The Owl House x Oc: Hidden Demons (S1+ 2)

Agony of a Witch

The Emperor's castle loomed over the parade of captured wild witches and their captors. They were being brought across the drawbridge on a paddy wagon, most hidden in shadow. All had their heads lowered, accepting their fates.
Lilith watched the procession from atop the castle walls, then turns and heads inside.
The head of the Emperor's coven stands in front of a large, stained glass window. She lets out a sigh, observing the portrait of the Emperor, many robed witches bowing at his feet while a Hand of the Titan reaches for the sun behind them.
"I haven't forgotten what you've promised me. I will bring you my sister and the witchling you seek, Emperor Belos." She said out loud. Caught up in her own thoughts, she didn't notice the small figure walking up behind her.
"Then why the delay?"
Surprised, Lilith turns to Kikimora. "Kikimora!"
The red witch was unfazed by her surprised tone. She tilts her head curiously as she voices her own thoughts. "The Day of Unity is fast approaching, and other teams have bound many rogue witches to covens, and yet The Owl Lady and Hannah still roam free. Are you....protecting them?" She asked suspiciously. The Clawthorne almost laughed at the idea. Protecting them? What a pathetic accusation.
"Rest assured, Kiki. I have everything under control." She stated, snapping her fingers. Several guards approach upon command. "Today, we capture Eda and her accomplice, once and for all."

—————

Outside the Owl House, Hooty was easily beating Lilith and her coven guards to a pulp without breaking a sweat.

Eda watched the bird tube through a pair of binoculars, smiling warmly. "Hooty! Ah, you're a thorn in my side." She stated, taking a sip of her apple blood. A coven guard is slammed into the window beside her, before being harshly dragged away. "But you always dig your way into my heart." She chuckled.

"Ooh, magic 'sghetti!"
Eda glanced up to see Luz trying to get into the pot on the stove, still being stirred by a wooden spoon. She whacked the humans hand away with said spoon. "Hey! That 'sghetti is Witch's Wool. It repels powerful spells." Eda explained, holding up some of the wool. "Every witch worth their salt has a cloak made from this stuff."
Luz gasped, eyes widening in wonder. "I'm worth salt...I want cloak!" She squealed, attempting to grab the cauldron. Eda merely pulls it away from her. "Easy, kid! With the Emperor's goons at my doorstep, I need this for protection. They have really stepped up their attacks lately." She stated, taking a quick glance out the window to see how Hooty was doing.
Hazel, who had entered the room, followed her gaze, brows furrowing in worry. The Emperor's coven was getting closer by the day. Feeling her anxiety rising, she shook her head. Hooty can handle them! He's held them off for this long without even a scratch. They'll be fine.
Luz stared intensely at her teacher. "I think I finally understand why the Emperor wants you so badly... He's got the hots for you, doesn't he?" She asked the last part jokingly. Eda sent finger-guns her way. "Uh, but no." she started, being serious. "Emperor Belos wants to control all wild magic through his coven system. He ordered my capture years ago because I refuse to fall in line." She stated. Hazel got up, standing beside Luz. "And he won't stop until he's got you, right?" She asked. Eda nodded her head.
At that, the human's head drooped, and even Hazel felt upset. What will the Emperor do when he has Eda? For her, she knew she'd immediately be taken to her captors. But if the Owl Lady refused to join a coven...
Eda held up a hand, smiling at the two girls. "Aww, don't sound so worried. I'm a master escape artist. The only thing that can slow me down is my curse, and that hasn't bothered me for weeks!" Eda announced, holding up her arms to demonstrate she was fine. That is, until feathers pop out from her arms. "Uh oh..."

Luz and Hazel back away, as Eda transforms into the Owl Beast. The amulet on her chest darkens, and she lets out a loud growl. Luz gasps in horror, and the basilisk grabs onto her arm. "King!" Luz screamed.
"Weh?" The small demon peeked his sleepy head into the room, before letting out a yelp seeing the Owl Beast.
"Get the elixir! Now!"
King scurried off. The Owl Beast let out a shriek, lifting up a clawed hand to slice down on the two. Hazel jumps on top of Luz, pushing her to the ground and safely away from the swinging arm.
King came back moments later, carrying loads of elixir. Hazel and Luz quickly took as many as they could, and began the process of trying to get Eda to drink it.

Eda had drunk a dozen of elixir bottles, and still hadn't fully transformed back. She was slowly reaching a claw up to harshly grab Luz's face, when Eda's eyes finally opened to reveal her normal, amber ones.
Seeing the bottle in her mouth, she lowers her hand from the humans face and takes it out. "Whew! Oh, thanks for this!" She chuckled, standing up and knocking over the bottles at her feet. "And those..."
Hazel let out a shaky sigh. Her cheeks were covered in large, white spots, but now she could feel her anxiety levels lowering after seeing Eda was okay. That is, until Luz pointed at Eda's neck, where the scarf fell off to reveal her still half black gem.
"Hey, your gem! It's still dark!"
Eda immediately pulls the scarf back on to cover her gem. "Uh...no, it's not! You're nuts!" But Luz wasn't having it, as the basilisk behind her started fiddling with her claws anxiously.
"The curse has been getting worse and you've been hiding it!" The human accused. Eda let her hands fall to her side. "Ugh...you're right. It's taking more elixir to turn me back and more magic to keep the curse from rearing its feathery head."
Anxious thoughts began to cloud her Hazel's head, as she looked up at Eda anxiously. "W-what happens if you use your magic up? Do you die?!" She asked, the large spots on her cheeks returning.
Eda shook her head. "No! Jeez, you kids are morbid. I just kinda sorta, turn into the Owl Beast...forever." She paused, before perking up. "Ahh, it's a fate much worse than death if you think about it." She laughed sarcastically.
Hazel shook her head, grabbing onto her tail and twisting it around. "No, no, no, no, no- how can you talk so light-heartedly about this?! We need to do something!" She said, clenching her fists. Luz agreed. "Hazel's right! We can't let that happen! We'll do something about it. We'll find a cure and then-"
Eda placed a comforting hand on their shoulders, trying to calm them down. "Hey, don't worry. I just have to limit my magic use a little." She said. Forcing a grin on the two girls faces, she smiles. "Ah! There's the Luz and Hazel I know!"