Previously on Calamitous Intervention
Anne, Eda, and King were at the stand, selling stuff from the Human Realm as per usual when Boscha and her friends decided to butt in and make fun of them. After that, they were bored so Eda decided to do a Body Swap spell. In King's body, Eda had a close call with a guard before deciding to take advantage of her cuteness to make easy snails. After a close encounter with Lilith, she decided to go to the slayground where she was forced to play with the usurper.
In Anne's body, King headed up the cliff to the Treasure Shack where he saw Boscha and her goons. He decided to make them his goons and threw the bag of water balloons, creating massive tentacle monsters. However, two Glandus kids named Bria and Gavin stopped the monsters and offered to take King to a candy shop. There, he had fun until Boscha entered the shop and slapped him after he insulted her. Upset, he ran to the slayground to where Eda was to get some comfort.
In Eda's body, Anne quickly got bored of running the stand, so she took off on Owlbert to fight Lilith and teach her a lesson. Unfortunately, she quickly lost, which resulted in her being captured. She was about to be branded with a sigil when she turned into the Owl Beast and fled to the slayground. Eda, King, Bria, and Gavin took her on and managed to suppress her with difficulty, but Lilith and the guards arrived to capture Eda once more. Thinking quickly, Eda used the Body Swap spell on all of them as a distraction.
Later, at the Owl House, Anne decided to reveal the Calamity Box to them, but they had no idea what it was.
Chapter Eighteen - Blinding Flights
A couple of weeks before Eda and King met Anne, the two were passing time at her Human Collectibles stand, Eda sitting front and center behind the counter and King napping on the table, well within her eyesight.
The stand had been pretty empty for the most part, but Eda didn't mind too much–Sunday afternoons had always been pretty slow and she had a very busy Saturday, so she was pretty content for the time being. The witch was passing the time playing on a 3DS that she snagged from one of Owlbert's trips.
As she casually played on her handheld, not focusing on her surroundings, she heard a young female clear her throat. She looked up, slightly annoyed to see a teen girl with a bold hairstyle and a pierce on her ear waiting in front of the counter.
"Oh, hello there," Eda greeted Viney, putting her game away. "So, what relics from the Human Realm would you like to snag? Maybe this little carpenter figurine?" She showed the intrigued teen a small figure of a red plumber holding a fireball on a gold round base.
"Or how about this weird hobo poster for your room?" she continued as she displayed a large, slightly folded poster of a middle-aged man with strands of gray hair standing in a recording studio. "This guy's got quite the hairstyle. I'll tell-"
Viney cracked up, interrupting the witch and making her smile disappear. "I'm just looking for some gaming equipment," Viney told her. "I heard you might have a big multi-sided die from the Human Realm?"
Eda waved this off. "Pssh, easy. I have like thirty of those. Could never really understand what the appeal is, though."
Viney grinned, rubbing her hands together. "I knew I was onto something good. I always like to scour fairs and small stands because the owners don't know the real value of some of these items, so they're dirt cheap," she told Eda.
As she took some snails out of her bag, she continued, "Main con is you might not always find what you're looking for, though, but when you do, you can get yourself a pretty awesome deal, and even get to meet some interesting folks. On the other hand, if I were to visit a game shop or large store, you can usually find what you're looking for, but since the owners know what they have, they charge you much more."
She blinked, realizing she was rambling to Eda. "Whoops, looks like my mind drifted a bit. How much is it?"
"Five snails," Eda replied. The young witch, satisfied with that price, set the snails on the desk and grabbed the multi-sided die. As she walked off, Eda watched her meet up with a lanky-faced boy and some sort of doglike creature. Viney excitedly told them something that was inaudible to the Owl Lady.
Eda couldn't help but smile a bit at this. She might've not known what they were gonna use it for, but she hoped that they would enjoy doing whatever they were going to do with that die.
Back in the present day, in the living room of the Owl House, Anne was sitting on the floor next to King, as he was deviously showing off a cursed pencil that Eda owned, careful as to not get the witch's attention.
"This brush is one of Eda's darkest secrets," he whispered to her, who was intrigued. "Anything you draw with it comes to life. Go on, try it!"
The human hesitated, a bit skeptical about it since the last time drawings came to life, it was back at the library, and that didn't end very well. Well, as long as she didn't draw Otabin, everything should be fine. She took the pencil, taking a close look at it to see if there was anything unusual about it, but it seemed like an ordinary pencil.
"Well, I should've learned my lesson at the library, but I can't pass this up," Anne said, grabbing a piece of paper and drawing a familiar figure on it. It, of course, was a tiny King. After detailing it to the best of her ability, she watched closely, waiting to see what would happen.
At first, nothing happened, and she was mildly disappointed. But suddenly, the drawing began to twitch a bit and began to rise from the sheet. Anne gasped at this, placing her hands on her cheeks. "Two Kings are better than one! I dub thee King 2!"
King gave her a weird look as the drawing looked a bit deformed cause Anne wasn't very good at drawing. Suddenly, Eda's hands suddenly intruded and crumpled the paper up, with a faint saddened 'weh' coming from the paper.
Anne's jaw dropped at this. "Eda, you murdered King 2!"
"Where'd you get my magic pencil?" Eda asked, ignoring her and sounding pretty annoyed. "I thought I stored it in my nest."
The human immediately narrowed her eyes at King, who chuckled nervously.
"Whatever, you're not gonna use it or see it again," the witch said as she used her hands to snap the pencil in two before tossing it into a garbage bin.
Anne groaned and pouted, falling on her back. "Why'd you always gotta ruin any chance of us having fun? Look at how King feels!"
They looked over to see King grabbing the crumpled-up paper from the trash can and holding it close. "No!" He then grabbed the two halves of the pencil and tried to put them back together. He fell to his side, whining. "I could've had an army!"
"That pencil was very dangerous anyway," Eda told them. "Neither of you have any idea how out of control these drawings can get."
"How 'out of control' can a tiny drawing get?" Anne asked with a deadpan expression. "It's not like it's gonna destroy the house or something."
"That's precisely why you can't use it," the Owl Lady replied. "Why do you think I hid it in the first place? You do not wanna know what happened last time I used it."
The human sat on the couch, grumbling before the front door suddenly opened to reveal none other than Willow.
"Uhh, hi. Is Anne here?" Willow timidly asked, and Anne waved to get her attention, recognizing her. "I'm right here." She hadn't seen her in a good while, but didn't mind her presence, since Willow was pretty nice to her.
"Oh, there you are," Willow said, smiling, before walking in.
"Hey, who gave you permission to–" Eda started, but Anne ignored her, walking past her. "What brings you here?"
Scratching her arm nervously, Willow replied, "Well, ever since the whole incident at Hexside, I've been trying to find something I can succeed at. I wanna try to show Amity that I'm more than just half a witch."
"Yeah, Amity's hard to figure out," Anne said. "I've got nothing better to do today, so I guess that's another way of saying you wanna hang out?"
The young witch cracked a smile at this. "Of course. We haven't really talked much ever since the night of the Moonlight Conjuring, so I figured, hey, we should get to know each other a bit better."
"Sounds cool," the human agreed, grabbing her backpack. "Well, I'll see you later, Eda, King!"
Eda rolled her eyes in response. She didn't really mind if Anne decided to leave, but she didn't fully trust Willow yet. She figured Anne would be fine, though. "Alright, kiddos, don't do anything stupid."
As they left the house, walking across the forest's pathway, they heard the distorted chirping of birds and saw strange creatures flying above them. Just a normal day in the Boiling Isles.
"Between you and me, I've been wanting something to… escape to," Willow explained as they passed by tall trees. "I want nothing more than to stand up to Amity and impress my dads, but I just can't bring myself to do it."
Hearing this from Willow kind of reminded Anne of herself when she was little. She preferred to keep her distance from other people and wasn't nearly as assertive as she was now. "Well, what did you have in mind?" the human asked.
"The reason I'm telling you this is because of this," Willow replied, pulling out a flashy poster of the local Bonesborough fair. "There's a local fair where they're having a Flyer Derby competition. I'm working up the nerve to enter it."
"Flyer Derby?" Anne raised an eyebrow, since she hadn't ever heard of this sport until now. "What's that about?"
"Here." Willow pulled out her scroll and showed her a post on Penstagram. The post featured a video showcasing two Flyer Derby players, both of whom were riding on staffs and flying through the air.
"Only Stabitha Jenkins and Old Gory are left," an announcer said as the two dramatically flew toward each other. The video looked pretty aged, with warbly audio and VHS artifacts throughout.
The two approached each other in the air as Stabitha snatched Old Gory's flag and headed toward her team's pole, laying it and raising her arms in celebration. "And it's Stabitha Jenkins with the winning flag!" the announcer proudly yelled.
As the video was playing, Anne chuckled at how cheesy it looked, but quickly stopped when she saw Willow's genuine interest and excitement for the sport. "Well, other than the corny costumes, the sport looks kinda fun," the human admitted.
"I'm not gonna wear that getup, so you don't need to worry," Willow replied. By this point, they were getting close to the fair. It was crowded, as witches of all ages were eager to visit the attractions inside. The two entered the fair, and instantly, the scent of fried food hit Anne's nose, which likely smelled better than it tasted. "Yep, this is a fair, alright."
They glanced around the various exhibits before Willow pointed Anne toward a large fenced arena, which was packed to the brim with witches and demons wanting to experience a Flyer Derby game in person.
They approached a square-shaped arena, watching as several witches on flying staffs were zipping and zooming past excited onlookers. They all had elaborate makeup and costumes befitting a professional wrestling organization. As a gray-skinned demon snatched the flag of a male witch, he flew to a corner where he hoisted the flag up high, making the audience cheer.
Anne was quite impressed with how tense and energetic the players were here. She wasn't too into teamwork or stuff like that, but she could see why the competitive nature of the post appealed to Willow.
Willow briefly smiled at the sight of the game but then sighed, perching her arms on the fence and leaning her head on them. "I don't know if I got what it takes to be a Flyer Derby player. If I can't make an abomination, then what can I do?"
Anne looked at her silently, before speaking, "That's because you shouldn't be in the abomination track. I've seen what you could do with plants firsthand, and you gave me a big run for my money."
The young witch giggled at this, but her smile quickly faded. "Really, it's not a big deal. I just need to keep practicing. Besides, if I can master abominations, it could be great for my future."
The human wasn't at all convinced by her words. "Dude, going that route isn't gonna get you far. You have the talent for plant magic, for crying out loud! Why waste it by making stupid goo monsters? Plants are way cooler."
Willow seemed hesitant at this idea, but her words did help her cheer up a little. "I don't know… Principal Bump might not even approve of the idea. Trust me, I'm fine."
"What's the harm in asking?" Anne replied. "At worst, you'll lose nothing, and at best, you can finally show Amity who's boss with that cool magic of yours."
The young witch contemplated her words, realizing Anne was definitely right. Making up her mind, she sighed. "Okay, I guess asking him wouldn't hurt."
The human grinned at her response. "That's the spirit!" As they watched the game end, Willow heard someone announce over the loudspeakers, "Prospective Flyer Derby players may try out the game by approaching the marked entrance."
"This could be my chance to be a great Flyer Derby player!" Willow said and lit up in excitement as she got up from resting on the fence and started to head toward a line where tons of excited teens were waiting.
"Don't forget to ask Principal Bump!" Anne called out to remind her as the excited Flyer Derby tryout ran from her.
As Willow got in her place in the line, she tilted her head to see a half dozen teens ahead of her. A tall, amphibian, birdlike, purple demon named Mr. Salamanca was wearing goggles and a ragged outfit was guarding a gate that led into the arena. He held a clipboard and asked each tryout for their name before letting them in.
As Willow got excited, she was in third place in the line as she saw the teens in front of her get a staff, and before she knew it, she was in front of the line.
"Whoa there," Mr. Salamanca held his arm out to stop her from going any further. "The next game tryout is already at full capacity. You'll have to wait for this session to complete before you can enter the arena."
Willow was about to say something as she sported an angry look, but stopped and timidly looked down. At least she may only have to wait a few minutes.
Anne looked from afar, still perching on the arena's fence. She noticed several teens entering the arena, each carrying a staff, but Willow wasn't with them. Concerned at first, she looked around and saw the gate was already shut and Willow was in front of the line, waiting for her turn.
Realizing it may be a couple of minutes, she started to feel a bit bored. Looking around for anything to do, she decided to head near some booths just to see what kind of weird stuff they offered here. She made sure not to go far so she could hear when the next game began, wanting to see Willow in action.
Something caught her eye, as she was especially interested in the sight of Viney and her two friends kneeling around a table, the three appearing to play some kind of role-playing board game.
With her friend occupied right now, she was intrigued, figuring out they seemed sorta chill. She began to walk up to them and see what they were up to. Upon closer inspection, they were playing a game similar to that Creatures and Caverns game Marcy got her and Sasha to play at some point.
Viney was explaining the rules of the game, showing them the multi-sided die she had gotten weeks ago, but stopped when she saw Anne approaching them. The human tried to think of something to say that didn't sound too awkward, but decided to go with the first idea in her mind.
"Uh, hi, the name's Anne," she began. "Soooo…. Uh, I see you guys like role-playing." She glanced at Viney. "What's with that ear piercing?"
The young witch just gave her a confused look. "My what?"
A short period of silence followed, and Anne coughed into her fist. "Okay, restart. I'm Anne Boonchuy. I saw you guys playing a game that looked familiar to me, plus you three seem pretty chill."
Viney chuckled at her awkward first impression. "The name's Viney," she replied, shaking the human's hand. "I haven't seen you around before."
"Oh, that's 'cause I'm not from this world," Anne explained. "I'm actually a human."
This got the full attention of the other two, who perked up at this. Viney's eyes widened as she glanced at Anne's ears. "Come to think of it, your ears are a lot rounder than ours. Oh yeah, these are my two friends, Jerbo and Barcus."
Jerbo waved while Barcus barked as a greeting, which made Anne do a double take. "Is he your pet or something?"
"Erm… what makes you think that?" Jerbo asked while Barcus gave her a very weird look, feeling slightly insulted.
Viney laughed at her question. "No, he's a friend of ours. Common misconception. There are all kinds of demons here and, well… It can be confusing. Oh, yeah, speaking about the fact you're a human… There's this kid I know who loves learning about them. He would go crazy if he met you."
"Are you talking about Gus?" Anne replied, and Viney raised her eyebrows. "Yeah, I think his name's Augustus or something. You already met him?"
The human nodded. "I heard he runs some sort of club or something." She then took note of their familiar outfits and decided to comment on them. "Wait, are you guys from magic school?"
"We're actually from Hexside," Viney explained. "Speaking of which… Now that I mention school, you look kinda familiar."
This confused Anne, who had never met this particular group until now. "What do you mean?"
Without saying anything else, Viney summoned her scroll and swiped through her photos, trying to remember where she saw her before. It then hit her as she looked at a selfie she took a few weeks ago. In the background, she saw a poster of Anne covered in abomination goo, titled "BANNED" above it.
Viney suppressed a chuckle at this, showing the photo to the others, who also saw what she was looking at. The human didn't know what to feel, so she just asked, "Okay, spill it. What's so funny?"
"You don't know?" the young witch replied, showing her the photo. "You're banned from Hexside. I had no idea you were actually the one behind the lockdown back then."
"Well, it was a real sticky situation," Anne explained. "Long story short: I snuck in with someone whose name I won't say, made them a top student, but got caught, and got both of us in trouble." She scratched her arm, looking down at the ground. "Yeah, not my best idea."
Viney didn't say anything as she got up from her seat and approached Anne with a stern expression, staring at her for a few seconds before her attitude immediately changed and she sported a big smile. "Glad to know we're not the only rule-breakers here. You seem pretty cool."
The human briefly looked confused at her sudden shift in tone before asking rather curiously, "What… rules did you break?"
"Let's just say… we like school a bit too much," Viney replied, before elaborating, "At Hexside, Principal Bump only wants us to study one track at a time. We wanted to study multiple tracks at once, but for some reason, he really didn't like that. So into the detention track we went."
"It sucks there," Jerbo added, and Barcus made a growling noise to indicate his disgust. Suddenly, they heard the voice of the Flyer Derby announcer in the distance, announcing that the game would begin soon.
"Well, I'll see you three later," Anne told them. "My friend's doing Flyer Derby tryouts."
"Jerbo and I are doing tryouts too," Viney replied, which surprised the human. "We actually signed up not too long ago."
"Well, in that case, I'll see you guys during the match!" Anne said, waving at them as she ran toward the stands, which were already getting pretty packed with spectators. The players were warming up before the main game, and her eyes darted to Willow, who was nervously clenching her staff, already in a riding position. She had to grab a temporary staff since she didn't have one of her own.
Next to her, she saw some students pointing and laughing at her. "Look! It's Half-A-Witch! What's she doing here?"
Anne clenched her fists, but stopped herself from saying or doing anything as she watched Willow stumble a bit before zooming ahead and up into the air. There was no way she'd be able to do something like that. Back when Eda swapped their bodies, she nearly offed herself just trying to land with Eda's staff.
During the warmup skirmish, Willow flew up around eight feet in the air, riding on her staff as she suddenly braked hard, still trying to get a grasp of it. She was visibly nervous, as she was now doing some turns around the arena. To Anne's surprise, she was starting to get the hang of it, eventually zipping around and moving up and down smoothly.
A look of confidence finally appeared on Willow's face, and she felt as if maybe she had a chance in her first game. Now, the question was how the young witch would fare against the other players. Willow and a few others were on the green team. The red team was being led by a female teen holding up a red flag, as she looked closer Anne let out a gasp realizing the team leader was none other than Viney!
After the warmups ended, both teams got on opposite sides of the field, floating on their staffs parallel to their teammates. Anne watched in anticipation as Willow wiped a bead of sweat going down the side of her face, her confidence wavering a bit.
"And now that both teams are ready, we can begin the Flyer Derby tryouts!" Mr. Salamanca yelled, before proceeding to explain the rules of the game. "Now, before we begin, I will reiterate the rules of the game. Each player has a flag color-coded to their team tied on their staffs. To score, you must snatch the flag of the enemy team and hang it on their post. If your flag is stolen, you're out of the game. The first team to lose all their flags loses the game. Are we ready to begin?"
The audience was cheering as a pink abomination referee stood by, raised its hand, and blew the whistle to signal the beginning of the game. Immediately, both teams rushed forward, launching magic attacks toward each other.
Willow was able to avoid them. Filled with determination, her eyes dramatically narrowed and she decided to put all her pent-up anger from being called "Half-a-Witch" for years into her actions, so she started to charge, flying straight forward Viney.
She noticed a few of Viney's teammates try to stop her with abomination goo, potions, and weak plant magic, but she was so focused that they weren't a big worry. She knew she wasn't supposed to use plant magic of her own, but since she wasn't at Hexside, she figured this wouldn't be a big problem.
She focused as a green, glowing outline surrounded her. Vines erupted from the ground below, catching the opponents off guard and knocking them away. It almost completely knocked them out of the game but they managed to stabilize their staffs. Right now, all Willow wanted to be was a star player–somebody special for once.
As she bounded toward Viney, she realized it would be too predictable to charge in like that, so she decided to play a little trickery. She flew past Viney, seemingly missing her, before starting to dive lower. Viney turned toward her in confusion as Willow suddenly flew up straight toward her from below, snatching the flag.
Viney gasped at her speed, silently scolding herself for letting her snatch the flag so easily. She was now out of the game. While Willow dived straight for the pole, her other opponents followed closely behind, slowly gaining on her tail.
The fact she was able to get this far amazed Willow. She had no idea she would get the hang of the game this quickly, but she couldn't let her guard down now. The game wasn't over, and everybody's eyes were on her.
Taking a deep breath, she approached the post, and right as her opponents were about to reach her, she stuck the flag on the pole, scoring them a point.
"And Willow Park is the first to score a point!" Mr. Salamanca announced as moderate cheering was heard. Anne was very impressed as she stood up and clapped, getting some weird looks from other students, but she didn't care.
Willow's confidence was building after she had managed to score so quickly. She hadn't felt this good in a very long time. She felt like she could actually belong and be a leader for the first time.
She swerved around the pole, using plant magic to stop the pursuers from grabbing her flag. Willow seamlessly zoomed forward, weaving around her teammates and opponents. This time, more eyes were focused on her. Her team hadn't really done much yet, but she was hoping they would support her.
Unfortunately, as she was thinking that, one of her teammates' flags got snatched and hung, scoring a point for the enemy team. Willow got a bit nervous, but knew she had to help her team turn things around before they lost.
As she focused ahead, she began to hear some booing and jeering from the stands, but didn't pay attention to them, figuring they might've been aimed at somebody else. Ignoring them, she dived toward Jerbo, trying to snatch his flag, but she just barely missed.
He swerved around and drew a spell circle, launching vines that spiraled in a straight line toward her. Willow countered by doing the same, and the vines collided midair, causing a small shockwave.
Unfortunately for Jerbo, he wasn't nearly as good with plant magic as Willow was, so her vines began piercing through his staff, which unnerved him.
While this was happening, an enemy dived toward her from behind, startling her. Quickly thinking, she drew a purple spell circle and summoned abomination goo that splattered against their face and blinded them, making them spiral out of control. "MY EYES!"
Using her plant magic, she created a barrier in their path, and they crashed into it, groaning. Taking this chance, one of Willow's teammates flew by, snatching their flag and scoring them a point.
Some of the people in the crowd boo and jeer at this, accusing Willow of cheating because she used different types of magic, but Mr. Salamanca spoke into the loudspeaker to quiet them down, "There are no rules against mixing magic."
Willow grinned before turning toward Jerbo and overpowering his plant magic as well.
She restrained him and dived forward, going to snatch his flag, but out of nowhere, he drew a purple spell circle and launched a blast of abomination goo that sent her spiraling back. She grunted, barely able to stop herself from crashing to the ground. "Uh oh!"
Willow watched as things began to take a turn for the worse for her team. Jerbo and some other teammates took the chance to snatch another flag quickly from one of her teammates, leaving only two left on her team and three on the opposing team.
Seeing this, she felt her confidence wavering, but she knew she had to do something or they would lose the match. If she could just beat Jerbo, she should be able to take out the other two as well. Without another moment of hesitation, she flew ahead at full speed, aiming to grab the flag from Jerbo's staff. While she was at it, she summoned some plants in hopes of reaching him.
However, the plants missed, and Willow grunted in frustration. She almost had him, and that mistake could've cost them the game. Now open to any attacks, Jerbo took this chance to fly toward her, summoning an abomination arm that grabbed her and locked her in place.
She gasped, trying to break free of his control, but it was too late. He flew by and snatched the flag from Willow's staff, taking her out of the game. She couldn't believe what had just happened. Just like that, she was out.
Without another word, she drifted down to the ground, going out of bounds. From behind her, she could hear some students jeering, booing, and laughing at her. She turned to see some of her classmates calling her "Half-A-Witch" and how she would never be good at Flyer Derby.
She started to feel overwhelmed, falling to her knees and clutching her head. Seeing this got Anne enraged. She got up from her seat and yelled at the students to shut up, but their laughter drowned her voice out.
Even though Willow did great at first, people still thought of her as nothing. She started breathing more shakily as she began to feel pessimistic and wondered if people would always see her as inferior and weak, no matter how successful her future life could be.
She didn't notice that vines were beginning to sprout from her outfit from the stress she was feeling. Viney, who was previously bummed out, noticed her from the sidelines and started to grow concerned. She felt bad for Willow and never understood why she was picked on so much.
As she watched, Willow's eyes subtly glowed green and vines began to emerge from the ground. Viney hopped down and ran toward her, trying to stop things from escalating. "Willow, you need to calm down! You're losing control of your magic!"
Willow looked down at what was happening to her, but it was too late to stop it. Seeing this made her panic even more, and this caused her to lose it completely. As Jerbo was cornering Willow's last teammate, he noticed something coming toward him from the corner of his eye.
Before he could even react, he saw a vine from below grab him and restrain him. Willow's plant magic went out of control as vines began spreading, disrupting the game. Seeing this, Mr. Salamanca got frustrated, but despite the tension, reassured the crowd that he would have it under control.
He ran forward, drawing a spell circle and using construction magic to summon pillars from the ground that headed toward Willow, slamming on the surrounding ground to form walls to contain her.
Anne knew this was only just going to delay things, so she hopped down herself onto the ground and ran toward Willow, dodging vines coming for her. She pressed the power glyph to her arm and felt a new surge of strength, leaping high in the air.
She saw a gap and tried to leap through it, but it closed just before she could hop through it. "Crap!" As she headed toward the pillar, about to smack into it with her body, she winded her fist back and punched it, causing it to crack.
She jumped back, rubbing her aching fist, as her punch alone wasn't enough. "How strong are these walls?!"
By now, the roots had spread to the edges of the square fence, and the crowd began to flee. Things were getting out of control now as the vines began grabbing random objects and throwing them around the stadium.
Just then, a figure walked behind a struggling Mr. Salamanca, before speaking, "I'll handle this. Remove the walls."
Mr. Salamanca nodded as he drew another spell circle, causing the walls to retract. The figure walked forward and drew a purple spell circle, summoning abominations that bounded toward Willow.
Anne looked at the figure, and her eyes widened. It was none other than Principal Bump. What is he doing here?! she wondered.
The principal drew another spell circle, which caused Willow to levitate in the air, slowly regaining her senses. After he managed to stop the vines from spreading any further, the abominations surrounded Willow and restrained her, making her yelp. "Get away from me!"
Principal Bump walked up to her, clearing his throat. Willow blinked for a moment, panting as she slowly regained her senses. She looked up at him, still in a slight daze.
"I'm very disappointed in you, Willow," he said, dispelling the abominations. "You've caused enough trouble."
When the young witch finally regained her senses, her eyes widened as she got up, gasping when she saw him. "P-Principal Bump? What are you doing here?"
"I came here to observe what my students and students of other schools are capable of," he replied sternly. "Not only have you caused chaos and ruined the game, but you also utilized plant magic instead of abomination magic, which you are supposed to be studying!"
Willow tried to think of something to say, but she couldn't, so she just hung her head in shame. The principal continued, "As punishment, you will be sent to the Detention Pit tomorrow morning. Do I make myself clear?"
The young witch felt her tears welling up a bit, but she nodded. Just then, they both heard a voice yelling, "HEY!"
Willow's eyes widened as she turned to see Anne walking toward them with a ticked-off expression. The human panted a bit, taking off her power glyph.
Principal Bump raised an eyebrow at this, recognizing her from the incident at Hexside. Before he could say anything, however, Anne yelled, "You're being WAY too hard on her! You don't know what she's been through!"
"Personally, I'm more concerned about you trespassing and refuting my words," the principal fired back. "You aren't a part of this, so I'm kindly asking you to leave."
"Not happening," Anne simply said, stopping when she was next to Willow. "She's been trying her best to find a place where she belongs, and wanted to try out for Flyer Derby, but apparently you're too blind to realize that she's been getting bullied this whole time!"
Willow couldn't believe what she was hearing. Nobody had ever stuck up for her like this, and for Anne to insult the principal directly was a very bold thing to do. For the first time, somebody had defended her after being humiliated.
Principal Bump narrowed his eyes at her. "You are in no position to be lecturing me about my students, but I am curious about what you propose. Do go on."
Hearing this, Anne got straight to the point. "You need to put Willow in the Plant track. She belongs there much more than the Abomination track. You've seen how good she is with plant magic, right?"
Viney hopped over the fence, hearing the entire conversation. "I agree with her," she said. "Every time I've seen her, she seems pretty nice. You'll make her life a lot better."
"Interesting," the principal muttered, pressing his fingertips together. "Willow has shown that she lacked in using abominations, but if what you say is true, then why hasn't she mentioned it to me?"
"Like I said, she's been bullied for years now," the human told him. "Plus, well…" She turned toward Willow. "Maybe I shouldn't keep speaking for her."
The young witch had a few tears rolling down her face, and with all that had happened so far, could only say a few words. "You have no idea how much it'll help me if you put me in the plant track," she said, visibly struggling to speak.
Principal Bump pondered for a few moments and sighed. "If this is what you think is best for your life and future, I suppose I can switch your track next time you come to Hexside." he gave his final thoughts.
Willow gasped quietly and, after a short stunned silence, began to smile. "Thank you, Principal Bump. I'll do my best," she happily said as she stood up.
Viney was standing by, all with a smile on her face. To cheer her up a bit, she headed toward Willow and bumped her shoulder. "I saw you out there, you've got some good moves! I'd love to keep practicing Flyer Derby with you. I bet both of us could be star players some day." she suggested with a smirk on her face.
Willow's mood was improving as she responded, "Really, you think so? No one's ever said something like that to me before. I'd love the chance!"
Principal Bump turned toward Anne curiously. This whole incident disrupted his day, and he wasn't pleased with all the chaos, but he was impressed with her courage and physical strength. She was able to take on witches with just a power glyph, and a daring yet intriguing idea formed in his head.
"Anne, was it?" he said, clasping his hands together. "I never knew humans were capable of battling magic users, which is why I have an offer for you."
Anne didn't know what to expect and was very surprised, considering he banned her and wanted to throw her into the Detention Pit. "What kind of offer?" she replied.
"An offer to be a student at Hexside," he stated, and her eyes widened. "Excuse me? I'm the last person who deserves to go there."
"I think the student body could learn a lot from having such an exchange student," he explained. "I've seen your potential, and I am curious about what else you could learn, despite not having a bile sac."
"This is a great opportunity, Anne!" Willow added, and Anne didn't know how to feel about this. On the one hand, she hated school, but on the other hand, this is a magic school, and she'd finally have something to do during the weekdays. Plus, she'd get to hang out with Willow and Viney, so it can't be that bad.
Making up her mind, she nodded. "Sure, I guess it couldn't hurt. Could be fun."
"Excellent," the principal replied. "Before you do, however, your guardian will need to fill out some paperwork. We can work out the details next week."
The mood was suddenly cut short by Mr. Salamanca, who slowly clapped with frustration on his face. "Yeah, yeah, you finally found your place, kids. Hooray! But I gotta clean up this mess, and you both have to return your staffs."
Principal Bump left as the crowd outside grew visibly impatient, the trio decided it was time to leave. Anne ran up to Willow and looked at her fondly. "Get ready, dude. The next stage of your life is just beginning," she said, happy she'll finally get to be where she belonged. "Soo… Where are you going from here?"
"I'll probably head home, "Willow said, her first time showing sincerity and happiness the whole day. "Tomorrow, I'll head back to school and hopefully find a new passion and love in the Plant track."
"See ya," the human said as she turned around to see Viney, still standing there. "You have any plans for now?"
"Ehh, I'm pretty much free for now. You planning on something?" Viney quickly answered.
"Nah, I think I had enough adventure and angst for today. I'll just go home," the human answered as she turned her head away, looking down. She paused for a few seconds before turning toward Viney. "So, you wanna come with me?" she asked curiously.
The witch chuckled as she crossed her arms and said, "Sure, I could learn a bit about your human lifestyle over there. Must be fun."
"Sweeeeeeeet!" Anne geeked out as she pointed finger guns and crouched back a bit.
"Only one thing though," Viney added. "Jerbo and Barcus are still outside waiting for me and they wouldn't like it if I bailed on them."
"Sure, they seem pretty cool too," Anne agreed. With this in mind, she turned toward Willow, who looked a bit exhausted but felt better than before. "What about you, Willow? Wanna come with?"
"Thanks, but I'm ready to go home," the young witch replied. "Thanks for sticking up for me, Anne. You too, uh…"
"The name's Viney," Viney told her. "Maybe the five of us could hang out sometime. Anyway, we should get going."
Just then, Jerbo walked over, having scrapes on his arms and legs from the vines that grabbed him earlier. "Wait for me!"
"Jerbo? I thought you left," Viney said in surprise, walking over to him and working on healing his wounds with her magic.
"That flower girl's scary, man…" he muttered.
Together, they headed out of the arena, parting with Willow. There was a crowd outside coming back to the game now that things had been settled. Before it got any bigger, they quickly left the area. In the same place as before, they found Barcus lying down in the shade, looking bored. When he noticed them approaching, he perked up and got up on his feet, walking over to them.
"Sorry we took so long, Barcus," Viney told the doglike creature, nervously looking to the side and brushing her hair with her hand. "Things got a bit… hairy. But I met a new friend today, and I'm gonna follow her home. You wanna come?"
"We're what ?" Jerbo replied, and Barcus barked, having a skeptical expression.
"Come on, guys," Viney assured them, "Anne is cool. We'll be fine."
"I would, but I still gotta do some Flyer Derby tryouts," Jerbo declined. "You two have fun, though."
"Well, you do you," Viney replied as she waved at her two friends before walking off with Anne.
As they were walking through the forest toward the Owl House, Anne told Viney about herself and what her world and home were like. She realized the two were clicking very well and surprisingly related well.
"Do you think you'll ever try out Flyer Derby?" Viney asked her, as the two were strolling on a rather quiet afternoon. "I can see your bold spirit working like a charm in the sport."
"Eh, now's not a good time," Anne responded, before continuing. "I have bigger priorities right now. But who knows? Maybe after I finally find my friends, I could give it a shot."
As they approached the Owl House's front door, Anne stopped before they could go any further. "Oh, right, if you thought you've seen enough weird until now, you haven't seen nothin' yet."
"I think I can handle whatever you throw at me," Viney told her. "What could get weirder than what I've seen so far?"
She looked at the front door and narrowed her eyes, seeing a strange shape on the door that resembled… an owl? Immediately, Hooty shot out of the door toward her, making her scream. "HOOT, HOOT! Hi there! Wanna be frieeeends?"
"Told ya," Anne said. "He's pretty much the guardian of this place, or whatever you call him. He's perhaps the most unorthodox home security system ever made."
She turned toward Hooty, waving him away. "She's fine, Hooty. She's a friend."
"Ooo! Another person to talk to!" Hooty said excitedly. "Okay, so one time-"
The human led Viney into the house and quickly closed the door, drowning out his speaking. The young witch looked up at the interior of the house, fascinated by it. "Wow, this is where you live?"
"Yeah, it's nothing much, but-" Anne started, but Viney cut her off. "This is so cool! My house is very… ehhh, and I'm totally jealous of you."
She approached a shelf, looking at all the strange things Eda had collected over the years. She reached out to touch one of them, but Anne stopped her. "Yeah, I think Eda would turn you into some sort of unholy creature if you touched her stuff."
"Wait… Eda?" Viney tapped her chin. "That name sounds familiar. Tell me more about this place."
"Well, it's called the Owl House," Anne explained. "It's where perhaps the weirdest family in all worlds lives. There's a little guy who's so gosh darn precious, that weird owl tube thing named Hooty, and Eda the Owl Lady. At first, I didn't like her, but over time, well… between you and me, I've started to care for her."
Viney smiled, finding this sweet as she wandered around and saw one of Eda's wanted posters framed on the wall. "Come to think of it, I've seen her before," she said, rubbing her chin while examining it. "Don't worry, I won't turn her in. Or will I?" she joked, turning toward Anne, who coughed into her fist, not appreciating the joke.
"Uhh, anyway, you're not gonna believe who my roommate is," Anne told her, changing the topic as the biggest surprise had yet to be revealed.
"Is he some sort of… witch? Demon? Beast?" she guessed, rubbing her chin. "Or maybe it could be some sort of divine being!"
The human shrugged, before walking her over to the couch, where King was sleeping on his back. He had a half-eaten bag of Hex Mix next to him. Anne figured he must've been in some sort of food coma as he didn't respond when she opened the door.
Anne smirked as she scratched his belly. "Wake up, buddy. We have a visitor." After a bit more scratching, he squirmed and jolted awake, blinking rapidly. "Weh? Who intrudes upon the King of Demons?!"
Viney's eyes widened. "Oooohh! He's so adorable!" She took a deep breath to compose herself. "I haven't told you this yet, but I'm actually a big fan of animals I own a giant bird named Puddles. She's always a joy to be around."
"That sounds awesome!" the human said, geeking out over the idea of being able to fly anywhere she wanted. "What else can she do? Can she breathe super hot fire?"
"That would be neat, but no," the young witch replied. "But maybe sometime I can introduce you to her."
"I'm sure Eda would like her too," Anne said, looking around the living room. "Speaking of Eda, where is she?"
King glanced up at them, barely able to keep his eyes open as he curled up on the couch, muttering, "She went into the portal and I think she's getting… stuff… human stuff, or whatever. She usually doesn't take this long, but…"
He brushed it off, falling back to sleep. Anne rolled her eyes a bit curious about where Eda was and why she was taking so long., but she figured she'd be fine. She was likely just taking her time, as usual.
Viney summoned her scroll and gasped when she saw the time. "Uh oh, looks like I'm gonna be late! Well, I'm gonna have to leave, but maybe sometime you should convince Principal Bump to let you into Hexside as a student. Jerbo, Barcus, and I have a cool hideout, and I'll be sure to show you if you do."
She waved at Anne and was about to leave when Anne asked her something. "Hey, when you go back to Hexside, can you do me a favor and be there for Willow? She needs someone like you to support her."
The young witch nodded. "Sure thing. Hope to see you at school, Anne. Maybe I could show you guys the hideout sometime. I guess you could say we can both grow and blossom together."
An awkward silence followed her pun, and she took this moment to walk off before things could get even more awkward. As the human stood there for a few moments, she suddenly heard a strange whooshing noise from behind her.
She turned to see a tired Eda walking from upstairs, presumably having left the portal in her room. In her hands, she held a large tied-up bag with many items inside. She glanced at Anne before nodding. "Oh, there you are, kiddo. You didn't do anything stupid out there today, did you?"
"Mmmm, nope," the human lied. "Just went to the fair, ate some ice scream, and enjoyed some rides."
Eda couldn't tell whether or not to believe her since trouble pretty much always followed where Anne went, but she brushed it off. "You didn't meet that creepy fat pig, did you?" she snarked, but also sincerely.
"Nope, I think he's learned his lesson," Anne replied before her face darkened. "Also, I wasn't joking about turning him into bacon."
Eda chuckled at this, before taking a sip of coffee she stole from a cafe. The human also remembered something she had to tell Eda. "Oh, yeah, by the way, I'm going to school at Hexside."
Hearing this, the witch's eyes went wide as she spit out her coffee.
To Be Continued in Chapter Nineteen
Sorry for the delay! My co-writer and I are taking a bit of a break from writing and only now did we finish this chapter. Hopefully it was worth the wait, as there were a lot of twists and deviations! We will return, though, just after maybe another week or two (think of it as a midseason hiatus).
~ Scruffy