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“Finally some peace and quiet,” Eda thought to herself as she laid down on her couch, “I've needed this.”
After a stressful couple of days, what with Hooty’s tomfoolery and the incident at Eclipse Lake, today was going to be a peaceful, non-adventurous day for the Owl Lady. Luz was hanging out with Willow and Gus at…something (she couldn't quite remember what Luz said they were doing) and King was minding his own business on the chair beside her. So finally, Eda could simply relax for a little bit before more chaos entered her life.
….
….
“I'm bored,” Eda sighed dramatically as she sat up from the couch.
“Wow, Luz goes away for one afternoon, and you get antsy?” King said sarcastically as he played with some human device Luz had salvaged from one of Eda's junk piles.
“Hey don't act like you weren’t clinging to her leg before she left, begging her to stay,” Eda pointed out.
“That was different!” King tried to counter, “I needed someone to read me a bedtime story!”
Eda couldn't help but roll her eyes. “Ugh are you still on that? If you need it so bad, let me read you one.”
“No!”
“Why not?” Eda asked, offended.
“Because anytime you read me a bedtime story, it ends with the main character getting eaten!” King pointed out.
“It's not a bedtime story if someone doesn't die,” Eda replied defensively.
“That's not true!” King countered, “Luz's never ends with the hero being digested.”
“Well Luz's bedtime stories sound lame!”
Extra tutoring. That was the story of most of Amity's days off.
Did she need it? No, she was getting A's in all her classes and spent most of the tutoring time bored out of her mind.
But her mother insisted.
Insisted that she spends her days off wasting her time, and her father felt no need to fight his wife over it.
And it wasn't for her education, she knew that. it was to keep her away from her friends, particularly Luz. It wasn't a coincidence that she got signed up for it after the demonstration incident. Anything for the woman to keep some sort of control over Amity.
But it was over. She was back in the mansion that was luckily big enough for her to avoid her mother most of the time and she could relax.
As she walked up to her room, all she could think about was taking a nice nap. She didn't sleep well the night before. She wasn't sure why, but her brain just wouldn't stop for long enough to let her rest (She also couldn't stop thinking about how hungry she was, but none of the food they kept in the mansion was edible to Amity. Everything had an awful texture or the taste was just too strong. She was smart enough to keep a couple of snacks she could stomach hidden in her room however).
All the more reason that as she opened the door to her room she could feel a weight lift off her shoulders. Finally she could lay down and-
Her bed sheets were different.
Amity froze when she noticed it. Her usual nice and thick bed sheets had been replaced with much thinner, less comfortable looking ones. Amity walked over to her bed and felt the new comforter and immediately cringed at the texture. It wasn't soft at all, it felt kind of hard. Not to mention way lighter than she liked it. It also had this weird pattern on them instead of the pure purple one that was on her bed when she left for her tutor in the morning. She quickly pulled back the comforter and felt the other bed sheets and found that the new ones also weren't nearly as nice as her old ones.
“I see you've discovered your new bed sheets.”
Amity turned around to see her mother standing in her doorway, a stern look on her face, “I took the liberty of switching out your old bedsheets with these new ones. You had those old ones for too long, it was time for a change. Also these are much more fashionable than those plain old sheets if I may say so myself.”
“What happened to my old comforter?” Amity asked, a pit forming in her stomach that always formed when she had to talk to her mother.
“I donated it, along with the rest of your old sheets,” Odalia seemed to roll her eyes at the thought, “Your sister insisted on it and I suppose it's a good deed. In any case they're gone now.”
Amity wanted to yell. Scream at her mother that she should have consulted with her before replacing her bed sheets. That she should have been able to choose her replacement. That she liked her old ones just fine. That these new ones felt awful.
But she couldn't. She was too terrified to do so, not with how her mother was looking at her.
“In any case, I hope you enjoy them,” Odalia said as she appeared to check her nails for imperfection.
“I don't like them,” Amity said with a bit of courage. Courage that she was trying to have in front of her mother ever since the incident with her Luz. Courage Amity regretted the minute her mother turned her face to look at Amity, now seeming very mad.
“What did you say to me?” Odalia asked, as if it was unthinkable that her daughter would have the audacity to simply dislike her bed sheets.
“I said I don't like them,” Amity repeated, still trying her best to be brave.
That was a mistake.
Odalia slowly approached Amity with that same disappointed look she always reserved for her youngest. Odalia brought her hand up to Amity's face, who instinctively closed her eyes and flinched, before she placed her hand on Amity's cheek. Her mothers hand was cold and uncomfortable, she hated the sensation,
Odalia moved her hand from Amity's cheek to under her chin and forced Amity to look up at the taller woman.
“Mittens,” Odalia said, causing Amity to shiver in fear, the eye contact being forced also making her uncomfortable, “These bed sheets cost me a lot of snails and I will not have a child of mine acting ungrateful. You will use these bed sheets and you will not complain about it. Do you understand?”
“Yes mother,” Amity said, feeling as small as a grain of sand at the moment.
“Good,” Odalia said as she let go of her daughter’s face, “Now I have a business meeting to attend with your father, make sure you don't cause any trouble, okay?”
Amity didn’t respond. She couldn't respond. The prospect of talking felt like too much at the moment.
Lucky for her, Odalia began to leave her room. However she stopped in Amity’s doorway and added, “Oh and I found your stash of candy while changing the bed sheets. I made sure to throw them out; don't need any daughter of mine getting fat.”
Odalia then closed Amity's door, leaving the girl alone and wanting to cry, but too scared to do so.
The next thing Amity knew was that Ghost had jumped onto the bed next to her and began rubbing her little head on Amity's arm. Amity took this as a sign and began to pet her palisman up and down her body rhythmically. It helped ground Amity and keep her from spiraling anymore in that moment than she had.
What Amity would've liked to do in this situation was jump into her bed and lay down, but she couldn't. Not with those bed sheets in it. Not when just the thought of them sent her to some sort of sensory hell.
She couldn't stay at the mansion.
Not right now.
And she could leave, her parents were gone and her siblings wouldn't stop her, they understood completely why she may need a break from the mansion.
And she knew just where she wanted to go.
“In other news preparation for the Bonesborough Brawl is under-”
Bzzt
“Time to teach this baddie a lesson with my ultimate spell! Go-”
Bzzt
“Oh Ogbert, I still love you with all my heart but your twin is so much richer and I just-”
Bzzt
“There's nothing on the crystal ball right now,” Eda groaned as she continued to flip through channels.
“Maybe there would be something to watch if you cared enough to pay for crystal ball plus,” King replied, at his limit with his mother's constant complaining.
“For the hundredth time, it's not happening,” Eda sighed, “It costs too many snails, all the originals suck now, and they keep removing stuff they own for no good reason. it isn't worth a single feather off my arm.”
“Speaking of feathers, did you remember to take your potion today?” King inquired.
“Shoot,” Eda said in frustration at herself, “I'll be right back.” Eda stood up from the coach, a sharp pain in her knees caused her to let out a pained “ahhh” before it quickly subsided.
The Owl Lady then quickly made her way up the stairs of The Owl House and found herself in her room. She searched through her closet and pulled out a bottle of the orange potion she loathed so much. Despite Eda and The Owl Beast’s understanding, she still needed to keep up with her elixirs regularly to not go full owl beast mode.
“I need to grab some more soon,” Eda noted to herself as she uncorked the vile and quickly chugged down the contents. It tasted as bitter as it always did and burned her throat like always, but if it meant she didn't pose a threat to her children, it was more than worth it.
“I should be good for another few days now,” Eda mused as she tossed the glass bottle aside, “Now to get back to doing…nothing.”
Eda turned to go back downstairs before she was face to face with her ever annoying house demon. It startled the Owl Lady enough that she recoiled.
“Hoot, hiya Eda!” Hooty said in his usual cheerful tone.
“Hooty, what do you want?” Eda asked irritably, “You almost gave me a heart attack.”
“I know, hoot,” Hooty replied as if he was proud of himself, “But we have a visitor hoot.”
“If it's someone selling something, turn them away,” Eda sighed, “I'm not interested.”
“I don't think Amity is selling anything, hoot.”
“Wait, Boots is here?” Eda stood there a bit puzzled. What was Amity doing there? Luz was off with Willow and Gus so clearly they didn't have plans. And it wasn't like Amity to just show up unannounced. While Eda figured she probably just wanted to see her girlfriend, the Owl Lady couldn't help but feel a bit uneasy at the notion. Something just felt a bit wrong.
“I'll go see what's up,” Eda said as she made her way downstairs. Despite her joints being in pain she rushed heading down. Hooty had already gotten himself back into the door by the time she reached the bottom.
Opening the door quickly, Eda looked down and was indeed given confirmation that Amity had made her way to The Owl House.
And she didn't look so good. She looked closer to an upset kitten than a teenage girl.
Eda was good at reading people, and Amity was easier to read than a children's book at the moment. Her eyes seemed glued to the ground. Her hair was disheveled - which was highly unusual for Amity, who would always keep herself perfectly presentable. She looked more tense than she'd ever seen in most adults. And she was curled in on herself, like she was trying to make herself appear smaller. Lilith used to stand the same way after a bad day: arms curled across her stomach, skittish, with that hollow look in her eyes.
Only Lilith didn't have to fly to the outskirts of the city to find any amount of comfort.
“Is um,” Amity seemed to be struggling to speak, “Is Luz here? I forgot my tamagotchi at home so I couldn't message to ask.”
“Sorry Boots,” Eda replied worriedly, “The kid’s with Gus and Willow right now.”
“Oh,” Amity immediately deflated, somehow looking sadder, “I'll uh, I'll just go then, sorry to bother you, Eda.” Amity summoned her staff and looked about ready to fly away as quickly as she appeared before Eda stopped her, the maternal instinct that Luz instilled in her kicking in.
“Wait a minute, Boots,” Eda said as she held her hand up to signal ‘Stop,’ which Amity seemed to flinch at, “You're not going anywhere.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean you're going to come inside,” the gray haired witch answered, “No way I'm leaving you alone in this state.”
“I don't want to be a bother,” Amity seemed like she was on the verge of tears, “I'll go. I'm sure you're very busy with the portal door anyway.”
“Boots,” Eda slowly put a hand on the teenager's shoulder, making sure she had every opportunity to pull away if she was uncomfortable, “I assure you I'm not busy, and you're not being a bother. I don't know what's going on but I can tell you don't need to be alone right now, so please come in.”
Eda watched in silence as tears began to fall from Amity's golden eyes. It was as if she didn't know how to process Eda's kindness properly and her body's reaction was just to cry. Before Eda knew it, the girl had wrapped her arms around her waist and began sobbing into her dress.
The old Eda would've made some snide remark before pushing the girl away, but not this Eda. Besides, that's not what the kid needed right now.
Eda tried to pick Amity up to move them to her couch but found her arms weren't what they used to be.
In this form.
Eda quickly transformed into harpy form and used her extra strength to pick the crying child up before slowly moving her towards the couch.
“What's going on?” King asked as she watched Eda carrying Amity.
“Boots is having a bad day,” Eda replied as she sat the pair down and continued to hold Amity, the girl's chin resting on Eda's shoulder.
“I'm sorry,” Amity spoke through her sobs, “I'm being a big baby.”
“You don't have to apologize,” Eda said in a comforting tone.
“I'm embarrassed.”
“You don't have to be,” Eda would've begun to rub the poor girl's back if she wasn't scared of her talons scratching Amity.
“Promise?”
“I promise.”
“Good, because your feathers are really soft,” Eda got a good chuckle out of that, thankful to finally get Amity to feel comfortable.
The two sat like that for a few moments before Amity's sobbing eventually subsided, and she spoke again, “You can let go now.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah I'm sure.”
Eda obliged the girl's wishes and sat her down next to her on the couch before changing back into her regular state. Eda watched as Ghost jumped onto Amity's lap and the purple haired girl began to pet her plainsman.
“I'm sorry about that,” Amity apologized, “I shouldn't need to be held like that.”
“Boots. You're fine,” Eda confirmed, “You're still a child, it's okay to act like one sometimes, okay?”
“Alright,” Amity sighed, still looking guilty over what happened.
“You want something to drink, Boots?” Eda asked as she looked sympathetically at the girl, “I'm sure you're thirsty.”
“Can I get some water?”
“Do you want a snack as well?”
“Yes, please, if it's not too much.”
“It isn't,” Eda said as she walked over to the kitchen. It took her a minute, but Eda eventually returned with a glass of water and some cookies for the girl. And the sight she returned to warmed the Owl Lady’s heart.
It was Amity telling a bedtime story to King who was close to sleeping on the chair.
“And then, the big bad demon king laid waste to the town that had called him short, thus ensuring he would never be picked on again!” Amity said dramatically, “The end.”
King let out a big yawn, “That was a great story…” the little demon said before finally getting back to one of his 5 daily naps.
“Good job there, Boots,” Eda said as she placed the water and cookies down in front of Amity, “You're the first person besides Luz who's told a story he liked.”
“Well I'm glad,” Amity chuckled, “I just changed the ending of one of the stories I tell the kids at the library, you have to play to your audiences with these things.”
“I'll take note of that,” Eda laughed as she watched Amity eat a cookie.
The abomination witch let out a ‘hmmmm’ in delight at the taste and quickly ate a few more.
“Someone is hungry,” Eda remarked with a smile. Her old self cringed at how happy she’d gotten recently.
Amity swallowed her most recent cookie victim. “I haven't eaten since breakfast.”
“So Boots,” Eda began as she turned to face Amity better, “What happened? Why did you come here?”
“It's stupid,” Amity said as she looked away as she hugged her knees to her chest.
“I promise I won't think it's stupid,” Eda said in a reassuring tone.
Amity paused for a moment before she mumbled something that Eda couldn't make out.
“You're going to have to speak up kid, my ears aren't what they used to me,” Eda said in a kind tone.
“I said my mom changed my bedsheets,” Amity finally conceded to the Owl Lady.
“And?” Eda said, wanting more information.
“I hate them,” Amity answered, “They're ugly and are super uncomfortable. And when I complained she got mad at me and called me ungrateful.”
“You can't get your old bedsheets back I take it?”
“No, mother gave them away. She even took the snacks I hid away in my room; said she didn't want me getting fat.”
“Boots, that's…” Eda was truly shocked, “That's awful.”
“You don't think it's dumb I got upset?” Amity asked.
“No,” Eda quickly answered, “You have every right to be upset, you should have bedsheets you find comfortable. And your mother shouldn't make you feel bad about a couple of snacks.”
“Thank you,” Amity sniffed, clearly holding back tears, “You're the one adult that doesn't make me feel like an idiot about these things. And Lilith. She never treated me like I was dumb.”
Eda's heart broke a little, she was all too familiar with the type of adults Amity has to deal with.
“I guess it's just a Clawthorne thing,” Eda said somewhat jokingly, “In any case, I am sorry that happened, really.”
“It's not your fault,” Amity sighed, “It wouldn't be so bad if I just had a good blanket to put over the rest of my sheets.”
“Is that all you need?” Eda raised an eyebrow at the purple haired witch.
“Yeah,” Amity nodded, “I can deal with everything else, I just need something that doesn't feel awful to lay under.”
“Well,” Eda began as her mind raced, “I do happen to know a place that sells nice homemade blankets.”
“Really?” Amity perked up like a cat who just heard a bag of treats be shaken, “Where is it? Maybe I can go pick myself up a good blanket.”
“Why don't I take you,” Eda offered, “I got nothing else to do right now, and I don't need to be worrying about if you find the place okay.”
“You'd do that for me?” Amity was clearly shocked at Eda’s offer.
“Sure thing, Boots!” Eda gave a toothy grin to Amity, “I'll be sure to have you back by dinner. The stew I have cooking should be done by then!”
“Oh you don't have to make me dinner.”
“Boots, do you want to eat my cooking or your parents’?”
“Yours.”
“And do you want to eat dinner with Luz?”
“Yeah,” Amity said as she began to blush.
“Then you're staying for dinner,” Eda said matter-of-factly before standing up. “Now let's get going because it starts to get dark.”
The pair eventually touched down near the far east corner of Bonesborough. Eda watched as Amity looked curiously at all the shops around the two.
“I've never been to this part of town before,” Amity mused as she hopped off of Ghost and collapsed the staff. “My mother always said it was dangerous and full of unsavory people.”
“She says that like it's a bad thing,” Eda said as she let out a hearty chuckle. “Now then, the shop is right over here.”
“Alright,” Amity said as she and Eda walked into the shop. It was a small store with cozy lighting and many custom made blankets on nice wooden shelves.
“Oh, Eda dear!” came a voice as the pair looked over to see an older witch standing at the checkout counter. She was short with her own set of gray hair. She also had 8 eyes and 4 arms.
“Hey there Mals,” Eda replied to her old friend, “It's been a minute hasn't it?”
“It has.” Her old friend smiled. “What have you been up to?”
“We do not have time to get into all that,” Eda replied. “I'm just here to get this kid a blanket.”
“Hello there, miss,” Amity said with a wave. “I'm Amity.”
“Nice to meet you, Amity,” the older witch replied. “Please call me Mals. Feel free to look through my collection until something catches your eyes.”
Amity simply nodded as she moved to look through the collection. Eda made her way beside her old friend as she watched the girl move around the shop.
“Is she your kid?” Mals suddenly asked as she kept a few eyes on the teenager.
“Oh, no no,” Eda replied as she shook her head. “I got kids but those two are trouble enough.”
“I see. I'm a bit shocked that Eda, The Owl Lady would end up with two kids.”
“Both are long stories,” Eda sighed, “This one’s just dating one of my kids. And I'll be damned if she doesn't make my kid the happiest person on the isles.”
“Well that's very nice, but uh, what are you doing taking your kid’s girlfriend to buy a blanket?” Mals asked.
“She has awful parents,’ Eda answered. “She's the daughter of the Blight's for context.”
“Oh, those people,” Mals said as her eyes dropped, “Not surprised; they're awful.”
“I know,” Eda sighed once again, “Honestly, sometimes I wish I was her-”
“Eda, come look at this!” Amity shouted, interrupting the Owl Lady. Eda glanced over to find Amity with a big purple blanket draped over her shoulders.
“That looks heavy,” Eda observed.
“It is,” Amity said as she clearly seemed to be struggling to stand under the blanket’s weight, “But it feels so good, like a big hug, I've never felt a blanket like this before!”
“That's called a weighted blanket, dear.” the old witch called out, “There's pouches filled with glass beads to get the sensation. A lot of customers with bad anxiety say it helps them feel better.”
“Do you think it could work for autism, too?” Amity looked up at Eda, searching for a rare bit of guidance from an adult in her life.
“It just might,” Eda smiled at the young witch, “So do you want it?”
“Yeah, I think so,” Amity was absolutely beaming, and it warmed The Owl Lady’s heart to see it after the state she found the abomination witch in earlier.
“How much is it?” Amity asked the shop owner.
“50 snails,” Mals replied, “Those take a long time to make.”
“I'll get it,” Eda offered before Amity could respond.
Amity looked back at the taller witch shocked. “Oh, you don't have to do that, also, since when do you buy things for people?”
“Since I'm feeling generous,” Eda lied. In truth, Eda just wanted to make the girl happy. It was mushy, and she kind of hated it, but the abomination witch had grown strongly on the Owl Lady, and if her parents weren't going to take care of her, she would.
In all honesty, Eda wished she could keep the girl away from that manor forever, but she knew it'd probably make things worse somehow.
“Now don't argue with me before I change my mind.”
“Are you sure?” Amity asked, still in disbelief.
“Yes, I'm sure,” Eda said before she pulled the required snails out of her hair and placed it in front of her old friend, “Now let's go before the stew gets cold.”
“Thank you,” Amity said as she began to fold up her new blanket before turning to Mals, “And thank you for the wonderful blanket.”
“You're welcome,” Mals smiled at the young girl. “Please come again Eda, I did miss seeing you.”
“I'll try,” Eda said as she and Amity began to leave the shop. Once outside, Eda noticed that Amity was still struggling with lifting the blanket, “Give me that,” Eda demanded before she took the blanket from Amity and shoved it in her hair.
“You better not get hair all over my new blanket,” Amity said with a stern look.
“My hair isn't going anywhere,” Eda chuckled. “Anyway, I hope you feel a bit better now.”
“I do, thanks a lot,” Amity smiled. “I owe you one for today.”
“You don't owe me anything.”
“But-”
“No buts,” Eda interrupted, “Just keep making Luz happy, and that's enough payment for me.”
“I'll try my best,” Amity chuckled before going quiet., “Hey Eda?”
“Yes, Boots?” Eda asked with a raised eyebrow.
“I don't know how to say this, but I kind of have this weird energy in me I want to get out.”
“You want to do the parallel arm thing don't you,” Eda sighed, “Luz gets the same way all the time.”
“Can I?” Amity looked up with the biggest kitten eyes Eda had ever seen.
“Of course,” Eda said as she outstretched her arms, and if the Owl Lady had to take a step back from the force of Amity's hug, that wasn't anyone's business. Even in her magicless state, Odalia would never gain any ground on the Owl Lady, but her daughter was already a better witch in every way that mattered.