A True Witch (Part 1)

Your Own Witch

Eda flew high over Bonesborough, tears almost instantly freezing into the feathers of her harpy form from the wind chill as she scoured the whole island again, looking for some sign, any sign of Luz. There was no way she was dead. She couldn't be. She wouldn't believe it. As she landed on the top of the library, trying to see if maybe she could spot something she couldn't before while she was moving, she saw something strange in the distance.

People.

Lots and lots of people.

She went to the ground and approached the group. Most of them were startled to see her, except one in the front with pink hair and papers sticking out of her pockets. The woman in front looked her up and down then chuckled slightly.

"I guess you really can teach an old dog new tricks." They chuckled.

"Lynn?" Eda gasped, recognizing her voice.

She went back to her normal form and ran over to her, pulling her into a tight hug.

"Did all of you escape? I thought the Collector captured you! Have you seen Luz?" Eda asked after releasing her from the hug, but still having a tight grip on her shoulders.

"We were freed by Luz a few days ago. The Collector had captured us and turned us into puppets, but Luz captured them and set us free. I don't know how exactly, we were all conscious when we were puppets but it's all...fuzzy. Luz somehow disassembled the Collector's hideout. I think I saw her using two staves, but they didn't look like normal staves. But we were far away, so who knows."

"Did she stay? Where is she?" Eda asked desperately, tears welling up as she ignored the stranger details and just focused on finding Luz.

Lynn sighed, took Eda's hands off her shoulders, and held them. She ever so slightly shook her head, refusing to look Eda in the eyes. Eda's breath hitched and she took a step back, trying to stabilize herself so she didn't fall over from the shock.

"Edalyn, I'm so, so sorry. I know what it's like to not know where your child is. When I got captured, I tried for days to escape so I could get back to Boscha and Ann. I had no idea if Boscha made it back to where we were hiding or if at any point her or Ann got captured or killed."

"But she's not my child! Not really. She was my responsibility, sure, but she has family in the human realm, family she can't get back to. I haven't seen her in weeks. Last time I saw her, she was on the verge of death, running away in a hideous cursed form thanks to Belos tricking her. I just...I just want to talk to her. I wish she could talk to me and tell me what in the Titan's damned name is going on."

Lynn went to reach over to Eda, paused, then instead pulled the papers out of her pocket and handed them to Eda.

"Luz didn't tell me anything when she gave me these, but they say to get them to you and the others in the hideout. There was one I was supposed to leave at the Bonesborough police station, but these are all for you and, I'd assume, the others she's close to."

Eda took them, hands shaking slightly. Sure enough, on the top piece were instructions written in Luz's handwriting.

Find the hideout. Give to Eda.

Eda pulled Lynn into a quick hug. When she released her, she had a small smile on her face.

"Thank you, Lynn. You and the other escapees stay here and set up a place to stay. With the Collector gone, we can start to rebuild. When we have a decent setup, we can use all the abandoned boats to bring people back. You think you'll be safe from the Trappers?"

"We haven't actually seen any since we got out. But we'll be on guard."

"Great. I'll be back."

Eda turned around and shifted back into her harpy form, all the papers still held tightly in her talons.