7
Lilith, dressed in a set of Eda's pajamas, was curled into a tight ball on the couch, a blanket draped over her and a pillow tucked under her head, the following morning. Eda's couch wasn't necessarily uncomfortable, but it was truly no bed. She groaned quietly, her muscles stiff from her awkward positioning all night. The witch pushed herself up into a sitting position, her back pressing against the ornate armrest on the couch. She blinked slowly, her vision a bit blurry from sleeping, and focused on the witch sleeping at the other end of the couch.
Amity lay curled in a small ball, not unlike Lilith had been, with her arms wrapped around her legs. She was wearing what looked like a set of Luz's pajamas and shivering slightly likely cold. Lilith sat up, uncovering herself and gently draping the blanket over Amity. She had no memory of the girl coming down the night before, but part of her was unsurprised that she did. After such an emotional evening, it made sense to the witch that the girl was seeking a sense of security and familiarity.
"Morning," Eda walked in, dressed in a soft plum-colored sweatshirt and a cotton skirt. Her pink, fuzzy bunny slippers padded softly against the rug as she began drawing all of the curtains back. She turned to face her sister, eyeing the child sleeping at the other end of the couch. "How'd you sleep?"
"I slept well, I suppose," Lilith followed Eda's gaze, also feeling unsure about Amity. "How about you, sister?"
"I slept well," Eda shrugged and then tilted her head toward Amity. "What about that one?"
"I don't actually know," Lilith's brow furrowed and she chewed on her lip. She reached a hand out to place it on Amity's lower leg above the blanket. "I don't remember waking up to her coming down. She has nightmares though."
"Aw, just like you!" Eda pointed and snickered before stepping into the kitchen to begin brewing tea for the two of them.
Lilith stood from the couch, wrapping the cardigan Eda loaned her to sleep in more tightly around her midsection and stuffing her hands in the pockets as she followed her sister. As strange as it was being in the owl house, Lilith felt at ease around Eda. Despite all of their years of drama and discourse, they knew each other inside and out. She didn't have to perform or withhold around her sister in the way she had to with nearly everyone else in the Boiling Isles.
She watched as Eda moved around the kitchen with grace. Eda's long, white hair was pulled back into a messy ponytail. It had been over a decade since the witches spent much quality time together, so Eda looked much older. It was clear to Lilith, who hadn't aged quite as visibly, that the curse was really affecting her sister. Still, Eda was as brilliant and warm as always. Her features had a new softness to them, her eyes twinkling and a small smile almost constantly playing at her lips. She was happy.
"What're you staring at, huh?" Eda asked then, startling Lilith, who had stood leaning against the counter with a curious expression.
"I apologize," the older witch flushed lightly. "It's just…I suppose I was admiring how happy you are."
"Huh?" Eda's expression read somewhere between confused and grossed out by Lilith's observation.
"I have always observed and admired your independence," Lilith continued. "I know you can fend for yourself. However, I have found myself worrying for you. Especially after everything with R-"
"Ah! Bup bup!" Eda put her hands up, silencing Lilith. "Look, I get it. You worried I'd get lonely and all that. You don't have to bring them up. I'm fine. I'm happy. I've got my kid and my house and my Hooty."
"I can see that," Lilith sighed. "I'm glad I can see that is all."
The sound of rustling in the other room pulled Lilith from the conversation. She stepped away, a fresh cup of tea from Eda in hand, leaving the younger witch to get started on breakfast. When she walked into the living room, she found Amity sitting up with the blanket wrapped tightly around her. The girl somehow appeared even smaller. Lilith's heart sank to her stomach when she realized Amity's expression was that of someone who had seen something horrendous. The older witch walked to her in quick strides, crouching down to Amity's eye level and placing her tea on the end table beside the couch.
"Amity, dearest," she held out her hands, and one of Amity's small ones poked out of the blanket to take them. Lilith placed her second hand on top of it, giving them a good squeeze. "Did you have a nightmare? Are you okay?"
Amity shook her head.
"I'm sorry, I cannot tell if that was in response to the nightmare question or if you're not okay," Lilith's brow pinched together.
"I am scared," Amity answered, her voice a bit squeaky. "What have I done? They're going to kill me, Lilith."
"No one will hurt you," Lilith shook her head, moving around to sit next to Amity. She removed her right hand from the girl's grasp, leaving her left to hold Amity's hand, and wrapped it around Amity's blanket-covered shoulders. "I will not let anyone hurt you. I will not leave you until we have answers and I can ensure you're safe."
Amity leaned to her side then, leaning into Lilith's warm shoulder. Lilith squeezed her tighter, watching softly as Amity fidgeted with Lilith's fingers. Lilith had hoped to set aside something more official when she asked Amity to become her official apprentice. However, at that moment, she realized time was of the essence and that it was a conversation they needed to have time to fully process before Lilith spoke to Headmaster Bump the following day. She needed to know Amity was truly on board.
"Amity, there's something I need to speak to you about," Lilith began and noticed the way Amity froze under her arm. The girl was completely rigid, already fearing the worst. Lilith squeezed her again, moving to gently rub Amity's upper arm. "It's not bad…I don't think. I wanted to talk to you and ask you something."
"You're not mad at me?" Amity whispered, looking up at Lilith.
"Not in the slightest," Lilith shook her head. "Quite the opposite, as a matter of fact."
The older witch pulled away a bit, moving to tuck her legs underneath herself and face the girl beside her. Amity mimicked her movements, scooting so that she was still wrapped in a small ball but facing Lilith. The older of the two witches reached out to take Amity's hands into hers again, this time holding each one separately. She took a slow deep breath, looking into the girl's thoughtful expression.
Eda had offered Lilith many reassurances, but Lilith still feared the girl wouldn't want to continue working with her. Lilith knew that she would be able to respect Amity's wishes. As much as she enjoyed Amity's company, Amity's safety and well-being came first and foremost. This is why she was asking early, instead of waiting for the more appropriate time frame. She needed to ensure Amity was safe and taken care of.
"Amity, I want you to know this is something I planned on asking you before everything I learned this week," Lilith spoke slowly, careful to not say anything damaging. "As you know, when I first began working at Hexside, I really wasn't sure whether this was going to be a good fit for me.
"When I met you, on that very first day in August, I was a bit blindsided by the connection I felt. I didn't expect it and I didn't understand it," Lilith smiled almost sheepishly. Amity stared at her with wide eyes, a bit confused and a bit delighted. She loved when Lilith opened up. It made her feel warm inside. "You have more potential than any young witch I have crossed paths with as Head Covenness and you have exceeded my expectations in your role as my apprentice."
"Lilith?" Amity squeaked again but Lilith held up one hand, silently asking the girl to wait a moment.
"I want you to know now that I will always show up for you in whatever way you need me. Whether or not you accept my proposal, if you need me as a professor, you have me. If you need me as a mentor, you have me. If you need me as a protector, you have me. If you need me as a friend, you have me," Lilith continued. "If you determine you do not need me…I will respect your wishes and needs."
"I would never!" Amity gasped and Lilith cracked a small smile.
"Amity Octavia Blight," Lilith offered Amity a wider smile then, unable to contain her nervousness. "I would like to formally request your presence and scholarship as my pledged and certified apprentice."
"You're asking me to be your apprentice? Now ?" Amity's eyes were wide and her jaw had slackened. Lilith's heart fluttered aggressively in her chest, like a bird trapped in a cage. She had feared the girl would be startled or upset by the proposal, especially given her most recent experiences. Amity was incredibly vulnerable. "Like…certified and pledged?"
Lilith pursed her lips, nodding very slowly.
Amity pulled her hands away and placed them in her lap, her eyes cast downward. She appeared to have stepped back into her own thoughts. When she squeezed her eyes shut and clenched her fists, Lilith's throat tightened. She realized she must have said the wrong thing. It was most likely that she had scared the girl or offended her. Not only was it very early, but it was also so shortly following a traumatic event.
"I mean it very genuinely when I say I will not be disappointed should you deny me," Lilith swallowed, unable to relieve the lump in her throat. "You will always be safe with me. I was hoping-"
"Lilith!" Amity looked into Lilith's wide eyes, several tears escaping hers as she spoke up and interrupted the witch. "I would love to be your apprentice. I just…at this point I was expecting you to send me away ."
"I would never," Lilith shook her head, her phrasing mimicking Amity's earlier.
"You want to become my…legal guardian?" Amity tilted her head to the side and Lilith nodded.
"Yes. This is why I am asking early," she elaborated. "I planned to ask you in the spring…in a more formal setting. However, if we can get Headmaster Bump's approval, I believe we can start the paperwork early. If things evolve as planned, I would take legal responsibility for you, and you would be free to leave Blight Manor if you wish."
"You're doing all of this for me?" Amity asked then.
"Selfishly, not entirely," Lilith's cheeks burned and Amity looked confused. "I am…I am also doing it for myself. I enjoy your company and teaching you. I have always felt as though there was a gap in my life…that is, until I met you. I want you to be safe and well, and I want to be your mentor."
Amity didn't wait another second before lunging into her professor's arms. Lilith held her tightly, noticing the way Amity's hands clutched the back of her clothing. While they still had to receive approval, this was one step forward for both of them. Amity sniffled, her face tucked into the crook of Lilith's neck, and Lilith began rocking her, gently stroking the back of her head. It had been a very long week, but this moment felt slow in a pleasant way.
When the two finally separated, a sniffle behind them caught their attention. Lilith's head whipped around to find Eda and Luz standing by the stairs. Eda had tears running down her cheeks and Luz's sleepy brown eyes were shimmering as well. Lilith offered them a small wave, acknowledging their eavesdropping, and Luz sprinted over to her.
"Oh, Aunt Lilith!" Luz wrapped her arms around the older witch, startling her. Luz had begun calling her 'Aunt Lilith' on the very first day, but the words felt even more meaningful now. "This is the best day ever! Amity is going to be the best apprentice."
"I know, sweet Luz," Lilith hugged the girl back, offering Amity, who was now pink in the cheeks, a small wink.
"Congrats Lily," Eda smiled at her sister before walking over to open her arms for Amity. "And to you, Amity."
"Thanks, Eda," Amity's face was very red now, her social anxiety manifesting under her fair skin. She stepped away from Eda, who kept a hand on her shoulder for a moment before pulling it back to herself.
"Alright, kids," Eda dusted her hands off on her skirt before placing them on her hips. "We have griffin egg omelets ready in the kitchen. You two need to wash up and eat, okay?"
"Yes ma'am!" Luz saluted her mentor before taking Amity's hand and leading her up the stairs.
"You didn't tell me you were gonna ask her now !" Eda laughed, sitting down in Amity's place and holding her hand out for her sister to take. "I would have put on nicer slippers."
"Please," Lilith chuckled. "It was time. I wanted her to know that I am not going to turn away from her or leave. I am all in and committed to figuring this out."
—
Later that afternoon, Lilith sat with her legs pulled to her chest and her chin on her knees, watching quietly as Amity and Luz worked on homework together at the kitchen table. Eda glided into the room, graceful as always, before plopping onto the couch directly next to her sister. She followed Lilith's gaze to the two girls, and flashed her fang at Lilith.
"You see it too, yeah?"
"What?" Lilith blinked, returning from the mild stupor she'd been lost in.
"Look at 'em," Eda nodded towards the girls again.
Amity was helping Luz with a potions question. She was sitting on top of her legs in the chair, one hand on Luz's shoulder, the other gripping the pencil she used to point at various parts of the problem. Luz's expression was full of awe and curiosity, her eyes locked on Amity, not the homework. The interaction was very tender and witnessing it thawed something in Lilith's heart.
"Luz has a crush on Amity?" Lilith whispered so quietly she worried Eda wouldn't hear her. She didn't want the girls to know they were speculating.
"Duh," Eda cackled, leaning back into the couch then, placing her feet on the coffee table and her hands behind her head. "Your kid and my kid are going to make the most epic couple once one of them spills the beans."
Lilith looked back at the girls then, smiling widely. Knowing everything Amity had disclosed to her about her sexuality, seeing Luz reciprocate the crush was heart-warming. It was extra special knowing that it was Edalyn's daughter. She trusted Eda more than anyone else in the Boiling Isles. Amity appeared a bit oblivious to Luz's affection, but the thought of them taking things slow comforted Lilith. Amity was going through so much all at once.
The older witch turned her head to look at her younger sister again. She was a bit jealous of the ease Eda seemed to experience when claiming Amity was Lilith's kid. The witch had only known the girl for a few months. As much as the deep maternal instinct to protect and love her had enveloped Lilith, she knew better than to allow it to overwhelm the child. There was something about their connection that Lilith couldn't place, and it appeared Amity felt it too.
"Where'd ya go?" Eda sat up straighter then, one eyebrow raising.
"Oh…I was thinking," Lilith shook her head. "You called Amity my kid again."
"She is your kid, sis," Eda shrugged. "I get it. When Luz appeared in my life I felt really…unsure. I took her with me that day because I let my curiosity get the best of me. She stayed over and told me what was going on at home. They were sending her away to a camp of some kind. She hadn't been eating and wasn't taken care of. We agreed she could stay with me for the duration of the camp time, seeing as her family didn't know she'd even taken off.
"It didn't take very long for me to realize I didn't want to send her back. I just felt…I don't know…like she was mine. I never pressured her. I let her make the choice. She asked me to be my apprentice, actually." Eda chuckled then. "I, of course, accepted and she became mine rather quickly. It all happened so fast…but I just knew. I trusted that gut feeling."
"I just fear I'm not doing the right thing," Lilith whispered. "My connection to the Emperor's Coven puts her in so much additional danger, Edalyn."
"You think being a wild witch who took in a human is much safer?" Eda scoffed. "It seems, sometimes, there is no perfectly safe option. I'll never be able to protect Luz from everything that's out there. The difference is that I'm choosing to try and I'm going to love her fiercely in the process. Her human parents didn't do that for her."
"Do you believe Bump will be supportive?" Lilith whispered, soaking up Eda's story of how she and Luz connected. She wanted to know everything that happened to Eda from the moment she was recruited. So much had been missed between them.
"Who do you think signed off on my apprenticeship?" Eda snorted and Lilith's eyes widened. "Lil, Bumpy loves his kids. He said he'd sign her into my care, as far as the Boiling Isles is concerned, so long as I enrolled her…and cleaned up a few messes of my own. He insisted she needed structure and extra support. He wasn't wrong."
"Wow," Lilith nodded slowly. She knew Headmaster Bump was incredibly generous and thoughtful when it came to students. The headmaster during her own teen years, Headmaster Faust, couldn't have been more opposite. It was a relief for her to hear all of this. "I am…relieved."
"I'm telling you," Eda reached out to place a warm hand on Lilith's forearm. "He will want to protect her. You have to be vulnerable though. I know it's hard for you…but you have to."
"Hard for me?"
"Yeah, I mean, you don't exactly like to open up, Lily." Eda rolled her eyes. "Not that anyone could blame you. Indoctrinated into the harshest coven on the Isles as a teenager, forced to commit heinous crimes on behalf of a tyrant, and seriously physically and emotionally abused despite your willingness to serve him. You haven't been allowed to open up."
"I don't know what to say," Lilith whispered.
"Then don't say anything," Eda smiled warmly. "I just want you to think about it, okay?"
The witches spent the rest of that Sunday helping the girls with their assignments, eating snacks, and catching up on their years apart. Lilith returned home to retrieve fresh clothing, deciding to stay another night. As much as she knew she probably should return home, she knew she would be too anxious to leave Amity. They agreed she would leave earlier than the others in the morning, and meet Amity at school when Eda dropped Luz off. They discussed their plans over dinner. The nerves were alive and well in Lilith's gut again, but she was growing more and more ready for the Monday ahead.
