Happy Thanksgiving to everyone in the United States. I hope you had a wonderful meal.
"I win, I win, I win again!" The shadow person crowed. They were celebrating that their toy trompo had outlasted Luz's. "This is the best game you taught me yet!"
"I'm glad that you enjoy it," Luz said kindly. It was a week since the saturnalia and she still found herself being dragged to this destination every night. She presumed the reason Eda's potions weren't working was that the shadow person didn't want them to.
Lilith was still researching to try to identify the shadow person. She had eliminated several suspects from the list of who this person was. That narrowed down the list a little bit.
Luz hoped the shadow person would slip up and reveal their name at some point. That would make it easier for her to interact with this person. They might even tell her about Belos's mysterious friend The Collector.
"It's been nice playing with you. I really need to wake up. There's something I have to do today."
The shadow person lamented. "Why do you have to go every morning? I'm way more fun than anyone in the real world." They rolled their eyes when they saw Luz narrow her eyes.
"What's so important about this man anyways?" The shadow person asked. The teenager looked at them in confusion. Gleefully, the shadow person extended their fingers into Luz's right ear.
The teenager shivered as they pulled out a memory and blew it up. It was a picture of Luz when she was very little with her mom and a man. A single tear fell to the ground.
It wasn't a tear of sadness, no it was one of anger. "HOW DARE YOU!" Luz screamed. Her astral body started glowing the nine coven colors. She thrust her hands forward and a multicolor beam struck the shadow person.
They were not expecting that and were astounded as they were sent clear to the other side of the In-between dimension. Two more beams struck the shadow until they were lying flat on the ground.
Luz materialized in front of them. She was still faintly glowing as she stared the shadow down. "My memories are private and not forms of amusement! Never go through them again! Am I being clear?"
The shadow person nodded. They were not going to unleash big sister's rage again. Instead, they promised never to do that again.
Luz smiled in satisfaction. The glow around her body faded. Closing her eyes, she willed herself back to the waking world.
Waking up in her bedroom, Luz took a look at her phone. Her heart started aching as she saw the reminder. Today was the anniversary of her father's death.
The teenager started crying. Ever since her dad died, she had tried everything to make her mom happy. It's why she had tried to be like other kids at school so her mom wouldn't worry.
Luz opened up her photo app. She selected one and looked at it. It was a photo of a photo. The photo showed a two-year-old Luz and her mom getting flowers from her dad.
Her two-year-old self was holding a big sunflower. It brought a smile to her face seeing her younger self wrangling the big flower with her mom's help.
She swiped to the right and a new picture filled her screen. It was the day they moved into their new house. Even though her father was sick, he still smiled as he held her six-year-old self in his arms.
A quick swipe and the next photo popped up. This one was taken on her seventh birthday. It had been taken a month before her father died. The photo showed her about to open her dad's present.
Luz started to sob as she recalled what had happened seconds after the photo had been taken. Her father had collapsed and then been rushed to the hospital. A month later he was gone.
She hugged herself tightly as she tried to hold back her sobs. Her father's gift was the first book in the Azura series. He was the one who inspired her to become a witch.
"What would you think of now, Dad? Would you be proud of me or disappointed with what I've become?" Wiping a few tears away, she put the phone away so she could get ready for the day.
Ten minutes later Luz was walking down the stairs and tripped on something. As she fell, she slapped a glyph on her body. She hovered over the last step before getting her feet on the ground.
Hearing the commotion, Eda came running out of the kitchen. "I thought I heard something crash." The Owl Lady looked around to see what had caused the noise.
"I nearly did, if it wasn't for my safety hover glyph," Luz replied. She showed Eda who was fascinated by a new glyph. "Dang girl, when did you discover this one?"
"The other day when King dropped Francois, I caught him with magic. As I collected it, the magic left an imprint in my palm. I thought you could use it when the bat babies get stuck to the ceiling and you have to pry them down."
Eda smiled and kissed Luz's cheek. "You're a sweet kid. I'll put the safety hover to good use today. The Bat Queen wants me to take the kids on a field trip today."
Before Luz could ask where Hooty appeared in the living room. "Good morning, everyone! Luz, I have a surprise for you!" Hooty heaved and spat out a large owl pellet.
It broke apart revealing a frazzled Amity and an Abomaton dressed in the ugliest clothes imaginable.
"Hooty! Stop eating Luz's girlfriend! Blight, get that ugly thing out of my living room."
Luz helped Amity up. Saying thanks, Amity told the Abomaton to stand in the corner. "Ugh, I wish I wasn't stuck with that thing. I hoped Hooty would digest it, but no luck there."
"Why do you even have an Abomaton with you?" Luz questioned.
Amity launched into the story of how she wanted to compete in the Bonesborough Brawl. She described how her dad won it back before he began working at the factory.
"I've always wanted to compete. Earn that belt and show my dad that there's more in me than he thinks. Instead, he wants to make sure I go to coven tryouts. I don't want to be in the Emperor's Coven anymore."
Luz was glad to hear that. "So, what do you want to do?"
Amity clarified that her siblings were going to use concealment stones to disguise her so she could compete. But she still had no idea what to do with her escort.
"Why don't you give it an impossible task so it won't be around to take you to coven tryouts? I'm sure you can think of something to outwit your dad," Luz suggested, her voice shaking at the word dad.
Amity heard Luz's voice tremble yet didn't inquire because she was focused on her dilemma. She asked if there was anything in the woods that was nearly impossible to get.
"Hold up there, Blight. What if your escort brought back something from the woods that could only be found in Bat Queen's territory? That Abomaton would be able to guide your dad to the secret entrance to Bat Queen's kingdom."
It went unsaid that the Blights would give that information to the Emperor for more power. Amity didn't want to put her girlfriend in danger.
King, who had been listening in the kitchen, ran into the living room. "Oh, I know something that would work! Make it look for Titan's blood on the Knee! Lilith's friend Steve told her they didn't find any there."
Amity grinned and did a spell circle to change her voice so she sounded like her dad, Alador. "Abomaton, I need you to do something for me before escorting Amity. Go to the Knee and find me a small amount of Titan's blood." She placed a small tube in the Abomaton's hands.
The creature gurgled and then left the house. "I can't believe I'm getting to compete in the Brawl! I wish you could come to cheer me on, Luz."
Eda said she would be there. The field trip was to watch the Brawl from a safe distance. Bat Queen wanted her babies to learn how to defend themselves. What better way to learn than an all-out fight between witches and demons?
Luz was thrilled to hear this. Watching Amity fight would be a great distraction from brooding about today's anniversary. "I'll pack some snacks!"
An hour later, the little family and three babies were sitting in a roofed tree stand near the fighting arena. The babies were munching on book pages as Eda adjusted the massive crystal ball.
Luz asked why they needed the crystal ball if they were close enough to see the fighting. Her foster mother replied that it was to help the babies focus since their attention span was short.
"Additionally, we'll be able to zoom in and get better audio. We're close enough to watch the big attacks, not the small ones. Also, with us being way up here we can't hear as well."
"Will you hurry up already, Eda? The fighting going to start any minute! Francois needs to pay attention if he's going to protect us from the Emperor's Coven," King stated anxiously to his adoptive mom.
A few seconds later, the adjustments were done and the Brawl started. Amity, or Mighty Mittens vs Skath the All-Knowing. An oracle vs abomination creator.
"Go Amity! I know you can do it!" Luz shouted.
The brawl began. Skath vaulted in the air and blasted spiritual energy at Amity. The girl blocked the attack with her abomination. Changing it back into goo she whirled it behind the Skath.
The oracle landed in the fighting arena. He only had a second to notice something behind him when he got pummeled into the stage. Amity pumped her fist and waved to her siblings.
Whoa, Amity is good at this. Maybe she can win the competition, Luz thought to herself. She glanced at the babies. Their eyes were wide open as they watched the next brawl.
A potion master had tied several bottles together and flung them at their opponent. The brawler used plant magic to wrap a thorny barrier around themselves.
It turned out to be a mistake. The potion bottles broke apart, the contents seeping into the thorns. Several plants started popping up before spitting sticky glue on the brawler. Unable to move the potion master took the brawler out with one hit.
"That's why you shouldn't underestimate potion masters," Eda said smugly. "Potions are more than just mixing stuff. It's about surprising the enemy."
The next few brawls were intense. An illusionist defeated a construction witch by making it appear that her opponent had lost his construction material.
It was shocking to see a healer take out a beast keeper by making their rat worm vomit.
Amity was up again. Her opponent was a bard who was using a triangle that created sonic blasts. The first attack pushed the teenager almost off the stage.
Luckily, her abomination grabbed her dress and pulled her back. The teenager separated the monster's arms and used them to create earmuffs and a shield. She pushed through the sonic attacks.
The bard switched out instruments. A trombone appeared and the bard started playing it. The instrument was now making Amity wobbly on her feet.
Luz held her breath, wondering how her girlfriend would win this one. She didn't need to worry. Amity turned her shield into a goo ball and sent it straight through the horn.
The bard started gagging on the goo. The musician was attempting to breathe when Amity kicked him off the stage. She wobbled a little before the emcee raised her hand.
The crowd was going wild, chanting for the next competitors to get started. The frenzies at the sports finals weren't as pumped up as this. "Is the crowd always this pumped?" Luz questioned.
Eda laughed, saying that this was pretty tamed compared to last year's competition. "They took a dozen brawlers to the healer's tent and that was just round one. Warden Wraith nearly killed his foe to get that belt."
"Isn't that a bit much?" Luz questioned.
Eda shrugged and replied, "The Boiling Isles is a dangerous place. Learning how to fight your way out of a situation is standard education."
"That's ironic because fighting is discouraged in human schools."
Twenty minutes later, they were down to the last few brawls. Luz could barely sit still. She wanted to be in the crowd cheering Amity on for the final brawl.
Eda knew what her foster daughter wanted. Giving it a little thought, she encouraged Luz to go for it. "Your girlfriend is definitely going to be facing off with Warden Wraith. Keep yourself hidden from sight and it will work out."
King agreed, asking if she could pick him up a Bonesborough Brawl souvenir. She agreed and then climbed down the tree stand. She rushed towards the arena, determined not to miss the final fight.
She arrived just in time as the emcee announced it was the final brawl. "The Mighty Mittens has shown her mastery over abominations. Will it be enough to defeat the unstoppable rage of Warden Wraith? Let the battle begin!"
Wraith attacked first as he morphed his arms into a pair of hammers. He swung them down and the arena floor. It started cracking in all directions. Amity jumped around, resolved not to get stuck in one of the cracks.
In mid-air, she twirled around as she let the abomination goo fill the cracks and make the ground sticky. Wraith managed to avoid most of the goo but his left arm got stuck in place.
Wraith spat fire at his trapped arm. The goo quickly harden and he was able to break free. He charged at Amity, who was already setting up her defense. She encased herself in the goo and hardened it to create protective armor.
Wraith turned his arms into axes as he tried to slice the armor off. Amity held her ground, punching the guy as hard as possible. Getting nowhere with his battle ax arms, the demon simply grabbed Amity and threw her across the arena.
Amity removed her armor instantly. Without the added weight she fell short of the boundary line. Wraith spat more fireballs, one of which straight through Amity, revealing her to be an abomination clone.
The audience gasped in surprise. For a teenager to pull off an advanced technique like that was impressive. The crowd and Wraith searched the arena trying to find out where the girl was.
Amity launched herself from beneath one of the cracks in the stage. She landed an uppercut on the demon's chin causing him to tilt wildly. Using the goo to increase her leg strength, she kicked the warden out of the arena winning the brawl!
Luz was jumping up and down screaming her girlfriend had won. She took a step towards Amity when she was grabbed from behind. Luz started to yell when a hand slapped tightly over her mouth.
Someone started to drag her away from the brawl. The teenager thrashed and threw back her head. Her captor dodged her and kept trying to drag her further from her girlfriend.
She also noticed they were not going deeper into the woods. Instead, they were heading in the direction of the Abomination factory. Reaching into her pocket, Luz pulled out the glyph for darkness.
Pinching the glyph, the darkness spread around Luz and her captor. She broke free and started running back the way she was dragged. Something sticky caught her foot and held her in place.
She grabbed a light spell and illuminated the area. Her captor cried out at the light spell blinded them. Whatever was holding her foot let go. She took off running again, back towards the tree stand.
Her captor came after her once more. She felt one attack coming at her and ducked. Abomination goo splattered on a trunk.
Seeing this, Luz realized she was in trouble. She needed to find Amity now! With an extra burst of speed, Luz made it to the arena. Her girlfriend and siblings were still discussing Amity's victory as Luz tore out of the forest.
"AMITY! HELP!" Luz screamed. Her girlfriend snapped to attention as she watched Luz run towards her frantically. She could just see the outline of someone still in the woods chasing the teenager.
"Protec Luz! I'll stop the pursuer!" Amity commanded.
The twins produced a large-scale illusion showing the arena was empty. Luz scrambled behind Edric as Emera stood in front of both of them.
Amity created her armor again and summoned her staff. She watched as the figure grew closer. Twirling her staff around increased the magic Ghost could release. When she had enough energy, she released it.
The blast hit the person who screamed. Not waiting for them to get back up, Amity raced in to press her attack. She raised her armored fist to punch the would-be kidnapper, only to halt. "DAD?!"
The twins heard her and were shocked as well. Amity dragged her father out of the woods and dumped him in the open. The twins broke their illusion while Luz went over to her girlfriend to hold her back.
The shabby and sheepish-looking Alador gave a crooked smile. "Mittens, I know you were angry with me for creating an escort for you. Still, you shouldn't attack me over it."
Amity pointed out he shouldn't have attempted to kidnap her girlfriend. Alador's eyes widened and asked when this happened. The lavender-haired girl threw her head back in anger.
"This is precisely the reason I ditched tryouts. You never listen to the twins or me anymore! You do whatever mom tells you to do, whether it's acting like a snobbish jerk or being an absent-minded dad!"
Alador tried to speak up only to receive a glare from his daughter that told him to shut up. Even the twins appeared to be afraid of her.
"I don't want to join the Emperor's Coven. That wasn't my dream it was Mom's. I like this color because I don't want to dye my hair green. I don't want to take extra courses to bump up my grades when they're already high enough!"
She stomped her foot as she continued her rant. "What I wanted to do today was win the Bonesborough Brawl, which I did," Amity told him as she pointed to her new accessory.
"I wanted to celebrate my victory with my girlfriend which I should be doing. Instead, I have to lecture you on how badly you've failed us, Dad."
Before Amity could continue her rant, Luz squeezed her arm. "Amity, I know you are angry at him. Hollering at your dad isn't going to fix your relationship with him. You need to converse this calmly."
Amity barked she had tried multiple times to talk to him. He never listened or did anything on his own. He had backed up her mom on every decision, even the ones that he didn't agree with because he was a coward.
"Remember that dinner party the emperor threw?" Amity asked gently. Luz swallowed her fear and nodded. "He didn't agree with mom's, "humans are inferior" attitude. He still went along with it."
Her girlfriend replied that people can change and Amity still had time to mend her relationship. She should be grateful for that. That's when Luz revealed what today meant for her.
The news shocked all the Blights. Amity was uncertain about what to do with this revelation. Should she hug her girlfriend or give her space? Maybe offer to help Luz with her ritual?
"I miss my dad terribly. It's not something I can get over. I can't talk to him about my problems. You still have that option. Don't pass up that chance."
Amity nodded and hugged Luz. Her siblings joined her making Luz feel happy despite her sadness. Amity escorted Luz back to the woods while the twins kept an eye on Alador.
"Are you going to be, alright?" Amity asked.
"I will be, sweet potato. I'm going to tell Eda and we'll do something. Congratulations, on winning the Brawl," Luz said. She kissed Amity on the cheek and jogged into the Bat Queen's territory.
Later that night, the Clawthorn sisters, King, and Bat Queen's family joined Luz for her ritual. When she explained why she had been off, Eda had comforted her. The Owl Lady asked if she wanted to do a remembrance ceremony.
Luz had asked what that was and Eda explained it was a family tradition. On the anniversary of someone's passing, they would place five colored candles in the shape of a star. Each family member lit one candle and shared a memory related to the element it represented.
It felt right to include her foster family in her ritual. Luz placed the flowers in the middle of the star. She also placed a drawing of her parents on the ground.
"I miss you, Dad. I'm always wondering if you would approve of my interests. Would you approve of Amity as my girlfriend? Would you be proud of me?"
Brushing back a few locks, she continued. "I hope that you are proud of me. I think you would like my family here. They're not normal by human standards, but I love them."
Luz took a deep breath, "Hey, Mom. I hope you're doing okay. I'm still attempting to get back to you. I wish I could have been there for you today. I'm sure it was challenging for Vee to pretend to be me today."
A tear fell down Luz's cheeks. "I hope you accept her when you learn the truth. Vee's been through a lot, and all she wants is a family to feel safe with. It would also be nice to have a sister."
"I love you, Mom. I'm going to keep working on the portal. I'll be home soon."
Standing up, the teenager went over to the first candle. It was blue, representing water. Luz held out her phone and showed everyone a picture of her as a toddler. Her dad was bathing her.
"I remember when my dad bathed me, he would always use a bubble bomb. It's a little sphere that you drop in the water to create bubbles. I loved watching him pop the bubbles."
She used her fire spell to light the candle. Bat Queen used her wings to help make the flame bigger.
The next candle was red and represented fire. Luz smiled as she recalled the family cookouts in the summer. "My mom is a good coke. My dad insisted that he man the grill when we would have a backyard cookout. He would always overcook the food. We would still eat it because it made him happy."
This time, Eda lit the candle. She hugged Luz tightly. The teenager moved on to the green candle for earth.
"My dad loved being outdoors. He would take me to the park whenever he could. We would spend hours just running around and having fun. We even did it in the rain."
Lilith helped light the candle. The former coven head gave the girl a comforting smile. Luz returned it in appreciation.
The next candle was yellow and represented the wind. Luz had a fond look in her eyes. She shared the memory of her dad helping her build a kite. It wasn't the prettiest nor did it get much height. She was just glad they made it together.
This time, Hooty lit the candle. Luz patted him on the head, thanking him for lighting the candle.
The last candle was purple and represented quintessence. The life energy that was inside everyone. This one was the one she shared her most important memory.
"As you know, I've always been considered a weirdo. I was too eccentric, even for a kindergartener. My dad picked me up from my first day at school. He knew something was wrong because I was still and quiet."
She smiled as she thought back on that day. "He took me to get ice cream despite my mom saying no sweets before dinner. We sat on a bench licking our cones."
"He waited until I was done with my cone before asking why I was sad. I told him that the kids and the teacher didn't like me much. He asked why and I repeated what the teacher said about my oddities."
Closing her eyes, Luz played the memory in her mind. How upset her dad had been to hear that. She thought he was going to take her back to school to yell at her teacher.
He didn't do that. He gave her a comforting hug before telling her something she never forgot. "He said that my oddities made me unique."
"I was as special as anyone else. That I need to be patient to find people who would see me for me."
Fresh tears fell down her face as she looked at her adoptive family. "He was right. I did find people who see the real me. I'm glad that I came here and met all of you."
She beckoned King over. Together, they lit the last candle. He gave her Francois to comfort her. Luz hugged the little guy tight before giving the toy back.
The small group watched the candles burn for an hour, enjoying the warm glow. Luz yawned and fell asleep. Eda picked her up and carried her into the house while Lilith blew the candles out.
Eda placed the teenager on top of her sleeping bag. She removed the outerwear and tucked the girl in.
She kissed Luz goodnight, the potion on her lips being absorbed through her skin.
The Owl Lady hoped that the dream person would leave Luz alone. She deserved to have a good night's sleep.
Back in the In-between dimension, The Collector was pouting. They were bored and wanted to play with someone. "I can't believe I agreed to leave her alone tonight. Now, who do I play with?"
That's when they remembered they also had the Grimwalker's hair. They rubbed their hands together as they picked the perfect game to play. The hair lit up as The Collector waited for their new playmate to go to sleep.
At the castle, Hunter was exhausted. The scouts and he had been dispensed to deal with the afterparty for all the brawlers. Many ended up intoxicated, triggering magical mayhem.
Then a fight had broken out between Wraith and the Blight kids. It had gotten worse when Alador had stepped in to protect them. A few hours in a cell should calm them down.
"I'm exhausted, Flapjack. Can you let me sleep an extra ten minutes before waking me up?"
Flapjack chirped and the two snuggled into bed. Within a few minutes, they were both slumbering peacefully.
Someone smacked Hunter's face. He shot up in bed and opened his mouth to reprime the person only to gasp. The Golden Guard wasn't in his room anymore. He knew where he was but couldn't believe it.
"Finally! I've been waiting for hours for you to fall asleep," the shadow person informed Hunter. They laughed when the boy reached for his staff and it wasn't there.
"Your birdy isn't here. I didn't want him to interrupt our first play date." The shadow zoomed over to Hunter and smacked him again. "Tag your it!"
"Wait a minute, uh ah!" The Golden Guard fell off his bed. He closed his eyes as he kept falling with no ground in sight.
He slammed into something hard. Opening his eyes, he saw that he landed on a square of cubes. He twisted himself around until he was sitting upright.
"Ha, ha, ha! You're hilarious! You truly believed I was going to let you escape our playdate? Come on, try to tag me!" the shadow person implored.
Hunter watched as hundreds of cubes came together to form moving platforms. The shadow person was standing on the farthest platform. They stuck their tongue out and made hooting noises at the teenager.
Hunter judged the distance between the platforms. He also timed the movements. Memorizing the pattern, he ran and leaped to the next platform. He barely had time to center himself before going on to the next one.
Hunter kept moving in all directions. One time he jumped and missed the center of the platform. He managed to grab the edge and pulled himself up.
"When I get my hands on that little shadow person, he's going to regret messing with me," Hunter growled. Running, he landed on the last platform before reaching to tag his target.
Only the shadow person vanished. The teenager looked around for his target. Then he heard laughing coming back from the start.
"Too slow! You'll have to be faster to catch me. Good thing we have all night to play!" the shadow person exclaimed.
"I really hate my life right now," Hunter told himself. He rubbed his eyes and resigned himself to this playdate. It was going to be a long night.