"What the hell am I looking at exactly?" Flint asked with a raised brow, crossed arms, and a hint of disgust on his face.
One might be asking what would have Flint looking like this, and the answer is quite simple:
There was a giant slug-like creature's corpse in front of them.
The residents of the owl house were currently standing on a beach and looking at the corpse, around the size of a trailer home, surrounded by trash and muck. They could even hear all the flies buzzing around even from their current distance, which typically would've been far enough.
Luz plugs her nose. "Thisth sthmellsth dithsgusthting." Luz said.
Eda ignores both of their concerns as she walks up to the slug-creature. "Yes, it doesn't get much more inspiring than the trash slug. It makes a home, a life from what others have thrown by the wayside." Eda reaches for something from the trash-slug mouth, revealing to be a rubber chicken that squeaks as she tosses it to the side. "Until, blam, it gets blasted by a wave one day and croaks from all the salt. And then we get to sell the stuff it ate." Eda pulls out a pickaxe and holds it out to Luz expectantly.
Luz recoils in horror. "Please don't make me," Luz said, her pupils shrinking at the implications of what Eda wanted her to do.
King walks a bit away and begins laying out a towel on the ground. "Aw, come on, Luz. It's not every day you get to go to the dump and pick apart a garbage carcass." King says sarcastically, shooting an unamused look at Eda.
"Ah, nuts to you lot." Eda swings the pick at the trash slug, breaking some things.
"So, Eda..." Luz began as her mentor started to pick away at the trash-slug's corpse. "What if we tried some new lessons for my apprenticeship? Like...read ancient scrolls or mix together potions, or-"
Eda groans as she tosses things from the trash slug's mouth. "Ugh. That sounds like a bunch of magic school stuff."
That caught Luz's attention and piqued her curiosity. "Wait. Is there a magic school here? Like, winding towers, cute uniforms, dark plots that threaten your life kind of magic school?"
"Oh yeah, didn't you mention something about a school the other day? Most witches get a staff that way right?" Flint asked curiously.
Eda dropped the slime in her hand and pointed at Flint with a grin. "Good memory. It's such a drag though, since they force you to learn magic the 'proper' way." Eda said with air quotes. "But magic isn't proper. It's wild and unpredictable. And that's why it's so beautiful. Eda picked up her...pick and rested it over her shoulder. "I didn't finish school, and look at me! Who wouldn't envy where I am right now?"
Seeing the number of flies going around the pile of trash Eda was currently standing in wasn't exactly the most appealing to either of the humans. Luz's expression falls, as every turn in this magical world continues to flip her magical fantasy on its head.
"Do you really want an answer to that question?" Flint asks with a deadpan expression, rubbing a spot on his chest that felt almost as tight as it was the other day before he'd cast magic. It was getting rather uncomfortable honestly, and his shortness of breath wasn't helping.
The hand gesture the woman sent his way gave him his answer.
Eda notices Luz's mood and starts to think of a way to cheer her up. She may be a criminal and would forever deny it, but she liked the kid, at least marginally more than any stranger that is. "Uh... hey, here's a lesson. A great witch is resourceful, like this," The woman takes Luz's hand and sticks it in a puddle of trash slug bile drags Luz's hand back and forth before letting go. Luz continues digging until she pulls something out.
"Oh, hey. Greasy slime ball." Luz said with fake enthusiasm.
"That's just nasty," Flint stated a bit green in the face.
Eda closes Luz's hands around the slime ball. "Use your slime ball wisely, young witch," Eda says in a faux sage voice before standing up and heading back to the trash slug. "Back at it! We'll hit the stink nodes first."
Luz starts to back away after pocketing the slime ball. These shorts were definitely going to need to be washed soon. "Actually, if it's okay, I think I'll head home and look at pictures of animals that are still... alive. Love you, King." Luz says as she pets King's belly on her way past him. King giggles at the attention. "You little beach peach." She then heads toward the woods as King sighs with satisfaction.
Eda turns to Flint. "And what about you?"
Flint scratched the back of his neck. "I'd rather try to figure out how to access that magic like I did the other day. Sure I was able to do it, but that was more of a desperation kind of thing. I'd much rather be able to do it on command without fighting for my life, thank you very much. Also..." Flint sighed. "I need to make sure Luz gets home safely," Flint said.
Eda sighs. "I get it, Lily was always doing the same with me when we were younger, trying to keep me out of too much trouble. Magic really isn't all that complex. It's a natural part of you, so use it that way." Eda advises him. It was honestly kind of nostalgic seeing the way Luz and Flint were. It reminded her of when things were...much simpler.
Flint didn't say anything in response to her, simply heading to King and giving the back of the little guy's neck a good scratch, earning him a content sigh for doing so, before going into a light jog the way Luz went.
Flint caught up to Luz as she glared at the slime ball in her hand. "Hey, Luz. Are you okay?"
Luz sighed. "I don't know Flintlock. Maybe all this magic stuff just isn't for me. Everything about this place is so wonderful, but not at the same time. You know what I mean?"
Flint shrugs. "I get it, I really do." Flint brought his left hand up in front of him. "I still can't really tap into that magic as I did before either. Eda told me something about witches having some special organ that allows them to do it."
Luz turned to him with a bit of annoyance. "And what about you? You're able to do it." Luz said a bit snappy. After a moment and seeing her friend recoil, she turned apologetic as she put the slime ball back in her pocket. "Sorry. I shouldn't have said that. It's just...it feels so unfair." Luz apologized.
Flint sighed. "It's okay Starlight, I know you didn't mean it," Flint assured before closing his eyes in thought for a moment and raising it to face up as he reopened them. "From the way it sounds, it seems like I might actually be from this world...somehow. Between my great health since we got here, and the magic organ matching one I have, it seems pretty safe to say. It makes a lot of sense honestly." Flint said. It was true. Flint being originally from the Boiling Isles made a lot of sense. After all...
He was adopted.
Flint put his hand on Luz's shoulder, bringing them both to a stop as he looked her in the eyes softly. "Life is never fair, we've known that for years. All we can do is fight back against that unfairness as much as we can. I know you wanna learn magic, I wanna learn too, but we can't just expect to have all the power right off the bat like some horribly written OP character." Flint told her.
Luz couldn't help but snort a bit at that. "Yeah, I guess you're right. What's the fun in being a master right off the bat anyway? I still remember that first drawing you tried to do of me years ago." Luz couldn't help but smile teasingly.
Flint blushed, averting his gaze. "Was it really necessary to remind me of that?" Flint asked embarrassed. That drawing had been absolutely horrendous.
Luz snickered. "No, but I can."
The two continued to walk in silence for a bit.
"Thanks for that, by the way. I needed it." Luz thanked him, giving him a grateful smile.
Flint's blush quickly dispersed as he shot her a smile of her own. "No prob. That's what friends are for."
Luz sighed. "I just don't see how that slime ball Eda gave me can be useful."
Flint shrugged. "I thought it looked more like some kind of seed."
"You can do it! You can!" The two suddenly heard nearby, grabbing their attention as they turned to a nearby bush. The voice sounded like it was coming from the other side.
"Mysterious voice of encouragement?" Luz pokes her head through the bushes and gasps. "No! Little witch girl." Luz says.
Flint pokes his head through the bush too to see who was there. The girl in question was a stocky fair-skinned girl who had pointed ears, olive-green eyes, and short, neat navy-blue hair with a few loose strands. She wore a pair of round gold-framed glasses, a gray tunic, a dark gray cowl, a belt with a gold pin, and gray-black short-heeled shoes. Her sleeves and tights were orchid-colored. The girl was currently sitting on a rock with a wagon next to her, holding a giant pot on it.
The girl stood up to pace around back and forth. "You can do it. Even if you get a bad grade, it's not a reflection of you as a witch. And my parents are right. There are better opportunities on this track. Now, get to school!" The girl says, giving herself a not-so-confident pep talk, stepping forward, and pointing with faux confidence.
In the process, she stomps her foot down, accidentally crushing a flower, and gets gasps when she realizes it. "Oh, no! Oh, little friend! I'm sorry!" The girl apologized to the flower. She kneels down and repeatedly traces a spell circle. The green circle let out some similarly-colored particles that fell onto the flower, causing it to perk back up and fully bloom.
Luz gasps and Flint tilts his head curiously. The girl's ear twitches as she, Luz, and Flint hear rumbling nearby. All three turn to see a wagon, with a glow indicating it was being moved by magic, rolling to a stop in front of her, carrying another pot and a girl reading a book on top of it.
The girl was thin and had a pale complexion, with bright golden eyes and the standard pointed ears witches had. Her hair is chin-length, with a ponytail pulling the front hair out of her face, and a mostly covered undercut visible at the temples. Her hair is also a two-toned, dyed aquamarine-green with brown hair visible at the roots. Like the first girl, she wore a matching set of gray tunic with a dark gray belt, cowl, and boots, the only difference there being a gold star pin displayed on her tunic. Even her sleeves and leggings were the same magenta color. Where she branched in attire was her triangle-shaped black earrings and black nail polish.
The maybe-artificial greenette looks away from her book and down at the bluenette condescendingly. "Willow! Wow." The girl greeted with equal condescendence as she hopped off the pot, as the magic moving it dispersed. "You're so unnoticeable I almost rolled into ya." The girl snickered.
The flower that the now-named Willow just healed wilts.
Flint rolled his eyes. 'Great. My bully radar is going ballistic.' Flint thought. He brought his gaze back to the scene and...blinked a few times in confusion, shaking his head a bit. 'My eyes must be messing with me. I could've sworn her hair looked lavender for a moment there.' Flint dismissed the thought.
"Hi, Amity." Willow greeted neutrally as she rose to her feet.
"Uh, shouldn't you get to class early to prep your..." The now-named Amity trails off as a rattling sound cuts her off. They turn to Willow's pot as it spills, pouring out a purple substance and an eyeball that blinks and groans.
Amity crossed her arms. "Oh, Willow. You don't have anything to show, do you?" Amity stated.
"Witch drama!" Luz gasp-whispered.
Willow pulls up her hood and blushes embarrassed.
Amity sighs. "This is why people call you 'Half-a-Witch Willow.'" After saying this, rattling comes from Amity's pot now. "Oh, looks like someone wants to say something to you." Amity walks back over to her pot and takes the cover off, putting her back to it afterward. "Abomination, rise." Amity ordered something, snapping her fingers for the extra bitch-factor.
Suddenly a mass of purple sludge rose, becoming more solid until it was humanoid in shape. It bends out of the pot to poke Willow's forehead, leaving behind some of its sludge in a star shape.
"You're a... star." The abomination managed to say with what seemed to be limited vocal ability.
"Aw. It's like mine. But much smaller and meaningless." Amity mockingly cooed, readjusting the star pin on her tunic that Flint was able to barely make out the words 'Top Student' on it. "As top student, it's my duty to tell you to keep at it." Amity puts an arm around Willow. "Even you could get a passing grade someday. Abomination, cower."
The abomination groans as it melts back into the pot. Amity moves back to it and places the lid back on the pot before taking hold of the wagon.
"See you in class, superstar." Amity bid her farewell, getting out one last verbal jab before leaving.
Willow removes her hood. As Amity leaves, Luz sticks her tongue out at her. Flint meanwhile...
Let's just say Eda wasn't the only one who knew that particular gesture.
"Oh, see you in class, superstar!" Willow imitates with irritation before wiping the star from her forehead. "I hate when she does that."
Luz flinches as she watches, while Flint looks on with sympathy...and a hint of wariness. These kinds of statements usually tend to escalate into a-oh, she's already proving his point.
The wind blows leaves around Willow as she rants. "I hate making abominations. I hate getting bad grades. Ugh! I can't stand this anymore!" Willow shouts, her eyes glowing green.
Flint quickly tries to grab Luz to get away, but his plan is foiled when the flower from earlier gets lost among giant thorny roots that burst out around it. While some of them surround Willow, glowing and writhing angrily, two of them snake out and grab both humans. Both of them yelp at the sudden contact and pain from the thorns puncturing their skin. The roots slam them on the ground a bit behind Willow, with Luz on her stomach and Flint on his butt as the vines are still wrapped around their ankles. The bespectacled girl turns and glares at the duo with her eyes still glowing.
Noticing the two on the ground seems to snap Willow out of her rage, the glow in her eyes dispersing in a sudden worried panic as the roots fall around her fall. "Oh, no, no, no, no, no! I'm so sorry!" Willow apologized as she made the roots still wrapped around Luz and Flint's legs retreat.
Luz rubs her leg. "It's okay. The thorns only went through a few layers of skin." Luz did her best to wave off the girl's concerns, only to notice Willow getting very close to Luz, forcing her to lean back a bit.
"So... circley." Willow said curiously, her eyes focused on Luz's round ears.
Luz squeals and moves to cover her ears.
Willow gasped as she looked toward Flint, seeing his ears were round too. "You're human! Both of you! This is astounding!" Willow gasped again, grabbing Luz's face, then helped her stand and began walking around her. "A human on the Boiling Isles! How'd you get here? What are you doing here?" Willow asked rapidly.
'She sure is curious. But that plant magic was something else. Can magic be cast without even using a spell circle?' Flint wondered. This girl appeared to be quite the prodigy in plant magic, as opposed to whatever that purple sludge was.
The group suddenly hears a ringing sound. It appeared to be a bell going off.
Willow flinches and puts Luz's arm down. "Uh, I'm sorry. I can't stay. I have to go disappoint my teacher. It was nice to meet you, human." Willow said glumly, walking away and giving the two a half-wave.
Luz gives a half-wave back, then rushes after her. "Wait! I'm Luz. And you're Willow, right? What you did with that flower and those plants, it was...wow." Luz said in awe.
Willow gave a sad smile. "Thanks, but... I'm not even supposed to be doing plant magic. My dads put me in the Abomination Track at school." Willow explained.
Luz squeals, grabbing Willow. "Like, magic school?"
Willow nods and Luz's smile grows.
"That's so cool!" Luz exclaims as she lets Willow go. "I'm so jealous. I have a teacher, but her lessons are a bit... untraditional. I bet she wouldn't even let me enroll. But I wish I could spend one day there."
"I wish I could get a passing grade for once. Then people would stop calling me 'Half-a-Witch Willow.'" She kicks her spilled abomination in frustration, the abomination groaning in response.
"Then maybe you're in the wrong class," Flint said, finally making his voice heard.
As Flint got to his feet, Willow sighed. "The Abomination Track has a lot more opportunities though, and I don't wanna disappoint my dads. Also...I don't wanna be like Snapdragon." Willow responded, shivering a bit at the mention of that sadist.
"I don't know who that is, but that shouldn't be what keeps you from your talents. I can understand wanting to make a parent proud, but..." Flint trailed off, seeing that Willow was looking even more hesitant at the mention of parents.
'Okay, maybe I need to go with a different approach.' Flint thought. Let it be known that Flint was not short on empathy.
"Willow, let me ask you something. Are your dads nice people?" Flint asked.
Both girls looked at him a bit confused. Luz knew he was in his 'Help someone' mode, but she couldn't tell what angle he was going at.
"Um, yeah?" Willow responded questioningly.
"Do they take good care of you? Do they make sure you know they love you?" Flint continued to pepper the questions.
Willow just nodded.
"A good parent would simply hope their child will succeed, and do whatever they can to support them." Luz flinched a bit at that. He was gonna have to address that at some point. "I'm sure they'll understand if you show them you're better with plants than abominations. My mom told me something she learned from my grandpa, 'If you get a job you love, it'll feel like you've never worked a day in your life.'" Flint stated.
[I did not come up with this saying. It was advice from a teacher I had in the past. He's a really nice guy.]
Willow still looked on the fence about it. "I don't know."
Luz patted Willow on the shoulder and flashed her a smile. "Isn't it worth it to at least try?" Luz asked.
Willow mulled over the two's words a bit before sighing, giving them a small but hesitant smile. "I guess so." Willow agrees reluctantly.
Flint smiled. "Then let's do that. We can talk to your principal or someone and show them what you can do. And since we'll be there, maybe Luz and I can get a tour of the place to see what it's like."
"Oh! That's a way better idea than what I was originally thinking." Luz said, reaching down and picking up abomination goo in both hands. "I was gonna suggest you make me your abomination so you could use me to get a good grade and check out your school." Luz finished her idea.
"While I appreciate the creativity, did you ever think about how I could go and check it out too?" Flint asked her with a raised brow and crossed arms.
Luz twiddled her thumbs a bit. "I...hadn't gotten to planning that yet," Luz answered sheepishly.
"You two would be willing to do that for me?" Willow asked stunned. These two complete strangers were willing to help her? Was this a dream or a trick? Because there's no way this was actually happening right now, right?
"Of course." The two said in sync.
"We help you-" Luz began.
"You help us." Flint continued.
"We do wanna see what the school is like, so it's only fair right?" Luz asked.
Willow scratched her chin. "That's true." She giggles holding out her hand to Luz, with Luz shaking it. "Okay. It's a deal. Luz and..."
Willow trailed off, not just because she realized she didn't know the boy's name...
But the abomination goo on Luz's hand got the two girls stuck when she tried to retrieve her hand.
"Oops. Abomination goo." Willow said as the two try to separate themselves.
Flint just chuckles. "My name's Flint, and let me see if I can help you two get unstuck," he said, grabbing the middle of the goo with his right hand and-
Flint blinked, trying to pull away and let go only to realize he was now stuck as well.
Both girls just looked from the spot his hand was at before turning back to him with half-lidded eyes.
Flint stared at his hand. "I...don't know why I thought that was a good idea."
Luz brings her foot up to push herself off Willow's hand. Her plan works and she frees herself from both of them, but at the cost of making her flop into the abomination goo on the ground as a result.
Flint and Willow, who are still connected, look at each other. Flint points over at the pot. "Let's just use the lid," Flint suggests.
Willow nods. "Good idea."
The three, now separated, are walking with Willow a few steps ahead to guide them. "Welcome to Hexside School of Magic and Demonics," Willow introduced.
Luz, now covered in abomination goo, looked on at the building with awe, squealing in excitement. Flint was much more tame, mostly due to him having elected to help haul Willow's 'assignment' for her.
Flint hummed as he looked at the building. "Not bad." He complimented.
The three find themselves beside some lockers, that had mouths for some reason. Willow stops at a locker, presumably hers, tickling it to make it open its mouth and give her her books. A shorter witch reading a magazine bumps into her from behind.
"Willow, you would not believe humans." The boy said.
The boy was noticeably shorter than them, with brown skin and dark brown hair with lighter shades. His upper lip is curved, similar to Luz's. He has pointy ears, and his eyes are dark blue. Like all the students, he wore a gray tunic with a dark gray belt, cowl, and boots. The difference was that the color of his sleeves and leggings was a light blue. Willow had explained on the way there that it was their school uniform, and the colors of the sleeves and leggings were the indicator of what track you were in.
Willow glanced at Luz and Flint as they stood beside the pot. With a grin on her face, Willow turns back to the boy. "And why's that?" She asked.
The boy shows her the magazine, which had a girl with braces on. "Did you know that humans nail barbed wire to their kids' teeth? But why? Maybe to make them magnetic."
"Actually, it's for storing treats," Luz answered, getting the boy's attention and confusing him.
Flint jabs her in the side. "Don't listen to her. They're for fixing a bunch of issues you may have with your teeth. Getting brackets though is far worse, according to my mom," Flint corrected his friend.
[As someone who had to endure brackets. Trust me. They are worse. It felt so good to finally get those demon contraptions out of my mouth and move my jaw side-to-side again. They were also decently heavy. So yeah, for those of you who will never need braces or have an extremely minor issue, you better be thankful you don't.]
Luz huffed, crossing her arms. "You're no fun sometimes."
The boy drops his magazine with shock on his face. "No. No, it-" He began fiddling with his ears while looking between Luz's and Flint's. "-it couldn't be.
Noticing the two's confusion, Willow explained. "This is my friend Augustus. He's the president of the Human Appreciation Society. Most witches wouldn't be able to recognize a human right away. But Augustus is an expert."
"Where are your gills?" Augustus asked.
Flint blinked before turning to Willow with a raised brow. "'Expert,' huh?" Flint asked with skepticism.
"We know an Augustus back in the human world. We called him Gus." Luz took it all in stride.
"Oh right, him. I sometimes forget he even exists, to be honest." Flint thought out loud.
Augustus got even more excited with that. "Gus? Nickname? Human nickname? Gus? Call me it. Wow. Gus! This is the best day of my life!"
"Wow. You have a very low bar for excitement. Anyway, I'm Flint, and this is Luz." Flint introduced himself, putting his hand out for a handshake.
The now-dubbed Gus took his hand and shook his hand frantically, whipping Flint up and down rapidly. "I can't believe this is actually happening! I'm meeting not one, but two humans. And on the same day!"
Flint finally manages to free his hand from Gus, stumbling backward a bit dizzily with swirls in his eyes. "Nice to meet...you too."
A bell screams 'What is with this world and all the sentient objects?' and the students around begin to file out of the halls at a quicker pace.
"I've gotta get to spelling class. See you guys at lunch!" Gus bid his farewell, grabbing his magazine and pulling a wand out of his pocket before running off.
Willow waved at her friend before turning back to Luz and Flint. "Principal Bump's office is this way. Follow me." Willow beckoned, walking forward with the humans following closely behind her.
Principal Bump was an older man with light-beige skin. If one looked closely, they would notice the upper half of his face was covered by an imp-like creature that gave him teal eyes with bright yellow sclera. What some people might not expect, was that this imp was actually his palisman, who assisted him in being able to see better. Bump wore a traditional academic dress consisting of a long black gown with a gold yoke, a black cape, gold trim at the sleeves and cape hem, plus a blue stole draped over his shoulders and black pointed shoes.
The principal of Hexside was currently doing some paperwork, a necessity given no one could catch that Titan-damned Choosy Hat that kept trying to eat the students. The hat had gone mad and strayed from its original purpose, apparently, the spell cast on it ages ago to make it complacent had worn off, and the company that made them had lost the incantation to tame it a couple of years ago. As much as a certain calamity given physical form had given him problems when she was in school, at least her leftover pranks weren't actively trying to kill his students, something he could at least be grateful for.
A knock sounded from his office door, causing him to look up from the documents before him. "Come in." He called.
Opening the door he was met with the young Park girl. That reminded him that he needed to have a conference with her about her current grades within the Abonimation track. Speaking of...
"Ms. Park. I believe Professor Hermonculus' class is about to start, shouldn't you be heading over?" Bump asked, admittedly a bit surprised by her presence. Her grades were already not doing well (he may put a little more focus on the Abomination track admittedly, given it was his own specialty), and the last thing the girl needed was adding tardiness to it.
Willow's expression showed nervousness as she stepped into the office. "That's actually why I'm here. I...don't think I want to be in the Abomination track anymore." Willow explained.
This caught Bump's attention. While it was admittedly a tad sad to see someone trying to switch out from Abomination, he couldn't put any personal bias forward. He was still an educator after all, and he prided himself on helping his students.
Bump interlaced his fingers. "Really now? Might I ask what brought this along?" He wasn't trying to judge, he was simply curious is all.
Willow looked behind her at the door for a moment before taking a breath to steel her nerves. "I'm not good with Abomination magic, I couldn't even get my current assignment to stay stable. I don't think I'm cut out for it." Willow admitted.
Bump hummed. "Alright. Then I'm guessing you have an idea of what track you'd like to switch to?"
Willow nodded. "I'd like to join the Plant track, if possible."
Bump scratched his chin. "That's quite the change. Are you sure this idea hasn't merely been brought up by the two who are currently standing outside of my office behind you?"
Bump heard a curse as two thumps followed from outside his office. Seeing that they were caught, a boy and girl (who he noticed was comically covered in Abomination goo) roughly Willow's age stepped out from either side of the frame, who he did not recognize, nor were they wearing the Hexside uniform.
Willow scratched the back of her neck sheepishly. "I met them on my way to school." She admitted.
"And who might you two be?" Bump asked.
"I'm Luz." The girl said excitedly.
The boy on the other hand gave half-bow. "Flint."
Bump noticed their ears and donned a look of surprise. "Humans? What brings a couple of humans to Hexisde, let alone our world itself?"
Flint spoke up. "We'd heard about Hexisde and were curious. We met Willow here when we were walking around and saw her do some amazing Plant magic, and suggested she should try switching to the Plant track."
Luz chuckled nervously. "Sorry for showing up uninvited."
"I will admit it is quite a surprise, but what kind of an educator would I be if I didn't provide a young mind an opportunity to learn?" Bump asked, getting up from his seat and walking over to the two. "Allow me to properly introduce myself. I am Hieronymus Bump, the principal of this fine academy." Bump introduced himself, shaking the two's hands.
"It's nice to meet you, sir." The two said in sync.
Bump turned back to Willow. "If you wish to change tracks, I'll first need to see some proof of your capabilities. Let us head to the field outside and you can show me." Bump informed her, as the group walked out of the office following him.
Bump noticed the pot outside and lifted the lid. Yikes. It's no wonder Willow wanted to change tracks. With an Abomination that managed to live up to the name literally like this, it made a lot of sense. He felt rather bad for it, honestly.
"We can just leave this here for the time being," Bump stated, as they all walked past it and began heading outside.
Looking to make some conversation, Bump turned to the humans. "Might I ask, how did you two come to the Demon Realm?"
"We followed an owl that stole my book and went through a portal door," Luz answered.
The boy must have noticed his confused expression, as he proceeded to explain further. "It was a palisman. Eda had it take steal some...sir are you okay?"
Bump had stopped in his tracks and gave a thousand-yard stare into the space ahead of him. Of course it was because of her, who else would it have been?
Shaking himself out of his moment of Eda-induced PTSD (he wasn't the only one classified with that specific variant), he replied. "It's nothing. I take it the Owl Lady is the cause for you being here?"
"I mean she gave us the choice to go back, but we decided to stick around for a while," Luz answered.
That made Bump internally sigh with relief. At least the woman hadn't resorted to kidnapping...well, intentionally, that is.
"Eda is teaching us magic, adamant about her distaste for how schools teach it-" Bump snorted at Flint's words. That certainly sounded like the Eda he knew. "-but she hasn't exactly done the most to teach us so far." Flint revealed.
"Ah, I see. So you were curious and wanted to see what it was like for yourselves?" Bump asked.
The two nodded and Flint continued. "Yep. 'It is important to draw wisdom from many different places. If you take it from only one place, it becomes rigid and stale.'" Flint said in a mock-sagely voice.
"Okay, Iroh," Luz remarked as she rolled her eyes.
"Hey, can you blame me for quoting him?" Flint countered.
Bump didn't know who this 'Iroh' was, but he sounded like a wise man.
The group reached the field outside and Bump turned to Willow. "Now, show me what you can do Ms. Park."
Willow looked around the area in search of something she could grow. Unfortunately, nothing really stuck out to her or gave her any ideas. She could make do with the grass, but that just felt a little basic is all.
Luz looked on and could tell she was struggling. She felt bad that she couldn't really help Willow with this. If only she had some kind of seed or something she could use to-
Flint shrugged. "I thought it looked more like some kind of seed."
Luz's eyes widened as she pulled out the slime ball from earlier. Looking closer, it really did look more like a seed!
Willow resigned herself. Looks like she'd have to just resort to doing something with the grass then. She began to make a green spell cir-
"Willow!"
Everyone turned to Luz running up to Willow with the slime ball/more-likely-seed in her hand. "Would this help?"
Willow's expression practically vibrated with excitement as she swiped the item from Luz's hand. "A seed! Thank goodness you had it on you." Willow thanked her.
Luz smiled softly. "Yeah. Thank goodness someone told me to hold on to it." Maybe Eda deserved a little more credit than she originally thought.
Willow placed the 100%-confirmed seed on the ground in front of her and began to perform the same spell she'd used on the flower earlier that day. "Please, grow." Willow requested it, raising her arms as it glowed ripe with energy. Soon enough thorny vines grow from the seed, reaching as tall as the school. The thorny vines coiled together in a spiral pattern as they formed a thick trunk. Principal Bump gasps, as vines branch off and coil again before flowers bud from the newly formed branches. In the end, a grand tree loomed over them all, resembling a-
Flint snorted. "Living up to your name I suppose," Flint remarked.
Indeed, what stood proudly before them was a mighty willow tree lookalike as tall as the school itself.
Principal Bump looked up in astonishment. "Remarkable." He breathed out. The man heard a squeal and saw Luz running up to Willow and grabbing her hands, jumping in excitement.
"That was amazing Willow!" Luz praised.
Willow scratched the back of her neck with a small blush on her face. "It's nothing really." Willow denied.
Flint gave her a look before gesturing to the tree behind her. "You call this 'Nothing?'" Flint questioned.
"I concur, Ms. Park." Bump said, clearing his throat to get their attention as he walked up to Willow. "You should be proud. This is quite the feat of Plant magic. In a few years, you might even be able to usurp the Snapdragon." Bump praised, bringing a hand up to the side of his mouth. "And I think we can both agree the Isles could use a much nicer person as a coven head, but you didn't hear that from me." Bump whispered.
Bump smiled, bringing a hand up and forming a quick spell circle that changed Willow's track colors to green.
Willow practically vibrated with excitement. "Thank you. Thank you. Thank you!" Willow...thanked her principal.
"Think nothing of it. Our goal here at Hexside is to teach our students to become the best witches they can be. As one of its students, that includes you." Bump waved her off. Bump clapped his hands together. "Now then, let's get you your new coursework shall we." Bump made another spell circle which switched out her Abomination textbooks to Plant, with a small handwritten note atop it to explain the situation to the Plant track teacher.
Willow set the books down for a moment and rushed over to snare both Luz and Flint into a bear hug. "Thank you Luz, Flint!" She then released the stunned teens and picked up her books. "Talk to you two later?" She asked.
Luz smiled and Flint nodded his head. "Count on it." The two said in unison.
Willow bid her farewell and left for her new class, leaving the two alone with Bump.
"I must thank you two as well. I had been meaning to discuss Ms. Park's current grades until you two showed up. You were almost like a blessing from the Titan. Now then, what say I give you two a tour of Hexside?" Bump offered.
Luz squealed eagerly and nearly responded, but Flint slapped his right hand over her mouth before she could say anything. Flint scratched the back of his neck with his other hand. "We would be happy to, but we'd hate to intrude if you're too busy, sir," Flint said.
Bump chuckled a bit. The boy was quite polite. "Nonsense. You actually came on a good day, believe it or not. I'd be happy to show you two around, especially as thanks after you've helped one of my students." Bump shrugged off the boy's concern.
Flint smiled. "Well if that's the case, then we'd be happy to-" Flint's face recoiled in disgust as he quickly removed his hand from Luz. "Did you just lick my hand?!"
Luz gagged, trying to scrape her tongue frantically. "It's in my mouth! That was a mistake!" Luz admitted, having realized that the hand she licked had some Abomination goo still on it, and was now trying to do her best to remove the horrid taste from her mouth.
Bump just shook his head in amusement at their antics.
When the lunch bell hit, Bump offered they could take a short break (and definitely not because he needed to calm down after noticing Eda peeking through one of the windows during their tour), saying they could meet back at his office once lunch was over. The two were given passes to get a meal from the cafeteria, along with a 'Guest' pin.
Luz had also managed to get most of the abomination goo off of her skin. There was still some soaked into her outfit and a bit in her hair, but her skin was free of the substance, so she'd take what she could get for now.
"Luz!"
The two turned to see Willow and Gus waving them over at one of the tables. Smiling, the two took their trays and made their way over to sit with them. Luz sat next to Willow, with Flint sitting across the table beside Gus.
"Thank goodness you guys have things we can eat here," Luz said with a sigh of relief. Eda had given them a list of all the various foods that she confirmed were safe for humans to eat (it was more like a list of what not to eat, given most food was safe, much to the two's relief).
"Hey!"
The group looked over to see the same girl that had been mocking Willow earlier, Amity if Flint recalled. She stood with her arms crossed as she looked at the group.
Amity looked at Willow, noticing the difference in her uniform. "So, chickened out of Abominations and fled to the Plant track huh? What, too ashamed in that shoddy excuse for an abomination that you had to switch tracks?" Amity mocked.
Willow began to look upset and was about to defend herself, but Flint was already sending a piercing glare at Amity.
"Why don't you leave her alone you sad excuse calling itself a person?" Amity turned to Flint with an appalled look, as the people in the cafeteria, including Willow and Gus, were now watching in shock.
"What did you just say to me?" Amity fumed.
Flint gave a huff of annoyance as he took a quick sip of his drink before continuing. "Why should I bother repeating myself for the likes of you? Willow switched tracks because she's better at Plant magic, simple as that. A real 'Top Student' should help their peers out, rather than belittle them with stupid names like 'Half-a-Witch.'"
"And just who do you think you are to talk to me like that? In fact, who are you two, and why aren't you in uniform? Are you even students here?" Amity glanced between Luz and Flint suspiciously.
Flint simply gestured to the pin on his jacket. "We're allowed to be here, and really, I don't think you deserve to even know my name. So, why don't you just let us eat in peace, m'kay? Buh-bye." Flint gave her a shooing gesture.
Amity growled before scoffing. "Whatever. None of you losers are worth my time anyway." Amity said, leaving the four alone.
Flint just went back to eating, glancing up to see Luz pinching the bridge of her nose, and both Willow and Gus staring at him slackjawed and pale. "...what?"
"Do you have any idea who you just said that to?!" Gus whisper-yelled.
Flint took another bite of his meal. "Don't know. Don't care." Flint stated simply.
Luz sent Flint a flat look. "And you talk about me making scenes?"
Flint didn't even bother looking at Luz. "You know how I feel about bullies."
A few hours later, Bump, Luz, and Flint can be seen walking to the school's exit.
"It's been a pleasure to meet you two, Luz and Flint. I hope you may find yourselves walking Hexside's halls as its students." Bump said to the two.
"Thank you so much, sir!" Luz thanked.
"It was fun to see what Hexside is like. We'll be sure to keep your offer in mind. Oh, and be sure to tell Mr. Cidem I'm grateful for the healing." Flint stated.
Along their tour, they had arrived at Healing 101, and the professor had managed to demonstrate as he healed Flint. As it turned out, the reason Flint was having some tightness in his chest, and why he couldn't use his magic again, were connected. His bile sac, which had also been confirmed to be the growth on his heart by the professor, had gotten blocked up due to a combination of disuse and his initial high output when he first cast that fire spell he'd used. The blockage was preventing the magic from flowing throughout his body because he wasn't used to using it, nor was his body used to having it flow within him. Luckily, Cidem's healing magic managed to open the flow of magic within him, which Flint tested by creating a small flame.
[As far as I know, the Abominations 101 teacher is the only one with an actual name associated with them, so I had to make something up. "Cidem" is "Medic" spelled backward, if you didn't notice.]
Bump smiled. "I'll be sure to let him know. You two take care. Oh, and do try to keep Eda out of trouble, as much as you can that is." Bump requested.
"I'll try, but no guarantees." Flint pointed his thumb at Luz beside him. "She's a handful enough as is."
"Honestly...that's fair," Luz admitted. Flint had made it very clear over the years about how much of a ball of chaos she could be.
"Until we meet again." Bump bid his farewell, stepping back into the school. A few moments later, Willow and Gus can be seen rushing up to them.
"Luz! Flint! I'm so glad we caught up!" Willow said happily before giving them an appreciative smile and a short bow. "Thank you both so much."
Luz had a faint blush at being bowed to. "It's nothing really. You just looked like you needed some help is all." Luz responded.
Flint took the praise in stride. "And it always feels good to help someone out. High-five!" Flint held up his hand and Luz gave him a high-five.
Willow and Gus stare at the two sharing a confused look.
"What was that?" Willow asked.
Luz turned to Gus, holding her hand up for a high-five. "Slap my hand. It's a human thing."
Gus hesitantly gives her a high five. Then he does it several more times with growing confidence.
"Oh. Oh, my. Oh, man, what a rush!" Gus said, excited to learn a new human thing.
"Well, we ought to head back now, no doubt Eda's wondering where we went." Flint said.
"Hey, can we maybe walk with you? You said The Owl Lady was the one who gave you the seed, so I'd actually like to thank her too." Willow asked.
Luz grinned. "I'm sure she won't mind, come on."
And with that, the two humans made their way toward the Owl House with their new friends in tow.
Eda had King in her arms when the four arrived. Flint saw the overturned barrel nearby and got the strangest feeling the two had their own eventful day, but decided not to think about it too much.
"Hey Eda!" Luz called out, getting the two's attention.
"Hey, you two. Who are these academy twerps?" Eda questioned. The woman was caught off-guard when Willow bowed to her.
'Great. Now I'm thinking about talking cats with speech impediments.' Flint thought.
"Thank you so much miss!" Willow showed her thanks, causing the older woman to look at Flint and Luz for an explanation.
"The thing you gave Luz earlier helped get Willow here to switch to the Plant track. It was a seed." Flint explained.
Eda blinked at that. "Oh. Um...you're welcome?" Eda wasn't quite sure how to react to that.
"Principal Bump gave us a tour after and check this out," Flint said excitedly, making a palm-sized scarlet spell circle that made a flame appear in the air. "Apparently I had a blockage that was stopping me, but the Healing professor helped me unblock it. I can do magic at will now." Flint revealed.
"I'm still confused about how you have a bile sac though. I thought humans didn't have them." Gus grumbled a bit in confusion.
Eda had a somewhat strained smile. "That's...great." Eda managed to get out.
"Going to Hexside would be nice, but..." Luz gave a smile to Eda. "I think there's still a bunch I can learn from my current teacher."
Eda's strained smile became genuine as she looked between Willow and Gus. "Yeah, that's right. These two are still my students. Back off, academy twerps." Eda said, going up to Luz as she got everyone laughing at her antics.
Eda pats Luz's head. "Looks like I taught you something after all."
"Uh, you high-five with your hands, not your head," Gus said, eliciting a chuckle from Flint.