A/N: The calm before the storm. I REALLY hope you guys enjoy this one.


Chapter Summary: The aftermath of Grom still leaves its marks as Edric has suddenly made a habit of avoiding not just the Dual-track kids but Lealtad especially. Now it's up to her to give the boy something he's owed: an apology.

Word Count: 18,286


How to Lose a Witch in 10 Hours

She felt terrible.

Leal woke up this morning exhausted, even in spite of her recent successes.

Recently, Lealtad managed to make a stamina potion, which produced three bottles per brew and did wonders for rejuvenating energy and maintaining… well, stamina. And it was also a great way of staying awake, as she spent several hours past her usual bedtime thinking. And staring. Its side effects included major fatigue; almost like the exhaustion of all the energy spent catching up all at once. For that reason, it was also an exhausting way to knock out. Leal decided to combat it by taking a sleeping brew, knocking herself out entirely.

The issue with the potion combinations was that it also spurred hunger.

From both her Healing and Potions classes, Leal learned overuse of potion ingestion had severe effects on appetite, spawning more metabolism and hunger. So she woke up feeling hungry and fatigued because knocking herself out with a sleeping brew didn't counteract the effects of her stamina potion. It was a battle to just wash up and clean herself, and she didn't even have the energy to make her bedroll like usual. She managed to get into her uniform and tiredly trudge herself down the halls and downstairs, entering the kitchen with half lidded eyes.

"Breakfast has been ready, Bean Head," Eda announced. "Better hurry so ya can still eat somethin' before I take you two to school!"

Leal nodded silently as she found her seat. She began scarfing down her scrambled griffin eggs, blinking slowly as she stared into the middle distance.

"Leal, what's up?" her sister asked, pushing her finished plate away. "You've been… kinda pensive these past couple days."

"Ooh!" King chirped as he stopped playing with his food. He kicked his feet around in his booster seat and looked at Luz, throwing her a thumbs up. "Nice one!"

Luz proudly smiled. "Thanks! Amity used it the other day, and I thought, 'Oh that sounds smart!'"

Leal snorted, maintaining her slow chew. "You sure talk more and more 'bout Amity since Grom."

Luz shrugged. "I dunno. I feel like I talk about all my friends."

Lealtad rolled her eyes. She had a feeling something happened with her sister and Amity after that night, but wasn't really around either of them enough at school to see any development. She did know Amity was one of the people who requested a copy of Luz's friend group photo.

"What 'bout you, Bean Head?" Eda asked as she approached the table, leaning against it. "You talking about your Blight?"

Leal slouched down in her seat. And there was the reason why she couldn't sleep last night. After getting her stamina potion and even talking late with Barcus, Lealtad was trying to concoct a plan to talk to Edric. To do something to apologize. Or even, what she could say to explain herself. But she got nowhere and could only think about his face. Not just in general... but the way it looked on Grom night. It also didn't help that she still didn't take down his photo. "I-I mean, I talk about all my friends too," she said, averting her eyes from Eda's.

The woman frowned. "You know that's not what I meant."

Then there was also the point that she never did get around to talking to Eda about it after Grom. She shied away from the witch's skepticism, turning in time to see her sister's expression of confusion.

Luz cocked a brow as she glanced back and forth between the two. "What? What do you mean?"

"You didn't tell your sister?" Eda asked, clearly shocked.

Leal glared at their guardian. "You don't have to make it sound like that."

"Hey, wasn't making it sound like nothin'," she defended with a shrug.

Turning to her curious sister, Leal let out a sigh. Maybe it was time to just let it all out. "Viney and I were supposed to go on a double date with Emira and Edric." Her sister gasped, eyes widening with joy and excitement. Leal cringed at her sister's eagerness and quickly tacked on before she could lose courage, "I-I wanted to do Vi a solid, 'cause she likes Emira. So I suggested it."

"Oh my gosh!" Luz exclaimed, slamming her hands on the table. "How have I not heard of this?"

"W-Well, you were busy with Grom and—"

"Hang on," Eda drew up a spell and levitated a chair underneath her. She sat down and narrowed her eyes at Leal. "What do you mean 'supposed' to? I thought you did go with them."

Luz blinked. "Wait, so you knew?"

Leal sighed. "I-I just asked Eda for advice," she told her sister. She turned to Eda. "And… I didn't. I lied." She sighed once again as she stabbed at her food. "Vi and I… didn't show up in time. It's how we got to the cliff so quickly. We were talking in the forest, because she felt nervous about her and Emira, so I tried to console her a bit. By the time we wrapped up, Grom was already released and yeah…" she lamely trailed off.

"So you stood them up?" Eda exclaimed. "Dang, Bean Head."

"Okay, I know it sounds ba—" she stopped at the blank looks she was receiving. Even King was raising a brow at her. "I know," she slumped. She took a quick bite of her eggs and munched sadly. "I-I thought could make it up to Ed the next day but…"

"But?" her sister prompted.

Leal frowned, swallowing her food.

"I think Edric hates me."

::TITLE OPENING::

"Okay, okay," Eda said, holding her hands up, "backtrack there. You ignored him at Grom?"

Leal's ears burned as she looked down at her half finished plate. "I-I didn't ignore him! I saw him!"

"But you turned away when he saw you," Luz recapped.

Leal scowled. "Yes."

"Then you ignored him," Eda flatly stated.

"Wow, never thought Leal would be cruel with boys!" King teased.

She let out a groan. "Yes, I know, it was a shitty thing to do."

"But… why did you do it?" Luz asked.

Leal flushed. "B-Because! I-I've never had a boy look at me the way he did and…" her mind flashed back to that night, the look on his face. She nearly flinched at the sudden thought. "It scared me," she quietly admitted. "I... I just, I realized this wasn't something I could just go with the flow with." She clenched at her fork and scoffed. "I just wasn't ready. And I panicked."

"So, do you like him?" her sister innocently asked.

Leal glanced up at her helplessly. "I… yes? A-As a friend, definitely. But… as…" she shut her mouth and shrugged. "I don't know what I feel."

"Excited?" Eda tried.

"Huh?"

The witch smirked at her. "Heart racing? Palms sweaty? Does the idea excite you?"

"I-I… no? What!" Leal was desperately trying to fight off the burning feeling in her ears. "I-It's not like that!" She let out a frustrated groan.

"So wait, how do you know he hates you?" Luz asked.

Leal frowned. "He's been avoiding me," she answered. "I-I see him in the caf, or in the halls, and he either draws up an Illusion to get away or just straight up runs!"

"Yikes, talk about irony," Eda mused.

King giggled. "Ha, zing!"

It stung, but it was true. "Y'all are hilarious," she dryly replied. "Point is, I-I just… I'm trying to make myself available but he keeps distancing. It… I-I don't know what to do." She continued to stab at her food, angrily munching as she blew out a breath from her nose.

Eda and Luz exchanged a look, while King tilted his head. "If you ask me, it sounds like he doesn't want to see you," the demon observed.

"Well, yeah," Leal scoffed. "I could obviously tell that much, Scruffy."

He pouted. "Well I thought it was worth pointing out!"

"So, what about Emira?" Luz asked. Leal turned to her. "She and Edric are usually joined at the hip, she avoiding you too?"

Leal sighed. "No… it's more her just following and chasing after her brother than anything." She deepened her frown as she continued to eat her food. She learned yesterday that Viney and Emira were going on their second date after school later today. Lunchtime was usually a bit rough with Viney prodding her every so often about Edric. She wasn't happy with her either, since she learned the day after during her and Emira's first date about Leal's lie. The girl wasn't hostile, but she made sure to jab here and there about Lealtad going to apologize to Edric. "She's… also busy with Vi sometimes," she lightly added.

Eda smirked. "Hey, at least your original goal for your double date worked out!"

She chuckled at that, nodding as she looked at Eda with a half smile. "Yup. There's the silver lining I guess." She shook her head with a sigh. "But that doesn't fix anything. Emira probably hates me too, Viney's well on her way, and I can't even talk to Edric!" she shouted, slamming her hand on the table. She sobered up from her outburst and looked to Luz, who looked worried and scared. Her sister had no idea what to do right now. She'd never really seen her like this, especially over a boy. "Sorry," she softly said.

Luz furrowed her brows. "What? There's nothing to be sorry for!" Her face winced. "W-Well, okay, there is but nothing with us to be sorry for!"

King tilted his head. "I dunno. You promised me another Nerf war the other day and I still wanna collect!"

"Sorry, King, I had my stamina potion I wanted to work on." She offered him a small smile. "I promise we can do it today."

"Well, that's your problem," Eda spoke up, frowning at her.

Leal cocked her head confusedly. "Spending quality time with King?" she guessed.

"Then Leal's got a whole lot of problems for me!" King happily remarked, bouncing up and down in his seat.

The witch shook her head disappointedly. "No. I mean how you're spending your time! Yesterday you were up on the crystal ball talking with that dog friend of yours, and the day before that you were working on your stamina potion. And now today you have plans to play with King?"

"I think that's importan—"

"Can it, King," Eda flatly stated. Her expression shifted into a soft one as she turned back to Leal. "Bean Head, you're still avoiding it. I think you need to actively seek him out."

Leal blinked. "What? But I-I am?"

"No I mean, actually go after him," her guardian reiterated. "You're waiting for him to make the move just by approaching him but you ignored him first." Hearing it so bluntly made her flinch, but she still kept her gaze on Eda. "He's of course going to retreat. Ya can't expect him to eventually let up. If you want to fix this then you need to do something more proactive."

"Yeah, ¡hermana!" her sister excitedly cheered. "It's time for you to make the moves!"

Leal nervously rubbed her thumb across her fork's handle. "I-Is that a good idea though? I mean, if he's avoiding me then maybe I should respect that?"

Eda blinked at her, unimpressed.

"I-I'm backing out again, aren't I?" she softly asked.

"Yuuup. But I don't blame ya. It's scary. And honestly, you have a point." Eda nodded at her. "You pushing so hard might make things worse. It depends on how much you're willing to risk and fix."

Leal gulped at that, looking at leftovers. Her appetite was quickly losing itself here. "I-I don't know if I can make that choice."

Eda leaned over and placed her hand on Leal's, smiling at her reassuringly. "And that's okay. It's always scary. But, like I said, it depends on you. You're still a kid, you've got so much growing to do." She pulled her hand back and crossed her arms. "Don't hesitate and live with regret for the rest of your life." She chuckled hollowly as she shook her head. "Take it from someone who's had lots over the years… you'll wanna live with as few as possible. Talk to him. Don't wait for him to make the move. You need to. It's a leap, remember?"

Lealtad gulped and nodded. "Okay." She took a deep breath. "I'll… try."

Eda winked. "Never doubted you for a second." She clapped her hands. "We better hurry now! Unless you wanna be late for school!" she announced, casting a spell circle and levitating all their dishes toward the sink.

They all immediately dispersed, with Leal gathering her stuff after washing her hands and Luz diving into the living room to get her things. Eda handed Leal her lunch before she went to get Owlbert. King announced the food fatigue getting to him but still wanting to go with them on their way to school, so Luz proposed that he ride in her hoodie. Within three minutes, they were off to the skies and on their way to Hexside.

In the coming distance, Leal could see flares and flashes from Illusion magic and a huge banner saying GO GET 'EM, BANSHEES. She rolled her eyes. Right, she forgot about grudgby. Luz's eyes widened with excitement as she leaned forward, making Leal instinctively adjust her hood so King didn't jostle or fall out. "Oooh, they really went all out!" her sister cooed.

Leal rolled her eyes. "Ah yes, exactly what I needed, sports fanaticism."

"Ya never know, it might be the perfect thing to use as a buffer," Eda pointed out as they began their descent.

Upon their landing, Luz eagerly stepped forward and jerked her thumb to herself. "My first grudgby season! I'm so excited, I have more school spirit than the school spirits!" she shouted, pumping her fists to the sky.

A chill breezed behind Leal and she turned to see a ghost floating with black pom-poms. Their face seemed very sad. "Why do I even bother," they groaned, tossing their pom-poms to the ground and floating away in a cartwheel manner.

Leal snorted. "Guess you were right 'bout that department, Sunshine," she joked.

"Ah, grudgby season is the best," Eda fondly spoke up. She jerked her thumb to herself. "You know, I used to play, back in my gory days.

"You mean 'glory days'?" Luz corrected.

Eda smirked and pointed at Luz. "Well, that too," she amusedly agreed. Leal fondly rolled her eyes as Eda pumped her fist excitedly. "I was unstoppable on the field. I had the best moves and," she brought her hand up and rested her chin on the back of it, waggling her brows enticingly, "the best cheats."

Leal snorted. "Of course ya did."

"Cheating isn't anything to brag about," her sister argued. "How do you know you were any good if all you did was cheat your way to victory?" she soundly pointed out.

"Ahh, hermana, never change your pure heart." Leal fondly sighed.

Eda scoffed. "What do humans know, with your goody-goody attitude? If 'cheaters never prosper', why was I the star player?" she challenged, gesturing to herself triumphantly.

Luz exchanged a look with Leal, who just shrugged disinterestedly.

"Well, can't reason with crazy," her sister shrugged back. She turned around and plucked King from out of her hood, who was fast asleep. "Bye, King, you little snoozers," she said as she lifted his ragdoll-like body and pecked his skull before placing him on Owlbert.

The demon's snoring ceased as his eyes fluttered open just barely. He then scrambled up and into Eda's hair, nuzzling in deep. Leal cringed at the sight, knowing despite how cool it looked, the woman's hair was not unkempt by style but simply because of hygiene—or her lack thereof. And as if to justify her disgust, King emerged his head. "Ugh. Eda, when was the last time you cleaned up in here?" he asked, chucking out a bag of onion rings.

Leal shuddered at the sight and turned away, taking her cue to catch up with her sister. "See ya back home! Love you!" she shouted over her shoulder. Her sister's pace slowed as her head tilted upward, eyes still locked on the banner above in awe. She chuckled as she bumped her sister's shoulder. "You seem real into this sport for a girl who's yet to actually catch a match."

She frowned and turned to Leal. "Hey, that's just how powerful my school spirit is!"

"I think that's just how powerful your any spirit is," Leal teased, ruffling her sister's hair before walking ahead. Her gaze flew to the front steps and toward the open doors. And there, she saw a familiar head of dark green hair. Edric Blight and his sister were currently sitting on the top of the steps, chatting animatedly with each other. Leal's eyes lit up in excitement. "Hey, Ed!" she shouted, throwing a wave and a smile.

The witch caught her eye before he immediately rose up and spun around, rushing into the building. His sister was quick to catch up with him, leaving Leal to wave at no one.

"Great start," Leal muttered.

"Don't give up!" Luz cheered on, appearing at her side.

Lealtad sighed but still shot her sister an appreciative smile, making her way toward the steps. She knew it wouldn't have been the best time to talk now, but she could at least have caught him and planned a time to meet. If anything, that was as good a plan as any. As she and Luz ascended the steps, she sensed her sister shooting her a glance every now and then. Once they entered the school—the usual time they'd go separate ways—she caught her sister lingering with a hesitant look. Lealtad raised a brow, prompting the girl.

Luz tilted her head. "You know you can talk to me too, right?"

Leal's eyes widened. Oh. That's what this was about? "Yeah, of course, hermana," she chuckled. She leaned over and flipped her bat upside down, allowing her to hug her sister. "I know that."

Luz hugged her back. "Just… don't forget."

She pulled away and winked. "I won't. And never do, Sunshine." She turned away and threw up a peace sign. "Have a nice day!"

"You too!" her sister shouted back.

Lealtad shook her head good naturedly as she merged with the hustle and bustle of Hexside. It was sweet of Luz, but Leal didn't want to burden her little sister with her problems. Luz would go above and beyond to help, and Leal appreciated that. But she didn't need that either. There was no sense getting Luz involved after all.

She could handle this.

::::

Potions was a great way to get her mind off things.

Don't get her wrong, Leal loved Healing as well, but with her genetic magic crutch there was still only so much she could perform. She enjoyed Healing for its studious and well informative side, as she learned a lot about the body and health from it—including all kinds of body types. But Potions let her experiment and play around. At first, she had her issues, but now, Leal took any chance she could to create potions. After she had time to spare, she'd brew more batches of strength, sleeping, fog, and more recently stamina.

If her bag wasn't filled with ingredients and potions, then her school storage potions chest would be. Most usually reserved those for their ingredients that they scavenged in Potions 'Till You Die, but Leal had so much she decided to stockpile in advance. Between home and at school, Lealtad always had a batch of something ready. Needless to say, she felt very comfortable working with her potions.

In Potions 101, they experimented with reverse engineering finished brews and trying to work out the necessary ingredients required. It had been one of the hardest things they'd done as of late, and Ayla informed them it was something they were going to be revisiting tomorrow as well as periodically throughout the year. She and Barcus barely managed to provide a full list by the end of class, but Ayla seemed impressed by their results nonetheless.

Though Leal couldn't help but notice Boscha had skipped class, leaving her to wonder if the girl had an elective at this time of day or couldn't be bothered. She understood it was grudgby playoff season, so maybe she took her time to practice or something. Either way, Leal welcomed the lack of the triclops as it meant she could focus more without the girl glaring at her every so often. It definitely made for a more peaceful first period.

"Honestly," Leal began as they entered Potions in Motion, "that was such a doozy. I've never thought about deconstructing a potion backwards."

Barcus nodded his similar sentiment. "That felt more like guesswork than anything else."

Leal chuckled while the two found their seats. Like clockwork, Barcus had already gone through the liberty of levitating their cauldrons and items toward their desk as Leal prepped her notes. "Yeah, but Ayla seemed to think we were on the right track."

"I hate when that happens though," her friend replied. "It feels like I am being teased about the answer, and I somehow know how to solve it—"

"When in reality, ya know nada," Leal joked. She nodded in agreement as she flipped her notebook open. "But actually, it's kinda like how Eda taught Luz 'bout our glyphs. Like, it's a matter of understanding the Isles and all that, but so far Luz is the only one who's managed to find literally anything with them. I've tried, but I don't think it comes to me as naturally as it does for her."

Barcus quirked his lips. "Well, 'naturally' implies that what Luz has managed isn't a result of her skill."

She shot him an admonishing look. "¡Oye! You know what I meant," she deadpanned.

He shrugged back at her. "And you have said before how you and your sister learn differently. She may be more proficient in learning with glyphs, but if our practice sessions are anything to say you have certainly applied a creative take in using them. Especially with glyphs."

"Ah, I-I dunno," Leal sheepishly argued. "I barely use light glyphs aside from photography." Last time she really used them was for Grom Night, when she took photos near the wall. "Plants are… a bit more confusing and intuitive than ice," she explained.

"Sure, but you are using magic. How you understand potions and all these new brews you're making," her friend pointed out, "is bonafide proof that you're excelling."

Leal flushed at her friend's words. "Gracias, Perro Guía." Ayla had arrived now, and class was just about ready to begin. Again, Leal noticed the resident annoyance was still nowhere to be found. "Hey, where's Boscha the Brat?" she whispered.

Barcus scoffed before he said, "Grudgby season is a whole other level of Boscha Brattiness. Teachers let her skip and do whatever she wants during classes if it means keeping up the school team's reputation and win streak."

Leal frowned at that. "Ugh, I remember reading about how proud our school was into grudgby, but I didn't think they were that sports focused," she bitterly muttered. "Well, least she's outta our hair."

"I pity the person whose hair she is in though."

Leal snorted. "I hear ya."

The bell rang, and Ayla called for everyone to quiet down and listen. In just under a minute, she gave off a quick preamble about letting everyone work on their personal projects today. She still advised that some try to echo the lessons of their precursor class, but didn't discourage anyone from working on their own things. Of the class, Lealtad was at the top when it came to producing several batches per class. Participation wise, they were graded at how much results they could produce—be it notes or their actual brews—and Leal was well known as very eager when it came to brewing.

Ayla always seemed excited to encourage Leal to keep trying, and the girl took that stride toward her healing potion project. She felt as though she was close to a discovery, and today might've been the class to work it out. Similarly, Barcus felt all the more confident that he was nearing a finished product with his precognitive potion. The handy thing with his other personal project—the potion that could help remember forgotten trains of thoughts or ideas—dubbed the "recall brew"—was that it was able to help him focus or remember ingredients he had forgotten to try.

Both her and her partner were very excited and eager to get their work done today.

It wasn't that long into class that both Barcus and Leal got into the swing of things. She already had a decent mock up of where to start and go from, but it was still hard figuring out the right combinations. She hissed as she moved toward her notebook, checking off her recent addition. "Ground up roacholotl skin, seven tablespoons," she muttered to herself, "Definitely worth keeping." She was on another brew, this time carefully considering each addition as she went on.

Barcus hummed as he maintained his stirring. "You have a concrete ingredient?" he asked.

Leal nodded as she shifted to Barcus' notebook. "Yup. Need me to write anything?"

He nodded his appreciation. "Stir until mixture darkens to dark indigo." She hurriedly jotted down his note into his notebook before returning to her own brew. The unfortunate thing with Barcus' dog demon-like physique, was his reliance on levitation magic for nearly everything. That also meant when working on a potion—especially one that he was essentially making up—he couldn't split focus from stirring to levitating a simple pencil and writing things down. Of course, Leal happily took the mantle as his seat partner and subjected herself to being his notetaker on the fly, if needed. She could multitask enough, and well, despite being left handed she did have to adopt a semi ambidextrous utility.

Luz would still make fun of her right handed handwriting, comparing it to a step above chicken scratch.

"Thanks," Barcus said, his eyes still locked onto his cauldron. "But I heard you right, yeah? Roacholotl skin?"

"Grounded up, roacholotl skin," Leal corrected, tapping her mortar and pestle with the end of her pencil. She shifted over to the rest of her ingredients, sifting through the next best addition. "The natural healing and hardiness of the roacholotl will definitely add the necessary healing effects I'm looking for," she explained, "And well, one strand already gives at least three tablespoons so I figure seven is enough to really bring out its natural properties."

"You've tested the quantity before, haven't you?"

Leal nodded. "Eight and above starts to dilute the water too much, and anything below barely gets absorbed. I think I found the sweet spot!" she happily concluded. "And I already know my next move!" She plucked a vial of ratworm spit from her array of ingredients and smirked. "One of this will surely give me the viscosity needed before I start stirring!"

She sensed Barcus' gaze glancing over for a split second. "Ratworm spit? You've been consistently using that recently. You really think it'll help?"

"I'm like… eighty to eighty-five percent confident," she conceded. She heard her friend chuckle, making her laugh a bit. "Well, I already use one vial for my stamina potion, and I notice the effects of it really play into the energy boost I get after ingesting it. I'm willing to bet the natural speed enhancements will amplify the roacholotl skin like I think it's been doing." She poured the vial in and began stirring. "Last time I tried something like this though, the mixture turned light blue."

"Ahh, and you think because of the natural healing aura of Healing magic, that's the right track?"

Leal sheepishly shrugged. "Call it a hopeful hunch, but yeah. It… It feels like the right track." She shifted to her notebook and awkwardly wrote down, One vial of ratworm spit with her right hand, barely keeping it on the same line. "I've been thinking about Miss Ayla's other lessons with working on a potion without a recipe, and well, what we did today." She pursed her lips. "If working backwards is something worth considering, I figured aiming for the results I want consistently with what I believe works might be the best way to construct a solid potion."

Barcus hummed. "I wish I had that kinda thinking toward my potion. It still feels like a dead end each attempt I make."

"Well, maybe perspective is the problem," Leal ventured, though not taking her eyes off her cauldron either.

"How do you mean?"

"I mean, if you wanna mix magic you seem to be doing more Potions then Oracle at the moment. Using more Oracle magic might help you see what you need going forward."

"Hmm, not a bad idea Leal!" she heard a spell cast and suddenly, Barcus' crystal ball was between them. She could see from her peripheral vision that he had begun using Oracle magic, attempting to see into the ball.

Leal gasped. "Wh-Whoa, ain't that a lot to do at the same time?"

Barcus chuckled. "Maybe, but it might be worth it to cease the stirring and focus on this for now," he wagered.

Lealtad shrugged as she turned her attention back to her potion. Well, Barcus did know more about Oracle magic than her, so she trusted that he knew what he was doing. Leal, meanwhile, was due for a long haul with stirring her cauldron. Getting to a light blue mixture took nearly ten minutes, and in that time, she had to fret about her next ingredient. So far, out of all her tests, she was confident that this current recipe had the necessary components. But her tests consisted of bruising her forearm or pricking it, but none of her results and healed those brief injuries. She'd always have to go to Viney afterwards and politely ask her to give her a once over.

Of course, these days it was more awkward considering…

She shook her head, sighing.

Great, and now it was back in her mind.

Viney wasn't being antagonistic or rude to her. And she certainly wasn't ignoring her like Edric. She was just… a bit upset. They still worked together in Healing, but the girl was not shy about badgering her into apologizing to Edric. It was ironic, given that nearly a week ago the witch had to be convinced to hang out with the Blights, and now it was Viney pushing Leal to talk to Edric. Nonetheless, Leal felt like she couldn't keep going to Viney for something like this, she needed to get this done today.

Her potion.

Not Edric.

Okay, yes, Edric as well.

Leal bit her lip and continued to stir, focusing on her mixture. Focus on this. She had to. Edric was for later. There was nothing she could do now. Pragmatically, this was a logical course of action. There was no sense dwelling on it when she was sure she'd do something later. Right. Because she would definitely not chicken out once again.

Suddenly, her hands began to feel clammy. She nearly startled at the sudden sweat accumulating in her palm. Really? Was she this nervous about it? Lealtad repeatedly unclenched and clenched her hands, alternating between her left and right as she tried to remove the weird feeling. So, now she was thinking about it, regardless of how much she wanted not to.

Was that rude?

The willingness and desire to just… ignore the problem for now?

Did this still count as avoiding it?

"I think I did it," Barcus barked excitedly. Leal spun out of her thoughts and toward her partner, who was looking down at his new mixture, which was a lighter shade of indigo. She gaped in awe as her partner excitedly began scooping his batch out into four bottles. Maintaining her attention as she stirred, she watched while Barcus drank the whole bottle. He shook his head and cringed, sticking out his tongue. She assumed he was not a fan of the taste.

Soon after, however, his eyes began to glow bright purple. The sight startled Leal and caused her to jump back a bit. "Uhh, ¿Perro Guía? You good?" she called out. His mouth hung open as he remained rigid, making Leal panic a bit. "Um, Miss Ayla?" she frantically shouted.

Her teacher appeared at her side. "Hang on, we'll have to wait to see for any effects taking place," she calmly advised, placing a hand on Leal's shoulder.

Leal nervously gulped as she watched Barcus. He was so still but his face looked like he was in a trance. Thankfully, seconds later and he came out it, blinking rapidly with a big smile. He turned toward her and grinned. "It works…"

Leal's jaw dropped. "Really?"

Barcus excitedly nodded. "It works! It looks like I can only see a few minutes into the future, and only from my perspective, but it worked!" he happily formed her, barking cheerfully.

Ayla clapped her hands. "That's great news, Mister Baker! What were you able to see?"

He turned to Leal with a wide grin. "You're gonna solve your potion soon."

Lealtad blinked in shock. "What?"

"I saw it. You had the finished potion and it worked!"

"U-Uh, you sure it wasn't like, the distant future?" she sheepishly argued. "It could've been tomorrow or—"

"No Leal." Barcus shook his head with a smile. "It's now."

Leal's eyes widened in shock as she turned back to her brew, which had just changed to a shade of light blue. This was it. It was literally foreseen that she had the solution in front of her. She ceased her stirring and looked at her array of ingredients. "Do I get a hint or…" she lightly prodded, beaming at her friend pleadingly.

Barcus chuckled. "I only saw it working, Leal. I saw you drinking it and saying it worked. I didn't see what the ingredients were." He smiled at her. "But I did notice it was a blue colour!"

Ayla offered a light round of applause. "Well, I hope your prediction rings true then, Mister Baker. And best of luck to you, Leal!" she encouragingly said before walking off.

Leal sighed and pouted, turning back to her assortment. If Barcus' potion was true, then it practically guaranteed the next item she chose would work. Which meant it was a new ingredient she hadn't used before, since it was a confirmed blue colour—something she hadn't achieved yet. But… everything she had was stuff she already tried! She looked to Barcus' array and frowned, there was barely anything different from his side. Even then, nothing he had possessed the natural healing properties she was looking for.

It had to be something new, but she didn't have anything new.

What could she do?

When she thought about it, there was obviously one big missing element with the brew. Something that really cemented the healing properties when ingested by the user. "Ingested," she murmured, glancing at Barcus thoughtfully. He merely cocked his head patiently as he panted, smiling at her. He seemed so confident in her. Heck, Lealtad wagered even if he hadn't seen the future he would've believed she could do it. It was that kind of good natured faith in which Leal really admired and appreciated.

Sure, Viney and Jerbo had their fair share of moments, but Barcus really knew how to place faith behind his words. As though he really meant what he said. It was no different than Luz; her sister was earnest, no doubt, but that came from great courage and passion as well. It was a kind of sincerity that reminded her… of Edric.

Leal frowned as she turned back to her cauldron of light blue. How can she be expected to heal the wounds between her and Edric when she couldn't even make a healing potion?

"But, like I said, it depends on you."

That's what Eda said this morning.

Leal looked back at her ingredients. Maybe this was her problem. There's no outliers that can come in to fix things. She couldn't rely on someone else to come forward, or even Edric himself to do it. She had to instigate. She started it that way, might as well resolve it the same way. Leal looked back to Barcus, who was still panting with a big smile as he now focused on jotting down his recipe. Maybe… that was what healing was all about: working on self, first.

Her eyes widened as the realization hit her. "¡Santa mierda!" she exclaimed. "It's saliva!"

Barcus spun his head toward her incredulously. "What?"

Leal ignored her partner as she began grabbing some empty potion bottles. She quickly filled them, noting that the batch emptied at four bottles. Leaving one of the bottles uncapped, Leal proceeded to bring it close to her lips and leaned over it. What happened next was actually the grossest thing Lealtad had ever done herself: she began to salivate in her mouth and proceeded to spit straight into the bottle. Barcus stared at her in shock and disgust while Leal felt her ears heat up, as though everyone had just seen her do that. But she wouldn't let the attention deter her stride. "I think I got it!" she explained as she capped the bottle with a cork stopper. She started to shake it, like an energy drink, as she smiled at Barcus. "It needs DNA!"

Barcus stared at her in confusion, but she continued to shake. Miss Ayla had noticed her excitement and returned to their desk, equally confused as she watched Leal shake the bottle. Leal herself wasn't sure what would happen to the mixture, as shaking it up was different from stirring, but it was the only way to mix it in such a small container.

With all the healing properties mixed in, maybe the real reason why a potion like this wouldn't work or hasn't been made was because of how different every individual was on the Isles. With Healing magic and glyphs, most problems could be easily resolved with practical Healing Coven assistance. But to use a potion, it'd have different effects on different witches and demons.

Relief then flooded in Leal as her bottle's mixture darkened from light blue to blue. She gaped in awe as she looked to Barcus for confirmation.

"That's how it looked!" he affirmed. "And then you drank—"

Without hesitation, Leal grabbed the edge of her notebook, and instantly dragged her finger along it. She hissed in pain as she felt the sting erupt and sure enough: her finger had a cut. Despite the brief pain, Leal smiled in eagerness as she uncapped the cork stopper and drank the bottle. Ignoring the concept that she had just spat into it, she was greeted with the familiar taste of bitter medicine. If that wasn't enough confirmation that she was on the right track, what happened next was.

After she finished the bottle, Leal glanced at her paper cut and she watched in awe as the small cut outlined with a light blue hue before sealing up. It was such a strange sensation. For something that was stinging a moment ago to just… stop. But, she remembered the feeling of it too. That sensation was similar to what she felt back at The Knee—when Eda healed her. She glanced between Miss Ayla and Barcus, with her smile burning bright. "¡Ay guau! It worked!" she shouted, pumping her fists to the sky. "It felt exactly like a Healing spell!"

Barcus beamed at her. "Told ya it was gonna happen!"

"W-Wow," Ayla stammered in awe, "That's… amazing Miss Noceda." She had her hand on her forehead as she blinked at Leal's batch. "A healing potion. Why, the Healing Coven might just be ecstatic over something like this!"

Leal turned to her teacher with a sheepish smile. "A-Actually, I kinda need to run a couple more tests." She turned back to Barcus with a pleading look. "This healed me because I put my DNA into it," she said while picking up one of her bottles and holding it out to him, "I need ya to spit into this and let me try it on you: to really see if my theory pans out."

"Uhh, sure?" he awkwardly answered.

She chuckled, placing the bottle before him. "Lemme guess, didn't see this in your precognitive potion?" she teased as she uncapped the bottle. As she leaned back to her side, she noticed Ayla was still hovering, her eyes transfixed with their exchange. Their teacher was no doubt equally as invested at this point.

Barcus smiled in amusement. "I only saw you cheering in celebration like you did just a few seconds ago, the vision stopped there." He then leaned over and spat into the bottle.

Leal nodded her understanding, moving to cap the bottle. Shooting an apologetic smile, she said, "Sorry, Barky, but ya mind, um—"

"Say no more!" he barked happily, moving his paw to his ingredients. He proceeded to cut himself with a manta bear claw, making Leal gasp.

"I-I was just thinking a paper cut would suffice," she said while shaking up the potion bottle.

Barcus's face contorted into pain as he shrugged. "It's fine. Besides, testing its effectiveness is crucial too!"

He was right, but seeing him commit so easily was a bit startling. Nonetheless, the second the mixture turned a darker shade of blue, Leal popped off the bottle and handed it back to Barcus, watching with bated breath as he picked it up with his teeth and drank. And sure enough, once he finished, all eyes flew toward his right paw.

The cut shone with a light blue hue and immediately after, was gone. Barcus smiled and looked to Leal. "It worked!"

"¡Dios mío, lo hice!" she shouted, pumping her fists to the sky once again.

"Astounding Miss Noceda!" Ayla commended with a light round of applause. "Truly, you have something amazing in your hands here!"

She turned and straightened up, attempting to compose herself. "Thank you, Ma'am."

Ayla raised a finger. "However, such a project like this deserves to be tested properly. So I propose that during your study period for Healing (Again), we allot some time with Mister Rowan to test the extent of your potion's potency and cures—much like Mister Baker did," she gently suggested.

Leal's brow raised. "You mean… with more severe injuries?"

Her teacher nodded. "Don't fret, I'll arrange something with Mister Rowan during lunch. It won't be anything he can't handle!" she added before turning away. "Congratulations once again, Miss Noceda and Mister Baker. It warms my cauldron to know I have such passionate students excelling in my class!"

Lealtad turned back to Barcus and shared a smile.

"Knew you could do it," her friend smiled.

"Thanks to you, Perro Guía."

He chuckled. "Likewise. I don't think I would've gotten to my potion if I didn't try mixing more Oracle magic like you suggested!" He tilted his head and smirked. "Plus, you already helped a ton with my notes and lending me ingredients."

She shrugged. "Just doing what I can, B-Dog."

He winked. "And I you, Miss Chemist."

Leal's brows raised at that. "Oooh? Chemist, huh? I like it!" She looked toward her finished batch and proudly smiled.

If she could do this, then her true agenda today could be done too.

She was still handling it.

::::

Leal didn't even see her sister or her friends in the cafeteria today, but she shrugged it off, thinking nothing of it. She settled into her usual seat with Barcus beside her, while Viney and Jerbo sat across from her. Lunch was a fairly amicable experience, though Leal could sense Viney's gaze every now and then along with the silent implications that came with. It was kind of an understatement to mention that the girl had her own reservations about Leal's… tactics (or lack thereof) when it came to dealing with the brother of the girl she was sorta dating.

It wasn't like she could really blame Viney though. At the very least, she wasn't being entirely antagonistic about it…

"So you talking to him today?" the girl asked with a mouthful of pudding.

Leal frowned with her sandwich in her mouth. Well, she wasn't always proactive about it. She ignored Viney's question and bit into her sandwich, savouring the taste. It was only a griffin meat sandwich instead this time, as Eda had stressed the importance of at least somewhat mixing up Leal's lunch diet. She wanted to complain, but understood the witch came from a well meant place. And, well, was also right. Most of the time.

"Vi," Barcus gently barked, glaring at the girl, "Leave it alone."

She sighed. "I'm sorry, okay? It's just… Em is really upset about it too," Viney stressed as she set down her empty cup of pudding. "I feel so bad 'cause literally all of us know it was just a big dumb mistake but you and Ed are the ones making this hard."

"Hey," Leal pointed at the girl. "Cuida tu lenguaje," she advised.

Viney blinked at her. "You know I have no idea what you're saying, right?"

"Watch it," Leal rephrased sardonically. "I know it's my fault and I know I've been avoiding it. It's just… been hard to work up to it."

Viney pouted. "I-I don't mean to harass you about it so much," she amended sheepishly. "I just don't want things between you guys to worsen because of this."

Leal's heart ached at the girl's soft admission. She stopped chewing on her sandwich and looked down at it sadly. Eda was right, what was the point if she was just going to live to regret it? She swallowed and let out a deep sigh. "I'm… I'm scared," she admitted.

All movement ceased. Jerbo and Barcus perked up from their meals while Viney stared at her shock.

She glanced at them all bewilderedly. "What? I can't be scared?"

"N-No!" Jerbo quickly asserted. "It's just… I guess, kinda surprising to hear you be upfront about it for a change."

Viney nodded in agreement. "Does this mean you know how you feel about him?"

Leal groaned, slumping her shoulders. "No, Vi, it does not," she flatly answered. "I… I just don't want us to be like this anymore. I-I like Edric! And I'd hate to have him avoiding me because of something I did."

"That's fair. There's no need to have your feelings entirely sorted on it just to apologize," Barcus chimed in.

She smiled in appreciation toward her Potions partner. "Thanks," she softly said.

"Leal, I don't mean to pester you about this," Viney gently said, "I get that you're scared. And… I honestly get why, even if you don't see it yourself." She frowned as she looked down at her finished tray of food. "I… I just want good things for you too. You helped me with Em, an-and I wanna help you too. But it can't be done if you're gonna dance around it."

"Viney," Barcus barked, "I think she gets your point already."

"It's fine, Barcus," Leal quickly interjected, raising her hand. She looked up from her sandwich and sighed. "I-I do appreciate your help though. I do plan on doing something today but—"

"You're still scared," Jerbo concluded. At her nod, he smiled. "Well, it's only natural! Pretty scary situation to be in."

"Real helpful, 'Bo," Barcus dryly remarked.

"I'm just saying: don't sweat so much," he amended.

Viney nodded eagerly. "Yeah!" She smiled at Leal. "Leap of faith, right?"

Lealtad sighed, dropping her head. "Dama Búho always manages to get the last word," she muttered as she picked up her sandwich. "Thanks guys. I-I swear, I am working on it. But, I don't think school is exactly the best place to talk about all this." She took a bite of her meal and shrugged.

"You want me to come?" Barcus offered. "Emotional support or something?"

She chuckled. "That's sweet, dude, but nah. However it goes, it's better if it's just us." She nodded to Viney. "You and Em are going on a date today anyways, so that guarantees Ed will be free." She took a breath. "That just means I have to catch him after school so I can talk to him."

Jerbo beamed, patting Viney's shoulder. "See? A plan's in place!"

Viney smirked. "Good. I'm hoping it'll work out for you."

"Hey, speaking of working out," Barcus slyly said, "Leal managed to get her healing potion working!"

Their friends' faces lit up in shock and pride. Leal bid a quick grateful nod toward Barcus, before letting the conversation delve into their very successful morning (studies wise, in Leal's case). Their friends were happy for them and curious about how well their potions worked, which led to Leal sharing her testing procedure that'd be happening during her and Viney's study period. But they weren't the only ones with notable achievements. Jerbo had shared his progress and success with mixing Abomination and Plant magic: his Plant Abomination was enormous and could apparently use multiple vine appendages, which was very versatile and strong.

Leal still couldn't fathom how cool it was that each and every one of them was mixing magic, and in turn, excelling at their studies because of it.

"And yeah, it seems like everyone's finally getting used to having Puddles around as my assistant," Viney happily stated.

Jerbo snorted. "Could hardly blame them. Working with a giant griffin is a hard adjustment period."

"Hey, he's not giant," Viney argued.

"Well, regardless of his size, I'm still grateful you keep lending me his feathers—comes in real handy for my stamina potions!" Lealtad happily addressed.

Her friend grinned. "See? Someone's at least adjusted to my assistant."

Leal snorted. "I also live with a giant demon door-bird." She dropped her voice to a stage-whisper, "I'm hardly a standard for normal."

"Is anyone?"

Lealtad laughed good naturedly at the girl's reply. She could understand Viney's protectiveness over her pet though. It was only in their fourth, fifth, and sixth period classes of Healing where they had more practical demonstrations, and as such Puddles was more often than not in the room by then. The more practical classes were where Leal had troubles in, as she still couldn't really do Healing magic. Her gaze shifted to her healing potions in her bag, making her smile. Well, hopefully after today, that would all change.

She might finally have a leg to stand on, if only a little bit.

"You guys have another Healing practical tomorrow, right?" Jerbo inquired, glancing between Leal and Viney.

The two nodded. "Yup. It's a pretty standard test too, nothing but cuts and bruises. Just on multiple consecutive subjects is all," Viney answered.

"So I assume that means you're skipping out on tomorrow's field trip?" the boy guessed.

Leal furrowed a brow at that. "The one to the Emperor's Castle?" she recalled before taking a bite. She heard about that trip a couple days ago. She didn't sign up because she thought it would just eat up valuable time she could've spent in class learning, and since it was an optional choice it didn't seem like it was necessary. Though she learned after school that her sister and her friends signed up, which kind of made Leal regret not going. Of course Luz promised to take photos and notes for her, but Leal assured her little sister to focus on enjoying the trip instead. Still, Jerbo bringing it up made her worry a bit.

"It was voluntary, right?" she clarified after swallowing her bite.

"Yup," Viney answered. "I didn't sign up because of our practical."

Barcus nodded in agreement. "I didn't want to go. I thought I'd still be working on my prophetic potion by then," he admitted with a bashful smile.

Leal clicked her teeth disappointedly. "Ah, you doubted your own skills and work ethic, ¡Perro Guía!"

He rolled his eyes with a fond smile, while Jerbo scoffed, shaking his head. "Well, I gladly chose not to go!" he stated, folding his arms across his chest.

Viney sighed. "Oh, here we go again."

Jerbo balked, looking at Viney offendedly. "Hey, wanting to revamp the Coven system is a big goal! And I don't want to buy into that tour guide nonsense," he declared. Leal exchanged a confused look with Barcus, who seemed like he was tired of hearing this before. "Seriously, all that stuff is pure propaganda biz." He gestured around them. "We're proof that the natural way of Nine Covens needs a proper overhaul! If we thrive in our academics with more than one track then why do we need to join one coven to keep doing that?"

Honestly, she really vibed with what he was saying. It was the kind of stuff Eda rambled on about back in June. Leal smirked, lifting her fist across the table and offering props. "Respect, Bo-Man," she commended. He bumped her fist proudly. "I know Eda would totally agree with you. Her whole shtick is being anti-Coven anyways."

"Hmm, that tracks," Barcus mused. He sighed. "Unintentional pun by the way."

The group laughed at that.

"Honestly, mixing magic does seem to make us do better than average," Leal addressed before taking the last bite of her sandwich.

"Exactly!" Jerbo agreed, slamming his fist on the table excitedly. He pointed at her excitedly while Leal continued to chew with a mouthful. "Leal, you just developed a healing potion! No one's ever thought to do something like that because of Healing magic! But your recipe could revolutionize and reevaluate the distribution of conventional Healing throughout the Isles!" he proclaimed, gesturing around the cafeteria.

Leal's ears flushed at Jerbo's passionate defence. She certainly wasn't that forward thinking when it came to this kind of stuff. If anything, it was more selfish of why she wanted to make it in the first place. She nervously gulped and chuckled. "Oh, wow. I-I dunno Bo-Man, I didn't think that far ahead with it," she sheepishly admitted. Her friends all drew their eyes toward her, making her casually shrug. "I was just thinking it'd be nice to have for Luz and King was all. We get wrapped up in a lot of shit."

Barcus smiled at her. "That alone is enough. Shows you made it for the right reasons!" He gave Jerbo a gentle admonishing look. "The revolutionary movement can come after."

"Of course it can," Jerbo waved off. "But that's not to say it doesn't have any merit! Don't deny your value, Leal!" her friend advised, pointing at her knowingly.

"I'll try not to, 'Bo," she amusedly replied.

Which was easier said than done.

::::

By the time school was finished, Leal was rushing from her locker to Viney's to catch her friend. She hadn't expected testing her healing potion to take up all of her study period, but because of it, she was able to get a decent grasp on what it could heal. With Miss Ayla as the consenting test subject—a notion that seriously made Leal unnerved—and Mister Rowan on standby, they were able to learn her potions could heal some pretty severe wounds and injuries.

Nothing entirely fatal, like bone breaking or massive punctures (Rowan had to test on Ayla's hand, the sight was incredibly jarring to witness) but enough that it got the job done in a way a regular Healing spell would. Both her teachers gave her extra marks for her project, which left Leal in a high. She still had more to test with it, but knowing its limits off the bat was beneficial nonetheless.

She had half a mind to share her discovery with Viney, while the other half had a semi selfish reason for seeking out her Healing partner. She knew she and Emira would be going on a date after school, so she hoped she could catch Emira before then—just to get a grasp on where or how to talk to Edric. She originally planned to wait by the entrance to catch the Blight, but with her practice tests going as long as it did she would never make it to the other end of the school on time.

And so, she mustered up as much courage as she could as she rounded the corner and saw Emira with Viney. They both looked really happy together, leaning against the lockers with their hands swinging close to each other just barely. Leal nearly froze, worrying about intruding on their moment. But she remembered Eda's words—she was not about to look for another excuse. "Hey guys!" she shouted as she made her approach.

Viney's brows raised, with a look of worry gracing her face as she glanced between Emira and her. "Oh, hey Leal!"

Emira turned her head and frowned at her, silently nodding.

Oof.

"How was your testing?"

Leal smiled. "Went great," she casually waved off. "I'll tell you about it tomorrow—I was actually hoping to ask Emira something?"

Said girl's brows raised. "What about?" Emira asked.

"Do you know where I can find Ed?"

Her curiosity deepened into a scowl.

"Don't know if I should be sharing anything with you," she softly replied with hesitation in her tone.

Leal sighed. "Em, please, you gotta tell me where your brother is," she implored her.

The girl sighed back, with her scowl lessening into a small frown. "I'm sorry, Leal, but he was… really upset about Grom."

She winced. "I-I know. And, I'm sorry I did that to your brother."

Emira's expression shifted into a smile. "Viney already explained what happened to me, Leal, about why you two were late. It… It's okay."

"If it really is okay, then tell me where I can find your brother," Leal pleaded. The girl's face was filled with hesitance but Leal wouldn't be deterred. If Emira could understand, then she could make Edric understand too. She could do it today. And she wouldn't let herself back out of it this time either. Taking a deep breath, she locked onto the girl's eyes seriously. "Emira, I swear on my father's grave," she held her hand to her heart, "I'm going to make it up to him today."

Those words seemed to have the right effect, as she blinked in shock for a few seconds. Then, the Blight observed her for a moment before letting out a sigh. "Okay Lealtad. He's at the Grom Tree."

Leal gulped.

Emira chuckled. "He's been going that cliffside to hang out way before Grom. Well, usually we go there," she amended.

Leal nodded. "Okay. Thanks, Em." She turned away and began walking.

"Leal?"

She stopped, looking back at the Blight.

"Good luck," Emira said with a smile.

She bid a parting wave and took off, leaving no room for waste. The second she exited the school, Leal pulled out a stamina potion and drank it. The effects kicked in immediately, and with a pep in her step, Lealtad sprinted straight toward the Grom Tree. An obviously newly dubbed name for the spot, but knowing it was somewhere Edric and his sister would occasionally go to meant a lot of things. It was probably one of the spots they'd go to when they ditched school. It was probably where they hid after pranks. But most importantly: Emira trusted Leal with knowing this.

Which meant Leal couldn't afford to screw this up.

Not anymore than she already had.

By the time she reached the clearing leading to the cliffside, her stamina potion's effects began to dwindle. Her body was starting to feel drained a bit, but Leal pressed on. She was used to being exhausted from spurts of running anyways—she could manage. The second she made it out toward the cliff face, she was greeted with the sight of the giant Grom Tree. It seemed like magic in and of itself, with how petals continued to fall from it at every waking moment while the tree still had leaves to constantly shed. But her eyes wandered down to the base, where she saw the boy of interest.

He was running around, playing with rabat—a bat looking creature with one eye and rabbit-like ears. Leal stopped and watched the scene before her. He was laughing and smiling, pointing and directing the small demon around as it flew and followed his maneuvers. Once again, she found him in an incredible light. Falling Grom petal leaves, afternoon lighting, and the cliffside backdrop…

She couldn't help herself.

An audible camera snap later, and the boy and his bat startled, turning toward her.

"S-Sorry," she ashamedly announced, dropping her camera to her chest, "I-I couldn't help myself." She mentally kicked herself for this. Way to really start off with a foot in your mouth.

"I…" Edric bit his lip, looking around their surroundings as though he was trying to find an escape.

Leal frantically held up her free hand while she used the other to tuck her bat into her bag. "I just wanna talk! And then… you can leave. An-And ignore me. Or…" she shrugged, "do whatever you'd like. But please, Edric, let me say something."

He looked toward his rabat companion, who seemed nonplussed by their exchange, and sighed. "How'd you know I was here?"

"Emira," she softly answered.

He sighed. "Of course…" he slowly nodded as he sunk down at the bottom of the Grom Tree, resting his back against it while his rabat flew around. "Go ahead," he half-heartedly gestured toward her.

Leal gulped. Taking a chance, she moved toward him and stood near his spot, silently asking for permission. He merely scooted aside and Leal's heart swelled at the opportunity, leaving her to sit next to him with a small space between. This was good. Distance, but he wasn't pushing or pulling away. She could work with this. There was silence for a few seconds, and she was grateful he wasn't provoking her to do more.

All she could do was focus on calming down her pounding heart.

But eventually, Leal managed to take a deep breath and turn toward Edric. He met her gaze—fear and hesitance backed behind his—as she tried to focus on his eyes. "I'm… I'm sorry, Edric. I-I'm sorry that… I invited you and your sister out on a double date and that I stood you up. I'm sorry that… you were looking forward to spending time with me and I didn't make it in time." Her hands interlaced with each other as she gripped hard. "I'm… so sorry. An-And I know that apologizing doesn't make up for it." Why did she feel like crying? She ignored the stupid burning feeling in her eyes as she closed them shut. "I just… I had to say this."

She wished she could keep them shut forever.

She wished, that maybe, the second she opened them things would be back to normal.

She just didn't want to chance it…

And yet, she did. The second she opened her eyes she was met with Edric's hurt expression. His face contorted from pain but also… bewilderment. He let out a small sigh as he shook his head. "Lealtad," he softly spoke, "It's not the fact that you ditched me Leal. I heard from Em already what you and Viney were doing. Why you were late, that is." He rubbed the back of his neck as he shot her small smile. How. How could he do that right now? And why did she feel so weird about it? "I'm happy you helped my sister out like that, in a way." And to her heartache, his smile fell. "It's just… you saw me back at Grom. I saw you. I know you saw me." It wasn't an accusation, it was a statement. A fact. "But when Viney came up… you didn't," his voice quaked a bit.

Leal nearly launched her hand forward to his shoulder. The excuse almost fell out of her mouth, "I had to check on my sister," but Lealtad knew that wasn't true. She ran away back there. Like she had been doing almost all week. She bit her lip and nodded. "You're right. I… didn't. I saw you and… I ran," she admitted. Admitting it felt no better, because it really felt like she was twisting the knife in front of him judging by his wince. God, she was the worst, wasn't she?

"Why?"

A simple question… but a loaded answer.

It depended on her, right? She could lie right now. She could just… omit things and leave it as is. Edric would eventually understand. And honestly, Leal would probably bury it behind her eventually. But the thought of not seeing him, not seeing his smile—she closed her eyes and shook her head. No. She wasn't sure where her mind or… "heart" was going these days, but she did know being around him made things confusing. Leal wasn't sure about any of it.

But…

She did know that if she backed out right now, she would regret it for the rest of her life. This wasn't like it was with Willow. This wasn't someone she was just… "okay" with rejecting. Edric wasn't someone who vied for her attention and proximity with the aims of getting a date or something. She was still clueless as to whether or not he was obvious, because she could hardly tell with Willow, but Edric was different. Leal couldn't understand why, but he just was. And that meant he deserved better. Better than a lie, and better than "Jerky Leal" who just shut people down.

"Queerness is pretty common here! Hoot, hoot!"

Between Eda, King, Willow, her friends—she had a bit of a time adjusting to it, but Leal was starting to believe Hooty's words.

She took another breath.

"I'm… I'm sorry, Edric." She felt so awkward repeating the same words. "I just… going to Grom with you, it made me feel so confused."

"Because you don't like me?" he quietly guessed.

Leal shook her head. "Because I'm asexual." His brows rose. "And… I don't know if I don't like you."

And his confusion set in as his cocked his head owlishly. "I… you lost me."

Despite herself, she snorted, giggling a bit as his honesty. "That's fine. It is confusing, " she admitted, nodding. That seemed to alleviate some tension, as a chuckle and a smile came from the boy. Spurring on, Leal smiled at him. "I… I am ace. And… well, I-I don't necessarily have a problem with relationships, it's just, they've never really been the most… comfortable experiences." When the boy's brows raised in alarm, Leal felt her ears heat up as she quickly added, "Th-There hasn't been anything bad. Just, nothing I liked. And, I-I kinda realized I'm just not big on the whole… intimacy thing. Like, kissing and stuff." She gripped at the edges of her army jacket, desperate for something to fiddle with.

"I… I spoke with Eda about it. This," she added, gesturing between them. "And… it's hard, to really understand. But… physical intimacy isn't something I'm entirely comfortable with. At least not all forms of it. That's not to say I think you'd do anything but…" she shook her head as she gripped harder on her jacket. "I-I don't have much experience with… dating." It felt stiff to say, but it was the only word she was comfortable saying.

Edric chuckled. "Well, neither do I," he earnestly replied.

She flashed him a grateful smile. He wasn't pulling away. "Fair," she nodded. "But that's not what I mean. I just…" she took a breath. "I know you like me." The way his face instantly coloured red was honestly adorable. He just smiled at her as he shrugged, as if accepting defeat. She giggled at the sight. "The thing is… I don't know what I feel about you. I-I like you—as a friend," she hurriedly added. "And, I-I was ready to accept that maybe I could go further and see where it takes us—back at Grom." She gulped and released her jacket. Giving the boy an earnest look, she nearly shied away from his genuine curiosity and attentive expression. "I just… I-I wasn't ready for the way you looked at me. At Grom. I-I wasn't ready for… feelings. And, it terrified me, so I panicked."

He blew out a breath, as if a realization was hitting him. "So you ran."

She nodded. "So I ran."

A silence brewed between them for a moment, and Leal wasn't sure what to make of it. His expression seemed so confused and torn, but he also seemed… relieved? She couldn't make heads or tails of whatever he was thinking. A weight had lifted off her shoulders and her heart, but it didn't make the hurt go away. And that was it. Leal's eyes widened as she realized what else she could do. What she should do.

A leap of faith, right?

She let out a breath. "Edric," he blinked, locking onto her eyes attentively, "I am so sorry for being such a jerk and ignoring you back at Grom. I-I know I already apologized but I need you to know that… regardless of my feelings, or-or how confusing this all is: I don't want to hurt you. So… let me make it up to you."

He cocked a confused brow and tilted his head. "H-How?" he stammered out.

"Literally anything you wanna do, let's do it." He blinked in surprise as she smiled at him.

"Seriously?"

Leal nodded. "Seriously," she asserted. "You told me before that you like to live in the moment: let me spend a couple making it up to you. Whatever you wanna do!"

"Oh, uh…" he seemed pensive for a moment, no doubt thinking it over. Then eventually, a small smile overtook his face. "Okay," he said briefly. He drew up a spell circle, and casted it, causing his rabat to return and perch on his left shoulder. "Ummm… I know a spot to get some good octobeetle wrap?" he turned to her hopefully.

She grinned. "Lead the way, Ed. It'll be my treat this time." She shot him a warning finger. "No exceptions."

::::

Edric's rabat, or Batric as he so dubbed him, was a plus one to their… outing.

Leal was grateful, as it felt like a palisman had entered the fray and gave her a small buffer if needed. But it wasn't needed. On their way to this octobeetle wrap spot, the two managed to fall back into regular habits and talked about school. Edric admitted he wasn't skipping as much anymore and Leal filled him in on her recent potion successes. Walking through the streets of Bonesborough, it felt nice to talk and just… hang with Edric once again.

"That's honestly pretty wicked," he commended, handing back her healing potion. "Two potions in the span of two days. That's like, what, four recipes you made now?" He chuckled as he shook his head. "And mixing Healing and Potions? You're well on your way to being a top student."

Leal snorted. "Based off Miss Ayla's constant praise, I'd say I'm practically there," she mused. Seriously, the woman would not stop talking her up each class. She honestly didn't understand how Amity could feel proud with the constant attention of being a "top student." It felt nerve wracking to have all that attention on her. She shot the boy a smirk. "But hey, I'm not the only one mixing magic it seems." She bumped her elbow against his side playfully. "You used a bit of a Beast Keeping to get your lil' guy's attention didn't you? Back at the Grom Tree?"

Edric's face heated up a bit. "A-A little. B-But it's not… it's nothing." He shrugged. "Batric's pretty easy to train." At the mention of his name, the rabat chirped from his shoulder, nuzzling against his cheek. Leal cooed at the sight, making the boy blush more. "Using Beast Keeping helps sometimes."

"Well, hey, not like I know much 'bout it." Leal shrugged. "How does it help?"

His face lit up in excitement. "W-Well, different kinds of Beast Keeping magic help with a variety of taming, soothing, and training beasts." He gestured to Batric. "Since he's a rabat, he's more native to The Knee, so he needs some conditioning in order to adjust to living at the Manor."

Leal smirked. "How are you managing that by the way? I thought your mom hated pets or somethin'. How have you been keeping him out of her hair?"

He proudly smiled. "Training," he replied, "Batric's comfortable with me anyways, so he mainly sticks with me. Other than that, he has free reign over my room." He moved his right finger toward the rabat's cheek, stroking it gently. "He's pretty easy going for the most part. Just needs to stretch his wings every so often."

She held out her hand. "Can I pet him?"

Edric's eyes lit up at that. "Yeah! I mean, if he's okay with it." He turned to his pet. "Stick out your finger a bit," he said as he moved his shoulder closer to Leal. She followed his direction, sticking her right finger out toward the rabat. Batric tilted his head, as if assessing her finger, before chirping quietly. To her delight, the rabat eagerly motioned his head forward.

She chuckled as she brought her finger closer to his cheek, rubbing it gently. "Wow! He's so soft!" she cooed.

Edric nodded excitedly. "Right? Easily the best sleeping buddy ever." His eyes widened as his cheeks reddened. "N-Not that I sleep with anything or—"

Leal snorted, pulling her hand back as she covered her mouth, muffling her mouth. "Hey, don't worry, that's cute," she replied, "I mean, it clearly shows he's comfortable with you then." She gave him another playful nudge. "Might just make a Beast Keeper out of you yet!"

The way the boy's eyes lit up at that, it was hard not to feel all giddy about it. This was what she liked about him. The way his expressions were just a thin window to his heart—he was so expressive, it was adorable!

Edric's eyes glanced forward as he gasped. "Ah! This is it!" He gestured ahead. Just at the end of the street, among other shops and stores, was a small cafe looking building. It was called Staffway, with a palisman staff underlining the name. The shop had several signs and posters of different kinds of wraps and sandwiches, as well as some outdoor patio seating. It reminded Leal of the Snack Shack back in the Human Realm. As they neared the shop, Edric excitedly turned to her. "I know you love Venny's ham-bug-ers and not dogs, but trust me, they've got some good wraps and sandwiches."

Leal's brows rose at that. "I'd say that's high praise, but you weren't exactly wrong about the octobeetle wraps at the festival."

"These ones aren't as good, but you can add toppings and sauces to really spice it up!"

"Hmm, well, I guess it wouldn't hurt to try," she admitted.

With that, the two made their way into the shop. The door swung open slammed against the demon bell above, making it cry in pain. "Be with ya in a minute!" a gruff, feminine voice shouted from within. Leal took the time to assess the shop, noting that there wasn't much indoor seating—save for a couple chairs and tables. It seemed it was more of a grab-and-go kind of joint, as half the shop was dedicated to the kitchen and counter space. The aesthetic of the place was very warm and tan, with very little contrast from beige and brown accenting everything from the walls to the floor. There was a menu hanging above the counter, and Leal could easily make out the several different types of meals offered.

Sure enough, Edric was eagerly pointing out the octobeetle combo that took up most of the menu.

"Thirteen snails, huh?" she observed. "Well, the fried mincers I can have, but I dunno 'bout the 'Slurper Slush' drink. You can have mine."

Edric's brows raised. "O-Oh! Um, okay!"

Soon enough, a large tan witch with a bald head and a nice blonde beard entered from the back. His eyes lit up in their direction as he waved. "Edric! It's been awhile! And oh? You've brought a friend?" He leaned onto the counter and brought his left hand near his mouth, loudly whispering, "He doesn't bring any friends here."

The boy's face reddened while Leal did her best to stifle her laugh. "Guess that means I'm a special case," Leal teased, shooting the boy a wink. That managed to earn a smile from him, which felt nice to see. It was obvious enough that he frequented this place a lot. She turned back to the man and smiled, offering a small wave. "I'm Leal," she greeted.

He nodded back. "Soren," he replied in kind. "Proud owner of this here, Staffway shop!" he declared, gesturing around them. "Best wraps and sandwiches in Bonesborough!"

Her brows raised. "Ahh, that's a tall claim."

"And it's backed deliciously well," he remarked, making her laugh. He motioned her to follow him down the counter, where an array of toppings and sauces were. "What're ya having?"

"I'll have my usual," Edric announced, "and she'll have the octobeetle combo." He gestured for her to go forward. "You can pick your toppings."

Leal blinked at that. "O-Oh." She stepped forward and scanned the toppings, a plethora of things she honestly would consider using as ingredients for a potion rather than a meal. With a sigh, she held up a finger as she dug into her messenger bag and pulled out a small notepad. She flipped through the list, reading through it as she glanced up at the toppings, trying to find a match.

"'Munchies List'?" Edric read aloud as he leaned over. "What's that?" he asked.

Leal turned to him with a sheepish smile. "Luz and I can't exactly digest most of the stuff you guys eat here, so she and I have been keeping track of what we can and can't eat," she explained. Honestly, with her new healing potion, trial and error should be loads easier now than having to wait over a bad stomach or have Eda heal them. Though, looking at this, there seemed to be at least one thing she was familiar with. "I'll have the griffin gravy, that's all."

"Any dip for your mincers?" Soren asked as he began prepping two octobeetle wraps.

Leal shook her head. "Nah, I'm good." When she glanced to Edric, she was surprised to find him gaping at her in shock. "What?"

"So wait, I just fed you an octobeetle back at the carnival and you didn't even know if it was toxic to you?" he exclaimed incredulously.

Her ears heated up a bit as she laughed. "First off, you didn't feed me anything," she corrected, ignoring the surprised stare Soren was sending at them, "and second, it was fine! I wanted to try and trying things is usually how we trial and error what's edible for us or not." She flashed the boy a reassuring smile. "Seems more insect species foods are on the safe side."

He let out a relieved sigh.

She couldn't help but smile at that. That was sweet that the first thing he thought of when hearing about her list, was the possibility of endangering her over a week ago. "I'll say though, it was the best food recommendation I've received yet." She hardly counted King with the ham-bug-ers, as at the time it was more him wanting it than him really suggesting it for them. To her delight, Edric seemed to enjoy the praise, as he smiled happily at that.

Soon enough, Soren returned with their meal near the register. As promised, Leal paid for their meals (she had to stop Edric because he still tried, but she held out) and the two were sitting outside in the patio area. The tables were small enough for maybe three people, so it wasn't too cramped or awkwardly spacious for them to sit and eat. But it wasn't just eating for them. With Edric, it was easy to get into the swing of talking about things once again. She nearly forgot about all the drama in the past three days because of the boy's presence: he was just that easygoing.

"I'm still surprised to hear that you guys haven't been skipping as much," Leal mused before taking a bite out of her fried Mincers.

Edric shrugged as he happily chewed. He had already finished his wrap—Emira wasn't kidding about the way he just inhaled wraps—and had not so discreetly returned to the habit of dipping into her metaphorical bowl of fried Mincers. She paid it no mind, as honestly, the wrap was pretty filling with griffin gravy and it seemed to make Edric happy to share. "Well, it's more Emira than me," he said as he gave one of his fried Mincers to Batric, who was still perched on his shoulder, "Before Grom, she really wanted to spend more time with Viney but since you guys are always at school, she realized we'd need to be there too."

Leal scowled. "Hey, we're not always at school!" He threw up a brow at her, silently challenging her. She sighed in response, admitting her defeat. "Okay, yeah, we kinda are." She made a mental note not to tell him that they all nearly agreed to skip out on Grom in favour of schoolwork.

Edric chuckled as he smiled at her. "Well, I think it's cute," she ignored the flush feeling in her cheeks and fixed a scowl at the boy as she grabbed another fried Mincer, "And admirable," he added. "You guys remind me of my sister—Mittens, I mean." At her raised brow, he elaborated, "I don't mean the uptightness either. I just mean, the dedication. Em and I have practically gone the full depth in Illusions, so it's hard to really 'excite' ourselves academically." He frowned as he looked out to the streets, watching the passerby. "But you… you look so… entranced by what you're learning an-and always look to apply it whenever you can!" He turned back to her with a look of awe. "That's cool."

She was trying desperately to fight off her burning blush in her ears. "Cool for a nerd?" she lightly joked.

"Well, I happen to think nerds are pretty," he easily replied.

A beat of silence.

Both their eyes widened, Edric's cheeks coloured red and Leal was positive her face was a tomato right now.

"Pretty cool!" he shouted, "P-Pretty cool! Nerds, you, I…" he lowered his head. "N-Not that you're not pretty. I mean, of course you are," he stated as though it was an obvious fact. Leal stared at him, gobsmacked. He noticed her gawking and froze a bit. "I-I mean, I don't want want to sound like, 'Oh, you're only beautiful to me!'" He slapped his forehead. "I mean, you have… a lot of great… qualities," he stammered out awkwardly.

Lealtad just blinked at the boy in surprise.

Wow.

She knew he liked her, but boy she did not expect this. She would've honestly cut him off, maybe told him she understood what he was saying, but Leal found herself too flustered to even say anything! She just smiled back, hoping that was enough. Eventually, he raised his head and caught her smile. To her relief—and appreciation—he flashed a big smile back. "S-Sorry. Emira always says I'd leave my foot in my mouth if it weren't for her," he softly mused.

Leal snorted, shaking her head. "No. That… was incredibly dorky," he cringed a bit, but his smile held, "but really sweet, Ed." She shrugged. "It's like I said: I happen to like you by yourself." And credit to his dumb, adorable face, his eyes brightened along with his smile at that. Okay, what were her thoughts even doing? Leal gulped, suddenly all too aware of how nerve wracking this was despite being so simply a moment ago. They were eating, right? So, she probably should just… eat to fill the awkwardness. With her wrap nearly done, Leal reached for the—

A brief graze, and it wasn't a fried Mincer her hand was touching.

She flinched, but didn't pull back. Her eyes flew to the tray of fried Mincers and, of course: his hand was there too. Leal didn't take her eyes off the contact before her. She could feel his gaze burning into her but she didn't want to look away from… this. Had she ever held his hand before? She was barely holding it now. His hand was over the tray, but her fingers were just above his, touching his tips. It was soft. His hands were huge but… her fingers could easily slide in between his. Each finger on her left hand slowly slid itself over his knuckles.

Why was this so soft?

A strangled squeak erupted in front of her and Leal blinked, glancing up to Edric's bright red face.

Shit.

"A-Ah!" she exclaimed, pulling her hand back as he did the same. She had half a mind to hold her hand back, but another to not touch it all. "S-Sorry," she strained out. "I—"

"N-No!" Edric hastily objected, waving his hands about. "That was—I mean… I—" he bit his lip as he clenched his fists in frustration. "I'm sorry. That was my bad," he softly said.

Leal raised her brows at that. Her heart pounded a bit. What? Why was it his bad? Didn't she reach out first? Wasn't she just caressing his hand (yeah, she was definitely not telling Luz about this). "N-No, it…" she trailed off, forgetting the importance of who went first and focused on his sheepish face. Was he… embarrassed? A strange sense of calm swelled within her as she took a breath. The truth. Yeah, that was what she needed. "I-I didn't mind," she said in a small voice, way quieter than she anticipated. Her throat was clammy all of a sudden, why was she so nervous to admit this?

But, thankfully, Edric heard. His face lit up as he stared at her, mouth hanging ajar a bit. Goodness, this boy was just too adorable sometimes with his reactions. He was so expressive! It also didn't help that Batric was glancing back and forth between the two, as though he was confused with what just transpired. Edric settled with nuzzling his pet's cheek a bit, making the both of them smile.

A bit of a comfortable silence hung after that, with Leal devoting the time to finishing her wrap while Edric sipped away at his Slurper Slush. The drink was definitely too sentient for her liking, as it had a mouth and moved around a bit, but Edric seemed happy to drink away so she was glad. The silence, while filled with bouts of chewing and slurping, wasn't anything bad. It was nice… like before, back after they first sparred with their friends.

Sitting together and just simply being together, was comforting.

It was a bit nerve inducing, seeing his gaze lock with hers every so often. But then, he'd smile and she couldn't help but laugh, at which relief would flood within her. It was awkward. It was also nice. It was just… very Edric of it all. Leal supposed that was why she didn't really mind at the end of the day. Her feelings, however confusing they were, were still obvious to her in that regard. Edric was still Edric, and that was comforting enough for her.

And maybe… maybe that was all she really needed at the end of the day?

Eventually, they managed to finish their meals and began walking once again. It felt aimless at first, but Leal started to realize the time and it would be getting late soon. So, they started to move toward the outskirts of Bonesborough. During this walk, Leal was hyper aware of their spacing. Edric was humming a tune, looking quite happy with himself, but Leal's eyes couldn't help but drag toward the boy's hand. With him strolling to her left, swinging his arms at his sides, it was hard not to think about closing the distance. But the mere thought of doing so made her feel all sorts of things: flustered, worried, afraid—

She couldn't chance it.

But at the same time…

Leap of faith, right?

Risk?

Taking a breath, Leal inched her hand toward Edric's. It felt nerve wracking to even consider the idea, let alone try it. But, just one more inch and—

"So this is it, huh?" Edric stopped and turned toward her.

She flinched and pulled her arm back, thankfully quick enough for him not to notice. He had a small smile on his face as he looked at her. Leal furrowed a brow and glanced around at the surroundings, realizing they were about to head into the forest. "Oh! Right, yeah," she nodded. "Guess we, um, go our separate ways here, huh?"

Edric chuckled, nodding back at her. "Yup." He looked off toward the forest, then back to her. "I… I had fun today. E-Even with all the awkwardness."

"Heh, me too." She shrugged. "Awkwardness is kinda my deal anyways." Batric chirped from his shoulder and Leal smirked at him. "See you later Batric," she said with a smile, "be good for Edric."

The rabat tilted his head, chirping once again and making her laugh at his cuteness.

She was about to offer a parting wave to Edric, but his face was suddenly serious. Or, no, contemplative? He looked at her with a small smile. He took a quick breath then said, "Leal?"

"Yeah?"

"I just want you to know, I-I don't want to like… pressure you into doing anything or whatever." He awkwardly chuckled. Leal's brows raised as she felt confused as to where this was all coming from. "If you don't like me like… like that, i-it's okay. You can be honest about it. An-And don't feel pressured to push outside your comfort zone for me."

Leals mouth hung open in surprise. She never thought that that was what he'd be concerned about after all this. The question of their feelings, the awkwardness, their well… relationship—none of that. He was worried about her boundaries. Honestly, this guy…

She shot him a happy smile. "Thanks Ed. But… I know my comfort zone. And I have for a while," she said with a confident nod. She gulped, fighting back her urge to back out, ignoring the chance to just stop talking right there. And so she continued, "I… I don't know what I feel exactly and I know it's not anything solid or serious, but…" she closed her eyes. What she was really trying to say here? When she thought on it, it overwhelmed her. But with Ed, sometimes the moment—the spur of it all—was what she needed to act on. When she opened her eyes, meeting his attentive look, she smiled… and said the truth, "I can say… that you're someone I'd be willing to think about pushing out of my comfort zone for."

She hoped that was—

"Heh," he grinned at her excitedly, "that's enough for me, Leal." He winked.

Leal let out a breath. "You have no idea how happy it makes me to hear that, Ed."

There was a breath of silence, and then Edric awkwardly rubbed his neck. "Can I um… can I give you a hug?" he aksed in a soft voice. At Leal's look of surprise, he held up his hands. "Y-You can say no! I-I just… wanted to hug goodbye… was all," he trailed off.

Leal couldn't help but smiled at that. Right. Friends… hugged all the time. This wouldn't be a big deal. "Sure," she nodded, holding her arms out. His eyes widened excitedly once again, making her heart swell over his adorableness. And then he stepped forward. His arms tentatively wrapped around her back, as she did the same for him, and they embraced. She moved her head to his right shoulder, as Batric was perched on his left.

It felt… so warm.

She'd never had a hug like this before. Maybe it's some sort of deodorant or shampoo, but he smelt so nice too. Like the scent of honey whisked into the air by a gentle wind. And despite the height difference—with her just a couple inches taller—she felt overwhelmed by his presence. It was as though his arms were wrapping around her whole body. Lealtad just felt secure, comforted—warm. Warmth was the only thing she could place at the moment, and a moment it was. It was probably only a few seconds, maybe even a minute, but the second he pulled away…

Leal tugged him forward but stopped, flinching her arms back sheepishly as she awkwardly smiled. "S-Sorry."

His eyes were wide with surprise but definite amusement, making her flush more. "I take it I'm a good hugger then?"

She scowled at him, still unable to keep her blush down, as she said, "But not humble it would seem."

"Some things are worth being proud about!" he smugly said, smirking at her.

Oh Titan, what did she get herself into?

Stepping away, she threw the boy and his pet a small wave. "Take care, Ed. I'll see you tomorrow?" she said, a bit too hopeful for her own good.

Edric nodded, winking at her. "See you tomorrow, Leal."

A sigh of relief escaped her as she happily turned toward the forest, accepting the giddy feeling in her heart and her smile.

As well as the lingering feeling of the warmth she had embraced.

::::

Before she even entered the clearing into the Owl House, Lealtad made sure to tug her beanie further down in order to hide her ears. She hadn't stopped flushing about it, because she hadn't stopped thinking about it. And no doubt, her sister and Eda would ask about it the second she saw her flushing. So she needed to save face. Or at least, as much face as she could…

Though the second she neared she noticed the door was open, and as she neared the house, she realized Hooty was sleeping. She wouldn't mind waking him to say hi—as she liked talking to Hooty sometimes—but recognized that the other members of their home might not appreciate that, so Leal decided to slowly walk so as not to disturb the door-bird. She was ready to find Eda or Luz, and ask them about why the door was left open, but heard a round of cheerful laughter as she approached the house. Curious, she carefully stepped in and poked her head through.

To her surprise, she was greeted with a well populated living room. Luz was sitting on the couch with Amity—who had a cast on her foot with a couple healing glyphs on it—and Willow. Gus was kneeling at the other end of the table, near Luz's side, and Eda was sitting on the other lounge chair. All five of them were all peacefully enjoying tea, laughing and talking amongst themselves. But to an even greater surprise, King was wearing a yellow and white, cheerleading outfit, pumping his yellow and white pom-poms up and down. But despite the absurdity of the sight, it was also… quite wholesome.

Ah, Hell, why not!

They were all too engrossed in their conversations to even notice her it seemed, so Leal acted on it. She lifted her camera and powered it on, bringing her viewfinder to her face. One snap, and the moment captured: laughter, smiles, and joy all around. They all seemed to catch her presence as they stopped talking, then turned to Leal.

"Ayyy, there ya are!" Eda raised her cup of tea toward her in acknowledgement.

"Leal! You just missed the montage!" Luz hopped out of her seat and rushed over toward her.

She raised a brow. "The what?"

Luz grabbed her arm excitedly. "You wouldn't believe the day we just had!"

Leal chuckled as her sister dragged her toward the table, making her sit next to Eda before returning to her seat next to Amity—who very noticeably flushed at that. "Um, well it looks like it was an exciting day," she mused, her eyes drawn toward King's outfit.

He sheepishly shrugged. "I, uh, was supporting Eda?"

She looked to the witch, who was proudly smirking. "Told him it was 'intimidation armour'."

"I took photos and videos!" Luz happily declared. Leal smirked, making a mental note to ask her sister for that material later. "Oh, but that's semi unrelated to what we got up to today!"

"Only semi?"

"Well, it's all grudgby themed," Gus chimed in.

"Yeah, I played a match with my sister who dropped by," Eda casually explained. "Kicked her butt too!" she proudly stared.

Leal whipped her head to the witch. "What? Lilith was here?"

"Yeah! And we won a game of grudgby against Boscha!" Luz cheered.

Willow giggled behind her hand. "Uh, Luz, we actually lost against her."

"But we won in spirit! And that's where it counts!" her sister exclaimed, making her friends laugh.

"It was a rough game I'm assuming?" Leal mused, nodding toward Amity's foot.

The witch flushed a bit as she laughed. "Uh, yeah, sprained my ankle a bit. A day's rest with this should take care of it," Amity said as she gestured to her cast.

Leal smirked, digging into her bag and pulling out a light blue potion. "Feel free to try this, if you'd like," she offered, holding it out to Amity.

The girl blinked as she accepted the bottle, while Luz gasped and looked at her excitedly. "Wait… is that—"

She nodded with a smug smile. "Yup. A healing potion." She glanced over to Eda and let her smile grow in pride at the witch's surprised look. "Just got it done today, and ran some tests with Miss Ayla and Mister Rowan—works pretty well on some wounds and injuries. I wouldn't rely on it for anything fatal, but it can handle some bad stuff." Amity seemed hesitant to try, as she glanced at her cast. Leal chuckled. "If ya don't wanna try it, it's fine. I'm not offended. Frankly, a sprain is in line with what it should be able to heal, but if you'd rather rely on conventional methods then more power to ya," she nonchalantly stated.

Amity smiled as she set it down on the table. "M-Maybe later."

"Well, whenever you try it, make sure to spit into it then shake it up until it turns blue. Well, darker than that blue of course." When she was met with a confused and grossed out looks, she sighed. "It requires DNA for it to work on whoever's using it. Takes the healing properties from the mixture and fuses with your spit so the potion knows how to heal your body," she briefly explained.

And in turn, she was met with dropped jaws.

"Wow! I don't think I've ever heard of a healing potion before!" Willow exclaimed.

"That's incredible!" Gus added.

"The spit part's my favourite!" King cheered.

"That's amazing, ¡hermana!" Luz shouted, bouncing up and down in her seat. "You've really gotten good with potions, huh?"

A hand came down on Leal's shoulder, making her turn toward Eda. The witch was proudly smiling for the whole room to see. "That's my Bean Head, alright." She winked at her. "Good job, kiddo."

Leal stared at her as her jaw dropped a bit.

The sound of a bat cracking against a softball echoed in her mind. Suddenly she was watching it whizz through the air and disappear out of the backyard and into the treeline. The cheers from all the important people in her life around her, making her stand tall. And then, a big hand coming down on her shoulder, making her squeal in excitement. A smile she could never remove as she looked up to the man proudly looking down at her.

"Wow! A home run! Nice job, kiddo!"

She blinked, shaking her head from the images she nearly engrossed herself in, and instead seeing Eda's big smile at her. "Thanks, Eda," Leal said with a big grin.

"And hey," Willow spoke up, "You're not the only one who learned something new today!"

Luz gasped as she reached into her pocket. "That's right!" She pulled out a glyph and handed it to Leal. "I learned this one thanks to Boscha during our grudgby match. It's fire!"

Leal gaped in awe as she looked at the glyph. She took a quick picture of it before handing it back to Luz. "That's awesome!" Her face blanched a bit. "And terrifying."

Nearly everyone tilted their head in confusion. "Why?" Amity asked.

She chuckled. "Because now my sister can play with fire," she quipped.

Everyone erupted in laughter while Luz flushed, pouting as she tucked the glyph away. "I didn't have to show you this," she grumbled.

Leal bit back her laughter and winked at her sister. "Well, thank you for showing me regardless then, hermana. Can't believe you managed to discover a whole new glyph today!" She shook her head with a fond smile. "I don't know how you do it.

Her sister's annoyance wiped from her face as she smiled back. "It's not like I really sought it out or anything... it just kinda happened! But hey!" She snapped her fingers and shot her sister a set of finger guns. "That's magic baby! In the moment and spontaneous!"

Eda lifted her tea up in celebration. "Here, here!" she cheered.

In all honesty, Leal couldn't really attest to that. Her potion discovery today was the amounted work of her dedication and time. Her discovery of her way of drawings glyphs and sticking it to things was based off others' advice and inquiries. It was less spontaneous than how her sister learned. But then again, maybe that was what made her sister so good at magic.

Suddenly, a look of interest took over Luz' face. "Oh wait," she said, "how did it go with Edric today?"

"My brother?" Amity perked up.

Leal's ears flushed, unprepared for the abrupt change in topic. She was grateful her beanie was tugged down to hide it. Though, she could feel Eda's curious stare burrowing into her. "U-Uh," her gaze glanced from her sister to her friends, making Leal gulp. Gus aside, Leal wasn't sure how to bring this kinda topic up with both Amity and Willow around. She was unsure if either girl would be uncomfortable by the subject, and so decided tiptoeing around it would be best. "I-It's nothing. We, um, had a bit of a problem. But I managed to patch things up!" She looked to Luz, then to Eda, nodding proudly. "We're all good now. We just spent the afternoon hanging out actually!" She looked back to her sister. "Ed introduced me to a sweet sandwich shop. We should check it out sometime!"

"Oooh! Definitely!" Luz eagerly agreed. "It could be our Snack Shack equivalent!"

Leal snorted. "Exactly." She spared a look to Eda, who was still looking at her with a skeptical stare, but also smiling. Before she could even inquire about it, the woman rose up from her seat.

"Whelp, I'll be in the kitchen if any of ya need me, brewing up another batch of tea," Eda announced as she plucked the teapot from the table and walked off.

Leal took her cue as well and stood up. "I guess I'll go change," she said as she began to make her way over to the stairs.

"Oh, Leal, wait!" Luz called out to her. She stopped in the middle of the hallway and turned to find her sister behind her, looking a bit nervous.

"Yeah?"

"I um, I just… I thought I should let you know why we were in a match against Boscha today."

Leal furrowed a brow. "Okay?"

Her sister took a breath. "She was bullying Willow because she was getting more attention than her, and then Gus and I stood up to her, then she started to bully all three of us nearly all day!"

Leal's heart dropped.

What.

No.

Not again.

"But," Luz smiled, "I asked Amity for advice and she said Boscha's all 'bout grudgby terms so I challenged her to a match so she could back off because of our underdog story but also to stick it to her! Gus couldn't play, Amity stepped in, and the three of us nearly won but then Boscha won because of this stupid rule—but that doesn't matter! Because at the end of the day, we had fun and proved to Boscha that her social hierarchy is total bunk!" Her sister panted, trying to catch her breath as she smiled at her.

But Leal could only stare in disbelief and horror.

"Dios mío," she uttered as looked down.

She couldn't believe it. While she was out focusing on her stupid potion and thinking about Edric, her little sister was getting picked on again! But this time she had the power and was in the time and place to do something about it. But she wasn't there for her. Lealtad gripped on her bat as she clenched her teeth. What was she even doing? She should've—

"Hermana," Luz softly spoke, placing her hand over Leal's clenched grip on her bat, "it's okay."

Slightly, Leal lessened her hold as she looked at her sister bewilderedly. "Sunshine, you can't be serious." What did she mean it was "okay"? How!

"I am! I'm serious!" she laughed. "It wasn't like before." She adjusted her hold on Leal's hand, softly squeezing it. "It was annoying, sure, but… I wasn't alone." Leal blinked at her sister as Luz stood tall and proud. "I had my friends with me, and well, I was also there for them. Because I had the courage to stand up to this time. Because of them." She glanced back at the three gathered at the table and smiled, before turning back to Leal. "And, because of you too."

Leal humorously chuckled. "I wasn't even there for you—"

"But you were," Luz interrupted, holding her big smile. "That's how I know I'll be okay. That's how I know I can stand up for myself. Because you're always ready to back me." Her heart swelled as Luz leaned in, embracing Leal. "Te quiero," she said into her chest.

Leal hesitated for a second, nearly in shock of the girl before her. But she composed herself and returned the embraced, resting her head atop her sister's. "Te quiero, Sunshine," she softly said into the top of Luz's head, "I'm so proud of you."

"Gracias, Leal, es todo gracias a ti," her sister whispered back.

Leal fought back the tears in her eyes as she took a breath. If she was told two months ago that her little sister would be standing up to bullies because of her friends, Lealtad wouldn't believe it. But now, her sister was grown: changed. She was someone Leal constantly admired and was fascinated by, and she had only gotten better in their time here. It was probably for the best anyways. Confident that her tears wouldn't spill or show, Leal pulled back and shot her sister a big smile. "Never stop being you, hermana, never."

Luz grinned. "Right back at ya," she winked.

Leal rolled her eyes and stepped away from her sister. "Go on and join your friends, I'm gonna get changed."

"Join us when ya can!" Luz said.

"Maybe. I might call Barcus and let him know about my day out with Ed—and this new glyph," she told her as Luz began to walk away. Barcus was pretty invested too, and well, she kinda thought he was easier to talk to sometimes. Just as she was about to go up the stairs, she caught Eda leaning against the doorway into the kitchen. She was shooting a knowing smirk at her, making Leal cock a brow. "Wassup?"

"So how'd it really go?" she said in a teasing tone.

Titan, did anything get past this woman? Leal laughed. "I already told you."

She narrowed her eyes at her, making Leal feel self-conscious about her red ears. Could she tell? "Yeah, ya did, but I suspect there's more," Eda smugly accused. "But, I more so meant how did your little hang out go," her tone was clearly insinuating something, but Leal just scoffed.

"It was fun. Like I said, Ed's fun to be with and I like him," she stated in a simple tone. At Eda's continued amusement, Leal rolled her eyes. "I… I followed your advice a lot today. And, I think he and I have an understanding now—him more so of me." She let out a sigh. "I… I made my feelings known. I dunno what it'll turn into," she shrugged, "but I just wanted Ed to know."

The witch proudly smiled at her. "Well, that's the most you can ever do and hope for, Bean Head."

"Thanks Eda."

"For what?" she asked, standing tall as she was clearly ready to stoke in her pride.

But, she threw her for a loop instead. "For being here," Leal honestly admitted. The witch's eyes widened in surprise. "It… It means a lot. To have you helping me… an-and Luz," she added.

Eda chuckled, stepping forward as she placed her hand on Leal's head, ruffling her beanie up a bit. "It goes both ways, Bean Head," she softly said. "Now go on, I won't keep ya." She waved her off as she stepped away.

"Hey, now, ya can't get rid of me that easily." Leal grinned at her. "I'll help you with dinner when I'm done upstairs," she said as she began to climb up.

Eda clicked her tongue at her. "Sounds good! And while we cook you can tell me more about your date!" she sing-songly said before dipping into the kitchen.

Leal's face heated up as she stopped halfway up the steps. "It wasn't a date!" she shouted back at the witch, who she could hear snorting with laughter in the kitchen.

With a resigned sigh, she shook her head and continued her journey upstairs. She sensed more teasing was to come, but figured since it was Eda, she could handle it. Like she handled today. Today, she made a new healing potion and managed to fix her friendship with Edric. And now she had Barcus to fill in, and a new glyph to check out. Regardless of the stress she had today, she was still excited for tomorrow.

Because whatever the future had in store, Lealtad knew she could handle it.


A/N: So, on Ao3, the relationship tags have been updated! Viney/Emira and Lealtad/Edric! On FFN, there's no real room to add all this, plus it's not really a "focal" point of the story, much like Lumity itself. I figured I'd wait a bit until their development appeared before actually ADDING them in the tags, so as not to spoil anything yet.

The chapter title is meant to pay homage to Terrace's episode titles and how most of them are references. I didn't know many early 2000s rom-coms that I could parody title, so I worked with what I could. Break It Like Beckham is the OG reference for the canon episode, but this chapter's title is a reference to How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days.

Now in terms of creating a plot structure? This one was quite hard at first. I didn't want to include Lealtad within the grudgby match (team balance is the main reason) and I wasn't exactly sure HOW I was going to make this chapter seem intriguing. This was one of those chapters I had to wait to write later on as the previous chapters before it would help dictate what I can and can't work with.

Two things I DID want to do in this chapter were establish Lealtad and Barcus' friendship and Leal's relationship/feelings toward Edric. Having Barcus essentially be Leal's best friend was something I just decided very early in my writing, and as the series progressed more and more I was both sad and glad our boy didn't get much screen time. As, after all, it meant that I could fill some gaps and push an interesting dynamic forward with him. Though, that mindset kinda applied to all of the dual-track kids.

I really thought the series was gonna follow more classroom settings and learning, even involving the dual-track squad as they're the only other people (at the time) who would have multiple classes with Luz. In the end, that whole thing was kinda confusing on how classes worked so I'm left to make do with my own ideas. Thus, bringing these three into the fold for Leal's sake. How the curriculum works exactly is still difficult for my measly brain to manage, but I hope what I've written here makes some semblance of sense to you guys.

In any case, I ended up contrasting the canon episode itself. Where we had more fluff and fun, here it's more teenage angst and such. Sure, there's still fun to be had, but I think it's fitting that for the L&L equivalent, Leal gets her hand of proper teenage angst that she's been missing out on. But on the idea of themes, there was a lot of elements calling back to "faith and loyalty", and I felt it was a nice way of establishing Leal's core character before the penultimate and final chapters. I know, I know, I REALLY have fun with my dramatic irony but hey? Why not!

Some notes to follow along canon events: Luz and Co. not being at lunch is because they were at the steps hiding from Boscha as per canon. Also, it's not really stated here, but a big reason too for Luz's whole "you can talk to me" line at the start is because she and Amity went into Willow's mind not long ago. They saw her memories, including some recent ones: Luz (and Amity) now know Willow HAD a crush on Leal. Of course, the two deduced that she'd grown from it-and Willow and Luz did have a talk about it-but the main significance is that Luz feels weird with both today's event with Eda AND this, wherein Luz isn't privy to as much information about her sister. It's a detail that's just glossed over simply because this story is Leal's POV, but it's just a background thing for Luz.


Review Responses:

Kavon D Robinson: Heh, based off this chap, probably not for a good while!

Sonic45: Well, we'll see if it gets that far!


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: November 22nd, 2023

Stay safe, and stay lovely y'all.

Until next time,

- Bleh