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foxlored · 1 year

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Deconstructing Luz & Hunter and Wittebane Siblings Parallels

Alternatively titled: Luz is actually not a stand-in for Philip and I will fight the show's writers on this myself if I must

Another Owl House mini-essay because this show's been on the mind. As the previous one, expect some mentions of abuse, murder, colonization, and so on (as per canon-typical Belos awfulness). Technically peer reviewed (my discord friends talked about it with me)

Luz & paralleling Philip/Belos

The show does a lot of work to make you see Luz as equivalent to Belos, partly in order to deconstruct that. I don't mind that actually, I think the subversion of the "just as bad as the villain" trope fits the show's themes of deconstructing the fantasy genre, given its similar takes on the idea of a chosen one and so on. However, I don't think these parallels are narrative as much as they are just a manifestation of Luz's anxieties and Belos feeding into that.

Stay with me here: We have a character who abandons the only family member they have left in order to stay in the Demon Realm. They fall in love with a witch, and fall in love with the world they're staying in. They unlearn the initial ideas they had about the world that dehumanize its inhabitants in some way—and are in conflict with Philip/Belos, who wishes to "save their soul" and get them out of there.

Am I talking about Caleb or Luz? That's a trick question, because it's both. It's literally the same character arc! And more importantly here—there's something to suggest that at least Belos sees them in the same way.

"We're human! We're better than this!"

Belos has a very peculiar dynamic with Luz in the fact that he is incredibly bent on trying to "save" her despite all she has done to go against him. He sees her as a potential ally, a human corrupted by the sinfulness of witchkind—and offers her an honestly that is pretty much never given to any other character. Now, compare this to the scene in For the Future where he hallucinates Caleb.

"I tried to save your soul. It's your fault this all happened!"

The mentality is strikingly similar—and while we don't have much content to show the specifics of Philip and Caleb's relationship, what we are given suggests a very real parallel between how he views Caleb and Luz.

What about Hunter?

A fair question, as the show poses Hunter as the Caleb to Luz's Philip—especially with him already being a grimwalker of Caleb. However, it's important to note that a significant part of that parallel is that it's incomplete—Hunter isn't the replacement for Caleb that Belos wants.

Because the cycle of killing and destroying grimwalker upon grimwalker is built off the fact that they cannot match what Caleb was. They... aren't Caleb. Even Hunter, who looked the closest, was just that: the closest. Not an actual replacement. Remember Belos had no qualms about branding him with a sigil, a death sentence on the day of unity.

Speaking of that—

King's Tide, & the curious case of Belos' Manipulation

King's Tide gives us two interesting scenes with Belos attempting to manipulate Luz, then Hunter. Both give a surprising insight into his mentality towards both characters.

Hunter, why are you hurting me? I only wanted to help you!

when trying to elicit hunter's help, belos is very much focused on that emotional relationship he cultivated in order to manipulate hunter. Why are you hurting ME. I only wanted to help YOU. but there's no further depth to it. Its a purely emotional attack. Contrast that both with his earlier scene with Luz, and what occurs in Watching and Dreaming.

And despite our differences, I want to help you, Luz. I can send you home. I have just enough Titan Blood for one more trip. Please. I don't want to see another human life destroyed by this place.

While Belos certainly isn't above using emotional attacks to weaken Luz's resolve—playing on her fears of being complicit in his crime, comparing his self afflicted monsterous form to Eda's curse, he also tries to connect with her on a logical level (at least from his point of view).

When he calls Hunter to stop fighting, it's purely because he knows he can eliminate a percieved threat by playing on his weakness—when he calls Luz to stop, it's because he wants to work with her.

You did do something good. I thought this one was another lost cause. Because of you, we can finish our work as witch-hunters, starting with them!

This exchange from Thanks to Them really encapsulates it all. Hunter is a tool for Belos to use, while Luz... I think the ambiguity in "we" in the above quote is purposeful. At face value, it's we as Belos possessing Hunter, an extension of Caleb—him and his brother together again. But he's addressing Luz, thanking Luz, and I don't think that's necessarily because Belos sees himself in Luz. A wayward human who needs guidance back from the clutches of humans... he sees Caleb in her.

Luz & Hunter, two sides of a Caleb coin

I think the two of them are both supposed to represent different facets of Caleb. They're the two characters who are deeply harmed by his manipulation, and both represent the ways in which Belos views his brother. A lost soul to be saved, family to be controlled; Someone who's loyalty must be maintained by emotional abuse and manipulation.

And I think the show becomes stronger when you look at it through this lens, instead of the forced "they're like siblings so they must be like these other siblings" comparison partially born out of Luz's insecurity.

#dove rambles #dove does analysis #the owl house #toh #toh spoilers #hunter toh #luz noceda #philip wittebane

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mdhwrites · 10 months

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Do you think if Owl House’s third season were longer instead of being crammed into 3 long episodes, it would’ve been better?

I actually did a blog about this literally the night before the S3 finale and the finale did not prove me wrong!

But I want to emphasize here that a lot of these problems... are due to S2 and S1. S3 is how it is BECAUSE of the writing choices the team made going into it. There were ALWAYS going to be problems with S3 because of how S2A was paced, because of the INSANE decisions made in the face of the shortening in S2B like the Collector. Just the insane amount of mismanaged time. But I like to provide evidence:

No usable villains: S1 had the most amount of threats that could be taken seriously and even they weren't treated the best. The EC were still mostly bumblers who could be taken out by Eda or Hooty with EASE, Lilith is used for comedy far more than threat in S1, even if her role as straight man works to keep some of her menace, Kikimora is barely there and Belos is introduced at the end of the season. All the one off villains are pathetic and usually defeated through brute force in their episodes proving that except by schemes, like Really Small Problems, they're all fucked going against Luz in S2 who now has actual power behind her. So by the end of S1, you have Hunter, Kikimora and Belos. S2A will then go on to make Hunter immediately not a villain, Kikimora a joke by the end of it and ignore Belos entirely until S2B while introducing no new real villains so now they only had BELOS and their time is running out. Also, their only human realm villain is a joke who got beat by Camila, let alone anyone with magic. Speaking of:

Edit: I straight up forgot to mention the coven heads but S2 does technically set them up... and then destroys the coven system, giving them no systemic power, and Luz literally saved all of theirs lives so they have no reason to fight her. Also because the Collector is straight up not a villain in S3, he would not be sending them out to kill people even if that were his style so they don't count as usable villains and neither does the Collector.

Power Scale Issues: In literally the sixth episode, Willow singlehandedly beats the shit out of an entire squad of trained MONSTER HUNTERS without even the element of surprise. She's just that strong. By S2's end, EVERYONE will be at her level. Luz at the START of S2, before glyph combos are introduced, takes down the Selkidamus effectively single handedly. She literally only needed physical strength of pulling the thing in and NO ONE acts like it's a question if she can slay it once she's given a sword. It's really fucking bad. And as they have magic in the human realm, all of these characters are still at that power level for what would have been the first half of the season. This means threats and villains are out of the question. How about character work?

Character Blandness: Willow has no character. She is wishy washy all the way through the series and this is true even in S1 where she is shy for half the episodes and also the most brazen person you know in the other half, sometimes in the same episode. Escaping Expulsion murdered about half of Amity's potential and Reaching Out made sure that there would literally never be a conflict about Lumity and made Amity only a bland love interest with daddy issues and her dad isn't in the human realm so you got nothing on her for the first half. Hunter had to have almost all of his shit dealt with by the end of S2 so he's a certified good guy at their side by the Day of Unity who at least half of the cast have accepted so all you have is backstory angst which they can only do so much of without it being repetitive or boring, especially if you want the BIG reveal to only happen shortly before his possession. Luz has her angst which can't be resolved until post Belos revealing it so you have half a season where NO ONE CAN DO ANYTHING. You theoretically have Camila fluff and Vee angst/fluff potentially but people got pissed at Hop Pop and Sprig getting episodes dedicated to them in the human realm instead of the plot. How would most have reacted to characters who have made barely an appearance stealing half a season from the entire Hexide Squad?

Human Realm is Bad: By the end of S1, the Isles has cellphones, it has televisions, it broadcast news, it will fight for a wrong unjustly done, etc. S2 only doubles down as it introduces robots, child endangerment laws and other things that are just part of the human realm. That's why ALL of the fish out of water jokes in Thanks to Them are utter shit and require characters acting like complete morons because the two worlds are the SAME. And they have almost always been that way. The only difference is that one has electricity, the other has magic. As such, going to the human realm is just not compelling. It doesn't even have thematic reasons to do so except I guess to FINALLY actually show Luz being bullied and they didn't even do that in the specials.

And sure, stuff with the resistance could have been neat in the second half. The first half could have included good fluff like Lumity dates and Gus freaking out about the human realm for an episode. But... It would still be needing to introduce elements. It would still be scrambling for ways to fill the time because S2 killed most of the potential for the characters and was so focused on that goal, even in S2A, that it didn't introduce compelling plot elements for drama or good villains to play into its adventure elements.

Could it have been better? Possibly. But a lot of people felt how much S3's specials were just padding. Just wasted time. Now TRIPLE the length of the season?

Yeah... The shortening was a blessing, not a curse.

=======

I have a public Discord for any and all who want to join!

I also have an Amazon page for all of my original works in various forms of character focused romances from cute, teenage romance to erotica series of my past. I have an Ao3 for my fanfiction projects as well if that catches your fancy instead, If you want to hang out with me, I stream from time to time and love to chat with chat.

And finally a Twitter you can follow too!

#the owl house criticism #toh critical

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rusted-icicles · 2 years

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*Stares at Luz, Belos and Hunter* Damn, I love that delicious, delicious Chosen One (except its all a lie/delusion) Trope.

Philip believing that HE'S God's chosen one to wipe out the sinful creatures of the Boiling Isles. He stumbled into the Boiling Isles, a realm filled with witches and demons and magic, by pure chance and is now enacting his personal witch hunter fantasy upon the isles. He fully believes that he'll go home to the Human Realm and be met with glory too! Because of course he will, he's the Chosen One, he's the one that saved humanity from the evil, evil witches!!! And anyone that tries to tell him otherwise gets removed from the story (Caleb getting stabbed, the Collector being dropped into the failure pit, Luz almost getting petrified), because there's no way that he's wrong. There's no way that he spent 400 years fulfilling his "destiny", even going as far as to mutiliate himself and turn him into something not human, only for it all to be for nothing. But it is for nothing. Not only did his plan fail, but the Human Realm has moved on from his ideals, and either wouldn't care at all about his efforts to "save humanity", or would actively despise him for it.

Luz trying to search for her "fate", trying to find the start of her epic fantasy story when she first arrives at the Boiling Isles, only to get tricked and almost killed by Adegast. She is told, straight to her face, that she is not a Chosen One. That she is just a regular person, and that believing that she has a grand destiny awaiting her is just going to lead her into trouble. But even as her dreams of being the chosen one is crushed, she still clings to her fantasy of becoming a witch, a fantasy that does become a reality. And in her journey to making that dream come true, she finds friends and happiness and a family. She didn't have to be some 'chosen one' to get all the perks that typically come packaged with your usual "Chosen One's Epic Journey To Save The World". But then, just as she had let go of "chosen one" fantasy, when she's starting to let other people help her instead of doing it all on her own (Reaching Out, which is right before Hollow Mind), it gets thrown in her face. Philip Wittebane tells her that "Perhaps you and I were destined to meet," and she has to deal with the possibility that maybe she did have a "destiny", that she was meant to arrive at the Boiling Isles. Except that "destiny" was to aid her greatest enemy, to aid the man that's trying to destroy her home.

Hunter being told that "The Titan has big plans for you", over and over again throughout his childhood. The Titan having big plans for him is the whole reason why he's here, why he's given the privilege of artificial magic, why he's the Golden Guard at such a young age. Hunter living with the pressure of being the chosen one, and wishing that he wasn't ("At least you've got your future figured out now." "At least you can figure out your own."). Hunter grew up believing that he's special, believing that he is important, that he is doing "something or someone good", only for it all to be a lie. There is no Titan's plan. He isn't special, he isn't important, and he is literally the latest in a long line of near-clones. He has no grand fate awaiting him on the Day of Unity, only a death sentence.

Special mention to King Clawthorne, who is simultaneously this trope and actually kinda a Chosen One if you squint. King spent most of his life believing that he is the King of All Demons, a feared and respected tyrant ruler that just got shrunken down into the size of a child. He believed he was special, unique, powerful, only for that to be a lie made up by Eda and perpetuated by the rest of his family (even if they're well-meaning).

Then, once he starts to come to terms with the fact that he is just a regular person, just a little guy, he finds out that he is special, that he is unique, that he is powerful. He is all of that and more, because he is literally the last of the Titans, the son of the Boiling Isles itself. And he immediately gets shackled by the pressure and responsibilities of a chosen one, even if it was well-meaning (Lilith's worship of him and focus on the fact that he is a god) or accidental (Darius's "Titan, help us" nd King's ensuing "I'll... do my best").

Something that defines a chosen one is their ability to save the world when no one else can, and on the Day of Unity itself, even after his family's attempts at keeping him out of the fight, it really turns out that King is the only one that could save the day at that moment. The CATTs's plan to stop the draining spell went wrong, the Hexsquad was under the impression that Belos could stop the spell and focused on defeating him, and King found himself in the right place, at the right time to meet the Collector and convice him to stop the draining spell. Hell, King even has the "heroic sacrifice" trope going on with him sending Luz and the rest of Hexsquad to the Human Realm!!

And it's tragic. He's a kid, he's not even supposed to be there. King literally just wanted to play catch with his dad by the time Edge of the World happened. He doesn't want this power, nor did he want this responsibility. But he's the only one that can free the Collector now.

This was mainly just a stream of thought so I have no idea how to end this properly or offer up a conclusion, so TLDR: Philip, Luz, Hunter and King all share a theme (if thats the word) of "believing that they are fated for greatness" that needs to be torn down. But out of all of them, King is the only one that got what he wanted, and by the time he got it, he didn't even want it anymore.

#the owl house #toh #toh hunter #emperor belos #philip wittebane #king clawthorne #luz noceda #hunter wittebane #its 'feeling emotional over toh's 'chosen ones are bullshit' schtick' hours!#i love these four so much #rusty ramblings

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astriiformes · 11 months

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Throwing meta thoughts at the wall here because I was musing on the fact that a lot of my favorite stories these days (TOH, Pentiment, the Locked Tomb series) are all at least a little bit about grief. But one interesting thing The Owl House specifically did with Luz and Belos was make both their stories about grief and mourning, but in the opposite directions.

I love stories where the protagonist and the antagonist are both grappling with the same question or difficult experience but differ drastically from each other in their answers to it. And in both Luz and Philip's/Belos' cases, that experience is the loss of a family member, and their relationship to the Boiling Isles is defined by that grief.

Belos sees the Boiling Isles as a corrupting force that needs to be eliminated because in his eyes, they're the thing that lead his brother astray. He probably would have had a problem with them regardless, since his fervently held religious beliefs are the other source of his antagonism towards witches -- and of course, the real source of the rift between him and Caleb. But they clearly became a scapegoat for his brother's running away and abandoning their world, as well as the reason he decided the Isles had to be destroyed at any cost.

And he never processes that grief. He creates the grimwalkers instead, killing them when they echo that original loss and trapping himself in a cycle where he never actually mourns, just tells himself he'll get it right the next time and finally have his brother back -- all the while projecting that same loss onto the Boiling Isles and letting it fester into an even worse bitterness towards everyone there in his attempts at genocide.

Luz, meanwhile, associates the Boiling Isles with her dad, who encouraged her interest in fantasy and even left her the Azura books, which were one of the primary reasons she decided to stay and learn how to be a witch. To her the Isles represent someone she loved, and now almost has a piece of back. Her wonder at everything there -- and her finding belonging and other people who love her, which she was clearly longing for after her dad's death -- is in part a wonder at rediscovering a happiness that had shattered when Manny died. Of course she ends up wanting to do anything to protect them.

We even see Luz try to suppress her own grief, which is probably part of why she worries she's too much like Belos -- she can see echoes of her own fears in his, even if they both have different relationships with them. But ultimately his story is one about going insane and destroying himself with unprocessed grief -- and an unwillingness to admit his own part in his pain -- whereas hers is about coming to terms with it, as well as with the guilt that comes from not always being able to protect the people you love from harm. It's one reason her conversation with the Titan is so lovely, because it's her simultaneously talking to a dad who never got to have a relationship with his own child and her talking to the Isles that gave her back some of the same joy as her own dad, as well as the courage to remember him the way he would have wanted.

And of course, both their mourning narratives are accentuated by the Collector, who has no real concept of grief and ends up learning about loss as a result of Belos' attempt to destroy the Boiling Isles clashing with Luz's attempts to save it. His confusion about death ties both their narratives together at the end, which works perfectly for an antagonist-turned-protagonist -- something that's really driven home by Luz and Philip's first "chronological" interaction occurring in large part because Luz offered to help him find the Collector in the first place.

I just!!!! It's about loss it's about grief it's about spying someone in the mirror that's almost-you-but-not-quite it's about learning to tell the difference and to be better than them even if you still understand something of the shape of what made them the way they are, about how misery is easy and hope is hard, especially when the world has taken something load-bearing away from you, but one is poison and the other is ultimately healing.

It's about grief and about how it can be the end of you or the beginning of a whole new story.

#every day i rotate themes around inside my head #f: us weirdos have to stick together

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rnelodyy · 2 years

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Okay, I genuinely never noticed this, I think because it kinda blends in with the background, but there's one detail in this painting that makes so much of the Wittebanes' backstory make sense.

Caleb is holding a pitchfork here. It's pointed down at the ground, so clearly he's not trying to intimidate this witch with it, but he is still holding it in his hand, just as Philip in the background is holding his mask.

The only other time we've seen pitchforks in these paintings is in the hands of the witchhunter mob. This encounter with the witch happened during a witch hunt.

So picture this: Philip and Caleb grow up idolizing the witch hunters, and finally, they're old enough to go on a hunt themselves. They get separated along the way somewhere, and Caleb ends up finding the witch on his own.

And he's curious. This witch doesn't seem dangerous, they're showing him how their magic works, and while he's still wary, he wants to know more. With the popular fandom headcanon that Caleb is a mirror for Luz (in that he never fit in with his peers, had interests that were deemed disruptive and dangerous, and fantasized about escaping his hometown and living out some fantasy adventure), this only adds weight to his decision not to attack or run. This witch is Caleb's ticket out of here, but if he's gonna leave, he's gotta leave now, because the mob is on its way and will kill the witch if they find them.

Philip sees this (or at least, part of this), but is scared to approach. So he hides, watches as his brother is lured into the portal, and by the time he musters up the courage to intervene, they're already gone.

And Philip tries to find a way to save his brother for YEARS. The version of him we see in the next painting is clearly a young adult, while in the top painting, he's a teenager. It took him THAT long to find a way of getting to the Boiling Isles, and even longer to find Caleb once he was actually there.

Is it any wonder Philip became SO radicalized? For YEARS, he thought what he'd seen was his brother, who he clearly adored, being ABDUCTED by the exact type of monster he was taught to fear, while he watched and did nothing. That mix of fear and anger and GUILT he must have felt, which he channeled solely into hating witches even more, and trying to save his bro.

The years between the moment he last saw Caleb and the moment he found him again gave his memories and opinions time to warp. The memories of Caleb became steeped in nostalgia, with Philip forgetting Caleb's flaws and playing up his good qualities. He blames the witches for his brother's disappearance, because if he can't do that, he'd have to blame himself for not intervening.

And then he finds Caleb, and learns that Caleb went on his own accord. That he's nothing like the Caleb from his (now warped and idealized) memories, that he married the witch that took him away from Philip, and Philip is so unable to cope with that reality that he just... murders his brother. Cause that's not his brother anymore, he's been too brainwashed, and it'd be a mercy to put him out of his misery at this point.

The blame for Caleb's death goes to the witches, and to Caleb himself. Philip stays, he finds the Collector, he becomes Belos, all to avenge the brother he himself murdered. He creates the Grimwalkers and kills them when they "betray" him, either by not being on board with genocide, or not being enough like Caleb, or being too much like Caleb.

Being shown the memories of what he did to Caleb by Gus brought it all back to the forefront. As long as he doesn't think about it too hard, he can blame everyone else for his brother's death, but in the end, it's nobody's fault but his own. Gus showing him the memory of the day he put a knife in his brother's heart was a very harsh reminder of that fact.

#the owl house #philip wittebane #caleb wittebane #this got very off track lmaooo #mel posts be like: i saw a cool detail i never noticed before anyway *5000 words of brainrot*#idk how my brain just skipped over the pitchfork i cant unsee it now

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polyhexian · 7 months

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Would eventually!Jasper end up with Hunter and the Hexsquad in the Human Realm?

Or, since Jasper succeeded in his goal of getting Hunter away from Belos, would those two still be on the Boiling Isles (or at least, in the Demon Realm) when the Collector got loose? (Would the Collector get loose if the Hexsquad didn't go to the Skull to save Luz from Belos, a situation Luz was in because Kikimora was trying to capture Hunter?)

Or, since Hunter and Jasper both have Emperor's Coven sigils, would Jasper still be helping fight Belos since they don't know if they can get far enough away for the Draining Spell to not work? And then Jasper's the one who insists Hunter be Luz's 'security escort' to try and keep both kids away from the fighting, and thus Hunter also gets separated from family by the dimensional rife? (That would probably fit best with 'everything is the same except Jasper is alive'.)

I like the idea of Jasper and Camila at the kitchen table, early morning, drinking coffee together, trying to scrounge up the energy to be the parents and parent-substitutes these kids need them to be. Jasper doesn't know most of these kids any better than Camila does. But at least they each have another adult to lean on.

OUGH ... okay actually hunter does NOT turn around in hollow mind. Jasper is left in despair because he couldnt save him. Labyrinth runners still happens. Jasper finds out where Hunter is on the day of unity during the chaos and he shows up obviously... the kids are fighting big goopy Belos... but they're getting hurt... Jasper gets there and they're like who are you! And he's like worry about that later. And they're like you know what? Fair. So they are fighting but jasper is so weakened from the draining spell he's almost useless- and then hunter finally collapses in pain. He can't move anymore. The draining spell is going to kill him.

Jasper does what he has always done. He decides what must be done. Then he does it, with no reservations or hesitation. He summons an abomination blade and without a word cuts his arm off.

The draining spell immediately stops! He's strong enough to fight again! The kids are all hurt and scared and jasper is holding off the goop man and he's like... standing between Belos and the kids. He will not let him get through. But he's starting to lose and BAM. Collector. He sploots Belos. The castle starts to fall apart. Jasper finally just... collapses. Pain and bloodless and exhaustion. And the kids start to run for the door before Luz is like wait! What about him?? And Willow is like isn't he dangerous? And hunter is like we can't leave him here. He'll die. So they drag him with him and then King wehs them and theyre tossed out into the rain... and jasper is still unconscious. He's out. They bring him with them to luz's house...

And she does her best. But he cut his arm off and there's shock, and then there was mud and rain and... he gets an infection and a fever and he hasn't woken up like... it's been two days since they got to the human realm and there's still this... mystery man laying on the couch panting and whimpering and occasionally crying out of speaking in his sleep... things that just give them MORE questions...

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lampmanliveblogs · 6 months

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Happy Halloween! I hope you’ve had a spectacularly spooky time! Me? Oh, you better believe I had the most frightening of days! I went to work. I know, I was terrified the entire time.

Nah, but Halloween has never been anything I really celebrate. The closest I got this year was watching that Soul Eater AMV and listening to some ”spooky” music on my way home from work today. If I feel like it, I might watch the Nelly Rapp movie. I’ve got it on DVD, but I’ve yet to watch it. And what better time to watch a movie about everyone’s favorite Monsteragent than on Halloween?

I’ve had a rough couple of days, I won’t lie. I wasn’t kidding when I said work was scary, cause bloody hell’s bells, it’s been A LOT to deal with. I work in this really big department store, an absolute unit of a store, a real superstore. And school’s out for the autumn holidays AND people got their pays recently. You can imagine the chaos, we had checkout lines going on for several meters.

This is all to say that I’ve been super tired and in a bad mood the last few days, so I haven’t had the energy to do much of anything. I did manage to do a rewrite of the story I posted a few days ago and it’ll be below the cut. I feel it’s fitting since it’s Halloween and it takes place on Halloween.

I don’t think I’m gonna publish it officially yet, I might want to take another look at it first… and I’ve given some thought to a potential second and even third chapter. We’ll see.

I still haven’t settled on a title yet.

Comparing this version with the first draft, you’ll notice that this one has been expanded a bit. I don’t often remove things between the first draft and the rewrite, I usually expand on stuff, which is what I did here. I’ll leave a few more notes at the end.

Enjoy!

Lamp Entertainment presents…

[Title]

Vee watched Luz and Camila disappear into the light of the portal. Off to save the Demon Realm from the evils Belos was bound to unleash with his return. The portal closed mere seconds after they crossed the threshold.

Vee could still feel the scent of the spent magic lingering in the air. It was potent and powerful, but not unpleasantly so. The Titan’s own magic, such a primal, primordial force of nature that Vee doubted she could feed on it if she tried. It’d be a bit like a human trying to eat grass, if grass could also spontaneously explode. A bad idea.

She turned around to begin her walk back to civilization. A small smile played on her lips. Despite the difficulties they were bound to face in that realm, a realm Vee herself was not ready to return back to, she couldn’t help but feel optimistic. If any two people could handle Belos and The Collector, it’d be Luz and Camila, two of the coolest people Vee knew.

Well… they were at the very least in the top three of the list Vee kept of cool people she knew (admittedly, a pretty short one). One person in particular was very high up on that list. They were a stranger that Vee knew very well, a clueless fortune teller. Pretty as a picture, dancing the night away.

Vee felt her cheeks heat up, and she quickly shook her head to try and clear it. She could think about those feelings some other time. Maybe when Luz got back she could give her some advice. For now, she had to focus on getting mom’s car back ho-

Her eyes widened and she shoved her hands into her pocket. She had her phone and… that was it.

”Sho-ot!” she yelled at the sky. The moon looked down on her, it’s cold light coloring every shadow blue. ”Camila still has the car keys!”

Well. That was her good mood ruined. Vee grumbled curses under her breath the entire way back to the town square. The festivities had died down by now, only a few organizers left trying to clean up the worst mess before giving up and going home. She threw the car a dirty look, as if it was its fault that Camila had brought her car keys with her like some kind of responsible adult. Now she’d have to walk all the way home, get the spare, walk back here, and then finally drive the car home.

She stifled a yawn. Maybe she could wait until tomorrow?

Whatever. She had a lot of time to think about what she’d do next.

She walked along the streets of Gravesfield. By now, most trick-or-treaters had trick-or-retreated back home with their bounty. A few jack-o’-lanterns still spread some light onto the streets, alongside the streetlamps and other decorations. The buzz of the last few organizers cleaning up after the festivities at the town square disappeared fast behind buildings as Vee navigated around them.

Her nose was a lot sharper than her ears though and if she took a few deep breaths she could still make out some faint scents in the air. Pumpkin and spice, candy and exhaust fumes from the Haunted Hayride tractor.

In a somewhat ironic twist, because she was so focused on trying to discern those quickly fading smells, she missed the one in front of her. Once she did notice it, she stopped dead in her tracks.

”It’s you!” A voice that was unfortunately familiar to her called out in the night. It was Jacob Hopkins, the man from the Gravesfield Historical Society, standing there, right in front of her.

Vee froze in place. Of course. Of course she had been too optimistic in thinking she wouldn’t have to deal with that man again. When she burst through the doors at the GHS and realized he was gone, she had felt so relieved. Like he couldn’t hurt her anymore. It was foolish, because he was still around. Did she really think he’d move towns because he got kicked out of the history club?

Before she had time to run, Jacob marched up to her.

”It really is you!” he said again. ”I’d recognize those evil eyes anywhere! You’re my demon!” He grabbed her wrist.

”I-I have no idea what you’re talking about,” she said and struggled to free her hand. She saw his eyes go wide and realized her mistake. ”Let go of me!” she said, this time imitating Willow’s voice, but it was too late.

”Don’t even bother trying to distort you voice, demon!” Jacob spat. ”I see right through your tricks! Where is the poor woman you had enchanted as your thrall? Did you eat her, you vile creature!?”

”No!” Vee cried. Hot tears threatened to flood her eyes, but behind that lied something else deep within her.

All her life she had been a prisoner, fettered, locked up and sealed away. Then she escaped and was on the run, always running. When she came to the Human Realm she was hiding, always terrified of slipping up and exposing herself. She was always ready, should the day come, to run again. Run, flee, hide, survive.

Not anymore. She has a great life here with a family and friends! Not just surviving, she’s living for something now! Who is Jacob to think he could take that from her? Did he really think he had just cornered the only wild animal that wouldn’t bite?

”Let go of me!” Vee repeated, this time with a hiss as she bore her teeth. Her teeth, which now looked less like the relatively dull incisors and vestigial canines of a human, and more like sharp fangs. The skin on her hands and wrists began to change too, hardening into tough scales while her fingernails turned into claws.

Jacob did look a bit worried when he spotted the teeth. But, be it because of bravery or stupidity (though Vee knew what she’d bet on), he didn’t relent. He held steadfast her wrist, intent on not letting his prize catch escape again.

”As if!” he said, while trying to make himself look bigger than he was. ”I’ll never let you go, monster!”

”Hey!” A third voice joined the growing chaos. Both human and demon turned their heads towards the voice, a voice that was familiar to them both, though more so to Vee. Despite the situation she found herself in, the basilisk felt a wave of relief wash over her. Suddenly, she knew things were going to be okay. Because who would come to her rescue other than Reality Check Camps very own Cabin 7?

Marco, dressed as a Frankensteiner, with his distinctive bangs covering his eyes. It was a wonder he saw anything at all, especially on this dim evening.

Samuel, dressed as a werwolf, albeit a werwolf with glasses. Apparently even lycanthropes are subject to bad eyesight.

And finally Masha, dressed as a witch. They were the spearhead of the trio, just as they were at summer camp. Always the first one to get them into trouble, only occasionally the one to get them out of it. This time, they arrived to help Vee out of trouble. It seemed that even though they were now strangers, Cabin 7 still had her back.

”What’s going on here?” Masha shouted, making Jacob flinch. ”Let go of her, you pervert!”

”Wha-no!” Jacob explained. He might’ve been some flavor of crazy, but even Jacob realized how bad things must look from an outsider’s perspective. And even he realized the consequences of that was not something he wanted to deal with. ”Y-you’ve got it around your back foot! This is not what it looks like!”

”Really? How about we call the police and ask them what they think it looks like!?” Masha yelled back. Marco and Sam stood by their sides, ready to back them up if things got ugly… well, uglier.

”I-it’s not like that at all!” Jacob said quickly, very keen on not getting the police involved. He looked around, as if the fuzz were hiding behind the corners, ready to jump him. ”Listen, uh… Sasha? No, no, was it… Vasha…? W-whatever, it doesn’t matter.” He yanked on Vee’s wrist, making her stumble forward.

”This is no mere girl!” he exclaimed. ”This is a demon! She has come from another world and has been living among us humans for months! And now her allies, the witches have come too! I’ve seen them perform their wicked magics! They’re not here right now, they must’ve gone back to their own world, but who knows when they’ll be back? You must help me contain this creature so we can warn the president! We’ll share the fame and fortune! I’ll even let you collab with me on Mewtube once my account gets restored!”

He smiled manically.

”If you don’t believe me, just look at her teeth! Look at her claws!” He held up Vee’s hand in the light of a streetlamp for the three teens to see.

It was a completely normal human hand with the soft nails so typical of humans. Vee smiled nervously, showing off a set of very normal human teeth.

At some point during his little monologue, Vee had realized that the best way out of this situation was to just let Jacob keep talking, so she had retracted her claws and dulled her teeth.

Masha, Samuel, and Marco shared a few glances with each other. Vee knew them well enough to follow along.

”This guy’s a loon,” Marco’s gaze said.

”I know you said he was a nutcase, but I didn’t realize it was this bad,” Samuel’s look said.

”Yeah, even I didn’t think it was this bad,” Masha said with one stare.

Samuel stepped forward.

”You’re crazy,” he said simply. Then he punched Jacob in the stomach.

Jacob made a funny sound as all the air was forcibly evicted from his lungs. He fell to the ground, holding his tummy, letting go of Vee in the process.

”Come on, let’s get away from this creep,” Masha said, taking Vee’s hand. They gently coaxed her into following then, not that Vee needed much convincing. They led her away from the gasping and writhing Jacob while Marco and Samuel stayed behind to make sure he did’t try to follow.

”Hey, I don’t think I got your name before?” Masha asked in what was an obvious attempt to distract Vee from what had just happened. ” We met at the GHS yesterday, remember? I’m Masha. I offered you a tour of the town.”

”Y-yeah, I remember,” Vee said. In the moment, she hadn’t realized just how fast and hard her heart was beating, or how ragged her breath had become. She took a few deep breaths to try and calm down, force her body to stop shaking. The danger was gone, no need for flight or fight right now. ”I’m Vee,” she said, finally remembering that she had to reintroduce herself to the friend that didn’t know her. ”And, uh… as much as I would like that tour, I think I just wanna go home at the moment,” she said in a feeble attempt at levity.

A small smile flashed on Masha’s lips.

”I saw your friends at the Haunted Hayride,” they said. ”I didn’t see you though. Too scary for ya?”

”I was staying home with mom,” Vee said, so focused on trying to stay calm that she let her mouth go on autopilot. It took her a moment to realize the slip-up and try backpedalling. ”Or, uh, I mean… aw, geez, I misspoke, I didn’t mean to say-”

”Hey, hey, calm down, it’s fine,” Masahs interrupted the panicking basilisk. They had reached a car parked in front of some small store. They opened the door to the passenger seat and made Vee sit down. ”Just take it easy. That creep didn’t hit you, did he?”

Vee shook her head and massaged her wrist. She could feel where he had squeezed her, though that wasn’t too bad. She had spent the better part of her first decade and half alive in chains, a little pain in her hands was no biggie. No, the thing that bothered her was that she could feel the smell of him on her. It was like a brand. She couldn’t wait to get home and wash it off her.

”I’m fine,” she said after a while.

”Are you sure?” Masha asked, sounding a bit skeptical. Not unwarranted, most normal people would probably be a bit more shaken than Vee was appearing. They probably thought she was in shock.

”Yeah, I’m sure, I promise.” Vee gave Masha reassuring smile, but not too reassuring. ”He didn’t even grab me that hard. I was just a bit shocked. I mean, this was a lot, even for him.”

”Mmmm…” Masha hummed, their thoughts trailing off. ”I knew the guy was unbalanced, but not that he was this unhinged… what was he even talking about, demons and witches?”

”Haha, yeah, I know.” Vee’s laugh was stilted. ”What a nutcase.”

Marco and Samuel came walking back to the car.

”What a wimp,” Marco said. ”After you left he started crying. I think he’s stilly lying there on the ground.”

”Serves him right!” Samuel spat. ”He should be lucky to get off so lightly.”

”I tied his shoestrings together and threw his wallet up on the closest roof,” Marco added. The two boys hopped into the backseat of the car while Masha made it over to the driver’s seat. ”So he’ll have fun with that for a while.”

Vee couldn’t help but smile, the mental image of Jacob trying to scale a wall and falling down too funny not to laugh at.

”Should we call the police?” Samuel asked.

”N-no,” Vee said quickly. While the police might be interested in finding out that a man tried to abduct a girl, they would also be interested in finding out that said girl seemingly did not exist. ”I don’t think its necessary.”

Vee didn’t know it at the time, but she ended up being right. While trying to get his wallet back, Jacob woke and nearly scared the life out of the poor people living in the house. He ended up getting arrested for trespassing. It remains to be seen if he learned his lesson from that.

”Alright, if you’re absolute sure,” Masha said. ”Let me drive you home at least. Or do you have a ride?”

”I’d appreciate it,” Vee said. ”I, ah… missed my ride home.”

The ride back to the Noceda residence was spent mostly in silence, broken by Vee giving Masha directions when needed. Marco and Samuel also formally introduced themselves, unaware that Vee already knew them very well.

Vee had some time to think during the car ride. When Luz returned from the Demon Realm and reclaimed her life, Vee had stopped hanging out with her old cabin mates. With all the new friends in the house, she hadn’t really had the time to stop and think about how much she missed them. But, now they were together again, yet still separated by this new face and voice… it hit her, all at once. How much she missed them and how much she wanted to spend time with them. But she couldn’t, or… maybe…

”There you go, back home, safe and sound,” Masha said as she pulled up the driveway.

”Wait…” Marco said slowly, scratching his head. ”Isn’t this where Luz lives?”

”Yeah, I live here too,” Vee replied. ”I’m uh… well, you see… it’s complicated, but, ah.. Camila lets me live here.”

Out of the corner of her eye she could spot Masha looking at her. They were clearly remembering the comment Vee made before about her mom. They didn’t say anything.

Vee took a deep breath, gathering up all the courage she had. ”Grow a spine,” was the human saying. Vee was a snake, she had plenty of spine.

”Why don’t you guys come inside?” she said quickly, not giving herself enough time to chicken out. She was going to commit to this now. ”I’d like to give you all a proper ’thank you’ for helping me out.”

There was some hesitation.

”It is getting pretty late and we were supposed to sleep at my parent’s house,” Masha said. ”But I’m sure they’d let us sleep at Mrs. Noceda’s house, right?”

”It should be fine, Samuel said, grabbing his phone to send his parents a text.

Marco shrugged and said ”I don’t care.”

”Sounds like it’s decided!” Ve said, a little too chipper and eager to get them inside. ”Come along!”

She lead them inside the mostly dark house and gestured for them to sit down on the sofa.

”Sit down, sit down, I’ll get snacks,” she said and hurried off to the kitchen. Her friends were left in the dust, looking around the messy living room. It looked like a whirlwind had swept through the house, with boxes of costumes strewn about.

In the kitchen, Vee was washing her hands while trying to work up the courage to go through with this crazy idea.

”Come on, you can do this,” she said while washing the stench of Jacob off her hands. She dried her hands off before gathering the snacks she had promised. This was going to take a while, she might as well give her guests something to chew on while she told them… what she was going to tell them. ”You escaped the emperor’s dungeons and evaded his scouts. You helped fight him tonights for Titan’s sake! You can tell your best friends a secret. It’s not hard. They won’t hate you… yeah! Us weirdos stick together, that’s the Cabin 7 way!”

”Hey, Vee?” Masha interrupted the disguised demon’s personal pep talk and nearly made her shed her skin at record speeds.

”Yes!” Vee almost yelled and spun around. ”Wh-what’s on your heart?”

”Is Luz home?” Masha asked. ”Cause we haven’t talked to her in ages…”

Masha’s usually confident eyes flickered down for a few seconds. It hurt Vee to see them without that characteristic confidence that she admired so much. They must be thinking that their friend Luz had abandoned them, left them for some new, cooler friends.

That sealed it in Vee’s mind. She was going to do this. She might come to regret this immediately afterwards, her friends might hate her, she might have to run and hide again… but she was going to do it. She couldn’t stand lying to them anymore, to cause them any amount of suffering. Not after all the kindness they had done to her.

”Yes… or, no,” Vee said, having taken just a little too long to answer. She grabbed the snacks and lead Masha out the kitchen. ”No, Luz is not home right now. She and Camila are away, it… it was a very sudden thing. Kind of an emergency.”

”…okay?” Masha replied, confusion on their face. They shared another few looks with Marco and Samuel. Vee realized that all things considered, she was acting very suspicious. It was Halloween after all. Someone acting this odd on an evening like this… watching horror films the night before, debating witches and folklore… it’s only natural that the unknown would trouble on a human’s mind.

”I’ll explain, I swear,” Vee assured them, not that it did a whole lot to ease their worried minds. If anything, it just made them more confused as to what was going on. ”But it’s a long story, so you might wanna sit down,” Vee continued and gestured to the sofa. The Cabin 7 Crew collectively hesitated before finally sitting down. Vee dumped the snacks on the coffee table and grabbed a chair for herself.

She felt around in her second stomach. She had absorbed a fair bit of magic from Belos during the fight. Amity and Willow had left plenty of abomination slime and enchanted plants behind. So she had a lot of leftover magic to scarf down on if need be. She could afford to show off a little.

”Have you guys noticed something… off with Luz lately?” she asked. ”In the last two months or so… almost like she became a different person overnight?”

Of course they had noticed, and Vee could tell based on their expressions when she asked that question. She also suspected that they had talked about it with each other. Not only had Luz more or less ghosted them and started hanging out with a bunch of strangers that no one knew, her personality had completely shifted. The Luz they knew from camp was gone… almost as if she had become a different person overnight.

”What I’m about to say next might sound insane, but I can guarantee you it’s the truth,” Vee said. ”All I’m asking is that you listen to me… and maybe don’t be too angry with me… okay?”

More glances were exchanged, glances of confusion and worry.

”Vee… what’s going on?” Samuel was the first one to speak up. ”Is… something wrong with Luz? What happened to her?”

Vee took a few quick, sharp breaths. She was about to go against every instinct in her basilisk brain, instincts ingrained into her very core by countless generations before her. Here goes nothing.

”Luz did become a different person overnight.” Vee was having to force herself not to speak too fast. She enunciated every word, trying to make sure there was no room for misinterpretation. ”Or rather, she became herself. You see, the Luz you met at summer camp wasn’t the real one. It was me. I was disguised as her and took her place. It was an accident, I didn’t mean to, but… well, I think is worked out for the better for both of us.”

Silence. The three Cabin 7 members sat opposed to her stared at her. Confused, bewildered, positively befuddled. Indeed, was this not an incredibly odd thing to be said by someone who wasn’t insane?

”I… don’t get it.” Marco was the first one to speak. ”What do you mean you ’took Luz’ place?’”

”I know it’s probably a bit hard to believe, I mean, me and Luz don’t exactly look or sound alike,” Vee said, a small smile on her lips. ”But what about now?” she said, speaking with the voice of Luz.

The Cabin 7 Crew sat still as rocks while their brains tried to process what was going on.

Vee giggled.

”S-sorry, but you guys look so funny,” she said, sounding exactly like Luz from camp. She stood up from her chair and spun around in place, transforming into a spitting image of Luz. No, not a splitting image, the original image. Because that was Luz from camp. ”How about now? Do you believe me now?”

Masha gripped the armrest of the sofa so hard their nails threatened to rip the fabric.

”Explain,” they demanded. ”Right now.”

”Sure thing, though it’s a long story, which is why I brought snacks,” Vee said, shifting back to her regular human form, but with a slight adjustment to make her ears more obvious. She decided against reverting back to her true basilisk form just yet. It was probably for the better if she eased her friends into it.

She cleared her throat.

”What Jacob said before was true. Well, kinda…’even a broken clock is right twice a day,’ I think the saying goes. There is a world beyond this one. A world of magic, and witches, and demons. Demons like me. I’m a basilisk.”

Masha raised their hand.

”No, you won’t die if you look at my true form,” Vee said.

Masha lowered their hand.

”That was a rumor started by witches because… well, you see, we basilisks eat magic, that’s how I can transform.” Vee paused to think for a second. Her captivated audience waited with bated breaths. ”You know what, this probably isn’t the best order to take things. Let’s start with Luz, on that fateful day while she was waiting for the bus to take her the horrible summer camp. As she stood waiting, she spotted a strange owl which she followed into an abandoned house in the woods…”

The End… or is it?

xxXXxx

Author’s Notes

…even more of them

The Lampman tries not to worldbuild in one of his fanfics challenge. Level: impossible.

Probably my favorite line in this was ”Did he really think he had just cornered the only wild animal that wouldn’t bite?” though the ”trick-or-retreated” line is a close second, I thought I was really clever there.

You might’ve noticed I changed ”Marco” and ”Samuel’s” costumes around. I have a reason for this, but I won’t explain it. You might wonder about the term ”Frankensteiner.” It’s from the books about Nelly Rapp by Martin Widmark (illustrations by Christina Alvner). Nelly Rapp is a monster agent, a person who deals with monsters and other supernatural beings. Her first mission has her take on the cold-hearted debt collector Robert Steen, a Frankensteiner.

A Frankensteiner is basically a Frankenstein’s monster, a human made up from separate parts (it’s a kids book, so they never explain exactly where the separate parts come from). They are often kept isolated from humanity and thus don’t develop a connection between their hearts and minds.

After spying on Robert, Nelly finds out that he has two left feet, and that he must be in constant pain from walking. So she manages to trick him into getting a foot massage. With his pain alleviated, he becomes a better person, even getting engaged with the masseuse.

In the next book, Nelly (with some help from her loyal dog London) cures two werewolves from their lycanthropy with vegetarian sausage, the power of laughter, and a strong lamp.

ANYWAY, one of the things I was very conscious about with this story was trying to make sure every member of the Cabin 7 Crew got to do something. It’d be very easy to have Masha be the only one doing stuff since, you know… they’re the only one with a name. Or personality. Also a ship, and fanfic writers love their ships almost as much as they love putting A Guy in a Situation (did i use this meme right?).

I sometimes steal take inspiration from song lyrics while writing. Usually, this is because I happen to be listening to that song while writing. Living in America by The Sounds doesn’t really have anything to do with anything, but it was on while I was editing, so Masha gets to be ”pretty as a picture, dancing the night away.”

A more obvious example is a few lines I stole borrowed from Fear of the Dark by Iron Maiden. ”Watching horror films the night before, debating witches and folklore, the unknown troubles on your mind.” Great song for driving home from work on a dark autumn evening.

So yeah, I would say this story shaped up pretty well. Let me know what you guys think. until next time, take care of the planet Earth, and remember that anything can happen in space!

#fanfic #fanfiction

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whatisurspaghettipolicy · 2 months

Text

Okay here we go, sublimating all sideblogs into One Blog to Rule Them All.

Hi there. This is an intro post.

I live in London and I am an adult who is very tired and has a borderline criminal relationship with potatoes. I speak English and Korean. I speak Welsh too, but very badly. I like podcasts, TTRPGs, 8hr video essays on video game lore/the Byzantine empire, and mythology/early literature. I am very scared of mushrooms.

I like to write. I post the fanfiction that I write over here.

You can ask me anything here.

Here are some things I have written that you might like:

Baldur's Gate 3

Something in the Static - E

The lanceboard of the gods is set; the pieces laid out. The world will be toppled; the cult of the Absolute will win.

Or it would win, if a discarded piece had not been returned to the board...

Years after fleeing demons in the underdark, a very dead paladin has woken up with a tadpole in her eye, a gaggle of party members who don't realise they shouldn't listen to her yet, and several unanswered questions in her head.

And Shadowheart wonders why nobody else seems to realise that their new leader can't go five minutes without lying.

[Tav/Shadowheart] Themes: humour, queer found family, what is morality?, can evil gay nepobabies be redeemed?, recovery from abusive power dynamics, religion as a tool of violence Playlist: lots of Hozier Standout comment:

I don't know if this makes sense, but this chapter has the inherent eroticism of Orpheus looking back.

The Locked Tomb

Lord Send Me a Mechanic If I'm Not Beyond Repair - T

The last gasps of a dying people who do not know they are dying.

(In the last days before the end, as you scroll through your phone and never realise it is ending.)

Themes: humour, existential dread, i had to take a screenshot of the daily mail for this pls be nice, gay little streamers Standout comment:

This was terrifying, thanks

The Owl House

Cardinal Song - The Owl House - G

As the dust settles, Hunter finds himself struggling at the reveal of Luz's new palisman.

But someone else knows what he's going through.

Themes: grief, my lil experimental phase Standout comment:

First of all, how dare you?

Heir to the Jedi - T

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...

As a dark empire's shadow stretches over the galaxy, Luz Noceda, a Force-sensitive mechanic is picked up by Jedi-in-hiding Eda Clawthorne. Knowing that rebuilding the Jedi order may save the universe, Luz finds herself on a collision path with the emperor and his dark forces. She can save the rebellion and save the dream...if she can find them.

[lumity] Themes: the star wars eu is good actually, i would write a very expensive star wars trilogy, can evil gay nepobabies be redeemed?, grief, what is morality?, queer found family, PTSD Playlist: lots of female vocalists Standout comment:

Oh no. The urge to make this fic my whole personality rises

Heart Streamer - G

When the Gravesfield Rainbow Society starts a fundraising drive, Luz agrees to run a 24hr stream of obscure '90s GameBoy Game Azura Staff of Light Quest: Radiant Monsters. The twist? The AI will be controlled by another player and she's got just the right person in mind: mysterious Azura streamer WitchChick128.

When the chips are down, will Luz's free-thinking ways help set another person free? Will the Gravesfield Rainbow Society make enough money to host at least one panel on LGBTQ rights this year? And just what other fundraising shenanigans will Gravesfield be subject to?

[lumity] Themes: humour, queer found family, gay little streamers Standout comment:

Poggers AU!

Golden - T

When self-assured teen Luz Noceda finds herself in the Boiling Isles, she knows she's got a lot to contend with. Luckily, she's got friends to light the way!

Even if one of those friends is the ward of the Emperor himself. [lumity] Themes: queer found family, can evil gay nepobabies be redeemed?, religion as a tool of violence, grief, PTSD Standout comment:

I had to walk to the opposite end of my house so I didn't try to strangle Odalia through my phone, holy shit.

Make My Home Inside Your Heart - G

It's been ten years since Luz came through the portal. Now she and Amity are expecting their first child. And Odalia wants to throw a little baby shower.

What could go wrong?

[lumity] Themes: queer found family, anxieties, one day i will be a better parent than my mom, PTSD Standout comment:

I needed something soft and by gods I found it

Dimension 20: Fantasy High

Gilear, Inc - G

Gilear attempts to set up his own side hustle. The Bad Kids help.

Themes: one big bad kids family Standout comment:

perfect blend of heartwarming characters and ridiculous goofs

Captain America

Class Pass - G

Sam buys Steve a class pass. Steve tries out some martial arts he didn't have in the 1940s.

Themes: steve rogers as a vessel through which i could channel my hyperfocus on mma

I Could Do This All Day - M

Bucky takes care of pre-serum Steve after an attempt at sex doesn't work out so well. [stucky] Themes: im very bad at writing gay man sex but by god i will for stucky

Life is Strange

Welcome Home - Life is Strange - E

"Okay Max, the next entry in her journal started. So you want to fuck your best friend." | Post bae over bay ending, Max finds herself in need of Chloe.

[pricefield] Themes: voyeurism, comfort

Borderlands

Sleep - G

After being freed by Lilith, Athena can't (or won't) sleep. Janey has the answer.

[jathena] Themes: comfort, PTSD

ok i love u bye

#pinned #if you know me irl #no you don't

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gremlinshenanigans · 1 year

Text

Aroace Hunter week day 4! A day late! Because life decided I should have 0 free time yesterday and I wanted to write this.

@sergeantsporks

Hunter stood in front of the Clawthrone estate door. He shifted from leg to leg, debating if he should knock.

On one hand, this was the easiest place to find help in his research. There weren't many books on grimwalkers, at least ones that weren't fables, and Luz had said Eda and Lilith had had an interest in myths and legends.

On the other hand, it involved Lilith, and he wasn't sure what he thought of that yet. This wasn't the Emperor's coven, but they hadn't talked since then either. It could get messy.

He sighed, deciding to trust Luz's judgment and knocked.

"Coming!"

Lilith opened the door, her expression souring when she saw him.

"Hunter. Dad isn't here, you should come by later."

Off to a great start. Hunter thought.

"Actually, I need your help with something. I'm researching grimwalkers, Luz said you could-you would help."

"I- well- if Luz said so," she huffed, "but grimwalkers? Why in Titan's name would you research those?"

"No reason-" She gasped, stopping him from finishing.

"Are you trying to bring Belos back?!" she summoned her staff, pointing it at Hunter's chest.

Hunter backed up. "No?! Why is that your first idea?! I hate him!"

Lilith squinted at him. They stood like that for a moment, ready for a fight. Lilith lowered her staff first, and let out a sigh.

"Maybe that was uncalled for."

"You think?"

Hunter glared at her. She glared right back, but didn't argue further.

"Grimwalkers, you said? I think I have some books that may help."

She stepped deeper into the house, holding the door open for Hunter. He hesitantly walked in.

"You can sit down while I get them." she pointed to the couch. Hunter walked over and took a seat, hardly relaxing.

A minute in and she's accusing me of wanting Belos back. Wonderful.

He heard rummaging upstairs, and ocassional cursing. Soon, she came back down, a small stack of books in her hands.

"Those are all about grimwalkers?" He sat up, momentarily forgetting their previous talk.

"Unfortunately, no, but I believe they could contain some information. Here, you can start from these ones." She divided the stack into two, and sat down across from him. Silence filled the room, broken only by the sound of turning pages and occasional muttering. There wasn't much information in the books on Hunter's end. Most were legends and fables, ocassionally a theory or two. Nothing he didn't know already.

"What are you looking for, exactly?" Lilith asked. Hunter snapped his eyes up. He had forgotten she was there.

"Anything, really. How they're made, I guess?"

She squinted at him again.

"I'm not bringing Belos back." he snapped.

"I doubt you could if you wanted to." she leaned forward, "Most of these are incredibly difficult to find, or impossible."

"You found it?"

Lilith nodded, and turned to book to Hunter.

She started listing the ingredients as he read.

"Palistorm wood,"

Guess that's how you saved me, Flap.

"Selkidomus scales,"

That's why I was sent to hunt them.

"Stonesleeper lungs,"

Hunter took a deep breath.

"A galderstone, for a heart,"

He touched his chest.

"And a bone of the orter species. Half of these are nigh impossible to get."

Hunter nodded, keeping his breath even.

Most of the books he'd read mentioned an ingridient or two, usually to highlight how horrible making a grimwalker was. This one had a full list, and it aligned with what he had found in the few scholarly books there were.

The writer was more sure of it than the others, writing it down as if it were a fact. He reached out to take the book, and Lilith let him. She sat down by him, both focused on the reading. There was more, instructions on what to do with the ingredients, and the differences a grimwalker may have. It mentioned the magenta eyes. That's the one thing all the stories had in common.

"Where did you find this?" He asked.

"I believe it came from the castle, or what was left of it. I forgot I had it, I thought it was a lost history book."

Of course that's where it was found. Belos must have used it to make all the golden guards. Hunter too. He scrunched his nose at the thought.

Lilith closed the book and got up to put it back on the pile. There was more Hunter wanted to read, but he wasn't sure he was ready to go through it right away.

"Did you get what you wanted?" she asked.

"Yes."

The room went silent again. Hunter leaned into the couch, thinking about what he had learned, or more confirmed, really. With the same book Belos presumably used.

Lilith watched him as he was lost in thought, going through a realization of her own.

"Hunter?"

"Mm?"

"I'm sorry for accusing you of wanting to bring Belos back. I hadn't thought about...what he could have been like to you, I heard some of what happened in the human realm but," she sighed, "I was too stuck on how it was in the coven. He must have treated you as bad as the rest of us even then."

Hunter blinked at her. He had thought about how the visit may go, and this was nowhere near it. The fight when he first arrived was more what he expected.

"And I'm sorry how I treated you in the coven." she blurted out.

"Uh, I- thank you? It's the past now, anyway."

She nodded, looking away and they were silent once again. Hunter spoke up first.

"I'll head out now, thank you for the help."

"Oh, of course! Take the book with you."

"Are you sure?"

"Consider it part of the apology."

Hunter nodded and took the book, hugging it to his chest.

"Bye, Lilith"

"Bye, Hunter. Come again, if you need more help."

He gave her a small smile.

"I will, thank you."

I'll have to thank Luz too.

#aroace hunter week 2023 #day 4: oriented/ free space #toh #the owl house #hunter toh #lilith clawthorne #did I miss something from canon? possibly #my memory is not the best #but oh well #shit happens #obviously this is for free space #my writing

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originalwinnercheesecake · 2 years

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What needs to happen in the owl house season 3 part b

The owl house is entering its third and final season. Season 3 will consist of three 44 minute specials (I think. I heard a rumor that fan outrage forced Disney to lengthen the specials to 55minutes). Season 2 ended with the characters kinda spilt into three groups. Luz and her friends henceforth called "The Hexside gang" are trapped in the human realm. The adult CATTs members are back home on the boiling isles out of one apocalypse and straight into another, and King is trapped as the collectors playmate in what ever "owl house" he has made. I am imagining that each special will follow one of these three groups adventures as they all try to reunite.

Here is what I need to see happen with the CATT’s

First Please let Dana keep her word about not thinking all the bad guys need to be redeemed. Terra Snapdragon, Adrian Gray, Hettie Cuttburn (tweets say she was going to be one of the really evil/cruel ones), Kikimora and Odalia all stay villains

In fact I could see ones like Kikimora and Odalia actually trying to side with whatever is left of Belos, Or the worst of the coven heads to be shown at the shows end, plotting to take Belos place as Emperors/Empresses

I would accept Mason (construction head) defecting to the CATT’s after he Day of Unity. He is still new, having only been a coven leader for a little bit longer than Rain has. That might not be enough time for him to be fully corrupted by the position. Also some early art hints that he is Steve and Matholomule’s father. If that is so he probably went along with the Day of Unity thinking he was creating a better world for his sons. So he has something important in common with the other parents in the CATT’s, and two very good reasons to change/fix his mistakes.

I really, really want to see Steve and Mattholomule again. They do not have to have speaking lines. It can just be for a couple moments during a fight, and welcoming everybody back from the human realm. Same with the twins, I am not ready to say good bye to them.

Eda with a cool prosthetic arm and hand.

Lilith with a cool prosthetic foot. We know she doesn’t have a sigil on her writs, but she has to have one. (Belos would have never let the witch who caused permanent damage to the shape of his nose survive his revenge). If its on her back she’s dead from whatever was happening to Eda. Give us some excuse for her to have wanted it on her ankle instead, and in present day she managed to kick her own foot off while tied up.

Have Darius and Alador see each other, give each other looks, but not talk right away. Keep the petty drama going while you can

My new hope for the reveal at whatever happened between them is that ... nothing happened! All the taunts are them being playful, and the only reason they stopped hanging out is that they stopped having any time to.

I still want a sweet reunion.. Also Alador totally thinks Eberwolf has been the one looking out for and taking care of Darius for all their time together as coven heads. Alador says he is very grateful to Eber for taking such a responsibility. Darius is annoyed.

The changes the collector makes to the isles are CRAZY.

I am not sure how the adults will figure out where the kids are. An off comment from the collector? finding broken bits of the portal? Darius being able to rach out to Hunter through penstgram (come on you know he will at least try). But they are determined to bring them back... but they need King (and maybe the collector’s) help to do so so they have to focus on saving King/stopping the collector first.

Have it questioned if Eda has a right to bring Luz back to the demon realm. Right now Luz is in the human realm which is her “real home”, and she is with her real mother. Eda was always going to have to let her go back eventually, right? So maybe it is time to let her go?

Eda decides that weather it is for a couple of minutes or for years to come, she has to see her surrogate daughter one more time. At least so she can be assuredLuz she is safe, and give her a proper good-bye.

I want them to find the remains of the previous golden guards. More specifically I want then to somehow (maybe Lilith as a skilled historian can deduce the age of bones or Eber can use smell or something to determine when a body died) find the remains of Darius’s mentor.

Have Darius say his name (not Caleb or Hunter. I know most of the GW’s were named Hunter, but we have 3 guys who we know where characters in their own right, and had people who were important to them/vis versa. All three 3 deserve distinct names), then recount how much the guard taught Darius when he was younger, and that he deserves better than this end.

Lilith then awkwardly tries to take Darius’s mentor’s mask/staff/whatever. Darius gets mad at her at first. Then she tells him that they can of course bury the bones, but that she wants the armor to create a memorial exhibit at the museum for this guard and the other’s sacrifice when this is all over. Darius agrees.

Something to trigger a memory from Lilith and Eda’s childhood, that they both remember very differently. This causes them to get into an argument, maybe a shouting match. They remember that their childhoods together weren’t nearly as great as they having been recalling/describing throughout the show.

They keep arguing but stop when they conclude that even if things weren’t always great when they were kids, and were down right awful the first half of their adulthood, they both do really love/enjoy the relationship they have now. So the make up and hug.

Harpy Lilith and Harpy sisters working together.

Hooty to go Ham on someone/something. Because I think he deserves to after all his family have been through. Just as a special treat

Darius and Eberwolfs boss forms again, at some point.

Eda and Camila to meet.

A onscreen reunion between Hunter and Darius (and Eberwolf) that everybody is conscious for.

When everything is over Eda is talking to Raine and nervously says something related to them having a life together now. They stop her like “woh woh whoh”. She gets more nervous, but then they say “Your supposed to ask me if I want to get back together first, then ask if I want to marry you/raise a family with you/etc.

Eda asks, Raine pretends to think hard about it before saying yes, Eda (playfully) smacks them on the shoulder.

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ordinaryschmuck · 2 years

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The Owl House from Worst to Best:

Salutations, random people on the internet who certainly won't read this! I am an Ordinary Schmuck! I write stories and reviews and draw comics and cartoons.

With The Owl House sort of returning in about a week, I figured that to celebrate, I would do the impossible: Rank the series from worst to best.

Why do I say that's impossible? Because The Owl House is one of those shows that makes me so happy that, while at its lowest...it's not that bad. Yes, even the episode you already know will be the worst isn't exactly the worst written episode in television's history. It's just that compared to the series at its highest, when you look at what's at the bottom, the cracks start to show.

So, you might as well say this is a "worst" to best list. Some might disagree, but hey, you try judging a show that makes you feel this happy.

Also, since I've talked about every episode in The Owl House, I'm not going in-depth on what I think about them. I'm using one to two sentences maximum. Three, if I really want to push it. If you really wanted to know what I think about each one, here’s a masterpost of every review I’ve ever made about The Owl House.

With that said, let's start this list off with, let's be honest, the one you already knew was going to be considered "the worst."

(Also, it goes without saying, but there’s going to be spoilers in this. That’s what happens when you talk about every episode of a series.)

40. “Once Upon a Swap”-Again, it's not bad, as there are some decent jokes sprinkled in...but "Once Upon A Swap" is pointless. Other episodes at least have outstanding character interactions and plot relevance for me to consider them essential to the series. But this episode really is the one where if you cut it out, you'll miss nothing (just put Lilith revealing that she and Eda wanted to join the Emperor's Coven in another episode).

39. “Really Small Problems”-I love the exploration between King and Luz's relationship and appreciate that it was an accident that he shrunk Gus and Willow...and that's all the compliments I have. The jokes aren't as funny as they could have been, Tibbles really is the worst character in the show, and Eda's subplot is...painful. Not bad, but just below average isn't pretty either.

38. “Sense and Insensitivity”-I don't dig Luz and King's story about writing a book, nor do I enjoy how quickly it's resolved, but Eda and Lilith's B-plot saves this episode. You get a sense of how much they care about one another which, in turn, adds extra pain in "Agony of a Witch," making this episode a C+ to a B-.

37. “The First Day”-The pacing really is what kills this one. There's so much "The First Day" has to do, and the writers have so little time to do it that when they do some familiar story beats, it comes off as disingenuine and out of nowhere. Still love it, though, for the new characters introduced and the lesson being told, but that doesn’t automatically make this episode better.

36. “A Lying Witch and a Warden”-Yeah, the message is heavy-handed, and the pacing's all kinds of wonky, but I still say this pilot does its job in making us like the series while future episodes reveal why we should love it.

35. “Hooty’s Moving Hassle”-I was entertained by the shenanigans Luz, Gus, and Willow got into and felt the shock in that reveal of Willow and Amity's past friendship...but did Eda really need to be that incompetent? The Hexes Hold'em thing manages to come back later in a much better episode, but I don't know. I feel it would take more than Tibbles to trick Eda that easily.

34. “I Was A Teenage Abomination”-Initially, you don't care that Luz and Willow cheated because they were standing up to the mean, one-dimensional bully. But, now knowing who Amity is and why she acts the way that she does, you start to see that she has a right to be mad and that Luz and Willow really shouldn’t feel too proud of what they’ve done. At least this episode gets points for introducing the rest of our main cast and having a fun B-plot with King and Eda.

33. “Something Ventured, Someone Framed”-Why does Gus' first episode have to be a liar reveal story? It's not as bad as it could have been, but it does leave a sour impression of what Gus episodes could be. On the bright side, we see how determined Eda is to make Luz happy, which is always lovely.

32. “Witches Before Wizards”-This was the reality check that Luz needed to see that the Boiling Isles isn't a fantasy world she can just escape to. Are Eda and King a little too mean spirited when it comes to joshing on Luz about her being the chosen one? Maybe, but they hardly knew her at this point, and I feel like Eda and King coming to save Luz more than proves that they'll always be there for her despite the occasions they'll laugh at her.

31. “Adventures in the Elements”-King's B-plot of dealing with evil stuffed toys is funny, but having it hurts Luz's story. If we really got to see what she went through in training with Eda, it would make Luz's big outburst genuine and understandable rather than impatient and whiney. At least I still get chills (ha) at seeing her learn a second spell, so I guess things aren't too bad.

30. “Escape of the Palisman”-Luz's story is engaging, and King's is weirdly cute...but the overall episode didn't wow me, you know? It's hard to explain, but for me personally, "Escape of the Palismen" is missing that extra zip that makes it go from good to great.

29. “Any Sport in a Storm”-I loved the stuff with Hunter and Willow, showing so much about their characters while maybe sparking a relationship that could hopefully go somewhere...but that subplot with Luz and Amity is worse on a rewatch, oh my word! We do not need half an episode dedicated to why Amity has The Great Witch Azura books when a seven-second conversation of her finding them washed up on the shore or buying them off of Eda would work better. The stuff with Willow and Hunter at least saves this episode, but man, does that stuff with Luz and Amity sting.

28. “Enchanting Grom Fright”-A beautiful episode that digs deep into Luz and Amity's anxieties (mainly Luz's) while ending with an explicit reveal that made the entire LGBTQA+ community watching this feel their jaw drop. It's great...though I will admit, I feel like this episode gets worse the more I rewatch it. NOT BAD, but the cracks (King's subplot, how it takes place in one day when it feels like two, and the fact that they let children fight a monster) become more difficult to ignore despite how the incredible stuff makes me want to.

27. “Wing It Like Witches”-In this episode, Willow proves how much she's changed by going against Boscha, a character who doesn't want to change. Meanwhile, you have Amity doing the same thing by choosing to be a part of the wildness that is Luz's friend group instead of siding with such trivial things as social status. Some people remember this as the goofy sports episode with Amity acting as a gay disaster but, to me, "Wing it Like Witches" celebrates character growth and development, and I am all here for it.

26. “Lost in Language”-Sure, we get a "two idiots and a baby" subplot, but at least we get a great "don't judge a book by its cover" storyline that finally kickstarts Amity's road to redemption. You see, this is how the good stuff outweighs the bad: Having more good and less bad.

25. “The Intruder”-It has a decent spooky atmosphere that introduces Eda's curse and how it cleverly ties into a chronic illness allegory, to the point where fans debate that she shouldn't have it cured, thus telling you how impactful that allegory is. It still bothers me a bit that King takes most of the blame when Luz's attitude contributed to his error, but I don't find as much issue with it as I used to. It's all still great.

24. “Covention”-I still stand by this being the perfect episode to show a friend if you want to get them into The Owl House. "Covention" has most of our essential characters, features some stellar writing that makes the episodes before it pales in comparison, and it's early enough where it won't spoil much. If you want people to watch The Owl House, start here and then show them the rest of the series so they know the kind of quality they'll be signing up for.

23. “Them’s the Breaks, Kid”-A cute, fluffy episode that manages to be the most essential at the literal last minute. Hats off to these writers for expertly making something that gives us a break from the story while still giving us important story beats at the same time.

22. “Young Blood, Old Souls”-A solid, tense, and emotional ending to the first season even if Lilith's redemption and the overall story could have slowed down a bit.

21. “Keeping Up A-Fear-Ances”-This episode is really engaging in the beginning and jaw-dropping in the end. It's just the stuff in the middle that could have used a lot more polish.

20. “Separate Tides”-A solid beginning to the second season, catching fans up on what they missed between seasons and letting the characters adjust to these new shifts in the status quo. Not as spectacular as the rest of Season Two, but still pretty great.

19. “Escaping Expulsion”-We're finally officially introduced to Amity's parents, not only giving Amity one last test of her loyalty to Luz but showcasing Luz's loyalty to her friends with how far she'd go to help them. Now, maybe Eda acts a little too recklessly, and Gus and Willow get sidelined a little too hard...but the amount of excitement I felt in seeing Luz blush at Amity is immeasurable. So leave me alone if I consider "Escaping Expulsion" is worth ignoring those two valid criticisms!

18. “Understanding Willow”-An incredible episode that gives us great insights into both Willow and Amity, their histories, their friendship, and how they became the people they are today. And, hey, the B-plot doesn't detract too much from the A-plot's drama and story. That's a plus for a Season One episode.

17. “Follies at the Coven Day Parade”-This almost felt like a season premiere. It had big, epic scenes, some compelling character moments, and established a sense of dread that remains consistent with the rest of Season Two. It really is outstanding...too bad Luz desperately wanting to help Kikimora is too insane of a concept that it severely hurts the episode.

16. “Through the Looking Glass Ruins”-A Gus episode that gives his character much-needed development that also gives us a Lumity subplot about them being cute while developing their relationship? Can I get a "HECK YEAH?!"

15. “Eclipse Lake”-A great episode that allows our two redeemable characters to talk and bond, with Amity proving how much she's changed by trying to offer the same chance to Hunter, despite how he's not ready to take that step just yet. It's all good...but what's with writing Eda as an idiot and letting Gus and Willow get sidelined again?! C'mon, writers, you're better than this!

14. “Agony of a Witch”-This was a tense and emotionally painful episode that is only a taste of the kind of stuff we'll get in Season Two. There's nothing to complain about here. It's just too good.

13. “Hunting Palisman”-Hunter's kickstart to the path of redemption, paired with an episode that's more or less about Luz figuring out what she wants in life and confronting the fact that she doesn't think stuff through. It's a great character study about our protagonist and our favorite bad yet sad boy that may or may not have sparked an AU of mine. I can't help but have a warm spot for it.

12. “Echoes of the Past”-An episode that finally gives King some depth, making him more than just a comedic sidekick in everyone else's adventures while giving him a real purpose in life. I always felt like King was directionless in Season One as his whole "becoming a tyrant" never felt like nothing more than a child playing make-believe to me, so I'm grateful "Echoes of the Past" gave him a path to get started on. Even if said path took him to darker places.

11. “Eda’s Requiem”-This episode not only introduces a fan favorite with Raine but also provides some character depth to Eda as she struggles to hang onto the past rather than ignore her problems with the present. Eda goes out of her way to keep her kids with her forever and possibly rekindle an old flame, only for life to provide both good and bad surprises that allow Eda a chance to accept what life throws at her instead of letting things be the same. Such a great episode that's only shy of making the top ten because others are better than it.

10. “Elsewhere and Elsewhen”-Here, we get a celebration of Lilith's character growth in how much fun and respect she shares for Luz, set up to a major reveal that most of us had already seen coming, and a phenomenally performed and even better-written scene between Eda and her father. Initially, I felt that Eda talking with her dad should have been something for its own episode rather than being the subplot of another, but with how great it is, who am I to really complain? Especially with how great everything else is.

9. “Yesterday’s Lie”-A Luz solo adventure (which is already winning some points on that concept alone) that introduces fan-favorite #3, Vee, and proves, even more, why Camila is a great mom. The woman saw a scared child and took her in, and cried her heart out because her daughter has been in a strange, unfamiliar environment that is far from Camila's protection. If your takeaway from this episode is that Camila's an awful mom despite all the evidence proving otherwise...you're beyond help.

8. “Reaching Out”-The episode that finally shows us the pain that Luz is keeping deep inside herself and how she's willing to find ways to find distractions rather than deal with the pain she feels in her heart. We also get some great insights from the rest of the Blight family (primarily Edric, Amity, and even Alador). And while that's all good, I wouldn't go so far as to say that they don't steal away from what Luz is going through, as she still has her own time to mourn and decompress.

7. “Hollow Mind”-Easily the darkest episode in the show, giving us a glimpse inside the mind of a madman and witnessing the many crimes and murders he committed before rising to power. What's even better is that we are, not once, supposed to feel sympathetic toward Belos but instead feel fear towards what he's done and what he plans to do. And it would be the best episode if not for the fact that literally every episode after just gets better and better.

6. “Edge of the World”-This one (mostly) brings King's arc to a close, giving him the answers he's been searching for but in a way that shocked most and left others afraid, given the current environment that he is in.

5. “Labyrinth Runners”-This one proves that the rest of the characters can stand out on their own without our main trio, each of them getting so much development and proving how powerful they can be.

4. “O’ Titan, Where Art Thou?”-This one allows King the time he needs to cope with new surprises while upping the intensity and drama as Luz and Eda literally fight over whether they can defeat Belos.

3. “Clouds on the Horizon”-This one, despite partially setting up the big finale, still stands out on its own as an episode that brings Amity's arc regarding her family to a close, all in a way that's...satisfying, depending on how you perceived Alador. Still, I'll be damned if I ranked the episode with Lumity's first kiss any lower.

2. King’s Tide-And this one...was an intense finale that allowed every character to contribute in their own way, all while ending on a cliffhanger that left me with no idea how things would get resolved. Amphibia's "True Colors" at least left me with some clue, but with "King's Tide," I've got nothing, and I am both excited and scared to find out what happens next. And this would have been the best episode...but...

1. “Knock, Knock, Knockin’ on Hooty’s Door”-Let me explain (and I will have to break my rule for this): To me, the best episode for a show isn't one that has higher stakes or more hurtful emotions. Instead, the best episode is the one that features everything that's to love about the series. And that really is "Knock, Knock, Knockin' on Hooty's Door." It has hilarious jokes, fantastic character insights, some real dark s**t, compelling drama, and some of the best LBGTQA+ representation, all through an adorable romance between two girls. And it accomplishes all of this while being an episode about Hooty. Hooty! The character we all wrote off as the comedy relief and nothing more manages to be the same character that gave us everything we could have ever wanted. If that doesn't prove how amazing The Owl House is and how "Knock, Knock, Knockin' on Hooty's Door" is the best episode...I don't know what will. It's great, you all know it's great. Why bother debating on it?

And you might have noticed that it doesn't take long until I start singing an episode's praises more than I talk about what went south with it. That's because, as I've said, The Owl House doesn't really have bad episodes. Even as I made this list and saw where some episodes were ranked, I found myself thinking, "That's not fair. This episode should be that bad." And it's not about how one episode is good or even about how one was bad, but because some episodes are better than others. "Wing it Like Witches" isn't a poor episode because it's #27. It's there because it couldn't measure up with what's above it. And is that really something to complain about?

If The Owl House is still passable at its worst, then that tells me what I already know: We have nothing to worry about when it comes to Season Three. The writers might have less time, but they're competent enough to at least make something that’s a hoot in a half.

#the owl house #luz noceda #king clawthorne #eda clawthorne #amity blight #willow park #gus porter #toh hunter #the golden guard #lilith clawthorne #toh vee #camila noceda #the owl house reviews #what i thought about

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hxney-lemcn · 2 years

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No One Like You — Hunter x gn! reader

Summery: The gang tries to get Belos to end the draining spell, someone comes in last minute to save them...?

tw: Spoilers for season 2 episode 21. Panic attack, abuse, mentions of death.

a/n: Okay...I'm not gonna lie...I changed the ending so I could finish the fic now and it's not the best. Kinda seems rushed but tbf I made this fic nonstop writing for 5 days straight so give me some slack. I just wanted everyone with a happy ending :(

wc: 2.3k

Chapter Fifteen

Master List | Chapter One

I sat next to the palismen as they shivered. Willow held King, Gus was fidgeting with the mirror artifact, Amity was pacing, and Mr. Blight was driving the ship, with Hunter on his side. I held the palismen close to me, trying not to let our impending doom fill my mind.

“I know how to fly a ship,” Mr. Blight said annoyed as Hunter kept messing with levers.

“Then fly faster,” Amity sniped back. “We’re barely halfway there! Luz could be in trouble.”

“Maybe if I took the wheel…” Hunter trailed off.

“Very eager to return to Belos, eh, Golden Guard?” Mr. Blight stabbed.

“At least I never built him an army!” Hunter retaliated.

“Watch your tone with me young man,” Mr. Blight scolded, letting go of the steering wheel to point at him. Which led the ship to rock and the palismen scuttled closer into me. I felt my stomach lurch with the ship, I already wasn’t a fan of heights and that did not help.

“Hey, here’s a bright idea,” Gus said, angrily standing up. “Don’t distract the pilot!”

They all started arguing and I shut my eyes trying to block out the sound. My breathing started to accelerate as their shouting overlapped and they raised their voices. I held my hands over my ears, I thought I was over this, I thought this didn’t affect me anymore. I guess I was wrong.

Before my moms got together, it was just mom and I. Mom…had a tendency of picking pretty awful people as her partner. I didn’t blame her, she even told me that she just wanted to give me a normal family. But everyone she chose turned out to be abusive. It was never aimed towards me. The arguing always happened late at night when they thought I was asleep. I was young, and I felt helpless as I tried not to cry at the shouting. I read books to distract myself, but that didn’t do much as I heard the punch.

I felt myself start to hyperventilate at the returning memories. Tears threatened to fall as I grabbed my hair in fistfulls to try and ground myself. I felt so embarrassed that I was reacting this way, but I couldn’t help it.

The feeling of an arm wrapping around me brought me back slightly. I looked up with teary eyes, only to see Hunter’s concerned face. I was still hyperventilating and seeing him made a few tears fall. Holding his hand up, he started to breathe in and count to four. I tried to follow him, but it took me a few tries before I was able to steady my breathing.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Hunter asked, a worried frown plastered on his face.

“I’ll tell you later,” I mumbled. If there is a later, my mind pessimistically added.

Hunter nodded and handed me a small loaf of bread and I took it gratefully. Looking around I saw that everyone else has calmed down. I nuzzled further into Hunter’s embrace, eating the bread in small bites. He was so warm and I felt myself calm down further. Mr. Blight came over and tapped Hunter on the shoulder, motioning to the wheel of the ship. Hunter looked at him in shock before looking back at me for permission. Smiling at him softly, I leaned up, pecked his cheek, and nodded.

He got up and went to steer the ship. I looked up to the sky, even if I wasn’t in danger of the draining spell, Hunter was. My parents were. People I care about are about to die if we don’t make it in time. I felt anxiety claw at my mind, the thought of watching Hunter die was a huge possibility and the thought clawed at the back of my brain. I brought my gaze to Hunter who stood proudly at the front of the ship. I know this is a pessimistic thought, but if these were going to be my last moments with him…I want to make them count.

I walked over to Hunter’s side, leaning on the panel in a way I wasn’t pressing anything. He looked at me and sent me a bittersweet smile. I sent one back.

“Are you going to be okay?” I asked quietly. “You know…we’ll have to face Belos…”

“No one’s going to be okay if the spell goes through,” Hunter countered. “I’m gonna have to be okay.”

I clenched my fist tightly, “You don’t have to be okay. I mean yes, even if you aren’t okay we’re still facing Belos, but you don’t have to hide your emotions because of that.”

Hunter glanced down, but looked back up at our path, “...fine. I’m…scared. I…some part of me still wants Belos’ recognition and…”

“I may not understand to the full extent,” I started, not wanting to overstep boundaries. “But I know that Belos raised you, he’s like a paternal figure. It makes me so angry knowing that he’s used that to his advantage and hurt you without care. Just…you have us now, and whatever he tries, we’ll always be here for you.”

“Thank you,” He replied. “That means a lot.”

Mr. Blight came over and took over steering the ship to give Hunter a break. We stayed near the front, resting our backs against the edge of the ship. I felt Hunter's hand brush mine lightly. I glanced at him from the corner of my eye, and slowly held his hand in my own. He intertwined our fingers and I rested my head on his shoulder. It just sucks that kids have to be the ones to save the world. Isn’t it supposed to be adults? That’s how it is in the books.

Hunter lifted his hand, breaking our hold to look at his wrist. I followed his gaze to see the coven sigil on his wrist glowing. I felt my stomach drop. We were close to the head when we were interrupted.

“Your ship has been reported stolen,” A scout shouted with a ship full of abomitons. “Land immediately!”

“Mom,” Amity grumbled.

Gus then made an illusion to make it look like we turned into a murder of crows. Hunter and I flew towards the other ship to try and stop the ship. Hunter wrapped the scout in their own cloak, but got slapped out of the air by one of the abomitons. I quickly flew down after him and caught him in my arms. He looked at me with a blush, but got distracted as Flapjack came back. He got back onto his staff and Amity stopped the abomitons with her dad's remote.

“Why did I make those things so powerful?” Mr. Blight questioned as the ship appeared back. “Stupid Alador. Stupid!”

We all landed back onto the ship, only for it to be hit. Two more scout ships appeared on each side. The ship plummeted at lightning speed as the scouts fully popped the ship's balloon. Hunter held me close to himself, trying to brace for impact. I held him back, hoping to offer some sort of protection back. Hitting the ground, we flew off the ship and hit the ground hard. Hunter was under me as I stood up slowly, stupid Hunter taking the brunt of the fall. It should’ve been switched. I helped Hunter up as Mr. Blight started to take down abomitons. Amity tried to get him to come with us but Willow grabbed her as we started to run to the head of the Titan.

Entering the ceremony was terrifying. Witches of all kinds littered the ground, their lives slowly draining from them. I kept my head up as I followed the others up onto the stage that held the head coven witches. Hunter rushed towards Darius, if I recall correctly, trying to shake him awake. But my eyes landed on Eda, her curse seeming to consume her. Amity, Willow, and I all rushed to her, holding her up as she was limp.

“She’s not waking up,” I exclaimed as Willow and I rested her to lay on the ground.

“We have to get to the head,” Amity said sternly, pointing in the direction. “Luz could be in trouble.”

Nodding in agreement, we stood up and I got Gus and Hunter’s attention, “We’re going to the head, let’s go.”

We flew as fast as we could into the head. My eyes kept drifting to Hunter’s arm as the draining spell crawled further up. We landed on a bridge high up and sprinted. We got to a corridor with a horrifying monster with Luz behind it. Willow held it down with vines as we stood in defense.

“We’re here to help!” Willow exclaimed.

“Did you really think we wouldn’t follow you?” Amity asked with a smile.

“Yeah girl,” Gus agreed. “Get with it.”

“You guys are literally the coolest!” Luz exclaimed in relief. The monster rose up and Luz explained, “We have to get him to stop the draining spell but he’s all berserk mad!” Wait so that thing is Belos?

Willow tried to get him down again with more vines, but he ended up snapping them, shaking the area around us. Amity protected Luz from some falling rocks and Hunter stood in front of me protectively. Amity and Luz tried to hold Belos down with abomination goo and ice but he broke through it. I noticed that Hunter let his branded arm go limp, the draining spell taking its toll. We ran backwards to give us some space. Gus tried to calm Belos down with memories of his past, but Belos went to attack Gus. Hunter and I quickly got him out of the way. I crouched next to Gus and Belos was suddenly in front of Hunter. His face morphed back to seemingly normal.

“Hunter, why are you hurting me?” Belos asked, I felt myself tense, crouching behind Hunter. “I only wanted to help you!”

“You’re…” Hunter trailed off, fear clear on his face. My eyes trailed to see glowing yellow like veins reaching his face and I felt like there was a hole in my stomach. “You’re lying!”

“Kill him,” Belos spoke in a demonic voice, his face morphing back to the monsters, and I pushed Hunter behind me.

Belos stood up and roared, the blue eyes littering his body glowing. I morphed to give myself wings and claws, and flew up to him, only for one of his arms to swat me out of the air at light speed. I rolled to the side as Willow tried to grab him with her vines once more. We kept fighting and fighting, but nothing seemed to work. Belos finally managed to corner us and I wrapped my arm around Hunter. I felt tears well in my eyes as I couldn’t ignore the yellow cracks that reached the top of his head. The feeling of dread as Belos loomed above us, ready to deal the final blow. We were all going to die here. I clung to Hunter, closing my eyes tightly as I saw Belos raise his hand he morphed into a scythe.

I waited a second, the only sounds being our heavy breathing. Why aren’t we dead? I opened my eyes only to see…a child? They held the tip of the scythe and stared at us. They wore what seemed to be pajamas that were night themed. Their face seemed to be half a sun and half moon colored, with glowing red and yellow eyes.

“Whatcha playing?” They asked, head tilted to the side. We stared in confusion as Belos backed up.

“Collector?” Belos asked, and…did he sound scared? The Collector turned around with a frown. “You're free. Just as promised.”

“As promised?” The collector replied incredulously. “I remember someone throwing me off a bridge. I’m not angry though. Say, you wanna play tag?” They brought Belos close so they were face to face, “I’m it.” With a touch, Belos was launched as he splattered into the wall like he was a bug. If I was terrified before? I am horrified now. I glanced at Hunter to see him holding a hand over his mouth.

“Too slow,” The Collector laughed. Turning to us, they continued, “You guys look slow too. Do you need a head start?” They walked towards us, finger held out, and I brought Hunter closer to me.

“Whoah whoah,” King spoke up, coming out of seemingly nowhere. “Collector! Buddy, pal.”

“King!” The Collector exclaimed like they were greeting an old friend.

“Remember what we talked about?” King asked, like he was talking to a kid. “You gotta help all my friends outside, or, uh, we won’t get to play Owl House.”

“Uh, Owl House,” Luz said stammering. “Uh, gosh. I love that game.”

“The memories last a lifetime,” Amity agreed.

“I play it everyday!” I exclaimed with a nervous laugh.

“I play it every hour,” Gus one upped me. Hunter just squeaked in fear.

“I’ll explain the rules later,” King continued. “But remember, we need lots of players.”

The Collector walked towards us and we rushed out of their way. They stared out at the draining spell that was currently taking place, “Hmmm. Okay!” They then moved their finger…and the moon followed, stopping the spell. “Boop!” I smiled in relief as the yellow vanished from Hunter’s skin.

“Hmmm,” The Collector hummed, and we inched backwards. “If we’re gonna play Owl House, we’re gonna need an Owl House!”

The Collector floated into the air and King floated towards him.

“King!” Luz exclaimed, reaching a hand out, only for Amity to hold her back.

Out of nowhere, King took out a disk and the Collector disappeared into it, “No! You can’t do this! You promised!”

“I’m sorry,” King apologized. “But this is for the better.”

“You liar!” The Collector shouted. “You pinky swore!” King looked away in guilt.

“I-I’m sure there’s a way we can make this better,” I said weakly. “Right?”

We all looked at each other and nodded.

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