A/N: Hello there. So, it turns out I got this chapter done a lot quicker than I was expecting to. Whoops? XD I will be honest in saying that I had planned to put quite a bit more into this chapter than I currently have, including extra scenes with Luz involving the Room of Secret Shortcuts and also some stuff between Xander and Lizzie that would have changed the tone of this chapter. But ultimately I decided not to do that, and not just because of how long this was going to get. Honestly, the OC basilisk here pretty much summed up the basilisk situation without including the one for Hexside, so I thought it would have just been unnecessary information that would have been repeated. And it wouldn't have made sense for me to have those scenes with Luz and the detention trio without including the context with the basilisk, which I think would have just caused a messy structure. Not to mention I wanted the focus to go onto the scenes with Xander, Lizzie and the basilisk here, which I felt were much more important for reasons you will probably find out once you read through it. The other stuff for Lizzie and Xander I decided to save for later chapters, as I feel they'll be more relevant for then and not here. But in their places, I have included new revelations that I think will help you understand my other OCs a little better, along with the Bat Queen. I won't lie, her dialect and short sentences were hard to write, but I'm hoping I did her justice here.

In the meantime, thank you to everyone who has been reviewing and reading this fanfic. Your continued support is greatly appreciated. I don't think the favourites and follows have changed since last update, so... nothing to say for that this time. Chapter 40 officially concludes Episode 13, though, meaning 41 and beyond will go into Episode 14. And while I do have plans for Lizzie to follow canon again in that episode, she will be changing the flow of the plot in a way that some of you might not have expected, along with meeting a certain face she has yet to officially meet in person... Until then, I hope the conclusion to the thirteenth episode is to your liking.


Chapter 40: Returning the Favour

A small gust rose and whipped between the young witch and the large bat-like creature silently staring each other down, gently rustling the former's cloak and caressing the latter's raven hair while Lizzie allowed the form of address to settle in. Behind Lizzie, Xander continued to watch the ensuing interaction with caution, a faint frown forming at registering the 'title' the Bat Queen had apparently given his cousin.

"Protector of Palismen…?" he mumbled as he scratched at his cheek with a finger, remaining oblivious to Bandit crawling out of his hiding place. "Those demon hunters mentioned that this creature protected palismen they were trying to go after before, which she confirmed. Were they referring to those palismen Father coaxed me into capturing—?"

Xander cut himself off at feeling Bandit clamber down his left arm. He turned back to the basilisk to see the ferret palisman perch on his wrist and start nibbling at the glowing net, gradually snapping it apart around the demon's face and arms. The blonde witch gasped.

"Oh, that's right! Forgot what I was doing!"

Xander adjusted his position and put Lizzie's healing potion on the ground, using his now free hand to yank at the opening in the net to quicken Bandit's aid. The basilisk waited until Xander had made a big enough opening for them to roll over onto their front and dig their claw-like fingers into the hardened ground to pull themselves out, prompting Xander and Bandit to stop what they were doing and for the ferret palisman to return to his owner's shoulder.

The basilisk hauled the upper half of their body out of the net, then slithered the rest of the way, eventually flicking the damaged net to one side with their tail for good measure. Xander and Bandit observed the demon in the meantime, with neither making any sudden movements at seeing the basilisk straighten out and face them. The serpent-like demon hunched their shoulders and clasped their hands close to their chest the moment wide amber met calm green, the slight trembling he could see from their hands causing his lone eye to droop.

His cousin was right: this basilisk was never a threat to them to begin with.

After a moment of silent staring, Xander slowly reached out and grabbed the healing potion vial from the ground, his visible eye darting back and forth between the basilisk and his steady movements to make sure the demon wasn't startled while he uncorked the vial. All the while the basilisk didn't move, but that didn't stop their eyes from fixing intently onto Xander's hands.

Upon completing his task, Xander cleared his throat and lifted the uncorked vial for the basilisk to take, recalling Lizzie's instructions before he repeated them quietly.

"Swill your mouth with this. It'll heal the burns the last potion inflicted on you. Don't swallow it."

The basilisk rubbed at the back of their hand as they glanced between Xander's face and the vial, their brow furrowing out of uncertainty. The older witch couldn't blame them; he'd also had to learn the hard way about just how dangerous his little cousin's concoctions were. After a moment of the basilisk repeating the process, though, they slithered toward Xander just the tiniest bit and raised a shaking hand, eventually taking the vial into a loose grip.

Xander stayed still and silent while observing the basilisk bringing the vial close to their face, his breath hitching in his throat when their nose twitched with the loud sniffing that ensued close to the vial's opening. He didn't know what he was going to do if the basilisk didn't try to use the potion, but luckily, after a few seconds passed, his worries went unwarranted—the basilisk stopped sniffing and finally placed the tip of the vial to their lips, tilting the vial and their head a bit to take a swig of the potion.

"Thank the Titan for that," he mumbled upon releasing the bated breath he'd been holding. "They've acknowledged we're not a threat…"

Xander briefly closed his eyes to take a moment to bask in his relief, despite the loud swishing liquid noises coming from the basilisk. However, Bandit's quiet whimpering soon had his attention drawn back to his palisman companion, who was peeking over his shoulder in the direction of Lizzie and the Bat Queen.

The two hadn't spoken or made any sound during the time Xander had been tending to the basilisk, so he was soon left blinking widely when the Bat Queen slowly approached Lizzie still sat on the ground, who instinctively hunched her shoulders at being closed in on.

"I've been expecting you," the Bat Queen said, eventually stopping just in front of Lizzie and reaching two of her claws towards the back of the witch's cloak to clutch at it. "Tiny human must have told you about forest home."

Lizzie gasped and looked down at feeling the Bat Queen hoisting her up by her cloak, her limbs momentarily curling themselves close to her body until she was put on her feet again and released.

"Wait, wait, wait!" Lizzie replied upon processing the last thing the Bat Queen had said, her wide green eyes turning to the bone-like branches looming over them. "You live here?"

She didn't wait for any confirmation from the Bat Queen herself. Lizzie's gaze wandered to the large tree and its cavern-like hole at allowing her body to twist toward it, her brow furrowing as the realisation clicked into place like the missing piece of a puzzle. Lizzie's thoughts propelled her back to the day she and King had been dealing with the demon hunters, when they'd returned to the Owl House and Luz had gone into detail about her encounter with the Bat Queen.

'A palisman?!' Lizzie had exclaimed out of shock as she and King stared wide-eyed at Luz on the other side of the sofa they were seated on in the living room. 'The Bat Queen is a palisman?!'

Luz smiled out of awkwardness and raised her shoulders a bit, a hand rubbing at the back of her neck. 'I know. Loco, right?' The Latina's smile dimmed a little when her hand dropped to her lap, her eyes drooping as her tone turned solemn. 'She said she was part of a staff made for a giant, but that she doesn't remember who her owner was or how she was broken. But ever since then, she's lived in that forest and taken in any lost or broken palismen.' Lizzie saw Luz's smile fade as she kept her gaze on her lap, her voice lowering a little in volume; she couldn't shake the feeling Luz was recalling something sad, based on how she kept her gaze fixed onto her lap. 'I can't imagine how that must feel, not being able to remember something like that…'

'That's right. Luz told me about this place, which means…' Lizzie faced the Bat Queen again with a deepened frown, a hand reaching for her chest to give it a rub. '…those palismen I saved…'

She couldn't bring herself to finish the thought, the blame falling on what she recalled those demon hunters saying mere moments ago. They recognised the Bat Queen and she recognised them, with the former claiming the latter had protected 'those palismen'. That realisation, coupled with the form of address the Bat Queen had just used, seemed to put everything into place for the young witch.

But when Lizzie opened her mouth to speak, she froze when she heard Xander speak up from behind, followed by his slow and light footsteps approaching her right side.

"That name you gave Elisabeth just now," he began, pausing until he'd stopped beside his younger cousin to stare at the Bat Queen with a slight squint. "Does it have anything to do with the palismen those demon hunters captured?"

Xander had taken the words right out of Lizzie's mouth.

"It does," the Bat Queen answered, causing Lizzie to gape while the bat palisman's eyes closed, her head lowering a little. "Their owners asked me to protect them." She paused to growl, making both Lizzie and Xander wince and step back the moment her eyes snapped open into narrowed slits. "But then hunters trespass, stealing them when I wasn't there to stop them."

Lizzie heard Xander gulp loudly and caught him gripping a hand at his throat out of the corner of her eyes. She had to press her lips together to stop herself from smirking or laughing, knowing any outward reaction that hinted he was involved with the demon hunters would result in the Bat Queen getting very angry.

'Still, that adds up with what the demon hunters said to Xander before. Which means those witches hid their palismen with the Bat Queen before they were captured.'

Eventually, the Bat Queen's expression softened with the righting of her head, her red eyes locking with Lizzie's calm green. "They told me all: from rescue efforts,"—her gaze sideways glanced Bandit on Xander's shoulder—"to reuniting the injured and the lost."

Lizzie and Xander gaped at the last thing and exchanged wide blinks, while Bandit stood on his hind legs and released a shriek, pointing his tiny paws to his furry chest.

'She knows I helped Bandit too? Did the fox palisman tell her?'

At least Lizzie knew where said palisman and the remainder of its friends had probably gone to after their two separate encounters.

"I am in your debt, young witch. Sigmund says you know of my offer," the Bat Queen continued, with Lizzie's brows raising at the familiar name. "So, should you need anything, whatever your heart desires, I shall grant it." Lizzie flinched at feeling one of the Bat Queen's outstretched claws faintly poke her in the chest. "You are ally of palismen, and ally of palismen is ally of I."

Lizzie blinked widely as the Bat Queen retracted her claws back to her side, her gaze drifting to the ground at recalling what she'd read in that letter. Meanwhile, Xander and Bandit were left silently glancing between with occasional blinks, likely because they were struggling to follow what was going on without being aware of the context, Lizzie guessed.

'Oh, yeah. That wild witch mentioned the Bat Queen owed me a favour. And now I know why…' She lightly scratched one of her cheeks with a finger. 'I haven't forgotten about that. But I haven't given it much thought…'

Her brows furrowed when Eda's words from a previous conversation resurfaced inside her head.

'Also, she owes you a favour. Maybe you can use it to find out more about this witch if you're still unsure.'

'Hm. I suppose now would be a good time to put that favour to use. I still don't know who that mystery witch is, but the Bat Queen clearly does. Maybe I could—'

Loud spitting and coughing abruptly silenced Lizzie's internal conversation with herself. She and Xander peeked over their shoulders towards where the basilisk was to see the demon standing before a splatter of blue liquid on the ground that Lizzie recognised to be from her healing potion, using one of their arms to wipe at their mouth while their other hand held the empty vial.

'Ah. Forgot about the basilisk.'

"Ahem," Lizzie cleared her throat and faced the Bat Queen again, offering the large palisman a smile. "Thank you, Bat Queen, both for the help and the offer."—Xander sucked in a loud gasp and quickly muffled it with his hands at the mention of the name—"But if you'll just excuse us for a moment, we need to make sure our—uh—friend is okay."

Lizzie frowned faintly at the last thing she'd said, with even Xander calming down enough to raise a brow at her choice of wording too. However, the Bat Queen nodded stiffly in response.

"I understand. I keep watch in case hunters return."

And with that, the Bat Queen slowly turned away from the two witches to stare at the path away from the tree, prompting Lizzie to return the nod.

"Great. Thanks."

Lizzie started to speed-walk towards the basilisk, with Xander still standing there staring at the Bat Queen's back. A loud squeak and gentle tug on his ear lobe from Bandit soon snapped him to reality, however, prompting the older witch to shake his head and spin round to stride after his younger cousin.

"Hey," Xander quietly hissed as he caught up and took a gentle grip on Lizzie's closest elbow, bringing her to a sudden stop at the same time the basilisk looked towards the pair with a blink. "You're acquainted with the Bat Queen?!"

Lizzie smirked out of amusement at the palpable shock and confusion Xander was apparently experiencing from this revelation. "Oh~? Is someone jealous~?"

Xander briefly scrunched his face up with a sharp intake of breath through his nostrils, doing his best to stop his cheeks from turning red at the heat he could feel steadily rising to them. "Be serious, Elisabeth."

"Who said I wasn't?" she replied sarcastically, finally causing Xander to let her go with a huff.

With Xander seemingly pacified for the moment, Lizzie returned her focus to the basilisk and continued her approach, making sure to slow down a little more at noticing the demon's shoulders hunch and their hands clasping the now empty vial to their chest. Xander didn't feel the need to keep following, instead choosing to fold his arms and look off towards the trees to his right with an inaudible grumble.

'Poor thing looks on edge.'

"Hey there," Lizzie greeted with a forced smile and a soft voice upon stopping a small distance away, even raising a hand to give a weak wave with the slight bending of her fingers. She left a little gap between them so she didn't startle them any further. "Are you okay now?" She pointed towards her own mouth. "With the burns, I mean."

The basilisk didn't speak, choosing instead to slowly nod to answer Lizzie's question. Lizzie frowned at this and turned her gaze to her shoes, rubbing a hand against the back of her neck.

"I— uh… I-I'm sorry if my potion hurt you. They're not made for consumption, so…"

"Oh, sure. They get an apology," Xander mumbled loudly enough for the basilisk and Lizzie to hear, prompting Lizzie to scowl and whip her head back with the intention to hiss a retort—

"She," the basilisk said timidly and in the same feminine voice the two witches had heard before, causing the pair to look back at the demon with wide blinks and raised brows. "I'm a she," she asserted, turning her amber eyes to the splatter of blue liquid in front of her; now Lizzie had gotten a good look at it, she realised the liquid was lighter in colour than before. Had she drained the magic from it? "Also, it's okay. I didn't get to drink it anyway. It hurt my mouth so much I spat it out without a second thought."

Lizzie heard Xander clear his throat and respond with a muttered and genuine sounding 'Sorry' before she released a small sigh of relief, her shoulders slumping when a hand went to her chest.

'The Titan is kind…'

"I should be the one apologising, really," the basilisk continued, slithering her way round the splatter to give Lizzie the empty vial with her head hung low. "I did steal from you and get your friend in trouble."

As Lizzie took the vial and slipped it into her satchel, she noticed Xander wince at the form of address out of the corner of her eye and scratch a hand against his vest, acting like he had a terrible itch he couldn't quite get rid of.

"We're not friends," he firmly stated while holding his palms out with a faint scowl, making the basilisk furrow her brow and Lizzie raise a brow at his reaction.

'What in the Titan has gotten into him?'

"Ignore him," Lizzie abruptly said with the slight tilt of her head in Xander's general direction. "He's a jerk to everybody."

"Oi!"

Lizzie ignored Xander's objection and brushed it off with the forced clearing of her throat.

"Ahem. Anyway…" Lizzie gave the splattered healing potion a brief sideways glance before she folded her arms across her chest. "If you don't mind me asking, why did you take one of my potions?"

"And impersonated me?" Xander added calmly. "As well as biting one of those hunters?"

The basilisk gulped thickly and wrapped her arms round her middle, her jaw twitching as if she was resisting the urge to answer. But after a moment of silence, the demon squeezed her eyes shut, her voice cracking at her next words.

"I just wanted those demon hunters to leave me alone!" Both Lizzie and Xander leaned back at this with a wide blink, rendered speechless as the basilisk's explanation continued despite her visible trembling. "It was bad enough being a prisoner of someone who brought our kind back on purpose! But just when I thought I was finally free, those hunters drove me out of the forest, all because they wanted to hunt me down!"

"Wait, wait, hang on!" Lizzie interjected with a faint frown and the slight raise of her hand when she managed to find her voice. "Someone revived the basilisks on purpose?"

The basilisk nodded stiffly and lifted her head to look Lizzie in the eyes when she opened them, causing the blonde witch to gape at the confirmation.

'Good grief. I have so many questions.'

And why wouldn't she, when it had been confirmed someone had managed to revive a dangerous race that went extinct years ago? Lizzie wanted to question this basilisk on the identity of this individual, yet the moment she opened her mouth, she was silenced at seeing the tears that sprung to the demon's eyes.

"I didn't want to hurt anyone," the basilisk croaked out. "I was just looking for somewhere to live in peace. But they didn't care. So, I fled to the nearest town to hide. I used up my magic supply taking on the appearances of certain beings I saw to evade them, including your friend. —"

"Not her friend." Lizzie rolled her eyes at Xander's attempted and annoyed interruption.

"—I had no idea those hunters knew him. T-They cornered me as I was trying to find a source of magic to replenish myself with. I-I ended up biting them so I could get away." The basilisk's mouth quivered as she rubbed her palms against her trembling upper arms, her amber eyes turning to the lump underneath Lizzie's cloak on her left side as the tears finally slid down her cheeks. "And then I smelt the magic coming from your bag…"

Lizzie looked back at Xander when the basilisk trailed off to see the older witch blinking widely with his jaw dropped to match. The younger blonde took this opportunity to hold her hands out towards the demon with a scowl, an action that soon brought Xander back to reality.

"I told you!"

"And I believed you," Xander replied exasperatedly, putting his hands to his hips. "You don't need to rub it in."

Lizzie waved him off with a hand and resumed her attention on the basilisk at hearing her hiccup, who had taken the opportunity to wipe at her eyes with her scaly wrists.

"Thank you for saving me, even after I caused you both so much trouble…"

"Don't worry about it. We understand." Lizzie gave a small smile, reaching a hand to her satchel to give it a gentle pat from where it rested underneath her cloak. "Same thing about my potions. I can easily replace them. It's no biggie."

The basilisk returned the small smile as she lowered her gaze towards where Lizzie's hand was, her head tilting to the side with a blink to rid the remainder of her lingering tears. "I didn't think potions had magic in them."

"They usually don't." Lizzie shrugged and forced a chuckle, scratching a fingernail against her cheek. "I actually infuse my magic with already existing recipes to enhance their effects."

"Oh…" The basilisk said with a nod of understanding, her amber eyes appearing to light up within her fixed gaze. "That explains why the mixtures changed in colour and taste after I drained the magic from them."

Lizzie's and Xander's brows raised at this, with the latter speaking up with a raised finger.

"Magic has flavour?"

"To us it does," the basilisk replied, taking a moment to lick her lips with her forked tongue. "Magic smells and tastes sweet, getting stronger the larger the source. That's why it was hard for me to resist your potions. The flavour was too intoxicating. Heh!"

"Sweet, huh…" Lizzie mumbled, her brow furrowing at recalling Hooty's former comments about her explosive potion.

'Hooty said the explosive potion tasted like 'spicy acid'. But then again… he's not a basilisk. Maybe he can't taste the magic like they can. Still, that's interesting to know. I had no idea adding magic to those potions altered their flavour and smell…'

Lizzie's eyes drooped as she returned her focus to the basilisk. "I'm still really sorry about injuring you, though. Even if it was unintended."

"There was no harm done." The basilisk patted her stomach. "At least I can use the little magic your potions have given me the next time I have to hide. It all worked out."

The blonde witch released a quiet gasp and smacked her palm against her mouth at the reminder, her eyes widening a little.

'That's right! She doesn't have anywhere to go—'

Lizzie's train of thought halted suddenly when her gaze shifted towards the tree behind the basilisk, her eyes narrowing and her lips pursing at the idea she could faintly picture forming inside of her head.

'Hm…'

Lizzie slowly turned round to where the Bat Queen was still standing guard at the foot of the path leading towards the tree. The palisman was no longer completely facing towards the woodland ahead of them, having turned her body enough that she was partly observing the exchange occurring between the two witches and the basilisk.

'From the little I know about basilisks, I don't think they've ever been known to drain magic from palismen. And since the Bat Queen jumped in to save her—even though she was technically trespassing—and is aware she doesn't want to hurt anyone… maybe it could work.' Lizzie glanced at the satchel lump underneath her cloak with a furrowed brow, her hands gripping tightly at the strap across her front. 'I can even offer to make some potions to bring to her if the Bat Queen has any concerns. Either way… it's worth a try, right?'

Lizzie knew she was throwing away her chance to learn the identity of her mystery helper/admirer, but she also knew this was the right thing to do.

"Bat Queen?" Lizzie called out to the bat palisman as she started to walk over, prompting Xander to raise a brow at watching his cousin go. The young blonde slowed to a stop a short distance away at the same time the Bat Queen fully turned to face her, waiting until she had her full attention before continuing. "About that favour…" She trailed off and fiddled with her satchel strap, resolving to take a deep breath to steady herself and gather her thoughts for her request. "Would you be willing to give our friend over there temporary sanctuary from the demon hunters?"

The Bat Queen's eyes grew wide with the raise of her brows, while Xander's and the basilisk's jaws dropped with shocked gasps. Lizzie even thought she heard Bandit react with a startled shriek somewhere behind her. The blonde witch lifted her palms in surrender and hastily explained herself before the Bat Queen could think to react.

"I-I know you're concerned about the palismen, but I can assure you she means no harm. She just wants somewhere to lay low until everything dies down!" Lizzie frowned and placed her hands to her chest. "I-I'll even bring her more of my potions so she has a magic supply to replenish from! Free of charge!"

Lizzie's eye twitched the moment she said the last thing, already shuddering at the mental image of Eda berating her for offering her services for free when she'd told her countless times in the past to never offer handouts. 'You know your worth, and you're worth more than nothing,' she'd said. But it cost nothing to be nice, didn't it?

Silence fell between the young witch and the large palisman then, with both Xander and the basilisk rendered speechless while constantly flitting their gazes back and forth between the pair. When it continued to drag on with no reaction from the Bat Queen, Lizzie even gulped and hunched her shoulders, naturally questioning if maybe she'd finally crossed a line; she soon got her answer when the Bat Queen's tiny pupils glistened with the relaxing of her expression, the ghost of a smile dancing upon her lips and exposing her fanged teeth from her upper jaw.

"How selfless," she remarked, slowly reaching out one of her clawed hands to place atop Lizzie's hooded head the moment the blonde blinked widely at the unexpected reaction. "I see now why Foxwick has taken a liking to you."

Lizzie squinted at the unfamiliar name as the Bat Queen retracted. 'Foxwick? Is she referring to…?' Her thoughts trailed off at the mental image of the fox palisman flashing into her head, not knowing anyone else it could have been given the name pun.

"Your generosity has touched me," the Bat Queen continued, walking forward and around Lizzie to approach the hollow hole in the large tree, with Lizzie turning to watch her go. "So, I will keep snake friend safe out of goodness of the heart."

The basilisk gasped loudly and covered her mouth with her hands, her eyes growing wide at hearing the declaration. "R-Really? I-I can stay?"

The Bat Queen nodded as she paused before the hole and partially turned to face Lizzie again, her smile widening a little. "You can keep favour. I will also pay for potions."

And at that, Lizzie was quick to shake her head and wave her arms about in front of her.

"Oh, no, no, no! Y-You don't need to pay me! Honestly!"

"It is least I can do. You must be compensated," the Bat Queen countered, prompting Lizzie's shoulders to slump as she fell silent. "Payment will be dropped off later. For now…" The Bat Queen turned her gaze to the basilisk, raising her wing to beckon the demon to follow her. "… snake friend must hide. Come."

The basilisk nodded in understanding, waiting until the Bat Queen turned away and walked into the shadows of the hollow hole before turning to Lizzie. The demon slithered her way over to the blonde witch and gently took her hands in hers, forcing a smile despite her quivering mouth.

"Thank you," she said in a breathless whisper, with tears once again welling to her eyes and lingering there. "I won't forget this."

Lizzie returned the smile and nod, even as the basilisk dared to look towards Xander with a nod of acknowledgement, as if to emphasise her words were also meant for him too. This left the older witch blinking widely and leaning back out of surprise, prompting Lizzie to bite the inside of her lip to stop herself from laughing at his reaction.

'What's up with him? I thought he'd be used to getting gratitude, considering his position in the Emperor's Coven.'

Eventually, the basilisk released Lizzie and went to follow the Bat Queen, slithering right up to the hole in the large trunk of the tree. She paused in front of the hole to look back at Xander and Lizzie one last time, with the former having straightened out and the latter not moving from her current position. The basilisk smiled again and gave the two witches a weak wave, only to turn away after a few seconds as Lizzie returned the gesture.

The blonde witch stayed quiet as she watched the basilisk disappear into the shadows of the tree, allowing her hand to go limp once the demon was completely gone from her sight. Xander took that as his cue to step to Lizzie's side, following her gaze while putting his hands in his trouser pockets.

The pair of witches kept their eyes locked on the entrance to the Bat Queen's home for a moment longer, taking the time to process everything they'd just seen and heard. Admittedly, Lizzie was expecting Xander to make comments about how crazy she was or why she'd done what she had. So, his current silence left her giving him a momentary sideways glance, noting the 'thousand-yard stare' he had going on based on the faraway look in his visible eye.

'Has he been in so much shock he hasn't wanted to say anything, or has he just accepted the craziness and decided to stop questioning everything?'

Lizzie's internal question was soon answered when Xander suddenly spoke up after what felt like forever, physically making her flinch out of surprise.

"I'm not going to report this to the scouts, by the way."

Lizzie's head whipped to Xander with a wide blink, staring at the older witch with a slight gape. Had she just heard that right?

'He's not going to report this? Is he serious?'

The thought had never actually crossed her mind until now, yet his words had naturally been unexpected. This was something Xander seemed to notice when he chose to gauge Lizzie's reaction, prompting a brow to raise.

"Did you forget everything I just witnessed was technically illegal?"

Lizzie's expression quickly relaxed, her former shock being replaced with a light scowl as she made to respond. "No." After a few seconds, she turned her head off to the right and allowed her eyes to droop, her next words only just about audible enough for Xander to make out. "I'm just surprised you chose to say it before I even breached the topic."

"Yeah, well, it saves you having to beg me not to, right?" he replied sarcastically, causing Lizzie to direct her scowl back at him and prompt him to chuckle. "Seriously, though, I won't tell them about the basilisk or the Bat Queen. Same goes for your 'confession' about those palismen."

"Because you're scared those demon hunters will expose your involvement in protecting them?" Lizzie said with a cheeky grin, making Xander narrow his visible eye.

"No. Not that those imbeciles have any proof…" Xander huffed and closed his eye, combing his fingers through his hair from front to back. "It's because you're right. That basilisk doesn't mean any harm. As long as she doesn't cause any trouble, she has a right to live a quiet life. Plus…" The blonde witch briefly trailed off, grumbling the next part with a clenched jaw. "…I owe you one."

Lizzie's brows raised, still managing to catch what he'd said despite his attempt to keep it unheard. "You do?"

Xander scrunched his nose at feeling the heat rising to his face. Lizzie saw his cheeks flush a faint pink when he turned his gaze to Bandit still perched on his shoulder, swallowing thickly before speaking up. "You helped and saved Bandit when you had no obligation to." He reached up a finger to Bandit's chin and gave it a light scratch underneath, prompting the ferret palisman to close his eyes and respond with a contented squeak. "I don't know what I would have done if anything happened to my little buddy, so consider this my way of thanking you."

The younger blonde took a moment to observe the witch and palisman duo during the brief quiet that fell between them, with her head tilting to the side with a furrowed brow. Seeing his interactions with Bandit had her recalling how distressed he'd sounded during his crow phone conversation, along with his reactions when the two had been reunited earlier that day.

'It's not adding up. How could someone who loves their palisman so much hire people like the demon hunters to capture the damaged palismen of arrested witches? I know he said he was forced by someone else, but even still… he's acting nothing like the bully I vaguely remember.'

Xander eventually broke away from Bandit to return his focus to Lizzie, especially when it seemed she had nothing else to say on the matter. However, when the older blonde paused at seeing the thoughtful and confused look on his younger cousin's face, he loudly cleared his throat and adjusted the edges of his cloak with his hands.

"Anyway, we should be off." He prepared to turn and start walking towards the path away from the large tree, with Lizzie following him. "No use lingering around this creepy place now that we've solved the mystery of the fake me, right?"

"Right," Lizzie quietly agreed, gripping onto her satchel strap as the pair began to walk side-by-side back the way they'd come.

She was still struggling to wrap her head around everything that had just happened, yet compared to before, she was at least accepting of some of the answers she had received.

'I don't know how I'm going to handle the potion deliveries for this or trying to explain what happened to Eda. But I guess that's something I can ponder on my way home.'


By the time Lizzie and Xander had emerged from the Bat Queen's area of Bonesborough's vast forests, the purple sky over the Boiling Isles had become enveloped in a bright fiery and orange hue, courtesy of the scattered clouds only allowing splodges of the darkened and starry background to be exposed. The two cousins had spent the entirety of their walk back in silent contemplation, likely for differing reasons, so it was no surprise that they continued to stay that way as they slowed to a stop on the path's entrance to the forest's depths, having returned to the familiar sight of reddened leaves and vibrant trunked trees settled on flattened ground.

'Yeesh. I guess time really does fly even when you've been chasing a thieving basilisk.'

Lizzie and Xander remained stood beside each other during the prolonged silence, with the former fiddling with her satchel strap and the latter keeping his gaze focused on the dusk sky above them. Eventually, Lizzie sideways glanced Xander at hearing him sigh heavily, seeing him lower his head again with a drooped eye.

"Well then. I suppose this is where we part ways."

"I suppose so," Lizzie muttered in agreement while observing Xander stepping away from her and holding out a hand towards Bandit on his shoulder.

Bandit was enveloped in a faint glowing green outline as he crawled onto Xander's hand, only to raise his chin as the black stick of the staff he was usually attached to flashed into existence. Xander held the staff between his palms once Bandit had curled his body around the top and turned into his woodened state, turning partially to face Lizzie with a light scowl on his face.

"Just so you know, today hasn't changed anything between us," he stated coldly while positioning the staff between his legs to seat himself upon, causing it to levitate a little off the ground. "The next time we see each other, I'll be back to ensuring you get put away for your antics along with the Owl Lady."

Lizzie rolled her eyes at the remarks, despite having expected them. "I know. You don't have to remind me." She let a small smile slip as she stepped a little closer to Xander, lightly knocking his closest elbow with her own and causing him to flinch. "But thank you for keeping quiet. And for listening to me. I really do appreciate it."

It took a few seconds for a red flush to spring to Xander's cheeks. With his nose and mouth scrunching up, he wasted no time in tilting his head upwards to try to hide his obvious embarrassment, responding in hissed stutters.

"W-Well, d-don't get used to it, Elisabeth! Y-You only got away with it today b-because I was off duty!"

"Aw," Lizzie replied sarcastically, giving Xander a wide smirk as she stepped out of his personal space. "What happened to us being 'friends'?"

Xander growled when his shoulders stiffened, raising a hand to the side of his face to hide it as he looked forward again. "T-That was never true and you know it! Stop twisting the basilisk's words!"

Lizzie chuckled quietly at Xander's reaction and decided not to say anything more, recalling Bandit's attempts to comfort his owner when the older blonde had been pushed to the brink because of her earlier teasing.

'I will say it's better to have him wound up by my teasing than our bickering, though.'

After a few seconds, though, Xander cleared his throat and returned his hand to his staff, speaking up once more as he began to slowly ascend into the air.

"Anyway, I should really be going." Lizzie saw Xander's embarrassed flush remain as he opened his mouth to speak again, only for no words to sound at his twitching lips, suggesting he was hesitating to say something. In the end, he shook his head—almost as if he dissuaded himself from voicing whatever was aloud in favour of something else—and dared to lock eyes with her once more, his expression softening slightly along with his tone. "See you…"

Lizzie blinked widely at the strained farewell, but her shock was brief. She took a couple more steps backwards when Xander turned away and began his ascent, her eyes never leaving his form even when he shot forward and took off towards the skies.

'Did I dream that? I swear, for a moment he sounded… sad.'

Once her older cousin had disappeared completely, though, Lizzie soon wandered into her thoughts with drooped eyes, allowing the tranquillity of the surrounding woodland to envelop her despite the dull ache she thought had sprung to life in her chest.

'I told Eda I was content with not remembering Xander. But seeing his behaviour today has left me with so many questions. Do I even know him as well as I thought I did? Is his conflicting behaviour the reason why my brain started seeing him as two different people?'

The blonde witch released a small sigh to her rhetorical questions with the brief closing of her eyes, tightening her grip on her satchel strap as she prepared to depart for the direction of the Owl House.

'Looks like I might have to resume digging into my past at a later time, if the situation ever calls for it, of course…'

"LIZ! HEY!"

Luz's cheery voice rung as a clear echo somewhere above her head, causing Lizzie to nearly jump out of her skin and suddenly stop. She tilted her head up towards the sky with a wide blink, catching sight of a trio of familiar silhouettes descending her way from the cloud-scattered sky. A brief squint confirmed the trio to consist of a smiling Eda at the head of her staff, with an enthusiastic Luz grinning and waving at her from behind. It was difficult to see from her current vantage point, but she noticed Luz's clothes looked black instead of grey like they were this morning, with Luz's sleeves and leggings appearing more vibrant in colour.

'Ah. Looks like Eda's just picked Luz up from Hexside.'

She also thought she saw King with his head poking out of Luz's backpack while waving at her too— Wait, what?

"Hey there, kid!" Eda greeted when her staff slowed to a hover beside the younger witch, her smile widening with the jab of her thumb over her shoulder. "Need a lift?"

Lizzie snorted at Eda's attempted joke and shook her head, unable to suppress a smile from stretching onto her face. "Ha ha. Very funny."

"Oh?" Eda remarked with the tilt of her head, her smile dimming down a little with the raise of her brow. "You seem to be in a better mood. Finally get a breakthrough with that sleep spell?"

Lizzie's smile widened with a little twitch, recalling Xander's earlier 'criticism' during her fight with the demon hunters.

'I completely forgot that was the reason I left the Owl House today.'

"… You could say that," Lizzie answered in a teasing tone, stepping closer to the staff as she did so. "But I'll explain my epiphany when we get back, because today has mentally drained me—"

As she moved to seat herself on the back of the staff, however, Lizzie paused upon taking in Luz's current attire now that she was close enough, her eyes widening and her brows raising at the sleeves and leggings.

Luz was definitely wearing the black cowl and tunic that made up part of Hexside's uniform (as Lizzie had expected to happen once she'd chosen her magic track); however, whereas she'd expected Luz's sleeves and leggings to be one solid colour depending on the magic track she chose, she instead found herself looking at array of them. Luz's left sleeve was coloured dark green at upper arm and light green on the forearm, while Luz's left legging was coloured red at the thigh and pink on the shin. Likewise, Luz's right sleeve was coloured dark purple at the upper arm and light purple on the forearm, while Luz's right legging was coloured dark blue at the thigh and light blue on the shin.

For a moment, Lizzie was sure she was seeing things, resulting in her gaping and rubbing at her eyes after multiple blinks as a precaution. Yet her actions did nothing to change what she was seeing.

"Luz, why do you look like a rainbow threw up on you?" Lizzie finally asked, prompting Eda to smirk and give Luz a gentle elbow in the ribs.

"Guess who got ol' Bumpikins to put them into all of the magic tracks."

"That's right!" Luz added, smiling widely and pointing both of her thumbs towards her chest. "This girl!"

'And here I thought I was done with the surprises today…'

"Seriously?" Lizzie questioned with wide eyes. Luz nodded to confirm she was, causing the blonde witch to chuckle as a proud smile spread across her face. "How in the Titan did you manage that?"

Luz shrugged her shoulders and sheepishly rubbed a hand at the back of her neck, closing an eye. "It's… a long story."

"Well…" Lizzie paused to seat herself horizontally on the staff behind Luz, which King took as his cue to scramble out of Luz's backpack and onto the blonde witch's lap. "you've got the journey back to the Owl House to tell me all about it, haven't you?"

"I guess I do," Luz said through a chuckle. "But it sounds like your day went okay, after all."

"As did yours, in the end." Lizzie gave Luz's hair a quick ruffle as Eda's staff went to ascend above the trees. "Looks like neither of us had anything to worry about."

"Nope." Luz briefly closed her eyes at the hair ruffle, twisting her body round some of the way to look back at the older blonde. "That means you'll keep up your end of the deal, right?" She smiled sheepishly. "Well… whenever you're ready."

Lizzie blinked widely at the reminder, yet she didn't need a moment to think her response through. With the two girls unaware of Eda silently observing them from over her shoulder, a small smile of her own dancing on her lips, Lizzie nodded and gave Luz a wide smile, feeling the warmth ignite and swell inside of her chest as she puffed it out.

"As we agreed. There's no rush to ask me, though. Take your time to think of something and then get back to me."

When Luz grinned in response and returned the nod, Lizzie took a moment to process her own actions and words, along with the feeling of pride that now lingered in her chest. It was strange for her to think about how far she'd come since Luz's arrival, especially seeing as her old self would have never gone out of her way for someone like Luz; a fact that arose the longer she found herself staring at this teenage human's face.

'Eda wasn't kidding back then, was she? Luz really has grown on me…'

"Ahem!" King loudly clearing his throat had both Lizzie and Luz turning to the little demon sitting in the former's lap. A scowl graced his skull head when he crossed his arms. "Excuse me! Isn't anyone going to ask about my day?"

"Not really," Eda answered, still glancing over her shoulder with drooped eyes to witness King gawk her way.

"Why not?!"

"Because knowing you, you probably spent the whole day eating through Hexside's trash."

King narrowed his eyes and pointed a claw at Eda even after she turned forward again, while Lizzie's brows raised with a wide blink out of realisation. "Not the whole day!"

"Wait, is that where you went?!" Lizzie shrieked, causing Luz to nod in confirmation.

"Yeah. The little guy hid in my backpack."

Lizzie groaned at this and facepalmed, ignoring the whipping wind ruffling at their hair (or fur, in King's case) and clothes as they flew towards the Owl House. "You've got to be kidding me…"

'I should have known.'

King shrugged his shoulders while Luz broke out into mild laughter, seeming indifferent to the reactions going on around him. "Hey, it's not my fault that place has the best buffet in town!"

"And I thought Hooty had a terrible diet…" Lizzie grumbled, deciding that was going to be her last comment on the matter before she blindly flicked her hand in Luz's direction. "Luz, please change the topic."

"Hey!" King cried out in objection, with Luz ignoring him and shaking her head at his antics.

"I'll be glad to," she responded with emphasis to enforce her teasing, only to clear her throat and straighten out her back in preparation. "So, about my first day at Hexside…"


During the entire flight above Bonesborough, Xander couldn't ignore the feeling of his pulse thudding within the confines of his throat, making him wonder for a moment if he was close to throwing up his heart and bile sac. What awaited him behind those four walls upon his return was basically second instinct to him at this point, yet each and every time he would still relive that same sense of dread swirling in the pits of his stomach, along with the uneasiness that clawed at his insides. It didn't matter how many times he was forced to endure those wretched lectures or be forced to stare into the dull eyes of the man he was supposed to call his 'father' looming over him out of disappointment. His feelings on the matter were always the same and never changed, with the aftermath leaving him empty and wishing he could just disappear into the sheets of his bed forever.

His thudding pulse jumped from his throat to his ears the moment he caught his home and street bathed in the faint light of dusk, drowning out the lashing wind upon his descent and eventual dismount close to the front door. A glimpse of the house's front windows revealed darkness being reflected from the other side, barring the faint orange glow from the bottom right corner of the downstairs windows and the red curtains drawn across the left window of the second floor. He'd expected to be met with this scene, which was why Xander walked towards the front door without a single break in his stride, keeping his staff upright at his side while gripping it tightly in his right hand. There was no use stalling the inevitable. Whether he hurried inside or dawdled didn't matter, after all. It wouldn't change the outcome.

Ignoring his pulse-pounding ears and slightly heavy breathing, Xander wasted no time grabbing the door handle and yanking it down to push it open, expecting to be met with Brutus sitting before the black mat awaiting his return with narrowed brown eyes. However, upon opening the door and stepping into the darkness of the home, he instantly paused at the sight of white fur illuminated in the orange flame-like shadows that stretched from the right side of the living room, his pulse quickly dying down with a wide blink. A large arctic wolf sat calmly before the black mat in front of the door, looking up at Xander with amber eyes that seemed to reflect the glow coming from the stone fireplace trying to light the room amidst the brown sofas gathered in that corner.

"Nocturne?" Xander muttered at realising it wasn't Brutus he was looking at, but rather his uncle's palisman, prompting his head to cock to the side while resuming crossing the threshold. "Shouldn't you be with Uncle and Aunt in their room?"

The white wolf palisman, 'Nocturne', responded with little grumbles as it watched Xander gently push the front door to, with the young witch raising a brow at what he knew the wolf palisman was saying. "Huh? Uncle let you out? But Father—"

Xander interrupted himself upon breaking his gaze away to survey the living room properly through the dim lighting offered by the fireplace, only to find that Ulritch wasn't sitting at the dining table where he'd expected to see him. In fact, both he and Brutus appeared to be absent from the room entirely, with a quick scan failing to show any signs of the older witch or his palisman even as silhouettes hidden in the darkness.

"Are they not here?" Xander asked as he focused back on Nocturne, who gave the blonde witch a stiff nod. "That's odd. Father is usually finished with work by now…"

Nocturne responded with further grumbles and gentle barks, even at one point raising its bushy tail to wag it in what appeared to be excitement. By the time the white wolf palisman had finished with its explanation, Xander was gaping, his mouth threatening to twitch into a wide smile.

"Really? Uncle and Aunt had you and Caprice wind up Father so much he had to leave to cool off?" Nocturne answered with a confirming nod and bark, causing Xander to snort and quickly cover his mouth with a hand. "Oh my Titan! And here I thought I was the only one capable of getting on his bad side!" The blonde witch took a deep breath to calm down, a weak smile slipping onto his face as he pulled his hand away. "I assume you did that to prevent Father from lecturing me on what happened this morning?"

When Nocturne nodded again, Xander's smile widened a fraction, a hand reaching out to give the palisman a gentle pat on the head. "Well, good boy. And thank you. You'll have to give that gratitude to Aunt and Uncle too."

Nocturne whined and rubbed his head against Xander's palm, seeming to enjoy the praise he was being given. Eventually, though, Xander pulled away from Nocturne with a small sigh, his amused smile fading as he gave the exposed windows of the living room a brief glance.

"Come on. We'd best return you to your room before Father walks in. Can't have you causing any further ruckus."

Nocturne barked quietly in agreement and prepared to stand, walking towards the stairs on the other side of the living room without a second thought. However, Xander didn't follow straight away, instead continuing to stare at the retreating light from outside while mentally reflecting on Lizzie's behaviour throughout today as the pitter-pattering of the palisman's paws gradually grew fainter.

"You're a really good actress, little cousin. Even without my mask, even when my public face slipped, you refused to acknowledge the pain and suffering you've caused me, and instead had the nerve to offer it to someone else while playing dumb. I have to admit, that hurt. Acting like you were the sole victim in our plight…"

As he dared to step closer to the glass, he recalled Lizzie's words to him from their last encounter in that alleyway, his visible eye drooping.

'I've been on the run for the last three years! You're a coven guard for the Emperor's Coven! How is that ruining your life?!'

"You think you're the only one who's had it rough, Elisabeth?" He paused in front of the window. "If only you knew how ignorant you've been acting. Because unlike me…" Xander raised his empty palm to the glass, gently pressing his exposed skin against the cool surface. "…you haven't spent your entire life living inside of a cage."


A/N: To those of you who are curious, the secrets Luz has uncovered about Lizzie, the sleep spell, and the explanations surrounding Luz's and Lizzie's separate escapades will be addressed in the next chapter, along with the personal fact Luz decides to enquire about. I didn't think it made sense to put it into this chapter. It seemed unnatural, especially after everything Lizzie went through. Also, Nocturne has now been introduced alongside Caprice. I will remind you all once again to pay close attention to these palismen, because the names and animal types will reveal things about their witches which may help you get to their secrets before Chapter 41 comes along. After all, there's a reason why Lizzie has had an issue with the sleep spell, and it may or may not have something to do with these palismen's owners...