Changeling Witch

(S2) Basilisk, Part 2

X adjusted his sunglasses as he walked into the old town square, still seeming a little bit nervous. Hunter, as always, gave a little salute to the statues in the park—he'd never once bothered to check the inscription, but seeing as one of them looked vaguely like him, he gave them a signal of acknowledgement every time he saw them.

"So... this is it, right?" X said, pointing up to the Robin's Roast Cafe. "I just go in and ask about that witch from the paper?"

"That's the idea," Hunter confirmed. "They might still have some of her enchanted snac—" He noticed X's ears starting to poke out from the ear flaps on his hat. "Um. Ears."

X instantly pushed the earflaps down. "Thanks."

Hunter shrugged. "I know how to hide 'em. Elementary schoolers are brutal."

Sniffing the air, X walked into the cafe, a puzzled expression crossing his face.

"Hey!"

He instantly jumped back as one of the baristas smiled at him. "What can I getcha, hon?" she asked.

"Um..." X walked up to the counter, fidgeting with his hoodie. "Have, uh, any magical old ladies left enchanted items here?"

The barista's face immediately turned sour. "Please tell me you're not friends with that witch-obsessed guy. I told him to stop leaving pamphlets here—"

"No, no, I'm here about her," X assured her, pointing up. Hunter stifled a laugh when he saw Eda's picture on the Banned for Life corkboard.

"Oh, Marilyn?" the barista said, following his gaze. "Yeah, she tried to pay for a latte with a live racoon a couple months ago. But when I called the cops, she did something weird to the croissants. We threw them in the trash—"

X's face fell.

"Buuuuut now we have a whole new problem," she continued, sighing. "Probably shouldn't go back there if I was you."

"Back where?" X asked.

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

Ten minutes later, he came sprinting out of an alleyway that was overrun with talking rats.

Once he stopped running, Hunter let out a frustrated groan. "They could've known something, dude. Come on."

"I'm sorry, I don't like confrontation, thank you very much," X hissed.

"You must not be a very convincing 'me,' then, because I was kicking douchebags's asses before I even—" His train of thought jumped tracks as he spotted a group of kids sitting beneath a tree, one of them fiddling with a deck of cards. "There!"

X turned around, following his gaze. "What are you talking about? It's just Holly playing tarot again—"

"No, those are Hexes Hold 'Em cards!" Hunter said excitedly. "Eda got rid of all of her packs! I was wondering where she stashed them!"

"Well, they ran outta magic," X said, giving the air a sniff. "I can't smell anything."

"Those kids might know where to get more, but you gotta be careful approaching high schoolers," he told him. "Mark all your exit routes, and—"

X let out a laugh. "Actually, these guys are cool." He started to walk over to them.

"A past connection that left its mark on your soul has shown up again," the goth girl narrated ominously, "and is asking you to shed your old ways and enter a metamorphosis, becoming the spiritual leader you're meant to be."

The guy with shaggy dark hair let out a yawn, scratching his stomach. "Yeah, that sounds about right."

"Hey, guys!" X said brightly in Hunter's voice, sitting down next to the others.