Happy New Year! Here's my new year's resolution–write more fanfiction!
Let's start with this.
Enjoy!
I do not own "The Owl House."
Chapter 12
A Friend
"Hmm, let's see here." Eda flipped through the papers on the table. "...So, if I do classify King as a pet in the forms…actually, now that I think about it, I could probably get away with classifying Luz as a pet–"
"Eda!"
Eda jumped in her seat and her papers fell to the floor as Hooty suddenly appeared next to her. His freakishly long body stretching through the window in the kitchen and right up into Eda' personal space.
Eda grumbled something mean under her breath before turning toward Hooty with a calm but annoyed look on her face. "Yes, Hooty?"
"We have a visitor, hoot, hoot!" Hooty shouted excitedly.
"Oh, Titan, is it Lilith?" Eda asked. "Oh-no, it's not my mother, is it?"
"No, it's a girl, hoot-hoot," said Hooty. "She has green hair that looks dyed but I didn't comment on it. Oh, and her eyes are golden, a lot like yours, hoot."
"...Wait a minute." Eda's brow furrowed. "Oh, hex no."
She stood up from the table and marched through the living room, passing by King, who was sitting on the couch eating a bag of Chimera chips. Chimera Chips: Now with garlic!
Eda threw open the front door. "Oh, you again."
Amity shrunk beneath Eda's harsh glare. "Um…hello, Ms. Clawthorne," she greeted, remaining brave despite looking nervous. "May I see Luz?"
"Hmm, let me think about it," Eda said. "...I've thought about it. Hooty!"
Amity let out a frightened shout as Hooty swallowed her whole and stretched his body away into the woods.
Eda smiled before closing the door.
She barely made it five steps into the living room before there was a knock on the front door. Curious and surprised, Eda turned back around and opened the door.
Amity was standing at the front door, panting from exhaustion and covered with slime. Hooty was lying in the front yard with smoke coming out of his beak.
"Hooooooooot," the house demon moaned painfully.
"...May I please…speak to Luz?" Amity asked.
"No." Eda drew a magic circle and picked Amity up off the ground with her magic. The young girl screamed in terror as she was launched into the air over the woods beyond the Owl House.
"I hope they don't add 'child murderer' to my public criminal record if that kid dies." Eda walked back inside and closed the door behind her. "That would suck."
She almost made it into the kitchen before there was a knock on the front door again.
"You've gotta be kidding me." Eda stomped up to the door and through it open again, seeing Amity standing there once more, covered in twigs and leaves.
"May I–ow, my arm–speak to Luz, please?"
Eda narrowed her eyes at Amity.
Luz drummed her fingers along her desk and chewed on the end of her pencil. She had been sitting in her room for hours, but no matter how much she contemplated, no matter how hard she thought, her drawing paper remained blank.
She let out a sigh. "This is so frustrating," she grumbled to herself.
There was a knock on her bedroom door before it opened, and Eda poked her head through.
"You still doing homework in here?" Eda asked.
"Oh, no, I finished my homework hours ago," Luz said. "I'm just trying to come up with a new idea for a mask." She made an exasperated noise as she slumped in her chair. "But I'm out of ideas."
"That actually might be a good thing." Eda eyed Luz's wall of masks with concern. "You…hardly need more masks."
"Everyone's gotta have a hobby," said Luz.
"Try sports." Eda sighed and shook her head. "Look, there's someone here to see you. And, try as I may, I couldn't get her to scram. So, she's earned a few minutes of your time."
Luz blinked and looked over at Eda curiously. "Who is it?"
Eda opened the door all the way to reveal Amity.
"Hello, Luz," Amity greeted. She sounded weirdly professional in her tone, like she was making sure to keep her voice neutral.
"Amity?" Luz stood up from her desk chair, blinking a few times in surprise. "What…are you doing here?"
"Well, I–what the hex?" Amity noticed Luz's wall of masks. "That is seriously creepy."
"Right?" Eda asked.
Luz walked up and closed the door on Eda before turning toward Amity with an embarrassed grimace. "Before you judge me, I have nothing to add in my defense."
"I…like your home," Amity offered. "The Owl House is much more…cozy, than I thought it would be." She looked over at the wall of masks. "Although, to be fair, this is a lot more like what I envisioned."
"What are you doing here, Amity?" Luz asked. "Don't get me wrong, it's nice to have you over, but…you can imagine my surprise."
Amity let out a sigh and smoothed out her black shirt. "...A bunch of students from Hexside are going to the Thigh north of the Knee. I thought…maybe you'd like to come."
"The West Thigh?" Luz asked. "Doesn't the West Thigh get, like, super cold and snowy this time of year?"
"It's also the time of year when the Snow Banshees gather around the Knee," Amity explained.
"Snow Banshees?" Luz asked. "Is…is that a thing?"
"Every year, the Snow Banshees migrate to the Knee in order to sing their nocturne." Amity went on. "They fly over the Thigh, singing their melody, it's said to be quite amazing."
"Aren't Banshees, like…extremely dangerous?" Luz asked.
"Actually, they're said to be really passive during their singing season," said Amity. "You won't be in any real danger, I promise. It'll just be cold."
"It's just that…every time you or someone in your family invites me to something, it ends badly," Luz pointed out. "The dragon hunt during the Blue Moon Sabbath, that dinner at your house, that time you pretended to want to hang out and study with me only to offer me up to Lilith like a roast chicken on a plate."
"That's not…I didn't…the dragon hunt wasn't my…and we both know my mom is…I don't even know what a chicken is!"
Amity took a moment to recompose herself. "Look, I'm sorry. For all of that. But this will be different, I promise. No tricks, no strings attached, no Lilith, no annoying siblings or greedy moms. This will…" Amity cleared her throat and set her mouth in a forced, thin line. "This will…be a good chance for us to…finally hang out more. On…better terms this time."
Luz tilted her head curiously.
"Would you like to come or not?" Amity demanded. Her cheeks slightly tinting.
"Well…" Luz smiled. "It would be nice to finally get to hang out with you with any of the fallout."
Amity looked away bashfully. "I…y-yeah, that…that would be–"
She stopped when she noticed something. Amity's gaze focused on the little bookshelf in Luz's room.
"Are those the Good Witch Azura books?" Amity asked. "You read the Good Witch Azura?"
"Oh, yeah, I'm a huge fan of the series!" Luz's eyes widened excitedly. "Wait a minute…are you a fan, too?"
"Uh-uh, I-I…" With a blush on her face, Amity pulled on her collar. "I…read them, yeah." She walked up to Luz's little bookshelf to check out her collection. "Oh, you have the fifth book."
"Oh, yeah, that one's, like, the second best one of the series, it's when Hecate finally–"
"Ah, don't spoil it for me!" Amity blinked and lowered her hands down from her ears. "Uh, I mean." She attempted to shrug casually but it ended up looking weird. "I…I haven't read that one yet. Those books are hard to find."
"Well, if you want, you can borrow my copy." Luz took the book from the shelf and offered it to Amity. "I don't mind, I've read it, like, five times now."
"Oh, um…" Amity took a nervous step back. "I…don't want to impose."
"No, it's cool," said Luz. "Just return it once you're done reading it. I take pride in my collection."
"...I…" Amity took an anxious step back. "No, I-I couldn't."
"Amity–"
"Look, it's tomorrow evening, meet us in front of the Library after hours, we're all leaving as a group after I get off work," Amity instructed. "I…hope you can make it."
"Can Gus and Willow come?" Luz asked.
"Willow?" Amity pursed her lips and glanced to the side. "Eh…y-yeah, sure. Why…why not?"
"Who else is gonna be there?" Luz asked.
"Well, you know Celine, right? From the Oracle Track?" said Amity. "She'll be there, so I'm guessing that Matt kid will be there too. I'm sure Viney will show up. Plus, uh…a few others. I don't know everybody's names."
"Will Edric and Emira be there?"
"No. No they will not," Amity stated firmly, sounding annoyed by the very thought. "I will, though."
"Well then, I'll certainly try to make it." Luz beamed excitedly at Amity. "It definitely sounds awesome. And you and I can finally hang out as friends!"
"Uhhh…" Amity pushed back her hair and bit down on her lip to keep from blushing some more. "Y-yeah, t…totally…bye."
She then raced out of Luz's room. Luz watched her leave, blinking curiously.
Amity groaned softly to herself as she made her way to the exit, running her hands through her green hair.
"...She sleeps in a spiderweb," she muttered to herself. "Who sleeps in a spiderweb?"
She was about to go down the stairs, but let out a startled shout and jumped back when she noticed the Owl Lady blocking her way.
"I'm leaving! I'm leaving!" Amity exclaimed.
With her arms crossed, Edalyn glared down angrily at the youngest Blight.
Amity sighed. "Okay, look. I know you don't like me, and I understand why. But I'm not my mom, alright?"
Eda raised an eyebrow. "Coulda fooled me with that hair."
Amity grimaced as if she had tasted something sour.
"Hey, Mom?"
Amity flinched as Luz appeared next to her.
"Can I go to the West Thigh tomorrow to see the Snow Banshees migrate to the Knee?" Luz asked.
"Snow Banshees?" Eda asked. "They're the most dangerous species of banshee–oh, wait, it's their singing season, they're mostly just horny during the–wait a minute, did she just ask you out on a date or something?"
"NO!"
Eda and Luz stared at Amity, whose face went red after the scream.
"It's actually–" Amity cleared her throat to stop her high-pitched voice. "It's actually a group thing. A bunch of students from Hexside are gonna be there."
"Can I go, Mom? Can I?" Luz begged. "It sounds really cool."
"Since when do you want to socialize?" Eda asked. She then looked over at Amity. "...Oh…of course."
"So, can I go?" Luz asked.
"...Okay, fine," Eda relented. "I've been to plenty of banshee singing seasons, the most dangerous thing to worry about is the cold, honestly."
"Do you go with Raine?" Luz teased.
"Zip it, you."
"She used to date Head Witch Raine Whispers," Luz told Amity.
"No kidding?" said Amity.
"Shoo, Blight. Don't bother me." Eda stepped out of Amity's way. "Leave before I feed you to my house demon."
Amity looked over at Luz. "See you tomorrow?"
"Sí. Nos vemos allí."
Amity blinked. "Uh…yup. See you tomorrow."
She went down the stairs, heading for the exit. Eda looked down at Luz, giving her a funny look.
"What?" Luz asked.
"Her?" Eda asked. "Really?"
"I have no idea what you mean."
"Uh-huh, sure."
Amity walked past by King on her way out, who was still eating chips on the couch.
"Eda doesn't like you," said King.
"Yeah, I noticed," Amity replied sourly.
Amity walked out of the Owl House and headed away. From the shadows of the woods that surrounded the house, a cloaked, masked figure watched her leave.
"Okay, so, just to clarify," Gus said. "This isn't gonna end like the dragon hunt or the trip to that island, is it? Because I would really prefer to just have a calm, easy adventure with no danger or dragons or drug dealers."
"All the banshees are going to do is sing," Luz explained. She adjusted her mask, which she had designed to look like Gangle's comedy mask from the Amazing Digital Circus. "According to Amity, it's going to be beautiful."
"Oh, of course."
Gus and Luz looked over at Willow. As the three of them made their way to the Library, Willow kept a bitter look on her face.
"Because if Amity says so, that it must be true," said Willow. "Right?"
"She's not trying to get me killed," Luz said. "She just wants to hang out. Make up for all of the crappy times."
Willow rolled her eyes. "If you say so."
The three of them arrived at the Library, where a group of students from Hexside were gathered in front of the building. There were about thirty students, all wearing their usual, casual attire, and Luz didn't recognize all of them. She did notice that, true to Amity's word, Celine from the Oracle Track was there. She had a head the shape and color of a crescent moon, with a single, purple eye on the right of her face. The left crescent tip had a yellow ribbon tied to it.
Luz also saw Viney and two of her friends. Boscha's two friends, Skara and Amelia, were also there.
And Boscha was there too.
"Uh-oh," Luz muttered upon seeing Boscha among the group.
"Oh, let me guess, Amity didn't mention that Boscha would be here?" Willow asked.
"Well, uh, no, but," Luz shrugged. "I'm…sure she's not mad at me anymore."
"You!"
Gus stepped backward as Luz and Willow looked over to see Boscha angrily storm up to them.
"How sure are you exactly?" Willow muttered to Luz.
"Don't think I don't know it's you under that stupid mask, human." Boscha grimaced at Luz's mask distastefully. "Why do you even wear those creepy things?"
"Fashion statement?" Luz offered.
"Get lost!" Boscha demanded, angrily pointing her finger back down the road. "It's bad enough I go to school with a human, I don't want you anywhere near me if I can help it."
"Oh, yeah, and you're such a delight to be around," Luz replied with a roll of her eyes.
"Watch it, round ears!" Boscha got ready to draw a magic circle. "Or I swear to Titan, I'll–"
"Boscha, knock it off!"
The group of students parted for Amity, who had just come out of the Library at the end of her shift.
"Amity, why is she here?" Boscha asked.
"I invited her," said Amity.
"You invited her?" Boscha blinked her three eyes. "Why?!"
"I told her about the singing season, and she wanted to come," Amity explained. "So I invited her to join us."
"Seriously?" Boscha complained. "Why are you buddying up to the human?"
"Oh, I don't owe you an explanation." Amity walked past Boscha, who stared at her with a look of incredulity.
Amity walked up to Luz and smiled. "I'm glad you could make it," she said. "I like the mask."
"Thank you." Luz put down her hood and took off her Gangle mask to smile back at Amity. "Made it myself."
Amity looked over at Willow and her smile became more difficult to maintain. "Um…hey, Willow."
"Amity," Willow replied flatly.
"How have you been–"
"We're not doing that."
"Oh." Amity looked away. "Um, okay, sure." She looked over at Gus. "...Augustus."
Gus waved his hand. "Hello."
"Did you guys remember to bring warm clothes?" Amity asked.
Luz raised a duffel bag filled with warm clothes. All of the students had a bag or a backpack filled with warm clothes, Gus and Willow included.
"Great." Amity adjusted her backpack. "Well, let's get going. We have to find a good spot to listen to the banshees."
"Sounds good." Luz pulled her hood back over her head and put her mask back on. "Lead the way."
"We will." Boscha walked up to Amity and crossed her arms. The gesture felt both territorial and condescending to Luz. As if Boscha was trying to establish that both she and Amity belonged to a much higher class way above Luz.
"We lead," said Boscha. "And you just follow behind and keep quiet."
Amity let out an annoyed sigh. "Boscha–"
"Let's go, everyone!" Boscha announced. "The banshees aren't gonna wait for us, so there's not a moment to lose!"
Gus looked over at Willow. "This is going to be kind of exhausting, isn't it?"
"Listening to the banshees sing better be worth having to listen to Boscha bark," Willow grumbled.
The snow fell gently from the darkening sky, creating a calming atmosphere as if it were Christmas Eve. The group had made their campsite near the base of the Knee. They were all bundled up and gathered around a bonfire, sitting in chairs or on a blanket in the snow. Everyone was having a good time as they waited for the banshees to appear, chatting or eating snacks or playing games.
Willow and Luz, wearing thick, winter clothing like everyone else, sat close to the bonfire on a blanket, to stay warm and cozy.
"This is really nice," Luz said. "Witch's fire is extra warm."
"Yeah, I'm glad we got here early," said Willow.
"Hey, who's that kid Gus is arguing with?" Luz asked, pointing toward Gus.
Willow looked over to where Luz was pointing and got a look at the boy Gus was bickering with. He was a short, thin kid, matching Gus's height. He had tanned skin, brown hair, and a grin that made you wanna punch him in the face. Currently, it looked like Gus wanted to do just that.
"Oh, that's Matt," Willow replied. "Matt Tholomule,"
"Matholomew?" Luz asked.
"No. Matt. Tholomule. Although, weirdly enough, he likes to say it as one whole name and do the 'one name' thing," said Willow. "He and Gus have, like, a weird kind of rivalry going on. Sometimes it's hard to tell if they hate or like each other."
"What are they arguing about?" Luz asked.
"Oh, who knows. It's different every time." Willow looked at Luz. "But, listen, Luz. About Amity."
Through her mask, Luz peaked over at Amity, who was speaking to Boscha. Luz couldn't hear what they were saying, but Boscha seemed unhappy about something while Amity kept a flat look on her face.
"Willow, come on. She and I are friends now," Luz stated.
"Yeah, I thought that too." Willow stared into the fire. "But then, she told me to go away. So, I did."
Luz watched as a sad light began to shine in her friend's eyes.
"You know what the worst part was?" Willow asked softly. "The way she made me feel like…like I was…nothing," she said. "Like I was so far beneath her that I didn't matter." Willow looked at Luz. "I don't want that to happen to you."
"...Willow," Luz said gently. "You are not…nothing. You mean the world to me."
Willow smiled. "And, that's good enough for me. You're a good friend, Luz."
"Hey, Luz."
Willow's smile immediately melted. Luz looked over and saw Amity approaching them.
Amity folded her hands behind her back and smiled. The winter clothes she wore were colored purple and looked expensive. But she didn't look like she was trying to show anything off. She wore them like anybody would wear anything of any price.
"It's a…lovely night, isn't it?" Amity looked up into the sky to see the snow fall down to her. "Perfect for listening to the banshees sing their melody."
Willow raised an eyebrow at Amity.
"Yeah, I bet it'll be angelic," Luz said. "But, couldn't we have settled into that lodge over there instead of being out here in the snow?"
"What lodge?" Amity looked over and saw what Luz was talking about. Over yonder, there was an old, wooden lodge in the snowy landscape.
"Oh, you don't want to stay in there," said Amity. "That's an old hunting lodge from a century ago, the fact that it's still standing is really a miracle."
"Oh. Well, in any case, I'm glad you invited me," said Luz. "Even if Boscha isn't too happy about it."
"Ignore her," Amity said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "It's difficult for her to just…let things go." She raised her hand toward the blanket Willow and Luz were sitting on. "May I join you?"
"You can take my spot." Willow stood up and walked away. "I'll go see if Gus won his argument."
Amity stared after Willow sadly before staring down into the snow.
"You can sit with me," Luz asked. "It's cool."
"Thank you," Amity took Willow's spot on the blanket, sitting down next to Luz.
Luz took off her mask, setting it down beside her. "...Willow doesn't trust you near me."
Amity nodded. "Yeah, I know."
Luz glanced over at Boscha, who was glaring at her from a distance.
"And, Boscha doesn't seem to like me hanging out with you," Luz added.
"Yeah." Amity nodded her head. "I am…well aware."
"Neither of our friends seem to like the thought of us being friends," Luz said. "And, yet, here we are."
Amity hummed a short laugh. "...Remember how Hecate and Azura first met?"
Luz chuckled. "Yeah. They nearly killed each other. Do you think Azura would have won that fight if Farnick hadn't intervened?"
"I feel like Hecate was winning that fight," said Amity. "But, during their first moment of peace together. When their friendship first started to form. Remember what Hecate said to Azura?"
"Oh, yeah, I loved that part," said Luz. "True equality can only exist–"
"when a people cease to pretend it does not," Amity finished. "I…I really liked that particular quote from the book."
"Yeah, me too," Luz said. "I love how wise Hecate is, it's my favorite thing about her character."
"And it's true," said Amity. "People like my mom, they like to pretend that they're better than everyone else just because they make more money. But, you." She let out an amazed laugh. "Oh my Titan, you cussed at her and called her a hag right to her face in our home. That was awesome." She gave Luz a look of admiration. "You…you don't really see rank or anything like that, do you? You treat everyone the same. I…" Luz thought it might've been the cold, but she saw some red form on Amity's cheeks. "I like that about you."
"...I…" Luz cleared her throat and grabbed her mask, putting it back on her face. "...Th-thank you."
Amity blinked her eyes. "I-I'm sorry," she stammered. "I didn't mean to be weird–"
"No, no, it's fine," Luz quickly replied. "Who am I to judge on weird? I'm, like, the weirdest person you'll ever meet." She pointed at her mask. "Look at what I'm wearing."
Amity giggled. "Fair point."
The two of them shared a chuckle. Amity pushed a lock of green hair back behind her hair. Despite the cold, Luz suddenly felt a little warmer inside.
And then, suddenly, the winds began to pick up. Everyone gathered close to the bonfire and looked up into the sky, seeing the snow shoot through the air like a barrage of bullets.
And then they heard the singing.
It started out soft and barely audible. Like when your speaker is on such a low volume you can't tell that's where the noise is coming from until you really focus and find it. But then it grew louder and clearer, and Luz decided that it was the most beautiful thing she had ever heard in her life.
And then the Snow Banshees appeared in the sky. Luz thought they were going to be repulsive and ghoulish, but they were actually quite lovely. As they floated through the air, traveling at a much slower speed than the wind, as if they created their own airway, the swarm of banshees all looked identical to one another. They all had long, white hair that moved like a flag in the wind. Each one wore, or seemed to be a part of, a long, billowing dress that looked like a solid flurry. The Snow Banshees all had pretty faces, but ghostly appearances, with pale skin and hollow black eyes. And as they sang, they looked content, as if they didn't have a care in the world.
"Oh my God and Titan," Luz whispered. The way they sang had no lyrics, but still held an unbelievable amount of heart and sold. Recording the song would have been a complete insult to the melody and wouldn't have properly captured the beauty of the singing at all.
"Amazing." Staring up at the banshees as they flew over them in awe, Amity leaned back on her arms and took in the singing. "Just…amazing."
"Right? It's beautiful." Luz pulled her gaze from the sight above her and looked over at Amity. "From here on out, please invite me to more stuff."
Amity laughed and looked at Luz. But then a look of shock and fright suddenly formed on her face.
"Luz," Amity whispered. "Don't…move."
"Why not?" Luz disobeyed Amity and looked over her shoulder. "Eep!"
One of the Snow Banshees was hovering inches away from Luz's face. Its dark, sunken eyes stared into Luz's eyes through her Gangle mask.
"...Hey," Luz squeaked. "...What's up?"
The banshee leaned down and sniffed Luz's head, making her incredibly uncomfortable. Everyone else took notice and marveled at Luz as if a pigeon had landed on her shoulder.
"Um…Amity?" Luz whispered. "What's it doing?"
"I don't think it's ever seen a human before, it looks curious," Amity whispered back. "Just let it check you out and wait for it to go away."
The banshee ran her tongue along Luz's mask.
Gaaahh, back off, gross!" Luz pulled out a glyph coin with a light glyph on it. "I don't consent!"
"Wait, Luz, don't–"
Luz hit the banshee with a blast of light. The creature let out a loud, terrified shriek before soaring back up with the rest of the group.
All of the Snow Banshee in the sky stopped in the air and looked over at the banshee that Luz had blasted.
And then, every single pair of black, hollow eyes focused down at Luz.
Luz stared up into the banshee-filled night sky. "...Hey, Amity?" she asked. "Snow Banshees don't have the whole 'mess with one of us you mess with all of us' thing going on, do they?"
"They're famous for it."
"Course they are."
The Snow Banshees all screamed in perfect, horrifying harmony. Their faces morphed into monstrous, hideous features with haggard skin and sharpened teeth.
"RUN!" Willow aimed her finger across the snow. "To the lodge!"
Everybody sprinted toward the old lodge, running as fast as they could through the snow wearing heavy clothing. The winds picked up and became harsh and violent as the Snow Banshees above started to swirl around everyone in the air like vultures.
A few of the banshees swooped down from the swarm, aiming their claws at Mattholomule of all people, who let out a frightened shout when he saw them coming for him.
Luz came up and aimed a light glyph on a notecard at the banshees, blasting them with light and scaring them away before they could reach Mattholomule.
Mattholomule, with a freaked-out look on his face, gulped loudly. "Thanks."
"Keep running!" Luz shouted as she continued to do just that.
Everyone continued to run for the lodge. The banshees made a few more dives toward the group, and Luz had to scare them off with her light glyphs. She couldn't tell if it hurt them at all, but the banshees obviously hated Luz's light enough to fly away from it as if it were the face of the Devil.
They were able to finally make it to the old lodge. The entrance to the lodge was a pair of large, wooden double doors. Amity and Boscha ran up to the doors and shoved against them, pushing them open. The old, rusty hinges whined and squeaked in protest as they were opened, and everybody ran into the lodge.
Viney and Willow helped Amity and Boscha push the doors closed. The harsh cry of the winds and the banshees died down with the doors closed.
The Hexside students all gathered in the center of the lodge's main foyer and huddled together fearfully. The banshees could still be heard screaming in the air above the house. It was like a constant, muffled surround sound they could hear from outside.
Luz looked around the main foyer. The place had held together quite well despite the years, though it was still in need of some home maintenance. There was a couch and some sofa chairs over by the cold and empty fireplace. The heads of various beasts were mounted on the walls and the hide of a large, furry beast laid on the floor. There was dust everywhere and it was dark and gloomy inside from years of vacancy. A pair of rickety stairs led up to the second floor and another door in the back led other rooms, possibly to lower levels of the lodge.
The wooden boards creaked beneath Luz's feet as she stepped across the floor. It was still cold inside the lodge, but it still beat being outside in the snow and banshee-filled air.
"Oh, way to go, human!" Boscha shouted at Luz. "You just had to piss them off, didn't you?!"
"I'm not gonna let some banshee fucking taste me, thank you very much," Luz argued. "...Although I do apologize for our current predicament."
"Apology accepted," Celine offered.
"Yeah, speak for yourself," Boscha growled. "Now what do we do?!"
"Well…" Luz shrugged. "Maybe they'll just go away."
Something pounded against the entrance doors.
"Or maybe not."
It pounded against the doors again. Amity walked up and used her abomination magic to summon a pair of large fists made of the purple goo.
The doors burst open, revealing a familiar masked figure in a white cloak.
Just about everyone inside gasped loudly with shock.
"No freakin' way," Mattholomule marveled.
"This guy?" Luz asked in an almost bored tone.
A trio of banshees came flying toward the open door. The Golden Guard brought out his staff and hit the banshees with blasts of red lightning. The banshees screamed and flew away, allowing the Guard to close the doors, throwing down the bar to barricade the entrance.
Everyone got out of his way as the Golden Guard stepped to the center of the foyer and slammed his staff down onto the floor. Red magic flowed from the staff through the floor and up the walls. And suddenly, the banshees' screams sounded further away, as if they were no longer brave enough to get too close to the lodge.
The Golden Guard let go of the staff, letting it stay stuck in the floor where it continued to feed magic to the lodge. He turned toward the group of students.
"Is anybody hurt or dead?" the Guard asked. "Because we should probably toss the dead ones outside for the banshees, it may calm them down."
"You again?" Luz pushed her way through the group and up the Golden Guard. "What are you doing here?"
"Yeah, hello to you too, human. The new mask is…kind of creepy, really." The Guard's masked face focused on Luz's masked face. "How many of those things do you own? Do what I do, just stick with the one."
"What in the…" Boscha blinked and stared slack-jawed at Luz. "How…how do you know the Golden Guard?"
"Long story," Luz said dismissively.
"And not a very good one," the Guard added.
"What are you doing here?" Luz asked.
"I was in the neighborhood," said the Guard.
"Seriously?" Luz asked. "Did you want to hear the banshees sing? Or were you just sightseeing or something?"
"Put it under the 'something' category," the Guard said.
"Um, mister Golden Guard, sir?" Celine stepped forward and shyly raised her hand up as if she were in class. "What is your staff doing?"
"It's a fortification spell in my staff," the Golden Guard explained. "It gives any fort or base, or lodge in this case, stronger walls that can repel most spells and ward off spirits."
"So it'll keep the banshees out?" Gus asked hopefully.
"Well, it wasn't designed to keep out spirits as dangerous as banshees," said the Guard. "But for now, yes, it should keep them out."
"Should?" Amity asked.
"Should, yes." The Golden Guard turned toward Luz. "I saw you scare off the Snow Banshees. You used your light magic, right? Can you do it again?"
"As long as I have a pen and paper, I can make as many of those lights spells as I want," Luz said.
"Good, you're with me then." The Guard faced the group of students. "As for the rest of you,"
Boscha raised her hand. "Uh, I believe that I should be your second in command and be able to give orders to everyone else here."
"Uh, yeah, sure, hold that thought and shut up for a minute," the Guard replied.
She looked pissed off, but not even Boscha had it in her to contradict the Golden Guard. Nearby, Willow smiled happily.
"Now where was I?" the Guard asked. "Oh, right. Raise your hand if you're in the Beast Keeping, Construction, or Oracle Track."
Gus, Matt, Celine and Viney raised their hands.
"You're Team Seeker," said the Golden Guard. "Search the lodge, see if you can't find a secret way out of here. These old-school, rich people places normally have at least one."
"Can we pick a cooler name?" Matt asked.
"No," the Guard said. "The two boys search the basement level while the two girls search the second floor."
"How could there be a hidden exit in the upper levels of the house?" Viney asked.
"Magic," the Guard replied. "Now go."
"Do I have to be stuck with Mattholomule?" Gus asked.
"Well, I don't want to be stuck with him," Celine argued.
"Yeah, sorry, Gus, he's all yours," said Viney.
"I'm right here," Matt complained. "What'd I ever do to–"
"GO!" the Guard ordered.
Gus and Matt ran to the stairs while Celine and Viney headed for the basement.
The Golden Guard let out a sigh. "Okay, now everyone in the Potions and Plant Track, raise your hand."
Boscha, Willow, and a few others raised their hands.
"You're Team Food. Search the lodge for anything edible," the Guard ordered. "It doesn't have to taste good, it just has to provide any amount of nutrition."
"Oh, come on!" Boscha complained. "You're making me scrounge around for food like some homeless person?!" She pointed angrily at Willow. "With the half-a-witch?!"
"Half-a-witch?" the Guard asked.
"Why do I have to go on a food run?" Boscha demanded.
"Well, because if you don't," the Golden Guard raised his gauntlet and extended the claws. "You'll be left with a face not even your mother will love."
Looking scared, Boscha gulped and finally shut her mouth.
"Freakin' Titan," Amity muttered in horror.
"Right?" Willow muttered back, standing next to Amity. "Maybe this guy is cool after all."
"Go," the Guard commanded, retracting the claws of his gauntlet. "Find whatever you think you can eat without throwing up."
Team Food went to search for anything they could eat.
"Okay, let's see." The Golden Guard tapped his mask. "Uh, anybody in the Healing Track or Bard Track, you're our med team. Stay on standby."
Skara and the other bards, plus the few who were in the Healing Track, shared some glances and some shrugs, unsure of what to do with no one currently sick or injured, before going over to hang out near a corner of the lodge far away from the door where there weren't any windows.
"Okay, anybody left who's in the Abomination Coven?"
Only Amity raised her hand.
"Really? Just you?" the Guard asked. "Okay, fine. I hope Lilith taught you well, Blight, because if the banshees break through, then you, me, and the human will have to fight them off."
"Her name is Luz," Amity said sourly.
"Don't care." Guard pointed his finger toward the hearth. "One of you get a fire going. It's gonna get cold."
There was no wood in the hearth. In fact, the thing was empty and filthy, with a thick layer of ash and dust covering the bottom of it. Fortunately, Luz was able to draw a large fire glyph in the soot and get a roaring flame going in the fireplace. The teams that the Golden Guard sent to search the lodge hadn't come back yet, so Luz and Amity sat next to the fire and got warm, waiting for everyone to get back.
Amity cast a sour look over her shoulder at the Golden Guard, who stood behind his staff and stared at the door, as motionless as a tree stump.
"I…do not like that guy," Amity whispered to Luz.
"He's trying to help us survive the night." Luz took off her mask and stared glumly into the fire. The banshees could still be heard outside, shrieking in the wind. "He's…helping us out of the pickle I got us in."
"What's a pickle–never mind." Amity placed a comforting hand on Luz's shoulder. "And you don't need to feel guilty about this, Luz. If someone licked my face or my mask, I would have punched them."
Luz chuckled. "Good thing I'm the one who got licked, right?"
Amity chuckled back. "Yeah, I guess so." She glanced warily at the Golden Guard for a moment before looking Luz in the eyes. "But, seriously for a minute; if this guy basically drafted you the first time you met him and tried to arrest you the second time, then…why are we letting him call the shots?"
"I believe we can trust him, if that's what you mean," Luz replied. "Maybe he is kind of an ass, but I honestly don't think he's a bad guy."
"Please don't take this the wrong way, but, what exactly makes you think you can trust him?" Amity asked. "He knows exactly who you are and who your mom is, right? What's to stop him from arresting you as soon as we're all out of here?"
"Look, please don't ask me why I trust him, because I really don't know," Luz admitted. "I know I probably shouldn't come within ten feet of the Emperor's right hand homeboy, but…" Luz shrugged. "There's just…something about him that I trust."
Luz looked over at the Golden Guard. "As weird and stupid as it might sound, I…I-I feel almost…comfortable around him. It's like I somehow know him."
"I thought you only met him twice?" Amity asked. "Three times including now?"
"...He reminds me of my mom," Luz admitted. "Just…the way he talks. Something in his voice makes me think of Eda for some reason."
"He reminds me more of Lilith," Amity said bitterly. "Who exactly is he?"
"Hex if I know." Luz stood up off the floor and headed over to the Golden Guard. "Let's find out."
"Luz, wait." But Amity could only watch as Luz walked up to the Golden Guard. He made no indication that he even noticed her approach him, keeping his gaze focused on the door.
Luz tilted her head at the Guard. "...Hey."
"Hello," the Guard replied.
"...How's it going?"
"My staff's fortification spell is keeping the banshees from getting in with surprising efficiency," the Guard said. "Though it's hard to tell how much longer the banshees will wait before they get bold enough to try to break in. They won't just leave, banshees never do, so we'll need to find a way out before then or we'll all be dead in the snow by dawn."
Luz blinked. "...Um…I…I-I meant, like…how's life?"
"You mean my life, or life in general?"
"Oh, forget it." Luz held her mask in her hands and stared into the mask's face. "...I, uh…I never thanked you for cutting me a break the last time we met. So…" Luz shrugged. "Thank you. For saving me from that eel psycho and not bringing me in like you were gonna do."
"I was in no condition to bring you in. Plus, you helped me, so I had no choice but to repay the debt I owed you for the mercy you showed me," the Guard replied.
Luz's expression grew tired. She hated how he spoke with as little emotion as possible. It was like he tried to be nothing less than a machine.
"...And,"
Luz's expression peaked with interest.
"...And, I…have no desire to bring you to Lilith," the Guard said.
Luz blinked with surprise. "Oh?"
"I find her rivalry with the Owl Lady childish and a little desperate," the Guard continued. "There's no reason to drag you into it. You're just a human, you're innocent in all of this."
Luz frowned. "Just a human, huh?"
The Golden Guard let out a sigh. "Okay, fine. I'd be lying if I said that I wasn't impressed with the progress you've made."
Luz almost smiled. "Yeah?"
"...Yeah." His masked face turned toward Luz. "Although, I am…curious as to what your motivation could possibly be. Power? Fame? Self-accomplishment? You're crazy? Is that it?"
"You try being the adopted daughter of the Owl Lady," Luz said. "Do you have any idea how hard it is to prove that I'm not…to not feel…you know–"
"Useless."
Luz looked up at the Guard, surprised by the way he finished her sentence. He didn't guess. He knew what she was going to say.
"Try being the right hand of Emperor Belos." The Golden Guard looked back at the door. "My entire life, the life you seemed so interested in, has been leading up to this uniform."
"Your entire life?" Luz asked. "How long have you been in the Emperor's Coven?"
"My entire life."
Luz blinked.
"...The Emperor found me when I was little. He took me in. Gave me a home. Gave me a purpose." The Guard's left hand flexed. "I…don't remember much of what my life was like before then. The Coven is…all I've ever known."
Luz looked at the floor. "Don't…don't you have any family?"
"All I have is the Emperor's Coven," the Guard said. "And Belos, my uncle, he…he never really talks about our family much."
Luz pursed her lips. "...I'm sorry."
"It's hardly your fault."
"Still though, I–"
"Uh, Sir?"
The Golden Guard turned around to see Viney and Celine had returned. Gus and Matt were right behind them.
"We may have found something in the cellar," Celine said. "Though we can't tell for sure. I feel a…vibe, we'll say, from it."
"The insects were all crawling toward it," Viney said. "That's normally a sign."
"Show me." The Guard turned Matt. "You're the one in the Construction Track, right? You're coming with me."
Matt saluted the Guard. "Mattholomule at your service!"
"I don't care what your name is."
Matt's smug look melted away and Gus got a decent chuckle out of it.
"Uh, do you need me to?" Gus asked.
"Maybe. I doubt there's anything hiding behind any illusion, but it wouldn't hurt to check," the Guard said. "Yeah, you come, too."
"Cool," Gus replied.
The Golden Guard turned toward Luz. "You and the Blight keep watch. If there's trouble, send for me immediately."
"Okay, sure." Luz put her mask back on and gave a thumbs up. "Will do, Double-G."
"For the love of Titan, don't call me that."
"Well, I don't know your real name," Luz said. "What is your real name? I feel like an idiot calling you the Golden Guard all the time."
"Well then, get used to feeling like an idiot," said the Guard. "...Good job, keep at it."
"Oh, fuck you."
The Golden Guard stared at Luz for a few seconds. Then, he raised his arms and began removing his gauntlets, revealing the brown gloves and bracers he wore beneath the metal armor.
Luz thought for a brief second that the Guard was about to box with her or something. But was instead surprised when the Guard offered the gauntlets to Luz.
"In case they do break in," the Guard said. "They might be a little big for you, but they'll still work. Don't use them unless the banshees actually get in."
Luz blinked. "Uh…h-how do they work?"
"Just draw circles." The Golden Guard headed for the cellar. "Let's go."
Matt, Viney, Gus, and Celine went with the Guard to the cellar. Luz studied the gauntlets curiously before trying them on. As the guard warned, they were a little big on Luz. And yet, she could feel power radiating from them. Luz's guess was that they somehow enhanced the Golden Guard's magic. But, what did she know?
With the Golden Guard gone, Amity walked up to Luz. "Well, what'd he say?"
"He's checking something out downstairs. Said to hold the fort 'till he gets back." Luz showed Amity the gauntlets the Guard had loaned to her. "He gave me these to use in case of emergencies."
Amity narrowed her eyes thoughtfully as she studied the gauntlets Luz was wearing. To Luz's confusion, she even held them in her hands and ran her hands along the gold metal.
"Oh, that's cool," Amity noted.
"What's cool?" Luz asked.
"These are magesmithed." Amity nodded her head. "And well-made, too."
"What's a magesmith?" Luz asked.
"Crafting magical items like enchanted helmets or weapons and stuff," Amity explained. "It's a rare practice anymore. Aside from palismans, witches normally just use their own magic."
"Really?" Luz studied the gauntlets some more before looking over at the Golden Guard's staff. "Do you think his staff is 'magesmithed' too?"
"It might be." Amity looked at the staff as well. "But what does the Golden Guard, of all people, need with magesmithed equipment?"
"Well," Luz took a moment to consider Amity's question. "...I would definitely need stuff like this, but only because…wait–"
Something slammed into the entrance doors from outside, causing the two girls to jump back fearfully.
They both heard a horrifying shriek from the other side of the door before something slammed into it again.
"Oh, crap." Skara and the rest of the healing team backed up into the corner. "We're all gonna hang out back here, you two do your thing."
Something slammed into the door once again before all went silent. Luz and Amity held their breaths, waiting for something bad to inevitably happen like it always does in scenes like this.
Then a pair of phantom claws pried themselves between the double doors.
Amity summoned her abomination goo and created a spear. Luz, looking unsure of what to do, aimed the gauntlets at the door like Iron Man would.
Though it seemed to struggle against the barrier created by the Golden Guard's staff, which seemed more immaterial than physical, one of the banshees broke through, crashing through the door, breaking the bar in two and flying into the foyer.
"Oh no, the door!" Amity rushed up and summoned a pair of large goo arms to reclose the doors before any more banshees could get in.
That left Luz to deal with the banshee. The creature let out a terrible scream before flying down at Luz.
"Freakin' Titan–Go-go Golden Guard gauntlet!" Luz drew a circle in the air at the banshee.
For the first time in her life, when Luz drew a magic circle, it actually appeared. As soon as the circle was complete, a powerful blast shot from her fingertip.
The blast hit the banshee and threw it across the lodge. It let out a painful shriek as it slammed against the wall.
"...Holy smokes." Luz stared at the gauntlets with wide eyes. "Man, the government guys get all the good stuff."
The banshee floated back up into the air and glared bloody murder at Luz.
"Oh, she looks pissed," Luz muttered. "Really pissed."
Amity finished boarding the door back up with her abomination goop and turned around. "Luz!"
"I got this…I think!" Luz stared at the gauntlets' fingertips. "Let's see, I've seen the Golden Guy do the claw thing, I wonder how I–" Luz flexed her fingers and the claws extended from the gauntlet's fingers. "Ha-ha! Here we go! Let's do this!"
The banshee let out a shriek and down at Luz.
"Oh, crap, I don't wanna get close! Bad idea! Bad idea!"
Amity ran up in front of Luz, created a sledgehammer with her goo, and struck the side of the banshee's head right before it could sink its claws in them.
The banshee crashed down and rolled across the floor. It struggled to raise its head up to look at Amity.
The young Blight summoned a giant abomination golem behind her and the both of them posed threateningly.
The banshee hissed angrily at Amity, before dashing for the fireplace. In a burst of frost, it killed the fire and escaped up the chimney.
"Luz, are you okay?" Amity asked.
"All good," said Luz. "Titan, these gauntlets are heavy, my arms are getting sore."
"You get used to it."
Luz and Amity looked over to see that the Golden Guard and the team had come back. Though Mattholomule wasn't with them, and Luz was curious why he wasn't with the Guard.
"How long have you been standing there?!" Amity asked.
"Since you clocked the banshee in the skull with a goo-hammer," Gus said. "Luz, give me my gauntlets back."
"You could have asked nicely," Luz grumbled before taking off the gauntlets.
"You could have done something to help!" Amity said angrily.
"It seemed like you had it handled," the Guard replied as he took his gauntlets back from Luz.
"Could you have done something?" Luz asked.
The Guard's masked face turned toward Luz. "Excuse me?"
"Uh, n-never mind," said Luz.
"...Get the fire going again." The Guard put his gauntlets back on and flexed the fingers. "And where's the food team?"
"We're right here."
Boscha, Willow, and the rest of the food team finally returned from the search of the lodge.
"What took you so long?" the Guard asked.
Willow and Boscha exchanged dirty looks.
"Please don't ever make us work together ever again," Willow requested/demanded.
"Uh, yeah, half-a-witch here is impossible to work with," said Boscha. "She won't do anything I tell her to do."
"Did you find anything edible in the lodge?" the Guard asked, sounding tired.
"We looked in every nook and cranny, but all we could find was this." Willow offered the Golden Guard their finding.
"What is that, a piece of tile?" asked the Guard.
"No, it's a chuck of really old hard tack." Willow walked up to the brick-laid hearth. Luz finished relighting the fire and got out of her way so Willow could tap the hard tack against the fireplace. It sounded like she was hitting it with a rock.
The Golden Guard let out a sigh. "Did you at least find any water?"
"I have a bottle of water here I brought from home." Viney came up and pulled out a plastic sports bottle filled with water.
"Perfect." The Golden Guard held out his hand. "May I?"
Viney handed the bottle of water to the Guard. The Golden Guard then reached into one of the pouches on his utility belt and pulled out something that looked like a small batch of caramel candies still stuck together.
"Let's see, how many of you are there?" The Golden Guard did a quick head count. "Okay, good, I have just enough." He broke apart the cubes and handed them all to the others.
"Okay, hold them out for me," he told the teens with the cubes. He used the water bottle to squeeze out a drop of water onto the cubes.
Each cube immediately expanded into the size of a king-size candy bar.
"Woah, cool," Luz marveled. "Like space food."
"Break them into thirds and pass them around," the Guard ordered. "There should be one for everybody."
They did as the Guard told them, until everybody was holding a cube in their hands.
Luz studied her cube. It looked like bread or some kind of thick cracker. "What are these?"
"Survival rations," the Golden Guard explained. "For emergencies."
"Uh, I have an extra one," said Gus, showing the two rations he had.
"The extra one's for Mattholomule," said the Guard.
"Wait, but, what about you?" Luz asked. "Where's yours?"
"I don't need one," the Golden Guard replied. "Eh, Willow, go ahead and bring Mattholomule his ration."
"Now hold on, you need to eat, too." Luz broke off a tiny piece of her ration and offered it to the Golden Guard.
Gus stepped forward and did the same thing, breaking off a piece of his ration and offering it to the Guard. Amity rolled her eyes but followed suit.
A few more teens, including Willow and Viney, did as Luz did and offered the Golden Guard a piece of their rations. The Guard looked at all of the offerings. His body language and the way he kept quiet suggested he might have been confused by the generosity.
"...Uh…" The Golden Guard walked up and took the old hard tack from Willow. "Everyone eat up and get some rest." He pointed at Willow. "Except you, Park. I need you to go help Mattholomule with the excavation."
"Excavation?" Boscha's three eyes widened. "Did you find a way out?!"
"We think we might've found an old bootlegging tunnel or something in the basement," said Viney. "Matt's down there trying to dig it out. He's gotta be careful, though. He said something about the foundation–I dunno, I'm not in the Construction Track–it's gonna take a while, is what I'm getting at."
"Which is why I need you, Miss Park, to bring Mattholomule his ration and help him with the excavation," the Golden Guard said. "I know how talented you are in plant magic, you're the best person here to help him with that."
Willow let out a sigh. "Okay, fine." She took the extra ration from Gus. "But Luz is right, you should eat something."
The Golden Guard turned around and walked back to his staff. As he did, he lifted the hard tack up beneath his mask and chewed on it. It sounded like he was munching on a hunk of limestone.
"...Eesh." Willow flinched at the sound before heading down into the basement.
It took some time, everybody was way too cold and scared to feel tired, but the group managed to fall asleep gathered together by the blazing fireplace even with the sound of the crying winds and wailing banshees outside.
Luz laid on her back on the floor, staring up into the ceiling with her hands folded over her chest. She had her mask still on her face. You might think wearing a mask while trying to sleep is what was keeping her up, but she had gone to bed with her mask on dozens of times before.
Luz moved her head to look across the lodge at the Golden Guard. He hadn't even tried to get any sleep, he just kept standing behind his staff as still as stone, preparing for the Snow Banshees to break in at any moment.
Luz looked over at Gus and Amity, who were both asleep on the floor close to her. She slowly got up, careful not to wake anyone, and tiptoed away from the snoozing group up to the Golden Guard.
"...Hey," Luz whispered.
"G…" The Guard paused and tensed up. Luz guessed he was fighting a yawn and didn't want Luz to know he was yawning. "Go back to sleep, human."
"You should sleep, too," Luz said. "For Titan's sake, you're not a robot."
"I don't know what a robot is."
Luz let out an annoyed grunt. She took off her Gangle mask and pinched her brow. "...How are Willow and Matt doing in the basement?"
"I haven't checked on them in a minute. I'm sure they have a handle on their assignment, though," the Guard said. "I'm not entirely impressed by that Matt guy, but Willow seems responsible and capable." He looked over at Luz. "Whatever you do, don't let Head Witch Snapdragon discover her. That wicked old hag does not respond to any form of threat lightly."
"...Um…" Luz rubbed her thumb against the mask in her hands. "...Thank you, for…you know, doing this for us. If it wasn't for you, we'd…probably be dead by now."
The Golden Guard looked back at the door. "Probably."
"...Can…I ask you something?"
"I would prefer it if you didn't," the Guard replied. "But, I doubt that'll stop you."
Luz looked down lower on the Guard's cape, where she figured his gauntlets were hidden.
"...Those…gauntlets you wear,"
The Guard looked back at Luz.
"They're…" Luz chose to speak carefully. "They're magesmithed, right?"
The Guard remained still and silent.
"Where…" Luz shrugged. "Where did you get them?"
"...I made them," the Guard said after a pause.
"Really?"
"Really," the Guard replied. "I…custom-built most of my uniform and inventory."
"That's actually pretty cool," Luz commented.
The Guard remained quiet, as if unsure how to respond to a compliment.
Luz glanced over across the lodge at the sleeping group before continuing. "You know, um…I've never actually seen you use magic without those gauntlets or…o-or without your staff."
The Golden Guard didn't move an inch or make a sound.
"...Are…" Luz flexed her jaw. "Are you…powerless without them?"
No response whatsoever.
Luz's eyes went wide. "Oh my God, you are, aren't you? I was right–"
In a blink of an eye, the Guard had Luz's throat in his grip.
Luz choked and gagged, struggling to breathe as she attempted to pry the Guard's fingers and the gauntlet they covered off of her throat.
"One word," the Golden Guard said in a tone as cold and hard as iron. "One. Word. And I swear to Titan, I will–"
"I…think…you're…cool."
Whatever he was expecting Luz to say, that definitely wasn't it. He seemed visibly taken aback by what Luz was able to croak out. The Guard released the girl, who coughed air through her sore throat back into her lungs.
"...I…I don't understand," the Golden Guard said.
"Dude, I think you're one of the coolest people I've ever met," Luz said, appearing not even bothered by the fact that he had tried to strangle her. "I mean, you're the Golden Guard, and yet you're…as magically capable as I am. That's how much you were able to accomplish. You made those kick-ass gauntlets, I honestly don't think you're bad at your job, you're…you're here, helping us to survive."
"Wha…you're not gonna, like…try to blackmail me or…something?" the Guard asked.
"No, of course not," Luz said. "You're a powerless witch trying to prove himself in a world of magic even though you were taken in by one of the most powerful witches in the world. You don't think I, of all people, admire that? You don't think I can relate to you?"
The Golden Guard looked away.
"...Hey…hey, wait a minute." Luz narrowed her eyes at the Guard. "You know, I've been thinking. How did you know we were all here to listen to the banshees sing? How did you know to be here?"
The Golden Guard straightened his posture.
"...Unless…" Luz blinked. "...Have you…have you been…keeping an eye on me?"
The Golden Guard didn't reply to that.
"You have, haven't you? But, not because the Emperor or Lilith is making you." Luz grinned. "You like me."
"No I do not."
"Well, I meant, like, platonically, man," Luz said. "You seem great, but you're hardly my type."
"Likewise."
"But admit it, you like me." Luz pointed her finger at the Golden Guard's masked face. "You empathize with me, don't you? A powerless outcast who wears a mask everywhere they go in the care of someone so powerful and famous? That's why you've been so…your version of nice, to me. That's why you don't want to bring me to Lilith." Luz crossed her arms and gave a smug smile. "I've gotten under your skin, haven't I?"
"Why, yes. You most certainly have."
"You care about me."
"You mean nothing to me."
"Then why are you here?"
"I wanted to hear the banshees sing, too."
"Bull. Shit." Luz poked the Golden Guard in the chest. "You like me."
"You annoying little–" The Guard sighed and pressed his fingers against his mask. "What do you want from me?"
"I want you to mentor me."
"Wh…" The Golden Guard shook his head. "What?"
"Let me be your apprentice," Luz asked eagerly. "Lilith used to mentor Amity, you can totally mentor me."
"You know what I am," the Guard said, sounding like he was being careful not to walk into a trap. "Why would you want me to mentor you? You already have the Owl Lady as your mentor."
"Can't I have two mentors?" Luz asked. "You're the perfect person to teach me everything I can learn. I love Eda, and I'm grateful for everything she's taught me, but…" She rubbed her arm. "I don't know, I feel like there's a lot that she doesn't tell me. But, you. I think I could learn so much from you."
"Here's all you need to learn from me." The Golden Guard took a step toward Luz. "I am not your friend, human. I do not want to separate you from your mother. I don't want to hurt you. Not at all. But if the Emperor orders me to do it, then I will bring you right to him, kicking and screaming if I have to."
"I don't believe you," said Luz. "That fact that you followed me here just to keep me safe proves that you're a good person. And, when the time comes," Luz smiled warmly. "I believe you'll do the right thing."
"I…" The Golden Guard seemed almost at a loss for words. "...I can't be your mentor."
"Can you at least be my friend?" Luz asked.
"...Luz…I–"
"We did it!"
Luz and the Golden Guard turned to see Willow and Mattholomule approaching them. They were both covered in dirt and dust and looked exhausted. But they also looked excited.
"Mr…Golden Guard…sir." Matt took a second to catch his breath. Just saying that one sentence left him winded. "We…cleared out…the tunnel. Or…at least…the entrance…to the tunnel…in the basement."
"It leads to the east from what we can tell," Willow said. She was the one who was used to working out, so she could actually form full sentences. "I think it leads to the east coast of the Thigh."
"Perfect, let's get the hex out of here," said the Guard. "Wake everybody up, we're leaving."
"Uh, is it just me, or did it suddenly get really quiet outside?" Luz pointed out.
The Golden Guard looked up at the ceiling. Luz was right, it had gotten quiet outside all of a sudden.
"...Wake everybody up, we need to get out of here!"
A chorus of horrible screams erupted from outside. The walls and the front door shook from something outside attacking the lodge without mercy.
"Oh, shit." Luz put her mask back on her face.
The commotion alone woke everybody up. Panic jolted everyone awake and up off the floor.
"What's going on?!" Boscha demanded.
A clawed, ghostly arm broke through the door, as well as the staff's magic barrier.
"Everyone into the basement!" the Golden Guard ordered. "Willow, Matt, take them into the tunnel and get out of here!"
"Let's go, everyone!" Willow headed to the basement. "Follow me!"
"And me! Follow me, too!" Matt went with Willow. "I helped clear out that tunnel!"
The whole group went with Willow and Matt, except for Amity and Gus, who stayed back to wait for Luz.
"Luz, let's go!" Amity cried.
"Yeah, I would very much like to leave!" Gus said.
"Go with them, human," the Guard said. "The banshees are breaking through the barrier we don't have long."
"What? But, what about you?" Luz asked.
The Golden Guard pulled his staff out of the floor, ending the fortification spell, though it hardly mattered anymore.
"I'll hold them off." The Guard placed the staff in Luz's hands. "Lead them to safety, Luz."
"Seriously?!" Luz shouted. "I am not leaving you behind!"
"The banshees will come after you unless they have something or someone to target," the Guard explained. "We don't have time for this, go!"
"They'll kill you!" Luz cried.
"Maybe," said the Guard. "But you'll all live. And that's the mission."
"But–"
More and more claws burst through the walls of the lodge.
"Go!" The Guard ordered. "Make sure everyone makes it home alive."
"Luz," Amity came up and placed a hand on Luz's shoulder.
Luz looked down at the staff in her hands. She looked up at the Golden Guard with sad eyes before going with Gus and Amity to the basement.
"...Goodbye, Luz."
The banshees burst through the walls into the lodge. The swarm of banshees circled the Golden Guard like vultures, stirring up a flurry that blew through the lodge.
The cold winds blew against the Guard's cloak. He raised his arms and extended the claws of his magical gauntlets.
Luz, Amity, and Gus went into the basement, where the group was still heading into the tunnel dug into the back of the room. Willow was at the entrance of the tunnel, herding everyone in. Boscha and Skara were in the back of the group. They both stopped and turned around when they noticed Amity finally arrive.
"Amity, where the hex were you?!" Boscha demanded. "Let's freaking go! I am not getting ripped about by banshees just because some stupid human was dumb enough to–"
"Oh, shut up." Luz shoved the staff into Boscha's hands, surprising the triclops a great deal. "Here, use this to help everyone get out of here."
She turned back around and headed out of the basement. "I'm going to help the Golden Guard."
"What?!" Amity grabbed Luz's arm. "Luz, you'll get killed!"
"I am not leaving him to die up there!" Luz exclaimed.
"Well…" A look of resolve formed on Amity's face. "I'm going with you, then."
"Are you out of your mind?!" Boscha cried. "Amity, let's just go!"
"No." The way Amity said it surprised Boscha. "If you wanna save yourself, then fine. But I'm staying."
"You can't be serious!" Boscha shouted.
The look Amity gave Boscha suggested otherwise.
"Fucking Titan–fine!" Boscha yelled. "I'll get everyone who wants to live out of here." Boscha pushed past Willow into the tunnel. "Let's go, Skara."
Skara looked back and forth between the tunnel and Amity with a conflicted look on her face.
"Go ahead, Skara." Amity smiled. "It's okay."
Skara sighed. "Please don't die, Amity," she said before heading into the tunnel after the rest of the group.
Luz noticed that Gus and Willow still hadn't gone into the tunnel.
"Aren't you guys going?" Luz asked.
"No we are not," Willow stated. Gus nodded in agreement.
Luz smiled behind her mask, and her eyes showed gratitude. "Let's go."
The Golden Guard slammed into what was left of the brick fireplace. There wasn't much of the lodge left standing. The winds and the banshees had reduced it to four barely intact walls. The roof was long gone, so you could see the snowfall, darkened skies, and swirling banshees.
The phantoms had done a number on the Golden Guard. His uniform and armor were covered in deep scratches and claw marks. His clean white cloak was now ripped and torn all over. The Golden Guard himself appeared barely able to stand.
"Kinda wish I hadn't given the human my staff," the Guard grumbled.
A banshee swooped down and swiped its claws at the Golden Guard's face, leaving lines of claw marks on his mask and tossing him across the snow-covered floor.
As the Golden Guard struggled to get back up, the entire swarm flew down to tear him into pieces.
And then Luz ran and frightened them away with a well-placed light glyph. The banshees all shrieked and retreated into the air.
"What…you?!" The Golden Guard got up and stared down at Luz. "I told you to leave!"
"Yeah, I know," Luz said. "But, we decided not to do that."
"We?"
Willow, Amity and Gus stepped up behind Luz.
"...You're all idiots for this," the Guard said.
"For the record, I still think leaving you behind was the smarter call," Amity replied flatly. "More so now than before, actually."
"Where's my staff?" the Guard asked.
"With Boscha," Luz answered.
"You left my staff with that annoying triclops girl–never mind, I'll berate you later."
A group of the banshees flew down toward the group. Willow reached into her pocket and pulled out a handful of seeds, tossing them at the banshees and using her magic to instantly grow them into a bundle of vines that wrapped around the banshees and dropped them to the floor.
"Oh, seeds in your pocket, that's a good idea," Luz commented.
"Porter! Hide us!" the Guard ordered.
Gus drew a large magic circle, creating an illusion spell that made the five of them invisible. The banshees cried out, sounding angered and confused by the sudden disappearance of their prey.
"Banshees never quit the fight, especially Snow Banshees. But it is possible to frighten them off with a big enough scare." The Guard's masked face turned toward Luz. "That's where you come in, Miss Glyph."
"That…is a seriously good superhero name," Luz commented. "Can I use and take credit for that?"
"Human–"
"Yeah, yeah, I know." Luz popped her fingers. "It'll take a few minutes."
"Do it in less. Meanwhile, we'll cover you," the Guard said. "Blight. Park. Get ready for a fight."
Willow and Amity nodded.
"Porter, let them see us, but keep them confused." The Guard extended the claws of his gauntlets. "In order to win this, we'll need to fight dirty."
Gus worked his magic. Literally.
The banshees above saw the five of them reappear below and dove down toward them. But to their confusion and irritation, every swipe of their claws went straight through smoke.
Every time they swooped down to attack, the banshees would be hit from out of nowhere by another blast of magic, a fist made of purple goo, or a whip of thorn-covered vines.
The banshees screamed in anger and circled around the broken lodge like a cyclone, stirring up a blinding flurry.
The mini storm began to disrupt Gus's spell, revealing where the witches below really were.
The Guard used his gauntlets to fire off a few blasts of magic up at the banshees. "Porter!"
"I'm trying! But the wind and snow are making it hard to concentrate on the spells!" Gus yelled back over the wind. "And my name is Gus, come on!"
"Luz, how much longer!"
"Just a little longer! Stupid snowy winds!"
Amity shouted and used her magic to summon a large, abomination golem. The creature let out a roar and started swatting banshees out of the air as they dove down toward the group.
"Luz!" the Guard shouted.
"Almost done!"
The banshees swarmed around the golem, and the goop that it was made of began to freeze over. The abomination let out a roar before it became an ice statue. One banshee crashed right through the golem, shattering it into pieces.
"Dammit!" Amity shouted.
"Don't feel bad, Head Witch Deamonne himself would have been impressed with that giant of yours," the Guard said. "Snow Banshees are no joke. But there's one thing creatures of the dark and cold are scared of."
The Golden Guard turned toward Luz. "Now?"
Luz finally finished drawing the trampoline-sized glyph in the snow. "Now!"
"Everyone get down!" The Golden Guard, Gus, Willow, and Amity dropped to their knees and covered their heads, shutting their eyes tight.
"Beware the light, bitches!" Luz slammed her hand down on the huge light glyph.
The explosion of light was like a collapsing star. The sheer force of the blast tossed the screaming banshees back, blinding them and sending them fleeing. Most of them were sent burnt and smoking from the power of the explosion.
When the light finally died down and the spell ended, Luz was the only one whose clothes weren't smoldering.
"I think I got sunburnt even with my uniform on," the Guard said.
"Luz, that was…intense." Amity cleared her throat awkwardly, though her eyes sparkled with admiration. "Where, uh, where did that come from?"
"Guess I'm just that darn good," Luz stated proudly.
"Uuuuh…" Gus nervously pointed upward. "They don't seem to think so."
Everyone looked up to see some of the banshees returning. They came slowly, as if scared of another blast, but appeared unwilling to call it quits just yet.
"You gotta be kidding me," Willow complained. "What exactly did you do to tick them off, Luz?"
"I basically told one of them I wasn't interested and slapped her in the face," said Luz.
"Huh." The Guard stared up at the approaching banshees. "I honestly thought that would work."
"Right?" said Luz. "Did you see that blast? No, of course you didn't, because your eyes haven't melted out of your skull. That's how good it was."
The banshees closed in on them.
The five of them grouped together and got ready for round two.
And then, out of nowhere, something appeared above them.
It was hard to describe what it was. It was like a living light. A mass of golden, ethereal flames that moved and appeared as some sort of specter.
Whatever it was, the Snow Banshees definitely seemed scared of it.
Everyone stared up at it in shock and confusion.
"...Did…did I do that?" Luz asked.
"If you did, then can you teach me how to do that?" the Golden Guard asked.
One of the banshees flew up to the golden fire and screamed at it.
The fire-thing simply glowed a little brighter.
The banshee lost its monstrous, haggard form, reverting to its calmer, less threatening appearance. Looking scared, it whimpered and flew away, as did the rest of the Snow Banshees, into the night sky.
"...I guess we win," Gus said happily. "Unless that fire ghost wants to kill us."
In an instant, the fire ghost flew down in front of the group, who recoiled from the specter or prepared for combat with it.
"...Um…" Luz nervously waved her hand at the fire ghost. "...Hi. Thanks for the save."
The golden flames moved, taking an almost humanoid form. It seemed to be studying Luz. As if it liked her. It raised what looked like an arm and waved back.
And then it looked over at the Golden Guard.
The Guard visibly flinched. When the flaming specter moved closer to him, he got into a fighting position.
But the specter, even though it was made of golden flames, did not appear to be at all threatening. It seemed to study the Guard the same way it studied Luz. But…somehow…more warmly.
The specter raised a ghostly, fiery arm. The Guard flinched once more as it seemed to reach for his face, as if desiring an embrace.
"...Who…who are you?"
The specter retracted its arm, as if its feelings had been hurt. Then it quickly moved what looked like its head up next to the Guard's head. And appeared to…whisper something into his ear.
And then it disappeared like a puff of smoke.
Luz and her friends all stared at the Golden Guard, who appeared frozen in place.
"Hey, uh, Double-G," said Luz. "Did that fire-ghost-thing…say something to you?"
"...She…she said…" The Guard sounded almost shell shocked. "...I'll send you a friend."
"She?" Amity asked. "How'd you know it was a she?"
"And, who is 'she' sending to you?" asked Gus.
"...I…don't know," the Guard replied softly.
"But…what, or, who, was that?" Luz asked. "I don't have a clue why, but, it, or she, I guess, felt somehow–"
"Familiar," the Guard finished.
Luz stared at the Golden Guard. "...Yeah…that."
"...Eh, w-we should leave." The Guard quickly made his way to the basement. "I should probably get my staff back from that Boscha girl."
Luz and her friends glanced at each other before following after the Golden Guard.
"Now, I will ask you again." The Coven Scout aimed her spear underneath Boscha's throat. "Where. Did. You. Get. This. Staff?"
"I told you already! The Golden Guard gave his staff to me so I could lead us all through the tunnel!" Boscha cried, gesturing with both arms over at the group of students who had followed her through the tunnel to the Thigh coast. "We were all almost killed by Snow Banshees, give me a break!"
The Coven Scout looked over at the Scout who had taken the Golden Guard's staff from Boscha. Holding the staff, he kept an eye on the group of teenagers, who all looked nervous, as if they'd been caught after curfew or something.
"Being in possession of property belonging to the Emperor's Coven, especially property belonging to high-ranking officials such as the Golden Guard himself, is a serious offense." The Coven Scout looked back at Boscha. "This is not something we can simply ignore."
"Hey! Do you know who I am?!" Boscha demanded angrily. "I'm Boscha Erring! My parents are the owners of Erring Potions! You do anything to me, and they will have your head, you–"
"What's going on here?"
Everybody looked to the entrance of the tunnel in the cliff face to see the Golden Guard step onto the beach. Followed by Luz and her friends.
"Golden Guard!" The two Scouts saluted their superior. "Sir! We were patrolling the coast when this group of Hexside students flagged us down!"
The Golden Guard looked over at the Emperor's Coven ship moored at the beach.
"But, this girl." The Scout pointed at Boscha. "This girl was in possession of your staff."
"I am aware." The Guard came up and took his staff from the Scout. "The girl is innocent of theft. I gave her the staff to lead this group to safety. They were at the base of the Knee to listen to the banshees sing. But, one of them upset one of them–the human did it–and I had to make sure none of the students were ripped to shreds."
"You looked like you got ripped to shreds," the Scout commented, taking note of the Guard's post-battle appearance. "We should get you to the castle, Sir, and get you all patched up."
"I'll be fine." The Golden Guard turned toward the group of students. "Can you all get home safely?"
Pretty much everyone nodded their heads.
"Perfect." The Guard turned toward Gus and nodded his head at him. "Mr. Porter." He nodded at Amity. "Miss Blight." And then Willow. "Miss Park." And finally, Luz. "...Clawthorne."
Then he turned around and headed for the ship. The two Scouts followed after him.
Luz blinked her eyes as she watched the Golden Guard leave.
"...Oh, no you don't."
A gangplank led from the beach to the deck of the ship. The Golden Guard and the two Scouts stepped onto the gangplank and headed up onto the ship.
"Hey, jackass!"
The three Coven members froze and turned around, seeing Luz storm up to the bottom of the gangplank.
"Are you serious right now?!" Luz demanded. She took off her mask and shoved it into her coat. "I came back to save your life, we all did, and we don't even get a thank you?!"
The Scouts moved toward Luz, but the Golden Guard, without taking his gaze off of Luz, raised a hand to stop them. "Prepare the ship for departure, I'll take care of this."
"God and Titan, what do I have to do to get a little respect from you?" Luz demanded, glaring at the Golden Guard as he descended the gangplank toward her. "Or at the very least, some freakin' gratitude!"
The Golden Guard walked right up to Luz and stared down at her.
"Oh, you think you scare me? Fucking try something!"
Luz glared up at the Golden Guard. She could see some magenta through the mask's eyeholes.
"Maybe you were right. Maybe I'm wasting my time trying to extend any amount of friendship toward you." Luz narrowed her eyes. "Maybe all you'll ever be, to anybody, is just the Golden Guard."
The Golden Guard leaned his face down in Luz's face, who didn't flinch or back down.
"Hunter."
Luz blinked. Her angry face waning. "What?"
"My name, is Hunter."
He then turned around and headed up the gangplank without another word.
Luz watched the Golden Guard, Hunter, step onto the deck of the ship with wide eyes. Her mouth twitched a few times, beginning to form a smile.
As the gangplank retracted into the ship, the Golden Guard kept his back to Luz.
But then, he reached up and took off his mask. He looked at the scratches on the mask before tossing it over his shoulder like he was discarding it.
The mask landed in Luz's hands. She stared at the golden mask in surprise, before looking up at the Golden Guard. He kept his cloaked back toward Luz even as the ship moved away.
Amity walked up next to Luz. "Thought I needed to step in for a second there," she said, glaring at the ship as it sailed away. "What'd he say to you?"
Luz looked back down at the mask. And she smiled.
Eda knocked on the door before opening it and poking her head into Luz's room. "Luz? You in here?"
Luz, sitting at her desk, looked over her shoulder. "Hey, Mom."
"Oh, you are home," Eda noted. "How was the concert?"
"Oh, it went horribly, we all almost died." Luz dipped her brush in the paint before continuing her work. "One of the banshees tried to lick me."
"...Uh…huh… Okay." Eda blinked her eyes. "...I'm gonna stop complaining about you not getting out more often."
"One good thing happened, though." Luz smiled as she grabbed another brush and dipped it in the polish. "I think I made a new friend."
"You think you did?" Eda asked.
"I'm…pretty sure I did." Luz shrugged. "Did you ever know anybody who was an asshole but turned out not to be a complete asshole?"
"Oh, Titan, now there's a story." Eda waved away her reminiscence. "Well, in any case, I'm glad you didn't die. And, I'm glad you made another friend." Eda grabbed the doorknob. "What's this new friend's name?"
"Hunter," Luz replied.
"Well, invite him over sometime, why don't you?" Eda asked before closing the door and leaving Luz to her project.
Luz lifted the finished mask up above her. "Why don't I, she says."
The mask that the Golden Guard had tossed to her now looked as good as new, thanks to Luz's talents. She stared into the eyeholes of the mask and smiled.
Luz got up and walked over to her wall of masks, placing her newest mask on the wall to join her other favorites.
"So much cooler than Lilith," Luz stated. "...Still kind of a jackass, though."
"Thank Titan I decided to keep a spare handy."
The Golden Guard placed his new mask over his face and stared out the open window of his room. The quarters of the Golden Guard were smaller than one would think. But it was cozy, and he kept it neat and tidy. It had been his room for as long as he could remember. The shelves on the wall held some of his old toys as well as some of his tools and equipment. His bed was a full XL, and in the corner of the room there was his work desk covered with paperwork next to his bookshelf.
Hunter pulled his hood down to let the gentle breeze blowing through the window blow through his blonde hair. The events of today left him…surprised at himself, to say the least. It wasn't smart of him to keep watch over Luz the way he had been, nor was it smart of him to immediately go to her aid when the Snow Banshees attacked her and her friends.
He hated to admit it–and never would out loud–but he had worked well with Luz and her team. The way they had come back for him when he was, for some reason, ready to die to keep the human safe…no one had ever done that much for him. Ever.
"Can you at least be my friend?" Luz had asked.
"...A friend," Hunter muttered softly to himself. His head hung a little lower before he turned away from the window.
"Chirp-chirp-tweet."
"What the?" Hunter turned back around.
There was a little red bird perched on the window sill. The bird had a pointed head and a black plumage of a mask. It stared up at Hunter with one brown, wide eye. The other eye was gone. Instead, there was a scar where it's left eye should be.
Hunter immediately recognized it as a palisman. A form of wild magic that the Emperor both heavily condoned as well as…heavily relied on medically.
He had no idea why one had flown into his window.
"Eh…shoo." He waved his hand at the palisman. "Get out of here. Believe me, this is the last place you wanna be hanging around."
The red bird palisman hopped up to Hunter's hand and nuzzled against his gauntlet. It then flew up to take perch atop of his hand and looked up at him as if he was its mama bird.
"Chirp-chirp-tweet. Chirp-chirp-tweet."
Hunter remained frozen in place as he stared down at the palisman on his hand.
"I'll send you a friend," the specter had whispered to him. "Find your family. Know who you are."
And that was all it…she…had said.
"...I know who I am."
The Golden Guard tossed the bird out the window before closing the shutters. He turned around and ignored the sound of the palisman tapping its beak against the glass.
He did his best to fight it, but he ended up looking over his shoulder at the palisman, who gave him a sad look through the glass.
He didn't let the palisman back in, but he did leave a small pillow on the window sill for the bird to sleep on. One more sad look earned the bird a piece of bread to peck at.
"It was only in my shadow, that I finally found a friend,"
"Till the light that bound us let go, and the Devil took my hand."
'Nightmares Never End' by JT Music ft. Andrea Storm Kaden.
