Work Text:
King looked at the drawing with satisfaction. "Yes. Yes! This is looking like the most spine-chilling demon of them all!"
Both he and Luz were lying next to each other, pencils and coloring utensils in-hand, drawing pictures with the paper sheets in front of them when Eda walked into the room.
"What are you two squirts up to?"
King was the first to jump to his feet. "Behold!" He shouted, showing Eda a drawing of a fish-like creature with hands. "Smoochy‐pie the Sweetie Baby! He's... He's a lot more threatening than his name implies."
Eda, though not all that impressed, gave a slight chuckle. She always wondered if the little guy would ever get tired of drawing cheesy mythical demons, though it didn't seem like that time has come just yet. Her attention then turned to Luz, whose back she was still facing.
"Just a few more finishing touches. Done!"
Luz turned around and held the picture in front of her. The drawing depicted both of them and King. Each of them were smiling.
"Surprise! It's a family portrait. Kind of? It's not perfect. The bodies are not as proportionate as I would have liked..."
Eda took Luz's drawing and gazed at it for another moment. Did Luz really just say she considered her family? As of now, she'd only been with the group of outcasts for a couple of months. And while she'd never actually admit to it, it meant the world to her that Luz thought that way.
As Eda was about to open her mouth to say something, she looked away from the drawing only for Luz not to be there. In fact, she was surrounded by nothing but darkness. "Luz? King?"
The drawing that once meant dearly to her had since burst into flames.
"Eda? Eda?!"
"It's happening again!"
Eda turned around and saw herself hunched over on the ground, in front of Luz and King who were backing away. This version of herself began morphing into her cursed form. The once gold eyes turned all black, and sharp gray teeth began forming in its mouth. Wings and feathers burst from its body as it grew larger and larger. The creature let out a loud screech as it turned around to face the two.
"Luz! Get out of there!" Eda shouted though neither of them heard her. She tried to get closer, to get them out of harm's way but was being blocked by some sort of invisible barrier. She couldn't do anything but watch as this now owl-like monster form of herself started walking towards the two.
"Eda, it's me Luz, and this is King. Don't you remember?"
The creature growled as it continued to walk towards them. King hid behind Luz's leg as they tried to back away slowly. "Please don't kill me! I'm too gorgeous to die!"
"We all live together, at the owl house. We're family-"
The creature screeched as its wings expanded. Luz and King screamed as they tried to run, but it was no use. In one swift move, it jumped and landed right on top of them, pinning them both down.
"No!" Eda cried as she began kicking and banging at this invisible barrier that was keeping her from protecting them. But no matter what she did, it wouldn't budge. What happened next ripped her heart out.
They screamed and squirmed as it opened it's jaw wide and began devouring them limb from limb. Their cries for help immediately faded as blood soaked the arms and face of the creature.
Eda fell to her knees, tears welling up in her eyes. Just like that, they were gone. A feral owl-like creature version of herself had killed the only two beings that brought joy to her life, gave her a purpose to live, someone to call friends or family...
As she looked up at the creature, it turned its attention towards her. It gave her a smile with its now blood-stained teeth as it expanded its wings and lunged towards her, shattering the barrier that once separated them. It let out another loud screech as it rushed towards her.
----------
Eda shot up with a gasp. Eyes wide open and heart pumping fast, she looked around at her surroundings. No longer was she surrounded by darkness. She was in her own room, still in her own nest. Judging by the gray skies of the Boiling Isles, it was still nighttime.
It must have simply been a nightmare. But what if it actually did happen? In her cursed form, she had very little control over the amount of damage she can do. The thought of accidentally mistaking her friends as fresh meat and killing them unknowingly made her frown. And knowing that she'd be the one responsible for their deaths...
Eda started to sniff, as she was suddenly washed over with guilt. She kept trying to remind herself that it was just a stupid dream-
But what if it did happen?
Eda curled up into a ball and started to sob to herself. Great. Here she was, the most powerful witch on the Boiling Isles, getting worked up over some silly dream. But it just felt so real. She would never intend on hurting them. Just the idea of Luz or even King getting hurt due to her curse got her more upset. She felt like a monster and continued to cry. She couldn't help it. At least no one was there to see her this vulnerable-
"Eda?"
Damn it.
Eda took a quick glance out of her nest. By the doorway stood Luz with King on her shoulder. "We heard some noise coming from your room so we decided to check on you. Are you alright?"
Eda quickly grabbed the blanket she had next to her and tried to pretend she was asleep. She in no way wanted them to worry about her, or see her like this for that matter. She wasn't a child anymore. She can handle this herself. But that didn't stop Luz from walking over to the nest.
Judging by the sounds of sporadic breaths and sniffles coming from under the blanket, both Luz and King concluded that Eda was awake. "Hey, can you keep it down? A demon needs his beauty sleep!"
Luz glared at King. "What King meant to say is that we're here for you." Eda didn't respond. Luz, sensing something was off, leaned over the nest and gently grabbed the edge of the blanket. She slowly pulled it down so she could be face-to-face with the owl lady. Eda, with puffy eyes and tears running down her face, stared back at Luz, who was now frowning. Of all her time spent on the Boiling Isles, never has she seen Eda cry before.
"Eda, what's wrong?"
Eda was reluctant to answer. She hated every moment of this. She hated feeling exposed, feeling weak. Yet the tears wouldn't stop falling from her gold eyes. And seeing the worried expressions of Luz and King looking down at her was only making her feel worse.
"I-I had a dream..."
She closed her eyes tightly, expecting them, or at the very least King, to laugh at her, to tell her to grow up. But neither did any such thing. So she continued.
"I was surrounded by darkness. I heard both of you calling for me. I turned around and saw a cursed version of myself. I-I couldn't do anything but watch as it attacked the two of you."
Eda looked away and started sobbing again as another wave of guilt fell upon her. At any moment, she could turn into a giant owl beast and go rogue, destroying everything in sight. "I-I'm sorry."
As she continued to sob openly, Luz and King exchanged concerned looks. It was a depressing sight to say the least to see the owl lady this distressed.
Luz stepped into the nest, with King jumping off right beside her. She sat down in front of Eda and without hesitation wrapped her arms around her body. Eda, no longer caring how vulnerable she was, returned the hug and let herself cry over the girl's shoulder. It had been forever since she'd been comforted, and she'd forgotten how... how wonderful it felt. Being able to let out all her bottled up emotions had been something that was well overdue.
"Shh, shh, it's alright," Luz said softly as she slid her fingers through the witch's long silky hair. "It was only a dream. I'm here now. We're here now. We're alive and well."
Luz pulled away, getting another look at the owl lady's face. Eda's sobs had since subsided to sniffles. She wiped away the witch's remaining tears and gave her a gentle smile.
Eda gave the girl a sadden look. "But, what if it happens? What if I turn into that owl beast and hurt you? I could never live with myself knowing that-"
"Hey," Luz put a finger to Eda's lips, making her go quiet. "I know you too well, Eda. No matter what you look like, you would never hurt me."
A new set of tears formed from Eda's eyes, this time not out of fear of losing the girl. But because of the newly found trust that she had received from her. If Luz felt safe around her, then she was happy. The witch pulled her into a bear hug. She never wanted to let the girl go. Well, not for the rest of the night at least.
"Stay?"
"Of course."
"Hey, um, you guys have room for one more?"
They both looked over at King, who was sitting on the other side of the nest all by his lonesome. Eda patted the ground next to her, indicating for him to join them. No way would she leave her little pip-squeak hanging.
With Luz cuddled in her arms and King resting against her side, Eda laid back now knowing that she had earned trust from the ones she loved. They were her family. And even if they weren't a typical family, that was okay. Because the weirdos gotta stick together.