"Amity?". The sound of the tall witch's voice was just as intimidating as his appearance. Amity's father, Alador, had always frightened me a bit, though not as much as Amity's mother.
Both stood in front of us now, along with a smaller, younger version of Amity. The auburn haired witchling appeared to be just as bothered as I was, if not a bit more.
Her father's matching-colored eyes shone through the shadows of the hallway, while her mother's confident posture made me want to shrink back. Neither were very pleased with their daughter, yet neither of them showed it.
"What is Willow doing here?" Amity's mother purred in a sickeningly fake tone. "She wasn't on the guest list for a reason".
"But she's…she's my best friend!".
My former friend's insistence caught me off guard. I thought she was having doubts about our friendship the night of the party, but she sounded so matter of fact.
Amity had told me it was scary arguing with her parents, that they always found a way to punish her for it. She often did it anyway, when she lost her temper, but the fact that she was fighting back now…
"Titan," I silently huffed. "I didn't think I could get any more confused about that night, but here we are".
"Nonsense," Alador stated. "Blights only associate with the strongest of witchlings. You can choose a new friend from the suitable companions we invited".
"They're mean" Amity spat back, a growl lining her voice. "Just because they work with their parents doesn't mean I have to like them".
"Good girls don't squabble, dear" Odalia scolded. The smile on her face was far from genuine. "Sever your ties with Willow".
"And if you don't, we will" Alador joined back in. His wife nodded.
"We'll make sure she's never admitted into Hexide".
The fear in younger Amity's gasp was heartbreaking. Her ears flattened back; her eyes sparkling with regret.
After going wide in shock my green eyes traveled to the present Amity. Though her eyes remained blue, a look of numbing sadness replaced the blank look on her face.
"Now go. And try not to make a scene".
Younger Amity turned and rushed into her room. She gritted her fangs as tightly as she could while she forced down her suffering. Meanwhile, her parents slipped away, apathetic to the pain they just caused their daughter.
A few moments pass, then a much smaller me bursts through the door in front of us. Tears slipped from under her glasses, which she tried to hide by raising her arm in front of her face. She raced down the hallway, fleeing the home of her new former friend.
I peeked into Amity's room, the sight within it making my heart sink even more. The younger Amity had collapsed to the floor. Her sobbing was silent. It always had to be or else her parents might find out and scold her for it.
A few minutes passed before I was able to speak again. My words had to squeeze through the lump in my throat to get out.
"Why didn't you ever tell me? I would've understood".
"I couldn't". Amity's voice was quiet, meek. "I was afraid of what they'd do to you if they found out you knew".
In spite of Amity's confession, a burst of confused anger broke out of me.
"But…but…What about all the things you've said over the years?! What about all the jokes you and Boscha told?!".
"I never thought you were weak, Willow. If anyone here is a half-a-witch, it's me. I'm a coward, a coward that lost everything she cared about because she was too afraid to fight for it".
Once again, I was speechless. I didn't know how I felt. I didn't know how I was supposed to feel! Was I angry? I think I was. Years of teasing doesn't just disappear, and the hurt from Amity's mistake had already done its damage.
But, at the same time, I felt better. I had spent those seven long years trying my hardest to prove to Amity I was a strong witch. To hear she never thought I was weak was rejuvenating.
"I don't blame you for hating me" Amity murmured, refusing to meet my gaze.
"I don't hate you," I admitted. "Despite everything you've done, I never did. All I did was just…feel hurt".
I think that was the best way to describe it. That was the one emotion that I always knew was there. It never went away only to come back later, unlike my anger or my shame.
"Can you forgive me?".
Forgiveness, sometimes it felt like I didn't know what that meant. What she did would never be excusable, it would never be okay even if Amity had good intentions. It wasn't that simple. But did that stop me from forgiving her? Would I always see Amity as that bully that made my life miserable for years?
No. Obviously, she was more than that. She was able to be a good friend. That's what she had been before her seventh birthday.
"Someday" I sighed. "If…".
"If?".
"Promise me, Amity. Promise me you'll be a better friend to Luz than you were to me".
Amity flinched. My words stung her like a bee.
"I promise," she finally said. "I will never hurt Luz the same way I hurt you. I'm done being a coward".
The walls around us faded to black before the starry night sky faded back in. The wind brushed up against me as it welcomed me back. Amity took her hand off of my forehead and backed away, revealing the shocked look on both Gus and Luz's faces.
"What just happened?" Gus questioned. "What did she say?".
"She told you about her parents forcing her to end your friendship!" Luz shouted, elated.
"You knew?".
The human's excitement suddenly dropped into nervousness. She absentmindedly started rubbing the back of her neck.
"Well I sort of overheard her and her siblings talking about it. I was gonna tell you, but Amity didn't want me to".
"Does anybody want to catch me up?" Gus jumped back in, rightfully feeling left out of the conversation.
"It's like Luz said. Amity's parents didn't want her hanging out with a late-bloomer like me. So they told her that she could either stop being friends with me, or they would make sure I wasn't accepted into Hexide".
"Jeez," Luz huffed. "Someone should hurry up and drop a house on those guys already".
"What?".
"I'll explain it later. For now, let's finish our little message to Boscha".
"Actually…" I hmmed hesitantly. The whole getting revenge thing no longer felt so good to me. "You know what? Forget Boscha".
Gus and Luz's eyes went wide once again.
"But we've almost finished," Gus whined.
"We shouldn't waste our night on her. She doesn't care about us. Why should we care what she thinks?".
"Willow's right" Luz agreed after a moment to think. "Screw Boscha!".
"Yeah, she's just some jerk anyways!".
"Amity," I ordered, pride swelling in my chest. "Get rid of all the fire".
With a simple snap, our flame message turned to smoke that blew away. Seeing it dance around in the wind just got the three of us more hyped up.
"Now let's have some fun!" I yowled, causing my friends to cheer.
Interrupting our short-lived celebration, Amity faced Luz in intent. The ghost's glowing eyes flicked like a broken lightbulb.
"I've got a message from the beyond. Would you like to hear it?".
"Er…Why not?" the human answered. When Amity said nothing, Luz added, "Tell us the message from the beyond".
"The marketplace becomes a trap, chains promising stone. Hope lies in the tree that weeps alone".
The word stone stuck out the most. The first thing that came to mind hearing that was petrification. After all, the people who were petrified were usually criminals who were locked up beforehand.
Luz focused on a different word though.
"Marketplace… Eda!".
With a large leap, Luz bounded through the sand. I lurched towards her and grabbed her shoulder, pulling her to a halt.
"Don't you think we should figure out what the rest of it means before we go? What if the tree they're talking about is in the woods?".
"Do you have any idea what it could be? Are there any plants that cry in the boiling isles?".
"Well, there's the obvious weeping willow–". Gus's gasp cut me off, making me jump in the process.
"What if she's talking about you?".
"Don't be ridiculous. How would I be able to help Eda escape?". As I spoke, I felt a hand snatch the back of my dress. Before I could turn to see who it was, I was already being drug forwards.
"We'll figure out when we get there" Luz hollered while racing into the woods.
"Where is "there" exactly" I prodded.
"I don't know, but we're gonna have to find it soon".
"And what about Amity?" Gus asked while pointing at the ghost who was patiently waiting for her next instruction.
"I guess she'll need to go back into the amulet". Luz tried to hide the sadness in her voice but was unsuccessful. She grabbed the purple stone, rubbing it a few times with her thumb as an attempt to distract herself from what was happening.
"Amity,". Her voice gave the undead girl a silent apology. "Cower".
The skin the moon had given her sloughed, In flakes, it floated to the sand underneath it. Flames flickered underneath it. It licked at Amity more and more until it finally consumed her. Once engulfed in it, she was carried back to the amulet and was stored back in it.
"Sorry, Amity," Luz murmured once the bright purple fire was gone. "I'll let you back out as soon as I can".
Our hurried footsteps kicked up the dirt on the road. We shoved past the people crowding the market way, all of them wearing long hooded clothing to hide their identity. The many stands all rushed by, only giving us enough time to glance at them.
"There!" Gus finally shouted. I followed his gaze to a fancier looking stand. On the outside of it a woman in a red cloak idly stood there. Chains wrapped around her like snakes climbing up a tree. On the inside stood a small pig-person and a black furred, horned demon.
"Eda!" Luz called while the three raced over there. The shiny gem on Luz's neck caught his attention.
"That," he declared as he pointed at it. "You said I could take anything of yours I want if I beat you at hexas-holdem, and I did. And I want that,".
"Really?". Luz glared at her mentor in disappointment. "You have a gambling addiction".
"No, no, no, Tibbles. You can't have Luz" Eda growled ignoring the accusation.
"I don't want the girl," Tibbles corrected. "I want that gem there".
"No". This time it was Luz who said it.
"She said–".
"I know what she said, or at least what you said she said. But this necklace isn't hers, it's mine and I say you can't have it".
The human's assertion only made Tibbles laugh.
"Well then" he smiled. "What if I took this instead?".
The smaller demon put a hand on King's back. In response he turned around with an angry "weh" and clawed at him.
"I always wanted a little servant to dress up and order around. I'll call him Bone Boy!".
"You can't have King either!" Luz, literally, hissed.
"Oh, and who's going to stop me from taking him? Once I hand his guardian over to the emperor's coven, he'll need someone to look after him". Tibbles summoned a spell circle and made a little outfit appear. "Now, Bone Boy. Go get changed".
"What if I gave you something better?" I jumped in.
I pushed my way to the center of the counter so I could directly look Tibbles in the eyes. I tilted my head slightly, letting the moon cover up the look in mine.
"What could be better than my own peon?".
I summoned a spell circle of my own. From it a thin red flower sprouted from it.
"A flower?".
"A snapdragon" I clarified.
"Really? You're offering me a snapdragon?".
"No" I chuckled. Suddenly the flower split open, and a mess of tentacles spit out from it. They all latched onto the smaller demon, pulling it closer while it tried to consume his flesh.
"I'm offering you a valuable lesson. Don't mess with me or my friends".
As Tibbles wriggled around, Gus pulled a strange silver wire twisted into a curly shape from his pocket. He bent the end of it out of words and stuck it into the lock of the chains around Eda. A few minutes later the lock opened, and all of the chains dropped to the ground. He then held his tool up like he was presenting it.
"And that, my friends, is why the paper clorp is my favorite invention from the human realm".
"That's a paper clip, Gus".
"Whatever it is," Eda rushed. "We need to go right now".
The four of us broke into a run, King having jumped into Eda's hair, while the owl lady summoned her staff. As she sprung into the air, Luz, Gus, and I all scrambled up behind her. In the distance I could hear Tibbles angry howls.
"Willow!" Luz roused. "That had to be the coolest thing I've ever seen you do, and that's saying something!".
"I told you that message was about you" Gus added, slugging me on the shoulder.
"What message?". Eda's question made the three of us pause.
"Well…uh… You're really gonna laugh at this". I stopped Luz by putting my hand on her back.
"We know about Amity".
"Titandammit, Luz! What did I tell you about using the amulet in front of people?".
"I didn't use the amulet".
"Yeah! The moon forced her out" Gus vouched.
"The moon?". Her apprentice let out an awkward chuckle.
"We'll explain it when we get back to the owl house".
…
"Thanks again, Luz. Last night was very interesting but fun". My human friend laughed at that.
"That's one way to put it".
"Well it's definitely a night we'll never forget" I giggled back.
"It's just a shame we couldn't do more with Amity" the younger witchling beside me sighed. "We could've made her do tricks and flips and stuff".
"Speaking of Amity, do you think I could talk to her before we go?".
"I guess that would be okay. We probably should tell her about last night".
Luz delicately held the charm of her necklace. She let out a deep breath, still a little sad she'd left the spirit in there for so long.
"Hey, Amity. Are you awake?". A yawn answered Luz's question.
"I am now. Can I come out? It's getting a little cramped in here".
"In just a second," Luz quickly assured. "But first…um…how much of last night do you remember?".
"I remember everything".
"Oh…Are you mad at me?" Luz mumbled.
"No, Luz." Amity responded. "You didn't make me do anything that embarrassing. I'm just a bit worried that Willow and Gus know now".
"They'd like to talk to you. Is that okay?".
"Just let me out".
Luz gave the command, spawning a burst of flames to come out of the amulet. They sat on the ground for a bit before disappearing.
"Hey, guys". The witch's ears flattened. "You wanted to see me?".
"Yes. I wanted to talk about last night". The serious look on my face made Amity gulp in fear.
I then drew a green ring in the air as my joking glare softened into a smile. I stuck a part of my arm through it and offered the witch my hand.
"You don't have to worry about us. We promise we won't tell anybody".
Gus drew a circle of his own and offered his hand.
"Not a single soul" he reassured.
Amity stared at us in shock. Her now golden eyes went wide in shock.
"Really?".
"Yep," Gus responded, popping the p at the end. "We promise".
Hesitantly, Amity grabbed Gus's hand. The ring shrunk and split in two, then ran up both witchling's arms.
"The everlasting oath is sealed" Gus confirmed aloud.
Amity then turned towards me. She was even more cautious with grabbing my hand as if it would reach out and bite her. My ring did the same thing Gus's did, sealing the everlasting oath.
"Thank you. I know I don't deserve this".
"You're right. You don't" I agreed, not letting Amity finish. "Nobody deserves to be hurt by their own parents. Your secret's safe with me".
The phantom thanked us again with a smile. Her relief and exhaustion intertwined.
"Shall we get going?" Gus asked me.
"One more thing". I grabbed Amity's attention with my gaze, making her look me straight in the eyes. "I can't say we're friends again, but it's a start".
Gus and I both made our leave, the latter shouting, "Thanks again, Luz" behind us.
We made it a few minutes into the woods before Gus's scroll buzzed. He checked it quickly, only to scowl at the thing.
"Boscha posted again".
"What did she say this time?".
"It's a video," he responded. He leaned towards me and made his scroll fly in front of us.
Boscha looked very tired, a stark contrast from the cocky bully she usually was. If you looked closely, you could see that her three eyes were a little red.
Had she been crying?
"Hey, guys. I just wanted to give an update on the party last night. It was pretty weird not having Amity there…but we still had fun".
That pause was very unlike Boscha. She usually spoke so quickly and confidently. It made me almost feel bad for her.
Gus and I shared a glance at each other, his grayish blue eyes revealing his growing pity.
"We weren't able to do much conjuring wise. We probably would've been able to had Ami…That doesn't matter. I just wanted to give an update for the losers who couldn't join us. You really missed out".
And that pity was gone. I really started regretting not posting our message to the triclops the night prior.
"And I also wanted to give my girl Amity one final shoutout". Boscha's voice faltered. The quick transition from mocking back to sorrow struck like a slap to the face.
"It hasn't been the same without you. Honestly, we all couldn't stop thinking about you. All night it was Amity this, and Amity that. And every time someone said something stupid… I could just…hear you".
Boscha had to take a few deep breaths. She tried to say more but she couldn't get the words to come out. All she could do was sit there with her mouth gaping open. Suddenly, her eyes grew watery. She didn't notice at first, but then a tear trickled down her face.
She wiped it off, her embarrassment making her rush. The triclops shook her head before she snapped back into her usual hellhoundish self.
"Can't wait to do it again. I can't help but feel that next year's party will be even cooler".
The sound of Boscha's voice cracking at the end made my annoyance towards the bully temporarily melt. What Amity said in her flashback came to mind, making me wonder what her reaction would be.
Boscha was quick to end the video there. She desperately didn't want anyone to see her sorry state for too long.
"Well," Gus admitted after a while. "Maybe it's a good thing we didn't post that thing about Boscha last night".
"She actually misses her".
"Why wouldn't she?" Gus replied, still slightly sad himself. "They were friends".
"Right. It's just a little weird to see Boscha like that".
"Yeah. Amity's death seems to have everyone shaken up".
"Some more than others" I agreed before continuing my walk home.