Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“And you’re sure about this?” Luz asked.

Amity gingerly pulled her newly purchased crystal ball from her backpack and inspected it one last time. A little flatly, she replied, “I already said I was sure.”

A gust of wind came in through the window into Luz’s bedroom in the owl house. She shivered and went to close it shut. She stammered a little, “I-I know. And I support you, one hundred percent. But…” She bit her lip and tried to keep her eyes locked on Amity, “Odalia was an Oracle too. I hope you’re not doing this to… for…” She groaned and leaned her head back. “I don’t know what I’m trying to say. I just want you to be okay with whatever you choose.”

Amity certainly understood where Luz was coming from. Her batata was always willing to go the extra mile to make sure she was in a good place. So, she nodded and said, “I appreciate that. I promise, it has nothing to do with her. Do you remember what I said to get Ghost to choose me as her witch?”

Luz nodded, “That you don’t know what you want to be when you grow up, but you want to choose it for yourself.”

“Right. And that means exploring all kinds of magic. It’s a chance to learn, especially with Hexside and all of Bonesbourough still being rebuilt.”

Luz put on her best determined face and clapped once, “Got it! Alright, let’s go raise the undead!” She raised her fist in the air.

Snickering, Amity rolled her eyes and said, “That’s not how this works.”

The pair made their way downstairs with Luz walking in front. Amity carefully held her crystal ball in her pale hands and took a deep breath as she entered the living room of the owl house. 

Sitting in a circle on pillows on the floor were her best friends, her found family. Willow, Gus, Hunter and Vee all looked at her expectantly. Luz sat down in one of the open seats, shooting Amity a comforting smile. Her warmth instilled a sense of confidence in the young witch.

“Okay everyone,” Amity took a moment to look at each member of the Hexsquad. “Thanks for coming. I really appreciate this.”

She dimmed the lights and placed the crystal ball in an ornate gold stand in the center of the circle. “Luz already knows this, but I’ve started studying Oracle magic. I don’t know if I’m gonna stick with it, but this is one of the first rituals that new witches are supposed to attempt.”

As Amity sat in the circle next to Luz, Willow spoke up. “I’ve heard of that! You summon a Spirit of Truth, right?”

Amity nodded. “It’s a small spirit that looks into each of us, and reveals some kind of truth. Sometimes we know what it is, sometimes we don’t. And it’s an experience best shared with our closest friends.” She took Luz’s hand and breathed easier, smiling and looking into her eyes as she said, “You know. The people we love.”

A brief moment of contemplative silence befell the group. 

Amity turned again to her friends and said, “This spirit speaks in the voice of whoever it’s latched on to. It might be an… uncomfortable experience. But, if we talk about it afterwards, it’s supposed to bring us closer together. You can leave at any time. I just appreciate you being here.”

Luz grinned and said, “I’ve shared so much with each of you already! This will be a breeze.”

Gus agreed, “I think we can all handle a little soul-searching.”

“I-I don’t know.” Hunter rubbed the back of his neck. “Does truth mean, like, fears? Or ideals? I don’t know what it’ll see in me.” He glanced down at his scarred arms, “If it’ll even see anything.”

With a supportive smile, Willow took Hunter’s hand. She tilted her head and offered, “You've got a lot more going on than you give yourself credit for.”

Amity reiterated, “I'm actually a little nervous too. It could be good for all of us, but no one will think less of you if you walk away.” 

Hunter took a moment to breathe and collect his thoughts. He stared into Willow's eyes for a while longer, seemingly searching for support, and finally said, “Okay. I'm in.” 

“Uh, me too.” Vee meekly offered, coiled up on the floor hugging a small pillow. “Never hurts to look at all your deepest, darkest secrets. Right?” She awkwardly joked, and it lightened the mood a bit.

Each of Amity’s friends smiled and committed to the ritual. This was Amity’s first time exploring traditional magic outside of Abominations in a meaningful way. It was daunting, but having her friends by her side calmed her beating heart. 

With one last deep breath, and a supportive look from her batata, Amity placed two fingers atop the crystal ball.

“Alright then,” She hardened her voice, “Brace yourselves.”

Chapter Text

Amity slid her fingers down the surface of the crystal ball and around the circumference. With her free hand, she cast a small purple spell circle in the air. She closed her eyes and focused on contact with the realm beyond realms, the place where the living dare not dream.

The lights in the owl house went fully dark, and the open windows slammed shut. If Hooty wasn’t out visiting Lilith’s, he surely wouldn’t have appreciated the sudden changes. The air in the living room became almost still, as though each molecule was frozen in time.

Amity scrunched her face as the spell became more difficult to maintain. She had to open her mouth to take a larger breath, and she felt a slight tickling in her chest. That was a sign she needed: A connection had been made with a spirit, small as it may have been. 

When she finally opened her eyes, the crystal was glowing bright purple. It was the only light in the room illuminating her friends. They each stared wide-eyed, fascinated by the swirling aura emanating from inside the sphere.

The glass grew too hot to touch, so Amity let go and took her place sitting in the circle. Luz leaned toward her and whispered, “What happens now?”

Amity quietly explained, “The spirit will rise up from the crystal, look at each of us, and speak in our voices.”

Luz let out a nervous chuckle, “Oh. Good.”

The amorphous aura of light surrounding the sphere peeled away from the glass, leaving it empty and transparent. It looked like a small colored light glyph floating upward. Everyone’s eyes were locked on it as its spherical form became more defined.

In a blast of light, the spirit of truth flew quickly between each of them. It never left the circle, and it almost seemed to dance in the air. Swaying rhythmically in the dark, the spirit cast light wherever it moved and the sounds of chimes echoed throughout the room. It would have almost felt peaceful had the Hexsquad not known what was coming next.

The spirit zipped across the circle right in front of Vee’s eyes. She yelped and covered her mouth as the spirit changed from blue to a forest-green. It flashed with every word it spoke, and in Vee’s own voice it said,

“I don’t deserve my friends. I was born in a cage, I’ll probably die in one too.”

Vee shuddered at the terrible words, hugging herself tightly and looking away. Gus put a hand on her shoulder, but that got the spirit’s attention. 

The dancing light moved closer to his hand. It floated up his arm and stopped at his face, morphing into a light blue hue. In Gus’s voice, it said,

“Everyone else found their soulmate, I’ll never find mine. My nights will be sleepless and lonely.”

Gus removed his hand from Vee’s shoulder and put it in his lap, a dour look crossing his face. 

The spirit slowly moved directly across the circle to Hunter’s position. Hunter swallowed hard but held his head high. The sphere of light shifted into two colors, golden and red swirling in defined halves. As Hunter, and with a hint of another terrible voice, it spoke,

“I’m an amalgamation of blood and generational genocide. Flapjack died for a monster.”

Hunter didn’t react, as though he knew what the spirit was going to say. The spirit whipped around his head, then moved over to Willow. With a now pale-green light washing over her face, Willow tried to show the spirit the same resolve that Hunter had.

“There’s no way I can keep everyone safe. I’m not good enough, I have to be better for all of them.”

Willow’s lip trembled, and she tried to smile as Hunter took her hand. She didn’t have much luck. 

It almost bounced across the air toward Amity. Continuing its terrible dance, the spirit changed back to purple and spoke as its summoner, 

“I am my mother. The rage bred in me cannot be forgiven or forgotten.”

Amity winced and closed her eyes. She knew whatever the spirit had to say would terrify her. After hearing so many admissions from the others, she wondered how a ritual like this was supposed to bring her friends closer together. A burning anxiety was crawling out from her heart as the ritual neared its end.

In the darkness of her closed eyelids, she heard Luz’s beautiful voice utter terrible words.

“I hate myself. I dream of the absent flame, and of a day where I don’t wake up.”

Amity’s eyes opened and she watched her girlfriend breathing rapidly. She wasn’t hyperventilating, but she was certainly close. Her auburn eyes were locked on the black sphere, somehow still generating light in its lack of color. 

As quick as she could, Amity reached for Luz’s hand but Luz pulled away. She crossed her arms and looked at the spirit as it slowly returned to the crystal ball. Its multicolored lights quieted and contracted into the glass sphere on the floor. Slowly, it faded and the owl house was illuminated once more. 

The spirit had passed. Amity looked at her friends and girlfriend, each one carrying a different expression. Fear, shame, shock: Her heart started to race as she stared into the consequences of her magical curiosity. She had no idea it would be that damning. 

All she could do now was try and make sense of it all.

Chapter Text

“That was…” Gus whispered in a shaking voice, “... horrible.”

No one else said a word. Willow inhaled sharply and wiped her eyes, and Hunter placed his hand on her shoulder. Vee hugged herself and looked away from everyone. Luz stared silently into the crystal ball, and Amity went into damage-control mode.

“The, um,” She cleared her throat and opened a textbook sitting beside her. She ignored her trembling hand and flipped to a random page, pretending to read from it. “Now that the spirit is gone, we’re supposed to talk about what it said. I-If you want to.”

Again, silence. Amity’s anxiety was taking over and she desperately wanted someone to speak up. 

She wanted this, to really strengthen the connections between her and the Hexsquad. Even after the Boiling Isles were saved, everything she had ever known was still being rebuilt. The neverending fear that her terrible past would drive her found family away from her was still ever-present.

She just wanted to take control again.

Biting her lip, she realized that more research would have been prudent before starting the ritual. Before she could apologize. Willow stood up. Hunter's hand slipped from Willow’s, and he waited for her. She didn’t look at anyone, her eyes closed tightly behind her round glasses.

Willow tried to find her voice, opening and closing her lips once or twice. Finally, she shook her head and turned from the circle. She found the door and almost ran out of the owl house. 

Hunter stood, “Willow, wait!” But she didn’t turn back. He quickly followed her outside, and the door closed behind them. 

Amity’s heart shattered. What have I done? She wondered in despair. 

Gus took a deep breath, looking at his crossed legs as he spoke. “Amity, I appreciate what you tried to do here, but…” He trailed off and collected his thoughts. “I think we’ll need some time. Before talking about it.”

Amity cleared her throat again to stop herself from sobbing, “Y-Yeah, of course.” She looked to her left, Luz still hadn’t said a word. Her gaze was locked on the crystal ball.

Vee sniffled. In a hushed and frightened voice, she said, “I wanna go home.” 

Amity shivered again.

“I’ll walk you back to Camila’s.” Gus offered Vee a hand, and the pair stepped outside without another word. The door closed, then it glowed as they stepped through the portal to the human realm.

The owl house was deathly quiet. Amity and Luz hadn’t moved from their seats. At the end of her rope, Amity looked away from her girlfriend and asked, “...why won’t you say something?”

Luz took a deep breath and apologized. “I’m sorry.” Her voice was hoarse. “I know you were looking forward to this. I should’ve tried to keep them all here.”

Amity shook her head and tears began to flow, “I screwed up, Luz. I wanted to bring everyone together and-” She sobbed once and brought her hand to her mouth. She bit her finger and breathed raspy breaths. Words refused to form as she choked on her fist, the shadows of her doubt spawning from her back and sending shivers through her skin.

Snapping out of her stupor, Luz nearly tackled Amity with a hug. In Luz’s warm embrace, Amity let her tears flow freely. It was very rare that she let her emotions take control. After such a terrible experience, one that she practically forced upon all her friends, sobbing into her batata’s arms seemed deserved.

“Amity, no. You didn’t force us.” Luz shushed and reassured her. Amity must have choked out sparse and broken thoughts in between her sobs and gasps. Luz hugged her tight and said, “We all chose to stay.”

“I should have…” Amity sniffed as she pressed her tear-streaked face into Luz’s chest, “I-I should have… studied more…”

Luz ran her hands through Amity’s delicate hair. “They’ll come around, okay? They will, I promise.”

Amity shook her head, her self-imposed guilt replaced with genuine concern. “What about you?” She looked up at Luz’s tired eyes, “We both heard what the spirit said about you.”

Luz’s comforting smile dimmed a little. “I could say the same to you. But hey,” She tried to laugh a little, “We’re supposed to talk about it, right?”

Amity looked down and leaned into her girlfriend again, thoughts aswirl with doubt and regret.

“It’s okay,” Luz rubbed Amity’s back in the hug, “It’s okay. We’ll both take some time. Like Gus said.”

Seconds passed into minutes. As time ticked on, Amity’s internal clock was completely out of sync. She had no idea how long she sat there in Luz’s arms crying, breathing, and everything in between. All the while, Luz held on tight and kept Amity very aware of their physical connection.

Amity would always be grateful for that.

After some time, impossible to tell how long, Amity’s breathing softened. Luz picked up on this and asked, “Want me to walk you home?”

Weakly, Amity nodded. She felt like a ghost in her own skin, clamoring to her girlfriend as though her life depended on it. 

Parasitic, almost. 

In an effort to focus on the warmth Luz offered, Amity focused on their hands clasped. She rubbed her thumb on the back of Luz's hand and counted the strokes, 

One… two… back… forth… 

Luz's smooth skin and a comforting count kept Amity grounded. When she looked up and saw a starry night sky, she barely realized they left the owl house. Time condensed in her quiet panic attack, and her heart beat only in time with Luz's. 

The pair stayed quiet as Amity's heart slowed its incessant drumming. As the seconds in her head grew distant, she loosened her grip on Luz's hand. Her chest was drained but at least it was no longer tight. 

Luz seemed to recognize the comedown. She smiled and softly said, “l love how these stars are so different from mine.” With her free hand, She pointed up as though Amity couldn’t see the night sky. “Constellations aren’t where they should be. Or, I don’t know, they’re not there at all. Makes counting darkness very hard.”

It took a moment for Amity to respond. Her breathing was light and her words lighter. Counting darkness? she thought. She raised an eyebrow and quietly asked, “What does that mean?”

Luz caught herself and rubbed the back of her neck. “Oh, nothing. Something my dad used to say.” She looked forward and focused on the path ahead of them, her face scrunching as she tried to resist a frown.

“Tell me about it?” Amity didn’t want to pry, but Luz was often very guarded when Manny Noceda came up in conversation. And, selfishly, Amity wanted to think about anything but the night she had forced upon her friends.

Sighing a little, a mournful smile crossed her face. “Just, his mantra, you know? He taught me to count the dark between the stars. His way of telling me that I can enjoy the lights, but I need to appreciate all the space between them.” She looked back up into the night sky and her smile brightened a little. “The stars balance with the dark. Good moments with the bad moments.”

Amity didn’t respond, instead taking time to ponder Manny’s philosophy. If today was such a terrible day, perhaps tomorrow would be better. It was something she could cling to. 

In no time at all, their walk ended at the steps of Blight Manor. Amity and Luz faced each other, hand in hand. “I, um…” Amity stammered as she looked down, “C-Can we just stay here for a bit?”

Luz smiled, “Sure! Nothing I’d rather do than stargaze with my awesome girlfriend.”

The pair looked up into the starry sky as Amity leaned onto Luz’s shoulder. It was an odd sensation: Amity wanted the day to end, but not the moment she shared with Luz.

Chapter Text

The next morning

Amity sat awkwardly with her hands in her lap. The unfamiliar living room of a Hexside acquaintance was not how she envisioned spending her morning, especially after such a sleepless night. 

When she first awoke, her anxieties began to strangle her mind anew. The weight of her first summoning sat heavily on her chest. There had to be a way to fix the damage she had done. Perhaps her experience was atypical for the ritual. She needed guidance from an oracle, and she certainly  couldn’t go to her mo-

To Odalia.

So she scrolled through her Penstagram contacts and found a vaguely familiar face. She didn’t share many classes with Celine. Amity knew she was a girl with a pale, crescent moon-shaped head, a soft smile, and a singular purple eye on the right side of her face. Maybe she’d be available for some questions.

Amity didn’t expect Celine to respond so quickly, nor to invite her over. So, after a short flight through Bonesbourough, here Amity sat on a soft couch in a brightly decorated home. Celine walked from the kitchen to the living room with a simple tea set on a wide tray. She placed it on the coffee table and poured two cups. Without asking, Celine smiled and added cream and sugar to Amity’s drink.

Raising an eyebrow as she picked up her cup, Amity asked, “How did you know?”

Celine laughed a little as she sat down with her own drink, “I’m pretty good at oracle magic.” Her voice was cool and collected, “I knew you’d want to come over today. I’m always looking into the future!”

Amity nodded, “So, you know why I’m here?”

“Your first summoning went pretty well,” Celine took a sip and smiled contentedly. “Even if you don’t think it did.”

“I scared my friends.” Amity shivered, “I pushed them away.”

Celine tilted her crescent head, “Even Luz?”

Amity sighed and smiled a little, “No. Not her. She’s definitely hurting but she won’t let it show.” She gave a short sarcastic laugh, “She’d rather focus on me than herself.”

“I can’t say I know your gang’s dynamic.” Celine said with a comforting look, “But if Luz stuck by you, I’m betting the rest of them will come around.”

She nodded and pondered Celine’s perspective. “Do spirits of truth always sound so…”

“Painfully honest? Yes.” Celine frowned and placed her teacup down on the table. “I remember my first summoning. I was with my parents.” She laughed a little, “You can imagine how well that went.”

A smirk crossed Amity’s face and she laughed through her nose. “Is the ritual supposed to be terrifying?”

Celine nodded and said, “Oracles are in the darkest school of magic. Back when the covens were first created, witches and demons made a sort of barrier to weed out people that couldn’t handle it.”

“Well, consider me weeded.” Amity looked into her teacup, “I’m never casting an Oracle spell again.” 

“That’s okay!” Celine smiled, “There’s no shame in stopping. Just know that every oracle I talk to says the ritual is worth the pain.”

“Really?” Amity felt the heaviness lift from her heart a bit. Half-jokingly, she asked, “Did you look into the future to check on me and my friends?”

With a hearty laugh, Celine said, “I may have peaked. But fortune telling isn’t always accurate. You can see a lot of possible futures, and you have to sift through all the facts to see the most likely outcome.”

Curiosity took Amity’s hand. “So, what do you know about the future?” She took another sip of her tea.

Flatly and quickly, Celine said, “I know how everyone’s gonna die.”

Amity nearly spit her drink out at the shock of such a statement. She held the tea in her mouth, unsure if she should swallow and say something or if she should just stay silent.

A wry smirk crossed Celine’s face, “Got ya!” She laughed as Amity rolled her eyes with a smile. “I know a lot of things! Don’t tell her, but Boscha is gonna end up being the principal at Hexside!”

That came as a surprise. “Really? Wow.”

Celine nodded, happy to share her oracle-expertise. “I know that the rebuilding of Bonesbourough is gonna be great. I know that you and I are gonna be friends when we grow up.” She gently said, “And I’m 100% sure your friends are gonna be okay.”

Amity sighed in content and let the warmth of her tea flow through her. “Thanks.” She whispered. After a few moments, she bit her lip and asked, “You said we’re going to be friends when we’re older? Why not now?”

Celine shrugged, “I guess I’m not ready for new friends right now. Plus,” she rubbed the back of her neck, “It wasn’t too long ago that you, Boscha and Skara were bullying me and my friends.”

“Oh.” Amity looked into her lap, a familiar shame washing over her. “I’m sorry.”

Celine waved her hand and said, “Bygones! I know you’re a better person now. This won’t be the last cup of tea we share; our families will be intertwined in ways we’d never expect.” She grinned brightly and tilted her head again.

Amity blinked and looked out the window when she heard a distant thunderclap. She placed her cup on the coffee table and said, “I’d better head home before I get caught in the storm.”

Celine offered a knowing smile and said, “Don’t worry, you’ll get home safe!”

Chapter Text

After flying home on her staff, Amity decided to wait out the storm in her bedroom. Boiling hot rain poured down from the sky, a deluge of heat that nearly caught Amity outside. Thankfully, she made it to her bedroom just as the water tapped against the windows.

Changing into her pajamas, she plopped herself down in bed and sat up against the headboard. When more than one sigh escaped her lips, Ghost hopped up into her lap. She purred and pushed her head against Amity’s hands. 

Amity smiled tiredly and slowly petted her palisman. The soft texture of Ghost’s fur was a comfort. Even if her anxieties had tempered a bit, Amity still wasn’t in the best of sorts.

A jazzy jingle rang from her crystal ball on her nightstand. The theme song to the short-lived Azura animated show signaled that her beloved Luz was calling. Her smile widened as she tapped the sphere to answer.

Luz shouted, “Hola batata! I wasn’t expecting so much boiling rain!” She was in the owl house in her own bedroom, the storm whipping at the windows behind her. A loud thunderclap made them both jump, and Lux exclaimed, “¡Dios mío!”

“You okay?” Amity leaned forward and frowned, “I can come over if you want?”

Taking a second to catch her breath, Luz shook her head, “I’m good! That one was just right on top of us.” She blinked and asked, “...You didn’t just offer to run out into the boiling rain for me, right?”

Amity blushed a little.

Luz pointed at Amity through the crystal, “Ah ha! You like me don’t you, Blight?”

With a giggle, she said, “In your dreams!” Amity’s blush streaked red across her pale face. No matter how long they were together, she would so often break down like a schoolgirl with a crush.

Not too long ago, that’s exactly who she was.

After a good laugh, Luz offered, “Come over when the storm passes! I was thinking about, um…” She rubbed the back of her neck, “Well, I was thinking about the ritual.”

Amity’s smile dimmed but she wasn’t opposed to discussing it. “...And?”

“And… I found a way to talk about it. My truth. Plus, I think I can cheer you up too!” Luz grabbed the crystal ball and turned it to her left, toward the bedroom door. “Look at this!”

Luz had stacked boxes and books to create a small… vendor stand? A merchant’s stall you’d see in the night market? “What exactly am I looking at?” Amity asked.

“A place where dreams come to life!” Luz shook the crystal ball for emphasis, “It’s a puppet theater!”

Amity laughed a little and asked, “You’re putting on a puppet show for me?”

“Yeah!” Luz turned the ball back to herself and softly smiled, “I want to express my feelings in a comfortable environment. I don’t know how everyone else is doing, they’ve been pretty quiet. But we did the ritual for a reason, and I’m not gonna sit here and try and fight my feelings!”

Amity’s chest fluttered and her breaths were light. Luz always found a way to turn things around, even if she wasn’t feeling her best. How could Amity sit in bed and wait for the rain to stop? Nothing, not even the fiercest storms, could keep her from her sweet potato.

“Luz?” She said with determination, “Don’t move. I’ll be right over.”

Luz blinked in surprise, “Huh? Wait, Amity-!” 

Amity tapped the crystal ball again and ended the call. She nearly launched Ghost out of her lap as she stood and put her shoes on. The rain was still a problem, but her ever-active mind had an idea for that.

She dug through her closet and found an old and slightly tattered umbrella. She released the lock on the stem and opened it up. The material was just a thin plastic sheet with some holes; hardly protective against rain at any temperature. 

She uncorked a large glass bottle on her desk and cast a spell circle. Tracing her finger in the air, she pulled slimy abomination goo from the bottle and moved it effortlessly in the air. With the open umbrella in one hand, she carefully flung the sludge onto the canvas. It spread over every inch of the open umbrella, coating the material and filling the holes.

Amity finished her spell by closing her casting hand into a fist. The spell circle broke and the abomination goo hardened, creating a heavy but malleable shell around the umbrella. She opened it and closed it a few times, and the protective casing held.

Satisfied with her invention, she didn’t even change out of her pajamas before bolting downstairs to the front door. She held her hand open and outstretched, and her staff flew right to her. Ghost was already in her staff-form, ready to fly.

As Amity opened the door, a streak of lightning crossed the dark sky. She opened the umbrella and gingerly stretched her arm out into the rain. Sure enough, the abomination shell held firm and didn’t let a single drop of boiling rain touch her arm. Amity mounted her staff all while keeping the open umbrella in her free hand.

She was determined to make it through the storm to the owl house. Nothing would stop her.

Despite the protection her umbrella offered, Amity zipped through the air like there was no time to lose. She knew her invention would hold but she didn’t know for how long. So, after a quick and dangerous flight through Bonesbourough and over the woods, she arrived at the owl house.

Hooty saw Amity flying towards him and his eyes went wide. He yelped and swung his door open, allowing her to fly directly into the living room. She nearly tripped over her own feet as she landed.

Having heard Hooty’s cry, Luz was already rushing downstairs. “Oh my gosh, Amity!” Concern crossed her face, “Are you hurt? Why didn’t you wait for the storm to-”

Amity dropped the umbrella and let Ghost return to her palisman form as she lunged into her girlfriend’s arms. “You mean so much to me, and I don’t say that enough.” She sniffled a little as Luz hugged back, “I didn’t think the ritual would be that bad, but you’re so brave for exploring what the spirit said.”

“Aw, Amity…” Luz squeezed tight and pulled back, “This has been tough for all of us, but I want to see it through. I should have had more faith in you from the start.”

Amity shook her head, “No, no: I definitely should have researched more. But hey, no more moping,” She smiled brightly and tapped Luz’s shoulders, “Someone promised me a puppet show.”

Luz’s comforting smile grew into an excited grin. She took Amity’s hand and practically dragged her upstairs. “Come on! You’re gonna love it.”

Chapter Text

Amity sat on the floor on a soft heart-shaped pillow, embroidered with the phrase I HEART YOU. An old relic from Hooty’s Tunnel of Love. Her back was against Luz’s bedframe and she patiently waited for the show to start as boiling rain tapped against the window.

Luz was crouched behind her makeshift stage, completely out of sight. She dramatically introduced her show, “Ladies, gentlemen, and fabulous enbies: we have an amazing fairytale for you today! Introducing…” She held up a paper sign with the title of her play, decorated with flowers, flames, ice and light glyphs. “The Princess and the Rascal: A Tale of Love, Discovery, and Fires Both Good and Bad!”

Snickering from her seat, Amity whispered, “It’s a bit lengthy, no?”

Luz peeked over the edge of the stage so Amity could only see her eyes. Her gaze was adorably mad and she said “Shush! No comments until after the show, please.”

Amity motioned, zipping her lips and placed her hands in her lap with a smile. Luz slowly shrunk down behind the stage. Her eyes were narrowed but her obvious smile pushed up her cheeks.

“Ahem.” She faked clearing her throat. Luz took down the sign and narrated, “Our story begins with our titular Rascal, Luzura.” A tan sock-puppet rose from the stage. She had dark brown beads for eyes, a stitched smile and glued puffballs on the top of her head. “Luzura wandered the Seven Planes in search of a place she could call home. Somewhere where she could be free and happy from the terrible things that haunted her.”

A drawing of a ghost on fire rose up behind Luzura. Luzura turned to the flaming ghost and opened her mouth wide, looked between Amity and the ghost, then hollered and ran away as it chased her.

“The mean voices would yell at Luzura, You’re not good enough! Or You’re a bad person! Or This is all your fault! Sometimes Luzura would be smart enough to escape those voices. But other times…” 

Luzura shivered and scrunched down into herself as the paper fire-ghost smacked her repeatedly. Amity frowned as the obvious symbolism hit home. Luz slowly lowered her puppets below stage.

Replacing them was a drawing of a large castle and a pale sock puppet with golden beads for eyes and a flowing black dress. Luz narrated, “Meanwhile, Princess Hecamity faced an equally distressing dilemma. The people of the queendom loved their princess…”

Luz’s right hand rose up with small finger puppets on each digit, thimbles dressed up in doll’s clothes and some of her fingers just had faces drawn on them. Amity giggled, but raised her eyebrows as she counted the things on stage.

“Wait,” She asked from her seat, “How are you holding up the castle if both hands are controlling the puppets?”

“I’m very limber!” Luz bragged as she raised the castle higher, the drawing attached to a long stick. At the end of said stick, Luz revealed that she precariously placed it between her toes to keep it upright. In a jokingly serious voice, she asked, “Now, may I continue?”

Amity held her hand over her mouth to stop a burst of laughter. “Sorry, sorry. Go ahead!”

Luz pulled the castle back down and continued, “Oh, how the townsfolk loved their princess and would do anything for her. But Princess Hecamity pushed them all away.”

She opened her hand and spoke as Hecamity, “Get back, you lesser people! I am above you all!” The sock-puppet turned to the audience and whispered, “But, truly, I am not! I yearn for something more than anger, to move beyond rage and fear, but no one can save me from myself! I am doomed to tread the path of darkness, set out for me so long ago by a maniacal matriarch, and her terrible intent.”

From her seat, Amity couldn’t help but smile. She had a good idea where this fairytale was going, and the audacious vocabulary was setting the stage quite dramatically. 

Luz whispered, “Scene change!” and warbled her voice for effect. She pulled away the current set and replaced it with Luzura and a large backdrop, a campfire on the ground and a starry night above.

Luzura sighed and looked wistfully up into the sky, lamenting, “Oh! Woe is me! All my life I’ve feared what’s lingered inside. My heart burns in the absent flame, one of my own making. Can no one help me escape thislf-induced torture?”

From behind the stage came a rustling noise, something Amity couldn’t quite place. Then, with a ptooey a large peanut flew across the night sky. Amity surmised that Luz spit it from her mouth, casting a wry smirk across her face.

Luzura looked up in awe, “Oh! Look! A shooting star!” She bowed her head and said, “I wish I was strong enough to beat the voices in my head. I wish someone could show me the way to love myself.”

Luz pulled her puppet hand down and put a picture of a regal bedroom over the campfire. Princess Hecamity appeared in the bedroom, looking out the open window and the same night sky. 

Again, Luz rustled in what Amity could only assume to be a bag of peanuts. She spit a peanut across the sky once more, and Hecamity spoke in a grand voice, “A shooting star! Oh, how I wish I could be someone else, to change into someone better.” She sighed dramatically, “But that could never happen. I think I will go for a walk to clear my head.”

Princess Hecamity “walked” out of her room and Luz pulled down the bedroom picture, leaving Hecamity alone under the stars. Luz quietly yelled to imitate a distant voice, Luzura’s voice, “Someone help me!”

Hecamity perked up and looked all around. She leaned forward as Luz brought the puppet up and down to imitate running. Finally, Luz raised Luzura’s sock puppet cowering under the attack of the mean ghost on fire. Luz must have been holding both the backdrop and the attacking ghost with her feet. 

“Gasp!” Hecamity said, “A beautiful rascal! I’ll protect you from those monsters, fair lady!” Hecamity dipped below stage and emerged with a toy staff in her mouth, one from Luz’s Azura action figures collection. Hecamity whipped back and forth while Luz made sound effects, “Zap! Pew pew! Blast!”

The mean ghost shook and wiggled, “Ahh! You have found the only thing that can defeat me: The power of friendship and love!” It slowly went down below the stage, and its voice echoed comedically, “But I’ll be back!”

Princess Hecamity spit out her staff and rushed over to Luzura’s side. Luzura looked up and gasped, turning to the audience to say “A princess! And she saved me? Me! A simple rascal! What did I do to deserve such an honor?”

Hecamity asked Luzura, “Are you alright?”

Luzura perked up and said, “No, but I will be. You saved me, you’re my hero!”

Hecamity turned away, “Alas! I am no hero. I am spiteful and angry, a terrible soul bred for a dark path.” She started to walk away when Luzura argued,

“No! You are not so bad. Maybe you have been bad before, but you would not have come to my rescue if your heart was fully encased in ice.”

“Do you mean that?” Princess Hecamity slowly turned to face Luzura. Amity could practically see the stars in Hecamity’s beady eyes. “That I could be a better person? Surely you speak ill, as though your mind was addled!”

“I speak no ill, my princess! Your past does not have to define you. I will help you become the kind of person you really want to be. Um,” Luzura bowed her head, “If you’ll have me…”

Hecamity tilted her head and grinned, as well as a sock puppet could, “Oh, thank you kind and beautiful rascal! But, pray tell, why was that terrible monster attacking you?”

Before answering, Luzura turned the audience and whispered, “B-Beautiful? She thinks I’m… beautiful?” She shook her head and looked at Hecamity, “That creature? Just the dark voices in my mind. The ones that scream how terrible I am, how everything is my fault, how I’ll never find a home. Nothing unusual!”

“Nothing unusual?!” Hecamity gasped, “Well, I don’t care what that creature speaks. You will always have a home with me in my queendom.” Hecamity leaned in close to Luzura and they hugged as awkwardly as sock-puppets could. “Stay with me in the castle. I can drive the dark away, and you can help me become my best self.”

Luz put on a deeper voice as she narrated the conclusion of the story. “And so, the Princess and the Rascal stayed together for a long time. They taught each other about love and friendship, and they protected one another when the heat of the fires burned their skin. Their friendship grew and blossomed until…”

Luz pulled the two puppets apart from their embrace, then slammed their mouths together in a passionate kiss. She warbled her voice and imitated noises from a sloppy kiss, smacking her lips and humming brightly. 

Amity laughed again, like a break in the tension. She was enraptured by the tale, despite its familiarity. Luz turned the puppets to the audience and bowed, announcing “The end! Thank you for watching, and for dreaming of a happy ending!”

Amity clapped and sniffled, her emotions unexpectedly bubbling to the surface. “Bravo!” She cheered as Luz popped up from behind the stage. 

Luz plopped herself down next to Amity and wrapped her arm around her. She leaned closed and said, “I know I’m not great at hiding my feelings, or telling the truth about them. The ritual made me realize that I wanna be better at sharing myself with you, even the bad parts of me.”

Wiping her nose with her sleeve, she corrected Luz, “You mean, the parts that you think are bad.”

Luz planted a kiss on Amity’s cheek, “Shush. And I don’t want you to feel like I can’t handle your bad thoughts either. I’m here for you, always.”

Amity wrapped her hand around Luz’s, still covered by the Hecamity sock puppet. “I know. And I’m here for you too.” She whispered with a loving smile.

Chapter Text

After the storm finally passed, the clouds burst and the warm puddles of water seeped into the dirt. Luz stretched her arms over her head as she and Amity walked outside. She yawned and said, “Oh man, we’ve been stuck inside forever!”

Amity playfully rolled her eyes, “It was only an hour, Luz.”

“Maybe,” Luz turned back and fluttered her lashes, “But an hour with you feels like an eternity in my heart.”

Snickering, Amity gave Luz a gentle push, “Oh Titan, stop it!”

“Never!” Luz smiled and asked, “Do you wanna go for a walk? Stretch our legs a little?”

“I think that’s a great idea.”

Luz gently took Amity’s hand as they turned back to the closed owl house door, “Can we walk through Gravesfield? Change the scenery a bit?”

“Sure!” Amity grinned, and the pair walked through the now-glowing portal door.

The shift in atmosphere between the Boiling Isles and the Human Realm always came as a shock to Amity. In Luz’s summer, her world was a lot colder than what she was used to. The cold was something she learned to enjoy, as it meant she could snuggle up to her batata more frequently.

She blushed at the thought and played with her bangs, twirling the lavender hair in her fingers.

Luz led the pair out of the clubhouse and into the woods, headed toward town. Seeing Amity fidget, she squeezed her hand tighter and asked, “Penny for your thoughts?”

“Oh,” Amity jumped a little at the tightened grip, “Just thinking about you. How amazing you are.”

Now it was Luz’s turn to blush. She waved her free hand and casually looked away from Amity, “Come on, don’t just say stuff like that.”

“Don’t put on a puppet show for me all about our traumas, and then I’ll stop saying how amazing you are.” Amity bumped her shoulder into Luz’s, “Let me help you drive that dark away.”

Sighing contentedly, Luz tried to argue. “Hey, you started it! You and that ritual. You’re the awesome one, wanting to bring us all closer together.”

“Uh huh.” Amity shook her head, “And despite my catastrophic failure,” She waved her free hand across the air for effect, “You still wanted to dig deeper. You invited me in, and that means a lot to me.”

“What can I say?” Luz leaned her head on Amity’s shoulder, “You inspire me.”

The sun rose high into the afternoon sky. Amity clung to her sweet potato like a moth to a flame as they strode through Gravesfield. The town had become so much more familiar to her in the last year and it was almost like a second home. Above all, Camila’s house was more welcoming than Blight Manor.

She hoped that feeling would change, as her father tried to repair his relationships with her and her siblings.

Lost in her thoughts, their walk ended right outside the Noceda household. Stopping at the front door, Luz took both of Amity’s hands and said, “Don’t get mad, but I have a surprise for you.”

Amity raised her eyebrow and asked, “Why would I get mad at a surprise?”

“Well,” Luz bit her lip, “I asked everyone if they wanted to come over and just relax.”

With a heavy sigh, Amity looked down and admitted, “I’m… sure they don’t want to see me right now.” Despite Celine’s assurance that things would work out, Amity was still having a tough time seeing that future.

“They’re all here, Ams.” Luz let go of her hand and tilted Amity’s chip up. She went wide-eyed as she looked into Luz’s chocolate irises. “Even if they’re not ready to talk, they want to be here for you. For each other.”

Amity drew a light gasp. To say she was perplexed would be an understatement. The way everyone left the owl house she wouldn’t have expected any of them to talk to her for weeks. And yet, here they were not a full day later.

“I-I…” She stuttered, “I don’t know what to say. How did you get them to come?”

Luz simply shrugged, “I just asked!” She laughed a little, “And people say I have trouble accepting love and support.”

With a soft smile, Amity hugged her sweet potato and quietly said, “Thanks.”

When their embrace ended, Luz carefully opened the door and led Amity inside. Most of the Hexsquad sat on the living room couch while Vee was helping Camila in the kitchen. A bit meekly, Amity announced their entrance. “H-hey everyone.”

They all turned to face her and Luz. Willow was the first to stand, almost rushing over to give Amity a hug. Apologetically, she said, “I’m sorry I left like I did. How are you feeling?”

Amity shook her head, “Oh no, please don’t worry about me.” She squeezed her friend tight and admitted, “I should have-”

“Nope.” Willow shook her friend and argued, “I get to worry about you. Just because I can’t protect you doesn’t mean I can’t be there when it matters.”

Hunter said, “And that goes for us too.” Gus and Hunter got up from the couch and joined the hug. Luz, of course, wrapped her arms around the pile of friends and held on tight.

After putting her knife down on the cutting board, Vee slithered to join her family in the embrace. “Room for one more?” She nervously asked as she fiddled with her fingers.

“Aw, come on Vee!” Luz reached out and yanked Vee by her hand, causing the basilisk to yelp a little. “Get in here!”

At the center of the circle, Amity giggled as Luz dragged her sister into the hug. How could any of them still feel like they didn’t belong? After all they had been through?

In time, Amity knew each of them would be willing to explore their fears and truths. Perhaps they wouldn’t share the experience with her, but they were each intelligent enough to recognize those dark parts of themselves. Perhaps it wasn’t a bad thing to live with that dread for a little while. 

They had each other to drag back into the light.

“If you’re finished with the hugging and crying,” Camila half-joked from the kitchen, “I’ve got plenty of food for everyone!”

The group laughed and disassembled, a few of them wiping their eyes of stray tears. They each headed into the kitchen to enjoy tea, hot chocolate, mac and cheese, and whatever else Camila could scrounge up on short notice.

Before Luz could join the group, Amity grabbed her hand and pulled her back. Without warning, Amity cupped Luz’s face and went in for a kiss. Their lips met and Luz jumped in surprise, before closing her eyes and losing herself to the moment. 

The lavender-haired witch pulled back, clearly leaving Luz wanting more. She said, “Thank you, batata.”

“Uh…” Luz smacked her lips, still in minor shock, “I’ll do anything for more kisses!”

Amity rolled her eyes and leaned in again. “Okay, but just one. They’re all staring at us.”

The group let out a synchronous awww.

Luz laughed, “Let them look!” and met Amity’s lips halfway.

The explosions of love and color flurrying through Amity’s heart never stilled, never wavered. In the dark corners of her mind, she would always have her Luz to light the way home.