Luz sighed to herself as she looked up at the ceiling of her bedroom. She had woken up from her nap about a half hour ago, but hadn't bothered moving, opting instead to get lost in her thoughts. What else was there to do? She couldn't leave the owl house until her medicine was ready anyway, so she might as well just relax. This thought process however was very out of character for the human witch. Normally a situation like this would be torture for her, and she would be trying to find ways to occupy herself.

But this was far from a normal situation, and she was far from a normal state of mind. She knew she needed to stay positive for both her own sake and her family's. But no matter how hard she tried, the intrusive thoughts of all the bad things she could do as a werewolf stuck to her mind like glue. It was upsetting her and driving her crazy at the same time.

She groaned in frustration as she sat up. Stringbean, who had been resting on her stomach, sat up and looked at her with concerned eyes.

Luz gave a reassuring smile and scratched her palisman under the chin. "It's alright, girl. I just have a lot on my mind, that's all. You know, with being a werewolf and all."

Stringbean reached over to the nightstand and grabbed Luz's phone before pulling up google translate. One thing the human witch had taught her palisman to do was use the app's audio feature to communicate with her, and it was times like this that made the snake shifter thankful for it.

'You're still nervous?' Stringbean typed.

Luz nodded. "I think I always will be. I just wish I could get it out of my head. The last thing I need is to be constantly worrying when Eda starts training me, especially since a lot of it involves mind over matter."

'I think it's just because you haven't started training yet. Once you do, it'll get easier.'

"You think so?"

Stringbean nodded. 'Yeah. You can always ask Eda too. You know she's there for you, and so is everyone else. They're all determined to keep anything bad from happening. You just need to be determined too.'

"I am, don't get me wrong. I just know there is always a chance something could go wrong, that I could do something horrible, and it just kills me."

Now Stringbean frowned. 'That's not determination. That's you being doubtful. Will you stop being so pessimistic? You only ever do that with yourself, and that's not right. What ever happened to your confidence?'

Luz sighed and rubbed her temples. It was true. Whenever she was helping someone, she would always be positive and optimistic to cheer them up. But when it came to herself, it couldn't be any more different. It was common for her to think she wasn't good enough, and she never gave herself enough credit. This was not something she could afford at a time like this, and deep down, she knew that.

"You're right." She said. "Titan, I need to stop doing that. Why am I even thinking like that anyway? I know I can do this, Amity and Eda helped me see that, so why am I still having doubts?"

'Because you're afraid.' Stringbean typed. 'And it's okay to be afraid. At the same time though, you can't let your fear get to you. If you do, it'll just hold you back. You need to be strong and confident like you always are.'

The snake shifter paused before typing again. 'You helped make everyone else's lives better. Why not do the same for yourself?'

Luz nodded. "Again, you're right. I worry so much about helping others that I hardly ever help myself. It just feels like it would be selfish if I did, you know?"

Stringbean shook her head. 'It's not selfish. You're just taking care of yourself, and there's nothing wrong with that.'

Luz smiled. "Yeah, that's a good way to think about it. I'll try that. Actually, I'll try that right now."

The human witch let out a sigh and sat up more straight. "Alright. You got this, Luz. You've gotten out of tough spots like this before, so you can do it again. Amity, Eda, mom, they all believe you can do it. Show this curse what it means to mess with you."

Stringbean beamed before morphing into a tiny wolf and letting out a howl. Her owner laughed.

"Oh, come here, you little goofball!"

The snake shifter hissed happily as Luz hugged her and she nuzzled in return. It made her so happy to see the confidence in her owner return, and it gave her energy and strength as well. When they parted, she hovered over to the wardrobe and opened it, hissing eagerly.

Luz smiled. "That's a good idea, girl. A new look for the new me, and I think I have a few ideas on what I could wear."

…

The human witch couldn't help but feel proud of herself as she looked into the mirror, really happy with the getup she had chosen for herself. She was wearing her favorite pair of blue jeans along with a black tee shirt that displayed a wolf in front of the full moon. Hunter had given it to her for her eighteenth birthday, and it was perfect to show off her newfound confidence in herself. She also decided to wear her beanie just for the heck of it.

"Hmmm, you think I should grow my hair out too?" She said to Stringbean.

The snake shifter nodded and typed on her phone. 'Absolutely! You looked great with long hair in your titan form! Just past your shoulders would be the perfect length! Though I wouldn't grow it out more than that. Really long hair just doesn't fit you.'

"Yeah, I agree. What about you, Hooty?"

She turned to face the house demon who had just entered through her window. Needless to say, he looked surprised and confused.

"How did you know I was here?" He asked.

"I have super hearing now." Luz replied. "It's a long story, but something tells me you already know that."

Hooty frowned and nodded. "Yeah, Eda told me and Lulu everything. I'm really sorry about what happened, Luz. I can't believe you got infected with lycanthropy of all things. You must be so scared..."

The human witch sighed and nodded back. "Yeah, but I'm gonna try to stay positive and not let it keep me down. It's the only way I can get through this."

Now Hooty smiled. "Well, you won't do it alone! I had Amity bring me here so I can keep an eye on you! I'll stay here at the owl house until you're all better!"

"Really?"

"Of course! That's what friends are for! Hoot!"

Luz gave a big smile and hugged her friend. "Thanks Hooty, that means so much to me."

"You're welcome!" The house demon said as he wrapped around her to hug back. "We'll hang out and chat just like we used to!"

"Darn straight! Hey, you said you came back with Amity, right?"

"Yep! She was just walking in when I came to see you!"

"Great, I'll head down now then. And listen, feel free to let me know if you have any ideas to help me out. You helped Eda with her curse after all, so maybe you can do the same for me."

Hooty beamed. "Of course, Luz! I won't let you down! Hoot-Hoot!"

He dashed out through the window he came from. A few seconds later, his voice was heard again.

"Oh! A bug!"

Luz snickered. "Don't ever stop being you, Hooty. Come on, Stringbean. Let's go downstairs and see what everyone's cooked up. I want to show them my new look anyway."

The snake shifter nodded eagerly and hopped onto her shoulder. The human witch mentally reassured herself one last time before exiting her room and making her way downstairs. When she reached the living room, she saw that everyone had indeed returned and were currently unpacking the items that they had gotten. Seeing all of this made Luz smile. Everyone was playing their part in helping her, and she felt more determined to not let them down.

Camila was the first one to notice her, and smiled widely at her attire.

"Oh Mija, I love that look." She said as she walked up and gave her a hug.

Everyone else smiled as well upon seeing the human witch, and it wasn't just because of her new outfit. She just overall looked more comfortable and accepting of her curse. And while there was still a hint of fear in her eyes, the positive and upbeat Luz they knew was starting to shine through, and it was something that warmed their hearts.

Amity ran up to her and kissed her on the cheek. "I agree. You look great, Batata."

Luz blushed. "Heh, thanks. I mean, things are changing for me now, so why hide it?"

"That's the spirit, kiddo." Eda said as she put her arm around her. "You just took your first step to mastering your curse, accepting it. And now that we have everything we need for your medicine, we can start getting to the fun stuff."

"We still need to make it, Eda." Amity said. "And we can't rush it either. Lilith said the formula and amount we use has to be just right for it to work. If we use too much, it could cause Luz to have a bad reaction."

Raine nodded in agreement. "Precisely. We need to be extremely careful with this and double check every step of the process. It might be tedious, but it's all for Luz's health and safety."

"And I'm not about to let anything bad happen to her." Vee said as she put her arm around her sister, causing her bottom lip to start quivering.

Willow giggled. "You've always been a big softie, Luz."

"Shut up." The human witch whimpered.

Amity frowned however. "I'll protect Luz with all my heart too, but we also need to be a little real here."

"Come on, Amity." Hunter said. "This is not the time to be pessimistic."

"Yeah, Amity." Masha said. "That's not like you."

The purple haired witch shook her head. "It's not that. When I spoke with Lilith, she told me something that was…hard to swallow, but it's something we all need to be aware of."

Everyone motioned for her to continue, so she did.

"She said that, despite all the precautions we're taking, there's really no way to know for sure what's going to happen. We're dealing with a lot of unknowns here, and there will likely be mistakes and errors along the way. Some may even lead to Luz losing control. I'm not trying to discourage you all by saying this. I know we can still do this. What I'm saying is, we need to be prepared for those bumps in the road."

The room was dead silent. Nobody really knew what to say. This was something that had been lingering at the back of their minds, and they didn't want to think about it, but they couldn't put it off any longer. This was a truth they had to acknowledge and accept. They were basing their methods off of legends and folklore that were likely outdated in some aspects. So all they could really do was make educated guesses on how they were going to help Luz. And like any process, there were bound to be some mishaps along the way, some major ones, and those could indeed make the human witch lose control of her curse. As much as they wanted to prevent that from happening, it may be a matter of when she'll lose control rather than if.

Luz tensed for a moment before shaking her head and speaking. "It's either that, or we do nothing. And I sure as heck am not planning on doing the latter."

Everyone's eyes widened. They knew how scared she had been about her curse, so they weren't expecting her to say that.

"You're okay with this, Luz?" Eda asked.

The human witch shook her head again. "No, but I'm gonna do it anyway. I…I know it's possible, maybe even likely that I'll lose control, and I know there's a chance I could hurt one of you if I do. I hate that, and it terrifies me. But at the same time, I can't let that stop me. You guys want to help me, and you're doing so much to make that happen. It would be selfish if I rejected that because I was afraid for your safety, not to mention stupid. You guys know the risks and the potential consequences, but you're doing it anyway. You're willing to stand up and face those odds…for me."

She started crying, but not because she was sad. She was crying because she was happy, happy that she was surrounded by people who loved her. People who were willing to potentially risk their lives for her, and wouldn't hate her if the worst did happen. The people who had now gathered around her for a group hug, further cementing this.

"Of course we're willing to do this for you, Mija." Camila said. "We love you, and we as a family will stick together no matter what. To hell with el lobizon. It can do whatever it wants, but it will never tear us apart, in both senses of the word."

"Same here." Willow said. "It's gonna take a lot more than a lycanthrope to scare me, especially when it comes to my best friend."

"And I used to fight wolf-like creatures all the time." Hunter said. "Maybe not a lycanthrope, but it won't be much different. I can handle anything your beast form throws at me to keep you and everyone else safe."

Luz gave a soft laugh. "I'll bet me being a werewolf makes me even cooler to you now."

The grim walker chuckled. "Heh. Yeah I'll admit, I did geek out a little when Willow told me about your new power."

"You're not the only one!" King said. "I think it's awesome too! Just think of all the crazy things we can do now, Luz!"

"Same here!" Gus said. "I think it only further shows just how tough you are, Luz. There really is nothing that can keep you down. Besides, who gets to say they're friends with a lycanthrope?"

"I know, right?" Masha said. "I'm like Hunter right now. I'm just geeking out on the inside!"

Vee rolled her eyes. "Of course you would."

"Are you really surprised? It's me, remember?"

Raine chuckled. "Now, now. You're not the only ones. I think Luz being a lycanthrope is quite fascinating myself, and I mean that in a good way."

"Can I join your hug?"

The group turned to see Hooty at the door, and they all smiled.

"You think we would say no?" Eda asked. "Bring it in, pal!"

The house demon rushed forward and wrapped himself around the group, causing everyone to laugh. As they did, Luz looked around and smiled widely at the people she was lucky to call her family, feeling incredibly blessed to have them in her life.

She then felt a kiss on her cheek and turned to see Amity giving her a loving smile.

"Are you feeling better?" She asked.

"The human witch smiled back and kissed her on the lips."

"Much better, Mi Amor. I know this isn't going to be easy, but I know I can get through it, because I have you and everyone else."

The purple haired witch smiled wider and hugged her, but it was more of reassurance for herself rather than her girlfriend. Because underneath that smile, there was still a typhoon of fear going on. A fear of the unknown future, and what may come with it.

Please, Titan. She thought. Keep Luz safe, and give me the strength to get her through this.