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“If it works this time, I’ll kiss everyone.”, mumbled Luz, adding the final piece to her new portal.King waved his arms while letting some cute joy noises, followed by Gus with his flags. Willow clenched her fists, as a support sign. Amity was next to her, blushing with her new purple-dyed hair, two thumbs up.“Don’t worry kid, if it doesn’t work, we’ll try something else.”, reassured Eda, a hand on Luz’s shoulder.She gave a nod to her mentor and put the eyed key in the keyhole. The door, which had previously blowed-up (thanks Belos), was brand new. The yellow eye was fixed with some demonic super glue on the door, made of different kind of woods.“Here goes nothing.” exhaled Luz.She turned the key and stepped away from the portal. At first, nothing happened. The wind blowed coldly through her hair. What if she was stuck here forever? Come to think of it, it wasn’t really unpleasant. She could stay at The Owl House forever with Eda, King and Hooty. She’ll study and graduate from Hexside. She could fall in love and start a family… But she’ll never see her mom again, that was the only cloud in the horizon. But still… Suddenly, the door started to glow, reflecting its light on Luz’s family and friends.“Is it… really?” whispered the human, her voice filled with hope.As to answer her question, the door opened to her realm. She saw the green of the forest she left months ago. She could feel the warmth of the sun from the frame.“Oh Titan, Luz, you did it!” exulted Amity.“I did it…” murmured the human.Her eyes were wide open, she couldn’t believe her cranky door worked.“Come on kid.” encouraged Eda. “Go for it, it seems to work perfectly.”“Okay, just one step.”She moved to the door carefully. She didn’t trust her portal, even if the gate appeared normal, there was a fifty-fifty risk of implosion. With an eye closed and a deep breath, she crossed the barrier between worlds. The first thing she did was to check if the air was still good. Yep. Still good old Earth’s Forest air. The birds chirped on every branch like a warm welcome for the new arrival.“I’m home.” she sighed.A large smile adorned her face. Finally, she made it to the other side. She turned to face her friends when a strange sound occurred. A strong buzz was coming from the portal.“Luz! Come back!” shouted Amity.She didn’t have the time to make it. The gate started to crackle, before exploding in a loud bang. The portal disappeared, shattered in a million shining shards fading in the atmosphere. The explosion sent her flying over ten feet. With a dread expression on her face, she got up and ran to the old house where the portal was opened.“No… no… no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no!” muttered Luz, tears started to roll down her cheeks. “No, please, no, no. NO! NO! TAKE ME BACK! PLEASE I BEG YOU! TAKE ME BACK!”She punched the old wood of the ramshackle house several times, repeating, begging, praying, she fell to her knees.“Please…” she sobbed.On the other side of the broken door, everyone was stunned and speechless. Luz has just… disappeared. She was gone. King, as the dog-like kid he was, cried loudly, scratching the ground where the portal was standing a couple of seconds ago.“Luuuuz, Luuuz, come back, your King commands you…”Amity felt her legs turning into jelly. Eda saw the young purple hair girl trembling and ignore her own growing sadness to comfort her. She wrapped her arms around Amity’s shoulders.“Bring her back…”The young witch’s voice was rough, creaky, shivery. She turned to Luz’s mentor; the cheeks wet by the warm tears.“I’m sorry kid.”Eda’s hands came maternally on the witch’s hair.“Bring her back.”, loudly repeated Amity.“I can’t, I don’t have any magic anymore.”“I don’t care, just bring her back now, please, bring her back.”She was like a sad broken record. She punched Eda’s chest repeatedly, asking endlessly for Luz’s return.“Please…”, she begged once more.That was the first time she cried in front of someone, but she couldn’t do anything else. Luz was gone and she didn’t have time to tell her so many things. Things that would stay unspoken. Now it was too late. Luz was gone and she was alone.Luz spent the rest of the afternoon in front of the old house, trying all sorts of glyphs to open the door again but nothing happened. At first, she thought it was because her notebook was soaked by her tears. But after tracing and drawing every combination possible, she realised none of her magic could open a portal to travel through dimensions. It was too complicated for her simple glyphs. Heavy-hearted, she stepped away from the house.“They’ll find a way…” sniffed Luz. “They always do. They have to.”She wiped her tears.“Eda… King… Willow… Lilith… Gus……… Amity.” she whispered; Amity’s name was hard to say but she needed to hear that sound. “One way or another, I’ll come back to you, I promise.”She put the hood of her cloak on her head and took the path to her mom’s house. The journey back home was peaceful. The sun was down in the sky, creating this beautiful orange red sky, one of Luz’s favourite views. But she didn’t look at it, she didn’t have her heart set on watching it. She was shocked by the recent events. She couldn’t get used to the fact she would never see the Boiling Isles again. She didn’t want to accept a future without magic, without the Owl House. This life would just be unbearable for her. The autumn wind was fresh, coloured leaves were swirling around the human girl.Her mom’s house was not very far away from the forest but the more she approaches, the more she was distressed. What would she say to her mother? The truth? Everything about the Boiling Isles, Eda, King, her friends? She would be absolutely mortified to hear all this nonsense. Besides how long was she gone? Time was different in the Demon Realm. Was it a week? A month? Two? A year, maybe? It was the worst day she ever been through, worse than when Eda was captured by Lilith. God, Eda… At least she still had King to keep her company. Each step Luz was making was harder than the precedent. Going home was like giving up on everything she’s been through. Giving up on Gus, Willow, giving up on Eda, giving up on the magic… Giving up on Amity… They didn’t take the time to talk about what happened at Blight Manor, the kiss she gave to Luz. She was in front of her old house’s door when the face of her purple-haired friend came to her mind. So that was it? Nothing more? Not a single miracle? She didn’t have the strength to knock. She stood right here, unable to make any move, sobbing uncontrollably. The door opened right in front of her eyes, her mother was here, dumbstruck, with a bin bag in her hand.“Luz? Mija? How…?”Behind her mother’s back, Luz saw something she couldn’t believe. She was already in the house! How was it possible? Camila turned to the other Luz, trying to figure what was going on. The other Luz panicked and began to run the other way. Luz’s instinct took over. She quickly came back to herself and shouted:“Mami, move!”Her mother walked out the way, with the same disconcerted face, allowing to Luz to chase her impersonator. She took out some glyphs out of her pockets and throw a vine to the intruder, catching it before it could go anywhere.“Let me out!” groaned the fake Luz.“Who are you? What are you doing here? Why do you look so much like me? Did you hurt my mom?” asked the real one.“Luz, mija, what’s going on?” questioned her mother.Luz took out a fire glyph and light it up.“Answer me!”Camila and the fake Luz let out a gasp.“Luz?”“Not now, mamá, please.”“Mamá, ayúdame, ¡por favor!” begged the impersonator.Unfortunately, Camila was stunned, she had too many questions starting with why is there two Luz, why one of them has a cape and does magic? Wait. Magic??? Camila took her flip-flop with her hand and started to threaten the real Luz.“Listen to me, you. I don’t know who you are or what’s going on but you’re going to tell me why I have two daughters and what was that thing you just did.”Luz turned away and suddenly she felt weak. All the adrenaline was gone, the sorrow and the grief came back to her. Her mom didn’t recognize her. It was too much to handle for a fourteen-year-old girl.“Mom, it’s me, Luz…”“Luz? But…”She had not any tears left to cry, her legs let her down on the floor of her old house. This day kept worsening.“Please.” she implored her imitator. “Tell her the truth.”“Release me.” requested the other.Luz nodded and removed the magic vines around the other Luz’s body. Once she was freed, the creature dropped out her disguise. The most of her body looked like a big green fish with clearer parts, blue fur, and yellow eyes.“You’re… a basilisk.”“Yes, my name’s Vee.” spilled the other girl.“What’s going on here?” cried out Camila, tired of don’t understand anything.Vee started to tell her story. That she was a demon from the Boiling Islands who came through a portal, Eda’s door, in the Human Realm. She took Luz’s place when she saw her at the market, back when Luz’s crossed the gate. Luz, then, told everything about the Demon Realm, she got away to avoid the camp and discovered a wonderful world of magic and monsters. When she started to talk about Eda and King, her voice crackled. She narrated every aspect of her life back then. How she learned magic through glyphs, the classes at Hexside.  Her friends… She talked a lot about Willow and Gus, how she met them, how awesome they were. Then, she said the name of Amity and her voice died in her throat. Her mother felt her daughter couldn’t say any more words.“I don’t say I understand, nor I believe everything you said.” she took over the discussion. “But… if this creature, I mean Vee, is here… You said you know light glyphs?”Luz nodded silently. She drew with some dust on the floor the sign she needed, then tapped on it. The glyph shined and a bowl of light emerged from the ground.“Absolutely astounding…”, whispered Camila.“Mom…” pronounced Luz. “I’m so sorry for leaving. I just didn’t want to change who I was, who I am. Since the portal was destroyed, I did everything to find a way to build it back. But now… I can’t go back anymore. The door blew-up and I’m here, on the other side.”“It’s okay, mija, we sure need to talk about this but right now, you need a rest, we all do.”“Yes, mamá.”“For this night, you’ll sleep on the couch, Luz.”“I understand mama, it’s okay.”Luz’s voice was toneless. She was awfully tired and sad, especially sad. After all that, she didn’t want to go to her room, not yet. Too soon. Far too soon. The couch was good.“As for Luz… I mean Vee…”The basilisk lowered her face, ashamed of sneaking into someone else’s life.“I don’t know what you are… but I know who you are. You’ve been my Luz for five months and I thank you for that. You can sleep here one more night and we’ll talk about this in the morning, okay?”Vee nodded; her eyes sparkled with thankfulness. She tried not to jump for joy, as she was certainly the only one happy in this house.“Thank you, mom! I mean…”“It’s okay.” smiled Camila. “You can still call me mom if you want to.”A large grateful smile enlightened her face.“Thanks mom!”She discreetly hopped happily to her room. Leaving Camila and Luz in the living-room.“Mom… I…”The mother took her child on her arms. She was silently crying for the both of them.“I’m so glad you’re okay. I’m so glad you’re here. No matter what happened. I always felt something was off since you… well Vee came back from camp. Now I understand why… I’m not saying I’m not mad at you, because I am. But… I’m really thankful to who or whatever brought you here. I love you mija. Te extrañé mucho, Luz.”Luz tightened her grip around her mother’s waist.“Te extrañé mucho también, mami.”Camila’s hand ran through her daughter’s hair. Even if Eda have done this several times, the feels were way much different. She felt nostalgic of things that were before the Owl House, when her and her mother watched animal and wildlife documentary, on which her mother would always cry. Or when they were doing board games until morning, those were the bests nights. She remembered the meals they used to share, the walks in the forest they used to do, the mother-daughter talks they used to have. Those were the old days. But then Luz got lost in the Demon Realm. Her life changed, and she missed that life.“Mom…”“Si, mija?”She wanted to tell her about how she missed the Owl House. She wanted to tell her she never desired to come back here, in this house. Visit for a few hours, sure. Being stuck here, possibly forever, no. But she couldn’t say it to her mother. That would break her already shattered heart.“I’m so happy to see you again.” she murmured, in the end.“Me too mija.”Mother and daughter held each other for another ten minutes, in the silence of the night. Then, Camila kissed Luz’s hair good night. She gave her a blanket and the teenage girl laid down on the couch. After another good night exchanged, Camila turned off the lights and went in her room, leaving Luz alone in the living-room.Even if she was awfully tired, the human girl couldn’t sleep. Everything was swirling in her head, all her thoughts, her memories, her feelings. She didn’t want to forget.“Eda…” she whispered, hoping the owl lady would hear her in another dimension. “Take care of King and Amity, please.”Those were her last words before she yielded to Morpheus’s arms.On the other side of the broken gate, no one was asleep. They were all in the Owl House, in the lounge, sat on the couch for Eda, Lilith and King, on the floor for the others. On the coffee table, they drew a sketch of the portal. Near it, there was maps of the Boiling Isles with marked places.“If we want to get Luz back, we need to split up.” explained Eda. “Three team will go on a specified location and pick everything we need to build that damn portal, again.”“I’ll go with Willow.” required Amity.Her old friend smiled at her; she was so glad they weren’t enemies anymore.“Gus, Hootsifer and I will form another team.” continued Lilith.The illusionist student frown, determined, and nodded to the ex-head of the Emperor’s Covent. The worm-owl said nothing but agreed too. That was maybe one of the first time he was silent.“Great, that leave King, Owlbert and I for the last team.”“Everyone knows what they need to do?”Each of them confirmed the plan they sent in motion. They weren’t leaving Luz alone, they were going to bring her back, at any cost.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

The morning came earlier than Luz expected. She forgot the nights were shorter in the Human Realm. She eventually managed to get some sleep, but not enough. When she woke up, she felt… strange. Like something wasn’t quite in place. She stared at the roof then remembered the events of the precedent day. Her eyes started to get wet, but she got hold of herself. She was sure Eda, Amity and the others were working hard to bring her back. She just had to wait. It wasn’t hard. She already waited. Like when she waited a whole year to read the fourth tome of Azura. Two years for tome three. She knew how to wait. Like when her mom promised her, they would go to her favourite beach for her birthday. She had to wait. Waiting was not hard. Waiting alone was. She wasn’t missing the Owl House days yet. She felt more like it was the day after a big festival. The emptiness. The calm. The loneliness. Her brain didn’t seem to have quite realised the possibility she might never come back. She trusted her friends. She trusted Eda and Amity. It was that trust that helped her to get up this morning, and every other she would spend away from the Boiling Isles. She put her blanket away and went for a shower, she really needed it.The water was hot, relaxing and, most importantly, blank. She didn’t shower to clean water for months. The Owl House bathrooms were… different. The water from there was orange-brown and came clearly from a stream, from the forest. The first days were complicated, but she eventually got used to it. That’s why she let out a little scream when she set out the water in her mom’s house. It was blank, normal, clean. She got used to it. The shower helped her think about what she would do today. She wouldn’t go back to school; this wasn’t her world. Besides, Vee was surely going there, she didn’t want to rob her life. She had the right to live her own life, like Luz lived hers on the Boiling Isles. She would wait at home, reading Azura fanfics, writing Azura fanfics, drawing Azura fanarts, watching Azura fanarts. She was just back at her old life, her vacation’s life. She could also do some cooking, some cleaning and improve her magic. She didn’t bring any book so she would have to do some trials and errors, well more than usually.The shower did her good. She wasn’t totally happy, but she was a bit more relieved. She had a course, a direction, a goal to achieve, something to do before Eda and the others came up with an idea to rescue her. She dried herself with a towel and put her clothes on. She buttoned up her blue cloak, she felt naked without it. Finally, she brushed her hair, leaving the cowlick she could never remove. She smelled the sweet scents of her mom’s breakfast. She smiled and left the bathroom.She bumped into herself. She frowned. The girl in front of Luz looked just like her in her pyjamas.“Uh…. Hi?” said the other self.The other girls voice was more crackled and high-pitched than Luz’s.“Hi Vee, how is it doing?”“Oh, uh…. Good, good. Showering, uh?”“Yes, don’t worry I left some hot water.”“Oh, uh…. Thanks! But I shower in cold water only.”“Right, okay, well, better get going.”“Yes, right, yes!”Luz felt the awkwardness of the situation and gave her an embarrassed smile. Vee returned her grin and entered the bathroom. Luz took the way of the kitchen where her mother was cooking. When she entered, Camila smiled.“Hi, mija, sleep well?”“Si, mami, the couch was comfier than I thought.”“I still think all that story is crazy, but I have two Luz at home so… I kinda believe it…”“I know mami, it’s weird for me too… I mean having a walking-talking mirror, even my stories weren’t that odd.”Camila laughed. This warm, tinkling laugh filled Luz’s heart with bliss. She didn’t hear that laugh for a long time and she needed it.“It’s true! Do you want some bacon with your pancakes?”A human breakfast! Oh, she missed those! The breakfasts at the Owl House weren’t that bad but she really preferred some real human pancakes.“Nah mami, thanks! Plain pancakes, nothing but human pancakes without anything on it!”Luz remembered when Eda and she tried to do some human pancakes, they didn’t turn out as expected, mainly because they didn’t have the basic ingredients they needed. The result wasn’t that bad, but they weren’t pancakes. Luz used to call them mock-cake.“My daughter did change…” sighed Camila with a smile.Vee joined them in the kitchen. She modified her appearance. Now she looked like a fusion between Luz and a basilisk. Her eyes were blue, and her pupils were black and yellow. She kept the basilisk green and blue fur around her ears, and the light-green spots under her eyes. Her hair was less wild than Luz’s, she styled hers with two hairpins.“G’morning mami.” she yawned.“Morning mija. Bacon with pancakes?” she asked, showing the frying pan.“Yes, please!”“New style?” asked Luz, pointing her chin at Vee’s ears.“Yeah… I preferred it that way. No offence but human’s ears are way too small.”“Looks good on you.” commented Luz with a soft smile.Luz had a sister; this is how it felt to her. She had a new sister, a twin sister. It was weird but she’ll get used to it, like everything. Right now, she was happy to share a meal with her family, the heart filled with a joy and hope. Seems like life was not going to give up on her. Her thoughts went to Eda, her other mom. She was wondering if the Owl Lady was still asleep, like always, or if she was ready to go into battle.On the other side of the shattered gate, the Owl Fam’ (as Gus liked to call them) was, indeed, ready to go into battle. King was the only one who slept, the others were planning their journey across the Demon Realm. Gus mastered his illusions all night, Willow took that time to work on her plants. Amity, Eda and Lilith were busy going through all the steps of their plan in the living-room. They also made sure to have all sort of glyphs for their trip. In the morning they were a bit tired but ready. After a quick nap, they all reviewed what they need to do.“Lilith?”“Yes sister. Me, Gus and Hootsifer will travel to the Forearm Forest.”“HOOT HOOT!” punctuated the demon owl on Lilith back.“We’ll get some enchanted wood to rebuild the door.” carried on Gus.“This will be like a picnic, hoot hoot!”Eda turned to the other group.“Amity?”“Yes ma’am! Willow and I will go to the library to get help from Edric and Emira and also do some research.”“Amity’s siblings.” clarified futilely Willow.“Right. Then we’ll head to wherever our research will tell us to go.”“Fine. As for me, King and Owlbert, we’ll go to Bonesborough’s market.” ended Eda.They all agreed and grabbed their staff.“We’ll meet here in three days then we’ll rebuild this damn portal and bring my kid back!” exclaimed the Owl Lady.They cheered and got out of the house. Every witch, that had one, grabbed their staff. Amity and Willow were the first one to go. The purple-haired girl hugged Eda before going.“Don’t worry kid, we’re gonna get your girlfriend back.” murmured the witch with a soft smile.The Blight went bright red, Eda’s smile changed to a smirk.“She’s not my… she’s my…”“I know kid, now go.”Willow got on Clover, her bee staff, Amity hold on to the waist of the plant witch. Together, they flew to their destination. They were followed by Lilith’s group.“Take care, sister.”“Don’t worry, I’ll have the king of demon to look after me.”“Weh!” shouted King, perched in Eda’s hair.“Here we hoot!” exclaimed Lilith’s backpack.“Bye King!” concluded Gus before they flew into the sky.It was Eda’s turn to mount her loyal staff and get off.“Do you think we’ll find what we’re looking for, Eda?” asked the little demon.“There’s no time for hope, King, we need to find it, I can’t let this end now, not like that.”“Glad we agree.”She brushed with her thumb the owl at the head of her staff.“Come on Owlbert, it’s time to go.”The wooden owl spread out its wing and the three of them reached the sky, off to Bonesborough’s market. The trip was quick, quiet, and quite empty without Luz blabbering about everything and anything. It was annoying sometimes, but Eda missed it. They landed on an amber-coloured cobblestone of a little alley, near the grand market.“Remember when I had that stand. I fooled every of these morons. Ugh, that was the good old days.” sighed Eda.“Yeah, everything changed when she burst through that door of yours.”The Owl Lady unfolded a peace of paper with some notes.“All we need is some ingredients.”“Weh?”“To stabilize the gate, I need to concoct a potion.”“You didn’t concoct a potion last time.”“Exactly.”And she regretted it, ever since the door exploded. This was her fault; she didn’t manage to protect her child. Of course, Luz wasn’t her biological child, but Titan she loved that kid. Every day that passed at the Owl House, every day that Luz spent to train her magic, Eda was seeing her young self in that girl. Maybe that’s why she felt so connected to her. Also, because she was absolutely adorable and loveable. That’s why she felt responsible for her disappearing. It was her duty to take care of her and she failed. Most importantly, she didn’t have the time to say goodbye to her kid.“Don’t worry Eda, we’re gonna get her back.”“I know we will.”Unfortunately, their market quest gave nothing. All the shops they did were empty, ransacked by the emperor army or simply did not have what they were looking for. Or was it because the Old Lady was known in the town, even powerless she was someone, a figurehead of the rebellion against Belos.“Titan it was a lot easier when I was the most wanted criminal of the Boiling Isles.” grumbled Eda as they went out of another useless potions shop. “What’s the point of being renown if I can’t find forbidden ingredients.”“The only way of getting those things would be sneaking in Belos’ castle.”“Yeah, not happening, I don’t have any magic, remember?”“But we need those ingredients Eda, your King needs his loyal minion.”“If you want to get those ingredients, you need someone to get you there.” said a voice that belongs neither to the little demon nor the owl lady.“Wait a minute, I know that voice.” trembled Eda, frowning.She turned to a thin and long figure, standing in the dark of an alley.“Hello Edalyn.” softly said the silhouette, taking out their mask.Short light turquoise hair on an old brown face. Round glasses, peaceful smile, green eyes. The head of the bard coven. King let out a “weh” of incomprehension. He looked up to Eda, he wanted to share his expression with someone. But the witch was shivering. He never saw her like that. She seemed lost in a far-off memory. The sudden appearance of this unknown witch made Eda blush, that was the first time ever King witnessed this. Her face displayed all sorts of emotions, like she was going through all of her life, all over again.“Rainestorm…” finally smiled the owl lady. --- Not far away from here, a purple-haired pale girl was opening the doors of Bonesborough’s library, followed by a dark green-haired chubby witch. The two of them were awfully quiet, their reconciliation was still fresh in their mind, they didn’t have the ease of a normal friendly talk yet. Besides they knew exactly what they needed to do and review their plan once again would just be a waste of time. They were on their way to the bookshelves when a familiar voice interrupted them.“Mittens!”Amity sighed loudly, rolling her eyes. She hated that nickname. That reminded her mother, and she didn’t want to think about that witch now.“Ed, you know she doesn’t want us to call her that way.”Her siblings walked down the book alley to Amity and Willow.“Oh right, sorry. Hey Ames! ... Better?”Amity nodded with a heavy heart. Yes, she liked that name, but it was a lot better when Luz was saying it. When her cute human face was calling her that way. She could give the world just to hear her pronouncing it again. Because that’s totally what friends want, right? There she was blushing again. Could she think about the human without going full tomato?“I think we’ll just go with Amity.”Edric and Emira snorted, looking at Amity embarrassed face.“What can we do for you, sister?”“Looking for some advice to ask your human out?”“Or some love potion to make her fall in love with you?”“Stop it.” grumbled the witch, as red as someone could be. “I’m not here for this.”She inhales and exhales slowly.“We need your help, actually.”“Ooooo for what kind of mission?” asked Edric with a large grin, the same her twin sister was wearing.“Rescue mission.”Her siblings smile faded on the spot.“Luz… She’s gone, isn’t it?”“Yeah, how do you know?” asked Amity, with a raised eyebrow, an expression of sorrow on her face.“We know you, sis.”“You have that face.”“The same face you had when mom and dad forced you to sever all contacts with the plants goddess.” Edric pointed his head at Willow.“The same face you had when you lost your library card.”“You know.”“When you lost something really close to your heart.”“Luz is not…” started Amity.“She’s a really good friend, we get it. Probably one of your best.”“What happened?”“Luz managed to build a working portal, but it exploded with her on the other side.” explained Willow.A shadow of sorrow passed on the twins’ face.“That’s why you need us.”“I need all the help we can get.”“Don’t worry, sis, we’ll help you. We can’t let this end right now.”“Right, not after that kiss…” whispered Edric, with a smirk.Amity’s eyes widened. Her face took the colour of Eda’s dress, a magnificent crimson red. She wanted to bury herself in the library. This… event happened several days ago but she still remembered crystal clear.“What kiss?” inquired Willow.“Nothing not important nothing to see or hear nothing happened I didn’t do anything to Luz now let’s go.” squeaked Amity.The three others looked at each other, holding back their laugh.“Someone got to tell her.” whispered Emira.“Not now, it’s funnier this way.” said back Edric.“Guys, Luz’s portal, bring her back, are we going?” hurried Amity, not in the mood for a shared laugh.“Right.” clapped Willow. “We need to stabilize the gate and a huge power source.”“Let’s split up, it’ll be faster this way.” recommended Emira.“Meet up here in about an hour, okay?”Everyone agreed to Amity’s suggestion. A thin smile filled with hope emerged on her lips.“Fine. Let’s get to work.” --- A shrill voice was resonating through all the forest. Its source was a sort of brown worm with a demonic owl face. He was dancing, more like wiggling, on a backpack that exactly looked like a tiny house. He was carried by a silver-haired witch with a green and a grey eye. Along with them was an exasperated teen brown witch, holding his head with his hands.“Lulu, Gus and the great Hootsifer, together on a great trip!” was singing the owl demon.“Can’t he shut up?”“I’m sorry, Gus, he’s so happy to go out, let him enjoy it!”“He’s been on loop for three hours!”“Isn’t it wonderful?”“Aughhhh!” complained Gus.The team was walking in the dangerous Forearm Forest, looking for some enchanted wood to rebuild the door.“I hope your enchanted woods is not in a dangerous place.”“Don’t worry, it’s really near, we just need to pass through the Looking glass ruins.”“You’re kidding…”“Not at all.”“Woohoo Lulu, Gus and the great Hootsifeeeeeeeeeeeeeer, about to conquer the woooooorld.”The path was dark and foggy. Clearly, they weren’t out of the woods… literally. --- “Shoot, what can I write?”Luz was laying on her desk, face down, her computer was opened on a blank page. She really missed it, since the Boiling Isles did not have any electronic devices, and the only one she had back then was her phone. She was really happy to get all of her works on Azura. She was back in the fanfiction’s business. Apart from Amity, the inhabitants of the Titan were not really into Azura, therefore into the fanfics. At least she had Amity to read her stuff back then and vice-versa. Her witch friend was not as highly experienced in writing stuff as Luz was, but she liked her style. Amity had a very poetic way of putting words together, Luz liked that. Her stories were very… human (pretty ironic, yes).“Shame we can’t read stories from the Boiling Isles.” she sighed.She suddenly raised from her desk; an idea had emerged in her brain.“They have an internet there, well they have Penstagram so they must have something to keep the data… even if it’s magic, there must be something. Gah! If only Eda showed me how to make those scrolls appear!”She fell again on her desk then grew a little flower with one of her plant glyphs and began to caress its petals.“Life would be much simpler if I could talk to them… But I’m stuck here… Wait. That could make a cool Azura story… Azura, stranded away with no means to talk to Hecate.”A smile appeared on her lips.“It could start with Azura and Hecate fighting each other… and then Azura couldn’t go back.”A mischievous grin replaced the soft smile she had.“Both of them would be sad and will regret it… That’s a perfect start.”She went back on her computer and started to write.
Azura, the good and great witch, was tired. Tired of all her adventures. She sure needed a rest but couldn’t let down all the people who was counting on her. Hecate, her formal rival, and now good friend was standing by her side in Azura’s cottage house. The Warrior of Peace was rich and famous but wouldn’t live anywhere, except her old house in the woods. It was her mentor house and now she lived here, in a peaceful clearing. The leaves were covering the ground, leaving a clear and sinuous path from the door to the woods. Her house was old, a bit wobbly and cranky. She liked that old wobbly cranky house. She hanged her white witch hat on a hook, near the door, and sat on her couch. She sighed as she contemplated her staff. Her tired face was reflecting on the blue gem located on the top.

“Are you alright, Azura?” asked Hecate as she joined her.

Her former rival lived here sometimes; she had her own house, but Azura needed company. That’s why she gave her the permission to come and go as her will. Hecate was coming from the kitchen, a snack within her right hand.

“Yeah… It’s just… I need some vacations, being the good witch is amazing, but I feel like I can’t keep the pace. Soon or later, I’ll make a mistake.”

“Oh, come on Az’, you’re like the greatest witch I know, you won’t make a mistake, I know you.”
Luz smiled. She finally had an idea for her story. She felt the gears of her mind switching on, like an old factory starting over after a long hiatus. She had the push she needed.“Now, let’s find the bone of contention.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

“How did you make it through last time?”Lilith, Gus and Hooty, the owl backpack, were in the Forearm Forest, looking for some enchanted wood to build the gateway to the Human Realm. Their journey was quite peaceful. The woods were quiet, without any monsters or fiend beast. They were alone, and that wasn’t a problem, Gus preferred that. Right now, they were in front of a large and huge plant wall.“I powered one of Luz’s fire glyphs with my illusions. Shame she didn’t left some before disappearing.”“Fortunately, you have a powerless witch with you!” exclaimed Lilith, taking out her glyphs like some playing cards, as Luz used to do it.“BURN THIS TO THE GROUND, LULU!” shouted Hooty.She performed a spin on herself and clap her hands on the piece of paper. A warm light appeared between her fingers. The split up her palms, two growing flames sparkled in the middle of each hand.“Now, Gus!”The teenage witch drew a blue circle in the air. Lilith throw her sparks in it, amplifying the spell. A giant fireball exited the circle and exploded on the green wall, making a huge hole in it, enough to let through the three companions.“Great work, little one.”“Thanks!”The three walked in silence through the forest, well Hooty was not walking, properly speaking, but he was there, weirdly wiggling dancing.“So… What does it feel like?”“What? Blowing a wall of leaves without proper magic?”“No, I mean, being with the outcasts, far from Belos and his henchmen, women and others.”Lilith tilted her head to the left.“It’s… different. It’s less safe but more fun. Besides I can be with my sister, again, and I met wonderful people like Hootsifer.”“HOOT HOOT that’s me!”“The only regret I don’t have money-off coupon anymore.”“The emperor offered you coupon???” “Well, not the emperor specifically but the trade union of the castle, yes.”“You have a what?”“Trade union. It’s a thing to defend worker’s rights.”“Workers like you?”“Soldiers, demons, witches… Everyone working at the castle.”“Pretty progressist.” chuckled Gus.“Who would have thought Belos wasn’t just a brutal murderous tyrant?”“He doesn’t know about that union, doesn’t he?”“Nope!”Hooty was still whistling their peculiar team song. Shouting some Lulu or Hootsifer every thirty seconds. They got deeper into the mighty forest. The fog around them was getting wider and darker, it was almost hard for them to see their feet.“Gee, that’s a pea hoot!”“I’m sure you meant pea soup…”“No, pea hoot because I’m in it, HOOT HOOT! GET IT?”The Owl demon burst into laughing, surely scaring some animals around.“I regret every word I could have said to that thing.” whined Gus. --- “It’s been a long time.”Raine hugged Eda with a soft and warm smile.“Eda who’s that?” asked King with a flinch.“This is…”“Hello, my name is Raine, I’m an old friend of Eda.”“Old friend… exactly…” repeated Eda, slightly blushing.King exploded with a laugh at Eda’s face, enough to let her get a grip on herself.“What are you doing here, Rainestorm?”“I’m paying visit to an old friend, as you see.”Eda chuckled. Titan, she missed their face, their eyes, their cheeks, their body, their voice… their lips. Of course, she was too proud to say any of this, but her red face was talking for herself.“Sooooooooooo.” broke King, holding back a laugh. “You said you wanted to help us sneaking into Belos’ castle?”“But Raine, weren’t you the head of the Bard Coven?” asked Eda.“Exactly, that’s why I can help you.”“Isn’t it too risky? I mean…”“This is where my team comes in.”Behind them, three silhouettes were standing in crimson red cloak. They all had masks, hiding their faces.“Your team?”Eda raised an eyebrow.“Let’s get to a quieter place.” suggested Raine after looking around them.The three shadows disappeared, and Eda followed them to an isolated part of Bonesborough. The background noise of the town progressively faded away leaving only the sound of their feet on the cobblestone.“So, Eda, who’s that witch?” whispered King during their walk.“Rainestorm? They’re… were a friend of mine. We met at Hexside when we were students there. We were best friends, partners in crime, partners in time…”“Partners in life?”Eda sighed; her cheeks turned to a light pink.“Yes… We dated until my cursed ruined everything. We broke up when they joined the Bard Coven.”“Actually, we broke up because you refused to be honest with me, Eda.” corrected Raine.“Details. The point is, kid, we didn’t see each other for years. We lived our lives on our own and I totally got over them.”“Actually, she spied on me for years because she was worried for me.” revealed Raine.“Like I said, details.”“Of course… Now get inside.”They were arrived near a seemed abandoned house.“Perfect place to kill someone… or have fun with someone.” commented the Owl Lady with a smirk, raising an eyebrow towards her former partner.“Edaaaaa!” replied Raine, their cheekbones turning red.The interior was like the outside: messy, old, and rusty. There were broken old chairs and tables laying on the floor, the brown wallpaper was torn apart. On the other side of the room, there was a counter broke in two halves. Claws marks were on the walls and the floor, along with blood. The place looked like an ancient bar, which had a harsh final night.“Titan, what happened in here?” gasped Eda.“I think you can drop the illusion now!” whispered Raine to one of the cloaked people.The concerned member raised an arm and draw a blue circle in the air. A glowing magic with the same colour flooded the place, clearing the trick. The tables rebuild themselves, along with the chairs. The blood and the marks disappeared. Everything was brand new. Above the counter, there was a large red-brown banner with a draw of a bat.“Welcome to the HQ of the Bards Against the Throne aka… the BATTs!” announced Raine.They all hisses, making wings signs with their hands. The masks were making more sense now.“Of course, you are.” snorted Eda. “The head of the Bard Coven is leading a revolution.”They all took off their disguises. Eda recognised some troublemakers she encountered before, like the girl from the Conformatorium, Katya was her name (the one who liked to write fanfictions on food, but honestly who wouldn’t).“That’s a nice place you got here.” whistled Eda as she took a tour of the room. “How did you manage to escape from Belos’ forces every time?”“We’re very organized.” answered Katya. “Thanks to our great leader.”“Stop it.” blushed Raine. “We were just cleverer than the guards.”“They’re pretty incompetent, that’s true.” laughed a BATT.“Good.” smiled the Owl Lady. “Because I need you to take me to the castle, get some forbidden ingredients and get out without anyone noticing it. Can you help me?”“Sure.”“No problem.”“Easy peasy.”The only who didn’t agree right away was Raine. They approached Eda with a concerned expression on their face.“Can I talk to you for a second?”“Sure.”“Okay, I’m gonna go somewhere else, your King is getting bored.” groaned the little demon.He hopped from Eda’s hair and went exploring the room. Raine took Eda with them and led her to a door at the back of the bar, behind the counter. It was an office, with a classic brown desk and a black padded chair. There were no windows, but the wall was covered with plans, maps, pictures, and drawing about Belos and his army. Just behind the bureau, there was a huge poster.“Why do you have that?” Eda pointed at the wanted bill.Raine flushed, embarrassed.“Oh well… you know… it was hard to move on, so I’ve had a kind of therapy.”“And put a badass drawing of me on your wall is therapy?”“…kinda?”Eda giggled with a snort. She came nearer the desk, observing the maps of the Conformatorium.“So, you’re really well prepared huh?”“Yeah, about that… Why do you want so much those ingredients?”“Oh, you know me Rainestorm, I like to rob and do some dangerous stuff. Nothing in particular.” she lied, the back turned, unable to look at their face.“Eda… you can’t lie to me. I always know when you’re hiding something from me.”“Sorry Rainestorm… It’s just hard to tell you everything. But I promise, I will, when this is all over.”“Just tell me it’s worth it. We could lose a lot in here, it’s Belos’ castle we’re talking about.”“Yes.” Eda turned away to face Raine, she felt a great sadness rising. She always hated to lie to them, but she didn’t have time to explain everything. She wanted her kid back at any cost and the sooner the better. “Yes, it’s worth it. More than anything in my life. Please Rainestorm. You have to help me. Please.”Raine sighed, Eda was begging and it was probably a first.“Okay. We’re gonna help you, but you better keep that promise Clawthorne.”Eda came closer to Raine, with a warm smile.“Don’t worry Whispers, I will.”The Owl Lady opened her arms and embraced the other witch in a soft hug. Which they responded quietly, smiling. Slowly, Eda took a step forward, forcing Raine to step back. With a slow pace, they both moved to the closed door. When they couldn’t do anymore step, Eda broke the sweat embrace. Her eyes connected to her former partner’s. They were so beautiful, that was one thing she didn’t forgot, after all these years.“Eda…”, whispered Raine.Their breath was shaking, their body too. Eda could see in their eyes, there were so much going on in their brain. In hers too, she was thinking, expecting, waiting for something to happen. They were both froze in the moment. The owl lady leisurely moved her right hand along Raine’s back, going up to come cupping their jaw. The left went on their waist.“Do you…” began Eda.The head of the Bard Coven didn’t wait for the end of the sentence. With a cute blush, they nodded. That was her signal, without further ado, she pinned them against the door and sealed their lips together in a warm kiss. Raine put her arms around Eda’s neck and shut her eyes. Titan, the Owl Lady missed this. Sure, she wasn’t the hugger, nor the kisser. She had several affairs but nothing that went very far. Maybe it’s because she was always obsessed with this bard enby witch. Their kisses were like waking up after a good night of sleep, but a thousand times better. It was like apple blood, if apple blood was soft, blessed, heart-warming, relieving.Their lips naturally split up but that wasn’t to Raine’s taste as they already went for a second kiss, to which Eda responded passionately. Their third one was longer, softer, and hungrier. They were desperate for more. Their former partner pressed them against the door, making a quiet thud. Eda tightened her embrace on the bard witch. Titan, she missed this. Their warm body against hers, the taste of their lips, the little noise they made every time they needed to breathe, their hands clutched to Eda’s dress. Their kiss began to speed up lightly, progressively. Titan, she missed this.“Eda…” gently moaned Raine when their lips weren’t connected.The concerned witch slightly opened her eyes to meet the green ones of her old friend. They had such beautiful eyes, something worth of fighting for. She could spend so much time just staring lovingly at them. Right now, the look in their gaze seemed to say just one thing. Eda wasn’t a telepath, but she understood what Raine were saying in their mind. Kiss me, don’t stop until I ask to. Kiss me, take your chance Owl Lady. A light smile appeared on her mouth as she went for another kiss. That feeling, that awesome, heart fluttering, brain melting, warm feeling. That incomparable feeling. Titan… she missed this. Raine initiated a reverse walk to the desk, pushing Eda to it. The Owl Lady allowed them to do so. She moved her hand on their maroon collar to pull them to her. Their passionate dance was going all over the room, with smooching noises, purrs, and soft moans.An awful thought emerges in Eda’s brain. Luz’s disappearance was not entirely bad after all. Of course, she wanted her kid back but if she could have that fun during her absence, she wouldn’t mind. She could stay here forever, in Raine Whispers’ arms, kissing Raine Whispers’ lips, feeling Raine Whispers’ heart beating along with hers, touching Raine Whispers’ skin, looking at Raine Whispers’ beautiful face, loosing herself in Raine Whispers’ amazing eyes. So stupid she was to let go someone like this, probably her biggest mistake, she needed to make up for all the lost time. That’s why every kiss she gave was so passionate and wild, her owl beast personality helped a bit here. Her hand clutched harder Raine’s collar as she pulled them closer. That feeling. She needed that feeling for such a long time. She felt the edge of the desk hitting her lower back. She was at their mercy.“Wait… Raine…” she said softly, panting, stopping their mouth ballet.“I know, we should get ready to attack Belos’ castle.”“Yeah but… I mean… it would be better to attack at night. The sun is still up in the sky… We have time…”Raine didn’t answered right away, like they were weighing up the pros and the cons. But the pros were so tempting, and the cons were… well Eda couldn’t find any at the moment.“I like your way of thinking, Clawthorne.”“Bring those lips, Whispers.”They immediately went for the neck, changing Eda’s smirk into a blissed smile, her eyes went straight up to the sky before she closed them, biting her own inferior lip, her entire body was shaking, like her breath. She felt their fang going on her skin, leaving a trace. Titan. She missed this, more than anything. Then they went back for Eda’s lips, luckily for her. Twenty seconds without kissing them was enough for her to miss it. She was obsessed. How did she manage to have an enjoyable life, all those years without it? Right now, she only wanted her future to be as soft, euphoric, and wild as Raine’s kisses.Behind the door, Katya silently stepped away from it.“Well BATTs, looks like we’ll strike at dusk, Raine is… busy right now.”“What about Eda?” inquired King.“…busy too. I think we’ll take the rest of the afternoon to prepare.” --- Amity was standing in front of the huge door leading to the old knowledge, The Forbidden Stack. Not long ago she was there with Luz, searching for the human diary. She felt like it was from another life when she kissed Luz on the cheek. Why did she do that, again?“It was just a huge misunderstanding, I’ll tell her next time, nothing was intentional. It was in a friendly way”She let out an awkward, quiet laugh, then sighed. Her sister noticed that long exhale and head towards the purple-haired witch.“Hey mit- sis, is everything good?”“Yeah… Everything good… Looking for stuff… Books, huh… Lots of pages… And words…”“Thinking about her?”“What? No! Why would I think about Luz?”“I didn’t say anything about Luz…”Amity’s face turned to a strawberry red.“Yeah well…  Have you found anything?”“Just a scroll. I think we need to go to Eclipse Lake.”“To the knee?”Emira nodded.“It’s the only way to find Titan’s blood to power the gate. If we don’t, it might blow up like…”“Like last time.”“Exactly.”“So… Eclipse Lake? What else?”“Nothing much actually, we get that blood and then we can get your Luz back.”“Whaaaaaaat??? She’s not my- she’s- Nooooo- We’re just- Friends that like friend-y stuff that do friend-y things and friend-y hangouts and friend-y casual kisses and hug, that’s totally friend like we are and… uuuuuUUUUUUh I GOTTA GO!”Amity’s faces reddened; she could be mistaken for a bowl full of cherries. She ran to the adult romance books shelf and opened her secret, not-so-secret, hideout. She dived into it and closed it right behind her.“I think I just found a new nickname for her.” scoffed Emira.A few seconds passed before Willow joined her, with a pile of books wrapped around a vine.“Has anyone seen Amity? I think I know how to get Luz back.”“You meant Cherryti?” responded Emira, with a grin.“Oh, that’s good sister.” laughed back Edric, from the other side of the bookshelf.“Did she…?” started Willow, a raised eyebrow, and a smile towards Amity’s hiding place.“Yup, totally.”“Do you think she’ll admit one day?”“I know my sister, there’s no chance she’ll do the first move, or it’ll not be intentional.”“And I know Luz, she’s pretty much the same.”“They’re doomed to blush all their life!”“What a shame!”“Unless…”“Unless?” Emira raised an eyebrow.“Unless we brought up the perfect scheme to help them.”“That would be very inappropriate, brother.”“I agree, they need to do this by themselves.” added Willow“As you wish.” sighed Edric, dropping his shoulders.The three of them cracked up a laugh. They needed it before their big mission. Behind the shelves, in a room filled with books, a witch was sat on the wooden floor, her knees against her breast, she was heavily breathing. Why wouldn’t that come down?“Stupid, stupid body, stupid brain! Why am I feeling like this?” she muttered.She looked at the floor and narrowed her eyes. Her books were all over the place. Usually the was quite the cleaner, she was obsessed with keeping everything at its rightful place. But recently, oddly, she had different things in mind, obsessions that didn’t want to leave her mind. And they all had a common denominator.“Luz the Human, what have you done to me?” she groaned. “Why can’t I be normal and live like everyone else?”Why, why, why? Why wouldn’t her stupid human face leave her mind? Why was it the only thing she was seeing, every time she closed her eyes? Why was she so obsessed over a normal, simple, friendly friendship? None of this was making any sense for Amity. She wished she could understand whatever was going on.“If only you were there…” she whispered, closing her eyes. “You’d help me figure it out, like you always do.”Amity eventually got up and cleaned out the mess in her room, after a good time of meditation. She couldn’t leave without tidy a bit. Then she got out from her lair, slowly breathing to calm herself down. The sooner they’ll get Luz back, the sooner she’ll understand what the heck was going on in her head.“So… Eclipse Lake?” she asked, frowning at Edric, Emira and Willow amused faces.Her siblings and Willow agreed. Without wasting any more time, they all took off to the mountainous land of the Boiling Isles.“Don’t worry Luz, I’m on my way.” whispered Amity as she set foot on the crunchy snow. --- 
“But I made mistakes!” sighed Azura, “Like you! Imagine if I end up like you!”

“What do you mean?” asked Hecate, frowning at the witch.

“Well, you’re not as a big deal as you used to be.”

“I beg your pardon?”

“You’re not the great witch Hecate, you’re just my former rival.”

“Yeah right, like I’m just a sidekick for you?”

“That’s not what I’m saying…”

“This is exactly what you’re saying! You’re just implying I’m a useless witch now. That I don’t have any powers anymore, thanks to you by the way.” growled Hecate.

“Oh, so that’s my fault now?”

“Kinda, yeah! You drained my powers, remember?”

“To save YOUR life, Hecate! If there was any other way, believe me, I would have tried. But there wasn’t enough time.”

“So that’s your excuse? There wasn’t enough time?”

“Because it’s the fucking truth!”
Luz was acting her fic as she wrote it, every dialogue was intensely played in front of her computer.“Wait, is the last dialogue too much?” she stopped and asked to herself.She played the scene again, with her normal voice for Azura and a lower voice for Hecate.“But there wasn’t enough time. So that’s your excuse? There wasn’t enough time? Because it’s the fucking truth!... The truth?... The bloody truth?... Because it’s the freaking truth!... Yeah, that’s probably better. Let’s keep this fanfic clean from any swear.”
“Because it’s the freaking truth!”

“I don’t give a damn about the truth! You abandoned me! And now I’m useless because of you!”

The wind around them rose, even though they were inside the house. Azura’s cape began to float. She frowned, unable to understand what was going on.

“What the-?”

“Shut up, Azura! SHUT THE HELL UP!” shouted Hecate.

The ground under their feet started to rumble. Was this an earthquake? Normally, her house would be safe from it. Behind her, a shining blue dot was floating in the air. Slowly, it began to expend, growing, spinning on itself. Azura turned her feet to what seems to be a portal to an unknown location.

“GET LOST, WITCH!”

“Hecate, wait!”

Like pulled by a superior force, Azura felt her body move backward, her feet were sliding on the floor. She tried to summon her staff, but she didn’t have the time to make it. Her body rose from the ground. With a frightened face, she attempted to hold onto anything before the portal sucked her off.

“HELP, PLEASE!”

Hecate’s anger fade right away when she realised what was going on. Unfortunately, too late, Azura disappeared into the blue spinning circle with a heart-breaking scream. The portal closed after her, leaving Hecate alone in Azura’s living room.

“What have I done?” she whispered, small tears rolling down her cheeks.
“Luuuz! I’m hooome!” exclaimed a voice that came from the outside of her room.With a smile, Luz saved her work and closed her computer. She stepped out of her room to greet her mother. She was weighed down with groceries bags. Luz went to help her clean everything.“Hola mama!”“How are you mija? Still not in the mood?”“A little better.”“How was your morning?”“I went back on my writing. Azura fanfics, you know. I drew, too.”Camila let out a quiet laugh.“My little girl is really back.”Luz smiled like a child, which she was, finally happy to be back with her mother. After cleaning the groceries, Camila took a tour of the house, see if there wasn’t any mess caused while she was gone. But as Luz stayed all morning at her desk, everything was in order. Everything except a sheet of paper on the couch. Camila took it and frowned.“Mija? What’s that?”“What? Oh, you’re probably talking about the drawing. It’s a classic Azura fanart, you know… Azura and Hecate… The good witch Azura.”“The witch looks kinda like you…”Luz chuckled, a bit embarrassed.“Well, you know, I always pictured myself as Azura.”“Makes sense… But what’s with her… friend?”“What do you mean?”“Mija, I know what Azura and Hecate look like, I’ve seen your books lay around in the house. I brought you to convention and stuffs I don’t totally understand.”Luz approached her mother to look back at her drawn. When her eyes fixed upon the paper, her heart skipped a beat.“o-oh” she stuttered.“Who’s that?” Camila pointed the witch that wasn’t Luz-Azura.Luz quickly pulled the fanart off her mother’s hand.“Nothing no one nobody it’s nothing you want to know good old Azura ha-ha you know oh boy it’s already late it’s almost time to get ready for lunch right I gotta go byyyyyyyyyyyyye”She locked herself up in her room, the cheeks heated and reddened by the scene. She slowly inhaled and exhaled, then took another look back at her draw.“Oh no” she squeaked, throwing away the piece of paper.She put her face between her hands, the eyes covered by her fingers, she wanted to understand why. Why did she draw Hecate in her arms? It wasn’t the first time she drew them, of course, nor the first time she drew Azura and Hecate being so close. Then why? She moved her index from her right eye and saw her paper for the third time. Azura was there, badass, holding her staff with a fierce look. And right next to her, Hecate, in her arms, with pleading eyes, poor defenceless Hecate… with pointy ears… golden eyes… bob cut… And she’s pretty sure, if she added colour, her Hecate would have cotton-candy hair. Why? Why? Why?... Why Hecate looked so much like Amity?

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

“Okay BATTs are you ready?” shouted Raine, coming out from the little room at the back of the bar.Their neck was ravaged by a succession of love bites, so was Eda’s as she closed the door behind them. She looked at herself in a mirror and tried to fix her hair. After some hairbrushes with her hands, she pointed at herself and made finger guns.“Damn girl, still got it.” she smiled.Katya, who was packing up looked at them with a smirk.“You spent a lot of time in there, captain, was the plan very difficult to prepare.”“Yes, right, the plan, a lot of things to go through.”“You gave a lot of nicknames to my body, but never the plan…” scoffed the Owl Lady.“Edaaaaaaaa!” they protested, blushing right in front of their team.“Anyway, we’re packed and ready to go. Whenever you’re ready, captain.” declared Katya, putting her mask on.“Fine, let’s do this heist.”King came back in Eda’s hair. They all left the bar, after lifting back the illusion. Then they walked to the heart of Bonesborough, the BATTs didn’t want anyone to notice a group of witches flying away from their lair. Eda was holding hand with Raine. She didn’t know why she became so soft all of sudden, but she didn’t mind. They were quite quiet during their little trip, Raine and Eda were still over the moon, the mind stuck on their kissing session. After an hour of walking, they finally set foot on a much-crowded street. They all picked their staff and rose to the sky, they needed to have a view of the castle to plan their move.“We need to get to the highest tower.” explained Raine. “There are less guards because it’s pretty much empty. Then we’ll need to go down and find the potions room.”They pointed the left area of the fortress.“It’s around there. It’s a forbidden area, even I as a Coven Head can’t get in there. But with some disguise we can pass through the guards, the ones in the castle are pretty much incompetent.”“Rude…” snorted Eda.“Eda and I will enter the castle with Katya. King and the other, you’ll be on watch. If anything goes wrong or whatever, Derwin will play his bassoon to warn us.”A teenage witch with brown skin, brown eyes and round glasses nodded.“Since everyone know their part. We have no time to lose.” --- “Did you hear that?”Edric turned his head around, a bit concerned. The three girls stopped their walk and pricked up their ears. But nothing, nothing else than the chirps of the birds and the light breath of the wind through the pine trees of the snowing Knee Forest.“Why are you so nervous Ed?” asked Emira with a nervous laugh, she did not feel very safe either.“Last time we were here, we were attacked by the Slitherbeast, remember?”“Yeah, I remember Lumity saving both of our butts.”“Who’s Lumity?” asked Willow with a smirk.“It’s a powerful witch couple who saves people from dangerous beasts.” explained Edric with the same grin.“Also, they’re very gay.” added Emira.“Can you please shut up?” whined Amity, who could’ve melted all the ice of the mountain if she had buried her head in the snow.“Sorry Cherryti.” teased her brother. The twins fist bumped each other with a laugh.A loud rumble cut short their good mood.“Tell me I’m not the only one hearing this.”“We hear it too, don’t worry.”“Actually, it’s the perfect time to worry.”The sound seemed to come from the ground, something was clearly moving under their feet.“Guys…?” began Edric.But he didn’t have the time to finish his sentence. Something grabbed his ankle and pulled him under the snow, he disappeared in a high-pitched scream, and a terrified expression on his face.“ED!”, they all screamed.But Emira’s was more frightened as she was also snatched by an unseen force. She tried to draw a spell circle, but she wasn’t stable. She struggled but was no match for her attacker and vanished too, from Amity and Willow’s sight.“No! No, no, no, no, no, no, no! NO!” she yelled, on her knees, scratching the ground to find her siblings.“Amity…” Willow put a hand on her friend’s shoulder.“NO! SHUT UP! BRING THEM BACK PLEASE, HELP ME!”“Wait! It’s coming back!”, warned Willow.The plant witch grew a giant floating flower to keep them above the ground. Under them, they saw a shape sliding under the blanket of white and thick snow.“What is that…?” muttered Willow, frowning.Amity was already throwing fire balls at it, and abomination goo. Her face was warped by rage. Her friend noticed it and went to her.“Amity calm down, we’re gonna get them back.” she tried to calm her down.“No! I need to! I have to! They need me! I need them! She needs me!” she fell down to her knees, on the petals of the pink flying flower, tearing up “She needs me…”“It’s not about the twins, am I right?”Amity sighed. Willow was right. Her twins could take care of themselves, even in deadly situations. They were probably in grave danger, but Amity couldn’t think of anyone else. Someone she swore to protect and failed.“Luz… I failed her…”“You didn’t fail her, it’s not your fault the gate exploded. You’re not the one to blame if she’s stuck on the other side. It’s no one’s fault…”“I know… It’s just… I wish I had more time with her… she’s my best friend.”“Yeah, right, friend…” Willow snorted. Amity looked up to Willow with a disconcerted face.“Oh no! Nothing!”, she answered, with a smirk.“Yeah, right. You’re weird Park.”“And you’re gay.”“True, but I don’t understand what it has to do in here.”Willow gave her the most intense stare.“Shut up Park.” vituperated Amity with a blush so intense she almost passed out. “Focus.”“Let’s follow that thing, we’ll probably see where Edric and Emira are, if they’re still alive.”“They are, I know it. Now come on.” --- “…so, when I celebrate my first birthday, I was nothing but a tiny hoot with big dreams, big hearts, and organs. I couldn’t swallow things like I do now. That’s when I joined a band, I used to play bass, but they fired me because I couldn’t not sing, they didn’t like my voice. Do you like my voice? It goes SWEAT HOOT BONESBOROUGH WHERE SKIES ARE SO HOOT”“I don’t understand why they ditched you, you have a wonderful voice Hootsifer.”“Yeah. I don’t understand why either.”Gus’ sarcasm made Lilith frown.“Sorry…”“You should be nicer to Hootsifer, you know, he’s adorable.”“OOOOOOH THANKS LULU! YOU TOO YOU’RE ADOOOOOOORABLE”Lilith giggled while Gus rolled his eyes. Around them the fog was getting foggier. The dark was surrounding them more and more, enough for Lilith to use a light glyph. The graveyard of the looking-glass ruins was close.“We just need to stay together guys.” anticipated Gus.Around him was quiet. Very quiet. Too quiet. He turned his head to the left, but Lilith was not there. To the right, same.“Guys?”“Augustus?” called a distant voice.“Guys, I’m here! It’s only an illusion, don’t worry.”“Yeah, don’t worry, listen to the little guy.” responded an arrogant voice that seemed to come from everywhere at once.“Who… who’s there?”“Come on Augustus Porter, drop the illusion, if you’re strong enough.”“Who are you and how do you know my name?”He clutched his fist, ready to attack whatever the dark fog was hiding.“Little Gus, I know a lot of things. But I don’t know what you’re doing here, will you enlighten me?”“What about you go to hell and leave me be?”“Cut! Cut, cut, cut!” yelled the voice.The fog dropped around Gus and a witch with a blue vest over a teal jumpsuit, with gold details, fur on his shoulders, an impeccable turquoise wavey haircut, a set of dark teal fingerless gloves and a small mirror in the middle of his vest. He had a long and dark teal tail with some fur at its end, after a sky-blue bead. By the look of his face, Gus could tell he was annoyed and bored.“What’s hell, boy?”“Oh, it’s a human thing, Luz taught me. It’s… Hey! What the hell? You are the Head of the Illusion Coven, you’re Adrian Vernworth!”“Again, with this hell.”Adrian sighed and waved his left hand, as if he was shooing away some flies.“The name’s actually Adrian Graye Vernworth, boy, don’t forget it. Now, now, if you could please follow the script, we have a work to do here.”“The… script?”Gus was confused, he furrowed his brow. He had no idea where Lilith and Hooty were, he hoped they were safe but… No, Lilith was a strong witch, even powerless, she could handle it.“The world is a scene boy; as entertainers, it’s our job to set and maintain the illusion!” Adrian declared with a large smile.He lifted both of his hands and draw a large blue circle in the air.“The show must go on!” he proclaimed, surrounding Gus with another fog, a darker one.He was trapped inside it. Everything disappeared around him. That was not a little illusion, something he could have create in class. He was in the complex, tortuous, vicious scheme of the Head of the Illusion Coven.“Come on Augustus Porter, time to shine!”Gus slowly breathed in and out. He was trapped, sure, but he was in his element. He studied illusions enough to know how to get out, but first he needed to find his teammates. Lilith and Hooty. They were separated when this guy showed up. That means they were also in the illusion’s fog. A giant beast showed up in the middle of the dark. It was the same as the one which attacked him last time, when he went to the Looking glass ruins. The guardian beast, with a whale body, some kind of a trump with two eyes and a tongue.“This won’t work on me!” he yelled. “I already defeated this illusion!”Like last time, he created another beast and ran away to the dark.“Lilith? Hooty?” he called but nothing answered.He was surrounded by darkness; the illusion was something else. Something really powerful.“What about… we set a different scenery?” Adrian’s voice grinned.Gus ran away as fast as he could, countering every illusion hex that were coming at him. He eventually got out of the dark. He turned away to see the fog and saw a huge black bubble enfolding the graveyard of the Looking glass ruins. He wanted to get the most far away as quickly as possible. So, he ran to the Forearm Forest, escaping from Adrian’s illusions. After ten minutes of exhausting sprint, he stopped to catch his breath. In front of him there was a building, in the middle of the forest. He approached and touched it.“Not an illusion.” he muttered and entered it.It was a weird building with red paint on the walls and a dark red carpet all over the ground, they were separated by a gold line making its way through the long hall. There were doors all the way, white doors with black ironed numbers on them. The lights came from candelabras placed between each door. He felt the softness of the floor below his feet, he smelled fresh paint in the air, and he heard voices coming down the corridor, voices calling him.“Not an illusion.” he repeated.“Welcome to the hotel Delaware.” softly said a pompous man behind him.Gus turned his feet to him. The man was a sort of valet, with a three piece-suit black and white and roundy ears, very human, too human.“Who are you?” asked the witch.“The butler, monsieur, would you like me to show you your room?”“What is it?”“The room? It’s a place to sleep, monsieur.”“No, that… that’s not what I meant. What is this place?”“You’re in a human hotel, monsieur, the Hotel Delaware.”Gus mouthed the word hotel and Delaware. His eyes sparkled with joy. A real human hotel? No. Something was really off... But it also felt so real… He could probably touch the butler… Which he did. He poked the cheek of the well-dressed man who didn’t even flinch.“Can I help you, monsieur?”The witch couldn’t believe his eyes. His hand was touching some real skin of a real human. He went to the wall and felt the weird texture of the paint concrete.“Is this… real?”“Of course, it is, monsieur.”“A real human hotel… it’s truly amazing! This is heaven!”“May I take you to your room, monsieur?”“Yes please! Lead the way!”Something was bugging Gus, but It was probably nothing, he couldn’t remember why he was here in the first place, but it was probably nothing. A real human hotel, oh boy! he won the jackpot. He followed the butler down the corridor and took the stairs up. He heard some faint voices coming from other rooms and a piano, there was probably a ballroom.“This is truly amazing.” murmured Gus.“Glad you enjoy it, monsieur.” replied the butler with a soft smile.On the next floor, he guided the witch to a door, looking just like the others, with a black 57 hanging on it and a peephole above it. He opened the room. It was a small but not-to-small bedroom with the same carpet on the floor, and the same red paint on the walls. Leaning against the right wall was a white sheet of linen bed, with a wooden frame, and cream-coloured pillows. Right in front of the door leading to the corridor, there was a double window covered by cream-coloured curtains. Everything was lighted by a chandelier in the middle of the ceiling. Finally, on the left side was an opened door to a bathroom with lime green walls, a bathtub at the back, toilets on the left and a sink under a mirror on the right.“Make yourself at ease, monsieur.”“Such a lovely place! It seems really modern.”“It’s the crème de la crème, monsieur.”The butler closed the door behind Gus. He sat on the bed and scanned the room. This was perfect. A real human room, with a human bed, human lights, human bathroom in a human hotel.“This is perfect!” he sighed with a smile, laying down on the sheet, and closed his eyes. The trip to this place exhausted him. Wait, a trip? A trip to where? To the hotel, probably, yes, that must be it.  He felt like falling from a million floors into the abyss as he rested on the comfortable bed.His dreams were… well he didn’t dream. There was nothing but darkness when he fell asleep, until he woke up in the middle of what seems to be the night. The light of the moon was breaking through the curtains of the room’s window. Gus didn’t wake up because of its light. Voices. There were voices calling him. Faint voices coming down the corridor.“What the hell…?” he whispered, frowning.He eventually got up and spread the window’s curtain. He saw nothing. Because there was nothing. Really nothing. The hotel seemed to be built in a desert surrounded by more desert and desert again. Below, he could see a garden with people dancing and playing joyfully, even though it was still night.“Who am I to judge…” he shrugged.He stepped out of the room, trying to figure out who was calling him. The second floor wasn’t light up. Everything was dark but, luckily, it was a straight line until a bunch of stairs. The voices were calling from far away.“Maybe the first floor?” he suggested silently to himself.The first floor was weakly lighted up. It was a big red light; unlike the warm light he saw when he arrived here. The corridor was empty and dark.“Someone is here?”He was still hearing voices calling his name. What the hell was happening in here? Human hotels were so weird.
We’ll meet again, don’t know where, don’t know when…
A soft music was coming from downstairs. Gus was still frowning. The music wasn’t here before, nor the singing. But there seemed to be a whole orchestra under his feet.
But I know we’ll meet again, some sunny day…
The music was matching with the environment, very pompous and spectacular. The witch decided to follow that music, ignoring the voices. He went downstairs and meet another large corridor. This one was light up by the warm brightness of an opened room on the left. A double door leading to a splendid ballroom. A large number of guests and couples were dancing in the middle of it, their feet shuffling on the wooden floor. A large crystal chandelier was hanged above them, flooding the large room with bright light. At the back, a small orchestra with a piano, three trumpets, eight other brass instruments and some percussions were playing. They were all behind a woman singing in a microphone on a shaft. Her crystal-clear voice was enfolding the ballroom as she danced to the beat.
Keep smiling through, just like you always do

'Till the blue skies drive the dark clouds far away…
Gus’ eyes were sparkling with wonder.“Such a lovely place…” he whispered.He watched the dancers as the lady’s dress were spinning at each turn they were making.
So, will you please say hello…
Unfortunately for Gus, he couldn’t stay. Voices, still calling his name, were louder. Like they were on this floor. He snaped out of this dreamy musical fantasy and ventured in the darkness of the long corridor, following the voices. The music was fading behind him as he progressed through.“Hello?” he called.Probably not a good idea since it was night but if there was music, the people that have been sleeping must have been awake by now. The voices were still faint, like covered by layers of unknown things.“Can I help you, monsieur?” said a pompous voice behind him.The butler was here, although he did not hear him coming. He was standing, waiting for instructions.“Do you hear it too?” asked Gus, a bit worried.“Hear what, monsieur?”“The voices…”“I do not hear any voices, monsieur, apart yours.”This was definitely weird. Maybe the voices were coming from the outside.“Right, okay… Can you show me the way to the garden?”“Of course, monsieur, follow me.”They walked down the hallway, away from the ballroom. There was nothing but silence around them, apart from the voices still calling him. The garden was quite empty. It was a demi acre of green grass surrounded by a five feet tall white wooden fence. People were dancing, playing, running in that garden, lighted up by the moonlight. Voices were coming from here, but also not. Gus was still hearing them in the distance. He frowned. A group of people came near him. He felt like he knew them, but something prevented him to figure it out.“Hey Gus!” said one of the people.“…hey?” Gus’ frowning intensified; how did they know his name?“We thought you’ll never come!”“We were worried sick!”“Heyyyyyy Gustifer!”The last one who talked stepped into the moonlight, revealing their face.“Luz?”“Of course, it’s me, Gusington!”“But weren’t you… trapped in the human realm?”“What? Am I?”“Well, isn’t this interesting…” murmured the person near Luz.“What?!” Gus blinked several times, trying to understand what was going on.“Gus, my friend, thank you for your service.” Luz smiled and her eyes turned blue, entirely blue. “Good night!” she exclaimed before punching him in the face.But the witch wasn’t going to be caught off guard. He grabbed Luz’s wrist and drew a blue circle, dropping the illusion on her body. One of Belos’ guard appeared under it.“So, it’s all…”“An illusion!” exclaimed the person near fake-Luz, showing his face in the moonlight.“You again?!” cried out Gus.“Clever Augustus Porter. I hope we’ll meet again!”Adrian dropped the illusion around them. Gus watched the hotel and the garden fade away, the Forearm Forest coming back around him. The guard and Adrian disappeared, leaving Gus alone in a clearing, surrounded by red pine trees. He heard the voices calling him from all around. He finally recognized it, it was Lilith’s and Hooty’s. Gus got up on his feet and followed the sound, as quickly as possible. --- “Hey sis’!”Luz was on the couch, watching TV. She lowered the volume and raised an eyebrow to the voice coming from the door. She turned her head and saw Vee.“Sis?” she asked.“I’m sorry, I meant Luz…”“No, no, it’s fine, it’s totally fine! I’m just… not used to it. We’ve met yesterday, after all.”“I know…”“And it was pretty awkward until now.”“I noticed… But I had a day of reflexion since school isn’t really… how can you say?”“Stimulating?”“Yes, that.”They both chuckled.“I know I… took your mom, took your room, took your friends…”“Strike that last one.” snorted Luz.“The point is, I took your life here. And I’m truly, deeply sorry.”“Look.” Luz got up and walked to Vee. She looked really like her, well maybe except the blue fur around her ears and the light green dots on her face. “I know we started on the wrong foot together. But believe me, if I had the chance to do it again, leaving this Realm to live on the Boiling Isles, I would. I’m not mad at you for replacing me. Actually, I’m not mad at you at all. I’m just mad at me for leaving mom alone. But thanks to you, she wasn’t!”“And now she has two daughters!”“Exactly! And I’m maybe not used to it, but I’m so happy to have a sister!”“Me too! Being an only child suck sometimes.”They both get to the couch and sat together.“Yeah, tell me about it… I wonder what it would be if I had brothers and sisters like Amity, how my life would be…”“Who’s Amity?”Luz did not realize she spoke out loud and blushed.“No one! It’s just… a friend I met on the Boiling Isles…”“Right…” Vee smirked.“Shut up!” Luz nudged her new sister.“So… what are you doing here alone, all day?” asked Vee, to change the subject.“Drawing, writing, watching TV… y’know…”“You write?”“Of course, I do! I’m a part of Azura’s fandom and I’m very creative! Of course, I write fanfiction!”“Ah yes, Azura, I read your books…”“What do you think?” inquired Luz, excitedly bouncing.“It’s okay, I’ve read better.”Luz blinked several times, theatrically shocked, and fainted dramatically, the back of her hand on her forehead.“The betrayal!!”Vee chuckled while Luz narrowed her eyes.“You’re not my sister anymore.”“Well, that was quick!”They both burst into laughter. It felt like a warm cup of cocoa going through Luz’s body. It was sweet and heart-warming. Like home… She was at home… It was the first time since she came back that she felt like home. She smiled at Vee, a sincere and warm smile, which the other her returned.“So… do you draw Azura too?” continued Vee.“Oh yes, I love to draw some Hecazura!”“What’s Hecazura?”“Hecate and Azura, you know the witch and her rival… Classic enemies to lovers’ trope! My favourite ship!”“Enemies to lovers… Ship… Right!”“It’s fandom terms. A ship is when you put two characters together, romantically. Sometimes more than two.”“I see… Do you have a rival too?”“What do you mean?”“Well, you were on the Boiling Isles, you love Azura, I’m pretty sure you tried to become a witch…”Luz chuckled; a bit embarrassed with being so obvious.“And with the glyphs you showed me you surely became one.”“You saw right through me, sister!” Luz made finger guns; her cheeks turned slightly pink.“So… Do you have a rival?”“I… did but we became friends.”“And lovers?”“No… I don’t think Amity… Even though…”A smirk emerged on Vee’s face.“Even though? What happened?”Luz recalled the events of last week. The library. The echo-mouse. The trials. The kiss… She brought her hand on her left cheek and softly brushed it. The ghost of Amity’s lips was still here. A melancholic grin was hanged on her face, her cheekbones were bright red.“N-nothing!” she stuttered.Vee’s smile grew on her face.“Right…”“ANYWAY!” Luz yelled, to avoid the subject. “I drew Azura and Amit- I mean Azura and Hecate and I’m now going to walk to the door and go outside without any thoughts just because I love to walk outside such a beautiful day today I love afternoons byyyyyyyyyyye.”She got up quickly and ran to the door without throwing a look at Vee, still on the couch, holding back a giggle. Luz opened the door and step outside, she quickly ran to the forest, to the old shaky house. When she got to it, she closed the door behind her, slowly catching her breath. She felt her back sliding down the door and fell on the old wooden ground.“Luz… why are you so flustered by a friendly kiss?” she muttered to herself. “Stoopid brain!”She sighed. That kiss. That goddamn kiss. It changed everything to her. She wasn’t the same since her cotton-candy haired friend kissed her cheek. The words Amity said before leaning on her were etched in her mind. You always have a way of sneaking into people’s hearts… This has been going on repeat in her brain for a week. She sneaked into Amity’s heart… She was sure of it. But it was painful to think about it. And then she avoided her for a week. She didn’t even answer when Luz asked her to be here for her portal. Willow made Amity come. But they didn’t talk. At all. And then… Well, it’s been thirty hours and it was still hurting as hell. Luz, come back! was echoing in her mind. Amity’s voice begging her for coming back. And the sudden dreadful silent.“Amity, you idiot…” she grumbled.She hated the Blight for avoiding her and for letting her cross that stupid portal. But she wasn’t mad very long. She couldn’t. At the very moment when she pictured Amity’s smile, with her beautiful lavender hair, and that cute expression she had when she was frowning… The way she fiddled with her necklace when she was thinking. And that smile. The one smile that sent shivers down her spine, the smile that made her stomach flip and her heart going on a rollercoaster ride.“Oh”As a fanfiction writer she already knew where this was going. She wrote about it countless times. She knew what the symptoms were… But it was the first time she needed to handle it.“Oh no I don’t like the sound of it.”Stop lying to yourself, Noceda.“Shut up, annoying voice of myself in my head. I don’t… I don’t…”But she was. She was so much. Incredibly, stupidly, amazingly, deeply. She had to admit it. She let out a growl. She had a crush on Amity Blight. “I have a crush on Amity Blight.”Luz was back, an hour after she left. She had a whole sixty minutes to settle down in the old shack. She tried to avoid it, reject it, understand it, feel it, fight it. But in the end, there was nothing but Amity. When she tried to empty her mind, Amity’s face was always there, smiling at her. Every time she thought of that smile, she would let out a whine. The witch had poisoned her mind and she was gladly falling for it.“So that settles the “who’s Amity” question… Wait, Blight?”“You know her?”“Her family is well known in the Demon Realm. And you have a crush on their child?”“It’s their daughter, the third one. She has an older-brother and an older-sister, twins. Edric and Emira.”“Oooookay.” Vee chuckled. “So… tell me about her!”“We met on my first week in the Demon Realm. I helped a friend of mine, Willow, but by doing so we kinda fought each other.”“Classic enemies to lovers’ trope…” muttered Vee, triggering a laugh with Luz.“Yeah well, we were enemies then friends, like good friends. We even went to prom together!”“Oooooh so that’s when…”“No, I don’t think so, I mean we were just friends at this point and there was nothing between us. We went to prom as friends! Actually, I asked her to go with me so she wouldn’t get rejected by her date.”“Right……”“Anyway. After some adventures we grew closer. She became my best friend, along with Willow and Gus, two adorable witches.”“I see…”“The more I saw her, the happier I’d get, but again it’s a totally friendly feeling.”“Of course.”“And I guess the kiss sealed it all.”“The WHAT???”“She kissed me on the cheek…” Luz sighed, dreamily, slightly blushing.“Why? How? What?”“Okay, okay, so there was this library stuff, she’s such a bookworm, and I kinda messed up and she lost her job. SO, I helped her get it back. And when I gave her library card back, she had that beautiful purple hair…”Luz paused because of the several number of feelings that were flooding her entire body. She would give anything to just touch those amazing hair.“Anyway…” she resumed, with strawberry cheeks. “She said something like you very good to come into peoples’ heart.”She knew it wasn’t the exact words. She knew the exact words. They were still replaying at this precise moment in her head. But it wasn’t the same when she said it. She prefers Amity’s voice saying it, Amity’s voice was so much better.“And then she kissed me and ran away to her house.”“So… she likes you too???”“Nah, I don’t think so, it was just a friendly kiss. She ran because she was clearly embarrassed to kiss another human… But… I mean… She did say “Stay away from MY Luz” before… and other stuffs…”“Damn girl… I know a bit about humans, and it seems like your pretty in love!”“No! I-I’m not! I just have a crush! It’s different! In love means feelings grew and for now I can’t develop them because I’m here and she’s on the other side!”Vee felt her sorrow and went for a hug, which Luz answered right away. It was really heart-warming to have someone else than her mom.“Will you tell mom?”“About what?”“Your crush on a witch.”“If it’s about having a crush on another girl it’s…”“No, that’s not what I’m talking about.”Luz recalled the events before lunchtime when her mother saw her drawing. Her face took a shade of red similar to a fire truck.“I’m pretty sure she already suspects something… Maybe I’ll tell her… But that’s nothing, really…”“You, having a crush on someone in another Realm, isn’t nothing, Luz.”“Maybe I should wait… Wait for the moment when Eda and the others will open that portal again.”“As you wish!” Vee shrugged. “Until then, I shall take care of my sister.”“Awwwww” cooed Luz as she went for another hug. “And I’ll take care of you too, Vee.”Both of them smiled as they were in each other arms. They weren’t alone. Not anymore. Even though Luz didn’t quite feel at home, this place looked more and more a lot like it. Especially with her a new sister and her mother, loving her at every moment. She felt calm and relaxed. Her crush on Amity could wait… Not too much, of course. She could spend the night on planning the perfect date, hoping the other witch liked her back. But for now, she would enjoying the warm embrace of her sister, her cute little demon of a sister.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

“You WHAT???”Willow’s scream echoed through the mountain of the Knee. She and Amity were walking in a tunnel leading to Eclipse Lake. They saw the shape under the ground, the one that took Edric and Emira, going that way. They were following it, talking about their life during the past week.“Please to make me repeat it.”“Ames, you kissed Luz on the cheek?? What did you do that? …Actually, that explains why you avoided Luz for a week.”“I don’t why, okay? It’s just… She got my library card back… and she made that sweet smile… Next thing I knew, she was looking at me with big eyes… Staring at my lips… and I panicked.”“Knowing Luz, she’s probably torturing herself about this.”“Really? That- that wasn’t…”“Amity… you’re both two walking-talking disasters obviously in love since you saved her from your mom’s abominations thing…”“We’re not- I’m not- I don’t LOVE her.”“Yeah right.” chuckled Willow. “You’re absolutely not thinking about her smile-”“Her stupid smile.”“Her face-”“Her stupid face.”“The way she looks when she’s about to use her glyphs-”Amity moaned; her cheeks took another shade of red. She bit her lip, thinking about Luz. Well, it’s not like she was thinking about Luz 24/7. Sometimes she was sleeping, and her dreams were mostly about Luz. It was very infuriating. She was so mad at the human. Mad for leaving, mad for letting this portal blow up, mad for getting stuck over there, mad for leaving without her, mad for leaving her alone. She was as mad as she was obsessed by Luz. Titan, she wanted to have the human right in front of her, to yell at her, to look at her… and kiss her other cheek.“That stupid look.” she replied, clutching her fist. She was so mad.Willow stopped and put a hand on Amity’s shoulder.“Hey… Are you okay?”“Yeah, I’m fine.” answered the witch without looking back.“Amity… We’ve been friends for so long, even with our… little disagreement.” she snorted. “I know you, Ames, I know when you’re sad, or happy, or upset. And I can tell you’re definitely not fine.”“I said I’m fine.”“You know you can talk to me. I’m your friend.”Amity felt tears growing at the corner of her eyes. Willow was right. She was her friend. It was so good to have her back in her life. She missed her so much. But it was hard to talk to her, express her feelings. The only one she managed to talk to was… well, Luz. With her gone, she had no one.“I… am fine.” she repeated.“Okay, I understand if you don’t want to talk to me. I’m not Edric, Emira or Luz.”Amity blushed at the last name.“But you need to talk to someone. It’s not good to keep it to yourself, trust me on this.”Willow continued their trip in silence, Amity walking ten feet behind her. Their feet crunched on the thick snow as they were going deeper in the mountain.“I… I miss her.” finally said Amity after a long moment of quietness.“I miss her too, Ames.”“No… you don’t understand. I miss her. I miss Luz. I miss talking to her. I miss her stupid face. I miss her hugs. I miss hanging out with her. I miss her laugh. I miss her smile. I miss Luz.” her voice cracked. She stopped walking and felt the warmth of her tears on her cheeks. “I miss her so much. And I’m so worry this portal thing won’t work because that would mean I could never see her again. And I don’t want that. I want to see her again. I want to spend time with her again. I want to do things with her. I want to laugh again with her. I want to write with her. I want her to look at me again. I want to have a future with her because I like her so much. Is that what you wanted to hear, Willow Park? I like Luz and I don’t want to think of a life without her. I- I-”Willow turned around and took her in her arms. She put her hand on the purple-haired witch’s head, patting her to calm her. She was sobbing on Willow’s shoulders, her arms along her body. She couldn’t move, she was too afraid, too sad, too broken.“It’s been thirty hours…” whispered Willow. “We’re gonna bring her back.”“But what if it fails? What if there’s no Titan’s blood? What if the portal doesn’t work and exploded again? I don’t want to live through another separation. Losing you as a friend was already too much for me. I don’t want to live that again.”“Luz is still your friend, don’t worry. And I am too.”“But it doesn’t matter if I don’t see her. I… I have to tell her.”“For your crush?”Amity nodded on Willow’s shoulder.“So, you know?”“The only one that doesn’t seem to know is Luz…” softly scoffed the plant witch.“But it doesn’t matter. If we can’t bring her back… If she gets stuck there… If something happens to her… If- If-” she was trembling, still crying. “I miss her so much…”Her legs were weak. If Willow wasn’t holding her, she would have collapsed on the cold floor.“Hey…” murmured her friend, caressing her hair, “We’re gonna bring her back. That’s a promise. And when you’ll see her again, you’ll tell her everything.”“But what if… what if…”“What if she doesn’t feel the same?”She felt Amity slowly shaking her head.“She’s obsessed with you Ames. Since she saw you at Hexside. She wanted to be your friend back then. She did everything to achieve that goal. She planned every of her moves, Luz’s style. But something she couldn’t predict got in the way.”“What?”“You… and Grom. And that grudgby thing with Boscha. And that incident with your mom’s abominations. Like the stars aligned for Luz the human to fall in love with you.”“Luz… has a crush… on me?”“And now it’s the other way. Everyone saw it but you.” chuckled Willow.“Luz… has a crush on me?” Amity blinked several times, trying to process the information.“I’ll do everything I can to bring her back. And then you’ll ask her out. Okay?”“Okay…” whispered Amity, sniffing.They stayed in that hug position for a couple minutes before breaking it. Willow gave a tissue to her friend, to clean her face up and they were back on walking, side by side. The tunnel was calm and silent. Until it wasn’t. In the distance, they heard voices, known voices arguing. The two witches exchanged a look, smiled and ran towards the sound.“I’m just saying, if that flakeworm eats you first, I’ll take your room to make a pool in your honour.”“Ed, we have the same room.”“Let’s just say the bed.”“That would be a very small pool.”“You’ll miss me, sister.”“I’m not dead yet. Besides, what about Cherryti?”“I’ll take care of her, don’t worry.”“One of us gotta help her date the human.”“I agree, it would be a shame if she doesn’t do anything about it.”They were both hanged at the ceiling of a cave, in a sort of web.“Do we really need to save them?” silently whined Amity to Willow.“They’re your siblings…”“I know, but a part of me wants to leave them here.”Willow rolled her eyes with a smile.“Come on.”The plant witch drew a green circle in the air and a massive vegetable pillar came from the ground, lifting them up to the twins.“Cherryti! There you are!” exclaimed Emira.“Stop it!” grumbled the lavender haired witch. “Don’t make me regret saving you.”“What attacked you?” inquired Willow.“A flakeworm.”“What’s a flakeworm?”Edric’s face suddenly turned blue.“You’ll soon going to know. It’s coming our way!”Willow and Amity turned to the moving shape under the snow, heading in the cave. Then it burst in, in all its magnificence, or horror. It was a fifty feet long white tube, worm-like, with a huge hole at its face and pointy teeth all around it. It had six long spikes around its mouth, clicking with anger. It screamed at Willow and Amity as it slid on the floor. Amity jumped from the green pillar to the ground, taunting the flakeworm.“Here, beastie!” she yelled.The creature turned and screeched. The cavern trembled under the piercing noise.“Willow, untied us, we gotta help her!”“Right, don’t move.”She summoned a fang made of woods and tore the web apart. The twins fell near the plant witch.“What’s that demon?” she asked.“It’s a flakeworm.” explains Edric, as he knew a lot about beasts and demons. “It follows its prey under the snow and capture it with its spikes. Then it spit web on its prey with its mouth.”“Gross.” commented Emira.“It’s supposed to be extinct. The flakeworms used to feed on the Titan’s blood to grow… but if it’s here then that means…”“There’s Titan’s blood near!”“Exactly!”“Let’s help Amity first.” suggested Willow.But the witch didn’t need any help. She was taking the beast in a single fight, sending her abomination goo from the bottle at her waist. She was avoiding every web the monster could throw at her. It was like she was dancing with the creature, in a waltz. One-two-three, one-two-three. A soft music was playing in her head. She span on herself, to the right. One-two-three, one-two-three. She sent a fireball to the side of the creature. It squawked at the impact, the stalactites on the ceiling were dangerously trembling. One-two-three, one-two-three. She used her abomination goo as a whip, hitting the flakeworm which seems to be more and more exhausted. One-two-three, one-two-three. She created another fireball and used her goo as a bat.“Eat this, sucka!” she yelled, striking the flaming ball towards the flakeworm.Its body crashed on the wall of the cave.“Amity! Watch out!” warned Willow, running to her.She drew a large green spell circle and jumped on Amity, catching her in her arms. A green shield of branches and leaves protected them from the cavern collapsing, Edric and Emira were also under it, waiting for the chaos to stop. The loud rumbling and tumbling were making Amity sick. She closed her eyes praying for its end. She wanted to be at home. At the Owl House. With Luz. The kind of calm she needed. Well, calm wasn’t exactly the right word as Luz was a real human dynamo, not to mention Eda’s extravagance and Hooty’s… hootyness. But it was the kind of atmosphere she liked. Especially with Luz by her side. She tightened her embrace on Willow, at least she had her friend. The flakeworm let out a screech of pain before falling silent. The cave was eventually not collapsing anymore, a thin gap was leading to another room, in the middle of the debris. Willow broke the embrace and held Amity’s hand.“Come on, this way.” she whispered.The Blights and Park walked through the hole and ended up in a small room, slightly smaller than the Owl House’s living room.“It’s a dead end.” noticed Emira.A tiny sound came from the place, a soft sound of a liquid falling on the snow. Amity scanned the room, looking for something matching the noise and saw it. At the right of the hole, there was a tiny breach with a blue liquid escaping from the cave, Titan’s blood.“I can’t believe it!” Willow squeaked. “We found it!”“Emira, get a vial!” asked Edric.Amity was looking at the small drop of blood, going in the flask. She smiled. Finally, the nightmare was over. Finally, she would see Luz again. Finally, she could tell her everything. And then, maybe, ask out the human that obsessed her thoughts since she crushed into her life. --- “So, are you going to tell me why we are doing all this?”Eda sighed, she squeezed Raine’s hand and look at the ground of Belos’ castle.“It’s for this kid, actually…”“You have children?”“Well, yes… and no.”“What do you mean?” Raine frowned.“Several months ago, I met this human kid who came here with a portal. That kid was socially awkward, very weird and a bit chaotic… She reminded me of the young Eda, without that bloody curse. She wanted to become a witch and I helped her. She befriended some other weird kids and the Blight girl.”“Odalia’s daughter?”“That Blight girl, yes. They’re so into each other, they’re the only one that don’t even get a clue.” Eda snorted. “She became a powerful witch, not as powerful as me in my prime of course, but enough to be someone. Her name is Luz, and I love her as if she was my daughter…” Her voice began to crackle. “I miss that kid, Rainestorm, it’s my fault if she’s gone. I didn’t secure enough the portal…”Raine’s hand slipped from Eda’s, and they wrapped their arm around the shoulders of the Owl Lady.“That’s why we’re doing all this, I want my kid back and I need to build another portal to do so.”“I understand… This way.”Raine showed a large tapestry showing Belos learning how to control wild magic. Behind it there was a door leading to a bunch of stairs. Without making any noise, they all took it and descend into the walls. A black wooden door was at the end, which didn’t cause any problem for the bard witches. It easily opened and a dark room was behind it. Eda took a light glyph and light up the place. There was a lot of shelves, with vials and ingredients resting on them. They began to search the room, Raine and Eda on a side, Katya on the other.“That’s weird.” whispered Raine, slightly frowning.“What is?”“We saw no-one, Belos doesn’t know we’re here… there something odd.”“You’re right. We should grab what we want and get away as quickly as possible.”Fortunately, everything was simply found and they went back to the corridor, running up the stairs.“Yes, emperor Belos, it seems like the human disappeared in the human realm.” declared a faint voice. “…I know… the Head of the Illusion Covent said so… Yes… He’s helping them… I know… We need to bring her back…”Raine watched Eda with a concerned look. They ran to the opposite direction, still not talking. Something was definitely weird.“It was too easy.” muttered Eda as they exit through the window.“And Kikimora said they were helping someone…” added Raine. “I don’t know if it’s a good idea to bring your friend back, Eda.”“I know… But I don’t care.” replied the Owl Lady. “This kid is my only family. So, whatever her return will mean, we’ll face it together.”Raine sighed but nodded.“I trust you, Eda.”“Thanks, Rainestorm.”, she squeezed their hand and caressed Owlbert’s head. “Let’s get back to the Owl House.” --- Gus was running, yelling, calling for Lilith and Hooty. He hoped they were still there. He didn’t know what time it was, but the down sun was a good clue. He eventually found them. Standing in the middle of the forest, their eyes entirely blue, frightened. Gus tried to scream, shake them, but nothing happened. They were like in a trance, shivering. Something was definitely wrong.“Calm down Gus… It’s probably an illusion… That’s it! It’s an illusion!”He performed a large blue circle towards the two and they collapsed.“Are you okay?” he asked as the owl worm opened his eyes.“Is Lulu okay?” screeched Hooty.The boy and the demon turned to the old witch who seemed shocked.“Is everything okay, Lilith?”“I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry…” she was muttering on loop, prostrate on the ground.“Help me, Hooty, we’re going to bring her back to Eda, she’ll know what to do.” --- The evening was already settled when Camila came home. Luz and Vee were both setting up the spare room for one of them, it was decided after their long hug. They talked a bit. About Luz’s confession, what she would do about it. Then, they decided to work in the house. They prepared dinner together and now, they were creating the perfect nest for one of the girls. Vee chose the music they could vibe too, helping them carrying the task.“Really?” scoffed Luz.“What?”“Well, that’s not the type of music the people of my age listen to.”“They don’t like Dire Straits?”“It’s old, like forty years old.”“If you don’t like it, I can still change.”“No, that’s okay, it’s your choice, and it isn’t a bad one. It’s relaxing, really.”“…okay.”An hour later, Vee was singing her favourite song at the top of her lungs, while Luz was arranging the bed, humming. That’s when Camila went to see what they were doing.“Did you make dinner, as promised?” she asked.“Si mama, me and Vee put it in the fridge.”“It’s like you didn’t be idle…” smiled their mother.“I have a sister to take care of, after all!”“Hey! I can take care of myself!” whined Vee, stopping her singing.Luz and Camila giggled.“We’ll see. For now, it’s time to eat.”Luz smiled. The future seemed bright. She had a crush, a loving mother, and an awesome sister. She was looking forward for the rest of the week.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

“What happened?”“We encountered a Coven Head, the illusionist one.”“Ugh, Adrian.” Raine grunted.Everyone gathered in the living-room of the Owl House, Lilith was laying on the ground, the eyes wide open and glowing blue.“Will Lulu be okay?” The worm-tube back on the door inquired, a worried look on his face.“I don’t know, Hooty. She’s most likely trapped in an illusion and I don’t know how we can get her out.”“Maybe we can go in her mind.” Amity suggested. “If the illusion is messing with her brain, we can fight it in here.”“Good thinking, bossy boots.” Eda grinned and summoned Owlbert, then turned to her former lover. “Rainestorm, can you put her to sleep and send us in here?”“Are you sure, Eda?”“My little sister needs me.”“She’s older than you.” Raine deadpanned.“Whatever.” Eda waved her hand. “Please.”“Take care. And come back.”“Oh, come on, Rainestorm, like I don’t want to come back to you.”Without a warning, the bard witch pulled the Owl Lady against them and sealed their lips in a soft kiss. Long enough for Amity to clear her throat.“Miss Eda? We need to save Lilith?”Eda broke the embrace, her cheeks as red as her dress.“Right, yes, Lilith, my sister.”Amity rolled her eyes with a smile. An improbable scene flashed in her mind. She saw herself and Luz, Luz the human. In each other arms. Kissing just like Eda and Raine did, only ten times cuter because it was Luz. She blushed as her heart fluttered. She needed to save Lilith, to have a chance for this moment to happen.“Are you ready?” Raine asked to Eda and Amity. The two witches nodded with determination. “Alright. Good luck.” Raine picked Owlbert and performed a spin with the staff. A glowing light wrapped Eda and Lilith, the second after they were gone from the Owl House living-room to Lilith’s Clawthorne mind. --- Lilith was wandering the alleys full of bookshelves, the dim light was soothing her, somehow. She wanted to stay here forever, among her books and that sweet scent of old written parchment. At least there wasn’t anything to annoy her, there wasn’t Eda or her mother or the Golden Guard. She was at peace here. --- “Of course...” Eda groaned when she set foot in that maze of shelves and books.“It looks like the Forbidden Stacks.” Amity frowned before smiling, remembering her adventure with her favourite human.“I don’t know what you’re talking about kiddo, but I'm sure it’s a nerdy thing... With Luz, judging by your face.”Amity automatically blushed and turned her head. Eda snorted as she proved her point.“Anyway, where’s Lilly?”“We’re in her mind, right? So, we must find her inner self.” Amity recalled.“It’s not that simple, Boots, she was trapped by an illusion, she’s stuck here.”“Which means...?”“There are two Lilly’s here. The inner Lilly and the real Lilly.”“Right...” Amity nodded, as she understood.“And let’s not forget the thing the Coven Head planted in her head to make her stay here.”“Find the real Lilith, defeat the illusion, bring her home and save Luz.” Amity mentally noted.“You got it, now let’s get to work.”Easier said than done because the maze was as maze-y as possible. They went in circles for some long minutes before Amity noticed the spines of the books. It was always the same. When she approached the shelves, she understood why. There was just one book, the same book on each shelf. Infinite versions of the same book over and over again. She furrowed her brows as she took one out. The cover was as dusty as the rest of the place. Amity blowed it off so she could read the golden letters written in cursives. 
The life and times of Lilith Clawthorne
Tome 1146 She opened it. The book had just one double-page, the rest seemed glued, and there wasn’t anything written on it. Instead, there was a rectangular screen.“Uhhh miss Eda?”“What is it, Boots?”“I think I’ve found something.”“Ugh... Lilith’s memories.”“In Willow’s mind those were in trees.” Amity remembered.“Each mind is different. As Lilith is a huge nerd of history books, it seems only logical her life is in old dusty diaries.”Young Lilith, red hair and round glasses, was making a swan with paper for her mother.“Yup, that’s my sister.” Eda rolled her eyes.A weird sound drew their attention. It was a muffled growl which seemed to come from the inside of the maze.“Did you hear that?” Eda inquired and Amity nodded.Eda tried to summon her staff but nothing happened.“Right... Mind palace...” She groaned. “Be vigilant, Boots.”“Yes, miss Eda.”The older witch grabbed a book and tore some pages. With a pen she always kept in her pocket, she drew several glyphs.At first nothing happened, everything was quiet. But suddenly, the floor started to rumble. The two witches were in a state of alert, ready to defend themselves. Their looks were drifting on every single object around them. But it was the least expecting thing that happened.The books started to glow. Amity already saw that phenomenon, when the wailing star animated the library. But these weren’t green. It was blue, just like illusion magic. A dazzling light wrapped the bookshelves as the roar grew louder. Pages which represented Lilith’s life flew through the air and combined one by one to form a giant and terrifying beast.“Is that...?”“Yup, a Paperdragon.” Eda threw a plant glyph on the ground and stepped on it to create a green protective wall. “Duck!”The huge monstrous dragon made of ancient pages of Lilith’s memories breathed a large amount of fire, annihilating the plants covering the two witches.“What do you know about Paperdragons, Eda?”“Huge beasts, live among the books, impervious to fire, very dangerous, usually nice unless provoked.”“How can we defeat it?”“I don’t know, I ditched this class to go on a date with Raine.”“Ughhhh!”The monster growled and set a bookshelf on fire.“Isn’t it supposed to be an illusion?!”“We’re in someone’s mind. Illusion and reality are the same thing here.”“Great.” Amity sighed. “We’re gonna die.” She performed a huge circle and an abomination rose from the ground. The creature was human sized and took a lot of Amity’s forces. She staggered before Eda caught her.“Wow, careful Boots.”“Abomination, cover!” She yelled.The Paperdragon blasted another column of fire towards the witches, fortunately stopped by the goo monster.“Good job, Boots!” Eda exclaimed. “Now it’s my turn. Time to use what Luz taught me.”She drew an invisibility glyph and used it on her. The dragon stopped his attack and looked around him. There was a sudden silence where Amity and the creature looked for Eda, until a screech resonated above the creature’s head. The older witch reappeared with a glowing ice ball in her hand.“TAKE THAT.” She screamed and threw it on the dragon. “BOOTS, FIRE BALL, NOW!”“Right.” Amity drew a spell circle and a purple fire ensued between her hands. She used her old Grudgby moves to aim for the ice ball and hit it. The spell explodes and a gallon of water dropped on the creature’s head.“And now...” Eda took out another glyph combo from her pocket and tapped it before throwing it on the wet Paperdragon. The reaction was immediate. Streak of electric light shook the monster. Waves of electricity crossed all of his body. His growled resonated in the huge library maze.“Abomination, protect!” Amity ordered.The goo creature picked up Eda and wrapped himself around the two witches just before the Paperdragon exploded. The pages of Lilith’s diaries flew through the air, sharp as knives, able to cut anything except maybe the abomination. Amity just waited for everything to stop and, eventually, the gloomy silence came back.“That’s done.” Eda grinned, dusting her dress.“What’s next?”“Finding Lilith.”“Well, she’s here.”“What?!”Indeed, the Clawthorne sister was standing in the middle of the paper mess.“Wh- What happened here? What have you done again, Edalyn?”“Me? Nothing! We were attacked by one of your former colleagues’ creatures!”“It was a huge Paperdragon sent by the head of the illusion’s coven.”“Ugh, Adrian.” Lilith grunted.“Alright, we’ve got Lilith, let’s get out of here before...”She didn’t have the time to finish her sentence because the sheets of old paper were glowing again and flew together to form a bigger and deadlier creature. The Paperdragon 2.0 was ready to take them down. When he roared, the walls of Lilith’s mind trembled, and his fire breath almost burned Amity if she didn’t sacrifice her Abomination.“Okay ladies, phase 2.” Eda declared, ready to fight. --- On the other side of the broken portal, Luz was in Vee’s room. It had been two weeks now since the portal exploded and stranded Luz in the Human Realm. The first days weren’t the easiest, but she managed to do something of her days. She spent those taking care of the house, as she was bored. When she had a block on her writing, she would dust the furniture, cook and bake something for her mother and Vee, dance, and watch TV. And three times a day she would go back to the old shack, with a flickering light of hope. But that doesn’t mean she didn’t believe in Eda, Amity and the others.Amity… She couldn’t stop thinking about her. She hoped she was okay. If she was there, she could say so much to her, so much. She could confess her crush, how she would love to kiss her lips and going on a date with her. If only that stupid portal didn’t close behind her, they would surely be on a date now… That said if Amity wanted it too, of course. Right now, Luz just wanted to talk to her, see her face, her beautiful smile and her dazzling eyes. She would give anything to feel her presence again.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

It has been now four months since Luz had built a successful portal. Four months since she had left the Boiling Isles and everything behind her. Four months since she had left Amity, and the magic behind her. Four months since she had met Vee, her new sister. She had lost hope for some time now. She knew, or at least she sensed her friends from the other side couldn’t build another working portal. Or they managed to do it, but they were so afraid it would close again they’d never opened it. Luz was stuck in this realm forever and she got used to it.Time passed and she managed to forget about her crush on Amity, about how happy she was to master magic. Her glyphs didn’t work anymore, maybe it was the remnant of the Boiling Isles energy that permitted the magic to work for some days. But now, she could tap the drawn symbols as much as she wanted, nothing would happen. She got used to it.Vee helped a lot. She was always there when she could be. When her sister would come home, after a school day, she would go to Luz’s room and spend the rest of the time with her. Camila was here in the morning and in the evening, those were some quiet and nice family bonding times. After everything Luz went through, she needed some quiet and nice moments with her mom. As Camila went to work before night, Luz and Vee would watch some movies and TV shows together and talk of anything and everything. Then they would go to sleep in the same room, as Luz asked when she started to have nightmare about the Demon Realm.During their alone time, Vee listened to some old music. She initiated Luz to old bands, pop music from the seventies and eighties. Luz fell in love with that music and she was glad to share something with her new sister. Vee really became indispensable in the Noceda family, Camila was even thinking about making her a true Noceda by the name. Luz almost forgot every of her problems thanks to Vee, even though the night were the most difficult. She would often wake up in tears, as the memories of her days in Bonesborough emerged every time. She pinched her skin every time, for the pain to make those feelings disappear.Somehow, she came back to Gravesfield’s life. Luz introduced herself as Vee’s cousin and worked at the library, as a helper. She didn’t gain any money from it but at least she wasn’t all locked up in her room, at least that’s what her mama said. Although Luz didn’t mind staying at home, she liked living among the books of her town, she hadn’t to hang out with the other time and the books weren’t judging her. If this was meant to be her life from now on, she wouldn’t mind, she got used to it. Eventually she would totally forget about ever going to the Demon Realm, about Eda, King, Willow, Gus, Hooty, Lilith, Edric, Emira… about Amity, too. Maybe not. How could she forget about her first crush ever? Unless she would find someone else to replace those memories, she couldn’t.But at least, Luz got used to it.Luz would always get used to it. No matter what. As long as she wouldn’t have to come back to everything she gave up. She didn’t want to suffer from it anymore. Those things were in the past and deserved to stay as well. She’d made a mistake, she just had to close herself to everything that could cause the same mistake again. The feelings were too painful to live through them, once more.Sometimes she even wished she had never come to the Boiling Isles. But if she’d never crossed the path of Owlbert and Eda, Vee would never have come to Earth. At least she was glad sometimes positive came out of this nonsense. At least she had some positive feelings, some joy, some smiles, some laughter. Everything was designed to hide her anger, the one rising in her throat every time she would think about her old friends from the Boiling Isles.She felt abandoned, forsaken, alone. Because no one dared to open a portal in four months. Every day she would come back at the shack and hope to see something. But nothing, nothing ever, every day, for months. Her hope flickered, faded away and she got used to it.She got used to the fact she would probably never see them again, nor the Boiling Isles. She got used to the fact she would probably never do magic again, she would never love again, she would never have friends again. But she didn’t mind, not anymore. Her heart was now closed and everything that matters were her mother and Vee. She even ditched her Hecazura fanfictions, and the Good Witch Azura books. Everything that could remind her of Amity. Her heart was now closed to protect herself.And she got used to it.Because no matter what happened, she would have to move on, keep on living. And to do so, she had to crush those feelings and put them away. Be sure to never cross her mind again. Move on, keep on living, let die the past and look for the future.Amity.Those were the most painful thoughts she had to repressed. Her beautiful smile, her hair, her eyes, the way she walked when she was at Hexside. The afternoons spent with her at the library. Her laugh. She missed her laugh so much. She missed how embarrassed she looked when Luz was doing something. She had to be embarrassed, why would she blush otherwise?Amity.The moon among the stars.She couldn’t forget her. She didn’t want to.Because it was the thing that would keep her awake at night. Every time she would close her eyes, the cotton-candy haired goddess was here. In her dreams, she was here too, but too far to be reached. The same dream. Over. And over. And over. And over. She wanted to beat herself, crack her skull and crush that brain. She wanted to disappear, her mind to go blank. She wanted to die because death was surely less painful than that.Four months.It had been four months. Four long months. With herself. Vee and her mother were there, sure. But inside, she was alone. On her own. She was missing something, and that something was Amity Blight. --- “Luz?”The human was staring at her ceiling. It had been six months now, the memories were blurry and almost gone. She didn’t even remember Amity. Was she blonde? No. She had a particular hair colour. Something like pink… or green… or was it blue? No, purple. Yes, it was purple. A light purple, lilac hair. And her eyes were golden. Maybe. Or was it Eda? Who was Eda? Wasn’t she the lady who tried to kill her? No, that was Lilith. And Eda was the cranky old witch who gave her a place to live in Bonesborough.The memories were fading. Luz was trying to hold them and cursed herself to have tried to forget them. She didn’t want them to go away. She missed them. She missed them so much. And the tears were running down her cheeks, the soft drops of water falling on her sweater. She would give everything to go back. To have never opened the portal in the first place. To leave her mother and Vee alone. She would have lived in the Demon Realm forever. She would have asked Amity out. Maybe she would have taken her on a date. And they would have kissed. So many times. She would have said ‘I love you’ so many times. She would have been a witch until the end of her days, with her friends, and maybe a girlfriend. She hated herself to have wanted to open this portal.“Luz?”She brought this on herself. This despair, this sadness. It was her fault, of course it was. If she hadn’t destroyed the former portal, she would have never needed to build another. All of that because Eda got captured, because of her. And then Eda lost her magic, because of her. Because of Luz. Maybe it was better that way. Getting her stranded here would avoid some more troubles for them. It was a fair reward for everything she had done.It was better that way.“Luz, cariño?”Luz got out of her torpor and noticed Vee frowning.“Are you okay?”Luz nodded as lie.“Do you mind if I put some music?”Luz shook her head.“No, go on.”“Thanks.”Vee turned on her personal speaker and one of her playlists played in the background.“If you want to talk, I’m here, you know?”“I know…”She went silent as the first note of a soft music came to her ears.“Thanks,” she murmured.“De nada.” Vee smiled and Luz felt better. At least she was here. She wanted to feel better. But she recognised the song. And the tears came back. 
I’ve gotta take a little time
 She knew the words by heart, it was one of Vee’s favourites songs. 
A little time to think things over
 And Luz learned to love it because they’ve listened to it so many times. And they sung it on the top of their lungs more than once. 
I better read between the lines
 But now, it was painful. Because the words had meanings, and memories started to play along. Just like some kind of videoclip. 
In case I need it when I’m older
 But it didn’t matter now. She was older, but she had read between the lines when it was too late. 
This mountain, I must climb
 Amity.Of course, she was thinking of Amity. This was a sappy romantic song. She wanted to sing it for her. She wanted to look in her eyes and sing it, to impress her. 
Feels like the world upon my shoulders
 She was falling. She felt the weight of her world crushing her shoulders. And she couldn’t bear it anymore. And it was her fault. 
Through the clouds, I see love shine
 And her world was clouded. The sun couldn’t reach through, and the moon was absent. Her mind was cloudy, and her heart was aching. 
Keeps me warm as life grows colder
 Vee quietly started to stroke Luz’s hair and she tried to calm down. But the song had just started. 
In my life, there’s been heartache and pain
 This song was the embodiment of Luz’s failure. 
I don’t know if I can face it again
 She was trying to forget, forget everything. And also, she didn’t want to forget. She didn’t want everything to fade away. 
Can stop now, I travelled so far
 But she had to stop! She couldn’t go anywhere. She failed and was stranded here, just like Azura in her old project. 
To change this lonely life
 Nothing to change, nothing could change that. She needed to find someone else, but she didn’t want to. She wanted Amity. She wanted Amity Blight. She wanted to say everything. But most importantly… 
I want to know what love is
 She wanted to understand love. She wanted to feel love. She was mouthing the words along with the song as the tears wouldn’t stop. 
I want you to show me
 And she had Amity in mind when she was saying that. Because it’s all she ever wanted. 
I want to feel what love is
 Because her heart was empty, grey. She had love, but she wanted a different kind of love. She would give everything to feel Amity’s scent again. To see her beautiful smile, her gorgeous eyes, and her pretty hair. 
I know you can show me
 If Amity was here. She could help her. But Luz was alone.