Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

"I didn't expect to see you here." 

Raine looked up, their eyes widening at the sight of the eldest Clawthorne sister. They had been picking up a pile of flyers they had knocked to the floor in their haste of trying to recruit a group of young witches when they felt someone come up behind them. They had thought it might be an interested pupil who had wanted to join the Bard Coven despite Raine's blundering. This was their first time at a Covention as a member of the Bard, and they wanted to make sure they were doing everything right, which meant they had placed a lot of pressure on themself and inadvertently heightened their anxiety. The forced smile that had been forming on their lips faltered at the sound of her voice. They spun around and saw the sleek black hair and piercing green eyes, so very different than the ones they secretly longed to see. 

"Lilith," they said. "I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised to see you. Are you here with the Emperor's Coven?" 

She smiled at him, a flash of teeth that were exceptionally white. "Of course. I'm sure you've heard I've been climbing up the ranks." She looked around and brought a hand up to her mouth, lowering her voice considerably. “Between you and me, I think I will be the leader of the Coven soon.” 

Raine offered a smile in return. “Congratulations. You truly are an extraordinary witch. The Emperor's Coven is fortunate to have your talents.” 

“Oh, Raine,” she waved him off. “You always were one to flatter.” 

Raine stood up, setting the papers on the table. 

"So, I see you've joined the Bard Coven," Lilith said, her eyes glancing to the marking on their wrist. "I can't imagine that went over well with Edalyn." 

Raine felt the color drain from their face. 

Didn’t she know? Surely, she had to know… 

"Y-you haven't spoken to Eda?" 

Lilith frowned.  "No. You know how difficult she is, with her whole ‘renegade witch’ nonsense.” she made a gesture with her hands in dismay. “ I haven't heard from her in months." 

"O-oh," Raine said, looking anywhere they could except at the woman in front of them. They couldn't believe that Eda hadn’t told her sister. "W-well, I thought maybe she would have told you, I don't- I thought- well you see- its not that-" 

"Raine," Lilith quirked a brow. Something in her usually composed voice seemed to unravel, a flicker of panic rushing to her eyes. "Did something happen to Eda?" 

"No! That's not- I didn't mean that anything- no," Raine stuttered. "Eda is fine ." 

“Then what is it?” 

Raine took a deep breath and let out a sigh. "It’s just- we broke up." 

Her mouth fell open. "What?" She reached a hand out to their shoulder. "When? Oh, why didn't Edalyn tell me?" 

"A while ago," Raine grimaced. Almost a year ago. "I just...needed space." 

Lilith considered their words. "Eda can be overwhelming at times. It's no wonder you needed a break from her wild personality." 

"No,” Raine grit their teeth with some irritation.  

It was never that. Never her personality. They loved the free spirited Eda, the messy Eda who didn’t take crap from anyone. How could they not love that Eda? She was breathtaking. She was enamoring. She was magical. 

“It was the curse,” Raine’s sighed. 

Lilith’s eyes narrowed. 

Harsh. 

Judgemental. 

(A flash of guilt?) 

“You broke up with her because of the curse?” her voice was cold. “Raine, I thought that you of all witches understood that-” 

“No!” Raine rushed out, holding up their hands in defense. “It’s not like that. I swear! You know that I would never leave Eda because of the curse.” 

Lilith stared at him, blatant confusion written across her face. “But you just said that it was the curse?” 

“Eda was locking me out,” Raine said, their throat feeling tight. It had been many months, and yet the pain was still so raw. “She was keeping secrets...lying to me. It wasn’t fair. Her curse isn’t fair.”

“No,” Lilith looked away, crossing her arms. “It’s not.” 

“I know she’s hurting because of it, and I wanted to help her, but you can’t help people who don’t want it. ” 

Lilith still didn’t look at him. “I suppose if that is what is for the best. You know her better than anyone, after all.” 

That hurt. 

The words they had spoken so long ago echoed in their mind. 

You're lying again! It's like I don't really know you...

“No wonder she’s been missing for months,” Lilith mused, her green eyes shining with a sadness that engulfed Raine. “I haven't even seen her in-” 

Lilith was cut off by the sound of guards shouting. The two of them looked over to the commotion that was building up. Raine had not been to a Covention in years, but they also knew it wasn’t a Covention without there being some type of brawl. They had to admit, it was a bit early in the day for one to already be happening, but they couldn’t say they were surprised. They were mainly relieved that it had nothing to do with the Bard Coven. There were people pushing and shoving, and Raine saw the banners of the Healing Coven waving overhead of it all. 

They pushed their glassed up and raised onto their toes to try and get a better look as Lilith pursed their lips. 

“Hey!” One of the guards shouted at some witches who were trying to get in the circle.  “Stand back! This doesn’t concern you!” 

“Looks as though someone decided to mess with the Healing Coven,” Raine commented, sparing a glance to Lilith. 

Secretly, they were thanking the Titan that the topic had shifted to something other than Eda. They didn’t think the could handle any more of it. 

“Honestly, who in their right mind would cause a scene like this at a Covention?” Lilith seethed. “It’s so uncouth! So reckless!” 

As soon as the words left her mouth, they were left to see none other than Eda Clawthorne arguing very loudly with the Head of the Healing Coven. 

“Sister!” Lilith cried out in shock.  

As Rained looked at the sight, they felt their heart flutter at the sight of the orange haired witch.

“Eda, ” Raine whispered. 

What was she doing here? 

Raine blinked, watching as Lilith began stalking over to her sister. Raine had no idea what to do. They stood there, watching, unsure of what to make of it all.

What were the odds she’d show up here of all places?

 After an awkward pause, Raine found themself following after her. 

“Hey! I said get back!” the guards yelled out in protest. 

“I am from the Emperor’s Coven,” Lilith hissed. “Let me through before I force my way in.” 

The guards exchanged a look, the other one giving a half-committed shrug. They stepped aside, allowing Lilith and Raine through. 

“Edalyn! What are you doing!?” Lilith asked with sheer mortification  

Eda spun around, her irritated expression morphing into one of shock. She stared at Raine, and they felt their heart hammering in their chest. A flash of hurt was written on her face, and quickly wiped away with a sly smug; one that was entirely too Eda that it made Raine tense. 

“Hey Rainsto-” Eda cleared her throat, catching herself before the nickname could flow from her lips. “Raine. Hello to you, too, Lily. Isn’t this a warm welcome back to the Boiling Isles?” 

The Head of Healing Coven rolled their eyes, looking at Lilith and Raine with reproach. “She was trying to steal some of our potions. Some of this elixir, mainly. As well as some miscellaneous items.” 

“Hey, it’s either I steal it now while I still look like this, or I come back after I’m shedding feathers and-” 

“Edalyn Clawthorne! You’re under arrest!”  a guard yelled. 

“Yeah, yeah,” Eda cut her eyes at the guards. “I got it the first time you tried to tell me, and like I said earlier,  it’s really just not a good time. Maybe in a few months I’ll come back and we could do this again? You know how much I love our little visits. I think that-” 

Lilith cut her sister off with exasperation. “I’m so terribly sorry for all of this! I am sure something can be arranged…” 

Raine doesn’t even know how to process what’s happening.

 They feel like the world is spinning as Lilith works out a deal with the Healing Coven and guards, and as they look at Eda, she won’t even meet their gaze. One minute she’s in handcuffs, the next Lilith is trading some gold object, and Eda is standing free. 

Lilith was apologizing the Healing Coven, and Eda finally looked to them, her honey colored eyes wide and uncertain. 

“You cut your hair,” Raine finds that it’s the first words that flood their senses, and they immediately cringe. 

Why is that the first thing you want to say to her after everything?

Eda blushed, her cheeks coloring with a faint red. “Yeah, I guess I did.” 

You look beautiful. 

Why can’t they say that? 

They took in her form more closely, and Titan, she looked as good as they remember. All pale skin and long limbs. Her beauty was always an effortless one. It’s on the tip of their tongue, a compliment that they know they shouldn't say but find themselves wanting to anyways, when they see the bandage wrapped tightly around her skin. 

“What happened to your arm?” they asked. 

Had she been attacked? They had heard rumors of brawls with the infamous Owl Lady. Raine had always assumed that she had won every fight. How could she not? Even at Hexide, nobody was a match for her unpredictable ways and powerful magic. They found it hard to believe Eda would let somebody get the better of her like that. 

Was is the curse? Raine knew the curse was progressing, but enough to do this? Surely that wasn't possible...  

Eda placed a hand over it and shrugged. “Oh, this? It was nothing. Don’t worry about it.” 

Her voice sounded off, and Raine doesn’t know why, but they pressed on. 

“It doesn’t look like nothing, Eda.” 

She glared. “Well, it is.” 

Raine held her gaze. 

Why can’t you just tell me the truth? 

Why can’t you just let me be there for you? 

“It’s not really your business anymore,” Eda said. 

“No...I guess it’s not.” 

Eda looked away before letting out a sigh. 

“Well, take care of yourself, Rainstorm. I can’t stick around here. I have to get back to Hooty and that little demo-” she stops, sending them a wary look before giving a snort, waving her hand. “You know how it is. If I don’t get lost now, they’ll realize that artifact Lilith gave them is fake. I gave it to her two years ago from the human realm and told her it was worth way more than it is.” 

Can you stick around anywhere? 

They bite down the retort. Isn’t that an argument they’ve had before? Why bring it up now? What was the point in trying if only one of them was willing to? 

Who is she going back to?  

Not you.  

“Good-bye, Calamity.” 

Eda stared at them, and Raine thought she might say something more. Instead, she just shook her head, and all they could do is watch as she left. 

They stood there in silence. 

They should go back to their table. 

They should go pass out more flyers. 

They should do a lot of things other than just stand there.

Yet, they wait for Lilith. The time is short before she approaches them, her footsteps quiet and calculated as she comes to stop next to them. She paused for a moment, and Raine could tell something was weighing on her mind, but she appeared to struggle. Eventually, the words form, and they are soft yet oh so heavy as they floated to their ears. 

“I know why you had to end it with her,” Lilith frowned. “But I’m going to get her a cure from Emperor Belos and then maybe the two of you can work it out.” 

Raine considered telling Lilith again that it wasn’t the curse. Their love wasn’t tainted by that... No. It was the secrets. The lies. The fact that Eda didn’t see how truly wonderful she was, and how she pushed everyone away, and how unfair that was to them. 

They considered telling Lilith that Eda didn’t need help getting rid of the curse, she just needed help learning how to accept it. 

It had been years, after all. 

Instead, they gave a sad smile. 

“Maybe.”

Chapter Text

It was late. 

Or, maybe it was early? 

Raine wasn’t sure. 

They couldn’t believe how the evening had transpired.  If a week ago someone had told them that Eda the Owl Lady would be joining them in their mission to free wild witches, they wouldn’t have believed it. 

They hadn’t spoken to her in years, and everything was happening so quickly. 

Now, here she was in all her glory, gazing down at a map with her tongue sticking out in that adorable way they remembered, and all Raine can do is stare at her.

“I can’t believe we did it,” Amber said, eyeing Eda with the same amount of vigor as her mentor. 

 Although the girl had started off not wanting the older woman to join them in their efforts, it was an entirely different story after this success. She had whispered to Raine at several points throughout the evening how ‘incredibly awesome’ she thought Eda was. She seemed to be in awe at how much of an agent of chaos the Owl Lady really was. 

When Eda had produced a light glyph from a piece of paper, the girl had practically ruptured Raine’s ear drum exclaiming ‘did you see that? She doesn’t even have magic but she still did a spell!’ 

Raine had to admit they were impressed with Eda’s resourcefulness, but they also couldn’t say they were surprised.  If anybody could figure out how to wield magic, it would be someone as unstoppable as her. 

“It was kind of amazing,” Katya said, giving a yawn. “But I’m beat.” 

“I think some rest would do us all some good,” Raine said, granting their pupils with a warm smile. They turned to look at Eda, who had rolled up the map and was biting her lip. 

“Goodnight!” Derwin called to them, always the most observant and able to pick up a hint. He began leading the other two out of the room. 

“Night Mama Eda!” 

Eda offered a smile and a quick wave, but didn’t say anything in return. 

Raine frowned. 

That was very unlike her...especially after the victory they had tonight.

“U-uh- Is everything alright?” they asked. 

“Did you ever..." Eda started casting a wary glance at the other BAtTS who were starting to leave the room. Amber had begun jabbering on and on about some item she’d seen at a shop the other day and Raine doubted they were listening, yet Eda lowered her voice. "Did you ever talk to Lily?" 

Raine blinked. 

They certainly hadn't been expecting that. 

"Not much," they admitted. "You know the two of us never got along all that great. Besides, you know better than anyone how focused Lilith gets on her work."  

Eda snorted. "Yeah. I'll never understand that. You're both the biggest dorks I know." 

Raine smiled at the remark and shook their head  "Do you talk to her?" 

Eda's joy faltered, a slip in the mask of indifference she so desperately wanted everyone to think she was comprised of. 

"Actually, yes," she said. "You know what happened, right? With the petrification ceremony?" 

"Yes and no," Raine said. "I know she caught you." 

Eda scowled, her eyebrows furrowed together in a way that Raine would have teased her about many years ago when they still had that right. 

"She didn't catch me."

"No?" 

"Well, okay yeah she technically caught me, but she fought dirty." 

"Since when did that bother you?" Raine wondered, eyeing her with curiosity. 

Eda's eyes sparkled for a moment and then she slowly shrugged. "The curse has been hurting me lately." 

The curse.

 She was talking about the curse. Raine tried not to look like a deer in headlights, the shock of it almost enough to paralyze them 

She said it was hurting her. 

There it was.  

The vulnerability she had spent years running from was now out in the open. 

Raine frowned. 

Her hair was all white. One of her eyes had faded, too. So much had happened in the time they’d spent apart. 

"I used up all my magic," Eda said, not looking at him. "I became the Owl Beast and couldn't change back. Lily took advantage of that." 

"Eda..." 

They didn’t know if they could stomach hearing about that day.

"She was trying to help," Eda rushed out. "In her own stupid way. She really thought Belos would cure me." 

Raine's frown deepened. "She told me that a long time ago." 

She asked for my help, they thought. I told her you didn't want help

I was still hurt. 

Still angry.

"Ah, so you did talk," Eda teased. 

Only about you. 

"Instead Belos ordered my petrification ceremony," she continued.

"I also heard about that," Raine said. 

I watched it from a far, wondering how it all came to this. 

 "But, you also know Lily betrayed the Emperor, forever condemning herself to a life like mine," Eda laughed. "So, really, she's better off." 

"Wait," Raine furrowed their brow, realizing a gap in the story. "You said were stuck as the beast. How did you get... unstuck?" 

"Lily...." Eda said. "She...She took half my pain." 

Raine stared. 

I offered that. Why didn’t she let me help her? Why did she let Lily and not me? 

"Raine," the way she spoke their name, so tentative, so vulnerable...It was a sound that had been burned into their very core and made them toss and turn at night. 

"E-eda," they stuttered. "Why would you-" 

"I found out who cursed me." 

"You did?" Their mouth opened. "H-how? Who?" 

Eda stared at them, and they could see she was contemplating whether or not she wanted to say it out loud. 

"It was Lily," she said. 

It was like time froze. 

Lily. 

Lily. 

Raine didn't reply, and her words hung in the air. 

Lily had spoken to them about Eda’s curse more than Eda probably ever had. She had spoken of how awful it was, how she didn’t know who could do such a thing. She had even cried to them about her sister’s curse, making it her life goal to find a cure... and all come to find out that she was the one who did it? 

"Tell me you're joking," Raine said, their words hardly audible. 

"What?" Eda furrowed her brow. "Raine, I-" 

"Tell me that you're fucking joking," they said, cutting their eyes up to her. 

Eda's eyes widened. 

Raine Whispers rarely got angry. They were calm and collected. The rational one, and their tone clearly took her by surprise.

"Tell me that she wasn't the one who did this to you," Raine said. 

"She didn't mean-" Eda reached out but they turned away. 

"Don't dare defend her!" Raine cried out. "You've been living like this for years because of her! 

“I know! But, Raine you have to-” 

“No!” Raine said. “I don’t have to do anything!” 

They turned away from her.

They didn’t want to hear this. 

They couldn’t hear this. 

Not now. 

“Raine, please,” Eda said. 

It was too much, and even though every facet of their brain screamed at them to stay, reminding them that walking away from Eda after she had opened up had been the very thing they had promised they would never do, they couldn’t handle it. 

How could Lily have kept this to herself for so long? 

They had to find her, and when they did, Raine would make certain that nothing they were thinking was left unsaid.