Lilith's eyes narrowed as she flew just behind her mother, scaling up the left knee of the Boiling Isles and trying to get a sense of where their old house was down below. But for the life of her, she couldn't see it, nor recognize the forests themselves. It all looked like one giant blur of amber and brown lumps with green and gray dots inter-spaced between them. It felt like it hurt her eyes the longer she stared, and she eventually huffed and asked, "Mother, are you certain we're going the right way?"
"You mean you don't know?" Nero asked from behind her. She didn't even need to look back to know he was raising his eyebrow.
"To be fair, it's been a long while since I've come home." Too long, to be exact.
"Yes Sweet Flea. I recognize this flight path like the back of my hand," Mother cheerfully replied before looking down and smiling, "As a matter of fact, we're here now!"
Down below was a shape that became more recognizable as they closed in on it: A small stone arch over an iron gate, the top covered in orange and amber leaves.
"Why are we stopping out here?" Nero asked right as he hopped off the staff, "Shouldn't we be stopping right at the front door?"
"Maybe, but I'm hoping we can talk a bit more. We didn't get to talk much on the way here," Mother admitted before walking up to open the gate.
"Never been good at the whole "socializing" thing. Still working on it, honestly," Nero shrugged, him and Lilith walking up to the gate in kind. Despite the close proximity, and despite how recognizable it was, Lilith still had a hard time making out all the details, making her wonder if something was wrong with her eyes. Blinking, she rubbed at them and felt a noticeable difference.
Well, that explains it. "Ugh, Titan damn it!" Lilith muttered just as Mother opened the gate, her and Nero looking back to her.
"Mom?"
"What is it? What's wrong, Sweet Flea?"
"I think when I turned into that beast, it destroyed my contact lenses."
At that, Nero walked up and grabbed at the sack on her staff, "You want me to help look for your spares?"
Lilith was about to nod, as even though she organized everything in her sack carefully, she doubted she'd be able to find them without some help, her eyesight as poor as it was. However, Mother interrupted and walked up to both of them, "Actually, if I may, I think I have something that could help." She closed her hands, the inside of which glowed with orange magic before she opened them, holding out a small container for Lilith, "I held onto these just in case I ever ran into you during the day." Lilith hesitantly took it and opened them, "I didn't think you'd need them anymore, but-"
Gasping, Lilith reached inside and pulled out- "My old glasses?" She held up the large round spectacles, letting the sunlight reflect off of them. It was clear they'd been kept clean and well-maintained after all these years. "Y-You actually kept them for me?"
Mother nodded, "I haven't done the best at showing it, but as I said, I always kept you in my thoughts as well." As Lilith's eyes grew glossy, Mother's smile shifted from sadness to something more upbeat, "Well, go ahead! Try them on!"
Feeling a cheerfulness on her face, Lilith obliged and unfolded the temples, slowly moving the glasses onto her eyes. As she did, she saw through the lenses, her vision becoming evermore crystal clear until they fully encapsulated everything she could see. Lilith looked around, particularly between her son and mother in order to adjust. It'd been so long since she'd worn glasses and the sensation was odd.
Odd, yet welcome.
"They good, Mom?"
"Yes, Sweet Flea. How are they?"
Lilith's eyes teared up behind her glasses as she hugged her mom, "They're a perfect fit. Thank you!" She could feel her mother hug back, hearing a light sniffle, though Lilith couldn't tell if it was Mom's or her own. The two pulled back, and she could see it was both of them. Seeing her mother smile at her, she matched it and looked back to her son, "So, my little raven, are you ready to meet your grandfather?"
"I guess," Nero looked down, his expression nervous, "You think he'll like me?"
"Oh Nero," Mother walked up to her grandson and took his hands, "Knowing my husband, he's going to adore you."
"… okay then," Nero still seemed unsure, but he nodded along as the three of them started walking down the path to the old Clawthorne home. "So… uh, grandma," He started, Lilith watching as he awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck, "Were you always busy trying to find a cure or taking care of gramps? You ever have time for hobbies or something?"
Mother hummed and looked up at the bright, sunny sky, "Well, there was one thing I was able to find free time to do." Clapping her hands, she turned to her grandson, "And that was fighting against monsters!"
"Really?" Nero's voice grew excited while Lilith found herself blinking.
"Wait, what?" Lilith stopped in her tracks, "I know you and dad had to fight a lot of beasts together to protect me and Edalyn, but you're doing it as a… a hobby?"
"Of course dear. Honestly, it's quite thrilling to face the dangers lurking the land, never knowing what the next challenge will bring," Mother sighed wistfully, "It's honestly less of a hobby and more of a passion of mine. I've been fighting against them since I was a little girl." She then pulled back her sleeves and flexed her arm, showing off her incredibly strong muscles lined with scars, "And look! Only minimal scarring from all that fighting!"
"… exactly how old were you when this started?"
"About six or seven, roughly speaking," Mother answered, moving her other hand in a so-so manner.
"Holy shit, me too!" Nero smirked happily at his grandmother and approached her before pulling back the sleeve of his left arm and flexing in kind, "Also, damn, you are fucking built."
"Hah! You're not too shabby yourself, oh grandson of mine," Mother replied, still showing off her scar ridden arm in a way that made Lilith feel rather self-conscious. She wasn't wiry or thin by any means, as all the athleticism from her days at Hexside and years of fighting for the Emperor's Coven left her in solid shape herself. In fact, by her estimates, she and her son were equally well-built.
And yet compared to her mother, she might as well have been a twig.
I should probably get off of that for the time being. "You… you mean to tell me that you used to sneak out and fight the isles's dangers at a young age too?" Lilith asked, seeing a brief flash of guilt etch her son's face. They'd try and talk about it later, but right now, she was more focused on the fact that apparently her son inherited a lot more from her mother than she ever realized.
"I didn't sneak out, actually. Didn't really have anyone to sneak away from," Mother replied, a small bit of sadness in her voice as Lilith quickly realized what she meant.
"You mean you're an…" Orphan went unsaid, but her mom's slow, sad nod spoke volumes. "I didn't know," Lilith looked away and rubbed at her arm, "I'm sorry to remind you."
Mother shook her head and returned a slightly sad smile towards her, "It's fine Sweet Flea. I made peace with it long before I had you or Edalyn." Gwen sighed and looked between her daughter and grandson, "But this week is meant to be about you two, so I'd rather not waste your time with tales of my childhood."
"I mean, it's about getting to know each other, and to be honest, I'd like to know more about you and gramps, so…" Nero pointed out, raising a finger as he did so.
"And I'd honestly like to know as well," Lilith added. They were here to make up for lost time, after all. And just as Gwen had missed so much, there was just as much Lilith had missed out on. She wanted to get to know her mother better.
Gwen seemed taken aback at first, but then she smiled, nodding to both of them, "Very well. Now," she turned and held her staff high, "Let's get moving! Don't want to keep Dell waiting any longer."
Once more the three continued their trek through the small woods of the left knee, managing to get a few steps in before Nero asked, "So, grandma, what's the biggest monster you've had to fight?"
At that, Mother hummed for a moment and answered, "Honestly, something I fought very recently. I was busy doing some trials needed to get a new cure for Edalyn when suddenly, I heard a very loud screaming. I looked up and next thing I knew, this giant plant snake demon lady fell from the sky! Probably would've crash landed on me if I hadn't gotten out of the way in time."
Wait, plant snake demon lady? Lilith gasped, quickly realizing who her mother was talking about. Looking over to her son, she saw the same look of surprise in his eyes before turning back to Gwen and asking, "Uh, mother, this snake lady wouldn't happen to have been named Echidna by any chance?"
Lilith watched her mother hum for a second before snapping her fingers, "Oh yes! Echidna! That's what she called herself. Honestly, I wasn't paying too much attention to that since she kept going into random non-sequiturs like "kill Sparda", whatever that is, or "tiny witchlings". She also smelled me, screamed "YOU!" and started going feral. Don't know if I ever met her before, but fighting her was fun. It was like finally getting to beat up my ex-girlfriend after everything she put me through."
Mom has an ex-girlfriend? All this time, Lilith thought her parents were soulmates. That they were each other's first, last, and only love. It seemed today was proving how little she knew about her parents even with the first seventeen years of living under their roof.
I wonder if that means Dad has any exes I don't know about.
"You fought that bitch too?" Nero cut in, prompting Gwen to turn and walk backwards as they continued for the house.
"Wait, you fought her?" Gwen looked at Lilith then Nero, "Both of you?"
"Separately. Last I saw her, it was just a little over ten years ago. After I defeated her, she smelled Nero's father on me and ran away."
"And I fought her more recently with Aunt Eda, Luz, and the Blights," Nero became a lot more sheepish, "Kinda also maybe sorta the reason why she almost fell on you."
Gwen shrugged, "It's alright, no harm no foul." She then turned and kept walking, "Honestly, she was so out of her mind that I almost felt sorry for her. But knowing that she tried to kill you both, I feel a lot less bothered over killing her. Dragged her body to shore and dunked it into the Boiling Sea when I was done."
"Heh, awesome," Nero smirked, and Lilith had to agree. What her mom did sounded pretty awesome.
"Daw shucks, thank you! Glad to know I've still got it," Mother pointed ahead, "We'll talk more about this later. Because right now, we're here!"
Lilith looked up, basking in the sight of her childhood home. It was just as she remembered it, simplistic log cabin that it was. Even from the front, she could see the roof window on the side where Edalyn would have her sneak out past bedtime, the two of them counting the stars for hours on end. The door at its center, the two windows at each of its sides, both closed with curtains, but with light shining through. Even with it just being mother and father now, the home still felt lived in.
Taking her first steps, Lilith approached the front door and reached out to open it, only to stop. She tried to force her hand forward, but it just hovered above the doorknob and refused to budge any further. Sweating, Lilith retracted her hand and backed up just a step, stopping to stare at the door. The more she did, the more it felt like her heart was about to tear itself out of her chest and run for the hills.
… wait, can that even happen? She was cursed now, so the answer was probably a very scary "Maybe".
"Sweat Flea?" Lilith heard her mother's steps from behind. Unable to face her, she kept staring at the door, her son's steps following not long after.
"I… I'm sorry, it's just-" Lilith gulped, "It's been so long. And after what happened, I-" She closed her eyes tight, "What do I even say to him?"
Hey dad, it's been a while, hasn't it? Sorry I haven't kept in touch, I've just been busy ruining so many lived as leader of the Emperor's Coven. Oh! by the way, I'm the one who cursed Edalyn, caused you to lose your eye, destroyed your career as a Palismen carver, and ruined our entire family. Also, you're a grandfather now. Could've let you know that if I wasn't so much of a complete and utter fucking coward to fess up and-
"Mom!" She felt Nero gently grab at her hand, "You're rambling."
Lilith blinked and saw the worry in her son and mother's eyes. She slapped her mouth shut, realizing she'd muttered all of that with them in earshot. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes, fighting back tears and facing the door again, "Will he hate me, for everything I've done?"
She'd only just started rebuilding that bridge with her mother. She didn't want it burned down with her father before she could even start.
Suddenly, she felt another, older hand hold hers, and turned to see her mother. Gwen smiled at her, so full of sadness, yet also an understanding she never truly saw until recently. "You know, Sweet Flea, I should've told you this sooner, but despite his injuries, your father did make attempts to visit Edalyn back in the day."
"H-He did?"
"But every single time, she was gone before we even got there," Gwen looked down at the ground, sighing, "He just wanted to talk with her. He never cared about how she became a wanted criminal, or how she was spending all her time in the human realm doing Titan knew what, or even how her cursed form ruined him. Dell just wanted to let your sister know that he forgave her. He never once blamed her for what happened." She managed to regain a small smile, moving her hands to gently hold the sides of Lilith's face, "If he never knew, and he never blamed Edalyn, I don't think he'll blame you one bit either."
Maybe he should, Lilith wanted to say, but she stomached it and remembered her promise to Nero: No more self-hatred, at least for today. With a light gulp and a tightened grip on her staff, she asked in a frightened, tearful voice, "You really think he will?"
"I mean, from the sound of it, I think he will," Nero threw his own thoughts on the matter into it as he looked to the front door, anticipation evident in his eyes. For all his earlier nervousness, Lilith could see just how excited he was.
"Sweet Flea, I've known that man since we were teenagers. Seen each other at our best and at our worst, helped each other through everything." Her mother began listing things off, "Making a home for ourselves, fighting whatever monsters came our way, bad breakups, figuring out our own feelings for each other." Lilith saw Mom's smile grow, a brightness in her eyes, "And our eventual decision to bring our first daughter into the world, and then another just two years after, both of whom we promised to cherish forever. The look on Dell's face when I first told him I was pregnant…"
Gwen chuckled softly, "So trust me when I say, you could say or do the absolute worst things imaginable, and neither of us will ever hold it against you. You and Edalyn will always be our daughters, and no matter what, we will always love you."
At that, the dam burst and Lilith rushed forward to hug her mother, sniffling and sobbing all over again. She felt her mother's arms wrap around her, and a second pair of arms followed not long after. Lilith felt herself smile between her sobs, despite still feeling the dread of what was to come. Even after everything, all the lies she told, the lives she'd ruined, and the pain she'd brought them, her family still cared about her. They still wanted her in their lives.
Remember this feeling, Lilith. No matter how much you'd like to forget it, She heard what sounded like her own voice, but it was so soft and soothing and unlike how she normally was. For once, she didn't hear the bitterness, the rage, or the disgust in herself that plagued her thoughts for as long as she could recollect. For the first time in so long, for however brief a moment, she felt… content with herself.
"Okay…" Lilith said as she let go and looked at the door one last time, "I think I'm ready to see him."
Mother nodded and knocked on the door, the sound reverberating throughout the entire house. Even from here, Lilith could hear the steps, and fear took hold of her heart all over again, leaving her to clutch at her staff until it felt like her knuckles turned an even paler shade of white than normal. Before that fear could overtake her completely, she felt a scaly hand take a hold of her free one. Lilith didn't even need to look, but she felt herself calm down as her son gently held her hand. The fear didn't go away, but it became a buzz in the back of her head as she took a deep breath, reminding herself that everything was going to be fine.
Everything will be fine.
Just as that thought entered her head, the door opened, and for the first time in decades, she saw her father.
"D-Dad…" Lilith muttered, seeing how the years have changed him. Gone was the orange hair he and Edalyn once possessed, in its place an aged, bushy white. His beard and mustache had grown out considerably, drooping downward with the goatee tied up using a bird-themed clip. He currently wore a dark gray robe, dark brown pants, and light brown boots, but what drew Lilith's attention the most was the scars. On his hand and on the left side of his face were scar tissue that never quite healed all the way. As a result, his left eye remained closed, likely forever, while his left hand trembled with no sign of ceasing.
The more Lilith looked at him, the more she saw her mistakes screaming at her, yelling at her to disappear forever. How much of a disgrace of a daughter she was. How she did this to him. How it was all her fault and she didn't deserve to be-
"Sweat Flea?"
Two words. It all vanished with just those two words from her father. The man looked at her with a single golden eye, filled with shock and worry, but most of all, filled with love and acceptance. And just before she could think it a trick of her own eyes, he reached forward and pulled her into a deep hug, as if she'd disappear the second he let go.
Once more, Lilith found herself holding back sobs, returning the gesture in equal measure. She could hear light sniffles from just behind, coming from her mother and son.
"H-Hey dad," Lilith slowly let go, holding her father close as she looked him in the eye. It was still harder than she hoped it would be, looking a byproduct of her biggest mistake in the face, but she could just as much feel Nero and Gwen's presence behind her. It was a force at her back, making the guilt much more bearable.
"Lilith, it's been far too long," Dad smiled and reached up to cup her cheek, "How have you been, all these years?"
Lilith's smile faltered just a tad, not knowing how to answer such a question. At least, not as she was. Instead, she sighed and felt the weight of everything she wanted to say. "It's complicated. Things have been good and bad, but they've been getting better for me, for the most part, at least. There's so much I need to tell you, but first," She looked back and gestured for Nero to come forward. Her son did so with only slight hesitation (Lilith could see how nervous he was) as she stepped aside, letting grandson stand before grandfather and said, "Dad, I want you to meet my son. This is Nero."
"Hey, grandpa," Nero waved with his right hand, still nervous despite his efforts to hide it.
"I… we have a grandson?" Dell blinked in surprise, looking to his wife, who nodded in reply and wrapped him in a one-armed hug.
"Lilith and Nero are going to be staying with us for about a week. Dell, I know this is a very sudden decision, but…"
As his wife went quiet, Dell smiled towards her and gave a light kiss to her cheek. "I understand, Gwen." Looking to both Lilith and Nero, he said, "Honestly, there's so much I need to say as well. From the looks of things, there's so much all of us need to say, but I think they can wait. Come inside, make yourselves at home."
Lilith gave a tired smile and nodded. It was only half an hour past noon, yet it felt like an entire day had gone by. Much as she wanted to rip certain band-aids off before she lost the nerve, she could wait until she rested a little. With her staff slung over her shoulder and carrying hers and Nero's things (plus just over a couple dozen elixirs for safety), she thanked her father and entered her old home, her son following just behind.
"Nice place," Nero whistled and started looking around just as Lilith did the same. In many ways, it hadn't changed a bit, things like the four seated dinner table still being the same, as was its position next to the fireplace. She spotted the same shelf to her left with wooden logs lining it, as well as the same cabinet just in front of one of the front windows with the same flower vase and lantern sitting on it. She took in the same pictures on the walls, the same doorway to the kitchen, the same stairway leading to the halls where her and Edalyn's rooms were, even the same arrows embedded at where the stairs turned a corner and led further upward. In many ways, everything was the same.
But while many things remained the same, and certainly looked the same, some things felt different. Despite Mom and Dad's presence, the entire home had a far more morose atmosphere than even in the years before she left for the coven full-time. Lilith couldn't explain, but it felt as if something was missing.
But what could be missing? Lilith asked as a chirping resonated from the halls. A yellow cardinal flew out and circled the room a couple times before fluttering right in front of Lilith's face. "Toast! Stop that!" Lilith laughed as she dropped her staff, which quickly turned back into Coronis. Her own Palisman flew up and joined Toast in the air, the two of them flying about before Lilith held out her hand to let Toast on it. She smiled and nuzzled her cheek to the yellow cardinal, who nuzzled back as she whispered, "I missed you too, Toast."
"Who's that?"
Upon Nero's question, Lilith turned to answer, but father beat her to the punch, placing a hand on his grandson's shoulder, "Nero, this is my Palisman, Toast." He looked over to said Palisman, who flew from Lilith's hands to his outstretched finger, "Toast, I'd like you to meet my grandson, Nero."
Toast chirped and flew over to Nero, fluttering in his face for a few seconds. Lilith watched her son chuckle and let the Palisman land on his shoulder before he pet his head with a finger, "Nice to meet you too, Toast."
Toast chirped a few times, with Dell clarifying, "He says hello, and that-" Suddenly, Toast flew over to Lilith and Nero's sacks, picking up Nero's with total ease before flying toward the upstairs hallway, "-that he'd like to help with your things."
"He didn't really need to do that," Nero said, looking where Toast went.
"Oh but we insist. You're our guests. Besides," Mother smiled sadly, "It's the least we can do to help make the years up." Before Lilith could try and help pick up her mother's mood, she'd already let go of her staff as it reverted back into Palisman form. "Hawksley," Gwen addressed the hawk Palisman, "Could you be a dear and help carry Sweet Flea's things to her old room. I need to get started on making us lunch."
Hawksley remained quiet, but gave a nod and grabbed Lilith's bag by the beak, flapping his wings and flying down the hall just as Toast returned from his own trip. Upon landing on her father's shoulder, he said, "We can start making up for time at lunch. In the meantime, how about you two get settled in?"
"Of course, father. Come along my little raven," Lilith let Coronis return to her shoulder before she started for the stairs, waving to her parents again, Nero doing the same as he followed her. Mother and son entered the halls and proceeded down, eventually seeing two rooms situated across from each other where their bags were placed. Instantly recognizing her old room, Lilith picked up her sack and said to Nero, "Looks like you'll be staying in Edalyn's old room."
"Huh," Nero muttered as he picked up his sack and entered the room, both of them looking in to see how little Edalyn's room had changed. The hand crafted stars and moon still hung as fixtures from the ceiling, the posters of celebrities and fictional characters her sister had crushes on remained on the walls, her shelf was still lined with adventure books, her toy chest remained in its corner, and even the old sword still hung from the wall next to her bed. Everything was neat and organized in such a way that it was clear Mother and Father went the extra mile to make it so.
Lilith held back a laugh, knowing her sister would hate how neat and tidy her room was now.
"Looks pretty cozy," Nero said absentmindedly as he put his sack down next to the bed, seeming unsure the more he looked.
"Nero, if you're not comfortable here, we can switch rooms. Or I can ask Mother and Father to try and accommodate a different room for you."
Nero shook his head and rubbed at the back of his neck, "Nah, it's not that. Just gotta… y'know, get used to all this."
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah, I think so," Nero looked back at her and smiled reassuringly, "It'll probably help to start unpacking, so… if you don't mind."
"Very well," Lilith nodded, though her concern never left her face, "If you need anything, my little raven, I'll be right next door." She walked out and began closing the door, leaving it open just a crack as her worries overrode all else. Through the slight opening, she watched as her son reached into his bag, pulling out-
Wait, is that- Lilith held in a gasp as she watched her son lift up the old log of Palistrom wood. The same one she gave to him all those years ago. She didn't even know he'd kept it this entire time. After never having seen him do anything with it, she was led to believe he'd thrown it away or gave it to someone else. Instead, here he was with it, and rather than continue to unpack, he sat down on Edalyn's old bed (his bed now, Lilith supposed) and just… stared at it.
Like he was trying to shape it with his mind. The more he stared, the more conflicted and frustrated he seemed. It was like watching him try to solve a puzzle, but the pieces were missing. Lilith remembered the times she'd seen that look on her son's face, first appearing when his right arm mutated into its current form, and appearing sporadically throughout the years. Even after all this time, Nero still didn't quite know what to make of it.
He still didn't know what to make of himself.
He's not alone there, After everything she'd said, done, and been through, Lilith didn't know what to make of herself either. It made a mirthless chuckle want to escape her throat, though she kept it where it was. Amidst all their differences, she and her son were one and the same on that front, even if it wasn't a good front for anyone to be on.
We'll figure this out as best we can, my son, Lilith hoped – still unsure of how – and turned, quietly stepping toward her room and entering, closing the door behind her. She turned on the lights, eyes going wide behind her glasses at both the sudden brightness, and at the sight of her room. Everything, from her shelves of poetry and nonfiction books, to her old record player for relaxing ambiance, to her notebooks filled with meticulously gathered notes from Hexside class lectures (all alphabetized of course), to her Grudgby trophies, to even her napkin folding figures, all of them were well-maintained after all these years. It was all just as clean and tidy as Edalyn's room, just the way Lilith liked it and done as if she'd never left.
Mother and Father didn't just think of Edalyn. They took care of both their rooms to the best of their abilities with love that only became more obvious the more Lilith looked, like they were waiting and hoping one of them would come home.
Or both of them.
The realization brought a bright smile to Lilith's face, even with the weight of the conversations to come. With a light spring in her step, she let Coronis fly to his perch, which remained where it always was: Next to her bed on the drawers. Sitting on said bed, she removed her boots and proceeded to lay down, staring up at the ceiling, itself just as neat and clean as the rest of her room. As she relaxed, she realized more and more just how much she'd missed this.
How much she'd missed home.
And for the briefest moment, she wondered if her sister missed it too.
"Ugh, how much longer till we get there, Eda?"
"For the last time, King, we'll get there when we get there!" Eda rolled her eyes as King asked for the fifth time in this entire trek through the forest. She wasn't even sure why he was complaining. They'd only been walking for about half an hour, maybe slightly more, at most. Hell, King wasn't even walking! He was just sitting on Luz's shoulder, so Eda had no clue why he sounded so tired and impatient.
It wasn't like he got it from her or something.
Her annoyed musings were broken by a chuckle from Luz, prompting her to ask, "What's so funny, kid?"
"Nothing, it's just…" Luz looked down, scratching her cheek with a sad glimmer in her eyes, "This kinda reminds me of when I was a kid. Growing up, sometimes mama and I would go on vacations out of Gravesfield just to get away from it all. I'd keep asking when we got there over and over again. Back then, I always thought asking it would help us get there faster, so I thought it'd help her too no matter how many times she said that we weren't there yet." Eda watched her smile falter just a tiny bit, "Looking back, it bugged her a lot, even if she never let it show much."
"Dad! Are we there yet?"
"Not yet, my Owlet! Just a few more minutes."
Eda remembered those voices: Hers and her father's. How many times as a kid had she all but begged him to take her to from place too place just so she could go on a little adventure of her own? So similar to Luz and her own mother? So annoying to the man, who swallowed it down with a smile because he cared more for his daughter's happiness? So… so…
"Are we there yet?" King playfully asked, Luz laughing as Eda suppressed another annoyed groan.
Ugh, dammit, I really am turning into my dad! Eda grimaced as a slight sadness started cropping up inside her, and it only grew the longer she thought about it. Now she was spiraling and thinking about him, and what she did to him, all the more. What I wouldn't give for a good distraction right now-
"Say Eda, how do you know these Gremlin guys anyway?"
Luz, you're a fucking Titan send! Eda put on her best smile and looked back for just a moment to explain, "It was around maybe a year or two after I started living on my own. I was looking around for any cures or treatments for the curse that I could get my hands on. It was also before built the Owl House or met Hooty, so I was mostly just squatting in one of Dad's old towers." She turned away so they wouldn't see her smile drop for multiple reasons, "One day, I went to sleep, only to wake up somewhere in these forests. You can probably guess what happened."
"You went Owl Beast," Luz answered with a solemn voice.
"Wait, that tower belongs to your dad?" King asked, either missing the point entirely or too used to the Owl Beast's usual antics to pay attention to that part. The result was the same: Eda groaning and running a hand down her face.
"The point is that I met the Gremlins at that point. Apparently they were watching the Owl Beast's entire rampage. After it ended, they offered me to help me," She grimaced at the memories, "And let me tell you now: Your first experience getting scammed is the most memorable. Most painful too, honestly."
Luz gasped before she grit her teeth, "You got scammed!? Now I hate these jerks!"
"Join the club, kiddo," Eda smirked and continued, "Anyway, it wasn't pleasant. Lost a lot of what little I had at the time, but it did teach me some valuable lessons, and I got pretty good when it came to running scams of my own." Though it also gave her some perspective on what scams were good ideas. More than that, it gave her something resembling a code of conduct when it came to her scams. No matter how tight on Snails she was, there were some lines she vowed to never, ever cross when it came to scams. And these assholes are still crossing it like a jump rope.
And the fact that they tried to do it with her own mother made Eda's blood boil. Things may still be iffy between them, but Eda didn't wish those kinds of scams upon anyone, least of all her family. One way or another, these fuckers were gonna pay.
Won't be long now, Eda took a deep breath, trying to keep herself calm as she now stood in front of the hideout's entrance, "We're here."
She heard Luz come to a complete stop behind her, King jumping down from the kid's shoulder and joining Eda at her left. Luz, meanwhile, joined at her right and asked, "Where's the entrance?"
"Is it an illusion? Or an invisible door? Maybe there's a hidden switch or something!" Luz started getting excited and began feeling around the large stone directly in front of them in search of exactly that.
"Let me help! I know how to sniff out hidden switches!" King ran up and started feeling around the rocks too, making Eda chuckle at her kids' enthusiasm.
Shaking her head and refocusing, she called out to the two, "Alright kiddos, back up. There's no hidden switch or anything." Luz and King whined in disappointment, but did as Eda asked and rejoined her. "I know this whole thing just looks like an oversized rock formation surrounded by forest with giant roots running along it, but trust me, this is the place." Eda proceeded to walk to the front stone that just so happened to look suspiciously like a giant door, "I'll give these bastards some credit. They have one hell of a security system," She pulled out her mom's necklace with the rune etched on it, "You can't get in without one of these."
Holding it up to the stone, the rune glowed a bright green, causing the same rune to appear on the stone itself. It glowed almost blindingly as light particles shimmered everywhere, enveloping the stone in an aura of green. Not a moment too soon, the stone moved to the right, revealing a smooth tunnel entrance.
"So cool!" Luz whispered in awe as Eda smiled again. It was just a cave entrance opening up, but no matter how mundane it was, the magic of Limbo always drew excitement from her. No matter how many times she rolled her eyes at it, Eda would admit to herself that it was infectious.
As they first entered, Eda used the rune again to close it back up before pulling an ice glyph out from her hair and slapping it against the wall. A thick layer of ice formed along everything from it to the entrance to the adjacent wall, ceiling, and floor. Turning to Luz and King, she said, "Just making sure there's no chance of them getting away. They're locked in here with us. Now come on!" Eda cracked her knuckles, "I'll let you and King get first dibs."
"Yes!" Luz fist pumped and proceeded to hi five King.
"I am so gonna bite their faces off!" King double fist pumped before the three of them traveled down the tunnel, Eda at the helm as they all entered a massive room. Jagged purple crystals, massive and small, lined the many stairways throughout the room and reached down from the cavern ceiling alongside various gold and bronze charms. Candles were all over the stairways too, brightening the room and trying to give off some sort of "wise, sage-like" vibe that was so over-the-top that it screamed "faker than Frank Sahwit's toupee". And sitting just in front of the waterfall pool in the center of the room, was a four-armed, bearded, navy blue skinned witch in a gray robe with a necklace of large green jewels and a wooden staff housing a purple crystal at its end.
It didn't take Eda long to clock just who that asshole (or rather, assholes) really was.
"Greetings, weary traveler! I am Master Wortlop," The disguised gremlins greeted as the trio walked up, their voice deep and reverberating in a way that couldn't be faker if they tried, "If you've found yourself here, I can only guess one of my students provided you a key. Now, how may I-" They paused the moment they took notice of Eda and stammered, "E-Eda! I mean, y-you must be Gwendolyn's daughter. I must say, you look so much like your mother-"
"Drop the act, you freaks," Eda sneered, anger rolling off her in waves as she cocked her staff like a shotgun, taking aim, "We're shutting your operation down. Permanently." Owlbert gathered his magic and let loose a blast of yellow energy, knocking "Wortlop" into the waterfall behind him before "he" slumped into the pool with a collective groan of pain.
"Hey! I thought you were gonna let us get first dibs!" King complained, stomping his foot all cute-like.
"Sorry, my finger slipped," Truth be told, Eda just got so pissed from seeing these bastards again that she forgot about that bit. Thankfully, she didn't get anymore earfuls, not when they all saw the old wizard cloak jump out of the water and flop around where its wearers had been sitting. It rustled, lumps about as big as King moving around under if before they finally managed to tear the cloak off, revealing a quartet of gray-skinned, pig-nosed gremlins with sharp, bat-like ears, each of them wearing short tunics in varying shades of brown.
"Oooooowwww…" One of them (Eda mentally clocked him as "Dead Meat #1") moaned and rubbed at a no doubt growing bruise on the back of his head. The others (Dead Meats 2-4) followed suit and slowly picked themselves up, groaning or coughing out water until they caught their breath enough to gasp and remember their very threatening present company.
And King.
"U-Uh," Dead Meat #3 stammered, "E-Eda, let's try and talk this out?"
Dead Meat #4 rapidly nodded his head, "Y-Yeah! How about we give you a 30% discount on a new cure all we've been cooking up? It's bound to work wonders on your curse! What do ya say?"
"Hmmm, let me think." Eda snapped her fingers and said, "I know! How about a counter offer? You give me and mine an extra 10% off…" She let Owlbert's magic envelop him, the Palisman glowing with menacing yellow aura as she pulled out a glyph, tapped it, and manifested a large ball of flames, "For each limb I blast away. How does that sound, shrimps?"
"I-I-I-I think w-we'll have to think about this in our office," Dead Meat #2 then screamed, "EVERYONE SCATTER!"
They all made a move to jump into the ground and start digging, but the sound of an activated glyph came from Eda's side, a thick layer of ice quickly enveloping the entire cave floor right as the gremlins were about to jump into it. Rather than dirt, their heads clanged against the ice, leaving them with bruises on the top of their heads as they wobbled for a bit.
"Now you're really not going anywhere, dirt bags!" Luz declared, Eda turning to see that she'd activated an ice glyph of her own.
"Nice one, kiddo!" Eda held out a closed hand and let Luz fist bump it.
"Hey, I learned from watching all your getaways," Luz cheerfully replied. Eda chuckled at the reminder of all her daring escapes from the Emperor's Coven since she took the kid in. And she figured out a bunch of workarounds just by watching her?
Luz, you never cease to impress.
"So, now that you're stuck," King stepped forward towards the gremlins and tried to punch his own palm to seem intimidating… which it wasn't, but Eda would let him think it was for now, "We're gonna make you pay with your blood and guts for duping Granny Gwen! You hear me!?"
"Uh, in our defense, Gwendolyn was dumb enough to fall for it anyway, so she deserved it," Dead Meat #1 said just as his associates desperately tried to shut him up. Not that it would've helped, because the moment that sentence left his lips, Eda swore she saw red as a snarl escaped her lips.
"THAT'S IT, FUCK HEADS!" Eda took her still active fire ball and threw it with everything she had, "SPICY TOSS!"
The gremlins had just enough time to panic and attempt to scramble, only getting far enough for the resulting explosion to send them all flying in different directions across the frozen room rather than be roasted outright. Three of them managed to reorient themselves enough to fire their own spells, a combined blast of lightning aimed right at Eda, Luz, and King. The three of them quickly split up, using the ice to slide around quickly, with Eda running up one of the stairways and taking cover behind a giant purple crystal as smoke filled the air from the second explosion of the day.
"DIE A THOUSAND DEATHS!"
"Someone get this psycho kid away from me!"
Eda looked up from her hiding spot and, amidst the clearing smoke, was able to see King chasing down one of the Dead Meats (she was 90% sure it was Dead Meat #1). He was already gaining on him when the gremlin slipped on the ice. From there, King jumped for him, the two of them rolling on the ground before her kid came out on top and started wailing on him with punch after punch to the face. Against anyone else, it probably wouldn't have been effective. Against these guys? King might as well have been a professional Bonesborough Brawler.
"YAAAAHOOOOO!"
Was that Luz?
"Stay still, you stupid human!" Eda rolled out from her cover when she heard that Luz was in trouble, and had her staff and another glyph at the ready to assist, only to be dumbfounded – and impressed – at the ensuing fight. One of the gremlins (Dead Meat #4) was using spell circles to lift chunks of purple crystal into the air and launch them high above at Luz, who was elegantly dodging and weaving past each one as she swung from the ceiling via a plant glyph whip. When one came dangerously close, she yelped and let go, plummeting to the floor, but quickly catching herself to begin sliding on the ice like a figure skater and circling around the gremlin with more glyphs at the ready to take him down.
"Ha! Atta girl!" Eda cheered for her second kid right as a shadow loomed over her. Looking up, she saw a large jagged crystal floating above before the aura around it vanished, sending it falling down toward her. Shit! Eda rolled out of the way and jumped down the stairs before it could make impact, hearing the laughter of those last two Dead Meats all the while, "Alright, where are you?"
"Right here!" Two voiced yelled from just behind her, Eda sensing the air shift with magic. She swiftly turned and spun her staff as fast as she could, deflecting the spells from her gremlin opponents, one of whom had "Wortlop's" staff in his hands. Dead Meat #3 took aim and blasted at her with a massive, powerful ray of violet magic. Standing her ground, Eda spun her staff even faster, digging her heels in enough to crack the ice beneath her feet. Yet despite her best efforts, the sheer power behind the blast still managed to force her back bit by bit, even as she put more strength into holding it off.
If I still had my magic, this would be way easier, Eda thought with a frustrated grunt and grimace, wishing she'd at least thought to store some potion grenades in her hair. Even with all the effort she'd been putting in, she just wasn't used to glyphs yet, let alone something like glyph combat. It was… annoying, to be the one falling behind Lilith for a change when it came to magic, but these glyphs just weren't something she could get used to! So much learning, not enough doing! Eda was many things (most synonymous with awesome), but patient and studious? Not so much!
Continuing to deflect the blast, she looked for anything in her current field of vision to use to her advantage. With eyes glancing upward, she saw the many jagged crystals and stalactites hanging from the cavern ceiling, giving her an idea. Fighting the weight of the energy blast, Eda managed to tilt her spinning staff upward, letting the beam deflect toward the ceiling just above Dead Meat #2 and 3. The energy struck stone, shaking the entire hideout with a resounding crash, sending dust, rocks, and crystal falling towards the gremlins, who panicked and aimed their own staff up to create a barrier that protected them from all the debris. Eda watched as the shield absorbed the impact from every falling object without so much as a scratch, leaving her to wonder how she was gonna get past that.
"Eda!" Luz's cry diverted her attention. She looked back and saw her apprentice twirling in place on the ice, Dead Meat #4 wrapped in vines and being swung around like a wrecking ball in a gray blur. But this blur came to an end when Luz let go and shouted, "Cover your eyes!"
Time almost seemed to slow as the gremlin rapidly approached, zooming just past her face. And when he did, Eda saw that his entire body was covered in light glyphs. Smirking at what Luz was doing, Eda did exactly what she said, seeing a massive flash of light even through her closed eyelids. The screams of the gremlin gang echoed across the entire cave until the light ended, at which point Eda opened them and turned to see the three idiots moaning on the floor, shield gone thanks to a dropped staff. Their eyes were puffy and bloodshot while the one who was a makeshift flash bang grenade looked like he had a bad case of sunburn.
"Time for the wrap up!" Eda reached into her hair and pulled out a plant glyph, activating it and sending a small torrent of vines toward the three gremlins, drawing out loud, high-pitched yelps as they were ensnared. With them now immobilized, Eda crossed her arms and smirked proudly at the handiwork as she heard Luz slide along the ice next to her.
"Nice moves back there, Luz," Eda said, holding out her hand for a low-five. Luz didn't waste any time returning it.
"Thanks! Guess all that roller skating back home paid off," Luz blushed a bit at the praise right as King walked up, hoisting the last of the gremlins overhead before throwing him to his cohorts, dusting off his hands with a few claps.
"Hail to the King, baby!"
"… yeah, one-liners aren't your strong suit, little guy," Eda chuckled, King's whole dignified pose and wordplay coming across as just too cute to her.
"Blame Nero. He got me hooked on trying them," King said, huffing and kicking the icy ground at his failure to sound cool.
"Yeah, I've been trying them too," Luz added, scratching her cheek, "They're a lot harder than you'd expect."
"Well, now that that's done, you guys may want to take a few steps back," Eda handed her staff to Luz and cracked her knuckles, "I need to make an informal complaint with their curing services, if you get what I'm getting at."
Luz nodded, letting the staff revert back to Owlbert, who perched onto her shoulder as she and King backed away. As they did, Luz waved and said, "Try not to rough them up too much, Eda."
"Rough them up just enough," King added as Owlbert hooted.
No promises there, Eda glared down at the gremlins, who were quivering in terror.
"E-Eda, p-please understand," Dead Meat #1 gulped, "Times are hard and we just needed to make some quick Snails."
Dead Meat #2 nodded like Hell, "Yeah! What if we cut a deal? We give you 40% of all the profits we make, and you don't hurt us? D-Does that sound fair?"
Eda clenched her fist.
"50%? H-How about that? 60%, maybe?"
Eda cracked her neck muscles, getting angrier with each passing word coming out of their mouths.
"Okay, we'll give you everything we have! Just leave us alo-"
"Shut up."
All of them went silent at Eda's tone, which itself was low, deathly, and wrathful. She wasn't used to being like this, but she didn't care. These pricks deserved it for what they'd been doing. Bending down to get closer, she sneered, "You think I give a single shit about your money? Is that seriously what you think this is about?"
"I mean, you're just like us, so-"
"What did you just say?"
"D-Don't act like you have moral high ground, Owl Lady!" Now Dead Meat #4 was sneering at her through chattering teeth, "You're a con artist like us, swindling people's hard-earned Snails! We've heard all about the scams you've been running since you started bringing stuff back from the human world! If anyone here's the bigger monster, it's you!"
Eda narrowed her eyes at what he'd just said, a low growl escaping her throat. Monster. She'd been called that for as long as she could remember thanks to this damned curse. How many people, innocent or not, had she terrorized, hurt, or even killed whenever she lost control and rampaged as that mindless beast? She didn't know, and she probably never would. Hell, maybe she didn't want to know.
All she knew was this.
"You're right. I am a monster," Eda snarled, her shadow enveloping them all, "I lie, I cheat, I steal, and I hurt. It's all I've ever done for the past few decades." An itching sensation started crawling its way on her skin, "But no matter how bad I am, I don't do the shit you bastards pull. I don't go around giving false hope. I don't hound people too desperate to refuse." Eda narrowed her eyes, "I want to hear it from you. Have you ever once thought about the people you tricked?"
The gremlins all flinched, panicking as they weakly tried to back away from Eda. She matched their desperation with stomps that felt like they shook the entire cavern, all while Luz and King called her name in the background.
She ignored them.
She was too pissed off to care.
"Can you even begin to imagine what it's like to suffer and toil for so long, to finally find some sliver of a light at the end of the tunnel, only to have it, and everything else, stolen from you? To feel like nothing will get any better and that there's no point in trying, so better to wallow away alone?That's how I felt after you tricked me, just a stupid, naive teenager who was desperate enough to do anything."
They kept backing away, and she kept stomping toward them, her shadow looming more and more.
"And I'll bet that's how everyone you've ever tricked felt too. That's what you were trying to put my mother through. She doesn't deserve your shit, and she doesn't deserve mine either, but you tried to force it on her anyway."
She stomped again, her shadow growing in size as her kids shouted her name even louder. It felt like her own skin was trying to eat her alive. All her anger boiled and screamed to tear itself out.
"You call me a monster, and you're right, but you're no different from the biggest monster on the isles, trapping people with false hope and turning them into pawns for your own personal gain. You're all just another Belos. The absolute worst kind of monster!"
And then, as the gremlins were cornered, she finally heard her own voice. The deep, menacing reverb, and the feeling of fangs growing in her mouth. She looked down and saw her arms coat themselves with feathers, fingernails turning into talons sharp enough to rend steel, and it felt as if her own body was fighting against her. As Luz and King kept crying out her name, she tried to fight back what was coming, even reaching into her hair for an elixir, only to find nothing, having left them at home.
She wanted to turn back to her kids and yell for an emergency elixir, having taught them to always carry a few just in case. She wanted to yell at them to run from the cavern and get far, far away. But her eyes and their ever sharpening vision landed on the terrified gremlins first, and a sliver of anger entered, magnified beyond her control by the monster inside of her.
As she felt what little control she had left slip away from her, she used it to pounce on her prey. To keep the beast as far away from her kids for as long as possible. She could hear the gremlins cry out in fear, begging to be spared. But Eda couldn't spare them from what was coming even if she wanted to.
And to be honest, a massive part of her really didn't want to.
As her vision started to go dark, the last of her control gone, she sighed from within and relented to the beast.
Know what? Fuck it. They're all yours.
She felt her body open its maw wide and lunge forward, the sound of screaming gremlins in its wake.
"… okay, now THAT was disturbing."
Luz could only blink and grimace while covering her mouth, watching Eda in her Owl Beast form devour the gremlins alive. Even with all the disturbing stuff she'd witnessed in her time on the isles, the witch-in-training would admit to being grateful that the Owl Beast's huge frame meant she wasn't able to see anything too gruesome. She'd probably have thrown up otherwise.
The nicest thing she could say was that it was still nowhere near as disturbing as Hooty. A cold comfort, sure, but still a comfort.
"Ew," King shuddered, eyes not leaving the sight, "I mean, good riddance to those jerks, but still, gross."
Luz could only nod, but even then, she felt like what just happened was overkill for anyone. Sure, these guys were evil con artists who Eda had a personal beef with (even aside from them having tried to dupe Gwendolyn), but she was barely comfortable with way back when Eda ate that Adegast guy, too caught up with her own issues about not being a special chosen one to give it much thought at the time.
Well, what's done is done, I guess, Luz sighed, partially relieved that it was at the very least over. It could've ended better, but these guys wouldn't be able to scam or hurt anyone else. Now they just had to head home.
"Alright, I'm tired," King said, sharing Luz's thoughts as he yawned, "Let's go home." He held out a hand expectantly, "Luz, the elixir, if you will."
Luz's eyes went wide and she looked down at King in a panic, "WHAT!? You mean you don't have any on you!?"
Now it was King's turn to panic, "You didn't bring any!?"
"I thought you did!"
"Luz, look at me!" King gestured to his fury body, "No clothes, no pockets! Where would I be keeping them!?"
Owlbert was hooting like crazy from his perch on her shoulder as she tried to calm him down, only to see that the Owl Beast had slowly started turning towards them. Eda's form stood tall, entire body coated with gray fur as a deep, low growl escaped from the back of her throat. Large wings with black feathers spread and retracted on reflex, her massive white mane of hair encompassing the entirety of her back. She faced the three of them, large beards of gray hair protruding from equally large ears, given the impression of fangs. Her pitch black eyes stared down at them, mouth curling into a vicious smile filled with jagged, yellow teeth sharper than any blade, all of them fresh from the kill and ready for more.
King hid behind Luz, whimpering out a prayer, "Titan, please help us!"
"Runrunrunrunrun!" Luz yelled as she grabbed King and made a break for the cave entrance, Owlbert flying just behind her. Eda's screeching tore through the hideout, shattering the ice and shoving her forward through sheer force. Fortunately, she was able to roll on the ground and keep running without missing a step. Unfortunately, by the time she reached the entrance, she forgot that Eda had sealed it tight with an ice glyph.
And Eda still has that rune necklace, Luz panicked again when she heard the thundering stomps of the Owl Beast, but she just as quickly put together a plan. Setting King down, she grabbed the nearest rock and started carving a massive light glyph on the entrance.
"Uh, Luz!" King yelled, grabbing at Luz's shirt just as she put the finishing touches onto the glyph. She turned around and saw the Owl Beast facing her from the other end of the cave entryway, screeching to an almost deafening degree before beginning to charge for them.
"King, get behind me!" Luz tried not to let her terror show, though she was fairly certain it was obvious anyway. Once King was safely tucked behind her, she pressed herself closely to the wall, waiting for just the right moment. Closer… Luz thought, Eda nearing by the second, Closer…
NOW!
Luz slammed her hand against the light glyph and ducked, covering hers, King's, and Owlbert's eyes as the cave hallway was filled with a light so massive and bright that it made her makeshift flash bang grenade from earlier seem like a small firecracker. Even through her closed eyes, she could see and feel how bright it was. Next thing she knew, a screech of anger echoed out and a rush of wind flew just above her, followed by the resounding crunch of shattered stone and ice. In the following moments, Luz could feel bits of broken ice and dust fall against her skin.
Getting up with King and Owlbert, she saw that Eda had smashed through the entrance and cleared a path for them. With that out of the way, she held out her hand, letting Owlbert become a staff as she let King hop to her back. Now aboard Eda's staff, they flew out of the cave and high into the air, only sparing a small glance toward the Owl Beast as she tried to shake off the temporary blindness. Right now, she was intent on flying back to the Owl House as fast as she could.
Just gotta lure Eda home and give her some potions. That'll fix everything! Granted, Luz only had about 12% of a plan so far. To start, she didn't know exactly how she was gonna restrain Eda long enough to feed her the elixir. If she could get their fast enough, maybe she could set down enough glyphs (preferably ice or plant) to hold her down while she and King force fed her a potion or two?
Another loud screech tore through the air, King screaming, "LUZ! SHE'S RIGHT BEHIND US!"
"I know!" Luz turned back for a split second to see the Owl Beast gaining rapidly on them. At the speed they were going, there was no way they'd have time to set a trap back at the Owl House. Thinking quick, Luz tried to shake her, making a sharp turn and flying even higher, reaching deeper into the cloud layers above as large wings flapped behind her. It was getting hard to see with how thick the clouds were, but Luz was betting on that.
Hopefully it'll be hard for her to see too, Luz thought, still hearing the wing flaps but seeing no sign of the Owl Beast, We'll lose her in here and head back home to set the trap. She'll sniff us out if we stay too long. Handing King an invisibility glyph, she took a deep breath and slapped one onto herself before flying downward unseen right as Eda's massive shadow soared above them. They sunk lower into the cloud layers and emerged from beneath, releasing their breath and looking back up and hearing the loud flapping from within. She looked back and nodded to King, who seemed a bit more confident and nodded back with a thumbs up. "Let's get back to the house before-"
"SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"
Luz looked up and heard a loud boom follow that scream. For the briefest second, she saw the surrounding clouds disperse with the Owl Beast at the center, her wings closed in front of her as if she'd slammed them shut like a clap. Next thing she knew, a powerful gale hit her everywhere at once, making her lose hold of Owlbert and sending him, her, and King all plummeting for the ground.
"WWWWWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" Luz had no idea who was screaming louder: Her or King. All she knew was that she had to reach Eda's staff or they'd all go splat! She did the first thing she could think of and reached for her glyph notebook, but the buffeting winds rapidly tore the pages and scattered many of her notes far above. In a panic, Luz grabbed the last one just before it got away from her. Pulling it to her face, she looked and saw it was a plant glyph, which did little to relieve her as the ground kept getting bigger and kept approaching faster.
Looking to Eda's staff, which was far to her right with King even further from there (and further down), Luz activated the glyph and sent a tendril of vines towards it. With the staff reeled in, she took a sitting position and flew downward to rescue King. The ground was fast approaching all of them, King screaming his lungs out (thankfully not literally), and Luz was putting pedal to the metal to desperately reach him in time. Thankfully, she just barely managed to grab him by the hand and pull him onto the staff before making a very sharp 90 degree turn that was WAY too close to the ground for comfort. As they zoomed forward, she tried to keep them upright and slow down, but her feet made contact with the grass and they were all sent tumbling to the grassy, dirt covered floor.
"OOOF!" Luz let out as she tried to roll over. She'd felt far worse, but it still hurt. Her ears were ringing a bit, but she could hear King groaning from afar as she flipped onto her back, staring at the cloudy afternoon sky with bleary eyes. Amidst the clouds, she saw what looked like a large black dot rapidly growing larger, making her wonder if her eyesight was busted after that crash.
She didn't realize until it was too large for comfort just what that dark blur was. Her eyes went wide, but before she could get up or roll out of the way, that dark blur landed right on her as she slammed her eyes shut and heard the resounding impact shake the surrounding forest. Luz opened one eye to see that she was thankfully unharmed, but unfortunately trapped beneath one of the Owl Beast's claws, talons digging into the ground beneath and keeping her from moving. Not that she could bring herself to, with the beast's face so close to her own, growling and baring all her teeth, breath reeking of blood.
Luz winced and whimpered, closing her eyes and turning her head to try and mentally prep herself for what felt like the inevitable. But Eda sniffed at her and something shifted. Opening one eye, Luz looked and saw the Owl Beast stare down at her with curiosity rather than the anger from before. Dare she say it, but the way the beast blinked at her was almost adorable.
It's probably be a lot more adorable and less scary if she wasn't still beneath her claws.
"E-Eda!" Luz and the Owl Beast looked over and saw King, a little banged up and trembling, but with Owlbert perched on his shoulder as he slowly approached with an outstretched, open hand, "Y-You remember me right? Remember us?"
"Y-yeah. I'm Luz, and that's King. We're your friends!" Luz stammered, but did her best to remain resolute, even with the Owl Beast looking down on her again.
"And… more than that, we're… we're your family," King rubbed at the back of his head as Owlbert hooted cutely. He carefully walked up just a bit more, slowly getting close enough pat his paw against Eda's forelimb as the beast stared at him, "You always call us your kids, remember? You've always been like a mom to m-I mean, to us."
"Please Eda, you have to remember us!" Luz pleaded, unsure if she was reaching Eda or not. It seemed a lot less scary when Nero did it with Lilith earlier. Her mind was also kinda stuck on King saying that the Owl Lady was like a mom to him. Sure, Luz always figured that's how he felt, but she was pretty sure this was the first time he'd said it outright. Of course, it all just reminded Luz of her own mother back in a world she'd probably never see again, but she tried to put her worries aside for now since Eda took priority.
The Owl Beast leaned down and gave experimental sniffs to both Luz and King, making them wince. She really hoped that Eda wasn't gonna try and eat them. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath and braced herself just in case.
"… Luz… King?"
Luz opened her eyes wide, looking at King, who had the same shock on his face.
"Luz… King… family…"
"Eda!" Luz and King cheered just as Eda lifted her talon from Luz, letting her go as the Owl Beast backed up, shaking her head. The two of them were about to rush up and hug her, glad that she was getting back to normal, but then she started sniffing the air. A low growl emanated from the back of her throat, causing Luz and King to back up a bit in worry.
"Family… sister… Lilith!" The Owl Beast's growl became more prominent, turning into an outright snarl as her wings flared up. Eda got low before launching herself into the air with a powerful wing clap that shook all surrounding trees and sent Luz and King flying back what felt like several feet. Thankfully, Luz was close enough to grab King and hug him tightly, cushioning the blow as her back slammed into a tree.
"OOOF!" Luz yelped and slid to the ground, "Oooooowwww…" After a bit of groaning, she put King down gently and got up, rubbing at her back to ease the pain.
"What was that about?" King asked, looking up to where Eda flew off with worry as Owlbert flew back to her shoulder.
Well, she mentioned Lilith, so that could mean- Combined with how the Owl Beast was looking up and sniffing the air, Luz gasped, quickly putting two-and-two together, "Eda's going after Lilith!"
"But why would she-" King stopped himself and answered his own question, "Oh, right, the curse thing." He still looked confused as he said, "But I thought we were all past that part by now!"
"Not completely." And Eda's probably burying a lot more anger than she lets on. "Hop on, King! We gotta stop her before she reaches them!" Luz held out her hand and let Owlbert enter her palm with a hoot. He quickly turned into his staff form and allowed Luz and King to hop on, taking them into the air, "Owlbert, know any shortcuts to Eda's old house?"
"HOO!" Owlbert took them high into the sky and flew off. Luz wasn't sure where he was flying them, but she trusted his instincts to know the fastest way there.
She just hoped they'd beat the Owl Beast to the punch before someone got hurt.