Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It was the middle of the night, and the town of Bonesborough lay in sleepy silence, tucked close against the shore of the Boiling Sea. Over the course of the evening, clouds had blown in across the water, obscuring the stars high above, and threatening rain to come. On the outskirts of town, set at a little distance from the nearest row of terraced houses, stood a simple wooden detached house - two stories, nothing out of the ordinary. Nothing, at least, until you got inside the invisible chameleon field that lay across the building like a blanket. Then the truth was revealed - a ramshackle mismatched structure of lean-tos and unexpected windows that looked as if someone had crammed three completely separate buildings together. Blindfolded. And at its front, a wide round eye-shaped stained glass window that glared down at the street before it. The Owl House.

All was peaceful out here on the edges of the town proper. There was no movement, no sound to disturb the calm. Nothing, that is, until a dark shape resolved against the glow of the scattered street lights, flying fast and straight towards the camouflaged Owl House. The figure descended and dismounted from the magic staff that had borne it, and the wings of its palisman folded away. The figure turned, to check they weren’t being observed, and now her face was lit by the faint orange glow. That rarest of sights in the Boiling Isles - a human.

Luz scanned the streets thoroughly before making a move closer to the Owl House. She was pretty certain no one had picked up her trail away from the Emperor’s castle, but the situation was too dangerous to cut corners. Nothing stood out. Relieved, she walked inside the camouflage field and remounted the staff, directing Owlbert up to the second floor, and the window of her room. No sense taking chances by walking straight in the front door, even if she was pretty sure everyone would be asleep. She didn’t want to encounter Hooty and have her cover blown.

She slipped inside and heaved a sigh of relief. The door of her room was closed, and the Owl House was dark and silent - Hooty had either not seen her, or decided it wasn’t worth raising everyone’s ire by waking them up in the middle of the night. But now the danger of the journey was over, the reality of her situation hit her again. She sank down awkwardly onto her bedroll, legs curled beneath her, and let herself slump forwards, head in her hands.

No one knew she had gone out tonight. No one except...

From the corner of the room came the very deliberate sound of someone clearing their throat. Luz startled and lunged upward, staggering to her feet gracelessly, as paper rustled and a gently glowing orb of light was produced by whoever had been waiting for her.

“You’re back,” Lilith said.

“What are you doing in my room?!” Luz hissed, surprise and dismay sharpening her voice into something approaching anger.

“Waiting for you, human,” she returned evenly. “Did you think I would send my sister’s protégé off into certain danger without waiting to make sure she returned safely?” She looked Luz up and down, her eyes appraising. “Assuming ‘safely’ is the appropriate term.”

Luz sank back down onto the sleeping bag. “I’m not hurt, if that’s what you mean. Or followed.”

“Good.” Lilith raised an eyebrow. “Can I ask what happened?”

Luz turned over to slump full length and face down on the bedding. Her reply was muffled by the pillow. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“I see.”

There was a silence, finally broken as Lilith folded her arms and sighed.

“I kept King out of here this evening by saying you felt unwell. You may want to keep up the pretense in the morning. Or you may not.” A pause, and then in a softer voice, “Good night, Luz.”

Luz didn’t reply, just lay silently as the witch let herself and her summoned light out of the room and closed the door gently behind her. Alone in the darkness, she buried her head deeper in the pillow as if to try to block out the memories that were replaying in her head, over and over. Amity’s face, twisted in anger. Her voice, echoing in Luz’s ears, ‘You’re not my hero, Luz.’ The finality as she turned her back. ‘Get out.’ Unsuccessfully. Suddenly it was hard to breathe. It felt as if someone had punched her in the chest. The storm of emotion that hit her was formless, too many feelings all roiling together, impossible to untangle, but all adding up to one simple thing: hurt. As if echoing the storm within, outside the clouds broke, and the patter and hiss of boiling rain filled the room. It was timely. Against that backdrop even someone sat close to her door wouldn’t have been able to distinguish the sound of muffled sobs that continued into the night.

She didn’t come out for two days. No one knew what the problem was, and Luz wasn’t talking. Everyone took a turn to knock at her door, and everyone was turned away. “I just want to be alone,” was Luz’s mantra, and her friends reluctantly obeyed. The only one who actually gained entry was King, and that was only because he sat outside the door and howled mournfully until he was finally allowed in, on the condition that he not talk. He was willing enough to put up with that if he got to be close to Luz, so now she got to add ‘cuddling King’ into her relentless shame-spiral schedule of ‘sleeping’ and ‘staring listlessly up at the ceiling’. Oddly enough, ‘crying’ didn’t feature too much after that first night. She didn’t seem to have the energy for it. She felt hollowed out, like somebody had taken an ice-cream scoop to her insides.

She knew she was worrying them. Lilith had clearly kept her promise of confidentiality. Every so often fragments of whispered conversations would float through the cracks in the door, and confusion was the repeated theme.

“Is she sick?” Gus’ voice was soft.

“I don’t know.” Eda sounded frustrated, but with an edge that Luz had come to recognize as worry. “That’s what she said. If she would let me in to take a look at her I might have a better idea.”

“Maybe humans react differently to Boiling Isles’ illnesses. Anything could be happening to her!”

“What do you want me to do?” Eda hissed. “She’s awake, she’s talking – although not much, I’ll grant you – and she’s eating at least some of the food I’m leaving for her. She’s not helpless, and she’s made it clear she doesn’t want to see any of us. Should I try ordering her out? Because I guarantee that’s not going to go well.”

Gus sighed. “No. I’m sorry. I just feel so… helpless. I wish there was something I could do.”

“You and me both, kid.” Eda’s frustration had disappeared. Tired concern filled her voice. “I think all we can do is wait.”

The conversation seemed to have come to an end. Footsteps sounded in the hall, presumably from the two making their way back through the house. Luz waited a good five minutes after they faded before peeking out into the empty hall. Nothing to see, except the plate of sandwiches Eda had left by the door. She swiped them and retreated back into her nest. Luz’s appetite wasn’t great, but she tried to persuade herself to eat at least a little each day. It was her sole concession to self-care.

Finally, midway through the morning of the third day, a brisk knock at the door woke Luz from a heavy sleep. She didn’t even open her eyes, just rolled over and waited for whoever it was to go away. Instead, the door creaked open, and the sharp tap of footsteps indicated she was no longer alone.

“Please just leave me alone,” Luz mumbled, half into the pillow, her eyes still shut.

“Not this time.” Lilith’s voice. The door squeaked as she closed it behind her, and boot heels clacked on the wooden floorboards as she came to perch on the chest alongside Luz’s bedroll. “This has gone on long enough.”

Luz’s back was turned, and she didn’t move, didn’t speak. If she ignored her, maybe she’d go away.

“I take it she didn’t want to be saved.”

Luz’s eyes flew open. Of all the buttons she could have pressed... She rolled over and pushed herself up on an elbow, eyebrows drawn together in a fierce glare. “Is this the ‘I told you so’ conversation? How you had been telling me over and over that Amity was a lost cause, and I didn’t believe you? How I’ve brought this on myself?”

Lilith was leaning forward, resting her chin in one hand, the elbow propped on her knee. Her eyes were curiously soft. “Is that what you’ve been telling yourself?”

Luz glared even harder. “No!”

“Mmm.” It was noncommittal.

“It’s not!”

“Well then, what have you been telling yourself, shut up in here?” She glanced at King, curled up on the window sill, very obviously keeping out of the way. “Because I doubt you’ve come clean to him.”

“It’s none of your business,” Luz snapped.

“That’s where you’re wrong.” Lilith straightened up and folded her arms. “You dragged me into this when you came to me for information that night. And now I’m the only one who knows. Which means, as awful as this is for both of us, I’m the only one who can talk to you.” She looked over at King again. “You want to do this with him here? Because we are going to talk about it.”

Luz felt something like shame creep into her chest, and her cheeks flushed. “King, could you... could you give us a minute?”

The King of Demons gave her a hard stare, before finally nodding. “You don’t need to keep secrets from me, Luz, but if it’ll help.” He shot a similar look at Lilith before hopping out of the window onto the roof beyond, followed by a distant thud as he made the jump to the ground outside.

Now he was gone, Luz sat up fully and wrapped her sleeping bag around her shoulders, facing Lilith. “Happy?”

“Quite the opposite.” She frowned. “What happened, Luz?”

Luz shrugged. “I got to the castle fine. Found her room. It was... different than I expected.” She wasn’t sure what she had been expecting, but that grand room with its own balcony had not been it. “She was there.” Why was it so hard to say her name? She paused, wrestling with the memory.

“And then?” Lilith’s voice was very soft, the gentlest of encouragements.

“She said I shouldn’t have come. That it was dangerous. She said she didn’t want to leave. Said she belonged there. She said...”

“Mm?”

“She said... that she didn’t need to be saved, that I couldn’t, anyway. That I hadn’t saved her before and couldn’t now. She said after I left, the first time, that she was trapped, that I’d thrown her back into the awfulness.” Tears were welling up, despite herself. “She was... angry. Really angry.”

Lilith sighed. “I see.”

“And then she threw me out. I came home. The end.” She dipped her head, trying to wipe away the tears on the edge of the sleeping bag.

“Did you believe her?”

“What?”

“Did you believe her? When she said that you threw her back into... whatever bad situation she was in?”

“Well I did, didn’t I? Back then, I saw how lonely she was, and I befriended her, and I helped her face her past history with Willow... I for sure thought I was saving her! And I thought it was working! She broke away from her bully friends! She was smiling more, laughing more... And then I just vanished. She had no friends to support her. No one to help her with her terrible family. I hung her out to dry.”

“No. You didn’t.”

“How can you say that?”

“Luz, Amity’s isolation and whatever her parents put her through were awful, and undeserved, but you didn’t put them on her. It wasn’t your choice.”

Luz’s eyes widened as realization hit. “No, it was yours. It was your choice to send me back! You did this!”

Lilith sighed again, and her face was impossibly sad. “Yes. If you have to blame anyone, much better you blame me.”

There was a rush of anger. Yes. This felt better. This felt easier. Luz pushed up off the bedroll onto her knees, grabbed the material of Lilith’s shirt, bunched it in her fists, pulled her down to her level. She was right in Lilith’s face. She wasn’t sure what she wanted to do. It was all instinct.

The witch didn’t respond. She didn’t even raise her hands to control Luz’s approach, or to protect herself. She just looked calmly into Luz’s eyes, her hands resting on her knees, waiting.

Luz glared, her breath coming in short gasps, her teeth bared.

And then…

And then it faded. As quickly as the anger blossomed, it died away. There was something in Lilith’s look of composed acceptance that cut through the haze. Luz released her grip on her blouse slowly.

“No. It’s not that easy.” She sat back on her heels and tilted her head back, staring at the ceiling. “It wasn’t your fault either. Blaming you doesn’t solve anything, even if I wish it did.”

Lilith nodded, resettling herself neatly on her seat. “And that goes so much more for you. I made my own bad decisions. I can own them, including their unexpected results. But you chose nothing. There is no blame for you here. None.”

Luz didn’t look at her. She felt almost raw, like the rush of emotions had opened up wounds she hadn’t know she was carrying. “But she was so angry. She was so hurt. Why couldn’t I help?”

“Sometimes we can’t help.” It was said so flatly, so strongly, that Luz looked at Lilith in surprise. The witch returned the look steadily. “Wanting to help or heal someone isn’t unusual. Especially if we’re the ones who’ve hurt them. Especially if we care for them. It’s as natural as breathing. But people can’t be ‘saved’ from their own choices, Luz. They have hearts and minds of their own. ‘Saving’ isn’t something we do to someone else. If Amity is to leave the Coven and find a new way of life, that must come from her. You can’t make that decision for her.”

She looked away again, staring out of the open window into the mid-morning sunlight. “The Titan knows, I’ve made that mistake. When I cursed Eda I had no idea what the real consequences would be. I thought it would deplete her magic for a day, not turn her into a...” she broke off, taking a moment to compose herself.

“So when that happened, I thought since it was my fault, I was the one who had to fix her. That it was my responsibility, and mine alone. My whole life from that point, all the way up to you facing me in the Emperor’s castle, was spent trying to save Eda. Every part of it was wrong. I made so many mistakes. I isolated myself, I cut myself off, I scrambled for the power that would save my sister, all through it never speaking to her, never being honest, never asking what she wanted. And all that effort, all that suffering… was for what?”

She looked at Luz silently for long enough for the human to wonder if she genuinely wanted an answer. But finally she shook her head and began again.

“Nothing. All for nothing. Because that wasn’t what Eda needed. She needed my presence, my support, my help. But she didn’t need a saviour. She needed a sister. That was a hard lesson to learn. A lot of mistakes made and damage done to reach that understanding.”

Lilith smiled now, a crooked, self-deprecating smile, but a smile nonetheless. “Amity is much the same. She doesn’t need saving. I’m not surprised she reacted badly. She’s stubborn and proud, and lashes out when she’s hurt. I should know – she was my student, after all. If she’s going to take a new path, that decision will need to come from her.”

Luz sagged, her head bowing. “I did it all wrong. I said all the wrong things.” Barely aware of what she was doing, she let herself collapse forward until her forehead was resting on Lilith’s knees. Her hands reached out to wrap loosely around the witch’s shins - the nearest she could get to a hug. Now the tears came in earnest. “I felt so useless. Everyone was doing such amazing things - saving lives, raising a rebellion... I thought this was something I could do. I was so stupid.”

She became aware of a light touch on her head, Lilith’s hand laid oh-so tentatively on her tousled hair. “You are many things, Luz Noceda, but you are not stupid. You made a mistake. Learn from it.”

Luz raised her head, the tears spilling down her cheeks. “Do you think Amity can change?”

“I don’t know.” Lilith’s expression was serious. “I thought not. I said so. But hope is not stupid, either. If you’re strong enough to hope, then no one can take that from you. After all, as you pointed out - I changed, after all those years in the Coven. Who can say she won’t? There are other ways to approach her. Better ones. And in the meantime, you don’t have to do this alone. I understand the urge to shut yourself away. Really, I do. But you are not alone. You have people who love you, right outside that door, and the rebellion has work for you to do.”

Luz nodded, and sniffed. “Will you tell them?”

“No.” She didn’t hesitate. “I gave my word. This is your secret to share, or not, as you choose.”

“Thank you.”

Lilith stood, smoothing down her skirts with elegant fingers, and gazed down at the young human. “Ready?”

Luz scrubbed at her face with both hands before climbing to her feet, shaky but determined. “I’ll try.”

Despite that intent, Luz didn’t come out immediately. After Lilith departed, she stayed for a while, letting her thoughts and emotions slowly sift and settle. King reappeared in the window after a few minutes, and without hesitation came over to curl up in her lap. She scritched the back of his neck and shoulders, making him wriggle with pleasure.

“I’m sorry. I’ve not been much of a friend over these last few days.”

At that, King turned himself around, to fix Luz with the most serious expression she’d ever seen on him. “Sometimes being a friend is just being able to be together. You give everyone else so much, Luz. You always did. I’m glad I could give you at least a little something back. And I knew you’d come around in the end!”

Luz bit her lip. “Thanks buddy.”

“You’re welcome. Now, in return: more scritches! The King of Demons demands it!”

She came downstairs for lunch. The Owl House crew welcomed her without much comment or fanfare, and somehow that eased her spirits more than anything else she had imagined. Not that they were entirely offhand, of course. She was aware of their careful regard, when they thought she wasn’t looking at them, but that at least was something she could recognise as an expression of their care, and could handle it as such.

She didn’t eat much. It would take a while to get her appetite back, she figured, but it was a start. At the end of the meal she gave Eda her brightest smile.

“I feel like I’ve been freeloading these last couple of days. Is there anything needs doing?”

Eda raised an eyebrow, and the gold fang flashed in her answering grin. “You’re asking me to give you things to do? You should know there’s plenty of nasty stuff I can imagine up for you - you sure?”

Luz put her hands on her hips, aiming for ‘heroic’, but possibly getting closer to ‘catalogue model’. “Try me!”

The relieved smiles around the room were hard to miss.

Eda was as good as her word, and Luz found her afternoon satisfyingly filled with tasks that kept her hands busy and her mind occupied. By the end of the day she was tired enough that sleep came easily, and if she dreamed, she didn’t remember them.

The next morning when she came down for breakfast, she found Willow waiting for her. She was definitely waiting. Usually Willow would be out and hard at work by this point in the morning, so to still be in the kitchen meant she had something definite in mind.

Luz grabbed cereal and a bowl and settled down at the table. “What’s up? Aren’t you usually out and about by now?”

Willow gave a one-shouldered shrug. “I’ve already seen to the garden. I figured I’d hang out and see if you were around this morning.”

Luz’s eyes automatically strayed to Willow’s hands, which indeed had dirt under their fingernails, and bore signs of new scratches. Eda had given her a space on a flat portion of the Owl House’s roof to plant a small garden while she was staying with them, and at least some of the new plants installed there appeared to be what Willow would probably describe as ‘unruly’.

“Uh huh.” Luz poured cereal and milk, and began to eat.

“Are you feeling better?”

Luz gave her a sharp look, but Willow was keeping her face carefully bland and expressionless. There wasn’t much she could read into the question. Might as well take it at face value. She swallowed her mouthful hastily.

“Yeah. A lot better than yesterday, at least.”

“That’s good. We were... well we were worried about you. I was worried.”

Luz looked down at her bowl. “I know. I’m sorry.”

“No!” Luz’s head snapped up at the sharpness of Willow’s exclamation, and the witch blushed. “No, don’t be. Whatever was going on, that’s not something to be sorry about. I’m sorry I couldn’t help. I just couldn’t think what would be the best thing to do. I wondered if I should have just barged into your room and... I don’t know... made you talk to me or something.”

Now Luz smiled at her. “I’m pretty sure that wouldn’t have worked, but thank you for considering the option of breaking and entering.”

Willow grinned back. “Well, if you are feeling better, there’s something I could use your help with.”

“Me?”

“Don’t sound so surprised.” Willow reached over the table to aim a mock-jab at her shoulder. “Yes, you. Now Bump’s under lock and key and his replacement has been installed at the school, I’ve got a plan for our next step. The new guy doesn’t know Hexside at all. He’s got no idea of the secrets that that place has. But we do. The rebellion needs a central stronghold, and the school would be perfect. I want to use the Secret Room of Shortcuts to set up a new HQ.”

Willow’s excitement was infectious, but Luz couldn’t help asking the obvious question. “Isn’t that a little dangerous?”

“I mean, yes of course it would have some risks, but not more than anything else we’ve been doing. This new headmaster couldn’t find his backside with both hands - there’s no way he knows about the Room, or the tunnels, or any of the other hidden areas of the school. And think of the benefits! We’d have access to the libraries, to materials, to magical artefacts, and most importantly - to the students.”

Willow was warming to her subject. She leant forward on the table, fists clenched. “With Bump gone, I’d bet a million snails that the students won’t be allowed to multi-track anymore. Hexside will go back to the Emperor’s boring mandated curriculum. If I know Hexside students, they won’t like that at all. And that’s where we come in. We can bring them straight into the Rebellion. We can give them extra lessons - give them all that extra teaching they’ll be missing - and increase our power right under the Coven’s nose.”

“Wow. I’ve gotta say, you’re persuading me. But do you have time to be teaching a load of kids as well as everything else?”

“No.”

Luz’s eyebrows crept up. “So...?”

“That’s where you come in.”

Luz held up both hands in a ‘stop’ gesture, her dripping spoon held at an odd angle. “Hang on. Sure, anyone can use glyph magic, but are you sure that’s the best thing to be teaching them? You guys have in-built magic. It’d be a waste not to train that.”

“Yeah, no I don’t want you to teach, Luz, although I’m sure you’d be great at it. I want you to help me recruit the teachers the Rebellion is going to need.”

“Oh.” Luz stirred at her cereal thoughtfully. “Well, sure. I guess I can do that. I can be persuasive. Do you have some targets in mind?”

Willow winked. “Do I ever.”

Half an hour later saw them cloaked and hooded and heading into the run down harbourside quarter of Bonesborough. The whole area looked like nothing so much as a slum. Ramshackle wooden houses leaned against each other, seeming ready to topple down with a light shove. How they stood up to the boiling rain, Luz had no idea. Even Willow was looking around with concern as they picked their way through the narrow deserted streets.

“Wow, I had no idea it was so bad down here.” Willow was staring at a heap of garbage piled up against the side of a lean-to shack. “I’ve never been here in person before.”

“I guess there are poor folk in the Boiling Isles too.”

“I guess.” Willow didn’t sound happy about it. “She must be doing pretty badly to have ended up here.”

“She?”

“You’ll see.” Willow perked up a little at the prospect of getting back on-mission, and picked up the pace.

The street was empty, the only sounds the thud of their footsteps on the broken cobbles and the distant crash of the surf against the harbour wall.

Luz cleared her throat nervously. “Where is everyone?”

Willow was looking straight ahead. “I don’t know. Maybe they don’t get visitors very often.”

A flash of movement in Luz’s peripheral vision brought her spinning around to the right, but there was nothing to be seen. Her neck prickled, and she could feel the goosebumps rising along her arms. “Um, Willow, this person we’re going to see – do they know we’re coming?”

“Nope. They’re off the grid. It took enough effort to just find where they were staying.”

“Oh.”

Willow came to a halt before a nondescript wooden house, nominally two stories tall, although the second floor was leaning dangerously out over the street. It looked as rickety as everything else in this part of town. She hesitated a moment before leaning forward to knock smartly on the front door.

There was a pause of a good thirty seconds before there was the sound of movement and a gruff voice called out from behind the still-closed door. “Who is it? What do you want?”

“It’s Willow - I’ve come to talk.”

“Go away.”

Willow huffed in frustration. “Don’t you remember me? Willow? From Hexside? I’ve brought a friend.”

There was no response. The door remained resolutely closed.

Luz frowned and grabbed Willow’s shoulder to pull her in close. “Is there a back way in?” she asked softly.

Willow gave her a frustrated look. “It’s worth a try. I’ll keep their attention out here – you go and have a look.”

Luz nodded and started for the corner of the house just as Willow began banging furiously on the door again. Luz was in luck. A narrow alleyway ran beside the building, and she followed it down until at the back of the house was revealed a fenced in back yard – perfect for a sneaky entrance.

She jumped for the fence, hauling herself up and over with only minor indignity – Willow’s training over the last few months had left her much stronger and more agile than she had been at any point back on earth. In contrast with the street at the front of the house, the yard was neat and well kept, with what looked like a herb garden against one wall, and another structure in the back corner of the space that looked like nothing as much as a… stable? What kind of creature was being kept in a place like this?

As she looked, there was a sound behind her, a deep, throaty, animalistic sound of warning, and she froze instinctively.

“Don’t worry,” the gruff voice from earlier said. “She won’t eat you unless I specifically tell her to. But I should warn you that she does have a taste for trespassers. Now why don’t you turn around very slowly.”

Luz raised her hands in surrender and did as she was told.

The first thing she was aware of was the creature stood very close behind her. It was a griffin, as tall as a pony, its clawed feet flexing and tearing at the ground. Its beak clacked threateningly. But behind it…

Behind it stood a burly female witch, her brown hair tied back in a high ponytail, a familiar fish hook earring decorating one ear. Her expression mirrored the threatening visage of the griffin, her thick brows lowered in a glare. But then a second later, her expression cleared and her eyes opened wide first in recognition, and then surprised delight.

Luz could feel the same look echoed on her own face.

“Luz?! What in the Titan’s name are you doing here?!”

Luz couldn’t help grinning back, and suddenly Willow’s insistence that she needed to be along for this mission made a lot of sense.

“Viney!”

Chapter Text

Viney didn’t hesitate for a second. Before Luz knew what was happening, the taller witch had covered the distance between them in two short strides and gathered her up into a smothering hug. She squeezed her close for a couple of seconds, then held her out at arm’s length, looking her up and down.

“I thought you were dead!”

Luz grinned nervously. “Not so much.”

“We all thought you were dead! You just vanished!”

“I got stuck in the human realm and couldn’t get back. It’s a long story.”

Viney cocked her head to one side. “Clearly not all that long.”

“Well, I mean, there’s more to it than...” Luz dragged herself to a halt. “But, no, you’re right. That’s most of it.”

“Sure.” Viney turned to indicate the griffin, who was still regarding Luz with deep suspicion, its clawed feet flexing in the dirt. “You remember Puddles, right?”

Luz nodded, eyeing those great talons. “But I’m not so sure she remembers me.”

Viney reached out to stroke along the griffin’s glossy neck feathers with slow, soothing movements, until Puddles closed her eyes and cooed softly. “Well, y’know, it’s been a while. Griffins don’t have great long-term memories.” She perked up again suddenly. “Oh! But the others will be so psyched to see you. Come on, let’s get inside.” She sent Puddles into the shelter of the stable with a gesture, and started towards the door, all brisk energy.

Luz followed hastily. “The others? Is the whole gang still together?”

Viney turned to give her a lop-sided grin. “More or less. Come on, it’d be just our luck to be spotted by a Coven fly-by. Once we’re under cover we can talk properly.”

As soon as Luz was through the door, Viney slammed it behind them and cupped her hands around her mouth. “Get out here! We got a visitor!”

“Who?” It was Jerbo’s voice, positively dripping with suspicion.

“Come and see!”

“Last time you said that there was a manticore waiting for us in the front room...” Jerbo was muttering as he came into view at the top of the stairs, but stopped dead as soon as he saw Luz. “Is that...?”

“Back from the dead! Come and say hi!” Viney was almost bouncing with excitement.

“Luz!” Jerbo clattered down the stairs so fast he nearly fell, pulling himself to a halt a few feet in front of her. “I can’t believe it!”

As he emerged from the shadows of the stairway, Luz could see him clearly for the first time. What she saw made her catch her breath. Jerbo’s right eye was covered with a black patch, and the whole right hand side of his face was angry red flesh, bubbled and scarred. He noticed her staring, and shrugged.

“It’s not as bad as it looks,” he said matter-of-factly. “It’s only been a year or so, and Viney says it’ll take a while to calm down.”

Luz spun to face Viney. “More or less, you said. Is Barcus…?”

“He’s fine.” Viney looked around impatiently. “Come on buddy, see who it is!”

A sudden sense of movement at the doorway to the adjoining room, and then Barcus bounded out with a joyful bark.

“He said he’s pleased to see you,” Jerbo translated. “He thought you were dead.”

“Yeah. Getting that a lot today.” Luz studied the canine witch carefully. Although there was nothing as obvious as Jerbo’s injury, Barcus’ head was marked with a tracery of scars, and one ear was missing a chunk. She turned back to Viney, brow furrowed. “What happened to you guys?”

The witch shrugged. “The Emperor happened. Even while you were here the first time you know the Emperor’s Coven was arresting anyone who didn’t join a coven, right?”

“Sure.”

“Well as time went on they got more… heavy handed.” Viney looked down at her hands. “When we graduated none of us wanted to join a coven. We’d had all those years of multi-tracking. We like working with more than one kind of magic. There was no way I was going to choose between beast keeping and healing magics and have one of them sealed away forever. The others felt the same way.”

Jerbo and Barcus both nodded vigorously.

“So we figured we’d live outside the coven system. There was already a low key resistance movement forming at that point. We threw in with them. Thought it would all be so simple.” Viney’s hands clenched. “We couldn’t have been more naïve. We made it six months before the Emperor’s goons found us. It was a miracle we got out at all. Some didn’t. None of us made it unscathed.”

Luz eyed her. “You look okay?”

Viney held her left forearm up in front of her, vertical in front of her face. Belatedly, Luz noticed that the left hand, unlike the right, was covered with a leather work glove. Slowly, deliberately, Viney closed her right hand around her left wrist and twisted. Luz gasped at the suddenness of the movement, and her mouth stayed open as Viney continued the movement again and again until she was able to pull the whole limb – elbow to hand – away. She waved the prosthetic at Luz.

“Most of us made it out. Some of us were missing more bits than others.”

“Viney…”

“Nah, nah. Don’t worry about it.” She screwed the limb back into place with the speed of long practice. “It’s okay. The gang’s all alive, and that’s what matters. Since then we’ve been keeping a low profile. Just staying out of sight has suited us well enough. The guy who loaned us this place is construction coven. He gave me a hand with putting this together,” she waved her left hand, “and he’s been good to us. The Emperor’s lot don’t bother with places like this.”

“Willow said you were off the grid. If she had trouble finding you, you can bet the Emperor’s Coven wouldn’t stand a chance.”

“Willow?” Viney looked at her curiously.

“Oh crap! Willow!” Luz’s eyes were wide in horror. “I forgot! She’s outside!”

Viney shot Jerbo a look, and he jogged through the open door into what was obviously the front room of the house. The sound of the door opening, and some apologetic noises from Jerbo drifted in. Luz took the opportunity in the moment of silence to look around. They were in a kitchen that led off into the back yard. A stairway led directly down from the upper floor, and there was just that one other door. What caught Luz’s interest though, was the disjunct between the house’s outward appearance, and what she could see now she was inside. The walls were sturdy and straight. The kitchen was small, but well-appointed, with a table, chairs, sink and stove every bit as good as those in the Owl House. Viney caught her looking, and grinned.

“Not what you expected, huh?”

“It looks about ready to fall down from the outside,” Luz said. “Is that...?”

“Like I said, construction coven,” Viney replied. “The outside is made to look like a dump. Means nobody particularly cares about what’s going on inside. Nobody bothers with really poor people. Unless they make the wrong kind of fuss.”

They were interrupted by Willow coming in, followed closely by a nervous looking Jerbo. She looked around appreciatively. “Nice place you’ve got here. You’ve still got a trick or two up your sleeves, I guess.”

“Sure do.” Viney beckoned them towards the table, and took a seat. Willow and Luz followed suit, but Jerbo remained hovering by the door. Barcus sank down onto his haunches and panted at them.

“All right.” Viney grabbed a pot of some black, steaming liquid and poured everyone a mug. “Now that we’re settled, why don’t you tell us what you’re doing here. Because I get the sense this ain't a courtesy call.”

“We need your help,” Luz said immediately, earning a sharp look from Willow.

Viney looked from one to the other. “Oh? And what kind of help might that be?”

Luz hesitated, looking to Willow, but the nature witch just sighed and waved a hand in a ‘go ahead’ gesture. “I guess I didn’t bring you along for your subtlety. Go on.”

Luz flushed. “Well... We’re working against the Emperor. I know Willow and a bunch of others have been doing it a long time. I’ve only just got back, but I’m with them too.”

“Uh huh.”

“Have you heard about the demonstrations recently? And the guard house hits? That’s us.” She felt a moment of pride, immediately dissipated by Viney’s next comment.

“Sorry, we’re kinda out of it down here. We don’t get the daily papers, if you know what I’m saying.”

“Oh, sure, well, we’ve been doing a lot, is the point. Lots of people saved from the Coven, lots of new people joining up to do what they can.”

“Mmm.” Viney looked around at the other two. “Listen, Luz, maybe I should just say it now. We’re hiding out down here for a reason. We know what the Emperor’s lot can do, and I gotta say, I’m not in a hurry to lose my other hand. He’s too powerful, and his troops are ruthless. Ordinary witches don’t stand a chance against him. I don’t think we can...”

Luz kept going doggedly. “But we’re getting so much bigger so fast! We’ve got real momentum! And Willow had an idea about our next step. Right now we haven’t got a base of operations, and she thought now that Bump has been arrested...”

“What?” Viney’s sharp question cut across whatever else Luz had been planning to say.

Luz stumbled, losing her flow. “Sorry, what?”

“What did you say about Bump?” Viney was leaning forward, frowning.

“You didn’t know about him?”

Viney shook her head.

“Oh, well, he was arrested, maybe a week or so ago. The Coven just marched in and carted him off. We don’t know what’s happened to him since then...”

“He’s not dead,” Willow interrupted. “The Coven would announce it if he was. There’d be pronouncements all over the Crystal News about how awful a criminal he was, and how deserving he was of his execution. He’s too high profile to just disappear for good.” She clenched her teeth and stared down at the table for a moment. “But whatever’s happening to him in the castle, it’s nothing good.”

“Shit.” Viney looked genuinely shocked. “I thought things would get worse, but I never thought they’d come for him.”

“Well now they’ve put their own guy in as Hexside Principal, and he’s doing his best to make it a training ground for loyal soldiers of the Emperor. No more multi-tracking. Hocus focus and all that malarkey.” Luz took a sip of the black liquid and immediately wished she hadn’t. “But the thing is, he knows nothing about the school or its secrets. We want to use the Secret Room of Shortcuts as a base. And we want to get people who know all about multi-tracking to train the students who want those extra skills.” She grinned triumphantly. “We can be defying the Emperor right under his nose!”

“You want to get people learning in secret,” Viney said slowly.

Luz nodded.

“Just like we used to.”

She nodded again.

“And they aim would be to... what? Have a lot of little willing child-soldiers of your own?”

“What?! No!” Luz reached out impulsively to take Viney’s hand. “No, of course not. Obviously if anyone wanted to join the Resistance and help, then that would be great, but it’s about more than that. The Emperor wants to keep everyone ignorant. That’s not fair. Everyone who wants to learn should be able to.” She looked over at Willow. “Right?”

Willow shifted in her chair, but nodded. “Sure. I wouldn’t say no to more recruits, but there’s a principle here too. And speaking of Principals...” She fixed Viney with a hard look. “That’s the other short-term goal. I want to get Bump out of there. He was good to you, to us. To all of us. And if we can rescue him, we will.”

Viney rubbed at her nose with her free hand. “Okay. I’m reading between the lines here, but I’m guessing you want us...” she indicated the three detention crew witches with a nod of her head, “to be your teachers.”

“Yes,” Luz said simply. “You guys were always about learning for learning’s sake. I bet you’d be great teachers. And you know all about multi-tracking.”

“Viney...” Jerbo spoke for the first time from his position by the door. As Luz looked over at him she was suddenly aware that he was trembling. “Viney, can we...?”

Viney looked back at Luz. “We need to talk about this. Alone. Can you guys clear out for a bit? Just into the front would be fine.”

Willow got to her feet immediately. “Sure. Whatever you need.”

As soon as she and Luz had moved into the front room, the door was shut firmly behind them. They sat in silence for maybe ten minutes, listening to the mumble of hushed voices through the wall, before Viney came to join them. She sat down opposite the couch they were sharing and sighed.

“They’re scared,” she said bluntly. “We know what it looks like when things go wrong.”

“I know,” Willow said gently.

“Yeah. You do, don’t you.” It wasn’t said with any kind of animosity. Just understanding. Viney scraped a strand of loose hair back over her ear and sighed again. “Look, I want to do this. I want us to do this. Barcus is on board too. But Jerbo...”

“Is there anything we can do to help?” Luz asked.

“Just give us some time? I know you’re under pressure here, but rushing this won’t help. Give us a day or two, and let us get back to you?”

“That’s fair.” Willow got up. “I’m glad you and Barcus are up for this, but I understand you can’t join us without Jerbo. I know you three stick together. Talk it over, and we’ll be back in a couple of days.”

Goodbyes out of the way, Willow and Luz pulled their hoods back up and headed out into the warmth of the afternoon. Luz shaded her eyes and gazed out over the water.

“You know, back in the human realm on a hot day like this you could stick your feet into the water to cool off. Paddling at the seaside was great.” Luz looked at the odd pink of the sea. “Could you do that here?”

“Sure.”

“Really?!” Luz perked up. “I for sure thought the Boiling Isles would have some kind of...”

“If you’re heat-resistant.” Willow continued without missing a beat. “Everyone else would be cooked.”

Luz subsided. “Figures.”

Willow gave her a sympathetic look. “In some places the sea is hot enough that even the steam is dangerous, but it’s not so bad here. Come and see.”

She led them out onto one of the long wooden jetties that stuck out into the swirling surf. The jetty was tall enough that they could sit with their legs dangling over the edge, warmed by the ambient heat of the water, so they did. Wordlessly they sat down side by side, staring out over the pink-purple water.

Luz spotted a ship at the mouth of the bay, and watched as it made its slow way towards the harbour.

“Hey, Willow?” She kept her eyes on the distant ship.

“Yes?”

“Thank you for this.”

“For what? You were helping me out.”

“No, I mean…” Luz paused, searching for the right words. “You didn’t need to bring me along for this. You thought it would help. You wanted to give me a boost, right?” She glanced over to see Willow’s reaction. The witch had a light blush colouring her cheeks.

“I definitely wanted you here for this,” Willow said firmly. “You’re persuasive. You talked those guys into taking action before, even when they were terrified. I figured if anyone could get through to them, you could.” She looked away for a second before turning back to make eye contact once again. “But… yes, I knew you could use a win. I don’t know what happened, but something hit you hard.”

The quiet seemed to expand around them, the movement of the sea below the only sound.

“Is all water like this here?” Luz asked after a while. “I mean, boiling rain, boiling sea...”

“Not everywhere.” Willow looked thoughtful. “The lakes and rivers have time to cool down. You can even swim in some places. Lake Lacuna, where I learned to swim, was like that.”

Luz thought back to that day all those years ago, when she had been inside Willow’s memories. “Oh yeah! The Lake! Where you learned with...”

She stopped herself with an effort. Willow was looking back out at the harbour, shoulders tight.

Suddenly she knew she had to tell her. She hadn’t thought she would tell anyone else at the Owl House what happened that night. Why would they need to know, after all? But in this moment that unshared secret felt like a burning weight in her gut. Willow was her friend. She couldn’t keep this from her.

“I went to see her,” she said into the silence.

Willow said nothing for a long moment. She didn’t move, didn’t turn. Then, with her eyes still riveted on the horizon, “That night?”

“Yes.”

“What happened?”

“Nothing. She sent me packing.”

Willow blew out a long slow breath. “I see.”

“I wasn’t followed or anything,” Luz supplied hastily. “I was so careful. Nobody saw me.”

Willow didn’t reply. The water bubbled and steamed.

“Are you mad?” It was so quiet, it was almost a whisper.

She still didn’t turn. “No.”

“Because it seems like you might be mad.”

Now she turned, but instead of the anger she’d been fearing, Willow just looked tired, and a little sad. “I’m not mad. Look, you’re an idiot. That was an idiotic thing to do. But you know that already. I just spent three days watching you fall apart trying to deal with this on your own. You don’t need me scolding you too.” She gave a little smile. “I may find time to be mad later. But we did good today. Why spoil things?”

There was a pause.

“I’m sorry.”

“I know. It’s okay.”

They lapsed into silence again. But in the quiet, Luz’s heart felt a little lighter.

“Hey, Luz?”

Luz glanced over at her friend. Willow was looking off into the distance again. “Yes?”

“You know we love you, right?”

“I know.” It was very soft.

“And we care for you?”

“Yes.”

Willow turned, and the green of her eyes seemed very bright. “And we want you to be happy?”

“Mmm.”

“Good. You give a lot, Luz. Let us look after you every once in a while, okay?”

Luz sniffled, and rubbed at her nose. “Okay.”

“Okay.” Willow got up and opened her arms. “C’mere.”

Luz stood up and stepped into the warmth of one of Willow’s trademark hugs. The witch’s arms wrapped around her, pulling her close. Really close.

“Y’know, you’re a… really tight hugger.”

No response.

“Ahaha, okay Willow, that’s too tight.”

Nothing.

“Too tight! TOO TIGHT!!”

She could almost feel Willow grinning into her shoulder as her ribs creaked under the strain.

They managed the return trip to the Owl House without any major difficulties, but the Emperor’s Coven was uncomfortably omnipresent. Coven guards had always been a regular feature of the centre of town, but since the protests they had made their presence felt more and more, even in further flung areas of Bonesborough. As Willow and Luz picked their way out of the slums of the Harbourside district they had to edge around a large group of guards, all focused on a single house at the end of a row. The pair of them pulled their hoods close around their faces and ducked their heads, moving as fast as they could without attracting undue attention.

Once they had put enough space between the Coven group, Luz breathed a sigh of relief. “What were they doing?”

“Raiding that house, I’d guess,” Willow replied, sneaking a quick glance back over her shoulder. “The Coven seems to be hitting half a dozen new places every day at the moment. They’re looking for witches who either don’t belong to a coven, or who are known members of the rebellion. Often they bring the residents in, even if they’re neither. They don’t always come back.”

Luz looked back too, just in time to see two Coven soldiers dragging a one-eyed, goat-horned demon out of the house. He was yelling something, but she couldn’t work out what it was at this distance.

“Come on.” Willow caught her elbow and urged her forwards. “There’s nothing the two of us can do.”

“I know.” Luz turned away. “It just makes me feel so…”

“Helpless. I feel the same. But it won’t always be like this. Come on, let’s get back to the others.”

They did. The rest of the day passed quietly, and Luz slept well again that night. The next day, however, when she came downstairs, Willow was talking quietly to someone in the crystal ball. Luz kept her distance until the call ended, but when it did, Willow addressed her immediately.

“I’m worried.”

Luz stopped her search for breakfast materials. “What’s up?”

“You know that group we passed yesterday on our way out of Harbourside?”

Luz just nodded.

“My contact just reported the Coven have hit four more houses in the same area. Three more yesterday, one so far this morning. They’re working their way down the street.”

“Are they looking for someone in particular?”

Willow scratched at the back of her neck, her face troubled. “Maybe. Or they may be trying a new tactic. Clearing a whole area of town at once would certainly net them at least a few non-coven witches.”

“Even down there?” In her mind’s eye Luz saw again the decrepit lean-tos and shanty buildings clustered along that stretch of the shoreline.

“Sure.” Willow was frowning. “When you don’t belong to a coven you end up having to live on the outskirts of society. You can’t hold down a regular job. Money’s in short supply. Why do you think Lilith and Eda were in the middle of nowhere? Or Viney and her friends? It’s because they have nowhere else to go.”

“Willow!” The realization hit her all at once. “We have to warn them! If the Coven are clearing the area, they’ll find them!”

Willow nodded emphatically. “That’s what I’m afraid of. Can you take Gus and go back to them? If you can persuade them to leave, his illusion magic can cover you.”

They moved fast. When she explained the situation to Gus, he was on board immediately. The pair of them made their quick and quiet way back to the Detention Crew’s house, skirting two full squads of the Emperor’s Coven, each group clustered at the front door of a different house at the far end of the street.

This time when Luz banged on the front door, Viney answered immediately, although she looked a little taken aback.

“I thought we said a couple of days?”

Luz pushed her way past her without a word, followed immediately by Gus. Viney could probably have physically prevented her if she’d wanted to, but she didn’t put up a fight. Once the door was closed, however, she rounded on them.

“What’s going on?”

Luz shoved her hood down and faced the witch squarely. “I’m sorry, but there’s no time. The Emperor’s Coven are working their way through this neighbourhood, house by house. They’re at the end of the road now. They could get here today.”

“Shit.” Viney wheeled away from them and pressed her face against the dirty glass of one of the front windows, squinting out at the street. It only took a moment. “Shit!”

She spun around and bellowed full volume into the house. “Jerbo! Barcus! The Coven are coming! Time to go!”

Jerbo was beside them so instantly, Luz almost thought he’d teleported in. “Go where? There’s nowhere for us to go!” His voice was high-pitched and panicky.

Luz was about to reply, but Gus got there first. “Sure there is.” His deep, warm voice was calm and strong. The sense of reassurance coming from him was palpable. “There’s a place for you with us. We’ll keep you safe.”

Jerbo’s shoulders relaxed just a fraction, but he wasn’t convinced yet. “How do we know that’s any safer?”

“Safer than a house that’s definitely going to be searched in a matter of hours?” Luz couldn’t keep the frustration from her voice.

“It’s okay, Luz,” Gus said gently, but his eyes were still on Jerbo. “It’s a good question. We’ve been a safe place so far, but you’ll want to check that out for yourselves. Come and see. If you have concerns, you can find a new place in your own time, no hard feelings. Sound good?”

Jerbo fell silent and looked over at Viney, who nodded slowly. “This wouldn’t be us necessarily agreeing to being your teachers or whatever.”

“Sure.” Gus smiled at one, then the other. “Take your time with the big decisions. But let’s just get you out of here for right now, okay?”

Now it was Viney’s turn to look at Jerbo. He hesitated for a moment, but was interrupted by a sharp bark from the doorway. Barcus was stood there with an unmistakably fierce expression on his canine face. Jerbo subsided, shame-faced.

“What did he say?” Luz couldn’t help herself.

Jerbo’s lips twisted in a half smile. “He told me to stop being an idiot. Or words to that effect.”

Barcus barked again, with an air of finality. He turned and disappeared into the main body of the house.

“He’s right,” Viney said. “We’ll get our stuff together. It won’t take a second. We don’t have much to pack.”

It took maybe ten minutes. The group that gathered in the back yard looked nervous but determined. Each of the detention crew had a pack on their shoulders, Barcus included. Only Puddles had nothing on her back. They had decided to leave via the alley, rather than risk being seen exiting the front door. There was no back route out of the yard, but that wasn’t a problem. Jerbo summoned an abomination hand, and before Luz knew what was happening, it had flattened a stretch of fence with a single powerful punch.

“Here we go.” Gus grinned around at everyone and swept both hands through an elaborate cycling spell circle. Luz could see the magic expanding and settling over them, like a gigantic umbrella. She could still see through the magical field, but everything outside looked oddly blurry, like looking through a smeary window.

Gus took a deep breath. “I should be able to keep this up until we get to the Owl House. But have a glyph ready Luz, just in case.”

This time, their movement was slow and careful. Although people could no longer see them, they could hear them, so stealth was of vital importance. The street only had one exit, since jumping into the Boiling Sea wasn’t an option, so they had to pass uncomfortably close to the Emperor’s Coven squads to get out. Luz knew she couldn’t be the only one who was literally holding her breath as they edged their way between the two groups standing on opposite sides of the street.

They were nearly fully clear when it happened. The Coven squad to their right shifted, and their leader suddenly came into view. She stood tall, authoritative in her white Coven cloak. Alone of the group, she wasn’t wearing a Coven bird-mask, and her long mint-green hair flowed freely down her back, tied back from her face in two elaborate braids.

Luz gasped, audibly, and at Gus’s panicked look, clasped her hands over her mouth, physically stopping herself from speaking her name out loud. Amity. She had stopped, and the group stopped with her, forced by the limits of the magical field. Gus’s hands were permanently in motion as he generated the invisibility field that hid them, which meant there was nothing he could do, at least not physically. He stared at Luz, silently beseeching. She could read his expression without his needing to say a single word out loud. Not now. Don’t do this. She looked around, and saw confusion and fear on the faces of Viney and her friends. They had no idea what was going on, only that she had stopped them in the middle of a bunch of people who would happily see them all dead.

Viney grabbed her arm, and although she didn’t pull yet, the threat was there.

Luz slowly let her hands drop from her mouth, and shook her head silently at Gus. She set her hand over Viney’s and mouthed at them both: It’s okay. Let’s keep going. They nodded, understanding, and slowly, painstakingly, they picked their way out and clear of the immediate danger. Luz couldn’t help looking back, to catch one more glimpse of Amity, but Viney’s hand was still firm on her arm, and they kept moving forwards. Of course Gus was right. What would she have done? She had learned her lesson, hadn’t she? Jumping into action on impulse wasn’t going to help anybody.

But seeing Amity like that… presiding over those scenes…

It felt like her heart was being torn all over again.

Eda was used to finding places for surprise guests. The Detention Crew were set up with a room of their own, and slowly settled into life at the Owl House. They were apprehensive at first, Jerbo especially, but it was quickly obvious that Willow and her rebellion friends spared no effort when it came to safety and secrecy. It took a day or so, but after that point even Jerbo was able to walk around the house without jumping at every unexpected noise.

Willow had decided to put some recon in place before making a move on Hexside, and so for the next few days they sat tight in the Owl House, receiving regular updates on Coven movements in the area of the school, and most importantly on the daily schedule and activities of the new Principal. At the same time they put the word out covertly among their rebellion contacts: did anyone know anything about Bump’s replacement? Where he came from? What his magical capabilities might be? Information began to filter back to them, a little at a time.

It was late in the evening, a couple of days later, that they were disturbed by a loud knocking at the kitchen door. Eda, Willow and Luz looked up from the cups of apple blood they had been sharing, and exchanged worried glances. Eda snatched up her staff from where it had been propped against the table, and Luz palmed two fire glyphs, one in each hand. Willow stood poised near the door, hands held at the ready.

Eda called out. “Who is it?”

“We’re sorry. Should have called ahead. Not sure why we didn’t…” The voice sounded confused.

Willow’s eyebrows shot up. “Kivan? Is that you?”

“Yes. Sorry Willow, I don’t…” he trailed off again.

Willow looked over at Luz and Eda. “Kivan’s with the rebellion. One of my most trusted contacts. It’s not like him to just show up though. I’ll check it out. Be ready to back me up?”

Eda held her staff pointed directly at the door. “They better not make any funny moves.”

Willow pulled the door open to reveal three figures stood in the darkness, illuminated only by the light spilling from the entrance. Two were recognizably members of the rebellion, both with hoods pushed down to reveal their faces. They stood flanking the third, clearly a prisoner. This figure had a bag over their head, and their hands were bound behind their back.

Willow looked from one to another, her face twisted in confusion. “What’s going on? What is this? Who is this?”

One of the soldiers took a hesitant half-step forward and cleared his throat. When he spoke, Luz realized this had to be Kivan. “We were down in the town when we heard there was a witch asking about you, wanting to find you for something. We figured that was suspicious, so we found her first. We thought we’d…” he stopped, and seemed to be struggling for words for a second. “We thought we’d bring her to you. See what you made of her.”

Willow folded her arms. “Let me get this straight. You heard some strange witch was looking for me. So you thought the best thing to do was to bring this strange witch directly to my door?”

“I…” Kivan was visibly sweating. “I… guess? I don’t know…”

Willow’s head snapped around to look at the second rebellion witch, who instantly snapped to attention. “What have you got there?”

He looked down at the object he was holding in his left hand, as if seeing it for the first time. “A guitar?”

Willow’s voice sharpened. “Is it hers? She’s a bard?”

“Yes.” Kivan sounded reasonably sure this time. “Yes. She was playing the guitar when we found her.”

“The bard specialist witch was playing a guitar when she spoke to you.” Willow pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed. “Okay, that explains a lot. Fine, bring her into the kitchen. We may as well see what she’s got to say.”

Luz raised a questioning eyebrow at Eda, who was straightening up out of her attack posture. The witch shrugged. “Bard track magic can do a lot of different stuff. But one of the things it’s best at is manipulating this.” She tapped the side of her head. “Seems like these two idiots might have been affected.”

When they were all stood inside the kitchen, the door safely closed behind them, Willow squared up to the prisoner, who still had yet to make a sound. “All right. Let’s have a chat. But I warn you, try any of your music magic, and we’ll hex first and ask questions later. Clear?”

“You don’t have to worry about me,” the prisoner replied in a light clear voice. “I just want to talk.”

Willow shot a ‘get ready’ look at Eda and Luz, then whipped the bag off the figure’s head. The person thus revealed was indeed a witch, with dark skin, and silver hair tied up in two buns atop her head. Her silver-grey eyes blinked hard in the sudden glare.

“Willow!” she said delightedly, as relaxed as if she’d just spotted them while out on a shopping trip, not in the least bit bothered by her bound hands or captive status. “It’s been so long!”

Willow just looked at her, her face a picture of bewilderment. “Skara?!”