so, the same thing would’ve happened to Faux Philip.  So if that’s true, he just popped into Magicland at an equidistant point too and didn’t see the door.  But I do theorize he found the door later and tried it and it didn’t work--otherwise the rest of my theory below doesn’t make as much sense, because how would he know he couldn’t make or find only a door and have that work.  Still, I don’t have a theory on how he lost access to the portal door after that.  Eda found it not far from her home, and Eda’s mom said her great grandmother knew there was ‘a human’ who lived in the area (not necessarily that great granny knew the person but at least that she knew of him, and depending on Witch lifespans it may have been impossible she knew him personally) who turned out to be Philip, so there’s a potential link, but I don’t have a guess yet on why it was there and not with Belos.  Unless Belos left it there to hide it and Eda just kinda found it one day?  Belos didn’t seem to know Eda had the door, he just kind of assumed since another human appeared that that human may have used it.  So going after Eda would bring him Luz and thus info on the door?  Like I said I don’t have a full theory on this.

At any rate, I hypothesize that Belos very much knows what he is and knows he can’t go through any door between realms unless something will ‘swap’ with him.  So he’s been trying not only to find or make a door and key BUT ALSO to make a ‘Faux Faux’ Philip he can use to be his doppelganger in Magicland so the door will even let him through.  (In other words he thinks he could technically become an ‘original’ by making another copy being, and that that being could then be swapped around for him like he was for Philip.)

So he knows what keeps him alive, and he’s been in Magicland long enough to know how to make ‘magic’ without being a Witch himself.  Eda, who’s been a virtually magicless Witch for a little while, still knows how to make potions.  Luz figured out the glyphs, which apparently figured into how Witches did magic before they evolved bile sacs and could do it naturally.  How much more could someone who’s been living in Magicland for literally centuries figure out how to do?  I suggest that over the years, Belos learned how to make constructs he called Grimwalkers.  After all it looks like a Grimwalker is basically a list of potion ingredients that somehow makes a walking talking person.  Abominations are goopy constructs too, so constructs are an existing type of magic.  But those potion ingredients--one of which is also a known thing that keeps Belos himself alive--are rare and difficult to find.  So it takes quite a bit of time and effort to make a Grimwalker.

Anyway long story short Hunter is the latest Grimwalker Belos has made, and Belos hopes to use him as a Faux Faux Philip who can take his place in Magicland when he returns to Humanland.  Possibly Belos made a baby him and left him with someone else to raise him, and he was abandoned or later ~found~ by Belos who declared him a ‘nephew’ and ‘took him in’ at the growth stage or moment in time when he’d become potentially useful?  The other members of his ‘family’ who couldn’t do magic were other Grimwalkers, and Hunter never knew them, Belos just told him about them.  Oh Hunter, you’re different from other Witches, but you’re not the only one of your kind!  Here, have a special kind of staff I made that helps members of our family make magic!  You’re very special, Hunter, the Titan has big plans for you, but also, don’t fail me or you’ll be (just as) useless (as the others).

So the previous Grimwalkers ‘failed’ in some way.  Maybe they didn’t master Belos’s style of ‘artificial’ magic sufficiently to his liking.  Maybe like I said, Belos had the door for a while, and he tried to get through and leave a Grimwalker behind but it didn’t work, and then he didn’t give up on the idea but just decided that particular Grimwalker was a failure.  Maybe the previous Grimwalkers just weren’t stable and broke down before he could even try to use them.  At any rate it would be so troublesome to have to replace Hunter who is skilled and stable (so far), and the Day of Unity is coming and the door is nearly complete and a key might soon be made or found, so Hunter had better stay put and not do any more missions.  Just like Amity misunderstood Luz’s texts, Hunter is misunderstanding Belos right now.  It’s not that Belos is worried he’ll fail at any further little missions or tasks, it’s that he doesn’t want him to be lost or to fail at his ultimate function.

And that’s what I think so far!

Anyway I also think that if all that is correct, it’s going to be interesting if/when Luz finds out what Belos really is and what he’s really trying to do, because that will mean finding out about Faux Luz.  Who’s ‘just like poor Faux Philip/Belos, who’s just been trying to get home all this time.’  Luz has already been having trouble deciding what she wants to do.  Be a witch, or go home to Humanland where magic is impossible?  Never see her mother again, or never see her Boiling Isles Found Family again?  Try to live between worlds somehow? 

So, finding out that if she goes home and stays home there will be a creature swapped into Magicland who might feel just as banished and abandoned as Belos...  Thinking that if she goes home and stays home her Found Family might take in the Faux Luz which would be nice because Faux Luz would be less sad, but that Found Family might also consider Faux Luz a Replacement (which Luz could think means they don’t care if it’s Really Luz so long as there’s A Luz--that she’s replaceable and not special)...  Finding out that her mom didn’t even notice the Luz that wrote home from camp and came back after a few months wasn’t really her (and is Faux Luz less boisterous and more practical like mom hoped? is Faux Luz the Luz mom Always Wanted Instead?)...  So thinking that if she stays in Magicland she might not be as missed as she assumed...

Oh boy!  Possible feelings and angst!  If I’m right anyway!

#owl house #the owl house spoilers #blatant speculation #but it's based on what we've seen so far #like i said this is more a record for future me to be like 'lol past me you were so wrong' or 'wow past me you got some things right!' #((like how i got pretty much EVERYTHING WRONG in my predictions for game of thrones haha))

[f1uffy-turtle]

Soul Bound Chapter 1: The Heart's Desire

Okay, I’ll give it one more try. Luz thought to herself.

She had been practicing on this particular glyph for almost the entire school period that she was afraid to admit that she wasn’t paying attention. Does time always move faster whenever you’re trying to figure something out? That question didn’t seem too important to her. She drew a few wavy lines on her sheet of paper, hoping that it would make some semblance of sense when it came to the glyph itself. She looked around and tapped on the torn up notepad for the umpteenth time. There was a small flicker coming from the lines, only for the page to disintegrate in an instant.

Pedazo de mérida! Jodete estupido papel!

Luz let out a heavy sigh and set her pencil down. Her ears went a little bit red. In theory, if it were to work, someone would be able to hear that. It was embarrassing enough that she had to explain that she was speaking in a different language, but it would be even more embarrassing for her to explain that she was basically cursing the glyphs that didn’t even work. She looked up towards the professor at the front of the class.

He didn’t seem to be eye-catching in the slightest; she just didn’t have anywhere else to look. If the other abominations teacher was here, she would just be looking at the abomination that was carrying the stout, cloven-foot man, wondering how he was able to create an abomination in ways that she couldn’t. She had to use separate ingredients for hers due to the human’s lack of a bile-sac like witches on the Boiling Isles had developed. Her mind wandered over to that, wondering how they could have evolved. I mean, they did have access to the human realm before, surely there must have been some way they have crossed paths in the past and the ancient Wild Witches could have learned to carry magic on their own.

Her heart sank. She relayed that thought again in her head; the human realm.

It had been two weeks since she had given up the portal to Emperor Belos and destroyed it so he wouldn’t have a chance to use it for whatever he had planned. He must have wanted it badly if he harassed Eda so long for it. Had tried to petrify her just for the chance that he could use it. Had lied to Lilith just so he could get Eda in his grasp just to cull the last known Wild Witch on the Boiling Isles.

She’d given up her only way back home. She’d given up the chance to ever see her mom again. The thought had never really sunk in just yet. She just wanted to let her know that she was okay.

“Ms. Noceda?”

“Er... yes, sir?!” Luz jolted out of her trance and knocked the contents of her desk into the air, reaching out to catch them, only to end up on the floor. The teacher snatched the notepad and the pencil from the air in one swift motion. People in the class stifled a chuckle or two and Luz couldn’t help but feel her face burning.

Yes sir? Really, Luz?

She picked herself up and took the notepad and pencil that he was holding out, trying to avoid making eye contact with him. He gave a small snicker himself.

“Apologies, Luz. I didn’t mean to startle you while you were daydreaming, however this is a class and you are here to learn, correct?”

Luz’s brow started to furrow. Of course she was here to learn. Why else would she have snuck in once or twice with Willow and Gus just to find out what a magic school was like? Why else would she have begged Eda time and time again to get her to enroll and possibly risk getting thrown in the Conformitorium again for being a wild witch out and about in the Isles? They were lucky that Principal Bump never really was too much of a stickler for Belos’ laws and even more lucky that Luz had nudged him with the help of the Detention Track kids to allow the students to pick more than one track when learning at Hexside.

“Of course I am.” She glowered at him as she crossed her arms over themselves; almost rivaling the smug grin that the substitute had plastered over his face, or at least what parts of his face that she could see. Not only did he practically tower over the teenager, but he was wearing a steely-blue scarf over the lower half of his face and spectacles that glared in the daylight that showered inside the classroom.

The substitute turned back towards the chalkboard. “Then tell me, Ms. Noceda, if you were paying attention, then clearly you can tell me what ingredients a witch would use to make an abomination’s strength rival that of one in the Construction Coven with a Power Glyph attached to the caster?”

“You can’t; the power of an abomination matches the strength of the caster combined with the ingredients that make it up. The witches in the Construction Coven can’t make them because their own power is locked off from making abominations of their own. You could use a Griffin’s egg as a base, shell and all, to bind the other ingredients together; the starch of some Screaming Brorne would be able to work it into a plaster-esque paste with the other fillers such as gravel and mold them around an armature to work around with, this can be made of anything from the most fragile of wooden branches to a steel pole. Once the abomination is molded, we then cast the consciousness spell to, of course, give it consciousness and the armature will dissolve with the structural integrity intact.”

Sweat beaded from her temple, she was so lucky that she had taken theater, or at least attempted to, when she was younger, or else she would have not been able to memorize all of that from her studies with Amity. Even then, she was surprised she even retained all that information. The substitute shot a glare at the human and shut the textbook that he was reading over with a snap.

“Mighty impressive Ms. Noceda, almost as if you wrote the textbook yourself. However, I’m not allowed to deduct points for any blatant plagiarism, yet I can clearly see that you haven’t even brought your textbook this time. You have a keen mind indeed, human.”

The school bell then screamed and Luz let out an exhausted breath that she didn’t even think that she was holding in. That was surprisingly tense. She could feel her chest loosen up once she heard that sound that had become so familiar – as grating as it was – over the past month. Everything began to tense up again as she felt a tug on her shoulder and she spun around, raising her arms up in a karate-chop stance. She lowered them as she saw Amity backing away from her, clearly startled by her sudden movement. They both laughed. The substitute barked some orders as everybody started pooling out of the classroom, but Luz didn’t hear any of it. She was honestly looking forward to the rest of the day.

~~~

“So what was up with Mr. Almade getting in your face like that?” Amity inquired this after they had walked down the hallway for some time. They were headed towards the toothy lockers that lined the walls of the inner corridors of the campus. She had kept the question to herself for quite some time because she felt the air grow heavy around the two as he leered over her. It was almost creepy in a way and she wanted absolutely none of that.

“Ugh! I don’t know! Honestly, he’s such a big jerk, I don’t get why they picked him to replace Mr. Hengemyr. At least he was a lot nicer… and had a better sense of humor.”

Amity chuckled as she remembered “Like that one time he laughed at your a-mom-ination joke?”

“Exactly!” Luz shouted louder than she had intended, but from the look on her face, she didn’t seem to care at this point.

“Well, clearly, he might like you.”

Luz gasped “How dare you, Ms. Blight! I am horribly flabbergasted by your insinuation!” She put on the most over-the-top posh voice that she could muster and Amity laughed so hard that she started blushing.

“You know, with acting like that, it was a wonder that he didn’t figure out that you were posing as an abomination before I did.”

“And you decided the best way to handle that was to have Principal Bump dissect me.”

Luz laughed at the comment she made, but Amity couldn’t help but feel her heart sink a little. She was glad that at least Luz could laugh about it now. That was basically how she met her, so she was glad that they have at least mended their friendship up to that point. If it wasn’t for Luz’s persistence, Amity wouldn’t have thought about how she treated the other people around her. How she treated Willow, how her parents had forced her to be around bullies such as Boscha and her clique just because they were friends with their parents. It rang in her head again.

Good children don’t squabble, dear.

Blights only associate with the strongest of witchlings.

Blight.

The more and more she thought about it, the more and more she hated it. Not because of how it sounded, but because of the expectations put on her. How they wanted her in the Emperor’s Coven so badly that Amity even called it “Her Future.” How they wanted Amity to uphold the social reputation of the Blight family just so she could look like the perfect decoration set aside the two “perfect” parents and her two older siblings who always managed to get away with whatever shenanigans that they thought up. In retrospect, they are teenagers. She always had to be the one who was the more mature sibling in the household, despite being the youngest.

Amity cracked a smile at the human, the one person who had shown her the light.

Luz.

I wonder if it means “light” in her language.

My beautiful, little light.

“Hey, Amity!” Skara shouted so loudly next to the green-haired witch’s ear that she fell over, scrambling to back away before seeing the bard-track witch.

“Oh, hey! Skara! I thought you would be with Boscha?”

“No, she started getting all nutty after her Grudgby match with Willow. I mean, I know that she hates her. Whoo! Never mind that, hate is too strong of a word… um… dislikes her, but that don’t mean that she has to get up in our faces about it, you know?”

Luz nodded. “You said it.”

Skara looked over at the human and beamed. “Oh hey, human!” She said as she waved her hands excitedly.

“It’s Luz.” Amity and Luz said in unison.

“Oh! Sorry, Boscha keeps on calling you that, so I didn’t have anything else to really call you.” She let out a nervous laugh.

Luz cackled at the nervous wreck. “It’s all good, I get it.”

She scratched at Amity’s locker and its gaping mouth opened, its tongue sticking out laying out an array of other textbooks that the green-haired witch placed her abomination textbook next to. The demon scooped up the textbooks and rolled its tongue back into its toothy maw, closing it up before giving a hearty belch. Luz had always been so fascinated at all the wacky demons that replaced ordinary items in The Boiling Isles.

Skara looked around the pair for a second, squinting. “Have you guys seen Willow around at all?”

Luz’s eyes widened for a moment. “Not since Botany, I haven’t. Why do you ask?”

Skara looked away from the human, her cheeks growing flush. “No reason, it’s just she’s all cool and I wanted to get away from Boscha for a bit and maybe work on that project that we’ve been assigned in Fundamentals of Songwriting -.”

Luz gasped. “YOU’RE GOING TO WRITE A LOVE SONG FOR WILLOW!”

If Skara wasn’t already flustered thinking about hanging out with Willow, she definitely was now that the human even suggested, let alone point out that she had a crush on the plant witch. “It’s not a love song; I just wanted to hang out with her is all. She’s just… nicer. She actually looks out for her friends. That’s something I never really got.” She sighed.

“I mean it’s not like I don’t have an abundance of friends, but it would at least be nice to actually know that I’m cared for or whatever, you know?”

Amity’s heart sank as Skara said that. Yeah, both of them have been a part of Boscha’s clique, but she was always the one who got the brunt end of everything. If it wasn’t for her natural charisma and the fact that her parents were as far up the ladder as theirs were, she probably wouldn’t have been accepted, let alone be as popular as she was. Maybe if she were nicer to her, things would have turned out differently for the bard.

“Well, hey. Regardless, we’ll be looking out for you.” Luz reassured the witch as she gave her a small smile. Skara returned the gesture and took in a deep breath.

“If that’s the case then, I’ll continue looking. It’s been nice seeing you guys.”

Luz and Amity returned the gesture as the bard disappeared into the hallway. Once she was out of sight, Amity let out a small chuckle.

“What?”

“A love song? Yeah, she’s definitely got a crush on Willow.”

“Oh yeah, she has one big time. Though, it’s not exactly a love song. It’s more of a calming spell that you have to write and you have to write it with the intent of performing it to someone that you’re really close to.”

“Okay, but still if she were to write it for Willow, they aren’t exactly close. And plus, didn’t it not work out between her and that one guy she asked to Grom?”

Luz shrugged her shoulders. “I honestly wouldn’t know anything about that. I’m not exactly in-the-know about this sort of stuff. Hey, speaking of, have you had any progress on who you wanted to ask out to Grom?”

Amity turned her face away as she felt it grow warm and she grabbed at her shoulder. How was she supposed to tell her that she wanted to ask Luz out? That if it wasn’t for the fact that she was chosen as Grom Queen to fight Grometheus, The Fear Bringer and Luz insisting that she would fight for her in her stead, then she would have actually given that note to her. Who was she kidding, no she wouldn’t. Grom read her fears and tore up the note in front of her. All while looking like the human. Not resembling exactly what she looked like. Her messy, short brown hair; her hazel eyes; her brown lips that she had wanted to kiss so hard for over the past month now. Grom only looked like an amorphous silhouette compared to the actual human and nothing like what shape it took for Luz's fear. The shape of her mother.

She never bothered to ask the human about it. She didn’t want to pry. What would she think if she pried into something like that and then asked her out once she actually had the courage? Would she even forgive her? Would she forgive her for all the stuff that she has done to the human in the past? She was lucky that Luz even pried into her heart just to be friends with her, given that it was definitely unconventional since she tried to do it by hanging out with Edric and Emira first and they tried to use Luz just so they can nab her diary. She doesn’t deserve that, but maybe she should thank her siblings for bringing her into her life. No. They would endlessly tease her for it. Amity gave a sigh.

“No. Not yet.”

Luz gave a supporting smile that made Amity’s heart feel like it was about to burst out of her chest. “Well, I hope whoever it is, they would say yes.”

I know I would.

That’s what Amity wanted so desperately for the human to say to her. It felt like it would have come so easily through her lips. Luz took her hand and she couldn’t help but return the smile that she was given. If only she knew that all she wanted was to be in her arms at that exact moment.

“Maybe I could help you write a song for them!”

Amity’s vision flickered back into focus as she tried to process what the human said. “Wait, wait. Are you sure? I’m not sure if you noticed, Luz, but I’m not in the bard track. And even then, I’m not all that musically gifted.”

That last sentence was a lie. Her mother had bought a grand piano for the servants to play about ten years ago and she would sneak in the music room while they were playing to play with them. Agreus, the particular bard that they hired for the music room along with their troupe was glad to teach her all they knew and she was ashamed to admit that she started writing piano pieces herself. Her mother was never keen that she did this and eventually fired those servants from the manor, yet the piano remained. Amity didn’t know why she kept it there. Maybe it was to remind Amity that whenever she would want to practice again, she would prove to herself that she was nothing more than a disappointment in her mother’s eyes. After all, interest in what could be a different track will lead to mixing magics and according to her mother: that was the greatest sin against the Emperor and against the Titan himself. Another thing that the human fought hard against, literally pushing her way through so she could be in literally every track that Hexside has to offer.

“Well, not to brag, but I’m pretty good myself. I’m pretty sure that we could figure out something to sweep them right off of their feet.”

“What about your project?” Amity asked her. “Don’t you have to write something yourself? And what about the fact that you can’t cast magic naturally? It’s not like a musical instrument acts like its own staff.”

“That’s why I have these babies!”

Luz pulled out a couple of teardrop shaped, flat pieces of plastic that had a small glyph carved into them. They were still easily readable which is really surprising considering how hard it was to even draw something that tiny.

“These can enhance the emotional output of any musical instrument and use that to cast spells from a distance away; doing anything from repelling or possibly killing the biggest monster to putting the widdlest baby to sleep.”

Amity laughed at the most adorable face that Luz put on when she said that. “How exactly would you use that? I don’t know any instrument here that can be played with that. Or is that the instrument itself?”

“Oh! Yeah, we have this instrument that we use on Earth all the time called a Guitar. It’s this stringed instrument that my mother used to play for me all the time when she would put me to sleep as a baby.”

Luz’s face drooped for a second. She missed her mother more than anything. If it weren’t for the fact that she had a little more than a month to go back to Earth, her mother would be worried sick for her. A little more than a month before she had to admit to her that she was lying to her own mother that she was at a summer camp that would try to make her “normal” and not inciting trouble at her old school for being weird. She faked a smile and looked back at Amity.

“I’m pretty sure I can find one at The Owl House that Eda decided not to sell at her human collectibles stand. Even after we destroyed the portal, she still has quite a few things lying around. I’m pretty sure I’ll find one.”

“Wait, you did what to the portal?”

Luz just realized what she revealed to Amity. She hadn’t seen her since she broke her leg at the Grudgby match and she had just recently recovered a week ago. The healers on the Boiling Isles really do work quickly. She was pretty sure that Boscha was the one who broke her leg by throwing herself at her as they were trying to make the final play, but she didn’t bother looking further into that to avoid further conflict. After all, she wanted to make sure that Amity was okay before doing anything about it. And even then, Amity asked her not to get into it once she got her cast removed.

“I mean,” Luz’s voice grew shaky, “Uh… Can we talk about this, you know, not here?”

The two witches walked out into the courtyard of the campus as Luz relayed everything that happened while she was breaking Eda out of the Conformitorium to stop her from getting petrified by Belos and The Emperor’s Coven. Lilith the curse she cast on Eda, Lilith’s explanation for the curse and her resentment for what happened, Belos lying to Lilith and outright refusing to heal Eda’s curse deciding instead to petrify her, Belos and his request for the portal. He said that he wasn’t going to invade the human world, but Luz couldn’t take any chances regardless and slapped a few fire glyphs on the portal as he was given the portal and let the human go and free her mentor. She used Eda’s staff to activate the fire glyphs and just like that, the portal was no more. Tears trailed down her face as she reminisced about her last visit to the human world as she was fighting with Lilith before she gave her explanation and they never stopped since.

Amity let out a deep sigh as she finished listening to the human. “That’s… a lot to take in.”

The human nodded and wiped the tears from her face.

“Do…” Amity asked, “Do you miss it? The human world I mean.”

“I miss mi mama. I promised her I would be back. That I would be back in three months.” She stifled a small chuckle. “She thinks I’m at a summer camp somewhere, doing taxes or whatever.”

Amity didn’t know what the human was talking about. Summer camp? Taxes? Regardless, it didn’t sound pleasant.

“I just wish I can find a way to go back now. I wish I could see her again.”

Tears trailed down the human’s face and she wiped them from her face again. Her pace began to quicken.

“I have to go, Amity. Eda would yell at me if I left her to clean Hooty this month.”

And with that, she left the green-haired witch. She wished that she could help her. But that would mean letting her go. That would mean that she would possibly never get to see her again. Of course it was like her that the one girl she fell in love with was only here on a time limit.

~~~

Luz walked along the tree line of the forest, soaking in the red leaves that adorned them. She needed to catch her breath in some way.

Lo siento, mama. Desearia poder verte.

She stopped for a moment and sat down to lean against a tree to be alone with her own thoughts. Being on the Boiling Isles before was everything that the teenager ever really dreamed about, even now. From the demons that resided there that wanted to eat her almost every week to the Isles’ version of weather; albeit they are more natural disasters. Eda had only mentioned stuff like Shale Hail and Painbows before, but she was lucky to never see them. Only Gorenadoes and Boiling Rains.

She remembered the first time it rained on the Isles. She was so excited when the dark clouds started rolling in. Both King tried to warn her before she went out, but he didn’t even get out a few words before she stepped outside the Owl House just to feel that familiar trickle of the first few drops in her hair. She looked over to a tiny flower just to see it wilt from the overbearing heat of the rains before Eda came rushing in from her night out at Bonesbourough just to shout at Luz to get inside.

She remembered Eda crashing up inside her room, flopping over to the nest she made for herself. Not a pillow-fort and thousands of comforters and plushies sort of nest, but an actual nest with twigs and moss among other things she found shiny and beautiful. In fact, that’s where she kept some of her favorite things from when she was still collecting trash in the human world just to repurpose and sell them at her stand. She always found the old witch’s favorable items to be a bit unorthodox, mainly due to the lack of knowledge that the witches of the Boiling Isles had for humans, let alone their world in general. She found Luz’s ingenuity and knowledge of her home realm admirable and decided to take her in to first help with her stand. A few shenanigans later, and Luz decided to stay with Eda and King so she could learn to become a witch regardless of her natural inability to cast magic.

She remembered when she first learned of Eda’s curse that night during the boiling rainstorm and how she rampaged through the house as the Owl Beast. She remembered finding out about the elixir that was more or less her medicine and reverting her back to normal for the time being. Now that Lilith hadn’t exactly healed Eda, but shared the curse with her instead as an attempted remedy for her past actions, she wasn’t exactly sure whether or not the Owl Beast was going to rear its head in again.

Her mind wandered to Lilith. Eda’s sister. She remembered being so excited to learn that Eda even had a family to begin with, let alone a sister that she would banter with whenever they were around each other. That hasn’t exactly changed since she moved into the Owl House, they still bicker a lot. She wondered if all siblings are like that. Edric and Emira teased Amity almost constantly; however they were pretty much her bullies. Almost like Amity was when they first met, picking on Willow when she was back in the Abomination track at Hexside rather than the Plant track where she was so naturally gifted. She was afraid that when she released those vines inside of Hexside when she first snuck in, the entire building would have imploded on itself.

She was glad that Amity was a lot better now. She couldn’t help but shudder at the thought of leaving her now. They had gotten along together so well after The Library Incident with Edric and Emira. They talked almost constantly that now she doesn’t know if she could ever see the island again if she wasn’t there. Even if she was a ghost that she could talk to, Luz would have gladly stayed just to be by her side.

A rustle in the bushes sounded across from Luz.

She scrambled up to her feet and rummaged through her satchel to reach for any glyphs that she prepared during the day. Where were they? She knew she put them in there somewhere. She peered into the satchel to find all the glyph papers tossed around the contents of her bag, tucked in between books and under them. She made a note that that was the last time she kept them in her bag. She wasn’t even sure if they worked now. She grabbed one that was sticking out of the page of a textbook. An ice glyph, that’ll do. She slapped the card down onto the damp soil. The card shimmered in a white-blue light before a large ice shard popped straight from the glyph and suspended a Hexside teacher in midair.

Mierda!

“Oh! Are you okay?” Luz cried out. “I’m so sorry; I didn’t mean to do that. I thought you were here to hunt me down or something.”

She lifted the teacher off of the ice shard that went right through the hood of his cowl and placed him down on the ground without breaking a sweat. Brown shaggy hair fell in front of the teacher’s face before he parted it like a curtain, revealing the wrinkled mug of the Abomination substitute.

“Mr. Almade! Heyy!”

“No need for pleasantries, Ms. Noceda. You nearly had me killed!”

Luz bowed her head solemnly. She just wanted to protect herself.

“But, however, that was an impressive feat of strength there. I nearly thought you were an abomination with how easily you plucked me off of that spike. I would be even more astounded by what abominations that you can make on your own.”

Luz opened her mouth to speak, but quickly shut it. Why did he even say it like that? Was he trying to imply that Luz can’t make an abomination of her own? What absolute nerve does he think he has for even condescending to her? And why her? She picked up the scraggly man who was surprisingly a lot heavier than he looked. Aside from the layered tunic and cloak that he wore, there was nothing on him to make him heavier than he actually was. She assumed it could be the scarf, however that made no sense to her.

“Well, to let you know, Mr. Almade, I’ve made quite a number of abominations of my own. Yes, maybe the first one was with a little bit of help, but the others -.”

“The one that you were helped with was made by Ms. Blight yes?”

Luz stood agape at the Abomination substitute, every word going through her brain, failing to even travel to her mouth.

“She is quite a prodigy herself. Suffice to say, you have become quite a master at the craft yourself from what I’ve seen. But is that skill really your own or one that you stole from the people around you?”

“What does that even mean?” Luz finally managed to scream out the words that had been hanging over her lips. “Of course I have my own skills, I rediscovered a lost magic and I’m learning more and more about it every day! What right do you have to even say that kind of thing to me? You’re supposed to be a teacher not some bully to beat down on other kids!”

“Oh, dearest child,” the teacher sighed through his scarf and dug into his sleeve to pull out a card and slap it on a tree. It twisted and contorted into a massive plantlike abomination whose branches sharpened. The bark splintered apart to reveal a gaping mouth with large, gnashing teeth. “You aren’t the first.”

~~~

Had Blight Manor always been this empty?

Amity walked the empty lavender granite corridors and traced her hand over the marbled patterns. She took in a deep sigh. Why did she now only realize that Luz wasn’t always going to be here?

She had been walking aimless around the manor for about an hour now. Her parents weren’t going to be home for another few hours or so, considering they had an extended summons from the Emperor himself.

The Emperor! She could only imagine how Luz feels about him especially after what he did to Eda. She wasn’t even sure if she wanted to be in the Emperor’s Coven anymore. Like she wanted to in the first place; for her parents it always seemed like everything that they were pressuring her to do was not only to further their reputation by having her hair forcefully dyed by them, but to get her into the Emperor’s Coven and force her to take her place at the top of the social ladder. As if they believed that she was worthy of any of that; As if she even cared about the social ladder to begin with. And now that contempt had been brought into focus by Luz.

Every time the thought of her floated into the Blight’s mind, she winced in pain and tried to wipe away any tears that would come streaming down her face. She wasn’t even sure if it was even worth it to pursue a relationship with her now. Maybe it was a waste of time.

Amity leaned on the mahogany hand railing as she trailed up the stairs to the foyer balcony and entered her room. It wasn’t small in the slightest, but not exactly a master bedroom either. It had enough to fit her twin bed and the rest of her set pretty well with some room for a few shelves to spare which she hung up with multiple posters, including one of Lilith in a profile view, staring directly at her as she is leaning over the hilt of an intricate sword with a smug grin on her face. The picture had a gilded border around it with the words “Join the Emperor’s Coven Today!” written under it.

Over the time since she asked her parents to hang up that poster in her room, she grew more and more discontented with it. The more she looked at it, the more she grew angry, sometimes talking to the poster as if it was Lilith herself that was mocking her. She only wished that she could have talked to Lilith like that in person whenever she was her mentor. And now she was excommunicated from the Emperor’s Coven because Belos lied to her and she acted accordingly. Her parents would definitely say it was her who betrayed Belos, but it really was the opposite to her. She wanted to shove all of her hate for the Emperor’s Coven and what it had done into Lilith’s face, but now that she isn’t the face of the coven, it wasn’t really worth it. She tore down the poster anyway. It’s not like her parents would care. She was a traitor anyway.

Amity threw the now crumpled up poster across her room and she watched as it knocked over the keepsake box that she kept on the windowsill. Realizing what she had done, she leapt over to the window and caught the keepsake box before it hit the ground and let out a sigh of relief.

She looked at the box with a longing almost purging her throat in a fit of sobs. She managed to keep it held back as she went over it. The box itself was as teal as parts of her hair that hung down the lowest part of the half-ponytail that she always wore with a letter “A” engraved on the lid. Gilded rivets acted as the box’s hinge that kept everything that she had found dear to her for the past few years.

She opened the box and took everything out one by one and lined them up on the windowsill. The tiara that she received when she and Luz defeated Grom; she remembered that night like it was yesterday and not around 3 weeks ago. A stack of photos of her and the rest of the group that Luz hung out with; they had become her dearest friends as much as Luz’s, especially now that she was mending her issues with Willow. Gus is a lot of fun to hang around, though to her, he can be pretty overbearing sometimes. And plus, he was two years younger than everybody else, so that made things a little more awkward. She talked to kids before, she read to them in the library and they were always super sweet to her. Though with Gus, it’s different. He had skipped a few grades and proved to be one of the smartest people that she had ever encountered, using his illusions to get them out of whatever sticky situation they got themselves in, if it wasn’t to use it for general fun. He is still a kid after all. How could she talk to a kid like that without condescending to him? That’s something that she would have to work on later.

Amity pulled out the last item and her heart sank. The torn up Grom-posal note that she wanted to give to Luz. She took it from the forest and stuffed it inside her chest along with her tiara that night. Why must her crush have to hurt her so much? Why did she have to leave? Tears finally managed to break the surface of her face and they started to pool up under her chin as the dripped down onto the rug and soaked into the fibers. She got up with the pieces of the note in her hand and walked back down the steps and back into the endless twisting maze that was the manor she lived in.

She didn’t know why she didn’t rip up the note into smaller pieces. She wanted to hold onto it for as long as she could. Maybe it was because she wanted to hold onto it for as long as she could? Or maybe she just didn’t have the energy? Neither excuse really felt convincing to Amity as she continued to traverse the manor; until she ended up in that room.

The grand piano stood in the middle of a large carpeted area of a much larger room with bookcases filled with books containing various sheet music that Agreus used to play the various works that either he or other notable composers wrote. There were even the few that Amity stuck inside the books with the scrawled writing that she made back when she played with him. A few other instruments laid out about the room, all put away neatly along the walls, but they never really stuck out for Amity. She took to the piano and sat on the stool as she brushed the dust off the keys that had lied dormant there from the years of neglect.

She thought for a moment. Should she really be doing this? She looked back to the note and remembered what Luz said.

Maybe I can help you write a song for them!

She couldn’t help but smile at Luz’s obliviousness. All she wanted was for her to stay. It may have been selfish of her, but she just wished that she could help the human while being with her at the same time. She ran over some scales on the piano, sounding fairly rusty as the hammers pounded on the strings.

Her hands trailed up and down the keyboard as she got lost in the music she started to improvise. After a while, she took in a deep breath and looked back at the note lying on the music stand. Her left hand started to make pulses on the keyboard as she felt all the pain and yearning that she felt swell over her. After a few bars, she started to sing from the deepest parts of her heart.

I was certain

From the day we first met

That our worlds will not cross

And I won’t regret

Those times that I hurt you

They seemed bittersweet

But you came around

And brought me to my feet

I won’t stop shaking

And my heart keeps aching

I couldn’t believe

That you would ever leave

I’d still let you go

But my heart says no

Please don’t go

When the boiling rains

Turn into snow

Please don’t go

And leave the memories

We made before

When you hold out your hand

And you take hold of mine

My heart starts to yearn

And I find myself pleading

Please don’t go

Don’t tell me that

I won’t see you

Anymore

Her breath grew shaky as she trailed along the keys. It wasn’t the best playing, still considerably an amateur to any bard out there, but she never thought about that. All she thought of was Luz. She thought of Luz and how she brought her out of her funk. How she was the sole reason that she was even happy to begin with. How she realized just how much she wanted to be out of her parent’s grasp.

“Little Miss Perfect

Do you understand?

That you’re meant for greatness

There’s no time to stand

So don’t be distracted

Just take the abuse

All you are meant for

Is a puppet to use.”

I won’t stop breaking

Out my heart

That’s quaking

I still can’t believe

That you looked out for me

I want to let go

But they still scream no

Please don’t go

When the boiling rains

Turn into snow

Please don’t go

And leave the memories

We made before

When you hold out your hand

And you take hold of mine

My heart starts to yearn

And I find myself pleading

Please don’t go

Don’t tell me that

I won’t see you

Anymore

Amity’s tears pooled up in her eyes as she started pounding over the keys. The frustration swelled over her. All the pain that she went through surged through her fingertips. All the longing, all the exhaustion that she felt coursed through her body as she practically belted out.

When time flashes by

Were you there by my side all along?

And when my face starts to flush

Would you even suspect

The love that I felt for you

Was even a prospect?

But even then

I can’t let go

My heart screams no

Please don’t go

When the boiling rains

Turn into snow

Please don’t go

And leave the memories

We made before

When you hold out your hand

And you take hold of mine

My heart starts to yearn

And I find myself pleading

I CAN’T LET GO

I WON’T LET GO

PLEASE DON’T GO

I CAN’T GO

I CAN’T GO

She stifled a breath as she left the note sustained in the air. She let out the one thing that she didn’t want Luz to hear. That she didn’t want herself to hear. What would her parents say if she ran off with her? Not even that, but what would she even do? Her fingers hovered over the keys as she softly laid them down on the next chord.

Please don’t go

I can’t follow you

Into the snow

Please don’t go

I’m too selfish

That, I already know

But when you crack a smile

Or when you make a joke

My heart starts to ache

And I nearly choke

Please don’t go

Don’t tell me that

I won’t see you

That I can’t see you

That I would never see you

Anymore

Amity softly pressed the keys on the piano to resolve the last chord and everything that had flushed over her lingered in the air. A mix of relief and sorrow hung over her as she closed her eyes and let out a sigh. A slow clap sounded behind her.

“Brilliant performance, darling; however you out of everybody in the house know the rules against using that old thing in the house.”

Amity spun around in the piano stool as she looked straight at the woman that she feared the most. The naturally dark green mane of hair that normally trailed down her back was tied neatly into a tight bun. Cold, unfeeling eyes stared back at her as she tensed up and bowed her head.

“Yes, mother.”

#The Owl House #Toh Luz #Toh Amity #Soul Bound #Ghost fic #luz noceda #amity blight #odalia blight #Robert Almade #writing #fanfic #skara #lumity #skarlow #angst #songfic chapter #songfic

[jeremys-blogs]

Aftermath (Fan Fiction)

To say that the mood in the house was muted would have been an understatement right now. From the moment the sun had risen there had been an overwhelming quiet throughout the entire place. Few things had been said to each other aside from the customary morning greetings, and for the time being everyone seemed content to just keep to themselves. Through the corner of her eye, Luz could see Eda making attempts to make circles in the air, only for said shapes to simply pass on with no effect. Of course, the older witch would stop as soon as she felt her apprentice's eyes on her, but then things would get somewhat better when the youth offered her a smile. But as nice a moment as that was, it was ended when the house's latest resident entered the living room. Lilith glanced to each of them, with Luz especially showing discomfort at her presence, but to the former's credit she said nothing, instead just walking over to the nearest window to look outside. After a while though, the silence became too much, and Luz knew that there were important things that needed to be said. "Will he send someone after us?"

All eyes were on the human now, save for Lilith, who kept her gaze on the outside. "The Emperor?" She paused, but knew without looking that Luz had nodded to the counter-question. "Hard to say. His reasons for coming after you and Eda were because of the portal...and that's no longer something he can have."

Luz winced, her memory of that moment still fresh in her mind. But as bad as it was that she herself had severed her only connection to her home, it also gave her other worries. "Will he come for revenge? We kinda humiliated him back there."

Placing her hand upon the windowsill, Lilith pondered for a moment. "Belos was always hard to read...but I think that, for now at least, he will keep his distance." For the first time since the conversation started, she turned, looking to Eda specifically. "You and I are no longer the powerful witches we were, Edalyn. It could be that he no longer considers us a threat worth pursuing."

Eda frowned to that. "Don't count on it, sis. Guys like that don't let slights go unanswered. He might not come in force, but he'll at least be keeping an eye on us." She too let her eyes drift to the window. "I wouldn't be surprised if he has someone spying on us right now."

"Ha!" Everyone turned to see that it was King who had laughed, and the small demon confidently strode towards Luz. "I say let em come! Luz here will show em what for!"

Luz smiled, appreciating the vote of confidence, which she showed by patting her friend on the head. But her expression soon turned serious as thoughts of Belos returned to her. "I'd be lying if I said I wouldn't want another shot at that guy. And hey..." She reached into her back pocket, pulling out the small fragment of the Emperor's mask that she'd kept. "I know he's not invincible."

Lilith frowned. "Be wary of overconfidence, apprentice. One successful hit does not win a war."

Eda smirked. "Depends on the hit." When her sister looked back to her, she continued. "All these years, everyone on the Isles though Belos was this big, indestructible king. Untouchable. And then what happens? A human girl comes along and whams him right in the kisser." She snorted briefly. "Everyone saw him up there, mask cracked and all. Word will spread. Maybe his grip isn't as iron-clad as everyone thought."

Hearing that, Lilith arched an eyebrow. "You expect some revolution?" she asked, her voice dripping with scepticism.

Eda shrugged. "Wouldn't be the worst thing to happen." She turned to Luz, smiling. "Oh, what I would have given to have been there when you gave that guy that wake-up call. I can't think of anything better."

Luz blushed, scratching the side of her cheek. "Honestly, I think he was just playing with me. He thought I was no danger." Her smile faded. "If he'd have been serious...I probably wouldn't be here right now."

Eda too looked disheartened, if only a little. "Me neither, kiddo."

Looking down to King, Luz stared at him for a time, then took a deep breath. "But no matter how strong he is...he still needs to be fought." She took a few steps forward, looking to Lilith and then to Eda. "We might not be his target right now, but he's still there, doing who knows what. Other witches will be going through hard times because of him. I saw the other statues, the other petrified witches." She paused here, seeing the discomfort on her mentor's face, no doubt as a result of thinking of what she nearly had happen to her. "He's not going to stop..." Her hand tightened into a fist. "Not unless someone stops him."

Lilith studied her for a long time, then folded her arms as she let out a sigh. "Fine words, child. But let's not forget that you speak of the most powerful being on the Isles. Someone we only just managed to get away from. Even if Eda and I were at our best, which we are most definitely not right now, we would stand little hope of victory against him. How exactly do you plan to bring about this glorious triumph you propose, when we now stand at our weakest?"

As much as she didn't want to admit it, Lilith was right, though Luz maintained her frown as she looked to her. "...However we can."

A silence fell between the two, ending when Lilith at last cracked a smile, then turned to her long-estranged sibling. "I can see why you took her in."

Eda chuckled. "Yep, she's a fire-starter alright."

Luz very much wanted to speak further, but it was here when the door of the house creaked open, causing all to jump slightly. Thankfully, it wasn't some intruder coming to face them, but simply the smiling face of Hooty, who spoke up in that ever-cheerful way of his. "Hoot-hoot! Special delivery! Did anybody order a couple of best friends?"

Though confused, Luz soon understood the words as she saw two figures walk through the front door. Two youths who grinned from ear to ear as soon as they saw her. "Luz!" Willow exclaimed.

The moment she laid eyes on them, Luz looked like she was going to burst into tears of joy, and such was her elation at seeing them that she rushed forward. So great was the impact of her embrace that the two other children were nearly knocked back from it, but thankfully they held their ground and returned the embrace, smiling all the way. It was a sweet moment, and one that even a cynic like Eda couldn't help but grin at, though she remained silent as Luz finally spoke to her friends. "I heard what you did, getting people on our side back there. I...I can't thank you enough."

Willow looked to her fondly. "After everything you've done for us, it was the least we could do."

Gus' smile grew. "Yeah! And hey, if nothing else, my Dad said it was the most eventful broadcast he's ever done. So there's that."

Luz looked to her younger friend with apprehension. "You weren't in too much trouble for that, were you?"

Gus waved her off. "What? Me? Nah. Dad just asked me to check in with him first before I suddenly decide to use his broadcasts to voice anti-Emperor sentiment to the public next time."

Luz had to fight the urge to laugh after a remark like that, but thankfully Willow was there to bring the conversation back to the more serious matter at hand. "Is it true? What they're saying? You actually fought...him?"

Her human friend's smile vanished, replaced instead with a more sombre look. "Yeah, it's true. And I won't lie to you guys...it was kind of a losing fight on my end."

As one would expect after hearing that, Willow and Gus looked to her with astonishment, but also an understandable degree of awe. "You...actually fought...Belos?!" Gus shouted out. In an instant, he whipped out his paper pad and pencil, going into full school journalism mode. "What was the fight like? What spells did you use? Did Belos favour abominations or something else?"

Luz smiled, grateful at her friend for doing at least this to bring the mood up, but when she spoke it was with somewhat less enthusiasm than him. "I'll tell you all about it. But right now I'm just grateful to see you're both okay. Last time I saw you...well....things weren't all that good."

Willow shivered, holding herself as she too thought back to their last encounter with one another. "Don't remind me. When we saw you being taken by that awful Lilith, we worried we'd never see...you...again."

Her voice had become slower and more fearful, and Luz knew already that the moment she'd been dreading had arrived. Her two friends had finally spotted that Lilith was here among them, and the older witch herself now stepped forward. Ever the professional, she had her hands clasped behind her back, giving the two newcomers a small nod of acknowledgement. "Students."

They were both still stunned at her presence, but Willow shook herself out of it, looking to Luz with expected confusion. "Wha...what is she doing here?!"

Luz looked away, thinking hard on how best to answer. "Well, it's kind of a long story...but the short of it is that she's turned against the Emperor and is on our side now...kind of."

Gus blinked a couple of times to that, then again slowly looked to Lilith, then to Eda. "So...is everything...good?" he asked, his voice betraying his uncertainty at the whole thing.

Hearing the question, Eda and Lilith glanced to one another, with the former smiling in that mischievous way she loved so much. "Oh sure, it's no problem. I mean she only cursed me, worked alongside an oppressive dictator and headed the years-long campaign to try and capture me, but hey, it's all good, right sis?"

Lilith at least had the decency to blush somewhat after that, giving Luz the opportunity to look back to her friends. "I think...we're working on it."

"Hoot-hoot! We've got an abomination incoming!" Hooty declared.

All eyes were to the door now. "The Emperor's Coven?!" Luz asked.

Hooty smiled. "Nope! Just that abomination girl."

Luz narrowed her eyes as her mind began to think. "Abomination gir..." Then her eyes widened. "Amity!"

Sure enough, her guess was right on the money, as her other Hexside classmate suddenly arrived onto the scene, carried by her trusty and faithful abomination, who gently let her down so she could get her crutch onto the floor. Once she was sure she was going to be okay on the ground, the fellow Azura fan looked to her otherworldly friend with as much worry as Willow and Gus had been showing. "Luz! Are you okay?!"

Luz rushed to her side, helping to keep her steady. "I was about to ask you that question. Have you recovered yet?"

Amity giggled nervously. "Well, no, not yet. But when I heard you were back here I knew I had to come and see." In that moment, she noticed too that Willow and Gus were here. "Oh. Hey."

The others nodded back to her. "Hey," Willow responded with a smile.

When Amity's attention returned to Luz, she opened her mouth to speak, only to be cut-off when the human girl began to preemptively answer her. "Yes, I went to the castle, yes, I broke Eda out, and yes...I fought Belos. Everyone else has already asked."

Amity immediately turned a shade paler after hearing all that, and when she hobbled forward slightly, her voice was one of pure disbelief. "Do...do you realise what you've done?! You've gone against the leader of the whole Boiling Isles! You'll be declared a criminal! An enemy of the state! He'll be coming for you!"

Luz could hear the worry in her voice, and looked to her softly. "I know...and thank you for worrying about me. But..." She looked over her shoulder, to Eda, and after the master and apprentice shared a glance with one another, Luz turned back to face Amity. "But I just couldn't let him have her."

Amity calmed down now, and also afforded herself a quick blush when she realised that Luz's hand was still on her shoulder. Backing away slightly, she cleared her throat. "Well...I'm just glad you're okay." Her concerned look returned shortly afterwards. "I'm...not sure if you'll be allowed to go back to Hexside after this. Everyone probably knows you're Eda's apprentice now. They might not want you at the school with the other students."

It was a point Luz admittedly hadn't considered, and Willow and Gus too seemed taken aback by the thought, looking to each other with sadness at the prospect of no longer going to school with her. But after a while, Luz looked to all three of her fellow students with the same determination she'd had when going to Belos' castle. "If that's the price...then I'll just have to accept it." She forced a smile. "Besides, it's not as if we won't see each other, right?"

Though the other children were still clearly dwelling on the more negative aspects of this situation, let it never be said that Luz's optimism wasn't infectious when she really got around to it. Amity, Willow and Gus all smiled to her, silently conceding to her point. Alas, as pleasant as this moment was, it was soon interrupted by none other than King, who walked to Luz and looked up to her. "We're all with you, Luz. Criminal or not, we'll help you."

Luz looked to him appreciatively. "Thanks, King. If I had to be stuck anywhere, I'm glad I'm stuck with you guys."

Those words immediately piqued the interest of her friends. "Wait...stuck? What are you walking about?" Willow asked.

A deep sigh from Luz. "Belos wanted Eda and me because of the portal to the human world. And...I had to destroy it." Seeing the looks of shock her friends were giving her, she elaborated. "It was either that or let him have it. I have no idea what he wanted with it, but whatever it was it couldn't be good."

Gus stepped forward. "So...you can't go home?"

In spite of that admittedly bad turn of events, Luz kept her smile. "For now...but I'll get back somehow. I don't know how...but I will."

Amity matched her determination. "And we'll help you. All of us."

Luz smiled to her, again patting her on the shoulder. "Thank you."

Amity smiled back, but through the corner of her eyes she could see movement, and when she turned to see who it was, she looked on with amazement to see that it was her own mentor, Lilith. Like with Willow and Gus, Amity was unsure of what to say or do, and so only managed to get out a whisper. "Miss...Miss Lilith?"

Lilith shook her head. "I am no longer leader of the Emperor's Coven, Amity. There's no need to be calling me 'Miss' right now."

Confusion sank in for the abomination prodigy, and after looking around at everyone else in the house, she clasped her hand over her forehead. "I think...we might need to hear the whole story on this one, Luz."

Willow raised her hand. "I second that."

Luz chuckled, nodding slowly. "Then come on in. I'll get some tea."

Eda watched as her apprentice led her friends into the house proper, and as soon as they were off to the kitchens, she looked over to Lilith, who had once more taken to staring out of the window. "So...why did he want it? The portal?"

Lilith sighed. "I don't know. I may have been his right hand, but he kept secrets even from me. All I know is that access to the human world was important for his plans."

Eda reclined into her sofa, giving herself a quick stretch before speaking up again. "Well, guess he'll have to come up with a new plan. Can't go anywhere with a burned portal after all."

Lilith glanced to her, then again to the window, narrowing her eyes as she looked to the horizon. "...I hope."

#writing #my stuff #fanfic #fanfiction #fan fiction #disney #the owl house #luz noceda #eda the owl lady #king #lilith clawthorne #willow park #gus porter #amity blight #hooty

[theartsynoodle]

Who’s Writing the Letters to Luz’s Mom?

I will leave this all under the cut because there are MAJOR spoilers. It’s not something that any of us would ever think going off of the information given to us by the show itself.

So at the end of Enchanting Grom Fright we are shown that Luz’s mom, Camilia (I hope that’s how its spelled I looked at different sites and they spelled it differently on each of them.) has been receiving letters that she assumes are from Luz, but we know very well they aren’t. There has only been a few possible theories as to who is actually doing, but I think I have some damning proof on who is doing it. Or more like what.

So the two characters people have been saying it might be are either Eda, or Amity. There’s also the theory that maybe it’s the Emperor’s Coven/Emperor Belos doing it. We’ll get to the Emperor later, but now I just want to explain why it’s NOT Eda or Amity.

First, let’s look at the handwriting in the letters.

There are many small notable details in this handwriting that we can pick out to try and pin this to someone specific. There’s a small mix of cursive, some letters flow into the next, slashes through the o’s, swirly g’s and y’s, open bubble dots on the i’s, and the most important thing (imo) is the cross through the z. I had to zoom out to get it, but you can see the z is crossed.

This handwriting is pretty fun, playful, and distinctive. There’s a lot of little details. Now I will explain why it is not Eda.

Firstly, we have not seen any of Eda’s handwriting (correct me if I’m wrong.) Secondly, how would she know where to even send the letters? She doesn’t actually know where Luz lives, she doesn’t even know much about the human world at all. She doesn’t know what hugs are or what summer camp is, she probably has no idea the actual situation Luz is avoiding, she just knows one day she’ll have to go back. I don’t think Eda is the type of person to go behind Luz’s back like that either. So I don’t think it’s her.

Now for Amity, we actually can confirm that it isn’t her since we see her handwriting on the Grom proposal she wrote for Luz.

There are similarities do not get me wrong, but there are a few off things. Her letters are more cursive like yes, but they don’t flow together like in the letters being sent to Camilia, her i’s also have closed dots and there is no slash through the z. I don’t think it’s Amity mostly because of the handwriting, but also like Eda, she has no clue where Luz actually came from. She doesn’t know who Luz’s mom is, where she lives, I don’t even think she knows Luz will have to go back to Earth some day as it’s a conversation we haven’t heard between them. Same as Eda, I don’t think Amity would ever do this to Luz either.

Now, who could it possibly be? Well, what if I told you it’s Luz, but not our Luz. I only started to think about this when I stumbled upon an interview featuring  Dana Terrace, Wendie Malick, Alex Hirsch and Sarah-Nicole Robles that was released back in March. At 11:12 in the video, Sarah-Nicole Robles says that she “Really got to improvise with Creepy Luz.” She then fumbles a little on her words before saying “You’ll see her eventually.”

Here’s the video if you want to listen to it yourself.

Now this to me, is a HUGE give away. This might’ve not meant much before Enchanting Grom Fright, but it sure does now. Let’s look at the handwriting in the letter again and some of Luz’s actual handwriting that I took from Wing it Like Witches.

It’s pretty damn close. The cursive, the open i’s, slashed through o’s , swirly g’s and y’s, and the slash through the z. Why am I so dead set on it being this Creepy Luz character? The letter is robotic sounding, it’s stilted and awkward, like it’s devoid of feeling. They misspell Luz’s name at the end, something that no one that knew Luz would do. I think that there is a clone of Luz, a much more lifeless but very physically similar version of Luz that was sent to summer camp as her replacement. Why? Because if Luz never showed up to summer camp, why didn’t Camilia get a call? Why didn’t Luz’s phone get blown up with messages asking where she was? Also, wouldn’t Camilia know her own daughter’s handwriting and seriously freak out if this note popped up and it wasn’t her kid’s handwriting? Because the camp thinks she’s there because there is a doppelgänger in her place.

Now we’re getting to the part of “Well who would send the clone?”, I think it’s the Emperor and Lilith.

The Emperor is a mysterious character, we don’t know much about him at all. We know he’s extremely powerful as he is of course the Emperor and knows how to heal Eda’s curse, something only he seems capable of doing. He also, wants Eda to join the coven, not arrested, but join the coven. He apparently has “Big plans for the Island.” and wants Eda to be a part of them according to Lillith in Wing it Like Witches. I think the Emperor’s coven sent the clone in Luz’s place so they could keep her there as bait for Eda. They saw the connection Eda has with this girl, so why not keep her on the island and use her to get to Eda? I’m sure he knows well who she is, she is a human after all. He is also the Emperor and I think he knows more about the human world than any one else in the show besides Luz. The fact that in the next episode, Agony of a Witch, the synopsis is,  On a school field trip to the mysterious Emperor's Castle, Luz puts herself in danger.

They’re going to the castle and this is what Emperor Belos has been planning for the beginning. He is luring Luz to him, to take her and convince Eda to finally join him. Luz gets put in danger because we all know she is Amity’s “Fearless Champion” and challenges literally everyone that ever defies any her friends’ honor.

And while at first I thought it was the Emperor himself that would take Luz, I don’t think it’s him, I think he has someone else do his dirty work. We also see in the promo that Luz has an encounter with Lilith in the castle, which leads me to point out the secret message being spelled out in the show. (For those who don’t know, there is a secret code in the show spelling out a message. The first part of the message being from each letter from the first word of every episode title, and the second part being a coded message in a Boiling Isles language.”

It reads:

“Two Witches Torn Apart Now Alone,

Two Hearts of Stone, A Curse of Feathers and Mud

A Betrayal...”

This definitely has to do with Eda’s curse and her relationship with Lilith. The newest addition being “A Betrayal...” from Wing it Like Witches, the message that needs to be decoded and is hidden on Eda’s cheat lunchbox. The one where we see Luz’s handwriting.

(Sorry I’m lazy, but its on the outside of the lunchbox, very faded, in the bottom left corner.)

This is the betrayal, Lilith takes Luz. She helped Belos send the clone since she knows more about Luz and Eda, she’s the one the takes Luz to get Eda to come to them, to join the coven. Lilith would do this, she’s frustrated with Eda. She gave her ample opportunity to join them and she has let her go too many times. It’s time for a cheap play.

That is what I think is happening with the letters, and uh, some episode plot prediction lol.

TLDR: The Emperor’s coven sent a clone of Luz, dubbed Creepy Luz, to take her place at summer camp so he can use Lilith to take the real Luz and get Eda to join the Emperor’s coven.

#the owl house #sorry if anyone saw this last night but i had to post this in the morning because midnight on a monday with a bunch of errors was not the ri #theory #long post #.txt #toh luz #luz noceda #toh amity #amity blight #toh eda #toh lilith #edalyn clawthorne #lilith clawthorne #lumity #kind of #camilia noceda #enchanting grom fright #wing it like witches #agony of a witch #toh spoilers #the owl house theory #the owl house spoilers #toh theory

[sergeantsporks]

Hey could you do Hunter getting getting injuries treated at the owl house? Like some hurt/comfort. If you want to write a non compliant Hunter that’s be really cool but thanks so much! I just love your owl house fics 🦉🪶

<3 Thank you!

Hunter yawned, the tip of his staff dipping through the air. He pulled himself back up. Just a little further until Bonesborough, and then he could make a pit stop, take a little nap, or at least grab some coffee. He rubbed his eyes. Okay, so maybe he should stop taking quite so many missions. But since he’d returned with the titan’s blood, Belos had been so pleased, and he wanted to keep that going, and obviously there wasn’t anything huge he could do, but if he kept taking all of the little missions, that would probably keep him in a good spot, right?

Hunter shook himself as he started to drift off again. “Bad,” he scolded himself, “Stay awake.”

He heard the sound of wingbeats behind him, and he twisted back. A griffin. Great.

Hunter dove to avoid the bird, but it chased him, shrieking. Probably a new mother. Well, he didn’t intend on being baby food.

Hunter swooped and swerved to the side, just barely dodging a swipe of claws.

If he’d just been a little more alert and less sleepy, he probably would have been able to see and avoid the tailstrike.

As it was, the griffin’s tail caught him right in the chest, knocking him off of his staff.

Hunter screamed as he tumbled through the air, clawing for his staff. His palisman fluttered out of his pocket, grabbing the back of his tunic in its claws and frantically flapping its wings.

It didn’t help much.

He slammed into the top branch of a tree, all of the air leaving his lungs with a whoof as the tree branch cracked under the force of his fall. The world blacked out.

When Hunter came to, it was because everything hurt too much for him to stay out. He groaned. His head felt dizzy, light, and everything ached—but especially his left leg, which throbbed painfully.

Hunter managed to pry his eyes open to see the ground, still far below, his staff too far beyond his reach, and his palisman lying dazed a few branches below.

“Ah!”

Hunter twisted to look up, biting his lip as the movement made his whole body scream in protest. He was hanging upside-down, his left foot caught between two branches. Hunter’s stomach heaved. Feet were… not supposed to bend that way.

Hunter strained to pull himself up and grab the next branch, but the shift made a wave of pain sweep up from his broken foot, and his vision went spotty.

Hunter relaxed, breathing heavily. Okay. This was… this was fine. He could get out of this.

Somehow.

Xxx

“Going to the library for some books, bye, Eda!”

“Uh-huh, yeah, books, sure, say hi to bossy-boots for me.”

Luz raced out the door and down the path, humming to herself. She tripped over a stick, and stumbled forward a few steps, looking back.

Wait.

Luz scooped up the coven staff she’d tripped on, glancing around. “Where…”

A rustle in the trees made her look up to see a very familiar white cloak and golden mask in the trees. Hunter was stuck upside down, and she suppressed a snicker.

“Need some help up there?”

“No! Go away, I’m fine!”

Luz tucked the staff in her belt, climbing up the tree and sitting on a branch next to him, scooping up Lil Rascal on the way. The trail of broken branches above Hunter indicated a pretty long fall. “Uh-huh.” She tugged off his helmet. “Can you even see out of this thing?”

Hunter swiped at her, and then yelped. “Ow! Go away! I don’t need your help!”

Luz examined the branch his foot was caught in. Oh, ow, that looked painful. “Hang on, I got this.”

She slapped a little plant glyph on the tree, and it responded to her, forming a little shelf underneath Hunter. Luz snapped the branch his foot was caught in, and he fell with a little oof to the tree shelf she’d made. Luz climbed down below him, taping a fire glyph to the bottom of the shelf and breaking the shelf, hitting the fire glyph so that it slowly lowered him to the ground.

“I said I didn’t need your help!”

Luz swung down next to him. “You’re welcome.” She held out his staff. “Hey. I know you’re mister independent or whatever, but the Owl House is literally right down the road, and you’re never going to make it back to the keep on your own, so why don’t you just come home with me, and we’ll fix your foot?”

Hunter snatched the staff back, struggling up to his feet and leaning on the staff, keeping his wounded foot up. He looked awful—besides the obvious foot problem, the dark circles under his eyes were so dark they looked like bruises, and his knuckles were white on his staff. “I said I’m fine. I jussssst… need to get to… town.”

He managed to hobble a couple of steps before he fell again, yelping.

“Wow. That’s just sad.” Luz hauled him up, slinging one of his arms around her shoulders and turning around. “Come on, let’s get you fixed up.”

“I doooooon’t… need…”

Hunter struggled weakly against her, but then gave up, going limp, his eyes sliding shut. Luz dragged him along. “Whoof—hey—wake up, you’re heavy!”

Lil Rascal cheeped in her pocket, flapping out and shifting into its staff form, hovering so that Luz could sit Hunter on top of it.

“Trrrrrraitorrrrr,” Hunter slurred, his eyes open just a crack.

Luz pushed him back towards the owl house, pushing open the door with her foot.

“HEY EDA!” she called, “CHANGE OF PLANS FOR TODAY!”

Xxx

Ow. Ow. Ow.

Why did everything have to hurt so much?!

Hunter opened his eyes, staring up at a ceiling.

Wait.

Where was he? He glanced down, the familiar weight of his armor gone. Replaced by a T-shirt that said ‘bad girl coven’ on it

“OOOOOOoooooooooooooooooooo, you’re awaaaaaake!”

Hunter yelped, punching the weird bird face. “Augh!”

The bird… worm… thing… drew back. “Ow! Geeeeeeze.”

Hunter sat up so fast he nearly blacked out again. His foot was stuck in a heavy cast, healing patches on it. “Where—oh, no-!” he swung his legs over the side of the couch. “I can’t—I can’t be here, I—”

Xxx

Luz came thumping down the stairs with more healing patches in time to see Hunter try to get up, and then immediately fall back with a groan.

“Ow—ow—ow—ow—”

Luz poked her head over the couch. “Hello!”

Hunter groaned. “Just kill me now.”

Eda stuck her head out of the kitchen, where she was cooking up more explosive potions. “Did I hear that we’re killing the nerd?”

“We’re not killing anyone.” Luz smacked a healing patch on Hunter’s forehead. “Pain patch!”

He tried to get up again, then hissed, sinking back. “I—ow—I can’t—”

“Your foot is broken, Hunter, you can’t go anywhere.” Luz put another patch on his face. “There. That should make it stop hurting.”

Eda snorted. “You know too many of those have a sedative effect, right? They use sleeping nettles to make them.”

Luz twisted back to look at her. “Whoa, really?”

Eda nodded. “See for yourself.”

Luz looked back down at Hunter, whose eyes were already drifting shut. He yawned, glaring at her. “What did… you…”

“Heh. Whoops. Sorry.” Luz squinted at him. “When was the last time you slept, anyway?”

“I don’t—couple of days, I don’t know.”

Luz slapped another pain patch on him. “I take my apology back, GO TO SLEEP!”

Xxx

“Aw, look at him.” Eda poked a sleeping Hunter in the face. “Y’know, he’s actually kind of adorable when he’s not trying to kill us.”

Luz peeled off one of the old healing patches that had lost its magic, applying a new one. “He can be nice. He needs a friend.”

Eda snorted. “Luz, he’s a coven member. I’m sure he has plenty of friends back with all the other Belos-ites.”

“I don’t think he does.” Luz sat on the arm of the couch. “He seemed kind of lonely, like he has no one to talk to. I mean, he’s the head of the coven—who’s he going to talk to that isn’t treating him like their boss?”

“Whoa, hey, there, Luz. He’s fun right now, when he can’t move, but don’t forget that he’s dangerous—he beat the two of us pretty handily, held his own against Kikimora, and Amity just barely got out of her fight with him, and that was when he was stressed out of his mind. I’m not saying he can’t be nice, or that he isn’t lonely, but just… watch your step, okay?”

Luz nodded. “I’ll be careful, Eda, I promise.”

Her mentor gave her a thumbs-up and ran back to the kitchen as smoke billowed from the door. Luz spun Hunter’s helmet in her hands, slipping it on. “Ugh. How does he wear this thing all of the time?” She tugged it back off, setting it down.

“Dooooon’t touch that.”

Luz jumped. Hunter was watching her through bleary, half-closed eyes. “Oh, hey.”

“Hey yourself,” he mumbled crossly, “Why can’t I move?”

Luz winced. “I miiiiiiiight have put a few too many pain patches on you. But you were really hurting!” She poked his shoulder. “Can you feel that?”

“Quit that!”

Luz stuck her tongue out at him. “Eh. Hey, did you know that half of your ribs are broken?” I think your armor probably protected you a little bit, but how high did you fall from?”

He blinked sluggishly. “I don’t know—high.”

“Man.” Luz fidgeted. “Hey, uh, Hunter? Where’d all of those scars come from?”

Hunter closed his eyes again.

“Hey! I know you’re not asleep, Hunter!”

He opened his eyes just a little bit. “They were accidents,” he grumbled, “Satisfied?”

“Accidents?”

“Yeah. Accidents.”

“Even the claw one? What was that an accident of, accidentally antagonizing a bear?”

He closed his eyes again. “Something like that.”

An uncomfortable silence fell over them, and Luz sighed. “Okay. Hey. I’m sorry. I won’t poke into your personal life anymore.”

He opened one eye. “Really?”

“No,” Luz admitted, “I’m totally going to keep poking into your personal life. But… you don’t have to answer. If you really don’t want to. Oh, hey, you thought the glyph combos were cool, wanna see my new one? Of course you do.”

Luz scribbled down a plant and fire glyph in a circle combo and squeezed it in her hand. A whip made out of fire stretched out, and she cracked it. “Neat, huh!”

“You just lit the floor on fire.”

Luz yelped, stomping on the fire. “Go out, go out, go out!”

Xxx

Hunter snorted, watching Luz struggle to put the fire out, then winced as the snort made his ribs ache. The pain patches must be wearing off.

Luz put out the fire and started chattering about how the glyph combos worked, and how folding origami could make the coolest things.

Hunter drifted off again, still groggy from the patches (and yes, okay, fine, from the all-nighters, too). When he opened his eyes again, it was dark. One single ball of light floated in the middle of the room, sending off a dim nightlight.

Night?!

Oh—he was so late—he would be in so much trouble—maybe he could pretend he was still out doing missions?

Hunter started to sit up, then fell back with a groan. Ow, his ribs.

His palisman chirped sleepily, untucking its head from its wing to blink at him. Someone—probably Luz—had propped his broken foot up with pillows and given him a blanket.

I need… to go back…

But it was warm and comfortable here, and he couldn’t move anyway, and his foot wasn't going to be better for a while, and his eyes were already drifting shut.

But maybe… maybe I can stay a little longer.

#and then he never leaves :) #toh #toh fanfiction #my writing #asks