Maybe I'm amazed at the way you love me all the time.

Maybe I'm afraid of the way I love you.

Maybe I'm amazed at the way you pulled me out of time.

And hung me on a line.

Maybe I'm amazed at the way I really need you.

I sat on the bench and jammed to Paul McCartney on my phone as I waited for the bus to arrive. I held up a small mirror to observe my reflection. It may look shallow but having a mirror on your person does come in handy when a straight-haired, straight-A student needs to look her best.

Though I do hear some peers say I look "hotter" with my hair down. But a Blight shouldn't be concerned with others' opinions. I fixed my hair into the ponytail and made sure my blouse was suitably buttoned up. Everything was just right for "Little Miss Perfect."

That's what everyone at school would call me. Though they mostly use it as an ironic slight, I think it fits who I am. "Little Miss Perfect," that's me. I looked at my wristwatch. "The bus must be running late?"

When the bell for Summer Vacation sounded, I had a plan that I'd be making the most of and would go over when I returned to Blight Manor. Ed, Em, and I were greeted at home by our butler Horace. Afterward, he informed me that my parents wanted to see me once I came home but didn't specify why. Horace took my bag to my room as I met Mother and Father in the lounge, revealing they signed me up for a Summer-long program without my knowledge.

Yeah, it'll help my chances of making it into an excellent college, but it would've been nice if Mother and Father asked me first. Instead of saying, "You will attend," and "A good little girl should do what she's told."

Next to me was a suitcase with enough clothes and toiletries to last the whole Summer and the supplies I usually bring to school. Ed and Em helped me pack, along with Horace, and Mother and Father examined my bag before sending me on my way. They didn't want me to bring any "distractions." But that didn't stop me from sneaking the fifth volume of my favorite book series, The Good Witch Azura. It was inside a hidden pouch, along with two sheets of paper that I pulled out.

One was a list of how I planned on spending my Summer, which included: "Tell Riley from chemistry class how I feel about her." Whenever I saw her walk by my locker, I would be overwhelmed with the most absurd feelings. My heart would beat faster, and I'd become fluttered from head to toe.

The other sheet was an old picture of me, my brother and my sister, who know about my secret. There was a little note scribbled in the corner that read, "To Mittens." I completely stood out from them. Six-year-old Ed and Em with pitch-black hair, and four-year-old adopted me being a brunet.

When I looked back to my baggage — and I couldn't believe it myself as I pulled out my earbuds — a tiny yet surprisingly strong owl was flying away with it. "Hey, get back here! Stop!" I gave chase to the little bird as it fled further into the woods. Unless Ed and Em snuck some seed into my bag — which they did once back in second grade — there should be no reason why this stupid bird would want it.

I kept chasing the little fast thing, even as it flew to an old rundown shack. There was something strange about it. It could just be there's an abandoned shack I've never seen until now. Or maybe it's the exotic golden eye on the door that was pretty much telling me to turn back. The even stranger thing, which made me gasp, was that the door seemed to open on its own for the owl. "Oh, no, you don't!" I sprinted for the door and ran right through, only to stop in my tracks, for I was suddenly inside a tent. "What the…" There were ratty clothes, broken toys scattered all over, and — "Oh my gosh!" — a shrunken head.

It also sounded like there was some commotion outside. The kind you would hear on a busy street, with people moving and talking aloud. I just had to clear something up and stepped out of the door, winding up back in the woods where the only sounds were my breathing and nature. I walked back through the door a third time and returned to the tent full of oddities and strange sounds. "Okay, this is too weird."

I hid behind a barrel once I found the owl waddling away with my bag in its beak and watched it intently. I would think it's cute, if not for the fact that it has my belongings. I carefully followed behind the little bird. Once the opportunity arises, I'll snatch my stuff and book it for the bus.

The owl shuffled out of the tent. "Eda, Owlbert's back!" I heard what sounded like a girl about my age shout. Was this bird someone's pet?

I moved the tent's curtains slightly to get a good look at these people. As I guessed, one of them was a girl about my age. Her skin was tan with dark brown eyes and hair, and wore a white and indigo hoodie, dark gray leggings, and white shoes. She also had strangely long and pointed ears, like an elf from one of those epic fantasy films.

The one I assumed to be "Eda" was a tall woman with ivory skin and wore a ripped-hem maroon dress and had untamed long gray hair and golden eyes. "Finally, you sure took your time." I gasped as I saw the owl turn into a wooden ornament once it perched itself on the end of a staff the woman held. Eda unzipped my suitcase and went through my belongings. "Let's see what we've got here." She took out my deodorant. "Sell." She took out my hairbrush. "Sell." She took out one of my training bras. "Trash." She continued digging through and eventually pulled out my book. "Hey, look what I found, Luz."

"No puedo creerlo!" The girl named Luz shouted in excitement. "I didn't even know the fifth book of The Good Witch Azura saga was out!"

Eda showed the book to her with a warm smile. "Well, consider this an early birthday present for my little girl."

"Gracias, Mami!" Luz hugged the older lady she referred to as "Mami." Eda hugged her daughter back while patting her head. She's probably her stepmother, or adopted mother, or something; they don't look like they're related.

Eda was about to hand the book to her daughter when I jumped out to snatch it and my stuff. "Excuse me, but these are mine! Bye!"

I made a run for the door with the strange eye when it suddenly slammed shut on its own and folded itself out of existence. I turned around to see Eda glowering. "You're not going anywhere."

I dashed out in a panic but skidded to a stop near a ledge that overlooked a rustic-looking town where dozens of creepy creatures surrounded every corner. A dragon flew over my head, only for a giant hand to swat it like a fly. Suddenly, I heard fluttering, and I saw something approach me to my left. I turned to see that, "Oh, it's just a little fairy."

Just as I sighed in relief, the little flying person revealed rows of sharp teeth. "Give me your skin!" It demanded.

I shrieked at the top of my lungs, then Eda's hand popped out the tent to slap it away; before grabbing the back of my shirt and pulling me in. "You scream like a banshee; y' know that?" She said as she held me up with one hand. "And you either must be brave or stupid to steal from the most powerful witch on the Isles."

My face became beet red. "Excuse me, but I didn't steal from you! I was just taking back what your pet owl stole from me!"

"Wait, that's your stuff?" Luz asked.

"Yes, it's my stuff! And why did you steal it?"

Eda brought me closer to her face. "We prefer "acquiring," for your information. And secondly, you wouldn't believe how much people are willing to pay for stuff from the Human Realm."

I could've already guessed this from the fact monsters, and whatnot surrounded me, but she just confirmed I wasn't on Earth anymore. "Look, I just want my book, bag, and everything in the bag back. Then, I'll be on my way, and we'll never have to see each other again."

"I think we should just give the stuff back to her, Eda," Luz said before looking at me apologetically. "I'm so sorry about all of this."

"I'm not." Eda drew a yellow circle in the air with her finger, and yellow energy surrounded my whole body. The woman released my shirt, and I discovered that I was completely weightless, floating in mid-air. Eda flicked her finger, and I found myself flying right out of the tent's front, landing butt-first on a creaky and old wooden stool. "If you want your stuff back. You gotta buy something from me, first."

"You're kidding me, right?" I shouted, my face even redder.

"No. But I'll make it worth your while." She pulled out a pair of rubber clogs. "Can I offer you some human feet filled with holes?" She placed it on the table before grabbing a deodorant roll, and it was my deodorant roll at that. "A bar of green human candy?" She placed the deodorant on the table before pulling out a small, broken television. "Or how about this black shadow box that reflects only sadness?" Right now, the only thing it was reflecting was my annoyance at this whole situation.

But this gave me an idea. "That's not all it can do." I told her, taking the television and grabbing some batteries from a bowl with a sign that read "human Candy." I placed the batteries inside and turned the dial, an exercise video playing with upbeat music played. "Ta-da!"

Luz's eyes widened. "I didn't know it could do that."

The music began attracting more patrons who gathered around in fascination, saying things like: "Huh?" "What's that?" "It's so alluring." "I'll pay forty snails for the screaming box!" "I'll give you a hundred!" "Can I eat the tiny person inside?"

"Do either of you even know what your selling does at all?" I asked the mother and daughter duo, raising an eyebrow.

Eda snorted before leaning into my ear. "Not really." She whispered. "But the "suckers" don't gotta know that." She pulled back. "I'm Eda, the Owl Lady."

"And I'm Luz Noceda." Luz greeted.

"Amity Blight," I told them. "And I would look to go home now if you …"

"Busted!" A deep voice then shouted.

Everyone scattered as one of the patrons screamed, "Run! It's the guards!"

I turned to where the voice was coming from and saw two masked men approach. The one ahead shouting, "Eda, the Owl Lady, and one of her apprentices! You two are under arrest for misuse of magic and demonic misdemeanors!"

"You two are criminals?" I asked. As if things couldn't get any worse.

"Would you guys quit following us around?" Luz asked them in frustration. "We haven't done anything wrong… yet."

"You two are coming with us." The guard then picked me up off the ground. "And you, too!"

"What? Why?" I asked in a panic.

"For aiding and embedding two known fugitives!"

"Leave her alone! She has nothing to do with this!" Luz shouted.

"Alright, alright. You win," Eda said.

"What?" Both I and Luz said at the same time.

"Just let me get my stuff…" The Owl Lady reached under her table, and then smacked both guards across their faces with her staff and freeing me; before slamming her pole on the ground, the entire stand suddenly shrunk and wrapped itself into a sack. She then hopped onto it. "Come on, you two!" She shouted at Luz and me.

Luz took my hand and pulled me onto the staff as she hopped on to it. "Let's get out of here!"

Before I could protest, we were flying away as I held onto the staff tightly, passing through the streets at supersonic speed while screaming, "OH MY GOSH!"

Meanwhile, Luz was having the time of her life. "WOOHOO!"

"Hang on!" Eda said as we began flying higher; I hugged the staff tighter and closed my eyes, praying for this craziness to end. "You can open your eyes now, human."

"I'm good," I said.

"You're gonna miss out on the view," Luz said, which piqued my curiosity.

I opened one eye before opening the other and gasped at the beautiful sight of mountains, trees, and rivers. "Okay. Wow. Just… wow." I looked over at Eda and Luz. "So, you two are witches?"

"Yep," Luz answered.

"And everything that just happened did happen?"

"Yep."

"Can one of you tell me where I am?"

"You're in the Demon Realm, kid," Eda answered. "And the island we're flying above right now is the Boiling Isles."

Before I could ask another question, there was a sharp screech; a gigantic creature flew past us, which looked like a, "Was that a griffin?" The creature screeched again as it did another flyby and shot spiders out its mouth. "Is that normal?"

Luz chuckled. "Of course. Everyone knows griffins have spider-breath."

"You see, every one of your human myths were developed by a little of our world leaking into yours." Eda further explained.

"And griffins aren't the only ones; there are manticores, vampires, werewolves, goblins, giraffes…"

Wait a minute, did I hear that right? "I'm sorry, did you say giraffes?" I asked.

"Yeah, the Isles banished those freaks centuries ago," Eda answered.

"Well, as "exciting" as today was, I think I've had enough. So, could you please land and open up that door of yours to send me back home?"

"Only if you help us first."

"What more could they want from me?"

"We'll explain when we land at our place," Luz said, pointing at the ground.

We descended to a house below, just about a foot off the ground, with Luz and Eda hopping off first. There was a popping sound, and I nearly shrieked upon seeing that Eda's hand detached from her arm. The Owl Lady put it back on. "Sorry, that happens sometimes."

The house was a large one made from white brick with a blue roof and a stained-glass window in an eye's shape. "Hoot-hoot!" A shrill voice made me fall off the staff, but Luz caught me before I hit the ground; it came from the door, which had a talking owl face on it. Nothing surprises me anymore at this point. "Hoot-hoot! Password, please!" Eda poked the face's eyes. "Ow!"

"Let us in, Hooty; we got no time for games." She ordered it.

"Alright, alright! Geez! You never want to have any fun! Ow! Hoot!" Hooty opened its mouth, which expanded into an entrance.

"Okay, I'm not going in there." I objected.

"It'll be okay," Luz assured me, placing a hand on my shoulder and leading me through the hole.

Once Hooty's mouth closed, Eda snapped her fingers, illuminating a living room with a fireplace, coffee table, couch, and two wanted posters of Eda and Luz. "Welcome to the Owl House, Amity Blight. Where Luz and I hide away from modern life's pressures, the cops, and exes."

It's no Blight Manor, but not bad. "So, you two sleep here?" I asked.

"Only when the night critters allow us," Luz answered way too casually.

I noticed a framed photo on the table with a younger-looking Eda, a seven-year-old Luz, and another woman, Luz's birth mother, I assumed. "Does anyone else live here?"

Luz was about to answer when a deep voice made itself known, "Who dares intrude upon I?" I saw a shadowy figure approach from down the hall, but its pitch became higher the closer it got and revealed itself as, "The King of Demons?" Which turned out to be a little puppy-like creature with dark gray fur, yellow-pink eyes, and a skull-mask that had a broken horn.

Luz ran over to pick up and pet him. "Hey there, King, how's our wittle cutie-pie doing?"

"I am not your cutie-pie!" This "King" protested.

Luz proceeded to give him a belly rub. "Yes, you are."

"I know." He lovingly said before finally noticing I was in the room. "And who's this?"

"Oh, this is Amity, a human." Eda introduced. "And she's here to help us with our little... situation."

"Which you've had yet to explain." I reminded her.

"Take a seat." She told us. "It's Storytime." Luz and King plopped onto the couch, and I rolled my eyes before sitting next to the furry little creature with my arms folded. "Now, this tale isn't for the faint of heart and contains horrifying images not suited for young viewers, or…"

With each passing second, my patience grew thinner. "Just get on with it already!"

"Killjoy." With both pointing fingers extended, Eda drew a large circle in front of us, which slowly began to project images of a fearsome-looking beast. "You see, King was once a mighty King of Demons; until his Crown of Power was stolen by the evil Warden Wrath." A crudely drawn cartoon of a large man in a plague mask stealing the crown played. "As a result, he became what's on the couch."

I suddenly busted out into laughter, holding my gut. "What's so funny?" An irked King asked. "There's nothing funny about any of this!"

"I'm… I'm sorry, I'm... having a hard... hard time believing this." I pointed at King. "Was once that." I pointed at the King of Demons.

Luz picked him up and held him like a protective pet owner. "Hey, don't be mean to this wittle bundle of joy."

"And I can be plenty fearsome!" King declared.

"Please, I've seen litters of kittens more terrifying than you." I scoffed.

An annoyed Eda coughed. "Are you gonna keep interrupting over there, or can I continue?"

"By all means."

"As I was saying. Wrath and his goons locked the crown away behind a magical barrier that no witch or demon on the Isle can cross through." She displayed an image of this barrier repelling cartoony witches and demons. "But a human can cross through."

I quickly put it together. "Like me."

"Exactly. Whaddya say? You help us retrieve his crown, and we'll send you back to your realm with no strings attached."

I quickly stood up. "Okay, there is no way I'm doing any of this!"

"Please, Amity, we wouldn't be asking this if we didn't need your help." Luz practically begged. "And besides." She held King up to my face. "Can you honestly say "no" to this wittle guy?"

"Luz, you know how I feel about anyone other than me exploiting my cuteness." The little creature whined.

But to answer Luz's question, "Actually, I can."

"Well, there's one thing you seem to be forgetting." Eda interrupted as she dug through her hair and pulled out a key with the same symbol on the door that brought me here. "We're your only ticket out of here."

"So, I don't have a say in this, do I?"

"Nope."

I sighed and pinched my temples, asking myself what I did to deserve any of this. "Fine, I'll get your stupid crown."

Luz jumped from the couch and gave me a big hug. "Thank you so much!"

"Okay, I get it; you're happy." I pushed her away as I tried hiding my blush, before turning back to Eda. "So, where are we going?"

Eda playfully twirled the key, almost as if she were taunting me, then stored it back into her hair. "Somewhere super fun."

The song Amity listens to is Paul McCartney's Maybe I'm Amazed