Author's Note: Happy Valentine's Day!
To commemorate this romantic day, I have decided to upload this specific chapter of the Owl Sanctum on this day. I'm hoping to finish the events of season 1 before the final episode comes out. Fingers crossed.
Hope you enjoy the chapter. Any and all comments are welcome.
"Hola, Stephen. How are you enjoying camp?"
Those were the words on Stephen's phone that came from Camilla Noceda. With Eda's door to the human realm, he and Luz are able to get a signal from Earth and exchange messages with her.
Stephen shrugged and texted back. "Better than I thought."
After he sent the text, he headed over to Luz only to find that she only texted a thumbs-up emoji to her mom.
"Luz, you've been sending emojis to your mom for weeks." Stephen said. "Would it hurt you to say something?"
"Probably." Luz answered. "I mean, what can I say? 'Hey, Mom. Not at camp actually. I'm in the Demon Realm learning to be a witch. Also, did you know that demons and magic are real? We even came face to face with the literal Devil.' She. Will. End me."
"Look, I agree, the whole Mephisto incident was traumatic for all of us," Stephen said, "But you don't have to tell her about it, or about any of the magical stuff really. Just tell her you're having a good time. That's all."
"Hoot, hoot." Hooty said opening the door he was attached too. "Time to fill those darling little heads of yours with…" He regurgitated and threw up a stockpile of books. "Mm-hmm. Delicious knowledge."
"Hooty, you know Wong is going to charge me extra for those books since you ate them." Stephen said.
Over at Hexside, Clea paced around the front lobby clutching a piece of paper in her hand. She muttered nervously to herself.
"Okay, Clea. You can do this. I mean, you've already been inside his head. Surely, you can handle simply asking him. And I know he is super popular, which is why I'm stationed right here next to the door so I can be the first to ask him."
Clea's confidence dropped when she heard several shrilling cries coming from outside. She looked out to where Stephen and Luz were and saw them (mainly Stephen) being crowded by a whole mess of students.
"Looks like I didn't go far enough."
Stephen and Luz burst through the front door and separated from the crowd. They could finally breathe.
"Wow." Luz said. "Stephen, I know you're the most popular guy in school, but did that crowd seem a little big to you?"
"Yeah." Stephen answered. "Everyone was being extra pushy, especially with those pieces of paper they were trying to give me. And I could have sworn one of them was trying to force-feed me a heart-shaped bottle of pink potion."
"Yeah. I'm surprised they didn't go further." Clea said helping Stephen and Luz stand straight.
"Clea, thank goodness." Stephen said. "What's going on around here?"
"It's the social event of the year for Hexside students." Clea answered. "See for yourselves."
Stephen and Luz looked around the halls to see abomination-shaped balloons hung on lockers and railings and red banners hung overhead. Hexside was looking extra festive. The two of them then witnessed a student fake a medical condition just to ask a girl out.
"What's all this?" Stephen asked.
"It's Grom Night." Clea said. "Tomorrow night, Hexside is going to be holding a party that everyone is looking forward to."
"Grom Night?" Luz gasped happily. "You mean the Boiling Isles have their own messed-up version of prom?"
"More or less." Clea said.
"Is this why everyone's been extra pushy toward me?" Stephen asked.
"Pretty much. As the most popular guy here, a whole mess of students is going to be asking to be his Grom date."
"Look who's getting lucky." Luz said nudging a playful elbow to her brother's rib. "This will certainly be a lot easier than you trying to get a girl back on Earth."
"Why are you making it sound like it was my fault?" Stephen asked. "We both know who's responsible for the Christine incident."
"It was an honest mistake." Luz defended.
"What's the Christine incident?" Clea asked.
Stephen sighed. "Okay. About a year or two ago, I had a crush on my next door locker neighbor, Christine Palmer. Ever the meddler, Luz decided to play matchmaker and slip a little love note into her locker. Only what happened, Luz?"
"I… may have forgotten to write down Stephen's name and instead, say it was from the locker next to hers." Luz admitted embarrassed.
"Yeah. Instead of me, Christine thought that the note came from the other locker next to hers, which belonged to a guy named Charlie. I'm pretty sure you can tell what happened next."
"I said I was sorry." Luz said. "But hey, maybe I can make it up to you by finding your own Grom date."
"Like who?" Stephen asked.
"Well… What about Clea?"
Both Stephen and Clea blushed and gasped. "What?!"
"I mean, it makes sense, right?" Luz asked. "You two do spend a lot of time together, even when she's not trying to heal your hands. Give me one good reason why you two shouldn't go."
Neither of them could. However, one person had a reason.
"Because she's nothing but a devil spawn."
Boscha's voice made Clea grit her teeth when she approached the three. She turned her three eyes over to Stephen and smiled.
"What are you doing here, Boscha?" Clea asked bitterly.
"I'm here to keep Mr. Popular here from making a mistake." Boscha said turning to Stephen. "Listen, Stephen, why don't you make the smart decision and just go to Grom with me?"
"Excuse me?" Clea asked.
"Sorry, Clea," Boscha said with an insincere apology, "It's just that only the best deserve the best, and you're just a lowly devil spawn. No offense."
"What part of that wasn't supposed to be offensive?!" Clea shouted before grumbling. "And besides, you wouldn't call me that if you met the Devil himself."
"Hate to break it to you," Stephen said, "But I've decided to go with Clea anyway."
"What?" Clea asked in surprise.
"What?" Boscha asked. She then smiled and chuckled slightly. "Oh. I get it. Taking pity on the devil spawn. Aren't you a nice guy? Fine. You can have him, Clea. Not that it'll mean anything." She laughed as she walked away with her posse.
"Ooh, I cannot stand her." Clea growled before looking at Stephen. "You're not really going to Grom with me out of pity, are you, Stephen?"
"No. Of course not." Stephen said.
"Oh, this is so cute." Luz admired. "And hey, if you two play your cards right at the dance, you could be Grom royalty."
"I hope not." Clea said.
"What do you mean by that?" Stephen asked.
Before Clea could answer, Stephen was bumped into by another student. Everyone looked and saw Amity, who stood over a pile of collapsed books and papers.
"Oh. Sorry, guys." Amity said.
"It's okay. Here." Luz said picking up a piece of folded pink paper and handing it to Amity, who then snatched it away. "Wow. Those are some quick grabbers."
"It's just… private."
All of a sudden, the intercom buzzed catching everyone's attention. Everyone murmured in fear hearing Principal Bump's voice coming from it.
"Attention, Hexside students. This is your principal speaking. This year, I have the privilege to bestow our highest Grom honor to… Amity Blight! Our Grom Queen!"
Most of the other students gasped looking over at the frightened green-haired girl. Luz, however, cheered.
"Whoo! Amity, get it, queen!" She held her hand up for a high-five, but Amity ran off. "Don't leave me hanging!"
"It's not as much of a good thing as you think it is." Clea said.
Once his free period had finally begun, Stephen wasted no time heading to the school library. As usual, Wong was there working the front desk, but much to Stephen's surprise, Principal Bump was there too.
"Here are the books back." Principal Bump said handing two books to Wong.
"Thank you, Principal Bump." Wong said. "Thanks for… Oh, hey, Stephen."
"Stephen?" Bump asked turning to the human boy. "Oh. Good morning."
"Good morning, sir." Stephen said.
"That reminds me," Wong said, "Sir, why didn't you select Stephen to be the Grom royalty? He's surely got a lot more skills than Amity. He'd win the fight for sure."
"Fight?" Stephen asked caught by surprise.
"While I can't deny that Stephen is talented, I worry that he might still be too new to the Demon Realm to withstand the horrors that Grom could unleash."
"Horrors?" Stephen asked. "Bump, what's going on?"
"Oh, you don't know?" Wong asked. "Deep within the hidden layer of the school sleeps the horrific monster known as Grom, also known as Grometheus, also known as the Dweller-in-Darkness. Long ago, it came from an evil realm to unleash unspeakable havoc until it was corralled by Hexside's founders and imprisoned beneath the school. Every year, it tries to escape, and every year, a student is selected to fight it. This year, Bump has selected Amity."
"A monster is trying to escape, and you send children to fight it?" Stephen asked.
"It's worked so far." Bump said.
"That's not the point." Stephen said.
"Here's the real kicker." Wong said. "Grom is a mind-reading shapeshifter. Once it finds out what you're afraid of, it'll change into it to defeat you."
"Yeesh. No wonder everyone's feeling sorry for Amity." Stephen said.
"Don't worry about it." Bump said. "I've watched Amity grow this past year, and I know without doubt that she is fearless."
Stephen said nothing more. He just headed over to a table and began his reading.
After school, Stephen and Luz returned to the Owl Sanctum only to find Eda wearing a brown suit and King handling sewing tools. The two of them were confused seeing them.
"Why am I doing this?" King asked. "I don't even wear clothes."
"Sweet duds, Owl Lady." Luz said.
"Why are you dressed like that?" Stephen asked.
"I'm chaperoning Grom tonight, so I have to look sharp." Eda said.
"And Gus asked me to co-emcee the fight." King said. "We're gonna turn this bloodbath into a fun bath."
"So have they announced the victim yet?" Eda asked.
"Yeah. It's Amity." Luz sighed. "She's kinda freaking out though. I wish I could take her place or something." That comment got howls of laughter from Eda and King. "What's so funny?"
"Kid, that's a noble sentiment," Eda said, "But Grom is a little above your pay grade."
"I agree with Eda." Stephen said. "Principal Bump himself thinks neither of us are experienced enough with the Demon Realm to handle the likes of the Dweller-in-Darkness."
"Yeah, like Stephen said." Eda agreed. "You're human. You're fragile."
Luz scowled. "Hey! I've been learning lots of new spells. I could totally handle it."
"Luz, maybe you weren't listening, which isn't new." Stephen said. "Grom can turn into your worst fears. I don't even know what I'm most afraid of, and believe it or not, that's an advantage for Grom."
"Maybe, but I'm not fragile enough to crumble under pressure." Luz said. "I mean, we came face to face with the literal Devil himself."
"We never had to fight him to the death." Stephen said. "I appreciate how much you want to help your friend, Luz, but we need to be cautious about our limits."
Luz pouted before storming off.
"Maybe you were too hard on her." King said. "She saved you from multiple monsters, remember? Stephen, just the other day, she fought of a literally hellish curse to save your life."
"Facing Grom means facing your worst fear." Eda said. "And I don't think Luz knows what that means yet. So, Stephen, you got any plans of your own for Grom?"
"Pretty much." Stephen said. "I'm kinda going with Clea."
"Nice. I was always rooting for ya." Eda said.
"Eda, you hired somebody to spy on her because you thought she was an agent for a demonic overlord." Stephen said.
"Water under the bridge." Eda said.
"Well, do you have any Grom-appropriate clothes for me?" Stephen asked.
"Check the attic." Eda answered. "Hey, King, do you think I can pull off red eyeshadow?"
"Girl, you can pull off anything." King replied.
Stephen stood in front of a full length mirror with a black-and-white tuxedo that fit him surprisingly well. He topped it off with a black tie. He smiled at the sight of himself.
"Hmm. This is pretty good."
"NO!" he heard Luz shouting from outside.
"There's no way she could judge me from outside?" Stephen said before heading outside. He was joined by Eda as they walked right up the front door.
Right beside them were the three Blight siblings, and in front of them stood a 30-foot illusion of Eda looking down on Luz who was sitting in a baby chair.
"Is that supposed to be me?" Eda asked. "Dang, I look great."
Stephen was curious until he spotted three more illusions on the side. There was a glass of milk, a cat with a human face on it, and a giant phone with a screen occupied by someone who wants to debate. Remembering how much these things made Luz uncomfortable, he realized what was going on.
"Wait a minute! Luz, are you preparing to fight Grom?"
"So what if I am?" Luz asked getting out of her chair.
"But how?" Stephen asked. "Amity's supposed to be the Grom Queen."
"I was," Amity answered nervously, "But Luz offered to take my place since facing Grom is the last thing I want to do."
"So what's with the giant Eda?" Stephen asked.
"Luz said she was most afraid of Eda looking down on her, that it would undermine her dreams of being a witch." Amity said.
"That's her fear?" Stephen asked. "That seems like too much of a thinker."
"Luz, do you think training will help you against Grom?" Eda asked. "He's the Dweller-in-Darkness. You don't get a super-creepy nickname like that for nothing. You always go overboard, and I end up bailing you out. What's the fun in watching a kid get eaten by a monster if it's my kid?"
"Well, maybe you'll have fun watching me defeat Grom." Luz declared.
"Luz, I don't think you're ready, but we're literally out of time." Amity said.
"I'll take it." Luz said.
"This isn't going to end well." Stephen thought to himself out of worry for his sister.
Stephen headed to Hexside all dressed up and prepped for the biggest night of the year. As he entered the gymnasium, he saw several students mingling and the stage being occupied by living instruments playing themselves. He looked around and saw Willow using her magic to flash up corsages for everyone.
But out of everyone there, Stephen was the most shocked to see Wong there alongside Emira Blight. He approached curiously.
"Hey, Wong." Stephen said. "Is it just me, or is Emira your Grom date?"
Wong sighed. "Don't read too much into it. She's just repaying me for helping her and her family out of that fiasco at the Knee."
"Oh, you're much to modest, Wongers." Emira teased.
That's when Willow came by and approached Stephen. "Hey. Would you like sprout-up?"
"Sure." Stephen replied. Willow tapped his breast pocket and formed a green corsage out of it. "Nice. So when does Clea get here? She's the one who invited me."
"Clea?" Willow asked. "I assumed she was already here. Baron Mordo's been here for twenty minutes."
"Really?" Stephen asked looking around. "Well, where is she?"
"I don't know." Willow shrugged. "Other than here, the only place students are allowed to go to is the bathroom."
Stephen's curiosity moved him to leave the gym and toward the nearest restroom.
Near the side of the gym, Eda was slouching and looking at her watch. She was nervous until an adult voice caught ber by surprise.
"Hello, Edalyn."
"WAH!" Eda gasped out before turning and seeing Baron Mordo. "Oh. It's you, Karl. What are you doing here? It better not be to detain me."
"Hardly." Mordo replied. "I'm in charge of security here. Grom is a big deal, and it'd be terrible if the Dweller-in-Darkness himself broke out. So until tomorrow, you're not my top priority."
"Oh. Okay." Eda said. "So where's Lily? Is she here too."
"Sadly, no. She had other business back at the castle. She sends her regards though." Mordo said. "I volunteered because this is the first Grom night for Clea ever since that awful rumor started, and I just wanted to look out for her."
"I get it." Eda said. "My own kid volunteered to fight Grom in her friend's place. If something goes wrong, and I'm pretty sure it will, it will be up to me to save her."
"We may have kids to look out for, Edalyn," Mordo said, "But don't think that makes us friends. I'll still be there to help arrest you."
"You know, you can arrest me, lock me up, throw away the key, or even force me to join the Emperor's Coven," Eda said, "But no matter what, your name will always be Karl."
Mordo groaned and rolled his eyes.
Stephen headed to the nearest girl's restroom and knocked on it. "Clea, are you in there?"
"No. I'm in here." Clea's voice came from the adjacent door.
Stephen entered the boy's restroom and entered finding Clea pacing around in a beautiful, purple dress. He admired her for a moment before stepping in.
"Clea, what are you doing in here?" Stephen asked. "This place isn't exactly meant for girls."
"I know, but this seems like the last place Boscha would find me." Clea said.
"Is that what this is about?" Stephen asked.
"You saw how she treats me." Clea said. "And with Grudgby season coming up, I know she's going to be extra unbearable. And to think, I used to be friends with her."
"Seriously?" Stephen asked. "You and she used to be friends."
"Basically. It's a long story."
"Hey. Don't worry one bit about what anyone else thinks." Stephen assured. "Do you really care about what she thinks?"
"Well, no." Clea answered.
"Who's opinion do you really care about?"
"Well, there's Mordo, and my friends… But above all… you."
Stephen smiled at that. "And we all know how amazing you are. Don't forget, I accepted your invitation to Grom. It wasn't because I felt bad for you. It was because you're so open, and kind, and helpful. And honestly, you look pretty cute with your new white hair."
Clea blushed as she smoothed her fingers in her hair. "Thanks. That means a lot."
"So let's forget about everyone else and go enjoy Grom together." Stephen said offering his hand.
"Together." Clea repeated before taking his hand. "I'd like that."
Stephen and Clea re-entered the gym where the party was still going on. Just as they entered, the lights went out save for one spotlight that shined on Gus who stood on the stage.
"Ladies, gentlemen, and assorted demons, it's almost time for our main Grom event! Please, please, take a seat! And beware that the first three rows are designated splash zones!"
"Looks like the fight's about to begin." Stephen said worried.
"Yeah. I heard Luz was facing Grom instead of Amity." Clea said sympathetically. "Think she can do it?"
"Only about 50 percent sure." Stephen said. "Still, Luz does keep surprising me, so fingers crossed." He and Clea headed to the bleachers while Gus continued to work up the crowd.
"I see we've got Principal Bump in the house! Now, sir, I hope you won't throw us in detention because we're gonna raise the roof!"
The spotlight shined on the principal himself, who awkwardly played along and made a raise-the-roof gesture with everyone.
"Now, introducing our Grom Queen! You know her! You love her! You've at least heard of her… Luz the human!"
The audience cheered as Luz made her entrance. She wore a black-and-purple suit with a pink tutu around her waist. With a push of a button, the trap door opened up and the weapons were laid out right next to Luz. She picked out a ball-and-chain mace which she topped off with a paper piece with an ice glyph on it. After that, she headed down to confront the monster within.
When Luz made it down, she was confronted by a living pile of black sludge which was unmistakingly Grom, the Dweller-in-Darkness itself. First, Grom changed into human-faced cats trying to surround Luz. Although they gave her the shivers, she swung her mace down and sent them flying with a wall of ice.
Along the fight, Grom continued to morph into things that Luz would be grossed out by. But Luz always managed to best them all easier than it would probably be. However, Grom had one last trick up its sleeve. At first, it looked like it was going to change into Eda, but after touching Luz' head, it changed into something else entirely: the portal to the human realm. The door opened, and a very familiar stepped out, one that both Luz and Stephen both recognized.
It was Camilla Noceda.
"What the?" Stephen asked. "Why would Luz be afraid of her?"
"Isn't that Luz' mom?" Clea asked recognizing her from Stephen's memory.
"Well, yes, but it doesn't make sense. Unless…"
"Unless what?"
"Well, lately, Luz has been trying to avoid serious texts with her mom. I think her greatest fear isn't Eda undermining her. It's actually her mom finding out that Luz has been lying to her."
"Whoa. That's pretty deep."
"Yeah. And if I know Luz…"
"I CAN'T DO IT! I CAN'T FACE MY FEAR!" Luz screamed as she ran out. "Camilla" then changed her lower half into a giant sludge beast that chased Luz out of the school.
"What's going on?" Clea asked.
"That 50 percent chance of failure finally caught up to us." Stephen said picking himself up to his feet. "Come on! Luz needs our help!"
"I DON'T WANNA BE GROM QUEEN ANYMORE! I GIVE UP THE THRONE!" Luz yelled before stopping at a cliff. She turned to see the monster in the form of her mother towering over her.
"Why can't you face me, Luz?" Grom asked in Camilla's voice. "Why don't you face your own mother?"
"You're not really my mom!" Luz shouted.
"How could you say that, carino! You're breaking my heart!"
"SPICY TOSS!" Eda shouted as she suddenly showed up and throwing fireballs at Grom. "Hands off my human, you interdimensional blob!"
"Eda, you were right. I'm not ready." Luz said desperately.
"That's okay. I got this one." Eda said preparing a spell.
Before it could be complete however, Amity jumped in and presented herself between Luz and Grom.
"Stay away from her!" Amity yelled before getting picked up by Grom. "I'm sorry, Luz! I should've fought my own battle! I…"
After reading her mind, Grom immediately shrank down into a shadowy figure that was her size. It was impossible to see who it was, but Amity seems to know who it was meant to be. The figure pulled a folded up piece of pink paper out of Amity's pocket and ripped it in half right in front of her. She looked down dreadfully just as Stephen and Clea finally showed up.
"I don't know what that was supposed to be, but this stops now!" Stephen shouted.
Grom turned and shot a black tentacle at him, but Clea pushed him out of the way and got grabbed instead. It read her mind for a quick second before beginning to change.
"Clea!" Stephen shouted.
"It's okay." Clea said. "The worst it could be is more of Boscha tormenting me. This will give me the chance I need to punch her in the face. I… Wait. That's not Boscha."
Instead of Boscha, Grom changed into an adult woman with long, black hair, black makeup, and a black, sinister looking dress. She was unfamiliar, but clearly, the sight of her made Clea freeze and breathe with much difficulty.
"Clea, are you okay? Who is that?" Stephen asked.
"That's Umar." Eda said. "She was a wild witch who terrorized the Boiling Isles years ago. But then, the Emperor's Coven caught up to her and destroyed her."
"But I've never met her before. All that happened when I was just a baby." Clea shivered in fright. "So why am I so afraid of her?"
"Umar" was about to approach Clea when Stephen got in front of her. "Hey, nightmare factory! If you want Clea, you'll have to get through me!"
Grom shot out another black tentacle. This time, it successfully grabbed him and read his mind. It then began to split and change into two cars. One only looked slightly damaged, but the other was upside down and destroyed. Along the ground were two people struggling for their lives. One was a boy who was nearly unconscious and the other was a woman who didn't look like she had long to live. Stephen fell to his knees petrified in who he recognized: a young version of himself and his dying mom.
"No. Not this." Stephen whimpered.
"Is that…" Clea said.
"I think so." Eda said.
"No, no, no." Stephen said with tears beginning to form in his eyes. "You can't just… Wait, what?"
He stopped crying when the driver's seat door opened up and a shadowy figure walked out. Like Amity's fear, this one was impossible to identify, but whoever it was, they stopped when they stood over Beverly Strange's dying body. She pleaded with them to help, but they didn't do anything.
"What? What's going on? Who is that?" Stephen asked still terrified at what he was looking at.
Over at the cliff, Luz went over to Amity who was still heartbroken by her fear. The green-haired witch picked up one-half of the torn piece of pink paper while the human girl picked up the other half and read from it.
It read "Will you go to Grom with me? Amity". That made Luz realize something.
"You were afraid of getting rejected. Amity, it's okay. What if I went to Grom with you instead?"
In an instant, Amity's pained face lit up and she looked at her friend with hope returning in her eyes. "Really?"
"That's what friends do." Luz said. She then turned to Grom as it was still in the form of her brother's fear and yelled out for its attention. "Hey! Leave my brother alone!"
Grom turned to her and changed back into a black sludge beast ready to finish her off.
"Well then, if that's settled," Amity said offering her hand to Luz, "May I have this dance?"
Luz gladly accepted Amity's hand and both girls pulled each other together. After recovering from his trauma, Stephen joined Clea and Eda as they both looked at Luz and Amity dance around Grom.
Amity did a little twirl to create a magic circle beneath her and Luz which created a large abomination. Luz then whipped out her spell glyph papers, and as he was dipped backwards, she planted a plant glyph on the abomination's head. The two of them jumped just as the abomination sprang forward and forced itself into Grom's mouth. Once it was inside, Grom began to strain itself before glowing plants shot out of its body. It was unbearable.
The dance ended when Luz landed on the ground first. She then caught Amity and spun around to get her back on the ground. Once they were done and they were in arm's length o each other, Grom exploded into a large tree with pink leaves at the top.
It was over. Grom, the Dweller-in-Darkness, was defeated. As the tree's pink pedals dropped from above, two crowns magically appeared around Luz and Amity's heads. They looked at each other proud at what they had done together, but they weren't nearly as proud their friends and families were watching from afar.
"So, who did you wanna ask out?" Luz asked.
"Oh, it's not important." Amity said quickly reaching in her pocket and throwing away the pink paper she hid away.
It didn't stay thrown out for long. Unbeknownst to the two of them, Stephen caught the paper and straightened it up. Written on it was one word, one name. It was the answer to Luz's question of who Amity wanted to ask out.
"Luz"
After reading the name, Stephen dropped his jaw for a second before looking back up at the two girls who defeated Grom. He closed his mouth and smiled letting out a slight chuckle. He had never been prouder of his sister than on this very night.
The Hexside students finally caught up just in time to see Luz and Amity revel in their victory. They cheered and carried the two girls over their shoulders heading back to the school.
During the celebration, Mordo ran out and gasped when he saw Clea. He ran up to her and knelt down to comfort her.
"Are you all right? Are you okay?" Mordo asked.
"I'm fine, Mordo." Clea assured. "But… I'm honestly confused. Grom touched me and changed into my fear."
Mordo sighed sadly. "Oh, man. Okay. What did you see?"
"Well, that's the strange part. It was a certain person, but I know I've never met her before." Clea said. "Mordo, I saw Umar."
Mordo widened his eyes and fell silent. He then rested himself down on the ground to have a talk with her.
"Okay, Clea. Look. The truth is, I was the one in charge of that team that defeated Umar. It's how I was given the title of 'Baron'. But during the fight, Umar had attacked a nearby orphanage and held a certain baby hostage."
Clea widened her eyes understanding. "That was me, wasn't it?"
Mordo nodded. "I still remember you crying in Umar's arms. She dropped her guard when she was annoyed by your cries, and I took the chance to save you. Once you were safe, I personally made sure she wouldn't threaten anyone else… ever. But you were still a frightened child, and I put you in that position. So I decided it was my responsibility to look after you. So after the Construction Coven rebuilt the orphanage, I came on over and adopted you. I didn't want to scare you anymore, so I kept this story to myself. But it seems that Grom was able to look into the fears that you repressed. I am very sorry, Clea."
"Hey, you didn't do anything wrong." Clea said. "If anything, I'm even more glad that you adopted me. Thanks." She gave him a hug which caught him by surprise. Though he was hesitant at first, he hugged back.
"Well, in that case," Mordo said, "How's about we go back home?"
"Actually, Mordo, if it's all the same to you, I think I should return to the dance." Clea said looking over at Stephen.
"All right." Mordo said. "I'll be in charge of cleaning up. You go enjoy yourself."
"I will. Thanks." Clea said catching up with the others.
Mordo waved to his adopted daughter, but right as she disappeared from his view, his smile dropped. He then sighed in disappointment. When he placed his hand down on a piece of Grom, he was surprised to see it change right before him. It took the form of a miniature version of Clea who was very angry at him.
"You lied to me! My whole life, you've done nothing but lie to me! How could you?! How could you plot against everyone I love?! How could you swear loyalty to that monster?!"
Mordo ended the nightmare by giving it a strong backhanded slap. Once it was gone, he took a deep breath struggling with his own guilt.
"She wouldn't understand. None of them would." Mordo said to himself. "I have to go through with this."
Back at the dance, Stephen made his way to the stage where the living instruments played. He held out a piece of sheet music and requested them to play it. After that, he quickly returned to Clea and offered her a dance.
"What was that?" Clea asked.
"Just requesting a little song for them to play." Stephen answered. "Would you like to dance to it?"
"Sure." Clea said accepting his hand.
Together, Stephen and Clea began to dance alongside everyone else. Clea was still afraid that others could be judging her, but Stephen kept her eyes on him. Right now, they both enjoyed each other's company as the band changed their song.
At the request of Stephen Strange, the band began to play "Strange Magic" by Electric Lights Orchestra. Not only did the title match too well with certain elements, but the music kept everyone upbeat. But among them all, Stephen and Clea were the ones lost the most to the song. Together, they danced along to the music as if they were dancing among the stars embracing the magic all around them. They continued dancing until the end of the night.
After the party ended, Stephen joined Eda, King, and Luz returning to the Owl Sanctum with them. He never dropped his smile until he joined Luz in their room and noticed her sullen attitude while looking over her phone.
"Hey, is something wrong?" Stephen asked.
"No. Nothing's wrong." Luz said. "It's just… Well, in the end, I couldn't face my mom."
Stephen sighed and sat beside her. "I get it. Look, I don't know exactly what you're going through, but I know that you can't hide behind emojis."
"I know. I just sent Mom a long text explaining how I felt and how much my friends helped me with my troubles. Don't worry though. I didn't tell her about the Boiling Isles or anything like that. Still, it's kind of a downer to know that I was fragile after all."
"Look, Luz, you're stronger than that. I mean, I know you did it with Amity, but you managed to defeat Grom." Stephen said. "If anything, I'm more fragile than I thought. Especially after what I just discovered."
"Right. I saw that." Luz said. "There was someone else at the crash."
"All these years, and I never even thought about who was driving that other car." Stephen said. "I think I was almost unconscious when it happened and I just repressed it. But the thing is, whoever it was stepped out of the car and didn't lift a finger to help my mom. I think…"
Luz looked at him with worry. "You think what?"
Stephen took a breath before admitting. "I think the crash wasn't an accident."
"You're saying someone ran into your mom's car on purpose?" Luz asked. "Who? Why?"
"I don't know." Stephen asked. "But something tells me I'm going to have to figure it out later rather than sooner."
Just then, Luz' phone buzzed. She looked at a new text on her phone.
"Can't wait! P.S. love receiving your letters!"
"Letters?" Stephen asked.
"Oh, you know adults and technology." Luz chuckled. "That's obviously a cute way of saying text."
Stephen chuckled. "Right. Of course. What was I thinking?"
Back at the Noceda household, Camilla laid in her bed and put her phone at her nightstand. Right next to her phone were two stacks of papers, each with handwritten messages on them.
On top of one stack, the letter read "Hi, Mom! I am having a great time at camp. Today, we learned what mortgages are! I can't wait to get home and see you. Let's do lots of fun mother/daughter activities forever and ever. And we can bring my brother into this too. Love, your daughter, Luz."
On top of the other pile, the top letter read, "Hi, Camilla! Never thought I'd say this, but I'm having a lot more fun than I ever thought. My dear sister and I are growing ever closer together. Can't wait to come back home and finally feel like part of the family. Love, your dear son, Stephen."
They weren't texts. They were actual letters, and they weren't written by Luz and Stephen.