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Chapter Text

"I'm your friend now."

Perhaps he got a little excited. Calling witches you barely know your friends was frivolous in the extreme. Does he not know what such hasty conclusions can turn into? Does he not know that even people who have known each other for a decent period of time, who smile at you every day, can plan your own murder behind your back?

"Friends don't stab each other in the back!"

"Sure they do! The Coven Heads do it all the time, back at the castle!"

Oh, those poor kids had no idea about friendship. Their pure innocent faith in the reliable shoulder of a comrade is simply ridiculous. Hunter would be lying if he said he didn't like the game. It was one of the best things in the last few days, actually. But playing in the same team and trusting without arguments are two different things. You should never lose your vigilance with anyone. He got a little excited, but, in the end, he did not lie - they were waiting for a very long time together in the Emperor's Coven. Of course they will become friends. It was the only option.

The endless corridor was empty and gloomy. The gilding on the walls almost suffocated him as he approached the throne room with the utmost hesitance. It was as if the remnants of doubt continued to pull him back, making it difficult for him to take each step. Hunter thought he had made up his mind when he gave Steve the answer. He knew what awaited these guys before joining the coven, but was that a big price? The price of honor, for the best job in the Boiling Isles?
These children did not realize their happiness. He'd convince them eventually.

For some reason, Hunter hesitated before entering the throne room. Indecision was not inherent in the Golden Guard. Mentally convincing himself of this, he sharply hit the door, forcing it to open with a characteristic noise.
"Emperor Belos." He habitually drops to one knee, his facial expression obscured by the golden mask, which Hunter could only rejoice at that moment.

The emperor was without a mask. No one but Hunter was allowed to enter his quarters without knocking. A small one of the privileges the Golden Guard had even over the Coven Heads (and for which he was despised).
Belos had his back to him, but turned as he spoke. His uncle's cold blue eyes flickered to the teenager, and Hunter's insides tightened. Will Belos approve of his choice?
"I listen to you, Hunter," the emperor replied in a calm, businesslike manner, for some reason continuing to study his young ward with his eyes. The boy tried not to pay much attention to it.

"I have news."
Belos' gaze remained impassive, but curiosity flashed through it. Hunter watched his always upright posture, his hands behind his back, the movement of dry lips on his wrinkled face, trying to catch the mood in every gesture, not to lose sight of a single detail.
"Good or bad news?"
"I think it is good. You ordereded me to hold the meeting—I—I figured I could do something else," he added, avoiding eye contact. He skilfully sidestepped the topic of the meeting, which he didn't get to have, because... Well, because everyone left. "I found witches who could join the ranks of the Emperor's Coven."

Belos raised an eyebrow curiously.
"Do you really think they are worthy?"
"Yes, uncle. Maybe they are just students—"
"Students?" Belos pressed. Hunter swallowed, recognizing the growing indignation in the man's eyes.
"Very capable students," he corrected politely. "I was able to test their skills. They are the best of the best. I know, uncle, you didn't want me to leave the castle, but—but trust me, they won't disappoint you. Please give them a chance."
"Give me a chance," he added mentally, but not out loud. Lately Hunter had been doing nothing but making mistakes and disappointing his uncle. He really wanted to prove his worth so that he could proudly wear that cloak again.
The silence choked him. Despite the loud pounding heart above the throne, Hunter could only hear his own. Cold sweat trickled down his back. He decided that lowering his head would be better than looking at him - in this way he only shows his fear. Belos hated fear. This is a weakness, this is what sometimes prevents amazingly capable witches from achieving their goals. Even if Hunter... was a little worried, it was not worth showing.

"Fine."
The boy shook his head and froze in place in surprise.
"Really?"
He did not expect his uncle to accept his offer so quickly. He expected more questions, even a verbal reprimand for disobeying orders. But none of this followed. Hunter wondered: either his work really impressed Belos, or... Or he was so disappointed in him that there was simply nowhere else.

"New soldiers can be useful for the Day of Unity. But they must prove they are useful."
"Maybe they are teenagers, but if they are prepared better—"
"So prepare them," sharp voice interrupted him. When Hunter raises his head again, Belos slowly approaches him. "I'll give you two weeks. If you can make worthy warriors out of them," Belos's hand gently fell on his shoulder, "who knows - perhaps the Titan himself will be proud of you. But don't put yourself in that danger again. I can't lose you, do you understand me?" the grip became a little stronger, causing not pain, but slight discomfort.

That's all Hunter needed to hear. All doubts disappeared at once.
"Understood. I won't let you down, uncle."
He got up from his knees, having received permission to go. The heart fluttered madly in the chest of the Golden Guard, who outwardly remained unshakable. This is not their test. This is his test. His uncle gave him a new test, which meant that he still trusted his nephew and was ready to give him another chance.
Hunter won't let him down again.

***

In vain Gus pulled the shackles and kicked the bars. The chains rang, but they did not give him freedom, and in addition to this, his shoulder now also hurt.
"Stop it," Viney told him, "you'll hurt yourself."
"I don't care!" with uncharacteristic aggression, the younger snapped, continuing his futile attempts. "We have to get out of here!"
"You won’t achieve anything with this, and I won’t be able to heal you!" The girl raised her voice slightly in response.

Gus didn't listen. He saw the goal and saw no obstacles. Of course, the rational part of him understood that he would not be able to cope with the enchanted shackles and bars on his own, but he did not intend to sit idle while he and his friends were imprisoned here.
"She's right, Gus. We might be heard," Skara said softly. "Let's try to figure out how to get out of here."
"We can't even use magic!" Viney chuckled desperately. “I'm an escapist, I've run away from punishment class at school many times in the past. But there is no way out of here.
"Maybe we just haven't found it yet." Skara shook her head. "I'm sure there's a way out of here. What do you think, Willow?"

The named girl did not answer. Until now, she was the only one who hadn't said a word. The witch was in the farthest corner from the others and looked completely depressed.
"I'm sorry, guys," she muttered softly, without lifting her head down in grief. "It's my fault."
"It's not your fault, Willow!" Gus objected. "It's all him, only him! He deceived us!"
"You were just trying to create a team, and you succeeded! We won! "Skara tried to cheer up her friend, but it only made things worse.

"And that's why we're here! Because of my stupid selfish desire to prove to someone that I'm worth something!" girl felt, as treacherous tears began to accumulate in her eyes. She was happy that because of the darkness and the distance, her friends couldn't see her face.
"But I'm worthless. I'm just Half-A-Witch,"echoed in her head. For some reason, everything she undertook ended in tragedy. Willow didn't believe in failure and kept trying. Now, through her fault, the team ended up in jail. She's the one who invited that guy. She asked him to become a member. She let him kidnap them.
She was the captain. She had to do something.

The door opened with a horrendous creak, and all four of those present tensed, simultaneously, as if on cue, looking up.
"How are you here?" A familiar voice, muffled by the mask, reached their ears.
"Let us go!" the youngest boy yelled angrily, tightening his chains again, rattling at his slightest movements.
"Oh, calm down. If you continue, you may rip your arms off," the Golden Guard warned. "We don't need it. Save your body for future trainings."
"We don’t want to join your stupid coven!" Viney joined the angry friend; the rest of the girls made it clear with their eyes that they completely agree with them.
Hunter frowned, which they couldn't see because of his mask.

"You shouldn’t scatter words like that," he said with more seriousness, his voice became strict and cooled to the temperature of frozen ice. "If anyone hears us, things won't go well, and I will not be able to excuse you."
He stepped closer to the cage, meeting scornful, watchful looks. It was familiar to him. He was often looked at in a similar way, and it was absolutely normal.
"I will show you to your new room, but I won't untie you. I can't be sure yet that you won't escape."
"Caleb."
A weak but determined voice came from behind the bars. It was the Captain's voice.
"Just let us go," Willow begged. She was the only one in whose eyes turned to him there was not contempt, but deep sadness. "You can find other, more capable and experienced witches who want to join the coven. You don't need us that much."

Don't need them that much.
They were wrong. Hunter didn't have time to look for other witches. He had already promised his uncle that he would make worthy soldiers out of these children. They are more than worthy. It is unlikely that he will be able to find more talented teenagers in the entire Boiling Isles than these four.
"Nonsense. You are capable enough. You'll see, you'll enjoy working in the Emperor's Coven," the Golden Guard promised in a sweet voice, turning the key in the keyhole and opening the cage. Using the magic of the staff, he easily freed the prisoners from the chains with which they were tightly chained to the wall, but did not leave their wrists without handcuffs.

"You better not try to run away. You can't."
"You're a terrible person," Willow muttered with fatigue and undisguised irritation. The Golden Guard did not even turn his ear to the insulting words.
"I think you will change your minds eventually."
"Our families and friends will come for us!" Gus refused to give up, but his attempts to threaten only once again amused the blond.
"Let them come. We'll deal with them," cruelty flashed in the purple eyes, and the younger frowned angrily. "I already said I am your new friend. I care about you and only want the best for you. One day you will thank me for this."
"Hardly..."
He ignored the angry whispers behind him. He let them be angry for now - wild animals also growl at first and wish you dead, until you tame them. Then they become the most devoted and close friends for the rest of their lives. With witches, the principle is probably exactly the same.
Hunter is willing to bet on it and take a risk.

***

"This is where you will be staying for the next few days. We don't have a lot of free rooms to give everyone their own, so someone will have to sleep on cots."
He dryly pushes the prisoners into a fairly spacious and, it should be noted, clean room. There was only one normal bed and three rollaways, and a small, narrow window let in enough light to fill the entire room. Even the dust was not visible in the sunlight, which testified to the maintenance of a high level of order in the castle. Which, however, was to be expected.
"Settle down."

The door closes with a soft bang. With a tug on the handle, Gus confirms his suspicions that it is locked.
"At least give back our scrolls!" the guy shouted through the closed door, but, of course, he received no answer. The Golden Guard took away their palismans, which were forbidden on the territory of the castle, and confiscated the scrolls - their only connection with relatives.

"You don’t need it here," Caleb said casually then, looking at gadgets that seemed to be seen for the first time. "No need to try to call your friends or relatives for help, I already said that it is absolutely pointless."

"Now I can’t even contact my father," Porter breathed irritably, doomedly leaning back against the door and sliding down it to the floor. From anger, tears accumulated in the corners of blue eyes, to which he refused to give freedom.
"You'll see him again soon," Skara promised sweetly, lowering herself to his level. She reached out her hand to pat him on the back in a comforting gesture. "We'll get out of here."
In their situation, the girl's reassuring smile and her positive reassurance hardly served their purpose.
"It's just disgusting!" Viney was indignant, plopping down on the only bed in the room. "None of us wants to join the coven! He has no right to force us!"
"He immediately seemed suspicious to me!" Gus howled in desperation. "From the very beginning! But I was not observant enough to prove it..."

"It's not your fault, Gus," Willow sighed as she sat down on the hard and cold floor next to her friend, "it's mine. I brought him to the team, and it's my fault that we're here. There is no point in denying it. If anyone had to be observant, it was me, because I was the captain of our team."
"Neither of you are to blame," Skara interjected. "None of you knew who he was, and could not have known about it. Anyway, we won the match, right?"
Willow couldn't argue with that. She nodded, albeit hesitantly, and a cocky smile spread across Skara's face.
"It's only because you were the captain. You managed to assemble a team of strong and experienced players who won."
"Really, Willow," the younger Porter said, smiling for the first time in over an hour. "It's all your merit. You proved to everyone what you are capable of, you led us to victory!"
"And his betrayal is only his fault," Viney agreed. "You don't have to be responsible for the actions of others."

The girl was ready to burst into tears, touched by the words of her friends. Gus put a hand on her shoulder in support, and Park smiled sadly at him, holding back tears with difficulty.
"Thank you all," she said sincerely. "This is the merit of each of us. I was just a captain."
"The best captain, Willow, you must admit it," the illusionist corrected her, frowning. "We did them well!"
"It was a really crushing victory," Skara nodded with a grin. "I would love to play with you all next year."
Next year. They were already looking forward to the next game. Her team did not lose faith in victory, in the chance of liberation. While they were together, they seemed to be on the shoulder. Regardless of whether it is a game or a real escape from the emperor's castle.

Willow perked up, as did everyone else. She was considered a good captain, and she was madly in love with her team. Scara was right. They can't give up as long as they have each other. The girl's face took on a thoughtful expression.
"There must be a way out of here," she thought aloud.
“Viney's experience with escaping might come in handy," Gus said. "And Skara is the best in terms of strategies. My illusions can also be useful, for example, for distraction or disguise. We have everything we need!"
"In order to escape, we first need to understand where we are escaping from," Viney noted knowingly, crossing her arms over her chest. "I can't do that until I know the layout of the castle."
"Yes, and for the strategy I need to first scout the situation here," thought Skara. "It's necessary to act as carefully as possible so that no one, including Caleb, suspects anything..."

Willow snapped her fingers as the realization hit her like snow falling on her head.
"Do you have an idea, Best-Captain-In-The-World?" Gus turned his head to look at her curiously.
"I know what we need to do," the girl nodded. She took a short pause, admiring the intrigued faces of her friends. "We'll become his friends!
"What? Friends of the Golden Guard?!" Viney asked indignantly. "I'll never become his friend!"
"Not really," Willow reassured her. "We'll pretend. Just like he did with us. Perhaps if we manage to ingratiate ourselves with his trust, we'll weaken his guard at least a little, and then it'll be much easier to carry out the escape plan! We'll pretend that we like to train and that we want to join the Emperor's Coven, while truly we'll carefully explore the castle."

"Wow! Such a wonderful strategy!" Skara sang in admiration. "Even I didn’t think of that, Willow!"
"I didn’t know," Gus squinted merrily, looking at his friend with a sly grin, "that you are vengeful."
"Revenge is a dish best served cold," she smiled ominously. "Let's try this plan."
"Pretending is my job," the younger Porter said proudly. "I can handle it with ease."
"We’ll take revenge on him at the same time," Viney gloated from the bed.

***

With extreme caution, the boy placed the confiscated staves along the wall of his room, fearing that the unfortunate totems would be damaged in any way.
"Ah!" shouts the Golden Guard; before he had time to take off his mask and bare his face, a strand of light that escaped immediately fell into the beak of the Little Rascal. "Flapjack, stop it!"
But the red cardinal hardly listened to his owner.

"What's the stupid boy doing?" the palisman chirped indignantly, amusingly bristling fiery red feathers.
"I know what I'm doing," Hunter replied offended. Now he took out the scrolls, which he took from his new friends. "What the strange gadgets..." the boy thought aloud, first looking at each scroll in turn, and then putting them on the table. On the table on which Flapjack sat and squinted displeasedly. "Don't look at me like that. You know what it's all about, and by the way, you helped me with this."
"Of course I helped my boy, but he is doing wrong!" the bird did not stop energetically chirping and flapping its wings. Hunter began to fear that the Little Rascals' voice might be heard. "You can't keep your new friends locked up!"
"I've already done it! This is for their own good."
"You won't let him take their palismans, will you?"

Hunter didn't immediately come up with an answer. His uncle needed palismans to heal the curse, but... Could he really do it? If earlier the guy, without hesitation, brought palismans to Belos, which he didn’t really take for living beings with equal rights to life, now his views have changed. Flapjack became his first and his best friend, only and most faithful. Hunter took a risk and did not want to think about what would happen to him and, most importantly, to Flapjack, if his secret became known. Most likely, his heart simply can not stand it.
Did he have the right to be friends with the palisman if he was going to doom new friends to the suffering that he himself most feared? It won't be fair. He may be considered a brutal killer with a high ego beyond his years, but the Golden Guard respects justice. At least the justice he believes in.

"What prevents me from telling Belos that I captured them without palismans? Or what they didn't have palismans at all?"
Probably conscience, Hunter thought, but he could handle that feeling. Not for the first time. He's been hiding Flapjack for about... Half a month if he's not mistaken? A few more small totems are unlikely to be a problem.
Flapjack stopped tweeting, but continued to look at the owner with undisguised displeasure, apparently disapproving of his intentions. Hunter sighed heavily.
"You know I can't make a mistake this time. I've made too much lately..."

Thoughtfully rubbing his wrist, he did not mean by this action any context, but the bird knew that under the sleeve the boy was hiding a scar. Recent scar. His boy would suffer if he disappointed his uncle again. The poor boy tried so hard to impress him that he bet his health on it. He risked his life for this. For the first time he had the opportunity to communicate with some of his peers. Hunter had no idea how to do it. He had no idea what teenage life is like, a normal teenage life.
Oh, his boy needed help. And in urgent.
"Don't worry. They'll be all right. Perhaps... I'll have friends for the first time?" hesitantly added the blondy and shrugged his thin shoulders. "You've always wanted this, haven't you?"
Flapjack didn't answer.

"They'll love it here, I'm sure. It's just a matter of time," he thought, laying his tired body on the soft mattress of the bed. "You know, maybe this is a test, but I think it will be... Fun, I guess? For the first time I will have apprentices. I will have friends for the first time!" He joyfully threw up his hands to the ceiling, unexpectedly smiling broadly, pleasantly excited by this thought. "I'm sure we'll become friends. They will change their mind."
His hands landed on the mattress on either side. The moon outside the window was large and full, its silvery light illuminating the room through the small window. Flapjack fluttered off the table, flying towards his witch, only to peck him in the forehead.
"Ouch!" Hunter instinctively tried to catch the bird in flight, but his hands caught only air, while the prankster himself deftly darted under his elbow, chirping. "Okay, I'm going to bed, just don't do it anymore!"

The blond rubbed his bruised forehead, which left a small reddish mark. Flapjack chirped apologetically, jumping closer to lie down next to Hunter and bury his pleased face in his elbow. The teenager smiled against his will; only in private did he allow himself to be touched by such things. He ran his finger caressingly over the cardinal's bright red plumage as a yawn overcame him. This day was difficult, and even more emotionally than physically. But it was worth it. He got his cloak back; while Darius hadn't said outright if he was worthy to wear it, Hunter was leaning toward the idea that he was probably worthy after all if the Coven Head had returned it. He just continued to dislike him, but he probably admitted his use. The game turned out amazing. It was unlike any of the missions he had gone on with other scouts. It was different... Exciting. He was a member of the team. They trusted him, they really took him for their own. This respect was unfeigned, and no one whispered secretly behind his back. They painted their faces green and took pictures together on someone's scroll. They were a single whole, a mechanism in which every gear is important. In the Emperor's Coven, they will be able to play as long as they want, and not in a year.

Hunter did not undress, because Flapjack fell asleep under his elbow, and he no longer wanted to disturb the sleeping palisman. The boy lazily turned his head to the window. Full moon and stars against a perfectly clear dark sky. The Golden Guard closes his eyes and slowly drifts off to sleep, thinking about the past game. About the wind in his hair. About green. About the laughter of comrades. About the Captain, whose strength and leadership impressed him the most. About the cloak that he would now wear with great dignity. Perhaps a little fantasizing about the next game they can play at any time.
He fell asleep when the moon disappeared behind a light black cloud and the room was plunged into darkness.

Chapter Text

Mornings in the Emperor's Coven began early, which was to be expected, but for which there was no way one could be prepared.
At Hexside, lessons started at nine. Many students complained about lack of sleep, especially high school students. Everyone has their own internal "clock" that is responsible for sleep and awake. It is much easier for someone to go to bed and wake up late, but society, of course, did not care much about this. Morning and afternoon existed for activity.
But six in the morning is incomprehensible to the mind.

Willow felt sleepy in every part of her body. Her eyes closed, and at times she began to feel as if she was about to fall to the ground. She had fallen asleep not so long ago, and waking up properly now seemed like an impossible task.
"Get used to the routine," Hunter just shrugged his shoulders, looking with slight puzzlement at the guys sleeping on the go. Well, what to do with them? Sleepy teens aren't very useful. On the first morning, these guys looked as if they could only be poked with a finger to knock them off their feet.

Either breakfast or time made them less lethargic. They looked much better, but that wasn't even what confused the Golden Guardian so much.
"Why are you smiling?"
"Can't we? – in turn retorted dark-haired girl. "Coven rules forbid that too?"
The boy narrowed his eyes as if trying to get a better look at her. In his gut, he felt that something was wrong here.

"It's suspicious. Yesterday you screamed and threatened to run away, and today you act like nothing happened!" suspicions increased in it with every second. "I warn you: if you have something in mind, don't even hope that you will succeed. You won't be able to deceive the Emperor."
"We didn't have anything in mind," Gus replied calmly, with the most honest expression on his face he could muster. "Yesterday we just blew up. You literally kidnapped us."

"Yep," the elder nodded in satisfaction. "And that is why I can't understand the reason for your sudden change of mood.
"Well, it's been a whole night already," Porter shrugged indifferently. "During this time, we calmed down and rethought something. There is no point in screaming. We're well aware that the guards of the Emperor's Coven are beyond our strength."

"We really got a little excited yesterday," Viney confirmed his words. "We didn’t want to leave our home and our families so abruptly, but… On the other hand, working for the Emperor's Coven is very prestigious and noble. Such an opportunity doesn't come to everyone. It's probably the least of the possible victims."

They were right. Many scouts did not withstand the preparatory tests, some broke down after a few time working in the coven. Only the strongest could stay. Some didn't even get a chance to try. Have they really changed their minds?
If the constant feuding between coven members taught Hunter anything, it was that vigilance must never be let down. But you can choose a neutral position: listen, but not trust completely without reason.

"Well, okay” he replied vaguely. "It is not important. We have a lot to discuss with you."
After these words, the team casually looked at each other with curiosity. They didn't act suspicious at all, and that was what seemed so... Suspicious.
"For example?"
"You must learn the rules of behavior in the castle, the daily routine, the Coven Heads by name—"

"Will we play?" Willow interrupted excitedly.
"Play?"
"You said that we could play in the coven more than once a year," the girl reminded him with a frown, looking as if she was here only for this. She folded her arms expectantly and now kept her eyes fixed on Hunter.

"Of course, we will, Captain... But there will be other trainings. Don't think that life in the Emperor's Coven is like Paradise. I know it may look like this, but to earn respect and the right to rest, you have to work hard, you understand?"
The four nodded in unison. It seems that the work did not frighten them at all. It seemed, on the contrary: even provoked. This is good. Diligence in the Emperor's Coven is honored no less than innate talent.

"And where do we start, Golden Guard? Willow asked a question, peering curiously at his expression as if she could read the answer on it.
"I—" Hunter thought for a moment, looking up at the ceiling. It was necessary to start somewhere - with something basic, basic, that beginners need to know first of all. "First, I’ll show you the castle."

***

Willow was already at the castle. Not so long ago, with her class, she visited it with an excursion. Kikimora then showed them a lot in the imperial palace. The delight in the eyes of the children was indescribable - it is hard to believe that she herself was once a little immature fool, blindly believing in the wisdom and mercy of the emperor. In such a short period of time, she was able to grow in every sense of the word. But with Hunter as a tour guide, she was surprised to get much more information about the places she already knew.

There was logic in this, of course. Then she was a student. Now she was a candidate for a seat in the Emperor's Coven. What she was not supposed to know before, now she had to know without fail. In fact, there was something mesmerizing about it: something that gave a sense of specialness. In addition, they had a unique opportunity to get information about the coven firsthand. After escaping, they will be able to share it with the inhabitants of the islands. They might be able to save the city from whatever it was. These thoughts gave me courage. Even in such a disgusting situation at first glance, she still managed to find pluses.

"Scouts are on duty every day in different parts of the corridor. You have already seen some of them. They rarely use force in the castle grounds, but try not to act suspiciously in front of them, as they still have the right to do this," the blond continued to explain, following the slightly lagging group out of the corner of his eye. When his and Willow's eyes met for a few brief moments, he turned away.

Most likely, with this information, he once again wanted to explain to them the futility of trying to escape. But they are not stupid. They themselves understand that trying to just get out of here is more than idiotic. So they had a plan - cunning, thoughtful and a little cruel, taking time.
Willow touched the wall with her hand. She grimaced mechanically from the cold that hit her skin and gave her goosebumps. It was cold in the castle, the walls seemed icy, despite the gold and numerous torches with tirelessly burning flames.
This place was saturated with some kind of subtle horror that could not be noticed right away. If Willow remembers her first impressions of the castle as a little schoolgirl, she will definitely remember the joy and delight when getting lost in these corridors seemed like the best event in her life. Only now could she feel something else. Behind all this luxury, there was something else, and the girl could not get rid of this frightening feeling.

She barely listened to Hunter. Much of what he said she either already knew or could guess. When the guy stopped, she finally returned to reality and realized that Hunter was looking directly at her.
"Are you listening to me, Captain?"
From this look, Willow was even embarrassed.
"Of course." She nodded, putting on the most convincing smile she could muster.
A rare shade of purple eyes lingered on her. It was hardly possible to distinguish something childish in this soldierly stern expression with inspiring scars on the right cheek and the opposite ear. It became hard for her to believe that they were about the same age.

"Okay," she managed to convince him anyway. "I showed you everything you need. Now you know how to behave in the castle," he concluded with a smile - not the one they saw on his face after their team won the competition. This smile was different, it had less sincerity and more pride. "If you need anything - contact me, friends. I'll try to find out when it will be possible to play the game."
Willow grimaced. There was too little warmth in the word "friends". It was more of a formality. It is unlikely that the Golden Guard even knew what "friends" were, based on the definition that he himself gave to this term.

He left them in the door lock custody room. Despite such precautions, they were indeed treated well here. Probably, Hunter was ready to do everything to make them want to stay here. Breakfast could be called royal. Even her father couldn't cook that deliciously. However, homemade food was still much better and could not be compared with the most exquisite dish in the whole wide world.

Well... She remembered her fathers. Willow didn't know why she did it. To ruin your mood?
Turning around, she noticed that all her friends were looking at her.

"Willow?
"We can think of something," she said with a slight smile. "Now we know more about the castle. But we'll need time."
"Are you sure we can convince him?" Viney asked uncertainly. "I don’t think this guy is capable of trusting anyone at all."
"If he betrayed us himself, then it’s clear why," Porter noted with a grin. "Looks like everyone here is like that."

"I think it's just a matter of time," Willow disagreed. "He wants to be our friend. It's already half the battle."
"But we don’t want to," the healer snorted, rolling her eyes.
"It's just a role, remember?"
"Of course I remember. But in general it's a bit weird."
"What exactly?"

Viney walked over to her cot and sat on the edge. The only bed in the end went to Gus - it was a little harder, and he, as a man, insisted that he will sleep here.
"He is the Golden Guard," the girl continued to think. "Why does he need friends? Moreover, we."
It really was a good question. Why does he need them when he has an entire Emperor's coven?

"He has been working for the coven all his life," Park said thoughtfully. "I don't think he ever had friends outside the castle."
It was even a little sad. Willow couldn't imagine her life without close friends and family. But she is an ordinary girl. She has no high status and power over the rest. On the other hand, was that what was needed for a happy life? Happiness is not about money, power, or fame. She knows this very well.

As if reading her mind, Gus narrowed his eyes and warned:
"Don't start doing this! Don't even think about pitying him."
"I don't pity! I'm just talking. He is cautious, and getting close to him really will not be so easy. On the other hand, he knows little about friendship, unlike us. Let's pretend to be goodies and do whatever he says. Over time, he will begin to trust us a little more."
Gus shrugged.
"I don't think it will be very difficult."

***

Just as Willow had predicted, the Golden Guard visited them again around lunchtime.
"I have good news!" he said in a cheerful voice. "Games are permitted. This is considered a good workout."

A small joy flared in the girl's chest.
"Who will we play with?"
"With scouts. Steve, for example, said he would be happy to participate."
The name didn't give her much information (she guessed that's what Hunter called the guard they beat), but Park felt a little happy all the same. She will definitely get some pleasure from playing with her team.

"We can play tonight," said the Golden Guard. "Now I'm taking you to lunch."
The team looked at each other cheerfully behind him. Everyone was thinking the same thing and seemed to be mentally able to keep in touch with each other. Although Hunter did not deceive them in this, they can have a real game with trained coven scouts. Perhaps it will be even cooler than the school tournament. More serious opponents could mean a clearly good game, which did not frighten, but rather only lit a fire in their eyes.

All the rooms in the castle seemed huge, many times the size of the rooms in their school. But the hall they were led to exceeded all expectations. It was as big as two sports fields in Hexside, even with a little left over.
"Training hall," Hunter explained, proudly noticing their astonished looks. "I often train here, too. At this distance, the game will be more difficult, but several times more interesting."

It was hard to disagree with this. Willow felt terribly small in such a huge room. In addition to being huge, it was as luxurious as the rest of the castle. At some point, the girl even doubted that she could play here.
"Would you like to practice a little before starting? For example, think over a strategy, like last time, or what else are you doing there."

Willow turned to her team. From their looks, they were just as delighted as she was. Catching the glances of her comrades, she read the answer literally on their faces.
"I think we're ready."
"Fine. Then we can start."

He took off his mask, revealing the familiar face again. He really looked like an ordinary (slightly unhealthy) teenager without all this uniform, which they fell for. Probably, it was quite hot in the mask, which is why the Golden Guard decided to take it off for the duration of the game, not being embarrassed by his subordinates. It was hard for Willow to imagine how he could wear it all the time. Just thinking about it made her feel hot.

"We are fighting against a team of five scouts. They are well prepared and already know the rules of the game, so I don't advise you to relax."
"We didn't even think about it," Gus replied decisively, slamming his fist into his open palm. Willow couldn't help but smile at her friend's agitated state. He burned with impatience to prove himself in a new battle.
She was glad to see him again in a good mood.

Five guards became their opponents. They did not see their faces, but it was not necessary. Noticing the staves of the Emperor's Coven in their hands, she asked herself a perfectly logical question, which she had only time to think about in her mind, since the answer was immediately given.
"Oh, yes, take it."

One of the scouts, catching the eyes of the Golden Guard, approached the girl. Willow gasped. Their palismans were safe and sound.
"Clover!" she was delighted, lovingly taking the faithful bee in her hands. As soon as she touched her own palisman, Clover immediately acquired her living form, starting to joyfully buzz and fly around her mistress. Her friends did the same with their totems.

"Will you use this staff?" Gus suddenly asked in surprise, pointing to what the Golden Guard was clutching in his hands. Now this detail has attracted everyone's attention.

He seemed to be lost. Seriously: such confusion flashed across his face that Willow felt sorry for him even for a split second. But only for a short fraction of a second.
"What else do you think?" he asked in what she thought was a slightly annoyed voice.
"But you—"
"This is the staf Golden Guard's traditional staff. What did you expect to see? Palisman?" He laughed, but the nervousness of his voice, to his misfortune, was clearly audible. "They aren't allowed in the castle grounds. Be glad yours survived."

Park frowned. Something was not right here. She clearly remembered the little red bird on the Guard's shoulder, with which "Caleb" seemed to maintain a fairly close bond. Hunter looked nervous.

She understood.

He hid the existence of his own palisman from everyone, even from scouts!

And it was reasonable. It is unlikely that someone here would not dare to use such information for their own benefit. Palisman would be in great danger if Emperor Belos found out about his residence here. Hunter defended himself and his little friend.
But where did he get this friend from? Why hasn't the Golden Guard handed it over to Belos yet, if the latter needs it so much? How did it happen that this stern soldier had something so cute and adored by everyone as a palisman? This was one of the reasons why Willow personally did not believe in the words of the Golden Guard at first.

"Let's get started," Hunter announced hurriedly, seemingly wanting to change the subject. "Captain, lead us."
The girl decided not to attach importance to the strange behavior of the Golden Guard, and therefore nodded. The moment everyone was on their staffs, she seemed to feel alarmed for the first time. As if it was only now that she finally realized what was going on. Her hands trembled slightly. She tightened her grip on the staff in them. This excitement was familiar to her. It was almost not displayed externally in any way, but it bothered enough internally... Strongly. Willow threw all her strength into making sure that no one noticed. When the game started, she felt a surge of courage. The process itself, apparently, gave her that leadership beginning, thanks to which she managed to earn the proud title of "Captain". It was just a game, just like on the school field, except without the wind in her hair, indoors and with other opponents. This time there was even less pressure, since only their reputation depended on winning and losing.

Willow managed to notice some peculiarity in the behavior of each opponent. She did this during the school game. Even with masks and cloaks, some signs of the guards, such as height, build, or horns on their heads, gave them away. Soon enough, the girl remembered them and their fighting style. One was very nimble and took two flags from them already. The other often used magic, and mostly construction magic – they very often had to dodge stones. What could be said unequivocally about everyone was that they did not compare with the students of the Hexside school. Those had more experience in the game itself, but these were more physically developed. This is not surprising. The previous duel seemed childish compared to how the course of the battle was developing now. And still, these little traits of each player helped a little.
Her team tried their best. They had only two gray flags, while the opposing team had already captured three green ones from them. They had to work even harder to beat them.

"Willow!"
Gus shouted to her from a distance of several meters, which he overcame in the next few seconds. He was going to hand her the flag while one of the guards chased him. Their hands touched each other, and at the same moment the girl intercepted the flag. She managed to hang him on the pole of their team while a friend dealt with the guards.
"Three!" she thought happily to herself. "Draw! If we get another flag, we can win."
It sounded simpler in her head than it really was. Once she fell, and could have inevitably hit the floor if she hadn't called for a litter of plants in time. She was able to grab the flag, but one of the guards literally snatched it from her hands when she was about to approach the table. They were not spared at all.

But it wasn't necessary.

She could feel sweat trickling down her back. Catching her breath, she prepared for the final push. Once near the opposing team's pole, she was about to grab the flag when two blocked her path. Quickly drawing a magic circle, she directed several thorny vines to clear her path, but the opponents skillfully evaded.
Do they get tired at all?" she thought. However, it was too early to give up. When she began to think that they were losing, a sudden flash of light blinded her. The girl did not have time to realize what it was.
"Come on, Captain," Hunter put the gray flag in her palm, saying these words. "I'll detain them."
He was the one who teleported her away from the guards. When his fingers touched her arm, Willow shuddered at the memory. During the first game, she handed him the flags when she fell off her staff. This time it was her turn. Thanking her friend with a glance, she moved towards the pillar.

She managed to get around one of the guards she met on the way. Scara took over the second one. The team members helped her, making every effort for a common victory.
There is!
"We won!"she announced solemnly, throwing out her hands. The eyes of her friends, distraught with joy, turned to her.
This battle was not easy.

***

This battle was legendary.
The boy's heart was beating so fast, as if he had just successfully completed another mission. The overall success felt even a little different than their own. He was part of the team and proved useful. Thanks to this, they came to victory.
"It was amazing"! Hunter exclaimed without skimping on praise and emotions, approaching his teammates. "We won again! For the second time!"
He saw that they were smiling, though not at all like after their game at school. They were smiling, but their faces were also clouded by fatigue.

"I have to admit, it turned out to be more difficult than I expected," Gus said between attempts to catch his breath. "I thought scouts didn't know how to play Flyer Derby."
"All scouts were once students, and the rules are quite clear and easy to remember. Isn't it exciting to defeat much stronger opponents?"
"You're right. It's exciting."
At the moment when the Captain touched his shoulder and weakly, with tiredness, smiled at him, something pleasantly pinched in the youth's chest. It was a strange feeling that could not be called either joyful or sad. Something in the middle. In the spacious hall, he suddenly felt hot, as if he had been basking in the sun in his heavy armor for a long time.

"We'll repeat!" he promised to follow the departing ones. The members of both teams began to disperse. Hunter stayed behind to clear the field of that little mess they made during the game–it shouldn't have taken long.
It was by no means the first and far from the biggest victory in his career and life, but it left a pleasant residue that did not happen after completing some particularly difficult tasks. The sickly-sweet taste of achievement, contribution to the common cause.

"Can I help you?"
A little bit did not expect that anyone besides him could still stay here, Hunter turned around with the sharpness of preparing for an attack.
"Oh, no, it's not worth it," he recognized Steve, who was watching from below as a teenager was removing flags from a pole. "I can handle it myself."

Steve didn't insist.
"As you know," he shrugged his shoulders, but for some reason he was in no hurry to leave. The scout continued to observe the Golden Guard's quick and agile movements as he teleported from one end of the hall to the other. "The game was impressive. Thank you for inviting me."
"Yes," the blond agreed, unwittingly breaking into a satisfied smile. "They're good. Especially the Captain. To be honest, I've never seen such a talent among school children before."
Sometimes he forgot that by age group he himself was fit for these school children. Fortunately, Steve did not comment on this.
"But do you really think they belong here?"

The teenager froze at the unexpected question.
"What? Of course! I've already said – they are very capable and worthy–"
"No, no, I'm not talking about that, "the scout hastily interrupted him. "I mean, do you really think they want to be here?"
Hunter didn't immediately find an answer.
"I... of course they will want. Maybe now they just don't understand that this is a huge honor..."
"This is not a job for everyone. The Boiling Islands are full of equally capable witches who want to join the Coven. But to force others..." he paused. "I understand, of course, that it's not my business, but I feel... A little sorry for them. I haven't seen much of my family since I got a job as a coven scout. These guys have families, friends that they have..."

Taken away.
Hunter knew what words that sentence was supposed to end with. Even without Steve, he understood perfectly well what was shining for those teens. He stared at the last remaining green flag as if he didn't know how to tear it down. He didn't want to look at the other person.
Why did a strange feeling of shame come over him if he knew perfectly well from the very beginning what he was doing?

"They were happy," Hunter said without turning around, stubbornly shaking his head. "Did you see that, Steve? They were happy. They enjoyed playing. Maybe it's really a little cruel, but life itself is as if you don't know it. Often you have to sacrifice one thing for the other. Perhaps they would never have reached their potential. It would be so stupid to waste time without even knowing what you're capable of."
Time is the most valuable life resource. That's exactly what his uncle told him, inciting his nephew to constant training and passing time usefully. It would be stupid to lose it, but Hunter knew that wasn't the main explanation. There was another, less generous and more selfish reason for this.

He didn't want them to leave.

He just didn't want to. Right now, Hunter felt like a petulant little kid about to have his favorite toys taken away from him. Didn't he deserve a bit of happiness himself? Especially if it will benefit everyone. He was sure that his new friends would eventually understand what he had done for them.

Steve looked at him for a long, silent moment.
"Isn’t it time for you to be on duty, Steve?" the Golden Guard asked in a colder and more stern voice, which he used when addressing his subordinates. He don't care if they were an order of magnitude older than him. He knew how to put himself and was not ashamed of age.
"I'm sorry, sir," the scout apologized quietly, then hurried away. His quiet steps did not attract Hunter's attention. A|n irritating thought stuck in his head.

"Steve is beginning to regret his choices."

Beginning to regret? Well, okay. These are Steve's personal problems. He just doesn't understand the potential these kids have! There are many of those? Rave! If there were many of them, Hunter would have competition not only with adults. There were many who wanted to. There were few good ones. Steve is just a scout, so it makes sense that he doesn't know anything about these things. Hunter didn't get mad at him. He understood this more, he was closest to the emperor and, accordingly, understood this a little more. The guy appreciated Steve's good-natured attempts to give him sage advice. There was no point in being offended by him.

Hunter plucked the last flag from the post. This movement turned out to be quite sharp, because of which the fragile green fabric almost tore. The bundle of thoughts in the head of a teenager slowly began to unravel. All was good. He did it. They won. His team is strong and happy. The rest will come with time. Steve, Darius, no one will ever have to doubt his abilities again.

He will show everyone.

Chapter Text

Despite the fact that Willow practically put her ear to the locked door, only silence came from the hallway. She heard the sounds behind her much more clearly than what she really wanted to hear.

"Can you be quiet?" slight irritation flashed in the girl's voice when she realized that because of the conversations of her friends, she could not concentrate on her work. "I can't hear anything."
"I think if there was someone, you'd have heard it," Porter remarked with a smile. "These guards have armor so ringing that you can hear them from the other end of the corridor."

“And yet you speak loudly. I think they hear your conversations no worse."
"Oh, so what? There's nothing wrong with that as long as we don't discuss the escape plan. And we have nothing more to hide."
Scara laughed softly at his joke, but Willow was serious. She was ready to give an answer to this, but her sensitive ears picked up sounds from outside the room.
"I hear something!" she whispered loudly, putting her index finger to her lips in a request to be silent, and this time all three of them obeyed her at once.

Gus exaggerated slightly. Yes, the guards were almost always heard, especially when they did not even try to hide their presence. Now the sound of protective armor was barely audible, as were the sound of footsteps themselves. The witch bent down, remembering the existence of such a wonderful thing as a keyhole. Although it was negligible, and with Willow's eyesight, it was hardly possible to count on good image quality, the color of gold was striking.

"The Golden Guard!" without turning, she gasped and heard the cots creak. Perhaps her friends began to collect cards, which, by a happy coincidence, on the day of the game, Gus turned out to have. Otherwise, they could simply go crazy with boredom in this confinement.

Willow tried not to breathe. She was already pressed against the door so that she was touching the keyhole with the glass of her glasses. She saw him, the Golden Guard, approaching them with a working gait. However, about three meters from their room, he staggered sharply. Park was surprised.

"Watch where you're going, Little Prince!" She recognized this low voice with an admixture of irritation immediately. The Head of Abomination Coven. He was the one who brought them here. A small flame of rage settled in the young witch's chest. It was impossible to escape from him, no matter how she and her team tried to do it. He was strong, but also self-satisfied. Preventing their attacks, he didn't even bother to take his eyes off his scroll!

The girl raised her eyebrows in surprise. She believed that almost everyone obeyed the Golden Guard, with the exception, of course, of the emperor himself. Even the scouts much older than him, in front of her eyes, obediently bowed their heads to Hunter. If they did not like it, they respected and feared him, or were forced to respect and fear him. Such carelessness Willow did not expect to hear at all, just like the apologies from the right hand of the emperor.

Did he apologize? To the Coven Head? It seemed to her that there was no one closer to the emperor than he himself. It seemed to her that the guy's pride did not allow him to know at all what an apology was in principle. It was so strange that Park fell out of this world for a while because of her thoughts. She managed to remove her eyes from the well at the last moment, before the key broke the glass in her glasses.

The door has swung open.

"What are you doing here?"
Willow put on the most innocent expression she could muster.
"We? Nothing," the girl replied smilingly, looking into the purple eyes opposite. "Waiting for you to come."
For a minute they looked at each other in complete silence. Hunter broke down first. Eye contact was not very pleasant for him.

"Nothing – is bad," he said, looking at the wall. "I'll bring you at least some books."
His eyes swept across the room, as if scanning it for any irregularities.
"Today we are training outside."
- "On the street?" Park asked stupidly, despite the fact that she heard everything perfectly.
"Yes, on the street. I got permission. Near the castle, of course," the blond added, narrowing his eyes, as if the four of them were already plotting an escape plan right at them.

"That sounds cool enough," Gus said. "Will you give us our palismans again?"
The Golden Guard thought.
"Maybe. But it's better that no one else sees you with them."
Willow, like the others, did not understand much, but obediently nodded in response to this statement. She knew that palismans were forbidden in the castle grounds. That's why Hunter took them. But the girl thought that the Guard was going to hand them over, and she was already ready for the fact that she would never see Clover again. However, as it turned out, Hunter only hid them, like his little feathered friend.

"I wanted to talk to you about this." As if reading her thoughts, the blond-haired youth spoke thoughtfully. He stepped into the room and closed the door behind him, apparently realizing at last that it would be more convenient to talk outside the door. "I've already said that palismans are not allowed in the castle grounds. That is why I took them from you and hid them. So if you want to keep them alive, keep your mouth shut." This time, his stern gaze flickered to Gus. Willow recalled that Porter had nearly spilled the beans about Flapjack during their game. "Yes, I also have a palisman. The bird became attached to me, and out of the kindness of my soul, I decided to leave it. If the rumor reaches the emperor, neither the palismans nor you and I will be happy, so I advise you to remain silent."

There was no point in threatening. None of them would risk their own totems, and there was no point in doing so. Although many questions popped into Willow's head, she made the wise decision to keep them quiet.
"I see you agree," Hunter said judiciously, as a small smile touched his scarred face. "Let's get out."

The sun was almost blinding, clinging to the roof of the castle. At first, Willow closed her eyes, trying to save them from this unbearable glow. At this point, she disliked the afternoon.

"Take your palismans, we will fly to the other side."
The area around the castle was small. A large chasm of impressive depth separated it from a wide stretch of land. She knew that there was also a retractable bridge, but she knew that hardly anyone would bother to activate it for their modest company.

She heard a familiar buzz and her heart jumped.
"I'm glad to see you again too, Clover," smiled the witch, holding out her hands to her own palisman. The bee rubbed itself against the mistress's cheek, after which it obediently turned into a staff.

Park expected them to be practicing right in front of the castle, on that little grassy field. However, Hunter did not stop when he flew to the other side, and led his company a little further.
"You said we're going to train near the castle," Viney frowned as if she suspected something was wrong.
"We won’t fly far," the Golden Guard calmly replied, landing near a small cluster of trees. "But no one will see you and your palismans here. That's for your own safety."

The team dropped down beside him. Willow felt the grass pleasantly tickle the skin of her legs, as soon as she found herself on the ground, which she was incredibly glad, like a breath of fresh air. She missed all this during her imprisonment in the castle.
Hunter was going to use the staff of the Golden Guard again. Why did he not take his bird if he returned the palismans to them? Was he so worried about his own, or had something happened to the little red cardinal?

Unfortunately or fortunately, this time no one asked this question, and even the very curious Gus decided to refrain from interest.
"How are we going to train?" Skara looked around in surprise, as if hoping to see someone else here. "There are only five of us, it’s impossible to play in such a line-up…"
"Yes, there are five of us," the Golden Guardian agreed with the obvious. "Scouts don't always have time for games. In case you're not aware, members of the Emperor's Coven have more important things to do.

Willow was a little annoyed at how proud he was about it. As if the game and their team meant absolutely nothing to him. It was only the knowledge that this was not the case that helped the girl keep a few caustic remarks inside her.

"We won't play, but train," the blond-haired guy continued. "As a single team."
"And how are we going to do it?"
"Let's practice the individual parts. Speed, height, coordination. You guys are playing amazing, but you still have some moments that sink in. Don't be offended."
Well, yes. From a professional point of view, he could see better. Willow suddenly wondered at what age he started doing so hard at physical.

"For example, you, Gus," Hunter turned to him. "You said that it is difficult for you to fly in a normal sitting position—"
"But you saw that I can fly differently!" Porter began to get angry.
"Don't interrupt. Your skills impressed me, your flying style is even more complicated than the basic one. But I would advise you to practice what is currently not working. You never know what might come in handy in the future.

It was a fair remark. Life loves to present various surprises, for which it is not always possible to be prepared in advance. For example, Willow never planned to become a member of the Emperor's Coven, to be imprisoned in a castle, like some princess from a children's fairy tale. In general, it seemed to the girl as if lately her life itself had been a series of surprises: meeting, reconciling with those with whom she did not expect this at all, studying and knowing herself, her hidden abilities...

"I propose to play a game similar to the Air Derby, but a little different," said the Golden Guard, as if he were judging each of them. "In this small thicket, I hid traps and five green flags - ahead of your question: yes, I prepared in advance. Your task is to collect these flags as soon as possible and bring them to me. It is desirable not to suffer and not die.

"Logically," Gus snorted derisively. "And how much time do we have?"
"There is no time limit. Do it how you do it, and then I'll tell you if it's good or bad."
"We just need to find the flags and bring them to you?" Willow asked, wanting to clarify. Everything sounded simple enough, so much so that it began to seem suspicious.
"That's right, Captain. By the way, you're the captain of the team again. I wish you good luck in this."
Before Willow could say a word, he soared up on his staff and in the blink of an eye disappeared behind the fiery red crowns of trees.

"Just wonderful," Park said with sarcasm and a measure of anger, looking after him.
"Come on guys, we can do it!" as always, Skara tried to maintain the spirit of the team. "We'll prove to him that we're stronger than we may seem."
Willow wanted to believe it. On the other hand, why shouldn't she believe it? Their team has already won, and twice. And she will continue to win if she herself believes in it.

Gathering her resolve, Willow stepped forward in front of her team.
"Yes," she began brusquely. "He said the flags were tied to trees. This means that we will fly from above - against the background of red foliage, the green color will be clearly visible."
"Maybe we should split up to speed up the search?" Gus suggested.
Willow thought for a moment.
"No," she finally answered. "He said that we should act as a single team and bring the flags to him together. We'd better act not so hastily, but together," the girl stood on her staff. "Follow me."

She was obeyed. Willow felt that her former leadership determination was returning to her. The adoption of new decisions and the need to issue commands did not frighten her, but pleasantly excited her, filling her heart with life.
During the flight, the girl thought a little, but still could not help but notice the bright green color, which, against the background of burgundy foliage, was very conspicuous.

"The first flag!" Behind her, she heard the joyful voice of Skara, who also noticed the object they needed. Bard immediately flew in the right direction, while Willow decided to take a closer look.
And then she saw something else that was very difficult to see at first.

"Watch out!" she shouted, rushing towards her friend, but Skara had already managed to grab the flag.
The flash of fire might have been the last thing she saw if the team captain hadn't knocked her off her staff almost the second she touched the flag. With her free hand, Park managed to draw a circle of spells and summon plants, which greatly softened the fall of the girls.

Gus and Viney immediately landed next to them.
"Are you injured?" Viney asked, getting ready to draw a circle of spells.
Skara, squirming, sat down on the vines and with a hiss raised her hand to her eyes. Her right hand was red from a fresh burn.
"What was that?" she asked in confusion and turned to the only one among them who could know the answer to this question.
"The fire glyph was glued to the back of the flag. I noticed a piece of paper when the wind blew and guessed it," Willow explained.

Viney sat down next to Skara, took her hand and began to cast a healing spell on the damaged area of skin. Gus, on the other hand, stood and watched all this with round eyes, expressing horror.
"These are the traps he has prepared for us?!" he exclaimed.

"What about the flag now?" Skara asked timidly, and Willow looked up to see that only a small burnt piece remained where the flag had been.
Good thing the tree didn't catch fire.
"Probably—" the girl did not have time to finish, as her eyes again noticed the catchy green color hiding in the red foliage. "Here he is!"

She flew to the right branch. The unpleasant experience made her first examine the branch and the flag itself from all sides and make sure that another trap was not waiting for her nearby. Everything turned out to be clean. With a triumphant look, she plucked a piece of cloth from a branch and held it up in the air, demonstrating her find:
"Here he is! Real flag! The previous one was just a trap!"
"We already understood that," Skara said a little sadly.
"Don't move your hand, I'm almost done," Viney told her sternly, continuing to work on her burn.

"It's OK. Now we know that we should be more careful, and this won't happen again, right?"
Silence meant consent.
With Viney fully healed Skara's arm, the team resumed their search. Gus managed to find the flag the next time. Again he was tied to a tree branch, almost in the most visible place.
"I found it," Porter said, but he began to fly up to the tree carefully, as if fearing that it might catch fire from his slightest movement.

Once close, he bent his head slightly, tightening his grip on his staff so as not to fall off it. Having examined the flag from all sides, the guy made sure that there were no glyphs here at all. However, in vain did he relax so quickly; as soon as he stretched out his hand, he immediately felt a thin thread digging into the skin of his fingers.

"Titan!" The teenager screamed and, without thinking twice, rushed down.
He made it just in time: several arrows flew over his head, and Gus was lucky only to hear their whistle.
"Gus, are you okay?" Willow asked, approaching him along with Viney, despite the fact that it was obvious.
"He had nothing else to do..." he muttered and raised his eyes to the sky. "Skara?"

"Took it!" the girl exclaimed joyfully, proudly raising her hand with the flag clutched in it.
This time there were no traps. Now they had two flags, which meant there were three more. In general, it is not difficult, if you do not lose your vigilance and remain attentive during the game. This is what Willow ordered her team before they took to the air again.

Trees rushed by at a rapid pace before her eyes. The girl tried to peer as best as possible, and soon the color of the rare green grass began to urge her to stop almost every time. Nearly all the vegetation was red and turned into one big mess in her eyes. The chirping of birds could be heard everywhere, it had become so habitual that the girl's brain began to worry when it suddenly stopped. They ended up in that part of the thicket where there were no birds, and it was strange.

"Flag," Viney pointed down to the bush, to which the flag was actually tied to a thin layer. But none of them this time was in a hurry to go down for very understandable reasons.
They all watched in silence for a while, as if wondering if they even needed to go down. What trap was prepared for them this time?

"Be careful," Willow said, and the very first, setting an example, began to approach the bush. She studied it with her eyes: for the presence of threads, glyphs, or any other traps, but she could not find anything of the above after a few minutes of research. Absolutely nothing to arouse suspicion.
"Looks like everything is clean," Willow said uncertainly. How could this be? Hunter set up cunning traps for them and would hardly skimp on them. Park could hardly believe it.

"Stop," Gus, as if reading his friend's thoughts, grabbed her hand in the air. "Don't touch it. It's an illusion."
To prove his words, he drew a circle of spells in the air and dispelled the illusion. In place of a small bush, a large thorny plant appeared - if Willow touched it, she would inevitably pierce her finger.
But the flag was indeed tied to a thorn.
"Thank you, Gus," Willow thanked her best friend, smiling at him.
"You know you can always count on me," Porter replied sarcastically, taking down their well-deserved flag. "We're almost done."

The next flag went to them quite simply. Rather, compared to the previous ones, it’s simple: it was hidden in a hollow of wild squirrels, but thanks to Viney, they managed to find a common language with them. True, it took some time, and healing spells, with which the girl got rid of scratches on her own hands. But it was worth it, because in the end, the squirrels themselves presented the witches with a small piece of green cloth.

"How did you manage to negotiate with them?" Gus asked.
"Lighter than easy. Squirrels used this fabric to cover themselves at night - yes, they have fur, but it's still warmer. In return, I promised only to give you into slavery so that you'd bring them acorns."
"What?"
Viney laughed.
"Of course, I'm joking. I just explained the whole situation to them. Wild squirrels only look so... Wild. Finding a common language with them is not so difficult."
"Sure if you know the beast magic" the guy rolled his eyes and got a chuckle from Willow.

"Okay, guys, don't argue. We have one last flag left. But... Where to look for it?" the girl was confused when she realized that they were at the very end of a small thicket, which they circled completely.
It was quiet here, so quiet that even the singing of birds, which was a background sound and still did not attract any attention, disappeared. But the silence was disturbing. They flew far enough away from the castle, and according to Hunter, all the flags should have been located only in that territory.

"Maybe we missed it somewhere?" Scara asked.
"Or did he forget to put up another flag?" Porter suggested.
"Neither one nor the other."
A familiar, unusually high-pitched voice for his age. Turning around, Willow saw the one she was expecting.

"Hunter? Have you been following us whole this time?"
"Did you really think I'd leave you alone?" He narrowed his eyes derisively. "Come on, you'd have run away then."
…But they didn't run away. They really fulfilled his requirements, bypassed strange traps, despite the fact that they did not know that they were being followed. Well... They weren't going to run away that day. They wanted to put their plan into action, to make a meaningful escape. If they took the risk now, they would only make the situation worse and finally undermine Hunter's trust.

"But we didn’t run away, see?" Gus said, apparently thinking the same thing she was thinking.
"Hm. Indeed," the girl noticed a slight surprise flashed across the blonde's face, which made her internally gloat a little. "And you have already collected all four flags?"
"All four?" Viney asked and looked at him suspiciously. "You said there were five of them!"

A smirk appeared on Hunter's face, which, according to Willow, could not bode well.
"And you must take the last flag from me."
He stretched out his hand, which he had been mysteriously hiding behind his back all this time. He held a familiar bright green cloth in his fingers.
"You… want us to fight you?" Gus asked in amazement, but the guy only grinned in response.
"No. It will be enough just to catch up with me, and this flag is yours."

"Just?" a thought flashed through Willow's head, for which she immediately reproached herself. She shouldn't have underestimated Hunter, nor should she have underestimated his methods, and by now she should have figured it out.
"Come on, Captain," he teased her, shaking the flag lightly. "Catch me and it will be yours."

It sounded so easy. The guy seemed to be deliberately trying to make it seem easy to her. But Willow was sure that in reality this was not at all the case: what were the traps he had invented worth!
Park takes a cautious step, as if to meet a frightened forest animal, which she intended to tame. Unsurprisingly, Hunter was airborne before he allowed her to approach him. Thus he started. Gus and Skara saddled their staffs and rushed towards him, but their opponent seemed to deliberately wait for them to approach him, reveling in their blind faith in false success, after which he teleported at lightning speed. A second - and now he is no longer a meter, but ten from them, and again lures them, calls to attack.

Willow rises and flies towards him. There are four of them, he is one, but he does his job perfectly. How deftly and at the same time quickly he flew around the trees and branches, not stopping for a single minute, made the young witch mentally go back a to the past and remember why she admired the skills of this guy in flight. Willow was on his tail the whole time. He teleported away from her every time she got close, and it was starting to get annoying. It was this irritation that urged her to try even harder, tighten her grip on the staff, bend down below under the frequent branches. Gus created many of them with illusions that were extremely difficult to distinguish from the real ones, but that didn't work either; Hunter dodged everyone, and they either crashed into trees and subsequently disappeared, or remained behind him, just like the original versions of them. The magic of the bard and even fur farming, when Viney called for the help of birds to delay him, did not help. Always, absolutely always Hunter was ahead of them.

And then Willow had an idea.

She deliberately lagged behind the others and turned in a direction where she could hide from prying eyes. Her plan was based largely on the element of surprise. Through the branches and foliage, she could see her friends chasing the Golden Guard. All four were too engrossed in the chase to notice her dropping out.
She didn't need much time. Drawing a circle of spells is a matter of seconds, but its power... Park hoped that she would be able to cope with her plan.

Adrenaline was almost the same as on some missions. Seriously. This was the case whenever Hunter had to face a worthy adversary, and he certainly could call these teenagers as such.
However, this has been going on for some time. It's not even that he was tired, but that ... By the way, they have already trained more than he originally planned.
Seeing the familiar gray armor in the distance, he held out his hand in front of him, urging the team to stop.

"Wait."
There were whispers from behind, which stopped when one of the Imperial guards came into their line of sight. The scout approached Hunter and stopped a meter away from him.

"I'm sorry to interrupt your training, sir," came the voice of the guard muffled by the mask. He only slightly bowed his head to his superior as he sat on the staff.
However, this was not the reason Hunter furrowed his brows.
"Something happened?" he asked in the serious tone that the Golden Guard always used to address his subordinates.
"An urgent order from the emperor," the guardsman said curtly. "You must lead a new mission, sir."

The teen's eyes widened slightly. He was often sent on missions, but quite rarely his uncle, like this, without warning, urgently entrusted him with something. Apparently, it was something clearly not insignificant.
"And what is this mission?"
"I don't know the details, sir. The emperor demands your immediate appearance at the castle."
It was understandable. Emperor Belos always summoned his subordinates to begin with, explained the essence of the matter, and only after that sent the soldiers on missions. Hunter would never have gone on a mission until he heard this instruction from the emperor himself - in his experience there have already been cases with deceit, jokes and other joys of life. Sometimes the guards also wanted to have fun, though this almost never got away with it.

The boy turned around and caught a few confused looks. A sigh escaped his lips, so heavy that he himself did not expect this from himself.
"Take them to the room. I will be right back."
The guard obediently bowed and turned his gaze to the children.
"We'll continue later," Hunter told them.
The three nodded hesitantly and followed the guard towards the imperial castle. Three...
Someone was missing!

Where is the Captain?

The blond looked sharply around him, as if in this way he could summon the girl. But nearby, he didn't see the familiar blue hair or the bright green tracksuit. Until now, it seemed to him that the members of the team pursued him together, and only periodically separated from each other a little, since completely different methods were used to capture him. But only three eventually returned to the castle, and she was still not there.
Hunter tried to quell the panic that was starting to build up inside him as he tossed from corner to corner. He just lost his own apprentice in the thicket, just think... Something could hardly have happened to her: there are practically no dangerous creatures near the castle, since the Emperor's Coven destroys them. Could she have gotten lost? It is also doubtful: the thicket is not so dense and occupies a relatively small area. Then there was only one option...

Titan.

Could she have escaped, leaving her friends behind? Until now, these four were inseparable - yes, they lived in the same room, of course, by force, but it was not like they did not like it. On the contrary, they were comforted by each other's presence. But surely Willow had a family that she missed, and it is unlikely that she would sacrifice her whole life of her imprisonment for the sake of a good game.
It's all the guy's fault. He let her go, he should have seen it. Of course, he could try to comb the thicket, but his uncle is unlikely to be loyal to his lateness. If he calls him urgently, this means that he must appear immediately, and nothing else. And Willow was probably already far, far away from here.

An instinctive scream escaped the boy's throat as something suddenly and tightly squeezed his shin. Looking down, he noticed the thin branches of the mahogany that were pouring over his leg in this place. When Hunter tried to free himself, he only made it worse: the grip tightened, thin branches now squeezed him to aching pain, and his very quick second leg was also captured.
"Damn it!" he mentally swore, reaching for the belt on which he wore a weapon. In the same second, his hands were bound at the wrist.
Every move brought wild more; Hunter had no way to free himself or even teleport with his staff. The blonde's heart pounded loudly in his ears. He fell into a trap, and whoever his enemy was, he could not offer him the proper resistance. However, the teenager was not going to lose face even in such a situation. He frowned, began to look around in panic. A drop of sweat slipped down his temple.

"Hey!" He heard a jubilant voice behind him and felt a strong hand grab the flag from his palm.
Everything immediately fell into place.
"You!" He turned around sharply. "Let me go! Immediately!"
Willow was shocked at the tone and volume of his voice. The girl's green eyes widened slightly as she faced the sudden wrath of her temporary prisoner. She drew a circle of spells and freed Hunter.

"I'm sorry, I thought I could catch you like that..."
The blue-haired girl flew back a little, a semblance of guilt flickering in her averted gaze. The boy's heart sank at the sight of this picture.
"Okay, it’s okay," the Golden Guard relented, twisting his wrist, which had a thin red mark on it.
"You caught me... Well done. You can assume that your team has won."
Willow beamed, the sadness on her face was instantly replaced by joy. Hunter didn't know what the strange warm feeling that came inside him at the sight of the girl's happy face.

"So… Now we’re going back to the castle, right?" Willow asked hesitantly. "I heard you talking to the scout, but I decided to finish what I started, since the opportunity presented itself... I'm sorry."
Hunter nodded.
"Very good. The surprise effect also counts. And yes, we should hurry."
He looked around. It was not difficult for him to orient himself and understand in which direction they should fly. He flew forward but looked back to make sure Willow was following him.

"Can you go to your room on your own?
The girl chuckled.
"I'm serious. Some scouts get confused in the castle at first when they just get a job."
"I learned the way to the room, thank you. I'll get on my own."
The boy narrowed his eyes slightly, as if he didn't trust Willow.
"If anything, you can contact any of the scouts, there're a lot of them on duty," Hunter noted this also in order to warn that any attempts to escape would be useless due to the presence of a large number of guards.
"Honestly, at first I thought you escaped," the blond admitted, turning his gaze back to the road in embarrassment.

"I could," Willow admitted, a hint of pride in her voice. "But I didn't, you see. It's about time you start trusting us," she added with jocular resentment.
"I can't trust you. You know very well why."
During such conversations, Hunter was extremely serious. Trust prisoners? Ha. He would laugh in the face of this joke if it were material. Trust will lead to nothing good, nothing but a knife in the back.
"Oh, come on, I’m just kidding," Willow chuckled innocently. "I know you are used to not trusting anyone with your job."
For some time after these words, they continued on their way in absolute silence. Or rather, no, not in absolute silence: no one canceled the whistling of the headwind and the singing of birds, but Hunter did not pay attention to these sounds.

"How is your little friend doing?" the Captain suddenly asked.
The blond did not immediately understand what, or, more precisely, who was being discussed.
"Are you talking about Flapjack?"
"Yes, about that red bird," the girl nodded, a smile on her face. "I haven't seen him for a long time... You don't take him with you."

The guy sighed. It was enough for him that Gus almost blabbed.
"Listen, I keep the palisman secret from the members of the coven... And from the emperor. They are prohibited in the castle grounds, yes. If unc— Emperor Belos sees him, he—" Hunter stopped in time. Of course, he could not name the real reason, could not tell about the emperor's curse, which only he knew about. "He won’t get well, and I don’t want that. He himself became attached to me, and now I can’t kick him out."

It was not entirely a lie... Rather, the truth is not completely. At first it was true. The little red cardinal himself found his owner. But the blond would be lying if he said that he himself did not become attached to this wonderful bird. He had a friend, a real friend, whose voice woke him from sleep and persistently persuaded him to go to bed early, a friend who supported him in difficult days, with whom it was possible to have conversations. After all, a friend he could trust. The second being, besides his uncle, whom he could trust. Why would a bird lie? Not from what. Flapjack loves him with that goofy, naive love of a pet for his master, and surprisingly, Hunter continued to love him the same way.

"Clover told me you were pretty nice to him," Park said.
"She's lying."
"No."
"Yes."
"No."
"Yes."
"No."
"I'll kick that stupid bee out."
"You won't do it. Why are you trying to hide it? There is nothing wrong with protecting someone!" Willow exclaimed. "I don’t understand how the emperor can dislike palismans at all? For what? They are very cute and very loyal to their owners!"

The girl argued and was indignant. In a way, she was right. There was indeed a lot of good in the palismans, and so far Hunter has not come across anything dangerous in Flapjack. However, he did not dare to argue with his uncle. He loved him, this man who gave him food, a job, a roof over his head when he was literally left with nothing. Uncle gave him everything, and Hunter was grateful for it, tried to repay in all possible ways. Sometimes he felt ashamed for hiding the truth from him, but every time he saw his own palisman sleeping peacefully on his cloak or pecking at something on the surface of the table, the feeling disappeared. He could not imagine that he was giving this sweet, faithful, innocent creature to death with his own hands.

He can find another cure for his uncle, of that he is sure.

"It's wild magic. It's dangerous," he said in a memorized text. Even though Hunter himself half believed it, he was still able to present this information in such a way that it sounded convincing.
Of course, Willow exploded.
"What? Do you really still believe this?! You yourself have a palisman, you see that they are not dangerous, they—"

"So the emperor thinks, and that’s all you need to know to stop talking about it," the Guard replied coldly, starting to feel annoyed. He wanted to close this topic.
Silence again. Not that it was somehow depressing, but it felt, in truth, a little awkward. It was like he said something so rude that she didn't want to talk to him anymore... But he was telling the truth, that's all. What is the point of discussing what they cannot change?
"I just wanted to make sure he was okay," Willow said quietly, but Hunter heard.

They landed at the entrance to the castle, after which the boy told the witch to hide her palisman.
"Never show it to anyone, okay?"
"But the guards at our last game saw them…" Willow remarked in confusion.
"Well, I will explain: not everyone can see them. Those scouts don't really care, but there are those who'll literally go to any lengths to get praise from the emperor, so be on your guard.

"I thought you were the same," the girl wanted to say, and even pursed her lips so that these words would not break out. Instead, she silently, submissively nodded.

They walked down the corridors, rounding familiar corners. Willow caught herself saying hello to the oncoming attendants along with Hunter... Titan, she began to get used to this place! Here she is already almost a celebrity, although it is a little insulting that they know her as a prisoner. At least now the Golden Guard didn't handcuff her. Did he forget or did he begin to trust her a little more?
"I need to go into the room to get my uniform. If you want, you can come with me."
Park's glasses nearly fell off his nose.
"Seriously?"
"You wanted to see Flapjack, right? You asked about him. You can see him with your own eyes."

Willow brightened up. She didn't know why the Golden Guard suddenly became so kind, but...
"Thank you." She smiled lightly, looking gratefully into his eyes.
"Nothing special," he turned away, and it even seemed to the girl that he was a little...
Embarrassed? Could he be embarrassed? It was so strange, it seemed unnatural. An emotion that, in her opinion, a witcher like him should be alien to. And not because she considered him irreversibly cruel. No, she never divided people like that. Absolutely evil and absolutely good do not exist - everyone has particles of both, just in completely different quantities. But it also happens that the brain itself forms associations with a certain person, and sometimes they do not converge with reality.

While she surreptitiously peered into his expression, trying to guess the emotion and trying to make it look inconspicuous, they approached the room. Hunter reached out to the doorknob and, catching Willow's curious gaze, looked at her inquiringly. It was the girl's turn to be embarrassed and look away.
"I don't have much time, so let's go quickly," he said softly as he opened the door.
Park immediately began to explore the room. It was small, but clean and relatively bright. The window here was very little, but let in enough sunlight. The large bed and the desk, on which the little red cardinal slept curled up, caught her eye. Willow even took her breath away from such a sweet picture.

"Flapjack, I'm back," Hunter called softly, closing the door behind him and Willow.
As soon as he uttered these words, the small bird immediately opened its healthy eye. The red palisman looked first at the owner, and then at Willow. At the sight of the latter, interest appeared on the muzzle of the bird. He immediately woke up, jumped up on his paws and quietly chirped inquiringly.

"Hi," the girl stepped closer to the table and held out her hand to the cute creature. Flapjack took off and landed on top of her with another short burst of chirps. "You're so cute! What are you talking about?"
"He says he remembers you and is glad to see you," Hunter answered a little anxiously, listening warily to the sounds outside the door.
"I'm glad to see you too, baby!" the witch answered, scratching the bird on the feathered back with her index finger.
Feeling the caress, the palisman whistled softly some pleasant melody and gently touched her hand with his head.

"Looks like he likes you," the obvious owner remarked a little with displeasure.
"Are you jealous?" she asked, grinning.
"No. I'm just saying it like it is."
Its feathers were small, fluffy and pleasant to the touch. Willow liked to stroke him, to listen to this unpretentious gentle melody. She heard Hunter walking behind her and going.

"It seems that they are friendly with Clover," the girl noticed when the bee flew off her shoulder and began to talk about something with the red cardinal.
"Yes, the palismans communicate with each other from time to time," the boy answered casually, simultaneously ringing his armor. "I forgot where I put the mask..."
"This is good. Well, I'm not talking about the mask, of course," she chuckled. "It's good that your palisman now has someone to talk with while you're busy."

She scanned the room looking for the totems of her friends. Looks like Hunter hasn't taken them yet... That's right, they left with that guard! But another detail caught Willow's attention.
"Is this yours too?" She nodded towards the toy, a pink stuffed frog nestled comfortably on Hunter's bed.
"What?" the guy was distracted from his search and tracked her surprised look. Immediately, the boy's face turned red. "It's... old. Ever since childhood."
"Oh."

Again she was surprised. It was as if learning the other traits of the Golden Guard was so amazing, as if he could not be a child, could not feel interest or love. Willow reproached herself for such thoughts. Yes, he was the Golden Guard, the emperor's henchman, who probably did some dirty work at times, but at the same time he was a Hunter. This is how Willow know him initially. He knew how to love, he had a palisman - a little red bird named Flapjack, in which he doted on the soul. He liked the game, liked it so much that he was ready to spend these games with them every day after work. Yes, he has a lot of work, but despite this, Hunter managed to carve out at least an hour for them and play Flyer Derby.

The girl suddenly realized. As if it wasn't clear. This guy who imprisoned them here was exactly the same teenager as they were. He was a child, he had a soft toy on the bed; he had a little friend, like her Clover. He liked to play sports with his team, although it is unlikely that he had something like this before. There were no peers in the castle to play with, and judging by the way the coven members treated him...
Her heart sank with pity, so much so that she wanted to cry. Flapjack tilted his head questioningly and tweeted, sitting in her arms and noticing the state of the girl.

"I have got to go," she heard Hunter's mask-muffled voice behind her. "Are you okay?"
She returned to reality.
"Yes— Yes, I'm sorry. I'm already leaving."
She set Flapjack back on the table. The bird chirped again inquiringly, but this time Willow could only say goodbye to he.
"Good luck," she wished after a few seconds of thought after they left the room.
The guard slowly turned around.
"Thank you," he said, and hurriedly walked in the opposite direction from her.

Thoughts still haunted Willow as she slowly walked into the room along the memorized route. Her heart was a little heavy and sad. She didn't want to think about it, but she couldn't help it.
As she opened the door, she heard her friends laugh and met their happy looks.
"Willow!" Viney exclaimed happily. "Finally, you have arrived. Skara came up with something!"

"Skara?" she asked uncertainly, closing the door behind her.
"Yes," the named girl smiled, apparently enjoying the attention that was now riveted to her. "I noticed something that might be useful for our future escape strategy."

The girl's hands trembled as she clutched the scroll. She was no longer ashamed and did not hide the anxiety in her eyes.
"They couldn't just disappear…" was all she could say, and she kept repeating the phrase for at least five minutes. It was painful for Amity to watch. She put her hand on her girlfriend's swarthy shoulder, hoping that she could at least calm her down a little, but was she capable of that when she herself experienced no less?

"That's it. And so we will find them," Blight said, narrowing her eyes in sympathy. As much as she herself wanted to believe it, she wanted to believe that she would be able to find a friend with whom she had only recently managed to restore communication. She really, really wanted to believe it.
"Willow’s fathers and Gus’s dad have already posted a missing person announcements… On the net, they put up a notice – but oh, it’s nowhere to be found! I— I just want to know they're okay..." Luz's voice cracked, trembling as if she was about to cry.

Amity's grip on her shoulder tightened slightly.
"We'll find them. We will definitely find it. The last time they were at school, right? We can ask around."
Noceda nodded uncertainly. That night, she and Amity were too busy searching for their favorite writer, and in the morning they found out that Willow, Gus, Viney and Skara were missing. Where could they have disappeared, and without a trace?

Luz put the scroll away and clenched her fists until her knuckles turned white. She will definitely find her friends, if she were not Luz Noceda, and the one who is involved in their disappearance won't get well.

Chapter Text

Hunter didn't know what he was doing wrong.
He was instructed to find recruits for the coven. That is exactly what he did. He brought in four teenagers who were talented and quick-witted enough for the job. The guy himself was surprised at his success. Even though they were only school students, they were more capable than he thought. With proper training, their abilities can be developed even more, and these guys will make an excellent four soldiers. Hunter was ready to take on the job himself.

But instead of the expected praise, or at least a banal recognition, he gets ... Nothing. It seemed that the condemning glances in his direction only became more frequent. Yes, he got his cloak back, but it didn't seem enough now. Perhaps he was exaggerating, but it looked like Darius only disliked him more.

"He didn't like the recruits?"
Hunter pondered this for a long time, and so far this explanation seemed the most likely. Four teenagers did not suit him with something, and he was dissatisfied with the work of the Golden Guard. Perhaps Darius simply did not see what they were capable of, did not see their potential.

"And why do I care about his opinion?" with irritation thinks guy. Yes, of course, he wanted to maintain his reputation, he wanted to maintain the respect of the coven members, especially those below him in rank. But his uncle's opinion always took precedence, and he approved of his choice. Well... The emperor trusted him, but he himself had not yet seen the future soldiers.

"What if Uncle is as dissatisfied as Darius is?"

This thought already makes his heart shrink in fear. If he fails again ... In a word, nothing good can be expected in this case. Even the emperor's anger is not as terrible as his own anger at himself. Hunter won't be able to look him in the eyes.

"No, it's okay," he thought to himself. "They just need to be trained. That's what I'm doing. Everything will definitely work out. They are capable, and soon everyone will see it."
The Golden Guardi is used to relying only on himself in everything. The fact that his success or failure now depended on other witches did not please him at all.

He practically crashes into a girl walking in the opposite direction.
"Oh!" the witch screamed, adjusting her thin gold-rimmed glasses. "I'm sorry."
Hunter narrowed his eyes in surprise.
"What are you doing here?!"

Willow was alone in the hallway, unaccompanied. This is a violation of the rules. Prisoners always had to be accompanied by at least one of the guards. Of course, these teenagers weren't exactly ordinary prisoners, because then they would still share the meager space in the dungeon of the Conformatorium, but they were forbidden to leave the room alone.
Did she manage to get out somehow? When did he not watch over it?
"I’m coming from lunch," the girl replied, holding his gaze.

"Why alone? Where are your friends?"
"They returned to the room. They were escorted by, uh... One of the scouts. I'm sorry I didn't remember the name." She chuckled as if she was talking about a complete trifle. "And I had to go to the bathroom ... Therefore, I asked for leave."

Hunter looked at her without averting his eyes, as if he had only to do so, and the girl would immediately take advantage of his momentary weakness, run away and disappear. Her words caused many doubts.
The guards had no right to leave the prisoners left to their own devices. Not for a moment, until they were again locked in their cells, and in their case, in a room. He gave this order exactly to everyone whom he asked to accompany them on those days when he himself was busy with work.
"Even scouts don't listen to my orders anymore, the boy thought bitterly, a heavy sigh escaping his chest before he even knew it. It seems that he really lost authority in the eyes of subordinates and heads of covens.

"Everything is fine?" He meets Willow's gaze, who looks at him puzzled.
"Yeah, it’s fine," Hunter replies quickly, almost smirking ironically when he sees something like concern in the girl’s eyes.
"Come on, I'll walk you to your room."
Willow doesn't resist and nods.

"However, it's no wonder I'm less respected," he reasoned, feeling himself blush with shame. An extremely unpleasant feeling settled in his stomach. Depending on someone else's respect is wrong. The guy did not rule out that a variety of dirty rumors were circulating behind his back, but as soon as he turned around, everyone immediately began to bow, fawn, please. It always works like this. But even if they no longer please, it means that he has lost all authority in the eyes of his subordinates, and this is already really bad. At this rate, he will not last long in his position.

His young age is not prestige at all, as many thought, exactly the same as family ties. Most believed that it was thanks to these two factors that he managed to achieve a high position.
In fact, on the contrary, he had to work harder and harder to meet the expectations of others. The title of "The youngest Golden Guard in history" required him to be constantly supported and justified. It was worth relaxing - and now respect turned into ridicule and gossip.

"It's going to be a long job," he thought as he automatically unlocked the door and let Willow inside. Yes, regaining your authority is much more difficult than losing it. But there must be some way to do it. Perhaps he should start with Darius. All gossip spreads through society like wildfire. In reverse, it works the same way.
If he manages to earn the respect of the head of the coven, then ordinary guards and even more so.

Willow didn't mean anything bad when she asked if Hunter was all right. He really seemed depressed. She meant, more than usual. It's no wonder he always looked tired and a little sick (Gus suggested he might be sick on their first day here), with so much work to do. However, his expression was different. The girl's empathy suggested that something was bothering him.

"Yes, everything is fine," not that she really believed him, but, in any case, she did not insist.
The girl nodded, agreeing to Hunter escorting her. In any case, she had already done what she needed to do.
She asked to go to the toilet, but, in fact, she intended to take a little look around the area. She remembered the guard frozen, obviously in doubt, and the cold sweat down her back. But in the end he gave his consent. It was almost funny. Probably, Hunter was so worried about this. He was silent all the time that they walked to her room.

As the door slammed shut, Willow joined her friends on slightly creaky cots.
"Willow!" Gus waved happily at her, trying to lure her into the game with a gambling smile. "Join us!"
On a small chair, in the space between the standing cots, were four stacks of shuffled cards.

Willow sat on the cot next to Viney.
"I don’t think I want to play right now…" she answered honestly.
"But I have already laid out the cards for everyone!" Porter excitedly pointed to several decks lying on a chair.
"Don't push her, Gus," Viney frowned slightly. "Are you all right, Willow?" the girl asked cautiously, placing her hand on her friend's shoulder.

"Yes, everything is wonderful. I walked along the corridor, but, unfortunately, I did not find anything that could help us escape... I just stumbled upon him."
"Upon the Golden Guard?" Gus clarified, instantly becoming more serious in his face. Until now, he had the least confidence in their new "friend".
"Yes. I said I was coming back from dinner, that's all."
"And he didn't come after you with questions about what you're doing alone in the hallway?"
"He asked, but I replied that I asked for time off to go to the toilet," Willow picked up the deck of cards prepared for her and looked at her without any interest. "I think he's a little out of his mind."

"He? Out of his mind?" Viney looks at her in surprise, arching an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"
Park shrugged.
"He didn’t seem to care about me," the witch replied, listlessly collecting her cards in a small fan. "Who goes first?"
"Me." Gus raises his hand and places one of the cards on the chair, but keeps his blue eyes fixed on Willow. "Maybe he's trying to pretend he trusts us more so we think we can get away? After our failed attempt, we will be locked up in a dungeon where he will no longer need to watch over us around the clock. Thus, he will simplify his task."

"Well, you are a theoretician…" Viney looks at him with surprise. She is actually impressed by his ability to come up with incredible stories in a minute.
"I think he was just worried about something, that's all," Willow shrugs again and frowns slightly, looking at the cards in his hands. She grabs one of them, puts it on top of Porter's card. Both instantly light up and disappear, turning to ashes. "I beat you," the dark-haired witch remarks, a slight triumphant smile touches her face.

The guy frowns and scratches his head with a thoughtful old man's air, as if he was trying to find the reason for his own loss.
"What can disturb the esteemed Golden Guard? " he did not scoff - genuine interest sounded in his voice. "Maybe we did something wrong with him?" He pours a pile of ash into his hand, clearing the surface of the chair. "Your move, Willow. You fight Skara."
The girl gets the deck in her hands again for several seconds, after which she puts the card in front of her new opponent. Skara hangs in thought, bringing her hand to her chin and frowning, demonstrating an active thought process.

"May be. I didn’t ask,” Willow replies. "I tried to find other possible escape routes, but found nothing."
"Probably pointless to look for loopholes in the castle," Viney suggests, and her opinion seems quite reasonable.
Gus frowns and crosses his arms over his chest.
"Do you think it's better to try and sneak out during outdoor workouts?"
"I don't deny it, but that's also problematic."

"I know!"
The moment Scara exclaimed, the three roommates turned to her in unison, waiting for a supernova mind blowing idea. The girl ran her eyes over each of her friends with intrigue, after which, with a triumphant look, she threw a card on a chair.
"I won!"
Willow's card turned to ice, Skara's card remained on top. It really was a victory.

A heavy sigh was heard from Viney.
"We thought you had an idea..."
"What is there to think about? Let's see the situation," the bard replied with a shrug.
Willow looked at her with an expression of mild surprise on her face.
"I didn't expect to hear that from the team strategist," she said with a grin.
"No, really, what can we do now? Now we are absolutely helpless. Viney is right about the castle - escaping from here is really... It is possible, of course, but very difficult. Therefore, I propose to trust the opportunity. I can strategize fairly quickly and in almost any environment." The girl smirked, letting a little pride spread across her face. She was not proud or overly shy - she knew her worth. "So I suggest you don't bother. By the way, who am I going to now?"
Viney raised her hand, signaling that it was now her turn in the game.

Willow watched how at first Skara, after a moment of thought (even in games she did not allow herself to relax and used her mindset to the fullest everywhere), put the first card on the chair, and then her opponent began to mumble, thinking about how she should answer. Yes, in fact, in this game you had to be able to think logically. Luz once mentioned that in the Human World there is a similar game with cards, but, of course, without such magical effects.
"It's going to be boring," she remembered Gus's wrinkled face in amusement. "How to understand that you have won if your player’s card has not turned to ashes or has not been covered with ice? It does not make sense."

But now, when Park looked at her friend, she saw only sadness and longing on his face.
"Gus, are you okay?" she asked as he leaned his hands on the cot mattress and sighed heavily.
The guy shrugged.
"It's easy to say 'don't fuss,' but it's actually much harder not to fuss," the boy said. "Do you think we can escape from here by the Day of Unity?”
"We’ll run away even earlier," Viney replied with a chuckle. "I'm not going to stay here longer than a week." She pulls one of the cards from the deck and frowns as if she's actually competing with them. She then sighs and takes the Skara's card. "I take. I have nothing to hit. Play with Gus."

Skara nods and goes back to thinking, looking down at her own deck as if for the first time.
"However... We seem to be able to convince him that we are his friends," Viney continues in a thoughtful voice. "It's not to be denied that he really started to trust us a little more."
"He's not that bad after all," Skara remarks, setting the card down on the table. Surprisingly fast.
She always thought positively and, it seems, did not know how to see something bad in others. Willow often wondered how she could befriend someone like Boscha.

"Not bad," the healer admitted reluctantly. But still our enemy. We must escape from here, and before Unity Day arrives.
"Father must be very worried…" Gus said quietly, looking up at the ceiling. "Most likely, he has already announced our loss on the news, and soon they will start looking for us..."
He stared up at the ceiling and swayed slightly from side to side. From the outside, it might look like he was talking to himself. Willow frowned. Sometimes she forgot that Gus was younger than her and everyone else here.

"We can hope that one of the relatives will guess where we are," he suddenly said, breaking out of a kind of trance.
"Then they will come for us."
"Right. Your father works as a host, so people are definitely looking for us already," Viney agreed, delighted that this small detail was remembered.

Willow thought of her fathers, who were also probably restless with worrying. Even though they didn't have the connections that Gus's father had, they were probably already doing everything they could to find their daughter. The thought warmed and broke her heart at the same time. She also thinks about Luz, whom she was thinking about recently. She had definitely noticed their absence. Maybe Amity too.
All the pleasant memories of relatives and friends, of the time spent with loved ones pop up in her memory, and she wants to cry. But Willow doesn't. She should at least be grateful that she is imprisoned in a comfortable room, and not in a damp dungeon, and that her friends are next to her.

"I take it!" desperate voice Gus brought her out of her thoughts. Skara chuckled softly, covering her mouth with her hand, while Porter snatched the card from the chair with an extremely displeased expression on his face.
"You're just lucky, bard."
"Envy silently."

By a happy or not so lucky coincidence, he again stumbled upon Darius in the corridor.
The head of the coven gave him a displeased look, from which the young man felt a hole in his stomach. However, he found the strength to turn to him.
"Darius!"

The named man stopped. Though extremely reluctant, he turned to Hunter.
"What do you want, Little Prince?" With all his tone, he made it clear that he did not want to talk with the Golden Guard.
But that didn't stop the latter.
"Do you really think I'm worthy of wearing this cloak?"

There was a silence that scratched his heart like a cat scratching an old shabby sofa. But the youth waited, looking at the Coven Head continuously, not even blinking. He was amazing at waiting. Wait for the best moment in ambush, wait for new instructions, wait until he receives praise for his efforts. He was ready to wait now.
The elder witcher sighed heavily and rubbed the bridge of his nose with two fingers, as if this question had tired him very much. Darius did this whenever something annoyed him or didn't arouse the slightest interest in him.

"Why are you so interested in this? I gave you the damn cloak."
Darius' question took him a little off guard, but he didn't lose his head.
"Because it's not just the cloak. I want to know if I have done well the work that was assigned to me."

For Hunter, conscientious performance of duties was extremely important. He believed that there was no point in work if it did not bring benefits. He tried to be as helpful as he could. Only in effort and work did he see the truth, and he could consider his work completed only when it was recognized as done correctly. Only then could he in good conscience afford to rest. Not vice versa. If doubts arise about his success, he must certainly correct it. So the teenager looks to Darius, waiting for him to point out the mistakes he can fix. Although he is not an emperor, he is a very authoritative person. Even if the members of the coven felt that he didn't deserve to wear the cloak, what good would his efforts be?
In that case, he could only prove that he deserved to wear that cloak.

A tired sigh escaped Darius's lips again.
"What if not? What if I don't recognize your work?" There was a hint of mockery in his voice.
"Even if you have done what you were ordered to do, I do not recognize you. I just don't admit it. There are no special reasons for this. You're just a teenager who has to, I don't know... Do teenage stuff. But don't take that position. Those who were before you in this position deserved it for a very long time. If you want to know my opinion, I really don't think you're old enough to wear that cloak. Satisfied?"

Hunter was not satisfied. Even though he expected something like this, he felt his heart become heavy. However, he still kept his eyes on Darius, not wanting to let his opponent recognize his weakness.
"But my opinion, of course, will not change anything," he concluded irritably, bypassing Hunter and waving him away as if he were an annoying insect.
The guard was silent for a long time. He turned around as the footsteps finally died away. The guy looked deep into the corridor, as if expecting to see the ghosts of the previous Golden Guards there, giving their blessing. A lot of thoughts swirled around in his head.

Not mature. Darius thought he was a little kid, didn't he? The young man clenched his hands into fists, feeling anger boil inside him like water in a kettle. Again nonsensical remarks about his age. Adults always think they are better than him. Even if they have less experience in training, they have much more experience in life, and therefore felt a sense of superiority over. In fact, it was so stupid and meaningless that sometimes he wanted to laugh like the ultimate madman. Some have paid dearly for such arguments later. As the saying goes, he who laughs last laughs best, and sometimes Hunter actually had the last laugh. But not in this case.
Anger called for an annoying desire to prove otherwise.

Throughout the night, Willow tossed and turned terribly. Not that it was surprising: she often tossed and turned in her sleep. But that was the norm when it happened in a dream. Now she did not sleep. No matter how much she tried to please Sleep, he still did not come to her. Ultimately, she gave in. Letting out a tired sigh, the girl lay on her back and stared at the ceiling, as if such physical exertion could help her fall asleep.

She heard Gus's light snore in her sleep and the cry of a crow outside the window. Everything around was calm, she lay in a comfortable bed and under a warm blanket, but for some reason she could not sleep. She thought about dads. Poor, poor dads... They sure are terribly worried about her. Willow remembered getting lost at a fair once when she was very young. Gilbert was then frightened more than herself and rushed to hug her daughter when she was found, forgetting even to reprimand her for it. A small smile appeared on Park's face at the memory. Then sadness filled her chest.
Sometimes her eyes closed, but her consciousness refused to stop its work. It seemed to do everything to keep her from relaxing and resting. Each of her friends was already asleep, but she couldn't. It seemed unfair.

When she couldn't sleep as a child, her father would come to her. They read fairy tales to her, and sometimes even by roles. Harvey was especially good at portraying the emotions of various characters with his voice: once Willow asked him if he wanted to become an actor, but he only laughed. He decided that the girl was joking, while in fact she was extremely serious at that time. And Gilbert was kind to her; he stroked her head, kissed her forehead and whispered goodnight when he thought she was already asleep, but she heard every time.
Willow's eyes watered involuntarily as she thought of her fathers. She thought she felt Gilbert's warm hand again on her forehead, gently smoothing her dark hair. He always smelled of something delicious, because he liked to cook. Then he closed the door, and the golden streak of light grew thinner until it was a thread-thin hole.

When a roar was heard, she automatically jumped up on the bed and turned her head in the direction of the sound. Her vision was blurry, and all she could make out in the impenetrable darkness of the night was the faint silvery light of the moon. Willow reached over to the nightstand next to the cot and fumbled for her glasses. Putting them on, she could make out a figure leaning near the window.
"What— Hunter?" the girl slowly stood up and walked uncertainly towards the named guest.

Yes, it definitely was him. Stepping closer, Park was convinced of this. She knew only one witcher with a long, wavy strand hanging over his forehead - a rather noticeable detail.
Their eyes met, and Willow read even more shock in the purple eyes.
"I… I think I mixed up the rooms…" he whispered.

The girl looked at him, still not believing her eyes. He was on one knee, as if bowing to her. For the Golden Guard to mix up the rooms? Nonsense. Willow gave him an incredulous look and noticed something drip onto the floor with a thud. Her eyes widened in horror as she could make out blood in the moonlight.

Chapter Text

Amity held her hand tightly, afraid to lose her in the crowd. At lunch break, schoolchildren hurried to the canteen, and sometimes it became like a real struggle for survival. However, the two girls stubbornly continued to go against the crowd in the most literal sense of the word.

"Excuse me, could you please take a minute to pay attention?"
Luz was practically begging, and Amity was sad to see. In most cases, the students either denied or completely ignored their requests. Blight involuntarily thought that if she were the same as before, not a single student of this school would dare to refuse her, and they would already have fished out the information they needed. True, in this case, she would not have helped Luz if absolutely everything had been the same as before.

"Luz, you need to eat too," the girl said softly, squeezing the man’s warm hand even tighter, but at the same time more tender. Of course, she was also worried, but Luz's self-sacrifice would hardly have led to anything good. She was worried about her girlfriend, which was completely normal.
"But we still haven’t received any valuable information!" Noceda screamed with unexpected irritation, but in her brown eyes Amity saw regret, pain and something else.

Guilt.

Luz constantly blamed herself for everything. For what I'm guilty of. For something that is not your fault. Amity hated to see her like this. It pained her immensely to think that she had acted so horribly to the person she loved most before. And she was ready to atone for this by caring for Luz, since the human herself does not want to do this.

And now the witch's hand gently rests on her shoulder.
"Luz, it's useless... At least for now," she spoke calmly and quietly, as if afraid to startle her. "You can't forget about yourself. It won't help them…" She bit her lip, feeling fear boil up in her heart. They didn't know what happened to the suddenly disappeared friends. There were suggestions that it was the losing team who decided to take revenge on their opponents bypassing them in such a dirty way, but the check showed that this was not really the case. And they had no more guesses.

Luz gave Amity a long look, as if in competition with her, but then only sighed in exhaustion.
"Okay," she nodded, resting her head on Blight's shoulder. Under other circumstances, Amity would have been delighted and touched by this, but the sadness in the eyes of the girl she loved caused her great pain. She felt like she wanted to protect her as she hugged her tightly.

As much as she wanted to rid Luz of her worries and heavy guilt, she felt the same way herself.
"Willow has really become many times stronger. They are definitely all right," Amity tried to calm herself, but she got out of hand badly. She did not doubt her friend, but, nevertheless, she could not know anything for sure. The Penstagram messages remained unread. Amity had not written to her for a very long time until this day. Once she hurt Willow too, and when everything seemed to start to get better, such a tragedy happened. A monstrous injustice.

As soon as the girls were about to leave, a quiet voice was heard behind them.
"I'm sorry, I— I can help you, I think..."
Amity turned around. She saw before her a familiar modest girl, whose name, however, she could not remember. She was a young witch about their age, perhaps a little older; her pale face was covered with freckles, she looked at Blight with her golden eyes, modestly scrolling a strand of curly pinkish-red hair in her fingers.

"Yes?" Luz perked up instantly as she approached her. It was like a switch had been triggered inside her.
"You're looking for someone who was at the game, right? I was there... I can tell you what I saw."
Amity was ready to hug this girl as tightly as she could. She sacrificed her time and lunch break to help them.

Luz instantly beamed.
"We would be very grateful!" She said it so loudly that the poor fellow even flinched, not expecting such a violent reaction. For a second, Blight feared that their savior was about to leave, taking with her what little hope they had.
The human took out a notebook and a small, badly sharpened pencil that she always carried with her for sketching. Now she was obviously going to give it another use.
"We listen to you carefully," she said with a measure of self-satisfaction, quoting her and Amity's favorite heroine Azura in one of the books where the witch interrogated her adversary. Luz has always been amazing at parodying her.

The girl (who turned out to be Mildred) told them nothing new in general. She only saw what happened during the game, but not what happened after. Amity was ready to despair and thank this girl for at least the information that she was able to give them when she took out her scroll.
"I completely forgot that I took some photos…" she said, and after a few clicks she opened the gallery.
The quality of the photo was good enough, even with movement, that the girls could make out the silhouettes of their friends and... Someone else.
"That's…" Luz gasped, and Amity fully shared her surprise.

The Golden Guard.

What did he forget in this game?!

"Thank you very much for your help," Blight smiled at Mildred. "You showed us everything we needed."
"I'm glad if I could really help you." The pink-haired girl smiled and disappeared into the crowd of students, while Luz and Amity were left alone with their thoughts.

The witch saw the human's fists clench.
"It is he. He took them. It can not be in any other way..."
There was undisguised malice in Luz's eyes. Amity herself felt the rage seething. First the key, now her friends. What was it? Revenge? Some special mission?
Whatever it is, they must find it and interrogate it. And this time, Amity will not look at their similarity and will not show him the slightest pity.

"We need to break into the castle," Luz said decisively, as if reading her mind. Of course, the idea was crazy, but this time they really had no choice. Friends are not left in trouble.
"Will you ask Eda for help?"
"No, she ... She will refuse. She'll say it's too dangerous and that I'm still a child." Luz rolled her eyes. She hated being considered a child. "Only we. Together. Fine? Do you promise not to tell anyone?"

Amity smiled as if she had been waiting for those words.
"No one will know," she promised, squeezing her girlfriend's hand. "Meet me in front of the school tonight."

Willow took some time to recover. Hunter's sharp sigh finally snapped her out of her trance.
"Careful, careful." She rushed towards him, catching him before he collapsed to the floor. Luckily, he wasn't heavy for her at all. "D-don’t make any sudden moves…"

Despite the fact that she was still in some shock, her voice was measured and even quiet so as not to wake the sleeping neighbors. In the silence, broken only by Gus's sniffling, she heard a stifled moan of pain. The guy seemed to become a doll as soon as she touched him: now she felt all his small weight.
Park helped him carefully slide down the wall. In such darkness, it was difficult to see anything clearly. His already pale face looked dead white in the moonlight, the dark circles standing out even more against the milky skin. Taking her hands off his side, she felt how wet they were.
"What happened, Hunter?" this time her voice trembled, just like her hands (which she could not see in the dark, but knew that they were in the blood).
"Just a mission…" he replied in a colorless voice. "I was… hurt by a monster… It happens sometimes."

Sometimes happens? Titan, he was now dirtying the floor and talking about it as if it were the most ordinary thing? Even if his work included such incidents, how can one treat it so casually?
"Sit down and don't move," she commanded in a commanding voice as she stood up. She doubted that in such a state he could jump up and catch up with her... Although who knows this damn survival guy ?! In the end, he got here by some miracle, and still found the strength to argue with her.

Assessing the seriousness of the situation, she decided on desperate measures.
"Viney, wake up," Willow grabbed the shoulder of her sleeping neighbor and began to shake her. "Faster..."
"What— What..?" heard a sleepy voice of a girl. She blinked slowly and stared at Park, uncomprehending.
"Need your help. Urgently."

The girl put all her seriousness into these words, which is probably why Viney jumped out of bed, as if scalded. She understood: if someone needs any of her help, then it is more likely to be medical.
"What's happened?" She looked at her friend with eyes round in shock, and then her eyes flickered to the figure that her peripheral vision caught in the darkness. "Oh..."
She quickly got out of bed and in the blink of an eye she was in front of Hunter, dropping to her knees. Willow ran up to them.

"Do you hear me?" Viney asked him in a quiet but strong voice. She touched his white cheek with the back of her hand.
The guy held his hand to the wound and closed his eyes when they touched him, as if the girl was touching his sore spot.
"I hear…" Hunter replied and coughed, letting out a soft moan. "I hear..."

"So, I’m going to need time…" Viney announced, trying to sound authoritative, but Willow still heard subtle notes of uncertainty in her voice that made her body goosebumps. She now had all hope.
Viney began to heal. From time to time, quiet groans were heard from the side of the sufferer, but Park was still inwardly amazed at his stamina. The rest of the room also began to wake up, and soon the whole four sank down near the wall.
"Stay away, please, I'm trying to concentrate," the girl said firmly. A bead of sweat was running down her face, and she was frowning with tension. Viney had never had to heal so much damage before, and she was visibly nervous for obvious reasons. All that was left was to hope and pray to the Titan that she would make it through.

The dark blue light emanating from under her hands did not disappear for several minutes. In the end, she exhaled exhaustedly and literally lowered her hands.
"Are you okay" Skara looked at her worriedly and put her hand on her shoulder. Vinie was breathing heavily, sweat trickling down her forehead.
"It's all right," she replied dismissively, while she herself was more worried about her sudden patient, whom she had not fully cured. "Now the wound is not fatal, but I didn't close it completely."

"Then I can handle it myself," Hunter nodded. He was still a little pale, and sweat was running down his face. "Thanks,” he said quietly to Viney, and slowly got up, leaning against the wall. Willow almost rushed over to help him, but ended up not moving.
"Sorry to wake you up. Good... Good night. See you tomorrow at training."

"What trainig? Crazy?!"Suddenly, Viney gave a loud authoritative voice. "With your wound, you should rest for at least a few days!"
Even Willow was a little taken aback by her friend's tone, even though the words weren't meant for her. Even though Hunter was their mentor, Viney wasn't afraid to talk to him like that. When it came to healing. She already had the makings of a future doctor - rigor, determination, quick decision-making. Healers are responsible for saving other people's lives, and absolutely everyone needs their help at least once, so rank and age do not matter. They are listened to, they are trusted with their own health, their own lives. And in those painful minutes that dragged on like hours, Hunter's life was in her hands, whatever one may say.

The guy, too, seemed not at all surprised by this behavior of Viney and only turned an indifferent tired look at her.
"Work is work. Thank you for helping... Really, thank you. Then I'll figure it out myself. Believe me, this is not the first injury in my entire career."
He was given a long, silent look. The tension in the room grew, let the panic disappear. Now his life was not in danger, but without proper care, the risk of complications could increase. Willow knew it herself. It's like a cold - at first glance, a frivolous disease, but if left untreated, it can flow into pneumonia.
There was a question in her mind that she, like everyone else in the room, didn't dare ask.
Why didn't he go to the Healing Coven? Is it just because he mixed up the windows?

Did he really mix them up?

"Do as you please. Good night," Viney told him, crossing her arms over her chest. She wasn't going to argue with him. He is not a little boy, but what is there - older than her.

As the door slammed shut behind him (or rather silently closed), the room fell silent again for a moment.
"Wow, Viney..." the youngest broke the silence very first. "Even I was scared… As if you were talking to me."
"Glad to hear," the girl grinned, her eyes narrowing like a fox.
But Hunter really listened to her! Until then, he seemed to listen to no one but his beloved uncle. Maybe because his life really hung in the balance, he temporarily changed his principles?
"Do you think he'll be all right?" filed a worried voice as always good-natured Skara, who was worried about any insect that crawled across the road in a crowded place. But now her worries were not unfounded.

"He's not a child anymore. He said that he would figure it out, so he would figure it out," Viney snorted and crossed her arms over her chest, but Willow did not escape the slight alarm in her voice. She, too, was not indifferent to what had happened. Otherwise, she wouldn't even yell at him.
"I gave him first aid, now his wound is not critical and does not threaten his life. And this, after all, is indeed not his first injury. With his work, he certainly knows what he's talking about."

It sounded logical. Willow had already seen a small scar on his cheek, a small one on his ear and even on his arm, when she accidentally noticed him without gloves. The scars on his work were not surprising. Perhaps, on the contrary, even a source of pride. The scars showed that he had been in more than one battle and seen a lot. Maybe that's why Hunter left them instead of healing them.

Why didn't he ask for help now? The Healing Coven worked day and night. Surely they would not refuse to help the Golden Guard.
"I'm going to sleep," Viney finally said, yawning. "And I advise you. You need to sleep at least seven hours a day."
"It’s a joy to get some sleep with these workouts," Gus grumbled, getting into bed.
In fact, they had a gentle schedule. Many scouts worked almost around the clock. From time to time, insomnia overtakes the girl, and she heard footsteps outside the door of their temporary room. Most likely, Hunter himself sometimes passed there. Their rooms were located next door, but the walls did not allow to hear what was happening in another room. But doors did. If you listened carefully, you could even hear snippets of conversation. And now she heard the rumble of one of the nearby doors.

Willow got into bed and covered herself with a blanket. A noisy sigh escaped her chest. Of course, after this, falling asleep will not be easy - stress and nerves have done their job. Still, the girl closed her eyes, hoping to get at least a minimal amount of sleep.

Entering the room, Hunter tried not to slam the door too hard, but he also failed this mission. He held his breath, listening to the sounds from outside his retreats. Silence. No one reacted to his trick in any way. It was very good. Exhaling noisily and heavily, the young man leaned his back against the cold wall and silently sank to the floor.

Immediately, a generous wave of anxiety washed over him.

"I'm fine, Flapjack," he wearily waved away the bird, which the Titan sees was circling above him, just like a hummingbird. "Hey, don't peck me! Sooner or later I'll get bruises from you, little abuser." He laughed softly at his own joke. "I'm fine, really. They helped me."
The chick chirped the urgent question in surprise.
"Of course not. You know why I have no right to apply there." Hunter frowned slightly. "The road to the Healing Coven is closed for me... Therefore, I planned to heal myself, but mixed up the windows. And that girl with the tail, Viney, she knows healing spells well. She patched me up."

I patched up. Like a doll. That's pretty much how it looked. She did not leave him to try to escape from here with her friends. None of them fled, as if they were fighting for his life, although they were not obliged to do so, unlike the healers. It was strange and unusual for him.
Is this what friendship is about? So it is known?

Flapjack jumped up and down and chirped inquiringly again.
"Yes, I feel good. What are you saying? Do you think she's talented?" he held out his hand to the palisman, on which he deftly jumped. "Yes, I think so too. Like all of them..."
The red cardinal bowed his head questioningly, peering into the master's now thoughtful face.

"You know... I used to want to make warriors out of them to prove my worth. Darius, uncle... Himself. But now... I would like them to understand for themselves how capable they are. To become stronger. I... Really believe in them?"
In all those many training sessions, he watched his friends get better and better, they make fewer and fewer small mistakes. Watching them, Hunter experienced a pleasant feeling. As if he was on to something. Never before had he been so pleased to see the success of others. He believed they could, and he was absolutely right.

He really believed in them.

Flapjack chirped again.
"I am not attached to anyone!" The blond jokingly waved the bird away. Palisman flapped its wings in protest. 'More precisely... We are, of course, friends, but... I'm not attached to them, no. I can't. They... Still want to go back to their families, I think." Chirping again. "Yes, they themselves said that they like to train and that we became friends, but... I think something is wrong here. Anyway, I brought them here by force. Although among the scouts there are those who did not come here of their own free will, but later fell in love with their work more than their family, friends and former life, so... Am I doing the right thing?"

Doubts in his head entwined into one huge tangle. He knew that he wanted the best, honestly fulfilled his duty, tried for the good of the empire, made sure that his new friends became stronger, more experienced and got better jobs on the islands. But the disgusting gnawing feeling from within did not subside. He tried to improve the situation, but seemed to only make things worse. And it wasn't even that Darius didn't praise him, and his uncle didn't seem to pay any attention to what he was doing.

He himself felt that he was mistaken, but he could not understand what.

Flapjack looked at his owner with silent concern.
"Of course, you will not give an answer... I have to give it myself."

Chapter Text

Willow did her best in training and at some point found herself thinking that she really liked it. During her studies, she could not organize her time so that she could train a lot and properly. Well... In such quantities, at least. Now, with every cell of her body, she felt the strength that she gained through hard work every day.

Of course, it was in no way like going to school. At first it was incredibly difficult to get used to the new regime, but later the girl got the taste and really loved the workouts, which helped her become stronger than she was.

All this boiled down to the fact that sometimes she mentally reproached herself for selfishness and similar thoughts. Of course, she still missed her dads and Luz and Amity. The attitude of those around them also left much to be desired - Hunter had a decent number of ill-wishers and envious people, and they, ordinary schoolchildren, also his students, were not taken seriously at all. The lowly demon who had once given them a tour of the castle and who, as she later learned, was called Kikimora, especially disliked the Golden Guard and always looked at their company as if she was going to kill them in their sleep. This look always made Willow feel a little uneasy, and before going to bed she would check if the door was closed.

It's not like she's warming up to Hunter. More likely, I just got used to it. And after tonight, thoughts simply did not leave her head. When her friends discussed their future escape plan, she couldn't help but feel guilty. If they knew what she was thinking, they would probably stop communicating with her.

"What's wrong with me?"

She thought about it all morning. She claimed to convince herself that she doesn’t like it here. First, she was forced to live here. Secondly, she hasn’t seen her family and friends for a long time and really misses them. Thirdly, she works for the emperor, and obviously it was not the others' desire to treat her in the best way. But then the fair thought occurred to her that someone who doesn’t like something doesn’t spend so much time convincing himself that he doesn’t like it. Does she really like this imprisonment? This is complete nonsense! Most likely, she simply adapted to the conditions. It's better than if she went crazy.

Someone's hand lands on her shoulder. The girl turns around and meets Gus' gaze.
"Everything is fine? Tired?"
"No, everything is fine," she stretched her lips in a smile and got up from the floor.
"Just took a short break."

It seems that her friend managed to notice her thoughtful expression, but, fortunately, he realized that now was not the best time to ask questions.
"Really," he said, sitting down in the place where his friend had sat before him. "And I’m thirsty."
"I can go get some water."
"Really?" Gus looked up at her. "That would be nice."

Prior to this, Porter had repeatedly expressed indignation about the lack of coolers with drinking water on the castle grounds. It is unthinkable for the entire palace to have only one dining room, which was not open around the clock! However, the guards brought a decanter of water to the "prisoners" room every day. In the first days, the guys were afraid to drink it and tried to identify any substances, but after Hunter took a big sip in front of them, they began to trust it a little more.
Willow went out into the corridor and after a couple of meters came across the mentioned Hunter.

"Oh... Where are you going?" he asked, arching an eyebrow, as he caught her in the corridor during training time.
"To get some water," the girl answered, looking him straight in the eyes in an attempt to prove her honesty. Judging by the softening look, the Guard believed her.

"Fine. I’ll be waiting in the hall," he said and, running his hand through his hair, headed in the named direction past her.
"He won’t even send security after me?.."
Before this, the guy did not let them go without protection, even when needed. And then he left them alone in the hall for a few minutes, having distinguished themselves in some matter, and sent them out to fetch water... Did she also begin to trust them more? Or did she just want it to look like that?

Either way, Willow found herself glad to see him up. Hunter looked as if nothing had happened that night that deprived her of sleep.

After pouring a glass of water for Gus, she returned to the hall, where the others, including the boy, were studying. They could rest a little while he was away, but in his presence they pretended to give their all. However, noticing Willow entering, the young man immediately headed towards her.

Anyway, Willow found herself glad to see him up. Hunter looked as if nothing had happened that night that deprived her of sleep.
After pouring a glass of water for Gus, she returned to the hall, where the others, including the boy, were studying. They could rest a little while he was away, but in his presence they pretended to give their all. However, noticing Willow entering, the youth immediately headed towards her.

Hunter really told her a lot of new things that they didn’t bother to explain to her at school. And, contrary to her expectations, he really knew how to explain. I would put him in the place of her first teacher in Abomination class. On the first day, she couldn’t say this, but later, no longer spending so much effort trying to seem cooler than he was, Hunter began to communicate normally. Surprisingly, he could do this too. Her first impressions of the Golden Guard were completely different. Is he really not who he wants to seem, only in the good sense of the word?

Remembering that smile, those purple eyes burning with excitement and desire to win, Willow could not imagine that all this was a deception. Each time her heart sank from pain and betrayal.

She approached the guy who had just been talking to Gus about something.

"How much longer will we train?" asked Willow. She thought that with this question she could probably show that she was not interested in all this, which, of course, was not the case. She just didn't want to be left alone with her meticulous thoughts.
Hunter was unfazed by this.
"About fifteen minutes, then lunch. You are tired? If yes, then you can rest."
"I’m not tired," the girl answered. She was just thoughtful, why did everyone think she got tired so quickly? "Are we going to play today?
"Maybe, but later in the evening."
"I see," she rolled from toe to heel, like a child begging something from its parent. The girl expected Hunter to be angry with her for wasting time asking questions, but this did not happen.

"He has changed," it was impossible not to notice. Today he seemed softer than in those days. Has anything affected his mood today? For example...
"How is your wound?"
He answered this question not so quickly, and Willow, meanwhile, lowered her eyes to the place where the injury was. It seemed that even now she could see the pool of blood under the golden armor... Memories came flooding back, making her shudder. It wasn’t that she was particularly impressionable or afraid of blood, but at that moment she was really scared. Although Viney healed his wound, it was not completely.
"Fine," Hunter answered with a little absentmindedness. "I bandaged her."

"And still: how do you train?" followed by a new question.
"Nothing unusual. It is no longer so dangerous after the healing and processing spells."
"But Viney told you to rest for at least a couple of days..."
"And I said that I don’t have time for this," the fair-haired one answered a little dryly. In fact, he didn't understand why Willow was asking him this. Does she think he's weak?

The girl's slightly worried gaze slid over him.
"But you— At least—" she tried to find words so as not to look stupid later. "Try to be more careful... Viney really doesn’t talk about such things qithout any reason. Otherwise, she’ll have to patch you up again," she said a little more confidently, crossing her arms over her chest and looking him straight in the eyes. It was as if she was glad that she was able to hide her own anxiety behind her reluctance to make Viney's life more difficult.

"This is not the first year I have dealt with such injuries. It could have been worse," Hunter’s voice became more and more careless, since the conversation on this topic was not very pleasant for him. The fact is that the young man believed that Willow considered him not strong and experienced enough, and the girl, in turn, was simply worried about him, since compassion and mercy were not alien to her since childhood.

Милана Караджова, вчера в 22:36
"And it doesn’t hurt?"
"Little things," Hunter answered again casually. He could tell he was used to the pain, but he bit his tongue just in time. Willow, however, could have guessed this herself, because there were plenty of visible and not hidden by clothing scars on the guy’s body.

This tone was enough to convince the girl to leave him alone with such questions. Yes, and to lag behind in principle. Willow walked away to continue her training with Clover.

Hunter still didn't understand why he was asked so often. These questions irritated him. Sometimes he caught Viney’s dissatisfied glance, but she was silent and turned away when the guy noticed her. He didn't like it, but he tried his best to seem indifferent to it.
He didn't sleep that night either. It was probably the strangest night of his life. After healing, he felt much better, despite the dizziness and slight burning pain in his chest, but this was a minor thing. When he mistakenly climbed through the window into their room, he really thought he might die. He had to deal with such large wounds a couple of times, but he had to act quickly. And he spent a lot of time on the road and got into the wrong room, which also wasted a significant amount of his time. The dizziness was too strong, and it took incredible effort to get to his feet.

He could not. And at that moment he was found weak. This is probably why they now looked at him with the same compassion with which they look at a helpless child or an animal caught in a trap. And Hunter didn't know if he was more angry at them or at himself.

It was not so much the pain that prevented him from falling asleep, but the annoying thoughts. It was a big lump that made his head feel heavy. A disgusting feeling of regret. How will he gain respect for himself now? Will she be able to bring him back? If not, then all his work will be in vain. He will let his uncle down again. This logical chain endlessly scrolled through his head, reached the end and returned to the beginning. Logical ring. He was tired of thinking, but could not close his eyes. Fortunately, by the morning it was not too noticeable, since the dark circles under his eyes were probably always there, like birthmarks, and fatigue had become a common thing that could be dealt with. Well, to be completely honest, rarely anyone paid attention to him. I just wanted to look presentable and maintain my image. At least for now.

For some reason, Willow looked at him especially often. It was as if she was assessing his strength. In fact, this girl was very capable and, to tell the truth, did not really need a mentor. The only point was her lack of self-confidence, which sometimes manifested itself. Perhaps now she herself understood it. Although there was no disgust in her gaze, he still felt awkward when he caught it on himself. This may sound stupid, but that’s why he tried not to catch their eye so often. And they managed it well themselves!
Has he let his guard down? No. But perhaps he began to trust a little more. And also demonstrate this so that they know about it. If you constantly control them, they will definitely make more than one attempt to escape simply out of reluctance to be locked in a cage. And the feeling of freedom (albeit false, since they would still be caught in the corridors without attempting to escape, even without his supervision) became a pleasant bonus. Hunter saw in their eyes that they were slowly becoming addicted to all this. Especially the Captain. And especially during the game. When the guy came out, for the first minute he watched them, what they would do in his absence. They seemed to be really having fun while training, and it definitely wasn't acting. Hunter was sure that they could not detect his presence. The hall in the castle was much larger than in their school, about three times. For the five of them, of course, there was no need for so much space, but there was plenty of sports equipment. Hunter remembered how, as a child, he himself studied in this huge hall, being still small in both age and height. And now he himself trained someone here. He couldn’t even believe it. But the hall still remained endlessly huge.

At lunch he decided to do the same. He walked away for a few minutes, but did not assign any security to them. Of course, the dining room is one of the most crowded places in the castle, but still. They didn't seem as unhappy as before. If they were playing a role while they were actually discussing the escape plan, they were doing it quite skillfully. Hunter even tried to read their lips a couple of times what they were saying, but nothing came of it.
"Am I really paranoid?" flashed through his head, but then was replaced by another thought. No, he's just being careful. Yes, that will be right. He need to choose your words.
However, he caught the dark-haired girl’s gaze on him so often that the piece did not fit into his throat. What did she want from him? He couldn't read that look.

"I suggest we play outside a little," he addressed them in a soft tone, and not commandingly, as before. It really was a proposal. They had already trained a lot today, so he wouldn't be surprised if they were tired.
But all four nodded. It was much better to play outside than in the hall.

Viney gave him a dissatisfied look.
"You definitely can’t play."
"I can."
"You can't."
"I can," he answered, a little more irritated.
"I won’t heal you a second time," the girl snorted and turned away, crossing her arms over her chest. It looked like her work was not appreciated. In fact, the guy simply knew what he could do and what he couldn’t do, and what kind of load could become dangerous. It was as if he wanted to bleed again.

"And you won’t need it. It’s okay, I’m experienced," the boy answered calmly. "Then finish eating and we can go to the field."
Turning away for a second, he did not notice how the four looked at each other, as if planning something.

The wonderful weather outside was spoiled only by the lack of wind. Walking in the warm sun is really nice, but training can be real torture. The heat was even worse than the cold. Especially in this armor. So Hunter took them off, leaving him in his pants and shirt. He buttoned the buttons of his shirt so that the bandages with which he had bandaged his entire chest were not visible.
He picked up his work staff again, fearing for Flapjack. Hunter didn't want to risk it at all. This time Willow only looked at him, but did not ask a question to which she already knew the answer.

"How long will we play today?" Gus asked, taking off his jacket, which was part of his uniform, since he very soon realized that there was no need for it.
"Until the first three victories? Same as last time."
The guy nodded back, but Willow frowned behind him. Last time... Last time he wasn't injured. She didn’t talk about it again, because she knew that Hunter wouldn’t listen to her. He said that he knew how to calculate his own strength. But the girl was not sure that the game would be effective. Was there any point then?

However, several guards appeared in the clearing to play. This was considered training, because the game required a lot of physical activity, and the players themselves were pleased, remembering their youth.
The beginning was very ordinary. Hunter was even surprised that he felt almost no pain. Was this normal? Wounds and injuries usually left at least some 'side effects', if not a whole bouquet - from fever to mild pain. However, now all he felt was the wind in his hair and the spirit of competition, which made his heart beat much faster than usual. This is a priceless, indescribable feeling that he didn’t even know about before. And he felt alive at that moment. Maybe even a little more alive than during his usual tasks and training, which he adored with all his heart and considered the meaning of his life. But then he was alone and relied only on himself, and now
he had to interact with members of his team, join forces and trust each other. The latter was especially unusual for him. It was hardly possible to trust anyone in the castle without expecting a knife in the back. And here... He didn’t even notice how he began to trust them more than before. And why, he had no choice, because otherwise they would not have been able to achieve victory. Working in a team was completely different than working alone. And it was not at all like any task that he performed in the detachments. Maybe because the responsibility wasn't as big as when catching a dangerous criminal or something like that. However, he still felt like a useful and necessary element in this company, and the game process was no less exciting than a difficult mission.

At first, the pain really didn’t bother him, but after a while he felt the wound under the bandages starting to itch. Perhaps he took a turn too sharp during one of his impressive maneuvers. Pain - the guard dog of the body - set him up in such a way that he completely forgot about it, but now, it seems, he began to remember when he was rightly put in his place.
Fortunately, the game is already over. Well, fortunately... It didn't end in their favor. They lost. This slightly dampened the guy’s enthusiasm, because he didn’t like losing at all. However, he felt relieved that he could rest a little.

"Let’s take a break," he said as he landed.
Nobody was against it. Several guards stepped aside to talk to each other. The teenagers sat down on the grass to catch their breath. Hunter suddenly thought about joining them, but something stopped him from doing so. No... He just wanted to be alone now. That's all. He moved a little further, but continued to monitor the members of his team. He ran his eyes over each of them and suddenly discovered with alarm that he did not see the Captain among them. As soon as he thought for a second about where she could have gone, he heard a familiar voice behind him.

"Are you alright?"

Willow realized that she had sneaked up too unexpectedly when the guy almost jumped on the spot.
"Sorry..." she apologized, smiling awkwardly. Hunter already seemed nervous, but she only turned the fire into oil.
"Nothing," the blond answered calmly, quickly returning to the image of a mentor. "I just lost track of you."
The girl frowned slightly. It seemed to her that their gazes crossed as she stepped aside.

"Well... Is everything okay?" she dared to repeat her question. As the captain of the team, the girl felt responsible for each player. Even though Hunter was their mentor, this game put power directly into her hands.
It's not like she looked at him very often, but he seemed happy during the game. Except that in the end it became a little slower. This could be attributed to fatigue, since they played for quite a long time, and even the sky had already become dark. But something inside still made her curious.

"I'm fine. I wanted to adjust the bandages a little."
"Don't sa—" She wanted to continue, but was interrupted by her own amazement. "Wait. Did you just tell me the truth?"
"Um... Yes?" Hunter himself seemed surprised. Indeed, he did not even notice that he began to trust them more. This time he didn't lie to make himself look better in their eyes.

He thought about it while Willow unobtrusively sank down on the grass next to him. In the evening, a slight wind still appeared, which could not but rejoice. This weather was much nicer than the drought. The wind slightly ruffled his blond hair, and the dangling strands fell over his right eye.
"Damn," Hunter said with dissatisfaction when he heard the girl’s laughter to his right. This only made him more embarrassed.
"That’s why I braid my hair," Willow said, stifling another giggle.
"What do you think I can braid my hair with?" he asked, defiantly throwing back a lock of hair. "So that it doesn't look funny."
"Grow them. I think a ponytail would suit you," she said, briefly imagining Hunter with a new hairstyle.
"Do you really think so?"
"Yes."

Hunter fell silent, pursed his lips, his face took on a thoughtful expression.
"Maybe."
"In general... I wanted to ask if everything is really all right and it’s just the bandages? Just towards the end of the game..."
She didn't finish the sentence, but she didn't need to. The blond turned away, feeling the heat of shame coloring his face.
"Sorry. Because of me we lost..."
"No, that's not what I'm talking about! The game still turned out very good. I just wanted... To make sure everything was okay," she lowered her eyes to the place of his injury.
Hunter followed her gaze.
"I didn’t have any pain, then I just... I got tired," the youth admitted, sighing heavily. "I should have put in a little more effort, yes..."
"No, no, you’re good for giving yourself a break. Losing is completely normal. You need to be able to lose," the girl said this phrase as if by chance, but the words still burned him painfully. Willow didn’t even suspect how hurt with such a seemingly simple and fair phrase. Hunter just knew and understood that he couldn’t do it. "Do you know how many times I lost before I learned to play?"

"You?" Hunter opened his eyes in surprise, staring at him in disbelief.
"And what? No one is born a master of sports or an artist. Everything is gained through hard work."
"But what about the capable and the incapable?" Hunter blinked his eyes in surprise, a little lost in this conversation.
Willow frowned slightly.
"Do you seriously believe this?"s he asked somewhat harshly. She considered it unfair and blasphemous to pour people out on those who can do a lot from birth, and those who are given less. "No, of course, there are those who are a little more talented... But this doesn't mean that talent gives you everything. Definitely, someone might be a little more inclined towards art, but that just means they'll have an easier time learning to draw than other witches. But this doesn'ot mean that he was born with a brush in his hand. Doesn't mean that far! Ability and talent are not everything. Tell me: do you think I’m strong?"

The question was unexpected, and therefore the answer to it did not come immediately. Opening his eyes, the guy thought for several seconds about how to formulate the answer that he knew from the beginning.
"Of course, I think so. You are the captain of our team..."
"Well..." Willow looked away. "Do you know that it wasn’t always like this?"
"What?"
"I used to be teased at school and called Half-A-Witch. I couldn't do anything at all. My parents also signed me up for a course in which I was not strong." Willow spoke about this in a calm and confident voice, despite the fact that it was always difficult for her to talk about this topic. She had lost her best friend and felt completely useless.
But she remembered what Hunter told her on the first day they met. This problem was close to him. Perhaps that's why it was easier to talk about her than usual. But, despite the fact that this was really so, the guy himself was surprised to hear such words from Willow.

"Is it true? This is hard to believe."
"Yes. Not everyone is born talented from the very beginning."
"I think you just didn’t immediately understand what you really have a talent for."
"Hmm... Perhaps," she couldn’t help but agree. If she did not have the ability to grow crops and this sport, perhaps she would not have learned it at all, or it would have been even more difficult for her. She may not have been as lucky as Amity, who seemed to know from the start what she would dedicate her life to, but she still had to appreciate what she had. She definitely did something better even than her capable friend.

But the guy was still a little shocked by what he heard. No, it wasn't that he was disappointed in her or upset. Quite the opposite: his attitude towards her has not changed at all. He remembered how he told her about himself. They really looked alike. Even surprising. The last thing he offended was being like her. This girl was one of the few people who managed to impress him. It was hard to believe that they had so much in common.

Willow looked at the high ceiling, which at first glance was not particularly interesting, and thought about her own thoughts. A whole bunch of thoughts were swarming in her head, and her body seemed heavy after a long, but very entertaining game. It was a pleasant tiredness. She was closing her eyes, falling into a short sleep, still accompanied by a stream of thoughts, when she was suddenly interrupted by the loud sound of breaking glass.

"Get up, Willow," said a familiar voice, causing the young witch’s eyes to widen and her to jump.,

Chapter Text

"Wh... what?.."
Willow felt like she was still asleep. Sometimes she dreamed of rather strange subjects, especially after stressful days. In biology lessons, they were told that the brain continues to work at night, and at the same time it rests in this way. So Willow thought she was having another questionable dream, or maybe even a nightmare.
Her heart jumped at the sharp, loud sound. She sat up in bed and instinctively reached for her glasses. At first, she tried to find her usual bedside table, forgetting that she was not in her room. It took the girl a couple of seconds to remember where she had put her glasses. On the floor.
With a sleepy grunt, picking them up and putting them over her eyes, she managed to focus on the figure that had previously appeared to her as a dark blur on the window.
Now, she was able to discern some details about this silhouette. A slender figure that belonged to a girl, short disheveled hair... And that voice...
"Luz?!"
"Finally recognize me?" There was a soft chuckle. "Sorry to keep you waiting... How are you?.."
Willow stared at the small window where Luz was standing, bent over and holding onto the top of the frame, with a shocked look. She appeared in the castle like a noble knight. But just like a dream... But it's too real.
"L... Luz?.." She heard Gus's sleepy murmur behind her. He rubbed his eyes and also stared at the girl in surprise, but a second later he jumped out of bed and joyfully ran to meet her. "Luz!"
This cry woke up the remaining two girls. Everyone leaned against the window, happily whispering to each other. Willow was the only one of the group frozen in place. But in the exchange of emotions, none of the four of them noticed.
"Whoa, Gus, I'm going to fall," Luz replied softly, laughing as he tearfully reached out to hug his friend. "I'm glad to see you too, buddy... How are you doing here? Did this freak do anything to you?.."
"You have no idea how happy I am to see you, Luz..." Gus muttered, abandoning his attempts to hug Luz and throw himself off the window with her and instead gripping her hand tightly.
"How did you end up here?" Viney's voice sounded surprised. "And... how did you even know where we were?
"It's a long story. I suggest we discuss it later, before the guards show up," Luz's voice sounded serious this time. "Amity and I'll get you out of here. Get up, carefully, but quietly."
She pulled Gus, who was still holding his hand, behind her, and she took a step out the window. It seemed as if she should immediately fall down, but she remained at the same level. She was standing on a staff.
At that moment, Willow saw another silhouette behind her friend and was surprised.
"You?.." She blinked in surprise when she saw Amity. Even she came here to save them?
Amity was very different from the version of herself she was before. That Amity would never have gone against the law, and she was trained by the coven. Even though they had reconciled, Willow still couldn't call Amity her friend, as she had done before. Was she only here because she was dragged down by Luz? Or was she really worried about them?
While Willow was wondering these questions in her head, Luz managed to pull Gus and Viney out and help them get on the staff to Amity.
"So, the three of you can fit in... Just stand carefully..." she muttered, holding the guys back to keep her balance. "Amity, you can come down, I'll help Willow and Skara..."
"He's got our palismen, Luz," Gus suddenly came to his senses.
Luz's eyes widened. She stared at Gus, as it seemed to Willow, with an expression of horror on her face. Considering the darkness, it looked even more creepy.
"He what?!" She practically shouted, forgetting about her own request to be quiet.
"They're fine, I saw them," Willow said for the first time. "He gave them to us for games. He keeps them..."
Luz turned to Willow. She was surprised, but seemed relieved by her answer.
"It's amazing... Well. Operation 'Escape' turned out to be a little more complicated than we imagined..." She scratched the back of her head as a nervous laugh escaped her. Amity's voice was soft and velvety. "You mean, we—"
"We can't leave them. We'll try to pick up the palismen. But first we'll get you out..." She reached out and helped Skara onto the staff. When she was already firmly on her feet, Luz reached out to the last prisoner. "Willow..."
Luz held out her hand. Willow had always trusted her. She became the person who influenced her growth to some extent. She made Willow bolder. She helped her overcome my fears. Luz is a very good person. Willow is really happy to be friends with her. In any other situation, she would have said yes. But now...
"No."
She took a step back. It is wrong...
"..."
Her friend's brown eyes widened. Luz was looking at her with a shocked expression on her face.
"I'm not going... I can't. This is wrong..."
"What's wrong, Willow? We don't have time... Come, quickly!"
"Willow!" he heard Gus's worried voice. "You're not going to stay, are you?"
"We need to leave, Willow!" This time she heard Viney's voice.
"Hurry up!" it was Skara.
Everyone was rushing her. Willow put her head in her hands, trying to protect herself from their voices as if they were attacking her.
"I can't! I can't just leave—"
"Leave who, Willow?" Luz jumped down from the window frame to the floor of the room and took a step towards Willow. "If you're talking about Clover, we'll try to get her back, I promised you.".. But first we need to get out of here—"
"No, I'm not talking about her!" the girl exclaimed a little louder than she expected. "Or rather, about her, too, but—"
She felt as if her heart had stopped when she heard muffled voices outside the door.
The guards.
The door swung open, and two soldiers appeared on the threshold. When they noticed the girls and the broken glass on the floor, they immediately took up a fighting position, pointing their staffs at them.
"Penetration!"
Luz reacted the fastest. Pressing the glyph to the floor, she created a wall of vines that temporarily shielded her and Willow from the guards.
This time Willow obeyed, having no other choice. They climbed out the window, running away from the soldiers, onto the staff to Skara, and quickly flew around the corner of the castle to hide in case the guards started chasing them. The cold wind hit her face, making her body tingle and her mind quickly wake up. It was the middle of the night.
They were quiet for a while. The castle was surrounded by guards, so they had to be very quiet so as not to attract attention in their "blind spot". The hearts of all six of them were beating so fast that it seemed they were bound to be heard.
But it worked out.
"Willow, what was that?" Gus whispered angrily, clearly amazed and outraged by her action. "We almost got caught! The whole castle will now be on its ears!"
The girl turned away from him, hearing the raised intonation that made her feel guilty. She knew, she didn't want to put them all in danger... She knew Gus was worried...
"Willow..." Luz reached out her hand and gently grabbed her wrist. Willow looked up at her and saw the worry and sadness on Noseda's face. "Can you tell us what happened..?"
Everyone else's eyes turned to her. Even Gus seemed to have softened somewhat. He only raised his voice because he was afraid for her and Luz. And Willow understood that.
It was difficult to speak, but she knew she had to answer the question, since everyone was waiting for her explanation.
"I can't do that to him... After everything we've said... " She muttered, turning away again. "It's would be a lie."
"Oh, no..." Gus was the only one who understood what she was talking about. It wasn't surprising, considering how long they'd been friends and how well he'd known her. The guy covered his face with his hands in despair. "Your kindness again... It's out of place right now, Willow. Remember how he treated us, how he treated you!"
"I don't want to do the same!" she replied, this time with a challenging glance at her best friend. "Wouldn't that make us... Even worse?!"
"With some people that's just the only one possible behavior! You're very kind, Willow, and that's wounderful, but instead of thanking you, such people wipe their feet on those who do them good. I don't want this to happen to you, and I certainly don't want you to get hurt!"
There was silence for a few seconds. Friends started talking in raised tones, and after Amity shushed them and reminded them of the need to hide, everyone fell silent and listened anxiously to the outside sound. But there was no reaction from the guards.
"He's not what you think he is..." Willow muttered after a while, breaking the silence. "Not like that, okay? I talked to him. He's just a teenager, just like us... He just grew up and was raised here. It's not his fault. However, he really wanted to become our friend and wanted to make our lives better—"
"By depriving us of our freedom and locking us in this golden cage," Viney said sarcastically, rolling her eyes.
"Yes, he thought it would be better for us! We have different ideas about what life should be like, because he grew up in this golden cage himself... I want to give him a chance."
"We might get caught, Willow!" even Skara, the kindest and soft-hearted of them, began to dissuade her. "It's dangerous!"
Everyone looked at her in shock. Except for Luz. She gave her a long, serious look, and they exchanged glances for a few seconds.
"Okay. We'll go to him."
Amity's eyes widened as she shot the girl a startled look. Her quiet voice expressed deep horror.
"We still have to go back for the palismen. That's why we're going with Willow. You're leaving. It's too dangerous to go all together," Luz said, turning to Willow with determination on her face. "Are you ready?"
"Yes," she nodded, secretly rejoicing that she had found support. Luz is really an amazing person. And a wonderful friend.

The two girls approached the window frame without attracting too much attention. The slightest mistake could cost them their lives now.
"I think it's better not to break the window this time," Willow whispered to her friend.
"I think you're right," Luz agreed, "that would definitely attract the attention of the guards still standing nearby. Do you want to knock?"
"Maybe," Willow nodded. It was a good idea. Definitely safer than breaking a window.
She looked through the frame and saw a piece of the room. The bed was pushed close to the window, and someone was sleeping on it. It was obviously Hunter, the owner of the room. If Luz had decided to repeat the window trick, they would also have risked injuring Hunter. He probably wouldn't have welcomed them with much joy after that.
Willow's heart skipped a few beats in her chest. She was nervous when she thought about the upcoming step...
"You managed to talk to him, didn't you?" Luz asked the question carefully, even though the answer to it was obvious.
"Yes... For a while," Willow nodded. "We talked a little bit."
"And... You're saying he's not what we think he is, right?" She continued, arching an eyebrow. "What do mean?"
"I... I don't want to say that he's good or something like that. He did a lot of bad things. But he's not much older than us... I think he could improve if someone showed him the right way. I'd like to try it... " Willow looked away again. "Maybe Gus is right about me being too kind and naive, but... If I see that someone needs help, I don't want to pass by, you know?
"I know," Luz nodded vigorously, and her expression became even more serious. If anyone could understand Willow's words, it was her.
"I just want to give him a chance. Nothing more. We are... We're all changing, aren't we? Sometimes we do it ourselves, and sometimes we need the help of others to do it... You and Gus helped me become stronger and more confident. You also helped Amity change... Maybe it will work with him?"
Willow stared uncertainly at the window once more. Maybe she was dreaming too much and really saw the world through the prism of rose-colored glasses... But, in any case, there was only one way to find it out – to check her theory.
"Let's find out, Willow. Knock on the window and try to talk to him. I'll be on guard if anything happens," Luz offered.
In her mind, Willow was incredibly grateful to her. She was once again convinced of how amazing her friend is.
Gathering her thoughts, she approached the window frame. There were a lot of questions in his head. What if he would refuse?.. In this case, they will be enemies of each other... Willow would really hate for this to happen. In truth, deep down she was even afraid of it. But she couldn't save him otherwise...
Three light knocks seemed to attract Hunter's attention – he immediately got up on the bed and turned his gaze to the window. Moreover, it happened so quickly, as if he hadn't actually been asleep. Willow's first reaction was to meet his purple eyes, which were wide with surprise. For a second, she thought that everything was lost – now he would send her away, immediately summon the guards... But no, he reached for the window handle and cracked it open.
"Captain?.." he said softly, not hiding his surprise.

The six finally landed on the ground, once they were at a sufficient distance from the castle. They were relatively safe now.
"These guards seem to be asleep," Viney said with a touch of sarcasm in her voice, putting her hand on her hip. "Poor guys. The night shift is not an easy task."
"Or we're so fast.".. Skara shrugged her shoulders with a slight smile. "I hope girls would have the same luck..."
Everyone was certainly worried about this. Amity couldn't take her concerned eyes off the castle. Her heart was pounding loudly, as if crying out and begging her to come back. She felt an incredibly strong sense of anxiety. Was it her intuition?.. Or was she just worried?..
"I'm sure they can handle it," Gus said, although his voice didn't sound too firm. "Willow and Luz are strong. And they have a convincing skill, right?" For some reason, his gaze fell on Amity at that moment. It might have seemed as if there was a sarcastic implication behind this modest gesture, as if he was saying: "you were a bad person too, but Luz changed you, remember?", although the guy meant something completely different. Was she supposed to know about this as a human's girlfriend?.. "We all know them... They can handle it."
Amity noticed his gaze. And she saw his second interpretation, which made her sigh. Whether Gus meant it or not, it was true anyway. Luz changed her... I gave her a chance, despite Blight's terrible attitude towards her. So that guy might have had a chance, too?.. Amity had met him before, and she even felt sorry for him... He wasn't much different from her. Anyway, she was familiar with his problem. That didn't mean Blight was ready to trust him right away. The world is cruel. You can't help everyone. But if there is a chance, then it's probably worth a try... Luz definitely reasoned that way after hearing Willow's words. They are similar in this respect, both are kind and stubborn...
Amity still felt ashamed of the way she had treated them both. She wished she could go back in time and not hurt Willow... In truth, she was worried about her now. She was a good witch, even if she wasn't as capable... She didn't deserve to be treated like this. She practiced a lot. She was developing. Amity wanted her to get stronger. Amity was so glad she hadn't broken her... She definitely wouldn't forgive herself if she did that. Amity felt regret now. She often thought about it at night. But she was happy for Willow. She wanted her to be okay. And she didn't want her to get hurt. If they encounter the guards, will they be able to fight back?.. Luz reacted quickly that time, but now those guards can raise the alarm in the castle...
"I believe in them too," Amity said softly. "But... I'm worried."
"We're all worried," Viney said. "But we can't crowd in there! Otherwise, we will definitely be noticed."
"In that case, it turns out that we can only wait..." Skara muttered, lowering her eyes. Her high-pitched voice sounded like the voice of a stricken bird. When even she lost her usual positivity, it became a little creepy.
"We'll be waiting. They'll be fine," Gus said again, seemingly more to convince himself than anyone else.
Amity continued to stare at the castle. To wait... It was too hard.
Hunter opened the window, letting cool air into the room. At first, he almost cowered instinctively.
"What— What are you doing here?.."
His shocked gaze was fixed on the girl who had broken into his window. Had he really fallen asleep after all and was having such an unusual dream?... No... It doesn't look like it. Everything felt more than real. But he couldn't even find the words to formulate a question about such an unusual situation.
"Can I come in first?.." she asked in a low voice. Even in the dark, it seemed to him that the Captain looked worried and tired.
Without thinking twice, the guy nodded silently, still confused. He didn't know what to say, but he didn't see the point in forcing the girl to freeze outside the castle, which was also dangerous considering the guards. However, as soon as she jumped to the floor of his room, an indignant expression appeared on his face:
"And what is she doing here?!"
"Hello to you too, 'bad but sad boy'."
He noticed a grin on the Human's face. Hunter's head was in such a mess right now that it seemed like it was minutes away from exploding unless he got answers to a huge number of his questions right away. Just the sight of an annoying Human made him furious.
"Don't ever call me that again. I can turn you over to the guards right now," he said through gritted teeth, to which Luz only grinned wider. As if she was amused.
"Hunter, please calm down first..." Willow begged him. Her voice didn't sound as confident at that moment, as Hunter had never heard her before.
"What's she doing here, Captain?" He turned to the girl and gave her a look full of suspicion. He didn't understand anything and was wary. He felt that he would not like the answer, whatever it was.
"Listen, Hunter..." Willow put her hands on his shoulders, obviously to calm him down. But the guy tensed up. He was completely unaccustomed to such physical gestures, did not know how to interpret them, and felt uncomfortable. "Just don't get mad, okay?.. They helped us escape..."
"What?!"
Hunter's eyes almost fell out. Not to get mad?!
"You promised you wouldn't run away! And you said 'us'?!" of course, Hunter heard and couldn't help but pay attention to it...
"They tricked me!" he thought, going berserk in his own thoughts. And how could he believe them? He was too relaxed listening to all this nonsense about friends!..
His chest ached for some reason. Being deceived turned out to be... Unpleasant. Painfully. He had been betrayed many times, but it had never been so painful. And all because he was too relaxed and allowed strangers to approach him! He was a fool!
"I knew it... I knew you couldn't be trusted!" He raised his voice so that he woke up Flapjack, whose sleepy and unhappy chirping he heard behind his back. The guy poked Willow in the chest with his finger, giving her an angry, accusing look. "Friends, huh? It was all a lie! You lied!"
"Calm down, Hunter," it was the voice of a Human who, like Willow, had climbed over the window frame, but uninvited, and was standing in his room. "Listen to her!"
"I'm not going to listen to you! You are traitors!"
He wanted to cover his ears so that he wouldn't hear empty excuses. Perhaps then he would have looked like a moody child... That thought stopped him.
"We want to help you!" Willow also raised her voice in desperation. "Please, Hunter! This is not life!.. What happens to you on missions, how you risk yourself! How people here address you here! You don't deserve this, you're a kid!"
"I'm not a kid!" he said, seething from the inside. Hunter just hated being compared to a child... Regardless of the context.
"Still, it's not a life you could live! You're living in a cage that I want to free you from. Risking yourself! I want to save you, show you freedom, show you what real friends are! Come on!"
She held out her hand to him. Just like at the game. At that time, Hunter wasn't thinking about what he needed to do. However, he was now frozen in indecision. It took him a few seconds, as if he had been analyzing her words for so long.
He turned away so he wouldn't have to look at her. It hurt again.
"You betrayed me. All of you. And you are the real wild ones. I shouldn't have trusted you from the start."
He spat out these words with undisguised disdain. Behind that rage, there were feelings he didn't want to voice. He didn't want to say that he was offended, to admit that he was hurt by what they had done and that he hadn't expected it. It was all his fault–he trusted them. He made a mistake and got what he deserved. He should have been controlling them better, he shouldn't have been showing such kindness, giving them a luxurious room instead of a dungeon... On the other hand, he was trying to be polite! He was trying to be a friend, not a hostage-taker! He tried!..
"Look at yourself," Luz frowned, stepping forward as if intending to protect Willow. "You tricked them into kidnapping them and locking them in a cage!"
"Luz, wait," Willow suddenly stopped her, pushing her away with her hand. She met her friend's surprised gaze."
"Willow...
"I'll do it."
At that moment, the girl lost all her insecurities. She looked at Hunter seriously, and now he recognized her as the captain of his team.
"Do whatever you want. I suggested it... I could have just left with everyone, but I came back for you because I don't want to leave you here. That's what friends do. They're not meant for submission, you know? They don't follow orders like your soldiers. They don't always agree with each other. But they value their friendship and take care of each other. Do you feel the difference? Sometimes friends can talk sense into you in order to save you. That's exactly what I want to do. Look around – do you think this is freedom? Being locked up here, constantly following orders, risking your life and receiving such treatment?"
"You— You don't understand." He took a step back. For some reason, her speech made him feel... Fear. "It's a duty! It's an honor! This is completely normal. Someone has to do this..."
"But he's not a good person, Hunter!" Luz intervened anyway. "I've seen more than you, even though you live here. I know it hurts to admit it, but believe me, it will hurt even more if you stay! Sooner or later you'll figure it out, but it may be too late!"
"You're lying..."
His mind was tearing apart. He put his head in his hands, feeling lost. Both girls seemed to be begging him. Flapjack was chirping incessantly behind him, seemingly agreeing with them. Even he suddenly decided to betray him? Why?.. It's his whole life! He lived like this all the time, he was proud of who he was and what he did! He has a higher status than many witches, was stronger than many of them! He worked so hard to earn this position!
He tried... For some reason, Darius's recent words came back to mind. Indeed, he still didn't consider him worthy. Why? The boy didn't understand his words. Was he just mocking at him? He could. He had always hated him for his blood relationship with the emperor and for Belos' attitude towards him. And anyway, many members of the Emperor's Coven hate each other. But that's okay. This is an absolutely natural law. The survival of all living beings works according to the same scheme. If you don't eat them, they'll eat you. Hunter was used to this and did not see anything wrong with such a completely natural phenomenon. And the Human was building a tragedy out of it. She just didn't understand anything and to everyone showed her kindness, which could one day ruin her.
"The Golden Guardian, sir?"
The knock on his room door sounded like it came out of blue. The sound made it clear that he didn't have time to think anymore. All three of them simultaneously turned their heads towards the door. Everyone's heart skipped a beat.
"It's urgent!"
There were at least two guards outside the door. Hunter's alert brain automatically took note of this.
"...A few minutes," he replied and turned to the girls. They seemed worried and looked at him, waiting for his actions. Apparently, they expected him to attack or turn them in.
"Get out," he nodded at the window instead.
In truth, he didn't know what he was doing. Why did he cover for them? He could have actually handed them over or arrested them on his own. But some kind of indecision made him stop, wait. He was still hesitating, not knowing what to say to the Captain. He will always have the opportunity to arrest them while they are here. They obviously weren't going to leave without his precise answer, otherwise they would have already done it while he was trying to sleep, since they managed to get out of the room.
"Hide and don't make any noise," he whispered to the girls, then closed the window just in case and went to the door.
"What happened?" he asked, opening the door slightly and peering through the crack. There were indeed two guards. Hunter was a little uncomfortable from the fact that he met them in his pajamas and without a mask, but what to do. It was night, after all.
He had a rough idea of what was going to be discussed, but he put on a fake surprise on his face, typical of people who are suddenly woken up in the middle of the night.
"Those teenagers, sir... They escaped."
It was the time for another acting game. His eyes widen slightly, and his mouth opens as well. It was as if the news had shocked him. It was as if he knew absolutely nothing about this story.
"...What?!" Surprise and anger seep into his voice.
"I-I'm sorry, sir, we're sending a squad out to find them right now!" One guard trembled nervously, raising his hands. Hunter even felt sorry for him, but, alas, he could not destroy his disguise. Then suspicion would have fallen on him. "We'll catch them, I promise!"
"You'd better to," he said, looking sternly at the two soldiers. It was unpleasant for him to tell them off for nothing, so he quickly closed the door.
"They're leaving," he said softly to himself, listening to the footsteps in the corridor rapidly fade away as the guards retreated.
However, as he approached the window and did not even have time to open it, he heard voices coming from outside.
"Here they are! Take them!"
Hunter's heart skipped a beat at that moment. What to do? Now he really didn't have time to think anymore–he had to take sides. Escape with them, let them go, catch them and lock them in a dungeon...
His eyes frantically scanned the room. Staff. He ran over, grabbed it, and went back to the window.
"Easy, Flapjack, I'll be right back," was all he said to his alarmed palisman, who was fidgeting in his seat at the time and asking him what had happened. But Hunter didn't have time to calm him down.
After opening the window, he quickly assessed the situation at a glance. Two soldiers were flying next to Willow and Luz; the latter took out pieces of paper with glyphs and was already going to attack them. Well, there are still only two guards...
"Wait!"
He quickly jumped out of the window and flew up to the guards on his staff, taking up a position in front of Willow and Luz.
"Sir?.." the astonished and confused voice of one of the soldiers was heard. "Sir, we were going to grab them..."
"Stop. Let them go," he said, without turning to the girls. "The Coven doesn't need them anymore. I looked at their abilities and decided that they were... Not ready."
"Hunter..." He heard her voice behind him, surprised and sad.
It wasn't easy for him, too. He had gotten used to the four of them... To their games, to communication with the Captain... They turned out to be somewhat similar. For the first time, he thought he had found real friends. But it would be frivolous to believe that everything would turn out to be so simple. All this was nothing but pampering. Perhaps that's why Darius didn't want to acknowledge him. Now he didn't want to admit himself either. Apparently, he really is still a child at heart, eager for such childishness.
"Let them go," he repeated, looking at the soldiers urgently. They always obeyed him implicitly when he spoke to them in that tone.
But now...
"No, sir."
"What?" Hunter exclaimed in shock. "What do you mean, no?! That's an order!"
"But we already have another order... Directly from the Emperor, sir. We can't let them go because they're Coven members. If they escape, they will become traitors, and we will be obliged to imprison them."
At that moment, Hunter's heart sank. He turned to the Captain and the Human and met their confused gazes. He couldn't help them now... There was no word against the emperor. And if he goes against him, his uncle... It's not going to end well.
No, he couldn't. It can't go that far. He had mercy on them when he was about to let them go. He did everything he could. But that's the limit of his abilities...
"You can't! What kind of nonsense is this?!" He heard the Captain start to get indignant, while he froze, unable to utter a word. "You haven't even signed us!"
"However, this is an order from the emperor. Sir, let us pass."
But Hunter didn't budge.
Suddenly, he did something he didn't expect himself to do. It was as if his body and mind had been taken over, and now he wasn't acting of his own volition.
I held out my hand in front of the girls, as if to cover them, and without turning around, he threw it in their direction.:
"Run."
"What..."
"Hunter, are you going to fight them alone?!" Willow exclaimed, shock evident in her voice.
The guards also tensed up. One of them prepared to draw a circle of spells in the air. It was becoming quite obvious that a fight could not be avoided. But now all the guards patrolling the castle are coming...
"Are you deaf?! Now he turned to the girls, glaring at them. "I said get out!"