A/N: It's back! The hiatus (for this fic) is over and now we can get back to the action! But first, let's get into the Review Answers.
: I understand where you're coming from, and do not worry, this will be addressed soon enough. In a way that many may or may not see coming. Also, thanks for enjoying the fic!
mastergamer14: The name of "Evil Luz's" rider form has already been determined, but that was one of the names that was kicked around. I cannot say what her role will be in this fic beyond being Luz's GF, at least not yet.
Dr. KRC PhD: Oh, it's going to get crazier, just you wait.
OMAC001: I thought you all might like that little tidbit of a cliffhanger.
starwing1995: You are not far off from the Ryuga comparison, but "Evil Luz" will come up again.
CapMorgan55: Happy to know I have exceeded expectations!
Bia1230: Thank you!
WaterDragonMaverick: You would be correct in your analysis of why Luz couldn't maintain her Rider Form in the Human Realm, and I'm happy to say, you'll love what comes next!
Demon dark mezzo angue: Congrats on being the first, and second, you're right. I might very well sprinkle in original chapters in between canon episodes, and once I do reach Yesterday's Lie, unless the show starts back up by that point, then I'll have go with my own vision of how the show will end.
Once again, I thank you all for sticking with and loving the story. Now, one last thing. For those of you who haven't read "Heroes From Another World", I'd start catching up now before Sunday.
Next Update: Sunday at 12:00pm CST US.
Three days had passed since the Petrification Ceremony of Edalyn Clawthorne was stopped by Luz the human. And since then, the Owl House group has been trying to figure out their next move. There was a notable tension in the house between Luz and Lilith, even though Lilith did take on half the curse in retribution for cursing her younger sister in the first place, Luz hadn't completely forgiven her for her actions in driving Eda into despair and nearly getting someone she loved killed.
Things were also getting a bit tougher, financially speaking anyway. The money made from the Kamen Rider Witch merchandise sold like hotcakes and gave them a significant boost to their household finances. However, now with Lilith living with them, and added to the fact that neither of the Clawthorne sisters could use magic at all, it considerably hampered their ability to do any kind of work that involved the use of magic, which was pretty much anything and everything on the Boiling Isles.
Sure, they had enough money for now, but Eda knew that soon enough they'd have to start figuring out what kind of jobs they could do to keep them fed.
Luz hadn't been to school since the ceremony, she made it a point not to contact Willow, Gus, Skara, or Amity. She wasn't sure if the Emperor's Coven was going to be watching them or possibly drag them away for just being associated with her and Eda. While Luz knew that her current Super Form was at least a match for Emperor Belos, he had already seen her abilities in that form. He wouldn't be caught off guard twice unless she made a new magic ring. So, until she was sure that Belos wasn't going to attack her friends, she decided to keep them at arm's length, or until the heat dies down from the event.
I know I shouldn't worry that much, Belos said he needed me to keep the Phantoms from hurting the citizens of the Boiling Isles.
"That's our only saving grace right now, Niña. The fact that we serve a purpose for him. When the last freed Phantom is destroyed, then he will turn his attention onto us. As much as I despise that mortal, I must admit that he is cunning."
But that could work in our favor, right? I got stronger with the Light Owl ring, my first Super Form. It's based upon my Light Style, so that must mean I have three more variations of my Super Form to go! By the time the last Phantom is destroyed, I might be strong enough to beat him!
"Heh, you have a point. We have the potential to get stronger. I just pray that it will be enough. We mustn't underestimate him, for all we know, he has spies watching our every move. Even if we obtain a new form, one of his scouts could report back our capabilities. As I said, he was caught off guard by how strong we were, he doesn't strike me as a man who would allow that to happen again."
I know, and there's still Pan's warning, and why did he want the portal that badly? …The portal…
Luz's mind flashed back to that moment when she destroyed the portal, exploding it into fiery pieces. It was her only way back home, and now it was gone. She had no intention of leaving the Boiling Isles, not with the Phantom threat still looming, even more so with whatever threat Belos was cooking up. But even if she won all her battles, she'd still be stuck here. It wasn't like the idea of being stuck in the Demon Realm was a bad thing, she had Eda, King, even Hooty as her family, Eda was practically like a second mother to her now. She also had her friends, Willow, Gus, Skara, and Amity, so it wasn't like she'd be alone.
But even knowing that she'd be okay here, that didn't negate the fact that her mother would be heartbroken. Summer camp was going to end soon, and without the portal, she couldn't send any text messages to her, to let her know that she was okay. Images of her mother crying in the living room, wondering where Luz had gone swam in her mind. She didn't like it. Even if she couldn't see her mother again, she at least wanted a way to communicate with her, to let her mother know that she wasn't dead or that she hadn't runaway.
Just then Luz bumped into someone, causing her to stumble backwards. "I'm sorry, I was–"
"No, it's my fault I was–"
"Oh."
"Oh…"
Luz was standing before Lilith. Ever since Lilith took on half of the curse, her hair had gained a gray streak to it, her right eye, which was turquoise in color, was now a dull gray color. Lilith couldn't use magic anymore, just like her sister, but the loss of magic seemed to hit her harder. While Eda learned how to live with the curse all these years, Lilith was still getting used to managing it like Eda.
The tension whenever the two were in the same room was palpable. Luz didn't really know what to say to Lilith, she was grateful for her help in saving Eda, and even more for taking on half the curse and bringing Eda out of her Owl Beast form. But, again, that didn't negate what she did to Eda, nor what she did to try and make up for that mistake and nearly getting Eda killed in the process.
For Lilith, it was almost the same. Guilt wracked her everyday since that night, she remembered the fury and the hurt she saw in the young girl. The intensity of her magic when someone she loved was put in such danger the way Lilith had done to Eda. Another part of their awkwardness came from the fear that Lilith had of Luz, she saw what that anger could do, how powerful she became. It felt as if she was walking on eggshells around the human, uncertain as to what, if anything, she said or did would give Luz the excuse to finish what she started back at the Conformatorium.
"Hey…Lilith…how are you doing?" Luz asked. Oh man, I don't know what to do. Part of me is still mad at her, but another part of me wants to forgive her.
"J-Just fine, hu – I mean, Luz. Yeah…" Lilith responded. Crap! I almost called her "human" again! How insensitive is that?! It's like her calling me witch every day! Calm down, Lilith, calm down! She's not angry, at least it doesn't look like she is. That's a good thing.
Silence reigned heavy in the room, so silent you could hear the ticking of the clock down the hall, and the breathing of the walls. Both Lilith and Luz were hoping, begging for something to come along and break up this awkward silence.
"Hey, Luz, Eda wants us downstairs to…" King paused when he reached the top of the stairs and saw Lilith and Luz just standing there, in painfully awkward silence. "Uh, you two okay?"
"NEVER BETTER!" They said at the same time.
"Riiiiiiiiight. Anyway, Eda wants to have a meeting in the living room so–"
"Right! I'll head down there right away!" Lilith stated as she rushed past King and headed down the stairs.
Now that Lilith had gone, Luz released a breath she didn't realize she was holding. She leaned up against the wall and groaned loudly, gaining the little demon's attention. "Things are still awkward between you two, huh?"
"YES!" Luz confessed in an exasperated tone. "I don't know what do around her King! Part me still wants to knock her block off, and the other half wants me to forgive her and help her out! Ugh, I'm at war with myself and I don't know which side I should take."
King shrugged and said, "Well, why don't you just have a fight with Lilith. Fist to fist, no magic. Just get it all out of your system."
"King, that's the road I don't want to go down. I'm afraid that what happened at the Conformatorium will happen again!" Luz confessed.
"What?"
"You don't remember how my magic got all dark and sinister! My Driver wasn't asking for magic anymore, it started demanding magic! Good guys don't demand something from magic, they ask for it! The island taught me that magic is a gift and asking for help from that power is the right way. Plus, I feel wrong being consumed by that much anger…"
Luz still hadn't told King or Eda about the nightmare she had on the night they returned from the Petrification Ceremony. She wasn't sure if it was a nightmare or a vision of what was to come if she let herself be consumed by her more negative emotions. That version of herself, she looked hurt, and she wasn't talking about the scars, there was pain in her eyes, and sadness. If that was a vision of the future, did that mean something bad will happen that will push Luz into seeking the power of darkness?
Lilith made her way downstairs, thankful to be out of that awkward situation with Luz. The grown woman walked over to the sofa and plopped down on it, groaning loudly for all to hear in the living room.
Eda noticed the dower mood her sister was in and asked, "Somethin' wrong, Lily?"
"It's…nothing."
"Yeah, right, nothing. C'mon, better you tell me before it eats at you and makes the curse act up," said Eda.
Lilith sighed heavily and sat up straight. "I don't know how to act around that girl. She's…I know she hates me."
Eda was reluctant to say that Luz hated Lilith, really mad at her and angry for what she did, yeah, understandable. Truth be told, Eda was still a little peeved about her own sister cursing her and never saying anything for last few years. But she was her sister, her friend, and her family. There were times when family hurts family, but eventually some scars fade, and the healing can begin. Besides, there was no point in holding a grudge, Lilith was suffering now like Eda was, only it was a bit worse for her. Eda learned to manage the curse after many years of trial and error, Lilith was still learning and would freak out whenever she started sprouting just a small tuft of feathers.
"Luz is only fourteen, kids that age have to work out their emotions. But Luz isn't a spiteful person, she'll eventually come around and soon you'll be just as annoyed by her as I was when I first brought her in," said Eda with a happy tone.
"But it's more than that, Edalyn! I…I'm afraid of her!" Lilith confessed.
Eda dropped the paper she was reading and looked at her sister as if she was crazy. "You. Lilith Clawthorne, former head of the Emperor's Coven, you're afraid of a fourteen-year-old kid?"
"You didn't see what I saw, Edalyn, you didn't see the fury, hear the anger in her voice, or feel the wrath of her flames! If it wasn't for the two of us falling into the Human Realm, she would've succeeded in killing me then and there," said Lilith.
Eda raised an eyebrow and asked, "Okay, what exactly happened after I was sent up to be petrified?"
Lilith went into detail about the battle that ensued after Eda was taken up to the stage. Eda listened intently and furrowed her brow in concern. "I have read that certain emotions can make spells stronger or give a strong boost in power to the caster of a spell. Feelings like love or hate can bring about immensely powerful results to cast spells, it can make a simple fireball spell transform into a raging inferno."
"And you're afraid Luz is going to snap and completely destroy you. Is that what I'm getting?" Eda asked.
"Yes…I know it's absurd! I'm afraid of a child, but she has magical power strong enough to match the Emperor! No other witch in history has been able to match him! And she managed to land a blow on him for the first time in years!" Lilith exclaimed.
Eda had to admit, Lilith was right about Luz's magic getting stronger, in time, she'd most likely be strong enough to fight against Belos. The Owl Lady was sure that the old tyrant wasn't going to allow that to happen, so long as he didn't have a way to wipe out all the Phantoms, they had assurance that Luz and their little group of weirdos wouldn't be harmed, less Luz turn all that power onto Belos himself.
"Look, you two need to talk at some point, otherwise it's just going to be…" Eda gestured to all of Lilith, "this for the rest of the time you're living here."
Lilith understood that, but still…
The two Clawthorne sisters heard footsteps approaching, it was then they saw Luz and King. Eda got up from the loveseat and stood at the center of the living room, allowing Luz and King to take her seat. The awkward tension was back again, but Eda decided to cut through that and get straight to business.
"Okay, everyone, I've called this meeting today to address the giraffe in the room." Luz and Lilith briefly glanced at each other. "We need money. So far, our funds from that Witch merch is keeping as afloat, but that'll run out soon. And since I don't have access to the Human Realm anymore, I can't hock any human paraphernalia, and without my magic, I can't make any more Witch related stuff."
"Eda, I have magic remember! I can use it to make the rest of goods! All I have to do is use my Copy ring and duplicate all the remaining merchandise!" Luz suggested.
"A good plan, but no. Your mana should only be used for when we really need it, or when there's a Phantom attack. I don't want you using up your power if there's a monster attacking the town," said Eda.
"But…"
"No buts on this one, kid. We'll just have to manage without that. If it comes to it, we'll use your idea as a last resort, alright?" Eda asked.
Reluctantly, Luz nodded in agreement.
"So, what do you propose, Sister?" Lilith asked.
Eda pulled out a wanted poster and said, "Bounty hunting!"
Lilith, Luz, and King blinked.
"I'm sorry, Edalyn, you want us to become bounty hunters? A profession that requires us to hunt possibly dangerous criminals and creatures, and bring them in to face justice or eliminate them? And pray tell, how are we to accomplish that without access to our magic? And also, you've stated clearly that you don't want to have Luz use her magic unless it's for an emergency or to battle Phantoms."
Eda scoffed at Lilith's concerns. "Lily, the Human Realm used to hunt witches and they didn't have a single magical ability. We have the upper hand, we're crafty, intelligent, resourceful, and unpredictable. We may not have magic, but there are plenty of potion recipes that don't require magic to make them work. I can whip up a few of them as well as some weapons, and then we start our hunt! Unless anyone else has any ideas?"
Sadly, no one else.
"I have an idea, hoot-hoot!"
Sadly, no one.
Hexside was a little on edge ever since the Petrification Ceremony, most notably, Gus, Willow, and Skara. It was hard not to know what Gus and Willow did during the ceremony, Gus cut off his dad in the middle of a live broadcast, and Willow led the chant that called for Eda's release. Thankfully, none of them suffered any repercussions for their actions by the Emperor's Coven, and while they did get a bit of a talking to by their respective parents, they weren't angry, just worried for them.
Now four days had passed and not one of them has seen Luz, she wasn't even returning letters that were written to her. The whole thing was bumming them out.
"I'm sure she's okay," Skara assured. "They're probably just lying low until the heat dies down a little."
"Yeah, that does make sense," said Willow as she gently took Skara's hand into her own. "Still, I'm worried about her, and Ms. Eda. The last time we saw them she was still in her Owl Beast form, Luz told us about her curse, and I can't help but think she's having a hard time keeping Ms. Eda under control."
"Just a thought, why haven't you guys gone to the Owl House and checked in on her?" Skara asked.
"Probably for the same reason why she hasn't come back to school or contacted us," said Gus. "She doesn't want to get us in trouble in case something happens, and if something does happen, we'll be far away and have the excuse of not knowing a thing about what was happening."
Skara hated seeing her new friends so sad, especially when one of them was her girlfriend. She needed to do something to help them out, she was the newest member of their group, she had to show that she could help them in some way. Now that she thought about it…
"Have you guys heard from Amity?" Skara asked.
Willow and Gus glanced at each other as they pondered that thought.
"You know, I haven't lately," said Gus.
"Yeah, I figured she'd be hysterical that Luz wasn't here, but I haven't seen her much recently," said Willow.
Skara blinked. "Why would she be hysterical?"
Willow clamped her lips shut and hurriedly lied, "W-Well, she considers Luz her best friend, Luz has really helped Amity become a better person since she's come here, and Amity just really cares about her – as a friend!"
Skara blinked once, twice, three times. Willow was sweating a little, she promised to keep Amity's crush a secret from others. While Skara was a part of their group, and also Willow's girlfriend, she wasn't about to reveal that secret until Amity said it was okay to do so. Although, realistically speaking, anyone who was paying attention could figure out how that girl felt towards Luz. Gus was a little too young to see the signs, and Skara, well, Skara was Skara, but she could be surprisingly intuitive when she wanted to be.
"Yeah, that makes sense, she really has mellowed out a lot since Luz came to town," said Skara.
Willow breathed a sigh of relief.
The bell rang and released its throat tearing scream to indicate that lunch period was over. The students dispersed for their next classes with Gus heading to this Illusion course. Willow and Skara, meanwhile, walked hand in hand as they made their way to their classes. The Bard classrooms weren't too far from the Plant Track classrooms, so Willow made it a point to walk her new girlfriend to class.
It was still strange for the two girls, Willow never thought she'd find someone special that made her heart flutter, much less that person being Skara of all people, one of the high-class witch families. It was a shame that she didn't get to know Skara when they were younger, perhaps this relationship could've blossomed sooner.
Although, there's a scenario where Amity might be the one I could've fallen for back then, if circumstances had been different, thought Willow.
But, no, she was fine with this. Luz and Amity were meant to be together as far as Willow was concerned, and this, what she had with Skara, this was right.
"Ugh, just when I thought it couldn't get any worse," said a familiar voice.
Skara and Willow, reluctantly, stopped in the middle of the hallway. They turned around to see Boscha, along with her crew of Amelia, Cat, and Bo.
"Ugh, what do you want, Boscha?" Skara asked in annoyed tone.
"Nothing, just voicing my distaste at how low your standards have dropped, Skara. Seriously, dating Half-A-Witch? Didn't you go to Grom with that cute Beast Keeper, Andrew? What was wrong with him?" Boscha asked.
Willow clenched her free hand in anger, she wasn't angered by Boscha insulting her. She was used to that. But she was laying that insult at her girlfriend, and that would not do. However, Skara saw the agitation in her new lover and gently patted her on the shoulder as she let go of her hand.
"It's okay, Willow, I got this," said Skara before planting a kiss on Willow's cheek.
The Plant Track witch blushed at the show of affection but was not opposed to it. This did allow her to gauge the other witches in Boscha's entourage. For the most part, Amelia, Cat, and Bo looked happy for Skara, but Boscha was a definitely not happy about it.
"Boscha, do you really have nothing better to do than harass me and my GF? I mean, how sad is it, really, that you gotta bash on our love when you're standing here with no one on your arm," said Skara in a sassy tone.
That actually got a reaction out of Boscha as her face lit up bright red, which also caused the other students to gasp in shock that Skara dared to say such a thing.
"Tch! I can get anyone I want; I just have high standards!" Boscha stated.
"Uh-huh, in other words, you freak a lot of people out and they're afraid if they do or say the wrong thing around you, you'll grind them into the dirt." Skara retorted.
"I…I just…! What's wrong with having standards?! HUH?! At least I'm not going out with a someone who's low on the social totem pole!"
Skara looked back at Willow for a moment, she hoped that one wouldn't make Willow think twice about their relationship. But it seemed that Willow was unfazed by that, so Skara pressed on. "So what? Willow makes me happy, and I make her happy, what's more to it than that? Isn't that what love is, or whatever? Tell you what, Bosh, once you get your own GF or BF, then I might take what you say seriously. Until then, I gotta get to class." Skara stood next to Willow and offered her arm to her girlfriend. "Willow?"
Willow smiled and happily wrapped her left arm around Skara's right and the two of them walked on, not even bothering to listen to the string of insults that Boscha was throwing their way.
"I'm sorry you have to deal with that, Willow," said Skara.
"I'm used to Boscha's mess, you have nothing to be sorry about," Willow replied.
"That doesn't mean I like it. Seriously, what's her deal?! My own parents haven't made a big deal about us going out, so why is she?!" Skara asked indignantly.
It was a long shot, but Willow threw out a theory. "Maybe…in her own weird, scary, Boscha way, she's trying to look out for you? Or, and this is also a hunch, maybe she's jealous?"
Skara thought about that for a moment, while the first option seemed farfetched, the second seemed more likely. She remembered the many sleepovers and times they hung out that Boscha said she was crushing on some guy or girl, but never did anything. It always seemed strange to her that she never did do that, objectively speaking, Amity and Boscha were probably the two hottest girls in their class year, not to mention the most popular. Skara was third by default, and only because of her family's nobility. So, the three of them made up Hexside's most eligible bachelorettes, but Amity was always focused on improving her magic skills, while Boscha was focused on being the best Grudgby player on the island.
They were both hardcore in what they wanted, and that often made them seem unapproachable. They were both ambitious, and any potential lover was going to have to try and keep up with them or be left in the dust, and that's even if they had the time to dedicate to a relationship. However, with Luz's arrival, Amity did appear more approachable, her look of superiority had softened as of late. While Boscha only seems to have become more antagonistic.
Before Skara new it, the two of them had arrived at her class. "Anyway, tell me if Boscha messes with you, I'm not gonna let anyone mess with my girlfriend!"
Willow blushed again and giggled. "It's still kinda weird to hear you call me that."
"Bad weird?" Skara asked.
"No." Willow leaned forward and gently kissed Skara on the lips before backing away. "The good kind of weird."
Skara giggled back and said, "I'll see you after school, right?"
"Yep."
Skara headed into the Bard Track class, allowing Willow to head to her classroom. When she arrived, she saw a few other Plant Track students had arrived as well, one of whom she just saw not too long ago, Amelia. Amelia was a tall, skinny witchling, with moss green hair, and hazel green eyes. She had interacted with Amelia a few times in class, and she seemed cordial enough, but when she was around Boscha she became less so. It was as if there was something about that girl that just made others want to be mean.
Willow walked over to her station, checking on her plant friends and watering them. While she was doing that, she heard someone clear their throat behind her. Willow turned around and saw it was Amelia, looking a bit contrite.
"Um, Willow, I'm sorry about what happened in the hall earlier, with Boscha and all…"
"Oh, no, it's alright," said Willow.
"It's really not, and…I kinda wish I had what you had."
Willow raised an eyebrow at that. "What do mean?"
"Forget it, sorry, I just wanted to apologize, never mind."
Willow stood there perplexed as Amelia left. It wasn't like it was unusual for them to speak, they were in the same track and class, and had worked together on a few projects, but that was in the classroom. Outside of it, in the halls or out of school, she was just another one of Boscha's crew. However, after Skara defected from Boscha, Willow had been wondering if Skara was the only outlier? Could the other girls be the same as Skara, not saying all of them have the hots for her, but could Amelia also want to defect from Boscha?
Must be exhausting being around Boscha, especially on the Grudgby field, thought Willow. Skara, Amelia, Bo, and Cat, they're on the Grudgby team with Boscha. I can't imagine how much worse she is on the field.
Meanwhile, down in the depths of the underground, the Phantom generals plotted.
"Witch is getting stronger," said Ahuizotl.
"Good, it'd be boring to fight her just to end up with an easy win," Ifrit replied.
The panther chimera growled in annoyance at his colleague. "Always eager for a fight, never looking beyond towards the bigger picture! Ever think she could get strong enough to surpass you?"
Ifrit looked at Ahuizotl for a moment and then laughed uproariously to the point that it echoed in the bone cave. "Oh, oh man, that's a good one. But, ah, no, no that's never going to happen."
"Your arrogance knows no bounds, Ifrit." Set chimed in. "The power of this Witch is steadily getting stronger and stronger; we cannot allow this to continue any further."
Typhon, smashed his right fist into his left palm, creating a thunderous boom in the cave. "For once I agree with this chaos scheming rat." Set visibly bristled at the dual compliment and insult. "If we battled Witch now, she would be no match for us."
"As true as your words are, Typhon, that is not the plan." The four Phantom generals turned towards the darkened area of the cave where the five different sets of glowing eyes of Tiamat resided. "Our mandate is to create Phantoms, the more of us the better. Witch is secondary if she interferes, plus, with our offer, the Rogue Phantoms will fall in line and deal with her directly. Leaving our loyal Phantoms to do their job."
"While I do agree, Lady Tiamat, finding Gates among these witches is proving difficult. There are a rare few of us who can sense Gates, and even fewer still who can do so from a distance. The magic of this world is like a smokescreen that clouds the senses, if it weren't for that we'd be making Phantoms in masse, rather than relying on these little piecemeal instances," said Set.
"Be that as it may, we are not to stray from the plan." All ten eyes of Tiamat glowed in unison as she added, "None of you are to stray from it, am I clear?"
Tiamat received a nod of understanding from the other four generals.
"Go then, speak with your Phantom prospects, and find out if any of them are any closer to getting a Gate."
With the order given, Typhon, Set, Ifrit, and Ahuizotl left the cave, leaving Tiamat alone. Once alone, the glowing eyes lowered as if she were bowing her head. A moment later, a dark figure appeared in the cave before her, a being far more powerful than herself.
It would seem your generals are getting weary, Tiamat.
"I have them in line, they dare not disobey me. Set is the most loyal of them, even if he questions the method, he will not stray from the plan. Ifrit is eager for battle, but I can wrangle him in if necessary. Ahuizotl is more cautious and will not enter into a battle without a plan of attack. But Typhon…"
Yes, Typhon, he is a beast of power, and arrogance. I caution keeping an eye on him. I cannot allow any deviations.
"Pardon me for asking, Master, but why is it that we don't make ourselves known and attack Witch together? Typhon alone would be able to extinguish the light of that being."
The room grew heavy with the presence of the Master, his power radiating through the very bones of the cave and making it rattle. Tiamat's different colored eyes blinked in shock at the display of power.
Even Witch is a part of my grander plan, she is not an anomaly, but a calculated – and in some ways necessary – evil. I put much faith in the Phantoms' ability to bring despair to these parasites, I would hope one little form of adversity isn't enough to deter you from obeying my will?
"NO! No, Master, it is not! I am sorry for doubting your wisdom. I will ensure that more Phantoms are created, you have my word!"
I have faith that you will, Tiamat. I know you will fight to the last of you.
With those words spoken, the Master disappeared, and the heaviness along with him. Although covered by darkness, Tiamat was sweating from that encounter. She had spoken to the Master several times over the course of their summoning, taking instruction from him. But just now, she felt a sense of agitation from him. Something must have changed to make him feel that way. Tiamat considered herself a loyal Phantom, the Master was stronger than any Phantom she had ever encountered, and far more sinister. So, when it was made known that this being of immeasurable power conjured them into existence, how could she not obey him? She was the strongest of all the Phantoms born onto the Boiling Isles, and yet her power paled by comparison.
"I will not fail, my Master."
Luz was out in the woods, in her little training area. With workout clothes donned and a sweatband around her head, Luz began going through her self made drills. Pushups, sit ups, jumping jacks, a few laps around the Owl House and then ran back to the training grounds. After doing all that, Luz started her fight training, she got into her stance and flattened her palms. She took a deep breath to center herself and went through her first "kata". Punching the air with a few palm strikes and moving into a few kicks.
She jumped into the air, performing a roundhouse kick, landed on the ground, moved into a sweeping kick, jumped a little, and came down on her pretend enemy with a palm strike as if to finish her opponent. Her imaginary foes weren't done, as she pretended to get swarmed by a few Coven Scouts, she rolled around on the ground, pretending to dodge magical energy blasts as they came her way. Luz pulled out a Fire Glyph paper and formed a flaming sword from it.
That was one thing that she had noticed that had changed when she got La Lechuza, whenever she used her glyphs, they gained a boost of power from the mana that the Inner Phantom generated and channeled. With that added power, Luz found that she could command the glyph to do certain things that she could not do before. One of those being the creation of constructs. Realistically, holding a sword made of pure fire should be extremely painful and should be burning her hand off, but since this was magic fire, and was made from her mana, it did not harm her.
With her flaming sword in hand, Luz charged for the imaginary Coven Scouts and slashed at them, deflecting a few of their magic bolts along the way. She slid across the ground and gave an upward slash to cut their spears and render them useless. Using her mana, Luz reformed the sword into a fire whip and lashed at the air in front of her, a few embers whisked through the air as she imagined the Scouts getting knocked away from the attack.
"Your mana control has gotten better since awakening our new power. At this rate, you won't need to transform to fight Belos' little pawns."
"Thanks, Lala, but I need to get stronger than this," said Luz. "Now that Eda – and to a lesser extent, Lilith – can't use magic, they're vulnerable. Which means it's up to me to protect the Owl House, from Phantoms and Belos!"
"I wouldn't say they're completely unable to defend themselves. Why not follow through with your idea of teaching them glyph magic? Certainly, if it works for you, it can work for them."
Luz dismissed the fire whip and broke out her Ice Glyph, she slammed it against the ground and created glaives of ice that jutted out from ground. With a wave of her hand, she managed to command the ice to reform into a wall of ice for defense, she then pulled back on the ice and made it come to hand, forming an ice hammer. The weight of the hammer almost made her tip over, but Luz quickly widened her stance and planted her feet to regain control.
"I have no problem with teaching Eda how to use glyphs, but…"
"You still do not trust her sister."
"And you do?"
"Not in the slightest. However, I can sense that she's desperate to prove herself worthy of your and Eda's trust. She has nowhere to go, no magic, and has now cursed herself with the same affliction she gave to Eda. Belos has shown that she is little less than a pawn to him, so there's no way she will go back to him. We are all she has left."
Luz brought down the hammer with a might thud, grunting from the effort. "And you think I should be nicer to her because of that, right?"
"When did I say that? You should exploit her desperateness, get her to reveal any and all secrets that she might know about Belos. Perhaps even get her to at least teach you more about the magic of this world."
Luz had to admit, Lala had a point. Lilith was a more learned witch than Eda. That's not saying that Eda wasn't as good as Lilith, oh no, she did surpass her big sister in raw talent and power. But as Lilith said, she had to become craftier and smarter, which meant learning more and more about magic than others. It was like two different styles of martial arts, there was the conventional way and then there was the street way. Luz had been learning – relatively speaking – the street version of magic from Eda, but perhaps she could benefit from a more formal way than both Eda and Hexside could offer?
The Latina shook her head at the notion. "I don't think I'd feel comfortable learning from her; besides, I think it'd just serve as a reminder of what she's lost more than anything."
"Suit yourself."
Luz continued her training as she fought more imaginary enemies, she could've trained in her Rider form, but doing so would defeat the purpose. If she trained up her body while not transformed, all the progress she made would then translate back to her Rider form when she transformed. That was her logic anyway. Luz took out the Light Glyph and this time formed a light sword that hummed in the air as she swung it. That's when she heard a rustling in the trees, and out of pure instinct, Luz switched the light sword into a ball of light which she quickly shot in the direction of the noise. There was a yelping sound as the beam of light shot through a bush and someone dove out of it.
"Amity?"
Indeed, the green haired witch was on the ground, and now her gaze turned upwards as she got an up-close look at her crush. In a tank top, with shorts on, and sweat dripping off her body and making said clothing cling to the contours of Luz's body. Amity's face only got redder to the point that her nose gushed out blood, resulting in the youngest Blight child passing out.
"AMITY?!"
"Pobre chica, se sobreestimuló (Poor girl, she got overstimulated)."
It took a few minutes, and some tissue, but Amity came around and was able to sit next to Luz. Although she kept her eyes plastered to the ground for some reason.
"Sorry for spying on you, I didn't mean to I just…happened to stumble upon you and…"
"It's okay, Amity, I'm sorry I shot at you. Guess I'm still a little jumpy," said Luz.
"No, no, you were justified in taking action like that," Amity assured.
An awkward silence befell the two girls, which was odd as this didn't happen often, at least with Luz. She normally was livelier than this, but it seemed as if she was tense.
"Amity…are you upset with me?" Luz asked.
Amity's head snapped up and then she turned to look directly at Luz, pushing aside her crush's attire for the moment. "What?! No! I could never be upset with you! Why would you think that?!"
Luz began to play with a blade of grass as she said, "Oh…uh…well, I did kinda sorta make myself an enemy of the Emperor's Coven after saving Eda and all…A-And I know that you want to join the Emperor's Coven one day so…"
Amity understood what she was getting at. "Luz, I don't care if the Emperor's Coven doesn't like you, or that you went and made an enemy of them. You're still my…my friend. I won't let you go because of something like that."
For some reason, hearing Amity say that made Luz's heart feel warmer. Luz scooted closer and wrapped her arms around Amity, giving her a big hug. "Thanks, Amity, I don't know why, but hearing you say that makes me feel better." About five seconds after hugging Amity, Luz remembered that she had just been working out and was sweaty. She quickly released Amity and said, "Oh, jeez, sorry about that! I just hugged you and I'm all smelly and sweaty!"
"I-It's fine, Luz, d-don't worry about."
I am NEVER washing these clothes again. In fact, I'm going to buy an identical set and hide these under my bed!
"Wow, you're turning into a real pervert, Little Miss Perfect. Next you'll be trying to sneak into the Owl House to steal her underwear."
I WOULD NEVER! This is a healthy level of obsession over someone you like! It doesn't make me a pervert!
"Oh, yeah, then admit to Luz right now that the reason why you didn't make yourself known earlier is because you were too busy ogling her from behind the bushes. Pervert and a stalker, it's a slippery slope."
That was a fact she could not deny, even if she wanted to. She did honestly come to check on Luz to see how she was doing, but Amity was drawn to the sounds of combat and went to investigate. When she did, she found Luz in the middle of some sort of training regime. The green haired witchling couldn't help but be captivated by the strong movements and creative use of her crush's glyph magic. If it weren't for her earlier mess up, Amity could've kept watching Luz for hours.
…Okay, maybe I am a bit of stalker.
"Told you so."
"Luz, I kind of have a confession to make. I didn't just arrive, I've been here for at least a few minutes…watching you train," Amity admitted.
Luz went rigid. Did that mean Amity overheard Luz speaking to Lala? Well, for all intents and purposes, since no one could hear the Inner Phantom other than Luz, it would just look as if Luz was just talking to herself. "Oh…y-you did."
"You looked…good, out there."
"T-Thanks…since Eda and Lilith can't use magic anymore, I'm the only one in the house who can now. I'm working to get stronger so I can protect them if I have to," said Luz.
"If you don't mind me saying, that fighting style you were using. It looked similar to the way Witch fights."
"¡Tonterías!" "Oh, well, there's a good reason for that. Since I'm the co-chair of the Kamen Rider Club at school and being that there's an actual living Kamen Rider on the island, I wanted to imitate her fighting style a bit, since I don't have any real fighting experience and all…" Luz explained, and hoped it was enough to convince Amity.
"Oh, well that makes sense. She is a talented fighter, so copying her technique could only benefit you."
Luz sighed in relief.
Amity smiled as she continued. "But your glyph magic's getting better. You made a fire sword, and then turned it into a whip. Made ice blades, then a wall of ice, and then a hammer. And just a moment ago you made a saber of light and turned it into a beam of light to shoot with. If the old me saw this, she'd be completely beside herself."
"And I am, just so you know. I can't believe Luz of all people was able to advance this much with her little scraps of magic paper!"
"And you've put on some muscle."
"I have?"
Amity blushed.
"Smooth, Little Miss Perfect, real smooth."
"Uh, um, yeah! I mean, it's not like your big or bulky or anything! I mean, you have lean muscle! I-It looks good, just saying!" Amity quickly added.
Luz looked at her arms and legs, she hadn't really noticed, but Amity was right, she had been gaining more muscle mass recently. With all the fighting and running around due to Phantom attacks, and the little training sessions here and there, Luz's body had been steadily getting stronger. She was no longer the weak little nerd girl she used to be. An out there thought came to her mind, a thought she wasn't sure she should ask Amity, but she felt comfortable enough to voice.
"Um…Amity, do you think I'm attractive? Objectively speaking, I know you don't like girls." Luz asked.
Amity wasn't sure how to respond, the overt, obvious answer, Luz was extremely attractive, she was attractive to Amity on both an emotional and definitely on a physical level, and that physical part only went up now that she got a better look at Luz's physique. However, this was her chance, she could finally correct that mistake from weeks ago.
"Not like you have the guts to tell her."
Amity steeled herself, it was time to prove her Inner Amity dead wrong. "Luz…I…I…"
Luz misinterpreted Amity's hesitancy, which made flashbacks of her high school return to her mind of the awkward times she said something around the girls and boys at school that nearly gave her orientation away. "Y-You know what, forget it, it was a stupid thing to ask!" Luz hurriedly said as she turned to leave. "I shouldn't have asked you, I said I wasn't going to weird you out and–!"
"I think you are attractive, Luz!" Amity blurted out.
Luz stopped and slowly turned her head to look at her friend. "You…You do?"
"And not just physically. You're kind, optimistic, loyal, loving, brave, and really a good friend. Any boy or girl would be lucky to have you, Luz. I mean that," said Amity.
That hit Luz hard as her heart swelled with joy, without thinking again, she rushed towards Amity and tackle hugged her to the ground. "Thank you, Amity. N-No one's ever said that about me…"
Amity could hear the small amount of pain in Luz's voice, it's what allowed her to push away the other feelings she had and made her focus on comforting her crush. "I don't know what those other humans said or did to make you think this way, Luz. But never think that your less than. I told you I don't like you thinking of yourself that way."
"Sorry…and thank you."
Part of Amity wished she could go to the Human Realm to make the humans who made her Luz feel like she did pay. How dare they make such a wonderful person like Luz feel like she was freak or inadequate.
"Kind of like you did?"
I was a different person, I was you, but that's not me anymore.
"Sooner or later, you'll be me again. When you realize that all of this was just a fleeting dream, a flight of fancy. You wanted to mess around with a commoner and have your fun, but sooner or later you'll want more, you'll want to rise to the top."
Amity held Luz tighter, as if protecting her from some unseen threat. "That won't happen. I will protect Luz."
Amelia didn't want much, but she did want to be in love. Although, she knew that that was never going to happen so long as she hung around Boscha. At the time, it felt like the right move to make. They were both on the same Grudgby team, and they seemed to click well together for the most part. But lately, Boscha has been getting more and more aggressive and arrogant. She understood that the triclops came from one the high-ranking noble families like Amity and Skara, and when Amelia's parents found out that she was on the same team as them, she was nudged into getting to be closer to them.
It wasn't like they were poor anything, her family was very well off, not super rich, but rich enough. Still, money wasn't the only thing that could make you in the Boiling Isles, clout and connections were also pivotal. Being connected to the Blight Family, Barbtalóne – Boscha's family, or the Grimamoré's – Skara's family, opened a lot of doors for a young witch.
Still, Amelia didn't yearn for the extravagant, right now she was content with simple things. One of those simple things, though it might seem silly to Boscha, was finding someone like Skara had, someone who cared about her. Amelia sighed heavily, she could only fantasize about being with someone, even now as she left school, she looked on at Skara and Willow, and felt a twinge of envy for her friend who was able to separate herself from Boscha's toxic orbit and become her own person.
Amelia started walking, she didn't really think about where she was going, or to what place. She was just lost in her thoughts, letting her feet take her wherever. Before she knew it, the young witchling found herself deep in the woods. Normally this would scare some witches who were unable to get their bearings, but as a Plant Track witch, Amelia only needed to speak with the trees and plants, and they would guide her to the right path. One of the advantages of being a Plant Track witch, nature was your friend, and you were never alone in the woods.
"Maybe I'm thinking too much about this? But…I'd just like to have someone like Skara has Willow, is that too much?" Amelia asked the trees around her.
The trees were great listeners, but their responses were slow and sometimes went unheard. Sometimes it was just better to vent to them, it did give a sort of comfort to her to talk to them.
Just then, a rustle came from the bushes behind her. Amelia turned her head in the direction of the sound and kept her gaze on that spot. For a moment nothing happened, but that quickly changed when three Ghouls appeared out of the bushes, each one brandishing a spear. Amelia screamed as she backed away, she was about to draw a circle, but that's when a fourth came up from behind her and grabbed Amelia by the wrists.
"NO! LET ME GO! LET ME GO!" Amelia screamed.
"HEY, LEAVE HER ALONE!"
Amelia looked to her right and watched as the earth itself began raging forth and exploded against the three Ghouls that were approaching her. Out from the bushes appeared a witch, she had red colored hair, fair colored skin, and pale purple eyes that shimmered like crystals. She wore the uniform of a Glandus student that sported the colors of a Construction Track witch.
"HEADS UP!"
Another Glandus High student came out, this time a boy with olive colored skin and silver hair, with eyes to match. After drawing a magic circle, the boy's right arm transformed into a chimera's claw that he used to strike the head of the Ghoul that was holding Amelia. The blow was enough to not only make the Ghoul release Amelia, but also knock it away a few feet. Amelia turned around and saw the boy was wearing the orange colors of the Beast Keeping Track, both the girl and boy stood a foot taller than her, and looked maybe a year older than her, kind of like Blight's older siblings. The two Glandus students got in front of Amelia and took a defensive stance.
"You want this girl," said the boy.
"Then you'll have to go through us," finished the girl.
The Ghouls, surprisingly, didn't advance, instead they retreated into the forest. The boy dismissed the claw, and the girl released the magic circles that were hovering around her wrists. Both turned around and looked at Amelia with kindhearted smiles.
"Hey there, cutie, you alright?" the girl asked.
Amelia blushed, no one had ever called her "cute" before. "Y-Yeah, I think so."
"Good, we saw those things creepin' around here, we were about to go and get the Emperor's Coven when we saw them goin' after you," said the boy.
The girl moved closer to the boy and leaned on his shoulder. "So, we followed them, and I'm glad we did."
The Glandus boy reached out with his hand and asked, "Need hand?"
Amelia blushed again but took his hand as he lifted her up to her feet. "You two are from Glandus High, right?"
"Yep, name's Circe," said the girl.
"And I'm Ezra," said the boy.
"Amelia, from Hexside. You two work so well together," Amelia commented.
Circe chuckled as she said, "Well, when you've been together as long as we have, you know how the other thinks."
Amelia's heart grew a little heavy when she heard that. "Oh…y-you two are together?"
"Tch, when are we not? She's like a tick that I can't shake off – ow!" Ezra yelped as Circe slapped him on the shoulder.
"Wow, really? I'm an annoying, bloodsucking tick to you?"
"If the shoe fits."
Circe and Ezra glared at each other for a tense moment, and Amelia feared that they were going to fight. But then the two broke into laughter. Apparently, it was all in jest, banter between lovers. Something that, again, Amelia envied.
Her dower mood must've shown as both Ezra and Circe seemed to pick up on the mood she was putting out.
"Let's head to the main road and get back to town, huh?" Circe suggested. The redhead then wrapped an arm around Amelia and brought her close. "Stick close to me, Amelia, I'll keep you safe."
"Tch, you mean we?" Ezra countered as he slid up to Amelia's right.
"Remind me again who took out three of those monsters? Oh right, this girl!"
The three walked for a bit in silence, despite what happened earlier, Amelia felt safe around these two. Even though they were from rival schools, it didn't seem to hamper their wanting to keep her protected.
"So, what's got you so down?" Ezra asked.
"Oh…it's nothing," Amelia assured.
"Hmm, doesn't sound like nothing. C'mon, Amy, tell us what's up," said Circe.
The green haired witch's blush returned as she turned her gaze downwards and away from the two Glandus kids. "It's embarrassing, and stupid…you don't want to know."
Ezra placed his hands behind his head as he continued walking along and said, "Well, we got time to kill, so, why not tell us? It's just us and the trees."
Amelia didn't know why, but she felt comfortable around them. Maybe it was because she was in an emotional state from being rescued from the monsters, but Amelia felt like she wanted to tell someone about how she felt other than the trees. "I…I'm jealous of my friend…one of my other friends is really…controlling and so aggro to other people. But my other friend was not only able to break from our group, but she did it so she could be with the person she cared about."
"And…you want to be with that friend? The one who left?" Circe asked.
"No…No, I like her, but not that way. I just…I just want to be able to have what she has, a relationship with someone. Like what you two have," said Amelia.
Ezra and Circe briefly glanced at each other for a moment before both teens turned that gaze on Amelia.
"What if you could?" Circe asked.
"What?"
"Have what we have?" Ezra clarified.
Amelia was starting to get a little confused. "I don't get what you mean. Are you suggesting that I let you set up a blind date with someone from Glandus?"
"Nope," they said in unison.
Circe let go of Amelia and got out in front of her along with Ezra.
"You see, we were thinking of expanding our little circle into a triangle," said Ezra. "We've been talking about it for a while now, but we never could find the right person who we thought we could mesh well with."
"But I think it might work with you. What do you say, Amy? What to be with both of us?" Circe asked. "You'll definitely make all your friends jealous back at Hexside."
Amelia's face was now bright red, she couldn't believe what she was hearing. Both of these Glandus kids were interested in her, and they were offering to have a three-way relationship with her? Part of Amelia's mind couldn't believe this, it had to be a trick, some kind of prank they were setting up to get her hopes up before they dashed them. But what if they were serious? They looked like they were. And who just openly asks someone if they want to do something like that if they didn't believe that they wanted them in?
"I…I don't know," said Amelia unsure.
Circe and Ezra could see that Amelia was getting a little overwhelmed by their offer and seemed to come to the same idea.
"Tell you what," Ezra started. "Why don't you go on a date with us?"
"With you?! Both of you?" Amelia asked.
"Why not? Try us out, and if you like it, then we can make this a more permanent thing. But if you don't, then we can just be friends, no harm no foul. What do you say?" Circe asked.
Amelia looked between the two Glandus students, part of her brain told her this wasn't a good idea, but her heart, a part that spoke a bit louder, was starved for even the thought of being with someone. Let alone two people. It kind of made her feel good to know that she was desired by not one, but two different people.
"I…I guess we could try this out, I am free tomorrow," said Amelia.
"Good, we'll meet you in the square tomorrow. You don't have to worry about changing out, we'll just be coming over in our uniforms, too," said Ezra.
"Looks like we're here." Circe pointed towards the paved road that led towards Bones Borough proper. "You should be able to get back easy from here, right?" The tall redhead leaned down and gently ran her fingers over Amelia's right cheek. "Or do you want us to escort you home, I don't think Ezra would mind. Would you?"
"Not in the least."
Amelia couldn't take the teasing anymore. "N-No, I'm good! I-I'll see you tomorrow!" Amelia then dashed towards the town, leaving the two Glandus kids behind as they walked into the forest.
As Ezra and Circe took their stroll back to their individual homes, they immediately got on guard as a figure approached them. The creature was humanoid and stood at least ten feet tall, covered in black fur. Its legs were lupine-like, and each paw had three long golden talons. Its arms were disproportionately longer than its torso, stretching to at least its knees, and each hand had four gold claws. The creature's muscles could be seen under the fur, but despite this it had an overall lean physique. Upon its head were horns that formed a crest, also colored gold to match its talons and claws. The monster had green eyes with red slits at the center, its face protruded out just a little, enough to give a short muzzle. Behind the monster it had a tail that seemed to be made of metal, the end of which had a very large and sharp blade attached to it. The monster was also had white sigil markings on its arms, legs, and one in the middle of its torso.
The beast growled lowly as it looked upon the two Glandus students, and then gave a huff. "Is there really a need to be on guard around me? Are you scared?"
Circe and Ezra relaxed, although they both gave the huge monster an annoyed glare. Circe placed her hands on her hips as she looked up at the Phantom and said, "Seriously, Barbatos, how is it that someone as big and imposing as you can sneak around so easily?!"
"Such skills are required in my line work. Now, do you think you'll be able to bring that Gate to despair? It took some effort to sniff that one out, and I'd rather not have wasted my time," said Barbatos.
Ezra crossed his arms over his chest and smirked up at the Phantom. "Oh yeah, she'll be easy. She's so desperate for a relationship, it's almost pathetic."
"What do you mean 'almost'? It is!" Circe laughed at little. "Oh man, we had her blushing and fidgeting so much I thought she'd pass out before we got to the town. Can't imagine what she's going to think about tonight, huh?"
"Keep your mind on the task at hand."
"But we are, after all, this is our area of expertise. Right, Succubus?" Ezra asked as his eyes glowed blue.
"Right you are, Incubus," Circe replied as her eyes shined hot pink. "Question, why did you want us to deal with this Gate? We've been trying to find Gates at Glandus but turned up zilch, so far. But here you find one and you decide to let us handle it instead of yourself."
Barbatos growled and said, "I have been gifted with the burden of being a Seeker. I am the rarest of our kind, I can track down Gates. But this world is making it needlessly difficult to find them. The Human Realm would be easier, the magic of this world interferes with my sensing abilities. So, why don't I take care of this myself? It's because after I find one of them, I report to the Generals and move on to searching for the next."
Succubus smirked at Barbatos again. "Must not be that hard, you've been getting some good hits there at that Hexside school."
"These Rogue Phantoms and Witch do not make my job easier. If Lady Tiamat wished it, I'd gladly seek Witch out and end the threat quickly."
"Poor Barbie, do you want to talk about it?" Circe asked.
Barbatos growled louder, making the two disguised Phantoms jump. The bestial Phantom turned his back on them and said, "Do your jobs, and I will do mine." With that order given, Barbatos walked into the shadows of the forest and disappeared.