Chapter 10 - The trip to the forest of the Bat Queen part I
~ONE~
"Me and Amity? But wait...how?...who?...what?...when?" Luz gestures wildly with her hand as she keep babbling.
"Yes, you and Amity." Iniko chuckled, "My sister and her Amity are dating for over a year. And they are a cute couple."
Luz stared at Iniko for an worrying amount of time, her brain still can't fully processing this. At this point, her mouth was gaped open and letting out no words.
"Hello, the Boiling Isles to Luz." Iniko was amused at how confusion she was. "Are you still with me?"
"Yeah, just...I.." She found her mind reeling blank."... I'm just..."
"I'd use "flabbergasted" in a sentence if I were you." He smiled.
"I'm just surprised." That's not exactly true. Luz don't know what to call the feelings that rotate in her head. "Amity in my world doesn't like me this way."
"Or maybe you think she doesn't." Iniko smirked, "At first, my sister didn't know Amity likes her, which was weird because Amity had a practically got 'I love you' written across her forehead, and she was acting real mushy around her. Aunt Lilith even decided to give 'The Talk' to Amity because of her strange behavior around our Luz."
After taking a moment to think, the Latina replied, "Nah, I and my Amity are just friend. I've read a lot of Romance Novel. So, I know how to spot the person in love. And Amity's got a crush on someone."
"And you've no idea who is this person?"
"No" Luz repiled, not understanding the unspoken meaning of his question.
'I'm getting déjà vu.' Iniko thought. 'Maybe all Luzs has the same the same level of the romantic awareness area as my sister.'
Then the gears seemed to turn in Luz's head. "Wait! Is Eda all right with the other me dating the daughter of person who cursed her. Or this rather a secret relationship?"
"Everybody knows that you are dating Amity." Iniko said, the faintest hint of a smirk creeping into his voice. "Ok, let me clarify things. At the age of eight, Amity spent three months in the Root Core - a training centre of the young witches from the upper-class families, where she became friends with our cousin Cassandra. Little more than a year later, aunt Lilith made Amity her apprentice. And the two quickly became more than the mentor/protégé. I still remember the look on Amity face when she called aunt Lilith "Mom". Cassie used to tease Amity about it from time to time."
He eat another oreo, and continued. "Edric and Emira, in turn, they just fell in love with our family. After their first visit to the Owl House. Our aunt and uncle basically adopted these three, and we've been like family ever since. So, mom don't have a problem with that they are the children of the Odalia Blight."
"So, I'm dating Amity... wow." Luz said it more to herself.
"That's nothing," Iniko levitated a photo album off the shelf over the stove. "Just wait til you hear about our grandparents. Or our adventures in Gravity Falls."
The next three hours passed by in a blur of stories, questions and explanation. Luz was delighted with Iniko's tales of his family and their adventures. Iniko was just telling her about his Luz first visit in the secret lair of the Rebellious Coven when a window had opened and Owlbert flew in, delivering a folded up note to Iniko and accepting a few scratches under the chin from Luz before flying off.
After Iniko read the note, he jumped on his feet. "I'll finish the story this evening." He had a smile on his face, "Now, grab your staff and put on your hoodie, we have a mission to complete."
"Mission? What mission?" Luz said in excitement of the information.
"Mom sending us to the forest where live the Bat Queen. BQ will detail what we have to do once we reach her nest."
"Yay, my first mission from the Rebellious Coven." The human girl popped up with sparks in her eyes.
Fifteen minutes later, they exited the house, giving Hooty a goodbye.
"I got all stuff off my half of the list." Iniko said as he check the contents of his backpack.
"Me too." Luz slipped on her book bag.
"Let's hit the sky." Iniko mounted the staff and kicked hard against the ground and up, up he soared, air rushed through his hair.
Luz sat on her own witch staff, as soon as she did the cat on top of the staff opened her wings and they flew out of the Owl House. They were not alone in the sky. A lot of flying creatures fly between the clouds. And the wind was changing. So, they have to be careful not to fall off.
Once they broke through the top of the cloud bank Iniko turned to her. "Do you know the way to the Bat Queen's nest?"
"I was there once."
"So, you know the way. Last one in is a rotten coconut!"
The race itself didn't take too long. The forest is just a few miles from the Owl House, and with the staffs continues to speed in excess of 70 miles an hour. The race ended in less than 20 minutes. Yet, what it lacked in length, it made up for in excitement. The race only consisted of few miles, but it was thrilling from start to finish.
In the beginning, Iniko had taken the lead, no doubt, relying heavily on the palisman, believing the staff by itself could carry him to a victory. It wasn't to be. Luz's skills were on full display, keeping herself in the race with Maotif. After three minutes, she was barely trailing him, and as Iniko strategically pushed his staff. Feline palisman relied more on her agility, bobbing and weaving as Luz missed flying creatures' numerous attempts at trying to either knock her off her broom, or off the pitch itself. Luz and Maotif's tactics received a enthusiastic glare from the male teenager.
With his lead diminishing and his victory in doubt, Iniko was becoming more excited and begin flying in nonstandard way. When Luz finally passed him on the last seven miles, Iniko looked at her and stood on the staff, surfing in air. She don't have been expecting such tactics, since she was looking more at him than the sky road ahead of her. After a five miles of that tactic, he smirked, then went higher and disappeared into the clouds.
"Maotif, I think it's time we speed up." Luz held onto her bag with one arm and staff with the other as she shot forward, Maotif purring happily as she stretched her wings to their full capacity. When they saw the forest not a minute later, the Latina directed a palisman towards ground.
Lower and lower Luz flew, until she could see individual top of trees and birds' nests on tree branch, and good place where she could land.
'Here we go.' thought Luz, and a few seconds later she had landed and dismounted on a patch of grass in the middle of a small clearing.
"We win!" The witch in training smiled, thrusted her fist into the air, cheering for herself and Maotif.
"What took so long?" A familiar voice interrupted the girl's moment of glory. Sure enough, as Luz looked behind herself, she noticed the teenage boy was sitting on large rock behind her.
The look on her face changed quickly to shock when she realizes that Iniko not only beat her to the forest, but he also had enough time to seat himself and roast marshmallows over a little magic fire.
"How?"
"Well," The teenage boy put the fire out, eating a one marshmallow as he held the stick to Luz, indicating he wanted to share the sweet, "Hawky is fast, has good turning ability and we both like to win."
Luz smiled as she took a second marshmallow herself. "So...Why do you think Eda sent us there?"
Iniko share a one of sweets with Hawky before gave the last bite on his marshmallow, sucking his fingers clean afterwards.
"I don't know, but we'll find out soon enough." as soon as the words leave his mouth, multiple eyes glowed in the darkness of Bat Queen's nest, revealing hundreds of animal shaped Palismans.
Iniko's ears twitched at the slight sound. And then the Bat Queen appeared out of nowhere.
~TWO~
The forest was quiet, the birds were scattered due to earlier commotion , the sound of twigs snapping filled the air, the two characters walked through the forest, one was a human teenage girl, she soft whistling the tune from some anime, a two steps behind her a small demon, he trying to avoid the small thorns in the wild bushes, his steps moving slowly.
"Luz, where are we actually going?" King asked, picking a piece of a thorn out of his tail.
"I want to talk to the Bat Queen." Luz said, halting in her steps so King could catch up. Once the demon was at her side, he could see the look of pensive on girl's face.
"Why?"
"I might be crazy, but I have this weird suspicion that I'm not the first person who switched places with yourself from another universe. Bat Queen's been here a long, long time. If someone was a witnessed person who's been in this kind of trouble before, it's her. So, I have some questions for her."
"But you know that her forest is the other way, right?"
"I know, I'm looking for the ride."
"I have a ride." Kind said and began climbing up to her right shoulder to ride on.
"I need a ride, too." Luz said as they continued traipsing down a barely-there path.
After several minutes, they came to a clearing with a crystal clear pond in the middle, fringe of trees around it.
"Luz, what are we doing here?" The demon asked as he looked around and hopped down from Luz's shoulder.
"We're waiting."
"For what?"
"For them."
When King was about to ask who "them" are, Luz pointing toward the opposite side of the small pound.
Trotting toward them were a dozen of the hybrid creatures combining the physical features of a stag and a bird.
They had the bodies, front legs, and horns of deers, but the hind legs, wings, and tails of what seemed to be giant eagles, with beautiful, brownish steel-colored feathers and large black claws. Each of them a different color of horns: stormy gray, bronze, pinkish roan, gleaming chestnut, and inky black.
These creatures are called the Perytons. The one of the fast and oddest creatures that ever flew.
They came gently and slowly to the small pound and start drinking.
"How did you know they will come here?"
"In my world this is their favorite watering hole." Luz said before bring hands to her face and then blow out, making weird sound. Once the perytons heard this sound, they looked in Luz and King's direction and their face changed.
Luz took a step toward them and almost whole herd of the perytons flew away. The only one left. It was a middle-aged peryton with the dark brown horns.
"Hi buddy, don't worry. I'm a friend." Luz said as she walked over to the winged deer.
When she stopped and lowered the bag, she reached in and pulled out a winged deer's favorite food. She held carrot in her hand and offered it to the hybrid.
The peryton kept its eye on the carrot, then it excited bit down on the carrot.
"Want more?" Luz asked, then she reached down into the bag.
While a half-deer chomped down on a couple more carrots, Luz said, "I have something else."
She reached down into the bag and searched until she found her desired item and pulled it out. Holding it out to show the hybrid, she said, "This is an apple."
Luz held the apple by her fingers and let a deer sniff it. Making sure to keep her fingers out of reach of its teeth, she watched the hybrid chomp on half of the apple. It wore an expression of deep thought as it chewed. After it swallowed, its wings opened in shock, knocking on the branches of the trees surrounding the trio. The peryton winced forcing them to lay against its back again.
"So you liked it, buddy?"
The peryton stretched up to lick the teenager's cheeck, so Luz held out the rest of the apple for a half-deer, and it eagerly chewed fruit up.
"I have some more. All these apples could be yours. But here's the deal: I need a ride to the Bat Queen forest."
The creature had turned its great, horned head and was staring at Luz with one fierce brown eye.
And then, to King's enormous surprise, the peryton suddenly bent its furry front knees and sank into what was an unmistakable bow or rather invitation.
Luz put her foot on the top of creature's wing and hoisted herself onto its back.
"You know how to fly this?" King asked as the peryton stood up.
"Yes, tío Thaddeus taught me everything about flying on the perytons."
"I'm sitting in the front!" The little demon said as tried to jump on the peryton. Luz just smile as she grabbed him by colar, and then put him in front of her.
"Hold tight." Luz said.
Without warning, twelve-foot wings flapped open on either side of Luz and King, the demon just had time to seize the peryton around the neck before they were soaring upward. It was nothing like a witch staff, and the demon knew which one he preferred.
But unlike King, Luz enjoy their ride. She drive the peryton, holding its horns like a motorcycle handlebars. The peryton's wings beat strongly on either side of them, slighty catching Luz's under her legs. Instead of the smooth action of her staff, she now felt herself rocking backward and forward as the hindquarters of the peryton rose and fell with its wings.
The flight was short, lasted nearly 15 minutes.
And then headed back to the ground; Luz and King leaned back as the peryton's neck lowered, Luz grabbing a bit harder the horns, then felt a heavy thud as the four ill-assorted feet hit the ground. The girl and a little demon push themselves straight again.
They got down, Luz give the peryton a two apples.
"You wait right here. We'll be back soon." Luz said as she reached out toward the peryton. The girl patted the neck several times and the hybrid closed its eyes lazily, as though enjoying it.
She and King walked into the forest of the Bat Queen. Luz've been here a million times in her universe. But this isn't her Boiling Isles...and this Bat Queen isn't Bat Queen she know, so the young Latina felt a little nervous visiting her.
Luz was trying to repeats the whole conversation with the wealthiest demon in her mind, until they came upon a strange looking cave which she knew was the entrance to the Bat Queen's lair.
The young girl took a few deep breaths, calming her mind as best she could, before slowly walked in with King not far behind.
Luz looked around, at the floor, the ceiling, and the every other part o this place. It look exactly like in her universe. She formally announced her presence, but she know from experience that it's bad idea. Bat Queen probably already knows they're here. And it is her lair, so she decided when it's time for show up.
After a minute of total silence, King asked, "Are we waiting again?"
The teenager just nodded.
They waited a few more seconds before they heard the large flapping of wings and standing before them was the Bat Queen herself, just as intimidating as ever.
"Hello, small human." She calmly said, eyes shifting towards King, "And her little friend."
"Greetings, great Bat Queen. I've come to ask for your help." After Luz finished speaking the Bat Queen looked at her silently for a number of seconds, the look in her eyes inscrutable.
Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed, please leave a kudos or/and a comment. I love hearing what people thought about my story.