Author's note: In celebration of Pride Month I picked up a draw tablet and made probably my first sketch ever. Since this site doesn't let me put images in the doc, I'll set it up as the new cover. Even though I much like the previous one. I'm no artist but it feels good to make something and to share it with you all.

Last chapter will be up tomorrow and be pretty short. See you then.

"When I take a look at you all, I see a messy school binder." King is seated on a large chair facing a couch where Donald and his fiance are sitting while Ms. Briar takes her spot on a rocking seat. The bag filled with Eda's elixirs sits on the table between them.

"A binder filled to the brim with different subjects. Old worksheets and scrap paper that serve no purpose. And yet we keep trying to cram whatever notes we have thinking it could help but all we do is make it worse. Do we just throw the binder away and get a new one? Or do you sit down and organize it?"

The three all look at each other inquisitively before Donald clears his throat and says, "What are you talking about exactly?"

"I'm saying what you all are struggling with is communication. Take it from me," King points to himself, "I once struggled in speaking my mind and because of that my hesitation nearly led to the fallout in a relationship between two girls and the destruction of the entire town."

"Er, what now?"

"Wait a minute," Ms. Briar narrows her eyes, "Are you talking about that freak giant slime attack a couple of days ago? You were involved in that?"

"Do you even have a license to practice these types of sessions?" Donald asks.

"I bet he has a PhD in being a cutie," mused the wife.

"Enough about me." King snaps his fingers to them. "This is about you three. We all agreed to hear each other out and to settle the issue once and for all. Donald, you came here to talk to your mother about something. Why don't you start us off?"

"I don't understand why we have to set it up like this but at least we're talking." Donald turns to his mother and clears his throat again, "I just want to know what's been going on, mom. When I told you about us getting married I thought you were happy for us. But now all of a sudden you tried to curse my wife in some elaborate setup that ended up destroying a local favorite of mine. Which we had to compensate for! I don't understand, what's been going on with you?"

King nods approvingly, "Well said, Daryl."

"It's Donald."

"Don't care," King looks at Ms. Briar and gestures to her. "Now, Ms. Briar. It is your turn to say your piece. What is it that you want to confess?"

Ms. Briar looks to King for a moment then looks over to her son and his fiance, back at King again, then back to the couple.

"... I hate your wife," she says.

"Oh!" the fiance gasps.

"And your dumb face!"

"Mother!" Donald cries.

"Now, now," King settles them down. "We all agreed to withhold our words until the person is done talking. Ms. Briar, would you like to explain why exactly you feel that way?"

Ms. Briar softens her expression and averts her eyes while fiddling with her thumbs. "Well… I was happy. For you two. But… ever since you got engaged, I hardly ever see you. We don't have brunch together no more. You barely answer my calls. I was just afraid… that you don't need me anymore. You're starting a new life with someone and I… didn't want to be left behind. So I… sort of started blaming your fiance for everything."

Donald and his fiance look at each other in surprise. Both at a loss for words at the revelation. "That's what this is about? Oh, mom." Donald reaches over and comfortingly pats her knee. "I never mean to leave you behind. It's just we've been so busy trying to set up the wedding, find a new place, and work extra hours to make up for the payments. I didn't want to worry you with that sort of stuff but I guess I ended up just pushing you away, huh? I should've tried to set some time aside for you. In fact, she was just telling me that I haven't been in contact with you in a while and suggested I take some time off."

Ms. Briar looks at his fiance in surprise, "You did?"

"Of course! Donald fondly talks about you, I didn't want you to feel like I was taking him away."

"After all this time of me projecting my crippling loneliness at you," Ms. Briar pulls her robe to blow her nose. "Oh, I'm such a fool! I'm sorry, dearie, for trying to curse you for the past few weeks."

The fiance raises an eyebrow at the mention of weeks, but still maintains a warm smile. "Oh, it's okay! You know what they say about the Boiling Isles! You're not a resident unless you have been cursed, swallowed, or grossed out!"

The three all share a laugh together. Donald, delighted to see his mother and his fiance getting along, feels grateful to the little demon who manages to make it all possible. "Thank you, Dr. King. It's because of you we were able to-uh, Dr. King?"

Everyone looks at the seat where King was sitting and finds it empty as well as the table that was holding the bag of elixirs. The sound of curtains flapping in the wind grabs their attention to the opened window over the kitchen sink where King made his escape through.

Ms. Briar's eye twitches before shouting, "THAT LITTLE-!"

~/~

"Eda!" Lilith shields herself as Owl Eda shakes the water from her body instead of letting Lilith dry her off with a towel. The two are inside the janitorial storage room since Lilith couldn't leave Eda contained in a cell with other jailed residents. "I know the concept of a bath is foreign to you but if you just stand still-!"

Owl Eda sticks her head up at Lilith and spits her tongue at her.

"Ugh! Don't you take that tone with me, young lady!" Lilith conjures a spell, causing the magical leash connected from the wall to Eda's neck and shortens the length. Eda lets out a yelp as it forcefully gets thrown back by the cord. She stands back up a little dazed and growls.

"Grrrr, yourself!" Lilith said while smoothing out the wet hair from her face. "You think I want this? To drag you in chains before the Emperor in this form? I have offered you time and time again to come with me willingly but you kept pushing me away! And now look at you!"

Owl Eda reacts with a gutteral "humph!" and drops to the ground while facing away from her. Lilith sharply inhales at her sister's childish behavior, "Fine! Don't talk to me! But just so you know, Edalyn. I'm doing all of this for you! You have no idea the sacrifices I'm willing to make to help you be rid of this curse!"

Eda doesn't turn her head to her sister but responds with another raspberry blow.

Lilith angrily shakes her fists before pulling her eyelid down and sticking her out at her sister before storming out of the room. She slams the door behind and presses her back against it. Taking a moment to calm down, her irritation changes to sadness. Could Edalyn ever forgive her even if Belos cures her condition? Could they really go back to the time when they were young and both dreamed of being in the coven together?

No, Lilith shakes her head at the doubts plaguing her. There is no use to entertain such thoughts. Everything will turn out alright once she takes her to Belos.

Lilith steps forward and casts an enchantment over the door to prevent being able to physically open from inside or out. As an added measure, she calls over a guard of the precinct. "Under no circumstances should there be anyone allowed to open this door. She remains inside until the caravan arrives. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, ma'am!" nodded the guard.

"Good," Lilith feels the knots in her hair and groans. "I'll be in the restroom if you need me."

The guard respectfully salutes her and stands in front of the door. Lilith heads down the hallway and passes through a window, not noticing a pair of eyes peeking over before entering the bathroom.

"I found where they're keeping Eda," Luz relays to Willow and Amity who are helping to boost her up to look through the window.

"Is Lilith in there?" Amity asks.

"She just left. There's a guard standing in front," she announced as the two let her back down. "If there's a better time to strike, it's now. Thanks for showing us where they took her, Willow. Me and Amity will be able to take it from here."

"I wish I could do more for you two," Willow said, concerned.

"You helped us locate Eda when we couldn't find her," Amity reassures her, "That's more than enough we could've asked from you."

Willow smiles gratefully at Amity before giving them a smirk, "Well, I wouldn't want to be in your guys' way either. Who'd thought your little snooping at the beach would've turned out for the better, huh Luz?"

Amity casts an accusing glance at Luz at the mention of 'snooping' and nods. "Yeah, Luz. Who'd thought?" she repeated in a mocking tone.

Luz withdraws into her cat hoodie and mumbles, "I said I was sorry…"

"Good luck you two. And please take care." Willow gives Luz a hug before running off.

With her out of harm's way, Luz gives Amity the approval to begin. Using her magic to summon forth her Abomination, Amity sends her golem to stretch its arm up to the window. It easily passes through the slit to the other side and unlatches the lock.

Amity praises her Abomination with a pat on its head and nods to Luz, "Okay, now we just need to get rid of the guard and-"

Luz reaches for her shoulder and says, "Wait, Amity! I'm really grateful you would do this for me, but are you really sure about this? Won't Lilith tell your parents if she finds out you were involved?"

"She's not going to find out, because I picked up a little trick." Amity conjures a spell circle over her own head and snaps her fingers. The glyph goes through her head changing her hair color, eyes, and ears to the same human look Eda gave her last night.

"I memorized the spell Eda used on me," Amity explains. With one final adjustment, Amity takes out her hairband and lets her hair down. She gives her head a shake to loosen it up. "That should do it. What do you think?"

"Huuuh…" Luz snaps out her stare and closes her jaw with one hand. She gives her a thumbs up and says, "You look great!"

Amity feigns offense and huffs at her, "I thought you said you prefer my real look?"

"What? Oh, no no-I mean yes, I do! I wasn't trying to-" Luz stops herself as Amity starts giggling at her before realizing what's going on. She places her hands on her hips and says, "Hey! Be serious!"

"I am," Amity says while holding her hand up. Now you know how it feels, Noceda. "As I was saying, what are we going to do to get rid of this guard? These guys are trained professionals. And any order from the Emperor's Coven takes top priority.

"I might have an idea…" said Luz, while reaching into her pocket.

Inside the building, the guard stands solemnly and dutifully to watch until Lilith's return. He hasn't notice something being thrown through the window until he heard something soft hitting the hard floor.

He turns his head to see a chocolate bar with a very long string attached to it. The guard stares at it for a while as it lays there before the string tugs it back a little like a fishing bait.

"... I should know better," the guard nods, "But the payout could be so good!"

He excitedly rushes over to pick up the candy bar but the string yanks out of his reach and starts climbing up the wall. The guard grabs the high window with his hands and pulls himself up to the panel.

Only to be knocked back down with a swift punch from an Abomination to his face. The guard falls unconscious as the back of his helmet slams against the wall. Creating a sharp metallic noise that manages to echo and reach Lilith's ear as she's inspecting her face for any wrinkles in the mirror.

The girls didn't notice and just climbed through the window with the Abomination's help. Luz cautiously walks over and taps her knuckles on the guard's visor to see if he's still out. Even though he gave no response, she continues to drum her fingers on the helm until Amity slaps her hand.

"Stop that," Amity scolds her. "Now, where did you say the room was?"

"Right there, the one with the magical glow, can't miss it!" Luz and Amity approach the door with a sheen of blue light layered over it. Luz looks to Amity and asks, "Not sure what this is about, but I'm guessing trying the handle won't work. Can you get it to open?"

Amity inspects the spell and frowns, "This level of enchantment is strong, but maybe we should test its capabilities before we-"

"I wouldn't recommend that, unless you girls prefer to be reduced into ashes." Amity and Luz felt their skin crawl as Lilith reveals herself with her eyes emitting a blue glow.

Luz tries to calm herself and clears her throat before greeting Eda's sister. "Um, hi! We're, uh, here to bail Eda out if that's alright?"

Lilith narrows her eyes at Luz before recognizing her. "Well, well, if it isn't Edalyn's human pet." She then casts her eyes over to Amity, who tenses up worrying she might be recognized as well. Instead, Lilith leers at the girl and scoffs, "Great, and now it's multiplying."

"Wow," Amity breathes, exasperated by the response but still relieved she didn't catch on.

"I don't know how they handle authority in your world, but what you two are doing is in violation of the Emperor's law."

"Better than betraying the word of their own sister!" Luz snaps at her, "Eda told you she's not interested in joining your coven! You can't force this onto her!"

"She's no longer in any position to make that decision now. This is for her own good. And from what I've seen, it's a better choice than to leave her in your care," Lilith said, accusingly.

"We were… we were doing fine before you showed up!" Luz retorts.

Lilith rolls her eyes and tempers her tongue at her, "Of course you were… it was so obvious from that little scene at the library. Who am I to judge the person who must be responsible for making my sister go through puberty twice!"

Amity feels her temper setting in and takes Lilith's attention a hard step forward. "That's not her fault!" she exclaims. "What happened to her was a mistake and Luz had nothing to do with it. She cares a lot about Eda and is willing to stand up to people like you who are just trying to take advantage of her curse!"

The last words brought forth the painful guilt Lilith felt on that day. Her taking advantage of her sister's curse? How dare they. How dare they stand between them and act like she's the villain?

The girls notice the tension building between them and Lilith. They jump into stances as Lilith raises her hands and summons her staff. "I have no interest in arguing with kids who think they know better. Children should learn to respect their elders. But since you are Eda's plaything, I will give you a chance to go home now before I make you."

"We're not leaving without Eda," Luz said firmly.

"Neither will I," Lilith thrusts her staff and fires a blast to knock out the girls. Amity steps in front of Luz and raises her arms, "Abomination!"

The two are safely swallowed in by the giant head of the Abomination. Lilith's attack collides with the slime but the blast has little effect on it. Taken aback, Lilith stares at the head summoned by a human. "Abomination magic? But how?"

Inside, Luz illuminates the space within the abomination with her light spell. "Amity, what are you doing? If Lilith finds out who you are then your life is over!"

"She won't find out!" Amity says to her, but feels anxious at the possibility. There's no telling what her parents would do if they found out their own daughter went against the leader of the Emperor's Coven. She might never see the light of day, let alone see Luz again.

This is crazy. Beyond crazy. Luz gave her the chance to stay out of it. She said she wouldn't hold it against her. Did Amity seriously believe the two of them could stop as someone as powerful as Lilith? The only reason her Abomination was able to protect them is because she's holding back.

It's hopeless. Amity desperately wants to repay Eda for everything but this is more than what they could handle. Why can't she be strong enough for them? Why can't she-

Amity thoughts ceased the moment she felt Luz touching her hand. "Hey, I didn't mean to make you worry. If you start losing it then who else can I lean on for support?"

"I-I know, I'm sorry." Amity looks away but doesn't withdraw her hand. Luz's warmth feels comforting to her even in this situation. "It's not that I'm having doubts or anything, it's just…"

"I know," Luz interlaces her fingers between Amity's and locks them together. "Those nightmares we faced seemed nothing compared to this. But just like before, I have you and you have me. If either of us have trouble standing, then we can lean on each other for support. You know what to say, right?"

Amity knows she's referring to the time they were inside Willow's head and feels embarrassed. "C'mon, don't make me say it out loud. It's going to sound so lame…" Amity flusters.

"Not to me!"

Amity groans and smiles sheepishly, "... we can do this together."

"I don't know what you two are doing in there, but if you're having doubts then I suggest you listen to them." Lilith taps her staff onto the floor for their attention. "Unless you prefer me to pull you out myself."

She decides to give them five more seconds to respond before she readies a spell. Just as she counts up to four in her head, a bright glow appears through the abomination and takes the form of a pattern Lilith doesn't recognize.

She squints trying to make it out before noticing the surface of its body begin bubbling. Sharp icicles pop out of the body and shoot down the hall towards her. Lilith jumps back in surprise but recovers quickly to deflect them off with her staff as she did to Eda's attacks. She held her ground as she swats the ice away from her as the abomination's body keeps firing them like a turret.

Eventually, the abomination's body subsides revealing Amity and Luz as the attack stops. Lilith furrows her eyes at them in disappointment. "You think that was going to stop me?" she asks.

"No," Amity shakes head. "We were hoping it wouldn't. Abomination!" Drawing her spell out, Amity held her hand out.

Lilith takes a stance ready to face the golem again but feels something dripping onto her head. She looks up in surprise at the spots on the ceiling and walls around her suddenly covered in abomination.

"But how…?" If the girl was summoning it close to her, she would have noticed it seeping out of the walls first and moved before it could manifest. The frozen ice shooting at her wasn't just water, it was the abomination's body. Deflecting them only allowed her to be surrounded without knowing.

Amity closes her fist commanding the splattered abomination puddles to take form. Thin, long tendrils shoot out like spikes all around Lilith effectively pinning her in the spot without any room to move.

"Amazing, Amity!" Luz praises her. "Just hold her still while I go and get Eda!" She turns around and heads down to the door with an enchantment casted over it.

"No!" Lilith's body materializes into blue flames and phases around the small opening between the spikes. Amity gasps and shields herself as the flames charge at her but swerves around to go down the hall. "Luz! Watch out!"

"Huh?" She turns around to see Lilith's dark silhouette within the flames appearing before her. Her body manifests back together as Lilith sticks her hand at Luz who tries to react with the paper spells in her hand, "Begone."

Lilith delivers a concussive blast launching Luz across the hall. The papers she held knocked out her hands and showers all over Lilith like a fired confetti shot. She was about to shift her focus to Amity before noticing lights glimmering all around her. Her eyes widen when she sees one of the exposed pages revealing a glowing glyph different to the one she saw before.

One by one, the light spell on the pages all goes off like camera flashes. Lilith drops her staff as her eyes are barraged by the dazzling lights causing her to reel back in agony. "Ah! You little-!"

"Abomination!" Amity orders her golem to manifest again and wraps its body around Lilith like a snake.

"This again!?" Lilith angrily groans while trying to move her arms to free herself. She cast her eyes down at Amity in resentment, "How can a human control an Abomination so efficiently? Who are you?"

"I'm, uh… Tiffany. From Earth," Amity quickly added.

"... well, Tiffany from Earth. I may not know who your mentor was but if there's one thing they should've taught you in a wizard's battle it's to pay attention." Lilith nods to something behind her. Amity frowns but notices something glowing behind her making her turn around. She gasps in shock at seeing Lilith's staff floating before her.

The staff spins with a trail of blue flames before launching itself at her. It was too quick for Amity to react as it knocks her out from under and continues heading down the hall to Luz who slaps her fire spell onto the enchanted door. She looks up and tries to duck out of the way but the staff catches her hood by its head and starts swinging her in a circle.

"AAAaaaAAAaaah!" Luz cries out before the staff suddenly stops to throw her back over to them. Amity rises up while clutching her head only to get knocked down again by a flying Luz. The two tumbles along the floor together until Luz breaks off further away. Amity's concentration on the abomination falters, letting Lilith able to free herself before taking her staff back.

Lilith slowly approaches them, without noticing the fire spell slowly burning away the sheen of magic she casted over it.

Amity groans in pain and tries to crawl over to Luz but a forcefield conjures up before her, cutting off the hallway between them. She turns over and gasps as Lilith's staff is stuck down to her face.

Lilith frowns at the girl before her and sighs bitterly. "You remind me of a girl who possessed a great aptitude in controlling Abominations. Amity Blight, her name is. Of course, if you were anything like her, you wouldn't be wasting your time with people of her ilk."

"Waste…?" Amity breathes the word again, her fears and anxiety shifting away at the absurdity spoken to her. "You think my time with them… was a waste?"

Luz struggles to lift her head as the hall stops spinning in her vision. She sees Amity beyond the barrier facing Lilith alone. She goes to shout at them but her voice leaves her as Luz notices the walls leaking thick, purple substances.

"I'm tired of everyone telling me what to do." Amity rises to one knee while keeping her eyes on Lilith's with a hardened stare. Lilith returns her gaze with a scorn before a drop of abomination substance falls between them.

"What is this?" Lilith turns around, realizing the abomination muck emitting all around them. "How could you do this without conjuring a-" Her answer lies behind Amity's back as she finally notices the glowing glyph on the floor. Did she draw it while she was face down?

Amity takes advantage of her surprise and conjures another glyph. A barrier similar to Lilith's erects behind the witch, blocking the two of them inside a box-like room.

"I finally made the friends I wanted to have. I finally listened to my heart and acted on it. And I finally have a place I can go to!" Amity raises both her hands and slams them onto the floor. "I won't let you take it all away! ABOMINATION!"

The Abomination substance explodes out of the walls and floors like busted water pipes. The hallway becomes flooded as the muck rises like a tidal wave with a face of the golem. Lilith did not have time to react with her being shocked by this much power coming from a supposed human.

Luz watches in terror as the wave swallows them both and blocks the view of the barrier keeping the abomination goop back. "Amity!" she cries out before throwing her fists against the barrier.

Suddenly, the barrier falls allowing the sea of sludge to pour out, nearly knocking Luz off of her feet. The Abomination goop floods the hallway a bit before slowly dissipating away. Both Lilith and Amity, covered in slime, are lying on the floor.

Luz rushes over to Amity and gently turns her over. "Amity!?" Luz carefully shakes her and lightly slaps her cheek to wake her up. "Are you okay?"

Amity opens her eyes, a bit annoyed at the slapping, and coughs out some Abomination gunk. "Quit it, I'm fine…" Amity rises up and spits. "I might've gotten a little overboard there."

"A little? You were amazing!" Luz squeezes Amity into her arms. "You were all like 'yaa!' and she was like 'aah!' And the abomination was all 'swish!' You know?"

Amity softly smiles at her girlfriend and says, "No, I don't."

Luz gleefully grins before remembering their objective. "Now we just gotta get Eda out of here! How long do you think we have before Lilith wakes up?"

The two nearly jump out of their skin by the sound of a hard footstep followed by labored breathing. Amity could tell without looking and answers, "I'm going with none at all…"

Lilith sweeps her sticky, soaking hair over her face and angrily glares at the girls before her. Her staff radiates with magic sparkling out like a storm. "You think that's going to be enough to stop me?" Lilith growls. "I studied all forms of magic for nearly thirty years! I was hand chosen by Emperor Belos himself to lead his Coven! And I fought against all manner of witches and monsters that were more terrifying and powerful than you two!"

Luz whispers to Amity as they both stare back in terror, "Any chance you could do that thing again?"

"I… might've expended my energy to conjure up that much."

"Oh, cool…"

Lilith raises her staff together in both hands, channeling whatever spell she has cooking for them. "There is only one person who could so much as hold a candle to me! And that person is-"

The room behind Lilith bursts open with the door breaking in half and the walls shattering to bits as something large rams itself through. Lilith turns around in surprise and feels the air nearly squeezed out of her as large talons grab her around the waist. The strength of the grip causes her hand to drop the staff as the magic saps away.

"E-Eda!?" Lilith wheezes as her Owl Beast sister stares back at her with blackened eyes. Her size returned to its full strength.

~/~

King ceases his running after gaining enough distance between himself and the house with the crazy old bat. With the bag of Eda's elixirs in hand, King feels proud and relieved to finally be able to help his friend.

"Alright," King pants between breaths, "All potions accounted for. All I have to do is head on home and hand it over to Luz before Eda transforms. Just got to take this road down and-"

King stops mid-sentence after he hears a horrible crash behind him. He looks over his shoulder to see a precinct building gathering dust and debris around a newly-made hole. His eyes follow what came through it and sees Eda's sister, Lilith, flatten against a building before falling off like a peeled sticker. A familiar roar can be heard coming from the building as citizens nearby all run and scream for their lives.

"... starting to think the author is getting lazy with writing these convenient timings. Oh, well. I'm coming, Eda!" said King, running to the building.

Inside the precinct, Amity is like a deer caught in a headlights at seeing her mentor being thrown through a wall like a doll through a house of cards. Luz is taken aback as well but tries to laugh it off. "Ehehe, on the bright side. Eda's back to normal-"

Her voice draws the attention of Owl Eda as she snaps her head over to them and utters a low growl. No hint of sentience could be seen in her eyes as she takes a stance like a predator ready to lunge at its prey.

Luz gulps, "Oh no, she's back to normal…" They both hold hands and slowly backs away without setting the monster off. They

"Luz! Amity!" King's voice can be heard from the outside as he runs at them with a bottle of elixir in his hand. "I got the stuff! I probably shouldn't say something like that in front of a jailhouse, but I got the stuff!"

"King!" Luz happily cries out his name before realizing her mistake as she and Amity cover her mouth. Owl Eda roars and lunges at the girls, ready to swipe her claws and to sink her fangs.

But before Eda could move, King knew he wasn't going to make it in time and dropped the bag to the ground. He takes out a vial and holds it in his hand like a pitcher. His only option to save them from getting mauled to death is to throw the elixir.

"All of my training has prepared me for this! It's do or die!" With all of his strength and hope, King rears back and gives it his best throw. The bottle sails into the air, with everyone but the Owl Beast eyes focusing onto it. Time itself seems to slow into a crawl as it comes closer and closer to them.

The bottle smashes against Eda's shoulder causing her to suddenly stop in surprise.

"Booyah!" King cries out in victory. "Who's the King, baby!? Who's the King!? I am! Uhuh! Oh yeah!"

"King."

"That's me! Alright!"

"King!"

King pauses with his hands in the air and frowns at Luz, "What?"

"Eda has to drink the elixir!" She reminds him.

King looks over to the Owl Eda, who stopped in the middle of her attack, still in her beast form and staring at the liquid dripping from her hide where the bottle smashed against. She looks over to King and bares her fangs at him.

"Oh…" King said, dejectedly.

Owl Eda charges at King with blind rage and drool flying from her teeth. The tiny demon freaks out while trying to ready another vial to throw but as the distance between them disappears, King loses it and blindly throws the elixir at her. Right into the mouth of Owl Eda who swallows it whole.

She stops in short of her claw about to cleave her little friend in two to gag. The contents of the elixir runs through her system and takes effect immediately. Eda coughs as her body shrinks away. The wings and the feathers sinking into her body. Her joints re-aligning themselves.

The cursed form is gone, leaving behind Eda Clawthorne still on all fours and hacking her lungs out. "Gack! Ugh! Did I just swallow a whole bottle again? Cough, oh by Titan, I am not looking forward to it coming back out…"

Eda spits and smacks her mouth before taking in the scene around her. She frowns, only remembering the time of last night with none of her reversed aging memories there to tell her what happened. "This isn't my room," Eda said, noting the destruction around her. "It does remind me of my first apartment though."

"Eda!" Luz excitedly runs over and gives her mentor a loving hug, nearly knocking the woman to the ground.

"Whoa! Easy there, tiger! What did I say about giving me a heads up next time?"

"Don't care! Too happy to see you!"

Eda shrugs, "Well, I can't really say I mind."

"Is this pool open?" King asks before jumping in to join the hug and squeezes himself between them. "It's been a long day for me."

Eda chuckles and rubs his head before looking over to Amity standing there alone looking a little left out. She rolls her eyes and sighs, "You want to jump in too?"

"Oh, no!" Amity waves her hands at them. "I-I'm fine, I don't mind-hey!" Luz pulls her in anyway for the group hug.

"Well, this is nice and all. But does anyone mind telling me what the heck has been going on since I've been out?" asked Eda. Before any of them could answer, a flash of blue flames erupts in front of the group.

Lilith manifests from the flames, revealing her beaten and stained body with a crazed look in her eyes. "Edalyn," her voice drips with venom uttering her sister's name. "How nice it is to see you back to normal… for now."

"Lily?" Eda squints at her sister, unsure whether to find her state to be horrible or hilarious. "What happened to you? Did you lose a fight with a wall? A really slimy wall?"

Lilith forces a cackle, making the group give odd looks at each other, before she stops. "Yes, go on and tell those jokes of yours, Edalyn. I'm sure the Emperor could use something to laugh at after I take you in!"

"Oh, buzz off! This isn't my fault!" Eda retorts. Luz leans into her ear and whispers.

Eda blinks and turns to Luz, "Oh… it is?"

Luz whispers into her ear again.

"Then she should arrest him! Ah, dang it Morton!"

"Miss Lilith!" Steve announces himself as he arrives with the reinforced caravan to the scene. "The carriage is ready! We better get going if we want to be at the castle tonight. These rental costs are no joke."

He takes a moment to look around the area from the devastated precinct building, Lilith's appearance, Eda and the kids, and the building with the caved-in wall next to him.

"... not gonna lie. I'm starting to feel a little left out on this."

"Steve!" Lilith barks, "Get off of that thing and come help me arrest them all!"

"Yes, ma'am!" saluted Steve, "Just give me a second to park this. Gotta share the road, you know?"

Had there been a better time, Eda wouldn't mind settling this in a duel or another round of Grudgby. But her body feels weary from her transformation and age reversal. Eda groans and rolls her eyes, "Come on, Lilly. Can we at least continue this tomorrow?"

"No!" Lilith barks. "I dealt with your antics long enough! You are coming with me to the Emperor whether you like it or-!?"

The ground violently stirs in devastating, rhythmic patterns of something huge making its way to them. Lilith stares at the ground watching the pebbles bounce from the vibration before looking to Eda who silently shrugs her denial of knowing what's causing this.

Steve is still on the carriage and looks around before hearing something bursting into the scene. Towering over the guard on the vehicle, stands Tiny Nose still in her supremely buffed state. She lets out a monstrous roar and beats her chest like an ape asserting its dominance.

"Ah!" Lilith takes a step back and points her staff at the newcomer. "What the heck is that!?" Eda takes the opportunity to whistle for Owlbert who senses his master has finally returned from the house.

Steve is the only one unfazed by the giant… thing, and scratches his chin inquisitively. "I feel like I've seen you before," he says. "Didn't I arrest you for arson?"

Tiny Nose grabs Steve from the carriage with her big hand and brings him up close to take a couple of whiffs before taking an exceedingly long sniff. "You smell like authority," her voice booms before tightening the grip in her hand, almost crushing the poor man. "Big Nose HATES authority!"

"Welp," Steve wheezes, "I don't see myself surviving this. Miss Lilith I've always loved-!"

Tiny Nose swings around like an Olympic thrower and casts Steve high into the air where his screams fade into the distance.

Lilith raises her staff as Tiny Nose looks down at her and growls. "Back!" she warns her, "Back you foul beast!" Her attention shifts as a shadow passes over and turns her around to see Eda and the rest of the gang getting onto her flying staff.

Eda flashes her a sly grin and says, "Love to stay and chat, Lilly. But I hate to bother you since you seem busy right now. But hey, if you manage to live, give me a call! Or don't. That's fine too. See ya!"

Owlbert takes off, carrying his friends away from the scene as Lilith screams after them. "Get back here, Edalyn! This isn't over! You hear me!? EDALYN!"

~/~

"Welcome back to Owl's Kitchen!" Luz announces into her wooden spoon while recording on her phone with the other hand. "After an intense battle, our heroes safely made it home only to be face with a new challenge: hunger!

"Joining us today is the more harsh-than-constructive reviewer, the King of Cuisine!" Luz points the camera at King sitting in a baby seat with an apron.

"I have the power to shut this place down if this meal sucks," King exclaims, "So Titan help me!"

"And dining with us today is none other than the illustrious Eda Clawthorne, the greatest chef in all of Boiling Isles!"

Eda takes a sophisticated posture before the camera and flips her hair, "Well, I wouldn't say the greatest but I do make a mean pot of chili."

Luz shifts the camera to the right and announces, "And with her lovely assistant, a four-star cook who earns his fifth for being such a cutie, Owlbert!" The Palisman Owl sits on Eda's shoulder and lets out a confirmation 'hoot' before giving his master a loving nuzzle.

Luz then aims the camera at herself and says, "Three renown figures all waiting to be served. All hope seems lost for our aspiring Chef Amity, but where there is darkness there is always light! Hailing from a different world of cuisines, her other half-"

"Luz!" Amity cries out to her from the stove. "You said you would help me!"

"Coming!" Luz shuts off the recording and hops over to join her. "What's the sitch?"

"What magic did you use again to make the art appear on the pancake?" Amity asks. Luz chuckles and heads over to the fridge where she keeps the colored batter in bottles.

"It's not magic, it's just pigments and technique. Here, I'll show you how it's done." Luz scoops the regular batter onto the hot pan and takes a few of her bottles to doodle. Amity watches in amazement as Luz makes a little replica of King's face but with a yellow crown on his head. She flips it over to bake and slides the bottles over to Amity.

"Now you try," Luz suggests.

Amity looks at the bottles and feels intimidated at the idea of possibly messing up and giving fuel for either King or Eda to tease her about. She frowns at the scenario and shakes her head, "I'll… wait until we serve everyone first."

Luz shrugs, "Okay, that's fair." She looks over at the table to check on her friends and sees Eda and King deep in conversation. The heartening scene made Luz realize how scary it was for it to almost be taken away from Amity hadn't helped, Luz would likely be sitting on the table alone or be taken to the Emperor's castle as a criminal too.

Luz couldn't hide the admiration in her eyes when she looks at Amity who is trying to concentrate on determining when the pancake is ready to be flipped.

Amity tries to pretend not to notice but her face keeps getting redder and redder by the second. "What?" she asks in a slight irate tone. "I didn't mess, did I?"

"No, no." Luz shakes her head, "I'm just really thankful for what you did for us today. If anyone had told me before the break that Amity Blight has a crush on me and is willing to stand up against the Emperor's Coven, I would've called them nuts. To think you and I end up being partners in crime."

"Oh, no!" Amity scolds her, "We are not partners in crime. What we did was stupid, dangerous, and very illegal! Lilith could've demolished us if she wasn't holding back and even then we only managed to get out by sheer luck! Out of all things that could've happened I…" Amity suddenly points her spatula threateningly at Luz, "Promise me you won't do something like that again!"

Luz held up her hands in defense and was about to say yes but considering the track record of her days at the Owl House it is incredibly unlikely to happen. "... I can only promise to try," she answers.

Amity sighs and lowers the spatula to flip the pancake onto a plate with the rest of the finished ones. "I suppose that's the best I could get from you… I don't know what's crazy. The fact we went against my mentor and lived or how surprisingly bothered I was you didn't ask for my help."

"I told you why, I didn't want you to risk throwing away your future."

"I know," Amity nods while pouring the next batch onto the pan. "I guess, I was just taken aback. After what we went through, I thought… we were a team, I don't know. You're not afraid to stand up to help but I'm weighed down by the things I'm still too afraid of facing. I don't mean to complain or make you feel bad. I just wish I can always be of help to you…"

"I didn't mean to make you feel like that. I'll always welcome the help but I'm not looking for you to be a hero, Amity," said Luz. "Being close to you made me realize just how concern I can get for others. I don't want to push you into things you don't want to do or get in trouble on my behalf. I could never forgive myself for dragging you into trouble. But I'm not the type of person who will just sit idly by either. I'm sorry, if I'm too much for you to handle."

Amity doesn't respond as she reaches for one of the dyed batter. Luz isn't sure how to take the silence for an answer and feels disheartened for making Amity feel this way. That is until she takes a peek at the batter and sees a replica of her own face sticking a tongue while bulging one eye with a speech bubble saying "i'm stoopid"

"Hey!" Luz playfully punches Amity's arm and chuckles. "That's mean!"

"It's true!" Amity barks back before flipping the cake over. "I know I was being a buzzkill for a second there but apologizing that you're being too much for me to handle? Luz, I was raised with a couple of twins who got nothing better to do than get in my hair. You're nothing compared to them."

Luz blushes at the compliment and feels silly for even mentioning that. "I was just trying to apologize…"

"Don't be sorry for being yourself," Amity responds while keeping her eyes on the pan, moreso to avoid making contact. "It's what I like about you after all."

"Wow, she's good…" Luz whispers to herself and swallows back the lump in her throat. Amity flips over the cake to show the finished result of her masterpiece. "What do you think?" she asks with a smug smile.

"Could use some work…" Luz makes the same face as Amity retaliates with a playful shove.

"Hey," Eda calls for their attention over to the table. "If you're both done cooking and flirting, come join us at the table and tell me about your day. Bet it can't be as crazy as what this furball went through."

"I assaulted an old woman," King said, nonchalantly."

"Coming right up!" Luz announces as both she and Amity join the others for probably their last meal together.

~/~

Luz blinks her eyes and knows she woke up too early by the grogginess weighing down on her mind. What time is it exactly she wonders? Luz would check her phone but rather not be blinded by the force of a thousand suns before going back to sleep.

Luz shifts her position a little to find that sweet spot again but before she could fall back asleep she feels something off. She takes a peek out of her covers and looks out where the couch is facing. Her eyes, still weary with sleep, are able to make out a head looking down on her.

"Hootyyy…" Luz whines while pulling the sheet over her head. "Stop watching me sleep."

"Hoot hoot! It's not me this time," Hooty answers through the window. "You blocked the door with that chair earlier, remember?"

Luz's eyes shot open wide with terror before peeking over at the hooded figure extending its hand towards her. Luz kicks her legs out and screams, "Don't-hurt-me-Eda-knows-eight-ways-to-turn-your-insides-out!"

"Don't scream, it's me!"

"Amity?" Luz opens one eye to see the 'hooded figure' to be her girlfriend wrapped in a blanket with her hair let down. Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, Luz pulls out her spell to light up the area. "What's wrong? Did the nightcrawlers wake you up with their nibbling?"

"No, I just had trouble sleeping. I was wondering if you were up too. I didn't wake you, did I?"

"Maybe?" Luz shrugs, "It's fine. I always end up waking up sometime past the hour. Wanna sit?" Luz scoots over and pats the space next to her. Amity obliges and settles down. Neither of them said anything for a while, perhaps still recovering from their restlessness or either of them unsure how to progress from here.

Luz takes the first charge by breaking the silence with a forced cough and asks, "Were you… not feeling well?"

"No… I'm just kind of bummed out about tomorrow. The last day of our school break and I have to spend it moving back in with my controlling parents." Amity sighs and pulls up her blanket, "I probably won't be able to see you again until school."

"It's so unfair, right?" Luz exclaims. "There's so many things I still want us to do. I haven't even gotten to show you how far I've gotten with my witch training."

"And I still didn't get to show the wonders of Abomination magic." Amity frowns at that terrible day of their plight with Geoffrey. Luz could see the same picture on her face and looked down.

"I'm sorry your week here wasn't all that great. I'm new at sleepovers, but I wasn't even prepared for the things that happened."

Amity thinks back about her days and sighs wistfully, "It was probably the stupidest week I ever had."

Luz's spirit felt like a balloon getting punctured by an arrow.

"But… It was definitely the best time I ever had. Even through all the troubles we faced, it was probably the most liberating experience of my life. No one-sided conversations with our eyes glued onto our Penstagram, studying school work to ignore twins, or any concerns about my parents for the most part. Just… dumb, silly fun with you and the others. To be honest? I'm more excited to come back here again."

Amity turns to smile at Luz but is caught off guard by the expression on her face. Luz sits there with her hands clasped together near her face with an exaggerated smug and flattered smile. "Daww, I knew you like us," she cooed.

That snuck a giggle out of Amity as she feigns annoyance with an eyeroll. "And how long did that one take for you to realize?" she teases.

"Hey, cut me some slack!" Luz exclaims, "It's not everyday you'd find out someone has a crush on you. Heck, I only found out about my crush for you on the same day you told me!"

Luz realizes this must be the first time for Amity to hear by the surprise look on her face. "Really? You mean back at the beach?" she asks.

Luz timidly nods and suddenly finds the couch interesting to look at. "I didn't mention that already? Haha, weird…" she mutters.

It's never going to be tiring for Amity to see her getting adorably shy. But what she said raises the question. "Luz," Amity begins, "I told you what I like about you. But I don't think you ever told me why you like me back."

Luz's anxiety goes into hyperdrive as her eyes bulge out of her head. "I d-didn't?" she stammers. "Are you sure? Didn't I mention it before?"

Amity denies this with a shake of her head.

"... oh." Luz feels her tongue getting dry and her chest rising at a rapid pace. It doesn't seem fair how Amity was forward with her feelings and Luz manages to keep these things from her. But being put on the spot suddenly made her mind as useless as a tv without a plug.

Amity can see the troubling hesitation plainly on Luz's face, "Do you need a minute?"

"No! I can say it!" Luz hastily replies. Probably should've taken the offer but she doesn't want to give Amity the wrong impression. "Well… you're incredibly smart and pretty. You work hard and… and… you're really good at magic!"

The first few compliments got color rising in her cheeks but the last one made Amity narrow her brows. "Uh, thanks…?" she replies.

Luz bites on her lip already knowing how unconvincing her words must have sounded. She already made a fool of herself. Why bother holding back now?

"And you're so mature! You know how to kick butt! How to play grudgby! And you like the same stuff as I do! I never thought I would meet another Azurite in a different world. Those publishers really know how to sell those books.

"I mean, when we first met, you did seem kind of mean-but only at first! When I got to learn more about you, I discovered you were a genuinely good person. You were willing to make sacrifices for people you care about even if it hurts you. I really thought that was amazing and brave of you to do. But thinking about how you went on for so many years trying to push the people you care about away so they wouldn't get hurt. It must've been lonely for you. Having to surround yourself with people you're trying to please while having no one you could relax with. I… I guess that's why I like seeing you smile so much. It feels different from the others. Like all I want to do is keep that smile on you and be the reason to bring it out. I think that's probably the reason I ended up falling for you... is that good?"

Luz looks back to Amity for any sign of reaction to the words she said. The witch she poured her heart out to sits there in stun silence. Naturally, Luz takes it as a bad reaction and wonders if what she said wasn't good enough or really lame. "I-I can still go on! Uh, um, did I mention you were pretty?"

Amity reaches over and takes one of Luz's hands to stop her from babbling. "No, that was…" Amity sniffs, feeling the warmth in her heart spreading like a fire on a cold night. "That was probably the most beautiful thing I ever heard… I-I don't know what to say other than thank you."

Luz softly replies, "Really? I can still say more."

"It's alright."

"Because, really I can-"

"Luz! I'm telling you, it's perfect." To be honest, Amity isn't sure if she could handle hearing any more or else her heart will explode.

Something stirs within Amity's heart, a desire born from the euphoric feeling inside. Was it the confession Luz gave her the reason it exists or is it the atmosphere? The little pocket of light that hangs over them gives Luz's face a certain glow. Why? Why is it that Amity wants to get as close as she can to her?

Is Luz going to stop her? Will she push her away? Amity leans closer, letting her inner desire to take over and follow it to wherever it goes. It's just going to be quick and harmless. She won't mind, right?

"Amity?" Luz notices the distance between them closing in. She doesn't back away as Amity leans closer with her eyes partly closed.

"Do you girls know what I love about you two? Hoot!" His voice is like someone walking in and slamming two pots together. Amity shot back feeling like she's waking up from a vivid dream and gives Hooty probably the rawest form of hatred burning in her eyes.

The Owl Door doesn't seem fazed by it as he sticks his tongue out and blushes, "It's hard for me to pick because I love you guys so much!" The curtains give off a glow as Amity magically shut them close on him. "Hey!"

"You almost nodded off there," Luz guessed, unaware of the intention behind Amity's action and mistaken it for something else. Because of course she would.

Amity blinks and clenches her teeth, trying to resist the urge to throttle her human. She could explain and try again but the mood is spoiled and Amity isn't sure if she could just ask it outright. "I… I guess I am feeling rather tired," Amity lies.

"It is still too early," Luz nods, "Wanna head back upstairs?"

Amity looks over to the stairs but doesn't move from her spot. Instead, she turns over and scoops up her blanket onto the couch and settles into her spot. Her face pokes out the sheet revealing her reddened face to Luz and says, "Actually… Do you mind if I just stay here instead? With you?"

"Okay," Luz squeaks before swallowing back her voice. She shifts in her position similar to Amity and scoots closer. "Sure, if you want. I don't mind at all. To be honest, I kind of want us to keep talking. We might not get any sleep tonight."

"That's fine."

"Are you sure about that, Ami? I might bore you to death."

Amity flashes her a smile and nods, "You can try, Luv."