Chapter 7
Okay, Michael. No need to panic. You have just woken up in a strange dimension that looks like something out of Doctor Fate's House of Mystery. The laws of physics don't seem to work the same as it does back home, and everything is too non-Euclidean. There doesn't seem to be any available exits. Well, none that are visible. Whatever eldritch horror that's captured you, they have ensured you don't escape. There are objects, tomes, and fetishes that you do not recognize. Anne and Luz are nowhere in sight, and that's even scarier. For all you know, you could still be in bed, dreaming, but then why does it feel so real? Is this my punishment for conversing with people not from my world? Did I upset some cosmic deity? No, that's ridiculous, and I refuse to believe me helping Anne and Luz had anything to do with my current predicament. There's always a logical explanation for everything, even in the most random and chaotic situations. There's got to be, right?
There wasn't one. Michael lay on the yellow-stoned floors, his mind racing at an alarming rate, taking in his newfound environment without panicking. He stared at the ceiling. Well, the darkened blanket of stars and constellations, to be precise. To his right was a matching scrying pool built in the center of the room and chains hovering overhead; strange stone runes were attached and aimlessly dangled. To his left, an apothecary workshop and scholar's desk stood lifeless. All around the room, one portion of the walls was missing; a sea filled with aquatic life was in its stead. The rest of the walls were moving in and out, breathing like it had a life of its own.
Looking back at the ceiling, he saw a shooting star stuck in its trajectory; the gold and blue shine illuminated every inch. The orange braziers on the walls fluttered limp, their presence bringing nothing but ambiance, weakly giving only a fraction of light. Nothing he saw brought him comfort.
Jesus Christ, Michael. You would think you've gotten used to this by now. Isekaied girls and government agents? Easy to grasp. Getting yourself spirited away by unforeseeable forces? That's still too big of a pill for you to swallow. The silver lining, though. At least, this is a different change of scenery than having that continuous nightmare. You know, the one with those two parental deadbeats constantly belittling you about your supposed failures and anxieties? Oh, God. How the hell did this even happen? Cupping his hands onto his face, Michael bemoaned the ordeal he found himself in as he tried retracing his steps.
All he could recall was going to bed, but that was hours ago. Since then, the young man ended up in this bizarre antechamber in no sooner than a second. At first, he thought this whole place was merely a dream. Unfortunately, after dragging his palms against the floor's surface, the texture scratching his skin felt all too real.
Nonetheless, Michael didn't call it quits. His mind still zigzagged and tried rationalizing his outrageous situation. There must have been some clue to explain how he arrived. So far, nothing struck him as familiar. He propped himself up and rubbed his temples, a headache slowly creeping in.
"I have got to figure out how I got into this mess and then come up with a way to get out of here," Michael said to himself.
"Well, if you do, tell me please. It does get boring around here and I do like a good theoretical discussion. It helps passed the time for us immortals, ay, blue eyes?"
Michael's calm demeanor fell into a slight panic. His head snapped up, and looming over him was a woman flashing him a very mischievous grin. The young man hopped up and twirled around; his heart nearly stopped.
Looking at her from head to toe, the woman was quite tall, standing above six feet with an hourglass figure with curves in all the right places. Her only attire was a yellow tube-top dress with a short skirt and knee-high red boots, mouthwatering cleavage on full display. Her skin was covered in white fur, wildly contrasting her long and flowing blood-red hair, her pointy and elf-like ears poking out from the bangs. The woman was almost monstrous, with bone spikes protruding on the side of her arms, horns pointing upright from her forehead, and fangs poking from her mouth. The tall woman gave a courteous bow, Michael noticing the top of her head having a single amber flame suspended harmlessly in mid-air.
There was something about this demon woman Michael found familiar, but he couldn't put his finger on it. All that was on his mind was how she was smoking, figuratively and literally. That's when Michael found himself staring absently at the voluptuous woman. She didn't seem to mind. The woman gestured and swaggered to the scrying pool, her hips swaying side to side.
The woman let out a playful huff.
"Are you going to keep staring at my ass, or are you coming over? I know it's impressive, probably one of the eight wonders, but let's stick to the task at hand, shall we?" Michael snapped out of his funk and quickly moved to her side, the woman having the slight high ground. "And to answer your long-awaited question: No, you're not dreaming and this whole place is a real as you and me."
Michael took a deep breath, and a slew of cliched questions escaped his mouth: "So, why am I here? Where is this place? Who are you? What have I done to deserve this abduction?"
The woman crossed her arms, one eye twitching. She raised her hand, gesturing for the young man to settle down. A scowl formed on her face. Eyes matching, Michael could see the irritation in her glare.
"Woah. Cool it with the barrage, chatterbox. That sort of belligerence is not how we do things around here, so let's do this the right way, shall we?" She gave a wry smirk and placed a hand on her bosom in designation, sounding gentile. "Hi. My name is Hekapoo. I'm the keeper of the dimensional gates and queen of the mystical flames that's spread upon a hundred worlds. A pleasure to make your acquaintance."
Michael gave a hard stare. "Hekapoo? As in the character from Star Vs. the Forces of Evil? The one who makes those dimensional scissors? That Hekapoo?"
"Please, do not ever mention that show to me, ever again. the way it depicted me, and the Magical High Commission was a complete mockery of everything we stood," she pleaded with a frustrated edge.
Michael fumbled a little, rubbing his neck. "Oh, sorry. I didn't mean to offend you."
Hekapoo sighed. "It's fine. You didn't know. I just wished they would have put in some consistency. Why would I even suggest giving that blonde ditz of a princess the option of destroying magic? It makes zero sense," her banter ended as she turned back, hands on her curvy hips. "Please, continue. You were about to say something, weren't you?"
Michael nodded. "That's right. I was about to say that my name is…."
The young man was cut off in mid-sentence as Hekapoo softly pressed her finger to her lips, smiling while giving him a brief caress. Michael fumed a little, giving the sassy woman a sharp glare. She moved back and faced the scrying pool, crossing her arms behind her back.
A soft giggle escaped from Hekapoo before getting serious. "You don't have to give me your name, Michael Therman. I know who you are."
Michael arched a brow. "Wait. Then why the introduction?"
"Oh, that. I just wanted to see that cute face of your scrunch up, that's all," Hekapoo teasingly shrugged and pinched his cheeks, ignoring Michael's unamused glower. "Right after you took in that Boonchuy girl, I've been keeping an eye on you from a safe distance. To be frank, for a mediocre human, you have opened up quite the can of worms, handsome. I'm actually impressed me," she winked.
Michael found himself blushing slightly. "Well, I'm very flattered that I was able to get your attention, Miss Hekapoo."
"Attention is an understatement. A young man from boorish Earth Prime basically gets in contact with beings from another universe, befriends and takes them in for safety, and are now dealing with forces who are trying to undermine all of that. Forget Hannibal crossing the Alps, that's the kind of premise for a bingeworthy anime," Hekapoo commented as she playfully patted Michael on the back. Her tone quickly shifted from praise to critique, finger to her chin. "Not only that, but it can also be quite the challenge for you. Despite seeing you in action, there are faults I did notice like your hot-blooded temper, uneasy paranoia, and the fact that you've only understand a fraction of your predicament. So, yeah, you're exactly the kind of protagonist typically featured in anime."
A cross-shaped vein throbbed on his temple, flashing a grin expression. The young man's patience grew thin. There was no way in hell he would stand and let a buxom demigod insult him. He had too much pride for that. The conversation was over for him, but it wasn't by a long shot.
"So, what? Did you transport me from my own bed just to nitpick on the recent roundabout that's become my life, or is there some other, less insulting reason? If not, then then tell me where the exit is so I can lead myself out of here," Michael demanded, one hand on his side while the other thumbed over his shoulder.
"Technically, your still in your bed, sleeping like a baby. All I did was simply extract your soul and brought it here in a temporary simulacrum. You know, like a golem? It's sort of like astral projection but, at the same, it's not," Hekapoo explained the semantics, almost in a scholarly tone, but then halted and got back on topic. "But I didn't painstakingly bring you here to talk about the complex machinations of soul displacement, nor ridicule how weird the last week and a half of your life has transformed."
Michael eyed the demon woman. "Did you bring me here to tell me why characters from TV shows are popping up in my world?"
Hekapoo scoffed with a toothy grin, ruffling the young man's hair. "Oh, please? Even if I did know how these breaches in your reality are happening, do you think I'm going to give you the answer so easily? I don't like spoilers."
The young man's gaze shifted down before Hekapoo grabbed his hand. She gestured back at the scrying pool. Michael turned and gazed into the pool as ripples created in the unnaturally blue water from the solemn demigod's caressing touch. Her smile quickly diminished, replaced with a dark, serious mask.
"The reason I brought you here was to warn you. As I said before, your actions have opened up a severe can of worms, and while nothing major has happened…yet you still need to be prepared. A grave omen is coming for you and your friends, Michael Therman, and my friend Omnitraxus Prime have foreseen it," Hekapoo stated as a stone tablet materialized in her hand.
Michael arched a brow, remaining skeptical.
"And that you be?"
Hekapoo cleared her throat and began thoroughly reading the tablet. The atmosphere around the two grew more dire. The more she recited, the darker and heavier it grew. Beware of the oncoming storm that courses into the boons of ancient mountains. Beware the incursion of crystals and gems, their determination and strength blinded by ignorance and lies. Beware the mad god who comes adorn in stars and stripes; his hubris knows no bounds. And of the demon's eyes, to the tyrants that control from the shadows, beware the waking nightmares and eldritch horrors that lurk from beyond, hiding carefully from the Creator's ever-watchful eyes, waiting for the time to feast.
Once she reached the end, the demigod recklessly tossed the stone slab and its very structure dissolving before the pair. A lump formed in the young man's throat, his eyes looking slightly unnerved while his face lost some color. Michael found his nerves and was about to respond. Still, Hekapoo interrupted, not giving him a chance to utter a single word.
"Or that's what that blowhard wrote. I don't know. I'm just the messenger. she said with an apathetic edge, slouching while waving dismissively. "Prophecies aren't my forte. And from my experience, it can be really vague and easily misinterpreted. Kind of like those angsty alt-rock songs with the cryptic lyrics you often hear on the radio."
Michael whimpered, dread trailing his spine. "I don't know. That seemed a bit on point and foreboding to me."
"Oh, don't be such a baby. Half of the time, Omni's predictions aren't always true. Half of the times, they're mostly 50/50 because he huffs too much cosmic gases, which make it really confusing if he's having a premonition, or just tripping balls. Except for that one about Pompeii, though. That one really caught us by surprise." That didn't make Michael feel anywhere better. Seeing his shocked expression, Hekapoo stammered and reassured, nervously smiling. "B-but who knows? You might have gotten lucky and received a dud." Her left arm wrapped around the young man's waist, making him jolt a little before letting go. "Anyways, you're about to wake up soon and I don't want to keep your sweet ass waiting too long."
Hekapoo turned and sauntered off to the atrium. A tall tree growing out of the misplaced soil was placed underneath the radiating aurora light (don't question the logistics), ripe purple fruits sprouting from its branches as the demigod picked one and bit down on its juicy flesh. Her body shivering from the ambrosial taste. When she was done and snapped her fingers, Michael found a door magically appeared from behind and stared at its mahogany frame. A sense of serenity washed over his soul as he reached for the golden handles, ready to walk out.
"Oh, before you go. There's one thing I need to tell you," Hekapoo spoke up, her mouth full and juices dripping messily. "Whatever's going on between you and Luz, you should make sure to cut her some slack."
"What's that supposed to…" he never finished his sentence.
Michael wanted to ask her about that cryptic advice, curiosity getting the best of him, but he never got the chance. Right when the young man turned back, Hekapoo had disappeared, her half-eaten fruit splattered on the floor. A second barely went by, and the mischievous demigod materialized before him, catching the flabbergasted young man entirely off guard as she shoved him straight out the door. Eyes widened in terror, and the last thing Michael saw was Hekapoo flashing a wicked grin, blowing him a kiss before closing the double doors, leaving the young man trapped within a swirling void of darkness. His own screams were inaudible, and no way for him to escape.
Michael woke with a start, completely nerve wrecked as he tried steadying his breathing. His eyes darted side to side, and the young man was relieved to return to his room. A bit of a disappointment, though, as his bed was primarily empty. Anne had sequestered into her own room, and he could use the company. He's had dreams before. More like night terrors, to be exact. But none that were quite so real.
Even so, if he were honest, Michael was still conflicted about whether it was a dream. It was best not to think about it. He grabbed his smartphone and checked the time. 7:40 AM flashed on the digital clock. Michael quickly rolled out of bed and opened the curtains, daylight streaming into his bedroom. It was time to start the day, and the first was to hit the showers.
Exiting his room, Michael made his way down the corridor. He looked around and saw no one in sight, the hall still dark and empty, blinds covering the windows. The girls were still asleep, and that meant the bathroom was available to use. Correction, the only one on the second floor with a shower. Without waking his housemates, the young man tiptoed his way into the bathroom, entered the large shower stall, stripped off his clothes, and tossed them aside. Knobs turned, and jets of hot water shot out from the showerhead. The young man sighed in contentment as the hot water rained onto his face, cascading down from his shoulders to his torso and nether regions. As the comforting heat helped his muscles relax and his morning troubles wash away, Michael started cleaning himself, scrubbing soap all over his very form.
At the same time, a song escaped from his very lips, his voice rough yet harmonious: "~Just tell me why, baby. They might call me crazy. For saying I'd fight until there is no more. Urei wo fukunda senkougankou wa kankaktek shoudo…"
Michael couldn't contain his excitement. He was in high spirits. The Watauga County Street Fair was about to begin in about two days. The thought of bringing two lovely ladies to such a hoedown, almost like a teenage boy's fantasy, came to life. As much as he wanted it to be, it wasn't like that. This trip was merely Michael making up for how he treated his friends. His overjoyed expression disappeared, the sheer look of guilt manifesting. Not another day went by that he regretted keeping Anne and Luz locked up, trying to keep the pair safe, evading Big Brother's wrath, but at the price of slowly suffocating them.
Regardless, it wasn't time for Michael to bewail. With the exam coming up in class and his shift to his part-time job, today wasn't a day to feel such trepidations. Moreover, another thought crossed his mind as he recalled his dream. Logically, he could have chalked it up as merely a lucid dream gone awry. However, sharing a space with two isekai heroines has taught him to at least keep an open mind. The prophetic warning she gave him, though, Michael could never forget about it.
I also can't forget about those voluptuous thighs of hers. Seriously, who wouldn't want to clap those cheeks? Goddamn! He grinned lecherously.
None of that, either. It was time for Michael to get out and get ready. Turning off the faucet, the young man washed the soap thoroughly, got out of the shower, and grabbed a towel to dry off his body. He moseyed to the mirror, brushing his teeth and combing his hair, his Asiatic features much clearer up close as he shaved. Just then, after taking his morning meds, the door creaked open as a lone figure dressed in purple jammies lingered at the doorway.
Luz groggily motioned inside like a zombie lurking on the prowl. Her heavy eyes squinted to see passed the steam, the young man in utter shock and embarrassment.
"Is anyone in here?" she asked.
Michael stood, blinking. Okay, Michael. She can't see you. That means you have a window of opportunity to slither out without getting caught. The only problem is…
He looked down and gasped.
…you're completely naked and don't have a towel on you! Turning to the side, he saw the discarded towel on the floor not too far and sighed.
Michael crouched down and quickly passed her, the steamy mists slowly dissipating. He reached for the large lavender cloth and tried grabbing it. A little shadow loomed in the mists, stepping closer and sneaking up behind the young man. Michael sensed a foreboding presence, seeing the shadow on the floor tiles.
"Michael, what are you…"
Standing up, Michael was caught in Luz's wide awake and intense amber gaze. All the color on her face disappeared as her attention drifted lower. The young man's Johnson was hanging out and flopping. The fact that he was erect (mainly from surprise) didn't make the situation any less awkward. Hands raised, the young man tried to calm the Latina down, to no avail.
"L-Luz? Before we do something we might regret, how about we take a step back, think this through, and pretend like this never happened. Okay?" Michael negotiated, his voice trembling.
Unfortunately, his voice fell on deaf ears. For the first time in Luz's life, she had never seen a naked man (internet and fantasies don't count). To say her reaction was an overreaction would be a joke. The witch-in-training's cheeks burned, glowing as red as a tomato. As she started freaking out, her hand immediately reached into her pajama pants and drew a small piece of paper. With glaring eyes, she opened it and tapped the sigil.
Michael pleaded for mercy.
"Luz! Wait a second, don't…."
"Michael, you pervert!"
With the fury of a thousand suns, Luz threw the sheet with extreme precision and speed. Michael instinctively held his arms to his face as the parchment glowed hot white, his bathroom illuminating like the Fourth of July. Then came a tremendous explosion, smoke floating out of the doorway. The very earth shook underneath, and a painfully grunting Michael overlapped the sound of burning fabrics.
"Michael, I'm so sorry. I…"
"Luz. Drop it."
The pair sat in the kitchen, cleaned and dressed in their usual garments. Luz was somberly staring at the table's flat surface, cheeks still blushing and her fingers fidgeting together. The witch-in-training barely touched her breakfast and only took in small bites. Michael was on the opposite side, eating his bowl of cereal as fast as humanly possible while fuming irritably. To say he was in a sour mood was an understatement.
After the bathroom accident, Michael had to get ready all over again. Not only were his new clothes singed and his hair ruined, but he also tried to hide the stench of burning hair and skin (thank God for Luz's healing glyphs). There's not enough Old Spice in the world to cover up that odor, though. Not only that, but now he would have to repair the whole bathroom, from top to bottom. That would cost him an arm and a leg, he thought aggravatingly. Since then, Luz pleaded for forgiveness, but Michael brushed off her apologies. Not out of malice or cold-heartedness, his mind wanted to be somewhere else.
Anne was brushing her bushy hair when she walked into the kitchen and saw her roommates, unaware of the negative aura stewing from the two. Her robe was already discarded. In its place, a new change of short overalls with a frog logo and a reddish-orange crop top she wanted to try on.
"Dudes, did you feel that earthquake? The house was shaking like crazy! God, for a moment, I thought I was back in Los Angeles," Anne called out, tying the scrunchy into her hair before finally reading the room. "Okay, what's going on here? Obvi, the barely making eye-contact and eating breakfast awkwardly spells something weird happened between you two."
Luz was about to speak up, but Michael beat her to the finish line. "Nothing happened, Anne. Well, nothing unusual happened. Luz and I had a bit of an accident, and I'm a little miffed that I'm going to be late, that's all," he half-lied, slowly getting out of his seat. "Which reminds me, I need to head out and run straight to class before my exams start. Running through these hills, it's not the first time I had to leg, and it probably won't be my last."
Anne eyed the young man. "…Okay?"
Clenching his bowl, Michael strolled over and tossed it into the sink. Not having the time to clean up, he promised to do it when he returned.
Anne took a step forward and stood next to Michael, watching the young man as he put his sneakers on.
"So, when will you be back?"
"Too early to say. Since my shift at my part-time job is coming up afterwards, I'll probably be tied up all afternoon till evening," said Michael with an honest edge. He sighed, face turning dark while continuing, "I might even stop at the pub on the way home and get a beer. I'll need it to calm my nerves, among other frustrations happening today."
Michael glanced briefly at Luz, who sank into her chair, the inner machinations of his heart aching with regret, but he sucked it up. The witch-in-training gave him a sullen frown filled with remorse, almost refusing to make even the slightest eye contact.
Looking forward, Michael was about to walk through the doorway and head out to class. But before the young man made one step, Anne stopped him, spun him around, and started fixing his jacket, adjusting the edges while tidying his t-shirt, fingers swiping off the debris from earlier.
Anne finishes up with a peck on his cheek. "Well, if you are, then you better not drink too much. All sorts of dangers come from public intoxication. Make sure you keep it to a minimum, but if not, call someone to pick you up, okay? Be safe and have a nice day. Michael."
"Okay, I guess?"
Turning around, Anne looked at Luz and effortlessly prompted her, rubbing her licked thumb on the girl's cheek.
"As for you, young lady, I expect you to be on your best behavior," she continued, her tone borderline maternally strict. "That means no magical shenanigans and no insane invocations that could potentially summon some Lovecraftian horror into our reality. Do I make myself clear?"
"Crystal," Luz blinked, eyeing the older woman weirdly. "But Anne, are you feeling okay. You're kind of acting like different person because you're never this attentive before?"
Anne winced and shook her head, mentally chastising herself. "Oh, crap! I'm so sorry, guys. Working as a herpetologist at the museum of natural history, back at home, I used to be very attentive to the frogs. Carrying my weight in this house, helping with cooking and cleaning, I guess some of those feelings started coming out," she professed and smiled, masking her internal dread, muttering to herself. "Oh, God, I'm slowly turning into my mother!"
The trio remained silent for a second as the air around them grew thicker than before, eyes darting toward each other.
Michael spotted the time on the oven's clock, eyes widening. The young man kicked his feet out of the kitchen doorway, his backpack slinging on his shoulders.
"Crap, I got to go. I'll see you girls later tonight!" Michael shouted from the hallway as he headed out the front door.
He didn't hear them respond back. Michael jogged through the driveway and up over the hillside. The moment he entered the forest and got on the pathway, the young man kicked it up a notch, sprinting forward with his arms sticking up from behind like a ninja striding into the night. Whatever made him get to campus faster, he didn't care if it made him look like an idiot.
Midterm exams, here I come!
Luz sat with her face planted on the table, arms folded under. A tired, grim frown cracked across her face as she was left with her thoughts. A few hours had passed, the afternoon arriving almost in a flash. With Anne having left, tending to God knows what, the witch-in-training was the only one in the kitchen. Alone with her thoughts, she wasn't sure what to do next. The events that transpired earlier haunted her as the image of a naked Michael flashed against her vision. That, and the sound of an elephant trumpeting in a torturous manner, rang in her ears. She growled in frustration and grabbed her bangs, trying to get the image out of her head. However, another conviction was eating her up.
Oh, God! Luz, what have you done? Granted, any girl would freak out if they saw a guy standing in his birthday suit. Obviously, but most girls don't use glyphs that can produce the same kind of firepower as napalm! It was an accident, and you and Michael would have laughed well afterward. Instead, as per your typical Luz self, you acted impulsively, blew up his bathroom, and almost killed him, shonen girl anime style! And now, Michael hates you and probably won't forgive you. No, you're simply overthinking it, but then why does it hurt so much? Usually, when you feel this way, it's with your girlfriend, Amity. But with Michael?
Luz perked up and placed a hand on her chest, her heart rapidly beating as she slowly prepared to leave the kitchen.
Be still your beating heart, girl. You're probably feeling extraordinarily guilty and nothing more. Even so, you got to make this right, Luz. But how? Michael is perhaps at work or still in class and won't be home until the evening. There's also the fact Anne's still here, and there's no way she won't let you leave the house unless you have a good reason, right?
Luz slowed her pace and stood like a statue. Her brain stabbed itself with uncertainty. Her plan was put to a grinding halt before it was even executed. She could beg and plead with Anne, but that might not cut it. Fortunately, lady luck was on her side as a small, rectangular piece of plastic caught the corner of her eye, lying on the granite countertop.
Hold on, is that…it is! Michael's campus ID card! Motioning over, Luz swiped the card and let out a giddy cry, carefully reading the laminated print in bold letters. Michael Fukubayashi Therman. Age 25. Junior Year. Huh. I didn't know he was Japanese. Well, that doesn't matter.
Shaking her head, Luz was back in the game, a newfound sense of determination arising as she tiptoed through the living room.
All you need to do is get out the door, head to the university, and give Michael the apology he deserves, even if it means getting on your hands and knees. You just need to go before…
"Where do you think you're going?"
Luz gasped right when her hand was placed on the doorknob, sweating nervously while reluctantly turning around. The witch-in-training glanced at a miffed Anne as she began climbing the staircase. Getting closer, the young woman crossed her arms and gave a disapproving glare.
"Anne! I-it's not what it looks like!" Luz stammer with her voice cracking, arms behind her back.
Without realizing it, Anne snatched the card from Luz's hands, holding it to her face. "Oh, really? Well, it looks to me like you were planning to sneak out, head down to the university, and try to beg Michael for forgiveness while using his id card as an excuse to talk to him," she deduced her friend's intentions.
From the scowl on Anne's face, Luz winced, eyes closed and prepared for a scolding of a lifetime. Strangely, nothing happened. When she opened her eyes, Anne returned the card, smiling. Although slightly hesitant, Luz took the card and stashed it in her flight jacket pocket, looking at her older peer in befuddlement.
"I don't know what's going on between you and our gracious host, but seeing as how it looks like you screwed up, I'm pretty sure he'll forgive you," Anne reassured as she opened the front door, waving for Luz to go.
"You're not going to stop me?" Luz asked, slack-jawed.
"Girl, you think I wasn't in the same boat as you? Back in on my universe, my friend Sasha and I got into fights before. Though, in more ways than most people. Sometimes, we pulled same stunts as what you were about to do, Luz. Still, we managed to forgive each other, and that cute raven-haired idiot will do the same for you," said Anne with a sorrowful edge. "He may be stubborn, but he's still an understanding guy, though you'll never know unless you talk to him."
Luz smiled, wasting no time dillydallying as she headed straight out the door. Before taking another step, the witch-in-training looked over her shoulder back to Anne, her expression widening in worry.
"You okay with holding down the fort by yourself?" Luz wondered.
Anne nodded and waved her hand, shooing the girl. "Oh, please. You're talking to a first-rate Muay Thai fighter and an interdimensional warrior, here. I can handle any intruder. Besides, Michael's got like a whole cache of guns stashed all over the property. He's packing so much heat, I feel more worried for the burglar's safety. Now, get going before it gets dark, Luz."
Like a deer on the run, Luz made her way up the hills and through the pathway. She was jogging down the side of the road as cars past her by, exchanging friendly waves. The witch-in-training headed straight to the university, and her day was only beginning.
A/N: Hey, everyone. This is kman134. I'm here to give you the next chapter of "Intruders from the Other Side." Firstly, you may not notice the beginning will introduce Hekapoo in a minor appearance, giving her the same vibes as the Outsider from Dishonored. I was trying to mimic her character in SVFOE while also implementing some nuance facets, such as giving her a slightly more mature and responsible demeanor while retaining her sultry, teasing personality (I was not at all happy with how she was handled in Season 4). Secondly, this chapter will provide an omen that will foreshadow what will arrive in the last few chapters of volume 1 and in the next volume, along with what may snowball in chapters 7 & 8. Thirdly, this chapter, and the next one, will explore Michael and Luz's relationship, both as friends and maybe more. I already explored his and Anne's, so it's time to deal with Luz and Michael's for a change. So, just a head up, the next chapter will be a lemon. I'm leaving it at that because I don't want to spoil too much. Lastly, I'm considering requesting a beta reader to help edit and add some pointers to my story because Grammarly isn't helping much. Anyways, I hope this can help ease your minds and tell you I'm not dead. Please, tell me what you think.