Previously on Calamitous Intervention
After Anne had given a subpar presentation for the entry exam to Principal Bump, she was accepted, but it turned out she had to be in the baby class until she could learn two spells. After spending some time at the slayground, which turned out to not be the best place for Anne at the time, she felt even more paranoid about what she would have to endure.
The next day, on the way to Hexside's entrance, she met Amity, who bombarded Anne with questions, quickly causing her to leave the young witch behind. As soon as Anne saw the baby class, she refused to enter it and instead decided to head to the principal's office. She passed by an open closet filled with crystal balls, and her intrusive thoughts won over her rationality, so she took one.
Unfortunately for her, Principal Bump had caught her using magic she wasn't supposed to and threw her into the detention track, where she met Viney, Jerbo, and Barcus. After arguing with the detention teacher, he fell asleep, allowing Anne's three friends to show her the secret hideout. Shortly after, they let Gus in and decided to pull some pranks.
The inspector came by and watched the various presentations from each track in the auditorium alongside Principal Bump. Seeing the chance to ingest some magic, she attacked the two, catching them off guard and leaving them helpless. She wandered through the halls, searching for more victims. Anne, Viney, Jerbo, Gus, and Barcus fought her off, but the strange magic within Anne was stolen, leaving her defenseless.
She then saw the reflection of the ice glyph on the floor, which she used to stun the basilisk, allowing the others to attack. Thanks to their efforts, the magic from the basilisk was returned to her victims. Principal Bump scolded them, but they argued their innocence, so he gave in and allowed Jerbo, Viney, and Barcus to study in multiple tracks. Now Anne was left to practice and perfect the ice glyph, which would take some time.
Chapter Twenty-Two - Sense and Insensitivity
It was a mostly quiet day in the marketplace, as King and Eda were at the latter's Human Collectibles stand, trying to make a living. Anne wanted to explore the other stands, curious to see what else the market had to offer.
As people passed by, King hopped onto the table and held up a tray of mostly inedible objects taken from the Human Realm. "Partake of my free snack samples!" he demanded. "Take them! I demand it as your ruler, the King of Demons!"
Seeing as nobody was even giving him a second glance, he got frustrated and threw the tray on the ground, creating a mess. "Why isn't anyone paying attention to me?" King asked out loud. "I'm their rightful overlord…" He plopped down on the edge of the table, reminded of his small stature. "Intellectually and such…"
Eda, who was leaning back in her chair, wearing a pair of sunglasses, couldn't help but agree with the fact that nobody was buying anything from her. "Yeah… Hey!" She noticed a student from the oracle track passing by and grabbed him by the cowl without a second thought, making him yelp in surprise.
She took a whiff of him to find out whether or not he had money on him, but an unamused expression appeared on the Owl Lady's face. "It reeks more of nerd than money today…" she murmured, letting the student go, who scurried away as quickly as he could to avoid Eda.
"Well, that's a bummer," she said. She was hoping to make some good money today, but traffic was dry, and right now, anything would've helped them greatly. "Y'know… I'm not sure how things will look one year from now if my curse gets worse and no one's left to look after you," Eda said to King. "But right now, I'm more worried about Anne and if she'll be around by then."
When King looked at her, a frown replacing his annoyed expression, she sighed before continuing. "I just hope she enjoys what we've got so far…"
Meanwhile, Anne was passing by stands, finding most of them unremarkable. The Book Fair didn't have anything that she found interesting until she saw one run by a bard track student offering used instruments for sale.
Curious, she approached the stand, studying the various instruments that were available to purchase. She couldn't help but be reminded of how much she, Sasha, and Marcy used to have their own band back home named The Sharps. As Anne's mind wandered, she felt an awesome idea ignite in her head.
Ever since arriving on the Isles, Anne hadn't thought too much about making music or just having fun as she did back home, but seeing this completely changed her mind and mood. She figured it could be fun to try making a song based on her experiences in this world so far. In order to do that, she would need an instrument, so she ran back to Eda's stand with an excited expression on her face, making Eda and King jump in surprise.
"Eda! I know what I wanna do!" Anne said excitedly. "Please give me some snails! I wanna buy a guitar someone from the bard track is selling."
Eda crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes at the human. "No, kiddo. We aren't really in the best spot financially right now."
King, meanwhile, had a thoughtful expression on his face. He'd listen to music before, mostly on Anne's phone. He would never, in a million years, admit to it, but he liked the K-pop songs she listened to. While normally he wouldn't agree to do this, he'd rather be doing almost anything else than trying to sell human junk for a second longer.
"Aw, come on, Eda," he pleaded, hopping down and standing next to Anne with puppy dog eyes. "We can come up with song ideas together. Maybe we could make money that way."
While Anne appreciated King siding with her, she hadn't expected him to mention the fact they could profit from something like this, but she wasn't opposed to the idea. Eda looked back and forth between the two, her stern expression faltering. Finally, she sighed, rubbing the bridge of her nose. The Owl Lady knew it would be a big price to pay, but at the same time, she couldn't deny Anne and King the chance to have fun together.
Finally relenting, Eda let out a long sigh. "Fine, fine… Don't make me regret this," she stated, pulling some snails out of her pockets and handing them to Anne, who squealed in delight. Before Eda blinked, Anne was already running away at full speed with King screeching, trying his best to cling onto her shoulder.
As Anne finally slowed down, catching her breath, King looked around, confused. "A fair without rides?" he mused, not impressed in the slightest.
Before Anne could reply, a strange boy the size of King came over, showing them an open book. "Who needs rides when this… can take you anywhere?"
Anne watched as King made a noise while throwing a piece of bacon on the boy's head, causing him to be grabbed and carried away by a winged demon, screaming.
The human was silent for a few seconds, hoping she wouldn't be blamed for that. "Okay, so I just witnessed a murder… And I probably won't lose any sleep tonight because of it…"
On one stand, Anne saw a sign announcing some sort of writing competition. Behind the counter was a man with green hair, sunglasses, and a red scarf that very much reminded her of an Irish YouTuber she watched a while ago. Next to him was a lizardlike demon with small, round glasses. Something about him seemed off to Anne.
"Ugh! What are these basement dwellers doing out in natural sunlight?" King asked, and Anne had to stifle a laugh while Tinella Nosa, who was waiting in line, came up to them with a scowl, taking offense at his insult. "Um, we're in line for Jon De Plume, most famous writer on the Boiling Isles, famed author of the Wealm Warriors series! I'm gonna have him wead my stowy... and marry me," she said.
"And… that's my cue to leave," Anne said, walking away before King could get any ideas.
Back at the stand, with not much else to do, Eda decided to get up and pack her stuff before exploring the book fair herself. She passed by bookshelves, taking books and glancing at them before tossing them to the side, one book nailing an unlucky kid in the head and knocking them to the ground.
"Boring… Boring…" she muttered. Finally, she picked up a book titled "The Magic Mirror" and saw her reflection in it.
"Boring…" she muttered, before noticing something in her reflection and gasping, bringing her hand up to her face. "Another wrinkle! The curse is quickening…"
Suddenly, Eda heard a familiar voice speak, not too far from her. "You, lackey." In a panic, Eda dove to cover behind a poster, thinking they had seen her, but realized the voice wasn't talking to her. Lifting the banner, she saw her sister Lilith and a coven scout waiting in line.
"Lilith…" she growled to herself with venom.
"Do you have the item we discussed?" Lilith asked the merchant—a tan, batlike demon. He had a long, curved neck and a wrinkled face with a pink nose. He also had two sharp fangs and red sideburns. His eyes were black with a yellow sclera, with dark eye bags under them.
"Oh, yes! Right here," the merchant replied, putting on a kind smile and reaching into a drawer, pulling out what seemed to be a rolled-up piece of paper. He handed it to Lilith, who opened it with a satisfied expression on her face.
"This is excellent," she said, as a blue glow emanated from the paper, illuminating her face. "A Map to the Bloom of Eternal Youth."
As Lilith rolled it back up, the coven scout next to her spoke. "Ma'am, shouldn't we be searching for the Owl Lady to join the coven? Remember that whole plan?"
Lilith chuckled. "My sister's curse has left her frail. She'll still be here when we get back," the coven leader replied, unaware that Eda was listening in on the conversation. Eda groaned in annoyance as Lilith continued. "This comes first. It's for the emperor, after all."
"Yeah!" the coven scout yelled, suddenly knocking over the merchant's books in excitement. "All hail the emperor!"
"Very good, Steve," Lilith said, patting the coven scout's head. She walked away, followed by Steve, who placed a hand on his own shoulder.
"Shoulder pats for Steve."
As the merchant looked on with disbelief, Eda came out of hiding, hopping over a table and approaching him. "Hey, bub, what'd you sell my prissy sister?" she asked.
"Oh! It's a map to the Bloom of Eternal Youth," he explained, getting over his shock. "A rare flower that only grows once a millennium. As the name says, it gives eternal youth to whoever holds it."
Eda smirked, contemplating this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. If this flower could give her eternal youth, then perhaps it could also remove her curse. "Interesting… So Lilith wants to nab this power for the emperor, huh? Well, won't she be surprised when I get there first and get it for myself? Hah! That'll show her who's 'frail'."
The merchant grinned, scratching the side of his face. "Yes, well, uh… We'll see, won't we?" He opened the drawer, pulled out another copy of the same map, and offered it to her. "Can't go without a map, of course," he reminded her.
The Owl Lady took it and opened it, a blue glow illuminating her face. She smirked, knowing this could result in another conflict between her and her sister, but she wasn't about to let Emperor Belos essentially become immortal. She'd put it to much better use.
Back at the empty stand, King sat down on Eda's chair, leaning back as Anne pulled out the new guitar she had recently bought. Seeing the new guitar made them both feel a lot of excitement.
"Later today, wanna write a song together?" Anne asked, and King squealed in delight, jumping up and down on the seat.
"YEAH!"
Later that day, at the Owl House, Anne was practicing a little and tuning the guitar while King lay on his stomach, resting his head on his hands, eagerly watching.
"I didn't realize how much I've missed writing songs," Anne said, strumming strings as she tuned it to her liking. "I even had a band back home with Sasha and Marcy. It was called The Sharps, and we would play all kinds of songs the kids back home would enjoy. Maybe this could make my time in this world a lot more enjoyable."
King, meanwhile, was happy to join her. He'd never played an instrument before, mostly because they were too big for him, but he'd manage. He figured music could be a way to spread his power further.
After Anne finished tuning the guitar, the two began discussing ideas about how the song would go. King, of course, wanted it to be all about him, but as endearing as that would've been, Anne had a different idea. She wanted to write a song about her time in the Boiling Isles.
Reluctantly, King agreed to give it a go, and she began typing the lyrics using the sentient typewriter, recalling everything she had been through in this world so far. Beating a warden, escaping a killer scamming wizard, being banned from Hexside, fighting Amity at the Covention, swapping bodies… Before they knew it, they had finished the lyrics and began reciting them in her room.
"Took a leap to a world unlike any I thought could exist
Ooohh~~
But arrived all alone, with no friends, who I very much miss
Whoa~~
Making friends and enemies
It's weird, but hey, it's grown on me
Witches, spell, magic school, got me feeling very cool
Flying staves, boiling rain
I feel I have so much to gain!
It's no big deal, yeah, no big deal!
Find a way to start again!
Brush off the dirt, and make new friends!
It's no big deal, yeah, no big deal!
Feel at home in a place that shouldn't be real
Crazy strange, but it's no big deal!
Met a witch who was weird, but kind and took me in
Ooohh~~
Helped me grow so much more and taught me how to win
Whoa~~
She may be a fierce witch outlaw, but she fills me with so much awe!
Prison breaks, fleeing fights, sneaking out in the night
Dodging guards, on the run, this life is really kinda fun!
It's no big deal, yeah, no big deal!
Find a way to start again!
Brush off the dirt and make new friends!
It's no big deal, yeah, no big deal!
Feeling home in a place that shouldn't be real
Crazy strange, but it's no big deal!
Found a friend with whom I wanted to share this great song!
Ooohh~~
He's a demon, who's small, but inside, so very strong!
Whoa~~
He's like the bro I never had, a mighty demon king comrade!
King of Demons, human witch, siblings fight, all new sitch
Learning glyphs, causing fear, what am I even doing here?
It's no big deal, yeah, no big deal!
Find a way to start again
Brush off the dirt and make new friends!
It's no big deal, yeah, no big deal!
Feel at home in a place that shouldn't be real
Crazy strange, but it's no big deal!
Casting spells, but it's no big deal!
Finding friends, but it's no big deal!
Finally me, and it's no big deal!"
Silence followed for a few seconds before they both laughed, enjoying the results.
"Wow, you have a pretty good singing voice, King," Anne said, setting down the instrument. If King could blush, he would from the praise.
"It was nothing," he said, waving it off, though his tail waving back and forth happily made it impossible for him to hide his joy. "Though, to be honest, I think with some adjustments to the lyrics, we can make it even better!"
Anne frowned in confusion, thinking the song was already perfect as it was, but before she could respond, they heard Eda's voice call out to Anne. "Apprentice! Living room!"
"Well, guess that's my cue," Anne said, patting his head. "I guess if you have any ideas, I'd be glad to hear them when I'm back."
King watched her leave, then turned to the typewriter before raising his hands excitedly, instead wanting to surprise her. "My turn to write!"
In the living room, Eda was studying the map as Anne approached her, raising an eyebrow. "Hey, what's up?" she asked.
"I am popping out for a few days to an undisclosed place to do undisclosed things," Eda explained, rolling up the map. "You're in charge."
"Uh… Sure?" Anne replied. Eda walked away, pointing at her with a glare. "No questions!"
The human watched silently as the Owl Lady left the house. "... Eda's just doing Eda stuff," she muttered to herself, walking back upstairs to her room. She peeked through the door, about to announce her return, before her jaw dropped when she saw what King had done while she was gone.
In the short time she was away, he had completely changed the lyrics she had created. Her eyes trailed to the trash can, seeing her lyrics thrown at the bottom. She turned to King, stunned, as he continued typing.
King turned toward her. "Hey, hey, Anne! Great news!"
Anne walked forward with a surprised yet scared face, seeing the ideas plastered everywhere for his version of the song lyrics. She then looked at her guitar, which was scribbled on. Her shock quickly turned to anger as she snapped her head toward him. "What the heck, dude?! This isn't what we agreed on!"
"I just made a few tiny edits, and this baby is humming!" King replied. "I mean, I liked your lyrics before, but come on. They're all about you. What about me? So, I made some adjustments, and they're better than ever!"
The human walked forward and picked up a rough draft he had made, more angry than curious. She read through the verse, and her face scrunched up. All of it was now just about him being the King of Demons and ruling everything or something like that.
It's no big deal, yeah, no big deal,
For I'm the ruler of this domain,
Bow down, my subjects, and praise my name,
It's no big deal,
Yeah, no big deal,
"Okay, disregarding the impressive fact that you were able to come up with these in like a few minutes, this isn't my song anymore!" Anne growled. "Well, technically, it is, but you completely changed the lyrics without telling me! I thought this was supposed to be a team effort!"
"It is a team effort," King replied. "I just made it better! We made the song together!"
"This isn't a team effort; it's a hostile takeover," she corrected, crossing her arms. "I was even thinking of a band name for us, but forget it. If this is how you want to do things, then you're on your own, kid."
"What?!" King said with disbelief as she left the room. He pouted before brushing it off. "Bah! What does she know?"
"What the heck, man?" the typewriter suddenly scolded the small demon. "Learn to collaborate."
"Hush, you!" King demanded. "I'll prove to both of you that my lyrics are better!"
As he heard the front door close, he peeked downstairs to see Anne walking down the path to get some fresh air and calm herself down. Seeing his chance, King headed to Eda's room and searched around until he found her scroll. He'd only been able to use it a few times, but he remembered how to use it.
After he returned to the room, he managed to lock the door and open Penstagram to Eda's account. "I'll show Anne my song is great!" he declared. He managed to get the guitar in as comfortable a position as possible and began experimentally strumming it.
While he hadn't played a guitar before, he watched Anne play it closely. It didn't take too long for him to figure out how to replicate the song. After finally perfecting it thirty minutes later, he raised his arms in triumph. "Ha ha! As expected from the King of Demons' unrivaled talent!"
He started recording using the scroll and sang the entire song with the new lyrics.
Meanwhile, Anne was walking along the path toward Bonesborough, irritated by how nonchalant he was when stomping on her hard work. Seriously, why did Eda let him become this self-entitled? she wondered to herself. This could've all been avoided if she hadn't kept up this lie, which would definitely backfire on her. She shouldn't have agreed to let him live in his delusional reality.
She took a deep breath to calm herself down. No, he's just a kid, she thought. But seriously, I need to talk to Eda about this. This really ain't healthy for his mental state later down the line, so he needs to know the truth sooner than later.
For some reason, King's behavior reminded her of Sasha's, but she quickly brushed it off. Her friend would never act like that…. Right?
After taking a long walk to gather her thoughts, it was already nighttime. Not wanting to risk dealing with demon hunters again, Anne headed home. By the time she arrived, King was no longer in her room. She already anticipated it, but she still couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed to not see him after so many weeks of being used to seeing King. She briefly wondered what he was up to at the moment, but chose not to think of it further as she plopped down on her mat and got ready for bed.
As her mind gradually drifted away, she couldn't help but feel slightly empty inside without King next to her, but she knew there were bigger things to worry about right now. The only time she wanted to see him was if he was there to apologize.
The next morning was when something began to really feel off. Even though she and King weren't on the best of terms right now, she still knew King needed to eat breakfast, since Eda wasn't here. As she made him his meal, he noticed King was acting suspiciously cheery and in a good mood, especially for the hour.
As he hummed to himself while eating breakfast, the human couldn't help but finally mention it. "Okay, spill it. What's got you so giddy?"
King looked up at her with a cheeky, happy expression on his face. "It's nothing. You could say it's no big deal ."
Anne narrowed her eyes at him, the two getting into a brief staring contest before she dropped it with a sigh, not bothering to entertain him with more questions. Without another word, she told Hooty to keep him out of danger while she left for Hexside.
He wouldn't get far, even if he did try, she thought to herself. He doesn't know how to play a guitar, nor does he have any way of getting his work out there.
Little did she know how wrong she was.
Throughout the day, things seemed to go like normal, and Anne didn't question things much. Her only real wish at the moment was for Eda to come back and teach her the second spell, as the baby class was starting to really get on her nerves and make these days feel like forever. Well, despite that, at least she had her friends at school to talk to during breaks.
As she walked through the halls toward the cafeteria, she heard something uncomfortably familiar and briefly paused. She could've sworn she had just heard a very familiar song, but she chalked it up to her imagination. When Anne approached the lunch table that Viney, Jerbo, and Barcus were seated at, they were all gawking at a video on the former's scroll. Judging by their reactions, it was something very big and popular, one that would either make or break her day.
"Hey, guys," Anne greeted, sitting beside them with her mostly edible lunch. "Find more baby griffin videos?"
"Oh, no," Viney replied, stifling a laugh. "I think you'll want to see this, Anne."
The human raised an eyebrow and peeked over her shoulder. What she saw made her heart drop. Right there, on the screen, was King with a guitar much too big for him, playing the song he stole from her while singing his lyrics.
"Got the crown, because I'm the King over all
Ooohh~~
And there is no way I will ever fail
Whoa~~
All my subjects bow to me, I demand you bend your knee!
Snacks, food, power naps, more desserts, table scraps. Living like I'm a King, take a look at my bling!
It's no big deal, yeah no big deal!
Ruler of all demonkind, your favorite demon mastermind!
It's no big deal, yeah no big deal!
Feeling like this life will never end, it's the best, and it's no big deal!"
Anne's jaw dropped as she watched him perform the entire song and, at the same time, make all her worst fears come true. King had really done it. He stole the song they both had collaborated on, changed the lyrics, somehow learned to play the guitar, and posted it on Eda's Penstagram account. Her fists were clenched, and she was barely able to contain her rage. Oh, he was gonna get it now.
Viney's voice knocked Anne out of her thoughts. "Anne, isn't this the little guy you introduced me to? His song is amazing!"
The human stared ahead for a brief moment until she took her lunch and stormed away to an empty table without another word, leaving her friends confused. She didn't want to speak to anyone right now. "That little rat…!" she hissed to herself.
Back at the Owl House, King hopped up and down in excitement as he saw how much traction the video had gotten. New comments and follows were trickling in by the second, and for King, this was euphoria at its finest! He decided to wait until Anne came back from school to surprise her and show it to her. She would be so happy to see him famous! Eda might also be happy to have so many followers on Penstagram, too.
As King turned around, he saw Hooty right in front of his face, staring at him. He yelped in surprise, falling on his behind. "Eda seriously needs to put a bell on you, Hooty…"
"I heard you stole Anne's song, hoot!" Hooty said, peeking his long neck around to look at the scroll.
"Wait, what? Since when did you care?" King asked, crossing his arms.
"I'm always watching… Hoot, hoot…" Hooty monotonously said, and King could've sworn he saw an empty void within those beady eyes for a brief moment.
"Well, whatever," King replied, slowly backing away from Hooty, unsettled. "The King of Demons has control over everything. Besides, it was a team effort, wasn't it? That means I can do whatever I want."
"I don't think it works that way, but suit yourself! Hoot!" Hooty replied. "Not really my business, anyway. What are you gonna do now?"
King rubbed his hands together, gaining a gleam in his eyes. "I think I'm gonna head to Bonesborough myself and bathe in all the attention my subjects will give me!"
"What about Anne?" Hooty asked.
"Pssh, she won't mind," King replied, unconcerned. "If anything, she should be thanking me for making our song famous. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'll be heading out."
As he walked toward the front door, Hooty blocked his path, confusing him. "I really don't think you should be doing that. What would Anne think of you getting all the credit?"
Already getting a little annoyed with the owl, King feigned surprise as he pointed to the kitchen. "Wait, Hooty, I just saw three- no- four flies going upstairs! I think they want to be friends with you."
Before the little demon even finished his sentence, Hooty was already going up the stairs at record speed, giving King the chance to flee before he could be stopped again.
As Anne got out of school for the day, nothing was on her mind bigger than the urge to see King and vent out all her tense, built-up rage. She headed out into Bonesborough's streets and surveyed all around her to see if there were any big gatherings going on.
When she saw an unusually big commotion near the town square, she had a very good feeling she knew who the perpetrator was. Her face gradually morphed into an expression of pure rage as she felt her legs move toward the small crowd of witches and demons.
Normally, Anne wouldn't bother with getting herself into crowds like this, but her determination to teach that song-stealer a lesson overtook her rationality. Pushing past the crowd with many protests, Anne slowly made her way to the front.
As Anne finally made it to the front, she opened her mouth, ready to yell at King, but she instead saw somebody she sort of recognized from the previous day. Some writer named Jon De Plume was the one who attracted the crowd, but if King wasn't here, then where was he?
Curious, she raised her voice loud enough to be heard. "Hey! Where the heck is King?!"
Some yellow demon next to her with two horns and a beak pointed behind her, and as she promptly glanced, she winced as she saw a MASSIVE crowd that dwarfed this one.
As Anne wafted through the crowd again and headed toward the bigger one, she heard hundreds of voices cheering as they were tossing a small figure up and down. Her eye twitched at what she was seeing. This many people over a Penstagram post?! And she thought people in her world had an obsession problem.
As the crowd dispersed and King signed autographs and even got gifts and fan art, a familiar figure in the corner of his vision caught his attention. Seeing who it was, he beamed and ran toward Anne.
Anne was crossing her arms while tapping her foot, having a scowl on her face as she saw King approach her, happy as if nothing was wrong with what he did.
"Hey, Anne!" he greeted, showing her various posters and gift boxes. "Can you believe it? Our song was a huge success, and it's all thanks to the changes I made!"
Hearing this, the remaining restraint Anne had completely vanished. She remembered all the passion they both had put into making No Big Deal, and King had just stolen all the credit for mostly her hard work.
"The world has submitted to me and accepted me as the all-powerful King of Music!" King continued before he saw Anne's angry expression and faltered, involuntarily shrinking in on himself. "And demons…"
"YOU took the song that I worked so hard on and shut me out!" Anne yelled at the top of her lungs, her volume catching the attention of many. "All you did was just sit there and add like two lines! And you had the audacity to steal it without asking!"
King shrank in on himself even further as he tried to get a word in. "But, Anne—"
"No! Forget it!" she screamed. "I've tried to be nice to you this whole time, but you just act like a spoiled brat!"
"But I… I'm the King of Demons," King weakly protested. "Isn't it my right?"
As it turned out, that was the completely wrong thing for him to say. Anne snapped again. "What king?! Your fake King of Demons illusion?! You aren't a king of anything!"
Silence fell after she said that. Even though she felt completely justified in lashing out at him, she instantly regretted it as she quietly panted in realization and glanced down at King, who was trembling. "King—"
He whimpered, with tears streaming down his face. He briefly tried to think of a comeback to justify himself, but he couldn't think straight. Not wanting to face her any longer, King shut his eyes before running off on all fours, fading into the crowds. Anne didn't bother following him, feeling regret. Even though King did something bad, she went too far with what she said.
King wove through the confused bystanders, leaping into a dark alley before he could be spotted and followed by his fans. He hid behind a dumpster as he panted for air, sniffling as he tried to calm himself down in the dark and shadowy corner. He was overwhelmed with what had happened and didn't know what he was going to do now.
After King took a moment to calm himself down, his mind started to clear up a little, but he was still feeling really vulnerable. As what Anne had said replayed through his head again and again, he numbly got up and started heading toward the exit of the alley.
That was until he heard shuffling behind him. King stopped and slowly turned around, on guard. He saw a figure approaching him. As the figure came out of the shadows, King got a clear view of his appearance. The figure was a tall, humanoid witch with long maroon hair, golden eyes with glasses, decked out in a short-sleeve black T-shirt with a tie, and tattoos visible on both his arms. Right off the bat, King could tell he was someone to approach with caution.
"You must be King, I presume?" the figure asked, giving the little demon a sinister, toothy grin. "I heard you're quite famous."
King narrowed his eyes, trying not to show any weakness to this stranger. "Uh, who are you?" he asked, getting a little nervous.
"Ah, where are my manners?" the figure replied, straightening his tie. "My name is Cynder. Cynder Brown. Lucky for you, I am a music producer, and I have come to offer you a deal."
King was silent, which prompted Cynder to continue. "I've seen your singing on Penstagram, and I gotta tell ya… You have a beautiful voice! And look! Imagine being on top of the world… That's what we can make you overnight!"
King looked in the direction he entered with sadness, contemplating his choices. There was no way he could face Anne right now, and if he did stop, everything the two went through recently would be wasted. His thirst for attention and fame also didn't allow him to quit. At least he'd have his fans and Cynder, if not Anne. And if Anne told Eda about what happened, would she hate him, too?
Shaking these thoughts away, King turned back toward Cynder, who was waiting for his answer. The little demon took a deep breath and sighed. "Okay… So, what do I have to do?"
Hearing King's acceptance made Cynder's grin even creepier as he pulled out a contract and levitated it over to the small demon. "All you must do is sign this contract, and your future… is mine."
Not thinking twice of the alarms going off in his head, King reached down to the ground, covered his paw in soot, and stamped it on the form, signing it and sealing the deal. "You're ominous, and I like it," King said.
As the days went by, as Cynder said, his fame grew even more as he found himself performing in front of bigger audiences and thus getting more fans. While King really liked how things were turning out for him, a part of him couldn't help but wonder where the heck his share of the money was, but it wasn't as important to him as the fame was, anyway.
Meanwhile, Anne sat on a bench by the slayground with her guitar next to her. She hadn't seen King in person since their argument, which felt like weeks. She sighed through her nose as she heard the laughter and screams of children as they ran around, enjoying themselves. It was a bit distracting, but Anne was able to tune it out as she wrote in her notebook.
She had been working on a new song, hoping it could be as good as her last one, but she just didn't feel like anything was clicking. She was trying to finish the second verse, but the lyrics weren't her best, and stress made it hard to concentrate.
Without warning, an unfamiliar figure sat down next to Anne, surprising her. They were dressed in a red cloak with glasses. They held a violin, which they placed down next to where they sat. Anne glanced at the stranger, and the two of them locked eyes. She saw green eyes filled with a mix of both kindness and sadness in them.
"Uh, hello?" Anne asked, still surprised by the stranger's appearance.
"Ah, pardon me," the figure apologized. "I couldn't help but notice that guitar next to you. Might I ask if you're from the bard track?"
"Bard track? I'm not even from this world," Anne replied, pointing to her ears. Seeing this, the figure's eyes widened slightly.
"I see…" the figure replied. "I believe I've heard of you before. Rumor has it that you were the one to best Odalia's daughter at the covention. That's quite an impressive feat. Anne Boonchuy, right?"
The human nodded with a blank face, having little interest in the conversation as she tapped the end of the pencil on her chin. Seeing this, the figure frowned. "Is something the matter?"
"Well, my friend's the matter," Anne sighed. "He stole my song, uploaded it to Penstagram without crediting me, and now he's getting all the spotlight! I confronted him about that, but I feel I went too far…"
"Somebody famous, huh…" The figure narrowed their eyes, thinking for a moment. "Would this friend of yours happen to be that self-proclaimed 'King of Demons and Music'?" they asked.
"Yeah, that one," Anne confirmed. "It doesn't matter, anyway. Nobody would believe me if I tried to do anything about it. The only thing I can do is just let it happen…"
"And I'll assume you haven't talked to them since the confrontation?" they asked.
The human nodded. "I don't even know what to say at this point. He cares only about himself, but also… he was raised like that. Eda's stupid parenting and all that…" Anne didn't notice the figure stiffen for a moment at the mention of that name, but they didn't say anything about it.
"I… don't know how to feel about King right now," Anne continued. "My feelings are out of whack, and I… just don't know."
The figure placed a hand on Anne's shoulder, comforting her. "I know that feeling very well," they said. "You two will get through this, as I'm sure you have done so before."
Anne nodded silently, and a moment of silence passed between them.
"Tell me, since you aren't from around these parts, have you heard of… bard magic?" the figure asked, intriguing Anne, who could've sworn she saw some mention of it at the covention, but she hadn't paid much attention to it.
"Not really. What is it?" Anne inquired, intrigued.
"Simply put, it's a way to cast magic using a musical instrument," the figure replied. "It has many uses, such as allowing you to control things, such as emotion, or even being used as an attack. Seeing as you cannot use magic from a bile sac you don't have, I believe it would be useful for you. Observe."
They got up and picked up their violin, closing their eyes as they started playing a soft tune that caused a golden glow to emanate from the instrument. Glowing golden trails began to spiral out and naturally flow all around. The scene was simply captivating and otherworldly, and Anne watched in awe as its magic spread throughout the area, even catching the attention of the young children. When the magic washed over her, she felt… peaceful, as if all her worries since arriving at the Boiling Isles meant nothing.
When Anne closed her eyes, she could've sworn she was reliving the happiest memories she had made throughout her life. Meeting Marcy and Sasha, remembering when they talked about playing in a band, playing pranks—all memories of pure bliss that suddenly felt like yesterday again. She could remember first coming to the Isles and meeting King and Eda. King might've had a large ego, but deep down, he was a sweetheart. When the feeling washed over, she felt like a huge weight of stress suddenly lifted off her shoulders and dissipated.
"That was…. Wow…" Anne said, unable to form words as the song finished. She hadn't noticed a tear had gone down her cheek until it landed on her arm. As the memories of her and King ran through her mind once again, she felt bad. She knew she shouldn't have insulted him like that and that she could've handled the situation better.
Shaking these thoughts off, she responded to the figure. "That was amazing! How did you do that?"
"Perhaps if we meet again, I could give you some pointers, but in the meantime, I must be heading back," the figure replied. "It was a pleasure to meet you, Anne Boonchuy. I hope we do meet again."
As they left, Anne had a realization. She hadn't asked the stranger for their name. She got up and ran after where the stranger had gone. When she peeked around the corner, she saw that they were gone. Disappointed but not deterred, she went back to the bench and sat down with her notebook, having a newfound motivation to finish writing the song.
Meanwhile, King was experiencing perhaps the peak of his life, thanks to Cynder's help. He quickly found himself treated like a celebrity in pretty much every way possible. For example, one day, he was casually strolling down the sidewalk, not expecting anything, when a trio of young witches decked out in King-themed drip suddenly jumped out in front of him, briefly startling the King of Music. As King instinctively reached back in fear, his mood instantly switched when he saw they were offering him snacks—no strings attached! Once he realized they were his fans wanting to give back to him, he happily accepted and was really delighted to get the attention.
Another time, he was casually relaxing near a large lake, lying down on the sand, when he could hear mutters around him, all curious people realizing they were seeing this iconic musician in person. And yet another time, he was in the library, singing one of his songs to a packed audience who absolutely loved every bit of his performance! He also met Boscha again, who seemed particularly interested in him, acting like she was sorry for making fun of him back then, but he wasn't gonna forget those earlier bad memories about her.
All this culminated in his biggest night yet—hosting a concert in the largest stadium in Bonesborough! As the sun set, King was in his lavish dressing room—a treatment he never imagined would actually happen! As he sat there alone in his seat, he was excited for the night.
The door to the room suddenly opened as Cynder peeked in, looking rather anxious and bloodshot and holding a strange glowing necklace of sorts. "Hurry up already! Your fans ain't gonna wait for hours!" he snapped as King was put on high alert and briefly yelped as he glanced at him.
"Uhhh, sure, just wait a bit!" he asserted as he glanced at the witch and nervously gave a thumbs up. "My fans will expect nothing but the best from the King of Demons and Music!" he finished, playing up his ego and character, and this seemingly satisfied Cynder, who promptly shut the door without another word.
As the door slammed, King went back to looking nervous as he slumped his head, looking down. He knew it would be perfect for him to perform and be treated royally by the world, but he still couldn't shake off the feeling that something was missing. Despite having the attention and spotlight all on himself, he still felt somewhat empty. He pondered for a bit before choosing to ignore all those thoughts and instead focused on preparing for the biggest night of his life!
Just a few minutes later, he found himself staring in the mirror, decked out with some rather flashy and bright clothing, including a red robe, sunglasses, and a large crown that was perhaps a bit too big for his head.
This is it, he thought. This will be a night to remember!
He took a deep breath as he strummed on the guitar a little to warm up. He had been practicing his new song for what felt like months, and he smiled with a gut feeling that everyone would be blown away. Cynder wasn't really interested in hearing it, but more talking about how much money "they" were going to make from this performance.
Speaking of whom, Cynder opened the door once again to check in on him. The witch's presence unnerved him, as if the little demon's employer were staring into his soul and judging him constantly.
"It's time for the grand beginning of your new life, superstar," Cynder said. "The time is now!"
King chuckled nervously, getting up from his chair and walking toward the exit. "Yep. I'm ready to go…" As he left the room and went closer to the stage, he felt a lot of anxiety.
As King entered the stage, multiple spotlights pointed at him, blinding him for a few seconds. When he opened his eyes, he saw an entire crowd of witches and demons gathered in the rows of seats in front of him, cheering loudly.
As he hopped on the steps placed at the front, allowing him to get up high enough to the microphone, the cheering quieted down as King took a deep breath.
"My subjects, I thank you for bowing down to me, your rightful King of Demons and Music!" he announced, and this caused another round of cheering. "Now, you will experience the greatest music that only royalty can bring!"
Here we go, he thought as he closed his eyes and began strumming on the guitar. The country-styled song started out slow, then started to pick up pace, having a promising start.
That was, until he began singing, and it wasn't the same level of singing as before. His singing was off-key, and he started to mess up the song a little.
"I'm the best king to ever roam the isles~!
I'm powdered with glamour and style~!
Whoaa~~!
Oohh, this life is so fresh~!
If only you could hug my flesh~~~!
As King continued to sing his new masterpiece with pride, he felt a rush of energy overcome him. He felt like he was at the top of the world until he opened one eye and saw something he hadn't expected.
Rather than seeing a captivated audience before him cheering and throwing offerings left and right as they usually did, he saw a bunch of faces with confused and bewildered expressions. What would normally be filled with loud screaming was instead dominated by an awkward, unsettling silence. Seeing this, he briefly paused in confusion, but he mustered up the strength to keep going, hoping the next part would turn things around.
Your tears of jealousy empower me
As I smirk and laugh at your faces~!
And I snap my fingers with grace
While you disintegrate with no trace~!
King's heart dropped as, by this point, he expected to hear cheering but instead was subjected to loud boos and groaning. He couldn't believe it. How could his loyal and devoted followers turn on him so quickly? Before he could think of what to do next, he instinctively dodged out of the way of a glob of food thrown at him from the side. "Wh-What?!" he yelled with his eyes wide open, hoping this was all just a bad dream.
Seeing as the spectators weren't letting up on the jeering, King froze for a few seconds before running out of the spotlight and into the curtains, wanting to abandon ship and cool down for a moment. Unfortunately for him, Cynder was waiting, conveniently blocking his path. Instead of saying something encouraging, he had a furious expression on his face. This was the first time King had seen his employer angry at him before.
Without another word, Cynder reached over and picked him up by his tail, lifting him until they were eye to eye. "Is this some kind of sick joke?" he said in a dangerously low voice, barely able to contain his rage.
"Uh, I guess… they have bad standards," King replied, following it with a nervous chuckle.
In response, Cynder dropped him and spat on the ground next to him. "I'm never gonna let you write your own songs ever again!" he roared. He drew a circle in the air using magic and summoned a purple transparent cube that sported a glowing pink outline, ominously floating in midair. "And do you know what happens to those who tick me off?"
King gulped, prepared for the worst, as Cynder pointed at King, launching the cube right in King's direction. He was shocked, as he had never seen anything like that before, but fortunately managed to leap out of the way in time. He glanced back to see a stool encased in a purple cube on the floor, realizing they get frozen like a block of ice.
"Haven't you read the contract?" Cynder asked, smirking. "Anybody who signs it signs their life to me as well. You have no choice in the matter!"
"Yeah, like I'm gonna let you kill me!" King retorted, shocked at this psychopath's audacity. He leaped out of the way of another attack, thinking about what he could do to get out of this situation. Unfortunately, right as he dodged a third cube, Cynder jumped in the way of his path and caught him as he yelped, holding him by the collar.
"Enough's enough, kid!" Cynder yelled, creating a large cube just big enough to trap King inside. "I'm sure a little creature's body like you could sell for some snails…"
Before Cynder could attack, a pillar of ice shot from the side, sending him flying into a wall and cracking it. He grunted, falling to the ground as a familiar figure caught King before he could hit the floor.
King opened his eyes, not realizing he was holding his breath. He looked up to see his best friend, Anne. Immediately, tears welled up in his eyes as he buried his head in her arms. "Anne! I'm so sorry!" he sobbed. "I know I messed up pretty badly, and if it weren't for me, we wouldn't be in this mess! I can't control it!"
Anne's face softened when she heard his apology. Even though she knew King was definitely a bit selfish and egotistical with his actions, she still knew it was the right thing to be by his side and step in at the right moment.
Without any warning, a stream of fire shot out, aiming right where Anne and King were. The human's eyes widened as she yelled while instinctively leaping to the far end of the room, all while carrying King in her arms to shield him.
"Shoot!" she yelled as she glanced up to see some scorched furniture as a result of the fire blast, though fortunately, the room itself wasn't flammable.
After Anne set King down, she hopped to her feet, facing off with Cynder. For the first time, instead of feeling anger, she felt determined to save her friend from this vile person. She ran forward toward the witch, pulling out her tennis racket and swinging at him.
Cynder dove under the attack and went to grab her, but she backed away before kicking him in the chest, making him stumble back. He growled and stomped his foot on the ground, creating a blast of fire that the human was narrowly able to avoid.
"I hope this works," she muttered to herself. She pulled out a tennis ball encased in a piece of paper. Anne took a step back and tossed the ball in the air before hitting it with all her strength, sending it careening toward Cynder.
Thinking it was just a normal ball, Cynder swiped it out of the way, but that turned out to be a huge mistake. As soon as the back of his hand made contact with the ball, it glowed before erupting into another ice pillar that smashed him into the ceiling.
Finally losing his patience, Cynder yelled in fury as he managed to get himself unstuck. He wasn't going to let either of them get out of this place alive for what they did to him. He raised his arms, and Anne felt a strange sensation on her limbs before she crumpled to her hands and knees, barely able to move.
"Wh-what's going on?" she grunted, suddenly feeling extremely heavy. She was confused until she noticed some strange, glowing purple cubes on her hands and feet. They were extremely heavy, and she found herself almost unable to move.
Cynder chuckled, wiping dirt off his face. "Now be a good little girl and wait for your turn to perish." He walked past Anne, who was trying her best to attack him, but it was almost impossible. As he approached King, she felt dread rising as a purple cube surrounded King's head, making him completely unable to blink or breathe.
Anne stared in horror at King's frozen face, only imagining him suffocating and unable to breathe as Cynder laughed maniacally. "With these cubes, he won't even get to see you suffocate to death!" he boasted as he snapped his fingers. "And just like that, he's gone!"
Anne trembled in fear, knowing that she had to do something, but she felt the strain on her muscles getting progressively worse. As she saw King grasp his throat, something snapped in her. She slowly rose from the ground, using every ounce of willpower not to scream so as to not get Cynder's attention.
Cynder was too busy cackling to notice Anne sneaking behind him, raising her cube-covered fist. One thing about his ability that he hadn't considered was that it could be used as a weapon against him. With one punch to the back of Cynder's head, his laughter stopped, his eyes rolled up in the back of his head, and he fell to the ground, completely out cold.
Thankfully, as soon as he fell unconscious, the purple cubes shrunk quickly before vanishing with a pop, and King let out a loud gasp of air, wheezing as he nearly passed out from the lack of oxygen. After taking a minute to recover, he got up onto his legs shakily and turned toward Anne, who was on her knees, sweat dripping from her forehead.
King gasped, running over to her to see if she was alright. "Anne, can you hear me?" he asked, worried.
Anne looked at his concerned expression and smiled. Her muscles were gonna be pretty sore the next few days, but she couldn't care less. Without another word, she scooped him up into a hug, which he gladly reciprocated.
"Well, I guess we should be heading home," King said, a little disappointed that his final performance was such a bust.
Anne smirked. "Well, it just so happens that I wrote a new song earlier, and the crowd should still be out there. Maybe it doesn't have to end this way."
Understanding what she meant, King felt a rush of excitement.
Outside, the crowd was slowly starting to disperse, talking about the failed performance, and many of them were starting to unfollow Eda/King's Penstagram account and even leave hateful comments. However, before the first person left, they all suddenly heard feedback from the microphone reverberating through the stadium.
There, standing on the stage, holding a guitar with King on her shoulder, was Anne with a confident smile on her face. All the spectators stopped and stared at them, many with anticipation and curiosity and many with doubtful expressions, but what would happen next would make a memorable night for many.
[Theme: Celica Gray - Welcome to Amphibia]
"Now I find myself
In a whole new place
A magical space
With friends I will embrace
But there's so much here to discover
What secrets will I uncover?
Fly into the unknown
Gotta cast a spell
And rebel~!"
As Anne was performing, her guitar started glowing a little as hints of bard magic started leaking out, though it wasn't a normal kind of bard magic. A golden stream of magic enveloped her, but it also had some blue sparkles within it. While singing, she noticed this and was amazed, but made sure not to mess up the lyrics. This didn't look like that figure's magic, so maybe it looked different for humans. She knew she would have to continue practicing it.
"Welcome to the Isles
I'll try my best to smile
I'm just a normal girl
Trying to survive in a new world
Whatchu gonna do?
You have to cast a spell
And rebel
Welcome to the Isles
I have to face my trials
So learn to use magic in the Isles~!"
After the two of them finished performing together, a brief moment of silence followed, until one by one, the spectators started clapping, which soon turned into a full-blown cheer. Anne and King laughed in joy as many started throwing them offerings. The figure that talked to Anne earlier had come to watch the performance and couldn't help but be curious about the strange magic she was giving off.
I wonder why her magic was differently colored like that, the figure thought. What does it mean?
King turned to Anne, feeling truly content for the first time in days. "Thanks, Anne," he said. "I… think I'm done with all this music stuff. I'm ready to go home."
"Yeah, I think my muscles are about to give out, so we should probably head home soon," Anne agreed. "So, what are we gonna do about that shady guy?"
"Eh, if he knows what's good for him, he'll stay away from us," King replied. With that, they headed home, with King secretly snagging some offerings from the ground on the way. He also may or may not have snatched Cynder's wallet as payback. He split whatever snails were in it with Anne, as a token of his goodwill and appreciation.
It didn't take very long for Anne to plop herself into bed and immediately fall asleep when they were home. King sat on the edge of the bed with her, curling in on himself. He yawned and went through the day's events in his head. Now that his mind was no longer occupied, he couldn't help but wonder if Anne had meant what she said back then about him being a fake king. Whether she still thought that or not, he would prove it to her.
As soon as he had this thought, he fell asleep as well.
Back in the living room, Eda was on her scroll, going through Penstagram. She had gone on an adventure of her own, facing her sister, getting scammed by that weasel, and beating the utter daylights out of him. Not a bad way to end one's day.
However, as she was looking through Penstagram, what was strange was how many people were talking about some kind of concert that had just happened with some punk that got famous because of one song.
She snorted in laughter until she came across a video recording of the event, and she saw none other than Anne and King on the thumbnail. She played it and heard them singing, absolutely bewildered. "What the?" She looked around for the two and instead found… an empty wallet with nothing but an ID on the couch next to her, alongside an envelope. Eda took it and opened it to reveal the ID of some schmuck named Cynder Brown. "A wallet?"
She took the envelope and opened it to reveal some snails alongside a note saying "For the guitar ;) ~ Anne".
"Girl, you do not wanna know," the typewriter from earlier said from beside her, confusing Eda even further.
To Be Continued in Chapter Twenty-Three
We finally, finally got this chapter done after what feels like forever. Based on the many lyrics made for this chapter, I'm sure you can understand why it took twice as long to release. It was also partly due to issues with motivation and such. Special thanks to ChampionElCid for graciously helping us with the lyrics! Fun fact: I remembered No Big Deal having three verses, for some reason, so despite it being longer than the original, I still like it quite a bit. I think it's even an improvement.
I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I will see you next time!
~ Scruffy