Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Luz's POV

EEEH! EEEH! EEEH!

My alarm flared to life, filling the room with its annoying sound. I groaned and flailed my arm, trying to find my phone so that I could silence the infernal racket. Wrapping my fingers around the plastic case, I opened my eyes and turned off the alarm. 6 am. Uggh. I hate mornings. Everything in my body told me to go back to sleep. My sleep cocoon, as King called it, felt so warm and comfy, even though it was just a sleeping bag on top of a blanket. Five more minutes wouldn't hurt. However, I knew that no amount of alarms would wake me up if I did.

Rubbing the sleep out of my eyes, I got up and stretched, looking at my bland room before walking over to the window and staring outside. No matter how many times I looked out the window, the view outside never ceased to amaze me. The sun spilled over the horizon casting a glimmer on the water, making it shine. Red's and yellow's mixed together, making the sky look like it was on fire. Two months. It had been two months since I convinced my mom to let me stay in the Boiling Isles, which did not go over well. When I told her I was in another dimension instead of summer camp, she was pissed and grounded me forever. Turns out, telling your mom that you were in another dimension instead of summer camp was a lot harder than telling her your bi.

The rest of the week was filled with screaming, arguing, and crying, mostly by me, until she finally agreed to let me stay there, with some conditions. I have to text her every day and spend at least one day a month with her. Walking away, I headed to the bathroom to get ready and put on my Hexside uniform, feeling smooth fabric on my skin. Making my way downstairs, the smells from the kitchen hit me wafted over me, making my stomach growl. Oh God, Eda's cooking again.

"Morning Eda," I said, walking into the kitchen.

"Morning kiddo," Eda said, stirring a pot.

I got some juice and sat at the table, letting out a big yawn. '

"Long night?" Asked Eda.

"Yeah. I was up till 2 am finishing my potions homework." This was only partially true. I was also texting Amity.

Eda handed me a plate of food. Thanking her, I took a bite and smiled as flavors danced on my tongue, making me smile. It was still nowhere near Latin American cooking, as that is the best thing ever, but it was still delicious. "Did that homework involve a certain green-haired witch?" Eda asked, smirking.

"No."

"Then why were you giggling so much last night? Last time I checked, homework didn't make you laugh." Eda's smirk grew bigger as she stared at me.

"I was trying to make a laughing potion, and Gus made me laugh by sending me cheesy jokes."

Eda groaned and poured herself some apple blood before sitting across from me and staring at the window. I wonder what she's thinking of. Knowing my mentor, it's either something dangerous, illegal, a scam, or all three. We sat in silence for a bit as Eda continued to stare out the window, in what I could only assume was deep thought. Again, probably about something illegal or a scam. A few minutes later, she broke the silence.

"So are you and Amity dating?"

I nearly spit out my juice, choking on it a little as I started to cough hard. Tears began to sting my eyes as my coughs wracked my body. Breathing started to get a bit hard as I gripped the table for support, while my brain was split between keeping me alive and trying not to have a bi panic.

"You okay, kiddo?" Eda asked.

"I'm fine," I said weakly, still trying not to cough up my lungs.

When the coughing finally stopped, thank god, I looked over at my mentor, who was casually drinking her apple blood. Where the hell did that question even come from? There's no way she – No, she couldn't know. "Were not together. Amity and I are just friends and nothing more." I said, trying to sound convincing.

"Mmmhm. Then why is your face all red?"

"Because I almost choked on my drink and started coughing," I said.

I needed something to get me away from this awkward situation before things got any more embarrassing. And luckily, that's just what I got as my alarm went off, telling me to leave for school. Finishing my breakfast, I grabbed my bag and headed out the door, telling my mentor goodbye.

As I made my way to Hexside, all I could think of was Eda's question. 'Are you and Amity dating?' Why did she ask that? Eda said she was only teasing, but what is she new? But that would be impossible, as both me and Amity work hard to make sure our relationship stays a secret. If people found out, the response would be catastrophic. I knew Eda would support and accept me, just as my mom had, but there was still that fear of rejection. I also knew that Amity's fear of rejection would be increased by ten. She told me how her parents nearly lost it when they found she was friends with a human. Imagine what would happen when they found out she was dating said human.

Even though Eda said she was joking, I couldn't help but think that I messed up something. Did I leave a romantic text from Amity open? Were my emotions to obvious sometimes? My thoughts were soon interrupted by my phone, vibrating. I pulled it out and smiled as I read Amity's text.

'Morning Lulu. Just wanted to say I hope you have a good day, and I can't wait for our book club meeting.'

God, I love this girl. To say that I was surprised to find out she loved me would be an understatement. I never thought anybody would love me like that, but here we are, with me dating the smartest, cutest, most popular girl in school. I send a text back as I walk toward the school.

'Morning, Ammy. I hope your day is amazing too, and I can't wait either. I can't wait to cuddle you.'

I deleted the text so no one would know. Just in case someone gets my phone. I know it's password-protected, and no one here knows how to work a phone, but it eases my concern. When I finally arrived at school, I headed to my locker to grab my books when I noticed Willow and Gus heading towards me.

"Hey, guys," I said.

"Hey, Luz. You ready for that plant test?" Willow asked.

"No. But when I am ever ready for a test." I chuckled.

"That reminds me. How did you do on that Illusion test?" Asked Gus

"I got a B-," I said, still unsure of how I managed to do that. But I've learned never to look a gift horse in the mouth.

"Congratulations," Willow said, patting me on the shoulder.

"Thanks," I said, smiling softly.

I grabbed my textbooks and closed my locker, leaning against it as I looked at my friends. Gus was rambling on about a movie he saw last night. About a guy who had to fight his illusion clones in a weird fantasy realm for control over his body and how he spent the next several hours talking to his clones about what would happen if the movie came true. Willow just told him he was being paranoid, and I couldn't help but laugh. Leave it to Gus to create a contingency plan on something that would probably never happen.

Without these two, I don't know if I would have survived Hexside as long as I have. We are all outcasts in some way, but at least we are outcasts together.. The three of us are like our own little loser's club. Yes, I saw the movie, and yes, it terrified me. I didn't sleep for days after that.

"Oh, Luz," Willow said, snapping me out of my thoughts. I looked at her curiously. "Me and Gus are having a bleeding heart marathon at my house after school. Want to come?"

"Sorry, Willow. I'd love to, but Amity is helping me with my abomination homework later, and she'd kill me if I missed it."

Willow studied me for a moment. "You've been spending a lot of time with Amity lately. Is there something going on between you two?"

Oh, for the love of Azura! "There's a big abomination test coming up. And there is nothing going on between Amity and me. We are just friends."

It was at this moment that Amity walked down the hall. As if the world decided to taunt and make fun of me. I smiled and waved at her, trying to get rid of the blush that was forming on my face. Amity looked at me and smiled, waving back as she walked down the hall.

Turning my attention back to my friends, I noticed Willow was wearing a smug smile. God, I hate that smile. It makes me uncomfortable whenever she makes that face, which is rare. Even Gus looked a little nervous. She must have seen my blush because there is no other reason why she would make that face. "Nothing more than friends, huh?"

I chuckled nervously, feeling my blush getting bigger by the moment. Willow narrowed her eyes at me, trying to find a crack in the wall I put up. Willow, I love you, but could you please stop staring at me? "Fine, I'll drop the subject," Willow said, dropping her mischievous smile.

I internally breathed a sigh of relief, something that I have gotten really good at since dating Amity.

"For now." Willow continued.

Dang, it Willow.

"Whatever is going on with you, too, I just want you to be safe." Said Willow.

A loud scream filled the halls, signaling the start of the school day as I headed toward my potions class. I'll admit, I thought potions was pretty bland at first, but I quickly grew to love the class and found it to be quite in-depth, like one of those games that are easy to learn but hard to master. The only problem was that it was with Boscha. Kind of hard to focus when you hear gossiping and feel an evil smirk stare into you. She offered to tutor me one time, but I turned her down as I knew that was bad idea. You've heard of the phrase don't make the deals with the devil? Well you shouldn't make deals with Boscha.

I walked into class and took my seat, putting my stuff on my desk. Boscha was in her usual seat, scrolling through her scroll, a textbook in front of her. As soon the bell screamed, my stuff flew off my desk. I was able to grab the breakable objects as the rest of my objects hit the floor. As I knelt down to pick up my books, I saw Boscha chuckling out the corner of my eye, before returning to my seat, just as the teacher started talking. That was a close one.

"Good morning, class. Today we are going to be making Fog Brews. You will know if you've done it correctly when your cauldron emits a mushroom cloud. You have 40 minutes. After that, I will come around and add the last ingredient to your potion to check your work. Begin."

Okay Luz, you've made this before. You can do this. I pulled my notes and began making the potion, following it step by step as best I could. After adding the pixie teeth, I measured carefully and added a drop of frogs breath, turning the potion a bright shade of green. I smiled, knowing I had done it right so far. Unfortunately, this was always the part where I get confused. Now was I supposed to add the bat wings and fairy dust before or after, lighting the cauldron?

I knew that getting this step wrong has bad consequences ranging from the contents exploding, to the liquid turning a murky grey color. I learned the former the hard way and that is why Eda doesn't let me make potions by myself in the house anymore. Going through my notes for like 3rd time, I noticed something interesting. 'Under no circumstances are you to add the bat wings and fairy dust before lighting the cauldron. Doing so will cause your potion to be unstable and turn a dark grey color.'

That's weird. It's in my handwriting but I don't remember writing it. Then again, I write most of my notes at night until 1 am, so I don't remember writing most of them. I decided to follow my notes and heated up my cauldron, before adding the bat wings and fairy dust. The potion shimmered a little before turning to a light orange color. Now all that's left is to wait for the teacher.

20 minutes later, the teacher began checking everybody's work, putting a few drops of a swirling bright blue liquid in the cauldrons. Some kids passed and some didn't do so well. One student's cauldron vibrated and exploded in his face, making his hair stand on end and covering him in grey sludge. Finally the teacher, moved to Boscha. Ugggh. Great, more praise to fill her over inflated ego. Then something interesting happened.

As the teacher put a few drops into Boscha's cauldron nothing happened, and after a few moments of silence, a small white mushroom cloud came out. Did Boscha do something wrong? I didn't have time to process what just happened as the teacher came over to me and put a few drops into my cauldron causing a big mushroom cloud to erupt from it.

She let out a curious 'hmmn' and scooped some of my potion into a bottle before smashing it on the ground, disappearing in a cloud of orange smoke and appearing behind her desk. "Very good Ms. Noceda. I am impressed. Tell me, how did you manage to do that?"

"Um. Since I'm not a witch, I've had to work extra hard. I've read as many beginner potions books as I could and did the potions until I got them right." I said.

"Well, I think that's great. Keep that determination and hard work kid, it will get you far in life." The teacher said before looking at Boscha. "Ms. Boscha, even though you are the top student in the class, you could stand to take a few notes and learn from your classmates. Like Ms. Noceda over here, maybe her dedication will rub off on you."

The class laughed a little at the teachers comment as I blushed. The same ear splitting scream filled the room, ending the class as I packed up and walked into the hall. As I walked to class, someone forcefully bumps into my shoulder. I looked up and saw Boscha staring at me, an evil smirk plastered on her face.

"Hello human." Boscha said, sarcasm dripping from her mouth. "That was a good show you put up there, but there are some payback to those who embarrass me."

"Look Boscha, I didn't mean to embarrass you. I just worked hard and it paid off. Maybe if you were more dedicated, you wouldn't have this problem. Now I have to get to history." I said.

Her face turned to anger and walked past me, this time shoving me against the locker. I rubbed the shoulders and headed to history. I walked into class and took my seat. The class dragged on for about an hour before finally ending. The res of the day seemed to follow that as well, with each class seeming to drag on longer than the last. Finally the last bell rang signaling the end of the school day, as I let out a sigh of relief, finally getting to be with my girl.

Picking up my bag, I put my books in my locker before walking down to the library. The whole way there, all I could think of was Amity. How soft her lips are and how amazing it's going to feel to be in her arms again. Her hugs and cuddles are amazing. No matter how bad I'm feeling or what I'm going through, they always make me feel better.

Walking into the library, I slowly made my way over to the romance section, taking extra care and making sure no one followed me. After checking that no one was around me or looking at me, I pulled a book and walked into the secret room. Amity looked up from her book and rushed toward me. "Did anybody follow or see you?"

"No. I took extra caution. I hung around the history section for 10 minutes just to make sure." I said, setting down my bag.

"Good." Amity wrapped me in a tight hug which I happily returned.

We stood there for a moment, wrapped in each other's arms. She looked into my eyes and gave me a passionate kiss. I wrapped my arms around her neck and leaned into the kiss, taking in her sweet scent.

"I love you Luz Noceda." Amity said.

"I love you to Amity Blight." I said.

Chapter Text

Amity's POV

Do you know what's harder than being the top student at Hexside and keeping up appearances? Doing all of that while hiding your secret relationship and pretending you are straight. And let me tell you, it is not easy. I can't tell you how many times I've had to lie about Luz and me or why we spend so much time together. Even as the top student in Hexside, there is only so many times you can use the tutoring excuse. Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad we don't have to hide our friendship because that would be even harder to do, but it's still hard. The only time we can act like a couple is during our weekly book club meetings in our secret hideout. It is also the only time where we can exchange our love letters. Yes, I know it’s cheesy, but they fill me with so much joy reading them.

My day started like any other day, with me getting up, taking a shower, and getting dressed. I sat at my desk, brushing my hair as I thought about yesterday. The thought of Luz and me cuddling, kissing, or Luz in general, always made me smile. After deciding that my hair was perfect, I tied it up in its usual style and smoothed out my uniform before heading downstairs. When I went into the kitchen, I found that it was empty. That's weird. Ed and Em are usually down here by now. Knowing them, they’re probably hiding somewhere, ready to scare me. For some reason, they think early in the morning is the perfect time to scare me. I looked around the kitchen, looking for any hidden pranks, and as I was looking, I found a note on the counter in Emira's handwriting along with a plate of pastries.

'Hey, Mittens. Ed and I need to head to school early to help the illusion professor. Ed's not happy it. We told the chef to leave some pastries out for you, and don't worry; we didn't tamper with it. The kitchen is also prank free. We will see you at school.'

Uggh. I hate it when my siblings call me Mittens. Then the realization hit me. Mom and dad are at work, and since Ed and Em are gone, that means I have the morning to myself. Wow, I have not had a morning to myself in; Actually, I don't think I've ever had a morning to myself. I checked the time and saw that I didn't have to leave for another half hour. Not as much time as I would like, but opportunities like this rarely come around, so I'm definitely going to take advantage of this. What is the saying Luz likes? Never look present in the mouth or something like that. I took a bite of the pastry in front of me and summoned my scroll, sending Luz a text.

‘Morning Lulu. I got the morning to myself. You alone?’

‘Morning, babe. Yeah. Eda left with the king to go to her shop about ten minutes ago.’

I smiled. ‘We must have done something right for both of us to be alone.’

‘Yeah, but I’d rather be alone with you. I’m missing my other puzzle piece.’

I rolled my eyes and giggled, a small blush forming on my face. Thanks, Gods, no one is around to see it. People groan at her cheesiness, but I love it as it never fails to make me smile along with everything else she does. Ever since we got together, I’ve always asked myself what I did to get such a great girlfriend because sometimes I feel like I don’t deserve her. Then she will do something dorky and make me laugh.

The idea of love and relationships never appealed to me, as I always thought it was useless. Whenever I saw people kiss or act like a couple, I would always roll my eyes. Now that I’m in a relationship, I don’t know how I could live without her. Our first kiss felt like fireworks going off and filled me with a warmth I had never felt before. I wish we didn’t have to hide it, but it would be the end of the world as we knew it if people found out.

‘Oh my gods, that was so cheesy. Booo.’

‘Love you, babe.’

‘Love you too, Lulu.’

I finished the pastry and was about to grab a second one when I noticed the time. After deleting the text chat from Luz, I grabbed my stuff and walked out of the manor, making my way to school. The walk to Hexside was uneventful, which is great because it lets me gather my thoughts. Time to pretend to be straight for another eight hours, yay. I walked into Hexside and made my way to my locker, switching out the textbooks. Boscha and the other girls were not here, which is great because I cannot deal with them right now.

Walking through the halls was boring, with the same chatter and magic spells going off. It seemed like it was just going to be another dull day. I walked into my abomination class and took my seat as a scream filled the halls. Students piled into the class moments later, including a certain human who stole my heart. It took all my strength not to wave at her, so instead, I gave a small smile. My beat a little faster when she smiled in return. If anybody asked what I was smiling about, I would say I was happy to be in class, which is true.

Halfway through the class, though, my smile faded as the teacher droned on. He wouldn’t even let me answer any questions because he wanted to give other people a chance. It’s not my fault; I study hard and know all the answers. Okay, it is my fault, but it’s still annoying. Even though I was bored out of my mind, I still took notes.

I knew Luz would be writing down her notes as well, but with more energy. Occasionally, she would raise her hand to ask a question before going back to writing notes. That’s one of the things I love about her, her hard work and determination. She is so determined to learn magic that she doesn’t let anything stop her, even though she’s at a severe disadvantage. I love watching her brain work and seeing that sparkle in her eyes when she learns a new fact or a new spell.

Once again, I had to resist the urge, this time to not even look at her. Come on, Amity. You can’t afford any slips ups, especially in this class. Just focus on the lecture. Which is a lot easier said than done when you have a cute human sitting in your class, and your dating said human. I sighed internally, knowing that I couldn’t even look or talk to her after class. That might be overkilling a little, but the truth is I’m afraid of what people will say. My parents made stop being friends with Willow when we were kids because she was a late bloomer with magic. If they found out I was gay and dating the human, they would destroy me. I’m talking destruction and rage on a scale the Boiling Isles has never seen before.

The class seemed to drone on for what seemed like forever until a scream filled the air: one down, four to go. I picked up my stuff and walked to my next class, avoiding direct contact with anyone. Once inside, I took my seat and looked at the empty classroom. I like being early to class. There’s a calm, quiet feeling before everyone comes. Which is what happened a few minutes later, as the bell rang. Uggh. Another boring lecture to sit through.

An hour and a half later, a loud scream filled the halls. I sighed, happy that my next period is lunch. Of course, that means talking with Boscha and the girls, but I’m hungry, so I’ll deal with it. Plus, I also have to be friends with them. Let me explain. The day after the grudby match, my parents found out I was friends with Luz, Guz, and trying to repair my friendship with Willow. They went ballistic, yelling at me for trying to be friends with Willow after they told me to cut ties with her years ago. How I was ruining the blight name by associating with weak witches and being friends with a human.

They threatened to get Willow, Guz, and Luz kicked out of Hexside if I didn’t cut ties with them. The only reason that didn’t happen is because Lilith vouched for the trio, promising my parents that they wouldn’t be a distraction. Lilith of all people vouching for a human and 2 outcasts. My parents told me I had to be friends with Boscha, Skara, Amelia, and Cat again, to keep my new friends. When I told the trio what happened, they were all surprisingly understanding, even though Willow was a bit annoyed. I walked out and put my books in my locker before heading to the cafeteria. After paying for my lunch, I headed over to my usual table and sat next to Boscha. She nodded at me before going back to her scroll, which I returned.

“Hey, girls,” I said.

“Hey Amity,” Said Cat

Okay, Amity, remember. Don’t act, do, or saying anything gay.

“How’s your day so far?” Asked Skara.

“Pretty good. I got the morning to myself, then I had to sit through two boring lectures.” I said, taking a bite out of my bread. “How about you guys?”

“Great. I aced my plant test,” Said Amelia, a huge smile on her face.

“Mine was going fine, until that that human walked into me,” Boscha growled as she sipped her apple juice. “Seriously, why are you even friends with the stupid dork anyway?”

The three girls stared at me, waiting for an answer. “She’s a hard worker, and she’s really dedicated. Something you all know I value highly. Plus, with all the time I tutor her stupid butt, she’s pretty funny.”

Boscha looked at me, a smug smile on her face. “So, you two must be pretty close. Almost like your more than friends?”

And there is the question. “As if I would date that human. I admire your hard work and dedication for Grudby, but you don’t see me wanting to date you,” I said.

“Touche, Blight,” Boscha said, smirking.

I smiled and took another bite of my lunch, happy that the topic was over for now. I knew it would be brought up later, but right now, I’m delighted to have some breathing room. Maybe I can have lunch without a lot of drama.

“Hey there, ladies’” A voice said.

All of us looked up and saw a tan witch standing at our table. His blue hair was neatly combed. I didn’t recognize him, but his uniform said he was in the oracle track.

“Um, hi?” I asked.

Skara rolled her eyes. “What do you want, Dante?”

“So, Amity, how about you and me go on a date?”

“Um, no thanks. I’m good.” I said. Boscha scrunched up her face. She only makes that face when something really bothers her, which is usually whenever Luz comes near her.

“But you don’t even know where I’m taking you.” Said Dante, smirking.

“I don’t care, the answers still no,” I said.

“And why is that?” Dante asked.

“Because I’m focused on my schoolwork, and I’m not looking for a relationship. Besides, you’re not my type.”

“Oh, you have a type? What is it?”

“Not you,” I said sarcastically.

The girls started to laugh at that comment. Just because I’m trying to be a nicer person doesn’t mean I still can’t dish it out. Dante seemed to get annoyed at the rejection, his lips forming into a small frown. He then smoothed his hair and put on a small smile.

“You’re just scared to have fun. It’s one little date.” Dante said.

Okay, this guy is starting to give me the creeps. What part of no does he not understand? I was about to speak, but one of the girls stood up for me to my surprise.

“She said no, buddy. Move along.” Cat said.

“Come on, baby.”

Okay, that’s it—time for the claws to come out. From the looks on the other girls, it’s clear that they had enough of this guy too. I slammed hands on the table and stood up.

“Okay. First off, I am no one’s baby, certainly not yours, so don’t even call me that. Secondly, Let me say this slowly, so the answer will get inside that tiny brain of yours since you clearly have trouble listening. I. Am. Not. Into. You.”

Dante stood there stunned, the words finally clicking in. Seems he doesn’t take rejection well.

“What’s wrong, Dante? Fire cat got your tongue?” I said.

“Yeah, what happened to all the big talk and game?” Asked Skara.

Dante’s smile formed into a scowl as he crossed his arms. “What are you, gay?”

I felt like I just got slapped in the face. Did he just call me gay? I am, but that question came out of nowhere. Seriously, who the hell just blatantly asks someone if they're gay? My mind began to spin out of control as I could feel a gay panic set in. Unfortunately, I couldn’t show that I was panicking, because it would prove Dante was right. I looked shocked and offended on the outside, but I was a complete mess on the inside. He doesn’t know that. He’s just some stupid guy who is angry about getting rejected. I just sat there, waiting for the girls to turn on me and start ridiculing me. But it never happened. Instead, they stood up for me. Amelia and Cat stood up and crossed their arms, their faces formed into scowls. Skara cracked her knuckles as she glared at Dante. Boscha looked the most pissed, a look of pure anger on her face as she growled.

“A girl doesn’t want to date you, so you call her a lesbian? Seriously how petty can you get?” Amelia said.

“It’s pretty obvious she is. Why else would she say no to me? I’m gorgeous and popular.” Dante said.

“She said no because you're a self-absorbed prick, with a giant ego.” Skara spat back.

“Back off before we hurt you.” Said Amelia.

“Or what?” Asked Dante, his face contorted in a wicked grin

Boscha walked over to Dante and grabbed his shirt, getting in his face. She drew a circle in the air and summoned a ball of fire in her hand, bringing it up to blue hair witches face.

“Listen, pal. When a nice lady says no, you respect it. You don’t be a creep, and you definitely don’t call someone gay because they reject you. Now you will get away from us, or I’m going to make sure your face matches your eye color. If you bother either of us again, I will make your life a living hell. Do you understand me?”

Dante nodded, a scared look on his face. Boscha extinguished the spell before dropping the witch and shoving him away. He dusted himself off and gave a small snarl before walking away.

“Thanks, girls. Especially you, Boscha.” I said.

“Anytime, girl,” Skara said.

“I don’t like you, Amity and I find you annoying sometimes, but even I could tell that guy was a total creep. If anyone here is going to tease you, it’s going to be me.” Boscha said, finishing her drink.” Speaking of which, Skara, how did you know that guy?”

“He asked me out before. But enough about him. It turns out Amity has a type.” Said Skara.

“Not really,” I said, finishing my juice. “I just said that, so Dante would leave me alone.” I took another bite of my lunch, trying to act as deadpan as possible.

“I think I know what her type is,” Bosch said, giving me a mischievous smile.

“And what’s that?” I asked.

“The human.”

I nearly spat out my food, swallowing it in one go. Coughs wracked my body as my mind went haywire. What did she say? There’s no way she knew. She couldn’t have. She would have exposed me or blackmailed me by now; they all would have. Tears started to sting my eyes, but I didn’t know if that was from my fragile mental state or from the coughing.

“What? No!” I said, still coughing.

“It would make sense with how much time she spends with her.” Said Skara, her smile matching Boscha’s.

“Oh, like hell, I would date Luz. I still have some class, thank you very much. I’m also not gay at all.” I said sarcastically.

“So, your not in love with the human?” Boscha asked.

“Yes. I am not and never will be in love with the human.” I said.

My heart felt like it was breaking, as I said that. Of course, I love Luz. She’s the only person who made me feel like I can be myself. Who accepted me for who I am. I was so mean to her, but she still wanted to be my friend. But I could never say that because my life would be over.

“Okay, Amity, we believe you,” Skara said.

So much for the lunch period with no drama, but luckily the rest of the lunch was calm. After lunch, the five of us said goodbye as Boscha, and I headed to advance history. Once inside, we sat down in our seats.

“Okay, class. Let’s start with a warmup question. What was the name of the battle between the fairies and the dwarfs?” The teacher asked.

Boscha raised her hand, surprising everyone, including me. Usually, she would just sit through class, trying not to fall asleep. But ever since we ‘mended’ our friendship, she’s been trying to one-up me.

“Ms. Boscha.” The teacher called.

“The Plantax Conflict,” Boscha said confidently.

“Incorrect. Anyone else?”

I raised my hand and stood as the teacher pointed at me. “The Battle of Pentula.”

“That’s correct.” The teacher said, smiling.

I smiled and sat back down. Boscha glared at me before looking at her notes, growling a few moments later. She must have written down the wrong information. The class droned on for another hour with the teacher talking about how the pixie dust taxes were created and the major battles and conflicts during the ‘dark ages.’ “And that is why fairies demand skin.” The teacher said. “Now, what was the turning point in the Kusara Conflict?”

Boscha shot her hand in again, a little quicker this time. “The Battle of Polearch.”

“Incorrect.”

I raised my hand and stood up once the teacher pointed to me again. “The siege of Kilvura.”

“Correct again, miss Blight. And tell me, how was the siege won?”

“General Kilthara couldn’t get passed the enemy defenses and knew he wouldn’t last long if he kept trying to force his way in, so he pulled his troops back and thought strategically. He then figured out he could sneak his way in. He dressed two of his guards in the enemy’s armor and hid a small part of his army in a caravan and put fruits and veggies on top of them. So when the enemy inspected it, they would only see food and not the army.

Once inside, the small group opened the gates, allowing the rest of the Kiltharas army to enter in a surprise attack, taking the city in a couple hours.” I said, beaming with pride.
“Excellent work. Once again, Ms. Blight proves why she is the top student.” The teacher said.

As I sat back down, I saw Boscha glaring daggers at me, her three eyes filled with jealousy and hate. I faced the front, trying not to give her attention, but I could still feel her stare. For the rest of the class, I felt an uneasy feeling coming from the three-eyed witch next to me, but I didn’t know if it was because I showed her up or because her notes were wrong. Whatever the reason, it made me feel awkward and uncomfortable.

A scream filled the room a few minutes later, ending the class. One more class left. After grabbing my books, I walked out of the class with Boscha. The uneasy feeling coming from her was gone, but I still kept my guard up because it’s Boscha. As we walked through the halls, my ‘best friend’ kept mumbling under breath. I couldn’t understand what she was talking about, but I think she’s still angry about what happened in class. All of a sudden, Boscha slammed her hand against a locker, making me and several other students jump.

“That stupid idiot who made my notes got it wrong,” Boscha said growling.

“Why was someone writing your notes?” I asked.

“I didn’t take any notes and picked someone at random to write my notes. A little intimidation goes a long way. Plus, I also had grudgby practice, and I also train outside of practice as well. Have to keep my skill sharp.” The three-eyed witch said with a smug smile on her face.

I pinched my nose and sighed. “Boscha, if you spent as much time and dedication to your studies and notes as you do grudgby, you wouldn’t have to make other people write your notes.”

Boscha‘s smug look immediately faded, being replaced with one of extreme annoyance. She rolled her eyes. “Ugggh. Don’t give them that. That stupid potions teacher told me that yesterday after that stupid human showed me up and embarrassed me. Said her dedication would rub off on me. That human should have stayed in her realm where she belongs instead of coming back.”

“I bet she didn’t mean to do it,” I said.

“Of course, she did. Things have been going bad since she came here. She needs to go back to her realm.” The pink-haired witch said, checking her nails.

I fought the urge to slap Bosca as my anger started to rise. But unfortunately, I couldn’t show my anger, because as far as everyone knows, Luz and I are just friends. Little do they know that she’s my everything. Calm down, Amity. Put on your neutral face, and don’t show her any anger.

“Whatever. So you want to watch my grudgby practice today? I’m showing off a new move.” Boscha said, still looking at her hand.

Thank gods she didn’t see my face, as I didn’t want to explain why I was angry. “I don’t have a choice, do I?”

“Nope.” The pink-haired witch said, her smug expression returning.

“Fine.”

“Cool.” Boscha walked away, bumping my shoulder light enough to make it look friendly but hard enough for it to hurt. I rubbed my newly injured shoulder and walked to my last class, sad that I have to spend even more time with the three-eyed witch. I was so close to getting out of school and hiding in my room. Gods, I could use a hug from Lulu right now. Her hugs make everything better. Walking into my last class, I sat down and stared at the front.

Of all the activities Boscha could invite me to, it had to be grudgby. The last time I played grudgby, she tackled me and broke my leg. Walking with crutches for two months was a pain in the butt. But as long as I don’t have to play, I should be fine. A scream signaled the start of the class. Thankfully the course was interesting this time, and the final bell came before I knew it.

Well, I shouldn’t keep Boscha waiting. I picked up my books and headed to my locker, mentally preparing myself for watching grubby practice. Once I arrived, I tickled it open and put my books away, before closing and making my way to the grudgby field. On the way to the grudgby area, I summoned my scroll and smiled when I saw Luz’s text.

‘Man, it seems classes dragged on forever today, and the lectures were more boring than usual. It’s like all teachers drank a boring potion.’

I giggled. If I can’t see or hug my girlfriend, this is the next best thing. ‘I’m glad I’m not the only one who thought that.’

When I finally arrived, Boscha, Cat, and Amelia were already there. I sat on the bleachers and looked at the field, watching the girls go through their warmups. Maybe I don’t have to play. Perhaps I can just sit here and watch. If I can do that, then it will make this more bearable. Anything to not show I gay I am.

Those hopes were immediately dashed when Boscha saw me and waved me over. Even though I couldn’t see her expressions clearly, I knew she was smirking. Sure enough, when I walked up to the girls, the grudgby captain was wearing a smug smirk. Her face said, ‘I am better than you,’ which fit her to a tee.

“Okay, Boscha. What’s this new trick you told me about?” I asked.

“I’m glad you asked, miss perfect.” The three-eyed witch said. “I’ve been working on this move all week. This will give us an extra edge during the season.” She summoned her scroll and put it in front of us before playing a video.

The video began with Boscha on the Grudgby field staring at the goal. She took a running start then jumped into the air. After tossing the ball in the air a little, she kicked it, causing the ball to sail into the goal.

I was impressed. I hate boosting Boscha’s ego, but I have to give her credit and props this time. She managed to pull off something you would only see happen in the pros. The thing I was most impressed by was how she made the ball arch into the goal while in mid-air.

“That’s really cool. But wouldn’t it be easier and safer just to throw it in?” I said.

“It would, but this will be like a wild card. The ball is out and seems like it’s over, then boom, the ball is kicked into the goal.” The grudgby captain said.

I still didn’t see the point, but it was a nice trick. Boscha traced a circle in the air and grabbed a ball floating next to her before facing the goal. She then rand forward and jumped in the air, just like in the video. After tossing the ball in the air, though, she tried to kick it but missed, falling on the ground with a thud.

Ouch. That did not look pleasant. I was gonna ask if she was okay, but she stood up and grabbed the ball, growling, and mumbling as she got back into place. She ran, jumped, and threw the ball into the air. This time, she managed to kick it, but it hit the goal post. The next three tries were the same, with her either missing the ball entirely or kicking the ball into some part of the goal.

“AAAAAGH!” The pink-haired, which screamed in anger. “Why can’t I get this stupid move, right? Don’t tell me that I wasted a week learning something that won’t help me?”

“Boscha, it’s okay,” Cat said. “You're already a great grudgby player.”

“Yeah, let’s just get to practice.” Said Amelia.

Boscha gave an exasperated sigh. “Fine. We’ll start practice.” She said, dusting herself off. “But first, I want to see one of you try it.”

None of us volunteered. We just stood there awkwardly, looking at each other.

“No one?” The pink-haired witch asked. “Amity, how about you try it?” She tossed me the ball, and I caught it out of reflex.

Dang, it. Boscha trapped me, and she knows it. I can’t back out because she’ll go around saying I’m a coward for backing out a challenge if I do. But if I accept, I will most likely fail and embarrass myself. Making other people miserable and showing off her status is what Boscha lives off of. She also knows it’s one of the only things she’s better at than me. However, a Blight never backs downs from a challenge. I walked to where Boscha stood moments ago and stared at the goal, thinking about how to do the trick.

Running forward, I jumped and threw the ball into the air. Next, I tried kicking the ball but overshot the kick a little, as I fell back down. It wasn’t as painful or awkward as Boscha’s, but it still hurt. As I got up, I rubbed my shoulder and looked over at the girls, seeing the grudgby captain chuckle a little. I grabbed the ball and went to try again. This time, I took a good look at the goal and a deep breath. I broke off into a run, jumped, and threw the ball into the air, kicking it immediately.

The ball flew into the air and went through the goal. I did it. Oh my gods, I actually did it. I landed on my feet, another thing I was surprised about, and pumped my hands in the air. When I turned to the girls, I saw they all had shocked expressions, their mouths open in complete disbelief.

“How did you do that? I’ve been working all week on that.” Said Boscha, still in shock.

“Lucky shot, I guess. I just kicked it immediately after throwing it in the air.” I said, rubbing the back of my neck.

“That was amazing,” Cat said.

“Yeah, you should consider rejoining the team again. Maybe you could be team captain again.” Said Amelia.

I smiled. “Thanks, girls, but my grudgby days are behind me.”

“That’s too bad. You’re amazing.” Amelia said, her smile getting bigger.

The grudgby captain looked like she was going to punch someone. Her face was morphed into a furious scowl as gritted her teeth. I don’t think she expected me to do as well I did.

“Amity, you need to go back to the bleachers. The real grudgby players need to practice.” Boscha said, putting as much sarcasm as she could into the word real.

I was more than happy to comply because the bleachers were where I wanted to be in the first place. However, when I walked back to the seat, I could feel Boscha’s three cold eyes stare into me. If looks could kill, Luz would be single right now. As I sat down, that feeling of unease got stronger. I couldn’t see Boscha’s expression clearly, but I knew she was pissed. This is going to be a long practice, and I’m not even playing.

The practice went by quicker than I thought, and I was soon walking home. Well, that was a day. I not only managed to embarrass Boscha not once but twice. Thankfully, my interaction with her is over for the day, and I can just go back home.

“Blight!!!!”

Or not. I grudgingly turned around to see my ‘best friend,’ her teeth and fists clenched tight. Yep, she’s definitely pissed. Nice going, Amity.

“What the hell, Blight?” Boscha said, half screaming. “First, you show me up in class, embarrass me in the hallway, then you show me up in Grudgby. I practiced for a week on that trick. Then you come here, try it twice, and get it right. Grudgby is my thing. I’m the star player and the team captain, and no one shows me up on that or embarrasses me.”

“Look, Boscha,” I said, crossing my arms. “You’re the one who made me come, saying I didn’t have a choice. You put me on the spot, and you know I don’t back down.”

“I made you come to watch my new move. Not so you could show me up and turn the team against me.”

“Well, I’m never joining the team again, so you don’t have to worry about me stealing your spot. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going home. I’ve got homework to do.” I turned around and walked away.

Boscha’s POV

Okay, that's it—time to bring little miss perfect down a level. I stood outside the grudgby field, seething with rage. My nerves snapped one by one, as my anger consumed me. How dare she come onto my turf, in front of my team and show me up. No one does that and gets away with it, not even little Miss perfect herself.

I screamed and kicked a rock, watching it soar into the distance. From the ow I heard, I must have hit someone. Well, I’m glad to see I still got it. I was about to kick another rock when I noticed 2 pieces of paper on the ground. With my curiosity peaked, I picked up the documents and found it was Amity’s history notes. They must have fallen out of her folder when she left, which gave me an idea.

I traced a circle and summoned a fireball. Sure, Amity has multiple versions of the same notes, but it will be hilarious to watch her panic and look for something that’s not there. I brought the fire next to the paper, only for the flame to move away. Magical protection, huh? Now, why would Amity need magical protection for her history notes? This warrants further investigation.

I stuffed the notes in my pockets and headed to the locker room to take a shower. After changing into some fresh clothes, I walked home thinking about how to remove the protection. Once I walked into my room, I sat at my desk and put the notes on the table.

“Okay, Amity, let’s see what your hiding,” I said out loud.

The next several hours were filled with a lot of trial and error, but I finally removed the last layer of protection. The words on the papers vanished and rearranged itself, revealing the real message. No way. I couldn’t believe what I was reading. I just hit the jackpot. A wicked grin grew on my face, spreading all the way to my ears. My brain began thinking of all the ways I could use this for revenge. Oh, I’m going to have fun with this.

Chapter Text

Luz's POV

"Azura. Our paths have crossed only in battle. But today, I stand before seeking an ally." The movie playing on the mirror said.

"I am surprised you are asking for my help, but I know you wouldn't ask for it unless you really needed it," I said, quoting the movie for the 20th time.

I sat on the owl house couch, watching an Azura marathon on the mirror, King asleep on my lap. It was the weekend, so there wasn't much to do. Usually, I would work at Eda's shop and make some snails, but she was off investigating a lead on how to reverse her and Lilith's curse, and I'm not allowed to set up the shop. And Willow and Gus are hanging out with their family, so I was stuck at home. But it's not all bad. I'm watching an Azura marathon and texting my girl. Albeit every so often.

"Believe me, this is very hard to do. But I need your help to defend Kavana."

"We may be rivals, but I will be happy to fight by your side."

"Luz, can you stop quoting and talking to the mirror?" King asked, looking up at me. "I can only handle so much of your mushy fandom, and I'm trying to sleep."

I chuckled. "Sorry, King. Go back to sleep."

I know that quoting movies while watching them with other people or demons can be annoying, and I try not to do it as much, but there are just so many great and quotable lines in this movie. My phone lit up a few minutes later. After making sure King was still asleep, I read Amity's text.

'I still can't believe you turned a stuffed griffon into a spider/scorpion hybrid. Like how does someone even come up with that?'

'Yeah, that's what my mom keeps telling me and what the judges said, but it won first place for a Halloween contest. As for how I came up with the idea, I spent several hours watching shows on mythical creatures and Azura movies.'

Amity's response came a few moments later. 'You're such a dork. :)'

I smiled and then checked to see if King was still asleep before responding back. 'Yeah, but I'm your dork.'

I sighed dreamily on the inside before deleting the text. Seriously, what did I do to deserve such an amazing girlfriend? A month into this relationship, and I still have yet to figure that out. But whatever I did to deserve Amity, I'm glad I did it. My text tone snapped me out of my thoughts as I looked at Amity's text.

'Aaaahh. My stupid signal crapped out while I was watching Azura 3, and it was just getting to the best part.'

'You know I have the third movie downloaded on my phone. Want to meet up at the hideout and watch it? I also want you to read my notes and make sure I didn't miss anything.'

My finger hovered over the send button. Should I really send this? On the one hand, I get to spend more time with Amity. On the other hand, we would be risking it going to hideout again. Granted, the last time we went was a couple of days ago, but somebody could put two and two together and then boom, secret exposed.

But I guess it could hurt to ask, and after all, Anmy could say no. I hit send and went back to the movie as I waited for Ammy's reply. The seconds turned into minutes, and the longer I waited, the more nervous I became. Was it wrong for me to send that? Why did I put the 'notes' in the text too? Of course, only Amity knows what' notes' mean, but was it still the right move? The universe apparently decided I had waited enough as my phone went ding.

'I don't know, Lulu. On the one hand, I want to see you, watch the movie with you and read your notes. But on the other hand, if we met at the library today, it would be starting to push it. Someone could put two and two together, and then everybody knows. I'll think about it.'

My heart sank a little, but I'm used to it and kind of expected it. Hey honey, I know we are in a secret relationship, and we have met several times this week, but you want to do it again? Granted, she was tutoring my dumb butt most of the time, but it's still risky. My phone dinged a few minutes later, which surprised me as I didn't expect her to come up with an answer that fast.

'Screw that. My siblings are trying to rope me into a prank again. And with my parents being away for the weekend, they have been trying to rope into several pranks. I'm still getting the glitter out of my hair. I'll be there in an hour. Text me when you get there.'

'What are you going to tell your siblings?'

'That I'm at the library studying. Now that mixing magic is legal, I want to learn all different types of magic.'

'Awesome. I'll see you there.'

I deleted the text and put my phone in my pocket before going back to the movie. It would take about thirty minutes to get to the library and another ten to make sure no one followed me before I went in. But that doesn't always work. One time I thought someone was following me, so I grabbed a random book from a shelf I was looking at and read it on a chair. Now I know random facts about Fairies. Did you know they can open their mouths 8 inches wide? Because I do.

After waiting for thirty minutes, I decided that I had waited long enough to leave without raising suspicion. Now all that's left is the sleeping demon on my lap. I carefully picked up the tiny demon and slowly put him next to me, trying my best not to wake him up. As soon as I put him down, he stirred a little causing me to freeze. Thankfully, he didn't wake up. After internally breathing a sigh of relief, I headed to my room to grab my letter before going back downstairs to finish getting ready.

King must have noticed his pillow was gone because he made a small whine and looked at me. "Where are you going?"

"I'm heading to the market," I said, putting on my cat hoodie.

"Ooh. I'll join you."

"No!" I yelled abruptly. "I mean, not today, King."

"Why not?" King looked at me, curiously. "You love looking at the market with me."

Crap! I didn't expect him to want to come along. Come on, Luz, think. "Because. Because I'm getting you a present and want it to be a surprise."

King's eyes grew wide at the sound of offerings. "Oooh. I love offerings. Have fun at the market."

I smiled; happy, he bought the excuse. Offerings always work. Unfortunately, now I need to buy King a gift, but that can wait. Right now, I need cuddles from Amity.

"When Lilith comes down, tell her I'm at the market," I said.

I walked outside and closed the door. The cold air tickled my face as I made my way to the library. Even though I was wearing my sweatshirt, the cold air still made me shiver. That's something I still haven't gotten used to on the boiling isles. How quickly the temperature can change. The walk to the library was dull and cold. There were multiple times where I had to rub my shoulders and adjust my sweatshirt to keep warm.

When I finally walked into the library, I was shivering. I kept blowing into my hands and rubbing them. My cheeks were red from the cold. Luckily the library was warm, and walking around would warm me up. I walked through the many aisles of shelves as I waited to see if anybody was following me. I try not to walk through the same path twice for this reason, as patterns can trap someone. If I feel like someone is following me, I'll take a book out and read it, as I said before, or walk through the library picking up books. If anybody asks, I can just say I want to learn everything about this place.

Although I would have to check out said books, which can lead to awkward situations, even if you're in every track. It was awkward and difficult to explain why I was checking out 'Biology of Mythical creatures,' 'The History of Snails,' and 'Fashion Trends Over The Last Forty Years and How They Changed Society.' Yeah, that last one was even harder to explain. But, luckily, I didn't have to do that this time. I slowly made my way to the hideout, all the while checking for followers. After seeing no one around, I opened the room and stepped inside. Amity looked up at me and smiled.

"It's freezing outside," I said.

"Yeah. There's a cold front coming in from the knee." Said Amity, putting away the book she was reading.

I walked over and sat down next to Amity, snuggling into her side. The warmth coming from her body chased away the cold from my body. "Ahh, much better."

Amity wrapped her arm around me and pulled me closer. "Am I your space heater now?"

"Yes. Yes, you are."

"Well, let me warm you up even more."

The Blight pulled me in for a soft, gentle kiss. Any coldness left in my body was quickly erased as the color returned to my cheeks. Once we pulled away, I put my head back on her shoulder. "So what did you tell Everybody at the Owl House that you were doing?"

"I told King I was going to the market. He offered to go with me, and I said no, a little fast and loud. He was very skeptical."

"Oh, my gods. How did you get out of that."

"I told him I was going to buy him offerings."

Amity rolled her eyes. "Is the demon ever not going to fall for that?"

"Probably not. As long as I bring King back something." I rub her hand with my thumb making small circles. "Eda and Lilith, on the other hand, won't fall for the same excuse repeatedly. After the second time, they started questioning it. Willow is getting more curious and skeptical when I mention your tutoring me."

"I know what you mean. Boscha and the girls look at me curiously, and skeptical every time I use the tutoring excuse. I get some version of are you dating the human every few days. The same thing with my siblings."

"It looks like we're going to have to step up our game."

"I guess your right."

I pulled out my phone and a pair of headphones. After a few moments of searching, I handed Amity an earbud. "Well, enough about trying to convince everyone that we're not dating. Let's watch something fun, shall we?"

The Blight smiled and put the earbud in, then cast a spell on my phone, making it bigger. We spent the next forty minutes cuddling and watching the movie. Occasionally we would share a kiss or quote the film. With all the hiding and lying about our relationship and who we are, it's moments like this that make it all worth it—just us cuddling in our little sanctuary, enjoying each other's company.

"Hey, ladies." A gruff character said. "You know the road ahead is pretty dangerous. How about I join you and keep you ladies safe."

"Uggh. This guy reminds me of Dante." Said Amity.

I looked at her curiously. "Who's Dante?"

"Oh, he's just some punk who asked me out at lunch."

"How did he take it?"

"Horrible. The guy kept flirting with me, saying things like, don't be like that, and you don't know where I'm taking you."

I balled up my fists in anger and growled. "If we weren't hiding our relationship, I would have let Dante have it and tell him to back off. I don't care if I can't do magic the normal way. No one messes with my queen."

The Blight smiled and kissed my cheek. "And that wasn't the worst of it. He called me baby, and I that point, I let him have it and bluntly told him I am not into him. Then he asked if I was gay."

Okay, I don't usually want to punch somebody, but that I wanted to punch Dante in his face after what I heard. "Only I'm allowed to call you, baby. No one else gets that that right. And who the hell bluntly asks someone of their gay?"

I have heard a ton of dumb stuff, but I don't think I've ever heard of anyone straight asking someone if they're gay or not.

Amity kissed my cheek. "I know, right." What surprised me is that Boscha and the girls actually stood up for me."

I paused the movie and looked at my green-haired girlfriend. "Why did they back you up? I mean, I'm glad they did, but would they tease you or question you?"

"They all agreed that calling someone gay after multiple rejections were too far." Said Amity. "After Dante left, Boscha and Skara said your my type and that it explains why we hang out so much."

"Did they see any blushing or evidence that they were right?"

"No. I quickly shut the idea down, saying I still had some class and that I am not and will never be in love with you." Amity looked away from me as her ears lowered a little. "It breaks my heart every time I say that because no one makes me happy the way you do. You accept me for who I am. It feels like I'm lying to you."

I gave her a small hug. "I know, babe, but you're not lying to me when you say that. You are doing what you have to do to keep us a secret. Even if you said it while I'm near you. I'm not sad or upset with you."

The Blight made a small smile and kissed me. "Thanks, Lulu."

"Anytime, sweetie." I snuggled back into her side. "And speaking of Boscha, I accidentally embarrassed and showed her up in potions, and now she hates me even more."

"Yeah, Boscha told me what happened. She wasn't happy, which wasn't a surprise. She was even angrier after I showed her up in history class and at grudgby."

"I thought you were done with grudgby? And why did you show her up?"

"I am, but Boscha said I had no choice but to go see her practice. She wanted another person to show off a new move she'd been practicing for a week. When I got there, she waved me on to the field to show the girls and me how the move worked. When did the move for real though, she kept failing at it." Amity let out an exasperated sigh. "Then, when none of us offered to try the move, Boscha chose me."

"Either you back you out and be called a coward, which Boscha will tell the entire school, or you accept it and embarrass yourself," I said.

"Bingo." Said Amity. "So when I tried the move, I hit the ground, causing Boscha to laugh. I pulled it off on my next try, which I am still trying to figure how I did it. When practice was over, she screamed at me for showing her up and trying to turn the team against her, which I wasn't. I actually felt bad for performing that move on my first try when she had spent a week working on it."

I kissed the Blights cheek. "So this is all Boscha's fault. If you hadn't challenged you or brought you onto the field, this never would have happened."

Amity laughed, making my flutter. Her gold eyes sparkled. God, I love that laugh. If I had to list the best sounds in both worlds, Amity's laughter would be high on that list.

"Oh, my gods," Amity said, holding her sides. "Truer words have never been spoken; just don't let Boscha hear that. You just made my day Lulu. Thanks, I needed that.

I said, giving her a small kiss. "No problem, baby."

"I love you, Luz."

"I love you to Amity."

We shared another gentle kiss before the green-haired witch wrapped her around me and pulling me close. I put my head on her shoulder and played the movie. For the next 40 minutes, neither of us spoke much, except to quote a few lines. When the film ended, I checked the time and found that it was 1 pm. We both still had plenty of time before we need to leave, and we could watch another movie. I pull the note out of my pocket and hand it to Amity.

"I've been looking forward to reading this," Amity said, unfolding and smoothing out the letter. "Hey, Ammy. Congratulations on acing your exam. I know you were worried about it, but I knew you had it as you're the smartest girl I know, along with the cutest. Your notes always make me smile. Sometimes I'll read them before I go to sleep or when I'm having a rough day. I know I say this a lot, but I still can't believe I'm dating you. I sometimes feels like I'm in a fairy tale, and that one day I'm gonna wake up and find this wall a dream. I feel happier when I am with you and feel like I can do anything. You're my gay queen, and I love making you happy. You mean the world to me, and I love you.

Your fearless champion,

Luz"

By the time Amity was done reading, her smile had stretched all the way to her ears. She got up and pulled a book off the shelf before opening it and placing the letter inside. After putting the book back, she sat back down and kissed my cheek.A ding filled the room and I growled at whoever just ruined the moment. When I checked my phone, I found the text was from my mom. I then decided not to tell my mom that I got from her text.

'If I have to treat another fireworks injury, I am going to lose it.'

I smiled. 'I see the crazies are out in full force today.'

"What does your mom do for work again?" Amity asked curiously.

"She's a nurse." I said.

'You have no idea mija. I hope your day is less hectic then mine and going well."

I looked at Amity and smiled as our eyes met for a moment, before kissing her cheek. 'It's going good. I've been having a lazy day.'

'I miss having lazy days. How is Amity doing?'

'She's doing good.'

Amity looked at me curiously and nervously. "She asks about me?"

"Yeah. I talk about you sometimes."

What came next was something that neither of us saw coming at all.

'Is Amity treating you right?'

¿Que diablos mamá?! (What the hell mom?!)

Both of our faces turned a dark shade of crimson. Amity made a small squeak and hid her face. This moment went from perfect to pure embarrassment in an instant. The only good thing right now was that no one was around to see our faces.

'We aren't together mom. We are just friends'

'Oh I sorry mija. From what you've told me about her, I thought you two were dating.'

'It's okay, but no me and Amity are not dating.'

I groaned and put my face in my hands. "¡Aaaagh! Le hablo a mi mamá de ti y hablo de ti un par de veces y ella cree que estamos saliendo. Y las pocas veces que le hablo de ti no le darían ninguna indicación de que estamos juntos. Es por eso que no hablar con ella sobre ti a menudo porque la intuición de su madre se activará y pensará que estamos juntos. Lo cual apesta porque ella es la única persona con la que puedo hablar de ti sin que ellos piensen inmediatamente que estamos saliendo. Uggh. ¿Por qué el Titán y el mundo nos odian ahora mismo?"

(Aaaaagh! I tell my mom about you and talk to her about you a couple times and she thinks we're dating. And the few times I do talk to her about you wouldn't give her any indication that we are together. This is why I don't talk to her about you often, because her mother's intuition will kick in and think we are together. Which sucks because she is the only person I can talk about you to without them thinking that we are dating. Uggh. Why does the Titan and the world hate us right now?)

"Honey, honey. Your ranting in spanish again." The Blight said, putting her hand on mine.

I looked at her. Everything seemed to slow down once our eyes met and after taking several breaths, my anger went away. "Thanks babe."

Amity bit her lip. "How much have you told your mom about me?"

"Just your name, your age, you have older twin siblings, your track and the fact that your the top student at school. Nothing that would tip her off about us. I haven't even told her your gay." I said.

"Well, to try and move away from this awkward scenario, do you got any more movies on your magic box?" Amity asked.

"Yeah. I got Azura 1, 3, and 4. Pick one."

The green-haired witch thought for a moment, then tapped the third movie and adjusted her earbud. I made a small squeal as the third one is my favorite. The movie ended an hour and a half later and we decided to pack up and head home. After making sure the coast was clear and the aisles were empty, we walked into an aisle and slowly went our separate ways. As I walked to the marketplace, I thought of what offering to get King. If I didn’t bring one home, he would whine and also get curious.

After thinking for few minutes, I thought of the perfect idea and made my way to bakery. Walking into the shop, the smell of sweets washed over me, making my mouth water. I paid for the sweets and waved goodbye, before heading home. The urge to not eat them was hard but somehow, I managed to resist.

When I finally entered the Owl House, King jumped up and ran over to me. He kept jumping and trying to reach the box, which was adorable. Even after all this time, he still thinks he can jump high.

“What did you get?” King asked excitedly.

I put the box down and opened it, revealing several cupcakes. The tiny demon squealed in delight as he picked one up and climbed onto the couch. He unwrapped it and licked off the frosting before taking a bite. I sat down and took a cupcake as well, taking off the wrapper and taking a bite. I let out a small mmh as the flavors danced across my tongue. As I finished my treat, my phone went off and upon checking it, found it was from Amity.

‘Thanks for today Lulu. I needed it.’

I smiled and looked down to see if King was distracted enough for me to send a reply. Sure enough, the tiny demon was licking the frosting off another cupcake and didn’t notice my smile. I took the opportunity to send text back.

‘No problem. I had fun to. I’m glad we were able to do it.’

After deleting the text, I put my phone away and grabbed another cupcake before relaxing into the couch, happy that I got to spend time with the love of my life. Even though it was only a few hours, it still made my day.

Chapter Text

Amity's pov

'I'm sick and can't make it to school today. Can you pick up the abomination homework for today and hand it to Willow? She'll drop it off later.' (No, Luz does not have covid. Just putting that out there.)

Not the best thing I wanted to see first thing in the morning. Granted, I didn't get much sleep at all last night, but it's still annoying. I groaned and rubbed the sleep out of my eyes, my dream still fresh and playing on repeat in my mind—stupid horror movies. Since the Banshees made it to the playoffs, Boscha decided it was an excellent idea for the group to have a sleepover and watch horror movies all night, including the tale of Mila. Now I've had nightmares for the past few days because of that. Something you should know about me is I don't do well with horror movies. Never have and never will.

I'll put up the right front and not show my fear, but I'm a big scaredy-cat. Luz showed me some human horror movies, and I have one thing to say about that. You people love scaring yourself and your gore. You have horror movies for almost everything, even horror movies that make fun of the genre. Luz says that you humans love horror because of the adrenaline and how it teaches how to handle different situations. I grabbed my scroll and sent Luz a text.

'Sure thing. Hope you feel better, sweetie.'

Getting out of bed felt like the toughest challenge. Maybe it's because of my nightmare draining my energy or because my bed is so comfy. After taking a shower and getting dressed, I stood in front of my mirror. Ugh, my hair is a mess. Luckily, this is where being organized comes in handy as I don't want to spend time looking for it. I brushed my hair, trying to straighten it as much as possible before putting it in a ponytail.

My hands started shaking, which rarely happens. Get it together, Amity. Mila is not real, and she is not coming to get you. Stop freaking out, or people will start asking questions. Oh wait, you don't know who Mila is. She's an Isles urban legend, and I'll tell you that story later. After calming myself down and remembering to act straight, I headed downstairs. Any hopes of getting a morning to myself again got crushed as my annoying siblings were already at the counter. Emira looked at me and smiled.

"Morning, Mittens," Emira said. Sleep well?"

I hate that nickname so much. "No. I woke up three times last night, and every time I fell asleep, all I could think was Mila chasing me."

The twins looked at each other and then back at me before shrugging. Do they know? If they do, they're hiding it well. Plus, they sometimes always look like they know something, which makes it hard to tell. And I'm not going to ask them if they know either because that would be stupid and could lead to them finding out. Usually, I would ask what they're planning because it usually involves me somehow, but I do not have the energy to deal with it right now.

"So, how is Luz's tutoring going?" Emira asked.

"She's doing great," I said. "Her grades have improved in plants and illusions, but she's still struggling with abominations."

"Speaking of Luz, how is she doing?" Ed asked.

This caught me off guard a little. My siblings love Luz, thanks gods, but I don't know how they would take me being gay or my secret relationship. "She sick."

"Ouch. Well, at least Luz doesn't have a bile sack. She would be miserable." Ed said.

I smiled, knowing my siblings were right on that part. Witch fever is an absolute pain to go through. Imagine your typical human cold and flu symptoms, forced into one or two days, along with pain so bad you can't move at all, and every time you sneeze, you have uncontrollable magic surges, and that's witch fever. Also, sometimes when you cough during a fever, you cough up sparkles. No, I am not kidding.

The three of us sat in silence for a while as we ate our breakfast. A loud alarm filled the room moments later, causing Em to summon her scroll and turn it off. She wiped the crumbs off her hands and nudged Ed. By the look on his face, he already knew what was going on but didn't want to leave. Emira glared at him, making Ed get up.

"We got to go to school and help the illusions teacher," Emira said. "We'll see you at school, Mittens. Tell Luz to get well soon."

"Will do," I said, waving goodbye to my siblings.

Ahh, sweet silence, and alone time. This morning has been crazy, so it is lovely to get some peace. EHH! EHH! Oh, for the love magic. I turned off the alarm and groaned—stupid school alarm. Well, I've never been late to a class, and I'm not going to start now. I sent Luz a quick text.

'Ed and Em hope you get well soon.'

Luz's reply can back moments later. 'Tell them thank you for me. Have a good day, sweetie.'

I smiled and put away my scroll before grabbing a second pastry and walking to school. The walk to Hexside was a little more anxious than usual because I kept expecting to see Mila around. If there is a dead teen witch bent on revenge around here, I do not want to be her next victim. A feeling of dread filled the air when I walked onto campus. Did someone die or something? A few people looked at me, but it wasn't a normal glance. It was more like how someone watches a target
before attacking. No, they are probably giving a glancing look, albeit a creepy one.

The feeling of dread got worse inside the school. Okay, now I know people are staring at me. I've been a bitch long enough to know when someone is judging you. What the hell is going on, and why is everyone staring at me? What's with the whispering? Is there something wrong with my hair? I summoned my scroll and checked my look but found nothing out of place. Somehow that didn't make me feel better and only filled me with more anxiety.

Walking down the hall felt like a walk of shame. Every pair of eyes stared into my soul, judging me as if I was a failed class project. Small crowds were gathered around the bulletin boards, making me wonder what they're looking at. The only things posted on them are play auditions, club meetings, and school advertisements. Besides, no plays are happening anyway, so they can't be looking at cast lists. Even if there were, why would everybody be looking at me and whispering? I feel like I'm in a horror movie and that a jump scare will happen at any moment. I saw Boscha and the girls down the hall, so I picked up my pace. If anybody knows what is happening, it will be them.

"Hey, girls, do you know what's going on?" I asked. "Why is everybody looking at me and whispering?" (Homophobia and bullying trigger warning starting now.)

"Look who it is, girls. It's Little Miss Lesbian." Boscha said with a wicked smile, her mouth dripping with venom.

The comment felt like an ice sucker punch to the face. Oh, my gods, she knows. No. no, she couldn't have known. There is no way she could have known. She is probably still teasing me from the movie marathon yesterday, where I accidentally said one of the girls was cute.

"What the actual fuck, Boscha?" I asked, a little louder than I meant to. "All I asked was why is everybody looking at me. Also, I am not a lesbian."

"Are you sure about that?" Boscha asked.

"Yes, Boscha. I'm not gay." I said. "How many times do I have to tell you that?"

Boscha's smile grew larger and more sinister as she stared at me. Then the four girls moved out of the way of a board, and I saw why everybody was looking at me and whispering. I was looking at love letters: Luz and my love letters to each other. My heart plummeted to my stomach. How is this even possible? I took so many precautions to prevent this from even happening.

I put several high-level protection spells on letters. I put protection spells in the spells. They were hidden in the hideout and disguised as school notes. My mind shattered like a mirror. All of my insecurities and fears for hiding who I am and my relationship flooded to the front of my mind. A lump formed in my throat, and forcing it down felt like swallowing kelto, the boiling isles version of lead. This can't be happening. This can't be real.

"Where's your fearless champion?" Skara asked.

"She's sick," I said.

I still can't believe this is happening. My worst nightmare just came true, and my life is over. My mind quickly went haywire as I tried to think of something, anything to save this situation. My heart felt like it shattered into a million pieces. Tears started to prick my eyes as I began to get choked up.

"I can explain these girls," I said, trying not to cry. "This was for a love potion assignment. They aren't real."

"That was a week ago," Boscha said. "And the effects wore off within a few hours."

"Aww, is the little lesbian gonna cry?" Skara asked.

"I think she is," Amelia added.

"I still can't believe that blue-haired dick was right about Amity being gay," Said Skara, her face a mixture of surprise and disgust.

"I'm not crying." I was trying to keep my composure.

"What happened to 'I am not and never will be in love with the human?'" Amelia asked.

"More excuses to cover her weirdness," Cat said. "Makes you wonder what else has been excuses."

Cat said the word weirdness like it was a foreign term that disgusted her. I knew what she was talking about, but that only made the pain worse. It felt like someone was stepping on all of the pieces of my heart. I reached out to touch Boscha, but she yanked her arm away.

"Don't touch me, freak!" Boscha screamed. "I don't touch gays."

I wiped away my tears and looked at Amelia. "Come on, Mel. You were the first one to start treating me like a friend after my parents made us be friends again."

"Only my friends can call me Mel," Amelia said. "We are not friends."

"How did this even happen?" I asked between sobs.

Boscha smile grew wider, reaching her ears. I had a feeling she was waiting for me to ask that. "Well, when you walked away after Grudgy practice last week, these letters fell out of your pocket. My original plan was to burn them because having you go crazy looking for something that isn't there would have been hilarious to watch. But your protections prevented that. Nice job on the protection spells, by the way. It gave me a real challenge and took several hours to bypass them. I then spent the next week making copies of them and put them up around the school today."

My blood turned ice cold. Oh, my gods, this is all my fault. I'm such an idiot! Why did I even bring the letters to the school in the first place? Now I'm going to have to tell Luz that we lost everything and got exposed all because of my dumb ass. She's going to hate me and leave me instantly, and after that, I will truly be alone. The tears turned into a flood, and it took all my strength to hold it back.

"Why would you do this?" I asked.

"One word." Boscha snarled. "Grudgby. You showed me up on my turf, in front of my team, and got away with that. For the rest of the damn practice, all I heard was Amity this, Amity that, and the way Amity pulled off that trick was amazing. Well, now I've fixed that problem. The next time someone mentions your name will going be through gossip and embarrassment. You will not have a friend in the world."

I did the only sensible thing I could think of at that moment. I ran, only to trip and fall hard on my face. The girl's cold laughter rang out through the hall as they stared at me. "Have a nice trip, Amity," Boscha said, pulling her leg back.

I scrambled up and ran into the nearest room, tears streaming down my face. All I wanted to do was crawl into a corner and cry. To scream until my lungs gave out. Unfortunately, this room will soon be filled with students meaning there was nowhere to have a mental breakdown. And the nearest bathroom is at the other end of the hall, which is packed full of students who just saw me cry. It felt like every time I tried to get up and breathe, the universe kept kicking me down.

Now I have to go back out there and walk through the crowd and the girls again. Uggh. The thought of the girls made me want to puke. Then something hit me besides nausea. A memory of the twins teaching me how to do an invisibility spell. Well, here goes nothing. I raised my hand over myself and cast the spell, praying to gods it worked. It had to as there were no other options. I looked into a mirror and saw nothing. Oh, thank gods.

Now all that's left is to get past everybody. After taking a deep breath, I walked outside and made a beeline for the bathroom. The flood of tears was getting harder to control, and trying to stifle my sobs hurt my chest. Several people looked around to see where I went, and the feeling of being watched never went away, with whispers and talking filled the hall, all about my epic meltdown. After running into the bathroom, I locked myself in the farthest stall before sitting on the toilet and hugged my arms.

I could no longer hold back the flood of tears that now streamed down my face. Everything in my body hurt as my screams echoed in the empty bathroom. Sobs rack my body to the point where it was hard to breathe. My life is over. Everything that I've worked for and accomplished was now useless and meaningless. No one will care about what I did or my top student status; all they will see is an outcast and failure. Because that's what I feel like; a failure.

I tried so hard and went to great lengths to keep this a secret. I was the one in the relationship who was the most cautious, and I fucked it up. All because I didn't put away the note better and brought it to school. Another set of screams echoed throughout the bathroom, causing more tears to fall. Boscha is right. No one is going to love me now, and I'm going to grow up alone. A scream filled the school, signaling that classes are about to start. But there's no way I can head to class after what happened. So I did something I have never done before. I skipped class.

Well, time to get this over with. I summoned my scroll and went to my contacts. Staring at Luz's name, my fingers hovered over the call button as tears fell onto the scroll. A few moments later, I made the call. Ringing echoed through the stall, replacing the screams and crying that occupied the space moments before, and on the third ring, Luz picked up.

"Hey, Amity." She said. "Aren't you supposed to be in class?"

"Yeah," I said. "I – I just wanted to hear your voice."

I tried sounding like I hadn't spent the last ten minutes crying my eyes out. Unfortunately, Luz saw right through it as her voice took on a more concerned tone. "What's wrong?" The Latina asked.

How do you tell your girlfriend that your mistake just exposed both of you? Answer: There is no easy way. "I'm sorry, it's all my fault."

"What is?" Anxiety filled Luz's voice to the point of cracking. "Honey, your starting to scare me."

"They know. Everyone knows."

Silence filled the air. A deafening silence so loud you could hear a pin drop. Yes, I know what a pin is. Every second that passed felt like hours as the silence grew louder. So this is how my relationship ends. Sitting on a toilet, crying my eyes out after getting exposed to the entire school. Luz is a forgiving person, but this might be where she draws the line. After all, she was exposed as bisexual too. Come on, honey, say something, please.

Luz's voice broke the silence. "Mierda. (Shit.) How did this happen?"

"Boscha posted our love letters all around the school," I said, crying. "This is all my fault. I was the one who kept talking about safety and how we need to be careful. The one who made all these rules so we wouldn't get exposed and outed. Now we're both paying the price for my mistake." I broke down into another fit of sobs as my words mixed.

"Woah. Slow down, honey." The Latina said. "Shhh. I'm here. Now take your time and tell me what happened."

It took a while to speak normally again as the tears got stronger. During that time, Luz didn't push me at all. She just sat on the call and said I'm here while her girlfriend cried her eyes out. I could tell her heart was breaking and that she was trying to be strong for me. Getting outed and seeing/hearing their partner cry would break anyone's heart. No one should be outed or have to hear or see their partner cry.

Once I had calmed down enough to speak, I told Luz everything. The argument me and Boscha had after Grudgby practice. How I didn't realize the notes fell out before walking home. Boscha getting rid of the protections and making copies before posting them all over school. Walking into school and seeing the letters. All the horrible things the girls said and locking myself in the bathroom. When I finished, an awkward silence filled the room as neither of us spoke a word.

Thankfully it wasn't as long as the last time, but it still hurt. Once again, Luz was the one to talk first. "Wow. I knew Boscha was a bitch, but I never thought she would go that far."

I wiped my eyes. "I understand if you don't want to date me anymore."

"Wait, why would you think I would leave you?" Luz asked.

"Because I ruined everything. If I had put the note away properly or not brought it at all, none of this would have happened." I said.

"I am not leaving you. I love you, and nothing will change that, Ammy." Luz coughed for a few moments.

"R-really?" I whimpered.

"Yes. Whatever happens, we will get through this together."

It felt as if a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders. For the first time since I left home, a small smile formed on my face. Even after all of this, she still loves me. Happiness washed over me and the feeling, while temporary, was more than welcome. I wiped my eyes on my sleeve and sniffed. "So what do we do now?"

A loud sigh came from the other end of the call. "I'm going to be honest here, babe. What happened today was a nightmare, and it's only going to worse before it gets better. People will hate us. They will laugh at us, insult us, and do anything they can to make our lives miserable. Sometimes you will feel like," Luz sneezed

"Bless you," I said.

"Thanks," The brunette said before continuing. "Sometimes you will feel like nothing you do matters and that you're all alone now, but we will get through this. Life will be hell for a few weeks, maybe months, but we will get through this together and find people who will love us."

I wanted to believe Luz right now, but I'm having a hard time believing anyone after what happened. "You sure?"

"Positive," Luz said.

Grabbing some toilet paper, I blew my nose and let out a shaky breath. I didn't know how things were going to get better. That was just wishful thinking at this point. But Luz has yet to steer me wrong, so I'm going to believe her. Then I realized I'm still in the bathroom, and anybody could walk in.

"Hey, you got any places I could hide for the rest of the day?" I asked.

Luz thought for a moment. "Actually, yes. Go to the detention room, grab some chalk, and draw a square with a keyhole inside it. Then tap the keyhole and move your hand as if you are unlocking a door."

"Thank you." My voice was still shaky. "I love you."

"I love you too," Luz said, then ended the call.

I put away my scroll and peeked under the stall. The bathroom was completely empty except for me, which is good. And since the first period is still going on, the only people in the hallways are hall monitors and the occasional witch running errands for teachers. That means I can head straight to the detention room without having to avoid people. Walking out of the stall, I checked the halls before heading to the detention room. My heartbeat like a drum. While no one could see me, they could still hear me. Some professors have their doors open during class, so it would come off as odd if I made noise right now. You also can't blame it on the ghosts when ours are visible.

After walking into the detention room, I closed the door and followed Luz's instructions, drawing a square with a keyhole inside on the blackboard. Then I tapped the keyhole and unlocked it. The square glowed and swung outward, revealing a small hallway, as lights hung from the ceiling turned on. The hallway itself wasn't that long, and there was a door at the other end. Okay, when Luz told me to go to the detention room, this was not what I was expecting. I crawled inside as the entrance closed behind me. What is this place?

Walking to the end of the hallway, a keep out sign hung on the door. I opened the door and stepped into the weirdest room I have ever seen. It was massive, with a spiraling ramp leading to the ceiling. Doors of different shapes and colors were scattered around the room. Some were on the floor while the rest lined the halls. Where do all these go? Curiously, I opened a green door and saw the plant classroom. Closing it and opening another one led into the hallway. After shutting the door, I stepped back and looked around the room. All of these doors lead to different parts of the school.

Usually, I would find out where all the doors lead to, but not right now. Right now, I just want to curl up somewhere. Maybe find a good book to read. After searching for a few minutes, I found a bookshelf in the back of the room. Even better is that it had an Azura book. Not my favorite in the series, but you never
look a gift horse in the mouth. Side note, we have those in the Isles. I walked back to the middle of the room and sat down against the wall.

But before I could start reading, my scroll dinged, making me freeze instantly. There were fifty contacts in my scroll, including Boscha and the girls, but only six would care about me at this point. Which reminds me, I need to delete Boscha and the girl's number. Hesitantly, I summoned my scroll and held it away, like it was a piece of stinky cheese. Anxiety flooded my nerves as my brain tried to figure out who texted me, ranging from Luz to my parents. With a deep breath, I looked at my scroll and found out the text was from Willow.

'Hey, Amity. Are you holding up okay?'

Chapter Text

Amity's POV

'Hey Amity, Are you holding up okay?'

Out of all the people to text me now, Willow surprised me the most. Okay, that's a lie. A text from Gus would have been more surprising, for the fact that he doesn't have my number. But Willow's text was shocking for another reason. We haven't talked much in the last few months.

We were starting to rebuild our friendship and talk more, but since I was forced to befriend Boscha and the other girls again, it kind of ruined almost all of that progress. Willow and I have texted sometimes to keep in contact, but like I said last time, she was a bit angry when I told her. I also knew this conversation would happen, but I always thought it would be when Luz and I decided to tell her.

'Well, my world just crumbled around me. I'm the laughing stock of hexside; I'm numb, feel like I'm in a nightmare, and I just spent ten minutes crying my eyes out in a bathroom stall.'

I put my scroll down and opened the book I found. With everything crumbling around me, it's nice to know that the plot hasn't changed. I know everything will happen in the book and know the characters won't bully me or make fun of me. My scroll dinged again.

'I heard what happened this morning. It's all anyone can talk about right now. That and letters.'

My heart sank. I can't believe everybody knows about my meltdown already, but I am not surprised to tell you the truth. Whether in the human or the demon realm, rumors and shocking events spread like wildfire. I stared at my scroll as Willow started typing another message.

'I had my suspicions about you and Luz, but it wasn't my business, so I didn't butt in. I understood why you guys kept it a secret, so I want to know how this happened. Luz was so oblivious. Both of you were.'

And there it is. I knew this conversation was going to happen, but I always thought it would be when Luz and I decided to tell her. However, I don't think that matters anymore.

Me: 'Well, we were planning on telling you.'

Willow: 'When?'

Me: 'We didn't know. We were just trying to make it one day at a time.' I started typing another message. 'As for how we got together, that's a long story.'

The three dots went away and appeared multiple times as Willow typed her message. 'I have a free period in two hours; you want to tell me then? Where are you, by the way?'

I looked around the giant room, wondering how even to explain this. I knew Willow wouldn't tell anyone, but it still didn't feel right for me to tell her right now. Weird thing to say, but it felt Luz rarely told anyone about this place. 'Sure. As for where I am, I don't know. But I am safe and away from everybody, which is all I care about.'

Willow: That's good. Remember that whatever happens, I accept and still love you. You have my support.

Me: Thanks, Willow.

Willow: No problem. I have to head to class now, but we'll talk later.

Today still feels like a living nightmare. Maybe if I pinch myself, I'll wake up. I squeezed my arm and looked around, only to find myself still in the room. The only difference was now my arm hurt. Well, it was worth a try. Since this is my new reality, and everybody knows I'm dating Luz, I might as well do something that I haven't been able to do. I scrolled through my pictures, found one of Luz and me, and set it as my lock screen.

It wasn't anything romantic, but it was still a fun picture that I could quickly get away with by saying we are friends. I then went into my contacts and deleted Boscha and the girls' numbers before getting rid of my scroll and opening my book. After flipping through the first few pages, I started reading chapter one.

Even before my life was ruined and my world wasn't in complete pieces, I always used books as my escape. No matter if it was Azura or another series entirely, novels always provided me with a means to get away and a new world that I could explore. And right now, an escape is what I need. I let myself get sucked in and fall into the world of my favorite series. Every so often, I wiped away a stray tear that fell down my cheek.

I must have lost track of time or shut out the world because the next thing I know, a voice snapped me back to reality, causing me to jump. "Um. Who are you?"

I looked up and saw a young girl staring at me with a confused look on her face. An orange spikey held her brown hair in a messy bun, and a fishhook hung from her right ear. Her uniform was torn at the sleeves and waist, with the latter being tied together. Her orange sleeves and blue leggings told me she was on a dual track of healing and beast keeping. I could tell she was surprised to find someone in here, just as I was shocked that someone walked in here. Luz told me this place was quiet and hidden. Then again, she probably learned about this place from somewhere.

"I'm sorry," I said, curling against the wall. I don't know why I apologized.

"It's okay." The brunette said. "Who are you, and how did you find this place?"

Wait. The girl doesn't know who I am? I don't know how that's possible with everything that's happened, but I'm grateful for some anonymity. Unfortunately, I don't think I can stay anonymous if I want to stay here. "I'm I'm Amity."

The brunette's eyes widened, and I braced for laughing or the insults to come. Only that didn't happen. "My name's Viney. I'm friends with your girlfriend."

That was not what I was expecting. Wait. Did she just say she's friends with Luz? "How do you know Luz?"

"We met in the detention track her first day here," Viney said. "She stood up for two other students and me in detention, and I showed her this hideout as a thank you."

Yeah, that sounds like something Lulu would do. Always willing to stand up for people and do the right thing. Sometimes it doesn't go over that well, like when she challenged Boscha to a grudgby match to protect Willow. But when Luz realized she went too far, she took the punishment of being target practice so Willow and Gus wouldn't have to. It also makes sense how Luz knew about this place. "How do I know I can believe or trust you?"

"Fair. If what happened this morning happened to me, I wouldn't trust anyone either." Viney tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. "You can use this room if you want."

"Really?" I asked skeptically. "You're just going to let me stay here, even though we just met?"

"Any friend of Luz's is a friend of mine, And that goes double for her girlfriend," Viney said. "Although you can't spend all day here, though, unless you want to get locked in the school all night. You have to go home at some point."

Shit! I forgot all about your parents. When I get home their going to fucking kill me. They have probably already heard about this morning, and if they haven't, they will by the time I arrive home. My parents hate the LGBT, and they're going to go ballistic. We are talking about an explosive level meltdown. I dropped the book and grabbed my head.

"What's wrong?" Viney asked.

"I forgot all about my parents." I could feel my mind slowly go insane as a panic attack began to set in. "I am so dead."

My breathing started to become rapid as I ran my hands through my hair. Viney must have walked towards me because she knelt in front of me and grabbed my hands. "Amity, look at me. Breath."

I did as I was told, trying to calm down my breathing. After a few moments, I got my breathing under control, although my mind was still frazzled. "Better?" Viney asked. I nodded. "That's good. Now my last question is, why didn't Luz tell me you were here?"

"She's sick," I said. "The last time I talked to her was this morning, so she may be sleeping. Wait, what time is it anyway?"

"8:50," Viney said. "And before you ask, I have a free period right now. This is just a quicker way to the cafeteria."

8:50. That means the second period ends in 40 minutes, and I still haven't told Willow how to find this room. If Viney hadn't come in here, I would have kept reading and miss Willow's free period causing her to text me wondering where I am. Usually, I would kick myself for not being prepared and losing track of time, but I don't care at this point. Still, I couldn't just tell Willow, 'Hey, find the secret room in the school, and we can talk.'

"Hey," I said nervously. "Even though we just met and this place is a secret. I promised my friend I would tell her how my secret relationship started, but I didn't want to tell her about this place. It didn't seem right for me to tell her, so do you mind if I tell her how to get here?"

"Do you trust her?" The dual-track witch asked.

I nodded. "She's one of the only people I trust now, and she's also one of the first friends Luz made when she came to the Isles."

"Then you can tell her. Just don't tell anyone else." Viney took out a piece of paper, wrote something down, and handed it to me. "Here's my number. Let me know if you ever want to talk. Remember, your not doing this alone. I'm here for you."

"Thanks."

Viney gave me a warm smile, then got up and walked to the many doors lining the wall. She walked through a green door and closed it behind her, leaving me alone in the room once again. I sat in silence for a few moments, wondering what just happened. That girl was nice to me. Out of all the hate and bullying, I got earlier and will get later on, because let's face it, some people are assholes, Viney was nice to me. She saw me as a person. Somehow, I felt that she would have still given me the same kindness even if she did know me. After putting Viney's contact in my scroll, I messaged Willow how to find this room and then went back to my book.

Luz's POV

I hate being sick. I hate it even more when you go to sleep, and you wake up coughing. And to make things worse, everyone knows about Amity and me dating, Amity being gay, and me being bisexual. So not only do I feel horrible physically, but I also feel like shit mentally and emotionally. The only silver lining to this whole nightmare is that I don't have witch fever.

I coughed into my shoulder and groaned as I put my head back down on my pillow. I had given up on sleep a while ago, so now I decided to watch random funny videos on my phone to help distract my mind and hopefully put me back to sleep. There was a knock on my door, and moments later, Eda walked into my room. "Hey, how you feeling, kiddo?" Eda asked. I didn't feel like talking, so I just groaned in response. "I brought you some food."

"Not hungry," I said.

"I'll just put it next to you," Eda said.

She put the plate on my mattress next to me. Oh, Eda got me a mattress a few days ago, which is a lot better than sleeping in a sleeping bag on the floor, especially when you're sick. But I'll tell you more about that when I don't feel like dying.

"So I hear something at the market today. You and Amity are dating. And Amity is gay, and you're bisexual." Eda said. "It's all over penstagram." I curled deeper away from the older witch.

"Why didn't you tell us at least?" Eda asked

"We were scared," I said. "We were afraid of this very thing happening, so we hid it from everyone."

"Well, I don't think any less of you or Amity," Eda said. "Your still my kid."

A small smile formed on my face. I knew Eda would accept Amity and me, but it was still great to hear that. Then I thought of Lilith and my mom, and my smile faded. My mom hates it when I lie to her. "What does Lilith think about this?"

"Lilith is following a lead to try and get rid of our curse. She has no service, so I don't know what she thinks." Eda said. "I know that's not what you wanted to hear."

I groaned again. "I worked so hard to hide this relationship and prove that a human can be a witch. I made friends besides Amity, Willow, Gus, and the blight twins. Now, most of said friends hate me."

"Well, what have people been saying?" Eda asked, her voice with concern and curiosity.

I grabbed my phone, switched to my texts, and handed it to Eda. I didn't want to see those texts again. 'I knew you were a freak.' 'I can't believe I invited you to my house. Now I need to disinfect for your bisexual cuties.' 'Go back to your world round ears. No one wants you here.' And my personal favorite: 'I can't believe I called you a friend. I have spent the last month telling people how awesome you are. Bi Bi round-eared freak.'

The grey-haired witch looked at the texts and whistled, her face switching from cringe to shocked to insulted. "Wow. I forgot how cruel kids could be." She handed the phone back to me, and I put the video back on. "I know a little bit about how you feel. Not about having your sexuality and secret relationship exposed to everyone, but about everyone hating you, calling you insults."

Eda sighed and continued. "After I first changed into the owl beast, I dropped out of hexside because I could never go back there. Everybody saw me differently and hated me. I was still a teen back then and had no one. So I learned magic from the island and slowly made a life for myself. Granted, it wasn't the best life, but I survived. If I can survive that, you and Amity can survive this."

"Thanks, Eda," I said, smiling. "If I had the strength and wasn't sick, I would hug you."

"I know." She said.

I yawned. "I'm gonna go back to sleep."

"Okay. Let me know if you need anything." Eda kissed my head and walked out the door. I wrapped the blanket around me tighter and closed my eyes.

Amity's POV

Once again, I got sucked into my book. It was only when I heard a voice that I snapped back to reality. "Wow. When you said to go to the detention room, this was not what I expected."

I looked up and saw Willow standing in front of the door. "Yeah, that's what I said to when I walked in here."

"How did you find this place?" Willow asked.

"Luz told me," I said, placing a bookmark in the book and closing it before putting it next to me. "A girl named Viney told her, and now I told you."

Willow walked forward while looking around the room. "Where do all the doors open to?"

"They lead to different parts of the school," I said.

"Wait, really?" Willow asked, shocked.

"Yep."

"Wow." Willow sat down in front of me and crossed her legs. "Okay, girl, spill. How did this whole love story happen?"