Boscha woke up a few days after the Covention, still nursing a few injuries like a broken nose from getting hit by Luz when Amity threw her at her, or a few bruised ribs from the Abomination stepping on her, not to mention her excessive use of magic that took a lot out of her. She didn't have much of a need to move... until she noticed that Luz wasn't in the bag next to her.
"Damn it." Boscha said, "How'd she return to normal, I thought she was still a ball."
Boscha got up and moved downstairs, where Luz was watching Eda play some kind of card game against Owlbert. Boscha limped over to the couch... yeah did we mention that she also has a fractured tibia?
"What'cha playing?" Boscha asked.
"This cool game called Hexes Hold'em." Luz said, "Hey, isn't Skara coming over today?"
"It's Friday already?! YES!" Boscha literally jumped for joy and shot her fists in the air, which proved catastrophic. A fact Luz, King and Eda could recognize by the noise that resembled an underwater rockslide.
"Boscha? You okay?" Luz asked.
Boscha could only groan slightly as she was stuck in her fist-pumping pose. "Hurts to move. Please help me."
Luz and Eda carefully propped her on the couch. Eda then bent her arms back into their regular position, or so Eda figured. "Seriously, kid, you need to take it easy. Most witches would end up in traction after facing a doped-up Amity. I want you to get better soon."
"Because you can't use the ball spell on me in this condition without causing massive internal damage?" Boscha weakly asked her.
"...Also, yes."
"And you don't wanna upset Mom by letting her daughter mess herself up any further." Luz chimed in.
"...Also-also, yes. Now anyway, why don't we get back to this game." Eda said, sitting back at the table, "Pay close attention Luz, Hexes Hold'em is a game of skill."
Eda put the cards down and they... came to life and destroyed the other played cards.
"Ha! In your adorable face Owlbert!" Eda said.
Owlbert, wearing an adorable little hat, hooted angrily and dropped his cards before flying away.
"Wow Eda, you sure showed the little bird who's boss." Boscha said, sarcastically.
"A victory is a victory, no matter who it's against." Eda said, "Victory is sweet and feels... fluffy... why do I feel fluffy?"
Luz looked and saw feathers coming out of Eda's arm.
"Eda, it's happening again!"
"Huh?" Eda looked at her feathery appendage. "Oh, that ain't good."
"I'm on it!" Luz had already bolted to the kitchen to the chest that held the potions to counteract the Owl Lady's curse. Except...
"AAAAAAGGGH! We're all out of elixir!"
Eda shuddered at hearing the news. "Oof! That really ain't good."
Luz ran back into the living room. She immediately slapped a glyph on each wrist to make gauntlets of light. "Don't worry, Eda! We'll think of something after we incapacitate you!"
"Whoa. You go, Sis!" Boscha marveled at how far Luz has progressed during her time in the Demon Realm.
"Would you just settle down, kid?!" Eda hollered. "It'll be fine. I just need to pick up some more from the market."
"MARKET!" Luz already prepared to head out.
Eda on the other hand, wanted to play more card. Boscha didn't care how badly it would hurt her, she raised a hand and slammed it against her other hand.
"Get your old ass out that door before I make you." Boscha said, before grabbing a metal pole that she was fairly certain belonged to a street sign.
'I'll be talking to Owlbert about what NOT to take from the human realm.' Boscha thought.
"Keep in mind, I can do this." Boscha said, while still looking at Eda.
Boscha literally bent the solid metal pole like it was nothing. Luz's eyes went wide.
'I need to steal a few power glyphs, I want to do that.'
Eda sighed. "Well, as THE most powerful witch on the Boiling Isles, I'm inclined to flex on you, but this curse does take precedence. Regrettably, I need to get to market... right after this next deal."
Boscha stood transfixed with the bent pole still in her hands. She was in utter disbelief that Eda was still playing this stupid card game. "Luz, can you deal with her?"
"C'mon, Triclops, just one hand?"
Luz then yanked the cards from Eda, despite her strong grip on them. A popping noise got the Owl Lady's attention and she looked at her arm, which was missing a certain something. "Hey, my hand... AND MY HAND!"
Luz stood at the doorway holding Eda's hand and the cards in them. "You want 'em, come and get 'em!"
Eda muttered various obscenities as she got up and gave chase.
"Boscha you should call mom, just in case!" Luz blurted before running out the door with a certain little demon, "King, keepaway!"
Eda and Owlbert followed after them, leaving Boscha by herself. Boscha, who was still not moving since bending that bar, mostly because she couldn't. "Too much pain. My body has rebelled, not that I blame it. So alone... no one to help me."
Just then, Hooty crept inside. "Need some help, hoot-hoot?"
"AWAY WITH YOU!"
In the Market, the Trio of King, Luz, and Eda made their way to the stand to get more elixirs. Eda started slamming her fist on the closed window.
"Come on Morton, open up!" Eda yelled as Luz and King watched.
"Uh, Eda, are you sure that's not going to cause damage to the place?"
"It'll do less damage than the Owl Beast." Eda said, continuing to slam her fist on the window.
Luz decided to move back, and that's when she noticed someone walking up to her.
"Hi, it was... Luz, right?"
"Yep, Luz Noceda."
"Oh, well, I'm Skara Harper-Melody, I don't know if we've ever actually introduced ourselves." Skara said, "Sorry about the whole, tossing your sister around for like 20 minutes a few days ago."
"Eh, she'll be fine, but if you ever do need a ball, I'm ready and willing to be one." Luz said
"Oh... uhhh, thank you?" Skara wasn't ready to dive down that rabbit hole. "By the way, where is Boscha?"
"She's still recovering. That witch's duel really caught up with her. Eda was helping with her healing, buuuuut..."
Luz gestured to Eda who was still slamming her fists against the closed stand and shouting obscenities.
"MORTON, YOU LITTLE SHIT! GET YOUR ASS OUT HERE!"
"I see." Skara had a sudden thought. "Hey! My friend Cat is in the Healing Track at Hexside. Maybe she can come over to your Owl Barn, too! And Amelia, maybe?"
"Uh... I... don't know." Luz said, "The Owl House is a bit... crazy."
"Oh okay, it's just... the Moonlight Conjuring we were going to have was cancelled, and we just don't have much to do now." Skara said.
"The Whatlight Whattering?" Luz inquired.
Skara found her naivete adorable. "Do you not have those in the Human Realm?"
Luz shook her head.
"Oh. Well, a Moonlight Conjuring is where a group of three or more friends gather at one of their houses for the night." Skara explained. "There's snacks, music, stories..."
"Oh, like a slumber party!" Luz blurted out.
"Then, when the moon is full, we find an inanimate object, join hands and use the moonlight's magic to bring it to life."
"... Like a WEIRD slumber party!"
"Yeah, so, we really have nothing to do tonight and are just kind of bored." Skara said.
"Ooo, I'll see if Eda will let you do one at the Owl House!" Luz said, "Wait right here!"
Luz rushed over to Eda... but not before running into Willow and Gus. She almost literally had, too. Fortunately, she managed to stop herself short of toppling the two.
"Friends!" Luz greeted. "How are you guys doing today?"
"Kinda bored." Willow flatly replied.
"Yeah. Everyone at Hexside has been yakking about the BIG Moonlight Conjuring tonight." Gus disparaged with his air quotes. "But we're above such childish nonsense."
"By which he means we don't have three people for our own Conjuring." Willow added.
"Yeah, that too."
"Wait, I'M three people!" Luz exclaimed. "I mean, WE'RE three people! No, actually, we're FOUR people!" She gestured to Skara waiting at the bench by King.
Willow recoiled in shock. "SKARA?!"
"Oh no! You've been seen with us!" Gus mourned for Luz's would-be social life. "Now you'll be pilloried! Denigrated! Excommunicated from your peers!"
"Hey, guys." Skara had already approached them. Gus and Willow backed away in spite of her friendly greeting.
"What are you doing?" Luz asked, seeing her friends slowly moving away, "It's just my future sister-in-law."
As if Boscha was right there, Luz got a text on her phone.
Are you talking about me?- Three Eyes
Luz couldn't help but laugh at the contact name she had for Boscha... and then hoped that Boscha would never see that as Luz would be probably be in the hospital if she did. Luz texted back.
No :P - Luzura
Luz put her phone away and looked back at her friends and Skara who was blushing at Luz's comment.
"Luz, you realize that's the Grudgby Captain right?" Gus asked, "She's like the second most popular girl at school."
Without warning, Skara lunged at Willow and Gus, grabbing them by their collars. Luz had no time to react, but in that microsecond her brain was burning with questions. She has known Skara to be nothing but nice. Did Luz put too much trust in her new friend's face value?
Before she knew it, Skara pulled the two witches toward her. Right out of the way of a group of hooded people dragging a carriage holding a chained-up giant demon.
"You two okay?" Skara asked. "You almost got flattened by those demon hunters."
"Oh... I... that is... uhh... thank you." Willow was finally able to stammer out.
Gus jumped in between Skara and the others. "And for the record, we are in no way affiliated with that human, so it is okay to befriend her!"
"Why wouldn't it be okay if you are?" Skara wondered.
"FOR SHIT'S SAKE, MORTON, OPEN UP, ALREADY!"
"I... should go make sure Eda isn't about to commit a crime." Luz said, "I'll be right back."
Luz rushed over to Eda.
"Eda, you may want to calm down."
"May I, now?" Eda sneered. "'Cause I MAY do worse shit if the curse overtakes me!"
"Well..." Luz struggled to say something to calm her down. After that failed, she figured the next best thing was to distract her. "Can I invite my friends over for a Moonlight Conjuring?"
"WHAT?" That definitely took Eda's attention away from slamming her fist on the potion stand. "How did you hear about that of all things?"
"Sooooo, is that a yes?"
Eda looked primed to deliver a scathing rant about Moonlight Conjurings until the stand finally opened up. "About damn time, Morton."
The shop clerk shakily rose to his feet. "Sorry, Eda. I was up all night tasting poisons. For some reason, I don't feel so good."
"Yeah, yeah, whatever, I'm going to need a refill." Eda said, handing an empty Elixir bottle to him, "Preferably now."
"Sorry Eda, but I'm all out."
"WHAT!?" Eda yelled, "I am literally the ONLY person that buys these from you!"
"M-m-my supplier hasn't shown up... they got eaten... so I don't have any ingredients to make anymore." Morton said.
Eda made a face that looked like she was about to just snap.
"Why did your dumbass supplier have to go and get themselves eaten?!"
"I-I don't know." Morton shielded himself with his trembling hands. "Adegast was usually more careful than that."
"A-!" Eda's rage gave way to embarrassment. "Well, nobody's perfect, right?"
Luz was confused. "Wait, wasn't Adegast the guy we fou-?"
"Luz!" Eda interrupted. "I believe Morton was about to tell me where to find more elixir."
For brevity's sake, Morton chose not to question the Owl Lady and played along. "Yes. Now, my next shipment won't be in until tomorrow, but you could find what you need at the night market."
"Oooohhhh, spooky." Luz was enthralled at the notion of a market at night. To her, it was more like a mall that was open late.
"Er, right." Morton went on. "Word has it that the elixir you need is being hoarded by the one called... Grimmhammer."
"Sounds evil." Luz couldn't help speculating. "Sounds like bad news, Eda. You sure you want to mess with someone like that?
"Well, it's either that, or you and Boscha have to put up with THIS until tomorrow." Eda showed her forearm to Luz, which was covered with more feathers.
"Well, why did you wait until now to get more?" Morton asked.
"I've been busy." Eda said, "I have an injured kid at home."
"Oh please, you've been too busy playing Hexes Hold'em!" King said.
"Uh, that is so untrue!" Eda said in offense.
"You're playing right now!" King said.
Eda already had the cards on the table, much to everyone's confusion.
"... Am I winning?" Eda asked.
Luz took Eda's cards and the deck and stashed them in her pocket. "Well, since that's all settled, it's conjuring time!"
"Luz, I never said you could have a Moonlight Conjuring at my house." Eda asserted.
"You never said I couldn-"
"You can't."
"Aw, dang it." Luz had no hope of swindling a swindler. "But Skara can help Boscha remember her past. One of her friends is a healer, which can help her, too. Willow and Gus need more friends for a Conjuring of their own... OH! We can even invite Amity! It might help make her feel better."
"Actually, Luz..." Skara approached her with Gus and Willow in tow. "Amity was hosting the Conjuring that got canceled. She's... in no shape to attend one, let alone host one."
Skara's sad expression set off multiple klaxons in Luz's mind. "What happened to her?"
Amity Blight never had much trouble drawing long lines on paper, but with her right hand bandaged and trembling from that last Blight Industries showcase, she had to settle for smaller pencil strokes. She tensed up trying to finish what she was sketching. Despite the strain on her wrist, she desperately wanted to keep drawing. She finally stopped when she felt the person she was drawing looked enough like Luz.
She fell backwards into the bed she had been sitting on, looking at the masterpiece she had made. At least Amity felt it was her masterpiece. Why did she feel that way? Why did the human occupy her mind so often lately? All these thoughts she never thought before. The feelings she never used to feel. It was overwhelming her. Better to just crumple this picture up and not think about Luz at all. Of course, her hand is still injured. It wouldn't be worth the risk to try.
A sudden knock at the door startled her. She could only think to stuff the drawing beneath her pillow and save it to look at later. Wait, not look at, throw away. Right?
"Amity? Are you in there?"
It was just her dad. "Yeah."
Her father entered the room, noticing all of the discarded papers on the floor with weird symbols drawn on them. What were those supposed to be? Umbrellas?
"Are you feeling better, Amity?"
"Let's see..." Amity sardonically replied. "Wrist is still sprained, quite a few lacerations left, ribs still bruised... So by Mom's standards, I'm good to go for yet another showcase tonight."
Her dad wasn't sure how to feel. He was somehow conflicted. "Mittens, I know you're upset right n-"
"DO you?"
"Yes, I do. But we're very concerned by you. Telling Lilith off, cheating in a witches duel..."
"I. DIDN'T. CHEAT!" Amity sat up straight, heedless of the pain shooting through her ribs. "Lilith is the one who put that glyph on me. That's why I told her off! Why the hell doesn't anyone believe me?!"
"Amity Blight! Language." Her father snapped. "This sudden shift in your behavior has put your future in the Emperor's Coven in serious jeopardy. If you didn't keep misbehaving, your mother wouldn't make y-"
"MY misbehaving?! What about Edric and Emira?! How many times have they cut class this week alone? Not to mention setting off those fireworks in Forearm Forest?! They were even out all last night tipping all those goblins in Jenkenmeyer's farm! And not ONCE have they had to help out in these showcases beyond watching the door! You and Mom let them skate by constantly while keeping me on a tight leash the whole time! Why am I always under so much pressure?!"
Her dad tried to answer, but he was at a complete loss for words. "I... haven't heard about the goblin tipping. I'll run that by Odalia right away." He got up and walked to the door. "Just rest up as much as you can, okay, Mittens? I'll get some more healing glyphs for you."
As soon as he closed the door, Amity flopped back onto the bed. She had felt drained after venting her frustrations, but less angry. However, that anger would resurface when her eyes wandered to the Emperor's Coven poster featuring Lilith in her trademark poise.
"Shut the fuck up."
"So, yeah, that's kind of why we have nothing to do tonight." Skara said.
"Well, sucks to be you." Eda said, "Rich people, I swear."
"Eda!" Luz said, upset by what she just said.
"Kid, I barely trust you and your sister to be left alone, you think I want you to bring more teens over?"
"Well... if I may." Skara said.
She threw a sack of money at Eda, it was so heavy she was struggling to lift it.
"Does that make you reconsider?" Skara asked.
"Well, since you asked so nicely, I don't see why you can't have ONE Conjuring party." Eda was too enthusiastic about the cash in her arms to haggle. Maybe next time.
"YES!" Luz was already feverishly texting Boscha.
Luzura: We did it. The Moonlight Conjuring is happening tonight 😀
Three-Eyes: The what now?
Luzura: Slumber party and Skara's coming over 4 it 💋💋💋💋
Three-Eyes: quit being such a 💩
Three-Eyes: so Eda got her potion?
Three-Eyes: hello?
Luzura: Sure. I mean she will tonight.
Three-Eyes: srsly?
Three-Eyes: anyway I called mom she'll be ready 4 portal anytime. Get ur asses home already
Luzura: k
"Hey Eeeeda..." Luz teased. "Better get your portal key."
"Why?" Eda asked.
"My mom is coming over."
As if Eda's day couldn't get any better! She grabbed Luz and King, and shove the bag of money in her hair... Luz isn't sure how that works but wants to do it.
"Come on Kids, I got a hot piece of ass to see!" Eda said.
"EDA!" Luz said, blushing, "That's my mom!"
Luz looked at Skara, Willow, and Gus
"Uh, I'll see you guys tonight!" Luz said before Eda flew away on her staff with them.
Camila walked through the portal. She barely set foot in the demon realm, when she was hugged by her girls.
"¡Tranquilo, Mijas! I'm happy to see you, too." Camila laughed as she hugged them back.
"AND ME!" King got in on the hug.
"Si, Perrito." The mother Noceda pet him on his head. She then noticed Eda standing shyly a few feet away. "Yes, Eda, I'm happy to see you as well."
"Welcome back, Cami." The Owl Lady reciprocated.
Camila set down her bags and stood aside from the door. "I also brought someone else who wanted to visit." No sooner had she said than someone else walked through the portal door.
"Yo, chicas."
"¡TÍO!" Luz and Boscha nearly trampled their mother and King to hug their Uncle Gabe. After their greetings, King walked up to the new human.
"Welcome, new minion. I am the King of Demons. Like your nieces before you, I bestow you with the opportunity to join my ever-growing army!"
Gabriel stood dumbfounded by the diminutive creature and his bold proclamations. After a moment of observation, he pointed at King as he turned to his nieces. "Mal0?"
Boscha and Luz burst out laughing at their Uncle Gabe's inquiry. King could only weh in uncertainty.
"No, Tío, that's not Mal0." Luz replied the moment she could catch her breath. "This is King. He's a demon and-"
"What's going on over there, hoot-hoot?"
"Oh no!" Camila did her best to brief Gabe on what to expect in the Demon Realm, despite how uninitiated she herself was. Witches, demons, curses, she thought she had it all covered. Unfortunately, due to forgetfulness or a subconscious desire to remove any memory of him, she hadn't mentioned Hooty. She couldn't even let out a warning before the house demon snaked his way through the crowd and stared her brother-in-law in the face.
Hooty, meanwhile, was ecstatic to see a new face. "Oh, coooooool! It's another human, hooty-hoot-hoot!"
Everyone else was transfixed by the interaction, nervous about how Gabriel would react to such a disturbing presence. But no one could have foreseen what occurred next.
"You..." Gabe held Hooty's face in his hands. "You're MAGNIFICENT!"
"HOOOOOOT?!" Definitely not something Hooty heard every day.
Before the shock could properly sink in for everyone else, Gabriel was already looking the house demon over. He was poking, prodding, plucking feathers and pulling Hooty's beak open to stare down the ghastly chasm that was his esophagus.
"This is all so fascinating!" Gabe proclaimed. "I gotta study him further. I need a sample. ANY kind of sample! Can I dissect him?"
"HOOOOOT!" Definitely not something Hooty ever wants to hear again.
Eda had enough at that point. "Damn it, Cami! Why'd you let that in the house? And what's with his obsession with Hooty?"
"Oh, don't mind him." Camila was surprisingly nonchalant about the whole situation. "He's just morbidly curious, being a biologist and all."
"What the hell is that?" Eda asked.
"He studies living things." Camila said, putting it in layman's terms.
Gabe took his head out of Hooty's mouth and saw Eda. He walked over to her.
"And I'd love to study you." He said, "Maybe over dinner, hot stuff?"
Normally Eda would turn someone into a ball and kick them away for saying something like that, but because she's starting to get a soft spot for the girls, and because of the curse currently affecting her magic, she doesn't want to potentially ruin that relationship she's been building... she instead she pulled out a switchblade and held it up, making Gabe put his hands up and slowly walk away from her.
"Okay, got it." Gabe said.
Boscha and Luz stepped back to speak quietly.
"So, are you going to tell mom that you're a demon?" Luz whispered.
"Not right now, after that, I don't think they could take that news... Tio Gabe might pass out."
Gabe had noticed something peculiar about his niece. "Hey, Boscha, what the heck happened to you? You join MMA or something?"
"Gabe, what are y- ¡PUTA MADRE!" Camila felt like kicking herself for not noticing Boscha's injuries sooner. "Oh, cariño, what happened?" She turned her daughter's head to check for further injuries. "Did a demon do this? Was someone picking on Luz?"
"Eshtowy bwien, Murmaw." Boscha tried to assure her mom, who was pinching her face in one hand while still looking her bruises over.
"We got to be in a witch's duel!" Luz couldn't contain her excitement at the thought.
"A what!?" Camila asked.
"It was amazing!" Luz said, "And you'll never believe what Boscha is able to do, wait right here!"
Luz ran inside and shortly after, returned, struggling to carry the metal pole Boscha bent.
"Boscha bent this!" Luz said.
Camila didn't think her eyes could get any bigger... until Luz started to ramble about how Boscha managed to lift an abomination as big as a house like it was nothing.
"And... what did you do in the duel?" Camila asked.
"Boscha threw me!" Luz said, very happily... without any context.
Camila shook her head. "Let's put a pin in that for now. If I recall, you mentioned Eda was struggling with her you-know-what?"
"OW!"
The Nocedas were alerted to Eda's cry. They noticed her rubbing her arm while Gabriel was checking out a handful of feathers. Camila sighed at the display.
Gabriel always was rather deceptively brilliant. Most people that would take a cursory glance at him wouldn't have him pegged as a molecular and microbiologist. But he had an unparalleled love for his work, which didn't take Camila long at all to find out when Manny introduced them. He had an unusual habit of playing around with his multifocus microscope that his employer inexplicably gave to him. He often displayed a borderline unhealthy interest in how things worked. Camila and Manny even had reservations about revealing Boscha's non-human features to him and made him promise not to harvest any blood, skin or hair samples from her. Thankfully, his loyalty to his family always beat out his morbid curiosity. But while Boscha was the exception, living things that piqued his interest were the rule.
"Gabriel Noceda, what did we discuss before coming here?" Camila's tone was the same motherly scolding she'd use on her daughters.
Gabe instantly looked defeated. "No examining people in the Demon Realm... without asking."
"AHEM!"
"Or at all! Definitely one of the two."
Eda was still massaging her arm. "Seriously, Cami, why'd you have to bring him along?"
"Hey, now, he's got a right to see his family." Camila insisted. "Plus, I thought he could help you out."
"Him?"
"Yeah." She took Eda aside out of earshot. "I didn't tell him about your curse. It just didn't feel right. But if you could spare an elixir, I think he could reverse engineer it to make more in the Human Realm."
"Wait, seriously?"
"It's just a theory I had. If you don't want us to try, we won't."
"I mean... it might work... but I don't have an elixir right now." Eda said, "I have to go to the night market in order to get some... going to be dangerous."
"Please tell me you don't plan on bringing my kids with you." Camila said.
"Nah, though Triclops' new strength would come in handy." Eda said, "The Kid is having friends over and doing a lame moonlight conjuring... I'm actually really glad you're here, you can supervise them while I go... stop being fluffy."
"Why don't you bring Gabe with you?" Camila asked, "He might not look like it, but he can be useful if you get into trouble."
Eda gave a doubtful look.
"Him? Really?"
Camila chuckled.
"Trust me, you'd be surprised at what he's able to do."
They suddenly heard a tree fall over and saw Boscha, who was leaning against it, looking a bit shook.
"Sorry, still getting used to this... super strength... thing." Boscha said.
Camila looked at Eda. "So, this is some kind of... witch puberty?"
"Not like I've ever seen." Eda was equally shocked.
"Well, I always told her she was special. Why stop now, right?" Camila decided to take it in stride. "At least it's not happening in my house."
The Owl Lady just grumbled.
"So, Mamá!" Luz ran up to her mother. "Are you excited for the Moonlight Conjuring?"
"I... guess? And, eeeehhh... what exactly is-"
"Magic slumber party."
Camila still wasn't entirely sure what that entailed, but once more, decided to roll with it. "Good thing it's a Friday."
Luz was having more and more trouble containing her excitement. "Oooooooh! I can't wait for you to meet my friends! Willow is so great and a really talented witch. Then there's Gus, who actually runs a Human Appreciation Club at his school. And Amity! She... 's not gonna be able to make it." The weight of those last words took a while to catch up to her. But when they did, her mood instantly deteriorated.
Her daughter's tone shift couldn't escape Camila's notice. "Is this "Amity" okay?"
"I don't know. I don't think so." Luz lamented. "One of Boscha's new friends, Skara, said she got injured during one of her family's... security showcases."
"¿Qué? What kind of insane parent makes their child take part in something like that?!"
"AMITY!" Odalia called from the dining room of Blight Manor. "Six hour warning, dear! Be sure to be ready for tonight's showcase!"
"Yes, Mom." Amity called back to her mother.
She had spent an hour or so staring at that drawing she told herself she was going to throw away. She was totally going to. She had more important things to do than to gawk at her sketch of Luz. But the wastebasket was all the way on the other side of the room, and she did have more important things to do.
Amity pocketed her sketch and headed for the bathroom. She wanted to check herself for any bruises that needed covering up. It was emphasized by her mother that she look presentable for the showcase later. But as soon as she opened her bedroom door, a bucket of nondescript blue slime fell on her. The slime spilt all over her, and it didn't take long for her to deduce who propped that bucket on top of the door.
"EDRIC! EMIRA!" Amity's shout echoed through the hallway. She could hear that contemptible snickering close by. Then, a plume of light-blue smoke burst out in front of her, revealing her older siblings.
"Damn, Mittens, you're a mess." Her brother Edric noted.
"You really gonna go to the showcase looking like that?" His twin sister Emira asked.
Amity's anger was building up, but she couldn't afford to let it out now of all times. "Don't you two ever have anything better to do?" She slightly scolded.
"Well, we did think better of it." Emira explained.
"Yeah, but then you had to go and narc on us to Dad about where we were last night." Edric derided.
Emira grinned smugly. "And what kind of big brother and sister would we be be if we didn't teach you that your actions have consequences?"
"What the hell would you know about consequences?!" Amity snapped. "I'm the one always getting in real trouble. You two just get by with a fucking slap on the wrist!"
"AMITY BLIGHT!"
The younger sister looked down the hallway to see an irate Odalia marching up to her. "What in Titan's name is with all the yelling and profanity? And why are you so filthy?"
"It was Edric and Emira! They dumped this stuff on me and..." as Amity looked in their direction, she noticed the twins had already vanished.
"Enough of these games, Amity." Her mother berated. "Just get yourself cleaned up for tonight. We'll discuss your behavior later."
As Odalia left, Amity was overflowing with fury. She just wanted to hit something or someone -two someones in particular- but she knew she couldn't afford any more trouble.
What could she do?
"Oh, before I forget, mom, I learned a new spell!" Boscha said, "Want to see?"
Camila was a bit concerned, what kind of spell was it? Last time she saw the effect of "Boscha" and "Spell" it resulted in fire.
"Uh... does it involve arson?"
"No... Luz you have problem being lit on fire, do you?"
"Sounds fun!" Luz said.
"NO! There will be no fire!" Camila said, before calming down, "Boscha, what's the spell?"
"Okay, no fire... this time." Boscha said, "I want to try it with fire at some point though. Luz, if you don't mind, and I know you don't... please stay still... you've taken your medicine right?"
"I've taken it, don't worry." Luz said.
"Okay, then." Boscha limbered up her fingers, drew a spell circle and fired a bolt of magic with a "SHABOOEY!" Once it connected, Luz was once again in her beloved spherical form.
Camila was concerned for some inexplicable reason, but she didn't want to discourage her daughter's magical education. "That's wonderful, Mija. But are you sure Luz doesn't mind?"
"Yeah, she's cool with it." Boscha assured her. "She tells me it's like a warm hug or something."
Boscha picked Luz up and spun her on her finger.
"And don't worry, I'll make sure she doesn't get a job as a basketball." Boscha said.
'Or maybe I can be her custom ball!' Luz thought.
"Alright, I have to get ready for the night market, or else I'm getting all fluffy and beasty." Eda said.
"Yeah, you tried to mate with mom last time." Boscha said.
"Gimme a break! I told you I'm off my game." Eda pointed out.
"I. Have. SO many questions." Gabriel exclaimed in his confusion.
"You'll understand when you're older." King replied. "At least that's what everyone tells me about Eda and Human Mom."
Eda practically scooped up Gabe and King. "Okay, you two. You're on Night Market duty with me. I'll need some extra eyes to watch out for pickpockets. And some extra hands in case I wanna pickpocket."
"PICKPOCKET!" The witch and demon cheered.
"Err... yeaaahh... crime." Gabe meekly joined in.
"That's the spirit!" Eda rejoined as she dragged him away with her. "Have fun, kids! Don't do anything I would do!"
The Noceda's were standing there for a while after the trio were out of sight.
"... Well I'm going to go practice." Boscha said, dribbling Luz to the hoop.
"Doesn't that hurt?" Camila asked.
"As long as you're gentle, no. If you get kicked full force, then yeah, it can be painful." Boscha said.
"And are you okay to practice in your condition?" Her mother asked, well aware of her propensity to overexert herself playing sports.
"Pfft! No te preocupes, Mamá." Boscha assured her. "I'm not as banged up as I-GAAHHH!" Her next thought was interrupted by the shooting pain in her leg that made her topple over. After she was dropped, Luz broke free from the spell placed on her to check on her sister.
Camila, however, was already tending to Boscha. "Mmmm-hm. I thought I detected a fractured tibia."
"You did not." Boscha was still insistent that she was okay to play, but her mom didn't budge. "Really? How can you tell? I mean, you're a vet, but..."
"It's all mammals to me, Mija... well, aside from the birds and reptiles." Camila jested as she rolled up Boscha's pant leg to check her shin. "But you don't need a medical degree to notice that limp of yours. Let me just check my bag, and-"
"Hey, Luz!"
Everyone turned around to notice Willow and Gus approaching.
"Friends!" Luz excitedly greeted them.
"Oh, these are your new friends?" Camila wanted to meet them too, but remembered her ailing daughter. "Lo siento. I need a bandage for Boscha's leg."
"Oh, I can help with that." Willow drew a green spell circle which summoned a slender vine from the ground. It wrapped itself around Boscha's shin and tightened just enough to keep her bone set.
"Extraordinario." Camila remarked.
"Yeah..." Boscha addressed the plant witch with a slight blush on her face. "Uhhh, thanks, Willow."
"Ah, so you're Willow. It's so nice to meet you. I'm Camila Noceda." She turned to the younger witch. "And you must be Gus."
"Indeed, I must." Gus proudly proclaimed as he held up his hand.
Camila stood bewildered until Luz got her attention. She slapped her hands together, indicating that Gus was anticipating a high-five. Camila reciprocated, which made the young Illusionist thrilled. Luz smiled when she noticed her mother chuckling at her friends' antics. They definitely made a good first impression. Luz helped her sister up, right when Skara, Amelia, and Cat arrived. Boscha immediately started blushing when she saw Skara. Luz gave Boscha a smirk, which annoyed the triclops. Boscha threw an elbow into Luz's ribs, making her let go and hunce over, and limped over to her mother.
"Mom, these are my friends. Amelia, Catrina, and... Skara." Boscha said, "They're the local grudgby team."
Amelia waved.
"Hi, Mrs. Noceda, I'm Amelia."
"I'm Catrina, but I tend to go by Cat."
"And I'm Skara."
"It's nice to meet you." Camila said.
Boscha got in between her mom and her friend. "Skara was... I mean, is my... uhhh... we were friends before I was lost in the Human Realm." She started to blush as she spoke.
"Oh, how sweet." Camila had little trouble picturing the two as little kids having fun together.
Boscha was feeling somewhat embarrassed, but carried on. "Y'see, when I met her, it unlocked some memories. Memories of when I lived here... of us playing together... and stuff."
"Oh, that's WONDERFUL, Mija!" Her mother wrapped her up in a tight hug, but Boscha didn't mind the exacerbations to her bruises. "Is there anything else you remember?" Camila inquired.
Boscha took a minute to think on that, but nothing came up. "No, sorry."
Luz was getting excited.
"Ooo, This is going to be so much fun!" Luz said, "I've ever done something like this before... no one... ever wanted to come over."
"Their loss." Boscha said.
"Right?" Skara chimed in. "I can't imagine anyone not liking someone as cool as you!"
"Aww, thanks." It took all of Luz's strength to not burst out in tears. "Well, how about we all get inside already?"
"Just don't talk to the annoying bird tube and you'll be fine." Boscha said.
"Hey, where is he?"
When she looked at the door, she noticed Hooty had buried his head in the ground. But once he heard his name, he popped up in front of Boscha with a terrified look on his face.
"Is the scary man gone, hoot?"
'Well, this is an unsettling new feeling.' Boscha thought. 'Sympathy for Hooty.'
Everybody headed inside, save Willow and Gus. When Luz took notice, she ran back to them. "Hey, guys! What're you waiting for?"
"It's just..." Gus nervously pointed to the Grudgby players.
"Hm?" Cat saw the finger pointed at her. "Oh, right. *ahem* What do YOOOOUUUU think you're doing here, Half-A-Witch?!" She struck a dynamic and accusatory pose.
Amelia couldn't help but play along. "Yeah, you tell'em! There's no dorks allowed here in... in this... pppppp!" She failed to keep a straight face, and she and Cat burst into laughter.
"Girls, stop messing with them!" Skara chastised as she approached the others. "Don't worry, nobody's gonna tell Odalia about any of this. Your secret friendship with Amity is safe with us."
"Wait, you knew?!" Willow was shocked to say the least.
"See, this is why we just rolled with it." Amelia noted. "If we didn't, everyone would have seen through your act."
"Such as it is." Cat added.
Willow became a smidge defensive. "What's that supposed to mean?"
Amelia started fidgeting. "We're really sorry, but - how to put this as delicately as possible - you and Amity can't act for shit."
"Okay, let's not get personal, here." Skara put an end to the conversation. "Let's go inside, already!"
And so they did. Luz began a tour of the interior.
"Welcome to the Owl House!" Luz said, "This is the living room... we call it that because the walls are actually breathing!"
Cat walked over to the walls, and since she was a healer, she had questions.
"I'm sorry... how the fuck?" She asked.
"I've been asking that since I got here." Boscha said, "There are many questions I've had since I got here. One, why does the house breathe, two, how do I breathe as a ball, three... how do I sign up for grudgby!?"
"You're really that into grudgby?" Skara put her hand on Boscha's shoulder. "If you wanna play on our team, you'd have to enroll in Hexside."
"I would LOve..." The sensation of Skara's touch caused Boscha's voice to crack. Her face was also completely red. "I would love to be able to play... for... your team." She was teetering on the edge of hysteria when Camila gently took her aside. Luz resumed the tour as the other Nocedas went to the opposite end of the room.
"¿Boschita? ¿Estás bien?" Camila inquired.
"No tengo ni idea." Boscha nervously uttered. "Me siento raro."
""Weird" how, Mija?"
"Well, it's about Skara. I keep feeling anxious around her. I thought it'd go away the more I talked to her, but it got more intense, like... Did you ever get a feeling like someone was juggling chainsaws in the pit of your stomach?"
"Whoa." Camila was taken aback, but not altogether surprised. Boscha never discussed anything romantic with anybody. Even Luz was in the dark about who or what her sister preferred. Still there were some seams in Boscha's indifferent facade. Often when Camila had drove to Gravesfield High to pick up her kids, she'd see boys cozy up to Boscha or ask her out, only to be shrugged off. Yet, when talking to certain girls, the usually sharp-witted and articulate basketball star would become an anxious stuttering mess. Naturally, Camila didn't pry into such personal territory, but now that her daughter is reaching out, it's time to clear the air.
"Well, that's not the metaphor I'd go with, but yes, I have felt that way before. These kinds of feelings usually occur when you're around people you have a... strong affection for."
"But... I can't... I barely know her." Boscha said.
"That didn't stop me with your father." Camila said, "Remember Boscha, I will always accept you, no matter what you are, or who you feel affection for."
"Mom... Creo que soy gay." Boscha said, making sure only those that spoke Spanish could understand her.
Camila smiled and planted a small kiss on her daughter's third eye, closed of course.
"I support you, Boscha... always." Camila said.
Overwhelmed by the emotional wellspring caused by her mother's love and acceptance, Boscha hugged her as tight she could. She managed to stifle her sobs to the point where they sounded like a puppy's whimpering.
"Boscha? You alright?"
The three-eyed girl was startled by Skara's sudden appearance. Wiping most of her tears and snot on her sleeve, she face her new-yet-old friend with an attempt at a neutral expression. An impossible feat, given that her tear ducts just wouldn't stop gushing. "Hm? Oh, yeah. Just some of those... back pains. From the witch's duel. Eyyyyup."
"Oh, shoot!" Skara smacked her forehead. "I forgot about that. Cat! Can you come help?"
Her friend broke from the tour group and ran up to Skara. "What's up?"
"Think you help Boscha out with her injuries?"
"I dunno." Cat replied. "Think you can convince Bump to give me extra credit for it?"
Her question was met with a stern glare from Skara.
"Pfft! I'm kidding. Obviously." Cat got right to work using a dark-blue spell circle to make her glasses lenses change in order to scan Boscha's back like an X-ray machine. "Don't you worry." She assured her impromptu patient. "You're in the care of the top student of the Healing Track."
"Yeah, by default!" That lighthearted jab from Amelia didn't exactly set Boscha's mind at ease.
"Ugh, don't mind her." Cat told Boscha. "She's referring to Viney, who used to be top healer. Of course, there was a reason she got sent to the Detention Track. Long story."
"As much as I wanna hear about that..." Luz interjected, "...what object are we gonna bring to life?"
"Well, it's our first one, so it should be something with meaning and beauty." Willow said, as her and Amelia looked at a plant.
"Like this action figure!" Gus said, going through the plant.
"I'm with Willow." Amelia suggested. "These flowers look nice."
"That's just plant magic with extra steps." Gus insisted. "C'mon. Action figure!"
"Ehhh." Amelia and Willow weren't budging.
Gus' mewling and puppy-dog eyes were swaying them until Camila took a look at the toy in his hand. "I remember these. The company that made them were sued because they came with those problematic phrases." She gave the toy a squeeze to demonstrate.
"WITH GREAT POWER COMES GREAT PRIVELEGE."
"Let's use it anyway!" Luz was not at all deterred by the toy's utterances.
"I'm game." Skara joined in.
Willow and Amelia exchanged a look, then realized they were outnumbered. "Fine." Willow shrugged. "We'll use the little buff guy."
Gus, Skara and Luz rejoiced. Willow was flummoxed when she realized how well she and Gus were gelling with the Grudgby clique. For the longest time, she saw them as - well, "goddesses" was a strong word - but they definitely seemed like icons of some type, forever beyond the scope of mere mortals. But the girls before her now were different. Approachable. This day had been indeed an informative one.
"So, how's this work?" Luz was eager to get this party started. "Do we take turns chanting? Ooh! Is this like "Sachiko Ever After?"
"I told you not to joke about that "Corpse Party" crap, Luz!" Boscha shuddered. "Still can't believe I let you talk me into watching those videos."
"All done!" Cat proclaimed as she finished her healing spell. "How you feeling?"
Boscha stretched her back and arms. "Pretty great, actually."
"I should call you to be my new doctor." Boscha said.
"Are you planning on getting more injuries!?" Camila asked.
"... Just being prepared." Boscha said, "This place is dangerous."
"Fair enough, I guess." Camila sighed. "Though with your newfound strength, you probably won't be the only one who should be prepared."
"Here comes the moon!" Skara exclaimed. "C'mon, everybody!"
She took Boscha by the hand to join the others in the middle of the room. They all sat in a circle and joined hands. If Willow or Gus hadn't been too excited, they might have noticed that they were sitting among the Grudgby players. They were acting like the seven teens in the circle were a tight-knit group.
Luz looked at her mother. "Hey, Mom, you want in on this?"
"Gracias, Mija, but I'll just observe this time." Camila smiled softly. "You kids have fun."
The conjuring started and that's when Boscha and Luz realized... they don't know what the words are. So, when the others start saying the chant, Boscha and Luz were trying to just look like they were saying it. Meanwhile, the others were in near-perfect sync.
"Moonlight, we call, we sing. Moonlight take this chance. Moonlight come tie the string. Moonlight start the dance!"
"Moonlight tie... string... and I don't know the words!" Luz gave it her best shot.
"Don't be afraid when I turn the party out, 'cause I come from the moon and I carry all the clout!" Boscha just winged it.
Whatever the case, the chant appeared to work when the septet began to glow a bright blue. Camila was awestruck, but at the same time, somewhat concerned. She hoped this wasn't some sort of Lost Ark scenario. Unbeknownst to anyone, Hooty had begun to stare at the moon, overcome with a strange sensation. Everyone looked at the toy.
"... Well that was a big ass bucket of nothing." Boscha said.
"Boscha, what have we talked about?" Camila asked.
"... I don't know, we talk about a lot of things I shouldn't be doing." Boscha said, knowing exactly what her mother meant.
That's when the house started shaking. Everybody was tossed around by the tremors as the decorations were jostled free from the living room walls. After a few minutes, the trembling stopped.
Luz was the first to regain her bearings. "You guys... did the house just hiccup?"
Gus grabbed the toy from the floor. "Little buff guy, what did you do?!" He asked as he squeezed said toy.
"A REAL MAN NEVER TAKES ACCOUNTABILITY."
"That... actually went better than I expected." Camila got back on her feet. "Everybody okay?"
"I think so, Mrs. Noceda." Skara did a head count confirming Luz, Gus, Amelia and Cat were fine. "Boscha? How about you?"
"Bleeehhh... I think I died." Boscha groggily called back. "I must be floating on a nice, soft, heavenly cloud..."
"Uh, not that I'm not flattered..."
Boscha opened her eyes. She was shocked to see that she was in Willow's arms with their faces pressed together.
"... but could you please get off of me?"
"BWAAAAHHHH!" Boscha scrambled to her feet. Despite her blushing and embarrassment, she offered Willow a hand. "I am SO sorry about that! Are you okay?"
"I'm good." Willow took her hand, coyly smiling as she was helped up.
'Damn it... I hate being gay.' Boscha thought, being incredibly embarrassed, '... But I also love women, so I'm very conflicted.'
Suddenly the house shook again, knocking everyone again.
"What's going on!?" Luz yelled, rushing outside and nearly falling to a painful death if Boscha didn't grab her.
"Luz!" Willow and Gus said, rushing to help her up as well.
"Why does the house have legs!?" Luz yelled, seeing the large legs, "And why is it walking!?"
"I think we animated the house!" Boscha said, before realizing something, "And it's heading to a cliff!"
Amelia summoned vines to wrap around the legs, but they didn't do much besides temporarily stop it.
"Hooty, stop!" Luz yelled.
"By the power of moonlight, I have risen. Hoot hoot!" The house demon refused her request. The house stumbled over a couple of trees, causing Luz, Gus and Willow to lurch forward and almost fall out of the doorway. Boscha wasted no time grabbing Willow to pull the trio back up. Camila and the Grudgby team followed suit, oblivious to the group glowing again. The house was meters away from the edge of the cliff.
Boscha's patience was at an end. "HOOTY, YOU FUCKING TURD, STOP ALREADY!"
And stop he did. Everybody retreated back into the house, relieved that they didn't meet their demise at the bottom of the cliff.
"Why did he stop?" Gus asked.
"Well, my threats are known to be effective." Boscha said.
"And the glowing?" Willow asked.
"Uh... I don't know."
"How are we gonna tell him to go back?" Cat asked Boscha. Hooty had registered that as a command and began to head back to his foundation.
It was at that point that Luz registered the fact that they were glowing. "Wait! Everybody let go of each other." They all complied, and once they were disengaged, the house came to a halt.
"Okay, now everybody join hands again." And once more they did what Luz asked. They all started to glow again and the house resumed its gait.
"It must work when we're holding hands!" Luz said, "The conjuring animated the house and we must be in control of it!"
"We're moving it with the power of friendship!" Willow's cheer was met with awkward silence. "And the moon. Probably the moon."
Amelia nonetheless shared her enthusiasm. "This has to be the biggest animation in the history of Moonlight Conjuring! We stand on the cusp of history, here. Not just the school, but the Isles themselves will tell tales of this for generations to come... Now let's take this baby out for a spin!"
"Yeah, joyride!" Gus was definitely on board.
"Ohhhh, no." Camila put her foot down. "Sorry, kids, but I doubt Eda would appreciate us tearing up the countryside with her home. Let's just get it back now and spare you all whatever unusual punishment she'd have in store for you."
"Mom's right." Boscha lowkey sulked. "I don't wanna get you guys in trouble."
Skara was quick to side with her. "Hey, we can always do this with someone else's house on the next full moon."
"Take us home, Hooty." Boscha instructed.
Once more, the house resumed its trek back to where it belonged. Though their ride was cut short, the kids were still excited about how their night was going. Luz was especially lost in thought about it. 'It's been an awesome evening so far.' Luz's thoughts started to spiral somewhat. 'I just wish Amity could've seen this.'
Nobody realized it, but it was at that point that Hooty pivoted slightly.
The Night Market in Bonesborough was bustling. Even though the crowds were no more bizarre than those that attended the Day Market, the atmosphere still carried an air of danger.
"Alright Human, stay close, the night market is where the most dangerous and blood thirsty criminals roam." Eda said, "Even I don't go here unless I have to."
"You don't have to worry about me, I'm a biologist, I've dissected a lot of creatures." Gabe said, pulling out a knife as long as Eda's hand, "I can take care of myself."
Eda whisted at the sight of his blade. "Well, look at you. You get in trouble much?"
"Not me, exactly." Gabe answered. "Back home, there was this asshole that kept trying to take Boscha when she was little and sell her to the government."
"Really? He didn't hurt her, did he?" Eda was feeling a pang of guilt for possibly getting Boscha stuck in the Human Realm.
"I'm not too sure." Gabriel recounted that horrible night his niece was taken. "He got to me first. Gave me a concussion and a broken zygomatic arch. Camila didn't go too much into the details of that incident, and I didn't pry."
"Don't fret, human!" King boasted from the baby carrier Eda had Gabe wear. "If this "Hole" person tries to attack my precious minion again, he'll have to answer to The King of Demons!"
Gabe petted the little demon. "That's nice of you to offer, little guy, but even as a young kid, Boscha gave as good as she got, and then some. That she bit off Mr. Hole's ear when she was nine is proof of that."
Eda had a good laugh at that. Just when she thought she couldn't be prouder, that three-eyed scamp kept surprising her. They walked up to a stand with a curtain and Eda leaned against it.
"Hey, I'm looking for someone called Grimm hammer." Eda said.
"I am the one they call Grimm Hammer." An ominous voice echoed throughout the area. The curtain lifted and a diminutive pig demon hopped up on the counter.
"Welcome, welcome, welcome!" The alleged Grimm Hammer exclaimed. "I've got weaponry from the Hinterlands, curses from the Winterlands, and JELLYBEANS!" He tossed the candy into the air for King and Gabe to catch.
"Jellybeans!" King rejoiced.
"Wax-encrusted goodness!" Gabe concurred.
"They're lethally delicious." The pig demon added.
"Eeeuugh." Gabe dropped the ones he caught and took the ones that King caught before he could eat them.
"You're Grimm Hammer?" Eda asked incredulously.
"Tibblet-Tibblie Grimm Hammer the Third." He proclaimed. "Please, call me Tibbles."
"Ha-ha. He wants to be called that." King chortled.
Gabriel was quite underwhelmed. "I'm starting to think Camila oversold this place."
"Ignore these two." Eda said, "I'm looking for Elixir."
"Elixir huh, like this?" Tibbles asked holding up a bottle of the golden heaven Eda needs.
"Yes, how much?" Eda asked.
"Oh, only a thousand snails... a bottle."
"A thousand snails a bottle!? I can get 10 cases of that from Morton for that!" Eda said, "What kind of game are you playing here?"
"Capitalism, where everyone's a winner... except you." Tibbles said.
Gabe face palmed.
"This really must be hell." Gabe said, "Has to be if Capitalism is here."
Eda growled, which made more feathers pop out of her arm, before she noticed the cards on the table.
"Say, are those Hexes Hold 'Em cards?"
"Really? Now?" King asked.
"Is that what they are?" Tibbles asked, "I've been using them as coasters."
"How about we make it interesting? I win, you give me the elixir. You win, you can take something of mine." Eda said, feeling confident.
"Deal." Tibbles said.
With the conjuring, it was clear something was off.
"Uh, Luz... I'm pretty sure we're getting close to town." Boscha said, "I'm fairly certain that Eda does not live there."
"Yeah, I don't know what's going on either." Luz said.
"Not to criticize or anything, Boscha..." Cat spoke up. "...but are you sure your command wasn't too vague or anything?"
"How's that now?" Boscha asked.
"Well, you did tell Hooty to take us home." Gus reminded her. "But, aren't we technically "home" already? How would Hooty register that?"
Boscha hadn't thought of that. She could only stare wall-eyed in confusion.
"Wait a minute, I remember this route!" Willow was looking out the window when she noticed a familiar building in their path. "Oh, thorns! We're headed right for Blight Manor!"
Camila was concerned by Willow's urgency. "Is this "Blight Manor" a bad place or-?"
"It's Amity's House!" Luz realized.
Amelia got confused. "Who told Hooty to come here?"
Nobody had any idea how this all happened, until Boscha had a sinking feeling. "Luz?"
"I never told him to go to her house!" Luz attested. "I thought about her and wished she could have seen what we did with the house, but-"
"That'll do it." Gus confirmed.
"Really?" Skara asked. "I never heard about that kind of thing happening at a Conjuring before."
"Not to add on..." Camila was peering out the door. "But is there anything about these Conjuring's that includes a giant crossbow?"
"Giant what!?"
Everybody looked through the doorway as best they could. Sure enough, there was an enormous crossbow on a cart, manned by the same Demon Hunters that Luz, Gus, Willow and Skara encountered earlier that day. Most disturbing of all was the fact that the weapon was pointed straight at the Owl House. The crossbow fired its giant arrow in an arc over the runaway dwelling. The rope attatched to the arrow wrapped over the house. Camila and the kids spotted even more giant crossbows that followed suit and held the house down.
"... I don't like this." Skara said.
Demon Hunters busted in and smiled as they saw the group. The leader of the group held his weapon out.
"Hello, kids." He said, holding his sword against Boscha's neck, "Three eyes... interesting. A very demonic trait. Tie them up, I want to see how fast I can break this-"
He was cut off as a loud bang rang out and the demon hunters watched as he fell backwards, a bloody hole near his collar bone was formed from the bullet that Camila fired at him.
"Mom!?" Luz and Boscha said in shock.
"Kids, get in the house, to the weapons room." Camila said.
Boscha didn't dare argue. "You heard Mom! Everybody upstairs and get you some weapons!"
"Ooh, weapons!" Willow was concerningly cheerful as she followed Boscha upstairs.
Skara noticed Luz staying put as the rest of the kids went to the armory. "Luz? Aren't you coming?"
"Don't worry about me. I've got my glyphs." The human assured as she whipped out a handful of ready-made glyphs. "Oh, and a bat!" She also reached behind the couch for a bat.
Camila, meanwhile, was holding off the Demon Hunters with some suppressing fire. It was going well until the hunter she shot had recovered. With a spell circle, he magically wrested the gun from her hands and dismantled it.
"I gotcha covered, Mom!" Luz had a solid ball of light at the ready. Using her bat, she sent it screaming into the face of another Demon Hunter, hitting him right in the groove in the middle of his bulbous forehead.
"Aaagh, Jeez!" The hunter bemoaned. "Did they have to go for the face?"
"Suck it up, Tom!" The leader clapped back before addressing the rest of his group. "Some of you go around back! Flush them out!"
"Yes, sir!" They said.
Luz activated a Glyph and threw the ball in the air, waiting a few seconds for it to fall before hitting it with the bat and sending it into the other hunters, which made the ball explode in burst of light.
"That's right, my sister isn't the only one that has a talent for sports!" Luz said, making another ball of light.
The group ran into the weapons room and began to grab whatever they could carry. Boscha had the morningstar she had during the whole Owl Beast incident, and had decided to call it Betty. To her surprise, Skara grabbed a Chain Scythe (Look up Soul Eater Chain Scythe if you need).
"Woah, that's a very dangerous weapon." Boscha said, "Are you sure you can handle it?"
Skara didn't say a word and held the chain, before using it to spin the two scythes like an expert. She swung one of the scythes before pulling it back and grabbed it. She held both of them in her hands and smiled.
"I think I can manage."
'... Holy fuck... she's literally the coolest person ever.' Boscha thought.
Willow managed to secure a broadsword as tall as herself, and didn't seem to struggle wielding it. Amelia decided to dual-wield a pair of scimitar. Cat, playing the role of medic, picked up a sizeable shield. Gus was still perusing the vast arsenal before him until something caught his eye.
"Did you find something yet, Gus." Willow was getting anxious to try out her new "toy."
"Did I ever!" Gus brandished the most devastating weapon in his eyes, showing it to his friends. "Behold, the ultimate in power and human ingenuity!"
Boscha was stupefied by the object in his hand. "Dude, that's a paperclip."
"Ah, ah, ah. "Paper-CLORP!"" Gus "corrected" her. "But fear not, I shall use its cataclysmic power responsibly."
"Yyyyyyyeeaahhhh, you do that." Boscha had little enough bandwidth to deal with that. "I'm going to go help my family fight off those evil magicians now."
Boscha ran out of the room and back outside, where she wasted no time in slamming Betty against one of the demon hunters heads. The hunter fell to the ground.
"... Shit, did I just kill someone?" Boscha asked.
The groan indicated no, so that made her feel better. She then charged into battle, quickly hitting one of the hunters attacking her mother in the stomach, making them back up and hunch over.
"Stay away from my family!" Boscha said, "Mom, are you doing alright?"
Camila, who had run out of ammo a few minutes before Boscha came out, nodded.
"I'm fine, but Luz is getting ganged up right now."
"Well... you and Luz... you're kind of a rare species here." Boscha said, "They probably could make a lot of money by selling you and her as exotic meat."
"Boscha, please stop before I throw up." Camila said, before noticing another coming at them, "Boscha, look out!"
Boscha turned around just in time to see a sword being swung at her, but it was blocked by Cat's shield.
"Don't worry, as a Healer, I won't let anyone get hurt!" Cat said, before pushing the hunter off, "Though I am allowed to make exceptions!"
She used the shield as an extension of her fist and performed an uppercut with it. The hunter was knocked out and bleeding from the strike.
"Woo! Like a Boiling Isles version of Captain America!" Boscha said.
Camila shook her head.
"What?" Boscha asked, "I'm not calling her Captain Canada, you know how I feel about that place."
"Just because you were banned from Quebec doesn't mean the rest of the country is bad." Camila said, "Now we need to get to Luz, fast."
Just them, Camila was hit in the leg by an arrow, taking her to the ground.
"AHHH!"
"MOM!" Boscha said, rushing to her mother's side.
"Guys, cover me!" Cat said, as the rest of the group came out of the house.
Once they were out, Cat ran over to help. Willow and Amelia were the first to disembark. Together, they whipped up a wall of thorny vines around the house, then faced off against the hunters with their weapons. Skara squared off against the leader with her chained scythe. The leader didn't think much of her at first, but her skillful swings soon put him on the defensive.
"Are you kidding me with this, Kevin?!" His purple-haired cohort chided.
"This is not the damn time, Delilah!" Kevin yelled back. "There's another one coming at us!"
She looked to the house and spotted a defiant Gus raising his weapon. He charged right at Delilah, to her utmost confusion. He then spun a sky-blue spell circle, and with a giant plume of blue smoke, a legion of Guses appeared.
"Where did these brats all come from?!" She started to freak out.
When he heard that, Kevin pushed Skara back for a moment. "It's Illusion magic, you dunce! Only one of them is real!"
Delilah flinched. "Wh-! I knew that!" She spun some yellow spell circles and fired bolts of lightning at the crowd of doppelgangers. One by one, they were reduced to wisps of blue mist by her attacks until they were all dispersed. "I did it!" She cheered. "But wait, weren't one of those supposed to be the real- Agh!"
She felt an attack from behind. Slowly, the hunter turned to see the real Gus plunging the unfurled paperclip into her side. Gus was overcome with a sense of triumph. "By the power of the Paperclorp, let your paralyzed form fall to the ground!"
Delilah looked at him, expecting something, but felt no sensation beyond the poking in her side from Gus still pushing his weapon against her.
"Hey. That hurts. Knock it off." She slapped the paperclip out of Gus' hands and flung him in Skara's direction. Skara saw the attack coming, and threw her own weapon aside to catch the younger witch. The two collided and tumbled toward the house.
"Oh no!" Boscha rushed out to her friends' aid, with Luz in pursuit.
"Not so fast, you little punk!" Tom had spotted Luz and launched a fireball at her. Boscha quickly stepped in and took the hit for her.
"¡MIJA!" Camila cried out after seeing her daughter immolated.
"I'm okay." Boscha was quick to assure her mother, who was astonished to see her only slightly singed. "Sorry, Mom! I was meaning to tell you about me being fireproof." The three-eyed witch then heard her sister wincing. "Luz?! Are you okay?!"
Luz was holding her arm, which was lightly burned. "I'm good, just a little charred is all."
That, however, was enough to spur Boscha into giving a death stare to the Demon Hunters. "Oh, now you guys are fucking dead."
She dropped her weapon and started moving over to the hunters. They charged at her, but she threw an uppercut and sent one a good dozen feet in the air, and kept walking before they landed. She grabbed one by the neck, lifted them up, and then slammed them down on the ground, breaking several bones in the process. The third, Boscha kicked that one into a tree, breaking it in two. She slammed her foot on their chest and growled.
"Don't touch my sister... EVER... again." Boscha growled, "Now get your other bitches, and get the fuck away from us."
"I... I can't order that, only the leader can do that." The hunter said.
"And where is he?"
Boscha heard Luz scream and quickly looked over and saw her, being held hostage while the leader held a knife to her throat.
"One step, and she's dead." He said.
Boscha, with speed that she didn't think was possible, ran and slammed him into a boulder by his neck. Not satisfied with that, she started pummeling Kevin with her fists. Her skin began to glow, and the glow intensified with each punch she delivered.
"Don't. You. Ever. Threaten. My. Sister. A. GAIN!"
Kevin was incredibly strong in a physical sense, which was likely the sole reason his face wasn't reduced to a smear on the rock. It definitely infuriated Boscha that she had to exert herself more. She was oblivious to everyone yelling her name.
"Boscha, please stop it!" Luz ran up to her. "I think he's had enough!" She grabbed her sister's arm, but she wasn't prepared for the burning sensation in her hand. Boscha's skin burned her to the touch. Her shrill yelp managed to snap the three-eyed witch out of her stupor.
When Boscha turned around, she saw Luz blowing on her hand to cool it down. "Luz? Are you okay?! What happened?"
When she approached, Luz staggered backwards, a look of dread in her eyes. "N..no... stay back."
That look shook Boscha to her core. That same look from years ago, when she first used her magic. When Luz was terrified of her. Boscha never wanted to put her sister through that again, and yet here they are.
"Boscha, hold up!" Skara got between them. "Your skin... it's glowing!"
"What?!" Boscha checked her hands to confirm what Skara told her. She could see the heat radiating from them, and realized to her horror that she burned Luz. "Oh no... oh no no no no no nonono! Luz, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to!"
"¿Mija?" Camila ran up to her daughter. "Boschita, what is happening to you?"
"NO! Don't get any closer!" Boscha warned everybody. "¡Lo siento, Mamá! ¡Esto no ha sucedido antes!"
Luz noticed her panicking. "Boscha, remember the breathing exercise!"
"Yeah... yeah, okay..." Boscha recalled those exercises Dr. Waybright taught her years ago in order to manage her temper - which she regrets ignoring now - and closed her eyes. 'Breathe, two, three, four... Hold, two, three, four... Out, two, three, four... Hold, two, three, four...' Eventually, the glow in her body subsided and there was no more heat enveloping her.
"How ya feeling, Sis?" Luz calmly walked up to her.
Boscha was shaking like a leaf. "I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry. Oh, Luz, I'm so sorry."
"Don't sweat it, Hermana. I should've been more careful."
"I should have been." Boscha insisted. "I don't like this... I don't wanna be this... I don't want you getting hurt because of me."
"I can help with that."
Before she could turn around, Kevin struck the back of her head with a leather sap, knocking her out. He then grabbed Luz, threatening her at knife point once again.
"GET AWAY FROM MY DAUGHTERS!" Armed with Luz's bat, Camila charged at the Demon Hunter leader.
"Okay, I am done with this." Kevin drew a spell circle, then fired it at Camila. With that, he was able to levitate her and fling her into the nearby bushes.
"Mom!" Luz wanted to go after her, but couldn't break free of her captor's grip.
Kevin was exhausted, but determined to put an end to this skirmish. "NOW then, before I was so rudely interrupted; drop the weapons and surrender before I flense your little friend here!"
The four remaining witches did as they were told as the hunters tied them up. They then gathered Boscha and Gus and threw all seven kids back into the house.
"Now let's get this house somewhere out of the public eye." Kevin ordered.
"What about the mom?" Delilah asked.
"Who cares?" Kevin groaned. "Just leave her. It's been a busy night as is."
The Demon Hunters managed to secure the Owl House to their carriage and promptly left the scene.
It was about that time that Camila had come to. She stumbled a bit, and then bolted back onto the battlefield, only to find it empty. No kids, no hunters, no house. Merely a few discarded weapons, the baseball bat... and a few of Luz's glyphs?
She was going to make those hunters pay.
"Soooo... what's happening?" Gabe asked.
"Eda's losing." King said, calmly.
Eda, who's eye was about to twitch shut, growled at them.
"Shut up!" Eda said, "I am under a LOT of stress!"
As she said that, feathers came out and covered her entire arm.
"Anyway, I got this guy right where I w-"
"I win!" Tibbles cheered.
"WHAT?!" Eda looked back at the game to see her cards' shredded remains scattered in the air. "How did...?!"
"Looks like you forgot about my wild card." Tibbles boasted as the aforementioned card did a little victory dance.
"Neat!" Gabriel took a picture of it with his phone.
"No!" Eda yelled, "Damn it!"
"Well, looks like I win and as our agreement states, I get whatever I want." Tibbles said.
"Ugh, fine, what do you want." Eda grumbled.
"Hmmmmmm..." The diminutive demon pig mulled over his options. "I want your little bone boy!"
"Hey!" Gabe fumed. "I take umbrage at that! I'm not as skinny as I look."
Tibbles facepalmed. "Not you, the little one!"
Eda brought out her staff. "Okay, enough of this shit. It's welching time!"
Tibbles snapped his fingers and chains wrapped around Eda, making her drop her staff, and since her curse is acting up, she can't use magic. She fell to the ground, unable to do anything.
"Eda!" Gabe said, rushing over trying to pull the chains off.
"You think this will stop me? I can still bite your ankles!" Eda said.
"Oh, I'm not to worried... Eda the Owl Lady." Tibbles said, pulling out Eda's wanted poster, "I know who you are, I wonder how much the coven will pay me to hand deliver you over."
Eda's face dropped at that. Gabe pulled out his knife and tried cutting the chains, only for it to not do anything against the magic chains. He wasn't easily deterred, as he furiously sawed away at the enchanted steel.
Eda was too embarrassed to watch this go on. "Hey, Gabe..."
"Hang on! I think I got these chains figured out." Gabriel switched to whittling at the chains as fast as he could.
"That knife won't be anything but a toothpick by the time you get a scratch on these things." Eda said, "Ugh, I hope Luz and Triclops are okay right now."
The group was trying to break out of the ropes, while Boscha was trying to break from a magic chain herself.
"Damn it, why can't I break out of these?! I uprooted a tree just by leaning against it!" Boscha yelled.
Willow also struggled in vain to escape before pleading with Boscha. "Are you sure you can't... like, superheat through the chains or something?"
"NO!" Boscha roared. "I... sorry. I meant no, I don't know how it happened, so I can't use it on command." Except Boscha did know how it happened. It came from her anger, just like her claws and her magic. Every time her rage got the better of her, people got hurt. Luz, especially. Boscha couldn't stand the thought of hurting her sister, even if by accident. And to avoid that, would she refrain from using her magic ever again?
"Don't worry, Hermana." Luz reassured her. "We'll think of something else." She then kicked the front door. "Hooty! Snap out of it and get us out of here!"
The house demon was still entranced. "In order for me to do as you say, let seven join hands. It's the only way!"
¡OYE, No me hables así!" Luz then kicked the front door even harder.
The house stopped and they all jerked, before the door opened. The six tied up in the rope were taken out, while Boscha was dragged out and put near the leader. He put a knife near her neck.
"Ifrit... those are a pretty rare demon... you certainly will make far more than that human will." He said, before turning to the others, "Toss the kids off the cliff, I want to savor carving this one."
"No!"
A cloth gag was put over Boscha's mouth, while the others were taken close to the cliff.
"W-w-wait, you don't want to do this, right!?" Luz yelled.
"Surely you must have dreams that you want to accomplish!" Gus added. "Is this really what you want to be doing with your life?"
"Actually, yes!" Tom said. "Pushing kids off of cliffs has been my dream ever since I was a child."
Everybody stared awkwardly at the hunter. "You have some serious issues." Amelia chided.
"Who are you, my parole officer? WHEEEEE!" That's when he pushed them off the cliff.
Boscha's eyes went wide and she let out a muffled scream as she watched her sister being pushed off a cliff to her certain death. Boscha felt the rage build up, against her will, in her and she felt the cloth burn away. She let out a deep growl, and her teeth sharpened, before she bit down on the chains and broke them apart with her teeth. She stood up and spit out the now molten metal. Her claws came out and her eyes went red.
"Uh-oh." Kevin began to think that he was underprepared for dealing with this specimen. Fortunately for him, Boscha didn't waste any time on him and made a beeline to the cliff, knocking down every other hunter in the way.
"LUZ! SKARA! ANYBODY!" Boscha peered over the cliff for any sign of them. She looked around frantically, scared that the worst case scenario had come to pass.
"¡Aquí abajo, Hermana!" Her eyes followed Luz's voice down to the cliffside, where Willow and Amelia had summoned a patch of vines to catch the group.
Skara waved to her. "Yeah, we're good!"
Boscha breathed a sigh of relief. She was not looking forward to explaining to all their families that they fell to their deaths. Not a good way to cap off a slumber party.
"NOOOO!" Tom cried. "Why must you stomp on my dreams?!"
Boscha responded with a devastating punch to his face. The skin of his face rippled violently as bone and teeth cracked from the sheer force of the attack. His body was sent sailing back and landed in front of the other hunters.
"GAH! They're CHILDREN, Tom!" Kevin wasn't impressed with his cohort. "Whatever! Everybody get the Ifrit girl!"
Boscha clenched her fists, covering the other kids as they made their way back up the cliff. No matter what, she wasn't going to let her new friends and her sister get hu-
"¡OIGAN, PENDEJOS!"
Everybody looked back towards the Owl House to see an angry and disheveled Camila, bat in hand and staring a hole in Kevin. "I'll thank you to leave those kids alone and piss off!"
Kevin and the hunters all laughed at her bravado. "And why should we?"
"Because I asked so nicely." Camila unwaveringly replied. She pivoted the bat in her hand, revealing the light glyphs that Luz had lost. Her daughters noticed the glyphs and immediately stood down. Boscha had reverted to her normal state without even realizing it.
Kevin still wasn't intimidated. "And just who the hell do you think you are?"
Camila tapped all of the glyphs. Light poured forth from the bat, culminating in an enormous lightsaber approximately ten meters in length. In spite of its size and force, it was light enough to wield with little effort.
"Who am I?" She sneered as she swung her giant weapon.
"I."
"Am."
"Their."
"CHAPERONE!"
The hunters were all caught in her swing. Even poor Tom had made it back to his feet just in time to get caught in the attack. The nomadic thugs were all sent flying into the night sky.
Camila watched them all disappear with a twinkle in the air. "They'll be fine."
"MOM THAT WAS AWESOME!" Luz ran up to her with the rest of the kids in tow.
"Well, I wasn't little league coach for nothing."
Luz suddenly understood where her baseball skills came from.
"Yeah, cute... can we go before they come back?" Boscha asked.
"Yes, everyone in the house." Camila said.
The kids scrambled into the house and held hands.
"Hooty, get back to the spot you came from!" Luz said.
Gabe was moving to literally stabbing the chain... it was as effective as the first several attempts.
"For the love of Titan... will you stop!? These are magic chains, only magic can get rid of them!" Eda snapped, "Ugh, this whole night was a fucking waste of time."
"I swear I got this!" Gabe wouldn't give up. Not if he wants to impress Eda.
"King, you mind giving me a hand here?" The Owl Lady yelled.
The small demon was sitting on the counter of Tibbles' stand, clad in a little sailor suit. ""King?" Who is this "King" of which you speak? I go by "Little Bone Boy" now."
Eda became indignant. "Why do you have to be so uppity with me?!"
"I think he's still ticked that you gambled him away." Gabe answered as he took a break from sawing away at the chains.
"Well, in my defense, I was sure I was gonna win." Eda explained.
King turned away from her.
'Ugh, fine, I'll swallow my pride... just this once.' Eda thought.
"King... Look, I know I have a problem. I get obsessed with Hexes Hold'em. But I'm done with that stupid game. Look." Eda scooted over and ate the deck of cards.
"Promis?" King asked.
Eda swallowed the cards, and gagged a bit, before looking at King.
"Promise." Eda said, "Ugh, I'm never eating cards again."
King kicked off the ankle chain and stood up.
"Alright, I'll grab one of those elixirs and we can get out of here."
"Bone boy!" Tibbles said, coming back to the trio, "The Coven is on their way and..."
Eda stopped listening, as she felt something shaking the ground. She quickly realized what it was, as a giant bird foot slammed through the stand.
"Sorry!" Luz said, "I'm sure my sister can fix that!"
"Fuck that, that's their problem!" Boscha said.
Eda just looked on in shock.
"... Was that my house?"
"Eda, quick!" King yelled, throwing an elixir at Eda.
Eda caught it in her mouth and drank the entire thing. The feathers disappeared and she made a spell circle, making the chain disappear.
"NO!" Tibbles yelled, "You aren't going to leave after all-"
Tibbles was cut off as a sharp pain hit his side. Eda looked on in surprise at Gabe plunging his knife into Tibbles side.
"Hey, Eda, why don't you go grab some of those cases of elixir, while I debate on making this little piggy into bacon?" Gabe asked.
Eda smirked.
"Well... don't mind if I do." Eda said, heading to the back, "Keep this up... and I might let you actually take me out on a date."
'Fuck yeah!' Gabe thought, 'Just for that, I might let this bastard live.'
The group had arrived at the location the Owl House originally sat before the conjuring and placed it back down. All of them were exhausted, and Boscha... she was traumatized.
'That's the second time I've done something that hurt or scared Luz because of these powers... why did I have to be this... demon... why couldn't I have just been a normal human?' Boscha thought, looking at Cat dealing with Luz's hand, 'I... I'm never using my ifrit powers again.'
"Snail for your thoughts?"
Boscha was jolted back into reality when Skara sat next to her. "SkARa!" She was back to being flustered, which surprised her in light of the night's events. "I, uhh... I'm so sorry this Conjuring went south. Then I get a bunch of superpowers and freak everyone out. I totally screwed everything up."
"Tch! The hell you did!" Willow sat with Boscha as well. "We got to play with weapons!"
"We brought a whole freaking HOUSE to life!" Amelia joined in.
"We defeated a horde of Demon Hunters!" As did Gus.
Skara put a hand on Boscha's shoulder. "And none of us are "freaked out" by your natural abilities. We've met Ifrits before, y'know. And getting to reunite with someone I thought I lost... best Conjuring ever."
And if the night wasn't enough of an emotional roller-coaster, now Boscha was weeping tears of joy.
"Awwwww" Cat had overheard the conversation while healing Luz. "I'm so happy those two found each other. To think Amelia and I were trying to convince Skara to move on before all this."
Luz watched the other witches interacting with one another. "Yeah, things turned out great. Still, I'm kinda glad we didn't drag Amity into this. I doubt she needs any more grief.
The Blight Industries building was brimming with activity. The stage was set for another product showcase. Hundreds of witches and demons adorned with cloaks - and a few "hex me" signs - gathered in front of the stage, greatly anticipating tonight's show.
Backstage, Amity was fidgeting with that sketch of Luz she meant to throw away. She was gonna get right on that, but things kind of got in the way, and now she has another showcase to muddle through. Her hands were tied. Just then, she could hear her father clearing his throat. Better pocket that drawing for now to look at - that is, dispose of - later.
"Mittens, are you feeling better?" Alador asked his daughter.
Amity sighed. "A little bit."
"Well, these new security measures are fully automated, but the magic missiles haven't been installed yet and they only have enough magic infused in them for short-range fire breath." He explained. "Just pretend to fight and feign unconsciousness, and they should leave you alone."
"Fan-tastic." She muttered to herself.
Soon enough, the lights went down and the stage lit up. Odalia made her usual grand entrance to the applause of the crowd.
"Welcome, one and all, to a very special Blight Industries showcase!"
Amity scoffed at her mother's bluster. After all, this was, what, the seventy-fifth consecutive "very special" showcase? Yet the audience laps it up, as per usual.
After a half hour or so of monologuing, the actual showcase was underway. As Amity took her place on the stage, she walked by her mother, who aggressively reminded her to "make it look good." A spotlight shone upon the part of the platform opposite Amity, and out stepped three quadrupedal abominations, partially encased in something metal.
"And now, presenting Blight Industries' newest innovation: THE ABOMOYED!" Odalia gestured to the canine-adjacent abominations as the crowd applauded.
"These new abominations are the pinnacle of home security. Unlike your standard abomination, the Abomoyed are powered by special rune engines, meaning that they can function independently and indefinitely. No summoning or magic consumption required. Their senses are greatly enhanced as well thanks to their engines. And best of all, their quadrupedal designs and smaller size allow for superior speed!"
Odalia then took out a remote control. With the press of a button, the three Abomoyed instantly surrounded Amity. The Blight matriarch continued with the presentation.
"But if you think that's the limit of their capabilities, then wait till you see this next feature!" The mouths of the Abomoyed started to glow. "Through a happy little accident, the output of the Abomoyed engines can coalesce into bursts of energy for offensive purposes. Behold their FIRE BREATH!"
The creatures did indeed spew fire from their mouths. True to Alador's word, Amity was out of the range of the fire. Although the heat was a bit much. "Oh NO! these new abomiNATIONS are too strong." Amity delivered her proprietary acting performance. "Anyone WHO orders one of THESE will ENjoy a life of seCURity."
Odalia scanned the crowd. There were a few nods of approval and some cheers, which was hardly the reaction she expected. She turned up the dial on her remote, which intensified the Abomoyed's attacks. Amity tried to dodge, but they managed to kick or tackle her. One of the modified abominations bit down on her neck and tossed her aside with its jaw. The roar of the crowd blinded Odalia to what her daughter was going through.
Amity shakily rose to her feet, dazed by the attacks she endured. Looking at the stage floor she noticed her sketch of Luz that apparently fell from her pocket. She lunged for it without thinking, but the Abomoyed weren't finished with her. She barely avoided their fire breath. Her sketch wasn't so fortunate. Odalia's prattling, the crowd cheering and the growls of the Abomoyed slowly faded from Amity's mind as her caricature of Luz was reduced to ash. Par for the course, right? Why try to have nice things when your family seems hell bent on destroying them. It's just not worth it...
'DON'T'
And now she was hearing things. Luz isn't around at-
'Don't EVER say you're not worth anyone caring about you! You don't deserve to be treated this way! NO ONE DOES!'
Right, that's what Luz said to her before. Why could Amity remember that moment so vividly? And what's this feeling creeping in her mind?
Whatever it was didn't matter to Odalia, who was still in the middle of her sales pitch. "That's right, folks! The Abomoyed is indeed the zenith of defense hardware! And it can all be yours for the moderate price of-"
"Just a few caveats to mention!"
Everyone in the building turned their attention to Amity, who had just spoken up. "There are some fatal flaws with these new "breakthroughs" in home security."
"Amity Blight, what in Titan's name do you think you're doing?" Odalia whispered through her gnashed teeth.
Amity gave her a blank stare, then resumed her own presentation. "For starters, even though they function independently, they're still abominations. They're virtually powerless against witches skilled in Abomination magic. Like so!" With the twirls of her fingers, she exerted control over one of the Abomoyed and tore it apart with a gesture.
"AMITY!" Odalia screamed.
"Second, the casing for the runestones that power their engines is flimsy and exposed on its back." Amity used the slime from the first Abomoyed to skewer the casing of another, easily taking out the runestone. "Without these, they'll fall apart." And so the second Abomoyed did. "Not an easy mess to clean for non-Abomination witches."
In her fury, Odalia turned the dial up so hard, she ripped it off the remote. The remaining Abomoyed charged up a more intense fire breath.
It wouldn't get the chance to use it, as Amity used her abomination matter to clamp its mouth shut. "And finally, the engines have no vents, save the mouth used for its fire breath. The output from the engines to maintain these smaller abominations is so intense that it's prone to overheating. And that's with the fire breath ability." The Abomoyed began to swell and glow red. "Without it, I wouldn't want this thing in my house." The creature exploded, leaving a giant, smoldering crater in the center of the stage.
"Make your orders now, folks." Amity quipped as she went backstage.
Odalia was paralyzed with rage when her daughter walked up to her. "You little... do you know what you've done? How much you cost m- this family?!"
"No." The young Blight had an empty look on her face. "Don't care."
Her answer was hardly satisfactory for Odalia. "Amity Blight, what has gotten into you?! All those snails down the shitter, and for WHAT?! I will not tolerate these outbursts! You... you..."
"What? WHAT?!" Amity was in no short supply of pent-up aggression. "What are you gonna do? Deny me the friends I want? Have Hermonculus tattle on me? Force me to study every waking moment I can? Let Edric and Emira walk all over me with impunity? How exactly do you plan to fuck up my life any more than it already is? Oh, is it more of these stupid showcases? Because I can not WAIT for the next one!" She then took her leave as her mother was too flabbergasted to try and stop her.
A few minutes later, Odalia glowered at her husband. "And just when did you plan to help me out here?"
"It's just incredible." Alador was writing in his notepad. "I never even considered the extent of the overheating problem. Mittens really has a knack for invention, don't you think so, dear?"
Odalia could only facepalm in defeat.
The door opened to the owl house and Eda, King, and Gabe walked inside.
"So... would someone like to explain why my house just took a walk down third street!?" Eda yelled.
"Well... the conjuring was a bit... wild." Luz said.
"Wild? Wild!? You animated my house! Do you have any idea how..." Eda grabbed Luz by the shoulders, "Awesome that is!? I am so joining you for the next conjuring!"
"W-w-what?" Luz said, "So, you're not mad that we kind of made a mess of your house?"
"Oh no, I'm furious, you're all going to be cleaning it up." Eda said, summoning a mop and bucket, for the group, "Now off with you."
The group went to go clean... it was their mess after all. Eda took a seat on the couch and closed her eyes.
"I'm exhausted." She said.
"I take it that the night market was a bit... exciting?" Camila asked.
"You could say that." Gabe said, wiping the blood off his knife, "A house? They animated a house?"
"Yeah... that takes some serious magic." Eda said, "And something tells me that a large part of it came from the Triclops."
Eda looked over at the group, briefly seeing Boscha's eyes change to red before returning to normal.
'She hasn't even reached her true strength.'
It was then that Eda remembered something else. "Oh yeah! Tio guy, Cami said you could do something with this." She handed Gabe one of her elixirs. "Something about throwing an engine in reverse, or whatever?"
"Reverse engineer a magic potion?" Gabriel's eyes began to sparkle. "This is the best day ever." He took out his fanny pack and put in the elixir, a baggie containing the blood he wiped and a light-pink tuft of hair.
Camila noticed the latter item. "Gabe, what did we discuss about taking specimens?"
"What?" Her brother-in-law whined. "It was self-defense! Well, her self anyway." He gestured to Eda.
Camila looked at the Owl Lady, who merely shrugged. "It's true. He kinda helped save the day, really."
"Is that true, Tio?!" Luz took a break from cleaning to listen to his story, as did Boscha.
"It's all true, Chicas." Gabe boasted. "Your uncle fought a ferocious demon! He almost got us, too. Eda and little Mal0 were all chained up, and it fell to ME to free them. Then I felled the monster with my trusty blade!"
Eda and King had a good laugh at that. "Okay there, Demon Hunter." Eda jested. "Let's not overwhelm the poor kids."
"Oh, gosh!" Luz shouted. "Speaking of Demon Hunters, we ran into some! And you should've seen what Mom did to'em!"
All eyes were on Camila, who looked a little embarrassed. "Well, it was a team effort."
"Yeah, but you took'em all out at once." Boscha added. "She used some of Luz's glyphs to turn a bat into a giant... lightsaber thing!"
"And then she took a big swing and they were all "BOOOSSHHHH" and then "WAAAAUUUUUGGHHHHHHH!"" Luz pantomimed the Hunters flying into the unknown.
Eda's face was incredibly flushed. "Damn, Cam. You're just full of surprises."
"LUZ!" Gus cried out. "You gotta see this!"
Luz and Boscha rejoined the other teens, who were huddled around Skara, who was holding a scroll.
"You know, I could've sworn I told you all to clean the house." Eda called to them.
"Sorry, Ms. Eda." Skara called back. "I just got a huge notification on Penstagram. It's about Amity!"
"Amity?!" That was more than enough to pique Luz's interest. As she and Boscha saw the scroll, they noticed that it operated much like a phone, as Skara scrolled through pictures of the night's Blight Industries showcase. Picture after picture showed Amity decimating her father's inventions in front of her frustrated mother. This shocked the kids, who all looked at each other in disbelief. And it was on that night that a cry rang throughout the Boiling Isles...
"WHAT?!"
Someone needs to make Garth a TVTropes Page, they are a great author/artist. Follow, Favorite, and Review for more.
Edit: Garth pointed out that I missed a section of the chapter, so I had to put that in. Don't format when exhausted... you make a lot of mistakes.