Coming Home
I stood on the edge of a cliff, the red ground dropping off sharply at my feet. A hundred meters below boiled a violet sea, stretching on as far as I could see. In the distance, a long, narrow peninsula extended into the teeming waters, ending abruptly in a collection of jagged spires. The night sky was bright with stars and a gleaming moon.
“Oh,” I said in a soft voice, “Mami is not going to be happy with this.” I looked all around; my eyes wide as I tried to take in everything at once. A laugh bubbled up my throat. “Mierda! I’m in another world!” I put my hands on my head, trying and failing to contain my glee. “This is just like the sixth Azura book! And only slightly more terrifying!”
A hoot sounded in my ear, making me jump in surprise. “Oh, sorry pollito! I got distracted, this place is just so… wonderful!” Turning my head to look at the little owl, I saw his eyes narrowed in a glare. “Right, right, la siento. Which way now?” The owl turned his head to the right, looking down the gently declining ground that ran parallel to the not-so-gentle cliff. Nodding, I set off down the hill, still admiring the foreign scenery.
After a couple minutes, a distant house came into view. It was peculiarly bell-shaped, the outside done in cracking white plaster that had begun to erode in some places. Near the top of the bell-curve there was a giant stained glass eye made up of varying shades of yellows with a vertical red slash for a pupil. Beside the house, a gray brick tower rose. It looked awesome.
“Is this where you live?” I asked the owl, excitement shining in my voice. He looked at me solemnly.
“That’s so cool! Did you build it yourself? Wait, no. That’s stupid, of course you didn’t! You don’t have thum-” I came to a sudden stop as a bizarre, brown tube stretched out of the door. “What the...?” I watched in bewilderment as it floated towards me, my eyes widening as it realized it was… an owl? Or, it had the face of one, at least. It had no other bird-like features, not even wings, and its long, cylindrical, body just kept extending out of the door. Its beak opened, and out came an annoyingly grating voice.
“Oh boy, friends!!”
I inhaled sharply, turning to run. But it was too late. Its awful body was surprisingly soft and squishy as it wrapped itself in circles around me, tightening until I couldn’t move. The little owl on my shoulder peeped in annoyance, hopping into my flannel to avoid falling.
“Hey! Let me go!” I yelped, grabbing hold of its body for support as my feet left the ground.
“Eda!” It crowed, “You have a guuueeesssttt.”
I heard the door open, and a peeved voice rang out.
“Dang it, Hooty! I swear, if you’re abducting random people again, I will sell you to the demon hunters.” A sigh followed. “Now, drop it.”
“Gah!” Suddenly, I was free. I fell to the ground, landing hard on my back, the air whooshing out of my lungs on impact. I recovered quickly, sitting up and scooting away from the demented bird. My gaze flitted between it and the woman standing next to it. She was tall, wearing a tattered red dress, and had a poofy mane of gray hair. Her face was angular, with big, golden eyes and pointed ears. A golden snaggle tooth, which looked suspiciously like a fang, poked out of her mouth. Dark grey feathers coated her crossed arms.
“A human?” She exclaimed, eyebrows rising to her hairline. “Where’d you get one of these?”
“I found it!” the tube answered, “walking towards the house!”
The lady sighed, rubbing her eyes tiredly. She looked at me. “Kid, what are you doing here? This isn’t your world.”
I gulped, trying to find my voice. “We-well," I stuttered, "I was hel-helping an owl. There was a monster. Th-the owl led me through a door, and here I am.” Shaking, I stood upright, gently pulling the owl from my flannel and showing him to the intimidating woman.
Her eyes narrowed. She drew a small circle of glowing, golden light with her hand, making me gasp. The little owl floated out of my grasp, towards the lady. A sound of distress rose in my throat as I reached out, trying to catch the owl and missing. The owl landed on her shoulder, nuzzling up against her throat and cooing. She looked down at him with a smile. Then she turned back to me, the smile dropping and anger alighting in her eyes.
She snarled, “You stole Owlbert? Wrong move, human. You’ll die for that.” Raising her hand, she drew another circle and then closed her fist, making my limbs snap together and causing me to fall to the ground, panic rising as I writhed around, trying to break free.
“I didn’t steal… Owlbert. I rescued him!” I shouted at her desperately, “there was a monster after him!” Tears began to trail down my face as the invisible bonds tightened, carving lines through the dirt. “Please…”
She paused, looking back at the owl as if asking for clarification and earning a series of hoots in response. She sighed, opening her fist and freeing me. “Fine, I believe you.” She turned, walking inside the house. “Now, go away.”
I stood, brushing off my clothes and calling after her. “Hey, wait a second!”
She turned, placing a hand on the side of the door and raising an eyebrow, “What do you want, human? I’m very busy.”
I hesitated, unnerved by her ferocious expression. “Where am I…?” I asked quizzically, “Are you magic?” Excitement grew in me as I waited for her answer.
She grinned ferally at me. “Kid, welcome to the Boiling Isles!” she exclaimed, throwing her arms out and narrowly missing the door frame, loose feathers drifting down from her plumage. “Home of witches, demons, and assorted vermin. I’m Eda the Owl Lady, and the most powerful witch you’ll ever meet.” She stared at me smugly and leaned against the frame, clearly waiting for my adoration. From his perch on her shoulder, Owlbert rolled his eyes.
I promptly gave it to her. “Holy shit, that’s awesome!” I said, “this is exactly like Azura book six!” I bounced over to her, latching onto her arm excitedly. “My name’s Luz! Can you teach me how to do magic? Please?! I’ll do anything!”
Eda shook me off with a disgusted sound. “Kid… No. Humans can’t do magic; your fragile body just isn’t built for it.” She ran a hand through her hair. “Besides, you have your own world to get back too. So, shoo.” She turned to go inside and started to close the door.
I froze, the memories of why I had come through the door in the first place rushing back to me. “Wait!” I exclaimed, putting a hand on the door to keep it from closing.
Eda yanked it back open. “What?!” She snapped.
“Please,” I said, holding up my hands, “The monster that was chasing us… I’m worried it will hurt my mom. She doesn’t know. Please, you have to help me.”
Eda stared grumpily at me for a moment, then sighed. She stepped to the side, gesturing for me to enter the house. “Have a set on that couch over there. I’ll be with you in a minute.”
Relieved, I quickly did what I was told, flinching a little as she slammed the door closed behind me. I stumbled as Eda shoved past me, walking through a door on the far side of the room. I held my hands to my chest uncertainly as I looked around. It was, frankly, a mess. There was stuff everywhere, clearly nothing had been cleaned in a long time. Spotting the couch, I slowly made my way over, eyes the artifacts scattered on tables and walls; a curious mix of human objects and stuff that was decidedly not human.
“Who are you?” came a squeaky little voice, full of anger.
Glancing around, I spotted a little, grey dog-like creature standing in the doorway Eda had disappeared into. Except… he had a skull where his head should have been, with two horns jutting out the end of it, one broken off at the base. In his bony eye sockets were two burning yellow eyes. And, he was adorable.
“Ay! Pequeno bebe!” I ran towards him, scooping him up and cuddling him against my face. “You’re sooo cute!!” I squealed. “And so soft!”
He pushed against my face with his little paws, squeaking. “Stranger danger, I don’t know you! Let go!! EDDDAAA!” He wailed, struggling to escape.
I heard a huff as Eda came through the doorway, grabbing the creature by the collar and lifting him out of my arms. “Human, meet King. King, human.” She set him down on the ground.
“That’s King of Demons to you, human!” He hissed, pointing at me with a clawed paw.
I cleared my throat. “It’s Luz, actually. Luz Noceda.”
Eda waved a hand at me with a noncommittal sound. “Have a seat, human.” She said, gesturing to the couch.
Rolling my eyes, I did as she said, tapping my hands on my legs as I waited for her to say something.
A minute passed, then Eda sighed irritably. “Alright. You saved Owlbert and returned him to me, which means I owe you one.”
I opened my mouth to say something, only to stop when Eda raised a hand.
“However, I don’t care. So, if you want my help, you’re gonna need to do something for me first.”
“How it that fair?” I protested indignantly.
She merely shrugged. “I didn’t say it was. You’re just going to have to deal with it.”
I huffed, crossing my arms and leaning back against the couch. “Fine! What do I need to do?”
A glint shone in Eda’s eyes. “Steal something for me.”
My jaw dropped. “Steal something?!” I squeaked. “But I’m not a criminal!”
She smirked, “Well I am! Deal with it. Do you want help or not?”
I hesitated, my brain scrambling to think of any other options. There were none. “…Fine,” I snapped.
“Perfect!” she exclaimed, “now…” raising her hands, she drew two spell circles, creating holographic illusions of a sword and a brick tower. “This,” she said, gesturing to the sword, “is the Sword of Speculo. I want it. I’ve tried taking it before but dropped it during my escape. Very embarrassing.” She stopped, shaking her head. “Anyways! I recently located it at this outpost, I’ve scouted it out already, I was just waiting on Owlbert so that I could get it. But now that you’re here, you can get it instead!” Smiling, she clapped her hands together, making the illusions disappear. “Now, any questions?”
I sat there, trying to get my thoughts in order. “Yes!” I exclaimed, “So many! How will I recognize the sword? Where is the outpost? Aren't there guards? Won’t I get caught? How-”
Eda raised her hands, effectively cutting off my ramble. “Kid! One at a time, please! You youths are so impatient.” She grumbled, “It’s a glass sword, one-of-a-kind. It’ll be easy to recognize. The outpost is on the edge of the Bat Queen’s forest. I’ll take you there, but then you’re on your own. There’s only ever one guard stationed there at a time; they have five-day shifts. The guard that's there now has been there for four days already, so she’ll be bored and not expecting company. It’ll be easy for you to slip in and out without her noticing.”
“Who’s the Bat Queen?” I asked curiously.
Eda huffed. “She’s a bat, she’s a queen. What’s so hard to understand! Keep up, human!” Shaking her head, Eda grabbed a wooden staff that was leaned against a wall. She turned to Owlbert, who was still perched on her shoulder. “Okay Owlbert, time to go.” Owlbert shook his head, making Eda frown. She turned to look at me, “What’s wrong with him?”
I cleared my throat. “Mami said he pulled a muscle in his wing.”
Nodding, Eda drew a circle, casting golden light over the little owl. Once it vanished from the air, Owlbert hooted happily, flapping his wings with a gleeful expression before hopping onto the staff, turning into wood.
“What’d you do to him?” I gasped.
Eda rolled her eyes at me impatiently. “He’s my palisman. Basically, the magical figurehead of my staff. No more questions, come outside.” With that, she turned and went out the door, ignoring the door-owl-tube, who tried to talk toher.
I quickly stood up and followed her, hearing the door close behind me with a thud. Nearby, Eda floated on her staff, clearly waiting for me.
“Come on human, hop on. I don’t have all night.”
“This is so cool…” I muttered to myself, carefully sitting down on the staff behind Eda. Suddenly, the staff shot into the air, causing me to cling to Eda with a yelp.
She laughed. “Now, don’t fall off! Cause I am not coming back for you if you do.”
I looked down, my eyes wide with amazement. “This is awesome!” I yelled over the wind, causing Eda to glance back with a grin.
After a couple minutes, the staff slowed and descended into a clearing, hovering a few feet off the ground. I hopped off, looking back at Eda for directions.
Upon seeing my perplexed expression, Eda rolled her eyes. “Just walk in that direction,” she said, pointing into the trees, “You’ll see the tower eventually. I’ll be waiting here.”
I nodded, then turned and started walking into the trees.
“And kid?”
I looked back, noting Eda’s serious expression.
“Don’t get caught. I’m starting to like you, I think I’d be sad if you got blown to bits by the guard.”
I laughed, “gee, thanks! I won’t get caught.” Snapping Eda a pair of finger guns, I continued walking, muttering under my breath, “I hope.”
I walked through the dark forest, doing my best to not trip and fall. I wish I had thought to grab a flashlight. Do they even have those here? I thought to myself distractedly, looking around for the outpost. Up ahead, the trees began to thin, giving way to an open meadow. I slowed, peaking over a bush cautiously, finally glimpsing the brick tower standing proudly at the center.
I gulped. “Alright, Luz. You can do this. For your mom. Just… don’t die! Simple, right?” I spoke to myself quietly, trying to shake away my sudden nerves.
Taking a deep breath, I slowly slunk across the meadow, crouching low to the ground and keeping my movements fluid. After a daunting couple minutes, I finally made it to the tower, pressing myself flat against it. I stood there for a moment, trying to get my heart rate under control. Once my heart wasn’t in danger of beating of my chest, I slowly crept along the tower, following the curve as I searched for a way in. A square of light on the ground exposed a window up ahead, and I carefully peeked in.
Inside was a quaint living space; a singular room with a small kitchen on one side, the rest of the small area taken up by a cot, a chair, and a lamp. On a wall hung a white cloak and a beaked silver helmet. And in the chair sat a witch, reading a book. The guard, I realized. She was pale, with teal hair that went down to her chin, half of which was pulled back into a ponytail. From the window I could faint hints of brown as her roots struggled to grow in.
Ay dios mio, I thought wistfully, she’s beautiful. I ducked under the window and shook my head, giving myself a mental kick to focus.
Peeking back in, I caught sight of a thin ladder extending past the ceiling. “The sword must be up there,” I mumbled to myself. “Can’t get in through the front, she would see me for sure…”
Walking back along the tower, I carefully studied the bricks, grinning when I saw how uneven they were. Grabbing the wall, I pulled myself upwards with a faint groan at the effort.
“Okay, Luz. One limb at a time, don’t look down.”
After what felt like hours, I finally made it to the top, heaving myself onto the rampart. I lay there for a moment, catching my breath and giving my screaming muscles a break. With a dim sigh, I stood up, my legs trembling with exhaustion. Sneaking over to the ladder, I peered down. Below me lay the second floor, weapons gleaming on the circular walls.
This must be it, I thought.
I maneuvered my way down the ladder, taking care to stay silent. After a couple seconds, I stepped down onto the landing, already scanning the walls for a glass sword. Below me, the witch was humming softly. There! It was on the far wall, shining dimly in the low light. Quietly, I tiptoed over and took it down, wincing as it scraped against the wall noisily. The humming stopped. Nervous sweat trickled down my head as I struggled to climb the ladder one-handed, my other hand grasping the hilt of the sword. I made it to the top, staggering a bit as I got off the ladder.
I peered back down the ladder, just in time to see the witch appear at the bottom. Her eyes widened at the sight of me, astonished. I froze, unsure of what to do as I made eye contact with her. After a moment, her gaze dropped to the sword in my hand, and a scowl overtook her features. Reaching up a hand, she drew a spell circle, a purple fireball emerging from it and shooting towards me. With a yelp, I sprang backwards, running as I shoved the sword through a beltloop on my jeans. Vaulting over the edge, I made it down the tower in record time as I half-climbed, half-slid down. Falling a little at the end, I landed heavily on my feet, jarring my skeleton until my teeth raddled. Without pausing to catch my breath, I took off at a run for the forest, glancing back to see the witch at the top of the tower, casting more circles as she shouted profanities at my retreating form. I zigzagged my way across the meadow, narrowly dodging fireballs all the while.
Finally, I made it to the forest, not stopping my headlong pace until I burst into the clearing where Eda was waiting.
She glanced towards me as I crashed through the bushes. “You got it? Good job, kid. Let’s go," she said, gesturing for me to hurry.
I climbed onto the staff behind her as she gave Owlbert a tap, sending us flying back through the skies once again.
The Owl House came into view after a minute, Eda landing gently by the front door. I hopped off, my knees nearly buckling under me as I followed Eda through the door. I closed the door behind me, turn to see Eda standing in front of me, expectantly holding out a hand.
“Well, kid?” she said, “hand it over.”
I wrestled the sword out of my beltloop, finally succeeding and passing it to Eda before walking past her and collapsing on the couch. “Mierda… I haven’t run this much in years,” I groaned, rubbing my aching legs. “What time is it, anyways?”
Eda looked up from studying the sword, “a little after three AM, I believe.”
“Okay,” I said, slapping my face lightly in an attempt to wake myself up. “Mami gets home around five, so we have two hours to kill the monster. Do you have a plan?”
“Well,” Eda began, leaning the sword against the wall before taking a seat in a chair near me. “In order to kill it without dying, we need to know exactly what we’re dealing with.” She rubbed a feathered arm, deep in thought. “KING!” she yelled, making me jump in surprise, “Get down here!”
There was a thundering of footsteps, and King burst into the room. “What do you want?” He cried, “I was in the middle of a very important nap!”
Rolling her eyes with a scoff, Eda turned to me. “Describe the creature to him. He might have an idea on what it is.”
King came to sit beside me, looking at me with wide eyes. “Well?” He squeaked eagerly, his anger long forgotten, “Go on!”
Eyeing him a little dubiously, I began describing the encounter. After I ended on the part where I hit it across the face I went quiet, waiting for his input.
King tapped his skull, humming slightly. After a minute, he spoke. “That sounds like a Cutis Graboto, a mid-class demon. They’re pretty rare. I wonder how one made it into the human realm…” His eyes narrowed, focusing on me suspiciously.
I shrugged, “I have no clue. How do we kill it?”
“Hmm. Fire! All shape-changers are vulnerable to it, they have an extremely flammable chemical in their skin that explodes when it touches fire. It’s nasty; blood and guts go flying everywhere!” He said, letting out a little cackle.
I felt sick. “Okaaay, that’s… lovely. So, how do we kill it without dying?”
Eda spoke up. “Oh, that’s easy! Magic doesn’t work in the human realm, so we’ll use you as bait to lead it through the portal, ‘cause it hates you so much, then I’ll cast a barrier spell around it and light it up!”
I groaned, standing up. “I don’t like it, but I also don’t have a better idea!” After popping my back, wincing as it spasmed, I tied my flannel around my waist and started towards the door. “Let’s just get this over with.”
Eda chuckled, standing up and ruffling my hair as I passed. “I like your enthusiasm kid!”
I smiled at her wearily, rubbing my eyes and stifling a yawn. “I can’t wait to go to sleep,” I muttered, opening the door and walking outside, Eda following close behind.
“Hooty!” Eda snapped as she closed the door.
“Yessssss?” said the door owl, spinning in a circle.
“The kid and I are going out, guard the house. Don’t let anyone in, and don’t let King out,” Eda ordered. She turned to me, gesturing for me to follow her before walking down a small path beside the house, following it to a flat section of ground before stopping.
“Okay kid, here will do. You still have the key, right?”
I nodded mutely, pulling the key from my pocket and handing it to her.
Taking it, she pressed the eye, watching impatiently as the key transformed into a door, the yellow eye blinking slowly at us before opening.
Eda turned to me, eyes hard. “Okay. I’ll be waiting here. Good luck, be careful, and don’t get killed!”
With that encouraging sentiment, she grabbed my arm and threw me through the door. I landed gracefully on my face in front of the ruined house, exhaling sharply in pain. “Oww…”
I heaved myself to my feet, dreading what was to come. Wringing my hands together nervously, I glanced uneasily around the dark wilderness, searching for any sign of the monster. “Okay,” I muttered lowly to myself, “If I were a terrifying demon with a taste for little owls and hapless queers… where would I be?” I groaned, “Probably at my house.”
With a heavy sigh, I set off towards my house. Through the dark woods. Without a light. Alone. This is why I’d be the first to die in horror movies, I complained silently, I’m stupid enough to act as monster bait. Still, I trudged on, jumping anxiously at every creak and moan. After what felt like hours, though it was probably only fifteen minutes, I finally caught a glimpse of my house through the trees. Relief swept through me. “I thought I’d be wandering this forest forever!” I exclaimed in a quiet whisper. Slowing to a mere crawl, I cautiously exited the trees, my eyes flitting from shadow to shadow as I tried to spot the beast.
A snarl split the air, and a dark shape came flying at me.
“Mierda!” I yelped, ducking on instinct and watching it go sailing overhead, narrowly missing me. Spinning, I took off at a run back into the woods. Adrenaline rushed through me; my once fatigued legs were now steady in my fear. Behind me, there was a roar as the demon regained its balance and took off in pursuit.
Tears began to trail down my face. “Fuck fuck fuck fuck fu-” my foot caught on a root, and I went flying, inhaling sharply in pain as a rock dug itself into my knee. With no time to lose, I scrambled up again and resumed my headlong flight, cringing as the demon’s panting breath got louder and louder, harmonized by its thunderous footfalls. There was a heavier step, and then another. Then silence.
My heart flew to my throat; panic seeping into the void it left behind. I threw myself onto the forest floor, the fall jarring me out of my shock as the demon sailed overhead, growling as it attempted to turn midair before landing heavily on its side with a massive floomp. I jumped to my feet, running past it before it could recover, though it still swiped a clawed hand at me with a snarl. I yelped, skirting further away from it without slowing down.
“Come on, come on!” I panted, “where’s that maldito house?!” I could hear the demon scrambling to its feet behind me, giving chase once again. Dimly, I registered a gap in the trees, a bright light shining beyond it. I gasped, there!
Altering my course, I broke free of the constraining trees, pushing my legs to move faster as the door came into view. The monster was at my heels again, its rasping breath echoing through the fog in my mind. A whimper rose in my throat, though I was breathing too hard for it to escape.
A hundred feet. Seventy. I could almost feel its teeth digging through my skin.
Fifty. Thirty. Its breath was hot on my neck.
Ten. The demon leapt forward.
Zero. I lunged through the door, throwing myself desperately to the side as the beast came roaring through after me. I lay on the cold ground, my chest heaving as I struggled to draw in enough air to satisfy my burning lungs.
I turned my head, shrieking in terror as I saw the demon’s face only a few inches from mine. Its expression was contorted with hate, its long rows of gleaming teeth bared into a sick parody of a grin as bloody spittle trailed from its maw. Between us was a golden field; barring it from mauling me as it so clearly wanted to.
“It’s okay, Luz. You did good. You’re safe.”
Flinching at the sudden voice, I turned my head sharply, relaxing when I saw the Owl Lady standing beside me, an emotion suspiciously akin to concern on her face. I laid my head on the ground, groaning through my labored breathing.
“Remind me…” I stopped, panting. “Remind me to never do that again.” Eda nodded solemnly, then held out a hand. Grasping it weakly, I let her pull me upright.
“Now,” she cackled menacingly, rubbing her hands together gleefully, “Ready to watch this sucker explode?”
“Please.”
With a look of delight, Eda drew a circle, then pointed a finger at the demon. A stream of golden fire poured out of the sky; the beast shrieking in pain as it was submerged. The cry grew louder and louder, making us wince and cover our ears. Then, for one blissful second, it stopped.
KA-BOOOM!!
We both flinched, heads tilting upwards to watch the billowing mushroom cloud waft into the lightening sky. After a minute, the smoke cleared, revealing nothing left of the demon but a smoking crater.
I turned, looking at Eda with vision flecked with black. “Eda…?” I murmured shakily. “I don’t feel so good. My eyes rolled back into my head, and I collapsed, succumbing to blissful unconsciousness.
I woke slowly, my mind sluggish and my body screaming its hatred of me. I groaned, reaching up a hand to rub my eyes as I tried to remember what happened. I cracked opened my eyes, my vision blurry as light streamed into view. I blinked a couple times, noticing a couple details in tandem. One: I was lying on a floor that was decidedly not my room. And two: I wasn’t alone. In a chair nearby sat the Owl Lady, watching me expectantly. That opened the floodgates, and memories from the previous night came rushing back into my mind, making me sit upright in a panic.
“Oh mierda!” I cursed, “What time is it!? Mami must be worried sick!” I launched myself of the floor, gasping as my muscles convulsed and gave out, making me fall back to the floor with a heavy thunk.
“Hey! Just take it easy, kid. You had one hell of a night.” Eda said, getting up and carefully pulling me to my feet, hanging on until I got my balance. “It’s only eight AM, I was expecting you to sleep for a lot longer.”
I sucked in a breath, looking at her with pleading eyes. “Please… I have to get home.”
Eda hesitated, then nodded. “Alright, fine. I’ll walk you to your house. Wouldn’t want you to get eaten on the way there.” She chuckled as she walked out of the room, motioning for me to follow. I staggered after her, my legs stiff and trembling. We went down a set of stairs and through another door, ending up in the main room.
Eda drew the key from her pocket, pressed the eye, and waited for the door to unfold, tapping her foot impatiently. As soon as it formed, she tugged down the door handle and threw the door open, marching through without hesitation. I quickly followed, not wanting to lose her. Emerging on the other side, I glimpsed Eda staring at the ruined house before turning to me with a grin.
"C'mon kid! Let’s get this over with.” She gestured for me to lead, which I did slowly, my legs protesting every step.
After a couple minutes of silence, Eda turned, looking down at me. “So… I was thinking.” She started, scratching her head with a feathered hand. “It was entertaining having you around last night, I had more fun than I’ve had in ages. I wouldn’t mind if you stuck around.”
I came to a stop, my jaw dropping. “Are you saying you’ll teach me magic?” Excitement began to build in me, aching limbs forgotten.
She hesitated, then threw up her hands. “Yes, fine! I’ll try to teach you. Magic and criminal acts. Can’t have any protégé of mine being a saint… What do you say?”
“Ay dios mio, yes!!” I threw my arms around her in a hug, wincing slightly at the resulting pain in my arms.
She growled, “ugh, stop that! Are you going rabid? What are you doing?” Shoving me away, she kept walking with a huff.
Uncaring, I bounced after her, too excited to walk normally. But my mom… I thought with a frown. She’ll understand. She has to.
We continued on in silence, eventually reaching the edge of the trees. Eda stopped, looking at me. “Alright kid, go talk to your mom. I’ll be waiting here, so don’t take too long.”
Nodding, I walked down the dark street, reaching my house and opening the door. “Mami?” I called tentatively. “Are you awake?”
I heard a chair scrape back, and suddenly my mom came rushing towards me, hugging me tightly. “Where were you carino?! I was so worried!” I hugged her back, mumbling into her shirt.
“Mami, can we talk?”
A while later, I finished telling her all that had happened last night, ending on Eda’s offer. I sat there, tapping my knees as I anxiously awaited her response. Her eyebrows were furrowed in thought, and her expression was torn. Mentally, I prepared my arguments to convince her.
“Alright, mija. You can stay there.”
“But Mami! I- What?” I was floored, her response was completely unexpected. “I can…?” I whispered disbelievingly, staring at her in shock.
She sighed heavily, reaching up and rubbing her eyes. “Luz, from what you told me, you were happier there in one night than you’ve been in four years… Despite nearly getting yourself killed several times,” she grumbled. “I only want what’s best for you, and I am confident that you know what that is. Just… please visit, okay? I can’t lose you, carino.”
I sat down next to her, feeling as if my heart was tearing in two. “Of course I will, Mami! I’ll stop by every week. You’ll never lose me. Te quiero mas que a nada.”
She sniffled, smiling at me. “Yo te quiero mas.” Now, go pack. Don’t keep Eda waiting.”
I gave her a kiss on the cheek, then got up and ran to my room, grabbing a duffel bag and throwing everything I might need and then some into it. Darting back, I said goodbye to my mom, sharing a heartfelt hug before closing the door and walking back to Eda, who grinned when she saw me.
“About time, kiddo! Now, let’s go get you settled in.”
The walk back to the ruined house was filled with chatter as I asked question after question, each met with a tired, exasperated response from Eda. Back through the door we went, emerging into the Owl House. Eda turned to me with a smile.
“Welcome home, Luz.”