It had been a few weeks since Amity so very selfishly put her friend's memories in jeopardy.
And boy, did she still feel bad about it.
Even if she fixed it, it still doesn't excuse the fact she attempted it in the first place. Or when she told Willow she was sapless and didn't deserve to be her friend, even though it was her parents who forced her to execute their friendship. Or how Amity bullied her old friend relentlessly for years. Her mother didn't tell her to do that one!
Amity felt like an idiot. Deep inside, she never anticipated being forgiven. If anything, she hoped Willow never felt a shroud of mercy in her heart. Amity Blight didn't deserve sympathy. She deserved punishment.
That punishment came to her soon enough.
Today was a glorious day. Not for the big kids, but huge for the little ones. Today was Track Orientation Day. Where all the children old enough would tour Hexside's more scholarly wings to learn about their place in the Emperor's coven system. Discovering their passions, choosing their tracks, it was a magical experience.
Amity remembered going on her own with her family. Emira and Edric tried convincing her to join illusions. Odalia desired an oracle child. Alador saw a really cool butterfly; However, he was pleasantly surprised with Amity's taste in magic. Overall, the experience was a bit of a mess. Despite that, Track Orientation Day was the day a young Amity fell in love with magic.
Although Amity didn't plan on participating, Mrs. Blight had other ideas. She claimed as a Blight it's important to "steer your lowerclassmen into the right direction". (Also she believed the oracle track was the best one and more people should be in it) It wasn't that bad though, the kids Amity read to were the exact age required. The now teen witch hoped that she'd come across them.
By the time she got to school, the gang was chatting in their signature spot on the hallway floor. It was… weird to see Luz again. As she looked over at the human, she glanced upon a much more unpleasant sight.
Willow.
Willow wasn't unmannered, but nothing was going to be the same between two childhood friends. Amity avoided everything Willow solely because of that. No crossing near the plant track, no flowers, no relaxing under trees, nothing. Change was hard, and the Blight child was a coward.
"Amity!" Luz beamed, "Have you gotten your partner yet?"
"My partner?"
Luz adjusted her cowl, sporting all her track spirit. Once she was finished rummaging through a cluttered backpack, she yanked out a pamphlet.
"Ta-da! Here it is! This year everyone's getting assigned a kid and a partner and we're gonna explore so many tracks and magic and… and-"
Gus cut Luz off, affectionately wrapping his arm around her, "And me and Luz are gonna be the best tag team anyone at Hexside has ever seen!"
The tag team let out holler, waving a set of Gus-Approved flags.
Luz's excitement was contagious. Both Willow and Amity giggled at the two's banter. Maybe this wasn't going to be so bad after all! Luz seemed ecstatic about it. She could spend some quality time with Luz, Gus, and the library kids. It was a win-win!
"Well, that means Amity and I should go get registered before it starts," Willow piped up, shattering Amity's optimistic thoughts.
Caught off guard, Amity panicked. Not Willow, please not Willow.
"Oh yes, absolutely! What am I to not already be ahead? It's what Blights do!" Amity nervously chuckled as she scurried away from the group. Luz and Gus looked concerned at Amity's odd behavior. Willow, not so much.
Amity groaned, why did she have to do that!? There was a perfectly good opportunity to hang out with Luz right in her face and she messed it up all because of Willow! It made poor Mittens angry, but she didn't know why. Willow didn't do anything wrong, she was just… present. The idea of it made her uncomfortable, that she had stare at her problems dead in the eyes,
Willow sighed, got up with a straight face, and trailed off after Amity. Willow wasn't going to go out of her way to make up with Amity of all people. The plant track student thought Amity should be the one making it up to her. It was stupid! Luz was obsessed with some sort of rivals to friends fantasy, it made Willow upset. The first new friend she had in years suddenly was all over the one who used to make her feel like garbage as a hobby.
"You think they hate each other?" Luz whispered. Her facial expression drastically converted from curiosity to dread.
"Um...kinda?" Gus was iffy on whether or not to be honest. Luz drooped over depressingly, watching Willow wallow away.
"Kinda? What do you mean kinda? They TOTALLY can't stand each other, how am I supposed to fix that?"
"I mean, you make Amity hang out with us now. She bullied Willow for a really long time. Now you're friends with her bully, y'know?"
"Let me put it into human lingo," Gus continued, "She doesn't 'vibe' with that"
Luz stared at him for a few seconds, processing what he said. Then, it all hit her scattery brain like a truck.
"Huh? Oh my god, I'm such a terrible friend!" Luz yelped, "We gotta fix this!"