Loyalty & Light

by BlehBluhBlah

"You and me, hermana... always." Ever since the Noceda sisters were kids, Lealtad had one thing in mind, and one thing only: protect her little sister's smile. Follow through a journey of The Owl House, as canon events unfold with Luz's big sister watching over her. Can Lealtad keep her sister grounded in her true home? Or will she lose her to this new world's fantastical themes?

3. Witches Before Wizards

A/N: Alas, the adventure officially begins and we now see how Leal fairs in this new world with Luz. I remember being really excited when I wrote this as it was another peel behind the curtain of not just how Luz and Leal's dynamic would unfold in L&L, but also what Leal's character would be like. Well, hope you enjoy!

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Chapter Summary: The first day into their new summer routine, Lealtad quickly grasps becoming a witch won't be as easy as Luz thought. And that it's a lot more dangerous than they realized. But worst of all? She can only offer so much advice.

Word Count: 15,179

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Witches Before Wizards

The shrill sound of Lealtad's chiming alarm startled her eyes awake, causing her to quickly fumble for her phone and turn off the noise. She heard a faint mumbling of, "Stupid human toys" and realized their surroundings. She sat up, moving a couple strands of her messy dark brown hair from her lips as a yawn escaped her. As the sleep blinked away from her eyes she took in the room before her. With the crisp sunlight seeping through the window panes, the room's natural brightness finally set in for Lealtad.

Sidled up against the corner of the room, with the windowsill at the foot of her sleeping bag, Lealtad stood up and stretched, thoroughly attempting to rid any temptative exhaustion from lulling her back to bed. She looked at her alarm and chuckled. 7:45 AM, and here she was thinking that it'd be for her camp volunteer activities. Oddly enough, no messages from the camp director had come in, leaving Lealtad to assume they just didn't bother calling or texting her about her whereabouts. Perhaps that should've been a red flag with such a camp; the fact that they hadn't concerned themselves with not only just one of their volunteers not showing, but also a camper.

She shrugged off the thoughts, deciding not to look a gift horse in the mouth. She thumbed over to her mother's messages, and quickly greeted her,

Fave Bebé [7:46 AM]: Morning dearest mother! I am texting you ever so early as to fulfill your request of me the other night, as I foolishly hadn't answered you before. I hope this morning message quells your worrisome heart along with the news I have to report that our sweet Sunshine is sleeping soundly and well. I have checked in on her cabin—we are due to rise soon for our first day!

Mami [7:47 AM]: I swear you are worse than your sister sometimes.

She laughed at that.

Fave Bebé [7:47 AM]: Ouch Mamá! I do what you ask of me and I am insulted?

Mami [7:47 AM]: Go! I imagine you have lots of work to do!

Fave Bebé [7:47 AM]: :( okay, I know where I'm not wanted…

Mami [7:48 AM]: shush. Have a good day, have fun!

Lealtad smiled fondly at that. She glanced over at Luz, watching her toss and turn a bit.

Fave Bebé [7:48 AM]: Te quiero Mamá. Good luck at work.

Suddenly, Luz woke up with a loud gasp, sitting up in her seat as she looked around the room. She pumped her arms out in excitement as she shouted, "It wasn't a dream!"

Leal snorted at that. "I think your and my bruises are enough to prove that theory, Sunshine." Her brows raised at that. "Oh and speaking of, how are they? Nothing too bad?" She pointed to her messenger bag. "'Member I got plasters in my—"

Luz ignored her as she dashed to the window, bursting it open as shouting at the top of her lungs, "Good morning, terrifying fantasy world!" Lealtad merely sighed fondly. She supposed that meant her sister was okay.

"Good morning!" a deep voice replied, before the sounds of rippling waves echoed throughout the shore.

Luz shuddered as she shrunk back inside, meeting Lealtad's eyes with discomfort. "Do I even wanna know?" Luz shook her head as she walked back to her bed.

She plucked King off the foot of the bed, startling him from his sleep. "Good morning, you little cutie-pie!" She began peppering his skull(?) with kisses.

"I am not your cutie-pie!" he denied as he struggled to push himself off of her affectionate attacks.

"Yes you are!" her sister affirmed, hugging him tightly before placing him back down.

"I know," he defeatedly sighed as he flopped on his belly, much to Lealtad's amusement.

"Sunshine, try to respect the poor shrimp's personal space," she advised.

Luz threw her head back. "Okay, okay!" she muttered. But she immediately followed up with throwing a smile her way. "And good morning, Leal!"

She laughed. "Yes, yes, mornin' Sunshine," she waved.

Luz's smile burned brighter at that. She then made her way over to her luggage. She hurriedly pulled out her outdoor clothes and unfolded them, no doubt prepping them to change into.

At that, Lealtad moved off her sleeping bag and walked over to Luz's, nudging the little demon dog with her foot. "Oi, twerp, scram. We gotta change." He stubbornly rooted himself against her prodding foot. "Tit for tat Scruffy; if you want us to respect your personal space respect ours and let us change."

His right eye blinked open at that, interest obviously peaked. "Promise?"

She shrugged. "Can promise for myself, not so much for my sister," she answered honestly as she nodded her head over at said sister.

He disappointedly sighed. "Good enough," he muttered as he stood up, stretching his back out. He proceeded to make his way out the room, leaving it all to the Nocedas.

Lealtad turned and watched as her sister pulled on her classic hoodie, and furrowed a brow at her. "I thought you were gonna shower?"

"Ah, I'll do it later—I'm just gonna freshen up real quick!" her sister eagerly explained as she hurriedly pulled on her leggings and shorts.

"Okay, Sunshine, I get you're excited, but I'm pretty sure Dama Búho would prefer teaching a hygienic student."

"C'mon, she keeps keys in her hair, you think that'll bother her?"

"Fair enough," Leal admitted. "But I'd also like to argue that's not an excuse? So please try to stay clean?"

"I will, I will!" her sister waved off as she exited the room and darted down the hall.

Lealtad could only sigh as she looked at their beds. She figured the Owl Lady wouldn't care for their messiness, but she knew their mom would kick herself if she learned that they were slacking on keeping tidy purely for the sake of their hostess just not caring. She rolled her neck around to crank out any more exhaustion and aching before deciding to get cracking on making their "beds."

Neatly rolling up and tying up their sleeping bag beds wasn't exactly herculean feat. The end result being Luz's bed propped up near the wall beside the door and Leal's against the corner she slept in. Satisfied with their appearance, Leal quickly changed into her classic attire: her ripped navy blue jeans and black Nike running shoes, along with her striped white and purple t-shirt and her army jacket, and of course, her classic red-orange beanie. She turned back to her suitcase, where she had her Canon camera resting, and plucked it off and placed it around her neck like usual. She then grabbed her red bat from the corner and rested it on her shoulder before exiting the room.

Did she need to bring it around the Owl House?

Probably not.

But was she in a living house with a witch and a demon?

Yes she was.

So the bat comes along.

She walked down the hall, once again scanning the walls and ceiling as she made her way down the steps and over to the living room. The interiors weren't as decrepit as she thought—actually looking quite nice with carpeting—but she remained skeptical of any surprise inanimate items that would suddenly gain consciousness. She stopped in her tracks once she watched her sister emerge from a door halfway down the hall wearing—"Sunshine… what the Hell are you wearing?"

"My witch apprentice outfit!" she cheerfully answered, giddiness clearly bursting at the seams as she walked down the hall.

Lealtad could sigh at the sight, following after her sister as she looked her outfit over once more. Her little sister was currently wearing a black ripped robe, with a red ribbon wrapped around her waist and a classic black pointed witch hat had donned on her head. She would've looked like a kid dressing up for Halloween, had it not been for the name tag she plastered on her chest.

"You don't even know if that's what witches wear around here," she decided to address.

Luz rolled her eyes. "Eh, so I'll explain that it's what humans think they do—it'll be sweet!" She walked further down the hall and waited at the base of the steps, knowingly expecting Eda to emerge from the top.

"Whatever," Leal shrugged. An idea flashed in her mind, causing her to turn her camera on. She called out, "Hey." Her sister turned back at her, just in time as Lealtad lifted her camera and snapped a quick picture—capturing her sister's perplexed face along with her goofy outfit. "Aaaaand, I'm keeping this one, for future teasing opportunities."

Luz pouted, blushing a bit. "Aw c'mon! This is me showing initiative!" When Leal furrowed a brow, Luz elaborated, "You've always told me first impressions count for something, so now would be a good time to show Miss Owl Lady that I. Am. Serious." She widened her eyes and puffed her cheeks as if to punctuate her point.

Leal snorted as she leaned up against the wall, glancing over her new photo amusedly. She might edit it later—she definitely wasn't sending it to their mom. "I dunno Sunshine, we woke up earlier than her. I don't think Dama Búho is an earlyriser type. And aren't owls nocturnal creatures anyways?" she joked.

Luz merely stared in deadpan. "And yet she'd care if I smelled nice?"

"I was saying that for my sake, Sunshine," she answered honestly, "I don't think I'd care if you became the world's first human witch if you still smelled like morning breath." Luz stuck her tongue out in retaliation, causing Lealtad to return the gesture.

Out of nowhere, the sound of a toilet flushing echoed throughout the halls, and Luz started to shake with even more excitement. Then, from the top of the steps, out emerged the one and only Eda the Owl Lady, wearing a light jam coloured sweater and an indigo dress with bunny slippers. She let out a loud yawn before noticing the two at the bottom of the stairs, one smiling like the Joker, and the other plainly staring up at her.

With about as much patience as she expected from Luz, her little sister immediately shouted, "Good morning, Eda the Owl Lady!" She pumped her fist to the sky as she assumed a heroic pose. "I am ready for my first day of Witch Apprenticeship."

Leal quietly chuckled.

"Ugh," Eda groaned as she shook spiders out of her hair, causing Lealtad to shut her eyes and shake her head. Just… why. She picked another out of her ear—Lealtad gagged—as she asked, "Who are you again?"

Luz's jaw dropped along with her name tag.

Leal threw her head back and sighed. "Ahh shit."

::TITLE OPENING::

Considering the fact that she just shook spiders out her hair, Leal figured Luz was right on the money for guessing Eda's stance on hygiene. If only the two of them could predict Dama Búho completely forgetting yesterday. But considering the carefree and lax attitude that exuded from the witch, Lealtad realized she probably shouldn't have been surprised. Her sister, however, seemed determined to jog her soon-to-be mentor's memory as she began regaling yesterday's events in a quick manner. She could only follow loosely behind as the two walked into the kitchen.

Lealtad noticed King was already sitting at the head of the table, in a booster seat with food prepared for him already? He looked to be eating a slop of bright orange goop with eyes protruding from it, all of which were staring back at him angrily. Which shouldn't be possible considering the eyes had no brows or lids to express aggression, but somehow they were. She chose not to question whether he made the food himself or if it just ended up there.

Suddenly a whirring sound emitted from behind Lealtad caused her to turn around and duck immediately when she realized an airborne mug was levitating across the room. "Luz, duck!" she shouted, thankfully alerting her sister in time as the mug flew over her head and into Eda's hand. "¡Oye! witch, mind giving a warning before ya do shit like that?"

"Lealtad," Luz hissed, "¡Relájate!"

"What," she balked. "It's a reasonable request."

Luz just turned back to Eda and held her palms out exasperatedly, "B-But you don't remember me? Luz? Noceda? A-And my sister? Lealtad?" She gestured to the sister in question, in which Leal simply offered a nonchalant peace sign. "We freed the oppressed and defeated the evil warden together? Yesterday?"

Eda promptly ignored her as she opened her fridge door, quickly pouring a sort of bright red liquid into her mug. "Kid, lay off the details. I haven't even had my cup of apple blood yet." She gestured said 30 & Flirty mug toward Luz, spilling a bit out as she held her frown.

Luz held a look of concern as she asked, "You mean apple juice…?"

Eda merely stared uninterestedly as she replied, "No."

Leal cocked a brow. "So are you a vampire too? Or is that a delicacy here?"

"Oh I remember you," she smirked as she hopped on her kitchen table, crossing her leg over the other as she gestured at Lealtad with her mug. "You're the snarky one," she mused before taking a big slurp of her drink.

Lealtad simply rolled her eyes as she adjusted her grip on her bat.

At that, Luz exploded with excitement as she slammed her hands on the table. "Teach me some spells!" she begged. She began to pace back and forth as she rambled on, "When do I get a magic staff? Was I supposed to bring my own runes?" She gasped as she stepped toward Eda, grabbed her arm as she asked, "Do you have a dangerous magical quest for me?"

Lealtad figured she'd let Luz run her course with her high since she knew nothing of what was to come. She merely watched in amusement as the Owl Lady nearly spilled her drink on herself.

Eda's eyes bulged as she pushed Luz off. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, slow down, kid. Being a witch doesn't happen overnight." She chuckled. She smugly pointed at Luz as she added, "Also, you're wrapped in a bathrobe and wearing the dirtiest traffic cone I've ever seen."

Luz plucked her "hat" off and blew on it, ridding all the dust in one go and revealing, sure enough, a traffic cone underneath.

Lealtad seethed at that as King childishly laughed. "Okay… now a shower would definitely be called for, because no way that's good." She walked over and knocked the cone out of Luz's hand with her bat. "Sunshine, wash your hands," she ordered, much to her sister's reluctance, Luz walked over to the sink and began rinsing. As Leal poked the cone over into the corner of the room, she asked, "And do you guys have traffic cones here on the Isles or is this another 'Human Collectibles' thing?"

"What do you think?" the witch shot back before taking another sip.

She merely shrugged. "I think I'm surprised you know that it's called a traffic cone. Especially considering the absolute botched names you were labelling all the 'merch' from yesterday," she teased with finger quotes.

"Hey, I know a few human things," Eda defended, lips now stained with apple blood (Lealtad wasn't going to bother with letting her know).

"Forget human things," Luz said as she waved her arms around, making her return known, "teach me about witchy things! Like how I can get my own staff?"

Eda smugly smiled. "A magic stuff, huh? You really want one?"

Leal snorted as she watched Luz slap her cheeks and widen her eyes. "More. Than. Anything."

Eda's smugness remained even after she wiped the apple blood from her mouth. She then placed her mug on the table as she extended her left hand outward. "Magic staff, come to me!" she ordered. A series of clattering and clanging sounds began to occur as Leal and Luz watched Eda remain triumphant with eyes closed. Luz still seemed enamoured as Leal worried about the potential of this staff clocking them in the head like Mjolnir. But as the sounds neared, even Luz's patience wore thin as she and Eda both turned at the corridor, just in time for the staff's arrival. It whizzed by the corner, floating, and flew straight at Eda.

Literally.

It flew straight at her.

It conked her against the head and nearly fell to the floor, but she caught it in time. She did a quick flourishing twirl before stomping still. With a deadpan expression, she simply stated, "It's early."

Lealtad snickered in amusement. Guess she didn't need to worry about it hitting her and Luz in this case.

Eda sent her a glare before beginning her lecture. "Now, witches are awarded their staffs from school. With me as your teacher, you'll be taking a different approach." She drew a circle with her finger and a large sack flew to her side. She then nabbed the sack and dropped it to the floor, revealing it to be full of what looked to be vials and flasks of presumably potions. "You'll have to work for it."

Lealtad shrugged. "Well, you did say, work for you before learning spells so…"

Eda smiled amusedly. "Wow, sharp memory this one," she muttered to Luz as she jerked a thumb toward Leal. She began walking, and wagged her finger at them. "Anyways, follow along, little humans."

Luz picked up the bag as the two followed after her. From the route they were taking, it looked as though Eda was leading them back to the living room. Lealtad cleared her throat, gaining Luz's attention. "I'm gonna get my bag, you take off that robe—you don't know where that's been either," she said pointedly.

Luz sighed but nodded nonetheless. As she set down the bag and began to pull off the robe, Lealtad darted off upstairs. She quickly retrieved her brown messenger bag from their room, double checking its contents. Sure, her books were still there, but more importantly her mini compact first aid kit was also there. She wasn't sure what those potions were all for, and if their effects might counter human medicine, but she wanted to be safe for now. With her messenger bag shouldered on, she rushed back to catch up with her sister and Eda.

Right as she made it to the living room, Eda sighed. "Finally. Took ya long enough." Leal narrowed her brows at the fact that Eda had also changed as well, but she chose to hold her tongue. "Now, I run a few businesses," she explained as she began walking, "On weekends, I offer rare human treasures that Owlbert drags over from your side of the realm." She picked up a toy sword and clicked on a little gray button.

"I shall smite my enemies! Ages six to eleven," the sword blasted through its small speaker.

Eda then tossed it over Leal and Luz's head, still smiling. "But most days I sell only the finest homemade elixirs and potions."

At that, Luz dug through the bag and pulled out one of the bottles. "'Snake Oil'," she read.

"No one wants an un‐oiled snake," Eda confidently assured. She then waved her hand, "Follow me." She led them out toward the balcony (that Lealtad didn't know existed) and gestured down at the town nearby. "Today you'll deliver packages and sell potions to that town over there, Bonesborough. You'll have to be careful. I have rivals everywhere who'd love to take my business down and you along with it." She pointed at Luz. "You wanted a dangerous magical quest? Sister, you've got one."

Luz zealously turned and saluted, and also let the bag slip from her hand as she declared, "I won't let you down, Miss Eda."

Leal rushed to the edge where they all watched the sack crash on the ground, staining into a mix of liquids. The sack melted into a puddle and deformed into a colour of brown that honestly reminded Lealtad of shit. "I'm sure," Eda sarcastically agreed. "But just in case, how 'bout your sister holds this next one?" Luz deflated at that as Eda grabbed both their shoulders and pushed the two back inside.

Lealtad winced as she turned back at Eda. "Uhhh, we're not getting charged for that, are we?"

"If you can not break this next batch, then sure," she replied as she grabbed another sack as she continued to shove them, pushing them out toward the front door. Leal noticed King was curled up on the chest near the door, soundly napping. Eda handed the sack to Lealtad, and it was surprisingly not as heavy as she expected as she merely held it with one hand. "Remember, never befriend a man in sandals and always measure twice, cut once."

The two exchanged a look as before uttering, "Uhhh—"

Her hand glowed as she shouted, "Be back by nightfall or risk mortal peril. Good luck!" And then the door slammed in their face.

And much to Lealtad's displeasure, they were met with Hooty's smile. "Have a nice trip!" he shouted.

She instantly shuddered and turned around, shouldering the sack over her other shoulder. "C'mon Sunshine, let's get going," she announced as she started walking, with her sister following soon after.

"Can I hold it?"

She sighed. "Luz…"

"Hermana, c'mon, you hands are full with—"

"Wait up!" The two froze and whipped their bodies around, surprised to see King trailing after them. "She's making me go with you," he announced unenthusiastically.

Leal blinked. "Why?"

"Because you two might get lost or eaten, probably both. Or at least she'll get lost," he pointed at Luz, "and that you will get eaten trying to save her."

Luz gasped. "No I wouldn't!"

"I beg to differ, Sunshine, you got lost in the forest all the time back home," Leal argued. She glanced down at the little demon. "But, whatever. You have a point," she noncommittally agreed as she turned back and continued walking down the path, now with King between her and Luz. "But I'm not giving you a shoulder ride."

King harrumphed. "I wasn't going to ask for one!"

"Well I will give you one, since my hands are free!" Luz pointedly addressed.

She groaned, throwing her head back. "¡Dios mío! If I give it to you, will you stop whining?" Luz grinned as she mimed her zipping her lips shut, causing Lealtad to roll her eyes and reluctantly hand the sack over—literally over King's head. With her left hand free, she switched her bat to her left and shouldered it more comfortingly.

"Why did you bring the bat anyways?" her sister questioned.

Leal blankly stared at her. "We're in a 'realm' where cute little fairies have monstrous teeth and wanna eat our skin—I'm slugging anyone who touches you."

"Okay," she gulped whilst nodding, "fair enough."

As they walked, Lealtad looked around their scenery. It was… actually shocking how beautiful and tranquil the flora of the forest was. The trees were nearly identical to that of pine trees, to the point where one could wonder if they really were in some other world. Set aside the fact that the pine needles of the trees were of a red-brownish colour of unnatural origin in the human world, it was a very nature-esque scenery. And that gave her an idea. Leal smiled as she slipped her bat down to her armpit, tucking it tight as she lifted her camera and turned it on.

She stopped in her tracks, eyes searching for the shot. Then she latched onto it. Right beside her, the peak of three pine trees and the clouds forming in the sky, perfectly centred between the three. She crouched down and brought her camera to her eye, adjusting her lens' focus whilst tilting both her head and the camera up to find the perfect angle. She held it steady, anticipating, waiting… it looked nice, but—

Then the wind blew.

The pine needles shook ever so slightly, and few had even flown off, and that was when Lealtad snapped the shot. One click and she pulled away, looking it over. A satisfied smile graced her face as she turned it to Luz, who was staring at her. "Nice, ¿no?"

Luz chuckled. "Yeah, yeah, it's awesome."

"Are you gonna keep doing that the rest of the way?" King impatiently inquired. "Because if that's the case then I'll just power nap here." He gestured to the dirt before him with an annoyed stare.

Leal rolled her eyes and stood up, moving over to catch up with the two. "Relax Scruffy, I'm coming." The three continued walking, but now Lealtad had become infatuated with her photo, checking it over in pride. That was until she felt someone staring at her, in turn causing her to glance at her sister. She wore a smug look of curiosity, causing Leal to shrug, "What?"

"And the camera?" she teased.

Lealtad laughed. "Hey, you can be a witch chick spelling up the place all you want, I will be taking photos in the meantime." She turned it once again, showing it to her sister. Despite the teasing, she knew her sister also thought it was a good photo, considering the awestruck look on her face. "We all have our hobbies, Sunshine." She winked, earning a laugh from her sister as they marched on.

Despite all things, it was nice to see her sister laughing again.

::::

Bonesborough up close, was equally interesting and disgusting. The scent that graced Lealtad's nostrils was almost enough to knock her out, but she eventually adjusted (read: went nose blind) as they went deeper into town. The sights were not too dissimilar to what she saw yesterday: a series of 19th century looking townhouses with some demonic twist over them—some with giant claw hands for roofs, others had roof shingles that had a big eye just sat in the centre of their slopes, and a couple actually had feet rooting out from the base of their house. Even if she told herself to stop being surprised with the absurdity, every turn still managed to catch Lealtad off guard.

One would also comment on the comical state of the two Noceda sisters' expressions; Lealtad wore a skeptical, cautious stare at each and every stranger they passed while Luz looked on in awe at practically everything her eyes could see. A small butterfly looking creature flew by Luz's face causing her to gasp in awe.

"Hey, it's rude to stare," King chastised.

"Scruffy's right," Leal nodded. "Don't bring unnecessary attention to us, Sunshine." For good measure, she also pulled her way from the flying critter since it looked like a hybrid butterfly with two faces.

Luz's wide smile of wonder remained undeterred. "Sorry. I've only seen places like this in my dreams—"

"More like nightmares," Leal muttered.

"Ohh, it's still incredible," her sister exclaimed. "And we're the only humans here?"

"Haven't seen any others," King shrugged.

"Wow," Luz said in awe. And, of course, a look of epiphany gleamed her face as she crouched down to the little demon dog, setting the bag down. "There must be a reason for that, right?" She stared off to the side in contemplation. "Why am I here?"

"Because you chased a small semi-inanimate owl through a portal 'cause it stole your fantasy book," Lealtad dryly recalled.

She scowled at that. "Sure, maybe that's how the events played out—"

"Because it was."

"—But," Luz wagged a finger at her, "perhaps that was to lead me here unknowingly of my true purpose!"

"¿Qué?" she owlishly blinked.

At that, her sister then stood straight as she brought her hand to her chest, staring off into the sky. "What if I, Luz Noceda, average teen, actually had," she then crouched down a bit and loudly gasped, "a predetermined path of greatness?" She raised her hands to the sky, shaking them in excitement.

Lealtad snorted. "Shit, I mean when you put it that way how can we not compare it to all the isekai anime we've watched." She couldn't help but acknowledge her sister's point there, events like yesterday did tend to play into a large scheme of things like destiny with worlds like fantasy anime, movies, and—

"Just like Azura!" Luz affirmed.

And that too.

"Yeah. Did Azura's path to greatness involve her delivering boil cream?" King inquired as he rummaged through the bag and pulled out a bottle labeled Boil B' Gone.

Luz clasped her hands together. "Today I'm delivering packages," she pointed at King, "but tomorrow I'll be earning the respect of everyone on the Boiling Isles with my magical prowess." She raised her fists in determination as she held her pose.

Lealtad proudly whistled at that. "You tell 'em, ¡hermana!"

But both the Noceda sister's grins fell at King's mocking laugh. "Good luck! The Boiling Isles is nothing but a cesspool of despair," he said as he gestured toward the streets.

"Well, on that, we agree," Leal conceded.

Her sister, on the other hand, grabbed the Boil B' Gone from King's hand and placed it back in the bag as she counted, "More like a cesspool of delight!" She then swung the bag around over her shoulder and brought her free hand to her forehead, shielding the top of her eyes as she scanned the market.

"You do know what cesspool means, right?" she felt the need to ask.

"Shush, I'm searching," her sister dismissed. She then locked eyes with something and exclaimed, "Ha-ha," before rushing off.

Lealtad's alarm bells rang as she chased after her sister. "Sunshine, ¡hermana!" but then a giant furry, sasquatch looking being stepped in front of her, halting her chase. "Luz," she whisper-shouted. Though she wasn't sure why she was doing that. Eventually, she got around the sasquatch found her sister at a gourdbeast eggs stand? Talking to a centaur? Just as she arrived, she watched her sister finger gun (god, what a Bi) up at the being with her sales pitch.

And even more shockingly, the centaured sighed—not from his mouth—and gestured to his stomach as he set down the gourdbeast egg(?). "My eyes are down here."

The two yelped. Instinctively, Lealtad pulled her sister back and smiled apologetically as his wide face. "So sorry about that, er, sir? M-My sister was just trying to make a sale." She nervously laughed.

He rolled his eyes and shrugged. Again, weird when his face wasn't on his head. "It's fine," he waved off as he turned away, clopping down the market.

She whipped around and raised a brow at her sister.

Who in turn sheepishly smiled as she dug into the bag and pulled out a potion labeled, Simmering Scales. "Wanna cool off?" she suggested as she held it out.

Lealtad, as much as she wanted to scold her sister, couldn't help but laugh. Shaking her head, she grabbed the potion and set it back in the sack, digging in and pulling out the small folded up paper Eda had left inside. "Very funny, Sunshine," she commended, "but how 'bout we first tick off some of Dama Búho's deliveries? As listed?"

A faint blush occurred as her sister chuckled. "R-Right, of course. Heh, priorities."

Lealtad rolled her eyes then looked down at the paper. Yup, she had… absolutely no idea where this was. "¡Oye! Scruffy! Do your job!"

He squealed, "Well then don't run off without me!"

She handed the paper to King, and waited as he read off the addresses and potions for each one. Something told her that this was going to be a long day.

::::

So, at this point, Lealtad knew she should've really stopped being surprised by the most out-of-left-field events occurring, but of all the weird things she would've expected to fend off today—beating up a house doorbell was not one of them. One of the houses they delivered to, seemed to be normal (as they could be for houses in Bonesborough) until Luz rang the doorbell and its mouth frame started to move and engulf her sister's arm. Lealtad instantly started to beat the door, the doorbell, and even the wall, with her bat. The ruckus managed to release her sister and also upset the owner.

And yes, they were on their property and were technically vandalizing it, but Leal would've cussed them out had Luz not hastily shoved them the potion and pulled her away. That was about as much as one could sum up how chaotic their day was going so far. Of course King wasn't as much of a help then as he was at any other turn aside from just giving very minimal directions. And to add more to their displeasure, King started to get fussy and began craving not dogs—whatever those were.

Lealtad shrugged and stated they didn't even have "snails" but King waved it off and pulled out a couple of rolled up bills hidden underneath his collar. He went and purchased three at a stand, with a slime vendor whose brain and eyes were the only things seen in his translucent body. They sat on the curb nearby, and from the looks of the cuisine, it looked like a fried bug in between a bun. King also assured that it was "probably safe" for humans as Eda said she once traded some to humans once in the Human Realm and nothing went bad but…

Leal looked over the ham-bug-er cautiously. It wasn't alive, thankfully, and she was well aware of humans even frying insects and bugs back in the Human Realm but she figured a Boiling Isles bug wouldn't have the same rules… or nutrients. But all she had to go off of was the word of a witch who forgot the only two humans she met yesterday, a word of which was being relayed by a bratty demon dog who was easily swayed by naps, pets, and food.

She looked at Luz and frowned. Her sister was down in the dumps, clearly understanding her fantasy world wasn't as glorious as she hyped it to be. But her main concern was making sure they were fed. She hadn't realized how much of a problem diet would be here but she figured, worst case scenario, she'd ask Eda to let her go through the portal so she can run to a human grocery store and buy some ingredients or even worse—just get takeout.

Her wallet was not limitless however.

She sighed as she sniffed the ham-bug-er once more, detecting nothing offensive or alarming to her sense of smell. It did honestly smell good. "I guess I'll take the bullet, hermana," she mused, nudging her with her elbow. "But don't dig in so soon even if I think it tastes good. It might have aftertaste or… like, side effects." Luz gave a confirming grunt and with that, Lealtad dug in. She took a modest bite and— "¡Ay, guau! Sunshine," she munched through her words, "this is pretty good!"

And of all things to expect, eating surprisingly good street meat(?) was not on the agenda but definitely a welcomed win. It was kind of irritating with how much was getting stuck in between her teeth, but it wasn't too bad that she couldn't just pick it out with her tongue or floss later. The taste was like a fried jerky feeling but also had a crisp that reminded her of plantains, which was also a welcomed savoury surprise on her taste buds.

"That's great, Leal," Luz monotonically replied, eyes still narrowed at her own ham-bug-er in disappointment.

Leal pouted as King gleamed over her. "See? Told you it's good! I expect a head pat in return!"

She scoffed. "Yeah, no." She swallowed and looked to Luz. "Also I know I'm kind of hyping it up but I wouldn't eat it yet, I might just straight up die like in an hour so we'll just wait and see." Lealtad knew there were probably safer ways of digesting but she wasn't exactly a survival expert. She could only try her best and if that involved dying just so Luz could find out one food was bad for her, then that was all she could offer.

"It's fine, I'm not hungry," she shrugged. Leal worriedly took another bite as she watched her sister's shoulders sag.

King grinned. "Ooh! Ooh! Can I have yours?" he eagerly asked as he raised his paw.

Luz obliged as she handed the burger over without looking. Lealtad was nearly finished hers and so far only found herself famished and neither poisoned or unsettled in her stomach. She quickly wiped off any crumbs with the napkin and dug into her brown messenger bag, squirting some hand sanitizer onto her palm. Once she was finished cleansing her hands, she turned back to her sister and held her shoulder. "Hey, hermana c'mon… i-if you want, I'll just pop right over the Human Realm right now and get some chimichurri sandwiches?"

"Leal, it's not the food," she gritted through her teeth.

Lealtad sighed at herself. Yeah, she figured as much. But she also knew eating made Luz feel better and chimichurris were some of her go tos.

King had finished scarfing down his meal and turned to the two with a pleased sigh. "I know I've had enough delight for one day."

"I thought being the only human-witch-in training in a magical world would make me special. But apparently, it just makes everyone want to scream at me or," she lifted her left arm, revealing the hybrid butterfly from before nibbling on her elbow, "eat me." She shook it off before Lealtad could, but as soon as it flew off, Lealtad swung at it with her bat, sending it toward a wall with a disgusting splat.

She once again ignored the fact that she now had technically committed homicide twice as her more present concern was her sister. "Hermana, you okay?" she turned to her messenger bag and hurriedly fished out a pair of disposable gloves before tending to her sister's arm. She seemed nonplussed as Leal carefully checked over the spot the creature was sucking on and noticed nothing looked different. Part of her worried it was something like a mosquito bite, where she couldn't notice it now. As a precautionary measure, she grabbed an alcohol wipe and held Luz's arm still, wiping the area.

Her sister winced and tried to pry her arm off but Leal held firm. "¡Luz, esperar!" she gritted out as she continued to wipe.

"Leal I'm fine!" she asserted as she pulled her arm away. "I should be doing other things instead of worrying about suckle butterflies!" She exasperatedly threw her arms up and sighed. "At this point," she dug into the bag and pulled out her Azura book (wait, she had it there?) and flipped to a page, "Azura had already been sent on an enchanted quest. Where's my quest‐granting wizard?" she gestured at said page.

Lealtad leaned over her shoulder to look at the picture and frowned. Maybe they've been a bit too into isekai…

"Sorry to break it to you, Luz, but no one here is that well‐dressed," King pointed out as he jerked a thumb at the not dog vendor beside them.

Luz dejectedly set the book back in the sack as they all stood up. "This has been a rough day." She shouldered the bag over with a grunt and they started off.

Lealtad turned back, slugging her bat on her left shoulder with her messenger over her right, before waving at the vendor. Awkwardly, she said, "Uhh, thanks for the meal?" He blinked happily in return as he waved back.

She then immediately turned around and rushed after her sister. "Luz, it's like you said, 'a rough day.' It's just the first day Sunshine," she grabbed her shoulders, stopping them in their tracks—much to King's audible annoyance. "Miss Owl Lady said 'being a witch doesn't happen' overnight! A-And this is just a job to do before you learn spells! Y'know? The side quest before the main plot quest? The fun filler episode?"

Luz sighed as she looked down. "Okay," she nodded. She pulled the paper out and offered a half smile. "Let's just deliver this last package and go home." She started off, walking ahead with King.

The reluctance to argue told Lealtad Luz was more so conceding rather than agreeing, which probed at her worries. But the evident line was that Luz wasn't fully convinced yet. She followed after the two with a frown. Patience wasn't exactly Luz's strongest suit in certain times, and while combating her ADHD with her own productive skills and settings was a battle the two worked together in: this new world was… well, literally a new world for Lealtad. She wasn't sure how she was supposed to sell her sister on anything when she had no idea how anything worked or if Eda was even good for her word.

They rounded a corner, heading toward an archway with a cloth as its door. As Luz and King passed through, Luz began mumbling, "Maybe this world isn't what I thought it wa—" she gasped.

Lealtad quickly rushed over and dropped her jaw as she was surprised as her sister.

A massive, Disney Princess animated-looking castle towered before them. The walls had golden banners hanging down and gold flags sailing from the peak of the baby blue towers' roofs. And she wasn't sure if it was her imagination but it seemed like the clouds parted and the lights shone upon the structure. It was like they were in a game and the developers were subtly telling them, GO HERE! Lealtad's eyes fell upon the path leading up to the large castle doors was wide and had small pink-purplish bushes on the sides, looking well maintained and balancing the palette of the blue hedges at the base of the castle walls. Lealtad chuckled as she looked at her sister.

"Pretty…" her sister uttered in awe.

She nudged her with her elbow, "You said it hermana. But you know what else," she pointed to the bushes and hedges with her bat, "I think it looks bi-utiful!"

Luz's gaze fell toward where her bat was pointing, and before she burst into a fit of giggles. "And you say I have bad puns." She shook her head as she took a step forward, but Lealtad held her hand out and stopped her sister. "Leal?"

She sheepishly smiled back as she picked her canon camera up and shook it. "You mind?" she asked. "I'll take one of you," she temptingly added.

Luz rolled her eyes and took a step back, pulling King along with her much to his displeasure.

She mouthed a "thank you" as she walked past the two then knelt down, taking in the sight with a perceptive squint. She tucked her bat under her arm as she turned on her camera, bringing the viewfinder up to her right eye. Centering up the angle, she focused the shot at the wall just above the doors. Her right hand slid down to her lens, adjusting the focus and shortening the focal length. Nearly all four towers were in the shot, and the glimmering light balanced out the shadows without reflecting off the gold and flaring up the image. She smirked, clicked twice, then lengthened the focal length a bit and clicked twice again. She pulled the camera down and swiped through her gallery, looking at the four shots.

"Sweet," she whispered. Turning back, she smiled at her sister and nodded at the castle, "Go on." Luz beamed as she took a step. "Wait, leave the bag."

Luz nodded as she dropped it beside Lealtad and walked up the path. "Tell me when!"

Leal threw a thumbs up as she brought the camera up once again, watching her sister. Just as she was halfway down the path, she shouted, "That's good!"

Luz halted and turned back, folding her hands in front of her, just dropping them past her shorts. Lealtad smirked as she tuned the focal length back to a shorter length but then paused. She turned her head away from her viewfinder and looked at King. "You don't wanna join her?"

He rolled his eyes. "Hard pass."

She frowned. "It'll be a nice shot," she offered in singsong.

He scoffed. "Nope."

Lealtad shrugged and turned back to her sister. She announced, "Three, two, one…" Two clicks, and she was done. She stood up and smiled. "Perfect!" she shouted as she checked the picture. Satisfied with what she had, she slung her bat over her left shoulder, then grabbed the sack with her right hand and walked up to Luz. "Gracias, Sunshine."

"Yeah yeah," she chuckled as took the bag from Leal then turned back around toward the massive doors. As the three continued up the path Lealtad showed Luz the photo and earned her commended approval. Lealtad could sense her sister was more infatuated with learning more about this place and so she reeled back in her excitement of her photos, shut off her camera, and let Luz take the lead. Her sister walked up to the golden doorbell and pushed the blue pearl button, activating a stereotypical ring.

Simultaneously, the giant doors swung outward, revealing a very dark corridor before them. Leal could barely see anything even if she squinted.

"Big houses always belong to big whackjobs," King complained. He jerked his thumb back, "Let's kick the package inside and get outta here."

Leal scoffed, "Who're you, FedEx?"

"What's—"

Luz ignored King as she walked in, cupping her hand to her mouth as she shouted, "Hello?"

"Hey, wait," the two said together as they stepped in after her. The doors immediately shut after them, raising all the red flags in Lealtad's eyes. King yelped and hurried after Luz whilst Leal brought her bat down from her shoulder and gripped it with both her hands.

"Just so ya know, Sunshine," she spoke up, "Last time a door shut after you went through it, you ended up here."

"I know, I know," Luz muttered as she waved her hand dismissively to shush her. She brought her hand up over her eyes as she announced, "I‐I'm delivering a package from Miss Eda, the Owl Lady." Suddenly, all the lights in the room lit up, startling Lealtad as Luz said, "Huh?"

Lealtad twisted around as she watched a ring of bookshelves light up with lanterns at each pillar around them. And as if by some interval, another ring of bookshelves above them revealed, then another, and another. She spun back and raised her brows as she noticed the top of a set of really tall stairs was a huge portrait of a wizard.

Well, she was guessing because his attire was textbook wizard attire.

Then out from the archway underneath, the same wizard from the portrait emerged, mimicking the same pose as well: his fingertips touching together with a poised-like expression across his face. Luz gasped. "Today just got good."

Leal snorted. "Guess there's your wizard."

Her sister held her cheeks as she eagerly smiled a wide teeth smile, happily dancing in place. "Magical wizard," she whispered in awe.

"Weird old man in jim-jams," King commented as he crossed his arms.

Leal rolled her eyes as she shouldered her bat once again.

The "magical wizard" descended the stairs, hands behind his back with his eyes closed. Which, honestly, was impressive in Leal's eyes because aside from the fact she couldn't even do that back home with her own stairs, he was also wearing sandals. She internally laughed at the sight as she recalled Eda's earlier warning about befriending sandal wearers. With that thought in mind, she stared at his feet and tilted her head inspectingly. Leal supposed it was more so slippers than sandals so Eda's advice might not need to be heeded at the moment.

"I was in my Oscillarium, reading the stars," he proclaimed in his old voice as he reached the bottom of the steps. His eyes opened as he brought his right hand up to his beard to stroke. "And who might you be, with eyes full of curiosity?"

Luz stammered, "U-Uh, I'm—"

He dashed forward, interjecting, "Young lady!" He leaned back with his fingertips touching, "dareth I say, I sense something unique about you."

Luz's face flushed with eyes of wonder while Leal wore a look of surprise.

He stepped backward and drew circles with his fingers, creating a table full of sweets and tea with a pair of green armchairs on the left and a large white armchair on the right. "Please, won't you join me for tea?" he asked as he seated himself on the white armchair.

Luz gasped as she grabbed her cheeks. "Okay!" But before she could go, both Leal and King—much to the older Noceda's surprise—grabbed her.

"Let's scram," he whispered. He then hopped up to Luz's shoulder and added, "Wizards are just old people with glitter in their pockets." At that, the three looked at said wizard and watched as he pulled out some glitter from his pocket and dusted it aside. Lealtad was just thankful for something random happening that wasn't horrifying or disgusting. "I don't trust him," King squinted.

"Yeah, we're supposed to be delivering,not sitting for tea," Leal chimed in.

Luz whispered back, "But the stars on his robe are sparkling. And look, there's a baby fox in his beard." Leal turned back, and sure enough, there was a damn baby fox with pearly bluebell eyes just sitting in his facial hair that giggled.

She blinked as she shook her head bewilderedly. "¿Qué mierda?" she exclaimed. Why was it just sitting there?

"Plus, I see scones on the table," Luz temptingly added.

King's eyes lit up as he shouted, "Where?" And hopped off her shoulder, darting toward the table.

She moved to follow him but Leal grabbed her shoulder once again. "Sunshine—"

"Scones, Leal," she repeated, "normal food and tea." Leal bit her lip and sighed, retracting her hand. Shockingly enough, she was right, this wizard for some reason had human food on that table. She nodded over to the table as she stepped aside, letting her sister take the lead. "We'd love to join you for tea," Luz proclaimed.

Leal politely smiled as she took the seat left of Luz's. She carefully looked the cuisine over as King munched away at everything in sight. It actually looked like human food; cupcakes, scones, biscuits, and even cream puffs. Even though Lealtad wasn't much of a big sweets person, the sight of all these pastries looked vastly appetizing. But, much to her disappointment, she was actually quite full from the ham-bug-er so she could only watch King devour the delicious desserts and fiddle with her bat's grip.

"Do you sell potions, Sir Wizard?" her sister asked, looking over at a nearby cart that looked full with the most textbook examples of potions and elixirs if Lealtad had to imagine any.

"Please, call me Adegast," he corrected. "And yes, I run a small business."

Leal furrowed a brow at that as King raised an empty plate up at him. "You should run a small business of… more scones into my mouth!" He chuckled. "Yes!"

She ignored the demon and raised her hand a bit, garnering the wizard's attention. "If you have your own business, why order a delivery?"

He chuckled. "Well I did say it was a small business," he shrugged, "I don't have exactly every item at my disposal."

"And you're actually a wizard?" He nodded. Leal decided to ask, "Sooo… what, like, makes a wizard different from a witch?"

He smirked. "Flare," he dramatically whispered as he produced more glitter from his pocket.

Leal snorted and leaned back in her seat. She had no comment for that—at least not one that wasn't a mocking remark.

Adegast then turned to Luz and raised an inquisitive brow. "I must say, I'm surprised to see you here. It was my understanding that Eda delivered the packages herself," he wondered.

Luz straightened up at that with an awkward smile. "Well, I'm kinda, sorta, her apprentice."

"No 'kinda', 'sorta' about it Sunshine, you are," Leal corrected.

Adegast lit up at that. Resting his chin on his hand, he inquired, "Oh! And how are you finding the experience so far?"

Luz's awkward smile faltered at that. She released a sigh as her head fell. "Can I be honest Mr. Adegast?" He merely smiled encouragingly, leaving the floor to Luz. Leal blinked in shock as Luz went on and said, "When I decided to stay in this magical world, I thought I was meant for something special. But Eda thinks I'm meant for chores and I'm afraid I came to the wrong place."

"Okay!" Leal stood up, raising her hand up haltingly. "That's enough oversharing with strangers." Luz scowled at her. She merely just narrowed her eyes in turn. "Luz c'mon we—"

"Well," Adegast stood up, "I have a quest—"

Luz exploded from her seat, dropping her teacup and shattering it as she stepped toward the wizard. "A quest?" she excitedly clarified.

She seethed. "Sunshine, the tea—"

Adegast simply chuckled, unbothered by his cup's demise. "You didn't let me finish. I have a quest-tion," he finished.

Her sister's shoulders slumped at that. "Oh."

"Would you like to go on a quest!" he cheerfully asked.

Leal blinked in surprise as her sister immediately answered yes. "W-Wait, Luz—"

Adegast grabbed a scroll from his beard (what was it with this place and people storing stuff in their hair?) and temptingly held it out. "I might just have the thing." He then unrolled the sheet, revealing a detailed and well drawn map of mountains, trees, but most importantly, a staff at the centre. Curiosity with the better of them both, the Nocedas leaned in as Adegast explained, "The prophecy speaks of a young human girl who will claim the Celestial Staff and free this world from an ancient evil. Perhaps thou hath cometh here for a reason."

"Perhaps I hath," Luz awestruckingly agreed as she accepted the map.

Leal baffledly shook her head. "Wait, wait, what 'ancient evil'? Since when do you guys have that lying around?"

He blinked at her with deadpan. "I did say 'ancient', no?"

Her ears reddened as she rubbed her neck to her chagrin. "Okay, fair enough."

He then looked to Luz. "Should you believe yourself worthy to attempt this quest…" he started to walk, and Luz followed right after.

"So worthy," she nodded, eyes still glued to the map.

Leal trailed beside the two, watching the exchange.

"…you need to know the road is dark and perilous."

"Love peril. Big fan of peril."

Well, if her stating how yesterday's events was 'some of the most fun she'd ever had' was anything to go off of, Leal figured her sister would enjoy such a caveat.

"…and only the Chosen One can pull the staff from its post."

Luz stopped and raised her head. "Chosen one," she echoed.

Suddenly, King appeared beside the two Nocedas, dragging the sack of potions with him. "Neat story, awesome. Anyway, your food is gone and we are, too," he announced, pointing toward the door.

Leal sighed, knowing her sister was enthralled by this quest but she also knew they did have to leave eventually. "Yup. Scruffy's got a point. We gotta go—"

"—and pack for this enchanted quest!" Luz chimed in, pumping her fists in the air. "I'm in!" she whooped.

"Wonderful!" the wizard congratulated.

Lealtad just face palmed. "I… don't know why I bother…" she muttered under her breath. She picked the sack up out of King's paws and dug into the bag, producing the potion Adegast ordered. "This has been lovely, th-thank you for the quest!" she earnestly grinned, "And for, er, shopping with Eda the Owl Lady?" Did she even have a slogan or marketing plan? After he politely accepted his delivery, the three made their way out of the castle and down the streets of Bonesborough. Two of them eager to return and another for an entirely different reason.

King had gone on several steps ahead as the two walked side by side. Leal still cautiously spared a glance at every passing stranger, and Luz was still entranced by the map in her hands. So entranced, in fact, she nearly walked into some giant caterpillar-like creature. Lealtad hurriedly pulled her sister aside, saving her from a collision but also shooting her a scolding glare before returning to her observational walk. Luz had the decency to wince at her but settled with a nervous chuckle.

"Aw c'mon Leal, you're not that mad I said yes. You're the one that said today might just be the side quest before the main quest! The fun filler episode?"

She sighed as she threw her head back. "I meant with delivering Eda's shit," she explained, "not accepting an actual quest." She glanced over at Luz's map and scowled. "How do we even know this is legit anyways? Dama Búho made up the whole story 'bout a human coming here to free Scruffy's crown—how do we know this isn't bogus?"

Luz pouted at that. "But, like, she was telling the truth about the barrier!" she pointed out. "An-And Mr. Adegast said prophecy spoke of a young. Human. Girl." She gestured to herself. "I'm all those things!"

"¡No me diga!" she sarcastically quipped, making Luz pout a bit. Leal laughed as she leaned over and ruffled her sister's hair, sparking Luz's annoyance but her own enjoyment. "Aw, c'mon, you know I love that you're all those things." She then prodded the map with the knob of her bat, "But how do ya know that's what's needed? This map doesn't exactly say anything about prophecies."

Luz puffed her cheeks and turned her head. "Whatever! I'm still excited, and I wanna go."

Leal snorted and shook her head. "I figured that would be your response." She stepped closer to her as they walked, bumping her shoulder with her elbow. "I'm just being overly cautious because someone has to be, Sunshine. But in all honesty?" Her sister perked up at her with wonder. "If there was ever a prophecy meant for young, human, girls, I know you would be the best gal for the job." She winked at her. "And I know you'd kick ass too."

Her face flushed as she smiled. "Thanks Leal."

"No problem," she shrugged. She then picked up the pace, walking on ahead. "Now c'mon," she motioned her sister to follow, "we got a quest to pack for."

"'We'?" Luz gasped as she rushed to catch up.

Leal laughed. "Of course 'we'." She turned to her. "You and me, hermana, always."

Luz brightened up even more at that.

::::

"Are you seriously taking a toy sword as your weapon of choice?"

"It's actually kinda sharp." Luz held it out for Leal to test, and as she felt the blade's edge she instinctively reeled back.

"¡Mierda! That's like a kitchen knife! And that's for ages six to eleven?" Luz merely shrugged as she put the toy down. Leal hesitantly turned her head away and went back to editing the pictures she took, utilizing her phone's app. She had downloaded them as soon as they got back to the Owl House, whilst her sister had started gathering "supplies" right away for their adventure. They were currently holed up in their room, with Luz sat cross legged on the floor, Leal sitting on the chest, and King had secured himself a nap spot atop Luz's propped up sleeping bag, circling and pawing at the surface repeatedly. She wasn't sure how much time they were gonna allow before setting off, but she figured she had time to at least edit the tree photos.

Luz merely chuckled as she pointed at Leal's bat. "You got your first bat when you were eleven."

Leal lifted her head up blankly. "Blunt objects are different from sharp ones, Sunshine. You would know from all your arts and crafts projects."

She shrugged as she sheathed the toy. "So, King, what kind of Chosen One should I be?"

King, who had finally finished kneading on Luz's sleeping bag, yawned. "Huh? What?"

She picked up her Good Witch Azura book and held it beside her head. "Should I be full of optimism and goodness, like the Good Witch Azura?" She slid it past her face and narrowed her eyes. "Or should I be like a bad girl Chosen One with black nail polish and a mysteriously withdrawn attitude?" Separating the book in half, she pretended it was a mouth as she said, "'I act like I don't care, but I secretly do.'"

"That's a tsundere, Sunshine," Leal dryly remarked.

"Oh, you guys talking about bad girls?" Eda announced her presence, now hanging the door and also… holding a severed arm? Leal just went back to editing her photo. "Wait, what's going on?" she asked as she stepped in the room, slinging the arm over her shoulder.

King stood up and placed a hand on his hip. "Eda, tell Luz how dumb wizards are."

Eda groaned in disgust. "Wizards are the worst," she waved the arm around, "Never trust a man in casual drapery."

Leal perked up at that. "And, again, what exactly makes wizards different from witches?"

"Nothing. We're all Witches." Eda gestured around the room, nearly hitting King with the severed arm. "Wizards are just twerps who give themselves fancier names to seem rich and cool, but are really just a bunch of wannabes who only know a handful of Illusion spells that make 'em look flowery. All show and biz for those posers."

"Huh, so literally flare…" she nodded interestingly. So in this world, being a witch was similar to just being human, the overall generalization of their labels was something else to think about.

"Why are you so hung up on wizards anyways?"

"Your wizard client told Luz…" King's eyes lit up as he tried to stifle his laughter, "she was a—" he fell over as he giggled, "was a Chosen One!" He laughed.

"Wait, wait, Luz?" Eda shook her head in disbelief, snorting and joining King in his fit of laughter and falling to the floor.

Leal dropped her phone to her lap and looked to her sister, watching her clutch her book in embarrassment as her face flushed. She hid herself behind her book and Leal scowled at the two laughing morons.

"Hey, knock it off," she spat out. King ignored her as he informed Eda about the map, sparking even more laughter. Lealtad began considering the pros and cons of slugging the little demon twerp with her bat right then and there.

Eda managed to calm herself down and stood up. "Let me see this map." She walked over and held her hand out as Luz hesitantly handed it over, looking off to the side.

Leal crossed her arms and narrowed her brows at the witch as she inspected the parchment.

"You didn't think this was real, did you?"

Luz stood up in alarm as both she and Leal said, "What?"

"This map is bunk," Eda replied, slapping said map. "There's no lake with a Celestial Staff on the Boiling Isles. I would have stolen it ages ago." At Luz's dejected face, Eda leaned down and smiled, "Ah, don't worry. Couple more months here and you won't look like such a mark." She ruffled up Luz's hair, only to get batted away from the young girl.

Leal blinked at that, noticing her sister's irritation. "Can I have some time alone?" Eda shrugged, turned around, and walked out, bringing the arm with her as King followed in tow.

Leal sighed as she rubbed the back of her head. "Sunshine I'm so sor—"

She looked at Leal. "Alone, alone?"

Leal gulped. "Sure thing Luz," she nodded. She grabbed her bat and she made her way over to the door.

Just as she was about to open it, Luz muttered, "Guess you were right after all…"

The older Noceda clenched her fist as she opened the door, not sure what to say in response. She closed it behind her and sent a glare down at the pair walking down the hall. "Hey," she whisper-shouted, startling the two. She rushed over to them, clenching her fists harder.

Eda raised a brow then held up her hands placatingly, along with the severed arm. "Whoa, whoa, ease up there, sister." She gestured at her bat with the arm. "No need to come swinging."

"You keep making fun of my sister like that and you'll have a lot more to worry about than being batting practice," she spat out, narrowing her eyes.

Eda's face lit up in alarm as she took a step back, clearly shocked. "Ooookay then. Wanna backtrack there? Explain what's up?" King glanced between the two, enthralled by their exchange.

Leal sighed, gritting her teeth in frustration. "My sister's had to endure a lot of pendejos who think she's not meant for anything!" Her thoughts drew to those stupid sticky notes, and all that teasing and gossip back home which made Lealtad boil even more. "And I'll be damned if I let some… some, hermit witch make fun of her for being special! So if you're gonna 'teach' her, maybe learn how to appreciate your students first, ¡Dama Búho!"

Eda held her hands out again. "Yikes kiddo! I know I said you're a no nonsense sort but I didn't think you'd be this hard pressed to stand up for her."

She scowled up at the witch, twirling her bat around in her left hand. "She's my sister. And if you say one more quippy thing I'm gonna knock your head off and feed it to Scruffy down there."

King's eyes widened at that as he stepped behind Eda's leg, holding onto it for protection. "Uhh, don't say anything stupid," he whispered to her.

Eda sighed as she rolled her eyes. "Alright, alright," she conceded, shrugging unsuredly. "I'll, be sure to… er, talk to her?"

That wasn't exactly the response she wanted, but Lealtad was too fed up to even care. She merely scoffed and shook her head, turning away from the two and flipping them off as she walked back to their room. The two walked off, heading down the stairs and Leal hung outside the door. She knew her sister wanted space, and like back home, she always allowed her to have the agency to retreat somewhere in the house. But she wanted to stand guard for both her ease of conscience and Luz's privacy because they still didn't know this place that well.

She went back to editing the photo of the three treetops, giving herself a distraction. There wasn't much to play around with, aside from lighting, because the shot looked great. It looked exactly like one of those nature photography shots people posted online all the time. The amazing part of it all was how these weren't just any trees. They were Boiling Isles trees. Satisfied with the look, Leal uploaded the photo to her gallery and swiped over to her texts. She sent it to her and her mother's DMs.

Fave Bebé [1:01 PM]: OneWithNatureIMAGE.

Fave Bebé [1:01 PM]: Nice shot, no?

She tapped her thumb against the side of her phone as she waited for her mom's response. If it wasn't a hectic day, around this time she'd have a few minutes to chat on her phone. Leal desperately hoped that was the case here. A ding soon occurred and she looked down.

Mami [1:02 PM]: Beautiful as always, mija.

Mami [1:02 PM]: How's camp work?

Leal bit her lip and looked down the hall. She then replied,

Fave Bebé [1:02 PM]: It's okay. Highlight so far has just been hanging 'round Luz.

Fave Bebé [1:02 PM]: My boss is a bit of a jerk.

Was she overreacting a bit? Maybe. Did she need to vent a little? Yup.

Mami [1:03 PM]: Oh no!

Mami [1:03 PM]: You want me to file a complaint to the camp?

She chuckled at that.

Fave Bebé [1:03 PM]: No Mamá. It's just the first day.

Fave Bebé [1:03 PM]: I can handle my own boss. I'm your daughter after all.

Fave Bebé [1:03 PM]: ᕦ( ò_ó)ᕤ

Fave Bebé [1:03 PM]: Speaking of bosses, let's both get back to work before either of ours yell at us?

Mami [1:04 PM]: Well said Lealtad! Te quiero, ¡Qué te vaya bien!

Fave Bebé [1:04 PM]: Te quiero, Mamá, qué te vaya bien.

With that, she slid her phone into her jean's pocket and leaned her head against the door, sighing exhaustedly. She knocked her bat against the door. "Sunshine? You ready to talk?" No response. "I can rush through the portal and get us some chimichurri sandwiches…" She heard footsteps approaching from the corner and found Eda returning.

She wore a look of guilt as she pointed to the door. "She, um, good to talk?"

Leal silently stared.

"Listen, I just wanna ask about that wizard client."

"Adegast?"

"Yeah," she nodded. "I don't exactly trust this scam he threw your sister's way. It smells all kinds of wrong."

"Maybe that's 'cause of the severed arm you were carrying around—scent of rotting flesh tends to linger," she snidely smirked.

Eda blankly stared. "Oh so you get quips?"

Leal rolled her eyes. "Hey, I don't know what else to tell ya 'bout the wizard dude. And there's not much else Luz or I can add that your pet hasn't already informed you of."

She crossed her arms. "Then can I at least apologize to her?"

She mirrored the witch, letting her bat drop down to her leg and rest against her knee. "Not until she says she's ready to talk."

It was Eda's turn to roll her eyes. "Yeeesh Bean Head, you're such a guard dog."

She balked at that. "'Bean Head'?"

Eda merely lifted her finger and drew a circle, causing the door to swing open. Lealtad fell through, landing on her back hard. "Argh, you bitch," she cursed as she rubbed her aching head. But as she lifted it up, she noticed the room was empty. "What the Hell?" She immediately turned herself over and stood up, realizing the window was open.

"Ah, nuts." Eda ran to the window. "Hooty, where'd she go?" Leal walked up behind just in time to see Hooty stretch himself over to Eda.

"Hoot, hoot. If you want the answer that you seek, solve my riddle within a week—" Eda slammed her fist against the wall, creating a massive crack and causing some rubble to fall down from the roof. "Ouch!" Hooty whined. "Okay, okay. She went into the forest towards Bonesborough. Sheesh!" He retracted himself back toward the door.

Eda groaned in annoyance as she turned around, walking over to the door whilst waving her hand along. "C'mon, let's go find your sister."

It was now Lealtad's turn to groan.

::::

King was leading them back toward the castle, which Lealtad honestly could've done without him. She memorized a fair amount of the town's streets to at least know how to find their way back to Adegast's place. But Eda insisted King come along and now they had a hound dog. For the most part, he seemed like head doing his entrusted job at the very least. He was sniffing their way back down the alley, claiming to lead them back to the wizard.

"And you're sure he's not a pet?" she remarked.

"Nah, he's a roommate alright," Eda assured. "But… a toddler would be more accurate."

Leal scoffed. "That's probably the most accurate you've been so far."

They arrived at the archway leading into the castle grounds. But when Eda pulled the cloth aside, Leal's jaw dropped at the sight. The entire castle was in ruins. Not like, it-just-got-attacked ruins. Rather, as if it was always decrepit and old and rundown. As thought several decades had transpired between the last time they'd been there. She nervously gripped at her bat as the three walked forward.

"I don't like this," Eda stated as they neared the front doors. Lealtad noticed there was no doorbell around, leaving the only option to just pull open the door. Fortunately, it slid open with ease, creaking ever so quietly as the light shone through. Once Eda stepped inside, she stepped onto a scattered pile of paper. She bent down and picked them up and as Leal looked over her shoulder, she felt a pit drop in her stomach once she recognized the sheet.

They were all the scrolls Adegast had given to Luz. Except they had a shining blue text with the words, The Chosen One exposed from the sunlight seeping through the doorway. Eda looked to Lealtad then back into the room they were in, scanning it cautiously. "I really don't like this."

"You and me both," Leal whispered uneasily.

Eda clapped her hands together and pulled them apart, producing her staff from her palms. She spun it around and stomped it, activating Owlbert and causing it to levitate. "Everybody on. King, try to sniff her out."

"On it!" King hopped on the front whilst Lealtad took the rear. Eda steered them out of the castle and out through the streets of Bonesborough. "Oh yeah," King nodded, "she's definitely back in the forest." Eda took a sharp turn to the sky, bolting them upright through the air then turned them back down, darting straight toward the forest. The little demon continued to sniff as he darted his huge head around. "Oh wow, I'm also getting another scent. Ugh."

Eda brought the staff to a halt as soon as a town came into view. Or rather, what was left of a town. She pulled the staff out from under them and said, "Oh no." She took a scan of the wreckage. "Are you sure she came here?"

King crawled forward and looked up at Eda after sniffing, "Can't mistake her smell. Like lemons and young, naïve confidence."

Eda seemed to consider the note as she walked forward toward the vine covered fountain in the centre. Leal would've chided King for that insult but she was too busy shouting for her sister. "Sunshine? Luz? You here?"

Eda started to shake an ivory cat puppet out from the fountain, ordering it to wake up. "What have you done with Luz?" She flicked its head then started shaking it. "What's your endgame?"

And of course, the freaking doll started to creak its head at Eda, eerily answering, "To find your pupil and still your wrath, look ahead and follow the path." It then cackled childishly as it just disintegrated in Eda's palms.

"Ah! The cat man melted!"

"Yeah no shit!"

Eda stood up and dusted her hands off, sighing. "It's a trap. They want me to follow Luz."

"So what do we do?"

"Go after her?" Lealtad stated as if it was obvious. "I swear if this is the result of some beef between you and an ex-boyfriend and my sister got wrapped in on it—"

"Relax Bean Head," Eda firmly said. "We're going after your sister."

"We are?" King blinked.

"Yes, because someone's gotta save her skin." She activated her staff once again, sparing a glance at another puppet with a scowl. "And with this M.O., she's gonna need all the skinsaving she can get." Lealtad gulped at that as she hopped aboard. Instantly, Owlbert took off, flying straight through the forest at rapid speeds. King held on for dear life as Eda maneuvered them through trees and branches like a Quidditch pro. "I know this guy. He's no wizard," Eda explained, "He's what you'd call a puppeteer, a demon who specializes in scamming and manipulating people. He's trying to use Luz to get to me.

"Oh so this is a result of your own personal beef?" Lealtad snipped.

"Yeah, and we're flying directly into his trap. Hurray," King sarcastically added.

She turned back at the two with a scowl. "Well, if you can think of a better plan, I'd love to hear it. Until then, save the backseat commentary." She turned back. "And hey, faster, you!" she shouted as she slapped her staff, somehow increasing its speed. They were zooming at this rate. Soon enough, they came upon a small clearing filled with fog and mist and at its centre: a large multi-tentacled creature with weird egg-like sacs on its chin was nearing Luz, who was chained practically all over. Leal gasped in shock at the sight. This thing looked atrocious. "Adegast!" Eda shouted, bringing them down right at the other end of the walkway.

The saggy cheeked puppeteer turned around. "Eda, I have you now!" he proclaimed, pointing at her with his hand. Okay, so he had actual arms too. Sure, why not.

Suddenly, three tentacles shot out from the ground and before Lealtad could process anything else, the three of them were wrapped in its clutches. Her bat was still in her hand, but now uncomfortably pressed up against her chest. Second day in and there were more of these damn tentacle arms—the Boiling Isles was pissing her off.

"That's right. You have me. Now release Luz," Eda demanded.

Leal was taken aback by that. That was something she was about to say. King complained about his unnecessary need to be a part of this scenario but she ignored him, in favour of shouting, "Luz, run! I'll be fine!"

Her sister stared up at her in fear and Lealtad cursed herself for not selling this as confidently as she wished.

"Oh, she can leave," Adegast proclaimed, "If she wants to. But I sense she wants a real fantasy." One of his tentacles flew past Luz, gushing at her with a mist that freed her from her chains but she still remained kneeling. Now surrounded by a faint mist and a gang of puppets began whispering into her ear.

"¡Luz, corre!"

Her sister remained still. Adegast cackled. "Your sister is too entranced within her own fantasy."

Leal watched in horror as her sister smiled at the ground, numbly announcing, "It is beautiful here."

"Luz!" Eda shouted, the tentacles started to tighten around them.

"And you guys think I'm special."

"Hermana, wake up!" Leal shouted at the top of her lungs, which were now being squeezed by a giant tentacle.

"But it's not real!" Luz declared, emerging from the smoke and rushing toward her sword.

"Nice hermana, now get out of here!"

Ignoring Leal entirely, she instead picked her toy sword up off the ground and held it up at Adegast. "I am a Witch's Apprentice. And I'm gonna earn my magic staff the hard way. I believed you, Magic Man. Now feel my wrath!" She then charged at the creature, stabbing the wizard puppet in one fell swoop and creating a puff of smoke in its wake.

Adegast winced in pain, loosening his grip ever so slightly, but just enough for the three of them to break free, landing near Luz. "Holy shit Luz, that thing is sharp," Leal wheezed, catching her breath for a moment.

"Told ya," she smirked. "Now let's start swinging!" She rushed at a fairy puppet and swiped at it, sending it high into the air before combusting into smoke.

Leal grinned as she twirled her bat in her left hand. "Oh… Hell yeah." As Eda began roasting puppets and tentacles with fire magic and Luz fought against a shirtless puppet—she wasn't gonna ask—Leal turned to her own set of opponents, three cat puppets in comically small outfits. She swung at the nearest one, destroying it instantly, then spun on her heel, whirling back on the other two and taking them out in one swipe.

She turned around to check on her sister, who had just vanquished Nevareth? Whoever that was, Luz seemed triumphant. Leal's eyes then flew to Eda, who seemed fine. All that was missing was—

"Back off," Adegast barked. "Or the dog gets it!" he threatened, bringing King up near his face as he tightened his tentacles around his mouth, silencing his argument against the dog claim.

"King, I'm sorry," Luz said as she dropped her sword. Eda and Leal followed after her, much to Lealtad's reluctance, dropping their weapons as well. "I should have listened to you and never trusted that wizard. You were right. He isn't mystical or magical." She narrowed her eyes. "He's just a big, slimy jerk!" She then kicked the sword off the ground and right into Adegast's forehead!

Leal's jaw dropped at the move. It seemed as though the damage was enough to release King into Luz's arms and destroy his final puppet, which apparently was the root of his power as he started to shrink and shrivel up into a small octopus, smaller than King's lower half.

They all cautiously stepped forward, watching Adegast squeak in agony as Eda plucked him off the ground. "Well, that's the last time I take an outside referral." And because things had to get weirder, Eda proceeded to swallow the small octopus whole, like a Demon Weapon from Soul Eater, licking her lips in satisfaction. "Oh, did you want some of that?"

Lealtad just turned around and grabbed her sister's shoulders, bringing in a tight embrace. "Hermana, you worried me so much," she softly spoke.

"Mm morry meahatad," she muffled into her shoulder.

"Mmmmmmm!"

Leal pulled away, forgetting that King was still in Luz's arms and was suffocating in their embrace. The small demon proceeded to hop out of her arms and into Eda's, letting the Noceda's share their moment. She quickly assessed her sister, looking her head over along with her arms and her hands as she asked, "Ar-Are you okay? No cuts? No bruises? No… anything? No pain?"

"I'm fine Leal, I'm fine," she sadly said. She gently pushed her hands away. "I'm sorry I worried you."

She sighed. "I'm sorry this wasn't the quest you wanted it to be," she placed her on her shoulder.

"Thinking of calling it quits, huh?" Eda chimed in, smirking at the two.

Leal narrowed her eyes at her before turning back to her sister.

"This place is nothing like I imagined," Luz shook her head.

Leal frowned at that. "Aw, Sunshine I'm so sor—"

"Then please," Eda stepped forward, beaming at her, "allow me to show you a place that's also beyond your imagination. C'mon!" She brought her hand up to her lips and whistled, calling Owlbert over. The staff hovered nearby, allowing Eda to place King near the middle of the shaft. She hopped on the front, then nodded behind her. The two exchanged a look before boarding Eda's staff with Luz in the middle with King, and Lealtad bringing up the rear. She magicked up a pair of blindfolds and held them out to the two. As they expressed reluctance, Eda rolled her eyes. "It's a surprise. You humans have that in your world don't you?"

Luz accepted the blindfold, wrapping it around before grabbing onto the staff for support.

Lealtad just shook her head. "If I die falling, I'd rather see the impact than plummet blind," she plainly stated.

Eda just blinked at her. "Wow… dark, kid. But I respect that," she smiled. She turned back and took off, setting straight for the sky.

While Luz held onto the staff firmly, Lealtad wrapped her arms around Luz's waist whilst her hands gripped onto the staff. Despite not being blindfolded, the speed of flying through the sky was a bit much for Lealtad's eyes so she instinctively squinted as they gained altitude. But as they ascended, she noted how the atmosphere around them was glimmering to that of dusk, with orange sunlight piercing through the clouds and creating a palette of warmth that honestly took her breath away. "Hermosa," she whispered in awe. Because the colours alone were barely even the surface of the sight.

They parked in the air, sideling up beside some clouds. Eda then turned and announced, "Okay, you can look."

Luz pulled off her blindfold and quietly uttered, "Whoa."

Right before them, a gigantic skeleton of some being of some sort was lying there. With its knee propped up, towering up to the clouds, its arms splayed out into the seas, and its head's horns protruding and shielding the sunlight's rays just enough to outline this beauty of a shot. Her camera was on before she could even think. Thankfully it was undamaged from Adegast's squeezing, clearly intact enough to take some quality pictures. One shot of the giant skeleton, another of just the beautiful sky dimming above them.

"The Bones of the Isles," Eda explained, "Up close the Isles can be slimy."

"And very stinky," King chimed in.

"And gross," Eda shuddered. Her eyes then glanced upward, dragging Luz's, and by proximity, Leal's, attention with it. "But if you look at it from a different perspective…" the sky above was now fading into an exposure of stars. Stars that would've made Leal question if this was even their star system or if they were looking at something else entirely had it not been so goddamn stunning. Her viewfinder was up against her eye by instinct and just as she clicked—a shooting star passed by for a fleeting moment. Her jaw dropped at the fortunate timing as she looked at the picture, it was… perfect.

"It's beautiful," her sister whispered.

"You said it, Sunshine," she agreed, staring at her photo in pride.

Luz then asked, "Eda, how did you know that wizard was lying?" At that, Leal propped her head up in interest, looking at Eda's reaction.

She wore a look of regret, one of momentary sorrow as she looked away. "Look, kid, everyone wants to believe they're 'chosen'," she said with finger quotes. She looked at Luz. "But if we all waited around for a prophecy to make us special," she chuckled, "we'd die waiting. And that's why you need to choose yourself."

Lealtad blinked in wonder at Eda's words. Maybe she did have some gusto toward being a mentor. Those were some of the most profound words she had ever heard in a long time.

"Does that mean you'll give me a magic staff of my own?" Leal snorted at her sister's impatience, she was still Luz after all.

"Not yet," Eda softly replied, "but someday."

With that, Luz's head rested against Lealtad's shoulder as she hugged her sister close. King's head fell to Luz's lap while Eda swung her legs playfully. Something about this moment, aside from the photos she just captured, told Lealtad that this was a worthwhile memory. She shifted her body to the right and turned her camera around, pointing the lens at the four of them. "Hey," she called out, gaining everyone's attention. "Say 'Bones!'"

Luz and Eda laughed, whilst King groaned. But nonetheless, after a three second countdown they all smiled and said,

"Bones!"

Although taking a selfie with a camera was hard, when she looked at the photo—four smiling faces in light of a setting sun, perched amongst the clouds and huddled together… Leal considered it to be a good memory.

::::

The next morning Lealtad had managed to get up a few minutes before her alarm, and decidedly made use of her early rise. She quickly freshened up and tiptoed around their room, changing into her usual attire, with her messenger bag in tow as well, before shooting their mother a text. She managed to edit another photo from last night, or rather, crop it a tad so it didn't look too Boiling Isles-y. The photo of the evening sky's clouds illuminated by a backdrop of a fading sunlight—it was perfect. She sent it to her as she walked down the stairs to the living room.

Fave Bebé [7:58 AM]: Took this yesterday:

Fave Bebé [7:58 AM]: SunsetIMAGE.

Fave Bebé [7:58 AM]: Your Sunshine is doing just fine. ( ^‿^)

Satisfied, she turned into the empty living room and scanned the area. She actually had a mission for being here, as she recalled there were some notepads or notebooks scattered about last time she saw. Upon entering the room now, her eyes locked on it right away, actually. A small notepad just hanging off the edge of the living room table. She grabbed it, pulled out a pen from her messenger bag and started to write down her notes until she heard footsteps.

Startled, she turned and found Eda, in the doorway, still wearing her sleepwear. "Oh, uh, mornin' Bean Head."

Leal awkwardly stared. She supposed the witch maybe did get up early sometimes. "Morning." Eda then turned and was about to continue walking down the hall, but Leal shouted, "Wait!" She turned back. Lealtad took a breath. This needed to be said, because it was important to her. "Um… thanks for saving my sister."

Eda smiled, brows still confusedly raised. "No problem kiddo."

"And, sorry 'bout exploding on you yesterday."

She awkwardly chuckled. "Sorry I laughed at your sister."

She shrugged, flipping the notepad shut as she walked over and passed Eda, making her way up the stairs. "Just make sure you tell her that," she advised. Eda saved her sister and gave some good advice; so she wasn't exactly on Lealtad's shitlist for now. But she knew Eda had a ways to go before earning her complete trust, especially in terms of looking after Luz. Upon returning to their room she luckily caught Luz as she was waking up, stretching from her bed exhaustedly. Without warning, she tossed the notepad on her sister's lap.

"What's this?" Luz tiredly asked, still rubbing the sleep from her eyes. She looked at the name of the pad. "'Munchies List'?" she read aloud.

Lealtad beamed down at her. "Good news, ¡hermana! Ham-bug-ers? They seem alright! Well, I didn't keel over and die so, that's all we have to go off of but still! We're good!" She shook her hands jazzingly as she smiled. Luz just blinked at her. "We gotta take precautions with what we put in our bodies here, okay? So play it by ear and lemme know if you do eat something so we can know what our diet here is. Let's play it safe as we have fun, okay?"

Luz grinned as she nodded. "Okay."

"Good," Leal leaned down and grabbed her bat, shouldering it like usual as she smiled, "Now wanna go get some ham-bug-ers?"

"Duh!"

As Luz bolted to get ready, Lealtad received a reply on her phone,

Mami [8:05 AM]: She looks bright and happy. XD

She chuckled as she watched her sister aimlessly throw on her hoodie and shorts in a rapid succession. "She certainly is, Mamá… she certainly is…"

---

A/N:A/N: Did Luz not eat for a whole day? No, she did—Eda made them dinner. But did she NEARLY go the whole day without eating? Well hey, when ya spiral into a bit of a gloomy world view shift you tend to lose your appetite. Did I also pat myself on the backf ro the dumbest bug/food pun? Yes. ( •‿-) And yeah, Leal's the one who helps establish their diet in this weird realm! I always wondered how they discovered what was edible for Luz in the Boiling Isles and I decided to give some explanation to that! Of course Lealtad's method of, "I eat first and if I don't die we're good" isn't exactly IDEAL, but she's also not bright either. She has good instincts, sure, but it's not hindsight with her.

As most had predicted/saw, Lealtad's dynamic with the rest of the Owl House residents is standoffish. She's not exactly as naive as Luz, but she definitely has gratitude for Eda saving Luz's life. I also had a bit of fun writing Leal's perspective in experiencing Bonesborough for the first time. Luz had a more fantastical awe walking in, but Leal's red flags were practically screaming at her the second they stepped into town. It's just fun to mesh the Noceda sisters' dynamics together. But speaking of narrative structure...

Each "chapter" going forward will have the "TITLE OPENING" line break at the start as a way to emulate the show structure. I still call these "episodes" and treat them as such because again, the AU is just TOH but with Leal! Also: what'd y'all think of Leal's photography? I like to believe she's a very simple nature/architecture photographer, but she has good eye for what would normally be a great shot. She's an amateur no doubt, but she excels in fields like street, lifestyle, and portrait photography. So in certain lights, some aspects of the Boiling Isles might just be a bit nicer than Lealtad realizes.

Her sending semi-edited photos to Camila is definitely a recurring theme I was excited to play with. It was another neat way to keep the texts alive between the two. Man, I am excited for your guys' thoughts on the next episode!

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Review Responses:

MarauderPrime12: Thanks! Glad you think so!

Demon dark mezzo sangue: I'm happy to hear you're liking the dynamic so far! The details of the whole principal conversation was something I knew FOR SURE I'd iron out the second I began writing that chapter. I love adding a bit more nuance and depth to passing scenes and Leal is a great addition for that! And I'm glad you see that too and also enjoy how she fits with the Noceda family! Thanks for the review!

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As always, feel free to hit me up on tumblr if ya got asks! And leave a comment if you liked this chapter!

Next chapter update: March 2nd, 2022

Until next time,

- Bleh