Chereads / Boiling Gems (The Owl House x Steven Universe) / Chapter 14 - Chapter 14: Pocket Pebble Pellets

Chapter 14 - Chapter 14: Pocket Pebble Pellets

Summary: Small relaxing moments in our lives

Luz finished her piece. "And when we're finished, your art skills will be as good as this." She shows off the image perfect portrait of all the boys sitting down with Hooty blocking King's face

"Wow, you perfectly captured a photo bomb. That's pretty impressive." Lucci chuckled. Nice to see Mr. Emo lightened up just a little. Her protagonist's powers were working their magic.

"It's so life-like…it's like there really is another me….what if there is!?" Hooty began freaking, hissing like a cat at the creature. "YOU'LL NEVER REPLACE MEEE-!"

"Screeeee!" Centi wrapped around her and hissed her venom at the bird demon.

"AHHHHHH! My beautiful complexion! It's ruined, I'm ruined!" Hooty wailed around like one of those inflatable dummies in front of car lots, only having a few minor burns at best.

"You were right, he is durable." She noted.

"Told yah. Still think you should leave 'Centi' outside. On the front porch of that cabin in the human world at least." Lucci told her.

"Hey, pretty much everything living here has been trying to eat me since I came, and I don't nearly complain as much as I did on my first day anymore, so pardon me if I take that advice with a grain of salt." She countered back. Not so easy when the shoe was on the other foot.

"Creeee?"

"Yeah, you can have a salty snack." She tossed them a Chaapp. Such a cute little gal. Made sense that she ended up being a demon from the boiling isles. Guess Eda had a long habit of leaving that door open if Centi was back here.

"Dang it, all my eyeballs end up too wonky." King groaned as he began to scribble out his attempt at a drawing. "I will conquer this medium of artistic expression or die trying!"

"Whoa there, little guy, don't murder your pencils. The more simply you think about art, the easier it's going to be for you." She patted his head. "Let's start with a simple circle." Luz smiled as she began drawing. "First I'll draw a head, then I'll erase a few details." It went down from a photo realistic face to some lines. "And one two three … a circle!"

"Wha..huh…how the heck did..but you already…huh!?" King looked like his own head was splitting for some reason.

"Huh, that's almost like when I learned the f-cord." Lucci nodded. "I play..what was it called…Beet's hoven after hearing it once and got my fingers used to the position."

"Man, the new generations just keep killing the last." Luz noted.

"That's why we're going to be the greatest and strongest." Lucci nodded. "But you're still going to have to slow it down, not all of us can draw a straight line."

"Fun fact, there's no such thing as a straight line when it comes to drawing." Luz divulged her knowledge. "Even the neatest looking has some bends or curves if you look close enough, so if your struggling, don't see it as messing up, see it as a new way to draw what you're drawing."

"Alright, let's try something with lines …" He began scribbling a bit, everyone in silence, before smiling. "Done." He showed off an image of a stick figure of Centi behind bars. "I think it's a deep representation of what real life should reflect."

"If I wasn't an advocate for freedom of expression, I'd be hiding you way more harshly than I normally would." She turns to her little buddy. "So instead I'll let Centi herself be the judge."

" Screeeeeeeee." Centi melted the page

"Everyone's a critic." The boy rolled his eyes. "You can keep your art, I shall forever fall unto the superior medium of music."

"In my eyes, no medium surpasses another. All forms are valid and unique in their own special way." Luz explained as she continued to doodle. "We take different tools and explore the world in whatever way we want."

"That's great advice and all, Luz, but what are you drawing?" King pointed to her paper.

"Just what I'm seeing…" She trailed off, noticing that there was an ominous looking black figure in the background of what she was drawing, with small white eyes that looked like they were staring at her. "Huh..guess my imagination wandered a little. I'll fix that, there."

"It got bigger." Lucci pointed out, and indeed, the black blob's image took up more of the canvas.

"Hmm … is that a um, Boiling Isles thing?" She asked nervously. "Because paintings don't move on Earth." Luz slowly began backing away from the image.

"I don't know, and I'm afraid to find out-Ah it moved again!" King shouted, the image now showing off a sign that said 'behind you'. "Set it on fire!"

"Wait, what would be behind-" She turned around and noticed a giant bulking and towering black demon shadow thing standing over them.

"Hello-"

"AAAHHH!" She slammed two light glyphs into each other, blinding whatever it was.

"AAAHHH!" Lucci formed a razor disk, tossing them frantically.

"SCRAAA!!" Centipeetle began spitting.

"Aaaaaaah mercy! I just wanted to compare notes!" The creepy thing responded as they were bombarded with their combined attacks.

" ...Huh?" Everyone titled their heads in bafflement.

"I didn't do anything wrong!" The giant black slithering creature shouted as it held a paintbrush in its hands. "I was just wanting to express my artistic expression!"

"Express your …" Luz looked at the painting. "Don't mess with someone else's painting!" She splattered paint on the guy. "At least get my permission before you scribble your work over my own!"

"But you let the Crystal Devil do it, so I thought …"

Lucci began to smirk. "Yeah Luz, seems a bit hypocritical." He lifted, went to the guy and extended his hand. "Don't worry big guy, we'll go somewhere where our talents can be appreciated."

"..,are we ignoring the fact he somehow broke into the HOUSE!?" King shouted.

"He knew the password." Hooty shrugged.

"I just said please."

"And you're the first guy to guess right!" So this was what counted as a normal day at the owl house.

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Jacob Hobkins looked over his diciple's work. "I see, I see … while I can see some minor holes in your connected theory, your evidence gathering skills have greatly improved over the years under my tutelage. I never even knew about the lighthouse incident."

His disciple nodded as his approval. "My efforts to expose the truth were nearly thwarted, but I managed to bring it to light. Sadly, it seem the poltergeist is no longer around, either expunged or transferee to another location." Rhonaldo Fryman, perhaps the only one in Gravesfield willing to seek out the truth.

"It's too be expected, it's not called the unnatural for no reason. It tends to wander away from publicity." Jacob nodded at the lost. "Now it says here that you think the lizard people are responsible for this. I know that they have connections with extraterrestrial life, but they're not the type to associate with the undead." Unlike those evil witches.

This town had a long history of encountering the supernatural, but many, far, far too many of the residents seem perfectly content with forgetting, heck, even parading the occult and witchcraft. The mayor may have said it was just a tourism hook, but Jacob knew far better than to believe that lie.

He's seen it before, a witch. Coming in, talking about snails as a form of payment, creating light from her hand, a staff that seemed almost alive, and what he could only assume was a portal to another realm inside of her unkempt hair. The woman came and went about town whenever she wanted, so there was no telling when she'd pop up. The only clue Jacob had was that she hung around the old cabin in the woods.

"Very well, but I know for a fact that there is something trying to hollow out the earth, which brings me to my latest theory." Rhonaldo handed out a very detailed looking pamphlet.

"Mud people." He read it out loud. "Makes sense to come to that conclusion. Witches were said to have been protected by colorful golems in the old days."

Rhonaldo nodded "My hypothesis right now is that the radiation from the Lizard People's crystal mines, combined with the magical energy of those golems, broke down their molecular bonds into a more unstable liquid state."

"Which would soon develop its own free will and sentience." He followed along. It was an interesting concept, he already questioned if witches were adapting to modern technology, but combining science and magic … the horrors it brought to the mind. "Have you found anything concrete to cement this theory?"

"Only a few pieces here and there. The giant eyeball that almost hit the town three months ago was the first sign. I originally assumed it was the snake people's satiate trying to spy on us all, but found that the destroyed pieces of it on the beach were more crystalline in design, perhaps the mud people using their powers to bring down orbiting meteors to crush their enemies."

Jacob thought about it for a few seconds. "I highly doubt it. They're too new of a civilization if that was the case, you had a better angle going with the hollow earth theory." The kid could get just a little too passionate with his theories from time to time.

"Right right, sorry." The boy apologized.

"It's fine, you've already pulled a lot." He patted them on the back. "It's more than most people do Ronaldo. We're the last line of defense if the government is taken over, we're the only ones who will take on the threat of our future." He gestured to the room. "Our research will become history in the making, the conspiracy this world hangs over the masses lifted for all to see."

"We'll finally show people the truth of everything there missing, and we'll finally get our mewtubes accounts verified!" It was important to have funding while searching for the truth. Museum curator and part time fry shop cook didn't pay all that well for it.

"We'll do more than gain that significant monetary boost to our livelihoods, my young friend, we'll be heroes!" He proclaimed proudly, putting a foot on his desk. "Saving the world from whatever uncanny forces lurk within the shadows! And I know just where to start next." He showed off a bill board which held his latest research project.

"Steven?" Rhonaldo asked, baffled. "You've been spying on Mr. Universe's kid? Yeah he's a little off but I haven't noticed anything strange."

Jacob paused, looking at his disciple incredulously. "You haven't noticed anything? Like, anything at all?"

"... No?" It seemed more like a confused question than a statement.

"Not even when he turned his hands into puppies that played with children?"

"Obviously he was just a very convincing ventriloquist with really good puppets."

"Not even the fact that whenever he's involved, there's a giant monster attack?"

"There's a lot of bears that live in the woods, and he likes animals like any normal kid."

"Not even he and multiple women took a van into the horizon when the OCEAN VANISHED!?"

"Climate change and drought induced hallucinations."

Jacob stared at him. "Okay, I'm spending the next few days trying to filter your perception of reality." Someone needed a check on it after all.

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"And here's Morogan the Screamer. I made sure to put a muzzle on the gall for ya and everything." The 'Rainbow Devil' chuckled as she slapped the prisoner on the back.

"Mmmmrrrrrrrrr." They were unable to use their sonic bard magic scream due to the special metal brand she had placed on their mouth. Bismuth was still a bit iffy on magic after all this time, but she couldn't deny how much easier it made her job.

"That's the tenth bounty this week. At this rate I'm losing more snails by bagging all the big names." The bounty clerk sighed as he placed 

"Hey, you're the ones putting large bounties on easy to catch crooks." She snickered. "Only the Owl Lady manages to live up to the price …" Yeah, wasn't that something …

That last encounter created quite the little revelation … Rose was hiding here.Bismuth didn't know why, or how the bitch managed to hide herself for so long, and under Eda's nose too, but she knew that it would end in absolute disaster. One that would get everyone killed in the end.

Her own entrance was a mystery. One moment she's being betrayed, the next she wakes up on some island with people that are actually kinda fun. At first she was devastated about the loss of her friends and the fate of earth, but after checking the stars and realizing there was literally nowhere to go because she's not in her own universe, SOMEHOW , the gem learned to live with it. It was nice just doing the right thing and helping folks with what they needed like a crazy hermit … until Belos showed his ugly head.

The only bastard that she could say for certain was worse than Rose. He just showed up out of nowhere one hundred years ago, proclaiming to save these poor fools from their own magic, restricting their powers and freedom's for 'the greater good'. He was almost as bad as the Diamonds, and that was a high bar in itself!

And now she couldn't even complete operation castle crusher, because now she had to focus on the more prominent threat of Rose … maybe she could get it into Eda's head that something was wrong. Point out how similar the rock was to herself and the other … Crystal Devils (Bismuth did not need to know what the FUCK happened to those gems) and make them realize the kid wasn't a witch.

It still confused exactly how she herself could use magic, but if she could use it, so could Rose, which probably made that little shapeshifting trick she has going on now much easier. "So am I getting my snails or what?" The gem held out her hand expectantly. "Because I have stuff to do later."

"Just a minute, let me grab a bag." The clerk walked to the back, leaving her alone with the muffled lady.

"So … not a single spell besides the screaming one?" They asked to pass the time.

"MMMMRRRR!!"

"No need to get your skirt in a twist, just curious." She laughed. "Just saying, you're a criminal, you don't HAVE to follow along the coven system and be a one trick snorse your whole life. Have a little variety in your repertoire is all I'm saying. Why do you think I caught you so easily?"

"Because you're a terror upon all witchkind?" A raspy voice said from behind her

The gem chuckled. "You do have a point-" She turned, seeing the face of who was laughing at her. "... Raine Whispers." Bismuth muttered.

The Coven Head Assistant smiled. "Rainbow Devil. I never thought I'd run into you within my lifetime." The Bard summoned that damn instrument. "With how everyone seems to fear your name, it's almost hard to remember that you're a mere bounty hunter."

"There ain't nothing mere about me." Bismuth shifted her arms into hammers, not in the mood to fight the coven system…not today at least. "Are you here to catch an outlaw, coven boy?" She asked coyly, mentally preparing an escape route. "Feeling cocky enough to lose a few teeth and bones today?"

They stared at her for a moment. "No." They sighed. "I don't want to fight … I was just coming to confirm the latest batch and see if any Bards were caught with bounties of their own … It's been way too much paperwork lately since my boss went senial."

Seeing that they weren't going to go for head today, Bismuth chuckled and shifted her weapons back. "You'd think they'd replace him when he start babbling gibberish in public. Didn't he destroy a stage in his last public performance?" Old fool lost his place and began firing shots at the audience. That was an entertaining Wednesday.

"Sadly he's still one of the more well adjusted members of the Coven Heads …" Raine spoke with a low tone. "Also it's not really an option to replace him … he doesn't have long anyway, so they're just putting the duties on me for when he eventually … bites the dust."

"That's morbid. Keep forgetting you witches have such low lifespans." If only that applied to Belos. Wouldn't be a sight for that bastard to just croak one day sitting his ass on the golden sculpted throne he's carved for himself. "Hey, on the plus side, there's a promotion in your future."

"Promotion filled with paperwork … and eyes. " The Coven assistant muttered.

"You're in the Bard Coven, isn't it your whole deal about performing in public?" Bismuth raised an eyebrow. "How the titan do you function with stage fright?"

"Lot of sucking it up and keeping a low head. I hate crowds swarming me, way too much pressure."

"Well, sucks to be you." Bismuth chuckled as she heard the familiar ching of snails. "Hit me up when you feel like having some fun Rainbow style, I'm gonna go grab me some parts." She grabbed the bag, walking to the door.

"You know the rumors aren't helped with you making vague statements like that outloud."

"Who says I want to be specific?" Bismuth smirked. "Whatever I'm planning is between me and myself, and whoever I decide to crush into pieces. Could be you one of these days, could be the Emperor's throne room, who's to say? The world's too big and wonderful to have set plans."

Right now, the one that needed to be crushed the most … the one she'd need the castle crusher against if the rest of the gems took her side … Rose would fall within half a year's time.

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Celenen, or Moon girl as most people knew her as, dusted off her crystal ball as she waited for customers. Some might say it was weird to open a stall in the school cafeteria for fortune telling, others didn't see the potential they could use. She was in the Oracle track, so there was a viable market to be exploited

First off, money was money, it was just common sense. Second, teenagers were desperate for gosip. Third, messing with people using vague futures was hilarious. And four … they needed every scrap and advantage they could in order to find a way to survive .... it.

The darkness, the agony, her family crumbling into dust as the island falls to entropy - "Boscha, look!" She was taken out of the nightmare as a familiar voice called out. "Fortune telling! We've gotta try it."

"Really? You're just gonna believe whatever sappy story this random nobody gives you?" The school bully asked. "Who even says she's competent?"

"She's been known to be a pretty reliable source for even the teachers." Amelie, the plant track student of the Banshees pointed out. "It's said that Principal Bump actually's gone to her a few times to prepare for Grudgby matches against Glandus."

Celenen didn't see why they kept coming to her. She kept learning new things from the teachers and others all the time … if she was good she might have been able to save people more. "Come on." Cat, the healing student of the Banshees, smiled. "We haven't done anything interesting lately. School's kinda fallen into a rut since Grudgbey season isn't on."

"Fiiiiinnnne." The Grudgby captain rolled her three eyes as the group entered the tent. "These fortunes better be super accurate or so stupid I laugh."

Celenen raised her hand over the ball, summoning her bestie, Casper, as the one specter rose up with a menacing form. "The future must be paid …"

"Is that supposed to mean we're gonna pay with our lives!?" Skara shouted.

"Paid … in the form of four snails per person." Casper continued.

"Four sna-you're just trying to con us out of our money, aren't you!?" Boscha accused.

"I asked Professor Goulocia the appropriate price, he said as long as it wasn't over two digits for someone of my age." Celenen answered. "We do accept substitutes in the form of objects."

"Will three fairy pies suffice?" Cat handed over three of the little mini confectionaries.

Well it wouldn't go to the apocalypse bunker, but she'd save out on some food money. "Sure, that'll cover three of you." Celenen once more set the mood. "Now take a seat, and let your invisible threads of the future become visible."

"Do me!" Skara shouted. "Do me do me!"

"Alright, let's take a look at what your future holds." She gazed into the ball, swimming through the expanding ocean of the future, watching as time split, converged, pooled, dripped, all fluid until a solid image formed … why she fighting two COVEN HEADS, she wouldn't-oh, ouch, that's gonna sting. "You will be forced to abandon someone you love."

" WHAT!?" The bard girl screamed, tears quickly forming in her eyes. "Who is it? What do I need to do to avoid that!?"

"You can't avoid the circumstances. It's a choice. You either risk the life of one person you love to save another, or leave them behind to save the former." Family or Friend, the decision was in her hand.

"That's cruel and unusual, especially for a customer." Cat muttered.

"What'd you expect, you paid for fortune telling with pies." Boscha called out.

"Fair enough, try me. Let's see if we can get one good thing out of today." The glasses girl turned to her.

"For the next girl, your future says …" Once more swim, don't drown, keep the head above the water as to not be sucked into infinity. Gently, gently … oh wow, so many Coven Heads in people's visions lately, and talk about vindictive as hell. And only one thing helped … "You will heal one of the Isles's greatest healer."

"I'm going to be strong….I'm actually going to be STRONG!?" Cat's eyes went wide and teary too, but this time out of joy. "I'm not wasting my life, I was right DAD! I DO HAVE A FUTURE IN THE HEALING TRACK! I'M NOT WASTING MY SKILLS!"

"Yeah …" Lets not tell her that she'd be an outlaw by then … for her own happiness.

"Alright, what about me?" Amelia asked.

"Just a second …" Celenen searched … and searched … and searched through the flowing liquid of time to see … "Wow …"

"Let me guess, it's either awesome or terrifying." The girl rolled her eyes.

"No…I don't see anything special...in fact…I'm having trouble finding anything of note." Celenen spoke honestly. "You can have your pie back if you want, it doesn't feel right to predict that your future is just … average and mundane."

"What…?" She pouted as she sadly accepted her pie. "Do I at least get an A on my grades?"

"...You're completely Average throughout your entire time at Hexide." The fortune teller winced. Well it would be more accurate to say she would be average the entire year, and then… it would happen and none of that would matter.

"So we got bad, good, and mundane." Boscha rolled her eyes. "Wow, what an amazing experience this has been. And so vague and non specific to."

"I don't need to see the future to know a chicken when I see one." Celenen decided just this once to egg the mean girl. She saw that she'd get paid by one customer today and she needed to fund the bunker.

"Do you know who you're talking to, one eye!?" The grudgeby captain got in her face.

" Yeah, a three eyed chicken." Casper moved into a pose. "Bawk. Bawk bawk Baaawk."

"I don't care if you're a ghost, I'm going to find a way to rip you to shreds one of these days!" Boscha yelled, going into her pockets and slammed the four snails on the table. "There, happy. I want my fortune!"

"Then your fortune shall be told." Celenen looked into the orb, fishing for something juicy and fun to tell. Something hilariously ironic. Scanning, looking around. Wow, there was a LOT of music and explosions on this path. Oh, here was a specially potent one. Ohhh … how the mighty fall. "A pink gemstone will mark the beating of your heart." They smirked. "For it shall bring the suffering of all those other than you."

"Wait, Boscha's going to fall in love with someone? Her?" Skara finally managed to wipe the tears from her eyes. " Her?"

"What's THAT supposed to mean?" Boscha turned to the bard incredulously.

"It's just that…well…" Cat laughed hesitantly. "You and people….you know…..mix as well as fire and dynamite."

"Yes, both go perfectly together and kill people." The girl glared. "What's your POINT?"

"It's partially to do with the 'kill people' part." Ameilia gave a broken chuckle. "If we genuinely saw you like that….actually saw you being happy, then the world would break apart and all life would cease to exist."

Boscha cracked her neck. "Everyone, we're extending practice until sunset. Make sure to bring your spike pads. You'll need them. " Ah yes, young love, how adorable and innocent … if only she could experience it before all the happiness vanished.

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"And finally revealed to Lisa that the one-eyed man was not standing behind her, but in the reflection itself." Connie read, sitting in the living room of the temple with the closets, and only friend that she had.

"I have so many goosebumps it's not even funny." Steven responded while holding himself. "My imagination makes this so terrifying. Come on Lisa, you can stand up to him!" Seeing the boy act so happy after everything that's happened was a definite treat to witness. 

Connie had been worried for a second, apparently after the phone store encounter, Steven didn't remember anything that day or what had happened. There was even something weird going on at the Big Donut, where Lars got stuck in a giant pink bubble that he claimed Steven trapped him in. And then there was Sour Cream, who said Steven broke her car, claiming he 'freed him from the metal maws of a beast'.

When she asked if there was someone running around with his face, he got really nervous and said he'd look into it. So far it was nothing but … still concerning all the same. The Crystal Gems took it as a sign of his other gem power's emerging having some weird mental effect on him they didn't count on, proclaiming amnesia or something to that effect.

Other than that though, he's been a lot calmer, smiling more. She asked how he felt about … 'that man', but Steven just said they didn't care about him anymore. The casual dismissal was both terrifying when explained in detail … but also very cool considering it was just cutting them out instead of keeping on the hate. "Lisa glared at the mirror. 'Is this thou's trick? Spying on a woman instead of facing her? A tactic of worms and cowards.' In responce the one eyed man let out a cackle, sounding of knives and rot as-"

"Hey you two." And here came back one of the annoying new additions to her life. "I got you hot Cocoa Steven." She offered a cup to the boy. "Sorry Connie, we were out of powder for two cups, some water works."

"Yeah, I'm sure of it." Connie rolled her eyes. She didn't mind Lapis being kind to Steven, or even her favoring him, the boy deserved it after all with his kindness, and saving the world's ocean too, but she didn't have to keep butting in. "Well, if you don't mind, me and Steven will go back to reading."

"I don't mind, I'll just sit here and listen too." The water gem plopped on the ground and scooted closer and gloomped the boy, putting even MORE space between her and her friend.

"Connie, do you know what this means?" Steven asked with sparkly eyes. "We could get another book buddy. And one with the eighteen and up permission for going on the Spirit Morph Saga's online forum." The ignorance of childlike wonder.

"Yeah, sounds totally fun and not a bad idea after all." Connie growned. "I was hoping to just keep this between us though, it was becoming our special thing we could do together." Alone and away from everyone else.

The boy tilted his head. "We could always do stuff with just us or with others. The world has endless options after all." He reached out and placed his hand on top of hers. "It's not like we'll ever be separated … unless your parents ever find out how crazy my family is."

"Yeah, no way are they ever going to find out." Mom hadn't been asking too many questions. Luckily Connie was intelligent and young, so the 'I'm at the library excuse' was still a valid and workable one. Connie went to reach for the book, before noticing Steven's hand was still on hers, as she let out a small blush. "O-Okay, where were we?"

Splash

Connie felt herself getting hit with water on the face. "Ooops, guess the kitchen sink is more on the fritz than I thought it was." Lapis stated as if she wasn't one hundred percent possible. "Pearl really needs to fix the plumbing around here." As if Pearl would let something deteriorate around her 'baby boy'.

"Lapis." The boy pouted. "I get you're pranking with Amethyst now, and it's cool you two are bonding, but please don't be mean to Connie." Steven asked her. "You two can be good friends if you try."

"But that means splitting my attention away from you, and I don't want that." Lapis squeezed the boy's puppy dog face tightly. "So are you going to start reading Connor or what?"

"My name is Connie."

"That's what I said, Kenny."

Connie sighed, opening the book.  "Rot as they shifted. 'Do you really think all art does is observe?' The one eyed man asked as they took many forms, like a shadow puppet in the moonlight. 'I welcome you to find me, child. The look of terror when you see my face will be delightful … but I am a pragmatic one.' They responded."

"So he's a man in the mirror with no form sounding super ominous?" Lapis asked. "Are you trying to tell me something, because I don't like it."

"It's just how he functions." Connie rolled her eyes, deciding to explain it to the semi-hostile gem. He moves and shifts between forms, constantly switching and changing himself because he has no form to call his own, his entire life is just living someone else's story."

"'Does thou assume some form of plot?' Lisa asked with a glare. The one eyed man cackled. 'Does thou trust your friends?' He asked her. 'Because thou must think twice … I have a companion, hiding amongst thou friends, lying through their teeth every day as they assume the face of someone else.'

"Hiding…lying….that must be such a terrible existence to lead." Steven looked like he was getting a little pale. "Constantly saying one thing when it's anything but what it looks like. What a horrible, horrible fate to have."

Connie stopped reading. "We can stop if you want to, check on crying breakfast friends or something." After about three episodes she was already sucked into the horrible fandom.

"No, it's fine." He shook his head, taking a sip of his coco. "Just talking silly and getting into the mood. Keep going."

Connie was hesitant, but kept going. "Lisa stared at the man. 'Never.' A simple responce sent the wizard cackling. Thou dare accuses me of lying? I am many things, but a man not of my word is not one of them.' Lisa moved closer to the reflection. 'No. Thou claims that they lie, but after all we've been through, our bonds will overcome your malicious plotting. I trust my companions with my life, even if they were once on your side.' The one eyed man let out a smirk that became a circle. 'We'll see, child.' With a cloud covering the moon, the reflection vanished, leaving Lisa alone in the darkness" Connie reached the end of the chapter. "That's today's segment."

"Wow. You're such a great narrator Connie." Steven complimented with that wide and bright smile. Whatever annoyances Connie had to deal with, that alone made all of them worth it.