#the hook hand is such an Eda move though

[silverrowbrush]

I can’t stop thinking about this.

Alador: So Edalyn, I believe I can outfit you with a proper prosthetic-

Eda: Hook hand.

Alador: …What?

Eda: Hook. Hand.

[avatarmerida]

@soldrawss : thinks of a huntlow AU

Me: instant brainrot

Sol posted a lounge singer/bartender AU on twitter like less than 48 hours ago and it instantly consumed me. I know nothing about lounge singers or what time period this is but I just went with it tbh here ya go. Part 2

———

She’s not coming over here, the voice in his head repeated as Willow lingered in the doorway of the backroom. No way, now way. Hunter had nearly jumped out of his skin when she came out, assuming she had left by now. The club had been closed for over an hour now, and he was always the last one out. But no, there she stood in the harsh light of the cheap light bulbs that seemed to favor her and her alone. 

She was a vision but she was no illusion.

Maybe there’s some creepy fan waiting outside for her, he thought. The very idea made him shudder. It wouldn’t be the first time, but Willow was the one the other girls called on to take care of these things. He remembered once Eda had kicked out some heckler who had been stealing drinks from other patrons and quickly over served himself. As he was unceremoniously escorted out, he declared that he’d be waiting outside all night. The singer finishing her set came up to the bar to get a drink and Hunter offered to call the police to at least have someone walk her home, but she said she wasn’t worried. Before he could ask why, Willow walked up and asked him for some ice. He saw her knuckles were bruised and had a few tiny fresh cuts, obviously from a recent altercation. Hunter quickly wrapped some ice in a clean rag and began rambling about getting the first aid kit but Willow just chuckled and said it was fine as  though it happened all the time (which Hunter later found out it did). 

“But…. But your hand,” he sputtered, amazed at how calm she was. 

“Oh, it’s fine,” she said, unbothered by the purple hue it had adopted. The ice had prevented the swelling, which seemed to be her biggest concern. “That’s why we wear gloves, right?” She gave him a wink and any chance that a Hunter had of being normal around her was gone. Hunter already knew she had the voice of an angel, but turns out she had the ruthlessness of one too. 

He was hooked.

So every night he sat at the bar, waiting for a glimpse of her. The regulars knew not to order a drink during her set because Hunter’s attention was rightfully elsewhere the moment she walked on stage. It wasn’t just her voice either, her sets were smart and funny too. She’d talk between songs, sometimes telling a story when she was introducing a number. Hunter wasn’t totally sure if they were true stories or just things she made up to help with transitions but any possibility at a glimpse into her life was too tempting to pass up.

Don’t stare, don’t be creepy, he thought, trying to steady his breath.  She had unpinned her hair but that only made her look more stunning in Hunter’s opinion. Her emerald green dress clung to her like it was aware of what an honor it was, making the room feel like it was bland and beige when she wasn’t occupying it. Without her signature white feather boa, he could see her bare arms, covered in freckles like a collection of constellations waiting to be discovered. He had never seen her so close before, he felt objectively starstruck. It was like his eyes didn’t know how to look anywhere else. It felt like being too close to sun.

Usually he could only see her face through a sea of people, the spotlight helped but it paled in comparison to her natural glow. It was like she was destined to always be across the room from him. He held his breath as though this was a sighting the slightest wrong move could ruin, as though she could be startled. But she rummaged through her bag and when she found what she was looking for, she reapplied her ruby lipstick in her handheld mirror shaped like a white rose. She was effortlessly elegant. As she blew a kiss at her reflection, he felt his pulse stop.

 She must be on her way somewhere, he thought. Of course she has a life outside this place, duh. He tried not to look like he was staring as he pretended to write something down, unaware he was holding the pen upside down.

From the corner of her eye, Willow scanned the room and saw they were alone. Perfect, she thought as she snapped her compact closed and made her way over to the bar. 

Be cool, be cool, he begged. He expected her to walk by him, maybe give him a small wave or a smile to acknowledge him and say goodnight. He was mustering up the courage to give her a nonchalant nod, like she was just another person in the bar and not the unknowing keeper of his heart. 

Oh Titan that’s so corny, he thought. There’s no way she even knows my name, I need to get over this-

“Hey Hunter,” she said, leaning on the counter like she was just anyone and not the most angelic thing to ever grace his bar.

“Oh, h-hey,” he attempted to respond casually, pretending to wipe the counter to look busy. He hadn’t exited her to stop. He cursed himself for not using her name as she had said his. He didn’t feel worthy of it. “Why are you here so late?”

 “Skara had a date so we all moved our schedules around to help her out and I ended up with the short straw,” she said. Hunter recalled she had gone on later than she usually did. “But I don't mind, it’s kinda cool seeing this place empty.”

“Eh, you get used to it,” he shrugged.

“That’s right, you always close, don’t you?” she said, knowing Hunter was a famous workaholic. “Oh wow, with the crowds you get I bet you like the peace and quiet at the end of the night.”

“It’s nice,” he admitted. “Gives me time to organize things and do inventory.”

“Oh shoot,  I’m probably interrupting your routine huh? Sorry, I can-.” she leaned back as though to leave but Hunter cut her off.

“No! Uh, I mean no… you’re not,” he tried to cover. “It’s nice to have someone to talk to, actually. Someone who's not slurring their words, that is.”

“Well then, if you don’t mind the company,” she said, setting her bag down and making herself more comfortable. “I don’t mind being it.”

“Can I get you a drink?” he asked, hoping she’d say yes.

She had been hoping he would ask. “You sure? Wasn’t last call over an hour ago?”

“Well that was yesterday,” he said, preparing a glass for her. “According to the clock, it’s technically a new day.”

“Well whaddya know?” she said as she watched him add ice to the shaker as he proceeded to mix her drink. He thought about doing the tricks he and Luz had practiced to get extra tips on nights when they worked together, but the risk of dropping something and looking foolish was too great so he played it safe. In record time, she had a  drink in front of her.

“How did you know my drink order?” she asked, impressed. 

“I memorize everyone’s,” he half-lied.

“Wow,” she cooed, stirring her drink as she watched him move behind the bar. “You know every drink by heart?”

“I mean, pretty much,” he said. “Just makes things easier, really. Sometimes I make up drinks when it’s slow.”

“Really? Do you give them fun names?”

“Huh? Oh, kinda? I-I mostly name them after birds.” he said, rubbing the back of his neck. “I uh, I like birds.”

“Oh?” she said, tapping the glass with her nail. Do you like songbirds? She wanted desperately to ask, but instead she said: “Really? What’s your favorite one?”

“Um, well I have the cardinal which is just cranberry juice and bourbon and but I add some garnishes on the side that make it look cool,”

“I’ll take one,” she smiled and Hunter went to work. The moment she set her empty glass back on the counter, he had another one ready in hand for her. She knew he was famous around the club for his attention to detail but she selfishly hoped the gesture was based in special attention to her.

She took a sip and her eyes widened in delight. “Oh! I love this!” She said and Hunter beamed as though it was the only drink he had ever made. “Eda said you were the one who made custom drinks for her and Raine’s wedding.”

“Well, it wasn’t too hard,” he said. “They have very distinct personalities, Raine wanted their drink to be something easy on the stomach but with a hint of apple while Eda cared more about her drink ‘weeding out the weak.’”

“Oh I remember those,” laughed Willow. The wedding had been the first time Willow saw Hunter, it was when she found out he would be working at the club. She had maybe had one too many ‘Eda’s Elixirs’ (some kind of apple moonshine mixed with red wine and whiskey and some secret fourth thing that made it work somehow) and thought she had imagined the stoic blonde she had dubbed ‘Prince Jawline.’ But he turned out to be real, a friend of a friend, a future coworker, a kindred spirit even. A man she still referred to as Prince Jawline when he came up in conversation. He didn’t remember meeting her there, but memory loss was a common theme that night.

But luckily Willow was just slightly better at holding her liquor.

“What about me?” she said, trying to sound as though she hadn’t been dying to ask. “If you had to make a drink named after me, what would it be?”

“Hmmm,” he thought for only a moment. “Probably sparkling white wine and kiwi. It would be bubbly and sweet and green, just like you. And I’d add a pink flower garnish, like the one you sometimes wear in your hair.”

Willow blushed, having thought her question would adorably stump him so she could make a joke about him being a tall drink of water. But this was much better.

 “Well, looks like I have a new usual then, huh?” She said with a smile as he went to give her a sample of his apparently improvised creation. He made sure to select the most elegant glass. 

“So, what’s your secret?” she asked and he froze for a moment before she continued. “How do you make these taste so good?”

“Oh, that! Oh it’s uh it’s the cherries,” he said. “I always put extra cherries in just about everything to make it sweeter.”

“Tsk tsk tsk, you can’t give up your secret so easily, bar boy,” she teased, picking out one of the aforementioned cherries. 

“Usually as a bartender, I’m the one people tell their secrets to,” he joked, trying to focus on counting the limes and lemons. But he hadn’t retained anything except the way Willow’s voice danced, the way it got slow and sneaky when she made a joke. It was the way she talked between her sets when she was introducing a love song.

“Ohh, you’ve got a stash of secrets, huh?” she asked, wrinkling her nose. “Anything good?”

“Well, I knew about the Blight divorce I think before even Odalia did,” he said in a low voice, fully aware no one else was there or would be there. But he liked how Willow leaned in closer to hear him when he did.

“No!” she gasped.

“Yeah!” he said. He had never been one for gossip, but that was no longer a secret so it didn’t count, right?

“Oh, what else?” she asked, sipping her drink in anticipation. 

“Oh, wow I can hardly keep it sorted,” he said. “I get people telling me about how they hate their jobs, how they’re afraid of getting older. Oh man, you can’t imagine how many confessions of love I get in a night.”

“I dunno, I bet I probably can,” she said with a smirk he thought he imagined. “Can I tell you a secret?” 

“Anything,” Hunter said, hoping his smile was as charming as he was manifesting it to be. She paused for a moment to create suspense before a smile overtook her face.

“I can’t see a damn thing,” she said before erupting into a sea of giggles. She laughed with her whole body, her whole self present in the silliness and Hunter was so captivated that he almost didn’t notice she was about to fall off her stool. Hunter reached out and grabbed her hand to steady her and she looked at him in awe as he pulled her forward.

He gulped. “W-what do you mean?”

“I can’t wear my glasses onstage because of the glare from the uh light,” she explained breathlessly, not removing herself from his grasp. “So the whole time I’m up there I can’t see anything.”

“Nothing?”

She slowly shook her head, her eyes still locked on him. “Nope, nothing,” she said, biting her lip. “Not unless they’re real close.”

Hunter then realized he was still holding her hand as he leaped backward as though she was on fire. She giggled again, it was like every sound she made was music. He pretended to be invested in the bottles near him.

“Oh uh wow I had no idea,” he chuckled.

“Well I guess that’s a good thing,” she said, sitting back. “It helps get rid of the stage fright when you can’t tell the difference between a packed house and an empty one.”

“You hardly seem like the type to have stage fright,” he said, cleaning out another glass that definitely was not dirty. Or an empty house, he wanted to add.

“Thanks,” she smiled, stirring the remaining ice cubes in her cup with her straw. “You’re sweet.”

“So uh, if you’re not looking at anyone what do you think about up there?” asked Hunter nervously. “Just because you always seem like you’re singing to someone, but that’s probably just because you’re a good performer.”

She smiled. “Skara taught me this trick for how to tilt my head so people think I’m singing to just them,” said Willow. “But I’m actually just looking at the back wall. Or would be, if I could see it. Huh, I guess I’m technically looking at you when I sing.”

He nearly dropped the glass on the counter. “Huh uh yeah well uh but it's not like you can see me or uh anything,” he said, clearing his throat. 

“Yeah,” she said, swirling the lingering ice in the cup in her hand. “Shame.”

“Did you want another?”

“I should probably slow down,” she chuckled. “I’ve already had three. Think I’ll work on some of these cherries.”

“Oh yeah you’re probably starving,” said Hunter, feeling stupid “Nothing’s gonna be open now, do you want me to get you like some pretzels or something? I could see if-,”

“No, no, no,” she insisted. “I already made you wash three extra glasses, I am not gonna let you go to any more trouble for me.”

He’d go to all kinds of trouble for her.  

“Fair enough,” he said as he went back to his usual duties.

“Hmm, ya ever try to tie a cherry stem into a knot with your tongue?” she asked, starting to feel the alcohol warm her chest and make her feel cheeky.. 

“What? Uh, no I don’t think I have?” he chuckled, having never heard of such a thing.

“Here,” she said, tapping the glass nearly full of them as she took one for herself. “Try it.”

He indulged her, taking a cherry and popping it in his mouth as Willow did the same. She watched in delight as he focused on trying to maneuver the stem in his mouth, holding back the giggles as she tried not to win their unofficial race by too much. At last, a look of surprise showed in his eyes as he went to carefully pull out his creation.

“You did it!’ she exclaimed, taking out her matching knot to compare.

“Yeah,” he laughed. “That’s so weird, is that like a party trick or something?”

“Hmm, something like that,” she said, making circles on the counter with her finger. “If you can do it, it’s supposed to mean you’re a good kisser.” She added her latest knot to a glass filling up with stems before giving him a wink. 

“Oh,” he said, nearly choking on nothing. Had he known, he would’ve tried to be cooler about it. Her reveal got exactly the reaction she had been hoping for. She loved the way his blush reached his ears. “I uh I didn’t well I don’t even-,”

“What do I owe ya, bar keep?” She said, resting her chin in her fist, having no intention of leaving but knowing he’d be caught in that loop for awhile.

“It’s on the house,” he said, shaking himself out of his trance before deciding to put a single glass away just to seem busy. He wanted to just talk to her, but was worried that focusing on that without a task to keep him busy would make saying something stupid easier. This way he didn’t need to worry about what to do with his hands or if he was staring. He was so used to staring at her freely from across a crowded room, seeing her so close felt almost forbidden.

“Oh no I know how badly this place pays,” she said. “Gimme the damage.”

“Oh no no, you misunderstand,” he said, leaning down with his elbows on the counter to see her better, feeling a burst of confidence for some reason. “When I say it’s ‘on the house’ I mean it’s on Odalia’s tab.”

“Oh, well in that case,” she leaned forward and reached over the bar to grab another bottle from underneath as she quickly unscrewed the top. “Pour yourself a glass then too.”

“Heh, I’d love to but I’m not supposed to drink on the job,” he said, his heart racing at the effortless way she had secured the bottle. He had never been so jealous of a bottle before.

“Awh, you sure? I hate to drink alone,” she teased. She examined his face to see if the phrase sparked a locked memory, but no. He didn’t remember saying that to her at the wedding. Nevertheless, she knew he was ever the professional, only he would consider being the empty bar so far after closing time as still being on the job. “What about a Shirley Temple? Extra cherries?”

He chuckled. “Well, now how did you know my drink of choice?” he said with charisma he hadn’t seen in years, preparing two of them, somehow knowing she’d also want one.

“Guess you’re rubbing off on me,” she said with a grin, As he passed her drink to her, she reached out and purposely placed her hand over his. She could feel his hand lean into the touch as the tips of their fingers fought the urge to interlace. “Thanks.” She made her voice light and airy. 

“Oh yeah, sure,” sputtered Hunter, slipping his hand away as he mentally cursed himself for not being able to match her energy. He wasn’t entirely sure what the energy was, but he was not hating it. “T-thank you too.”

“‘Thank me?’ For what?” she chuckled.

“For… being here, I guess,” he said, not sure what he had meant either. He cleared his throat as he tried to compose a better explanation. “It’s nice having you here. Not just now, either. All the time. I’m kind of a big fan of yours.”

“Really?” she asked. She hiccupped, her hand darted to her mouth to cover it in embarrassment. She shook her head, hoping to shake them and continue to appear cool and collected.

Hunter smiled. “Yeah, I mean, you’re amazing,” he said. “T-the songs you pick are amazing. The way you… I mean, it’s all amazing.”

“Aww,” Hiccup. Darn it, why now??? She thought. But she tried to embrace it, hopefully he would think it was cute. 

He did.

“What’s the sweetest drink you got?” She asked, failing to suppress another hiccup. “Cause that should be the one named after you.” She held her glass to her lips and gave him a wink. 

There were many drinks she could name after Hunter.

One night, she had a sore throat which made her singing sound raspy and deeper. It was a nice sound, but by the end of the night she could barely speak. When she got off stage, Hunter had sent Luz with a special mixture of honey and lemon that had her back to normal the next day. She hadn’t told anyone she was sick or asked for a remedy, but he just knew. 

When she had to work on her birthday, he added a sparkler to her drink. She didn’t know how he knew, she must’ve mentioned once in passing long ago, but he remembered. Luz said he had special ordered the sparklers, so it definitely wasn’t a last minute thing. 

Dang it, that would’ve been a great time for the tall drink of water thing, she thought. The alcohol was making her a little spacy and she missed the way Hunter stopped functioning at her sweetness remark. She let out another hiccup, nearly spilling the drink she held to her lips. Hunter snapped out of his trance as he tried in vain to hide his chuckle and Willow pretended to be offended. “Hey!”

“Sorry! Sorry!” he laughed in spite of himself. “It’s not bad I swear it’s really… endearing.”

“‘Endearing?’” she repeated, raising her eyebrow. He didn't want to say ‘cute.’ He thought it was cute, but he didn’t want to say that. She hiccupped again and he couldn't help but offer her a guilty smile and she gave him a faux vicious stare. “Well, they may be endearing to you but they’re getting on my nerves.”

“Here,” he said, reaching down to grab something from the fridge. “Biting on a lemon is supposed to help them go away.” He presented her with a recently cut lemon wedge.

She looked at him skeptically. “You’re joking.”

“No, no I swear,” he insisted. 

“Okay then,” she said, reaching down to grab another lemon from the tray. “I’ll do it if you do.”

He was going to protest, saying he didn’t have the hiccups. But instead, he took the slice from her and allowed their finger to brush once more. “Deal.”

She smiled as they both looked at each other and felt something shift. Willow was insanely competitive, and she heard Hunter was too. Mentally, they decided to enter a match to see who could endure the sour taste the longest. They both brought forth their best poker face as they tried to seem casual about the sharp acidity. They stared at each other with cutthroat intensity as their eyes began to water. 

They surrendered at the same time, each discarding their lemons in a napkin  as they exclaimed their remorse.

“Hey, I think it worked,” laughed Willow, waiting another moment to see if a hiccup would interrupt. When he didn’t she refocused on the tart taste lingering in her lips. “Oof, I guess that’s why I don’t sing ‘Life is just a bowl of lemons.’”

Hunter laughed, debating if he should mention her rendition of the song had been his inspiration for adding extra cherries (he had ordered extra, thinking about her while filling out the order form). 

“I’m sure you could make even that sound lovely,” he said softly.

She giggled, before taking a deep breath and sliding closer to him. “Liiife,” she sang sweetly and quietly, as though wanting to lure him closer. “Is just a bowl of… lemons.”

Hunter hadn’t had a sip of alcohol but he might as well have been drunk. Her voice seemed to surround him in an embrace, pulling and pushing him forward as it guided it toward her peridot eyes. 

“I-I like it,” he said, trying to remember how to breathe normally. He gulped as she prolonged her gaze on him and tucked her hair behind her ear.

“I’ll dedicate it to you,” she decided, sucking her teeth as she suddenly felt inspired. “Hey you want a sneak peek at something I’ve been working on?”

“Really?” he said, eyes widened before he caught himself. “I-I mean uh, really?” He tried to downplay his interest, but she could see through him. 

“Yeah,” she said, twirling the end of her hair. “You up for a private concert?”

“You don’t have to,” it hurt him to say, He didn’t want to impose. “I mean, you’re off the clock and I don’t wanna-.”

“Oh hush,” she said, flicking the loose strand of hair in the front of his hair, like she just needed an excuse to be closer to him. “You won’t let me pay you for the drinks, consider it a tip.���

“Okay,” he said, not trying too hard to summon an argument. She clapped her hands in excitement as though she didn’t do this practically every day. 

“The mic’s not on, but with no one in here the acoustics are really great,” she said, hopping off the stool. She took her long skirt in her hand as she ran back to the stage, tapping the microphone as she often did before her sets, though nothing happened. She giggled and ran over to the piano to find her starting note as she prepared to sing acapella.

“Okay, well this one isn’t on the set, so lemme know what you think, okay?” She called as she smoothed her dress. “I’ve been saving it for a special occasion.”

She took a deep breath and suddenly the alluring sound of her voice flooded the empty room. She knew how to perfectly adjust her pacing to the echoes the emptiness caused. It was haunting and enchanting and Hunter felt as though he could melt into the floor as it swept over him. 

“Some day, when I’m awfully low

When the world is cold

I will feel a glow just thinking of you

And the way you look tonight…”

As Hunter stood behind the bar feeling a familiar lightheadedness her voice inspired, he couldn't help but notice she had put her glasses on before she started singing. There was no one else here, but she wanted to make it absolutely certain that she saw him.

Inventory could wait until the morning.

[kindofsortofmaybe]

a one shot prompt of Willow interrupting Hunter while he's making palismens at work???

hi tysm for the prompt!!! this was fun to write :)

Distracting

“So, working with Dell has been going well?”

Hunter smiled, his eyes creasing at the corners in that way Willow loved. It had taken about six months for Hexside to be rebuilt enough to start up classes, and another three months after that, Hunter decided he wanted to carve a new palisman. It had been somewhat difficult to function without one for those nine months, but Hunter couldn’t find it in himself to replace Flapjack so quickly. After carving Waffles, he found he liked the work, and Eda set him up with her father to learn more about the trade. He had been apprenticing for Dell ever since.

“Yeah,” he replied, “it’s been going really well.” Hunter was sitting on the floor of Willow’s bedroom, having just come from an afternoon with Dell, and the two were just catching up on each other’s weeks. “I’m not a natural or anything, but he says if I keep working as hard as I am, I’ll be a pro in no time.”

“That’s great, Hunter,” Willow replied, beaming proudly. She loved seeing him happy and loved when others recognized how great he was.

“Thanks.” Suddenly his smile was directed at her, and it took her breath away. Even after being together for months, she couldn’t help but pine after him. “But, speaking of working hard,” he continued, “he sent me home with some spine wood to practice on. I thought I could work on it here while you work on that oracle essay?”

Willow groaned loudly and practically melted off of her bed, ending up in a strange position that had her top half on the ground, facing Hunter, while her legs remained on the bed.

“Don’t say that to me,” she whined. “I would rather do anything but that essay.” Hunter laughed at her, so she blew a raspberry in retaliation.

“Well, tough luck, cause I’m practicing carving either way. So essay or no essay, no distracting me, okay?”

“No promises.” Hunter poked her arm with his socked foot, prompting her to laugh. “Alright, fine. No distracting you.”

“Thank you.” Her boyfriend pulled his supplies out of his backpack—setting a small cloth on the ground to catch the wood shavings—and got to work. Willow watched him for a few minutes, then stared at the ceiling aimlessly for a few minutes, and then looked back at Hunter. She let her legs drop off of the bed and shimmied a few inches across the floor to be closer to him.

“Are you done yet?”

“Do I look done?” Hunter retorted, waving the barely-carved piece of wood to emphasize his point.

“Yes, yes you do. It looks perfect. It’s clearly a carving of me and it’s gorgeous. Now pay attention to me, instead.” Hunter gave her a deadpan, but it only further encouraged her.

“Pleeeeease? Just give me one little smooch and I promise I’ll leave you alone,” she pleaded, sitting up to give him a better view of her exaggerated pout. Hunter laughed, surprised, and she watched a splotch of red bloom from his cheeks to his ears. She would never get tired of having that effect on him.

“Fine, but only so you’ll stop distracting me,” he conceded (though they both knew that was not at all why he agreed to kiss her). They both leaned in, but while Hunter expected a quick and chaste kiss, Willow had no intentions of letting him off the hook that easily. She grabbed him by the collar with one hand and splayed the fingers of her other hand across the back of his neck, pressing their lips together firmly and feeling a jolt of satisfaction at the surprised noise that came from the back of his throat. But he adapted quickly, dropping the carving knife and chunk of wood in favor of placing his hands on her waist. Her heart beat wildly in her chest at the contact. Their lips moved in sync, as if they were made for each other, and Willow, feeling bold, nipped gently at Hunter’s bottom lip. When they parted a few moments later, his face was bright red, his eyes were wide, and his hair was looking worse for wear as a result of Willow tangling her fingers in it.

“Hi,” he said, breathlessly.

“Hi,” she replied with a quiet laugh.

Willow did not stop distracting him for the rest of the afternoon, and in the end, neither of them got much work done at all.

[novelist-becca]

Strange, how I’m scared but delighted

Fandom: The Owl House

Relationships: Eda & Luz

Rating: T

Summary: Eda patches Luz up and learns that her old classmates never changed.

Note: I'm tagging @cowboyarsonist, and shoutout to @fallenflowersfromgrace for helping me with some parts!

“Oh…my gosh! Wow…yeah! Extra credit for everyone!” 

  That was all Luz said before casually tossing over some gold star stickers, which Lilith gladly took and…nuzzled? 

  Then Luz winced, stretched her back and headed upstairs, saying she needed to go lie down. 

  …

  About five minutes passed before Eda realized something. 

  The kid was less energetic than she was this morning, when she was teaching glyphs. And when she came back, it wasn’t hard to see how banged up she was. Clearly, something was wrong. 

  Shit. 

  Eda got up, cracking her back before passing her sister (who had stuck her sticker to her shirt, the darn people pleaser) and going towards the stairs. 

  “See ya Lily, I gotta check up on our teacher.” 

  ~

  Luz had only just laid down on her sleeping bag with an arm draped over her face when a knock came at her door. (Even though it was open just a crack.)

  “Luz?” Eda. “You uh…you alright in there? Can I come in?” 

  “Um…sure,” Luz mumbles out. “It's open!” 

  Eda slowly pushes the door open to see Luz flat on her cocoon, all worn out. When she gets closer, she could see that Luz is scrunching her face in discomfort. That and…her uniform is torn. And…is that a bruise?

  As for Luz, she is only just starting to feel the aches of what just transpired not too long ago.

  “Shit, kid, what happened?” Eda says, kneeling on the floor next to her. 

  “Nothing?” Luz attempts.

  “I’m not stupid, Luz. You’re hurt.”

  “It's nothing too bad!” Luz says nervously and nonchalantly, covering her aching cheek and side. She can dress her wounds later! “I swear!”

  But Eda cocks her head with a skeptical look. “You sure, Luz?”

  “Yeeess?” Lies.

  “Then, do you think you can let me see you?” Eda crosses her arms, raising an eyebrow. 

  Luz gives in and slowly moves her hand away. Sure enough, there are some big red scratches on her face, and she still grips herself in mild discomfort. There might be more. And she wants to know who or what caused this.

  “Jeez, that must smart,” Eda inhales through her teeth. “You sure you're alright?” 

  “It…it does.” Luz admits, shifting a little. “It does hurt. A little.”

  No. Not ‘a little.’ 

  “Does it hurt anywhere else?” Eda asks, gesturing to where the girl is gripping herself. She can see her hesitating. “You gotta tell me.”

  “I…” Luz starts to see that there isn’t a way out of this. “My legs and back…and my head hurts a bit.”

  Eda nods. “Alright, let’s get you patched up, shall we?” 

  At first, the witch gets up and turns to leave to the bathroom, intending to get the first aid kit from the bathroom. But then she hears Luz moving behind her. 

  “No, wait…!” Luz grunts. “I-I can…get it… myself!” 

  “No, kid, you-”

  “I can get up!” Luz closes her eyes and tries her best to sit up. It takes a lot of effort, and hurts a lot. A sharp pain goes up her spine as she pushes herself up. 

  “Ah- ow, ow, ow-!” Luz yelps. Her back isn’t broken , but it sure feels like it is!

  “Oh, Titan-”

  Thankfully, Eda gets behind her and hooks her hands under her shoulders. 

  “Here, I’m gonna help you up,” Eda says. “On three, ‘kay?” Her hands begin to lift her. “One, two, three!”

  And with the witch’s support, Luz is able to get two feet firmly on the ground, as sore as they are. Eda then circles back around to be in front of her and firmly holds her shoulders. 

  “Good?”

  Luz’s back still hurts like hell, and her legs ache, and her head is spinning from standing up, but other than that, she supposes she can walk. So she shrugs. 

  “Guess so,” she grunts. 

  Eda nods, then wraps an arm around her shoulders, beginning to walk her to the bathroom.

  “You can lean on me if you need to,” Eda offers her other arm. So Luz takes it and does her best to ignore the pain in her legs as she is taken to the (thankfully not far) bathroom.

  ~

  When they both enter the bathroom, Luz lets go and is immediately sat down on the edge of the bathtub, and Eda goes to rummage around in the cabinets next to her. 

  “It’s really not that bad-” Luz tries to say while scratching at her back. Although part of her knows it’s bad.

  “-I still want to take a look, okay? I don’t like seeing you in pain.” Eda insists, pulling out a large white container with a white cross over a red stripe. Luz slumps in her seat as the witch comes over and sets the kit down. 

  It’s not that Luz fears stuff like visiting the doctor or getting examined! It’s more like she doesn’t look forward to whatever Eda’s reaction might be when she hears what she did that night. She hasn't forgotten what transpired with Amity either. 

  “Can you turn around for me?” Eda says after kneeling in front of the girl. She hesitates, but swings her legs over the tub’s rim, turning her back to the witch. 

  “Think you’re able to lift up your shirt a little bit?” Eda says. “I just need to see how bad it is.” 

  Luz takes off her uniform cowl and then very carefully tries to reach back and see if she can pull the back of her shirt. (Underneath, she happened to be wearing an undershirt to help with the cold weather, so she decided to just take the uniform shirt off as well.) To her dismay, lifting her arms over her head causes her to feel an uncomfortable pulsing in her upper back as well as her head. Screwing her eyes shut, she recoils immediately.

  “Ouch, nope!” The girl whimpers out. “I might need help…”

  Eda winces at Luz’s pained voice and carefully helps remove the uniform top and then moves the undershirt’s hem up herself. She notices Luz shiver and tense up when the fabric is pulled up to her shoulder blades. 

  The witch inhales sharply through her teeth. Sure enough, there is a light mosaic of bruises forming around the kid’s middle back, and a few scrapes, too. They can be seen on her back and shoulders.

  Shit, kid, what happened to you?

  It…almost reminds her of the morning after she was saved from being executed. Hopefully some ice packs will help later.

  “Is it…is it bad?” Luz dares to ask. She definitely felt her clothes brush against a few scrapes she definitely has. She hears the sound of a faucet, likely Eda washing her hands.

  “Well, I can’t lie to you, kid. You have a lot of scrapes on here and a hell of a bruise forming.” Eda sits back down and clicks open the first aid kit. “You sure went through somethin’.”

  Or someone. 

  “Yeah. Sure did.” Luz admits. “And uh…I think there's more on my arms and legs.”

  Eda nods in acknowledgement and moves to sit on the edge of the tub next to Luz, bringing the box with her. “Okay, let’s fix you up. Can you just move one leg over so I can work?”

  The girl nods, swinging one of her still aching limbs over the tub’s rim so that she’s practically straddling it. Behind her she can hear Eda fishing around for the right materials. 

  “It’s not bleeding, is it?” Luz asks.

  “Nope, thank Titan, but it could if you irritate it more.” Eda advises, taking a cotton ball and wet washcloth, and dipping the cotton ball in a healing substance before raising the rag to one of Luz’s abrasions. “Try to hold still for me, this might hurt.”

  When the cloth is pressed against her skin, Luz tenses a bit again. But when the cotton ball is pressed against her wound, she feels the cold sting and flinches, hissing through her teeth. “Ah-!”

  “Sorry sorry, I know it stings, just- try to relax, okay?” Eda says, pressing more gently this time. She steadies Luz with a light hand on her shoulder. “You’ll be okay, I promise.” Luz replies with a shaky nod.

  “And, uh…lemme guess,” Luz says as she feels Eda applying more ointment. “This heals faster than human medicine because ‘magic’, right?” 

  “Eh, if you wanna put it that way, sure. But you should still take it easy.”

  “Hah, wasn’t planning on doing otherwise,” Luz chuckles tiredly. She’s not that kind of idiot.

  “Riiight.” Eda teases. 

  Luz grits her teeth as Eda continues treating the spots on her back. She had planned to patch herself up, and let Eda and her sister have fun with whatever they learned, but now that she thinks about it, it’s much easier right now to just let someone else, someone she trusts, heal her instead.

  That…and she's worried about how Eda will react to how this happened to her. 

  “Okay, I think we’re done with this side…” Eda mutters. Inside the box, she pulls out a small pack of healing patches. On Luz’s upper back, the healing ointment had already started to spread and slowly heal her abrasions. And after gently sticking the patches on, she applies some “Vicks Vapor Rub” (Owlbert found it in the human realm a while back) to the bruises, and the shirt is pulled back down.

  “So? My back’s done?” Luz asks.

  “Yup. I gave you some healing patches and “Vapor rub”, so it will heal faster for you.” Eda reassures with a soft pat on the back. “And uh…we should get to your arms now.” 

  Luz winces at the reminder. She can feel aches in her arms that are hopefully not as bad as they feel. 

  “I-I guess…” is all she can come up with as an answer. 

  “Yes. Now come on, think you can turn around one more time for me?” 

  “A-actually-” Luz pipes up. “Maybe I can sit on the floor on a towel? My butt’s startin’ to get a little tired…” 

  “You know what, good idea! I should’ve thought of that earlier,” Eda chuckles, folding up a towel and placing it on the floor. “Here, let’s sit you down…” She takes Luz’s hand and shoulder, carefully helping her to the floor with a grunt. “Better?”

  Luz nods and rolls her shoulders. 

  Next, Eda is on her knees next to the girl, examining her arms. Like her back, they are bruised and there are light scrapes. So, again she begins pressing the cold rag on where the scrapes are, cleaning the dirt and grime. 

  Luz inhales a gasp. The wounds on her arms feel worse than her back…

  “ Oh jeez-”

  “I know it hurts, kid, just take a deep breath, okay?” The witch says, trying her best to reassure. “I promise it’s not as bad as it feels.”

  “If you say so,” the girl murmurs. “Sooo, um…”

  “Yeah?”

  “I’m guessing you wanna know what happened?” 

  “Well, yes, actually.” Eda confirms with a chuckle. “I’d love to know what happened for you to come back late all banged up like this.” As she says this, she’s started wrapping gauze around the kid’s arms.

  “It’s kind of a long story…” Luz mutters. 

  “Well we have all the time in the world right now. I ain’t going anywhere.” Eda smiles as she finishes wrapping the bandage. “There, that should do it, is it too tight?” Luz shakes her head. “Good. Maybe we can ice it later. Can you give me your other arm?” 

  As Eda repeats the cleaning process on her other arm, Luz takes a deep breath, trying to think of the best way to tell her mentor/guardian that she basically almost died to the Blights.

  “Hey,” the witch puts a hand on her bandaged shoulder. “Don’t force yourself to talk, alright? Like I said, I’m not leaving, so try to relax, take your time.”

  “You won't get mad?” 

  “Ha! Luz, you're talking to the formerly most wanted witch in the Isles. Whatever mess you got into, I'll understand.” Eda swears. 

  “Okay,” Luz takes a breath and starts her tale. “So…remember Amity?”

  “The Blight kid?” 

  “Yeah. Uh…I didn't exactly get to be in school today because…her parents expelled us. Me and Gus and Willow, I mean.” 

  Eda stops abruptly. “I'm sorry, they did what? After everything I did to get you in there?” 

  “I-I think it was my fault? We were all called to Principal Bump’s office, and they said stuff like ‘the rampage of Grom’ and the detention monsters a while back? And that we 'endangered’ Amity. Then Mr. Blight forced Bump to expel us.” Luz says, hanging her head in shame. 

  Eda's eyes remain wide in shock. “Those bastards.” She mutters. 

  “D-did you know them, Eda?” 

  “ Ohh yeah , I knew them. Odalia and Alador loved to push me and Lily around as kids. They are the fucking worst.” Eda growls. “Did they do this to you? Did they start something with you?”

  Need me to finish it? 

  “What happened next was- well, Gus and Willow were both so devastated and sad, and I couldn't just stand by, so I kinda…confronted Amity's mom.” 

  “Oh boy…” Eda doesn't like where this is going. 

  “Yeah…she agreed to let them back in if I agreed to go to their weapons showcase.” The girl scrunches her eyes shut. "Though I'm surprised she didn't make me do an 'Everlasting Oath.'"

  “What?! You agreed to be their target practice?!” Eda whisper-shouts. “Great Titan, Luz, what were you thinking?” 

  “I know! I know it was stupid! But it was my fault Gus and Willow were in that situation and I didn't know what else to do!” 

  “Aw, kid…” Eda pinches the bridge of her nose. It's a well-known fact that Luz would do literally anything to protect her friends. So…

  “You said you wouldn't be mad!” The girl protests, nearly jostling her sore arm from Eda's hold, which is pulled back. 

  “Oh, I'm not mad at you, I'm mad at them. Those two are still big bullies.” Looks like old habits die hard. "And knowing Odalia, she wasn't being fair. I bet to her, it wasn't even a 'deal'!"

  “No kidding! Not to freak you out but the weapons they used were ridiculous, but that was nothing compared to the giant Abomination thing, which was more of a Terminator knock-off to me.” 

  “What's that supposed to mean?” 

  “I think it was called the ‘Abomaton’? It was covered in this armor, and oh god , they made it chase after me! It was pretty scary.” Luz still remembers how her heart nearly stopped when the thing lifted its hammer. She trembles at the memory. 

  Eda finishes wrapping her other arm and clenches her fists. “You mean they actually tried to kill you with it?! Titan, that's just…!” The witch lets out a snarl.

  Those pricks better regret it if I see them again.

  “Eda?” 

  “Sorry, it's just…they tried to kill you. I don't like that.” 

  “They wouldn't even listen to me when I tried to bail.” Luz recalls. “But uh…the important thing is my friends were let back in.” 

  “ And that you got out in one piece.” Eda moves in front of the girl. “Keep talking, I'm gonna work on your legs. Can you roll up your pants?” 

  With a little bit of assistance, she's able to roll up the pant legs to her knees, revealing a few more bruises. 

  “I can stitch these later…” Eda mutters.

  “Ah…the reason I made it out, is that…” Luz blushes bright red when she remembers. “Amity saved me.” 

  “Stay away from my Luz!” 

  Did she imagine it? Hopefully not. 

  Someone as cool as Amity Blight couldn't feel like that towards her, right? 

  “She did?” Eda raises an eyebrow. “Damn!”

  “I think Willow and Gus were there too. Guess they snuck in somehow. Anyway, Amity just showed up in this cloak and her hands were glowing and gosh, she looked so cool and pretty…” she must be smiling like a dork right now.

  Looking up, she sees Eda with a knowing smirk on her face. 

  “What?”

  “Ohh, nothing,” She smirks. “Continue.” Eda knows a crush when she sees one. She knows from experience. 

  They’ll talk about that later. 

  “Uhh…so she like, stood up to her mom, and threatened to tear apart the Abomaton, which I really wanted to see- and holy crap, that woman gave in!"

  Now Eda almost wishes she was there. “Trust me, Odalia cares about nothing but her status as a rich bitch. You said they let you back in?” 

  “Yeah! I don't think she wanted to, but she ended up holding up her end of the deal and let my friends go back! Sooo it was worth it!” 

  Eda doesn't miss how Luz keeps referring to Willow and Gus and excluding herself from the issue. Even though it affected her just as much.

  “Worth it…even though all I feel is pins and needles.” Though the healing patches and ointment are working wonders right now.

  The important thing is her friends are happy again. If they're happy, she’s happy. 

  “Anyways. Kid, you were gripping your side earlier, can you let me take a look?” 

  Complying, Luz lifts her shirt a little, and there is indeed a light bruise on her right side along the bottom of her ribs, and a smaller one on her stomach.

  “I-I think I can put the Vapor Rub on myself this time.” Luz insists. And she does (despite her sore muscles) and it is only a little soothing. It doesn't ache as much when she moves. She'll just have to try not to slouch from now on. 

  “We're almost done, kiddo, let's see that scratch on your face again,” Eda reminds the kid, who looks lost in thought. She wets another washcloth, and lifts it to Luz’s face to clean it. At first, she jumps a little. “It's alright, I'm just cleaning your cheek.” 

  “Right, right,” Luz nods, and allows Eda to gently wipe away the dirt and dab the scratch. 

  “I'm really sorry I worried you, Eda. I didn't mean to.” 

  “Don't be. You clearly didn't know how rough it was gonna be. Odalia and Alador pushed you, and you tried to stop them. But I really wish you'd think these things through!” Eda says while sticking a small bandage to her cheek. 

  The girl looks down. “I know.” But I couldn't stand by.

  Standing back, Eda looks a tired Luz over and gets an idea. Hopefully one that will cheer her kid up.

  “Hey,” She puts her hand on the kid’s head. “I'm gonna go get some ice packs for you. Stay out and don't move.” 

Soon Eda comes back with a few plastic zip-lock bags and what looks like ice glyphs.

  “I know you saw it earlier, but I want you to check this out up close.” Eda smiles excitedly.

  In her hand is a bunch of ice glyphs. Only on the paper, these were three ice glyphs connected by a drawn circle. When Eda taps it, they glow and the paper swiftly turns into an ice ball like earlier. 

  “Ta-da!” Eda exclaims. 

  “You…you followed the lesson details from this morning?” Luz says with a small smile as Eda placed the ball into a bag. 

  “Yup! I know it's not as big and fancy as Lily’s, but heyyy, at least we learned something, right?” 

  “Sure did.” Luz answers as the witch ties the makeshift ice pack to her arm. The coolness is soothing. “I'm proud of you, Eda,” 

  “Ha! No, I'm proud of you for figuring this out in the first place. I'm sorry I didn't listen earlier. I kinda wrecked the house a little bit before you came home.” 

  Especially since it almost hurt King.

  Luz waves a hand dismissively. “Nah, don't be. Pretty sure I was acting the same way when you were teaching me.” 

  “Ehh, you're not wrong… ” Eda chuckles after managing to get an ice pack tucked against Luz’s back. It makes her heart swell when Luz laughs back. 

  “You know what they say, practice makes perfect.” The kid remarks. 

  Eda holds the third ice pack towards Luz. “How's your head?” 

  “Mm, it hurts. I'm just tired, I guess.” Most likely from exhaustion. She did overexert herself. A lot. 

  “Well, how about you hold this to your head for a while then?” The ice pack is placed in the girl’s hand and Luz gladly holds it against her head and relaxes. 

  When Luz is ready, Eda helps her to stand again, and they head to Luz's room after getting a glass of ice water. 

  “Do you want to try a healing potion to help with your pain, or do you wanna take those pill things this time?” Eda offers. 

  (Sometimes, on the not-so-rare occasion Luz would get hurt, she would decide between taking a healing potion, which usually helped faster, or take the painkillers she packed with her for camp, just in case.)

  “I think I'll take my pain pills this time,” Luz says. Eda nods in agreement and takes the bottle out of her bag, handing it to her, who gladly swallows them. “I'll warn ya though, these will make me loopy later!” 

  For a moment there is peaceful silence. 

  “Luz?” 

  “Yeah?” 

  “You know you didn't have to go and do all that for your friends right? Look what happened to you.” 

  Luz frowns and stares at her lap. “Well, um…you know, they were being treated unfairly,” 

  “So were you!” Eda leans into the kid’s view, getting at her eye level. “You were expelled too!”

  Luz fidgets with her fingers. “Yeah, but it was my fault anyway! I'm the one that kept dragging them into my stupid adventures, so I had to make up for it! They don't deserve this!” 

  “Hey, don't do that.” Eda cups Luz’s cheek, gently turning her head to look at her, placing the other hand on her shoulder. “Listen to me. We talked about this. Don't act like your problems don't matter, Luz, because they do. You don’t owe them a damn thing. It wasn't your fault, got it? Those prudes pushed you.” 

  Slowly Luz nods. “Th-they did push me.” 

  “Yes. They pushed you too far, even when you tried to bail out. I said it before. You didn't know how rough it was really gonna be.” 

  “Th-that’s true, I didn’t,”

  “Right! So don’t downplay yourself.” Eda playfully pinches Luz’s cheek and she giggles. “Get that into your head!”

  “Stoooop!” The girl laughs. Then her face is overtaken by a yawn. 

  “S-sorry if I made you waste your time, but…thank you for helping me.” She says.

  “It was absolutely not a waste of time, and I’m glad you’re feeling better. But now you should rest up before dinner, knucklehead.”

  “My spaghetti noodle arms agree.” Luz leans against her pillow against the wall. Then she takes the opportunity to lean her head against Eda’s chest. 

  “Thank you for helping me,” She mumbles as her eyes get heavy. “Wha…what are you going to do with Odalia and Alador?”

  Eda lightly scratches her kid’s head. “Oh, I might just send them potions that’ll give them boils for months. Like the old days.” There’s a mischievous grin on her face. 

  “Ha, nice…”

  "Well why wouldn't I? For Titan's sake they messed with my fucking kid!"

  Wonder what Odalia would've done if I was there. She must know I'm her guardian.

  Eda presses the ice pack back against Luz’s head. “You just relax, take a little nap, I’ll come get you when food’s ready, ‘kay?” 

  “Aight…” and within a few seconds Luz is nodding off. 

  Eda knows this won’t be the first time Luz’s self-esteem reared its head, causing her to do reckless things even to protect her dear loved ones. Obviously, as noble as it is, it’s not doing Luz any good.

  But Eda will keep reminding the kid of how much she matters until it’s drilled into her head. 

  Because she does. She matters so fucking much and she hurts herself.

  For the time being, she needs to let her kid rest her battered body, get everybody some grub, and write down her new glyph knowledge. 

  Eda takes one last look at Luz before standing up. 

  “Oh, kiddo, I wish you’d realize you’re a person, too.”

[drabbles-of-writing]

Stitched Back Together

AO3

first Owl Fight attack, woo! The prompt for this one was “Luz and Raine hanging out”

Summary: Free of Kikimora's control, with scars carved into their skin, Raine is taken back to the Owl House. Awake in the middle of the night, unable to sleep after their whole ordeal, they officially meet Luz. Talking to one of Eda's kids really shouldn't be as intimidating as it feels.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

When Raine first saw the kids, truly and consciously, there were thorns retreating from their eyes and scars etched onto their skin as Eda held them tightly.

Eda’s sclera had turned black, hands hooked into talons with wings arched over their heads, and was at least two feet taller than when they had last seen her. And there had been a lot to ask about there, and possibly some gawking, but this isn’t about that.

Because as soon as Raine could stand, Eda holding their hands tightly and almost brought to tears at how relieved she was to see them alright, to know there would be no more harm done to them, Raine noticed the two figures far across from them, holding back the few guards trying to intervene.

They recognized them quickly, from the photo that had twisted a hole into their chest, because Eda had kids and she had spoken of them with such desperation and love--

The girl had turned, and Raine knew then they hadn’t been imagining the round ears when they first saw the photo. She had the young demon they recognized earlier clinging to her back, and they both looked at Raine with confusion. The demon’s had been accusatory, but the humans, she had to be a human, looked nothing but curious.

It had all passed by in a blur, the escape from the guards and Eda bundling them into the Owl House, frantic as she continued to check them over, never slowing in her talking as the wings and sharp edges retreated back into her body, which Raine may have quietly mourned the loss of. They suited her.

The human and demon had watched from the background, occasionally offering assistance towards or around the two, but more or less giving them space as Eda fretted and explained all she could to Raine, clinging like she was afraid if she didn’t, Raine would vanish again.

They heard of what Kikimora had done to them, of what Belos had done to them, of what they had done. Of Eda’s acceptance of the curse, of the rest of the BATs being in the Conformatorium (something they both agreed on fixing as soon as they could), of everything that Eda could think to catch them up on.

There would be time to unpack all of that, to formulate plans, to talk about everything beyond what Raine had missed out on. But that could wait until another day, could wait until Raine had gotten rest, and a moment to reorient themselves.

And yet, they still found themself in Eda’s kitchen, nearing midnight, with a cup of tea that looked suspiciously like the one Lilith had liked in their hands.

They knew they should be asleep, it was late, and knowing Eda, there would be far more to fret about in the morning. Eda had offered her nest, but Raine had taken the couch, not exactly willing to voice their opinion on how Eda’s nest did not look comfortable.

They were thankful for it later, too, when they awoke after barely an hour of sleep with the feeling of vines wrapped around their throat and muffled, begging cries as their hands moved of their own accord.

They sighed and slumped against the counter, setting down the cup for a moment to rub at their wrist, where scars from the reaching thorns still lay. They faded the further the scars stretched up their body, but they figured the ones along their wrist and arm would last for the rest of their life.

It wasn’t too bad, a scar was really the best thing they could’ve asked for. They stared down at their tea, thoughts swirling and not even bothering to try and sort any of them out. Later, when their wrist didn’t have a phantom ache.

“Oh, hey.”

Raine startled, almost knocking their cup over as they whirled their head around.

The human stood in the doorway, looking a bit surprised at Raine’s reaction. She had clearly just woken up, hair a frizzy mess and eyes still blinking with sleep.

“Oh, um, hello.” Raine said, forcing themself to relax. “Sorry, is there something you need?” They asked, wrapping a hand around their tea.

“I just came here for a snack,” The human shrugged, breezing right by the counter and towards the cabinets. 

Raine nodded, mostly just to themself, and went back to staring into space, trying to pretend the awkward tension hadn’t suddenly arisen.

They realized after a moment that the girl had paused in what she was doing, hand still in the cabinet door, but taking nothing out. They looked up for a moment, and caught the girl watching them with a contemplative look on her face until she realized she had been staring and jerked back to shuffling through the cabinets.

“So,” Raine said, in some attempt to break the tension, leaning their arms across the counter. “You’re Eda’s kid?” They said, grimacing slightly at how off that had come off sounding.

“Er, yeah,” The human said, frowning at the cabinet before shutting it again and opening a different one. “And you’re...Raine.”

“You’ve heard of me, then?” Raine guessed, taking a sip of their tea.

“Vaguely,” The human admitted, opening another cabinet door. “I know you’re--er, were, the head of the Bard Coven. I know Eda mentioned some group called the BATs you lead. I know that...Eda knows you.” She said, voice becoming more mumbly as she spoke.

“Ah, Eda didn’t speak of me much, then?” Raine inquired, telling themself that they shouldn't really be surprised.

“Not until you, uh, had the whole...thing happening.” The girl nodded. “Then Eda got really worried and me and King asked why she was so worked up, and then she told us you were an old friend, which I maybe halfway trust, and that you had this group with the BATs...and I still don’t think I understand it completely.” She admitted with a sheepish look.

“Sounds like Eda.” Raine chuckled, shaking their head slightly as they smiled down at their tea. “Wait, halfway trust?” They added right after, back straightening.

“I mean, I trust you mean a lot to Eda,” The human said, her raiding of the cabinets forgotten. “And I trust Eda means a lot to you,” Raine did not flush at that, thank you. “But pretty much everyone Eda knows she has a very complicated relationship with, and I’d be surprised if you were the one exception.”

“Ah,” Raine said, rubbing the back of their neck. Is this what it felt like to be interrogated by a kid? “You got me there. We haven’t...seen each other in a while.” They admitted.

“How long?” The human asked, interest sparking in her eyes as she leaned next to the cabinets.

“Erm, two...maybe two and half decades?” Raine said, lifting a hand and tilting it. “Titan, it sounds much longer than it feels when I say it out loud.” They murmured.

“Oooh, another piece of the mysterious backstory!” The human grinned, perking up, all the hesitation from earlier melting away at a probably concerning speed. “Why’d ya stop talking?”

“Ah, well, you know,” Raine said, flushing again as their ears pressed back. “Just...a split, really. Seeing other people. Eda had some things she still needed to work out, and I suppose I had to reflect a bit, too.” They mumbled.

“Wait,” The girl narrowed her eyes, and when Raine focused on where she was again, they pulled back when they realized Luz was on the other side of the counter. “Are you one of her exes?” She gasped, eyes wide.

“Oh dear,” Raine sighed, face falling in their hands.

“You are!” The girl exclaimed, and they sincerely hoped it didn’t wake anyone else up. “Man, and I thought all her exes hated her from how she talked about some of them.” She whistled. “Explains a bit, though.”

“Is that so?” Raine mumbled, knowing that they were blushing up to their ears.

“Yeah, I mean, explains why she seemed so freaked out. She's gotta know you pretty well.” The human said casually. “She goes all out when she gets attached, as I’m sure you know.” She added with a light tease.

“Oh, I know.” Raine sighed, memories of holding back a feral Eda back in Hexside from mauling Odalia still vivid in their mind. “And, since we’re talking, I apologize, but,” They said, raising their head from their hands when they were sure they didn’t look like they’d had a nasty sunburn across their face. “I don’t believe I...caught your name.”

“Eda didn’t mention it?” The human blinked, graciously taking the change in conversation.

“She might’ve, but I’ll be honest, I caught maybe two of every five words she said.” Raine admitted, flicking an ear. “I’m sorry, but I figure I should ask now before it turns into something where I ask at a much worse moment.”

“Ah, don’t worry about it,” The human waved her hand. “You went through a lot. My name’s Luz.” She said cheerfully, offering a hand. “The other little guy is King.”

Raine blinked at it for a moment before reaching out and taking it, giving a single shake until Luz pulled back. She was practically rocking on her heels from how excited she seemed, and Raine may have allowed a small half-smile in return.

“Have you lived with Eda long?” Raine asked, because they could still remember Eda’s pained explanation that the kids weren’t hers hers, and found themself wondering where in the world she had picked up a human.

“Few months,” Luz said. “Four, maybe? I dunno, the calendars here are different from the human realm.”

“Four months?” Raine blinked, surprised. “I would’ve thought you’d known her longer.”

“Nah, I’m just a recent addition.” Luz shrugged, looking away with a hint of nervousness. “King’s been here for years, though.”

“Huh, odd.” Raine said with a shrug as they went back to drinking their tea. “You act a lot like her, I would’ve thought you’d have picked up those habits from her.”

“I do?” Luz repeated, straightening.

“Yes?” Raine lowered their cup. “When she was younger, at least. Very curious, couldn’t leave any questions unanswered. And stubborn. And maybe a little too attentive for her own good.” They added with a lighthearted tone.

“Oh, yeah, that-that sounds familiar.” Luz coughed into her fist, and Raine smiled at her embarrassment. “You knew her when you were younger, then?” She asked, and Raine chose not to comment on the slight diversion in conversation.

“Since Hexside,” Raine nodded. “I want to say we were eleven or so? Maybe twelve. Never had a moment of peace since.”

“Aw, Eda’s backstory just keeps getting more and more convoluted. At least yours isn’t as crazy as Lilith or her moms. Even after the whole mind-control thing.” Luz said with a fiery curiosity in her eyes, and Raine was impressed at their lack of visible reaction to how casually Luz brought up the mind-control. Another thing like Eda, Raine thought. No amount of answers would be satisfactory, and treated every odd thing like it was just another day.

“Well, I’m glad I got her daughter's approval. Wouldn’t want to fight my way in now, would I?” Raine chuckled, tilting their cup back and finishing the last of it.

When they lowered their cup again, Luz was staring at them like a spooked rabbit, hands gripping the counter. They blinked slowly, brow raised in confusion.

“I-I’m not,” Luz stuttered, coughing to clear her throat and forcibly releasing the counter. “I’m not her daughter, you thought I was her daughter?”

“You aren’t?” Raine frowned, ears perking up. “But you said you were her kid.”

“That’s--I thought you meant--like when Eda just casually calls me and and King kids, or when I’m out with my friends and she’s watching us we’re just ‘her kids,’ you know?” Luz said, looking a little frantic as she did so, wildly waving her hands around. “Not--no I’m not, related to her or anything--”

“Oh, I knew that.” Raine brushed it off. “But Eda told me you and King were her kids?”

“I--when did that happen?” Luz asked, near sounding like a demand.

Raine hesitated, for a brief moment. They doubted someone like Eda would so casually tell a teenager and young demon about that time she, you know, almost died, and it really wasn’t their place to tell them as such if she hadn’t.

“The last time we spoke.” They settled on. “Before the...thing.” They said, mimicking Luz’s words from earlier. “I learned she had kids, and I told her that if she had something to lose, she had to get back to them.”

“I...oh.” Luz said quietly, slowly relaxing and turning her head down to stare at the counter.

“I’m…” Raine hesitated. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to overstep, I didn’t know it was a touchy subject--”

“No, no! It’s not, you’re fine.” Luz waved them off. “I just...didn’t know Eda had said it like that.”

Raine would’ve thought something along the lines of ‘Eda didn’t tell you she thought of you as her kid?’ if they didn’t know that Eda was the same person who hadn’t even truly thought of them as dating until Raine had introduced her as their girlfriend with earshot. She’d been so touched over the whole ordeal that Raine had to remind her, repeatedly, that they had been dating for over a month. Apparently knowing, and having a title for it, were two very different things.

They wouldn’t be surprised if this kid was the same. 

“She cares about you, you know that, right?” Raine asked softly, and Luz looked up to meet their eyes.

“Yeah,” She said, cracking a small smile. “I know.”

Raine nodded in satisfaction, stepping around the counter to set their cup in the sink. It was late, they could wash it in the morning. How Eda could've ever thought about leaving a kid like her, they don't think they'd want to know.

“She cares about you, too.”

Raine paused, going still as one hand lightly gripped the edge of the sink.

“I know,” They said, almost surprised that they believed it so easily, inhaling as they set their shoulders back. “It’s almost scary how little that seems to have changed.” They mumbled.

“For the both of you, huh?” Luz teased.

Raine whirled around, ears pressed back as their face lit up again, being greeted with the girl's smug face that she had to have picked up from Eda, it was almost uncanny. 

“I--you--she just--there was--shouldn’t you be asleep at this hour?” Raine managed to strangle out, getting a gleeful giggle out of Luz as they did so.

“I got hungry,” Luz shrugged simply, her smug expression never falling.

“Then grab a snack and go to bed.” Raine huffed, crossing their arms, as if that would hide the embarrassment as they stepped aside.

“I will, once I find where Eda put the cookies. She keeps hiding them from King and doesn’t tell me where she put them.” Luz muttered, stepping up to the cabinets again and opening a new one.

“I think that means she’s hiding them from both of you.” Raine raised a brow.

“She should find better hiding spots, then.” Luz said, retracting a hand from the cabinet with a container full of cookies in her hand, shaking them. “Cover for me if she asks why some went missing?” She asked, a pleading look on her face.

“I’ll cover you if one goes missing.” Raine bargained, and Luz gave them a disgruntled look before sighing and taking a single cookie from the container.

“Can’t believe you.” Luz huffed good-naturedly, putting the cookies away.

“Just because you're Eda’s kid doesn’t mean I’m going to let you get away with everything, Titan knows how Eda would’ve ended up if that happened.” They muttered, shaking their head. “I fear the day you and Amber meet.”

“Who?” Luz tilted her head, taking a large bite of her cookie.

“One of my crew, she’s about your age.” Raine said simply. “I think you’ll get along. Now go, shoo, I’m willing to bet tomorrow will be quite hectic, and you need your sleep.” They said, herding Luz out of the kitchen.

“I’m going, I’m going!” Luz said, smiling as she lightly batted at Raine’s hands, darting out of the kitchen. “Remember, you saw nothing.” She warned, walking backwards as she narrowed her eyes on Raine.

“Lips are sealed, I was fast asleep the whole night.” Raine said, leaning against the doorway to the kitchen. “Though I figure she’ll find out, anyway.”

“Yeah, but I’ve got backup now.” Luz said, shoving the last half of the cookie in her mouth before slipping away through the doorway that led to the staircase.

Raine chuckled, shaking their head as they pushed themself off of the doorway. They should probably hit the couch again, too. Eda would only fret more if they were falling asleep all day tomorrow.

“Oh, almost forgot!” Luz said, head suddenly poking through the doorway and causing Raine to pause. “Welcome to the Owl House,” She said cheerily. “Since I take it you’ll be staying a while.”

Raine’s ears flicked back and they mumbled under their breath as Luz’s smile only widened, and Raine couldn’t help but mirror it.

“Night!” She chirped, vanishing around the corner yet again.

Raine watched the place where she’d vanished again, rubbing their wrist and noting it didn’t ache as much as before. 

“Goodnight,” They said to the empty air.

[originalhybridloverfics]

You Are To This Day The Only Woman I Have Ever Loved - CH 2

A/N: I'm a little nervous about this chapter, still, I hope it's enjoyable.

I apologize for any mistakes or medical inaccuracies.

Serkan could not explain the sense of urgency, of panic creeping over him. His heart felt like it was going to beat right out his chest, his throat kept closing and he had this explicable fear flowing through his system and he could think of nothing but Eda.

She had to be okay. He had gotten to know her and God, she was amazing. She was fun, beautiful, talented, smart, funny, caring, forgiving, the list went on. She was so many things and he found he cared for her deeply. He couldn’t imagine something happening to her. Hadn’t she suffered enough?

He parked his car and jogged across the hospital parking lot and ran through the doors, and up to the counter, he was about to demand where Eda was when he heard Melek’s voice.

He whirled around, Melo had tears streaming down her eyes, her body shaking as she stood in front of Eda’s aunt who was in tears her arms wrapped around herself.

He noticed the blood on Melo's hand. His stomach turned violently with the knowledge it was Eda's blood.

“I don’t know how long she was there!” Melo cried. “If I have gotten there sooner, if I had just met her there-”

“You couldn’t have changed what happened,” Ceren was with them and her words were spoken softly. “Sometimes bad things just happen.”

Serkan moved away from the counter and walked closer to Eda’s family his heart in his throat.

“But why do they keep happening to Dada?!” Melo cried distressed. “This shouldn’t be happening. Dada doesn’t deserve this! And even if she makes it she could still lose the baby!”

“Baby?” Serkan’s voice shook, his heart thudding in his chest. “What baby!?”

Melo whirled around, her eyes widening at the sight of him. “Eniste?”

Despite Eda and Serkan not being together, she continued to call him that. Serkan would never admit it out loud but he liked it. She was just so happy and sweet and he liked her as a person.

“What baby? Where’s Eda?” he asked, his voice shaking.

“She’s with the doctors,” Ayfer answered. “They're doing everything they can for her and the baby.”

“She’s pregnant with my child?” Serkan asked but didn’t need the confirmation. Everything inside of him was screaming that he and Eda created that child together before he lost his memory.

“Oh, God,” Serkan groaned, he clutched at his heart as it pounded almost painfully against his ribs, he stumbled back, his feet feeling unsteady beneath him.

Melo acted quickly grabbing his arm to steady him and led him over to a chair, easing him into it.

"Abi," Engin appeared suddenly with Piril. Serkan hadn't even seen them.

Serkan stared off unseeingly not noticing Leyla and Erdem in the corner, somber. He couldn't see anyone.

“Serkan?” Ceren asked as she moved closer with Ayfer.

Serkan didn’t react, didn’t move, didn’t flinch.

Melo placed her hand on his shoulder gently, squeezing and his eyes snapped up to hers. They were wide with shock and fear. “Are you okay?” she asked.

“No,” Serkan’s voice shook. “No, I am not okay? How could she had not have said anything?”

“I don’t think she knew?” Melo confessed. “She’s been so stressed and so focused on taking care of the company and trying to get you to remember, dealing with Selin, she forgot to care for herself.”

Serkan ran a shaky hand through his hair. “None of this is right. This shouldn’t be happening. None of it.”

Serkan knew he cared for Eda but this feeling in his chest was saying it was more than that and now all he could see was her. S child in her arms with her dimples and her smile and her eyes. God, he wanted their child to be just like her.

Everything was slipping away from him right when he wanted to know everything about his lost year. Pieces of his old life were in his reach and he wanted nothing more than to put it all back together again.

Everything was so wrong. He could feel it in every bone in his body. He wishes it was him who was in danger right now, whose life was hanging in the balance. He rather Eda be unharmed and perfectly fine, healthy, nurturing their child.

Why couldn’t it have been him? Hadn’t she been through enough? Hadn’t he caused her enough pain?

How much more could one person endure?

It was two hours later when a doctor emerged from behind two double doors, walking toward Melo. “Mrs. Yildiz family.”

“Yes,” Ayfer said. “We are her family. Is she going to be okay?”

“I am Dr. Kaya. We are doing everything we can. We were able to stop the bleeding, we had to take her for emergency surgery for her open fracture. It was important to clean and stabilize the bone. The kind of fraction Mrs. Yildiz has can get infected easily but because of her pregnancy, we had to give her a not as effective antibiotic that won’t cause harm to the baby.”

“Baby?” Aydan gasped, grabbing a hold of her son’s arm. She and Seyfi along with Selin had shown up twenty minutes after he did.

Serkan felt Selin tensed beside him. “She’s pregnant?”

Serkan ignored everyone and focused on Dr. Kaya. “Does that mean she didn’t lose the baby?”

“I don’t know how it’s possible but no, she didn’t lose the baby. The bleeding that occurred was because the baby was in distress but both Eda and the baby are stable for now. I’m concerned about her head injury, she has some swelling on the brain, if it does not go down I’m afraid she will need to be taken into surgery again.”

“Can I see her?” Serkan asked.

“Serkan, I think it’s best we let Eda be with her family,” Selin interjected, placing a hand on his arm.

Serkan jerked his arm from beneath her fingers, shooting her a glare. “I need to see her.”

“Is she awake?” Ayfer interjected.

“No, and we’re not sure when she will wake. It’s all up to her.” Dr. Kaya relayed.

“Can I see her or not?” Serkan asked impatiently, choosing not to acknowledge his words. Eda would wake up. She had to. There was no other outcome that Serkan would accept.

Dr. Kaya looked at Ayfer. “Mrs. Yildiz?”

“It’s okay. He can see her first.” Ayfer nodded.

Dr. Kaya motioned Serkan to follow him.

Selin’s hand snapped out the second he moved away from her, her fingers digging into his wrist. “Serkan, you should let Ms.Yildiz see her first. She’s her family. We should go home.”

Serkan ripped his arm away. “If you want to go then go but you will be leaving without me.”

Selin watched as he walked away from her and toward Eda with no regard for how she felt. He didn’t even stop once to look back at her.

Hate simmered in her heart. She should feel remorse for hurting Eda and her unborn child but all she felt was failure. Failure to keep Serkan at her side and failure at getting Eda out of her life and away from Serkan.

Selin turned on her heel. She needed to find a way to end Eda once and for all, sever every connection the other woman had to Serkan once and for all.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Serkan wasn’t sure what he expected when he walked into the hospital but it wasn’t this.

It wasn’t Eda, laying in bed hooked up to monitors, her head wrapped in a bandage, her arm in a cast, her skin pale, the room around her void of her light, of the beautiful colorful essence that she excluded from her being effortlessly, offering hope to a troubled world.

He stepped forward slowly. His heart thudding in his chest. “Eda, I’m sorry but please, wake up.” his eyes drifted to her stomach and his hand moved before he registered it, landing softly on her stomach. It was mostly flat with a small curve, barely noticeable unless you knew what you were looking for. “We have so much to talk about. I don’t know if you knew or not but I think I can understand if you did and why you wouldn’t say anything.”

His other hand moved to her cheek. “I haven’t been the man you fell in love with. Or the one you lost but still you tried to bring him back, bring me back, and I pushed you away with cruelty and harsh words. I’m sorry.”

He paused, gathering his thought, his chest tight with a feeling he was beginning to understand. “I should have tried harder to remember. Hell, I should have tried period with you, I hated that everything was different from what I remembered so I ran from it and from you and the way you make me feel. It was a mistake. I know that so let me fix it. Just wake up when you’re ready and we will work this out. All of it. The company, the shares, the baby, you and me, all of it.”

Eda didn’t move, didn’t react, the readings on the monitors didn’t change and Serkan felt his world grow a little darker, he stepped back reluctantly and walked out of the room even though it was the last thing he wanted. Every step away from her felt wrong but her aunt was waiting. Her friends were waiting and in truth, he didn’t feel like he deserved to be at her side.

He needed to earn that right and since he been back he had done nothing to do that.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

The hour grew late, Serkan had refused to leave the hospital throwing around his wealth and reputation to ensure he or Eda’s family didn’t have to leave when visiting hours were over.

His mother had gone home with Seyfi after making him promise to call when Eda wakes up. Layla and Erdem left, Layla assuring him she would take care of his schedule. Engin took Piril home to rest. Ceren and Melo fell asleep in the chairs in the waiting room. Ayfer was inside with Eda.

Serkan paced outside the door, feeling restless. Selin went to get coffee. She kept insisting they should go but he refused. Selin went as far as to bring up that he had to be at the office but he reminded her that Layla was taking care of it.

Like hell he was going to work when Eda was hurt, fighting for her life. No, this is where he needed to be. Everything inside of him was telling him he shouldn’t be anywhere else but at her side.

He selfishly wanted to be the first person she saw when she woke up and despite all that had happened, that he said, he wanted to be the one she asked for.

At one point, he finally just slid down to the floor, facing Eda’s door, praying that she would be fine.

Serkan wasn’t sure at what point he fell asleep but he was awoken by commotion.

His eyes snapped up to the sight of Ayfer being ushered out of Eda’s room and doctors and nurses rushing inside. Serkan jumped to his feet pushing his way inside and coming to a dead stop.

Eda was flatlining, he stumbled forward but was pulled back.

“Get off me!” he snapped. Trying to shrug the strong arm off of him. “Eda!”

The arms tightened and pulled him forcefully from the room and all he could hear was the long beep, never-ending, all he could see was the doctors working over Eda, her dark hair fanning out across the pillow.

It happened suddenly and without warning.

One moment he was standing in the doorway of Eda’s hospital room and the next it was like he was being transported to a time he didn’t remember, to a memory his brian had locked away from him.

He was talking at a college seminar and a beautiful dark-haired woman walked down the steps and into the light. He was intrigued instantly.

He was pulled into another memory, Eda marking his car, arguing with her, Eda handcuffing him.

His head felt like it was going to explode, there was this pressure behind his eyes and he closed them tightly, putting a hand to his head as memory after memory hit him.

Eda surprising him with her skills behind the wheel, the first time she called him a robot. Helping her through her panic attack on his plane, waking her up on the beach, and the way she smiled at him so sweetly. His idea for her to pretend to be his fake fiance. The first time she slapped him. The first time she kissed him.

God, he never told her but that kiss was unlike any kiss he ever had before. He was so angry at her for it because it shocked him. His world had turned on its axis.

Eda agreeing to his contract and wrongfully assuming it was because he wanted Selin back.

It was never about Selin.

The first time he picked her up, the first time he took her to his place and her clear love for animals, the first time she met Sirius.

He remembered the first time he slipped her flower engagement finger on her hand for the first time and how right it felt. How perfect it fit.

Their fake engagement, seeing her in that yellow dress for the first time. She had looked so perfect and he felt so drawn to her, the softness of her skin when he fixed the strap of her dress. Her pure delight at his magic trick. Their first dance. There was no need to dance as close as they did but he wanted to. He wanted to be as close to her as possible.

The first time they stargazed together and he pointed out Sirius's star. He remembered the way being around her made him feel that night. He felt peace and a sense of calmness he wasn’t used to.

He remembered being angry with her for getting close to him, he didn’t want to feel this way but he hated when she pulled away from him. He remembered coming to her house with Sirius for the first time.

He remembers them talking about Selin being jealous of her and God, everyone had to be jealous of Eda. She was an angel by some miracle that had fallen into his life.

He remembers riding with her in his car, the top-down, music playing from the radio, her dancing to the music singing along, her hair blowing in the wind, her smile wide and carefree. The happiness he felt in that moment just being with her.

The first time she suddenly lost consciousness and the fear he felt. It was such a strange trait about her and constantly worried him.

The first time he saw her in her swimwear, the irrational jealousy he felt, hearing that he wasn’t her type from Seyfi and then trying hard to subtly show her that he was.

The first time he prepared dinner with her.

It was something so simple and domestic but he thoroughly enjoyed himself. There was just something so easy being in Eda’s presence.

God, he remembered that white dress she wore to the dinner they had with Selin and Ferit, when he saw her in it for the first time, god, it was like all thoughts left him and there was just her. The most beautiful vision he ever saw in his life.

The fear that took over when he saw her slip into the pool when he was still under the impression he couldn’t swim, nothing else mattered only to learn that she was pretending not to be able to swim.

God, she really knew how to drive him crazy.

Their time in Antalya was some of his best memories and held a special place in his heart. He felt that trip had really brought them closer in a way he hadn’t been aware he was capable of.

He remembered opening up to her about his brother.

It was the first time he really felt like he could open up to someone about his brother’s death and how that grief was still with him even to this day.

Waking up to her snuggled against on the couch, the peace and happiness he felt, the way his heart reacted around her, trying to beat right out of his damn chest at her proximity.

The first time he played his guitar for her, the hug they shared outside, he felt like his chest was expanding with the warmth he felt. Her pure joy and elation when he gave her his guitar pick at the end of the night.

He knew he had feelings for her but after that night he knew it was more than that, even if he didn’t want to admit it.

He remembered how bad it felt when she was pulling away from him on his birthday. He remembered sitting down with Selin and hating every moment, he remembered sitting down with Eda at one of her small cafes and the surprise on her face. He remembered her gift. She gave him the world.

Little did she know she was his world.

He remembered accusing her of stealing.

It was stupid but he was trying to rationalize why she was avoiding him. He had never been more wrong.

The way he missed her in their time apart even when he was wrongfully angry with her for a betrayal she did not commit.

When they sat in the park together, discussing Selin and her jealousy of Eda.

He didn’t say it but there was not a single thing about Eda, Selin shouldn't be jealous of. Eda was unlike any woman he had ever known. And when she said he didn’t want her touching his soul, it was true but it was too late. She already did.

The regret he felt even before she brought proof that Kaan was behind it. The pain he felt watching her slip off her ring and place it in his hand.

The need he felt to fix things with her, needing her back.

All of this became so real to him. For him, it was no longer about their contract and more about wanting her in his life.

Finding her in the garden talking to flowers brought happiness to him that he wanted to hold onto.

He remembered handcuffing her and taking her up to one of his family's vacation homes, letting her vent her anger by throwing things, her astonishment that he was able to get them out of the cuffs the whole time.

He remembered arguing with her in the rain and the sight she made, clothes drenched, damp hair clinging to her, raindrops running down her skin, the fire in her eyes, when he pulled her to him. He wanted to take hold of her mouth with his own.

He wanted to taste her, wanted to feel her wet skin against his, wanted to bury his hand in the wet strands of her hair. He just wanted her. Everything she had to give, he wanted.

Waking up to her next to him in bed was more than he could say. She was always so cute when she first woke up.

Watching the video of her helping his mother broke through what walls he still had up. She was an angel in his life that he didn’t deserve.

It was surprising that all she wanted was a simple apology.

Nothing felt more right than slipping her ring back on her finger. He wanted it there always.

Then Selin had to come in and give him the panic of his life by speeding up the time for her wedding and cutting his time with Eda short.

He wanted her with him all the time.

Seeing Eda try on wedding dresses that were so her, she was so beautiful, so original. She was going to be the perfect bride one day.

He remembered first hearing about her parent's death, the cause for her claustrophobia, and wrapping his arms around her, allowing her to cry on his shoulder. He wanted nothing more than to help her with her phobia the way she was helping his mom.

Sometimes he didn’t understand her, she was so talented and beautiful and smart so why couldn’t she see that it was never about Selin. He never cared that Selin was getting married, it had always been about her shares. Why was she unable to see he only had eyes for her?

He remembered Selin asking him to choose and it was an impossible notion to him because it was never a choice. It was always going to be Eda. His heart knew no other answer.

He couldn’t bring himself to say goodbye to her and he needed her to stay but he didn’t know how to put it into words.

He remembered panicking about her leaving his life to the point it made him sick, that night she took care of him was one of the best nights of his life.

He was kidding himself thinking he could let her go. He had never felt freer than when he finally told her he was in love with her. A weight lifted off his chest when he kissed her and the looked in her eyes after had his heart soaring.

He remembered the first time they went to their cafe and the peace and the happiness he felt there with her.

He remembered, sneaking around because they hadn’t told anyone they were together and were avoiding his mother and her aunt and their disapproval.

He remembered talking to Selin about his feelings for Eda, Selin telling him she always dreamed he would be the way he was with Eda with her, he remembers her accepting that while she loved him he did not feel the same.

Or at least at the time, he believed she had accepted he was in love with Eda and moved on with her life.

He remembered cooking dinner with Eda, watching the stars, cuddling on the couch, he remembered giving her his gift. Her star and how much she loved it. The joy and happiness that filled his heart made him feel like anything was possible.

He remembered the way Eda looked on Selin’s wedding day. She completely outshines the bride, he hated that he couldn’t touch her, hug her, kiss her. It was a crime.

He remembered the jealousy he felt when Efe showed up.

He wanted to keep Eda all to himself but he also wanted to tell everyone about them. He didn’t want to have to hide how he felt about her when his feelings for her were the truest thing he has ever felt in his life.

He remembered how free it felt when everyone did know.

He remembered buying a house in Italy and making plans to opening up a branch there.

He wanted to follow her to Italy. He wanted her to follow her dreams and he wanted to support her, he wanted to share in her success and joy. He wanted her to have everything she wanted in life and he wanted that life to be with him.

He wanted to just leave with her. It didn’t matter where they went as long as they were together. He wanted to run away with her and leave everything but their love behind.

He remembered their first time together and how perfect it felt.

They were connected in every way imaginable and he couldn’t even think about ever being apart from her.

He remembered telling her about the house, he bought and his intention to go with her to Italy. She was so happy and it made him happy.

This was what love was feeling joy at someone else's happiness and giving without wanting anything in return.

He remembered his father blowing up his world when he revealed he had a part to play in Eda’s parent's death. The truth tore Serkan apart, shattering him into pieces.

He saw his life with Eda, all his plans for their future slipping through his fingers and there was nothing. Absolutely, nothing he could do to change it.

He couldn’t change the past. He couldn’t fix his father’s mistakes.

His father ruined every hope and dream he had for his future with Eda.

He remembered coming to the decision to end their relationship to protect her. It was the hardest thing he had to do and he hated the pain he caused her but at the time he was under the belief that he was doing right by her.

If she were to find out the truth he would only be a constant reminder of all that she lost. She would never heal or move on and be happy and that couldn’t happen. Her happiness was more important than his own.

It was hell being apart from her and watching her grow close with Efe.

He remembered the fear he felt when he found her unconscious in the ditch during the company retreat. When she woke up without remembering their break-up it was a short reprieve from the hell his father had forced on him until she remembered.

Going back to his vacation home was a new kind of hell, constantly hit with the reminder of their first time there together. The first time they made love, cuddling together in bed afterward, having breakfast together, the way she looks in his shirt. It was one of the happiest days of his life.

He remembered when Eda asked him to tell her his happiest day. There wasn’t enough time for that. Every day spent with her was his happiest day. When she asked him to tell her about his saddest day, he knew he couldn’t. He couldn’t break her the way the truth broke him.

He remembered dancing with her on Piril’s birthday. The desire in her eyes as they danced close, the need he felt to be even closer.

He remembered when he thought she was pregnant. There was a fear and a sense of responsibility, and panic. Seeing Eda, holding little Serkan though was a sweet sight. She was such a natural. She was going to be an amazing mother but he wasn’t ready for it then.

They weren’t even together, currently and she was pregnant. How could he ask her to build a family with him when he destroyed hers? How would he tell his children that their grandfather from his side of the family is why their mother grew up without her parents, why they would never meet their other grandparents.

He remembered how much she believed him after the roof collapsed. She believed in him more than he believed in himself.

He remembered not understanding what her problem was with Selin, why she was so threatened by her. Selin meant nothing. He never loved her as to where she was concerned she meant everything to him.

He never loved anyone the way he loved her and he was sure he would never again.

He remembered her being the cause for his mother finally being able to go outside again. She gave him a miracle and she did it just to be her. To help. She was too good for him and his family didn’t deserve her.

He remembered the fear that she would start to move on from him. That she would fall in love with someone else.

He remembered finally coming to the decision to tell her the truth and let her make the decision about him.

He remembered getting drunk and only wanting Eda, watching her sleep the next morning and he remembered Selin ruining everything by telling Eda the truth about her parent's death.

Her pain and tears tore into his soul. He hated that she questioned if he ever really loved her. He will always love her with every nerve, every cell, and molecule, in his body.

He remembered the mistake he made in not telling her the truth. He broke her trust.

He remembered tearing into Selin for interfering in matters that did not concern her, for constantly involving herself in his personal life. He remembered telling her that he never loved her and was in love with Eda.

He remembered not even reading Eda's contract before signing, he could have been signing everything over to her and he wouldn’t have cared as long as she remained in his life, as long as she forgave him.

He remembered when she removed her ring and had him do the same. It had gone against everything inside of him. That ring had become a part of who he was.

The rules of her contract were ridiculous to him but he would follow them as much as he could to keep her with him.

He remembered seeing her model that dress for his mother's foundation and God, she almost stopped his heart she was so fucking gorgeous and perfect.

He remembered asking her to meet him and waiting for her, the ache in his chest when she never showed but he was unwilling to give up on her.

He remembered his jealousy about her spending time with the photographer and warning the man away from her. Eda was a taken woman and he had no intentions of giving her up.

He remembered finding out the switch of address in the invitation he had given her and that Eda had waited for him as he waited for her. He had his suspicions of who tampered with the invitation.

He remembered trying to help her with her phobia as they rode an elevator together, holding her close, breathing her in, feeling her heart against his, kissing her. Everything had fallen away and it was just the two of them.

He remembered finding out about Eda knowing about Ferfit, Selin, and Kaan’s involvement in their contract being released to the public. He couldn’t even bring himself to be mad at her for keeping it from him.

He remembered testing if she was jealous of him.

He remembered when they did pottery together, his arms around her, breathing in her neck, wanting to just stay like that forever if it meant she would always allow him this close.

He remembered about their competition about Bulga being into him.

Serkan wasn’t an idiot he knew the woman was attracted to him but he didn’t care. She had no chance. He only wanted one woman and that woman was Eda Yildiz. There was absolutely no reason for his fairy girl to be jealous.

He remembered intentionally seducing her when he spoke to her of feeling her tremble when she said his name, the desire in her eyes, the way she lost her breath, and how she said his name. Almost sounding like a plea. It was everything.

He remembered her aunt's birthday, ice skating, the way her body heated when he spoke french to her, laughing and practically dancing on the ice, snow falling around them.

He remembered trying to soothe her anger when her grandmother came to the company. He called her Eda Bolat.

It had such an amazing ring to it. Perfect. He wanted her to be a Bolat. He wanted her to be his wife.

He remembered the awful feeling of Eda keeping him at a distance and letting him go like he was so easily replaceable in her life. She meant everything to him. Didn’t she feel the same about him but if she did why was it so easy for her to let him go?

He remembered Eda staying over, walking in on her in the bath and needing to imprint the moment on his memory, Eda talking to that stupid statue Bulga gave him. He tried not to focus on her because he was uncertain if he would be able to keep his hands off her. He brought her breakfast in bed because she deserved that. She deserved to be treated like the Queen that she is.

He remembered having a special bracelet made for her after hearing the story of the bracelet she lost when she was a little girl, the smile on her face when she opened the present was more than he could’ve hoped for only made better when she embraced him.

After he was arrested and released her avoidance of him was so painful, made worse when she told him they could not be together and he wondered was this how she felt when he ended things between them? It was like his soul was poisoned and slowly dying.

He couldn’t take seeing her with Prince Seyman, right after. But he wasn’t the only one who was jealous so was she and it all came to a boiling point when they confessed to it.

There was nothing about that night he didn’t remember, each stating their claim on the other, practically ripping each other clothes off and finding themselves nearly fucking against the bookshelf before finding a bed and making love to each other's bodies, caressing and worshipping. Kisses that had toes curling and desire becoming their only concern, finding relief in each other.

He woke up alone and half thought he had dreamed their night of passionate sex but then there was the knocked-over lamp, tangled sheets, and her scent in the air. That scent that never failed to do things to him.

He remembered the astonishment when she surprised him on his plane and the joy when she proposed to him. He said yes, of course, it was the only answer he could give, it was all he ever wanted. He remembered discussing Paris right after and all the things he wanted to do with her but he seriously doubts that if they ever made it to Paris they would leave their hotel room.

He remembered playing the piano for her and proposing to her. He wanted to spend the rest of his life with her, he wanted to give everything and more and he wanted to be able to tell his children how much their father loves their mother.

He remembered their real engagement party and how chaotic it was but he was happy to have their marriage accepted by their family. The fear and anger he felt when that prince bastard thought he could kidnap her, the feel of her in his arms after was the only thing that could calm him.

He remembered the awful misunderstanding about postponing the wedding, believing Eda was having second thoughts about building a life with him.

He remembered their time in Spanca, it was the best trip he had since their first trip together. Eda joining him in the tub was the best way to end his night, followed by amazing shower sex and making love to her in silk sheets, whispering sweet words and I love you’s.

He remembered walking into her dressing room the day of their wedding. She was standing in front of the mirror in a silk robe. He came there to tell her he had to go and sign some papers but he would be back. He made a promise that he would always fall in love with her.

He never should have left that day. He should have insisted on signing the documents electronically. He should have married her that day and taken her to Paris for their honeymoon.

He should have taken her away just the two of them for months on end. They should have made memories together and traveled the world, and practice building their family. God, there were so many things they should have done if only he had chosen differently.

If only he hadn’t put work first before what was supposed to be the start of their new life together.

He remembered when the plane went down, he was on his way back home to her. He was eager to marry her. He wanted to be able to wake up next to her and call her his wife. He remembered the fear and the panic as the plane lost control and was heading for the ocean.

The panic that the life he dreamt of was going to be ripped away from him.

The fear wasn’t for himself. It was for Eda. Never being able to see her again, feel her touch, the warmth of her skin, her sweet smell, the sound of her voice.

The pain she would feel if he were to die. He never wanted the memory of him to haunt her. He wanted her happy living her best life. He wanted her to take the world by storm and do what she did for him. Bless the world with all the color she could and ultimately her goodness and beauty and intelligence. He wanted nothing holding her back not even the loss of him.

And now remembering everything, their love, her and then remembering how terrible he was to her when he first came back. He was cruel and mean and harsh and he wanted to kick his own ass.

He caused Eda pain, he was the cause of her tears, he pushed her away and made her feel less than she was. He belittled their story and the importance she was to him.

What the hell was wrong with him? He lost his memory but he was not this person to her not even when they first met.

And now she was laying in a hospital bed fighting for her life and the life of their child, believing he didn’t love her.

She was wrong. He loved her. He kept his promise he loved her without his memories and now with them, he still loved her. He loved her in a way he didn’t know was possible.

If she didn’t make it, if their child didn’t make it, he wouldn’t be able to go on. He could never forgive himself. This was all his fault.

Serkan stumbled back crashing against the wall, his legs giving out on him, tears streamed down his face.

His heart hurt and he couldn’t breathe.

“Serkan!” He felt hands on his face but he couldn’t see anything beyond the image of Eda fighting for her life.

“Eda,” he whispered hoarsely. “Eda, I need Eda.”

“Serkan, I can’t make out what you are saying. Calm down. Everything is going to be okay.”

“No, I won’t.” Serkan dug his palm into his eyes and roughly wiped his tears away. “Nothing is going to be okay again if she’s not.”

Serkan looked up at Selin and his expression darkened. “Don’t touch me.”

Suddenly the commotion in Eda’s room died down and Dr. Kaya stepped out.

Serkan pushed to his feet moving away from Selin. Melo and Ayfer were already there. “Eda?” Serkan's voice was desperate. “Is she okay? Is the baby?”

“It’s too early to tell. We’re not sure exactly what happened. It’s possible she had a bad reaction to the medicine she was given. We need to run more test to be certain? We don’t know what damage was done to her or the baby.”

“Do it. Do whatever you have to,” Serkan said and the doctor nodded.

Selin seethed inside. She needed this to be done. Eda was ruining everything and now she was fucking pregnant with Serkan’s child. That should be her. Eda had continuously taken everything from her from the day Serkan introduced her as the love of his life.

She stoled Serkan from her. He was her’s. He had been for years. She broke up with him because he wouldn’t share his life with her. She agreed to marry Ferit to show Serkan what he lost but no, he had to go and find Eda and the best version of himself.

He was everything she wanted when he was with Eda, kind, caring, thoughtful, affectionate, loving but with her, he was a passionless man who only looked at her through calculating eyes. Not eyes of love and admiration.

She took Aydan from her, a woman who once believed she was the perfect woman to marry her son and become her daughter-in-law.

Even Piril had become good friends with Eda and publically supported her relationship with Serkan.

And now Eda was carrying Serkan’s child.

She should be the mother of his child. She deserved to have everything she ever wanted. The effort she put into her job, her relationship with Serkan, the need to be perfect. Yes, she deserved to be the one to have Serkan’s affections and his child. She deserved the picture-perfect life they could have together if given the chance.

If only Eda would stop fighting and die already. Just how many times did she have to try and kill her before it took? Perhaps the third time would be the charm.

She would not lose Serkan to her again. She refused to watch them being together.

She would not watch Serkan have a family, building the life she always wanted with Eda when she has been here all along.

“If you would like a moment with her before we take her to run test, you only have a few minutes.”

“Thank you,” Serkan pushed into the room, letting it shut behind him.

He hated the sight of Eda pale and looking weak. She appeared to be just sleeping but he knew better, her arm was in a cast from surgery. There was a bandage on her head, the monitors she was hooked up to were steadily beeping.

He moved forward, carefully sitting beside her on the edge of her bed. He clasped her hand in both of his. Her skin was slightly cold from the chill in the hospital and he rubbed it to try and bring her warmth.

“I’m so sorry.” He whispered. “I hate seeing you like this, you should be laughing and smiling and gracing everyone lucky to be near you with your goodness not laying in the hospital for reasons out of your control. I know things haven’t been easy for you and you have been unhappy but I promise that’s over now. You fought for me and now it’s time for you to fight for yourself and for our baby. Can you do that for me, Eda? If you can I promise you everything is going to be okay.”

Her fingers curled around his, tightening, his eyes snapped to her face. “Eda,”

“Serkan,” her eyes fluttered open and she smiled softly at him. “You’re here.”

Her eyes were slightly glassy and he was sure she was a little loopy from the medication. She was cute when she first woke up, always a little disoriented.

He lifted his hand and cupped her cheek and Eda leaned into his touch, her smile soft and tender. She shut her eyes, savoring the soft touch of his hand against her skin.

“I’m here, baby, and I’m not going anywhere.” Serkan lifted her hand and held it to his own cheek.

“Promise?” She asked, having trouble keeping her eyes open.

“I promise.” He said softly.

“Promise you won’t break any more promises,” Eda whispered.

Her words were soft but they felt sharp like a knife cutting into his heart. He turned his head and kissed her palm. “I will never break another promise to you. I rather die than break any more promises.”

Eda smiled her eyes drifting shut again.

A few minutes later a nurse came and took her for tests. ‘

Serkan waited outside the room for Eda to be brought back. Selin returned but he couldn’t be bothered to deal with her yet. She wasn’t what mattered.

[djemsostylist]

Farewell, my love

I thought I was done ranting about SCK, and I swear this is the last one. I've learned my dizi lesson, and I have so many good ones to look forward to watching. Lesson number one, don't watch a dizi where the only draw is the two leads.

Here's the thing. In the past couple of months, and having watched a few other dizis, I started to wonder if maybe Hande and Kerem had blinded me into liking a show that was never actually more than crap. But in my recent rewatch (I'm up to 12) it was good. It genuinely was. The chemistry was great, the slow burn was great, but for me, the biggest part of why SCK 1-12 was great is that the angst and the drawn out story made sense. Eda and Serkan not talking to each other and keeping their feelings close made sense when Serkan wasn't sure Eda didn't hate him and Eda wasn't sure he wouldn't always choose Selin. Their angst and noncommunication worked here, because this was a story about two people getting to know each other and falling in love. Here, we (and they) learn about their fears, their doubts, their insecurities, their uncertainties, and we learned who they were as people. In 13-21, we watched them grow as people. We watched as they loved each other through pain and as they set up boundaries and learned what would and would not be acceptable to them as a couple. They learned how to talk and share their feelings and be open with how they feel (granted it took fucking forever, but we got there. Finally).

And, and perhaps this is the MOST key--they were in character, they had arcs, and things didn't simply happen for plot. At least not in ways that sacrificed character.

From 22-39, we mostly dealt with plot. Plot which drove characters, but one thing, ONE THING that remained at the of it all was the Eda and Serkan could not be apart. Even when they aren't together, they are together. Their longest separation is immediately following the plane crash, in which Eda does everything humanly possible to keep pieces of Serkan as close to her as she can.

They are it for each other. The love story told in the first several episodes was clear--they are soul mates, they have invisible handcuffs, etc etc. They can't separate, they won't no matter how hard things get. And they both have lines. Eda believes strongly in telling the truth, trusting your partner, believing in them, and above all, family. She lost her parents--being able to be a mom with a family is something we know is important to her. Serkan is self-sacrificial, but he channels it into doing anything and everything he can to make Eda happy. He has learned how to be a partner, how to share his feelings and trust others, and like Eda, his own issues with his parents and the feeling of abandonment mean that he has a deep desire to want to build a strong family.

We have watched them go through literal hell and back. We have watched them fall in love and learn each other over, and over, and over. So to see them having finally survived all of that--crazy families, tumors, plane crashes, gas lighting fiancees, awful friends, terrible parents, and to have survived and come out the other side--and then, what, break up? Spend five years hating each other and Eda keeping his child from him...for what? What could possibly have caused them to be so broken that they left each other and Eda kept a child from him? What is worse than plane crashes, crazy grandmothers, amnesia, crazy ex-girlfriends--what? This isn't sensible angst that shows characters growing and changing and moving. This is angst for angst sake. This is drama for drama's sake. And it's not it for me.

The Eda I know would never, EVER keep Serkan's child from him. Ever. No matter what he said or did, the Eda I know, the one who confronts people head on, who fights for the people she loves and who doesn't let someone off the hook, the one who knows how hurt he was by his own father, who still mourns her own, would not do this. Even if, as some people think, Serkan tried to drive her away (and we'll address that in a minute), my Eda, episode 15 Eda, would shove her pregnancy test in his face and say "yeah? You don't love me, fine, but your child? How about that?" She wouldn't leave. Or would she? This is the Eda, after all, who ran away in 37 instead of standing with him and finding out the truth and making choices together. Did she leave bc he didn't tell her about the tumor? "Sorry you found out you're dying, but since you lied I'm gonna let you die alone. Oh, and keep your kid's existence from you, peace out."

As for Serkan, why would he let her go? Because he thought he was dying? I mean, I guess if she got mad enough about the secret to leave him, I could see him letting her go. It would reinforce what he has always though, that he isn't worthy of love--hers, his parents. It means that all the growth and reassurance and peace he got means nothing. And honestly, I don't think he's survive that. After all, what would he even have to live for, after it's reaffirmed that he isn't worth loving? And if he drives her away instead, then what was the entire point of 14-21? What? That entire 7 episodes of learning to love her, of learning to be the partner who listens and gives and trusts means nothing. Hell, 14-28 mean nothing. Because he is right back to where he started in 13. And if Eda, who knows he has a tumor, listens?

The point is, these aren't the people I love. These aren't my characters. This isn't the kind of beautiful angst that was built in 1-12. This is pure plot to sell things, and I hate everything about it. For me, there is no redemption here for Eda. She kept a child from him. It's not a thing you can say "oops sorry" for. She kept his child from him. Unless she was escaping a plot on her life bc Serkan is a secret mob boss and she had to go into hiding for her safety, there is not way I see this not making her not only a pretty horrible person, but also a hypocrite of the highest order.

As for Serkan, he's already been "the bad guy". He's made mistakes before (although I'd argue he gets a pass for actual brain damage), and I have no desire to see him, once again, thrust into the "Asshole Bolat" role. Not Robot Bolat, because our beloved RoBo would never have let Eda leave. Just Asshole. Which is what I assume, otherwise how do you justify another fucking breakup?

This show is starting it's 40th episode. 40th, and our couple has been together and happy for 4? Almost 5 episodes. It's too much. I'm done. At some point you start to wonder if they aren't just toxic and need to stay away from each other. Because if all they are is pride and miscommunication and refusing to talk and now a child is being hurt as a result--just no. This isn't the love story I signed up for.

So, it was a good run. I'm grateful to SCK for introducing me to Turkish tv (again), for helping me meet some truly amazing people, and for giving me a fandom again after far too long. But, like every other fandom I've been in, it's time for it to end. It's reached a point where I no longer find joy in a story that has gone so far beyond it's original tale as to be entirely unrecognizable. So I'm getting off this train. It's been real.

[fallenflowersfromgrace]

Another Rant Regarding The Owl House (not really a rant, more like an idea)

Alright, here's more or less a theory for an episode (because it's past midnight and I come up with stupid stuff in the dead of night) that could possibly take place in season 2, I dunno.

I had assumed Lilith's reason for cursing Eda was a lot more complex than a simple childhood mistake. Okay, not simple, but I was expecting like a ritual gone wrong...not Lily being a total idiot and picking the first shady scroll she saw and thought it legit. (Then again, said idiot witch almost killed herself with a tree) Still, what she did was wrong and she has to make up for it and everything else before she's fully redeemed.

So in the middle of the night, my brain decided to ask, "What would be the most complex redemption for this character (Lilith)?"

To which I answered, "I have an idea, but it's complicated and probably won't happen. Mainly because I know nothing about how to do a successful redemption."

SO HERE'S MY IDEA.

It's very far fetched, but Imma go for it, and if it's incorrect on all levels...well at least it was fun to write down.

I feel like this idea would take place in a point in time where Lilith has started repairing her damaged bonds. She's been living at the Owl House long enough to see the family dynamic Luz, King, and Eda have. However, the only person she has a decent relationship with is King, as despite what she did to the other two, they've never had a bad interaction and he did save her from Eda's wrath when they were all going to be Petrified. Luz still sends her uncertain looks filled with distrust, but they're not as common as they were in the first few days. Eda, however, only has two moods when it comes to her sister. It's either pretending she isn't there or total passive aggressiveness and no in-between. So Lilith has been walking on thin ice and hasn't really done much to address the inner problems she's ignored completely.

I have reason to believe there is some sort of magical creature on the Boiling Isles that has an ability like a mythological siren. Where they draw you in with promises of happiness, and kill you when they have you hooked.

Considering Lilith is probably drowning in her own guilt, these creatures see a total gold mine with her and decide to try their luck. After all, those not in a postive state of mind are eaiser prey for them to lure in. Here's the thing though, these creatures transport the victim into one moment of their life they wish to change as a test. You pass, you go free...you fail...well, rest in pieces.

So Lilith is captured easily (hardly any magic for one thing), and they put her through the test.

She's sent to the moment when she went to the Night Market and bought the curse that would tear her and Eda apart. Of course, her first reaction is to prevent her younger self from doing such a terrible act. HOWEVER, she is stopped before she can, due to one of the creatures appearing to her with a scroll in hand. They give it to Lilith and tell her that the scroll they have is the curse her younger self will buy. By not placing the curse in the box, younger Lilith will be prevented from buying the curse with help from outside forces.

The creatures tell her that by interfering, Lilith can fix everything she had been trying to make amends for since she cursed her sister.

She sees a completely different life flash before her. One where, after Eda decides not to fight her for a spot in the coven, there is no Owl Beast. Lilith gets the spot and her dream comes true. She sees a life where the two of them continue to be best friends, and a constant in each others life. She sees the two of them attending their last Grom night ever, while Eda is busy setting off pranks in the gym and enjoying herself without the curse looming over her. Eda is there when Lilith graduates from Hexside and in return, Lilith does the same only a few years later. Her younger sister is there to see her off when she moves out, and says they'll see each other later. Lilith sees a future where the two of them are adults and Eda's hair is as bright and youthful as she is and shows no sign of rapid aging. They're hanging out, and there is no motive to spend time together. Just two sisters enjoying each other's company. It's everything Lilith ever wanted...including one small detail. In this possible outcome, Eda joined The Emperor's Coven. She renounced her wild ways and joined her sister like they talked about when they were kids.

Lilith then asks uneasily what happens if she lets the curse go into the box. They tell her that the events will turn out the same leading up to this moment in time.

Now she's left with a choice that would alter her life as well as Eda's and only has ten seconds to decide before the younger Lilith will walk over and find the curse.

Surprisingly, she's hesitant. A solution to her problem is right in front of her and she's debating if she should take it. Of course, she's cautious after what happened with The Emperor, but her hesitation is for another reason.

She has less than five seconds, but she's come to a decision that she's uncertain about. Suddenly, another thing appears in her hand, the one that isn't holding the scroll. A picture of her and Eda side-by-side working together in the coven. Lilith's eyes widen, and her mind and heart are in agreement with her choice.

There's a sigh from the witch and she mumbles, "Forgive me, Edalyn," before she cements her decision.

She wakes up to her sister forcefully shaking her awake with Luz and King at her side. She's confused, of course, because they couldn't have found her so easily. Eda, understandably freaked out and concerned, (yes, she has a rocky relationship with her sister, but if anything is going to knock Lily's lights out, it's going to be her.) is demanding what she just witnessed. Apparently a bunch of creatures literally faded out of existence and dropped Lilith onto the floor like a rag doll. Lilith, who is still processing her reality as well as the previous moments, says nothing and stares at the ground. There's still some guilt, but not as much as before.

Her choice was actually easy to make.

In the alternate outcome, where Eda isn't cursed, Lilith realized there was something missing...the Owl House. Along with the fact Eda doesn't have a fluffy demon or a human kid. (Because why would she if she's working in the coven? She only picked up Luz because of her portal to the human world which was only used for dumpster diving.)

She remembers how Eda's protégé was so adamant about getting her mentor back. How her sister sacrificed the remains of her power for this child she's barely known a month.

It hits her hard, but she notices that Eda is happy now...and Lilith would be a monster to take that away from her sister.

The reason she was so hesitant was because she wasn't sure if letting Eda suffer through all those long years was something she could allow herself to do...but she did, and she feels bad about it. She couldn't save Eda from the curse. Yet, she reminds herself there is another way to fix what's broken. After all, she managed to sacrifice her own wants for once.

There's a lot of mixed emotions in her head, and it all stops when Lilith feels herself being pulled up to her feet and Eda scoffs, (although the concern is still there) "let's go home."

The ending is a bit messy, not gonna lie. But it isn't like Lilith choosing not to let herself buy the curse was going to have an effect on reality. She would've died, if that was the case. I'm not saying letting Lilith curse her sister was a good thing, just trying to write out an idea where Lily has to pick between what she wants and reality.

I think that would be her starting point. Realizing her own wants and expectations weren't realistic. She wasn't going to have the relationship she wanted with Eda if she was trying fix everything at the expense of others (Luz) and Eda herself. I feel once she gets pass that she'll be able to take life for what is and how she can fit into it.

Part of this idea was really just another thing of Lilith being able to realize that her definition of happiness isn't what would make her sister happy. I feel like she just doesn't grasp yet what Eda has with Luz and King and that's why she was so adamant about the "real family" bullcrap. Possibly because she doesn't have close relationships. I mean, I've joked about her being Amity's goth mom, but to be honest the two have interacted like once or twice in the first season. And I'm sure she didn't get to socialize much being the right hand of a tyrant, because when you're second in-command you more or less marry your work. The Emperor doesn't strike me as one who would encourage relationships, especially if they can distract from his wants, so I'm sure he was pleased at Lilith's lack of attachments to others. But I'm sure once she does realize that family isn't just the people you share blood with, it will be easier for her to grow.

[lizacstuff]

Anon asks: SCK Fragman 38 speculation

(Asks under the cut)

Anonymous said: Do you think they're getting married this next episode? idk if the tattoos were confirmation

I think it’s possible? But I also think it’s entirely possible that they get the tattoos as a symbol of their love and a promise of sorts that they are through messing around, but they’re not actually married yet.  Frankly, they already gave us all the wedding hoopla with these two, I’m absolutely fine with an elopement or quick courthouse style wedding, or just a couple of witnesses in a garden. Whatever they want! Let’s just get her done.

Also... I know I said it before, but I’m just in love with the idea of these tattoos. Such a great solution to their ring issue. 

Anonymous said: Thoughts on all these twitter theories from the “sick” line in the fragman?

- it’s about piril and engins kid bc basak and anil filmed in the hospital, and piril was hit by a car in 36 and in 37 she had that moment where she clutched her abdomen and had to sit down

- it’s a flashback serkan has to when his brother alp was sick

- serkan is sick and it’s a way to reveal Kemal as his bio dad (blood or organ donation)

- serkan is sick and it’s a way to reveal eda is pregnant when they draw blood from her to donate

That fragman could be hinting at so many things, and it very well could have been misleading. So lets take each theory in turn. 

“it’s about piril and engins kid bc basak and anil filmed in the hospital, and piril was hit by a car in 36 and in 37 she had that moment where she clutched her abdomen and had to sit down”

Very possible. Engin thinking something had happened to Piril two eps ago did feel like foreshadowing, almost preparing the audience for something. It would be so heartbreaking if she loses the baby, and seems too dark for this show, but it is something that happens to millions of women, so we’ll see.

Also can you imagine after the way Piril stuck by Selin, if Piril lost her baby, and she then witnesses Selin using her baby as a pawn to get revenge on Serkan and Eda?  I’d like to see Piril and Engin’s reaction to that. Though again I think that’s pretty dark, especially for the side couple. 

- it’s a flashback serkan has to when his brother alp was sick

I think this is a very good guess. Serkan probably will see a doctor after he passed out, and if it is another panic attack brought on by the stress of losing Eda, I could see a doctor telling him if he wants to move past the panic attacks, he needs to get at the root of his abandonment issues, which all lead back to his brother’s death. That could be why he’s getting out a box of his things and reading that letter.  So I could very well see a flashback happening to Alp’s diagnosis.

- serkan is sick and it’s a way to reveal Kemal as his bio dad (blood or organ donation)

I’m honestly fully onboard with Kemal as Serkan’s bio dad.  I hear a lot of people poopooing the idea because of opportunity, but I think they told us when it could have happened. In their first meeting, (unless my subs were bad) Aydan mentioned that Kemal had returned once to apologize for standing her up when they were young and going to run away together. I assume that was the window. Kemal showed up years later (after Alp was born) to apologize.. they had a fling and there’s the opportunity for Serkan to be his son. 

Though, to me, if they’re doing something with Serkan’s health it’s got to be related to the plane crash. The chest clutching since he’s been back is concerning, plus wasn’t his hand shaking at one point? So I don’t see him having some serious underlying issue that’s unrelated. This guy does not shy away from going to the doctor and was just in the hospital for probably over a month recovering, so you’d think if there was anything wrong before, we’d know it.  Unless the plane crash acerbated something that’s genetic? And/or requires a match like bone marrow or kidney. I suppose they could give Serkan some rare blood type and that would be something applicable to most any ailment. We shall see. 

- serkan is sick and it’s a way to reveal eda is pregnant when they draw blood from her to donate

This one I think is the least likely. It’s been very fuzzy how much time has passed, but at the minimum 3 months since they were supposed to get married and were having sex, so if Eda were pregnant I think she would have noticed the signs by now.  

Anonymous said: Liza, I know they won’t kill Serkan, but could you reassure me that they won’t? I’ve followed you since Once and you were always good at reassuring.

Ha! I remember making lists of all the reasons they would never kill Hook. 

THEY WON’T KILL SERKAN.

And I’m even more certain of this than I ever was of them not killing Hook, and I was damn certain then. 

There is literally not ONE reason for this show to exist without Eda and Serkan. Not one. This is their love story, and really, storyline wise, the show should have ended awhile ago, and the only reason they keep it going is to keep Hande and Kerem on screen together, making their magic. Seriously, that’s the only reason.

You see how Serkan dying would be counter to that, right?  And if the show were about to end, trust me, there is nothing in it for anyone to have a tragic ending. This started as a romantic comedy, and will end as one, with a happily ever after. And if you’re still nervous, trust this, the production company is still hopeful to sell it into even more foreign markets, especially English language ones, a surprise tragic, twist ending that gets vilified on social media (and trust me this fandom is huge, vocal and capable) would really hurt those chances. 

So even if we’re headed into a bad diagnosis for Serkan, he will be fine in the end, it will just be something for him and Eda to fight through. I promise. 

Anonymous said: thoughts on that wonderfully beautiful fragman? i was watching with hearts in my eyes and then read the translations.. poor serkan!! if it really isn't misleading i definitely think it's some consequence of the plane crash. but, we are secure in what kind of show this is and the full knowledge that it's not a drama and no one is gonna actually die, i'm excited for the potential this storyline is gonna give us!! (esp with the return of the old writers)

I can’t wait to see that rain scene, and the after-the-rain scene and their motorcycle ride. The fragman was very beautiful, but it also felt very poignant and a little melancholy.

It’s interesting with the announcement that the second writing team was back, there were tidbits from several legit entertainment-type reporters yesterday that the show was going back to it’s roots being funny and entertaining.  So a terrible diagnosis for one of the current characters, especially the romantic leading man, doesn’t really fit with that. 

It the writers hadn’t changed I’d be more concerned, not about a character dying, just about the show leaning into some big sort of health-related melodrama.  But I think whatever might be happening will be in service to the plot.  As far as Serkan having a health-scare related to the crash, as I said above it’s very plausible. I mean what are the chances that a man survives a plane crash, is fished out of the sea, spends weeks in a hospital, gets amnesia and is perfectly fine 3-4 months later with no other repercussion? Doesn’t seem possible! 

Anonymous said: Liza, the second set of writers is really coming back! We might actually get comeuppance for Selin!

YESS!!!!! Please. I had completely lost hope with the last set of writers who seemed hellbent on normalizing her behavior.  Look I’d be fine with a 3 minute conversation where Serkan tells her that he knows she’s a manipulative liar and the baby is not his, that he wants her out of their lives for good, and that if she ever comes near Eda ever again he will personally destroy her. 

Is that so much to ask?

Though I’d like her to be humiliated in front of the rest of the team. Just so everyone knows what kind of psycho she is and no one in Edser’s orbit is tempted to give her another chance ever again. 

It will be interesting to see how this plays out.  With the news that Sarp Can (Deniz) is COVID positive, he obviously won’t be back on set anytime soon. They could probably get some VO from him if necessary, for a phone convo, but I’m gonna guess he’s done on screen. 

It’s time to write both characters out! 

As for the 22-23, 25-30 writers coming back, that is the best news I’ve had in ages.  They weren’t perfect, but the things they did well, they did really, really well. Their comedy, romantic scenes, heartfelt dialogue, accurate characterizations and penchant for sizzling scenes that “break the Turkish family structure” will all be most welcome. I’m really excited for the first time in ages. 

Anonymous said: Very interesting that the fragman did not address the Selin baby drama at all. It focused solely on Edser which was a welcome change while at the same time has me a bit nervous for the angst & drama no doubt headed our way. But if Eda & Serkan are together for good now to face the challenges coming then I cannot wait to watch. The last episode was so well done but Eda & Serkan were both near their breaking points for different reasons & you just felt awful for both of them. Really glad that the engagement did not happen and the show focused on the fallout from Serkan’s amnesia. And even had the side characters addressing how difficult things have been for Eda and that she might need some time before picking things back up with Serkan! Looking forward to the resolution of the baby story/exit of Selin and seeing Eda & Serkan heal together.

I hope that the fact that nothing Selin-related was addressed in the fragman means that we finally have people in charge who understand that we are so damned fatigued of Selin that featuring her an active deterrent for viewers.  Also I haven’t seen any evidence that Bige has been on set for 38. That doesn’t mean she hasn’t, it’s still possible, but it is encouraging that the ep will be  light on Selin. 

As far as the drama and angst, I think there’s more headed our way, however I’m hopeful it will be the good kind and not the kind that made us really uncomfortable and want to tear our hair out during the Selin/Deniz era. We know that Eda and Serkan must decide to stay together (spending time together, ring finger tattoos) so the point of the pregnancy storyline is done. When Eda found out Selin was pregnant, it gave Selin the chance for one last Hail Mary pass, and she took it, trying to break them up, but it failed. So it’s usefulness is over. She can’t keep the charade going because of Deniz, and because once Serkan has time to calm down and think, he’ll realize that any time in Slovania where he was so injured that it’s possible he doesn’t remember, he also would have been too physically incapacitated to do anything of the sort. 

As for Eda needing some time, yes, things in 36 were just too easy for Serkan in terms of the fallout from his amnesic behavior. Episode 37 made him work for it and I think come to terms with the fact that, Selin manipulations or no, there’s work to do and things he needs to atone for.  Putting her first throughout the episode, and showering her with love, was a good start. 

Anonymous said: The conversations Selin had with Eda, Serkan and Aydan in this episode had my blood boiling. Someone stop this psycho! The unnecessary hole digging was real, my god. I don't care if she's pregnant, don't hold Eda back this time and let her fight this snake. Let everyone fight her! If she's lying to Deniz now, he can fight her too.

I know, she reached new levels of abusive manipulation.  They better be planning a comeuppance, if she’s just allowed to leave with people waving goodbye, I will scream.  The Aydan conversation with her posing the question about abortion was something else. It came across to me more as a threat. Like... I’m thinking about doing this, if you don’t want my decision to be your fault, you better stay on the right side of me. 

The Eda and Serkan stuff goes without saying. It still floors me that she’s willing to pretend like she raped him (if he can’t remember because he was that injured and foggy, then it’s impossible for him to have given consent.) rather than just giving up and living the truth.  

Anonymous said: Like I get it (kind of) but I am so sick of watching Serkan be nice to Selin. Very much looking forward to Serkan chewing her out for how much she hurt Eda with this fake Serkan baby daddy story when she is exposed. I get that Serkan feels he is to blame for calling her to Slovenia in the first place & essentially in his mind giving her hope of them being together but he needs to stop excusing her horrible behavior from there. No decent person would take advantage of that situation the way she did. It seems like the only way that Selin will have an epic fall is if Deniz decides to fight for the kid he knows must be his and tell Eda everything. Going to be tough for her to believe initially but it will have to start making sense once she thinks back on things and then if the photos surface then she will know it must be true.

Agreed. I get Serkan’s guilt, and it actually shows what a good person he is, but he needs to get over it.  Because seriously, all Selin was obligated to do when she got his call was to hang up, and then dial one of the following: his mother, his father, his fiancé or best friend/business partner Engin. That’s it. Call them and say, hey, Serkan’s alive, this is where you’ll find him. But NOPE! Instead she decided to fly there, manipulate him, keep him hidden and try to use it to get back with him. She made him beholden to her, just another in the long line of brainwashing and manipulation. Her flying to his bedside was the wrong thing to do, and it would be great if someone beside Eda recognized that. 

Anonymous said: Even though Selin is the worst and I just cannot wait for her to finally be unmasked as the manipulator she is, I am really looking forward to Edser in the next episode. Eda taking care of Serkan after he passes out, the two of them reaffirming their commitment to each other with the tattoos & possible elopement, Eda reassuring Serkan that she will be at his side even if the kid turns out to be his and also the two of them working together to get to the truth. So darn excited! And if the spoilers are right that Deniz tells Eda the truth and Serkan sees the photos from Ferit then I will be so happy. It is time for Selin to go for good!

SELIN MUST GO. Yes, I think as soon as the news that Selin is pregnant and trying to pass it off as Serkan’s brain-fog baby, Ferit will unleash the photos. (if it’s him that has them).  

I just want Selin and Deniz gone so we can focus on other things. Their presence on this show is a energy drain, and I want to focus on rain frolicking, motorcycles and bed sharing!!!!!  

Anonymous said: I'm so glad that we had a scene of Serkan telling Eda that even without his memories he fell in love with her again, he just couldn't admit it. Serkan has an interesting perspective on the memory loss part of their lives where I think he almost feels too guilty about it all and just wants to move past it. I've noticed that in his dialogues in 36 & 37 where he wants to leave it in the past and basically do his all to make it all up to her in the present and future.

I think this is very well observed. He definitely was trying to leave the past in the past, but honestly I think that’s just laziness on the part of the old writers, not wanting to have to have a reckoning for all the things they had him say or do. Since the writers decided to go that way, I could buy it’s because Serkan feels too guilty about it all. We know how much he loathes making mistakes or being wrong or owing apologies. If that’s what they wanted to do, it would have gone a long way if they’d shown a bit more of him blaming himself, especially in 36. 

I was also very happy that Serkan came out and said that he’s fallen in love with her again. My only thing is I wish if they were going to do that, they would have thrown a little more detail in the dialogue. Like Serkan admitting to her that he started thinking about her all the time as soon as he returned and met her, maybe admit that he slept on his office couch clutching her wedding invitation.  A couple of things like that would have been very nice for Eda to hear. 

Anonymous said: SCK sure loves creating difficult situations for Eda & Serkan. I really felt for Serkan in the last episode especially since he was back to being the romantic robot we all love. He so baldly wants to make up for lost time with Eda that he rushes ahead with the proposal and then gets crushed when she rejects him. And then spends most of the episode frantically trying to figure out what is going on with her and trying to show her how much he loves her. I was really happy though that the show addressed a few different times how awful the last few months have been for Eda and it also made Serkan address it. His plan to just forget about everything and move forward did not happen. Loved that the side characters stepped up to remind him of everything he & Selin put Eda through. Not so crazy that the show decided to use Selin’s pregnancy as the plot device to get Serkan to finally realize “oh yeah, what happened since my accident is a very big deal & now I have to face it & come to terms with it” but still glad it happened. Selin is obviously so much more in the wrong than Serkan but let’s hope her downfall takes place in the next episode.

All of this.  I think you’re exactly right, Serkan tried to brush past everything and I’m glad that finally the other characters stepped up a little to help make him see that he had more work to do. Special shout out to Seyfi for his sassy comment about Serkan almost marrying another woman. And finally Piril was useful and acted like a friend, the first time she had since he returned.  

[rohad93]

Worth the Fight: Chp 6

Luz spent the next few days on her guard duty stewing, trying to decide exactly how she feels about Amity Blight. She waits on bated breath for two days for Bump to inevitably come to her, tell her to scram, that Amity told him about everything that happened in the archives, but he never does.

She can still feel the sting in her cheek when she thinks about that afternoon and anger threatens to bubble up, but she can also still clearly hear Amity’s voice echoing in her head.

‘You don’t know me!’

Never has there been a truer statement she thinks; she knows absolutely nothing about Amity Blight.

She thought she knew at least one thing, and that was that Amity was certainly the arrogant, vindictive type that would go running straight to Bump the moment they returned to the manor, but she didn’t, and Luz is left knowing even less than the nothing she did before, now all she had was questions.

She’s still angry, the insults, the slap… but she can also admit that she was hardly being sensible or kind herself, and she definitely egged some of it on, trying to get a rise out of the noble, which was not the mature thing to do, and she ended up getting exactly what she wanted in the end.

She sighed to herself, running a hand through her hair. She should apologize, Amity was right of course, she doesn’t know her circumstances or anything about her, certainly not enough to go around throwing out accusations, just as Amity doesn’t know her, but the memory of the stinging in her cheek and the insults hurled at her are still too fresh to allow it right this moment.

Luz would hardly consider herself to have a big ego, much as she liked to play the overly confident for laughs, especially considering who her teacher was, but she still had her pride and it would not allow her to apologize yet, not when just as many hurtful things were said and done to her.

She doesn’t see Amity again before her day off, even with no proof, she just knows the other woman is avoiding her, she doesn’t mind that at all, the only thing she could possibly say to her at this point would be an apology, and she isn’t ready to face her yet. She doubted she would get one in return, she is a noble after all.

She tried to put a halt on that thought, jumping to conclusions like that is part of what got her into this mess to start with, despite all the evidence she’d gathered from previous experiences in dealing with nobles over the years that tell her otherwise, she had always prided herself on keeping an open mind, how many times had she been looked down on because of her ears?

She stood in the stables, in the empty stall she had claimed as her personal space, and shucked off the black tunic, bearing the Blight family crest and tossed it at King, asleep in the corner.

She chuckled to herself as it landed on his head, making him sit up. She grinned as he shook it off and gave her a look that couldn’t be translated as anything but annoyed.

“Sorry,” she laughed, hardly sorry at all as she pulled on her own, violet-colored tunic and cinched her sword belt around her waist, her weekly payment of a hundred and eighty silver secured safely next to her sword as she looped the leather into a knot.

She needed a chainmail shirt, Eda had never been willing to buy her one, since she hadn’t really done much fighting herself, but she planned on it now, and the last thing she wanted was to do was be run through by a pike or a sword the first time she entered a tourney or a duel.

“Come on, Bud!” She took off out of the stables at a run, she needed to get out of this place for the day and as quickly as possible. She could hear King’s large paws slapping the ground in a trot as he followed along behind her.

Her sword and coin pouch rattled against her hip as she ran out of the gates, giving a wave to Jerbo, who waved back as she jogged by. His day off was tomorrow, so she would have gate duty with another guard, none of which liked her at all, but that was a problem for tomorrow, she was going to fully enjoy today.

The city is full of people all moving from one place to the next at any given time, going about their business, barely paying her any mind except to move out of the way as the two barreled down the busy streets of Bonesburough in an excited rush. She can do whatever she wants today, so standing still and watching the world slowly move by without her is not on her agenda for the afternoon. It’s as though she’s been building her energy stores for the past several days and she feels fit to burst with all of it swirling around inside of her.

She made a direct beeline for the smithy. She still hadn’t had a chance to explore much of the city yet, so it was easy for her to get turned around, but the towering pillar of smoke she could see in the distance showed her the way to her destination.

She could smell the burning wood, coal, and metal by the time she turned the corner, the shop coming into view and immediately she spotted Viney out front, shoveling coal into the billowing furnace, the sleeves of her tunic rolled up to her elbows and leather apron on, protecting her from most of the errant sparks.

“Hey, Viney,” she called out with a grin as she trotted up.

The witch stood and turned to her, face hidden behind the metal plate mask.

"Well, hey stranger," she flipped the mask up and grinned. "I see you haven't been impaled yet," The blacksmith chuckled as Luz stopped in front of her.

"Not yet, but it’s still early into my knight career…” Luz grinned.

“True… what is that?” Viney’s eyes went wide as she looked down at King, who blinked back at her.

“Oh, this is King, he was here with me last time, though I guess he did go with Eda while we were in the shop,” she admitted.

Without warning, Viney stepped forward and knelt down to be face to face with the demon wolf and held a hand up. King tentatively sniffed the appendage before snorting and allowed Viney to reach up and scratch the space between his ears and horns.

“Isn’t he handsome!” she said, making the beast seem to puff up with the praise and Luz rolled her eyes at him.

“He’s something,” she mumbled to herself, smiling.

“You have a lupus infernum as a pet?” she looked back up at Luz as she scratched behind one of King’s ears.

“A what?” Luz cocked her head at the name.

“Lupus infernum, a hell wolf, they’re a rare species of monster that roam the wilds in the far north. Usually, very, very hostile…,” she hummed, turning back to King, his eyes closed as he enjoyed the impromptu pampering, tail thumping on the ground.

“Well, he’s more of a companion than a pet, and he was already traveling with my mentor when I first met her, she said he just kind of showed up one day, injured, she patched him up and he just kinda stayed." Luz shrugged. She'd never really questioned the beasts’ presence, besides, he was good company.

"I imagine having him around is useful when you're traveling out in the wilderness," Viney said as she climbed back to her feet.

“He is… when he wants to be,” she chuckled, reaching down to pat his head.

“So, what can I do for ya?” she crossed her arms and turned to the human.

“I need a mail shirt,”

“Well, we got ‘em, come on in, and have a look.”

Luz followed the shorter blacksmith inside and she showed her what she had. She picked one up, testing its weight in her hand, they were heavier than she had expected.

“I think this will work.” she nodded.

“Hundred silver and it’s yours,” Viney said and Luz nodded, counting out the silver pieces from her bag and handing them off to Viney.

When the deal is done, she wasted no time pulling off her tunic and slipping on the chainmail shirt, it hangs heavily from her shoulders as she moves about, pulling her tunic back on. She’s definitely going to have to get used to it.

“Do some training in that and before you know it you’ll forget you're even wearing it,” Viney promised.

Luz and King hung around the shop a while, Viney even showed them a few things around the smithy before they spotted a group of the Emperor’s soldiers making their way toward the forge and Luz decided now would be the perfect time to go. She waved to Viney as the two trotted away, back through the crowded city streets.

It seemed that life in the city never stopped, Luz had yet to see a day where the streets weren’t filled to the brim, especially the market.

She could hardly think there were so many vendors all shouting to be heard over each other and trying to grab the attention of the people passing by.

One vendor did catch her attention though, sort of.

King grabbed the edge of her tunic between his teeth and was dragging her in the direction of a witch selling large chunks of meat hanging from hooks in his stall, and Luz rolled her eyes at the beast.

“Okay, okay, but don’t get used to this!” she warned him as she negotiated a price for a thick slice of some kind of meat, she doesn’t even need to know what kind, it’s not like she’s going to be the one eating it.

She got a fat, juicy strip of shiny, red meat for a price that was much lower than she had expected, but she figured the large demon wolf at her side had a lot to do with that. She thanked the vendor and turned to King, who was looking up at her with wide, rust-colored eyes, and drool dripping from his maw, forming a puddle at her feet.

“Ready?” she asked with a grin, shaking the meat and watching as King’s eyes never wavered from it, his whole body shaking in anticipation.

She chunked it up into the air and watched, grinning as he jumped up and snatched it up in his jaws before he quickly chomped it down and swallowed.

“You’re a glutton,” she laughed, scratching his head.

“Luz!?”

The human looked up at the call of her name and found herself staring back at both Willow and Gus.

“Willow, Gus! What are you guys doing here?” she turned to the two with a smile.

“I was on my way out of the city to collect some ingredients with Gus, I didn’t realize you knew him.” the witch smiled at her.

“And I didn’t know you knew, Willow,” The apprentice archivist laughed. “What are you doing in the market?” he asked.

“King and I are just enjoying our day off.” she smiled, gesturing to the beast. Both Willow and Gus looked at him with wide eyes, taking an unconscious step back from the demon wolf still swallowing the remnants of his meal. “It’s okay,” Luz assured. “King is a friend.”

Her assurance didn’t seem to do much as King looked up at them as he ran his tongue across his muzzle and the pink spots of blood now staining the white fur around his upper lip.

“Uh…” Gus stood behind Willow, peeking out at the beast.

“I promise, look.” She knelt down next to King and wrapped her arms around his fluffy neck and gave him a squeeze, ruffling the thick mane-like fur that protected his neck and he let her.

The two witches looked at each other, unsure, Willow slowly stuck out a hand. King gave it a tentative sniff, much the same way he had Viney before giving it a small lick, which prompted Willow to slowly, carefully run her fingers over the bridge of his nose.

He closed his eyes and allowed the soft scratching, which made Gus finally move out from behind the apothecary and with a shaking hand, reach to scratch the spot behind King’s left ear, which made his tail thump approvingly on the ground.

“See?” Luz smiled up at them. “He’s my pequeño bebé," she cooed, rubbing her face in his fur.

"Your what?" Willow blinked at the words.

"Ahh, sorry, pequeño bebé, my little baby," she laughed, finally extracting herself from the wolf and standing up.

"There's nothing little about that." Willow pointed at the demon wolf, which made Luz chuckle.

"What language was that?" Gus looked up at her with wide, amazed eyes.

"Oh, uh, my mom called it 'Spanish'," she explained with a shrug.

"Is that a human language?" Gus is looking at her with wonder in his dark eyes.

"I guess so, yeah." She shrugged again. She'd never heard witches speak it, then again, other than her mother she'd never heard another human speak it either.

"I didn't know humans had their own language…" He pulled a pad of paper from his pocket and started jotting down notes.

"Do you have plans for today or would you like to come with Gus and me to pick herbs in the woods?" Willow asked.

"Yeah! We could use a knight and her companion at our side!" He gestured to her and King.

"Yeah, sure!" She grinned. she couldn't remember the last time someone her own age had invited her to do something with them; probably never.

They talked about all kinds of things as they made their way outside the city walls toward the nearby forests.

Guss and Willow have lived in Bonesburough their entire lives, and know the city backward and forwards, and have also been friends nearly as long.

In turn, Luz told them about all the different adventures she'd been on with Eda and King over the last five years, which suitably impressed them.

"I don't think I could ever have what it takes to be a knight, but that sounds amazing. Excitement and adventure around every corner, never knowing what tomorrow might bring." Willow was looking at her with a bright smile as they walked through the woods, carefully picking different plants as Willow pointed them out.

"Well, I definitely like the idea of adventure and excitement, though I would like to live in one place again,… but what I really want to do is protect people from monsters… the beastly kind and the people shaped ones…," Luz trailed off, breaking eye contact with Willow to look off into the forest, which made the witch frown.

"There's no shortage of either," Willow agreed with a frown as Gus looked at their new human friend with concern.

"So, what's it like in human towns?" The younger witch asked, which successfully brought Luz out of her thoughts.

"Huh? Oh… uh, I don't know." She shrugged as she reached out to scratch King's head.

"You don't know?" Willow cocked her head to the side in question.

It occurred to Luz as they talked, that most of the witches she's encountered who have anti-human sentiments have all been older, usually at least forty or older. She's never really had an issue with anyone younger, and the more time she spent talking with Gus and Willow, she realized no witches under that age have ever even seen a human outside of her. She can't even remember herself the last time she's seen another human, probably not since her mother died seven years ago, and she can't remember a time before that either. As far back as her memory stretched, it had only been her and her mother.

What does it mean, she knows for a fact there were other humans on the Isles because the older witches know her on-site by her ears; so where are they?

She and her mother had lived alone on the edge of the woods away from any other settlements, she’d always told Luz it was for safety, but she’s not really sure now, and her mother has been gone a long time, so she isn’t going to get any answers on that front.

"How can a human not know what a human town is like?" Gus questioned with a frown.

"I spent the last five years traveling across the empire with Eda, and before that, I lived alone with my mom on the edge of the woods," she explained.

"Wow, your mom just let you leave home to travel around with Eda to become a knight?" Gus asked, amazed by that.

"I started traveling with Eda because my mom died…," The silence that followed her response is deafening and expected, but there's really no other way to say this fact. "It's okay though, it's been a long time." she smiled at them, but even in their short acquaintance with the human, they can tell that it does not reach her eyes.

"I'm sorry, Luz." Willow frowned and Gus nodded.

"Thanks, but, really, it's okay, it's been seven years, I trained with Eda and I'm well on my way to becoming a knight… even if all I'm doing right now is playing guard for the Blight family…," she grunted, rolling her eyes.

"You're working for the Blight's?" Willow questioned, the surprise in her voice is clear.

"You know them?" Luz cocked a brow.

"Their youngest daughter, Amity and I are childhood friends, she visits me at the apothecary when she's able to, which isn't very often but…," she trailed off as she saw the sour look on Luz's face. "I take it you've met her?" Willow chuckled.

"How can you be friends with her? She's so…." Luz pursed her lips, searching for the right word, and several raced to the tip of her tongue, but none of them are very nice, even though she promised herself this morning that she would try to be more open-minded in regards to the youngest Blight daughter.

Willow just chuckled at her.

"Amity can be… intense, at times. Did the two of you argue about something?" Willow wondered aloud.

"You could put it like that…," Luz trailed off before explaining her and the youngest Blight's interaction at the archives several days ago.

Willow winced at the tale and Gus gasped.

"Yeah, knowing Amity, I'd say you touched a nerve... Not that the things she said were any better, but she's actually very nice, I promise," Willow said.

Luz grunted.

She'd believe it when she saw it.

She spent the majority of the afternoon rummaging around the forest with King and the two witches before finally making her way back to Blight manor by early evening.

The sun is starting to dip toward the horizon, slowly, but surely, though it’s still warm and she's already a little sweaty under the chain mail, so a little more couldn't hurt.

The Blight's had a training yard set up near the guard barracks, near the house beneath the third-floor balcony.

She's going to take Viney's advice and get some training in.

King plopped himself down into the hay of their stable stall to nap, while she makes her way to the training yard.

~ ~ ~

Amity sighed to herself.

She feels like a prisoner in her own home.

Even if she had been confined to the manner before while her parents were away, she had at least been able to go places escorted by a guard, but ever since her altercation with their newest guard, Luz Noceda, she can't stand the idea of running into the woman again.

Not so much because she finds her boorish and crass, though she certainly does.

No, mostly, she feels ashamed.

Amity had never raised her hand against anyone before in her life, and to be honest she had surprised even herself after her hand had made contact with Luz's face.

But, what the other woman had said had really struck a nerve somewhere deep inside her, for multiple reasons.

The foremost being that Luz didn't know the first thing about her, and had absolutely no right to judge her, which had lit a raging fire in her gut, one that had quickly been doused in cold fear at the dark look that had fallen over Luz's face the second the shock of her strike had worn off.

For a long moment, she had expected the other woman to hit her back, but she hadn't. She'd simply picked up her books and walked away.

Amity didn't get her at all.

She also feels guilty.

Guilty for slapping her, and where she was adamant in Luz having no right to judge her, she had done the same thing had she not? Hurled baseless accusations she had no way of knowing we're true or not.

She'd been cold and hostile to the woman from the moment they had met, and she can admit now, while she's still annoyed that Bump won't let her leave the manor grounds unescorted, Luz running into her had been an accident and could have happened to anyone.

She grumbled to herself as she walked down the long, empty halls of Blight manor, dress swishing around her ankles with the quick movement.

She needed some fresh air, she hadn't even been to her favorite spot by the pond she'd so dreaded the idea of coming face to face with Luz, and knowing that an apology is owed… on both parts really, but she doubts she can count on one being returned by the uncouth warrior.

She scoffed to herself. She was doing it again, foisting her preconceived notions on a person she did not know at all. This whole affair had put her in a bad mood for the last four days.

Even her siblings seemed to be staying clear of her, perhaps being able to sense the dark cloud hanging over her.

At least there was that. She wasn't sure she could handle the twins and this crisis of conscience at the same time.

Blights do not apologize, but unlike her parents, Amity believes she has enough consciousness to know when she is in the wrong and when she needs to make amends.

Though, knowing and doing, are two very different things; her pride is a very hard thing to ignore.

She quickly moved up the stairs to the third floor. The balcony from there always provided a lovely view of the nearby sea. It was especially breathtaking at sunset or sunrise, she could definitely use the relaxing atmosphere right now.

It's still quite warm when she stepped outside onto the balcony, but there's a breeze that tousled her hair and makes the mid-summer heat more bearable, the few clouds that seem to be rolling across the sky and occasionally covering up the slowly sinking sun also help.

She leaned on the wooden railing and stared out at the sea, watching the sunlight sparkle off the distant waves in flashes of orange and pinks.

It helped release some of the tension in her body, and she closed her eyes, setting her chin in her hand. She can smell the faint salt that lingers in the breeze from the ocean even from here.

She's all but ready to fall asleep standing up when a loud 'thunk' makes gold eyes pop open and glance around.

The noise comes a second time, and now she can follow it.

Down below her, in the training field that was available to the guardsmen, is Luz.

The human doesn't see her from down there, naturally. She's not even turned to face her.

She's facing a training dummy, sword drawn and held in the ready position. One Amity has seen many times in illustrations of the sword-play books she has read cover to cover multiple times.

Despite her still mixed, negative, feelings about Luz, she can't help but watch. The art has always fascinated her.

The other woman is standing rock still in front of a dummy, it hardly looked like she was breathing, but then she dashed forward, and in one fluid motion strikes through one of the dummy’s straw arms, cleaving it away from the rest of the body with the smooth strike before she bounced backward, movements seamless as she put distance between herself and her stuffed opponent, sword raised again and hopped to the side, perhaps as though avoiding a mock strike.

The moment her foot touched down, she is again moving forward, ducking under the dummy's remaining, stretched out arm and pivoted on her foot a swift pirouette that made Amity dizzy just watching, and in a flash of metal, the blade falls, sundering the entire dummy in two at the chest.

Wide gold eyes blinked at the demonstration of skill.

It seemed at least some of her accusations the other day were baseless.

Luz is certainly not graceless, far from it.

If anything, she moved as smoothly as water in a stream, seamless, smooth.

She watched as Luz sheathed her blade and wiped the back of her arm across her forehead.

She frowned to herself as she stepped away from the railing, hands clenched into the fabric of her dress skirt.

She always told herself that she would be a bigger person than her parents. and it's time she finally practiced what she preached.

[needtherapy]

soaring, carried aloft on the wind...continued 23

An arranged-marriage story for Xichen and Mingjue, in another time and another place.

The Beifeng, the mighty empire of the north, invaded more than a year ago, moving inexorably south and east.

In order to buy peace, the chief of the Lan clan has given the Beifeng warlord a gift, his second oldest son in marriage. However, when Xichen finds out he makes a plan.

He, too, can give a gift to the Beifeng warlord, and he will not regret it.

Part 1: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9 / 10 / 11 / 12 / 13 Part 2: 14 / 15 / 16 / 17 / 18 / 19 / 20 / 21 / 22 / 23 … HOME

It’s complete on AO3 here.

Notes: Check the tags if you’re concerned about the pairings ;)

For translations of the entirely fictitious Beifeng language, you’ll have to scroll to notes. I’m only going to translate something that’s not clear in the text. Sadly, there’s just not any other good way to do it on Tumblr!

Chapter 23

Xichen has never kissed anyone but Mingjue; he is at first too shocked to react, and then an intrigued, analytical side of his mind registers the differences, the unaccountable differences. Guangyao tastes like salt and wine. He is less demanding than Mingjue in some ways, but there is a fierce intensity in him, like a darting fox on the prowl. Instead of the inexorable heat of Mingjue’s passion, Guangyao’s mouth and hands are the tantalizing flutter of wings, a brush of eyelashes across Xichen’s skin. What does it mean, Xichen wonders, that he is not repulsed by kissing Guangyao as he suspects he should be?

Guangyao makes a soft sound of surprise in the back of his throat and slides his arms around Xichen’s neck, pressing forward with his hips, pushing him back further, and Xichen realizes his intent. With a clanging gong of clarity, it stops being an entertaining experiment. Even if he is distantly curious about what it would be like to bed someone else, it is less appealing without Mingjue to share it with. And no abstract reward is worth this risk to Mingjue’s trust, to his family’s treaty or—he is now fairly certain—to Huaisang’s heart. It is no hardship to plant his feet and untangle Guangyao’s arms from around his neck.

“Guangyao, stop. You’re drunk.” Xichen murmurs, cupping his hands around Guangyao’s shoulders and pushing him gently away. Tousled and flushed, Guangyao looks hurt and vulnerable, and Xichen has a flutter of regret. But this close, he can see a faintly purpling mark on Guangyao’s neck, on the soft skin just under his jawline. “And I do not think you truly want me, do you?”

“You underestimate your appeal, Xichen,” Guangyao says, with a charming smile, smoothly shifting from brittle and aching into an openly flirtatious man Xichen is even less familiar with. He skims slim and agile hands over Xichen’s chest, hooking one finger in the neck of Xichen’s tunic. “I am not too drunk to know what I want.”

“What purpose does this serve?” Xichen asks, truly mystified. There seems to be no value in seducing the Ikarahu commander’s lover, and he is not so vain as to imagine Guangyao does anything without value.

Guangyao blinks slowly at him, glancing up through downcast eyelashes, and his smile holds an enticing promise. Xichen isn’t as immune to the seduction as he ought to be and he moves back a step, putting space between him and this dangerous version of Guangyao.

“Perhaps I am lonely, Xichen,” Guangyao says, taking a half-step toward Xichen. “Ipira’orhew Ikira has made it clear he will not be alone with me, which is flattering, but unhelpful. You, though, are beautiful and, I think, not so uninterested.”

He tips his chin up, lips parting slightly, the invitation clear. Xichen is tired of being the only one who doesn’t seem to know the rules or stakes of this game he is somehow a part of. Unhelpful, Guangyao had said. What did he mean by unhelpful? It seems an important key to unlocking this puzzle, so Xichen accepts the offer, letting Guangyao’s lips meet his and trying to ignore the hands circling his waist.

“How could I possibly be helpful to you, Yao-ti?” he murmurs against Guangyao’s mouth, and Guangyao draws back with a frown, his spine straightening. Xichen expects him to lie or deflect, but instead, Guangyao’s response is unfortunately straightforward.

“Help me...” He lifts his chin and looks Xichen in the eyes, which does not reassure Xichen in the least. “Help me find a way to send the Beifeng home or extend the armistice while my father builds an army great enough to defeat them.”

Xichen steps back, this time more firmly, this time with fear. He had so hoped that Guangyao’s aim was only personal and not political, but of course he was wrong. Of course the Jin chief would not send his son to the Ikarahu without an ulterior motive. Xichen’s father had not, although at least his father was forthright with his goal.

“What you are asking of me...Guangyao, it would endanger…” he is unwilling to share the extent of his fear, and uncertain he knows how this Guangyao will react. “It would endanger the treaty with my clan.”

“If we are successful, it will not matter,” Guangyao says, a strange light in his eyes, and his right hand clenches unconsciously. “Please, Xichen. You do not understand. There is nothing else I can do. I am running out of time, and I am running out of options. I can not fail here.”

Xichen does understand, actually. Perhaps they had not intended to kill him, but Xichen suspects Guangyao’s father has already sent him an impatient message about the consequences of failure. Xichen feels a well of sympathy for Guangyao, but...

“What have you done already?”

Guangyao stiffens, and Xichen is so afraid of the answer, whether it is a truth or a lie.

“Nothing. I have done nothing, which is the problem, Xichen. I have sent my father one message, and his answer was...not satisfied. But I can not...there is no delay he will accept.”

Xichen can not imagine how Guangyao could have sent his father a message without Huaisang noticing. But then he knows. It is the only answer that fits.

“The bridge?”

Guangyao picks up a book, an account ledger, sitting neatly on a shelf and turns it over in his hands, brushing fingers across the rough leather, a tight expression pinching the corners of his mouth into a flat line. “The Ikarahu magic is unique, Xichen. Fascinating and powerful in such a different way than our people’s. My father does not think it holds danger. He values only foot soldiers and cavalry, but...he needed to see. It is a factor to consider if he is to build an army.”

Xichen wonders how intentional it was that tricking the Ikarahu into putting their magic on display also cost Guangyao’s father a bridge, a supply route, and provisions.

“Even if your father can launch a successful attack, the Ikarahu will not turn tail and go home without what they came for,” Xichen points out. “They will fight.”

Guangyao slams the book down, his voice turning bitter and angry. “Do you even know what they came for, Xichen? What they started a war for? What your family sold you for?”

Xichen shakes his head. “Does it matter? You know, do you not? Do you think it unimportant?”

He is angry now too, and frustrated by the lies and secrets of war. It seems like a child’s game of keepaway, and Xichen feels like an unwitting pawn. This time, he will not be used.

“You do not have to stay here, Guangyao. Mingjue will send you home in a week, and you can play maka from the comfort of Jinlin Tai. I will not endanger my family on your word, and…” He squares his shoulders, making a choice. “I will not sacrifice my own happiness for the Jin.”

“Then you have killed me as surely as if you speared me through the heart here and now. My father will not accept anything but success from his eldest son. I have no choice but to do whatever it takes. Whatever I must to be welcomed back home.” His tone has a vicious bite, but inexplicably, a tear slides down his cheek, and he turns away.

“Does inheriting the Jin clan mean so much to you?” Xichen asks. “You have another choice. You could choose to stay with people who care about you.” He ventures into deeper water. “You could choose to stay for Huaisang.”

Guangyao whirls on Xichen, bursting with unconcealed outrage. “How could you possibly understand? Your life in the Cloud Recesses was a dream, a sheltered fantasy. A family who loved you, a clan that respected you, a mother whose memory you were allowed to cherish? You have always had the privilege of your status and position, and you have never known what it was to fear for tomorrow.”

The words twist with venom in his mouth, and Xichen is stunned, taken aback by the accusations he doesn’t understand. They are both the privileged eldest sons of their fathers, both given away to buy peace. Of course he has known despair. Of course he has known fear. Yet, Guangyao’s fury is so raw, Xichen senses he’s missing something vital.

“I am as much a subordinate here as you are, and unlike you, I can never go home,” Xichen reminds him, and Guangyao’s brow furrows before he laughs, as brittle and bleak as the winds that shear through the camp.

“Are you truly that ignorant, Xichen? You are the edas ahora, the beloved husband of Ipira’orhew Ikira, and I assure you, he takes that definition seriously. Ahora’ipa is not a military title like Zewu-Jun, it is a bestowed honor, the acknowledgement of a relationship so dear it has a name. Did you think they were only words? That they meant nothing more than sound? Why would you want to go home, when clearly, your fortune here is never ending, aitapaho?”

He bites off the sentence with a jagged snap, turning the endearment into a curse. Xichen ignores both the spiteful words and the words that twist in painful hope. They’re only a distraction, he thinks, a veil to hide the truth. Until now, he hadn’t been sure, but Guangyao’s determination to hurt him, to turn his eyes away, has convinced him.

“Your fortune could be the same as mine, I suspect. Why can you not accept Huaisang’s affection as real?” Xichen touches the mark on Guangyao’s neck, the darkening love bite he recognizes. “Why can you not accept that your feelings matter too?”

Guangyao flushes and meets Xichen’s eyes. “Affection is a liability, Zewu-Jun.”

Xichen has to smile because finally, Guangyao has backed himself into a corner. “If that was true, you would be seducing Huaisang instead of me. I have no power here and no military knowledge. Could it be that you do not want to use him as I know you could?”

The only answer Xichen gets is an irate exhale, and in the silence, Xichen hears something that stops his heart.

The scream of fireworks in battle.

To be concluded in part 3!

[ahhhsami]

Modern korrasami AU. Korra and asami are planting a garden at their new home. They just moved in to a larger home after adopting their 4th child. They needed more room for activities! Featuring Naga and kids rolling around in the dirt "helping".

Four kids, so many, lol. I don’t actually like writing kids much, so none of them have any dialogue :P (AO3 LINK)

Also inspired by @futagosa‘s modern Korrasami art. The pieces are awesome!X ::: X ::: X ::: X ::: X ::: X ::: X

“Korra, no.” Asami starts walking backwards, careful not to trip on the uneven soil. “Guys…” Her eyes flit from Korra and down to each of her kids faces. They each had dirt in their hands, stalking towards her.

They had recently moved into their new home, needing the space. They had discussed adopting a fourth child for some time, but knew that they’d need to move. They couldn’t have four kids and a dog in a three bedroom house. So they made the move. Korra had also been ecstatic when she realized she could finally plant that garden she had always wanted.

Today Korra and the kids had started working on it while Asami was at work. She didn’t have to stay the whole day, so she had come home ready to spend time with her family. Instead she was now being backed into a corner, dressed in her business clothes, that she knew for sure, would not come out of this unscathed.

“This isn’t how I wanted to be welcomed. I thought I’d get some hugs and kisses.”

“Oh, we can still do that,” Korra laughs. Suddenly her and the kids start sprinting towards her. Asami’s about to turn to run away, but instead she’s tumbling to the ground. She lands on her back, her legs resting on Naga’s back.

“Oh come on,” she laughs as Korra and her four kids start rubbing dirt all over her. She laughs as they continue their onslaught with high pitched giggles.

Korra kneels beside her and leans down, kissing her now dirt covered forehead.

“Welcome home.”

“Yeah, such a great welcome,” Asami teases. Asami giggles more as her kids pig pile on top of her. She reaches out to pat each of them on their heads or arms, to show that she cares for each of them. “How has Mommy been with you all? Any complaints Miku, Siku, Nikka, Eda?”

There’s a collective no and more tickling. Asami has tears in her eyes and her stomach hurts as Korra starts tugging the kids off of her. Asami sits up and pulls them all into her arms. Their tiny bodies melt into her and she kisses each one on the tops of their head.

“So we didn’t really get much done,” Korra says honestly. “We ended up just playing in the dirt with Naga.”

Asami looks over the kids head, seeing the pure white dog now looking as if she were naturally brown.

“Alright, let me up.” Asami pushes up from the ground and then kisses Korra on the cheek as the kids tug at her wife’s legs. “I’m gunna go grab something. Be right back.”

Asami leaves her family and grabs the hose that’s in the garage. She hooks it up to the tap. She’s glad that Korra is setting up the garden at the side of the house, so she and the kids can’t see what she’s doing. She screws on the attachment so that the water will spread and be able to spray all of them at once. She turns on the water and sprints around the corner. As soon as she’s close enough, she holds down the trigger and starts spraying them all.

There’s a ton of loud squealing and barking. Everyone’s running around trying to avoid the revenge of the dirt covered Mom.

Asami fakes a maniacal laugh as she starts spraying Korra straight in the face as her wife runs towards her. Korra wraps her arms around Asami’s waist and heaves her over her shoulder.

“Run kids!” she shouts. “I’ve got her.”

Asami puts the hose down Korra’s shirt causing the cold water to hit her back directly. Korra jumps and skips around, but doesn’t let go of her.

“Okay, okay! I give. I give,” Korra eventually says as she puts Asami down.

Asami looks around at her waterlogged wife and kids.

“Well at least you all aren’t covered in dirt anymore,” Asami says positively. It’s now just turned into mud. “Seriously we need to spray everyone down before we go inside.” She points the hose at Naga. “Especially you!” The dog’s head sags and she hides behind Korra’s legs. The kids follow Naga’s lead and join the dog.

“I have to agree with Mom,” Korra says as she starts corralling them over to Asami.

“Who’s first?” Asami asks. “We could go oldest first.”

“Sounds good to me.”

Korra pushes Siku towards Asami. She then sprays him down and gives him a kiss to his forehead.

“Thanks for taking the lead,” Asami praises him.

Eda is next, then Miku, and then their youngest Nukka. The real struggle is Naga though. Korra has to chase down the dog and then hold her down. Asami effectively gets Korra as wet as the dog in the process.

When Korra lets go of the dog, she holds out her hand for the hose. “Your turn.”

Asami sighs, but resigns to her fate. She hands the hose over and is soon drenched head to toe. Her clothes cling to her as Korra and her usher the kids into the house. They’d spend the rest of time before dinner giving them baths and then Naga.

[drabbles-of-writing]

Be Alright

This is part of my Four Years AU

AO3

Masterpost

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Luz was never known to be overly cautious.

She was reckless, impulsive, and an overall disaster of a human.

Titan, Amity loved her.

It was almost routine at this point, how it would go. Luz would jump into oncoming danger, others would (sometimes) follow, and she’d limp out with a big grin and a cheer about how she’d shown them, whether or not she’d actually won. It was no surprise that Amity had taken up healing as a secret secondary track.

It was always a gamble how things would go. Sometimes Luz would only have a few scratches, other times she’d be clinging to consciousness by a thread, moments away from breaking Eda’s house rule of nobody jeopardizing the rebellion by going to a public hospital.

But they usually had it handled. Luz would bounce back with twice the enthusiasm, even if her scars told a different story.

Despite all of this, Amity knew she’d never get used to seeing a scar in the making. 

,

“Who brought fireworks?”

“Ed!”

“Worth it!”

Explosions rung out, painting the emptying Night Market in scattered debris and bright flashes. Amity ducked under a broken roof, cursing as another explosion sounded off further away, accompanied with whoops and cheers.

“It’s a miracle none of them are dead yet,” Came a hiss from beside her.

She whirled around, relaxing when she saw it was just Willow appearing by her hiding place, vines wrapped all along her arms. Out of everyone, Amity was sure she would come out the most unscathed.

“I’m convinced Eda’s already died a few times,” Amity said, tilting her head to the sounds of explosions. “But she keeps coming back. My bet’s that she’s on life seven now.”

“That would explain a lot,” Willow agreed, peering out of their hiding place. “Dawns breaking, we should get out of here.” She added, raising her head.

“Already?” Amity lifted her head as well, seeing that, indeed, there was light seeping around the Market.

“Think you can wrangle Luz without setting more things on fire?” Willow asked, glancing at her with a smirk.

“If anyone is going to set things on fire, it’s Luz.” Amity said matter-of-factly, wincing as she heard shouts and a crash from elsewhere in the Market. “I can promise my best,” She said simply.

“That’s the best I could ask for,” Willow chuckled, stepping out of their hiding place. “Good luck.”

“I’ll need it,” Amity muttered, peering around the debris as she heard another explosion sound off. “Titan knows who she's going to piss off this time.”

,

Amity felt like she shouldn’t have been surprised.

And yet, she still felt a wave of exhaustion just finding situations like these.

Luz stood atop a pile of debris, swinging her staff like a club and knocking it against the heads of those in the Night Market who had stayed to attempt to fight her and the rest of the Owl House residents. Aside from a few scrapes and cuts to her hands and cloak, she wasn’t any worse for wear. Even her owl mask was relatively intact.

Eda was somewhere at the bottom of the pile with King, also giving their attackers a hard time. Amity was almost about to be surprised at how tame Luz was being...before she combined a firework and ice glyph and shot it towards an attacker, flinging them back with an explosion and into a busted stand with a gleeful cheer.

Amity sighed and calmly summoned a regular sized abomination, sending it off behind her towards other assailants that had assumed she couldn’t hear them approaching. In boots covered in metal. Honestly, she wondered how nobody had caught them yet.

Luz swung her staff at a different demon, grinning as she turned and scanned the area. Near instantly, her eyes landed on Amity, who was a good few meters away from her trash pile.

“Hey, Ams!” Luz shouted across the battleground, frantically waving her hand, her smile somehow growing.

Amity couldn’t help but return a smile of her own, her ears flicking back as her features softened. 

There was a bark behind her and she snapped out of it, glancing back as Barcus ran by, giving her a tired look.

“Oh don’t you start,” Amity warned, flashing a fang.

Barcus rolled his eyes and rushed off around a broken stand vanishing from sight. Though the sounds of yelling from those of the Night Market confirmed he was still as much in the fight as everyone else.

“Hey,”

Amity yelped at the sudden noise by her ear and spun around, almost falling over before an arm holding a staff hooked around her back and stopped her falling.

“Oops,” Luz smiled sheepishly, her head hovering over Amity’s as her shoulders hunched. While the top half of her face was hidden by her mask, the eyes were very expressive. “Sorry, wrong time for surprises?”

“That’s not going to stop you,” Amity grumbled, getting to her feet as Luz pulled her staff back and thumped the blunt end against the ground. “I was just with Willow, we need to--”

Luz’s head tilted away from Amity’s face for barely a moment before she withdrew a fire glyph from her sleeve and activated it. She chucked it right by Amity’s head, almost grazing her ear.

Amity turned barely half a second later, watching as the fire glyph made contact with a demon trying to sneak up on them. This one hadn’t worn metal boots and Amity hadn’t heard them approaching. Smart. She’d see if she could get the Emperor's Coven to help her arrest that one.

“Sorry about that, you were saying?” Luz said, looking right back down at Amity. She assumed so, at least. The eyes of her mask were more like pale circles than actual eyeholes. 

“The Coven, Luz.” Amity said, also unphased. “It’s dawn, the Coven will be here soon. You know how they like to come early to catch people trying to flee the Night Market.”

“Aren’t you also in the Emperor’s Coven?” Luz reminded, unconcerned. “Can’t you make them leave or something?”

“I’m the leader of my small, and remarkably passive,” Amity enunciated, ignoring explosions sounding off. “Group of the Emperor’s Coven. They don’t come here. Other guards do. I have absolutely no power here.”

“I wouldn’t call Archie breaking Jerbo’s nose passive,”

“Oh you have not seen the kind of guards they have by the Toes.”

“Shame,” Luz leaned against her staff. “Perhaps you could show me sometime?” She asked, the eyes of her mask moving in a sort of eyebrow wiggle.

“Luz,” Amity sighed, clasping the palms of her hands together and pressing it against her nose as she mentally reeled herself in to keep her composure. “Asking me on a date in the middle of a battle is bordering on impressively bold and tacky, which is a line I didn’t know even existed.”

“What can I say? I like making new lines.” Luz beamed widely. “Does this mean I can keep kicking in teeth?” She asked hopefully.

“Absolutely not,” Amity crossed her arms. “I just said the Coven is going to arrive. Do you want to explain to the rebellion you need another prison breakout because nearly everyone here got captured for not leaving?”

“Tell you what,” Luz said, passing her staff to her other hand. “You can grab everyone who’d rather not be here when the Coven arrive while Eda and I finish up here.” She suggested casually.

“Luz you're going to get captu--”

“Oi, there she is!”

Luz and Amity calmly turned their heads, spotting that over the crest of the fallen stands, with the sunrise behind them, was a small band of demons and witches. A little less than a dozen or so. They all looked a little beat up, but many still sported a decent amount of weapons and, likely, magic.

“Oh you’ve got to be kidding me,” Amity groaned, leaning her head back.

“Well, since we’re already here…” Luz said, nudging her shoulder. “I mean, it's pretty bad form to back down from a challenge…”

Amity, ignoring the gang approaching them (who clearly thought they had the high-ground at were taking their sweet time, the idiots), gave Luz a half-hearted glare. Luz was still giving her a hopeful look, giddy with excitement. And Amity had to admit, it had been a while since they’d fought an enemy on the same side. Publicly, at least.

“Fine,” Amity relented, sagging as Luz perked up. “But as soon as they’re gone we are leaving.”

“As you wish, Miss Blight.” Luz said with a low, dramatic bow, mocking the title Amity’s Coven would give her.

“Only you could get away with that,” Amity muttered, finally turning her gaze back to the group of demons and witches, who had spent the last few minutes pulling up weapons from the debris and scattering to ‘hide,’ if you could call it that.

Snowy finally decided to show up, flying around Luz before landing on the end of her staff. Luz stood from her bow and gripped her staff with two hands. Amity summoned her own, already determining where to place three different abominations in the area.

“Shall we?” Luz said, giving Amity a coy look and gesturing broadly to the approaching witches.

“Try not to get your head blown off,” Amity said casually, offering the tiniest of smiles. Luz’s staff began to glow as she took a step back and braced herself, a springboard moments away from uncoiling.

“No promises!”

,

It was hardly a fight.

But Luz didn’t seem to mind. She never did. She was just thrilled to be part of one.

Amity would’ve been bored were Luz not there. One could count on her to make things interesting. Granted you had no say on if it was for better or for worse.

Amity swung her staff, her abomination following and lumbering right into a cluster of demons. She had multiple up and running around, and she’d admit, it was a little tiring. But she’d done worse before, and their assailants were almost gone.

Dawn was well upon them now, the light casting long shadows. Amity had lost track of who was or wasn’t around them anymore. She figured Willow had already left, and likely dragged a few others with her. She’d get yelled at later, she knew it.

There was a holler to her left and she turned towards it, flicking her wrist to move an abomination out of the way.

A spire of ice shot up from the ground, sending three witches flying off to who-knows-where. Luz’s head popped around from behind it, laughing as Snowy flew at another witch trying to run at her. In the same movement, Luz drew a plant and lightning glyph. She threw the plant glyph at one of the larger demons around the ice spire, wrapping his arm in vines. She ran by and slapped the lightning glyph on the vines, causing them to erupt and explode as the demon yelled and bolted.

Amity shook her head, glancing at her own palisman, Fang, sitting on her staff and giving her a bored expression that could rival Willow’s.

“Hey, at least she's effective.” Amity shrugged. Fang only huffed and clung tighter to the top of her staff, melding into it until he looked like nothing more than a fancy wooden carving.

There was a crack and a shout, and Amity looked back just in time to see a demon stumble away from getting Luz’s staff whacked right into their face. Amity quickly moved an abomination towards them to get them stuck, should they try to retaliate. She did a double check on the rest of her abominations, which were thankfully beginning to drive away the remainders of their attackers and beginning to melt into the ground when they were done doing so.

“And you better stay out!” Luz shouted after a demon behind her, waving her fist in the air. 

Amity was about to call out to her, but sounds of rapid footsteps grabbed her attention. She whirled around, summoning a small abomination as a shield before a witch crashed right into it. It took all of two seconds for Amity to recognize their white cloak and gray mask before she recoiled and cursed under her breath.

“Titan I hope you weren’t paying attention,” She mumbled before drawing a circle in the air. One of her other abominations turned into goo and quickly fused with the abomination in front of her, caging in the guard as they yelped and thrashed about.

Amity flicked her wrist and her abomination lumbered off, taking the guard with them.

They had run out of time.

“Luz, we gotta go!” Amity yelled, her shoulders tense as she searched for her human.

Luz had ended up a good few meters away on a slope, hollering after a few running demons. She glanced back at Amity’s shout, and seeing the worry on her face, wasn’t about to argue with her.

“Well, it was fun while it lasted.” Luz shrugged regretfully. “I suppose this is where I bid you adieu” She said, giving Amity a cheeky bow. In the same movement of her bow, she had hooked her hand into her mask and easily took it off and held it out in a hand. It was mainly for show, anyway.

Amity huffed and raised a brow, despite her amused smile. Luz lifted her head slightly and gave a teasing wink before standing back to her feet.

The witch, who hadn’t paid attention to anything else going on, saw a sudden movement from behind Luz. She could only process the mild annoyance at having to patch up another bruise on Luz before she spoke.

“Behind y--”

In barely a second, the demon behind Luz wrapped an arm in front of her and tugged her back, startling the human. In the same moment, before any of them could react, they brought up their other talon. There was the flash of a blade between their fingers before said blade was jabbed straight into Luz’s throat.

Amity froze. Luz froze. Everything seemed to go still. The blade was dug high up on Luz’s neck, blood already coating the object and beginning to leak around the demon's claws. Blood trickled down Luz’s neck and began to stain the collar of her shirt.

And, just as fast as it froze, time snapped back at a jolting speed.

There was a shriek overhead and a dash of white. Snowy reappeared and slammed her body into the demon's face, flashing her talons and screeching. The demon threw the blade to the side, yelping and stumbling back to try and throw off the palisman.

Blood gushed from Luz’s neck, and upon finally being released, the human gasped as her hand flew up to her wound. She stumbled, having nothing holding her up. Her knees shook and buckled, sending her tumbling to the ground, still grasping at her neck.

Amity could only stare, her eyes wide and pupils so narrowed they practically vanished. She visibly flinched and broke out of her state when Luz’s body hit the ground.

“Luz!” She screamed. A scratchy, shrill sound that even Amity didn’t know she was capable of.

She was running before the name was out of her mouth. She suddenly knew what tunnel vision was like. Her focus was solely on Luz, collapsed on the ground. Her feet seemed to hook and stumble against every little pebble as she rushed up the slope, her heart in her ears. Everything else was fuzzy and irrelevant, and they faded into background noise.

Amity was at Luz’s side far too soon and still too late for her liking. She stared down at her, her throat going dry.

Luz was gasping and pressing both hands to her throat, whether it was due to the pain or some part of her conscious enough to try and stop the blood flow, she couldn't tell. Blood pooled out, creating almost a sort of halo around her head. 

But her eyes, oh Titan her eyes.

They were blown wide, and were so white it looked almost unnatural. Her pupils had shrunk to sizes that she’d learned from Luz should not be physically possible for humans. A constant side-effect of shots she had gotten years ago.

Her eyes stared off into nothing, glazed but still so full of pure, unbridled terror. Luz was not someone who was scared easily, and seeing such an unmasked horror from her was nothing short of unsettling. Her eyes darted about as she wheezed for air, and she looked as though she couldn’t tell where she was.

Then those eyes landed on Amity.

Her face barely changed, although her eyes did. Her pupils dilated, ever so slightly. She locked those eyes with Amity as she gurgled through the blood bubbling in her throat. Amity could see her own petrified, still expression reflected back at her in those eyes. She was like a deer in the headlights, and she could feel her hands going numb.

One of Luz’s hands left her wound and she reached out, coated and dripping with blood as her fingers grazed Amity’s pant leg, weakly trying to grab at her.

Finally, though now that she looks back, the entire experience probably only lasted a few seconds, Amity snapped out of her trance.

“Luz,” Amity’s voice cracked, startlingly quiet as she dropped to her knees.

She panicked, and she knew she was. She looked over Luz rapidly as she wracked her brain for what to do. She knew healing magic, for Titan’s sake!

Instead, all she could think of to do was to press down on Luz’s throat, taking over as her girlfriends own hands started to shake and fall. Her eyelids drooped slightly and Amity felt a violent spike of fear at the sight.

“Viney,” Amity croaked, shaking her head as she wrapped an arm around Luz and pulled her closer, placing her head on her lap in some feeble attempt to elevate the wound, even though that wouldn’t do anything for a neck wound because of course it wouldn’t.

“Viney, Viney!” Amity cried, raising her head and frantically looking around the debris and dying--wrong word--chaos around her. “Where’s Viney?” She yelled pitifully, tightening her hold on Luz.

Yes, Viney could help. She was a far better healer than Amity. She’d healed bad injuries all the time. She just needed Viney and everything would be fine.

“Where are you?” Amity wailed, her panic rising to near hysteria as she searched the area with blurry, tear-filled eyes. She wasn’t sure who specifically she was calling for now. “Please, please she…”

Amity risked a glance down at Luz. She was now breathing through laboured breaths, raspy and shaking like a building that was about to collapse. Her eyelids were droopy, but she was stubbornly keeping them open as she lightly tried to hold her hands against her neck.

“There you guys are! What--”

Amity jerked her head up, pulling Luz closer to her chest as her ears dipped low.

Eda.

It was Eda. She was going to be okay. They were going to be okay.

Eda faltered, her confused, but still cocky, grin falling as she looked over Amity. Sitting on her knees, covered in blood that wasn’t her own, holding Luz like she was going to slip away from her at any moment.

“Kid!” Eda exclaimed, rushing forward and skidding to her knees so fast she likely cut them up as she grabbed Luz.

Amity was too numb to stop her, letting Eda take her as she stared off. Eda turned Luz over, sharply inhaling at the sight and her pupils narrowing and ears flicking back. Amity felt selfish for being glad that Eda had to see this, too. Because now Eda could take Luz, and she’d be fine, and tomorrow this day would be a funny story they’d tell the rebellion on a slow day.

Snowy had shown up again, though Amity couldn’t remember when. She had landed beside Eda, chirping and flapping her wings frantically as Eda scooped up Luz in her arms. She stood, momentarily forgetting about Amity as she yelled words the younger witch could no longer make out.

Her vision became splotchy and her ears felt fuzzy. Everything felt like a blur, and she was barely aware of being lifted off the ground. But she could still acutely hear the frantic beating of her heart and feel the stickiness of the blood drying on her clothes and hands.

,

When Amity finally came to, she was in the Owl House.

It wasn’t a consciousness she eased into, but rather was jerked out of by nothing in particular. She simply suddenly snapped up, her eyes shiny with emotion again as she looked around.

She was sitting on the couch, and Lilith was beside her, obviously lost in thought. Willow, Barcus and Gus were the only ones in the room, all of them sitting on the floor around the table in front of the couch.

She felt something warm in her hands and looked down, realizing she was holding a cup of tea. Lilith must’ve made it, considering how obsessed she was. Likely one of the kinds that helped keep her calm, she used those a lot.

She stared at her hands in fascination, seeing that they were no longer covered in blood. And for a moment, she thought she’d imagined it all.

But if she looked closely, she could still see the small bits and splatters of dried red liquid on the back of her hands. And when she looked down at herself, she saw that while her cloak and extra layers had been removed, her pant legs were still covered in dried blood and her shirt had specks of it that had soaked through.

Amity felt like she was going to be sick.

“Are you back?”

She blinked, forcing her eyes away from herself as she looked to the coffee table in front of her. Gus was sitting next to it, leaning his arms on it. He was looking at her now, face full of concern.

“Come--” Amity stopped and cleared her throat, hating how strained it sounded. “Come again?”

“You, um,” Gus gestured to his face with his hand. “Had a bit of a...gone look, for a while. You just, I dunno, you were…” He shook his head and swallowed. “H-how are you doing?”

He was nervous, clearly so. And seeing Gus as such did little to ease her own nerves. At least it was only nervousness, Amity wasn’t sure how she’d react if he was full-blown freaking out.

“I…” Amity blinked a few times, trying to get her mind in order. She was aware of everyone else in the room looking up towards her. “I’m--I’m fine.” She said, looking down at her hands again before sharply turning away. Right, the blood.

“Where, where’s Luz?” She asked, looking around the room. She tried to push down the growing feeling of unease, she didn’t trust herself not to hurl if she thought about it too much.

“She’s upstairs,” Lilith said, frowning slightly. “You saw Eda carry her up there with Viney.”

“I-I did?” Amity said, staring at her mentor.

“Yeah, you wanted to go with them.” Gus nodded, looking increasingly worried. “You don’t remember? You were freaking out and Willow had to calm you down.”

Amity turned to Willow at that, like just looking at her would suddenly explain everything. Willow was sitting at the other end of the coffee table, looking tired. That was nothing new, but her looking ready to fall asleep where she sat wasn’t. She met Amity’s gaze with exhaustion, cringing slightly and glancing away.

“Oh,” Amity said, gripping her cup of tea a little tighter. “I...I don’t remember that.” She said, shrinking in on herself. “Is Luz okay?” She asked, her voice wavering slightly.

Nobody met her gaze. Aside from Barcus, who lay underneath the table, for some reason. He met her gaze for a moment before his ears flicked back and he growled something under his breath.

“I’m going to check on her,” Amity said, pushing back the way it felt like her heart dropped as she sharply put her cup down on the table and stood up.

Her head felt dizzy as she did so, and it didn’t help that everyone started talking over each other as soon as Amity spoke. She stumbled for a moment before Lilith grabbed her shoulder and awkwardly pushed her back onto the couch.

“Absolutely not,” She said sternly. “We barely got you cleaned up, and still need to get you out of that.” She said, gesturing to the stained clothes Amity still bore. “Eda only took her up there a few minutes ago, we were simply catching our breath before you came to, it's why not everyone is here yet.”

“I know healing magic!” Amity protested, shrugging off Lilith’s hand. “I can help Viney.” She said, getting up again.

“You are in no condition to help Luz right now,” Lilith insisted, getting up just as quickly and lightly touching Amity’s arm as she stood in front of her. “Not after all that.” She said, her voice softening.

“What would you know?” Amity growled, more harshly than she meant. “You weren’t there. Nobody here was!” She hissed, resisting the urge to throw her hands in the air.

“No, we weren’t.” Lilith agreed, and the fact Lilith had done so with no argument had Amity shutting her mouth instantly. “But Eda told us where she found you, and judging from how you reacted and looked when they brought you back, I highly doubt seeing Luz in her current state is going to help anyone.”

Amity wanted to protest, she really did. She wanted to shove Lilith aside and storm up to wherever Luz was and do all she can to make her look up at her with eyes that didn’t get burned into her mind like a nightmare and a smile that didn’t have blood gushing out of it. But she knew she’d never make it far. Lilith was stubborn, and Willow would surely help keep Amity downstairs. There was no fighting Willow.

And, if she were honest with herself, she doubted she’d be able to do anything, anyway. Eda was probably already panicking, and the mere thought of seeing Luz laying on a cot with bandages around her neck and curled into a ball made her knees feel close to giving out.

“Luz will be okay,” Lilith continued, moving her hand up from Amity’s arm to the shoulder. “Viney said the blade entered too high,” She explained. “It didn’t hit any main arteries. She’s made it through a lot, this’ll be barely any different.” She assured, giving a tense smile.

If Amity had the energy, she’d argue that the fact everyone was anxiously waiting around didn’t exactly give any good signs. But right now, she wanted to do anything but dwell on today.

“Come on,” Willow said, pushing herself to her feet. “I have spare clothes here, we should get you out of that mess,” She said, offering a hand for Amity to take.

Amity stared down at it for a moment before her shoulders slumped and she took it, letting Willow guide her out of the living room. Gus and Barcus gave her pitying looks as they left through the door by the stairs.

“I’m sorry,” Amity mumbled, bringing her free hand close to her chest, where it was currently fisted. “I didn’t get her out of there in time, I humored her and now--”

“Hey,” Willow said sharply, turning around and narrowing her eyes. “I know how Luz is, this isn’t your fault.” She said, lowering her head so she could keep eye contact with Amity. “Something like this was bound to happen, anyway.” She mumbled bitterly.

“But I…” Amity trailed off, her throat feeling dry as she broke away from Willow’s gaze and glue her gaze to the ground, her hands trembling.

“It’s alright,” Willow said, gently squeezing her hand. “Luz will be fine, and so will you. Knowing her, she’d probably fight the Bat Queen herself if you so much as said you vaguely missed her.” She added, trying to joke.

“I know,” Amity said, looking up as her ears flicked down. “And that's what scares me.”

,

Amity was on her fifth cup of tea when the door to the Owl House had opened.

Barely an hour had passed, with no word from anyone upstairs. Barcus insisted that if Eda wasn’t worrying about having to risk a hospital visit, Luz was bound to be fine.

Nobody had left the house since Luz had been whisked away, leaving none of them able to tell the others they hadn’t picked up on the way back about the situation.

So the laughing and jeering that greeted them when the door opened was a bit jarring.

“Ey, there they are!” Edric grinned, walking in as he shoulder-bumped Jerbo. “I can’t believe you guys left us!”

“Ed almost got caught by the Coven,” King said, sitting up on Jerbo’s shoulders. “I rescued him.” He added proudly, a paw on his chest.

“You did not,” Jerbo shook his head with a smile. “What was the rush? We thought you’d all been carted off to prison again.” He asked, looking around the room.

Exhausted, stricken faces greeted them. You could see the joy die from their eyes, replaced with bone-chilling worry.

“What happened?” Emira demanded, stepping in and closing the door.

“Luz got hurt,” Lilith said calmly. “Badly.” She glanced to Amity beside her, who was staring at her tea. “Amity witnessed it.” She added, quieter and full of pity.

The twins looked to each other with similar faces of fear before they rushed in, moving to crouch beside their sister. Lilith silently moved to the furthest side of the couch so Emira could sit next to Amity. Jerbo and King glanced to each other before hurrying to the others on the floor, talking in hushed tones.

“She’ll be okay,” Amity said, her eyes flickering between her siblings. “I’ve learned from you two that things often look a lot worse than they actually are.” She added with an obviously forced lighter tone, giving a small smile.

“Oh, Amity…” Edric trailed off, his ears pressing back. “What...is…”

“Wasn’t fun,” Amity said, continuing her fake tone. “I can tell you that. I think I washed my hands raw.” She said, looking down at where said rubbed-red hands were shaking as they held her cup. “She’s--” She broke off, swallowing thickly and refusing to let her voice break. “She’s with Viney and Eda.” 

“If you start using humor to cope I’m going to punch you.” Emira warned, a growl forming before dying out. 

“Hypocrite,” Amity rolled her eyes, taking a sip of her tea.

“Well hey, if Viney’s with Luz, then she’s going to be up and running in barely a day.” Edric said, quickly changing the topic away from them. “She's dealt with all kinds of ridiculous injuries, especially from Em.”

“Oh your one to talk,” Emira snapped. “If Jerbo was a healer--”

“Behave,” Lilith called sharply, giving the twins a warning glare from the other side of the couch.

“Yes, mom.” Edric mumbled under his breath so she couldn’t hear.

“Hey, Luz is tough.” Emira said, wrapping an arm around Amity’s shoulders and pulling her against her side. “A little scrap will barely graze her. It’ll be a joke within hours, just you wait.”

Amity raised a hand to her neck, lightly rubbing it as she glanced to her sister, grimacing before looking away.

“It was here,” She said quietly, almost inaudible. “They got her here.”

The twins tensed. Edric squeezed Amity’s arm and she slumped, letting Emira keep her upright.

Neither of them spoke after that.

,

It was late afternoon when they heard the sound of footsteps on the stairs. Everyone's heads were up in a flash, waiting in bated breath.

It was Eda.

She looked drained, a hand running down her face. She paused at the doorway, looking out into the living room with anxious faces staring back at her.

“She’s okay,” Eda said, and it was like the weight of the sky had been lifted off their shoulders.

Amity almost fell off the couch by how fast and heavily she sagged in relief. Emira’s arm around her was the only thing keeping her stable.

“She’ll need rest for a few days, but Luz will be back to normal in no time.” Eda said, walking into the room. “Viney’s doing a final once over,” She added, catching Emira’s eye.

“Can we see her?” Gus asked, standing up.

“Kids exhausted, you can’t all see her at once.” Eda deadpanned. “Viney already almost bit my head off for staying that long,” She mumbled under her breath. “One at a time, and honestly, Viney might yell at you to leave her alone within the hour.”

Amity was on her feet in seconds, her cup forgotten on the table. She took a step towards the stairs before pausing and turning back to Gus.

Sure, Amity had seen what happened to Luz but...he was Luz’s friend, too. He and Willow were still her closest. And...well, she couldn’t help but feel guilty as she met his eyes.

Gus seemed to understand and smiled, sitting back down on the floor beside Willow.

“Go ahead,” He said, and Amity once again wondered how his emotions could almost flip on a dimel. “But I call seeing Luz next.” He said, looking back to the others with a joking glare that couldn’t frighten a squirrel.

“Yeah, good luck fighting for that.” Willow taunted, punching his arm as he yelped and gave a sheepish smile.

“Don’t break anything,” Amity warned, but smiled back as she nodded to her siblings and made her way to the stairs.

As she passed Eda, the witch reached out for her. Amity paused, watching her. Eda seemed to hesitate for a moment before patting her shoulder and moving away, towards where the rest of their family began to discuss who-knows-what, all the tension having left them.

Feeling a bit lighter, Amity made her way up the stairs.

,

She hung outside of Luz’s room for a moment, scuffing at the floor with her feet. She could hear shuffling and muffled voices through the door, and wondered the consequences of busting in when Viney was still packing up.

The door opened and Amity jumped. Viney stepped out, looking surprised for a moment before relaxing with a smile.

“You know, she was just asking to see you and the others.” She chuckled, re-situating her medical bag under her arm. “Try not to--never mind.”

Viney only shook her head as Amity pushe right by her, rushing into Luz’s room. Viney couldn’t blame her, and only shrugged and shut the door behind her.

Amity paused for a moment to take in the scene, suddenly remembering she probably should’ve mentally prepared herself better.

Luz was laying on her mattress Eda had upgraded her too, under a single sheet. She was laying on her back with one hand hanging off and brushing the floor. The other was situated on her stomach. She was still wearing her outfit from earlier, but her purple cloak had been discarded on the other side of the room, and Luz had been changed out of her surely bloodsoaked shirt. She wore one of her gray tank tops instead, and her eyes were partially closed.

For a brief, horrifying second, Amity was reminded of a corpse in an open casket.

That was, until Luz saw who had entered the room.

“Ami--” Luz’s gleeful cry was cut off by her hacking loudly, coughing as she sat up and pressed a hand to her throat.

“Are you okay?” Amity worried, rushing over and standing over Luz, reaching out a hand.

“Fine,” Luz wheezed, lifting her free hand to reassure Amity. “Voice is just gonna be off for a little while.” She said, her voice scratchy as she rubbed at her neck once before dropping her hand.

And once it moved away, Amity finally got to see the bandages wrapped tightly around her. True to Lilith’s word, they were much higher up than a typical throat-slit. On Luz, it was just below her chin, right where her neck met her head. Though it still didn’t stop Amity from wincing at the sight of the gauzes.

Luz noticed and deflated slightly. She attempted to shake it off and grabbed Amity’s hand, pulling it closer and encasing both of her hands over it. Which was an easy feat, considering they were noticeably bigger.

“I’m glad you're okay,” She said in her strained voice, looking up at Amity with a smile that the witch lingered on a moment too long to be natural.

“I’m not the one you should be worrying about,” Amity said, a little sternly as she pressed her ears back. “If anything, I should be saying that I’m glad you're okay.”

“Aw, you care.” Luz teased, sticking out her tongue. Amity gave her a half-hearted glare and she faltered, her smile falling along with her eyes.

“I just,” Luz swallowed, biting the inside of her cheek as she noticed Amity’s unease. “I’m--I remember what you looked like when I,” Luz hesitated, clearing her hoarse voice as a hole opened in Amity’s gut. “I...I was worried about you.” She mumbled, lowering her head.

Amity stared at Luz’s hunched form for a few moments. Then, tentatively, like she was expecting Luz to bolt, she lifted her other hand and stepped right to the edge of the bed. Luz spared a glimpse up as Amity wrapped her hand around Luz’s back and pulled her closer.

Luz drooped into her hold, thumping her head against Amity’s chest and squeezing her hand tighter. Amity lightly ran her hand through the hair at the base of Luz’s head, which she also rested her chin on and rocked subtly to the side, shutting her eyes.

They stayed like that for a while, letting the memories of the day roll over them before forcing it back, all in silence. Amity was sure Luz could tell she was fighting back crying again, and she knew Luz wasn’t as alright as she acted. Not from how her hands left her own and clutched tightly at the girls sides, pulling at her baggy shirt and pressing her face close.

“I was scared for you,” Luz finally broke the silence, her raspy, painful-sounding voice almost inaudible. “You looked like you’d seen the end of the world.”

“Well, I was certainly scared for you.” Amity said matter-of-factly, trying to cover up her disturbance at Luz having remembered more than she thought. “Don’t worry about it, I’m alright now.”

“That’s the worst lie I’ve ever heard in my life.”

“Oh, and you're a master at figuring out liars now?” Amity snarked, looking down at Luz and meeting Luz’s eyes, which were wonderfully normal and not full of panic.

“I’m good with you,” Luz said cheerfully in her stupid scratchy voice that Amity hated she kind of liked. “Your right ear moves when you lie, when you forget about it.”

Damnit. Edric and Emira had always remembered that tick of hers and Amity had learned to stop herself from flicking said ear whenever she was lying. But every now and again, she forgot.

“That proves nothing,” Amity said stiffly, turning her head away. “I move my ear when I’m annoyed all the time.” 

“That's your left ear,” Luz said with gleeful factuality. “I noticed.” She said proudly, giving Amity an expression like she’d solved a puzzle and was looking for praise.

“That you did,” Amity mumbled, ruffling Luz’s hair so it’d fall into her eyes. She needed to cut that sometime. “You're very annoying like that.”

“Too bad I’m your annoyance,” Luz teased, giving Amity a smug wink.

“Woe is me,” Amity said in a bleak voice, laying her head on Luz’s to hide the blush creeping up her face. “I’m going to be suffering for the rest of my days.”

“C’mon, I do that all on my own--” Luz broke off in a fit of coughs, doubling over and releasing Amity.

The witch stepped back, eyes flashing with fear as got to her knees beside the bed and laid her hand on Luz’s leg. She shoved down the helpless feeling she thought would’ve been gone by now as Luz coughed and rubbed at her bandaged neck.

“Sorry,” Luz wheezed, her fit finally calming down.

“It’s alright,” Amity said, her voice quiet as well. “You should rest your voice.”

“No, I-” Luz flinched, rubbing at her neck more before shaking her head. “I’m sorry for scaring you,” She rasped. “You said we had to leave, and I didn’t, and--”

“Hey, hey,” Amity chided softly, lifting to hold Luz’s free hand. “It was an accident, I don’t blame you. Nobody does.” 

“I know, but…” Luz sighed, her shoulders slumping. She leaned forward, lightly knocking her forehead against Amity’s as she closed her eyes for a second before opening them. She kept her eyes locked on where Amity was still holding her hand.

“I’m a mess,” Luz mumbled, stroking her thumb over the back of Amity’s hand. “And I should’ve...I dunno...I just…” She groaned and finally met Amity’s gaze. “I’m sorry. For a lot of things. And I wish that it,” She gestured around them with her other hand. “Didn’t end up like this. You know? This is a rebellion, I thought it’d be fun. They always make rebellions sound so cool and how you’d always escape them okay and be heroes.”

“So, Azura, then?” Amity lifted a brow.

“Don’t patronize me,” Luz huffed good-naturedly. “Look, I’m just...sorry. That I got hurt, that someone else could’ve gotten hurt, that you're stuck in this mess, that…” Luz muttered and blinked her eyes rapidly, like Amity somehow couldn’t see they were beginning to water. “God, I think I’m still high off those pain medications.” She groaned, covering her face with her hand.

Amity blinked before giving a small smile. She moved her head back slightly and raised her other hand, reaching out for Luz and cupping her cheek. Luz immediately leaned into it and slipped her hand off her face to hold Amity’s in its place.

“I’ve been stuck before,” She said, pointedly keeping her gaze away from Luz’s bandages. “And if this is your idea of stuck, then you better believe I’m not leaving.”

Luz gave a small half-smile, leaning further into her hand. Amity brushed her thump behind Luz’s eye, looking over her with mixed feelings. Luz wasn’t one to admit her fears so openly, and even Amity could tell how she tried to cover up her awkwardness at being open. Perhaps taking a page out of Luz’s book wasn’t a good idea, but she couldn't be bothered to worry about herself right then.

Amity leaned forward, catching Luz’s minor surprise for only a second before she placed a kiss on the side of Luz’s mouth, where a small scar went right over it. She remembered when Luz had gotten that scar, and she recalled how at the time it seemed like nothing more than an inconvenient cut. 

Amity pulled back only a moment later, almost snickering at the sight of Luz. She was flushed and looked like a deer in the--nope. Wrong analogy.

Amity hoped her quick cover-up smile was enough to make up for her sudden shift. 

Luz eventually reeled herself in and her expression shifted to that of a pout, letting her hand fall from Amity’s as she thumped her head on her girlfriends shoulder.

“Cheater,” She whined, her voice muffled.

Amity giggled, relaxing as she wrapped an arm around Luz and held her close. It was an awkward position, but she couldn’t find it in her to care.

She remained there for a moment, laying her cheek against Luz’s shoulder. She glanced to the side, looking over the bandages around her throat. And for a moment she saw just how deep that blade dug into the human’s skin.

“It’s going to scar over,” She found herself saying, feeling Luz stiffen in her arms. “Isn’t it?”

Luz was silent for a few moments, and in those moments Amity feared she shouldn’t have spoken. Luz had never been one to dislike her scars until...well, she’d gotten a rather nasty one from Eda she’d rather forget. But then Luz exhaled, sounding far more tired than she had been before.

“Yeah,” She croaked. “Viney said it would.”

“I’m sorry,” Amity murmured.

“It’s okay,” Luz said, resting her chin on Amity’s shoulder so she could be heard better. “This isn’t my first and it won’t be my last.”

Amity felt a chill at that line. She knew it wasn’t meant to be foreboding, only a small joke so she wouldn’t worry. Yet, it made her uneasy at how Luz brushed it off. And it was a small reminder that, even if Luz felt regret, she was still a naturally reckless person. And one day she’d be right back in her bed, covered in bandages and possibly in a worse condition than a hoarse voice.

“Luz,” Amity said, tightening her arms around the human. “I…”

Titan, what even was there to say? Don’t say that? You deserve better? I love you?

She wouldn’t get anywhere with any of those. And especially not the latter. There was too much going on already, and this was neither the time nor the place.

Amity squeezed her eyes shut and sighed before leaving her eyes half-lidded.

“Be careful,” She said instead. “If not for yourself, then for the others. You have no idea how scared we were.” She flicked her ears further down. “Don’t do anything overly stupid, okay?” She said, her voice hitching as she tried to cover it with a more teasing tone.

She could feel Luz swallow against her shoulder, shifting in her hold slightly.

“I’ll try,” She murmured.

And Amity supposed that was the best she could ask for.

“Also,” Luz started nervously. “Uh, not to rapidly change the subject,” Luz said, lifting her head slightly, her voice a bit more strained than before. “But your claws are kind of digging into my back…”

“Oh, right!” Amity squeaked and jerked back, sharply tugging her hands off of Luz and wincing when she felt her claws slide out of Luz’s shirt and skin. “Sorry, sorry,”

“I’ve had worse.” Luz chuckled, pulling away and giving Amity a mildly pained smile. “And as much as I love having you here,” Her eyes trailed somewhere behind Amity. “I think Gus is about to break something if this doesn’t hurry up.”

Amity turned around, confused. Sure enough, the door to the room was just barely cracked, and Gus could be seen pacing outside it. And Amity was willing to bet Willow was there, too.

“Seriously, guys?” Amity rolled her eyes, exasperated.

“We weren’t listening, I swear!” Gus insisted, pulling the door open further and poking his head in. “We weren’t even here that long!”

“Next time, you can just knock.” Amity grumbled, flicking her ear at Luz’s snickers behind her. 

“Eh, figured you’d tear our heads off if we did,” Willow said, pulling the door open further. “So, can we come in then?”

“Yeah, yeah,” Amity sighed, getting to her feet and brushing herself off. “Eda’s going to kill you if she finds out both of you were sneaking in at the same time.”

“Eh, I’ll probably be fine.” Luz shrugged, her voice scratching more as she clearly tried to hold back another cough.

“Get it out of your system,” Amity told her simply, deciding to push back her earlier turmoil as she turned back to the door. “You want me to cover for you two?”

“You and I both know it's going to take ages for you to finally go downstairs instead of hovering by the door.” Willow deadpanned. 

“This is bullying,” Amity complained as Gus and Willow walked in, with Gus instantly springing to Luz’s bedside and going off about some topic Amity was tuning out.

“Yeah, hurts, doesn’t it?” Willow said with a smirk, raising a brow as she passed Amity.

“...Touché,” Amity mumbled with an acknowledging nod.

Willow only shook her head and came up by the head of Luz’s bed, calmly watching as Gus talked a mile a minute, so much livelier than how he was mere hours ago. Amity stood back and watched, fiddling her hands together as Luz coughed and assured her friends she was fine and letting Gus continue his rambling.

Amity unconsciously rubbed her hand at her own throat before quickly dropping it again. She fiddled her hands together, feeling that her claws were still unsheathed. She pressed along her fingers, trying to coax her claws to sheath. It only somewhat worked, and she relented that her claws weren’t going to go away for a while.

Willow glanced over at her with a questioning look. Amity cringed at seeing her concern and gave a forced smile and nodded her head. She knew it didn’t convince Willow, but she didn’t push and turned back to Gus and Luz without further comment.

She’d always be worried about Luz, she decided as she watched said human listen to Gus and pointedly ignore the warning glances Willow gave her as she messed with her bandages. Luz would always be a handful, no matter how much she changed, she’d still be the human who had to learn as much magic as she could and the one who wouldn’t stand for an emperor like Belos. If nobody would do it, Luz sure as hell would.

And, as scared as she was to blink and suddenly see that blood on her hands again, she decided it was worth it. She’d never get used to it, not completely.

Amity could almost hear Willow calling her a hypocrite, because the more she thought about it, the more Amity began to realize that she’d likely do anything of Luz’s request to make her safer. Hell, she didn’t doubt she’d fight her own parents one-on-two if Luz asked nicely.

And while the thought of that terrified her, she couldn’t find the common sense to find a reason to stop herself, should it happen.

Perhaps that's just the impact Luz had on people.

Or maybe it was just Amity.

She couldn’t find it in her to care anymore.

[drabbles-of-writing]

Please gush more about this wings AU thing

aaaAAAAAA sir you’ve opened the floodgates

K so most things are similar to canon? But there’s wings and that’s fun. Luz is just a common lil house sparrow, nothing particularly special about her. Eda, on the other hand, is a whole melting pot. Hybrids between different species are a thing, but the thing is, the hybrid traits show up in color and mannerisms of said bird. Wing shape sticks to only one specific species. Eda got the owl gene, but has a mess of other birds in her, too. She’s got raven (shiny things), cardinal, scarlet tanager, vulture, probably goose, and many others. Lilith was given the raven wing shape, which added to the reason on why she dyed her hair, so she can at least look like a pureblood.

Willow was pretty easy, hummingbirds fit her Aesthetic. But she’s also Buff, and I thought it’d be funny if she was a giant hummingbird, since those bad boys are, as far as I know, bigger than house sparrows. Gus was a little more difficult. I wanted a small bird, but I didn’t know which. Then I looked up the white-breasted nuthatch and found that 1. they are very loud. 2. they will fight bigger birds. So obviously I had to go with that. Gus is babey but he is loud and he will fight. probably a bit of a mix with chickadee or finch in there somewhere, too. A fast bird just seemed to fit Amity. But I wanted a fast but dainty-ish bird, not like a hawk or eagle. She was almost a gyrfalcon, but mutuals thought an american kestrel would fit her better. They are tiny, they are fast, and they are babey. Mattholomule was obvious. Shrikes are assholes. That’s just how it is. Boscha gave off the vibe of a bird of prey who would destroy me. But parrots could also bite my face off without blinking so I went with pretty and deadly. Lovebirds have a color similar to Boscha and also her being a bird with that name was funny so I chose it. Skara as a songbird was obvious, she’s in the bard track after all. So a nightingale was inevitable. Simple feathers, but with a beautiful voice. Viney,,,,,,honestly I just thought of birds that hang around other animals and came up with Oxpecker. She’s also probably a bit of a melting pot with dove, egret, and a couple different starlings. Jerbo is tall. Secretary birds are tall. Enough said. Belos was almost a bearded vulture, but I decided against it. I decided “let’s give him the biggest wings imaginable. simply because I can” so I chose the wandering albatross, the bird with a wingspan of twelve feet. Yeah, they’re thin, but these guys can also fly for a really long time, and idk, I thought the threat of that looked interesting.

In this AU, the rich don’t really,,,,fly. Flying, in the high-class, is seen as too much work. People who don’t fly are seen as powerful because they have better things to do, or they simply have no need for it. This has led to a couple of high-folk simply,,,,,not knowing how to fly. Also a lot of wing muscle issues. The twins can fly, not well, but they can fly. Amity, on the other hand.....can’t. At all. Of course, nobody else knows this. Choosing not to fly is one thing, but not knowing how is a disgrace. 

Luz is a different story. She uses her wings all the time, which helps strengthen them. It’s not just because she flies often, but because she is constantly moving them. She uses them as extra hands to push and pull things, she flaps them excitedly and hovers an inch or two off the ground when excited, she hangs them when she’s tired or sad, she flares them when she’s mad, and she just moves them around when she talks or is showing off something. She simply cannot hold them still. Which is fine for her, since sparrow wings are small and thin, but for Eda, who also moves her wings a lot, it’s a hassle. It’s a common occurrence for something to fall over in the Owl House because neither of these two can hold still.

Also, they have more than just wings. That’s some weak shit right there. They’ve got tails, patches of feathers, can make chirps similar to their species, if their species has crests of feathers or a certain piece of feather(s) that stands out, it shows up. Along with dots of color if it stands out. Peacocks have those three frills on their heads plus faint whites around their eyes, turkeys have those dangly things I’m too lazy to look up the name of, and sometimes the size of the bird affects a person's height. The whole sha bam. It’s hell for Eda, who’s a blend of at least 5 different birds. What surprise will today bring? Who knows!

There’s also of course, accessories and fashion for wings. Jewelry, ribbons, scarves and silk that can be pinned or pierced on wings and sometimes tails. Of course, the rich have the most lavish, but the prettier ones are usually very heavy and weigh down flight near completely. And trying to fly with ribbons or silk around wings is difficult, and can tangle and cause birds to crash. In fact, some types of silk or techniques for fashioning wings are banned or heavily mandated due to the hazards and accidents that occur. Fake feathers are also a thing, usually for those who want their wings to look more grand, hide knives in their wings, or, recently, to hide clipped wings. Binding wings are also a thing, though they are typically only for prisoners or for people with such big/broken wings that they can’t keep them closed properly. These are usually covers that wrap around the entire abdomen to keep the wings shut, but for people who don’t want others to know they need them binded, there are thin strings that stretch across the backs of wings that hold them shut or up at a certain angle. Some people put painful pricks right underneath their scapulars to keep their wings at a regal posture. There are also piercings. Some are rings, some are simply nubs. A common piercing is to piercing the base and tip of the membrane and hang a thin chain between the two. Emperor Belos has a tradition of stabbing hooks through the membrane of prisoners and hanging them by their wings alone before they are to be petrified. 

There’s also a little unofficial tradition with gifting feathers. A person will pluck a feather from their wings (sometimes tails but that’s more uncommon) and give it to someone. The more important the feather, the more you mean to someone. It’s not inherently romantic, it’s more of a way you show you care about someone, but it can be. Scapular (base feathers) and primary feathers are the important ones. They’re the feathers that are the closest to said person or their the feathers that are required for flight, they’re usually shown off with pride when they’re gifted to someone. Often a simple string with the single feather on it, but earrings and bracelets are also used. 

Luz has a necklace each from her friends and family. She has a primary feather from her mother, a primary and scapular feather from Eda, a primary covert from Willow, and a secondary covert from Gus. She would later get a secondary feather from Amity that would eventually be replaced with a primary feather. She keeps them all on one necklace in her room and switches them up every now and again. Sometimes she’ll wear only one feather, sometimes she’ll wear a few, or all at once. There’s no particular pattern, she just wears what she wants to that day. 

The grom note in Enchanting Grom Fright is replaced with Amity wanting to give someone a marginal covert feather (she was going to go with scapular but decided that might be too much). Luz going with her to grom coincides with her gifting a secondary feather to Amity, and Amity gifting the same type back. Amity kept that feather with her at near all-times as a necklace she hides under her shirt. A secondary and primary covert feather from Willow and Gus respectively would soon join Luz’s every now and again.

Luz would also teach Amity how to fly, once she realizes that Amity can’t. Course it’s in secret, nobody can know that Amity Blight can’t fly, but Willow and Gus do show up to help. Thing is, it hurts. Amity has barely used her wings in fourteen years. Her parents always made her hold them at a certain angle and she could barely express herself with them. They were more like large pieces of jewelry than anything. So when first learning to fly, she has to stop after only ten minutes, because her wings hurt. They ache and cramp and she’s convinced it’s too late for her to learn how to fly, her wings simply aren’t used to it. Luz, not one to back out on her word, basically becomes a coach instructor. Once a week she drags Amity off into a clearing where nobody else is and basically chucks her into the sky (stronk wings). And after a while, Amity’s able to go longer while gliding or warming up her wings. Ten minutes becomes fifteen, then twenty, then thirty, and suddenly, she can go over an hour practicing without getting tired. And you better believe she shows off to Willow and Gus. Maybe even Lilith a little bit during training, though that’s mostly on accident. Races, of course, happen a lot. 

I’m already ramblin’ a lot and I do wanna write this eventually, so I’ll stop here for now. But know that there are romantic flights, Amity’s parents do not like the ‘common species,’ wings can be clipped, Eda is not immune to wing injury, and Barcus is trying to avoid all the bird drama, unsuccessfully.

[lizacstuff]

Sen Çal Kapımı and Eda/Serkan asks

Hey all, thanks for the asks, I got a bunch after episode 23, so I’m answering them in one big post under the cut. 

(KEEP READING)

Anonymous said: Thoughts on how or if Eda & Serkan finally reconcile in the next few episodes? The show does a nice job of making you feel bad for both Eda & Serkan when it comes to them not being together. It is tough not to melt when Eda & Serkan look at each other and also touch not to yell at the screen “kiss, just finally kiss again please” because the actors have so much chemistry together. Eda has the willpower of a freakin goddess honestly that is the only explanation for them not hooking up post breakup. That aside, I am not crazy about the fact that the show really ramped up the Serkan flirting, love declarations and sweet gestures. While it is totally understandable that Eda would rebuff a lot of it especially initially sometimes it feels like it has also prevented her from ever getting a chance to sort through her feelings. I took the contract as her way to put space between them especially the clause about only work related talk but it feels like she never really got that space. She is just in a constant state of trying to juggle her worries, fears, doubts, desires, a lot of which she probably had before the breakup with her pain from the breakup & secret and she has to constantly be on her guard so as not to give into Serkan. On top of work, trying to be a good friend, school, etc. And now there is another woman in the picture trying to make moves on Serkan which is clearly upsetting her as well. I get Serkan wanting to show Eda that he is willing to change and how much he cares about her but how about just saying “ you know I love you and I will be ready to move forward whenever you decide you are too” and just have them be coworkers for a bit. It would honestly be interesting to see what kind of reaction that gets from Eda.

You make a lot of great points. Honestly, I think Serkan’s actions can be chalked up to a few things:

A) He just can’t help himself. He probably, intellectually wants her to have the time she needs, but when they’re together he just doesn’t know how to hold back. It’s completely in-character and it’s how he acted when they were broken up too. He broke up with her for her own good, and logically knew he needed to stay away from her for both their sakes, but in reality he couldn’t do it and took every opportunity to spend time with her.  

B) They are drawn to one another so when they’re together, neither can resist so it always escalates beyond what either was planning.

C) She always responds to him, and he knows how to get to her, so I think in any given moment he thinks he’s just one move away from her being ready to get back together, and he pushes his luck. He just wants it so badly. 

I also think that Eda would be in a very different emotional place if they hadn’t been thrown for a loop twice.  If she and Serkan had gone to dinner at the end of Episode 20 and talked, they’d be in a better place. Instead, of a nice healing dinner, we got Eda being emotionally scarred by thinking he abandoned her again, because that's how she felt after the break up. Even though she now knows he didn’t stand her up, she still went through those emotions, and they still lost the opportunity to spend that time together and come to an understanding.  

Same thing goes for movie night. She was excited, she wanted to go to his place, she wanted to watch a movie with him, but she gets there and finds this woman who has already unsettled her trying to take her place in his life. So again instead of having time together, alone, when she’s made an overt move, she leaves upset. 

Also, practically, TPTB know that this show’s entire thing is the sexual tension between these two characters so they just want to keep it ramped up to eleventy at all times. Which I can appreciate as a viewer.

As far as the reconciliation, I just want it to be emotional and beautiful and I want to see them happy. Happy like the ice-skating scene, but fully back together and that happy.  I don’t want to put expectations on the next episode, HOWEVER, it is a holiday episode, it is exactly 10 episodes since they broke up, so the time feels right for something good to happen. 

Hi I would like to have your opinion on episode 23 what do you think about it ? I found that there was too much balca she’s almost in every scene. Also the writing felt a bit inconsistent?? especially for serkan and eda (idk how to explain it, but it was weird at times maybe because of the writers changing).  

Full episode thoughts are here.  

At this point any Balca is too much Balca. I’m already ready for that crazy lady to be vanquished. 

As far as the writing feeling inconsistent, maybe it's because the last two episodes had different writers, but I think it's more that they're trying to pad out the series and they needed a few filler episodes until they get back together.  They want to give us the sexual tension and the heart-melting moments, because that is the entire point of the show, but if the emotional momentum kept pace with every scene they gave us, Ed and Serkan would be married by now!  And then the show would be over. So, honestly, I think they're struggling trying to give us those moments without getting them back together too quickly, which results in some of those inconsistencies you talk about. 

In the end, I have full confidence that this show will deliver in every way most of us want it too, but it may be trying for some to watch in real time.  My advice is to be patient and don't judge it too hard. It's a sweet, silly confection of a show. Let the beauty of Eda and Serkan and their shippy moments spark joy and don't think too hard about the rest.  

Anonymous said: I can't wait to see the reconciliation between eda and serkan especially since this time it will be eda's turn to confess her feelings and finally tell him I love you. How would you like this to happen? I think that the confession could not have come at a better time with the arrival of the grandmother.

Can’t wait for their reconciliation and an Eda “I Love You.”  I’ve very much of the opinion that she has already expressed that sentiment several times, and I am very sure Serkan knows how she feels, HOWEVER, I also, badly want her to say it and tell him what he means to her. The audience deserves it! I don’t have many preconceived notions about it, I just want it to feel like a big moment and I want it to be properly emotional. And then I want them to have sex. Because frankly they’re gonna explode if they don’t. 

As for grandma, I was wondering if they were going to bring her in when they were still apart, or right after they got together, or right before they were about to get back together.  It appears it’s the final option, right before they were about to get back together. It was about to happen, Eda was ready to turn the page and go to Paris with him and that would have cemented everything. Let’s hope Gran’s appearance does not derail that, and they still get back together. All I want is to see is them united and working as a team. Perhaps they’ll get back together, but keep it on the dl so they can suss out what Grandma wants.  We shall see. 

Also I want to see Serkan’s reaction to Grandma having arranged a marriage for Eda. Dude is not going to be happy! 

Anonymous said: I can't get enough of this scene when he described it all through her, every word was describing her actions and showed her why he is so sure around her. He can read her like a book like she is so naked in front of him. She can’t hide anything any more.

They sizzle! 

Anonymous said: I really like how the writers ended up reversing roles with serkan and eda. Serkan was so closed and cold in the beginning and eda was the one who tried everything to make him open up a little more to her. Now it's Serkan's turn to do everything to make Eda open up to him, trust him again and reveal his feelings (after the break-up and everything that happened it's understandable that she acts like that, she needs time).

This is really well observed! Great point.  They really did have a role reversal.  

I think some people forget how cold and punishing Serkan was in the first handful of episodes. Like go back and watch the second half of episode 3, watch how he treats her, it is HARSH.  (By the by, can we get that Serkan to make an appearance and put Balca and potentially Babaanne, in their place?) 

I love Serkan, his pain gives me pain, but it’s okay that Eda has taken a little time and has had a few stops and starts on her way back to him.  

Anonymous said: why didn't eda say anything when serkan told her i love you in french? I know that given the situation she couldn't have said it back but I expected her to at least say something.

DUUUDE, she did say something. She said that she understood what he said, then she went a bit weak in the knees, looked at him with stars in her eyes and was about a millimeter away from kissing him before coming to her senses. Then, with a huge smile and in a very flirty manner, she told him not to speak French anymore, pretty much admitting to him what his speaking French does to her heart, body, soul, mind, everything!!!!

If you’re reading that scene in any way negatively, you’re watching this show entirely wrong. Seriously, reset your perspective and get a better attitude, you’ll enjoy everything about your life more. 

Anonymous said: I saw something around here and I would like to bounce on it eda clearly has the attention to leave and no longer see serkan but she continues to act (with her scenes of jealousy) and give false hope to serkan why?

Eda is confused, the last four eps she’s been in a constant emotional tug o war. On one side is her aunt and her stubborn pride telling her that she needs to leave and start fresh. On the other side is her heart and her soul knowing that she loves him and that they are inevitable. 

It’s only been a week or so since she found out everything and Serkan is the one putting the hard press on her. He’s a big boy, he can handle the situation. He has demonstrated multiple times that he knows exactly where her heart is, she’s not giving him any false hope by having a hard time resisting him. Her jealousy is an honest reaction, even if she won’t admit it, and her succumbing to his flirting and declarations is an honest reaction.  Which is exactly what he wants, he wants to push her into recognizing and admitting her honest feelings. Besides, Eda had pretty much decided to move forward with him by the end of the last episode, which is pretty dang quick in the scheme of things. 

If you want to enjoy this show, don’t tie yourself into knots trying to pit these two lovers against one another. They’d be the first to defend the other if you did it in front of them. 

Anonymous said: Do you know if there is a new episode of SCK this coming Saturday or are they taking a break till 2021? Episode 23 just about did me in and I need the next one ASAP. I loved all of the Edser scenes! I hated all of the scenes with Blaca but am trying to stay optimistic that the writers know what they are doing. It cannot always be smooth sailing for Eda & Serkan but every time they finally start moving toward reconciliation, a problem arises that understandably (in my opinion) causes Eda to put her wall back up. I get since we never have Eda saying she loves Serkan out loud/openly that this is the show’s way of telling us that she does want to reconcile & loves him as much as he loves her but dang, an “I love you Serkan” at some point would be amazing. But like Serkan was being a total idiot about Blaca that whole episode. He focused solely on Eda being jealous which is true but kept him from seriously considering that Blaca was bad news. It was frustrating to watch even though there has to be drama to keep things interesting. Staying positive that Eda & Serkan (and hopefully Ayfer & Aydan as well) will be a United front against Grandma & Blaca in the next episode.

I believe episode 24 will air on December 26th, no new episode on January 2nd. 

All I want is for them to take on Grandma and Balca together!  Bring it, show, I know you want to. No misunderstandings, no miscommunications, just facing them together.

You’re right about Eda’s walls going up and down. The last four episodes have been all about Eda and Serkan making slow progress towards each other and then the end scene is something that resets the progress. The dinner sabotage which picked at Eda’s abandonment issues and prevented them having a heart-to-heart talk which probably would have done them a world of good. The kiss which was followed by a slap. Then Eda once again working up the emotional courage to make a move, but she shows up at his house only to find Balca there and that derails everything. Then in the last episode, Eda had decided to start fresh, go to Paris with him on the most romantic date in the world, but boom there’s Babaanne. 

She’s going to say I Love You, and it’s going to be glorious. Now when that happens is another matter. We shall see, however it wouldn’t hurt to...

[rohad93]

Worth the Fight

Medival Au, cause i am nothing if not predictable in what i like to write about. dont expect these updates as quickly as MM. im still working out the plot.

Trees, fields, and more, big surprise, more fields. Sometimes she spotted the occasional wild animal scampering through the grass, though that was the most interesting thing she’d seen so far.

”Are we there yet?” Luz asked for the third time in an hour as she and Eda trudged along the dirt road they had been following for two days as it wound through the fields and forests of the countryside.

“Do you see the city?” Eda asked as she glanced at her apprentice out of the corner of her eye.

“No…”

“Then we’re not there yet!” Eda threw up her arms. “Kid, relax, we’ll get there when we get there, I know you’re tired, I’m tired, hell, King is tired.” She gestured to the demonic dire wolf trotting along beside them, tongue lolling out of his mouth. His black fur shined in the sun but was near blinding against the white fur on the top of his head that created a distinct skull-like pattern across the top of his face.

“Poor baby…,” Luz cooed as she reached out and scratched the space between his horns, making his tail wag.

“He’ll live….” Eda rolled her eyes. “but you might not if you ask me if ‘we’re there yet’ one more time,” she grumbled, adjusting the light plate armor on her shoulders. It was the height of summer and as used to traveling in the stuff as she was, she was still baking under the sweltering midday sun.

Luz just pouted as they walked along. The leather of her boots was rubbing raw spots on the soles of her feet with each mile they walked.

Two days ago Eda had shaken her awake from where she and King had been lying curled up in a pile of hay. The seventeen-year-old had been half asleep and had missed most of what the older woman had been saying to her, just trying to keep her eyes open as Eda rambled on and shoved their meager belongings into an old rucksack.

What she managed to glean from the rapid-paced, one-sided conversation was something about a job, money, and leaving town, which did catch her attention.

They had been to a lot of towns over the years she had been training under Eda, and some were definitely better than others in terms of how the locals treated humans, but the one they had been staying in for the last year was probably the worst of them all. It got to the point that when Eda went to meet potential clients for jobs, Luz had to stay behind because they would take one look at Luz trailing behind her and decide that no matter the older woman’s reputation with a blade, they didn’t want the human girl around.

They’d see her rounded ears and sneer, glaring down their noses at her. Surely any self-respecting witch or sell-sword worth her salt wouldn’t be letting a human follow her around. Eda would say something snarky that almost always resulted in a near brawl and Luz would stick her tongue out at them as Eda stomped away, grumbling colorful words under her breath.

Eda was on her side, but it eventually boiled down to being able to eat and Luz decided it was best to just stay behind, even though it meant she wouldn’t get much in the way of training in swordsmanship or the combat magic that went along with it, not that she could actually do the same kind of combat magic that was natural to Witch’s anyway, being human.

As Eda had once explained it to her, witches had an extra organ, a bile sac, she wasn't entirely sure that's what it was actually called, she learned a long time ago that Eda had a tendency to make things up if she didn't know the answer. Supposedly it was an extra organ that allowed witches to absorb the natural magical energy of their world and use it to add powerful effects to items, especially weapons. Those that did were witch knights, the strongest and some of the most respected members of society, and Luz wanted so badly to be one, to prove that she was worth something, human or not, but without a bile sac, she was lacking the magical aspect, which left her at a distinct disadvantage. Heck, she didn’t even have a real sword, so she couldn’t even do the most basic jobs to help Eda feed the three of them, King alone ate like a horse, with Luz trailing behind him. She was a growing girl after all! Eda always said she’d get one when she thought she was ready, not before.

She’d usually just use the dull-practice blade Eda had given her to work on her stances and strikes, beating the living tar out of whatever trees she happened to come across in the woods while she waited for her to come back with King trailing along behind her.

To say she was glad to be out of that town though was an understatement, even if Eda still hadn’t told her where they were going, and as glad as she was to have left the dreary little town of Beldville, she was so tired of walking!

She pulled at the collar of her violet-colored tunic, sweat was making it stick to her clammy skin, but she knew better than to say anything, they were both hot and tired.

They continued the silent trudge beneath the sun, which thankfully was slowly, but surely sinking closer and closer toward the horizon, though it didn’t lessen the heat any. Eventually, the sun had moved to dip just below the horizon, nearly blinding her with its bright orange rays, as it sank and dark blues were starting to rise up over the horizon line in response to the waning light.

Luz shielded her eyes with a hand and glanced into the distance. The dark smudge in the distance was slowly growing into the silhouettes of buildings and she grinned.

“Is that it?” she pointed excitedly toward the end of the road.

"Nope," Eda said, popping the 'p'.

"Whadda ya mean 'nope'?" Luz whined. "That's a town!"

"It's a town, and we're going to spend the night there, but that's not where we're going," she informed her and Luz groaned, shoulder slumping.

"Where ARE we going?" she huffed.

"Patience, apprentice." Eda wagged a finger and grinned at her, making Luz grumble.

Eda always said that when she didn’t feel like explaining herself, which was often.

It was a small town, and although it was nearly dark there were still a number of people milling about the streets.

A few people glanced at her and Luz frowned, pulling up her hood to cover her distinctly rounded ears from view. There was no need to draw any unneeded trouble when they were only going to stay one night.

Eda noticed the motion but said nothing as she dug through a pouch on her belt.

"Here, Kid." She held her hand out to Luz, who held up her upturned palm as Eda dropped a handful of coins into it. "Go get yourself something to eat and I'll meet you back here at this inn." she hooked the thumb over her shoulder to the worn building behind her.

Luz broke out into a wide smile at the silver coins in her hand.

“Thanks, Eda!” She turned and dashed off down the road with King hot on her heels. Eda just smiled as she watched her disappear around the corner.

Luz trotted down the street, she didn’t know this place, but she knew most towns had pretty similar layouts and the market was always at the center of town, and sure enough, she soon found herself walking through the market with King at her side, most people gave the cloaked girl and the demonic creature a wide breadth, understandably. Usually, creatures like King were wild, bloodthirsty monsters that would just as soon rip off your arm, and she’d seen him do it the last time she’d been attacked by a villager with a human problem.

Luz had never feared him, he’s always just been Eda’s silent companion and her big baby ever since she’d started traveling with the gray-maned sell-sword.

She reached over and scratched that certain spot behind his right ear that made him let out a low growl that almost sounded like a happy hum to her.

“Hungry buddy?” she asked, smiling as they walked and he snorted.

There were days Luz was almost sure he understood every word she said. There was just a certain, almost intelligent look in his rusty, red-colored eyes when he looked at her.

“Let’s get some food then!”

She glanced around at the different shops and a few stalls before her eyes fell on a storefront and lit up.

‘Tomes and manuscripts’

“Book shop!” Luz whispered excitedly to herself and made a beeline for it. “Wait here, King.” She turned to the beast, who snorted and plopped himself onto the ground outside the shop. She pushed the door open and grinned as the smell of ink and old parchment filled her nose.

Luz loved books, though she rarely had access to them. Having to carry everything you owned with you at all times meant that you just couldn’t have some things, and books were heavy and took up space that could be put to better use, for food or supplies, that’s what Eda said anyway. Luz would reluctantly admit she was right, but she didn’t have to like it!

“Welcome!” a voice called from her left. She looked over at the old witch peering at her over his spectacles at her. “Can I help you find anything?”

“Uh, thank you, just looking.” she waved a hand.

He nodded and she walked down the many shelves packed with worn leather-bound tomes, grinning to herself as she ran her fingers over their spines, feeling the smooth, cool bindings beneath her fingertips. So many stories, knowledge, and wild adventures aplenty crammed between two hard leather covers. Luz adored books, a lifelong love affair lit aflame by her mother, who had taught her to read and write at a young age. Something uncommon among the lower classes of witches and unheard of for humans in the Empire of the Boiling Isles, who were the lowest class citizens of them all, but her mother hadn’t been from the Isles. She’d always told Luz about a beautiful place across the sea, with fine grain, white sand beaches, and tall trees very unlike the ones here, that dipped and swayed with the wind, their leaves long and few, but still perfect for blocking out the strong rays of sunlight on a clear day.

Luz sometimes wondered what it might actually be like to see it with her own eyes, she doubted she ever would, her mother had always told her it was far away and she’d left to escape a war, bringing only her native tongue and a sack of food.

Luz hummed to herself as she continued browsing up and down the dimly lit rows of books with rapt interest. She turned a corner and glimpsed a small table covered in old, worn books, and felt drawn to them.

They were all hefty tomes and she flipped through the first few on the stack, nothing of any real interest, some play scripts, and something about treaties on the great war. She set them aside and picked up the last one in the stack. It had a dark brown cover with gold inlay around the corners and spine. It’s worn leather bindings were pockmarked with scratches and divots, some worse than others. She flipped it open and found some of the pages were yellowed and crinkled in places as though they had gotten wet and been left out in the sun to dry at some point.

The pages were full of runic writing that she couldn’t even begin to guess at, but as she flipped through the pages she stopped on one with a drawing, a perfect circle with several lines that made up some kind of symbol.

There was very little text in the book that she understood but one set of runes did stand out, the symbols meaning ‘light’. She’d learned them years ago when her mother had told her that her name meant light.

She ran a finger over the crisp, inked lines of the glyph.

They glowed.

“Augh!” she nearly tossed the book across the room, it clattered across the floor with a heavy thump and she grimaced as it landed on the wooden floor. She held her arms up in defense, but the book only continued to lie there.

After a moment quickly scooped it up and gazed at its gold bindings before she flipped it back open to the page with the illustration. She hesitated a moment, hand hovering over the illustration before pressing her fingers over it, skin running across the rough parchment beneath.

The lines began to give off a pale light as she traced them, till eventually, the entire thing was awash in soft glimmering light.

Luz stared at the glowing drawing with open awe and wonder.

“Magic…,” she breathed.

She’d done magic, she wasn’t sure what kind or even what it was supposed to do, but for the first time in her life, magic!"

She needed to look through this, all of it.

"I'll be closing shop in a few minutes!" The shop keeps voice carried out through the store making Luz jerk.

A few minutes wasn't nearly enough time! Her mind raced with thoughts before finally deciding as she slapped the book closed and hurried to the front counter where the shopkeep was still standing.

“How many snails for this book?” she set it on the counter and he eyed it for a moment.

"This? Bah, ten snails, it has little value to any witch, merely theories on old magic.

"I'll take it!" She slapped half the money Eda had given her on the counter.

Only King would be eating tonight it seemed, but the chance at magic? Worth a hungry night.

He nodded and accepted the coins as he pushed the book back toward her, but as he did, got a glimpse under her hood and spotted her rounded ears.

Luz knew what happened the second it happened. His brows crinkled between his eyes and his once, disarming smile, curled into a sneer.

"A human, in my shop!?"

Luz snatched the book off the counter and bolted for the door.

"No take backs!" she squealed as she burst out the door, making King jump up as she did.

She dashed back the way they had come, the black beast loping along behind her with an excited, rumbling bark.

It didn't take long for them to get out of sight, turning the corner and ducking into an alley.

She pressed her back to the wall, clutching the book to her chest, and waited until it finally seemed like she wasn't being chased; she peeked her head out and found the street clear.

She turned back to look at the worn leather-bound book in her hands and grinned.

She couldn't wait to look at it better later.

King whined at her side, scratching at her with his paw.

"Ah, right, right. Let's get you some food, buddy." She smiled at him and snuck toward the other end of the market, spending the rest of the money Eda had given her to buy meat for the beast, who wolfed it down in record time, practically swallowing it whole before they made their way back to the Inn.

"Get some grub?" Eda asked from her place sitting in one of the beds when they walked into their rented room. King immediately trotting over to the empty bed and jumping up on it and curling up into a massive black ball of fur.

"Fed King, yea." She nodded, pulling off her cloak and kicking off her boots before she climbed into bed, shoving King over.

He growled at her but she just shoved harder till there was space for her to lay. He snorted in response but never lifted his head as she laid next to him, book in hand.

“What about you?” Eda narrowed her amber eyes at her, noticing how she only mentioned king. “And where’d you get the book?”

“Uh…” Luz stalled and Eda sighed.

You bought the book instead of eating, didn’t you?” It wasn’t really a question.

“Yeah…,” Luz mumbled and Eda sighed.

"Well, what was so much more important than eating? If it's another flowery love story, kid, I swear…," she trailed off, rolling her eyes.

"It's not!" she insisted. "It's a book about magic!" She flipped it open and opened to the diagram and ran her hands over it, creating the same glow as it had in the bookshop, which made Eda sit up.

"Well, look at that…" she tilted her head. "What's it do?" She looked back up at Luz.

"I'm… not sure yet…" She shrugged. “I need more time to read it." Eda hummed, looking at the glowing glyph on the paper before shrugging and plopping back down on her bed.

“Whatever kid, just don’t stay up all night looking at it,” she grumbled, rolling over and pulling the blanket up over her head.

“You go it, teach!” Luz promised as she snuggled back against King and flipped through the pages.

She really wished she could read any of the writing around it other than the runes for light. She flipped some more pages and found another diagram, a sketch of a sconce, or something similar with a circle drawn above it and little lines indicating rays of light. She hummed to herself.

She had only the basic knowledge of how Eda did magic. She could just kind of think about what kind of effect she wanted to apply to an object and would press her hand to the blade of her sword and it would glow for a second before taking effect, she’d made her show her enough times to know.

Luz pursed her lips and leaned over to her satchel sitting on the floor by her bed and dug out a piece of charcoal she liked to use to draw when they were on the road or she was waiting around on Eda, ignoring the angry rumbling of her empty stomach. She pulled her training sword out of its sheath and looked at the blunt, reflective weapon for a long minute before carefully drawing out the glyph across the flat of the blade.

she glanced back and forth between the book and her blade, humming to herself when the last line was completed. She hesitated a second before pressing a fingertip to it and the glyph glowed before the bright light spread across the entire length of the blade, lighting the room up.

Luz stared at it in awe, before a bright grin stretched across her face, empty stomach forgotten.

She’d done it.

She’d done magic!