Summary: Sandals are the worst
Hooty had many fun parts of the day. Watching the sunrise, eating bugs, talking to Lucci, eating bugs, watching the sun set, eating bugs, playing in mud, eating bugs, etc. But his favorite part? Watching the cute little gang he called a family slowly and gently wake up in the morning … time to give them a little jolt. "Morning Lu-OW!" He shouted, being hit with a book by their latest roomie.
"Don't sneak up on a girl, especially in the bathroom!" The human girl yelled as she pushed him out of the window.
"Geesh. Try to be nice and you get hit in the eye. And they wonder why chivalry is dead." Hooty groaned as he pushed his head into Lucci's room, the kid having fallen asleep while playing his lute. "You'll never hit me in the face, right bestie!?"
"I'm not lonely!" Lucci woke up, falling to the floor on his face. "Oh, it's just morning wake up. Hey Hooty. Fill up on voles again? You know you're on a limit."
"Not yet, I wanna see what I can snag from what Luz likes to call 'human food'." Hooty answered, filing away hootastic therapy sessions for later. "I have a great feeling about the edible flower."
"Huh, I've heard of edible clouds, edible dirt, and edible fire, but never edible flowers weirdly enough. You'd think plant magic would solve that."
"I thought you weren't allowed Plant Magic anymore?" Hooty asked. "You know, after the vegetable incide-"
"We don't talk about the 'incident' remember?" The boy stopped him. "Just like how we never mention the bunny parade of 2019." He could still taste the fur to this day. "Morning roomie." He turned to see Luz. "I see rumors of human fashion sense don't quite do it justice."
"I'll have you know I am an exotic specimen." The girl twirled in the little outfit she was in, with a black dress and pointy black hat. "I'm ready to greet the world and begin my first day of witch training."
"Hey, I'm not knocking you down. There's something to be said about someone that's never too ashamed to wear an old bathrobe and a dirty street cone. You do you, girl." Lucci sent a genuine thumbs up before heading down the stairs.
Luz looked confused, before taking her cone off and wiping the dust off, groaning as she followed Luci. "So much for looking the part."
"Wait, do humans think Witches wear streat cones?" Lucci asked. "Man, that's not even a decent stereotype." Looked like a funny one though.
"That's not what I was getting at. So much of my fantasy is getting deconstructed by the minute." Luz sighed. "So I don't know if this is a stupid question or not, but if your a boy, wouldn't that make you a warlock?"
"Witches is a general term for anyone that uses magic. Demons are people like King, with odd abilities natural to their species." Lucci watched as said creature walked into the room.
"Feed your mighty King, servant!" The little doggie demon demanded.
"Aww, I'm guessing your ability is being super adorable when you sound angry." Luz pinched the little guy's cheek.
"Your flattery can only save you for so long, human…unless you continue to give me head pats!"
"Anyway, Warlocks is kind of an old timey term that nobody uses anymore, so at this point we just kinda generalize it with Witch." He answered. "So … what are you cooking?"
"Pancakes." The girl smiled as Hooty looked over the spread.
"... You put pans in your cakes?"
"Keep forgetting this world doesn't have all the same rules and history as my own." Luz stated as she opened that bag of white powder. "They're cakes that you cook in a pa-hey! Hooty, stop eating that!"
"But I eat flowers all the time." The demon justified as he shoved his face into the bag of white goodness.
"That's flour. It's basically powdered roots. It's meant to be an ingredient that you mix together, not eat raw."
"Ooooh…" Hooty nodded, before going back to eating it. "Nom, nom, I'm becoming one with the powder!"
She sighed, pulling out a plate. "I already made one, split it between the two of you for a taste test on 'human food'."
"Sorry about that, it takes a while for people to understand Hooty's whole deal." Lucci said as he rubbed Hooty's head. "Isn't that right, big guy?"
"The inner machinations of my mind are an enigma." Hooty stated what all living life forms needed to hear.
"Well, time to eat poison." King took a bite of the food, silent for a moment as he let out a tiny squeal. "This is!" The little guy shouted, before suddenly pausing, looking mundane. "The most … terrible thing i've ever tasted …" He began sliding the plate away. "You wouldn't want this Lucci, I will take the burden."
"Nice try King, we were taught to lie by the same woman, and I'm older." Lucci stabbed the food with a fork and shoved it in his mouth.
"Only in this current form I'm repressed into!" Keep telling yourself that little guy.
"Wow, this is good …" The boy nodded. "Although strangely light … it's like a snack rather than an actual food."
"Our stomachs were made for tougher stuff." They turned as Eda walked in, scratching her face. "Gah, I need my apple blood."
"You mean apple juice, right?" Luz asked, concerned.
"Nope….." Eda drank a whole half a gallon of the stuff. "…whoever you are." That seems to kill something in the little girl the moment she heard it.
"Luz … your witch apprentice?" She asked in a quiet voice.
"Apprentice-oh right, that wasn't a dream." Eda scratch's her back. "Well if your serious about living here, ya gotta start making it worth my while."
"Will that include giving me a witch's staff like the one you have?" The human asked with wide and beady eyes."
"Not likely." Lucci answered, looking curiously at the pancakes he was devouring with King. "Palismin wood is super rare ever since the Emperor Coven's started to hoard it. Grandpa Dell used to make them for people, but even he can't spare enough for me." Eda seemed to cough up her apple blood a little.
"More mysterious backstory! Tell me more!" Luz exclaimed.
"Too early in the morning. Besides, you need to earn your keep around the house first before we move onto witch stuff." The woman answered. "Starting with selling our potions with Lucci in the city."
"Aw man. I thought it was 'rob the bakery' week." Lucci pouted.
"You and I both know you need to lighten up on sweets. You have an even worse addiction to those than I do with apple blood." When the woman admitted she had a problem, you knew it was serious. "Besides, it's a great chance to show the girl how we do things around here. Remember what I say about an extra pair of hands."
"You can never have enough with a grab and go." He rolled his eyes as King finished his meal. "Come on Roomie, grab a bag and let's go ahead and get started. The faster we finish the faster we can wander freely."
"Haha, you got to do chores." King laughed.
"You need to go with them too." Eda said bluntly. "Lucci will need an extra pair of eyes for lookout in case any guards are still on the lookout from yesterday."
"You're lucky you get to stay at home Hooty." King grumbled as he had to walk away. Yeah, he was super lucky.
"Be safe out there, get back by nine or face my wrath, and remember what I always say about lemons!" Eda called out to the kids.
"Oh, you guys make lemonade here too?" Luz asked.
"What the heck's lemonade?" Lucci raised an eyebrow. "The expression is, if life rolls you lemons, gather as many as you can, label them yellow oranges, and sell them at triple the price."
"You guys have lemons and oranges, but you don't have lemonade?"
"Welcome to the boiling isles, kid. The comforts are little and the suffering is a cesspool.." Eda snickered.
"But it's a cesspool we call home." Lucci finished with a smile. What a delightful start to an amazing day.
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King watched as the new girl almost got herself killed … again. Lucci grabbed Luz's hand. "Why are you about to arm their security system?" His brother asked with exhaustion.
"Wait, that's not a doorbell?" The oblivious nature of this chick was almost awe inspiring.
"No, that's a doorbell." King pointed to the mouth, punching it in the nose as it began screaming. "And that's how you ring it."
The house groaned in pain before the door wiggled open, revealing a girl with a weird crescent shaped head and only one eye. "You got the stuff?"
"Same as always, Moon girl. Thirty vials of snake oil." Eda's kid handed the stuff over as he accepted the pavement.
"Wait, her name is Moon Girl?" Luz asked.
"It's called an alias honey, keep … up …" The girl stared at the human with confusion. "You're new …"
"Yep, Luz Noceda! Human straight from earth and soon to be the most powerful witch on the isles!" The girl stretched out her hand. "Let's be friends!"
"Human … not from the Isles … variable!" Moon Girl shouted, before shutting the door. "A NEW VARIABLE!"
"... Is that normal?" Luz asked.
"Eh, she does that every two months when she sees something new." Lucci shrugged. "When I made my first delivery to her, she used a trapped door on me to keep me from 'making new paths' or whatever. I try not to pry."
"Cool." Luz smiled. "The Boiling Isles is so weird and amazing. From the fliers, to the magical illusions, to that statue, to that centaur with the toned abs." She kept pointing around.
"Hey, don't body shame me!" The half horse shouted, the eyes and mouth being on the chest rather than the head.
"So is suicidal tendencies a universal human trait or just you?" Lucci sarcastically asked. "Because you are about as hard to keep alive as a baby." He paused. "Harder than it was to keep King alive actually."
"Hey, I'm just admiring this beautiful and crazy world here." The girl responded as a fairy was biting her elbows. "Just think about it, I'm the only human on the boiling isles, that HAS to mean something!"
"Yeah, it means mom left that door portal thing open." The boy said bluntly. "I'm more surprised she hasn't made the mistake before."
"The portal opens up to an empty shack in the middle of the woods." King explained. "Normally nobody would be around there to begin with."
"There's actually a guy back home that does blogs occasionally there, but no one listens to Rhonaldo." Luz said. "I used to, until he started edging towards entitled jerk territory."
"Everyone becomes an entitled jerk when they have what they want." The boy grumbled. "So, what's next?"
"We have a wizard in that mansion over there." King pointed to the well kept manor.
"You guys have wizards!? Finally! Wait, I thought you said witches was the general term or something?"
"It is, this guy just lived long enough to keep using stuff like that." Lucci shrugged. "Usually people like him, as mom says, are just old creepy dudes in robes."
"Okay mr. Glass half empty, I'll take your advice with a grain of salt and make my own conclusions." Luz smirked. "Maybe he can tell me about my magical destiny!"
"That's a terrible thing to want." Lucci countered. "Destiney just means you don't have a say on what you do, and as an aspiring agent of chaos, I'm completely against that."
"Anarchy for life!" King shouted as he tackled the door. After it opened, they were greeted by a library, along with a robe wearing weirdo in sandals.
"Ah, Lucifer Clawthorne. Luz Noceda, I've been expecting your arrival."
"You know my name?! How?!" The girl immediately began falling for
"Oracle magic, increased awareness, oldest trick in the book." Lucci stated.
"Also you have your name on your bag." King pointed to said animal themed object.
"I foresaw that the Owl Lady had sown the seeds of doubts within her child, but I count myself fortunate that the dark cliff has yet to consume your light, young human." The robed weirdo gestured to a table that smelled delightful. "Have my homemade scones, a recipe passed down one hundred years."
"Let me guess, you're gonna say these are poisoned?" Luz rolled her eyes this time.
Lucci walked up and took a bite. "... No, just cinnamon."
"Sprinkles of brown gold, I'm sold!" King jumped on and began devouring the sweets..
"How does the Boiling Isles have cinnamon but not lemonade?" The girl asked.
"A mystery for the ages most assured. One of many questions that I hope we can answer." The old fossil began reaching into his wardrobe. "I believe, no, I know for sure that you are who the prophecy foretold of, Luz Noceda. For I see that it is your magical destiny to accept my quest!"
"Prophecy, destiny, magic, quest!?" The girl got those gogo eyes.
"And we're leaving." Lucci pulled away the girl. "Your stuff is in the bag, don't try and eat my roomie!"
"What, but, he has a destiny and everything." The girl tried reaching out as she was dragged away.
"Don't worry, suspicion for the path is expected." The man tossed a paper airplane their way. "When you see your true destiny, the path will show its way!"
"Yeah, sure." King stuffed his face with another pastry before following the kids. "I don't know what kind of scam you're trying to pull, but you should stop and stick with making scones. Seriously, business would boom, just saying."
"Guys, what was that?" Luz accused them as they made it to the front. "He had everyone I've been asking for!"
"Luz, people with sandals are worse than my mom when it comes to conning others. It's why I cut the middle man and don't even wear shoes half the time." Eda's kid groaned. "Point is you can't trust them to not hit you over the head when you're back is turned.
"Just like the time Lucci got hit with veg-"
"Don't finish that sentence King." Right, they would never bring up 'the incident' again. "Point is, I know a con when I see one.
"Oh yeah, well you seemed sooo trusting of those scones." Luz accused right back.
"Of course I am, poison doesn't work on me." He shrugged, taking another bite.
"... Really?"
"Yep. I never get sick in general. In fact, after a while I started taste testing poisons for flavor."
"…Eda had you taste poison for her?"
"Yeah, better me than her. That's why I'm her number one partner in crime."
"Don't forget about me." King raised his arms. "I'm the sane one!"
"Pretty sure that's Hooty's position."
"…You're kidding right?" King asked, taking a sniff of the scones. "You sure poison doesn't affect your brain?"
"Can we not get into this right now? We still got a dozen orders to fill and mom hates it when we're late."
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Lucci groaned as he flopped on the couch. "Luz, seriously, you need to think before you act." He said. "We had to start a house fire because you were about to get eaten."
"How did you start a fire with a ball of lint and a plastic bottle?" Luz asked, looking both impressed and horrified.
"A good witch knows how to be resourceful." Mom answered as she sat down, rubbing his head. "Back in my day, I had to work with a glass bottle and a paper bag." So smart and cool.
"I didn't know I could be so curious and so afraid at the same time." Luz sighed.
"Oh don't be like that kid. You're here now, so that means filling those orders was a cake walk." Eda smirked. "An uneventful day like that is a win."
"It did have one good part." King walked in, finishing off the treats they nabbed. "Watching Luz believe in magical destiny was hilarious."
"Magical destiny.." Mom was quiet for a second before hitting the ground like she did last night. "Hahahahaha, that's almost more hilarious than Emo Lucci!"
"I think it's more concerning than hilarious." Lucci muttered, wanting to get away from that mental image quickly. "Who trusts a man in sandals?"
"Seriously, what's your guys deal with sandals?" Luz asked.
"Anyone dressed in casual drapery and opened toed is always bound to be hiding something." Mom explained what should have been common sense for everyone. "It's the Boiling Isles equivalent of a 'guy with a van'."
Luz looked like she was about to argue, but lowered her finger. "You just thought of an example, didn't you?" King observed. "So you know we're right."
"Come on, can't you guys just let me have this?" Luz begged.
"Have what?" Lucci asked. "A dude telling you you're awesome for something you didn't even accomplish?"
"I've made it this far, I'm the only human here on the isles! That has to mean something special is bound to happen at some point!"
"That sounds more like what an entitled egoist would say." King responded. That was a bot of the kettle calling the pot, but Lucci would let the little guy have it if it helped his roomie.
"But look, he has a map!" She pulled out the object. "A powerful magical object that can save the world, or something."
"Luz, don't tell me you actually want to follow that map right now." Lucci sighed. "Excluding the sandal thing, what good is there in following some fixed path?"
"Rewards and adventure along the way, along with helping those in need?"
"As I said, what good is there?" Lucci was a helpful person, sure, but he wasn't going to risk his life to get the Emperor's coven to stop hunting them. After all, that's why they had Hooty.
"As I always say, trusting strangers gets you stabbed in the back." Mom agreed. "Wanna see the scars?"
"No thanks, I'd rather think to myself for a minute." Luz sighed as she left the room and headed upstairs.
Lucci felt a tinge of regret. There was being a realist, and there was crushing hopes and dreams. "Did we go too far?" Like Lucci kept stating, he wasn't a monster.
"Son, this is the Boiling Isles. Earth is a lot safer than anything you'd find here." Mom explained. "It's better she gets crushed by us before some crazy psycho uses her fantasy to lure her into a trap … like that one time when you were six with the zoo."
"That was a cruel way to find out opossums weren't real." Lucci shivered. So many flaming squirrels that day. "I'm going to check on her so she doesn't drown herself in the world crushing loneliness the planet always creates."
"…Do you need to talk about it?" King asked as he went upstairs.
"Maybe in ten years or so." Lucci answered as he headed to Liz's room. Okay, how to rip off the bandaid without tearing off the skin? "Hey Luz, I hope you know we're not trying to be mean. Optimism is just hard to have when.." He opened the door, and saw his roommate stuffing supplies in her backpack, with the map in hand. "…when your insistent on walking into a trap."
She looked up at him. "You can't stop me."
"I can bubble this whole house so you can't walk out of it without anything capable of blowing up through five concrete walls." Lucci deadpanned. "Please, rework that sentence."
"Lucci, all my life I've wanted an experience just like this. Back home, I have nothing. No friends, no special skills. I'm just..the weird girl who people barely remember exists." She looked at him with said and begging eyes. "Do you know what that's like?"
Lucci recalled a time before he realized how terrible friendship was. When he thought others outside his family could cure the empty feeling in his heart. "..I do." He sighed. "Fine, I won't stop you. But I'm coming with you."
She looked at it with a pondering posture before smiling. "Fine, but you can't be a debbie downer the whole trip there."
"A whosit whatter?" He asked.
"Human idiom, I'll explain it on the way." Luz picked up her pack and squealed. "Oh this is just like the good witch Azura! Me, the plucky hopeful chosen one on a quest with her brooding emo but powerful sidekick!"
"One, I'm not broody. Two, I'm not emo. And three, I'm not a sidekick." He listed off, already regretting this trip. "Now come on, we'll jump out the window."
"What's wrong with the front door?"
"Do you really think mom will let you go through with this quest after calling it bunk?" Which it was. "Hooty will catch us either way."
"If I miss the Human, can I eat her corpse?" The bird demon asked. "Pretty please?"
"Is there anything in this world that won't try to eat me?" Luz asked.
"Eh, it's a fifty-fifty chance for everyone here." Rare beasts were apparently a delicacy. He was half interested in eating a 'Lion' when he found one, they sounded as cool as the delectable treats they came from.
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"See, this is the emo you were talking about." Luz watched as the boy tried to set up a comparison and Nevareth. "Do I sound anything like him?" Ten minutes into the journey and Luz was convinced that she made the right choice, if only for the chance at staring at the abs the whole time.
"You're just jealous that I can process my tragic teen angst better than you." The eyepatch wearring beefcake stroked his hair back and let that juicy looking sweat gleam off his body.
"What tragic teen angst? I am a perfectly happy boy with a loving family." Lucci complained. "And you haven't even contributed to any fights …" He looked thoughtful. "In fact, it's been a bit … peaceful on the trip here."
"I know, that means my chosen one instincts are leading us in the right direction." Luz smirked smugly. "I solved the riddle of the bridge.."
"He just wanted you to guess his name, and it was on his shirt." Lucci countered.
"I saved the fairy princess from a rampaging beast.."
"The tumble weed that wouldn't have hurt a fly."
"I took on the dark knight with compassion …"
"He was your long lost future son, who oh so conveniently came to this moment in time."
"See, this is what I meant by Debbie Downer Lucci." She countered back. "Is it so weird to imagine that everything can line up perfectly in the world for once without trouble?"
"What kind of place is your world if you think things could be this perfect?" He rolled his eyes. "Like seriously, life would be terrible if it was like this."
"You're just jealous because you never found true love." The fairy companion they traveled with giggled.
"For your information, 'princess', I have fallen in love. I just know far too well that I have no chance."
Oooohh, romance from Lucci! That took precedence over the entire adventure. "Aww come on, have you tried just asking her out?" Luz questioned.
The boy gave a happy sigh. "She told me that if I died in a ditch, she would consider coming to laugh as my corpse was eaten by woodland life … her mocking laughter was music to my ears." … That was so genuine she had no response.
"Good thing that I have no such qualms announcing to the world the beauty and stunning figure that is Luz Noceda." Neverth sent her a wink as he took off his shirt. "Wear it as a cape to show my love always protecting you."
"Oh yeah, this quest is questing in all the right ways." Luz admitted with no shame. "So how long until we actually get to the sword of … what did you call it?"
"You mean we've been following this map for the last two hours and not once did you think about what we're trying to find?" Lucci smacked his head. "Thief 101 Luz, always know ahead of time if the safe is full of money." Did he only learn anything if a crime analogy was attached?
"The sword of almighty power and justice lies within that cave." The troll the picked up pointed to an opening.
"And you don't see anything blatantly obvious in the naming scheme here?" Lucci asked. "Heck, the eyepatch guy is from 'angstmore'. I feel that's overkill for the emo."
"Coming from the aspiring criminal named Lucifer." She raised an eyebrow.
"What's that got to do with my name? Mom told me it means light bringer, I glow, so it fits."
She raised an eyebrow. "Technically true, it was the name of an angel … that rebelled against the great good god of christianity and became the malicious deity known as the devil that spreads evil through the world." He wanted to break her fantasy, she'd break his.
Lucci looked thoughtful for a second. "I spread chaos throughout the world, I wouldn't necessarily call that evil…is it? Anarchy is just freedom in its purest form, and there's nothing wrong with freedom..,is there?" Existential crisis patch achieved!
"The point is, we're here." She glanced down at the sword. "Once I pull this out, we'll save the world!"
"What would we be saving it from? Am I on the wrong path? Are people like Aunt Lilly and Boolus right this entire time? Am I the one everyone should fear and loathe?" She'd question the aunt Lilly part more if it wasn't getting in the way of her big moment.
"Say hello to your hero, Boiling Iles!" She shouted, pulling out the glowing blade. "I, Luz Noceda, am the chosen one!" She wasn't crazy, she was destined for more. She wasn't the weird kid. Mom would see Luz was doing the right thing!
Ominous laughter rolled in with a fog. Luz tensed, raising her blade in defense … as it crumbled into pieces. "Hahaahahaah oh you young naive fool! Of all the people I've lured, you have got to be the easiest mark I've ever had!"
"What are you-" She was cut off as all her cool accessories quickly turned into chains. "No! My awesome stuff is weighing me down!" Why was this happening?
"It was all a trap!" An octopus shot out of the ground. "Adegast the puppeteer." He laughed. "I've been playing you for a fool!" He waved her friends around.
"No, my friends! Don't worry, I'll save you all.."
" Idiot, there was never anyone else!" A tentacle shout out control the wizard that started her on this quest, only looking much more lifeless and wooden. " Eda's been stealing my potion's business for years now and I want payback! I was aiming for her little bastard originally, but the old coot made him too paranoid for me to trick."
The basta … right! She wasn't alone! "Lucci, a little help!" She shouted out.
"Was I just built for evil? Was mom setting me up for failure all this time?" … Oh yeah, she broke him. "Do I embrace my evil fate, or fight against it? But mom taught me to rebel, so by rebelling against rebellion.." he kept going as he was wrapped around a tentacle.
"And now I have the perfect bait for the Owl Lady." He cackled. "All because of a naive little girl who believed in dreams."
Damn it! Why did she have to be so stupid! Why, why...wait, there was still an out to this. "Nice try, Eda doesn't even know we're here, so you might as well give up on your plan now!"
"Luz! Lucci, don't worry I'm coming!" The one time it didn't pay to live with a crook with a heart of gold.
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Eda flew to the ground. "Alright … whoever you are." It wasn't easy getting this far, but luckily Hooty was a huge chatter box as well as an effective security system, so finding out where the kids went was easy enough.
"Adegast!" The demon shouted. "Your arch nemesis!"
"... Right." She said to the creature she's never noticed before. "Let them go, you have what you want." She didn't think she'd have to take him seriously, but if this guy captured Lucci then he must have been an actual threat.
"Yeah, I do!" The slimey bastard grabbed her from the floor and incompated her, keeping her away from Owlbert. " I have the most wanted criminal on the isles and her two wards captive to watch her destruction! Three more toys to add to my collection of puppets!" Eda hated when she dealt with sadists. Took all the fun out of a good struggle.
She grimaced. "King, get ready to bite." She whispered to the little guy hiding in her hair. "Sorry Luz, it looks like your apprenticeship is ending early."
"No, I'm sorry Eda, I should've listened to you guys when you warned me! I'll never trust a guy with sandals ever again!" The human shouted as she wiggled from her binds. "I'm sorry Lucci, you're not the brooding emo! You're the brooding realist with common sense!"
"My entire life is a lie, existence is meaningless. I was born into evil and will bring about the apocalypse that will doom us all." Her son looked contemplative as the tentacles around him gripped tighter, looking like he barely noticed at all.
"Snaging my kid was one thing, but turning him into mentally damaged individual is another!" She shouted out.
"Hey, it's not my fault you kidnapped a broken child. Seriously, I at least do thorough background checks before turning them into puppets." The squid jerk shrugged.
"Oh I will so eat you if I get out of this!" She didn't kidnap Lucci! If there are no parents, then there was no kidnapping. If anything, she saved Lucci that day.
"That's a big if … now are you two ready to watch this woman di-OW!" He shouted, holding up a bit tentacle.
"Damn you evil man, even your tentacles taste like your delicious scones!" King shouted as he tore off a piece.
"Wait really?" That snapped Lucci out of the trance he was in as he started to look around. "Wait, how did I get here? Why are we bound and why is mom-it was a con, wasn't it?"
"Yes, you guys were right, now less I told you so and more getting the heck out of here!" Luz demanded.
"On it." Multiple shields came out of the air. "Been wanting a reason to try this little trick." Said shields developed small little blades on the edges … as they began to spin at an alarming speed. "Razordisks!" And they were sent flying at every tentacle.
"You little shit! How the hell do you even have such a detailed shield spell at such a young age!?"
"The most powerful witch in the world is my mom. I'm only a quarter as awesome as whatever she has under her belt." The boy smiled.
"Aw, love you too, sweetie." She grinned as she was freed, grabbing Owlbert and slicing Luz's binds off.
"Speaking of … am I named after the greatest evil in the Human World!?" He shouted out as he blocked an attack.
"Lucci, what have I told you about thinking too deeply about book covers?"
"Only judge if it's rated ages 18+."
"Exactly. I chose Lucifer because it sounded cool, and I want to have the coolest kid in the boiling isles, regardless of the meaning." Although the meaning was too great to pass up. "The only one who can decide how evil you end up is you."
He looked at her, then at Luz. "It's not evil to take this guy down right?" He asked the girl.
"No, it would be very much the opposite of evil!"
"Cool." The shields started merging together into a large shield with spikes on the front. "Then let's get dangerous." He grinned as he shot it forward at the much smaller octopus demon.
" Aghhh, you little cur, I'll get you for this!" The demon squealed as they turned to Luz. " Human! Help me and I can make sure you live your fantasy! No one will laugh or mock you again!! I can guarantee-!"
"You just admitted to telling me dreams are pointless and that you wanted to keep me alive just to watch you torture a woman who was just doing buiness better than you!" Luz grabbed a rock and threw it right into the squid's eye. "I'm gullible, not stupid!" Well that was comforting.
"Alright, I believe that's enough character growth for one day." Eda formed a stream of fire, launching it right at the target. "Time to cook our meal for tonight."
" You won't get away with this indignation! My arms reach far and wide! I have connections like the likes you've never-"
"Ah, shut yah yap." Eda rolled her eyes as she bit the head off the tiny twerp. "Aaah, nothing beats fresh squid after knocking a jerk down a few pegs."
"Oooh, save me the legs!" Lucci raised his hand eagerly.
"I'll take an eye! Those are super juicy." King squealed adorably.
"I … Think i'll pass for now." Luz spoke awkwardly. "I'm sorry guys. I'm just so…confused. I thought coming here I'd fine my place right away, but I'm still lost."
"Don't start calling it quits just yet, Luz. You're young and impatient, just like I was at your age." Eda reassured. "Everyone does something they regret at one point or another."
"Yeah, I have hundreds of regrets I'd like to take back, yet I still go out every day and prepare to punch life in the face." Lucci agreed. "So what if you almost got us puppeteered? I've been swallowed alive five times and I don't look back on it."
"You're gonna mess up plenty of times, and we'll eat whoever tries to destroy you." King said while nibbling on an eyeball. "You're our weird dangly and skinny human, and we're going to keep you around for as long as possible."
"Thanks. That's probably the greatest compliment any one group has ever given me." Luz snickered. "So exactly how long will it take to get my own staff?"
"When you learn a couple decent spells that you could take on a couple coven goods … shouldn't take longer than a couple years." Eda nodded.
"A couple of y-!" The girl had that exasperated and tired look in her eye, before recanting. "You know what, after today I'm willing to have a little patience." Luz sighed. "But I'm going to blow my training out of the water and get that staff way, WAY earlier than that!"
Lucci laughed. "Good luck, it took me that long and I'm a prodigy."
"A prodigy with lots of personal issues." Luz muttered.
"Says the girl that thought life was just going to hand her greatness."
Looks like the life of the Owl Lady just got even more complicated … and Eda thought it was tough with two kids in her life.