You needed me (TOH 'Lunar Eclipse' AU part 10), an owl house fanfic

You needed me

CW/TW: ANGST, more angst, menstruation (I mean, does it even need to be said at this point?), mentions of blood, anxiety attacks, undiagnosed mental illness, dysfunctional family relationships, body pains, references to child abuse, reference to assault.

Edit (after Wing it like witches): I was operating under the assumption that Eda was the older sister! I'm not going to change it around now, I've based so many things on her being older. I also headcanoned that Lilith was an illusion track student! Because her spell circles are blue. If she was indeed on the potion track with Eda, she would know how to do a proper potion of Orcilae and stuff like that. In this AU, she was an illusion track student! This is the curse of writing fanfic for a show that's in its first season! You get shit wrong.

EDIT after watching Agony of a witch (spoiler alert! for the notes, both here at the top and at the bottom) GO WATCH IT IMMEDIATELY! Support the show in any way you can!):

- SPOILERS -

WOW YEAH THAT WAS ONE HELL OF AN EPISODE! WELP. IT CHANGES NOTHING FOR THIS AU! I'M NOT GOING TO EDIT OR CHANGE A SINGLE THING!

I got the notes for this part back from my new and shiny and very talented BETA reader Jess Thurrrsday night? My time (god, don't ask me, I'm an insomniac). So I've only made the adjustments they suggested (I sent them the story on Monday 17/8). I haven't changed anything in the main story. Partly because I was too nervous to write, mostly because I felt satisfied with the story. And I was trying to get the surprise at the end sorted out. Oh yeah, there's a big surprise at the end! If you're reading this on fanfictionDotNet - sorry, but you're gonna have to go to Ao3 to see the surprise, because you can't post links on fanfictionDotNet. Just google Evilsnotbag + Ao3 and you'll find my stuff.

I'm pretty sure Lilith will end up being the one to cure Eda's curse (in canon, that is). I predict that Luz will put together a team of friends and call in The Bat Queen's favor and they'll go try and save Eda, and The Emperor will try to drink Eda's magic or eat her palisman or whatever it is that he does, and Lilith will be cast aside, because now he's got what he wants from her. Then she'll have a breakdown, then team up with Luz (by Luz convincing her to fight back or, more likely, they'll drag her along because she can cure the curse) and help rescue Eda, then they will all go on the run together and Hooty will go full Moving Castle mode! And they'll all be outlaws! YUP! That's it! That's my prediction! EVERTHING IS GOING TO BE ALRIGHT GOD DAMN IT!

Now, on with the story.

Amity awoke in a dark room.

Luz...

She jolted upright - her arms were free! And her legs! She patted her chest and winced - something soft and springy was under her shirt.

A bandage! It wasn't a dream! Someone must have found me -

A fleeting memory of Lilith's face hovering just above her own bloomed in her mind. And light. And... relief.

She must have saved me. Saved us...

She looked around. On the beds next to her lay her brother and sister.

"Ed! Em!" she got to her feet and stumbled forward. Her legs didn't seem to want to carry her and she fell and hit her chin on the wooden floor. "Ow!" she groaned, sitting up. A door was flung open and blinding light hit her in the face.

"You're awake! Eda, Amity's awake!"

"Luz? Luz!" Amity tried unsuccessfully to stand up.

"Here," Luz held out her hands, then pulled Amity to her feet and into a tight hug.

"I thought I'd lost you!" Amity whispered, trying to embrace as much of Luz as she could.

"Querida..." Luz sighed. "I've been so worried."

"Ah, good you're hugging," Eda said from behind Amity. She was carrying a sleeping King in her arms. "Come out, will you? Let's leave the others to rest."

Luz gave Amity another tight squeeze, then took her hand and led her into the next room. Amity blinked in the light. It was a large, airy room. Things rustled in the ceiling. She looked up to see several birds before noticing both Luz and herself had bandages around the wrists and ankles. Luz's barely healed cheek had a scrape, too. Eda seemed tired, but uninjured.

"Where... are we?" she asked, then sat down on the chair Luz had pulled out for her.

"A friend's house," Eda said.

"How long have we been here?"

"Since about one in the morning. It's... ten now. So you've slept for a while. How you feeling, kid?"

"... Weird," Amity answered after a moment. "Did Lilith... um... give me donum lucis?" she asked in a whisper.

"Yeah, she did," Eda said in a voice that made it clear she did not approve.

"You said that before, what does it mean?" Luz asked.

"Means 'gift of light' - you transfer some of your magical energy to someone else - it's very dangerous, especially for the one who casts the spell!" Eda saw the guilty look on Amity's face. "But I'm sure I'd have done the same thing! But maybe not for two people at the same time, especially not if I'd just drained myself less than two weeks earlier." She finished in a mutter. "Probably saved both your lives, but still. Reckless thing to do." She crossed her arms. "Thought you'd be bed bound for a few days, surprised you're up and about."

"How... is she?" Amity asked in a careful voice.

"They're still working on her," Eda nodded up at the ceiling. "Trying to mitigate the after effects or... something."

"What's wrong with Ed and Em? Will they be okay?"

Eda and Luz exchanged a look.

"They... got their bile sacks inflamed by what we think were sick bile leeches," Eda said slowly. Amity gasped.

"Is that what... that thing was..." she raised her hand to her heart. She had heard stories about those creatures. "Are they going to be okay?"

"Yeah, yeah," Eda nodded. "Morton fixed them up good. They've been drained, pretty much, but there probably won't be any lasting damage. They'll just need a few days of bed rest. But... we did find out some things."

"About... what?"

Eda exchanged another look with Luz. Luz reached out for Amity's hand.

"You're... scaring me," she said quietly.

"Ingalill Grönvall, that's the name of the woman that took us," Luz began. "She was hired by Ed and Em... to steal my phone."

"... What..." Amity breathed. It felt as if someone had thrown her into ice cold water.

"Ingalill saw it as an opportunity to make a lot of money. So she took them, and you, and Luz. And the phone," Eda said.

"The guards said they were going to sell me to some collector as a pet," Luz added. Her eyes got a haunted look in them as she said it.

"And ransom you and the phone to your parents for a lot of money," Eda eyed both Luz and Amity with concern. "Probably going to use the phone to blackmail them for everything they're worth. That's her style. And her problem. She doesn't know when to quit."

Amity stared into the distance, her heart beating surprisingly slowly in her chest. The memory of Em pressing the bile leech to her chest when she wouldn't stop asking to see the boss suddenly made horrible sense to her.

She didn't want me to find out what they'd done...

Whatever those brief moments with Em in the cave had been yesterday, they were now added to the pile of ever-growing betrayals.

She got to her feet without a word, then marched back into the room she had woken up in. She yanked at Ed and Em's ears, fury burning in her aching chest.

"Heyy, what, stop iit..." Ed whined.

"Ow, what the - " Em mumbled.

"Did you hire someone to try to steal Luz's phone?!" Amity demanded.

The twins' eyes shot open and they exchanged a look.

"And could you for once in your life answer me honestly?!"

There was an awkward pause while Amity panted, glaring back and forth between her brother and sister.

"Yeah... we did," Em admitted, holding a hand over the ear Amity had pulled. She at least had the decency to look guilty.

"YOU FUCKING IDIOTS!" Amity screamed at the top of her lungs. Ed and Em jerked back in surprise and alarm. "YOU ABSOLUTE, FUCKING ASSHOLES! THEY WERE GOING TO SELL LUZ! SELL HER! I WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU, YOU FUCKING COWARDS!" Amity glared at her brother and sister, her eyes burning in the sparsely lit room.

"Y-you have no idea what it was like!" Em blurted, scooting closer to her brother. "Mom and dad were so mad at us! They took away all our stuff! And our allowance! And we couldn't see our friends!"

"Yeah, that's what we call a punishment," Eda huffed from over by the door, crossing her arms and glaring at the brat. "Don't suppose it ever occurred to you that you deserved it?"

"They wouldn't even talk to us..." Em sniffed. "We just wanted things to go back to normal - we heard them fighting - they never fight! Dad was so worried about the recording getting out, he might lose his position at the council and mom might lose her position at court - we just wanted it all to stop and go back to normal!"

"Normal?! What is that normal, exactly? Is it the normal where you tease me every chance you get? Is it the normal where you try to take my diary and put it all over school because I told on you about skipping class? Is it the normal where you put sneezing powder in my lunch so I'd bleed all over myself in the cafeteria?! Or is it the normal where you lie and get away with things over and over and over again!?" Amity had to take a breath.

Ed and Em stared at their younger sister.

"You don't get it!" Em said, shaking her head. "It felt awful to be at home!"

"Oh?! No?! Really?! It felt awful for you to be at home?! Oh, I have no idea what that's like, not like it's been that way for me for years and years and years, not at all - let's hear all about how precious Ed and Em have been having a tough time at home for an entire week, yeah let's talk about that!"

Em's face was crimson and Ed looked terribly uncomfortable.

"What are you even talking about?" Ed huffed.

"You bully me!" Amity spat, pointing from one twin to the other. "Mom and dad ignore me! I can't bring friends over without fearing you'll humiliate me in front of them! I had to get a lock for my room! I had to make a place for myself in the library so that I could have somewhere I could be left alone! I worry what you'll say to me at breakfast, at dinner! And I can't trust anything you say! You're so good at lying, I don't know what to believe and what not to believe - it's hell to walk around being tense all the time! Because I never know what's going to happen next! You might do anything! And it's always two against one! I'm always outnumbered!"

"C-come on, Mittens, everyone can hear you," Ed tried.

"Then what have I just said, Ed?" Amity raised her eyebrows and glared at him, furious.

"Opf!" he spluttered. "Didn't know I had to take notes," he looked away, flustered.

Em's mouth opened and closed, like she was trying to say something, but couldn't find the words.

"We... we didn't want for anyone to get... kidnapped. Or... s-sold," she managed after a moment. "They just... took us, when we went to pay. Nothing we did or said made any difference at all. They didn't care. They just did whatever they wanted."

"Hah..." Amity let out a bitter breath of laughter. "Not so funny when you're on the receiving end of that, is it?"

Em looked up at her sharply.

"Is that... how we've made you feel?" she asked, sounding close to tears.

"Yes!" Amity snapped. "You literally repeated what I just said! You just do whatever the heck you want and you don't care what it does to someone else!"

"But - that's not the same!" Ed interjected.

"Oh? How is it different?!" Amity turned to him now.

"We - we're family? We're supposed to be able to joke around with family - "

"And you're also supposed to stop when someone says it's not funny - or at least that's what I've been told, by people who are not in my family!"

"But - "

"If I say it's not funny, then it's not funny to me and the thing you're doing is just - bullying!"

"But you do think it's funny - "

"AM I LAUGHING, ED?!" Amity demanded. "When was the last time you heard me laugh?! Out of genuine enjoyment?!"

"Uh... You tell on us! That's how you get back at us - it's a game! We one up each other!"

"No!" Amity shook her head, looking at her brother in disbelief. "I tell on you because there is a remote chance it'll make you stop. But it never has... This... this is pointless," Amity shook her head again. "What was I even thinking? You are completelyincapable of thinking of anyone but yourselves. Why do I keep trying? ... It's not as if you're actually worth it." She turned on her heel, then marched down the few steps into the other room, then proceeded outside. In the fresh air, she paced and panted, muttering angrily under her breath.

There is no point - no point in trying to talk to them! They'll never understand, it's like they can't understand. Or they don't want to. It's like they're immune to logical thought!

She stomped around until she began to feel dizzy, then plopped down on a garden bench. She was still fuming, but the hot rage inside her was giving way to sadness and she was angry at the sadness.

"Can we join you?" Luz asked from the door to the house.

"Sure," Amity wiped her face on her sleeve.

"Brought you some tea," Luz said as she took a seat on Amity's right.

"And cinnamon buns," Eda plonked down a chipped plate on the bench, then took a seat on Amity's left. "Should eat something, kid."

Amity was very hungry. She had no idea when she'd last had food. She grabbed a bun and dipped it in the tea.

"Fanksh," she said with her mouth full.

"That was some speech you gave in there," Eda commented. "I'll give you eleven out of ten for passion, thirteen for bravery. Twenty for big-girl swears."

"Yeah, good on you for standing up to them," Luz gave Amity a slightly worried smile. "You okay?"

"I don't know," Amity answered with a sigh."I was all angry and now I just... feel sad."

"Family stuff," Eda said and took a bun for herself. "It'sh nevar eashy."

"Like... are they stupid? How did they think getting the phone would just make it... all go away?!"

"Right?" Luz agreed. "And it's not as if that would mean I wouldn't have access to the video anymore."

"It doesn't?" Amity asked. Eda looked at Luz in surprise.

"No, it all gets backed up - uhh... saved? To the cloud, um... Iiit's... not a cloud cloud, it's technology. I don't have to have a physical copy. As long as I have any type of device and internet access, I can look at the video. Or send it wherever I like."

"That sounds pretty useful," Eda commented.

"So there was no point to this ordeal at all?" Amity said, letting out a breath.

"Maybe I should have said something when the entire family was over at Lilith's place," Luz mumbled. She looked down at the ground.

"Bah! Shouldn't have to add 'oh and no you can't just steal it because human technology is more sophisticated than that' in a very clear deal. Luz, don't you dare even remotely blame yourself for this, you hear?" Eda gave her a sharp look. "They brought this on themselves." She paused a moment. "... I suppose this means we should share it with the guard?" Eda rubbed her chest and grimaced. Just saying that out loud had given her heartburn.

"At least it didn't sound like your parents were in on it..." Luz fiddled with her hands, looking uncomfortable.

"No, but who knows?" Amity said bitterly.

"The deal was that if either of you two informed us of them being little dingbats, that broke the deal. Or if they tried to get the suspension lifted - deal's off. So, yeah. We could make your family explode."

Amity thought about it.

"I... kinda don't want to make them explode," she admitted reluctantly. "If we were to release the recording, it would punish mom and dad a lot more than it would Ed or Em. And that just doesn't seem fair to my parents... They're... idiots, but they're my idiots. If that makes sense."

Luz made a soft little sound.

"Sure it does. Family's complicated. Not all black and white and clear cut... Gotta tell your parents what they did, though," Eda said, running her hand through her hair.

"Yeah, that'll be fun," Amity huffed, kicking a rock half way across the garden. "Can I just be done, afterward?"

"How... do you mean?" Luz asked.

"With my family. At least for a while. I can't be in that house. With them." She nodded in the direction of Ed and Em.

"Think that sounds like a great idea," Eda chuckled. "Not going back to that house. It is a bit of a mess at present."

"How do you know that?" Luz asked, looking around Amity with narrowed eyes. "Have you been naughty?"

"Oh, every minute of everyday, kid; naughty is my default," Eda gave her a wink. "Buuut... I might have paid the Blight family back a teensy bit for messing with you, not gonna lie about that." After a moment she added: "Anymore."

"... Like what?" Luz asked, feeling strangely touched.

"Mmm... there was the carcass on the roof and the subsequent bullbat poop rain... And the cursed graffiti to look like your big bruise. And the roses - and everything else, really - being eaten by this herd of friendly neighborhood pebras that happened by... Ah, and the other day I put some leftover ghosts in through an open window*. Just... little things, really."

"For me?" Luz asked.

"Yeah for you!" Eda gave her a 'duh!' look. "Nobody messes with my Luz." She leaned back on her hands and looked up at the clouds. Both Amity and Luz looked at Eda. Luz smiled, feeling touched. And Amity... she didn't exactly feel jealous of the thing that had just happened between Eda and Luz. She knew she and Lilith had... something similar, but different. Wait, where was Lilith?

"Where's... Lilith?" she wondered aloud.

"That's a bit of a complicated question," Eda said. "Want to tell the story, Luz?"

"Sure."

Luz (and Eda) told Amity what had happened after Lilith had found her and her siblings. It took quite a long time. And there were a lot of gestures and play acting.

"So... she's... still in Grönvall's body?" Amity said slowly.

"Think so. She sent a message to the guard where they could find the cave and stuff, but told them she was still in pursuit of Ingalill so she might be gone a few days. Think that'll score her some extra bonus points with the court or whatever," Eda waved a dismissive hand. "And it'll give her a few days to recover from draining herself. Again. With Morton's help though, it'll be a quicker recovery."

"Who's this Morton?" Amity asked.

"He's the old friend I mentioned; this is his house. Wasn't the biggest fan of being woken up in the middle of the night, but he's a good sport. And a very skilled potioneer. He finished school and everything, got the shiny license. And the nice cushy job indoors with basically no heavy lifting. The poor guy. Dabbles with healing and has a few interesting creatures helping him out with that."

"How... did you find us?" Amity asked, looking at Eda.

"Because of my clever girl right there," Eda gave Luz a proud smirk.

Amity turned to look at Luz, who, to her surprise, was blushing.

"I... realized that there was something wrong, when we were in the bathroom at the Book Nook. So I looked through the gap in the door and wrote down what I saw, on the door. I didn't really have time to tell you what was going on, but... I tried to warn you."

"Luz..." Amity took Luz's hand and looked her in the eye. "Thank you. You saved all of us."

"Afnptch," Luz sputtered, blushing a deeper scarlet. "I - I'm sure Eda and Lilith would have found us anyway!"

"We would have, you can bet on it," Eda interjected. "But it wouldn't have been as quick. Got Lilith to thank for that, too. She was freaking out you weren't back by curfew. Said you'd never be late." She looked at Amity.

She was worried about me, Amity thought. A warm and kind of aching feeling spread through her chest.

"See? Everyone helped!" Luz said with a smile. "When we get home I'm going to make a whole bunch of food," she gave a little sigh. "I said I'd do that, when I was getting out of the ropes."

"No objections from me," Eda smiled, then leaned back against the house wall.

"Can I go see Lilith?" Amity asked.

"Sure, kid, but she's still in Ingalill's body. So, yeah. Be aware."

"Is the scar scary or something?"

"What? No, it's just weird because... well because me and Ingalill were a thing, back in the day. So it's extra weird to me because of that. Guess it's not as weird for you."

"Mysterious romantic past," Luz giggled.

"I have some good memories from back then I'd like to keep just the way they are, if you catch my drift," Eda nudged Amity gently with her elbow. Amity glanced up at her, then at Luz. Luz was blushing and grinning knowingly.

"Not... sure I am..." she said slowly.

"Aaaand you don't need to!" Luz jumped in before Eda could launch into an impromptu the birds and the bees talk. "Go check on Lilith!"

As Amity stood up, the penny dropped. She hurried into the house, hoping they hadn't seen her blush. She also felt embarrassed that she hadn't immediately understood what Eda meant. But it wasn't as if she was used to adults talking about that sort of thing in front of her. Still... Luz had understood. She didn't want to come off as not knowing about that sort of thing in front of Luz.

She walked around the little house until she found a staircase. She could hear voices from above.

"Hello? Lilith?" she said as she walked upstairs.

"You're ambulatory!" a man with a strange hat said as he swept a curtain aside. "Amity, right? I'm Morton. How's your balance?" He looked astounded and very pleased.

"... Fine. Fell over at first, though."

"Mm, that's not uncommon, but it usually passes quickly," he gave her a gentle smile. "Are you looking for your mother? I'm afraid she hasn't been able to switch back to her own body yet."

"My... what?"

"Oh, she's not...? I'm so sorry, I meant no offence." The man gave Amity a slightly worried look.

"'s fine," Amity mumbled and shook her head, feeling very stunned.

"She's just down the hall and to the left."

"Uh... thanks." Amity walked past him and found the room after walking the wrong way at first. The mother comment had really thrown her.

"Oh, Amity! You're up already?" Lilith's voice said from her right. She sounded surprised and delighted. Lilith was now the fourth person to have expressed surprise over seeing her up and about. She wasn't really sure why that was. But doing better than expected wasn't a bad thing, surely.

Amity turned and had to blink hard a few times. The voice had come from the tall blonde woman now in front of her, instead of the Lilith lying on a bed in the middle of the room.

"I guess this is a little confusing, isn't it?" Lilith said apologetically.

It's her voice. It's her stance... and her facial expression, Amity thought. She nodded.

"I just... wanted to see how you were."

"A little... complicated, I would say." She glanced at her body. There were refocusing needles in the palms and face of her real body, bunches of herbs on her chest, hips and legs and a small red bird sat perched on her forehead. Its beak moved as if it was singing, but Amity couldn't hear anything. "I'll be right as rain in a while, but... As much as I dislike being in this particular body, it... has certain advantages."

"Oh?" Amity hoped those advantages had nothing to do with what Eda had hinted at downstairs.

"Ingalill is very physically strong," Lilith said, opening and closing her fists. "There's some tightness in the scar, but apart from that there is... no pain. Whatsoever."

Amity let out a breath and smiled up at her mentor's borrowed face. "I'm glad."

"How are you, my dear?" Lilith took a step forward.

"I'm... okay?"

"That makes me very happy to hear. Would it be... entirely inappropriate to hug, at this moment?" Lilith asked, smiling uncertainly. "I completely understand if you don - oof!"

Amity had walked up to her and embraced her without a second thought.

"I'm so sorry," Amity whispered.

"Wha- whatever for, my dear?"

"My brother and sister - this was all their doing," she sighed out a pained breath. "If they'd just..." she trailed off.

"As usual, you try to take responsibility for the actions of others," Lilith smiled tiredly and stroked Amity's back. "You have nothing to apologize for, my dear."

"But I do!" Amity insisted. "I'm - I'm just bringing so much trouble into... your life..."

"Things have... certainly been a lot more eventful lately," Lilith smiled down at the girl's worried face. "My dear... If you are in trouble, I will be there. I would do it all again, if it meant it would keep you safe. In a heartbeat."

Amity breathed out forcefully and hugged Lilith more tightly than she had ever dared before.

"C-can I keep s-staying with you?"

"Yes. Yes, of course you can. Please do. I enjoy your company very much."

"I enjoy yours too! How long... can I stay?"

"As long as you want."

Amity drew in a shaky breath and burrowed her head in Lilith's borrowed chest.

"Thank you," she panted. "I was so scared... In the... place."

"Me too." Lilith stroked Amity's hair in a slow and gentle way.

"You gave me the gift of light, Lilith!" Amity sobbed. "You - ! I-it could have - !"

"Listen, little one," Lilith said calmly. "It's called a gift, because that's what it is. I gave of myself to keep you and your brother with us. I don't regret it for a moment. When I saw you in that jail cell... I was so relieved to finally have found you. What those vile people did to you - they are going to rot in the bowels of the conformatorium forever. Nobody hurts my Amity and gets away with it. Nobody." Lilith shook her head and hugged Amity tightly to her borrowed body.

She said... 'My Amity'... Amity smiled, despite the tears on her cheeks, her heart blooming with warmth. She felt so protected. I'm her Amity... I was in trouble and she came for me. She found me.

They tied Ingalill up before transferring Lilith's consciousness back into her own body. It had been nearly twelve hours since they arrived at Morton's home.

Lilith knew she was going to have a very rough time of it once she was back in her own body, but she couldn't stand being in the body of a child abusing, sister immolating smuggler for a moment longer. They had agreed to keep Ingalill sedated until Lilith was well enough to deliver her to the conformatorium herself.

"You sure about this, Lily?" Eda asked as she tied the final knot.

"Yes, stop asking," Lilith gave her a tired look. "I want out of this... creature."

Luz and Amity stood next to Morton, holding hands tightly.

"Here we are," Morton said, holding out a bottle of dark blue potion. "Drink it all. There we go. You should start to feel drowsy in a few seconds."

Once Lilith's head dropped to her shoulder, Eda cast the spell.

Morton walked over to the Lilith lying on the bed and coaxed the little bird off her forehead and up onto the back of his hand.

"Did it work?" Amity asked in a worried voice.

Morton waved his hands over Lilith's shoulders and face. The blue lines that appeared were quite pale, but there was a steady light coming from them. He nodded approvingly.

"Good work, Hildegard," he said to the red bird, nuzzling her neck. "She's a young phoenix, but she knows what she's doing." The bird made a high pitched little sound and nibbled Morton's nose affectionately.

Lilith's eyelids flickered and everyone gathered around the table while Morton went to check on Ingalill.

"There she is," Eda said gently.

"Mmh," Lilith grunted, her face contorting slowly. She raised a slightly shaking hand to her forehead. "Ohh dear..." She made a drawn out inhalation hiss. The pain in her body was not as bad as when she had drained herself last time - and she seemed to be able to move - but compared to no pain at all, it was agony. And her stomach was more involved than she had anticipated.

Fan-tas-tic, Lilith thought as she did a quick calculation.

"Girls? ... Would you mind leaving the room for a moment?" she asked.

"Uh, sure?" Luz said, glancing at Amity. "Everything... okay?"

"Nothing... unexpected is happening. I'd just like a word with Eda in private." She managed to open her eyes a little and give the worried looking girls a faint smile. She reached out and gently squeezed Amity's hand. After a tender moment where Amity put both her hands on Lilith's, the girls left. As did Morton.

"Could you help me in the garden a little?" he asked them on their way out the door. "Need to pull up some potatoes for lunch."

When the three of them had left, Lilith closed her eyes and gripped her dress over her stomach, exhaling forcefully. Eda raised her eyebrows at her sister.

"What's up, Lily?"

"I'm quite certain I started my moon time," she said in a strained voice.

"Oh, great," Eda let out a little huff of laughter. "You always did have a great sense of timing. Guessing you need a change of clothes?"

Lilith covered her eyes with one hand and rubbed her temples. "I'd like to change in any case, but I assume so. Oh..." her breathing grew labored. The hand on her belly rubbed in little shaky circles and the hand over her eyes pinched the bridge of her nose hard in an attempt to pull her attention away from her distressed uterus and the tension in her temples.

"I'll go see what kind of potions Morton's got at home, but first." Eda waved a hand and a water bottle appeared. She heated some water, then gave it to Lilith.

"Thank you, oh," Lilith groaned with relief as the warmth of it soothed the deep, grinding ache in her lower belly. She rested while Eda went to check with Morton.

After a few minutes, Eda returned to the room with a pile of clothes and Lilith forced herself to sit up. She didn't want to look at the sheet.

"How bad is it?" she asked.

Eda glanced down. "Can't see anything. Morton says to don't even worry about the sheets, anyway. He's got a mattress cover and everything."

"Silver lining, I suppose."

"Hah!"

Lilith sighed at the unintentional pun, then put her feet on the floor - someone had thankfully removed her shoes at some point. "Could you please help me to the bathroom?"

"Yeah, sure. Up we get. Morton had some tedrium extract lying around." She held up a little bottle and shook it. "Should at least do something for you. And he's got a ton of willow bark tea he's just mixed up, a new blend apparently."

"Thank goodness..."

They made their way to the bathroom, then Eda went and got the fresh clothes and the potion.

There was only a little shower stall and not a full bath, but Lilith was thankful to just be able to wash herself. She had dirt in places she hadn't had dirt in in years.

I'm never going to go into another cave again, she promised herself.

As she sat there (standing was currently not an option) and let herself enjoy the warmth of the water, she hoped Ingalill had taken the brunt of the cramps of the day. The first 48 hours were always the worst, maybe it was down to 36 now. She wanted to go home and just sleep for that long. But there were things that needed to be done. Getting hold of the Blights, for one. She sighed at the thought. She was pretty sure this was all the twins' doing and Mr and Mrs Blight were blameless, but this time Lilith didn't have any actual physical evidence to show Mr and Mrs Blight. Had the Blight twins been shaken up enough by this terrible ordeal that they were just going to admit to what they had done? She sincerely hoped they had. When they had arrived at Morton's house in the middle of the night, Lilith had sent Sapphire first to the guard, then, after daybreak, to Principal Bump. Her message had been brief, saying that she needed to take a few days off. She had apologized for the short notice. Her work was important, yes, but today, she needed to not worry about lesson plans and whether or not she was being to hard on her students. Today... she just needed some time to recover. And to try to think of how to handle the situation.

Once she was dried and dressed in the borrowed clothes (a nice and loose, knee length tunic in a soft, dark brown material and black leggings), she slowly made her way downstairs, holding onto the wall and the still warm bottle.

"Thank you for the clothes and potion, and all your hard work," she said to a smiling Morton who was just coming in from the garden.

"I'm glad I had something clean for you to wear! I've been meaning to do laundry all week, but you know how it goes. How are you feeling?"

"About as well as you could expect," Lilith said quietly.

Morton gave her a sympathetic look.

"The sun is shining outside, why don't you go have some fresh air and some rest? I could bring you some willow bark tea. Or broth."

"That would be very kind, thank you, but I'm afraid I feel a little nauseated." Lilith gave their host a grateful smile. "Don't want to risk it just yet."

She made her way slowly outside, then sat down on a cushioned bench already occupied by Eda.

"Hey, Lily. How you feeling?"

Lilith let out a long, weary sigh. "Like punched, raw meat..." She adjusted the hot water bottle on her belly.

"Hah! That is a great description, I'm gonna use that."

"Feel free."

The girls were at the other end of the garden, doing something Lilith couldn't quite make out. Things were a lot blurrier than she remembered. Ingalill's vision had been so sharp. Perhaps the girls were gathering some vegetables. After a minute or so, Amity spotted Lilith and hurried over.

"Are you alright, Lilith?"

Lilith gave the girl a tired, warm and slightly pained smile. Eda turned her head and gave her a look that seemed to say 'Well?'.

If I want Amity to be open with me, I should be open with her,Lilith told only person Lilith had really talked about moon time related things with, when it came to herself, was Eda. She had never told a colleague when she was in any kind of pain. And certainly not her students. She was so used to keeping it a secret and pretending she was fine. It was hard to let those walls down.

"I'm... having some rather intense cramps," Lilith admitted with a bit of effort.

"O-oh," Amity blushed. She hesitated, then slowly sat down next to her mentor and gently leaned her head on her shoulder. "I'm sorry..."

Lilith let out a little squeaky breath, her hand lifting to her heart. She looked from Amity to Eda, blinking away sudden tears. Eda gave her a crooked, approving grin. Lilith closed her eyes and put her cheek on top of Amity's head.

"Oh, sweet girl..."

"The twins are awake, by the way," Eda said when Amity had gone back to helping Luz. "Or, they were. For a bit. Amity gave them a piece of her mind."

Lilith looked over at Eda. "How did that go?"

"They're dense, but I think Amity might have gotten through to them? Looked as if it made an impact at least. She was okay afterward. Well. Kind of okay. We talked a bit. Told her what happened after you got to her. Gave her something to eat."

"Thank you, Edalyn."

Eda shrugged. "How do you wanna handle the twins?"

Lilith let out a long sigh. "I don't."

"Hah. Yeah. I hear you." Eda leaned back on her hands. "You know, Luz told me the recording is basically indestructible. They could smash her phone to bits and she'd still have access to it."

"... How?"

"Oh I didn't understand what she said, but that's the gist of it."

"I don't see Tobias Blight sending his children to talk to criminals to get a hold of the phone. I think they came up with this harebrained scheme all on their own."

"Yeah, they basically said as much during Amity's little lecture. Bah, naive little shits. Can't wander into the bad part of town and expect it to be just like in a story book. Lambs to the slaughter, really." Eda stroked her own neck.

"They could have died," Lilith said, then realized the words that had just come out of her mouth were one hundred percent true.

They could all have died.

She swallowed hard, trying to blink away the tears that burned the corners of her eyes. The images started to flash before her eyes. Countless horrible scenarios which resulted in the lifeless body of a child. Amity, Luz, Em, Luz, Ed, Amity, Amity, Amity - Lilith closed her eyes, but the pictures were clearer in her mind. She had been able to keep it all at bay while she was in Ingalill's body. Now, all the worry she had pushed away struck her like a wave.

A hand landed on her shoulder and gave it a firm squeeze.

"Hey." Eda looked at her seriously. "They didn't."

"You could have died..."

"I didn't."

"Luz could have died..."

"She didn't - Lily - look at me. Look at me." Eda's voice was stern.

Lilith opened her eyes. Eda's face was very close now.

"That didn't happen. We didn't let it happen," she said, putting her other hand on Lilith's other shoulder. "We went in there and we got our girls back. That's what we did. That's what you did. That's what happened. Hey." She lowered her chin then raised her eyebrows at Lilith. "What happened?"

Lilith let out a confused and slightly embarrassed breath.

"Lily, what happened?"

"We... went in there and we got our girls back."

"That's right. Nobody died. We got them back." Eda nodded slowly as she spoke.

"We got them back..." Lilith repeated, closing her eyes again. The moment of panic was over. The tension drained from her shoulders and seemed to flow down into her belly instead. It felt as if an iron fist was slowly squeezing her insides. She put her hand on her stomach. For a few seconds it was bearable, then there was a cold, sharp, twisting sensation. Lilith's breath caught in her throat; she was astounded by the suddenness and intensity of the pain. For a moment, the world faded from her senses. When it came back, she wanted it to go away again. Agonizingly slowly, the ache faded.

She opened her eyes and blinked at the sunlight, suddenly so bright. The sound was turned back on. She could hear the wind rustling in the trees.

"There she is," Eda said from above her. "Hi."

Lilith turned her head, squinting up at her sister. Was she... lying in Edalyn's lap? She made a move to get up, but gasped at the stab in her lower belly. Her knees pulled up automatically.

"Just stay there until you feel better, alright?" Eda said in a voice that sounded tense, worried and slightly amused all at the same time. She patted Lilith's shoulder. "Amity will be right back with the hot water bottle."

Lilith reluctantly relaxed, feeling her cheeks burn.

"Really gotta go get yourself checked out, sis," Eda said. "You fainted."

"I - did - not," Lilith huffed, feeling embarrassed and angry.

"Did too," Eda insisted, then squeezed Lilith's shoulder as she tried to get up again. "Just - stay there, you stubborn idiot. Breathe and whatnot."

"Fine." Lilith crossed her arms and tried to blink away the tears that rose in her eyes. She sniffed, trying to calm herself down. It was extremely unsettling to lose consciousness. One moment you're sitting up, next moment you're not. It made her feel nauseated. "Probably because of last night, not... just..." she trailed off, shaking her head.

"Tell me if you're gonna hurl," Eda said, looking down at Lilith with a warning look in her eye.

"Not going to - " Lilith had to stop talking to swallow the bile that rose up the back of her throat. "No, I am, no I am going to - " she put a hand over her mouth, curling in on herself and gagging as her stomach churned. Eda waved a finger and a bucket appeared as Lilith leaned over the edge of the bench. Eda managed to sweep Lilith's hair out of her face just before the sandwiches from last night's dinner made a reappearance.

"Oof. Better out than in."

Lilith panted, waiting to see if more was coming. She drew in a deep breath, then felt the second wave roll over her.

"You done?" Eda asked after a few seconds.

"Think so..." Lilith spat into the bucket, then wiped her mouth on the back of her hand. She felt a hand on her forehead.

"Think you might be running a little fever," Eda observed.

"How long have I been lying here?"

"Less than five minutes."

Footsteps approached and Lilith made a move to sit up again.

"Don't be an idiot," Eda said, giving Lilith a stern look.

Amity appeared round the corner, carrying the hot water bottle. She held it out to Eda.

"Thanks, kid."

Lilith let out a groan of relief as she curled herself around the warm package. Amity gave her an extremely worried look, then looked at Eda.

"Is there something else I can do?" she asked carefully.

"Think we're good."

"I'm just a little under the weather, Amity dear," Lilith managed. "I'll be..." She raised her hand to suppress an awful-tasting burp. "Right as rain..."

Amity glanced at Eda who gave her a reassuring nod, then gave her a meaningful look and jerked her head in the direction of the house. Amity took that to mean that they wanted to be alone.

"Call if you need something, okay?" she said, stepping back reluctantly.

"Right, sure."

Amity disappeared behind the corner.

"Why did you have her deal with the hot water bottle?" Lilith asked, letting her shoulders down.

"She came running over when you passed out, looked as if she was about to pass out too. So I gave her something to do so she wouldn't just stand there, worrying. Gotta stop draining yourself, Lily."

"It's not as if I do it on purpose," Lilith muttered, stung.

Eda huffed.

"There's a reckless streak in you, little sister."

"You're one to talk. Throwing me your staff last night... the thoughts that went through my head, Edalyn..."

Eda was silent for a moment. Lilith was talking about when she had tripped in the cave, and Eda had gone to distract the guard.

"Same thoughts that went through mine, probably," she admitted in an uncharacteristically quiet voice. "I can't... cast when I'm about to transform. Thought it'd be a good distraction if I just... went on a bit of a rampage or whatever. I knew you'd take care of the girls. And Owlbert. And King."

Lilith looked up at Eda. Eda didn't meet her gaze.

"Why didn't you tell me the curse had gotten to this stage?" Lilith asked.

Eda shrugged. "It's... a new thing."

"... Maybe the girls should stay with me..."

Eda looked down at Lilith - there was true hurt in her eyes now.

"I didn't hurt Luz," she said. She sounded as if she was holding on to that fact with all her might. "I found her. I kept her safe. Even though I transformed."

"... That you did," Lilith admitted. She remembered Eda prowling around the bound Luz in the room where the big fight had happened.

"I listened to her. I listened to you." Eda paused for a moment. "That's... new, too."

"Edalyn... I..." Lilith took a breath. "I know you're not going to like me suggesting it, but... The Emperor might be able to help you with your curse. If you were to join the coven - "

"I'm not going to join the coven, Lily," Eda said firmly. "I'll handle it on my own. I have until now! I'll sort it out. I always sort it out... One way or another."

"But - "

"I don't want to owe anyone for something like that! Especially not someone like him."

"... What if I found a cure?"

Eda looked down at her sister.

"That depends."

"On what?"

"On what the price is going to be."

"What if... there wasn't a price. At all."

"There's no such thing as a free feast, Lily," Eda muttered, looking away. "I'll sort it out myself. Don't worry about it, alright?"

Lilith could practically see the walls going up around her sister. She knew Eda didn't often let people in, but it had hurt Lilith to hear she wouldn't accept her help, even if it came with no strings attached.

Could I truly give her something like that without strings? Maybe she's right to doubt me.

"What if someone came to you and said they could make the pain go away?"

"What?" Lilith's eyebrows wrinkled in confusion.

"What if someone came to you and said they could make all the pain just... go away. Would you believe them? Would you believe them if they said you could get the cure or whatever for free?"

"... Sounds too good to be true."

"Exactly. And even if there was a cure, and you did get it for free, there would be a price, sooner or later. Maybe a little fudged paper work here, a lost piece of evidence there... It would never. End. Whatever relationship it is, it would be forever changed. One would always have power over the other. I... don't want that to happen to us."

"I think I see your point," Lilith admitted.

"Maybe that's how the Blights see us. Or you."

"... You lost me."

"That you have power over them. And that you could blackmail them forever because of it."

Lilith let out a little huff.

"I think that's absolutely how they see it."

"Are you going to blackmail them forever?"

"I have no actual intention of blackmailing them, but... I can't say it hasn't crossed my mind. Having leverage over both Tobias and Agnathea Blight is... a very powerful thing to have. I could make a lot of positive changes if I can lean on them to get their votes in the Council and the Court."

"Well there you go. How is that not blackmail?"

"But if it's used for good things?"

Eda huffed. "Good according to who? You?"

"According to whom," Lilith corrected.

Eda gave her a 'really?'-look.

Lilith rolled her eyes. "Yes, good according to me, I suppose?"

"Shouldn't it be according to Luz, if anyone? She's the one who's got the recording."

"She's not involved in the political game on the Boiling Isles."

"But she could be, when she's older. She'd shake things up a whole bunch. Make some real positive changes."

Lilith frowned.

"I think I see another point of yours," she said quietly. "So we just do nothing with it?"

"Not saying nothing, just... be very, very careful with it. Save it for a rainy day. And make sure Ingalill keeps her trap shut about it."

"It's not as if anyone is going to believe her, if she does say anything."

"When she says something, not if. She'll find a way. It's freaking inevitable. Even the people in the deepest dungeons have some sort of interaction with guards, and guards talk. And she can be very charming, when she needs to be."

They looked at each other at the same time.

"Maybe we... make her forget. Might be the best thing to do anyway. She might figure out that you didn't cast a spell on her, that the pain she felt was just from being in your body. She's a clever little bastard, that one."

"Edalyn..." Lilith said guardedly. "That's extremely illegal."

"Yes. But so is the other option I can think of."

"... I see your point."

The idea of Ingalill figuring out and spilling her most closely guarded secret sent unpleasant chills down Lilith's spine. She shivered, despite the rubber bottle warming her belly.

"You could say it was an accident," Eda suggested. "That she hit her head. Or something."

Lilith closed her eyes as a wave of tiredness flowed over her. There were too many things to think about.

"Right now I just want to sleep."

"I hear you," Eda sighed. "Let's get you a bed. You can sleep for a while and we can talk about this more when you're not so full of ouch."

"... 'Full of ouch'?" Lilith asked.

"Something Luz says. The opposite of 'right as rain'."

"I see... An apt description."

They got Lilith upright and into the house. Morton gave Eda and Lilith the use of the smallest bedroom on the top floor. Eda prepped the bed with several layers of towels for protection, then helped Lilith get into a nightshirt that was much too large for her.

"I'll bring you some crackers or something," Eda said once she'd helped Lilith into bed. "And I'll see if Morton's got some ginger ale or tea or whatever."

"Is there lavender in the garden?"

"Probably? Why?"

"The smell of it just... helps."

Eda gave her a half-smile. "Sure, I'll go check."

When she returned to the room a few minutes later, Lilith was fast asleep. There were tear tracks still drying on her cheeks. Eda put the little tray she had brought on the nightstand with a weary sigh, then left the room. She left the door open a crack.

Downstairs, she found King, Amity and Luz asleep on the couch in the living room. Amity was sitting upright, but Luz had slumped over onto the armrest. King lay sprawled between them. Eda took a peek into the room where the twins lay - they were asleep too.

She rubbed her neck, her finger catching on the tiny nick Ingalill had made last night. She couldn't help but to feel a little guilty about her. Maybe a lot guilty. When they had met, all those years ago, Ingalill had been so young. Barely twenty years old.

Half her life has passed since I last saw her.

It had been a lovely, chaotic little whirlwind of a romance. Parties and grifting, music halls and pickpocketing, markets and get rich-quick-schemes. Wonderful days and nights living on the edge, doing backflips and handstands on it, challenging each other to go further every time. And then they went too far. They had bitten off more than they could chew. And Eda had to bail. Honestly, it had been a bit of a relief that it was over. She had been much younger back then, but the curse was still there, and it had gotten harder and harder to keep it a secret.

The mace that had slashed Ingalill's face had been meant for Eda, who hadn't seen it coming. Ingalill had pushed Eda out of the way. Eda threw the culprit into the nearest wall in response, but the rest of the guards chasing them were just moments away. If she stayed, the best case scenario was a few years in prison and no permanent injuries. She could risk her life for a person she had known a few months, who had just taken a mace to the face for her sake. Or... she could just leave.

It had not been her finest hour.

"'Nice knowing you, kitten'," she said under her breath. Not a particularly great goodbye, but she had been pressed for time. Once she flew out of there, she had felt like she had left a huge weight behind. Maybe she was just looking at the past with rose tinted glasses. It had been hard, those months in Shincity. But she didn't like to remember those parts.

They hadn't had any underlings. It hadn't been an operation as such. Just the two of them, dancing on the edge. The feeling of sticking it to the man, together, without anyone knowing until it was too late, tricking the world and wrapping it around your finger - that feeling was better than any drug. After a successful outing, and sometimes even in the middle of a scheme, they'd find somewhere at least partly out of sight and ravish each other, high on the thrill. Those memories Eda revisited quite frequently. Oh boy, didn't she just.

And now... she would have to cast a memory spell over Ingalill. It was that, or kill her. Eda would do a lot of things for Lilith, but not that. Or... maybe she would. If Lily's literal life was at stake, not just her... reputation or whatever.

Maybe she should just do it now, while everyone was asleep. No... she'd wait for Lilith to wake up. She might have come up with a different solution in her sleep or something. She let out a tired sigh.

When Luz awoke on the couch, it took a moment for her to remember where she was. She spotted Eda standing by an open door, looking into a room a few meters away.

Luz walked up to her mentor, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

"MmmEda?" she said with a yawn.

"Hey, kid," Eda glanced at her, then back into the room.

"Whatcha doin´?"

"Trying to figure out what to do with these brats," she sighed, gesturing toward the sleeping twins. "I've tried contacting the Blight house, but nobody's there. Morton let me use his crystal ball. Are they out looking for them? Nothing's been on the news. Thought it'd be a pretty big story, the Blight kids being kidnapped. But there's just... nothing. Well. There was a story about The Emperor's Coven making a huge bust and Lilith being in pursuit of the 'ring leader'," she made sarcastic air quotes.

"Maybe... they're outta town?" Luz suggested drowsily.

"Would be easiest to just wake them up and ask but even though they're little shits who put all our lives in danger, they're... still kids, you know?" She waved a hand vaguely in their direction again. "Like, how would you even punish them? And I don't know if I'm supposed to come up with that punishment, or Lily is? Or their parents? The guard? Bah..."

Luz looked at Eda and blinked up at her slowly.

"Tha'ss a lotta questions," she commented.

Eda tutted, then put her arm around Luz's shoulders. "Sorry, kid. Just thinking aloud... How you doing?"

"Tired. Kinda hungry?"

"Yeah, me too. Let's make some toast or something."

They found Morton in the cozy kitchen and made themselves a few sandwiches. It was amazing how quickly Luz bounced back, Eda observed. She didn't for a moment think that this was it - there would probably be nightmares and things that popped up later, but for now, the kid was handling things surprisingly well. She was a robust little tyke. Resilient. Resourceful. She watched Luz devour three pieces of toast with butter, cheese and cucumber. She felt proud of her. Luz had really used her head last night. Left the message, got out of her restraints, acquired a weapon, even if it was just a rock. A rock that was still in the front pocket of her hoodie, if Eda wasn't mistaken.

"You're keeping that thing?" she asked, pointing at the bulge on Luz's belly.

"Hm? Oh, yeah. I am." Luz smiled and took another bite of toast.

"Why?"

Luz tilted her head from side to side as she chewed. "It's my Eda rock."

"Your huh?"

"It's got a heart of gold, like you." Luz took out the rock and put it on the table. There was a shiny core that had been partly exposed by a fang. "You'll go into deep, scary caves to find me. You'll break down doors and trample bad guys. For me. No matter what shape you're in."

Eda leaned in to take a closer look.

"Huh, would you look at that..." she said, kind of stunned by what Luz had said. She looked over at the kid; Luz was giving her a warm, wide grin. Eda grinned back, feeling more touched than she'd like to admit, but the guilt swirled in her mind too. "Come here you," she said, leaning over to give Luz an affectionate noogie.

"Oh," Morton said, looking at them with watery eyes. "So nice to see this side of you, Eda."

"Keep your trap shut about it," Eda said, pointing a warning finger at him. "Kid, you're gonna wreck my reputation as a hard-ass!"

"I won't stop til the world knows!" Luz made a dramatic gesture. "Gather round, children, and hear the tale of Eda, the witch with the heart of gold - "

"Yeah, yeah, okay - put a sock in it, kid," Eda chuckled. She got to her feet. "Gonna go check on Lily." She ruffled Luz's hair one last time, then left the room. She wiped the corners of her eyes quickly, then headed up the stairs. She might as well actually go check on Lily.

Eda took a peek into Lilith's room to find she was still asleep. She waited a moment to see her chest rise and fall a few times, then left the room. She could do with a nap herself, oh couldn't she just. Might as well, really. There wasn't really anything for her to do right now, apart from worrying about what was going to happen next, and Eda didn't really do worrying. She rubbed her sore back, then went into the room Morton had let her and Luz use to catch a few hours sleep in earlier. She flopped onto the bed fully dressed and pulled a pillow into position, then closed her eyes.

Heart of gold, huh, she thought with a huff. You don't know how wrong you are, kid.

Luz made a few more sandwiches and brought them into the living room. She tried to sit down without waking Amity, but her friend's eyes flickered open when the couch creaked.

"Aw dang it, was trying not to wake you," Luz said quietly. "Made you and King some sandwiches, if you're hungry."

"Oh, thanks, Luz..." Amity rubbed her neck, then sat up. She could do with something to eat. She was sure they'd had lunch not too long ago, but her body cried out for nourishment.

"Hey, um... I was thinking... do you maybe want to read the new book? Or... is that like... a really bad idea?"

Amity's eyebrows rose. She had completely forgotten about the book. She considered it for a moment. It would be marvelous to escape reality for a while.

"That would be nice..." She looked at Luz, then rubbed her neck again.

"Maybe we could... take turns reading aloud? I don't think my bag... made it out of... there." Luz looked suddenly so very sad. Amity reached out and took her hand, then scooted closer as the tears started to roll down Luz's cheeks. Amity put her other hand over the back of Luz's and squeezed it tight.

"Of course we can," she said. Amity didn't know what more to say. There was nothing she could say to make it alright, nothing that would make what had happened not have happened. But maybe that wasn't the point. There was something she could say... Not to change the past, but to help in the now. And in the future. That was the point. "I'm here. I've got you," she said quietly.

Luz drew in an unsteady breath, then leaned her head on Amity's shoulder. Amity breathed out, then rested her cheek against Luz's forehead.

They sat like that for a long time, just letting themselves cry and find comfort in the presence of the other. Just like with Lilith, Amity felt she had permission to cry around Luz. She hated that her brother and sister had endangered her friend, and herself, and Eda. And King. And Lilith. She wondered what her parents would do when they found out. Would they even believe her?

"You should eat something," Luz said after a while. She wiped her cheeks with the back of her hand.

"I will, but... the sandwiches aren't going anywhere. We can just... talk. Or... not talk. Just sit."

"Thanks, but I think it's kinda... over. For now." Luz gave a brave little smile. "I do really want to read the book, though. I could start, while you eat?"

"Sure," Amity nodded. She spotted her book bag by the door and waved her finger. The spell circle broke apart before she could complete it. "Oh... right."

"It's okay, I'll get it!" Luz got to her feet and went over to get the bag. She took a seat on the sofa again and gave it to Amity.

Amity was glad Luz hadn't just opened it. She took out the book and looked at it. The red cover was glossy and pristine, despite all the things it had been through in the last twenty four hours. She raised it to her nose and drew in the smell of a brand new book.

"I really love that smell, too," Luz said with a little smile.

Amity held out the book to her and she did the same thing. It made Amity blush for some reason. Luz opened the cover and ran her fingers over the signed title page.

"'Guardians of Goretack, volume six; The Spirit of Song, by Vermetica Handergat'," Luz cleared her throat as Amity took a sandwich. "'In the beginning, there was silence. The world was lifeless and dull. Then one day, a flower grew. And in that flower was a spirit. When the flower bloomed, the spirit spread their wings and flew into the sky. Their wing beats made the first true sound. And the world was forever changed.'"

Amity hadn't been able to start eating, she just stared at Luz.

"Am I doing a weird voice?" Luz asked, looking uncertain.

"No, no - you're just..." Amity looked for the right word. "You've got a great story telling voice. And rhythm."

"Oh," Luz blushed and straightened her back. "Thanks, that means a lot, coming from you."

Amity smiled nervously, feeling her heart beat pick up. She shoved the sandwich into her mouth for something to do and looked at Luz, hoping she'd keep reading. Luz grinned in a very goofy way, then looked down at the text again.

"'The-a' - um - ha-hum, ahh, okay..." she shook her head and blinked hard. Her voice had cracked on the first word. "'The Priestess of Song opened the doors to the temple, welcoming in the vibrant light of dawn."

When Lilith opened her eyes, something stirred next to her. She froze, then turned her head, eyes wide. A large, dark cat blinked at her slowly. Lilith breathed out, raising a hand to her chest to try to calm her racing heart.

"You scared the living daylights out of me," she muttered. She saw the light from the landing spill in through the open door. The cat must have wandered into the room from the rest of the house. "Are you a friendly cat? ...Or the kind that likes to scratch people?" she asked suspiciously.

"Mrowr," said the cat. It rose from its loaf shape and raised its back, stretching out first its front, then its back legs. It stepped up on Lilith's thigh, then walked over her abdomen and re-loafed there before she could get her hands out from under the blanket. The cat began to purr and Lilith slowly relaxed. It was a melodic, soothing sound. And the cat was warm... so warm. The gentle vibrations it made seemed to counter the ache that had been rising steadily since Lilith woke up.

She breathed out and closed her eyes, letting her hands settle on her ribs. The pain was still rising in her back, but her stomach felt a whole lot less... urgent. Maybe it was the weight of the cat. Maybe it was the purring. Maybe it was the heat of another living being that soothed her - maybe it was all three, but it was helping... And that was wonderful.

She lay there, listening to the reassuring sound of the fluffy beast. There were harmonies to the purr that rose and fell steadily. It was hypnotic... She felt it move slightly and stiff whiskers nudged her hand, then a nose. Without opening her eyes, she extended her fingers and stroked its head. The purring deepened and Lilith sighed, feeling the sound reverberating through her body.

What a good cat, she thought. Wonderful, marvelous cat...

She drifted off, lulled back to sleep by the gentle creature.

When she next awoke, it was to the sound of a door creaking open. The cat was gone.

"Hey," Eda said in a raspy voice.

Lilith responded with a grunt, her hands reaching down to stroke her aching abdomen.

Eda sat down on the edge of the bed and rubbed her face.

"How you doin'?" she asked.

Lilith drew in a breath through her teeth as a cold surge emanated from somewhere deep inside.

"Where - did the cat go?" she moaned.

"Cat?"

"There was a cat... big, fluffy one... It sat on my..." she leaned her head back on her pillow as the ache grew. Her breath became shallow.

"Hey... hey. Don't tense up," Eda said softly, then sighed.

Lilith rolled slowly to her side, pulling her knees up. When the cramp finally subsided she panted in relief, then rubbed her temples and sore jaw muscles.

Eda looked at her with troubled eyes.

"Feel sick?"

"Not at present," Lilith muttered tiredly.

"Where's the hot water bottle?"

"By my feet somewhere..."

Eda found it and reheated it, then lifted the blanket and carefully put it against Lilith's belly. Lilith drew in a quick, unsteady breath, then exhaled slowly while she curled around the bottle, her tense face relaxing.

"Thank you," she managed after a few seconds. She wiped the corners of her eyes, then looked up at her older sister.

"What were you saying about a cat?"

"It was in my bed earlier. It got on my stomach and purred. It was... wonderful."

"Huh. Haven't seen any cats. Sure it wasn't a dream?"

"No idea. Maybe it was."

"Wanna hear something cute?"

"'Cute'?"

"Yeah. Went downstairs just now... Amity was reading aloud to Luz on the couch. From the book they got yesterday, I think."

"Really?" Lilith's eyebrows drew together.

"Kids are so resilient, huh."

"They really are," Lilith tutted and sighed. "Eda... what are we going to do?"

"About what exactly?"

"Ingalill. And the twins."

Eda let out a long, weary sigh. "Well... I've tried getting a hold of the Blights, but no luck. There hasn't been any news about their kids being kidnapped, so I think they're just... somewhere else. Don't think they even know their kids are gone." She shrugged. "Didn't want to wake the little shitheads unnecessarily." She huffed. "As for Ingalill... Don't worry. I'll take care of it."

"'Take care of it'?" Lilith asked carefully.

"I'll... mess with her memory a bit. If someone discovers she's had her memory modified... it's just better if it could be traced back to me, since we've got history."

Lilith closed her eyes, a huge feeling of relief stealing over her. She reached out and touched Eda's hand.

"Thank you," she said, her voice so quiet it couldn't even be called a whisper. She took a breath, then repeated it at her normal volume. "Thank you, Edalyn."

"You've got more to lose," she said with a shrug. "Besides... you're fresh out of oomph anyway."

Lilith let out a bitterly amused breath.

"Got any ideas on punishments for the brats?" Eda asked, to change the subject to something marginally less awful. "Worst I can think of is to clean Hooty." She shivered at the thought. "Yeah. They can do that. For about fifteen years."

"I don't want them anywhere near me or Amity," Lilith said tiredly. "I fear I might do something unforgivable."

Eda turned her head to the side. "Gardening duty? Ooh, set them to wrangling the compost gremlins. Or just leave it to their parents to decide."

Lilith huffed. "My estimation of the Blights' parenting capabilities have lowered considerably."

"Well, shit. Not as if they were high to begin with. What did they do?"

"That's between me and Amity, she told me in confidence," Lilith said firmly. "But let's just say... How they acted in my dining room is certainly not their lowest point." She let out a frustrated sigh. "When I found the Blight children in the cave, Em said she thought I hated her and her brother. I told her I hated what they did... and that they could make a change and do better. That they were supposed to protect their little sister... not torment her... She lied to me. She didn't tell me the whole truth of how and why they'd got there. Just a version I would accept, and - " she trailed off.

I am an authority figure and in a very dangerous situation she told me what I wanted to hear, more or less... To protect herself. It's a defence mechanism. A learned response... She probably thought I wouldn't take her and her brother with me if she had told me the truth... She just wanted to get out of there... And who could blame her for that?

She closed her eyes and sighed deeply.

"Hurting again?" Eda asked.

"It still hurts but... It just hit me... How the twins act... It's not only out of malice, I don't think. It's... They don't know how else to act. Because they've never... learned how. Or, might be more accurate to say that what they've learned is to be cruel. Learned to bend the truth... because they needed to. To keep themselves... safe."

"But you could say that about just about anyone," Eda countered. "Ingalill, too."

"She's an adult."

"She wasn't always."

"We're not talking about her now. We're talking about... children. Cruel, arrogant, selfish, spoiled... vicious children. But still... Children."

"Yeah, so? Not gonna change my mind about them cleaning Hooty."

"That's not what I mean... Whatever punishment we give them, we should at least make it clear that it's because of what they did, how they chose to act, not... because they are inherently bad people. We needn't be needlessly cruel just because..."

"Just because they could have killed our kids, themselves and us?" Eda huffed, looking away.

"But that didn't happen." Lilith raised her eyebrows at Eda. "We... stopped that from happening. Like you said earlier. We went in there. And we got our girls back. We stepped in. Not their parents. We... have to be... compassionate."

"We don't," Eda said simply, shaking her head.

"Then how are we any better than the Blights? Or Ingalill?"

Eda rolled her lips over her teeth, breathing rather hard.

"Is it compassionate to mess with someone's memory?" she asked, her voice taut.

"... No," Lilith answered quietly. She didn't even try to justify it.

There was a tense silence that rang with sadness.

Eda shook her head slowly. "I'll still do it."

"Edalyn - "

"No - I'm - I'm responsible for her, okay?" She held up a hand, making a decisive gesture at the floor.

"... What?"

"She wasn't like this, before. She... was just a wild... twenty something kid basically. Wanted to... stick it to the man. Steal the cream from under the fat cats' noses... Have sex on their beds while they were in the other room."

Lilith sighed. "Spare me."

"We got co - ... over confident. Got in way over our heads... And the shit hit the fan. Was only a matter of time before it did, but... She got badly hurt while trying to protect me and I... left." Eda let out a long breath and sagged.

"You... left." Lilith felt a sharp sting in her heart.

"Yes. I left. I left her terribly hurt, in a situation I couldn't have helped her get out of, no matter what I did. The only one I could get out of that situation relatively unscathed... was myself. And that's what I did. I had no interest in taking the blame for what we had done, or sharing the blame, out of solidarity or... whatever. It was supposed to be fun dangerous, not dangerous dangerous. So yeah, I got out of there. That's why... she's like this."

"Edalyn..." Lilith said, looking at her sister in surprise. "You... probably didn't help her when you left, but everything she's done since then is not on you... She was well into her twenties when you met. An adult. Able to make her own decisions. Not as if you taught her all she knows."

"Hah, no... Actually, I caught her trying to lift my wallet and..." Eda sighed, remembering the rush of finding a kindred spirit, game for anything and attractive in a way that made the soles of her feet burn, even now. "Things just... flowed. For a while..." She looked at the floor now, her face falling. "Being left for dead, to take the fall for something another person was in on as well... changes you."

"I'm not denying that, but - mmmh..." Lilith closed her eyes and grimaced as the pain swelled. The nausea rose up in the back of her throat. The conflicting impulses made her head spin - she needed to throw up, but she feared the pain that would bring. She pressed her hand over her mouth, feeling the cold sweat break out on her forehead and back.

"Shit," Eda muttered. She moved the bucket closer to the bed, then finger combed Lilith's hair away from her face. Her sister gagged a few times, then lurched forward and vomited over the side of the bed. Her face was a mask of agony, her breath ragged and heavy. When Eda put her hand on Lilith's back, she felt her trembling.

"I know it hurts," Eda said quietly. "Just... try to breathe." She stroked Lilith's back with long, firm strokes. She noticed her pant with less distress when she was around the lumbar region, so she focused her efforts there. Slowly, Lilith's breathing steadied.

Lilith raised a trembling hand to her forehead, thumb and middle finger rubbing her sweaty temples.

"Maybe we should leave the serious discussions until later, or something," Eda suggested. Her hand stopped stroking Lilith's back.

"Please don't stop," Lilith breathed, feeling terribly embarrassed.

Eda hesitated a moment, then resumed the slow massage.

Lilith sniffed, covering her face. Eda felt the suppressed sobs through her hand.

"Just me here," she murmured, scooting a little closer. "Don't have to hide it..."

Lilith let her hand fall, trying to breathe steadily through the tears. She hugged herself, one hand curled in front of her chest.

The pose Lilith was in sent Eda tumbling down memory lane. As a kid, Lilith had sucked her thumb. Many a night, she had crept into Eda's bed after a bad dream, and she would lay just like that, curled in on herself on her side. The memories made her heart ache.

"D'you remember the summers at Nana's house?" she asked, her voice sounding far away.

Lilith nodded, breathing out a long breath.

"Those were the days..." Eda sighed. "Picking herk berries in the long grass, climbing the cliffs behind the house, jumping into the lake..."

"F-feeding the bunnies in the morning..." Lilith sniffed with a faint smile.

"Oh yeah, the bunnies... And her big ol' unicorn Buttercup. Oof... You could just brush her for hours... She used to step on my toes."

"You used to eat her sugar lumps." Lilith wiped her cheeks.

"Oh yeah." Eda chuckled softly. "Used to sleep so well there. All those frogs singing in the night..."

"I liked when we went swimming in the evenings..."

Eda smiled. "Me too. Maybe... that's something we could do again. Take the girls there. Or... something. During summer break."

Lilith looked at Eda in surprise, then closed her eyes and nodded. She would like that very much... It was something nice to look forward to. And that was surprising in itself; to look forward to spending time with her sister.

Eda walked slowly down the stairs, rubbing her sore arm. Lilith had fallen back asleep after a while. Now she could really do with some apple blood. Or a more serious drink.

When she reached the bottom floor, she found Luz snoozing on the couch, King curled up next to her. Amity raised her head when she heard Eda's footsteps. The look on the kid's face filled Eda with dread. She nodded in the direction of the kitchen and Amity got up. Her iRaven sat on her wrist.

When they were in the kitchen, Amity started to pace back and forth.

"What's up?" Eda asked.

"My parents. They tried to contact me. But I didn't... pick up."

"Good thinking. Lily should be the one to talk to them." Eda rubbed her forehead.

"I could bring her my raven."

"She's... resting right now. Your parents can wait a little longer."

As she said that, the bird on Amity's wrist started cawing out a jaunty little tune.

"It's them."

"Don't answer."

They both watched the bird until it fell silent. Eda let out a breath, then turned to the fridge. She had just put her hand on the handle when the bird started singing again. Amity looked at Eda worriedly.

"Fine. Come with me." She gestured with her thumb toward the living room.

"Wait here a bit, alright?" Eda said when they had reached the top of the stairs. Amity nodded and watched apprehensively as Eda opened a half-closed door and slipped inside.

After a minute and two more unanswered calls, Eda appeared again.

"Come in, kid."

Amity entered the little room. It was dark in there. It took a moment for her eyes to adjust.

"Amity?" Lilith asked.

"My parents keep calling," Amity took a step forward, then hesitated. Lilith was lying in a bed that was built into the wall. She looked... ill. "I don't know what to say to them. I don't know what they want..."

"Come here." Lilith beckoned her over.

Amity took a seat on a little stool and Eda sat on the edge of the bed. The bird started singing again and Lilith took a deep breath, rubbing her temples.

"Answer it, please," she said, then opened her eyes and looked at the bird.

Amity touched the raven's head and it opened its beak.

"Sweetheart! I've been calling forever! Why didn't you pick up?!" the voice of Mrs Blight came out of the bird's mouth. "Hello?!"

"Hello Mrs Blight," Lilith said in a calm voice.

"Muh-Miss Clawthorne?! What - "

"I am here with Amity. And your other children."

"Tobias! They're with - " there was a series of scrapes and muffled words.

"Where are our children?!" Mr Blight barked, his voice suddenly loud.

"They are safe. We are at the house of a family friend."

"Tell me where!" Mr Blight demanded.

"I understand that you must be worried and upset. But I would prefer to speak to Mrs Blight," Lilith said in an icy tone.

"Cantankerous old - " more muffled words, agitated this time. Lilith put a hand on Amity's trembling wrist.

"We came home and they weren't here," Mrs Blight's voice could be heard over fading footsteps. In the distance, a door slammed. It made Amity twitch. Lilith took her hand and squeezed it gently.

"We've been trying to get a hold of you during the day," Lilith said, looking at Amity with an inquiring look on her face. Amity nodded that she was okay, then tried her best to actually be okay.

"We were out of town - why - what happened?! Their beds haven't been slept in, their school lunches are still in the fridge - "

"Agnathea," Lilith said in a calming voice. "Please listen carefully. Earlier this week, Edric and Emira contacted some rather unsavory characters and hired them to acquire Luz's recording device."

Mrs Blight's loud, sharp gasp and subsequent rapid, shocked breathing told Lilith she hadn't known about it. Nobody could fake that kind of reaction.

"The criminals they hired betrayed, then kidnapped them, and Luz and Amity. Luz managed to leave us a message before she was... taken," Lilith closed her eyes and grimaced. "Which... enabled us to find them rather quickly." Eda reached out and started to rub Lilith's back. Lilith gave her a grateful look, then continued: "At the time... we thought it was only Luz and Amity that had been abducted."

"Emperor's blessing..." Mrs Blight sounded on the verge of fainting.

"The kidnappers put... bile leeches on them to keep them quiet; Edric and Emira have received treatment for bile... sssack inflammation and are recovering. Amity was drained as well, but is in fffair condition."

"Inflammation..." Mrs Blight breathed.

"Everyone is safe and recovering," Lilith was taking deep breaths. Sweat beaded on her forehead. "The... kidnappers have been apprehended."

A whimper escaped the raven, followed by an unmistakable sniffle.

"Mom..." Amity breathed. She couldn't remember the last time she had heard her mom cry.

"S-sweetheart?!" Mrs Blight gasped. "Is that you?! Amity?"

"I'm - I'm here, mom," Amity sniffed. "I'm okay..."

"Oh, sweetheart I've missed you! Come home - please come home..." Mrs Blight pleaded. There was a raw edge to her voice. Amity closed her eyes, cringing at the sharp guilt that writhed in her chest.

"The children are safe," Lilith said before Mrs Blight could continue. She squeezed Amity's hand tightly. "I... will send my palisman to guide you here. I would prefer you come alone, Mrs Blight."

"But he's their father!" she cried.

"I am not concerned with his... emotional well being," Lilith panted firmly. "Given how he acted last time I saw him, I do not trust him to keep his temper. Your children are in a delicate state. And we will need to talk rationally about what sort of ramifications this incident is going to have."

"Rah... ramifications?" Mrs Blight asked, sounding confused.

"Edric and Emira broke the deal we established during... our last meeting and endangered the lives of themselves and... five other people. There need to be serious consequences for their thoughtless, rrreckless actions."

"But - they were kidnapped - "

"A kidnapping they directly caused," Lilith interrupted, gritting her teeth. "See this situation for what it is, Mrs Blight. They are not only, and not the only, victims here. They are the sole reason it happened."

There was silence.

"Mom..." Amity whispered. "They did this. They say they just... wanted to fix things. Wanted to get the phone so you'd stop being mad at them. If they had just followed the rules for once - please tell me you understand that they did something wrong..."

"Sweetheart..."

"Mom..." Amity whimpered. "Please tell me you un-der-ssstand..." She had great trouble getting the last word out. Lilith's other hand slid over Amity's, trembling with the effort.

"I... I understand," Mrs Blight said breathlessly.

Amity breathed out and slumped forward, closing her eyes.

"I will send my palisman within - the hour," Lilith managed. "Please bring... fresh clothes."

"Yes... yes, I will. I'll see you soon, sweetheart, I love you."

Amity twitched and swallowed, then said: "Bye mom." She closed the raven's beak gently, then lowered her head to her knees, her breathing unsteady and shallow.

"It's alright," Lilith panted, stroking Amity's shoulder. "It's alright... You did so well..."

"Yeah, good job, kid," Eda said, still rubbing Lilith's back. "You too, Lily. You need the bucket?"

"No," Lilith shook her head. "Thank you, Edalyn..."

"Don't worry about it."

"I'm s-so s-sorry," Amity squeaked. "You're in s-so much pain an-nd - "

"Yes, I'm in a lot of pain - that doesn't mean I won't help you if I can," Lilith's eyes filled with tears, both from the overwhelming physical pain, the mental stress of the call she had just navigated and the distress of knowing how all of it must be affecting Amity.

"There's room to squish in there, I think," Eda nodded at the space in front of Lilith.

"Would you like to come here?" Lilith asked, scooting back a little and patting the mattress in front of her. Amity rose without a word and lay down next to Lilith, curling into a little ball. Lilith wrapped one arm around her shoulder and head, resting her cheek just above Amity's little pony tail. "It's alright, my dear... You did so well..." she whispered tenderly. "We are going to sort this out. Everything is going to be alright."

Amity's little body shook with silent sobs, making Lilith's heart ache fiercely. She looked up at Eda and their eyes met. Eda pointed to herself, then gestured toward the door with her thumb, silently asking if she should leave. Lilith gave her an uncertain look and opened her mouth half way, then closed it again. Eda nodded, scooting a little closer to Lilith's legs. She kept rubbing her sister's lower back. Lilith gave her a grateful, sad little smile, then closed her eyes.

"It's alright... It's alright..." Lilith whispered, stroking the top of Amity's head with her thumb.

The clock on the wall ticked and tocked with sharp metallic sounds, terribly loud in the otherwise silent room. Amity sat with her eyes firmly on the carpet in front of her. Lilith sat on her left, wrapped in a blanket. Luz sat on Amity's right. They were holding hands tightly. Luz had her head leaning against Eda's hooded shoulder and King in her lap. On the smaller couch next to them sat Ed and Em, also wrapped in blankets. They looked pale and tired.

There was a knock on the front door.

Eda tutted. "Finally."

Amity tensed, her breathing becoming more shallow. She had a strong impulse to get up and run out of the house. Lilith's hand sliding over her wrist and gently gripping her hand calmed her slightly.

"It's going to be alright," she whispered.

Amity really wanted to believe that.

Morton opened the door.

"Ah, Mrs Blight, how do you - "

"My children," Mrs Blight breathed. "Where are my children?"

"Right this way," Morton gestured for her to enter. He led her into the living room. Amity heard the familiar high heeled gait and swallowed hard. She hadn't seen her mom for more than a week. She didn't feel like she was ready to see her.

"Mom..." Em said, sounding scared. "We messed up... we really messed up..."

Amity looked up, stunned. She stared at Em. She had never heard her sound like that. So... vulnerable. It didn't sound like an act.

Mrs Blight marched over to the twins and hugged their heads to her midriff, her face working hard to keep from crying. The muscles around her mouth were twitching. Amity looked away, feeling suddenly conflicted.

"You... silly... silly..." Mrs Blight said in a voice thick with emotion. "What... possessed you to do such a thing?!" She let go of the twins and grabbed them both by the chins and lifted their heads up. "Answer me."

"You were so mad at us, mom," Ed said, his lower lip trembling. "We just wanted to fix everything..."

"We didn't mean... we didn't want..." Em whimpered.

"You could have died!" Mrs Blight said, inhaling and exhaling powerfully. "You could have killed - your sister!"

Both twins nodded in their mother's hands, their faces crumpling.

"And Luz," Eda added sharply. Everyone looked at her. "And King, me and Lily. Let's not forget those little details, shall we?"

Mrs Blight eyed Eda with a mix of indignation and fear. There was a soupçon of rage in her gaze, too.

"Yes. Let's not forget that," Lilith agreed. Even though she sat in the couch with her legs pulled up and wrapped in a blanket, she managed to look imperious. She was pale and sweat was visible on her forehead, but she radiated power even so.

Mrs Blight turned to look at Lilith, and the expression on her face turned more apprehensive. Her eyes flicked to Amity.

"Sweetheart," Mrs Blight breathed, letting go of the twins. She took a step toward Amity.

Amity felt a thrill of fear - she didn't want to look up and see empty sockets where her mother's eyes used to be, and at the same time she didn't want her mother to look at her at all, empty sockets or not. She closed her own eyes and turned away from her family, hiding her face in the blanket draped around Lilith.

"What part of that reaction says 'come closer' to you?!" Eda demanded, half rising from her seat. Mrs Blight stopped with her hands a meter from Amity's knees.

"I want to hug my child," Mrs Blight said, sounding indignant.

"She obviously doesn't want that, back off. I said. Back. Off." Eda's voice was full of warning.

Mrs Blight retreated slowly. Ed and Em moved over to make room for their mom. She sat down between them. When Ed tried to lean his head against her shoulder she gave him a sharp look.

"Well this silence is fascinating," Eda commented.

"Where would you suggest we start?" Mrs Blight asked with a controlled breath. Amity could hear the danger in her voice and swallowed, tilting her head further down; she wanted to hide. Lilith stroked her knuckles gently and took a deep, calming breath. In the middle of all the swirling anxiety, Amity managed to feel glad Lilith didn't feel uncomfortable she was leaning on her side like this. She had never sat like this with anyone, as far as she could remember.

Eda grinned dangerously at Mrs Blight. "How about we start with an apology from those brats of yours, hmm?"

Mrs Blight drew in an insulted breath, but got interrupted by Em.

"We're sorry," she said quickly.

"Yeah, we didn't mean for... anything like this to happen," Ed added. "We're sorry."

"Tell us how this all started," Lilith instructed calmly. Amity could feel her chest vibrating as she spoke.

There was silence for a moment.

"Well, go on," Eda said.

"Um... We thought that if... we got the phone back, everything could just... go back to normal," Ed said quietly. "We didn't want you to be mad at us, mom..."

Eda huffed.

"We heard about a place in the market district, where you could... h-hire people," Em sniffed and wiped her cheek with the corner of her blanket. "So we went there... We asked around and... met this woman... t-told her what we needed. We agreed on a price and a where to meet. When we went to pay... they just... took us. Woke up in the dark... And then, later, Amity was there..."

"You lied to me," Amity found herself saying. "I asked how you got there and you lied..."

"Yes..."

"W-when I asked questions you - you put your f-foot on the leech thing and you - you pressed down."

Luz gasped and Lilith turned to look at Amity sharply.

"Y-yes," Em's voice shook.

Everyone looked at Em now. Everyone apart from Amity.

"I did it so you would go to sleep," she sniffed. "You just kept moving and asking questions, they were getting angry - "

"I was trying - " Amity turned to glare at Em, the muscles around her mouth seizing up. "To get them to ransom Luz with us - "

"I c-couldn't lose you too!" Em cried, hiding her face behind shaking hands. "Ed had moved and shouted so much! I said I thought he was really hurt, but I thought he was dead and I didn't want you to think he was dead and I didn't want you to die so I just - I just - I didn't know what else to do - " She dissolved into tears.

Silence followed Em's statement. For a long moment there was only the sound of her wretched crying. Amity didn't know how to feel about what she'd just heard.

She thought Ed was dead... And didn't want me to know...

"When I found the children, only Em was awake," Lilith said into the silence. "I saw to Amity first. She..." Lilith had to take a steadying breath. "Was barely there. I gave her donum lucis. Then I saw to the other children. Ed's leech was dead. I suspected his bile sack to be inflamed. He didn't wake, even after I gave him donum lucis. We carried them out and tried to find Luz, but then King heard them above us. We followed the sound and managed to apprehend the kidnappers after a short... altercation. Then we came to this place. Morton has seen to all our injuries."

"Your children should make a full recovery. They just need rest," Morton smiled at Mrs Blight. "You should change the bandages daily until it heals completely. There will likely be a scar, I'm afraid."

"Thank you, Mr Morton, the Blight family is in your debt," Mrs Blight said, seeming to have collected herself. "Please send the bill to my estate."

"Oh, there is no need for payment - " Morton waved his hands.

"I insist," Mrs Blight said firmly.

"Oh, a-alright..." Morton looked troubled.

"Thank you for retrieving my children, Miss Clawthorne and Miss Clawthorne. The Blight family owes you a debt of gratitude." Mrs Blight said it quickly, not looking at either Eda or Lilith. "If that's everything, I will take my children home now." She rose to her feet. "Fernus, fetch us a coach." She summoned her staff and the three eyed monkey on it hopped down and scampered out the door.

"Hang on a minute there. We've gotta talk punishment," Eda said. "I'll expect them at the creek by the second inn on the way to Nailtown every Saturday, at noon for the foreseeable future. There's plenty for your little troublemakers to clean."

"And I will have them at my home every Sunday at six in the morning. My gardener is getting on in years. They can use someone to do the heavy lifting."

"Fine. None of this kidnapping business reaches the news," Mrs Blight said, still not looking at either Eda or Lilith.

"Nobody wants that." Lilith agreed.

"See to it that your brats actually do what they're told this time, alright?" Eda gestured at the twins with a disgusted look. "I only have so much compassion."

Mrs Blight's nostrils flared, then she looked Luz up and down.

"I don't suppose you'd be interested in some sort of trade..." she suggested reluctantly. "For the recording."

Luz shook her head slowly.

"It is only by Amity's request that we are keeping the information hidden," Lilith said, her voice cold and hard. "Be grateful for her generosity."

"Then I bid you good evening. Come, children." Mrs Blight took a step forward, then looked at Amity, who hadn't made a move to get up. She gave her youngest daughter a long, calculating look. "You obviously understand that family must come first. So come on, sweetheart. It's time to go home."

"Wow, okay," Eda scoffed, looking Mrs Blight up and down. "That's real inviting, that is. Obviously you don't have to go with them, kid."

"You certainly do not," Lilith agreed. She stroked Amity's knuckles as she said it.

Amity kept her eyes firmly on the carpet.

"What is it going to take to get you to come home?" Mrs Blight asked, sounding frustrated and embarrassed now.

Amity remained quiet. She had no idea what to say.

"The Gerdingzert party is next week," Mrs Blight said in a tense, meaningful tone.

Amity's eyes widened and her scalp and back were suddenly overrun with cold shivers.

That's why she's wanted me to come home... Because of the party... If I'm not there, people will wonder why... She hasn't missed me. She's missed the Youngest Daughter piece in her Blight family play set.

"Excuse me," Amity said. She got to her feet, then walked round the couch and into the kitchen without saying another word, her eyes firmly on the floor. She hurried out into the garden, kicking stones and twigs as she paced back and forth, her mind on fire.

After a while, she wasn't sure how long, a coach trundled down the lane beyond the fence.

She stared at it, angry and upset. A part of her wanted to run after it and beg them to take her home with them. She was supposed to do that - wasn't she?

Yes, run after them!

No, are you insane?! They never listen!

But they're your family! Mom cried! Em cried! All because you couldn't handle them teasing you! It's all your fault! You're weak! Mom and dad are fighting! Ed and Em are hurt! You're hurting everyone!

Am I just supposed to let them hurt me instead?! How is that fair?!

Her breath was coming faster and faster, her heart was beating hard in her chest - it was getting hard to breathe now, the ground under her feet swayed - the wound in her chest threatened to swallow her and here was a high pitched tone ringing in her ears.

"The Gerdinzgert party is next week."

'Please come home soon, sweetheart. Love, Mom'

Images started to flicker, snippets of memory flashed past. She felt so confused. Things didn't make sense. What had just happened? Did her mom hate her now? Would they change the locks so she could never go back home? What was going to happen?!

Eda rubbed her forehead and sighed, then held up a hand as Luz got to her feet.

"Luz, give her a moment," she said.

"But she looked so upset."

"Yup. That's why she needs a mome - Luz!"

"I'm just gonna go actually ask her, okay?! So I know!" Luz hurried after Amity.

Eda sighed deeply, then pulled the hood off.

"What a charming family, truly."

"Makes ours seem warm and welcoming," Lilith sighed, too. She looked worriedly after the girls.

"That's a sobering thought - eesh, I need a drink, wow..."

The sound of footsteps returning made Eda turn around, an 'I told you so' smirk ready on her lips. When she saw Luz's expression, her face fell.

"What's... up, kid?" she asked. Lilith turned to look at Luz as well.

"It's Amity, I - I need an adult," Luz pointed toward the garden.

"I got it, I got it," Eda said, waving at Lilith to remain seated. She got to her feet and followed Luz. In the garden she found Amity pacing back and forth. She was breathing erratically.

"Oh boy," Eda sighed. "No, this... Lily would be better at this."

She went back to the living room.

"Lily, need you."

"What's - wrong?" Lilith asked, her voice catching as Eda helped her to her feet.

"Think it'd be best if you tried to handle it, if you're up for it. Your kid needs more of a... delicate touch. She looks really upset."

Lilith nodded, looking pale, but determined.

It took a while for her to get to the garden.

"Oh dear... Could you put on some tea, Edalyn?"

"Sure, yeah. Come on, Luz."

Luz looked from Eda to the still pacing Amity, then back at Eda.

"She'll be okay, let's... just give them some time, alright?"

"Okay..." Luz reluctantly went into the house.

Now Lilith stood alone on the grass, watching Amity stride back and forth at the far end of the garden. She took a deep breath, then moved forward.

"Amity, my dear?" she said softly. The girl didn't seem to hear her. Lilith didn't want to reach out and touch her; she didn't respond well to being touched suddenly. Instead, she stepped into Amity's path and squatted down slowly. Their eyes met and Amity stopped a few meters away, staring at Lilith in surprise and alarm. "It's alright," Lilith said carefully. "Let's... sit down..."

Amity looked frightened. Her hands opened and closed and her chest heaved. The longer she stood still and looked at Lilith, the faster she breathed - until suddenly her hands rose to her chest, a look of utter panic coming over her features. Her breathing grew more labored and erratic - it sounded almost restricted. Lilith quickly got to her feet and approached the girl, hands held out.

"Amity, listen carefully - you are going to be alright. I think your body is reacting to all this stress. I am going to try to help you calm down." Lilith's voice was calm and steady. "Do what I do." She stood up straight and put both hands on her chest, then inhaled deeply through the nose and exhaled slowly through the mouth. "In through the nose... and out through the mouth."

Amity mimicked her stance, but struggled to get the breathing right.

"It's going... to be alright..." Lilith kept breathing deeply. "Just in through the nose... and out through the mouth... Good girl. Listen to the wind in the trees. And breathe. Feel the breeze on your skin. And breathe. The grass under your feet. And breathe..."

Amity found her chest didn't feel so tight when she did as Lilith said. Soon, she felt like she could breathe freely again, if slightly shaky. She stood with her hands on her chest and her eyes closed, feeling less panicked, but that left more space for the shame - Lilith had seen her freak out... They must all have seen her freak out...

"My dear," Lilith said softly. "Let's go sit on the bench. And have a little talk."

Amity nodded. They made their way over there. Lilith sat down slowly, but Amity hesitated.

"Please sit." Lilith patted the cushion right next to her, then held out the blanket she had wrapped around her shoulders, inviting Amity to share it.

The gesture made Amity's heart do the inside out thing so powerfully she felt her knees want to buckle. Her hands rose quickly to her chest. Lilith looked at her worriedly. Amity slowly sat down and Lilith draped the blanket around her. Amity pulled her knees up, then grabbed the corner of the blanket and pulled it over her head, hiding herself from view.

Oh, little one... Lilith's heart ached. As did her stomach. She adjusted the water bottle, trying to think of what to say. She clasped her hands and let out a long sigh.

"Amity... I'm so sorry this is all happening," Lilith shook her head. "It must be so overwhelming..."

Under the blanket, Amity exhaled powerfully and nodded. Seeing that reaction made some of the tension leave Lilith's body.

"Have you felt... overwhelmed like that before?"

After a moment, Amity nodded again, slowly this time.

"May I ask... when?"

"'fter you ban-nished dad," Amity managed.

Lilith had to take a steadying breath. That must have been why it had taken so long to find the girl afterward. She must have felt awful... And she'd had no one to help her... Lilith swallowed, trying to blink away the tears that rose in her eyes. The guilt she felt was powerful. She had left to escort the remaining Blights to the gates, and in the few minutes she had been gone, Amity had left the dining room. Lilith hadn't seen her for an hour and a half.

"Oh, little one..." she sighed, shaking her head. The loneliness of the girl sitting huddled beside her was so... devastatingly familiar. She couldn't keep the tears away. She tried to let them fall with as little fuss as possible. She wanted to take the girl into her lap and hold her tight, but Amity was obviously not ready for that kind of physical interaction.

"Being overwhelmed like that is... terribly frightening. I... wish you would have told me, at the time," Lilith said when she had regained some control over her voice. "But I... can understand why you did not..."

Amity tensed, her ears tingling. Had... Lilith experienced something like this? The surprise almost outweighed the lash of guilt.

"Your heart races... Your mind fills with... images of things that have happened... Or of things that might happen, no matter how unlikely." It was hard to say these things aloud. Lilith felt as if she was opening up doors that she would rather have remained closed forever. "In the moment, it's... hard to remember what is now. Sometimes it's hard to remember what is real... But it passes. You can help your body calm down by focusing on your breathing or... by distracting yourself..." She wiped her cheeks and sniffed. "If you can find something to ground you, or someone, I find that works very well." She closed her eyes, remembering the feeling of Eda's hands on her shoulders.

"I didn-'t want an-y-one to s-see," Amity said in a tiny, vulnerable voice.

"I can understand that. It... makes you feel so exposed. And... if you're used to being around people who take advantage of every perceived vulnerability, it's... more than understandable to wish to... isolate yourself. Especially if it's something as... intense as this." Lilith wiped her cheeks with one hand and rubbed her aching back with the other, grimacing at the rising pain. She gritted her teeth, then slid her hand over her hip and pinched the skin on her upper thigh. Her attention focused there instead. The pain in her skin and muscles was a lot less... panicky than the internal cramp. After a few moments, she let go. Thankfully the pain in her belly and back had settled down.

"Is it going to happen again?" Amity asked.

Lilith took a deep breath before she answered. "Most likely."

Amity hugged her legs closer to her chest, pressing her head against her knees.

"It will get better," Lilith said in a soft voice. "These last few weeks have been tumultuous. You are a very brave, very strong girl, Amity."

"I'm not brave," Amity sniffed. "I'm scared all the time."

"... Bravery isn't the absence of fear, it's being afraid and still doing the thing that frightens you."

There was silence for a long moment, then the blanket started to move. Pride swelled in Lilith's chest.

She must be terrified to reach out right now, and yet she is...

Lilith resisted the urge to look at the girl, but smiled and wiped her cheeks again.

"My family confuses me," Amity said in a voice that shook slightly. "They... lie. They... close doors... They say and do and own terrible things... Why do I still... want them?"

Lilith let out a sad sigh. Amity had asked her that before.

"It's built in, I'm afraid." She closed her eyes. "Wanting... their affection, their time... their approval... People are supposed to want those things. Family is supposed to provide those things. When they don't it..." She shook her head. "Makes everything harder. Especially trust."

Amity nodded, then let out a weary sigh.

"Luz trusts so easily..."

Lilith smiled. "She does..."

"Should... I be like her?"

Now Lilith couldn't stop herself from looking at Amity.

"... No. You should be you, my dear."

"People like Luz..."

"Yes. And they like you, too."

Amity shook her head. "They don't. People like Ed and Em..."

"I like you. Luz likes you. And so does Eda. And King."

Amity sniffed a few times, then started to tremble.

"I don't - understand - why..."

Lilith's heart broke.

"Because we see you, Amity," she whispered, hoping the girl would understand. It was taking all her mental strength to not pick her up. "And right now I would very much like to hold you..."

"Please hold me," Amity squeaked, then quickly covered her mouth with her hand.

Lilith embraced her at once, not caring about the awkward angle. She clutched the girl to her, her eyes tightly shut. Amity trembled in her arms, finally allowing herself to cry.

"My sweet, sweet girl," Lilith whispered against the top of her head. "It's alright, it's alright... I see you, I hear you... Your family may not, and they are missing out on a wonderful person... Shh, shh, shh... It's alright... It's alright..."

"Lilith..." Amity squeaked, burrowing her head against Lilith's chest. "You're so kind to me..."

"I care about you deeply, my girl."

Amity squeezed her mentor tight. "I... I... c-c-care deeply about you, t-too..."

"I know," Lilith said with a soft, happy breath, feeling joy and pride burst like fireworks in her chest, mixing with the sadness and worry.

"I framed the picture you made me," Lilith said after she had regained control of her vocal chords. "I'm going to keep it on the desk in my study."

"Y-you are?" Amity looked up at Lilith.

"Yes, I am." Lilith smiled down at her with such warmth and fondness, Amity started to blush. But not out of shame or embarrassment now, rather from feeling... feeling...? She didn't know how to label the rush of emotion. But she knew there was pride mixed in there.

"It's a beautiful picture and it means a lot to me. Actually I... wanted to ask if I could have one of the pictures you took on the night we saw the Perytons? Of the two of us together? I... would like to frame that, too."

Amity stared at her, mouth hanging open a moment, then her lower lip started to tremble and she nodded slowly at first, then faster.

"I w-wanna do that too," she whispered, then covered her mouth with her hand.

Lilith let out a breath of laughter, then placed a kiss on the top of Amity's head. Amity drew in a quick, deep breath, then exhaled and leaned her head on Lilith's chest again. It felt like all the remaining tension had suddenly gone out of her.

"Oh my - was - was that an alright thing to do?" Lilith asked, blinking in surprise.

Amity just nodded emphatically, sniffing loudly.

"Oh, good..." Lilith panted, relieved.

They sat for a while, just letting themselves settle into the comfortable silence and the knowledge that the other one cared for them deeply. Both of them had known the other cared, of course they had, but hearing it said out loud again... It meant so much to both of them.

Lilith kept stroking Amity's hair and back with long, reassuring strokes. When her cramps started to bloom warningly, she moved one hand to rub at her tummy. The hot water bottle had gone cold long ago.

Amity noticed the change in Lilith's breathing and looked up.

"Is it... hurting?" she felt her cheeks flush.

"... Yes," Lilith said softly. "I could use some tea. Would you like some tea?"

Amity nodded.

"Would... you like to stay out here? Or go inside?"

"... Go inside."

"Alright," Lilith gave her a calm, warm smile and stroked her cheek with the back of two fingers. "Would you mind helping me stand up?"

Amity got to her feet and held out her hands for Lilith. They went round the corner together, walking slowly. They found Luz, Morton, King and Eda in the kitchen. Luz looked up from her cup of tea. At first she looked worried and tired, but when she saw Amity and Lilith standing side by side, a relieved smile appeared on her face. It was like the sun coming out from behind a dark cloud.

"Hey," she said softly. "You okay?"

Amity blushed and nodded. Luz's smile widened.

"You want a sandwich? This cheese is really good with cucumber."

And... that seemed to be that. No questions about what had happened. No accusations about being crazy or weird. Amity's shoulders lowered. She nodded at Luz again and dared a faint smile.

"That's very kind of you, Luz," Lilith said, giving the girl a warm smile. She looked down at Amity. "Why don't you have a seat, my dear? I will be right back."

"Okay. Do you... want me to make you a cup of tea?"

Lilith let out a soft breath and smiled, then stroked Amity's cheek. "Yes, please. Thank you, my sweet girl." Amity smiled and closed her eyes, leaning into the touch.

Amity took a seat next to Luz and Lilith left the room to go to the bathroom. Eda followed her.

"Good job, Lily. Holy crap," Eda said when they were out of earshot of the kids.

Lilith had to stop and lean against the wall, one hand on her heart.

"Oh Edalyn..." she sighed slightly unsteadily. She had felt so many emotions over the last hour. She wiped the corners of her eyes and shook her head slowly. "Thank you for getting me..."

"Yeah, no problem." Eda's hand landed on Lilith's shoulder and gave it a squeeze. "You good? What you need?"

Lilith looked up at her older sister with a little smile.

"Refill?" she held up the hot water bottle.

"Sure thing." Eda patted her shoulder and gave her a bracing smile.

While Eda reheated the water, Lilith went to the bathroom. When she washed her hands she realized she hadn't brushed her teeth in a very long time.

"Eda, could you... go get us some toothbrushes?" she asked once she had dried her hands. "If there's a store open nearby?"

"Uh... sure." Eda handed her the wonderfully warm bottle with a little smile. "Yeah, brushing my teeth would be good." She smacked her lips. "Yup. Just want to finish my sandwich, then I'll go."

They went back into the kitchen. Lilith took a seat next to Amity, stroking her shoulder as she did so. Amity gave her a shy smile, then pushed a mug of tea toward her.

"Thank you, my dear," Lilith said softly. She picked up the mug and took a long sip. There was a surprising hint of mint hidden in the bitterness. "Oh, this is a very good blend."

"That's so kind of you to say," Morton said with a gentle smile. "I could give you another round of needle treatment tomorrow morning. Should help you get back to casting a little faster. And it might help you with the pain, too."

Lilith froze, the mug half-way to her mouth. "What... pain?"

Morton's eyebrows rose. "Your... monthly pain?"

"Oh. Right," she gave him a stiff smile. "Wait... refocusing needles to help with... cramps?"

Eda raised her eyebrows at Morton.

"They can. They are a useful tool. Can be used to treat a lot of different things, not just stabilize your bile flow."

Lilith took a breath. She wanted to say: I'm willing to try anything at this point, but settled for: "Yes. Sure."

"Okay," Morton gave her another gentle smile. "I will go do my night time chores and feed the animals, then I think I will go get some sleep. Feel free to help yourself to anything in the kitchen."

"Thank you, Morton, you are a most generous host."

Morton smiled wider, then excused himself.

"Hey, um... could... we all sleep in the same room tonight?" Luz asked after everyone had finished eating. "Really don't want to sleep alone and um... With her still in the house and everything." She nodded up at the ceiling, indicating Ingalill. "I know she's asleep or whatever, but..."

Amity looked up. She would never have dared to ask something like that. She hoped their mentors would say yes.

Eda and Lilith exchanged a surprised look.

"I mean, sure, right? We could squeeze in. The beds are wide enough for two," Eda said with a shrug.

Lilith looked slightly uncomfortable. She opened her mouth, then shut it again.

"If you don't wanna share a bed with me, Lily, just say so, I'll take a mattress on the floor or whatever."

Lilith pinched the bridge of her nose and took a breath. "I don't mind sharing a bed with you, I just - things are rather heavy."

Eda chuckled. "I don't care if you're on your moon time. A few towels and it'll be fine, fine. Just wear socks, please, your feet are always so dang cold."

Lilith let out a surprised breath of laughter. "Fine, I'll wear socks."

"Well, alright then. Got ourselves a real slumber party situation."

"We could tell stories!" Luz cooed. "Aw and sing our favorite lullabies!"

"Hah!" Eda snorted. "You know our cousin Trevor used to always - "

"Oh, please don't," Lilith groaned, covering her face with her hand.

"He would always come into our room at our Nana's house and ask us if we wanted him to sing us a lullaby before bed, no matter what we answered, he would always do a huge fart and then close the door so we couldn't get out."

Luz snorted with laughter and Amity let out a disgusted little sound.

"Could probably do a Trevor version," Eda gave Luz a wink. "Since I'm not much of a singer."

"If you do that then I'm not sleeping in the same room," Lilith shook her head, rubbing her aching back.

"Joking!" Eda held up both her hands in surrender, then narrowed her eyes and gave Luz and Amity a conspiratorial look. "Or am I?"

"Edalyn... could you please go get the toothbrushes before the store closes?" Lilith asked, to get the conversation away from the subject.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm going."

"We'll set up and stuff and you can have a rest, Lilith," Luz said with a gentle smile. "Do you have something in your room you need?"

"Thank you, that's very kind. I don't think so." She made a move to get up, froze, then said: "Eda will you get some moon cloth too? Mx Jay's."

"Sure." Eda turned to Lilith with a smirk. "Annnnd some chocolate covered almonds, perhaps?"

Lilith let out a soft groan.

"Yes, please."

Eda left for the store and the girls set up the room while Lilith had a little lie down.

She massaged her tummy as the girls chatted, trying to take deep breaths. The tea was helping, but she wished the cat would appear again. But maybe it had just been a dream.

When Eda returned, they let Lilith use the bathroom first, before everyone piled in, eager to use their new toothbrushes. They were all vivid neon colors with glitter in the handles.

"Never thought I'd miss brushing my teeth so much," Luz said as she rinsed her mouth and put more toothpaste on to have a second go.

Eda put down a few towels, then flopped onto the far side of the bed. When Lilith lay down next to her and put the reheated hot water bottle to her tummy, she let out a long, heartfelt sigh. After a moment she reached for the bag of chocolate covered almonds and took a handful.

"You just brushed your teeth," Eda chuckled. "What kind of example are you setting for the kids, hmm?"

"Eeedaaah," Luz said in a disapproving tone. "She's been drained and she's got cramps - if it makes her feel better to eat candy in bed right after brushing her teeth, then she deserves to eat candy in bed right after brushing her teeth, without us judging her."

Lilith pointed to Luz as she chewed, giving Eda a 'she gets it'-look.

"Well excuse me for caring about your dental health," Eda said with an amused breath.

"You can do that and be nice," Luz said calmly, then turned to Amity. "Hey, querida, you want to read some more before we go to sleep?"

"Someone's got a special Spanish nickname," Eda chuckled from the other bed. There was a huge grin on her face.

"What, are you jealous?" Luz countered.

"No - well, what does it mean? If it's something cool, I might be."

"It just means 'darling' or 'honey'."

"Darling?" Amity asked, sounding stunned. Her face felt hot. "You've been calling me... darling this whole time?"

"Yeah?" Luz said uncertainly. "Was that... bad?"

"Opf - not bad - just... I don't know, I thought it was a human nickname for a friend. Like... buddy or something..." Amity was blushing furiously. Eda was smirking.

"Do you... mind if I call you that? I could call you buddy instead." Luz's eyebrows drew together.

"No, no, darling is fine, uh, I mean querida is fine!" Amity said it quickly, then let out an embarrassed little sound.

"Hey, that was great pronunciation," Luz smiled at her.

On the other bed, Eda and Lilith exchanged little grins. Eda made a huge eye roll.

"Uh... thanks, um... I'd love to read some more but..." she glanced at Eda and Lilith.

"Fine by me if you read aloud," Eda said easily. She looked at Lilith with raised eyebrows.

"By all means," Lilith gave Luz and Amity a little smile. "But not too late. We... all need some rest."

"Okay!" Luz reached across Amity and grabbed the book. "Do you guys want some quick backstory or can we just keep going?"

"Just go for it, kid," Eda chuckled.

Luz and Amity got comfortable, then Luz opened the book and began to read.

"'Chapter five; The Fields of Silence... Fredonia pulled on the reins and sat back in the saddle. She turned to her companions and said: 'We're getting close. Tie down everything that might make a sound. We don't want to disturb the spirits.'"

Amity and Lilith lay and listened to Luz reading the story. But Eda's mind wandered. She wanted to wait until the girls were asleep before she went to... take care of Ingalill.

After about half an hour or so, Luz's voice started to sound groggy. A few minutes later, she had dozed off, the book open on her chest. Eda gave it a little longer, then got up. She carefully picked up the book and put the sparkly pink bookmark between the pages, then put it on the nightstand and turned off the lamp.

She left the room quietly and walked up the stairs.

Ingalill was still sitting on the chair they had left her on, chin resting on her chest.

Eda's usually so steady hands were shaking. She wondered if this was how whoever had cursed her had felt. Had they then taken the memory of what had happened? Or had that incident been so terrible that Eda herself had just... blocked it out? She hated not knowing.

And now... she was about to do the same. Put another person in her situation. Well. Not her exact situation, but... She would give her the curse of knowing something bad or important or life changing had happened, without being able to recall any of it. And nobody around to tell her about it.

In the darkness of the underbelly of the conformatorium, would Ingalill lay sleepless, wondering what had happened?

Was it fair to do this to another person, when she knew how much it could change a life?

No.

It wasn't fair. It certainly wasn't right. But it was necessary. For Lilith's sake... For the girls. For the sake of keeping the Blight's secrets as well, making sure an actually bad criminal couldn't use the information to blackmail them.

"You are not going to come near my kid ever again," she whispered.

She wondered how much she would have to take. How many hours? Or were they talking about days? When had the Blight children told her about Luz's phone? If she left that in Ingalill's head, she might think it was all about the phone, and try to find it again.

Better take it all...

Eda swallowed and straightened her back.

When did the Blight kids say they first met Ingalill, Sunday, wasn't it? It was Thursday now. Five days. Five.

Eda shook out her hands, rolled her lips over her teeth, then planted her feet. She muttered the spell under her breath, shaking her head. She cleared her throat, closed her eyes a moment, then drew in a breath and placed her hand on Ingalill's head.

"Okay, here we go..."

For the girls. For Lilith.

"Amicus somnus. Quinque diebus. Quinque noctibus."

As she spoke, images started to flicker across her mind. She had to close her eyes again as they zipped past faster and faster. Some were more vivid than others. The emotions attached to them assaulted her mind and heart. That was the price for taking someone's memories; youhad to bear witness.

"Hoc animi quod donum meum as umbra."

She saw the fight through Ingalill's eyes, saw the blow she had given Luz. The trap she had laid for Eda. How Eda had transformed centimeters from her face and then tried to attack her. The shock of finding Eda in her hideout. The jokes she had shared with her lieutenants when they transported the girls. Taking them from the bathroom. Devil's Nectar with a twist of lemon at the bar. How she had wished she had taken her other green cloak, with the silver fastenings instead of the brass ones.

"Decoro oblivio," Eda finished in a whisper. She let go of Ingalill immediately and took an unsteady step backward. Her head ached and she felt terribly dizzy. Her searching hand found a wall and she leaned against it until the world stopped spinning. She wiped her sweaty forehead and upper lip with the back of a shaking hand. It came away bloody. She let out a breath.

When she felt more steady, she went to wash her face, then returned to the room with a wet rag. Ingalill had a nosebleed too. She mopped it up, stared at the rag for a moment, then waved her hand. A vial appeared. She carefully squeezed a few drops of blood into it, then set the rag on fire in the grate. Then she searched Ingalill's pockets. She found keys, coins, receipts and several hidden blades Lilith had missed.

"You always did have such a knife fetish," she muttered as she threw the last little dagger onto the pile.

She snuck down the stairs and into the kitchen. After all that she needed a big drink. She found Morton's pathetic drinks cabinet and poured herself a large glass of sherry. Armed with the drink, she went out into the garden for some fresh air. The headache was fading a little.

When she moved into the room the girls and Lilith were in, she tried to make as little sound as possible. Luz was laying on top of the covers, taking up seventy five percent of the bed. Amity lay curled into a little ball by her pillow. And Lilith... met her gaze.

Eda raised her hand to her heart and exhaled forcefully.

"Holy crap, Lily!" she whispered.

Lilith rolled to her side as Eda got into bed next to her.

"It's done," Eda said quietly.

Lilith let out a long breath.

"Thank you, Edalyn..." Lilith gave Eda a sincere look.

"Yeah..." Eda looked away, rubbing her stiff neck.

The silence stretched.

"... Doesn't feel good, does it," Lilith stated. It wasn't a question.

Eda's eyebrows rose.

"You've... had to?"

"Yes." There was a haunted look in Lilith's eyes now.

"I feel... like a..." Eda trailed off. "Very bad person. Starting with an 'r'..."

Lilith exhaled forcefully and blinked a few times, then nodded.

"I felt... something similar." She reached out to touch Eda's shoulder. Their eyes met. "Thank you for protecting me... the girls. Us."

Eda put her hand over Lilith's.

"You needed me."

Lilith closed her eyes and swallowed, then nodded again.

"I'm so sorry, Edalyn..." She sniffed.

"Hey if you're gonna start crying, then I'm gonna start crying," Eda drew in a sharp breath and exhaled quickly.

Lilith tried her best, but there was no stopping the tears.

Eda's shoulder started to shake.

Instinctively, they drew closer. For a few minutes, they sniffled, then the shock seemed to settle.

"I have a monster headache," Eda confided, wiping her cheeks.

"It'll pass... Best thing to do is sleep."

"Not sure I'll be able to do that..."

Lilith hesitated a moment.

"Do you... remember that song... that Nana used to sing?"

Eda breathed out and relaxed slightly. "Yeah..."

"Close your eyes."

"... Why?"

"I can't sing... if you're looking at me."

Eda's eyebrows rose. She looked at Lilith, then smiled and sniffed. Then she closed her eyes.

Lilith took a deep breath, then began to sing, very quietly.

"The moon shines bright, stars shimmer all night... In the meadow lies the fawn, sleepy from play... Then kit in the den, the kitten in pen, witchling in bed and filly in shed... Sleepy little darlings, snuggle in tight. Rest your hearts now, dream, it is night. The sun will rise, and tickle your nose, but now it is time, to slumber and doze..."

It didn't make up for what she'd had to do, but the song made her feel reassured the reason she had done it for, had been solid. The benefits far outweighed the cost.

"Ha ha, you love me," Eda sniffed. "Gross."

Lilith let out an amused and exhausted breath. "You're impossible..."

Notes:

(Post Agony of a witch notes will be marked, unmarked are from before)

1. A great big thank you to Jess for BETA reading!

2. WHY YES, THAT *IS* LILITH'S ACTUAL VOICE ACTRESS (CISSY JONES) SINGING! A song that I wrote! The internet is amazing aaaaahhhhh!

I wanted to do something special for you guys, because holy crap... I wouldn't have kept going this long if it wasn't for you! Hope you like it! Surprise! And a bonus surprise that can be found in Perytons and soup, part 12!

It's a funny story how it all came about and Cissy was so generous and flexible! I contacted her via on the 8th of August and asked if she would sing a little lullaby, for a fanfiction. I'm going to dust off my old Ko-fi account and try to gather her a little tip for the wonderful work she did! Anything that drops in there up until the 6th of September will be sent on to her with a thank you drawing :)

Since I don't live in the US I couldn't use her preferred method of payment, so she asked that I donated the money to a charity instead and then to send her the receipt - and she sent me the recording just a few minutes later (while I was still trying to process it all lol)! So she showed a lot of trust in me, a complete stranger - I really appreciate that and find it really touching. I donated to an organization called BRIS which helps children in need in Sweden. I feel an artist should be paid for their work, so as well as the donation to BRIS, I want to give a tip directly to her! So any donations you guys make, I will match! (I mean, up until a point) I set the minimum coffee thing to just 1 USD, so please donate if you can.

I told Cissy I wanted to surprise you guys with the animations and she seemed to really like the idea, so yeah, now I'd like to surprise her too, with a nice tip. It would mean a lot to me if you could contribute! Please consider doing so :) if you add your preferred nickname/handle in the little note (you can leave a little message when you make a Ko-fi donation), I can add your name to the thank you drawing! Like a little thank you card type deal :)

3. (Post Agony of a witch watching edit:) Wowzers. Cissy sure can keep a secret! Holy fuck. HOLY. Fuck. The lyrics of the lullaby hit a lot differently now. And the fact that it's a lullaby. And Eda might not be able to wake up, in a way, in canon I mean. I mean, she will, obviously, in canon (and in the fanfic). But you get it. If it made you cry, please know that it was supposed to fill you with warm, hurt/comfort-y feelings, the knowledge of a bond being rebuilt, not... to twist the knife in the wound. Cissy did an AMAZING job, she was so professional, so kind and so generous. Please consider donating to the tip. With all the Lilith hate flying around, it would be good to remind people that it is "just" a show with actual people behind it, who are "just" doing their jobs. Please be respectful to the crew and everyone involved in the show, and each other, obviously.

4. Wow, this turned out rather longer than I had planned. Longest part yet! I keep trying to end this arc, and I just can't seem to manage do that. But it is drawing to a close. I don't think I'll be able to leave this AU alone, though. Ugh.

5. "Amicum somnus. Quinque diebus. Quinque noctibus. Hoc animi quod donum meum as umbra. Decoro oblivio" (LATIN) = Sleep friend. Five days. Five nights. This mind is my gift to the shadow. Dignified oblivion. (Post Agony of a witch watching edit: ;;;;;;_;;;;;;;)

6. I am *loving* the awesome comments and reviews people are leaving, and a few people MADE FANART! AShgferjufheroiuhfke thank you guys so much, it means so fucking much to me! ;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;v;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;

Please let me know what you thought about this part in the comments/reviews! And no, I don't want comments that are just Lilith hate, obviously. There are other places you can spew that.