A/N: So, I did have a full draft of this chapter done right after the last one, but before I proofread it I got busy playing that 'Owl House - Witch's Apprentice' web game.
Yes, I'm so starved of content I'm playing an HTML5 game. At least it had full voice acting, from the show's cast too.
It wasn't good. But I 100%ed it. It has a good amount of that S1 charm. Man, S1 was such a fun time lol.
As Luz and Phillip had their little heart-to-heart, Amity was in the other room - calling hunter. Opening with a soft "Hey there!"
"Hey, Amity…" Hunter's voice was low, he sounded noticeably exhausted.
"Are you, uh…Doing alright?" She asked, concerned for her close friend,
He let out a small sigh, and said "I had a pretty rough night…"
"Well, would you be alright if we came over a little bit? Luz just got a copy of the first Cosmic Frontier movie from Scramazon, I know you've been wanting to watch it." Amity asked. She was not as good as her girlfriend with mushy emotional stuff…Her forte was more with getting people together. If Luz was the heart, she was the mind.
"Well- sure, that sounds like fun!" Hunter said, his voice noticeably perking up.
"I knew you'd like that." She said, with a big smile on her face. "We'll be over in half an hour or so…We'll stop by that bodega near your house to grab some snacks and drinks, too."
Okay, She may have told a tinyyyy bit of a lie…It was actually her who'd ordered the film. She didn't lie for any nefarious purposes, though! She'd thought of making a day out of it for a while now, this was just as good an excuse as any.
The next few hours were…Well, pretty uneventful. Amity grabbed Luz, they went to Bonesborough, and stopping at the "Scarborough Fair" Bodega. Strangely, the only place they could find a specific flavor of chip they were addicted to - BBQ Boaritos. The regular flavors? Could be found at any shop under the sun, but the BBQ flavor? Only that one particular store. It was weird.
They then arrived at the Park household, and popped the film on. It was a very heavily compressed adaptation of the first book, and the whole gang agreed that it wasn't… Very good. But it wasn't very bad, either. It was just kind of… Boring. It was somehow both too long and too short, in that they cut so much content from the book the story was held together by duct tape, but the scenes they did keep were so meandering and aimless.
Really, the only enjoyment the gang got was seeing how characters only described in text and maybe in cover art were converted to the big screen. It was all practical effects and costumes, and they were really good for the time it was released.
While it was kind of…Lame, it was a massive success for the time, and it spawned a series of sequels that fans unanimously agreed…that every other entry or so wasn't unwatchable. Sometimes even kinda good.
But, after the movie, when they were all cleaning up and making small talk - Hunter said "Hey…Can I ask you two a question?"
"Sure." Luz said, walking towards him. "What's up?" Amity asked.
"What's…What's going on with…You know, with Belos?" Hunter just went…Straight for it. As he said this, he grabbed Willow's hand, holding his thumb over her wrist. Feeling her heartbeat. It helped keep him grounded in stressful moments like this.
"He's…Actually kind of warning up to me. He even cried in front of me earlier today…" Luz said, with a nervous laugh.
"Not a surprise…" Amity teased, nudging her girlfriend. "You always have a way of sneaking into people's hearts."
"Oh, stop it you!" Luz said with a chortle.
Willow crossed her arms. She felt fairly left out of the loop…Hunter didn't like talking about it, and she didn't want to go over his back and ask Amity directly. "What- like, actually is going on with Belos?"
"Oh, Hunter hasn't told you?" Amity said, raising an eyebrow.
Hunter frowned with an embarrassed look. "Sorry, Willow…It's just…It's hard to talk about, you know?"
"I understand." She sighed, giving him a small smooch on the lips.
This helped Hunter calm down a bit, at least enough for him to explain the situation. "So, explain- I mean, correct me if I'm wrong, but- Luz, you said you found Belos in the forest near Lake Lacuna, right?"
"Actually, Eda and Raine found him, but otherwise yep." Luz corrected.
"And, Amity took him in, and- from what we can tell, he's human." Hunter stammered.
"Yea, He took a bad tumble and his nose started to bleed. Like, Red human blood. I don't think he could…do that before." Amity shrugged.
"No, I- I haven't ever seen him bleed either, Just that kind of…Green…Sauce?" Hunter said simply, not really wanting to start drudging through old memories… But he did remember seeing the Emperor get injured during a failed coupe. He had a spear sent through his stomach, and instead of blood - was that green liquid…
"Wait, so he just, like- He has all his memories, right?" Willow raised an eyebrow, confused.
"No, but- ahh…It's hard to explain…" Amity squeaked. "Well, when we found him he was completely amnesiac. He didn't even remember his own name. But, after last night, well- he started getting them back… Though so far all he can remember is some childhood stuff." Luz said, doing her best to soothe the room's worries.
Hunter looked momentarily shocked, then ashamed. Internally, he felt like it might be somewhat his fault…
"Greaaaaat, so he's a ticking time-bomb." Willow snarked, crossing her arms.
"A time-bomb I'm trying my hardest to defuse!" Luz said, holding her index finger aloft.
Hunter had crossed his arms, gripping his shoulders tightly and shuttering.
"Are you okay, Sunflower?" Willow relaxed for a moment, putting her hand on her boyfriend's shoulder.
"Hunter? Did…Something happen last night?" Amity raised an eyebrow.
"We…We got into a fight, and- I…I said…I said some things… But…You know what he told me?" He stammered, barely able to get the words out.
"What…Did he say?" Luz asked, bracing for the worst.
The words caught once again in Hunter's throat, before all coming out as a cry. "He said he was proud of me for standing up to him!"
The entire room was shocked silent for a moment.
Willow just frowned, squeaking "Oh no, Hunter…"
"I- I think I'm done talking for the night, I'm sorry." Hunter looked down at the floor, trying his hardest to keep his composure. Willow patted his back softly, and said "It's okay, you don't have to."
Hunter turned around, walking over to a cabinet in the corner of the room. "Do you think you could…Do me a favor, Amity?"
"Anything." She replied, without hesitation.
"Can you…Give him this?" He crouched down, and grabbed a small cardboard box that was inside the cabinet.
Amity just stared at it for a moment. "Sure…But, what is it?"
"If it's a pipe-bomb, can you tell us beforehand? Home repairs are expensive." Luz snarked, trying to lighten the mood.
This did genuinely get a laugh out of Hunter. A belly laugh. "No, no, nothing like that…" His face once again soured, as he stood up with the box. "It's a present. I…I carved him a Palisman."
"What? Why?" Willow stammered, concerned.
"Carving palismen helps me calm down, and- I…" Hunter took a deep breath. "I…I thought, that, he…He deserves, someone. Someone he can truly start from the beginning with."
Willow had to choke back a tear on that one. "Hunter…You're…It's so amazing, that someone as kind as you came from as someone as mean as that."
"Are you sure about this, Hunter? I mean, You know what he did with them before…" Luz butted in, stating the uncomfortable question that was nonetheless on all of their minds.
"Yeah, but- He only ate palismen because of his curse. If he isn't cursed anymore, than… he won't hurt it, right?" Hunter stammered.
"I'll make sure he won't." Luz grumbled, crossing her arms and closing her eyes. "If he even ends up thinking of it…"
"Off to the knee with him?" Amity raised an eyebrow. They both got a laugh.
Though, Hunter's face didn't lighten. "Please. Don't tell him I carved it…I don't want him to think I've forgiven him."
"Have you?" Luz asked, after an awkward second.
Hunter took a deep breath. "No…But, If he continues the path he's on, if he's truly trying to change, then…I might. Willow said that it's best if I do…For my own sake, I mean!" He stammered, not trying to make his girlfriend look bad. "She said that if I let go of all the pain, I'll feel…Better. And I'm trying my hardest. For all I know, I might wake up one morning… and realize that it worked, that I do forgive him, and feel so much better. Who knows, it might even be tomorrow. But all I know is right now, and I can tell you for a fact it's not yet."
Even though it was kind of rambly, they got the gist of what he meant. They all mutually decided to head their separate ways for the night.
