Hell's Boiling Point

by ShootToMiss

Summary:

[Formerly "Hell on the Boiling Isles] "So get this... there's this girl. Normal girl, nothing strange about her. She gets sent to this summer camp... but the camp calls her mother and tells her she never made it. And that's when things turn sideways." When the BPRD investigates the disappearance of Luz Noceda, Hellboy ends up taking a vacation to the Boiling Isles...

Chapter 1: Runaway Girl on the Luz

Notes:

A shorter story I’ve decide to work on. I’ve been hitting writer’s block with my other two stories- Exiles and The Games Rich People Play (go check em out, I’d love to hear feedback on them), and I feel like I need to stir my brain up to keep going. This probably won’t be too many chapters, but I hope it’ll be a decent crossover.

Don’t worry, I’m not gonna keep starting story after story without finishing. I’ve looked around and the general consensus is that you can have three stories going before you start stretching yourself too thin. I’m close to done with the other stories’ chapters anyway.

Edit: I added a little something something to the end of both chapters, some embedded videos- it's an experiment. Let me know how y'all feel about it. If you like it, I'll keep it in. If it's too jarring, no biggie, I can take em out easy.

A man lifts a cigar to his mouth before lighting it. “So get this…” He puffs out.

“There’s this girl… a normal girl, nothing strange about her. She lives with her mom, goes to school, reads her favorite books, the works. Sure, she’s a bit of a rambunctious kid with a big imagination, but she isn’t packing some hidden powers or anything.” He taps his cigar, the ashes falling off. A shine catches his eye, prompting him to investigate. “But she does know how to get herself into messes. See, she causes a few incidents at school cause of her more… “ambitious” projects. Gets a little too graphic in a play, uses a swarm of spiders for a model Griffon, and brings in snakes for a book report. Course, that Griffon thing is pretty accurate… but probably not what a normal kid should be doing in a normal school.”

He reaches down and picks up the shining object. A marble. “So after the snake thing, ol’ mom decides it’s time to stifle… I mean, reign in her daughter’s imagination. She signs her up for this summer camp that’s all about bookkeeping and filing taxes and… reality. Sounds like hell, which is a lot coming from me.” He flicks the marble up in the air and catches it, staring at it again when it rests in his palm. “So when the summer begins, she sees her kid off, but needs to leave for work before the bus arrives. She trusts her girl and asks her to text once she gets to camp.”

He pockets the marble, then makes his way through the woods. “Sometime later, after work, the mom texts her daughter, to see if she made it okay. The girl confirms. Pretty normal, nothing seemingly wrong… but then about that time, that’s when the actual counselors at the camp call… and where the real trouble begins.”

---

Camilia had flopped onto her favorite chair, glad to be through with a rough day. She hadn’t been able to get off until late at night, swamped with patients. Even her lunch break had to be cut short for an emergency…

Which reminded her: she hadn’t gotten the chance to text Luz yet. By now, she should’ve been getting ready for bed, probably after the introduction ceremonies at the camp… if they had those at an “inside the box” camp. “How’s summer camp?” She texted.

Oh Mija… She wondered if she had done the right thing, sending her to this place. She knew she looked disappointed before she had gotten on the bus… it’s not as if she had wanted to resort to this option. After that hijo de puta left the two of them, she only dived deeper into her love of wizarding fantasies to cope. But the incidents had started piling up, and the school wouldn’t tolerate them anymore. They had threatened suspension, or even expulsion. So, Camilia had to put her foot down, for Luz’s sake.

A ring from her phone alerted her. “I think I’m gonna like it here.” Luz’s text wrote. She sighed in relief. Perhaps things wouldn’t be so bad after all. Especially if Luz was already having fun.
Another ring from her phone, this time for a call. She didn’t know who decided to call this late in the evening, and she didn’t seem to recognize the number. It could have been a robo call. She let it pass, not wanting to deal with something like that.

Once the call passed however, she noticed the same number had called her several times today. She had turned off her phone while working, but it seems someone really wanted to get in touch with her during that time.

She quickly called the number back, curious about the circumstances.

“Hello?” Came a voice from the line.

“Uh, yes. This is Camilia Noceda. You’ve called me several times today. I apologize, I was at work, and had my phone turned off. I only just got off around forty five minutes ago.”

“Ah, Mrs. Noceda! I’m Artie Felds, a counselor at Reality Check. Yes, we’ve been trying to get in touch with you. It’s about your daughter.”

Camilia felt a twinge of worry. “Oh no. Did she cause an accident at camp? I promise it won’t happen again, she can let her imagination get away from her.”

“Excuse me?”

“I know it might’ve caused some chaos, but I hoped she might learn a bit of balance while she was there.”

“Mrs. Noceda, what are you talking about?”

“…Que?”

“Turns out, that little summer camp about filing taxes and crunching numbers sure liked to keep consistent records. Go figure. So when a camper doesn’t arrive, they’re pretty quick to call the family about it.”

“Mrs. Noceda, I was calling to see if you wanted a refund for your registration. We assumed there was a family emergency of some kind…”

“Uh, Mr. Felds, was it? What are you talking about?”

A tense pause from the other side of phone. “Um… Mrs. Noceda… your daughter never arrived at camp.”

Camilia’s heart felt as if it had stopped. Her fingers grew cold, clenching the phone as tightly as a snake. She struggled to breath for a moment.

“Mrs. Noceda?! Are you still with me?”

She took a deep breath. “I’m sorry… I’m sorry, I need to go.” She hung up, quickly dialing a new number after.

“9-1-1, what’s your emergency?”

“Please, I… my daughter has gone missing.”

---

“Where did you last see your daughter ma’am?” The police officer asked. Camilia stood in front of her home, many cops walking around, inspecting the property.

“I had left her in front of our house so she could wait for the bus.” She drew her hands up to her face. “I thought she would be safe in our neighborhood…”

“Yeah, everyone thinks their neighborhood is the safest place around.” The other police officer said, only making Camilia feel worse.

“In any case,” The first one said, recognizing the insensitivity. “We’ll do everything we can to find her. Is there anything else you can tell us? Any strange things that might have been happening around here recently?”

“I… I texted her. And she answered me back. Right before the summer camp called.” She lifted up her phone and showed the texts.

Before he could look over the message, another officer walked over. “Mendoza, I’ve got a witness from across the street. Says the kid ran off into the forest, but why, she couldn’t say.”

Mendoza nodded, then quickly looked at the texts Camilia provided. “Ms. Noceda, what kind of summer camp were you sending her to?”

“It was Reality Check. It’s a camp meant to teach kids to be more down to earth. My daughter’s imagination was starting to get the better of her. It caused a few incidents at school.”

“Hmm… well, Ms. Noceda, this might not be as bad as it looks.”

---

“The police figured it was a run away scenario. Girl feels out of place, thinks she doesn’t belong, or something else. So, the police figure she couldn’t have made it too far, and send a squad out into a forest. They even get dogs to make it quicker.”

“Fan out. If there’s any trace of where the girl went, we’ll find it in this forest.” Mendoza said, as his group began combing the area. Each one had a hound on leash. “Get your hounds to sniff out every inch they can. “You’re with me, Officer Stacy.”

The blonde nodded. “You got it, Corporal.”

Mendoza then leaned down to let their dog smell an Azura doll, something the girl played with often, according to her mother. “C’mon, Riley. Let’s get a girl home to her mother.”

The dog sniffed a few times, before barking in one direction, leading the officers onward.

It hadn’t been too long of walk, when Riley reached his destination.

“Well, if that ain’t spooky.” Stacy commented.

Before them stood an abandoned house. It was run down, probably waiting for some kid to come make it a dangerous clubhouse of some kind. Mendoza sighed. “Looks like we’ve found our run away hideaway. C’mon, we’ll coax her out of there.” He heard a whimper and looked to Stacy. She gave him a confused look back, before both of them noticed the culprit: Riley.
The poor dog was entirely submissive, ears and tail drooping, never taking his eyes away from the house. Mendoza responded by trying to pull him forward- he pulled back instead.

“Riley’s the bravest dog in the squad. The hell could be in there that’s scaring him?” Stacy asked Mendoza.

He didn’t have an answer, instead choosing to pull his gun out to search the house. It didn’t take much time, but his heart was pounding the whole way. Each room he feared he might find a bear or some thing worse… and even more, he feared he might find a poor girl’s body massacred by it.

It both his relieved and concerned him when he finished. “There’s nobody in there. I mean nothing, no animals or people… not a thing.”

“Then why the hell is Riley so scared?”

“That’s what I’d like to know.” Mendoza heard static from his radio.

“Coporal Mendoza, come in, Corporal. This is Officer Griggs.”

“This is Mendoza. What’s your status?”

“Might be nothing, sir… but did you drop your sniffer dog’s doll?”

Mendoza looked to Stacy, who showed said item was in her pack. “No. Still secure. Why are you asking?”

“Because I just found one… and it looks pretty new.”

Mendoza paused, thinking on this.
“This is Officer Dare, I’ve been seeing random pieces of junk all over too. Saw some toys myself, but also a pair of glasses, and even shoes. And yeah, some look like they only dropped in the dirt recently.”

“Officer Williams here. I found a lunchbox and a radio. Even a book or two.”

This was starting to worry the Corporal. Quite a few items that kids would use… they could’ve been simply lost by the children from the surrounding neighborhoods. But Mendoza didn’t want to take chances.

---

“The Corporal was starting to think that maybe it wasn’t so simple as a girl running away from home. Things were strange enough when the CSI’s couldn’t find DNA on the house or the toys, but the traced call is where things really turned sideways.”

Camilia looked at the officers around the room. The one in headphones gave Mendoza a thumbs up, and he in turn nodded at Camilia. She quickly dialed her daughter’s number.

Ring.

Ring.

Ring.

“Hello?”

“Sweetie?”

“Oh, hey mom! What’s up?”

Camilia wanted so badly to ask if she was alright. But the police had told her to act natural- if someone had taken her daughter, they were likely only letting Luz answer to not arouse suspicion. Even if she still only ran away, if she knew they had realized she’d run, she might stop answering her phone. “I just wanted to check in on you sweetie.”

“Already? Didn’t you check in the other night?”

“It’s been some time since we’ve been away from each other like this. I guess I’m still worried.”

“O…kay?”

Camilia couldn’t believe how casual she was being about this. Then again, Officer Mendoza did say she might’ve been enticed by her captors and simply didn’t know what danger she was in. “So, how has the camp been so far?”

“Oh, uh… you know. Taxes and stock exchanges and… bundles more! But, you know, made fun!”

Camilia could tell she was lying, not just because of what she already knew, but the tone in her voice. “Are you sure? I… I know you weren’t exactly excited when I left you.”

“Oh… well… It’s just, after being here for a while, I think my opinion’s really turned around. You know, uh, really got to know the place.” *BANG* “Listen, uh… they’re about to start the, um… the next activity!”

“What? What activity? What was that noise?”

“Oh nothing, just a couple of the other campers having some fun!” *BANG* “I’ll call you back soon, love ya!”

“Wait! Mija! I… I just wanted to say I’m sorry.”

“…Huh?”
“I’m sorry if… if I ever made you feel like it wasn’t ever okay for you to be yourself. I know it’s been hard after… after your father left. But I only wanted what was best for you. But if you truly aren’t enjoying yourself… you can tell me. Because I love you. No matter what happens, I’ll always love you. And if you want to go home, you can tell me. And we’ll talk about a plan both of us can be happy with. Ok?”

“Yeah, Mom. I’d like that. Honestly, I really am enjoying it here. But I’d like that. And I love you too.” *BANG* *CRASH* “Oh boy! Sorry mom, I gotta go!” *click*

“Wait, Luz, don’t-” She heard the tone, and realized she was gone. Tears welled in her eyes. “Oh mija…”

Mendoza placed a hand on her shoulder. “It’s okay, Ms. Noceda. That should’ve been long enough for us to-”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” The Officer using the phone tracker jumped back out of his seat. Several sparks started coming out of it, too dangerous to approach. But it soon became worse, the sparks becoming full on lightning, burning into the ground around the tracker. It finally died down, the lightning disappearing.

Officer Stacy broke the silence. “What… the hell… was that?”

Mendoza used a baton to tilt the tracker, investigating the burns. It formed a perfect circle. “I don’t know… but I think we might be in over our heads.”

---

“So, the police realize they’ve got no idea what’s going on. They call in for some kind of backup… and it eventually reaches us. The Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense. Once that little situation reaches our ears… well, we know exactly what’s going on.”

“So that’s the deal. Girl’s been kidnapped, but all our leads are mysterious kinds of dead ends, and with the tracker incident…” Mendoza told a woman from the BPRD as they stood in front of the Noceda house.

“You’ve contacted the right division, Cpl. Mendoza. We’ve got the tools and people to find this girl.”

“I hope so, Ms. Corrigan. Ms. Noceda’s been losing her mind over her missing daughter.”

“Just guide us to that house you found and we’ll take it from there.”

“Officer Mendoza?”

The two turned to find said mother walking up to them. “Are… are these the people who can find my Luz?”

“They are, Ms. Noceda, but I really must ask that you head back inside…”

All three were interrupted by a large figure emerging from the forest. “Hey, Kate. Liz and Abe are already getting some bizarre readings-” He didn’t get the chance to finish, cut off by a high pitched scream. “Ah, crap.”

“Oh Dios, es el Diablo!”

“Yeah. I get that a lot. It’s the face, really. One of those faces everybody recognizes.”

Camilia and Mendoza looked on in stunned silence. Only for them to be even more surprised when Morrigan walked up to him. “You were saying, Hellboy?”

“Oh. Yeah… The others found readings similar to the other hideaways we’ve been to, scattered across the planet. But they’re more potent. They said it’s looking like it might lead to another dimension. Not one we’ve been to before. Need more time to recreate it.”

“Right. Anything they need?”

“Grocery list is right here.” Hellboy handed Kate a paper. He glanced over to the two fearful people. “Maybe I should head back over there.” He started to head back into the forest.

Camilia didn’t necessarily understand what they talked about… but it seemed this BPRD was her closest shot at getting Luz home. “W…wait!” Hellboy turned as Ms. Noceda ran up to him. “Please… I don’t know what’s going on anymore… but, if you’re really el Diablo, I…” Tears welled in her eyes, before cascading down. “Please, I’ll do anything to have my daughter back. I-I just… she’s all I have left. I’ll give my soul, even-”

“Hey, hey, hey.” Hellboy said gently. “Come on, now. I can’t stand to see a pretty girl cry.” He sighed. “Listen… I’m not the guy from downstairs. All we’re here to do is get your girl home safe and sound. No catch, no strings… nothing. We’re only here for your sake.” He gave her a sincere smile. “We’ll find her. Okay?”

The tears only seemed to fall harder. Her breathing hitched. “Thank you… thank you so much.” Mendoza finally had the courage to step forward and began guiding Camilia back to the house.

Kate looked at Hellboy solemnly. “There’s a good chance that whatever took her has already… well…”

“Yeah… I know. But maybe I can be the thing she blames for losing her, instead of herself.”

---

Hellboy stood before the abandoned house, now crawling with BPRD agents. Camilia Noceda’s teary face burned in his mind. “So, that’s the story. Some girl’s been kidnapped by an unknown force and we’re the only ones who have a chance to save her. We’ve been scrambling for several days now to crack the code to whatever dimensional door opened up in this house. It’s slow… but we’re getting there. And if we can’t make it for the girl…” He glanced down at his gun, the Good Samaritan. “I’ll be sure to give ‘em Ms. Noceda’s regards.”

The BPRD recruit stood there, looking at him in awe. "Wow... seems a lot more important than the guy who brings the donuts..."

"Eh, don't worry so much. We're all doing our part. Just keep working hard, and they'll give ya bigger stuff eventually." Hellboy plucked a chocolate covered donut from the box. "Besides, to me, you're doing God's work."

He walked up, entering the house himself. Abe was busy setting up new equipment to test the possible power output they would need. Liz was researching runes and glyphs, looking for the right combination. “Hey, Abe. Liz. Found another trinket.” He threw the marble he had collected onto a pile of the various other objects that had been found.

“Heard you talking out there. Scaring the new recruits?” The fish man asked as Hellboy took a bite from his donut..

"Let's maybe wait till the case is done before we start using it for storytime?" Liz spoke up without looking up from her books. “Sure hope this tale ends as a punchline and not as a horror story.”

“Think I’ll kick the ass of whoever did this regardless. Cause either way, I’m not laughing.” He took the Azura doll from his other pocket and looked over it. “God knows what that girl must be going through.”

---

“No, no, nonononononononono…” She struggled, trying her best to keep the red liquid from pouring out onto the floor. But it seemed pointless as dripped through her hands. Nothing could help her now…

The door to the bathroom flung open, revealing a somewhat confused Eda. “Luz, have you seen my bottle of overflowing red slime?” Eda’s eyes widened as she saw Luz covered in a mass of red good, trying desperately to get the blobs on the floor back into the bottle.

“I… might have been playing out an acting role I had. I was a dead corpse! …It got out of hand.”

---

[time 0:34]

A statue with three heads is zoomed in on; its eyes light up when fully closed in.

Based on characters from Dark Horse Comics and Disney

A pistol marked "The Good Samaritan" floats by...

Ron Perlman as Hellboy

Then paper with the light glyph...

Sarah Nicole Robles as Luz Noceda

The owl staff...

Wendie Malick as Eda Clawthorne

And a stuffed animal...

....and Alex Hirsch as King and Hooty

ShootToMiss Presents-

 

 

HELL'S BOILING POINT

Notes:

Hoo boy, won’t Hellboy get a kick out of what the situation actually is. Trust me, later in life we’re all just gonna look back on this point and laugh…

And yeah, it’s probably going to deviate from the Owl House’s canon.

Chapter 2: Get Outta Town

Summary:

Hellboy gets very acquainted with the wildlife, who are all too happy to tell him all the hot new vacation spots.

Notes:

I’m shocked at how popular this story got after only one chapter. I’m honestly really flattered. I suppose it’s because my other two main stories are these massive crossovers that might be a little overwhelming in terms of characters and franchises.

But hey, this story made it to the The Owl House fanfic recs page on TV Tropes! I’m honestly flattered. It means a lot to me that someone thought my story was worth being advertised like that. Hope I can keep living up to that expectation.

A quick note: I reference the hellboy animated movie Sword of storms… which never actually happened in the comics continuity. I felt it didn’t upheaval too much in the grand scheme of things, so I grafted it in to my crossover’s canon. Blood and Iron, however, is not canon to this timeline. That still belong to Wake the Devil.

Edit: Since I did this to both chapters on the same day, I'll mention again- I'm experimenting with some videos at the end of these first two chapters. If y'all like it, I'll keep going with it. But if too many find it jarring, I'll take em out.

The paper in my hand looks awfully convincing. In a world where the camp didn’t call Ms. Noceda, this might’ve been a clean coverup. It’s just as she said… the handwriting looks exactly the same as the kid’s. So either Luz herself is sending these letters, or her captors are. It’s like this case keeps devolving into some kind of sick joke.

“You just got it this morning?”

“Yes, it was with my other mail.” Camilia’s shaking. I don’t blame her. It almost seems like this piece of paper is taunting whoever reads it. Like it thinks it can spit in your face cause there’s nothing you can do about it.

“And your texts?”

“Luz has started to only respond with emojis.” That’s bad. Sure as hell sounds like a grownup trying to be a kid. The letter, too. It’s subtler, but there. One sentence has her wanting to do non-specific “mother/daughter” activities. Whatever the hell that means… “I did get in touch with her last night, but she answered quickly and kept the call short. I heard noises in the background again.”

“That’s good. It means she’s still alive, wherever she is.” That might be a lie, but even I’m not sure. Truth is, I’ve had my fair share of encounters with creeps that can mimic voices. Maybe her kidnappers are trying to taunt Camilia, make her think her daughter is alright before coming out with the horrid surprise. But suggesting that out loud sure as hell isn’t going to be light on Camilia’s conscience. So I keep it to myself.

“And… the cabin?”

“The BPRD is hard at work finding any traces of Luz or the kidnappers. We think we got something to work off of.” That was hopefully true. Our guys and gals found the door to the cabin itself had the most residual magic left behind. Makes sense, using a door as a door. A real novel idea. We’re just having a hard time pinning it down, is all. Bad news for me is, they’re bringing in a psychic to try and get a clearer image. And man, do I hate psychics. “I can’t give you a specific amount of time, but we’re on a fast track to cracking it.”

She sits down in a chair, obviously mentally and emotionally exhausted. The worst part about all this is that she can’t take off any days from work. She’s a single mom trying to provide for her (now missing) kid and her job is a nurse in a hospital. You tell me how stressed she probably is. “Every single night this goes on I feel like I’m losing my mind. I can’t… I can’t help feeling this is my fault. I should have never tried to send her to that camp. I pushed her away, right into the arms of some stranger who wants to do God knows what with her.”

I’m not having any of that. “Don’t go there. None of this is your fault. You were doing what any mother would, trying to get your kid to make friends and get her to step outside her comfort zone. Whether or not you approached from the right angle is something you can talk with your daughter about… but it’s got nothing to do with her being kidnapped. It’s the bad guy’s fault. They’re the ones who thought taking advantage of mother and daughter was a good idea, the creeps who thought that anything good comes from kidnapping kids. Blaming yourself is what they want. They like it when the victims think they’re the ones at fault because it’s one of the sick pleasures they get out of life.”

“I know, I know, but… I can’t help but feel I could’ve done something. I thought she would be safe on our street. A cop reminded me that… shouldn’t be assumed.” I think I know which cop she’s talking about. Officer Brady, a real mouthy guy from what Kate says. Kept delivering smart comments while she worked with them. Or at least, comments he thought were smart.

He’s an idiot, is what I’m saying. What kind of asshole gives a mother grief while she’s worrying about her missing child? “Don’t worry about him. Some people don’t know when to stop talking.” I take a look at the letter again. I’m not too keen on leaving it with her, if only because it might cause her more stress just by looking at it.

“Might be best if I take this letter with me. I’m gonna have some agents come down to check on your house, see if there’s anything we can trace from your mailbox. Don’t worry, they’re pros. They know how to do their job without being invasive about it.”

“Thank you, Mr. Hellboy.”

I give her a friendly smile. “Come on, ma’am. I keep telling ya, it’s just Hellboy. Never been a fan of being called mister.”

She gives a small smile back. “Of course.” I nod back at her before going out the door.

Since we first spoke a week ago, our group’s been keeping in touch with Camilia. Since she’d only just been introduced to the idea that magic and monsters are real, we’ve been trying to take it slow, so she doesn’t panic too much. She’s been taking it rather well, all things considered. Sometimes I feel like she might actually already know it’s real- but that’s just conspiracy at this point. It’s more likely that she realizes that either way, someone took her daughter. Doesn’t make a difference whether they’re a wizard or not in that regard. And I did finally manage to completely convince her I wasn’t Satan, so there’s that.

Course I realize I tend to be the one who volunteers to go update her on our progress. What can I say? I got a soft spot for kids. You would too if you were a kid summoned to earth by nazis to bring the apocalypse. Seeing a mother so afraid for her girl tugs at my heartstrings. Kinda reminds me a lot of Professor Broom.

The cabin’s as lively as ever. Agents in yellow hazmat suits running around, quadruple checking for anything they missed. Kate’s muttering to herself about any local legends that might be involved. Abe and Liz are reading through all the books on magic we have.

“Kate, got something for ya.” I’m almost glad when I give the letter to her. I swear, holding that thing alone was starting to get on my nerves. “Ms. Noceda just got it this morning. Don’t know if it was the girl or her “lovely hosts”.” I mean, I have my reasons to believe it’s not the kid. What teenager sends letters nowadays?

“This could help us pinpoint the magic energies of the house.” She signals an agent over to get some readings done. “Honestly, if we had a more vivid analysis of this specific magic, we’d have an easier time working off of it. I feel like I’ve been trying to work a connect the dots page, except it’s missing most of the dots.”

“No kidding. My analogy would’ve been a crossword with no hints, personally.” Once Abe and Liz wander over I give ‘em my other errand. “This letter magically appeared in Ms. Noceda’s mailbox. Y’all mind running over there to do some scans?”

Liz tosses her book aside. “Might be a good break from a dingy old cabin. I haven’t had any luck here so far.”

“Indeed. Our usual sources of information don’t have anything to help us here.” Abe notes.

“And none of the town’s folklore really matches this case.” Kate piped up from behind.

I can already feel the annoyance. “Guess that means only one option. Ugh...”

“C’mon, Hellboy. We’ve exhausted our other resources. A psychic can see the picture much more clearly than we can, and it’ll be much faster than using what we have on hand.” Kate nudges me with her elbow. “Besides, you and this psychic have already met.”

“That might make it worse.” Unfortunately, she’s right. As much as I don’t like them, a psychic’s our best bet at finding the girl right now. Doesn’t mean I have to like it. “Fine. But I won’t stick around for the hammy prose if I don’t have to.”

“Fair enough.” Kate acknowledges.

“In the meantime, I guess we better head down to Ms. Noceda’s. We don’t want the magic energies to deteriorate before we can get a good look at them.” Liz begins trudging towards the Noceda household.

Abe wasn’t far behind. “Indeed. I doubt we would’ve been so slow in our investigations if we’d arrived sooner. But that’s how things play out sometimes...”

“I told Ms. Noceda you wouldn’t be invasive. Make sure she’s comfortable before you go poking around everywhere.”

“You got it.”

“Of course. Good luck with your eternal hatred of psychics, Hellboy.” Abe shouts out. He leaves before I can say something back.

Kate must hear the grumbling come out of my mouth. “He makes a good point, you know. Sometimes it’s almost as if you think they’re out to get you.”

“Look, I get they can get visions on crap like this. But if I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a million times… They usually only tell you what you already know. And what help they bring is always too little, too damn late. I don’t want him to tell me some confusing foreshadowing riddle that I’ll only get once I’m holding the girl’s dead body in my arms.”

“Funny you should say that exact ‘million-time’ statement...” I raise an eyebrow at that.

“Ma’am!” I don’t get a chance to ask before one of the grunts comes rushing in. “The escort has just arrived with Russell Thorn.”

Russell Thorn? Ah, damn. I do know this guy. He helped us out with the incident in Japan. Yeah… yeah, I remember, the one with the Japanese demons and the magical katana. We got breakfast afterward… and aspirin. Everybody was feeling sore after that little event. We’ve … tolerated each other since then.
Maybe he’ll learn from last time and know how much I hate it when the brain boys tell me what I already know.

---

“Yes… yes. I see a doorway was here… yes, an opening between realms was torn for the longest time, only to suddenly vanish. I see a girl cast into that other world…”

I know Kate’s looking at me. She can tell when I start getting pissed. “Why don’t you… step out for a smoke, Hellboy?”

“Yeah. Think I’ll do that. Maybe look for more trinkets while I’m out…”

---

I don’t hate all psychics. But man, do a lot of ‘em not live up to Lady Cynthia.

Whatever. At least looking for toys and other items around the forest isn’t so frustrating. The items might not have fingerprints on them, but it looks like even they have some residual magic on them. Which might as well be fingerprints for us.

A glint catches my eye. Looks like another marble, same pattern as the one I found before. Whoever took ‘em must’ve accidentally ripped the bag they were in. Gotta say, monsters kidnaps humans a lot, but that usually makes sense. I can’t seem to wrap my head around why they would take all this crap.

But it’s evidence, so I can’t say I don’t appreciate them leaving breadcrumbs. As I reach for it, I suddenly find myself grasping at nothing. I look around, seeing if I somehow pushed it away…

Only to find myself with a tiny new friend. An owl… looks like a pygmy owl specifically. He’s got the marble in his mouth and is giving me this odd look. “Hey. I know that looks interesting and all, but I’m gonna need that back. Now just hold still a moment and-” The thing runs. Cause of course it does. “Damn…”

What follows probably isn’t the most embarrassing I’ve done, but it’s up there… a big demon guy chasing a tiny owl for a marble. Must be the funniest damn sight in the world from the outside.
The bird bobs and weaves, turning sharper corners than I thought it could. Eventually, it starts flying, but I manage to keep up with it. It lands in a clearing… one that I know is close to the cabin, so I better wrap this up before someone sees me. Looks like it hasn’t realized I was able to follow it; its attention is on some bag on the ground. Looks like it found more goodies. I use the opportunity to sneak up on it, do my best to not rustle the grass… then jump on it, covering the bird with my stone hand.

It wriggles, but I’ve got it now. It doesn’t take me long to pry the marble from its mouth. “Sorry, little guy. But like I said, I need this thing.” I pocket the marble so he can’t get to it. Satisfied with what I have, I open my palm so he can move freely.

“Hoo!” He says to me. Looks like he’s not too happy.

“Hey, I’m sure you would’ve gotten a kick outta this thing. But you might wanna stick to mice for now.” I give him a little pet- he doesn’t try to bite me for doing so. But instead of soft feathers, I feel… wood?

Before I can register, he jumps from my hand and grabs the bag he was looking at. I manage to glance what’s inside: a slinky, a silly straw, a witch doll-

Wait. Those were all things we found in the woods. Things we left in… “The cabin!”

The owl seems to not like the situation anymore and shoots up into the air with the bag. I reach for him but miss both the bird and its cargo just a tad too late. “Get back here, you wooden antique!”

It doesn’t take us long to get to the cabin. It’s open, not like how I left it. “Kate! Get that damn bird! Before he gets in the house!” Unfortunately, none of them can register what I just said. The bird makes it inside and shuts the door. Even jumping the porch, I don’t make it. Before I can touch the doorknob, a flash of light comes from within the house. When I open the door, everything -our evidence, the bag, the bird- all of it is gone. “DAMN IT!”

Kate ran up to the house behind me. She probably didn’t even see it. “What the hell is happening? What was that?”

“A tiny trash thief, that’s what. You see who opened this door?”

“I thought… I thought it was just one of the agents.”

“Nah. A little wooden owl. Took all of our items and flew off into another world.”

“Damn. They must’ve sent the owl to cover their tracks and keep us off the trail. And considering the letter… they’re trying to stall us as long as they can.”

Then that’s it. If they want to stall us then that means they’re planning to do something with the girl, and they don’t want us interrupting. Trying to track them down with the letter or what little trinkets are left in the forest won’t be fast enough. “Hey! Brain boy!” I head down the porch to my “friend” Russell. “We’re running out of options here. We’ve got a gateway that only freshly closed, and you’re the only one who might have a chance to see how we can open it back up.”

“Look, it’s not that I don’t want to. But I can only see what they show me.”

“If it worked in the Japan incident, it’ll work here. Just try.” Kate adds in. Russell gives a sigh of resignation and walks up to the door. He stays silent for a few moments.

“…I’m sorry. It’s just the same as I told you before, Kate. I see a black mass that consumes all in fear… a curse that comes from incredibly close… and I see a girl in the snake’s- no, the owl’s nest. There’s nothing mor- Hold on. Yes… yes! I have something!” He reached his arm out to us. “Please, hand me something to draw with!” Kate’s quick to throw a pen to him. He begins drawing on the door itself. “This image is burned into the place where the doorway opened. It’s fading quickly, but I think I can… here.”

He finishes up his little art class, shows us his work. It’s a circle, and inside the image is… well… it’s hard to describe. To me at least, it looks like a spiral, with hands holding it open all around its circumference. In the middle is the image of an eye… a demon’s eye. While I can’t describe its appearance any better, both Kate and I know exactly what it is. “It’s a glyph.”

“And it might just be the lead we needed.” She pulls out her phone and takes a picture, then starts dialing a number. “I’m going to call Liz and Abe, then the Bureau. If this image or anything like it is anywhere in our archives, we’ll find it. Russell, I need you with me in case you have any newer visions.”

I see ‘em walk off towards the other agents. Kate starts giving them new directions. I decide to stick around, looking at the image on the door. Part of me’s relieved, we’ve got another lead and it’ll hopefully get as further than before. Just hope we’re not too late.

That image though… there’s something about the eye. Something I can’t quite place… it looks familiar to me. Guess that’ll be a mystery I’m gonna have to solve as we go along. Since we just avoided a near miss, I decide to relive the rest of my stress with a smoke. Poor, clumsy me accidentally drops my lighter however, and it falls under the doorway. Today’s been filled with major and minor inconveniences alike.

What probably was a bad idea on my part was pushing on the glyph part to open the door.

The thing lights up like a New York night, sparking and glowing. The light overtakes my sight, blinding and covering me before I can make a run for it. I can feel the magic coming from the glyph… the kind that can tear open dimensions. I’ve got just enough time to realize what’s probably about to happen to me.

“Oh crap…”

---

The light finally stops, and I can see again. What I see isn’t really a happy sight.

It takes me a split second to realize that I’m hundreds of feet in the air. Take me about another to make an appropriate response.

“DAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGHHHH!”

I’ve survived falls like this before. But it’s not fun to hit the ground at terminal velocity, I can tell you. It’s pretty breezy, kinda feels nice for the most part. Then you slam into the ground hard, and it feels like every hangover you’ve ever had combining into one monstrous pain.

And yeah, my expectations were met pretty accurately. I’m thinking on this while I’m sitting in my own personal crater, and I sure as hell don’t feel like I’m in a bed of flowers.
When I finally brush off the pain and dig myself out of the dirt, I take the time to get to know my new surroundings.

It’s pretty hard to miss the giant skeleton in the ocean. “Hell of a landmark…”

And that was just the beginning. Looking inland, I see what looks like a painting by Hieronymous Bosch. Demons and monsters with absurd and terrifying appearances, acting like folks you would find in any other human town.

In other words, I’m exactly where I need to be.

“Well, Hellboy. You’ve found yourself a new vacation spot… how about you take in the sights, talk to the locals… and make some demons wish they hadn’t taken a trip out of town.”

Notes:

Yeah, we’re not quite at Luz and Eda yet. Next chapter, I promise.

In the meantime, if y’all are open to it, I’d love to hear comments and reviews on my other main stories:

Exiles: Across the multiverse- In which several characters are taken from their worlds to fix timelines across cartoon, movie and comic worlds, and more.

The Games rich People Play- In which Pacifica Northwest is brought by her father to a rich resort for Spring break and meets several other rich characters there.

See you next chapter… and watch the right hook.

Chapter 3: On the Hunt

Summary:

Foreign Boy fights crazy Owl Lady. Hijinks ensue.

Notes:

Man, this story’s really making it’s way around. Glad you’re all enjoying it.

First note- You might notice this is a biggun compared to the last two chapters. I’m not sure what happened, I felt a lot more spurs to write than usual. Before I knew it, the chapter got really damn long. I wasn’t sure if I should split it up into parts. If y’all find this larger chapter too jarring, I can turn this one chapter into several. In any case, don’t expect them to get big like this again for a while.

Secondly- Yep. Saw that finale. It’s… definitely thrown me for a loop. I can say the Owl House story might be more disrupted than I thought. I also don’t know what words mean- looking at what I’ve planned, I would definitely say that things aren’t going to follow Owl House canon smoothly is far too much of an understatement. Be prepared, is what I say.

Finally- A small fact about comics Hellboy… he’s not a government secret like in the movies. More on that next chapter. Just thought I’d mention that.

Also, my AO3 viewers- since I added the embedded videos well after I posted the chapter last time, just so you know- I'm experimenting with embedded videos at the ends of the last two chapters, and as you can see, at the beginning and end of this one. Let me know if you like it or if it's too distracting, and I'll edit the stories accordingly.

“There you go, kid! It’s a human torture device, a show of disdain towards children. They make them play these silly, boring carnival games- like I’m talking so boring they don’t even have one pair of teeth chomping at you- and reward them for their suffering by offering them this giant impossible to wield pen! Show this off to your friends and they’ll be impressed by the potential sadism you possess.”

“Whoa….”

“It’s all yours, for twenty snails.”

The little sucker throws the money onto my table, eyes filled with glee. “I’ve surely made a non-impulsive and satisfying purchase with three weeks allowance!” He shouts. I almost feel sorry for tricking the poor kid… nah. Just kidding. Not even a little sorry.

I gotta say, ever since Luz became my apprentice, business has been great! The real reasons why humans use these pieces of junk are way more outlandish than anything I could come up with. Well, most of the time anyway. Sometimes I do need to put a little spin on them. Like that giant pen- humans really don’t care when they get those things. They just put them in their rooms, forget about ‘em for weeks and then throw them away. But the tyke I just sold it to didn’t know that. And what he and all my other customers don’t know… puts a lot more snails in my pocket.

Still, I can’t act like that’s the only reason I keep Luz around. She’s kinda growing on me. The kid’s impulsive and has tunnel-vision at times, but she’s got a fire in her and can be real clever when it counts. She reminds me of… well, me. Course the differences are, she has a harder time cheating and lying because it’s “bad”, and I actually had a bile gland to use magic. Even still… the fact that she managed to pull off the light spell is nothing small. I mean, it is for a citizen of the Boiling Isles. Even a child could learn a light spell. But a human? It shouldn’t have even been possible. The kid’s got more potential than I would’ve ever guessed. She might end up getting her staff after all…

Speaking of staffs, where the heck is Owlbert? I’m running low on stock. And he usually doesn’t take this long. If he got distracted trying to flirt with one of those human’s fake bird statues again… for Titan’s sake, I keep telling him they won’t come to life.

Luckily, thinking on him seems to have invoked his summoning. He crashes into my table, items flying everywhere. “Nice entrance.” A wave of my fingers is all it takes to get everything back in place. “You know, for a staff that can fly faster than the speed of sound, you sure seem to be late a lot.”

“Hoot!” He takes offense to that, but he’s not the one running a business. “Hoot.”

“What do you mean you almost picked up another hitchhiker? We picked that weird shack specifically because humans don’t like going into creepy places!”

“Hoo!”

“Not a human? What are you saying?”

“Hoot.”

“Looked like a demon?”

“Hoot.”

“With a stone hand?”

“Hoot!”

“With its horns sawed off?!” What demon in their right mind would do that? No demon worth their hellfire would dare break off its horns. Maybe I need to be the one doing product runs from now on. Owlbert’s clearly starting to lose it. “Did they make it through the door?” My palisman shakes its head. “Then who cares? It was probably one of those… cast-plyers Luz told us about. Just a human pretending to be a monster or demon. Regardless, they didn’t make it through the portal, so we’ve got nothing to worry about.”

“Hoot?”

“We’ll worry about finding a new entryway later. Right now I’d like to see what wonderful garbage you’ve brought me…” Still, Owlbert’s right to be concerned. Luz was one thing, but we can’t start attracting humans in here all willy nilly. But man, was the one he described a real weirdo… by both human and monster standards. Glad I’ll never have to meet that mess.

---

Gotta say, out of all the hiding places for monsters I’ve been to, this one’s definitely the most grandiose. There’s giant mouths and arms in various places, and people are walking by them like it’s no big deal. The more normal parts of town give off a Transylvanian vibe. Medieval fantasy, at the very least. As for the people, there’s no consistency… in shape or form. Some look like your typical demons and imps and other humanoids, but others go way off the rails. A big centipede with a human face, a centaur whose eyes are on his chest… the hell? I think I just saw a kid whose head was only an eye. Must pay a fortune in eye drops…

Nevermind. The main point is that with all these… “unique” individuals walking around, I don’t stand out like a sore thumb. For once. Not that I get treated differently back home, but people do tend to see me coming a mile away. A big red guy with a rock hand isn’t exactly Waldo when he’s in a crowd. But here I can go about my business without the bad guys going back to their bosses for backup. Makes doing my work a lot easier. Well… sort of. The person I’m looking for might actually raise a few eyebrows. I haven’t seen a single human here. That by itself is pretty normal. While there’s plenty of supernatural attacks on people out there, the magical creatures that don’t need to drink blood or steal souls tend to want to stay away from humans in general. Inviting them to their secret towns is out of the question.

Maybe that was obvious, but there are times when humans do manage to fit themselves into magic communities. I was kinda hoping there would be some here. Might’ve meant Luz wasn’t in as much trouble as we thought.

I’m no detective, but I can still do a little investigating when I need to. I catch the name of this place as I walk through the streets, from passing conversations to various signs. Bonesborough. As far as I know, not a capital city or anything, but it is well known. Located in what’s called “The Boiling Isles”. Fun names. This place’s founders sure had a sense of humor. Furthermore, this place is ruled over by an Emperor. Though nobody seems to talk much about him on an average day. Guess I’ll have to do some reading later…

Beyond that, I don’t get much in the way of useful information. I walk around town for some time, wandering aimlessly without a good place to start. I suppose I could start in some kind of bar or tavern. Find out what’s the word around town about humans. The only issue I might run into is descriptions… a common thing is that monsters and demons don’t bother to differentiate between humans.
Luckily, I have a workaround. I pull a picture out of my pocket- one that has a young girl with a smug look on her face. Camilia gave us a bunch of pictures like this so we could identify Luz by appearance. She’ll stick out like a sore thumb now, but it does make it easier to ask around.

I get the attention of a bystander looking into a window of crystal balls, tapping his shoulder. “Hey. I’m new around town. Know where a guy can get a drink?”

“Oh, uh… let me think… uh, yes. The Terrorantula’s Web is near here. Down the street, make a left before the Eldritch Pet store.”

“Thanks. And while I got ya… you seen this girl around town?” I ask, flashing him the photo.

“Ew… no, I haven’t seen whatever that is. Looks too stringy for my taste.”

I bite back a grimace. “…Right. Thanks anyway.”

“Hope you like our town, stranger. Oh!” He reaches into his pocket, and tosses me some… coins? “Some snails for your troubles.” My… troubles?

…Is it the way I’m dressed?

---

You know, the upside of this place is that I don’t stand out physically. Downside is, since I was raised by humans in a human environment, I might stand out in my behavior.

Like this tavern. I know what humans want to pick a fight and which are just drowning their sorrows, but since everyone in this town looks so different, I can’t even begin to figure out the cliques in this place. Probably best to just stick to myself. If anyone does try to pick a fight with me, I’ll throw ‘em for a loop, no matter where their head is on their body.

The guy behind the bar is a giant spider of some kind with multiple mouths. Probably should’ve expected as much with the name. “Hey, Barkeep.”

“Hmm?”

“News come through here often? I’m visiting and I need some information.”

“Uh… yeah. We tend to get some real characters from around town. Don’t know much I can offer you though.”

“We’ll see. Give me something light while you’re at it. I’m on the job, so to speak.” The thing nods. It hands me… some kind of drink. I’m a little hesitant to take a sip; I don’t know what it’ll do to me. But I have to blend in, so I take a quick swig while all his eyes are elsewhere.

Hmm. Not bad.

“Word has it… that there’s a human walking around these parts. Thought you might have heard something about it.”

“A human? …Eh… I’ve been hearing rumors, but no one talks about it too much. I did hear in the news that a human was sighted in Hexside school.” All of his eyes are on me. “Why you asking?”

“Consider me a hunter of sorts. Someone’s paying me big to get the human for them.”

“Who’d want some boring human?”

“I don’t ask questions, I just get paid.”

“Fair enough.” He goes back to cleaning various glasses. “Now, people all around town have been seeing that human from what I hear. I couldn’t tell you exactly where she is. But I hear there’s a place in the market that sells human garbage.”

“Human garbage?”

“Scam artist, probably. Most sane folk know human crap ain’t worth a single snail, but there’s a lot of silver-tongued stall owners in that part of town. What baffles me is how they’d get their product… as far as I know, the Boiling Isles have been cut off from the human world for years. In any case, if anybody would have a human, it’d likely be that stall.”

“Any idea where I might find it?”

“I’m sorry, no. I get my supplies from Hex-mart. I know curses and eyes of newts are usually fresher in the Harmers’ market, but…”

“I get ya. Guess I’ll just have to ask around.” I finish off the drink. That guy gave me some of this town’s currency, might as well use it.

“Ah, it’s on the house friend. Titan knows you’ll need all the money you can get…”

“Uh… thanks.” Why do people in this town keep thinking I’m some kind of bum? Is it cause I smell like dry-roasted peanuts?

---

“Eda!” Ah, I was wondering when Luz would get back. The little rascal went somewhere with her new friends; she didn’t say much other than they wanted to show her something. “You’re not gonna believe this!”

“I probably will, but fire away, short stuff.”

“Willow and Gus managed to get me a disguise so I can sneak into the school’s Magic Fair!”

“Ah, the Magic Fair. Where all the nerdiest students come together to show off their projects… and where the snobs make their parents buy out the competition. I remember my Magic Fairs… they still can’t clean my pranks off the walls, from what I hear. Wait… aren’t you banned from Hexside?”

“Well… I am. But I managed to find a disguise!” She pulls out a mask. Looks like someone’s face got sat on… “Or I made one anyway. It was either this, or… wear a mask from the other stalls that either wants to eat me or replace my face.”

“Oh, come on, Luz. The risk of face eating and/or replacing is the fun part! Builds character.” I inspect the mask. “Besides, this ain’t gonna be fooling anybody.”

“I’m sure it’ll be fine.”

“No, it won’t.” A wave of my finger, and the mask reconstructs to look far more convincing. “There. A little construction magic, plus a pinch of illusion, and it’ll fool the pants off anyone.”

“Wow! Thanks, Eda!” She stopped herself. “Um…”

“No, it will not try to eat your face. Go have fun, kid. Just try not to let them turn you into a nerd or anything.”

“Woohoo! I already was a nerd!” She runs off. We’ll have to train that out of her. Oh well, back to my garbage.

Wonder what I can get off this slinky thing… hey, maybe I can advertise it as a human intestine coated in metal.

I would keep going with that, but Owlbert starts going nuts. He’s still locked onto the staff, but he’s shaking like crazy. Better unscrew him and see what this is about… “What’s got your feathers so ruffled Owlbert? Haven’t seen you this shaky since I took you to the palisman vet…”

“Hoot!” He points his little wing out into the market. It takes me a moment to see what he’s looking at, but I do see it. Way down the street, is a big fella with a trenchcoat of some kind. His skin is a burning red, and he’s got this gritty face. But what really catches me off guard are his sawed down horn stumps, and his large stone right hand. No doubt about it, this is the fella that chased Owlbert.
I still don’t understand what demon would willingly weather their horns like that. King goes on and on about how important a demon’s horns are to them, and only accept horns being broken in intense battle. Says ‘The only demons who do that are down on their luck and selling their horns for drink money’. He certainly looks the part. It has to be a human, I would think… but something about looking at this guy sets off alarms in my head. I don’t like it.

Not important. What matters is some guy who attacked Owlbert managed to find his way here even after my portal closed. Which means business today is closing early. “Come on, Owlbert. We’re closing up shop. We’ll just have to come out early tomorrow.” A few spell circles and my stand and product are formed into a bag, hanging off my staff. The portal is closed into a briefcase. Owlbert tries to get back on my staff. “Hang on. We don’t want him recognizing you. Climb into my hair a moment. Once he’s out of our hair… no pun intended, we’ll make a break for it.” He nods, and nestles himself into my hair, which I’m quick to cover up with a hood. “Now, let’s just sneak out of the market-”

“Hey, hold on a sec, miss.” I cringe internally. “I’m looking for a stall selling human junk. I was told it was down the street, around here. You know anything about it?”

I turn to face ‘you-know-who’ and… well damn. He’s even bigger up close. If it were anyone else, they could cave under the pressure of this scary guy immediately. But I’m a pro… a true master of the lie. “Human junk stall? Sorry buddy, haven’t seen it. They must’ve packed up for the day.”

“This early in the morning?”

“Hey, I don’t judge people’s business practices. Maybe they’re a late night stall.”

“Uh huh… well then, before I let you go… you seen this girl?” He pulls out a small picture and places it up to my face.

I… what? That’s Luz. As in, my apprentice. The human. Why does he have Luz’s picture? More importantly, why is he looking for her? Did she get in some kind of trouble? He did come from the human realm apparently… but why was he there? Was he searching for her then too?

…I gotta find Luz. “Sorry stranger, never seen her. Humans don’t really come around here. Now, I’m a little busy, so I’ll leave you to your search…”

“I never said anything about her being human.”

…Aw nuts.

He starts advancing towards me slowly. “Now, I’d appreciate if you’d actually be cooperative and tell me what you know. Where is she?”

Damn. I panicked when I saw her photo. Usually I’m better at keeping track of my lies like that. Alright Eda, think, improvise… “Well darn. You’re craftier than you look. Alright, fine. I have seen her. She usually wanders around the market this time of day.”

“Why? Who brought her here?”

“Some powerful witch from the rich neighborhood. Likes to flaunt off things they found.” There you go, Eda. Back on track. “Guess that human girl was one of them.”

“Really.” He’s not asking. Darn, he might not be buying it. But I just need his attention off me for a moment… an illusion might work, but with him so close, he might interrupt me before I can pull it off. “You know… I really don’t like it when people try to feed me a load of crap. So I’m gonna ask you again. What do you know about the girl?”

“Look, I’ve only seen her.” I glance around the market, hoping for something else to cause a scene. Wait… are those…? Oh man, for once in my life, I’m really happy to see the guards. “Not much I can tell you beyond that. Now will you get out of my face?”

“Not happening.” He reaches for something in his coat.

“Well, I guess I’ve got no other choice then… THANK YOU SO MUCH, OLD FRIEND!” He gives off a confused and annoyed look. Just wait, you thick fist for brains… “IT’S REALLY NICE TO CATCH UP WITH SOMEONE WHO KNOWS EVERYTHING ABOUT ME AND MY ABILITIES AND MOST PERSONAL SECRETS! ME, EDA THE OWL LADY!”

“What the hell are you- OOF!” While he gets tackled by one guard, I manage to avoid the other. Those big brutes never could catch me. Finally, I get the chance to escape. “Come on, Owlbert! We’ve got to go find Luz.” He hops out of my hair and on to my staff, and we take flight, speeding through the sky and away from the market. “But first, a quick stop to the house… King should be there, and I need to give Hooty very explicit instructions…”

---

“What the hell are you doing?!”

“You are hereby under arrest for fraternizing with a criminal!”

“Criminal? What?!”

“Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law! Choosing to keep quiet is not much better however, as we will use a mind worm to suck out your memories!”

“Get… off!” One swing of my regular arm knocks the guard holding me clean out. The other two don’t take kindly to that.

“Get him! Don’t let him escape!”

“Oh, I’m not going to escape.” I grab the second guard by the face and slam him straight into the ground. It cracks from the force. Third guy’s not looking so confident now.

“Uh… maybe w-we can let you off with a w-w-warning for now.”

I grab him by the scruff of his outfit. “Why did you attack me?”

“Y-you were fraternizing with a criminal! We heard her say-”

“She was pawning you off on me, you morons!” But that’s news. That woman really did know something if she was trying to distract me like that. And if she’s a criminal, then these guards will definitely have information on her. “Tell you what, cone head. Today’s you’re lucky day. I’m looking for something that lady has, and I’ll be all too happy to catch her for you in the process. Just tell me where I can find her, and keep your guards out of my way.”

“R-right!” I drop him, and he scrambles to get up. “But… wait… you don’t know who she is?”

“I’m from out of town. Humor me.” I clench my stone hand as a warning.

He quickly searches through his bags, pulling out a large poster… a wanted poster. “Her name is Eda Clawthorne, alias The Owl Lady. She is an incredibly powerful witch who relies on wild magic. She has been evading capture for some time now.” I grab the poster from him and look it over.

“What was she doing in the market then?”

“She… has a stall. She sells human garbage right under our noses. Even when we find her, she always manages to get away.”

“Human garbage…” Then she was the stall owner. But how did she know I was coming? She’s never met me before, and there was no proof I was with the guards. Something’s not adding up… unless… I managed to spot her flying away. She was flying on some kind of staff… and on the head of it was something with wings. I couldn’t tell for certain; she was too far away to see that well. But if that owl from before belonged to her… well, only one way to find out. “Hey,” I wave the picture again. “You ever seen this girl with her?”

His eyes widen. “Yes! I have! The Owl Lady brought her to steal an item from our prison, the Conformatorium. Something that belonged to her pet. Only a human can go through the barrier. She then went on to assault the warden and help several prisoners escape.”

“And since then?”

“Guards have reported seeing the girl with her. Sometimes out on her own, searching for items in the market. We assume Eda has taken to using the human as a servant.”
The poster is crumpling from my grasp. That hag kidnapped her… just so she could have an errand girl?! …That does it. I see her again, I’ll knock her head clean off. I turn back to the guard. “You guys at least now what rock she goes crawling under?”

“We do. She lives in a house on the outskirts. We tried many times to get into it… but her house demon is too strong for us.”

House demon? So she’s got a security system. Luckily for me, I’ve got the perfect breaking and entering tool. “Point me in right direction, and you’ll have an owl lady by the end of the day.”
“Th…thank you. And for the record, I apologize for assuming you were in league with the owl lady. We figured you were probably desperate…”

“Look, just don’t… desperate? What do you mean desperate?”

“Uh… well… you seemed down on your luck. With what you did to your horns and all…”

“My horns? What do you mean my-” Wait. My horns. That I don’t have.

…

Great. So I do look like a bum. Guess I stand out more than I thought I did.

---

“Yes… yes! My minion, you are almost complete! Just one more… there!”

Ah yes. Francois, one of my army’s many captains, has been given the opportunity to evolve. His floppy ears already struck terror into my enemies… but now, with this, no one will stand up to him! …Except me, of course.

“Yes, with this… A BOWTIE!” I shout to the heavens, holding him up high. “The classiness of this bowtie is already too much for anyone to handle! Combined with your floppy ears… you’ll surely become the general of my army, Francois.”

I’m interrupted from my preparations by the door slamming open. Hooty gives a grunt of pain. “Hoot! Ouch! Well gee, Eda, no need to be forceful.” Eda? That’s weird. She’s never back from the market this soon.

“Quiet, Hooty. I don’t have time. King? King!”

“Over here, Eda. The heck are you doing back here?”

“I ran into some trouble in the market. I just came here to let you know.”

“Pfft. You always run into trouble at the market. What’s so special this time?” I mean, Eda only gets like this when… “…Was it an ex-boyfriend?”

“No.” She places her stall bag down. “Some big red guy with a stone hand. For some reason, he was looking for Luz. And he was setting off all kinds of danger vibes for me.” She picks up a few of her non-magic items and stuffs them into her hair. “I need to go look for Luz. Whatever this knucklehead wants from her is anybody’s guess, but it can’t be good. In the meantime, I need you to stay here, King. No garbage pillaging, no minion searching, don’t even step onto the front lawn. Stay inside. As for you, Hooty, make sure to keep anyone but me, King, and Luz out. And if you see the big red fella… go nuts on him.”

“Caaaaaan do! Hooty hoot!”

“Jeez, Eda. You’re acting like Emperor Belos himself might show up. Do you even know if he uses magic?”

“Look, in any other instance, I’d laugh this off. But the kid can’t handle herself like I can. She only knows a light spell. Until she’s back in the house, I’m treating this more seriously than I usually do.”
“Isn’t she at that Magic fair at Hexisde? Aren’t you both banned from there?”

“I gave her a disguise, but it’s certainly going to be harder for me to wander into there. Harder… but nowhere near challenging.” She puts a pair of sunglasses on, a smirk growing wide on her face. “I’ll be back soon.” And with that, she flies off, gone as fast as she arrived.

Wow. Eda usually never gets like this. Even when her third ex-boyfriend came back around… and that guy had thirteen heads. And one of them wouldn’t stop tipping his hat…

Whatever. Honestly, I feel like Eda’s overreacting. Like I said before, if it were Belos himself, then I’d understand, but a big muscle guy? Eda can fight those kinds of guys off in her sleep. Oh well. Nothing much I can do about it. Might as well go back to upgrading my minions.

Now then, Bartholomew… your large eyes and terrifyingly fluffy tail are already weapons of mass destruction… but none of my accessor- I mean, improvements, really match with them. Wait! I know!
Let me see if nothing ate it yet… ah ha! On the far end of clearing, where the forest begins! A deep red flower, one that looks really prett- dah, I mean, it’s an ancient flower of fire, granting the wielder immeasurable power. With that, Bartholomew’s power could match Francois! All the while creating a fierce rivalry in the name of impressing me! Only for them to gradually go from bitter rivals to best of friends! It’s perfect…

I got to get it before it something happens to it. Just open the window up here, and…

“HOOOTY TIME! Eda told you not to leave, King!” Oh right. The most annoying door ornament in the world. Also, the being with the worst sense of personal space.

“I’m just running down to get that flower of fire over there.” I push him away from my face. “Besides, what’s the problem just walking a few steps away from the house? Even if Eda’s new boyfriend is after them, no one on the Isles is dumb enough to attack the house itself.”

“Don’t care! I’m feeling particularly strict today! I’m a wild card!” He says, twisting and curling like he usually does.

“Ugh!” I hate it when Hooty’s daily whims start getting in the way. Still, he might be strong, but he’s an idiot. “How strict are you feeling today?”

“Specifically strict!”

I can work with that. “Well, you know… Eda only said not to leave here… and here is relative. And if you carried me over to the flower, I technically wouldn’t be stepping on the front lawn. So whaddya say, Hooty? How about you help me get that flower in a way that technically doesn’t break Eda’s rules?”

“Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm-H’OKAY!” Ha! Dummy. He gets low so I can climb on his head, and begins to stretch towards the flower. Just a little closer… a little closer… my army’s almost complete… got it! And look at that! No big brute dude in sight. Nothing to worry abo-

“GAH!” Something picks me up by the scruff of my neck. I hate that! “Who dares attempt to indignify me-”

…Uh oh.

“I dare.” The big red guy says. As in, the big red guy Eda warned us about while also telling me to stay in the house for safety but I decided to go out anyway because I didn’t think he would come here but now he’s here holding me by the scruff of my neck because he’s actually crazy enough to attack the house… yeah, that guy. “You’re pretty photogenic, you know.” He’s got a rolled up paper in his hands. Must be the wanted poster.

“Y-y-yeah. I uh, look good from all angles.”

“Not for much longer if you don’t tell me what I want to know.” He tosses me up slightly just so he can catch me by the tail.

“Gah! Stop! This is not the way people usually demonhandle me and I think I prefer the other way!”

“Where’s your master?”

“Master?! I am the King of Demons, leader of a great army! She is by no means my mast-AHHH!” He pinches my good horn with his stone hand.

“You gonna tell me or are you gonna speechify? Cause I don’t like it when creeps like you waste my time. I think it’ll be spent better finding out whether this bone thing is something you wear… or if it’s part of your face.” He tugs on my horn slightly.

“NO! It’s my face! It’s my face!”

“Then talk! Before I find out for myself.”

“Well, you see, she didn’t tell me before she left, but uh, H-H-Hooty might know! Isn’t that right, Hooty? …Hooty?” Come on, Hooty, that’s your cue! What on earth is he doing?!

…I don’t believe it. “Hooty… WHY ARE YOUR EYES CLOSED?!”

“You were stepping on them, so I had to close them. Lovely conversation you’re having! Who’s your new friend? Hoot hoot!”

Luckily, Hooty’s idiocy even has the stranger stupefied. Which gives me only one chance…. “OPEN YOUR EYES, YOU MORON!”

“H’okay!” He says. One of these days, Hooty…
...
...
...

“HOOT!” After saying nothing for like, ten seconds, Hooty rockets forward suddenly, plowing into the guy and forcing him to drop me. Better late than never, said NO ONE EVER! Whatever. At least he’ll chase this guy off now.

Hooty plows him right into a tree. The guy must be tough though, cause he doesn’t seem all that winded. He swipes Hooty away from him with his stone arm. Hooty responds using himself as a giant whip, hitting the guy over and over. Every time he swipes at Hooty, he only gets whiff of air. Like I said, Hooty’s an idiot, but he’s strong.

“Stay still you freaky snake-owl hybrid!”

Now seems like a perfect time to gloat. “Ha! Serves you right for threatening me! And who are you calling a freak? Coming from the guy that actually sawed his horns off!”

“Get a different hairstyle from everybody else, and suddenly they won’t stop talking about it…” He mutters, before having his feet swept out from under him. Hooty proceeds to barrel into the ground, before coming back out underneath the guy, flinging him up.

What happens next nearly makes me hop out of my fur. When the guy lands, he pulls out some kind of metal object. In a moment, something starts blasting out of the thing towards Hooty… and consequently towards me. I jump in surprise as a something hits the ground next to me. Hooty gets hit in his face, but it doesn’t seem to do too much.

“Gotta be kidding me…” He mutters.

“OUCH! My face! Stop doing that! I have sensitive skin!” Hooty shouts. News to me.

Hooty appears to have enough of this guy, so with a swift move, he coils around the guy and constricts, keeping him from moving.

Thank the Titan… this guy was a complete nutjob. Still, Eda was so worried… and yet here the guy is, wrapped up like a present. “Well, well, well. Guess Eda got worked up over nothing. We’ll have to tell her how we handled this ‘big bad dude’ when she gets back.” With some… embellishing on my part, of course. “Oh, I know! Let’s throw him into the ocean, Hooty! …Hooty?”

Hooty’s got this strained look on his face. Is he… struggling? “Hooty’s… having trouble…” I look to his victim. Sure enough, he’s forcing Hooty’s coils open. Before I know it, he bursts out… and he looks mad.

“I’VE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS CRAP!” He picks up a large branch from nearby. “I am not getting beat up by a doorknob with feathers!” A quick swipe, and Hooty gets smacked across the face. He tries to fling himself at the guy again, but this time he’s ready for him. With one swing of his stone fist, Hooty’s given a clean punch.

Unfortunately, for both of us, that seems to do it. Hooty recoils and retracts all the way back to the front door. I’m quick to follow him, not wanting to get caught by this guy again. “Hooty? Hooty! Speak to me!”

“Hooty no feel good…”

“Come on, Hooty, this is no time for a nap! He’s coming!” I nervously look from him to the guy. The red guy’s got a small boulder in his arm now. Is he…?

“Knock knock.” He says, reeling it back.

As cowardly as it would feel, now might be a good time to move. I scramble away. I can feel the wind from the thrown boulder as it slams straight into the front door. Hooty is knocked from his hinges completely. “HOOOOT!”

I make it to the bushes. Luckily, the guy seems more interested in the house right now, as he makes his way inside… but this is bad. This guy might be worse than even Eda thought. And she said he’s not even looking for her…

He’s looking for… oh no.

I gotta find Luz.

---

That was dumb. If Abe and Liz ever find out I almost got my ass kicked by a bird wreath, they’ll never let me hear the end of it. Best to keep this one to myself. The little guy got away, but I have an immovable witness with me to make up for it. For now, I should see if the kid’s here in this house…

The house is what I’d typically imagine from any witch. A good number of unknown ingredients and magical objects. My search doesn’t bring up much beyond that. I find a giant owl’s nest, which does make me a little worried. I don’t want to find a giant pellet with human bones in it.

The last room is important, though. I find a sleeping bag. Nothing but a sleeping bag and a small amount of her belongings. And a picture of her with her mother… poor kid must be only barely keep from losing it by looking at this thing.

Good news is, she’s coming home today.

Bad news is, she’s not here. The witch must’ve taken her somewhere. I make my way back to the talking doorbell. “Listen up, bird brain.”

“THat’S wHaT I Am…” He says in a daze.

“I’d like to know where your master is… now you already know how hard I hit… so you better tell me the right answer.”

“hOoOt… He-…HeXside… schooooo….” He trails off, going unconscious. But I caught that. Same thing the bartender said. Hexside… why there? Is she going for backup?
I won’t figure it out standing here, of course. But if that’s where she’s going… I might as well take the opportunity to school her.

…Hmm. Glad I didn’t say that out loud. Lines like that’ll get you a bad reputation...

---

“Oh my gosh, I’m so excited!” I dash around, taking in all the students’ stands. “There’s so many projects! ‘The applications of Newt Tails’, ‘The Effects of Transmutation on Flesh’, ‘Kraken Soda Volcanoes’? It’s all so amazing!”

“Easy, Luz.” Willow pulls me back by my shoulders. “Eda may have given you a disguise, but Bump might still be able to figure out it’s you. Probably best not to draw too much attention to yourself.”

“Right, sorry. I’m just getting magic overload. So many projects, so little time!” Still, I thought willow would be all over this… “Didn’t you make a project, Willow?”

“Well, I was going to… but Amity’s still fuming over the abomination incident. Considering she also joined the fair, I thought it be best to steer clear for now.”

“Speaking of which…” My other new friend, Gus, pipes up. “Blight at twelve o’clock!”

“Whuh?”

“Straight ahead!” Sure enough, Amity was walking down the path, several batwinged monster mouths carrying her project behind her. From what I could glimpse, something about the study of better renewable wand energy sources.

“Quick,” Willow pulled us over to the side. “Act natural!”

We pretended to converse, to the best of our ability. Gus and Willow started up something about school lunch policy and whether or not they should have to fight their food. But I don’t know anything about that! What if Amity looks over here and sees me not saying anything? She was watching us a lot during the abomination thing… apparently. Oh shoot! I didn’t realize, but I was staring at her the whole time I was thinking all that! She just caught me looking at her! I quickly looked away, but… aw man, she must know something’s weird now! Quick, improvise!

“AND SO I SAY TO HIM, QUIT ‘GOBLIN’ EVERYTHING DOWN!”

Maybe not that… the whole aisle is staring at me now… and Amity most definitely suspects something, cause she’s walking right over.

“What are you doing here, Willow?”

“Oh, Amity, just… checking out the projects with some friends.”

“Friends, hmm? I recognize shorty over there. (“Hey!”) But who is this? I don’t remember them going to our school.”

“O-oh, her? She’s just… visiting from another school. Bloodwell. We were showing her around so she wouldn’t feel out of place.”

“Oh really? And what’s your name?” She stared me down, right into my soul.

“G…Goblita?”

“Uh huh… and what exactly interested you enough to come here, Guh Goblita?”

“Uh… goblin… stuff?” Oh, please buy it…

“…Hmm. Fine, that checks out.” Wait, it does? “But I’m keeping my eyes on you…” She did the whole ‘point at my eyes then point at you’ thing before leaving.

I feel a sigh of relief come from my mouth. “That was too close…”

“Man, it’s a good thing everyone knew Goblarry was doing a project on Goblin engineering today.” Gus stated matter-of-factly. “That was some quick thinking, Luz.”

More like panicked thinking, but yeah, it worked out nicely. “So where to first?”

“Well, there’s a presentation on utilizing weaponized pet cuteness we thought you’d might like.”

“Oh! You didn’t tell me there was a cuteness stall! I should’ve brought Kin-wah!”

I didn’t have much time to react before being pulled in between two stalls. Considering this is the Boiling Isles, the first thing that came to my head was “scary monster”. So, I did what I thought was appropriate.

“MMMMMMMMPPHH” I scream out through a closed mouth

“Luz. Luz! Take it easy, it’s just me.” I stop at the sound of Eda’s voice and peer up. “Jeez, kid, if that was your best defensive tactic, maybe I need to start training you more in fighting than spellcasting…”

She finally lets me go. But why is she here? She didn’t really have any interest coming to this event. Maybe she’s pulling a prank? But most importantly… “What was that all about?”

“Sorry, kid, just needed to get you out of sight. Things got dicey in the market today, and for some reason it’s revolving around you.”

“Me? But I haven’t gotten into trouble today… yet.” Probably best to answer that way. Honestly, I expected some kind of hijinks that would involve me losing my disguise and being chased all around the fair field.

“You sure?”

“I’m sure. I’ve been with Willow and Gus, and they’ve been keeping me away from Bump and Amity.”

“Then you haven’t met a big red-skinned, stone armed guy with missing horns?”

“Uh… no?” Not that I know of… but why does that sound familiar?

“Well regardless, that kind of guy’s after you. Sorry kid, we’re gonna have to cut your fun times short today.”

“Aww…” And here I was looking forward to all the magic…

“Oh, don’t worry about it too much. The Covention’s coming up anyways, and that makes this look like a baby class show and tell. Not that I’d advise going to Covention, but I know you’ll want to, and you’d probably learn about it one way or another.”

“Oooooh, now I’m definitely excited again!”

“You can get excited in the Owl House. Come on, hop on the staff and we’ll get out of here. Once I know who this guy is and what he’s capable of, maybe you’ll get to go to the Covention. But for now, you’re staying in the safety of the house.”

I take a seat on Owlbert. Hopefully Eda can help me send a message to Willow and Gus about why I left so suddenly. Man, I think I actually would’ve preferred the shenanigans coming from Amity or my disguise.

“Eda! EDA!” The familiar squealy voice of King catches both of our attention, stopping us before we can make it off the ground.

“King?” Eda actually seems a little upset. “I told him to stay in the house…”

The two of us peer out from our little alley, searching for King. Down the street, he’s quickly scuffling around, almost like a scared lost child.

“He’s gonna get us caught…” Eda lifts her staff, as if she’s about to throw a spear. “Get him out of the open.” With a swift throw, Owlbert zooms by King and picks him, boomeranging back to us. “King! I know it’s kind of our group dynamic to be rebellious to everyone, even each other, but when I said stay in the house I meant it!”

It takes King a second to regain his bearings. “I know, I know! And I did! M…mostly. But that guy you warned us about showed up at the house! He attacked!”

“What?!”

“Hooty fended him off for a while, but the guy was really strong! H-he had this metal thing that shot other metal, and he hit him… hit him with a branch, and a rock, and he… he threatened to pull my face off! It was as if he was as tough as your owl beast thing!” Hearing King get so scared about this guy prompts me to pull him into a hug.

I noticed Eda’s hands clenching up right away. “Damn it…” That’s the first time I’ve heard her curse. Er, non-magic curse, I mean. “I should’ve been there. Hooty and I would’ve sent him running with his tail between his legs… King, take Luz back to the Owl House.”

“But it’s-”

“I know, it’s trashed. But that guy’s been making a beeline for Luz. He has to be on his way here… or maybe he already is here. I’m going to go confront him, and make sure he stops following us for the time being. Then, once I get back to the house, we can start fortifying. Attack my house, threaten my friend, try to take my student… he’s about to find out why I’m the most powerful witch on the Isles.”

---

People probably think it’s strange how different the magical realms are to ours. I tend to think it’s strange how similar they actually are. Might as well be looking at a science fair… guess I should be glad they didn’t call it a ‘silence’ fair or anything. Those puns were getting on my nerves.

Still haven’t connected the pieces since I got here. For all accounts and purposes, this is like any other school… normal students just trying to get an education. Did she come here so she could have meat shields and cannon fodder?

I don’t like it. I feel like I’m missing something here. Info that’s dancing just out of reach, something that’ll bite me in the ass sooner or later. Did she really just kidnap the girl for a servant? Or is there something more going on here?

All these questions aren’t helped by a fruitless search. Thought finding the girl here would be like looking for an apple among oranges, but I haven’t seen even a sign of her. Hope the witch didn’t change routes. I’m getting tired of this chase as is. Even the picture isn’t helping.

I get knocked out of my thoughts by a shove. Some pint-size triple eyed brat didn’t even have the decency to say “excuse me”.

“Watch it, geezer.”

“Cute kid…” I say with every bit of dry sarcasm.

“They get real vicious at that age. I should know.”

…Figures. She musta been waiting for me. I turn my attention to the Owl Lady, smugly looking at me from a few feet away. “Hey there, pellet witch.” I light myself a cigarette. If we’re really gonna get into this, I’ll need a smoke.

“That’s Owl Lady to you, tomato face.”

“Only my pals call me that. To you, it’s Hellboy.”

“Oh, what’s the matter, not Hellish enough to be a man?”

“I’ve got enough self-respect to not care.”

“No sense of self-preservation though, since you’ve been antagonizing the most powerful witch on the Boiling Isles.”

“Think you misspelled “cockiest”. Besides, if you’re so powerful, how come you been running from me all day?”

“Because it would be a waste of my time to trounce you. I’ve got better things to do than teach a hornless idiot that he shouldn’t mess with me… but then you attacked my house, my friend King, and you’re trying to take my human…”

“Your human? That’s a laugh…” We share a glare. “Listen, Lady… I’m tired, you’re ugly… and neither of us are getting any younger. How about we end this already?”

“Excuse you, I am clearly an eleven out of ten. But sure, I agree. So tell you what… you leave this town and never show your face to me again, and I’ll agree to not vaporize you on the spot.”

“Better offer. You give me the girl, and I won’t completely ruin your face with the beating I’ll give you.” I take the cigarette from my mouth. “Might wanna take me up on that.”

“Not happening, you hornless freak. She’s staying with me.”

Again with the horns. “Well, in that case,” I flick the cigarette in her direction. “Let’s do this.”

Our staredown lasts a while. Both of us are waiting for the other to make a move. And we know it.

All of the sudden, Owl Lady slams her staff on the ground… a blast of smoke comes forward, covering my sight. I dash forward to where I know she was, hoping she didn’t take the chance to run. All I get is more smoke. Great.

The hell’s that rumbling noise?

A giant owl face comes bursting into view. “JEEZ!” I barely have time to jump out of the way before several smaller ones come from the ground, darting towards me. They’re slower than the bird door though, at it takes a few second to smash each one.

The attack clears up the smoke, but I haven’t spotted her yet. By now, people are running away, not wanting to get caught in the crossfire. She knows where I am though and feels fine taking pot shots at me. I feel myself be struck by bolts of fire. I can take hits like that just fine. Fire’s no big deal. But I’d really like to figure out where she’s shooting me from.

I spot her on one of the top of the stands. That smug look is still on her face. I take out my gun and fire on her, knowing she probably thinks I can only punch people. She doesn’t seem too surprised. Must’ve been informed by her little friend. What does catch her off guard is when my gun blasts off her hand.

Unfortunately, she’s got another trick up her sleeve. I see her hand still move after I blast it- looks like I didn’t damage it too badly- it draws a circle in the air, while the main body itself shoots more fire bolts at me. I do my best to weave through them.

I run towards her, wanting to close the distance- it’s obvious she wants to keep this a ranged fight. I get up close and it’ll be a bad time for her. She seems to know, cause I get tripped up by a sudden by a rope with a mind of its own.

Doesn’t take me too long to rip it off, but it’s long enough for her to grab her hand… and reattach it to herself. Well, that’s perfect. She’s like a lego or something…

Can’t let it slow me down. She seemingly sinks into the ground right as I get to the stall. Really hate this game of hide and seek.

I don’t have to spend too much time waiting for her to show. This time I feel a shock- lightning feels like. That does hurt worse. This time she’s up in the air, floating. A stronger blast of lightning hits me, flinging me into several of the stands. Gonna feel that one tomorrow. But this is a good opportunity. She floats lower, thinking she’s got me. I pull myself up with a nearby wheelbarrow full of some kind of vegetable. Right as she prepares another spell, I throw the thing at her, knocking her out of the sky. She lands some good yards away. Better close the distance while I can.

She’s tougher than I thought she’d be. She jumps up, and slams her staff again. I’m seeing double now… scratch that, about twenty of her. They start whizzing around me, taunting me. I try to hit one, but my fist goes right through, dissipating it. Illusions, no doubt. Looks like they go away if I disrupt em.

But I can’t go swinging my fists wildly. That’s probably what she wants. I keep my pistol at the ready.

“Sleep tight.” I whirl around to find her right behind me, just as she hits me with some kind of spell.

SLEEP

The word rings in my head. A sleep spell, huh? Too bad for you, snaggletooth. I’m not feeling all too tired.

That finally takes the smile off her face. I might not know all that much about her, but she doesn’t know everything about me either. In my coat, I have charms and talismans collected from all over the world to protect against magic. In particular to this case, I’ve got charms that ward off sleep spells. One too many sneaky bastards use it as an escape plan, and they use to hit me a lot.

Still, I’ve been feeling some of these hits. I’ve learned recently that they don’t always completely protect me. And this witch’s attacks have hurt me a few times. I guess I should be glad the anti-sleep charms were potent enough… or that her sleep spell wasn’t as strong as her others.

I throw a punch, but she’s still got enough sense to fight. She throws up a force field of some kind up, but it cracks with my first punch. Another swing and it shatters. Should’ve paid attention to her staff though, she’s got some spell prepared. She aims it at me point blank, and my instincts tell me to dodge. Just a tad too late though, and I feel a cold sensation wash over a large part of my body.

My body’s encased in ice… a freezing spell. Getting bad flashbacks to Marrakesh… My stone arm’s stuck, at least enough to not have good leverage. My other’s free though. Still strong, but it could take a few punches more to shatter the ice.

Owl Lady starts walking up to me. “Well, I’ll admit. You’re one tough fella. Caught me off guard a few times even. Not easy to do when you don’t use magic, especially against me. But I think this fight’s over. Probably should’ve slept when you had the chance. Now I gotta give you a nap the hard way.”

Better think fast, or this might hurt. I check to see if there’s anything around me. No, it’s all too far. Anything on me? I got one pocket on my coat completely free. Only one chance then… she’s charging up some kind of spell, and I don’t want to find out what it is.

My luck must be turning around.

I pull the pin from the grenade with my mouth and toss the thing in front of me. “I don’t think it’s gonna be my naptime.” She seems to realize the threat and throws another shield up.

I’m not out of this yet.

---

The explosion rocks the ground, causing me to fall over. I look back and see smoke billowing up from where the fight was going on. “Eda…”

“She can take that guy no problem, Luz. Come on, we got to go! We’re almost off the schoolyard!”

“We… we can’t just leave her with that guy!”

“Luz, I don’t mean to be cruel, but I’m a small guy, and you only know a light spell. Neither of us are in a position to help her. Also- he’s after you!”

“I know, but I… I just…”

“Luz, Eda will be fine. She’s gotten out of worse scrapes before. You have to trust her. Now come on!”

As much as I hate leaving her, King’s right. Reluctantly, I start running, but can’t keep my eyes off of the smokestack…

Probably should’ve actually been looking forward. “OOF!” I say, before falling flat on my butt.

“UNNH!... Watch it, nitwit! Oh, it’s you…” Who said that? Wait, why can’t I see?!

“AHH! King, I’ve gone blind!”

“What are you… wait a minute…” A flash of light shines on me as I feel the mask pulled off of me. I’m very relieved to see again…

Only to find Amity is the first thing I see. “WAH!”

“I knew it! I knew there was something wrong with you! You’re Willow’s “abomination”!”

“Uh… I can explain!” Before I can, I hear the fighting from behind us… is it getting closer?

“Can we do this some other time?” King asks.

Amity ignores him, but I’m starting to drown out the talking too. “Explain what, exactly? How you’re obviously trying to sneak into the school to cause trouble again? Is this all your doing?!” I stare closer at the fairground. Surely, I wasn’t mishearing… “Are you even listening to me?!”

It happens in a moment. I see the stalls in front of me start smashing and flying aside. I instinctively fling myself against Amity, sending us both to the ground. “WATCH OUT!”

We hit the ground, and I can feel the wind and some rubble hit my back- it’s small but it stings a little. The rest of it lands over us. I can tell from the impact it makes that it would’ve hurt. I stare at it a moment, amazed at close we were to injury.

“Get off of me!” Amity tosses me aside. Her face is all red for some reason… did she get hit?

I turn back to find out what caused that explosion of wood. Thankfully, it’s Eda. But she has a shield up, and is breathing deeply and is sweating. The shield’s looking very cracked… “Who hits people with statues?! That’s just rude…”

“Eda!”

“Kid? I told you to head home!”

“I…” I don’t have time to answer her. A shadow looms in the dust in front of her… but she’s focused on me. “EDA! LOOK OUT!”

Eda’s too late to dodge. A giant fist smashes through her shield and into her, not only sending her flying away, but in pieces. Her parts hit the ground in front of me. “Eda! Are you okay?!”

“Ohhhh…” She’s knocked out.

“Huh… guess I really did knock her head clean off.” I look up to the figure in the dust… who is now staring right at me. “Hang on a sec…”

“Oh boy…”

“HIYAH!” I hear King yell at the top of his lungs. “RUN!” He shouts at me, before charging at the stranger. He simply catches King and throws him off to the side weakly.

Amity doesn’t seem to know what to do. She’s frozen in fear. Eda and King are out of commission… but… he’s looking for me, right? He only wants me?

I bolt, making a mad dash for anywhere but here.

“Hey! Stop!” The guy shouts.

I can’t slow down. I can hear hooves behind me… cloven hooves? No. Can’t focus on that. Gotta move. I’ve got to get him as far from Eda and King and Amity as I can…

I run a few blocks, making twist and turns the whole way. I make a few last sharp turns, before I notice an empty stall. I jump inside and try to stay quiet.

At first, I don’t hear anything. I’m left alone with my thoughts. But then, I see a shadow in the light. It moves every now and then. He’s checking all the stalls… It’s not long before his figure emerges in the doorway.

Lo siento, mami…

The figure moves through the entrance towards me. Eda was right… he was big. And I don’t have anything to protect me! Oh, this is bad…

“There you are. Been looking all over for you.”

W-what does he want with me? Oh no… are humans a delicacy to guys like him? I do my best to try and scooch away, but the only thing I feel is wall behind me.

“Hey, whoa now. It’s okay, I’m not here to hurt you. I’m on your side.”

On my side? Why would the big scary guy be on my side? He kneels down, and I can finally see him clearly.

“Are you hurt? Any bruises or scrapes?”

I… I don’t believe my eyes.

My terror turns into utter excitement. I feel my jaw widen on its own. Of course he would be here to help. He’s… he’s…

“Sorry if I frightened you or anything. The name’s-”

“¡DIOS MIO, ERES HELLBOY!”

“Uh… yeah. That’s me.”

“Soy una gran admiradora, he leído todos tus cómics y he visto todas tus películas. ¡Tengo muchas preguntas! ¿Con cuántos gorilas cyborg has luchado? ¿Cuál es el monstruo más espeluznante que has visto? ¿Alguna vez saliste con un hombre lobo? ¡¿ME DAS TU AUTÓGRAFO?!”

“Whoa, whoa, slow down, kid!”

“Sorry! I just got really excited. You have no idea, I’ve heard all about your adventures with the BPRD. The Tunisian Mirage, The Sword of Storms, The Zombies of Brazil! I’ve just love your comics!”

“Those things never get the eyes right…”

“The only thing I love more is ‘Good Witch Azura’. In fact, I wrote a crossover fanfic between the two of you online! It only has like, thirty reviews… but I’m very proud of it!”

“Look, I’m flattered and all, but we need to focus. Are you okay? Can you walk?”

“Oh? Uh, yeah. I’m fine.”

“Good. So your kidnapper hasn’t done any weird spells to you. As far as I can tell… Get ready to move, kid. We wanna get you home in one piece.”
“Huh? What do you-”

“Luz! …Luz! Answer me!”

“Eda!” She’s okay!

“Damn. Tough hag… don’t worry, kid. Stay here for now, while I go have a talk with your would-be master.”

“Um… okay?” What on earth did he mean by that? Wait… maybe he’s here to help us with the guy that’s trying to find me!

…Wait a sec… if Eda was fighting Hellboy this whole time…

“Then you haven’t met a red-skinned, stone armed big guy with missing horns?”

And Hellboy wants to save me from someone he thinks already kidnapped me…

“Stay here for now, while I go have a talk with your would-be master.”

…Uh oh.

I rush outside. The two of them are already at it again, smashing through nearby buildings. King must’ve helped Eda put herself back together…

“You stay away from Luz!” She fires a lightning bolt at Hellboy.

Hellboy blocks it with his stone hand, all the while he fires his gun at her. “That’s my line, hag!”

“Hag?! I’m in my forties, you asshole!” Oof. Another curse from Eda as she slams the ground with her staff. A tree-like arm bursts from the ground and tries to squash Hellboy.

“Coulda fooled me!” He says, cracking it apart as he meets it with his own fist.

On the one hand, it’s pretty awesome seeing my mentor and my hero-idol go at it in a glorious fight. But on the other hand, I really need to stop this before either of them gets hurt. Eda’s looking exhausted, and she could succumb to her curse if she uses too much more. And the BPRD can’t lose Hellboy… “HEY! EDA! HELLBOY! PLEASE, STOP! YOU DON’T HAVE TO FIGHT ANYMORE!”

It’s no use. They’re going at it so hard, they can’t hear me. What can I do? If I get in the middle of it, I could get hurt, completely defeating the purpose of both. And all I know is a light spell…

A… a light spell. A very shiny light spell.

I grab a nearby stick from the ground and begin drawing. I need to complete it before they take the fight somewhere else. “Luz! There you are!” King rushes up to me as I’m almost done. “Come on, we got to go!”

“No! I know how to stop this fight! I just need to complete this glyph!” I go back to drawing.

“Are you nuts?! That won’t do anything to him!”

“I’m not trying to hurt him!”

“What?!”

“Just trust me!” I finish the circle. If this doesn’t do it, I might have to get involved. I slam down my hands as hard as I can…

The surface of the ground is sucked into the orb of light that emerges. I turn to the two fighting. I’ve gotten the attention of both. It’s now or never.

“Please! Please, stop fighting!” I turn to Eda. “He’s not here to hurt me! He helps people!”

“What?! Wait, do you… know him?!”

“Yes… well, not really… I can tell you when we get back to the house.” I then turn to Hellboy. “Thank you, Hellboy… but I wasn’t kidnapped. I… I chose to stay here myself.”

He looks shocked. “…You’re gonna have to explain that one to me, kid.”

“I will… to both of you.” I sigh in relief. King climbs onto my shoulder, probably also confused.

Man, what a day this has been.

Notes:

Hoo! That one was a doozy to write.

Sorry folks, I tried to do Hooty justice, but I don’t think he’d beat Hellboy at the end of the day. He’s faced weirder and worse.

Eda on the other hand… well, she would put up a far better fight.

THAT BEING SAID- My advice, follow Stan Lee’s word on the matter, and don’t worry too much about who would logically beat who. Do what makes sense, but also what makes the story interesting. Another thing I’ve learned is to make sure both sides of a crossover are treated with the same level of respect. You don’t want one side looking better than the other. It’s why I had some technicalities in their fight, and why neither truly won.

Give me the word, all you birds! I love to hear feedback, whether you need to learn me a few things or just like the story, I keep an open ear. See you next time!

Chapter 4: Stay a While

Summary:

After Luz introduces Hellboy and tells the agent what happened, she's told some very discomforting news. Faced with the consequences of her actions, Hellboy convinces her to leave to own up to her decisions... but finds there might be complications to that.

Notes:

Hello all you happy people. Sure been a bit, eh? Yeah, this chapter is around as long as the last, but it took longer to write out because of certain character moments I wanted to get right. Even now I’m a little nervous about them, but you can’t learn until you take the first step, so you know.

Before we move on to the chapter, big mcthankies from mcspankies to TakanaMakana, my current editor! He was the one who made sure all the Spanish was correct and beta read this chapter for me. Couldn’t have done this without him.

Just a heads up, we move away from action and more to character interaction this chapter. Hope y’all enjoy!

In 1944, the U.S. army sent a squad of soldiers to a small town in East Bromwich, England. Even a hero from the time, The Torch of Liberty, was sent down. His sources claimed that the nazis were in the final steps of a plan called “Project: Ragnarok”. Three members of the British Paranormal Society were also assigned to the case, consisting of Professor Malcom Frost, Professor “Broom” Bruttenholm, and top medium Lady Cynthia. Lady Cynthia too confirmed that something was about to occur in the abandoned church they were directed to, being told so by psychic visions…

“Well, “Broom”? Your reputation got us here, but so far all we’re doing is freezing our dainty little butts off.” Sgt. Whitman stated, frustrated.

“Sergeant, I have spent the last nine years studying this place, trying to discover what happened here long ago that was so horrible it erased all willingness of the locals to even discuss the matter.” Bruttenholm replied. “When Lady Cynthia told me the disturbance she had sensed in the ether was centered here…”

“No, wait.” Lady Cynthia interrupts. “There is… another… a second center.”

How the Nazis went about their plan and where they were, and why the soldiers were at the church and not where the nazis were, is something only the government and the BPRD know for sure. But it was at that moment that everything went to hell…

Quite literally.

“We are not alone here. There are troubled spirits. Holy spirits. A priest. A nun. Their shades are with us.” She pauses before continuing. “They have… a message. They say… They say… something is coming.”

“What the…” Was all The Torch of Liberty could say.

“Cynthia…” Bruttenholm muttered in shock. Suddenly, the ground began to shine with a fierce intensity. Broom, sensing danger, threw himself at Lady Cynthia. “Your ladyship!!! GET DOWN!!”

The ground in front of them erupted, lit with the fires of hell… when that fire subsided, in its place sat a child, red skinned and wielding an indestructible stone right hand.

“Shoot it! Kill it! It’s a demon come from hell to destroy us all!” Frost shouted.

The Torch of Liberty wasn’t so afraid. “It… doesn’t look too dangerous to me, Professor.”

“It looks… like a little boy!”

And it was there that Professor Broom gave him his name.

“Hellboy…”

1945, one year after the Hellboy Incident and after Broom and the army took the child in, Professor Bruttenholm would establish the BPRD… the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense. Its mission was to travel across the world, protecting humanity from the paranormal and supernatural.

Years later, on August 6, 1952, Hellboy was granted honorary human status by the United Nations, after foiling a plot by Nazi remnants in Brazil involving mind controlled zombies and cybernetic monkeys. Ever since, Hellboy has been known all around as the world’s greatest Paranormal Agent…

---

“And that’s Hellboy! The supernatural fighting paranormal agent ready to deliver evil a brutal right hook!” Luz finishes.

Her audience isn’t so amazed. She moves forward to show several pictures of me on her phone. There’s the photo the army took when they first found me, the picture from my first mission in 1952 with the burning nazi flag behind me, several newspaper articles, comic books, movie posters… guess the kid really is a huge fan.

“So… he’s a big red hellhound puppy the humans trained to attack his own kind?” Eda said, giving me an unimpressed look.

“Careful. I bite.” Still, I always kinda forget how much information we actually gave away to the public. Oddly, the professor really pushed for the transparency. Thought that keeping everyone aware of the problem would convince us to stick together. Honestly, I agree, but I can’t stand the publicity. Luckily, we’ve done a pretty good job of making it clear how people shouldn’t interfere in cases. We’re not celebrities, we’re agents. Gotta do my job unhindered.

“Oh come on, Eda. I know you two got off a bit rough, but it turns out everybody just thought I was in danger!”

“Still think you are.” Both the witch and I say. We raise an eyebrow at each other.

“…Er, the point is, turns out we’re all friends here! We have so much in common! Like how we don’t want me to die!”

“Like I would be friends with someone like him. You go around hunting your own people and expect me to be all chummy now?”

Time to nip that bud. “The BPRD acts on cases where humanity is directly threatened or attacked by the supernatural. We don’t go frolicking around demon realms for giggles. Poking big monsters with a stick isn’t our style. It’s when they go around stomping on people that we take issue with.”

“Sure.” The witch barely listens, scrolling through Luz’s phone.

The little skull headed thing watches over her shoulder. “Ugh, I think I’m with you, Eda. “BPRD’s finest agent punches out horned devil in Brisbane”? And you call yourself a demon…”

“I don’t, actually. Guess you weren’t listening.” The thing squints at me, trying to intimidate me.

“Hold on a second… “BPRD takes down occult group in Appa…lack-een Mountains”?” The witch snorts. “That’s cute.”

I don’t take kindly to that remark. Those cultists terrorized the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians trying to control spirits called “Thunderers”. “How exactly is that cute?”

“Oh please. Humans can’t do magic. It’s common knowledge.” She says with that smug grin of hers.

My turn to chuckle. “Who told you that load of crap?”

“Oh no no no, don’t start with me. The human world has no magic to speak of. Everyone knows that. Sure, you’ve fought magical creatures, but they all have the organs or affinities to use magic from their own bodies. Humans don’t really have anything.”

I look at the kid. “You did tell her, right?”

Luz shrugs. “I tried, but she kept laughing it off.”

“Figures. Considering a bartender told me this place has been cut off from the human world, guess that myth caught fire quickly.”

The witch waves a key around. “Perhaps everyone else. But if you didn’t notice, I’ve got a way to the human world.”

“And have you done anything else besides stealing people’s stuff?”

“Of course. I went to that place called “Vee-gas”. Apparently, there was supposed to be magic there. But it was all parlor tricks. I wasn’t impressed.” She suddenly looks aside fondly. “Though I did meet that handsome fella with good taste…”

“You have a human ex-boyfriend?” The skull headed dog asks.

“Ex-husband, actually.”

“In any case,” I say to get her attention. “Magic is all over the place on Earth. It’s just in hard to reach places. Physical… and metaphysical.”

She shrugs. “If you say so, red boy.”

In one ear and out the other with this woman. I’d better stop wasting my time before I get a migraine. “Speaking of which… you’ve explained me to her.” I turn to Luz. “Now, time to explain all of this to me.”

“Careful, Luz. This could take hours.” She flashes a grin before relaxing on the sofa.

“Funny.”

Luz herself looks a little nervous. “Right, uh… where to start… well, it all started when I was waiting for the bus. I had, uh… thrown my Azura book in the garbage. When I went to go get it, it was gone, stolen by a small owl… this little guy.” She points to the same owl I encountered, who seems to be preening himself. He hoots when he realizes people are talking about him. “I chased him for my book into an abandoned shack, and before I knew it, I found myself on the Boiling Isles!”

Alright, matches up so far. “I’m assuming you met this character about then?” I gesture to our classy host.

“Yeah. I, uh… um…” She suddenly clams up.

“…Kid?”

“Ok, so… Eda might have… kidnapped me a little. At first.”

I shoot a glare at said witch. She doesn’t seem to be fazed. “Oh, don’t give me that look. I just needed her for a favor, is all. She was completely safe, uhh… 90 percent of the time."

“Yeah, that doesn’t make me feel better.” As if I didn’t have enough reasons to be pissed off with this woman. “What did she have you do, exactly?”

“Oh, uh… you know. Just an errand.”

“Ah, an errand. And would that errand be attacking a prison to obtain some item from behind a barrier?”

She gives me that “caught with her hand in a cookie jar” look. “…Yes.”

I pinch the bridge of my nose. “So If you really were… “kidnapped a little”, then how exactly did you decide to stay on your own?”

“Uh, well… after that little adventure, Eda held her word and let me go home. But…” She starts rubbing her arm all guilty like. “…I really didn’t want to go to the summer camp mom had sent me to. So, I stayed. And I asked Eda to teach me magic.” She starts to wave her arms in a panic. “B-but it’s fine, though! With Eda’s portal I can go back whenever I want. So, I just stay here for the summer, and then go back home after! My mom won’t even know I’m gone!”

“Except…”

Her face gets even more nervous. “E-e-except?”

“There’s a problem with this scenario, Luz. Why exactly would I be here looking for you?”

She doesn’t answer me. She’s actually slightly shaking. I know she’s not naïve enough to not figure it out. From the looks of it, she’s knows, she’s probably just dreading the severity of the answer.
Well… might be best to rip this band aid off quickly. “Luz, what do you suppose happened when your mom signed you up for that camp?”

This time she opens up her mouth, but it seems she can’t find an answer.

“…Luz. You were registered in their computers. When you didn’t show up, they called your mother.” The bomb drops. Her eyes widen in horror. “She’s been worrying herself day and night, thinking you’d been kidnapped or… worse.”

Luz looks a little sick to her stomach. “I… No… what?”

Oh boy. That bomb dropped really hard. “Why don’t you sit down kid?”

She follows my advice, taking the nearest seat she can find. It almost seems like her legs give out from under her. I myself pull up a chair next to her.

“Luz… what did you think was gonna happen when you didn’t show up? That they would just pretend you were there and try to trick your mom?”

“I… I thought it would just be like a roll call sheet. Like in school. And that they would, you know…”

“Mark you absent and do nothing else about it?”

“You know, when you say it out loud, it sounds… pretty stupid.”

I sigh. I speak to her gently. She didn’t mean to do anything wrong… but she did, and she needs to be aware of it. “Kid… you know how a lot of my adventures go, right? They aren’t always happy endings. A lot of people go looking into the dark… and they don’t come back out. And the ones who do, come out different. This could’ve ended badly.”

“I’m… I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright. But you need to know how reckless this choice was. Trust me, I’ve made plenty of reckless choices of my own. All of em came with consequences. And all of ‘em hurt, one way or another.”
“…I… I didn’t mean to hurt her.”

“I know you didn’t.” I don’t say anything beyond that. I mean, I don’t know if I’m already overstepping some bounds here, since I’m not her parent.

A patch of silence. Her face is reading all kinds of distress. “Back home… I… I’m a weirdo. I stand out in all the wrong ways. Always have… anything I tried to do to be noticed, I just prove how much of a screw up I am.” Now, I’m no fool. I know that high schools and even middle school can cause self-esteem issues in kids. But for her to think she was always a screw up? There’s something deeper here. “When I read about Azura and my other books and comics, it always feels so much better to lose myself in those fantasies. The idea that I’m meant for something greater, that my weirdness is actually something special just feels… comforting. So, I felt like this was my last chance to be special before… before I had to give up on all that stuff.”

“But I didn’t mean to hurt my mami. Honest. I didn’t do this to get back at her, or because I thought she was being unfair. I know how much she loves me and just wants the best for me. She works so hard for me to have a good life… she’s always been there for me.” She pulls a book out of her bag. “But… after the incidents at school, she’s been pushing me to leave my hobbies. She wants me to start showing restraint, reach out, socialize more. I just wanted one chance to live my fantasies before I gave them up. I thought it wouldn’t hurt my mom as long as I pretended I went to camp and started doing those things after summer. But I guess it was just a confirmation that I’m a screw up to everyone… all she’s done for me, and I go and hurt her.” Her eyes well with tears.

I can’t help but remember one moment from the start of this case. “Please, I'll do anything to have my daughter back. I-I just… she's all I have left. I'll give my soul, even-”

“It’s okay.” She looks up at me. “You made a mistake. And you’re gonna have to deal with the consequences of it. But she ain’t gonna love you any less. I’ve gotten to know your mom this last week, so trust me on this. Now, I won’t lie. She’ll probably be hurt. And she’ll probably be upset with you. And that’s not gonna be fun. But you’ll get through this. And maybe… you two can talk about this thing once everything cools down.”

I’m not sure if I convinced her. She kinda looks away, trying to rub off her tears. That’s about when snaggletooth pipes up.

“Luz… how about you go with the whole “me kidnapping you” story?” She suggests.

“Wha-?!”

“Hang on, hear me out. Your mom means a lot to you, so why not pin the blame on me? That way, you won’t have to end up hurting her with the truth.” That’s surprising to me. That she’d stick her neck out for the kid… then again, she did send me through several buildings trying to protect her. Still, I’d rather not teach the kid she can lie her way out of her own mistakes.

“But… I can’t just throw you under the bus like that.”

“I don’t know what a bus is, but don’t worry about it. I’ve got plenty of crimes pinned on me, what’s one more?”

Luz looks like she’s thinking on that. I’m about to throw my two cents in, when she gives me the second surprise of the day. “No. Hellboy is right. I owe it to my mom to tell her the truth. I need to own up to my mistake.” She stands up and looks at her straight on. “Besides, if she thinks that you’re to blame… I might not ever get the chance to see you again.” The witch looks stunned. Guess she wasn’t expecting that answer. “If I tell her what happened, that it was my fault, I think there might be a better chance I could come back. So I can still see you, King, Willow and Gus.” Willow and Gus?

Don’t really have the chance to think on that. The Owl Lady finally gives a sort of respectful smile. “Okay, kid. If that’s what you want.”

Luz nods at her. The dog… King thing scuttles up to her. “So… you’re leaving already?”

“Yeah. But I’m sure we’ll see each other again.” She picks him up and pulls him into a hug. “My widdle cutie pie.” Is that bone marrow starting to glow on his face? Genuine question. Anyway, she walks back up to me. “I’ll go get my stuff, Hellboy.”

As she strolls upstairs, the witch watches her go off. She must’ve forgotten I was here, because I can hear her sigh. She widens her eyes when she remembers who else is here. “What’re you staring at?! Don’t you have something to pack too?!” I don’t get into banter with her this time. I just stroll outside and decide to have a smoke. “Yeah, that’s right. Mind your own business.”

I don’t know about her staying or coming back here. But it is a little surprising that she and the witch have made an impression on each other. You know, one that isn’t some old hag preying on an innocent kid. Still, I don’t know how much of that is genuine on the witch’s part. She seemed pretty defensive about it. But I haven’t really run into a good witch before. I’m not really sure what to believe.

At the least, it gives me something to think about as I stare out across the purple sea.

---

No…

You are not leaving yet, Hellboy. And neither is she…

---

It doesn’t take long for Luz to pack up. She’s still sullen about the whole situation, and from her point of view, I’d guess I’d be too.

The witch lady pulls out a key of her hair and presses an eye on it. Before I know it, a door with the same eye pops out of the ground. The same one from the glyph. I still haven’t pinned down where I saw that eye.

“Oh, Eda!” Luz suddenly shouts. “If you see Willow and Gus…”

“Don’t worry, Luz.” She rustles her hair. “I’ll tell them what went down.”

She smiles. “Thank you.”

“Who’re Willow and Gus?” I’m curious enough to ask out loud this time.

“Oh, yeah… they’re two friends of mine here on the Boiling Isles. I lost them at the magic fair, and they might be pretty worried about what might’ve happened to me.”

Friends? Well… I’ll be damned. I don’t mean that as a comment on the kid, more that she actually did what her mother was hoping she’d do. I can’t just let her stay for that alone unfortunately. But it might be something to mention to Camilia.

“So, just open up and go through, and we’ll end up at the shack?”

“Yes, Captain Obvious. I’m glad, too. Can’t get rid of you soon enough. Go chase some leprechauns or something.”

“And you go back to selling garbage. Hope that’s fulfilling.”

“It’s only one of my jobs thank you very much. My much more lucrative business is selling people proper potions and elixirs.”

“Right. And I’m sure you don’t jack up the prices or anything.”

She seems genuinely confused. “What’s your point?”

Right. We’re done here. “Why don’t you step on through, kid. I’ll be right behind you.”

She nods, then wraps up her two… housemates in a hug. “Goodbye, Eda. Goodbye, King.” She opens the door and moves through the portal.

But I got one last message. “Look… I don’t like you all that much and you don’t like me. But if you want to see the kid come back, just don’t give us a reason to think you’re out for her soul or anything. Alright?”

She doesn’t say anything to me. She doesn’t even really change expression. Probably best to leave now before we start going at each other agai-

“Uh, Eda?” We’re interrupted by a… very familiar voice. “Did I go through this thing wrong?”

We watch as Luz steps out from behind the portal. Not through it, behind it. She looks as confused as I feel. I raise an eyebrow at the witch again.

She notices. “Whoa, whoa, whoa, don’t look at me like that!”

“What’re you up to?”

“I didn’t do anything! Look, it was probably just still activating. Luz, go back through from that side. It should be done by now.” Luz nods warily and steps through.

Only to run into us, back where she started. The Owl Lady can already predict what I’m about to ask. “Uh uh. I’m not doing this. If I was really trying to keep Luz here, why wouldn’t I just push you through the portal first? Besides, I can’t control who goes through the portal and who doesn’t. The magic needed to even begin to think about doing that outscales mine by tenfold.”

“Then why can’t she go through?”

“I don’t know!”

The little guy, King, jumps on Eda’s shoulder. “Did you try turning it off and on again?”

“You’re not helping.”

Luz intervenes before things get heated. “Hold on! …Hellboy, there are BPRD agents on the other side, right? Why not just stick your head or arm through and tell them to come over? Maybe they might figure something out.”

“Not a bad idea. But you,” I point at the Owl Lady. “Better not take an interest in drawing circles in the air.”

She puts her arms up defensively, giving me a flat look.

I didn’t really need this case getting more complicated. But thankfully, it seems manageable. Kate will get a kick out of the stuff I’ve seen, though. Better stick my head out.
…
You know, last time I checked, the abandoned shack didn’t have a damn thing in it. But right now, I’m looking at some familiar décor from a certain witch’s house. I pull my head back and look at my three onlookers. I put my arm through, and stick out to the side, showing them that I seem to have run into a similar problem.

“Okay, you and I both know I wouldn’t want this.” The Owl Lady says. And she’s got a point.

Yeah. I’m thinking things just got a lot more complicated.

“Aw, crap…”

---

It’s been about 7 hours since Hellboy disappeared this morning. Along with most of the front of the cabin. Liz and I hadn’t been there, but from what Kate says, it happened very suddenly. One moment, everyone had their backs turned, scrambling to take advantage of the latest breakthrough. The next, a flash of light engulfed the front door and most of the porch, and Hellboy was gone.

We rushed back as fast as we could. We didn’t really have time to explain to Miss Noceda, but we informed her there might be a turnaround in the case. By the time we had got there, the agents were already trying to scan the area, drawing a weird glyph of some kind.

Kate also informed us of a small owl who stole most of our evidence. It might’ve been working for whatever kidnapped the young girl.

Despite all of that, we were actually less worried than we were before. Hellboy disappearing is nothing new, and if anything, it tends to be good news. Usually, Hellboy ends up exactly where he needs to be. At that point, missions tend to wrap up quickly.

But we hadn’t relaxed entirely. There was still a live hostage in this case. We still didn’t know her status, other than the fact that she wasn’t dead. And while Hellboy often disappeared to where the case was occurring, we knew it was still best to continue our own efforts as well. Unfortunately, we still seemed to be having trouble.

“That’s the last book.” I say, dropping it on the table. “Even with the image of this glyph, I found little of anything useful.”

“Great. So, we really haven’t moved forward whatsoever.” Liz groans as she also puts her last book down. “Hopefully, Hellboy is having more luck than we are.”

“That he probably is. Though he’s probably already gotten into a fight as well.”

“Twenty bucks says four.” Liz states, smiling at that. Some other agents nearby join in.

“Nah, in this time, he’d be at five. Thirty bucks.”

“I’ll take some of that action. Forty for Three!”

“Sixty bucks on six!”

“Benjamin Franklin says seven! One for each hour gone!”

Liz turns back to me. “What about you, Abe?”

“…Two.”

“Only two? Can’t say that’s a usual number for him.”

I shrug. “I’ve got a hunch.” The bet is really only to break tension anyways.

“Well, let’s hope your hunches are more accurate than my machines.” Kate walks by, frustrated. “We’ve got a far better understanding than before, but we’re still no closer to cracking this egg. And Russell’s visions are still pretty vague.” She gestures to the psychic over in front of the house.

“I see… a moonlit tree… destroying the darkness…”

“That doesn’t even sound remotely relevant…” Kate mutters. “Unless something happens in the next five minutes, we might as well be blind until Hellboy comes back.”

“Professor Corrigan! You may want to see this!”

The few of us run to the voice. A lone agent waits in front of the broken cabin. “Over here, ma’am. It just showed up.”

A door shaped beam of light was shining where the cabin’s door used to be. None of us had any doubt as to what it could be.

“Hmm. Well, if it’s really that easy, I guess I should say it more often. Abe, Liz?”

We nod, gearing up as fast as we can. We’re only scouting for now, so light ammo and armor is what we pack. Can’t be too sure what might be on the other side of this portal. While we readied ourselves, Kate had much of the debris swept away, and a ramp placed in front of the doorway.

“If you find Hellboy, be sure to ask him how he managed to get himself into this one.” Kate says jokingly.

“I’m sure it’ll be as inconvenient as it is funny.” I reply. After all, that tends to be the case most of the time.

I feel Liz nudge me in the shoulder. “You should also get your wallet ready. I’ve got a good feeling about this bet.”

“If you say so.”

Kate’s face switches to her usual serious mode. “Joking aside, priority number one is the girl. You take her and bring her back ASAP. We can concern ourselves with our new friends after.”
“Hellboy can probably keep them bus-”

“Ah hah! I knew this thing wasn’t broken… sort of.” A sudden voice brings us out of our planning. A middle aged looking woman with a sharp gold tooth is poking out from the portal. “Still don’t know why it isn’t letting that big red buffoon through… maybe the connection’s bad. Man, this place is more of a dump than I remember. Was it always this… rubbly?” It’s about that point she takes notice of us. Her eyes dart around, before she assumes a nonchalant look. “How’s it hanging.”

She gets her answer quickly, as I swiftly raise my pistol to her face. “Not much, ma’am. You see, we’re with the BPRD. We were wondering if you could tell us about this “big red buffoon” of yours.”

She groans. “Oh, peachy.”

---

“Hey, trenchcoat.” The Owl Lady says as she steps out from the portal. “These friends of yours?”

It’s only then that we notice the pistol to her head… attached to a very fishy hand. As she backs up, I can see Abe stepping through.

“Well, well. Cavalry’s arrived right when all the fun’s ended.” I say with a smirk. Abe matches that with a smile of his own.

“Ah, there you are, Hellboy. Kate’s dying to know how it happened to you this time.”

“Hmph. She’ll have to coax it out of me.”

“Guess it must be pretty embarrassing then.” Liz comments, also stepping through the portal.

“Oh, for the love of- I’m not hosting a house party all of the sudden!” The Owl Lady complains. Abe keeps his gun to her.

“Yeah, don’t bother, Abe. My Good Samaritan did little more than piss her off. Gave her a few good cracks in her skull though. She’s pretty harmless now.”

She scoffs. “Whatever helps you sleep at night.”

I draw their attention to a certain girl. “’Sides, we found who we were looking for.” Said girl was hyperventilating. The two seem a little worried about that. “Breath, kid. Just let it out.”

“Oh my gosh. Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, ohmygosh ohmygosh ohmygosh! You’re Abe Sapien and Liz Sherman! Oh, first I get to meet Hellboy, and then the Fish Fighter and the Cool Flame themselves!”

“Fish Fighter?”

“The Cool Flame?”

Both seem more confused than anything at those names. “I think those were your monikers in the comics.” I explain. “Turns out she’s a big fan of the BPRD.”

“The biggest!” She says with glee and a wide smile.

“Hold on, if she’s a big fan, how come her mother only sort of knew of our existence?” Liz asks a fair question.

“Yeah, mom never really focused on your agency when reading the news. Y’all don’t make the front page or main story anymore. Everybody’s gotten so used to the supernatural existing. I mean, I do think she’s seen your agency come up, but it’s all politics and finance. I have told her about you guys a few times, but even then, I think she might’ve thought that Abe and Hellboy were just fictional comic characters.” Luz adds.

“This is what happens when you don’t pose for photos.” Abe does a little tisk tisk motion with his fingers.

Hellboy shrugs. “Ah, who cares. We get the job done whether people know us or not.”

“So, mission finished then? The girl’s right here, the threat’s neutralized…” Liz asks me.

“Eh, threat’s a strong word.” I correct.

“If you’re gonna talk smack about me, do it to my face!” Our lovely host shouts.

“Anyway… yeah, I’d like to say the job’s done. But we’ve got a problem. Both the kid and I can’t step through that portal. And though she pisses me off, I know it’s not the witch.”

Liz sighs. “And there’s the twist.”

“Yeah. So, I’m gonna need Kate to come over and start researching this thing pronto.”

“I’m not feeding them.” The witch states.

“Didn’t want your cooking anyway.”

“So, I guess this means I’m not going home just yet.” Luz says, and I hear the relief in her voice.

She probably shouldn’t be so relaxed. “Kid… you realize this just means we’re bringing her to you, right?”

That relief look on her face suddenly turns into one of terror. Guess she wasn’t prepared as she thought.

“Oh, farts.”

---

I run as fast as my legs will take me. I was just about to head to work when I had gotten the call from the BPRD.

They found her. They found her, and she’s ok. My Luz is ok!

It fills me to the brim with happiness to hear those words. I don’t even bother calling my boss, I just run for the cabin, desperate to see my little girl.

The first one I see is Professor Corrigan. She is on a call with someone. Her superiors from what I can tell.

“No, no. Look, other agents can handle those cases, Manning. Yes, but considering the circumstances, I’d rather have Abe and Liz still here… Manning. Manning, we’ll talk about this later.” She hands up rather abruptly. “Ms. Noceda! Sorry to call you on short notice, but I’m sure you’re glad to hear the news.”

“Yes! Is she here? I don’t see her…”

“Wait, did they not…? Ugh, I’m going to have words with that agent… Listen, your daughter’s fine. She’s not hurt. But there is still one complication.”

“A… a complication?”

“Look, why don’t you come with me? I’m sure you’ve been all too eager to see her.”

She takes me up to the cabin, which has… oddly lost some vital parts. I’m stunned to see a glowing light coming from the doorway. It’s almost blinding…

“Don’t worry, it’s safe. Just step right on through.”

I’m a little nervous. But I trust Professor Corrigan. With my breath held, I take a step forward.

It takes a while for my eyes to adjust. As my vision slowly comes back, I notice my surroundings. Some kind of… home? It is filled with odd looking liquids and terrifying imagery.
However, I also notice the many BPRD agents filling the room. Including… “Hellboy!”

“Hey there, Ms. Noceda.”

“Please, I came to find Luz, but Professor Corrigan said there was a… complication? I do not understand.”

“I’ll tell you in a second. I think you’ve been waiting long enough.”

As he moves out of the way, I find my daughter standing there. To see her again after so many days of fearing the worst… I’m overcome with joy.

“¡Mija!” I fling myself at her, wrapping her in my arms. I hold tight, hoping that she’ll never be taken from me again. When she hugs me back, I know she’s really here, that this isn’t a dream. “¡Estoy tan feliz de verte sana y salva! ¡Pensé que nunca te volvería a ver! ¡Oh, mi Lucecita! ¿Estás herida? ¿Esos monstruos te hicieron algo?"

"Estoy bien, mami. Yo también estoy feliz de verte. Por favor suéltame un poco, me estás aplastando..."

I release her. The tears are flowing down my eyes. “Oh, thank you, Hellboy. I owe you so much.”

“Nah, I’m just paying you back for telling me about that neat chimichurri place.”

Always so modest… because of him, I can finally take my daughter home. “Come on, Luz. I don’t want to spend another minute in this place…”

“Uh…”

Luz’s unsure response confuses me. Doesn’t she want to go home? “Ahem.” I hear Hellboy clear his throat. “That’s… where the complication comes in. See that portal thing?” He points to the wall of light I came through. “We’re experiencing technical difficulties. Neither me nor the kid can go through it for some reason.”

My feelings of joy begin to leave me. I just found her… and yet I can’t take her home? “I… w-what? But…”

“Hold on now. Breathe, Ms. Noceda.” He kneels, speaking directly to me. “We don’t leave a job half done. We’re still with you every step of the way. Your daughter’s safe and sound. All we need to do is keep an eye on her and figure out what’s wrong with the door. We’re almost there.”

“…You’re right. Gracias, Hellboy. I just wish this ordeal in its entirety could be over already.”

“I know. Unfortunately… there is one more thing. Something I believe your daughter needs to tell you herself.”

My daughter? Did something happen to her after all? “What does he mean, mija?”

“Uh… well… it’s a… a funny story. You know, I wouldn’t want to put stress on you or anything.”

“Kid, the longer you wait to pull that pin, the more you’re not gonna wanna do it.”

Luz sighs at Hellboy’s words, and looks at me with extreme guilt. Is this why she looked so nervous? What could have her feeling so ashamed?

“Mami… I have a confession to make.”

---

"¡INCONCEBIBLE! ¡DÍAS ENTEROS PENSANDO QUE TE HABÍA TRAGADO LA TIERRA, CREYENDO QUE TE HABÍA PASADO LO PEOR! ¡ME MENTISTE EN LA CARA Y ELEGISTE QUEDARTE EN UN LUGAR PELIGROSO CON GENTE PELIGROSA! ¡CON COMPLETOS DESCONOCIDOS! ¡¿TIENES ALGUNA IDEA DE LO QUE PODRÍA HABERTE PASADO?! ¡VÁLGAME DIOS, QUE ESTOY PENSADO SI NO DEBERÍA CASTIGARTE POR EL RESTO DE TU VIDA!"

Oof. This is brutal. Poor Luz is cringing, looking like a sad puppy dog. I’d be too if I was receiving a verbal lashing like that. Still… it’s going a lot better than I was expecting. She kinda scared me for a moment there. After Luz said everything she kinda just sat there quietly, unmoving. Then this happened.

“Uh… what is she saying?” King questions me.

“Tough parental love.”

“Uh… okay?”

“I just cannot believe you, Luz!” Cam says, going back to English. “Making such a reckless decision! Putting the fear of God into your mother’s heart! Why would you do such a thing?!” Luz was quiet for a moment, but she realized her mother indeed wanted an answer.

“I… wanted to learn magic for this summer instead of going to Reality Check… before I had to start giving up on all of my hobbies.”

Camilia looks taken aback at first. However, she regains composure. “So you decided to stay with someone who kidnapped you-”

“O-only a little-”

“Kidnapped you,” Camilia emphasizes with a glare, and Luz realizes she shouldn’t be talking right now. “You decide to stay with her just because she seemed somewhat nice? On top of that, you had no idea what kind of cost or repercussions this magic would have, and yet you still chose to learn it?!” Camilia kept going. “Not to mention, the fact you chose to stay on an island with creatures that have indeed said they want to eat you!”

“Well… I…”

Camilia takes a deep breath. “You have a room here?” Luz nods. She turns to me. “And there is nothing in it that will harm her, yes?” I nod too. With that confirmation, she turns back to her daughter. “This is what will happen. You will go to your room and stay there until these good men and women find out how to get you home. You will not step foot outside this house, you will not use any magic, and you will not talk to that woman." She says while pointing to the Owl Lady.

“But she’s not-”

“This is not up for discussion, Luz! I will not have you near that woman, or anything having to do with this place! As of this moment, you're grounded.” She pauses a moment. “When we get home, I will hear nothing more about these Boiling Isles. And then you and I are going to have a long talk about your hobbies.” She finishes.

Luz looks completely defeated, sulking up to her temporary room. When she disappears upstairs, I see Camilia take off her glasses and rub her face.

“Geez, a little harsh on the kid there, don’t ya think, human?”

Oh, bad timing, Owl Lady. With that one comment, I can see the anger in Camilia reignite.

“¡TU CALLATE! ¡¿Cómo te atreves a actuar tan tranquila después de haber chantajeado a mi hija?! ¡Debería retorcerte el cuello por ponerla en peligro!”

“Huh?” The Owl Lady said, not understanding.

“I said, you will not address me so casually after kidnapping and extorting my daughter in the first place!”

She rolls her eyes. “Like I told big red over there, she was under my protection. She-”

“ENOUGH!” Camilia aggressively advances on the witch, catching her off guard. “I will not sit here and let you feed me excuses for why you kept my daughter hostage! You kidnapped my daughter! Simple as that! And if you dare act as if that is no big deal, I will show you just how angry that makes me!”

“Well, I-”

Camilia keeps pressing forward, causing the witch to start backing up. “Secondly, you will not call me human, or Cam, or Camilia! To you, it is Ms. Noceda! Do you understand?!”

“U-uh…” Her casual demeanor’s been completely snuffed out.

“I said, do you understand?!”

“Y-yes, Miss Noceda.” Even I’m not prepared when Camilia takes her by the collar of her dress, pulling her down to eye level.

“Finally, and most importantly, you will never set foot near my daughter again! You will not talk to her or send messages to her! If you even think of looking at my daughter again, I will use your head as my next Halloween decoration! Am I clear?!

“B-but-”

“I said, am I clear?!”

“Yes!”

“Yes, what?!”

“Yes, Miss Noceda!”

She finally releases the Owl Lady, who ends up sitting there, frozen.

The little guy, King, seems shocked. “Wha… but… how did she…” He has trouble finding the words. “I’ve never seen anyone frighten Eda like that!”

Abe is the one to reply to him. “I believe the saying goes, “Hell hath no fury like a mother scorned”. Just so you know.”

“Simply put, don’t mess with moms.” I add.

Camilia walks toward us, her rant done. King jumps in surprise and balls up, covering his head. “Please don’t hurt me!”

She ignores him for now. I can see she’s stressed again, massaging the bridge of her nose. Maybe it’s time for everyone to take a breather. “Ms. Noceda. Why don’t you sit down for a while? I’ll get one of the agents to bring you something to calm your nerves.”

“…Y-yes. Perhaps I should.”

Things sorta quiet down at that point. But it ain’t a relaxing quiet. I’m not sure where Luz and Camilia go from here. Hopefully, they can work things out.

---

At some point I find myself outside again, wanting another smoke. A little strange that I have yet to light it. My mind’s too occupied.

The door to the shack opens, and out steps the Owl Lady. She’s got this disgruntled look on her face, like somebody’s broken her window. To be fair, I suppose I’d be unhappy too if I had a bunch of unwanted houseguests.

“Nice weather we’re having.”

She gives me a scowl. “You’re a funny guy. Your agents said I was making Ms. Noceda in there “uncomfortable”. So, now I’m not allowed in my own home. Go figure…”

“Look, I know you feel inconvenienced and all, but that woman in there has been worrying all week about her daughter being kidnapped. And you did do that, no matter how much you sugarcoat it. So you’re just gonna have to take it for now.”

“Alright, alright, I get it. Maybe I should’ve checked with the kid’s mom before I got that favor from her. And taking her in as my apprentice. Responsibility and all that.”

“I think not using her for a prison break at all would be ideal.” Still, if she she needed it that bad… makes me curious. “What exactly were you looking for in there anyway?”

“Oh, we just needed King’s Burger Queen crown.”

“…Come again?”

“His crown. That little headpiece meant a lot to King. Poor guy felt lost without it.”

“You kept a young girl from going home because you wanted a dime a dozen paper crown? One you could get from the trash of any Burger Queen in the human realm?”

“If it meant that much to King, then it meant that much to me. But hey, we lost it anyway when the warden showed up. Crushed it and then tried to make me date him.”

“Hold on… if you only went in there for a crown, what the hell was the prison break I heard about?”

“Oh, that was Luz. I tried to send her home, since she had already helped us, but the rascal rounded up some prisoners and fought off the warden.”

“You’re telling me the kid set up the prison break herself?”

“I was surprised too. The warden is a mean dude. I sent her home first chance I could. But she apparently found a kinship with those prisoners.”

“That’s… not encouraging.”

“What? Oh, you’re under the impression the Conformatorium is a legit prison. No, it’s just where the Emperor sends the riff raff who don’t ‘conform’. It’s in the name. While he uses it mostly for renegade witches, he turns a blind eye to anyone Warden Wrath sees as freaks. The people holed up in there barely did anything wrong. Wrath just doesn’t like weirdos in his town.”

“Weirdos? How exactly would you classify weirdos in a town like this?”

“Well, the ones Luz freed were a girl who wrote fanfiction of romance between foods, a guy who ate his own eyeballs, and a conspiracy theorist. We couldn’t do much for the others, but they pretty much went along those lines.”

Alright. I’ll admit. Being locked up just for that is bullcrap. “Why does the Emperor ignore this?”

“Because he’s an authoritarian who’s tricked everyone into believing he’s a savior. Really he just wants the Boiling Isles to work exactly how he thinks it should be. Anyone who doesn’t fall in line, especially witches that use wild magic like me, pay the price.”

“If what you’re saying is true, why take the girl under your wing? Doesn’t that put her in more danger?”

“Not under my watch. I take care of my own. If she wants to learn the proper ways of Boiling Isles magic, then I’m sure as hell not gonna let that guy rain on her parade. Course that didn’t stop her from getting interested in Hexside, but I’ll make sure she knows how much of a scam that is.”

…Man, I can’t pin this woman down. She’s all over the place. She seems to care for the kid and has integrity… sorta, but she’s also a con artist criminal. At least I’ve got a possible suspect for this whole portal thing. If what Owl Lady here says is true, anyway.

I don’t have time to finish my conversation with her. Two kids suddenly come running into the clearing. Both have pointed ears and are wearing a similar kind of uniform. “Eda!” The one with green hair shouts.

“Yo, pintsizes. Guessing you’re here for Luz?”

“Yeah, she disappeared before all the craziness started!” The shorter one confirms. “Is she alright?”

“And who is this guy?” Glasses asks.

“Take it easy, kids. Luz is fine. I just had to take her home for… reasons.” She gestures to me. “Ask this guy.”

The two look at me, confused. At that point, it clicks in me who these two are. “You Willow and Gus?” They nod. “Luz is inside, but… you might not be allowed to see her. Her mom is here and ain’t really happy with her right now. She’s grounded at the moment.”

Gus, I’m assuming, gasps. “She buried her?!”

“…No. She’s just confined to her room.”

“Oh.”

Willow steps forward. “Do you know when we could see her? We were so worried.”

The two eye me in anticipation. “Not sure. You’ll have to ask her mom.”

“Yeah, she’s inside. Go on in, you little twerps.” Before I can register, she opens the door, and the two scurry in. I give her a look. “What? They wanted to know.”

I head inside to stop them. Not sure if Camilia really wants to be pestered with that right now. The little guy seems to be jumping the gun though. And also incredibly misinformed. He’s in front of Abe. “Hello Luz’s mom! Do you know when Luz won’t be imprisoned in her room anymore?”

“Uh…”

“Why do you want to see my daughter?” The two kids’ attention is drawn to the actual mom in this room. She’s got this confused look on her face.

“Oh, sorry lady.” Gus apologizes. Abe looks more baffled than ever.

Willow speaks first. “We lost track of her at the magic fair before things went bonkers. We heard she got punished, though. Do you know when we’ll be able to see her?”

“And… you are…?"
“Oh, sorry! I’m Willow and this is Gus. We’re Luz’s friends.”

“Well, Willow and Gus, I’m sorry to say…” She pauses in the middle of her sentence, a surprised look on her face. “…Did you say you were her friends?”

“Yep.”

“You betcha!”

Camilia’s getting curious now. “How… How do you know my daughter?”

“Well, it was the other day on my way to school that we met. We hit it off nicely. She pretended to be an abomination, I showed her around Hexside School… pretty fun day, all things considered. And thanks to her, I got moved into the Plant Track instead of the Abomination track!”

Gus speaks up. “And I got to learn about humans from the source! She even gave me a human nickname! My real one’s Augustus!”

“Yes… seems she really struck a chord in you two.” Camilia seems to smile again, if only briefly.

“Yeah! Is she alright by the way? We still don’t know what happened to her.”

“Y-yes, my Luz is okay. I’m glad to see she has friends who care for her so much. Why don’t you two stay here for just a moment?” She gets up from her chair. “Hellboy, may I speak to you privately?”

“Sure.” We walk into a room while the agents continue their work.

“Sorry for the sudden conversation.” She says after the door closes. “But I need your expert opinion on this.”

“Fire away.”

“So… I know what I said to her. That I wanted absolutely nothing to do with all… this, after we got home. But now… I find out she’s finally made friends. I always believed she could, if given the right push, but… I never expected it to happen in a place like this.” She sighs. “I… I don’t know what to do now. This place, it’s so dangerous. And yet Luz has friends here. Teens who don’t seem dangerous whatsoever. She’s connecting to people. Can I really take her away from something I wanted for her?”

She must be leading up to the paranormal. But even so, I’m not sure where exactly she’s going with this.

“How… dangerous did this place seem to you?”

“…It actually seemed pretty normal at first.” She cocks her head. “By that, I mean it’s as if I was walking in any other town. Just with strange looking demons. The only trouble I ran into was the witch. And even then, she thought she was protecting the girl from me.”

Her posture tenses up. “That doesn’t excuse her. She still took my daughter and kept her here like a hostage. I still don’t trust her.”

“And I understand that. Not faulting you there. But she does seem to care what happens to her. It was something I didn’t know about at first, and it’s sent my thoughts on the matter for a loop.”

“Perhaps.” She seems nervous now. “Did she… did she tell you any different why she decided to stay?”

“You don’t have to worry about that. She didn’t want to hurt you. She knows how much you love her. I think this place just really… connected to her. Especially with what you told us about her.”

“…She did seem pretty devastated to never come back.”

“She was hoping to convince you to let her come back and see these folks. She was ready to take her punishment otherwise. Sort of…” I remember a small detail. “It’s funny. Snaggletooth actually offered to be the fall gal. Said she would’ve taken the full blame, even if it wasn’t true. But your girl turned it down ‘cause it meant she’d be even less likely to see her.”

Camilia looks shocked but doesn’t say anything.

I pause for a moment, wondering what next to say. “…What do you think is best for Luz?”

“I… I don’t know. All I know is that she made two friends. And that she really enjoys being here. A small part of my mind is suggesting that I actually let her stay here. But I don’t want to reward her for lying to me and running away and staying with strangers. And I most certainly don’t want her to get hurt.”

“…Maybe you need a little more context.” Camilia looks at me questioningly. “Get all sides of the story. See what’s happened to Luz so far. If you’ve got a bigger picture, you might figure out why she wants to stay here so much.”

“…Yes. Maybe it’ll clear my head a bit.” She sighs. “Even this ‘Eda’ character… Could you go get her for me?”

We exit the room. Willow and Gus seem to have taken an interest in the agents, poking around them and asking tons of questions. As Camilia asks them to sit down, I poke my head out of the house. “Hey. Owl Lady. Ms. Noceda wants to talk to you.” She only looks at me curiously before coming inside. When we head back in, it looks like Camilia even got King.

As the Owl Lady sits down, she begins. “I want you all to tell me everything that Luz has done while she has been here. Leave no details out.”

---

I steel myself, as I stand outside the door of my daughter’s room. Considering everything I just learned, I believe I was right to be worried about this place. But perhaps I shouldn’t have been so harsh.
But before I can decide anything, I need to know what happened from Luz’s perspective.

I quietly open the door. And what I see astonishes me. Several small lights are floating around the room, glowing with a shining brilliance. I can see Luz drawing on a piece of paper, before tapping it. The piece of paper is sucked into yet another ball of light.

I make the mistake of gasping, which makes Luz jolt. She starts to panic. “Uh, mom! This… this isn’t… I was just-”

“Shh. It’s okay, sweetie. Never mind that now.” I sit down beside her on her sleeping bag. Her eyes are red. She’s clearly been crying. I pull her into a hug. “Lamento haberme enojado tanto, mija. Yo solo… estuve tantas noches preocupada pensado que te había perdido para siempre. Me afecto tanto saber que me habías mentido.”

“Lo se... perdón por ser una carga.”

I pull away, looking her in the eyes. “Oh no, mija. You made a mistake. But you’re not a burden. You could never be such a thing to me. I would never see you that way.”

“I… I never meant to hurt anyone. I didn’t think this would hurt anyone at the time…”

“I know. But it did. You must learn to look before you leap, mija. Making decisions so rashly can affect more than just yourself.”

She nods, looking down in shame. “Si, mami. I understand. And I also understand if you want to leave this place.”

“…Luz…” I begin, and she looks to me, perhaps expecting more punishment. “While I was down there… cooling off... I happened to meet two friends of yours.”

Luz straigtens up. “You saw Willow and Gus? Are they okay?”

“Yes, yes, Lucecita. They’re fine. In fact, they came around asking about you. They told me how you met, and I just need to say… I’m proud of you, mija.” Luz is stunned by this. “I don’t condone you running away and staying here. But you finally have friends. I always knew you could connect to people if given a chance. And while I certainly didn’t expect that to happen in a place like this, I couldn’t be more happy for you.” I fix a tuft of her disheveled hair. “No matter what happens after this… I will be okay with you seeing them again.”

She smiles for the first time in a few hours, the grin growing wider in excitement. “You… you mean it? I can come back here and see all of them?”

“Now, hold on, Luz. Your friends are one thing. But this place and this… Owl Lady are another.” Her excitement fades away at that. “Now, after your friends arrived, I decided to do some… questioning. I asked your two friends, the cute little bone cat, and even this ‘Eda’ what happened during your stay here- with help from Hellboy of course. What I heard from them… varied. Like how you nearly got eaten by an octopus monster after accepting a quest from a man you didn’t know.”

“Uh…”

“Or how you were almost dissected because you pretended to be an… ‘abomination’.”

“Er…”

“Or that your mentor turned into a giant monster and tried to eat you after you had taken her important medication.”

“…Yeah…” Luz chuckles sheepishly.

“You might’ve guessed, but this really didn’t help my view of this place. But…”

“But?”

“I also heard how you protected the Owl Lady and the cute fox-thing from that octopus. And how you’ve been incredibly diligent in doing her errands. I heard how you supported Willow’s interests and helped her stand up to her bully. And while I don’t want you thinking all prison riots are okay… you did free people wrongfully imprisoned for being different. I’m proud of you for those things too. But that doesn’t take away from the danger you’ve been in…” I scooch to face my daughter. “I’m not sure what to think of this place. But the fact is, until the BPRD can get you home, you are stuck here. For who knows how long. I am… open to letting you visit places on the island. However, I’m also considering still keeping you within this house the entire time, just to be safe. But before I can make any kind of decision, there’s still one thing I need to know. I want to know why you really decided to stay here.”

“Why… why I really decided?”

“Yes. I know you did this because you didn’t want to go to Reality Check, and because you knew I would start pushing you to move away from your hobbies after summer.” I place a hand on her shoulder. “But now I want to know why you’re so interested in all this that it would compel you to make those decisions. Why you want to live out these fantasies. Why you wanted to learn magic so much. Why you were so eager to be a ‘chosen one’.”

Luz shifts around, squirming at the question. I think I already know… but I need to know for sure. I take her hand in mind, to comfort her and let her know she can tell me anything. “I… I wanted to feel special. To stand out… but for something that I actually liked. …I wanted to feel like being ‘me’ meant something.” Her lips purse, as she tries to hold back tears. “I just wanted to believe that I wasn’t a mistake.”

Sometimes I wish I wasn’t right. She still hears the words from that night too well. I swear… if I ever see that man on my doorstep again, I will pay him back the pain our daughter has been through tenfold. “Luz… my sweet girl. You aren’t a mistake. Being yourself is not a mistake.” I pull her into another hug. “But… I know I didn’t help. I pushed you towards a place that didn’t speak to you. I made you feel that it was wrong to be yourself. Something I never wanted to do. I meant what I said in that phone call. I do want to talk about better ways to help you outside your comfort zone. I want what’s best for you, Lucecita, but I also want you to be happy.”

“But it wasn’t really just this Reality Check thing. I know I stick out like a sore thumb. Every time I be myself I just mess up and look like even more of a weirdo. I just thought this place was my real calling. The only place I could stand out in the right way.”

“Mija, no one is born special. No one has some destiny waiting for them in a scroll. We all come into our own through our own choices. It may take some of us longer than others, but with a little help, we can all find out what we want to live life for.”

Her face lightens up. “Heh… you know, that actually sounds a lot like what Eda said. She told me that if we waited around for someone to tell us we’re special, we’d die waiting. That we have to choose ourselves.”

“Si. She did mention that.” I’m… a little shocked. I was skeptical when she told me that she had said such a thing to my daughter, but it appears it was true. The Owl Lady said something to my daughter that resonated with her. This must be what Hellboy meant when his perceptions of things were shaken up.

“…I know what I did was selfish and reckless. But I really think there might be something for me here.” She looks up at me with a hopeful expression. “Is there any way I can convince you to let me to stay?”
I sigh. “I just don’t know, Luz. This place is very dangerous. And while she has surprised me, I still don’t trust that woman. I would need some way to know that she can take responsibility. To know that this place is… manageable.”

Luz thinks on this, furrowing her brow. “…What about a demo run?”

I look at her quizzically. “What do you mean?”

“Well… since I’m stuck here, maybe we could really give this island a test. Especially since Hellboy’s stuck here too. He could watch over me the next few days, and we can try out a thing or two on the island. And after all is said and done, he can tell you what happened so you can decide if this place is okay!”

It’s… an idea. But I’m reluctant to go along with this. ‘Testing’ like this doesn’t keep her safe, necessarily. Having Hellboy with her could help, but… “I’m not sure… I’ve already asked so much from Hellboy. And he is dealing with his own issues at the moment.” Then again, he’s a very kind man. “If he can’t do such a thing, Luz, then I’m afraid we may have to just go home. But if and only if he accepts, then I must lay down some ground rules.” She nods profusely. “One, you will not go anywhere on the island without Hellboy for the time being. Even with your friends. If he allows you to go with other agents, then I trust his judgement. But If he or another agent aren’t available, then you cannot go.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Two. You are still being punished. Since you can’t do chores at home, you will be doing work for the BPRD agents that are watching over the portal… within reason, of course. And if we deem the Owl Lady’s errands safe to do, you will continue doing those as well.”

She cringes a bit at that, but nods.

“Thirdly, I will coming by everyday to hear from Hellboy what you’ve done and what has happened. If it becomes too risky for my liking, I will call it off. No buts.”

“Understood.”

“And finally… for the time being, no magic.”

“H-huh?!”

“Luz… the week I spent with the BPRD, they were openly honest about many things. Including witches on earth. Hearing about the vile things they do, and how much of their humanity they have you sacrifice for their powers, I’m almost glad that this Eda is the one who found you.” I give her a stern look. “You could have very easily been targeted by one of them for your interests. And we might’ve found you in a very different state. As for the magic… Hellboy and his agency are investigating this place already. Until he can determine the safety of this magic, you will not practice it. If he finds it to be harmless… I may consider letting you learn it. But until then, even your light spell is off limits.”

Luz looks conflicted and disappointed but agrees. “Si, mami. Uh… and Eda?”

“…I guess I can’t see if I can trust her if I don’t give her the chance to earn it… but Hellboy’s authority comes first, understand?”

She nods again.

“Good.” I breathe deeply. I’m probably about to make a very questionable choice in parenting. “Then I am open to the idea. Let us ask Hellboy, before anything else.”

I just hope that questionable choice is the right one.

---

“So, you’re a babysitter now?” Liz asks, amused.

“Maybe.”

“Manning might not be happy about that. He might consider you getting too close to the case.”

“Screw ‘em.” I put out my cigarette in my hand. “It gives me a chance to help out both of them while also letting me learn more about how this place works.”

“You really think it’s this emperor fellow?” Abe questions, not taking his eyes of his scanner.

“I don’t know. But Snaggletooth said blocking the portal would take a bunch of magic. He’s my biggest culprit. What’s really irking me is… why the two of us? There’s no relation as far as I can see. I don’t know what connects the us both, what it is about the kid and I have in common. I’m not seeing all the pieces here, and I hate that. Just means the bad guys have the advantage.”

Liz sips a bit of her coffee. “So, what’s up first then?”

“The kid says there’s some kind of convention in a few days where the covens recruit and show off. I figure that’s a good place to start.”

Abe snaps his fingers. “Before I forget… how many fights did you get into while you were here?”

“Hmm?” Weird question. I know I fought Snaggletooth, but there was also… the… “One.”

Liz gives me an incredulous look. “One? Are you sure?”

“Yeah. The Owl Lady.”

“That’s funny…” Abe says, a smirk on his face. “Because I was having a lovely conversation with the door earlier…” I tense up. “And he says you and he fought. Claims he got quite a few hits on you-”

“If you don’t mind, I think I’m gonna go have a talk with that door.” I state before walking away.

Before I get out of earshot, I can hear the two of them talk. “I believe you and the others owe me.”

“Yeah, yeah. So much for my good feeling…”

---

“And you’re sure that is how you would describe him?”

“Y-yes, my Emperor. Sawed off horns, stone hand, red skin. I… I apologize greatly for not apprehending him. I-”

“Don’t be so foolish. I do not wish to detain him. Nor did I expect that you and the guards would. Go and rest up. Just know that I expect you to pull double duty for not coming to me or my subordinates sooner.”

“Yes, my Emperor!” The guard scurries off, glad to not be greatly punished. As he should be…

“Lilith.” The Owl Lady’s sister steps out from the shadows and bows. “Should you or your guards see this creature again, question him. Do not apprehend him, however. I simply wish to know his intentions for being on the Isles.”

“And… if he interferes with capturing my sister, or vice versa?”

“Incapacitate him if you must.” I wave her out. “Be on your way. I am aware that you must ready yourself for the coming Covention.”

“Yes, my emperor.” As she exits the room, Kikimora is quick with her curiosity.

“Sire, might I inquire why you do not wish to apprehend this trouble maker? His fight with the Owl Lady tore up much of the grounds of Hexside. Should we not find out who he is and arrest him?”

“I already know who he is, Kiki. Long have I prepared for the day he would arrive here… and yet I still do not feel ready.” I stare out, looking the petrification statue in the eyes. “Anung un Rama… do you even realize who wanted you here?”

Notes:

I dunno, I think King had the right idea about the door. What about you guys?

Next time, Covention is in town! Will things go the same? Will they be different? Will Hooty get a breath mint? I mean, those first two are up in the air, but the third one’s pretty much a no.

That’s it for now, see you next time! Watch the right hook!

Chapter 5: Hellboy's Day Out

Summary:

Hellboy goes out to do a few errands on the town. Meanwhile, the denizens left at the Owl House meet and greet with another member of the BPRD...

Notes:

Hey folks. Sorry I've been gone so long. A few factors had a hand in making me take such a long time. The biggest one? The U.S. elections. Those were so damn stressful to wait through. I couldn't focus on writing. I was too anxious, too restless. It ended extending the writing of this way into November.

The other biggest was… well, some of you might notice this chapter isn't Covention. Well, after I finished the last chapter, I just didn't feel right going straight into Covention. I didn't want it to be a complete copy/paste of the episode but just with Hellboy, so I needed to think about it. With Takana's help, I was able to think out a solution. However, that solution required setup, which is admittedly what this chapter is for. Despite how it was initially just made for that, it also ended up being more good character pieces for me wot work with.

Another thing y'all might notice is the name of the story has changed. Yeah, back when I put out the first chapter, I rushed with the story's name because I wanted to post the story ASAP. Looking back on it though, the name just felt… bland. Generic. So, I got to thinking about a new one, discussing it with Takana, and Hell's Boiling Point is what I settled on. It still brings both series to mind while sparking an interesting title. Hopefully.

Finally, I've been looking to find somewhere to commission a title card for this story. I tried drawing a piece of my own, but it's... definitely amateurish. I'm hoping to use It as a template to send to an artist I can commission for a better one. Someone who can mimic Mignola's art. It might take some time.

I also found some fanart of this story! Szart98pl made a piece of Hellboy and Eda's staredown. Go give him some love!

With all that out of the way, on to the next chapter! No real action this time, that's coming in the next few chapters.

"That's a load of bull." I flick my lighter closed.

"Yeah, Manning's been really on my case about keeping too many of his "star agents" here. He's being stubborn on this in particular since you're stuck here." Kate replies, kolache box in hand.

I sigh and take one. "So, when did they leave?"

"Abe and Liz got airlifted this morning. It'll probably be a few days before they handle those ghosts in the Dead Sea."

"Hmph. Ghosts in the Dead Sea… Fitting situation, I guess." I take a bite. Not bad, but nothing compared to this one location in Dallas. Best I've tasted.

"HOOOOOOOT! HOOOOOOOT!" Our conversation is interrupted when the feathery door piece starts hooting like some kind of howler monkey bird hybrid.

"That's certainly a wake up call." Kate says, using her free hand to rub one of her ears.

"Try hearing it at 4 in the morning. I think Snaggletooth knocked him out before he could go off too long. Threw a cauldron at him."

"World's worst alarm clock…" Kate groans.

"Anyway…" I veer the discussion back, trying to drown out the sound. "Any other news I should know about."

"Well, he thought we were overstaffed. So he's decided to move most of our agents out too. Said he doesn't feel we need so many just to get you home."

"Did he not get the point of my report? It wasn't just me. The girl's trapped here, too. This isn't just some aftermath cleanup of some kind."

"Manning doesn't seem to think so. He's only leaving us with about four or five agents for the time being."

"Is there any good news you got for me?"

"Well, since he was taking Abe and Liz for a little bit, I was at least able to get him to send me someone to replace them. It's his first time out in the field since actually becoming an agent, so he's pretty excited about it."

"Hmm? They're sending us a rookie?" That felt a bit irritating. A hollow gesture even, replacing our experts with greenhorns.

"Don't tell me you forgot. After all, it was your good word that got him recruited… as well as resurrected."

Resurrected? What does she… ah. I see who it is now. "Well, Kate… when you're right you're right. When should we expecting him?"

"He should be arriving within the hour. You gonna introduce him to our latest hosts?"

"Sort of, but I won't be sticking around for too long. I'm gonna be heading into town today. Honestly, I was mostly mad cause I felt we needed someone who could keep track of ol' Owl Face. Miss Noceda doesn't trust her yet, so I can't have her going off alone with the kid. A few humans aren't gonna keep her from doing whatever she feels like."

"Supernatural agents aren't going to have a much easier time."

"Yeah, but it'll be easier regardless." I finish the pastry before returning to my smoke. Nice way to begin a morning. Knowing my luck, I'll need this little bit of relaxation before things eventually go nuts.

"So, you're already looking into this emperor guy?"

"Well, that's only half of it. I'm also gonna see what I can find out about the magic of this place. See how it works. I know both Nocedas probably want to hear how that goes."

Kate looks through her files. "I guess that'll give me a chance to ask Miss Eda about the letter. There's a question I still have."

"It wasn't her." She raises an eyebrow at me. "Think about it. Luz was the one who wanted to stay, and Eda didn't much care. Why would she bother sending a letter to cover her tracks? Besides, I brought it up with her. She laughed at me for being old fashioned. Apparently, the people living here have some kind of magical phone-like scroll."

"…How?"

"No idea. Guess it beats using birds."

Speaking of which, a sudden commotion outside grabs our attention again. "Dang it, Hooty! Shut your beak before I turn you into fried chicken!"

"Ow!" The screeching finally goes silent.

The two of us just sort stare out the window, thinking to ourselves how weird this place is… I'll take a fight with another one of those cyborg gorillas over hearing that feathery tube make any more noise.

I clear my throat. "That… does bring up another problem. Eda's been to Earth. Recently, even. She might not care about humans much, but there's a good chance she'd know that letters aren't a popular type of communication anymore. Heck, the kid's been using her phone constantly while here. Whoever wrote that letter probably didn't know that we'd grown in tech… which means they had to have been cut off from the human world for years."

"Then the emperor, perhaps? He is your biggest suspect after all."

"Could be, but it's just not gelling together to me. He keeps a random human girl from going home, but he stills needs to send a letter to cover his tracks?"

"Maybe he wanted to bring you here? Wouldn't be the first time."

"Yeah, but I'm here now. If he was as quick on the uptake to trap me here after my fight with Snaggletooth, why's the barrier still not working for the kid?"

"Good point." She puts the files down and stirs the coffee she bought. "Are you saying it's not him?"

"No… maybe. I don't know. Like I've been saying, I don't have all the pieces right now. If I'm gonna pin anyone, I'll need to do it after I get more info."

"Fair enough. Just try not to get into trouble while you're out on the strip."

I hold back a laugh. "Yeah. I'll try. Doesn't mean I'll succeed."

"You people still here?" A sluggish voice calls out from the stairs. "Don't you have beds on the other side or something?" The Owl Lady trudges over to her fridge, pulling out a container of reddish liquid.

"Some of us have good work ethic." Kate snips back, not even looking at her.

"Bleh." Snaggletooth bats the air at us and drinks her beverage. "Hmm. That's funny. Usually Luz would be down here jumping all around about magic lessons."

I shrug. "Still sleeping, I think. Best not to disturb her. Yesterday was pretty stressful."

She scratches her stomach. "Where's the nurse?"

Kate sips from her own coffee. "Ms. Noceda left pretty early this morning for her job. She'll be back tonight to talk more with us about this whole "trial" thing we're doing."

"Hm." Snaggletooth mutters. She strolls over to the doorway, currently glowing in the middle of the living room. "Never kept this thing open for this long. It does make me wonder if this thing has a battery life."

Kate walks over to observe it as well. "Not as far as I can tell. It'll stay on as long as we need it to."

"And that means you'll be bumming around my house until then. Great."

"Morning…" Another sluggish voice emerges from upstairs. Luz rubs her eyes, peering around the room.

"Jeez, kid. You look as dead as I do." The Owl Lady comments.

"Sorry… after all the… "excitement" from yesterday, I guess my body didn't feel like waking up early."

"Now you know how evening people feel."

"Guess Mom had a morning shift. I remember her kissing my forehead this morning before I went back to sleep." She gives out a long yawn. "I wonder if maybe I could meet with Willow and Gus today about Covention. I didn't get to talk with them too long before they had to go home…"

"Might be good to just take it easy today." I suggest. "I was meaning to do some solo investigating into the town anyway."

"Oh, so you're going to investigate the magic of the boiling isles today?" She asks somewhat excitedly, waking up a bit.

"Among other things." The kid hops up and down, quietly shouting "yes" to herself. "But it also means you're stuck here. Gives you a chance to get acquainted with your new chores. Kate will let you know what you need to do."

"Dagh." Her arms droop, and she looks exhausted already.

Snaggletooth starts grumbling from the kitchen. "What about my deliveries? How am I supposed to get those done today without my errand girl?"

"You could do 'em yourself." I tell her flatly.

"After the fiasco yesterday? I don't know if you noticed, but we destroyed a lot of property. The fuzz is gonna be looking for me extra hard. Need to lay low until they calm down." Snaggletooth explains. "You on the other hand will probabvly have an easier time talking your way around the guards."

"Well, that's tough. Tell me how it goes later this week."

She marches up to me. "Oh no you don't. They wouldn't be up in a tizzy if not for you."

"And I wouldn't be here if not for you. Wanna keep this going?"

"The point is, Trenchcoat, I need the snails from my business to buy the elixir for my curse. Remember? I told Luz's mama yesterday. You were there. And that's not including all the other things I need to buy to keep up with this house. Charm supplies, special magic coatings, beast repellents, it goes on."

"Alright, alright! I get it already. I'll make your damn deliveries for you. Jeez…"

"Good. You'll find the supplies by the door before you go out. Make 'em first and then you do whatever "detective" work you need after. Capiche?"

"Hmm."

"Hey Hellboy, where are Liz and Abe? I was hoping I'd at least get to ask them about some BPRD adventures." The kid pipes up, peering around the room.

"Sorry, Luz. Our ever so wise Director airlifted them out for a job at the Dead Sea. They'll be gone a few days inspecting some ghosts."

"Aww… wait, ghosts in the Dead Sea?" Her eyes light up. "Awesome…"

I chortle a bit. The kid's all sunshine and rainbows about this stuff. I'd been expecting her in a more goth getup when I was told she was into monsters and myths. Well, you know what they say about assuming... I toss her a kolache, which she scarfs down pretty quickly. "Don't worry about Liz and Abe. They'll be back before you know it. But I do have someone coming to replace the manpower."

"Sidney Leach?" She guesses. Hoo man, Leach'll like that. The human agents don't get as much attention as us weirdos do. 'Cept maybe Kate.

"Nah, this is a new guy. It's his first mission, so we thought this would be a good place to start. I'm waiting until he gets here before I head out. I think you'll like him. He's a pretty good guy."

Snaggletooth groans. "As if I didn't have enough people invading my house."

---

To say I'm nervous is a bit of an understatement. I'm completely anxious. My first mission since being brought to life… again.

I'm still shocked they decided to do that. After what almost happened with Liz, and what I did to Bud, I figured they would be happy to leave me lying on a dissection table. I mean, a lot of them were. But Hellboy and Abe… I don't know what they saw in me, but I'm gracious they believed I was worth something. Even Liz was willing to forgive me.

The car finally comes to a stop. Good, I can finally get out of this SUV. Let me tell you, I may not have proper nerves, but I felt my legs were falling asleep regardless.

Arriving at the destroyed cabin (I've been told it used to be less exploded before Hellboy arrived), I see three agents. According to the rundown I was given, these agents are meant to stay on this side, seeing how the portal interacts with the human world. The rest are with Hellboy and Kate on the other side.

Unfortunately, most of the agents are still wary of me. They just kind of stare at me for a moment, only looking away when I notice. It's a bit distressing, but maybe not unwarranted. I'm just choosing to ignore it for now.

Standing before the glowing door, my nervousness comes back. I take a deep breath. I don't have any lungs, of course, but I've heard it can be calming. One step through it, and I'm in a cabin of wonder and magic. Well, I think so anyway.

"Hey, Roger. You make it here okay?" The familiar voice of Hellboy grabs my attention. He stands there with Kate and some other characters. The rundown talked about them.

"The ride was bumpy, but otherwise okay. This place looks cool."

"Whoa! He's as big as you, Hellboy!" The young girl shouts. Luz Noceda, from what the report says.

"Everyone, this is Roger. He's our latest recruit."

The girl sticks her hand out excitedly. "Hello!" Without hesitation or doubt. I think I like her already.

I mirror her, shaking her hand with as much enthusiasm. "Hello!"

"Okay, last time I checked, humans didn't have gray skin." The older woman, I'm guessing Eda the Owl Lady, comments. "Or weird metal rings in distracting places…" She mumbles so the girl can't hear. "Wait a minute…" She sniffs the air, slowly walking over to me. "Smells like… dried blood." She eyes me up and down. She lifts up one of my hands and peers at it closely and poking at it. I wasn't prepared for her licking the back of my hand. It tickles. "This… this is a homunculus! Bigger than the usual kind… how'd you get one of these guys?"

Hellboy shrugs, his expression a bit weirded out from Eda's "inspection". "We just sorta found him."

"Who would leave a perfectly good homunculus lying around?"

"I feel like I've heard of that…" Luz ponders out loud.

Eda leans back onto the counter. Her attention is mostly focused on Luz. "Homunculi are artificial beings created using Alchemy. It's considered an advanced study under potions at that dingy school."

"Ooooh, Alchemy! I know a show that involves that… huh, now that I think about it, the glyphs are kinda like that show."

Hellboy strokes his chin. "Oh yeah. The one with the kid with the metal arm?"

"You've seen it?"

"Haven't been able to catch up with the series. BPRD work is like that."

Kate finally says something. "Oh yeah, you left off on the old version. They released a remake a few years later."

"Blech." Luz gags. "You watched the first show? We definitely need to get you into the second one. It's far more accurate to the manga-"

"I have no idea what any of you are talking about, but if I could have your attention back…" Eda loudly interrupts, and Luz's gaze returns to her. "Potions and Alchemy don't involve glyphs or spell circles, kid. It's all about combining materials to make concoctions and other special items. In this guy's case, a Homunculus. You take some blood and herbs, stew it in a jar… and then you incubate it in horse manure!"

Luz stares at her with a blank smile. "Gross." I frown a bit. I suppose that was expected. I could only come off as "not freaky" to a human for so long. "But also really cool!" She adds unflinchingly, surprising me. The smile returns to my face.

Hellboy places a hand on my shoulder. "Yeah, Luz likes anything having to do with magic and monsters. And with Snaggletooth and her little house of wonders here… you'll fit in just fine." He looks around the room. "Where's the dog bone?"

"King? Either he's sleeping in or he's working on his "totally unbiased" book of demons. He'll turn up eventually."

"Right. Listen, let me just give him a quick rundown, then I'll be on my way." He guides me to the house's front door, picking up some box as we head outside. "How ya feeling?"

"Nervous." I rub the back of my head. "I know it's silly, I've already technically been on my first mission…"

"Right. South Carolina… you been doing okay since then?"

"As good as I can do, I guess."

"I'd like to tell you it's not going to get complicated this time, but it's been doing that long before you got here. Honestly, nine times out of ten, the mission isn't as simple as we first think."

"I just hope I can adapt to the situation if it does end up going awry." I poke at the cap on my chest. "You and Abe advocated for me. I don't want to let you two down."

"Don't worry about that. Just focus on doing the right thing, I'm sure you'll do fine." He adjusts the box full of liquids. "So, first job for you. I need to go into town to do some investigating. You keep an eye on the girl and make sure the witch doesn't get up to anything with her. Ground rules: Luz can't go anywhere unless we say so and can't do this island's magic until we give the all clear. We keep her out of danger no matter what."

"Gotcha." I can't help but wonder one thing, though… "Um, is this where I salute?"

"We don't really do that. I will take a thumbs up, however." We share two thumbs, and Hellboy makes his way into the forest towards town.

Back inside the house, Eda is relaxing on the couch, changed into a red outfit. Kate is directing the agents to move machines in certain places. I don't see Luz.

"There, in that spot. Out of the way of people's feet but still close to the door. Can someone get me a MIGNO-93? That's probably our best bet to scan the inside of the portal. If we get the readings on that sort of "in between" area, we might be able to figure out why it's rejecting Luz and Hellboy."

"Need my help?" I offer.

"Not quite yet, Roger. But I will need some heavy lifting done for some pieces on the other side. Just wait around for now, I'll let you know when I need you."

"I could probably heeelllllp!" A weird cylindrical owl thing rises up between us. "I can totally pick up those thingies and doodads! I can even juggle them if you want!"

"No, no! You aren't going anywhere near that delicate equipment!" Kate shouts at it.

"Aw, come on! I promise not to drop a few of them!"

Kate pulls a small device out that sparks. "Get the hell out or I'll show you what fifty thousand volts feels like."

"Gah! Don't tase me, bro!" His form quickly slithers out the window. Kate pinches the bridge of her nose while walking back to the other agents.

I can't help but stand there. I'm not sure what else I can possibly do, as the other agents are already handling the other equipment. I just sort of stand around awkwardly, gazing at various items on the shelves and walls. Already I feel like I'm not doing enough.

"Whoa. I've never been this close to BPRD investigations before." I jump at Luz's voice. Standing next to me in a new outfit, she gazes on as the agents do their work. "Usually I only see them from TubeTube videos, or on TV. Getting to see them in person like this is exciting." She turns to me. "What's it like working with him? Solving supernatural mysteries and fighting alongside Hellboy?"

I don't answer at first. My experience with the BPRD so far has been… limited. At first, I was their enemy. Then I was stuck in their facilities for a while. Then South Carolina… and finally, training proper.

Still… despite the limited time he'd spent with him, he knew much of what he could say about Hellboy.… "Well… you can tell he's been at this for a while. Complications are both surprising yet predictable to him. It might catch him off guard at first, but he's quick to adapt. He's also a real welcoming guy. He does whatever he can to make you feel like you're not out of place. But most importantly… he wants to do right by everyone. Whether it be human or supernatural being, he won't stand to see them be wronged. And he sees the better parts in you… even if you don't." I give her a grin. "He's a pretty great guy."

"Yeah." She looks down and smiles. "I think so too."

"Luz, good to see you're dressed for the day." Kate calls out, slightly startling her. "You're just in time for me to teach you your first new chore."

"Aw, darn it…" Luz slumps over.

"Come on over. You're first job will involve marking down energy levels and repeating them back to me."

"Oh, I know that one." I mention. "I can help you learn it."

"Really?"

"Sure. Don't worry, you won't have to mark down the numbers each second. Kate will fire it up, and when this little gauge reaches max, that's when you record it and tell her…"

---

I toss the last few snails into the bag, pocketing it into my coat. This went surprisingly quicker than I thought. I was worried it would take me till the afternoon and give me less time to look around. Still, it might've been quick, but it wasn't necessarily easy. One house's door kept moving on me. Literally. One resident sprayed me with… some kind of goo. I think the less I know, the better. I'll just make sure to wash extra thoroughly tonight. One house's doorbell tried to eat me. I responded by knocking its teeth out.

I can tell you, it's not looking like we'll let Luz do these deliveries. At least not until Snaggletooth takes some damn precautions.

Still, in spite of being pushed to do the witch's grunt work, it has given me a chance to take a closer look at the people who live here. Before, I'd been entirely focused on finding Luz. So, it'll be fascinating to see what I missed the first time around.

It's astonishing to see how integrated magic is into these people's lives. I think I've seen several dozen spell circles being used on one street alone. Shop and stall owners, street performers, even some children running and playing around. If this magic really is backed by a demon, it might be one of the best pyramid schemes of damnation I've ever seen. This place might as well be completely dependent on it.

Surprisingly though, I have this feeling in my gut telling me there really aren't any strings attached. I don't know, something about the casual use of spells… But I can't go off a gut feeling alone. Ms. Noceda will want some hard proof. I'll need to start doing some research proper… but where to start?

…Well… I do know one place.

---

Eyes are on me this time around as I enter the tavern. Guess word got around about a certain event yesterday... and who was involved in it. I noticed it on the streets too. Some gave me hard stares as I walked around, others gave a quick glance and then tried acting inconspicuously.

"Well, well, well. Look who it is. You end up finding your human, friend?" The barkeep asks me as I stop at the counter.

"More or less."

"You sure know how to cause quite a ruckus, you know that? People all around town are talking about what happened at Hexside. The way some go on it's as if a gore-nado flew through the area." ...Gore-nado?

"Just tends to happen on the job. Things get complicated."

"Complicated? You call getting into a tussle with the strongest wild witch on the isles complicated? The Owl Lady of the Outskirts? The biggest criminal on Belos' hit list? I'm surprised you weren't blown to pieces by her!"

"I'm pretty sturdy." I flip a coin onto the counter, the one from when I first got here. I'd rather not use the witch's money. She'll probably find a way to make me pay a huge amount of interest for one damn coin. "That being said, I could use some of your info again. The magic she was using... I'm not exactly familiar with it."

He slides a different drink down, dark green in color. Once again, it tastes pretty good. "Not familiar with... what in Belos' name are on about? The Owl Lady might be powerful, but it's the same magic everybody uses."

"Remember when I told you I was from out of town?" He does a double take at me.

"You said you were "visiting". I thought you meant that you just weren't from Bonesborough. Where the hell are you from then?"

"Way out of town... where the witches gain their power through deals with demons. And I mean the big ones."

"...You mean... witches from the human side?" I nod, and he shudders. "Yeesh. Their magic is even wilder than the Owl Lady's. Those gals creep me out something fierce. What do you need help from me for?"

"The magic of this place doesn't seem to follow the same rules as what I'm used to. I need to know how it works if I'm gonna fight her again."

"Again?! Why would you do something so stupid as that?"

"The Owl Lady's got something I want. I ain't leaving till I get it." That's only sort of true, in a way, but I'm not sure I need it getting around that I'm staying with Snaggletooth. Those guards did tackle me for simply being associated with her...

"Hmph. Crazy bastard. Well, I can't tell you how our magic works exactly. If you really need that kind of information, just go to the Bonesborough Library."

I down the rest of my drink. "S'all I needed to know. Can you give me directions?"

---

"No, no, no. If we are to show our expertise at the Covention, we must be in sync. Our future comrades will be in that audience, and we must be sure to make an impression on them here and now if we are to gain their loyalty." I point to the coven member who has been slacking during this crucial rehearsal. "For our Emperor's sake, get it right! Unless you'd prefer to make our beloved leader look bad?"

"N-no, ma'am. I'm just a little tired is all."

"Then get some apple blood if you must! Just don't come back onto this stage until you know you can give it your all!" He shakes his head up and down, then scurries out the room. I sigh. "All right then, I suppose that's good a time any for a break. Take five." The other coven members also exit the room. Honestly, they would not be so nonchalant about this event if they were the ones organizing the coven's show this year.

"Miss Lilith, Miss Lilith!" A city guard comes storming in. "Miss Lilith, I have some urgent news."

"Can it not wait? I'm busy enough as is coordinating for the Covention."

"It's about the demon with sawed off horns! One of our guards spotted him in town!"

That information gets my attention. "The one who fought my sister? What is he doing in town?"

"Last the guard said, he seemed to be... making deliveries."

"Deliveries?" From what other guards have said, he was apparently a bounty hunter. Why would he be making deliveries? Did my sister truly beat him yesterday and enslave him? Doesn't seem like her... then again, previous reports about her mention her being with a human. It's hard to know what's going through my sister's mind these days.

"Do they know where he's going?"

"I'm not sure, ma'am. He was last seen exiting the Terrorantula's Web."

Hmm... I do need to stay to prepare... but Belos did want me to question this individual. I might not get another chance. The Emperor will surely forgive me for leaving if I am successful getting answers. "Continue having your guards look for him. But do not engage. I will confront him myself."

---

I grunt as I put down a box of stuff as gently as I can. I stop to catch my breath. Miss Corrigan had detected some odd signatures in different spots in the house, but they'd been blocked off furniture. So, my next job was to move that furniture so she could get proper readings. And then moving it back when they were done. Nothing too heavy, of course. Roger would be the one to move dressers and couches. Still, it's hard work.

"That's the last spot. Now, I just message the results back to base and wait to see what they have to say."

I kind of register that. The least I comprehend is that we're done with lifting and moving... for now. My poor nerd arms are going to feel sore in the morning.

"Until that info comes down, let's go ahead and take a break."

"Finally…" I flop into the nearest chair. "This punishment's turning out even harder than I thought." Only a little past noon and I already felt like going to bed. But now, I have some time to myself to spend how I want… at least for as long as this break is.

I mull around in my mind what to do for the time being. Maybe I could ask Eda to show me… wait, no. Eda couldn't teach me anything until Hellboy gave the okay. Well, then maybe I could go with Willow and Gus to… no, I can't leave without approval from the BPRD. Maybe I might be able to talk to King, but I haven't seen him all morning. Looks like I'll just have to play around on my phone. I take it out and- "Ah, dang it! I forgot to charge it last night…" I look around for a static rock. Eda uses them for more… electrical spells and potions, but I found very quickly that they were surprisingly good at charging my phone. All I needed to do was place it next to one, and within an hour, it would be ready.

However, by the time that hour would finish, I'd probably be back to work with Kate and the others. I groan in frustration. "This stinks."

"Kinda does." She glanced up at Eda as she walked into the room. "Don't worry about it too much, kid. The Para-whatsit guys might be paranoid about the magic of the Boiling Isles, but I can tell you for sure that it's just fine. I've met my fair share of witches on the human side, and trust me, the Titan's magic isn't a malevolent source like theirs is."

"I guess… but I still worry that they won't see it that way. And it doesn't make the wait any less agonizing."

"Yeah. It's real boring around here now ain't it? You look like you're about ready to become one with that chair." She gives a small snorty laugh. "Ahh, but seriously kid. It'll be fine. Before you know it, we'll be back to learning your next spells."

Eda says that, but… will we really? I've seen everything on this island as pretty cool, or amazing, and all that, but… from most other people's perspective, it would be seen as horrifying. I'd been hopeful this morning that Hellboy was looking into the Isles magic, but was that really a good thing? If anything, it could mean the opposite. And even if Hellboy found it alright, would her mom see it the same way? The concerns are wracking my mind like crazy.

"Yeah…" I mutter, not entirely convinced. "I'm gonna go and get some fresh air before Kate comes back."

---

Luz misses the saddened look that Eda gives her as she walks out. She notices me looking at her and acts all grumpy again. "What's with the grin, big guy?"

I don't answer her on that, simply heading for the door. "Maybe I can talk to her."

"…Good luck." She mutters as I walk out the door.

Luz isn't doing much, simply leaning on the house, staring at the forest's edge. She's probably waiting for Hellboy. With not much for her to do, I can see why. If Hellboy comes back and says the magic of this realm is okay, then she'll be able to learn it again. But until then, her options are limited.

"Oh. Hey, Roger." She greets as I stroll up.

"Got bored?"

"Sort of… but it's more than that. Without much to do, it's made me think. Hellboy could be my hero. But…" She pauses a moment. "…If Hellboy comes back and tells mom that the Boiling Isles magic is too dangerous…"

"I get it. The wait is killing you, isn't it?"

"Yeah. The moment he comes back will either make or break my chance to stay here." She looks off across the ocean. "So, here I wait… at least until Kate comes back from break." She peers up into the sky. "I just wish more than anything else that my mom will let me stay. That she'll see how amazing this place is. I may noy be a chosen one, but I feel like I can find my purpose here."

She sighs in defeat. "But I can't kid myself. I ran away from home and broke her heart. I stayed in a place that put me in danger, scaring her out of her mind. I'm lucky she even humored me on this trial run. I'm glad she'll let me see Willow and Gus, but as far as the rest of the Boiling Isles go… if she decides I can't come back, I can't really blame her."

Her face reads of distress, eyes watering slightly. At that moment, she seems to realize she told me this. She wipes her face. "I'm… sorry. I didn't mean to dump all that on you. I guess all that's been weighing a bit much on my mind."

I don't mind. I'd gotten much of the story from Kate through the day. I could relate. Guilted by mistakes… searching for one's worth… it makes me feel a kinship with her. I suppose it's only fair that I share my own experience with such.

I sit down against the wall, bringing me closer to her height. "I had a brother."

Luz looks at me in curiosity. "A brother? But I thought you were-"

"Artificial. Yes. But we were made by the same creator. It's about as close to a relative I can get." She nods in understanding. "My brother… see, I'd been wandering alone for the time I'd been alive. Wracked with guilt over mistakes I'd made in my first moments of life. I had hurt someone… and even…" I stop myself. Though I don't wish to say it to a young girl, she seems to get the implication. "I thought myself an abomination."

Luz looks at me sadly, placing a hand on my shoulder. I smile back at her. "About that point, my brother found me. He told me of the father who abandoned us…" Luz's hand clenches my shoulder a bit harder. It's as if she was pained to hear that. "…and attempted to persuade me we were superior to human beings. For the time I spent with him, he said great words about us… I'd thought that maybe I did have reason to live. But… I soon realized he did not care for what I wanted." The memories of the event flash in my mind. "He wished to destroy humanity. Have us become one in a gigantic colossus made of metal and flesh. But I wanted no part in such a massacre. I did not want to build my life off the corpses of others. …He would not listen. In the end, I understood that he only saw me as a means to his own ends. I… I had to…

Luz kneels down. "I… I understand." She sits beside me. "I get what you're going through. A lot more than you realize. Thinking that you weren't meant to belong… or just feeling terrible about mistakes you've made. Even when it comes to your…" She hesitates at the end. "…But… why tell me all of this?"

I remain silent for a moment. "My brother only came to me for what he wanted. To have a mindless drone whose only purpose was to serve him. He wasn't truly family to me in the end. But your mom… she's tough on you… but she considers what you want. She wants what's best for you and is willing to do it in a way that speaks to you. Even if she did lose sight for a moment. And you… you're still worried about how you hurt her. You care for her as much as she does you… even if you two don't always see eye to eye. Even if I've only been exposed to a corrupt version of the concept… I feel I can confidently say that you two truly are family." I look at her with great conviction. "I believe she will come around. From what I've heard from her, she cares more for you than anything else. It might be rough, but I think she'll understand what this place means to you."

She smiles back at me, grateful for the support. "What you said about Hellboy… about him seeing the good in people. Were you…?"

"I hurt people he cared about. Once the incident with my brother ended I went with him to make things right. It cost me my life. I expected him to not give a damn about me afterward, but… he put a good word in for me."

The girl giggles. "Yeah… you know… I was expected him to be a lot like in the comics. Gruff. No nonsense. Spouting one liners everywhere."

"He is like that, though."

"Well, yeah, but… I wasn't prepared for how gentle he was. When he told me how my decisions were affecting my mom… I half expected him to give me an earful… I even thought he might call me dumb. But… he was nothing like that. He was calm. He didn't even raise his voice at me. And then he walked me through the whole situation. He made it clear I made mistakes… but the whole time, it felt like he didn't want me to drag myself down with them. It's almost as if he'd… been through the same thing."

"Yeah… I got that feeling too." We sit in silence on that thought, staring into the forest just like before. After a few moments of the sound of ocean waves and forest breezes, I finally stand back up. "I think Kate might actually be done for the day, at least on this side of the portal. Maybe we could find something to do to pass the time?"

Luz also stands up, dusting herself off. "My phone isn't charged yet, and I can't do what I usually do on the Boiling Isles… the only thing I can think of is King. But I don't know where he is."

As if on cue, a commotion came from inside. Before we could guess, the door slammed opened. "Luz, there you are!" A small animal thing comes forward.

Luz excitedly runs over and scoops him up. "King! I haven't seen you all morning, you adorable little button!"

"Gah! Luz, I'm trying to act intimidating here!" It was still a few moments before she stopped cuddling him and put him down. "Ahem… yes, well, I'd been very busy all morning. When I heard you wouldn't be learning magic for a while, I thought we could use the opportunity to catch up on your demon lessons. Of course… I suddenly realized I didn't have enough demo- I mean, hadn't prepared the next few lessons, so I've been spending all morning getting them ready to teach you."

She kneels down. "Aw. You wanted to help me pass the time, didn't you, cutie-patootie?"

"No!" He rushes to say. "You're just… behind on your lessons! As a professor of demons it's my job to keep you updated on these things! Now, come on, already. We're losing daylight."

"Do you mind if I join?" I ask. Seems like it could be fun. Plus, I have nothing else to do. I'm bored.

"Uh… this lesson is kinda private, weird giant stranger."

"King, this is Roger the Homunculus. He's with the BPRD."

"Those humans have a Homunculus?! What did I miss?"

"Why don't we go inside, and I'll tell you. Come on, Roger!" She leads King inside to start their lesson.

Besides fun, the BPRD does need to know what kind of creatures are roaming the island. And it might just take enough time for Hellboy to come back.

Still… what is taking Hellboy so long anyway?

---

"Damn."

I got turned around at least three times trying to find this library. I had to ask for directions a second time. Just to find this place closed down for the day.

I walk up to the door when I notice a piece of paper. This might shed some light.

Dear Library Visitors,

We are sorry to declare that the Library will be closed for some time. We have become understaffed after several of our librarians suffered nervous breakdowns, due to pranks from unknown suspects. If you should know who might be behind these practical jokes, we ask that you post an anonymous note to the snitch box at your local guard house.

Thank You,

THE KEEPER OF KNOWLEDGE AND UNGODLY SECRETS, LIBRARIAN KOLOK

"Great. Guess I'm not checking out any books today." I sigh. There's got to be another way to find information on this island. Asking the locals is an option, sure, but it's like asking random bystanders how a field of science works. They could probably give you the basics, but they can't go into detail.

I leave down the street. No point staying. I could break in, but that ain't my style. At least not for legitimate businesses. Plus, it would draw too much attention to me. Suppose I could wander around for a bit longer before heading back, try to find an alternative. But then I'd just be walking around aimlessly. Maybe that school has some teachers who could answer my questions… but they probably won't be keen on letting me around their after my little tussle with Snaggletooth. Assuming class is even in today after we trashed the schoolyard… Perhaps it's just best if I go back to the bar and ask for more options.

…But first, I should probably take care of the pest problem I've been having for the last few blocks.

I swing around, pulling my gun on whoever's been tailing me. The woman is startled, backing up a bit. "You know, I've never been a fan of stalkers. So I'll give you one chance to answer me. If I don't like it, I start blasting. Why are you following me?"

She straightens up and stares at me. "You'd be wise not to pull a weapon on the leader of the Emperor's Coven."

Oh, great. This could be trouble. "Tell me why you've been tailing me, or I might just chance it."

"Easy, demon. I did not come to arrest you. I am Lilith of the Emperor's coven. I am simply here to ask you some things. If you wouldn't mind answering them?"

I raise an eyebrow. I thought the guards might follow up on me after I promised Snaggletooth to them. Didn't think it'd be this soon. I lower my gun. "Depends on what you're asking about."

"Just some matters concerning your stay here."

Doesn't seem like she's lying. Still, if she's the leader of the Emperor's hounds, I better be cautious. I put my gun back in my coat.

"Ah, good." She pulls off her hood. "Out of my own curiosity, I must ask… how did you know I was following you?"

"You learn to spot weird things in my line of work."

"Interesting. And is your business what brought you to come to blows with the Owl Lady?"

"You could say that."

"Can I now? Yet despite going after a well-known criminal, you intimidated my guards into backing off." She looks at me questioningly. "Why?"

"You're… kidding, right?"

She stares at me stone-faced for second before she grimaces. "Fine, you have a point there. Moving on." She clears her throat. "That being said, you promised the guard one Owl Lady. And we seem to have a noticeable lack of Eda Clawthorne within out prison. You and her seemed to have quite the showdown yesterday. What happened?"

I narrow my eyes. She's obviously prying for information. "I didn't win." I say, and she looks expectedly unimpressed. "But I didn't lose either."

"You're trying to tell me you were evenly matched?"

"I'd say so. But I'm looking to tip that scale."

"Is that so?" She waves a finger in a circle, and the bag of snails from my coat fly out. I catch them before she can take them. "Then tell me, why are you doing her errands for her?"

I glare at her as I nestle the bag tighter in this time. "We've got an arrangement. She's got something I want. I ain't leaving till I get it."

"The human, right?" I freeze. Guess I should've expected she would know. I'd been asking around about it so much, it was bound to come back to me. I say nothing to that. Never was a great liar. "Seems I'm on the mark. But… that's not all you're here for, is it?" I raise an eyebrow. The hell is she implying? "My si- Eda is many things, but a slave keeper is not one of them. If you truly wanted to take the human, I have no doubt she would let you. You probably just spooked her while trying to find the thing. But if the human was really all you were after, why haven't you just gone?"

Did… did she not know? If she's really the emperor's stooge, he probably would've told her that he was keeping Luz and I here. Unless…

Unless he isn't the one keeping us here.

"You clearly have an ulterior motive. What is it that you're looking for, hmm? I can get it for you. Emperor Belos is a very generous soul."

"Really, now?" I think it's time I do some fishing of my own.

"Indeed. However… before I could get you what you want, I would need a favor from you."

"And that is?"

"The Owl Lady. If you capture her and bring her to me, I will make sure you have a personal audience with the Emperor to voice your desires."

Figures. Finish the job, get the reward. With what she wants though, I can get the info I want. "Sounds like a good bargain. But if I'm gonna take her in, I need to know what I'm dealing with. The magic you use on these Isles is different than the stuff witches use on the human side."

"You wish to know our magic works?"

"It would help."

"Ask away then, I'll be happy to comply."

"The source of it, first off. Where's it come from?"

"The magic of the Isles is a gift from the Titan. His body brought forth a well of magic that all are privileged to use."

"So, you worship him in exchange for this power?"

"No, no." She quickly stops me. "The beings of the Isles have evolved due to the Titan's magic permeating the air. The creatures of the Boiling Isles have evolved organs such as bile glands next to our hearts to use the magic surrounding us whenever we want."

"So, there's not strings attached?"

"Not necessarily. We follow the Titan's will. But The only one the Titan speaks to is the Emperor. He tells us what the Titan wishes. But the magic would be here regardless. Belos simply taught us how to avoid destroying ourselves with wild magic, like what Eda uses."

"I see. So there's no way to use the magic without these bile glands?"

"Most assuredly." Her face suddenly becomes anxious. "H-hold on, you're not thinking of… No, out of the question, you will not grievously harm her, much less her bile gland, in any way." I look at her questioningly. "The… the Emperor requires she be unmaimed. Is that clear?"

Now why does she want Snaggletooth unharmed? Strange… "Fine. Is the magic of a demonic nature?"

"What?"

"Demonic nature. The way witches from the human world often get their magic is by deals with devils. That kind of magic can be suppressed by methods I know. Is it evil, basically?"

She shakes her head. "No. The magic is of the Titan's, and the Titan's alone. His magic was a power separate from that of hell. One can destroy themselves if not careful… but that is an error on the user, not any outside source."

"Damn. That narrows my options."

"Will you be unable to combat her?"

"No. I think I've got some options left. But it'll take time."

"Perfectly acceptable."

"Good. Then leave me alone for a while. I don't want Snaggletooth getting suspicious. Just assume I'm not ready to strike if you see me with her. Got it?"

"Most certainly. I wish you a good evening, mister…"

"Hellboy. And leave the human alone. If you want the witch unharmed, then the kid's gotta be unharmed."

"Of course. We shall not harm a hair on her head. Let us meet with less hostility next time."

I walk away, headed back to the little shack on the coast. I almost expected today to go belly up after seeing that note on that door. Definitely thought I'd get into more of a hassle with the guards. Instead, I came out with the info I was looking for… both concerning the magic and the ol' Emperor himself.

Don't know how long I can keep the lie up, though. Better use it while I can. God knows how things will probably go wrong somewhere down the line.

---

I watch as this 'Hellboy' disappears into town. How he plans to deal with Eda, I am unsure.

A Coven member flanks to my side. "Is it wise to give him so much free reign, Lilith?"

"Of course not. I'm not giving him that much rope." I head off back to the Covention center. "I felt off that entire conversation. We will 'leave him alone', but we will be watching his exploits. Closely…"

---

The sun setting over the horizon tells me just how long I took. Hope Luz didn't go nuts with boredom.

I'm greeted with what looks like some kind of makeshift college classroom. Looks like the bonehead finally decided to come down. He's got some chalkboard out with some drawing of a monster out. Both Luz and Roger are sitting down in front of it, both wearing some small caps. They look like bats.

"Hey, Luz." Snaggletooth shouts from the other side of the room. "Trenchcoat is back."

"He is?" Her eyes dart around the room, till they land on me. "He is!" Luz shoots up, running to me in in a flash.

"Hey, kid. You keep yourself busy while I was gone?"

"We were getting along just fine before you interrupted my lesson." Pint size says in a huff.

"Did you find out if I can do magic?" She asks, her face wrought with worry.

"I still need a bit more information. But it's looking good for you." Her face bursts into the biggest gleam of happiness I've seen on her all day. "How was your first day on the job, Roger?"

"Pretty good. King was nice enough to let me sit in on the demon lessons."

"Demon lesson?" That's a bit concerning.

"They're harmless." Kate pipes up. I hadn't even noticed she was sitting down with Snaggletooth. "I have solid info from a local." I look at the Owl Lady, and she just looks away. "How was your search today?" Kate asks me, and I grumble a bit.

"A mixed bag. I got some useful notes. But I might have the attention of the local guards."

"Oh no… don't tell me we'll be seeing wanted posters of you now."

"Not that kind of trouble. But I think I'll be under a watchful eye from now on." I get down and whisper to her. "I also got some interesting information about our "suspect"…"

"You got caught? Amateur." Snaggletooth says with a cocky grin.

"Yeah, yeah. We get it. You're good at being a criminal." I take the bag of snails out from my coat and toss 'em over. "You know, I could start asking for a paycheck."

"You're doing volunteer work, nothing more. The moment I get Luz back on the job, you're being let go."

"Yeah, we're gonna need to talk about that delivery route of yours…"

"Wait, you went out to do Eda's chores? I didn't think they'd take that long. You are an amateur." Pint size says, leaping down from the table he'd been on.

Luz kneels down next to him. "No, King. Hellboy went out to research the Boiling Isles magic, to see if it's dangerous or not. My mom won't let me learn it if it is."

"Unfortunately, the library was closed. Some pranksters caused some mayhem and they had to take a few days off."

"Oh, I heard about that in the papers. Reminds me of my first practical jokes…" Eda says, the sound of nostalgia in her voice.

"That's what you went out there for?" King asks, then walks over to a nearby shelf and pulls out a book titled "The Unauthorized Boiling Isles History". "But we have a book that goes into extensive detail on the magic of the Isles right here."

Kate, Roger, Luz and I stare at the book dumbfounded, before giving Eda a strange look. "We do? Oh yeah, we do!"

"Ugh, this always happens. She forgot we had a back door last week. If I wasn't here, I'm pretty sure she'd forget who Hooty was."

"Aw, come on!" The door-bird slithers in, smooshing his face into Eda's. "No one can forget ol' Hooty!"

She punches him hard enough to fling his head into the nearby wall. "No matter how hard I try." She proceeds to gulp down her drink furiously.

I grumble in frustration before grabbing the book out of King's hands. "I'm gonna have to go and do some quick studying. Come and get me when Ms. Noceda gets here."

---

"Here's some tea, Ms. Noceda."

She takes the cup from the Homunculus gently. Her hands tremble slightly. Luckily, it's not due to the artificial human in front of her. She took pretty well to the guy, just like Luz did. Roger's just like that, honestly.

"Thank you, Roger." She takes a sip, before calmly breathing out. "Though it's good to know my daughter is safe, my body has still been so shaky. I had to excuse myself from more precise jobs today."

Kate takes a sip from her own cup. "That's understandable, Ms. Noceda. You've had a scary week. Your body's probably still trying to come down from it all."

"Hopefully it does soon. My superiors have not been so sympathetic to my situation. They've been rushing me to get back to "100% percent", as they say."

I grumble in anger. "Figures. Bunch of assholes…"

"Don't worry about me, Hellboy. This isn't the first time. I can handle it." She takes another sip… and I notice her cup is already pretty empty. "I understand you have some things to tell me about this Island's magic?"

"Yep. I've got it on good authority that the magic of this island isn't connected to demons and that it won't burn up Luz's soul." I take the book from earlier out and slide it to her. "Don't let the name fool you. It matches up with what I learned from official sources in town. I've got the chapter bookmarked."

"Thank you, Hellboy. I know Luz must have been happy to hear that." She sighs as looks it over. "Still, I can't help but feel wary to let her learn it. Even with this information in front of me, I still feel scared of it."

"Sounds like normal parent fears to me. It's only natural to be cautious, Camila." Kate notes.

"…That… "Covention" is tomorrow, right?"

"Yep. With all the covens coming to demonstrate, we'll be able to fully understand this magic's capabilities."

"Good. Maybe understanding what this magic can do might sate my fears." She puts the book down. "I also have one other concern. I've been thinking about the fact that this Eda is a criminal. It's gotten me worried about my Luz's safety with her possibly being target by the law. With her having escaped the local jail…"

"I've got you there." I mention. "Had a talk with an important official in town today… I've gotten them to leave your girl alone. They don't really seem interested in her anyway."

Camila seems to relax a bit at this. "That's good. If that's the case, I'm not so nervous to let her go tomorrow. Just please make sure to keep her out of trouble."

"I'll be watching her like a hawk."

"Thank you." Her eyes veer away to Roger, whose currently playing with a weird item from Eda's house. "My third concern is… can we have Roger wear pants?"

I cringe. "Trust me, Cam. It looks even weirder."

---

…

The pieces are moving…

...I must make sure…

…

…In the right direction…

Notes:

Okay, Covention next time. (spongebob narrator voice) Tomorrow for sure…

Chapter 6: Covention

Summary:

It's Covention day! Anyone get a sense of deja vu?

As Luz and her guardians explore the event and what it has to offer, they might find it has more in store for them than they thought...

Notes:

HELLO, EVERYONE!

Sorry for being gone for so long. Once again, circumstances kept me from focusing on this story for quite a while. The warehouse I work at had a grueling holiday rush, and it was especially bad because two of our people transferred, with no replacements for them. Adding on top of that, some relatives I hadn't seen for a while came for the holidays, and I wanted to spend time with them.

But even when I did get back to work, it still took me a while. Why? Because this was the longest chapter I've ever written for any story. It took me longer than I projected to finish. The last two chapters barely made ten thousand words, this one hit sixteen thousand. Be prepared for the longest chapter yet.

AND THE BIGGEST NEWS- I commissioned art for the story! The title work is drawn by MyNameJers, you can find him on his tumblr, reddit (u/Jers_TreeMan) and twitter (@chrisTheJers)! Go give him some love, he did an amazing job mimicking Mike Mignola's style while still making it his own! You can find the new art on Chapter 1, at the end.

As always, a big thanks to TakanaMakana for beta reading, editing and suggestions!

With all that out of the way… the event many of you have surely been waiting for… it's Covention Time!

You know what I like about living out on the edge of the Boiling Isles? Plenty of things. The main draw though, is how quiet it is. No neighbors to bother you, especially not for a cup of pixie sugar. Not that I have any- I take my apple blood straight, thank you. No racket from the other residents either. Just the ambience of the surrounding outskirts. Which is another draw… how close to nature you are. Titan knows that everyone else is too afraid of wild magic to go venturing deep into the forests of the island. But me, I like it out here, where there's less rules and more freedom. Sure, you have to take a trek just to get to town for daily shopping and take-out deliveries don't go out this far. But it's a small price to pay to live out here. Oh, and to avoid getting arrested by the cops. That's probably a better tradeoff.

Lately however, things have gotten less quiet. The agents dawdling around my house and the homunculus and blonde gal talking outside are proof enough of that.

Because suddenly, a big oaf in a trenchcoat shows up with his human buddies and start poking around all over the place, using human machines to measure this, calculate that. Usually, this would be the part where I'd chase them off with a multitude of painful spells, but unfortunately, I have to let them do this. Not only because I can't get rid of Trenchcoat himself, but also because Luz won't be able to learn magic if I do. Cause wouldn't you know it, these guys brought Luz's mom with them. And boy, was she not happy.

She yelled up a storm at Luz, before turning on me. Admittedly, I said something I probably shouldn't have, and she got in my face about it. Boy, did that leave me stunned. No one has ever talked to me like that before, not even my own sister. Now, could she have really throttled me like she threatened? Nah. I was caught off guard, and even intimidated for a moment. But I'm the Owl Lady. I've got more than enough ways to deal with any kind of threat, let alone a human.

But when the shock wore off, I did realize just how serious the woman was about her daughter. To have family like that who'll even stick it to a powerful witch like me… it must be real nice. I've got King and Hooty, but my own family? I care about them, but… they haven't really stuck up for me in a long time. Lilith thinks she does, but she never listens to me about that boss of hers.

In any case, when Luz and her mom came down with that little plan of theirs, I thought it'd be best if I played nice for the time being. Luz wants to learn magic more than anything, so I definitely couldn't bring myself to foul it up. The Kid's puppy dog eyes are unbearable to look at. Her mom also said she would let me around her if I proved I was trustworthy. However the hell I'm supposed to that in her eyes…

Still, I didn't get why they wouldn't let Luz do magic at first. Sure, humans can't learn magic the standard way, but it shouldn't be a danger to her. The conversation that followed had quite a few revelations for me.

Luz's mom had gone to bed, staying up in the room her daughter was in. Most of Flathorn's friends went back to the other side, leaving me to watch while he sets up a makeshift bed in my living room. "Hey, I know the nurse doesn't trust me. But I can guarantee that Luz's soul isn't in danger or anything like that. I know from experience, and even witches in training can tell you that much."

Trenchcoat sets down his belongings on various tables around my couch. There aren't really any more rooms he can sleep in, so this will have to do. "Well, Ms. Noceda doesn't trust you, and I'm not sure how I feel about you either. Besides, if you saw what it did to humans on the earth side of things, you would probably understand why we're not so keen on letting her practice the art."

I wasn't so convinced. "Considering how it doesn't come to humans naturally, I can't say I believe you all that much."

He raises an eyebrow at me as he throws a blanket down. "You're still on about that? Haven't you ever met a witch on the other side? You go there plenty."

"Of course I have. All hunched over and withered, right? Or at least most of them." I close the blinds to the house. I can hear Hooty settling into his door. I swear, if he screeches in the morning again…

"So you've met some, but you still don't think humans can do magic?"

"Look, just because some of the Isles residents look like humans, doesn't mean they are."

He pauses while removing his trenchcoat. "What are you talking about?"

I better put this one to rest. "Humans think all their little myths and tales go back to some other humans turning into monsters, one way or another. But the truth is, every one of your myths comes from the Boiling Isles. Werewolves, mermaids… and especially witches. One way or another, they left the Isles to romp around in your world. Magical they might be, but human they aren't." I call my staff. Owlbert, who had been stretching his wings, hops back onto it. "The only way Luz is going to learn magic, is her little glyphs- an indirect method that doesn't involve magic coursing through her veins. She's not going to turn into a demon, or a monster, or a wrinkly old witch, because all those things don't come from humans to begin with. You can doubt me on that one all you want, but any Isles resident can tell you that one. So, trust me when I say this: Luz isn't in danger learning magic here." With Owlbert comfortable, I warp my staff back to its resting place so he can sleep.

His only response is to stare at me, not a word escaping from his mouth. Guess the revelation was too much for him… "Effie Kolb." He says, before removing his trenchcoat.

"Hmm?" What kind of weird response is that?

He picks up a bottle of alcohol of some kind and pops it open. He's got this somber look on his face. "Just a little over sixty years ago. I'd just finished up some work in Virginia, in the Appalachian Mountains. I come across this house where a poor girl's been bewitched- left in a death-like state. This wanderer comes in. Tom… good guy, he was. He knows what's wrong with her and who's responsible. Some girl who got tangled in the wrong crowd, named Cora Fisher. So he takes me to confront her. He tells me the girl's involved with the same woman who tried to get him to become a witch. Her name was Effie Kolb." He takes a big swig from his drink, then lets out a low grumble of anger. "Nasty woman. She had this terrible habit of tempting young kids to become witches… to give up their souls to her boss. Some came to like it. Others had no choice. But all of them belonged to that creep afterward. I got a good look at him. Damn, was he ugly… he lived up to his namesake." He finally stares right into my eyes, completely. "The Crooked Man, they called him."

And just like that, my instincts flare for a brief moment. Similar to what happened when I first met Flathorn, my body seems to have gone completely alert. And I can understand why this time… that was a powerful demon's name. I could feel it down to my bones. But not your average Isles demon… this one felt… deeper. "That's… not right. No demon from the Isles could do that."

"That's because he wasn't from the Isles. He was from Hell." That sent my heart into a pit. "I take it you've heard of the place?"

"Yeah… I've heard." He looks at me expectedly, wanting me to elaborate. "The reason why Belos closed off most ways in and out of the Isles was because of them. He gave a lot of speeches about how they used Earth as a playground. How they convinced various individuals from the islands to stay on earth- to terrorize humans since they couldn't use magic to fight back. Like I told you, he hates wild magic. And the demons from Hell… he always said they wanted nothing more than to send us back into the age of wild magic and tear our society apart. So, Belos closed off the realm because he didn't want "the demons and traitors corrupting the good people of the Isles." I never believed wild magic was bad, but… even when I started living out here and rejected Belos' society, something in my gut told me he wasn't wrong about Hell and its inhabitants. There's always this sudden flight or fight response in me when Hell is discussed, and I get this deep pit in my stomach."

He points his bottle at me. "You ever get that feeling when talking to earth witches?"

I think about that. I'd never made it a habit, mostly because they don't seem to like me… some of them even tried to fight me. But when I remember all the times I came across earth witches, those same feelings of dread come back.

"Hmm." Flathorn mumbles, seemingly content with the look on my face. He doesn't look smug about it, surprisingly. More like he's got the confirmation he needed. He takes another swig, continuing his story. "The Crooked Man was a particularly cruel one. And Effie Kolb, his right hand, wasn't much better. Killed poor Tom's father… turned him into a horse and rode him to death. We convinced Cora to come with us to a nearby church, so we could bless her. Try to save her, you know?" He looks away. "…She didn't make it to the church. But the two of us did. And with the help of the priest, we gave Tom's father his burial… and did what we could for Cora's soul." His sadness is palpable. His grip loosens on his bottle, nearly dropping it. Only for him to clench tightly out of anger. Almost shattered the thing in his hands.

"Even when the Crooked Man and Effie came with an army of old, ugly witches… we fought them off, and we even managed to send the Crooked Man back to hell. And Effie Kolb? Well, it wasn't good for her. Changed from the young teen she looked like into the old hag she actually was." He finished off his drink, before throwing it into a nearby trash. He almost went to grab another one but stayed his hand instead. "Dammit, Hellboy… don't get drunk… not on this job…"

The silence could be cut by a knife at that point. He puts the cooler away and hangs that… "gun" of his on a rack. "So… I think I can guess where this is going."

He nods, and his gaze turns to the stairs. Where one little girl is resting. "Effie was human. The old priest knew her when she was truly a young girl, and him a young man. She was always off… but it got worse when she met the Crooked Man." He grimaces.

"And she's not the only one. Humans can use magic. Believe you me. But a lot of them want the power for their own gain. And they want it right away. So, kids and adults alike all over the planet end up meeting demons, one way or another. They make deals with them- their souls for knowledge- and it's not pretty what they turn into. Sometimes they find out how to tap into magic on their own… but they decide to dip into the dark kind. It changes people. Not only into witches, but other monstrosities… vampires, werewolves, and a plethora of other horrid things."

He finally sits down on the couch, still gazing at those stairs. "I'm telling you… we have good reason to be wary of this magic of yours. Too many people get tempted to toss their souls away for magic. They don't know any better. I'm not taking any chances when it comes to Luz." He finally turns away, lying down. "Still… considering what you told me about this emperor guy… I'm not surprised that you thought these things. He's all about control… ain't he?" He closes his eyes.

Later that evening I was left with my own thoughts, wandering up to my own room. I started to get why they were so cautious. But it doesn't make me any less determined to prove them wrong. The kid's counting on me.

But that other stuff Trenchcoat told me about… it started to make too much sense. If demons from Hell were as powerful as we were always taught, it would make sense they could give you powers you never dreamed of… even if it was a stupid way to get them. But even more than that… 'Humans can't do magic'. 'All human myths come from the Isles.' I'd heard these "truths" over and over as a kid. I'd never thought of them twice. They just seemed like the norm to me. But the more I think on it, the more it doesn't add up, especially after what I've seen and heard.

Luz can use magic, even if it's not the normal way… and obviously there's those witches Hellboy talked about that used to be human. But Belos wants the people of the Boiling Isles to believe that humans aren't and never were capable of magic. He claims the creatures on Earth came from the Isles before he closed off the realm and denounces them as traitors. And I've been hearing rumors that Belos has been seeking to claim my door to the human realm. At first, I thought he wanted to go to Earth… now I'm thinking he just wants to destroy the last gateway between the realms.

For whatever reason, Belos wants the Isles and Earth to stay as far apart as they possibly can… almost as if he's trying to keep something away. But what, I can't say for sure. I didn't get much farther thinking on it that night. But it's been popping up in my mind every now and then.

The calm morning is broken by the sound of my front door opening. Luz and Trenchcoat must be back from deliveries. They probably would've been back sooner if someone hadn't argued with me about whether Luz should be doing my delivieries.

"Hey, Eda! We're finally back!" Luz bursts through the doorway.

"Took you long enough. Did Ol' Flathorn do a safety check every time you got to a house?"

"My job is to keep her safe." The red wonder interjects, bringing in a smell of human "coffee" and cigarette smoke into my house. And oddly… roasted peanuts. "It's certainly not made easier when your little errand run alone risks her being eaten."

"Pfft. Luz was doing just fine before you made a fuss about the deliveries." I make quotes in the air, and he narrows his eyes at me. "But sure, it's so bad that she's learning on the job. I guess next you'll want me to cover her in soft pillows and have her go everywhere in a giant bubble."

"Sorry I didn't want the kid to lose her arm to a doorbell." Of all the things, he refuses to let go of that one in particular. "But sure, keep complaining. I'm sure Ms. Noceda will love how difficult you're being on matters as trivial as this."

"Firstly, I keep telling you the mouthbells just get a taste of your arm to know your intentions. Secondly, I'm completely willing to play nice, but it doesn't mean I can't criticize." I draw a spell circle, creating several portals that start juggling several things of mine. "I saw since the first day that she had this idealized version of what the Isles were like. I send her on these runs to remind her that the Isles are very different from her flowery fantasy books, while at the same time giving her a closer experience with the Isles' magic. Each and every customer I deal with, I make sure isn't some scammer or nutjob. She's never in any real danger."

"Fair enough. But it's not up to us. Luz is Ms. Noceda's daughter, and what she says goes. You can't just expect her to just causally throw her daughter into the thick of it." He sets the empty errand crate down nearby and throws my earnings to me. "You want to convince Luz's mom to try things your way? Ease her into it. Otherwise, you'll just scare her further into her shell."

The sound of Luz clearing her throat reminds us that she's still in the room… and we're obviously leaving her out of the conversation. "Oops, sorry kid." Probably shouldn't get into the habit of going at it about Luz as if she isn't there.

She gives an understanding smile in response. "It's… okay. Everyone's just kind of concerned about me. I get it." She focuses on Trenchcoat. "But… I kinda agree with Eda. I learned the routes and how the houses work pretty fine on my own. And Eda does send King with me to pull me out of trouble. Well, there was the wizard… but that was really more my fault."

"See?" I gestured to her while looking at Flathorn, feeling vindicated. "You gotta take risks sometimes if you wanna learn. Sure, sometimes you land in the mud… or fall off a cliff… or walk into a fake wizard's trap. But more often than not, you're rewarded with experience to use for the rest of your life. You won't always be able to take the easy way out."

He shakes his head, "Maybe not. But you shouldn't always do things the hard way just cause you can. I should know. I've gotten my clock cleaned just because I thought I had to do things the hard way. There are times when it's better to take the simpler option."

"Hmph. And yet the nurse is taking a risk letting her kid learn magic, isn't she?"

"Ooh! That reminds me! We actually met Willow and Gus while on the delivery run!" She interrupts, hopping up and down excitedly. I kinda wonder if she did that to keep us from arguing any further. "They told us they'd come by to meet us. They didn't get the chance to show me around the Magic Fair, so they want to make it up to me with the Covention. They'll probably be here any minute."

"You don't need a tour to know it's all a sham. There's a reason why I never joined any coven, not even the main nine. It's all a scam."

Luz snorts. "Oh, come on, Eda. It can't all be a scam."

I fetch one of my disguise cowls, while King enters the room. Good. I always need help getting my hair into these damn things. "It is, and I'll show you why once we get there. The only thing this Covention is good for is that it'll put your mom's fears to rest. Once Trenchcoat gets the information he needs, I'm out." I suddenly notice King is holding one of Luz's books. "King, what in the Titan's name are you doing?"

"What? They might be flowery, but once you get past that, they're actually pretty good reads!"

I sigh in exasperation. "Just help me get my cowl on."

---

Willow and Gus arrived while the witch stuffed her head into a hood. They talked with Luz about all the covens she might be interested in while we made final preparations. Kate and Roger decided to stay behind, but I gave 'em a walkie just in case.

The streets have been pretty empty since this morning. Even more so now. Not sure why, though. From what I can gather, this whole event is mostly like a college or job fair for the school kids. A way for the covens to advertise and convince kids to pick their career paths.

Snaggletooth's been grumpy since we left. I imagine she has more to say about this convention… and that it probably involves a certain emperor. With Luz talking with her friends up ahead, I figure now's a good time to talk to her about it.

"So, what's your beef with the system this time?"

She keeps tucking tufts of hair into her hood, even though it can't contain it. "Why? Gonna start a revolt?"

"Anything this emperor does that could possibly affect our stay here is a concern to me. I'd rather know now rather than later."

"Hmph. Alright, then. You know why I think it's a sham?" She taps her staff on a poster of a heroic looking Belos as we pass it. "Cause it's just another way ol' Bellyache tries to force the Isles into his neat little image."

"Somehow, I had a feeling it was along those lines. But how, exactly?"

"The coven system isn't just a career path. It's your only path. Whatever coven you join, you're locked into it. They seal off the rest of your magic, leaving you unable to cast any spells but the ones that coven was approved to use. Baking coven? Only spells that can be used for baking. Seamstress coven? Get ready to only ever do clothing magic. Plumbing coven? That's a sad life. The nine main covens have a larger variety, but it's not much better."

That is kind of bunk. If someone made an error in deciding their career, they were basically screwed. "Why the lockdown? What's so bad about variety to Belos?"

"More freedom in magic means less control for him. The less control, the more things start to shift back to the days of wild magic… at least in his eyes. And to him, that means losing his rule." She raises two fingers. "There's only two groups on this island that use spells from all areas. Wild witches like myself, whom Belos wants to arrest for "risking the spread of wild magic". And the Emperor's Coven. The only group he approves… because they act as his hand."

"I get it. Weed out the best and have them work for you, enforcing your rule. Meanwhile, the rest are crippled, but are taught to think they're being kept safe. If they ever catch on, they won't have the power to do anything about it."

She snaps her fingers and points at me. "Bingo! Now you're catching on."

"So, that's why you're so upset about Luz coming to this event."

"Yep. I ain't gonna let Belos get inside her head, subtle or not. I'm planning to show her when we get there. I'm hoping she learns to be her own witch rather than follow some set path already planned out for her by some random coven."

"Not a bad lesson. Except her mother's probably going to decide what she can and can't learn."

She gives a discontented grunt. "Which will completely undermine my cool lesson. Don't remind me. Whatever. I'll wear her down eventually."

"I don't know. I think you might scare her with all this Belos talk."

"I'm leaving that part out for now." She's quick to say.

Right. Leave it out even though we need to tell Camila everything. "Any particular reason?"

"Belos might not want humans, but he's not too concerned just because one is around. Especially if they're hanging with a irreputable criminal like myself. I don't want the nurse and Luz getting uppity for no reason. Luz could even learn a little magic and he won't mind. He'll only have an issue if more humans start running around, causing incident after incident."

"You think he'd come down from on high just for that?"

"Only if he feels he needs to reinforce his lies. And take it from me, if he feels the need to do that…" She gives me a stern look. "…at that point, we might be in trouble."

---

The convention… er, covention center is quite packed. Stalls as far as the eye can see.

Luz tends to inquire from her friend Willow about the covens, since Eda isn't keen on them. She lists them out as we walk along. Man, some of these are just… superfluous. The hell is even the point of making a hot-hell-dog vendor coven?

What interests me the most though, is when she talks about "the main nine". We come across a display by the Construction coven. They seem to focus mostly on building and repair. Kind of seems like they'd be a lesser coven.

"They use power glyphs to increase their strength." She explains when one of the coven members takes one out for a tiny nose… thing. Unfortunately, she seems to go crazy with power and starts trashing the whole place.

"I AM THE DESTROYER OF WORLDS!"

I watch as a table lands nearby. "Uh… should we do something about that?"

Willow shrugs, brushing it off. "Eh, this kind of stuff just happens. You should have seen what happened last year with the Bard coven."

Gus suddenly shudders. "So many flutes in all the wrong places…"

"Yowza wowza!" Luz says in amazement. A sudden ghostly version of her appears, saying the same thing, catching me off guard a little. "Yowza-whaaa?"

The vision walks over to two older teens standing in front of a symbol. "Ah, you've been taken in by the allure of the illusionist coven! We like to magic with a hint…" He disappears in a puff of smoke, reappearing a few feet away. "…of showmanship." His fellow students appear right next to him.

Luz jumps up and down giddily at the performance. But I've got to get an answer on this before we move on. "What exactly sets the main nine apart from the rest?" Willow and Gus seem surprised I don't know, giving me strange looks. "Hey, I don't live here, remember?"

"Oh, right." Willow strokes her chin. "Well, the best way to put it is that the main nine contain the those who are adept at a larger field of spells. The Construction coven isn't just good at building walls, they're good at all kinds of building spells. From interior decorating to even cooking, if it's buildable, they can do it."

Gus thumbs toward himself. "Yeah. I'm not just able to use smoke spells. I'm learning teleportation, mirror copies, a huge variety of light spells… and some of the masters of my coven can even use intangibility spells."

"I see. They're the cream of the crop."

Luz, who was listening intently, sounds even more amazed. "Wow! Then these covens are sort of like… your career and calling in life! What could possibly be so bad about them, Eda?"

Snaggletooth follows up what she told me earlier, showing Luz a kid who's having his magic sealed away. No mention of Belos, like she said… and topped off with some humble bragging about her being the most powerful witch on the isles. No surprise there.

The group starts to move on after she's done explaining, but before I can move with them, someone grabs my shoulder. Some lady with a look giving me a weird stare. "The tea leaves foretell that this…" She flips a pen in her hand before giving it to me. "…will lead you to your destiny."

Ugh… destiny. For Luz it's what she wants most, but I can't seem to get away from that damn word. Luckily, this lady just seems to be spouting bullshit to get me interested in her coven. "Uh, yeah lady. Thanks." I take the pen, if only because I need something to write notes with to give to Camila. She backs away "ominously".

"Well, that was… ah, crap!" As I look away from her, I realize I've completely lost the group. Damn it, Hellboy. You can't just lose the kid you're supposed to be looking after… I dart my head around, watching for any sign of them… until something catches my eye.

One man, standing in an aisle, staring at me as if I was the strangest thing he'd ever seen. Usually, I'd brush that off. But when I look a little closer, he seems stranger than his surroundings. He's got a full body cloak. It looks like something's rustling under it. But the weirdest thing is… his face. It's not a face at all… it's a gas mask. It's torn in vital places, so I thankfully don't have to worry about a chemical weapon out of nowhere. But there's a weird green glow coming from his eyes. It makes me feel nervous.

"Hey, Flathorn!"

"Hmm?!" I jump and reflexively rear my fist back. Nothing there.

"Take it easy, ya weirdo, It's just me!" I look down to find King giving me a judgmental look. "Are you coming or what? Willow and Gus are about to show us the Emperor's coven panel."

I glance back to find that the masked person is gone. Vanished completely. My eyes narrow. "…Yeah… lead the way."

---

Snaggletooth looks even more "thrilled" as we watch the Emperor's coven panel. She keeps trying to crack jokes to random audience members around her, prompting them to scoot away.

Luz watches the performance, her eyes glued to it. Snaggletooth groans.

"Something the matter?" I ask her, careful not to be too loud.

"I already told Luz why these covens are bunk, but she's still bent on watching this garbage." She states as we look at her watching the show.

"Hey, you said it yourself. You want to teach her to be her own witch, let her be her own witch. She's just trying to make an informed decision."

"You say "informed decision", I say straight up brainwashing."

"You know her, you love her," The principal of Hexside shouts, drawing our attention. "Lilith!"

"Huh?!" Snaggletooth seems… surprised, as the same witch I met from yesterday appears on stage.

Luz also takes notice of her expression. "You know her?"

"You could say that."

The kid makes a small gasp. "Mysterious past!"

I'm not so content to leave it there. "That's the one I got my information from yesterday. While I was out on the town." I whisper to her. She glances at me for only a moment, before going bacl to staring at her, saying nothing. "So I'd really like to hear how you know her myself."

She stays quiet, glaring at the woman on stage as she makes a speech about climbing to the top. "I'll tell you back at the house." As she finishes and disappears from stage, Snaggletooth gets up and quickly walks out.

"Hey, Eda! Hold on!" Luz chases after her. Well, that was odder than usual for her. Better go and make sure the kid stays out of trouble…

"Oh, are you okay?!" My attention is grabbed by someone further up the stands, who is looking over a fallen person on the stares. "You should be careful and watch your step." Another person says to… a guy in a black cloak. Is that…?

I get all the confirmation I need when he quickly glances at me, and I see the same gas mask before. He rushes out the nearby exit. Now, that's just suspicious. "Hey, wait!" I shout as I run after him. "Let's have a talk!" I follow the exit he took… and find no sign of him when I get outside. "Damn…" The hell is up with that guy? And why does his mask seem… familiar?

I snap out of my thoughts when I realize… I went out the wrong exit. Luz and the others are gone again. "Damn it."

---

Eda had decided to leave after seeing the Emperor's coven. Something about that lady really set her off. I hope I can find out- I love mysterious pasts!

But, for now, King and I are going to explore the rest of the Covention. I really want to see everything this place has to offer! "So, King, where to first?"

"I say the cooking covens. We should snatch all the snacks they make while they aren't looking!"

"King, those are free." I snicker. "And besides, if they weren't, Hellboy would never let me do that."

"Eh, what he doesn't know won't hurt him."

"What are you talking about, he's right…" My eyes widen as I look behind us, noticing a lack of a certain agent. "King, where's- oof!" Distracted by what's not behind me, I don't notice whoever I just bumped into.

"Watch where you're- Oh, it's you. Willow's "abomination". Or are you a goblin this time?" Hoo boy, it's Amity.

"Hey, you're that kid from the magic fair!" King notes.

I better clear this up. "Uh, hey Amity. So, funny story… not an abomination or a goblin. Sorry for the confusion those times. I'm Luz, the human. Hi!" I extend my hand to shake.

"Put that away!" She swats my hand, and points at me. "I don't know how you survived that encounter with that monster at the fair, but you'd better stay away from me. You're the one who got me in trouble with Principal Bump, and I never get in trouble." She walks away.

She's getting on my case for that? Didn't she direct Bump to cut me open? "Well, to be fair, you were okay with him dissecting me."

"You can't be here!" She turns on a heel and cuts me off, as if she didn't have an answer for that. "This covention is for witches only."

"Well, I'm training to be a witch! I'm getting lessons from a powerful witch and a ferocious demon… two ferocious demosn, in fact! We came here today to learn about the coven system."

"Did someone call me ferocious? Good to see you're finally seeing what I truly am, Luz." King speaks as he climbs on my shoulder. Amity looks unimpressed.

"That lame little mutt is your "ferocious" demon?"

"Hey!"

"And let me guess, this witch mentor of your wouldn't happen to be the wild nutjob criminal you were shouting to at the fair, right? The one who fell to pieces from one hobo demon?" She gives a smug smile. "Yeah, real winner there." My fists clench on instinct. "Though I guess she's a good pick for you."

"Why are you being so mean, Amity?"

"Because you, your little demon and your mentor give witches-in-training a bad name. Oh, and as we discussed… the school incident?"

"I only intended to help Willow pass. Everything else was an accident!" She crosses her arms, unconvinced. "I'll tell you what, Amity. It's one thing to say I can't be a witch, but it's another to insult and bully my friends. Just like the good witch Azura when facing down her rival Hecate at the bog of immediate regret… I challenge you to a witches du-WUGH!"

"No," Hellboy says as he brings me face to face with him. "You don't." Amity stumbles backward in terror. "Kid, what are you doing? Are you forgetting what your mother wanted?"

"Well, I just.. I wanted to…"

"Where the heck were you, Flathorn?" King asks him.

"That's… on me. Got distracted by something. Not important. What is important is what you were about to do, kid." I rub the back of my head in embarrassment.

"W-wait, hold on!" Amity shouts from the ground. "Didn't he attack you and your mentor? What… what's happening here?!"

"Misunderstanding. Don't worry about it. Just think of me as her bodyguard."

"He's your bodyguard?!" She shouts, even angrier than she was before. "You destroyed my magic fair project I'd been working over a week on!"

"My bad, kid. We had a disagreement that got… a little out of hand."

She glares at me, ignoring Hellboy. "So you're to blame for that too!"

"Amity, it's not like that, it wasn't on purpose-"

"So what, cheating's not enough for you, you have to sabotage another person's work? I was going to show that to a representative from the Emperor's Coven! You… you… fake witch!'"

"Hold on a second…" Hellboy gets between us. "Amity? As in, Amity Blight? As in…" He leans over her, making her scared again. "The girl who nearly got my kid sliced open?"

"Um… well…" Suddenly, she's lost the words.

"Why don't you go on ahead and leave, before I have something to be real angry about?" She backs away, before scurrying off.

I'm just a bit concerned. "You weren't… actually gonna hurt her, were you?"

"I don't hurt kids. But she doesn't know that." He guides me into the other direction. "Besides, she ain't worth it. Don't let her bother you, kid."

"I… guess so."

"Now, maybe let's have a talk about jumping into a problem you can't get back out of?" He gives me a stern look, and I chuckle nervously. "Luz, I'm serious. You could've gotten yourself in serious trouble back there."

"But Amity was being such a jerk! She was saying I could never be a witch, and insulting King and Eda!"

"I'm with her! She was defending my honor!" King protests.

"You stay out of this." Hellboy plucks him off and sets him back on the floor. "Now Luz, how exactly were you gonna stick it to her? By using the one non-combative spell you have that you aren't even allowed to use?"

"I… um… well…" Huh. I guess I forgot I only had the one spell… and that Mom said no magic. "I guess I thought I was taking a risk, like Eda said."

"There's a difference between that and jumping in without a plan. Even if I don't agree with her methods, Snaggletooth did say she thought ahead before she did anything else. The consequences, the rewards, your limits… then she decided to take that chance. Picking a fight with a bully who's had plenty more years of training than you is just reckless."

I sigh, disappointed at the outcome of all this. "And now my Mami's going to know I jumped into something without thinking… again."

Hellboy nudges my shoulder. "Look, Luz, she's probably not going to be happy, but it ain't going to be the nail in the coffin. Let's just keep looking at all the covens, alright? Heard they have a squirrel handling coven, which is… honestly, I got to see it for myself."

"…Okay." Hellboy's right. I mean, now that Amity's avoiding us, the rest of the day should be fine. Right?

---

Ugh. I can't believe this. I could just scream right now! She just shows up in Bonesborough out of nowhere, and in just a few short meetings she makes my life a nightmare! I was actually having fun today! Then she comes in, acting like she can become a witch so easily? Just like that? On top of that, it turns out that she's the one who caused the fair incident! It's like she's doing everything she can to aggravate me! And just for the cherry on top, she can never watch where she's goi-"Unnh!"

I stumble backward. "Watch where you're going, niiiiiiii-ice witch lady who has every reason to stand there!" It's Lilith. I bumped into Lilith of the Emperor's Coven. And then I yelled at her. Oh, this day can't get any worse. "I'm so sorry, Miss Lilith, I-I-I didn't see that it was you, which is- I mean- It's my fault, I wasn't watching where I was going, it was an accident, honest!"

"Young Miss Blight, please recompose yourself." Lilith… Lilith said my last name.

"Y-…You know me?"

"Of course, Amity. I know all of our most promising students. Especially the most talented at Hexside." I struggle to contain the urge to squeal. Miss Lilith said I was the most talented! "Now, take a deep breath, and tell me what had you so upset you couldn't see two feet in front of you!"

"O-oh, that? It's nothing really, I just had a run in with a troublemaker, I can handle it."

"Amity, a witch must be focused at all time, especially those in the Emperor's coven. Whatever you're upset about, it's clearly bothering you. Distracting you, even."

I wring my hands together nervously. "U-uh, well… there's this human girl I've been… encountering these last two weeks."

Her eyes widen. "Human girl?"

"Yeah! She showed up out of nowhere and started messing with my life. She made a complete mess at Hexside, and got me in trouble! And it turns out, she has a bodyguard. And it's the same guy who tore up the magic fair field the other day!"

"Really?" Her interest in my plight has piqued, as she kneels down to listen further. "I'm imagining then, that you had another run in with her today?"

"Yeah! She comes in, talking about how she's going to be a witch! Like it's that easy! And when I point out that her demon is a tiny runt and that her mentor is a wanted criminal, she arrogantly challenged me to a witch's duel!"

She raises an eyebrow. "And how did this make you upset? I don't believe you are weaker than her… are you?"

"N-no! I just… her bodyguard came by, stopped her from challenging me and scared me. I would've trounced her otherwise."

Lilith gives me a smile. It… doesn't look like a comforting smile. But it must mean she's about to help me, doesn't it? "Did this human girl say if her mentor was here?"

"Yeah. She said she came with her today to learn about covens. Why?"

Lilith stands and turns her back to me. "I understand your anger completely, Amity. You wanted to show this girl how hard it was to be a witch." She peers back at me. "Don't you worry. You'll have your witch's duel."

My face lights up at the sound of that. "Really?"

"Of course. I know this human's mentor quite well. I must confide in you… she is my sister." …Whoa. The Owl Lady is Captain Lilith's sister? She must be so disappointed in her… "Though we may be enemies, I'm sure we can both pull strings to set something up. You can show the coven members and I just what you're made of."

I can't help but give a wide smile. "Yes!" I shout. "Uh, I mean, thank you, Miss Lilith."

"Of course, Miss Blight. Just wait near the entrance of the arena. We'll give the Covention a performance they won't forget."

---

After leaving young Miss Blight, I quickly put a call on my scroll, having all guards and coven members watch the exits. Hopefully, she hasn't made it out of the center yet.

The stars couldn't have aligned sooner. My sister, making the mistake of coming to an event filled with guards, alongside the only one besides me and Belos capable of taking her on. Never has a better opportunity come to pass. Of course, there's no way she won't try to fight her way out. I have to reel her in. I'll also have to find a way to keep the human girl safe, else Hellboy not be happy.

I get a message that she's been stopped at the cooking covens, and quickly teleport there. I find her in a rather lame disguise, a hood containing her massive hair. Did she really think she could make it past the guards in such a lame disguise? Does she really believe them to be that idiotic? …I'll… not answer myself on that one and just be glad a coven member stopped her.

"Will you guys just step out of the way before I set you on fire?"

"Not a chance, Owl Lady."

"Then I guess we're going to find out if you remember to stop, drop and roll."

Perhaps it's time for me to step in. "Now, sister, surely you aren't planning to leave so soon?" Eda turns to glare at me. "I'll take it from here. Why don't the rest of you watch for any other undesirables?" As they leave, I feel I must humor a possibility. "I don't suppose you're here to join the emperor's coven, are you?"

She snorts. "In your dreams."

I scoff. "Still so arrogant about being covenless, sister. You think you're better than us, but while you ransack garbage and run from the law, I train the next generation of witch students for the Isles."

She waves me off, "Big deal. I've got a student of my own now. Soon, she'll wipe the floor with any of yours."

"So I've heard. The human, right? She's been causing quite the ruckus all over. She sounds like nothing more than a troublemaker."

As always, my sister gets riled up when people challenge her. She can't say no to a fight. "Wouldn't you like to think so?"

"Perhaps then, you would like to prove your statement? A witch's duel between your student and mine."

"I'd take that bet." I've got her now. "…But I'm not. I 'm having a disagreement with her "guardian". But rest assured, she'll be running circles around your students soon enough." She says, slinking away.

"…What?! But you never turn down a challenge to your pride!"

"Yeah, well there's a first time for everything. See ya, sis."

She continues walking away. I need to think of something fast! How do I get her little delinquent to fight my prodigy?

…Hmm. Delinquent.

"Oh Eda, I was going to offer you a pardon just for today, but it looks like you're forcing my hand." She looks at me in curiosity. "Let me put it this way- either you accept this witch's duel or I have you arrested…" She snorts again. "As well as your human protégé." That wipes the smile off her face.

"What?!"

"Well, she did initiate a prison break and caused chaos at Hexside, I think I have a pretty good reason to do so." I giv her a sly grin. "However, if you accept the duel, then our conditions will be such- should you lose, you will come with us to be imprisoned willfully. Should you win, I will let all of you walk out of here today without even a scratch."

Eda scowls at me as I give my ultimatum. "And what's stopping me from blasting my way out?"

"From what I can tell, you're new roommate wouldn't like you putting the girl in danger." She widens her eyes in surprise. "Oh yes, I know about your new friend. I imagine he wouldn't be happy with you."

She stomps her foot in the ground. "Fine, Lilith. You want to play with fire? I'll make sure you get burned." She stomps away.

Everything's coming together. I must say… clever of Hellboy to convince her to come to this event. Once he hears the terms, he'll realize what I have planned. Lure her into the arena, have the girl forfeit to "fulfill" the conditions, then help me take down my sister together. The girl is unhurt, and I can finally cure my stubborn sister.

I can't imagine how happy he must be that I noticed his opportunity.

---

"Ah, crap." Nice to know Trenchcoat is taking the news well.

"Yep. And I actually tried to back off this time."

Luz is pacing around in a panic. "She's gonna kill me! She's gonna kill me all the way dead!"

Trenchcoat pinches the bridge of his nose. "Didn't think she'd pull something like this…"

Now that's an interesting statement to make. "What do you mean you didn't think she'd pull something like this?"

He sighs. "When I met your sister yesterday, I pulled this little charade to get info out of her. Told her I was planning to fight you again and capture you for the guards."

Luz's head snaps in his direction, eyes filled with worry. "You… you weren't actually planning on doing it, were you?"

He shakes his arms. "I may not like her, but you do. I couldn't do that to you, kid. In any case, I guess she thought I planned this, or something." He rubs his head. "But man, that woman being your sister... it explains a few things."

"We could fight our way out…" I suggest. "But there's a hell of a lot more guards here than usual. Belos must've amped up security after the fair got trashed."

He sees where I'm going with this. "And Luz could get hurt in the struggle. But we can't let her fight. She could get hurt then too."

He's right. There's only one way to do this without putting her in danger. "Then I guess we forfeit."

"What?!" Luz exclaims. Hellboy looks at me in surprise. "But, Eda-"

"We'll have still accepted the duel. It just means the Luz will technically have lost. You can take her to safety, and then I can fight the guards myself. I should be fine."

"No." Hellboy states immediately.

"It's not like you can jump in to help me, Flathorn. You'll render the bet null and she'll arrest Luz anyway. Besides, I imagine you'll be overjoyed to have me gone."

"No." He reiterates with force. "I may not agree with your choices, but you took care of the kid and taught her some important things. And it's not like you aggravate me enough to just leave you to the dogs. We're finding a way that gets all of us out of here."

I stare at him in shock, before giving a faint chuckle. "Heh. Want to keep Luz happy that badly, eh?"

"That's just a perk." He ruffles Luz's hair, who smiles back up at him. "There's got to be something we can take advantage of."

"Not much. Luz only has the one spell, and her opponent, well…" I look over to her as she shows off her skills, summoning a small abomination. "She won't even need to lift a finger. Her creation will do all the work."

"It looks smaller than before…" Luz notes.

"Her nerves might be messing up her focus. We can't expect it to be that small in the arena." I explain.

"Her creation…" Trenchcoat mutters. "What if Luz didn't have to lift a finger either?"

I give him a strange look. Does he mean… "I get ya. Magic mines!"

"What? No!" He pulls his "walker talker" thing out. "I mean, Luz may not know a lot of spells… but she's got a pretty good creation of her own at home." Luz looks at him in confusion.

At home? …Ahhh. Pretty clever, Hellboy. "I like the way you think, Trenchcoat."

---

While Eda went to her sister to "discuss" a different type of witch's duel, Hellboy called Roger on his walkie. He was here within a half hour. The plan is that we pretend I created him, and he'll fight Amity's abomination. However, to avert Lilith's suspicions… I have to be the one to give Roger orders. He can't do literally anything unless I tell him to.

You know, I 've been the center of attention before. And just like all the other times, it's a nightmare. But at least those times all that was at stake was a scolding and maybe a detention. Now? Either Roger wins while pretending to be a Homunculus I didn't actually make, or Eda gets arrested. I may not be the one getting my hands dirty, but that doesn't make me feel any better.

"Eda, I don't know about this…"

"We don't have much of a choice, Luz. They aren't gonna let us go unless we win. So, we need to do whatever it takes to win." She pats Roger on the shoulder, as if I didn't make the connection.

"I don't like it any more than you kid, but Snaggletooth's right." Hellboy says as he eyes around the stadium. "We're not exactly in a position to bargain. Well… we probably could let our fists do the talking, but that puts you in danger. So, if they're gonna offer us a way out that keeps you from getting hurt, I'm all for it."

"But… isn't this cheating? Pretending Roger is something I made?" The homunculus himself is just standing there with a smile on his face. He's being covered by a cloak, so people don't see what he really is.

"If the situation were different, I would agree that it's underhanded. But Lilith forced you into a duel she thought you couldn't win. If she wants to play like that, we will too." He places a hand on my shoulder. "Trust me, kid. It happens a lot on the job. Doesn't mean you have to like it, though."

"Yeah, but… what about Amity? This isn't really going to be fair to her." Sure, she's a jerk. But it doesn't feel right to win like this against her.

Eda snorted in amusement. "Oh, come on, Luz. The kid loses one lousy match, so what? Unlike certain people here, it's not the end of the world for her."

"I mean, I guess… but we're just transferring the danger to Roger! Is he really okay with this?"

Roger gave an "ok" sign. "I'll be fine, Luz. I've already been in plenty of scraps before, so this one shouldn't be too bad." I rub the back of my head. I just can't shake this bad feeling in my gut.

"Hey, it was either this, or I could've planted magic mines everywhere, but Trenchcoat made a stink about that." Eda noted with a tinge of annoyance.

Hellboy groaned. "Yeah, take her out of danger and put her in more danger. Real smart backup plan."

"Well, I thought it was a pretty good idea." The conversation is put on hold as Lilith and Amity enter the arena. The people begin cheering as they take the stage, both looking very high and mighty.

"Beloved citizens! The Emperor's Coven proudly presents an impromptu demonstration of the sort of witch we seek every year! Introducing, Amity Blight!" The crowd cheer even harder as Amity steps forward, a big smug grin on her face. Lilith then gestures toward me. "Versus… some human girl." I can hear the people in the stands murmuring to themselves and each other, either deriding me or reinforcing their praise for Amity. "However," Lilith began again, the crowd silencing itself. "this match will not be your standard witch's duel. Today, we pit Miss Blight's skills as an abomination wielder to the test against that of an alchemist!" She gives a quick confused glance to Hellboy- probably because she still believes his charade. More murmurs from the crowd, questioning what she meant. "This random human girl will bring to the table… a Homunculus." She gestures to us again.

It takes me a second to realize she's signaling me to bring forth "my creation". "Oh! Uh, r-right." I clear my throat. "Um… Homunculus. R-rise? No, uh… stand by for battle… yeah!"

Despite the awkward command, Roger steps forward, then throws off his cloak. The crowd suddenly gasp in astonishment. Amity actually loses composure a little, staring at Roger with worry. "Th… that's her Homunculus?" Was it really that impressive? Then again, Eda did say he was bigger than the average Homunculus…

Lilith places a firm hand on her apprentice's shoulder, but it looks firmer and stricter. Amity takes a deep breath before drawing a spell circle. "Abomination, rise!" The purple circle flashes on the floor, and from it comes forth her creature… and it's looking particularly larger than before… like, over twice the size Roger.

"Waagh!" I can't help but yell in surprise. The thing towers over Roger, who looks at it with a rather undeterred expression. Man, guess he wasn't kidding about being in worse situations.

Amity looks at it in surprise, before smiling a rather sinister smile. "Oh ho ho, yeah… let's see if your homunculus can take this, human." Lilith barely reacts, as if she expected this.

"That's… a lot bigger than what she was pulling off outside…" Hellboy says, rather incredulously, He almost sounds suspicious.

"Yeah…" Eda says in the same tone. "Guess that's Lilith's prodigy for ya." She doesn't sound convinced on that.

I don't really have time to dwell on what their problem is with it, considering now her Abomination can eat Roger in a single bite. "Oh gosh… now I'm really not sure I can let him do this!" I whisper yell, my knees shaking.

Hellboy kneels down next to me. "Easy, kid. Easy. Roger can handle that thing no problem. You just need to guide him."

"But that thing is huge! And what do I even tell him? "Punch It"? "Punch it harder"?"

He shakes his head. "Listen, Luz. I've been in plenty of fights where brute force alone didn't win. Lots of guys hit harder than I can. At those points, you gotta pay attention to what you can do… and what your opponent can do. What are their strengths and weaknesses? What are yours? What's around you? What's the terrain? The more you find out, the better chance you have of winning."

"But even if find that out … what if I can't use it to my advantage? If I lose, Eda's going to be taken away, and…"

Eda kneels down on my other side, her smile as confident as ever. "Listen, Luz, just remember what I said this morning. Sometimes, you've just got to jump in and take those risks."

"…O-okay. Here goes nothing I guess." I step forward with Roger, as Amity does the same with her abomination. I wave nervously at her. She cracks her knuckles to… to… actually, I don't know why she's doing that, her abomination is doing everything… Oh wait, I get it! Intimidation! …Yeah, it's working.

The bell rings (or rather, screams), signaling the start of the match. "Abomination, attack the homunculus!" Amity shouts, and it begins lumbering over. "Show me what you got, human!"

As the abomination closes in, I realize Roger hasn't moved… because I haven't given him an order. "Uh, Homuculus! Attack as well!" Yeah. That works.

Roger charges towards the abomination and delivers a swift powerful punch to its gut. He pierces its stomach… which ends up doing nothing, his fist sinking into the mass of goo. The monster barely takes notice, preparing to slam down on Roger with his arms.

"Gah! Get out of there!" I shout, prompting Roger to tear his hand free. He jumps back just as the monster brings its arms down, dust flying from the impact. Roger pauses, waiting for another order. But what do I tell him? He can't even punch the thing. I clasp my head in fear. "Run!"

Roger quickly moves away from the creature, forcing it to stumble after him. However, as he runs, I notice the thing grasping the sides of its face. With effort, it unscrewed its own head and threw it at Roger. I barely had time to shout something to him.

"DODGE!" As Roger looked at me in surprise before being hit by the mass of slime, it occurred to me that saying 'dodge' distracted him more than anything.

It didn't seem to hurt him. He simply got up and started shaking off the mess. "Tastes like… grape jelly and mustard." He muttered at a volume only I could hear.

A booming step redirects my attention back at the abomination, reeling from its throw. Well… at least it didn't have its head now.

As if I jinxed it, the thing's head began to grow back, making a mindless groan in the process. "Brulurgghhhh…" Soon, its three eyes are staring at Roger again, and it begins to lumber over once more. I get caught again in my own thoughts, wondering how I can beat this thing. It can't be punched, it probably doesn't feel pain anyway and worst of all, it can regenerate!

All that time in my thoughts gives it a chance to close the distance, cornering my homunculus friend on one side of the stadium. As the abomination raises one of its arms to attack, I figure all I can really do is keep having Roger run. "Watch out for its arms!"

Roger prepares himself, keeping his eyes on its arm. Once the monster brings it down, Roger easily sidesteps it. It winds up its other arm, attempting to swipe at him from the side. But again, Roger quickly backsteps from it, barely needing to move. It catches nothing but air.

"Geez, that thing is slow…" I realize what I just said right after it comes out of my mouth. It's bigger than Roger… but it's also slower. "Rog- Homunculus, dive between its legs!"

Roger shoots underneath the abomination. Unable to comprehend quickly enough, it catches nothing but air again. The abomination bends in an unnatural way to look between its legs, leaving itself wide open. "That's it! Take out its head!"

Roger punches at it again. However, instead of punching through it, he delivers rapid swipes in a way that creates a big gash in the side of its head. Before the creature can grow it back, Roger delivers a strong punch that blows its head away, splattering it against the wall.

Its head starts regrowing back as it untwists its body. I knew that was coming… better back off for now. "Get some space between you and it!" Roger runs off again. Ok, so it's slow, and… rather stupid, if that last blunder was any indication. But it can still regenerate, and it can't be fought directly. It has to be weathered down.

Amity chuckles. "You're wasting your time, human. I'm the best abomination user in school. And you're about to see why. Abomination, grab the homunculus and don't let go!"

I ignore her jeers and focus on her creature. It stumbles a bit, before trudging towards Roger again, its arms outstretched. Huh… seems to be rather clumsy. Then again, it's pretty much a pile of living wet clay. Stable enough to stand, sure, but it still doesn't have bones. That's why it's having such a hard time grabbing Roger… "Homunculus, dig up a stone from the arena and throw it at the abomination's leg. But don't get grabbed!"

Roger punched the ground, causing a sufficient crack, breaking out a decent sized rock… just as the monster is on top of him. He dives away as it reaches for him, throwing the rock once he emerges from the roll. He hits the leg with enough strength to take it out. Without the stability, the creature falls over, splatting into a big pile of grime.

"Yes!" I shout in joy.

"Don't get ahead of yourself!" Amity yells from across the way. She still has a confident stance, but she seems to be getting irritated. "I already told you you're just inconveniencing me. This duel's far from over." She snaps her fingers, causing the abomination to reassemble. "I'll show you just how outclassed you are."

"We'll see about that." I look to Roger, determined. He gives a subtle nod to me before looking back at Amity's monster. War of attrition, here we go…

---

As Luz commanded Roger against Lilith's prodigy, Trenchcoat and I were having a conversation of our own. "Yeah. There's definitely some funny business going on here."

"I mean, that was obvious the moment that thing came out a giant. Wouldn't mind hearing the other telltale signs, though." Trenchcoat so graciously requests of me.

"Well, the large size could be possible for a witch in training, but she definitely wouldn't be able to keep regenerating it like that." I bump my chest with my fist, something he notices. "Abominations and their "life forces" are connected to a user's bile gland. It can only grow and stay stable as long as there's magic in the tank. You get me?" Flathorn nods in response, taking in the explanation.

King interrupts me and takes over. "Oh, I know this one! Like any non-magical organ, a bile gland starts out weak, getting stronger with age. At her age, she could probably summon a big abomination like that, but she wouldn't be able to keep it going for long. Especially not after the big hits it's been taking. Honestly, your buddy could probably take it down easily on his own…"

"So, someone's giving her more power?" Trenchcoat questions.

I clamp King's mouth shut. "More power… but not more control. Minus the size, that one's pretty good for a kid her age, pretty stable. But it's also typical for a rookie." I subtly gesture at the abomination as it moves. Lilith seems to be entirely focused on the Homunculus. "Slow, inept, and unable to morph its way out of a paper bag. Professional abomination users would certainly have a stronger creation that moves faster and nimbler than that. It would also be far more amorphous. And while they don't get too much smarter, they can think quicker… that one probably can't follow complicated commands."

King finally pries his mouth from my hand. "Ugh. Have you been eating Hex Mix again?"

"I get it. Her magic's been given a huge boost, but that can't compensate for her skill." He's already lit a cigarette for himself. "So… I'll take it even a newbie like me could guess it's one of those power glyphs."

"You'd be right, newbie." King replied.

"Hmph." Trenchcoat grunts, not biting back at him. Guess he thought now wasn't a good time. "So, the girl snatches a glyph because she thinks she can't win?" He seems to be wanting to confirm.

I review the answer quickly in my head. "Eh… no. She seemed pretty surprised at her own potential. And I can't imagine the Construction users wanted to keep the glyphs out after that "incident"."

"So, the only one who could get to them at that point, would be the same one who didn't react when her protégé pulled out a massive mud monster." He looks at me directly. "Thought you said she would play by the rules."

"I thought she would. And you thought she wouldn't put Luz in danger. Clearly, my sister's grown a bit more underhanded in recent years."

The both of us watch as Roger continues to fight, being led by Luz's increasingly smarter plays. The Blight girl has stepped up her game, as her abomination manages to grab or hit him every now and then. But he's not down for long before he deals the blows right back.

Trenchcoat hums in thought. "So, should we call 'em out about now? The Kid's starting to do pretty good."

King agreed, watching the fight with great intensity. "Yeah, I want to see her humiliate the green haired girl. She called me lame!"

"Oh, you can take it one little insult. But yeah, she's learning to adapt rather well, and she's even getting pretty confident in her decisions. Let's wait just a tad longer. Still, we'll have to out them in a way that Lilith can't turn around back on us." I give a quick nudge to Owlbert, who unscrews himself from my staff. He hops into the stands while Lilith isn't looking, slowly darting into position behind them. "I don't see the glyph on any of her visible parts… so there's only one open space of skin it could be on. I'll have Owlbert move to a vantage point and look through his eyes. Once we're ready, I'll bust them."

Man, Lilith was such an amateur.

---

"Yeah, go Luz!"

"You can beat her!"

"Take her down, Luz!"

I smile as I hear King, Willow and Gus' voices cheering me on. I might not be as popular as Amity, but I've got all the support I need.

"Yeah, go human!" I jolt in surprise as I hear an unfamiliar voice. One of the kids from the school is also cheering me on, and a few others join in.

"She's more awesome than I thought!"

"Never thought I'd see a human beat Amity!"

I didn't expect the praise from the other audience members. It actually feels… really good.

"Ugh!" I turn back around, met with a fuming Amity. "I am NOT being embarrassed by you again! Get ready, human! I'm ending this now!" She points her finger at her abomination, which I unfortunately let get close to Roger, and it slams its fist into him. He skids across the ground, not too damaged by the punch. Things have been going alright so far, but that thing doesn't seem to letting up anytime soon. But neither is Roger.

It's strange. I thought that thing might be able to knock out Roger in a few hits, but he's barely fazed. It must not be as strong as it appears. Or maybe Roger's tougher than he looks.

The subtler thing I notice is what's happening to Amity's abomination. It almost looks… smaller? Yeah, it is! Before, it was taller than the arena walls. Now it was a few inches lower than them. Every time Roger smashes it, it gets smaller! And the smaller it gets, the more manageable it becomes. We just need to keep going! "Homunculus! Grab the rock from earlier and move to the center of the arena!" He darts to grab it, careful not to be caught by the monster.

"What are you up to?" Amity pried at me. I kept my mouth shut, not wanting her to catch on.

As her abomination followed, Roger got ready with the rock. "Now, behead him my creation!" I only somewhat notice I'm starting to get dramatic. Roger launches the rock into the abomination's face, scattering it into tiny bits. "Yes! Now sweep him off his feet!"

Roger smiled for a split second before getting back into character, running like a freight train into the abomination's leg. Taking out its balance again, it falls into a heap. Amity was clenching her fists, becoming increasingly angry. "Would you cut it out?! This isn't a joke!"

"Oh, I am very serious Amity Blight! My homunculus shan't fall here to your mud monster! Bring on your best! My creation can keep going till yours is but mush!" More of the crowd cheered at the showmanship.

"Yeah, but I can't." Eda stated, stepping into the battle zone, King jumping off her shoulder.

"Ah, man, I was starting to enjoy that!" He protests.

"Yeah, well I can't take that flowery crap. So, I think I'll bring things to an end." She's… ending things? "It's funny you think you can slip rookie tricks past me. I am the master, after all."

"W-what are you insinuating, Eda?" Lilith suddenly got nervous.

Eda snorted. "Oh please, sis. The evidence was practically breathing down my neck. Or rather… hers." She points to Amity, who looks at her in confusion. "Why don't you lift the back of your hair and show the crowd?"

"My hair?" Amity does so, seemingly more out of reflex.

Almost immediately, someone from the audience shouts out angrily. "Hey, that's one of our power glyphs!"

"What?!" Amity shouts in surprise. She peels off one of the glyphs I saw from earlier, looking at it in shock. Her abomination shrank almost immediately. Now Roger towered over it. "W-w-wait- I didn't- this isn't-"

"She's a dirty cheater!"

"She was scared of the human!"

"How could Amity delve to such a thing?!"

"No! I didn't know! I… I didn't…" She begins to shrink herself, taking poorly to the jeers.

"Yep, that's right." Eda shouts over the crowd. "My goody two shoes sister rigged the witch's duel. I mean, come on! Even if this girl is a prodigy, she's still a rookie! There's no way she could summon such an efficient abomination! But man, can you believe it? The emperor's right hand so unsure she'd win, she cheated. Amazing, isn't it?"

Lilith huffs out loudly. "I only did it because I knew you would cheat!"

"Oh really? You got proof?" King challenged her, only to slightly cower when she leered at him.

I can imagine she only wants to embarrass her sister… but it's having a worse effect on Amity. Her thoughts are coming out of her mouth, unheard by the crowd… but I can hear her. "No, no, no, I didn't want to win like this… not in front of my dream coven…" She sounds so scared. So… distraught. She… she didn't mean to cheat. But… I did. "If she doesn't trust in me… how can I…" Tears start forming in her eyes.

…I'm sorry, Hellboy, Eda. I can't do this.

"STOP!"

The stadium goes silent, all focused on me. I take a deep breath… and admit the truth. "This isn't my homunculus." The entire audience gasps, even more astonished than before. "He's a free homunculus who wanted to help me. His name is Roger." The crowd begin to murmur louder. "Lilith probably used that glyph because she knew we were already planning something ourselves."

"I knew it! You did cheat!" Lilith began to speak in a mocking tone. "I mean, come on! A human girl who knows how to create a stable homunculus that's larger than the average? I knew she couldn't have made it!"

Eda's face is still smug. "Eh. You still cheated."

"Are you kidding me?!" She shouts in pure ire. "I caught you cheating! That means you lose by default! You'll have to come with me!"

"Prissy, perfect Lilith cheated!" Eda kept going, making her sister angrier.

"Ugh! You are such a child!"

"Uh oh." King tugs at my arm. "I think we should make a break for it, Luz. When those two get going, things get messy."

I ignore the sister's spat for now to look back at Amity, knowing full well she'll rub it in my face. To my shock, she just looks at me in full disgust, before running off. I thought for sure she'd…

"Hey, kid." Hellboy comes up from behind me, Roger joining us. "I respect your integrity. But it looks like we're going to have to think of an escape route."

I look back at the door Amity ran through. "Right. Uh… Hey, Hellboy? I'm sorry."

"Hey, like I said, Luz. Don't worry about it."

"Not for that."

He raises an eyebrow at me. "Then what are you…?"

"There's still one more risk I need to take."

---

Luz suddenly rushes off, before any of us can react. "Whoa, kid, wai-OOF!" Hellboy yells for her, running after her… only to trip over poor King.

"Ow! Watch it, Flathead!"

"Now's not the time dog bone! Come on, we've got to get her before she goes too far!" He picks the small demon up and runs off. "Roger, keep an eye on the witch! We're leaving soon!"

"Can do." I wave as he runs off. Still, it just seems like they're having a spat. What trouble could that cause?

"OHH, THAT'S IT!"

A sudden shockwave washes over me, as the air suddenly gets warmer.

"There she is."

I turn to see the sisters shooting blasts of fire at each other, effectively making me eat my words.

"Witch's Duel!" Someone shouts from the audience.

Well… I guess each family is different.

---

I sit there in the darkness, letting my tears run freely. I've already been humiliated enough today, so I'd rather anyone not see this. Not that hiding really matters at this point, I guess. There doesn't seem to be many people left. The Covention hall is rather empty, everyone either watching whatever's causing the explosions in the arena or leaving after scouting out their preferred covens.

"Amity!" …Can she not even leave me alone even now? "I'm sorry."

"Seriously? After everything that's happened, you expect me to forgive you? Just leave me alone!" But she remains there, not even taking a step from that spot.

"I never meant to embarrass you."

"That's all you ever do! First at school, then the fair, and now this!" I get up and look her in the eyes. "Even if you were telling the truth about the other two events, you still humiliated me. And today, you made me look like a fool in front of the Emperor's Coven. My future!" I stress as I gesture to her, hoping it gets through her head just how much this meant to me. "You think it's so easy to be a witch! Treating it like a game and acting like it's just some hobby you can pick up. I've been working my whole life to get to the top! Joining the Emperor's Coven is all I ha-" I correct myself quickly. "It's all I ever wanted." I furiously point at her. "If you're actually sorry, then I want to hear you admit it. You cheated. You lost! Say you're not a witch. Say it!"

"I'm not a witch." She says without hesitation. But what she does next catches me off guard. She proceeds to kneel down, taking out a notepad. As I kneel down to see what she's trying to show me, I watch as she draws a symbol on it, before tapping it. The paper crinkles and becomes a small light… and she stares at it, a look of pride and accomplishment… and then shows it to me. Her face reads as if she's wanted nothing more than to show me what she's achieved. "But I'm training hard to be one."

It's… a look I know all too well.

---

I keep my distance as Eda and her sister fight. Though I'd like to help, I feel I might just get in the way. Besides, it's a good chance to see what full-fledged witches can do.

Lilith attempts to launch her fire blasts, only for them to be blocked by stone owls that Eda summons from the ground which proceeds to attack Lilith.

"If you would just turn yourself in, I could help you!" Lilith shouts from one side. "All you had to do was forfeit the match!" She dodges several smaller owls, before throwing her enflamed staff at Eda.

Eda blocks it easily with a shield. "I keep telling you Lilith, I don't want anything that antler head has to offer. Not even his help!" Just as it seems Lilith will break through, the owl on Eda's staff flies off and attacks her, distracting her long enough for Eda to summon one last owl. It swallows her whole. "You can work for him all you want, but I'm staying free and wild, thank you."

Before Eda and I can react, both of us notice a hole burned through the stone. I'm too late to intercept her as Lilith teleports behind Eda, hitting her with a hard blast. "We'll see about that, sister."

This isn't good. I could attack her, but I don't know if she'll sick the guards and coven members on us if I do. I need to distract her somehow.

"This is for your own good, Eda. The curse is catching up with you."

Eda sighs in resignation. "I guess it is. But I'm still not accepting Belos as my leader."

Lilith looks at her in concern. "Eda, there's no telling how much time might be left. This could be the last time we see each other. I just want to help you."

"You know…" I speak up, catching her attention. "You really don't listen to your sister."

"This doesn't concern you, homunculus. I suggest you leave while you can."

"You think your way is best, that Eda only needs to do what you say to be happy. You don't even bother to see her side of things."

She scoffs at me. "Are you lecturing me? You know nothing about our lives!"

"I've seen enough to know you're a bad sister."

"How dare you!" She slams her staff down, another shockwave filling the arena. "You're just a pile of living human fat! What would you know about family?!"

"More than you might think. But that's a story you don't have time for." I pause, and smile at her. "You have a flight to catch."

"What are you babbli-eeeeEEEEEEEEN!" Lilith screams as one more owl head shots out rapidly from beneath her, launching her into the stands.

"Nice going there, big guy." Eda says as she runs past me.

I catch up to her quickly. "I tried to make a funny comment like Hellboy does. Do you think I pulled it off?"

"Eh, it was alright. If you want real funny, you should learn from a comedy master like me."

---

I stare at the ball of light, mesmerized by it. It takes me moment to remember it's a rather low level spell. "T-that's nothing… a child could do a light spell." I turn away, and she puts the light out, slightly dejected. "But… I've never seen it cast like that before."

She brightens slightly at that. "It doesn't come naturally to me, like it does for you. So, I've had to improvise."

I guess that makes sense. But there's still one thing I don't get. "Then… why cheat today?"

"Lilith forced us into that. Either she arrests Eda and I, or I fight in a witches duel. One she knew I wouldn't win, so she could have Eda arrested anyway." She puts her notepad back in her pocket. "My mom wants me as far from danger as possible, so Hellboy and Eda had Roger fight for me instead. We just wanted to get out of this place without causing trouble."

"But then why out yourself?"

"…Because I couldn't stand to see you nearly break down like that." She admits, stunning me silent. "You were right. You worked hard to impress Lilith and the Emperor's Coven. I didn't want you thinking it was for nothing."

I look at her, scrutinizing her for any sign of a bluff. But she seems to be telling the truth.

I can't process all this at the moment. With everything that's happened today… I need some time to think this over. I get up to leave. "Weird glyphs aside, I don't know if you can learn magic. But I guess that won't stop you from trying." She doesn't speak or try to follow me again. I guess she's content with that.

As I leave the covention… I can't seem to stop thinking about her and that little light. Luz Noceda… such a weird girl.

---

I watch as the Blight kid walks off, and soon after the dog bone darts up to Luz, commenting about her leaving him. We had actually found them pretty quickly. This time though, I felt like the kid had the situation covered, so I didn't step in. I smile to myself. Good to know something came out of this day gone badly. Kid probably did the hardest thing anyone could ever do- make peace with an enemy. Even I have trouble doing that. My temper often gets the better of me.

I don't quite notice green hair walking past me until she's right next to me. Better follow up on this real quick… "Hey. Kid." She tenses for a moment before turning to face me. "Take it easy. Just wanna know… this mean you'll leave her alone?"

She pauses. I think she's just a bit scared of me, is all. "I… won't antagonize her, if that's what you mean. As long as she doesn't bother me."

"…Fair enough." I only say. She continues to walk out the center, relaxing a bit.

However, even though I'm done with her, something else catches my eye as she goes out the door. That damn mask. The gas masked figure from before is peering out from a gap in the stalls. He's gazing down our way, giving off creepy vibes. It's kinda pissing me off. There's that saying that once is happenstance, and two is coincidence, but three times is enemy action. I think it's time I found out what this guy's problem is.

"Hey, Hellboy!" I look away as Luz comes up to me with King on her shoulder. "I'm ready to go when you are!" My eyes dart back. But he's gone. No trace of him anywhere. And I don't have the time to go hunting him down. "Uh… something wrong?"

"…No." I narrow my eyes at the empty space. "It's nothing."

"H'okay, Flathead. If you're done being all eerie, can we go fetch Eda and your big gray friend?"

"Ain't no need for that." The witch appears behind the three of us, Roger in tow. "We gave Lilly the slip. Now, we should probably get out here before she can organize the guards."

"You guys go on ahead." I tear a nearby metal support pole from its place, causing the stand to fall down. "I need to have one last little talk with your sister."

Snaggletooth gives a small shrug. "Knock yourself out. Come on, Luz."

"Wait, Eda, I wanted to ask you something…" Luz begins. I walk out of earshot at that point, but she says something about being a "true witch". Admittedly, Snaggletooth has more knowledge in that, so I'll leave it to her and find out what she tells Luz later.

With some backtracking, it doesn't take me long to find the gothic captain, standing at the entrance to the arena. She's yelling at one of the other coven members to mobilize. I think I'll get her attention.

As the pole embeds itself into the wall right in front of her face, she stands there a bit stunned for a moment. Slowly, she turns to scowl at me.

"Damn. Guess my aim isn't just bad with guns." I say nonchalantly as I pull my gun out, staring her down right back. "I was aiming for your head. Thought it might come off like your sister's."

"Really? You're mad at me? I should be the one throwing fireballs at you! I had her and all you needed to do was forfeit and help me detain her!"

"Maybe. But you're first mistake was assuming I was bringing her here to get captured."

"Is that not why you came to an event crawling with guards while the human was in arm's reach of you?"

"She and I both came here because the kid wanted to come. Not my fault you saw signals that weren't there." I point accusingly at her. "Not to mention, you had no idea if she wasn't going to fight her way out. The kid could've gotten hurt in that kind of blowout."

"So then both you and I could've detained her. "

"Except that still puts the girl in danger." I raise my clenched stone fist. "When I said I wanted her unharmed, I felt you had the brain power to know that meant "out of harm's way". On top of that, you pull underhanded crap like forcing us into a no-win duel and cheat using that power glyph. Nice going there, by the way. Real confidence booster for your student."

"I had a perfectly good reason, and her impressions on our coven have not changed, if that's what she is afraid of." Feels like she's missing the point. She slowly summons her staff. "Am I to assume you see me as an enemy, then?"

I point my Good Samaritan at her, and she readies her staff. I get a bit of déjà vu in the staredown…

I put my gun back in cloak. "Nah. That'll just cause trouble for me. But you're on your own trying to catch your sister. I won't get in your way. Seems like she can handle herself. But if you put Luz in danger again… we're gonna have problems." Even if I wasn't actually going to do it, I feel it's time to break off that "deal".

She lowers her staff. She doesn't look too happy to hear that, but she's not angry. "…Very well. But know, the moment you do truly side with her, you will all be on the chopping block."

"Miss Lilith." Another coven member walks up to her. "A call from Kikimora."

She curses under her breath. "Take your leave, Hellboy. I have important matters to attend to."

Sounds like she's in a bit of a bind. Can't imagine this incident going down well with her boss. Unfortunately, my situation isn't much better. Camilia's probably not going to like how today went.

---

"You told me she would be safe."

"I know."

"You told me the local guard would not target my daughter.

"I know. I'm sorry."

Luz's mom sighs as she chews out Trenchcoat, rubbing her face. "I forgive you, Hellboy. But being coerced into a competition she should not have been in, and a bully on top of all that? From what you've told me, this second day almost ended in disaster." She stirs her tea out of habit.

I scoff. Lilith isn't the only amateur I've seen today, it seems. "Ah, you're not gonna let one little run in with the law scare you away, are ya?"

"Says the most wanted criminal on the Isles." She quickly snips.

"You know it." I say with full smarm, giving her a wink.

She rolls her eyes and continues conversing with Hellboy and Kate. "I'm glad that it was not all bad. She seems to have taken care of her bully problem… for now, at least. And it's good to know her sense of honesty is in one piece, despite the circumstances."

Really? The circumstances? "Look, I get you don't like me, but it was necessary to cheat the way we did to keep her from fighting directly."

She rolls her eyes. "I understand that objectively, it needed to be done. I'm not so huffy that I can't see the practicality of it in this case. I'm simply happy that Luz remembers her morals. Can a mother not be proud of her daughter for the simple things?"

"I just feel like you're not giving the other positives enough credit. The kid gets pushed into a situation she couldn't plan for, took some leaps, and landed on her feet for the most part. She even came out with some life lessons. The whole honesty junk, adapting to situations as they happen, becoming your own witch, and learning to bury the hatchet in the ground instead of someone's face!" Though that certainly would've been interesting, I think for a moment.

She stirs her drink faster, a slight bit of irritation in her voice. "My problem is more with the fact that your notoriety is what got her into trouble in the first place. If even Hellboy and his fellow agents can't guarantee her safety because of your record, how can I feel confident in her staying here?"

"Look, you're upset that we got in trouble because of me, I get it. But we took every chance to keep her as far from danger as possible. We accepted the duel straight away because that meant she would be okay. Not to mention, Flathorn here reiterated his point with my sister. The guard won't lay a finger on her from this point!" She doesn't seem very convinced. I don't like the idea of what I'm going to suggest, but if it'll calm her down… "Okay… if I talk with my sister myself, will that be enough? She might not want to do me any favors anytime soon, but I have more than my share of good arguments to use against her."

She stops stirring and looks at me intently. The ticking of my clock nearby is loud and clear as she reads my face. "Fine. One more chance. But if I find out she has a bounty on her, that's the end of it. Am I clear to everyone?" She looks back at Trenchcoat.

He gives a quick nod of confirmation. "Other than that, on the learning side of things today," He took out a notepad and slides it to Camila. "This magic is capable of a lot, from baking to summoning mud monsters. But that just means we can pick and choose what she learns. She's not going to be blowing herself up any time soon."

"Si. That's good." She finally takes a sip of her tea. Thought she was gonna stir it till it became a whirlpool. "So that just leaves… the test."

Kate's quick to jump on that. "We're going to take readings of her while she performs a spell. We've got standard purifying materials if it shows any negative effect."

"Then we just have to have Luz use her light spell?"

Kate's face scrunches a bit. "I could take readings of that, but that one seems like it could be a puff of smoke. I'd need something more… constant. I want to get the best readings as possible."

The three of them sit there in silence, lost in thought. Ignoring the one person who could give them some good options. "Well, this is a little insulting. I'm right here, you know."

"You got a suggestion, Snaggletooth?"

"Nothing that won't get under the nurse's feathers, but I can find something that'll work for ya." Luz's mom give me an unamused glare. "Alright, fine. Miss Noceda." She gives a curt nod and goes back to her tea.

Okay, maybe she intimidates me just a little.

---

"Standartenführer Sauer. I've returned from my scavenging." I state, words muffled by this verflucht mask. I stand the straightest I possibly can, for I am standing before the one who is most dedicated to our cause. The darkness of his mask's visors loom over me like I was a miserable insect.

"I am certainly aware of that, Sturmmann Müller. And yet, I've also noticed you have absolutely no take to speak of." He speaks with a dangerously low voice. Had this been any other day, I would've been fully deserving of his anger.

"I have my reasons, Captain. I bring you good news… as well as bad news." I preface myself. "I was just about to contain the Blight girl for study, when I noticed something in the Covention hall. A young girl. A human girl. Central American, from the looks."

He comes dangerously close to my face, his interest piqued. "Another… human?"

"Yes, sir. That's not all, Captain… she could use magic."

"She can?! Phenomenal…" He places a hand on my shoulder. "Are you sure of this, Müller?"

"Indeed. I saw with my own eyes. It was only a simple light spell, but it was magic nonetheless."

The pressure in the atmosphere recedes and I can breathe easier. Sauer walks over to his latest experiment. "This could perhaps be our only chance… no more failures. And yet…" He begins inquisitively. "There must be a reason you did not grab her on the spot."

"That is the bad news, I'm afraid." I begin, knowing full well what will happen once I tell him. "You see, not only is the girl the ward of that annoying wild witch…" I take a deep breath in. "…but she is also being guarded by the ape."

"The ape?" He says in slight confusion, as if he did not immediately know. I cannot blame him. After going so long without seeing or hearing about him, I would have too, had I not seen him with my own eyes.

"The ape from that wretched bureau, sir. He's here. And he is watching over the girl."

Slowly, Sauer's hands clench, and he begins to shake. The pressure returns to the atmosphere, weighing down on me, making it hard to breath. Before it crushes me, the captain erupts in furious anger. "RRAAAAAAAAAAGGHHHHHH!" He slams his arms down on his research table, crushing his latest experiment. A splatter of blood hits my mask. I wish I could wipe it off, but I dare not move. Sauer continues to pound his fists into the table, the pathetic creature wailing in pain from the assault. His lab equipment is smashed to pieces. Finally, he relents, breathing heavily over the mess of blood and glass. He turns back to me as he finally calms down. "Eherm… my apologizes, Sturmmann. That was rather… infuriating news."

"I understand, sir." I peer at the now dead creature, smashed into mush. "I am sorry. I did not mean to cause you to ruin your operation."

He looks at one of bloodied gloves and scoffs. "Mourn for my lab equipment. It was far more valuable in the end. That whelp offered nothing but the same dead ends we've hit before." He waved off the damage, before questioning me again. "Did the blasted ape see you?"

"Yes, but he did not seem to be aware of my affiliation. I had my swastika concealed."

"Did he follow you at any point?" He seemed tense asking that.

"No. He was distracted by other things before he could get a chance to. And I made sure to check multiple times."

"Thank god…" He heaved a sigh of relief, then recomposed himself. "The last thing we need is that creature knocking at our door."

"Shall I mobilize our squad so we may procure the child?"

"No. Not yet. That blasted hag was one thing, but with the ape here, going in guns blazing will only result in failures. We must approach this intelligently." He flicks some of the blood off his hands. "We must prepare. That girl could hold the key, and we cannot miss such an opportunity." He picks up his experiment by the legs. "No longer will I waste my time on these imp children. Now, get some rest, Müller. I must clean up."

"Yes, sir." I salute him, which he returns. I am all too willing to further our cause. And I am sure that Sauer is all too eager to dissect the girl and see what she hides.

"Mark my words, Müller. I will not allow him to foil us as he did before. He will know just what mistake he made… when we show him what he gave us."

Notes:

Yep. Nazis.

You know, the one thing Hellboy loves about travelling is that there's always a nazi just waiting to be killed by him. That's not a canon statement, but I get the feeling it's true.

Joking aside… things are about to start getting darker, folks. Hellboy's world is slowly, but surely, seeping it's way into the story of Owl House. I won't get edgelord on ya, but be prepared.

Keep Those reviews coming! I'd love to hear how you feel about the latest chapter!

Chapter 7: The House That Could Walk

Summary:

Eda's curse in encroaching, but she's out of elixir. Hellboy doesn't have time to focus on that, however, as she's also found him the perfect spell for Luz's test run... the Moonlight Conjuring. While Roger is sent off with the Owl Lady, Hellboy oversees a Boiling Isles style sleepover... one that Camila happens to be sitting in on. Quite the setup for things to go wrong...

...Perhaps more than Hellboy and Eda are prepared for. For there are monsters lying in wait in both the stone jungle and the wild, dark forests, ready for their time to strike.

Notes:

Hey, guess who's back everybody, alright! Finally, after many long months, I got this chapter out, and man… it's a doozy.

Twenty Seven Thousand words. The last chapter was only around Fifteen Thousand. I wanted this thing out in April, I don't even know how it got this big.

So, even when I got done getting a new car, and took a break from apartment searching, it took me a damn long while to get this thing done. But it's here, and ready for y'all's eyes!

The only news I have? Well, it's very important…

Amphibia Deserves Better.

Haven't even watched it yet, and I know they do. Dumbass Disney folks… they better not cancel the show because of their own stupid mistakes. "Gee, I wonder why the ratings didn't hit so hard for the finale? Duhhhhhhh…." Whatever, let's just give Disney hell for it, teach 'em that we don't appreciate our favorite characters being mistreated.

On to the story!

The air is different.

It's been different for some time now. Something on the winds has changed. I feel it. The forest speaks of new arrivals.

But it is not unfamiliar with said arrivals. The forest knows what has come to this land. From the lowly mosses and fungi to the highest reaching tree, they bristle with anticipation. It makes me uneasy. I have felt the same as they do, but I am not so excited as they. These presences fill me with dread if I am to be honest.

Long have I rested here in the forest, listening to what it tells me. The knowledge it contains, the events of its past, and the people who live within it. Very few times have the winds changed in such a way. The last that I remember was when the foolish dictator took over. And when the air changed then, it led to terrible slaughter… and the disappearance of my beloved.

Ah, my love… we were to discover the secrets of this island together. Instead, we are now separated, and perhaps know even less than we did before. I never should have asked you to scout that "Emperor's" fortress. I have spent so many nights away from you because of it.

I know she is alive. I sense it down to the soil in my bones. She is somewhere in that "human-like" city, unable to escape. No matter how many times I call out to her, she does not return. I would have razed their settlement to the ground myself to find her… but the power that tyrant and his followers wield is too strong.

No. I must wait. Soon enough, there will be a perfect opportunity for me to strike. To take back my love from the domain of the Imps. I just need to wait… wait… for her. Yes. Surely, she will come soon. She has not forgotten us. She knows we still reside here. Last I spoke with her, I told her of our woes. Our old friend told me to wait, that she would find her way to this realm soon enough. When she arrives, that fool… Belos… he will not be able to stand against her. She is the mother of Russia, and her reach is long. He will find that she is a mountain too insurmountable, like those of our home country…

The Baba Yaga… whose iron teeth and wooden bones support us and many others… she will help me rescue my Baba Bolotnitsa… and we will burn this emperor's kingdom to little more than ash. Might he may have, but she cannot die so long as our home… on the other side… endures. Yes, all will be right again… and the Baba Yaga will have this island's secret…

…Still. This new air… the presence of these individuals threatens to cause chaos, just as it did the last time. Should I destroy them before they can do so? …No. The chaos they cause will likely only affect Belos' domain. Let them destroy each other.

In the meantime, I will wait…

---

"Alright, I'll bite. The hell is this?"

Snaggletooth had set up some kind of card game in the middle of her living room. The cards had various pictures of the elements, both natural and magical. Roger and Luz were looking on intently, while the Dog Bone just seemed unimpressed. The weirdest part to me was her playing against her little bird friend. And the bird was actually into it, poker hat and everything.

…Looks kinda cute, I'll admit.

"We're learning about the paper rectangles that old people think are fun!" …'Old people?' I raise an eyebrow at her.

"Ah, kid. Why'd you have to go and do that to me?" She gives me a sheepish look and shrugs, before returning her attention to the witch's game.

"Anyway, as I was explaining to Luz and Mr. Gray over here, this is Hexes Hold' Em. The trickiest game on the Isles. Every witch worth their bile knows how to play." She explains.

Hexes Hold Em? And here I thought I was done with the puns. The witch places one last card in an empty spot before the whole thing sparks. The cards suddenly stand on their own with open mouths. Can't say I'm too surprised about that little twist. I've seen weirder during my own games. Still weird though. Oddly violent too, as they start clawing and biting at each other. "The object of the game is destroy your opponent's deck… literally. Whatever cards survive each round are shuffled back into your deck. You run out of cards, you lose." She and her little wooden bird stare at each other intensely. "Now, just when your opponent thinks they have you on the ropes, that's when you pull out the 'trump card'." She raises a different card up into the air, which activates some kind of destructive spell. All of the owl's cards are destroyed, and a little message made out of fire declares her the winner. Real subtle, this game.

"Oh yeah! In your adorable owl face!" She starts dancing around.

"She always this humble in victory?" I ask the little wooden bird.

He gives me a curt nod. "Hoot."

"Hmm. I think I'll stick to Poker." I say as I notice the ashes blowing away. "Don't have to worry about losing all the cards you bought, for one…"

"Ah, bunk to your game of numbers and shapes." Snaggletooth jeers, bumping Luz with her elbow. "You know how easy that game is? I went to both the cities where humans worship gambling. Vay-gus and Monty Crisco, or whatever. Completely dominated at both."

"Really? And just how many games did you win without cheating?"

She shrugs. "I dunno. Six, give or take… probably just take." She replies casually. "My ex-husband from Vay-gus only had to win three. Man after my own heart, that Stan…"

"Right. Listen… Luz, Roger. You want to be good at any kind of card game? Don't be predictable. You play the same strategy constantly and behave the same way every game, people are gonna notice." I pull out my own stack of cards, shuffling them in my hands. "And of course, you can do the same thing to your opponents. If you peg them and their habits down, you've got pretty good control of the game… if they aren't a lousy cheat, obviously." Snaggletooth just ignores me, keeping that smug grin of hers. "Though if you know the signs, you can tell when someone's cheating too."

"That really works?" Roger asked.

"It does, and I have the experience to prove it." I whisper to Luz. "Jessie James's ghost likes to bluff a lot."

She gives me one of her starry-eyed smiles. "I don't know what that means, but card games with ghosts sounds cool!"

I let out a small chuckle. "And that was nothing compared to this game I had with a vampire in Prague. Though that wasn't exactly the most conventional game…" I pull out my own deck of cards. "I can teach you the ropes if you want. Roger already knows how to play, so he can be a good starting game partner."

"Well…" Luz contemplated, still unsure.

"Go ahead, Luz! And after he teaches you how to stare at four other people for hours, I'll show you an actually fun game!" Snaggletooth says, turning on the smarm. I was about to rebut that, but something caught me off guard. Roger looks curiously at the sight too. Feathers are sticking out of the witch from all sides. She hasn't taken notice, oddly enough. "What are you two staring at?"

Luz saw it too, but it left her more afraid than the two of us. She's gone so far as to hide behind the arm of the couch. "Uh, Eda?"

I hand my stack of cards over to Roger. "Either you got skin problems, or this is that curse I've been warned about." I walk over to get a closer look. The witch finally realizes she's become a featherweight and looks all over her body.

"Oh no! Curse emergency!" King yells out in surprise, ducking behind Luz. On closer inspection, the ones that just grew seem to have stopped. Weird, since they popped out in an instant (or at least while we weren't looking). It's emerging… but slowly.

"This soon? I…" She seems shocked. And the hell does she mean by "this soon"? She realize everyone's looking at her, and yanks her arm away. "Alright, everyone needs to calm down. And stop gawking at me, Trenchcoat. You're not my sawbones." She makes her way up the stairs. "I just need another dose of elixir, is all."

"Hmph. 'Scuse me for not wanting to deal with a big bird monster…" Especially since the kid seems to be worried about you. Ah well, I guess she's right though. If she just needs an elixir, then that's all there is to it. Then we can go back to having good times with cards and forget this ever happened. No need to make a big deal about it, right?

---

"Uh oh." Snaggletooth says, as we stare at a box containing nothing but empty vials. "This is terrible… I'm all out of elixir!"

"Can I gawk now?" I joke of course, but Snaggletooth doesn't seem too amused as she sends me a glare.

"Last time you didn't have your elixir, you turned into this thing." Luz reminds the witch, showing her an image on her phone from her last fateful encounter. We're lucky she didn't get an arm torn off in that incident.

"Whoa. She almost looks like a griffin." Roger takes the phone. "Or a manticore. It looks kind of cool."

"Well thanks, grey goliath." She goes from concern to admiration… a little too quickly. "I know I should be repulsed, but I'm glad I'm not the only one who believes I pull off the ferocious look." She fluffs her hair.

"Eda…" Luz chides. If she didn't, I was going to. But the witch gets the picture.

"Right. We're gonna have to go into the market. King, get me my hood." He nods and scurries off.

"Hooray, shopping trip!" Luz excitedly shouts. Any other kid I'd chastise for not taking this seriously. But considering she was worried about Snaggletooth changing into a giant set of teeth, I think she's just trying to keep high spirits.

I stop the witch before she heads out the door. "I am serious, though. Do I need to worry about you going savage on me?"

"It's just a little hiccup, Trenchcoat. Don't get your sideburns in a twist. A quick trip to the store and this'll be nothing to worry about."

"You're jinxing it." I should know. I've said my fair share of statements that goad the universe into proving me wrong, and that one's up there.

"Oh shut up, I am not. Now, come on. It's still some time before Morton's opens and we wanna be there for first pick."

I let out a heavy sigh as she exits the room. I can't help but feel this is a bad omen for a crappy day.

---

"Open up, Morton! I don't have all day!" That might be a little too literal in my case.

"Hang on, just a moment!"

Easy for him to say. He's not on a time limit. Maybe if he risked being turned into a feathery fright, he'd be faster. It's especially not helping my stress to have Trenchcoat breathing down my neck about all this. He keeps giving me judgy glances. His gray buddy's entirely focused on the set of cards from earlier.

"That's one scary parade." Luz notes from beside me. She's taken notice of some unfriendly faces… bringing my attention to it is just her way of asking for clarification.

"That's no parade. Those are demon hunters." The small group has a Bull Centidemon primed and ready for the market. As it attempts to wrestle free, the biggest fella- probably their leader- shocks it unconscious. "They're dangerous nomads that hunt and sell the most dangerous beasts." The big one turns to us with a glare, causing Luz to gasp.

"I don't like how he's eyeing us…" Trenchcoat says in a low tone.

"There's a good chance he's sizing us up. They can get a bit overconfident… to the point they'll go after a beast that belongs to somebody else. Luckily, we don't have anything of value to him…" I slam my hand on Morton's stall again to emphasize. "But I'm going to be his next meal ticket if Morton doesn't OPEN UP!"

"Sorry, Eda!" He finally raises the shudder. "I was up all night poison tasting and for some reason, I don't feel great…" That's Morton for you. Dedicated to making sure his product is top of the line… at the cost of some common sense.

His attention is quickly drawn away by the two tall figures standing near me. Roger's trying to teach himself how to shuffle a deck, and Trenchcoat leaning up against the shopowner's stall. Trenchcoat glances over. "It's the horns, huh?" Morton awkwardly looks away. "Yeah. Course it is…"

I snap my fingers to regain his attention. "Focus, Morton. Don't worry about the hornless wonder." I hand him one of my empty elixir bottles. "I'm all out of my juice, pal."

"Oh, gee… let me see what I can do." I don't like the way he sounds about that.

As Morton shifts through his stock, I hear Luz gasp again. It sounds happier this time, though. "Willow and Gus! Uh, Hellboy, can I…?" She asks him. It's kind of exhausting, since her two friends are only across the street. It's gonna be refreshing when she can walk down a block without needing to hold his hand.

"Go ahead, kid. Just make sure to stay in sight." He watches her walk off. "While we're waiting… you got any ideas for our little test?"

"For Titan's sake, it's only been a day. Y'all asked for a beginner's continuous spell that wouldn't freak out Glasses... I need just a bit more time to find something like that."

"We didn't necessarily ask for that last part. But if there's really not that many spells that wouldn't give Cam a heart attack, I've got a feeling it won't matter if you manage to find one."

"Look, there's plenty of perfectly serviceable spells that fill separate quotas, maybe even a few of them, but not all of them. The biggest hurdle is finding one Luz can use without having a bile gland. I figured using a spell that relies on an outside source of magic. Which there are a decent amount of. But they either aren't beginner spells, or the source of magic is… dangerous."

He shook his head. "Yeah, that's right out. Any other ideas?"

"Well, we could try to have her learn a new spell. You know, in her own fancy way. But I still don't know how she did it the first time. She tells me and King she saw a symbol in the light spell, but… I haven't even seen one faint image of that symbol." I remember when she first tried to show me the spell on her phone… couldn't see a damn thing, even when she said she captured it perfectly. "I mean, I can see the ones she draws on paper. But the ones inside spells themselves? Nothing. I could try to sample a spell in front of her, but I don't know if she'll see anything. Heck, she's told me she hasn't seen anything since the light spell."

"Hmm…" He grumbles, thinking deeply.

"Exactly. Not as easy as you'd think. Especially when you're distracted by a lack of curse cure." Speaking of which… "Anything, Morton?"

"Well… I've got good news and bad news. The bad news is, I'm all out of elixir for a few days. The good news is, feathers are a good look for you!" He says. As if on cue, a feather sticks out from my head, which only makes me angrier.

"MORTON!"

"I'm sorry, Eda! But why did you wait so long to restock?"

"I've had a lot going on the last few days, alright?" No kidding. The meeting with Big Red, and all the stuff that came from that, coupled with the Covention incident… I got a little distracted. "Look, Morton. You've known me and my condition for a long time. There's got to be something in there that can hold me over until you get a new supply."

"I'm sorry, Eda. There's nothing that comes even close to this elixir." He apologized. He had a contemplative look on his face. "It's risky, but… there is one way you could possibly get your prescription. If you come back tonight."

"…The Night Market." Of course it would come to that. My luck today had already been spiraling down a bottomless pit, what was stopping it now?

"I've been hearing about a guy… goes by the name Grimhammer. He's been known to have whatever the wandering eye is looking for. He's your best shot."

"Yeah… but at what cost?" I say somewhat quietly. "Keep the next batch saved for me, Morton. Hopefully, I won't be snatching up small animals next time you see me."

"Mind filling me in?" Trenchcoat asks from the side. Of course he'd want to know.

"The Night Market is this exact market after dark, as if it weren't obvious. But unlike the gathering of mostly honest vendors you see around you, the people that set up shop at night are… devious."

"Ominous."

"You don't know the half of it. If they aren't selling you the most volatile potions and sickening of spells, they're trying to swindle you out of your own soul." Hold on a second. There's probably one reason why he's so interested. "No, I'm not bringing Luz there anytime soon. Even I avoid the Night Market if I can help it."

"Which ain't the case right now, obviously." He gestured to my empty bottle.

I groan. "Yes. Obviously."

"Well, if it's necessary to stop you from becoming a rampaging monster… What time do we head out?"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. "We"? You can stay home teaching dull card games to Luz. King and I will take care of this."

King suddenly rose up from his comfy spot on the nearby bench. "What? Why me?"

"I need another pair of eyes to watch out for pickpockets. Titan knows how many of those hands are gonna get grabby…"

"You're taking pint-size, but not someone else for backup?" Trenchcoat asks incredulously. "Yeah, that makes sense."

"I do not need backup, thank you very much. Just because I'm wary of the Night Market doesn't mean I can't handle it."

"Considering your track record this morning, I'd rather not take my chances."

Now he's starting to get on my nerves. "Listen here, Flathorn. I've been in worse situations than this plenty of times over the years. I've gotten out of them just fine."

"Then you won't mind me watching your back, just to be sure."

I slammed my staff down. "You're staying."

He straightened up in response, glaring at me. "I think you're forgetting that I'm here to make sure the kid is safe at all times. And keeping the witch lady who lives in the same house as her from turning into a giant flying monster is one of them. Unless it turns out your monster form is as friendly as Barney the Dinosaur, that's not gonna change anytime soon."

Before I could ask who the hell Barney was, Roger suddenly cleared his throat. The two of us stopped arguing to look at him. He had a sheepish look on his face, along with King, who had perched on his shoulder. The small demon made a quick pointing motion in the other direction…

…Where an equally sheepish Luz was standing. "Is… this a bad time?"

"Uh… sorry, Luz. Just having an intense argument." I say, Trenchcoat rubbing the back of his head. "How were your two partners in crime?"

"Oh, they were… okay." She wavers a bit in tone.

"You don't sound so sure." Trenchcoat notes. "Something wrong?"

"Well… when I went to go talk to them, they looked pretty bummed out. When I asked about it, they told me about something really cool…

---

A few minutes earlier…

"Heya friends!" I exclaimed as I slid up to the two witches. The response they gave me were probably two of the most miserable faces I've seen. "Whoa, what happened? You two look like you just lost a pet…"

"Hey, Luz. No lost pets. We're just being the school outcasts as usual." She pointed down the street. Amity Blight was currently hanging with some of the other school girls. She hadn't seen me yet, which might be for the best. We didn't leave off as enemies yesterday…but we aren't exactly friends either. "Amity's hosting a Moonlight Conjuring tonight. Most kids in the school are, in fact. As usual, we didn't get invited to any."

"She's been posting about it on Penstagram nonstop." Gus added, summoning his scroll phone thingie with a spell circle. Scrolling down (uh, no pun intended), I could see plenty of different selfies taken, all with different captions about how excited they all were. "No passive aggressive comments about nerds or dorks, oddly enough. But the fact neither of us were invited tells us all we need to know."

"You didn't get an invite from anybody? I'm sorry, guys." I've been down that road before. A lot of days, I'd hear the other girls in class talk about slumber parties or movie nights they had. I'd never hear about it until after the fact. It always told me what those kids thought about me. So hearing Willow and Gus lament about not getting invited to a Moonlight Conjuring… it's something I can relate to… Uh, hang on a second. "Wait, what's a Moonlight Conjuring?"

Willow perked up, happy to teach me anything about the Boiling Isles. "Oh! It's an all-night party you have with friends. You eat snacks, watch late night crystal ball visions and play all sorts of games!"

"That… sounds like a slumber party!" I always wanted to go to a slumber party!

"And then, when the moon reaches the right place in the sky, you call upon its power to bring something to life!"

"…Like a weird slumber party!" Right. You know, by now, I probably should have expected a Boiling Isle twist like that. "How come you don't host one yourselves? I mean, two's company and all, right?"

"I wish. We would've done it all these past years if that were the case." Gus answered, summoning a book that seemed to cover the event. He turned it to an image of three silhouettes holding hands. "You need at least three people to call upon the moon's power."

"Well… If I joined you, then we'd be three people! Then we could…" I suddenly remembered why that wouldn't work either. "Oh. I'm still not allowed to use magic. Sorry guys, I… didn't mean to get your hopes up."

"That's okay, Luz." Both Willow and Gus give me a smile. "The fact that you thought about it means enough."

I hear a gaggle of giggles from the group of girls. They've wandered over, and they've unfortunately set their sights on us. Luckily, Amity seems rather indifferent to me being there. "Oh, what's the matter, Willow? Sad because you and shortie didn't get invited to a Conjuring… again?" The three eyed one taunts. "Then again, it should be expected. Only real witches belong in a Conjuring." I glare at them for that one. Amity glances over, giving us a quick once over. Her eyes land on me, before she quickly looks away.

"Leave her alone, Boscha. It's not her fault she was born with no talent." The other girls laugh, but she stays quiet as they stroll away.

That was a horrible thing to say… but strangely reserved. When I first saw Willow and Amity meet, the green haired girl practically rubbed it in my friend's face how much better she was. And every time I saw her afterward, she was pretty aggressive in how she talked to me. But here she just kind of… ended things. Still mean… but weird.

I get interrupted from my thoughts by a spiny vine popping from the ground next to me. Willow's definitely looking angrier than me about this whole thing. "Hey, hey, Willow. Don't let them get to you. It doesn't matter what they think, cause we're still going to have a fun night. We can have a regular slumber party!"

"Really?" Gus asked hopefully.

I bring them together into a hug. "Sure! We just need a night for ourselves to take our minds off all this. We may not be able to defy the laws of nature and bring unholy life into an object, but we can still have plenty of fun!" I might not be able to go to a Moonlight Conjuring, but for me, a slumber party is the next best thing!

---

"…But I guess that isn't really an option either." Luz finished relaying her story. "Since y'all are gonna be… gone."

"I'm sorry, kid. I'd have Roger watch you if I could, but he and Kate need to do some work over on the Earth side of things. And I need to make sure Snaggletooth gets her medication." He places a hand on her shoulder. "Maybe some other time."

But I'm not so sure. See, I don't really like Moonlight Conjurings. To me, they're pretty dumb. So, I wasn't even keeping track of when it was supposed to happen. It's magic that's way too simple for my tastes. But here I am, wanting Trenchcoat off my back… while also looking for a spell that he and his buddies need for their little test. And here Luz comes to help me kill two birds with one stone…

"Nonsense, Trenchcoat. One little slumber party won't hurt anyone." He gives me a peculiar look. Luz perks up. "In fact, we're gonna do you one better, Luz. You and your chums are going to have a Moonlight Conjuring!"

"Really?" Luz asked in confusion. "But my mom said…"

Big Red crosses his arms. "Snaggletooth, you'd better not be trying to subvert her authority right in front of me."

"Subvert nothing! I just found you the spell you've been looking for!" He raises and eyebrow. "A Moonlight Conjuring relies on the magic of the Boiling Isles moon to bring an object to life. The object stays alive until the moon is no longer cosmically aligned. You getting this, Trenchcoat? It's an outside source of magic that even a child could use. And as long as you aren't being stupid, like say… trying to bring a giant statue to life, you're pretty far from harm's way. I just found you your test run."

Luz, taking this information in, started growing the widest smile I'd seen from her yet. She looks up at the big lug, practically begging with her puppy dog eyes.

"Come on, it could take me some time before I find another spell for you. The moon will only be like this for tonight, after all." I kneel down and emphasize Luz's face. "And you wouldn't want to make this face all sad, now would you?"

He stares for a moment… before groaning in defeat. "Alright. Ok. I just need to confirm with you mom."

"Yes!" Luz pumped her fist. She runs over "Guys! You'll never guess the turn of luck I just had!"

Big Red drags his hand over his face, before pointing it accusingly at me. "Don't think I don't know what you're doing."

"Whatever do you mean?" I say, full smarm in swing.

"Ugh… Roger! Let me use your walkie. I need to get in touch with Kate." As the two of them prepare, King crawls up onto my shoulder.

"Clever. Now, it's just gonna be the two of us again."

"And as a bonus, Luz will be learning magic in no time." I buff my nails just a tad. "How do I do it?"

"Oh, brother…"

---

I pause a moment before calling Kate. Don't really want to leave the witch on her own… "Hey, Roger… I got a big job for you tonight."

---

Once I entered, I immediately started setting up various pieces of equipment around the house. Most of it was the usual large machines meant for scanning, but the one last piece was a small wrist device I had Luz put on.

"So, what is this meant to do?" She asked.

"Most of my equipment is meant to scan for magic in the general area and its properties. However, this little device is meant to read the effects of magic on a human body. How much is coursing through them, whether it's positive or negative, and any changes it might be making to a person's body." I lift Luz's wrist and tap the device. "If anything non-demonic happens to you, this'll tell us."

"Having magic down to a science." She snorted. "That's a little ironic."

"No magic is ever exact. But it pays to try and break it down as much as we can."

"Yo, Kate. How're we doing?" Hellboy asks, unloading a bag of various holy imagery. That little part's just in case something demonic happens. I know Eda's said over and over that nobody on the Isles is infected with demons through the Titan's magic, but we still have to take precautions.

"All done. I'm ready when everyone else is." I walk over to a desk I've set my laptop on. It's currently connecting to the wrist device. "Is Roger back yet?"

"Not quite. Hope he gets here soon. I need him back before the witch leaves."

Said witch is preparing herself for her little errand run. She's ditched that tight fitting hood from the other day that made her look like she has an afro. Now it's just a regular cowl. "Prepare to be disappointed then, Trenchcoat, cause I'm on my way out. My only chore is to make sure Hooty doesn't have any sweets after nine. Trust me, you don't want to clean up after that."

"Hoot! Hoot!" The weird door opens himself. "It was one time!"

She pinches his beak shut. "And it was one time too many."

"Hello?" I recognize Camilia's voice coming from the portal. She steps out in the open, her eyes blinking from the flash of light.

"Mami?" Luz hops over. "What are you doing here?" She asks in curiosity.

"Kate called me about this… moon event. We both agreed that it would be best if I were to sit in on it. I need to see for myself how this plays out." She set her bag down. "Since I have an off day tomorrow, it won't be too much of an issue, no matter how late it ends up being."

"Oh, that's good…" Her face reads differently. I can see Luz take a deep gulp. That's understandable. This is probably her best chance to learn magic, and now that her mother is here to witness firsthand, she's going to be sweating bullets hoping nothing goes wrong. No pressure, right? Poor girl…

Roger steps out a moment after. "Here's the guest of honor, Kate. I'm not too late, am I?" He turns to Hellboy.

"Nope, you're right on time."

"On time for what?" Eda asks in confusion.

"To go with you, obviously."

"What? You said he was gonna be busy tonight!"

Hellboy clicks his teeth. "Ah, well that was when Kate didn't need to overlook this whole Conjuring thing. Now he's free to help you out tonight." Heh… Hellboy may not be a devil, but he can be devilish. "Don't worry. Ms. Noceda here already knows the dire errand you need to run. I think she'd appreciate you bringing along Roger, don't you think?"

Eda clenches her teeth in a forced smile, clutching her staff so hard the Owl on top actually squirms a little. "Yeah. Totally."

Luz meanwhile, is looking around the cushions. "Where's King?"

Eda takes a deep breath and lifts her cloak. The little demon is sleeping in some kind of baby carrier. "Right here. He practically conks out when weightless. It's good when I need to keep him from getting rowdy." While Luz delights over the cute, if undignifying sight, I hear Cam muffle her own "aww" in the background. Guess it's obvious where Luz gets her taste in cute things.

A knock at the door catches all of our attention. Eda answers it to find Luz's two friends, wearing the same giddy faces she's been having all night. "Hi, Eda!"

She gives a silent wave and lets them by. They rush to Luz in excitement.

"Well, I'm suddenly even less in the mood for social gatherings. I'm gonna go get my elixir before I start coughing up pellets." She tries to leave quickly.

"Forgetting someone?" I mention, and she jolts to a stop. Eda turns back to her unwanted travel partner, who gives her a small wave.

She gives another forced toothy grin, her voice dripping with suppressed anger. "Noooo. How could I possibly forget him?" She drops the smile instantly as she prepares to take off… only for her to nearly fall off her staff when Roger hops on. "Watch it, gray goliath! If you make us crash on the way there…"

"Sorry, Eda. Sometimes I forget I'm a lit bigger than other people."

"Just don't shift around too much. Otherwise we'll all be eating dirt…"

They soar off into the night, headed for the brightly lit town. I've yet to stroll through it myself, but I think I'll wait till morning, if Eda's warnings are any indication. "Now, did you really have to go and do a thing like that?" I ask Hellboy, who gives me a confused look. "Poor Roger's going to have to deal with her all night."

He snorts. "He'll be fine. It's the witch I'm worried about."

"You? Worried about her? You two can barely stand to be around each other."

"Maybe." He stares off in the direction they flew. "But you didn't see how she looked earlier today. She kept trying to play it off, but there was this fear in her eyes and panic in her movements that grew as the situation got worse." He paused for a moment. "…She's terrified of becoming that thing. But for whatever reason, she thinks she has to handle it alone. Bull to that. Whether she likes it or not, we're helping her."

I cross my arms. "Looks like someone's growing on you."

He grunts, knowing he can't argue with me. "Besides, tonight it pays to be safer than sorry. This little moon ritual needs to go right and worrying about Snaggletooth becoming an owl monster isn't going to help."

I have to agree with him on that. But I have to imagine that it's going to be riskier on Eda's end. Honestly, with the information we've gotten so far, I'm already convinced that it's safe for Luz to learn "Titan Magic". But her mother still needs to be put at ease. It shouldn't be hard. With a small spell like this, what could possibly go wrong?

"Is Hooty growing on you?" That cursed owl creature starts rubbing into Hellboy's cheek, completely invading his personal space.

"Like a damn tumor." He growls as he swats him away.

The bird thing looks at me. I light up my taser, quickly deterring him from getting too close. "Geez! Fine! I'm gonna go look for candy!" He slithers away.

Honestly, if anything will make Camila too afraid to keep Luz here, it's that thing.

---

According to Willow, it was going to be some time before the moon was finally in position. It gave me some time to get to know Willow and Gus a bit more. The last time I had talked to them, I was mostly concerned with finding out what happened to my daughter, so I didn't learn too much about them. They had already picked an item to bring to life, some small muscle doll (although it seemed Willow would've preferred a plant).

"This is so great! Our first Moonlight Conjuring… ever!" She looks at me a bit nervously. "Although, having this much parent supervision is… not ideal. No offense, Ms. Noceda."

"Oh, it's fine. I know Luz probably wished her first slumber party wasn't being so closely watched by her mother." I could see Luz blush a bit at that. "I should be gone once this… "conjuring" part is over. If it turns out okay."

"Oh, it should be fine. Conjurings are pretty safe." Gus tried to alleviate my concerns.

I'd like to believe him, but safe is very relative when it comes to these Isles. What the local kids consider to be nice and fun is often rather dangerous for human children.

And admittedly, despite how much I've allowed after this whole mess started… there's still a part of me that wants to just… take Luz from this when the portal is fixed. Even with Hellboy and Kate's findings, even with the overwhelming evidence that the magic won't negatively affect her, I can't help but feel like she's still not safe. Is that me being an average parent? Or is that me being irrational? It's hard to tell at this point. I don't think any parent has had to deal with their child stumbling upon a demon dimension filled with witches. At least, not that I know of.

Luz huddles around with her friends. "It's okay, guys. Once my mami has seen the conjuring, we'll be free to do all kinds of sleepover stuff! We can tell scary stories, play all kinds of games, eat snacks until we throw up and regret it in the morning…" She then attempts to whisper so that I can't hear. "And if the ritual goes well, my mami will finally let me learn magic!"

There's so much excitement in her voice. It warms my heart to hear it, to see it on her face. She enjoys herself here, far more than she has for school events or camps back home. So much happier. That's one of the biggest reasons I'm not whisking her away the first chance I get. She's made a bond with this place and some of its people, and she's already grown from it. Perhaps she could grow even more if I give this place a chance. I know she wants me to. So, I remain steadfast to my decision. It may not be the most orthodox parenting, but this isn't exactly the most orthodox situation.

"Hooty? HOOTY! What are you doing over there?!" Luz suddenly shouts. The weird… owl door is stretching into the Owl Lady's kitchen, scavenging through her food.

"Nothing!"

"Oh no you don't! I'm not cleaning candy puke all night!" She jumps over the couch and runs to fight him off.

"She's always wanted to do one of these." Willow and Gus look to me. "The slumber party part, I mean. She hasn't really been given the chance back home."

Willow gives a weak laugh. "To be honest, this is new for us too. No one at our school really wants us to be around." She sadly explains. "They'd prefer to just point and laugh."

"That's terrible. Why would they be so cruel to you?"

Gus gets up. "Well, I skipped a few grades to get into my current class. I'm younger than everyone there. And well… not to brag, honest, but I'm still doing better than my classmates. No one really likes having a "pint-size brat" show them up." He looks at the weird wrestler doll in his hands. "That, and I have this whole human club thing, and people think I'm weird for that."

"As for me," Willow spoke. "I've always been behind everyone in my class. My magic developed late, and well… magic is everything here. No one wanted to be stuck with a half witch like me…" She lamented. "Not the preppy kids, not the nerds, not even the potion students. Sure as heck not Amity…" That last bit seemed a bit more venomous as it came out of her mouth. She clears her throat. "But yeah, this is a nice change of pace. It might not be the most perfect first conjuring, but I'll cherish it all the same."

"I'll just be glad if we can bring this little guy to life." Gus squeezes the voice button on the doll.

"You know who else likes muscle dolls? My mom!" Who the hell made this doll?

Still, as soon as that doll speaks, they go back to excitedly talking about the conjuring. They're grateful that Luz has given them this opportunity. I suppose, even if things don't turn out well, I can be glad my little girl has bonded with people who can bring out her happiness… and whom she can bring out joy in return. She likes to pretend that she's just fine without friends back home, but I can always see the hurt in her eyes when she realizes the kids at school have left her out of something. Willow and Gus looked the same way as they talk about how other children see them. Suddenly, Luz returns and joins their talk. I see the rest of their worries fade away. I see the same happiness filling them that I saw in her. The same light in their eyes. They look ready to take on the world.

Even if I'll never be quite sure about this magic… I won't keep Luz from something like this.

Hellboy comes in, looking at his watch. "It's just about time. We'd better get this whole ritual thing set up. You kids mind giving us a few pointers?"

Willow nods. "Sure. I'll show you where to place the candles…"

---

"Would you hurry it up? I don't have all night." Eda asks in irritation.

"Oh! Sorry." Roger apologizes as he catches up.

That's the third time she's caught him lagging behind us. "You know, if you keep getting distracted by every shiny looking stand, we're gonna be out all night." I say, dangling from Eda's front. The humans wanted him to be our babysitter, right?

"I know, but I haven't really had a chance to walk around the town yet. When you called me for the covention I had to run through this place so quickly. It looked interesting before, but now…"

"Tough. Tonight's no time for a leisurely walk either. We're trying to find my elixir, remember? If you don't stop getting sidetracked, I'm leaving you behind, Trenchcoat be damned." She quietly starts to mumble. "Not that I wouldn't have preferred leaving you behind."

"Then why didn't you? It's not like he could catch up if you decided to take off." I ask her, also whispering. I was asleep at the time, so I only kinda got the short of it. Seemed like it wasn't too hard for her to just book it.

"I would've, but Trenchcoat all the sudden decides to bring in mommy. I couldn't just do what I wanted with her watching. Damn blackmail…"

That figures. Still, there's a silver lining to this. "Eh, I guess it could be worse. Could've still been Big Red coming with us."

She scoffs. "As far as I'm concerned, this isn't any better."

"Seriously? I mean, I understand the beef with Devil Lite, but what's wrong with Roger? I actually kinda like him."

"You're only saying that because he sits in on your "demon classes"." She points accusingly at me.

"He's a very inquisitive student!" I say in defense. "Even then, it's not like he's that bad. You don't have the same problem with him as you do Hellboy."

"It's not who it is, it's the principle of it." She growls. "I've already had it up to here with them marching around my house, telling me what I can and can't do. Now all of the sudden they think I need a babysitter. I've been taking care of myself and you for year now. I know these damn isles like the back of my hand, far better than Trenchcoat or any of his human buddies. Yet they have the gall to think I can't look out for myself? The line needs to be drawn somewhere, and it has to be here."

I'm… not one to argue with how well Eda knows the Boiling Isles. And I'll admit I was up for going it alone earlier today, but…

I mean, I only found out about Eda's curse after me and Luz… "accidentally" caused the incident during the rainstorm. But ever since then, I've seen Eda in a different light. Before, she'd always been this invincible magic force, scared of nothing and able to take on anyone. After… I suddenly started noticing things I hadn't before. How exhausted she could be each night. Sadness in her eyes when she thinks no one's watching. Anger when she talks about certain things. She kept acting like tonight would've just been a fun romp in town. Yet I feel feathers digging into my neck, a desperation in her pace and frustration in her clenched hands…

Maybe … it's not so bad having Roger watch our backs?

"Luckily, I've got just the plan to get rid of him for the night." Eda continued.

"Get rid of him? What do you…?"

"Oh, take it easy. I just mean I'm gonna keep him busy while we find this 'Grimhammer' guy." She explained.

"I don't know, Eda… we don't really need to "get rid of him". It's not like it hurts to have him here."

"Again, it's not about him specifically. That no-horned oaf seems to think I can't do this without his big gray babysitter watching me every moment. So, we're gonna show him that we're perfectly fine without him or his buddies."

"Didn't we need them at the covention? You know, forced into an apprentice battle? Counting on you to lose?" I point out. "Roger himself even helped you with Lilith."

"W-well… yeah, I guess. But that's only because my fight with Trenchcoat ramped up security. Pretty much solved their own screw up, if you ask me. I'll bet we wouldn't have been in that situation if they never came to the Boiling I-aAACHOO!" She suddenly sneezes rather violently. "Hmm. That was weird."

"Uh huh…" I agree, hoping she didn't get any on my skull. "Look, are you sure about this? What if something happens?"

"Then I'll get us out of it, like I always have!"

"But if enough time passes, you're not have any magic on hand!" I pluck out another feather and show it to her. "We're kind of on a time limit here!"

"King, a good witch knows that magic isn't her only weapon. Her other skills can be just as powerful." She takes out a piece of paper and writes something on it. "A silver tongue, for instance… Hey, Gray Giant. I've got a job for you."

Still lagging a bit behind, he runs up again. I don't think he heard our yell-whispering over the crowd. "Yeah?"

"I just realized that we need two other items while we're out. I need you to go get them while we get more elixir." She hands him the small note.

"Two quarts of elbow grease and… palisman fluid?" He read off. "Hellboy really didn't want me to leave your side…"

"But he probably also wanted you to help us out, huh? And it's very important we get that fluid for Owlbert. Can't have him running out of energy while we're in a bind. And we're gonna need that elbow grease to coat the house. There's some bad storms being forecasted for the next few days, and I don't want to burn out my elixir." Eda explains. "Look, it's a short trip. Heck, we'll probably be done before you know it. In fact, I'm confident we'll be the ones coming to get you."

Roger looks down at the paper in his hand. "Well… okay. Do you want the walkie? You never know what might happen." He takes the small black box out of his vest.

"This isn't my first frolic into the night market, Chunky. I'll be fine, you just get going already. We want to be back before it gets too late, alright?"

"If you say so." Roger walks off, checking around the market for any sign of Eda's "important" items.

"Really?" I question. "The old fake grocery list trick?"

"Hey, as far as he knows, those two items could be very real. At the very least, it'll keep him busy long enough for us to get my elixir." She suddenly shudders and grips her arm. More feathers.

"I still think we should've just let him come."

"I said it's fine." Eda said rather harshly. She wasn't having anymore of it. Reluctantly, I stayed quiet on it… for now.

---

The candles are set up, the conjuring item has been chosen, the moon's in the right place… everything's just about ready. I can barely contain my excitement.

"Okay, people. I've got the normal readings of Luz and the room logged. Start whenever you like." Kate explains. Gus places the doll (or figurine as he keeps insisting; some things just don't change between dimensions) between the three of us.

"Alright. Just repeat the phrase I showed you Luz, and we should expect Muscles to come alive any moment." Willow instructs me. I can see my Mom out of the corner of my eye. She looks as nervous as I feel. Though we're probably nervous for different reasons, I think we both just hope this will go right. "Okay. It's time." The three of us hold hands, ready to begin.

Here goes nothing…

Moonlight, we call, we sing.

Moonlight, take this chance.

Moonlight, come tie the string.

Moonlight, start the dance!

As we speak the chant, a faint blue glow begins emanating from the three us. It grows brighter as each verse is said. When the last line is said aloud, it pulses out from us. The candles are blown out, covering the room in darkness.

Silence. Everyone watches expectantly, waiting for the doll to come to life. But… nothing.

Kate looks over her laptop. "I'm… getting readings. But wasn't something supposed to happen?"

"If that Witch pulled the wool over my eyes…" Hellboy mutters quietly.

"Well, it was… pretty." My mom admits.

The three of us look down at the doll, still unmoving. "Did we… do something wrong?" I wonder aloud.

"No, we followed the instructions to the letter." Willow replied.

"Then why won't this little guy get up?" Gus asks.

As if on cue, the doll begins to shake. Oh good, it was just a bit delayed. A sense of relief washes over us… only to be replaced by fear and confusion. The rumbling is getting louder and we can feel the shaking in our very bodies. Scratch that… the entire house seems to be shaking.

If the doll isn't coming to life… what is?

One final violent shake sends us all sprawling, even Hellboy. "Ugh. I think the candy I already ate is about to come back up…" I groan.

The others begin to collect their bearings, trying to figure out what's going. "Everyone still in one piece?"

"I think my insides got rearranged…" Gus mutters from the bed.

My mom raises up from behind a now overturned chair. "You… did say this would be a simple spell, right?"

"That's what I was told." Hellboy confirms.

"It should've been simple. To be fair, I think it did work… but not on the doll." Willow commented. "We must've brought something to life, though."

"Sure looks like it." Kate pipes up, covering her laptop. Some of her tech has toppled. "Something's connected to Luz. There was a fluctuation for a few seconds, but I'm getting a consistent reading now. No negative effects so far."

Hellboy looks around the house, searching for anything that might be moving. "Y'all stay put for a moment. I'll go and check things out." He begins searching through the house, trying to find the source.

"Ah, Willow," Mom gets her attention. "Is the summoning supposed to make the ground shake like that?"

"Uh…" She pauses. "Well, no. It was probably whatever we gave life. B-b-but I'm confident it's still safe! Our object won't do anything unless we tell it to." She says, hoping to alleviate my mom's growing concerns. Thanks for trying Willow.

"Are you certain?" Mom's worried eyes stare into Willow's.

"Nnnnn… ninety five percent sure."

"That's still an A!" Gus quickly adds. I'm not really sure that's how it works, but thanks, Gus.

Mom lets out a mix between a sigh and a whimper. She sits back down on her (still overturned) chair, trying to not freak out.

Man, why did things have to go wrong all the sudden? And just when we were about to convince my mom to let me learn magic… oh please, whoever's up there, don't let things get any worse tonight! I really need this!

"Didn't find anything upstairs." Hellboy states as he comes back down. "Only place left to check is outside." If I was the type of person to bite my nails, I would be right now. What is he gonna find out there? Is it gonna be some weird monster we awakened from the earth? No, no, maybe it's just one of Eda's lawn ornaments. Yeah, that's it. Oh, wait, Eda doesn't have any lawn ornaments. "JEEZ!" Hellboy's shouts alert us.

I rush outside to see what it could be… only barely stopping myself before I drop over the side. "WHOA!" That cliff wasn't there before… and I imagine that's what Hellboy thought before he found himself dangling over the side like he is now. The others come out from the house from behind me. My mom gives out a fearful gasp.

"Stand back, kid! This ain't exactly a fun experience!" I start backing up, before my mom pulls me back completely. It takes him some effort, but he finally manages to climb up. "I think I figured out what walks among the living."

Willow looked around, rubbing her glasses for a short moment. "We… somehow brought the entire house to life. I wasn't expecting this."

"How'd you miss the doll?" Kate asked.

"I'm not sure. I've heard that sometimes another object can cause interference and hijack the spell, but I don't know the reason why."

Gus scratched his head. "But how is the house up so high? Even if we did bring it to life, I don't think it'd be able to hover."

"I'll give you three guesses." Hellboy pointed to the door. Hooty wasn't looking like himself. His eyes were wide open, shining a bright light blue.

"Hooty?" I snapped my fingers in his face for a reaction. "Hoooooootyyyy."

"I SHALL ONLY BE THE BOON TO THE MASTERS OF THE MOON!" Was his only response.

"He's in some kind of trance. He must be under our control." Willow noted.

"I… don't understand." My mom said in confusion. "Wasn't the weird bird thing already alive?"

"Hooty is a house demon… he's practically part of the building. When we brought the house life, Hooty must've been taken along for the ride."

Hellboy snorts. "That, or he's more lifeless than we think."

"HEY! I'M BEING CONTROLLED, I'M NOT DEAF!"

"Well… that's no problem." I say. It was a bit worrying at first, but if Hooty's the one moving around, we should be fine. The night can still be salvaged! "I mean, we're still connected to the house, right? And Hooty wouldn't hurt anyone anyway. We can just stay here and wait out the moon! Kate's got all the readings she needs, no big deal!" At that point I was staring at my mom, trying to convince her more than anyone else.

Kate pokes my shoulder. "Not to rain on your parade Luz, but the fluctuation from earlier only happened when Hooty got up. I imagine because Gus told it to get up. I need to see how these orders affect your magic levels. Which would mean we would need to test multiple commands." She looks to my mom. "But that would need your approval, Camila. It's up to you whether we keep going with this."

She rubs her face and temple, pushing up her glasses. "I just… I don't know. I was told this was going to be a small spell. If it could go wrong like this… I don't think…"

No, no! If this keeps going, she'll… I need to convince her we can do this. It's now or never. "Mami, wait! Ok, so maybe the spell had a… "malfunction". But Kate already said there's no negative effects on me so far! And even if the object we brought to life was… bigger than we wanted, he's still fully under our control! He won't hurt us. I promise, this will be fine." I stared into her eyes, pleading for her approval.

She's silent as she stares back. The wait is agonizing. She sighs. "Ok. Ok. But we stay as safe as we possibly can. Which means getting back inside, for starters. I don't want you driving this house from the outside." She seems to realize what she just said. "Realmente dije eso como si no fuera la cosa más extraña. ¿A qué punto llego mi vida?" I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding in.

"Oh, thank you mami!" I hug her as the joy uncontrollably gushes out. She gives a deep hug back. "I promise we'll be extra careful."

"I suppose that just leaves Eda. It is still her house." Kate mentions. Oh, that's right… would Eda really approve us moving her house around everywhere?

Hellboy waves a hand dismissively. "I wouldn't worry too much about that. She gets huffy about all the stuff we do, but she wants Luz to stay too. I'm sure she'd be for it if she knew it was the clincher."

I walk up to him. "Are you sure, Hellboy? Shouldn't we at least ask her first?"

"Suppose you're right kid. Better to be safe than sorry. I'll just call Roger up so we can talk to her." He brings his walkie up. "Roger. Come in, Roger."

"Roger here."

"It's Hellboy. I want to talk to the witch for a sec."

"Uh… she's kind of busy at the moment."

"Busy?"

"She's… haggling."

"Ah… she going to be done soon?"

"It could be a while."

Hellboy looked up at the moon. "Hmm… alright. When you the chance, tell her the house is under the moon's spell and that we're going to walk it through some commands. Alright?"

"Sure thing."

"Good. Hellboy out." He finishes, pocketing the walkie again.

"Uh. That wasn't…" I start, about to point out the lack of permission being granted.

He places a hand on my shoulder. "I know, I know. But we don't have the moon forever. I'd rather do this sooner than later. I'll take responsibility if Snaggletooth takes issue with it. This'll be on me, 'kay?" I nod. "Now, let's get inside and take this thing for a ride."

---

It didn't take us long to find Grimhammer's after our little 'Roger' debate. King never brought it up again, thankfully. We asked a local from the alley for directions. If you can't trust alley drifters, who can you trust, honestly?

It was a little while before we reached the tent. I could tell we'd arrived by the big decorative skull atop the stand. Kinda gave it away. I approached cautiously, not sure what type of character this "Grimhammer" was.

"Hello?" I called out, peering into the stand. "Uh… I seek the one they call Grimhammer."

"I'm the one they call Grimhammer…" A spine tingling voice said from within, eyes glowing from behind the counter. Without warning, the curtains of the stand flung open, the lights illuminating all of its wares. The voice's owner jumped onto the counter to reveal… a small pig-like demon, wearing quite the piece. This is… not what I was expecting. "Welcome, welcome! I got weapons from the hinterlands, curses from the winterlands, and JELLYBEANS!" He shouted suddenly, throwing said beans everywhere.

King caught one in his hand. "JELLYBEANS!"

"They're lethally delicious!" King seemed to still consider eating the damn thing before I swatted it out of his hands.

This guy was… not at all what I was expecting. "You are Grimhammer?" There's no way a name like that could belong to this pipsqueak.

"Tiblet-Tibblie Grimmhammer the Third, at your service! But you can just call me Tibbles."

King snorted. "Yeah, that name sounds much better than Grimmhammer." He said sarcastically.

'Tibbles' simply smirked at him. "The last name is just for the allure. Makes customers curious before I pull them in with my incredible variety of wares."

Something about this guy is off, but he seems… negotiable. "Okay, "Tibbles", I need some more of this elixir." I hand him my empty vial.

"Ohh! Now here's a rare brew- very special indeed. I believe I have one vial in stock!" He shuffles through his wares, pulling out a full bottle.

"Perfect! I'll give you ten snails for it."

"Add two zeroes, and we have a deal."

A small beat of silence goes by as I process what he says. "WHAT?! That's highway robbery! I know for sure it doesn't take that much to make the damn stuff!"

"Ah, but it does take as much to "buy" it."

"That's not the point! What kind of business provides medicine but jacks up the prices of the medications that people need to live normal lives or worse, to keep from dying?!"

"Welcome to capitalism, ma'am. Where everyone wins… mostly the rich, though." He turns back into his stand, leaving us to ourselves.

I slam my fist down on the counter in frustration. This cannot happen right now. I'm too close to succumbing! I need to think of something…

"Eda…" King whispers. "Maybe we should just go find Roger, and we can think of something together."

"What? No. I don't need him or anyone from his group to help. This is just a minor setback."

"You're almost full owl! You call that minor?!" He yell-whispers. "You're in no shape to do anything here on your own!"

"I. Am. Fine." I growl. There had to be something here I could do. Maybe a reaction I could set off to distract him? A pet I could set free? My eyes peer around, searching for an answer… until I discover the perfect option. "Besides, King. What did I tell you before? A witch's wit can be just as good as her magic. Hey, Tibbles! How about we make things interesting?"

He turns back to me, raising an eyebrow. "Interesting? What do you mean?"

"I see you have a set of Hexes hold 'em cards." I point to the deck sitting on one of his more "up front" shelves.

He looked at them in confusion. "What, these? Yes, they're popular with children and adults with way too much free time. Why do you ask?"

I ignore the… indirect insult he threw at me and continue. "How about we have a little wager? If I win a game of Hexes Hold 'Em, you give me the elixir, free of charge?"

He pursed his lips, narrowing his eyes. "And what would be in it for me?"

"I have my own assortment of goods that you might want to add to your own wares. I'm a businesswoman myself, you know." I pull out my Hexes deck, which I keep on hand in case I run into a boring situation. "You beat me and one item of mine will belong to you instead, your choosing."

His smile grew as he thought on the idea. "My, my. That is interesting. Very well, ma'am. You have yourself a deal."

I smile as I set my cards onto the table. Boy, would he be in for a nasty surprise…

---

There are new murmurs in the forest. And I can't believe what they're saying.

The trees, the bushes, the fungi… they speak of a house walking through the forest. Stomping high above the tree line.

Could it be her? Could she have finally come to help us? Is she here to lay waist to this island of imps and maggots?

I doubt it… it has been so long. Ironic that I would wait for so long only to be skeptical of her return. But how can I be sure?

But that is when the forest tells me more- the house walks on legs like that of a bird. And I know for certain who it must be. There is no other answer. And yet… why does she not come to find me? I stay here as she always intended, listening to the forest. Waiting for the secret… longing for my wife… but why does she not meet with me?

…I must go to her. I must find out what is wrong.

---

"Alright, now we're gonna swivel around these next set of trees, back and forth. Remember, if you hear scraping and shuffling, it means you're hitting the trees." The three kids nodded and the three of them glowed bright blue as they guided the house… or Hooty I guess, through the trees. Things had been going pretty well so far. While the kids weren't out on the front porch, risking having a nasty plunge, they were at least at the front of the house. The door was open and the windows uncovered, giving them as clear a view as possible.

Truthfully, Willow said Hooty could probably avoid obstacles on his own, but we wanted the kids to focus as much power as they could through their connection. And that meant taking full reigns.

"Definitely the weirdest driving test I've ever seen." Kate commented, making me chuckle a little.

"Hey, she's about one year away from driver's ed. Might as well get her ready for it."

"Más a la izquierda, Luz." Her mother added as they walked the house around, her hands gripping a nearby chair tightly.

"Lo tengo, Mami. Todo está-" Thump. "Aún está bien."

I could see Gus and Willow looking at each other as the two squabbled. If this was driving practice, they were the unfortunate backseat passengers. Uh… well, you know, if the backseat passengers also had steering wheels of their own.

"Gira cuidadosa- ¡Con cuidado!" Scratch. Thwack. "Ese giro fue muy largo."

"¡Me estas poniendo más nerviosa!"

"Ahora solo detente lentamen-"

"Lo-lo tengo, Mami. Puedo manejar esto..." The stop was not as graceful as Luz planned it to be. The house suddenly jerked forward, nearly throwing everyone to the floor… again. I had to run to catch some nearby breakables that almost hit the ground. "… ¿Ves? Todo está bien."

"Is uh… is that enough testing, Miss Kate?" Gus asked, shaking slightly.

"Yep. I think I've got everything I need to make an efficient analysis." She gestured for Camila to come over, Luz following anxiously. Gus and Willow chose to join me instead, letting their jitters wear off.

"Geez. I never thought controlling a house could be so stressful." Willow comments.

I shrug. "Never fails. A kid gets behind the wheel and the parents will micromanage."

"Huh? What wheel?" Gus stared at me, bewildered. "Why are humans getting behind wheels? Is that really the only way humans can get around? You might as well walk at that point…"

"No, it's… you know what? Don't worry about it. Just worry about having fun."

"Oh, I definitely am!" Gus replied excitedly. "Even though we didn't bring the little muscle guy to life, a house ain't too shabby. I'm gonna remember this night for a long time."

"Yeah. It feels great finally being invited to one of these parties. And it's nice to have a friend who doesn't think you're only half a witch." Willow agreed somewhat somberly. It hurt to see the kid keep turning back to bad memories.

"Hey!" Gus jokingly acted indignant.

"Aw, you know what I mean, Gus." She ruffled his hair, getting a laugh out of him. "Still, part of me wishes I could just take this house to Amity's little get together and prove her wrong."

I nudge the young girl's shoulder. "Don't pay 'em any mind. If they just want to say the things that'll drag you down, then their opinion ain't worth much. The people who're there for you… their words are much more valuable. They're the ones you should care about." Willow smiled at that, looking to Luz with appreciation. For whatever reason though, that look began to gradually become muddled. "Something on your mind, Willow?"

"It's… weird. When we control Hooty, the power of the moon flows through us. But it only works if it can circulate through all three of us. That's what Hooty was saying earlier. It's why we have to hold hands. We act sort of like a living spell circle." She looks at her hands, wiggling her fingers around. "But whatever magic is flowing through us, it feels more… intense coming from Luz."

"How so? Aren't you the ones with those magic organs? Shouldn't you be the ones who come off more intense?"

"That's not quite how it works." Gus answers. "We're calling on the power of the moon. Meaning we're using the moon's magic, not our own. Our tanks are still full." He patted his chest.

"Still, I can see where you're coming from. It's surprising enough that Luz can call upon the moon's power. From what we were always taught, alternate sources like the moon still had to flow through one's bile gland, even if it didn't use up that person's bile. That's mysterious enough as it is. But even if Luz can use moon magic, we actually have the glands, so shouldn't we be using more of the moon's magic?" Willow added. "I can't quite explain it either."

That was quite the puzzler. Luz doesn't have the magic organ her friends have. How could she be using more of the moon's magic? It didn't add up.

Eh… that's probably a mystery best saved for later. Time to see what the verdict is.

Kate was finishing up the rundown. "Overall, everything seems to be in normal. The magic doesn't put any strain on her or change her in anyway. I'm not even getting a hint of anything evil."

Camila nodded. "I see. That's a great relief."

Luz peered up at her. "Does… does this mean…?"

Camila didn't answer right away. I could tell that worried Luz a little. "I don't see why not. Hellboy, Ms. Corrigan and the others have given overwhelming evidence that the magic is harmless. And despite some… worrying speedbumps, I don't see issue with you staying in this house." Luz looked about ready to squeal, stars shining in her eyes. "However… any spell you learn will go through me first. If it's too dangerous, it's not happening. And I still don't quite trust Eda to be watching you on her own. So, if Hellboy is willing, he will still be the authority figure you listen above all others. Hopefully, by the time they fix this portal nonsense, Ms. Clawthorne will have shown me she can be responsible…"

"I'm up for it." I confirm, knowing just how wild that witch could be.

"Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you, mami!" They hugged each other tightly again.

Good to see that finally come to a close. Not that I felt burdened by the Nocedas dilemma, but it might be good to focus on our portal problems now… "Well, you're gonna have to start learning tomorrow. Right now, we need to get Snaggletooth's house back on her property. Then maybe you rascals can have the rest of your party up in Luz's room."

"Woohoo!" "Yes!" "Alright!" The three voiced a quick cheer, getting ready to control Hooty again.

Knock, knock, knock.

Everyone tensed.

We gave each other confused looks, wondering if we'd all heard what we thought we did. We listened intently… maybe it was a woodpecker.

Knock, knock, knock.

No. That definitely came from the front door.

"Luz… is Snaggletooth expecting anyone tonight?" Luz shook her head. I don't like the looks of this… I bring a finger to my lips, motioning them to keep quiet. Slowly, I make my way to the door. The knocking continues, growing more impatient with each second. Liking this even less and less, I place my normal hand on my gun. I take the door's handle and slowly turn it, opening the door just a crack… and peer outside.

Only to be met with wide, piercing eyes, looking down on me with incredible ferocity.

"You… are not Baba Yaga."

Before I can register the familiar name, the door is slammed open, throwing me backwards. I get up quickly to see our uninvited guest stepping inside. He's a full head taller than me. His hair and beard both resemble plants more than they do hair. What clothes he does have would be fit more for a medieval peasant, covered with dirt and moss. Long and extravagant horns sit atop his head, similar to that of a deer or elk- but they look more like tree branches, growing from his head. His entire body is covered in tree roots and vines, wrapping around his body and sticking out in some places. His eyes continue to glare at me, not an ounce of intensity leaving them.

I whip out my gun, already fed up with this guy. "That's far enough, creep. I don't know what makes you think you have the right to come into this house without permission-"

"Permission?" The creature's voice booms out. The children hide behind Cam and Kate, scared by the intruder. "You invade her household and have the gall to tell me I lack the consent to enter?! WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?!"

I keep my gun trained on him. "I think I should be asking that question myself."

"Petty creature… I am he who is as old as the grandest tree, he who has seen the soil of ages past…" I could see the vines and tree branches suddenly begin to point towards me. "I am the Leshy! Spirit of the forest!"

"Well, listen here, spirit. I don't care where you think you are. You've got the wrong house. Now kindly take three steps back and get your nasty tendrils outta here. Or I'm gonna start putting holes in your fancy dress."

"YOU THINK ME A FOOL?! There is only one house that walks the night on the legs of a fowl!" His eyebrows furrow. "You have desecrated her home… and there is no sight of her… what have you done?! Where is Baba Yaga?!"

That damn friggin' name again. I remember it all too well. One of the most dangerous witches in the world, if not the most. And it just so happens that Hooty's new look just happened to make him look like her abode. Fantastic… but why the hell is there a creature here that knows about Baba Yaga? Last I heard from the witch, the emperor closed off the Isles from the outside world.

No time to question that. This guy's overstayed his welcome. "I don't know what to tell you bushman. It's just a coincidence. Now get out, before I make you get out."

"Why you arrogant little…" His eyes narrow. "…You… I have never met you… and yet you seem familiar…" Oh boy. "Your appearance… yes. She has told me who it was that wronged her…" This ain't gonna be pretty. "You… YOU ARE THE CRETIN WHO TOOK HER EYE!"

I shoot as he lunges. The shots pummel his face and chest, cracking one of his horns slightly. He's ultimately undeterred. "Of course…" He tackles me, knocking the gun out of my hand. He's quick to begin striking me… and his hits are hard. It takes me a moment to recover before I finally catch one of his fists, delivering a blow of my own from my stone hand. It sends him reeling back, giving me time to rush him.

He attempts to reach out and grapple me, but I catch both his hands in my own. Both of us attempt to overpower the other. Unfortunately, he seems to be winning, slowly pushing me back. "I don't know whether fate is kind or cruel to bring me you instead of Baba Yaga… but I will seize this opportunity with reckless abandon." His gets very in my face about it. "Though I must leave your death to Baba, I will take great pleasure in mauling you senseless before I take back her beloved home… and rid it of the other pests."

"THAT'S IT!" I headbutt him fiercely, making his nose bleed, catching him by surprise. "You've officially become a crap house guest. And you know what I do with terrible guests?" I barrel into him before he can react, rushing him out the door. "I THROW 'EM OUT ON THEIR ASSES!" I yell, tossing him far off the side of the house's edge, into the trees below. "Piece of shit..."

"Here, Hellboy." Kate runs up with my gun, needing both hands to carry it. "That thing… said it was the Leshy? I think I know that one…"

"I don't care what it is, it pissed me the hell off." I reload the bullets I used just in case I need them. "Tell Luz to get this thing on its way home. I'll keep on the lookout for the tree hugger." A rustling from the trees catches our attention. "Coming back for more?! Bring it on, I'll use you for kindling!"

"Insolent fool… you are in my domain…" His loud voice rings out. My eyes widen as a large figure emerges from the treeline… The Leshy, now supersized, gazing at us in fury. "As long as the trees reach for the heavens… SO WILL I!"

"Damn." I push Kate back inside, and shout to the kids. "LUZ, PUT THE GAS ON THIS BIRD AND LET'S GET OUT OF HERE! BUT STAY INSIDE!" A blue glow emerges from the house as Hooty turns on a dime, nearly throwing me off. I see the Leshy chase after us as I look around the corner of the house… the trees seem to be moving out of his way. He's gaining on us pretty quickly. I look down at my Good Samaritan… I'm gonna need more than this.

I rush back inside. Many items have fallen and broken. And the furniture is being knocked around like crazy. Kate and Camila are holding on for dear life. The kids have to sit down just to avoid being unbalanced. They've let Hooty do most of the driving this time, which is probably for the best. "Luz, does she have any spells that can be used instantly? Like some kind of grenade?"

"I… I-I don't know! Nothing like that ever came up!" Damn. We've got nothing but a big gun, a taser, and maybe some blunt objects. Not a good set of weapons to fight a giant. Our best bet was probably fire. I've got a lighter, matches and cigarettes on me, but that's going to be a rather small singe on the green giant out there… the only one who knows what's flammable… and better yet, can just throw fire at will…

We need Eda.

"Alright, here's the plan. We need to get to Snaggletooth. And that means heading into town. Luz, you keep Hooty going towards the market, that'll let her know where we are. Kate! Take my walkie and call Roger, I'm gonna see if I can slow that thing dow-hrrrgh!" The house unexpectedly lurched to a stop, sending me to the floor. The only reason he'd do that is if… "Luz, don't stop now!"

"We didn't! We're trying to make him move but he won't budge!"

Won't budge… why would he…? …Unless something else is… "Crap!" I make a beeline for the outside. And my suspicions happen to be right. About a dozen trees have unnaturally tilted, their branches holding the house in place. "It'd be a good day to be a lumberjack…"

I was about to get an axe, but this little trap was all that the Leshy needed to catch up. His stomps gradually slowed as he skulked around to the front of the house. He had a wicked smile about him, his hideous teeth coated with algae and mud. "Not so much bravado now, hmm?"

"I got enough to spare, jackass."

He growled as he gazed at me. "It seems you have also figured out how to control her house's very movement. The more I know of you, the more my hatred of you grows."

"Feeling's mutual, pal." I beckon him towards me. "You ready for round two, then? Is that it?" The least I can do is draw things out until Snaggletooth and Roger get back.

"I think not. I've little time to waste." Damn. Guess this is gonna be a David and Goliath thing. I pull my gun. The more distracting I can be, the better. "Oh, please." His giant hand swiftly grabs me, crushing me in an inescapable grip.

"Hellboy!" A cry sounds from the house. Luz looks to me in fear, her mother trying to hold her back. "Willow, you've got to get these branches to let go!"

The other girl was clutching them, trying to pour her magic into them. "They… they won't budge! They aren't listening to me!"

"Don't worry about me! I'll be fine! Get back inside and don't come out unless I- GRAAARGGGH!" The pain is sharp all over my body as the Leshy crushes his palm.

"Perhaps you will be 'fine'. If you consider being half-dead to be acceptable. I will be back for your barely living body later. For now, I must try once more to call upon my wife and be ready to bring Baba Yaga into this realm. I only hope such news will bring her out of that concrete trap…" There's another one out there?! "Baba Yaga shall tear this realm asunder with her magic and find the secret…" Secret?! "Your fellow intruders will also serve her… or better to say, "be served to her"."

My eyes widen… I know exactly what purpose they'd serve to Baba Yaga. The image of small finger bones littering her house still haunts me. "NO! You stay away from them you son of a bitch!" I pull my gun hand free of his grip, firing into his face. It does even less to him than it does before.

"You shall not make demands of me." A mass of leaves and lichens begins moving up his arm, forming a slithering shape. "If it were up to me, you would be better off as decomposing remains feeding the soil. But as it stands, Baba wants her revenge, and she wants her eye…" The shape reaches the top- a snake make of dead foliage, hissing at me menacingly. "…so you shall simply be my pet's plaything instead."

He opens his palm, but I have no time to recover as the snake lunges, sending us careening off below. I hit the ground, causing the leaves it consists of to scatter. But it quickly reforms, and coils around me. The last thing I hear is Luz screaming out in terror.

"HELLBOY!"

---

This wasn't supposed to happen like this. I wasn't supposed to lose.

The card game with Tibbles was going fine at first. I practically trounced him the first few rounds. But out of nowhere, during round 5, he pulled a rare card that won him the game. I should've taken that as a bad omen… but I just thought it was dumb luck. I should've known better.

He began to completely turn the tables on me. Round after round he pulled powerful cards that gave him a leg up on me. Before I knew it I was down to half a deck. A quarter. A fraction. And now…

The last of my cards are going up in ashes, a smug grin adorned on Tibbles stupid little face. "Oh, it seems I've won."

I barely have the words. "I can't… you just… how did…?"

"I suppose I'm just a quick learner. The game was fun… but I am the victor. I believe we had a deal?"

My teeth clench again. This arrogant little pig just knows how to push all my buttons… "Rrrrrggh… fine! I'll tell you what I've got."

"Oh, but I already have something perfect in mind." He states. What did he mean by that? He hasn't even seen my stuff yet. "Truth be told, I do need a tiny model for the baby clothes."

A tiny model for… wait. "King? You want King?!"

"Hang on a second! I didn't agree to this!" King protested.

"Of course you didn't. And you still won't! I don't "own" King. And neither will you!"

"Ah, but Eda, he's going to need a new home once you've been taken by the guards." He says, his smile growing sinister.

"Hold on, how did you know my-" It dawns on me just what he implied. The situation he put me into. "You… you knew who I was the whole time." Further realization sets in as I remember how he got me here. "You knew how to play the game all along!" I draw a spell circle in the air, ready to fry him into bacon… but it fizzles out halfway through. "Uh oh."

"Of course I did, you twit!" He actually snips back in offense. He snaps his fingers, and suddenly chains burst out of the ground, capturing me. A metal collar whips out from the back, clasping onto Kings neck and pulling him away. "What child do you take me for to not know my own wares, to fall victim to such petty tricks?! Honestly, if that's your material, I just don't see how you've escaped capture for so long… even if the guards are idiots." But his tone changed back to arrogance pretty quickly. "Then again, you did fall prey to such easy tricks of my own. "Oh no, I have no idea what these small rectangles do! I'll just play this woman in a game and risk losing money!" Honestly… I had you pegged the moment you arrived here. It pays to know your competition. But unlike certain 'fake wizards', I know how to be subtle in eliminating that competition. All I had to do was wait out the clock until the curse fully took away your magic."

"So you jack up the price on your bottle of elixir to make me desperate." I say before losing my balance and falling over.

"Well yes, but you were already pretty desperate it seems. Aside from childish tricks, that was pretty shoddy Hexes playing there. I apologize for utterly destroying your entire deck, but if it makes you feel better, you won't have any use for card games where you're going." He began chuckling like a mad man. "With the reward from turning you in, I'll be able to take the first step in bringing my little stand into a full-blown monopoly! One I'm sure Emperor Belos would be all too happy to endorse."

"I'll get out of this. And when I do…"

"Yes, "you'll never get away with this" and whatnot. If you'll excuse me, I have to look my best for the emperor's coven." He walked to the back of his stand, humming a confident tune.

"King." I whisper. "Psst. King. Do you see the bottle?" He doesn't even look at me. "King. King! Can you hear me or what?"

"Oh, now you want me to help." He crosses his arms.

"What? Of course I want your help. How're we gonna get out of this otherwise?"

At that moment, he snapped. "We wouldn't even be in this mess if you hadn't sent Roger on a wild goose chase!"

"I didn't need him or his help!" I angrily snap back. "I'm the expert on these islands, I'm fully capable of doing this on my own!"

"So then you don't need my help? Or Owlbert's? Or Hooty's?" He narrows his eyes. "Or Luz's?"

I pause, taken aback. "N-…No, I didn't mean…"

"And fat lot of good you did on your own." King continues. "What do you think is gonna happen when Roger can't find us?! He's gonna go back to the house and tell everyone that we managed to get captured! And what's Luz's mom gonna think when she learns you sent Roger off? You may have given them an easy spell to convince Ms. Noceda, but now Luz is gonna be taken away from us anyway! All because of your stupid pride!"

King's words sink in and my anger drains away, becoming desperation. "W-wait. That's not… that's not what I…"

"Oh, sure. Maybe they'll come and rescue us. But how are they supposed to do that when the woman who apparently knows "so much" about the Isles is behind bars?! And also a giant owl monster who can't tell friend from foe?!"

I fail to answer him. Because he's right. I was so stubborn, wanting to stick it to Trenchcoat so badly… I wasn't even thinking. And now look at me. Primed and ready for imprisonment I'd managed to avoid for years. About to become a monstrous creature… with no way to turn back. Unable to do anything about it. Possibly dooming King too, one of my closest friends…

This wasn't supposed to happen like this.

My eyes gaze into his, filled with regret. "…I'm sorry."

"Hmph. Yeah, well…" He sits down, feeling defeated himself. "Sorry isn't going to save us now."

"No." A familiar voice pipes in, a shadow looming over me. "But I think I can."

King gasps in shock, as I do my best to turn my head. Standing above me is a face I'm now all too glad to see.

"Roger!" King shouts in joy. He gives a smile in return.

Not that I'm not glad to see him, but… "How did you find us? I sent you on an aimless search. The items I wrote down aren't even real."

He kneels down. "The truth is, Eda… I didn't really believe you." His face is practically asking me "seriously?". "I mean, important items that you only just now remembered, that are just as vital as your elixir? I've actually been tailing you the whole time."

I blush. Yet another person I failed to outwit tonight. "Still… why act like you were fooled?"

"You looked like you needed some space." He said.

That's… touching actually. I smile at him in appreciation.

"I don't know exactly what you think you're doing, but unless you're with the Emperor's forces, kindly step away." Tibbles interrupted, getting up onto his counter.

"I'm here for my friends. I'm not leaving without them."

"That's too bad. These two are quite valuable to me." Roger reaches for something in his pocket. "Ah, ah, ah. I have both of them captured and chained. You wouldn't want me doing any more than that, would you?" Damn. The little porker was right. He can add anything onto our chains and shackles if he wants to. Even if Roger knew magic, it would still be risky.

"But who wants to threaten anybody? I merely see if you'd like to bet them in a game."

"Oh, really? You want to try your luck too? What could you have that I could possibly trade for her?"

"A perfectly good Homunculus." He gestured to himself.

Tibbles scrutinized him. "…Well, who could say no to that?"

No… that was too easy. Tibbles made it clear I was too valuable. He's up to something… but Roger should know that, shouldn't he? He's really been watching us the whole night. So, the better question is, what is Roger up to?

"We'll play a regular game of poker. Heads Up style." Roger stated.

"Oh my. Is that a human game? Sounds like fun." His voice… now that I listen closely, it doesn't sound genuine. He had that same tone earlier, but I was too blind to see it. He knows human games too. "You'd best be quick, though. I've already sent for some guards. You wouldn't want to waste time, now would you?" And there's him trying to make Roger desperate. I don't know what Roger is going for, but I sure hope he knows how to take the win.

"Waste time… sounds like the perfect kind of underhanded strategy." He sneered at Tibbles.

…Wait a minute. Maybe… maybe he's not trying to win. I look to King, and he looks back at me. I can see the wheels turning in his head.

"Oh, whatever do you mean?" Tibbles asked innocently. "Say things like that and I might opt out."

We give each other a curt nod, playing our parts for now. Hopefully, Roger is doing what I think he's doing...

---

Solid enough to carry me and yet nothing to punch. This thing is the bane of my existence. Any time I try to deliver a swift hit, it just reforms around my arm.

But my situation's sparkles and rainbows compared to Luz and the others. Here I am getting my ass kicked by a creature I can't even hit and the others are now stuck with that overgrown pile of driftwood. Damn it all… just my luck that when everything goes to hell right about when things were gonna be fine…

It carries me further and further away from where the house was, sharp, dry leaves cutting my clothes and skin. They aren't deep, but if this keeps up I'll leak out my entire bloodstream little by little. It throws me against any rock it can find- I guess nature boy wouldn't like it if the trees ended up snapped in half.

I'm getting nowhere trying to take this on physically. If I don't get it to let me go, I'll never get back to the house before the others are killed. Even if it'd leave me with one less option for the Leshy, I'll have to use the matches I've got. Fire's my only option.

I pull out my lighter, sparking a flame. Goes out instantly. Damn thing is moving so fast it's blowing out the fire. I try it a second time, but it's no good. It goes out too. Need to distract this thing. I could try firing my gun, but that's about as effective as punching it. I need something more potent.

I don't have too much time to think about it, as it flings me into a clearing. "GAAAGH!"

"Wah!" A scream rings out as I slam into the ground. Who the hell is walking through the forest at this time of night? As I lift my head up, two eyes meets three. She's got pointed ears and pink hair and skin. Hang on… I recognize her. She was the rude kid at the magic fair.

She looks at me in disgust. "Eugh! You're covered in blood! You better not have gotten any on me!" Nice to know her attitude hasn't changed…

I hear a rustling from the bushes behind her. I reach out to the girl. "Kid, get down!"

She backs away. "Okay, homeless dude, you need to back all the way off. I know mace spells."

The foliage practically explodes as the snake bursts from it, ready to start our dance again… but the girl is in the way. She'll be cut apart for sure!

"YAAAGH!" She screams again and flings her arm in the air… only for a fireball to pop up out of nowhere. The mass of leaves suddenly put on the brakes, rapidly backing off. "What the hell was that thing?!"

Right. She's a witch, as most kids on these Isles are. She must go to the same school as Willow and Gus. Still, what are the odds she was the one kid I run into who specializes fire magic?

I hear growls from in the woods. The kid might've scared that thing for a moment, but it'll be back. I run up to her. "Think you can hit it when it comes back?"

"Ugh. Please. You're only talking to Hexside's champion Grudgby player."

"Didn't ask for the life story." A hiss erupts from the bushes. "Now get ready!"

The snake makes another attack, practically flying towards us. The girl summons several fireballs and begins shooting them. The snake dodges the projectiles, zigzagging in order to reach us. "It's getting closer!" The girl said, getting frantic.

"I see him." Too bad for moss-tongue, I got those few moments I needed. I take my coat off. I pull out my lighter… and crack it open, pouring it all over my coat. Right as the monster reaches us, I set my coat alight with a match, and unravel it in front of us. The snake ends up getting a face full of flames. It cries out in pain, rearing back. It shakes it off quickly and glares at us, completely pissed.

"Do I… do I shoot it?" The girl asks.

"No. It's too fast. We need to draw it in. Hit it when it's devoted itself to an attack, so it can't dodge or deform."

"Why's is just… sitting there?"

"It knows this coat won't last much longer. I did this to buy us some time." Coat's already a quarter burned. I glance back. "…Can you only make fireballs?"

"I… I know Immolation. It immediately covers an object in flames. I use it for my Grudgby plays." Not sure I even want to know. "But I have to touch the object to set it on fire." Halfway burned.

"Hmm…" She can't get close, she'll be torn to pieces. Me on the other hand... "How bout this?" I lift my stone hand to her. She nods. Coat's almost gone. "On my mark."

"3." The snake gets ready to lunge.

"2." The girl readies to draw a circle on my stone arm as quickly as she can.

"1." The cinders fall away from my other arm.

"Now!" It happens in just a moment. The snake lashes out… and can't avoid the suddenly ablaze fist I plunge down its throat.

The foliage that makes up its head bursts into flames. It roars in pain, unable to put itself out as the fire quickly spreads along its body. Soon, it's entire body is thrashing about the dirt road, trying to smother itself. I look back to the girl, who just stares between me and the snake, bewildered. I take a cigarette and light it using my arm, before pointing said arm at her. She snaps her fingers, the flame instantly going out. "Thanks for the light, kid. Now how 'bout you get out of here." I blow out a puff of smoke. "I got bigger monsters to fry."

She stares at me wide-eyed for a moment before nodding again, running down the path.

Now that I'm done with dealing with the garter snake from hell, I can get back to the house and stop that maniac spirit. I just hope to god he hasn't hurt any of them… but where the hell am I supposed to start? That thing practically dragged me halfway through the forest. And there's no telling if the Leshy took the house anywhere… Wait. I never gave Kate the walkie. Now might be a good time to call for the witch-

Smashed. In pieces. Must've happened during my fight with the snake. What a load of…

…Someone's coming. Is it the girl? No, the footsteps are too heavy.

I swing around, pulling out my Good Samaritan. Standing there is a large fella with an eyepatch over his eye… the same one from the "evil parade" that Luz spotted this morning. "Now… what do we have here?" He bellows.

My luck is just fantastic today…

---

"You'd do well to play better cards. We've only been through a few hands and you're already doing very poorly." Tibbles taunted. It frustrated me, but he was right. He already had over half the ante.

I observed the current cards in the middle. I felt like my hand could take it… but Tibbles had been doing eerily well. Don't get me wrong, it was a safe bet he actually knew how Poker was played, and I never planned to win… but I am a little frustrated, you know? I thought I might be doing better. It feels like he's cheating…

Still, me playing fast and loose is part of the plan. If Tibbles didn't think he could win, he'd cut off the wager. I needed to keep him occupied, and trust that Eda and King would figure out what I'm doing. Even so, his attitude towards all of this sickens me. "People's lives are just games to you, are they?"

He took one of his chips and began flipping it, over and over. "Not quite. They're money. Give a man water for free in a desert and he'll give you nothing but empty gratitude… and no water. You're better off keeping the water for yourself. It pays in this life to get every last cent you can out of people, and to lose as little to them in return. If it just so happens that the money you make off them is blood money…why be bothered? It's not my life I'm paying for."

"People aren't just objects you can squeeze money out of. They're sentient beings who have the same rights to necessities that you do."

"Hmph. If you believe that, then you understand nothing about business." Tibbles caught the chip and placed it down. "Now, enough dawdling. Are you calling or not."

I leer at him before placing some chips into the pot. "Call."

"How limp." He pushes a decent amount more than I did in. "Raise $5000."

I sat there, wondering if I should call it… he'd being scaring me off with rather large raises all game. Perhaps now was the time to try and call his bluff. "I'll call that."

The hand followed through after that, revealing a full house for me… and four of a kind for Tibbles. "Well, that's another batch for me." He snapped his fingers and the pot reassembled on his side. "I do wonder… if you go missing, Eda, will your little human come to rescue you? I wonder how much she will go for…" Eda's eyes widened at the implication, before giving a dangerously low growl.

I slam my fist down. "You'll regret it."

"At the rate I'm winning, I'm pretty sure I won't. Of course, you can forfeit if you're getting cold feet, but I don't think Eda will be able to-" Various sounds of broken glasses ring out from Tibbles' stand. "What was that? What's going on back there?" Silence.

A glass flies out from the back- a bottle of yellow liquid. "Eda! Catch!" She positions herself to catch it in her teeth… only for a magical hand to appear and snatch it, bringing it back to Tibbles. I shove the table aside, pouncing for the vial… but more chains come from the ground, dragging me down.

"Whoahohoho! Hold on there! That was a close one, wasn't it? Almost had me!" He scowls at the back. "Why don't you come out from back there, bone baby? Before your gray friend gets quite the shock." King crawls from the back, an apologetic look on his face. "Hmm… I see now. The game was just a distraction. Trying to take my mind off the elixir so you could get it to Eda, eh? Close, but not enough."

"It wasn't exactly hard." I jeer.

"Excuse me?"

"It's just as Hellboy says. Don't be predictable. I saw through your poker face right away. You act dumb so people will let their guard down. That's your strategy. Like when you accepted both of our wagers. So, all I had to do was make you think I was playing right into your hands. You probably would've won the card game… but I've got you right where I want you."

He stared at me for a moment… then burst into laughter. "Right where you want me? I don't know if you noticed, but I have the elixir! You lost! Now all I need to do is hold you here until the guards arrive!"

"Or until Owlbert gives Eda the actual elixir." King added.

"Yes, or until Owlbert gives Eda the actual… wait, what?" He looked to King in surprise, before glancing to Eda… whom Owlbert was already feeding the open bottle of elixir. "NO- GUAGGH!" I used his temporary loss of focus to break my arm free, and deliver a swift punch into the porker's face, sending him careening into his shop.

Eda, in the meantime, quickly broke free of her chains, before quickly zapping King's shackles. She gives her palisman a quick scratch behind the ears in appreciation before screwing him back in. She and King look at each other for a moment before he hops down and crosses his arms, remembering that he was angry with her. She turns to me, only giving a quick nod in thanks.

"Augh! Ow, my poor little snout…" I could hear Tibbles moan as he removed himself from the wreckage of his shelves. He looked to the bottle in his hand in confusion, dipping his finger in and tasting it… "This is… orange blood!" He steamed in anger as he hoisted himself back onto his counter. "You giant, dimwitted buffoon… I'll make sure your two friends suffer for-" He stopped when he noticed Eda was no longer chained up. "O-oh. Eda. You look… healthy."

Eda said nothing. She didn't even smile. She only stared at the small merchant with calm, yet righteous fury, her staff sparking with magic power.

"Now Eda… or p-perhaps you'd prefer Ms. Clawthorne?" Eda slowly stepped forward. "Yes, right, perhaps it's best if I call you the Owl Lady." The staff's eyes lit up, glowing brightly. "N-n-now, Owl Lady, surely we can come to agreement, can we? We're both witches of business! And I must say, you're friend's punch was quite the punishment! I'll certainly be feeling it for days… my medical bill will be quite high, uh…"

Eda stopped right over him. She towered over him, intimidating him into silence. "You con me in a way that even I feel is sick and wrong. You insult me for being desperate in a frightening situation. You try to have me hauled off by the guards. And to top it off… you tried to take King… and threatened to take Luz." She lifted him up his collar. "See, Tibbles, here's the thing… any good entrepeneur, even ones as shady as me, know that customers are the lifeblood of any firm. And it's not good to make your customers upset, piggy. Some of them could cost you your very business." Lightning bolts shot from Owlbert's eyes, causing Tibbles' stand to be entirely destroyed. She dropped him, leaving him to stare at the remains of his stand in horror. "I'm sorry I utterly destroyed your tiny, worthless shop. But if it's any consolation… I could've utterly destroyed a fat, worthless piglet instead."

She turned away from the flaming wreckage, content with her work. "Let's go. I've had enough shopping for one night." She moved down the street, leaving us to follow.

Sometime down the road, she began slowing down… until she came to a stop. She fell onto the side of a building, sinking to the ground. She solemnly looked to me, and King. "Yeah. I think proper apologies are in order." King still refused to look at her. I simply let her go on. She sighed. "I've been taking care of myself for so long. Living life by my own rules. No one to look out for me but myself. When you and Owlbert and Hooty and… even Luz came along, it wasn't all that different. I was the one who knew what was best, not just for me, but for the rest of you too." She looked up at me. "Then Trenchcoat and you lot came around. Suddenly, I'm forced to act a certain way in my own household while I let strangers prance around it, poking their noses around in my private life. I'm doubted every single step of the way for every piece of information I give despite being your best source of knowledge. And now today, you try and send a babysitter with me? As if I can't take care of myself like I have for years?! As if I'm a child?!" She bolts up, glowering at me. "Who are you all to judge me like that?"

I don't reply. It feels like she need to get this out.

Sure enough, her arms slump to her side in defeat. "But… I guess you weren't wrong, huh? Look at me, bragging about how much I know. And yet here you are, bailing me out of a nearly disastrous situation I put myself in… all because of my pride. Guess your friend's right to treat me like a child."

"Hellboy wasn't trying to treat you like a child." I object. "I know you two bicker a lot… but Hellboy only wants everyone to get out safe and sound. You're no exception. I think he can see how truly terrified you are of losing yourself. I can see it too. He does care about what happens to you. He may be gruff… but honestly, I can tell you Hellboy has a bigger heart than almost any human."

"I'd like to believe that. I really would. But it's hard for me." She unscrewed Owlbert again, who cuddled her in attempt to comfort her. "My curse first struck me when I was a teen. And in that moment, when I needed people the most… everyone turned their backs on me. Even my parents. Lilith was the only one… but she might as well have too. She never listens to me, never considers what I want. So, the only one who was there for me… was me." I can see King's anger leaving his body, as he slowly turns to his friend. "When you've had to take care of yourself, by yourself, for so long… it's hard to trust other people to be able watch your back out of the goodness of their heart." King walked up to her, gazing up at her in sadness. "Even when they've had your back for years. …I'm sorry, King. I should've known you were just trying to look out for me." She rubs his head affectionately.

"Aw… I can't stay mad at you. Especially when you're telling off sob stories like that." I could tell he didn't mean that. He gives Eda a hug. "Apology accepted."

There was one thing I wasn't clear on, though. "What about Luz? From the stories I heard… you accepted her rather quickly."

Eda avoided my eyes at first. "Luz was… different."

"How so?" She breathed out, trying to find the words. I could see her contemplating how to put it.

"She… reminds me of myself. Before my life turned to shit." She chuckles. "She's got that same burning love for magic that I did. The same eagerness to take on anything. I look in her eyes… and I see me. That little girl who had so much hope in her heart… before Belos' society turned on her. That kinda broke down my walls quickly. She just kind of… connected with me." She laughs again, snorting. "But talk about breaking down walls, here I am having a tell-all with you. There's something about you that makes you… approachable. I guess I see why Luz bonded with you so quickly."

"I'm a very good listener."

She smirked. "Maybe that's it." Her tone became somber again. "Listen, Roger… I know you've got no reason to… but when you tell Trenchcoat and Ms. Noceda about this…. Could you downplay it?" She asked. "Maybe I'd have more of a chance of seeing her again if it doesn't sound like it went so horribly wrong… because of me."

"Downplay what?"

"Uh… downplay our misadventure in pharmaceuticals?"

"What misadventure?"

"Roger, are you okay? Do you not remember…" She suddenly realizes my intentions, looking at me in disbelief. "You… you're gonna lie to your buddies and pretend this never happened? Why? Everything I did… glasses would go crazy about. The kind of thing Trenchcoat probably wants you to tell him about! I mean, I'm already pushing it asking you to do anything after how I treated you!"

"Probably."

"You could get in a lot of trouble for lying to them."

"Most likely."

"Then… then why?"

I give her a small smile. "I know a thing or two about second chances. I killed someone in my first few moments of life. Nearly took another. Because of that, I hid and ran, believing my existence a mistake… believing the rest of the world couldn't understand my pain. But Hellboy came looking for me to save his friend… the one whom I almost killed. He convinced me to come back and save her. It costed me my life." Eda gasped. King had a slightly confused look. "I was content to give my life there. But Hellboy… on the way to help her… he talked to me. He gave me my name. He persuaded the BPRD to try and bring me back to life. Gave me a second chance. …If I can have another chance after the kind of mistakes I made… well, what's one problematic night caused by pride and poor judgement?"

She smiled. "You're the salt of the Titan, Roger."

"Eh, I try. Besides, I already told Hellboy over the walkie that you were just haggling. Speaking of which…" I pull out my walkie, deciding to give Hellboy a heads up. "Hellboy, come in, Hellboy. We've gotten Eda some elixir and are on our way home. Over." Static. "Uh… come in, Hellboy. Mission successful, over." Nothing but more static. Eda and King grow slightly concerned. "Something's not right. Hellboy isn't answering."

"Maybe something went wrong with the spell. Did he tell you anything when he called earlier?"

"Um… I think he said he was taking your house for a moonlit walk in the forest."

…

"What?"

---

"WRROOOOOAAAAARRHHHHHHH!" The sound the creature makes chills me to my bones. Like an unholy mixture of an elk and a wolf. He just sits there on the porch, howling over and over.

Not that we can do much about it. The monster has trapped us in various plant life within the house.

Kate and I are trapped in a makeshift cage made from branches. Though it is only wood, the bars hold together, strong as steel. The children are tied up in vines at the center of the house, struggling to get free. They're unable to grab a hold of each other's hands, restrained by their bonds.

Willow is simply slumped in her vines, defeated and disappointed in herself. She shouldn't blame herself. This… this thing… constantly goes on about how it's one with the forest. We should've known that it would have domineering control over plants.

Gus was even more restless than Luz. He panics, trying to squirm out of his vines, considerably more fear in his eyes. My god… he's even younger than Luz and Willow. How scared must he feel right now? Wondering if his life will end tonight?

And my daughter… "Hooty!" Luz shouts. "Hooty! You have to wake up! Snap out of it!"

"IF YOU WANT THIS TO END AS YOU SAY, THREE MUST HOLD HANDS, IT'S THE ONLY WAY!"

"¡Oye, no me hables así!" She said.

How can she be so calm during all this? We've been taken by a horrible creature that lives within the woods… unable to do anything but wait until it does god knows what with us. She's in more danger than I ever could've imagined she'd be. I can't fathom where her courage could be coming from…

The… "Lehee"? No… the Leshy comes back inside the house. He appears to be in deep thought. "I had hoped she would hear my call… attempt to escape with renewed vigor at the wonderful news… but my beloved remains silent. I cannot take this aching in my heart…" His eyes scrunched. "As much as I would wish for her to be here… to have us both reunite with Baba Yaga… it seems I must instead call her here to help me free my wife." His head tilted up, eyes squinting at the kids.

My heart begins to beat faster as he approaches them, eyeing them up and down. He looks over Willow first. "A filthy imp. And borderline too old… a terrible combination. She would hate that."

What is he…?

He then looks to Gus. "Young enough, but still an imp. It would ruin the taste."

T-taste?! He couldn't mean…

His vision finally ended on Luz. "But you… almost too old, but there's a youthful energy about you. Baba Yaga will enjoy such a wonderful meal."

"H-huh? Meal?" Luz blanched in dread, her unexplained courage draining… just as I realized in horror what he meant.

"¡NO! ¡DEJA A MI HIJA, BASTARDO! ¡ALÉJATE DE ELLA!" I slammed at the wooden bars, hoping my anger and motherly instincts could give me the strength to power through… but they would not budge.

"Oh, do be quiet." The monster flicked his hand, a vine wrapping itself around my mouth before I could say another word. Kate did her best to remove them, trying to claw them off. But they were just as strong as the other plants.

"Mami!"

Kate glared at the Leshy and gave her own share of choice words. "Bastard is right. We told you again and again that this wasn't Baba Yaga's house. Those are owl legs out there, not chicken legs. And none of us are close to dumb enough to take something that belongs to her, much less her home. This house belongs to the Owl Lady, Eda. Ring any bells?"

"Bah… you attempt to trick me." The Leshy instantly rejected. "You say you would not dare attack Baba, but you are affiliated with the one who assaulted her. Why should I trust what any of you have to say?" He glared into the cage. "I have waited decades for her return… we both have. I will not be denied her arrival by dirty imps and putrid humans!"

"Decades? For wha-"

"ENOUGH!" Kate didn't have the chance to finish before vines wrapped around her mouth as well. "I've wasted enough time as is. As the moments go by, my love remains confined in the stone walls of that dreaded town. I refuse to sit back and hear nothing but silence from her any longer!" He walked back towards Luz. "If I am to ask Baba Yaga for such help, then I must be as gracious as I can to her. Especially after I failed to find what she wanted…"

As he got closer to my daughter, my hope for a miracle vanished little by little. I couldn't stop the tears from flowing down my face. She… she was going to die. Right in front of me. And not mercifully… in agony and fear. My Lucecita… when my parents disowned me… when my husband left us… she was still there. A small, bright light that shined me through those dark times. It's why I gave her that name…

And now my little light was going to be snuffed out. There I was nothing I could do. Just… sit there and watch her become food for some wretched creature. I couldn't fight the beast. I couldn't whisk her away. I couldn't comfort her in my arms. And now I can't even call soothing words out to her, little lies that everything was going to be alright. She was just going to be… gone.

And it would be all my fault.

"Wait, n-no! Stop!" Luz struggled, now even more panicked then Gus, trying to move from the Leshy. But it did her no good. Willow and Gus fearfully looked on, dreading what came next for their friend. The monster's wooden, creaking hand reach for her neck, and-

"HEY, ASSHOLE!" A resounding shout came through the open door, the Leshy's hand stopping mid-air. "YOU AND I HAVE UNFINISHED BUSINESS, YOU OVERGROWN HEDGE TRIMMING! GET THE HELL OUT HERE!"

A silence passed through all of us.

"HELLBOY!" Luz broke that silence when she shouted out his name. Her scream is somehow both joyful and fearful. I should know. When I realized who was outside… I tried my best to do the same through the vine.

The Leshy clenches his hand, obviously unhappy. "Headache after headache, this night has been…" He sauntered away, off to take up on Hellboy's challenge… and taking his hand away from my daughter, just as well.

I wanted a miracle… but as far as I'm concerned, Hellboy is much better than one.

---

I stared up as the Leshy made his way outside. He looked down upon me. He was still angry, but he also had a bit of arrogance in his eyes. That's right, you bastard. Keep thinking you've won. "I'm surprised." He said. "You got away from my pet."

"Torched him, actually. He went up like a light. All he was really good for, if you ask me."

He growled at that. "You'll find that such small bonfires will not take me down so easily."

"Nah. I'm thinking weed killer. Cause that's all you are. A small, stubborn little bramble sticking its roots where it don't belong."

That really set him off. He stepped off the porch, growing in size before he fell a foot off it. His giant footstep cratered in front of me. "Am I so little now?"

I smirked. "Well, clearly you're compensating for something. I think that wife of yours is staying away for a reason."

…

…

…

"I'm going to kill you now."

"Aw, was it something I said?"

He reaches down for me, probably wanting to crush me into paste. But that's exactly what I wanted him to do… as I reach for a fun little number my new 'acquaintances' gave me…

---

Sometime earlier…

"Now… what do we have here?" Eyepatch says. He's looking me up and down with his good eye.

"Just a guy out for an evening walk." I glower, subtly warning him to back off.

"I'll bet. And I imagine the house demon and the forest spirit are too."

"…You've been watching us."

"We saw your house walking among the treeline. Who wouldn't be curious?" He replied. "Nevermind the forest spirit shouting about himself so the heavens can hear…"

That obvious, huh? Then if they're coming to meet me… "So what's this, then? Coming to get me before going after the big prizes?"

He stifled a laugh. "We considered, but… auctioneers are particular about the horns." Well, guess my unique look saved me trouble for once. "No, I'd like to extend a hand of… teamwork."

I give him a peculiar look. "To do what exactly?"

"We noticed that you'd like a certain spirit… gone. We would've gone for him ourselves… but its strength concerns some of my clan. So, I propose an alliance. We all take down this spirit together… we take the spirit, while you take the house you seem so fond of."

"Oh, come one Balthazar!" Another cloaked being leaps out. "I know for sure we can take him. We don't need this guy's help." Under the cloak is… a guy with a very large chin. Man, move over Leno… "We help this guy, we lose out on one of the creatures. That house demon could go big for restaurant owners!" Yeah, that's enough of that. I walk over as he talks. He doesn't notice at first. "Honestly, why not just take both?" He suddenly notices me towering over him, his bravado drying up.

"Because you don't want to."

He gulps. "Uh… right. Don't really feel like it."

'Balthazar' clears his throat. "Yes, despite Tom's… alternative solution, most of us believe working with you is best."

I weigh my options. On the one hand, these guys are shady as hell… but they'd be much more manageable than a plant god. I think it's better if I get help on this one.

"You got anything sharp on you?"

---

In the present…

The Leshy draws closer, ready to see how much blood comes out. "Say there, big man…" He has no time to react before I fling a harpoon right in his cornea. "You've got something in your eye."

"GYAAAAAAAGHHH!" He howls in paint, his hand reaching for his face now, instead.

"So, I made some friends in the forest. They'd really like to get to know you."

On cue, the demon hunters emerge from the forest, throwing roped harpoons over the Leshy. Distracted and in pain, the monster is brought down onto one knee. Balthazar charges an electric spell in his hand. "Weaken him while he's down!" He fires his attack at the Leshy's chest, giving the monster quite the shock. The others follow suit, firing off spells of ice, wind and earth. Only a small few use fire. I curse about that. Big man's right about one thing, it's probably take a forest fire's worth of flame to bring him down. But we have to make do with what we've got.

I take the second harpoon I picked up and rush towards the downed giant, jumping up onto his arm. He's still focused on getting that harpoon out. I'm not even sure if anything else is hurting him. But we gotta keep trying.

I try to make my way up to his head, but that's when it happens. I feel something wrap around my waist.

Not again…

The vine pulls me off the Leshy, hoisting me into the air. The others are being attacked by plants as well, forcing them off of the monster. Said spirit is getting up, snapping the ropes of his trap. He yanks the harpoon out of his face with a sickening sound. "I do not care who tries to get in my way, not do I care what injury may befall me… I WILL NOT STOP UNTIL BABA YAGA IS BROUGHT TO THIS PLANE!"

I swing my harpoon's blade into the vine, cutting me down. Only a few of the demon hunters are hands free, Balthazar being one.

We brace ourselves for one hell of a fight.

---

The commotion outside grows louder, shaking the entire house. Hellboy really likes to make an entrance… he also likes to cut it way too close.

Unfortunately, we're all still trapped. Camila and I haven't even managed to remove the gags. But with Hellboy out there fighting the Leshy, we've got time to get out of this.

Luz and Gus are also at work, but Willow is still unresponsive. Luz seems to notice this. "Willow, come one! Now's as good a time as any to escape! You could use your powers to take control of these vines, so they'll let us go."

"I'm… I'm sorry, Luz. I just can't…" She laments. "I couldn't even save Hellboy."

"That wasn't your fault. You were under a lot of pressure, and the Leshy's control over plants was strong. But Hellboy's okay. He's out there fighting that thing right now, trying to give us the chance we need! I bet if you just concentrate-"

"Nothing will happen." Willow rejects. "I tried as hard as I could, but I failed. Hellboy almost died because of it. Amity was right about me…"

"What? No she isn't. She doesn't know a thing about you-"

"Of course she knows about me!" Willow snaps. Her face softens when she realizes she'd yelled at her. The shouting has even grabbed Camila's attention. "She knows everything about me. Even more than you…" She sighed despondently. "…because we used to be friends."

Luz gasped. Gus, who I guess already knew the story, just made a dry comment. "I'd usually ask if this is the best time, but we're clearly not going anywhere…" I myself had only heard Amity was a bully, who'd been part of the problem at Covention.

Willow grew a faint smile. "We used to play together as kids. We did everything with each other. You'd be surprised just how different she was back then. Practically unrecognizable." Those fond memories turned sour, judging by the look in Willow's eyes. "Then one day, her magic powers developed. And… mine didn't. Not for a long time after. Amity suddenly thought she was too good for me… she left me behind. All I ever wanted to do was prove her wrong, make her see that she was wrong to hurt me like that. But… I just can't…" Tears began forming in her eyes.

"What are you talking about?!" Luz shouted, making Willow jolt in surprise. "You brought a house to life! Can Amity do something like that?" Willow looked at Luz, stunned. "I've seen what you can do, Willow. Since the first day we met. You're amazing! You made a giant plant grow through the entire school from just a tiny seed! You make vine monsters from the ground just by getting mad! Forget what Amity thinks!" Willow's shock melts away, a genuine smile appearing on her face. "From all the witches I've seen so far, you're like… the second strongest I've met. And you know who's the strongest, what that means. I may not know a lot about magic, but I bet if you put your mind to it, you could get these things off of us. Forget about Amity. Forget about the Leshy. Heck, forget about what's happening outside! Just stay calm and focus on what you do best. I know you can do it."

Heh… Luz really knows how to give a pep talk, doesn't it? Even as far back as that little prison break… Luz seems to have a natural talent for rallying people. It's an understatement to call it an admirable… more like outstanding. I glance over to Camila, and despite her fear, I can tell she thinks the same. There's a big smile under that vine.

Willow seems convinced as well, stifling back some tears. "Okay… okay. I cand do this. I can do this…" She closes her eyes, doing best to drown out the noise. She places her hands on the plants trapping her, green energy glowing from them. They don't respond at first. The tension can be cut with a knife as they remain immobile… then abruptly, they began to move. Small rustling at first, merely shaking in place… until slowly but surely, the vines unwrapped themselves from Willow, finally freeing her.

"Yes! You did it, Willow!" Luz cheers.

Gus chimed in as well. "That's our girl!" I simply pumped my fists, while Cam relaxed in relief.

Willow looked down from her hands up to her two friends, beside herself with joy… only for the moment to be cut short by an explosion from the Leshy outside. "Right. Might not be the best time to celebrate. Let's get you guys out." She prepared more spell circles.

A few minutes later, we were all freed, the vines finally uncovered from our mouths.

Camila was quick to hug Luz tight. "Oh, thank god, I thought I was going to lose you. That monster… he almost…"

"I'm fine, mom. I was scared too… but I'm fine."

Camila pulled away. "Let's get Hooty and get you far away from this thing as possible."

"No."

"Wha… I…" Camila lost the words for a moment. "No?! Luz, that thing was about to cook you! We need to get you to safety!"

"I can't just leave Hellboy to fight that monster!"

"Luz, he's told me his stories. He does this all the time! He'll be fine."

"Mami, I've kept track of his stories since I was eight. He's fought a lot of things, but never anything like that. He could be killed!" Luz argued. Well… he has, but those situations have been kept a bit more under wraps.

Still… "Cam, she has a point. Hellboy isn't invincible. I know what the Leshy is… he's practically fighting a demigod. If it kills him, which it most certainly can, it'll come after us again. And we'll be right back where we started."

Camila grew angry with me. "But why does it have to be my daughter?! She's just a child, she can't fight these creatures like Hellboy can. She could die!"

"I… I know. But we still have no sign of Eda. This thing has to be stopped right now, otherwise it's just going to keep coming back. At the very least, we have to hold it off until Ms. Clawthorne can find us."

"I… just can't." She began breaking down. "I can't keep putting you in danger like this, mija…you're all I have left…"

"Mami…" Luz placed her hands on Camila's arms. "I know you're worried for me. Terrified for me. I know you think this is a just another reckless decision. But it's not. It's a risk I have to take. We're the ones controlling Hooty, we're the only ones who can do something to help. If we don't…"

Camila and Luz locked eyes, both vying to persuade the other. Eventually, Camila simply shifted her face down. Not acceptance… more like reluctant allowance. Luz just slowly pulled away, never taking her eyes of her mom until she'd grabbed both her friend's hands. "Come on, we need to go."

Things aren't going to be the same after tonight… I just know it.

---

Things weren't looking too good. Most of my new allies had been indisposed of, stuck fighting plants or rendered unconscious. The last few of us who could fight the main target hadn't been able to do much. Whatever hits we made barely left a mark. Balthazar's shocks just weren't the same as full blown lightning, most of the damage being insulated by the Leshy's wooden-like skin. My harpoon, even with my strength, didn't pierce too far past the skin. To top it off, his eye seemed to be slowly healing.

The bright side is that he was too big to catch us… so far. His giant form gave him strength, but not a lot of agility. We were like flies to him… but that comparison worked both ways. He couldn't swat us, but we couldn't hurt him.

Balthazar tried his luck hitting him in the face, using some kind of spell to jump high up. While he met his mark, shocking the monster's eye (same one that got stabbed, coincidentally), the Leshy managed to hit him with a backhand on the way down, sending him into the ground, hard. His buddies and my remaining help bailed to go check on him. Guess he was the lynchpin.

I decided to try something myself while the Leshy was still distracted, pole-vaulting with my harpoon just high enough to deliver a swing with my stone hand. It hit him in the side of the knee- an unpleasant feeling, I'd bet. Though it caused him to yelp and unbalanced him, it failed to do much else. He simply turned his attention back on me, ready to finally end me. I dodged a few more of his swings but failed when he grabbed for me. A quick stab with my harpoon forces him to drop me, though the damn thing gets stuck in his hand. All he has to do is yank it out. Might as well have been a splinter. He brings his fist down onto me. I manage to roll back this time, but the ground is upheaved by the force, flinging me up. Which gives the bastard the chance to kick me like a soccer ball.

It's not fun getting launched by a giant foot. Less so when you hit a big tree hard enough to snap it in half. I'm trying to get my bearings, but the Leshy needs only a few steps to reach me. "Hmph. Even when banding together with rotten imps, you can barely harm me."

"Sure as hell… pissed you off…"

"Take solace in that petty little victory. It only gives me more reason to crush you like a grape. I suppose I'll have to ensure I don't smash your eye in the process." He lifts his fist in the air. "I hope she is not too angry that she could not kill you first. But she must surely know how you've given me the same amount of pain as- HHGgggRRrK!" The Leshy's boasting was cut short by him choking out of nowhere. While I was glad someone finally shut him up, it did take me by surprise. Something brown around his neck…

Wait.

The Leshy is brought down, pulled by his neck onto the ground, revealing Eda's house. In the doorway, Luz and her friends stood, hand in hand, shining blue. They… they were fighting the Leshy with the damn bird sausage.

I struggled to regain my footing, fighting the dizziness. I couldn't let them take him on alone.

"Who… what is- you!" The Leshy angrily barked. "I will- ugh!" The kids shut him up again by bringing Hooty's foot down on his face, cratering the ground beneath him. Bringing their foot back in, they launched the other, scratching Hooty's talons over the monster's chest. It does a hell of a lot more damage than my puny metal pole. Unfortunately, the Leshy catches that foot, and tries to return the favor. But Hooty's head comes out and swiftly whips his hand, hurting him enough to cause him to let go. As he attempts to quickly get back up, The kids deliver one final kick, forcing him back away.

The Leshy's clearly had enough. He launches vines from his body, going for the kids, prompting me to put my adrenaline into overdrive and recover. Luckily, they never reach the three, as Willow suddenly breaks the circle… and launches her own vines out, holding them off. Gus uses a spell circle himself, and begins running on the attacking vines… along with Gus… and Gus… and Gu- okay, there's an army of Gus. They begin popping up all over the Leshy. He diverts his attention, trying to brush them off. But he seems to be passing through them… right, I remember now. Gus's specialty is illusions.

With the Leshy's vines slacking due to lack of focus, the kids rejoin hands, sending Hooty's head and wrapping around the monster's legs. Not a moment later, he's back on his ass as the bird pulls his feet out from under him. But he ain't done with the creature yet. Using a strength I didn't know the doorknob had, he swings the giant and throws him through the forest, hitting a large nearby cliff face. I think that one gave him a concussion.

He's still not out. The Leshy raises up once more, intent on charging the house. Don't think they'll be able to hold that back… but now, I have my wits about me. And swamp thing just gave me a much better weapon…

His charge is interrupted when a large tree slams right into the side of his head, throwing him off. Hmph. If I had a nickel for every time I threw a tree at a big monster… well, I'd have two nickels. Which is weird because I thought that would've happened a lot more by now.

The Leshy's fists tremble. He begins oozing green from his mouth. I think that last number might've made him snap. "You little maggots are intent on making this night the most excruciating I've had in a long time… but I will suffer such indignities so longer…" The trees around us begin shaking violently. They creak loudly, some cracking like bones. The kids look worried, and I can't blame 'em. Not sure if we can handle what's coming "You will see just what power I possess, you will feel agony as the forest rips you apart, strips your flesh from its bones, and TRAPS YOUR VERY SOULS WITHIN ITS- GGGGRRRRRYYYAAAAAAAGGH!" Another interruption… except this time, its from a bright explosion that hits the Leshy's side. We turn towards the source of such a powerful fireball…

…And find Eda hovering above, glowering at the monster with a look that could kill. King is perched on her shoulder while Roger hangs from her staff, not quite as dignified.

A flick of her wrist and the two are hovered over to the Owl House, reuniting with Luz and co. Her attention stays on the Leshy. "I don't know who you are. I don't know why you've decided to track mud all over my house. I don't even know why you're attacking my guests… but right now, I really don't care. I've already had a very long night dealing with one asshole… so as long as you leave and crawl back into whatever hole you came from, I'm willing to let you go. You have till the count of three."

The Leshy only stared up at her in defiance. "You…filthy ingrate! This house does not belong to you, it belongs to her!"

"One."

"And if you choose to desecrate it just as these whelps have, I shall bring the forest's wrath upon you as well!"

"Two."

"You will know the power of the Leshy as I infest you with mold and fungi! Your eyes and mouth foaming with-"

"Three." Without warning, she was gone.

The Leshy was just as confused as I was. "Wha…?" A red hot glow emerged from behind him. He swiveled around to find a giant owl staring him down, emerging from the yes of Eda's staff. He stared at it, awestruck by its visage…

…and screamed in agony when it unleashed a torrent of flames on it.

"AAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUGGGGGHHHHHHHH!"

The Leshy could do nothing as he was barraged by fire. It torched his foliage of beard and hair. His antlers became cinders. His skin became like charcoal. It hadn't been long, but by the time Eda finished, he was barely recognizable. His size diminished, having completely lost his energy, and he collapsed on the ground.

Man… all that work the rest of us did, and she took it out in seconds. Glad I wasn't fighting her like this a few days ago…

She flew down to me. "So, Trenchcoat, mind telling me what the hell is going on? Why is my house walking around like it owns the place? Why the hell did this asshole attack you all? And… why aren't you wearing a shirt?" She seemed the most confused by that last part.

"Hang on a second and I'll have those answers for you. Most of 'em anyway." I walked over to the half dead forest spirit, Eda following. He whimpered as I stomped down on his charred torso. I don't usually resort to this method, but what he was planning to do with the kids… screw 'em. "Talk. While there's enough of you left for the fireplace. Why are you here?"

"I… I am here because Baba Yaga… wished us… to be…" He groaned in pain. "Since… at least sixty-five winters ago…"

Eda gasped. "D-did he… did he say Baba Yaga?!"

In any case… sixty-five winters, that's… "You've been here sixty-five years? You and your wife have been here that long?"

Eda seemed surprised. "That's longer than Belos has been in power…"

I took note, before grinding my foot. "Why? Why did she send you here?"

"UurRgGH… We… were to find… the Titan's…. secret…uggghh…." The Leshy collapsed. Not dead, just unconscious.

"Titan's secret?" I turned to Eda for answers, but she only shrugged.

The sound of footsteps caught our attention. Balthazar, having gained a limp, had arrived with his group. Eda readied to get rid of more uninvited guests, but I placed my arm in front of her. "He's all yours."

He gazed at Eda for a moment before he moved in on his quarry. "Hmm… knowing that this house belonged to the Owl Lady… makes me glad we chose the better option." And just like that, the bastard that made this night hell was hauled off.

"Alright, enough dawdling. What happened? How'd my simple little spell turn out like this? I wasn't lying to you or anything, it wasn't supposed to be dangerous." She gave me a peculiar look. "All I know from what Roger told me is that you somehow took my house for a stroll."

"Yeah, that…" I sighed. How'd things get like this, indeed. "So, apparently the spell misfired and brought your house to life."

"My… house?" She looked dumbfounded.

"Yeah. The doorknob was stuck in the passenger's seat. Grew a pair of legs and everything."

"And you decided to go walking with it instead staying put, why?" She asked accusingly.

"That was me. Luz's magic levels kinda fluctuated when the kids gave orders, so we needed to take it for a drive. That way Kate could get an accurate set of readings. You want to be angry at anyone for that, be angry at me."

She stared at me for a moment, studying me. She let out a breath. "Whatever. If you needed it to make your argument to glasses, who am I to argue? Just make sure to help me clean up and take stock of anything I might've lost."

"Deal."

"So… where does toasty come in?"

"That…" I cringe. Hard to imagine things went downhill in only a moment. "He showed up on your doorstep just as we were wrapping things up. He went ballistic, because… well, because he thought your house was Baba Yaga's."

"Baba Yaga…" Eda clenched her staff and shuddered a bit.

"You know her?"

"She's a boogeyman story for kids of the Isles. But we've met once… never considered her a story ever again."

"Hmm. Tonight's full of surprises…" I give a weak laugh. "So, yeah, we fight, he tosses me out, I come back with some buddies, and we try to fight him off. Damn if he wasn't a tough SOB though. Oddly enough, the kids came to my rescue. Gave the thing a beating with their spells and the house."

"Hey, I chose Hooty as my house demon for a reason. He's one hell of a security guard." She looked up to the house. "Everyone okay?"

"Far as I can tell, yeah. But…" I shake my head. "You know… Cam was on board."

"S-she… she was?" Eda seemed a bit more excited for that than she probably let on.

"Yeah, but… right after, this whole thing… I think… I know, she's gonna do a one-eighty."

"…Oh. I-I see."

The somberness was palpable. "I hope… you had more luck than we did."

"Yeah, I… yeah. Roger was a big help. Sorry… for being a pain in the ass about it."

"Damn. Turned your opinion on it in one night. Was he really that helpful?"

"Yeah. Nice and supportive for… haggling."

I could kind of tell there was something she wasn't mentioning… but if Roger covered for her, I don't think I mind. Besides, whatever did happen probably would just bring this night down more.

She held her staff out to me. "Come on. Let's get my house back in place. Moon's almost down."

That's where we ended off, the solemn atmosphere just… sinking in.

---

The walk back home was… quiet. Eerily quiet. No one really said anything. Not Hellboy, Kate, Eda… not King or Roger… not the kids, not even Luz. What was there even to say?

The silence was only broken when the house finally hit the ground… by the bird door. "Well, I don't know about any of you, but I had a fun time out tonight!"

We all gave him a death stare. King was the only one to comment. "Encompasses an entire house and yet he still doesn't know how to read a room…"

With the quiet effectively disrupted, everyone began shuffling around. Roger was helping Kate pack up. King, Willow and Gus went upstairs, giving a small look of longing to Luz before they left. Hellboy and Eda just poured themselves a drink and sat around, trying to process the night.

Luz slowly walked up to me. "Mami?" She said meekly. I… I know things totally went off the rails tonight. But I swear to you, it was all an accident. That monster wasn't supposed to be here. None of this has to change anything."

"Luz…"

"A-a-and even though it did attack us, Hellboy and Eda were there to protect us, and everybody got out okay, no one was even hurt."

"Luz."

"Because we did fill out all the requirements, the magic was safe, it didn't affect me, so I'm begging you, please, don't let this night-"

"LUZ!" I yelled. Out of fear, and anger, and sadness. I wanted to go off, saying how the Leshy was just there waiting, how we had no idea if anything else lived out there. How everyone kept promising me that she would be safe, only for problems to keep escalating with her in the middle. How Hellboy and Eda wouldn't always be there, how I still didn't trust Eda, how she was nearly cooked right in front of me, how she ran off to go fight a monster that could've killed her, how none of the requirements of our deal mattered if she wasn't safe on any part of this island…

But the rant lodged in my throat when I saw her face. The tears streamed down her cheeks, and I remember… she was there, too. Almost killed by the Leshy, watching as Hellboy was whisked away, seeing everything go to hell… as much as I wanted to give my final decision tonight… it would be too much. This night had been too much. I couldn't do that to her… not now, not yet.

"…Why don't you get some sleep. It's been a long night, and everyone is very tired… we'll talk about this in the morning." It was a lie, in a way, implying that there was something to discuss. I think she knew that too.

"Okay, Mami…" She sniffled. "G-good night." She soon disappeared upstairs.

I couldn't bear to see the heartbreak on her face… but I could bear it even less if something happened to her. I'm sorry, Luz… I just can't do it anymore.

Hellboy set his drink down and walked over. "Cam?"

"I'd… rather not go anywhere else tonight. I'm just… so tired." My way of saying I didn't have the energy to go home.

"That's alright. Why don't you take the couch tonight? I'll find my own arrangements."

I was about to protest when Kate called Hellboy over. "Hey, Red. Remember when I said I recognized that creature's name? I've got it right here." Hellboy strolled over to her, looking over her laptop's screen. "The Leshy. Slavic deity of forests. He can grow as big as the trees. Nasty fella. He'll teach you magic if you reject any image of god. My question is, the hell is it doing here instead of the forests of Russia?"

"Apparently, doing a job for the Baba Yaga."

"The Baba Yaga? The big witch herself? Okay, I'll rephrase, what does a major Russian mythological figure want with this realm?"

…Slavic? Russian? The thing that was out there… it came from… Earth? That's… a good reason never to move to Russia.

"The Leshy said something about… the Titan's secret." He turns to Eda. "Sure you don't know anything about this, Snaggletooth?"

"I've learned my fair share of magic, secrets and even general gossip. Never heard anything about that."

"But you said you met Baba Yaga."

"Only for a few moments. It wasn't pleasant. I'm not afraid to admit that she terrifies me. Way more than any of those American witches…"

What?! "What… what do you mean, American witches?" I voice my thoughts without thinking.

The glanced at me, putting their conversation on hold. An awkward pause went by. "Um… American witches. I've met them on the other side. Ugly on the inside as they are on the outside. Trenchcoat here told me about a time he met them."

"W-where?"

"Uh…" Hellboy seemed reluctant to tell me. "It was… a long time ago. I was doing work in Virginia. I met some people in the Appalachian Mountains having a witch problem." He gestures to Eda. "Nothing like these guys. Those witches made deals with devils and everything. They… they preyed on innocent young kids, coaxing them with magic."

Virginia… in the Appalachian Moutnains? That was… that was only a few states down from Connecticut. And the mountains were practically next door. No… no, that was just a random attack. And Hellboy took care of it. "So… they're gone. No more witches. You dealt with them."

Hellboy's eyes widened slightly, and he suddenly got very quiet. All he could do was scratch the back of his head.

Eda wasn't so quiet. "Ehhh… no. I've been back over plenty of times. There's a fairly decent number of witches over that country. That's not even counting the werewolves, vampires and ghosts I've met."

"W-werewolves? Vampires? Ghosts?!" I exclaimed in shock. That can't be right… could it? It couldn't be true, the public would know. They would…

…But then again… look who I'm dealing with. A demonic looking man and an agency dedicated to investigating paranormal events. They fought such things every day… they told me as much when Luz first went missing. Hellboy and his teammates would make small mentions here and there of previous cases… sometimes when I had a question, other times when they wanted to calm my fears.

"Hellboy's dealt with disappearing children before. He once went after an Ijiraq up north, in the 70s… brought all the kids home safe."

"I've been to Japan. It's not all anime and kimonos. Mostly cursed scrolls and ancient swords. Oh, and the demons Fujin and Raijin."

"There's rumors in the BPRD that Hellboy once took on Krampus. If there's anyone you can trust to get the job done, it's him."

As the memories returned to me, I couldn't help but feel… confused. Why was she so upset by this revelation now if I'd been told such things long before? What was making me so afraid finding this out tonight?

"Yeah, everyone thinks their neighborhood is the safest place around." The police officer's cruel words from the first night rang in my head. It'd stuck with me, made me feel guilty, like it was my fault Luz had gone missing. Hellboy had told me not to listen to him, but… maybe… maybe he was right, in a way.

I'd never bothered to look into the BPRD before all this started. It just didn't seem important. My biggest problems then were Luz's social challenges and her teacher's threats of expulsion. Even after the BPRD came along, telling me what they fought, showing me the Boiling Isles… I associated all the danger with this place, and not with my world. My neighborhood. My home.

But… that wasn't true, was it? In every corner of Earth, there was likely something waiting. A monster, a demon, a witch who wouldn't think twice about gobbling up my daughter for lunch. I never thought about these kind of things because they seemed a world away, whether fictional or real. But… Luz found a cabin in the woods that led to another world… what powerful monsters were lying in wait like the Leshy, in the quiet forests around their town?

And the worst part about this realization was… that meant home really wasn't safe. Eda had taken out that monster so easily. What would the small flimsy wall of their house have done to slow that fiend? I'd said to Luz that she had been lucky that the Owl Lady didn't want to hurt her… but just how much luckier was she really?

"Cam? Cam." I felt Hellboy shake me slightly, popping me out of my daze. "Listen, don't worry about it too much, okay? It's like you said. We've all had a long night. Let's just get some shut-eye."

I gave a gave a small nod, going to lie down on the couch. I did my best not to think about these new thoughts.

But I couldn't sleep that night. Not when home didn't feel safe anymore.

---

"This deal never happened. The monster was delivered to the usual auction as you planned. Is that understood?"

The demon hunter watched as his cohorts carried a rather large bag of snails away. He only shrugged. "Paid twice the asking price, I don't see why not. It's your money and all." He gave a small wave before his group disappeared into the dark.

I looked to my two coven guards. "You two, watch the door. No one in or out. If you fail, I'll make sure you wish you were dead." They stood up straight, motivated by fear. "I must attend to this matter myself."

I marched through the door, locking behind me. It was a small warehouse, rented out for nothing more than keeping their prey. I should know, since I sent city guards asking them to do so. I couldn't have him sold off to an auction… not this one.

He had no strength left. His skin, which would usually smell of pine and be as strong as oak, was nothing more than a charred suit of armor. His soft, mossy beard had been burned away. His majestic antlers, which were like trees on their own when he towered above, were simply gone. It pained me to see him like this.

He seemed to notice he had a new guest. "Leave me be… have I not been stripped of my dignity as is? Kill me, or leave me alone…"

His despondent tone clutched at my heart. To see him reduced to such a state… even emotionally. "Are you truly so unhappy to see me?"

My voice came as a shock to him. He stirred from his prone position, opening his eyes slowly, beholding the sight before him. "No… is it really you, beloved? After all these years?"

I stepped forward, into the light. With a quick swipe of my fingers, his bonds were cut. He crawled forward, doing his best to look me over. "Hello, Lesovik. It's been too long."

Though his entire body was smoldering, he still managed to produce tears. "It… it is you… my Baba Bolotnitsa…"

That name… I hadn't heard it in a long, long time... "I… I go by Kikimora now."

"Just… Kikimora?" He laughed a little, coughing in pain from it. "You are no average Kikimora, love. You are the Kikimora of the swamp! Why, the mortals did their best to stay out of the forests when you were around."

I blush at his flattering words. He was never short on praise… "That was a long time ago, Lesovik. Things have changed."

His smile dropped, a baffled look on his face. "Right… yes, yes. They had captured you, yes? I cannot imagine what they have done to you while you were imprisoned. Such odds garments you are wearing… that they would assimilate you into their sickening lifestyle…"

"Lesovik." I said sternly. "They didn't force me to do this. I wear this of my own choosing. I was never captured. Never held against my will."

He was stunned. "What? But… did you not hear my call on the wind? My howls into the night? I have spent years waiting for your return, just as I have Baba Yaga…"

"I sent you a message. I told you what I had decided to do, from the first few days."

"I… I did not want to believe what the trees told me. That you would turn your back on us…"

"Turn my back?" I balked. "Belos opened my eyes, Lesovik. He showed me the inevitable Armageddon. The day the Ogdru Jahad destroy everything draws closer and closer. No matter who conspires for or against it, there is no stopping it. The knowledge he knows, the magic he possesses… I know he is the only one who can stop it. If he can obtain the Titan's secret…"

"That secret is meant for the Baba Yaga." He growled. "And you know it! It is the entire reason she sent us to this lowly place! YOU ARE BETRAYING HER!"

"BABA YAGA IS A FOOL!" My accent returned involuntarily. "She clings to a past that is long since gone! She is obsessed with revenge on the man who took her eye! But though I did not recognize him at first, I know of him. I have seen what that man is meant to do. Did Baba Yaga ever mention that? He is the one meant to bring the seven serpents onto this plane. But he cannot simply be killed. The Ogdru Jahad must be stopped permanently… Baba Yaga cannot do that. Her magic is dying. Belos is the only one capable of stopping what's coming. So I choose to follow him."

"I will not join you…"

"I did not believe you would."

There is a stillness as we come to terms with our broken marriage. There truly is no going back… the old days are gone.

Lesovik struggled to fight back tears. "When… when did I lose your love, beloved?"

I wished I could say I was doing better, but my own eyes were watering. "…It faded with Old Russia… so long ago." I pulled a secured flagon off of my back. "I didn't come here to fight with you, believe it or not. Though I may support a new cause, I couldn't bear to see you traded like cattle."

He wouldn't look at me at first. But when I put the flagon down before him, he couldn't help but be interested. "Is this…?" He brings the flagon to his nose, taking in the scent. "You still know how to brew?"

"I never forgot. Not this…" He takes a gulp, reveling in its flavor. "But I think it might be my last. I can't bear the memories it brings."

Lesovik grasped it tightly, savoring what he could. He reached out to me. "Oh, my Bolotnitsa… even though you have abandoned your dresses of grass and leaves… you still look beautiful." He caresses my cheek. "Though you do not love me anymore… I still care for you."

I stroke his hand in kind. Teardrops fall beneath me. "I know. I care for you as well. Which is why I can't let you suffer through what is to come."

"What do you-" He never had the chance to finish. His body was turned to ashes instantly as I finished the spell circle on his hand. The remains fell to the ground. With a whisk of my hand, they blew away, out the window to be scattered to the wind.

The deed was done.

I couldn't bring myself to move. Not for some time. But eventually, I reminded myself that there was work to be done.

I stepped outside after drying my eyes, signaling my entourage. "As you were. I must return to Belos. My mission is complete."

I walked away from that empty building, and I never looked back.

Notes:

Phew… now that was not a light undertaking.

I had the base idea for this chapter way back in November, oddly while I was standing in line to vote. Took a long time to really pull things together.

Firstly, Eda's Hexes "addiction"- never really made sense to me, it really only shows up in the one episode for the sake of the b-plot. So, I felt like going deeper into her character instead… at least, this story's version of her character, anyway.

Secondly, The Leshy- I struggled to find a way to bring this episode into my combined universe, but when I wondered what Kikimora's inspiration was, it wasn't long before I found myself the villain: The Leshy. As well as a way to connect to a Hellboy villains. Will Baba Yaga make an appearance in person? Hard to say, but we'll see as time goes on. He's not entirely accurate to his source material, but that's how Hellboy mythology be sometimes.

A side note, but as you might've noticed in a small detail, I headcanon Luz's home being in Connecticut. The trees around her house and in the forest don't look coniferous, more like a broadleaf species, and its where Dana Terrace was born and went to college. So, until the show says differently, my version of Luz lives in Connecticut... still not sure of the town, though.

Next chapter is going to be a little bit different… God knows when I'll get it out. Until then, see ya!

Chapter 8: The Owlet and Other Short Stories: B.P.R.D. Tales

Notes:

Oof. This… this, uh, is coming a bit late, huh? Wow. It's hard to pinpoint down any one reason- real life things getting in the way, having no motivation to start even when I have time, and then writer's block when I manage to get started, it's all a mess. I wonder what happened while I was awa-

 

*You forgot there actually had been an Leshy in the Hellboy comics, despite being a fan. Not only that, but that Leshy hated Baba Yaga's guts, and even helped Hellboy out.*

 

…Whoops. Well, that's no biggie- as Viosang described, the Leshy I wrote isn't quite accurate to the myths they know. However, they were keen to mention that it can vary from region to region- so, "Word of God" is that there are multiple Leshy in this world, to sort of match this "multiple version" angle.

 

It is important to note that Hellboy could tend to alter both real religions and long disbelieved myths to fit the universe. Still, I tried my best to research them and keep them as accurate as I could. Still, if anyone more familiar with these creatures wants to correct me, I definitely want to hear to improve in the future.

 

Well now, 'other half of my brain that is making me remember things', if that's all-

 

*Luz's father wasn't a deadbeat at all, you moron.*

 

(glass breaking sound)

 

…

 

…

 

…

 

(cue Kirby death music as I crumple to the ground)

 

*To quote the YMMV Tropes page for this fanfic- "Reaching Out reveals that Luz's father is actually dead and that they implicitly had a good relationship beforehand, making this improvised plot point retroactively kind of mean-spiri-

 

HOW DO YOU THINK I FEEL ABOUT IT?! I thought this was gonna be an unexplored thing! They didn't show us Phineas' dad and Ferb's mom, they didn't explore the Pines parents, they didn't go into Sasha and Marcy's folks! I thought this was gonna be another case of the creators letting us make our own answers! I didn't- I just… GAH! Don't I feel like an ass…

 

…

 

…*sigh* Believe it or not, I can work with this. But it will take a VERY long while to pay that off. I can't tell you anymore than that.

 

Oh boy… anyway, there were some good things that happened while I was gone. I discovered there was a Spanish translation of my fic being made! "El Punto de Ebullición del Infierno" by FakerDarkSouls on Wattpad. You're awesome dude, and I hope you and your readers keep enjoying the story. I guessed Luz was from Connecticut before the reveal, before anybody even thought, which absolves me of any and all previous infractions. I don't make the rules. Chapter 1 got looked at by the podcast "So You Think You Can Fanon", and they had very kind things to say about it- thank you guys very much, and I hope you look at more in the future! And of course, the rest of Season 2 aired, and it was great!

 

Unfortunately, with that last thing in mind… I've got good news and bad news. Bad news is, I'm going on hiatus until Season comes out and Owl House ends. I don't want anymore curveballs being thrown at me- yes, my story was always going to deviate from the original, but I want to make sure the deviations make sense. To add onto that… this chapter isn't all six stories- it's only two, essentially one third. Tackling only a few of the stories at a time helped me finally get down to brass tacks- I realized that having to anticipate writing something that was even longer than last chapter was discouraging me. So, I'm going two stories at a time.

 

The good news is, the hiatus won't be in effect until after next chapter- the next two short stories. The final short stories are… affected by the Owl House, to put it simply, and will only be written and posted after the hiatus. Until then, you can still expect one more chapter before I intentionally take a break.

 

Big thanks to my editor TakanaMakana, and for a little bit of the first chapter from Imawriteritswhatido for part of the first story.

The morning was as quiet as the night before. Deathly so. A glance around the room and I could tell that none of us had slept. I could understand that. I simply couldn't close my eyes. Not with everything I'd learned the night before. By the time I had finally fallen asleep, it was only a few hours till morning.

Eventually, everyone else joined me, all of them in the same state I was. Baggy eyes, slouches… everything. Hellboy decided to make us something for breakfast, using supplies he got from his BPRD friends. The food of the angels, he said… or pancakes, as most people called them. No milk, so thankfully my Luz won't have another thing to add onto her woes.

"Might've had a terrible night, but we can at least start the morning off something nice." He said. I could tell he was trying his best to cheer everyone up. His results… varied. Most of the others dug into their meal as if they hadn't eaten in days… it was probably their way of dealing with the stress.

But Luz, Eda and I were not so eager. I had too much on my mind. Eda simply stood in her kitchen, drinking some apple blood. She wouldn't face us. And Luz… she could only poke at her food. Every now and then she would glance at me with worry. Perhaps hoping that I would change my mind, or maybe she was afraid of the answer she knew I would give.

If only she knew… I had no idea what I wanted anymore. Everything had become topsy turvy. This place didn't feel safe… but home doesn't feel safe either. What could I possibly do now? Where could I even hope to take my daughter to keep her out of danger?

I'd only just started to realize last night what was waiting back on earth. But maybe I was worrying too much about it? Or… perhaps I was not worried enough. I needed clarity… and I knew who to ask to get it. But first things first… I needed to get Luz out of the house.

I put my fork down and cleared my throat, grabbing everyone's attention. "Luz, about last night…" Luz tensed up, likely expecting the worst. "I think you and your friends should get some fresh air."

Luz doesn't say a word. Her head falls slightly forward before recoiling, her brain short circuiting for a moment. "Uh… wha?"

"It wouldn't be good to stay cooped up in here after last night. Perhaps Willow and Gus know some places that could take your minds off what happened?" I glance at the two young witches, who also seem a bit confused. When they realize I'm asking them, they snap out of it.

"Uh… y-y-yeah." Willow speaks up. "I… guess we could go to our usual hangouts."

"That's good. I'm sure she would enjoy that. Just as long as Roger goes with you."

"Yeah… of course." Gus nodded.

I noticed Hellboy giving me an inquisitive look. I waved my hands, letting him know I'd tell him later.

Luz's remained bewildered for the rest of breakfast. Strangely enough, the anxiety of the situation encouraged her to eat. I did manage to catch her with several looks of content… guess I should start eat too. I'm worried it might be the only reprieve either of us have today.

It didn't take too long for the kids to get ready, even Luz. No doubt it was because I didn't turn her down like she thought I would. But I don't want to get her hopes up… it's not as if that suddenly means I'm letting her stay. Ugh… I'm thinking in circles here.

Out of their pajamas, the three children stood at the door. They were only waiting on Roger, who seemed to be talking with Hellboy about something. Eda was seeing them off.

"The gray goliath will be with you, so he'll keep you out of trouble. Just don't try to trick him…" She leaned in with a smirk.. "…He won't fall for it. Trust me."

Luz smirked back for a moment but drooped her head. She opened her mouth, only for nothing to come out at first. She eventually found the words. "Eda… if this is… if I can't stay, I…"

"Of course you can't stay."

She seemed put off by that. "W…what?"

"You've got a full day of fun with your friends to look forward to! No use squatting around this dusty old place when there's a whole town of cool stuff just waiting for ya."

Hooty took offense. "Hey! I bathe!"

"Yeah, in mud." She shot back. She placed her hands on Luz's shoulders. "And after all that excitement you'll end up stuck back here because my door is on the fritz. Chin up, kid. You're not out of my hair yet. So enough with the premature goodbyes, alright?"

I had to smile at that. I don't get along too well with Eda… but I won't deny that she has a kinship with my daughter. It's beneficial, even. But that doesn't matter right now, at least not until I can figure out what it is I want.

Roger finally joins them. Luz walks up to me one last time before they head out the door. "Mom… what exactly does this really mean?"

Isn't that the question today? I let out a breath on instinct as I put my hand to her cheek. "…You'll know for sure when you get back."

She's not quite pleased with the answer, but she's not sad either. She sighs to herself and slowly walks out with her friends. Roger gives me a thumbs up and follows them out.

Not a moment after the door closes, Eda starts to scrutinize me.

"Eh, stop giving her the once over, Snaggletooth." Hellboy calls over from the table, digging into an inhumanly large stack of pancakes. "She wants to say something, she'll say it. That is what this is about, isn't it, Cam?"

I give a weak laugh. "Si. How could you guess?"

He pretended to think about it. "Hmm. I dunno, really. Just a hunch."

"Yes, well I would've probably kept Luz within arm's length if I didn't have my world view shattered last night." I pinch the bridge of my nose. "But I suppose it's also my fault for not really "listening" when you and your friends told me all those stories. It was all right there in front of me, but I was too blind to see it…"

He shook his head. "Don't be so hard on yourself. Lots of people tend to be like that."

"But I'm not exactly in a normal human situation anymore, am I? I said that the first day I got here but I didn't think about just how true that was." I sat down at the table across from Hellboy. "And now I don't know what to do again. Everything seems so dangerous and… I just don't want anything happening to my little girl."

"So… how can I help?"

I smiled. He's been so willing to help despite how small my problems likely seem to him. "Despite worrying so much that it turned me into an insomniac, there was one thing that finally put me to sleep. The only way I'm going to figure out where to go next… is if I do the same thing I did last time." I clasped my hands together. "I need context. I need info. I need to know just what danger lies in wait on earth…" I looked at Eda as she groggily drank a mug of her 'apple blood'. "…And the Boiling Isles."

Eda coughed up apple blood back into her cup, spilling some on herself. "Did I… am I hearing this right?" She stared at me like I was growing a second head. "You've been against this place since you got here. I thought you'd be done with it after last night. Are you saying that you'd actually… let her stay because of some ghost stories?"

I was about to protest her framing of it, but she didn't seem accusatory or even opportunistic. Just genuinely confused. I take a breath. "I won't say for certain… but if I can get the full picture, maybe I can finally figure that out."

Hellboy snapped his fingers and pointed at me. "Which is why you sent Luz out for the day."

"Si. I know what she would argue for. She is biased towards the Isles. But I don't think she has the full picture of what this place is really like. Yet at the same time, I had thought I had a nice, full picture of earth and the dangers it held… until last night." I looked at them both. "Both of you have seen the good and the bad of both sides. If I am going to decide, I need that realistic point of view, unhindered by both her idealistic viewpoint… and my own."

Hellboy nodded, while Eda just looked in deep thought. "I'm happy to help. But I'm not sure where to start." He said. "My resume's pretty large."

"Maybe you could start with something I'm familiar with."

He raised an eyebrow. "Familiar with?'

"Yes. Monsters I was told about since I was a child. Dominican legends. If I can get an idea of just how real they are… it would be telling, to say the least."

He dug into his pancakes while mulling it over. "Hmm. I've actually been to the Dominican Republic a few times." He snapped his fingers again. "I got it." He swallowed before continuing. "Let me tell you about the time I was called to the country in the eighties to investigate a string of disappearances…"

---

The Six-Toed Dog

Santiago Province, Dominican Republic. 1983.

The BPRD had been called in by the mayor of the San Jose municipality after a string of disappearances occurring in the towns surrounding the Armando Bermúdez National Park. Several villages and hamlets reported their young men vanishing, the only evidence of their kidnapper being a series of footprints in the mud that were impossible to track. The locals believed it to be a local legend, and the Professor seemed to think they were right. Abe was off dealing with some matter in Campeche, so it ended up being a solo job. Like pretty much all my missions, things got crazy pretty fast…

The jungle was quiet. Save for the light rainfall that pitter-pattered on the trees. It'd been falling for some time, as the dirt path had long since become mud. At this point I'd been walking so long I was starting to compare how far my feet fell into the slop.

My muddy stroll through the woods eventually pays off. Even in the darkness and the rain, I can see the candlelight coming from the hamlet ahead. Kinda late to be up, ain't it? Wonder if they were told I was coming… or maybe they're just too afraid to go to sleep.

If I'm even gonna begin to learn what this thing is or how to find it, I need to ask a local. But considering they've already got a monster harassing them, I might just freak them out. I stand there for a moment, water puddling around my feet, wondering which door I should knock on.

I suddenly get the feeling that someone is staring at me. A quick glance around the hamlet doesn't reveal anybody looking out their window… but a small four-legged silhouette is looking at me from behind one house. It wags its tail as it strolls up to me, looking up at me with a big ol' smile.

"Well, hey there pup." I give out a hand for her to sniff. "What are you doing out on a miserable night like this?" She actually placed her paw in mine to shake. But that's not what shocked me. No, upon looking closer, I noticed the dog had six toes on its paw. Or rather, all of its paws. "Heh. Well, how about that… Don't suppose you know who I need to go to, do ya?"

She yipped again, and suddenly ran off to a specific house. She barked at me, wanting me to follow.

"I… guess you do."

I still hesitate to knock, even after walking up to the house. But nothing's gonna get better until I introduce myself. Hope they don't scream too loud. I give the door three knocks. Shuffling sounds can be heard from inside; they're almost frantic. Slowly the door opens, just a crack, and I hear a quiet yelp.

"Don't panic. I'm from the BPRD. I'm here to help."

He opens the door fully. "No, I… I'm sorry. I know who you are. I just… you're really that big."

I chuckle. "It's the pancakes. All those carbs, you know?"

That actually gets a small laugh out of him. "I can imagine." He steps out of the way. "Come in. Let's get you out of that rain."

I step inside. The guy begins to close the door behind me. "Hang on. Don't you want to let in the…" I pause. Looking outside, there doesn't seem to be any sign of my four-legged friend.

"Let in whom? Do you have someone with you?" He asked nervously.

"…No. Thought I saw someone out there."

He looks outside with frantic eyes. "We should… we should talk."

I stare outside for another short moment before I let him close the door. "Right."

Before long we were sitting at his rather small dinner table, nothing but a single candle illuminating the darkness. The man looked around several more times before talking, as if he were being watched. I hand him a smoke. Might calm his nerves. "My… my name is Luis. I suppose I'm the closest thing to a leader this hamlet has." He sighed in frustration. "And yet I can do nothing to help it. I know what is out there, how to find it, but I… I'm just too afraid."

"You called the BPRD. Best decision you coulda made, I think. You're no good to these people dead." I take out a cigarette and light it on the candle. He does the same. "What exactly do you know, anyway?"

The burnt ends of our tabs grow brighter as we smoke them, illuminating our faces briefly with each puff. They almost seem to match when each of us decides to talk. "It is a Ciguapa. I knew from the moment these families told me that their butter and meat were mysteriously disappearing."

"That's not one I'm familiar with."

"Some believe the legend came from the Taino. She is a woman of unrivaled beauty. She lures men into the woods, bewitching them with her eyes. They are never seen again."

"Like a siren."

"Yes." He leans on the table, silent. "I tried to stop it then, but I could not. I did not have the means. I could only watch as these families began to weep for their lost sons and fathers. Not just here, but in hamlets and villages all around. And then…" He buries his face into his hands. "My brother. He went to live northwest of here. Wanted to raise chickens. I couldn't stand the damn things when we were kids, but he always had a way with them. Kids liked to tease him and call him "Mama Gallina", or "Mother Hen". But he wore it like a badge of pride… I… I found out he went missing a few days before you arrived." He tries to suppress it, but he can't help but weep. "I have no doubt what took him. If only I could have stopped it…"

I let him grieve. He's likely had to hold it in for the sake of his fellows. God knows how hard it is to stay strong in a position of leadership. After some time goes by, I place a gentle hand on him. "My son, Julio… he's barely thirteen. What happens when she comes for him next?"

"Tell me how to stop it. And I will. No one else is getting taken on my watch."

He nods, wiping the tears. "It is… not orthodox, to say the least."

"That hard to come by?"

"It is not as simple as a silver bullet or a stake through the heart. See, it is difficult enough to track the monster. Since its feet are backwards, tracking becomes a nightmare. But the only way to truly capture a Ciguapais in on a full moon… with a certain kind of dog."

"Which breed?"

He shakes his head. "The breed isn't the issue. It's the… traits." He sighs in exhaustion. "It's… complicated to explain why. But the only kind of dog that can track a Ciguapa… has six toes on each foot."

"…You don't say."

"I know, I know, it's not like one of those dogs are just sleeping in any old kennel. I should know, I looked all over the country. God, I searched all over Hispaniola. But I couldn't even find one." He stroked his hair back, stressed. "I went into town, used a computer to look for any overseas. Still didn't find any, but even if I did, I wouldn't be able to afford it."

Something funny's going on here. "What about the dog outside?"

"…Outside?"

"Yeah. Six toes. Black and white? Seems friendly."

"Oh. You must've seen the pictures at the memorial." Memorial? "I'm afraid she is no longer with us. Though I wish to God she was…"

"You mean…"

"She died over a decade ago. She was beloved by all of us." He chuckled a little, shedding a few more tears. "We… we called her Seis… just a darling. A good… a great dog. I wanted so badly for Julio to grow up with her. But she's gone now."

"…I see."

"Usually, we'd have more time to find a different solution. But the monster is only supposed to attack on the full moon. Instead, she's been attacking practically every night. If we don't stop this now, none of these villages will have any men left. Our only hope is if you have any ways of tracking the creature. That perhaps the bureau knows other ways to find a monster like this. Otherwise… we might be lost."

I look towards the front door. "I don't think we'll need to-"

CRASH

We stand up quickly, spooked by the sudden noise. Footsteps pound through the small home towards us. A woman bursts into the dim light. "Luis! Julio is- GYAAH!"

"Carmen, calm down! He is here to help! What about Julio? What's happening?"

She rushes to Luis' side, fearfully looking between him and I. "I… I woke up from a nightmare about Julio and the Ciguapa. I went to go check on him and… and…. he's gone, Luis!"

"What?!" He and his wife rush to their child's bedroom, me in tow. The window's wide open. There's a fairly large sharpened stick next to it- a makeshift spear. Kid probably thought he could take the thing out, help his pops… bit off more than he could chew. Doesn't take a genius to know what happened next.

"No… no, no, no!" He turns to me. "Please. You said you saw something out there. Did you see where it went?"

"No…" I walk over, looking outside for a quick moment. The footprints are filled with water… they've lost a lot of form from the rain, but they're still there. No telling when it happened, but it won't help to ask that now. Dunno if there's still time… but I ain't gonna find out sitting here. I scoop up the stick and rush outside.

"W-wait, Hellboy! Where are you going?!"

"I told you I wasn't letting anyone else get taken! I meant it!"

"B-but the dog!"

"Trust me, Luis! I've got it taken care of!" At least I hope so, if my suspicions are right.

I follow the footprints for a while. At some point, I notice a set of footsteps join his… backwards footsteps… before going back down to one… then disappearing over a small set of rocks. It's when I get past the rocks that things get bad. Multiple lines of footprints, both going towards and away from the hamlet. Difficult is an understatement… how'd she even do this?

A small yip comes from my left. A familiar pup runs up beside me… as if appearing out of thin air. "Was wondering when you'd show up. Over a decade, huh?" She looks up at me silently. "Guess you're still looking after him, eh?" She barks in confirmation. "She took the kid. We don't have much time. Think you can make sense of this?"

She sniffs at the ground, going over all the pathways. She settles on one off to the left, giving a little yip.

"Good girl. Lead the way."

The path leads higher into the mountains. Every second it takes to catch up, I feel like I'm losing ten minutes to save the boy. Seis is like a machine, running through the forest at a breakneck pace. I nearly lose her a few times.

Our chase eventually pays off. Seis slows down close to a mountain side, a cavern not so inconspicuously sticking out among the rocks. Seis gives a subtle growl as she stares into the dark opening. I slowly trod up the mountain, readying my borrowed weapon.

A chirping noise stops me in my tracks. Almost like a bird. Coming from the cave… and it's getting louder. Damn. Was hoping to catch this thing off guard. That way I wouldn't look at it. If this thing bewitches anybody that looks into its pearly whites, I needed to make sure it didn't see me.

Seis growls again. Maybe I could close my eyes? Let Seis guide me? …Actually… I can look at her. Just not into her eyes. Maybe…

The footsteps draw closer. Seis sounds ready to tear someone's throat out. Eventually, it comes to a halt. It's about three feet away. I'd glare it in the eyes if I could… but I'm just a little more focused on her odd appendages. Hope she's not sensitive about her "condition". The darkness caused by the rain helps, but the continuous lightning means I can't rely on it.

She coos. "Sorry to intrude, lady. But I'm looking for somebody. A young kid who wandered off. Couldn't help but think he might be with you. No reason why."

The Ciguapa doesn't speak, chirping more as she slowly strolls up to me. The closer she gets, the harder it is to avoid having her face in my line of sight. Especially since she's shorter than me. She pauses right before me… before crouching quickly, hoping to catch my line of sight. Just a second too late- I blink and dart my head upward, so I'm looking at the treetops instead. "Ah, ah, ah. Not getting me that easily." I hear her growl. "Listen. All I want is the kid… and for you to stop taking people. You do that and I'm out of here."

She gives a fiercer growl. "Not sure what you're on about, but I ain't leaving with the kid. And if you're not gonna give him over… if you're gonna keep hurting these people… we're gonna have a problem." I step a little closer. "So… we gonna do this the hard way?"

…

She answers with a slash from her claws, putting a gash in my chest and flinging me back from the force. I land a good ways down the rocky hill, dropping the stick along the way. "Guess that's a yes…" I groan. The wound is already closing up, but damn if I wasn't expecting such tough claws. I dart my head back up, taking care not to look too high. But the Ciguapa's gone. I take out my Good Samaritan, keeping my eyes to the ground but my arm torso high. I can hear the mud being disturbed around me. Still no idea where Seis is.

Another slash hits me on the shoulder. I retaliate by shooting, but from the sound of it, I only hit the trees. Another across my back, another shot in response. I'm not getting anywhere like this… I'm essentially fighting half blind.

Alright, calm down. She's got you handicapped as far as sight goes… so just listen. Rain's not coming down that hard.

…

…

…

The mud gets sloshed to my right, and I throw a backhand, finally hitting her. She still dodges my bullets. Gonna need to hit her a little harder. Or maybe just not be a garbage shot…

Another sloshing of mud behind me. I wind up and wait for it…just as she's on top of me, I turn and give a blind hail mary. I hear the satisfying sound of a face getting punched, followed by her landing in the mud. Before I can shoot her, I hear parking from up the hill. Seis is standing outside the cave entrance. Was wondering where she went.

I hear the mud shifting ahead. Damn it… shouldn't have gotten distracted. Now I have to get another good punch in. Is she seriously running at me head on?

I swing at her again, but this time she's ready. I barely have time to cover my eyes as she uses the mud to slide beneath me. Bad move, I should've dodged. I get flung off my feet and face first into the instinct, I wipe at the mud in my eyes. And the first thing I see are… some rather gorgeous eyes. And the world just sort of… falls away.

Wh…what was I doing again? Something about… a kid? But… damn, she looks amazing. I… I can't take my eyes off of her. I feel something slip from my hands… and hear a beautiful voice.

That's it. No need to fight. Just relax, and let me… take care of you. Y…yeah. Sounds like a good time. Such harsh words you told me earlier. And hitting me… so rude. But I can forgive you. Such a poor, pathetic creature… so broken and tamed by these humans that you would side with them instead of one of your kin… you understand now, don't you? These cruel humans take and take and take, cutting down these once beautiful forests for ugly stone and metal constructs. I am simply taking something in return. She steps closer, her pretty smile gets… sharper.

Yes… I take their fathers and brothers and sons… until they receive the message. Then perhaps I will - "SCREEEEEEAAAAYYGGGGHH" An ugly screech interrupts her sultry voice. One of her gorgeous eyes is… gone. Red liquid pours from where it used to be as she backs away, covering her face in agon-

"YYEEEEEEEOUCH!" I grab my tail, clutching it in pain. Who the hell freaking bit me? It felt like… like a dog. "Wait a second…"

I finally register the rain landing on my face and remember where I am… what I was doing. Damn… I nearly let myself become a midnight snack.

"Sir? Are you… okay?" I suddenly notice a young boy standing next to me. He's holding the spear I dropped earlier, its tip bloodied. I connect the dots pretty quickly.

"Pretty dangerous thing you did, kid."

"I made sure not to look into her eyes directly… since she was staring at you, it was easier."

"So… you're Julio, right? Luis' kid?"

"You know my papá?"

"Well, he asked for my help concerning our little friend over there. And saving you, when you went missing."

"I… I'm sorry. I wanted justice for my uncle… I wanted to make her pay for hurting my papa. So when I thought I heard it outside, I went and looked… and then everything suddenly went fuzzy. I woke up in the cave up there. It was weird… it almost felt like something licked me awake."

"…Definitely strange."

"But now we can certainly kill her! She's wounded!"

I hold him in place before he can bum rush her. "Hey! Hang on, kid! We can't take her without a plan."

"But her eye is gone!"

"And she's still got one left. I think that's enough for her. If either of us get lost in her eyes… eye, again, we'll both be in trouble. She'll definitely hear us coming if we rush her." I pick up my gun, mud seeping from its openings. "And we definitely can't hit her from a distance anymore. We got to find a way to get close without getting that vicious stare of hers." As the mud drips onto my hands, I get the inklings of an idea. "Kid, when I give the signal, dig your hands into the mud and launch as much as you can at her. Right in her face, got it?" He nods, almost looking at her. "Don't look. Can't risk it. Just wait for my mark."

The commotion caused by Seis suddenly went quiet. The monster gave a low growl and I could here it shuffling around. Pretty soon the growling slowly got louder. Here she comes… the mud sloshes louder and louder as she steps ever closer. Not yet… not yet…

…

"NOW!" With a heave, the both of us fling a gallon of mud right into the creature's face. She screeches as her face is covered. With little time to lose, I snatch the spear from the kid's hand and drive it straight through her. Her wail catches in her throat, grasping at my arms. "You know, I could kinda get it. Your home keeps getting cut down. And it's a load of crap. But you lost me on account of you being a kidnapping, murdering bitch. So, use those freaky feet of yours and walk right into hell." I let go of the weapon, her body limply teetering backward splashing into the water. "How's that for taking something in return?"

I collapsed backward into the mud. That was a close call… but that seems to be a common theme for me. Maybe I should just rest for a moment.

I'm not able to shut my eyes for long though. "Uh, Mr. Demon Guy? Are you dead?" Luis' boy pokes me with a stick.

"Alright, alright. I'm getting up. Stop it already." He sighs in relief. He eyes the corpse of the creature. Must be a little shellshocked. "Well, kid, you might've gotten captured, but you sure make a pretty good spear. I think he'll be proud that your handiwork helped bring the monster down."

He smiles. "Really?"

"After he scolds the crap out of you, of course." He deflated a little. "Come on. Let's get you home."

We got back an hour or so later. Luis and his wife tore into Julio at first, but softened when it fully hit them that he was safe. I hadn't seen Seis since the fight. Guess she thought her work was done on this plane. The locals lauded me for helping them, even if I couldn't save the victims. But I let them know who the real hero was. Luis only smiled fondly, almost unsurprised. He was just glad she was still watching over them.

When I left the next day, I heard a bark up the road. Seis was standing there, seeing me on my way out. She then walked back into the forest, her form fading along the way…

---

"That's…" I leaned forward, rubbing my temples. "I can't believe that actually happened. A real Ciguapa? A living, breathing Ciguapa? And close to where I lived as a child…" I turned to Hellboy. "How did I never hear about this? Even as schoolhouse rumors?"

"Governments tend to want to cover up monster incidents. It could have a lot of reasons. Tourism, not wanting to use money on services to prevent monster attacks, public appeal for certain politicians… sometimes they genuinely think they're protecting the fragile minds of the people. It's up in the air whether that last one has merit, but rural areas tend to get hit with the consequences the hardest." He threw his fork on his plate, having long since finished his meal. "Not that it still doesn't seep through. But middle and high class urban areas just tend to go on like nothing happened. Kind of like how they do with… well, everything else really."

I sighed. "You've certainly painted a vivid picture for me, Hellboy. I think I can begin to understand the world you've been encountering your whole life." She looked at Eda. "Still, even with that on my mind, I'm not sure if occasional threats like that can top the constant danger of the Boiling Isles. Nearly every day Luz has been here so far, she has nearly died. The danger here just seems overwhelming in comparison. Unless, Miss Clawthorne, you can prove otherwise?"

The Owl Lady stared at me, before her eyes darted all over the place. She chuckled nervously. That didn't inspire much confidence. "Y-Yeah! Sure! Otherwise! You know, I have just the story for that. A perfectly normal, safe day where I experienced no horrors beyond imagination. It's even filled with cute little bunnies and birdies and wolverines…"

"Wolverines?" Hellboy parroted in exasperation.

"Yeah, they're pretty adorable… and uh, harmless, right?" The two of us looked at each other, before looking back at her incredulously.

She sighed. "Okay, okay. I can't give you a story you'd want to hear. But I do have one. And I know I can at least make my case with it." She got up from her seat. "But first, can we maybe clean up my house a little? There's still liquids all over the place. And I think my snake oil grew some snakes."

Well. That would explain what I just felt starting to slither up my leg.

---

I paced back and forth around the bench Willow brought us to. Mamá's out of nowhere indecision could result in anything. She could change her mind… or she'll double down. Or maybe she'll stay on the fence forever! Agggh! The anxiety this is causing is eating me up inside!

"Luz, you have to calm down." Gus said from the bench. "Are you just going to keep pacing till it's time to go home?"

"If it makes time go faster, then yes!"

"I can tell you, it definitely doesn't. Though I do have a theory revolving around 88 Titan toes per hour…"

"This place is rather beautiful." Roger said… before raising up his hand, a giant flytrap plant wrapped around it. "If… dangerous."

"I come here a lot when I want to take my mind off things." Willow explains. "I thought Luz might like to see the exotic plants, but…"

I finally stop. "I'm sorry, guys, but I can't get this out of my head. Mamá seemed so sure last night, but now it seems like I still have a chance. But it may amount to nothing. But waiting here is killing me. AAAAAAGHHH! It's like every second ticks slower and slower!"

"Luz, whatever's going on, it's in the hands of Hellboy and Eda. There's not much you can do." Willow tried to reason.

"No…" I argue back. "Maybe there is. Last time, Mami spoke to the rest of you… but then she came to me. If I can make an argument to explain why it's okay to stay on the isles, I can convince her, once and for all, to let me do magic!"

"But you already tried that." Gus brought up. "You told her the Isles weren't dangerous. Which… isn't true in the slightest, honestly."

"I don't know." Roger shrugged. "I can't say it's any worse than what the B.P.R.D. has to deal with."

I could just see the lightbulb above my head. "Roger, that's it! My mom wants to bring me home because she thinks I'll be safer there, but you and I both know just how dangerous the world- our world- can be! If we can show her that, the Isles will seem tame by comparison."

"That… seems counter-intuitive." Willow pointed out. "Not to mention, your mom might just see it as desperate."

"I don't have much choice, Willow. I can't just keep coming from the same angle. I need to try something new." I ran up to my homunculus friend. "Roger, you know some good stories, right? You're in the B.P.R.D. I can tell my mom the ones about Hellboy, but any other will help."

"Well, I haven't been on any field missions. I haven't been with the agency for that long, honestly." He stroked his chin. "I've only been on one. But I'm not allowed to tell anyone. It hasn't been… declassed? The point is, I've got nothing."

"Oh, come on, Roger. Nothing at all?"

He took a deep breath. "I could talk about the story of my brother…"

He looked reluctant on that. "…No. That one was… personal. I get that." I couldn't go that far.

He smiled. "Thank you, Luz." He sat back onto the bench. "Well… there is something I might have. In between then… and when I was born. Even just after my birth, I'd experienced the supernatural side of Earth…"

---

The Homunculus and the Princess

I had been wandering for quite some time. I thought myself a monster. I didn't begin to think differently until I had been found by Hellboy. But there was another moment before all of that… when I almost thought otherwise. Back when I had no name. I had been walking the country of Romania in the eight days between my revival and meeting my brother…

This country is cold. Especially at night. The wind rides along its mountains, brushing against every creature that should find itself without shelter, chilling them to the bone. Yet no matter how cold it gets, I still feel warm.

I should not. There is death on my hands. Mere seconds after being given life, and I had taken someone else's. It has only been two days since then, the image still burning in my mind.

Burning… I feel the fire of creation within me. It came from the woman. I absorbed every last bit of the fire from her. I stole her power. I stole her life force. Meaning my existence is even more undeserved.

I can feel that power seep out, should I focus. Curiosity had begot it. But it is… hard to control. Even letting out a small amount allowed large patches of grass around me to catch fire. Burnt old, sturdy trees. Scared and hurt animals in the environment. I have stowed those curiosities for now.

For now, I wander. Seeking any justification for my granted existence. Wondering if I can be forgiven.

My thoughts are interrupted by a scream. It rides the wind, resounding through what seems like the entire countryside. It pulls me to it, as if meant for my ears alone. But I am hesitant. Can a monster like myself really respond to a cry for a savior?

The scream rings out again and my body moves on its own. I run through the forest as fast as I can, trying to follow the voice. It becomes louder as I rush through the foliage. But as I made my way forward, I also began to hear something else: Growls and barks, brimming with ferocity.

A figure bursts from the bushes. A little girl, tears in her eyes, bumps into me as fast as her legs can take her. As she shakes off the sudden stop, she looks up to see what she's hit, and her jaw gapes. I imagine I am rather daunting to find in the middle of the dark forest.

More so is the set of teeth that comes in after her as a pouncing wolf readied his fangs to tear into the young girl. I react quickly, backhanding the beast onto the ground while the child recoiled as the wolf snapped at her hair, only to bite nothing.

The animal shakes off the hit, standing up and growling in defiance. As if called by their pack mate's failure, nearly an entire pack of the wild creatures emerges from the brush, staring down the one who interrupted their meal as they slowly circled the two of us.

The girl makes a snap judgement by moving closer to me, trembling as the wolves decrease the size of their circle. The one I smacked away moves up to the front, likely the leader. It growls, a warning for me to give them the girl.

I found myself responding out of instinct. "What do you want with her?"

Another growl, this time baring more teeth, told me that I was not to know.

I look down at the girl, seeing her eyes stare back into mine pleadingly... A young life, begging to not be extinguished. With only that look, I felt instinct take hold. Though I did not feel deserving of my life, this child more than deserved hers.

I looked back at the pack leader, furrowing my brow, not saying a word. It snarled back at me.

Wolves lunged at me from all sides, fangs bared. I push the girl to the ground and use my body to shield her as I immediately feel them sink their teeth into my shoulders and back, trying to tear my flesh. One tries to come in low for the girl, only to find my hand gripping its throat as I tossed it away. The rest I fling from off the top of me, their rabid bites unable to pierce my hide.

What happens next is a blur. A whirlwind of wolves attacking. Punching or hitting them away. The girl crying, unable to handle it all.

I don't know how much time passes before the pack starts backing off. They slowly break off from the onslaught, limping and panting, except for one. The pack leader, unwilling to accept defeat, makes one last desperate try by going straight for my throat. But, despite its reckless abandon, the hunt finally ends as I slammed my fist into its face. The audible sound of bone cracking fills my ear and echoes through the forest. It gets up, its jaw dangling, clearly broken and with eyes full of hatred. It can only give one last growl before running back into the woods. The others follow, whimpering.

The girl remains curled up, now silent. She seems to be afraid to open her eyes, as if expecting to see a row of teeth closing on her if she were to do so.

"They're gone."

Slowly, she opens her eyes. The tears come forth again almost instantly as she rushes to me, crying into my leg. "Mulțumesc! Mulțumesc mult! Am fost asa de speriat!"

I didn't quite understand, but it sounded like gratitude. "Uh… you're welcome."

She backs away, wiping her tears away. "Sor… Sorry. Speak… English?"

"Y…Yes."

"Still learn. Not speak well. But I… understand." She struggled to say.

I nodded. "Do you know the way back home?"

"Yes… I… understand woods." But she scrambled in front of me. "But, please! Come with?"

I was… hesitant, to say the least. "I don't think… I shouldn't."

"Please? I… do not feel safe."

I sigh. "Very well. I will be right behind you."

She smiled in relief. "Mul- uh, Thanks you!"

We made our way to her village. She was still rather spooked, looking at each shadow and jumping at every small noise in the brush, not surprising after such a close encounter. "Should have been home long ago. But I… lost time, playing in forest. Got dark. They… the beasts… blocked me on big road. Then big lup… bark at me. Push me to come with him. Could not reach father."

I listened, curious. "Do… you know why?"

"No. Only that want me living. Had no choice. I go with them. I see empty spot. Run…"

""Into me. I see." As we made our way through the wilderness, I began to perceive an orange glow coming from ahead. "Lights from the village, I presume."

Sure enough, houses appear in the dark. There looks like a lot of movement going on. Seems the girl's disappearance was well noticed. "I believe I should go."

"Ce?" She looked at me confusingly. "No! You save me! Come! We cook for you! Give you warm bed tonight!"

"I can't. I'm not fit to be in that village. Among those people."

"How can you say that? You are hero!" She protested.

My eyes widen. Hearing her call me that… it makes me… happy. Makes me feel like… less of a monster.

Distracted by her words, I don't notice the voices from the village growing louder. Before I can react, they are upon us, surrounding me with weapons. They shout things at me in their language, and though I don't know what they're saying, I can see the anger and fear on their faces.

One man comes through the crowd, scooping up the girl into a hug. "Adelina! Esti in siguranta! Eram atât de îngrijorat pentru tine! Unde ai fost?!"

"Papa! Eu-"

"Tu!" He quickly turns his attention to me. "Cine ești tu?! Ce ai făcut cu fiica mea?! Răspunde-mi, la naiba!"

Adelina stood in front of him. "Tata! Oprește asta! M-a salvat!"

The man looked at her, shocked. They exchanged words, likely describing the situation up till this point. He glanced at me now and then, his look softening.

"I… thank you, stranger." He sighed. "You saved my daughter, and I am truly grateful for that. But you must leave now."

"Ce?! Tata, did you no hear me?! He is good man!"

"I will not argue with you on this, Adelina. Good man or not, the entire village is already on edge with a monster on the loose."

"One monster?" I asked before I could stop myself.

"I'm sorry, but it is none of your concern." He spoke solemnly. "Just know your presence agitates my people. You may leave with no quarrel from us. But never return to our village, and stay away from our people. Please."

"Tata!" Adelina angrily shouted.

"Adelina." I stopped her. "It's fine. He's right. I do not belong here. It was good to meet you, but I must go." I moved out of the crowd, making my way back into the forest.

A day since that incident. I am no closer to finding justification for my existence.

I've taken refuge in a cave, decently far from the village. It's quiet, and the animals walk by without much regard for me. It's rather nice to see them, if only because they take my mind from thinking too much. I will rest here for now, move on tomorrow-

"Hello!"

"AHH!" I stumble backwards as the girl from before hangs down from the cave entrance. She looks rather eager to see me. "Adelina? What are you doing here?"

"Came to see you!" She smiled.

"You shouldn't be here. How did you even find me?"

"Told you. I know forest. Live here, you know?"

I shake my head. "Okay, but why? Your father didn't want me anywhere near you. You've already been saved, and I have nothing more to do here."

"Well…" She kicked the ground. "I do not even know name."

I turned away. "…I don't have one."

"Ce? No name? That is bad. All people need name."

"I do not. Monster is the only title I deserve."

"Why you say such things? You are kind person. But you hate you more than village does."

"…That… is none of your concern." I mirrored her father.

She huffed. "You sound like Tata. Never trust other people. But I make you not say bad things!" She went outside the cave, before bringing in a basket. "I give you this. Full of good food! You eat it."

I looked at the basket, filled with fruits, vegetables, and breads. It did look rather delicious… And she was staring at me rather expectantly. "You're not going to leave till I eat, are you?"

She shook her head.

"You do realize it will be dark soon, don't you?"

She teetered back and forth. "Yes… but that mean that you guide me home again. You too nice to let little girl go out in dark alone."

I grunted in annoyance. "Devious child… fine." I took a bite from one of the breads. It was rather sweet. A very addicting flavor… "Well… you were right. This is good food."

She smiled. As I ate my way through the basket, we talked. She would try to ask things about me that I didn't feel comfortable revealing. So instead, she moved on to things about herself. Her favorite foods, her favorite flowers, the silly things she heard around town, the games she played… it went like that until I noticed the sky turning darker.

"I think it's time for you to go." I pointed outside.

She stomped the ground. "La naiba! I forgot thinking of name!"

"It's fine. You don't have to worry about that. You should get home."

"No! I think name for you. For now, I call you Gri."

"Gri?"

"Yes. You are much gray. But I find name for you, promise."

"You don't even know if I'll be here tomorrow."

"Oh. I know you be here." She sniggered, before leaving.

I shake my head. Such a strange girl…

I don't know what spurred me to stay today. But here I am, sitting in the same cave as she shows up with more food, another big smile on her.

We talk some more. Mostly about things we enjoy. But today, the conversation steers towards something different.

"I am… sorry. Sorry that Tata force you out. He was not unkind before."

"Before?"

"Before monster." She shuddered. "It arrive over year ago. Villagers that see it say it has head of dog. Others say bear. But all say it is large and ugly."

The event from a few days ago comes to mind. "This wouldn't have anything to do with when I saved you, would it?"

"I… did not think… at first. But Tata tell me something last night. Said I should not go far from village anymore." She rubs her shoulders. "He say that monster take princesses."

"What does that have to do with you?" I question.

"I am daughter of… may-yor? Uh… village leader. Tata says that is enough for monster. So, he is protective of me."

"I see. So, the wolves… were helping him." I tilt my head. "But why?"

She only shrugged. "I do not know. But I know mean bad." The two of us sat in silence. Suddenly, Adelina stood straight up, spooking me. "I know! You fight monster!"

"What?"

"Yes! You fight monster! Kill it! Save my village!" She explained. "You become loved by village, and don't have to stay in cold cave anymore!"

"I… don't know."

"It will be fine, Gri! You are strong! You fight pack of wolves!" She walked out of the cave, a skip in her step. "I go and tell Tata! He will love idea!"

"But never return to our village, and stay away from our people. Please."

"Uh, Adelina, that's definitely not-" Aaaaand she's already gone. Well… this will be interesting.

She did not come back the next day. I could only guess that her father did not approve… neither her plan, nor that she had been coming to see me. I assume he denied her from ever seeing me again. That's probably for the best, considering what I am.

Still… the time spent with her was… enjoyable. For the short time we spoke, I felt far less hatred for myself than I did before. Perhaps… I can at least rid them of the creature that haunts them, as thanks.

"MONSTER!"

A yell from outside disturbs me from my thoughts. That sounded like Adelina's father…

Walking outside, I see him as well as several villagers surrounding me. All have weapons. "Where is she, beast?!"

I look at him in confusion. "What do you… what are you talking about?"

"Don't play dumb with me, creature! Last night, my Adelina starts spouting off some crazy plan to fight the Căpcăun. She mentions coming to see you! I ground her for disobeying me, but come today, I find her missing! Where is my daughter?!"

My eyes widen in horror. "I don't have her…"

"What?"

"I don't have her. I thought she was still in the village." He glares at me. "You may check my dwelling, but you won't find her here." The man narrows his eyes, then gestures two villagers to look inside. After a short time, they come back out.

"He is right. Adelina is not in there." The bigger one confirmed.

The father's expression reads that of despair. "No. No, no, no. Oh, my sweet little Ada…"

I can already connect the dots. "The monster she spoke of… it has her, doesn't it?"

"The Căpcăun. A terrible ogre. A being of pure evil… it arrived on the borders of our territory a year ago."

"What does it want with your daughter?"

He sits down on a rock, his grief weighing him down. "The Căpcăun… in tales they would take princesses for no other reason than to be an enemy for knights to fight against… It is only now, as a grown man that I understand why it truly does so… when I saw it that first night, I could see in its eyes… no mercy or empathy. Only the unforgiving indifference of nature." He took a leaf from the ground, turning it in his hands. "It took my daughter as leverage. We feed it and protect it, she will remain unharmed. It does not care if my people starve, or if my little girl is hurt, only that it gets what it wants from us, like a parasite."

"He will not. I will save her."

"W-What? Are you insane? It will have retreated to its dwelling by now! Fighting the beast in his own home is suicide!"

"I'm tough."

"Tough doesn't matter. A Căpcăun may be a giant brute, but they are also surprisingly clever. In many stories, they lead heroes to their demise."

"Then I will be on my guard."

"And I'm supposed to trust you?! I told you to stay away from my daughter, and now because of you, she has been captured! Why should I even let you handle this?"

"Adelina is a kind soul. I may not be worth much, but I know she deserves to live. I owe her that much."

He stared at me. Finally, he let out a breath. "Fine. I will take you to where it hides."

We quickly moved through the woods. Time was of the essence. Maybe it wasn't the best time, but I felt… anxious. Perhaps this was the answer I was looking for. If nothing else, Adelina depended on me.

We came upon a cave, far larger than the one I had stayed in. It smelled of death and waste. Skeletons of animals and men alike littered the outside, trailing inside.

"Everyone, be on your guard. We must attack it together."

"Wait." I stopped him. "Where are the wolves?"

"Wolves? What in God's name are you talking about?"

"When I found Adelina, she was being chased by wolves. They did not dare harm her. We thought they had to be working for the monster…"

I have only a split second when I hear the growl from behind us. I slam my arm into the pouncing wolf, sending it back. In a flash, the rest descend upon us. Man and beast fight, blood flies everywhere. I run to help Adelina's father against a large one.

"No!" He shouted back at me. "We can handle ourselves! You are the only one who can fight the monster by yourself. Save my daughter! Go!"

I nod, venturing into the cave on my own. The rancid smell becomes worse every foot I go. Even more skeletons litter the ground, more of them human. I hope to God that one of them isn't her.

Eventually, I stumble upon a large, open area. The smell is at its worst. I look around, but it's hard to see with the lack of light. I nearly trip over something. Looking to the ground, I see one of the wolves, its body horribly mangled… and a familiar broken jaw.

I hear a voice rumble from the shadows. A large figure shifts in the dark. I can see that it stands about two heads taller than me. A growl resounds through the cave, rumbling my insides.

I remain undeterred. "Where is the girl?"

It moved closer, and I could see some of its features. Its face was caught between man and animal, with mangled teeth and pointed ears. Patches of matted hair dot its head. It seems to understand my demand well enough... and is not pleased. It bares its teeth and fangs, all of them covered in dirt and dried blood.

My heart skips a beat, hoping my friend isn't the one staining those sharp edges. A heat builds within me, but I force it down quickly. "The girl."

It grumbled in response, narrowing its eyes. Before he says anymore, I hear a familiar voice. "Gri! I am here! Punch monster and win!"

It stomped the ground, making it rumble, attempting to intimidate the girl into silence. I hear Adelina scream as the beast leans into a dark area. The sounds of her whimpering

The fire burns hotter, and I find it more difficult to keep it suppressed. Smoke rises from my fingers. "You will let her go. Or I will make you."

The creature guards its hostage jealously. It slings mud from its resting place at me- challenging me to come and take her.

In hindsight, I should've seen that as a warning. Instead, as I took a few steps forward, I felt the ground beneath me shake. I looked down to see the very earth sinking, along with my leg. A symbol of some kind glows, piercing the dark. I struggled against the ground as it continued to swallow me, more of the stone floor around me becoming soft dirt. But I could not free myself.

The beast only stared at me, its beastly eyes boring through me.. When Adelina's father said the beast was clever… I did not anticipate that he meant this. But I should've known better. If it were somehow controlling the wolves, there was no telling what else it had prepared. My limbs begin to lose strength as the makeshift quicksand limits my movement.

"No! Gri! You can get out! Do not stop!"

It lifted the girl, growling at her again. It makes for the door, intent on escape. I

"Stupid monster! Let go!" I cannot see what happens, but the creature roars in pain. Adelina must've hurt it somehow.

Suddenly, a scream pierces my ears… a cry of pain. Adelina's cry. He… he hurt her.

The rage in me built rapidly. I felt the burning sensation from before, ready to burst… but this time, I didn't stop it.

"RAAAAAAAAGH!" I cried out, fire blasting from my spot. The magic quicksand hardened, then exploded out from under me. The flames surged forward, hitting the creature head on.

The monster screeched in agony as the flames seared. But I wasn't finished. I leapt forward, tackling the Căpcăun to the ground, before relentlessly wailing on him. I ignored its cries of pain, smashing my fists into his face, over and over. I was too blind to see the crimson liquid staining my hands.

No, only the sound of a young girl, whimpering. I stopped suddenly. The fire had lit the cave brightly. I almost wish it hadn't. An intense burn seared across her hand. She clutched it in agony.

"Adelina… I'm… I'm sorry, I-"

She recoiled; her eyes filled with nothing but terror. It was then that I noticed the blood seeping off of my hands. Like they had been dipped in paint. I looked back… the monster's body lay still, its skull mutilated beyond recognition. Its innards lie all across the cavern floor. A ghastly sight.

This wasn't just the work of a monster… but a complete monstrosity.

I clenched my hands, realizing that I had justified why I should not walk this earth to begin with. "Let's… go." I stepped out of the way of the cave's exit, and she slowly got up to leave. I willed the fire to cease as we left.

The sight up top was not much prettier. Many wolves dead, but some villagers weren't so lucky either. Adelina's father rushed to her. "Ada! My child! What… what happened to you? Who did this?"

"The fault is mine."

Any relief he was feeling was suddenly overtaken by anger. "You?! I trusted you to save her! Now look at her! Her arm could be damaged beyond repair!" He shouted, verbally tearing into me.

"F-Father, wait…" Adelina spoke up. "It… It is not… it was accident."

"Enough, Adelina. We're taking you home."

"No." She pulled away, wincing from the wind brushing against her burn. "Gri saved me. Gri stop…" Sh paused. "Gri killed monster. Village is safe. I am safe. He is savior."

"No…" I said, grabbing the attention of both. "I am not. I am cursed. A frightening monstrosity…"

"G-Gri. No… you only scare me, it… I was not…" She shook her head. "You saved me."

"I hurt you."

"You are good man!"

"I am an abomination." I glared at my hands…. the blood having long since dried. All these hands were fit for was murder. "And it was foolish for me to think otherwise. To dream of something better."

"No! I… Gri… I know you are good man."

You wouldn't. Not if you knew that there was the blood of an innocent man on my hands. "I'm… sorry, Adelina. Thank you… for everything. But there is only one fitting fate for a disgrace like myself."

I walked away. Away from the first friend I ever made, from the only possible place that might've accepted me.

"Goodbye, Adelina."

I drowned out Adelina's cries, until I could hear them no longer.

And just like that, any thought I could be anything more than a murdering godforsaken creature was silenced. Not long after, I took a cross to the highest point I could find, and begged for an end to my suffering….

---

"And I suppose I was granted it. Though, not the way I had thought."

I saw Roger suddenly become sheepish… probably because he noticed us welling up with tears.

"O-Oh, I'm so sorry. Was that… Was that too intense?" He scratched his head. "I only meant to talk about the ogre, and the girl in danger. I guess I got… too into it."

"No, it's… *sniff*… it's fine. I mean, I asked for it. Literally." I replied. "It's just… I'm sorry you went through all that. I didn't mean to push you to talk about it."

"It's fine, Luz. Nothing I can do about it now."

"Have you… ever gone back to find that girl?" Willow asked, also sniffling.

"…No. I've never felt quite brave enough to go back. What could I even expect?"

"I think… she'll be upset that you left." I told him. "But also… happy. Happy that you're okay. And happy you have a name now." He smiled at that.

"I always wondered… how humans did without magic. I guess I know." Gus said, wiping away his tears.

"It's not always that bad. Honestly, people on the Earth side usually live calm, quiet lives." Roger said. "But when it happens… it can get pretty bad."

"Exactly. That's what my mom needs to know." I argued. "Mami wants me to go back to the earth side because she thinks I'll never be in danger from magic and monsters. But if anything, things are just as dangerous over there. At times, even more than here! And Mami…"

"…Uh, Luz? You cut off there." Willow tried to get my attention.

But I… had a sudden revelation. I'd read so many stories, fantasized about the possible reality of creatures, followed the adventures of Hellboy… but now, every single ounce of that could be true. And if the Boiling Isles were any indication, they were dangerous. Cryptids, demons, witches… and if they were anything like the Leshy…

…Two years ago. Two years ago, a boy in my class went missing. Around that time, there were reports of mutilated animals, from as small as cats to as large as cows. A few days later… his body was found. It… wasn't pretty. His father was sent to jail, convicted of the murder of his own child. But a week later, he was released, and all crimes stricken from his record. People were outraged. That's when several BPRD agents stepped forward… and revealed a werewolf had been the cause.

What was weird was… people just shrugged it off. Sure, there were people who thought it was a conspiracy, thought they were covering some corrupt bailout for a murderer. But most people just… went on with their lives. As if it were an everyday occurrence.

I knew that boy. He wasn't my friend, but… I knew him. He liked basketball and was the class jokester. His dad was a friendly face that always volunteered for school events. And while the rest of the world moved on, he was left to mourn. Left to be personally inflicted by the supernatural side of the world. He just sort of… broke down after that. I'd hear parents talk about it.

He took his life a year afterward. People mourned… and then moved on. Not thinking about what had happened to that family. The monster that shattered them. Why not? The BPRD stopped it. They always do. So, why think too hard about it?

And I guess… I'm guilty of that too. I always saw the romanticized side of things. The adventure, the magic, the awesome agents, but… there were people that were at the center of each of their cases. People who inspired the stories of the comics. People whose lives were ruined by… magic and monsters. People… my age. Whether it be a girl from halfway across the world… or a boy sitting right next to me in math.

In my little town of Connecticut, which has Mami and I's favorite chimichurri place, served just right by Mr. Rodriguez… where Mrs. Collier, the librarian, knows just which fantasy stories I might like… where every kid I'd ever known, mean or nice, plays and hangs out, only caring about the next school sporting event or video game or boy band concert… where my Mami and I live. Where I've grown up, where I've had so many memories, good and bad. How much of that would be torn apart without the B.P.R.D. there? How much had they already stopped? What's actually waiting around each corner?

And… and… how safe will my Mamá be when those creatures come knocking on our door? When Hellboy and the B.P.R.D. aren't there to help?

…This was supposed to help. Not make me feel worse.

Notes:

Sorry it's not all the short stories. The next two are coming, but after that, prepare yourselves for a wait- this time on purpose.

 

During the hiatus, and even before, I'll be going back to some previous stories I've neglected. I've been away way too long from "The Games Rich People Play" and "Exiles: Across the Multiverse". I'll likely even be doing some oneshots and even some fun little mindless writings.

Chapter 9: Heart of the Cards

An indeterminate time on the Isles…

Luz was up early this morning. She didn’t know why. She’d simply found herself awake, unable to sleep again. She didn’t feel awake though. Something in her heart was… aching. The morning in its entirety felt… somber.

She walked downstairs, hoping to take her mind off that feeling. She was met with Hellboy, looking out the window. He shuffled through a deck of cards aimlessly.

”Couldn’t sleep either.” He stated, already knowing why she was down here. “Just woke up and felt… sad.”

”Me too.” Luz walked up next him. She glanced at the cards in his hand.

”I’ve always liked cards.” He explained, aware of her curiosity. “All games, really. Professor always wanted me to think a few steps ahead, so he taught me a lot. Where they came from, how they evolved… a lot of them came from Egypt, you know. He used to play me back when I was a kid… I used to love shouting that I was the “King of Games” every time I beat him. Looking back, I think he just let me win.”

Luz nodded. “I’ve always like the designs of fantasy card games. Extravagant and unique monsters across so many cards… it must take a lot of talent. Since I didn’t have any friends, I only played my mom. If we’re being honest, I spent more time explaining the rules, or why a fairy was carrying a giant syringe, or constantly repeating what “vase of avarice” did. But it was always the best. Especially after a hard day at school. I don’t think I’d be good against regular players though.”

”Eh, don’t worry about that. Enjoying a game isn’t about having the skill for it. It’s about having the passion.” He lifted the cards up to her, giving her a smile. “Up for a game?”

She smiled back and nodded. And the two spent the morning playing. Sometimes the games were goofy, other times they were tense. But every single one was fun.

And though that air of sadness still lingered, it was greeted by a sense of joy as the two laid their heart out on the cards.

Notes:

Mike Mignola and Takahashi once traded art pieces involving Hellboy and Yugi with one another. This seemed only right.

Rest in Peace, King of Games

Kazuki Takahashi
1961-2022

Chapter 10: The Owlet and Other Short Stories: Boiling Isles Fables

Summary:

With the boys of the BPRD having told their tales, now the witches of the Isles have their own threads to spin... the true dangers of the Titan come forward.

Notes:

Ugh... it's happening again, ain't it?
So, while real life has indeed been affecting me, I've also learned from my sister that I have undiagnosed ADHD. Inattentive, from the sounds of it. My parents have it (also undiagnosed), my sister had it diagnosed... it's explained a lot about my life. Why I always seem to fall off on these stories, nevermind stuff in my everyday life.
I'm waiting till my next doctor's appointment so he can recommend someone who'll take my insurance. Then we'll see where it goes. For now, I'm trying out ways of quelling it so I can work on the chapter. But i wanted to let y'all know I'm alive and still determined to get through this story. I have a preview here for you to see till I can get it done.
One story is nearly done, but I've yet to start the other, so it could still be a while. Like before, when it's ready, I'll delete this, then upload the chapter proper.
Update 3/14/23:Hey, I've updated! I don't have both stories ready, but I felt I should at least give y'all one while you wait for the other half.
So, Stringbean, eh? She's the bee's knees. Heck, she could probably become a bee with knees. I was hoping she'd be a snake, and she technically is... which works for me.
Hopefully, I can get the rest out before the finale in April. Heck, I'd trade Waddle Dee plush if it meant getting the entirety of this anthology out before then.
...No, I wouldn't, actually. Waddle Dees are too adorable. But, one can only hope.
Update 4/10/23: I did not. But, hey, might be better now that emotional Owl House fans are looking for an outlet. …An Owl-tlet.
So, I was a little surprised by some reveals in the finale… but this time, they actually work in my favor! Can’t tell you why or how, only that they do.
Also, somebody should probably change the noodle incident on the tv tropes page about Eda meeting Baba Yaga- not so much a noodle incident now. Also, add the fact that I guessed that it took place in Conneticut on the YMMV page because not just because Dana was a native, but that I also reasoned that the trees appeared to be broadleaf! I’m totally the most superior owl house fan since I deduced it from that fact alone.
(...I’m joking of course, don’t add that second thing)
Hope y’all enjoy the chapter now that it’s complete!
Oh, and one more thing- big, and I mean BIG thanks to MyNameJers for the art for this chapter! Y'all definitely need to check him out, he does great work!

After an… interesting experience with multiple snakes (It wasn't my first time; Luz is my daughter, after all), we'd begun to clean Eda's house. It was a bit confusing trying to figure out what weird concoctions of hers went where, but with some guidance, we eventually got everything put away.

Before the lost of us could sit down, King stumbled down the steps. "I'm awake! Don't take Luz away yet!" The sudden declaration stung at my heart a little. He looked around frantically. "She… she's not gone already, is she?"

"Easy, King. Easy." Eda calmed him. "Luz just went out with Willow, Gus and Roger. They'll be back after a while. And she's not leaving until we figure out the problem with the portal anyway, remember?"

"O-Oh. Okay." He looked up at her pleadingly. "Why didn't you wake me up?"

"Sorry, bud. You looked completely worn out last night, I made a call to let you sleep in if you could. Unfortunately, everyone else couldn't sleep for long." He grumbled, not thrilled that he'd slept in. "Hey, chin up. I'm about to tell a story to Miss Noceda and Trenchcoat here. You wanna hear it?"

"…Ok." As she sat at the table, King leapt up and sat in her lap. The sight of his little head barely peering over the table looked incredibly adorable.

"Okay… okay…" Eda looked at Hellboy. "What do you and your crew know about Baba Yaga?"

"She's of Slavic legend. Countries spanning from the tip of Russia to the edges of east Europe know her, her tales existing for centuries. Infamously, she's known for feasting on children." His stone fist clenched a bit before relaxing. "Nasty stuff. But there are plenty of tales of her exhibiting other terrifying powers."

Eda sighed. "Yeah, that pretty much lines up with what I've always been told. All the scary bedtime stories taken up to eleven."

"I don't understand. The Boiling Isles knows about a creature from earth? I was under the impression that you were the only one who'd been to earth."

"We weren't always separate from the Human Realm. Once upon a time, witches of the Boiling Isles could go to earth freely. And the tales they brought back would persist even after Belos closed all methods of travel." She lifted three fingers up. "Let me put it this way, Ms. Noceda. Barring any exceptions, there are three witches so dangerous and terrifying that they even give Belos pause." Eda leaned back in her chair. "Truth be told, you'd be hard pressed to find anyone who believes they're real. Parents'll tell stories of them to kids who aren't behaving. Teens will pass them around the campfire to scare their friends. Adults will reminisce on "the myths of old"- think it was just the consequences of wild magic being told as stories. But me? I know they're out there. All of them. And it only took meeting one of them to know that all three were real."

She breathed in, and I notice her hand shaking. "Baba Yaga. The Witch of the Forest."

She dipped her finger into her apple blood, the crimson liquid staining it. "Nimue. The Queen of Blood."

She picked up the last snake, and it curled around her finger. "And the Black Goddess of all witches… Hecate." She noticed Hellboy tense in his seat.

"Each one has a rep sheet that could fill a textbook… several, more likely. If I'm ever lucky enough, I'll never see the other two. Word is, they're leagues worse than Baba Yaga. That being said, she's still pretty bad. You said bark head was going to-" She cleared her throat uncomfortably. "-cook Luz?"

I nodded, a shudder rolling down my back just thinking about it. The thought of having to watch my little girl be roasted alive… tears nearly fall from my eyes again. "Y…Yes."

"Yeah. Titan knows why she...enjoys that. …I…I feel just as disgusted and scared as you do thinking about what could've happened to Luz if I hadn't…" She trails off. "You said you've met her too, Trechcoat?"

"…Russia. Her turf. 1964." He looks away, grimacing. "Thought I could stop her. Found her in a graveyard. Shot her eye out."

Eda didn't respond. She only stared in shock. "…Titan below, Trenchcoat. Just… just like that?"

"…Spring didn't come to Russia that year. And all the babies born over the next 12 months were blind in one eye."

"…Dios mío." The words escaped from my mouth. "The… the entire country?" He nodded solemnly. "But… you killed her?"

He looked up at me, his eyes uncertain. "I don't even know."

Eda sighed. "Yeah… that makes sense. My encounter wasn't much better. And fittingly enough…"

She leaned over the table, resting her forehead in her palm.

"It started on the worst day of my life."

The Owlet

Boiling Isles, Unknown. 1990.

My first transformation. It happened just as tryouts for the Emperor's Coven had ended. The moment it did, the people jeered and threw things at me. I became… confused. Scared. Instinctively, I ran to the safety of the forest. I could've been lost to the curse right then and there. Lucky for me, there were two factors on my side that night. One, the curse was far weaker back then. Even in my owl beast form, my consciousness would stay firmly in control… unless I got too stressed. The second? Well, that's a bit more complicated…

Run.

Run from two legs. Need safety. Forest safe.

Tired. No more noise. No more danger. Thirsty...

Stream… water.

Water tastes good. Cooling down…

Water… something in water… something is… monster?

…Monster look… like me. Monster is me? Me in water? … Me…

I… That's me. In the water. What… what happened to me? Why do I look like this?!

My… my hands… they're just claws. There's feathers all over me. How did this happen?! Who did this to me?!

"Wait… where…. Where am I? Lily and I played in the forest sometimes… but I don't recognize this place. I… I'm lost.

I… I don't know what to do. Lily was always the better camper. She could find her way back… where is she? She was with me…

…at the coven tryouts. I… remember. I forfeited… Lily wanted it more than anything in the world. So I gave it to her… and then… my mind got fuzzy.

This… this can't be a coincidence. Transforming on one of the most important days of our lives? Someone did this on purpose… Principal Faust never liked me. That stuck up bitch Odalia might've done it. Or maybe this was some cruel joke by Snapdragon. She's just a psychopath…

This is getting me nowhere. I need to get home and get help. Mom and Dad will know what to do. Titan, Lily must be worrying her curly hair out over me.

Luckily, I don't seem to be too far into the woods. There's not a lot of animals… The trees look rather "organized, if that makes sense… and I can smell the lingering scent of scorched magic… this must be one of the places where the wild magic was purged by the Emperor's Coven. So, as long as I keep to these safe areas, I should be fine.

This new body is… difficult. Four legs instead of two, and these…wings are so awkward. How do griffons deal with these things? Whatever… once I find my parents, they can get somebody to deal with this.

I try my best to find my way home. But time passes, and I still don't feel any closer to Bonesborough. Oh for the love of- "I've passed that stump that looks like a butt three times now! This isn't working! I can't see any landmarks. All these stupid trees are in the way! How am I supposed to know where I'm going?!"

Ugh… Guess that means I gotta climb. I was at least always good at that. I look for the tallest tree in the area, climbing up it as quickly as I can. Unfortunately, I still can't see anything familiar. Just more trees… I can see parts like the Head and the Knee, but that doesn't help me all too much. I need to get higher… but none of these trees are high enough. Unless…

I flap the new appendages on my back. These stupid things are stuck on me for now, might as well use em. Sure, I've never flown before (I mean, I've also never had wings before), but how hard can it be? All you have to do is flap, right? I see nothing wrong with this plan.

Readying myself, I aim for another branch so I can at least catch myself if things go wrong. With a heave, I launch off my perch, flapping my wings like crazy. It goes well for a moment… but in a split second, everything goes wrong. I rapidly veer downward, slamming into the branch and breaking through it. I flail about, desperate to try and grab any strong branch. In my panic, I mistakenly furl my wings, sending me plunging down faster.

The ground speeds toward me. Terror overtakes me in that split second, my brain registering just how high I had climbed. I don't know if I'll even survive, I-I-I-

-Spread wings. Catch wind. No longer falling. But trees danger now. Use tail. Move through trees. Must stop. Reach out limbs, drag in wind. Make slow. Not slow enough. Land on ground bad. Feel, in front leg. But stopped. Stopped… safe…

I'm… safe. What happened? I was heading for the ground, and then… everything went fuzzy… now I'm ok? I'm alive… I survived! "I'M INVINCIBL-AGH!" I cry out, clutching my right arm. It feels like someone dropped a rock on it. It hurts to put weight onto. "Maybe not…"

I rub my arm, as if that'd make the pain go away, angrily muttering. "Razzing, frazzing, flying… birds make it look easy, 'oh, look, I'm up in the air and I just don't care', stupid feathered rats…" I can't help it. I still don't know where I am or where I'm going, and now I might've broken something. To top it off, it's getting dark. If it was difficult to find my way home before, it'd be even worse at night. Especially with a sprained arm… leg? Whatever.

I settle on finding shelter, but there's not many options. I'd settle for a large, low-hanging branch at this point. Not a very glamourous sleeping spot, but I've had worse napping areas in the school-

-What was that? Something big is rustling in the bushes behind me… was I just- no, there it was again. Loud this time. Well, if this thing thinks it can sneak up on me, it's got another thing coming. A fireball will send it packing…

"Wha- What's going on? I did the spell circle, I should be making a fireball right now." I spin my finger around again. Nothing. " D-Did I flick my wrist wrong? One more time…" N-n-nothing. My magic… isn't working.

…My magic isn't working.

As the rustling gets louder, my panic shoots through the roof. Something big is coming and I have absolutely no way to defend myself. I've never been without magic before. I don't… I don't know what to do. I'm frozen in place.

Run.

The word resounds in my head and I dash away immediately. My bum limb slows me down but all I can do is ignore it. The noises don't get any quieter. It must be on my scent… I can't stop. I run and I run, even using my bad leg. It feels like I'm being stabbed every time I take a step, but I have no choice. But it's still not fast enough. The noises are getting louder.

Eventually, I come to an open area, backed by a rocky cliff of some kind. The pain from my leg is unbearable- I can't… I just can't run anymore. I…

Hide.

The voice speaks again and on instinct, my eyes dart from place to place. I spot an opening at the bottom of the cliff and rush towards it. I struggle to get in- it's inside is large enough, but the opening's not. But the creature's almost here. Thinking quickly, I start digging out the dirt beneath the opening. It's working… but it's not fast enough. I growl, realizing that I have to use my other arm again.

It hurts even worse than running on it. Feels like my entire arm will snap off for every clump of dirt I dig. Thankfully, with both arms working, it doesn't take long to clear the way, and I scramble inside.

Just in time… as I settle inside, I hear the creature's footsteps as it arrives in the clearing. I try to calm my breathing. Each step it makes causes my heart to beat faster. I can't see it… but I can feel it's presence. It's overwhelming. I've… I've never felt this vulnerable. Its footsteps stop… just before the hole. I can see its shadow being cast over the ground in front of me. I can practically feel the world around me go silent. My heartbeat is the only thing pounding in my ears… and the begging within my mind. "Please don't look in, please don't look in, please, Titan, please don't let it find me…"

After what seems like an eternity, the shadow moves away. A slight feeling of relief washes over me. But I don't dare peek out. I just sit there, keeping watch. Eventually, the exhaustion from today's events catches up with me. Even my busted arm can't stop me from falling asleep. Even when I seemingly catch a glimpse of the shadow, I can't help but black out.

A sharp pain in my arm wakes me up. Daylight peers through the opening, letting me know how long I've been knocked out. Titan… a whole day? Forget just Lily… Mom and Dad must be worried sick. I need to get home.

Though the possibility of the creature makes me wary, I've got no choice. I start shoving dirt out, this time leaving my bad arm out of it. With some effort, I escape my makeshift hidey-hole. I don't get immediately snatched up into the jaws of… whatever, so I guess that thing is gone. For now…

But… there's a new problem. The forest looks like the entire plant coven had an off day. And I can hear a lot more animals out there in the woods… I think I'm in… the Deep Wilds.

Every part of the forest that hasn't been kept under control by the Emperor is considered to be part of the Deep Wilds. It's where wild magic is at its strongest, it practically permeates the air. To say nothing of the dangerous plants and animals that live here…

Crud. In all the excitement last night, I didn't realize that I'd run the wrong way. There's all kinds of scary bedtime stories about how kids go missing in these woods… I really don't like the idea of becoming one of those stories.

My stomach growls rather violently. I guess I haven't eaten since yesterday… but what can I chow down on out here? As far as we were told, everything in the Deep Wilds was dangerous. That included food.

…Eh, I can probably hold out. For now, I should focus on getting back to a safe area.

My stomach is eating me from inside out at this point. It's as if every step I take, the growling only gets worse. If I don't find food soon… no, I'm just being a baby. I can work through this.

I see a blur scurry between the bushes, a small creature, no bigger than my hand… paw. Without knowing why, I froze. I stood still, not moving even an inch. After a few minutes of silence, a tiny head popped out of the bushes, sniffing the air. The skull for a head was pretty telling.

'An echo mouse… never thought I'd see those anywhere but the library.' I watched as it inspected the ground, searching for food. It didn't seem to notice me yet. I'd never admit it out loud, but these things were… kinda cute.

'Man, he does not give a single wart being out here. I guess this place is just everyday life for him.' I thought to myself. 'Still, he should be just a bit more wary. But he's just sitting there, alone… vulnerable… open… delicious."

The last thought was like an electric shock, zapping me out of a trance. 'What?! No!' I turned away, the sudden movement spooking the mouse. 'I am NOT eating that. So what if I'm hungry?'

'…I'm… hungry. '

' Must stop… hunger .'

' Must not starve… NO!'

I shook my head. 'I'm not an animal! That little guy's just trying to survive out here. It's defenseless! It's small… it's… it's…' I turned my head, faintly making out the mouse's form in the distance. 'It's… getting… away… '

' Must not… get away. '

' Must… get prey. '

' Must… KILL… prey. '

' Must… survive. '

I sprung up, quickly glancing around. I could tell this time... I blacked out. Last thing I remember, I was trying to stop myself from... wait...

I feel something in my mouth... Spitting forcefully into my paw, I look to see bits of hair in my saliva. Feeling around with my tongue, I can taste iron, plain as day. I feel something at the bottom of my feet. It's… like a small piece of rope. What is that? Moving my foot off, I find a mouse's tail, severed from its body.

Which means... which means... I didn't... I couldn't have... I... I just...

"Ah… Ahhh! AGGGGH!" I scream out, unable to stop. I scurry backwards from the tail as if it were poison, and wipe my tongue with my good hand. But I can still taste it. It won't go away… I just… want it to stop.

I don't want to be in this forest with all these monsters just waiting to eat me. I don't want to eat little creatures like some feral animal. I don't want this stupid busted hand. And I definitely don't want to be this dumb owl… thing! I just… want to go home… Mom hovering over me, overeacting. Dad cooking me something nice. Lily talking about how exciting it is to be in the Emperor's Coven… I can't take this anymore. I… I need them… I need them…

"D-…Dad! …Mom! LILY! PLEASE!" No answer. Not even the monsters care to hear me. I'm… alone. I can't help the tears that fall to the dirt. "I wanna go home. I wanna go home…"

I sit there, unmoving. Only crying. I feel my shadow change with the day. But I'm not sure how long I stay like that.

Yet another rustling from the bushes finally grabs my attention. Always the rustling. Some creature I don't know about waiting in the shadows. ...Well, you know what? I've been chased, hurt, starved, and turned into a horrible beast on top of all of that. I'm tired of this. All of this. I'm not gonna take it anymore. If this thing wants a meal, it's gonna have to work for it! I don't care if it's the biggest, meanest, ugliest-

CRASH

...Owl?

"Skreee!"

Y-Yeah. An owl... well, an owlet. Bug eyed thing is looking around the place, like it didn't even have an idea it was following me. Was it? This couldn't be what was chasing me last night.

"Skreee! Skreee!" It screeches out, looking all over the place. It spots me, and suddenly gets into a defensive stance, lowering down, raising its wings above it to seem bigger. I guess it would work on a small demon, but to me it just looks silly. Whatever... it's not some monstrous creature out to get me, so who cares?

Now out of danger (or never in it to begin with) I take the chance to rest. These last two days have been a trial. The owlet stays in the weird pose for a while, but eventually it seems to realize that I'm not going to eat it. Unfortunately, that means it goes back to what it was doing before.

"Skreeee! Skree! Skreeeee!" It sits there, screeching over and over. It feels like someone dragging their nails against a chalkboard. Well, it can't do that forever, at least.

"Skreeeeeeee!"

Rrrrrrrrrrrgh...

"Skreeeeeeeeeeeeeee!"

RAGGH! It's been hours! Freaking hours! Why won't this stupid thing shut up?!

"Skreeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!"

"OH, FOR TITAN'S SAKE! SHUT UP! SHUT UP, SHUT UP, SHUT UP!" I almost launch myself at the tiny thing, scaring it back into its intimidation. "You think crying out like a baby is going to help?! News flash, you little feathered runt! Mommy's gone, and if she didn't come to get you before, she never will! NO ONE IS! WHY WOULD THEY EVEN WANT YOU NOW?!" I huff as I stand over the owlet, still guarding itself. Its eyes stare deep into mine, and I can see everything that fills them. Fear. Vulnerability. ...Loneliness.

...Like me.

Crud, what am I doing?! Yelling at a literal baby for just wanting its mommy. I've really hit rock bottom. I back off a little. No need to frighten it anymore.

Should I just... move on? No, I... I can't. I'm seeing too much of him in me to be comfortable with that. Besides, this little guy's never going to survive without somebody looking after him. But what does he need? Well, he's not a literal baby, so he doesn't need a changing, and if he's sleepy, he'll probably doze off on his own... he's gotta be hungry.

I groan. I've heard these things eat meat, and that means... an echo mouse, or something similar. Which means I'm gonna have tiny creature blood on my hands. Again. But where to even find that? I'd come across that echo mouse randomly.

Well, I look like a beast. I probably have the senses to match. Might as well use 'em.

I guess I could… try smelling first? No, birds aren't known for their sniffers. But junior's got one heck of a set of peepers on him. Maybe I'll find something if I just… look for it? Worth a shot. Can't get a good look from down here, though. I need... ugh, I need to get some height. I look for the sturdiest tree I can find. One that's not too high either. Luckily, there's a decent one not far from junior. Walking up to it, I can already feel my arm telling me not to go through with it. Even staying off of it, it aches like crazy. Climbing with the thing's gonna feel like murder. ...Is this really worth it?

Without thinking, I look back to the little guy. The doofus has stopped raising his wings up, but is still looking at me with those big ol' eyes. He cocks his head to the side in confusion.

It tugged at my heart, much to my dismay. "Oh, I'm gonna feel this for weeks, I just know it..." I raise my good arm, clenching into the bark. I take a deep breath as I raise the other in the air. Ripping the bandaid off, I quickly bring my other claw down. The same sharp pain shoots through my arm. Knowing it's about to get a lot worse, I steel myself, then start climbing. It's just as bad as the digging from last night, maybe even worse. But the ride up is thankfully short, thanks to me being much bigger. I nurse my wrist for a moment. Won't be able to focus with the pain.

When that settles down, I begin looking at the ground, whether it be at the foot of the tree or a dozen yards away. I don't make anything out at first. It all just looks like plants and dirt. Maybe it was dumb to think I had better sight.

But the more I looked, the more clear things started to get. Little details started sticking out to me. Tracks made in the ground... scratch marks on certain trees... little bugs crawling along the twigs...

And then, suddenly, a noise. It was distinct in my mind, but it sounded like... leaves being disturbed. My eyes follow my ears, and my head turns towards the right. Narrowing in, I see a bushy tail sticking out of the bushes. The sight of prey clicks in my mind.

Knowing I might scare it, I quietly make my way down the tree. It hurts like it always does, but I can't afford to be loud. Once down on the ground, I make my way slowly towards the critter, making sure to avoid noise of any kind. Time around me seems to grow more still as I take each step. I stop right before the prey. Can't stand on my bad arm, I risk faltering on it with too much weight. So, I'll have to grab with it... carefully, I stretch my arm out. Need to time this right...

...

The animal goes still. It senses danger.

I freeze.

Both of us do. We stay still... waiting...

...

...

...

It jumps forward. But it's just a tad too slow. I grab its tail, dragging it out into the open.

I'm met with tiny, sharp and bloody jaws, gnashing at me. The top of its head has incredibly small eyes. Most of it's flat head was covered by two slits, its nostrils.

"Ugh... Trapjaw Squirrel." I say out loud. These things were annoying. Hungry little runts, they'd consume anything they could smell. And they'd bite through anything to get it. Bags, wooden boxes, even a metal lunchbox. Even if someone was holding the food, they'd chew through your fingers if they got the chance, just to get to the goodies you were holding.

Carefully, I grab its head by the nostrils, so that it can't snap through my hand. I clench my teeth. I didn't like Trapjaws, but… this still felt awful. Except it's worse this time, because I'm conscious for it. But… junior needs something. If he doesn't get it now, I doubt I'll have the chance later.

I grimace. "Ugh… Meal time." I lunge, piercing its body. It screams out, wriggling in pain and terror. Blood spills out, filling my mouth with the taste of iron. I hate every moment of it. It takes far too long before its movements slow down and eventually stop. When it does, I take the first chance and spit as much blood out as I can. The taste lingers, unfortunately.

With a heavy sigh, I plop the creature down in front of junior. He just stares at it. Then he looks back at me.

"Well?" I ask. "You gonna eat it or what?" It whines all this time, and now it won't eat? Wait. This is a baby bird. Does that mean…? "Do… you need me to chew it up for you?"

He brings his head slightly inside his body. If I didn't know any better, I'd say he was cringing. "Oh, thank the Titan. But… you still won't eat it?" He flutters his wings a little. Is he frustrated? "Okay, well what do you want me to do about it?" The owlet circled his head around, then waddled over to a patch of grass. He began plucking at them, tearing off bits of each blade. Piece by piece by… by piece. "You want me to tear pieces of this thing off?" He bobs his head down once.

The grimace comes back to my face. "Is there really no other way?" He stares at me. I guess there isn't. I kneel down, and reluctantly start tearing a piece of flesh of the thing. "Here I am in the middle of the woods, turned into a giant beast, eating small creatures and tearing them to shreds like a psychopath… and talking to a baby owl. I might as well become a hermit even if I do get rescued."

The strip comes off, and I hang it over junior. He finally bites it… well, he swallows it. I begin tearing more pieces off the squirrel, giving each one to him. Watching him eat is… adorable. In a way. In any case, it somehow keeps my mind off the fact that I'm dissecting a carcass.

He finally finishes up. Good thing too, I'd gotten down to its organs. If I had to scoop those out, I might've quit right there. "Finally satisfied, little guy?" He suddenly perks up and screeches at me. "Whoa! What did I say?" He seemed fine for a while, until… "Wait… uh, little girl?"

His… er, Her feathers smooth out. Whoops. "Sorry. I'm still calling you junior though. Nothing wrong with that." She cocks her head. "Well, I'm not gonna call you 'little owlet' or some junk. Gotta call you something." She stares at me again, then looks off in a different direction. "Well, we better get going." I walk away, ready to leave this… 'memorable' spot. But my footsteps are the only ones I'm hearing. I look back to see the owlet staring at me. "You coming or what?"

It takes a step back, making me scoff a little. "Look, I'm not the nesting type. You wanna stay here, fine. But I am the only one who can get you food… and keep you from becoming someone else's." Her head shrinks into her body again. "Your choice." I start walking again. It's not long before I hear the sound of waddling behind me. I can't help but smile.

Seems she's not keen on giving up her pride. Every time I look back, Junior starts acting like she wasn't following, pecking at something on the ground or looking away. It's adorable at first.

Eventually, though, I can hear her stop even when I don't look back. That's aggravating. "Look, if you stop so much, we're never gonna-" The words die in my throat.

She's looking intently at the brush off to the side. She screeches at something… something hiding in there. Her feathers are raised higher than ever. I run over, preparing myself. I tense, not sure if I'm prepared for what stands behind the foliage.

Unexpectedly, a figure instead lashes out from behind us. On instinct I move in front of the owlet. I feel claws slash at my side. I manage to whack it away, but the pain from the wound is fierce.

I get a good look at our attacker. It stands on two legs, but its body leans forward, with its front claws hanging below. Said claws are about 4 inches in length each… about the same size as its sharp teeth. On its body is a mixture of fur and scales, looking like some kind of bad skin condition. It stares us down with blank, beady eyes, before hissing at us, its mouth splitting into four segments- like some kind of horrifying flower.

A Devil Lizard, easily one of the most fearsome predators on the isles. Which was bad news for me and Junior.

There weren't many of them left, the Emperor had seen to that personally. But that didn't make them any less dangerous. "Tornadoes of teeth and claws" the camp guides would call them. Always hungry and mean as all hell. An adept Witch could handle them no problem. But I'm a novice… without my magic. And a bum leg. And now, a bleeding side. Surface level, but it was still an issue.

I think it might have been the blood from the Trapjaw I killed. Might've attracted this thing. Except, I feel like I'm forgetting something. There was one more nasty fact about these creatures, but I can't remember-

"SCRARARARAYYYHHHHH!" A shrill screech sounds out behind us. Another lizard leaps from the bushes, lunging at my back.

"Pairs." It comes back to me too late. "They always hunt in pairs!" I move to block, my arm stretching out and grabbing the Devil. Though I grab it, one claw hits my shoulder, getting deeper than I'd like. I hear the other one run forward, intent on grabbing the owlet while I deal with its buddy. It rushes past my legs to escape. Before the Devil can follow, I throw its hunting buddy at it. He dodges as the other skids across the ground. But it does compel him to change course, heading for me. It tackles me to the ground, gnashing at me with teeth and claws. I grab both its arms to keep them from sinking in. But it doesn't stop its mouth from clenching down into my neck. Neither does it stop its hind toes from digging into my abdomen. I'm thankful the thick feathers keep both from gutting me. But I'm still vulnerable.

But when the other one doesn't go for me. When it shakes off its stupor, it races off to my side. The owlet has taken shelter in a hollowed out tree stump. The Devil attempts to reach in, but its claws are too big. So it begins slashing at the stump, chipping away large chunks of wood with every swipe.

I want to help. I HAVE to help. I can't just let them kill junior! But… I can't get this stupid thing off me! The feathers are managing to keep it off… but its teeth and claws sink deeper, slowly. It'll only be a matter of time… I… I can't save junior… I can't even save myself… What do I do?

'Kill…'

H-Huh?

' Kill. Survive. '

What? N-No…

' Kill. Protect. '

Can't think… what is… happening?

'Must kill.'

'Kill.'

'KILL.'

'KILL. '

The light leaks through my eyes. My whole body aches. The ground beneath me feels… damp.

With great effort, I push myself up. My mind hasn't caught up with me yet… I was… walking? …Yeah. With junior. But then we… were attacked. By-

"The Devil Lizards!" I shout, finally remembering. I look around frantically. I don't see Junior anywhere. Nor the lizards. They… They didn't. Did they?

"Scree."

A jolt goes through my body as I hear a tiny sound. Glancing up, I notice a small body sitting atop my head. Junior.

A feeling of relief fills my body. "Huh… There you are. Thought I lost you. Gave me a scare. But if you're here… where are the Lizards?" I wonder aloud. I've regained my lucidity… which is when I suddenly feel a wetness on my claws. It's not my blood… the color's a bit off. I notice a trail of blood leading away. Dread emerges in my mind.

Justified when I find two bloody piles, sitting across the way. They aren't even distinguishable anymore… but I know what they are. I look away. It happened again… just like with the mouse. I stare at my bloodied claws again.

"What… What's happening to me?"

"Skree." Junior jumps down onto my good shoulder, nuzzling me. "Okay, already. You're welcome." I push down those unpleasant thoughts for the time being. I can't… I can't focus on them right now. We have to move. I might've "won", but whatever happened while I was blacked out let loose a lot of blood. It's not safe to stay.

Junior hops onto my head, getting comfortable. Guess she trusts me now… that, or she just sees no other choice. Still, better lay down a ground rule. "If you poop on my head, I'll eat you." I can sense her shrivel up a bit.

I begin making my way through the forest. It hurts when I move… anything. Everything. But I can't afford to stop. Who knows what'll be coming after us once the scent of blood hits downwind…

Pretty soon, the sun has set again. The moon's light is just starting to bleed through the darkness. And I feel like I'm just about to collapse.

But just when it feels like I'll be trapped in this forest forever… I hear something. Is that… an animal? No, no… that's different. It sounds like… voices. From people!

"Yes! We're saved, Junior!" I run towards the source, boosted by one last bit of adrenaline.

But then, when I get close, things get… weird. I can see a green glow emitting between the trees ahead. The trees seem to rustle… yet there's no wind. And the atmosphere is overflowing with… dread. My confidence suddenly drops, and yet I can't help but move forward. Driven by morbid curiosity.

I reach a clearing. In it, stands someone with long, abrasive looking hair. Gray, sickly skin covers her. And her eyes… er, eye, glows a deep yellow.

"I've yet to see her return in a year, Baba." A deeper voice speaks aloud. "I'm wrought with anxiety."

"Patience, Lesovik." The old woman says. "She is not so fragile. Keep observing. Keep waiting. In time, we shall find the Titan's secret."

"Hmph. This land is so… infested. Imps all over the place. I know not if I can bear their presence any longer."

"Should you reveal yourself, the pretender will realize he is intruded upon and shall oust you. You must show restraint."

"Please, Baba. Surely I may at least remove one lowly pest at a-" The voice stopped. "Hn… Baba, it appears we have a guest."

Suddenly something grabbed me, pulling me out from my hiding place. I felt vulnerable, and not just because I was out in the open. This lady felt… off. "Uh… hi."

"You…" She moved closer. I can't stop my body from trembling. "How odd. An imp transformed by a curse. Yet it is not of typical magic…" She lift my wing, and I can feel her clammy hands through the feathers. I instinctively pull my wing back. "Tell me, child. What brings you into the deepest part of the woods on this night?"

Rats. The deepest part? I've been going the wrong way the whole time! And now, wrinkly over here is… inspecting me. "Uh… not on purpose. I just… woke up like this. Been trying to go home."

"And yet, you find me. Such… opportunity should not be wasted." She gestured her to come closer. I didn't want to. But the ground beneath me seemed to move on its own, putting me face to face with her. She's hunched over, seemingly frail and old. And yet… there's a power there I can't explain. It weighs down on my head like an anvil, threatening to crush me. Her yellow eye bores into my soul… as if she's eyeing that instead of me. "You wish to relieve yourself of this curse?"

I can't even muster my usual snark. I feel like she'll kill me if I snip at her. "I… uh… yes."

She didn't react. She only continued to stare. "You will give yourself to me in servitude, and I shall."

"Uh… who are you, exactly?" Not an ounce of sarcasm in my voice. Only sincerity. And fear.

"You will refer to me as Baba Yaga."

…

"B…B-Baba… Ya-…Yaga?" Fear overtakes me completely. I back away slowly. "I… appreciate the offer, but… I think I'm okay. It was very nice to meet you, but I must be going home now. Thank you fo- HUKK!" My body seizes up. My bones feel like they are about to pierce out from my body.

"Child… I did not give you a choice." I feel myself pulled towards her once more. "Only… an alternative. You may either serve me with mind intact… or I will suppress you, and the beast shall be my pet."

"W-Wait… lemme go! Stop !"

"The beast it shall be, then." It feels like claws begin to dig into my head. I feel consciousness slipping away… Please… I've been through so much… not here… not now…

"SKREEEEEEE!"

Something catches both of our attention. Junior leaps out, hidden in the mass of feathers on my head. In only a moment, Junior aged considerably. A fully grown owl swooped in, taking one particular flower out of the ground. She landed on a rock some ways away before she changed once again. Her feathers receded giving way to bronze skin. White hair grew from her head. A cloak appeared on her body. Her talons became hands. Hands which she used to crush the flower.

"No! My ancho-" The hag never got the chance to finish as she disappeared.

Suddenly, the trees around us begin to shake. The entire forest seems angry at us. "Wretch! What have you done?!"

"I've taken a player off the board." She points at a particular tree. "Just as I can temporarily remove you ."

I hear the sound of someone groaning, and the rustling of the trees ceases. "What… What happened?"

The old woman approaches me. "I've sent him to sleep. It will take some time for him to wake up. Allowing me the chance to talk with you as I am. Be glad Baba Yaga was not here as a whole. I do not think I could've defeated her otherwise."

"Wha… Who… are you?"

"Hmm. The human world gave me so many names… Ninhursag. Artemis. Diana. Ragana. Xochiquetzal. It has been so long since I had heard my given name… Kuuhet."

I blinked. None of those made a lick of sense to me.

"Right… this world has been cut off from the human realm. I forget sometimes." She sighed. "Not that it matters. My name's birthplace, as well as all the rest, are only dust in the wind now. Nothing lasts forever. And yet… here I am, attempting to stave off the end."

"Well… I can see that." I say without thinking. She looks at me. Quick! Take it back! You already had one old witch try to gut you, don't convince a second one to finish the job! "U-Uh, I mean… you do look… kinda old." Dang it, Eda.

She looks on. Then she gives a light chuckle. "I suppose that is true. But it is not what I meant. My end arrives, and I can only consider it luck that I may choose in which matter I move on from this world."

"Choose?"

"Yes… this is where I choose to place my stakes. My final gambit. To impede she who destroyed my home…"

"I don't understand."

"You may not, for a long time. But you will know, when the time is right. I see it in you… a wild heart waiting to break free. You showed as much these last few nights."

Last few nights? What does she… wait a minute. "You… you were the one following me the first night!"

"Yes. Though I realized I may have frightened you. I took the form of the owlet to get closer… to see how you would adapt to the wilds around you."

She was around the whole time?! "You… you absolute jerk! I've been wandering around this stupid fucking forest for days, and all you could think to do was test me?! You're sick, lady!"

"It was not kind. I don't deny it. But I had to find out now… before my time was up. I've walked the mortal plane for so long… to see how I could stop her. To help those who came after us. I suppose it is only fitting that it is at the end of my life, when I finally find my claim.'

"Your "claim"? Listen here, you old hag! I'm no one's "claim"!"

"But you are the one I choose. You are close with that of wild magic. Especially of this realm. I've no doubt you have the power to decide the fate of this place."

"What are you even talking about?! Decide fate? The one you choose? Close with wild magic?! I want nothing to do with the stuff! Look at what it did to me! I look like a freak, I black out, eat rats and go completely feral! Why would I want anything to do with it ever again?!"

She sighed again. "You do not yet understand the blessing of this. You still see it as a curse. Such few days will not change that, especially ones so frightening. I suppose there is a risk you will never see it as anything else. But it is a risk I must take." She reached out her hand to me.

"Whoa, whoa! You are not touching me."

"I can suppress the changes."

"I don't care what you…" I paused. "You can?"

"Not permanently. But I believe there are remedies you may take when you return home." Well, so much for that. "It will keep the beast at bay… but you may find in the future that you don't wish to."

I scoff. "Yeah, whatever. What's the catch? Am I your "servant" now?"

"Nothing of the sort. Only that you hear my words before I heal you." I raise an eyebrow at her.

"You just want to tell me something?" She nods. "…Fine."

"Listen, child. Do not simply hear me and ignore."

"Alright, I get it already! I'll write it down when I get home if I have to, just say your stupid thing and fix me!" I snap. She doesn't react, only kneeling down to stare into my eyes.

"Remember this. The dangers your Emperor claims of wild magic are false. He seeks to control what he cannot. Deluded that he may stop what is to come. To find the secret this fallen giant holds. But forces are at work against him to orchestrate the end of all things. The Black Goddess most of all, so she may hasten the destruction of all. Just as she destroyed my home… And to prevent their victory, you must embrace magic for what it is. Wild. Natural. The essence of all things."

She grabs my arm, pulling rather roughly. "Return to the Deep Wilds when you feel the constrictions that his society has created. Embrace its chaos. Over time you shall see the beauty and power of wild magic… and you will hopefully learn enough before the time comes."

She finally let's go of my arm and stands up, but her eyes remain focused on me. "When you finally see, the last bit of my magic within you will come forth… and will tell you what you can finally understand."

"Oh yeah? Why can't you tell me now?" I asked, putting up what little bravado I had left.

"That, you cannot understand." I swear I can see a cheeky smile on her.

"Just change me back, lady."

A glow appears on her hand. The aura begins to encompass me. A blinding light fills my vision, and I see nothing but white.

The sight of the moon in the sky greets me. My head is pounding. Blinking awake, I get up slowly, bringing my hand to my head to nurse it.

My… my hand. My regular witch hand. It's really back to normal! I look at my body- no wings, no talons, no feathers. Even my wounds are healed. And thankfully, minimal clothing damage. That crazy old lady actually did it!

"Eda?" A voice rings out to my left, choked by a sob. I look to find Lily, standing in the doorway of our house, tears streaming down her face. "EDA!" She runs, capturing me in the hug of all hugs.

"Good to see you too, sis." I say, though a bit muffled. She pulls away. "You would not believe the last few days I've had."

In just the blink of an eye, her happy tears turn sad again as she looks to the ground. "I'm sorry!"

That's weird. "For what?"

She opens her mouth, but hesitates before finishing. "I just… I can't believe someone would do this to you…" She looks off to the side, distraught. "They must be such an awful person."

Ah. She must feel bad that she couldn't do anything to help me. "Eh, don't worry about it. I'll kick their butt later." It doesn't seem to give her confidence.

"Lily?" I hear dad's voice from down the road. "I told you, the neighbors are fanning out for your sister. They won't-" In the shadows, Dad stops in the road. "Eda?" His eyes water immediately as he stares at the two of us. "EDA!" He runs, so fast that he skids on his knees to come to a stop. Not a moment later he wraps me in an even bigger hug than Lily.

"Dell? Is that you?" Mom calls out from the house as she quickly emerges from the front door. "Poor Lily has been crying her heart out. Has the search party had any-" She drops a bowl of something. Probably whatever organic recipe she made. "Oh my… my little girl!" And finally, she too rushes up to embrace me.

"Geez, guys. Wasn't gone that long…" But I don't mean that. My eyes water just as much as I feel them around me. I feel safe again.

…Mostly. I clutch at my arm… the same place that lady used her magic on me. I don't know what she wants with me… but I hope I never find out.

I'd hoped things would quiet down after that, but they never really did. The lady was right- my curse did come back. And it started affecting me and my family. After a few "incidents" I'd rather not talk about, I'd left home... but I never really forgot those first few days I spent as the beast.

"But with things starting to get crazier around here… I don't think I have a choice."

Camila shook her head. "My goodness, Eda. I had no idea you went through something so traumatic. And at such a young age."

"Yeah, it's… not a time in my life I like to talk about. The bad days didn't really end there. Honestly, it was really just the start of my downhill drop."

"I can understand. Had some times in my childhood I don't look fondly on." Hellboy says.

"Really? I can't imagine." I hope that didn't come off as too sarcastic. I meant it in good faith. Thankfully, he smiles, having taken it in good humor.

However, his frown returns. "That old bat, though…"

"Yeah. At first, I thought "screw her". Thought I'd be able to avoid doing what she said, but when home life got… stressful, the wilds is where I ended up going. Er, eventually." I did find the door first, after all. "Still, that 'message' of hers hasn't come around yet."

"Yeah, but that's not the weird thing. I know some of the names she said, but I had to run others by Kate… all the names she listed were goddesses from human mythologies. All of them were patrons of nature in some way or form, among other things."

"So, what? I ran into a god?"

He shook his head. "No. I know what she was talking about. You mentioned the Black Goddess, right?"

I think on it for a moment. "Huh… yeah. I haven't thought about it much since, but with what I know now… she meant Hecate, huh?"

"Yeah…" He glanced at the door to the human realm. A pit forms in my stomach. He… couldn't mean… "I got a bad feeling…"

And I hope that feeling is wrong.

-

I watched as Luz picked at her food listlessly with a troubled look on her face. After Roger had told us his story, her mood had taken a bit of a dive. She seemed to be thinking of something, going back and forth about it in her head. We’d offered to go get lunch, hoping that getting something in her stomach would take her mind off… whatever was going through it. Even picked a food cart that Gus and I really liked. No dice, though.

“Are… going to eat your food, Luz?” Gus asked. “I really thought you might like the Fleshwich here.”

“H-Huh?” She looked up in surprise, almost as if she had forgotten that we were right next to her “Oh, sorry. I guess I’m not really feeling hungry.”

“Feels like something’s on your mind. You wanna talk about it?”

“Uh…” She looked unsure, her stare going back to the yet to be eaten sandwich between her hands. Maybe we should put a pin in that for now. Whatever answer she was looking for inside her head didn’t seem to be coming anytime soon.

“Well… how about this? Why don’t we tell you one of Gus and I’s greatest secrets?” I suggested.

Luz’s interest piqued instantaneously, her Fleshwich now all but completely forgotten and sliding dangerously from her hands . “A secret?”

Upon hearing that, Roger looked sheepishly at the three us, more than a bit uncertain. “Should I… step away?”

“Nah, you’re fine, Roger. I’m thinking the BPRD will want to hear about this. We were planning on telling Luz about it during the Moonlight Conjuring. But, uh… things got away from us.” I explained. “The time we met another human.”

“Say WHAT?!” The people at the tables around us turned to stare at us, startled by the sudden yelling. Luz chuckled nervously, realizing that she had not only jumped from her seat, but also shouted to the top of her lungs for everyone to hear. The crowd slowly looked away from us and back into their meals, uninterested in whatever a couple of teens and a golem were talking about.

“Why didn’t you mention this to the BPRD?” Roger wondered with an inquisitive look on his face of clay. “Considering this kind of information is quite relevant to the current case”

“Eh… there’s some… caveats to it, to start.” Gus added, hesitance clear in his voice. “To say we met another human isn’t… entirely accurate.”

“But that’s kind of a long story.” I finished. “You up for hearing it?”

She immediately slammed her arms down on the table, eyes wide and focused on me like a ravenous Helliamphora. “Tell me everything .”

I giggled in response. We were getting somewhere. “Alright, then. This happened a few years ago…”

The Shadow on the Water

Boiling Isles, Bonesborough, Hexside School. 2019

Gus and I hadn’t known each other for too long, only a few weeks at best. But we’d become fast friends. We just… understood each other. So when the most important opportunity of Gus’ life came around, I knew I had to help him any way I could. Little did I know our “ambitions” were about to get us both way in over our heads…

Augustus plopped his supplies down as the tide slowly rolled back. I looked around, hearing the waves hit the beach and the bubbling sound of boiling water along with it. A cliff, about thirty feet tall, stood next to the beach, overlooking the ocean. I was actually pretty familiar with it all. My dads had taken me here plenty of times to have picnics or look at wildlife. They even told me to avoid the cliff, as it was unstable thanks to the constant erosion done by the sea.   

Augustus had called me after school one day, asking for my help for… something. He wouldn’t explain, just said it was a surprise.

“So, what’s this surprise you were telling me about?”

"Okay, so get this," Augustus started, barely keeping down his excitement. "There's been a rumor going around school. A few weeks ago, the Beast track's class was studying why trash slugs came to the beach despite the risk of death. As they were studying, one kid cried out, pointing at the sea. He claimed he saw something on the water. But when his class looked, all they could see was a strange fog that had rolled over... practically out of nowhere." 

I stayed silent. Augustus was quite theatrical, and she could tell when he was using a "dramatic pause". 

"So, nobody pays it any mind. But then, as the Beast track sends their other classes over the next few days, other kids begin to say the same thing... maybe one person in class saw it, maybe a few. But regardless, it's always the same story... a figure on the water, always obscured by fog. Eventually, the Beast track cancelled the class, tired of the "disruptions". They say the kids are only seeing mirages. But I think it's something else..."

I leaned in, in anticipation.

"It's... a human!" He said.

"A human?" I had heard the tales of humans and I had asked about them to my dads, who had very differing answers about them. Her papa Harvey had said that they were nothing more than silly legends, and preferred to not focus on the tall tales of some cryptid species, or cryptids in general. Her dad Gilbert, however, was a different story: He believed they were out there somewhere, but didn’t think they were scary monsters or anything. Still, beyond asking them, she’d never given humans much thought. And yet… this seemed a bit odd. “I don’t think a human would be able to live in boiling water, Augustus.”

“Or so you’ve probably heard.” Augustus raised his eyebrows up and down. “I have a mindblowing theory that’s going to take the humanologist community by storm.” He pulled out a notebook, with a crude drawing of a human. It seemed humanoid in nature, with various appendages, oozing venom out its ears, and teeth on its eyelids… not much different from a witch or demon on the isles. But one feature stuck out. “Gills!”

I nodded as I looked over the diagram. “Fair, but so do a lot of demons. But what about surviving the boiling water? That stuff can burn even the toughest demons in seconds.”

“Well, that’s the second part of the theory. According to rumors spread by some wild witch, humans have really smooth skin. So, you’d think they wouldn’t last even a few seconds. But you know what else has smooth skin?” I shook my head. “Selkidomuses! Their skin may be smooth, but it’s actually very rubbery, with a lot of blubber beneath. It acts as natural insulation to keep their bodies from heating up, at least long enough to get food, or to move from land to land. I think humans have the same type of skin!”

“Really?” She mulled it over. It would make sense. Except… “Except you don’t have proof.”

He faltered a little. “Well… yeah. If I brought this up with the humanologists, they’d laugh. The lead researcher believes that humans have “smooth, sensitive skin”. He even says that they don’t ooze venom of any kind!”

I connected the dots. “That’s why we’re out here, hmm?” He nodded sheepishly. “So, you need to find the human to confirm that they have natural insulation and gills to prove your theory… even though that’s a theory you created to begin with… which is only because you believe the creature on the water has to be a human in the first place.” I smirked, teasing him.

“N-No! I totally thought they had gills way before this!” He sputtered.

I giggled at his response. “Easy, Augustus, I’m just joking. So, we’re… on human watch?”

“Yep!” He pulled out a spyglass of some kind. “If we can get visual proof that what’s out there is human, and that it has gills and blubber, we’ll finally have proof and recognition!”

‘Recognition’ caught my attention for a moment… but I decided to brush it off. I guessed having a little bit of notoriety for making a startling discovery about a mysterious species would be kinda nice. “So… how are we gonna do that?”

“Well, with the creature so far out into the water, it won’t be easy to spot. And renting a boat is too expensive… especially if it doesn’t show up the day we do so. So, our only bet is to capture a picture of it from afar.”

“And… how do we do that?” I asked.

“That’s the good news. See, my dad has a special camera for when his crew needs a clear shot of something from a distance.” He opened his bag a little, revealing a fleshy mass with a mouth at the end, an eyeball in the mouth. It looked at the two of us, blinking.

“Oh, sorry, Eye-ris. Go back to sleep. We’ll let you know when we need ya.” She moved her pupil up and down to confirm before closing her eyelid. “So, yeah. We just need to spot them with this spyglass- we don’t want to get her out on a false alarm, after all- and get Eye-ris to take the picture, and boom! Proof of humans being able to live in boiling water!”

“Sounds like a plan.” I looked out to sea. “You really think it’ll show up today?”

“Probably not, but that’s why I wanna keep coming out here. We’re bound to see it at some point.” He stood up straight, puffing out his chest a bit. “Can I count on you to have my back, Miss Park?” He said in, trying to pull off a deep, serious voice.

I giggled, mirroring him. “You can count on me, Mister Porter.” I saluted, which he returned. We stood there in those poses… before breaking into laughter.

And so, for the rest of the afternoon, we watched. Augustus more intently than me, if I'm honest. But, regardless of effort, the figure never showed up. Luckily, Augustus seemed to take it in good spirit.

"Hey, we were kind of expecting it to be a quiet day, weren't we? Just means that's it's much more likely that it'll appear tomorrow." He'd said.

Unfortunately, that hadn't been the case. We went back for several days after. But despite observing the sea as thoroughly as we could for the entirety of our afternoons, we never saw the figure. We kept trying, but Augustus took each failed attempt in less stride as time went on. After a week, Augustus began to get frustrated.

"Agh! I don't get it! Every single Beast track class that went to the beach saw the figure. But we've been at this for days and haven't seen a thing! What are we doing wrong?" Augustus ruffled his hair, agitated.

Indeed, it was a conundrum. How could so many people see it, but when we look, nothing happens? I had to think on it for a moment, but I just wasn't seeing it. But something occurred to me... "What if... we're not thinking about this the right way?" Augustus looked at me questioningly. "There was only ever one person in those classes that saw the figure. And yet, they were always with a group. Maybe... there's some condition to make it appear? Maybe it was attracted to groups of people?"

Augustus pondered on my explanation... and his smile grew. "Of course! We haven't been seeing anything because we haven't been doing it the right way! We have to replicate the details those classes had when they saw the human! Maybe it... attracted it in some way!"

So, Augustus formed a plan: we would ask several students to join us on the beach, to recreate the size of the classes and attract the creature. There was just... one problem with that plan.

"Ha! As if anyone wants to go around with you dorks hunting for proof of baby stories." Boscha mocked. It'd managed to get to her ears, despite our efforts. And once she'd made the popular kids' opinion (or rather, just hers) known, anybody who'd thought of going with us suddenly lost their nerve.

Amity had been there with her. She hadn't shown much interest in the event in general, but did have something to say. "Come on, Willow. Trying to drag people into a search for a mythical creature? Just because you're half a witch, doesn't mean you have to use desperate methods to keep people's attention."

It was nothing new. Amity had been drilling into me how I was "half a witch" since we stopped being friends. I usually just talked to my dads about it. It made it easier to weather. But when I'd met Augustus, it had been nice to meet someone besides my dad that I could just... talk to without being judged. Someone who could help cheer me up when I was down... and who I could do the same for.

But... this whole ordeal was starting to have an effect on him. As evidenced by the poor demon crabs he kicked at when we returned to the beach that day. "Rgh! Why does Boscha have to be such a jerk? All we want is people to come stare out at the ocean for a while!"

"Y-Yeah, can't see why people wouldn't be on board." I said, trying not to sound facetious. The two of us already had enough of that at the school.

He sighed. "If we can't get people to come to the beach... then, we're gonna have to get a substitute of some kind."

"Substitute?" I wasn't sure where this was going.

"Yeah... like... what if we make our own people?" He suggested, fully serious. "I mean, if the creature comes out because there's multiple people on the beach, who's to say it won't be fooled by fake people?"

"Well, it's kind of a hunch..." I noted. "But it's not like we haven't been operating on hunches up to this point."

"That's the spirit! Now, help me find some old logs..."

So, we set about making our little "congregation". We got whatever we could to make it look like multiple figures were standing on the shoreline. It took us over the weekend to get it done, but our hard work eventually paid off. Before us stood an entire class of fake people. We were pretty proud of ourselves. All that was left was to put it into action.

The next day, Augustus didn't meet me after school like he usually did. He was already at the beach when I arrived, spyglass in hand.

"Uh, hey, Augustus." I spoke up, grabbing his attention. "Kinda missed you there after school got out."

"Huh? Oh, sorry Willow. But I needed to maximize our time."

I frowned a little. Augustus was starting to take this all very seriously. Before, it seemed like it was just a fun thing, a hobby that he showed a lot of interest in. But now... I couldn't help but feel it was starting to become an obsession.

I ignored it for now. He was just frustrated, wanting his hard work to pay off. He'll calm down once we catch sight of the creature. Or… so I told myself.

But as the days went on, my worries only grew. Augustus would be so focused on the ocean that he wouldn't hear me unless I shouted for his attention. He would constantly fix the "people" around us, even for the most minor of problems. And his body showed more and more signs of restlessness as we continued to see nothing.

Eventually, he came to the conclusion that they weren’t real enough, that the creature could tell they were fake. So, he began to use his illusion magic. He would create images of himself and me to add to the people. But when the creature didn’t show up even then, he kept moving the goal post. ‘They had to look like their classmates’, ‘there needed to be more’, ‘they need to look like they’re doing something’, or some other caveat that he’d use as an excuse to justify using up all his magic. He exhausted himself maintaining them. I tried to tell him to relax, but he wouldn’t have it, insisting that his illusions had to work.

After another week using fake crowds, the sun was setting, and we'd still not seen any sign of the being. Augustus suddenly yelled in anger. "Agggh! It's still not working! What else are we doing wrong?” He shook his head. “We have to find this out.”

 I wasn’t so sure. He was starting to stress himself badly over this. If it continued, he might get himself hurt. “I don’t know, Augustus. Maybe we should take a break for a few days.”

“What? No!” He immediately objected. “What if it shows up while we’re not here? We can’t take that chance!”

“It will still be here when we get back.” I argued.

“You don’t know that.” He shot back. “I thought you said you’d be with me!”

I began to get riled up, upset at his accusation. “Yeah, when I thought this was just some fun thing we were going to do! But the way you’ve been acting the last few days, it’s like this is the only thing that matters! Who cares if we don’t find this thing?”

“Everyone! If we find it, if we prove that there’s a human here, that’s instant recognition!”

“That’s what this is about?! Becoming popular?!” I shouted. Augustus had never even implied… so all along, it was just for the notoriety? I couldn’t believe him.

“It’s about stopping all the bullying! The harassment! If we do this, if we get that popularity, Boscha and the others will stop picking on us! Amity will stop calling you half-a-witch!”

“No! She won’t!” I knew that for sure. Augustus had no idea what he was talking about. “You don’t even know for sure if that’s a human out there. It could just be floating debris for all we know! What are you going to do then?”

He threw his arms up in the air. “Well, at least I can say I tried! Unlike you!”

“What are you talking about?! I’ve been giving you a hundred percent since we started this dumb monster hunt!” I growled at him, beyond annoyed at this point.

He looked at me as if I’d just stabbed him. He clenched his trembling hands, biting his lips in anger. “If… if you think it’s so dumb, then maybe you should LEAVE!”

My eyes widened, the corners watering as heard him say that. “F-Fine! I will!” I turned around, stomping my way off the beach. This had gone on for too long. I was tired, and the whole thing had stopped being fun a long time ago.

“Fi-Fine!” His breath hitched. “Just go!”

…

It was our first big fight. I was so mad, I’d stayed in my room for the rest of the night, crying my eyes out. My dads tried to offer comfort, but I still didn’t feel better by the time morning came around.

For the entire next day, my emotions were a mess. I was a combination of angry and sad, bubbling together. Any time Augustus and I saw each other, we gave each other glares before turning away. I could hear Boscha and the others talking about us having a “nerd break up”. They didn’t really try to hide it. I was able to power through most of their “routine” when they confronted me about it. Surprisingly, being angry at Augustus kept my mind off of it. Amity… was uncharacteristically quiet. But I took that as a blessing.

However, it was also a problem. Being angry about our fight got me through the day… but I also couldn’t stop thinking about it, even when I wanted to. Augustus was the first friend I’d had in a while. For him to pretty much accuse me of being a bad friend… it hurt. I’d honestly wanted to help him, I gave it my all looking for the creature on the water. And yet… I feared that maybe I really was the one to blame. I’d already lost Amity because I was only half a witch. Calling his goal dumb… was it really my fault?

I didn’t get much sleep the next night.

When the next day came around, things were pretty much the same… except this time, Amity decided to join in.

“So, where’s your friend?” She leaned up against the lockers as I packed my things up, glad the school day was over.

“Yeah, did you two nerds kiss and make up?” Boscha mockingly said.

“He can do whatever he wants.” I said bluntly.

“Hmph. We just figured, since he was asking about that thing on the beach again.” Amity replied. “Apparently, he went straight to the kids that said they saw it. Wanted to know if there was some “big connection”.” She said in air quotes.

“And you wanna know what they said?” Boscha taunted.

I didn’t answer this time. I wasn’t in any mood for their games. I closed my locker, walking away from them.

“Supposedly, they all told him the same thing.” Amity said, louder as I walked off. “They were all burned by the water.”

I froze in place. I turned slowly. “Wh…What?”

“Each of the Beast track kids who saw the boat got burned before they saw “the thing”.” Amity explained.

Boscha smiled evilly. “But that’s not the kicker. Several other kids got small burns on those trips, but never saw the thing. Because the ones who saw the creature had gotten large burns from the boiling sea. One kid tripped and got their hand caught in a sizzling tide pool. Another got splashed all the way up their leg by a wave that crashed on the rocky shore. Stuff like that.” My blood started to run cold. “That’s when they started shouting about something on the water. But since burns are so common on the boiling sea, nobody paid that part any mind… well, except for your little friend.” My heart felt like it was stopping. If Augustus had heard that was what had triggered the sightings…

I ran straight for the door.

Suddenly, our fight was the last thing on my mind as I rushed through the forest. I couldn’t let Augustus do this. The burn wasn’t the problem. A burn like that could be healed pretty quickly- it was the circumstances around it. She knew Augustus didn’t have the right precautions with him… he didn’t know healing magic, for one. Nor was there going to be any student that knew healing magic alongside him, thanks to Boscha’s fear mongering still lingering over the other kids. He might’ve taken some first aid kit supplies with him… but nothing in those packs would be strong enough magic for the large burn he would have to inflict upon himself. Worse yet, she knew Augustus wouldn’t go get medical help immediately- he was too focused on snapping a photo of the monster. Overall, he risked doing permanent damage to himself- something that even the best Healing coven members wouldn’t be able to reverse.

She wasn’t even sure if Boscha had told the truth, but she couldn’t take that chance.

As she emerged onto the beach, she saw Augustus, hovering his hand over the bubbling water. “Augustus!”

He turned suddenly at her voice. His surprise quickly became apprehension. “What do you want?”

“I’m trying to stop you from doing something stupid!”

“Wouldn’t I be prone to doing that since my monster hunt is so “dumb”?!”

I’ll admit that I rolled my eyes at his sarcasm before I focused on what was important. “I’d say burning your whole hand isn’t the smartest of moves!”

He looked at me in confusion. “My whole- what are you talking about?”

“The other kids! They told you they had to burn their entire hand, or get long burns up their legs to see the creature!”

“Wha- no, they didn’t! All they said was they got small burns on their fingers! From like… picking up demon starfish and eight eyed crabs that hadn’t cooled off! Sure, one kid tripped and got his hand into a tide pool, but that was the worst of it!”

…Ugh. So Boscha had lied to me. No doubt just to see the look on my face. Great, she and Amity must be laughing up how I fell for such a dumb lie.

…But… had the lie really been that convincing? When I thought about it… all it had taken to grab my attention was the fact that people were burned to begin with. Maybe… I couldn’t stand to see Augustus hurt, regardless if it was or wasn’t severe. Maybe… I just wanted an excuse to end this stupid fight.

“YEOW!” Augustus shouted out, snapping me out of my thoughts. He was waving his finger around, blowing on it. “Rrrgh… that smarts…” He pulled out a bandage from a nearby first aid kit, the magic added to it by the Healing coven glowing as it soothed the burn.

I let out a sigh of relief, grateful that it had only been a cruel lie. I walked over to Augustus’ side, kneeling next to him. “Y’know, burning yourself for the sake of a monster hunt is still worrying.”

Augustus looked at me, still upset… but his face had softened a little. “Yeah, well… I wouldn’t know unless I tried.”

“Don’t expect me to let you do it again if it doesn’t work.” I pointed at him sternly.

“Why not? I’ve… only got nine more tries.” He said. I looked at him a moment. We blinked for a few seconds, saying nothing.

*Snrk*

I couldn’t help it. It was such a dumb joke that I started snickering. Augustus wasn’t too far behind, giggling with me. “Unless…” I began to say, interrupted by own laughing. “…unless you want to start using toes.”

“N-No. You don’t have to worry about that for me.” He replied, interlaced with chuckles. “Can’t stand it when I injure my toes.”

Our laughter subsided, the quiet returning. But I felt the tension ease around us. Maybe… we could leave this silly fight behind us. “Augustus … about what I said…” He looked at me, waiting for what I would say. Though the tension had eased, I still felt a bi awkward. I couldn’t meet his eyes at the moment. So, I looked out to the sea… and that’s when I saw it. A fog had rolled in over the water. “Is that… fog?”

“Fog?” Augustus parroted, confused. “What does that have to-”

I pointed. “Fog… over the water.” His eyes widened as he noticed it too. Our gazes were transfixed outward.  

Then, we saw it. A silhouette in the cloudy mass. We couldn’t make out its shape… but we knew what it had to be. “The human…” Augustus whispered.

“Snap a picture.” I said. Augustus had gone through all the effort, he shouldn’t miss the chance now.

“I… I can’t. It’s not good enough.”

I whirled to him in surprise. “Huh?”

“You and I both know what’s there, but… it’s just a shadow in the fog! The other kids will just laugh it off!” He looked around. “We need a clearer shot, we need…” He looked up at the cliff overlooking the beach. “A vantage point!” He dashed for his camera, taking it out and running up the path that led to the top.

“W-Wait, Augustus!” I chased after him. “That cliff isn’t stable!”

“But if I don’t get a clear shot now, I’ll miss it!” He reached the edge, bringing out Eye-ris. I ran up behind him. I could feel the edge of the cliff shift under our weight.

“Augustus, you need to come back over here!” I called out.

“I can get it!” He objected.

“No!” I put my foot down. “Augustus, I’m sorry I called your mission dumb! I know how much it means to you!”

He turned to face me. “Then why? Why do you want me to give it up right when I’m so close? If I get a clear shot of this thing… we’re finally gonna be treated with respect! Don’t you want them to stop bullying us?”

“Of course I do! But it’ll never work this way! Even if a shot of that creature was clear as day!” I argued. “You wanna know how I know?!” I sniffed, my eyes watering. “Because my best friend left me behind for that.”

Augustus looked surprised. “Your… best friend?”

“Amity. She developed her powers. I didn’t. So she left me behind. To be popular. To have recognition. To treat me like dirt. That’s why I got so mad. I thought… I thought I was going to get left behind again.” I looked at him pleadingly, trying to wipe the tears from my cheeks. 

“And… and it’s why I know this won’t be enough! All that stuff… it’s just a cutthroat world where people stab others in the back, to use them for their own games. But unless you’re naturally talented like Boscha or Amity, it’s never enough. You might get recognition one day. But then, they drop you the next and treat you like garbage. So, you keep doing more desperate things to stay popular, to keep from being bullied. And you don’t care if you hurt yourself or others in the process. I’ve seen girls get in with Boscha’s crew only to be thrown out by next week. I know. I don’t… I don’t want you to try so hard only to get hurt because of it.”

Augustus stared at me, stunned. He opened his mouth, but now words came out. He looked over the area of fog, and sighed. “Willow…”

*CRACK*

Both our eyes widened at the sound. The edge of the cliff was cracking… with Augustus still on it. Before he could react, the cliff gave way.

“AAAHHHH!”

Without hesitation I rushed forward. I went over the side, just barely grabbing Augustus, while also clutching the edge of the cliff.

Augustus’ legs flailed as we dangled on the edge. He held onto my hand, not daring to loosen his grip. Eye-leen flapped around us as we hung there, her eye frantically darting around for something to help us with. “Eye-ris! Go get help!” With nothing else to do, she complied, flying off.

Augustus tried to grab hold of the cliffside, but the rock was damp and slippery, the steam of the boiling sea having risen to condensate on it. He couldn’t get a good hold. As we both struggled to do something to lift ourselves up, Augustus accidentally looked down, screaming out again. “Aaahhhh!”

“Don’t look down, Augustus. Just close your eyes!”

“I… I don’t wanna die!” He said, beginning to cry.

“We won’t! We just have to hold on!” I wish my arms could back up those claims. They burned as I held onto him and the edge, screaming for release.

“I-I’m scared!” The tears streamed down his face.

“Just don’t let go! Eye-ris will come back, and-” The dirt shifted beneath my hand. I stared up at it, afraid for my life. “No, no no no, please don’t give way!” But the dirt wouldn’t comply. The land gave, and my hand slipped off, sending us both plummeting down. The last thing on my mind were my dads. I’d hoped the pain wouldn’t last too long.

I blacked out from fear. The last thing I remember before things went dark wasn’t the feeling of burning, but landing… into someone’s arms.

-

When I finally came to, I was met with the orange glow of a lantern. My head felt like it was going to split apart, but I tried my best to ignore the pain as I got up. Still hazy, I couldn’t tell much from my surroundings. I’d almost feared that my glasses had fallen off. As I rubbed my eyes, I found they were miraculously still there.

As my vision cleared, I noticed Augustus right next to me, still passed out. I looked at where we had landed. We were… on a boat. A boat currently rowing to shore. That was when I noticed that we weren’t alone.

I could hear grumbling, and realized it sounded like a man. A rather deep voiced man at that. He was wearing a leather outfit of shorts, loose and baggy. He seemed humanoid… so I guess he was a witch? His grumbling soon became audible.

“Terrible day for fishin’. Den agin, I s’pose every day’s been no good. Damn boiling sea… yet here I am today with the strangest catch I’ve ever had. Two wee babes danglin’ ‘oer the water like dey were bait on a fishin’ line. Never in all my years…” I carefully got up, uncertain what this stranger wanted. I decided to stay quiet, not wanting to startle him as he kept rambling. “Now cause o’ dem, I gotta expend my energy, goin’ way past my time. …Ah, who’re yeh kiddin’? You dun have it in yer heart to let the wee ones die…”

Unfortunately, Augustus chose that time to wake up. He groaned loudly, causing me to desperately cover his mouth to muffle him. But Augustus, startled by the sudden action, flailed a bit and hit me. I yelped in response.

“You two r’ awake, I see.” Augustus and I went rigid as the man’s voice called to us. His head was slightly turned to the back of the boat, but I still couldn’t make out his face. “Any burns? Any bruises?”

We looked at each other, unsure if we should answer. Augustus was too scared, so I mustered up the courage to speak. “I don’t… think so.”

“Good. Den I can shout yer ears off then! What in heaven’s name were ya two weans doing on a cliff?! Ya tryin’ to look brave?! Some kine a’ schoolyard dare?!”

“N-No.” Willow answered, more rigid than before now that he was yelling. Her bravado shriveled up rather quickly. “We… we were…”

“We were looking for the human on the sea!” Augustus shouted out, rallying himself for a simple answer.

The man chuckled. “Tha human on tha sea… what a daft reason. Tell me, boyo. Were it worth yer life? Were it worth the tears o’ yer Mam and Da?”

Augustus deflated at that, defeat clear on his face. “I… I wasn’t… I didn’t mean…”

He ‘harrumphed’ and continued to row. “Aye, maybe ye didn’t. But t’weren’t for me, you’d not be going home to yer folks.”

Augustus looked down in shame, the man’s words piercing through him. “I… it’s just my dad and me…”

The man went silent for a moment. “…He ain’t got tha strength t’ lose you, too. Believe me. And what o’ you, missy?”

“Uh… W-Well, I…” I stuttered. “My uh… my dads are waiting for me at home.”

The man grunted a bit. “Hmm. A bit too much fer these old-fashioned bones. But so long as dey care fer ya, never mind me.” I tilted my head. What on Titan did that mean?

“Listen, I ain’t jus’ sum oul fella shouting yer ear off fer no reason. I had family waitin’ fer me. But now…” He stopped- both talking and rowing, sitting there for a moment. “Had a little one, much like you, lass. Named Aisling. Sweet girl. Loved swimming.”

Augustus looked to me somberly, a feeling I shared. So… he didn’t want to see our parents go through what he did. “You… lost them?”

“It’d be more accurate t’ say dey lost me.” He corrected. “Went fishing one day. S’how I provide fer my family. Was clear as day, let me tell ya. No storms to be seen. But on a day of calm skies and calm water, what would come upon me but an act o’ God itself. Out of nowhere, a flash of blindin’ light overtook me. Don’t remember much after. Cubes? Strange colors? S’all a blur. Next I knew… I was here.” He sighed. “Haven’t seen them since. Must a thought I left ‘em. I wonder if she’s grown… found a fella fer herself…”

“Wait…” Augustus interjected. “Are… are you the human?” The man only grunted. “You… you are. Oh my gosh, I have so many questions!”

“Tough.” He said firmly, unwavering in the face of Gus’ enthusiasm. “I’m only here t’ bring ya back to shore. Won’t have the chance to talk to ya after.”

“But… I…”

“Look, kid, if I waste too much time, ya won’t have the chance to make it ta shore. I only have the strength for this.” That confused me even more. Wouldn’t he have energy once he caught his breath at the beach? “Then, it’s back to being on this lake. In this place… forever.”

“Well… maybe you could go back.” Augustus said optimistically. “I mean, you’re still in one piece. I hear some lady in the market has been to the human realm! You could totally meet her!”

“Hehe.” He chuckled again. “Yer a lively one. I appreciate tha vote of confidence. But… yeh assume too much.”

“…Huh?” I said aloud. It was then I… felt something with my hand. Looking down, I noticed the seat of the boat seemed… bloated. The wood had expanded and cracked in places. I saw the same thing around the rest of the boat, from the bow to the rudder. The boat looked… well, like it had been boiled. It was a miracle the thing wasn’t falling apart. And that’s when I noticed the man himself. His clothes had a faded look, like the color had been washed out. While his leather garb was stiff, the cloth parts were shrunken in places, firmly tightened to the man’s body… which I realized was looking rather… gaunt. Moreover… steam rose up from his body, and he looked… damp.

Though the lantern sat at our backs, on a hot summer’s night, and the Boiling Sea was just below us, I noticed… I still felt cold. And it seemed to emanate… from him. A shiver went up my spine. I think Augustus had caught on as well, because I could see him shaking out of the corner of my eye. The two of us focused on the man. He had stopped rowing, the waves going as quiet as he did.

“…A small wooden boat don’t last very long on an ocean o’ boiling seawater. Just t’weren’t made for it.”

We continued to stare, waiting intently. We were two afraid to ask him to turn around. I thought… I hoped I was wrong. But we only kept looking on.

Needless to say, we weren’t ready when they boat hit the sand. We fell off the seat, into the crutch. And when we felt the most vulnerable, that’s when it happened.

A bony hand, reached above us, grabbing the lantern. As it pulled the light away, we struggled to get up out of the small space. We heard the man move above us… and his figure loomed over us. In the presence of light, we finally saw his appearance.

A skeletal face- no flesh, no muscle, only bone- illuminated in the orange glow. Its empty black voids seemed to stare at us. His skull dripped with still boiling water, each droplet still burning as it moved from cranium to teeth. As he held the lantern aloft, we saw that his hand wasn’t simply bony, but completely stripped of flesh as well. His clothes held tightly to his bones, giving him a starved appearance… but we realized it was much worse.

The man was dead. He and his little boat were burned alive when they came. His cooked flesh eaten by the creatures of the sea.

“AAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHH!!!!” The scream came out on instinct.

“Gah! Dun spook a man standin’ inna boat!” He said, clutching his ears… or lack thereof. “I know I shouted yer ears off, but I had reason fer it… no need t’ deliver the same to me n’ kind.”

We gave much smaller, shorter screams as we frantically tried to get up, desperate to get away. I clutched at the rim of the boat, trying to climb out…

“LET GO O’ THAT, YA EEJIT!” The man shouted, despite his lack of lungs. Scared by the volume, I pulled my hand back, and we both stopped moving. We couldn’t help but curl into a fetal position as we cowered.

“P-Please, don’t hurt us!” I yelled, tears forming in my eyes.

“We d-d-didn’t… didn’t mean to… to make you mad!” I heard Augustus added, intermittent with sobs.

“Oh, for the love o’… would you two quit caterwaulin’? I ain’t gonna hurt ya!” He said.

My eye opened slightly, peeking out. “Yo…You’re not?”

“O’ course not! Why would I save ya just ta hurt ya? What kine a’ bastard would do such a thing? If I wanted ta do that, I coulda just threw ya o’er the boat anytime… or just not saved ya at all!”

“But… you…” Augustus pointed out. “You wanted to stop us from getting out.”

“Because…” He pointed overboard. “We’re still in tha shallows! I didn’t bring ya all this way jus’ for ya ta cook yerselves at tha last stretch!”

We opened our eyes fully at that. Slowly, we got up, and peered over the edge. Sure enough, the waters of the sea were still beneath them. Shallow, maybe, but still hot as ever.

“Now, ya two weans stay in tha boat while I push us into shore. Dun have much time as it is.” He placed a foot on the edge.

“W-Wait!” I yelled out without thinking.

“I’m already dead, cailín. Ain’t much it can do ta me now.” He hopped out. Moving to the rudder, he pushed firmly. Despite no longer having flesh, he moved it pretty easily. Augustus and I kept looking at him the whole way, unsure what to say… if they should say anything at all. “Y’know, it ain’t polite to stare.”

I panicked a little. “I’m sorry, I just… we have a lot of different people on the islands. People with… different skin colors… different sets of eyes… multiple heads… people with strange bodies, inside and out… but…”

“Dead is still dead.” Augustus blurted out, but he covered his mouth quickly.

The man looked at them. “Aye. That it is.”

“And… even the most powerful witches can’t change that.” I added.

“I hope ta God they can’t. No person has tha right to disturb the dead.”

“Then… how did you… I mean, what did…” I struggled to find the words.

“I dun quite get it myself. Tha big man says we tend ta latch on t’ where we died, either by fear or unresolved issues. And I was definitely not a fan of bein’ boiled alive.”

I gave him a strange look. “The big man? We?”

He went quiet again. “…Never yee mind.”

The boat finally came to a stop, and the skeleton walked to the bow. “Alright, young’uns. Adventure’s o’er.” He reached his hand out. We looked at it for a moment. “You want down or not? My hand ain’t gon’ ta fall off.”

We looked to each other once more. I took initiative, grabbing his hand and holding on tight as I stepped out of the boat. Augustus soon followed, and we silently thanked the Titan that we were finally on his solid land.

“Now den…” The skeletal being said aloud. “…High time fer me ta be going. Can’t say this wasn’t… excitin’. But let’s not go danglin’ yerselves off cliffs anymore. Alright?” We nodded. “Good. Now, best ya be getting’ ta yer folks.” He began to push the boat back into the sea.

“Wait!” I yelled out. “We never got your name!”

He paused. “…Ain’t no need for chislers ta be chasin’ ghosts.”

“But… I want to know who saved us.” I said, pleading. “You… you didn’t have to save us. And now… I can go home and see my dads.”

“And… and I want to tell your daughter what happened to you!” Augustus spoke up. “You never got to see her… I don’t… I don’t want her to think you didn’t care.”

He sat there, hands clenched on the boat. He didn’t turn around. The silence was palpable as we awaited his answer.

“…Conor. Conor Devney.” He finally said.

I smiled, and I could feel Augustus’ happiness as well. “I’m Willow. And that’s Augustus.”

“Willow and Augustus. Huh…” Conor turned back to us… and we both looked on in shock. For a moment, it was as if we were looking at the man he once was. Bright red hair settled on somewhat pale skin. He had a well-grown beard and moustache to match. His face had… a warmth to it, in spite of its rough appearance. His hands and body were rather burly, implying where his strength had come from. “I’ll remember those names.”

We smiled. But not for long. As soon as the vision came… it was gone. Nothing but the skeleton remained. Sadness enveloped the atmosphere once more. He turned back around, pushing once more. “Slán leat.”

As the boat was slowly returned to the water, the fog that had obscured our vision before seemed to roll back over. As he got back into his boat, a rather thick patch slowly covered him. Yet he continued to row. We continued to watch until the fog cleared, and when it did, Conor had vanished. There was no sign he had ever been there.

Suddenly, Augustus slumped down, sitting on the sand. He rubbed his head, ruffling his hair. I sat down next to him. He gave a tired laugh. “…I really thought getting a picture of some mythical creature would solve all our problems. I guess it really was stupid.”

“Don’t say that.” That was the main thing I regretted saying. I didn’t want him to take that away from all this. “Wanting to solve the mysteries of humans isn’t stupid.”

“Maybe, but… I’m pretty stupid, that’s for sure.” He rephrased.

“No, that’s not-”

“Don’t say it’s not true. Cause it is. I acted like a jerk, got way too into it, and…” He gazed at me, eyes watering. “Almost got my best friend killed.”

I couldn’t help but tear up in return. I pulled him close. “I forgive you. Honestly, I’m just glad you’re okay. I don’t think I could handle losing another best friend.”

“And I couldn’t handle losing the only one I’ve ever had.” He sighed loudly. “Maybe I should give up this human stuff.”

“Now I’m definitely not gonna let you do that. You love it too much. And hey, you wanted to get people to stop picking on us. It was an admirable goal. Just maybe… don’t get so serious about it that you avoid good judgement?”

He smiled. “It’s a deal.” He looked back out to sea, shaking his head. “Guess I can cross ‘heatproof skin’ off the theory.”

“What about the gills?”

“Oh no. Sure, he boiled alive, but that doesn’t mean he can’t breathe underwater.” He shrugged. “I didn’t see gills… but I also didn’t see ‘not-gills’.”

I gave him a flat look. “He was a skeleton. He didn’t have anything left.”

He looked sheepish at that. “Well… still. I just wish I could’ve asked him about it. Hopefully, the next one we meet is, uh… alive.”

“Truth be told, Augustus, I’m not sure.” I replied. “I mean, when are we ever gonna meet another human?”

Shortly after, our dads burst out onto the beach, all up in a tizzy. We were grounded for a month, but honestly, Gus and I didn’t care too much. We were just happy to be alive. We actually made it a point to go back out there every now and then, to see if we could spot Conor out there- y’know without getting crazy about it. We never saw him, but I’d like to think he saw us; that we gave him some company doing… whatever he was stuck there doing. Of course, as you could guess, we really did end up meeting another human a few years later…

-

“Yowza. Meeting a ghost. That’s… spooky.” Luz said, bewildered. Roger sat there, deep in thought.

I shrugged. “Yeah. To be honest, it still kinda creeps me out. We hadn’t mentioned it before, because… well, we were afraid your mom would take it well.”

“Yeah”. She agreed. “Admittedly, it’s not the most reassuring news. The only other human we know that ended up here died immediately.” She slumped down into her chair. “But as much as I don’t want my mom to hear about it… it could be a clue to figuring out why I’m stuck here, so the BPRD has to know.”

“Yeah. It’s… kind of why I was still stunned to see you. You were the first living human I’d met.” Gus explained.

Luz’s eyes widened. “Well, that’s certainly a distinction I’d never thought someone would need to make.”

“So, I’m guessing ghosts aren’t really normal for humans either.”

She shook her head. “Nope, definitely another thing the BPRD is usually called in for. From what I’ve read in the comics, ghosts come around cause the person who died did so suddenly or painfully. Maybe they have unfinished business… or maybe they’re just super evil. Depends on the context clues, I guess. Hey, Roger could tell us!” She glanced over to Roger, still lost in his thoughts. “Uh, Roger?”

“Hmm?” He snapped out of his thoughts, caught off guard.

“The way ghosts work? Died suddenly? Unfinished business or evil?”

“O-Oh, yes.” He confirmed. “Kate often says that those are the most common reasons.” He didn’t say more on the matter, returning to his thoughts.

“Er… what gets me, is what the ghost said, about “we” and “the boss”… does that mean there are more ghosts on the Boiling Isles?”

Willow scratched her head. “I’m not sure... specters and spirits are common enough in the Boiling Isles, we have a few residing in Hexide, but we’ve never seen someone like Conor again.”

“We also sorta took his advice and never really followed up on that.” Gus said as he crumbled his Fleshwhich wrapper into a tiny paper ball. “He was right. Kids shouldn’t be chasing ghosts.”

Luz smirked. “But… chasing ghosts is the BPRD’s bread and butter. Right, Roger?”

Roger wasn’t listening. Luz had to shake him a little to bring back his attention. “O-Oh? Sorry, I… have a lot of things on my mind.”

She smiled at him knowingly. “A penny for your thoughts?”

He pursed his lips, quite nervous. “I’ve… been thinking about what you said. About Adelina. I wasn’t so sure if I should go to see her again. But then… that story. The man on the boat. I imagine he would’ve given anything to see his daughter. To know how she lived. Maybe… maybe I could go to the other side and find Devney’s family. Tell them what happened to him.”

There’s a pause for a second and, for just a moment, Roger looks... lost. It comes as fast as it leaves an in its stead something else replaces it: determination. “And maybe… perhaps I’ll gain the courage to see my friend Adelina once more.”

She rubbed his arm comfortingly. “I think that’s an awesome idea. Then maybe we can tell Conor when you get back.”

“I will probably be away for a few days.” He noted.

“Hey, it’s fine. I can handle myself here. Just don’t get into too much trouble over there.”

He chuckled. “I don’t think either of us can promise that.”

Gus cleared his throat, gaining everybody’s attention. “Well, I don’t know about y’all, but I’ve sufficiently devoured my meal. I think we should get going and try to do one more thing before the day ends. And I know just the thing Luz will like.”

We cleaned up, Luz getting a little to-go box. While Roger and Gus led the way, I stayed with Luz, a little behind them.

“So… feeling better?” I asked her.

“I… think so.” Suddenly, her facial expression changed. “Say, there’s something I don’t quite get.”

“Hmm?”

“Why would Amity stay all quiet the first day, but then suddenly start confront you the next?” She questioned.

“Heck if I know. I’m haven’t understood what goes through Amity’s mind in a long time.”

“Yeah, but… she didn’t tease you at all. Boscha was the one who did all that. Why would she confront you just to tell you what Gus was up to?”

I thought on that. “I… don’t know. Huh. Weird of her…”

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d almost think she wanted you two to make up or something. As if… she still cares about you.” We stared at each other a brief moment… before bursting into laughter. “Ah, man, I almost couldn’t get through that.”

“Yeah, that’s silly. Next you’ll tell me that we’ll actually become friends again.” Like that’ll ever happen…

Notes:

I know it's not much, but I promise the wait will be worth it.
I'll see you guys, hopefully soon. Hoping to get this out around the time For the Future releases proper. And those of you who peeked that episode early- don't spoil anybody and watch it officially when and if possible.
Update 3/14/23:No, Eda is not "The Chosen One" of any kind. She was chosen, but it's not some prophecy or anything. It'll be explained another time.
This chapter is incomplete, as it still needs Gus and Willow's story. Be on the lookout for it to be updated again.
Update 4/10/23: Conor was supposed to come off as Irish. Might’ve made him sound Scottish or… piratey instead. Hopefully that’s not what happened.
Next chapter- yep, we’re finally leaving this one behind- the Nocedas will have their turn.
Hope y’all emotionally recover from Owl House ending!
Please, review and let me know what you think of the chapter!

Chapter 11: The Owlet and Other Short Stories: Noceda Dreams

Summary:

The Short Story arc finally comes to a close as mother and daughter recount the times they faced wild dreams and nightmares... that perhaps were more real than they thought.

Notes:

IMPORTANT NOTE- I’ve retconned Camila in Chapter 1 saying that her parents disowned her for having Luz out of wedlock. Neither of those things happened now. I even went back and slightly reworked chapter 1… and took that part out in the process. My editor and I agreed that these things were “putting a hat on another hat”- it pushed the dramatic into the melodramatic. Camila still doesn’t have a good relationship with her folks, but it’s for a different reason now, as you’ll see.

It’s done… we’re done with the short stories. We move on with the story from here on out!

Hahahahaha- I’M NEVER DOING THIS AGAIN.

Like, maybe one short story at a time, in between chapters, but never a bunch at once. What was originally only meant to be ONE chapter ballooned into three. These things drained the life and soul outta me, and y’all probably noticed.

I didn’t do it for no reason though. These weren’t just fun little diddies I did to expand my writing creativity. Each one of these tales had significance to the story one way or another. Some are more obvious than others. That’s why I kept trucking on, in spite of how much it drained me.

From here on out though, it's the main story. But I am probably going to limit myself again. I think it’s perhaps been a bit too daunting trying to capture an entire episode in one chapter with all the added changes. I’m thinking about 5000 words a chapter, give or take a few hundred. So, Lost In Language isn’t gonna be done all in one go. Otherwise, we’re gonna be running into this issue all over again.

Also, I must apologize to my FFnet folks- I completely forgot that you can only review a chapter once. All that time asking for reviews on a chapter that I kept updating, I was wondering why nobody was saying anything. Boy, am I an idiot.

I also somehow didn’t notice that the setup for Willow and Gus’ story was gone on FF. It should be there now. One last update for that chapter.

…sigh. Let’s get started. In spite of how exhausting it’s been, I’m really proud of these short stories and I hope you enjoy them. Let’s finish strong!

One last heads up- I present Cosmic Frontier as more of a Star Trek expy here- a tv series instead of a book, and stretching back further than just the 90s. It’s simply what I’m familiar with.

A big thanks to TakanaMakana, Quantum01, and MyNameJers for the help editing.

King had fallen asleep close to the end of Eda’s story, nestled on her lap and dozing. Honestly, he just kept getting more adorable.

“What’s with the stare, Trenchcoat? You’re weirding me out.”

Eda asked Hellboy, who glanced up at her from eyeing King. “Hmm…” He looked hesitant.

“Listen, if we’re clearing the air right now, you gotta pipe up.” She said.

He seemed to take note of that. “...King. He’s… not necessarily your partner, is he?”

“Pfft. Course he is. He’s got an ego, but I wouldn’t ask for a better partner in crime.”

“No, not like… hmm.” He pursed his lips. “He’s… just a kid, ain’t he?”

Eda’s face darkened a bit. “Mmm hmm.”

“...Which means he was probably a lot more scared when he met me than I thought.”

“You threatened to pull his skull cap off.”

I looked at him in shock. He didn’t deny the claim. “Yeah. Yeah, let’s not sanitize it.” He sighed loudly. “The context I have for little guys like him is that they’re imps, or fae, or some other tiny bastard that causes a lot of trouble. They’re small, but they’re adults. They mouth off and don’t tell you anything till you force their hand. Kinda have to bully them.”

“Would you have done it if he’d clammed up?” Eda stared daggers into him.

“...Yeah.” He didn’t look proud saying that.

Eda’s hair bristled, and she bared her teeth. For a moment, it’d seemed like she’d attack. Hellboy didn’t defend himself, almost as if he thought he deserved a beating. I felt like a trapped mouse, close to the path of an angry bear.

Which helped it hit me, too. It was tough to remember that King wasn’t just some pet that could talk. Here, he was a sentient being, just like every other strange creature. More than that, he was a child. A child who didn’t seem to have a family… besides the Owl Lady. And Eda… no matter how bad an influence she was, she cared for King. She acted a lot like his mother. And Luz… she’d noticed the girl had started to act like his big sister.

I empathized with Eda in that moment. Enough to know I should say something.

“Eda.” The Owl Lady turned to me. She wasn’t going to attack me- I could feel it. But she did give me an angry glare, likely expecting to be criticized. But I just looked at her softly. “You have every right to be angry about that. But Hellboy would not have brought it up if he did not care. There’s regret in his eyes. He made a mistake that might’ve meant harming a child, and he clearly wants to make up for it. I’m not saying you should forgive him, but… you should hear him out.”

Eda’s face softened at her words. She seemed glad that someone understood her anger. She didn’t say a word, only looking to Hellboy to see what he would say.

He looked right into her eyes, and spoke then without hesitation. “I don’t hurt kids. But I did. And that was screwed up of me when I’ve been going off about keeping Luz safe. I’ve been a coward not to say anything up to this point. And I wanna make sure I make it up to the little guy.”

Eda stared at him for a solid minute, then sighed. “Listen. Y’all have taken a lot of my agency since you got here. My pride got a little wounded, and I haven’t been the most helpful because of it. I decided last night I was getting over it. I can handle some creeps in my house for a few days. But I do not compromise when it comes to King. If I ever catch you doing something like that again, I’ll tear off that stone arm, stick it where the sun don’t shine and literally turn you into your own puppet. Am I clear on that?”

He didn’t react, but he replied. “Understood. And as far as I’m concerned, so long as I’m here, he’s under my protection too.”

Eda nodded. “First thing you’re gonna do when he wakes up is apologize for that. Where you go from there is probably up to King.” He nodded again, and she snorted. “You’re being oddly more cooperative on this than anything else we’ve argued on.”

“You took a little boy in despite the fact he looked nothing like you. It… hits close to home.”

Eda chuckled. “Oh yeah, you were raised by humans. What was that guy that took you in? Brom or something? Should I call him so he can give you a scolding?”

He finally looked away sullenly, clenching the arms of his chair, clearly upset.

We both grasped that we had hit a very sore spot. Eda seemed almost dismayed at how sad he’d suddenly grown. Neither of us needed to be a genius to connect the dots.

Her face softened. “...I’m… sorry.”

“No, I just… had a few strong memories come back, is all.” He loosened his grip on the chair. “He was a good man. It hurts to remember he’s gone, but… it’s nice to remember the good stuff too.”

Eda gave him a moment before speaking again. “I’ve… been distant from my folks. For… personal reasons. But I’ve got fond memories of ‘em. Stuff I wouldn’t trade for anything.”

They didn’t say much more between themselves, almost as if that simple trade of information was enough for the two of them. It… made me feel just a bit left out.

“You… got fond memories of your folks, Cam?” He asked.

I could feel my own face scrunch up. “That’s a little complicated to answer. I… have good memories. But it tends to get overshadowed by the many… not so good moments.”

Hellboy visibly flinched a bit. “Sorry.”

“No, it’s fine. It’s just… my parents were very religious. And old-fashioned. It wasn’t a good combo. The moment I hit my teens, I started to disagree with them on a lot of things: How to behave, what stuff I could be interested in, who I could hang out with… and it only got worse when I met Luz’s father… really don’t want to hear them brag about that one… But the breaking point was… when they started telling us how to raise Luz. We lost our tempers and well… we haven’t spoken since.”

Hellboy grunted in acknowledgement. “I get it. I’m not… keen on my folks. Blood-related ones, I mean. They had some ideas for me… and I don’t want anything to do with them.”

I chuckled a little. “Yes… it’s exhausting.” Yet, as much as I didn’t want to think back on my childhood… one moment was beginning to burn like a bright light, something I couldn’t ignore, something I dreaded thinking about. But with all the revelations I’d learned in the past few days, it seemed I couldn’t ignore it any longer. “You know… there is one thing that’s sticking out like a sore thumb. When I was a child, I had a nightmare.” Hellboy and Eda looked at me peculiarly. “I know. A kid having a nightmare. Not a big deal, right? But… despite the fact that twenty nine years have passed since I had that nightmare… I still remember it so vividly. That’s not supposed to happen, right? No matter how vivid they are, you always forget dreams and nightmares before long. But no matter how hard I try, I can’t seem to forget it. I never thought much of it… I didn’t want to, frankly. But… with everything I’ve learned since this whole debacle began…” I trailed off.

“I don’t think it was just a nightmare.”

---

El Cuco

Danvers, Massachusetts, December 1991

I was thirteen years old. My family had moved to the States a few years before thanks to a job opportunity given to my father. It was hard adapting to so many new things: A new environment, new faces, new culture… and of course, I found myself facing the ugly side of America. Racism was a factor suddenly thrust into my life. But a few months after we moved, I would be subjected to something more terrifying than I’d known… and a fear that would only be surpassed by the disappearance of my daughter.

“Mr. Brooks.”

“Here.”

“Mr. Campbell.”

“Here.”

“Ms. Derceto.”

“Here.”

“Ms. Gomez.”

“Here.” I spoke up as the roll call reached me. As the teacher continued on, I leaned over to my best friend. “Do you have it?”

Dolores pushed her glasses up, before pulling a VHS out. On it was labeled “Cosmic Frontier: A New Generation”. “The original episode featuring the first appearance of the crafty reality warper, C, as he tests the wit of Captain Jean Claude Packard. As you requested.”

I could barely contain myself as I took it from her. “Oh, you’re the greatest, Lola.”

“That I am, Cammy.”

I pulled another VHS from my own backpack, a previous installment. “Here you go. Back safe and sound, like I promised.”

Dolores shook her head as she took back the video. “All this secrecy. I mean, it’s only a show. Are you sure you’re not overreacting about your parents?”

“No way!” I objected. “My parents would totally freak if they found out I was watching this. They think this kind of stuff is all… satan-y.”

“Excuse me, ladies. Is the topic you’re discussing in some way more important than my class?” The teacher called out.

“No, sir.” We answered back, putting on our conversation on hold.

He cleared his throat. “Alright, then. Don’t forget, next week’s history test is one of the last for this semester…”

---

“Okay, but I still haven’t really been sold on Celestial Expanse Iota. Captain Avery doesn’t really grab me the same way Packard or even Dirk do.” Lola explained.

“I actually find him to be even more engaging. The idea he has to get past his own son’s death while trying to lead a station slowly becoming a central hub for the galaxy… it makes him a bit more “human” than the other two, if that makes sense.”

She shrugged in response. “If you say so.” She opened her lunch, and I shudder at the smell. Anchovies and seaweed. Dolores has such a weird palette.

“So, has anyone asked you to the winter dance yet?”

I snort. “Someone asking weird chubby space girl out? As if. You?”

“Ah yes, anyone want a date with fishface girl? Please.” We laughed it off, but it was admittedly a sore spot. Kids made fun of me because I love Cosmic Frontier and I’m… a bit on the pudgy side. But kids made fun of Dolores for more hurtful reasons. Since she tended to eat things like anchovies and seaweed, so there was a bit of a fishy smell around her, and her glasses had the unfortunate effect of magnifying her eyes.

But the worst part was that they brought her legs into it. Dolores was stuck in a wheelchair- she never explained what caused it, but I knew it wasn’t my business to pry on such a personal matter.

Other kids however, didn’t care so much about her privacy. They’d joke that she was hiding a tail fin under there, and some would try to rip her blanket off her.

Even so, she wasn’t one to let it keep her down. In fact, when she saw me being picked on a few years ago, she rolled in to tell the bullies off… we’ve been best friends ever since.

“I don’t think my Papi would approve anyway. He’s pretty adamant about making sure I don’t date until my Quince. Maybe not even then…” I rolled my eyes. “Not that I really wanted to go anyway. I’d just be giving little miss perfect Priscilla Donagan a chance to target me for some big prank.”

“Oh, undoubtedly. Geez, a girl gets her braces off and suddenly she thinks she’s better than everyone else.”

“I am this close to punching her out, Lola.” I growled. “But I’d just get a lecture from my parents. ‘A violent woman is not a woman of the lord’, or something like that.” I shook it off. No need to get worked up about it. “But you know what I’m really excited for?”

“Does it have to do with a certain movie coming out in theaters?”

“You know it! Cosmic Frontier: Uncharted Territory! The final movie featuring the original cast! I’ve gotta see it.”

“I dunno, Cam. I’ve kinda had my fill of the original cast. And the quality looks… spotty.” She shook her head. “Of course, seeing as you need me to go see it since your parents would never take you, I guess I don’t have a choice.”

“Aw, come on, Lola. You’ll love it! Besides, even if this movie isn’t so good, there’s always next year.” Lola began to shift uncomfortably. She stopped looking me in the eyes. “...Lola? Something wrong?”

She rubbed her arm. “I… I only found out about it a few days ago. I’ve been trying to figure out how to tell you…” She paused. “My… my father got a job opportunity from a location closer to New York. Once the school year is over, we’re...”

I connected the dots immediately. “...You’re… moving away?”

“I… I tried to convince my dad not to, but… he simply couldn’t refuse the offer.” She looked down sadly.

I could feel the tears stinging my eyes. “Y-...You’re my only friend here, Lola. If you leave…”

“I’m losing my only friend, too. And going somewhere completely unfamiliar.” She sniffed, despite how stoic she tried to be. “I don’t want to leave you either.”

As the mood fell, I wondered what I would do. After finally becoming just a little comfortable here, I was going to have that comfort ripped away…

I slammed my hands down on the table. “Then we’re going to make sure we make the most of the time we have left! And if we’re gonna have to deal with uncharted territory, it’s only right that we start with Cosmic Frontier: Uncharted Territory!”

Lola wiped the tears under her glasses, giggling a little. “We were going to do that anyway.”

“Yeah, but now there’s a lot more meaning behind it! Just you wait, Lola! We’re gonna have a movie night you’ll never forget!”

---

The rest of the day had been less eventful. The class clown threw a whoopie cushion under one of our teachers’ desks, but that was about it. So, I was pretty caught off guard by my ride home.

The first thing that should’ve alarmed me was how quiet she was. But I was so lost in thought after Dolores’ bad news, I just didn’t notice.

“Bye, Lola!” I waved as I got in her car. But Mom didn’t ask me how my day was, or what happened, or… anything, really. She watched me as I settled in, before she finally began to drive.

While I hadn’t noticed her silence at first, I began to heed the atmosphere with each and every mile, and I could feel a chill down my spine. If my mom was aware of my discomfort, she didn’t show it, simply staring at the road ahead.

For the rest of the drive, I was anxious of the lion’s den I’d just stepped into.

When we get home, Dad is there sitting at the table, just as silent as Mom. He looks to me as I enter the room,

“Welcome home, Camila. Could you come sit down?” He said.

“Uh, sure. Let me just put my backpack in my-”

“Ahora, Camila.” He said sternly. Realizing that making him wait would only make him angrier, I scurried over, leaving my backpack next to my chair.

“Camila. We know that you’re growing up. And as you grow up, certain temptations may present themselves to you.” Mom began.

“But we expect you to remember what we taught you, to remember what you learned in church. It disappoints us when you break our trust.” Dad added.

“Break… your trust?” I repeated back. I was beginning to get a sinking feeling of what this was about.

“Do not play the fool, Camila.” Mami scolded. “Unless you’d like to tell us that this isn’t yours?” She pulled a shoebox from aside and placed it on the table.

My shoebox. The one I keep in a secret panel in my room- it had been there when we moved in. The shoebox where I keep all of my personal Cosmic Frontier collection. Which meant…

“Mami! You went rooting around in my stuff?!”

“Don’t you take that tone with me, young lady.” Mom fired back, sternly. “You live under our roof. And so long as that’s true, what is yours is just as much ours. Perhaps moreso.” She opened the shoe box. “Besides, I had good reason to search your room. I knew you were hiding something from us. Did you think I didn’t notice how suspicious you’ve been acting? Notebooks you would close as I walked into the room, the rustling in your room when I’d knock on the door…”

“And now we know why.” Dad glared. “How could you go behind our backs, Camila? We told you this show was not allowed in our household.”

“It’s not a big deal, Papi! It’s just a harmless show!”

“Harmless?” Mom scoffed. “God only created man to be in his own image, Camila! And the only beings from above are the angels! These “aliens” are just Satan’s way of enticing demons to us. And this so called technology attempts to demean the Lord’s glory. Only He is capable of miracles. But this show would portray it like witchcraft, meant to make you believe that you can bend creation to your liking. I did not spend hours in labor for a child that thinks she can play God!”

“That’s not at all what it is! This is exactly why I didn’t want you to know! It always comes down to being Satan’s master plan!”

“When you move out, you can subject yourself to these satanic images all you want. But until then, you live under our house, and our rules, Camila.” Dad emphasized. “Now, where have you been getting these? Who showed you this program?”

“Who… showed me?”

Mom pulled out… my diary?! They seriously read my diary?! “You wrote that someone introduced you to it. Who was it?”

I turn away. “No one. I found it myself.”

“Camila, do not lie.” Dad said strictly. I clammed up. “Fine. Your grounding just became one month instead of one week.”

“Fine. Can I go now?” I say with a decent amount of venom.

“Not so fast, young lady.” Mom stopped me. “Your bag.”

“Are you serious? Haven’t you invaded my privacy enough?”

“Now, Camila.” Dad says, his voice low. Reluctantly, I hand them my backpack. They quickly rifle through until they find the tape I’d gotten from Lola. “So, you have been getting these things from someone at school.”

“Who is it, Camila?” Mom asks again, but I remain silent. “Fine, then. Regardless, you won’t be seeing this again.”

“What? You can’t take it!” I object. Lola gave it to me… I can’t lose it. I can’t!

“I refuse to have this in my house any longer, Camila. And I refuse to let Satan’s work influence anyone else.” Dad says resolutely.

“No, Papi! I’m borrowing that! I have to give it back!” I stomp my foot. “If you take it, or destroy it, or anything else… you’ll make me a thief!”

He jolts and stops in his tracks. Turning to me, he looks… angry. But I stand my ground. He growls audibly, before handing me the tape. “You will not watch it. You’ll return it as soon as possible. Because every hour it remains in my house is another day you’re grounded, Camila.”

I take it from him, holding it close, like my life depended on it.

He walks off, fuming. Mom soon follows, though she glances back at me. “Go to your room, Camila. And you’d best think about what temptations you’re giving into.”

As she leaves, I simply scowl, retreating to the safety of my bed.

---

I lay there on my bed, staring at the Cosmic Frontier tape in my hands. Now, I was never gonna be able to watch it… or any Cosmic Frontier ever again. I shuddered, wondering how strongly they were going to bring the hammer down to enforce that.

Temptations… hmph. Why couldn’t they understand? Cosmic Frontier is about discovery, camaraderie, fighting against injustice and prejudice… who could create something like that under some pretense of trying to lure people into evil? Well, I could probably still go see the movie with Lola. Scratch that, I definitely still had to go see it, I promised her we would. I’d never forgive myself if she left before I could fulfill that promise.

I hear a knock at my door. What do they want now?

“Camila. We have a guest. Come on out.” Seriously? After what just happened? Ugh… let’s get this over with.

“vml hrsG…”

I swiftly turn my head. For a moment it… sounded like someone was whispering. …Maybe I’m just hearing things.

I re-enter the dining area, where Mami and Papi are sitting. However, there is also another man sitting there. I recognize him… Father Rodrigo, the priest of our church. What’s he doing here?

“Perhaps you would care to tell Father Rodrigo the things you told us, Camila?” Dad gestured to him.

“If you will not listen to us, perhaps speaking to a man of the Lord will get through to you.” Mom said.

They looked at me expectantly, as if they thought I was going to start confessing then and there. Seriously? The only thing I did was look away in defiance. I could hear a slight grumble from my dad.

“Perhaps she would feel more comfortable if you were to leave the room. Maybe sit on the porch?” Father Rodrigo suggested. “Your fight only just happened, so she’s more than likely still feeling defensive. If she feels that you’re listening at all, she’ll continue to refrain from speaking.”

The two glanced at each other for a moment in uncertainty, as if having a conversation with their eyes. Eventually, however, they relented. “Very well, Father.” The two got up, stepping outside.

It was quiet for a bit. The moment my parents had stepped out, he’d simply started looking through his bible, as if he knew I was going to start gabbing any minute now. It was a little arrogant.

Despite my attempt to stay silent, eventually I got frustrated with him just sitting there. “So, this is where I’m supposed to confess, right? I tell you the horrible, demonic temptation I’ve given into, and then you absolve me of my sins, is that it?” I mockingly said. “Well, forget it. I don’t care what they told you. I didn’t do anything wrong.”

“Yes, I’m inclined to agree.”

“There’s nothing wrong with Cosmic Frontier. It’s just a show! I…I…” I did a double take. “Wha… What did you say?”

“I agree. Personally, it’s not my cup of tea, but I don’t really see anything wrong with a child taking interest in such a show.”

“…Okay, I get it. Make me let my guard down before you start scare-mongering, right? I’m not buying it.”

“That’s rather fine, because I’m not selling anything.” He smirked.

I stared at him, squinting hard enough that my eyelids could probably crush diamonds. “What’s your angle, exactly?”

He paused for a moment, his face sobering. “Camila… do your parents often try to control your life? Not just what you watch, but what you eat and where you go.”

I gave him a curious look. “Why do you want to know?”

He closed his eyes. “I’m concerned about how they treat you. Despite what they claim, I feel as if they are using the Lord as a weapon against you.”

I snorted. “Don’t let my mom hear you say that.” I glanced at him again. “...You are gonna keep it to yourself, right?”

“Not a peep will reach their ears.” Father Rodrigo promised.

I stared him down a few more moments… and let out a breath. Suddenly, I felt so… exhausted. “Feels like I live in a gulag. It’s not just watching anything other than StarchyTales. If I don’t eat what they want me to eat or wear what they want me to wear, they get all... judgmental. “You’re getting so chubby, can’t you eat better?”, “You look so shabby in those clothes, why not wear something that actually looks good?”, and stuff like that. Worse, if I talk back, they either put their foot down even harder, or guilt trip me. Earlier, Mom said she “didn’t spend hours in labor to see me play God”. I didn’t ask to be made.” I finished, rather harshly.

Father Rodrigo looked at me rather sympathetically. “It certainly sounds to me as if your parents have a rigid grip on your life.”

“Oh, and let me guess, I just have to suck it up, right? That’s what the bible says, or whatever. They can treat me however they want, and I just have to obey them.” I spoke with a little venom.

Surprisingly, he didn’t take offense. “It does say such things. But it also teaches that parents should treat their children with the same compassion that the Lord treats his children. It pains me to see your parents teaching you to fear them.”

That was news to me. “If they’re supposed to be good parents, why do they try to force me to do everything their way? Why do they try to guilt and shame me?”

He leaned slightly to the side, partially in thought. “The world is… full of many things that are out of our control. Racism, an increasingly complicated political world, and the ever shifting culture of our country… I imagine that all these things make your parents… anxious. It likely makes your parents feel better to control you, because it’s one of the few things they have such control over.”

I tilt my head. “Really?”

“It is my best guess. And this show of yours, they see you so invested and feel threatened. It’s a tool that could break their control over you. So, they treat it as a callsign of the devil.” He sighed. “Such envy and hatred can become a tool for the devil in of itself… just as King Saul’s mind was poisoned by his jealousy of David.”

“Uh… I don’t remember that one.” I chuckled nervously. He only chuckled back. “You never really did answer me. Why do you care so much?”

“Aside from it being my job as a priest to show such love and kindness? Hmm…” He looked a bit hesitant, but quickly pushed that down. “All through my childhood and into my adult years, I’ve seen parents fail to realize how they are pushing away their children from the Lord. They use his name in vain, and it turns them from the light… into many, truly dark places.” He actually shuddered. “As a priest, I hoped I could keep that from happening… as best I could, anyway.”

“You know, you could try to convince my parents they’re being idiots. “Maybe they’ll listen to a man of god”, and all that.” I suggested.

He chuckled again. “You’d be surprised how often people stop listening to religious figures when it doesn’t fit their views. I think all we can do is pray that they realize they have been too overbearing.”

I groan. “So… what? Years from now, am I just expected to forgive them when all is said and done?”

“For yourself, if nothing else. Grudges can poison the heart, whether you're religious or not. But as to whether you still want them in your life… well, only you can decide that.” He stood. “Still, if you ever need someone to talk to, just let me know. For now… take this.” He handed me a small wooden crucifix. “So you remember that the Lord is with you, no matter what. Besides, your parents believe that you’re cavorting with the devil, so they might calm down if you take this.”

I still wasn’t sure what to think about this guy. But… he seemed pretty genuine. “...Thanks.”

Not too long after, my parents came back in, and Father Rodrigo said his goodbyes. My parents expected me to open up, but when I stayed quiet, they simply sent me back to my room.

---

“Wow, Cam. I just… I know you said your parents were overbearing, but I didn’t think by that much.” Lola shook her head as she placed the VHS in her backpack.

“Honestly, this isn’t even the worst case.” I sigh. “Now how am I gonna see Uncharted Territory with you?”

“Can’t you just… say you’re hanging with me to study an upcoming test, and just have my folks take us to go see it?”

“I dunno… my parents have gotten a lot more suspicious about the kids at school. They’re wary about whoever gave me such “sinful material”. They’d probably suspect you, too.”

She snorted. “I mean… they’d be right. But I doubt they’d suspect me from the get-go. Nobody ever thinks the kid in a wheelchair is capable of anything.” She said with a tinge of bitterness.

“Are you sure? You might get in trouble.”

“Hey, what’s the Astral Oath? To love and protect each other just as we are…”

“Through supernovas and solar winds.” I finished, smiling. “Ok, let’s do this. Step one, I tell my mami we’re having a study session for the history test next week.”

“Okay, but you really need to be careful not to give away that you’re lying.” She interjected.

“What? Come on, Lola.”

She gave me a deadpan look. “Cam, you’re a garbage liar. You sound all strained and suspicious in an attempt to sound casual. Completely unconvincing.”

I huff indignantly. “Well, if you’re so good at it, how do you suggest I do better?”

“Easy. Tell half-truths. Since you’re technically being honest, just omitting the unsavory lies, you don’t feel as nervous.” She suggested.

“You sure that will work?”

“Trust me, Cam. It works.” She assured.

I narrow my eyes.”You… sound like you’re speaking from experien-”

“So, we should plan our day out! We wanna make sure we don’t spend too long, right?” She took out a pen and paper and began writing up a schedule. “Now, the best time would probably be…”

“?vml vsg boozvi vsh hR”

I turn my head rapidly. Glancing around, there are numerous conversations going on around the lunchroom. It was loud… but just like before, I heard someone whispering.

“Yo, Cammy. You paying attention?”

I turn back to her, before taking one last quick look around the lunchroom. “Sorry, I just… thought I heard something.”

---

“A study session?” My mom asked as she drove me home for the day.

“Yeah, I’m a little nervous about next week’s test, so Lola offered to help.” I clenched the straps on my backpack a bit tighter than usual.

She raised her eyebrow. “Can’t you do it at our house?”

“We could, but Lola’s house is more suited for her wheelchair. No need to inconvenience her just for this, you know?”

She thought for a moment. “...Very well, Camila. But I will pick you up not a second later.”

“Thank you, mama.”

-

“Thank you for taking us to the movie, Mr. Derceto.” I spoke up.

In many ways, he was much like Lola. He also had glasses that made him look a little fish-eyed, and the smell of anchovies and seaweed was just as… pungent. But he was also just as nice as her. “Not a problem, Camila! For someone who’s been a wonderful friend to my daughter, I don’t mind bending the rules a tad.”

“If we’re gonna make it back before Mrs. Noceda does, we need to leave now.” Dolores explained. “Cam says she’s as punctual as a clock, and I believe her.”

“Right! Hold on to your glasses, you two. I’m still not entirely acclimated to these kinds of vehicles.”

“Uh, what does that mEEAAAAA-”

It was the third scariest moment in my life.

---

Though our town was a relatively quiet one, the theater almost made it seem like a hustling, bustling city. Whether it was a pack of teens, some girls having a night out, or just families here for a good time, it was a crowded hotspot.

It took a hot minute before Lola and I could get our snacks and shuffle into the movie, but once there, we were ready for one of the greatest experiences of our lives.

“.verhhviknrmf hizvkkz vsH”

Again, I turn. The people behind me seem to be intently awaiting the show, none of them moving their mouths. But… that can’t be. I know I heard whispering. Is… is someone following me?

“Hey, it’s starting!” Lola said quietly. It takes me a moment to turn back. I even double take when I think I hear the whispering begin again.

Even after I turn around, it takes me a good twenty minutes into the movie for me to shake my uneasiness.

---

We had a wonderful time. The plot had been about foiling an assassination attempt on a peace conference, after the enemy planet was finally forced to seek concilation. It was up to Dirk and his crew to go on one final adventure to stop it.

“I mean, I always wondered what made the Crijons an ally of the federation in A New Generation, but an exploding planet was not my first guess.” Lola said.

“I know! And I can’t believe…” I started to whisper to her. “...that even people in Astral command were in on the conspiracy.”

“What’d you think of the villain?”

“Not as good as Quin, but he was pretty entertaining.” I snickered a little. “The dumb look on his face when the missile was headed straight for his command deck-” I began giggling uncontrollably.

“Yeah, he looked pretty dumb.” Lola sighed happily. “...You were right, Cam. I had a really great time. I think… I’ll remember this memory plenty.”

I smiled, before noticing a standee, and someone with a camera in front of it. “Oh, hey!” I gestured to her to come along as I walked over. “Scuse me, sir? Could you take our picture?”

Turns out the man was there to photograph moviegoers anyway. We stepped in front of the standee and flashed the Astral Symbol. He gave us the photo, and we finally made our way out.

I looked at it, a somber grin on my face. “Here, Lola.” I handed it to her. “I want you to have this. That way you never forget this chubby space nerd.”

Dolores took the picture, staring at it before glancing back at me, her eyes watering. “Oh, Cammy…” We hugged, and I could feel my shoulder getting a bit damp. I couldn’t complain… I was crying all over her shoulder, too. “I’m gonna miss you so much… thanks for being such a great friend to this fish eyed weirdo.”

We held that hug for a good few seconds before separating. “Right…” I wiped my eyes. “Let’s get back to your house before my mom comes to pick me up…

Dolores stopped her chair suddenly. She looked ahead nervously. “Uh, Cam…”

I gave her a confused look before following her gaze. Mr. Derceto seemed to be in an argument with someone. A one sided argument, given how much the other person was shouting.

My heart sank when I saw just who was yelling at him. “Oh no.”

“You should be ashamed of yourself, bringing her to such an event! ¡Me enfermas!” Mami scolded him.

Mr. Derceto shook his head. “I just don’t see what the big deal is…”

“I expect you wouldn’t.”

Mr. Derceto scowled. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“If it weren’t obvious to you…” Mami stopped when she noticed me. “Camila!” He walked over and grabbed my arm. “Pon a tu madre en una tumba prematura, ¿por qué no? You’re coming home with me right now! You’re in so much trouble!”

“Ah! Wait! Mami, let go!” It was no use, though. I’d probably hurt myself before I broke free of her grip. I look back to Lola sullenly. “See ya, Lola…”

She appeared to be half glaring at my mom, half looking at me in concern. “Take care, Cam.”

---

“I can’t believe you’d do such a thing. Lying to us? Sneaking off to a movie? And to a movie of a show we forbid you from watching!” Papi shouted.

“Are you trying to damn yourself to hell, Camila?! Because you are very close to throwing yourself into Satan’s arms!” Mami added.

I only sat there. I’d already gotten enough of this the other day. An encore performance was just exhausting.

“At least we know who the culprit is, now.” Mami said. A feeling of concern overcame me. “That girl. I’ll bet she’s the one who’s been giving her all those demonic items.”

“What?!” I shouted in shock.

Papi spouted a theory of his own. “Something about that family has always been off to me. Just look at how pale they are. And the way they smell like something rotten… I’m confident that they’re into something satanic. And it’s eating away at them from the inside.”

Mami concurred. “I think you might be right. You know, I wouldn’t be surprised if that girl is hiding goat legs underneath that blanket-”

“Are you two serious?!” I object. “She’s in a freaking wheelchair, Mami!”

“Don’t you take that tone of voice with us, young lady.” Papi said angrily. “You’re in enough trouble as is.”

I stood up. “I’m not just gonna let you stand there and talk about Lola that way!”

“That girl is the cause of all this!” Mami accused. “Convincing you to lie to your parents, taking you to see unholy movies-”

“It was my idea to sneak out! Not hers! You can’t pin that on her!”

“Only because you were around her!” Papi blamed. “She’s been filling your head with unholy thoughts! She’s a terrible influence to be around! As of right now, Camila, we forbid you from seeing her.”

I gasped in horror. They gave me stern looks, refusing to back down. I scowled. “No.”

Mami recoiled. “What did you say?”

“I sad NO! You can make feel bad for what I wear and what I eat! You can take away everything about Cosmic Frontier I ever collected and burn it! But you’re NEVER going to keep me from Lola! I’ll talk to her every second I’m away from you! If you take me out of school, I’ll sneak out every chance I get to see her! And even if she moves to the other side of the Earth, I find a way to send her letters, and read the ones she sends back to me! You aren’t taking my best friend away from me!”

“She is straying you from the path of God, Camila! Straying you from us!” Papi argued.

“I’D RATHER BE WITH HER THAN EITHER OF YOU!”

Silence. My mother and father looked at me in abject horror. I flinched, ever so slightly…

…But I didn’t take it back.

Mami sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. “...I can’t believe this… my daughter is cavorting with the devil…” She then scowled at me. “And do you know what happens to girls who stray from God, Camila?”

I tensed a little. I’d never gotten them this angry before. What… what were they going to do?

“El Cuco will come for you.”

My shoulders slump as I blankly stare at her. “Really, Mami? El Cuco?”

“Don’t scoff.” Papi warned. “He comes for disobedient children like you, Camila. Stalking them from the rooftops, waiting to whisk you away… or feast on you.”

I rolled my eyes. “This is just… wow. What am I, five?”

“We…” Mom stuttered a bit. “We mean it, Camila. El Cuco is a living shadow, a horrid thing that can transform into whatever it wants. The way you’re going, Camila, cavorting with people of the Devil? You won’t see him coming till it’s too late.”

“Or he may just take you in the night, pulling you into the darkness… never to return.” Papa added.

I sigh. “Can you guys just ground me for another month? Cause that would be so much better than you two trying to scare me like this.”

Papi growled… then groaned, shaking his head. “...Go to your room. Perhaps tonight you may even get a glimpse of him.”

And with that, I was finally able to walk away from this stressful conversation.

“...wvgrirkh bomrzgivx hr vsH”

I whisk around. The whispering again. But the only ones here are me and…

…My parents.

I scowl at them, as I watch them whispering to each other from the corner of my eye, before entering my room.

---

Night fell. But I couldn’t sleep. Hard to believe, I know. There were just so many things on my mind.

But the biggest thing? That my parents were clearly the ones doing all that whispering. I mean, seriously, what else could it have been? That same kind of whispering has been happening nearly everywhere I go, and then they tried to scare me with El Cuco? It couldn’t have been a coincidence.

I didn’t know why my parents, more likely just mom, followed me everywhere just to try and make me believe in El Cuco. But I’m not surprised. Like usual, it was some way to control what I do.

Well, I’m not going to fall for it. They can try all they want… I won’t let them stop me from seeing Lola.

I looked at the crucifix that Father Rodrigo gave me.

“They just don’t get it. They’re too stubborn. If Father Rodrigo can’t make them see… can’t you?” I asked aloud, as if God were really listening.

A movement out of the corner of my eye grabbed my attention.

I looked to the shadows being cast across my window. Every few seconds, a small bump went across the bottom, where the windowsill was.

“.ivggzn lM... ?wvgxvuuzmf flb viz dlS”

I glared. They were still trying to pull this. “Oh no. It’s El Cuco. Whatever will I do?” I say deadpan, out loud. The whispering continues. I audibly groan. “Oh, give it a rest, Mom! I can’t believe you’d go this far just to make me do what you want!”

The whispering stopped for a moment. I grabbed a flashlight.

“I’m a teenager now, Mom! I know monsters aren’t real! You can’t just scare me into submission!”

Silence. Nothing but the dead of night and the sounds of…

Wait. There… weren’t any sounds coming from outside. No rustling from the trees… no crickets chirping… even the wind was quiet.

Without warning, a creaking noise sounded out from around me. It seemingly traveled along the walls, and through the ceiling… as if something was moving through the foundation.

A shiver went down my spine as the sound moved around. It… it sounded like someone’s bones cracking. But… I knew Mami and Papi were just trying other ways to scare me. They… They had to be. “I won’t… I won’t let you change me just because you’re too scared of the world around you!”

Movement in the window again… a lot of movement. Too much movement. The shadows made by the top of the window, the blinds, the tree outside… something slithered alongside them. When one disappeared, another showed up.

I shined my flashlight at the window, hoping to reveal the culprit. The feeling of dread welled up inside of me. “So, just… stop! I’ll… I’ll r-run away! I swear!”

Creak

I froze. My closet had begun to open. Pitch black came from within. Nothing else…

Except the bright glowing eyes staring back at me.

I jumped out of bed, put my slippers on, and ran out the room. Reaching my parents’ door, I knocked, resisting the urge to pummel it with fear. “O-Okay, Mami! Papi! Your… your little story got to me! I’m scared, I… could I sleep with y’all?”

The noise continued to travel through the house. As if the entire place would collapse. I began rapping the door. “M-Mami! Papi! P-Please, open up! I think there’s something out here! I’m scared!”

“.oirt shrollU”

I jolted as I heard a voice, not merely a whisper, speak to me. I whirled around and saw the glowing eyes coming from down the hallway, surrounded by darkness. I aimed at it with the flashlight, hoping that I’d find my mom or dad standing there.

The flashlight lit up the hall. The shadow was still there. It towered over me, it’s body fusing with the darkness outside the light’s reach. My body shook with fear as it stared into my eyes.

“.ozvi viz hivghmlN”

It moved closer. The light from the flashlight began to disappear, as if its body was snuffing it out. It… It was really El Cuco.

I stepped back, unable to speak anymore. Tears leaked from my eyes. My legs felt like they would shatter.

I practically slammed the door, hard as I could. “MAMI! PAPI! PLEASE, PLEASE OPEN UP!” But they didn’t answer. The light didn’t even come on. El Cuco moved even closer. It reached it’s gaunt hand out, hoping to grab me.

I didn’t have any other choice. I ran.

I ran out the door, screaming, just trying to get away. I nearly tripped over the bump in the sidewalk as I did. My first thought was the neighbors. My mother knew them, they could help! I went to my left, reaching the next house. I almost hurt my hand rapping the door. “Please! Please, answer the door!” I shouted aloud, hoping they would hear me. But the lights in this house remained dark, too.

“.dlm flb vpzg ghfq woflsh R hkzsivK”

A shiver went down my spine as the voice sounded out from behind me. I turned to find the El Cuco only a few feet away, still staring.

“Ahhhhh! No!” Panicking, I threw the flashlight right at its face, causing it to squint. I took the chance to run.

I ran down the street. “SOMEBODY HELP ME! I’M BEING ATTACKED! AYUDAME! EL CUCO IS CHASING ME! DON’T LET IT TAKE ME!” All the lights in every house remained dark. Whatever street light I reached shattered as I got close, spurring me to keep running.

“.oord bn lg wmrn iflb wmvy woflx R”

The darkness seemed to swallow up any light behind me it could, capturing the world into a realm of pitch black. I was so focused on running, I didn’t notice a stray rock. I tripped, but got up quickly, though I lost one of my slippers. At a fork in the road, I turned left.

As if luck would have it, I finally saw someone. A man walking through the neighborhood. Maybe he could-

‘BARK! BARK! BARK BARK!” A sound caught my attention. From one neighbor’s yard, a dog barked furiously at the man. Paranoid, I stopped, trying to get a closer look.

The man turned… and I was met with the same glowing eyes.

A loud and sharp whine echoed out. The dog had vanished. But I could see something dripping along the fence, where it had been…

“...vifgzvix hhvosgilD”

I didn’t waste another second. “AHH! STAY AWAY!” I ran the other direction, not waiting to figure out what happened to the poor dog.

As I approached another set of street lights that shattered, a sudden sharp pain hit my foot, causing me to fall down. It was bleeding, likely cut by one of the glass shards. But as I saw from where I lay, El Cuco was still following. He almost seemed to slither across the ground as he stalked me.

“.wmrn iflb nliu wvvm R gzsd gxzigcv ghfq woflsh R vybzn iL”

Doing my best to ignore the pain, I got back up and continued to run. It hurt worse than any scrape or bruise I’d gotten, but I couldn’t stop.

I thought I’d finally been in luck when I saw a police car, sitting in the road. That had to have been my chance! “OFFICER! AYUDA! BAD GUY!” I waved my arms frantically as I ran to his car.

But as I looked through the glass, I was met with bad luck once more. The officer’s eyes were half lidded. He drooled a little, and overall seemed unresponsive. As if he were in some sort of… trance.

Is that what happened to Mami and Papi? To everyone in the neighborhood?

“.mdl bn ul vml hz flb vpzg woflx R hkzsivk ,gvb wmZ”

The voice of El Cuco sounded out, interrupting my thoughts. Not even bothering to look where it came from, I only continued to flee.

My legs were starting to get sore. My foot stung like nothing else. I was so tired. And no one would be coming to help me. I didn’t know how much longer I could keep this up. Should I try to reach Lola? No… her house was way too far. I’d never make it. And she might be affected, too. What could I even do?

“...worsx ,virhvw flb ivevgzsd flb vert woflx R”

Despite the fact that I couldn’t understand what it was saying, whatever it said… made me feel enticed. As if it had… offered something I wanted. I pushed through those feelings. I couldn’t let it trick me.

“.ivevilu wmvriu iflb sgrd vy woflx flB”

I tried to push whatever thoughts she was forcing on me out of my mind. “Stop it! Leave me alone!”

“...ofuivwmld lh tmrsgvnlh ul gizkz vy oo’flb wmz ,vn sgrd vnlX”

I block out the words, and run. Run and hopefully find someone who can help before my body gives out.

And then, I saw it. A glint of light. Faint, but there. Out of the corner of my eye. I turned to it, and there was the church. Dim lights came from within. I guess God was the only one who could save me at this point.

I made a dash for the doors, slamming them open.

There, in the front, was Father Rodrigo. He whirled around in shock as I ran down the aisle, rushing into his arms. “Father Rodrigo!”

“Camila! What are you doing here so late? My goodness, your foot is bleeding!”

I cried into his chest, barely coherent. “M-monster! El Cuco! It’s chasing me!”

Father Rodrigo seemed bewildered. “El Cuco? Camila, I know I said I’d be here if you needed to talk, but aren’t you a little old to-”

The doors to the church slam open. El Cuco’s eyes pierce through the darkness. Father Rodrigo’s eyes widen in horror.

Rodrigo pulls me behind him. “Stay behind me, Camila!” He takes out his crucifix and bible. “Yield, demon! This is a house of God!”

“.flb vezh glmmzx wlT ?vn nliu flb kvvp mzx vxzok xrgvsgzk hrsg pmrsg flb lW”

The darkness from outside seeped in, swallowing every candle’s flame, but Father Rodrigo held his ground. “San Miguel Arcángel, defiéndenos en la lucha. Sé nuestro amparo contra la perversidad y acechanzas del demonio.” He began speaking. The darkness slowed.

“.tmligh hr sgrzu h’vml hrsG .tmrghvivgmR...”

“Que Dios manifieste sobre él su poder, es nuestra humilde súplica. Y tú, oh Príncipe de la Milicia Celestial, con el poder que Dios te ha conferido-” He stood against El Cuco, steadfast. He refused to flinch for even a moment. But even though the darkness slowed, it did not stop.

“.bmrghvw bn nliu vn kvvp glm oord flb ,ivevdlS”

Rodrigo was practically shouting at the top of his lungs, but El Cuco began to reach his arm out, towards me.

I flinched, falling backward, my glasses falling off. Even with my sight impaired, I could see the monster looming over us. I looked on in fear as I was seemingly doomed.

And yet, it stopped. I could see the eyes staring at me, studying me.

“.mllh llg wveriiz vezs R .dzh R hvml vsg g’mviz bvsg gfy ,izornrh viz bvsG .hvbv vhlsG...”

Father Rodrigo, taking notice of its hesitation, finished his prayer. ““-arroja al infierno a Satanás, y a los demás espíritus malignos que vagan por el mundo para la perdición de las almas! Amén!”

El Cuco recoiled, as if struck by a great force. It growled at us.

“.vn lg sgild bmz ul ivtmlo lm viz flb ilu ...izvu woflsh flb wmZ .worsx ,mrp iflb ilu mifgvi oord R ...mdlw wizft bn gvo R”

El Cuco, and the darkness it brought, receded. The candles lit back up, as if their flame was given back. Father Rodrigo clutched his heart in relief, briefly holding his crucifix to his head.

I don’t know if it was blood loss, or exhaustion, but as the adrenaline left my body, I lost consciousness. The last thing I heard was Father Rodrigo.

“Camila? Camila!”

---

Light hit my eyes, and they fluttered open. Groggily, I rose from where I was resting. I looked around… I was… in my room?

I heard my door open, and in came my mom. She gasped when she noticed I was awake. “C-Camila! You’re up!”

“Y… yeah.” I muttered.

Papi was right behind her, quickly entering. He seemed… restless. “How… how did you sleep?”

I rubbed my head, thinking back on last night… and it all came back to me! “M-Mami! Papi! El Cuco… it attacked me!”

“What?” Mami said in confusion. Though… it seemed off.

“It… it tried to take me! I tried to knock on your door to get you, but you wouldn’t wake up! I was so scared, I ran outside and through the streets, and… the church, and Father Rodrigo…”

“Camila. Shh.” Mami hugged me. “My little Cami, you just had a nightmare, that’s all.”

“N…No. It felt so real. It had to be real.”

“We checked on you, Princesa. You were in bed all night.” Papi said.

“I…” The words failed me. Could all of that really have been a dream?

“But…” Papi began. “I can see… that we must’ve really frightened you last night. Perhaps we went too far.” I resisted the urge to sass him, which was easier thanks to feeling so tired. “You are still grounded for a month.” He said sternly, but soon softened. “But… we will not keep you from seeing your friend. And when your grounding is done… we will consider letting you watch your… space show.”

I perked up. “R-Really?”

Mami placed her hands on my shoulders. “Just promise us you will not lie or sneak out again, Cami.”

“I promise.” I said, rather quickly.

Both of them sighed in relief. “Why don’t you come get something to eat? We cooked Mangú.”

I nodded. “Okay. That sounds nice. I’ll be out in a moment.” They nodded, exiting my room.

I sighed. The fact that all of that had been a bad dream… was a relief. But it really did feel real... But it was over, and my parents were dialing it back. I should just-

“Ah!” I yelped as my foot touched the ground. I straightened out, a severe chill going down my spine. That foot… that spot…

My eyes slowly traveled downward, my arms shaking. Was… was the cut there? Did that mean…?

…

My eyes darted back up at the last second. I was too afraid to confirm. Despite how much it stung, I ignored the pain, and headed to breakfast.

I never did talk about that “nightmare” ever again. Not even with Lola. In fact, I started to ignore a lot of the ‘supernatural’ things that people talked about around me. I just focused on spending as much time with Lola as I could. It was a tearful goodbye, but I think I made the most of it. My parents, although more lenient than before, did still keep some bad habits- criticizing what I ate and wore, for one. But they never really got as bad as they used to be… until I started dating Manny, and even more so after Luz was born. And yet, despite rebelling against their control… for a fairly long while… I didn’t go out after dark.

---

“I still have no idea what that… thing was saying to me. Honestly, I don’t think I want to know. Now that I remembered what happened that night, my only hope is that I never see it again.” I finished.

“Shadow demons, probably.” Eda theorized. “Nasty pieces of work. They were probably feeding on your fear.”

“Or maybe something else entirely. Hard to say without any of us having been there.” Hellboy interjected. There was this… scowl on his face as he said that. Like something about my story… really unsettled him.

“But how come it couldn’t take me? Everyone else was entranced, but why didn’t the… thing do it to me if it was trying to take me?” I asked.

“The crucifix.” Hellboy answered simply. “Doesn’t matter what holy symbol of what religion it is. If you’ve got faith in what it represents, it’ll protect you.”

“But… I wouldn’t exactly have called myself a devout Christian back then. Or now, even.”

Hellboy gave a light shrug. “It was probably Father Rodrigo’s faith within, not your own. Guy seemed devout enough for twenty people, honestly.”

“I’m surprised your parents didn’t take advantage of how scared you were. But they backed off your friend and that space show of yours instead?” Eda pointed out.

“I think for once, they actually cared about me more than the idea of controlling me. They lightened up because if I wasn’t disobeying them, El Cuco would leave me alone. …Well… I hope that’s what it was…” I opt to change the topic. “What I don’t get is, why did my parents lie to me about it altogether? Not just that night, but the rest of my life?”

“Maybe they were protecting you. Finding out the monsters under the bed are real isn’t doing a kid’s mental health any favors.” He grumbled a bit. “Or, a bit more cynically… they were protecting themselves. Too scared to acknowledge that the supernatural is really there… so they did their best to make sure you never did.”

“...I guess I can understand that sentiment. I blamed my lack of knowledge of the BPRD and the supernatural on just… never focusing on you. But maybe I didn’t want to. Maybe I didn’t want to relive that night, or acknowledge that it was ever possibly real. And because of that… my daughter was just as unprepared.” I let out a deep breath. “But it’s painfully obvious to me now. I may be more familiar with Earth, but… in many ways, it can be just as dangerous as the Boiling Isles. In some cases, even more so. And yet, even the children of the Isles seem more prepared for such things.” My hand slightly clenches in resolution. “Hellboy, can your agency do me a favor?”

“Mhm?”

“I need the number of Father Rodrigo. I need to ask him about that night…”

“Could take till tomorrow.” He noted.

“That’s alright… I only need his answers for myself.” I peered out into the Isles, now anxious for my daughter to come home. “I already know what I’m going to tell my daughter.”

---

Luz and the others are at their final stop, a view from the tallest rib. Luz could see the entirety of Bonesborough from here, all the witches and demons making a life for themselves.

I could feel Willow, Gus and Roger looking at me as I gazed out from the viewspot.

“So…” Willow broke the silence. “You went quiet again after lunch.”

“Yep.”

Gus spoke up next. “And we were… kinda hoping to ask…”

“If I finally wanted to talk about what was on my mind?” I finished.

“We’ll leave it alone, if you prefer not to.” Roger assured.

“...No. No, I just needed some time to think.” I breathed out. “I feel like… no, I know what next step I need to take.”

“What do you mean?” Willow asked.

“When I heard both of y’all’s stories, I started… reflecting on things. Incidents that happened in my home town, rumors I heard, events the B.P.R.D. took care of.” I shook my head. “It put a lot of things in perspective.”

“You’re… you’re not saying you agree that you should leave, are you?” Gus said, a bit fearfully.

“No, nothing like that. But I’ve been thinking… maybe I’ve had the right goal… but I’ve been trying to attain it for the wrong reasons.” I concluded.

“How so?” Roger asked.

“Well…hmm… how do I explain this?” I thought for a moment. “...You guys up for one last story?”

The three looked at each other for a moment. They turned back to me and nodded. “Hey, why not go three for three?” Willow said.

“Can’t leave you out of the fun, can we?” Gus agreed.

Roger stepped forward. “Go right ahead, Luz.”

I smiled. “So, after we left the food cart, a lot of memories were drudged up from the stories y’all told. But there’s one I remembered above all the others.” I explained. “Which is weird… because it was a dream. You’re not supposed to remember dreams, right? And definitely not after a few years.” My friends glanced at each other, curious. “But I do. I never gave it much thought… till today. And now…” I looked at them intently.

“I don’t think it was just a dream.”

---

Tiamat and Ashur

I had only recently started the sixth grade. We were currently learning about the ancient civilizations of ancient Mesopotamia. At the same time, my Mami had found a wounded snake in the forest. You should have seen it. It had this golden underbelly, and on top it was covered in a deep oceanic blue. Mama had never seen one like it, and it didn’t match any I’d ever known. We spent a few weeks taking care of it. While we did, we noticed it didn’t really act like a typical snake either. It was weird. But the weirdest thing about it was what happened when I came back from school one day…

“Mama! I’m home!” I dropped my backpack by the door.

“Mija!” Mom greeted me. She was at a desk, hunched over something. “How was school?”

“Uh… good.” I said, half-heartedly.

Mami gave me a look. “You don’t sound so confident.”

“Oh, it’s just… the first big assignment for History class. I’m just a bit nervous. But I’m fine, otherwise. Just some jitters.”

Mom studied me in barely visible concern. “...Alright, Lucecita. But if you need to talk, or if you need help with studying, just let me know.”

“I will, Mami.” I noticed a familiar set of scales on the desk. “Oh, is that the little snoot?”

Mama chuckled. “Little snoot?”

“Yeah! Cause she’s got a little snoot! I don’t have a name for her, so I just call her that.”

Mami sighed. “Luz, baby, you shouldn’t name her. We can’t keep her here. We said we were going to let her go once she got better, remember?”

My shoulders slumped. “I mean… I know. But we’ll probably never see her again once she’s healed and slithers off into the brush. I’m just… really excited to spend time with her while she’s here.”

“I know, mija. I’ll be sad to see her go too.” She turned back to the desk. “And it looks like it’s gonna be today. She’s healed up pretty nicely. She’s just about ready to be released.”

“Aww…” I whined sadly. Moving towards the desk, I found the little snoot coiled up. She began to follow me, her whole head turning as I walked by.

“She just so docile… even for a non-venomous snake.” Mom noted. The snake slithered out of her spot, moving towards me. “I’ll admit, Luz, she seems to have taken a liking to you.”

I extended my hand out, and the serpent slithered onto my arm. “She must know I’m a snake person.”

Mami giggled. “I’ve heard of dog people, cat people and even bird people. But never snake people.”

“Just be glad I’m not a lizard person. BLEP.” I said, sticking my tongue out. The little snoot stuck out her tongue in kind.

Mami giggled again. “Tell you what. She’s been cooped up all morning, and being on my “examination table” probably hasn’t helped. Why don’t you take her out for one last nap in the shade? Then we can say goodbye.”

I smiled. “Sure! Maybe she’ll tell me her snake secrets.”

Mom looked at my backpack. “Why don’t you take your books out? It’s a nice, soothing day. The perfect kind of day for reading in the shade.”

“Oh, um… of course.” I sling the bag over my shoulder without disturbing the little snoot and wandered outside.

Mami was right. It felt wonderful outside. Any other kid would find it easy to study. But me… well…

I groan as I slump next to the tree in our backyard, slowly slipping into a sitting position. The little snoot has slithered up onto my shoulder.

“...You know, little snoot, sometimes I wonder if I’d be a better snake than a person.” The snake seemed to eyeball me, as if it were giving me a confused look. “It’s just… middle school is so much different than elementary school. There’s no recess, the projects aren’t as fun, and the kids seem… even meaner than before.” I pulled out this year’s history textbook. “And to top it off, I can’t seem to focus on reading this stupid thing! I try, but my brain just… keeps thinking of some different thing every few seconds.” I clutch my shoulders. “I’m supposed to do an essay on something about ancient Mesopotamia, but I haven’t even written the first sentence. And it’s due tomorrow!”

The snake slithers down onto my leg. “I don’t suppose you know anything about Ancient Mesopotamia, do you?” It bleps its tongue. “...Heh. Thanks anyway.”

I lean back against the tree, taking in the scent of it. It smells like almond flowers. The breeze is nice, soothing against the skin and calming to the ears. I can’t help but fade away, letting sleep take me…

---

Little one…

I stir, as a soothing voice calls out to me. “Huh?”

I must speak to you…

“M-Mama? Izzat you?” Opening my eyes, I find… a near void, filled with nothing but a golden glow.

Not quite, little one…

“Wha? Who said that?”

My eyes dart around, looking for the source of the voice. It was then that I felt something looming over me, compelling me to peer upward.

A gigantic serpent, shining with golden scales on its belly, and deep blue scales on top of it. The hood extending from its head told me it was some kind of cobra. Even more unusual? Out from its back, spread two colossal wings, with dazzling blue and green feathers. It stares intently at me.

We have much to discuss.

“Ahh!” I fall backward, more than a little spooked.

Fear not, child. You and your mother have taken such good care of me. I will not hurt you. It would be bad form.

I blinked, processing that statement. On closer inspection… the serpent did look familiar.

“Little snoot?”

Luz Noceda. Such a unique spirit you have. Knowing what lies ahead of you, I wondered if it was wise of me to entrust you with the truth. So, I came to see for myself what you were like. I see now I have nothing to fear.

“A-Ahead of me? Like, a test at school after my assignment?” I wondered aloud.

Yes. Many tests ahead of you… but you may not be aware of them until it is too late. I can only hope my knowledge will help you.

“K-Knowledge? Are you… helping me study?” I was just wholly confused at this point. “Who… are you?”

The people I watched over long ago… they gave me the name Wadjet. Goddess of snakes.

“...Whoa… big snoot…” I couldn’t think of anything else to say.

The serpents who dedicate their life to you speak highly of your kindness. I, too, have borne witness to it. I can sense within you… a kinship. You resonate with my kind. You view us not with fear and disdain as humans often do, but with wonder and admiration.

I shall repay your kindness with the knowledge you seek. I shall tell you the tale of the Gods and Goddesses of Mesopotamia…

“G…Gods and Goddesses? Of Mesopotamia?”

Yes. Did you not want help learning about that?

“Huh? Oh! Er… I wasn’t… actually expecting you to help.” I said rather sheepishly.

Ah, but help I shall. It is how I wish to repay you.

I shall first tell you the tale the way the humans did… through their blind worship of those who did not deserve it.

They tell of the goddess of the sea, Tiamat, and the god of groundwater, Apsu. How their union gave birth to other gods- Lahmu and Lahamu, Anshar and Kishar. From them, came other gods, from Anu, to Ea.

“Uh… I don’t know if I can remember all those names.” I admitted.

For now, child, focus on Tiamat and Apsu.

Now, Apsu could not control these gods, and he feared they would rise up against him and Tiamat. He consulted his vizier, Mummu, who had advised that they should destroy their children.

“What?!” I shouted, appalled. “How could she ask them to do that?! No way they accepted.”

Apsu agreed. Tiamat refused. She could not bear to destroy what they had created.

“So, their dad… abandoned them…” I pushed down some… familiar memories.

But the gods caught wind of Apsu’s plans. It was Ea who took action, lulling him to sleep with a spell. Though Mummu tried to wake Apsu, it was no use. Ea took the halo from Apsu’s head, killed him while he slept, and chained Mummu. His body became the dwelling of Ea and his wife Damkina, and within his heart was born the god, Marduk. His splendor was so great, his own father considered him to be the sun itself. In celebration, Anu crafted the four winds.

“So, they killed him and then… lived inside his heart? Gross. …Wait, Marduk was born inside…” I suddenly remembered the talk Mami gave me not too long ago. “AGH! WAY GROSS!”

But they grew arrogant. The taunted the distraught Tiamat, belittling her failure to protect her beloved. Tiamat grew furious. In retaliation, Tiamat created an army of her own. She formed eleven monstrous creatures, chimeras with blood like poison. Her remaining loyal child, Kingu, arose as her new consort, and chief of her war party. Tiamat gifted Kingu with the Tablet of Destinies, ensuring his total command over her army.

I tilted my head. “The Tablet of Destinies? What’s that?”

For now, it is not important.

Ea became aware of Tiamat’s efforts, and grew frightened. Her power was formidable, and several gods had declared their loyalty to her. He went to the other gods, telling them of the eleven beasts, Kingu, and the tablet. His grandfather, Anshar, asked Anu to attempt to appease Tiamat. But he was unable. Her anger and might were too great. Anshar feared the worst.

“Well… yeah. They killed her love. What, did they expect her to jump for joy?” I thought for a moment. “Then again, Apsu did want to kill her children… maybe she should’ve.”

Anshar and Ea turned to their last hope… Marduk, born even mightier than his kin. When Anshar told him that he was to fight Tiamat, Marduk accepted the challenge. He told them that once he had done so, he would have the others name him supreme god, a being even Anshar would answer to. Though Anshar was against such a notion, he eventually relented.

“I… kinda feel like that’s a red flag.”

You may be right, child. But nonetheless, Marduk was given his throne, and the weapons necessary to fight Tiamat. Marduk began by trapping Tiamat with the four winds, cornering her. Tiamat, enraged by his challenge, engaged him in combat.

Though she was mighty, Marduk was mightier. He entangled her in a net, restricting her further. When she attempted to consume him, he used the winds to bloat her, causing her great pain. As she lay there, immobilized by his efforts, he shot an arrow into her heart. And the mighty Tiamat was dead. Those who had allied with her were captured, the eleven creatures she made were chained and tamed, and Kingu was stripped of the Tablet and sent to the angel of death. To commemorate his victory, Marduk smashed Tiamat’s head with a mace, her blood taken by the North Wind. He split her body in twain. One half became the sky, the other became the earth.

From then on, Marduk went on to create. The constellations, day and night, clouds and rain, and finally… humans. Kingu was used as a sacrifice. From his blood, Marduk crafted humans to be servants of the gods, as eternal punishment for Kingu.

“Wait…” I interrupted. “So, the Mesopotamians… believe this is how the world was created?”

All civilizations tell the tale at one point. Perhaps with different actors, perhaps with different places. But all of them tried their hand at explaining their own existence.

“Huh… that’s actually kinda cool. So, what happened to Marduk?”

Hmm? Oh, him. He had the gods construct him a throne, had a temple built in his name, gave himself numerous titles… and so on and so forth.

“That’s… not very specific.”

Yes, seems I petered off there at the end, did I? Honestly, I couldn’t bear speaking another word. Quite the ego on Marduk. He would perhaps be furious to know that other Mesopotamian civilizations would conquer those that knew him, their leaders replacing his name with a god of their own- Ashur. All this talk of Marduk, only to be pushed out of the limelight by an unknown name! Except… certainly not an unimportant one.

I heard something akin to a laugh from the serpent. “Uh… you seem pleased about that for some reason.” The snake scoffed.

How could I not? The fools who worshipped Marduk were fed blinding lies, twisted tales passed down from fathers to sons, mothers to daughters. All of them started by Marduk himself. The true tale is far different.

“Bwuh? Wait, then why tell me all that?” I asked, confused.

That is the only version that your human scholars will accept, little one. But allow me to show you the truth.

In the middle of the glowing aura, shadows appeared. So far, there were only two. They formed vague humanoid shapes, featuring horns on the heads and wings on the back.

Tiamat and Apsu were indeed partners in life. This much is true. But they did not sire Lahmu, or Lahamu, or Anshar, or Kishar, or any other… No, they lived peacefully in a realm beyond ours, giants trudging through a forgotten land.

A crack formed off to the side, startling me. Shadows that looked far more human stepped out of it, in awe of their surroundings. The two larger figures greeted them, talked with them.

Then, from a doorway between worlds, they came. A golden people from a civilization that lay in another dimension.

Tiamat and Apsu welcomed them hospitably, and the guests returned it in kind. They met Lahmu, Lahamu, Kishar, Anshar, Anu… and the young Ea. They conversed with one another, telling each other of their lives. The creatures they had found, the food they ate… the magic they used.

“Magic?” I repeated excitedly, my interest piqued. Wadjet nodded.

Many years, they lived without issue. The giants crafted land so their friends may live on, cold water that they make drink, and animals which they could tame or eat. And the golden people grew. For a time, the two groups were at peace.

But it all changed. For the golden people were not the first visitors to the giants’ home. Before them… was Mummu.

A feminine figure slithered out from behind Apsu’s shadow, whispering in his ear. Looking at her… gave me the creeps.

Mummu was not a man, but a woman with the body of a snake. She only ever came to the giants in shadow, or in the night. She had come long ago, seeking knowledge from Tiamat and Apsu. In return, she gifted them with knowledge of their own.

Apsu was enthralled with what she had to share. But Tiamat did not trust her. Something about her was… off. And her distrust would soon prove justified.

Out of nowhere, Mummu began to say that the golden people could not be trusted. She claimed that they secretly met each night, planning ways to kill them. Tiamat balked at such claims, and Apsu originally met them with scrutiny as well.

I smiled for a moment. ‘So, in the true version… he didn’t abandon his family?’

My hopes were dashed when Apsu’s shadow was shown next, clearly anxious and irritable. Suddenly, Tiamat came in and began arguing with him. Whatever happened, Tiamat left in sorrow, while Mummu watched on from behind Apsu’s throne.

But her words began to poison him. Day after day, Mummu fed his paranoia, his fears, his anger. Apsu grew suspicious of those he once trusted, eyeing them with hate. Tiamat became distraught. She tried to reason him back to sanity. But his fears got the better of him. Then, one day, Mummu suggested the worst. She said that they would need to kill the golden people, before it was too late. Apsu agreed. Tiamat refused. She could not destroy the people she had come to know so well. It tore their love in two, and she left in despair, taking with her the last treasure they had created together: eleven eggs, infants of their own.

‘...Of course.’ I scowled.

But Ea, having grown into the leader of his people, somehow caught wind that Apsu wanted to kill him. But before Ea could issue an attack, a warrior stepped forward. Kingu, most formidable of their forces, wished to meet with Apsu in one last plea, to know why he wished to kill them. Ea was incredulous, but allowed him to do so.

I tensed as I watched the bearded human come before Apsu. Apsu looked about ready to kill him. But Kingu dropped his sword and some sort of chest piece, and fell to his knees. Apsu’s shadow relaxed. Kingu began to converse with him.

When Kingu met with Apsu, he was first met with hatred. Apsu threatened death upon him if he did not leave. But Kingu stripped himself of all weapons and armor, allowing himself to be vulnerable to Apsu. For the first time in quite a long time, Apsu doubted. He doubted the words of Mummu and the fears that had gripped him, and opened his eyes.

Kingu spoke with Apsu of his misgivings. How he was told that they planned to kill him. Kingu knew he could not sate these fears so easily, but he offered to plead their case. And so, Kingu told him of their origins. How they were once part of a great golden city, under a wise king. How it was overlooked by a statue wielding a fearsome stone hand. How it was all brought down by one woman.

He told the giant how their King was seduced, and his knowledge stolen. How she preached the knowledge their king wished to keep secret, driving them mad. How they began to sacrifice children and poison the air and earth. When the statue saw this, it wept, and came to life. It rampaged across their once great city, killing nearly all…

Though they survived, the other cities of their kingdom would not accept them, believing them to be tainted. They feared they may not survive, until one day, the youngest of them learned of a place they could flee to. Using magic he had never seen before, Ea had brought them to the giants’ realm. They could not question this- they had nowhere else to go. Apsu had saved their lives by gifting them land, food, water. They would not dare to attack him.

Apsu’s shadow sighed, ashamed of himself. Luz contentedly huffed. ‘Messed up big time, buddy.’

Apsu stared into Kingu’s eyes as he told this tale, seeing a sincerity he’d never known. He realized he had been wrong. He asked Kingu what became of the woman, feeling a sense of retribution. Kingu revealed that their king had cursed her for her crimes. Half of her body would become a viper’s, to reflect her true nature. Moreso, the sun’s rays would forever be deadly to her, forcing her into darkness.

Apsu’s shadow stood in surprise. Luz gasped as Mummu emerged from his shadow again, and instead of speaking, struck Apsu with a sickly, green energy. Kingu appeared horrified, before becoming angered. The other humans burst in, to Kingu’s confusion. One adorned in bulky garb (Luz assumed it was something… kingly), came forward. It seemed to be Ea. Apsu pulled Kingu closer, whispering something in his ear… and from his mouth, a slightly different hue of gold flowed from his mouth, into Kingu’s eyes. Just as that ended, Ea began to attack Apsu’s body. The giant’s shadow was assaulted, dissipating from the shadow-play.

Apsu was shocked. These traits… matched the description of his trusted advisor, Mummu. And it was then that Apsu realized that he had indeed been tricked… and pushed to blame the wrong people. But it was too late. Night had fallen. Mummu emerged from the shadows, and struck Apsu with dark magic. Before he could fade from consciousness, he gifted Kingu with some of his own magic, and told him to find Tiamat. The last words he spoke were a message for Kingu to give to his beloved.

Kingu prepared to fight the traitorous snake, but was stopped by the arrival of his own. Ea, leading all the warriors of their clan, had come in spite of Kingu’s request. Kingu witnessed as his leader used a terrifying magic to tear the horns from Apsu’s head and impale him with them. With Apsu’s death, came a cataclysm unlike any other. As his blood shed from his body, it flooded the world, raising the level of the sea. Creature and person alike were afflicted by the disaster that changed the realm forever.

Kingu fled. A bright hue of blue burst from below, unable to be ignored. Mummu barely reacted, only slithering towards Ea, who kneeled before her. Kingu looked on, disgusted.

Mummu came forth… and congratulated him for his part. It was then Kingu discerned that he too had been betrayed. And with that clarity, came the realization of where Ea’s knowledge had come from. It was Mummu who told him of the giants’ realm. Who told Ea that Apsu had planned to kill them. For Mummu was indeed the very same woman who had brought their city to ruin. Ea had been coaxed by her honeyed words, and it had been their plan all along to murder Apsu… and very likely Tiamat as well.

“...I don’t like Mummu.” I said, rather bluntly.

Yes, she is detestable, is she not? But she has only begun to show her sins, as you will soon see.

I saw as Kingu came before Tiamat’s shadow and told her what had happened. Tiamat’s maw opened, roaring a cry silent to my ears.

Kingu left as they vowed to make a city from Apsu’s corpse, lying that the beast sought to feast on them to their people. He sought out Tiamat, who had fled across the world, and told her Apsu’s last message.

“Mummu is after the tablet.”

With this revelation in hand, Tiamat screamed in anguish and fury. Wracked with guilt that he could not save Apsu, Kingu pledged his loyalty to her. Tiamat was merely thankful that he had brought Apsu back from the brink of insanity.

A rectangular shadow appeared from below, Tiamat guiding Kingu towards it. A fiery energy moved around her hands as she told him a tale.

Placing her trust in him, Tiamat showed him what Mummu sought: The Tablet of Destiny. Tiamat spoke of where it came from. She and Apsu were forged by Greater Spirits, once upon a time. When they first awoke, the two were afflicted with visions spanning beyond time and space. They were so terrified by what they saw that they could not bear it. But the curse of knowledge is that once something is known, it cannot be unknown. They could not remove it from existence, nor could they repress it. But… they could move it.

They forged a tablet out of stone, crafting it with a power known as the Secret Fire. They then transcribed it with the knowledge from their minds, forging it into the Tablet of Destiny. Filled with the secrets of the universe, Tiamat and Apsu had vowed to guard it with their lives. No one deserved to know such things. But now, with Apsu gone, Tiamat was the only one left to keep it safe.

I looked at the unassuming tablet. “Wow… were the secrets really that dangerous?”

They could’ve unraveled the very threads of existence, Luz Noceda.

“Yowza…” I muttered. “So… did Kingu help her protect the tablet?”

As I asked that, the scene changed, with Tiamat and Kingu looking upon eleven small creatures. They were… really cute.

No. She could not lay such a responsibility upon Kingu.…But she could ask him to protect her eleven children, who had only just hatched. Kingu accepted this as an honor, and vowed that no one would harm them. He would train them once they became old enough, and they would hopefully avenge Apsu’s death.

“Sure. No pressure…” I commented.

The scene changed entirely, as I saw Ea and an unknown woman appear. The woman appeared to be in labor, under Mummu’s watchful eye. I silently thanked Wadjet for using shadows. I really didn’t want the details.

Ea lifted up two children, taking them before Mummu, who sprinkled a dash of her sickly magic over them.

But these eleven children of the giants were not the only new lives forged. Ea had consummated a relationship with one known as Damkina. Two babes were born from this union- a boy that Ea named Marduk… and a girl, named Ashur. These children were “blessed” by Mummu, as she considered them her own. So long as they sought the knowledge she desired, she would grant them what they desired.

Before I knew it, the babies became young children. The boy, Marduk, practiced fighting a dummy of some kind, while the girl, Ashur, sat in an illustrious forest with a book at her side.

Suddenly, Ashur was attacked by some sort of bear-like creature. Marduk was quick to defend his sister, and with surprising skill for a young boy. Although he warded the thing off, he had taken a wound in the arm. It was then that Ashur stepped forward, a calming purple energy coming from her hand. She placed it upon her brother’s arm, healing the injury.

Marduk and Ashur were inseparable. They truly cared for one another… in spite of their differences. Marduk was much like his father. He lived to fight, and desired power. There was no doubt he would serve Mummu loyally.

But Ashur was more demure, preferring to avoid unnecessary violence. She was more comfortable among the wilds than the modern craftings of civilization. And though she sought knowledge, unlike Mummu, she believed in earning knowledge rather than taking it.

For most of their young lives, this hadn’t mattered. But as they grew older, they were told of the fate given to them. They were to help Mummu find the Tablet of Destiny, and kill Tiamat and those that stood with her. To that end, Ea continued to feed Marduk’s bloodlust and Ashur was introduced to Mummu.

I saw as Marduk grew more… violent in his training. He would practically tear the dummies apart, and when he had his first human opponent, he- ‘Oh… I don’t think he can live without that. I wonder if you can still puke in dream land…’ I thought, very queasy.

Ashur worked under Mummu, learning the magic she wielded. But when her training ended and Mummu left, she collapsed, puking her guts out. ‘Ok, if this keeps up, I really will find out if you can-’ I desparately fight the urge to heave.

Marduk excelled in his training. He wanted nothing more than to hear his enemies' cries, to see people bow to their knees before him. He envisioned goring Tiamat and taking the Tablet for Mummu. But Ashur, modest as she was, lacked the vicious drive to learn such evil power. Despite her reluctance, Mummu, Ea, and even her brother coerced her to learn. And as she did so, her body felt more and more tainted.

The time had come for the siblings to fight. When they began, Marduk exceeded expectations. But Ashur was paralyzed in fear and sadness. The people they fought… were their own.

Chaos erupted around me as numerous humanoid shadows fought one another. Marduk slaughtered his way through the battlefield… honestly, I think he killed a few of his own along the way.

But Ashur remained still, shocked at the sight. She fell to the ground.

She was set upon by a larger figure, with horns and wings that made him look very similar to Apsu. But before he attacked, he saw Ashur’s terrified form… and hesitated. In that moment, Marduk came to his sister’s aid once more, slicing at the figure’s face. He recoiled, clutching his face.

Kingu had not been idle in these years. He spread word of Ea’s treachery, many of the golden people switching loyalties. And now, they fought each other in a bloody civil war. Ashur was horrified, having been told she was to fight monsters. She collapsed on the battlefield, unable to continue. In her despair, a shadow loomed over her.

It was not of the Golden Ones. He was Ugallu, one of Tiamat's eleven children. He appeared ready to strike. But when he saw the distraught state of the girl, he hesitated. It was all the time Marduk needed to intervene, slashing out Ugallu’s right eye.

Though he drove Ugallu off, the battle was lost. Marduk returned as a hero. Ashur returned to be scorned.

I watched as Mummu ranted at a somber Ashur. I don’t know what she said… but it couldn’t have been anything pleasant. “It’s not fair… they threw her into a warzone. She never wanted to do this!”

Ah, but Mummu did not care. She was furious. She belittled Ashur for her failure. But Ashur argued back. They had always been told that Tiamat and her children were the enemy. But the spawn of Tiamat had spared her. Perhaps they could be talked to. Reasoned with. Could she at least not try?

As Ashur pleaded her case, Marduk stepped up to Mummu.

Mummu sat in silence. Suddenly, Marduk stepped forward, vouching for his sister. He convinced Mummu to let Ashur try things her way. After a night of thought, Mummu granted her request. But were she to be unsuccessful after a year, the war would resume. Before she left, Marduk gave her an amulet. A symbol that he would always protect her.

Ashur took the amulet, hugging her brother. “At least her brother still cares…” I thought for a moment I heard the snake scoff. But she continued before I could ask.

Ashur’s shadow walked along, the scenery behind her changing rapidly, to indicate an arduous journey. She finally stopped when she came upon a familiar figure… Ugallu.

I felt a bit of Deja Vu as Ashur cast aside her items, kneeling before him. Just the same when Ugallu relaxed in response.

Ashur left for Tiamat’s land at once. When she arrived, she was met once again by Ugallu. Ugallu did not trust her, resentful of the pain her kingdom had caused.

Just as it happened before, Ashur dropped all weapons and armor. She told him to strike her as many times as he felt necessary to compensate for his pain.

Shocked by this gesture, Ugallu’s anger left him. He agreed to take Ashur to his mother.

Ashur’s shadow came before Tiamat and Kingu… who greeted her warmly, to my surprise.

When she arrived, she was greeted by both Tiamat and Kingu. To both Ugallu and Ashur’s surprise, they greeted her warmly. They offered food, water, and shelter. Tiamat even offered to teach her the magic they knew. But Ashur was confused. She had been the child of their enemy. Why would they be so kind? They would not tell.

I gave Tiamat and Kingu’s shadows a strange look. “That’s… kinda weird.”

Ashur thought so as well. But although it struck her as odd, she accepted their offers. She grew to know their city. Their culture. The lives built by those who had supposedly abandoned her people. She ate with them, played with them, worked with them. It struck her to her core. They had forged a society together, without persecution or strife. The very opposite of what she had been told.

I watched as Ashur explored the great city, people greeting her happily in the streets, nature coalescing with civilization perfectly. She saw Ugallu and greeted him. He tried to ignore her… but couldn’t really do that when Ashur dragged him off elsewhere.

Though Ugallu kept his distance at first, she began to chip away at his rough exterior. She would ask him questions about his home, his family and the life he lived. She always tried to include him in her activities. And slowly but surely, bit by bit, he opened his heart to her. Before half a year had even passed, she had developed a closer bond with him than any other.

“¡Ay!” I cried out as other monstrous figures appeared. But Ashur showed no fear towards them. Some had longer snouts and more imposing bony spikes. Others had multiple eyes and more arms… or no arms at all, as Ashur found out when she met a serpentine figure.

She met Ugallu’s siblings, the supposed monstrous chimera. Basmu, Usumgallu, Musmahhu, Mushussu, Lamu, Uridimmu, Girtablullu, Umu dabrutu, Kulullu, and Kusarikku. Before even a week had passed, she had learned their names by heart. And they knew her in kind.

I marveled as I watched Ashur try a new kind of magic. Each chimera showed her their magic, manipulating the elements around them. She looked so… happy. Nothing like when she trained with Mummu.

Ashur seemed to notice something in one burst of light, drawing it on the ground before her. And she, too, summoned light. Ashur was delighted as she began going around, observing the spells of Ugallu’s other siblings… and so was I.

She learned of Tiamat’s strange magic- the ability to “speak” to the universe around her. When she asked for light, she received light. When she wished for ice, it granted her request. When she called for fire, it responded to her call. And when she spoke to the plants, they grew in response.

But her children did not only speak hers. No, they spoke their own language as well, crafted by their own tongues. But they could use each other’s languages as they pleased. Tiamat encouraged Ashur to learn these tongues for herself. Ashur eagerly agreed.

It was frustrating at first. No matter how hard she tried, she could not speak the way they did. But then, one day, as her dear friend Ugallu practiced in front of her, she noticed a strange symbol within his magic. Studying it, she discovered it to be his language. They were not words, but symbols given vocal form. She drew it out in front of her… and a light came forth from it.

With this startling new discovery, she began to excel. She studied the language of all eleven of Tiamat’s children. She combined them in various different ways, producing new spells of her own. With each new lesson, the sickness in her heart diminished. This magic was not about force, or pain, or violence. It flowed and conversed with the universe itself.

So much to learn. So much beauty. How could this be the nightmare her father had told her of?

On a starlit night, Ashur and Ugallu sat before the moon. Judging by the pained look on her face, Ashur was appalled and somber about something. Ugallu appeared to be angry, though thankfully not at her.

It was 3 fourths into the year when she felt the urge to tell her friend. On a somber night, she told him of the tale she had been weaved. Ugallu was furious. He balked at such lies, telling her the truth of the traitorous Mummu and the murder of his father.

Ashur was horrified. She could not believe that her family or Mummu would do such things. She did not speak to him for some time.

The moon moved through its phases, signifying that time had passed… and with it, their expressions changed. Ashur’s became more determined… while Ugallu’s was haunted. “Wait… what’s going on? Why’s Ugallu so spooked?”

…When she finally came to him again, it was of resolution. She would not take part in such a conflict any further. When her year expired, she would return to her kingdom and plead to leave the Tablet be. And should they reject this plea, she would look her father, mother, mentor and brother in the eyes, and refuse to spill even a single drop of blood for the Tablet.

Ugallu was horrified. He knew of the cruelty of his enemies. He believed they would murder her for such words. But Ashur trusted them. She showed Ugallu her amulet as proof, explaining who gave it to her and what it meant. Her brother would always protect her.

Though he protested, her mind would not be changed. And Ugallu dreaded each passing day. And in the final week of her journey, Ugallu’s fears bested him.

Ugallu’s form approached Ashur, and he guided her to a secret place. Soon, they were upon a familiar rectangular shape.

“What?! ¡No, gran tonto! Don’t do that!” I yelled, clutching my hair.

His judgment lapsed. A foolish idea came to him. If he were to show Ashur the Tablet, she would obtain vital knowledge. Knowledge that would spare her.

The eve of her leaving, Ugallu secretly brought Ashur to the tomb of the Tablet of Destiny. He lied, claiming that his mother allowed her a brief peek. But Ashur saw through this. She admonished him. He knew what she had said. He should have known that even if she had learned from the Tablet, she would not speak a word. If he truly believed that she was in danger, gifting her this knowledge would only increase that danger. Worse, he had betrayed his own mother’s trust.

Ugallu fell to his knees. I gave a forlorn sigh. Even if it was wrong, I couldn’t be mad. He only wanted to save his friend.

Ugallu broke down. He begged Ashur not to go, for he did not wish her to die. He cared for her too much.

Then it all went wrong. A familiar sickly green came from Ashur’s amulet. From it emerged two familiar figures…

But before Ashur could comfort him, history mirrored itself. Her amulet glowed a sickly green. Bursting forth came Mummu, and her champion Marduk.

Ugallu tried to attack, but was ensnared in bonds of that green magic. Ashur tried to plead to her brother and mentor… but they cast her aside.

Unprepared, Ugallu was captured by Mummu’s magic. Horrified and confused, Ashur commanded they let him go. But Mummu scorned her, disappointed in her weakness. When she pleaded to her brother for help, he only glared. He had vouched for her. He believed that if they let her gain the enemy’s trust, they would take her to the Tablet. Then, the amulet, in actuality an artifact of transportation, would allow them to appear behind enemy lines. He thought that she would be loyal. But she betrayed him and her kingdom. He deemed her unfit to be his sister, and disowned her.

Her heart shattered.

“I… I can’t believe it. That… jerk! ¡ESE HIJO DE PUTA!” Wadjet and the shadows looked at me in surprise. Marduk’s shadowy anger gave me a tired look as if to say ‘I’m just doing my job…’

I blushed sheepishly. “Well… I mean, he was.” My anger came back in full force. “How could he turn on his sister?!”

His bloodlust won over his love for his sister. If there was ever anything of value in Marduk’s heart, it died long ago.

I scowled as other humanoids were brought forth from the amulet. Before long, an entire army was amassing in the room of the Tablet.

As more forces poured out from the necklace, the two invaders took Ugallu hostage. They demanded the city surrender, or he would be killed. Neither Tiamat nor Kingu would see him hurt, and they relented.

What happened next would forever scar Ashur. Marduk gave a bloodthirsty grin.

“No…” I looked on in horror as Marduk flung himself at Tiamat. Her shadow was torn to shreds by someone who was little more than a wild animal in human skin, and all I or Ashur or anyone else could do was watch. “Stop! JUST STOP IT! ¡DETENLO AHORA!”

He stepped forward… and began to maul the great Tiamat. He hacked away at her flesh, assisted by violent spells from Mummu that twisted and tortured her. He forced her children and Kingu to watch. By the time he had finished, the mighty Tiamat was dead, not killed in an honorable battle… but treated as a plaything by a rabid dog.

But he was not done. He looked Kingu in the eyes… and ordered his army to slaughter the people.

The horror continued as the soldiers attacked the innocent. A red glow grew brighter around the silhouetted buildings, which only told me one thing…

They were burning it all to the ground. Ashur only curled in on herself in sorrow.

The bloodbath that followed lasted through the night. None were spared. The screams did not stop, no matter how much Kingu and Ashur wailed. By morning, the streets were paved red.

Ashur wept. Ugallu had told her of their cruelty and she did not listen. And they used her naivete, her kindness, all for their gain. Now, the lovely city she had come to know had been razed. Had this violence been what they wanted all along? To murder the innocent with glee?

She approached the place where Ugallu and his siblings were bound, and collapsed before them.

As Marduk and Mummu went back to inspect the Tablet, she collapsed and cried to Ugallu, his siblings and Kingu in sorrow. She too, deemed herself worthless, a blight on the realm that belonged nowhere.

I watched on, saddened. “No… don’t blame yourself…”

You and Kingu agreed. He objected to her self-loathing. Though he knew from experience that it could always have been a trick, neither he nor Tiamat felt that it was her fault. Ugallu had seen something in her, a sincerity like none other, and felt she was worthy. Just as Apsu had, so many years ago. And he and Tiamat trusted his judgment… even now. Ugallu agreed. Over the year he had come to know her, she’d never been out to hinder others for her own gain. Her desire to learn and grow was always tempered by kindness. Neither of them blamed her for what happened.

I watched as Ugallu and the others consoled her. With their silent words, came a newfound resolve in Ashur’s eyes.

Ashur broke them free with the magic she had learned. Ugallu and his kin ran off in one direction, while Ashur and Kingu went in the other.

Touched by their words, Ashur vowed to try and right her wrong. She secretly freed the Eleven and Kingu, and they set about stopping Marduk and Mummu. While the Eleven went to combat their enemy’s forces, Ashur and Kingu traveled down to the tomb of the Tablet. There, they found the two vile snakes, evidently having trouble accessing the knowledge of the Tablet.

Kingu whispered to her of Tiamat’s last defense- a spell around the Tablet that shielded it from gluttonous eyes. No one could look upon it so long as they desired the knowledge. Hearing this, Ashur whispered a plan to him.

I was confused when Ashur walked out into the open, seemingly appealing to her two abusers. And as they let their guard down, letting her approach the Tablet… Kingu launched a surprise attack.

Walking up to her brother and mentor, she feigned regret and repentance. She told Mummu and Marduk how she had been taught Tiamat’s language, and would make up for her failure by shedding the ward from the Tablet. With no other option, the two allowed her to walk up to it. It was then that Kingu leapt from the shadows, combatting the invaders. He would distract them while Ashur made to destroy the Tablet.

Suddenly, a golden glow came from the Tablet, connecting to Ashur’s own purple energy.

A look of abject terror etched itself onto Ashur’s face, worse than any I’d seen… before it warped into pure fury.

But when Ashur reached for it, Tiamat’s magic reacted. The ward was not only meant to protect it, but to leave her two final gifts. Tiamat’s magic showed Ashur the only secret she would ever need to know, a piece of knowledge that the giant herself wished to discover… about Mummu. What she was truly after horrified Ashur to her core.

She wanted the end of everything.

When the vision subsided, Ashur was filled with an emotion she had only now become familiar with… rage. Rage that Mummu had used her and her brother in ways even he did not understand. Rage that they had slaughtered so many for such a worthless reward. Rage that all she was ever meant to be was a stepping stone to the apocalypse.

Ashur fell forward, catching her breath. She looked up just in time to see Kingu struck by Marduk.

As she was released by Tiamat’s spell, and the Tablet shattered, she came upon another sin that enraged her even more. Kingu had fought valiantly. But Mummu and Marduk together were too great for him to surmount. Marduk had delivered a mortal wound to the once mighty warrior, and sought to finish him as violently as he did Tiamat.

Her fury returned… and her body changed. She grew taller, and gained mighty horns and wings. She looked very similar to Tiamat when it finished. She looked on at her brother and mentor with rage, causing even them to recoil.

But Ashur could take no more of their treachery. And it was then that Tiamat’s final gift flowed through her… the last of her power had infused with the girl. And with her newfound rage, she turned this power unto her former family.

“Go get em…” I muttered, unable to even deny the satisfaction of seeing the looks on their faces.

It wasn’t so much a fight as it was a slaughter. Ashur tossed Marduk and Mummu around like ragdolls, shrugging off their blows and spells like nothing.

By the end, she had them at her mercy. She raised her hand to fire one last spell… but stopped. She sighed, exhausted.

She waved her hand, and behind the two wretches, she opened a crack, sending them through it. The remaining followers of their empire were not far behind.

She fought Marduk and Mummu, overwhelming them with her great gift. But even when she finally suppressed them… she could not bring herself to kill them. With Tiamat’s power, she banished Mummu, Marduk, and the golden people that followed them, back to the realm from whence they came. Marduk cursed her name as he fell through the portal, vowing to kill her one day.

Ashur turned to the dying Kingu, rushing to his side. Ugallu kneeled across from her, and his siblings cried in sorrow. Even I had to wipe tears from my own eyes.

Kingu appeared to comfort them, even as he faded. He pointed to Tiamat’s body… as the gold glow from before poured into the deep blue, it created a neon green, brighter and more comforting than Mummu’s. Kingu smiled on, before passing away.

With the deed done, Ashur tended to Kingu, surrounded by the eleven children he raised. She was sorrowful once more. But Kingu comforted her. He showed her one last solace. Though Tiamat had been killed, her blood had flowed into the oceans created by her lover’s death. The warmth of such a reunion began to boil the seas, changing their landscape once more. Tiamat and Apsu had been reunited in death. With his dying breath, Kingu only wished that his death might mean something as well. He thanked his eleven children for giving him the chance to make his life one of honor, and Ashur for helping him keep them safe.

The sun and moon moved across the sky, until about two and a half days passed. Ashur’s horns and wings had faded, and she had returned to normal size. She looked at Ugallu somberly, and he appeared saddened by a decision she made.

Even so, he warmly embraced her, the two shedding tears as they hugged. As they pulled away, Ashur gave Ugallu some sort of trinket.

With his death, Ashur felt too ashamed to stay. Knowing Tiamat’s powers were fading, Ashur stated that she would also return to the realm of her forefathers. Mummu would not be stopped simply because one avenue was cut off. She was devious and resourceful. Someone needed to combat her efforts. This time, Ugallu supported her. For he, too, held regret for his mistakes and felt that he had responsibilities to attend to. He and his siblings would create something out of the world their parents had left for them. As they said goodbye, they gave each other one gift, a promise to see each one last time. Ugallu gave her a crown- for she herself was worthy of leading others into brighter tomorrows. In turn, Azura gave her friend a wooden bauble- a bat-like carving that would stay by his side.

The shadows faded, the world returning to a realm of gold. Wadjet moved to meet my gaze.

And so, Ashur returned to our world. Though she no longer held Tiamat’s power, she continued to fight against those she once called family. In his vengeance, Marduk eventually went mad, before meeting his end. No one knows what exactly happened to him, but the kingdom he forged worshipped his name for many years to come… though they would eventually warp his tale.

As for Ashur, Mummu eventually retreated into the shadows, choosing to wait out her opponent’s death. Knowing she could not be around forever to combat Mummu, Ashur taught others in hopes they would succeed her. But while some undertook that mission with great honor, others would corrupt her name, forging a city under it and crying Ashur’s name in battle to justify their bloodshed. One could say they took vengeance for her when they invaded Marduk’s kingdom and struck his name from his own pantheon…

But Ashur cared for none of their selfish desires. And as she felt her time come to a close, she discovered a way to meet her friend one last time.

The silhouettes of Ugallu and Ashur returned one last time. Though Ugallu looked much larger, and Ashur appeared much older. They walked together before coming to rest in front of a view of the ocean.

Ugallu felt joy in seeing his friend. Though he was saddened to know that she would soon breathe her last, he vowed to make her feel as welcome as she was before. He showed her the kingdom he had created, the young his siblings had spawned, the magic language they had forged.

The scene changed, and Ashur laid upon a bed, Ugallu at her side, and the other chimera around her.

Ashur enjoyed every moment of it. She told Ugallu of her own tale, what she had done after they had separated. He reveled in those stories. But all stories must come to an end. Ashur’s life began to fade, and Ugallu knew he would have to say goodbye one last time. He and his siblings were there, seeing their old friend through the next step of her journey. But before she passed… it is said she left Ugallu one last thing… a secret. No one knows what this secret was, if it even was such a thing to begin with. Some simply say it was unimportant to any but the two of them. Yet others say that the secret was something so great, it could change the very universe itself.

Whatever it may have been, Ugallu never told a soul. Not even his own siblings, or any children he would come to sire. Knowing that secret would be safe, Ashur passed on.

I waited for the snake to continue. But she was only met with silence. “W-Wait, is that it? Shouldn’t… there be more?”

I’ve told all you must know of Ashur, young girl. I can only hope I have told it to the right person.

The figure of the snake noticed the world around us begin to crumble.

Our time together grows short. But there is one last thing I must tell you. A warning.

“H-Huh? A warning? About what?”

Something you can only be aware of when it is staring right at you.

The shadow of the snake moved right into my face.

Luz… beware of the woman you first meet who greets you with a familiar face.

“Wha? What does that mean?!” But the shadow of the snake began to disappear as the world fell to pieces. “Hang on! Come back! Gosh darn it, why do ominous warnings have to always be so vague?!”

---

“Huh!” I shot up, sputtering back into the land of the awake. I was still in the backyard. Of course… it was just a dream. “That was… something else.” I rubbed my face intently. “Hope you had a good nap, little snoot, I…” But the snake was no longer in my lap. “L-Little snoot? Oh no!”

I looked for her as thoroughly as I possibly could… but there was no trace of her- no trails, no shed skin, nothing. The only thing I found… was a feather, both green and blue in hue. I was pretty distraught, thinking she’d been hurt or killed. But my mom reassured me, telling me that she’d probably just returned to the forest. It was for the best. She was a wild snake, after all. But I still wonder where she might’ve gone… and why I still remember that dream of her so vividly.

---

“That dream… Wad… jit? She was warning me about something. About what… I don’t know. But clearly something bad. And why wouldn’t she? The human world may not intertwine as heavily with magic and monsters as the Boiling Isles… but it’s there. Waiting in the dark.” I concluded. “And it’s… unsettling. The idea that people are whisked away into the night, never to return. On Earth and the Boiling Isles. And the thought that it could happen to the people I care about…” I shudder.

“Yeah… I can’t imagine how my dads would’ve felt if I’d disappeared that day, on the beach.” Willow agreed.

“Conor Devney.” Gus pointed out. “And the other humans. If he vanished without his family any wiser, did that happen to the other humans too?”

“Exactly. I don’t just want to be a witch… I want to be a witch that can protect people. That can defend them from the things that go bump in the night.”

“Does that mean you want to be a B.P.R.D. agent?” Roger questioned.

“...Maybe.” I answered, unsure. “All I know is that, right now, I want to learn magic. I’ve got to.”

Roger nodded. “One thing at a time, I suppose.” He looked out at the setting sun. “It’s getting late. I think it’s time to head back. Should probably mention that little dream of yours, too.”

A cold feeling went across my skin. Despite being so antsy for the day to go by, now I was anxious about talking to Mama all over again.

Suddenly, two hands were on my shoulders, as Willow and Gus stood beside me. “Hey. We’re here with you, okay?” Willow said.

“No matter what happens.” Gus added.

I gave them a smile, and steeled myself.

Time to rip off this band aid.

---

When we got back to the Owl House, the first thing we did was tell each other the stories we’d been sharing. (It was quite the coincidence that we were both telling tales to each other.) Regardless of what Mama chose, the BPRD needed the info in our tales to try and find answers, to get me home.

The Six-Toed dog. The Căpcăun. The Owlet. The Ghost. The Nightmare. The Dream.

Some of them had already served their purpose. But others revealed new leads for us to follow. Conor Devney in particular made Kate question if I were really the first human on the isles.

While the agents talked, I said my goodbyes to Willow and Gus. Roger, too, as he decided to start planning his trip. After that… well… it was time.

“Mami?” I found my mother sitting outside, in deep thought.

“Hey, baby. Did you enjoy your day out?” She asked me.

“Ehh…” I said honestly. “My mind was a little… preoccupied.”

Mami gave a light laugh. “That makes two of us.”

I paused for a moment. ‘Here goes nothing…’ “…Mama, whatever you’re about to say, can I please tell you something first?”

Mami looked at me curiously. “What is it?”

“It’s just… listening to what everyone had to say today… it put things into perspective. I know you want to take me home cause it’ll be safer, but… I don’t think it actually is. There are things on Earth, lying in wait… I don’t want those things to take the people I care about. I want to be able to protect you and my friends.”

Mami looked on somberly. “Oh, my Lucecita. I can understand, I really can. I thought if I whisked you away back home, nothing dangerous would ever come for you, ever again. But hearing what Hellboy and everyone else had to tell me, I realize reality isn’t often what we wish it to be.” She covered her hand with her mouth. “Something wants to keep you here, mija. And I don’t think it would stop if you went home. I’m glad you want to protect others… but I also want you to be able to defend yourself when the time comes.”

My eyes widen in realization. “Wait… you mean…?”

“Yes, mija. You can learn magic.”

“You mean that? Really?!” I hugged her in excitement. “Oh, thank you, thank you!”

Mama chuckled. “Okay, okay, Luz! I know you’re happy, but we’ll still need to figure out how you’re going to be taught.” I pulled away, nodding profusely. “But that’s something we’re going to start figuring out tomorrow. It’s pretty late. Let’s get some sleep.”

“Okay.” I answer… and then hug her again. “Thank you! Good night!” I run to get ready for bed- after all, the faster I go to bed, the sooner I can get started learning magic. And the sooner I do that… the better chance I have against whatever wanted me to stay here.

---

“So, I likely won’t be back for a few days.” Roger finished telling the two of us. He seemed almost apologetic, as if it were his fault he needed closure.

“You don’t have to justify it to us. Kate and I understand completely.”

“Do you really think the library is the next step?” I asked.

“If there’s any info about human activity on the isles, the library is the best place to start.” Kate explained.

“Could be encoded.” Hellboy mentioned.

Kate smugly waived that notion off. “Please, I can decipher it. From Atbash codes to simple backwards messages… I’ve seen ‘em all.” She looked at me. “In the meantime, you just stay safe, ok?”

“Thank you.” He shuffled. “Erm… should I request for a helicopter… or something?”

“Actually, you’re in luck.” Kate told him. “We already have a chopper on the way.”

“We do?”

“Yep. And it’s got our backup. Manning probably would’ve thrown more of a fit if we didn’t have someone to come switch out with you. And thankfully, we’ve got two.”

---

The blades of the chopper slowed as our flyboy landed in a clearing closest to the cabin. Hopefully, Hellboy hadn’t gotten into too much trouble while we were gone…

We were greeted by the sight of Sidney Leach, his glasses reflecting what little light was around. “Good to see you two. How was the Dead Sea?”

“Finally lived up to its name.” Liz joked.

“We heard that progress was moving, if slowly. With any luck, we might be able to help advance it further.” I said.

“Well, you’re gonna be without Roger a bit. He’s got some business to attend to using your ride. He can tell you about it if he’s got time.” Leach explained. “Kate wants you both on the Boiling Isles in the morning. She’s got missions for each of you. Something about some leads we have to follow.”

“Noted. Let’s get some dinner and catch what little winks we can get, Abe.” Liz offered.

“Please, nothing too salty.” I’d had enough of that in Jordan.

She snickered. “I’ll see what I can do.”

---

“Here you are, sir.”

Müller showed Sauer the photos posted by the imps. Several shots of the wild witch’s house walking through the town. “This is… truly mind blowing. The girl truly has the ability to use magic.”

“I would be remiss to mention the two imp children that were also there, sir.” Müller mentioned.

“Of course, of course. It muddies any possible idea of the extent of her power. But the circle could have only worked if all three could use magic…” He thought for a moment. “It will not be easy to take the girl. The ape’s shortsighted allies will keep her close. Hmm…” He tapped his foot as he considered their next course of action. “We cannot afford to alert the witch or that blasted ape of our presence. So… we shall see if Zeta Tau can prove any worth to her existence. Have her watch from afar. Report back any and all activity to me. I must know their patterns, their weak spots. Only then, can she be taken.”

“Yes, sir. Shall we be… cleaning out the pantry, Standartenführer?”

“No. In case this proves to be yet another dead end, I want to make sure we still have experiments to fall back on. Keep them… for now.”

“Of course.” Müller nodded before exiting. He quickly made his way to the kennels. The moment their unbearable groans and cries hit his ears, his tone soured. “Honestly, such pathetic things…” He walked towards the cages of the juveniles. Some backed away in fear at his presence. They understood their place. Others stared at him in defiance, their spirit not yet broken. The rest were of no concern, for they were little more than worm food. They were either sprawled on the floor, or curled into a corner, moments away from death. He found himself amused at their neighbors, weeping over their half-dead corpses, or crying out unimportant speeches at him of his supposed evil.

It did not matter. There was only one he was here for. He stopped at the final cage, housing a slightly more important specimen. “Zeta Tau.” From the darkness of the cave, a figure scrambled out. She almost appeared as a cross between a bat and a young girl. Dark fur that looked as pitch black as the night, large ears that were half the size of her head, furled wings attached to her arms, and a hognose to round out the look. She wore clothes that would qualify more as potato sacks than anything reasonable or practical.

She immediately cowered, prostrating herself before him. “Zeta Tau. We may soon find ourselves… cleaning house. You impressed us in the retrieval of key ingredients. Your continued survival shall depend on you being continually useful in the coming days.”

She remained silent. He sighed. “Is that clear?”

She looked up at him, nodding profusely. “Zeta Tau do good!”

“We shall see if you can back that up.” He pulled out a picture of Luz Noceda, showing it to her. “This girl is of the utmost importance. We require her to be observed… only observed, do you hear me? You will watch her from a distance and report back her activities every night after she has gone to sleep. Do you understand?”

“Yes. Understand. Watch. Tell. Not go near. Zeta Tau do good!”

“You had better.” He pulled out a combat knife, pointing it in between her eyes. “Your predecessors said such things and failed us horribly. You know what happens to tools who do not live up to expectations… do you?”

She cowered again, clasping her hands together. “Yes! Zeta Tau not do bad! Zeta Tau do good! Zeta Tau do good!”

He sheathed his blade. “I’m so glad we understand each other. Your mission shall start tomorrow. 7 am sharp. Do not let me catch you sleeping in.” He turned away, ready to rid the migraine of hearing these whelps. Zeta Tau returned to the shadows of her cage. She sat there, balled up and shivering. Her only thoughts were of survival.

---

“Let me out! I don’t wanna be here!” It felt like I had ended up back where I had started. A cold, confining metal cage.

“Be quiet.” The man at the work table muttered. “Mother is speaking to me…”

He always said something like that in the evening. How he ‘served his mother’, or how ‘she took care of him’, or about her ‘vision for the world’. But tonight was just getting creepy… he had been sitting there, staring into the ceiling… a green glow was coming from his eyes.

I’d believed that finding that doorway would be my salvation. An escape from my creators and captors. But the moment I had entered into the realm, I had been attacked by… something. Some thing. By the time I had woken up, I’d been trapped once again. In the backroom of some… crazed nut.

Jacob Hopkins, he was called. Apparently, he ran the guise of being a museum curator. But the man secretly had a hand in witchcraft… dangerous witchcraft, if the ingredients I’d memorized around his room were any indication. They exuded magic, but… a disgusting, foul magic. If I tried to scarf it down for strength… I don’t know what it would do to me.

“My mother has finished speaking to me.” Hopkins suddenly said, standing up. “She has questions for you, basilisk. And you would do well to answer honestly…” He held up a letter in his hands.

I gazed in confusion. But a sight behind him made me back terrifyingly into my cage. My instincts were firing on all cylinders.

His shadow had stretched far beyond what it should be. It had taken a form similar to mine… a female humanoid body, attached to that of a serpent’s. Glowing eyes pierced out where there should only have been shadow.

“I will cut straight to the point. These letters…” He threw one on the ground in front of her. ‘To Mom’, it said. “Why do they reek of your magic scent?”

Notes:

And so concludes The Owlet and other Short Stories. Next time, we start off Lost in Language… but we aren’t doing it all in one go. Gonna be split into parts. Sorry guys, it’s for the best.

I also have another important announcement to make- From here on out, I will be switching to Third Person POV for my writing. First person has been… interesting, but I think now’s the best time to move into a more comfortable style of writing.

To those of you offering comforting messages concerning my undiagnosed ADHD- thank you. I’ve only JUST recently started trying to get it diagnosed and treated. We’ll see how that goes.

Ta ta, everyone!