A Slither of Death

Exchange

"LILIA!" Jen screamed after the elderly witch, tugging and fighting against the person, Alice, who was trying to pull her away from the door. Ellie watched them, ignoring Agatha and Tee- Billy who awkwardly stood to the side, both of them not very close to the eldest witch in the Coven. Ellie silently and discreetly diverted from them when she saw Agatha stumble away as well. Ellie watched, just as Rio taught her to.

Agatha seemed to be in a trance, mid panic attack it seemed. Her breathing was heavy and she was gasping for air. Only came back to her mind when she saw Rio Vidal in front of her. Rio ditched her coat, instead wearing tight dark green pants with a simple black shirt that showed parts of her upper stomach. What caught Ellie's eyes was the true Green Witch crown.

'Hmm'

Ellie thought as she watched from the sidelines. It seemed as though all greatly powered witches got those fancy crowns. Rio, Wanda, Billy, herself. Ellie was drawing connections in her mind about how one could obtain these crowns. From what she could understand, you had to have that power to begin with. It is not something you can just get. You must be born with these great powers.

Rio over death and the earth. If Rio was Death, does that mean there is also Life? Huh, Ellie's never thought about that before.

Wanda, her biological mother, had reality in her veins. Her powers are so well known and innate that there was only her, one Scarlet Witch, in the entire multiverse.

Her brother? Well Billy hasn't practiced his magic enough to know.

Ellie seemed completely different though. Apparently she was born to simply balance the darkness her mother brought from the Darkhold. But if that's true then-

"Ellie." Rio spoke softly to the young girl once she noticed her. The brunette snapped her eyes to meet the earthly brown of her mentor.

"You have to take him..." Ellie mutters quietly to herself though both women could hear her perfectly "Don't you?"

Rio let the silence envelope them and say what she couldn't. She couldn't, for once, say that she needed to take someone. Not when she knows it will hurt someone she deeply loves and cares about, someone who managed to wiggle her way into her black heart and gave it another reason to beat.

"He is disrupting the sacred balance." There it was, Rio's most infamous line in existence. All about keeping the balance of Death and Life.

"And I'm not?" Ellie didn't hesitate to ask.

"Collecting you, would do more damage than there already is." Rio simply stated. Ellie and Agatha both scoffed at her words.

"Please," Ellie grumbled, plopping down on the ground with no amount of grace "No one would need me, my brothers would have each other. Always a duo in a trio." She said that last part with a certain amount of hiss in her tone.

So yeah, maybe she was always a little jealous of her brother's connection to each other. But Ellie was a quiet child inside the Hex, she stayed inside with her mother and helped her bake while her brothers and Uncle P went out to cause trouble. Though their roles seemed to have switched now.

She was the one causing trouble and laughing in death's face (literally) while Billy, usually a ride or die sort of gal was now putting himself in danger to get answers and frankly, very sassy. Though that is something the two had always had in common.

"I won't, you know," Rio looked down at her. "I made a promise to myself to make an exception. An exception for you, you, Ellie. Because I care about you." Rio finished her words with a grunt, being cut off by a force that is her kid. Ellie wrapped her arms around Rio, not minding the dirt and grime on her.

"You'll let Billy go if I let Uncle Pietro go?" Ellie mumbled into her shoulder. Rio tensed before Ellie tore herself away.

"Pietro is dead, but his soul remains on the mortal plane, similar to the Panthers in Wakanda. But, he remains here therefore you cannot collect him. You haven't been able to for years." Ellie made eye contact with him, his face was one of acceptance, happiness even.

Happily able to give up watching over his family to give his nephew his cheated life. Usually spirits need to go on their own terms when they are ready, much like Evanora but there are rituals that could force a spirit into deaths hands once and for all.  

"So," Ellie clapped her hands with a bright smile "Deal?" Rio chuckled lightly, but the slight nod relaxed both Ellie and Agatha. A beat passed.

"And the other boy? What soul would you give? I can't simply let the boy take a life without another to replace him." Ellie shrugged.

"I don't know, you figure it out." Rio gave her a deadpanned look to which she cackled at.

"We'll find a lost soul." Agatha cut in, stepping in front of Rio "And when you do, you will leave me and Billy alone." She gestured towards Ellie. "You have your apprentice, now let me never see you again."

Rio's face broke, knowing that this was her fault. That the love of her Dead life hated her now. Won't even forgive her when she is giving her another gift. Another chance for a son. She gritted her teeth in anger. No one will ever know nor understand what she did in order to give Agatha simple time with Nicky. She went against her very nature for Agatha, and she had the audacity to call it 'nothing'?

"Fine." Rio seethed out and stalked away from them and the road.

Together Ellie and Agatha walked aside each other in silence, trying to find the rest of the group. They found them because Billy talks really freaking loud.

"I'm fully aware that Agatha Harkness can never be anything but a coven-less witch."

"Then you must also be aware that Ellie is crazy! What kind of person speaks to people who aren't really there?!"

"Ouch!" Billy and Jen stopped their argument to turn to the girl who help a smirk and a dramatic hand to her chest. "And just when I thought we were getting along Jenny. Hehheh."

Jen scowled at her "Stop calling me that."

"I will when you stop beefing with a girl 100 years younger than you." Even Agatha chuckled a little at her comeback.

"Time to finish the road."

A/N

So so so so sorry this took so long. Semester starting and work at the same time bit my ass. I really hope I did Rio justice. Seen so many fics where she is the villain (which she is not imo) I hope the way I did this makes sense.