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“It’s not that noticeable, is it?”
“Luz, there’s abomination clay all over you. Of course it’s noticeable.”
In her haste, Amity tossed another textbook out of her locker and onto the corridor floor. By now, she was beginning to feel her locker breathing down on her – literally. The stun spell she’d cast on it would keep it occupied for only about 30 more seconds. So, if she was going to find what she was looking for in this locker’s magically-enhanced depths, now would be the right time.
“Come on…come on, I know it’s in here.”
Finally, after grazing a surprisingly warm potion bottle and an assortment of old candy wrappers, Amity’s hand found its target. The chenille fabric was unmistakable, so she prized the item free and hoisted it up to the surface.
With the last of her might, Amity pulled herself and the article out of the locker, just as the structure’s jowls slammed shut. The effort knocked her off balance, causing her to stumble backwards slightly before finding her footing by the nearby railing.
“Wow, talk about a close call!”
Luz, meanwhile, stood just beside Amity’s locker and commented as the expedition unfolded. From head to toe, the young human’s multi-colored Hexside uniform was tarnished with tar-like purple sludge – the sure sign that she’d had a close run-in with a vat of abomination clay. Somehow, she’d even managed to get the magic-imbued adobe in her hair, leaving it slightly iridescent in the daylight.
Despite this, Luz’s mood was as chipper as ever. In fact, apart from the even coating of purple slip across most of her body, a fellow student might have assumed that Luz was having a normal day. Amity didn’t see it that way, though, which was why she had made an extra effort to compensate for her mistake.
“A little too close, yeah.”
While catching her breath, Amity looked back in Luz’s direction. She’d shoved the article under her arm to keep it secure, but she now loosened her grip and shook it lightly. After a few stiff shakes, Amity felt satisfied that the item was suitable enough for her friend to wear temporarily. Accordingly, she offered it up in Luz’s direction without making direct eye contact.
“Here, put this one. It should cover up some of the clay, at least until we can wash it out later.”
As soon as her eyes beheld it, Luz felt like she had been offered a holy artifact. But rather than some garment of legend, Amity simply held out a letterman jacket with a royal blue body and maize-colored sleeves. It was a perfect match for the kind she’d seen Boscha and the other grudgeby players wearing since the start of the season.
“¡Dios mío! Is this what I think it is?”
Immediately, Amity could see the giddiness growing in her human friend’s eyes. If she was being entirely honest, she found Luz’s exuberance to be absolutely endearing, regardless of the situation. But the present gesture felt embarrassing enough, so she didn’t want it highlighted further.
Shaking the jacket in Luz’s direction again, Amity insisted, “Yes, it is. Just take it and put it on and don’t tell anybody.”
While snatching the jacket, Luz’s look of sheer amazement continued. “This is your varsity jacket, though. Don’t you want to wear this, like, every single day?”
Looking a bit glum now, Amity knelt down, regathered her schoolbooks, and explained, “I used to, yeah. When I was the grudgeby team captain, that coat never left my side. But I don’t play anymore, so I just keep it in my locker, in case of emergencies like this.”
As Amity spoke, Luz carefully examined every last stitch. First, the vibrant gold “H” on the left breast caught her eye, followed by an assortment of metallic pins affixed to the alphabetical chenille patch. Then, Luz noticed an inscription emblazoned on the opposite breast side – “Captain,” it proclaimed proudly. The ringed neck, waist, and cuffs were hard to ignore, too, what with their bold bands of Hexside school colors.
“Anyway,” Amity continued, “it’s my fault you’re covered in abomination clay in the first place. The least I can do is help you cover it up.”
Indeed, Amity’s inadvertent slip-up in abomination class had precipitated Luz’s predicament. Raising an abomination from the clay always required concentration, which was in short supply for Amity while she kept her wistful gaze trained on Luz in class. At just the wrong moment, these crossed wires led Amity to raise an abomination that bore an unusual resemblance to the round-eared human. In a fit of embarrassed fright, Amity slammed the half-raised creation back into its urn, causing the container to shatter and spill its contents all over her lab partner.
Luz, to her credit, took the whole incident in stride. After wiping away the residual clay, she excused herself to wash up. Amity, feeling guilt wash over her almost immediately, followed close behind. Only after considerable persuasion was Amity able to convince Luz to detour to the main atrium, where the young witch’s locker stood.
Now, Luz was fully convinced that the detour had been worth it. After all, this was Amity’s varsity jacket she was holding! She almost didn’t feel worthy to wear it - even if its owner had freely offered it up. Her ginger grip upon the durable coat further indicated her concern that it would dissipate before her eyes, like a dream, if she mishandled it.
Looking up at her friend again, Luz couldn’t help but seek some reassurance that the offer had been genuine. “You’re sure it’s okay for me to wear this? I don’t want to get any clay on it.”
“Yes, it’s fine,” Amity nodded. “And don’t worry about the clay. My dad enchanted the coat to clean itself once a day.”
Having now been doubly-assured, Luz felt prepared to don this mantle of athletic royalty. After unbuttoning it, she slid the jacket on smoothly, one arm at a time. Much to her own surprise, it was nearly a perfect fit. The arms were a little short, owing to Amity’s slightly smaller stature overall. But in a pinch, it would look like a natural fit all day long.
“Hey, this looks pretty good on me, don’t you think?” Luz inquired while checking herself out.
Amity bit her lip, trying not to blurt out the first response that came to mind.
Better than ‘good,’ you goof. You look unbelievably cute.
Instead, she just gazed on at Luz, who had begun to spin in place while inspecting her new attire. Once she was turned fully with her back to Amity, the green-haired witch suddenly remembered that the coat also featured a sewn-in inscription across its shoulders. There, her family name was inscribed in white block letters, along with her former jersey number, “13”.
It didn’t take long for Luz to tilt her head back to her friend, who now wore a seemingly unwarranted look of dismay. Furrowing her brow, Luz questioned, “What’s up? Is there something on the back? Did I get clay on it already?”
After sliding the coat off momentarily to check the garment’s posterior, Luz caught sight of the jacket’s rear detailing. Seeing the name and number only managed to renew her excitement.
“This thing has your name on it, too?!,” Luz shouted into the presently vacant atrium, “Score!”
Amity managed a meager nod in reply. Internally, she frantically questioned how the coat’s personalization could have slipped her mind. Now, it would be all too obvious where Luz had obtained such an exclusive piece of clothing. Without a doubt, Boscha and the other grudgeby team members would give her a hard time about that.
Luz, meanwhile, proceeded to pull the coat back on without a single mental reservation. Already, the young human knew that she was going to brag about her new duds to Willow and Gus at lunch. Naturally, she’d also continue showing off for Amity while they walked back to class, in hopes that the green-haired witch would be thoroughly impressed with her sporty looks.
“Check it out, Amity,” Luz eagerly implored while gesturing proudly toward the jacket’s back, “I guess this makes me a “Blight”, too!”
Like a verbal clapper, Luz’s words set off wedding bells in Amity’s head. The idea of Luz carrying the Blight name was simultaneously the culmination of her absentminded fantasies and the most intimidating prospect of her young life. Amity almost couldn’t believe that Luz was throwing the idea around so casually. But then again, Luz probably didn’t have an inkling of how many times Amity had imagined such a tantalizing future while trying to fall asleep at night.
Even now, in Hexside’s empty atrium, the thought of one day being bound by oath to Luz forever sounded alluring. Just for a moment, Amity could picture all the white, all of the flowers, all of the matrimonial pomp - just as she’d read about in a hundred different romance novels. And there was Luz, smiling her stupidly perfect smile, waiting at the alter to actually become a Blight, once and for all.
Dearly beloved, the officiant would begin, we are gathered here today to witness and celebrate a tradition older perhaps than even the Titan. This is a tradition that has endured through all struggles, perhaps because it has given its participants the strength needed to face all odds.
Indeed, there is no union more profound than marriage. In its creation, two people become greater than they once were apart. In its practice, it embodies the highest ideals of love, fidelity, devotion, and sacrifice. Often, its bonds run so deep that the union endures - even beyond the end of a mortal coil.
It is only right, then, that today’s celebrants should seek such fulfillment for themselves. They have rightly desired these aspiration gifts, believing in their hearts that these boons would enrich their future endeavors together. All that is left now is for them to form an unbreakable bond. In doing so, they will bind their mutual existence to the magical weave that permeates our very existence, making them one with the Boiling Isles forever.
And so, without further ado, I wish to welcome you to this gathering in celebration of the marriage between Amity Blight and Luz the Human.
Without warning, Amity’s daydream popped like a balloon. In her mind, she’d just filled in Luz’s last name with the moniker everyone at Hexside used. But something about it sounded off key on the lips of her internal officiant. Indeed, Amity now had the creeping suspicion that “the Human” wasn’t Luz’s real last name at all.a
If it was, she considered, then my name would become…Amity the Human Blight…
Reflexively, Amity cringed at the idea of such an awkward last name. The thought alone was enough to break the spell of her fantasies, crashing her back to reality, where Luz had been acting out scenes of herself as a brash, gritty grudgeby player. Once she noticed her friend’s inattentive stare, though, Luz paused and tilted her head in Amity’s direction.
“You okay, Blight? You looked like you were really checking me out there.”
“Yes, yeah, I was…” Amity blurted out as she snapped back to reality and tossed her hands around erratically. “I mean, I wasn’t doing that. I was just thinking about what you said, about being a Blight. You know, the only way that could happen is if we were…”
Inhaling sharply and throwing a hand over her mouth, Amity cut herself off suddenly after nearly allowing her inner monologue to slip out. She could feel her blush only growing more crimson now, making her concerned that her cover had been blown.
But Luz didn’t let on as much. Rather, the human girl continued to wait patiently for Amity’s rejoinder, oblivious to the meaning of her friend’s rouge affectation.
After slowly lowering her hand, Amity tried to logically play off the indiscretion.
“Oh…ummm…that could only happen if we were…ummm…siblings! Yeah, if you replaced Edric and Emira! Then we’d have the same last name.”
Some nervous laughter afterward only sounded all that more suspicious, especially to anyone who could read Amity’s present emotional state. Luz wasn’t one of those people, however, given how readily she accepted her friend’s contrived explanation.
“Temping as that sounds, I couldn’t replace those two cool cats. I mean, I’d need green hair for starters. I’d need gold eyes, too, come to think of it. Plus, I’d need to know way more spells if I wanted to be as popular as them…”
As Luz went on listing every trait that she’d need to fit in at a Blight family reunion, Amity turned a horrified look inward.
Did I just ‘friend-zone’ her? No, damn, I ‘family-zoned’ her! What if that’s all she thinks of me now, as a sister? She wouldn’t marry her sister! Aaaaaaaa, what’s wrong with me…
There was no time to fret over that perceived misstep, though. Amity knew that they needed to get back to class before their teacher questioned their long absence. Either way, folks were sure to talk when Luz sat back down, still covered in abomination goo but now sporting the former grudgeby captain’s jacket.
“Hey, we should probably head back…” Amity suggested while staring squarely down at her shoes, hoping that her pink cheeks would finally dissipate in the meantime.
“Yeah, you’re probably right,” Luz concurred while turning her gaze up to a nearby wall-mounted clock. “But hey, thanks for the sweet jacket! I promise I’ll take good care of it and get it back to you tomorrow!”
With that, Luz turned on her heels and started to pace back toward their abominations classroom up the hall. Amity found herself rooted to the spot near her locker for a moment longer, still trying to relish the sight of her dream girl wearing her varsity jacket. She’d dreamed of this for years without telling anyone and now, here it was…here she was.
“Are you coming?”
Luz’s voice rung out again, this time from around a nearby corner.
“Yeah, I’m right behind you.”
Amity brushed a few loose bangs up behind her ear while calling up the corridor. She was ready to go, now that Luz had passed just out of eye shot. A quick sprint to catch up was certainly warranted, if only to indulge in a few fleeting moments of walking side-by-side, like a real couple, without anyone else around.