Changeling Witch

(S2) Hunter's Problems

Hooty still had one more shot to go before he gave up on his life entirely. Earlier that evening, he'd followed Hunter back to his room, and listened to his little spiel after that embarrassing bombshell he'd accidentally dropped. It went something like this:

Hunter: *poking at the cage* Okay, mouse. If you're not gonna tell me about Philip, or how he made his portal, or whether or not he had any descendants... is there a chance you could tell me how to ask out an ocean-haired, honey-eyed angel?

Mouse: *silence*

Hunter: Look, Edric's smart, cool, and classy—and a complete nerd with no common sense, but the first three things are seriously important in this situation. If I'm gonna ask him out, I gotta pull all the stops. Can't mess it up.

Mouse: *sniffs tail*

Hunter: Now, my way of wooing a guy might fly on the Boiling Isles, but Edric might get the wrong idea if I take him to a cemetery. Maybe I could still do the black roses? Or is he allergic to flowers? Oh fuck, how do I not know if he's allergic to flowers? *covers face with hands* Aaaaaaaaaah, who am I kidding? I'd be a horrible boyfriend. If none of the guys back home are interested, why should the guys here be?

Mouse: *gnawing on tail for no reason*

Hunter: But that cheek kiss meant something! I know it! So I just gotta figure out the perfect confession, along with finding out more info about the portal, along with finding out more info about glyphs, and I should be set!

Mouse: *asleep*

Hunter: *flops onto sleeping bag with a loud, exhausted groan*

Hooty was able to gather that the only way for Hunter to get over himself and make progress on that portal was to have his love life taken care of—and the only way to do that was through setting him and Edric up. Compared to what he did before? That should be easy.

Once he'd got everything set up, he dropped his note in front of Hunter's room, knocked on the door, and quickly hid.

Hunter came out and picked up the note, squinting at it. "'As we stumble through life, gloom knows no bounds,'" he read aloud. "'You'll only find love when you're in the ground?'" He rubbed his chin. "Huh. Morbid. I like it." He flipped it over. "'P.S. I mean the basement, love, Hooty.'"

He looked up, an irritated expression on his face. "C'mon, Hoots, I don't have time for this! I didn't even know we had a basement!"

...............

Thankfully, the basement wasn't that hard for Hunter to find. He activated a light glyph as he went down the stairs, trying to think of a reason as to why Hooty would get him to come down here. It looked like it was just for storage space, and that didn't spring up any possibilities.

Unless...

"No, no, that's ridiculous," Hunter said aloud, shaking his head. "Why would he be—"

A large, pellet-like object on the floor started to shake.

Hunter leaped back as it opened up—revealing a very shaken-looking Edric inside.

"ED!"

"What—what happened?" Edric panicked, looking around wildly. "Last thing I remember was some bird thing swallowing me, and—oh my Titan, was that Hooty?" He finally noticed him. "Wait, Hunter?"

"Uh—this is our basement," Hunter stammered, helping him to his feet. "I am so sorry about this. Hooty's been acting weird all day. More weird than usual."