Among Us

The Blight house wasn't what she was expecting.

Based off of her first impression of Amity, she was expecting something...bigger. Colder feeling.

Instead, she found herself inside a little, cabin-like house. Small but cozy, and pictures scattered around. Sitting either on what looked like a decorative dresser, or hung on the walls throughout it.

"Go get dinner started, it's your turn Ed, Mittens."

There wasn't any argument from either, and Luz thinks that was the strangest part of it. 'Well...I guess they don't argue all the time.'

Emira went with them to what looked like their kitchen, soon coming out with silverware and napkins. "Can you help me set the table?"

She nodded, "Sure."

"So Luz, I couldn't help but overhear you say you were bi?" Emira asked as she handed her some of the silverware.

There was a sudden clattering from the kitchen followed by Amity's whispered curses and Edric's laughing.

Luz chalked it up to a moment of clumsiness, answering Emira, "Yeah." And started setting down the forks and knives like the older witch was doing. 'Family habit ingrained into them? Maybe they really were from a rich family...' Luz couldn't help but think that. The forks were some of the ones she saw in movies about rich families.

The older witch's lips curled up, briefly reminding her of a fox, "Hear that Mittens? We've got another!"

Amity peeked around from the kitchens doorway, "Shove it Em." And went back to helping Edric with food.

Luz paused, slowly putting down the last fork. "Another what?"

"Well, you're looking at gay 1." Emira winked, placing her hand under her chin in a little pose.

"Gay 2!" Edric called, she could hear him urging Amity to say something after he did, but there was only the sound of wood connection with someone's head. "Ow! Mittens, that was mean.~"

"Wait...you're all...?"

"Straight as a spell circle?" Emira grinned. "Yep."

Edric and Amity came out with plates that...had food? Luz wasn't entirely sure. Some of it was still moving. And blinking. "So even..." She looked at Amity, who immediately tensed.

The witch visibly withdrew, attempting to look smaller in her chair as she sat down. She wasn't looking anyone in the eye. "...yeah."

Luz remembered that feeling. Not necessarily denying it but feeling exposed when it was talked about. Maybe she could put Amity at ease somehow? "That's so cool!"

"Huh?" Amity sat up a little. Luz could see the poorly concealed relief.

"Well I never really had a lot of people to talk to about it with!" That much was true. There weren't many kids at school who seemed to want to even talk to her in the first place. Let alone about something so personal. "Do you have a different name for it in your world?"

Edric shrugged, "Nothing I can remember. We've used human terms ever since we knew about them."

"Oh wow...well, you know I'm bi. What about you guys?"

Emira gave her a wink, "Lesbian. But I think you knew played for our team cutie.~" Amity gave her a not-so-subtle kick from under the table. Emira just huffed, "Kill joy."

"And I am gay." He did a little bow that made Luz giggle, "You can tell because I suck at math."

Amity snorted, quietly saying into her cup, "Maybe it's because you're too busy sucking d--" Emira interrupts her little sister with a hard elbow to the ribs, making her choke on her drink.

"You're just jealous cause I can actually get past hand holding." Edric quipped.

Emira chuckled, "Yeah, because you go right for their pants instead."

"Wow. Just expose me why don't you." Edric gestured in Luz's direction, "Right in front of the first human we've had in our house."

Amity picked at her wriggling food petulantly, "Oh so when I make those comments, it's a bad thing. But you and Ed can do it all day."

"It's because you're the baby sis, baby sis."

"I am not a baby!"

"Kinda proving his point, baby sis.~"

Luz watched them all, fascinated. If you told her Amity was the type to make dirty jokes, she wouldn't have believed you. But now? "You're way different at school."

Amity stopped picking at her food, which seemed to be trying to grab the fork in retaliation, but she immediately stabbed it so it couldn't move. "...old habits die hard."

Luz gave her a reassuring smile, "It's alright. You're here now."

'You have me now.'

"You don't have to worry about hiding your inner you here."

'I like you for you.'

And of course she couldn't say those thoughts out loud. But she could at least hope that the message got through. With how Amity's ears dropped slightly as the tension lessened from her shoulders, Luz decided she did something right.

Edric and Emira shared a look, then looked to Amity, all of them nodded simultaneously. It made Luz worried about just what they had all unanimously agreed on. Something about the Blights all agreeing on something was scary.

"We're definitely keeping her."

Oh. That's what.

"Maybe we can keep her at the house?"

"Uh...you know I'm not a pet right?" Luz asked with a nervous little laugh.

Edric gave her a pat on the head like one would a dog, "Sure you aren't."

Amity was left to be the voice of reason. "Guys, she still has to go home at some point."

"But it's a Friday night Mittens!" They whined in perfect sync. "Let her stay the night."

Amity put on her sternest expression, "We can't keep Luz in our house. She has a family!"

"Then maybe we could kidnap them too!" Edric suggested.

"Please don't kidnap my mom..." Luz pleaded, "Kidnapping me is fine--wow I never thought I'd say that--but don't do that to anyone else. Especially my mom."

Amity scoffed, "Yeah, we really don't need anymore humans knowing about us."

"And who's fault was that?"

"Yours!"

"I don't know anyone by that name. Em?"

"Nope, me neither. Guess it'll forever remain a mystery."

Amity gave up trying to get them to take responsibility, changing the subject. "Luz, you haven't touched your food."

Luz looked at the...food...as it squirmed on her plate. Were those eyes? "Uh...I don't know if I can eat this." She watched the witches casually eat the still moving (alive?) food, stomach turning a bit when Edric ate what was definitely an eye. "Yeah...I think I'm going to make a simple sandwich."

Amity tilted her head in confusion, "I've heard of those, but never had one."

Emira nodded, "The bread slices with meat and cheese thing right?"

"Oh, so it's called a sandwich for a different reason then I thought. I thought you humans literally ate witches with sand."

Luz stared at all three of them in stunned silence, "I mean no offence..." She began slowly, "but how have you all survived this long?"

For a moment Amity looked ready to say a snappy comment back but paused, cringing. "We watched human movies to study your world. I also used books. We only discovered our mistake when it was too late. It was a rough few weeks."

Luz thought back to that first study session she went to, remembering what the witch had hidden underneath a textbook. "What books by chance?"

Amity got flustered by the question. "Nothing in particular. I liked human fantasy..."

"...like The Good Witch Azura maybe?" She added hopefully.

"Maybe." She answered stubbornly.

Emira nudged Amity, "Didn't you gush over those books for like a month before you--?"

"--shut up!" The younger witch growled.

"So you're more in the closet about books than about--" Amity immediately kicked Edric's chair from under the table, easily sending him tipping back and crashing. "--ow."

'I have no idea what I'm doing. But please let it work.' Luz reached across the table to grab the angered Amity's hand. The witch froze, looking down at their now joined hands before looking to her. "It's alright Amity. We don't have to keep talking about it."

Amity looked away, "...come on Luz. I'll walk you home." She glanced at her siblings, Edric still picking himself up, "Ed, you have dishes tonight."

"Yeah yeah, go take Luz home."

Amity was dragging her out the door almost before she could say a proper goodbye.