I do not own Soul Eater or Owl House.
But part of me kinda wishes I did.
The hiss and sizzle of bacon was a pleasant thing to wake up to.
It breached through the haze of sleep, gradually rousing Soul from his slumber. The smell alone was enough to get his mouth to water, tempting him, practically daring him to go and eat and skip his normal morning routine.
"Haven't even brushed my teeth yet," he grumbled, slowly stretching, working out the kinks in his arms. He smiled, "Geez, Maka… not a cool way to start the morning. At least come wake me up first…"
He pushed himself up – or tried to, at least. There was an unusual weight in the center of his chest, as if something had curled up atop his ribs and was now refusing to move, remaining stubbornly in place despite the efforts of his still sleep-addled body.
Annoyed, Soul finally opened his eyes, glaring down at the small object that refused to let him do his single morning sit-up.
He blinked. Once. Twice.
A small cat was curled in a ball on his sternum, breathing gently with a contented smile on its small face. Its fur was a deep purple, so deep it was practically black; its tail curled up in a spiral, so long that if stretched out, it could easily have reached two feet and still have several inches to spare. A strange collar and pendant hung around its neck, but what truly caught Soul's attention was the hat.
The enormous, crooked Witch's hat.
Suddenly, memories of that night came flooding back; the house shaped like a pumpkin; the drudgery of four long nights of effort; the sting of three consecutive defeats.
But most of all, Soul remembered the utter disgust he'd felt with himself for turning on Maka, even if it was to get the upper hand, and the taste of the glowing purple Soul as he'd chewed and swallowed, power welling through him in an overwhelming surge of strength… only for it to all disappear in an instant, leaving him feeling genuinely ill for the rest of the night even if he'd done his best not to show it.
Soul felt the colour drain from his already pale face as he slowly connected the dots.
This was the cat they'd mistaken for a Witch. This was Blair.
Blair was in his room.
Blair had followed them home.
Before he could call for Maka, the cat stirred; she pushed herself up, first stretching up, and then out with a long squeak of a yawn. Her bright yellow eyes gradually drifted open as she licked her lips, and she met Soul's gaze.
He was certain in that moment that he was dead.
He knew that there was no way he could win without Maka – and even with her, their chances would be dubious at best. They'd only won because he'd successfully tricked Blair… and Soul knew how vengeful cats could be.
He could only guess she was here to pay them back for her missing Soul.
For a long moment, neither spoke. The terrified Weapon merely stared at the bemused cat, waiting for the killing blow to come…
"… morning, Soul," Blair yawned again, then slowly curled up and laid back down, eyes fluttering shut, "Jus' lay there a few more minutes, 'kay? You make a nice pillow…"
Soul swallowed, thoroughly confused. Was he still asleep? Was this some nightmare where Blair's bizarre idea of revenge upon her killers took the form of just living in their apartment and making a nuisance of herself?
Slowly, he ran his tongue along his jagged teeth…
"… well, I'm not asleep…" he winced at the scraping sensation across his tongue, the mild pain enough to totally dispel any hope he might have had of abruptly waking up.
"'course not, silly…" Blair mumbled, "Settle down... I wanna nap a little more…"
… he was officially at a loss. He had no idea what to say or do.
Cautiously, he brought his arms beneath himself, and slowly tried to push himself up…
"Nyoooooo," the cat whined, digging in slightly with her claws.
Soul immediately stopped, laying back down; on the one hand, he was now more than a little thankful he had worn a shirt to bed. Those claws felt sharp.
On the other, he liked this shirt, and felt no desire to see it get all snagged up.
Eventually, Blair's claws retracted, and Soul felt himself let out a sigh of relief.
"… okay," he whispered, reaching up to his chest, "Let's try this, then…"
He slid his hands under the relatively small cat, her dark fur soft as silk to the touch, and slowly tried to lift her off.
Once more, she responded with her claws, this time digging in harder to keep him from lifting her, "Nyooooooooooooooo…"
Soul quickly set her back down, cursing as the tiny little razor blades the cat called claws sat on the surface of his skin, over a dozen and a half little needles that would only need an errant twitch to break through. When they pulled back once more, he took a deep breath, gritting his teeth.
"Blair, if you don't let me get up, I'm going to call Maka in here," he threatened, hoping he wouldn't have to follow through.
She opened one eye, still smiling that smug little smile, "Will you?"
"I will."
"Will you, really?"
"Blair," he urged through his teeth.
"Hmmmmmmmmmm," she drew the sound out, slowly, letting her eye angle upwards in mock thought.
Then, a cloud of smoke abruptly erupted from her form, and Soul found himself winded as the weight on his chest went from roughly seven pounds to well over a hundred.
Blair chuckled as the smoke cleared, her humanoid form now clad in the same short black dress she had worn before, cutting off just above the thigh, the curled toes of her long black boots matching the curls of her hair; she sank her razor sharp, perfectly manicured nails, even in this form more like claws than anything else, into the fabric of the mattress. She grinned at the visible panic on the Weapon's face, settling back down once more, "Promises, promises, Soul."
"… God damn, you do not fight fair," he grumbled, "Not cool."
"Let's just say I learned from the best, and leave it at that."
Soul let out a sigh of defeat, slumping back down against his pillow and staring up at the ceiling.
It seemed there was only one way out of this.
He closed his eyes, and took a deep breath to steel himself…
"Maka," he called, raising his voice, "Can you come in here for a minute? I need a hand dealing with our guest."
At this, Blair raised her head, eyes blinking open in mild surprise. After a moment, footsteps began to draw closer to the door, the apartment's only other occupant on the approach.
The door opened, and Maka stepped into the room, her hair already up in her usual pigtails, her brows furrowed as her eyes swept the room, "What guest-"
Her eyes landed on the bed.
"… Blair followed us home," Soul stated, hoping that would explain everything.
"Oh, wow, you actually called her," Blair's eyes shot from Maka to Soul, smiling, though she pointedly did not move from her spot atop the Weapon, "Well played."
"Please, get her off," he begged.
Maka stood there for a long moment, silent, before turning around, and walking back out of the room.
"… wow, that's cold," Blair whistled, giving Soul an empathetic look, "Didn't think she'd just ditch you like that."
"Whoever said anything about ditching him?" Maka shot back, and the sound of something heavy rolling across the hardwood joined her footsteps. When she entered once more, she pulled along with her a large, heavy…
Vacuum cleaner.
The cat's eyes widened with sudden terror, her grip on the bed tightening, "Oh, that's not fair!"
"Get off my partner, or I start vacuuming the bed," the Meister threatened, "With you still on it."
"You're bluffing!" Blair whined.
Maka turned on the vacuum. Its loud howl filled the room, the light on the front turning on-
And Blair's human form disappeared in a puff of smoke, the small black cat rushing past Maka and out into the rest of the apartment.
"… thanks," Soul sighed, letting his head fall back onto the pillow.
"Don't thank me yet," Maka leaned down, turning off the vacuum, "We still gotta figure out what she wants, and find a way to get her to leave."
"I know," he grumbled, bringing a hand to his forehead with a groan, "… how'd you know the vacuum was gonna work?"
"I used to have a cat. It was always terrified of the vacuum cleaner," she shrugged. Then, she smiled, "Anyways, breakfast is ready. You wanna come get some bacon and eggs?"
"Absolutely," Soul grinned, finally pushing off the covers and following Maka into the kitchen, still clad in his pajamas.
Luz nibbled half-heartedly on her slice of toast, bouncing restlessly on the balls of her feet. She paced across the floor, hoping to let her body expel the restless energy that sat in her stomach like a small, bound animal; it didn't do anything to alleviate her anxious anticipation, but it did at least give her a physical outlet. It felt good, the back and forth, the way her bare feet dug into the floorboards and propelled her forwards, leaving a slight, but pleasant sting on her soles, the kind of sting that comes from pivoting in place or from jumping really high with no socks on – it felt almost like a dance.
She'd managed to get in some sleep after talking to Papi. She hadn't woken up until nearly ten in the morning, and she had still felt exhausted; as usual, Mom was gone by this time of day, and was likely already at the hospital.
In the meantime, she was stuck at home.
No friends to go see. No places to go.
Just… stuck. Waiting for an update she at once coveted and dreaded.
She took another bite of toast, resisting the urge to check her phone again. She'd already checked at least three times since getting up, once before showering, once after, and once while she'd made her toast; no messages from Dad. No word from Mom.
Luz knew better than to get her hopes up, but the anticipation was killing her; it was already a struggle not to try to think about what life at the DWMA would be like. Her hands itched with the urge to grab her crayons and some paper. She wanted to draw; herself, her future room and partner, it didn't matter.
"Would I be a Meister?" she wondered aloud, "What kind of Weapon partner would I have? I'd love to have a scythe, kinda like Dad…"
She smiled, raising both hands as if she were wielding the large, heavy black blade of the Death Scythe… then frowned, "… but then maybe I'd just be copying Maka… I don't wanna come off as just aping off my little sister. Maybe a sword? An axe?"
She brought a hand to her chin, her brow creasing further as she started tapping her foot. Then her eyes lit up, "Or a staff! I'd love to have a staff for a partner!"
The image of herself conjuring the strength of her Soul Wavelength through a staff of white, tipped with a massive sapphire shot through her mind, striking down an evildoer with a simple twirl of her partner. She couldn't suppress the rising squeal of excitement that was burgeoning in her stomach, making her bounce up and down, "That would be so cool!"
Then she stopped, eyes widening in realization.
"But wait… what if I'm a Weapon?"
She looked down at her free hand, thoughtful, clenching her fingers into a fist, then opening them again, "If I'm a Weapon, that'll make finding a good Meister really important. But before that, I gotta figure out what kind of Weapon I am!"
Luz started pacing again, quickly finishing her toast, "Unlike Soul Wavelengths, Weapon traits are hereditary – I remember that much from what Dad told me. So if I am a Weapon, then that means I'd probably, almost definitely be a scythe!"
She held her arms out directly in front of her, taking care to move away from the table, making the best concentration face she could manage. She clenched her jaw, tightened every muscle in her body, grunting in exertion as she tried to force her body to transform. She could hear her blood vessels going into overtime, feel her lungs begging for air as she struggled…
Finally, a wave of dizziness forced her to give up. She stumbled back, sucking in as deep a breath as she could as she leaned back against the table, her vision swimming.
"Dios mio," she groaned, sitting herself down in the chair before she could fall over, rubbing at her head as she waited for the room to stop spinning, "Okay… either I'm not a Weapon, or I have no idea what I'm doing. Or both."
Luz shook her head, her vision and headache gradually returning to normal. She frowned, crossing her arms, "This… might be harder than I thought. I don't know how this Weapon or Soul Wavelength stuff works… I need a crash course, and fast."
She pulled out her phone, going through her contact list, short as it was.
The most obvious person to call would be Papi. He would happily explain all this to her, but she suspected it wouldn't be something he could compress into a five minute phone call and still make it easy to understand. There were schools with six years or more dedicated to the subjects – that was part of why DWMA existed. To help kids better understand and use their powers, and guide them towards utilizing those powers for the right reasons.
Besides, it was still in the morning; he was probably still busy, and he promised that he'd call Mami.
"Best leave him to it for now," Luz continued through the list.
The next name she stopped at made her heart skip a beat, then sink.
Lil' Sis Maka.
Her lips curled downwards as her eyebrows curled up, a pang of hurt ringing through her like a small, broken bell. Maka had never been the most prudent person when it came to responding to Luz's texts and emails – it always took a day or two in the case of emails. Luz had always assumed that was because Maka liked to be thoughtful in her responses, and didn't just jump into things the way she did.
But just over a month ago, the responses stopped entirely. She hadn't heard so much as a word from Maka; just an abrupt silence that left Luz wondering if she had once again done something wrong, something to alienate her sister.
She bit her lip, bouncing one knee once more as the anxiousness returned. Should she do it? Should she try one more time to talk to Maka?
"… eh, what's the worst that could happen?" she asked, smiling, as she tapped on the name.
Blair pouted as she leaned forwards on the table, once again in human form, watching Soul and Maka split the dishes between them. Soul kept glancing at her every few seconds with a wary eye, as if expecting her to turn hostile at any moment; Maka, on the other hand, was very pointedly ignoring her, refusing to so much as give the cat a second glance and keeping her attention squarely on soapy water.
"… you two are grumpy," she grumbled, chin on her arms.
"You broke into our house – after trouncing us several times over the course of the past week – and now you're refusing to leave," Soul huffed, placing another plate back in the cupboard, "I don't understand why you think we'd be happy to see you."
The cat let out a whimper, sinking further into her arms.
"Why are you even here, anyways?" Maka finally asked, her words sharp and scathing as daggers, "We killed you and took one of your Souls. Are you just here to annoy us as payback?"
"No," Blair's voice was somewhat muffled from under her arms.
Maka's grip on the knife in her hands tightened, clearly contemplating the pros and cons of taking yet another cat Soul as she continued her cross examination, "Are you here to take Soul? As I recall, our last fight was a pretty solid 'no.'"
"No," Blair sat up slightly, raising an eyebrow as she looked from Meister, to Weapon, to Meister again.
"… what's with that look?" Soul inquired cautiously, eyes narrowing.
"… are you two an item?"
The plate made a solid THUNK in the bottom of the sink as it slipped from Maka's hands; she cursed, digging around in the soapy water before yanking it back out.
"We are NOT," Maka snapped, scrubbing furiously.
"Really?" Blair's smile shifted, becoming knowing, almost smug, "You're pretty touchy when it comes to him, you know that? If I didn't know any better, I'd say you two were actually a couple."
"Blair," Maka finally turned to glare at the cat, and Soul was sure that if looks could kill, Blair would be dead, nine Souls or no, "What do you want?"
Blair shifted in her seat, pushing back and folding her hands on the table with her best business smile, "I want to live with you two!"
You could hear a pin drop in the dead silence that passed; for a moment, Maka's rage had entirely subsided, and Soul's caution had disappeared, both replaced with shock. Just as quickly, however, both returned, eyeing the magical cat with wary stares, eyes narrowed and brows furrowed.
"… you… want to live with us," Soul repeated.
"I just said that, yes," Blair confirmed.
"… why?" Maka set her cloth down, crossing her arms, "Don't you already have a place to live? It's a lot nicer than this apartment."
"Well… yeeeeaaaaaah," Blair's eyes wandered the room; the apartment was small, but cozy, white walls decorated with the occasional portrait or poster, with small, inexpensive furniture. A half wall separated the kitchen from the dining table, but let Blair see and hear Maka and Soul with no issue, "I will say that my old place was much roomier and had way nicer stuff."
"So, again," Soul repeated, "Why do you want to live here?"
"Oh, it's got nothing to do with the place. I'm good with here or there in terms of actual location," Blair bridged her fingers, resting her chin across her hands, "I just want to live with you two. Specifically."
Again, the Weapon and Meister were left speechless. They looked to each other, silently questioning the cat's sanity before looking back at her.
"… why!?" Maka demanded, her voice growing increasingly incredulous, eyes widening in something between disbelief and panic.
"Because I'm boooooooorrrrrreeeeed," Blair dragged the word out as long as she could, trying to emphasize her situation, "It's boring living all by myself. I don't have anybody to talk to and the only things I have to play with are what I can enchant with my Magic, but that might as well be me playing by myself with dolls!"
"So find somebody else to play with!" Maka cried, "We're students at the DWMA! We don't have time to be playing with some stray cat!"
"And yet, you have time to loaf around this apartment feeling sorry for yourselves," Blair teased.
"That's different! And moreover, YOUR fault!"
"How is it my fault? You're the ones that thought I was a Witch."
"You could have told us you weren't!"
"Would you have believed me, Maka?"
"I-"
Maka stopped; she knew that on some level, Blair had a point there. She had no idea what a true Witch's Soul looked like, and had just assumed Blair was the real deal…
"Alright, that's enough," Soul interjected, placing a placating hand on his partner's shoulder. He then turned his gaze on the cat, lips pursed, "Blair, in case you haven't noticed this place is kind of cramped as it is. We can't afford anything bigger than this, and your place isn't in Death City. Maka and I need to be here in order to continue our classes."
"Fair point, fair point," Blair conceded, nodding, but still smiling.
"We only get about five hundred dollars between the two of us every month for groceries and rent. Our budget's tight," Maka added, finally smiling as she gained a concrete reason to not let the cat live with her, "We don't exactly have the money for a third mouth to feed, even if we did have room."
"I can get a job," Blair stated without missing a beat.
Soul raised an eyebrow.
"You? Work?" Maka scoffed, crossing her arms, "Didn't think you were the type."
Blair's smile split into a grin, "Oh, Maka… you think I had that pumpkin house you broke into for free?"
At this, Maka's smile faltered, "… I thought you just… I dunno… Magic?"
"Really? You think I just Magicked the building into place? All the plumbing for the hot water for my baths? All the glass from the window Soul smashed up?" the cat teased, letting out an actual laugh this time, "I'm good at Magic, Maka, but I'm not that good."
Maka's smile continued to fail, showing more and more dread as the magical animal continued to make her points.
"Plus," Blair added, disappearing in another poof of smoke; in her place sat the small black cat once more, raising a paw, "You're forgetting that I'm a cat. I don't actually eat that much compared to you two, so my contributions to the food bill would actually be a lot smaller than you're implying, and I don't take up that much space. You wouldn't need to move to a bigger apartment to accommodate me since I basically sleep where I want to anyways."
Once again, silence fell between the three; Maka's smile had been completely replaced with an expression of utter dread. Soul seemed uncertain, lips still pursed, but he seemed to be in thought.
"… so what you're saying," Soul started, "is that you are capable of making enough money to actually own a decent sized house and pay all the bills for it. And, moreover, that your actual living expenses are significantly smaller than either of ours'."
"Bing-go," Blair singsonged, "Five points to the little scythey boy!"
"Please don't call me that," he shuddered, looking away.
"If it helps, I can probably get my property sold sooner rather than later. We'll have a good bit of money to sit on for a while, if you really want me to contribute to the household," Blair set her paw down, "So, what do you say? Not a bad offer, right?"
"… it seems too good to be true," Maka stated, still not at all excited about the prospect of living with a magical cat – a magical cat that was stronger than her.
"Maka makes a good point," Soul noted, "So far, this seems a lot like a honey trap."
"A good instinct," Blair nodded, her tone approving, "But I promise, there are no strings attached. All I want is to live with you two, and I'll contribute everything I can to living here."
The Weapon and Meister glanced at each other, both unsure.
"… you do owe me," Blair's voice filled with sudden, mock sorrow, "Poor Blair is down from nine Souls to eight. What ever will she do now?"
"… we'll talk about this later, okay?" Maka finally sighed, defeated, "Soul and I already have some important things to talk about, Blair. You make a good case, but we'll discuss the living arrangements later."
Blair beamed, knowing that her chances of winning just became that much greater, "Fine by me!"
The cat hopped off the table, padding off down the hall, "I'm gonna go take a bath. Let me know when you two are ready to start talking numbers."
With that, she disappeared from view.
"… never thought I'd see a cat that likes baths," Soul sighed.
"Me either."
They each turned back to the sink, resuming the dishes.
"… so. That important stuff you said you wanted to discuss," Soul started, "You talking about those Kishin Egg Souls Lord Death offered us?"
"Yeah," Maka confirmed, draining the sink so she could run fresh hot water, "I wanted to know what your thoughts on it were."
"Well… on the one hand, it sucks that we have to start over. Ninety nine Souls and a whole year, down the drain," Soul huffed, placing another dish into the cupboard, "On the other… I dunno. It just… doesn't feel right, you know?"
"Like we didn't earn it," Maka agreed, "Like we just piggy backed off of someone else. Someone who wasn't even part of the Academy, from the sound of it."
"Yeah," Soul bobbed his head, "That's it exactly."
"… I'm glad."
"Hm?"
Maka glanced at him, a small smile on her face, "… I was thinking the same thing, to be perfectly honest. I know it seems like a stupid move, but… I don't wanna make a Death Scythe like that. I want to do it the right way."
Soul paused, then let out a low chuckle, baring his teeth in a grin, "You and me both."
"… I thought that conversation was going to take a lot longer," Maka confessed, "I thought it would take at least an hour to settle on what we were gonna do."
"Funny how a little honesty can wrap things up like that," Soul put another cup away, "… is that the last of the dishes?"
"Yeah. All that's left is-"
The sound of a phone ringing abruptly cut Maka off, making her jump as it buzzed in her shirt pocket. After a moment, she let out a sigh of relief – it wasn't the ringtone she'd assigned to her Dad.
She fished her phone out, and glanced at the screen.
Then she stared at the screen, her heart sinking once more.
The name "Noceda" blared across the screen like a death sentence.
Luz was trying to get a hold of her again.
"… this important?" Soul asked.
"… I…"
Maka didn't know how to answer. She couldn't take her eyes off of her phone screen.
"… I'll deal with the rest," Soul decided, turning his attention back to the sink, "You do what you need to do."
"… thanks, Soul."
Maka turned, and sped back to her room, faster than she wanted to admit, closing the door behind her. The phone continued to ring in her hand as she walked over to her bed, and sat down, staring at the name.
When Maka was six, Papa – back when she was still willing to call him that – had given her Luz's contact information, her email and phone number, and vice versa, so that they could talk. They were penpals, making up for the fact that they weren't able to grow up together by telling each other anything and everything.
Or at least, that had been the idea.
Maka had always found her half sister difficult to talk to; even on the phone, Luz was more than capable of overwhelming Maka with how quickly she spoke, and her complete lack of volume control or filter for anything and everything that crossed her mind. So many things went through Luz's head in a given moment that it was hard for Maka to keep up with her – she could be jumping from one thought to the next with barely any sense of connecting thread one moment, then hyper-focused on one particular topic the next, and even on the phone her presence was a dominating one, leaving Maka feeling like a candle in the wind.
It wasn't so much that Maka disliked talking with Luz so much as she simply found it exhausting.
Thankfully, Luz had understood when Maka explained it to her, even apologizing for overwhelming her like that; their correspondence went from phone calls to emails and the occasional text. Luz's emails had even become something for Maka to look forwards to, as it was so much easier to follow her thought patterns when they were written out than when Luz was babbling nonstop in mixed English and Spanish; she'd even made Maka laugh so hard she bruised a rib once.
But there was one thing Maka had never been able to get out of her head – a nagging thought that had only grown stronger as she got older, causing her to put off opening Luz's emails and checking her text thread for longer and longer periods of time.
And then Mama filed for a divorce with her father.
That was over a month ago.
Maka had not opened a single one of Luz's emails since. Nor had she checked the text thread.
She'd even changed the name marking her half sister's contact from "Luz" to "Noceda."
And now, here she was. Sitting on her bed, debating whether to wait for Luz to give up, or to decline the call.
Guilt stabbed through Maka's stomach like an iron stake.
She knew it wasn't fair. She knew she should just answer.
But… how was she just supposed to let go?... Mama hadn't let go…
Eventually, the ringing stopped. The call went to voice mail.
Maka sighed, and flopped back, laying down on the bed.
… and the phone began to ring again.
She picked it up.
She stared at the screen.
Noceda.
"… she's not going to give up, is she?"
Maka knew the answer to that question already.
If there was one thing she shared with her older sister, it was that neither of them knew when to quit.
Slowly, she closed her eyes, placed a finger on the bottom of the screen…
… and held it to her ear.
"Hello?"
Luz's eyes immediately snapped open at the voice. She leaped out of her chair, unable to suppress her joy, "Maka!"
"… hey, Luz," Maka's tired voice rang in her ear.
"It's been so long since I last heard from you!" she started to pace, a broad smile crossing her face, "I was starting to think you weren't gonna pick up at all! ¿Cómo estas? ¿Estas bien?"
"… Luz," Maka sighed, "You've gone into Spanish mode again."
"… oh," she let out a sheepish chuckle, rubbing the back of her head, "Sorry…"
"It's okay. No big deal."
"… seriously, though, are you okay?" Luz frowned, finally noticing how off Maka sounded, "You sound exhausted. Have you really had that rough of a morning?"
"… it's been… kind of a rough week," Maka admitted.
"You wanna talk about it?" Luz leaned against the wall, staring up at the clock, "I can listen. I'm not going anywhere."
"Not really, honestly. I mostly want to know why you're calling."
"Weeeeeeeeellllll-"
"Please don't stretch your words out like that," Maka groaned, "You sound like that dumb stray cat…"
Luz gasped, "You found a talking cat!?"
"A Magic talking cat, yes," Maka confirmed.
"Send me pictures!?"
"Maybe once she's out of the bath."
"A talking Magical cat that likes baths!?" Luz squealed, hopping from one foot to the other, "I am so jealous right now, Maka!"
"Trust me, it's not nearly as fun as it sounds."
"I'll be the judge of that, thank you," Luz smirked.
"You can judge after she screws up your Witch hunt."
"Wait, is that what happened?" Luz stopped midstep, the gears in her head turning, "Last I heard from you, you said you made it up to around eighty Souls. Did you make it up to ninety nine?"
"… yeah… unfortunately, though, we wound up botching the Witch's Soul. We mistook a magical cat for a Witch and now we have to start over."
Luz winced, "Ouch… yowza, that's rough. Sorry, Maka…"
"'s not your fault. Besides, it's not like the last year was a total waste; Soul and I are both stronger for it, and this'll count towards our grades."
"Well, that's good at least," Luz smiled, leaning back once more, "I hope I get to meet you and Soul in person soon."
This time, Maka didn't answer, and silence fell between them for a long moment.
"… so. How come you're calling, Luz? Is something wrong?"
"Well, I missed you. You haven't been emailing me back lately," Luz put an arm across her stomach, anxiety blossoming inside and making her smile slip, "I was worried…"
"... I'm sorry," Maka began, "It's just… there's been a lot going on, lately, with school, and Mama getting divorced from Dad…"
"… oh," Luz felt her heart plummet, "I… I'm sorry… I-"
"Don't," Maka interrupted, "It's…"
Another pause, Maka clearly struggling with her words, unsure of what to say…
"… it's not a big deal. Dad had this coming for a long time."
Luz couldn't stop herself from flinching. She'd known Maka was angry at Papi, that was one thing… but it was another thing entirely to hear the venom in her little sister's words.
"… so," she started, hoping to steer the conversation to a happier topic, "I, uh… I was actually gonna ask you something, Maka."
"Hm?"
"… can you teach me how to use my Soul Wavelength?"
She could practically see Maka's confused blink; Luz heard the ruffle of fabric as she moved, pushing herself up.
"... Soul Wavelength?... I mean, I could, but… why, Luz?"
"… okay, Dad told me not to get my hopes up, but basically I got in a lot of trouble at my school here for using snakes and fireworks in my book report, and getting sent to the principal's office four times this year, and I'm being sent to CampRealityCheckforthesummer,unlessPapicanconvinceMamitoletmecometoDWMA,andifI'mgonnadotha'Ireallyneedt'knowhowt'usemySoulWavelength," Luz felt her words starting to bleed together from how fast she was speaking, desperation seeping into her tone.
"… did you just say you used snakes and fireworks in your book report?"
"Makaaaaaaa!" Luz whined, "I really need help here! I don't wanna go to that summer camp!"
"Okay, okay, Luz," Maka's tone shifted, becoming more even, authoritative, "Settle down for a minute, alright?"
"… okay," Luz shifted from foot to foot, trying to ease her anxiety.
"… listen to me carefully. A Soul Wavelength isn't something that you learn how to use in one day. It takes a long time and a lot of practice just to be able to sense it. Even if we were to start right now, you probably wouldn't be ready for summer classes at the Academy."
"Yeah, but I'd be that much further ahead than I am now," Luz insisted.
"You're not even sure if you'll be allowed yet. What if we get started, and your Mama decides you can't come?"
Luz bit her lip, her head dropping, "… I…"
"… I'm not trying to hurt your feelings, Luz. I'm just asking you to think about this," Maka assured, "You know as well as I do how much it sucks when you get your hopes up, only for things to not go the way you want them to."
"… yeah. I know… that doesn't make it any easier, though…"
"I get it. Trust me. I get it. But that's why I'm saying this; it's better to know what's going to happen than it is to act based on an unlikely hope."
Luz closed her eyes with a breath, letting her head roll back against the wall. It wasn't as if she didn't understand what Maka was trying to say. Life was easier when you tempered your expectations.
"If you're always expecting disappointment, you'll never be disappointed," she muttered, "Kind of a sucky way to live if you ask me…"
"I hear that," Maka sighed.
"… can you still teach me?" Luz asked, "Just… the very basics. The very very very basics. Even if I get sent to summer camp, it'll at least give me something to practice."
Maka paused, then inhaled, before releasing the breath slowly through the mouth; Luz could practically see her closed eyes and focused expression, the very picture of a determined teacher.
"… alright. I can teach you a little bit about your Soul Wavelength."
"YAY!" Luz whooped, jumping from her spot on the wall with her fists raised, "Thank you, Makaaaa!"
"Not right now!" Maka interrupted, voice stern, "Right now, I have stuff I need to do. But I'll see what I can do about calling you on the weekends – if, and only if, you're willing to listen to me."
"I can listen," Luz agreed heartily, "I can listen soooooo good, you'll never meet a better listener!"
"I'm sure," Maka remarked dryly, "And you have to understand, you won't get it immediately. If you do, I will be very, very surprised."
"And more than a little jealous?" Luz teased, grinning.
"Ha ha. We'll see how long that lasts."
"Hey, I might be able to do it! We won't know until we try!"
"Heh… yeah. I guess that's true."
There was muffled shouting from the other end of the line, and Luz heard Maka shout something back; after a moment, Maka returned.
"Sorry. Looks like Soul needs me for something. Gotta go for now."
"Alright!" Luz gave a salute, despite knowing Maka couldn't see her, "When should I expect the first lesson?"
"Sunday, about six in the evening. That's usually when I'm done my homework unless there's a big project involved."
"Okay!" Luz nodded, "Talk to you then!"
"Bye, Luz."
"Love you, Maka!"
The line went silent, and Luz looked to the clock. It was almost noon.
"… and now, we wait."
Camila Noceda didn't so much sit down in the chair as much as she did sink into it, grateful to finally be off her feet for a moment. The room was, mercifully, silent, the beds empty, the monitors dark, the machines not making so much as a single blip.
Technically, she wasn't supposed to use rooms like this for her break, but she'd needed to get away from all the noise; this morning had been, to say the very least, rough. Today had already seen the aftermath of a particularly severe pile up.
There hadn't been any fatalities – at least, not yet, as far as she knew. Of the six that had been rushed to the hospital, only two of them had been in critical condition, and had since been stabilized. It seemed as if everyone was going to pull through, but Camila knew better than to make such assumptions so soon after even a relatively minor crash.
She knew what this kind of work more often than not entailed, but even so, riding in that ambulance, uncertain as to what she would see when the vehicle stopped… lifting limp, bleeding bodies onto stretchers and pulling them in, doing whatever was needed to keep them stable… holding their hands as the ambulance pulled away…
Even after that, when the treatments began, was a constant flood of nerve-wracking anxiety. There had been children in that collision… and that always made it so much worse.
She couldn't even begin to imagine if it were Luz coming in on one of those stretchers.
She took off her glasses, rubbing her eyes; she was on her lunch break, now, but at any moment she could be called back in to assist if something went wrong.
She'd become a doctor because she'd wanted to help others… but sometimes, the stress that entailed became almost too much to bear.
"… I should eat while I have the chance," she murmured, reaching for her bag.
A loud noise blared out, and Camila's heart leapt into her throat; she staggered up, eyes wide and sweeping the room, expecting to see doctors and nurses rushing in with a new patient-
… only to realize it wasn't an alarm.
It was a ring tone.
A familiar ring tone.
She felt her heart sink, and she dug into her pocket, pulling out her phone; she stared at the name written across the screen, at the familiar red hair and the kind teal eyes with a sorrowful nostalgia.
Spirit Albarn.
She briefly considered not answering – she'd requested a long time ago that he not contact her outside of specific occasions, and even then, the only topic of discussion would be their daughter.
But Spirit hadn't broken his promise yet; outside of some very important conversations, he never called her about anything other than Luz.
After a long moment of deliberation, Camila finally answered.
"Hello?"
"Hey, Camila. Are you free at the moment?" the Death Scythe's familiar voice was cheerful… but she recognized the strained tone.
She let out a sigh, sitting down again, "I am on my lunch break. Is there something wrong?"
"Well, that depends largely on how you define 'wrong,'" he started, "I don't think anything is wrong, but I am a little concerned."
"Is this about Luz?" she asked, opting to cut out the banter entirely.
"… it is."
The doctor took a breath through her nose. Of course Luz had called Spirit; he always seemed to be the one Luz went to, always the one she called when she felt she wasn't being heard.
"I was going to call you to give you an update later today," Camila started, "But going off your tone, I take it you already know."
"She brought live snakes and fireworks to school. Kids and the principal got bitten, right?"
"No one was seriously injured, but yes. That is the long and short of it," she confirmed.
"And she's being sent to… Camp Reality Check for the summer?" she could hear the disapproval in his tone, despite the effort he took to keep his voice even.
"… yes," Camila's answer was quiet, but firm, "She needs to be able to separate reality from fantasy, Spirit. She can't keep acting out like this."
"… okay. I'll admit, this time, she went over the line. But don't you think this is a bit of an overreaction, Camila?" he queried.
"This is the fourth time she's been sent to the principal's office this year."
"And the other three times, she didn't do anything wrong," Spirit argued, "The Sausage Incident was, at worst, five minutes of clean-up. The anatomy assignment was done as requested. And the time with the cheerleading squad, she didn't even do anything. Each time she was sent in because her teachers and peers declared her a maverick. This is the first time the trip to the principal's office was actually deserved, and I doubt Luz is going to do something like this again."
"It's not my decision, Spirit," despite her best efforts, Camila felt her frustration bleed into her tone "The school board has mandated that she has to go if she is to continue going to this school. Otherwise, she'll be expelled, and you know how hard it is to find a school that will take in a child that's been kicked out for bad behaviour, that's actually safe."
"… well, there is one school off the top of my head," Spirit's tone was light, cheerful even.
"No."
The word shot out of her mouth before Camila had even fully processed the implications of the Death Scythe's words, decisive and final.
"Camila-"
"Spirit. We have talked about this," her voice was calm controlled, and cold, "I am not sending Luz to Death Weapon Meister Academy."
On the other end of the line, she heard the redheaded man take a long breath; she could practically see him rubbing his brow with his fingers, eyes closed and lips drawn into a thin line.
"… she called me at four in the morning, Camila."
At this, she stopped, blinking, "… I'm sorry?"
"Luz is scared out of her mind. She feels like she's going to be forced to change who she is on a fundamental level to please the people around her. People who don't appreciate her creativity or enthusiasm," Spirit's voice was somewhere between placating and pleading, a tone Camila had found herself using on more than one occasion, "She called me last night because she couldn't sleep, she was so worried about this summer camp you're sending her to. I can count the amount of times I've heard her that despondent on one hand and still have fingers left over.
"It breaks my heart, listening to her like that and not being able to do anything about it, Camila. Especially when she…"
He trailed off.
"… when she…?" Camila asked, afraid of the answer.
"… Luz asked me if I could sign her up for classes at DWMA. She wants to be here. She thinks she can fit in, and… honestly, I think she'd be a perfect fit," a hopeful smile came back into the Death Scythe's words, "There's plenty of kids as weird or weirder than she is, and the students and teachers alike would love her enthusiasm."
Camila closed her eyes, offering no answer.
"… if the issue is money, I'll pay for it. I'll pay for all of it," Spirit assured, "God knows I've got more money than I know what to do with these days, being a Death Scythe. I'll pay for both of you to come to Death City; Hell, I'll even ask Lord Death to take a look at your resumé. The school needs a good doctor, and you'd fit the bill perfectly."
Still, she said nothing. His words rattled around in her skull, tossed about like the sea in a storm, and she struggled to find its eye of calm so she could sort them all out…
"… what do you say, Camila?" he urged, "Would you come back to Death City? For Luz's sake?"
She inhaled, long and deep. When Camila finally opened her eyes, she reached into her bag, and pulled out her wallet, flipping it open, staring at the picture of her daughter framed in the leather.
"Oh, Mija…" she whispered, running her thumb across the young girl's hair, the brilliant smile one she wished she saw more often.
She didn't know what was the best option.
But she did know one thing.
"… Spirit," she spoke slowly, deliberately, choosing her words with care, "I am not trying to disparage what you are trying to do. I know you care about Luz every bit as much as I do, and that you're trying to do your best to be a good father to her. That's more than I can say for any other man, any other person I have ever met.
"But we both know that the issue isn't, and never has been money. Especially not with you supporting us the way you have been since becoming a Death Scythe."
"… I know," he sighed.
"I left Death City behind for a reason. Even putting Luz aside for a moment, I have put too many Weapons and Meisters back together," she felt her voice quiver with emotion as memories flooded back – memories of men and women coming home grievously injured, of kids coming in on stretchers from Witch hunts gone awry, "I have had to tell too many people that they were no longer capable of fighting. I have had to mark too many Weapons and Meisters as Killed or Missing In Action. And I have seen too many children with shadows in their eyes, not realizing for an instant that they have been traumatized by what the DWMA has had them doing from as young as eleven years old."
Silence reigned between them for a long moment. It felt less as though they were entire states apart and more like they were in the same room, staring each other down over what they believed was best for their child.
"… I will not have it. Not for Luz," she declared, her words bearing a finality as powerful as any Witch's spell, "I do not dispute the importance of Death's work. But I do dispute using children as soldiers to hunt Kishin Egg Souls, and especially Witches."
"… so. Camp Reality Check it is, then?"
"I don't want to send Luz there, Spirit. Believe me, I don't," she felt herself wilt, but kept her voice firm, "It puts me in just as much pain to see her so miserable… but if that's what's going to keep her safe, then yes. I genuinely think that's what's best for her, at the moment."
"… what's best, huh?" Now Spirit sounded sullen.
"It won't be so bad," she assured, "It'll only be for three months. The worst that will happen is three months of boredom. She may even make some actual friends there."
"… yeah."
A pause.
"… so. Are you going to tell Luz? Or do you want me to call her?"
"Let me," she insisted, "It's my decision where she goes. It might be harder for her to hear it from me than from you… but, it's not fair to expect you to handle it every time she's feeling lost or unheard."
"… okay."
"Spirit?"
"Yes?"
"… thank you for lending Luz an ear. And for trying to make her feel better, and find a place for her to fit in," her smile was melancholy, "You really are a good father to her."
"… thanks, Camila. Is it alright if I make time to visit before she has to leave for Camp?"
"Of course," she nodded, "As long as you are good to her, I will never bar you from seeing your daughter."
"Alright. I'll leave you to it, then."
"Goodbye, Spirit."
With that, she hung up, and stood, slinging her bag back over her shoulder, smile fading.
Her break wasn't over, but she had long since lost her appetite.
She stepped back out of the room, and proceeded to return to work.
Author's Note: Sorry if any of the Spanish is incorrect here. I never actually learned it, so I'm trying to go off of translators and notes I found online as I go... if you have any corrections in regards to the language, please, please do not hesitate to point them out! I will be sure to correct accordingly!
Thanks for giving this a read, everyone, and thank you so much for your patience and understanding with me. Let me know what you think! I hope you all enjoyed the first chapter of Owls and Souls, Witches and Resonance!