Chapter 12 - Chapter 12: Chapter Twelve: Understanding Willow

Amity's life was simple: go to school, be popular, maintain social status, and get the best grades. But most of all, she had to uphold the Blight family name, which resulted in a high level of expectations being placed on her shoulders. One of those expectations was to be friends with kids of the same stature as her or children of the people her mother was friends with. 

Which is why she was hanging out with Boscha. Both girls were leaning against their lockers as the three-eyed queen bee was magically changing her nails while Amity was reading a book. Ever since learning about Booker's status as a Seventh Born, she's been trying to do more research into the subject. However, information was scarce. Something that didn't make much sense to her, as there would surely be information on these powerful beings. 

She mostly ignored Bosha as she changed her nails to tentacles. "Too wiggly." the girl scoffed before changing them to miniature flames. "Too obvious." She groaned before turning her nails into talons. "Now we're talkin'! I think today is a talons day—rawr!"

Amity rolled her eyes before the nicest of her friend group came running over. "Hey, girls! Time to bug out at my birthday party!" Skara exclaimed as she walked over with a smile. Amity and Bosha stopped what they were doing as the black witch held up an invite, which was unrolled in the shape of a red butterfly. Its wings read "SKARA'S 15th". 

"Invite only, but you witches are my VIPs, bitches!" She handed the two girls each a red butterfly. 

"Are these made of real insect wings?" Amity asked, looking at her unfolded invite with a raised eyebrow.

"My dad spared no expense! You only turn 15 once!" Skara said happily. 

"You only turn every age once, Skara," said her tri-clops friend in a blunt tone. 

"AAAAAAAHHH!" A sudden scream got the attention of the girls, and they looked in the direction it came from. The source turned out to be Gus as he collapsed to the ground with a slushy in his hand. "My brain is freezing!" 

"Gus is out!" Luz exclaimed while holding a spoon to her mouth as if it were a microphone. She then pointed to Felix and Willow. "He joins the corner of shame!" 

"Hey, my slushy was too cold, I tell you!" Felix exclaimed, getting a chuckle from Willow.

"We're now down to our last competitors!" Luz said, pointing to the last three Bridges cousins that were left standing: Booker, Jason, and Roswell. 

Roswell, who was wearing the uniform for the Planet track, looked at his jumbo slushy cup. "Why are we doing this?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. 

"Come on, it's fun," Booker said, nudging him. In order to hide his Seventh Son traits, Eda had him wear a gunmetal color beanie to hide most of his golden hair. Luz added a smiley face patch to the hat to give more, as she called it, happiness.

"Are you ready!?" Luz said, pulling out a duck call whistle from her pocket. The three boys looked at her with determination as they got ready to slurp. Luz then blew into the duck call, making its funny duck noise. 

The three boys then started slurping their slushies as fast as they could, all while the others chanted brain freeze. The first one to lose was Roswell, who groaned in pain from a brain freeze. The next was Booker, who squealed and made a funny face. This made Jason the clear winner of the challenge, but he didn't stop until he drank every last drop of his slushy. 

He threw the empty cup to the ground and yelled in victory. "I AM THE DEVOURER OF SLUSHIES"

Skara couldn't help but giggle at her cousins' silly game. However, she stopped when Boscha shot her a glare. 

"It's so weird that a human goes here now, but to let a hybrid of a human and a witch in is just worse and should never have been allowed. Too bad they've already burned their social life at the stake. Any friend of Willow's is an automatic dork," she said with a sense of superiority and cockiness. This did draw a brief glare from Amity, who wasn't happy with Boscha's racism towards Booker and Luz.

However, Skara nervously chuckled. "Yeah, they…they sure are lame…" she said hesitantly. 

In the past, she made a deal with her cousins not to interact with them when they were at school so as to keep her friendship with Boscha. This was to keep the Bridges cousins separated from one another as much as possible for their own safety in case their true identities were revealed. They accepted the agreement, knowing that she still loved them and would be nice to them whenever she wasn't around her friends. 

But after learning about the purge and how the Emperor was after Booker, she started to look back on her decisions with shame. Even her girlfriend, Bo, told her that she shouldn't be ashamed of being family with people that Bosha deemed to be losers. However, she'd been friends with her and Amity for so long that she didn't want it to end. And she knew that if she did end things with her, then Boscha would kick her off the Grudgby team, which was something she'd been working so hard at. 

However, Boscha didn't make it easy to want to stay friends with her when she acted like a Maren, aka the Demon Realm version of a Karen (AN: lol), and a bully to other people. 

Skara was snapped out of her thoughts when the invited Boscha started molting. "Ugh! Skara! Why did you give me an invite that was molting? Gross! Give me another one." She demanded and threw the invite away. Only for it to stick to the back of Booker's head. 

He pulled the invite off his hat and looked at it. He then turned to Skara and waved at her. "Yeah! Happy birthday, Skara!"

Skara nervously laughed and waved at him, all while Boscha was giving her a glare.

"You're the one that threw it, so don't get mad at her," Amity said, walking away from them as Boscha looked at Amity with a gobsmacked expression.

{Play music: Into the Badlands theme}

As the portal gate opens and the camera zooms in on it, Booker and Luz are seen to be in the sky. They opened their eyes, only to realize they were falling, which caused them to freak out before something zoomed past them and caught them. Booker and Luz opened their eyes, with Luz behind Booker and holding his arm while Booker held onto the staff to stay on. The two kids saw they were saved by Eda, who smirked at the duo as they flew to her house on her Palisman staff.

The door where Hooty was opened up as Luz and Booker stepped outside, with Luz twirling and posing with Eda's staff while Booker drew his Dragon's Bite sword he got recently and did his own pose. But then Eda took her staff back with an amused grin while Luz gave a sheepish smile, and Booker looked somewhat amused, too. King popped up in front of them in a pose.

A Boiling Isle mural was seen briefly as Gus, Willow, and Amity were seen before it burned away to show King commanding an army of stuffed toys, which all fell on him. The scene burned away again, showing Booker standing under a spotlight with grief written on his face as the fire was seen all around him. Silhouettes appear as they take the shape of a man with pointed ears, a human woman, and six children with slightly pointy ears. The fire consumed them.

Now Booker and Luz were on Eda's staff, with Luz riding up front like she was driving and Booker standing behind like he was surfing on a surfboard. They zoom down the Boiling Isles, past many friends and foes alike, until Eda and King join in on the ride... then they hang on for dear life as a massive, monstrous worm-like monster, mouth wide open, lunges at them. Everyone, minus Booker, screamed in horror. The latter looked brave and defiant towards the monster, and he pointed his sword towards it.

Then the scene changes back to the Owl House, where it's nighttime, and stars twinkle in the sky as the four are on the roof and looking up into the sky. Luz opens her hands to reveal a ball of light as Booker's hands glow, and a glyph-like symbol appears on the back of his hands.

He grinned and slammed his hands together, causing light magic to burst from his hands. That's when the title appeared.

The Seventh Son

Chapter Twelve:

"Understanding Willow"

Minutes passed, and break time had started. This gave the students of Hexside just enough time to gather their supplies and get ready for their next classes. Booker, Luz, and Willow were standing around the two new students' lockers.

"So let me get this straight," said Booker as he pulled out a book from his monster locker. "In Photo class in this world, you're able to create photos from your memories by just pulling them out of your head?!" 

"It's pretty neat, huh?" Willow asked, smiling at how excited the two friends were. 

"Heck yeah! I'm so excited about the photo class! I can't believe you can make instant pictures of your actual memories!" Luz said, tickling her locker to get it to open its mouth. "I'mma see me some baby Willow!"

"I'll admit, I was adorable," Willow admitted, putting her hands on her cheeks. "But I think Booker would be a much cuter baby than me."

"Oh, come on, I'm not that good-looking," Booker said jokingly. He was about to take another book out of his locker, but it bit down on it. "Hey! No, drop it! Drop it!" he yelled, tugging at the book. 

However, the locker wouldn't let go. In the end, the locker won the fight and ate the book before hissing at him.

And just like in a bad high school movie, the three friends heard the sound of laughing coming from Skara as she, Boscha, and Amity walked in their direction. "I can't believe they'd even hang out with her! It's just embarrassing!" Boscha said, looking in their direction. She then placed her fingers around her eyes like glasses. "'Oh, look at me! I'm going on a date with my ferns!'"

"Solid Willow impression, Boscha!" Skara laughed as she, Boscha, and Amity passed Booker, Luz, and Willow. The black girl looked at her cousin, only for her to get a look of disapproval from him. She immediately looked away. 

However, Willow wilted. "Well, I think you would make a lovely date, Willow," Luz said, trying to cheer her up. Imagine her with a nice, tall, blonde boy—not her boy! Booker was hers! 

Wait, where did that come from? 

While Luz blushed with embarrassment at her own thoughts, Booker said, "More so than some three-eyed bitch." 

Boscha heard this and stopped to whip around to glare at him. "What did you just say?" She said in a threatening tone as Amity and Skara stopped with her. 

"You heard me, Boscha. Or should I call you…Bitcha?" Booker smirked. 

Skara had to quickly cover her mouth as her cheeks puffed up, trying to hold in her laughter from bursting out. 

"UGH!" Boscha screamed before storming off in a huff. 

"What?! You got nothing else!? Come on, Bitcha! This is a perfectly good moment to throw your life away!" The Seventh Son called out to the bitch. Willow started giggling at his nickname for the mean girl as Luz looked at him with disapproval. However, Booker fixed that by poking her stomach and making her giggle. 

As Amity turned around and started walking away, Skara covered the side of her mouth with her hand and mouthed 'sorry' to Booker. However, it didn't do much with his disappointment in her. She turned and caught up with her green-haired friend. "Hey, Amity, weren't you friends with Willow?"

For a moment, Amity stopped walking and tensed up as she side-eyed the black witch. 

"Don't be ridiculous. I'm a Blight. We only associate with a select few. Keep annoying me, though; I'm happy to select fewer," she said, walking off.

"Oh, I coulda sworn that you guys hung out," said Skara as she followed Amity. 

Willow sighs.

"God, I hate when she acts like that," Booker said, glaring at Amity. 

"Who," Luz asked. 

"Amity and Skara," Booker said. "Skara's not a bully, and this stupid rule she has with us is nuts. And then there's Amity…"

"I'm not surprised," Willow said before walking away with Booker and Luz following her. She looked down at the ground with a scowl. "She's a Blight, and the Blights are the Blight of the Boiling Isles."

The photography class took place in a darkroom-like classroom with various frames, desks with small clotheslines for hanging up photos and glowing spiders hanging from the ceiling to act as lights. The students were sitting at desks in front of their undeveloped photos, with Booker, Luz, and Willow at the center desk. The illusion track teacher was in charge of the class, as this kind of magic fell into her department. 

Luz picked up a pair of tweezers with demon teeth and an eye. Everything having teeth and eyes is a theme she was starting to pick up on. Booker sat on Willow's left and watched as Luz sat on her right and prepared to pull out the memories. 

"Alright, memory melon, let's pick another juicy one!"

"Be careful with my brain!" Willow said playfully. 

Luz gently stuck the tweezers into the plant girl's ear and pinched down. She then pulled back, pulling a glowing red photo out of Willow's ear. The glow faded, and the kids looked at the photo, seeing that it was a black screen, just like a really old camera would print out after just taking the picture. 

"Heh, who says brain surgery is hard?" Luz said as Willow rubbed her ear.

"Everyone, Luz," Booker said.

"Shush, you!" Luz pressed her finger against his lips to shut him up before putting the empty photo on a wire. Placing it with four other photos. 

At the same time, the teacher walked by and stopped at their desk. "As you work, note that some prints have greater clarity than others. These are moments that evoke strong emotional responses."

"So the clearer they are, the more meaning they have?" Booker asked, looking at the last memory closely. 

He went to touch the photo, only for a big blue hand that had "HALT" on it stopped him after appearing from thin air. This was done by the teacher, who then said, "But, if you damage the prints, you'll damage the memories themselves! Be extremely careful." She stared at the kids with a serious expression as she walked away.

"Whoa. Photo class is intense," Luz said, which was putting it lightly in Booker's mind. 

The Seventh Son looked at the first photo that Luz had just pulled out of Willow and saw that it was developing. The photo showed a very young Willow on a chair, blushing a bit, with a band-aid on her cheek and wavy and poofy hair. 

"Aw, look at how cute you are," he gushed.

Luz saw and gasped. "Oh my gosh, Willow, you had an awkward hair phase, too? I knew we were all meant to be friends." Look took out a picture and held it up next to Willow's. It was a picture day photo of her as a child. She had her hair done up in three awkward braids, each sporting two bows. There are also stickers on her hair. 

"What about you, Booker?" Willow asked, turning towards her friend.

It was at that moment that Booker became uncomfortable as he looked away. All of his family photos, except for the one he still had of his brothers, were all burnt in the fire that killed them. The same mysterious fire that he still didn't understand when it came to its origins. It was a mystery that haunted him as much as the death of his brothers, mother, and father.

"I…I don't have any on me at the moment," Booker said sadly. Luz walked over and placed a hand on his shoulder for support. He placed his hand over hers and looked back at the photos. He saw his chance to change the subject when the other photos started developing. "Ooo, there's more!"

The rest of the photos are developed to show different images from Willow's childhood. From Willow being pushed on a swing by her dads to her feeding as a spider demon and one of Willow and her dads at what looked like a winter holiday. But the one that made Booker and Luz pause was the final one. The first photo they pulled out of their friend's ear. It was a picture of a young Amity, who had naturally brown hair, hugging Willow at a birthday party. 

"Whoa," Booker said, surprised to see the rich girl as a brunette. "That's…"

"Was a long time ago," Willow said with a bitter scowl as she turned away. Not wanting to even look at it.

Booker looked at her with a confused expression. "Well, yeah, I know you and Amity have a history, but you two look so happy together. What happened?"

"I don't want to talk about it," Willow told him. 

The Seventh Son walked over and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Look, I get it. The past isn't something easy to talk about. True me, I know. But wouldn't you feel better talking about it?"

"Booker's right," Luz said, walking up to Willow. "You can't just bury this."

"No, but I can do this." Willow turned around and grabbed the photo before flipping it around. Now she couldn't see it, and it made her happy again. "That's my motto, after all! Out of sight, out of mind."

Booker was about to say something when the bell screamed and rang. Students began leaving, and Willow followed suit until Luz stopped her. "If you won't tell me what she did," she said, "I'll never be able to cook up a scheme to make you friends again."

"Luz, I don't want you to do that. No schemes, no plots, no ruses, none! Okay?" she said, giving Luz a stern look. "Now, let's get to lunch!" 

And with that, Willow turned around and left the room. 

Luz sighed sadly and followed her. Booker watched as the two girls left before looking back at Willow's memory photos. Taking the photo of Willow and Amity. 

"What could have happened between the two of you," he asked as he stared at the photo. 

But as he looked down, he noticed the tweezers on the desk. Normally, he would have just left them there. However, an idea started to form in his head. An idea that could give him the answers he's been looking for for seven years. He placed the photo back on the wire and picked up the tweezers. Stealing them as he walked out of the room. 

However, in doing so, he left the photo facing the right way, with the picture side facing the door. Booker didn't notice this as he followed Willow and Luz out of the classroom. "Wait up!" he called out to them. 

Unbeknownst to him, however, Boscha and Amity come from the opposite direction.

"I can't believe that little punk had the nerve to say that. He's gonna pay." Boscha ranted, still fuming about how Booker insulted her in the hallway. 

Amity, however, rolled her eyes in annoyance. She's been having to deal with Boscha's ranting for the past hour, and she was getting sick of it. But it wasn't like she didn't deserve Booker calling her a bitch. Because she was. 

As she rolled her eyes, she looked into the photography room and stopped. She looked at the pictures on the wire, and her eyes immediately landed on Willow's memory photos. More specifically, the one where she was hugging Willow at her birthday party.

Amity froze at the sight of the picture. "Oh no."

Boscha walked up to her. "Why do you look like you've seen a ghost? Is there a ghost in photo class? Are they cute?!" She asked, trying to look into the room. However, Amity blocked Boscha's view with her hand.

"Yep, just a super cute ghost. But they're all mine!" Amity said, slamming the door behind her as she rushed inside. 

"Ask if they have any friends!" Boscha said from the outside. 

Amity rushed to the group of pictures and focused on the birthday one. This was bad. This was really bad. Of all the memories she had to remember, why did Willow have to remember this one? If this got out, it would ruin her! 

With that in mind, Amity took down the photo as she looked at it. It wasn't a bad memory…for the most part. That moment was a great memory in her miserable life. But it was the last moment when she was truly happy. Just staring at the photo brought back a sense of that happiness she missed so much. 

But it was happiness she couldn't get back, not after what she had done to Willow. Amity made her choice that day, and she had to pay the price for it. She couldn't let anyone see this photo. 

The only decision for her was painful and one she would already regret. Amity sighed, holding back her tears. "Willow, I'm sorry. But I have to do this."

Taking a deep breath, the mint-haired witch summoned a small purple flame on her finger and used it to burn her face off the photo. She blew on the embers to put it out before placing the photo back on the wire. Seeing her task was complete, Amity turned and started to leave. 

However, the sound of crackling made Amity stop at the door. She looked back and gasped in horror when she saw that the photo had reignited and burnt a bigger hole. 

"Oh, no. No, no, no, no!" Panicking, she rushed back over to the photo. "Um, uh…" Amity looked around, trying to fire something to put out the fire. She decided to blow on the flame in the hopes that it would extinguish it. However, the fire failed to go out. In fact, it completely destroyed the birthday picture. 

But things went from bad to worse when the fire started spreading to the other photos, burning them up, too.

"Oh, come on!"

After collecting their lunch trays, Booker and Luz made their way over to Gus and Luz in the cafeteria. As they approached, they saw the illusionist looking over a walking pinboard titled "WHO TO INTERVIEW." On it were photos of people from all over the school and town. 

"Hey there, detective. Are you solving a crime or about to commit one?" Luz asked jokingly as she and Booker sat on both sides of him. 

"Sadly, this is one problem crime can't solve. My interview for journalism class is due tomorrow! I'm supposed to choose someone 'interesting, accomplished, and noteworthy.' People aren't meant to be all those things! Curse your need for perfection, Gus!" Gus yelled as he held his head in a panic.

"Okay, buddy, okay." She said, giving Gus apple blood to sip on like he was a baby. This oddly calmed him down. However, as she did this, Luz looked over to Booker and saw him examining something in his hands. To the Dominican girl's shock, it was the pair of demon tweezers that they used in class. "Booker, what are you doing with those? You can't just take them from class!" 

"I…I was just borrowing them." Booker said, acting like a kid who tried to take a cookie from the cookie jar. "I was going to put it back. I just need it for something." 

"Booker, we could get into trouble for taking those tweezers. Right, Willow?" Luz looked to Willow, expecting her to be on her side. 

What she was not expecting to see was her sweating up a storm. Willow looked a bit feverish as she continued to sweat at a fast rate. "Wha…what was that?" She asked, looking confused about what was going on around her. 

"Willow, are you okay?" Booker asked, looking at her with concern. 

"When did it get so hot?" she said as she grabbed her cup and drank her water from it. When Willow exhaled, steam blew out of her mouth. However, it didn't cool her down. So, she poured herself another cup and doused herself with the water in the pitcher, causing her body to release more steam than a steam engine. 

Gus sips at his apple blood, looking confused, while both Booker and Luz look concerned. Steam came out of Willow's ears as she took off her glasses and cleaned them with a napkin. But when she put them back on, her pupils dilated until her eyes were completely black.

"Uhh, hi! I'm Willow!" The plant witch said as she held out her hand to the two boys and Luz. "Remind me of your names?"

While Booker and Luz were confused and worried, Gust didn't take it all too seriously. "This is serious journalism, Willow. Clowning around will get you nowhere." He said, looking away in annoyance. 

"I'm—I'm serious! Who—who are you?" Willow stammered, looking scared at them.

"I'll admit, this amnesia spin has piqued my interest."

"Gus, I don't think she's joking," Booker said as he grew worried. Standing from his seat, he walked over and placed his hand on his witch friend's forehead. "It really seems like Willow's forgotten us."

Luz thought for a moment before a gasp escaped her lips. "Booker, don't you remember what the teacher told us about damaging the photos?"

"Yeah." Booker then understood what she was getting at. Someone was messing with Willow's memories right now! "Oh no, bro."

Booker kicked in the door to the photo class as he, Luz, and Gus, while Willow walked drunkenly behind them. "FREEZE, SCUMBAG!" He yelled, pointing at the person who was hurting Willow's mind. However, he, Luz, and Gus gasped, and their jaws dropped at the sight in front of them. 

Amity Blight, Booker and Luz's friend and Booker's secret crush was desperately trying to blow out the flames that were burning two of Willow's memories. All while the others continued to burn. She notices the others looking at her. Having been caught red-handed, she nervously greeted them as the photos in her hands turned to ash. 

"...Hi" 

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?" Booker shouted, startling the young witch as he rushed over to the photos. "Are you totally out of your mind!?" He reached out to grab them.

But just as he was about to grab the wire, all of a sudden, his mind was bombarded with flashing images of his 7th birthday. Booker yelled in shock and fright as he fell to the ground. The world around him became a blur as his vision started playing tricks on him. The fire started to spread across the table before reaching out toward the other tables. The memories of those tables started burning away as the walls started catching on fire. Booker started having a full-on panic attack as the fire engulfed the room. And in the wall of flames, he saw 8 pairs of glowing eyes, each at a different height, staring down at him. 

"Booker…Booker…"

The Seventh Son stared at the eyes with absolute fear, not realizing that Luz was desperately shaking him by the shoulders. "Booker!" She yelled, trying to get him out of his state.

"What's wrong with him?" Amity asked, worried for the boy. 

"I don't know. This has never happened before. Willow!" Luz gasped when she realized the memories were still burning. She grabbed the poles holding up the wire and rushed out of the room.

Running into the girl's bathroom, she kicked open the first stall. "AAAAAAAHH!"

"Sorry!" Luz apologized to the girl who was using it before kicking up the second stall door. Thankfully for her, there was no one inside. 

The Dominican girl jumped towards the toilet and stabbed the poles down into it. Dunking the flaming photos into the water until the fire was completely out. Pulling them out, Luz grimaced at the sight of the still-ruined photos.

"Wait, wasn't there a sink in the classroom?"

After Luz ran out, Amity did her best to calm Booker down as he finally snapped out of his panic attack. "Booker, it's okay. You're safe," she said soothingly, rubbing his back as she calmed him down. "Are you feeling better?"

"Y-Yeah…" Booker said, still shaken by his vision. "What happened?" 

Gus was trying to get Willow to sit down on a stool as he looked over his shoulder at him. "You totally freaked out when you tried to put out the fire Amity caused," he said, pointing at the mint-haired girl. This made Amity flinch.

"Guys, we've got a problem," Luz said as she walked back into the room. 

She held the poles up and showed them the destroyed photos hanging on the wire. They were all either completely burnt away or particularly destroyed. Either way, the damage was done, and only one person was responsible for this. 

"How could you do this, Amity?" She asked the witch in disbelief, walking up to her. "How could you destroy Willow's memories!"

"I-It wasn't on purpose. It was an accident!" Amity said in a panic, ashamed of what she had done, especially as it made not only Luz but also Booker mad at her. 

"How?! How was this accident?!" Booker yelled in frustration as he stood up and glared at her. "Why would you even think about doing this!?"

"I…I…" Amity struggled to come up with an excuse or even a lie, but doing that would only make it worse for her. 

Luckily for her, Willow, in her brain-dead state, was there to save her. Giggling, the girl wiggled her fingers as she leaned back on the table. "Have I always had this crazy thing? She asked before slapping her face gently. "Blap, blap!" Willow giggled as she walked to Booker and Luz and put her arms around their shoulders. "I can tell we're gonna be good friends!" 

She fell down on the ground as Booker and Luz frowned at Amity. "Well, that's just great! How are we supposed to fix this?!" Booker yelled, gesturing to Willow as she wiggled around like a worm. 

Luz thought for a moment before gasping. "I think I may know someone."

Sneaking out of school was not how Amity wanted the day to go, but now she didn't have a choice. She followed the group of four friends into the forest as Booker and Luz guided Willow along the way. "Are you sure that your…aunt will be able to help Willow?" Amity asked Booker, who had Willow's left arm over his shoulders, and Luz had the girl's right arm over hers.

"I like pie!" Willow shouted. 

"For Willow's sake, let's hope so," Booker said.

As they walked together, Luz glanced at Booker. "Hey, Booker…what happened back there?" She asked, referring to the panic attack he had back in school.

"I…I don't know," Booker admitted, looking down at the ground.

"What do you mean you don't know?" Luz asked, confused. "You've never had a problem with being around fire. Heck, you fought Lilith in a temple that was on fire!" 

"You fought the Head of the Emperor's Coven?!" Amity gasped, stopping in her tracks for a moment before quickly catching up with the friends. 

"Yeah, it tends to happen when a bounty's placed on your head," Booker grumbled. He sighed and looked down at the ground. "I guess it started after learning about the fire spell. I just…I see these visions in my head, and then I see everything burning around me, and then I just…shut down."

Luz and Amity looked at one another in concern. While the mint-haired girl didn't know what it could mean, Luz had a gut feeling it had to do with the fire that killed his family. 

"Is…that why you took the tweezers?" She asked, referring to the one from school he still had. 

Booker sighed. "Yeah. I don't remember everything that happened that night. I want to see the memory. But first…" He stopped, making Luz stop. Gus and Amity stopped, too, as they looked ahead to see the Owl House in front of them. "Let's get Willow some help."

The five kids walked up to the front of the house, where Hooty greeted them. "Hoot hoot, password. AAAAH!" Hooty shouted in pain as Booker kicked open the door and walked Willow in with Luz. Gus and Amity followed inside, with the mint-haired girl looking at Hooty with a raised eyebrow. "Geez! You could've just asked! Hoot!" He closed the door behind her. 

As Booker and Luz let Willow go to walk around, Amity walked up to them while observing the house. It was then that Eda came walking down the stairs and let out a loud yawn. Smacking her lips together and scratching herself, she looked at the kids and was surprised to see them. 

"Kids? What are you doing here?" Eda asked before gasping. "Are you skipping school? Ooooooooh, I'm so proud of you!"

"No, we need your help. Willow's memories were set on fire by Bitch-Pants McCrabby!" Booker said, pointing at Amity with his thumb.

"HEY!! I told you it was an accident." Amity exclaimed as she glared at him. 

"Sure, and the fact that we call you that is an accident, too," Booker said, crossing his arms. Making Amity's face turn red. 

Luz laughed nervously and raised her hand. "Not me, I call you Mrs. McCrabby," she said, thinking that it would help ease the tension.

"Thanks, Luz," Amity said exasperatedly.

"All of the memories were destroyed, and Willow's now like…this!" Booker gestured to Willow, who was licking the wall. 

Eda hummed to herself and walked over to Willow. "Alright, I'll see what's going on with your friend." She said, grabbing Willow's face and a flashlight. She shined it into the girl's eyes. 

As they watched Eda and while Gus was still freaking out about his essay, Booker stood with the girls. They glanced at one another and blushed before looking around. It was bad enough for each of them to be around one crush, but two? It certainly made waiting around awkward. 

"So, this is the Owl House?" Amity asked Luz, trying to ease the tension between them.

"Yup," Luz said.

"And how long have you two been staying here?" Amity asked, looking down at the ground, where she saw candy wrappers on the ground. She was hoping they were candy wrappers.

"Uh, what day is today?" Booker asked.

"Today's Tuesday." 

"We've been here 2 months."

"What?! You actually lived in this place for 2 months?" Amity asked, looking at the walls as they breathed. "And you... sleep here?"

"Only if the night critters and Luz allow me to," Booker said, looking at Luz. 

She looked at him with a look of displeasure. "I do not keep you up late at night!" 

"Your snoring does, woman!"

Amity looked at the friends and giggled at how silly they were being together. "You're really an odd group of people."

That was when Eda finished what she was doing and walked to stand in front of the three kids. "Well, after a thorough examination, I've come to the conclusion that…Your friend's brain is fried. Burning those memories erased everything. Didn't they tell you that even minor damage can have huge effects in school?!" Eda asked them.

Speaking of Willow, the plant witch walked into the couch where King was sleeping. "Ahh, a chair for sitting!" Willow said before flopping face front onto the couch. Booker and the other girls in the house watched as she did a handstand while trying to sit and then flopped upside down.

"And by the look of it, her brain's burned up real good. Damage like that can change everything about a person. Willow may never be the same." Eda explained, twirling her finger around her ear in the universe gesture for crazy. 

Hearing this made Amity look away in shame, knowing that she was responsible for this, while Booker and Luz both exchanged looks of concern. 

Back on the couch, Willow finally got the sitting position right. "I got it!" She exclaimed before looking at King as he slept. "Ooh, a furry fruit!" She said before picking the demon up and pinching his fur. "I'm gonna peel it!"

This woke him up. "What?" King asked, before trying to escape as she began to 'peel him'. "What is happening?!"

"Aunt Eda!" Booker exclaimed. 

"I've got it!" Eda drew a spell circle and shot it at Willow. Hitting her in the head and putting Willow to sleep. She dropped King, and he fell back on the couch. 

"Sleep spell…" King yawned and went to sleep.

"I didn't cast it on you." Eda frowned with her hands on her hips. 

King yawned again. "Yeah, who cares?" He waved her off and went back to sleep. 

"Aunt Eda, there's got to be something we can do," Booker said, anxious to help Willow. "We can't just leave her like this!"

Eda began thinking of a way when an idea came up. "There is one way, but it's terribly dangerous and partially illegal." She said, pausing for a moment before grinning at the Seventh Son. "So you're in the right place! I'll send you into her mind to fix the damage."

Upon hearing that, Luz gasped and got super excited. "Be still, my fantasy-loving heart. I have always wanted to do this!" 

Booker looked at her with a raised eyebrow and a smirk. "You've always wanted to invade someone's mind?"

"Ever since the day I was born!" Luz exclaimed before placing her hands together and whispering to the world. "Thank you, Boiling Isles."

Booker shook his head with a smile. Luz will always be Luz. "And you're sure this is safe?" Booker asked Eda.

"I'm not gonna lie. It won't be easy. You have a lot to fix in there 'cause it's a mess! Yep, whoever did this to Willow showed unbelievable disregard for her safety, downright despicable. I can't imagine what kind of person you'd have to be to do that." Eda said, making glances at Amity.

"Yeah, I wonder who could do that," Booker said, glaring at the mint-haired girl. Causing Amity's guilt to grow to new levels as she looked away in shame, knowing how much she screwed up.

"Oh, right, it was you, Blight," Eda said, pointing at Amity. "Anyways, you two, who's going inside with you?"

The door opened, and Hooty said, "Maybe I can help! I'm pretty good at getting stuck inside people's heads!"

"Yeah, in all the wrong ways!" Booker said, using his magic to create a tendril of light to slam the door shut. He then turned to his mentor. "And what do you mean, who else?"

"I can send three people into Willow's brain, but only three," Eda explained.

Booker looked at Gus, who was pacing in front of his corkboard. Still trying to figure out a person to interview. "I'm running out of time. Ugh. I'm in total free fall!" He paused for a moment when he looked at a pile of books. More specifically, the book about raising the dead. "Must I turn to forbidden sources?" He asked and reached out towards the book. All of a sudden, the books came to life and growled at the small witch, making him scream and fall over. 

Gus had a lot on his plate so that just left a certain witch. "Well, I hope you're happy, Amity," he said, turning to her with a stern look. He pointed to Willow as she slept. "You broke Willow, and now you get to fix her." 

Amity looked at the ground dejectedly. "Willow might not want me in there."

"Are you kidding me!?" Booker exclaimed, looking at her with a very unpleasant expression with her answer. "I get you and Willow have a rocky history, but you can't leave her like this."

"Booker's right! You set everything in there on fire! You have to help fix this. Please, do the right thing," Luz said, pleading with Amity. 

Amity looked at both the human and hybrid and thought for a second. They were right. This all started because she was only trying to do something she knew she had to do. But this wasn't right. Willow didn't deserve anything she did to her. This was all Amity's fault, and now she had to fix it, or Willow would never be the same again. 

Sighing in defeat, Amity said to Booker. "Okay, I'll try my best."

"That's all anyone can ask for," Booker said, smiling at her as he held out his hand to her. At first, Amity was hesitant, but then she took it. Holding onto his hand as she blushed with a small smile. Were Booker's hands always so big and warm? 

Booker blushed as well, and he held her hand gently and tightly. Luz then grabbed his right hand and held it tighter than Amity was, frowning at her. "Uh, Luz, can you loosen up a bit?" he asked. She did, but for some reason, she gave him an angry look.

"Alright! A bold choice, taking the girl who caused the mess." Eda said, drawing a spell circle around them on the floor. She then drew another circle and summoned a bell from it. Giving it to Luz, she began explaining. "When you're done, ring that, and I'll cast you back—Oh, and keep an eye out for her 'Inner Willow.' She's the gatekeeper of emotions and memory. She might help ya."

With that said and done, Eda lifted her hands, and the spell circle around Luz and Amity produced a light that encased them. "Be careful in there," Eda said to Booker.

"We will, Aunt Eda." He nodded, holding both girls' hands as their clothes and hair floated a bit. 

"Now, here we go!" Eda raised her arms over her head, causing Booker, Luz, and Amity to shout as they disappeared into the yellow light of the spell. Then Eda directed it to Willow, who was still fast asleep.

Inside the mindscape, the three kids landed inside a pillar of yellow magic. When the magic faded, they found themselves alone together in a black void inside Willow's mind. 

"Huh, I was expecting more," Booker said.

The universe granted his wish when a blinding light appeared and burst forward. Booker, Luz, and Amity shielded their eyes until the light dimmed. When it did, they opened their eyes and gasped in amazement. 

The three found themselves standing together in a beautiful forest with a cloudy sky and a roll of mushroom-shaped trees with purple leaves to their right and left, making a pathway for them to walk through. However, when they looked at each tree, they saw that it had large holes in it and was growing around a dark picture frame. 

"Wow," Booker said in awe as he, Luz, and Amity looked around and started walking. "I imagined that Willow's mind would be full of plants, but it's beautiful here."

"Yeah, but where's her Inner Willow? Do you really think it'll help?" Amity asked as she walked next to him. 

"I don't know. We'll just have to start fixing stuff on our own!" Luz said in her chipper tone before stopping and looking around for a tree to start with. "Hmm, now let's see…" 

That's when she saw a tree without any leaves and black bark. Walking up the damaged tree, Luz inhaled a deep breath and blew the dust off a frame, only to cough when it blew back into her face. With the soot off, the picture showed itself to be of a fort on a beach made from logs, string, and sticks. 

Raising her hand to the picture, Luz touched it. But the moment she did, the image glowed around her hand as it went through the picture. 

"Luz, what are you doing?" Booker asked as he walked up to her.

"Hey, I found something magical," Luz said as she poked into it some more times. "I'mma put my face in it!"

"Wait!" Booker called out, but Luz laughed as she entered the picture and fell into it. "Luz!" Booker ran towards the painting and stopped in front of it.

Amity came running back to him when she heard him yelling. "What happened?"

Booker was about to speak when Luz stuck her head out of the picture. "I think I found the memories. Let's go!" With that said, she grabbed Booker's shirt and pulled him in. 

"Aah!" Booker yelled out as he and Luz fell through the opposite side of the picture. He landed on top of Luz, who smiled and giggled at him. Blushing, he quickly got off her and glared at her. "Why did you have to do that?"

"Oh, whatever do you mean?" She asked with a smirk as she looked around, avoiding his stare before skipping away. 

Booker sighed and dusted himself off before looking at his new environment. "Whoa…"

Back on the other side, Amity wanted one or both of her friends to come out patiently. "Guys?" She asked before Booker popped out of the painting. 

"You might want to see this, Ams," Booker said, holding out his hand to her. 

Amity blushed at that nickname before placing her hand on his. Booker then pulled her inside. On the other side, she looked at the memory and gasped in shock. 

The memory was of a grassy beach with pine trees, a dock with a sign that read LAKE LACUNA, a large stone with a life preserver leaning against it, and boogie boards leaning on a tree. But what really stood out were the burnt holes around them. It was as if the world was like paper, and someone had burned into it in the air and ground. 

Giving the sign another look, Amity instantly recognized the place. "Lake Lacuna! This is where Willow and I took swimming lessons!" She said as the winds blew through their hair. How long has it been since she came to this place? 

Booker started walking around and stopped. He bent down to pick up some of the ashes and let them fall through between his fingers. "The ash must be from the fires." 

"So, how do we fix this place?" Luz asked, walking back to them. 

Amity looked around before her eyes fell upon the fort that Luz saw in the original picture. However, it looked damaged. She gasped and ran towards it. "Our fort! In the dunes!" Amity exclaimed, smiling as good memories returned to her. 

She and the other two ran up to the fort. "You made this with Willow?" Booker asked as Amity started taking things off of it. Trying to fix it. 

"Yeah! One time, Willow wanted to play hooky from our swim lessons, so we built this!" Amity said as she shoved a plank of wood into Luz's hands.

"Forts, hooky, Willow," Luz said, absolutely loving this mission as it is all her to learn about the witch girl and her friendship with Luz. "Can words get any cuter?"

"Sounds a lot more fun than a swimming lesson," Booker said as he dusted some dirt off the edge.

Amity smiled and chuckled, fondly recalling that summer. "It was. We knew the swim teacher would be on the prowl, but Willow said she'd protect us with an illusion spell," she said, finishing the fixes to the fort. Backing away, she looked at the fort with pride.

"Wha? It's like a dog house for angels!" Luz gushed. 

But Amity noticed something was off. "Wait, something is missing."

Deciding to help out, Booker looked around the ground for what it could have been. That's when he noticed something in the sand. Walking over to it, he swiped sand off a small flag reading "A+W" on it. Picking it up, Booker walked back to Amity and held it out to her. "Is this it?" 

Amity looked at the flag before smiling at it fondly. Taking it from the boy, she placed it in a small flowerpot tied to the top of the fort. "There," Amity said.

All of a sudden, a flash of light consumed all of them. Although it faded, Booker, Amity, and Luz remained in the memory. Looking around, Booker saw that the color had returned to the area, and all the burns were fixed. The memory was completely restored. 

"I think fixing the fort fixed the memory!" Booker said as he and the girls watched the memory play out.

The memory showed a young Amity and Willow laughing together as they entered the fort. However, all over the fort were seagulls, but they weren't like the ones from the human realm. Resembling helmets with webbed feet and bird wings, they had human skulls for heads inside their snail shells. 

"Ugh! The seaskulls are back again!" Young Amity complained.

"Don't worry, I'll get rid of them!" Young Willow said with a smile. She cast a spell to make them disappear. However, instead of getting rid of the seagulls, she got rid of the fort. This startled the seaskulls before Willow's spell wore off, and the fort reappeared. Trapped inside, they attacked the young girls.

"Willow!" Young Amity yelled as the swim teacher spotted Amity and Willow and ran over to them. 

"I'm sorry, I thought I was getting better!" Willow apologized as she and Amity were dragged back to class.

When the memory ended, Amity, Booker, and Luz jumped out of the memory together. "Willow was a... late bloomer." The witch told the two.

"I know, but now she's more like a great bloomer!" Luz exclaimed, much to Amity's annoyance. 

"I think I'm starting to understand this place," Booker said as he looked around at the trees. Seeing some that were more damaged than others. "This place is a manifestation of her most important moments! And by restoring them to how they used to be, we can fix Willow's mind and restore her memories." 

That's when Booker saw a tree right next to them. It was horribly burnt up, but the tree held up the birthday party picture. "And we'll start with the photo that started it all."

Booker and Luz ran up to the tree. But when she recognized the picture, Amity was immediately horrified. No, not that one! "Wait!" She shouted, getting the two to stop and look at her. "Uhh. You want important moments?" Amity asked before walking up to the awkward hair day picture. She smiled nervously at the two of them. "This one might be about a crush!" 

"Hmm, don't mind if I do!" Luz laughed and jumped through into the picture. 

Alone with Amity, Booker walked up to her. "Is everything okay, Ams," he asked. "What happened in that memory?"

"I…Look, Booker, you wouldn't understand," she said, looking away in shame. 

"Then help me understand," he pleaded. "I don't know what's going on with you, Amity. One moment, you're this really sweet and caring person, and then next, you're a spoiled rich kid burning up people's memories."

Amity blushed a little. "You…you think I'm sweet," she asked, looking hopeful.

"Yes, and I really like that side of you," Booker said, blushing as well. "For me, that's the real you when you're not…well…" 

"Bitch-Pants McCrabby?"

"Yes," Booker said. 

"I know, I know," Amity said, looking away in guilt. 

"You know you're going to have to go into that memory and face whatever it is that's bothering you, right?"

"Yeah…"

Staring at the beautiful girl, Booker sighed. "So, we'll focus on the other pictures before we get to that one. But just…know that if you need someone to talk to, I'm here, and so is Luz. You know that, right?"

Amity looked at him and smiled, happy to hear him say that. She then grabbed his hand and pulled him into the memory Luz had gone into. 

And so began what felt like hours of hard work fixing Willow's damaged memories. For Willow's picture day memory, they quickly cleaned up the room she was in so she could take her school photo. Upon doing this, Young Willow walked up to the chair and sat down in it, smiling nervously in the hopes of her crush noticing her. 

Next up was the slayground. Together, the trio fixed the swing set. This allowed the memory to play, showing Willow and her dads playing on the swings. Her papa pushed her too hard, resulting in her accidentally kicking and knocking over her father. However, he didn't mind, and the three of them laughed together. 

In another picture, they had to find a book that she and Willow run, even when they weren't supposed to be. They found the book and placed it back on the shelf. It was called "Weapon of Love". Amity explained it was about a weapon finding love. It was a horrible book, and Willow and Amity thought so too as they laughed while reading the 13+ romance novel, only to run from the angry librarian chasing them. 

Next, Amity and Luz placed a sign back in place, and Booker hammered it in. When it was back in place, they were teleported outside and watched as Amity waved for Willow to join her on the "Roller Ghoster." She quickly came and strapped herself in at the very front. And then they were off. However, the ride wasn't just a kitty ride; it was also an extreme roller coaster with over five large loops.

"I don't feel so good!" Young Willow screamed as they approached the first large loop.

Before the inevitable, they got out, and Booker quickly turned it around. "Yeah, we don't need to see how this one ends."

Amity smiled and chuckled as she remembered that day. "Yeah, Willow threw up a lot that day," she said. "That's when you knew she was havin' fun."

"Ew... I mean, aw!" Luz said. "That's cute…in a gross way."

Booker looked around at the many trees they'd restored. "It's amazing the kind of friends you two used to be," he asked with a wide smile. "I can't believe you would have tried to destroy these memories."

When he said that, Amity's smile disappeared as she looked downcast. 

Seeing this, Booker started to apologize. "Whoa, hey, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to…"

"No, you're right. I can't believe I almost erased all of this. I really messed things up," Amity said in shame. 

"Well, yeah, but you're working so hard to fix it," Booker said, resting his hand on her shoulder, and Luz took Amity's hand. "You may try to hide it from everyone else, but you deeply care about Willow, and that's why we're able to do all this. It's because of you, Amity!" 

"R-Really?" She asked, blushing and glancing at both of them. 

"You're right!" Luz said, pitching in. "We've gotten really good at fixing memories! I won't rest until we've got this all sorted out. Repeat after me: 'We can fix this together!' Come on!" She encouraged the two.

"We can fix this together!" Booker said. "C'mon, Amity!" 

Amity smiled and blushed. "We can fix this together." She said, putting a loose strand of hair back. 

"Heck yeah, we can!" Luz exclaimed, jumping into her and hugging her. 

This made Amity blush even more as she rolled her eyes. "I don't know why I put up with you two," she said as Luz rubbed her cheek with hers. The bisexual girl also blushed as she found Amity to be very beautiful. 

"Because we own you," Booker said, leaning in. 

"Because you love us," Luz said, pulling away. 

Amity sighed. "Yeah, yeah…"

Booker backed away and looked around at the forest. All of the memories were restored, and every tree was back to normal. There was just one last tree that needed to be fixed, and it was the one that Amity had specifically tried to burn herself out of. 

"Only one last memory to fix!" Booker said as he began walking towards it. When Amity saw what memory it was, she gasped in fear. 

"Wait!" She shouted, getting Booker to stop and look at her in confusion. Luz shared the same confusion as she pulled away from Amity. "Uh, let's skip it! What's one memory going to do? Where's Eda's bell?" She said in a panic. She ran at Luz to grab the bell. 

However, Luz stops her with one hand on Amity's face. "Huh, you've been suspiciously avoiding that memory." She narrowed her eyes at the mint-haired girl. 

"Me? Avoid? No." Amity said nervously as she stepped back. 

"Okay, then let's go," Luz said, but Amity suddenly grabbed her arm.

"Wait! Don't!" 

"Amity, what is your problem?" Luz yanked her arm away. 

"I just…"

Booker walked over and said, "Amity, we can't just leave. I know some of these memories must be painful for you, but who knows what damage one memory will have? We have to fix it, so you gotta stop being weird."

Amity's eyes darted away as she avoided looking at the two. She backed up from them. 

"Unless... there's something in there you don't want us to see," Booker said. 

"What? There's nothing to hide!" Amity said loudly as she crossed her arms defensively. Still avoiding eye contact. 

Luz looked at Amity softly. "What happened to you and Willow," asked the Dominican girl. "You two were such great friends. Whatever it was, I'm not here to judge. I'm just here to help Willow."

" Help? All you're doing is prying into your friends' lives!" Amity said, growing agitated. "Well, did you ever think maybe it's none of your business?"

"Oh, it's none of our business?" Booker asked, having had just about enough. "You made it our business when you burned Willow's memories! We wouldn't be here if it weren't for you!" 

Amity flinched a little bit. "I didn't mean to burn the other ones. It was just supposed to be that one," she exclaimed, pointing at the one photo.

"And how does that make it any better? You wanted to get rid of it so that you could keep your social status!" Booker exclaimed. Amity gasped and looked at Booker in shock. "Wait, is that why you stopped being friends with her? So that she didn't drag your status down?" 

As Luz watched the two of them argue, she noticed smoke slowly starting to drift in. "Uh, guys? Is there something burning?" She asked before turning her head in the direction of the smoke and gasping. Booker and Amity did the same, and they gasped as well. 

The entire forest behind them was set ablaze with the same pink fire Amity used to destroy the memories at school. Now, it was ruining everything they had just fixed. It was a horrific site, but it only got worse. 

Stepping out from behind one of the trees, a pink monster made out of the fire that burned the trees. It started walking toward the two, burning the ground as it walked. It then held out its hand, and a flaming ax appeared in it. It roared and threw the weapon at them. 

The trio screamed before Booker grabbed the girls and rushed behind the tree they had just come out of—just in the nick of time to save themselves. However, as it flew past the tree, it changed course like a boomerang. It turned around and hit the picture, setting it on fire!

"Oh no! That thing is burning up all the memories!" Luz exclaimed. 

"Then let's put that hothead on ice!" Booker held his hands up to clap them.

"Are you crazy?! We can't fight that thing! We need to leave now!" Amity said, reaching into Luz's cowl. 

"Amity, wait!" Booker said, but it wasn't any good. Amity took the bell and rang it. 

The trio waited for something to happen, but after a second or two, nothing happened. Amity rang it again, and still nothing. She then started ringing it harder and harder, but there was still nothing. 

"Goddammit, Aunt Eda," Booker sighed in dismay.

"What? What does that mean?!" Amity shouted as she vigorously rang the bell with every word. "Why! Won't! She! Answer!?"

"Yeah... she's not super reliable," Luz admitted.

The monster roared again as it set fire to another photo. Booker looked past the tree they were hiding behind and watched as the flame monster jumped out of another memory, setting it on fire. It looked at another one and threw an ax at it, setting that one on fire before jumping through another one. 

"I…I don't think it's after us." Booker said out from behind the tree with the girls. Together, they watched as the monster did its thing. 

"But why is it destroying all the photos?

"I don't know," Luz said, looking around. Something wasn't adding up to her. If it wanted to destroy everything, then why was it leaving memories unburnt? She saw that the swing photo was unharmed. "That one hasn't been burned, or that one!" She pointed to the Christmas photo.

Booker glanced over the trees that had been burnt. "The library one had," he said, noticing that Willow was still in the photo. And it was the same with the Roller Ghoster photo and the one with the eggs.

Don't ask about that one.

As Booker saw more of the memories that had Amity in them being burnt, a horrible realization set in. "Oh no…"

"What? What is it?" Amity asked him.

Booker turned and grabbed her shoulders. "Amity, that thing isn't after any photo. It's after you !"

The monster jumped out of another photo and turned towards the kids. It locked eyes with Amity and glowed in anger as its flames raged on its body. 

"What?"

The monster growled as it burned brighter and ran towards them.

Booker started to panic, seeing the fire monster coming at him. He clapped his hands and slammed them down on the ground, summoning a giant wall of earth in front of them and the monster. Stopping it in its tracks. It let out a roar of frustration before punching the barrier. 

"I don't know how much longer that wall's gonna last!" Booker yelled we've gotta get out of here! 

"But where?" Amity asked, freaking out. 

Luz looked around before pointing to the birthday memory. "Quick! In there!" She yelled, grabbing Amity's hand and rushing towards it. Dragging Amity along as Booker followed them. 

"Wait!" Amity yelled, pulling back just as Luz was about to jump through. Stopping her. "Please, not that one!" 

"Just get in there!" Booker yelled, pushing into Amity and Luz. The force of the impact made all three of them fall into the image.

The kids groaned in pain as they lay on the floor of the memory. Everything was sore as they sat up. Opening his eyes, Booker saw that they were in a room with posters, pictures, and toys. On both sides of the door, there were balloons tied to strings attached to weights. 

"Where are we?" He asked.

Amity stood up and looked around. "It's…It's my room." 

"This is your room?" Luz asked, looking around. "It's nice. Not what I was expecting, but nice." She then noticed something on the ground. Walking over to it, Luz saw that it was a picture of Willow. "Aw~" 

"Wait, you didn't want us to see the memory of your room?" Booker asked, not noticing that Luz was about to place the photo back on the dresser. 

But Amity saw it and began to panic. "Luz, NO!" She yelled, about to rush past Booker and stop her. However, it was too late, as Luz placed the photo back on the dresser in its original position. That's when the familiar flash of light came, and the memory was restored. The trio watched the memory begin to play, and it started with the door to the room opening. 

"You have to get out, Willow, now!" Young Amity said to her friend in a frustrated tone. She marched into her room while Young Willow followed behind.

"Wait, why?" She asked, very confused by the way she was acting to her. 

Amity watched as her younger self couldn't find the right word. "Because—because—"

"This is how it happened…" Amity said with a very uncomfortable look, unable to look away from this horrible memory. 

"Is it because I still can't do magic?" Young Willow asked, grabbing Young Amity's hand as she desperately wanted her friend to stop being mad at her. "Amity, I'm—I'm sorry I got us in trouble at the beach, I just—I can't get the spells right."

"It was never about the spells," Amity said with a miserable expression. But it was in vain. She couldn't change the past. 

With a hesitant look, Young Amity ripped her hand away. "Well, yes, that—that is why!" She said, getting mad at Willow. 

"No!"

"Because you're a weakling!" Younger Willow was shocked and heartbroken when she was told this, and she started to cry. 

"No! You never were!" Amity exclaimed, wanting the memory to end more than anything. But it wasn't going to stop. Because it never stopped. She didn't stop herself that day from saying the words that would haunt her for all of her days, from saying something no friend should ever say.

"You can't do magic, so I don't wanna be your friend! Now, go!" Young Amity yelled. Willow started sobbing loudly as she rushed out of the room. 

"Please…Please stop this…" Amity begged as she started to tear up. The memory did stop, but only when her younger self left the room, leaving Amity in the room with the two people she didn't want to see this memory. 

Booker and Luz stared at Amity in shock as she broke down into tears and fell to her knees. Wallowing in shame and self-hate. She hated herself every day of her life for what she did to Willow and hated herself for how she treated her. All those times she acted superior, snobbish, or even bullied Willow, it was all an act. An act she was forced to do because she was a Blight. An act that Amity allowed to take over and dictate her life, turning her into a person she would've never wanted to be. 

Watching all those memories of her childhood made Amity realize just how much happiness she had robbed herself of. All the adventures they went on, all the fun they had together—they were the happiest moments of her life—and she ruined it all. 

Amity continued to cry, even as a person stepped in front of her. "Now you know," Amity said, wiping away her tears as she tried to regain control of her emotions. "So, what are you waiting for? Yell at me. Tell me I'm a horrible person and that you don't want anything to do with me."

Booker stared down at her and sighed. "You can't change the past, Amity. Trust me, I would give anything to have my family back, but our future is still to be written. Willow's future is still to be written, and you can make sure that she still has that future," he said before kneeling down and holding out his hand to her. "That's why you have to help us."

Amity stared at Booker's hand for a moment. Then she surprised him by slapping it away. 

"No! No, dammit!" she yelled, clenching her eyes. "Don't forgive me! I don't deserve it!" 

"Then prove to us that you're worthy," Luz said with a smile of encouragement. 

Opening her eyes, she looked at both the boy and the girl. Why? Why was it that out of all the people on the Boiling Isles, why was it always them that were giving her second chances? She was horrible to them, just like she was to Willow, yet they were still willing to forgive her. 

But they were right. Amity made a mistake, and Willow was paying for that mistake. Well, no more. She wasn't going just to sit around and feel sorry for herself. Not when Booker and Luz were going to fight to save Willow's mind. If they were going to do it, Amity wanted to do it, too.

Outside the memory, the monster saw that it had been restored, meaning that they were inside. It roared, and was about to jump into the photo. But just as it was, an ice fist shot out of the photo and punched the monster in the face, sending it flying away and landing on the ground. It reformed itself on its feet and glared at the tree. 

Booker, Luz, and Amity jumped out of the picture and stood together as they faced the flame monster. 

A tense standoff ensued as the trio glared at the monster. The being growled and summoned two fire axes. Booker tried to look brave, but when Luz glanced at him, she saw he was sweating, and his knees were shaking. 

"It's going to be okay, Booker," she said soothingly. "We're not going to let it hurt you." 

The Seventh Son looked at her with a raised eyebrow. He didn't have Dragon's Bite with him, meaning he only had his magic. But that's like his greatest trick up his sleeve. 

"Let's do this."

The fire monster roared as it changed at the kids. Amity drew a spell circle and summoned an abomination to her side. 

"Abomination! Attack!" Amity commanded as the abomination charged at the monster. Booker then clapped his hands and summoned multiple copies of himself. The clones rushed towards the monster with fearless determination as Luz and Amity joined her friend. 

"Luz! Amity!" Booker yelled, clapping his hands and pulling them away, summoning two baseball bats made of ice. He threw them at the girls, and they caught them. 

The flame monster swung at the abomination, cutting its head off with one of its axes, but it didn't stop it. Amity's abomination slammed into the monster, splattering itself all over the monster. It roared in anguish as it felt the goo extinguishing the flames. It increased its fire, melting the goo away from its body. 

"BATTER UP!" Booker yelled, jumping and swinging his own ice bat at the flame monster. Hitting it with all his might in the side of its face as it roared in pain. 

Luz hit it in the knee and Amity in the back, forcing the monster down on the ground. The clones jumped in and started beating their ice bats on the monster. If their bats melted, they would summon new ones. 

Growling in pain and frustration, the monster let out an all-mighty roar and unleashed a blast of fire that knocked everyone off their feet and sent them flying back. On impact with the ground or a tree, the clones disappeared in a puff of smoke. Luz landed on the ground while Amity was slammed into a tree. 

Groaning in pain, she looked up and gasped when she saw the fire monster standing in front of her. It glared down at her as it raised its hand down on her head and killed her. And it would've been the end for Amity if it wasn't for the Seventh Son of the Seventh Son.

Jumping up high and falling towards it, Booker slammed his hands together. "No, you don't!" He yelled and slammed his hands into the back of the monster. He screamed in pain as his bare hands touched the fire.

His powerful magic blasted the ice all over the flame being's body. Freezing it into place. 

Amity stared at the monster trapped in ice in shock before she heard Booker land on the ground. "Booker!" she yelled, running around the monster towards him. She and Luz saw Booker on his knees, looking at his hands in pain. 

"Are you okay?!" Luz said, looking at his hands and seeing burns on them. "You hurt yourself really bad!" 

"It's fine. I'll just have Eda heal me up," Booker said, trying to pass off on the fact that it hurt to close his hands. He was then flicked in the head by Amity. "Ow! Hey!" 

"You're an idiot, Booker Bridges!" She yelled at him in frustration. Sighing, she summoned a spell circle and conjured a blob of abomination goo. Amity then broke it apart and had them wrap around his hands. Soothing the pain and cooling the burns. "But…thank you—again."

Booker looked at her with a surprised look before laughing a little. "Woo! Teamwork, bady!" Luz cheered as she wrapped her arms around Amity and Booker. So happy that they had won the fight together. This, however, made both Amity and Booker blush. 

"Uh, Luz," Booker said, getting the girls' attention as they heard the sound of steam. The two girls looked up to see the ice melting rapidly. Quickly getting to their feet, the kids backed away as the monster melted itself out of its prison. However, its body was obscured by steam. 

Summoning another ice bat, Booker waited for it to show itself. "Who are you!?" He yelled at it. 

As the shadow stood in the steam, it turned itself around to face the trio. "I am what she made me." It said in a very familiar voice. The fog cleared, and the kids were shocked when the monster was revealed to be Willow. But this wasn't the Willow they knew. Dressed in her casual clothes, this Willow was glowing pink with flames around her. 

"Willow?" Luz asked in shock. 

Breaking free from the ice at her free, Willow glared at Luz. "Willow Park is gone. I am what remains." She said, her eyes turning completely purple as the ground around her burnt 

Still in disbelief that the monster that was burning all of the photos and who wanted to kill her was Willow, Amity stepped forth. "Are you... the Inner Willow?"

"That's who I used to be. Love, sadness, fear." Inner Willow said as the scorched ground began to spread out from her feet. " I used to be a being made of all emotions. But ever since you set Willow's mind on fire, all I can feel is ANGER AND HATRED!"

She yelled out those last words as her hands ignited in flames. The fire shot everywhere, and she set more trees on fire. Booker, Luz, and Amity watched the destruction in horror as Inner Willow set trees that had Amity in them on fire, even if she'd already burnt them. But it wasn't just the Amity trees that were on fire. Other memories were set ablaze.

"No!" Booker shouted as he changed at Inner Willow. He swung his ice bat at her, but she blasted him in the chest. Sending him flying back into a tree with a burn mark on his sweater. 

"BOOKER!" Luz and Amity shouted. They turned to Inner Willow as she approached them. 

"Please! Stop!" Luz cried out, begging her to do so. 

"I am only doing what Amity started. Every moment she touches me, I'm going to burn!" 

"You're just hurting Willow!" Amity yelled at the being as she extended out her hand. "Why are you doing this?"

Inner Willow snapped her furious glare at her, making Amity flinch. "How dare you talk to me about hurting Willow? Still haven't figured it out yet, after rewatching the memory. How you threw her away for being weak!" She yelled, pointing to the birthday party photo. Amity gasped. 

"That was the moment her pain truly began," Inner Willow yelled. "And for years, she's continued to be hurt by you and your new friends, who you let pick on her for years. All because you thought she was weak. Tell me, Amity Blight, how much pain do you think she's had to bottle up inside herself to stand being in the same room as you?"

"Amity!" Luz gasped as she saw a ring of fire circle around Amity's feet.

"I'm not hurting Willow. I'm just finishing the job you started. You wanted to erase your friendship with Willow from existence, and I can erase all that pain. After all, out of sight, out of mind."

Booker got up and gasped when he saw what was going on. He quickly summoned another ice bat and rushed forward, putting himself between Inner Willow and Amity.

"Wait! Please, it doesn't have to be this way!" Booker yelled. The guardian of Willow's emotions gave him a death glare, but Booker didn't back down. 

"You're Willow's friend, and yet you protect her?!" Inner Willow questioned him. "Why would you protect the person that caused her so much pain!?"

"Willow, I know how you feel. You're angry at Amity," Booker said, trying to calm down the being. "Amity's a lot of things. A snob, stubborn, overconfident, a Bitch-Pants McCrabby at times."

Luz sighed and shook her head. "Booker…"

"The list goes on, but she's not a bad person!" Booker declared. Amity looked at him with genuine surprise and shock. Even after all she's caused and what he saw, he was still willing to call her a good person.

"You lie." Inner Willow prepared to finish the Blight off. 

" Wait! Please. If…If you're going to kill me, at least let me say something!" Amity pleaded, shutting her eyes. Luckily for her, the flames disappeared.

"Oh, and how's that?" 

"Before all this started, I never once thought about breaking our friendship, Willow," Amity said. "But I was forced to."

Inner looked at her with sinister amusement. "Another lie? From a person whose family is a blight on the Boiling Isles? Do you have proof?"

"I…"

"Hang on!" Booker interrupted. Dropping his bat, he reached into his pocket and pulled out an object. Opening his palms, he revealed the demon tweezers. "I was going to use it on myself. To see what really happened the night my family was killed, but first, I'm going to use it to save my friend."

Inner Willow raised an eyebrow.

"I get it," Booker said, holding up his hands. "You're angry at Amity, but there's only one way to know what really happened."

Booker turned to Amity. The mint-haired girl understood what he was going to do and nodded. Closing her eyes, she concentrated on the birthday party. Allowing her friend to reach into her ear with the tweezer. 

When he felt something, Booker pulled a photograph out of Amity's ear. "At least see the truth," he said, holding out the photo for Inner Willow. 

Glaring at the two of them with completely purple eyes, Inner Willow blinked. Her eyes turned white as the photo started to glow, a bright flash of light that consumed the entire area. 

When the trio opened their eyes, they found themselves in Blight house's large kitchen. "Whoa, so fancy," Luz said. 

"Hang on, Willow, I'll get you some water!" said Young Amity's voice as she ran in from the living room where the party was being held. She ran up her little stool in front of the sink and poured some water into a cup. 

She was about to run back into the living room when a woman's voice called out behind her. "Amity?"

Present Amity flinched slightly at that voice, but not as much as her younger self did. She dropped the cup on the ground and turned around. 

Walking into the room was a mature-looking witch who possessed a curvaceous body that contrasted with the sharp features in her face and blue eyes. She had tufted hair similar to Amity's, but it was two-toned mint green with a lighter streak across the top, and she styled her hair by tying it into a bun reminiscent of a Roman nodus. She wore a violet blouse with a white petticoat that had a triple interlocking orb pattern, navy pants, and gray-heeled boots. She accessorized herself with a necklace with a pink, oval gem that matched the one Amity used to wear, purple lipstick, and golden earrings.

"Who's the chick?" Booker asked. He will admit that she was hot, but there was something about her that Booker didn't like. The way she looked down at the young brunette with a look of displeasure didn't help his first opinion of her.

"My mother," Amity said, scowling at the sight of her.

"What is Willow doing here? She wasn't on the guest list for a reason ." Amity's mother, Odalia, said in a smug and superior tone. 

"But, she's—she's my best friend!" Young Amity said, much to Inner Willow's surprise.

"Best friend?" Odalia asked in mock surprise before she laughed. "Nonsense, dear. Blights are only associated with the strongest of witchlings. Which is why, for my present to you, I'll allow you to pick a new friend from one of the suitable companions we invited." 

She held out her hand towards the living room. Young Amity turned around to see that her mother was talking about young Boscha and young Skara. Both witchlings looked bored as they just sat around. 

"But they're mean! Just because you work with their parents doesn't mean I have to like them!" Amity argued, crossing her arms and turning her head away. 

Booker was shocked to hear this. Skara was only friends with Amity because Uncle Willy and Aunt Kimberly worked with the Blight family. 

Seemingly all sweet and understanding, Odalia knelt down to her daughter's level with a smug smile. "Good children don't squabble with their elders, Mittens. Sever your ties with Willow, and if you don't…" She then grabbed Amity's face and forced her to look at her. "Something very bad will happen to her."

Young Amity gasped as her mother let go of her face. 

"I'll make sure the girl is never admitted into Hexside and is never seen again. Now go and try not to make a scene. And clean up this mess before your father sees it." Odalia ordered before walking out of the room. Not caring about her own daughter, who looked like she was going to cry.

The memory ended, and there was another flash of light. The trio and Inner Willow were back in the forest, and the fire that destroyed the photos and trees disappeared. 

"So…that's why you ended your friendship with Willow," Booker said, turning to face Amity as she looked down at the ground. 

"You were trying to protect her," Luz said, feeling so sorry for the witch. 

Amity looked up at Inner Willow. She was facing the birthday photo with tears in her eyes, which had returned to normal. "Willow, you were never too weak to be my friend. I was too weak to be yours. I'm so sorry. I didn't want to lose you as a friend, but I couldn't live to lose you because of me. I can't take back what I've done, but I can promise that I won't let Boscha and her gang pick on you ever again!"

Inner Willow turned around to her. "And how do I know that you'll honor that promise?"

Reaching into her pocket, Amity pulled out the invitation to Skara's 15th birthday party. 

"I'm a Blight. And Blights always honor their deals." Amity declared and started to tug on the invitation. "I'm not actually gonna rip it because it's a real butterfly, but you get the gesture." 

Crying a bit, Inner Willow smiled. She reached out and grabbed Amity's hand. 

"I do, and I think Willow should keep her memories of you," she said. The good and the bad."

Amity gave her a small smile. "Me too." She said, her voice full of emotion.

Booker and Luz walked up to the girls. "Then, if it's okay, the three of us still have some work to do," she said. 

Inner Willow nodded.

After another round of fixing Willow's memories, they're back in the main forest of Willow's mind. Together, the three friends stood in front of the tallest tree in the woods. The bright green leaf tree that held the birthday photo also appeared to be the core of Willow's mind. With the repaired birthday photo in hand, Amity hung it on the tree. The sound of shuffling behind them gained their attention, and they turned around to see Inner Willow walking out from behind a tree, no longer surrounded by pink flames. She was with Young Inner Willow, holding her hand as they smiled at Amity. 

Feeling tears falling from her eyes, Amity smiled and waved at them. Years of self-hatred towards herself washed away as she finally made things right.

Young Inner Willow turned to leave and walked face-first into a tree. She giggled and ran off. Likely to go back into the memories of her and Amity playing. Inner Willow waved goodbye and followed her.

As Amity watched the inner self of her best friend walk away, Booker and Luz joined her on both sides. "So, what now?" The Seventh Son asked. "Are you and Willow friends again?" 

"I'm not sure," Amity said, looking down at the ground. "I caused years of pain and suffering for Willow. That's…not something you can just erase so easily. Nor should it be."

"You're right, and Willow may not forgive you," Booker said, placing a hand on Amity's shoulder. "But at least you finally told her the truth. It's a start."

"Thanks, Booker," Amity said, genuinely grateful for his and Luz's help.

"Let's go see how she's doing," Luz said, pulling out the bell Eda gave her. She grabbed Amity's left hand, and Booker grabbed her right. Luz then rang the bell. "I wonder what Eda's doing."

As it turned out, the reason Eda didn't pull the kids out the first time was because she and King were in a fierce competition for who Gus would interview. Completely out of breath, they looked at Gus expectantly, posing on the coffee table, with various items littering the floor.

"So? Who got the gig, kid?" She asked, hoping that it was all finally over. 

"Well, this has been the hardest choice of my entire life," Gus said as he sat in a chair before standing up. Eda and King glared at one another. "But with the public interest in mind, the interview goes to...Hooty!

"Hooty?" Eda exclaimed, completely shocked. 

"Hooty?" King yelled, completely furious. 

"Hoot?" Hooty asked, opening the door. 

As Eda and King glared at Gus, he explained his decision to them. "Well, your performances got me thinking. What could create such interesting people? Only the Owl House itself." Hearing that, Hooty gasped. He was absolutely thrilled as he laughed happily. Gus walked up to him and pulled out his pencil and paper. "Tell me everything, Mr. Hooty!"

"I've been waiting to hear those words all my life!" Hooty exclaimed as Gus walked outside. Hooty closed the door, muffling their conversation. 

Eda could not believe what just happened. She was just beaten out of being interviewed by Hooty, of all things! "Ooooh, I'm gonna do it." She growled in fury. "I'm gonna rip that fucking birdy bastard's head out of that door!"

"I'm gonna rip that kid's head off his body!" King exclaimed. 

The two of them were stopped by the sound of a bell ringing. "Huh?" Eda looked around, trying to figure out where it was coming from. She figured it out when she looked at Willow. "Oh, right, I put people in there."

Using her magic, she pulled Booker, Luz, and Amity out of Willow's mind and brought them back to the real world. The three kids landed with a puff of yellow smoke, holding hands. The bell disappeared from Luz's hand as Amity let go of her other one and Booker's.

"Where were you the first time we rang?!" Booker yelled at Eda before noticing that the house was in shambles. "And what the hell happened here?!"

"And where's Gus? What did you do with Gus?" Luz asked, looking at her teacher with a look of disapproval. 

"The kid's fine. He's just dead to us." Eda said grumpily as she and King walked away in a huff. 

The trio watched them leave, confused. "That doesn't fill me with confidence!" Booker called out to her. 

Their attention was brought back to Willow when the witch started groaning. As she woke up, she opened her eyes and slowly sat up on the couch. 

Booker and Luz quickly ran over to her and helped her sit up. "Easy, Willow." He said. 

"Willow, do you know who we are?" Luz asked. 

Willow looked at the other of them. "Um…two friendly scarecrows?" Booker and Luz freaked out before she started laughing. "Ha! Just messing, I remember everything!"

"She's back, folks! My girl's back!" Luz screamed happily as she jumped on Willow and hugged her tightly. Knocking her into Booker. "I'm gonna hug you so hard you'll never forget me again!"

As the three friends laughed together, Amity turned away, looking hurt. However, there was nothing she could do. So she started to leave. Booker noticed and watched her open the door. Looking back at the Seventh Son, Amity gave him a shy wave and was about to take a step out the door. That was until someone called out to her. 

"I remember what you did, too." Amity stopped and looked back to see Willow facing her. Pushing Luz off herself, Willow stood up from the couch. "What you did in there," Willow said, pointing to her head. "I can't say we're friends, but it's... a start."

Happy to hear that, Amity waves again at her, smiling. She left the house and closed the door behind her. Walking past Gus and Hooty, talking about things no one cares about, the mint-haired girl followed the path back to town. She would likely have to explain herself to her parents, but Amity didn't mind. 

Remembering the invitation to Skara's party, Amity stopped walking and reached into her pocket. Pulling it out, she looked at it as the invite unfolded. If her mother knew about the invite, she would force her to go, saying that it would make the family look good. But at that moment, she didn't care. Amity just saved her best friend from losing her memories of their friendship. Smiling, she let the butterfly fly off and walked away.

Willow might not see her as the best friend she used to be, but she knows that Amity is willing to change for the better. It's a start.

"So…what do you think?" Booker asked Eda as he sat in her nest with her. He was in his pajamas and talking with the Owl Lady about the weird visions he'd been having and the panic attacks he's had when around the fire. 

"Well, it seems like something triggered your mind," Eda said. "And how long has this been going on?"

Booker shrugged his shoulders. "Since I learned the fire spell." He said. He then pulled out the tweezers from his pocket and held them out to Eda. "I want you to help me pull out the memory."

"Are you sure?" Eda asked, surprised to hear the young boy make a request like that. And it made her worry about him. "Booker, what's going on with you?"

"I just…I need to see what happened that day." Booker said, avoiding eye contact with her. "I don't even remember everything that happened that day. It's all just…blank. I want to know the answer is still inside my head."

Eda looked at the young boy as he looked up at her. She could see the desperation in his eyes. The need to know what happened to start the fire was immense, and it honestly broke her heart. "Of course." She said, taking the tweezers. "Just…think about that day. The moments that you remember." 

Booker nodded and closed his eyes. He remembered that birthday as best as he could, despite the seven years. It really was a happy thing to remember despite the tragic outcome. He remembered his brothers had gathered around, singing him a happy birthday as his mother, Elizabeth, walked out with the cake and placed it in front of Booker. She kissed him on the head as she and Malcolm sang with the other boys. 

But that was it. 

The next thing Booker knew, he was outside on the ground, as his family's home burnt to the ground in front of him. People who were around when it happened said it was as if there was an explosion before they saw the fire.

"Alright, I've got it," Eda said.

Booker opened his eyes and looked at the photo. Scooting closer to his aunt, the two looked at the photo together. It took a moment to form, but when Booker saw what it had to show, his eyes widened in shock.

When the photo developed, it showed his 7-year-old self sitting at the head of the table with his back to the window. His family was gathered around him. Everyone was looking at him in shock and surprise, and he looked at his hands in amazement. In his hand, he was a ball of fire, with his magic markings glowing. He was using magic for the first time in his life, and it was the fire spell.

"Huh, well, that could explain the panic attacks. But look at you! Learning the fire spell at such a young age!" Eda said with a big smile as she looked down at Booker. However, what she saw surprised her. "Booker?"

Booker was crying. He stared at the photo as his hands shook. "No…" 

"Booker, what's wrong?" Eda asked, not becoming very worried. 

Booker looked at her with a devastated expression. "I killed them," he said, unable to process the overwhelming grief. "I killed my own family."

"No!" Booker was startled when Eda shot up to her feet and glared down at her nephew. Tears filled her eyes. "Booker, you're not going to say that, and I never want to hear you say that again!" 

"But how else could it have happened, Eda!?" Booker cried, standing up. He looked down at his hands as they shook. "I couldn't control my magic before. W-W-W-What if I didn't when I first used the fire spell?" 

"Booker, you couldn't have started that fire because you were only a witchling," Eda argued. 

"And what about now?! Am I really that much better than I was back then? The Emperor is hunting me down for who knows what, and he killed so many of my family to get to me!" Booker shouted, backing away from Eda as he looked scared, not at her, but at what he could do to her. 

And God forbid what he could do to Luz, Amity, his friends, or the last of his family if he lost control again. And with Belos after him, Booker was putting everyone in danger just by being around him. 

"I…I can't stay here." Booker turned around to run away from the Owl House, to get away from everyone. 

But he was stopped when a wall of light appeared in front of him. The Seventh Son stopped in his tracks, giving Eda the chance to run over and grab his left hand. 

"Kid, please just stop!" Eda said, begging him to calm down and not leave. Booker didn't face her, but he didn't try to run away. "Booker, this was the last memory you remembered from that night. But that doesn't mean that it was the reason that fire started."

"But—"

"No, dammit! Booker, I loved Malcolm. Fuck, I still love him, and that's why I can't let you do what you're going to do to yourself. I don't believe that you did it. And even if it's true, you were only a little kid. I'm not letting you think that you're responsible for what happened!"

Booker finally turned around, now sobbing. "Eda…" He ran into her and hugged her tightly. Crying into her chest as she hugged him tightly in return. 

"You did not kill your family, Booker Bridges. Stop crying because I'm going to cry." Eda said as she started crying, too. Together, they mourned for their losses as the Owl Lady held her student as if he were her own son. "I will not let Belos get you, Booker. I'll protect you."

The two of them stayed in the room for the rest of the night, with Eda allowing Booker to sleep with her all night.