The Seventh Son

by Cowboy Alchemist

Booker Bridges is an orphaned boy who wants to find his place in the world. Luz Noceda is a young girl who wants to live a life of excitement. These two friends accidentally stumble upon a portal and befriend a rebellious witch and an adorably tiny warrior. Together, they'll become the apprentices of the witch while remain in the Demon Realm seeking enlightenment.

21. Chapter 21: Prodigal Cure

I'm cowboyalchemist on Discord. Come on over if you want to chat and talk about ideas. If you want an invite to join my Discord server, you only have to ask me. My profile also contains a link to my server. If you're on the web, copy and paste it into the search bar, removing all the spaces. If you're using the app, I think it should work if you just click on it.

For those of you wondering where I have been in August, well, this all started when a friend of mine, AstroEvade, posted on YouTube a review of the Seventh Son. Let's just say that I ended up agreeing with some of the points made, so much so that I couldn't stop thinking about going back and making any and all corrections that she felt needed to be made.

I decided to remedy the problems people had with the story (not all of them, as I know that people on TVTropes don't like Booker having a temper, but screw that! Taking that away would just take out a lot of the fun the story has). I went back through the story, ran Grammarly through every single chapter, and then changed what had to be changed to make it a better story. Pushing my mental health to the limit just to make it better.

It was a process I genuinely hated. It delayed a lot of my work to the point where I had to rethink everything. I was exhausted and drained, and I hated myself for letting the review get to me in the first place. However, it's done. I have finished it. The Seventh Son has been improved upon, and I sincerely hope never to have to do it again. Seriously, I can't even imagine trying to do it with stories I'm very far into.

Either way, I'm back, and I'm ready to give you the next chapter.

Before we get started, however, I do need to talk to you all. And it has to do with y'all's reaction to ChampionElCid's review.

I just want to say I thank you all for your support and defense. You all know that I love writing this story, and I love knowing just how many people love it, too. However, while you all are free to speak your mind and defend this story, ChampionElCid has every right to criticize it and complain about its faults. This isn't a perfect story, and everyone's free to their own opinion.

Do I think the guy was an ass in his review? Oh, hell yeah, and that's my opinion. He can have the opinion that this story isn't good in his mind. At the very least, he isn't telling me to take it down.

That being said, I thank you all for supporting this story. While I don't condone attacking people for not liking the story, knowing that you all are willing to defend the Seventh Son means a lot to me as a writer. That being said, let's all remember to be good people.

As for you, ChampionElCid, while I respect that you have your opinion, remember the old saying:

"If you haven't got anything nice to say, don't say anything at all."

Also, Puck627, you need to stop telling me to update. I'm working as fast as I can, but you need to stop.

---

Years ago

The day Eda was cursed was the worst day of her life. It ruined her. As a witch and a student at her school, Eda's life was tarnished. With the exception of a select few, no one, not even her own sister, would come near her. Who would, especially with a monster inside you that would take over you any chance it had? A beast that would plunge Eda into an abyss of despair and cruelly take hold of her mind and body.

It was a horrible fate that fell on her, but it was made worse by the nightmares that would come with the curse.

When the 14-year-old opened her eyes and saw nothing but blackness, Eda suddenly gasped and sat up, panting. She found herself in a shadowy void. Not this again, she thought to herself. This couldn't be happening.

Eda stood up and looked around, frightened to be back in this void again. It was here. She knew it was here. It's always there, waiting to attack her. To change her.

A shadow flashed past behind her. She turned around to look at it.

There it was—the Owl Beast.

In its truest form.

True to its name, the Owl Beast was a robust, quadrupedal creature with an owl-like appearance. It had a thick coat of dirty gray down feathers, large wings, bird-like legs, and long tail feathers. Its head resembled that of a barn owl, featuring a heart-shaped white face with hollow black eyes and a small beak.

It stepped on the ground, shaking. It then stretched its neck towards Eda, stopped in front of her, and screeched a horror shriek.

"AAAAAAAH!" Eda cried out in surprise.

---

"NO!" 14-year-old Eda screamed as she shot up in her bed.

"Hey, hey, it's okay," Malcolm said, taking her into his arms and hugging her tightly. Making Eda feel his love and safety as she hugged him back. Sobbing into his chest. "It's okay, it's okay. I'm here."

The door to the door opened, and three figures came into the room. Gwendolyn, the mother of Eda. The head of the Oracle Coven, Yeoh Saberslayer, before both of her arms were cut off by Belos. And her husband and the then-head of the Healing Coven, Mahri.

Having the same pale skin as her daughter, Gwendolyn had violet-colored lower lip, olive-green eyes, and rounded-out facial features, such as pronounced dimples and a ball chin. Her hair at the time was reddish-brown with a lighter-colored front and sides. It was worn in a symmetrical neck-length style, standing upwards on the sides and top with two locks falling around her cheeks.

Despite his name meaning a place of destruction, Mahri was a gentle giant of a man who was so big he had to bend down to fit through the doorway. Mahri had tanned skin, long hair that was covered by a black headdress, a short mustache, and a beard. He wore the light blue rode of the Healing Coven, with the armband of his coven, and a gray sash around his waist.

"Edalyn!" Gwendolyn ran in when she heard her daughter screaming. "Oh, thank goodness you're awake."

Eda continued to cry before pulling away from Mal's chest to look up at him. Her boyfriend had volunteered to use his amazing magical powers to free his cursed girlfriend.

"Mal…Did you…"

"I tried," Mal said with great sadness and grief. He hated it. He hated it so much he couldn't save her. "I'm sorry, Eda. I tried everything the masters taught me."

Eda hated it too, but smiled to cheer her beloved boyfriend up. "Hey, it's…It's okay, we'll try something else," she said.

What could they try?

Mahri walked up to the young girl, his fingers interlocked. "Eda," he said, "what did you see? In your dreams?"

When Eda swallowed the lump in her throat, it burned. It felt like forcing down razors. "It always starts the same way. I wake up someplace dark…And then it appears. It hunts me. Tries to hurt me…And eventually... I wake up, and I know I turned into... that thing. I…" Eda grabbed her head and shook it, her eyes shut tightly. "I don't want to become that thing again!"

"I wouldn't let that happen," Mal declared with a smile.

Yeoh walked to the bed and held out a hand. "Here, take this," she said, placing an object in Eda's hand. It was a large gem. "It will tell you when the beast's energy is bubbling to the surface."

"Oh, what a beautiful little stone," Gwendolyn said.

"It's a temporary solution," Yeoh said, smiling at the cursed girl. "But at least it gives us a fighting chance against it."

Gwendolyn's face twitched.

"May I speak with you outside," she asked, ushering the three who came to help outside.

"But, Eda," Mal protested.

"It'll just be a minute, hon," said the mother in a kind smile.

Mal looked to Eda, who smiled at her boyfriend. Expecting to see him again.

Eda's mom closed the door. Eda got up and eavesdropped on their conversation behind the door. Watching as her mom turned her anger and frustration on Mal, Yeoh, and Mahri.

"What the hell was that?! I thought you're some kind of powerful witch, not the Bauble Seller." Eda's Mother said, scolding Malcolm for his inability to heal her daughter.

"Mrs. Clawthorne, please." Malcolm pleaded. The elder Clawthorne turned away from him, arms crossed. "I'm trying to help her, but every healing spell I tried using didn't work. The curse is too strong for me to rid the beast within. Whoever cursed Eda must've burned the scroll to prevent me from using it to reverse the spell. But if I can keep it bay, It'll give me—"

"Keep it at bay!?" Eda's mother turned around, infuriated by the young Bridges's suggestion. "Oh, no. Are you saying that you can't do it? My daughter is suffering, and you're standing here, doing nothing! If you can't do it, I'll find someone else! I want that thing out! Cut the curse out if you have to!"

Upon hearing this, Eda gasped in horror. She covered her mouth and clutched her chest, panting heavily in fear. She looked at the open window, swinging and squeaking from the wind.

"Mrs. Clawthorne, I love your daughter, and I will do anything for her, but this…" When Mal was unable to speak, his master stepped in.

"Mrs. Clawthornes, in spite of being the head of the Healing Coven, I have studied all forms of magic," Mahri explained to the woman. "From the lowest of light spells to advanced lightning magic. I have lived a very long time, and this curse is unlike anything I've ever seen before. More powerful, more accent than anything on record. We need to be careful, or we could permanently damage Eda. For all we know, the curse is now embedded into her soul."

Gwen brushed him off, not happy to hear his concerns. "Oh, what do you know? If you're not going to do what is necessary, then I'll find a way to cure Edalyn. No matter what it takes."

She looked at Mal with disdain.

"And you, Bridges. I would have expected more of an effort. How could you let her suffer?! You're supposed to love her!"

"Don't! You! DARE!" Malcolm yelled, letting out a pulse of his magic that sent the mother to the floor.

The mother of his girlfriend looked at Mal in shock. She tried to get up, but was held down by vines coming out of the ground to wrap around her wrists and ankles.

"How dare you—"

She was gagged by a vine, watching in fear as the ceiling over Mal's head darkened.

"Do not ever question my love for your daughter! I will remove the curse, but I will not do it if it means hurting Eda anymore than she is hurting."

Mal let out a calm breath as his magic calmed down. Freeing Gwen.

"So long as she wants me to, I'm going to cure Eda. Until the day comes that she doesn't want me to help or I finally cure her, stay out of my way," he told the mother, much to her shock. Very, very few things will make Malcolm angry.

Anyone questioning or trying to make him feel like he didn't love Eda was one of them.

He walked past the woman and went back to Eda's room, leaving the mother to face Yeoh's judgmental glares.

Opening the door, Malcolm steps into Eda's room. "Eda I—"

Before he could speak, he gasped. Eda was gone. Her room was empty. The window above Eda's bed was open, and then it dawned on the seventh child of the Bridges family.

"Oh no..."

---

Meanwhile, Eda ran through the forest faster and faster. She stopped to catch her breath. This wasn't fair. None of this was fair. Why was any of it happening to her? All she wanted was to be normal again. Eda would give up being a bad girl just to have the curse taken away from her. To not have scared all of her friends away.

To not have gravely hurt her father.

"Eda!"

Eda gasped and looked up, only to see it was her boyfriend running to her.

"No, wait!" Eda yelled, holding her hand out to him. "Please. Don't come any closer! I…I could hurt you again."

"What, like you did the last time," Mal said, walking and holding up his arm, which was bandaged. "I'll just flash you again." He conjured a ball of light.

"This is serious, Mal! I…I don't wanna be like that," Eda said, close to tears as she hugged herself.

Mal, hating to see his girlfriend in such a vulnerable state, walked up and hugged her. Kissing her on the lips to calm her down. "I know, and I wouldn't let it happen," he said.

"What about mom," she asked, afraid. "What if…what if she doesn't love me anymore?"

"Your mother does," said Mahri, who walked out of the trees behind the teenage couple. "She's just…doesn't know how to help you and is expecting results."

The master of Malcolm stopped in front of his student and his girlfriend. The boy looked at him in lost. Everything he'd taught him was all for nothing. They worked for every other curse, but this one was different.

"Master, what do we do," Malcolm asked.

Mahri stroked his beard and pondered it for a moment. A second later, he passed the two kids.

"Walk with me," he said, and the two followed. Mahri started leading them into the forest. "This is a dangerous time for you, Edalyn. Your mother's willingness to take more extreme measures to rid the curse is a danger to you, yes. But some will try and hunt you down for it."

"The Empire," Eda asked, scared.

"There are those blinded to see his malice," Mahri said.

The journey would come to an end when they reached their destination. In front of them were the destroyed ruins of a mysterious terrace. The only remains were an iron gate held in place by a stone archway and partial walls. Purple leaves and vines overtook the structure, displaying the ruin's age.

"I never knew this was back here," she said.

Mahri nodded and held out his hand, stopping the kids before they could walk any further. When they looked at him, they saw that he was looking at the ground, more specifically, an object sticking out of the ground.

Kneeling down, the coven head reached out and grabbed the object, pulling it out of the ground and revealing it to be a suitcase-like object buried in the sand. The kids gathered around as he picked it up and wiped off the dirt on its surface.

"What is that," Eda asked, intrigued.

"A bridge. Not the one that would allow you to cross rivers and valleys. One more important than anything made by a witch, yet still about to until two sides to one another. This door is its vessel, and it will keep you safe, young Edalyn."

"You… want to send Eda to another world," Mal asked.

"That is your choice, Malcolm, as I'm giving this door to you. As of today, it belongs to you," Mahri said, revealing the eye of the portal. The very same one he'll give Eda in the future. "All I ask is that you never let it fall into the wrong hands. Not until the day comes when both worlds are ready to meet each other…and Belos falls."

"I…I understand," Mal said with a nod.

"Do you? Belos will stop at nothing to possess it. It must never fall into his hands. I'm giving it to you to keep Edalyn safe, but in turn, you must never allow anyone else to possess it," Mahri said, looking at the portal in his hands. "This portal could be what brings about great change, and Belos would corrupt that change with his tainted magic."

"Are you saying that we're going to have to fight Belos," Eda asked.

"An apt question, yet one that you shouldn't worry about right now," Mahri said, brushing his hand on the eye.

The eye then flashed, and the suitcase shot out of Mahri's hand. It folded open into a door with a key in its keyhole. The key turned in the lock, unlocking it. The door then opened, revealing the human realm on the other side.

Mahri walked to the door and pulled the key out. He then turned to his student and held it out to him.

Mal looked at the key and then at Eda. This was a big decision. They were still able to come back whenever they wanted, but by leaving, they would be leaving their family and friends for who knows how long. And yet, Eda knew that she didn't have a choice. Her mother was going to stop at nothing to get her curse removed, even if it meant going to the most extreme measures to get it out, regardless of her input.

This curse was hers to get rid of, and Eda trusted Mal above everyone to do it.

She nodded her head.

Mal turned to the key, knowing the responsibility that was placed on him if he took it. And it was one that he gladly did.

The boy reached out and pinched the top of the key. Holding it by the cut-outs.

"Do you have it," Mahri asked.

"Yes," Mal said.

"Say the words, please."

"I have it."

Mahri released the key to his student.

---

{Play music: Into the Badlands theme}

The intro opens with Booker rising from a dark void and clapping his hands. His magic markings light up, and the eye of the portal opens behind him, with a fire burning inside. One by one, his friends appear in front of him. First is Luz, who plays with her cards and does her light spells. Next, Eda steps out of a portal and spins her staff, only for King to come out from behind her. This is followed by Willow summoning massive vines as her eyes glow, Gus holding an open book and conjuring illusion clones of himself, and Amity twirling into the frame and smirking as she brings down a wall of abomination goo.

A Boiling Isle mural is seen again, only this time, the nine symbols of the Covens are added on top, the Owl House is on the bottom left, and the Emperor's Castle is on the bottom right. Lilith, Hunter, and Kikimora appear in the frames, taking the place of Willow, Gus, and Amity. They then show the reverse side of their frames, with Lilith sobbing, Hunter taking off his mask, partially revealing his face, and Kikimora enraged.

The scene is burnt away again, but this time, it is by Emperor Belos. Behind him was his castle as lightning strikes.

Now, as the sun set, Booker and Luz were on Eda's staff, with Luz riding up front like she was driving and Booker standing behind like he was surfing on a surfboard. They zoom down the Boiling Isles, past many friends and foes alike, until Eda and King join in on the ride... then they hang on for dear life as a massive, monstrous worm-like monster, mouth wide open, lunges at them. Everyone, minus Booker, screamed in horror. The latter looked brave and defiant towards the beast, and he pointed his sword towards it.

Then, the scene changes back to the Owl House, where it's nighttime and stars twinkle in the sky. Only this time, the night sky is colored in a more vibrant purple, and the family of four can now see the Milky Way on the roof. Luz opens her hands to reveal a ball of light as Booker's hands glow, and a glyph-like symbol appears on the back of his hands.

He grinned and slammed his hands together, causing light magic to burst from his hands. That's when the title appeared.

The Seventh Son

---

Chapter Twenty One:

Prodigal Cure

Seven years ago, Booker was forced into the foster home that would become his prison. People like to think that orphanages are all nice, happy places. But they're not. They're places where hope can be snatched away if the parent looking to adopt doesn't like you for any number of reasons. Even the most minor things like eye color.

When Booker walked into the bathroom, it felt cold to look at. There was no sense of warmth or care in it. There was only a cross and a picture of Jesus hanging on the wall.

There was another boy in the bathroom, and they were taking a shower. Booker didn't bother him. That was his business. He just wanted to use the restroom.

Walking up to one of the urinals, he pulled his pants down slightly and started peeing. However, at the same time, one of the bathroom stalls opened, and another boy came out. However, they weren't going to the exit.

Booker turned around and saw that the boy was replacing the soap bottle that was sitting at the corner of the shower current. Switching it out for another soap bottle.

However, it didn't look like soap at all. It was clear, almost like water.

The other boy looked at Booker like a deer in headlights. He then turned and ran out, taking the soap bottle he stole with him.

What was that about?

Booker looked back at the shower to see that the boy bathing had taken it. He could hear the bottle being opened as he watched himself with what would turn out to be bleach.

And then came the screams.

---

Booker gasped and jolted up. Looking around, he was startled to see that he wasn't in his bedroom. However, it only took him a moment to realize that he was. He just wasn't in the sleeping quarters of the orphanage.

He was in his bedroom in the Owl House, his new home and the only home he had ever wanted to have.

That was the first night Booker spent in that orphanage. The next seven years would be the most hellish time he'd ever spent. He didn't feel safe there with the other boys or with the staff. Father Dean was more worried about the reputation of the orphanage, so he did the bare minimum when it came to discipline. The nuns were in charge of that, and they were the cruelest when it came to punishment.

It was in that orphanage that he gained his fury. The trauma of listing his family burned inside of him, eating away at his mental health. He hated being called small because his height was a death sentence. The smaller you are, the more likely the other kids are going to pick on you.

And bullies weren't like on TV. They were dangerous, especially when they knew they could get away with their deeds. So many times in the beginning, Booker was beaten so badly that he ended up in the infirmary.

Leading to Booker's hair-trigger the moment he's told about his height. Because the moment he heard it, his body entered flight or fight mode. His need to live kicks it. If he didn't put down the bullies and show what would happen if he's called small, then he'll just be picked on again until he ends up killed by "accident".

And yet, now, that anger, that hate, and need beat down all who smelled him small—it was fading. And it was all thanks to two people.

Luz, the first love of his life, kept him together. She'd seen the worst of him, and instead of hating him and leaving him, that wonderful young woman chose to stay with him. Because they were both weirdos, and they loved each other for it.

And most of all, Eda.

Booker loved Luz and Amity with all his heart. Willow and Gus were his best friends, and he had a family on the Boiling Isles. But Eda was what he'd needed for so long. A parent who loved him. To fill the gaping wound left in his heart. Eda couldn't replace his family, but she was still there to be the family he needed. And it was with her help and love that Booker became happy.

His anger was a work in progress, but he was no longer lashing out as much. Eda's motherly love and kindness cooled the raging inferno. And for his new mom, the two girls he loved, and his friends, he'd been trying to be better.

Booker was still a wanted person, and Belos still wanted his blood, but he's finally learning to let his guard down.

"Another nightmare, huh?"

Booker looked up to see his mom standing at the bedroom's doorway. She was wearing a longer, three-toned maroon dress with mid-length sleeves and with lighter-gray tights. Her boots were now dark gray, and she no longer wore earrings.

"Is that the dress I bought for you," Booker said with a growing smile. That was until he saw the bottom of it. "Wait, did you rip it?"

"Huh?" Eda looked down at her new dress. "Oh, yeah. I did."

"Mama Eda!"

"What? It looks good on Mama," Eda said, smirking at the modification to her dress. She then looked at her adopted son with a worried face. "So…what was it about this time?"

Back on earth, Booker was told that he needed to represent a positive image of the church and his orphanage. Father Dean said it was to bring a positive outlook on all of his fellow kids—definitely not to cover up the fact that his happy little orphanage wasn't, in fact, a happy environment.

When he told her about the kid who bathed himself in bleach, Eda was shocked. "Titan-dammit," she hissed. "And Father Dean never did anything to the kid that did it?"

"Locked in solitary for a week, forced to write an essay on one of the old testaments, and he was released," Booker said. "Father Dean wanted everyone to be happy but never did anything to make us truly happy.

Eda sat down next to him and hugged him tightly. "I'm so sorry you had to go through that," she said as her adopted son hugged his left arm around her. "Honestly, it's no wonder you got the tempter you have."

Booker sighed in shame. "I know," he said, looking down. "I'm…I'm trying to get better with it. But…well…"

"Is it a bad habit to let go when it comes from your past? Trust me, I know all about bad habits," Eda said, ruffling his hair.

Booker nodded but frowned. "Was…Was I really that bad of a person?"

Eda looked at him in shock. "Who told you that?"

"Well, I've been thinking back on how I've been…well, I just thought that I'm lucky to have still the friends I have," Booker said, pulling his legs into his chest. "Especially when I let that anger get the better of me. Honestly, I would have thought that people would have hated me because of my anger…"

"Let me tell you something," Eda said. "Fuck those people."

"Huh?"

"I said fuck people who would hate you for something that's not your fault, Booker," Eda said with firmness. "You were only a kid that went through one of the most traumatic experiences anyone could have gone through, forced to hold all that repressed trauma in for seven years, allowing it to build up. And that's not even ignoring the fact that you were forced to live in a brutal and dangerous environment."

Eda kissed his forehead with love.

"You're not a bad person, Booker. Don't ever let anyone tell you otherwise," she said, flicking his forehead. "Even if you do have a short temper, shorty."

"Watch it."

"Hehe, sorry."

"Thank you, Mama Eda," Booker said. "For everything."

"Don't mention it, kiddo. Now come on," Eda said, ruffling his golden hair as she stood up. Booker smiled and got up with her. Together, they left the bedroom.

---

When they walked into the kitchen, Booker blinked in confusion before smiling. In the kitchen, Luz was sleeping with her head atop a pile of books while snoring, just where he'd left her the previous night when she wanted to continue their research into how to get back to the Human Realm.

"Luz," Booker whispered, giving her a little shake.

Luz groaned.

"Luzzy~"

"Luzzy is sleepy."

Booker smiled at his crush and was about to try again. However, that's when Eda exclaimed, "Beans!"

This caused Luz to jolt up, cry out, and fall backward. Booker quickly saved her by getting behind her and catching her. "What's wrong," Booker asked while Luz looked up at him with a big blush.

"We ran out of apple blood," Eda said, kicked the fridge door close, and turned around.

Booker rolled his eyes with a smile as he pushed Luz back up. "So…Still no luck," he asked, picking up some of the books that landed on the ground.

She sighed and said, "None. And I was up all night. I read every tome, book, notepad, and tea leaf."

Luz picked up the cup she used for the tea leaf ritual and showed it to Ede and Booker. Inside were a bit of tea and the crumbled bits of a leaf.

The tea leaf formed into a shrugging person.

"But nothing explains how to make a portal to the Human Realm," Luz said, throwing the cup away. Breaking it against the wall.

Eda walked around the island and patted her on the back. I wish I could help ya, kid," she said. "My door was already pretty old when Master Mahri gave it to Mal."

Booker blinked and asked, "Master Mahri?"

"Yeoh's husband. He was the former head of the Healing Coven and your father's master. Thought him in secret everything he knew," Eda explained. "I've only had the door for 14 years. Mal's had it when we were…well, the same age as you two."

"AAAAAAAAAAHHHH!"

The conversation was interrupted when, from somewhere in the house, Lilith started screaming. Booker, Eda, and Luz gasped.

"Lily?!" Eda called out to her sister.

They ran to the living room. Just in time to see Lilith on the ground, her hands growing feathers on her fingers and down her arm, beginning to turn into Owl Beast.

"Help... me," Lilith pleaded, reaching out to them.

"I've got her," Booker said, acting fast, rushing over and taking out a bottle of elixir from beneath a pillow on the couch.

He then ran towards Lilith as Eda laid her down on her lap. "Calm down, just calm down," she said, tilting her head back to allow Booker to feed Lilith the elixir gently. "The curse acts stronger when you're stressed."

Lilith drank all of the glowing elixir. The potion kicked in, causing the feathers to disappear. Opening her eyes, the woman inhaled sharply and started panting.

"That was... That was horrible!" Lilith exclaimed, rubbing her temple like she had a migraine. One most likely caused by the horrible taste of the elixir. "How have you managed all these years?"

"Well, it's been hard," Eda said, downplaying the experience of her first few years under the curse's control, as she helped Lilith up. "But since we split the curse, at least the elixirs are working again."

Lilith smiled and said, "That's a relief."

She would have placed her hand on her chest…

…If she noticed her left hand was gone.

She made a terrified noise while Luz cried out in shock.

"Your hand!" Booker yelled, pointing at the cut-off end of Lilith's arm. "Oh, wait, there it is." He bent down and picked up Lilith's hand.

"Oh, yeah, sorry. A side effect of the curse. It's actually fun once in a while," Eda said as her adopted son set the hand back in place. "Now, don't worry. I've stashed elixirs all over the house."

Eda then showed all the places where she hid the elixirs. She still had five more under the couch seat and stashed one behind a flower pot.

Whenever you start feeling feathery, just help yourself to one of these bad boys," she said, pulling one out of Luz's hood.

While Luz was impressed and clapped her hands, Booker was more confused.

"Wait, when did you put that there," he asked.

"Don't worry about it."

Seeing just how much Eda had come to rely upon these elixirs, along with the many other pains and hardships she'd endured being cursed, Lilith looked down in shame. All this time, she could have been there for her sister, and yet she wasn't. Only trying to fix the problem instead of comforting Eda. Never fully understanding her suffering until she finally had it nearly happen to her.

"All this time…I had no idea this is what I did to you. I am so, so sorry," Lilith said as Eda walked up to her.

"Eh, don't worry about it. Yeah, I lost a lot because of it, but I also gained good things for it," Eda said, handing Lilith the bottle of elixir. "And you got me if you need anything."

Eda patted Lilith on the shoulder and walked out with Booker and Luz. Leaving Lilith to lie down on the couch.

She looked up, only to notice a few bottles of elixirs taped to the ceiling.

Lilith smiled. At least Eda was prepared.

---

"Mahri gave the portal to Malcolm and told him never to allow anyone to have it," Eda said, continuing their conversation from the kitchen. "Made him sore an oath, just like he did with me when he gave me the door. When Mal and I broke up, that was pretty much it. I no longer had a means of going to the human realm until 14 years ago."

"You never came back to our world," Booker asked.

"Not as often as I'd hoped. If I wanted to, I'd have to go to your father. I still have strong feelings for the adorable idiot, but when he started dating and then marrying your mother…well, it never felt right," Eda said, looking at the horizon sadly as she rubbed her arm. "I didn't want to get in the way of their happiness, so I just started having more adventures in this world."

"Why wouldn't you tell anyone," Luz asked her.

Eda smirked and raised an eyebrow. "Why? Suddenly curious about my past?"

The girl gave her a serious expression. "Always. Always curious."

"Well, I may have been using it to hide from someone," Eda said with a sour look in her eyes.

This got Booker's attention as he looked alarmed. "Hide from who?

"Probably me!" said an all too familiar voice.

"Shit," Eda said.

A sudden strong gust of wind started blowing, forcing Eda, Booker, and Luz to shut their eyes and shield their faces. Through cracked-open eyelids, they saw a bird flying and a tornado coming toward them.

Fully opening her eyes, Luz looked up, surprised, and said, "Magic bird tornado?"

Booker summoned his Dragon's Bite to him.

"Booker, don't!" Eda said, placing a hand in front of him. Looking at the tornado with bitterness. "I know exactly who it is."

"Yeah, that's what I'm worried about!" Booker said. It was only a matter of time before all of Eda's enemies came after her, and it looked like today was the day.

However, when the tornado stopped, Eda's eyes narrowed when she saw it was none other than her mother and her Palisman, Hawksley. He was a red-tailed hawk talisman with desaturated medium brown feathers and a lighter head and neck, and he had darker, black-tipped wing and tail feathers. His beak was more yellow-brown, as were his talons, and he had glowing white-gray eyes.

Gwendolyn landed in front of the trio as her bird landed back on her staff, turning into his staff form. Hunched over and imposing, his eyes medium brown instead of white, and the staff was a dark gray crook.

The mother's appearance had aged, and her hair was now mostly light gray, with the exception of two patches of white on her sides.

"Hello, little witchlet," Gwendolyn said with great joy. She was so very happy to see her daughter. Her staff vanished before the older woman ran forward with open arms. "Come here," she said.

"Gwendolyn," Eda said in disgust, stopping Gwendolyn from coming closer by pressing her hand on her head.

Booker, still armed with Dragon's Bite, leaned to Eda and asked, "Mama Eda, who is this?"

"Hush, child!" Eda covered his mouth in a panic.

However, it was too late. The moment she heard the word 'Mama', Gwendolyn gasped and stopped. "Mama? Are you telling me…"

"No, NO! It's not what you think!"

"I have a grandbaby!"

Booker didn't know when it happened, but Dragon's Bite was on the ground, and he was in the air. Having everything inside his body squeezed out towards his head and legs as Gwendolyn's arms hugged him to the point of nearly passing out.

"Help…please!" he gasped, feeling his eyes about to pop out.

Luckily, he was placed down at Gwendolyn, who looked him over with glee. "Oh, he's so handsome. His ears aren't very pointy, but other than that, he's perfect," she said, pinching his cheeks. "Edalyn, how could you not have told your own mother about you finally settling down and giving birth?"

"Mother?!" Luz and Lilith, who heard from outside and pushed open a window, shouted in shock.

Booker at Gwendolyn in awe and with a growing smile. "I…I have another grandmother?"

"Adopted grandmother," Eda said, pulling her adopted son away from her mother. "And I didn't just knock up or settle down. I adopted Booker. He's Malcolm's son."

Gwendolyn leaned down to look at Booker closely.

"Oh." She shrugged. "That's a shame, but legally speaking, he's your son?

"If you wanna split hairs—"

"Hello, I'm right here!" Booker yelled, feeling a bit offended. Behind him, Luz was the only person to see Lilith crawling out of the window like a scurrying animal. "And you signed the documents, lady. Making it the first legal thing you've done."

Eda rolled her eyes.

"Oh, don't be like that. Isn't it so good to see your mother again?" Gwendolyn said, squeezing Eda's face with both hands before Eda bushed her away. "How are you feeling? Are you eating well? I heard all about the Petrification Ceremony. Trust me. I have a lot of strong words for that Belos."

"Yeah, you do that," Eda grumbled.

Booker nudged her. "What's with you? Isn't she your mother?"

"Unfortunately—AAH!"

Eda yelled, and she and Booker were shoved out of the way and to the ground when Lilith came out from behind them.

"Mother! Mother, you know, I was there too," she said with a smile, hoping to get some kind of recognition from her.

"Oh, hello to you too, sweet flea," Gwendolyn said, touching Lilith's hair. "Still dyeing your hair, I see. Well, it's very sleek. Now give me a moment with Edalyn, dear. It's important."

For a moment, Lilith looked surprised by how her mother brushed her off so easily. She should be shocked that after all these years, her mother didn't have the time even to acknowledge her like she did her older sister.

But really, she wasn't.

People don't change that easily, and Lilith's mother still ignores her. Because of that, she became sad and backed off.

"That's right! Today, I am about to complete a 30-year mission," Gwendolyn proclaimed to her daughters, adopted son, and the little human girl.

"Mission," Luz asked.

Eda, with an annoyed expression, groaned. "Oh, no."

"Your mother has finally succeeded."

Eda pinched her eyebrows. "Here it comes."

"Today," Gwen spun her staff and jabbed it on the ground, "I shall be curing your curse!"

Booker could almost hear the music of hope from some random movie playing in his head. "Are…Are you for real," he asked with a growing smile. "You can actually cure mom?!" He turned to Eda, who was digging for gold in her ear with her pinky. "Isn't that great?! Mom, you can finally be cured!

"No, thanks."

"WHAT!" Booker, Luz, and Lilith yelled in shock. Eda looked at them with wide eyes filled with disbelief.

"I said, 'No, thanks,'" Eda said, crossing her arms. "I got my elixir system. I'm good."

"But... But who knows what they put in those nasty concoctions?" Gwen asked, appalled.

"Actually, I do. I was in the Potions Track, remember? And would you look at the time?" Grabbing Gwendolyn's staff, Eda quickly pushed Gwendolyn to sit on it, much to the old woman's surprise. "I've got a lot to do today. It's so sad to see you go. Okay, bye!"

With a slap on Gwendolyn's staff, Eda sent her flying away. Satisfied with herself, she turned back to the house with her eyes closed, eyes closed, and then dusted off her hands.

"Moms. Am I right?" she said, opening her eyes to look at the other.

No one was happy with her. Booker, Luz, and Lilith stared at Eda with a completely shocked expression on their faces.

"What?"

"Your mother was going to cure you…and you sent her flying away…I…I don't…" Booker's shock turned to anger as he shouted at his adopted mother. "What is wrong with you?!"

"Booker, you shouldn't yell at your mother," Lilith said. However, just as frustrated at Eda, Lilith walked to Eda to criticize her too. "But he is right. WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU?! I haven't seen Mother in forever!

"She was handing you a cure on a silver platter, Mama Eda!" Booker yelled again.

"How could you do that to her?!" Luz yelled, joining in on the berating. "I'd kill to see my mom right now, and you just launch yours into the sky?!"

"Everyone, time!" Eda said, putting her hands together in a T. "Look, I get why you're all mad, really, I do, but listen. She comes around every year, toting a new cure for my curse. But they never work, so I am done getting my hopes up."

"But…But what if it's really a cure," Booker asked, looking at his adopted mother with pleading eyes. "Eda, can't you at least give it a try?"

"I'm sorry, kiddo, but I'm not," Eda said and started walking into the house.

Booker sighed in frustration while Lilith stood there with a look of disbelief. "Mother visits Edalyn... regularly?" she asked, following Eda into the house.

Booker and Luz turned their heads back toward the mother of their adopted mom/mentor. Gwendolyn landed, then walked away with a sad expression.

Luz made a pitiful sound, and Booker frowned. "Do you really think she found a cure? " he asked her.

"I…I don't. I really want her and Eda to make up, but…" Luz paused for a moment.

"It could not really work and make things worse," Booker said, nodding as he picked up Dragon's Bite. "I understand…but I think this is something that we need to do."

Luz nodded, and together, they ran after Gwen.

Booker waved to her. "Mrs. Clawthorne, wait!"

Gwendolyn turned around to see her adopted grandson running up to her.

"I-I mean Grandmother Clawthorne. I mean grandmother. I…Titan, this is so weird," Booker said, rubbing the back of his head. "I mean, I'm adopted, so I don't know what to call you."

"You can call me Grandma Gwen, my dear," Gwen said, smiling at her grandson.

"Uh, right. So, I'm your new grandson, Booker," Booker said, holding out his hand to her, only for Gwen to smile and pull him into another hug. "Ooooooooh, the back again."

Luz giggled at the funny yet sweet scene as she cleared her throat, getting the grandmother's attention. "And I'm Luz. Eda's apprentice. I think what you're doing is so sweet. Eda can just be so…"

"Stubborn," Booker said with a smushed face.

"Yeah, there we go."

Gwen sighed and released Booker. "But please don't blame Edalyn. It was the curse that created the rift between us," she said with a hand on her chest. "It destroyed all of Edalyn's relationship. Including the one with your father, Booker."

"Yeah, she told me all about that," Booker said, rubbing the back of his head.

Luz stepped up to smile at the old woman. "I understand. Right now, there's an actual rift between me and my mom in the Human Realm."

"Human Realm? Hmm." Intrigued, Gwen thought for a moment before gasping when an idea came into her mind. "My dear, I may know how to fix both our rifts."

This excited Luz. "Really?"

"I've heard some information that may assist you with your quest. Help me cure Eda's curse, and that information is yours," Gwen said to the two kids.

Luz, exhilarated, hopped on. "Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes!"

Determined to find the cure, Booker nodded with a grin and asked, "When do we get started." Was it small to go on a quest with a stranger? No, but Gwen was his new grandma, and if she really did believe that she had the cure, then it was worth the chance.

"We'll be consulting someone…" Gwen grabbed her necklace, and the rune on it started flashing. "Very special."

---

Leaving the Owl House together, Booker, Luz, and Gwendolyn walk together down a path in the forest. On both sides of the trio were two rocky bluffs.

"So we're gonna meet a curse expert," Luz asked, excited to find the cure. "This is so rad."

"Yes, after years of dealing with the Healing Coven, I finally found someone who promised me a cure," Gwendolyn said, smiling. "And once he gives me the cure, we can finally be a family again."

"I'm sure Mom would love that," Booker said, rolling his eyes. "She just…likes doing this her way. Had been for as long as I've lived with her."

"Oh, she thinks that she knows what she wants, but as her mother, I know what's best for my little girl," Gwen said, wagging her finger.

Booker and Luz glance at one another. "Right…"

"You know, when Eda and Malcolm were dating, I thought they were the happiest couple in the world. I was sure they would have gone on to marriage. I will admit, I wasn't fair towards your father," Gwen said, looking down at the ground in shame. "He truly was trying his best, but it wasn't enough. And if his best isn't enough for my daughter, then I couldn't accept the relationship anymore."

"Well, as you know, Grandma Gwen, my father really did try everything. I'm sure that had he had enough time, he could have cured your daughter and saved their relationship," Booker said. He didn't like how she was talking about his father like that.

"Either way, my little Edalyn still ended up becoming your mother. Still, I never would have thought that my Edalyn would finally have a child. And while I would have rather she's…" Gwen glanced at Booker, who gave her a raised eyebrow.

"Gave birth?"

Luz said, "Well, it's not like Booker's not a bad choice for a grandson, right." She gave Gwen a warning look. As if dangering her say something bad about her best friend/crush.

"Oh, no, I'm not saying that. I just…didn't expect Eda to adopt anyone after not wanting any," Gwen said, pointing to Booker. "Especially for someone so young and little."

"Hey! I'm not a miniature gopher anymore, dammit!" Booker yelled, his anger spiking again.

As the group came to a stop, Luz sighed in exasperation and placed a hand on her friend's shoulder. "Booker, you know that's not what she said," she said, helping him calm down.

Gwen looked at Booker with a raised eyebrow. "Hmm, a bit of a temper on you."

Exhaling a deep breath, Booker frowned and looked down in shame. "I know, I'm sorry, Grandma Gwen. It's just…It's something that I can't stand being called," Booker said, rubbing his arm as he explained to them the originals of his fury. "The orphanage I grew up in was extremely rough. And because I was the shortest person on the block, I was the easiest target for a lot of the bigger kids. They called me short and tiny, all while kicking the shit out of me. Most nights, I would go to bed with bruises and cuts."

"Oh my," gasped Gwen, looking at her new grandson with horror.

Booker nodded and stuffed his clenching fists in his pockets. "And then, one day, this really bad kid came at me. The others held me down as he started cutting me," Booker said, feeling his chest where the bully cut into him. "He said that I deserved it for being weak and small. That God took my parents and my brothers away because I was so small. And you know what's the fucked up part? I…I kind of believed him. I'd believed him so much that I got angry. Everything went blanket, but when I woke up, I…"

Knowing exactly where the story was going, Luz walked up behind him and hugged him. "Booker, it's okay," she said softly.

"No, I need to say it," Booker said, trying to get his breathing under control. "I'd beaten that kid within an inch of his life. He never picked on me again and had to be moved away. I don't know why Father Dean kept me around. I wouldn't. But since that day, whenever someone calls me small, I just…snap. To be called small is to be called weak, and in a place like where I grew up, weakness is death."

"Well," Gwen said, "I'll be sure to give this Father Dean a good verbal thrashing for allowing such things to happen—right after we cure Edalyn." She turned and continued walking with Booker, and Luz followed her from behind.

Walking abreast with her best friend, Luz looked at him worryingly. "Are you okay," she asked.

"Yeah, it's just…I've been thinking a lot about how I've been the last few years," he attempted, looking down in shame. "Is there really any wonder I turned out the way I did? A thug with a hair-trigger temper. It's honestly a wonder why you didn't just dump me when I yelled at you on the Grudgby field."

"Booker, I told you, it's okay." While it did hurt when he saw all those awful things, it made Luz realize that she wasn't the best of friends for Booker when she could almost get him killed. "You had nothing to apologize for," Luz said, still not sure why Booker thought he was the bad guy. "I was the screw-up."

"I know, but still…"

"Booker, you're not a perfect person. You're brash, get angry quickly, and are violent," Luz said, giving him a critical eye. However, that softened as she smiled at him. "But I would have to be the biggest loser on the planet to not see past all that. To see the real side of your worth being friends with. You can be a jerk, but you're a jerk with a heart of gold. You're strong, you always try to keep me out of trouble when I'm in the wrong, and most of all, you were there! You were there for me when no one else was. If it weren't for you, I would have been alone forever.

"I sure as hell am not perfect," Luz said, rolling her eyes. She then looked at Booker with her big eyes, looking at him with love in them. "I have made so many mistakes that it's not funny. If anything, you shouldn't be friends with me."

Booker looked at the first girl he'd ever love in wonder. For as long as they'd been friends, he'd never once thought Luz thought of him like that. He'd always thought about the Dominican girl as the ray of sunlight that brightened his bleak life. Never once imagined it was the other way around.

"Heh, you know, Eda said the same thing to me this morning," Booker said, smiling. "About people being dumbasses for only seeing our flaws."

"And that's why we weirdos need to stick together," Luz said, pointing her fist at him. "Which is why, if I do something stupid, I'll need you there to bring me back to reality."

"And if I get too hot-headed, I'll need you there to cool me down," Booker said, and the two of them bumped their fists.

The three of them continued walking until Gwendolyn stopped. "Here we are," she said.

Booker and Luz looked up and were confused at first as they found themselves standing in front of a rocky cliff. For miles, there were no signs of anyone, not even animals.

For a moment, Booker was going to write off his new grandmother as an alcoholic like Eda. However, something caught his attention.

One of the stones was a slab that would have been perfect for a door. This was proven when Gwendolyn walked up to it and displayed her necklace.

The boulder flashed the same symbol, then opened up by moving aside, revealing a hidden cave entrance.

"Whoa! How long has this been here," Booker asked with wide eyes. "Are there more of these places?"

Gwendolyn chuckled as she walked forward. "Of course there are," she said. "They're all over the island. You just have to know where to look."

"I love secret passages!" Luz cheered as she and Booker rushed to catch up with the old woman.

Before long, the three of them entered a large cave decorated with many things. Hanging from the ceiling were many golden shapes, like circles, moons, and stars. Purple crystals jutted out of the ground, and large tree roots were buried in the cave from above. Candles illuminated the room, along with a waterfall in the back wall of the cave. Its rocky wall was painted to look like a sun.

And there, sitting in the middle of an altar in front of the waterfall, was an old witch with four hands. His skin was purple, and a blue jewel was on his forehead. He had long white hair and a beard. He wore a pale gray robe with a large green orb necklace around his neck. In his top right hand was a staff with a diamond top, and a similar orb bracelet in his lower left hand.

The trio approached the altar as a gremlin with boils on his eyelids kneeled in front of the witch.

"Please, they're so itchy," the gremlin pleaded.

Humming, the old witch waved his hand, casting a spell circle. A circle of purple light surrounded the gremlin and lifted him up and off the ground. The light then flashed, and the gremlin was healed. He opened his eyes to show a look of pure joy as they were filled with stars and a moon.

Gwendolyn, Booker, and Luz gasped at the sight of that. Gwendolyn looked happy, while Booker and Luz looked shocked at the witch's abilities.

He watched as the gremlin was then put down on the ground. "Boils, they're... they're gone! Thank you, Wortlop. Thank you," he ran away out of the cave, crying happily.

The blonde boy's attention was pulled away when Gwen placed a hand on his shoulder.

"That's Master Wortlop. He's a traveling curse expert who's perfected next-level healing magic," she said when Master Wortlop gestured for Gwendolyn to come over. "Ooh!"

Gwendolyn shoved Booker aside and passed her staff to Luz. The two kids looked at one another, confused, but stood back as the old woman walked up to Wortlop and knelt in front of him.

"Gwendolyn, my pupil. Your aura is shining bright." Master Wortlop complimented her, opening his glowing white eyes devoid of pupils.

"It took many months, but I was able to gather the sacred items you requested," Gwen said with excitement as she pulled out a sack. From it, she took out an egg. "The copper egg from the Snowy Rib Cage." The second item to come out was a dagger. "The silver dagger from the Swampy Toes, and…" Lastly, Gwen pulled out a glowing gold chalice with eyes carved into it. "The golden chalice from the desert of Palm Stings."

"You're a dedicated mother, aren't you?" said Wortlop, stroking his beard.

Clapping his lower hands together, Wortlop summons a spell book out of thin air.

"Inside this tome is the healing ability you seek," he said, passing it over to Gwendolyn. "But keep it away from the eyes of non-believers, for many will be blinded by the power it holds."

Gwendolyn looked at the tome in awe for a moment. Finally, she had the answers she wanted. Finally, someone was giving her what she wanted: a straightforward cure for her daughter.

"I understand," she said, standing up and bowing to Master Wortlop. "I am in your debt, Master Wortlop."

Booker and Luz glanced at one another as Gwendolyn turned around and walked away. Could this really be it? Did they really find the cure for Eda?

There was only one way to find out.

---

From the Owl House's living room, King looked at Booker, Luz, and Gwendolyn through a window as they prepared for their plan to cure Eda. Gwendolyn placed a sign on the ground. Booker dove it down with a mallet. Luz wrote "APPLE BLOOD" and drew an arrow pointing away from the house.

"Isn't it amazing, Francois? If Eda's mom can just pop up, who says my dad can't?" he asked with excitement while Booker and Luz followed Gwendolyn deeper into the forest.

King stretched his arms and said, "Nyeh! Better get my hugging arms ready."

The sound of a laugh bursting out had King open his eyes. Looking at the couch, he saw it was none other than Lilith. She was lying on the couch eating ice cream.

"Yeah, good luck with all that dad stuff," she said with a doubtful smile as she munched on a spoonful. Spitefully thinking about her mother. The idea that she came to see Eda, of all people, instead of her just further drove home how much Gwen didn't care about her. "Take it from me, kid, parents do not love their kids equally. They only care about one kid and leave the others without any."

King scoffed. "You don't know what you're talking about."

"Do I? I was at the top of my grade, made honors, and never lost a witch's duel. I made it into the Emperor's Coven and climbed the ranks to become a Coven Head. What does mommy dearest do? Not speak to me for years! The first time I came back home to tell her of my plan to find a cure, she brushed me aside, saying good luck. That's it! A 'good luck with that'!"

Lilith threw the now-empty carton on the ground.

"Waiter, another round, please!" she called out to Hooty, who stretched his head to her and barfed out another carton of ice cream on the table. Luckily, it wasn't covered in saliva.

Not caring that it was in Hooty's mouth, as he went back to his place in the door, Lilith opened the ice cream and dug into it.

"Sometimes it doesn't matter how dutiful you are or successful you are. Parents just won't give you the time of day," Lilith said, miserably stuffing her face.

King looked at his stuffed rabbit. "Don't listen to her, Francois. My dad won't be like that."

This made Lilith sneer with bitterness. "Right. Your mysterious father, who didn't even stick around to watch you hatch," she said.

That hit King hard.

She was right. He didn't stick around. All that time, he could have come back, and he never did.

As King stared at Lilith with a devastated expression, the witch said dejectedly, "Looks like you and I are in the same boat, King."

King whimpered and clutched Francois closer to himself.

---

Back in the forest, Luz finished painting the last of the signs and wiped off sweat from her forehead. Booker came over, took the sign, and staked it into the ground.

"Man, I can't believe that we might actually cure Eda," Luz said. "That Wortlop sure is amazing."

"Yeah," Booker said, smiling. "And if he's the real deal, we'll be making a new door in no time."

The two of them high-fived before blushing at one another and looking away with cute smiles.

"Nice work, you two," said Gwen as she came back. Her Palisman was carrying down the back of her collar before setting her down on a stone. "With Wortlop's tome and your ability to lure Eda out of the house, we'll be curing that curse in no time."

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure she's always down for more apple blood," Luz said as Booker helped her stand up. "So, that Wortlop guy was really something. You're his pupil?"

Reading from it as she levitated it in front of her, Gwendolyn looked up from her tome. "Oh, yes. But first, I had to prove that I was worthy of his secrets," she said, putting the tome away. "So, I spent the last year on a bunch of dangerous quests. And I didn't even get that many scars."

To prove her point, Gwendolyn flashed her bicep muscles, showing that they were very muscular and covered with various scars.

"Holy hell, Grandma," Booker said in complete shock, comparing her bicep to Gwendolyn's.

"Your bicep game is ridiculous," Luz said, comparing her nerd arms to hers well.

Booker smiled and chuckled before turning back to Gwen. "So, you think this Wortlop can help us with our problem?"

"I know it," Gwen said, no longer flexing her arms, smiling with hope. Evident that she had so much hope in Wortlop.

"You have a lot of faith in Wortlop," Booker said, smiling at Gwen. "What can you tell me about him? I'm surprised that Eda hadn't tried finding him."

"Not surprising. But when I found him and saw his miracles, I knew this was the right man to free my Edalyn of her curse. And since then, he's been helping me find the cure," Gwen said. "And all it cost me was my entire life's savings."

As soon as they heard that last piece of information, Booker and Luz stopped what they were doing and looked at her blankly.

"You…what?"

Suddenly, the three of them heard steps on sticks and leaves rustling.

"Our signs must've worked," Gwendolyn gasped. "Quick, hide!" She quickly ran away together with Luz and Booker.

---

If there was one thing in the world that Eda could never resist, it was the temptation of Apple's Blood. The moment she saw the signs, she was on the trail laid out by the three trying to cure her.

"Oh, baby, it's time to stock up on Mama's night juice," Eda said, following the signs into the woods.

She was completely unaware that her adopted son, her adopted student, and her mother were watching from a tree branch high up.

"Uh, Grandma, what exactly did the tome tell you to do," Booke asked.

All he and Luz were asked to do was set up signs. That's it. In hindsight, it was ridiculous, but he really should have asked what the plan was in case things went off the rails. However, all Gwen said was that it was a surprise.

"Don't worry, my dear," Gwen said, pulling out the book to float next to her. "According to Wortlop's tome, we start by lowering the beast's defenses with special crystals. And they're supposed to be quite calming."

Booker would have asked how they were going to get the crystals to her in the trees. However, before he could, a sharp crystal dropped down from the sky.

"Whoa!" Eda narrowly avoided the falling crystal. "The fuck was that?" she said before looking up to see more crystals coming down at her. "Oh crap!"

Thinking quickly, Eda spun her staff over her head, shattering the rest, then narrowly avoided another falling crystal.

"Knife season came early this year," Eda commented, staring at the ground oddly. That's when a large shadow loomed over Eda. "Hmm?"

Eda looked up and screamed in complete fear. Jumping back and landing on the ground, she narrowly avoided a large crystal.

As the dust cloud created from the impact settled, Eda was seen lying on the ground, looking shocked from her near-death experience. A bunch of feathers springing out of her body.

Booker and Luz turned to Gwen in complete and total shock.

"Are you crazy!?" Booker asked, gritting his teeth. "You could've killed her!"

"We've gotta get down here," Luz said, pulling out an elixir from her hoodie. Booker thought about maybe getting her a utility belt for all her needs.

I should get one, too, he thought.

Luz was about to throw it to Eda, but Gwendolyn grabbed her hand and stopped her from delivering the elixir.

"Oh, no, no, no. The texts say those feathers mean we're driving the beast out," Gwen said, turning the pages.

"Yeah, and forcing the Owl Beast out!" Booker whispered.

"Exactly."

Booker looked at her like she was insane. And she might have been. "You…want the beast to come out?"

"Gwen, if that happens, this one elixir isn't going to be enough to stop her," Luz said, staring down at the elixir with a worried expression.

However, Gwendolyn, confident in the teachers of her master, placed her hand on the elixir. "Don't worry. This is all part of the process. After today, Eda will never have to drink those nasty little things again," she said.

Booker was about to protest again when Gwen pulled out a satchel bag.

"Next, we're gonna put that beast on ice," she said, releasing a puff of smoke from her bag.

That smoke formed a cloud with a face, which spouted out ice from its mouth. Eda got covered in snow, turning her into an Eda-shaped snowman.

"Ugh!" Eda let out.

---

Back at the Owl House, Lilith and King are lying on the couch, both groaning from eating too much ice cream. There was ice cream all over the living room. Spilled on the ground, on the table, and one tub was stuck to the wall.

"How do you get a parent's attention," King asked, rubbing his skull as the tub on his head slid off.

"Heck, if I know. Mother wasn't even at my Coven Initiation," Lilith said, munching on another spoonful of ice cream.

"At least you know what she looks like," King said, sitting up, trying not to vomit. "All I have is an old wall carving. What if that's just graffiti?"

Lilith finished the last of her ice cream and threw it to the wall. "Waaaaaaiteeeeerrr!"

The front door opened, and Hooty. Stretching into the living room, he looked around with a look of concern. "Heh, that's, uh, that's an awful lot of ice cream you guys are eating," he said before stretching towards Lilith with a wary expression. "You know Eda gets that stuff from the Night Market, right?"

Instead of showing appreciation for his concern, Lilith instead pointed at Hooty accusingly. "Are you my mother? Because that is an awful lot of judgment," she said. "And if there's one thing that woman can do, it's judge me."

"This sucks," King said, throwing away the ice cream container on his head before looking at Francois. "If my dad doesn't care about me, why should I care about him?" He then dropped his favorite toy. "Hmm? Well, I'm not going to him. He's gonna have to come to me!"

The little demon lay back down on the armrest with his arms crossed.

Emboldened by this, Lilith sat up angrily. "And I am sick of being overlooked. From now on, I…" she paused before standing up angrily. "I have no mother! And I... I'd say that to her face!"

"Yeah!" King cheered, standing up.

Hooty, however, hesitantly said, "Isn't that taking it a bit too far?"

"It's not taking it far enough. Go tell her," King exclaimed, gesturing towards the outside through the door. "Go on. She's right outside."

"She is?" Lilith yelped in surprise. At first, she thought about whether her mother had heard all the things she said.

"Yeah, I saw her go off with Booker and Luz. I think they're gonna heal Eda's curse or whatever."

Realization hit Lilith as her years of bitterness flashed across her face. Uh, oh. Is that so? Mother paying attention to Edalyn... again. Why am I not surprised? It's not like she hasn't done it for all my life," Lilith said. "I mean, it's not like I care."

And with that, the witch set her arms akimbo on her hips and grinned…

…only for a bunch of feathers to pop out of her face.

Hooty slowly retreated away from her as King cautiously pointed at her. "You got, uh, uh…" he paused to point to his face. "You got a little, uh, hmm…"

Realizing what was happening, Lilith gasped. However, remembering her sister's advice, she quickly turned around to lift up the couch seat.

There's nothing but feathers under the seat. The elixirs Eda kept there were gone.

"What? No!" She quickly ran over to the flower pot. "Where—"

Lilith lifted up the flower pot, only to see that the one stashed there was gone, too.

"Are—" She ran upstairs and entered Eda's bedroom. To Lilith's horror, when she opened the cupboard door, her sister's elixirs were gone.

"The elixirs?!" Lilith ended her sentence after finding every single one of the potions was gone. They were all gone, and she could feel the curse getting worse.

Lilith started covering her face and sobbing. She dropped to the ground on her knees, still crying. This wasn't happening. This couldn't be happening. Where did all of Eda's elixirs go? Who could have taken them? Why would they take them? Did they not know that it was the only way she and Eda could live normal lives?

As the witch cried, King popped out from behind the door.

"Lilith?" King called out hesitantly. The little demon walked into the room, and Hooty followed King from behind.

Lilith suddenly jolted up and let out a terrifying scream. It hurt! It hurt so much! It hurt as her eyes turned black, and her voice became deeper. But there was nothing she could do. The curse was too strong.

Hooty and King watched with growing fear as they saw Lilith transform with a terrified expression. Her shadow loomed over the duo.

King, in an act of desperation, tried to offer his ice cream. "...Weh?"

---

Back in the forest, Eda was at the end of her patients. For some reason, the people who were trying to offer her the apple blood were trying to either test her commitment to the beverage or just flat-out kill her. From being blasted with snow to being trapped in a flaming inferno, even using flying snakes. If it weren't for her quick thinking and a bit of luck, she'd be dead by now.

As she cleared the obstacles below, Eda climbed up a cliff—beyond exhaustion. "This... better be... the oldest, strongest, stinkiest apple blood…ever!"

She looked up at a sign that said, "IT REALLY IS ¡THAT GOOD!"

"FUCK ME!" Eda screamed in frustration. "And fuck my love of booze!"

She then begrudgingly continued walking but accidentally stepped on a flower that covered the bottom of her shoe with a gooey green substance.

"Ah!" Eda yelled as she slipped forward. Luckily, she balanced herself, looked down at her shoes, and groaned. "I just stole these."

She turned to keep on walking but accidentally stepped into a trap covered with leaves, which sent her flying upwards and screaming.

While this was going on, the trio responsible watched. Gwendolyn looked at her with a serious expression while Booker and Luz were shocked at the sight of this.

"It seems like the curse isn't my daughter's only problem," Gwendolyn said, looking at her daughter critically for her alcohol addiction.

Eda screamed and landed on a bush. Her Owl Staff flew to her as Eda reached out for it. "Help Mama up," she groaned.

"Okay, that's it!" Booker said, standing on the branch and turning to Gwen. "This has gone on long enough. We tried freezing the curse out; we tried sweating the curse out…

"We even tried flying snakes for some reason," Luz added.

"Oh no, the snake!" the trio heard Eda scream. Looking down below, they watched Eda run away from two flying snakes, screaming. "They seek revenge!"

Booker sighed and rubbed his temple. "Grandma, none of this is working, and it's only hurting Eda. I know that you trust Wortlop, but did he ever say where he learned this stuff? Have you tried bringing him to…"

When he turned to Gwen, Booker came to a halt in his sentence. Luz turned as well, and the two BFFs saw that not only was she not paying attention, but she was on a crew phone.

"Yes, I'm sending it right away," she said softly. Gwen then hung up the call before the crow cawed and flew up.

"What did you just do?" Luz asked, narrowing her eyes.

Turning to the kids, Gwen revealed she was slipping some gems into a pouch. "It turns out the ancient tome is only the first of a series," she said, handing over the bag to the crow. "So, I'm trading in a few paltry family heirlooms to get the rest."

If Gwendolyn admitting she gave away all of her life's savings didn't set off red flags, that certainly did. As the old woman flipped open the book to read, Booker looked down at Luz. She nodded at him.

Dubiously, he held out his hand. "Give me the book, Grandma Gwen."

Gwen quickly held out her hand. "Halt! Only people who have scaled Wortlop's 'Pyramid of Study' can touch the tome," she said, displaying her necklace.

Booker crossed his arms and looked at Gwen with an unimpressed look on his face. Then he leaned his head to the side, dodging Luz's plant glyph as it shot towards Gwendolyn and grabbed the tome.

"Hey!" Gwendolyn yelled as her book was ripped out of her grasp.

Booker caught the book and opened it as Luz stood up to look at him.

"What fuck is all this?" Booker asked, looking at each page he turned with growing confusion. "Jar of bees for existential dread? Aromatherapy for broken legs? Super Sword? X-Ray Oculars? Bird songs for sufferers of…stuffy noses?!"

"Ay dios mío," Luz said, taking the book from Booker as she turned towards Gwendolyn, finally realizing what's been going on. "Gwen, don't you get it? You're being scammed! Wortlop is a fake."

Gwendolyn scuffed. "You really think I'd spend my life savings on a fake," she asked, taking back the tome.

"That's because you don't know you're being scammed!" Luz exclaimed. "I've seen this happen. I've been a victim of a scam, and I have almost paid with my life."

"Well, then, that's your fault for trusting a fake. But I know that Wortlop isn't," Gwen said.

"And how do you know that you're not just another sucker in his schemes? I know you want what's best for Eda, and I do too," Booker said, turning to Luz as she pulled out an elixir from her hoodie and handed it to him. "That's why I'm calling this off."

He was about to go down and help his adopted mother. To get her curse under control and apologize for not stopping this madness sooner.

But Gwendolyn grabbed his hand in a strong grip. Booker was so shocked by her action that he didn't do anything to stop her from taking the elixir away.

"Booker, dear, I really thought you were better than your father," she said with a glare.

"What are you doing?!" Luz yelled.

"It's obvious that you don't know the truth about these elixirs. According to Wortlop, poison like this is made by healers and potion makers who simply want money," she said, summoning the tome and opening it to the exact page that explains this hoax. One page slandered potions and elixirs, while the other said that you should be sending that money on Wortlop's 'methods.'

"Are you blind, woman!?" Booker yelled angrily at his adopted grandmother. "You're calling potion makers greed, but you just gave away all your money and priceless belongings to Wortlop!"

He turned to Luz.

"Stay here and make sure Eda doesn't get killed. I'm going back to the home to get more elixirs," he said, with Luz nodding and saluting.

"Right!"

However, Gwendolyn chuckled. "I'm afraid that will be a waste of your time," she said with a cheeky smile.

Just then, her palisman returned to her. Dropping onto the branch, a sack in front of Gwendolyn. Inside were all of Eda and Lilith's elixirs.

"Hawksley cleared out every bottle hours ago," Gwen said as Booker and Luz looked at the bottles in the sack in shock and horror.

"What?" Booker asked, enraged by the complete idiocy of his adopted grandmother. "Have you lost you lost your mind!? Why would you do this?"

"Because I am a mother who will do anything for her daughter. I thought that you were better than your father. Just like Mal, I thought that you truly loved her and would do anything for Eda. But I guess I was wrong about the both of you," Gwen said with venom in her voice as she threw the bottle in her hand into the sack.

Booker looked at his new grandmother in shock. Were all those nice things she said about Mal a lie? The more he thought about it, the more enraged he became. The more enraged he became, the more the lines on his arms started to glow.

"Give me the elixirs," he said.

"Oh, I don't think so," Gwendolyn said, about to kick the sack of elixirs off the branch.

"I wasn't asking."

Booker clapped his hand and blasted Gwen in the stomach with water. Sending her flying back and hitting another tree. Allowing Luz to rush in and take the sack.

"I've got it!" she yelled with a grin.

TEAR!

Only for Hawksley to swoop in and rip into the bottom of the sack, making every single glass bottle of elixir fall out.

"No!" Luz screamed and jumped down to try and catch one of them.

"Luz!" Booker clapped his hands and jumped down after the girl he loved.

Despite her heroic attempt to save one potion, it was ultimately all in vain. They all shattered on impact with the ground, Leaving Luz screaming as she fell towards the earth with nothing to save.

She would have died had it not been for a certain guardian angel. Or, in this case, a Seventh Son that grew wings with his illusion magic.

Landing in front of the shattered remains of the potion, the two of them looked at each other with blushes and smiles. "Can you ever stop falling," Booker asked jokingly.

"Not for you, mi pequeño ángel," Luz said with a loving smiling.

"Hey!"

Still blushing, the two of them looked up to see that Eda had not only gotten away from the flying snakes but was now standing in front of them. Still having feathers on her, she glared at the two kids with a look of disapproval and anger.

"Sorry to break up the romantic moment, but what is going on here?!" Eda said, still upset after being nearly killed all day, only to see that all her elixirs were destroyed. "And what did you do with my elixirs?"

Booker placed Luz down and held up his hands. "Mom, please, if you just let me explain," he said, only for Gwen to come down and land in front of the two kids on her staff.

"Witchlet, it's okay," she said, patting off a leaf on her shoulder and gesturing to the kids. "The kids and I are working to heal you."

"More like trying to stop you from making a big mistake!" Luz yelled. "You took all of Eda's potions!"

"You did WHAT?!" Eda glared at her mother.

"It was for your own good," Gwen tried to explain. "And now, they're all gone, and we can focus on really healing you."

"Really heal me? Are you out of your mind?!" Eda asked, becoming angrier when her mother said that. "You weren't healing me. You nearly killed me!"

As Eda spoke, more feathers started popping out from her body. Startling Booker and Luz as the witch started ranting at her mother.

"Oh, why does that not surprise me? You always do this. You are always trying to impose your way of doing things on me! Never let me make my own decision!"

"Mom," Booker said, looking at his mom with concern.

"Do you not understand why I ran away? Do you not understand why I didn't want your help? Because of this exact reason! You've always made me feel ashamed for being cursed, and every time you tried to 'help', you went so overboard that you would almost kill me," Eda yelled, getting featherier as she walked up to Gwen, who looked at her daughter in shock. "And you know what's the best of your meddling? It's fake that you're part of the reason I broke up with Mal!"

"I…" Gwen tried to speak.

"I didn't do anything? Was that what you were going to say? I bet it was! But it was you who kept telling me that he was never going to cure me! That he wasn't the solution and that he couldn't get rid of the curse. And you know what? I BELIEVED you! I couldn't get what you said out of my head, and it ruined our relationship! I broke up with the love of my life because I believed he couldn't do anything to help me!"

"Eda, please try to stay calm!" Luz pleaded.

"Why? Why should I be calm?" Eda asked, her rant coming to a crescendo as she closed her eyes"After everything she did, I have a right to be UPSET!" She opened her eyes again, showing they'd turned fully black.

The worst-case scenario happened as she transformed into the Owl Beast in front of Booker, Luz, and Gwendolyn.

---

When Eda opened her eyes, she was back in the shadowy void, lying face down, just like in all her dreams.

Before she could move, the all too family foot of the Owl Beast stepped in front of her, rumbling the ground.

Looking up with only her eyes before lifting her head, Eda saw the large Owl Beast standing in front of her. This was it. She was back where it had always begun.

"Ooh, let's get this over with," Eda said, standing up.

The Owl Lady turned around and started running away, panting.

---

Back outside her mind, Booker pulled out Dragon's Bite and stood in front of Luz. Determined to protect her from Eda in her Owl Beast form. This wasn't like last time. Eda wasn't in control of the beast, not from the way it was closing in on the three of them while growling.

"This is really bad," Luz said.

Gwendolyn, however, stepped in front of the kids and cast a spell circle to summon tome. "Don't worry," she said, reading from her book. "According to this, we just have to... Uh…"

Believing that there was some kind of hope, Luz asked, "Have to what?"

Slowly, Gwendolyn turned around to show the kids the tome. "Buy the next volume...?" she said nervously, showing how the information would be in volume 7.

"...Booker," Luz said.

"Way ahead of you." The book got stabbed by Booker's sword before he set it on fire. Burning it into ashes.

Eda roared, bringing everyone's attention back to her as the beast took a step closer to them.

"This day can't get any worse," Booker groaned.

And it did when, behind them, King screamed and ran out from a bush. He noticed Owl Beast Eda and cried out in shock.

"This day can't get any worse!"

"King?!" Luz exclaimed. "What are you doing?"

"So Lilith was feeling stressed," said King, "and, uh, the light glyph didn't really work. So, uh... uh... uh…"

Suddenly, from the sky came a large shadow. The group all looked up, and some gasped as it turned around and landed in front of them. It was just like the Owl Beast cursing Eda in many characteristics, but with black hair that hung from her head, large, crooked fangs, a longer neck, black claws, her ears having small ridges with no hair growing out from them, and she was much larger than the Owl Beast.

"She turned into that thing," King yelled, pointing at Lilith, who'd now become the Raven Beast.

"And now it just got worse," Booker said as the little demon hugged Luz's leg.

Gwendolyn was the most shocked. "Sweet flea," she asked, shocked and sad to see how her eldest daughter had become a monster.

Lilith unleashed a mighty roar.

Eda roared back and rushed towards her. Lilith did the same—charging at her sister. Before they could collide to rip each other apart, the larger beast jumped up and dug her claws into her sister's back. Drawing blood as she shrieked in pain.

Everyone on the ground watched in shock and worry as Lilith lifted Eda up off the ground and flew off with her, unable to believe what was going on.

"They're going towards Bonesborough!" Luz exclaimed, picking up the Owl staff.

"And we're going to stop them," Booker said, joining behind Luz as they both got atop Owlbert, ready to take off. "Grandma Gwen, you coming?"

Gwendolyn, however, was still in a state of disbelief.

"That... was my little sweet flea," she asked. "That means she's also…"

"Cursed! Yes! Were you not paying any attention to her?!" King yelled at her.

Booker reached down, grabbed King, and placed him behind him on the staff.

"We have to help them," he told the two on the staff with him. "Luz, I need you to get to Morton's shop and get more elixir there. I'm going to hold them off."

He then turned back to Gwen.

"Are you coming or not?"

She wanted to. Gwendolyn wanted to. Her motherly instincts were screaming at her to go. And yet, she hesitated and grabbed her neckless. "This... This must be part of the process, right?"

Seeing the conflict inside her, Luz sighed and closed her eyes. "We can see you still need a little time," she said, opening her eyes. "Alright, Owlbert. Let's fly!"

With a hoot, Owlbert took off into the sky.

Gwendolyn watched as they flew away with a hesitant expression while clutching her necklace. This wasn't right. She was supposed to be healing Eda, but all the things that her daughter said had a tightened hold on her heart and was squeezing down on it.

Had she really gone too far? Did she really drive her own daughter away? Did she really influence Eda to end her relationship with Malcolm?

All she ever wanted was for Eda to be free of the curse, but did she really do it all wrong?

She turned around and flew towards the other direction on her staff.

Still clutching her necklace, Gwendolyn started questioning everything that she'd done for her master.

"Wortlop... he's not a fake, is he?" she asked, landing in front of the cave door. "After everything I did for him…"

Something wasn't right. The cave door was not fully closed. It should always be closed completely so that Wortlop's enemies don't get in. But now there was a gap large enough for Gwendolyn to peep inside.

And what she saw made her gasp.

Inside, someone had hung up Master Wortlop's clothing accessories, including his body and face.

Instead of her master, there were four gremlins in the cave, surrounded by piles of snails. Collected from everyone that had come to Wortlop for guidance. One of the gremlins is trying on some jewelry. The second one had a jar next to him. The third one was leaning back on a bag of money. In the fourth one, his back turned to the entrance, and he rubbed his face. A fire pit with fire bees in it was set in the middle of the cave.

"Hey, what do you wanna call this one," the second gremlin asked, dicking up a pile of dirt with his hands and put them in a jar.

While staring at his jewelry, the first one said, "Eh, I don't know. Cleansing mud?"

"Yeah, from the Healing Bogs of the Hips or whatever. What do you think?" the third gremlin asked the fourth one.

"I think…" the fourth turned around, covering his eyes. "We're gonna be rich!" he exclaimed, putting down his hands and revealing some fake boils on his eyelids.

"Hey, you think that stupid bitch is gonna come back," the first one asked. "You know, if she's still alive."

"Yeah, what do you think we can get out of her," the fourth one asked. "You all saw the boy she was with, right? That has to be the Seventh Son!"

"And if we tell her to bring him to us," started the third one before the second one ended it for him.

"We'll be five times richer!"

All four gremlins laughed together. The con they had going was flawless. Simply flawless. A sucker is a person desperate to hand over everything, then give them the advice that would end up getting them killed. No witnesses and no one could trace it back to them.

For a moment, they truly did believe the con was flawless. That was until the fire of the bees suddenly became bigger, causing them to scream and scamper away. At first, they had no idea what was going on. That was until the fire separated by Gwendolyn using a spell circle. Commanding the bees with her Beast Coven magic.

And she gazed at the gremlins with a barely contained fury. After everything she heard, she finally became a believer. A believer that everything Booker and Luz told her was true. These little fuckers had scammed her out of everything. Sent Gwen on wild goose chases with the false hope of curing her daughter. It was all a lie.

Gwendolyn saw Wostlop for what he truly was and wanted to make him pay.

While the one that had the boils on his eyes hid behind the others, the other three gremlins rushed to the altar and put on the clothing accessories, pretending to be Master Wortlop. Only, they had his head on backward.

"M-M-Mrs. Clawthorne?" he said nervously, clearing his throat and changing to a deeper voice. "What a fortuitous surprise."

Oh, there used to be a time she would have believed everything that came out of his mouth. But not today.

"You know, I always hear of your stories. It's time I told you mine," Gwendolyn said sternly, a fire bee landing on her finger. "Right after Eda was cursed, I joined the Beast Keeper Coven. I thought they surely would know what to do. After all, she did turn into a beast."

She started walking towards "Master Wortlop". "But the beast keepers told me the curse couldn't be tamed. And the healers told me it couldn't be healed," she said, her face changing to a sad expression. "Eda told me she found something that made it manageable, at least. But I didn't listen. She told me that Malcolm was going to do everything to help her, but I ended up poisoning her against him.

Gwen sighed and looked at the ground.

"I can never forgive myself for that. I don't expect Eda to as well. But it's time that I start going ahead with what I should have done from the beginning."

"I could give you the next volume," Master Wortlop desperately pleaded. "5% off? 10% off?"

"Leave," she ordered the creatures inside the body.

The fire behind her became larger, startling Master Wortlop. He looked at the woman he'd been scamming for years.

Looking like a demon from the infernos of hell, Gwendolyn gave him a death stare as the fire burnt wildly. Representing her fury.

"And if I ever see you in Bonesborough again, I make you this promise: I will rain down every agony, every violation imaginable, upon you. I will parade your cold, eviscerated corpses from every corner of this realm and the next and feed your souls to the vilest filth in hell!"

After thoroughly wetting themselves, all four gremlins jump out from under the robe, screaming in complete and total fear. Diving towards the floor, they immediately dig their way underground. They get out of there as fast as they can before Gwen makes good on her promise.

With the conmen gone, Gwen let out a sigh, and the fire immediately died down, turning back to the original fire pit size.

"Still got it," Gwendolyn chuckled. Booker may have a hair trigger anger, but it was nothing compared to her fury.

Perhaps she can teach Booker a thing or two about using that fury in him.

---

Meanwhile, in Bonesborough, Owl Beast Eda and Raven Beast Lilith both flew toward the town at high speeds. Eda tried to escape Lilith's wrath, but her sister kept on pursuing her. Lilith managed to catch Eda and slammed into her, tackling her down and pinning her to the ground, damaging some buildings in the process and causing people to flee in terror. Eda kicked Lilith off her and took off, flying away. Lilith growled and pursued Eda again.

They continued fighting each other in the air, and eventually, both crashed to the ground. At the same time, Booker, Luz, and King flew past just in time to see this.

Booker landed the staff on the roof of a house. "At this rate, Eda and Lilith are gonna tear apart the entire town. I'll hold them off," said Booker. "You two find Morton and get those elixirs."

"Right!" Luz said, then, out of nowhere, kissed him on the cheek. "Good luck."

With that boost in confidence, Booker turned around, clapped his hands, and jumped off the roof.

At the same time, the Owl Beast and Raven Beast roared and rushed each other. But just as they are about to butt heads...

BOOM!

As if the world were in slow motion, Booker dropped down in between and held out his arms, holding them both back by their faces with the power spell activated.

With the magical lines of his arms shining brightly, he pushed them both off. Eda and Lilith land on their feet and roar at the Seventh Son.

"Mama Eda!" said Booker to the beast before looking at the second one. "Aunt Lily! You've gotta fight the curse!"

But they didn't want to fight it. They wanted to fight each other. The sisters roared and charged Booker. He clapped his hands, summoned wings, and took flight into the air, dodging the sisters as they collided with each other.

Booker landed on the roof of a house, drew Dragon's Bite, and fired beams of light energy.

Eda got blasted by the beam, but it missed Lilith, who snarled and jumped high up towards Booker.

The Seventh Son quickly flew into the air, and Lilith took off after him. Recovering from getting hit, Eda promptly followed. Both beasts roared as they pursued Booker, who sent out shots of more light beams from Dragon's Bite, but Eda and Lilith dodged them all.

"I knew this wouldn't be easy," he said to himself. "I don't wanna hurt you two, but you're giving me no choice!"

Pouring more of his magical energy into Dragon's Bite, making the runes glow brighter, Booker pointed the blade at the two cursed women. He let loose a vortex of high-power wind at them.

Eda dodged the vortex, but Lilith got hit and roared in pain as she got twisted around in the air. Her body was then shot out of the vortex, and she crashed into the ground. Luckily, everyone had run away when the fighting started.

The Owl Beast proceeded to try and slice Booker with her claws, but he flipped above and fired ice shards with a swift slash of his sword, which Eda dodged by circling in the air.

"Forgive me about this, Mom!" Booker sheathed his sword and clapped his hands.

Activating the power spell, Booker flew towards Eda and delivered a powerful punch to her face, causing her to roar in pain as she was sent back. Eda snarled in anger and flew up at her adopted son, slashing Booker with her claws, but he quickly grabbed her wrists and tried to hold her back in mid-air.

"I know you're both still in there somewhere, Mama. Please, I know you don't want to hurt me," said Booker, begging his new mom to listen to him. "And after everything you've done for me, saving me from my darkness, I don't wanna keep hurting you, too!"

Meanwhile, on the ground, Lilith got up and shook her head before roaring in anger. She took off after Booker in vengeance.

Booker turned his head when he heard the roar to see Lilith coming after him. He quickly kicked off of Eda, sending her back, and dove down, barely dodging Lilith before she collided with him.

He landed on the ground holding Dragon's Bite just as Lilith landed in front of him.

"This ends now, Aunt Lily!"

The Seventh Son stabbed the Dragon's Bite into the ground and clapped his hands, activating the Illusion spell. He then summoned several clones of himself to surround the Raven Beast, leaving her confused and trying to find the original.

"ATTACK!"

All the clones advanced on Lilith and attacked her with various blows and spells, making her roar in pain as she was hit on all sides.

With that distraction, the original Booker rushed in to hit Lilith with a baseball bat made of hard light.

Surprisingly, she caught his magic-made weapon, ignoring the pain caused by the clones. Booker held Lilith back with his hard-light weapon, gritting his teeth at how strong Raven Beast Lilith was.

"Come on, Aunt Lily! You have to get over it!

Suddenly, Eda charged in behind to smack Booker. Sending him crashing through a couple of houses. This caused dust clouds to erupt from multiple places and made all the clones disappear in smoke.

Now, there was nothing to stand between Eda and Lilith from killing each other.

---

Completely oblivious to the fighting going on, Morton sighed dejectedly with his hand on his chin. Business had been next to nothing, and he'd been bored out of his mind.

"No one's bought anything in a while," he said, reaching for the wooden panel handle. "I should close up shop."

"Morton!"

"Hmm?" Morton looked up, only for Luz to land in front of the Mr. Elixir stand, almost crashing into Morton, causing him to cry out in surprise.

"I need every last elixir you have!" she yelled with urgency.

Morton gasped happily with a big grin. Finally, business.

"Also, do you accept payment in hyper-realistic pencil portraits?" Luz asked, taking out a drawing of Morton from her pocket. Holding it out, she grinned at Morton. Hoping he would accept it as a substitute for money.

And just like that, Morton became unhappy and closed the panel door in front of Luz.

"Shoot! I thought I was improving," Luz said, looking down at the drawing sadly.

Suddenly, Booker crashed through the building behind Luz and King. He yelled in pain as he rolled across the ground before coming to a stop.

"Booker!" Luz cried in shock as she and King quickly ran up to him, shaking his arm."Booker! Are you okay?!"

Booker lifted himself up, spitting out a chunk of wood from his mouth as he rubbed the back of his head. "I'm fine, Luz," Booker said, easing his concern. "I'm so happy I had the power spell going."

The sound of shrieking got them looking up. Eda and Lilith were duking it out again, fighting in the air as they attempted to overpower one another. Luz, Booker, and King watch in grave concern.

"Luz, did you get the elixirs?" Booker asked his best friend.

"No! Morton wouldn't accept my payment," Luz said, showing him the drawing.

Booker and King looked at her like she was an idiot.

"It could've worked!"

"Don't worry!" said a familiar voice from a distance.

Booker, Luz, and King turned around, all three of them surprised by who was coming.

Gwendolyn landed in front of them and spun her staff. On her shoulder, she carried a large bag of snails.

"Mama's here," she said.

---

Eda roared at Lilith as her sister attempted to bite Eda, but she managed to dodge her and fly away. Eda then landed atop a roof while Lilith caught up with her and pinned her down.

Booker, Luz, King, and Gwendolyn observed this. The four of them stood together on another roof across from the duo.

"You sure this is gonna work," Luz asked, glancing over at Gwendolyn suspiciously.

"More importantly, why should we trust you," Booker asked, glaring at the old woman. You're not, like, secretly sending us to our deaths?"

Gwendolyn sighed, expecting a ration like that. "You have every right not to trust me. But today, you helped open my eyes. Now, I'm making things right," she declared, pulling off her necklace, throwing it down, and stepping on it with her heel, breaking the necklace into pieces.

That was enough for Booker, Luz, and King. Together, the kids rode onto the Owl Staff and flew away.

Alone, Gwendolyn cast a spell circle, summoning some flying boards to her. Using them like a bridge, she approached Eda and Lilith.

"My beautiful daughters," Gwendolyn said, voice filled with regret. "I failed you."

The cursed Eda turned her head towards Gwendolyn. Snarling with hatred, she walked towards her.

Gwendolyn walked up to her daughter. "Edalyn? You're in there, aren't you," she asked, reaching out a hand. Eda growled at Gwendolyn, but her mothers placed her hand on her daughter's hair anyway.

---

Eda was still running away from the Owl Beast. She'd been running away from it for what felt like hours. Time was hard to tell inside this void. She didn't know how long it would take for her kids to get back to normal. She didn't want to know the kind of destruction she was causing.

Suddenly, Gwendolyn's voice can be heard from the void.

"You're right about everything. I should've listened to you. I know now why you pushed me away."

Eda stopped running. "Uh, Mom?

"I should've trusted Malcolm. Instead, I influenced the end of your relationship. I ruined everything because I made you think your curse was something to be ashamed of."

The Owl Beast rushed towards Eda and screeched at her.

No longer running away, Eda turned and stared down at it.

"Whether we want it or not, it's a part of you. And I love every part of you. I'm so sorry it took me so long to say."

Holding up her hand, Eda stopped the Owl Beast. Light flashed in between her hand and the beast, making the Owl Beast screech.

To Eda's complete and total shock, she watched it gradually shrink until it eventually became as small as a chihuahua. Seeing that it could no longer scare the woman, it ran away, tweeting.

With the beast finally subdued, Eda called out to her mother. "Mom, I can hear you. And you…"

Turning back to the beast, Eda pounced on the Owl Beast and pinned it down, putting it in a chokehold.

"You ruined my life more than enough! Now, it's my turn to drive!"

---

Back in the real world, Gwendolyn shut her eyes and placed her forehead into Eda's forehead. "I'm so sorry," she said with all the regret she had in her heart. "For everyone."

"Mom?"

Gwendolyn opened her eyes. She gasped with shock and joy to find Eda staring back at her. Her eyes had already reverted back to normal.

"Witchlet!" Gwen exclaimed, hugging Eda.

Seeing her mother, once again, giving Eda all of her love and attention, Lilith roared and attempted to pounce at Eda. However, Booker came flying in and grabbed her wrist.

"Not this time!" he yelled, pinning her arm behind her back and kicking Lilith down on the roof. Luz then threw plant glyphs on Lilith's right side, conjuring vines that pinned her body down.

Gwendolyn stepped away from Eda and approached Lilith, as Booker got off. The curse may have started with her youngest and she may have influenced Eda to end things with Malcolm, but Gwen had hurt Lilith from the beginning. So many times she could have been there for her, supporting her, giving her praise, and yet she didn't.

"And Lilith…" Gwen knelt down in front of her, caressing Lilith's cheek, calming her down. "You were always so self-sufficient. But I didn't give you the attention you deserved. I'm so sorry, sweet flee, but never, ever doubt I don't love you less."

Upon hearing that, the part of Lilith still inside the Raven Beast started sobbing. Gwendolyn shushed her and embraced her, caressing her head.

"Now!"

Luz and King fly towards them from above. King jumps down from the staff, landing on Eda's head. In his hand was a modified elixir.

Booker pulled Lilith's long ear, making her open her mouth in a shriek. Luz, who pulled out the same modified elixir King had, pulled out the bottle's cork with her teeth. Then, she dumped the elixirs into Lilith's mouth.

King does the same, pulling the cork out of his bottle and pulling Eda's ear back. "OW! Hey, what the fuck, King?!" She was interrupted when King dumped the elixir into her mouth, making her drink it.

The reaction was instantaneous. Both sisters' eyes started glowing as a cloud of glowing air appeared and surrounded the duo. The strong airflow forced Gwendolyn to shield her face and blew Booker and King backward. The Seventh Son grabbed his demon friend and pulled him into him. Curling his body around him. Both of them almost rolled off the roof, but Luz landed just in time to catch him.

Together, the four of them watched as the cloud expanded and flashed brightly, forming the shape of a bird. Within the bird, Eda and Lilith were pulled upwards before it flapped its wings down. The cloud eventually busted and gave off a bright flash, forming a column of glowing energy that shot into the sky, with the forms of Eda and Lilith inside. Both returned to normal.

"Dang, that is good elixir," Luz said, with Booker nodding in agreement.

Looking at the light with hope, Gwendolyn walked forward. Reaching her daughters as Eda and Lilith descended from above, right into Gwendolyn's arms. Feeling the weight of her daughters, the mother sat down with them in her arms and stared at both of them lovingly.

Both Eda and Lilith opened their eyes and smiled at Gwendolyn. "About time, Mom," said Eda.

On the other hand, Lilith started sobbing. "Mom, I heard you, but I couldn't stop myself. I... I couldn't do anything." She tried continuing but continued sobbing.

Gwen didn't need a response or a reason from Lilith. All she wanted to do was hug her daughter. "It's okay," she said.

"Mom! Aunt Lilith!" Booker exclaimed as he ran over and hugged his adopted family members.

"Oh, Booker. I'm so sorry!" Eda said as she started crying from the fact that she tried to kill her son.

"It's fine, Mama Eda. Everything is okay now," he said, hugging her, Lilith, and Gwen.

Luz smiled gladly at the sight of this while King came to a realization. "She was... trying to do her best, huh?"

"That's all that we can do," Luz said.

---

Nighttime came, and the family returned to the Owl House. And now, it was time for Gwen to take her leave. Booker, Luz, King, and Eda gather outside the house to see her off.

"I'm sorry for all the trouble I caused, " she said to Eda before looking at Booker and Luz. "To all of you. I just wanted to help. I should've trusted you more."

"Yeah, you should've," Eda said, jokingly punching Gwendolyn's shoulder.

"And I'm so sorry about Malcolm. I did love him like a son. Had I stayed out of it, the two of you could have gotten together and even married. If he were still alive, I would have told him how sorry I am," Gwen said, looking down in somber gloom.

Eda did the same. "There's…a lot of things I would have told him," she said, rubbing her arm. "But just as he'd moved on, I need to as well. So, hey, don't be a stranger. Okay, Mom?

Gwendolyn smiled at Eda.

Suddenly, without warning, Lilith kicked open the front door. "Mom! I'm ready!" she yelled, carrying a bindle on her shoulder.

"Huh?" Eda asked, squinting at Lilith as she walked past her and stood next to her mother.

"Well, we were talking, and I've decided to go home with Mother and make up for lost time," she said, smiling at Gwendolyn.

Booker, Luz, Eda, and King were surprised by this announcement and reacted differently.

"Auntie?"

"What?"

"Lily?"

"You lived here?"

The news didn't sit well with Hooty, who burst from the door and screamed. "What?!"

"Edalyn, Lilith told me how she gave you the curse," Gwendolyn said with a sad expression. She then grabbed both of her daughter's hands and held them gently. "I am so, so sorry to you both to have this secret weighing you down. I wish I knew sooner."

Pulling her hand away, Lilith looked to Eda and said, "There's still a lot to be learned about this curse, but... it'll be nice to spend some time home and reconnect with Dad."

Eda looked away after hearing the last part. That's right, she hasn't talked with her father in so long.

"We'll be away for a while, but we have plenty of elixirs stocked up!" Gwen said, taking out a few elixirs from her hair.

Booker placed his hands on his head. "Wait, if I'm an adopted Clawthrone, does that mean I'm gonna start putting stuff in my hair?!" he exclaimed, looking a bit freaked out.

"Someday, my hair is gonna be big enough to do that too," Luz said with King in her arms, looking at Gwendolyn admiringly.

King looked at her incredulously. "You actually want that?"

Beyond miserable knowing he was going to be losing his new friend, Hooty started bawling his eyes out as he stretched towards Lilith. "No! Lulu, you can't!"

Smiling at her friend kindly, Lilith touched Hooty's cheek. "Hootsifer, I have to. But don't worry, we can be penpals," she said, nuzzling him before turning around and leaving.

Hooty, however, hit the ground and cried louder.

"But I can't hold a pen!"

Finally, that just leaves Gwen's new grandson and his little friend. Looking at them, the old woman couldn't help but see the same love and friendship Eda and Malcolm had all those years ago. A constraint reminder of what her daughter lost from her curse and her meddling. But perhaps it will end differently this time.

"Booker, Luz, if it weren't for you, I might still be wrapped up in Wortlop's lies," she said with gratefulness. "I'm so sorry for all the rotten things I said about your father, Booker. He was a fine young man. I'm so sorry for your loss."

Booker nodded somberly. "So am I."

Luz then said, "Gwen, you said that you could help me get back home."

"Of course," she said. "So here's what I should've told you from the start."

She bent over towards Luz and Booker.

"You're not the only humans to have lived in Bonesborough. Nor, the only hybrid."

It was a revelation that left both Booker and Luz lost for words. There was another human that lived in the Boiling Isles? And they were hybrids? Where are they half human and half witch? Hybrids of humans and demons? How did they get here? How come they didn't know about it back on Earth? So many more questions flooded their minds as Gwendolyn continued speaking.

"There's a rare substance called Titan's blood. It is extremely powerful and sometimes causes leaks between our realms. Plants, animals... And you guys have a lot of garbage, by the way," Gwendolyn said, throwing in that last comment.

"Titan's blood." Booker looked at his hand with wide eyes. "That's the stuff that Belos wants from me. That's what gives me my powers! Are you saying…my blood can get Luz home?"

"I'm not sure, but while it allows things from our world to leak into yours, humans are rare. My great-grandmother told me about a human who once lived here. Some believed that he was a hybrid of a human and a witch. But one day, he just vanished. Rumor has it he left something in the library. If you can find out more about him…"

Hopefulness flooded Luz's face. "Maybe I could find out how he got here!"

"Exactly," Gwen said, winking at Luz.

When all was said and done, Lilith and Gwendolyn got on their staffs and lifted into the sky. They looked back and smiled at their family and friends, then flew away together on their staffs.

Hooty was still crying when Eda said, "Well, I'll be on the couch for the next twenty-four hours." She yawned and started walking into the house. "Goodnight."

"No, wait! I call couch," King exclaimed, rushing in after her.

Booker turned to follow them but stopped. He looked back to see Luz still standing where she was, her hand over her heart, looking up at the sky.

"Hey, you coming?"

"Yead, I just…I just can't believe we finally have an idea where to start," Luz said with hope still burning.

Booker smiled at her and placed a hand on her shoulder. "We'll get you home, Luz."

Luz, blushing, nodded and looked back up at the stars. "I'll be home soon, Mom," she said as a gust of wind blew past the two of them. The young girl grabbed Booker's hand and followed him inside. "Camp's probably ended by now. "She must be so worried."

---

At least, that's what Luz thought her mother was.

In the upstairs bathroom of her home, Camila was giving herself a pep talk. Tonight was the big night. The one that she'd been waiting a whole week for. She finally had a day off, and that could only mean one thing.

Date night.

"Come on, Camila. You can do this," Camila said, wearing a towel over her naked body. "It's not like you haven't been on a date before. It's just…"

Camila paused for a moment, her face falling. Her last date with her deceased husband, Manny, was before he got sick. Seven years ago, the same time that Luz's poor friend, Booker, lost his family.

"Am I…doing the right thing?" she asked herself, placing a hand on her breasts. She loved Manny still, and the feelings she had for this new man were just as intense. Was Camila ready to call it love?

"That's what first dates are for," Camila said, looking at her reflection with determination. "Manny would have wanted you to move on, Camila. You've waited long enough, and he's…he's perfect. He's everything that Manny was. Luz loves him; he adopted Booker and loved him like a son, and he's a good man. A great man."

Camila pulled on the knot and allowed her towel to drop. Now fully naked, the mother cracked her knuckles.

"And you are going on a date with that great man," Camila said with newly found confidence. "I just hope that Luz can stall him long enough."

---

If only Camila knew that the girl downstairs wasn't her real girl. It was an imposter, which would carry a negative connotation, given that Vee changed her body to look like Luz and was taking her place.

However, it had nothing to do with malice. It wasn't to replace Luz's place in this world. It was out of necessity to stay alive and off the streets. When she came to this world, she turned into Camila's daughter daughter. The mother was so kind to her and her friend that she decided to stay with her.

Vee waited downstairs for both Camila and Camila's date. How long has it been since they've seen each other without keeping up appearances? A week? Pacing around the living room in the form of Luz, the young girl waited anxiously. She wanted to see him before he had to leave on their date.

And luckily for her, the doorbell rang.

"I'll get it!" 'Luz' yelled to her 'mother' upstairs and ran to the front door.

Opening the door, Vee's eyes sparkled. Standing on the other side was a man so similar in appearance to Manny that when she first saw him, Camila almost believed that he was.

But he wasn't.

The man standing on the other side of the door was a tall and muscular witch with pointed ears like all witches. He had short, curly hair, a beard, brown eyes, and light olive skin. His face was grizzled from battle, and his body bore many scares under his nice new suit.

And on his arm was tattooed a symbol that Vee hated so much. Feared so much. Something that the man that stood in front of her was.

He was once part of a Scout for the Emperor's Coven.

And yet, instead of fear as he closed the door behind him, Vee expressed complete and utter joy.

"Inika!" Vee yelled as she jumped up at the man.

"Oh!" Inika stubbled back and he felt the full weight of her body on him. Hugging him as he hugged her back. "Hey, baby girl. It's been so long. I'm sorry I haven't seen you."

He pulled her away and held Vee up. Seeing her in her true form.

What jumped into his arms was a human girl. What he now held in his arms was a basilisk beast demon.

This wasn't the same Greater Basilisk that Booker fought and killed. Vee was much smaller, with a chubby serpentine body with two arms and a fishlike tail in place of legs. Her face was round, with wide eyes, a turned-up nose, and a catlike mouth in a "W" shape, with two small teeth poking out from her bottom jaw, with her lower lip being a dark maroon color. She had pale, swamp-green scales with cream-colored spots on her head, tail, underbelly, and the bottom half of her face. There were tufts of navy-blue hair on her head, back, and ears. Her eyes consist of yellow-gold pupils, black irises, and aqua sclera. She had off-white fins on the sides and tip of her tail, along with a dull peacock-blue piercing on the tip.

They should be enemies, yet these two souls found within themselves a father and a daughter forced to stay away for the time being.

"I've missed you so much," she said, smiling at the man who had been like a father to her. "How have you been? How's work?"

Inika shrugged and placed down his secret daughter figure. "Eh, it was okay," he said with a smirk. What about you? Are you doing good in your studies?"

"It's going great! I haven't made that many friends, but I keep in touch with the ones I've made from camp," Vee said, grinning so brightly. A complete 180 from her time in the hellhole she escaped from with the help of the resistance and Inika.

"I'm so happy to hear that," Inika said, hugging his daughter.

The conversation was cut short when Camila called from upstairs.

"Is that my date~"

Inika chuckled and said, "Indeed it is! And I brought Booker along to keep Luz company."

Casing a spell circle, Inika used his illusion magic to conjure a perfect clone of Booker with his hoodie. As it turned out, he still had access to all his magical abilities, even if Vee had to suck out some of it to recharge her shapeshifting powers.

"Hi, Mrs. Noceda!" the fake Booker said.

"Hi, Booker. I'll be out in just a minute," said Camila.

Inika turned to Vee and nodded. The basilisk nodded back and transformed back into Luz. At the same time, Inika used a spell on himself. One that allowed him to hide his ears under a veil of magic, making them lose their pointiness and appear as round as human ears.

And just in time, as Camila came walking down the stairs. Everyone looked at her and was stunned by her beauty.

Camila was always a beautiful woman, more than the mother thought of herself. Like her daughter, the Dominican-American woman had tan skin, brown eyes, and brown eyebrows. With a medium body frame that could still attract men, she wore her hair in a bun with two tufted bangs.

While she usually wore modest clothes and nothing that made her stand out too much, the dress she came down in was incredible to Inika. She was clad in a fancy green, sleeveless red dress that hugged her body in all the right places, with low-heel purple shoes and lipstick.

All eyes were on her. Even the cloned copy of Booker looked at her. He is equally as attracted to the mother as his creator. Inika looked at Camila and fell in love with her all over again. It was love at first sight when he came to this world, and seeing Camila in that same dress was like staring at an angel.

"So, how do I look," Camila asked with a tentative smile, swaying her shoulders nervously with her arms behind her back. "I know it's not something that I would…usually wear. But, I wanted it to be something special."

"Mom, you look amazing!" Vee said, putting up two thumbs-up. She leaned towards Inika, who looked at the mother with hearts in his eyes.

Inikai walked towards her and held her hands gently. "You're more beautiful than all the angels of heaven," the witch in disguise said breathlessly.

"Oh, come on, stop. It's embarrassing!" Camila said, turning away with a smile that betrayed the fact she secretly loved her date's reaction, especially with how red her face looked at him with her sparkling brown eyes. "Though, I will say that you look quite handsome."

"Both of you have earned this," Vee said, smiling a heartfelt smile while wearing Luz's face. Making Camila and Inika smile at her and Booker before looking back at each other.

That wasn't a lie. She truly was happy that her father found someone as wonderful as Camila and wanted to be with her as much as her 'mom' wanted to be with him. It was obvious that they were in love with each other, yet they needed to find the strength to move on from their losses and embrace each other.

Inika and Vee knew that one day, they would have to tell Camila the truth, that the real Booker and Luz would come back. They were ready for it. But how long would that take?

Only time will tell.

---

AN:

And even when your hope is gone, move along, move along, just to make it through!

So, do you all still think Father Dean is a good man? Just like how the show changed people's perspective on Camila, making us realize that she was a top-tier mom, I decided to do the same with Father Dean, but in reverse. Basically, instead of being the good role model everyone thinks he is, Dean is actually not. He allows a lot of bullying to happen in the orphanage, turning a blind eye to many of the problems kids have and only getting involved if it hurts his image and the reputation of the church and his orphanage.

I know that people were hoping for more character development from him, but considering he served and will serve no purpose in the story going forward, I don't see the reason why I should.

Gwendolyn was definitely an interesting character to try to figure out in this story. While I didn't want to demonize her completely, I didn't want to let her off the hook for all the BS she pulled. The idea of having her be one of the major factors in Malcolm and Eda's break-up makes sense, given just how much she'd come to disdain the normal covens like the healers. Believing them to be ineffective, and when Mal said that he wouldn't do anything extreme if it meant hurting Eda, Gwen would have just extended her hatred towards him, too.

And given just how frustrated and scared Eda was in her younger years, hearing her mother talk to her about how much Mal couldn't help her would have added to her frustrations.

It's bad, but it's not irredeemable. Although she didn't directly cause the breakup, she did cause Eda to doubt Mal.

The decision to address Booker's anger was a response to a lot of the comments on the Seventh Son's TVTropes page. More specifically, the opposition people have about Booker's anger. Apparently, they don't like Booker having a temper and view it as making him unlikable, even though no one else seems to have a problem, and it only seems to be a problem with one person. A person who's gone on to claim that all my OCs are bad characters for having anger and hypocrites for getting mad at other characters and not being called out for their mistakes, even though there are moments where they are.

So, I decided to say it directly to their faces. Showing why it was perfectly reasonable for Booker to have a bad temper and how he's trying to let that anger go now that he's in a really good place in his life.

Is it really any surprise why Booker even has a bad temper? As explained in the story, that anger was the cause of a horrific event that happened in his life and the violent and cruel living situation of the foster system that he was forced to live in. It's not a good system, and the fact that people want Booker to be an angel and never get angry is laughable.

That was how the story started, and this is how it's going on: Booker is letting go of his aggression because he doesn't need it anymore.

To end this rant, I'm just going to say that I'm trying to be a better writer, I really am, but if you really want to focus only on the bad qualities of my OCs, then I don't know what to tell you other than to just go for another story.

Also, that bathroom flashback was from a movie I can no longer remember. If you have any ideas as to what it was, please let me know.

Now, we have finally reached the pair that I've wanted to write about for a long time: Vee and Inika. Inspired by one of MorninMark's comics, which is a real tearjerker, the story tells of how Vee met a Scout who befriended her, became like a father to Vee, and helped her escape at the expense of his own life.

In this story, Inika lives and goes through the portal with Vee.

I know that some of you have been wanting it to be another Basilisk that escaped with Vee and have her be paired with him, but I didn't like that. Instead, I wanted our top-tier MILF, Camila, to have someone to fill her heart with love and be the father Vee never had. I wanted this to be a what-if scenario where the man who helped Vee escape lived and found a new life with the girl he's come to see as the daughter he lost.

Also, Bionicle fans will recognize the name Inika.

That's it for today. The Seventh Son will return. If you like what you read, be sure to leave a review, then favorite and follow the story. If you don't like the story I'm writing, find another because I'm going to write the story I want.

Until then, see you soon.