Amity's mind was a whirlwind as she touched down in front of Blight Manor, still trying to process just how dramatically things had changed in just a single night. Her girlfriend was now a werewolf. And while she fully intended on keeping the promise she made to her, she was still terrified for her to say the least.

She knew from Eda's experience just how difficult a curse like Luz's could be to live with, and how it could affect a person both physically and mentally. The last thing she wanted was for her girlfriend to go through that experience. The thought felt like a thousand pound weight on her shoulders, and it was starting to take its toll. Even though Luz was trying to be positive at breakfast, Amity could tell she was still distraught about the whole ordeal, and seeing this was like a dagger to the purple witch's heart. She really needed the support of her father and siblings at that moment.

She quickly dismounted Ghost, the palisman changing back to her animal form, and headed up to the door to ring the bell. It only took a few seconds for her older sister, Emira, to answer it, and she greeted her with a warm smile.

"Hey, Mittens!" She said. "So how did the hunt go last night? Tell me everything!"

Amity was trying hard to compose herself, but her defenses were weakening. "Emira, I need to talk to you, Edric, and Dad right now. Something has happened."

Her sister's smile immediately faded. "What's wrong? What happened?" She asked as she put her hand on her sister's shoulders.

The purple haired witch's defenses were weakening even further, and tears started to form in her eyes. "The animal we were after turned out to be a lycanthrope. We tried to fight it, but Luz…Luz was bitten and…and now she's cursed to be one herself."

Her sister gasped in shock. Had she heard that right? "A-Are you serious?"

Amity nodded, and at that point she couldn't hold it in anymore. She threw her arms around her sister and began sobbing. Emira instantly hugged her back. Her sister and Luz had seen many crazy things on their adventures together, but this was the last thing she was expecting to hear.

"Oh my titan. Amity, I'm so sorry." She said. "Poor Luz. She must be so scared right now."

"She is. She's afraid that she'll hurt someone…or even worse, and I'm terrified of what would happen if she does. You know how Luz is with this stuff, Emira. If she did hurt someone, it would devastate her, and she may just lose hope. I can't let that happen, Sis. I just can't!"

She continued to sob and Emira continued to hug her. She placed a loving kiss on her forehead and spoke again. "It's okay, Mittens. I'm here. I know this is scary, but I also know you and Luz will figure out a way to get through it. In fact, knowing you, you already have. Am I right?"

Amity sniffed and nodded. "Yes, but I can't do it without your help."

Her sister smiled and nodded back. "Well, that's what family is for. Come inside and sit down. I'll go get Edric and dad."

….

Before long, the whole Blight family was seated in their living room, minus Odalla of course. After the defeat of Belos, she was arrested and imprisoned for helping the emperor in addition to various other crimes. Amity would be lying is she said it wasn't satisfying to watch her 'mother' being taken away by the authorities, but now wasn't the time for that. There were much more serious issues to discuss.

The purple haired witch brought her family up to speed on everything that happened the previous night. The encounter with the werewolf, Luz getting bitten, and the plan she and everyone else had to help the human witch adjust to her new life. She had to pause several times throughout as she was still very emotional, but Emira would rub her back and whisper reassuring words to her every time she did, while Ghost would snuggle and purr against her. This helped make her feel better.

When she was finished telling her story, her family all shared the same expressions of shock and disbelief on their faces. Like her, they too had heard the stories of the lycanthropes, but they had always thought of it as a thing of the past. At least until now.

Alador was the first to speak as he rubbed his temples. "I don't even know what to say. I always thought the lycanthropes went extinct many years ago. But now you're saying that not only are they still around, but the savior of the Boiling Isles herself has been infected with their curse."

"Why did it have to be Luz of all people?" Edric asked. "I mean, doesn't she deserve a break after everything she's been through?"

Amity nodded her head while trying to hold back more tears. "That's what everyone is saying, and you're right. It just isn't fair. Why does she keep getting punished for all the good things she does?"

Emira sighed. "This may sound messed up, but that's exactly the reason. If you're someone like Luz, you tend to put yourself under fire more often than others, and you're not always going to escape unscathed."

She then perked up. "But I agree that we can help Luz. If anyone is capable of controlling and mastering lycanthropy, it's her."

"I second that." Alador said. "And I think this plan you have for a containment chamber is sound. The only question is, how are we going to make it?"

"I have a few ideas" Amity said. "And I drew some basic blueprints to show you."

She then walked over to her father and handed him a few sheets of paper. As he looked over them, he scratched his chin as he pondered to himself. His daughter had clearly thought this through (something he was proud of). It was just a matter of what design would work best.

"I think we should go with this dome shaped one." He said. "This chamber design should be able to contain something like a lycanthrope without providing any structural weaknesses."

"Even then though, that might not be enough." Edric said. "If lycanthropes are as formidable as the legends say, we'll need this chamber to be made of the toughest material we can get."

His father nodded. "Agreed, and I'm thinking we will use titansten to make it. It's the strongest metal in the Demon Realm. And while it's not cheap, that won't really be a problem for us. I'm not sure about how to counter a lycanthrope's magic though, so I agree that Amity should go to Lilith to consult her."

"We should go to Darius too." Emira said. "I'm sure he'll be more than happy to help build the chamber."

Alador shook his head. "He left a few days ago for an expedition to chart new islands, remember? He probably won't be back for at least a few months."

"Oh, right."

"Still though, I'll give him a call and tell him of the situation. I'm sure he can reach out to his contacts to get us the titansten we need."

His face took on a much more confident look. "Yeah, I have no doubt this will work. I'll get started on making detailed blueprints right away. In the meantime, I need you kids to get me some supplies from the market that I'll need. I'll send you a list on your scrolls. If we do this right, Luz will be just fine."

Amity choked and hugged her father. "Thanks, Dad. This means everything to me."

"Anything for you, Mittens." He replied as he hugged her back. "I failed you as a father once before, and I won't make that mistake again. Besides, it was Luz who helped patch things up between us. It's the least I can do for her."

Edric and Emira walked over and joined the hug as well.

"Ditto." The former said. "We all owe Luz big time."

"I agree, but don't say that to her." The latter said. "She'll get all modest and stuff."

Amity smiled. "If she does, I'll smack her. She really needs to give herself more credit."

The family all laughed as they let each other go. The purple haired witch was feeling a lot better now that she had her father and sibling's support.

"Alright." She said as she pulled away. "Emira, Edric, you guys go to the market and get the stuff Dad needs. I'll go and see Lilith. We need to catch up anyway."

"Sure" Emira said. "We'll get over to the market and see what we can find."

"Alright then, race you!" Edric said as he ran out the door.

"Hey! Don't get a heads start, cheater!" Emira yelled as she also ran out.

Amity groaned and rubbed her temples. She loved her siblings, but they also annoyed her to no end. "Those two are just hopeless."

Her father laughed and put his arm around her shoulder. "Don't think too hard about it. They're just trying to lighten the mood to make you feel better."

The purple haired witch sighed. "I know. It's just annoying sometimes, you know?"

"Hey, isn't that what siblings do?"

Now Amity snorted. "Yeah, good point. I guess if they didn't do that, something would be wrong."

"Absolutely. Now go out there and help Luz. I'll head to the lab and start doing my part."

"Alright. Thanks again, Dad."

The purple haired witch hugged her father one last time before heading out.

...

While getting the support from her father and siblings made Amity feel a little better, the pain she felt for her girlfriend was still present in her heart. Why wouldn't it be? Having a loved one be infected by one of the worst curses in Demon Realm history would devastate anyone. As hard as it was however, the purple witch tried her best to keep her mind out of the gutter. Her girlfriend needed her now more than ever, and she needed to try and stay strong, no matter how much it hurt, and hopefully Lilith would be able to help with that. Eda had already called her sister and brought her up to speed on everything, so at least Amity wouldn't have to tell the full story again. She would rather not relive that event yet again.

When the purple haired witch arrived at the museum, Hooty, who had been appointed as the curator, greeted her at the front door. Normally, the house demon was very jovial and upbeat, always trying to brighten everyone's day. This wasn't a normal day however. Today, he had a distressed look on his face as he watched Amity touch down.

The second she did, he burst into tears and coiled himself around her in a hug. "I'm so sorry, Amity!" He shouted. "I can't believe this is happening to poor Luz!"

The purple haired witch hugged him back while also giving a small smile. As much as the house demon annoyed her, he really knew how to be there for someone when it mattered most.

"Thanks, Hooty." She said as she pulled away. "This is hard on all of us, but we can't get all upset now. Luz needs our help now more than ever, so we need to be strong for her."

Hooty sniffed and nodded as he pulled away. "You're right. I'm sorry. I just get emotional when it comes to my friends."

"Anyone would be like that, so you're not alone. Like I said though, we need to stay strong for Luz, and keeping a clear head is the only way we'll be able to help her. Can you do that?"

The house demon recomposed himself and nodded. "You bet! Let's go up to Lulu's office so we can start doing just that! I'll give you a lift! Hoot!"

Amity yelped as Hooty lifted her up in the air and carried her inside. She still had no idea how his mood could change on a dime like that, but she gave up trying to figure him out a long time ago. She just accepted he was weird.

….

Lilith was biting her nails and pacing around like a madwoman when Amity and Hooty arrived, and it took them a while to get her to sit down. Like everyone else, Lilith was shocked to hear about Luz's condition when Eda called her, and promised that she would help in any way she could. Unlike everyone else however, her drive to help the human witch was partly fueled by guilt, and Amity couldn't blame her.

It was her after all who had cursed Eda. And even though her sister had since forgiven her and repaired their relationship, she still felt incredibly guilty for all the pain she put her through, and probably felt it was her responsibility to help Luz.

Seeing this, Amity put a reassuring hand on her arm. "Don't do that to yourself, Lilith. What happened to Luz had nothing to do with you."

"Yeah, Lulu!" Hooty said. "It wasn't your fault! It was that stupid lycanthrope's! I swear, when I get my hands on him…"

The historian shook her head. "Don't bother, Hootsifer. That thing is long gone by now. After attacking a human, it will want to stay as far away from civilization as possible."

She then sighed. "And I know it's not my fault. It's just…I've already seen one person I care about suffer because of a curse like this, and now it's happening to another one."

Amity took a deep breath and nodded. "Yes, but that still doesn't mean you should be hard on yourself. That won't solve anything, and we really need you right now. I know this curse can be beaten, but I don't know how to do it. If anyone would however, it's you. You know the history of the lycanthropes better than anyone."

Her mentor took a deep breath as well and nodded back. "'Beaten' is not the word I would use, but I know what you mean, and I agree. It absolutely can be mastered and controlled. You just have to know exactly what to do and what to use. Luckily we already have the first half covered. Eda is the perfect person to teach Luz how to control her new power, and I myself can step in and help too if needed."

"And we're already coming up with ideas for medicine for her if she loses control." Amity said. "Making it however is going to be the tricky part, and we don't want to do anything hasty. That's where you come in. We need to know what formula will work best to suppress Luz's curse."

Lilith nodded again. "You're right to be cautious of how to make it, because doing it wrong could be disastrous. First things first, do you know exactly how lycanthropy works?"

The purple haired witch pursed her lips. "Well, it can be triggered by extreme emotions as well as some potions and magic. Gus also texted me when I was on my way here, and said being hurt by weaknesses like light magic while in human form can trigger a transformation as well."

"All correct." Lilith said. "And that last part is what I was going to get into. You see, lycanthropy doesn't work like Eda's curse does. It infects a person by directly fusing with their body and mind, essentially becoming a part of them. This makes it extremely difficult, if not impossible, to manipulate. In addition, it was made to identify and react violently to anything it perceives as a threat. Potions, spells, etc. could not only make Luz transform, but cause her to go into an animalistic rage. Think of it like your body's immune system reacting to a virus."

Amity's eyes widened. "Wait, so even if I use a basic healing spell on Luz, it could make her lose control?"

Lilith shook her head. "No, those are fine. It's spells and potions that could manipulate the curse that could trigger it. Even the pain share spell won't work. The same goes for Luz's titan form, given the light magic that accompanies it. If she were to try and enter that form now…it would likely be fatal."

The purple haired witch swore to herself. She was considering using the pain share spell as a last resort if Luz truly couldn't control her curse. She was more than willing to accept any consequences for her girlfriend, but now that idea just went out the window. Not only that, but Luz could no longer change into her titan form without putting her life at risk. This was going to make things much more complicated.

Amity sighed. "And I take it the same will happen if we use too much medicine?"

"Yes. It needs to be just the right amount so the curse will see it as more of a sedative than a poison, in a figurative sense of course. Sedatives in general will have no effect."

"Trust me, we learned that the hard way."

Lilith tensed. "I'm sorry, I forgot."

Amity shook her head. "It's okay. Anyway, here's a list of what we plan on using to make the medicine. Raine thinks the lycanthropes may have adapted their magic by mixing it with elements from the human realm. So we're doing the same with the medicine."

Her mentor took her scroll and looked over the list of items. After a few moments of looking it through, she gave a nod of approval. "Raine was smart to think outside the box, because they're right. Just an elixir alone won't do the trick, but mixing it with these items from the human realm most certainly will. Based on this, I would say about eight ounces should be the amount you'll need."

Amity nodded and took her scroll back to type this information in her notes, but there was another thing on her mind.

"What about when it's a full moon?" She asked. "That's when the lycanthrope's power is at its strongest, right?"

Lilith nodded. "Yes, and it's not a small change either. It's a substantial power boost, so you'll definitely need a higher dose of medicine for those situations, at least double the normal amount, but it's hard to determine exactly how much you'll need. Every lycanthrope reacts differently to the full moon, and the amount of medicine given to them during that phase. I'm afraid that part may only be learned through trial and error."

The purple haired witch tensed. That wasn't exactly the answer she wanted to hear, but beggars can't be choosers. She just had to work with what she had.

"Well, that's exactly why I made designs for a containment chamber." She said. "If the worst happens, we can put Luz in a place where she can't hurt herself or us."

"That's a good idea." Lilith said. "But you'll need more than just metal. Even animae lycanthropes can teleport over short distances, and it isn't like the one the Hunter uses. It is legitimate teleportation, and lycanthropes can even use it to go through solid matter, so you'll need something that will make Luz not want to try and escape."

"You mean like a repellent? Masha said they'd try and find some in their research."

"Exactly. A specially enchanted pendant will work well, and luckily we have a spell book that shows how to do this in detail."

She then turned to Hooty. "Hootsifer, would you be a dear and grab that book from the archives?"

"Okay!" The house demon said before taking off. There was a brief moment of silence before Amity walked over and gave Lilith a hug.

"This is probably the fifth time I'm saying this to someone today, but thank you so much for doing this." The purple haired witch said. "This has just been so hard to cope with, and anything that'll make this easier means a lot to me."

Lilith turned around and hugged her back. "It's hard for all of us, Amity, so you're not alone. And I'm telling you this right now, this isn't going to be perfect. Remember, we're dealing with a curse that hasn't been seen in the Demon Realm for five hundred years. Its time in the Human Realm has definitely changed it. And even with human folklore to work off of, it's impossible to know for sure what's going to happen, what will work, and what won't. Slip ups are bound to occur, and I need you to be ready for that. More importantly, I need you to be there for Luz when it does happen."

She hugged her apprentice tighter before continuing. "Don't let that discourage you though. You said it yourself that the curse can be mastered, and you're right. Luz absolutely has what it takes to do that. And with you and the rest of her family at her side, I have no doubt that she will. You just have to be willing to endure the pain."

Amity nodded and looked up at her. "I am. I will take all the pain in the world for Luz. Even without magic, I will find a way to make it easier for her."

Her mentor beamed. "Then you have nothing to worry about."

At that moment, Hooty came back into the office with the enchantment book and handed it over to Amity.

"Thank you, Hooty." She said. "I think this will be a big help."

"You're welcome!" The house demon replied. He then pondered something for a second before continuing. "Hey, would it be okay if I headed back to Eda's place with you? You said we all need to be strong for Luz to get through this, and I want to be there for her to do just that."

Amity smiled and nodded. "I think Luz would really appreciate it. Are you okay with that, Lilith?"

The historian nodded back. "Of course. I'll start doing some more research in the meantime. Might find some things that could be useful. And don't worry, Hootsifer, I'll hold down the fort while you're gone."

The house demon gave a big smile. "Thank you, Lulu! Just let me get into my portable home, and we can head off! I'll be just like old times! Hoot-Hoot!"

He took off once again, and Amity and Lilith couldn't help but chuckle. Hooty was quite the character, but that's what made him so unique.

"You know," The former said. "I've never actually seen him switch between houses. How does he do it?"

Her mentor's smile faded and she actually started to look a little green. "Trust me, Amity, there are some questions you're better off not knowing the answer to."

The purple haired witch frowned. "That bad?"

"You have no idea…" Lilith replied with a shudder.