Work Text:
Collecting the bounty these days was getting less and less rewarding. It was already bad enough that Eda was struggling to hold the fort down, but now they were without money — which led to some very… interesting meals some nights.
Their little household was ever growing, now with the newest addition. Eda’s sister, Lilith. She was… well, she was something. The three of them ( four if anyone considered Hooty) were still learning to trust the ex-emperor’s coven member, and Luz sincerely hoped that it would become easier to do so as time went on.
Even though there was still some tension between the original inhabitants of the Owl house and its most recent recruit, anyone with common sense could see that Lilith was trying hard to redeem herself. Sometimes it was the little things that Eda appreciated most, like when the dishes were clean when they returned from chasing their chances at a decent meal.
Other times, it was cheap and blatant — like those times when it was obvious that Eda’s nest had been mysteriously fluffed and prepared for a good night’s sleep. Eda would always rub it in that she needed to try harder when she did things like that. Luz always found it sweet.
Either way, Eda and Luz appreciated her efforts, even if one of them didn’t want to admit it. Especially on occasions like today when Luz suggested that they all split up on different bounty-seeking endeavors to try and bring in more cash at once.
The Owl lady was hesitant to let Luz go all on her own, but after convincing reassurance from the girl, she didn’t see a problem in it. Still and all, it was a rather well-known fact that Luz was now stronger than both Eda and Lilith combined.
Even if it was a little humiliating for the once most powerful witch in the Boiling Isles, it was the broader truth. That didn’t mean she wasn’t going to send King with her for a little extra protection, though…
“What is this place? Gives me the creeps…” The King of demons mumbled, shrinking back behind Luz’s neck from his perch on her shoulder.
“I’m not too sure, but this is where the map said to go. According to the description of the creature we’re after, Glop… Gloppomogus ?… Okay, I have no idea how to say that…” she admitted, squinting at the bottom-of-the-barrel scroll that she was given. “In any case, we’re headed right towards it!”
“Gloppomogus, huh? Sounds lame. I bet he’s some kind of pretentious jerk,”
Luz just rolls her eyes. King was always going around insulting things like he had something bigger. Any other time, she would have laughed, but right now? She was determined. She was focused. She uncompromisingly set on providing for once, just like Eda was always doing for her.
Sure, they were currently walking through a forest of thick trees and shrubbery filled with critters she’d never seen in Bonesborough, but she was doing rather well with holding it together if she was allowed to brag…
She didn’t know how many leaves she’d almost swallowed. She had to use the Owl Staff to swipe the low hanging branches and cobwebs that threatened to entrap her. It almost made her wish she went with the bounty that the others went after. It was much less demanding in terms of finding it, and Eda persisted that she took that one instead. Luz really hoped Eda and Lilith were doing alright with all those glyphs she had sent them off with.
Better her than her two defenseless maternal figures, right ? That’s what she kept telling herself as she admittedly didn’t know where she was going. If she pretended to be confident, then eventually it might become reality…
Eventually.
Hopefully .
She groaned.
“ Leaves!” Swipe.
“ Leaves!!” Swipe. Aggressive swipe.
“And more LEAVES-“
And then with a panicked yelp, suddenly, she was tumbling down a steep incline, twigs snapping and leaves crunching as she hurled downwards. King had never known that he was capable of such a death grip until now.
Luz’s eyes are squeezed shut and she lands on her belly with an ‘ oof’. There was a pause in which either of them spoke, but instead tried to catch their breath. Luz felt King clamber off of her.
“Luz? Are you alright?!” He blurted, placing his paws on her back. He looked at her with concern and a small wince. That fall definitely had to have left a mark.
Luz moaned in pain, a hand going to massage her sore neck as she shifted to try and stand. “Yeah. Yeah , I’m alright…”
“Phew! I thought you died or something,” he joked, trying to lighten the mood. It didn’t work. There was a possibility that she could have died.
Once she was on her feet, she felt around her pockets for the map. She gazed at it closely, making a connection of their current surroundings and the illustration. Quite literally, she had stumbled upon a clearing. There were much less trees and firmer land. These parts however, were much thicker and less sun shined through the thickness of the tall trees that she could only compare to Sequoia semervirens back at home.
“Hang on a minute…” A quick glance down to the paper in her hands. “King!- I think… I think we found it!” She shouted immediately upon spotting the cavern-like structures made of rock that was identical to the one on the map. King rushed over, crawling up to her shoulder and clinging on for lack of better words that he was terrified of this obsolete, bleek and unpopulated place.
They approach tentatively. Luz may have been reckless at times, but she wasn’t foolish as to rush in with zero caution.
The girl takes a deep breath, looking back one more time at the outside world. From what she could tell by looking up at the sparse and thin rays of light shining through the leaves, the sun was setting. If they made it out of here, it would be night time on the Boiling Isles, which was not a good time to be out.
It may have been crazy, but she had to do this. She had to try.
For the Owl House.
Her determined expression quickly flashes into horror when something quickly flies past the light, making it go dark for no longer than half a second.
Her heart raced in her chest, King whimpered, and she got ready to panic over this of all things.
She takes another deep breath and regains her composure. She’s made it all this way. No turning back. “D-Don’t worry, King… Hey, it was probably just a bird. No need to worry.”
“ You’re right. Just a bird… heh. We should get going…” he suggests in cowardice, but even Luz likes the thought of being out of sight of whatever may have been watching them. Thinking that it was merely a bird was a nice thought, but deep down, King and Luz both knew it wasn’t.
“Geez, t—this better be easy for how many Snails were getting for this…” He shivered as an empty, cold breeze brushed past them upon stepping into the cave. Closing his eyes, he buried his face into her shirt and was glad for once that his human companion was so fearless.
Reaching into her pocket, she grabs a light glyph. It hovers in her open palm as they trek further and further into a cave filled with things neither of them were prepared to see. The Gloppomogus and its four-thousand bounty reward, hopefully — but Luz was not confident that they’d find it before they came across some other sleep-stealing critter.
Luz and King were silent. The only thing that could be heard were mysterious echoes of something that they were approaching, Luz’s uncertain footsteps, and water dripping sounds amplified by the echo and indefinite deepness of the cavern. The light spell illuminated the rocky walls like a candle. Luz gulped, careful to not look at the shadow of her own figure in fear that she’d see something following them.
“Aw man… a fork in the road.” Luz announced suddenly, breaking the deafening silence. King opened his eyes for the first time in minutes and observed the scene.
There was indeed, a fork in the road. A plethora of entrances leading to who knows what. There were about four of them, each archway carved into different, mysterious shapes. Luz hated decision making, especially in times like these when hers and others' lives depended on it.
“King, we might just have to try all of them…”
“ All of them ? But that could take all day!”
“I know, I know . But… we don’t have a choice. Eda is relying on me. I have to do this.”
“Uh… Luz? I’m pretty sure Eda wouldn’t care if you do this or not. She cares about you more than she—“
“I know.”
Luz looks to the side, a line of guilt forming between her brow. Her fists tighten, hanging dull at her sides. She knows this. These things that King tells her. But it just wasn’t right. She couldn’t stand the thought that Eda gave up an entire week’s worth of food for all of them to buy the only thing that her human body can digest.
She couldn’t stand the passing memory that the very reason that the mighty Eda The Owl Lady is now just a sick joke with not an ounce of power left lies in her own existence.
She can’t even bear to think about all the trouble she’s caused for the Owl House. It was just too consuming and the guilt swallowed her. And she didn’t even try to resist, because maybe she deserves it.
Maybe that’s what she gets for being such a weirdo.
“I know.” She couldn’t stand it. “And that’s exactly why I need to prove myself useful today.”
“ Luz… that’s not…” King tries, but Luz cuts him off.
“We’re going to start from right to left. We’ve got nothing but time, so let’s stop standing around.” She declared, feigning sureness. And just as she starts, she finds herself tumbling to the ground for the second time today when a broad, showy voice suddenly echoes off the rocky walls.
“ Have you considered that the average Gloppomogus commonly resides in the west?”
Had the intruder been one with predatory intentions, Luz and King were as good as doomed. But luckily for them, it was just someone who was starting to become familiar these days.
The Golden Guard.
Luz never knew where she stood in terms of alliance with him. After all, he was a worker of someone who definitely wasn’t a friend. Emperor Belos.
He seemed nice enough, and he never really went out of his way to antagonize them on the few occasions that they came across one another. Heck, she’d never even seen his face! It was all a little fishy how chance always had it that they’d meet. She was almost starting to think all of those times, including this one, weren't a coincidence…
“You again.” Luz acknowledges broodingly, collecting her scattered glyphs.
“Yeah, it’s me. Thought you could use some help.” He informs casually. “Looks like I came right on time.”
King stared daggers into that pompous imbecile as he crouched by her. Contending with the thin paper glyphs, she inadvertently casts most of her light and ice spells while trying to grab them.
She groans. What a waste. At least King was a sweetie pie and tried his best to help out.
“ Are you just gonna sit there and watch?” Luz asks, genuinely puzzled. She doesn’t bother because she can see him in her peripheral vision.
“ Heh . Yeah.”
“Well— mister… whatever your name is. Thanks for the directions, but I don’t need your help.” Luz concluded, dusting off pebbles that had stuck to her. She tried to ignore him, turning the other way and mentally recalculating which way was west.
“ Really ? ‘Cause last time I checked — I was helping. And you needed it.” He insisted, standing beside her. However, Luz excludes him and simply sighs. If west is where he said, then west it is. After all, he probably knew more about the Boiling Isles than she did. She didn’t have much of a choice but to trust him.
Much to Luz and King’s demoralization, the Golden Guard persists, following them as they enter the west tunnel. Luz kept stealing quick glances at the shadow on the wall, inwardly pondering if she were safe in his presence or not. Eh, at least if she died, there’d be a witness.
“So… Emperor Belos’s guard, huh? How long do you plan on following me?” She pandered aloud, hoping to start some kind of small talk to fill the less than pleasant silence.
“As long as you’re in here. Someone’s gotta protect you, right?” He dismisses her question nonchalantly.
“Hmm. Yeah. Alright, alright .” Luz says slowly, processing the whole thing. This was incredibly suspicious. Even more so than the Selkidomus incident.
Suddenly, Luz snaps around, halting their steady pace of walking. Pointing the Owl Staff defensively at him, he puts his hands up defensively after the girl shoves her light-glyph holding hand closer to his masked face. She glares at him suspiciously, and even King was giving him a black look.
“What are you really here for?” She presses sternly.
“Geez, I’m just here to make sure the Emperor's target doesn’t get herself killed! Is that really a bad thing?”
“Waitwait— ‘Emperor's TARGET?’ KILLED? You don’t think I’m strong enough to do this?!” She snapped, “It’s because I’m a girl, isn’t it? So you’re one of those…”
“What? No- I-“
“Now listen here you pretentious jerk! Luz and I are busy here, so why don’t you go scrub your fat Emperor’s feet?” King barked, pointing an accusatory claw at the seemingly innocent offender.
The mysterious boy sighs, smacking a hand to his faceplate where his forehead would be.
“A guy can’t get a word around here, can he? Human, can you tell your weird dog to stop yelling at me? And for Pete’s sake — I’m here to help.”
There’s a pause in which Luz just stands there, the Guard just stares, and all of them are still in defensive mode. “ Look . I don’t know who you are, or who’s side you’re on, but I can’t trust someone who works for the guy who tried to kill my mentor,”
She jabs Owlbert softly into his chest before taking a more civil stance. “And for the last time, I don’t need your help.” She says seriously, and it’s final.
The Golden Guard can’t seem to fathom how foolish it was for someone as uneducated as Luz Noceda could insist that she doesn’t need help from a professional, and following the stretching silence from the finality of her words — he says all that he can say in a relenting voice.
“ Fine.”
At that, Luz turns back to the right direction. Straight ahead. She hugs herself regretfully as she listens to his footsteps that grew more and more distant. Even though she really could have used the guidance and protection, she simply couldn’t bring herself to deal with someone like him. It was too risky. And if it weren’t for her dwindling determination and false confidence that she had to do this on her own to prove herself, then maybe she would have gotten somewhere.
But for now, it was just a rocky tunnel. And lots of walking.
Lots and lots of walking.
In the fullness of time though, they stumble upon an open space. It was almost too open.
Almost suspiciously so…
Digging in her pockets, she grabs another light glyph and combines it with her old one and creates a larger, brighter orb of light. It illuminated the dark, rocky cavern a greater deal.
“We should split up. Maybe we’ll find something faster.” King suggests, hopping off of his warm, safe perch on Luz’s shoulder. ”I don’t like this place… gives me the creeps.”
“Same here buddy, but that’s a good idea.” She creates another light orb and crouches in front of her furry companion, slowly passing it into his open paws. “Here’s some light,”
The two of them begin to wander, but they absently stay close to one another.
“Alright King, let me know if you see anything. I don’t know how big this thing is- or what we’re dealing with, so just—“
“ Uh, Luz?”
She was hesitant to answer, taking into consideration the fear in his voice. “…Yeah?”
“What is that? U—Up there? On the ceiling?”
“ Oh boy.” Her gaze slowly wanders up to where he was pointing, fully ready to see something very frightening.
And indeed, was it frightening with its ten or so eyes, lumpy, misshapen body and slimy exo-coat. No wonder there was a pile of mysterious goop in the middle of the cave. Just sitting there all nasty and ominous.
Living on the Boiling Isles had given Luz her fair share of terrors, but this one was especially jarring because when she made eye contact with it, it seemed to have already had its preying gaze on Luz.
A loud, sticky sound followed it detaching itself from the rocky ceiling as it prepared to do… something. Attack probably? But whatever it was, it was happening fast — but Luz had just enough time to scoop up King into her arms and dive out of the way when it plopped on the ground, sending a loud echo through the caverns.
Alright Luz, you prepared for this one. Just kill it, collect evidence in that weird bottle thing they gave you back in Bonesborough, get out of this cave, and prove to Eda that you’re helpful.
Simple.
King quivered, his eyes shut tight while he clung to the human. Somehow, Luz quickly recovers from her fall and she’s up again, just like that. She was in that mode she always went in when it was combat time. Fierce, unafraid, and unyielding once her objective was clear. Telling her anything would be like talking to a wall when she was like this, so King just closed his eyes and wished desperately that he wasn’t here when he could feel Luz running straight toward it.
Following that, he heard the casting of an ice glyph. He felt them pass through something and felt the rumbling of her grunts as she summoned several plant magic glyphs. The unraveling of the vines was loud, but whatever she was doing must’ve worked, because that distressed sound that came from their enemy sounded perfectly in their favor.
“ What?! HE’S GROWING?” She bellowed frustratedly, panting as she caught her breath. At that, King’s eyes flew open, and absolutely, it had grown.
Luz’s endeavor to regain her oxygen flow was concerningly brief. Right away, she was back at it — but even more aggressive this time. King felt himself being thrown around as Luz whipped around, throwing glyphs left and right at a chimerical speed. “ Why won’t you die?!”
“ Luz, c—calm down!” King pleaded fearfully, his eyes clamped again. The thought of being back at the Owl House with Hooty as his only company suddenly didn’t sound so bad at all. He wished he was there right now. He wished he wasn’t here.
“ You should listen to your pet more often, human.”
It was that dumb voice again. Didn’t she tell him that she didn’t need help?
Luz’s head whipped toward the direction of the voice after she landed on her belly from diving out of the way from the ravaging creature again. By now, Luz had used up every bit of her energy. Getting up from this wasn’t going to be as brisk as all the other times, which was a shame because the Gloppomogus was getting really really close with its mouth open.
This was the end, she guessed. She wished she could tell Eda that she was sorry. She wished she could tell her mom that she loved her. Or talk to Amity, Gus and Willow one last time.
She squeezes her eyes tightly and prepares for the worst.
At least… These were her thoughts before the Golden Guard put himself in the rapidly closing distance between the fallen girl and the slimy bastard, of course.
Luz couldn’t see much from behind him, but her eyes were unfortunately open when the blinding light that came from his staff filled the space before the Gloppomogus began to swell. It grew and grew and grew right before it was enveloped in a swirling storm of magic that Luz hadn’t seen in all her time on the Boiling Isles. It was magnificent. A captivating light show that she couldn’t take her eyes off of.
He turns his head back to her slightly, pulling his mask aside just a tad, revealing a boastful, red eye. He shot her a blink-and-you-miss-it wink, right before Gloppomogus combusts into a big, slimy mess. Luckily though, the Guard had protected them last minute with one of those force fields that Eda always used when it rained.
After a silence and a half, Luz opens her eyes again. She can feel King clinging tightly around her neck. Slowly, she shifts to sit and stares at her savior with wonder. “ Thanks .” Is all she can come up with.
“ Eh . I mean, I know you didn’t need me to help you in the first place, but I just thought I’d pop in and see how bad you were doing.” He says for a laugh, extending his staff out to pull her up.
The human girl is still trying to process everything, but maybe it was better not to dwell. “Alright, alright. I definitely needed your help. I was… stupid for thinking I could do this on my own.”
He crosses his arms. “I gotta give it to ya. That determination of yours is quite captivating.”
And despite everything, Luz convinced herself that the warmth creeping up on her cheeks is because she’s had it with this guy. That’s all. But in the grander scheme of things, Gloppomogus was dead. She opened the lid on the container and scoops up some of the goo. A few of his eyes too, just in case .
Closing it up, she tucks it under her arm and collects herself after everything.
“We should get going.”
“Yeah, you probably should. If Gloppy was too much for you, then the night critters that roam these parts are a different story. Good luck out there, human.”
Luz froze, suddenly growing fearful of what was waiting for when they got out of the cave. She was all out of glyphs, and there was little she could do with the Owl Staff.
“ See ya,” The Golden Guard bid his farewell rather teasingly as he mounted his staff. At a cruising pace, he was on his way past when the flight came to an abrupt stop.
Luz had grabbed it with no remorse, smiling at him apologetically. “ Room for one more?”
“Two more!” King corrected.
After about twenty minutes, they had finally made it out alive. Luz had never been so grateful to see grass in her life.
Either way, the hard part was done. And now, she could prove to Eda that she wasn’t just some freeloader !
King was fast asleep on her shoulder and she listened to his soft snores as she gazed down at the forest that grew more and more distant as they flew away.
His staff is much faster than Eda’s, Luz notes inwardly as she snuggled into the shoulder blades of a boy whose face she’s never even seen. Or learned the name of.
But that’s what was fun about it, right? Luz loved a good mystery, and this was no exception. Besides, what harm would it cause if she was starting to trust him? Surely it wouldn’t interfere with her endeavor to find a way home.
Right?
Right?