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"Well, it wasn't constantly a mess- I'd just place stuff wherever I wanted it whenever I wanted it there and left it until I needed it. Not like you could barely walk across the floor or anything, but definitely not with all the systems Lilith used. Maybe you're right- let's try moving stuff around and see what feels right."

"Can't stuff just be placed around differently without the mess?"

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"Hey, anyone wanna come over to my place and make an absolute mess of it? My dear sister tidied everything up while I was away from Spirale and it's been absolutely miserable trying to get used to."

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"Apparently I was entered in some kind of sexy contest and lost to a pig. What kinda load of garbage is that?! I oughta find whoever was running this poll and-"

Her brewing tirade is cut short by Owlbert flapping about and trilling over something.

"Huh?" A quick check of her phone, and some scrolling. "...Ooohhh, she's an actual pig. ...No, yeah, I can see it. Good on her."

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There were times when Eda wanted to curse the weird time-space mixups that happened with being brought into and removed from Spirale. It had been a source of confusion, relief, and immediate frustration since the early days of her time here. Of course, right now, with her dear apprentice in her tight embrace, she can't possibly bring herself to ponder such things.

"I've missed you so much, too." The times they'd been absent from each other's lives were not equal, which Eda had the slightest idea of when she saw the girl's reaction. More time had passed for Luz than had passed for herself. That was the only way the time element really mattered: the effect it had on Luz, how much worse things had been for her and anyone else she was with.

Owlbert coos in delight and nuzzles back against Stringbean, a sight which makes Eda beam in pride. "Looks like Owlbert is too! When'd she finally hatch for you, huh?"

Luz squeezed Eda tightly, glad for the reunion at last--it simultaneously felt like it had been ages since she'd last seen the witch, and also like hardly any time had passed at all. She knew this was the effect of Spirale and its time funniness, but it left her feeling a strange swirl of emotions.

"I missed you so, so much," Luz confides with one last squeeze, before releasing her mentor.

Stringbean, meanwhile, curiously circles Eda first, before stopping to hiss inquiringly at Owlbert. Both these presences were more than familiar to her, obviously from her time as an egg, and she was already full of affection for both Luz's witch mom and her palisman.

She nuzzles gently at Owlbert's side as Luz giggles softly. "Stringbean's so excited to finally meet you both."

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It was a bit of a bummer that Lilith was in no mood for one of the wintry competitions around, since Eda had felt much more spry lately. She'd had a hell of a time with that one-on-one grudgby match from a long while back, and getting to relive that fun without the threat of being taken in by the Emperor's Coven would've been a nice time.

Fortunately, she'd mellowed out over her time getting used to having a real family again. Just getting to talk for a while with Lilith had become reinvigorating to her, so something less heart-pounding could be equally enjoyable. Plus, hey, free cake!

"Hmm, well, let's see..." With a delicate demeanor acted entirely too well for the wild witch, Eda sliced a thin wedge of cake for herself, taking a small bite, just enough to sample everything one would need to. "Why, I believe you're right, dear sister- the cake itself is much too light. You'd need bigger bites from a bigger slice to get anything substantial! Like so..." Now looking much more eager, the knife swung to give herself a much heftier slice, from which she took a good mouthful of the dessert. "Mmm...mrch brhturr." Didn't even finish chewing, of course.

@strigistricken | Winterfes: You Bake It You Buy It

For how excited some people seem to be about the winter festivities, there isn't much that can interest an old witch who's lived through more than enough interesting times. Much less two of them, with very different ideas of fun—there is no way Lilith would have convinced her sister to sit through an ice-sculpting class. And she wasn't looking to get competitive today; she's kept herself so busy lately, it feels like they never get to just spend time together.

Luckily, there is something they can agree on, and that's free food.

"I think this cake is missing something..." She muses with all the authority of a judge on a baking show, and definitely not someone who just wanted to eat cake. "But I'm not quite sure what. We might need another sample over here to investigate. What do you say, Edalyn?"

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Eda had fully intended to find Luz immediately once she'd realized the girl was back, only to realize shortly into searching for her that the Spirowle House was obviously the first place the girl would've gone. She tore through the air back to the Mistwood, aiming to get back to her home and wait for her student there.

Only for the door to open just before she could pull it herself, and a familiar face beaming right at her heralded the hard impact of a hug being thrown upon her.

"Luz!" The witch hoisted the younger girl into her own tight embrace, feeling lighter than this place had allowed her to feel in a while. "Oh, I'm so glad to see you again, kiddo." She'd rather the girl be safe back home, in all honesty...but if she had to be stuck here, having Luz made it feel more comfortable.

Any thoughts she could've voiced were immediately set aside as a little creature poked its head out from above Luz's. A moment of surprise later, and Eda registered who this must be. "This is your Palisman! Finally hatched, huh?" Looking at the little thing, it really could've only come from Luz- nice as an adopted one would've been, this felt more right.

Owlbert was clearly delighted by the new companion, flapping his wings to hover near Stringbean and cooing with warmth and enthusiasm.

@strigistricken time to meet the baby

Eda hadn't been in the house when Luz had arrived back, and so she intended to go hunt for her mentor. Luz had just opened the (still Hooty-less, for better or worse) front door, when she came face to face with the witch herself.

Luz instantly brightened, lunging forward to wrap her arms around Eda.

"Eda! I'm back! I'm so happy to see you again, you have no idea--oh! And I have a new friend for you to meet!"

Stringbean knows her cue, and she peeks out above Luz's head with a gentle flick of her forked tongue.

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"Ugh, and here I thought this festival was gonna give us something exciting," Eda muses aloud whilst trudging away from Frosty's House of Horror, having glimpsed the circumstances and deciding to abstain.

"How's something like that supposed to be actually scary if you aren't fighting for your dang life against the horrors?"

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Eda had never quite gotten the appeal of fishing when she tried it a decade ago- at least as far as the way they did it in the human realm. It was just so much less thrilling than what she was used to. Fishing on the Boiling isles had a lot more risk of getting swept up in the jaws of a fangly beast and dying, or getting crashed upon by boiling water and dying, or- really it was just the possibility of dying in general. Boiling Seafishing was much more of an extreme sport, so the rewards felt all the more worth it.

Of course, time took its toll on everyone, especially those with afflictions like that of the Owl Lady. She wasn't so limber or eager to defy death anymore, and the idea of fishing on the frozen water sounded like just the right mix of risky and relaxing. Then again, this is beginning to lean too far into relaxing into straight-up boring territory. If it weren't for the cold tearing at her skin she'd have fallen asleep by this point. What was the point of fishing if there weren't going to be any stinkin' fish? She becomes half tempted to ditch the place and find a better use of her time.

Then a familiar voice cuts through the air, drawing her attention up in calling her by an old alias. Unfortunate that she would find herself frozen by the very occurrence that makes it a very good idea to get the hell out of there.

"O-oh! Stan, you're...here!" She hardly remembered everyone she scammed, but it was difficult to forget one of few who'd been just as big a con as herself, not to mention...well, everything that happened between them. "No, I-I didn't...um, how've you been?" Probably her least graceful conversational dodge ever- or at least top 5.

@strigistricken liked for a winterfes starter. SOMETHING SEEMS ICE-FISHY.

Now this is more like it. Stan can say he much prefers fishing when it's warm , ( and in the company of family , but that's something he would never admit out loud ) but this is a far better use of his time than engaging in neighborly warfare with Bill. Having set up at one of the various holes about two hours ago , he peeks down at his line to see nothing. Just his luck. He finally gets out to fish , and they aren't even biting. A hand raises to wipe his face , cringing at the bitter cold. The cheap pair of gloves he stole bought aren't doing him much of a favor , and a beanie can only do much for his ears.

He shifts his attention away from his pole. Maybe the fish are just shy - don't want to bite when they have an audience. He looks across the ice at the various people bundled up for the cold. One figure in particular stands out ( though she's still very blurry ) , and he raises from his seat to get a better look.

❛ Marilyn ? ❜ He asks , squinting at her. ❛ If that even is your real name ― what're you doing here ? Come to steal my catch too ? ❜

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Eda falls into the hug without a fuss, bringing her arms up to wrap around her older sister. The hold is weak at first, but soon tightens to keep her braced for support against Lilith.

"I know, but..." A sharp inhale cuts the thought off, one she clearly is trying to make NOT sound like a sniffle. "That should make me feel better, but it's hard to not also feel worse over that, you know...?"

Lilith doesn't like to think of Eda as fragile, but in that moment, she seems so light, so delicate... what is she supposed to do? Lilith hesitates, just letting Eda lean on her for what seems like forever. Then, gently, she pulls her sister into a hug.

"...There's nothing you could've done."

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"Y'know what? I'm fine! Everything's fine. I'm gonna get to scaring anyone and everyone and this Halloween's gonna beat the pants off any one that came before! This place isn't gonna keep me down!"

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Eda didn't directly look at Lilith- she could tell it was her as she sat down. Her body slumped over against her sister's, clearly trying to keep it together and having a rough time at it.

"...Even knowing what happens every eclipse, she'd been around for so long I stopped worrying. I got too comfortable, I forgot it could happen to any one of us just as easily..."

Maybe she should say something. But she doesn't, just sitting down quietly beside Eda instead.

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She's just sitting on a park bench late at night, staring out into the distance. She kind of always figured this could happen, even told herself that it might not necessarily even last long.

That didn't make it hurt any less...

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"Hmm, yeah, it sounds like a frustrating situation if what you've got going on back home's that important. But I dunno about that last part- way I see it, long as you're not in the ground, you can do whatever you want with your life. Gotta play with the cards you're dealt, y'know?"

"My sentiments to you. Perhaps once I acquire enough money, I can create my perfume station again. It is....my days of force retirement unsettles me. And there is much to do back home."

"But I am too old to think of new jobs now...."

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"I know what you mean...not that the place I come from was super cozy all the time, but it's hard for this place to feel like home sometimes, even if I'm living in a house that looks exactly like the one I had."

"Its becoming quiet cold... how I miss my home now. Its warmer forest."

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“I know, right?! Watches and jewelry and other knick-knacks still get lifted just fine, but there’s a certain elegance to emptying someone’s wallet that can’t be enjoyed here. Not to mention this digital crud took me forever to get used to.”

❛ Jesus christ , they don’t even use cash here. What’s a guy supposed to do now that he can’t pickpocket someone ?? ❜

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"Exactly. You're your own witch, sis! However it is you wanna style yourself from here on, what matters is it's your choice." Anything that helped her sister loosen those rigid standards that had been imbued thanks to the Coven and her dreams to get into it, Eda would support in full.

"Eda, your hair is always wild." In the face of such optimism, her little concerns sound silly. It's not as if she hasn't drastically changed her style before. "Maybe I'm overthinking it. It'd be good for me to make my own decision for once."

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"As much as I'd love to find some dumb zany activities to have a great time at, I think I wanna check around some of those home decor vendors first! I tried the whole "replacement furniture" thing at the Spirowl House-" Dammit Luz had her saying it- "and it'll take at least another decade before it feels homey enough. So maybe they'll just have some junk from the genuine article we can cram in there to do the trick!"