PS. Chapter Word Count: 2545
PSS. I have a lot to say today so I'll just start. This has a lot of triggers: Implied murder, murder, implied torture, implied slavery, implied death, death, insanity, implied suicide, and suicide. It's a dark fic. If any of these trigger you in any way don't read. If I missed any pls tell me.
PSSS. So, this is a look at what would happen if the future of TOH sucks and all the MCs are dead or worse except Eda. The idea is now that she lost her family, she finds a way to go a year back in time and "fix everything". She slowly goes insane and is kind of OOC but that's because she's driven by pain and fear and is slowly losing her sanity.
PSSSS. So, the order might be confusing but here you go: All the terrible things in the future (italics) happen at different times which you will need to piece together. The order of current day is sequenced.
PSSSSS. It gets more distorted at the end for two reasons: I wrote this in one three plus hour sitting, I am tired, and I'm dehydrated. Two, Eda is obviously going insane so her POV is getting more and more cryptid anywho. It's still readable though.
She couldn't blame the boy, Hunter. He wasn't in control of himself.
"Please!" Eda cried, practically on her knees, so vulnerable towards her younger self. "Today, if you send Owlbert to the human realm you'll bring back… something."
"Something what?" The year younger witch asked, confused and worried.
The elder thought for a moment before replying, "Something wonderful."
"If it's so wonderful, why can't I get it? Is it diamonds, endless snails, a cure, a-"
Interrupting her past self, The older Eda replied, "No. It's something more valuable than anything. And if you get it…" Eda was trying not to cry. "You will hurt it."
The younger Eda was confused to say the least. "Well, can you at least tell me what it is?"
The time traveler shook her head before she continued, "I'll do anything. Give you anything. Tell you nearly anything. Just one day. You can send Owlbert tomorrow. You can go yourself the day after! You can do whatever… just don't go today."
Something in the younger told her this was important beyond belief. Nodding, she assured, "Okay older me. But, what's with your eyes? It isn't the-"
"Curse," Eda finished, nodding in conformation. "I'm going to fix everything though. I promise."
She was nearly crying. Something that rarely happened. She was so vulnerable and trapped it was almost dream like. Still it felt real. "Can you at least tell me what it is? I promise I won't get it."
With tired, gray eyes, to old for her age, Eda replied, "A daughter."
The younger was left confused as her year older self left.
She couldn't blame him. But he dropped her. Luz was gone.
o0O0o
She never saw it happen but heard from Luz of Belos cracking him open.
Three days later, Eda was in the Bat Queen's cave. A sleeping, unknowing Owlbert sat in her arms. "Hey! Bat Queen!" She called in to the damp cave.
A screech echoed off the walls. "Who is the who's come to my nest?" The palisman cried in a tone that sounded angry, though the witch knew she was only scared for her young.
"I'm- I'm Edalyn Clawthorne, the most powerful witch on the Boiling Isles!" She called back.
A giant figure swept by, coming closer to the time traveler. In the future they're friends. Just, not yet. "And why might Edalyn Clawthorne be here?"
Eda uncupped her palisman. While her past self slept Eda snuck in and took him. With any luck, she'd never find out. "Please, I know who you once were and what you do. Take him. Please," She began, beginning to sob on that last note.
The large palisman looked mortified at the thought as she demanded, "What is the meaning of this Edalyn?"
Vulnerability over took the witch again as she admitted, "I'm not Edalyn from this time. I'm from the future. One where he dies. One where were friends and as a friend I'm asking you to take care of him."
The Bat Queen looked questioningly.
"P-Please. This is a huge sacrifice for me to make. Just… if not for me, than do it for Owlbert."
The older smiled. "That is very noble of you Miss Edalyn. I can see as to why we are friends. Give your little friend to me."
"Just never tell him why he's here. Please." The Bat Queen nodded in understanding.
According to Luz, Owlbert was dead. Scrapped for the sap inside of him, eaten by the emperor.
o0O0o
King was alive, still around, and tortured. A slave.
Eda made her way to King;s place of birth on a rented staff, curtesy of the Bat Queen. She informed her of needed to save more family and, as a mother, the old palisman agreed.
Rounding the corner in order to not hit a large building, the old witch landed on the rough sand. She reached into her pouch and grabbed her tools: spray paints. As she entered the odd building it wasn't long before she was met with her pet's old protector.
She wasn't going to hurt, she couldn't. Instead she grabbed her borrowed staff and performed the long practiced spell taught to her by this same being nearly two months ago.
Before he could lunge at her, he was disabled. A mechanical being stripped of power while thriving in the mindscape.
"I'm sorry."
She took her cans and looked up at the stone walls, decorated with art that told a story. Not long after they were drowned in happy art Luz might have drawn if not at camp. Rainbows and kittens littered the walls causing the removal of King's past but the hope for his future.
Next time he came, he wouldn't be able to figure out much of anything. He'd be sad and hurt, but he'd be healthy, well rested, fed, and loved. That was what mattered.
King was a slave to bigger demons after the death of his father, the king.
o0O0o
In the eyes of many, Lilith's treasonous ways couldn't go unpunished as her curse was amplified.
Eda stared through the window at her sister whom she knew was still drowning in guilt of Eda's curse. Eda had been in the past two weeks by now and the coven convention from so long ago was tomorrow.
Eda wouldn't be going this time. She didn't have Luz to convince and she was probably still morning Owlbert. Lilith was though, it was her career after all.
It would stay that way, her career. She'd never quit for the sake of her younger sister and never split the curse. She'd be going down a road Eda didn't want her to take, but she'd be healthy.
Eda used her still foreign staff to create a note in front of her sister. While suspicious, the curseless one read the parchment slowly morphing her face into one of pure shock and horror.
Eda watched the rare sight of her sister breaking down as Eda knew what she had learned. The anonymous note shared Belos's refusal to actually cure Eda and several made up consequences of Lilih leaving the coven to stop her from doing so.
Eda fled before her older sister could hear her own sobs.
Lilith wasn't Lilith as her curse amplified. She couldn't talk to it anymore as it wasn't the inner beast her and her sister befriended. It was something worse.
o0O0o
No one believed it when it happened. Willow was always naturally talented with plants, they just never expected her to lose control.
Eda looked in at the Park house hold. Luz never showed up at Hexside and never forced her friend into switching tracks. She was still in the abomination track. She'd had enough though. She begged in her living room, begged to her dads to let her switch. The plant coven at the convention yesterday was so cool to her.
Her dads gave in, seeing the passion in their daughter's eyes. And, while it was a hard thing to do, Eda had to destroy the child's dreams.
That night, when she knew Willow was in bed, she knocked on the door to the Park house hold and Gilbert answered the door. "Hello," She greeted. "I'm-"
The man screamed. "Honey! Get the Emperor on the line! The owl lady's he-"
Eda slammed her hands over his mouth and cried, "Please! I'm from the future. I'm close friends with both you and your husband and you can't let Willow quit abominations."
Intrigued, Gilbert asked, "And why is that?"
"She loses control. She can't do plants! I mean, she can do plants! That's the problem though, she's to good," Eda cried, tears streaming down her face.
"What are you talking about?"
Eda looked at him with total remorse and responds, "Listen, I know it sounds strange but Willow loses control and gets herself seriously hurt. Please I know you don't believe me but are you really going to take that chance? What business would I have lying to you?"
Willow kept getting taunted and having horrible grades in the abomination track. Still she was alive.
She lost control in an attempt to help. She turned all her time to her studies to help her friend (family) fight off Belos. To much time as she suffocated in her endless creations.
o0O0o
The house was gone. The owl house was gone. Hooty went with it.
Two and a half weeks in, young Eda was hating herself for losing Owlbert, King and Hooty there to comfort her. Half a week ago she woke up with him gone. It was hard without him to say the least. So hard she had yet to remember her future self even existed in this time line.
That was why she was shaken when she came home from the night market after bargaining with Tiddles for some of her elixir (which she forgot to get in her depression) to her house being… gone. Sure it was a night one could do a moonlight conjuring but that shouldn't mean anything.
But… her house was gone… Hooty was gone. As much as the demon annoyed her… she really did love him deep down. What, was she going to lose king next-
She quickly clung the sleeping King closer to her. Her life was falling apart.
And from the shadows after hiding Hooty with the help of some demons she bribed, the time traveler looked on. Eda could suffer, her family couldn't.
Hooty was gone. Amity destroyed him when she lost control.
o0O0o
Gus attempted to learn more and more magic. He couldn't help with just illusions. Sadly, he couldn't figure out beast keeping.
Eda looked at the staff in her hands. This was going to be life ruining for Gus, but at least he'd have one.
It was odd how much Eda considered Willow and Gus her family, but she did and she wasn't about to ruin it as she snuck into her old school. Her paints from earlier came in handy once more as she snuck into the boy's bathroom. Good thing it was Saturday.
"I'm sorry Gus," she sighed as she began to paint. She sprayed on Gus's full name and designs that clearly praised illusions. She framed her her kind of maybe son whom she'd never actually meet in the new reality.
She managed to ignore Bump's traps and alarms to change the rules. Rather than detention, graffiti resulted in expulsion.
It was a hard decision to harm Gus's future like that, but at least he had one.
He couldn't figure out beast keeping and couldn't control the beasts. All they had left was his left arm which was still oozing in saliva.
o0O0o
After the twins got sent to a behavioral boot camp, Amity was forced into the dreaded coven and possesed like Hunter. She couldn't control herself any longer as she fought against her real family.
It was Alador and Odalia's fault. The Blight children were as much family to Eda as Willow and Gus were, especially the youngest. And, while the three were soon to be orphans, they'd be safe from the toxic household they grew up in. Even if Amity was still the good girl she once was.
Four weeks in to this venture and Eda snuck into Blight enterprises. The security was easily avoidable with help from a stolen Gladorstone enhancing every spell from her staff.
She was soon in the building and soon could hear voices that she knew could only be the Blight parents as the children were at school. Creeping closer, Eda knew (wrongly thought) she was doing the right thing. It was for her family.
She approached a door with the sound of conversation inside. A female voice continued, "-So that's why I fired Mazzy."
A monotone voice respond, "That's nice, dear."
There were only two people those voices could be. A shocked gasp could be heard as the white door opened followed by the blood curdling scream of two adults with no warning or time to run.
Eda was slowly becoming less and less stable while trying to save her family in the past. Still, she couldn't see her family killed and tortured again.
As she fought against her family with no control, she was fully aware and they knew it. They could see the unshed tears in her eyes and the pleading look of regret in every battle.
o0O0o
Her Mom was safe and out of the fight. Eda and Lilith forced her into vacation right before the war and told her nothing. To keep her safe. Still, she suffered in the past.
Before Eda could save her old lover, she had some time. To make the most of it, she took the liberty to help her mom. During this time, Gwendolyn Clawthorne was still at the mercy of "Master Wortlop" and Eda refused to stand by it.
Despite this, she was no longer going easy. She was done talking. Master Wortlop might as well be dead by the time the elder witch got there. "You know what they say," An Eda whom was clearly not sane muttered as she approached the fraud's hide out. "You can't do squat when you're dead."
Her mom did not deserve this. As annoying as she was for years, her heart was in the right place. Inside of her. She wasn't dead. And she wasn't going to be dead (or scammed) on her youngest daughter's watch.
It was night as she approached the home of the dirty little frauds giving Eda a possible one up on them. That theory was confirmed when she entered the cave to see a number of sleeping gremlins that were soon to never wake up.
Gwendlyn didn't know of the war. Her children wrote lies of mundane life on the Boiling Isles. Still, she used to fall for scams of all kinds.
o0O0o
When Raine was captured they managed to free themselves soon. Still, their life didn't last long after that.
Eda made her way BATS headquarters with a torch that was already lit. A checklist in her mind that read: stop the BATS from continuing so the Raine can't get captured and destroy Raine's foolproof plan to become the Bard coven leader.
Eda was tired, she was ready to be done. She saved her family and now she could be at peace. She didn't want to waste a single second waiting to be done. She couldn't.
She was sane enough to make sure no one was in as she called out to be positive, but that was it. She dropped the torch and climbed her way out.
Once they escaped, Raine had to run. It was just bad luck they fell off the balcony while trying to escape.
o0O0o
Edalyn Clawthorne had done the right thing. She knew it. Sure she ruined her own life in the process but everything was fine. There may have been a bit of blood but her family were all alive and well (as far as she knew).
Now, she didn't want to remember the other (better) reality. Her purpose was served, she saved her family. She found A way to go exactly on year back in time and she won within six weeks. Her family was (not) safe. Her family was (not) fine.
There was no hesitation when Eda jumped.
PS. I have an obbsesseion with reviews so please review! If this obsession is not fueled my obsession shall become henna tattoos! Choose my fate.
PSS. I hope this was enjoyable, it made sense, and it doesn't seem to out there. The idea is that Eda's attempts to fix things (for a lot of obvious reasons) make things ten times worse for everyone but Luz. I may or may not write a sequel showing the consequences… we'll see.
PSSS. I didn't edit so…