Chapter 10: Escape of the Palisman

A few days had passed since that little incident Gus tricked me and Luz into showing off that douchebag Mattholomule. While it wasn't very pleasant considering that me and Luz ended up finding out just what a nightmare detention in the Boiling Isles is like, there were some positives that came with it. I got to meet Gizi, the Duskerman cousin I didn't know I had, and Luz was able to get into Hexside. Of course, Luz could only get enrolled as long as me and Juniper were enrolled with her. While me and my sis aren't exactly okay with this idea, we're willing to suck it up so Luz could attend school. I'm willing to do anything if it means Luz can be happy. It was going to be a while before the next semester started, but we were willing to wait it out. Right now, we were in Bonesborough, doing what King wanted to do. What the little demon wanted to do was to go down to the local slayground, the Boiling Isles version of a playground, and "conquer" it. Turns out King had never been to any playground before which actually made sense since he had been living at the Owl House. Considering how my mom and sis couldn't really go out much, it's expected that King wouldn't be able to try many things.

Much like she has done with me, Luz managed to convince my mom to have us take King down to the slayground. With me, Luz, Mom, and Juniper sitting on the bench, I managed to get a good look at this slayground and—as I expected—it was a freaky version of a playground. Like everywhere else, where usually something was alive, there indeed were things there that stood out. The playground set had a demon-like design and there were octopus tentacles moving around in the sandbox. Where we were sitting, there was a sign that said "All bloodthirsty monsters must be leashed". While understandable, I find it hard to believe anyone would bring anything bloodthirsty to someplace where little kids played. While me, my mom, and Juniper were doing fine with King going into the slayground on his own, Luz was stressing out from it all.

"Luz, calm down." I said, looking over to my friend with a reassuring smile. "It's just his first day at the slayground."

"I can't help it, DK!" Luz replied back, frantically. "What if he gets hurt?" She then gasped. "What if the kids are mean to him? My parental instincts are freaking out, man!"

"Luz, come on." Juniper said as she was reading her manga. "He's fine. Besides, it's too early for those to kick in now."

"Hey!" Luz exclaimed, pointing a finger at her. "It is never too early to develop parental instincts!"

"Juni's right, Luz." Mom said, agreeing with my sister. "You really shouldn't act like a mother just yet. And King's fine. Look at him."

"Yeah, it does look like he's having fun." I said as we looked over to see King trying to climb up a slide.

"Aw! I wonder what cute little game he's playing." Luz cooed at the sight.

"Probably something to satisfy his ego." Juniper said in a bored tone as she continued reading her manga.

"Stand back, cretins!" King cried out as he continued climbing up the slide with a few kids watching him. After a little more he got to the top and cried out in victory. "Yes! Yes! This is a throne worthy of a tyrant. Bow to me you snotty underlings! Bow!" The two kids at the bottom of the slide exchanged a look with another at this demand.

"Okay!" They said as they did the opposite and did a few silly antics.

"Yes… appease your master." King said before a kid with snot trailing from his nose came up behind him.

"This isn't for standing." The kid said. "It's for sliding. You try." While the kid was only trying to push him down the slide, instead King came tumbling down it as he was taken by surprise before wailing over to us like a little kid.

"Eda! That monster took my throne."

"You mean the baby?" Eda asked in an amused tone.

"No, the usurper." King said as he pointed to the kid who was now playing on a spring rider. "I want you to go over there and blow him up. Kaboom!"

"Kaboom!" The kid said as he mimicked what King said.

"Really, King?" I said to the little demon. "You seriously need to be able to handle things on your own. You can't just call on us to help you with anything that doesn't go your way."

"Yeah, I'm not using Owlbert to blow up a five‐year‐old." My mom added, the Owl Lady twisting her palisman off her staff and making the little owl hoot as he woke up. "He's got better things to do. Like this." She scratched the little owl's side, making him warble like a pet who enjoyed this sort of affection.

"Aw! What a sweetie." Luz said, gushing at the sight. "How did you get him?"

"Get? I made Owlbert." Eda told her.

"Wait, you made Owlbert?" I asked my mom in surprise.

"Yeah." She said to me. "I carved him from the branch of an ancient tree."

"You know how to make a palismen?"

"Of course. Why else do you think your dad has one of his own?"

"Yeah, it's actually a thing in our family." Juniper put in as she kept reading. "The Clawthornes are actually known for being palisman-makers."

"Really?" I said, my twin nodding in confirmation and making me smile. "Wow! That's so cool." I then turned to Mom. "So I guess you've had Owlbert for a long time, huh?"

"Yep. He's my palisman. We're bonded for life." Mom said as she let the little guy jump into her open hand before lifting him up to have him perch on her shoulder, Owlbert rubbing against her affectionately after getting on her shoulder. "I'd annihilate anyone who'd hurt him." With that last part, Juniper gave a sad sigh for some odd reason, causing Owlbert to go over to my twin to cheer her up which was something she appreciated.

"But seriously, King," I said as I turned to the little demon, "no matter how much you ask, we're not going to help you beat up a little kid you think wronged you."

"Fine! Don't help!" King said to us. "Revenge will taste all the sweeter if they fall by my hand alone!" As he laughed evilly, King failed to notice the same little kid from earlier sneak up behind him.

"Tag, you're it!" The kid said as he playfully pushed him into the ground, laughing again as he ran off.

"Ooooh! Oooh! It's coming! Mom, it's coming!" Juniper said as she put down her manga, excitedly tapping Mom's shoulder.

"What's coming?" I asked, confused by this.

"King's squeak of rage." Mom said as we then watched the little demon grunt while standing straight back up before throwing a tantrum. Making an extremely, high-pitched squeal that easily anyone could laugh at, he ran off, making me laugh with my mom and sister.

"Okay, that is adorable." I said as I laughed.

"And totally funny!" Juniper said, laughing as much as I was. "You should've been here when I took the last cookie!"

"He is like a little teakettle." Mom put in, wiping away a tear.

"Are you kidding?" Juniper commented. "He sounds like an angry, little gnome that sucked in some helium. The little guy's voice would've been squeaky enough, so just imagine how it'd sound afterward!" The three of us continued to laugh some more for a moment before Luz spoke up.

"Hey, what's that?" Luz asked as we turned to see her looking at the symbol on the bottom of Owlbert's right foot.

"Oh, that's an interlock." I told her. "It's how Owlbert is able to reattach himself to my mom's staff. Every palisman has one."

"Interlock?" Luz asked me.

"Yeah. Dad told me about this." I said before I then explained. "When a palisman bonds with the witch or warlock they are made for, they become a staff. After becoming one, they develop an interlock under one of their feet, allowing them to reattach themselves to the staff if they ever leave it. As every witch and warlock is unique in their own way, the interlock the palisman haves is just as unique, not one is the same. The interlock only works with the staff they became and that staff alone."

"That's right." Mom said with a proud smile. "Which means that every palisman can't be a part of any other staff except the one belonging to their witch or warlock."

"Hey, Mom." I said to her. "Seeing how you know how to do it, you think you can show me how to make my own palisman?"

"Maybe one day." Mom said to me as she closed her eyes.

[Eda's mind]

"But I think it might be a while before…" Eda said as she opened her eyes and was surprised to find herself in an area that was dark and grey like in her dreams. She could only gasp in surprise as she stood up, the bench and her staff fading out as she did.

"Luz? Ryuji? Juni?" She called out to them, her voice echoing and full of panic. "Hello?"

"Eda!" Luz's voice echoed.

"Luz?"

"Mom!" Ryuji's voice echoed.

"Ryuji?"

"Mom!"

"Juni?" Eda said as she heard Juniper's voice echo before, all of the sudden, something came in from behind her.

After it knocked her down it, the Owl Lady was shocked as she saw it was the same monster she had seen in her dream, the very same creature from the night when she revealed her curse. As it held her up in a claw, having her trapped in its grasp as it was ready to finish her off, all Eda could do was snap her eyes shut.

[Ryuji]

"Mom? Mom!" I said as I lightly tapped my mom's face, trying to get her to wake up after she fainted on the bench.

"Has she ever done this before?" Luz asked in concern.

"No, I've never seen her do this." Juniper said as I kept trying to wake our mom up.

"Mom! Mom!" I said to Mom. "Please, Mom, wake up! Wake—Whoa!" Without much time to react, I watched as Mom lunged at me, knocking me to the ground while—much to my shock—with a knife made out of ice In hand. The way she was acting was almost like she was being attacked and was fighting for her life.

"Mom, no, don't!" Juniper said as she got a hold of Mom, putting a hand on the same hand that was holding the knife.

"Mom, it's okay. It's me." I said to my mom in a very calm and reassuring tone despite the shock from seeing her hold a blade to me with the Owl Lady starting to calm down as she caught her breath.

"Ryuji?" Mom said as she lowered her weapon before gasping in shock, my twin letting go of her as she got off me. "Kiddo, I'm sorry. I…" As she tried to apologize, she grunt and shivered as if she was in pain.

"Oh, no. Your curse." I said with worry as I pieced it together, seeing Mom's curse acting up again.

"We got to get you back to the house, pronto!" Juniper said as me and her then put one of our mom's arms over our shoulders, carrying her as my twin grabbed her staff.

"King, we have to go!" Luz called out as we made our way out.

"Five more minutes, please!" The little demon said as he was in some kind of little showdown with the little kid.

"King, get over here now!" I firmly yelled at him.

"Ah, man." King said in dismay before he firmly pointed at the little boy. "This isn't over!"

"Okay, let's play again real soon." The little kid said as he walked towards the demon, holding out his arms.

"No, no. Keep those sticky hands away!" King screamed out and his voice became louder just as the boy hugged him. "Oh, no! He's touching me! Aaaaahh!"

After getting back to the Owl House, Juniper threw Mom's staff over to where it was lying against the left arm of the couch as me and her helped our mom to it, the Owl Lady yawning as we did.

"Okay, that's it. One step at a time." I said as me and my sister gently set Mom onto the couch. "There."

"Hang tight, Mom. I'll go get an elixir." Juniper said to her.

"Don't worry about it." Mom said as she wave her off. "I'll get it myself in a bit."

"Mom, don't push yourself." I told her out of concern. "You already passed out once."

"I appreciate the concern, but it's fine." Mom told me with a reassuring smile. "Not the first time I got like this."

"Well, we're not gonna take any chances." I said before I turned to Juniper. "Juni, go to Morten and get another stock of elixir. Seeing how the curse acted up, Mom might need double the dose."

"On it!" Juniper said as she used her magic to gather some snails before heading out to buy some more elixir in Bonesborough.

"Do you need us to stay home and take care of you?" Luz said before she gasped in excitement as she gained an idea. "I could fit King in a little doctor's outfit."

"Eh?" The demon was surprised from hearing what she said.

"No one wants to see that." Mom said in a bored tone.

"I do." Luz whispered.

Not sure why, but the thought of Luz in a nurse's outfit popped up in my head as I thought about King dressed like a doctor. This made me lightly smack the sides of my head as I felt my cheeks heat up a bit.

"Mom, you clearly need your elixir now." I said, getting Mom's attention. "I'll go get you one."

"Kiddo, relax. I know how to take care of myself." Mom said to me in reassurance. "I've had this curse long before you were even born."

"So, how'd you get it?" Luz questioned.

Eda grunted as she put her face into the couch before muffling an answer. "I don't know."

"You don't know?!"

"Yeah, that's actually the problem." I said to my friend as I explained. "My dad told me that somebody gave my mom her curse. Nobody knows who, only that whoever it was had managed to do it when she was vulnerable and without anyone's notice."

"So no one knows who did this to Eda?" Luz said.

"Yeah. And she and Dad had tried everything to break this curse, going to people they trust who could possibly give them a solution. They went to their friend in the Beast-Keeping Coven, they went to a couple of old classmates in the Healing Coven, and they even tried their luck with the royal families of Armro. All of them said that this curse was beyond what they could do. They were lucky even to find the elixir which can only keep it at bay. Because this curse is so complicated, the only way we know how to get rid of it is by finding the castor who did this."

"Well, then let's find whoever did this and get them to lift the curse."

"Easier said than done. My dad had spent years trying to track them down, looking to every witch and warlock that practices curses, but all of them had been dead ends."

"And I don't really care if we find the asshole that did this because I'm fine. You kids got nothing to worry about." Mom spoke up as Owlbert brought her staff over and she used it to stand up before raising an eyebrow at us. "Anyway, don't you have plans with little Ms. Pigtails, Tweedledum, and Twerpledee?"

"Oh, that's right." I said as I remembered the plans me and Luz made with Gizi, Willow, and Gus. "I forgot that we were going to see the grudgby game between Hexside and Glandus High."

"Now I get Ryuji getting into this with him being a basketball star and all," Mom said as she placed Owlbert back on her staff, "but since when are you into sports, Luz?"

"Since I found a little something called 'Hexside Pride'!" Luz said as she got in her mentor's face. "To think that Glandus, whoever they are, would dare face us."

"Luz, they're another magic school here on the Boiling Isles." I reminded her. "Juni told us about them, remember?"

"Oh, right." Luz said with an embarrassed smile before I turned to Mom.

"Though, considering how you are now, I don't think it's such a good idea for me to just leave when…"

"Ryuji, don't get all sympathetic on me." Mom told me. "I'll be just fine. Just go and hang out with your friends."

"You're sure you'll be okay?" I asked out of concern.

"Positive." Mom said. "You have fun at the grudgby game."

"Okay, if you say so." I told her. "Just take it easy, okay?"

"Yeah, yeah. Just go see the sport." Mom said, pointing to the door.

"Hooray! Hooray for sports!" Luz cheered out as we went over to the door before she stopped to kneel down to King who was drawing plans to face off against the little kid from the slayground. "Hugs and kisses, King. Mwah!" She kissed him as we ran out the door, my friend singing as she went outside. "Don't spend all night plotting reveeeenge!"

"That drooly‐faced heathen will know my wrath." King replied back before I stopped at the door and looked back at Mom.

"Oh, before I go…" I said before using a magic circle to bring an elixir down from upstairs and over to my mom.

"Ryuji…" Mom said with a nonchalant look on her face as she held the vial.

"Just making sure you take it." I said to her with a smile. "Bye, Mom! See ya after the game!"

[No one's view]

After Ryuji left and closed the door, Eda couldn't help but smile at how lucky she was to have a kind and caring son looking out for her as much as she looked out for him.

"Good to see Ryuji's got his dad's caring heart." Eda said to herself before she then proceeded to drink the elixir.

"Hah! Sure you will, Augustus." Mattholomule scoffed as he sat down with his arms crossed.

[Ryuji]

After leaving the house, me and Luz managed to get to Hexside before the transport beasts left as they stood waiting in front of the school, said beast looked like a living Viking ship with a yellow dragon head held up by a blue neck, yellow dragon wings, six legs that had three-claws each, and a long yellow tail with a white banner that said "Hexside" in blue capital letters. The bodies of these beasts had yellow and blue flags attached to the sides.

"Ryuji, we're going to a sports game." Luz said to me as we walked over to the stairs. "Do you really need to bring your sword?"

"Hey, you know I don't leave the house without my Saisho." I told her. "Besides, we might actually need it."

"Pfft! Come on, DK." Luz told me. "I bet we won't need it the whole game."

Just when she said that, one of the beasts then tried to take a bite of her. As she managed to dodge it with a yelp, I then got in front of her, glaring at the reptile after drawing my Saisho to hold in front of me.

"Don't even think about it." I said, the beast's eyes widening in fear before it quickly backed away in fear. After it did, I then calm myself as I put my sword back on my back and looked at Luz. "You were saying?"

"Okay, maybe having your sword around wouldn't be such a bad idea." Luz said before we then kept on walking. "Now what do you think of this as a cheer? 'Hexside's gonna wreck your side'!"

"Eh, bit on the nose. How about 'Hexside is the best side in the west side'?"

"Better, though is it good enough for a cheer?" Luz then pointed over as she spotted Willow and Gus at the back of the line. "Look, there they are!"

Heading over to our friends, I looked to see they were dressed for the game with Gus wearing a yellow sweatshirt with a blue collar and cuffs, Gizi dressed in a blue and yellow skirt, her right twintail tied up with a blue ribbon and her left twintail tied up to a yellow ribbon, and with pom-poms in hand with the right one being blue and the left one being yellow, and Willow wearing a baseball cap of yellow and blue, both the hat and sweatshirt saying "Hexside".

"What up, our fellow Hexsidians?" I said before thinking of other nicknames for people who are a part of Hexside. "Hexsiders? Hexsidetites?" Giving up on guessing, I then went on to ask what the nickname was. "Okay, what exactly do you call someone from Hexside?"

"Actually, most people call us winners." Willow told me.

"You guys ready for a great game day?" Luz asked excitedly.

"You bet!" Gizi exclaimed. "This is gonna be so much fun!"

"Yeah, grudgby games are the best." Gus answered, just as excited. "The players go through these action‐packed trials and the audience gets to wave flags. Look! I practiced." Pulling out a pair of flags, he did a few twirls with them.

"Well, me and Luz will be giving it our all as we cheer for Hexside." I said with a proud smile.

"Is it weird that we're not wearing much anything Hexside?" Luz asked while looking at her usual shirt, earning a worried expression from Willow.

"Um, it's weirder that you're wearing those colors, Luz." Willow said with a worried expression.

"Will, what are you talking about?" I asked her, wondering what she meant.

"Well, she's actually wearing Glandus colors." Willow said as I looked at a banner and saw that Glandus High's team colors were the same as Luz's shirt.

"Oh. But it's just a shirt. I doubt anyone would notice." I said.

"Get ready to be creamed, Glandus nerd." Said a giant Hexside student who pressed a finger on Luz's head, the ground shaking as he walked by us.

"Hey! I'm a Hexside nerd!" My friend replied back. "Gotta change out of this shirt." She then turned to Willow and Gus. "Where can I get a Hexside one?"

"I know." Gizi spoke up. "There's a lost‐and‐found box in the cafeteria."

"Ah! The lost‐and‐found." Luz said as she gained a smile. "Where mouth guards go to retire."

"Along with many other shameful items." I commented with a little chuckle as I went with Luz to find some clothes in Hexside colors.

Going into Hexside, we managed to find the lost-and-found which was actually this big chest. Rummaging through it, we managed to find plenty of clothes with the right colors for any member of Hexside. While I did try to get her to just take the first thing she plucked out of the chest, Luz insisted on looking around it more to make herself a Hexside outfit for herself so she could give it her all in cheering. Knowing that there was no way to deter her from this, I went on to help her pick something out.

A moment after, we both went out the doors, wearing what we took from the lost-and-found. While I only took a white and blue baseball cap with "Hexside" labeled on it in yellow capital letters, Luz went all out by dressing herself in a blue soda-drinking cap with flags on the cup, a blue sweatshirt with a yellow stripe across the chest, a blue and yellow cheerleader skirt, and a pair of pom-poms that each matched the color of one of the flags on each side of the cap with blue on the left and yellow on the right. I would be lying if I said that I didn't like seeing Luz in that kind of skirt again.

"Goooo, Hexside!" Luz cheered as she jumped and managed to do the splits, a sickening cracking sound coming with it that made me cringe a bit.

"Uh…you alright, Luz?" I asked her out of concern. "That sounded like it'd hurt."

"It did." Luz replied back, slowly allowing the pain to slowly subside. "But now I know not to do this again."

"Here, let me help you up." I said as I then went on to help Luz to her feet. "Guess you kind of dodged a bullet by not becoming a cheerleader, huh?"

"Yeah." Luz said before she looked forward. "Uh… where is everyone?"

Turning my head, I looked to see that every student that was lined up along with the transport beasts were gone. Hearing a roar, I looked up to see the beasts flying away with students riding on its back.

"Hexside rules!" said the giant student from before yelled out as he was being carried by one of the beasts as it flew away.

"Oh, no! Come back!" Luz yelled as we ran down the stairs, trying to call back the beasts.

"Hey, you forgot us!" I called out, but it was too late as the beasts were long gone. "Crap." Turning back to the stairs where I planned to sit at in depression, I was surprised to find Willow and Gus still standing there. "Willow? Gus? Why are you two still doing here?"

"Yeah, why didn't you guys get on the bus?" Luz added, just as surprised.

"We weren't going to leave you behind." Willow said as she smiled at us.

"Yeah, we're besties." Gizi added with the same smile. "And you never leave a bestie behind."

"I was." Gus said under his breath.

"Gus." Willow elbowed him in the side.

"Please tell me we can get to Glandus if we hoofed it." I said, hoping there was a chance we could make it to the game.

"We'd never make it in time. Glandus is…" Gus said before he did a few motions with his flags, pointing outwards, "all the way out in the middle of the Isles."

"And the quickest way there is by flying." I said, my hopes that we could still make the game dwindling. "Don't suppose any of you have broomsticks we can ride on."

"Nope, sorry." Gizi told me. "Mom and daddy don't me riding on a broomstick."

"I would ask my dad if he could give us a ride, but he's pretty busy." Gus told me.

"My parents are working too." Willow said with the same regretting look on her face.

"Starting to wish I had my own staff now." I said as I hung my head in despair.

"Wait, I know how we can get us a staff." Luz said as I looked to see her smile at me as she got an idea. Seeing Willow and Gus turning to me, I then realized what Luz was thinking.

"Luz, we can't ask my mom to give us a ride." I said as I gave my friend a nonchalant look. "You saw how tired out she was. She's in no condition to fly anywhere on her staff."

"I know." Luz said before she looked away while scratching the back of her head. "But maybe… we don't need to ask her to give us a ride." Took me a brief moment, but I widened in my eyes in shock as I realized what she was suggesting.

"No." I told her as I gave my friend a stern glare, straightening up to look at her in the eye. "Out of the question."

"Oh, come on, Ryuji." Luz said to me.

"No way. Doing a moonlight conjuring without my mom's permission was risky enough." I told her. "But asking her to give us Owlbert? Are you out of your mind?"

"It'll just be this one time!"

"Luz, Owlbert's not a taxi. He's my mom's palisman! He carved him herself! And you heard her. If anything happens to him on our watch, she'll crush us!"

"Okay, okay, I get it." Luz said to me. "I know how much she cares about Owlbert, but this is for our friends. They've been looking forward to this just as much as we have. We can't let them down."

After seeing the pleading look in her eyes, I looked to Willow and Gus who looked at me with worry, hoping that I would agree to help them. With that, I then saw that Luz was right. Sure, I have gone to great lengths to help those two, especially where it got me and Luz in trouble, but they were the first friends me and Luz ever made and I would hate to see them so disappointed like this. So, with a sigh of defeat, I went on to say what they wanted to hear.

"Alright. But you're gonna be the asking mom for permission. I already did it last time."

"Deal." With that, we all then ran off to the Owl House to ask Mom for her staff.

[No one's view]

At the Owl House, King was walking upstairs to Eda's room to tell her the plan he had come up with for getting revenge on his "usurper".

"Eda, Great news! I thought of the perfect way to get revenge on that usurper." King said before holding up a piece of paper that show a picture of the little boy who was surrounded by fire. "Now, don't be put off by the complicated premise. I'll break it down for you in small pieces. Huh?" Upon looking over to Eda's nest, King was shocked in horror to find the Owl Beast instead of the Owl Lady sitting there. King screamed as the Owl Beast growled and began approaching him. "Aah! Owl Beast! Stay back!" From this, the transformed witch stepped back a bit, leaving the demon surprised and confused. "Wait, did you just… listen to me?" Standing up, King saw Eda standing in front of him before deciding to test to see if she was listening to commands. "Uh, come here. Sit." Upon his order, Eda then walked over to King where he then looked to see that only her left eye was pitch black. "Interesting. Eda's only partially transformed, which means she's totally suggestible." King then gained a pleased look in his eye. "Yes, yes! This will do nicely. Forget fire! I've got a greater force to unleash: You! You're going to help me regain my throne. I mean, if that's okay with you, right?" His only answer from the Owl Beast was a growl. "I'll take that weird grumble as a yes." He then as he grabbed a nearby satchel before dragging it over to the chest full of elixir. "I'm just gonna grab a little bottle of elixir in case you go rogue on me."

Too busy preparing to go back to the slayground with Eda, King failed to notice two empty elixir bottles that spilled out of the satchel.

[Ryuji]

Reaching the Owl House, me, Gus, and Willow decided to wait outside while Luz went in to talk with my mom.

"Okay, here goes. Wish me luck." Luz said before she went into the house.

"So… You looking forward to attending Hexside?" Willow asked me.

"Not really." I told her. "There are only a few things I like about doing that."

"It's not that bad once you get used it." Gus put in. "All newcomers are like that. Well, except for Luz."

"Yeah, well, she's the only reason I'm going." I told them. "If she doesn't go to Hexside, then I'm not going."

"But we'll still be there." Willow said to me.

"That's not the point, Willow." I then went on to explain my reasons. "Look, it's not like I hate Hexside. I would like to go there and learn more about magic. It's just that I don't want to drag too much attention to myself. I mean, both my parents are practically criminals who the Emperor's Coven has been trying to capture for years. I want to avoid them and Belos as much as possible."

"And you think that, by going to Hexside, you'll get in trouble with them?" Willow asked.

"Basically, yeah." I told her. "The truth is that I'm only going because Bump said that he would let Luz in if both me and Juni get enrolled. If it means a lot to Luz, I'm willing to go to Hexside if it means she gets to go with me."

"Aww, that's so sweet." Willow cooed at this.

"You must really like her if you're willing to do anything like this." Gus added.

"Well, she's my best friend and I'd do anything for my friends." I told them with a smile, getting them to smile back at me. It was only a moment before Gizi gasped and held her pom-poms over her mouth.

"OMT!" Gizi said as she then lowered her pom-poms to reveal her smile. "You have a crush on Luz!"

"What?" I said as I was surprised by this, feeling a bit of heat on my cheeks. "No! No, I don't!"

"You do!" Gizi said to me. "You totally doooo!" She sang that last part.

"Gizi, come on! I'm just being a good friend!" I told her.

"Whoa, take it easy, DK." Gus spoke up with a chuckle. "No need to get all defensive."

"I'm not being defensive!" I told him, feeling my face heat up even more.

"Well, I think you and Luz would make a great couple." Willow said with a casual smile.

"Please, all of you, just stop talking!" I said as I covered my face with my hands, feeling as though my face was just giving off steam as I never felt so embarrassed even as I heard the three share a little laugh at my expense.

[No one's view]

Back in Eda's room, King managed to find an elixir from Eda's chest and placed it in the satchel before walking back over to the Owl Beast.

"Now, to destiny's battlefield: the slayground!" King declares before he heard Luz call out to him.

"King? King?" Luz calls out.

"Luz? Oh, no." King gasped before taking off the satchel and turning to Owl Eda. "Sit. Stay." Quickly going out into the hallway and closing the door behind him, King was soon met by Luz.

"Is Eda up?" Luz asked the little demon.

"Oh, Eda? No, no. She is out like a light." King said as he tried to make an excuse when they heard a growl from the other side of the door. "Oh, man. Can she snore?"

"Oh, no. I wanted to ask if me and Ryuji could borrow her staff." Luz said with a look of worry. "But I know she needs her rest."

"Oh, I'm sure she won't mind." King said as he took Eda's staff that was leaning near the door, giving it to Luz. "Just take it." King said giving Luz the staff.

"I can't. Not without Eda's permission." Luz said before she heard a faint screech coming from her mentor's room.

"Well, there's your permission. Off you go." King urged, trying to get Luz to leave.

Luz was hesitant, but not wanting to disappoint her friends, she decided to go ahead and take the staff.

"I really owe Gus and Willow one. Besides, it's just for the afternoon. I'm sure Eda wouldn't mind."

"Not our generous, kindhearted Eda. Big heart on her."

"Well, we'll be back soon." Luz said walking away.

"Close call." King said after Luz walked away, the little demon going back to the room. "Now, time for revenge. Right, Owl Eda?" Upon entering, King sees Eda eating a chair she had, but brushes it off as less of a concern. "Yeah, I'm feeling confident about this plan."

[Ryuji]

After waiting for a while and I managed to recompose myself, me, Willow, and Gus looked to Luz as she walked out of the house with my mom's staff in hand.

"So, what did my mom say?" I asked her.

"King said Eda was still tired, but I think she said we could borrow her staff." Luz said, looking unsure while holding up the staff.

"Wow, the curse must've done a number on her." I said with concern for my mom before I then gained a smile feeling glad that we managed to get her approval. "Well, at least we can make it to the grudgby game."

"Then let's get going." Luz said before she lifted up the staff. "To Glandus High!" Hearing a hoot, we looked up to see Owlbert had woken up from Luz accidentally smacking him into the wall. "Oh, sorry, Owlbert."

"Hey, Owlbert." I said, getting the palisman to turn to me. "We're sorry to disturb you, but we were wondering if you could help us and our friends. We missed the bus to the grudgby game and the only way we can make it there is by flying. So you think you can give us a ride?" Owlbert thought about this for a moment before he then hooted with a nod. "Great!"

"Oooh! A real palisman!" Gus said as he, Gizi, and Willow looked at Owlbert.

"He's so cute!" Gizi said as she gushed at the sight of Owlbert.

"Who's ready to board Air Luz?" Luz exclaimed.

"Whoa, whoa! Time out." I said to her. "Luz, I think it'd be best if I took the reels on Owlbert."

"DK, come on. I handled Owlbert pretty easily when we were at the Conformatorium."

"Yeah, with the help of my mom." I told her. "Plus, you haven't used him since then or got any lessons on how to fly with a staff."

"Yeah, but I've watched Eda fly a bunch of times. I think I got it down."

"Well, I don't know…" I said before I heard Owlbert hoot and looked to see the little owl motion with his wings, telling me to let Luz fly the staff. "Really? You're fine with her?" I got a nod in response. "Alright, if you say so."

"Whoa. How did you know what he said?" Gus said with a surprised look.

"My dad has a palisman of his own." I explained to him. "Guess after so many years of talking to her, I now know what any palisman is trying to tell me." With that, we all then got on the staff with me behind Luz, Gizi behind me, Willow behind my cousin, and Gus making up the back.

"Eeeh! This is so exciting!" Gizi squealed in excitement.

"Feel that power‐to‐weight ratio." Willow commented.

"Boys, prepare to fly!" Gus said to his flags as he raised them up.

"Next stop, Glandus High! Let's go!" She commanded as Owlbert took to the air, flying up to the front of the eye-shaped window. "Step on it, Owlbert!"

"Luz, wait, don't…" I said, but it was too late as Luz taped underneath the staff, making it shoot forward so fast that Luz couldn't control it. All we could do was scream as we ended up crashing through the forest, bumping through trees and everything.

[No one's view]

In the very same forest, Juniper was walking back to the Owl House, humming to herself while carrying a full sack which no doubt had bottles full of elixir. It wasn't long until she stopped by the sound of screaming echoing through the forest. Looking around to find the source, it wasn't long until she saw something fly into view, the young Clawthorne becoming shocked as she sees her twin along with Luz, Willow, Gus, and Gizi flying on Eda's staff.

"Juni, get out of the way!" Luz yelled out, causing Juniper to scream and drop the bag before ducking out of the way of the group.

After they whizzed past Juniper, the gang ends up crashing into one tree and are sent flying off the staff with both Willow and Gus landing in some bushes and Luz getting caught on a branch by her sweater. Managing to recover from the fall that was cushioned by the bushes, Willow and Gus manage to pick themselves up as Luz slowly slipped out of her sweater. Looking up to the sound of screaming, the three gained looks of shock as they saw the cousins falling towards them with Gizi landing on Willow and Gus and Ryuji landing on top of Luz. Unknown to them, Owlbert had landed nearby, crashing to the ground by the top of his head.

[Ryuji]

After the crash and hearing the groans of my friends, I soon began to wake up as I recovered from the fall off of the staff.

"DK! Luz!" Hearing her voice, I looked over to see my sister running over to us with a look of concern. "You guys okay?"

"Yeah, we're fine." I told her as I pulled myself up.

"Yeah." Luz said before we looked at each other and I saw I was on top of her, causing us both to blush.

"Luz, I'm so sorry." I said as I quickly got off her.

"No, it's fine." Luz said as she sat up and looked away, sounding just as embarrassed as me.

"Wait, where's Owlbert?" I said, remembering the palisman. Hearing a quiet hoot, I looked over to see Owlbert lying on the ground. "Owlbert!" Running over to him, I was about to pick him up when he then twisted and detached himself from the staff. "Owlbert?" When he turned to me, I gasped as I saw he had a crack on top of his head. After giving me a sad look of broken trust, Owlbert soon then took off and flew away. "Owlbert, wait!"

"No, no, no! Owlbert, come back!" Juniper called out as she ran over to me, but the palisman ignored both of us as he flew up into the tree line. After the little owl was out of sight, my sister turned to me with a glare. "What did you do?"

"Juni, I can explain." I told her with a worried look.

"Explain what?!" She said to me. "You just scared away Owlbert, our mom's palisman! That little dude is practically family!"

"It was an accident!" I told her. "We didn't mean for this to happen. We missed the bus to the grudgby game and we just didn't want to miss it."

"So you decided to take Mom's staff and fly all the way there?" Juniper said, still pretty pissed about what happened.

"Juni, wait!" Luz spoke up as she ran over to us. "Please, don't be mad at him. It was my idea to take Owlbert. If anyone is to blame, it's me."

"It's not your fault, Luz." I told her. "You couldn't have known.

"Well, I say it's both your fault that we lost Owlbert." Juniper said to us before picking up the staff. "And if we ever want to get him back, you'll both follow me. Keep up." With that, Juniper then ran off in the direction Owlbert went.

"I've never seen Juni so mad." Luz said with a look of worry.

"Yeah, not even King pisses her off that much." I said, feeling much the same. "Come on, we got to get Owlbert back before Mom finds out what we did."

"Right." Luz said before we both then ran after my sister.

"Hey, cuz! Wait for us!" Hearing Gizi's voice, I looked behind to see her, Willow, and Gus following us from behind.

"Luz, exactly how long did you tell my mom we would have Owlbert?" I asked my human friend as we ran through the forest, tailing my sister.

"I told her we would bring him back by this afternoon." She told me.

"Then we better hope we can get Owlbert back before then." I said before I spoke to Juniper. "Juni, where are we going?"

"The only place where a palisman like Owlbert would feel safe." Juniper said to me. "It's not too far from here."

"And you know this how?" I asked her.

"Because I've been there." She told me.

"You've been there? Wait." Thinking about what she said and how she reacted earlier at the slayground, I gasped as I realized what she meant. "This happened before, didn't it?" With that, my sister then stopped and we all stopped with her. She sighed before she spoke up.

"Yeah… it did." Juniper said as she then held the staff in both hands. "You're not the first people Owlbert ran away from. I am." We all gasped in shock at this.

"Wait, Owlbert ran away from you? Why?"

"It was stupid. I wanted to go to a party and the only way I could make it there was by flying. I asked Mom if she could give me a lift or if I could borrow Owlbert, but when she said no, I just…"

"You took Owlbert without her permission, didn't you?"

"Yep. It was my first time flying with a staff, so I ended up crashing. Owlbert got hurt and flew off." Juniper then turned to look at us with a serious look. "Look, guys. I'm not mad that you two made Owlbert leave. I mean, I already had to rescue you both from a trap when you went on that fake quest or when Luz snuck into Hexside and nearly got dissected, I help you with Mom that time Luz took one of her elixirs, you both did a moonlight conjuring that nearly cost us the house…"

"Okay, we get it."

"But the point is that you need to take things more seriously, especially you, Luz. You can't just play around."

"What? I'm not playing around!" Luz said, shocked by this. "I always take things seriously!"

"Hardly half the time." My sister retorted. "You took Owlbert just to impress your friends. The Isles is nothing like your world at all and there's already been plenty of times where you nearly got yourself hurt and even killed to prove it."

"But they all still worked out in the end."

"That might be true, but it isn't the point. You can't just do something and not think on ahead or not consider what if things don't go as planned and the possible end result that could very well possibly affect those that care about you. Around here, you screw up anything, you lose everything. That's what I learned when I hurt Owlbert and that's something you need to learn if you're ever gonna stay here." From this, Luz thought about this for a moment and then hung her head in shame.

"You're right. I do things without thinking. I don't try to make anyone worry on purpose, honest. I just didn't want to let anyone down. Back home, I had always tried my best to make everyone happy. Heck, the only reason I was going to that summer camp was that my mom wanted me to. Growing up, even though I was trying my best, it seemed like I just managed to mess up. The last thing I ever want to do is just let everyone down. I'm really sorry for all the trouble I caused." I was about to say something to my friend, but my sister surprisingly spoke out what I was gonna say.

"Luz, you don't need to try so hard to make everyone feel better." Juniper said. "Not everything needs to be perfect. I mean, if everything was perfect, then we wouldn't have much of anything. I mean, look at me. I'm living with my mom while we're both hiding from the law and dealing with keeping our own craziness under wraps, yet we're happy with it. We got a roof over our heads and we got each other. The point is that a good day doesn't mean everything goes the way you want it, it's just how you make of it. As long as you got things that make you happy, you're good." Luz looked at my sister with surprise.

"Wow, never thought I'd hear that from you." I said to my twin with a smile.

"Don't get used to it." She said with a nonchalant look. "I'm just making sure your girlfriend isn't a sad girl the whole time." Just after she said that, Luz rushed over and gave my sister a hug.

"Thanks, Juni. You really are a great friend." Luz said to her with a grateful smile.

"Yeah, don't mention it." Juniper said as she looked away with a blush, patting Luz on the head. A moment after, Luz then let go of my sister who then cleared her throat to recompose herself. "Now, let's go get Owlbert back." With that, we all then began running again, only stopping after a while as we soon found ourselves in front of a stone entryway which gave out a rather ominous vibe. "Okay, we're here."

"Man, humans can run." Gus commented. "Must be their dorsal fins."

"Gus, for the last time," I told him, "that is merpeople, not humans." I then turned to my sister as I walked over to her. "So Owlbert's in there?"

"Yep. Now come on." Juniper said before Willow spoke up.

"Wait, we have to be careful. It's really easy to get lost in this part of the forest."

"She's not wrong." Juniper added. "Especially considering how the plants grow wild around here."

"Well, we aren't gonna turn back without Owlbert." I told her. "He's Mom's palisman and a member of the family. Plus, Mom's gonna kill us if she finds out we lost him."

With that, we all then walked through the entryway into a thick forest that had a ground littered with all sorts of bones that crunched as we walked over them, making the vibe around here even creepier.

"Wow. I keep stepping on a lot of crunchy twigs." Willow said as we walked.

"Those are bones, Willow." Luz said, making the witch look up above.

"Not if I never look down." Willow said.

"Okay, I don't get it." I said, confused by the situation. "This place is as creepy as hell. Why would Owlbert think this is a safe place for him?"

"What was that?" Gizi asked, frighten by something flying right by us.

"Wait a minute." I said as I then took notice of everything in this forest. "Bones, massive webs, barely any sunlight. Okay, this place gets a ten on the creepy factor."

"Yeah, this isn't any kind of forest I'm used to." Luz said as she poked some webs.

"That's because this isn't a forest." Willow said, making us look down to see three familiar, bat-like demon children walking toward us. "It's a nest."

"Hey, Junior!" Juniper said as one of the bat children flew into her arms, my sister laughing happily as she held the little demon. "Good to see you, ya little rascal." Seeing my sister like this, I couldn't help but snicker, something which didn't go unnoticed as Juniper scowled at me. "Hey, I'm just happy I got to see them again. Don't judge me."

"You know them, Juni?" Gizi asked with surprise.

"Of course she does. They're the Bat Queen's babies." I said, explaining to Gizi, Willow, and Gus. "She had my sis and mom take care of them one time."

"Wait, the Bat Queen?" Gus questioned as he, Willow, and Gizi backed up into a large web behind them.

"I think I'd rather take my chances with Eda." Willow added.

"The hell you are!" Juniper snapped back at them. "You started this together with Luz and my bro and you're gonna see it through!"

"Better do what she says." I told the three. "You don't want to argue with my sister, trust me."

"Uh, we're looking for a little owl and…" Luz said, talking to the babies before Juniper spoke up.

"He's right over there." My twin said, pointing to Owlbert who stood about a couple of feet behind the babies.

"Owlbert!" I said with a smile. "You're okay!" the little owl whimpered in fear and backed away a bit, making me lose my smile. "Owlbert, we're really sorry for what happened. We shouldn't have used you like that."

"Yeah, we promise we'll never do it again. Please, come back home with us." Luz said right before Bat Queen came in and stood in front of Owlbert, the demon hissing at us and making me and the gang gasp.

"Hello, small human." She said as she walked over to me and Luz. "And hello to you as well, young Frank."

[No one's view]

At the playground, all the kids were happily playing, one little girl building a small sandcastle in the sandbox with a tentacle that seemed to be watching her. Just as she finished it, the sandcastle collapsed with the sound of loud footsteps followed by a shadow that loomed over the sandbox and make the tentacle sink into the sand.

"Ahem!" King cleared his throat as all the children to see the Owl Beast who was on a roof and growling down at them with the little demon on top wearing a cardboard box with a picture of armor drawn on it and holding a red flag with his skull on it. "Listen carefully! You all have two choices: grovel or…" Before King could finish, Eda gave out a terrible shriek, causing the kids to scream and run away.

"Ah! Monster!" Braxus yelled as he ran away with the other children

"Good enough." King said as Eda made her way down to the ground. "Run! Despair!" Making their way over to the jungle gym, King looked down at his "usurper" as he panted in fear. "Your time has ended! Mine begins!" In an instant he said that, the little kid goes down the slide and runs away, crying as he did. King paid no mind to it as he went on to gloat. "Not so tough now, you spongy hatchlings. I will eat you!" With the Owl Beast lowering her head, King then climbs up the slide to stand atop it. "All who stood in my way are gone! I declare myself despotic ruler of this land! Nothing can stop the almighty…" Before King could finish his declaration, he heard a chomp and looked down to see Eda had taken a bite out of the slide. "Hey! Hey! No eating the throne!" Eda stopped as King glared down at her. "No." In an instant, the Owl Beast then took another bite. "Oh, come on!"

[Ryuji]

With the Bat Queen looking down at us with anger burning in her red eyes, me, my sister, and Luz tried out best to keep our ground with Willow, Gizi, and Gus cowering behind us.

"I-i-i-is that… t-t-the…" Gizi stuttered in fear.

"Bat Queen, yeah." I said to her before putting on a smile as I spoke to the demon. "Hey, B.Q. Long time no see."

"Yeah, it's good to see you again." Luz added, putting on a smile as well. "My, your hair is looking great and not greasy. And your kids… They're as cute as ever."

"You know, that could've gone worse." Gus said, but the Bat Queen growled, making me and Luz flinch.

"Take it easy, Bat Queen." Juniper said as she stepped forward. "They're just here to get Owlbert back."

"Yeah, the only reason he ran off was that we just needed a ride on my mom's staff." I said to the Bat Queen.

"I know. He told me all." Bat Queen told me as her eyes began glowing yellow. Looking down, I saw Owlbert's eyes were doing the same.

"Wait, you can communicate with Owlbert?" I said with surprise. "But I thought only those who create a bond can talk with a palisman."

"Yeah, she's actually the reason why Owlbert came here." Juniper told me. "For some reason, palismen seem to trust her."

"Trust her? The Bat Queen?"

"Yes, I protect him and any palisman." Bat Queen told me as her eyes returned to normal.

"Oh, cool. So we'll just take Owlbert and…" Before I could walk over to Owlbert, Bat Queen put up one talon in front of me, stopping me before I could make a step.

"To be careless with a staff is very serious. Your mother was careless and so were you." Bat Queen said, making a look of guilt appear on my face. "Her staff left her sight and you let human take, hurt, frighten."

"I know. I should've known better." I said to her. "But Owlbert is my mom's palisman, besides you owe us a favor, remember?"

"What I owe does change nothing." Bat Queen sternly told me. "He will not go as he does not trust you or human girl."

"Owlbert, we never meant to hurt you." Luz said as she came up and got on one knee. "Please, forgive us." The owl hooted as he flew up and landed on Bat Queen's head, their eyes glowing yellow for a brief moment.

"If you want forgiveness, you need trust. Trust must be earned." Bat Queen said as she and her babies flew up backward, landing on a rock with a large amount of treasure behind her. "Earned through… trials!" As she said this, fire sprouted out from three rocks on the ground, lighting up the nest and giving it some light.

"Trials?" I said, confused by what she meant.

"Trials?" Gus said as he grew excited, slowly starting to wave his flags.

"It's a test." Juniper spoke up as me and Luz turned to her. "Owlbert wants to see if you two are willing to do anything to get him back. He's done a lot for us, you need to show him you can do the same."

"Luz, Ryuji, careful. The Bat Queen is well‐known for her impossible trials." Willow told us. "Barely anyone wins against her."

"Yeah, she's right." Juniper added. "The trails are some serious business. Even I barely got through them all."

"It's not like we have a choice." I said to them. "We need to get Owlbert back."

"He's right. We're not leaving without him." Luz said before she then spoke to the Bat Queen. "We accept your challenge."

"And we'll be right there with you!" Gizi said as she, Willow, and Gus were about to run over before Juniper stopped them by holding the staff in front of them.

"No, DK and Luz are the ones doing the trials, not us. They need to do this alone." My twin told them before sitting down with her legs crossed and the staff on her lap. "All we can do is support them from the sidelines."

"She is right." Bat Queen put in. "No helpsies for them."

"Guys, it's fine." I told the three. "This is our mess, so we'll handle it."

"Yeah, it's about time I take things seriously." Luz put in.

"Okie-dokie!" Gizi causally said as she held up her pom-poms. "Then we'll just be cheering you on!"

"Let the flags raise you up!" Gus said, backing her up.

"Let the trials begin!" Bat Queen said, raising up her wings and making the flames shoot up.

"Okay, so what do you have for us?" I asked her.

"First, milk the spider demon." Bat Queen told us as she tossed Luz a bucket.

"Wait, spider demon?" I said and I became more frightened while Luz shuttered a bit as we turned around and saw a giant spider of black and yellow with big, pink fangs walk over to us. "Dear God, why?"

"Well, that explains the webs all over the place." Juniper said out loud. "Oof! Sucks to be you, bro."

"Shut up, Juni!" I said to her before turning back to the spider. "Do I really have to milk this… disgusting thing?"

"Calm down, DK." Luz said with a smile of reassurance. "Remember, we're doing this for Owlbert."

"I know, but…" I said before I shuttered in disgust.

"Hey, don't worry. It's just one spider." Luz told me. "Plus, it's our first trial, so we'd only have to do it once."

"You do have a point."

"And even you have to admit you were gonna have to deal with something like this."

"Yeah, you're right. Okay, I'll milk the spider."

"Great, and I'll make sure it gets in the bucket."

With that, Luz then went over and held the bucket under the demon's fangs. Looking at the giant spider for a moment, I glanced over at Owlbert who tilted his head. Remembering why I was doing this, I turned back to the demon and gulped as I prepared myself to milk it. Fighting against the feeling of fear while sweat went down from my brow, I slowly reach one hand out to one of the fangs, my nerves making me all shaky. When I finally managed to grab a hold of the fang, the spider demon freaked out which led to some of its venom being shot at my face.

"Aah! I'm hit! I'm down!" I said as I let go of the fang and fell backward to the ground, holding my face.

"Ryuji!" Luz spoke out in concern, the thud of a bucket falling to the ground hitting my eardrums.

"Oh, it burn!" I said as pulled my hands away from my face. "Aah, I think it's acid!" Looking at my hands, all the fright I was feeling faded away as I saw some white liquid dripping down from my palms and I became confused. "Wait a minute." Licking some of the liquid on my hand, I was surprised as I recognized the taste. "Milk? That demon's fangs are full of milk?"

"Well, duh!" Juniper spoke up. "Where do you think we get our milk from?"

"Wait, you mean that giant spider is the Isles' version of a cow?" I said in disbelief.

"If that's an animal where you get milk from in the human realm, then yeah." She told me before she gained an amused smile. "Still can't believe you freaked out over some spilled milk."

"I freaked out because I thought I got spat with poison!" I snapped back at her before looking at the sound of screeching and watched as the spider demon ran away, quickly getting myself to my feet. "Hey, come back here!"

"If you run, you'll just make this harder for yourself!" Luz put in as we began to chase it.

After chasing it for a while, I then used a spell circle to do a Wind Dash, parkouring a wall and getting on the demon's back. After a while of managing to keep myself on as the spider demon tried to shake me off, I then used another spell circle and placed it on my palm where it started glowing orange as held it in front of the demon's face.

"Hey, easy! Easy." I told the spider, trying to get it to calm down. "It's okay. It's okay. You're okay. Calm down." With that, the demon stopped panicking and stood still as it calmed down, getting me to smile and pet it. "There we go. Good girl."

"Way to go, DK!" Luz said as I got off the spider, rushing over to me with a proud smile. "Guess that means you aren't afraid of spiders anymore, huh?"

"Well, I wouldn't say that." I said before I pet the giant spider again, the demon purring as I did. "But at least now know I don't have to be afraid of this kind."

"Wait, you're afraid of spiders?" I heard Gus speak out as he, Gizi, and Willow looked at me in disbelief.

"Well, yeah." I admitted, giving the three a scowl. "And if you tell anyone about it, I'll wrap all three of you at the same time! Got it?"

"Yep! Got it!" Willow said, frightened by my threat.

"I won't say a word of it!" Gus said with the same tone of fear.

"What happens in the nest, stays in the nest!" Gizi causally said with a smile.

With that, I calmed myself down before going on to milk the spider demon, gently pulling its fangs down and filling the bucket Luz had with milk.

"Good girl." I said as I pet the demon for allowing us to fill the bucket with her milk before she then walked away. "Goodbye, thank you." With that, me and Luz then looked over to one of the rocks and watched as the flame then went out, a sign we passed the first trial.

"Yes, we did it!" Luz proudly said as we completed the first trial.

"Yeah, we did." I said, feeling just as proud.

"Don't get too cocky." Juniper told us. "You still have two trials left."

"Right." I said before I then turned to the Bat Queen. "Okay, B.Q., what's next?"

"Remove bee's nest." Bat Queen said, motioning to what had to be the weirdest-looking bee's nest I'd ever seen sitting on the side of a tree.

"Sounds easy enough." I said before me and Luz then went on and climbed the tree up to where the bee's nest was. But before we could even try to knock it off the tree, the nest changed color and we both screamed as we found out it was the head of a giant bee, climbing down the tree as fast as we could and running as it began to chase us.

[No one's view]

As the giant bee was chasing the duo, Juniper watched with a blank look on her face while the trio of Hexside students looked at this worry.

"Uh, are you sure we can't do anything to help them?" Gus asked the young Clawthorne with concern.

"Yep. Bat Queen won't let anyone taking her trails get any sort of help." Juniper told him. "And she'll make sure no one can give any assist."

"Oh, yeah? We'll see about that." Gus said as he stood up and began running over to Ryuji and Luz. "Don't worry, guys! I'm coming to—whoa! Hey!" Just then, Gus found himself trapped where he was standing by webs, said webs coming from the spider demon Ryuji and Luz had milked earlier.

"See? Told ya." Juniper casually said to him.

[Ryuji]

"Okay, enough of this!" I said as I stopped running and turned to face the giant bee, taking out my Saisho and preparing a Dragon's Roar with my sword's blade engulfed in fire. "Attack Magic: Flame Dragon's Roar!" With that, I blasted the bee and sent it clear out into the forest, the giant insect being sent far enough that we couldn't hear it buzzing.

"Nice shot, DK!" Luz exclaimed as the second flame went out.

"Give babies a bath!" Bat Queen said as she gave us our final trial, me and Luz being given a wooden tub full of soapy water and a scrubber before we went on to clean the demon's babies who bite and struggled against us.

[No one's view]

As the witches watched the duo do their final trial, Gus tried to free himself from the webs with his flags.

"Come on. Almost got it." Gus said as he then succeeded to cut himself out of the webs. " I am free! Bat Queen. You will rue the day you tried to trap—Aah!" Gus was then trapped again, groaning in annoyance while hanging from a net of webs.

"Go, DK and Luz!" Gizi cheered for her cousin and friend.

"Juni, why aren't you helping?" Willow asked the young Clawthorne.

"Yeah, if you help me get free, we can get your mom and…" Gus put in.

"Not happening." Juniper told them. "This is DK and Luz's trial. They have to do this alone."

"What?" Gus and Willow said with shock.

[Ryuji]

"My sister's right, guys!" I spoke out while me and Luz tried to wash the babies, having overheard our friends talking with my sister. "Both of us messed up. I was reckless and let Luz take Owlbert even though I knew it was a bad idea."

"Yeah, and I was selfish and ended up hurting him." Luz put in. "We both need to do this by ourselves so he knows how much we care about him."

Having done enough cleaning, me and Luz then picked up the tub and splashed it on the babies, finishing the job as the three were now clean as a whistle. For a brief moment, the babies were calm and Luz gushed at how cute they looked before they then screeched out, baring their fangs and causing Luz to yelp and cling to me in fear.

[No one's view]

Back at the slayground, King was still trying to get Eda to listen to him, the transformed witch ignoring him as she continued to eat more of the slayground.

"No, no! Bad Eda!" King snapped as Eda then ate a swing. "You are my beast and I control you!" Kicking her on the wing, King soon realized his mistake as the Owl Beast roared at him, causing him to trip himself as he backed away in fear with Eda slowly approaching him like a predator cornering its prey. "What was I thinking? I can't control the Owl Beast! I'm such a fool! I'm…" Feeling something behind him, King turned around and saw the satchel he used to carry one of Eda's elixirs, remembering he could stop the Owl Beast as he pulled to bottle out. "I'm a genius!" As the Owl Beast screeched over him, King took his chance and tossed the elixir into Eda's mouth. Surprised by this, Eda then spits out the cork that was on the bottle. "Great! Now change back to Eda. Any minute now, you'll magically transform." Instead of changing back, Eda growled angrily at the little demon and held up a hand to slash at him. "Oh, nuts!" King then sunk himself into the box he was wearing like a turtle right before Eda then slashed at him, ripping the box apart and causing the little demon to run away in fear.

The chase through the jungle gym eventually leads to King becoming tangled up in the climbing ropes. Before Eda attacked him, they both turned to the sound of a siren-like screech coming from a caged demon atop a cart that had a sign which said "Animal Control" as said cart rolled in. As it pulled up to the slayground, the riders of the cart are revealed to be three of the demon hunters that Luz, Ryuji, Willow, and Gus had encountered during their moonlight conjuring, Tom being one of them.

"Ugh! This is so embarrassing." Said the purple-haired demon hunter with a groan.

"Hey, hey! This job is all we have right now." The eye-patched hunter told his fellow hunter. "Since we failed that hunt with Kai, this is the only thing we can do. Now just suck it up, put on a smile, and let's get it done." With that, the purple-haired hunter then smiled and gave two thumbs up. "Good. Let's roll." With that, the hunters then walked into the slayground, the purple-haired hunter sticking their tongue out at their leader for a moment.

"Oh, no! Animal control!" King said with worry.

"There. Matches the description the parents called in." The eye-patched hunter said to his fellow hunters. "Bag it!"

"Oh, no! no, no, no!" King worriedly said as he tried to free himself, the Owl Beast walking over in front of the hunters as she prepared to attack them.

Before she could, the hunters used spell circles to place Eda into a net. Though she tried her best to break it, the net was too strong as it closed in and held her in place as the eye-patch hunter came around and used his sword to electrocute Eda, causing King to cover his eyes as the Owl Beast passed out and fell to the ground.

"Eda!" King said as he watched the hunter use his magic to pick up the transformed witch and place her in the back of the cart. King then to struggle out of the ropes but soon gained a nonchalant look as he hung there from his foot. "Great. Fantastic."

[Ryuji]

After giving the Bat Queen's kids a bath, me and Luz then watched as the last flame went out as we passed the final trial.

"Okay, Bat Queen. That's the last one." I said as I wiped the sweat off of my brow.

"Yeah, we've done all your trials." Luz added. "Hopely this proves our dedication to Owlbert." Hearing a hoot, we both then watched as the palisman flew down from the Bat Queen on onto the rock where the last flame was. "Owlbert, we're really sorry for all the pain we caused you."

"Yeah, we promise to be more careful." I said as we walked over to the little owl. "Just please, will you come back home?"

The little owl hooted with a nod of his head before he started flying down to us. It all seemed like it was gonna be okay until Bat Queen raised up her talon and the spider demon came over and trapped Owlbert in its webs.

"What the…?" I said, surprised by this before I glared at Bat Queen. "Hey!"

"No! More trails! Last trial!" Bat Queen said as a large flame erupted behind her. "You must face me." A larger flame erupted from behind the Bat Queen much to Luz's surprise.

"What?" Luz said as we were both shocked by this as the large demon roared before swooping down over to us where I then used a barrier to block the Bat Queen before she was then sent back by a blast of dark red fire.

"That wasn't the deal, Bat Queen!" Juniper snapped as she stood up, holding a flame in her hand. "Owlbert said they did enough for his trust!"

"Yeah, we did our trails fair and square!" I put in. "He's forgiven us! Let him go!"

"You will never get him back!" The Bat Queen roared as she flew over to Juniper who rolled to the side.

"Juni!" I said as I removed the barrier.

"I'm fine, DK." Juniper said as she got back to her feet. "Now run! We'll hold off Bat Queen!"

"We?!" Willow said with surprise.

"Yes, we!" Juniper said as she then used her flames to cut Gus down. "I don't know what's going on with her, but if you want DK and Luz to get out of this alive, you'll help me fight Bat Queen."

"Okay, for our friends, we'll do it." Willow said as she stood up with an unsure look on her face.

"Yeah, no hurts my besties!" Gizi added as she stood up, tossing down her pom-poms with a look of determination.

Just then, they all turned to the sounds of snarls and saw the Bat Queen's flying in from behind.

"I'll hold them off with my flags!" Gus cried out as he drew their attention and they started flapping around him, Gizi, and Willow. "No! Bad idea!" Juniper facepalmed herself with a groan of exasperation before she spoke to me and Luz.

"DK, take Luz and get out of here!"

"But…"

"Don't argue! Just go!" Juniper said as she tossed me Mom's staff before she then went on to fight the Bat Queen, throwing fireballs at the giant bat.

Though I really didn't want to leave my friends like this, especially to do my own battles, I saw my sister was right and me and Luz had to escape. With that, I then grabbed Luz and carried her as I then used a Wind Dash to leave the nest, ignoring the explosions of my sister's fire blasts as she fought against the Bat Queen.

"Ryuji, wait!" Luz said as I ran as fast as I could away from the nest.

[No one's view]

Unknown to everyone, Owlbert was slowly pulling himself free from the webs, determined to help his friends.

[Ryuji]

"Okay, I think this far enough." I said after getting a good enough distance from the nest, gently putting Luz back down for her to stand.

"Ryuji, we have to go back!" Luz said to me. "We have to save Juni and our friends!"

"I know and that's what I'm gonna do." I said before giving Luz the staff. "Luz, head back to the house and get my mom. I'll help Juni and the others with Bat Queen."

"What? No!" Luz said as she grabbed my wrist when I turned around, getting me to look back at her. "Ryuji, I'm not leaving you!"

"Luz, this is not up for debate." I told her.

"I don't care!" She argued. "We started these trials together and we're gonna finish it together!"

"Yes, you are." Hearing that familiar voice, we both became shocked before we then watched my twin land flat on the ground behind Luz.

"Juni!" I said as I went over to my sister. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Juniper said, looking worst for wear. "B.Q. is tougher than she looks."

"Stop! Why are you doing this?" Hearing Luz speak out, I looked over as she looked up at the Bat Queen. "We already did your trials and earned back Owlbert's trust!"

"No! You hurt him, you frighten him!" Bat Queen countered. "Owl Lady is reckless! I'm the only one who can keep him safe!"

"Kuwabara, was she like this when you went through her trials?" I asked my sister.

"No." Juniper told me, looking just as confused as me. "She was a little annoyed when I passed, sure. But she didn't stop Owlbert from going back home."

"We won't let you imprison Owlbert!" Luz cried out.

"Then face my wrath!" Bat Queen said as she then swopped down at Luz, my friend using the staff to try and swat her away as she was pushed back.

After a while, Luz lost her footing on some vines and tripped right into a ditch. Seeing Bat Queen fly down to her with a roar as Luz held up the staff to prepare for the worst, I decided to take action and took out my Saisho as I prepared to attack.

"Attack Magic: Wind Dragon's Roar!" I said as I then sent a blast of wind at the Bat Queen to send her crashing into a nearby tree. As she was recovering, I used a Wind Dash to run over to her, glaring down at her with my sword at the ready. "Bat Queen, this battle is over! Don't make me hurt you!"

"No… trials… not over." Bat Queen said as she tried to pull herself up.

"Bat Queen, Owlbert clearly trusts me and Luz again, he wants to come back home." I told her. "We already did so much! What more do you want?"

"You won't… take him." She said, refusing to surrender. "I will… protect him."

Seeing her struggle, I was now more confused than ever. Juniper said that Bat Queen didn't act like this when she put my sister through these trials. None of this made any sense. What exactly made things so different for her to put me and Luz through this? For what reason would the Bat Queen refuse to let Owlbert come back home when he actually wanted to?

[No one's view]

"Bat Queen, this has gone long enough!" Ryuji said as he had his sword at the ready. "Just give up and let Owlbert come home!"

"No… I won't yield." Bat Queen grunted as she tried to get herself up.

Laying there on the ground, Luz wondered as to why the Bat Queen was being so stubborn and letting them take Owlbert back with them. Though upon looking upon the demon's right talon, Luz noticed a strange symbol on it. Sensing familiarity with it, Luz then thought back and realized she had seen something like it on Owlbert.

[Flashback]

"Hey, what's that?" Luz asked, looking at the interlock on the bottom of Owlbert's right foot.

"Oh, that's an interlock." Ryuji told her. "It's how Owlbert is able to reattach himself to my mom's staff. Every palisman has one."

[End of flashback]

From seeing this, Luz gasped as she figured out why the Bat Queen was refusing to let Owlbert go home with them.

[Ryuji]

"Ryuji, wait!" Hearing her voice, I turned to Luz just when she pointed forward. "Look! On the Bat Queen's foot!"

"Her foot?" I said before I then turned to look at the demon's talons and gasped upon seeing a familiar symbol on her right talon. "Is that… an interlock?" Seeing this made me realize why the Bat Queen was trying so hard to keep Owlbert with her and I let the Bat Queen get to her feet. "Of course. It all makes sense now. You're a palisman!" From this, Juniper gasped as the Bat Queen looked at me with eyes widened in shock.

[No one's view]

At the slayground, King had managed to get his foot free, sitting up after landing on the ground as he gained a look of shame and blamed himself for getting Eda captured.

"Your pride has destroyed you." Hearing the familiar voice, King's eyes widened as he saw his "usurper" standing behind him on the other side of the ropes with a smug smile on his face. "The throne belongs to me now."

"Over my dead body!" King declared before he heard Eda's screech, remembering what had happened and knowing he had to save her. "Eda!"

"Yes, leave and forfeit your reign." The child said with a grin.

"Then forfeit, I shall!" King declared as he ran after the demon hunters' cart. "I'm coming for you, Eda!"

After the little demon left the slayground, his "usurper" gave a sigh of contentment at seeing King leave to rescue.

"Well, at least he's got his priorities straight. Better go see how this will go out." The kid said before he snapped his fingers and exploded in a cloud of light blue smoke.

[No one's view]

After a while of running down the street, King managed to find the demon hunter's cart as it was stopped in front of railroad crossing signs that had arms which were literal arms with giant white hands, the trio waiting for a giant snail with what appeared to be windows on its shell to pass. Seeing his chance, King instantly rushes over and sneaks into the cart through a window.

"Eda? You in there?" King asked right before he dodged the transformed witch as she tried to bite him. "Eda, I'm sorry. I used you for your strength ʹcause I felt weak. I'm your friend. If only there were some way to remind you who I am." It was then that King remembered something about Eda. "Wait a minute, you love my rage squeal. Like this." Taking a deep breath, King then released his high pitch squeal which causes Eda to burst into laughter.

"So tiny, so angry." Eda laughed as she transforms into her normal self, the net around her disappearing.

"Eda!" Smiling, King then runs over and the two hug.

"What happened?" Eda asked, confused to find herself in a cart.

"Okay, so I went to your room and you were the beast. And then…" King thought about telling her the truth, but went against it and lied. "Then you just rushed out of here, so I chased you down, then you got caught by animal control, I came here, and I managed to get you back to your old self."

"Uh-huh. I'll deal with you later." Eda said as she stood up, holding King in her arms. "Wanna bounce?"

"Yes, please."

With that, as the railroad crossing arms finally raised to let the demon hunters pass, the trio heard an explosion and looked to the back to see the back of their cart with a giant hole in it.

"Oh, the demon got away!" the eye-patched hunter groaned in annoyance before he looked to see Eda in the distance as she was walking away with King. "Hey, lady! Have you seen some monster that has gray hair like you? Lady? Lady!" Eda ignored him as she continued walking away.

Unknown to any of them, from an alley, the kid from the slayground watched with a smile as Eda and King casually made their escape from the hunters who had no idea that their catch was walking away.

"Well, looks like my work here is done." The kid said right before he created a light blue spell circle and was shrouded in a puff of light blue smoke, the smoke soon dissipating to reveal a witch who looked like a teenager with yellow eyes dressed in a white cloak with a long braid of her hair hanging out of the hood to reveal it was colored light blue. Her cloak had gold accents. "Glad I can help people out, especially family. Speaking of which, better get back to mine before Mom finds out I'm gone." With a wave of her cloak which began to glow light blue, the witch instantly disappeared without anyone's notice.

[Ryuji]

Standing there in front of the Bat Queen, I was just as shocked as the girls to discover that the Bat Queen—the richest demon on the Boiling Isles—was really a palisman like Owlbert. This had explained why Owlbert had fled to her of all people.

"No wondering Owlbert went to you." I said as I pieced it together. "If anyone can make a palisman feel safe, it's a fellow palisman."

"Bat Queen?" Juniper said as she came over to me, looking at the Bat Queen in disbelief. "You were a palisman this whole time?"

Bat Queen only raised up her foot, glancing at the very same symbol that all palismen had before closing her eyes while looking away and now knowing her secret was exposed, a secret she had no doubt been keeping for a long time.

"Yes." Bat Queen admitted before she turned away. "I was once part of a grand staff, a staff made for a giant! But I was broken, discarded."

"So that's why you're so protective of Owlbert." Luz said as she came over to me and Luz, now having a better understanding much like myself. Bat Queen then turned around

"I protect… all!" Bat Queen said as she then turned back to us, her eyes glowing bright yellow again.

"All?" I asked, wondering what she meant until Luz spoke up.

"Ryuji, look!"

Turning to where my friend was pointing, I looked up to the trees behind her and gasped at the sight of multiple glowing eyes looking down at us. Looking carefully, I became even more shocked as I saw the owners of those eyes were actually palisman that sat amongst the branches. I was so shocked because the number of palismen I could see looked like they could fill the trees. All of them were different kinds of animals like birds, lizards, bugs, frogs, and all sorts of mammals. I even saw a monkey that had four faces. What surprised me more was the number of scars each of them had.

"Palismen." I said, surprised to see so many in one place.

"There's so many." Luz added, just as surprised as I was.

"Yeah, these are all the palismen Bat Queen looks after." Juniper told us. "Just like Owlbert, they all came to her for a safe place to hide.

"Yes, I made home in forest." Bat Queen told us. "I'm here to take the lost, the forgotten."

"Lost? Forgotten?" I said, confused by what she said. "I don't understand. I thought palismen were cherished by all witches and warlocks."

"No, not all." Bat Queen told me. "Some witches and warlocks know respect palismen deserve, others careless and cruel. Most palismen are treated poorly, left with nothing but pain. I give those who were treated as such home here, a place where they are safe."

"Wow, I had no idea." I said, feeling sorry for both Bat Queen and the palismen who undoubtedly suffered a lot. "To think that so many palismen could be left like this, so broken up and scarred. This is just… wrong. Dad always told me that a palisman isn't just a piece of wood or a decoration for a staff, it's a living being who chooses to be by your side through thick and thin. To anyone who uses a staff, the palisman is a companion, not some trinket. Most importantly, a palisman is a friend and you never give up on a friend. The bond between a witch and a palisman is special and needs to be cherished." With that said, I then turned to Bat Queen. "Bat Queen, we understand that you're trying to make sure no palisman suffers like you did, but Owlbert isn't forgotten and he never will be."

"He's right." Luz spoke up. "Eda carved Owlbert herself and Juni's known him her whole life. Both of them know how important having a palisman is. He has those that love and care about him very much."

"He will not go back with you." Bat Queen said, turning around and walking away.

"That's not your decision to make!"

"She's right!" I said, backing Luz up. "We earned Owlbert's trust back. We showed him how much we care about him, just like my mom and sister. He's free to make his own choice and you can't force him to stay here! He's coming back home with us!"

"No, he is not!" Bat Queen said as she was about to attack getting me to hold up my sword. But, before anything could happen, Owlbert landed in front of me and Luz and held out his wings while hooting away with his eyes glowing yellow. No doubt he was communicating with her telepathically. "You… You care for them?"

Their eyes stopped glowed as Owlbert nodded and hooted before turning around to walk over to Luz who kneeled down and held out her hands so she could bring the owl up to her shoulder. After she did and Owlbert perched on her shoulder, Owlbert warbled while rubbing himself against Luz's cheek while I gently pet him with two fingers and a smile on my face as to show we cared for him too.

"Very well." Bat Queen said as she admitted defeat before motioning us to leave. "Go. And take your friends."

"Hey, wait for us!" Hearing Gizi, I looked over to see her along with Willow and Gus running over to us with the babies on them with Gizi having one on her head, Willow having one on her arm, and Gus having one on his leg. With a whistle, Bat Queen was able to call her babies back to her.

"I don't think I'll ever be clean again." Gus said as he started to clean himself.

"Bat Queen, do you know what happened to your owner?" I said the giant palisman. "I bet they are worried about you."

"It has been thousands of years." She admitted in despair. "So long, I've forgotten."

"Well, if you ever want to search for them, I'm more than willing to help you." I told her with a smile.

"Me too. I bet anything that your owner would be happy to see you're okay." Luz added, making the Bat Queen smile.

"Thank you." Bat Queen said with gratitude. "Before I leave, young Frank, I have something for you." Hearing this, me and the gang exchanged a look of confusion before her eyes flashed yellow and a small little palisman that looked like a woodpecker came flying by, dropping something on the ground in front of me.

Picking it off of the ground, I looked to see it was a red key that had a head shaped like a V with this feathered pattern that made it look like wings at the sides and had a blue glass sphere at the center that had what looked like a black compass rose with only four points and a circle that went through the center of each point on the glass.

"A key?" I said before I sensed some familiarity with it and looked to Bat Queen.

After she gave me a nod, I then pressed on the glass which acted like a button before a red line of light appeared in front of me, something popping out of it. After I caught it and the line disappeared, I looked at what was now in my hands and saw it was a red suitcase that had a sphere like the key on the front which was set on the forehead of what looked like a dragon's face. I gasped as this confirmed my assumption.

"The Vallake Family's portal!" I said as I looked upon this in disbelief. "Where did you get this?"

"From your father." Bat Queen told me as I looked at her. "Axel came here and give portal to me, said to give to you if you ever come here. I believe it to be safer with you than with me."

"Thank you, Bat Queen. And don't worry, I'll keep this safe." I told her with a smile. "Sorry for the trouble."

"It is ok. Goodbye for now." With that said, Bat Queen flapped herself up into the air, her babies holding onto her hair as she soon flew off and disappeared into the leaves of the tree they lived in.

"DK, Luz!" Gizi said as she came over and happily hugged us. "That was amazing!"

"I can't believe you took on the Bat Queen!" Willow excitedly added.

"And we're not dead!" Gus happily put in.

"Yeah, I guess I was wrong about ya, Luz." Juniper said with a proud smile, playfully punching Luz's arm. "Looks like you do know when to get serious."

"Thanks, Juni." Luz said with a grateful smile. "And thanks all of you for helping us get Owlbert back. I'm sorry we missed the game."

"Yeah, I'm sorry too." I added. "I know you guys were looking forward to it.

"Are you kidding?" Gizi exclaimed. "That was better than any grudgby match!"

"Yeah, there were action‐packed trials and I got to do my flag wave." Gus added. "I might be slightly traumatized, but today was still great. Hooray!"

With that, my sister then looked to Luz and gave her "Told ya so" smile, causing my friend to chuckle before she looked to Owlbert who was still perched on her shoulder.

"Come on, let's get this little guy home." Luz happily said as we all then made our way out of the forest.

As we were walking, I stared down at the gift Bat Queen had just given me, thinking about what she said while still in disbelief that I was holding a portal like the one my mom had.

With the whole mess sorted out, we managed to get back to the Owl House where I then made the Vallake portal disappear. After the five of us apologized to Juniper for what happened and promised her we won't let it happen again after she gave us a threat similar to Mom's, me and Luz said our goodbyes to Willow, Gizi, and Gus before the three made their way back to their homes.

Sitting on the couch, I watched as Luz peeled a bandage and placed it over Owlbert's crack.

"And now you're a part of the boo‐boo buddy club." Luz said, causing the little owl to hoot as his way of saying "thank you".

"I still can't believe that my dad entrusted a portal to the Bat Queen." I said as I gazed at the portal key in my hand. "To think that the Vallakes are hunting my dad for it when it wasn't even with him the whole time."

"Ya think Mom knew about this?" Juniper asked me.

"No. If she did, she probably would've been selling stuff from Armro by now." I told her.

"Yeah." Juniper said. "Think we should tell her we have it now?"

"Nah, it's probably best she doesn't know."

"Doesn't know what?" Hearing that voice, I looked over to see Mom standing at the door with King behind her, causing me and the girls to panic a bit.

"Oh, nothing!" I said with a nervous chuckle as the three of us tried our best to look casual.

"Owlbert, why are you off of the staff?" Mom asked as we all then gained looks of fear as we realized that we forgot to tell Owlbert to back on the staff. Just when I thought we busted, Owlbert flew over to my Mom's shoulder and warbled something to her. "Ryuji and Luz took you to get ice cream? Aw, that's… a horrible lie." Mom glanced over to her student and me as we gulped nervously at the thought of the scolding we were going to get. "Well, lucky for you both I don't care right now. I'm going to take a nap." After Mom went upstairs, me and the girls gave a sigh of relief as we were safe for today before I then realized something.

"Wait, I thought she was sleeping." I said, getting the girls to look at me. "What was she doing outside of the house?"

"I'll, uh... be at the slayground." King said, walking away from the house and leaving me, Juniper, and Luz by ourselves before Owlbert came flying down and perched on Luz's shoulder.

"Let's keep this one to ourselves, shall we?" Luz said to us, the palisman warbling in response while nodding his head.

"Yeah." I put in.

"No arguments here." Juniper added.

"Though I got to say that what we just learned today was pretty cool." I said, remembering what we found out about Bat Queen.

"Yeah, who knew that B.Q. was actually a palisman who looks after other palismen?" Juniper added with a smile. "Hell, I didn't even know palismen could have kids."

"Guess that's just one of the many secrets palismen have to them." I said as we then turned to Owlbert. "Makes you wonder what else we can learn from them."

"Yeah, I can't wait to get my palisman."

"You and me both. Just hope Mom can show us how to carve one."

"Maybe after we showed her we earned our staffs, she'll show us." Juniper then turned to Luz. "And I bet she'll show you how to carve one too."

"Really?" Luz asked with surprise.

"Of course. She helped our dad carve his palisman." I told my friend. "Seeing how you're her student, it only makes sense that she'd show you how to make one."

"Yeah, especially considering you'll get to be her daughter-in-law one day." Juniper said, making me and Luz lose our smiles and blush.

"Juni!" I said as I punched her in the arm.

"What? Don't tell me you haven't thought about the idea of marrying her?" Juniper said with a chuckle. "She is pretty cute…in a nerdy way." I growled in annoyance at her before Mom spoke up from upstairs.

"Ryuji, don't get mad at your sister! And Juni, stop teasing your brother! I'm not in the mood to be dealing with either of you!"

"Sorry, Mom." Me and my twin said, gaining looks of worry as we upset our mom with Luz giggling at our expense.

[No one's view]

In Eda's room, the Owl Lady gained a look of worry as she found three empty elixir bottles lying on the floor before she coughed a bit and spit out another empty bottle.

"The elixir, it isn't working on the curse anymore." Eda said as she held the empty bottle she spat out. "This is bad." After she says this, she started coughing until she spat out the swing the Owl Beast ate at the slayground. "When did I swallow a swing?"

At the Bat Queen's nest, the bat demon now revealed to be a giant palisman was chasing her babies around with hair curlers in her hair.

"Babies, to bed." She ordered, the three flying up to their branch to sleep. "And now, how about story?" She smiled flying up to them. "This is story of how I'd come to know father of young Frank."

[Flashback. 30 years ago]

Within the forest where the Bat Queen had her nest, there is a cloaked figure walking through it, following behind a flying Owlbert.

"Owlbert, it's been over an hour." The figure said to the palisman. "Where are you taking me?"

After a moment of walking, the figure stopped when they heard a crack and looked down to see the ground littered with bones. Just after they do so, something large lands in front of them, catching them by surprise and causing them to fall back onto the ground where their hood slips away to reveal them as a teenage Axel Frank. Looking in front of him, Axel yelps as he sees the Bat Queen glaring down at him.

"Uh, hi." Axel said with a nervous smile.

"Human." Bat Queen said, taking notice of his ears. "Why are you here in forest?"

"Look, I'm not here to cause any trouble." Axel said to her before he heard a hoot and Owlbert flew down between them, the palisman looking up at the Bat Queen as his eyes glow yellow. The Bat Queen's eyes glow the same color for a moment before she spoke again.

"I see." As Owlbert's eyes stopped glowing, Bat Queen then turned her gaze back at Axel. "Your name Axel, correct?"

Axel was surprised to hear this. "Yeah, how did you know?"

"He told me. He also tells me you look to make a palisman."

"Wait, you understood him?" Axel thinks for a moment before he then gains a look of realization. "You're a palisman too, aren't you?"

It was now Bat Queen's turn to be surprised. "Who told you?"

"No one. It's just from what I've read about palismen, only a palisman can speak to another palisman so freely like that."

Bat Queen then regained her emotionless expression. "I see."

"Now who are you anyway?"

"I am the Bat Queen."

"Bat Queen? As in the wealthiest demon on the entire Boiling Isles?"

"Yi-yi, that is I."

"Okay then." As Axel spoke, Owlbert then flew up and perched himself on the Fire Dragon's left shoulder. "So I'm guessing he already told you why I'm here?"

"Yes, he says you look to create palisman of your own, but have trouble with it. Why?"

"Well, it's because I want it to be perfect." Axel then sat up, crossing his legs. "My girlfriend got me some Palistrom wood so I could carve out my own palisman. I don't want it to go to waste, so I have to make sure my palisman is perfect."

"Oh? And why is that?"

"Well, it's just because she worked so hard just get me enough of that wood for me to carve. Palistrom wood isn't easy to get these days and I have always wanted a palisman of my very own, so I'm just so touched by what she did. I didn't even ask her to do that yet she did it for me. She's already done so much for me and I want to make it up to her. The best way I can think of to thank her for such is by making sure that her efforts never go to waste."

"I see. And you struggle with how you want palisman?"

"Yes. I came all this way to look for help in carving mine. When I walked in here, I wasn't sure if this was the right place to look for help. But now I see that Owlbert hadn't led me astray and I was wrong to doubt him. Who better to help me with a palisman-related problem than an actual palisman?"

"It seems this palisman trusts you, so I believe I will help you, human. Now what sort of palisman do you mean to carve?"

"Well, that's just it. I don't know. I've been trying to figure out what sort of palisman I wanted to make. Should I go with a bird, like Owlbert? A mammal? A reptile? Or possibly something amphibious? There are just so many choices that I can't decide."

"That is not what I meant."

Axel was confused by this. "Uh, I'm sorry?"

"What sort of palisman do you want for yourself?"

"I believe I already told you. I don't know."

"You don't know what palisman will be, but do you know what you want?"

"Uh… I don't exactly understand."

Bat Queen sighed in exasperation before she spoke. "Very well, then I will show you." With that, her eyes glow yellow and Axel looks up and becomes shocked to see the multiple glowing eyes of all the palismen Bat Queen had been taking care of, something which his future son and his friend would come to witness.

"Whoa! So many palismen!" Axel was surprised to see this as all the palismen above him. "I thought you were the only one."

"Of course not. Do you believe that Owlbert came here because I was alone? I made home here and take in all palismen that were hurt. The lost, the forgotten."

"Hurt? Lost? Forgotten?"

"Not many palisman are accepted even by the first people they are made for. When that happens, they have no place to go."

"That is until you decided to make a place for them. I had no idea that this could even happen to a palisman."

"Of course, you are not of this land. As such, you're ignorant to how many treat palismen."

"Well, I'm not gonna be like them, especially considering that mine will be a palisman that I will carve myself." Bat Queen then looked to see Axel give a serious look. "As I've come to understand from Owlbert, palismen are living creatures. They don't deserve to be tossed aside just because they aren't to one's liking. That's an easy way to lose their trust and it's never easy to earn one's trust back. As I've come to see from my beloved Eda and her family, a palisman is not a tool, but a loyal partner that stays by your side no matter what." Hearing a chirp, Axel soon looked up and watched as one of the palisman from above flew down and perches on his free shoulder. The palisman is a small, red bird with a scar over its left eye which then nuzzles Axel's cheek and causes the young Fire Dragon to smile. "Hey, little guy."

"It appears you speak vowels, human. It would seem that you know what you want."

"Everything except for what my palisman is supposed to be."

"Even when speaking out from heart, you're blind to what problem really is." The little bird on Axel's shoulder stopped nuzzling as the young Fire Dragon gave the Bat Queen a perplexed look.

"What do you mean?"

"Your problem isn't that you don't know what you want, your problem is that you think too much on how palisman looks."

"Well, of course. It's my first palisman. It has to be perfect."

"I know, but what do you see as perfect?"

"Well, I…" Axel paused for a moment before he then realized he didn't have an answer. "Actually, I don't know. This is my first time ever trying for a palisman. Nobody in my family that I know of has actually tried for one before. As such, there's not much I can go on making the perfect palisman."

"And that is problem. Making palisman is not about how palisman looks or whether or not it is perfect or not. What matters is palisman made for."

"Made for?"

"Yes. How palisman looks depends on desire of those they are made for. All palismen you see here, even the ones down here with us, was each made with different desires. Some made for quest for power, some made for chance at glory, others made for unique desire."

"So you're saying that the way all these palismen look is not because their original owners were thinking about what they'd look like, only what it would mean for them?"

"Exactly, which is why palismen are often discarded as many believe they do not help them achieve such desire."

"Wow, that's harsh. So the palisman you took in are the ones people didn't believe could help them."

"Yes. They stay here in forest as they believe they will not be able to trust anyone ever again."

"Well, I highly doubt that." Axel then uncrossed his legs and stood up, giving an honest smile. "Just because something doesn't go right the first time, doesn't mean you can't try again. That's what I learned in life. It's pretty rare for the first time that things go the way you want it, but that's why second chances exist, so we can try again to see if things go right. These palismen may have been rejected by the first person they thought they could trust, but it doesn't mean that there isn't someone out there they can trust. You said these palismen were each made to help a witch or warlock with a different purpose in life. I'm sure if they just try, they'll find someone they believe they can help, one who accepts them for who they are. All they need to do is just give it a chance."

"Hmm." Bat Queen thought for a moment as she looked around and saw the palisman in the trees looking toward Axel in awe, all of them touched by his words. With this, she then spoke again. "You truly have kind heart. With one such as yours, I believe you have desire, yes?"

"If you mean with my palisman, then yeah. I want to be able to protect those I care about. I want to protect my friends, my family, everyone that I know and love. At one time in my life, I had lost someone very dear to me and it tore me apart. It was a time when I wanted to do things alone, so that I could never suffer that kind of pain again. Though that was only because I thought I was never strong enough to keep anyone close to me safe from the dangers that come with a life like mine. But I came to realize that what happened in the past isn't something that can be set in stone. Things are different now because now I know that I've changed and become stronger, strong enough to make a difference. And I have those who choose to stand by my side to thank for that. All that is what got me to realize my goal in life, both as Axel Frank and as a Fire Dragon. I want to make a world where everyone can live together in peace and harmony, no matter who or what they are. I want to make a world where everyone can have a chance at a happily ever after, a chance where they can be happy. I want to make it where no one has anything or anyone taken away from them much like when it happened to me and I didn't have the strength to stop it. I want to make a world where the strong help the weak. I want to be a hero for both the weak and the strong, a hero for all."

Bat Queen then smiled at the young Fire Dragon. "You truly have a great desire, hu… Axel. I believe that saying this helps you with problem?"

"Yeah. Now I know what to do." With his arms at his side, Axel then bowed respectively to Bat Queen. "Thank you for helping me, Bat Queen."

"Think nothing of it, Axel. I was glad to help a great person such as you."

Straightening himself out of the bow, the young Fire Dragon then watched as the little red bird nuzzled his cheek a bit before flying back up into the trees. After giving Owlbert a grateful smile, Axel then waved goodbye to Bat Queen before turning to leave, the giant palisman smiling at the young man walking off with his ideas on what his palisman would be.

[End of flashback]

"And since that day, I was glad to have helped that day." Bat Queen said with a smile as her babies slowly drifted off to sleep. "And he managed to return favor by helping bring lost palismen here and even showing me how magical being parent was." After finishing her story and seeing her babies fast asleep, Bat Queen smiled as she then joined them on the branch.

Young Frank and his human friend make quite the team. Bat Queen thought to herself, thinking how similar Ryuji is to Axel. Hopefully both will be ready for what will come.

With that, Bat Queen wrapped her wings around herself and her children before going to sleep with them.

Well, this was one hell of a day we had. Sure, me and the gang didn't get to see the grudgby game like we planned, but at least my friends were still able to have a good time. Not only that, but we also got the Vallake Family's portal, me and Luz have gained Owlbert's trust, and I think Luz had earned my sister's respect. It was also quite surprising that Bat Queen, the richest demon on the Boiling Isles, was actually a giant palisman who took in other palismen who needed a safe place to call home this entire time. At least now me and Luz know more about palismen than we did before and how important it is for one to have a palisman. Really gives me and her more thought about our own palismen from when we earn our staffs. Needless to say, I really can't wait to get a palisman of my very own and learn how to make one if Mom is willing to teach me. DK out!

Author's Note: Hey, guys! I hope you all like the new chapter. This had been quite eventful and full of surprises, huh? Ryuji and Luz managed to go through trials and earn Owlbert's trust, they found out the truth about Bat Queen being a palisman herself, and they've now obtained the portal belonging to the Vallakes. Though with all the great things that had happened, there are also equally terrible discoveries. After her recent rampage as the Owl Beast, Eda has now discovered that the elixir is slowly losing its effect on her curse. Will this mean that Eda will no longer be able to hold back her curse and be stuck as the dreaded Owl Beast? Or will Ryuji, Juniper, and Luz be able to save the Owl Lady? The answers are yet to be discovered. By the way, if you're wondering about the mysterious witch girl who got King to rescue Eda, I can't exactly tell you who she is. But I will let you know that she does play an important part in this story and you'll see her again soon. Also, she is voiced by Sarah Wiedenheft. In the next chapter, while Eda and Juniper are dealing with finding a way to hold back her curse, Ryuji and Luz decided to enter a writing contest with King. That's all I got for now. Don't forget to leave a comment to tell me what you think of it. See you all in the next chapter!