Claws unsheathed and fur rippling in anger, a ferocious brown feline leapt towards a sleek orange cat. In response the smaller of the two flipped onto his back and dug his hind feet into the brown cat's underbelly. The two tumbled and wrestled as they engaged in an epic battle.
Or at least, that's what King was seeing. Though I was watching the same video, I saw something totally different. I saw two fluffy kittens just play-fighting. It was hardly worth all the excited shouting the King of demons was doing.
"Yes! Fight! Kill! Bow to the cold embrace of death!".
"I regret teaching you about the internet," Luz deadpanned from the other side of me.
"What regrets could ever come from the internet? By the way, did you know the earth was flat?".
"Yep, that's not right buddy".
"Reminds me of that time a con-witch convinced Ed that drinking rat bile would help prevent worms" I chuckled. "It ended up giving him worms".
As quickly as it took me to mention it, the old memory turned sour. I couldn't even say my brother's name without being reminded of his sacrifice… of his exorcism.
Luz noticed my sadness almost immediately. She went to say something but was stopped by an odd buzzing noise. The "cell phone" in King's claws began to vibrate, much like a scroll with a new notification.
The human grabbed the phone and checked her text messages. She started reading it aloud, but her voice fell into a mumble.
"Hola, mija! How is camp…going…".
Right. Luz's mother, Camila thought that she was at a "summer camp" right now. According to Luz, it was supposed to make her more normal.
"Why don't you just tell her the truth?" I asked softly. "After she hears about how well you're doing here, she won't mind that you didn't go to camp".
"And what am I supposed to say, Amity? "Hey mom, instead of going to camp like you told me to, I went to a world full of witches and demons, which are both real by the way". She'd kill me". It took Luz a minute to realize what she'd just said. "Ah! I'm sorry!".
"It's fine, Luz" I sighed exasperated. Why did she always have to make such a big deal about her slipping up? "I know it's just an expression".
"Why don't you just never tell her and live with us?" King asked, hope lining his voice.
"No! I can't just abandon her…not like papi did".
"It wouldn't be abandoning her if you still text with her".
"But what'll happen when camp is over, and I don't come home? She'd be heartbroken" Luz argued. "I have to go back. And I have to tell her the truth eventually".
"You have the rest of the summer" I reassured, though I couldn't hide my sadness. Luz was right. She couldn't live here in the demon realm forever. She had a home in the human realm, as well as other family.
"But…you're still going to visit us though, right?". At that, the younger human picked up King and cradled him in her arms. She scratched his fluffy belly lovingly.
"Of course," she answered confidently. Her comforting smile then fell into an unsure frown. "As soon as I can convince mom to let me".
"You seriously don't think your mom will like us?" I prodded.
"She'll like you guys. She just won't like the way I met you, especially you, Amity".
"Why would–". Before I was even done asking, I got my answer. Luz's gaze once again traveled to the hole in my abdomen, her guilt rising like early morning mist.
Luz let out a big fake yawn and stretched her arms out. She let King back down and scooched to the edge of the couch.
"Welp, I'm beat". Her happy tone was overdramatically fake. "I think I'm going to head to bed".
"But it's only seven thirty".
"I know, but I can barely keep my eyes open".
The human nearly ran up the stairs, her only other words being a rushed "good night".
"You ever worry about her?" King asked flatly as he watched her scramble away.
"Constantly" I sighed. "I wish there was something I could do. Make her mom see that her coming here was a good thing".
"Why don't you just tell her yourself? We have a portal".
"You mean go to the human realm and tell her that Luz didn't go to camp?".
"You don't need to tell her that," the small demon clarified. "Just tell her the part about Luz taking you in. Then when Luz finally gets around to telling her about the demon realm she won't be as shocked".
"That…might actually work". I couldn't believe it but, as crazy as the plan sounded, it made sense. "But how am I supposed to find her mom when I have no clue where she lives? Plus, I'm stuck to the amulet, remember?".
"Well she lives close to the portal entrance, so it can't be that hard to find. And I can just carry the amulet while you search".
"But we've never been to the human realm before. Isn't it dangerous?".
"Of course, not". King rolled his eyes. "Eda only makes it sound dangerous to sell stuff. But Owlbert goes there multiple times a week and always comes back fine"
The cat-like demon's gaze quickly circled the room before he leaned in and brought his voice to a whisper.
"We should go there tonight. You can walk in her dreams like you did with Katif".
"And how do we get the key from Eda without her noticing? I'm sure she wouldn't be okay with this".
"Leave that to me" King answered with a flick of his tail. "Just meet me outside around midnight".
…
The nearly full moon hung in the sky, its light covering everything below like a blanket. Stars surrounded it, shining just as bright. The still in the air was broken by the occasional pixie cry.
Part of me wondered as I sat behind the owl house waiting for King, if the human realm had nights this peaceful. I guess I was about to find out.
The sound of paws hitting the ground pulled me from my star gazing. Just as he promised, King came from around the corner with both the amulet and the key around his neck. He was dragging a suitcase behind him, yet his steps were light and quick. The last thing either of us wanted to do was alert Hooty of our plan.
King pressed the eye in the middle of the key. The suitcase rose into the air and folded open, revealing a door with the same yellow eye on it.
"You ready?" King asked, attempting to hide his nervousness.
"I don't know. I guess we'll find out".
With a deep breath out, I pushed the door open and walked through the portal. There was a large flash that the new realm hid behind for a moment. But then my sight returned revealing a stunning sight.
Everything was so green! The grass, the trees, neither of them were red like they were on the isles. Even the air felt different. There was a small but sharp chill as well as the sound of some weird sort of birds or bugs chirping. The moon looked the same, from what I could see through the leaves, but the sky was an odd dark blue instead of purple.
Behind us was a wooden cabin that looked to've been centuries old. The forest had gnawed away at it, leaving it full of splinters and loose nails. It was as if just standing near it could give you a ton of different diseases.
"If all houses in the human realm look this terrible, maybe Luz really should stay in the demon realm" I silently shuddered.
Once we left the woodland, into the nearest human town, my worries were proven wrong. All neatly lined up next to this large black roadway, were much nicer houses. These ones were much better kept and were nicely painted. Even though they seemed different in style, they were made of both wood and brick just like our homes in the demon realm.
Our search for Luz's home didn't take us too far, just a two-story white house with a blue roof. It was the second house we checked. I went inside and immediately saw a picture of little Luz struggling to eat a bowl of spaghetti without making a giant mess. I quickly stuck my head outside to tell King I'd found the place we were looking for before heading up the stairs.
Just as I expected, Mrs. Noceda was upstairs, sleeping in her bed. She looked a lot like Luz, same caramel skin and dark brown hair (hers in curlers). I guess that shouldn't have been that much of a surprise. Unfortunately, I looked a lot like my mother too.
With a deep breath, I raised my hand and placed it onto the older human's forehead. I closed my eyes for a second while I shifted into her dream. When I reopened them, I was…back downstairs.
In what seemed to be the living room, over near the couch in front of this weird contraption (I think Luz called it a "TV"), Luz's mother was being confronted by a man. At first, I thought it might've been Luz's father, but he looked too old, gray hair and all.
"Have you no control of your daughter?". His growl rumbled like thunder. "What kind of mother are you?!".
"Please, sir. I'll pay for anything she's broken!".
"I don't care about the money! I want you to punish your little brat like an actual good mother!".
"You have no idea what a bad mother looks like!" I couldn't help but jump in. The man turned around to reveal two deep wide eyes that were as black as an abyss.
"Who are you?".
"I'm real" I huffed. "Unlike you".
I poked my finger into the man's shoulder. In response he melted into mist and faded away. The other human stared onward, horrified. Apparently, she hadn't realized she was dreaming.
"Don't be alarmed. That man was just a figment of your imagination" I told her, my voice much softer.
"And…you're not?" she nervously squeaked.
"No. I'm as real as you are". I offered my hand to Luz's mother politely. She took a moment to gawk at it, as if I were holding some rare artifact. "Mrs. Noceda, my name is Amity Blight, youngest of Alador Blight".
Finally, Mrs. Noceda took my hand and gave it a few shakes. She still seemed confused, yet it was the polite thing to do.
"Please. Just call me Camila" she said with a little more confidence.
"Okay, Camila. You're probably wondering why I'm in your dream".
"Oh. Is that what's going on?".
"Yes. Right now, I'm walking in your dream. You see, I'm sort of…a ghost. The ghost of a witch". I silently prayed to the Titan that Camila would believe me. According to Luz, both ghosts and witches were considered myths akin to bigfoot or possums.
"You're a wiccan?" she tried to clarify.
"I don't know what that means but, I am a witch: a being that has and uses magic".
To demonstrate I drew a spell circle into the air and summoned a simple ball of light. Camila gaped in amazement, her vivid brown eyes wide in surprise.
"It's beautiful".
"Luz seemed to think so too". Hearing the name of her daughter drug Camila's attention away from my small spell, back towards me.
"Luz? You know my daughter?".
"I do," I answered, despite my rising trepidation. "I…you see…" I paused to think for a moment. This was it. It was time to tell the human in front of me the truth, at least half of it anyway.
With a sigh, I drew another spell circle. From it a canvas of magic appeared. Animated silhouettes inhabited it, each one taking the shape of the witches encountered over the past month.
"I wasn't always a ghost," I began. "I used to be a student at a school called Hexide. I was the top of my class, highly renowned and popular. But then, an incident with a dagger ended up killing me. Instead of going to the spirit realm, my mother tied my soul to an amulet and tried to force me to kill people. When I refused to, she would…punish me.
When she wasn't looking, my siblings stole the amulet and brought me to Luz. She agreed to protect me until my mother had been dealt with. Had she not helped me hide, I would have never escaped her. I owe your daughter my very soul".
Camila was speechless, but in a different way than she was mere seconds ago. Pride glistened in her gaze, while a white tooth smile grew on her face.
"Dios mío" she murmured as she untwisted her thoughts. "I was hoping that Luz would make friends at camp but…this…".
"You believe me? Luz said you wouldn't if she told you".
"Trust me," Camila laughed. "My imagination isn't good enough to think of something like this. I usually just have dreams of missing Tax Day, or work, or the occasional space travel".
"Or what?".
"What? I didn't say anything unusual". Despite the nervousness in her voice, I had no choice but to believe that. I knew nothing about humans other than what Luz told me.
"Luz also said you may not like me, because of the world I come from. I figured I could show it to you, so you can see it's not so bad".
"Wait. Different world? You aren't from earth?".
"No. I come from a place called the demon realm". As I spoke the walls and floor disappeared, replaced by dirt and red pines. Behind me, Blight manor sat proudly on the horizon as the sun lit up the orange grass. "This was my home before the accident. Before my mother drove me away".
"It looks like something out of a novel" she gasped as her eyes jumped around our surroundings. I could tell her head was spinning like a gorenado.
"I know it's a lot to take in" I admitted while trying to ease Camila's roaring senses. "When I first walked into the human realm, I found all the green a little intimidating".
"Human realm", "demon realm", "spirit realm"…are there any other realms?".
"Thousands," I explained calmly. "But it's very hard to travel between them".
"How did you get to my world then?".
"A witch named Eda has a portal door that opens not too far from where you live. She sends her palisman…er a magical companion that can turn into a staff to gather human trash so she can sell them as artifacts". The scene changed again. The forest and field morphed into Bonesburrow marketplace. Sitting right in front of us was Eda's stand, trinkets and all.
Camila crept towards it, squinting at all of the junk on display. She couldn't keep a laugh from bursting out of her.
"Eda doesn't know much about humans," she snickered. She held up a small black cylinder with a few yellow stripes and a little nub on top. "Batteries are definitely not anything you should be eating".
"Luz said those help power human inventions, like cars or remotes".
"Not quite. Not all cars have batteries". Camila let out a fond-filled sigh. "I hope she hasn't told you anything else incorrect".
"She says someday she'll actually show me the human realm". My heart suddenly fell to my stomach! I didn't mean to say that!
"But don't you already live in the human realm?" Camila prodded, her suspicion growing.
"She meant the rest of the human realm!" I sputtered. "She did say it was really big!".
"And the demon realm isn't?". Phew. Thank titan she let it go.
"I'm not sure" I answered truthfully. "All I've ever known is the isles".
Camila sent her pity to me with a saddened look. Through her shock, she was able to share my heartache. She tried to place her hand on my shoulder, only to realize it wasn't tangible when it fell through.
"Don't worry, cariño". Her voice was as sweet as fire bee honey. "My daughter and I will protect you for as long as you're in the human realm".
Now was my chance to tell her Luz's secret. If there was any time for her to learn the truth about said daughter, it was now! But I couldn't do it. Call it cowardice if you want, but Luz's secret wasn't my secret to share.
The world around us faded to black as Camila's eyes fluttered open and shut. I had a lot more to show her. She had barely gotten a glimpse of my home. But I had run out of time.
"Thank you for your understanding" I sadly sighed before she awoke. "Please remember this dream when we finally meet in the real world".
As her eyes fully opened, Camila started stirring in her bed. I internally jumped as I made myself invisible. If she knew I was right beside her while she slept, titan who knew what she would say! Not only was that quite creepy, but then she might think Luz was with me, ergo not in this camp thing she sent her to.
"How'd it go?" King questioned once I phased through the door.
"It…well". I wasn't sure how to answer that. She seemed quite supportive of the idea that Luz was protecting me, but that wasn't the part Luz thought she'd be angry about. "I'll tell you when we get to the owl house".
…
"No, nope, nada". As she sifted through the human candy, Luz picked up every object she saw. If it was edible, she'd throw it back in, while she'd throw out anything that wasn't. So far everything she took out had stayed out.
"Eda! None of this stuff is candy" the younger human complained. The older witch beside her gave her a sly smile.
"And that's why you're here" Eda rasped. "To keep things authentic".
"I'm serious, Eda. What if someone ate this tack? Their stomachs would be turned into swiss cheese, and that's the worst type of cheese for a stomach to be".
"Well maybe next time, you should tell Owlbert what to look for".
"I've tried, but he always forgets".
"Maybe" I suggested. "Maybe I could go with Owlbert the next time he goes to the human realm".
There was a small silence before Eda's laugh rang out.
"That's nice of you to offer, but the human realm is far too dangerous for a young witchling like you". As she spoke, King and I shared a glance.
"Yeah. I'd never survive".
The sound of tiny talons hitting the dirt brought our attention towards said palisman. The tiny owl fluttered from the tent behind us to his witch's shoulder while dropping a large sack to her feet.
"Since you're in a sorting mood, kid. How 'bout you look through today's human junk?".
"Gladly" Luz hmphed indignantly.
At the sound of the human's voice, the tent opening rustled again. Someone was pushing through, someone much bigger than Owlbert was. I spotted a hand with caramel colored skin and a flash of dark brown hair—Oh! Oh, sweet Titan! It was–
"Mami?!".
