Chapter 25, Part 2; Eda's Requiem:

It was a typical day at the Owl House as Eda was looking over a to-do list.

"Okay. Luz needs a new coat. King needs to be checked for fleas. Kai needs a haircut. Am I missing anything?" she mumbled to herself.

Eda looked in the mirror and chuckled.

"Ah. You've changed, Owl Lady," she said.

Eda grabbed a picture that was taped to the mirror. It was from after Kai had defeated Grom. Luz was holding the camera as she smiled, King had climbed on top of Kai's head as the red haired boy had his arm around Eda, giving the camera his signature boxy grin. Eda smiled.

"It's worth it," she said.

"Ninety-four, ninety-five," Luz's voice said from outside.

Eda walked to the window and opened it to see Kai doing push ups with Luz and King on his back.

" Ninety-six, ninety-seven, ninety-eight, ninety-nine and one hundred!" Luz cheered.

She and King climbed off Kai's back as the older boy stood up and wiped his brow.

"Okay, King. What's the first thing you're gonna do when you meet your dad?" Luz asked.

"Well, once Kai's done training, I'm gonna move out of that closet, that's for sure. Then I'm gonna ugly cry. Hard! What about you, Kai?" King asked.

"To be honest, I'm gonna punch him," Kai answered.

"Violent but fair," King said.

Luz turned to King.

"Have you told Eda about your decision to le-"

Kai covered Luz's mouth.

"Shh!" King said.

The sound of a window being closed caught their attention and they looked up.

"That was weird," Kai mumbled.

Inside the house, Eda had ducked down so the three kids couldn't see them.

"I-I'm not ready yet. I'm not sure how she'll react, " King said from outside.

Eda sighed as she walked to her vanity.

"Everyone's leaving, huh? Even King," she said as she grabbed the grom picture.

Eda bent down in front of a chest that rested beside her desk.

"I guess I'm no substitute for the real thing," she said.

She opened the chest and was about to put the picture inside when she saw a mandolin sitting in the corner of the chest. Eda placed the picture in her hair as she grabbed the instrument and stood up.

"Huh, nothing like a good distraction," she said.

Eda started playing an old tune she remembered from a long time ago. As she played, the room was surrounded by magic as her belongings floated in the air, making Eda gasp.

"Has my magic returned?" she asked herself.

Some black particles covered a floating boot before the music stopped and everything fell to the ground.

"Huh. Guess not. Stupid Curse," Eda grumbled as she threw the mandolin in the chest.

Unbeknownst to her, one of her potted plants was covered in black blotches as it withered away.


With the others:

Kai, Luz and King stood atop of a cliff's edge. Luz was holding a stopwatch as Kai held Blaze tightly and King was settled in his school bag.

"Ready…Set…GO!" Luz said, starting the stopwatch.

Kai jumped down from the cliff into a nosedive. Blaze's eyes glowed red before opening his wings and gliding above the water. Kai swerved past multiple pointy rocks.

"Kai, heads up!" King shouted.

Kai looked to where he pointed and saw a medium sized hole in one of the rocks. He smirked before standing up on his staff and jumped over the rock as Blaze flew through the hole. Kai landed back on his staff, riding it like a skateboard.

"WOOOHOOOO!" Kai cheered as he flew higher into the sky.


Back with Eda:

The Owl lady was sitting on the couch looking through a book as she twirled the sparkly pen through her hair and her scroll played a live news recording.

"And we're back live at the emperor's castle," a female news reporter said.

Eda lifted her head.

"Hmm?" she asked.

"In light of Scooter Crane's retirement, today's ceremony will confirm Raine Whispers as the next head of the Bard Coven," the reporter said.

"Do I have to be on camera?" Raine asked.

The abomination head, known as Darius groaned.

"For Titan's sake, just say something," he said.

Raine gulped before they turned around, pulling their hood down to show that they were a young witch who looked to be Eda's age. They had medium brown skin, mint green hair with white streaks on the bottom, darker mint green eyebrows and green eyes.

"Um…I am honored to work with Emperor Belos in preparation for the Day of Uni-bee," they said.

Raine blushed when they realized they made a mistake.

"I mean Uni-ly! I mean-Uh…Oh no. This is going all wrong," they said, running a hand through their hair.

"Uh! I've gotta go! Thanks again for this opportunity Emperor Belos!"

And with that, Raine ran off the stage. Darius face palmed.

"Cut the feed,' he grumbled.

The footage paused as Eda shook her head.

"How are you supposed to be Head Bard with stage fright?" she asked herself, chuckling.

The door opened as the three kids walked with Kai holding his backpack that was filled with something.

"Sorry, Kai," King said, holding his stomach.

"It's okay, buddy. Oi, Aunt Eda, got another backpack I can borrow? This one has some chunks in it," Kai said, holding the bag at arm's length.

"Closet," his aunt answered.

Kai quickly ran off to throw the puke bag away and grab a new bag.

"So, why are you suddenly so interested in flying? Did you and Luz give up on returning to the human realm? I mean, I suppose you can stay here a little longer," Eda said.

"Oh, no. We're still going home. We just had some minor setbacks," Luz said.


Flashback:

Kai bent down beside her bed with a carrot in hand as she tried to coax the Echo Mouse out.

"Come on, little buddy. You got portal info that we need. You want a carrot? Does baby like carrots?" he asked.

The Echo Mouse shook in slight fear before slowly crawling out from under the bed.

"There we go. It's okay. See? You're safe here," Luz said as the mouse climbed into Kai's lap.

Though just as she said that, Hooty came in and ate the mouse in one gulp!
"Fear not, children! Hooty, the guardian owl of Ga'Hoot, has protected you once more! Ga'Hoot!" Hooty declared.

Kai growled as he pulled his dagger out.

"I'M GOING TO MAKE YOU INTO OWL SOUP!" he shouted, leaping at Hooty.

The sound of landing blows were heard as Luz rubbed her temples.


End of Flashback:

"We managed to get the mouse back safely but he needs to recover," Luz said as Kai walked back into the living room.

"In the meantime, this weekend is the Gland Prix!" King declared as he held up a poster to Eda.

"Hexside, Glandus and St. Epiderm students race to win glory, honor and-" Kai said before getting cut off.

"Fame! Winners also get an interview with the Boiling Isles News! Do you know what this means?!" King exclaimed.

"Kai's gonna enter the competition and get King on camera to send a message to his Dad!" Luz exclaimed.

Eda gave a forced smile.

"Oh. That's…great," she said.

King rubbed his neck.

"But, uh..there's something I'd like to talk to you about first. You see, I think it's time for me to le-" King tried to say before getting cut off.

"Leave…the talkin' for later. If you wanna win there's no time for talk. You gotta go practice. Now," Eda said.

Kai looked at his aunt with narrowed eyes but couldn't say anything as Luz wrapped an arm around his shoulder.

"We should head back out while King's tummy is empty," Luz suggested.

"Yeah!" King cheered.

The two younger kids ran out of the house. Kai followed behind them before stopping to look at Eda.

"Hey, are you okay?" he asked.

Eda looked at him.

"Me? Psh! Yeah, never been better," she lied.

Kai lowered his eyebrows.

"You know you can say something if you're not feeling okay," he said.

Eda gave him a smile.

"Nephew, I'm fine. Seriously," she said.

Kai sighed and nodded.

"Okay…just let me know when you're ready to talk," he said as he followed King and Luz.

Eda sighed.


At Grimgrub's Pub:

Eda was sitting at the counter with her head resting on the counter top and a box of apple blood beside her.

"I just don't wanna hear him say it, ya know? I was finally getting used to being an aunt and having people in the house, then woosh! Rug's getting pulled from underneath me," she said.

The bartender hummed in disinterest.

"Sure. I get it. It's like every time you come in here, I think, maybe she'll pay her tab this time," he said.

Eda gave him a glare as she took a sip of her apple blood.

"Hey! Get your hands off me!" a voice said.

Eda turned to see a demon hunter getting hauled away by some coven guards.

"Don't fret, citizens! We are helping this wild witch find her place in society," one of them said.

The demon hunter struggled against their grip.

"No! I don't want to join a coven! Let me go!" she cried as she was dragged away.

Eda growled as she crushed her juice box and stood up.

"Put it on my tab, Kevin!" she said as she stormed out of the pub.

"Hey, jackasses! Let her go!" she said.

The two guards turned to her.

"Get Lost, Owl Lady," the first one said.

"No coven wants a powerless witch," the second one said.

He grunted as he was punched in the face.

"How's that for powerless?" Eda said, smirking.

The guard growled and drew a spell circle. Eda closed her eyes. Before the guard could fire a spell, the sound of a string being plucked was heard and it canceled out the guard's spell.

"Huh?" he asked.

Everyone turned to see four witches standing on the giant Belos statue. They started playing an enchanting tune as everything around was covered in magic and floated off the guard. The witches stopped playing as the leader jumped down from the statue.

"Look at the emperor's lackeys trying to uh…Do I really have to say this?" they asked one of their partners.

"We all agreed on the script!" one of them said.

The leader groaned before standing up straighter.

"Trying to mute the music of our hearts! And weaken magic by forcing witches and covens against their will!" They said.

'By the titan that was corny,' they said in their head.

Eda narrowed her eyes as she recognized that voice.

"Blasphemy!" the first guard said.

"Blasph-you!" the leader shot back.

"See? You're a natural," the shortest one said.

"That's right, Bonesborough," the leader said.

They plucked another string and made the two guards fall to their knees.

"They take your magic," the leader said as they plucked another string.

The two guards stood up.

"They restrict your knowledge," the leader said, plucking another string.

The guards were then forced to march in place. The leader stepped forward.

"They say they do it in the name of "unity", but what they really want is control!" They declared.

They held up their villain and started playing, making the guards march away.

"Shove Off!" they said.

After the guards were gone, Tiny Nose ran up to them.

"Who are you hewoes?" she asked.

"We are the Bards Against the Throne, aka…" The leader began before getting cut off.

"Surrounded!" a guard said as he put on ear muffs.

Soon, the quartet were surrounded by numerous coven guards.

"Psst!" a voice whispered.

They looked down to see Eda in a manhole, motioning for them to come down. One of the members grabbed a smoke bomb and threw it down, making red smoke go throughout the area. Soon, Eda and the BATTS made their way through the sewers.

"End of the line, folks," Eda said as she stepped out.

She helped the other three climb down.

"Word of advice. Next time you put on a performance like that, make sure you have an exit strategy," Eda said.

"Thank you. How can we ever repay you?" the taller one of the three asked.

Eda scratched her chin.

"Well…you can let me join your little team," she said.

The other three members gasped.

"Hey, I may not have magic, but I am an agent of chaos," Eda said.

The leader jumped down.

"Sorry. We're not accepting new members," they said.

Eda scoffed.

"Is that any way to treat an old friend, Raine Whispers?" she asked, pulling their mask off.

Raine huffed and turned to glare at her slightly. Eda smirked as she folded her arms.

"So, the Head Witch of the Bard Coven likes pretending to be a rebel. Too bad they're not very good at it," she said.

"Eda! You're embarrassing me in front of my crew," Raine whined, blushing.

"Huh?" their friends asked.

Raine turned to them, placing a hand on Eda's shoulder, who blushed at the contact.

"Hey, it's all right, everyone. The Owl Lady is an old friend," they said.

The other members took their masks off.

"Nice to see you again," Katya said.

"Is she going to join our group?" Derwin asked.

Amber huffed and folded her arms.

"She doesn't seem like a good fit to me," she said.

Raine chuckled.

"Actually, she's one of the people who inspired me to make the group," they said, surprising Eda.

"Huh?" she asked.

Raine rubbed the back of their head.

"It was a while ago," they said.


Flashback:

"Raine…I know why you're really here," a young Eda said.

She and Raine were sitting on a hill surrounded by flowers. Raine looked away from her.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," they said.

Eda snorted.

"Uh-huh," she said.

"Who cares about a stupid performance?" Raine asked as they rested their head on their knee, looking at Eda with a soft expression.

"This is more fun," they said.

Eda snorted.

"Sure," she said as she held her mandolin.

Raine chuckled when they noticed Eda had her finger placements wrong and reached over to help.

"See? You'd be a mess without me," they said.

The two witches made eye contact. Raine clears their throat as they look away. Eda smiled and held her mandolin up.

"Okay, "Raine's Rhapsody"," she said.

She started playing a soft tune as the area around them was surrounded with magic and the flowers floated in the sky.

"You know, you can't run from your fears forever, which is why you've gotta get the jump on them. Give 'em a whack right in the face," Eda said.


Back to the present:

"I thought you were just joking around. I only learned what it meant when I started teaching for the Bard Coven. The emperor prioritized recruitment through force and anyone who refused to fall in line disappeared. And I wasn't going to let that fly, so I took matters into my own hands. I carefully moved up the ranks and I found people who wanted to change things, like me," Raine said as they smiled at their friends.

They turned back to Eda.

"And that's when we formed the Bards Against the Throne, aka.."

"The BATTS!" the three younger witches announced.

Footsteps were heard from above.

"We've gotta get out of here!" Eda whispered.

Raine nodded as they motioned for the other members to get moving. They climbed up a pile of rocks before turning to Eda and held their hand out.

"If you've got nothing to lose, we could use the help," Raine said.

Eda blushed slightly before smiling and taking their hand.


Back with Kai, Luz and King:

Kai was hanging from a tree branch as he did pull ups. King was beside him as Hooty helped him. Once he got to 68, Kai jumped down and pulled his shirt up to wipe his forehead. Luz handed him a water bottle.

"Okay boys. The Gland Prix is the day after tomorrow. Are you ready?" Luz asked.

Kai nodded as King jumped down from the tree branch.

"I've got the jitters. And I still haven't been able to talk to Eda," he said.

Kai rubbed his skull.

"Don't worry, Aunt Eda has just been busy this week," he said.

Hooty popped up beside them.

"You've always got Uncle Hooty's shoulder to lean on," he said, getting into King's face.

King pushed him away.

"You don't even have shoulders!" he exclaimed, running off.

"Lean on me!" Hooty said, chasing after him.

Kai shook his head as Eda walked out of the house. He ran towards her.

"Hey, Aunt Eda, King's still waiting to talk to you," he said.

Eda nodded and sped walked.

"Maybe later," she said.

Kai blinked.

"Uh…okay. Maybe at the Gland Prix," he said.

Eda sighed and gave him a thumbs up.

"I'll be there. I promise," she said as she walked away.


At the BATTs' hideout:

Eda placed a map down on the table.

"Well, there you have it. Homemade maps of every nook and cranny in the city," she said.

Raine placed their hands on the table.

"Okay. Here's the situation. Emperor Belos wants every wild witch in a coven before the Day of Unity," they said.

"He's trying to steal as much magic as possible. We don't know why," Derwin said.

"Right now, we're just focused on helping those he's captured and the raids take place, here, here and here," Raine said, pointing to three spots on the map.

"Wait, at the same time? How are we going to do that?" Katya asked.

Eda smirked.

"Don't worry, kids. Mama's got a plan," she said.

"You're not our mom," Amber said.


Strategy #1:

"As the first team is rounding up witches on Hackson Road. Amber will sneak in and take 'em out,"

"Fine,"

Amber is shown hiding in an alleyway as she played her flute to make the coven guards fall asleep.


Strategy #2:

"Before anyone calls for help, Derwin and Katya will distract the second by Skinford Avenue,"

"That we can do,"

Derwin and Katya are then shown dancing atop of a bridge as they play their instruments before running off with the coven guards behind them.


Strategy #3:

"Wait, what about the captain?"

"That's when Raine comes in,"

Raine is shown using their bard magic to tie the captain up. They pulled their mask up and gave Eda a thumbs up.

"As long as I don't have to make anymore speeches,"

"And if everything goes well, I'll be guiding the escapees outside Bonesborough,"

Eda opened the back of the cart and helped the wild witches out.

"Belos has less reach outside the city,"

Amber, Katya and Derwin are shown helping the wild witches escape through the sewer system as Raine and Eda watch from the bridge. They made eye contact before blushing and looking away from each other.


Later, the team walked back to their hideout.

"Man, I can't believe it's already morning," Eda said, yawning.

"I'm not tired yet!" Amber said.

"Amber, you've gotta calm down," Katya said as she carried Derwin on her back.

The others chuckled as they walked inside the hideout.

"We did it! Eda, you're amazing!" Amber cheered.

Katya walked in from behind her.

"We actually helped people this time," she said.

Raine laid down on a pillow as they yawned.

"Rainstorm," Eda said, walking towards them.

Raine chuckled as they opened one eye.

"Wow, I haven't heard that nickname in a while," they said.

"You've gotten so strong. It's incredible," Eda said as she leaned against the table.

"But how did you become Head Bard with your stage fright?" she asked.

Raine gave her a smirk.

"I'm just that good," they said, smug.

Eda rolled her eyes before gaining a sad look.

"How have you been doing with the whole…ya know?" she asked.

Raine sighed.

"With Kendrick disappearing? It's been hard but I'm getting through it. What about you?" they asked.

Eda sighed.

"13 years and I'm still having trouble processing it," she said, sadly.

Raine decided to change the subject.

"Anyway. You still know any Bard spells?" they asked.

"Well, you remember the curse. It messes with my magic," Eda said.

Raine drew a spell circle and summoned Eda's mandolin. Eda caught it and looked at Raine with a surprised look.

"How did you become the Owl Lady with your stage fright?" they asked with a smirk on their face.

Eda blushed before smiling.

"All right. You asked for this," she said.

She began playing a soft tune. Raine watched as everything in the room floated off the ground. Soon, everything around turned gray as the papers were covered in black blotches before Eda stopped playing. Raine stood up and looked at Eda. The Owl Lady laughed slightly.

""Raine's Rhapsody?" More like "Eda's Requiem," am I right?" Eda jokes.

She handed the mandolin back to Raine.

"Ah, I'll leave the playing to the professionals. Call me if you need anything," Eda said as she walked out of the hide out.

"Bye, Mama Eda!" Amber said.

Raine placed the mandolin down as they looked at the withered away paper on the table.


The Next Day at the Gland Prix:

Everyone in the Isles were gathered outside as Kai, Luz and King stood at the starting line. Kai, dressed in his grudgby uniform, was stretching when he saw Eda walking towards them.

"Aunt Eda!" Kai exclaimed.

Eda smiled as Kai and Luz hugged her.

"You made it," Luz said.

King walked up to her as he held Blaze.

"I, uh, would really like to tell you something before the race starts," he said.

Eda bent down to his level.

"Well, if it's so important, we can talk about it after the race…when you win, okay?" she asked.

King sighed.

"Uh, yeah, yeah. Okay," he said.

Up onstage, Gus and his dad walked towards a giant magic orb.

"Welcome everyone to the Gland Prix!" Perry announced as Gus made an illusion appear in the magic orb of a Gland Prix flag.

The crowd cheered.

"Contestants will fly down the right arm to the Cubital Valley. They use speed, cunning and magic to race to the checkpoint and back to the finish line! Winners get their names etched on the cup of Ephemeral Glory and an on-camera interview seen by everyone watching across the Isles!" Perry said.

Luz ruffled King's skull. King climbed into Kai's backpack as Kai mounted Blaze.

"On your marks…Get set," Perry said.

"AGGHHH!" the trophy screamed.

And with that, the racers took off. Eda was sitting in the stands when she felt her crow phone ringing. She reached into her hair and answered it.

"Raine?" she asked.

"We got a tip about another raid. I know you're busy but…" Raine said.

Eda looked at the map of where the racers were and shook her head.

"No, it's fine. I'm on my way," she said.


Later:

The BATTS were in the woods as they approached a broken stone bridge. Amber, Katya and Derwin grunted as they jumped across to the other side. Raine stopped walking.

"This should be the spot," they said as they summoned their violin.

Raine played a chord. A sound wave went through the forest. The group waited but nothing happened.

"Something isn't right," Raine said.

Suddenly, Katya, Derwin and Amber were trapped in purple abomination goo. Raine grabbed Eda's hand and they hid behind a wall as Darius and Eberwolf arrived.

"Looks like we missed a few," Darius said.

"Oh no. It's Darius and Eberwolf," Raine said.

Eda gained a worried look.

"And that means…" she said.

Raine sighed.

"We fell for their trap," they said.


Back with Kai and King:

The other racers were zooming through the Isles with a student from St. Epiderm was in the lead. Kai suddenly appeared beside him, startling the student as he flew off course.

"Ha-ha! Take that Stank Epiderm!" King taunted.

Kai flew towards beside a student from Glandus as they raced to the checkpoint. The hybrid boy smirked and blasted wind from the bottom of his shoes, giving him a speed boost.

"Kai! Kai! Slow down! We're going to crash!" King screamed as he covered his eyes.

Kai pulled out a plant glyph he had borrowed from Luz and smacked it onto the checkpoint and used it to fling himself. King screamed and held on tightly to Kai as they flew past the other students. Watching from the screen, Luz cheered as Principal Bump smirked at the other principals.


Back with Eda and Raine:

Darius made a face of disgust as he held his cloak.

"This place is disgusting. Figure out which one's the turncloak so we can leave," he said.

Eberwolf sniffed the three witches before turning to Darius and shook his head. Darius sighed.

"Just my luck," he said.

Darius snapped his fingers and the three witches were brought to the conformatorium. Raine and Eda gasped.

"I was scheduled for some me-time today, so hand yourself over before things get nasty," he called.

Eda and Raine hid behind a rock. Darius groaned.

" I know they can hear me. I know you can hear me!" he shouted.

He sighed before turning to Eberwolf.

"Eber, help me out here," Darius said.

Eberwolf made a spell circle onto his forehead. He opened his eyes as they glowed orange and looked around the area. Eberwolf then saw footprints leading deeper into the forest.

"I am not going in there," Darius said.

He grunted as Eberwolf jumped on his head and ran into the forest.

"You'll regret that, mutt," he said as turned into abomination goop and chased after him.

Up in a tree, Eda and Raine released the breaths they were holding as they reappeared. Eda chuckled as Raine held her in their arms.

"I am so glad I remember how to do that," she said as she held up the invisibility glyph.

They jumped down from the tree as they landed in mud.

"Ew. gross," Eda said.

"Eda, Belos's plans are a lot more dangerous than I let on. He's preparing some big spell for the Day of Unity but he can't do it without every head witch. If we can take out Darius and Eberwolf…" Raine said.

Eda shook her head.

"Say no more, Rainstorm. What's the plan?" she asked.

She jumped in surprise as her mandolin was dropped into her hands.

"You say your curse messes with magic. I think I can make that work in our favor," Raine said.

Back with Eberwolf and Darius, the two head witches were still following the tracks when Eberwolf spotted a pair of boots. Darius smirked.

"It seems our traitor is a clever little songbird," he said.

The boots turned around and kicked mud into Darius' face. The abomination head growled and Eberwolf stepped back as Darius summoned abomination spikes and tore the boots up. He marched back to the bridge, undoubtedly pissed.

All right! No more playing around!" he screamed as he turned into his abomination form.

Eberwolf growled as he grew fangs and claws. He made a spell circle and summoned a mouse worm as he left to look for the traitor. Behind some pillars, Eda and Raine peeked out to see Eberwolf run past them. Eda turned back but ended up making eye contact with Raine. Eda blushed and quickly looked away as Raine rubbed their neck before summoning their instruments. They handed the mandolin to Eda who took it. Raine began playing their violin as magic surrounded the area in a soft orange glow. Eda looked at Raine who gave her a smile and a nod. She took a breath and started playing. Objects around them floated off the ground as they kept playing. Eda's gem glowed as the forest was then surrounded by black magic. The black magic seemed to have reached Eberwolf and Darius as it covered the two coven heads. Eda smiled.

"It's working. Keep Playing," Eda said.

Raine looked down to see the black magic crawling up their feet.

"Look. We may not make it out ourselves," they said.

Eda looked at them.

"But it'll stop the emperor right?" Eda asked.

Raine nodded.

"Then we play on," Eda said as she turned away.

As she did, the photo of her, Kai, Luz and King in her hair slipped out. Raine's eyes widened as the picture fell to the ground and stopped playing.

"Eda? Do you have kids?" they asked.

Eda stopped playing in shock.

"Uh, they're not "mine" mine. One of them is Ken's son but it doesn't matter. They have real families to return to," she said as she turned away.

Raine gained a remorseful look and drew a spell circle to take Eda's mandolin away and stop the spell. Eda looked at them confused.

"I don't know what you're running from, but a great witch once told me something about punching fears in the face?" they said uncertainty.

They shook their head as they smiled at Eda.

"Look, what I'm trying to say is don't give up so easily," Raine said.

They handed the picture to her.

"They probably need you more than you think," they said.

Raine looked at the picture and smiled at the redheaded boy who looked exactly like their old friend.

"Especially the redhead. You're his aunt and he's going to need someone to look after him," they said, helping Eda up.

Eda smiled at them.

"We can find another way to stop Belos, together," Raine said.

The two witches screamed as they were grabbed by Darius.

"Found you songbird," Darius smirked.

Eda grunted as she grabbed a tree branch and held on tighlty to Raine's hand. Raine gave her a smile. Eda noticed and tears filled her eyes.

"Raine. Don't," she said.

"Go. You know I can't stand an audience," They said.

They let go of Eda's hand. Raine summoned their violin and used it to get free as they landed on their feet.

"Hello, Darius, Eber," Raine said.

"Raine Whispers. You'll regret what you did to my cloak!" Darius growled.

Eberwolf growled at him.

"And your treachery. Whatever," Darius said.

He then grew bigger as Raine stood there ready to fight. Eda climbed down from the tree. She felt tears in her eyes and ran off to the Gland Prix. Eda stopped running and wiped her eyes as she ran towards Luz. Luz smiled at her as they both watched Kai race against a student from Glandus.

"Kailin of Hexside and Ulka of Glandus are barreling towards the finish line!" Perry announced.

Kai crossed the finish line as the camera went off.

"And there you have it! Kai over Ulka!" he announced.

Eda and Luz cheered.

"For 5th place,".

Eda blinked in confusion.

"Huh?' she asked.

"Hey, Aunt Eda," Kai said as he and King walked towards them.

Eda turned to him.

"You were flying like the dang wind. What happened?" she asked.

Kai rubbed his neck.

"We were winning for a while but King got airsickness and vomited causing us to crash," he said.

King sighed.

"It's okay. I'll just throw my message in the trash where it belongs," he said.

Eda shook her head.

"No. This isn't over ," she said, pulling out her scroll.


Later:

Kai was holding the scroll as he recorded King.

"Eda, who's even gonna watch this?" King asked.

"No one watches crsytal balls anymore. It's all about streaming," Eda answered.

King sighed.

"All right," he said.

Kai zoomed the camera in closer as King cleared his throat.

"Hi, Dad. If you're out there watching this, I, uh, wanna introduce myself. I like cheesy foods and conquering kingdoms. Though I haven't conquered any of my own yet. But maybe you have and we can compare notes. I'd love to meet ya. We could do parent-kid stuff. Toss a ball, burn some ccookies, catch me going on weird websites or something. Also, I found this symbol in the tower I hatched in. Maybe you can teach me to read it. I live with my favorite human, a butt kicking hybrid and a cranky old witch," King said.

"Hey!" Eda said.

"But cranky or not, she's the one who raised me. Which is why I am legally changing my name to King Clawthorne! Surprise, Eda! Now we're connected for life, and there's nothing you can do about it!" King announced.

Eda's eyes widened in shock as she took the papers.

"That's what you wanted to tell me this whole time?" she asked.

Luz handed her a pencil.

"And if you sign here. It'll be official," she said.

Eda took the pencil and felt tears in her eyes. Kai stopped the recording and ran to pick King up in a hug.

"Haha! Welcome to the family, bud!" he said.

King smiled as Kai placed him on his feet.

"I guess that makes us cousins, right?" he asked.

Kai nodded and yelped when Eda suddenly pulled him and King into a hug. The hybrid boy blinked as he hugged his aunt back.

"Aunt Eda, are you okay?" he asked.

Eda nodded as she pulled back from the hug, wiping her eyes.

"Yeah! I'm fine. Just really happy," she said.

Kai smiled as Luz jumped on his back.

"I think this calls for a family picture!" she said.

The quartet grouped together as Kai pulled his phone out and held it out.

"Everyone say "Cheese!" " he exclaimed.

"Cheese!" they all said as Kai took the picture with a bright flash.

The flash disappeared as it showed the quartet smiling brightly.