Hello Hello! I'm here again! No commenting on how late I was again, I'm inexcusable... Stupid, idiot, perfectionist brain... We're here five chapters away from this story's part 1 and boy, am I excited! Probably (big emphasis on that probably, because change is the only certainty in this story apparently), this next few chapters will remind you some of the shows episodes, not telling which, just that they're from S2. Now, enough with me rambling, let's get to the story!

Chapter 23: Gauze for guilt

"I'm sorry, WHAT?!" Darius exclaimed, after Raine filled him in on their conversation with Eda.

"Look, I know it's not much, but it's the best I could do." They said, keeping their voice steady. There was no reason for this conversation to escalate.

"'The best you could do'? Is that how we call it now? Because from where I'm standing, it looks like you were simply trying to appeal to the Owl Lady!" He spat, getting into their face.

Raine narrowed their eyes, but didn't turn away. "I was trying to find a middle ground! Eda's on our side, creating tension with her would do more harm than good."

"Oh, and stalling on getting vital information on Belos for the sake of one kid, wouldn't?! While we're at it, why don't we just walk into the throne room and say: 'Oh, hi Belos! Can you perhaps put a pause on whatever it is you are planning? We're waiting for your nephew to get over his issues.'?!" Darius mocked, before he resumed the staredown.

"I had no other choice!" They called out (So much for not escalating...). "What don't you understand about that? Eda made it clear that she wasn't going to agree on anything other than that. So unless we settle for it, we can kiss that information goodbye!"

"So what? Now the Owl Lady's suddenly calling the shots?!"

"No one is! Right now, we're just compromising. If you want to get something sooner, I suggest we focus on what's going on at the castle. Because we still have to figure out what Terra, Vitimir and Osran are working on, before they complete it."

Darius remained silent after that, his gaze still hardened, still locked with their own.

Until Eberwolf popped up between them with a yelp, cutting that staring contest short.

"You agree too?" He asked, more resigned than anything, and received a nod from the small demon. "...All right then."

And after that, he turned around and walked outside, the soft wind at the balcony, much needed at the moment.

He leaned against the railing (probably a bit too hard) and sighed heavily, trying to control his thoughts...

All those arguments he could use against Raine and the Owl Lady. The hare-brained (doomed to fail) plans to sneak into the Owl House and get the boy himself. The thought of...

No. Not that! Not now.

Not now...

...!

He let go of the railing, feeling his grip bubbling. About to be engulfed in abomination goop and break the metal inside it in half.

...

"Breathe... It's okay, Darius, you did good. Just breathe..."

He clenched his hands into fists, breathing slowly, forcing it to shimmer down.

...

...

...!

But it only seemed to do so when he felt something on his feet. More specifically Eber nuzzling at them like a kitten. And then he procceeded to clim across his shoulders with a concerned whimper, his eyes searching his face. And his nose sniffing it as well.

"I'm fine, I'm fine." Darius said, trying to convince himself more than Eber. He turned to the other way, gently pushing the demon's face out of his own.

And when he turned back to him again, he could tell that he was onto him.

So he just gave him a look that had gotten all too familiar between them. An honest admission that he wasn't exactly fine and a plea to stay that way for a while.

And so it did. They stayed where they were, looking at the night sky, letting the silence and the wind take the tension away.

And carry a single persistent thought with it...

...

...

Why didn't you make it?


Time seemed to have slowed down at the Owl House for the last couple of days. Not that anyone was complaining. After manifestations of their worst nightmares, surprise visits from coven scouts, screaming Karens and dirt-snakes and overall concerns and tension, it was nice and much needed to have some sense of normalcy.

BOOM!

Even if that included the occasional explosion.

"Is everyone okay?" Luz asked, peeping out of her hiding spot behind a vase. King peeping out from behind her, before climbing across her shoulder.

"I think." Amity replied, dissolving the magic shield she conjured for her and- "Hunter, your hair noodle's on fire!"

"I-I got it, I got it." He said quickly, pinching at it to put the fire out. "Sorry about that."

"It's okay. At least it didn't blow up in our faces... For the most part. So, I think we should call this one 'Time bomb' glyph." Luz said, writing down on her journal the combo and its name, when-

"Kids! Tell me that wasn't another broken window." Eda's voice was heard, calling out to them from outside.

"That, uh... wasn't another broken window." Luz called back sheepishly, while Hunter looked nervously towards the direction from where Eda was heard.

"Ugh... Get Hooty to clean up, I'm coming in a bit. And be more careful. We're running out of bandaids."

"Okay." After calling at Eda, who probably didn't believe her (and after three broken windows in two days, it made probably sense), she glanced towards Hunter.

He was clearly trying to force the tension out of his face, out of his mind.

The Owl-... Eda wasn't mad. Strangely enough, she was more... done with this. She wouldn't yell, wouldn't be upset, wouldn't...-

"Maybe we should take a break." the Bli- Amity said, before he could find himself in another spiral.

"Yeah. We definitely deserve it after setting a glyph record!" The hu- Luz agreed, proudly showing off her journal and the four new glyphs they learned today.

The safety hover and the air step (as Luz called them) were probably the most useful, but the thunder and the time bomb were pretty impressive too. Even if they almost fried the room up...

"Then how about we celebrate with aaa... Think fast!" King piped up, throwing a stuffed toy to Hunter's direction, only for him to duck down.

"Ha! Missed-" Before he could finish, Amity bonked him on the back of his head with the toy King threw.

He gave her the stink eye, while she laughed, Luz and King exchanged a knowing look, already preparing the next fire, when-

Ding Dong! Ding Dong! Ding Dong!

Luz's... scroll thing started making noise, getting everyone's attention.

"Hunter, it's time to get Flapjack's bandages changed" She said and turned off the alarm and Hunter nodded at her, before grabbing his cruch to stand up.

"How come he's not here, come to think of it? He's basically stuck on you?" King asked.

"He was feeling a little tired today. The Owl- Eda said it's to be expected after losing magic from this stunt he pulled the other day." Hunter replied, part of him trying to reassure himself more than explain the situation.

The palistrom sap was working (from the looks of it...) but today... Flapjack just seemed off. He didn't try to wake Hunter up in the morning, he hardly got up from the pillow and was unusually quiet at breakfast. Not to mention that he seemed to eat, or maybe even be there, out of obligation. And how he dismissed any worried inquiry or glance with a quick 'I'm fine, just a little tired.' and a rather strange smile, that Hunter found way too familiar.

Eda said it'd be okay, Flapjack would be okay. And he believed it, he still wanted to believe it. If he didn't, he wouldn't leave Flapjack while he was with the others on the glyph lessons. But...

"Well, I'll be just a second." Hunter said quickly, shaking off his thoughts and made to head outside.

It was okay. It was! And it wasn't like he left him alone. He was with Eda. Who knew all about how to take care of a palisman! He was okay! He was just tired. (Right...?)


...

...

"Oh. Hey, buddy. Good moring."

...!

Flapjack shook his head, unable to believe what he was seeing.

How was this-?

Was he seeing ghosts?

Did he di-?!

...

No, it was Hunter. Eating...

"Hey? Are you okay?" He asked worriedly and dropped his knife and fork, before scooting next to him, ready to pick him up.

"Uh, yes, I'm fine. Just... coming out of a crazy dream." The little bird answered quickly, shaking off his wooziness (and his thoughts). "What about you?"

Hunter looked away at that for a moment, as if he was looking for an answer.

After everything that had happened yesterday, he supposed this type of question would seem pretty hard to get one.

"I... don't know." He finally said, still not really looking at him.

Flapjack looked away as well, wondering if he should start a conversation. About what happened in the day before... and about what he heard in the night. Flapjack looked away as well, wondering if he should start a conversation. About what happened in the day before... and about what he heard in the night.

His gaze fell on the tray before them, and all the goods it carried.

"What is all this? Where did it come from?" He asked, hoping the change of subject would brighten his witch's mood, if only a little.

"The human and the Blight left it here. I was just..." Hunter replied, his voice trailing off awkwardly. As if he made a mistake by enjoying a meal.

"You were actually eating for a change. Without pressure might I add." Hunter's cheeks and ears turned slightly red at that, as they always did whenever he got embarassed. "That's good." The little bird added quickly, genuinely happy for him.

"...Yeah, I guess it is." He said, a ghost of a smile forming across his face. "That stack of... food is the best one though. I ate most of it at night, unfortunately."

"Well, what's stopping you from getting more?"

Hunter turned to look at him as if he just heard the most outrageous thing in the world, but didn't seem to be able to find anything to counter his palisman. And quickly turned away again, the gears in his mind obviously turning.

"You're still going to avoid them?" Flapjack asked, before jumping on his lap. "Hunter, I know yesterday was... a lot, but don't you think you've been hiding from them enough?"

"I-I'm not hiding from anyone! Well, apart from the emperor's coven, I mean."

"Then why don't you try going downstairs for a change and get some more pancakes since you-"

"More what?" Hunter cut him off, a curious, confused look on his face.

(...!)

Right... He didn't know.

"...Pancakes. That food you said you liked?" Flapjack answered, a sad smile in his voice. One that, judging by the way his witch was looking at him, didn't go unnoticed. "I... knew someone that really liked them too."

"Your first witch?" He ventured, his tone careful.

Since Flapjack first bonded with Hunter, it was sort of an unspoken rule to talk about his past, and especially his first witch barely if at all. Apart for one or two times, the boy hadn't asked, and those times he did, Flapjack didn't really say anything and made sure to establish this rule. At first calmly and then with a bit of loud chirps and pulling on his hair (That was a bad day, and he felt bad about it. They both apologized to each other later.).

Now, though... he had basically started the conversation on this subject on his own. And besides, he couldn't really expect Hunter to be honest and open about stuff if he didn't do the same.

"...Yes." The little bird said, now his turn to look away. "They were his favorite food. And the first thing I ever ate. I stole one from his plate one morning, he chased after me. He was yelling 'Give me back my flapjack, you stupid bird!'." He paused for a moment, noticing Hunter's confusion. "Another word for 'pancake'. I knew he didn't mean it, though. I got up to a high branch on a tree and ate it all. It was so good...! And it was funny, messing with him like that. Ever since we'd have pancakes together every morning. And on that specific day on top of that tree. It was... our ritual. Our thing..." He stopped there, the sadness in his smile increasing, feeling too much inside him.

In... who knows how many years, this was the most he had spoken about his first witch. And he wasn't sure how he felt about that. All he knew was that it was heavy. About as heavy as it was on the first years.

But then...

"Well... I know it's not much, but we can share it, if you want."

...!

He turned towards Hunter.

He was extending his hand at him, holding a piece of the pancakes, smiling at him. The most earnestly he had seen him smile in weeks.

And the weight inside him was lifting, replaced by warmth.

He moved closer to him and slowly bent over, taking a bite. The first in centuries.

...

...How good it felt! That taste... soft and... sweet and just...!

...

Flapjack hadn't really realised when he and Hunter ate all that was left. All he knew was that taste and that long forgotten joy of sharing it with someone.

Someone that also didn't seem to realise when the plate got emptied. But realised something else...

"Hunter?" He ventured, as Hunter let out a sigh, his eyes widening when he saw him grabbing his cruch.

"Well... We didn't get to enjoy much. Right?" The boy said, mustering up a smile.

The little bird smiled back, as his witch picked him up and placed him on his shoulder.

"Come on. Let's go get some pancakes, buddy."

"...Flapjack."

Hunter stopped walking for a moment. Turning to look at him in surprise."What?"

"My name... is Flapjack."


"Flapjack?" Hunter called, as he walked over to his palisman, sitting at the edge of Eda's balcony.

"Hey, Hunter." The little bird greeted warmly his witch, turning his attention to him from the ocean view. While Eda picked him up and brought him to her vanity. "How did it go over there? You didn't start a fire?"

"Not exactly, but we nearly did..." He chuckled, sitting down. "It's time to change your bandages."

"Oh, okay."

"Here's the sap, kid." Eda handed it to him, the first aid kit already there. After everything that happened the last few days, she was probably sleeping with it too.

"Thank you... Eda." Placing a hand on his shoulder,the two exchanged a smile, before she stepped a bit farther so he could do the change.

She was far enough to not make him feel judged, but close enough to help if needed.

The boy started unwrapping the old bandage, gently and carefully so as not to hurt his palisman. "So... how are you feeling? Did you get any rest?" He asked, trying not to sound too worried.

"A little. Sorry if I worried you, but today's just one of those days." Flapjack answered, picking up his witch's concern.

"I-it's okay. I just-" He stopped talking when the bandaged was removed.

The wound seemed to be closing. The sap was really working. For a brief second both of them smiled, excited at the prospect of flying again.

Though from the looks of it, it would definitely leave a scar... Yet another scar...

Not that it mattered. He'd take a thousand scars if it meant keeping Hunter safe!

Nothing else mattered. Nothing...

"...Looks like you're getting better, Flap." Hunter spoke, voicing their relief, their hope. But Flapjack could hear some worry still lingering in his words. Actually not exactly worry, or not just worry. But also... caution.

"Yes. I am." He replied, not sure of what else to say at the moment, as Hunter put some cotton to the sap and started applying it to the wound. "...Hunter, is... something wrong?" He dared to venture after a few seconds of silence.

The boy stoppped for a moment, as if the question broke him out of some kind of trance. And honestly, it might as well have.

If the sap was indeed working, then either he didn't know very well how healing worked for palismen, or something else was wrong with Flapjack. And he had no idea what it was, much less what to do to help him.

"I... I was hoping you'd tell me that." He finally said, his tone and eyes openly worried, pleading.

He heard Eda moving, but didn't pay much attention to her, his gaze locked with his palisman's for a while, before he remembered he had to put on a new bandage.

Flapjack said nothing, his own gaze filled with concern and turned away just as Hunter's did (thankfully...). Unfortunately though...

"You don't seem... right today. And... I got a feeling that it's not just because you're tired. I don't want to force you to tell me, but... you can't always worry about me and expect me to not be worried about you too. I just want to know if I can do something to help you." He said, finally turning to him again when he finished with the bandage.

Again with those eyes...

...

...

"I-"

...!

Before Flapjack could say anything the doors slammed open and then closed. With Eda slamming her back on them, looking absolutely terrified.

She turned to the shocked duo at her vanity, as if she had forgotten they were there. "I need to get out of here. Now!"

And that's the end for this chapter! And that's where I leave again. Hope you guys liked what you read. See you next time! Please leave a review and stay safe. Byeeeeee! :)