Work Text:
I still remember
3rd of December
Me in your sweater
You said it looked better on me than it did you
Only if you knew
How much I liked you.
Sleepovers with Amity weren’t usually this… warm.
Well not warm physically, it was more of a feeling than anything. Something Boscha felt inside her chest. It made her… happy. And it was different. In fact the entire atmosphere was different.
Usually her sleepovers with Amity were stiff, and cold. Amity would stay over her house because her parents had to do something with the Emperor’s Coven and it’d usually proceed as normal: Amity would arrive at the house, they’d eat dinner, change into their pajamas, and watch a movie without saying as much as a friendly word to each other, although Boscha tried to start conversations. Usually by gossiping or insulting someone. To which Amity would just shy away from, and bury her nose in a book as usual.
Typical.
Although if Boscha was being honest with herself, she didn’t really want it that way.
But tonight was different! Boscha liked it.
For once, while Amity was reading (during the movie as usual) Boscha asked about her book. Amity had perked up, explaining what the “Good Witch Azura” was about, and then it all evolved from there.
Amity was smiling. She was laughing. And she looked so beautiful while doing it. If Boscha had managed to ignore her small crush on the green haired girl, it was certainly at the forefront of her mind now.
Boscha let down her snarky exterior and let herself smile, small and soft. She wasn’t trying to win over anyone, or prove her dominance. Although that was fun, seeing Amity genuinely happy was another thing entirely. Boscha had never realized there was more to Amity than her cold demeanor and excessive studying.
She liked this side of her.
A cold draft blew through the room. The Boiling Isles had a winter of sorts, and some sources said it matched up with the human realm, although no one could really be sure. The boiling rain turned into acid snow, melting and destroying almost any living thing it landed on. Along with the tiny holes in whatever plants were left outside, it brought harsh cold winds, and it was clear that the weather was seeping through the house somewhat.
Boscha shivered and wrapped her arms around herself, feeling a chill wrack her body. Amity was still rambling about some attractive character called Malingale when she noticed Boscha’s discomfort and didn’t hesitate to unbutton her blue sweatshirt, wrapping it gently around Boscha’s shaking figure.
Boscha stared at her, all three eyes wide and trained on the other young witch, questions filling her mind to the brink.
“...What the heck is this supposed to be for?” She asked, internally kicking herself for her tone.
“...You looked cold,” Amity mumbled, averting her gaze to the wooden floor. “Go on, put it on. I don’t mind.”
Boscha hesitated for a moment before following Amity’s word, slipping the garment over her shoulders. It was soft and seemed to be knitted, with metal buttons and a large hood at the back, as was the fashion for most witch garments. It felt strange… it wasn’t the sweater though, just the act in itself. Boscha never borrowed anyone’s clothes, and since when had Amity ever cared about her enough to give her a kind word or two, let alone her sweater?
She was going to treasure this moment forever, that’s for sure. Who knew when something like this would come again?
“Heh, you look better with that on than me,” Amity admitted. Boscha knew no one could fight blushes, but she tried anyway. “Maybe you should keep it.”
Boscha panicked. What?! She couldn’t- it felt wrong for some reason. She knew whatever they had now was fragile. She couldn’t just- She couldn’t keep it. There was no way.
And besides, she’d outgrow it in little time. It was already a little too small for her due to Amity’s slim figure. It was probably custom-fitted, knowing the Blights.
“N-No, it’s fine!” Boscha said, a little too loudly as she quickly shrugged the fabric off and tossed it at Amity, accidentally putting some of the strength she saved for Grudgby matches into her throw. “It’s stupid anyway!”
And with that, the spell was broken.
Amity stared at Boscha, eyes full of hurt, before drawing her knees up to her chest and burying her nose into her book again.
Boscha bit her lip and reached out a hand tentatively, but then quickly dropped it, a feeling of hopelessness taking over her.
No! That’s not what I meant to-
It’s not-
…
Goddamnit Boscha.
But I watch your eyes
As she walks by,
What a sight for sore eyes,
Brighter than a blue sky,
She’s got you mesmerized,
While I die.
A couple of days later, it was back to school as usual.
Amity was back to her cold self, ignoring Boscha even as she stood by her locker while Boscha and Skara talked, although Boscha wasn’t paying attention to what she was saying, preferring to watch Amity as she observed the many students that traversed the halls. She kept a stony expression as usual. Boscha liked to think she was ranking them as they walked past. It was probably a Blight thing.
...And then something changed.
Amity’s features… softened.
Boscha caught on immediately and followed Amity’s line of sight, desperate to know what was making her look so absurdly fond, or surprised, or adoring, or whatever the hell that face was. It must have been something truly incredible if it could catch a hint of Amity Blight’s affection without even interacting with her. Amity’s eyes seemed to have tiny stars, and her mouth was curled into a small smile, and Boscha could almost swear there was a hint of a blush on the teen’s face.
Boscha felt a pang of jealousy rise up inside her as she looked for Amity’s target.
Why can’t she look at me like that? Why can’t I just- what do I need to do?! What am i doing wrong? What is it that makes her-
And quickly enough, it was clear who Amity was staring at in such awe.
The human.
Luz the human, as she and everyone else in the school called her. Boscha didn’t want to believe she was there in the first place. Humans couldn’t do magic. What was she doing here?
And by the looks of her uniform, why in all the titan was she taking all of the tracks?! Mystery after mystery.
Luz seemed to be oblivious to Amity’s stare, instead heading over to the plant girl and the prodigy kid with a skip in her step, chattering excitedly. Her energy was almost blinding, and she smiled so much it was almost annoying. Like a ray of sunshine, except in physical form. She made her friends smile and laugh with no effort. She managed to get in all the tracks, even after she had gotten banned. She managed to do everything, including managing to ensnare Amity in her little bright universe.
Everything about her was so goddamn infuriating.
And Amity just kept watching her, with that dopey smile on her face. She didn’t notice Boscha. She never did. She always shrugged off her company, was always harsh, was always-
Boscha clenched her hands into fists and sneered, trying to fight off her jealousy and rising sadness with pure anger. She… how could she do that without trying? Where was her mask? Why did she keep acting like she was happy, and joyful, and goofy, and why did Amity like it so much?
Boscha jumped and growled when Skara tapped her on the shoulder, trying to get her to engage in the conversation again. Her sudden noise shocked Amity out of her trance, and she glared at Boscha before continuing to watch Luz, and all of her stupid antics.
She was so tired.
Why would you ever kiss me?
I’m not even half as pretty
Boscha walked home that day, fuming and seething. Truly, she didn’t know what Amity wanted. Or whether it would even be possible to get her to like her when she already had her eyes dead-set on the human.
And yes, she had tried asking about Azura. Amity didn’t answer. She just turned away and walked off.
And she didn’t answer her the day after that either, or the next day.
Boscha could literally see her drifting away. Eventually, she started wandering over to the human and her friends, without saying a word to her “friend” of over 5 years. She and Skara still talked, while Amity hung in the background, hanging out with those losers and smiling just like she had been at Boscha’s sleepover.
Except… there were no moments where she crawled back into her shell. Instead, the conversations seemed to be fluid, with almost no mishaps from what Boscha could see, but it was obvious that Amity was gradually losing her cool around the human.
She saw her awkward movements, the lilt in her voice, the blush on her face when she got close enough to see, although that wasn’t for long.
She overheard her talking to the plant girl one day as she passed them in the hallways.
“Because y’know, Luz is really pretty- I mean, like everyone’s pretty! As in not ugly! Y’know?”
“Heh, you look better than I do with that on than me…”
Boscha pulled her cloak over her head and stalked off down the hallway.
You gave her your sweater
It’s just polyester
But you like her better
I wish I were Heather…
A month or so after the sleepover, with Amity having completely abandoned the friend group that her parents picked out for her, Boscha was walking around the Boiling Isles market, trying to concentrate on what she needed to get.
Some elixirs, some magic powder for her mother, specifically in dark red, the weekly jar of pickled eyeballs that made her feel vaguely uncomfortable when she ate them…
And then she spotted a flash of mint green hair out of the corner of her eye, and stopped.
She groaned. Of course.
There they were. Luz and Amity, acting all buddy-buddy, like usual. Boscha couldn’t hear the conversation they were having over the crowd, but she noticed the sweatshirt that Amity was wearing.
Blue, with metal buttons.
The human was waving her arms around, trying to explain something while Amity watched with interest, the same, yearning smile on her face that Boscha thought she should have gotten used to.
Boscha looked around for a gap in the crowd and slipped behind one of the stalls, putting a finger to her lips so that the manager wouldn’t kick her out, and silently waited and listened to their conversation.
“And it makes perfect sense! Those guys were never anything but mean, and yet they still expect her to hang out with them when she’s got Azura? Hell no! And- oh, hey by the way, Amity your sweatshirt looks very cute!”
Boscha could see the blush on her face from here, as Amity awkwardly played with her hair. Boscha wanted to slam her head into the nearest wall. Amity really was going soft huh?
And so had she…
“Oh- thank you Luz…” Amity trailed off, as Luz smiled of one her bright smiles at her. She smiled awkwardly back. Boscha wouldn’t be surprised if she turned into abomination goo right there, considering how she was acting. It was pathetic…
“Here.”
Amity unbuttoned her sweatshirt and handed it to Luz shyly. Boscha knew this scene. She knew Luz wouldn’t screw it up like she had. Because she was just a little ball of light, wasn’t she? She always knew what to say, and even if she didn’t, Amity would adore her anyway. Unlike Boscha. Luz earned Amity’s affection in the span of a month, and Boscha had waited for years.
It just wasn’t fair…
Boscha stopped listening as Luz put on the sweatshirt, watching the two of them with a stormy mind filled with sharp thoughts and longing. Luz spun around, now wearing two sweatshirts, and Amity was smiling so hard it looked like her face might split.
She wanted to be the one who made her smile.
She wanted to be the one who she wanted to hang out with every day.
She wanted to do a good job being her friend, and a good job being more than that, and being a witch who Amity could stand to be around without being stiff and cold. She wanted Luz’s personality, her charm, her charisma that somehow got Amity to abandon her freezing glare.
The sleepover would have been perfect. She would have finally gotten Amity to understand that she was actually worth hanging out with, besides her obvious power and the fact that her parents made her.
And it almost was. But Boscha couldn’t let down her stupid guard for just a second and now here Luz and Amity were, looking more like girlfriends than just friends at this point.
The two of them walked off while Boscha zoned out in her jealous and fuming thoughts. She watched them, Luz was still wearing the sweatshirt, Amity was still smiling, they both seemed so happy-
I wish I were Luz.