The Wolf & The Witch

*~*Chapter two*~*

It was an odd feeling in Luz's chest, watching the town she grew up in fly past her through the window and slowly morph into less familiar territory. Her head rested against the window, bandaged arm laid delicately across her lap, her mind felt so muddled from the events of the last few weeks. It had been such a normal day, nothing seemed to be out of place, it had happened so fast and now.. Now she was taken out of school, being moved across the state to live with her aunt. She loved her aunt dearly, she was always so close to her but this felt wrong. This wasn't supposed to happen, it was just a normal day.
But one upside of it all was aunt Eda, and a whole magic school for her to learn in, but how she desperately wished it was under better circumstances. Camilla seemed to notice her daughter's sadness, she felt it too, but for the time being it was safer for Luz to be with Eda. Hopefully by the end of the school year Luz could come home, everything could go back to normal, it was the hope that Camilla had to cling so desperately to. When they finally arrived at Eda's front gates Luz seemed less sad and more excited, bouncing in her seat in anticipation to see her Aunt. It warmed Camilla's heart to start to see the girl cheer up even if it was just for a moment, it made doing this so much easier.
Eda was waiting on the old swing porch, King beside her excitedly bouncing up and down as the car came into view. Eda was smiling but Camilla could see the sadness in her eyes, the same pain Camilla felt when it all happened. Luz wasted no time as the car came to a halt, bursting out of the car to run up the yard and to King, who was instantly running towards her as well. They collided with squeals of joy, Luz picking up the furry demon and spinning him about in her arms. Eda let out a chuckle and Camilla rolled her eyes as she followed her daughter up the yard at a slower pace, the sight before her tugged on her heart. Luz seemed happier than she had in months.
"Luz! I missed you so much! I have so many cat videos to show you!" King declared as he snuggled up to Luz's neck, the teen giggling as his fur tickled her.
"I can't wait, I missed you too." Luz's reply was bubbly, excited even, but those who loved her still felt the whisper of sadness in her tone. Catching sight of Eda who stood a couple paces off watching the pair with a soft smile, Luz opened an arm to beckon the older woman closer. She happily obliged, wrapping them in her arms for a loose bear hug. Camilla watched quietly at the three embraced, reunited finally a soft smile tugged at her lips but her heart still broke.
When they pulled apart Camilla could see it in Eda's eyes, she felt the same way. Her voice even lacked its usual flare as she addressed Luz. "You remember the room in the attic that you used to love playing dress up in?" When Luz nodded a yes Eda grinned and continued. "Good, we cleaned it out, it's yours for as long as you're here." Luz smiled, this time a much more genuine one as she popped King onto her shoulder to head down to the car and start unloading her belongings.
"I call dibs on sleeping with Luz tonight!" King declared, snuggling happily into Luz's hair who gave him a giggle in return.
Eda and Camilla stalled on their end of the yard for a moment, their eyes finally meeting. Camilla could feel her tears threaten to spill, Eda's ears dropped as a silent exchange happened between the pair of old friends.
"I'm sorry Camilla." Eda spoke softly so that Luz and King couldn't hear her, King's happy squealing sure to drown her out. Camilla sucked in a deep breath, tearing her eyes away from Eda's golden gaze to stare down the driveway at her daughter, it was all she could do to keep from crying.
"I am too."
XxX
It hadn't taken long to unpack Luz, she hadn't bought any furniture, just objects. Eda had furniture waiting for her and she even went through the trouble of making the attic room feel like her bedroom at home, complete with a 'The Good Witch Azura' bedsheets. Luz felt so grateful that Eda cared enough to try as hard as she did but still, sadness tugged at her heart. 'This doesn't feel right.' The thought echoed in her head as her warm chocolate eyes rested on her untouched plate of food on the table before her, she knew her family was speaking around her but it all felt so far away.
"Luz." Camilla's soft voice prodded her back down to reality, back to the dinner table, she quickly realized everyone was staring at her. An embarrassed flush crossed her cheeks.
"Sorry Mami." Luz murmured, both Camilla and Eda smiled softly, patiently.
"I was just telling your mom you're all ready to go enrolled in Hexside, you'll start the day after tomorrow. It'll give you some time to adjust before we throw you straight in." Eda explained, Luz nodded slowly as she listened. "I signed you up for all the tracks like you asked, by the time this school year is over you're gonna be a full blown witch instead of just practicing light spells in the garage." Luz smiled at that, a bit of actual excitement filling her limbs finally. It was exciting to be able to learn so much about magic, her mom, while supportive of her interests, wanted her to have more of an education than just spells so magic schools like Hexside were not an option until now.
"Thank you Eda, I'm so excited to learn more." The pair of older women seemed genuinely happy to hear the excitement return to Luz's voice. It had been a hard few weeks.
There was a moment of hesitation before Eda spoke again. "I know I'm not usually one for rules but, there is one thing we need to talk about.." She began, Luz stiffened as she realized what this was about. Luz unconsciously gripped her bandaged arm, Camilla's eyes couldn't help but wander to the wrapping. When Eda began to speak again her voice was smaller than before, firm but weak. This was so painful for her. "You can't tell anyone about your curse, not until we know what can be done about it."
There was a tense silence over the table, Luz's eyes fell to her injured arm as her jaw set in an attempt to keep tears from falling. King was the first to move, gently leaning over to put his clawed hand over Luz's in an attempt to comfort her, Luz smiled appreciatively down at the demon.
Slowly Luz looked up again, somberly meeting Eda's gaze. "I won't tell anyone, trust me I don't want anyone to know either." Camilla felt her heart break as Luz spoke, she had never heard her daughter speak so.. calmly? Sadly? Either way, it was breaking the woman's heart.
"Good. I know this is scary, but the curse won't take full effect until the end of the first year, we have time to reverse this." Luz nodded slowly, a bit of hope blossoming in her chest. "And if we can't reverse it we'll manage it, like I do." Eda smiled sadly, gazing at her niece with a loving protective look. Luz smiled back, she knew Eda would do all she could to help.
"And Mija.." Camilla's soft voice caught Luz's attention, turning her eyes to her mother instead. "I'm sorry for doing this, I just want to keep you safe." Camilla's voice was shaky and strained, it broke Luz's heart.
"It's ok Mami!" Luz instantly reassured her, reaching across the table to gently take her mother's hand. "I understand, magic isn't as common in our town, Eda's house is the safest place to be. I'll get better here." Luz repeated back the words that her mother had been telling her the last few weeks, giving her the strongest smile she could muster. 'I have to stay strong, I have to get better.' Determination echoed in Luz's heart, fueling her very being.
Camilla squeezed Luz's hand back as she forced another smile for her daughter. "I know, Eda will keep you safe, but I wish I could stay too." The pair held onto one another as if their lives depended on it, Eda quietly watching.
"I won't let anything ever happen to you again kid." Eda whispered to herself, unable to hold back a few tears of her own as she made the silent vow.
XxX
The outside air felt good against her, pushing against the small bits of muscles she had built up over the last few weeks. She could hear Eda overhead, King happily shouting commands to Eda as she soared through the sky. Luz would've laughed if she had the breath to, she had built up more muscles but she was still pretty weak compared to Eda. Luz skidded to a halt in front of the river bank that Eda had directed her to, running here was a different path than flying, sides heaving with the effort of panting as she dunked her head into the clear water to gulp down a few mouthfuls. The loud slaps of Eda's wings could be heard as she descended behind Luz, not nearly as out of breath as the teen.
"I love flying!" King shouted, earning an amused grunt from Eda.
"Thank you for flying Eda Airlines." She joked as she extended a wing to let King clamber off easily, allowing her monsterous feathered body plop onto the ground. "How you feeling Luz? You were keeping up pretty well from what I could see." Luz lifted her head from the river now, sides still heaving as she licked the remnants of her drink from her jaws.
"I'm good, definitely going to need a lot more work though." She chuckled, padding her way over to flop down in front of Eda, King sitting between them with a happy tail wag.
"Hey Luz look, we both have tails now!" King announced, wiggling his own tail to emphasize his words. Luz chuckled, raising her own fluffy tail to show off for the pair.
"Tail buddies!" Luz joked, the two bursting into fits of giggles as Eda gazed at them fondly."I wish this was all the curse was, turning into a wolf at will? That would be awesome!" Eda chuckled at Luz, the newly made werewolf sitting up on her haunches to scratch behind an ear with her back foot. It was odd to stare at the wolf, it's fur the same color as Luz's hair with accents of tan along her chest and legs, eyes a burning intense ember, the bandages she wore on her arm earlier wrapped around the foreleg. Knowing her niece was cursed like she had been all those years ago sent a shiver of rage down her spine, but she pushed the feeling down, for now just for Luz's sake.
"Yeah I wouldn't mind mine much either if it was just turning into the owl beast." Eda admitted, shrugging her wings in a way to resemble her shoulders. "But sadly, there is so much more." Luz groaned, letting her paw smack to the floor.
"This is shit." Luz snapped, a soft growl leaving her throat. King gasped as Luz uttered the word, it was rare for the girl to get angry enough to swear. But this was definitely something worth swearing for, Eda had done plenty when she was first cursed.
"Yeah kid, I know. But we'll figure this out." Eda smiled at Luz, it brought the girl comfort as she returned the gesture.
"Together?" Luz replied, hope burning into her heart once more.
"Together." Eda replied, the two gazing at each other with more emotion in their eyes than most could ever know.
"Together!" King chimed in with a bounce, earning giggles all around.
"Alright, race you back home?" Eda challenged as she got to her feet, stretching her wings out to allow King to scramble up her back again.
Luz grinned, getting to her paws muscles tensing against her skin as she readied herself to run. "You're on!" And without another word they were off.
XxX
The next day was better, easier, Eda and King slipped out early that morning for work down at the market leaving Luz home alone. Or at least alone with Hooty. Who at the moment was squawking into her ear as she lazed about on the porch in a spot of sunlight. Luz had visited Eda just three short months ago but apparently Hooty had seen quite a bit since she left.
"-And then there was this lady bug! Hoot hoot! It was so cute! But then I ate it.." Luz grunted out a small chuckle, while Hooty can be a pain sometimes he was funny once in a while.
The sun felt nice on her skin as she laid herself out on the floor of the patio, ever since she had been cursed she had felt the urge to be outdoors almost constantly. It felt more natural to be outside where she can hear everything around her, the millions of scents about her tingling in her nose, the feeling of the sun, she needed all of it.  Luz knew deep down this wasn't good, this was the instinct of the wolf that now inhabited her and was taking over. 'Eda will fix this, I'll be okay.' She tried to reason with herself, until the memory of Eda's nest popped into her mind. 'Maybe fix is a strong word..'
"I need to go for a run." Luz spoke absently, more to herself than anything as Hooty was no longer listening and instead chasing a bug. She just needed a few hours to herself in the quiet, Hooty was great company but definitely not quiet. Turning into the wolf burned, the feelings of bones shifting and fur growing, it felt searing hot but it was only a few seconds. Then like that the pain was gone. In one fluid leap Luz was off the porch and trotting down the yard to follow the path up to town. Luz wasn't unfamiliar with the town, she had grown up coming here every summer but she had spent most of her time in the owl house with Eda and King. The town was nice but the owl house was much interesting, however seeing as she would be here the rest of the year she should at least get to know the area.
The path slowly went from dirt to a more cobblestone path as she entered the town, careful to keep out of the way of others but for the most part she blended in well. Seemingly just an average dog, or wolf. Catching her appearance in a window as she passed Luz couldn't help but sigh, sure she was growing but she had quite a bit of growing to do in this form. 'At least it'll help me blend in better.' As she turned the corner the market she had visited a few times with Eda came into view, she hesitated for a moment. 'Maybe I should stay out of where Eda is. I don't know how she'll feel about me being in town.' Luz decided to herself as she changed directions, instead heading down a path she hadn't been down before. Eda had never been one for rules but she was fiercely protective of Luz so her wandering town in her cursed form may not be her favorite thing. 'Not like anyone will notice.' She thought with a roll of her amber eyes.
The wolf girl wandered the town for what felt like hours, mostly keeping to the shadows and alleyways, but was always happy to stop for a small child to give her thick coat a scratch. At one point a whole playground of children had caught her and demanded puppy play time, which Luz happily obliged to. Parents had not been thrilled at the sight. The sun was starting to fall in the sky again when she started to leave the borders of town again, this time following a clean silver path to a gorgeous palace-like neighborhood. Eda had always steered clear of this part of town, especially when Luz was with her something about the witches here weren't as friendly to humans, but now she could explore freely without worry. Luz couldn't help but marvel at the giant mansions, they were so gorgeous and while they seemed too cold to ever be a home they were nice to look at. Luz quickly found herself at what became her favorite estate, probably the largest one she had seen yet with a beautifully landscaped front yard behind a sleek black fence. "Blight Manor." A gorgeous silver sign read above a locked gate, Luz stared in wonder at the place it truly looked like a caste.
A soft scratching noise caught Luz's attention, perking her ears she hesitated a moment before creeping forward to slip easily under the fence. "Just a quick look." Luz mumbled to herself, following the noise to a secluded spot under a large tree hidden easily by bushes. Luz froze at the sight before her, heart hammering in her chest as her instinct screamed at her to run. It was a witch, a young girl about her age curled up under the tree furiously writing in a notebook. Her eyebrows were scrunched up over a pair of glowing yellow eyes, chewing on her lip in thought, mint green hair pulled back to keep her line of sight clear, Luz glanced down at what she was working on. Judging by the amount of concentration, and the giant textbook beside her, it was probably a school thing.
Ignoring her legs that screamed at her to run she slowly lowered herself to the ground, watching the girl from the bushes. Like an absolute creep. It was rare that Luz met pure witches beside Eda, she had met a few at the market on her summer trips but even then it was no one her age. Luz felt excitement bubble up in her chest, so much so her tail began to wag. She had to quickly get that under control before she was found out, but if the green haired witch heard she showed no sign of it, relief flooded Luz's chest.
Luz stayed crouched in the bushes as the girl finished whatever she had been doing, slipping her things back in her bag with a huff she shot an angry glance back at the house. 'Why don't you go in?' Luz couldn't help but wonder with a tip of her head. A gust of wind blew over them, Luz's fur was an excellent source of heat but the green haired girl shivered. Luz felt a pang of sadness, raising her paw to step forward and warm the girl up; she had to quickly correct herself and pull her forepaw back to her chest. Except she had been too quick. Snap.
The girl whipped around, narrowing yellow eyes onto the bush that Luz hid in. The wolf girl held her breath, tucking her ears to her head as she silently cursed herself.
"Who's there?" She demanded, Luz flinched, silently praying the girl wouldn't notice her if she escaped quick enough. The canine tried to move quickly but in her haste rustled a bush, loudly. "I said, who's there?" The girl growled and Luz froze in fear, she was caught, she had no choice. 'Hope she likes dogs.' Luz mentally prayed before stepping slowly into the open, head down averting the witch's eyes. Silence passed between them, Luz could hear the blood roaring in her ears and heart pounding in her chest, she refused to look up too afraid of what she would find.
"Hey there, it's okay." Luz looked up as her soft voice reached her ears, she sounded much gentler than she did before, now turned to face her and hand outstretched towards Luz. The wolf girl hesitated, amber eyes traveling from the witch's face to her hand, when she found no sign of malice she happily approached shoving her hand against her palm. Polished fingernails ran through her dark fur, a giggle instantly coming from the witch as her hands went from her cheeks to behind her ears. Luz's tail wagged, had she been human this would've been very embarrassing but this felt so nice. "See I'm friendly." She cooed, Luz couldn't help but agree. They relaxed against one another, Luz leaning into the delightful scratches while the witch girl watched and giggled in amusement. It was a blissful few moments.
When the girl pulled back her hand Luz couldn't help the whine that left her, remembering her earlier shivers though she scrambled forward to lay her head in the witch's lap in an attempt to keep warm. 'And not for more scratches.' Luz mentally added to herself but as the polished fingers started to run through her fur again she almost let out a sigh of content. Luz couldn't help but want to lay here like this with the lovely witch, to just lay here and forget everything she had gone through, this witch made it all melt away. 'I like her, she'll be my friend.' Luz decided, already plotting ways to find her once more when she was in her human state.
A loud crash made them both jump, Luz's head shooting up to see that her new friend was staring fearfully at the house. Luz slowly followed her gaze, narrowing her eyes in an attempt to see what she did, and while her line of sight was blocked she could surely hear what was happening. It wasn't good. A growl tore through Luz as realization dawned on her, her friend was afraid to go inside.
"Yeah, I don't like when they fight either." Luz glanced at the girl behind her, eyes softening as she longed to give her a hug, her hand was gripping Luz's fur tightly now. 'Hold on, I've got you.' She wanted to speak, to give her friend comfort, but Eda's one rule rang in her head. She couldn't tell anyone she was a cursed human. 'I just have to be here for her like this. For now at least.' Luz thought a bit sourly.
"I don't know what Em and Ed did but Mother and Father are not happy, and when they're not happy nobody is." Luz looked at her directly now, amber eyes boring into the girl as she tried to silently communicate she was listening. 'I'm here.' Luz wanted to scream to her, but she kept quiet. For now. The girl's gaze fell back on Luz now, a soft sigh escaping her as a sad smile tugged at her lips. "I know you can't understand but thank you for listening." Luz whined a little at the comment, scooching a bit closer to her new friend. 'I understand! I'm listening!'
"Ed and Em are my siblings, I love them a lot but they got in trouble a lot. Which gets me in trouble a lot, so I hide out here when they're in trouble so I don't get mixed in with it." The wolf girl felt her blood boil from the explanation, Luz remembered her mother coming home crying sometimes from the hospital about children whose parents weren't kind to them. It always broke Luz's heart to hear. Stuffing down the anger, whining instead she plopped her paw into Amity's lap in a vain attempt to hold her hand. 'I just want to make you feel better.' Amity giggled at the gesture, placing her hand over Luz's paw, Luz couldn't help but notice how her massive paws seemed to dwarf the witch's own hand.
"Wow maybe you are a wolf, your paws are giant." Luz rolled her eyes at the comment, watching her friend run her fingers over her paw digits. She seemed to notice after a moment and smiled softly at her. "Well if you are a wolf, you're the friendliest wolf I've ever met." Luz yipped, wanting so badly to finally speak with her friend but she knew this was all she could do for now. Play the part and keep her comfortable.
The sound of slamming doors was what distracted them this time, the pair frozen again in fear of what was to come but this time only silence. 'Good, I hope the other two are safe.' Luz hadn't met her new friend's siblings yet but she felt the same protective urge over them as well, no one should treat their kids like that. Her friend hesitated for a while, staying as stiff as a board, almost scared to even breath. But when no sign of noise came she let off a puff of relieved air. "Finally." She grumbled, slowly standing to let Luz's paw fall to the ground. The wolf girl watched the witch with fierce amber eyes, the urge to keep her here pulled at her heart, to keep her within her sight.
"Thank you for staying with me, but I have to go inside now." The green haired girl turned away and before Luz could think through her plan she found herself holding onto the strap of her friend's bag, desperately whining. 'Please don't go, I'll keep you safe.' She hoped desperately that her amber eyes would relay the message, but her new friend simply bent down to give her a pet of farewell. "I'm sorry I have to." Luz whined again, it was all she could do. After a moment of thought her friend added. "I'll be ok, I promise."
Luz didn't want to, she desperately didn't want to, but she couldn't reveal herself yet. She had to let her new friend go into the house. Dropping the strap Luz felt a pang of fear shoot through her lightning. 'Please stay safe, until we meet again please stay safe.' She kept her eyes on her friend until she was through the door, and then she sat and waited just a little longer. 'I'll keep you safe, friend.' She had no name to call the witch by yet, but she knew she had to find her friend again but as herself. She had to find her and keep her safe. It was dark when Luz finally started the long walk home.

AN: And now Luz's side!! Yay! She is just a sweet wolf protecting her friends, a gentle fuzzy beast. Also I don't know if she would technically be a werewolf since she's cursed but I'm gonna keep going with werewolf, it's the closest term I can think of. Hope you enjoyed <3