A/N: Oof. This chapter was hard to write, not gonna lie. Well, more so the last part of the chapter and some middle bits rather than the beginning and some other middle bits, but hey... Here we are. I'll go into more detail about that at the end to avoid spoilers on how I mixed things up. But from where we left off last chapter, Lizzie had just uncovered Eda's plot to pursue the Bloom of Eternal Youth to supposedly spite her sister Lilith, with our newly introduced character overhearing the merchant's plot and sending his palisman to offer Lizzie some assistance. This chapter follows on from that and contains quite a few revelations which will come into play in future chapters (which won't be revealed for the time being. Hehehe~). It shouldn't take much for you guys to guess what those revelations are, but that is the reason why I shortened this chapter a little bit. On top of the fact that I thought it was best to stop it where I did, since there is a brief timeskip to evening when Lilith is chasing Eda towards the flower, so... yeah. XD Quick FYI though: the italics and bold writing are indicated for when Lizzie is reading something aloud. Also, the name of the forest where the flower is isn't the canon name. I purposely made it up. Just makes things easier for me when describing stuff. XD

Thank you to everyone who has been favouriting, following, reviewing and reading this fanfic. Your support is greatly appreciated. I'd once again like to remind readers about the poll on my profile pertaining to which trio of chapters for each episode you've enjoyed seeing Lizzie in. I would appreciate it if you'd take the time to vote on it, as I really do want to know which retellings you guys have enjoyed the most for Season 1A. Without further ado, I hope you enjoy this chapter and little character interactions that occur. In the meantime, I'll get answering reviews:

Gry25: Firstly, thank you for your feedback. Glad to know you enjoyed the chapter. Secondly, I have seen the latest episodes and oof... That was a lot to process. Not gonna lie, it gave me some good ideas for when I do get around to writing it, especially as Season 2 will still allow me to include the OCs I have yet to introduce without them causing issues where the events are concerned, which is a relief. XD And thirdly, that is a funny idea, I'll admit. Although if something like that does happen, it would probably be in Season 2. Xander's appearances for the remainder of Season 1 are all going to occur when Luz is off doing her own thing, so only Lizzie will be encountering him for now. Still undecided about how Season 2 is going to play out, but it's possible Luz may wind up encountering Xander with Lizzie present during one of those episodes, depending on how my plans go and if I don't change my mind about things. XD


Chapter 32: A Liars' Quarrel

Lizzie assumed upon heading back to Eda's stand that it was going to be a while before they would be heading back to the Owl House. So, imagine the shock she got when Eda, Luz and King were already there waiting for her with everything packed up and the trio seated on the former's staff, eagerly beckoning for her to hurry so they could go home. For Eda, Lizzie could guess that her eagerness was related to the map and her insistence on going after the Bloom of Eternal Youth, but for Luz and King…? Well, it turned out the pair had discovered a writing competition and had partnered up to try to win it together, if their excited rambling towards Lizzie on the journey back was any indication (at least, from Luz. King's rambles about gaining 'power' and 'control' confused the whole matter for her). Either way, the second the group arrived at the Owl House, both parties wasted no time in ignoring Hooty's greetings and splitting up to head to their respective rooms to prep for their respective projects (with Luz somehow hauling the green monster typewriter with two brown eyes attached to its sides and a square mouth with normal teeth and two fanged ones on either end of its top jaw up the stairs, which once again left the blonde witch questioning when Luz had gained such strength since her arrival here), leaving the young adult witch to her own devices in the living room.

With everyone currently distracted doing their own thing (including Hooty, who had decided he wanted to take a midday nap for some reason), Lizzie saw this as the perfect opportunity to slip into the kitchen and seat herself at the foot of the table closest to the back door, stretching the glowing map out in front of her to get a better look at the forest this 'mythical flower' was apparently in, while also reflecting on the conversation she'd had with the merchant who had given it to her with a hand holding her chin and her fingers drumming against the table. She didn't bother to remove her cloak and satchel or lower her cloak hood, with her mind too preoccupied to even consider doing so.

'This whole thing doesn't make any sense. The emperor is looking into this and Eda accepted that map from the merchant without a second thought. She's always one to be wary of scammers, and she was the one who constantly drilled never trust a man in sandals into my head, which that merchant did not have.' She stopped tapping the table to trace a finger along the glowing lines of the forest drawn onto the parchment. 'Also, this forest is a real location. One of the ingredients that I sometimes buy for Eda's potions comes from this place. So, it stands to reason that this isn't an elaborate trick, especially if even the emperor himself wants that flower.'

Her finger paused in the middle of the map as her eyes closed, her focus returning to the merchant at feeling her stomach sink.

'But thanks to Eda, I know when to recognise the signs of a scammer, and that merchant gave me those vibes even without his creepy mannerisms. For one thing, he had multiple scrolls in that drawer, which is odd for a flower he's claimed only blooms once a millennium. For another thing, he was selling his wares at a book fair. A clever tactic if one wanted to garner attention and stand out above the rest. He also never charged me for the map, meaning he has something else to gain from sending his clients on a wild goose chase outside of snails. And his clothes…'

Lizzie opened her eyes and scowled, recalling Eda's words to her during the whole mess with Adegast.

'And I'm surprised you didn't get her out of there. I'm always telling you not to trust men in casual drapery.'

Lizzie leaned back in her seat and placed a hand to her chin, turning her gaze to the ceiling. 'There's no doubt his outfit matched Eda's warning, which must mean Eda might be walking into a trap, perhaps one set up by Lilith herself.' After a few seconds, though, Lizzie loudly snorted and slapped a hand against the table, slowly shaking her head. 'No, no. That's probably unlikely. From the little I've seen of Lilith, she's skilled with her magic and predicating what Eda would do, but she's also immature and easily tricked if what happened at Covention was any indication. Plus, if it was a trap, I don't think that merchant would have blabbed about their conversation.'

The blonde tapped her foot against the floor as she turned to the map on the table again, her eyes drooping.

'It's most likely that Eda's jumped headfirst into this whole thing without thinking because Lilith called her 'frail', along with the fact that this flower is supposed to do what it says on the tin: grant eternal youth to whoever finds it.' Lizzie tilted her head to the side at recalling her earlier encounter with Eda. 'Although, I still don't understand why Eda is suddenly so bothered about her age. I feel like I'm missing something—'

"Apprentice, employee!" Lizzie straightened up when she found her thoughts being cut off by Eda's stern voice slicing through them. "Living room, now!"

The blonde witch turned to the kitchen doorway with a raised brow, already having an idea as to what Eda was calling her and Luz (because who else was classed as her 'apprentice' in this cottage but Luz?) for.

'Why do I get the feeling Eda's preparing to embark on her 'little quest'?' Rolling up the map and returning it to her satchel, Lizzie stood from the table and made her way towards the living room, a faint smirk appearing on her face for a few seconds. 'Still, she's really not acting like herself! 'Apprentice' and 'employee'? What's with the formalities?'

By the time Lizzie reached the living room doorway, she saw Luz making her way down the stairs with her hands behind her back. She greeted Lizzie with a wide smile as the pair entered the living room together, approaching the cloaked back of the Owl Lady by the fireplace. But even with her back to them, Lizzie still caught sight of the light blue glow reflecting onto Eda's exposed arms and face, and also noticed that the front door was now open with Hooty wide awake.

'Yup. She's going after the Bloom of Eternal Youth. My gut was right again.'

"What's up, boss lady?" Luz greeted Eda as she and Lizzie stopped close to where she was stood, prompting Eda to roll up the map and face them with one hand hiding it behind her back.

The Owl Lady opened her mouth while placing a hand to her chest, but she paused and blinked widely at seeing Lizzie, her eyes looking between the cloak and satchel the younger witch was still wearing.

"Going somewhere, Redwood?" She asked sarcastically.

Lizzie smirked at the joking jab, narrowed her eyes, and crossed her arms in front of her chest, copying Eda's actions while Luz also looked the blonde witch over at realising she was still in her 'outdoors attire'.

'Eda's probably confused as to why I'm still looking like this. But she's covering it up by taking a jab at the fact I rarely leave the cottage; inside jokes at its finest.' "Bold of you to ask when you look like you're about to go somewhere yourself, Owl Lady."

Eda's eyes drooped at the returned sarcasm. "Touché." Lizzie snorted at this, which Eda took as her cue to clear her throat and sideways glance the front door behind her, leaning back a bit. "Anyway, I'll be popping out for a day or two to an undisclosed location to do undisclosed things." Eda frowned and pointed a finger at Lizzie at choosing to resume eye contact, with the latter's eyes narrowing further and whose smirk instantly faded. "As usual, Lizzie's in charge whilst I'm gone."

"Why's it 'undisclosed'?" Luz questioned with the tilt of her head.

"No questions," was Eda's stern reply as she turned her body towards the door and started walking, continuing to point at the two girls without breaking eye contact and while keeping the map hidden behind her back.

"And why are you acting weird?" Lizzie added on as Eda reached the front door and pulled her cowl over her head, prompting the older witch's scowl to deepen.

"I said no questions!"

Eda raised her middle and index fingers on her left hand and bent them slightly to close the front door behind her with a gentle slam, leaving Luz and Lizzie staring at the wood in silence with simultaneous raised brows.

'Very smooth, Eda. Totally not suspicious at all.'

There was a few second delay before Luz managed to bring herself to speak.

"Uh…" Luz turned to face Lizzie when the older witch turned to face her. "Is it just me or was Eda acting strangely?"

"It wasn't you. She is acting strangely," Lizzie answered the young Latina without missing a beat. "Which leads nicely into what I need to tell you." The blonde witch placed her hands on Luz's shoulders and bent down some they were at eye level. "I'm worried about Eda and what she's up to, so I'm planning on going after her to make sure she's okay. That means you'll be in charge whilst I'm gone."

"I actually thought you were going with Eda until she questioned you," Luz replied without so much as a blink, appearing to be taking the situation well despite how confusing it probably was for her. Then again, Lizzie couldn't blame her. Although Luz had been here a while, she didn't know Eda as well as she and King did.

Lizzie sighed heavily at that and shook her head. "I technically am, Luz. Eda just doesn't know that I am." She tightened her grip on her shoulders and frowned. "But I won't go unless you're sure you're going to be okay. We've left you alone in the Owl House a few times now, of course, but it hasn't been any longer than a day. Will you be all right to handle Hooty and King while I'm off chasing Eda?"

Luz grinned and waved Lizzie's question off with a hand. "Don't worry, Liz! I can handle them just fine!"

Lizzie raised a brow. "Are you sure? Because in my experience, those two can be a right handful."

"Absolutely!" The young Latina puffed her chest out and jabbed a thumb into it, straightening out her back. "King's too busy working with me to win that writing competition to get up to anything. And I can easily distract Hooty with my secret weapon." She reached a hand into the pocket of her hoody and held up her phone with one hand, tilting the other one back and forth in a gesture that Lizzie wouldn't have known was supposed to be for 'jazz hands'. "Ta-da!"

"… Fair enough," Lizzie relented with a small sigh, releasing Luz and standing up straight again to pull the hood of her cloak over her head while the young human returned her phone to her pockets. "The kitchen cupboards have been restocked, so you should be fine for food as long as you don't let King ransack them. Should you need to buy anything, however…" Lizzie placed her hands to her hips. "…have you still got any snails left from today's spending spree?"

Luz nodded stiffly and patted one of her pockets, allowing Lizzie to hear the jingle of the remaining coins as they moved around inside the sack. "Thirty snails to spare. That should cover us if we want to buy a quick bite, right?"

"Right." Lizzie tilted her head, recalling not seeing Luz with anything in her hands when she'd arrived at the stand. "I didn't know you'd bought a new book, though. What did you get?"

Luz smirked and tapped a finger against her nose, letting out a small giggle before closing one of her eyes. "It's a surprise! I'll let you know what it is when you and Eda get back!"

Lizzie briefly pressed her lips together at this, but she decided it wasn't worth questioning at this moment in time.

'Yeesh. And I thought Eda was the only one acting weird today.'

"Good luck with Eda, though!" Luz said as she spun on her heels and headed out of the living room, offering Lizzie a small wave.

"Thanks." Lizzie shouted after Luz when she disappeared into the hallway, placing a hand near her mouth. "Good luck with your story!"

"Thank you!"

'At least I know Luz and King won't be getting up to anything dangerous while I'm away.'

With Luz having left her alone, Lizzie lifted the flap of her satchel and peeked inside at her collection of potion vials. She raised a finger and mumbled under her breath at counting each vial aloud, her eyes following her fingertip all the while.

'I don't need to stock up on potions, so I think I'm good in that department. But as for chasing after Eda…' The blonde dropped the flap of her satchel and scratched at the back of her head, her gaze turning to Eda's wanted poster stuck on the wall above the red sofa, specifically focusing on Eda's staff depicted in it. '…how am I going to tail her? The only way to get to that forest and back within a day or two is travelling by staff. And while I know where it is on foot, there's no way I'd catch up to her in time.'

Lizzie groaned loudly and hid her face behind her hands, feeling the sudden urge to walk towards the nearest wall and smack her forehead against it.

'I did not think this through at all, did I?'

Lizzie was ready to go off on a mini tirade inside her head on how much she regretted not staying on long enough at Hexside to have gained a staff. But before she could even think of doing so… loud and muffled hissing from outside had her lowering her hands and glancing at the front door, followed by Hooty's shouts raising her brows with a blink.

"Who are you?! Shoo! This is my territory!"

'What in the—?'

Lizzie never got to finish that thought, because it was interrupted by the sight of the front door swinging open, with Hooty's body partially stretched out of his hole and bent in hunched angles. The fur on his tube-like body was stood on end as he hissed at the ground like a spooked cat, his beady eyes as wide as saucers.

"Go away! I hooted here first!"

"Hooty, calm down," Lizzie said as she approached the unsettled house demon. She placed a hand to the side of his body and stroked her fingers through his fur, attempting to follow his gaze while also trying to get him to relax. "What's the matter?"

She soon got her answer the moment her green eyes locked with a familiar looking red, two-tusked snake staring back at her from under the canopy, with a piece of rolled up parchment in its mouth.

"Oh!" Lizzie exclaimed with a blink, moving her hand away from Hooty (who had since stopped hissing at her presence) and crouching to be closer to ground level, which the snake took as its cue to slither over to her. "You're the snake palisman I saved from those demon hunters. I was wondering where you'd gotten to."

"Be careful, Lizzie!" Lizzie turned to Hooty with a raised brow at his shriek, seeing the house demon had moved backwards when the snake had approached her. "That snake is just trying to get your guard down! My hooty senses are telling me it's up to no good! Hoot hoot!"

Lizzie chuckled and shook her head at this, reaching up a hand to gently pat Hooty's side (or what she thought was classed as his side anyway…). "Hooty, it's okay. This snake is someone's palisman. It's not going to hurt anyone."

Hooty turned his gaze between the snake and Lizzie once before finally straightening out his body again, prompting his fur to smoothen out in turn. Eventually, though, he relented with a small huff, his tone dripping with disappointment. "Okay. If you say so…" He trailed off as he locked eyes with the snake again, only to squint and slowly retract a little more. "But I've got my eye on you! Hoot hoot!"

The snake merely tilted its head and quietly hissed in response to Hooty's words, causing Lizzie to roll her eyes and turn her focus to it once more after resting her elbows against her knees.

"Ignore Hooty. He gets very territorial."

Lizzie briefly paused in favour of giving the area behind the snake a quick look, the reoccurring question about why it was here on its own and where its friends were (the fox palisman especially) already on the tip of her tongue. Yet before she even had chance to get the words out, the snake palisman proceeded to release the parchment by widening its jaw a bit and let it roll to a stop against Lizzie's boot.

"Hm?" The blonde witch collected the parchment from the floor. "Is this for me?" At seeing the snake palisman nod, Lizzie wasted no time in pulling the ribbon around the parchment loose and allowing it to unravel, eventually using both hands to open it out in front of her face with a slight frown. "Wonder what it is…"

A quick skim of the parchment revealed a small paragraph of text in pen with handwriting that Lizzie didn't recognise. That didn't stop her from reading the following out loud:

"Dear Elisabeth Redwood,

You don't know me, but I believe you know my palisman 'Sigmund', the one who has delivered this note to you.—"

"Oh…" Lizzie stopped reading and raised her eyes to the snake palisman patiently listening to the contents of the scroll, a small smile coming to her face. "Your name is 'Sigmund'?" Sigmund hissed in response. "Aw. That's nice. And I see you found your owner too. I'm happy for you."

That realisation soon had her pursing her lips, however, her mind propelling back to the night she'd been eavesdropping on Xander and the pair of demon hunters.

'Wait. Didn't those demon hunters mention that the owners of the palismen were caught by the guards?' Lizzie focused on the parchment again as she prepared to resume reading it aloud, but not before adding one last thought on to appease her confusion. 'Then again… perhaps not all of them got captured? Or maybe they have other allies? Or this person somehow escaped?'

"—He's told me you were the one who rescued him and the other palismen from being taken to the emperor. You have my sincerest gratitude for that. Had you not stepped in when you did, I dread to think what fate would have befallen them.—"

Lizzie's voice grew quiet as she read through this part, her smile fading and being replaced with a frown.

'Wait, taken to the emperor? But Xander wanted them at the Conformatorium, didn't he?'

She decided to read on despite getting no answer to her rhetorical thought.

"—There is much I wish to discuss with you, as according to Sigmund and the other palismen, you are a wild witch like me and can be trusted. But alas, you appear to be in the middle of important business involving that sleazy merchant's scam.—"

Lizzie's shoulders slumped with a groan.

'Gosh darn it, Eda! I was right! Why did you end up falling for this scammer's lies?!'

"—I do hope you and I can talk soon. Until then, to show my appreciation, I'm loaning you Sigmund to pursue the Owl Lady; he tells me you don't have a palisman of your own. Please take good care of him. Don't worry about returning him. Sigmund can find his own way home.

I wish you luck,

V.S.—"

'V.S?' Lizzie scratched at the back of her head and furrowed her brow at the initials, struggling to recall if she'd ever encountered anyone Eda knew who could have those initials in their name. 'I don't think Eda nor I know anyone under those initials…'

"—P.S. The Bat Queen says she owes you a favour."

Lizzie's reaction was delayed for a couple of seconds, but when the last part of the note processed in her head, her jaw opened so wide it almost hit the floor.

"The Bat Queen said what?!"

Her shriek forced the blonde witch to tumble backwards onto her bottom, her hands bringing the parchment closer to her face so she could read that last sentence again with a squint. But it didn't matter how many times she repeated it in her head; it didn't change. She was reading it correctly.

"Holy Titan. I have so many questions." And why wouldn't she, when this stranger had just gone and dumped quite a bit of information into what they'd written? She lowered the parchment to her lap at hearing Sigmund hiss and then seeing him slither to her left side. "… But I guess I'll have to wait until I sort Eda out. She has to take priority."

'Still, I am grateful for the assistance. I just hope I get the chance to thank this witch at a later time.'

Lizzie rolled the parchment up again and slipped it into her satchel, switching it out for the map she'd previously put in there.

"You came at a good time. Eda's just left and I was beginning to question how I was going to tail her." The blonde said to the snake palisman as she brushed out the map flat against her thighs for Sigmund to see, lightly prodding at the middle of the cluster of trees displayed on it. "Eda's heading for the Webbed Woods. Do you know how to get there?" Sigmund gave a stiff nod, prompting Lizzie to grin and proceed to roll the map up again before shoving it into her satchel again. "Great! Then we'd better hurry. She's probably already a good distance ahead by now."

Lizzie patted her thighs with both hands to signal for Sigmund to climb onto her lap, which the snake palisman did without question. Slipping one hand under his head and the other under his tail, the young witch raised the snake into the air a little and tilted her head.

"Okay. So, how do we get your staff to—?"

Lizzie's question was cut off by the sight of Sigmund closing his eyes and his body becoming enveloped in a faint red glowing outline. Next thing she knew, a long and thick red stick with intricate bumps and markings grew from Sigmund's forehead in a small flash. Lizzie blinked widely and leaned back as Sigmund arched his body and curled himself round the staff, bending his head so that when he solidified into his wooden state, he was posed with his tail and the majority of his body coiled, while his head pointed downward towards the ground.

"… Whoa," she muttered, unable to say anything else for the moment.

The blonde witch waited until the flash had died away and Sigmund's eyes had opened to expose their red glow before she stretched out her palms to release the staff, allowing it to float in mid air while she stood to her feet and brushed off her skirt with a hand, her gaze never leaving the object in front of her.

'I've never seen staffs materialise like that before.' She tapped at her chin with a finger and squinted. 'Although Eda has sometimes materialised her staff out of thin air. Maybe it's the same for palismen…'

Shaking her head to dismiss her own ramblings, the blonde witch proceeded to sit sideways on the staff close to its head—just out of the way of where Sigmund was coiled up, of course—and gripped at it tightly with both hands (after she was sure her satchel was closed).

"All right, Sigmund, whenever you're ready, let's go after Eda." She swallowed thickly and lowered her voice before continuing. "Just please don't go too fast. I get airsick…"

'I've never ridden a staff on my own that often, but it's a good thing the palismen know how to control it themselves. Otherwise, I'd end up like Luz did with Owlbert the other day…'

Lizzie couldn't help shuddering at the recollection of Luz revealing to her and King what exactly had happened between her and Owlbert on the day the pair had been chasing after a cursed Eda. But that soon disappeared when she felt her feet raise from the floor and the staff suddenly jerk forward, prompting a loud gasp to escape her as she watched her and Sigmund ascend diagonally into the air. Lizzie tightened her grip on the staff until her knuckles turned white, looking back at the ground when she heard Hooty shouting up to her from the front door (and seeing he had since stretched himself back outside into the open after their departure).

"Good luck, Lizzie! If you don't come back because that snake ate you, I promise to avenge you! Hoot hoot!"

Lizzie groaned and rolled her eyes at the comment, turning her gaze to the purple, cloud-scattered sky as Sigmund raised her above the red treetops of the surrounding forest. She'd barely been in the air for more than a minute and yet already she could feel her palms growing clammy at the reminder that this was the second time she'd disobeyed Eda (and maybe also partly because she was in possession of another witch's staff and was currently responsible for keeping it in good condition). It was a low record compared to the likes of Luz, King and Hooty, but to her it felt like a bigger deal, considering she was so used to being the responsible one. The last time she'd felt like this, she'd purposely forced Owlbert to stop when she was supposed to be returning Luz to the Owl House and abandoning Eda and King at the Conformatorium. Now she was purposely leaving Luz, King and Hooty alone to pursue Eda and protect her from an obvious scam artist.

'The déjà vu was already bad enough at realising this is a repeat of what happened to Luz. But the fact I'm disobeying Eda again to save her life has since made this worse.'

Lizzie dared to glance over her shoulder at the Owl House in the distance for a few seconds, watching the cottage and its surrounding trees getting smaller and smaller the further away they got, even against the breeze whipping at her cloak and clothes.

'I'm sorry, Eda. I know you don't like me 'babying you' because of your curse.' She breathed in and out of her nostrils and faced forward once more, a scowl appearing on her face. 'But I can't stand by when the proclaimed most powerful witch of the Boiling Isles—who smells lies and scams as obviously as King locating hidden food in the Owl House—isn't acting like herself. Something is bothering you, and I will find out what it is…'


Throughout the journey to her destination, Sigmund had flown at a steady enough pace for Lizzie to linger in her thoughts without fear of throwing her guts up, especially as she was concerned about the length of time it was going to take to get to where she needed to go. Based off what Eda had said, Lizzie was assuming it was going to take a good portion of the day to arrive at the Webbed Woods, an assumption that was noted by how the Boiling Isles' purple sky was slowly turning orange the longer she flew. Of course, given that she'd departed from the Owl House during the mid-afternoon, and that travelling by staff was much faster than trekking on foot to her destination, there was a chance she'd wind up there quicker than she'd thought. Either way, the possibility of it being the second option did little to ease the guilt gnawing away at her gut, a feeling she recalled experiencing when she'd joined Eda and King in following Luz's trail during Adegast's fake quest. This time, though, she knew these feelings were stemming from the concern surrounding Eda, and not just because of her uncharacteristic behaviour.

'Eda's prone to acting childish and immature around Lilith. I saw that plenty of times at Covention. So, it's possible Lilith's insult rubbed her the wrong way and she's only going after the flower to spite her. It doesn't completely explain why she'd be so hung up about her age. I suspect there's more to it than Lilith, but whatever it is has made her act rashly.'

Lizzie shifted her gaze to the satchel pressed against her hip and released a small sigh, subconsciously letting go of the staff with one hand to clutch the strap against her chest.

'I just hope Eda has packed her elixirs with her, even if they're not working as well now. If it wasn't for my potion vials, I could have put a couple in my satchel.' Lizzie scrunched her nose up at feeling the heat rising to her face, prompting her to raise her head to stare ahead with the hopes that the gentle breeze of the late afternoon air would cool it down. She didn't need a mirror to suspect her face had likely flushed scarlet. 'I can't deny I'm not angry with her, though. How dare she be all secretive after asking me to keep an eye on her and go running off on a treasure hunt despite knowing her curse is unstable right now?! Does she not care about her own health at all?!' Lizzie clenched her jaw at her nostrils flaring at the reminder of Eda's strange behaviour earlier. 'I swear, she'd better hope it only takes me a small trip to catch up to her and not a full day, because so help me Titan—'

And sure enough, that statement proved to be the correct when Lizzie's thoughts cut off at Sigmund slowing down to a hover, allowing Lizzie to get a glimpse of the vast and dense red treetops of the woodland below her, located close to two of the ribs of the titan.

'There it is: Webbed Woods.'

Lizzie had never personally been to this place before, and there was very little she recalled hearing about it from the vendors whom she usually bought the potion ingredients from. So, she was coming into this situation with very little expectations as to what she was going to see; however, one look at the closely packed trees was all the young witch needed to see to know that she wasn't going to be able to search for Eda or the Bloom of Eternal Youth via the air, causing her shoulders to drop with a loud huff.

"Well, there goes my plan of staying airborne." She turned her gaze to the glowing eyes of Sigmund at the head of the staff. "Lower us to the ground, Sigmund. We're gonna have to go from the entrance."

And Sigmund did just that, resuming the staff's movement and slowly lowering Lizzie towards where the forest initially began, bending forward a bit to dip below the treeline and then right itself and stop once it was close to the land. Lizzie dismounted once the staff was hovering, taking a moment to glance up at the towering leaves and twisted patterned trunks of the trees leering over her, blocking out the sunlight and casting the ground in shadow and darkness deeper in.

'Yeesh. This scammer is giving me Adegast vibes. Must be why it seems like this merchant wanted something else instead of snails.' The blonde gulped thickly while collecting the staff into her left hand and slipping her right hand into her satchel to bring out the map again. 'I hope I don't have to find out what that is…'

Using the faint glow emitting off the map once it was opened out, while using Sigmund's staff like a walking stick, Lizzie straightened out her posture and stepped forth into the darkened overcast, occasionally switching her gaze between the map and where she was going. While the forest itself was vast, the path she had to follow was fairly simple and short, with each of the landmarks set up in a way that allowed her to find her way with little trouble. But while the journey through the forest itself didn't seem perilous, it didn't stop Lizzie's mind from running wild with thoughts of something lurking deep in the darkness somewhere.

'Considering webs are harvested from this place, I wouldn't be surprised if there were any spider-like creatures living here: another reason for me to give Eda a good talking to when I find her…'

The further Lizzie ventured through the dense terrain, the darker her surroundings slowly seemed to get, indicating to her that evening was drawing ever closer. She realised that there was still no sign of Eda anywhere (or even Lilith, not that Lizzie had wanted to cross paths with the coven head anyways), something she wasn't too surprised about. After all, there was quite a gap between when Eda left the Owl House before she did, along with the fact that Eda tended to fly like a maniac on her staff at faster speeds than she had with Sigmund (as poor Lizzie recalled once experiencing which had led to her discovery of her airsickness…). So, it made sense that Eda was likely already a good way ahead of her by now.

'I'm just hoping I can at least get there before she finds that flower…'

Around the time that Lizzie found herself passing over halfway through her journey, she was entering a small clearing where the surrounding trees were arched diagonally away from her, granting her a little bit of light towards her surroundings. However, before Lizzie had a chance to properly get her bearings, loud rustling sounded from behind her.

The blonde instinctively swirled round and lifted Sigmund's staff to grip vertically at her front, taking on a wide stance upon sighting some bushes shaking just to her right, which she squinted and took two steps back at.

'Okay. This looks bad. But if all else fails, I can just use the staff like a bat and knock out whatever it is that's about to jump out at me.'

Her imagination was already running wild at picturing an eight-legged, furry creature with multiple eyes and feelers about her size looking ready to launch itself at her out of the bushes, which prompted the blonde witch to tense her jaw and tighten her grip on the staff, poising it behind her in preparation for a swing. But when the rustling stopped and she spied a tall, cloaked humanoid figure stumble out of the shrubbery with a familiar high-pitched cry, the blonde witch was left relaxing her stance and raising her brows with a blink.

'Wait, is that…?'

The light enveloping the clearing revealed the dark teal haired witch Lizzie knew as 'Lilith', whose familiar two-toned grey gown and white and gold cloak were covered in splotches of mud. Her hair was also dishevelled, with bits of leaves and twigs sticking out of it.

"Ugh!" Lilith groaned and brushed her hands against the front of her clothes and cloak, grumbling to herself with a frown. "That's the second time I've tripped into bushes! Why does this keep happening?"

"Because your gown and cloak go past your feet," Lizzie said after straightening up and righting the staff at seeing she wasn't under any threat. Lilith blinked widely and flinched at hearing her voice and whipped her head in her direction, prompting Lizzie to continue with a slight smirk and wave of the map still in her hand the moment green crossed with aquamarine. "The Emperor's Coven should really rethink their fashion choices to better equip themselves when traversing terrain like this."

Lilith's eyes drooped the moment she realised who she was staring at, prompting her to puff her chest out and straighten her posture, her chin tilted upwards slightly.

"Oh, it's you," she said snidely. "The covenless degenerate and my sister's so called…"—she raised two fingers and bent them twice to air quote her next words—"'adoring fan'."

Lizzie's smirk faded and became replaced with a scowl and narrowed eyes, making her respond to Lilith with a tight tone. "That's Elisabeth Redwood to you, thank you. I have a name."

"Doesn't change the fact you shouldn't be here." Lilith frowned and took a quick look at her surroundings, eventually focusing her gaze on Lizzie once more with a slight tilt. Upon doing so, her eyes lit up at the sight of the glowing map in the younger witch's hold, a sly smile making its way onto her face. "Oh, I see now. Did dear Edalyn send you after the Bloom of Eternal Youth just to be a nuisance?" Lilith laughed, tossed her head back and placed a hand to her chest, making Lizzie growl and bare her teeth at the reaction. "That's rich! Has she become so frail that she's sent someone younger to do her dirty work because she's worried about breaking a hip~?"

"Hey!" Lizzie snapped and tightened her hold on the staff in her right hand, flushing her knuckles white from the shaky grip. "That's big talk coming from a witch who's naïve enough to fall for a scam artist's trick!" Lilith's brows briefly raised at this. "I wouldn't even be here chasing after Eda if she hadn't overheard your conversation with that merchant! So, you've got some nerve!"

"Oh? Edalyn's here?" Lilith huffed and folded her arms, turning away from Lizzie slightly. "That explains it. She's using you and your fanciful tale to act as a distraction while she gets the flower." The older witch shook her head a couple of times. "Of course she still hasn't matured after all this time. It has her written all of it."

Lizzie gaped and held her arms out, her eyes widening out of disbelief. "Seriously?! Did you not hear what I just said?!" She leaned forward and pointed her hands towards Lilith. "Eda doesn't know I'm here. You've convinced her to ignore her common sense and chase after a non-existent flower."

"Now you're just grasping at straws," Lilith replied dryly, eventually raising her hand to make a 'shooing' motion towards Lizzie. "Why don't you run on home, little witchlet~. This is no place for children."

Lizzie's shoulders slumped with an exasperated sigh, the willpower to argue with Lilith burning out like a flame on a candle that lacked enough wax to keep it burning for longer.

'Good grief. And I thought Eda was prideful. It's like talking to a brick wall.'

"Forget it. I don't have time for this." Lizzie turned around and rolled the map up, slipping it inside her satchel before proceeding to walk on ahead, using the staff for support. "I have enough on my plate worrying about Eda's curse acting up again. I don't need you getting in my way."

Lizzie didn't realise what she'd said until she heard Lilith speak after a small gasp, unaware of the wide-eyed look that had befallen her face as she covered her mouth with a hand, a hint of concern and shock in her tone.

"Edalyn's curse is worsening?"

The younger witch halted immediately and slapped a hand to her mouth with her eyes almost popping out of their sockets, feeling her joints freeze in place at becoming aware of her little slip of the tongue.

'Ah, crud!'

However, it took a few seconds for Lizzie to properly process what Lilith had said. The blonde witch turned her neck so fast it was a wonder it didn't snap off, looking back just in time to see Lilith sigh and lower her head, a hand reaching up to support her chin.

"Looks like my suspicions were correct, in the end."

"Wait." Lizzie turned around fully to face Lilith with her brows knitted together and her hand lowering from her mouth, her next words bringing the teal haired witch's gaze back to hers. "You know about Eda's curse?"

"How could I not? She's had it ever since we were teenagers." Lizzie's jaw dropped at this revelation, with Lilith fully facing Lizzie as her eyes drooped, her gaze turning off to the side.

'No way. I mean… I don't know how old Eda actually is. But when she said she was cursed when she was 'younger', I thought she meant as a young adult, not a teen!'

"It's been a while since I've seen her last, but I'll admit I was surprised when I saw her at Covention." Lilith continued. "I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me, but when she went to defend you and stumbled… I knew then it was no trick." The older witch raised a hand to her own face and stroked her cheek. "There were more wrinkles on her face than before."

"Wrinkles?" Lizzie repeated with a blink, a hand of her own lifting to her face and stretching her fingers towards her left eye at recalling that wrinkle she'd seen under Eda's eye. "What do wrinkles have to do with her curse?"

Lilith turned to Lizzie with a raised brow and her head tilted slightly. "You don't know?"

"Know what?"

"That the curse hasn't just affected Edalyn's magic." Lilith grabbed at a strand of hair in front of one of her ears and thumbed at it. "It's also affected her appearance and accelerated her aging. It's why she has grey hair and appears older than she actually is."

Lilith's words seemed to cause something to click into place inside Lizzie's head, as if a puzzle piece that was missing had finally been found and slotted into the gap of the mental puzzle constructing in her mind.

'… Of course!' Lilith flinched and closed an eye while watching the younger witch hit her forehead with a resounding smack, remaining unaware of the inner conversation she was having with herself as she stared wide-eyed at the ground. 'When I first met Eda, her hair was still a little red in places, but overtime it greyed out. I naturally assumed it was just an age thing, yet now that I know about the curse… it makes sense. And because of what's been happening lately…'

The merchant's words bubbled to the surface of her mind.

'The Bloom of Eternal Youth is a flower that only grows in this area once every millennium, granting eternal youth to whomever holds it. The emperor has taken an interest in the flower and has sent the leader of the Emperor's Coven to retrieve it, which has apparently prompted your friend to decide she wants to retrieve it for herself…'

'This wasn't just about Lilith insulting her, was it? Part of her must want to believe that the Bloom of Eternal Youth is real, because she thinks it can counteract the effects of the curse.' Lizzie groaned and briefly squeezed her eyes shut, using two fingers to rub at one of her temples with an exasperated sigh. 'Oh, Eda. Why must you be like this?'

"Ahem." Lilith clearing her throat brought Lizzie's eyes to open, her gaze shooting to the older witch to see her staring at her with a furrowed brow. "Is… everything all right?"

Lizzie didn't say anything at first, instead taking a moment to give the dishevelled coven leader a brief look over from head to toe before allowing her shoulders to slump.

'I can't believe I'm about to do this. But Lilith probably knows Eda much better than I do. Plus, she did just show concern for Eda and her curse, which is to be expected, since she is her sister. If anyone can help me find her quickly and put a stop to her antics, it's gotta be her.'

Lizzie took a deep breath in through her nose and released it through her mouth while running a hand through her hair, giving herself a moment to prepare before she started speaking.

"Look, Lilith—"

The young witch barely got her words out by the time a pair of footsteps were heard rushing towards them from Lizzie's left (and Lilith's right), followed by a familiar sounding and… unusually worded battle cry.

"Spicy toss!"

On instinct, both Lizzie and Lilith swirled towards the assaulter with wide eyes and loud screams, with the latter recoiling with her hands clasped to her chest while the former raised the staff behind her and spread her legs apart. However, the moment the pair saw the bushy, grey-hair, wide golden eyes, and red cloak and dress of a certain witch as they skidded to a halt close by, wielding a blade crafted of ice in her right hand and a ball of flames in her left hand, the pair froze in place along with the newcomer.

"Edalyn?" Lilith questioned with a wide blink, a hint of annoyance entering her tone despite her surprise.

"Lily?" Eda questioned with a wide blink of her own and a hint of surprise in her tone.

"Eda?!" Lizzie cried out when she could find her words, prompting Eda's brows to raise as her gaze turned to the young witch.

"Lizzie?!" Eda scowled and crossed her hands in front of her body in an 'X' formation, only to cast them out to the side and cause the ice blade and flames to disappear in flashes of bright blue and orange light. Her eyes flitted between the two witches as Lilith and Lizzie straightened themselves out, crossing her arms in front of her chest as she did so. "What is going on here?!" Her eyes narrowed at the staff she eventually saw Lizzie clutching, a brow raising. "And where did you get that staff?!"

Lizzie and Lilith briefly sideways glanced the staff and snake palisman perched atop it before the former focused on Eda again with the clearing of her throat, moving the staff behind her back. "Long story. Not important." But then Lizzie copied Eda and pointed at her accusingly. "But if anyone should be asking what's going on, it's me. How dare you lie to us and run off on some wild goose chase!"

"Don't you take that tone with me, missy," Eda replied sternly, jabbing a finger at her with a deepened scowl. If Lizzie looked close enough, she swore she could see Eda's face flushing up a bit out of anger. "You're the one who's disobeyed me. You're supposed to be watching Luz, King and Hooty right now. What are you doing out in the middle of nowhere?!"

"Knocking some common sense into you, obviously!" Lizzie bit back, causing Eda to take a step back and place a hand to her chest.

Out of the corner of her eye, Lizzie could see that Lilith looked like she wanted to say something, but that she'd resorted to staying quiet and move her head back and forth between the two speakers like she was watching a grudgby match with a slight squint. It seemed to Lizzie like Lilith knew this was probably not a discussion she should be getting involved in, yet her mind appeared to be focused on something and prompting her to focus on their discussion nonetheless.

"Excuse me?"

"Don't give me that, Eda!" Lizzie reached a hand into her satchel and snatched up the rolled-up map, which she proceeded to wildly wave about above her head. "I know all about your quest for the Bloom of Eternal Youth! Did you honestly think you could hide this from me?!"

"Where did you get that?"

"That so called merchant gave it to me." Lizzie thrust the map back into her satchel, her voice growing quiet and taut at the sudden ache striking her chest, her body shaking with suppressed rage; she couldn't quite put her finger on it, but there was something strangely familiar about this situation. "I can't believe you'd be so reckless, Eda…! After asking for me to trust you to worry about your curse, why would you purposely put your faith in a furball whom 'the most powerful witch of the Boiling Isles' would have easily identified as a fraud and risk your life for a made-up flower?!"

Silence fell in between employer and employee at this, which was only broken by Lilith's gasp and shocked response towards Lizzie as she leaned back.

"Wait. You were telling the truth?!"

Lizzie looked at Lilith with drooped eyes and shoulders, briefly clenching her jaw to resist the urge to call her a bunch of names that immediately popped into her head.

"… Yes," Lizzie eventually hissed. "Because I'm not a liar." She returned her gaze to Eda. "Unlike a certain someone."

Eda squinted and placed a hand to her hip. "Hey. Watch it."

"So, then…" Lilith slowly looked to Eda as she tried to get her words out, her eyes widened slightly as what little colour was present in her face began to drain. "…is it true, Edalyn? Is the curse worsening?"

Eda leaned back and gaped at Lilith's questions for a few seconds. "What? Where did you—?" She interrupted herself with raised brows when the realisation smacked her in the face, prompting the Owl Lady's head to whip towards Lizzie, her voice cracking when she spoke. "You told her?"

"It was an accident," Lizzie quietly answered with a sigh, her brows furrowing as she took a step forward. "She was getting in my way, and I was too busy worrying about you and your curse acting up again—"

"Which I told you not to worry about," Eda's hiss cut Lizzie off and made the younger witch wince under the older witch's frown and clenched jaw. Yet that didn't stop her from pushing the matter further, even through her cracking voice.

"But how can I not when you're throwing yourself into danger over a flower that isn't real?!"

"I'm not debating this now." Eda went to walk forward and pass Lizzie by, balling her hands into fists at her sides while addressing the blonde witch in a low tone. "Go home, Lizzie."

But Lizzie ignored her, willingly up the courage to step into Eda's path and block her by holding the staff out in front of her, forcing Eda to stop in her tracks. "Not until you tell me why you're willingly believing the lies of a scammer!"

Narrowed gold locked with narrowed green as Eda relaxed her white knuckles, putting her shoulders back and taking a deep breath to keep the anger threatening to penetrate past her twitching jaw. Yet before Eda could even think of what to say, Lilith's hand went to her shoulder, her next words causing the Owl Lady to freeze over as if her sister had just been ordered by the emperor to have her petrified.

"You were hoping the Bloom of Eternal Youth could heal your curse, weren't you?"

Unlike Eda, however, Lizzie wasn't shocked by this revelation. She'd come to the same conclusion only moments ago thanks to Lilith's recent piece of information and based on Eda's silence, the amount of sweat she could see gathering on the witch's brow and how quickly her wide golden eyes were darting between the pair of witches, it was all the confirmation Lizzie needed to know that they were right.

'Eda…'

A hand went to Lizzie's throat the moment she felt a lump beginning to form, which she proceeded to rub at as she stared silently at her technical employer, the regret immediately settling in. With her brow furrowing, Lizzie raised the staff and went to step forward, opening her mouth in preparation to offer the Owl Lady words of reassurance. But before she knew it… Eda swiftly shoved Lilith to the ground and darted round her while her sister shrieked and crashed to the floor on her side, leaving both Lizzie and Lilith gaping as they stared after Eda's cloaked back at hearing her laugh loudly and shout their way in a singsong tone.

"See you later, chumps~! I'm gonna get to the Bloom of Eternal Youth before you~!"

It took a few seconds for both Lilith and Lizzie to process what had just happened. But once Eda had already gotten a bit ahead of them, Lizzie became the first to snap back to reality with a growl. With Lilith shaking her head and attempting to push herself to her feet, Lizzie twirled on her heels and dashed after Eda with the staff in her hold raised from the floor at her side, yelling at the Owl Lady at the top of her lungs.

"EDA! GET BACK HERE!"

Lilith stumbled from side to side once she was stood up, managing to regain her balance and run after the other two witches as Lizzie chased Eda out of the clearing.

"E-Edalyn! Why are you like this?!"

Unbeknownst to the trio of witches leaving the clearing, a pair of red eyes were observing their departure from a set of nearby bushes, which narrowed once they focused on Lilith's back disappearing between the trees.


A/N: So... Hooty's reaction to Sigmund should have been obvious: Hooty's an owl, Sigmund's a snake. Snakes are predators of owls. Made sense for him to freak out at seeing Sigmund. XD Next, Lilith: not gonna lie, she was hard to write here. But just like in Covention, I was trying to capture the complexities of her character outside of her villain persona in Season 1. A lot of people who write Lilith while she is an antagonist focus too much on making her into a 'She's-the-bad-guy' character, when there's obviously more to her than that. Despite being on the enemy side, she still cares for Eda and is empathetic, especially considering she has regretted her actions all these years and has been trying to fix her mistake, but is currently still battling with her own insecurities, denial and the prideful image she's had to maintain because of her position. Which is why I thought it made sense for Lilith to act all condescending towards Lizzie initially until Eda's curse was mentioned. And then the argument between Eda and Lizzie... well... I originally wasn't going to put that there. But I thought it made sense given Eda's tendency to be secretive and the fact Lizzie would be naturally upset that Eda lied to her, especially after the agreement they'd not long made. Plus, the two of them act like mother and daughter at this point. An argument about this was inevitable, especially considering Lizzie knows Eda is smarter than she lets on and Eda knows it's uncharacteristic for Lizzie to not listen to her. Just some small family drama for ya~. XD