Lucila waved to Amity as the girl flew off on her staff towards home. She looked up ahead and then down at the town square. She sighed to herself; the sisters would be there at least twice a week to sell human things to them. But without Eda, profits were getting low. She had offered to help them a few times, but Lucila always insisted that they'd be fine...
Plus, her mother would know if she suddenly gave away snails to her secret friends.
The green-haired girl clutched her necklace, as it was her mother's way of communicating with her. For some reason, Odalia insisted that only Amity wear it. Maybe because her siblings usually got off scot-free while she was left to pick up their pieces. At least in recent time, they had eased up on her—though knowing her crush on Luz didn't stop them from teasing her.
The Blights were one of the most richest families on the Boiling Isles, the highest being the royal family of course. And because her parents (mostly Odalia Blight) wanted to associate themselves with the more well-known families, Amity was not supposed to be friends with the Nocedas. So at first she avoided them. But over time, both of the sisters grew on her, especially Luz. And she was close to Camila as well before she disappeared, as the woman was the mother figure that Amity needed in her life. And as she became closer with the Nocedas, the more and more pushy Odalia got about her whereabouts during the day. It was honestly getting harder by the day to ease her mother's suspicions. Alador just mostly minded his own business by being in his workshop for Blight Industries. And while he knew about Odalia's grilling, she always told him to stay out of it.
Amity sighed as she passed the market and was now in the forest on her way home. If anything, she'd rather be anywhere else than home. But for the sake of her friends, she'd keep up being obedient to her mother, because what she needed they were trying to keep her away from.
"I can't believe Luz is going to Hexside now," Amity gushed to herself with a dreamy smile. "She'll be in my classes, we'll see each other every day-" She froze as it hit her. She'd be seeing her crush every day. That was just as many opportunities to embarrass herself...
Eh, it could be worth it in her opinion.
"I hope Luci will be okay till Luz gets back. I wish there was more I could do for them," She murmured with a small sigh. Being the youngest daughter of the Blights meant that in public, she couldn't be seen with them or defend them whenever they were being picked on by the town. And it wasn't like she wanted to stand by and do nothing, but she had to keep up appearances so as to not be grounded by her mother for being friends with the human witches. Though Willow and Gus had no trouble being looked down upon by the town for being openly friendly with them...
She slowly landed in front of her home, her eyes saddened. She knew that they had to have gone somewhere. People didn't just disappear out of nowhere, even if they had magic capable of doing so. Lucila might not believe it herself, but the monster of the Boiling Isles, the Chosen One, the war...they had to be connected to the disappearances in some way. Now she just had to make the connection...but how was she gonna be able to do that without any other clues or evidence?
"Amity Blight!"
She was so lost in thought that she didn't even realize she entered the house. The girl looked up wide-eyed at Odalia Blight, probably the biggest person against the Nocedas. Not even both of them had equal animosity, it was mostly Lucila she had tension with. The girl had combated against Odalia multiple points when she so much as passed by the Blight mansion. And Luz didn't have a high opinion for the woman either, since she attempted to keep Luz out of Hexside for even looking at Amity one time, with little success.
"Oh, where have you been? I wanted you to practice your spells for the new school year," Odalia placed a hand on her hip, narrowing her eyes. "Don't tell me you ran into those delinquent, untalented Nocedas again."
"They're not delinquents, Mom," Amity rolled her eyes while walking past her. "And no, I didn't see them. I was at the bookstore."
"That's where Lucila goes to every morning! So if you even take a breath near her, I won't hesitate to put them out of their misery," Odalia said while gripping her necklace and it glowed. Amity touched her own glowing necklace.
"Yeah, Mom, I get it, they're not part of the town. I don't bother them, and they don't bother me," She deadpanned as she walked upstairs to her room. "Hey, Dad," She greeted quickly as she saw his back nearby as he was facing his desk. He gave a small wave and went back to work
"And don't forget to study!"
Amity just looked annoyed by her mother's insistence and headed for her room, wanting to not be bothered right now. "Not like I don't do that every day and night..."
"Hey, Mittens," Edric greeted her as he and Emira were waiting for her. She ignored them until they blocked the door.
"What do you guys want?" She sighed a little.
"He just wants to know if you were with Luci today," Emira smirked while jerking a thumb to Edric, who flinched and blushed. "Since he thinks she's so cute and all-"
"Heh heh, ignore our dear sister," Edric placed a hand on her mouth. "She doesn't know what she's talking about! ...But seriously, were you with her today?" He whispered while looking around nervously. Emira and Edric had long known about Amity's friendship with the Nocedas, but they didn't talk to the sisters as much as Amity. They also attended Hexside, so they would be seeing Luz more often. It wasn't like they didn't want to be friends with the Nocedas, but also they were more active on social sites that Odalia regularly monitored. So if they were seen with the sisters, and a photo got taken of them, their mother would never let Amity see them again. Therefore, they had to keep their distance moreso than their sister.
"If you must know, yes," Amity rolled her eyes to the back of her head.
"And was Luz~?" Emira teased, causing the girl to blush. Both of them poked at her red cheeks.
"She was, wasn't she?" Edric asked while ruffling his sister's hair.
"Ugh, you're so annoying!" Amity shouted as she pushed past them, fixing up her hair. She slammed the door shut behind her and pinched her nose. "Never a moment of peace in the house..." She murmured as she let her face hit her pillow while flopping onto the bed. She brought her head back up and looked at her bookshelf. She sat up and plucked one of them off the shelf. Curiosity got the better of her about this 'monster' of the Boiling Isles. She flipped through pages, wondering if he even existed or it was in a literal sense.
Either way, she hoped that her friends didn't run into him any time soon...
Luz flew through the skies, passing the forest while on Melody. She smiles as she flew out of the town, and later passed by Latissa. However, when she got into Palm Stings, she noted that it was dark and that she should've already arrived at that point.
"We should've gotten there by now," She murmured as beasts stared roaring from the area. The Night Market started to open, the people staring at her. She laughed a bit awkwardly, as even outside Bonesborough apparently, the Nocedas weren't safe from the looks and scorn... "Maybe I missed a turn?" She looked at the GPS from her phone. "Maybe if I go this way..."
Her phone started to glitch out, however, and she frowned. It had been doing that all day because in the Demon Realm, she didn't have the bars needed for a human phone. She glanced up at the signs, which were all scratched out. Up ahead were two paths, one going into a dark and creepy forest, while the other was a bit more lit. Melody soared over to the safe path.
"What? Melody, come on, this way seems to be quicker," Luz moved over to the left and then stopped. Melody's eyes continued glowing while flapping her wings. The girl couldn't tell, but the palisman was debating the two paths. The creepy forest was definitely something the blue hummingbird wanted to avoid...
Melody nudged her body over to the safer path, but Luz huffed, moving to the left once again. "Come on, Melody. I'm sure it won't be long. Watch, we'll be in Hexside at no time," Luz gripped the staff hard and swooped over to the left. Melody reluctantly flew over, but landed on the ground. She came out of staff form and shook in fear, looking around. Luz picked her up soothingly in her hands, starting to walk.
"This is nothing," Luz laughed off anxiously. "I've seen forests like this almost every day back home..." At least in Bonesborough it felt safer than this...this forest just seemed more eerie. Which was normal for the Boiling Isles, but not THIS eerie.
"It's okay, Melody. We're just...taking a scenic route, that's all," Luz stated nervously to the shaking palisman. Some leaves flew past, and a demon bird flew past her head, freaking them out. The girl snapped out of it, trying to look brave for the palisman. Fog started rolling in as well and a Slitherbeast in the shadows ran past. Melody looked around in a panic, flying behind Luz and grabbing a strand of hair. She tried pulling Luz backwards and then they heard a howl.
"This...this can't be the path to Hexside. Where are we?" Luz said slowly while backing away. Something about this wasn't right. "Maybe we should ask for directions." Usually she'd keep going, but the dark atmosphere was too much for her—which was saying a lot. Another howl was heard and Melody darted into Luz's hair in fear. Luz pulled her out and Melody turned into the staff, but then she turned back into a palisman. "Melody, Melody, it's okay, just calm down," Luz said in a gentle voice as the hummingbird palisman landed on the ground. She chirped in fear while hopping backwards into a tree. "Come on, you're safe."
Melody hit the tree, and a bunch of bats came flying out. Luz yelped as she jumped for the ground, landing as the bats flew over her. She covered her head with her arms.
"We gotta get out of here!" She scooped up Melody and ran off straight. She had no idea where they were headed, but hopefully it was anywhere but here. She looked up ahead, gasping as she slid to a stop...in front of a cliff. And the cliff looked very dangerous as it had spikes coming out of it. "Not there, not there, not there!" She scrambled onto her feet and screamed while running off. Another howl occurred and Melody flew off in terror.
"No, Melody!" Luz held out a hand and ran after the palisman...but Melody disappeared into the fog. The human witch whined and sagged her arms. "There goes my ride home..." Thunder struck and she looked up to see the clouds darkening. "Aw, not boiling rain! I don't need to be boiled alive before getting to magic school!"
She heard something and glanced up, seeing some Stonesleepers coming out of hiding. She gasped sharply and took off, the creatures chasing after her. She glanced back and fired a light spell, but it was too small to fend them off with. It literally just hit them and had no effect. She slipped, and continued on, sliding down a small hill. She then fell flat on her face, looking up...to see gates to a castle. "A castle? Way out here?" She murmured and looked back to see the Stonesleepers getting closer. She ran up to the gates, banging on them.
"Heeeeeeelp! Someone open these gates, please! Heeee-" The gates opened and she stumbled onto the ground. She used her foot to slam the gate into the creatures' faces. One of them even grabbed her leg and she screamed again, kicking one square in the face to get them to let go. Once they did, she ran far enough for them to not touch her. Luz blew a raspberry since they couldn't get past the gate. But by the way they were hesitating, it seemed as if they didn't want to trespass...
Well, she was trespassing too. But it was either that or get killed. "I'm sure the owner will understand," She smiled a little before finally getting a good look at the castle. It was gray and didn't look inviting, with a metal bridge that was over a pile of sharp rocks. It almost looked like a medieval castle now that she thought about it. She had heard about the castle from Lilith a few times, but she didn't think it'd be this...dire. Thunder struck again and it started to rain.
She gasped as she put a shield over herself, running across the bridge as the raindrops hit the shield. Steam came from it, and the spell wouldn't last long. Luz stopped in front of the door, knocking. "Hello? Anyone home?"
The door slowly opened and she peeked inside. "Wow..." She murmured at the golden-colored hallways, which all went in a different direction. So she didn't exactly know where to go... Luz slowly closed the door behind her, dropping the spell. She glanced at the many paintings around her, tapestries, and even two statutes further down the hall. Luz raised a brow and stepped further inside, looking at the statues. Both of them were of a man with a forelock in his hair...
"Why does this seem so familiar?" She murmured in thought and felt it was a bit weird that she hadn't came across any staff yet. "Hello?" She called out while rubbing her arms. "Hello!" Her voice echoed a little.
"Is that who I think it is?" A familiar voice asked, but she couldn't determine where it was coming from. She glanced around the hallways as she didn't see anyone.
"Shush! Maybe she'll go away," Another male voice scolded him, and Luz stepped further down. Nearby was a small candelabra and a clock made out of abomination goo.
"Alright, I know I heard voices! ...And I know that one of them is familiar with Eda," The girl warned, the two items flinching. Both the candelabra and the clock had eyes and mouths.
"Not a word, Raine. Not one word," The clock warned Raine. Luz narrowed her eyes suspiciously and then her eyes saddened.
"Maybe I'm just imaging things...excuse me! I didn't mean to come unexpectedly, but I lost my palisman, and I need to stay here for the night. The boiling rain won't be easy to get through, anyway," She gave a small awkward chuckle.
"Oh, Darius, come on," Raine rolled their eyes at the abomination clock. "That's one of Eda's kids! Well, they're not really hers-"
"Shush!" He covered Raine's mouth with his slimy hand. Raine smirked and licked it. "Oh, you did not just do that!" Darius moved away his hand, groaning in disgust. As Raine knew, Darius hated getting dirty...even if he was just a clock.
"Of course, Luz! Missed us?" Raine called out to her.
"Raine...?" She murmured happily while taking them to light the way.
"I'm over here!" They waved their little stick arms in excitement.
She turned around in confusion. "I don't get it," She stated simply and Raine patted her on the head. She turned around to them.
"Hi!"
She screamed and dropped them onto the ground. Raine groaned and she bent down to examine them. "Raine...? Is that really you?!"
"Oh, now look what you've done, Raine," Darius jumped down from the platform and she blinked in shock. She knew Darius, as he was one of the former 9 generals from the war. Well...more like one of the defected ones, as he had joined Hunter's side once he knew Phillip's dark secrets. Raine joined first, though, once he learned what Phillip had intended to do to Eda, their girlfriend. Eberwolf was the last of them to defect, as the others stayed with Phillip. "Great. Just fantastic."
Luz picked him up, freaking him out. "Darius!" She hugged him tight and he struggled to breathe. "Wait, what happened to you?"
"Luz, put me down!" He exclaimed while Raine just snickered a bit to themselves. Luz examined Darius, tickling his feet. "Stop! Stop that!" Luz then started shaking him and Raine needed to remind Eda of this later. "Ow!" He cried out as Luz turned the knob on his back, playing with the inside. "Personal space much?" Darius closed it on her finger and she recoiled it back, shaking it in pain.
"Oh, sorry! It's...it's just that I wasn't expecting both of you to be...well, like this." She then let out a sneeze onto Darius.
"Oh, really! Right in my face?! Ugh!" He complained as she put him down, shaking.
"Darius, look at her, she's soaked. Come on, we'll show you to the fireplace," Raine hopped over to the throne room.
"Thanks...and maybe you could tell me what happened," Luz hugged herself, looking around. Meanwhile, a shadow was watching them from down the hall.
"What?! No. No. And no!" Darius denied immediately while chasing after them. "If he finds her here, he'll make her regret even showing up!" He grabbed at her pants, trying to drag her away. "I demand that you turn around now-" He let go and stumbled onto the ground, some of the goo flying out. "Oh no, no," He looked up in disbelief. "Not the throne!" He narrowed his eyes as Luz sat in the big throne, a fireplace nearby.
A moving ottoman ran over, spinning Darius around. "Why is this happening? Why is this happening?" He murmured while covering his hands.
"Hey there, little guy," Luz patted him on the head and he placed his wooden feet on her knees.
"Luz, it's me!"
She gasped as she recognized the voice. "Gus?! You're alive too?"
"Yup, not exactly back to my devilish, handsome self, but still kicking," He commented while planting himself underneath her legs.
"B-But-" Before she could get a grip on what was happening, a moving coat rack placed a blanket over her. "Ooh, now that's cozy..." She said in a happy tone, leaning back into the throne.
"No! This is too much. As the responsible adult unlike some people-" A cart ran Darius over and stopped near Luz.
"Luz?!" The talking teapot exclaimed happily, and Luz did a double take.
"Willow?!" She gushed at her.
"I can't believe you're here! How about some apple blood? It's boiling rain right now, freshen yourself up," Willow poured a cup of apple blood into the teacup.
"No. No apple blood. No apple blood!" Darius protested from the ground.
"Oh, but Luci's told me no apple blood," Luz waved a hand. "Said I'm not old enough."
"Luci's not here. Take a chance!" Gus mocked her a little and she scoffed playfully. She took the teacup and sipped it. "Huh. Not as bad as I thought it was gonna be," She stated while looking at the cup.
"That's because it's me!" King cried out happily.
Luz gasped while looking at him, tears in her eyes. "King!"
"Luz!"
"If you're here, that means Eda is too! Can you take me to her?" Luz said and then glanced around rapidly. "Plus, I gotta tell Luci everything and where I am. I can't believe you guys are ali-"
A loud slam was heard as the doors to the throne room opened. Raine gave a knowing look of fear as the fire went out. Willow shook so much that her top almost came off. King hid behind Willow. "We're in trouble, aren't we?"
Luz's eyes went wide in fear as a large shadow loomed from the hallways...