" Okay, now whittle a bit more on the ears." Luz instructed. Amity followed suit and used her knife to cut into the left ear a bit more, sharpening it to a point at the end. Since they got back from their little tour around the Isle, they quickly got to work on Amity's palisman. Amity tried her best to capture the image on Luz's phone, using it as a reference for her work. It had been several hours now, and close to 5pm, but they both worked tirelessly so they could begin their staff training as soon as possible.

A knock on the door interrupted the duo's concentration on the task at hand. When Luz went to see who it was, she was met with a guard holding a pile of clothes and a mask on top. He handed them to her. " Don't tear these up, you hear? I don't want anyone shooting the messenger." Before Luz could get a word in, he left. She brought the clothes back to Amity, once again sitting beside her as she continued to carve away. The palisman was looking closer and closer to the domestic cat on Luz's phone. Amity thought, what better way to harness the worlds they both come from than with a creature from Luz's world that is both cunning, yet kind?

Amity looked up at Luz, still carving little pieces to smooth out the wood. " Is that your uniform?"

Luz nodded, " Yeah, looks like it. They're kinda bland, huh? Think I could spruce them up for a bit of flair?" Luz raised her hands "jazz hands style", but Amity shook her head.

" Not a good idea. The whole point of the uniform is to be the same as everyone else. The only time you can look different is if you're just built different or you're a higher ranking."

Luz huffed, her lip curling in dissatisfaction. She tried to distract herself from the idea with Amity's carving. It was very nearly completed now, and only needed some fine-tuning. " Can you hand me the thin knife? It's over by the top of my bed." Luz got up to retrieve the blade and came back to deliver.

" Why do you have this up there?" She asked, curious, but mainly concerned.

" You have to be ready for anything." Amity's nonchalant reply didn't ease Luz's anxiety over this development. She bit her cheek at the idea of needing a knife at the head of your bed. What would she even need it for in such a guarded up place like this? Doesn't she have magic to defend herself even if something did happen to attack? Luz's thoughts were cutoff shortly as Amity piped up. " There we go." She held up the finished palisman with pride. It was a small cat, sitting idly on its perch. Amity smiled as she showed it to Luz. "Now the best part." She spun a magic circle around the cat, and as the circle pulled into the palisman, the pink light flashed, revealing an inactive palisman. The cat was white with a deep purple dot covering the eye and a strip on the neckl. The ankles of the back paws had purple lines that helped accentuate the look as the front paws were completely purple.

Luz was completely dumbfounded by the design and just the idea of something so beautiful. " Can I hold it?" She asked. Amity nodded in response, handing the palisman over to Luz. She looked at closely, touching the body, noticing how the once rough, very woodlike texture was now smooth as a boulder.

Amity snapped her fingers and the palisman glowed a slight pink then opened its eyes. Luz jumped a bit, still holding the cat at it looked around. It got up and stretched a big ol stretch before making its way to Amity, sniffing her. It then began to purr and rub against her legs. Luz put her hands on her face, unable to look away. "Awww. It's so cute!"

Amity picked the cat up and looked into its pink eyes, feeling its purr on her hands. " I think I'll call you Sphinx." The cat leapt onto her shoulders, continuing to rub with happiness at its new name.

"I wish I could have a cool palisman like yours. It's a little familiar but so much cooler." Luz played with the cat, letting it bap her finger. Amity could see a bit of grief in Luz's eyes as she made a poor attempt to hide it with cute cat things. She sighed.
"Okay." Amity nodded. Luz cocked her head, confused. Their eyes met before Amity spoke again, closing hers. "Go add whatever you want to your uniform." Luz gasped, her eyes lighting up. "I'll vouch for you, just because you can't have a palisman, but if they tell you to fix it, then you need to listen to th-" Amity was cut off by Luz's hug. " Oh thank you thank you! You won't regret it!" She chirped happily. Sphinx was almost knocked off of Amity's shoulders, but kept hold until Luz let go. Luz ran over and grabbed her mask, excited to start.

"Okay, nothing too crazy, though. I'm gonna go take care of some work that I'm behind on, due to this.. whole thing," she motioned at Sphinx and Luz. "Can you watch her for me until I get back?"

Luz pointed fingers guns at Amity, winking, "You got it."

" I was talking to Sphinx." Amity chuckled as she grabbed her cloak, slipping it on over her uniform.

Luz flushed, then smirked, " I see what you did there."

"Okay, I'll be back in a bit." Amity slid on her mask and slipped through the door, leaving Sphinx and Luz alone for a while.

" So," Luz broke the silence, "You wanna help me decorate?" Sphinx meowed in response.

—

The doorknob twisted and allowed the door to open as Amity made her way back into her room. " Luz, I'm back." She called out. She heard giggling coming from near the bed and as she stepped closer to see the full extent of the room, she saw paint and brushes lining the floor. There was some mess from what looked like a spilled cup of paint water, but no Luz or Sphinx. Amity could guess where they were hiding as Luz didn't seem to be very good at keeping quiet. She heard her shush Sphinx under the bed.

"Oh wow, all alone. Wonder where those two got off to." Amity sat on the bed, playing along. She heard more giggling. "I guess I'll just have to eat these Fried Orbs all by my self then." She joked. She felt and heard a bump under the bed, then a quiet "ow". She saw Luz and Sphinx scramble out of the bed with wanting eyes.

"Fried Orbs?"

Amity laughed. "Gotcha, don't ever think you can outwit the master of wits." She waved her finger to create a spell circle, yoinking Luz and Sphinx out from under the bed, sliding them across the floor. They grumped, disappointed in the lack of fried food in the room.

"You can outwit me in everything else," Luz announced, "but lying about Fried Orbs is a whole other level I thought we agreed never to stoop to." She glared at Amity, who just smirked.

"Well, if you two are done playing around, we still have time to check out our new staffs in the training yard."

Luz cheered, then rolled around to get up. "Oh, but first," she bent down underneath the bed and pulled out her mask. It was covered in different splotches of colored paints around the nose and eyes. On the forehead was a light glyph. "I finished my little art project and added a bit of pizzazz." Luz hit the glyph and a light shined on top. "See? It's a headlamp in case we're on a night mission or I can stun people with its blinding light. Wooo." Luz showed it off. Amity pushed it down, a bit worried.

"Luz! That was literally rule number one that the Emperor gave you. It was one of the only rules. No glyphs, you have to get rid of that." She whispered a bit, trying to make sure no one in the rooms beside them could hear.

Luz gulped. "Oh shoot, I forgot about that. I kinda..carved it in so I wouldn't have to rewrite it if the ink got smudged." She gave a weak smile, hoping that would fix things. Spoiler alert; it didn't. Amity pinched her nose bridge, trying not to spill over.

"Okay, fine, this is fine. Just..Cover it up with some paint and make sure not to activate it. Ever. Maybe someday we can get the Emperor to forgive you on this or convince Tanka to make you a new helmet. Though, she is pretty strict on her rules with her uniforms." Amity's head was spinning, and Luz could practically see the gears turning, trying to figure out what to do.

"I'll just paint over it, then maybe we could figure this out later." Luz said. Amity sighed, her hands over her cheeks. Luz put her hand on Amity's knee. "Look, I'm sorry. I promise this won't happen again," she assured.

Amity sighed again, then pat Luz on the head,. "It's okay, this is just another hiccup for us. Just don't do it again, ya here?" Luz laughed.
"Eye-eye captain." She saluted.

Sphinx meowed from the floor, looking up at Amity and Luz. "We should get out there before it gets too dark."

—

The training arena was a bit darker now that the night was looming over it. Torches were automatically lit via magic, and kept the area light enough to see. The one in the Emperor's castle is much larger and much better lit, but this would do.

Luz and Amity walked along the floor, making their way to the middle. No one was there, it was late after all, yet it felt so eerie, like something could happen at any moment. The creatures from the outside were kept away by gates and magic, but it was still odd to be outside at night in a place like this. Luz shuddered at the thought of the wall or magic shielding failing, but at least she was in a place of great magic users. Nothing to worry about, right?

Sphinx jumped off of Amity's shoulders, then created a staff to sit on, turning back into her inactive mode. Amity grabbed the staff swiftly before it could fall. "Okay, let's get to it then."

Luz stood back as Amity began with a spell circle, using her staff like a pencil in the air. The circle was the same pinkish tone that Amity's usual magic was, but seemed to emit a much stronger amount of magic from it. She focused hard, keeping it together. She struggled against it, trying to stabilize the magic, but it was a dud. The circle crumbled and fell as Amity caught her breath. "A lot harder than it looks."

"You got this!" Luz cheered her on from the side. This gave Amity a bit more strength as she raised her staff once again. The circle formed, and once again she held it for a moment. This time she closed her eyes, letting the feeling of the magic, the feeling of the staff course through her. She felt the presence of Sphinx's mind connecting to her own. A mind full of cunning grace. One of love and diligence. A strong feline who could evade any attack thrown her way, bringing it back ten fold due to her agility. Amity could feel Sphinx's mind melding with her own as her eyes shot open and the circle flew forward, destroying one of the many fighting dummies in the area. The blast sent pieces of the straw in every direction, some getting in Luz's hair. Amity straightened herself out as she heard another cheer.

"Yeah! That's what I'm talkin about! Woo!" Luz clapped, impressed by the magic she witnessed. Amity blushed, smiling, and proud of what she accomplished.

"It's still gonna take some getting used to, but I feel connected to Sphinx. It's like an extension of my own finger, you know, if the finger was cat shaped." Amity laughed.

Another round of applause was heard, but not from Luz's direction. It took both of the witches' attention over to the door of the area. The applause was slow, coming from one person alone. They emerged from the darkness of the door, showing themself.

"Oh you have got to be kidding me," Amity grit her teeth.

It was none other than the Golden Guard himself. He clapped slowly before walking closer and stopping his mockery. "So, I see the Emperor's little pets have been playing around a bit with their new toys." His voice was like that of a crackly teen. There were hints of puberty hitting his vocal chords, even if he held himself high with pride.

"What are you doing here, Hunter?" Amity spit.

Hunter stammered. "It's Golden Guard to you! Just because you're Lilith's "prized pupil" doesn't mean I have to respect you. You're still below me." He seemed to smirk under his mask.

"Then why are you here?" Luz asked, a bit snarkishly, hoping he would take his leave. She hated bullies like him on Earth, god forbid she'd have to deal with one here.

"I came to see what you two were up to, considering the last magic you dealt with burned down some precious items." Hunter gestured towards Luz. He was a snarky jerk, and Luz could feel her blood boiling over.

"Seriously, just go back to the Emperor or wherever it is you hang out. We're in the middle of something." Amity protested.

"Yeah, I saw your "something". For someone who's an apprentice of the right hand to Belos, you sure have a lot more training to do if you ever want to master that staff. I'm surprised he even gave it to you, considering you disobeyed a direct order for this human." He looked at Luz. "Speaking of which, I see you have your uniform. Shame you weren't wearing your mask, your ears are a disgrace in of itself. A human as a witch? What will they come up with next?" Hunter laughed to himself, proud of his burn. "Anyways, I do have much more important things to attend to other than watching you two trip over your own feet. Byeeee."

Before he could walk out the large door of the area, Hunter jumped to the side as a blast of pink fire hit the ground he once stood on. He turned to see Amity pointing her staff, her face laced with anger.

"Oh it's like that is it? Taking a shot at someone like me is a big mistake, Blight." Hunter summoned his staff. It seemed to be more electronic, with a mainly white build, but a red sphere in the middle. Luz looked at her own staff, seeing a bit of a resemblance. "Just a warning," Hunter took stance, "I don't play fair." His body was consumed by the same red electricity that summoned his staff, and suddenly he was gone. Amity looked around before being hit from behind suddenly. As quickly as he appeared, he was gone in a flash. He kept up his routine; zapping in and out, hitting his mark and getting out of dodge before Amity could even comprehend what was happening.

"Amity!" Luz yelled out, worried for her.

"I'm fine!" She yelled back, clearly lying. She bared her teeth, trying to focus after each hit. He wasn't hitting too hard, but it was enough to knock her off base. Luz scrambled with an idea, then looked at her staff. She clenched it in her fists, knowing what she had to do.

She focused, holding the staff vertically, gripping it tightly.

Focus. She thought. Her mind was racing, trying to quickly get ahold of her staff's power before it was too late. Luckily, Hunter wasn't too interested in her.
Hunter stopped, standing in front of Amity as she struggled to stay standing. She leaned on her staff, her legs shaking. She glared at him before trying to cast another spell. Once again, he was too fast. This time, he was just dodging.

"Let's see how fast you are with that thing." He taunted, teleporting all around the arena, letting Amity's magic get close before zapping away. His speed mixed with Amity's already injured state left her little to work with. Luz had to act fast.

She zoned out, leaving everything behind. Focusing into her staff. Trying to feel around for that soul, that bit of magic to connect to. The void was black, darker than any black she had ever seen, and it consumed the area around her, leaving only her in this empty darkness. It was her and her staff. She breathed, slowly, controlled, a specific balance overcoming it. Her grip on her staff lightened as she found this balance. A calm wave rushed over her, filling the black void. She could feel something, itching deep within the void. It swirled around her, yet she couldn't open her eyes to see it. She could feel it, feel the magic that looked at her in this black. The eyes were practically burning holes into her head. She allowed it.

Her breathing slowed again, becoming more controlled. She felt electricity entering the palms of her hands, as if her gloves weren't even there. She felt hands touch her shoulders, connecting. The void began to lighten as her staff glowed brightly in front of her. When her eyes opened, they were filled with static and anger. She thrust her staff forward, drawing a circle of yellow in the air, aiming at the evading bully.

Fire.

Luz staff emitted a wave of electrical yellow magic, thrusting forward and hitting its target. Hunter spazzed in the air, convulsing as the electricity flowed through his tiny body. He shouted painfully before falling to the ground. Amity's brows raised in shock and confusion. She turned to see Luz breathing heavily with her bright, yellow glowing staff still pointed forward. She had anger written on her face. When the glow of the staff faded, she lost her balance, falling forward to her knees in a daze.

"Luz!" Amity rushed over, trying to see what was wrong. Luz opened her eyes, but her vision was blurred a bit. She smiled.

"Now I know what you were saying about the connection." She chuckled lightly as Amity held her up.

"What was that? You actually hit him, like hit him, hit him. Are you alright? How many fingers am I holding up?" Amity held up her fingers, but Luz pushed them down.

"I'm fine, I'm fine. Just woozy. Maybe this is why humans don't do "normal" magic." Her words were a bit slurred as she struggled to keep her eyes open.

A cough and groan stole the duo's attention over to where Hunter was laying. He slowly got to his hands and knees. When he looked over, they noticed his mask was gone, laying beside him. He had rustic golden hair that swooped back and appeared to be shaved down along the sides. A single strand of hair lay in front of his face as he grit his teeth. His hooked nose bunched up in anger as he glared at them. He slowly got up, grabbing his staff for support before picking up his cracked mask. He looked into it as he shook getting up. "I guess you did learn a thing or two in this dump." He choked out. "Next time you won't be so lucky." Those were his last words as he donned his mask again and zapped away with red streaks.

"That's right! A human kicked your butt! Tell your friends Luz Noceda kicked your butt!" Luz yelled, still obviously messed up from the events. She slumped forward.

"Okay, let's get you back to the room."