I'm back! Hope you're all enjoying the story. Let's do this!

I do not own 'The Owl House.'

Chapter 4

A Man Among Witches

"So…how is this game played?" Caleb asked as he watched the witch children kick the ball back and forth.

"See those two goals?" Maggie pointed to the goals on either side of the makeshift grass field, which were both large rings on poles made from summoned vines. "One team has to get the ball through the opposing team's goal in order to score a point."

Caleb watched in fascination as one of the teenagers got the brown round ball to the opposing side and kicked it up through the goal. The kid and his team shot their arms up and cheered.

"Huh," said Caleb. "What do you call this game again?"

"It's called grudgby." said Maggie. "I used to play it all the time with my friends back when I was little."

"Why is this game called 'grugdby'?" Caleb asked.

One of the smaller girls playing the game bulled into one of the bigger boys, tossing him to the ground. With a fierce and almost feral look on her face, the witch girl drew a magic circle and the boy sank into the ground with a cry of fear.

"Because it can get very competitive," Maggie answered.

"My God," Caleb whispered. "That boy will be okay, right?"

"Oh, he'll be fine. I used to bury the boys all the time." Maggie brought her fingers to her lips and whistled. "Hey, kids! Come over here and say hello to my human friend!"

The witchlings put their game on hold and ran over to Maggie and Caleb. The boy who got buried managed to dig his way out of the ground and went with his friends as if nothing happened.

Caleb gulped and took a step back. A few of the children were obviously of demonic heritage. Some simply had a strange color of skin while others looked like they were part monster.

"Hi, Miss Clawthorne!" A girl with blue skin and white hair greeted. "This nervous guy is a human?"

"Wow, look at his ears." the boy who got buried commented. He looked regular save for his purple hair. "They're so small and round."

"Children, this is Caleb. Caleb, these are a bunch of children whose names I can't recall." Maggie said.

Caleb recomposed himself and cleared his throat. "Hello, everyone. Caleb Wittebane here."

"You're from the Human Realm? It's actually real?" A curious witch boy with three eyes and green skin asked. "What's it like?"

"Well…there's no magic, for one," Caleb replied.

"No magic?" the small but surprisingly violent girl asked. Her skin was pink and her hair was blue, making her look almost like a sprite. "But how do you do stuff?"

"Well…same way you people do stuff, I suppose. Just without any magic." Caleb said.

"Hey, you wanna be our referee?" one of the boys asked.

"Oh sure, I'd love-"

"Sorry, children, he can't." Maggie began quickly pushing Caleb away. "We've got places to go and people to see."

"But I wanted to watch them play their odd and violent witch game." Caleb protested.

"Listen, the referees hardly ever survive one of these games. And you're a soft human. You'd be dead in ten minutes." Maggie told him. "Have fun children! May the best team win! Show no mercy! Byeeeeeee!"

The children watched as Maggie led Caleb away.

"You think he'll get eaten?" one kid asked.

"Eh…probably." another kid replied. "Shame, too. He seemed really nice."

"Everything seems to be so unnecessarily violent and extreme in this world," Caleb commented as he and Maggie walked.

"No offense, but your world is hardly any different," Maggie said.

"Fair enough," Caleb's eyes became filled with excitement. "But as scary as this world is, it has so many wonders to behold! Granted, it's mostly terrifying, but not all of it. Many of the demons we've come across are about three feet tall and adorable, the locals are quite friendly, and that ride we took on that griffin was just exhilarating! I almost feel bad for eating those griffin eggs that Sam cooked up for breakfast. In my defense, it was the third attempt at finding something that actually agreed with my stomach."

Maggie chuckled at Caleb's child-like wonder. "I'm glad to see you're enjoying yourself here. I was afraid it all might be too much for you to handle."

"Because I'm a human who doesn't have magic?" Caleb asked.

"Well…yes," Maggie admitted. "Now, how about we break for dinner and see what else we can find that agrees with your digestive system?"

"Before we do that, I wanted to ask you more about magic," Caleb said.

"What about it?"

"Well…what exactly is magic to your kind?" Caleb asked. "Where does it come from?"

Maggie shrugged. "Magic is just…a part of who we are. It's our way of life."

"Your father mentioned that you witches have something called a bile sac attached to your hearts," Caleb said. "And that's where your magic comes from."

"Yeah, that's right," said Maggie. "A witch's bile sac can develop differently than others, giving them a talent for a particular style of magic, or perhaps give them less of a knack for a particular style of magic. Some get really lucky and are born with an incredibly developed bile sac, giving them enough talent to be masters of multiple forms of magic."

"Are there…different types of magic?" Caleb asked curiously.

"Well, technically, we have nine recognized types of magic. Ten if you count the basic things like summoning fire or freezing water." Maggie counted on her fingers. "There's plant magic, abomination magic, oracle magic, bard magic, illusion magic, healing magic, construction magic, potion brewing, and beast keeping."

"Intriguing," said Caleb. "So…let's just say, hypothetically, if someone with no talent at magic whatsoever were to attempt witchcraft, which of those types of magic would he or she want to attempt?"

Maggie gave Caleb an odd look. "Are you…asking me to teach you magic?"

"What? No!" Caleb replied. "Well…okay, yes. Perhaps I am. But only because I just want to understand how it all works."

"Caleb, humans cannot learn witchcraft," said Maggie. "I'm flattered you're so interested in my culture, but I'm afraid magic is quite out of your league."

"So there's no way to perform magic without a bile sac attached to my heart?" Caleb asked.

Maggie tapped her chin. "Well…I've heard stories about how witches used to perform magic using…other methods. Something about the Titan's alphabet. I don't know, it's ancient history lost to time. I'm afraid you're out of luck."

"Can't I at least try something out?" Caleb asked. "What about potion brewing? That sounds interesting."

"...I guess we could start you off with a little bit of potion brewing," said Maggie. "But, I'm not much good with potions. I prefer a more wild approach when it comes to magic." For emphasis, Maggie drew a magic circle and summoned a tree out of the ground. The tree immediately grew bright red apples and Maggie caught one as it fell from the tree, biting into the fruit. To Caleb's shock, the apple oozed out a red substance that coated Maggie's lips.

"Mmm-mmm. Blood apples." Maggie wiped what Caleb hoped wasn't actually blood off of her mouth. "Ever bleed and ferment these things? Apple blood is to die for."

Caleb gulped. "Uh, yes, well, I can't do the magic circle thing. If you're not much good with potions, then do you know someone who is?"

Maggie threw the apple core away of licked her lips and fingers clean. "Okay, fine. If you wanna learn magic that badly, then I can take you to someone who can teach you potion brewing."

"Really?" Caleb asked excitedly. "Who?"

"My little sister, Thea," Maggie said. "After she got married, she strayed from the family business and started a potion shop that became somewhat successful."

"You have a sister?" Caleb asked.

"Yeah. We don't talk much anymore." Maggie rolled her hand. "I was always traveling the isles, she never liked to stray far from home, and we really never saw much of each other save for the holidays and birthdays."

"Well then, how about we go and pay her a visit?" Caleb suggested. "You get to see your little sister, and I get to learn how to brew potions."

"Are you sure you wanna learn potions?" Maggie asked. "Bard magic is way more fun. And I don't think you'd need to know much magic to do it."

"I couldn't play a note to save my life," Caleb said.

Maggie sighed and rolled her eyes. "Okay, fine. Let's go." Woodrow flew off her shoulder and extended into a staff. Caleb got on the staff with Maggie and the two of them flew off into the air.

Maggie and Caleb landed in downtown Bonesborough on the cobblestone street. They got off the staff and Woodrow shrank back into his palisman form, flying up onto Maggie's shoulder. The witch had brought the two of them to the front of a small shop. The sign above the front door read Potions and Stuff.

Caleb looked over at Maggie.

"Thea was never the best at naming things," Maggie said.

"It's simple and to the point." Caleb offered.

"Ho-ho, Thea's gonna love you." Maggie walked ahead. "Come on."

Caleb followed Maggie as she opened the front door to the shop. A bell atop the door rang as Maggie opened the door. Caleb looked around at the shop. The shelves were all lined with bottles of all shapes and sizes filled with liquids of every color in the spectrum. The front desk was lined with a bunch of random trinkets and knick-knacks as were a few shelves around the store.

"Thea? You in here?" Maggie called.

The front desk suddenly rattled with the sound of something bumping into it hard. A second later, a young witch woman stood up from behind the desk, rubbing her head. "Ow."

Caleb blinked. The young witch woman looked so much like Maggie, but at the same time, they seemed almost completely different. They both had the same pale skin and the same rust-red hair. The younger witch's hair was a lot more messy and unkempt, though, in desperate need of a comb and a brush. She wore large, round glasses over her amethyst-purple eyes. The dress she wore was similar to Maggie's in fashion, except her dress was a lovely lapis-blue color. She was thin and a foot shorter than Maggie, obviously the little sister.

"Hey, Thea." Maggie greeted.

"Wha?" Thea adjusted her glasses and her face lit up with joy. "Maggie!" she ran around the desk and practically leaped into Maggie's arms. "It's so good to see you! How are you?! I heard you got back from the Human Realm yesterday! How was it?!"

Maggie laughed as she patted Thea's back. "Good to see you too, little sister. Haven't changed a bit, have you?"

Thea's palisman, a cute, little bluebird, flew out of Thea's hair and landed on Maggie's shoulder with Woodrow. The two palismans exchanged chirps and nuzzles before the bluebird began affectionately rubbing up against Maggie's jaw.

Maggie chuckled. "Hello to you too, Blue."

"Blue?" Caleb asked. "...It makes sense, I guess."

"Exactly! Why overcomplicate it?" Thea released Maggie and looked over at Caleb. The little sister's eyes widened. "Ooo, Maggie, is this your new sweetheart? He's a handsome one."

Caleb blushed while Maggie rolled her eyes in irritation. "No, Thea. He's just someone I brought back from the Human Realm. Meet Caleb Wittebane the human."

"He's a human?" Thea adjusted her glasses and took a closer look at Caleb. Upon seeing his ears, Thea's eyes widened in disbelief. "By the fallen Titan, he is a human. Just look at those adorable round ears."

Caleb smiled and offered the witch his hand. "Caleb Wittebane."

Thea grabbed and shook Caleb's hand. "Dorathea Clawthorne. But, please just call me Thea."

"Will do," said Caleb. "It's nice to meet you, Thea."

"Likewise." Thea released Caleb's hand and looked at her big sister. "Are you sure he isn't yours? He's a real gentleman, perfect for you." Thea blushed. "Not to say that I'm interested. I'm a married woman after all."

"How is Morgan?" Maggie asked.

"See for yourself." Thea turned around and called out, "Morgan! Maggie's here with a friend!"

A moment later, the door to the back opened up and Morgan stepped out, followed by a strange creature made of dark purple goo. The creature was only half the size of Morgan, with a gooey mouth and dark hollow eyes with green pupils.

Caleb blinked in surprise. Not at the goo creature, but at Morgan. "You're…a woman."

"My, aren't you the observant one." Morgan teased. She was tall and muscular for a woman, as if she had taken up blacksmithing at a young age. She wore a white shirt over her tan skin and black overalls tucked into brown boots. Her eyes were crimson and her hair was as black as tar. Her palisman was a brown bat that nestled comfortably in the overall's front pocket like a kangaroo's joey.

"Hey, Morgan." Maggie greeted.

"Maggie, hey!" Morgan stepped around the front desk and met Maggie with a quick but firm hug. "How's my favorite and only sister-in-law?"

"Oh, I'm fine," said Maggie. "Have you met my friend Caleb? He's from the Human Realm."

"Really now?" Morgan turned to Caleb and smiled. "A human in the Boiling Isles. How about that?" she offered Caleb her hand. "Morgan Fulstone Clawthorne. I added Thea's last name when we married. I'm the Stuff in Potions and Stuff. Thea brews the potions while I make these toys and trinkets."

"Caleb Wittebane." he greeted as he shook Morgan's hand. "Um, please forgive me if I sound rude, but you and Thea are truly married?"

"That's right. We've been married for about a little over a year now," said Morgan.

"But…you're both women."

"Yeah, so?" Morgan asked, seeming confused.

"Oh…Well…" Caleb coughed into his fist awkwardly, "See, back home, it is against my religion for those of the same sex to be romantically involved in any way."

"Seriously?" Morgan asked. "Why?"

"Um...I-it's considered sinful and unnatural," said Caleb. "If one were to engage in such an affair, they would be deemed a sinner and shunned by everybody."

"...Well, that's just ridiculous," Thea said.

"Indeed it is." Morgan walked over and pulled Thea toward her, kissing her tenderly. The smaller woman's face lit up with a blush as Morgan pulled away from the kiss. "No one's gonna tell I'm not allowed to do that."

"Morgan." the embarrassed Thea whined. "Not in front of my sister."

"Nah, don't mind me," said Maggie. "I've walked in on worse, we all know that."

Caleb stared for a minute, then he chuckled. "I must admit, the two of you seem quite happy together."

"And you seem like a good match for Maggie," said Morgan. "How long have the two of you been together?"

"We're not together." Maggie and Caleb said instantly and simultaneously.

Morgan raised an eyebrow and looked over Thea, who just shrugged as if baffled herself.

"Uh, say, what is that gooey thing behind you?" Caleb asked Morgan.

"It's an abomination."

"Yes, it looks quite gross, but what do you call it?"

Morgan rolled her eyes. "Freakin' tourists. Abominations are magical golems created by witches talented in abomination magic. The goo can be used for all kinds of purposes, but most famously, we use it to create these things to perform various tasks." Morgan raised a hand towards the abomination. "This is Coby. Say hi, Coby."

"Hhhhhhhhhiiiiiiiiiii," Coby gargled.

Caleb leaned away. "Uh…charmed."

"Listen, Thea," Maggie said. "I'm here because Caleb wants to learn how to brew potions, and I recommended you as an instructor."

Thea's eyes widened. "Really?"

Caleb shrugged. "As a human, I can't do any other kind of magic. Maggie said you could teach me about potion brewing.

"Hmmmmm." Thea rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "...I've never taught anybody before."

"I'm eager to learn," said Caleb.

"Well…okay, I guess," Thea said. "Follow me to the back. I can show you the basics of potion brewing."

"Wonderful!" Caleb said. Thea's palisman flew back into her hair and she led Caleb into the back.

Once the two of them were gone, Maggie walked up to Morgan. "Hey, now that we're alone, a need to ask a favor."

"Sure, whaddya need?" Morgan asked.

"Here's the short version: Caleb…sort of saved my life in the Human Realm, which is why I brought him and his brother here before they could be killed by their own people. When I used the portal to send them both to the Demon Realm, Caleb left this behind in his house."

Maggie reached into her hair and pulled out Caleb's ship in a bottle.

"Ooo, a bottled ship." Morgan marveled. "Now there's an idea."

"I was able to swipe this from Caleb's home before I went through the portal myself," Maggie explained. "It looked like he put a lot of effort into this thing."

"I'll say." Morgan took the ship in a bottle and examined it with admiration. "A bit of a crafter, isn't he?" She read the name of the ship out loud. "Golden Guard. Catchy. I like the figurehead."

"I wanted to do something nice for him, to thank him properly," said Maggie.

"Just sleep with him, then. It worked for me with your sister."

"Gonna ignore that. I want you to magic this thing up. Make it look really nice." said Maggie.

Morgan stared at the bottled ship in thought. "Hmm…Yeah, yeah. A little illusion magic, a little abomination magic…" Morgan smiled and nodded. "I'll take it to the storage room while Thea's teaching Caleb in the back. I should have it done by the time they're finished."

"That's perfect," said Maggie. "You're not gonna charge me for this, are you?"

"Nah, don't worry about it." Maggie turned around and headed for the storage room to get started. "Anything for a girl in love."

"I'm not in love!" Maggie shouted after her.

"Riiiiiight."

Maggie groaned in irritation and crossed her arms. She looked over at Coby, who just stood in place and stared at her.

"So...any weekend plans?" Maggie asked.

"Doooooooooon't geeeeeeeeet daaaaaaaaaays oooooooooooff." said the abomination.

"Oh...that stinks."

"Yyyyyyyeaaaaaaah."

(several hours later)

"Okay, so with the gremlin spittle added along with the gnome beard hair, what would you say we need to add next?" Thea asked.

Caleb looked into the bubbling cauldron of purple liquid. "Well, taking into account the amount of grossness of the previous two ingredients, still can't believe that's an actual factor to take into account, we'd need something more…savory, in order to balance the recipe."

"Because the balance of ingredients is essential to potion brewing." Thea recited once more.

"That fire bee honey you mentioned should do the trick," said Caleb. "Not only should it balance with the effects of the other ingredients, but it would also give the potion the kick it needs to be effective."

"Correct." Thea went over to one of the many shelves and grabbed a jar filled with fiery honey. "Although, we need to be careful not to add too much honey. As far as potion ingredients go, fire bee honey is pretty potent stuff."

Caleb chuckled almost childishly as Thea scooped a little bit of honey into the large cauldron. "I must say, this is a lot of fun. Brewing magic potions with a witch. What would they say back home?" Caleb then frowned. "They would...probably say 'hang him' or 'burn him' or 'behead him'. Then they would carry out whatever they decided on."

"And I must say, you are picking up on potion brewing surprisingly well," Thea said as the potion emitted a healthy glow. "I am greatly impressed at what a quick study you are."

"Oh, why, thank you," Caleb said. "I can't cast spells or shoot flames from my fingertips, but I can at least brew a mean potion."

Thea grabbed the big ladle and handed it to Caleb, who began stirring the potion. "I am curious, Caleb. Why are you, a human, so eager to learn our crafts?"

"Well," Caleb said as he stirred. "I must admit to the embarrassment of this confession, but I've been feeling rather helpless during my time on the Boiling Isles. I wanted to learn something that could give me at least a single bearing in this world. Potions just seemed like the easiest magic a human can do. Eh, no offense to your profession, of course."

"Oh, none was taken." Thea sighed as she stared into the bubbling liquid. "Growing up, I never had the magical talent Maggie had. In fact, I was a bit of a late bloomer with my magic. Even when my magic did start to develop, it was never anything impressive. Save for potion brewing, though. It's the one thing I've ever really been good at."

"Nothing to be ashamed of," said Caleb. "You seem to be really good at this. I'm not terribly familiar with the potion brewing profession, but you're obviously talented."

Thea blushed and adjusted her glasses. "Thank you. But still, I know how it is to feel helpless. Even with my love and talent for potion brewing, I was still one of the smaller kids on the playground, who couldn't perform magic very well. Before I met Morgan, it was always Maggie who stood up for me and had my back."

"You're Maggie's little sister. She was doing her job as the older sibling," said Caleb. "I have a little brother, I know how it is."

Thea walked over to pick up a box of glass bottles. "So, how did you and Maggie meet?"

Caleb ceased his stirring and grabbed some bottles. "Well, when Maggie started stealing from my hometown,"

"Of course,"

"the people managed to find her and hunt her down," Caleb explained as he began filling the bottles with the potion. "They then bound and imprisoned her and would have tortured and killed her if I hadn't set her free."

Thea gasped in shock and dropped the bottle she had into the cauldron. "By the Titan, I…I had no idea."

"Yes, well, my town ended up turning on me for saving Maggie. My brother killed one of our town leaders to give me a head start. Before they could get me and my brother, Maggie used that portal of hers to bring us into the Demon Realm."

"You saved Maggie's life," Thea stated in awe.

"And she saved mine in return," said Caleb. "All that's left is to wait a while before we can sneak back into our own world. I'm not sure how long that's gonna take."

"My word," Thea said. "No wonder Maggie's taken such a shine to you."

Caleb blushed. "Eh…so, your, uh, wife is a crafter, yes?" he asked. "You know, I'm a bit of a crafter myself. My brother and I used to whittle when we were little, and I recently finished putting together a ship inside of a bottle."

"You don't say?" Thea stared at Caleb and tapped her chin. "...Would you happen to be looking for work?"

Caleb blinked. "Pardon?"

"You can brew potions and you can craft?" Thea asked. "Morgan and I could use your help around here."

"You're offering me a job?" Caleb asked.

"I wouldn't be able to pay you a whole lot, but it would be a simple job." Thea offered. "Help me brew the potions, help Morgan craft the knick-knacks and bric-a-brac, maybe sweep the floors and clean the windows every now and then."

Caleb starred off in thought. "I…suppose it would be wise to come into possession of some of this country's form of currency. But, why would you be willing to hire me?"

"You saved my sister's life," Thea said. "As far as I'm concerned, that makes you family."

Caleb blinked in surprise, then he smiled. "I'm honored."

Thea smiled back and returned to filling the bottles with potion. "And for what it's worth, I think you're a great match for Maggie. She needs a kind gentleman like you."

Caleb blushed and almost dropped a bottle into the cauldron. "I…have no idea what you mean."

Thea chuckled. "Titan's teeth, I remember being utterly in denial about it too." She grabbed a box of corks off the shelve. "Push the cork all the way in and twist clockwise ninety degrees."

Maggie stuffed the finished ship in a bottle back into her hair. "Thanks again for this, Morgan."

"Hey, anytime," Morgan replied. "I hope Caleb likes it. He seems like a really great guy."

Maggie smiled and shrugged. "Yeah, he is."

Morgan grinned at her sister-in-law. "Call me crazy, but I get the distinct feeling that I'm gonna be calling that guy my brother-in-law someday."

Maggie made an irritated noise in her throat. "I'll definitely call you crazy."

"He's good for you, Maggie," Morgan said. "And you obviously like him."

"It hardly matters whether or not I do," said Maggie. "Caleb's going to go back home after enough time has passed for things to calm down there."

"Maybe he will," said Morgan. "Unless, of course, you give him a reason to stay."

Maggie's eyes widened. "...I-"

The door to the back opened up and Caleb and Thea came back.

"It's official: Caleb has a gift for potion brewing," Thea announced. "I even offered him a job here."

"And I accepted!" Caleb exclaimed. "Because what else do I have going on?"

"Really?" Maggie asked. "Good for you, Caleb!"

"Yes, your sister and I brewed a very impressive batch of…" Caleb frowned. "Uh…what were we brewing again?"

"Stool softener," Thea replied.

"...Oh… Well, that's disappointing…and gross."

Maggie looked up at the clock on the wall. "Hey, Caleb, let's get going. There's more I wanted to show you before the day's end."

"Alright, then," Caleb said.

Maggie walked up and hugged her little sister. "See you later, sister."

Thea returned the hug. "Stop by more often. I miss you all the time."

"Bye, Morgan," Maggie said. "Take care of this adorable runt for me."

"Can do," said Morgan.

"It was nice meeting you both," said Caleb.

"Likewise," said Thea. "You start work tomorrow morning. Don't be late."

"Yes, ma'am," Caleb said as he followed Maggie out of the shop.

Morgan walked up and placed an arm over Thea. "You know those two are gonna end up sleeping together."

"I'm just glad she finally found such a nice man," said Thea. "I wonder if he's met a mother yet. That'll be the real test."

Morgan shuddered. "Please don't remind me."

"Incredible." Caleb breathed as he watch the sun set over the ocean.

"It is, isn't it?" Maggie asked. The two of them sat together on a blanket on the sandy beach. The ocean waves crashed onto the shore in a steady rhythm.

"This world might be downright scary, with its magic teenagers, beasts that keep trying to eat me, goo-men, and food that tries to fight its way back up my throat and choke me to death," Caleb held up a candied worm on a stick.

"Well, what the hex do you expect me to do?" the candied worm demanded. "News flash: no one wants to be eaten."

The candied worm let out a cry of agony as Maggie took the stick from Caleb and swallowed it whole.

"But all in all, it's not so bad." Caleb continued. "It's quite…extraordinary, really."

Maggie tossed the stick aside and looked down at the sand. "It's gonna be a shame when you decide to leave."

"Leave? Oh, right, when I decide to leave, right. When things calm down back home." Caleb pulled on his collar. "It's, uh, getting a little warm isn't it?"

"Oh, that's just the heat emitting from the Boiling Sea." Maggie raised a hand toward the ocean.

Caleb stared out into the sea and saw the steam rising from each wave that hit the shore. "Oh, so that's why it's called the Boiling Sea. I thought it was just a clever name."

Overhead, a dark cloud rumbled with thunder.

"Oh, no. It's about to rain," said Maggie.

"That should cool things down," Caleb said as he raised a hand into the air to catch the rain.

A raindrop landed on Caleb's hand and burned like a mother fairy.

"OW!" Caleb reeled his hand back.

"Yeah, the rain boils too. Hold on." Maggie made a magic circle and traced an arc over the two of them. The sand rose over Maggie and Caleb until a lean-to of sand protected them from the boiling rain, which poured down around them, leaving a puff of steam wherever the drops of rain landed.

"Boiling rain?" Caleb asked.

Maggie made another circle and created a sand lounge chair for the two of them. They both rested back against the side-by-side chairs and listened to the rain and waves. "We also have gorenadoes, shale hail, painbows that turn you inside out," said Maggie. "I'll admit, I very much preferred and enjoyed the weather in the Human Realm."

"Jesus wept, you don't have weather, you have plagues." Caleb rubbed his rain-burned palm.

"Here, let me." Maggie took Caleb's hand in her own and traced a magic circle over his palm. A moment later, the burn mark vanished.

"Thank you," said Caleb.

The two of them held hands and stared into each other's eyes for a little longer than necessary.

Caleb broke eye contact first and took his hand back to cough awkwardly into his fist.

Maggie bit her lip and looked away. "Uh…I…got you a present. And by that, I mean I stole something from your house and am now returning it." She reached into her hair and pulled out Caleb's ship in a bottle.

"The Golden Guard," Caleb exclaimed happily. He took the bottled ship and looked through the glass. His eyes widened in wonder as he saw what had been done to it.

The Golden Guard was now sailing in place, floating in the seawater inside of the corked-shut bottle. It was surprisingly realistic, like watching a ship sail through a spyglass. There was even a tiny crew manning the vessel. Miniature sailors swabbing the deck or carrying barrels or pulling lines. There was one tiny sailor up in the crow's nest, looking around with his spyglass. They all moved at a repetitive pace, following the same patterns of movements and actions over and over again.

Caleb looked at the captain at the helm, dressed as a decorated sailing commander, hat and all. The miniature man at the helm seemed to resemble Caleb.

"God in Heaven." Caleb marveled. "How did…?"

"I had Morgan enhance it while you were learning potions with Thea," Maggie said. "So, do you like it?"

"I love it!" said Caleb. "Thank you, Maggie! But, you didn't have to do this for me."

"Yes, I did," Maggie said. "I need to confess something to you."

She looked out into the rain and the sea. "When I was caught and imprisoned back in the Human Realm…there was never a time in my life where I have been more terrified. I was terrified of being tortured and killed, and even more terrified of what might happen to the people I care about if I gave up how to get to them."

Caleb placed a hand on Maggie's shoulder. "That's nothing to be ashamed of. I would have been shaking with fear. Perhaps even soiled myself."

"I'm not used to being afraid like that," Maggie said. "I'm used to getting into any kind of trouble I want and then getting out of it with maybe a slap on my wrist and a scolding from my parents. But getting caught and almost killed as I did? That was…utterly horrifying."

Caleb looked at Maggie's forlorn face, who wouldn't look him in the eyes. Gently, he reached up and placed two fingers on the side of her chin, tilting Maggie's head so she would meet his gaze.

"...I know what fear is," Caleb said. "I also know what bravery is. It's being smart enough to be afraid, and being strong enough to beat it."

Caleb smiled supportively. "Margaret Clawthorne. You are, without a doubt, the most incredible woman I have ever met. I know we barely know each other, but I believe you to be a proud and vain stoic, brave enough to overcome the worst of trials."

Maggie stared into Caleb's eyes, magenta meeting livid. She closed her eyes as Caleb carefully cupped her cheek in his hand.

Maggie smiled. She then took Caleb's ship in a bottle from him and turned around to lean back against his chest. Caleb blushed, but smiled at the gesture, leaning back against the sand chair with Maggie leaning back against him. The two of them sat together under the protection of the sand lean-to. Maggie admired the bottled ship in her hands as she rested herself against Caleb, who was able to see over Maggie's large hair. Woodrow flew out of her hair and landed on top of Caleb's head. The woodpecker moved Caleb's hair around as if rearranging a nest before comfortably tucking his wings and falling into a nap.

Maggie watched as the ship in the bottle sailed in place. "I like the figurehead you made," she commented, looking at the gold, spear-wielding warrior. "That mask he's wearing is quite neat."

Caleb sighed. "When Philip and I were little, we used to carve masks out of wood in our pastime," he said. "Philip's favorite mask was this antlered, deer-skull mask I made for him, while I always wore a mask like the one the figurehead is wearing. The one Philip made for me."

Caleb closed his eyes. "Carving masks was considered to be…witchy, so we only did it when no one else was around. And even when we were done carving, most of the masks went into the fire. We stopped making those masks entirely after mother died, and father's temper grew even more ill and ugly."

Maggie frowned and blinked. "Your…mother?"

Caleb nodded sadly. "She was a kind woman, and a kind mother. My father was the leader of the Witch Hunters, and a cruel and selfish man. But he loved mother. He even let her read in her past time and do other things that would consider her a witch."

"What happened?" Maggie asked softly.

"One day, mother got sick. Very sick. Something the doctor had never even seen before. She was dead in a week, and the town blamed it on witchcraft," Caleb continued. "Mother's death was hard and Philip and I, and it turned father into more of a monster than a man. We began to dread father's return home and enjoy the late nights he spent away from home."

Caleb stared out into the rain and sea. "Father took witch-hunting incredibly seriously. Especially after mother's death. There was this one man who came into town, Gerard Fontaine, who was accused of dabbling in the worst kind of dark magic. Father was hell-bent on catching him, but Fontaine was a crafty trickster, who didn't care who got hurt. Father chased him into the woods, where Fontaine had laid out a trap for him and the other Hunters. Father and two other Witch Hunters were killed, and Gerard Fontaine made off like a bandit, never to be seen again."

Caleb and Maggie remained silent for a few minutes, just listening to the sound of the waves and the rain.

"...Do you…ever miss your father?" Maggie asked.

"Never," Caleb said. "But, I miss mother with all my heart. I wish I could better remember her face. Every year it gets harder and harder to remember what she looked like. I just know that I have her hair color and the same tooth gap she had. But her face…that's harder to remember."

Maggie turned on her side and got comfy against Caleb. Caleb blushed as Maggie pressed against him. Soon after, Maggie went to sleep on Caleb's chest.

Caleb eventually managed to fall asleep with the witch and the woodpecker on him, the sound of the rain hitting the sand lean-to and the waves crashing onto the shore and the feel of Maggie's body against his put him out light a light.

With Caleb asleep, Maggie reopened her eyes and raised her head. She tilted Caleb's head to its side and pulled a pair of odd-looking tweezers out of her hair.

"Hold still, Caleb," Maggie whispered as she hovered the tweezers over Caleb's ear. "Let's see those memories."

So, yeah, I got the idea for the ship in a bottle from Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales. I thought it would be cool. Anyway, a really tender Caleb and Maggie moment. Hope you liked Thea and Morgan's introductions.

Until next time!