A/N: We're back! A Owl House story!

I'm actually out of town when I upload this, so I hope the formatting goes well, since it'll be from my phone this time. If not, I'll have to fix it when I return!

Luz flew on top of Lil' Rascal, desperately trying to hold her breath as her glyph kept them both invisible. As soon as she'd seen him arrive at the Owl House, chirping up a storm, she'd assumed something had gone horribly wrong and Hunter needed help, only for the darn bird to fly her off with no warning to the Emperor's castle of all places, to what she could only assume was Hunter's quarters.

Luz couldn't see herself, even if she wasn't invisible, but she was sure if she could that she was red in the face from the effort of holding the air in her lungs as long as she had. Rascal had flown her up close to one window, that she assumed he wanted her to jump through, but without being able to ask or see him to confirm, she'd lingered and doubted until she couldn't put it off anymore.

Even if this wasn't the right place, as long as she wasn't out in the open and could take a breather, she was willing to risk it. Blindly, unable to see the staff she had her legs wrapped around, she lept, landing on the windowsill and nearly slipping, letting out a loud gasp as she started to fall.

Only she didn't meet the sweet release of death, instead being grabbed by the scruff of her collar from inside the room she'd been trying to get inside, and yanked to the floor. She landed with a loud "oomph!" But the same hand quickly clamped over her mouth.

"What are you doing here?!" Her savior, now revealed to be Hunter himself, hissed quietly, eyes wide and frantic as if he was moments from having a panic attack.

Luz mumbled against his hand, her voice far too muffled for the boy or his returned Palisman to understand. Fearing she'd lick his hand like last time, he quickly let go, which was a wise decision if the smarmy look on Luz's face said anything. "What?"

"I said-" Luz was cut off, her normally toned voice shushed by Hunter, who put a finger to his lips to signal she needed to be quiet. Lowering her voice as much as she could, she instead murmured, "I said, I came to rescue you."

Hunter clenched his fists, and rolled his eyes, turning his seething gaze to his palisman, who hopped about innocently on the windowsill, making an obvious effort to avoid eye contact with his owner.

"While I'm touched," and despite his heavy sarcasm, he genuinely was, "I didn't send him to you to rescue me, I needed you to keep him safe!"

Luz opened her mouth to ask "from what?" But stopped when she noticed the state of the room she was in. Desk drawers had been pulled out, laying on the floor and papers scattered and crumpled under foot, the bed was a mess, not just unmade but turned all the way over, mattress hanging off the bed frame. The pillows had been slashed open and the stuffing pulled out, feathers littering every surface of the room.

The shelves had likewise been toppled, books pulled from their shelves and searched through, many of them torn to shreds. Many of the knickknacks and other things that had been resting on the shelves had also been broken open or apart. The entire room looked like a tornado had run through it, devastating everything in its path.

"What happened here?" Luz asked softly, concern for Hunter's well-being leaking into her voice, "Is this your room?"

Hunter nodded, and leaned in so he could whisper directly into her ear, his breath tickling Luz and almost making the secrecy pointless when she had to stifle a laugh, "Someone was in my room, they may have planted a way to listen in on me while I was out. They can not know I have Rascal, or that you of all people are in here."

Luz's eyes widened, "Someone bugged your room?"

Hunter looked disgusted, and more than a little horrified, "does the Human Realm have bugs that can report back to their masters about things they overhear?"

Luz was going to correct that, but really it wasn't all that far from the truth, so she just went along with it, "Basically, yeah. Oh, hey!"

She stood up, pushing the young man away from her so she could check out one of his collectibles. "I know this little guy, this is Sprig, from Amphibia!" She picked up a plush doll of a pink frog, and started to play around with it.

"I had no idea you were a fan of the show. We have to talk fan theories. Do they get cable here? I haven't seen the second half of season 2 yet, I can't wait. Marcy's my favorite character, who's you-" Hunter sighed, and put a hand back over Luz's face before her excitement about the doll made her forget she was supposed to be whispering.

He yanked the plushie from her hands, and to Luz's horror grabbed it by the head and pulled, tearing the head off and sending a pile of fluffy gore onto his floor, where to both his and Luz's surprise, a clatter of a small crystal met their ears.

Hunter crouched down, picking the gem up. This was what he'd been searching for. He knew he was being listened in on! This was proof he wasn't paranoid! He chuckled unevenly to himself as he crushed the damned thing in his hands, his volume rising until it had passed normal conversation range.

Luz took a step back from her glyph student, "Ooookay, unhinged laughter, not a good sign."

She quickly picked up the beheaded doll, and started stuffing the stuffing back inside. "Don't worry, little guy. I'll fix you up soon, and get you away from the crazy Golden Weirdo…"

The laughter died down after a moment, as Luz tried desperately to reunite Sprig's head with his body, and not having much luck. With a happy sigh, Hunter finally decided to answer Luz's questions, "I have no idea what an Amphibia is. Or cable, for that matter. I just found that at the night market one time-"

"Oh, is that the item Tibbles ripped you off over?" Luz asked, remembering their previous conversation from a few weeks back.

"- and thought it was cute…" Hunter finished, then folded his arms. It had absolutely been the item Tibbles had ripped him off over, but he obviously wasn't going to admit that, "No. That was something cooler… and manlier. Obviously."

He'd paid over a hundred snails for that dumb doll, and now it was in pieces. Kikimora was going to pay.

Luz smiled, not believing his obvious lies. Grabbing his mattress and sliding it back into place on the bed frame, she hopped on it and took a seat. She was already here, so might as well make the best of it and make sure her student was alright. "So, why was someone bugging your room?"

Hunter shivered uncomfortably at that phrasing again, thankful witches used gems and crystals for their reconnaissance and not insects, "It's not just someone. It has to be Kikimora."

Luz tilted her head, like a confused puppy, "But why though, aren't you guys on the same side?"

"It's about our positions, and the power that comes with it. The two of us were granted the rank of Co-Coven heads for the Emperor's Coven after Lilith was removed from the position. We have split responsibilities, so neither of us have full command over the Coven." Hunter explained, picking up his desk's chair, which had been overturned and setting it down so he too could have a seat.

"The thing about my Uncle is he encourages his underlings to one up each other. Do anything you can to gain the advantage. He did this on purpose, to see who was more worthy of taking full command, and so Kikimora is playing by his rules and fighting dirty." Hunter spit, clenching his jaw tight over the idea that his privacy had become a pawn in a game.

Luz blinked, and looked around again at the trashed quarters. "That… really doesn't sound healthy. Not for your relationships, or for your own wellbeing."

The fact that Hunter's mental fortitude was clearly frayed over this invasion just added oil to the fire. Luz offered him a sympathetic smile, "You sure you want to be a part of all this? I'm just saying, plenty of room over at the Owl House if you need a new room?"

Hunter stubbornly shook his head, "No, I'm not running away from this. I'll prove I'm the better witch, one way or another. And then Kikimora will answer for this when I outrank her."

Luz sighed, fearing that would be the answer. "Well, if you ever change your mind…"

Hunter gave a grateful grunt, and they lapsed into silence. He turned to look at his Palisman. Rascal, now free to make as much noise as he wanted, was chirping and tweeting out a song, other birds out in the distance returning it. As much as Hunter wanted Rascal to stay, he knew he'd have to send him away again. He couldn't risk the Palisman being alone in his room in case it was broken into again.

Knowing Kikimora was watching him also drew in the idea he might need to be even more careful about his Glyph lessons with Luz and the others, or at least take every possible precaution against being found out. He'd been lucky his notes from their lessons had been on his person, in his bag, and not in a desk drawer today.

Hunter would burn them the moment Luz went home.

While he was thinking about that, Luz was trying to think of something to say. Finding her words, she uttered, "I know you're really set on all of this Emperor's Coven, Golden Guard stuff, but it's also okay to change if that doesn't make you happy anymore."

Hunter looked at her curiously, and she began to backpedal, "Not that I'm saying this is making you unhappy. Just, you're clearly stressed. What I mean to say is, well, look at me!"

"I always wanted to be a Witch, but that wasn't feasible in the Human Realm, so I decided I'd be a writer instead. But now that I'm here on the Isles, I can be a witch! But that's also opened my eyes to the fact that just being a witch isn't exactly a job… I mean, Eda was the best, and she still had to sell human garbage to pay the bills." Luz elaborated, kicking her feet back and forth as she explained her early dreams.

"But now that I'm a witch, writing about my fantasies doesn't really fit me anymore, you know? I'm living them! I still love to write, though. But that's not what I want to be anymore. Instead, I want to become a teacher. I want to teach anyone who wants to learn all about glyphs, and their history, and how they work. Someday, when I'm older, that's my goal." She finished, smiling brightly.

"That's not going to work," Hunter cut her down bluntly. "Belos wouldn't let it happen. Teaching glyphs? Wild magic? He'd burn down any school that took you in as a teacher and petrify whoever hired you."

Luz grimaced at the mental image, but shot back, "Well, Belos isn't going to be around for… ever-"

She stopped, realizing who exactly she was talking to. Hunter deflated in his seat, not looking Luz in the eye. "Hunter, I'm sorry-"

"It's true." Hunter spoke somberly, "You know it is. I know it is. You said it yourself, you've seen what he uses Palismans for. I don't think he's long left for the world in his state."

His eyes hardened with resolve and he forced himself to look at Luz, face to face, "That's why I decided to take your lessons. Wild magic has always fascinated me from a historical point of view, and I'm certain I can find something to heal him. To make him less sick from whatever curse it is that ails him."

His fists tightened, "I have to."

Luz pursed her lips, inwardly debating with herself over what she knew was right and really stupid, or wrong, but the better choice. Closing her eyes, she listened to her dumb little heart, and made the stupid decision, "There might be a spell to heal him."

Hunter blanched, not expecting to hear that of all things out of Luz's mouth. "What did you just say?"

Luz pointed a finger at him, "But before I tell you, I want you to promise, this will be a last resort type of thing. I mean it, we check the glyph avenue and every other branch of magic first. Promise, or I'm not telling."

Hunter didn't even bother to weigh the options as long as it gave him any kind of lead. "I swear it."

Luz took a breath and held it in for a few moments before steadily releasing it, "Okay, so, Lilith and Eda were only born a few years after Belos took control. So, their Mom may have taught them a few older, wilder spells that probably aren't in use anymore. I mean, I've never seen or heard anyone use this besides Lilith and Eda, so-"

She shook her head, clearing it before she could get sidetracked, "When Eda was going to be petrified, she was stuck as an Owl Beast. The curse had grown too powerful and she couldn't turn back. But Lilith used a spell to take on half of it herself."

Luz recited the spell as she'd heard it, "With this spell declared, may the pain be shared."

Hunter cocked his head. Incantation spells weren't common in today's age, but one that simple seemed almost childishly in concept. "And that did what, exactly?"

"It didn't cure Eda, but it did drastically reduce her curse. It also inflicted it onto Lilith. If you perform it, if you even can, since it just seemed like the words and a forehead touch, no magic finger circles, then you'll be living the rest of your life with whatever it is that is killing your Uncle. And you're young enough it might take you over even earlier in your life than Belos. He's got to be what, at least seventy, right?"

Hunter took in this new information. It was true, he lacked any magical ability, so spell circles were useless. Maybe if he had his staff in hand?

"Hunter, you promised, so you'd better not be planning anything," Luz warned, snapping Hunter out of his thoughts.

"I said I wouldn't, so I won't. But if it comes down to it, I should at least know if I'm capable of doing it at all, right?" Hunter argued.

Luz crossed her arms, trying to look as menacing as possible, but looked about as threatening as a baby otter. "I'll be watching you, my young padawan."

Hunter had no idea what that meant, but took offense to it anyway at being called young by someone like Luz. Still, this was useful information, something he could at least attempt to study behind his Uncle's back, and maybe find a cure from there so he could avoid becoming… goopy. "Thank you, Luz. I mean it."

She smiled, "Just don't make me regret it!"

"I'll try not to," Hunter chuckled, then waved over his cardinal friend, "Now, I need you to take Rascal with you. Keep him at the Owl House, and don't let him escape and find his way back to me, no matter what."

Rascal tweeted angrily in protest, biting at Hunter's thumb. "Hey, this is for your own safety here. I'll see you plenty when I come to my lessons, okay?"

That seemed to appease Rascal enough, as he transformed into a staff that Luz took from Hunter's hands and straddled. "I'll see you the day after tomorrow, then." She said, already thinking up stuff to add to their lesson plans.

"That's the plan," Hunter smirked, and with that Luz took off, using another invisibility glyph and holding her breath until she was out of the castle Guard's line of sight and far off into the horizon.

If the day of the confrontation was awkward, then Lucia didn't know how to describe what it felt like the day after. Camila hadn't had enough time to drop them off at school today, so the human and the Changeling had to walk, side by side, pretending to the outside world that nothing had happened between the two.

As they walked, Lucia could feel Vee's eyes on her, the girl giving her side eye. Not that Lucia wasn't also guilty of this, it was just so weird now, knowing this wasn't Luz.

Lucia could remember when they were half their age, and she'd walk this same route with Luz, hand in hand. And now her sister was in another dimension or something. She didn't want to think about stuff like this so early in the morning. It was bullshit, and she had enough on her plate.

"Come on," She muttered to the Changeling, hastening her pace so she didn't have to walk beside her anymore. Disheartened, the smaller girl had to jog to keep up, trailing behind the rest of the way.

School itself was uneventful. No one picked on Lu- Vee, not since the Principal gave Crane detention for a week for what she'd done. The two girls didn't see much of one another, purposefully avoiding one another in the hallways between classes.

Then lunch rolled around, and despite not wanting to see each other, they sat at the same table as usual to keep up appearances. Amelia didn't join them that day, and Lucia didn't expect to see her do so for a while, and couldn't blame her. Last time Amelia had a big revelation about herself, she'd disappeared for three weeks to figure herself out.

Lucia didn't mind. Amelia could take the time she needed. Lucia would be here for her when she was ready to talk again, and would give her any space she needed.

It did leave her alone with the Changeling, though, which she wasn't crazy about.

Vee wasn't looking at her, not that she had for the past several lunch periods, even before she'd been exposed as a faker. No, if Lucia had to guess, she was still watching Clara, with bright puppy dog eyes. This gave Lucia an idea, so she reached into her bag and pulled out a pen and paper, and began to make a list.

"So…" She began, causing Vee to jerk, "I'm a bit curious, do you like her because of you, or is this some strange holdover caused by taking Luz's form?"

Vee, now in the present, took a moody stab at her food, "It's me. I don't actually learn anything about my host by taking their forms. It's just a coincidence."

"Yeah, I guess it's just a big old coincidink that you happen to have a major crush on someone my sister used to also make oggly eyes over, huh?" She scribbled a few more items down.

Looking back up at Vee, she pressed a bit more, "How come you're able to imitate a lot of my sister's behavior, then? You didn't take her form until she was gone, right?"

Vee shifted uncomfortably, "I… may have broken into your house when you and your mom were gone, and looked through her things. Found a few old journals and diaries."

Lucia glared, "So, you were violating my sister's privacy?"

"I thought she was dead!" Vee hissed quietly, not wanting to attract any attention.

"Well, you certainly didn't do an amazing job of blending in, if I managed to catch you." Lucia continued, clicking her pen and putting her notes away for now.

"Humans aren't as close knit as the residents of the Boiling Isles. I didn't know Luz in my previous form, because your entire society is built around cars instead of everything and everyone being in walking distance of each other. Back home, everyone in town knew each other, unless they specifically didn't want to be known. Nailing someone's personality is a lot easier when you've actually met them at some point, in one form or another." Vee explained, sliding her food tray away, half uneaten, not in the mood to finish it.

Lucia propped an elbow onto the table, leaning her head against her hand, "So, that means your last form, Victor, was it? Was human?"

Vee hissed, and slammed a hand down on the table, a reaction Lucia hadn't been expecting, "Yes, now as I said, I don't like to talk about it. So please, drop that name, okay?"

Lucia nodded, sliding her own tray of food away, "Yeah, sure. Won't hear anymore about it from me."

They returned to a moody silence, and didn't speak again for the rest of lunch, the only sounds coming from the scratching of Lucia's pen and the noise of the other students.

Vee and Lucia, much like they had that morning, walked back home together after school, keeping a bit of distance between them as they went. It made Vee miserable, but at the same time it kept her own anxiety in check. She didn't like being alone with Lucia after last night.

To her relief, she could see their Mom's car in the driveway, which meant she had arrived home, so the Changeling picked up her pace, ignoring the walkway and jogging over the lawn up to the door, throwing it open and rushing inside, closing the door behind her despite Lucia only being a few yards away.

"Mom!" She called out in greeting, and seeing the older woman, still taking off her own shoes after arriving home mere moments before, threw her arms around her into a tight embrace. She could feel the love her mother felt for her, filling her like she was an empty tank. Vee sighed deeply, relaxing into the hug. She'd needed this recharge after such a difficult day.

Camila chuckled at her daughter's enthusiasm, patting her on the back as she returned the hug, "Oh, Mija, what's up with you today?"

The sound of the front door opened and Vee could sense Lucia's eyes watching her without having to see her. Another painful reminder of their severed connection. "It's nothing, Mom. I love you!" Vee sang happily, removing herself from her surrogate mother's arms, weaving around her to head for the living room, where she knew she'd have to get started on her homework soon.

"I love you too, Luz." Camila responded sweetly as she passed, then turned to her other daughter. "Why don't you ever greet your mother like that anymore, hm?"

Lucia scoffed, rolling her eyes, but gave into her mothers wishes and uttered an exasperated and obligatory, "I love you, Ma," passing her by without a hug to throw herself on the couch, tossing her bag beside her.

As much as she'd made it seem like a hassle, after last night and what she'd believed happened with Luz, Lucia made a mental note to tell her mother she did in fact love her as often as possible. Even if it made her feel a bit like a dork. She never knew when it might be her last chance to do so.

As Vee dug out her homework, Camila left to change out of her work scrubs in her room, and Lucia lounged on the sofa, not intending to do her own homework until the last minute like any self respecting teenager. Instead, she watched Vee lazily as she scribbled in answers.

After a few moments, and knowing she had some time to spare before her mother came back and could hear them, Lucia asked, "What's with being so lovey dovey with everyone? I know you feed off of it, or whatever, but do you have to be so huggy?"

Luz had always been touchy-freely, but now that Lucia knew that this wasn't Luz, she'd realized that Vee was just a tad bit clingier than her actual sister was.

Vee didn't look back at Lucia, and for a moment she wondered if the demon had heard her, or was ignoring her. Then Vee sighed, "Are you going to question everything I do from now on? Of course I like hugging Camila, she's my Mom."

Lucia sneered, "She's my Mom, and Luz's Mom, not your Mom."

"Well, until last night, for all intents and purposes, I was Luz," Vee snapped back. Breathing through her nose, she tried to calm herself, but the tension didn't subside. "Look, I know from a human's perspective, I'm just this thing that tried to take your sister's place. But Changelings? We don't have any identity but the ones we take. I was Luz, or the best Luz I could be. I love our Mom, like she's my actual mother."

Her head hung low, she'd still avoided looking at Lucia as she spoke, "And I love you, too. It might seem dumb, but I can't help my nature."

Lucia slumped in her seat. It was hard to be testy towards someone who'd just said they loved you. Grumbling, she sat up, "Shit."

"Where are you going?" Vee asked as Lucia stood and went for the front door.

"Out," Lucia said simply, walking through the door and slamming it shut behind it without another word.

Vee shrugged, trying not to worry about her once-sibling, and focused on her work. The study material was easy enough to understand. She might be stuck with the brain of a fourteen year old, with all the mental and emotional maturity that came with it, but she was still a several hundred year old demon, and that came with certain arcane knowledge of subjects like algebra.

History was a bit of a struggle, even after spending eight years in the human realm. Humans certainly liked to do a lot of things they thought were impressive, and write them down. Science as well. Chemistry made her miss when she'd posed as a witch in the potion track at Hexside, but she didn't linger too long on those memories. Changelings never did.

By the time Lucia returned, Vee had finished her homework for the night, and was lounging in her room on her bed. The older girl knocked on her doorframe, since the door had been left wide open, and let herself in, tossing a book onto Vee's lap.

Vee picked it up, "Easy Spanish for Beginners?" She read aloud with a quirked eyebrow.

"Yeah. To help you blend in a little better." Lucia admitted, stuffing her hands in her pocket sheepishly. "I went out to the bookstore and got it for you."

Vee opened the book with a skeptical expression, and gave Lucia an unimpressed look when it clearly said "Property of Gravesfield Library" on the inside of the cover.

"Alright, I might have borrowed it from the library. Without asking. I, uh, don't have a library card. Too many fines and I'm not allowed to check out anymore until I pay them off." Lucia admitted.

"Well, uh, thanks." Vee said hesitantly, unsure if Lucia stealing a book for her counted as her doing something nice or not.

"Oh, and here." Lucia pulled a folded bit of paper from her pocket, and set it on Luz's desk. Seeing Vee's confusion, she elaborated, "It's a list I made during lunch today. About a bunch of things you do differently than Luz, and a few of the stuff Luz likes, so you won't blow your cover."

Vee picked up the list, taking a look at all the little details she got wrong. She pursed her lips as she studied it, wondering if she'd done that bad of a job filling in for the human she'd tried to replace, or if Lucia was just that observant, and moved her focus to the list of things Luz enjoyed that would help her fit into the role better.

"I'm not saying you have to be Luz, honestly I think it's still creepy as Hell. You're at the age where Luz would be expanding her interests anyway, and anything you've done differently could just be explained as the camp rotting your brains out, or something." Lucia clarified, rubbing the back of her neck and feeling ridiculous for writing all of that stuff down.

Vee glanced up from the list with her own grimace, "Thanks, but… do I really need to get into the Azura series? It just seemed really cliche."

"Yeah, that right there, talking like that will get you abducted by the government or something from how fast it'll blow your cover." Lucia responded, trying to inject a bit of playful banter into the conversation.

Thankfully, Vee seemed to catch on, "I think I'd be fine with that, really, as long as I don't have to suffer through the torture of reading through young adult trash literature."

Lucia laughed, "Honestly, I kind of dislike the series myself. But I was all Luz had to talk to it about. So I faked it. It's not so bad as long as you've got someone to read it with."

Vee smiled shyly, picking up the copy that had been left untouched on her desk since the last time Lucia had read to her. "In that case, would you read to me some more?"

Lucia blinked, processing the request, then slowly took the book from the Changeling's grasp. "Well, if we're putting on the ruse that you're Luz, it wouldn't be accurate without continuing the Azura book club," She admitted.

The two sat down together on the bunk. The air between them hadn't quite cleared, but the distance wasn't quite so far anymore. Vee didn't lay her head on Lucia's lap this time, Lucia still was adamant about not doing any character voices, and they read in misery together, spending the rest of the night complaining about how poorly written the Azura books were to each other.

Amity stood stalk still, back straight at attention in her backyard as her new mentor, Darius of the Abomination Coven, paced back and forth, looking her over. Finally, he sighed in disappointment, "What is it that you're even wearing?"

Amity frowned, feeling a bit self conscious, "It's my school uniform from Hexside. Sir." She added quickly, not wanting to disrespect him on their first lesson together.

He seemed to accept the answer, if reluctantly. "I can't believe they're still using that old design. That old Principal has no sense of fashion, nor taste."

He turned his back to her, cape bellowing as he did so, "It'll do for now, but I'd like to make an improvement, if I may?" He didn't wait for her to answer before one of his abominations rose from the ground, and threw a white cape around Amity's shoulders.

Well, it was more of a white sheet, compared to Master Darius' own glamorous apparel. The only thing that convinced Amity that it wasn't just a sheet was that it had a clasp to hold it around her neck, which the Abomination kindly fastened for her.

She stared questioningly at her new teacher, who was examining the new look. "If you have something to say, say it. I'm here to teach you, not baby you." He ordered.

Amity nodded, "Alright, sir, why do I need a cape for my lessons?"

Darius smiled approvingly, "From what your parents and other teachers and tutors have said about you, you already command plenty of power when it comes to Abominations, dear Amity. In that case, I have decided we shall instead focus on your refinement."

He gestured to her new attire, "You are to get as little of a mess on your cape as Witchly possible. Abominations are a messy magic, and making as little of a disaster out of yourself shows a tight control over your creations."

Amity nodded in understanding, "What will we be doing today then, sir?"

"I've yet to truly see your strength first hand. While your other teachers were impressed with it, I will not be so easy. So, today you will be sparring." Darius explained, and Amity felt a cold spike of panic inside her.

"I-I'll be fighting you, sir?" She stammered, not having prepared for the possibility. Darius was supposed to be legendary, and if she wasn't in the right mental state going in, she'd be creamed and make a fool of herself.

Darius shook his head, "No, that'd be over far too quickly. As much as it pains me to say it, you're opponent will be one of your father's… ugh, Abomitons." With a snap of his finger, one arose from the muck on the ground, and with Master Darius' skill regarding transportation, all of it's metal bits followed from parts unknown to join it.

When it was assembled, he looked it over in disgust, "I've heard you fought it to a stand still at the showcase for it two months ago. I'm curious to see how you've grown, so it will be a good test of your new limits."

He stepped aside, "I'll also be leaving it on it's usual automated mode. I'll observe how you fight a Masterless Abomination with your own. And remember to mind your cape."

Amity nodded, and summoned her own Abomination to rise against the towering Abomiton. She was more than confident that she wouldn't have to worry about a mess getting on her just from the summoning, she wasn't a feeble child, or a talentless conjuror, after all. But she was worried about how she'd manage to keep her own creation from splashing all over her during the fight.

The two purple titans met in combat, the Abomiton more powerful, but slower due to the extra weight and lack of someone to command it. As Amity feared, when they did clash the blows sent puddles of goop spraying everywhere, but she was conscious enough to avoid it, weaving out of the way before any could get on her, and mark her first test as a failure.

Blow for blow was exchanged, neither abomination surpassing the other. From the sidelines, Darius kept his expression steeled, watching every move with eyes like a hawk.

While it was an uphill struggle, Amity slowly began to gain the upper hand over the Abomiton, her own about to end it when Darius gave a command to stop, approaching the makeshift arena. It was too late though, as Amity's creation, arm formed into a mallet, swung down on the Abomiton's head and made it erupt into a fountain of goo which shot everywhere.

Amity could only watch in horror as it landed everywhere but on her, including all over Darius' own cape. His upper lip twitched, and for a moment Amity could swear his eyes turned black with rage, but he turned his back to her before she could be sure.

Darius trembled, anger in his veins over these new stains, from an Abomiton no less, but willed himself to calm down. He wasn't going to yell at a child for an accident during a training session he had brought on and was overseeing. He was a master of the arts when it came to Abominations, he could simply command the stains out.

This wasn't mud, or dirt, or disease ridden slime, this was goo, he was the master over that, he was one with it. It was nothing to him.

Breathing out, he turned back to Amity, masking his expression. She forced a sheepish smile back, and showed off her own spotless cape, "At least I didn't get any on me?" She tried.

Darius sighed, "Yes, I suppose that is a consolation. Very good. However, I must have overestimated your father's already paltry work, if this is what he considered a home safety defense system. I expected more of a fight out of it."

"Not to put down your own achievements, of course," Darius clarified.

Amity bit her lip, "Well, it is something my Father made, so…"

Darius raised his brow, "And that would mean?" He asked, as this didn't sound like a complaint about the quality of the creation, but rather the maker itself.

"I have to work with these things, on stage, to show how they work." Amity explained, "We all do. So my Dad made it so that it pulls its punches against anyone in the Blight family, as a fail safe. It hit as hard as it did in the showcase because it was technically under control of my Mom, who wanted it to hit as hard as it did against me."

Darius glanced at the now headless Abomiton that was now going to be his responsibility to fix. "How very sentimental of him. I'll see what I can do to remove that feature before your next sparring session. For now, take pride in that you have passed your first test, and came out clean."

He reached out with one of his gloved hands and placed it on her head, ruffling her pink hair in a way that could almost be described as playful, if not for the intensely serious expression on his face, and the stiffness of his movements. Children really weren't his forte.

Amity beamed anyway. It wasn't a shining star to pin to her lapel, or an encouraging word from Luz, but she'd still take praise from a teacher any day.

A/N: Finally, some resolution to the Hunter scene! Honestly, I really love the idea of Luz becoming a teacher at Hexside post-canon. She clearly enjoys it when she's teaching Eda and Lilith. I think it's the single best fit for her as a career path, and I hope other people adopt the idea and I see more future fics about this.

I'm also really proud of the Amity scene. It's not the most important scene in this fic, but I still really love it.

Let me know if you liked it too, and if my lore for Changelings is dumb or brilliant or both!