Chapter Text
Hunter and Luz had successfully escaped from the strange creature, now they only had to find a way out; both of them were following a little Belos, who had saved their lives recently, allowing them to get away from the terrifying monster.
The purple-looking boy, tries to get them as far away as possible from the creature that is chasing them, he can only sigh tiredly, taking care of children is difficult...
Hunter looked annoyed at Luz, because she interrupted at the worst possible moment, and yes, he could have stepped on the glass vial, but she distracted him; therefore, it was her fault the situation they got into.
Luz remained unaware of the blond boy's glare.
She kept gazing at his surroundings, they weren't as sinister as she thought he would be the twisted ruler of the Boiling Isles; actually, it seemed like a pretty normal place to be in a mindscape.
Well, Luz has only seen one mental landscape and it is Willow's, it is the only criterion by which she can judge; but it is very calm, peaceful, beautiful…
Meanwhile, the purple boy peeks out from behind the trees, circling among them; he loved this place, it was the representation of a set of wonderful memories in his life.
The two intruders didn't seem to pay attention to the images within the frames, and he didn't know whether to be relieved or offended that he wasn't interesting in their eyes...
Luz decided to end the silence, coming up with a good topic of conversation to kill time.
"Hunter, do you know that Aunt Lilith said you were a child prodigy?" Luz asked, curious if Hunter was aware of how he was known.
Luz thought he would be annoyed at such an implication, but he just snorted in annoyance at her poor attempt to piss him off.
"Of course I had to be amazing…" Hunter mutters, "That comes with the role", the young blonde pursues the purple boy with his eyes, trying not to lose sight of him.
This little Belos was the only existing guide available to help them navigate the great mindscape; and Hunter was suspicious about it.
The mind was a representation of what had been lived, and with the great size of the place, it made it seem as if the emperor had lived too long; which doesn't make any sense, no one can live that long!
"And why is that?" Luz asks, snapping Hunter out of her own thoughts.
Hunter gives her a vacant look, hoping it wasn't a serious question; Luz's gaze remained the same, with that, the young blonde realizes.
She does not know…
The purple boy turns around at Luz's question, looking at the girl, with the same expression as Hunter; How could she not be aware?
Hunter looks behind Luz, the little purple boy shakes his head; well, that was a younger version of his uncle, and therefore a figure to obey.
"I had the most powerful witches in the Boiling Isles as my teachers", Hunter replies, justifying the question perfectly and ends up turning away from Luz's gaze.
The purple boy holds Hunter's hand, and with his free hand he signals for silence; It's a secret, they'll let the girl find out on her own.
Well, that is if she pays enough attention...
Hunter laughs at the obvious idea of his little uncle, even if he didn't talk much, he understood that he was planning; Luz didn't find it funny how they were communicating with each other, it was as if they agreed to annoy her.
Although that wasn't a lie from Hunter.
All the coven leaders taught their respective areas of magic to Hunter, making him very capable and wise; much was expected of him, and he tried to live up to the expectations imposed on his image.
Luz thought about the image of a little Hunter excited to learn, following the witches in the castle like a little duck; but then a thought appeared in her mind.
She kept looking at Hunter, as if she didn't believe he actually existed; The blond young man felt his gaze boring into his back and he turned around to face the curious girl.
"What?" he asks bitterly, giving her a blank look.
Luz looked pale, and that worried Hunter, maybe there was something that prevented humans from wandering through the mindscapes; They should hurry to leave if that's true.
Luz could barely articulate her question, but she managed it, "Does that mean Terra taught you magic too?" Luz's question caused an eerie silence.
Hunter stopped suddenly, remembering something...
The purple boy bristled like a cat at the mention of that name, he didn't like that woman at all...
"Actually, she did," Hunter mentioned, but at Luz's look of disbelief, he made her ask, "Why are you looking at me like that?"
Luz was still open-mouthed in disbelief at what she witnessed before her.
"How are you alive?" the girl mutters, being heard by the other two in the silent surroundings.
"Excuse me?", the blond young man looks disturbed at the idea of being dead.
The purple boy holds Hunter's hand tightly, trying to keep him from leaving his attention; and he can agree with Luz, the girl's question has validity and many reasons to exist, she is right about it...
"Terra is crazy!" Luz screams, terrified at the idea of a little Hunter in the care of that woman.
The purple boy nodded, quite agreeing with that statement...
"See?" Luz pointed to the boy next to Hunter, "He agrees with me!"
The purple boy gave her a thumbs up, stating that he also thinks the same as her...
"What reason could there be for making such a statement, Luz?" Hunter asks.
Luz is so distraught that she lets go of the fact that Hunter has said her name.
"Eda told me a story the other day about her youth, and she mentioned Terra…", Luz squirmed anxiously, "She doesn't seem like someone who should have a child in her care…", she explained, appearing distressed by such an idea. .
The purple boy thought the same as the girl, any creature without enough skill to escape from that woman should stay away from her...
Hunter looked puzzled, not knowing the reason behind those words.
The purple boy shook his head, and took Hunter's hand to guide him down another path; they would take longer to try to find a way out, but in return, he was going to show the boy the truth...
Hunter started to follow his little uncle, Luz followed them both.
The little purple boy stood in front of a painting, Hunter and Luz were not far from him, he stared at the memory with hatred, he hated it so much...
The purple boy enters the painting and extends his hand to invite them to come in...
Luz accepts his hand and enters; his hand is extended again to Hunter, who seems unsure about accepting.
"Are you okay with us seeing this?" Hunter asks, looking fearfully at his outstretched hand.
The purple boy nods in confirmation…
Technically his uncle was giving them permission, so Hunter relents and enters the painting; Hunter and Luz shouldn't have a problem entering the memories if they had permission to do so.
As they were all together, they left through a painting located in a golden corridor, Hunter immediately recognized the place where they were.
Luz had never been in that place, but it was quite similar to the other halls inside the castle, so she guessed that they were in the castle.
The purple boy paid attention to the right side of the corridor, where a darkness loomed…
Hunter and Luz turned their attention in that direction, trying to figure out why the boy had looked there; It didn't take them long to find an answer.
Before them, the image of the emperor was present.