Kim and Skara, still hand in hand, heard the scream and without any conversation needing to happen Scarlet shot toward the library to find out what had happened. When they arrived they found Ed and Em curled up in fetal positions, and Amity knocked out with a slight nosebleed. Skara and Kim separated with Kim examining Amity for injuries while Skara pulled out her harp to play a calming spell to help Ed and Em.
As Amity started to wake up she saw a pair of amber eyes and let out a questioning whisper, "Luz? Is that you?"
Kim snickers, "Sorry Amity, not this time. Are you ok? What happened?"
As Amity sat up with a familiar headache. She saw her older siblings as they finally started to calm down, and what happened came back to her as she growled, "That frigid heartless lich. I can't believe she would do that to them." Amity stumbled over to her siblings and wrapped them into a warm embrace as she teared up repeating, "I'm sorry," over and over to them until Ed and Em reached up weakly and hugged her. After Kim finished casting a few healing spells to counter the effects of what happened, and Skara managed to convince them to try some of the leftovers from her date, the trio of Blights started to explain what happened.
Since Ed seemed particularly affected, Em looking at Skara and Amity started with, "Ok so me and Ed have been noticing how strange you have been acting since the Noceda's got here. At first we were really happy because you two seemed to be happier, but then we noticed Amity spending more time with… Odalia… and no good ever came from being around her. Since we knew you (Skara) would never tell us anything if Mittens told you not to, and clearly we couldn't ask her because we didn't know if Odalia was directly affecting her mind we had to come up with an alternate plan. The best we could come up with would be to try for your diary Mittens, and that's what we were going to do tonight, but we heard about Skara's date and things got a little complicated."
Ed whimpered out, "We weren't going to do anything with the diary. We… we just wanted to make sure you were ok. I promise it's the truth."
Amity hugged her brother lovingly and whispered, "It's ok Ed. I understand. You were scared, and after what she did to both of you… I can forget it ever happened." Amity looked at Skara, "Anyway, I confronted them out here since you two were apparently having too much fun on your date. We are so discussing that later by the way, but I kinda yelled at them, and had a bit of a meltdown. Then they mentioned fuzziness in their memories, and it triggered one of the things Odalia taught me since I convinced her to teach me oracle magic." Ed and Em looked at Amity in shock, knowing how much Amity hated oracle magic and everything about it. "So I got their permission to try to 'clear their minds'. Basically if Odalia used her magic to mess with their minds. I was going to try to remove it, and I was right… oh Titan was I right." Amity started to tremble until Ed and Em pulled her into another hug.
Em took over again, "Ya we remember everything now, and those memories are why you found us… processing. It was bad. Mental conditioning and punishments bordering on torture, and worse when she discided that we would never meet her standards. She didn't just throw us away like broken tools. She hexed our minds so we couldn't think properly, remember properly, and she even tried to manipulate us to slowly push Amity away from us so she had no one to rely on but her… among other things."
Em started the tear up, "It's sick. I remember exactly when and how she did it now, and the worst part. Because of how she structured her 'commands' I'm not even sure if us picking on and harassing Amity was even completely her influence. I think it just made us go bigger and more hurtful with it, but at its core it was still us… Oh my Titan we're monsters. What kind of older siblings do that to their little sister? No wonder you didn't trust us. I wouldn't have trusted us either."
For the first time Kim spoke up, "But you know now, and that's the important part." When everyone looked at Kim confused Kim continued, "You can't change the past, but you can start being there for each other the way you always wanted to starting now. Amity are their minds their own now, and can you prevent your mother from dominating their minds again?"
Amity nodded slowly, "I think so. She's stronger than me, but I should be able to at least keep an eye out for any tampering."
"Good enough, and you two, are you ready to step up and protect Amity and my Skara when the rest of us can't be there?" asked Kim in a commanding voice none of them had heard from her before that filled all four of them with conviction.
The twins nodded confidently, "We will do our best."
Kim sighed and sat down, "Ok then. Welcome to the Hexsquad. I think my estrella and Amity have some things to fill you in on, and while they do that… I'm going to talk to Luz about everything else."
Skara took Kim's hand, "Are you sure, Kimmy? That's a lot of trust."
Kim smiled, "They're your family, so they're mine now too, and family trusts each other, but no offense… Odalia will never be any of our family. I know she's their mother, but between what I just heard and what I read earlier… lich is dead to all of us."
Amity looked at Kim quizzically, "What did you read?"
Kim all of a sudden got very nervous as she admitted, "I might have found your secret room earlier, and… your diary. I didn't see anything past the stained page though. Kinda made me feel ill, and dirty. I'm sorry Amity, not just for invading your privacy, but… everything. I never would have guessed you had it that bad."
Amity seemed to start to get mad for a moment, but then she cooled, "Ok, but we are never discussing what you read and you will never do that again. Are we clear?"
"Crystal," responded Kim as she sent Luz a text to explain what she wanted to do resulting in a heated back and forth for the next few minutes giving Amity and Skara ample time to fill the twins in on their plan while avoiding certain topics. After she was done Kim let out a sigh, "So Luz agreed to let me tell you some of what's going on, but she wants to be present for other parts so you will have to wait for those. Sorry." With that Kim explained Raine's theory which nearly made the twins pass out from excitement for their sisters and then fear thinking about what Odalia could do with that information. She also told them about the connection between the Clawthornes and Belos, and the fights in the forest without revealing Vee's secret or the existence of the Sanctuary.
With that done Skara chimed in with a mischievous smile, "I think that the Blights, Noceda's, and I should all go for a 'training trip' up on the Knee this Sunday. It would be a great chance to test each other, and talk where no one can overhear." Skara shot Kim a knowing look that Kim caught immediately.
"Ya I hear it's a deeply magical place with beautiful views and the perfect place to warm up with someone special. Maybe someone could even tell a certain choco-mint how they feel, or maybe said mint could make the first move? Sounds like a great opportunity," teased Kim, making Amity immediately blush ear to ear, and the twins gasp and start making little excited noises.
"Yes, absolutely. We really should spend more time getting to know Luz. Who knows we might be seeing a lot more of her soon," teased Em, making everyone laugh except for Amity who just hid her blushing face. After that they all separated to get their Sunday plan started.
"Ugh, I'm not so sure about this Kim," groaned Luz.
"Luz, you said you would try, and think about it this way. It's only the six of us up there. If it gets to be too much, just go for a walk for a while. It's one day. Please?" Sighed Kim as they gathered up the last of the supplies they would need.
"Ya ya I heard your pitch all day yesterday. I still don't understand why we are doing this though," whined Luz. "You know as well as I do that I'm not a "team training" kind of gal. I explore alone. I train alone. It's just safer that way."
As the duo finish packing, and go to tell everyone their heading out. They are stopped by a grinning Eda on the couch.
"Getting an early start aren't you girls?" Laughed Eda. "Ok kiddos, are you sure you don't want me to come with you? The Knee is beautiful, but not many go up there anymore, and it's gotten a bit wild as a result."
"Don't worry Aunt Eda. We'll be fine. Between the six of us we have plenty of eyes, and power to go around," stated Luz dismissively. "You've had to spend every day since we got here looking after us in one way or another. You deserve a break from us always taking advantage of you. Titan knows you probably had better things to do."
Eda's laugh immediately warped into a scowl, "Luz, I never want to hear you say that again. You two are the best thing to happen to me in years. Am I clear?" When Luz and Kim only looked at her in shock from her uncharacteristically stern tone Eda sighed, "I know I'm not the most maternal old bird, but… you two and King are probably the closest I'll ever get to kids of my own. Spit and rot, I wanted to do this differently, but I have something special for each of you." Reaching up into her impressive mane, Eda pulled out a pair of wrapped bundles. "After hearing about that fight you got into saving BQ and your friend I decided to make you something."
As the pair carefully opened their gifts their eyes began to water and they felt overwhelmed. Each of them held a beautiful hooded cloak in their signature color with gold colored stitching, and each had a unique feature. Luz's purple cloak had a pair of cat ears lovinging added onto her hood, and Kim's crimson cloak had extra inlay that made it look like it was covered in scales or webs. As the two stood in awe of these exquisite gifts they noticed that the pockets on each side bulged slightly, and when they checked them they found a pair of black fingerless gloves inside. On the back of each glove was a design they had never seen before. It was of an owl with stars in its eyes and a pair of slightly curved horns. Kim spoke up first as she asked, "What's this symbol? I've never seen it before?"
Eda smiled again mischievously, "That young Kim, is my personal brand. It's tradition that when a Clawthorne carves their palisman; firstly it's always a bird, and secondly that bird becomes our personal brand. Mom's is an eagle, dad's is a gold cardinal, Lily's is a white raven, but besides being birds they always shared two other features. They all have stars in their eyes and horns. Now no matter what happens or what you get up too, as long as you carry those gloves, a part of me will be there. Why don't you try them on? I think you'll really like them." With squeals of joy both girls put on their new cloaks and gloves, and as soon as they did Eda let out a cackle as she lobbed a pair of small fireballs at the girls catching them completely off guard. To their surprise though, the spells fizzled against them without any sign of damage.
"What the hell was that Eda?" growled Luz, before Eda walked over and flicked her nose.
"Relax kid. Those cloaks are made of witches wool. They naturally repeal low level spells, and slightly weaken stronger ones. Can't do much to protect you from physical attacks like blades, but flames, lightning, ect it might save your life. I also added a couple other special additions. If you feel down by the neckline there is a small bit of extra cloth you can pull up the next time you feel like playing vigilante, and the inner layer is hexed so that it will adapt to the weather. Real useful when you're… I don't know… about to go hiking up on the frozen Knee or traveling through the deserts of Palm Stings." Eda pulled the two into a warm hug. "I'm not dumb. I know that I can't always be there to look out for you, and you're no doubt going to get into trouble regardless of what I do, but at least with these I'll always know that you're as prepared as possible."
The twins hugged Eda back just as warmly as Luz whispered back, "Thanks Aunt Eda. We love them. Kinda wish you'd told us about the Clawthorne family tradition though."
"Ya. I love Scarlet and she's perfect just the way she is, but we might have considered carving birds if we knew," grinned Kim, making Eda sit back in shock.
"We may not be Clawthorne's, but you're still our Aunt Eda, and we would have been proud to continue the tradition," added Luz.
Eda just looked at the two overwhelmed, "Ok, none of that. You've already gotten freebies out of me. You're not getting anything else." They all just laughed, before they separated, and Eda waved them off.
"So Professor, what exactly is the plan for this little field trip," asked Luz as she leaned back against her sister as they flew up toward the place they were told to go so they could meet up with the Blights and Skara.
"Not really sure yet, but the Knee is wild territory, and there's no one up there to stop the rest of us from cutting loss up there so it might be the perfect place to experiment," grinned Kim.
"Wow. First you get a girlfriend. Now you want to 'experiment'. If I had known corrupting you was this easy I would have tried harder to find you someone sooner," laughed Luz.
Kim blushed, but then she smirked, "You're just jealous Amity isn't your lab partner yet."
Luz almost fell off of Scarlet in shock, "Nope. None of that. Only one of us can make innuendos, and as the older twin I already called dibs."
Kim laughed, "They wouldn't have to be innuendos if you'd just ask her out already. Maybe you two can sneak away to cuddle in the cold… That's actually not a bad idea."
"Ok… Holy Titan. Just stop. I'm proud of you for finally finding your confidence, but turn it down a bit until I can adjust," groaned Luz before she whispered, "Dammit Skara you better not hurt her."
As the Noceda twins slowly made their way to the place they were told to land at they saw Skara, Ed, and Em sitting on a half crumbled wall while Amity used a wand to practice casting fireballs. For a moment they just hoovered out of sight and watched until they saw Emira jump up and take the wand from Amity as she said, "Ok Mittens, that's enough easy mode. Now do the spell without the wand."
As everyone watched Amity nodded and started drawing a circle in the air, but instead of making a blast of fire the spell just fizzled. Amity tried again, same result. After four more attempts and her frustration finally getting to a boiling point Amity let out a yell as the spell didn't fizzle… it blew up, knocking Amity backwards, and finally signaling that it was time for the Noceda's to land.
As Kim jumped the final few feet to the ground to start healing Amity, Luz just walked up to Ed and Em with a casual wave. "So… you all started without us?" stated Luz.
Emira just smiled at Luz before saying, "Ya, got here late last night to set up camp, and Amity wanted to get started early. I think she just wanted to have something to show off when you both got here… looks like she went with burn marks, odd choice but whatever."
Skara piped up next, "Morning Luz. Maybe you can help. You got that fire glyph the other day so you must have some idea."
Luz shrugged and pulled out a fire glyph as she walked over to the freshly recovered Amity. "Hey Amity, I noticed you are having a bit of difficulty, and I think I know a way to help." Amity looked at her confused until Luz put the glyph in her hand and said, "So what you're going to want to do is tap this when you're ready, but I want you to focus on how it makes you feel when you do. Try to identify how the magic flows and from where. It worked for me." Luz finished with a smile.
Amity looked down at the glyph, and did as she was told. As a small pink flame sprang to life, so did a slight blush on Amity's cheeks. "It worked. I think I know what you were trying to show me. I was looking at it wrong. Elemental magic is different from my Abomination magic. Abomination magic is cold and fueled by will power just like Oracle magic, but elemental is fueled by emotion. It's a living thing," Amity beamed with excitement.
Luz laughed, "Nope, that wasn't what I wanted to show you, but I'm happy you can see it. Welcome to the Bad Girl Coven though, cause that was wild witch lesson one that you just taught yourself."
Amity looked at Luz in surprise, making Kim continue, "The essence of wild magic is that core belief. Magic is alive. It surrounds, guids, and aids us everyday. At its core the coven concept works as a nice way to understand and focus on a specific aspect of magic, but to truly grow and develop you have to move past it. You can be strong with only one of them, but if you combine potions, abominations, plants, and oracle magics together what do you get? Answer, something fairly close to life. Plants for bones, oracles for spirit, potions for blood, and abominations for the body. It's a lot more complicated in practice, but I think you get the point. We are not just one type of magic so why should we only practice one. Sure we all have a Titan given specialty, but it can only carry us so far before we have to feed it with other knowledge to keep it growing."
When Kim finished she found not only Amity looking at her, but everyone else doing so too, until Skara let out a small giggle, "I think I understand now. We've been trying to make music with only one instrument when we could have been using the whole orchestra. You're a genus hun. Why hasn't anyone ever explained it that way before?"
Luz laughed, "I'm sure someone tried, but a message only works if it's heard, and people are willing to listen. Much like the concept itself, it's just that simple."
"I doubt we are the only ones to notice either. Think about it, after studying some of the unique tricks the Heads boast I guarantee they know it too. Darius had to have studied healing to do his goo form, Graye has to understand some oracles concepts to manipulate the mind and not just trick it, and Lilith uses elemental blasts more than anything else. Even if they don't realize it consciously, they are mixing concepts without mixing magic. A loop pole in the system if I've ever seen one, but only a half measure to reaching there true potential," smirked Luz.
Edric looked at everyone and sighed, "I guess this is a wild magic bootcamp on top of a training trip now… Odalia's going to be pissed… I'm in."
Luz smiled a sinister grin, "So I noticed something. Do any of you know how to fight without magic? I've seen a few people that can since coming here, but not many?"
Em's eyes narrowed at Luz's grin, "Not really. Why? It's not like we really need to worry about it since magic can get us out of most situations. Seems like kind of a waste of time."
On hearing that Kim mirrored her sister's grin, "In that case, how about a game? You four vs. Luz and I. You can use any magic you like, and we won't use any. First team to run out of players loses, and we can use the forest as our battle field because Luz would take you all out without the handicap."
The Blight's all smirked as they nodded, and Skara sighed before giving Kim a kiss on the cheek while whispering loud enough to be heard, but make it look like she's trying to be quiet, "Be gentle my love. They no not what they've done."
Kim kissed her back and smiled, "I'll try amor, but just between us. For every five minutes you can avoid being caught by Luz, I'll give you another kiss when we're done." Skara giggled and nodded, and for the first time the Blight's thought this might not have been such a great idea.
"As an extra handicap I'll give ya a five minute head start. I'll send up a stream of sparks before we start hunting. Good luck… your gonna need it," Luz said with the most sinister laugh they had ever heard from her.
True to their word five minutes after everyone else entered the woods Luz sent up the sparks to start the game. While Luz started weaving between trees, Kim disappeared into them. It took all of three minutes for the two pairs of twins to find each other. Ed and Em used an open glade to set up four dozen illusions of each of them milling about. Luz almost giggled as she dashed through illusions swinging her fists and firing kicks, but finding nothing but air. In a bush nearby the Blight twins watched with equal parts amusement and terror as they watched Luz perform her angry violent dance. It was both beautiful and horrifying to witness, especially when they saw one blow strike through an illusion's head, and put a sizable creak in the tree behind it.
As they prepared to create more milling illusions they felt an arm slide around each of their necks and they heard Kim say, "I never get tired of watching her let off some steam. The grin is a bad sign though… So do you surrender or do I actually have to fight you? Better yet I could throw one of you into the 'blender'. Luz probably wouldn't hit you full on… unless she's completely sunk into her battle frenzy… Ya probably best you surender." Faces paling, they gave up as Kim shouted, "It's ok. You can calm down now. I got them." But Luz just kept going. Kim sighed and threw a rock that Luz slapped away, but seeing her sister seemed to snap Luz out of her frenzy. "Come on killer. We still have a couple cuties to find, and so help me if you hurt Skara I'm filling your beanie with Itching dust, and your shorts with acid spitter sap."
Luz laughed, "I can play soft, and for the record. We both know you wouldn't dare touch the beanie… again. Am I clear?"
Kim groaned, but gave her a stern glare, "Just don't hurt her, and we won't need to find out."
Luz snorted, "Message received. I'll try. A second Great Noceda War might sink the Isles." With that Luz ran off. The Blight twins looked at Kim confused, but she just starting walking away before flipping into the trees, and disappearing.
"Those two aren't normal?" stated Ed flatly.
"Nope, and they're going to be our inlaws someday aren't they?" stated Em just as flatly.
"Most likely. Heard their mom is scarier," stated Ed.
"Perfect," said Em as they both sighed.
It took Kim another five minutes to find Amity, but when she did she found her in a cave with a little ring already made, and unlike her siblings Amity seemed to notice Kim's approach. "I'm not sure which of you is there, but I actually do know the basics of melee combat so how's about a spar? Winner takes all."
"Nope. I concede. If you know how to fight then the point was already made, but if you're still itching to fight Luz'll take you on after. I wouldn't suggest it though. She tends to get rough when she's excited… unless you're into that kind of thing," Kim laughed, making Amity blush and get distracted. Before Amity could recover, Kim was behind her with a short stick pressed to Amity's back. "Could have won though. Just for the record, and I wasn't joking. Luz is not a fight I would choose… we don't spar for a reason."
At nine minutes since the beginning of the game Luz finally found Skara sitting on a log with her harp. Luz just let out a sigh, "I was really hoping you'd last another couple minutes. Kim's gonna be so cranky."
Skara laughed, "You haven't caught me yet, Luz. I only have to hold you off for another thirty to forty seconds to get my second reward, so bring it tough girl. Or was that 'terrifying strength' just a rumor?"
Luz rushed forward only to hit a shield when Skara began to softly play. Luz started to smile, and for the first time Skara felt scared of Luz. Planting her feet Luz started to throw powerful punches at the shield, but it wasn't until the third punch that Skara felt a shift. Luz's eyes started to glow softly, her smile got wider, and the shield began to crack. Despite her best efforts the spell shattered under the weight of the sixth punch, and with a roar Luz approached Skara with a seventh ready to throw. Skara closed her eyes awaiting the blow, but instead she felt Luz boop her nose. "Thanks Skar I needed to burn off some of my excess energy, but don't worry. I will never hurt you. I protect my family, and that includes you now." As Luz started walking away she added, "You made it ten and a half minutes by the way. Go get your prizes, cunada."
When Luz and Skara made it back to camp they found Kim adamantly trying to convince Amity to change her mind, and when Luz figured out what she was making she couldn't stop smiling. When they saw Luz, Amity smiled and Kim looked scared. "Luz, no. No entiende lo que pide. Por favor, recuerda la última vez que te diste un capricho. ¿De verdad quieres correr ese riesgo? (She doesn't understand what she's asking for. Please remember last time you indulged. Do you really want to take that chance?)" Kim begged.
Luz sighed, "I know what I'm doing Kim. I won't go wild."
Amity just scoffed, "Don't even think about it Luz. I want to see what you've got. I want you to hit me as hard as you can without holding back. I can take it."
Luz seemed to tremble slightly, but contained herself as she walked into Amity's sparing pit. "You want to start with swords, or what?" asked Luz.
Amity made a spell circle and created a sword out of Abomination goo. Luz made a light blade, and with a cocky bow the fight began. Amity tried to press Luz under a flurry of slashes, but Luz stood strong, and when there was a momentary break Luz pushed back with a couple slower heavier swings that drove Amity back a step with each block. For the next couple minutes everyone watched as they pushed each other back and forth with ever more complicated strikes without either of them gaining an advantage, but while Amity seemed to get increasingly serious and focused, Luz's grin only grew. Suddenly there was a loud creak as both weapons collided, shattered, and dissipated, but to Luz's ever growing glee she saw Amity summon more goo to create gauntlets. "Alabado sea el Titán, creo que estoy enamorada," Luz practically screamed, making Kim groan.
"Translation please, Kim," Emira asked, nervously.
Kim sighed, "Just this once… she said, 'Oh praise the Titan, I think I'm in love'. This is very bad."
Skara looked on concerned, "How bad?"
"At this rate Luz is going to go wild, and stop holding back," groaned Kim.
Back in the ring Luz threw her cloak and shirt toward Kim revealing a black sports bra underneath along with a few previously hidden scars before letting out a roar of challenge, and rushing Amity bare handed. Amity did her best to withstand the onslaught, but a couple swings clipped her making her gasp. Freeing one of her gauntlets Amity managed to throw a punch straight into Luz's face that sent her flying back, but Luz quickly got up and wiped her busted lip as her grin spread to its limits, and her eyes started to glow.
Trying a new strategy, Amity tried to catch each of Luz's punches with her own, but after a few punches she found her gauntlets breaking under the strain. When they finally disintegrated Amity found herself without any defense as Luz tackled her, and started to grapple her. They struggled for a while until Amity felt teeth brush by her, and on instinct Amity bit Luz before throwing her off. Luz made to rejoin the grapple until she saw Amity's shocked eyes, and it worked like cold water on her overheated brain. Taking a breath Luz realized she gave in, and couldn't remember the last minute or so, but something about the look in Amity's eyes told her something happened. Sitting back Luz finally noticed how cold it was, and that she was bleeding slightly from a bite near her neck. Looking at the others she saw a similar look of shock on their faces, and before Luz could ask, Amity got up, and walked into her tent, sealing it closed.
Luz felt her heart shrivel as she watched Amity practically run away from her. She had done it again. She opened herself up, and let herself hope… And now she had to deal with the consequences. Luz pulled herself to her feet lifelessly, and simply started shambling toward the forest once more. She didn't grab her cloak, or say anything to anyone. Within seconds she was just gone into the dark of the woods no longer feeling the cold or the after effects of the day. Luz was just empty, and numb.
Kim and Emira recovered from their shock first, but not soon enough to stop Luz. Once Skara and Edric recovered as well they tried to come up with some kind of plan, but they couldn't think of one that could help in this situation. Kim told them that physically Luz wouldn't be in any danger in the woods, but Kim was afraid of what she might do to herself. Everyone else assured that Amity wouldn't hurt herself, but after the fight nobody could speak to her condition. Kim groaned in frustration, "I warned them. I tried to tell them that it was a terrible idea to go through with sparing, but Noooo…. Nobody wants to listen to the only person on the Isles with any understanding of Luz's 'beast'. Not that I ever expected Amity to have one too, but… ugh… I hate this, and did Amity just mark her? Like I doubt it was intentional, but is there a ritual, or would something like that be enough?" growled Kim in frustration.
Emira stammered, "Maybe. Things like that are kinda intimate so I have no idea. Given how hard they've been crushing, and… I'm not even sure if they were even fighting towards the end. It looked like fighting, but it felt more like foreplay, and holy Titan I've never seen Amity like that before. Is that what you meant by having a beast? You gotta give me something here Kim because I'm really confused?"
Kim sighed, "Luz's beast isn't a thing per say. It's more of just what we started calling it when Luz cuts loose, and honestly, that was nothing. Even before Dad passed it was there, but it almost never came out, but ever since it's always there just beneath the surface. Her beast is her anger, frustration, and pain, but also her passion and 'hunger'. Between that and her depression… I'm sorry. None of you need to deal with this… I'll go after Luz. You just help Amity." Kim tried to get up to walk away, but she felt the other three grab on to her and pull her back.
Surprisingly it was Edric who spoke first, "No Kim. Don't walk away from us. We know better than most how heavy this kind of thing can be."
"Let us in. We want to help. Family sticks together, remember. Let us help," Emira said with a small smile.
Skara pulled Kim into a hug, "I knew there was something wrong, but I didn't know how to help. Let me fix that my love. Let's go fix this together."
Kim smiled at them, and swallowing a lump she stammered, "Ok, but we need to help Amity first. She needs to understand too."
As one they all moved over to just outside Amity's tent, and once Emira assured Kim that Amity would be able to hear them Kim started to explain. "Luz has always been special, and stronger than she had any right to be. Skara saw the memory when our parents realized it the other day. I was five, and after I skinned my knee she picked me up, and carried me into the house. No five year old should have been able to do that, even if she still had some trouble. She was always active so it didn't come off as too odd, but Dad was supportive about it. He helped her get into sports like boxing and baseball to help channel it, but even then she had to control it. When he died though… she got kicked from her teams, and lost her outlets... it broke something in her. She used to have a leash on the angry beast inside her, but maybe it was the trauma or the depression, but whatever control she had is nearly gone. She's a raw nerve all the time. You've all seen tastes of it when she fights, but her sadness is worse. Think about it for a second, she is strong enough to counter magic with her bare hands, punch through not just trees but stone on occasion, and add her magic on top of that… the incident at the Convention shouldn't have been that big of a surprise. Now what do you think would happen if all of that anger, pain, and sadness turned back on itself… She doesn't cut that I'm aware of, but I have patched her knuckles enough to know she finds a fight, and not all of her injuries are from fighting other people."
"Has she ever hurt you, Kim?" Emira asked, a bit of fear leaking out.
Kim laughed, "Never. She couldn't if she wanted to, and more then once I wished she would. No, you misunderstand. She doesn't have it in her to hurt one of us. Her spar with Amity is a great example. Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but that was her playing, not fighting. I'm sorry, but if she actually cut loose… well lets just say Lilith got off easy. She still had enough control to not fully give in." Amity's head peeked out, but everyone else was too captivated to notice except Kim. "Honestly if it was only the rage it wouldn't be a problem. We know how to work around that, and it works for the most part. Although we are going to have to watch Boscha close. She doesn't seem to get the hint that if she doesn't stop trying to provoke her, Luz will break her beyond recovery, magical or otherwise." Kim let out a laugh that worried them.
"No, it's the self hate that worries me. Despite all that strength, and ferocity she has a very soft heart. She loves so deeply. She would protect a complete stranger to her dying breath, and yet all she has ever received for it was scorn and rejection. Everybody thinks I'm the nerd between us, but that was always Luz. I might be brainy, but bring up The Good Witch Azura and watch her go. Don't actually, unless you have a few hours to lose. My point is that she has been hurt and betrayed so many times that she honestly believes that she is unlovable. She has been alone so long that she can't imagine a world where someone might actually accept her for who she is except me, and even then she sometimes has doubts, as annoying as that is. Not only has she convinced herself that no one could love her, but she doesn't think she deserves to be loved in the first place."
Skara pulled Kim into a hug, "It's a feeling you share, isn't it?"
Kim nodded sadly, but kept going, "Normally being selfless is a good thing, but in this case it's dangerous. If one of us was stuck on a boat in the middle of the Boiling Sea she would try to swim out to save them without a second thought, and she would smile while she did it." Kim looked directly into Amity's eyes, "Loving Luz is like standing in the center of the worst storm you can imagine. There will probably be chaos all around you, all the time, but you will never have to be afraid again. You will be safe, loved, and secure in a place where nobody can hurt you ever again. She will devote every second of her existence to your happiness even if it hurts her. You deserve to know what you're getting yourself into. Are you ready for that kind of responsibility?"
Everyone else finally noticed Amity was out of her tent, and they waited as Amity considered the question. Was she ready? Amity looked down for a moment before making her decision. "I don't know, but I've never felt this way before." After another pause Amity looked at Kim resolutely, "I'm going to do it. I don't know if she loves me, but I think I love her. No, I don't know how I know, but I love her. Some part of me knew, and it did the only thing it could to prove it. I marked her, and the only regret I have about it is I didn't ask first." Amity started to cry laughing, "Oh Titan. What's wrong with me? Why can't I make myself regret it? Why does the thought of what I did only make me feel… excitement?"
Skara gave Amity a hug, "Welcome to love. It doesn't make sense, but even when it's confusing it's still the best feeling in the world. Now we've got a Boiling Gorenado to catch, and then you are going to have to explain marking to her because…"
Amity's eyes shrank as she paled, "She doesn't know. Oh Titan, that might be worse. Please tell me that at least you two have…"
Kim snorted as she got up, "Nope, but I might when we're done finding Luz. If you're ready for that kind of commitment, Skara."
Skara blushed, "We'll discuss it later. Right now we have a Luz to find."
Once more the five of them entered the woods, and if they expected Luz's trail to be hard to find they were woefully disappointed. It only took a few hundred feet before they found the beginnings of her trail of destruction. It started light, a cracked tree here, a scorch mark there, but soon they found whole trees uprooted, and a large fifteen foot boulder with a bloody fist imprint in it with cracks spider webbing around it making it resemble a broken windshield to its edges. They knew they had found her hiding place when they noticed the clouds swirling above a familiar cave as the storm slowly built.
"Thanks for helping me find her, but I don't know if you should follow me in. She won't hurt you, but I don't know what kind of state she'll be in. I can't ask you to…" Kim started saying, but Amity stepped in front of her.
"No. This is my fault, and if I want to be with her I have to be ready to see every side of her. I'm going with you, and if you try to stop me I'll just go alone," Amity stated, with a fire in her eyes that made Kim laugh with her eyes getting moist.
"Ya, I can see it now," smiled Kim, but before Amity could ask what Kim meant she started walking into the cave forcing Amity to run to catch up. They could hear Luz sobbing as they approached, but there were occasional beastly whines layered with them. As they approached the first sparring ring Amity created they saw something they didn't expect. In the middle of the ring was Luz, but she was undergoing some kind of transformation. Purple-black fur was beginning to sprout from her, and they could see bone claws and horns starting to take form. The air was thick with purple magic as it rippled off her in waves as she cried.
"Is that normal?" asked Amity in confusion, but Kim noticed no revolution.
"No. This is new," remarked Kim, before she paled. "Is this the next stage of whatever we've been going through? Oh guano. Problems for later," thought Kim. "Let me go in first, and I'll lead you in." Amity nodded as she watched Luz, but Kim noticed something behind the worry in her eyes… "Was this transformation doing something for her? Wow. They're both weirdos. Guess that tracks," thought Kim. Kim pushed that revelation aside… forever, she hoped. Focusing on her sister Kim spoke softly to her, "Luz. It's me. It's Kim. I want to help you. Can you hear me?" If she could, it only seemed to make things worse because Luz curled into a tighter ball as a wave of force threw Kim back down the hall, and out of the entry. It didn't hurt, but it did knock the wind out of her.
Now alone with Luz, Amity started walking forward slowly with her hand out. With quiet careful steps Amity made her way toward Luz's head, and she sat down beside it. Stealing her nerve, and trusting her heart Amity started to run her fingers through Luz's hair soothingly as she began to speak, "You know, I didn't know what to make of you at first. You appeared out of nowhere like a vengeful Titan, and I'm not going to lie. I thought you were kinda conceited. Rich coming from me, but then you confronted Principle Bump without any fear, and I'd never seen anyone do that before. You stood up to the strongest authority around, and bent it to your will, but then you did something more amazing to me. You softened. Willow was begging you for forgiveness, and you just gave it like it was nothing. You didn't yell at her or degrade her. Instead you comforted her, and promised to protect her. You devastated my whole world view, and it took you less than a couple minutes, but once wasn't enough. By the time we met at the Covention, I think you had my interest, and I wanted to know more about you. I'm still not sure breaking away from Ms. Lilith was the best idea, but in the moment I had to do it. Once more you exposed the toxic influences around me, and despite the pain I received when Odalia found out, I don't regret it."
The transformation slowed and started to slowly reverse as Amity spoke, and Amity swore she heard Luz croak out, "Amity?" But she kept on talking with a faint smile.
"Luz everytime I'm around you, you change my world. Hearing about what you had to go through made me realize just how far I had fallen, and gave me the strength to try to fix myself. I never thought I would find someone who could understand me, but here you are. You know what it's like to be hurt when you just want love. To hate yourself for things beyond your control. To have this hate and rage that burns in your chest. You got violent, and I turned into a bully, but somehow you never let yourself become a monster. You turned all that pain into a sword and shielded others so they wouldn't have to go through what you did alone." Luz felt tears land on her forehead. "Luz, I'm in love with you. I don't know what else to say. You snuck your way into my cold shriveled heart, and you filled it with light and hope. Luz, you make me a better person, but I understand if you don't feel the same. It's not like anyone as great as you could ever love me."
Luz, now fully back to normal, shifted to sit up and held Amity's hand in her own as she asked, "Are you serious? Amity, you're beautiful, smart, and powerful. I don't know when I fell for you, but I did. I've wanted to tell you, but I was afraid. I convinced myself that teasing and flirting would be enough, but when I saw the fear in your eyes after our spar I thought I'd ruined my chances forever. I'm sorry that I scared you."
Amity laughed, confusing Luz. "You didn't scare me. I scared myself. I marked you, and it scared me."
Luz laughed, "Really? A busted lip and a little nip, and you get shaky Blight. That seems a bit extreme."
Amity blushed, "Luz, there's an old witch tradition that when a pair of witches want to be exclusively together they claim each other with a bite. It marks that person as taken, and while there are actual advantages to it like using the lingering magic in it to help track each other if one gets lost. That's not really how it's perceived. It's an incredibly intimate thing, and…"
Luz blushed, "You marked me by accident." Luz looked away in embarrassment. "I'm sorry, Amity. I'm sure Kim or maybe another healer can remove it if you want."
Amity took a deep breath before saying, "Only if that's what you want. If you don't want me or aren't ready for that kind of commitment then that's what we'll do, but I don't regret it. I love you Luz, and I don't care what anyone else thinks."
Luz looked at Amity in shock before she asked, "It's not a witch marriage proposal right?"
Amity shook her head, "No, marriage is more of a business arrangement these days. It's a union of assets. The only emotional part of it is the ring, and it functions as an improved mark. It's complicated to explain. Marking isn't a contract. It's a promise. It would just tell the world that you're Amity Blight's girlfriend, and that I chose you over every other being on the Isles to be with, that you're MY Luz. It's your decision, but to make it official I would need you to do something." Amity exposed the side of her neck. "It's only fair if you return the favor, please," Amity said nervously.
Luz seemed baffled at the situation before her, but she leaned in and whispered tentatively, "Are you sure?" Amity just bit her lip as she nodded.
When the others saw Amity and Luz leave the cave they noticed two things. The duo were holding hands with the happiest smiles any of them had ever seen from them, and Amity had a fresh bite near her collar. They were giving off a giddy, almost electric aura, that while not visible to the naked eye, it could be felt like pressure or a feeling of imminent disaster. When Luz saw them she gave them a sheepish grin and said, "So… I'm sorry about before. I guess I worried all of you a bit, but I'm fine now, better than fine in fact."
Amity giggled, "Ya, kind of a snap decision, but we're together now." Amity pulled Luz close and kissed her cheek, "This lovable bruiser is all mine, and anyone who has a problem with it can go swim in the Boiling Sea."
Luz let out a laugh, "I will never understand how I ended up with this minty queen, but she's mine now and I can't help feeling like this is all a dream." Luz swept Amity off her feet saying, "We'll see you back at the campsite. It's cold out here, and I feel like running with my hermosa novia (beautiful girlfriend) held in my arms."
As Luz ran off Kim just let out a sigh, "So that was unexpected. Quick question, What age do you have to be to get married on the Isles?"
"Sixteen," answered Ed flatly.
"And same sex pregnancies require a potion, right?" asked Kim."
"Yup," answered Em flatly.
"Good to know. Gonna have to warn Aunt Eda to burn every copy in the house cuz I really don't trust whatever that was," groaned Kim.
"Hun, Amity is rich and connected, and Luz is crazy enough to experiment her way into it. If that's what they want, then we can't stop them. On the bright side I've never seen them so happy, and I doubt you need to worry. They might be crazy in love, but they aren't stupid," said Skara as she took Kim's hand. "In the meantime, why don't we focus on some training. That is why we came up here."
Author's Notes: So I'm trying something new and making these notes as I edit so this will kind of be a behind the scenes look since sometimes characters tell white lies or don't tell the whole truth.
Eda did not make both cloaks and sets of gloves in one day; she started after their birthdays, but hearing about them playing 'vigilante' made her finish in one day. If Luz and Kim had tried to carve bird palisman they probably would have been Cygnus the Swan (kim) and Dominus the Roc (Luz). Dominus would have had the unique quark of being able to change size but never bigger than a fist until "redacted". Don't worry I'll cover the First Great Noceda War eventually. Hermosa novia also translates to beautiful bride, but it's not my fault that bride, girlfriend, and fiance all translate to novia. I think I'll take advantage of it though 'wink wink'.
So for complete transparency both parts of 'Noceda's in Love' along with the next chapter were originally planned to be one chapter. Looking back, that was a terri-bad idea, and having to balance all those ideas probably didn't help with the burnout. In the future I will probably only update this story on Sundays and 'daughter' on Thursdays if I have a chapter ready. Anyway, shine on beautiful readers, shine on.