The angel of the owl house

Where they being nice to her now because they were scared of her after her Bile Overload? Or because she was now a top student? Did they realise that they'd been wrong to begin with, or was it just because Willow was no longer "Half-a-Witch"?

Thankfully, Willow wasn't able to fall too far into insecurity, as both Luz and Amity made sure she was distracted by having fun. Luz danced enthusiastically with everyone, even if her dancing was kind of unorthodox by witch standards (and probably by angel and human standards too), while Amity stuck close to Willow and chatted happily with her, making it feel just like the old days. It was honestly a little shocking to both of them how easily they slipped back into their old friendship so long as they weren't thinking about the bitterness or guilt they still felt beneath it all. Willow even found herself getting her own back for some of Amity's teasing over the years, by lightly teasing her about her obvious crush on Luz. It was fun, and as the party went on and Luz and Willow grew more comfortable with Skara's other friends, they opened up more.

They eventually put on a little show of their own with their magic; Luz drew some ice glyphs to create snow, which Amity used her ice magic to shape into bodies, while Willow grew pumpkins shaped like the party guests' heads, that were then placed on matching snow bodies, which Willow and Amity animated with a combination of abomination magic and vine skeletons so that they'd mimic the movements of the person they were based on. The teens all laughed and began to play around with the snowy replicas (which Luz dubbed the "Abomination Snowmen), while the parents were impressed by the display of magic.

Meanwhile, Eda was having the time of her life too. Her exuberance and the stories of her old hi-jinx (mostly embarrassing ones about Odalia) made her the centre of attention, especially with those parents who'd gone to Hexside with her in their youth. The few who'd gone to St. Epiderm or Glandus were bewildered by the crazy things she'd gotten up to, while Odalia was left fuming as she struggled to maintain a pleasant facade around the other parents. If she cracked and demanded Eda stop, it would only make her look bad and damage her reputation, so the woman was forced to bear it. Eda was loving every second of it, and considered it fair punishment for getting between the friendship of a pair of little girls.

After two hours of partying, a butler came over to Severin and whispered in his ear, making him smile excitedly. He dismissed the butler back to his post, then grabbed a fork and tapped it against his wine glass, signalling for everyone to turn to him.

"Good evening, my friends! How are you all enjoying my daughter's 15th birthday party?" Severin asked, grinning as he slowly made his way over to the doors to the foyer. The teens all cheered, and the parents applauded politely (excluding Eda, who cheered like the kids).

"Wonderful, wonderful! But the night is still young, and I have a pair of very special guests who I am very happy to introduce to you all! Please welcome…" Severin snapped his fingers and the ballroom doors opened, letting two figures walk into the room.

"The Head of the Bard Coven and my mentor; Scooter Crane! And his second in command and my long time friend; Raine Whispers!"

Skara screamed with excited delight, while the others cheered or clapped. Luz was one of the ones who clapped, curiously examining the two.

Scooter Crane was one of the coven heads she hadn't seen in person before, only a simplified picture of him on a coven banner. He hadn't been manning the bard coven's booth at the Covention like the others Luz had seen in person, and now that she'd seen him, it was obvious why. The man was old; older even than Eda looked when suffering the full effects of the curse on her body. He was a hunched over old man with mostly standard witch features, though he clearly had some demon blood too, as he had simple horns atop his head and large, clawed hands. His skin was also a very faded red, which contrasted sharply with the grey moustache and short head of hair he sported. He was wearing thick round-lensed glasses over eyes that appeared perpetually shut, and he was dressed in black and red robes and walking with a cane shaped like a musical note.

But it wasn't Scooter who really interested Luz, but his second in command: Raine Whispers. She had heard a bit about them; Principal Bump had referred to a "Mx. Whispers" hanging out with Eda as a kid, and they'd been mentioned by Skara a couple of times too, including the ugly rumour her mother had started about them being Skara's true parent. Then of course there was Eda herself, who'd once called Raine her old friend, and referred to them as "Raine Storm" earlier in the party. However Eda had resisted any attempts by Luz to learn more, and had shut her down from asking by saying that it was something too personal for her to want to tell Luz. The girl shot a brief glance towards her mentor, and saw that Eda had gone slack-jawed at the sight of the bard, and her eyes had both joy and sorrow in them.

Turning back to Raine themselves, Luz eyed them carefully. They were slim and had an androgynous figure, with skin about a single shade darker than Luz's. Their face was pleasant and had soft features with a big smile, and beautiful green eyes, and their short hair was a very light mint green that appeared almost white. They sported large round lensed glasses (similar to Scooter's) and a single long earring on their right ear, and they wore a red pants with grey boots, and a black tunic with a gold buttons and trim, a burgundy collar, white elbow-length sleeves, and a tan coloured belt. Luz liked their style quite a lot, and compared to Scooter, who looked fairly at home with everyone's attention on him, Raine looked shy, which Luz found to be sweet.

The two bards waved to the other guests, then Scooter said; "Thank you for inviting us, Severin. It is wonderful for us to be here at… where are we again?"

Raine leaned over and whispered; "Young Skara's birthday party."

"Little Skara's birthday! She's gotten older again!? Didn't she just turn 9!? Youngsters these days really do grow up fast!" Scooter chortled.

The other guests chuckled at the old man's comment; clearly he was going a little senile in his old age. Raine softly corrected him, while trying to hold in their own laughter.

"What? 15!? When did that happen!?"

"Today, Uncle Scooter! That's why its my birthday!" Skara giggled, running over and hugging the old man. Scooter smiled brightly and patted the girl's back with his large hands.

"Aw, there's Severin's little symphony! You're growing up too fast!" Scooter said.

"That's what Dad always says!" Skara said, then looked to Raine; "Hi Raine!"

"Hello Skara." Raine replied with a smile; "Happy Birthday!"

"Hehe thanks! If you two are here, then that can mean only one thing! You and Dad are going to perform!" Skara grinned.

"That we are! Once the band has finished their set, we'll be taking the stage!" Scooter declared. When it came to music, all signs of senility vanished from the old man, who instead seemed to get about ten years younger.

"Great! Can I join you too? I want to show off how good I've gotten on the harp since you last visited!" Skara asked eagerly.

"That sounds like a wonderful idea!" her father said, "Why not invite your friend Luz to join us too? That way the past and present top students of the bard track can play together!"

Hearing her name mentioned, Luz walked over; "I don't think I'm even close to being a top student in the bard track yet, but I wouldn't mind joining in. I can summon my ocarina if you want me to, Skara."

"Naw, just sing instead; you've got the voice for it, so show it off!" Skara said, before formally introducing Luz to Scooter and Raine.

"Nice to meet you, Luz. It's rare to get someone who can use bardic magic through singing. I'm looking forward to hearing it." Raine said kindly, offering Luz their hand to shake.

As the young angel shook their hand, Severin smirked; "That's not all you should look forward to. Luz here brought her mother along as a guest, and she just so happens to be an old flame of yours."

Raine blinked in confusion, then looked to where Severin pointed. Walking towards them from the crowd of parents was the one face they never expected to see.

"E-Eda!?"

Eda smirked, though it was a tad forced this time; "Raine Whispers. It's been too long."

Luz's jaw hung open; Raine wasn't just Eda's old friend, they were an "old flame"!? They had dated!? No wonder Eda hadn't wanted to talk about it! Eda was never fond of talking about her past relationships, and Luz could tell just by looking at Raine that this one had been different for Eda.

"W-What are you doing here?" Raine asked, a blush beginning to form on their cheeks.

"I'm here with my kid and apprentice, Luz." Eda said, lightly slapping Luz on the back.

"You have a kid!?" Raine gasped, looking Luz up and down even more closely. The more they looked, the more they began to turn an uncomfortable shade of green. "I-I would never have thought-!"

"Yeah, a big surprise to everyone, I know." Eda rolled her eyes, "It's good to see you, Raine. We should catch up some while you're here."

Raine gulped and nodded; "O-Of course! But let's wait until after our performance, okay? Can't delay the birthday girl's celebration so a couple of old timers can talk about their glory days!" they chuckled nervously.

Luz looked over to Skara, who was watching with a big grin; she was clearly enjoying this interaction as much as any performance! The girl loved her drama and soap operas, and it must have felt like one was playing out in front of her.

"We aren't that old!" Eda protested, but she accepted all the same.

With that promise for a talk later, Raine and Scooter went with Severin to socialise with the other adults, while Eda decided to chat with Alador, knowing it would drive Odalia crazy and keep her own mind off of Raine for the time being. Skara then dragged Luz back to the other teens and they continued to enjoy the party, with Skara introducing Luz to the concept of magic party games such as pin the tentacle on the demon, bobbing for crab apples (dodging the pincers was imperative), and various other games that basically constituted mini-witches' duels with two or more players flinging specific kinds of magic at each other to achieve some kind of objective.

This continued until the hired band finished their set, and happily vacated the stage to make room for the Bard Coven's performance. As soon as they did, Skara quickly dragged Luz behind the stage to prepare for the song (and to show off the new, ruby red and butterfly themed harp her father had gifted her), while Severin had brought Scooter and Raine back stage too.

"What song should we perform?" Scooter asked, sipping a drink to sooth his parched throat after so much socialising, "I'm afraid these old fingers of mine struggle to play more than one or two without rest."

"I don't know that many. I only started practicing my singing recently." Luz said, nervous to be performing with four experts. "What instruments are you guys playing?"

Scooter smiled and summoned a large floating keyboard, that looked like just the keys of a grand piano floating in front of him. Severin summoned a large cello, and the bow that came with it resembled a butterfly. Lastly, Raine summoned their violin, the scroll of which was modelled on a fox, though Luz felt something strange about it.

"How about you decide, Birthday Girl?" Raine suggested.

Skara immediately grinned and turned to Luz; "How about the Ballad of Motivation? You know that one Luz, and it'll get everyone even more pumped up!"

Luz nodded; "Alright, I think I can do that. Though I might need a refresher on the words."

Raine reached into their tunic and pulled out a book of sheet music; "I have them in here. I'll help you go over them while the others prepare." they offered kindly.

Luz agreed, and the two went a little further from the others to begin going over the lyrics while Skara, her Dad, and Scooter got themselves warmed up for their performance. Once Luz had refreshed her memory on the odd foreign lyrics (bardic spells tended to linger in the memory of the caster, so it didn't take much to remind her), she smiled up at Raine, who looked nervous.

"Do you get stage fright?" she asked.

Raine nodded; "I do. It must seem pathetic for a high-ranking member of the Bard Coven, but it's true. Eda always used to tease me for it. What about you?"

"I get a little bit of it. I mostly just want to make sure I don't screw up and ruin Skara's birthday." Luz admitted.

"I'm sure you'll be fine. Skara clearly has faith in you." Raine smiled softly.

"Thanks." Luz replied, "You'll be fine too, and we'll do the best performance ever so Skara can remember this birthday forever!"

Raine chuckled and agreed, then watched as Luz began to softly sing a few scales to warm up her voice.

Unbeknownst to the young angel, Raine had been watching her more or less the whole time they'd been at the party, whenever they could let their attention wander from the conversations Severin kept dragging him into. The girl seemed sweet, and Raine was glad Skara had such a friend, as they knew that Boscha could be a bad influence while Amity was distant, but the knowledge that Luz was Eda's child tore at their insides as a question filled their mind.

Was Luz their child?

They and Eda had broken up around 15 years ago, so they would have still been together around the time the 14 year old Luz would have been conceived. Her skin colour was very close to theirs, and her eyes were a dead-ringer for Eda's; the only detail that didn't seem to come from either of them was her brown hair, but if Raine remembered correctly, Eda's mother had brown hair in her younger years. Plus there was her bardic talent, which was apparently good enough that she could use it with her voice despite not having a lot of training… Could Eda have been pregnant when they broke up? Raine didn't think she was the sort of witch to jump into another relationship on the rebound, not after how close they'd been, so they had a hard time believing Luz could have been "fathered" by anyone else. Come to think of it, Eda hadn't really been seen for about a year after their break up… and Raine had ended things in part because Eda refused to be honest about her problems with them, so they wouldn't put it past her to not tell them she was pregnant.

The details lined up too perfectly for Raine to think of another possibility; Luz had to be their daughter!

That internal revelation shook Raine to their core; they needed to talk to Eda! Raine refused to be a deadbeat parent; if Luz really was their daughter then they wanted to be a part of her life!

Before they could try and broach the topic with Luz, Skara came back over and announced that it was time to begin their performance, so Raine decided to hold off on talking to her until after they'd spoken to her mother.

The five bards took their instruments (a bat-winged microphone in Luz's case) and got up on stage, finding that the rest of the party guests were gathered in front of it, with the teens in the front and their parents in the back. Luz smiled nervously at Willow and Amity who were watching eagerly from the front row, neither of whom had heard her sing before.

Skara began their performance by plucking away at her new harp, and one by one the others joined her. Then, when it was time for the lyrics to come in, Luz began to sing.

In the audience, Eda grinned proudly at her apprentice's talent; listening to Luz singing in the shower had become a wonderful way to wake up in the mornings at the Owl House, and it tugged at Eda's heartstrings to see Luz stand side by side with the best of the Bard Coven and not be completely overshadowed. Meanwhile Willow and Amity were watching with open mouthed shock and delight, the former only growing happier when she turned to look at Amity and saw her face turning into a lovestruck tomato. For Amity, listening to Luz sing was like a drug; it filled her with so many emotions that she didn't know if she wanted to laugh or cry, but she definitely knew she wanted to live in that moment forever. And that was before the Ballad of Motivation began to take effect!

But Willow wasn't the only one to see Amity's reaction; her parents had noticed too. Alador had merely raised an eyebrow, then smiled as the ballad made him feel more awake. But Odalia narrowed her eyes; this Luz girl was a fair singer, and would have been a worthy companion for Amity, especially with her relation to Lilith Clawthorne… but Odalia just knew she was somehow responsible for Willow's return to Amity's life. Amity would never defy her mother so openly, and Willow was too weak to convince her. It could only have been the corrupting influence of the Owl Lady's daughter!

As the Ballad of Motivation hits its crescendo, many in the audience were dancing; the teenagers jumping around as their energy overflowed, and their parents spinning and twirling one another like they'd done in their youths. The energy in the room was so high that when the song came to an end, they were clamouring for an encore.

Luz froze in panic; she wasn't ready to sing another song yet! Thankfully, Scooter Crane was an experienced performer and recognised her panic, so he spoke up.

"Thank you all for your enthusiasm, but these old bones need a bit of rest before I can play again! Give us some time and I'm sure we'll be able to play again later tonight!" he smiled, making a show of rubbing his wrists. Luz wouldn't have been surprised if they really did ache, as he'd been playing rather enthusiastically.

The audience accepted his excuse and the performers stepped down from the stage. Eda, Willow, and Amity immediately surrounded Luz.

"That was amazing! I'd heard you could sing, but that was something else!" Willow praised.

"It definitely beats your singing in the shower. I've gotta get the Owl House fitted with some better acoustics! Maybe I should also bust out my old cittern too." Eda said, ruffling the girl's hair.

"Thanks guys." Luz smiled, "What did you think, Amity?"

"You're incredible." Amity breathed, a blush still on her cheeks. Luz squeaked in surprise at the look Amity was giving her, and the mint-haired girl seemed to catch herself. She blushed deeper as she said; "I-I mean you sounded incredible! You're definitely good at bard magic. Yep! Just a real good singer!"

Inwardly, Amity cursed herself for sounding so dorky, but Luz's smile at her compliment was enough to calm her. Anything that made the angel girl smile like that had to be good!

Before anything more could be said, Raine walked over to the group; "You did a wonderful job up there, Luz. May I borrow your mother for a bit?"

"Thanks Raine! And sure, go right ahead." Luz replied.

Eda smirked at Raine; "Oh? Did that little ballad finally give you the motivation to come catch up with me?"

"Something like that." Raine said seriously, their eyes flicking towards Luz again for an instant. They then took Eda by the hand and began pulling her away, and Luz was treated to the sight of her mentor actually blushing and appearing flustered as she let her ex drag her off. They disappeared out through the front door of the ballroom, back to the foyer, leaving the teens behind.

Deciding to get some air herself, Luz headed through one of the glass doors along the side of the ballroom, stepping out onto a veranda that overlooked the rest of the grounds. Willow and Amity joined her, but they were not alone for long.

"Ah, Amity. I've been waiting for a chance to speak with you."

The three girls all froze, and Amity in particular went pale as she turned to find her mother smiling coldly at her, with her father stood behind her, tinkering with some half mechanical, half abomination device he'd brought along.

"G-Good evening, Mom." Amity greeted politely.

"Yes, good evening dear. I would have spoken to you earlier, but my fellow guests kept my attention." Odalia said, obviously referring to Eda. "Care to introduce me to your… friend?"

"Of course. Mom, this is my friend Luz Noceda." Amity said meekly, "Luz, this is my mother and Co-CEO of Blight Industries; Odalia Blight."

"Charmed, I'm sure." Odalia said, offering her hand to Luz.

"Nice to meet you." Luz said, taking the hand. Odalia squeezed her hand as tightly as she could without it being an overt threat, making Luz struggle to maintain her false smile.

"And of course, you and I have already met, haven't we Willow? How have you been?" Odalia asked with faux politeness.

"I've been well, Mrs Blight." Willow said, her expression painfully blank. She, Luz, and Amity were all far more on edge than they'd expected to be, since Eda wasn't around to back them up. Things were perilously close to blowing up in their faces, but there was no backing out now!

"I'm glad to hear that." Odalia lied, "Though I'm surprised to see you here, especially as my daughter's guest. It was my understanding that the two of you were no longer friends."

Willow felt a spike of irritation; "You mean after you ordered Amity to stop associating with me?"

Odalia's eyes hardened; "Ah, so Amity told you. I do apologise for that nasty bit of business, but you must understand; a Blight can only associate with a select few. The best, brightest, and most well connected. A child with little to offer us was just an unnecessary distraction."

Luz and Willow were mildly impressed Odalia managed to make herself actually seem almost apologetic as she'd said that, but literally no one who knew the woman would actually believe it.

"Unfortunately that hasn't changed, so I am curious to know why you have begun associating with Willow once again, Amity. Not to mention your friendship with Luz here; I mean no insult to you child, but if there's one thing worse than a weak associate, it is a tainted one, and being related to the Owl Lady is quite the unfortunate taint to have." Odalia said with a shake of her head and a look of faux sympathy.

"Your information is out of date, Mrs Blight." Willow said coldly, her tone barely civil. "I'm not the same weak little witch I was back then. I was a late bloomer, I won't deny it, but I am now the Top Student in all of Hexside in the plant track. Even the older classes can't compare. My teacher has compared me favourably to a young Terra Snapdragon."

Odalia raised an eyebrow, part amused and part irritated by the girl's argument. It looked like little Willow Park had grown a backbone.

Unfortunately, she wasn't the only one.

"And I'd say I'm far from a tainted associate." Luz chimed in; "I'm multi-tracking in three different classes and doing good in all of them, and I'm privately learning four other types of magic with a goal of mastering as many as I can. You heard Mr Cadence refer to me as a future top bard, and you saw what I could do on stage. Sure Eda is a criminal, but she's also the most powerful witch on the Boiling Isles, and my Aunt Lilith is the Head Witch of the Emperor's Coven… and the mentor of your daughter. It was also partly my efforts that convinced Aunt Lilith and Principal Bump to allow a multi-tracking program, which has allowed your daughter to become even more amazing. Associating with us has made Amity a better witch, and more importantly, a happier one too. That should be reason enough to keep that association."

Luz finished her speech by smiling sweetly and staring unblinking into Odalia's eyes. She'd practised that speech a dozen times since yesterday afternoon, and was pretty happy with it; she'd spoken to Odalia using her own language, even if it had felt unnatural to her. Willow was similarly staring Odalia down, proud of what she and Luz had said and ready to continue arguing with Odalia until she finally backed down and let them be friends!

As for the Blights, Amity felt a wave of excitement at seeing the girl she'd become so fond of talking forcefully to her mother, and felt a similar wave of pride towards Willow. Alador gave both girls an impressed raise of his eyebrow, pausing in his tinkering to watch them more closely. Odalia, however, was inwardly fuming. She did not like being defied, especially by children she considered far below her! But they weren't the first tough nuts she'd cracked; she knew just how to handle the situation! Then she could deal with Amity's defiance!

"Hmm, you've made some interesting points, young lady." Odalia lied, smiling coldly, "I can't truly find fault in what you're saying. Quite impressive. Very well, I'm open to discussing this further… but not here. I don't wish to air any more of my family's business where unwanted ears could be listening in."

Luz continued to smile sweetly, even as her eyes remained sharp; "Of course. Shall we continue to discuss this somewhere quieter?"

"Naturally. How about the centre of the hedge maze? Severin has put up signs to direct people through it and I happen to know there is a nice little private seating area in the middle. A perfect place to talk privately." Odalia suggested.

Luz, Willow, and Amity exchanged looks; it was obviously a trap. Amity opened her mouth to protest, but Willow grinned widely; "What a lovely sounding place for a chat! We'd be happy to, right Luz?"

"Of course! Thank you for taking some time out of your busy life to speak with us! We'll head there right now." Luz chirped.

The two immediately turned and headed down from the veranda to the hedge maze, flashing Amity a smile as they went. The mint-haired girl tried to follow, but she froze as her mother put her hand on the pink stone around her neck, making it glow. The matching stone Amity wore beneath her dress began to glow too, and her mother's voice filled her head.

"You will remain at the party, Amity. Your father and I will be the ones to clean up this little problem."

"B-But…!"

"No buts." Odalia said sharply, glaring down at her daughter, "We will be discussing your behaviour and choice of friends later. Now go back to the party. Now."

Amity stepped back with a whimper, shrinking in on herself. Her mother's voice left her head, and the woman said out loud; "We won't be long, Amity dear. Do have fun with your friends while we're gone."

With that, Odalia left for the hedge maze, dragging Alador with her. Amity watched them go, paralysed with fear. What were Luz and Willow thinking!? Eda was nowhere near the hedge maze and wouldn't be able to come to their aid! Did they really not think Odalia would stoop so low as to attack them!? Luz was one thing, but Willow should have known better!

Amity turned and began shuffling back to the party, her heart beating wildly. Should she go tell Eda? She wanted to, but she had no idea where Raine had dragged Eda off to! But what else could she do!? She didn't want her friends to be hurt, and she couldn't go back to being the bully her mother wanted her to be! But she didn't know if she could defy her on her own either!

Amity froze, her heart beating so hard in her chest that she thought she was going to have a heart attack! She had to do something! Anything! She silently asked herself; "What would Luz do?"

She remembered Luz facing down the Mandragora not once, but twice to protect her. She remembered her lying despite the pain it caused her to save Amity from the bet at the Covention. She remembered her freely taking the blame in the Library Incident to save Amity's job. She remembered her fighting the Basilisk to save the school.

What would Luz do? She would help!

With determination bubbling up in her chest, Amity spun around and began stealthily following her parents to the hedge maze. Amity would help her friends!

The girl saw her parents stop outside the entrance to the maze, and promptly ran around the side, looking for another entrance so she could get to the centre and warn Luz and Willow before her parents arrived for their "talk".

Meanwhile, Alador and Odalia looked through the main entrance, where a series of little eyeball signs had been put up, each with a pupil shaped like an arrow, pointing in the direction they needed to go to reach the centre of the maze.

"Do you have your abominations ready, dear?" Odalia asked.

Alador raised an eyebrow; "Why would I need those for a talk, Odalia?"

His wife rolled her eyes; "Honestly dear, do keep up. We're not here for a talk; we're here to teach those brats a little lesson. They aren't good enough to associate with the Blights, so we're going to make sure they don't."

Alador scowled; "You want me to use my abominations to assault a pair of teenage girls?"

"We don't need to actually harm them. Just make sure they get the message that continuing to involve themselves in our business will lead to consequences." Odalia replied.

"Why do you care so much about this, Odalia? That Luz girl is the niece of Lilith Clawthorne, and Willow is a top student now. Why not allow Amity to remain friends with them; couldn't they be valuable assets?" Alador asked.

Odalia scowled fiercely at him; "Willow is a nobody from a go nowhere family. The highest she will rise is a middling position in the Plant Coven. As for this "Luz", we all know that with her curse, the Owl Lady's days are numbered, and rumour has it that her daughter inherited it. She is a dangerous time bomb, and a blind man could see that Amity is frustratingly fond of her. Best to rip that problem out at the root before things escalate."

Alador blinked with surprise; "Amity is that close with her? I don't remember her saying anything like that. I thought they were just friends who met via Skara."

Odalia rolled her eyes; honestly, how could her husband be so brilliant with abominations but so oblivious to everything else? The simple fact that Amity had dared befriend Willow again after last time was obviously Luz's influence; obviously their little girl had been swept up into a teenage rebellion by the Owl Lady's spawn.

"Never mind all that. Summon your abominations so we can get this over with." Odalia ordered.

Alador narrowed his eyes and straightened up a bit; "No. I want no part of this; Amity has been doing incredibly well in school and in her apprenticeship with Lilith. She even has a Palisman now! If she wants to make friends outside of the children of our business partners, then I won't stand in her way. Besides, if we go ahead with this plan, she could lose not just her friends, but also her apprenticeship."

Odalia sneered; "Ugh, why do you choose the most infuriating moments to go soft! Fine, if you won't assist me, then I shall handle this myself. Go back to the party, Alador; I will clean up the mess. As usual."

She then stomped her way into the hedge maze, leaving Alador to go red in the face and growl with frustration. His wife was becoming more like his boss with every passing day! He debated following after her and trying to stop her little scheme, but ultimately sighed and decided not to; Odalia would only escalate things further over her injured pride, and if Amity was going to lose her friends, she didn't need to deal with her parents fighting on top of it. Instead he turned and began heading back to the party, trying to think of how he might cheer his youngest daughter up after all this. Perhaps they could have some father-daughter bonding time in his workshop…?

Meanwhile, Odalia marched through the hedge maze, following the signs and trying to compose herself before she reached the centre. She'd just barely managed it, and smiled coldly as she arrived at the small seating area in the centre of the maze; it sported a pavilion gazebo made of white marble, with a set of patio furniture beneath it, at which Luz and Willow were sitting and quietly chatting. The two girls looked up and smiled as they saw Odalia approach, and stood to meet her, their smiles becoming a little too wide for Odalia's tastes.

"Ah, there you are Mrs. Blight. We were beginning to think you might have gotten lost." Willow smiled.

"Is your husband not joining us?" Luz asked, looking around for signs of Alador.

"He will not be needed for this conversation." Odalia said shortly.

Luz and Willow exchanged a look, then smirked. "Well then, this is going to be a lot easier than expected!"

Odalia sneered; "What do you mean this will be easier?"

"This was a trap, right?" Luz asked.

"You invited us here to threaten or hurt us, so we'd stay away from Amity." Willow added, completely unconcerned.

Odalia gaped as the two girls giggled at her look of surprise; "So you knew, and you still came? That just proves what stupid little girls you really are!" Odalia snarled, grabbing her necklace, which housed her oracle stone.

"Of course we knew. Eda told me you were ruthless, and literally no one who talked about you had anything nice to say. We figured that once you realised you couldn't bribe us or threaten us with your position in the Parent Creature Association, you'd try to threaten us in some other way." Luz said, completely unconcerned. "Tia Lily would never let you have us expelled after all."

"We just never thought you'd actually come on your own. Did your husband refuse to play along? I guess you don't have as much command over your family as you think." Willow smirked, absolutely loving the chance to talk down to Odalia.

The older woman fumed; "How dare you!? You will both stay away from Amity if you know what's good for you! I raised my family to prominence and I'll be in the cold ground before I allow a couple of brats to threaten that!"

Luz giggled at the threat, making a vein pop out on Odalia's forehead; "That would be a scary threat, if you weren't completely powerless. If Alador had been here with his abominations, we would have actually had to fight, but with just you it's not a problem."

Odalia bared her teeth and summoned a powerful spirit from the oracle stone on her necklace. The creature was the largest such spirit that Luz had ever seen, and was definitely terrifying. Or at least, the massive, bandaged wraith would have been terrifying, it if wasn't currently quaking at the sight of Luz.

"Oops, looks like your spirit has performance anxiety, Odalia." Willow teased.

"What are you doing!?" Odalia hissed at her spirit, which was absolutely refusing to make a move towards the girls. The spirit refused to answer her, and when Odalia tried to use magic to compel the spirit to attack, it shrieked like a banshee directly into her face, then fled back into the oracle stone. Then no matter how hard she tried, Odalia just couldn't get it to come back out. Suddenly, the woman noticed a shadow behind her and spun around, finding countless thorny vines emerging from the hedges that made up the maze, all responding to Luz and Willow's magic.

"Sorry to burst your bubble, Odalia, but oracle magic doesn't work on me. The spirits you need to use it with are scared of me." Luz said with a toothy grin.

"What!? Is this because of that infernal curse!?" Odalia demanded. She didn't remember anything about Eda being immune to oracle magic!

"It's definitely because of my… feathery situation." Luz said, avoiding a direct lie by alluding to her angelic nature.

"Now remind me Odalia, what coven are you in?" Willow suddenly asked. Odalia sneered at the girl, so Willow flicked her finger and one of her vines grabbed Odalia's wrist and forced her sleeve up, revealing the sigil of the Oracle Coven. "Oh that's right; the Oracle Coven. I guess that means oracle magic is the only kind you can use."

Willow's smile grew sharper; "That means that so long as Luz is around, you're completely powerless. You can't bully us, and you can't bully Amity."

Odalia felt a shudder go up her spine as she realised Willow was right; she was utterly powerless. Without oracle magic or her husband's abominations, she could do nothing against Luz or Willow, and with both girls having powerful plant magic in the centre of a hedge maze, they had an undeniable terrain advantage. Odalia inwardly seethed at her helplessness, but she hadn't become the successful woman she was now without knowing how to deal with a bad hand.

"Very well." she said bitterly, "What are your demands?"

"First, I want an apology." Willow said, "For making Amity cut off our friendship!"

Odalia narrowed her eyes, but nodded in agreement. Luz then said; "Second, you've got to promise not to come between Amity and any of her relationships ever again, unless it's genuinely toxic."

"Fine. Anything else?"

Willow and Luz exchanged a look, then Willow said; "Lastly, go easier on Amity and the twins. They're your kids, not your employees!"

"Yeah! Keep going the way you are, and the moment they're old enough to ditch you, that's what's going to happen. Unless you want to end up old and alone with no one to carry on your precious Blight family name." Luz added.

Odalia nodded stiffly, fighting the urge to roll her eyes; "Agreed. Shall we shake on it?" she asked, offering her hand.

Willow narrowed her eyes, then drew a spell circle around Odalia's hand before Luz grasped it. "I don't trust you, so you'll make an everlasting oath to keep to the terms we just set. And to never try and attack us again." Willow ordered.

Odalia nodded again, but inwardly she was smirking. These children were admittedly smarter than she'd given them credit for, but they were still just children… shockingly naive!

Before the everlasting oath could be completed, Odalia suddenly pulled back the hand Luz was grasping, yanking the girl close with a yelp of surprise. In the same instant, Odalia flicked her other hand out, causing a concealed knife to slip out into her hand, which she quickly pressed to Luz's throat threateningly.

"You didn't think you'd beat me that easily, did you?" Odalia smirked as both Luz and Willow froze. They'd never expected her to have a back up if magic didn't work!

"Let her go, Odalia!" Willow demanded, her magic causing numerous sharp roots to sprout from the ground around the woman, poised to impale her.

"I think not. But since you were nice enough to draw the circle for the everlasting oath, why don't we make use of it. You, little Luz, are going to swear to never go near any member of my family again AND do all in your power to keep Willow away too. You will also swear to obey my every command, as recompense for the humiliation you've caused me." Odalia smirked.

Luz scoffed; "And if I say no?"

"I have a knife to your throat. I'm sure your bright enough to figure it out."

The young angel glowered at the smirking woman, before suddenly grinning; "Do it."

Both Willow and Odalia blanched; "Luz, what are you doing!?" Willow cried.

"Are you stupid, girl? Do you think I'm bluffing!?" Odalia snapped, pressing the blade against her throat a little further, just barely avoiding actually breaking the skin.

"Whether you're bluffing or not doesn't matter." Luz said, "A slit throat isn't instant death. If I can cast my healing magic before I pass out, then I'll be safe. But you? Willow's roots will tear through you."

Odalia frowned, her eyes flicking around to the sharp roots that were mere inches from her flesh. "The operative word there is "if". You might not be fast enough, then where will you be?"

"Dead." Luz admitted, "But you will be too."

"Assuming Willow has the guts to follow through." Odalia smirked mockingly at the bespectacled girl, who was looking at her with such hatred that the Blight Matriarch was sure she was trying to light her on fire with her eyes.

"Even if she didn't, what do you think would happen when people found out you murdered me? Eda would kill you for certain, and take out all of Blight Industries along with you." Luz countered.

Odalia narrowed her eyes; "The Owl Lady is not a threat to me." she lied, "And counterpoint; if you die and Willow kills me, what will people do when they find out about that? Willow will be petrified for certain."

Luz frowned; they were at an impasse. Both were in equally bad positions; the only sure fire ways out of this were if one of them agreed to an oath, or Odalia slit Luz's throat and she succeeded in healing it while Willow bound the woman to prevent a second attempt or an escape. It was a gamble with Luz's life on the line, as well as Willow and Amity's futures and happiness. But Luz was an angel; she lived to help others, so she made her choice.

"No deal, Odalia. Swear the oath Willow and I gave you. There's no other way out of this for you." Luz said, amber eyes boring into Odalia's sapphire ones. Secretly, she put her free hand behind her back and drew a spell circle, casting an illusion that created glowing words on the back of her clothes, letting Willow know to bind and not kill Odalia. Willow wasn't happy, but then she sensed plant magic gathering around Luz, as the angel girl then prepared a second spell circle; one that would summon a healing lotus the instant Odalia acted against them. Luz had pushed things as far into her favour as she could; now the ball was in Odalia's court.

Odalia grimaced as she saw the determination in Luz's eyes. She really wasn't going to cave! Now her only option was to follow through with her threat (which actually had been a bluff) and hope she could take out Willow before she was killed! At least if Luz was out of the way, her oracle magic would work again! She gave Luz one last ugly sneer, and in an instant everyone knew the choice she'd made.

Luz braced herself, and Willow's eyes began to glow green as her magic threatened to rampage, but neither of them had a chance to act. Instead, a voice suddenly screamed out.

"STOP!"

Odalia flinched, instinctively pulling the knife a little further away from Luz's throat. At that moment, a tendril of purple abomination slime shot out from the shadows and bound the wrist holding the knife, then tightened. Odalia yelped as the bone in her wrist cracked, and the knife slipped from her fingers. Luz immediately released her grip on Odalia's other hand and leapt back, with one of Willow's vines wrapping around her waist and yanking her to Willow's side, while another grabbed Odalia's knife and dragged it underground. The plant loving girl then spun Luz to face her and frantically checked Luz's throat for signs of damage, but thankfully there was nothing but a faint red line from where Odalia had held the knife to her skin for too long.

The person who shouted then stepped out of the shadows, revealing themselves to be an absolutely livid Amity.

"Mother!? What in the Titan's name were you doing!?" she demanded, her eyes flashing lavender as she struggled to contain her emotions. She was so angry that she had to withdraw her abomination slime, lest she crush her mother's wrist so tightly that the hand was ripped off.

Odalia winced as she cradled her broken wrist, then glared furiously at her daughter.

"Amity!? What do you think you're doing!? I told you to go back to the party!"

"I don't care what you told me! I couldn't stand back and let you take my friends from me again!" Amity roared, really struggling to keep her magic under control. Ghost was in her hands in staff form, and pink magic was crackling around the Palisman as she too struggled to contain her fury. Amity then turned back to Luz and Willow.

"I'm sorry I took so long to get here. Turns out Mr Cadence only put up signs leading from the maze's main entrance, so I got lost for a bit." Amity said, feeling a tad embarrassed that it had taken her so long to remember she could just fly over with Ghost.

"I'd say you got here right in time. I'm 90% sure Odalia was bluffing, but it would have been kinda bad if I was wrong." Luz replied with a shaky smile. She'd been in enough life-or-death situations on the Boiling Isles to have gotten used to it, but it was still too scary.

Odalia rolled her eyes as she stalked closer to the girls; "Of course I was bluffing! As if I would actually sully my hands by killing a child!" she scoffed, not actually sure if she was lying or not. She'd been bluffing at first, but even she didn't know if she'd have followed through in that final moment. She reached for her oracle stone with her unbroken hand, but before she could even try and coax her spirit into telepathically linking her to her daughter, Amity ripped off her own necklace and crushed it beneath her heel.

Odalia grit her teeth; "Amity Blight, you are in enough trouble without digging yourself into more! Get away from those two right this instant! You association with them is at an end, and if you know what's good for you, you'll get back in line before I have to put you in your place!"

"No!" Amity growled, "You're going to listen to me for once! Luz and Willow aren't my associates, they're my friends! They're good people, who were nice to me even when I didn't deserve it! I was weaker than they ever were, but now I want to be strong like them! I want to be the kind of person they are, and not the kind of person you are! I want them to be as proud to be my friend as I am to be theirs! And I won't let you rip that away from me again!"

Luz and Willow smiled joyfully at their friend, feeling her love and affection for them in her words. However Odalia didn't take it as well.

"You insolent little-!" she reared her unbroken hand back to slap her daughter. Amity braced herself (this wasn't the first time it had happened), but her friends flew to her defence.

Willow caught the woman's wrist with a vine, and crushed it just like Amity's abomination slime had done to her other wrist, making Odalia yelp in pain. Luz, who had pulled Amity behind her the instant she saw what was about to happen, then used her concealed wings to launch herself upward a bit to erase the difference in height between her and Odalia. Then in a fit of rage like Luz had never experienced, her eyes began to glow white and she threw her fist forward, decking Odalia right in the nose, breaking it and sending the woman sprawling to the floor. Willow, her eyes now glowing a solid green as she reached the verge of a Bile Overload, then bound the woman in thorny vines, making sure the thorns shredded Odalia's fancy clothes and left shallow scratches on the woman's skin.

The two girls then glared down at Odalia, their eyes still glowing with magic and fury.

"STAY!" Luz began.

"AWAY!" Willow continued.

"FROM!"

"OUR!"

"FRIEND!" they finished together, their magic raging so much that the ground beneath them rumbled a bit with that final word.

Odalia looked up at them with both rage and terror; she was magically powerless around Luz, bound by Willow, and had two broken wrists and a broken nose. She was utterly defeated.

"Amity, are you alright?" Luz asked with concern, getting a grip on her emotions faster than Willow, who was now breathing deeply to try and calm down.

"I'm fine. Thanks for stopping her; she hasn't slapped me often, but it's never pleasant." Amity replied with a sad smile, unknowingly making both Willow and Luz furious. Willow began to curse under her breath, while Luz's eyes began glowing again. As an angel, she didn't run the risk of a Bile Overload, but it was still hard to control her magic when furious, causing it to leak out of her and make her eyes glow. The eyes were the windows to the soul after all.

"Willow, sit Odalia up for me please. I think it's time to end this." Luz said ominously, making Odalia pale.

Willow smirked and forced Odalia up and into a kneeling position with her vines. Luz then approached her, while Amity looked on fearfully.

"L-Luz, what are you going to do?"

"Don't worry Amity, I'm not going to hurt her. Just give her a little…" Luz wiggled her fingers, each of which was now tipped with a tiny blade of light magic, "… hair cut."

Amity and Willow both let out a choked laugh of surprise as Odalia began struggling against the thorny vines. Luz ignored her wiggling and protests, and began running her light blades through Odalia's hair haphazardly, shaving different parts of her head to different lengths, burning some pieces until it was black, and generally giving the Blight Matriarch the worst haircut the Demon Realm had ever seen. It was indescribably bad; like a toddler had gone at it with sheers and a lighter, and all three teenagers laughed uproariously at the finished product. Amity took a picture with her scroll to show her mother.

"H-How dare you!" Odalia shrieked as she saw the result.

"Oh put a sock in it." Luz scoffed as she and Willow summoned their own scrolls and took a myriad of pictures of Odalia. With the hair cut, bloodied nose, and obvious helplessness in Willow's vines, she looked utterly humiliated.

Once the girls were done, Willow (who's eyes were still glowing, unlike Luz's) knelt in front of the woman and smiled coldly.

"Now, this is how it's going to go. You are going to agree to never come between us and Amity again, and never act to hurt us, Amity, or any of our friends and family in any way. If you refuse, we'll go up to the party and show everyone these pictures, then spread them to the entire Boiling Isles. Your reputation will be ruined… and of course, if you actually did do something to hurt us…" Willow made her vines tighten just a little bit, making Odalia wince.

"Do we have a deal?" Willow asked.

Odalia dearly wished she could refuse and get her revenge on these brats, but they had her dead to rights. They were threatening the one thing she didn't dare risk; her reputation.

"Fine! I don't have a choice! Now let me go!" Odalia demanded, a hint of desperation creeping into her tone.

Luz and Willow exchanged looks, then turned to Amity, who silently nodded her approval. Willow then released Odalia from her vines, and Luz roughly pulled the woman to her feet.

"Good. Just remember to stick to it, and we'll all get along just fine." Luz said, before leaning in to whisper in Odalia's ear; "And if you ever try to hurt Amity again, I'll destroy far more than just your reputation." she said coldly.

Odalia shuddered and recoiled away from Luz, who plastered a pleasant smile on her face; "Bye bye now!"

The woman didn't need to be told twice; beaten and humiliated, she turned and slunk off, planning to call Alador to make excuses for her with the other party guests before going home. Once Odalia was gone, Willow calmed down and her eyes stopped glowing, while Luz let out a long sigh of relief.

"Phew! Well, that could have gone better!" Luz said, still feeling a little wound up.

"I'll say. The plan went way off the rails, but it worked out at least. We can be friends without her interfering." Willow said, before grinning; "Plus beating her up a little was great catharsis, and it wasn't even immoral since she started it!"

Amity giggled happily; "And now that we're threatening the one thing Mom cares about, we don't have to worry about her causing us trouble! I can finally live my own life! I am a little worried about Dad though… speaking off…"

She put her hands on her hips and glared at her two friends; "What were you thinking, agreeing to come here to talk to her alone!? Surely you knew it was a trap!" she scolded.

"We did, but we figured Luz could handle Odalia since she's immune to oracle magic, and we had the terrain advantage with all these plants." Willow explained.

Amity crossed her arms; "And if Dad had come too?"

Luz and Willow snapped their fingers, causing a massive Ice Wyrm to suddenly rise out from behind the hedge maze and bear down on them, breathing a chilling wind over them. Amity squeaked in surprise, whereupon Luz snapped her fingers again and dispelled the illusion, revealing that the "Ice Wyrm" was actually just a construct made of vines and partially frozen with ice glyphs.

"We prepared this to deal with him. We figured the threat of this thing would keep Alador from doing anything drastic. Besides, he didn't seem malicious like your Mom." Luz explained.

"It was tough to make so many vines that could also withstand the cold. I had to use my Power Glyph from the Covention on it. It's almost too bad I didn't get to really use it." Willow added.

Amity looked at the construct; it had fooled her for a moment, and clearly her friends had picked up some of Gus's flair for showmanship, so she expected it would have worked on her dad too. The icy breath made from ice glyphs was a nice touch too.

"You two really have gotten stronger… it's weird to think you were both "bad" at magic just a few weeks ago." Amity mused, "I guess I was worried for nothing. Thank you both for all you've done."

"Thank you too, Amity. Your arrival really helped us out." Luz smiled.

"Yeah! Now come on; with Odalia dealt with, I want to really party with my friends!" Willow said, throwing an arm around each of the other girls' shoulders. Luz and Amity happily agreed and together they headed back up to the party, hoping they hadn't been missed.

[Meanwhile]

Eda felt her heart beating faster and faster as Raine led her out of the Cadence family manor and onto the grounds, eventually taking her over to the cliff side far from any guests or employees. The effects of the Ballad of Motivation were helping her keep her nerves, as even though she was thrilled to see Raine again, she was also extremely nervous as to where this reunion could lead. Eda had dated a few times in the years since she and Raine separated; boyfriends, girlfriends, and everything in between had come and gone, but none had lasted long. Raine alone had been Eda's one long-term relationship, and the two had shared something truly special… until the curse came between them.

Shoving that thought aside, Eda leaned on the safety railing on the cliff side and smiled at Raine; "So, this is an awfully cosy and isolated spot for catching up. Have you gotten bolder over the years, Raine Storm?"

Raine blushed at the comment, a smile tugging at their lips; "You always brought out that side of me. But that's not why I dragged you here. I wanted some privacy to discuss something extremely important."

"Sure, I'm okay with that. But let's not take too long; I don't want to leave Luz along with those social piranhas for too long. The kids are mostly fine, but the parents will snap her up after that performance." Eda grinned, only half joking. She also wanted to get back before Odalia could pull anything, and so she'd be ready to back Luz up.

"Actually, it's Luz I wanted to talk about." Raine said, suddenly looking very serious.

Eda blinked; "Luz? I'm happy to talk about her, she's a great kid, but what do you want to know?"

Raine felt their eye twitching. So Eda was still dancing around the obvious issue… well then, Raine would be direct.

"I need you to answer this question, and I want you to be totally honest, alright? Please Eda; this is extremely important to me."

Eda went still; she'd rarely seen Raine so serious. If they were asking about Luz… had her singing tipped them off that she was an angel!? Was that what Raine was going to ask about!? Raine was an amazing bard, so Eda wouldn't be that surprised if they'd been able to work out Luz's secret just from that!

"Is Luz my daughter?"

Eda was so surprised by the unexpected question that she almost fell over the edge of the safety railing. Thankfully she caught herself and stared dumbly at Raine, only able to say "Huh!?" in response.

Raine frowned; "Eda, I'm being serious. Is Luz my daughter?"

"Why would you even think that?" Eda asked, still stunned by the seemingly random question.

"Her skin tone is similar to mine, her hair is curly like mine gets when its long, she has a natural talent for bardic singing, some of her mannerisms resemble mine, and no matter how I calculate it, if she is fourteen and turns fifteen before the end of the year, then you had to have been pregnant with her for 2-6 weeks before we broke up!" Raine explained, getting a little more emotional with each point, "And while we had our problems, I don't think for an instant that you'd cheat on me, so the only possible other parent would be me!"

Eda's eyes widened; a part of her felt happy that Raine had so much faith in her… and they were right of course. Eda was many things, but she never cheated in a relationship and despised those who did.

Raine grabbed Eda's hand again; "Please tell me the truth, Eda! If Luz is my daughter, then I want to be a part of her life!"

Eda sighed and shook her head; "Raine, Luz isn't your daughter. I swear it."

It hurt to see how stricken Raine was at that revelation, as it meant their mind was going to the only other possibility they could think of, which was Eda being unfaithful. Eda was quick to nip that thought in the bud.

"Luz isn't actually my daughter." she confessed, feeling oddly sad to be saying that out loud.

"I-I don't understand. Is she your adopted daughter?" Raine eventually asked.

"No, the whole thing is just a scheme I cooked up." Eda sighed, "Luz has some unique circumstances that mean she'd be in danger of being captured by the Emperor's Coven if the truth of who she is was discovered. Luckily, when Lilith found out about her she assumed Luz was my daughter, so I decided to let everyone think that, to keep her safe."

Raine nodded slowly. They were actually a bit disappointed; parenthood scared them, but Luz was a nice kid and clearly someone important to Eda if she was willing to spread a lie like that. They would have liked to try being a real parent, especially after mentoring a lot of the kids who came into the Bard Coven. But at least this meant Eda hadn't hidden their child from them.

"I see… so who is Luz really then? You can trust me, Eda." Raine said.

"Not with this, Raine Storm. For the record, I do trust you, but this is Luz's secret and I won't spread it… but I'll ask her later if she's cool with you knowing." Eda replied.

Raine accepted that; "I understand. But who is she to you?"

"She's my apprentice. She's half human, so she was raised in the Human Realm and accidentally stumbled through my portal about… 8 weeks ago? She helped me out of a jam at the Conformatorium, and I took her in as my student right after." Eda explained, smiling fondly at the memory.

Raine gave her a smile, which had Eda frowning. That was their "you're not fooling me" smile.

"So Eda the Owl Lady has taken in a young student. Maybe Luz's cover story is better than I thought; you've actually become quite motherly." Raine smirked.

Eda scowled and flicked their forehead; "I already told you that I'm not her Mom!"

"Not legally or by blood, but you still think of that girl as a daughter, don't you?" Raine said knowingly.

Eda looked away with a huff; "You've been hanging around Senile Scooter for too long. It's turned your brain to mush!"

"Eda, I've always been able to tell when you've been lying to me or hiding things from me." Raine began, giving the woman a softer smile, "And it didn't feel like a lie when you called her your kid."

Eda crossed her arms; "It's just because she's my apprentice. You know how possessive I get. Don't think too much about it."

Inwardly, the Owl Lady knew Raine was right. Luz had only been in her life for a couple of months, but she'd become someone Eda cared about deeply. But no matter how much the deepest, most suppressed parts of her heart may wish it to be otherwise, Luz was not her daughter. She had a mother of her own in the Human Realm, and it was obvious Luz loved her dearly. In just over a month's time, Luz would be going back to her real mother and Camila would be amazed by how much her angelic daughter had grown. The cracks in the relationship would heal (Eda had enough experience with Mommy Issues to spot Luz's insecurities towards her mother) and Luz would never even dream of putting Eda in the same category. Eda had no doubt the girl would still be her student and care deeply for her; Luz was too good of a person to do anything else, but she would never be more than that.

"Eda… it's okay for you to think of her like that, you know that right?" Raine said.

"No, it's not. She's got a real family to go back to. Besides, someone like me was never meant to have kids; I'm a terrible role model." Eda faked a smirk. "Not that it matters; the curse means I can't have kids anyway."

Raine gasped softly; "I'm so sorry, Eda…"

Eda waved him off; "It's fine. I never wanted kids anyway." Before Luz and King at least, "And it's far from the worst thing the curse has done to my body. I mean, you should have seen my looks before Luz and I found a way to power up my Elixirs! I looked like an old lady!"

Raine grinned; "Well you definitely look good now. Listen, I'm sorry I ambushed you with that question, and opened up such a big and uncomfortable subject for you. I-If you're still willing…" they blushed faintly, "… I-I'd like to catch up properly."

Eda smiled, feeling her melancholy fade away as she pulled Raine over to lean against the railing with her; "That might be the best idea you've had all night, Whispers!"

For the next little while, the two chatted about their lives. Raine told Eda about how things were going in the Bard Coven, and some of the secret things that they'd seen the Emperor's Coven getting up to, while Eda told Raine about King and the various misadventures the residents of the Owl House had gotten up to since Luz arrived in their lives. The two were laughing so hard that they almost missed a pair of very familiar people stomping by. In fact, they would have missed them entirely if not for one of them cursing as they left.

Eda and Raine gaped as they recognised Odalia Blight; her arms in slings made from abomination slime, her nose red and swollen, her clothes torn, and her hair sliced and burnt into the most hideous botch job Eda had ever seen. Given the way Alador was following her while looking pristine and with absolutely no sympathy for her, Eda guessed Odalia had gone too far and paid for it. Unfortunately, that also made the Owl Lady remember that she was supposed to have been backing Luz up!

She muttered a curse under her breath; "Sorry to cut the catch up short Raine, but I better go check on Luz."

"Of course. I've been away from the party for too long anyway." they agreed.

The two hurried back to the ballroom, and were surprised to find no signs of a scene or trouble at all, and Luz and her friends were chatting animatedly by the food table, none looking any worse for wear. Eda immediately rushed over to Luz, who smiled brightly as she saw Eda approach.

"Eda! Hi! You missed a fun talk out in the hedge maze!" Luz grinned.

"Sorry Luz, I got distracted talking with Raine." Eda said apologetically, "What happened?"

Luz, Willow, and Amity exchanged mischievous grins and pulled Eda off to the side to tell her everything that had gone down with Odalia. Eda was furious that Odalia had gone so far, but she cackled with delight upon hearing that each of the girls had busted the foul woman up a little, with Luz being responsible for the terrible hair cut. Raine, who was listening in, had to cover their mouth to stop them laughing at the mental image of Eda's young apprentice shaving Odalia's head.

When they were done, Eda ruffled Willow and Amity's hair; "Okay, you girls are officially becoming part of the Bad Girl Coven! Anyone who can beat down Odalia deserves it!" she then turned to Luz, and hugged her lovingly. "And you kiddo are going to be the next Head Witch! I'm proud of you!"

Luz preened at the compliment and hugged Eda back, making Eda's heart soar. Luz may not be her daughter, but until she went home next month, Eda could at least pretend.

The rest of the party extended late into the evening, since the next day was a weekend, and everyone had fun. Skara convinced Luz to sing with them again, and they and the bards regaled the guests with another song. Eda spent more time with Raine, then took Amity aside for a little talk, letting her know that if things went bad at home with Odalia or Alador, then she was to come to the Owl House, where she'd always be welcome. At the same time, Raine told Luz and Willow stories about Eda's wild youth, and the two girls were soon joined by the rest of Skara's friends, who all wanted to know more about the infamous wild witch.

Eventually the party came to an end, and the guests began going home with their parents. Raine had to carry a sleeping Scooter back to the Bard Coven, but promised Eda that they'd stay in touch, which Luz and the Owl Lady were extremely glad to hear. As Eda said a private goodbye to Raine and Willow was saying goodbye to Amelia, Luz and Amity wandered down to the estate's front gates together.

"I really wanted to thank you for everything you did, Luz." Amity said, "It's thanks to you that I was able to begin patching things up with Willow and restart our friendship."

Luz giggled; "Aw, you give me too much credit. All I did is nudge you two in the right direction; you were the one who did the hard part. You owned up to the bad things you did in the past and tried to make amends. You're amazing Amity, even if your Mom doesn't see it."

Amity shook her head with a smile; "I was only able to do that because of you. Ever since I met you, everything has changed. I can do things that I never even dreamed of. I… I can't even find the words to properly say how I feel. You… you're a real angel, Luz."

Luz beamed, a faint blush on her cheeks. But Amity wasn't quite done yet. Acting on impulse, Amity leaned in and gave Luz a peck on the cheek. Both girls felt a spark of electricity pass between them from Amity's lips to Luz's cheek, and they both turned to stare into one another's eyes. They were initially stunned by the feeling, then it fully registered what had just happened. Both girls blushed tomato red, with Luz's eyes growing large and sparkling as she gasped softly.

Amity stepped back, mortified by what she'd just done. "Uh… okay! Thanks again for all your help! Farewell forever!"

She then turned and ran off towards her home, muttering; "Why did I do that!? Why did I do that!?" over and over as she fled.

Luz watched her go, her heart beating like a humming bird inside her chest. She went weak at the knees and soon found her legs buckling beneath her, leaving her staring dumbfounded in the direction Amity had fled. Just behind her, Eda and Willow smirked, having seen the whole thing after finishing their farewells. It took a little while for them to snap Luz out of her shocked stupor, and for the whole flight home, Luz couldn't stop touching her cheek where Amity had kissed her.

Today may not have been her birthday party, but it looked like Luz had gotten a present of her own anyway!