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It was yet another mundane day at Hexside… well, about as normal as Hexside could be. Kam walked to his locker and placed his books inside. He didn’t have any need for them at the moment, he was about to go into his free period. The boy didn’t know how he was gonna spend it: maybe he’d go to the alchemy club room, maybe he’d stop by the school library, or maybe he’d just find a nice quiet place on campus and relax.
As he contemplated how he’d spend his leisure time, he was greeted by Lycidia Talbot, Azura’s best friend and his secret crush. He couldn’t explain why, but he was inexplicably drawn to the werewolf. Perhaps it was her bold personality, her piercing yellow eyes, or her “wild child” attitude. Whatever it was, he was helplessly smitten.
“Hey, Kam,” she greeted.
“Oh, uh, hey, Lycidia,” he replied, flustered and blushing slightly.
“Ya think you can help me out with something?”
“Yes! I can help,” he exclaimed before toning down his enthusiasm. “Uh, what is it exactly?”
“Well, I need a partner for photo class, and Azura had to cancel so she could help Mr. and Mrs. Deamonne with their baby.” She rubbed the back of her head, “so I was wondering if you’d be willing to help me instead.”
Kam became a little nervous at the mention of photo class. He was all too familiar with the course: using magic tweezers to extract memories and turn them into photos. Not only was it dangerous since the resulting photos were highly delicate and the slightest amount of damage could destroy a person’s mind, but it was also highly invasive. There were some memories he’d rather keep buried.
“I don’t know, have you asked Tansy? What about Barbeau or Mieko?”
Lycidia sighed. “Tansy’s with Azura, and I haven’t seen Barbeau or Mieko since yesterday.” She then clasped her hand together in a pleading motion, “Please, you’re literally my only hope.”
The werewolf girl made her eyes as big and as sad as possible, combining it with a quivering lip for an additional touch. She had busted out the ultimate guilt trip technique: the puppy dog pout. Her partial canine status managed to improve the power of her pleas significantly.
Kam was powerless to her desperate charms, he couldn’t refuse. “Okay, I guess I can help,” he sighed, “as long as you don’t go too far into my mind; there are some memories that I wanna keep private.”
“Got it, no problem, dude.” She then grabbed his hand and started to drag him to class. The boy blushed madly as she held his hand.
***
Kam sat in a stool as Lycidia gently inserted a pair of special tweezers into his ear and pulled out a photograph. She shook the magical Polaroid before placing it on a clothesline among other memories. They were all pretty pleasant memories: Christmas with family, a birthday party, building his first model with his mom, and his first convention.
As they worked the instructor walked around the class. “Remember, students, be extremely careful. If you damage the prints, you’ll also damage the memories themselves.”
“So, is that it, are we all good,” Kam asked, somewhat nervously. He wouldn’t admit it, but he was a little anxious about what Lycidia would see.
“Just one more, and then we’re done,” she said as she pulled out the last memory.
The werewolf shook the memory, trying to make the picture visible. The black started to fade away, revealing a moment of Kam’s life, but something seemed off about this one compared to the others, it didn’t quite match the happy tone. The memory depicted a young Kam with damaged glasses, bruises, and tears in his eyes, cowering before an unkempt and angry looking man.
Lycidia didn’t know what to think of it, she looked at Kam, concerned. “Hey, Kam, is everything okay?”
“Yeah,” Kam replied with a raised brow, “why?”
Lycidia then turned the photo around and showed Kam the picture. His heart sank immediately at the sight of it. He quickly snatched the memory.
He looked at the photo intensely, his eyes wide. His breathing gradually got faster and faster, quickly escalating into hyperventilating. His hands started to tremble and his grip on the memory got tighter. Kam’s focus shifted to the man in the picture, and his breathing became more aggressive, growling furiously. His expression changed from anxious to furious, with grit teeth and tears of frustration building. The boy was displaying a horrific mix of emotions: sorrow, wrath, regret, and anxiety.
Kam could take it no longer, he grabbed the photo with both hands and tore it apart. Instantly, his expression went blank. He stood there for a moment , completely still before starting to sway slightly. His eyes then rolled into the back of his head, and he started to fall forward.
Lycidia rushed over and caught him before he hit the floor. “Kam,” she said worriedly as she tried to jostle him awake. “Kam, wake up!” She then gently slapped his face, no response.
The other students and teacher gathered around them, concerned for the boy. Murmurs could be heard among the youths, some asking what happened, others asking if he was okay. The teacher stepped forward among the kids.
“Ms. Talbot, what happened?!”
“I don’t know,” Lycidia replied in a panic, “he got a look at one of his memories, then he freaked out and destroyed it!” She then scooped up the unconscious boy. “I’ve gotta get some help!”
The werewolf sprinted out of the room with her friend in her arms. Ordinarily, she would have taken him to the nurse, but she knew there was nothing they could do for him. If Kam was gonna pull through, there was only a select few who could actually help.
***
Lycidia ran to the Owl House, only stopping when she came to the door. “Hooty, I need to see Mrs. and Mrs. Noceda! Pronto!”
“Sure, but only if you can answer my riddle,” Hooty replied.
Lycidia roared at the infuriating house demon, she was in no mood to play.
Hooty shrunk back into the door. “…I’ll get them for you…”
The demon opened the door, letting the werewolf and unconscious boy in. She gently placed him on the couch. Lycidia looked over her friend, he was so quiet, so peaceful. If it weren’t for the current circumstances, she’d think he looked kind of cute when he slept.
Luz and Amity walked into the living room. “Lycidia, if you’re looking for Azura, she’s still at Willow and Hun—“ Amity stopped when she and Luz saw Kam on the couch.
The witches rushed over, concerned about the boy. “This looks bad,” Luz commented.
“We better call Vee,” Amity commented.
Luz pulled out her phone and dialed her sister. “Vee, it’s Luz. Now don’t freak out, but something happened to Kam and—“
Before she could even finish, a portal door opened in the living room, and out of it emerged a near exact clone of Luz, but with long ears, blue hair, and a long basilisk tail. She looked around frantically, her breathing heavy.
“WHERE’S MY BABY?!”
She turned around and saw him laying on the couch. The basilisk gasped and ran over to her son, holding him tightly in her arms. “What happened to him?!”
“It’s all my fault,” Lycidia lamented, drawing the mother’s attention. “We we’re in photo class, I pulled out one of his memories, and he freaked out and destroyed it.”
“I’m sorry, who are you,” Vee asked in confusion.
“I’m Lycidia,” the werewolf introduced herself sheepishly, “I’m a friend from school.”
“Oh, so you’re the girl he keeps talking about.” Vee refocused her attention on the situation. “Wait, what memory, what did it look like?”
“Kam was really little in the picture, he looked kinda beat up too, and there was this big angry guy standing over him.”
The Nocedas sucked their teeth, they immediately knew what happened. “Oh no, not him,” Vee said beneath her breath.
“Who,” Lycidia asked in frustrated confusion, “what is going on here?!”
Luz put a hand on the cub’s shoulder. “Lycidia, Kam is very… sensitive about his life before he was adopted.”
Lycidia facepalmed, “And I just reminded him of it. Ugh, this is all my fault.”
“It’s not your fault,” Amity reassured, “Kam doesn’t like to talk about it, you couldn’t have known.”
“How do we help him,” Vee asked worriedly.
“In our experience, the only solution is to send someone into his mind and repair the damaged memories,” Luz explained.
“Wait, you mean we have to actually go into his mind,” Lycidia asked.
“Afraid so,” the green-haired witch confirmed, “and we can only send in two at a time.”
“I’m his mother, I have to go,” Vee announced.
“I’m going in too,” Lycidia added. The others were about to object, but the wolf girl stopped them. “You all keep saying it isn’t my fault, but it is, we all know it’s true. The least I can do is clean up my mess.”
The witches sighed, there was no talking her out of this. “Alright, but be careful,” Luz warned as she summoned her staff, “given his current state, the ‘Inner Kam’ may be in a frenzy right now, and he could be really violent. He’s probably destroying any and all memories with ‘him’ in them.”
Amity pulled out her scroll, “Give us a call when you’ve fixed all the memories, we’ll pull you out.”
Luz then made a circle over the duo, enveloping them in a flash of light. The light then flew right into Kam’s head. Luz and Amity watched with concern.
“I hope they’ll be okay,” the human expressed.
***
Vee and Kam looked around, they now found themselves in a forest, surrounded by trees. Each tree had a portrait on it, all of them depicting moments in Kam’s life. However, some of the portraits seemed incomplete, like they had been splashed with black paint. They were in Kam’s mindscape alright.
Lycidia looked around at the mess she caused, so many happy memories, all ruined because she pushed Kam into that stupid project. It wasn’t the time to dwell on mistakes though, she had a job to do. “So, where do we start?”
Vee examined the memories, spotting one she thought would be a good starting point. It was hard to make it out under all the splotches, but she could faintly make out an alley on a rainy day. “This one,” she said as she led the werewolf pup into the frame.
***
The two now found themself in an alley in the human world, only it seemed off. The colors around them were up muted, there was no one around, and it looked like time itself had come to a screeching halt.
“What memory is this,” Lycidia asked.
Vee didn’t answer, she was more focused on rearranging the trash in the alley. She put a tipped over trash can right-side up, picked up some old newspaper, and placed them on top of a nearby cardboard box that laid on its side.
“There, just like I found it,” Vee said as she dusted off her hands.
A bright flash then enveloped the entire memory, and Vee and Lycidia were back in the central mindscape. The pair looked back at the portrait, it was pristine, completely devoid of any black splotches. Not only that, the memory was playing out, almost like a show.
***
A young Kam, sat in a cardboard box, his only shield from the pouring rain being the box itself and a bunch of newspapers that laid on its top. He was cold, tired, hungry, and scared, but he had no way to alleviate these feelings. He couldn’t even ask for help, if he did, they’d probably send him back to… him. He couldn’t go back, he wouldn’t go back. This was his life now; no food, no shelter, scrounging for himself. This was no life for a child, he prayed that something good would come along for him.
Suddenly, he heard footsteps approaching. The boy did his best to stop his shivering, but he couldn’t help it, he was just so cold. The footsteps got closer and closer, he didn’t even want a peek at what they looked like, lest he made himself visible to the stranger and risked being brought back. Or worse yet, it could be him. The footsteps came to a stop right at his makeshift shelter, he held his breath, hoping they wouldn’t notice him.
Kam’s eyes were closed tight, he didn’t want to look. He heard the footsteps get closer, and the wet newspaper being moved away from the box. This was it, he braced for the worst.
“Are you okay,” he heard a gentle and concerned voice.
Kam opened his eyes, it was Vee. She looked worried about him, a child she had never even met before. The boy froze, he felt so many emotions all at once: relief that “he” didn’t find him, caution that this woman may not have the best of intentions, fear that she might make him go back, and yet underneath it all, he felt a sense of kinship with her, like she knew all too well what he was experiencing.
Tears welled up in the boys eyes, in a flood of emotions, he hugged her tightly, weeping softly on her shoulder. Vee was surprised, but after all she had been through, she knew a hurt child crying for help when she saw one. The basilisk reciprocated the hug, holding him gently as he wept.
***
Vee stood there, silent and stoic as she reminisced about her life with her son. Lycidia, though, was utterly gobsmacked. “So wait, that memory was from when you—“
“It was from when I first found Kam,” Vee finished, “the poor boy was alone, scared, and on the run from someone he feared, a situation I knew all about. So, I took him in.”
That answered one question, but raised many more. How did he get into that situation? Who was he running from? Was it the guy from the memory Kam ripped? She supposed she’d find out soon enough as Vee had already found the next memory she wanted to fix. Through the heavy dark splotches, they could barely make out the image of young Kam running from a car in the middle of the night.
Wasting no time, the basilisk and werewolf leapt into the portrait. However, unbeknownst to either, they were being watched by a creature covered in what could only be described as flame-like shadows. The beast growled at them, it looked like it didn’t take too kindly to them repairing the memories.
***
Moments later, Lycidia and Vee emerged from the memory. They turned around and watched as the memory played out. Young Kam was walking down the street in the dead of night, his only possession being a beat up backpack. The poor boy was alone and seemed scared, what happened?
Just then, a set of headlights turned on behind him. Kam’s blood ran cold, he slowly and nervously turned around. A beat up mustang was a few feet behind him. The window slid down, and a familiar angry man poked his head out.
“KAM,” he roared, “GET YOUR SORRY ASS OVER HERE!!!”
Young Kam started to breath heavily in a panic. “No…” he said softly, “NNNOOOOOOOO!!!”
The boy ran away in tears, the man grumbled furiously as he pulled his head back into the car and slammed his foot on the gas, skidding after Kam. He ran desperately, praying that he wouldn’t be caught. The car easily pulled ahead before coming to a stop. The man then stepped out, ready to catch Kam.
The boy looked around desperately, there had to be a way out. He looked to his left and found a derelict alley, quickly running down the narrow passage, the man chased after him. Kam sped through the alley, with the man following behind. He managed to keep a good distance from his aggressor, but for how long? He could feel himself starting to get tired, and if he got caught… he didn’t even wanna think about that.
The boy looked ahead to see a chainlink fence, it was a dead end! He couldn’t be caught, he wouldn’t be caught! Kam then looked around the fence frantically, thankfully, he found a hole in it. He managed squeeze through the gap without getting scratched or his clothes getting snagged. He was in the clear, or so he thought. When he tried to continue, something caused him to trip.
Kam looked back to see the man had reached through the hole and grabbed his ankle. “You little… ungrateful… PEST!!!”
The thug started to drag Kam back through the hole. The boy tried frantically to resist and break free, but he wasn’t strong enough. The wrathful man’s grip got stronger and stronger, hurting the child. He looked around and found a lone brick, quickly grabbing it and bashing them man’s hand with all his might.
The man let go and clutched his bruised and bleeding hand. Kam got up and ran away, the man growled as he watched.
“You think you can run, pequeño bastardo?! I’ll find you! And when I do, YOU ARE IN FOR A WORLD OF PAIN!!!”
Kam didn’t look back, and he didn’t say anything, but he did shed a few tears as he ran from his pursuer.
***
Vee was silent again, it hurt her more than anything to watch her boy in such pain. Lycidia’s jaw hung wide open. This was it, the last straw, the breaking point, she had to know who that guy was!
As Vee walked away, Lycidia put her foot down. “Okay, that’s it! I can’t take it anymore! Who was that guy, and what does he have against Kam?!”
Vee let out a sigh before walking back to the werewolf girl. “That… was Kam’s father…”
Lycidia stood there, stunned. She couldn’t believe what she just heard. “That was Kam’s dad?!” Vee nodded, “But why—” The werewolf stopped, her sensitive ears just picked up something close by.
“We’re not alone,” she said seriously.
The two quieted themselves, readying to face whatever they were trapped with. They heard a loud stomp to their left, and what they saw shocked them.
It was some sort of creature with a vaguely human silhouette, they couldn’t really tell, since it’s body was covered in a flaming black aura. The monster placed a hand on one of the memories, covering it in black splotches until it was almost completely unidentifiable.
The basilisk and wolf girl gasped, drawing the beasts attention. It roared at them and lunged, intent to kill the pair. The duo leapt out of the way just barely fast enough.
“WHAT IS THAT THING,” Lycidia screamed.
“It must be the Inner Kam,” Vee posited, “Luz said that the memory being torn must’ve enraged it, and it’s destroying memories.”
The monster was about to attack again, but it got a look at a memory standing next to it and ceased. It was the memory of Kam’s first birthday with Vee. The creature snarled, slapping it’s hand aggressively against the portrait, blotting it up.
Lycidia and Vee watched. “Wait, if that’s the Inner Kam, then why is it destroying a happy memory,” the werewolf asked, “wouldn’t it be more likely to destroy memories with Kam’s dad.”
The monster turned its attention back to the duo and lunged. Acting quickly, Vee turned her arm gigantic and swatted it away. Lycidia made a large spell circle in front of her, making sure it was aimed at the monster. She then took a deep breath before letting out a massive howl right into the circle. The spell circle amplified her yell, turning it into a beam of concentrated sound.
The creature was hit dead-on by the howl. It did it’s best to guard, but the sound was too strong. The shadowy monster was swept up by the attack, crashing into some trees. A massive cloud of dust was kicked up, concealing it.
Lycidia panted, that attack took a lot out of her. Vee seemed impressed.
“Woah, nice move. What do you call it?”
“Hyper… Howl…” she panted.
The dust started to settle and the creature emerged, only the thick aura concealing its body was gone, revealing its true form. It was a man of Latino descent, with short hair cut into a curly buzz cut, a messy five o’clock shadow, and a slightly toned build. He wore a white sleeveless shirt, jeans, and brown shoes. The pair gasped, it was Kam’s father.
The inexplicable and despicable man smirked at their shocked reactions. “Surprised to see me?”
Vee let out a low, inhuman snarl, her eyes squinting sideways. She then lunged at him, roaring and turning into her full basilisk form. The basilisk wrapped the despicable man up like a snake, making sure it was tight, but not so tight that he couldn’t breathe, she wanted answers.
“WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN MY SON’S MIND?!”
Kam’s father snickered. “I’m not really here, cabrona. I’m the manifestation of that little disappointment’s fear of me.”
Lycidia stormed over furiously. “Where’s the Inner Kam?!”
“You’ll never find him,” he gloated. “That little brat thinks he can forget about me? Fine, but I’m gonna make him forget EVERYTHING ELSE TOO!!!”
Vee growled at the manifestation, she tried to squeeze tighter, but he managed to resist. His dark aura flared back up and he broke free of the basilisk’s grip. He then grabbed her tail and threw her away, hitting Lycidia as well. The basilisk and werewolf collided with a few tries, confused by what just happened.
Vee held her aching head as she turned back into her human form. She then turned to Lycidia, “Are you okay?”
The werewolf pup groaned. “How is he this strong, he’s just a guy?!”
“Fear is a strong as you make it, and right now I think Kam’s letting his fear rule him!”
They looked back at Kam’s father, the darkness around him was spreading across the mindscape rapidly. It was getting closer, they had to do something. That’s when Vee had an idea. Remembering from all the times she had helped Kam study his glyph combinations, she drew one in the dirt and slapped it, creating a massive thick mist.
The mindscape was blanketed, making navigation quite impossible. Luckily, Lycidia and Vee had senses far greater than almost any creature, they were able to navigate through the fog.
Kam’s Memory Father grew frustrated. “Where are you?!”
Lycidia and Vee snuck right past him without raising alarm. “What do we do now,” the werewolf whispered.
“We need to find where the Inner Kam is hiding,” Vee explained. As they snuck through the mist, the two pondered where he would be. That’s when Lycidia got an idea.
“I think I know where he is.” She grabbed Vee’s wrist and led her to the nearest patch of memories. They looked over each one closely until Lycidia found the memory they were looking for.
“I found it,” she whispered, motioning for Vee to come over.
The pair looked at the portraits, it was the memory that started this all: Young Kam cowering before his father. It was untouched, it must have been because he needed at least one memory of himself to continue existing. The two looked to each other and nodded before jumping in.
***
Lycidia and Vee found themselves in a desolate, depressing room with the bare minimum of amenities. A lumpy old bed, a broken clothes hamper, and a boarded up window. Down in the center of the room, they found a small familiar boy emanating a blue light. His clothes were messy and frayed, and there were various bruises on his body. He was curled up into a ball in the middle of the room, sobbing softly.
Vee knelt down to the boy. “Kam,” she said gently.
The boy jumped, flinching in fear. His breathing was panicked and he was clearly on edge “Kam, it’s okay, it’s me,” Vee comforted him, “I would never hurt you.”
The basilisk then knelt down and wiped the boy’s tears away. His breathing slowed as he looked at her. He then hugged her, which she returned. Cradled I’m his mother’s arms, he started to feel a bit more relaxed.
“Okay, seriously, what is that guy’s damage,” Lycidia asked bluntly. “What kind of monster does this to his own kid?!”
Vee looked at the Inner Kam, he looked back at her and gave a nod, she could tell her. Vee then sighed before looking back at Lycidia.
“When Kam was born, his biological mother died in childbirth, and his father blamed him for it. For the earliest years of his life, his father abused him physically and emotionally. It wasn’t until he was five that he couldn’t stand it anymore, so he grabbed some money and what little possessions he had and ran away.”
Lycidia inhaled sharply through her fangs. That was awful, but Vee wasn’t done yet.
“He lived on the streets until I found him and took him in. I could tell he was a kindred spirit, so I did my best to be there for him. I also tried to respect his boundaries, allowing him to open up about his past at his own pace. When he finally told me, I decided to adopt him, but there was a glaring issue: his father was still out there, and he could legally take him back if he wanted, so we had to take care of him first.”
As if on cue, Kam’s father burst into the memory, enraged. “There you are!” He then took notice of the Inner Kam. “Heh, see you found ‘arruinador de vida.’”
Vee held the inner Kam close. “YOU SHUT YOUR FILTHY MOUTH!!!”
“What? It’s true. That little waste of oxygen has been ruining lives since the day he was born, starting when he killed my wife.” Inner Kam started to sulk, his father’s words getting to him. “He ruins everything and everyone around him.”
Lycidia stepped forward, growling like a rabid animal. “It isn’t his fault your wife died in birth, you jerk!!! Kam’s a great guy: he’s smart, loyal, funny, cute, and if you ever stopped pitying yourself and blaming him, you’d see just how great he is!”
The Inner Kam blushed at the werewolf’s words. Vee stood up, still holding onto him tightly. “That’s right! You were too busy looking at what you lost to see what you gained! You never deserved a son like Kam!”
Kam’s father growled. “You wanna know a secret,” he said calmly. In an instant, he leapt at Vee and Kam with intent to kill. “I NEVER WANTED A KID!!!”
Vee quickly turned into her basilisk form and swatted him away with her tail. With the Inner Kam in tow, Vee and Lycidia ran out of the memory. “What’re we gonna do,” Lycidia panted, “how can we stop him?!”
“ I don’t think we can,” Vee replied, “Kam is the only one who can stop him.”
“WHAT,” Inner Kam exclaimed.
“Kam, he’s the embodiment of your fear, he’s only as strong as you make him.”
“But… but I can’t! I’m not strong enough!”
Vee looked him in the eyes. “Kam, I know this is hard, dealing with trauma always is, but you can overcome it. You stood up to him once before, and I know you can again.”
That’s when she got an idea. She quickly scanned the surrounding memories, she was searching for one moment in particular. After a few seconds she finally located it. “Come on,” she ordered Lycidia as she slithered over to the memory. The trio then leapt into the portrait.
***
Vee, Lycidia, and the Inner Kam looked around; they were now in a courtroom with a packed jury box, an elderly judge, and the werewolf pup could even make out a few members of the Noceda-Blight family seated behind the prosecution. At the prosecution sat Vee and her lawyer, on the defendant’s side sat Kam’s father and his lawyer, and on the witness stand sat young Kam, looking nervous and uncomfortable.
“What memory is this,” Lycidia asked.
“This is the trial where I got custody of Kam,” Vee explained. “The first time he stood up to his father; I’m hoping it’ll inspire him to do it again.”
Vee’s lawyer stood up and approched the witness stand. “Now, Kam, you say your father has abused you for many years. Can you please elaborate?”
Young Kam looked around the courtroom, he saw his father, glaring daggers at him. He could instantly tell what he was thinking. ‘If you say a single word, you’re dead!’
The intimidation from his progenitor heightened his unease. He then glanced over to Vee. She had a reassuring smile on her face, telling him that it was okay, that he had nothing to fear.
He let out a sigh before opening his mouth to speak. Before even a single sound could be uttered, the entire memory paused and the color around them started to drain. Vee, Lycidia, and the Inner Kam were the only ones in the room with any color or motion whatsoever.
“What happened,” Lycidia asked.
Inner Kam gasped. “He’s here…”
Kam’s Father then burst into the memory, an unhinged look on his face. “Found you…”
Vee held the Inner Kam closely while Lycidia stepped forward, growling like a wild beast. “I. Have had. ENOUGH OF YOU!!!”
She ran towards him on all fours. As she approached, her form changed rapidly, turning from a girl with wolf-like features to a full-on wolf. The wolf pounced on the abuser, biting and clawing at him. Vee watched, she couldn’t just sit by and let this girl do this on her own. She set Inner Kam down in front of the prosecutor’s desk, wanting to keep him out of the conflict.
“Stay here, I’ll be right back,” she told him before slithering off to battle. She may not have liked conflict, but when it involved her son, all bets were off.
Inner Kam peeked his head over the desk, watching the battle timidly. His father was able to throw Lycidia off of him, only for Vee to slam down on him with her tail. It looked like he was flattened, but he stood up, with her tail in his grasp. He then swung her around before slamming her down on Lycidia.
The werewolf and basilisk panted, he was just too strong. Kam’s father walked over and grabbed both by the throat, lifting them up. “Now you’re gonna see what I mean,” he said as his dark aura started to slowly spread to them. “You’re in this situation because of him! If he wasn’t born, you two would probably be in better circumstances right about now!”
The darkness started at the very tips of their tails and slowly rose up their bodies. Vee and Lycidia’s faces were twisted in sheer, unrelenting agony. They couldn’t even scream, they were in too much pain.
Inner Kam watched. This monster was hurting his mother and the girl he liked. He couldn’t stand it, something had to be done! But there was no one else there, he was the only one who could do anything. He had to stand up to his father.
“Hey, bastardo,” he called out.
Kam’s father faced the boy, a twisted smirk spreading across his face. “Well, look who finally decided to show up.” He then dropped the werewolf and basilisk.
Vee weakly reached out to her son. “Kam… no…”
Kam’s father stepped forward slowly, cracking his knuckles. “So, are you ready for your rightful punishment?”
Inner Kam mustered up all the courage he had and stood his ground. “The only one who deserves to be punished is you!” Kam’s father growled. “I never did anything! My birth mother’s death was tragic, but that didn’t give you any right to abuse an innocent child since birth! You were a horrible father and a despicable human being, my birth mother would despise the man you became!”
That was it, that was the thing that finally set him off. Kam’s father growled as he raised his fist for a punch. “PUEQUEÑO MIERDO!!!”
Kam’s Father went in for a punch, however, Inner Kam caught his fist, stopping it completely. Everyone gasped, he tried to pull his fist back, but the boy wouldn’t let go. He tried to hit him with his other fist, but Inner Kam caught that one too.
Kam’s father tried to break free, but the boy’s grip was too strong. “How— how did you get so strong?!”
“I’ve always been strong, but you’ve also gotten weaker,” the Inner Kam replied.
Vee and Lycidia helped each other up, with them both changing back to their humanoid forms. They watched as the Inner Kam held back his father’s attacks. The boy then aged before their eyes, reaching his actual physical age.
“Fear is only as strong as you let it be, and I’m done giving you anything,” he replied before head-butting him across the room.
Kam’s father was imbedded in the wall. Inner Kam approached him. “You know, you helped me realize something,” he said as his father fell to the ground. “There’s something I’m way more afraid of than you: losing the ones I love.”
Kam’s father growled like a rabid beast, charging at him at full speed. Inner Kam wound up his fist and punched his father right in the face. The despicable brute then exploded into a cloud of dust, screaming in agony.
Vee and Lycidia walked over to the Inner Kam. “Dude, that was epic.”
Vee hugged him. “I’m so proud of you.”
Inner Kam returned the hug. “Thanks, mom.”
The color around them returned as the memory resumed. The trio then watched the rest of the memory play out.
“Yes,” young Kam replied to the prosecutor. “He’s hit me, beat me, and told me I was worthless.”
Kam’s father slammed his hands down on the desk and stood up. “SHUT UP!”
“NO,” Kam roared back, “I’M NOT GONNA LET YOU HURT ME ANYMORE!!!”
“Do you have any proof,” Vee’s lawyer asked.
Young Kam then raised his shirt, revealing a myriad of scars and bruises. Most notable was a scar in the shape of a clothes iron. The jury, judge, the bailiff, all in attendance, even the defense attorney gasped in horror.
Kam’s father growled furiously. In a blind rage, he charged the witness stand. The bailiff blocked him, holding him back, but he grabbed the bailiff’s gun and tossed him aside. The monster aimed the gun at Kam, who was too terrified to move.
“I should’ve done this a long time ago!”
In that instant, Vee’s body seemed to move on its own. She rushed over to Kam’s father, desperate to protect the boy— no, to protect her son. Her hand shifted into it’s basilisk form and she scratched the despicable man across his right eye, causing him to drop the gun.
The heinous man fell to the ground, his hands over his eye, trying to stop the bleeding. Vee huffed angrily. “Stay away from my son!”
“I’ve seen enough here,” the judge said, slamming his gavel, “I hereby award custody of this boy to Ms. Noceda, and find this man guilty of child abuse.” He then looked to the bailiff. “Take this creep away.”
The bailiff picked Kam’s Father up and escorted him out of the courtroom. Kam ran out of the witness stand and leapt into his new mother’s arms, numerous emotions running through his mind at once. Terror from when his father pointed a gun at him, relieve that he could never hurt him again, but most importantly, joy to actually have a parent who truly loves him.
Vee, Lycidia, and Inner Kam smiled as they watched the memory play out to completion. It was a joyful and tender moment, one that the mother and son would always cherish. Ordinarily, someone in Lycidia’s position would’ve felt like a third wheel, but she didn’t. She felt like she was getting to see a different side of her friend, one she never saw before and made her understand him better.
Vee turned to the exit. “Come on, we have memories to fix.”
***
Moments later, back in the Owl House, Luz received a call from Vee. “We fixed the memories, you can pull us out now.”
Wasting no time, Amity made a spell circle, bringing them out of the young man’s mind. They turned around to check on Kam. The boy groaned as he regained consciousness.
“Kam, do you remember us,” Lycidia asked carefully.
Kam smiled in relief. “Yeah, mom, I remember.”
Overfilled with joy, Vee and Lycidia embraced him, he was gonna be alright. As they pulled apart, the werewolf girl sat next to him.
“Kam, I am so sorry, I should never have pushed you into—“
“It’s not your fault, Lycidia,” he reassured. “Neither of us knew that memory’d be pulled out.”
“But still, I wouldn’t have even asked if I knew.”
“To be fair, I wasn’t exactly vey forthcoming with details about my early childhood, but that’s besides the point. You helped save me, if it weren’t for you, my mind would probably be mush right now.”
Lycidia blushed slightly. “Thanks, but I can’t take all the credit. I would’ve been lost if it wasn‘t for your mom.” She then refocused her attention on something else, something more pressing. “I gotta ask though: how are you so positive after… all that?”
Kam just shrugged. “Yeah, it’s hard, but I’m just thankful for everything I have now, like my mom, the rest of my family, you…” The pair blushed before Kam cleared his throat. “And the others, of course!”
As the pair of teens talked, Luz, Amity, and Vee watched with knowing smiles. “So, what do you think,” Luz asked her sister.
“I think those two are made for each other.”