Work Text:
I.
“I can’t believe you roped me into faking an emergency drill at school!” Raine said for what seemed like the 50th time ever since Eda proposed the idea a few hours ago.
“It was fun! Did you see Odalia’s face when the alarm sounded?” Eda snorted at the memory, “Her whole makeup routine got ruined because of the alarm shrieking and students running around!”
Both students were walking the path behind Hexside.
“Yeah, but now we both got detention!”
“Oh c’mon, Raine, it’s not that bad!”
“Eda, my parents are going to kill me.”
“They won’t! We didn’t even get the harshest punishment! Ever since Fausty retired and Bumpipoo took over his role, most students don’t even get sent to the pit anymore! We all just help around school or something.”
“Yeah, but it’s gonna be on my record.”
“You know what else is gonna be on your record?” She put an arm around their shoulders, “The way you used your bard skills to mimic Bump’s voice and tell everyone a wild basilisk had been left loose in the school and was threatening to suck the magic out of everyone!”
“Yeah but-”
“And c’mon, I think that we got like the easiest job around the school. And that was probably due to my unbeatable charm and amazing charisma in convincing Bump.” She smiled at them, throwing a wink in their direction, “We just help some Plant Track students take care of the greenhouse for, like, 3 hours, and then we’re home free.”
Raine sighed and relaxed against her side, “Maybe you’re right…”
“Of course I am! Now c’mon!” She took her arm from around their shoulders and grabbed their hand, quickening the pace.
They burst into the greenhouse, still hand in hand. The place was completely empty except for a student with green hair and dark green eyes who seemed maybe a little older than them. She was, obviously, sporting the Plant Track Uniform.
“Oh, you’re the students assigned to help in the greenhouse, right?” She checked her clipboard, “Edalyn and Raine?”
“Yep!” Eda said enthusiastically while Raine only nodded.
“Fantastic. We have a bulletin board on that wall over there” she pointed, “that has a few assignments that need to be done for the day. If you need any help, just let me know!” She said before turning around to continue to write something down as she examined the plants in front of her.
Not wanting to waste any time, Raine and Eda walked towards the board, eyeing the list among a bunch of pamphlets promoting the plant track and the plant coven and a few motivational cards with plant puns.
“Alrighty, Raine. Let’s see… Oh! ‘Feed Nellie II, the giant blood fairytrap plant. Warning: don’t get too close.’ I think I found mine!” Eda said excitedly, “Want to help?”
“I think I’ll stay with ‘water flowers by the window’” Raine rubbed the back of their neck, an awkward smile on their face.
“Boriiing!” She rolled her eyes, “Don’t you want to feed a fairytrap plant?! They’re so cool!”
“No thanks, I don’t want to lose an arm, I need both to be a bard.” They chuckled.
“Well, suit yourself.” She shrugged and Raine watched as Eda scurried to a tent inside the greenhouse, the words “NELLIE II” painted above the curtains of the entrance.
They took a deep breath and grabbed a watering can before filling it up with water and strolling towards the window.
Flowers of various colors with dozens of little petals sat on the table in gardening pots. Raine started watering them, whistling as they went.
Raine couldn’t help but admire the colors immediately brightening and the reflection of water droplets on the petals as they went.
“Oh, you watering the chrysanthemums?” The girl from earlier appeared by their side.
“Mmhm!” Raine hummed, a smile on their face.
“I love these! If you want, at the end of the day you can take a bouquet.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, the plant track has been facing a few shortages of students during the last semester. Not many people are around to help the greenhouse.” Raine’s mind went back to the bulletin board with the pamphlets.
“Oh, well, thank you. I’ll take one.” Raine’s eyes immediately fell on a pot with a few orange flowers and a single pink one in the middle. The color reminded them of Eda’s hair. They smiled and made a mental note to take those.
Then a shrill scream came from inside the tent where Eda had gone a few minutes ago.
Eda.
Raine didn’t think twice, they let the watering can fall to the ground and ran towards it, bursting into the separated room.
Eda was being held by a vine from Nellie high in the air as she tried to escape its grasp.
Again, Raine didn’t stop to think twice. They summoned their viola and with a single string of their bow, a burst of energy hit the vine, causing it to be cut and Eda fell to the ground.
“Eda!” Raine screamed and ran towards her, scrambling to know if she was okay.
“Ugh! Stupid plant! How dare you?! I was trying to feed you!”
Nellie II didn’t seem bothered as it tried to grasp both Eda and Raine this time. Raine whistled loudly, causing the plant to knock back for a few seconds, but not enough as it immediately tried to grab both of them again.
That is until it was involved in a green glow.
“Nellie! No! Bad girl! What did I tell you about attacking people!” The girl from earlier stood in the doorway, her finger raised as she traced a spell circle.
“Yeah! I was trying to feed you!” Eda complained again, shaking her first high.
Raine helped Eda up as they traced a spell circle and their viola disappeared.
“Uh, thanks for that.” She said, patting the dirt off her legs.
“It’s no big deal. Like I was going to let you get eaten by a bloody fairytrap.” They smiled.
“Yeah…” She smiled before growing quiet again.
“You okay?” Raine asked, putting their hand on top of Eda’s.
She finally opened her mouth, “Can I… help with watering the flowers?”
“Really?” They raised an eyebrow at her and smirked, “I thought it was boring.”
“Hey, better be boring than dying.”
“Who are you and what did you do to Edalyn Clawthorne?”
“Shhh! Just show me the flowers!”
They giggled and took her hand.
The three hours passed rather quickly and in the end, Eda did get to feed Nellie II, with the help of the student of the Plant track of course.
By the end of their punishment, Eda was covered in dirt, a bit of bloody fairytrap slobber, and had a few bruises but she looked ecstatic as ever.
“Here you go, Raine.” The student said as she traced a circle in the air and the flowers were cut from the put and arranged into a small bouquet.
“Thanks!” Their eyes scanned for Eda around the greenhouse and found her already a few feet outside. They quickly nodded to the student and ran after her.
“Oh hey!” Eda said when Raine finally caught up to her.
“Were you planning on leaving me behind?” They teased.
“Nah, just didn’t want to be around that place anymore.” She shrugged, putting her hands in her pockets.
“Oh yeah! Here, I got these for you.” Raine offered the bouquet to her.
“Oh, Raine! You flatter me.” Eda said and held a hand to her forehead and the other to her chest, fake swooning.
“Just take them!” They shouted, a blush appearing on their face. Eda snorted and took the flowers from their hand before plucking the single pink one behind her ear.
“How do I look?” She asked, throwing a smile in their direction.
Raine stared at her. Sure, she had a couple of bruises, her hair was messier than usual, and she had dirt on her face, uniform, and hair but honestly? She looked beautiful, especially as the sunset behind her made her almost glow with the oranges and blues of the sky.
Raine, whose face was now slightly heated up, just avoided her eyes.
“Like a dork.” They said teasing.
“Shut up! I’ll have you know I look great even with all the dirt on me!” She pointed at them with a smile.
I never said you didn’t¸ their mind screamed but they just kept their mouth shut.
As they walked back to school and back home, they hoped that whatever they were feeling was just a one-time thing.
II.
“Oh right. It’s Scabuary 14th. Ugh.” Lilith said as she walked through Hexside corridors, all decorated with streamers and hearts.
“It’s just Ghoulstine’s Day, Lily.” Eda said, rolling her eyes.
“You’re just saying that because you like the number of cards that get ejected out of your locker first thing in the morning.”
“Yeah, maybe, but I doubt I’m getting any this year.” Eda tightened her grip on her backpack.
“And you say that why…?”
“Because of the curse, duh.” Lilith was quiet, “I might have been popular before but now everyone looks at me like I’m a bomb or a freak.” Eda said and looked at Lilith, whose expression was somber too. Eda immediately plastered a bright smile on her face, “Hey, but you’ve gotten quite popular ever since you got your spot in the Emperor’s Coven and got promoted to captain of the Grudgby team! Maybe, for once, you’ll get more than me.” She patted Lilith on the back and continued making her way through the hallway.
Lilith tickled her locker for it to open but before she could react, it barfed what it seemed at least a dozen of Ghoulstine’s cards and at least half a dozen bouquets.
“Wow.” Eda stated and looked at her sister, whose face was red as her own hair. Everyone in the hallway turned to look at her and Lilith started to panic, trying to shove the gifts inside the locker again as the students continued to stare at her, a few giggling.
Eda fumed.
“Hey! What’s so funny?” Eda growled and a few students stopped laughing while the others continued. She could spot Odalia’s green hair behind a few of them and Titan, Eda wanted to punch her so much now, “Yeah yeah! Keep laughing, I think you have plenty of time to do that since you got nothing today.” That shut the last of them up but Eda kept staring, baring her teeth at the crowd.
A few students backed away muttering stuff about getting away from Eda before she turned into the “monster” but Eda didn’t have time to feel hurt about that.
She kneeled near Lilith and helped pick up the cards and flowers and helped put them one by one inside it.
“Thank you, Edalyn.” Lilith muttered.
“No problem, Lily. But hey, I was right. You definitely beat me this year.”
“You still haven’t opened your locker.”
“There’s no one in school beating you, Lily. Especially me.”
“I don’t care about beating you in this, Eda. The Titan himself knows that I couldn’t care less about Ghoulstine’s day.” Lilith said, finally shoving the last bouquet inside her locker. Eda didn’t argue more.
Eda finally turned to her locker, just beside Lilith’s, and tickled it. She didn’t even try to shield herself from the flood she was so used to getting every Scabuary 14th. She would be surprised if she had something more than books from Potions’ class in there.
And surprised she was.
A single bouquet of pink flowers wrapped in a golden ribbon was vomited into her arms, along with a letter.
“Oh hey. I got one.” She said, more surprised than anything, “Yay for not completely losing your charm with a curse!” She smiled and took the card in her hands before opening it.
“What does it say?” Lilith asked.
“‘For: The most beautiful witch at Hexside who manages to brighten up every room she walks in. From: Your secret admirer. May these tulips brighten your day just as your smile, your laugh, and your voice brighten mine. Thank you for being such an amazing, admirable, and powerful witch.’” Eda read out loud, “Awn, lame. It’s typed!”
“Well, whoever they are, they know you well enough to know you would go through everyone’s handwriting in school just to find out who they are.”
“Yeah, you’re right.” Eda sighed and smelled the flowers, a small smile on her face.
She wouldn’t say it out loud, but she was scared of the rejection that would come with being cursed. Sure, she faced rejection every single day in school now, but it would be too real when she opened her locker today and find it empty for the first time. She wasn’t expecting something like this. Something so personal and thoughtful.
She smiled, still holding the flowers in her arms.
“Hey, look who’s there.” Lilith remarked as Raine turned around the corner, looking around the hallway skittishly.
Eda smile’s got even bigger when she saw her best friend.
“Hey, Rainestorm!” Eda shouted, waving a hand high.
Raine’s eyes found hers and they halted for a second, their face whitening for a quick second.
They quickened their pace towards the sisters, trying to hide their nervousness.
“You okay, Raine?” Eda asked, a genuine question and a worried expression on her face.
“Yeah, fine, just…” They moved their hand wildly trying to find their next words, “I think I may be sick. Yeah. I think I’m sick.”
“Oh shit, really?” Eda cursed, immediately shoving the bouquet of flowers back into her locker, “We should get you to the healer’s office then. I’ll come with you!”
“N-No need! I think I can get through the day.”
“Nonsense! If you’re sick, you should get to rest, not be stuffed in a classroom.” She took their hand in hers, “Do you mind if I take them, Lily?”
“Go for it, classes don’t start for 10 minutes anyway. I’ll go ahead.”
“Cool! You’re the best, sis!” Lilith didn’t reply.
As Raine sat in the Healer’s office, Eda kept holding onto their hand, the identity of her secret admirer long forgotten. After all, Raine was more important than anything for her.
III.
“Was Grom always this boring?” Eda asked, resting her head on top of her knees. Raine, her best friend, was sitting right beside her whistling into the cup of punch they got a few moments earlier for Eda. They were both sitting in the corridor outside the gymnasium.
Eda had just been stood up at Grom, the girl that invited Eda just a week ago just decided to not show up and leave Eda by herself. Probably some dumb prank, make the cursed student think she still has game, and leave her waiting for three hours. Eda didn’t even enjoy the Grometheus fight because of that and that was her favorite part!
“This is my first Grom, so I wouldn’t know.” Raine said, offering her the cup and Eda took a swing, “I’m… sorry she stood you up.”
“Meh, it’s fine. Like, it’s a bummer, but it’s not like I actually liked her, I didn’t even know her name.” She chuckled sadly.
“Well, it’s her loss.”
“I don’t know if I believe that…”
“Well, you should. Anyone would be lucky to have you as their grom date.” Raine said, their voice becoming quieter as they went on with the sentence, a small blush appearing on their face.
Eda smiled at them, feeling her own face heat up and hiding it by resting her forehead against her knees. She had been feeling more and more like that around Raine lately, for approximately the last 3 months. She knew what it meant, she wasn’t new to crushing, but this was different.
She deeply cared about Raine, they weren’t a normal admiration crush. Well, she did feel a lot of admiration towards them. They were the coolest, baddest, kick-buttiest witch she knew. But they were more than that.
They were her best friend, her shoulder to cry on when things at home got too hard to handle, the person who would listen to Eda for three hours while she waited for her Grom date to show up and when she got stood up, they were the one who offered to cheer her up.
She couldn’t just risk losing their friendship because Eda was so close to falling in love with them, so she buried her feelings deep down.
Finally, Eda cleared her throat and tried to take another sip of her beverage but found her cup empty.
“Ah, shit. I’m out of juice.” She complained.
“Wanna head back to get more or do you want me to?” They smiled at her and Eda felt her heart skip a beat.
“No, I think I’m ready to face the crowd again.” She smiled weakly as Raine got up from the cold and dirty hallway floor.
“Just tell me if you get overwhelmed, okay?” Raine offered her a hand and pulled her up. Eda had to refrain from blushing from head to toe when Raine gave a reassuring squeeze and continued holding her hand while they walked towards the gym.
As it always was, after the defeat of Grometheus, the party usually died down. A few couples were dancing around the room as a slow dance was being played by a few of Raine’s classmates. Eda spotted Lilith talking with a few of their teammates from Grudgby and Eda couldn’t help but feel a pang of jealousy.
She dismissed the thought immediately. Lily didn’t have many friends besides Eda while they were growing up, she should feel happy that Lilith finally found her place. Besides, no one in the grudgby team could compare to having Raine as a best friend.
Raine dragged Eda towards the punch table, letting go of her hand for a second to grab a cup and a ladle.
Eda watched as Raine whistled into her cup before turning to get one for themself and doing the same process.
“Cheers.” Eda said and they clinked their plastic cups before taking a swing.
They stayed in silence once again, Eda watching Raine as they tapped their fingers against their cup in the rhythm of the music.
Eda tried to divert her attention to something else, hoping to make her attraction towards them less obvious than it already was.
She then saw Larry, one of her classmates from Potions class setting up a small backdrop for pictures with the help of a few other students.
“Wanna take some pictures, Rainestorm?” She bumped their stomach and tilted her head in the direction of it.
“Oh! Yeah, sure!” Raine took the final sip of their punch before setting the cup down on the table.
Both of them walked towards the witches who immediately noticed them.
“Oh! Hey Edalyn, hey Raine.” Larry said, adjusting their glasses, “Do you two want to be the first ones to take Grom pictures?”
“Duh!” Eda said excitedly, interlocking her arm with Raine and dragging them in front of the camera.
Eda put her hand around Raine’s shoulder while they put one around her waist awkwardly. She grinned widely.
Larry set themselves behind the camera, “In one, two, three!”
Then Eda heard a poof of magic above her and Raine. She looked up and saw two light purple flower crowns fall on their heads, that somehow managed to match both their outfits.
She looked around and saw one of her teammates from the plant track drawing a spell circle, a smile on her face. Eda looked a Raine, the flower crown was tilted slightly on their head, falling in front of their eyes and she couldn’t help but let out a laugh at the adorableness of it. Then Larry took the picture.
Eda’s laughter and snorts died just as Larry came forward giving them the picture.
“Did you like the flowers?”
“Uh, yeah, they’re pretty, but uh… what was that for?” Eda asked, taking a stray petal off her dress.
“Not many couples got corsages this year at grom, so the plant track thought it would be fun to share around a few surprise ones.”
“Oh, that makes sense- Wait couple?” Eda squeaked, her face flushing.
“Yeah! Didn’t you and Raine come to Grom together?” Larry said with a genuine confused smile on their face.
“W-What makes you say that?” Eda whisper-screamed.
“Well, I haven’t exactly seen you two apart ever since the night began. Even me and Jennie took some time to ourselves tonight.”
Eda took a look at Raine, whose face was red too, but they seemed to be dealing with it better than her.
Eda started, still red in the face, “Well we’re n-”
“Thanks for the pictures, Larry.” Raine interrupted, smiling at her and taking her hand in theirs.
“You’re welcome!” They smiled and motioned for the next people in a small queue to come forth.
Eda didn’t say anything until they were already out of the gym, the scenes of the last minutes passing in front of her eyes at the speed of light.
Finally, she and Raine were sitting on the steps of the entrance of Hexside, the cold night air trying to freeze their bodies, but the temperature of her face was enough to survive the direst cold of the knee.
Raine hugged their knees in silence, the crown still on their head.
Eda was also in silence, as she smoothed the wrinkles of her dress and refused to meet their eyes.
“For you.” Raine finally broke the silence as they offered her a flower from their crown and offered Eda. She timidly took from their hand, “And, uh, sorry.”
“Uh, for what?”
“For… not denying that we went to Grom together.” They breathed, resting their chin on their hand.
“Oh.”
“I like Larry, but their girlfriend is close with Odalia and who knows what Odalia would do with the knowledge that you got stood up at Grom and-” They stopped themselves and shut their mouth, “Just, sorry.”
Eda smiled and scooted closer to Raine and adjusted the flower crown on their head.
“From now on, you’re not allowed to say ‘sorry’ anymore. I mean it.” She teased.
“What if I make you mad? Am I allowed to say it then?”
“Like you could ever make me mad. There’s a higher chance of me doing that to you than the other way around.” She snorted and they laughed together with her.
“Oh! There you are, Edalyn!”
Eda whipped her head to see Lilith at the entrance of Hexside.
“Mother just called me, it’s time we head home.”
“What? Oh, c’mon Lily!”
“Don’t ‘oh, c’mon, Lily’ me, Edalyn. Mother wants us both home early.”
“Ughh!” Eda laid herself on the steps and looked at Lilith with her best pleading face, but Lilith just raised her brow at her, “Fineee.”
“Wait!” Raine took Eda’s hand and put the picture from earlier in it, “Larry made two copies. I’ll keep mine if you keep yours.”
Eda smiled and threw her arms around Raine in a hug.
“Of course I’m keeping it, you dingus.” She squeezed them before pulling away, “Give me a call when you get home?”
“Naturally.” They shoot her a wink and she could feel her cheeks starting to hurt from all the smiling she did.
Reluctantly, she got up from the stairs and followed Lilith, who was already a few meters ahead of her.
As she walked home, Eda stared at the picture of them, burning into her memory Raine’s scrunched nose, the slightly surprised look in their eyes at the flowers that dropped on their head. She ran her thumb on their face, a lovestruck smile on her face as she twirled the flower they gave to her between her fingers.
She would treasure that memory for a good while.
IV.
“With less than a minute left for the end of the game, the game is tied between the Banshees of Hexside and the Gorgons of Glandus High! Can the banshees bring home the victory or will Glandus win once again?!”
Perry Porter’s voice was tuned out from Eda’s ears as she ran across the field, adrenaline kicking in as she stole the ball from one of the opponents and ran towards the goal.
As she passed the half of the field, she shot a look to Lilith, silently wanting to see if her sister would want to deliver the final score and bring the game home as her last game as captain before she graduated, but Lilith just shook her head.
Taking that as a final confirmation, Eda gripped the ball even tighter in her hands and with full speed, ran towards the goal.
“Oh! Edalyn Clawthorne has the ball and she’s going for the final score! With the Gorgons not anywhere near finding the Rusty Smidge, if Eda scores the final goal, it’s a win for the Banshees!”
Eda loosened the grip on the ball, using a free hand to draw a spell circle in the air, making the ground shake beneath a few feet ahead of her before creating a hill just tall and close enough to the goal.
“Five seconds left!”
She quickened her pace, avoiding the spells cast by her opponents.
“Four!”
Eda gets closer to the hill she made.
“Three!”
She’s almost at the top.
“Two!”
She reaches the top and jumps in the direction of the goal.
“One!”
The ball passes through the goal with perfection and Eda lands gracefully on the ground.
“THE BANSHEES BRING THE WIN HOME!”
The whole grudgby crowd cheers and Eda isn’t even close to feeling her adrenaline die.
She walks towards the center of the field before she’s flooded by her teammates, as they all raise her in the air. Eda snorts and looks around for Lilith, who has a small smile on her face. Eda laughed loudly, joy taking over her body.
At this moment, she wasn’t Edalyn Clawthorne, the student who got cursed publically and who every day faced the consequences of it. She was Eda, star player of the Banshees who just brought another win home for Hexside. Sure, the euphoria would probably last a week or less and soon she would come back to the routine of being bullied for her curse, but she chose to savor the moment, savor everyone shouting and cheering her name over and over again.
Although so many people were chanting her name loud and clear, one single call for her name stood out for her.
“Eda!”
She whipped her head around, looking for the source of it.
She found Raine just outside the circle her teammates were in, hands behind their back, smiling at Eda. She immediately felt her heart flutter at the sight of them. She signaled for her teammates to let her down and when she was set on the ground, she parted the crowd towards them.
“Hey, Rainestorm.” She smiled, wiping a bead of sweat from her forehead. She immediately felt self-conscious. Don’t think about how you’re sweaty, smelly, and out of breath from the game, don’t think about that.
“Hey, congrats on the win!” They said, shooting her a toothy grin.
“Thanks! Although, it was more than just me playing.”
“Really? I couldn’t tell, you were mesmerizing there.” They said, shooting Eda a wink.
Oh. Well, that’s new.
Eda felt her whole body flush and she hoped that the natural flush of her body from all the running was enough to mask it.
“Well, I can’t deny that.” She chuckled, rubbing the back of her neck.
“I got you these.” Raine finally took their arms from behind their back and showed her a bouquet made of dark blue flowers, dark purple ones, and a few pink ones, all wrapped in a golden ribbon that matched Eda’s eyes, “As a victory gift.”
“Oh, you… flatter me, Raine.” She said, taking the flowers into her arms. That ribbon seemed… familiar to her somehow.
“It’s nothing,” They blushed, fidgeting with their cloak nervously, “these flowers don’t even begin to express how much an amazing, admirable, and powerful witch you are.” Then, their face was red, eyes widened.
Eda didn’t get it until… She connected the dots.
The ribbons from both bouquets.
Thank you for being such an amazing, admirable, and powerful witch.
“Yeah, fine, just… I think I may be sick. Yeah. I think I’m sick.”
“Raine are you-”
“SORRY EDA I GOTTA GO, I GOTTA… FEED MY PALLISMAN!” They chuckled nervously before turning on their heel and quickening their pace.
“Ah, shit! Raine!” She looked at the bouquet in her arms and quickly looked around her surroundings.
She identified Lilith’s ponytail and ran towards her.
“HEY LILY, CANYOUHOLDTHISFORMEFORASEC?” She shouted quickly.
“Uh-” Eda didn’t wait for her response and just shoved the bouquet into Lilith’s arms.
“THANKSYOU’RETHEBEST!” She shouted before turning around and running after Raine.
They were just about to leave the field, rubbing with the heel of their hand at their eyes.
“RAINE!” Eda shouted louder than she wanted, they turned around to face her, eyes with tears. The sight broke her heart.
“Eda, please. Just… Go enjoy the post-game!”
“What about you?”
“What do I have anything to do with the team? I don’t belong there, I’m not part of the team.”
“What if I want you there?” She asked, her heart skipping a few beats.
“W-Why, I would probably embarrass you in front of your teammates.”
“You? Raine! You’re the coolest witch I know. They would be lucky to even talk with you.” She held their hands and grinned ear to ear.
“You’re just saying that.” They blinked a few stray tears away.
“I’m not, c’mon! I’ll introduce you to everyone.” She tugged them by their hands back into the field.
The euphoria was still going around, although the Banshees were now on their way to seat on the benches and have proper rest.
Eda, who was still holding onto Raine’s hand.
“Hey, guys!” She shouted and spotted Lilith still holding the bouquet, all her teammates turned to look at her and Raine. They waved and called Eda’s name.
“Y-You don’t need to this Eda if you don’t want to.” Raine avoided looking at Eda.
“Why do you keep saying that?” She tightened the grip on their hand, a worried expression on her face.
“I mean, why would you choose to introduce me to your cool grudgby friends?”
“Because you’re important to me, Raine. And because I’m not ashamed of our friendship.” Raine was silent, “Raine? You know I’m not ashamed of you, right?” They continued in silence, just staring at Eda’s friends who kept looking at both of them.
Titan, that wouldn’t fly. They needed to know that she didn’t feel ashamed of them.
Then something clicked in her brain.
She took a deep breath and pulled their body close to her and they let out a surprised yelp, looking her in the eye.
Eda leaned her forehead against Raine’s.
“Is this okay?” Eda whispered, their noses almost touching.
“Y-Yeah.” Raine whispered back, their breath tickling Eda’s cheek.
“I’m sorry if I ruin things.” She said before leaning in to kiss Raine.
They were stiff and Eda was so sure she needed to pull back.
She tried to, but they followed her, squeezing her hands.
Eda’s head completely tuned out the whooping and celebration sounds from her teammates, choosing to focus on the warmth she was feeling from them and the sound of her heartbeat going crazy in her chest.
She finally pulled back, looking at Raine like a deer in the headlights. Them, on the other hand, were smiling widely.
“Wow.” She said after a beat of silence.
“Wow.” They echoed. Giddiness took over her body and she threw her arms around Raine’s waist and raised them in the air, spinning them around, making them let out that damn contagious laughter.
Eda set them down on the ground before kissing them again. And then peppering their face with more kisses.
“Awn, stop! Eda, you’re all sweaty!”
“Doesn’t matter, you got me addicted!” She said planting another kiss on their face, “Now you’re stuck with me.” She gave them another kiss. They giggled adorably and, oh Titan, she was deep.
“Congrats, Eda!” One of Eda’s teammates said, “And you too, Raine.”
“Uh, thank you.” They adjusted their glasses who were almost falling from their face from Eda’s shenanigans.
“I think the whole school knew at one point or another that you two would get together, so it’s nice to see it happening.”
“Wait, really?” Eda quirked an eyebrow at her.
“Yeah, pretty sure people were betting that you guys were already together, but had to keep a secret for some reason.” She shrugged, “Oh and Lilith had a bet with Odalia that you two would get together before she left for the Emperor’s Coven so I think you just gave your sister a lot of money.”
“You know, I should be offended that Lilith was betting on my personal relationship, but it’s Odalia.” Eda snorted and Raine giggled too.
“Edalyn, your bouquet.” Lilith said, approaching the two of them and putting the flowers in her arms.
“Oh right, sorry for making you hold that. But hey, in compensation I just made you win a lot of snails from Odalia.”
“Ah, yes. I suppose that’s a slightly fair trade.” Lilith smiled.
“You gonna share so I can take Raine on a fancy first date?”
“Edaaa!” They whined, hiding their face in their hands.
“What? It’s only fair I give my partner the best of the best!” Eda couldn’t stop the words before they left her mouth, “Uh, I mean, unless you want us to not label this stuff, which is cool! I would be a-okay with tha-”
“I guess it’s only fair I treat my girlfriend the same way.” They say kissing her cheek and Eda visibly relaxed.
“Ugh, as much as I am happy for you both, PDA is a thing.” Lilith rolled her eyes.
“Hey! You’re seeing the start of a beautiful relationship, Lily! You need to treasure it!”
“Just because of that I’m not sharing any of the snails I get on my bet with Odalia.” She said, adjusting her glasses and turning on her heel.
“What? Nooo! Lily!” Eda whined before falling into snorts and squeezing Raine once again, “Were you really my secret admirer?” she asked.
“Yeah… I kinda regretted it and tried to take it back before you got it, but I was too late.”
“Why did you regret it?” Eda raised a brow, a curious look on her features.
“I thought the whole thing was too cheesy and you would hate it.”
“Whaat? Oh, Raine, no! I loved it! Cheesiness and all.”
“Really?”
“Really, I love cheesy! You can be as cheesy as you want with me, Rainestorm.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.” They smiled and stood on their tiptoes to kiss Eda on her nose, “Now c’mon!” They walked a few feet ahead of Eda and turned to face her, “I want to see Odalia’s face when Lilith announces she won the bet.” They offered her a hand and Eda gladly took it.
V.
“I’m coming, I’m coming!” Eda said, skipping the steps of the stairs down the Owl House, tearing a few feathers from her arms.
She was still in her comfortable Pajamas despite the fact it was well past noon. No one could really blame her, she lived alone now, if she could, she would spend all the time in just pajamas.
She was relaxing in her bed when incessant knocking on the front door started. She tried ignoring it for a minute, but whoever the person was, they were very insistent on it.
She opened the door, revealing Raine on the other side and suddenly, Eda was reminded of the only reason she made an effort to look her best.
Raine was smiling on the other side of the door, holding a bouquet of red snapdragons in their hand. They looked flawlessly stunning as always with a black long-sleeved shirt with a white collar, red pants, and brown heeled boots, making Eda’s heart skip a beat.
“Oh, hello, handsome stranger.” She teased, subconsciously unwrinkling her skirt, “What brings you so far from Bonesborough?”
“I’m here to see a beautiful lady, maybe you’ve seen her?”
“When I look in the mirror, yes.” She snorted.
“I guess you’ll suffice then.” They teased and Eda brought a hand to her heart, mocking offense.
“Wow, you woe me, Rainestorm.” She smiled before grabbing their arm and pulling them to a kiss.
“Can I come in?” They asked, their lips just above Eda’s. She made a positive sound at the back of her throat before leaning in for another kiss.
She pulled away, still holding onto them, and let them inside the house.
It was amazing how, even though Eda had been living in this house for less than two months and the fact Raine had been here for less than 10 times, they already knew their way so well. Eda watched as they opened a cabinet and pulled an old vase before filling it with water and putting the snapdragons in it.
She could absolutely get used to seeing them around the house more often.
“Did you get those from our hill?” She asked watching as Raine arranged the flowers in the window.
“Yes, and I’m pretty sure it’s not ‘our hill’, Eda.” They teased, turning around to face her, “Unless you bought the land for it.”
“Hey, no one but us goes there, pretty sure we could claim it as our own.” She shrugged her shoulders, “But what’s the occasion for the flowers?”
“Well…” They approached her, taking her hands in theirs, intertwining their fingers together, “Today just so happens to be the 4th anniversary of when you kissed me in front of your old Grudgby team.”
The realization hit Eda like a griffin falling on top of her.
“Ah shit. I completely forgot Raine. I’m so sorry, I’m the worst girlfriend-”
“It’s fine, Eda.” They squeezed her hand, reassuringly, “I get it, you just moved houses, you’re going to be a little forgetful, which is why I came here. I thought we could just laze around all day. I don’t have classes today so I would be bored at home anyway.”
“Okay…” She sighed, “Still, I’m sorry. Today is such an important day and I fucked it up, I couldn’t even make an effort to get out of my pajamas.”
“You know I don’t care about that, right? Eda, our first kiss happened when you were all sweaty and smelling from a Grudgby game. You could be covered in Trash Slug goo and I would still want to kiss the hell out of you. Like right now.” They leaned in, looking at her through half-lidded eyes.
Titan, she loved bold Raine.
She leaned, letting go of their hands to pass her arms around their neck while they put one hand on her face and the other on her waist, deepening the kiss.
Eda sighed into the kiss, a small purr on the back of her throat as Raine nipped on her lip just hard enough to send a shiver down her spine.
“Sorry, did it hurt?” They asked, caressing her cheek tenderly.
“I’m not going to break, Rainestorm. I’m pretty sure you’ve kissed me rougher than that.” She teased and she got to see them blush.
Titan, she loved that blush.
“Just making sure you’re okay, Calamity.” They planted a soft kiss on her jaw and Eda all but physically melted.
She tangled her hands in their hair, threading through the soft mint strands as they continued peppering her jaw with soft kisses that made her sigh.
“I would be more okay if you kissed me.” She teased.
“I am kissing you.” They answered.
“Boo, you know what I mean.” She joked, stroking their jaw with her finger. They finally got their act together and moved to kiss her on the lips and again, Eda sighed into the kiss.
She swore she could spend hours just kissing them, just holding them, just loving them.
Titan, she loved Raine so fucking much.
“I love you.” She breathed when they pulled away to catch their breath, feeling her eyes well with tears. Titan, why was she crying? This wasn’t the first time she said she loved them and nor was it going to be the last.
“Hey, hey.” They traced a thumb under her eyes, wiping the tears, “I love you too, Eda.”
“I know.” She laughed nervously, causing more tears to fall, “Even I don’t know why I’m crying. I think I’m just a little overwhelmed.”
“Would it make you feel better if I stayed? As I said, I don’t have anything to do today. And even if I did, I missed you.”
“We saw each other less than a week ago and we talk by crows every day.” She laughed, wiping the final tear away and clearing her throat, “But uh, I missed you too.”
They smiled and pulled her into a hug, their head resting on her shoulder. Eda breathed in their warmth, their scent, their love.
They stayed there for Titan knows how long until a familiar pitter-patter hit Eda’s window. She looked outside, a boiling rainstorm starting outside.
“Thank the Titan we didn’t go out.” Eda chuckled, “Want to cuddle in bed?” She asked.
“Always.” They said kissing her neck softly before taking her hand, “Lead the way?”
“Like you already don’t know it.” She snorted.
“Just indulge me, will ya?” They rolled their eyes.
She couldn’t deny that to them.
VI.
Raine was worried about Eda.
Granted, they were always worried about her, when your girlfriend of almost a decade is a wild witch with a knack for getting into trouble both in this realm and others, you should be worried. But Eda always knew how to handle herself, ever since the day they met her. So Raine didn’t pamper Eda around much. They knew she could take care of herself.
But then.
She hadn’t replied to them for the last three days.
They left her what it was about 50 crow calls, all unanswered. Sure, crow calls didn’t reach the Human Realm where Eda spent most of her time nowadays, but even so, they made sure to call at least once every single hour they knew she was usually awake and yet, they didn’t get a single response.
They were really worried about her. It was becoming something more and more common.
They knew she was hiding stuff. She always had, she never shared details about what happened to send her father to the healing coven all those years ago, she didn’t share when the curse made her physically ill to the point she would cry in her sleep from pain, she would shut them out whenever she felt the slightest little thing about her curse acting up.
They had told her so many times that they didn’t care about that, that they wanted to be there, that they could help her if she felt too much pain to do the dishes, to go to the market, that they would be there to support and love her as they did during the last almost 10 years.
But Eda didn’t let them in. So they had to take drastic measures.
That’s how they found themself standing in front of her house, ready to knock on her door.
They did and then he opened his eyes.
Titan, Raine didn’t get Hooty. Eda had said that he appeared outside her house a couple of years ago and she made an offer to have him guard the house, which was good since Eda had been having problems with the Emperor’s Coven for a good while and having something like Hooty was good for her safety but even so…
“Hoot! Hello Raine!”
“Uh, hello Hooty.” They grimaced, “Is Eda home?”
“Well, she told me to tell anyone that she didn’t trust that she wasn’t but since you’re you…” He tilted his head slightly, “Yeah, she is.”
“Good, can you let me talk to her?”
“Sorry friend, Eda made it very clear she didn’t want to see anyone, not even you. She’s just been busy!”
Raine’s heart shouldn’t have fallen to their stomach the way it did. It wasn’t the first time Eda had said that she didn’t want to see them, they never took it to their heart, they know Eda loves them.
But it didn’t mean that it didn’t hurt.
And it did. A lot.
“Titan, Hooty, can you help me with this, please? I just want to see if Eda is okay.” They could feel their eyes welling with tears.
“Uh… Jeez, I don’t know…” Hooty faltered, avoiding looking at Raine.
Then she heard the deadbolts of the door being unlocked, Raine’s heart picked up its beat wanting for the door to open.
But only a crack was shown, the little chain still showing that Eda didn’t unlock them all to let them in or let them see her.
She was on the other side, her golden eye looking at them through the door.
“Eda!” Raine said, putting a hand on the door and getting close but Eda just avoided their gaze. Then they noticed a few orange feathers sprouting from her forearms.
“Raine, please. Go away.” She said, her voice weak, making their heart ache. It was the same voice she had when she mumbled during her nightmares or when she was in pain. Eda was in pain and she didn’t let them help, “I’m sorry I haven’t returned your calls, I’m just busy.”
A lie. Titan, Eda wasn’t busy, unless she was busy hiding all of her pain from them, shutting them out.
“Eda, please. Just let me in. Let me take care of you, I swear, whatever is happening it’s going to be okay.” They felt a tear roll down their cheek as their voice trembled.
“Raine this is the last time I’m asking. Go away, I’ll call you when I’m less busy.” Her voice was trembling too.
“Eda, I won’t go away.”
“Then feel free to sit on my front door all day, just… leave me be.”
Raine tried to speak up but Eda had already closed the door, bolting it back up. They could hear faint footsteps going inside the house until silence reigned again.
Raine felt more tears roll down their cheeks, more as they thought about how even though Eda had just said all that stuff, that just made them more worried about her.
This was such a mess.
“Hoot, sorry for that, Raine.”
They almost forgot that Hooty had been listening in for the whole time. They didn’t know if they felt more ashamed of him hearing the conversation than or the fact that they had completely tuned out Hooty’s presence, which wasn’t something easy.
They wiped another tear away, before a switch went off in their mind, making them remember what they had gotten Eda.
“Hey, Hooty,” they drew a spell circle in the air and a bouquet of forget-me-nots and cornflowers appeared in their hand, “Can you give these to Eda? And tell her that I hope she feels better?”
He seemed to consider for a second before nodding and taking the flowers in his beak and going inside.
Raine didn’t stick around after that, turning on their heel and walking home.
On their way, they put a hand on their pocket, feeling the familiar weight of a small box they have been carrying for almost a year.
They took the box into their hand, opening it and revealing the ring they had been dreaming of seeing Eda wearing for so long.
They sighed, closing it and putting it away.
They could only hope Eda would let them in.
VII.
Titan, Raine really didn’t want to be doing this.
It wasn’t bad enough that their plan to enter the Emperor’s mind and discover anything related to the Day of Unity had failed, but they had also endangered Eda’s kid and Darius’s… whatever The Golden Guard was to him now. But he seemed to care about the boy, so Raine respected that.
It was amazing to watch Eda care so deeply about those children. She had really grown a lot in the last 20 years. They had caught a glimpse of that during the time she spent with their BAtTs and when she tried to kidnap them, refusing to let them go until she was through with them.
The Eda they knew would never do that, she always wanted to pretend like things between them were okay. If she was the same witch, she would’ve taken the first option to run away from the fight and act like it never happened.
Not this Eda. This Eda stood her ground, wanting to talk Raine out of whatever was going on, bring them back to her side. It hurt them so much to lie to her face like that but it had to be done. Her safety was more important than anything.
So when they caught wind that her kid was the one that got caught in this mess, they knew they had to find a way to fix it.
And that’s what led them, Darius and Eberwolf to get some flowers so that they could deliver the potion for Eda.
“Titan, Whispers, if you’re making us look for flowers just because you’re still thinking about the Owl Lady, I’ll have your head on a stick!” Darius whisper-screamed as he scanned the area, no doubt getting his white gloves dirty.
Raine heard Eberwolf mumble something they couldn’t understand and Darius nodded. Raine would never guess how Darius understood a single word from the Beastkeeping leader.
“It’s not! It’s the only way I know how to get past the security system, can you trust me on this?”
“Ugh, fine. But you’re paying for the cleaning of my clothes.” He huffed and Raine rolled their eyes at him.
After a bit more searching, they found a bunch of pink tulips on the ground. Without thinking, they did a swift cut with a spell circle and gathered them in their hand.
“Darius, give me the potion.” They said, extending their hand to their fellow coven head and receiving the small flask. Carefully, Raine poured the liquid inside the cup of the tulips, mindful of not spilling anything. They drew a circle and the liquid became more solid, masking it as part of the flower, “Now, Darius write something down for me.”
Raine watched as he rolled his eyes but took a pen from his pocket and drew a circle for a small piece of paper to appear.
“Write: ‘This is the Teleportation potion into the mindscape. Use to get those two out. P.S: You’ll still need a powerful energy source for it to work without magic.’”
“Done- Wait, why am I writing this? Can’t you do it?”
“Eda would recognize my handwriting. And as I said, I’m not getting-”
“You’re not getting her involved, I get it, I get it.” He rolled his eyes in annoyance before giving Raine the tag and wrapping the violets with a piece of their cloak.
Raine told Darius and Eberwolf to hide before they turned around, flowers in hand to the house.
They stood before this door so many times, waiting for Eda to open up and let them in. Not this time.
Just as they took a deep breath, they heard Eda’s voice inside the house, alongside the sound of glass shattering and something else falling to the ground.
“Bones, dirt, and muck! I don't have time to fail!”
Titan, if Raine had time right now, they would think about the fact that Eda never held off swearing when she was younger. The presence of young kids in her life changed that habit.
They shook the thought away before knocking on her door.
“Inopportune interruption, eh? I'll handle this.” They heard Hooty inside before his body slinked back from the window beside the door.
“Didn’t you read the sign? I said BRB!”
Raine cleared their throat, not daring to look in Hooty’s direction, afraid that he would recognize them.
“Uh… These are for Ed- I mean The Owl Lady.” They offered the flowers, “Tell her it’s from a… secret admirer.”
They were suddenly nervous that their excuse wouldn’t fly but then Hooty spoke up.
”Okay, mysterious stranger!”
“Oh, and put it in a vase as soon as possible!” They whispered.
Hooty nodded before shouting loudly, “Edaaa!” And taking the flowers from them, not paying Raine any more mind as he slinked back inside, “Special delivery from a secret admirer!”
“Hooty, that thing could be booby-trapped. Get it outta here.”
Then, Raine snapped their fingers and made the flowers disappear, leaving the spell behind in its purest form.
Then they ran, not looking behind.
They stayed with Darius and Eberwolf, waiting patiently for any sign that the spell had been done.
A powerful explosion erupted inside the house and Raine could hear voices, but they couldn’t make out who they belong to. Then shouting and the Golden Guard fleeing the house in a panicked state, Eda’s human kid screaming… his name? Hunter?
Raine took a look at Darius, his face was contorted with worriedness. They put a hand on his shoulder and with a silent nod, they whispered:
“Let’s go after him.”
VIII.
Raine should be worried.
Belos had been assigning them to go around cities and promote the Bard Coven to get more witches for the Day of Unity. Granted, every single Coven Head was doing it, but it made it so much more difficult for them to plan the rebellion.
Titan, neither of them did any progress recently in discovering more about the Day of Unity and yet here they were, all stranded in different places on the Isles, doing the last thing they wanted, recruiting people to the same Covens that would kill them.
Raine felt sick to their stomach.
Currently, Eberwolf was investigating a new species of Demon that appeared on Belos’ radar, Darius was doing speeches in schools around Bonesborough and Raine was on their way to make a presentation in the middle of the city.
Ironically, it was the same place that the BAtTs had played and got Eda out of trouble all those weeks ago.
Under Belos’ gigantic statue, a small stage was set, dozens of chairs set in front of it, and sitting in those, a crowd of students in their uniforms with the signature red color of the bard coven and their own instruments, happily waiting for the presentation.
Titan, they hated this. They hated this so much.
With a deep breath, securing the case of their viola in their hand, they tried to quickly walk through the crowd, hoping that no one would notice them.
But they did. Young demons and witches shouted their name and last name, excited to finally see the head of a Coven Head so close. But one student caught their attention.
A girl with silver hair shaved in the sides with the same uniform that they used to wear during their Hexside days waving happily at them, a flute on her hand, a big smile on her face as she screamed “Break a leg, Head Witch Whispers!”
Guilt was weighing on them like an adult griffin sitting on their back.
They gave a shy smile and practically ran behind the stage.
A small carriage was set behind the statue, guarded by Coven Scouts. Raine presumed this is where they would wait for the presentation to begin.
As soon as the scouts noticed them, they nodded and drew a circle in the air, making the door to the carriage open for them. Raine gave them a sympathetic smile before just heading in.
Inside, there was a table for them to put their viola on top, a big vanity with a mirror, a pair of comfortable chairs and-
“Hello, Sprout.” Terra said, as she sat on one of the chairs. Raine thought their heart was going to stop.
“Oh, hello Head Witch.” They put a hand to their chest, faking a relieved smile, “Sorry, you just scared me.” It wasn’t a lie.
“So very sorry! I’m just here to wish you good luck before the presentation! I know you have that stage fright of yours to deal with it.”
“Oh well, thank you. I appreciate it and all the help you’ve been giving me for the last month.” They lied through their smile.
“it’s nothing! Speaking of it,” she made a hand motion to the cup that was hanging by their waist, “I believe it’s time for your tea.”
“You’re right. I can’t be having one of those headaches during the presentation.” They unstrapped the cup and offered it to her, watching as the petals fell from her palm into the cup.
“You’re absolutely right, sprout.”
Raine tried to ignore her poison gaze as they whistled into the cup once again and took it all in one sip, wiping it with the back of their hand and smiling at her.
“Thank you, Head Witch.” They smiled.
“You’re welcome. Now good luck with your little show!”
They watched as she stepped out of the carriage, holding their smile until they were sure she was as far away as possible.
If they were not sick already from the guilt of seeing all those students cheering for them, not knowing how much danger they were in, Terra’s whole presence just made them physically ill.
For how long would they need to continue with this charade?
They sat on the chair that Terra didn’t sit on, holding their head in their hands. They had less than 15 minutes before they needed to get on stage, how would they be able to perform a single note? They were a fucking mess, emotionally and physically.
They didn’t register incessant knocking on their door until it was loud enough to break through the hundreds of voices in their head.
They immediately wiped a tear away and cleaned their glasses on their shirt sleeve before putting on their best (although fake) smile.
“I’m coming, give me a second!” They said, before unlocking the door.
They were greeted by the two coven scouts fast asleep on the side of the door and a big bouquet of yellow, pink, and red flowers staring at them at the bottom of the steps of the carriage.
They looked around, seeing no one that could’ve left those there.
Still, with their eyes hazy, they grabbed the bouquet in their hand before their eyes landed on two main things.
A letter shoved between the flowers and red snapdragons.
Their heart skipped what seemed to be hundreds of beats and again, they scanned the area for her.
But again, she was nowhere.
Grabbing the bouquet in their arms, they stepped inside the carriage, already breathless.
Putting the flowers on their vanity, they grabbed the letter and sat back on the chair.
With trembling fingers, they ripped the seal and unfolded the letter pages, letting their eyes scan over the caligraphy that they immediately recognized.
‘Dear Raine Whispers/Rainestorm,
I will start this letter by saying: I have no idea what I am doing. This is the fourth attempt to write this letter, I discarded all the other ones because honestly, I would just start rambling so I think it’s better if I go straight to the point.
I really hope you’re the one who helped me bring Luz and Hunter back, or else I’m making a fool of myself and you have no idea what I’m talking about like at the parade. So, if you didn’t, just… ignore this, please.
If you did help me, Titan I have so many questions. Luz told me Hunter was hunting down a group of rebels that wanted to invade Belos’ mind, but if the person who helped is part of those rebels and you’re the one that helped me… It just makes things more confusing the more I think about it.
Did you suddenly remember that Belos sucks? Did you always know? Or am I missing context that makes the fact that you’re still on his side and helping me save my kids from him make sense?
I hope you get to explain it to me one day, I really do. I want to talk to you again and something that doesn’t involve me getting my shit beaten by you.
A few days ago, after you gave me those flowers with the teleportation potion, I thought back to all the flowers and bouquets you gave me through our time together and I don’t think I ever realized how many were there and the fact that I never retributed it. Made me feel like shit. So I got this thing for you (This is the time you look at the beautiful bouquet if you didn’t get the cue.)
I hope you liked the flowers, I spent some time on that old hill collecting those snapdragons. I asked Luz for help to pick the other two. She chose sunflowers and pink camellias. She said that she knows a lot about flower symbolism, (wasn’t that something you got hyperfixated for a few months back when we were younger?) but she didn’t tell me their meanings, I hope they’re not… bad, or else I’m putting her on timeout (I’m not really, I’ve gone too soft on her.)
Titan, even writing this stuff makes me wonder who was I before these kids entered my life. I was so irresponsible, I guess I needed to start looking out for someone to finally start looking out for myself. Poetic, huh?
I don’t really know how to end this letter, but I hope that I’m not misreading this whole situation we’ve been in ever since we saw each other again last month. I would be willing to try aga I want to talk things out, solve things left unsaid all those years ago. If you want that too (no pressure, I would never know if you actually read this letter or not), let me know. I hope you’re okay, remember to stay safe too. I lov
Break a leg, Rainestorm, let them see who’s the coolest, baddest, kick-buttiest witch in the entire Boiling Isles.
With love, Edalyn Clawthorne/Lord Calamity.’
Raine didn’t even try to hold back the tears as they fell into the paper in their hand.
Every word made their heart skip several beats in the most bittersweet way possible.
Titan, they just wanted to say “fuck the emperor, fuck the covens” and run to her, take her into their arms and tell her how much they still loved her, how they never stopped loving her through the last two decades, how every day they still thought if she was okay out there, on her own, evading scouts.
They wanted to kiss her, give her everything they gave to her all those years ago, and more.
But they couldn’t. Not for now.
They would reunite with Eda once Belos was taken care of. That was one promise they would never break.
“Head Witch?” a voice from outside, probably one of the scouts that had woken up from the sleeping spell, knocked on the door, “It’s almost time, are you ready?”
They took a deep breath, folding the letter and putting it into their pocket before wiping away a few tears. They looked in the mirror of the vanity, putting on their bravest face, remembering her words.
Break a leg, Rainestorm, let them see who’s the coolest, baddest, kick-buttiest witch in the entire Boiling Isles.
“Yeah. I’m ready.”
They grabbed their viola, before stepping outside, ready to take on the entire world.