"𝘈𝘮𝘪𝘵𝘺!" 𝘓𝘶𝘻 𝘤𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘶𝘵, 𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘨𝘪𝘳𝘭𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘭𝘢𝘶𝘯𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘪𝘳.

The two grunted as the impact of Amity landing in Luz's arms caused them to land on the ground. They looked at the rising smoke in fear, their eyes widening as they saw the mangled figure of Belos rushing towards them.

His glowing eye glinted as Georgia dashed in, striking him across the bridge of his nose with a lilac disc, trying to hold him off before he snapped back to face the brunette, his skin growing back.

"Crap."

–––

The Collector grinned, placing his pinky against the disc-shaped glass, smiling at King patiently. The Titan frowned in nervousness, walking forwards with his pinky sticking out. 

As King's pinky met the glass, he slowly began to pull away, a glowing hand emerging from the glass as the Titan pulled, his eyes widening in surprise.

A sizeable smiling silhouette appeared below King's feet, glowing brightly as the moon's stages were displayed around it, stars and constellations littered like dust.

A small crack soon appeared on the disc, clinking as it continued to drag down.

–––

Eda's eyes snapped open, feeling immense pain in her arm. She winced, sitting up as her arm became an ash-like substance, bubbling as she groaned. 

Kyle perked up, hearing a noise as he left Evelyn's side, the healing witch rushing from person to person as she tried to get them conscious. Kyle noticed Eda's movement, calling out his wife's name as she met his gaze.

"Eda's awake!"

Evelyn's eyes widened, rushing over to Eda as Kyle kneeled nearby his friend. He gasped, seeing her arm, the curse taking over her. He stepped back as another cry of pain escaped Eda, the curse taking over her as it travelled from her forearm to her upper abdomen. 

Evelyn cast a healing spell, but the blue rings faded as Eda's pain worsened. The vines from the bard sigil on her wrist continued to spread before another hand grabbed hers, Eda's eyes widening as a name slipped from her lips.

"Raine?" She whispered, Raine, struggling to stay conscious.

"I-I promised... a special kid I'd protect you," Raine strained out, smiling weakly up at Eda.

They yanked off Eda's forearm with a pained grunt, her cursed appendage soon disintegrating into dust as Eda's curse slowly receded, Raine, smiling softly at her. Suddenly, more vine-like lines began to envelop their face as they felt their consciousness fade, collapsing onto Eda.

"Raine!" Eda cried out in worry before looking over to Evelyn.

"Evie, do something! Please!" She begged as Raine lay across her lap, tears threatening to leak down.

"I-I... I'm sorry, Eda... my healing has very little effect on the spell. Only time can fix this wound," Evelyn faltered, guilt filling her. "I'm... I'm sorry."

Eda frowned, sobbing as tears leaked down her cheeks, weakly holding her injured lover as her sleeve was torn, revealing her amputated arm.

–––

The disc was successfully split in two. It 'clinked' as it fell onto the ground, a glowing cloak emerging from it as King and Kikimora watched in awe, covering their eyes from its bright light.

–––

Sweaty, tired and in pain, the seven teenagers stood back, each covered in various injuries, ranging from scratches to scars, their clothes torn. 

Hunter gripped his right arm painfully as golden vines crept up his arm and streaked along the side of his head. Willow kneeled behind him in worry as she placed a hand on his shoulder, Georgia standing in front of the group protectively with a flickering shield before another hit landed on it, sending her back.

She grunted, panting along with the others as she struggled to stand, Willow, looked over at her in concern as she pulled her brunette friend up to her feet.

"Georgia, stop! You're hurting yourself!" Willow urged, Georgia wincing as she shook her head.

"I gotta... I gotta help you guys, I've gotta be responsible for you, Gus, Luz and Amity... Xen's badly injured, and Hunter can barely move! I have to try, please..." She begged, weakly pulling an oracle ghost out.

"Please just let me be the one responsible for once because I can't keep seeing you guys in pain... so please Willow, trust me..."

Willow frowned, her eyes darting down to a weak Hunter, his expression filled with pain before she looked back at Georgia, nodding sadly.

"Just... be careful," She muttered, Georgia smiling back sadly as she frowned walking up to Belos.

She took in a breath, exhaling shakily as Belos raised his arm. His appendage morphed into a giant scythe, lowering it rapidly as Georgia used the ghosts as a shield, the others holding onto each other protectively as Luz shielded Amity's head, Willow clutching onto Hunter along with Gus.

The brunette's eyes widened as she saw the ghosts start to break one by one, tears of fear filling her eyes as she braced for impact. 

Suddenly, a metallic 'clank' filled the air, Luz's eyes opening in confusion as the pain she expected never arrived.

A yellow hand pinched the scythe as it trembled, a smiling child with a half-blue face grinning with curiosity.

"Whatcha playing?" He asked cheerfully, confusion filling the others as Georgia kept the ghosts away, stepping back. 

"Collector?" Belos questioned in fear, stepping back.

The child's smile dropped as he turned around to face the monster, Belos' arm still in his grasp. The group stared in confusion as Belos' tone changed instantly, as though he was... scared.

"You're free! Just as promised," Belos smiled through his ruined face. 

"As promised?" The Collector raised an eyebrow in disbelief before he placed his finger on his chin in thought.

"I remember someone throwing off a bridge," He pulled his finger away with a smile. "I'm not angry though. Say, you wanna play tag?"

Collector spun their pointer finger, dark goop swirling around their hand as Belos dragged towards him, the child smiling widely.

"I'm it."

He grinned, poking Belos on his forehead, sending the ruined Emperor flying backwards. He crashed into the doorframe, splattering against the wall with a loud crash, the goo leaking down. The group of seven teens looked at the good in horror, Hunter's hand covering his mouth in shock.

The Collector giggled to himself, his hand over his mouth in entertainment.

"Too slow!"

He then spied the group behind him, his smile dropping as the teens froze in fear, unsure of what this kid would do next.

"You guys look slow too," Collector turned around, placing a hand on his back as he walked towards them. 

"Do you need a head start?"

Georgia backed away, noticing his narrowed eyes at her, the witch feeling uncomfortable. A shiver went down her spine, the Collector humming.

"Say, you wouldn't happen to be the big bad wolf's kid, would you?" A grin grew on his face. "I remember you! I'd recognise that eye anywhere!"

"B-But I don't know you," Georgia stuttered. "I've never met you my entire life–"

She halted, her back hitting the wall as the others watched in fear, the girl looking behind her to see the wall holding her back. Xen struggled to stand limping their way over to Georgia to protect her.

"Dear ol' Dad didn't tell you, huh?" Collector placed his hand on his chin, slight malice in his tone. 

"Get away from her!" Xen cried out but was pushed aside, Willow grunting as she caught them.

"Don't worry! We'll be great friends! All you gotta do is promise not to lie to me again," Collector reached his hand out, about to grab the girl's wrist before King's voice interrupted the boy.

"Whoa, whoa! Collector! Buddy, pal," King smiled nervously, holding his arms out as Collector's attention was pulled away from the confused half-witch.

"King!"

Willow rushed to Georgia, placing her arms around her winded friend, gently pulling her away as Georgia looked at her hands in confusion.

"Remember what we talked about?" King smiled nervously. "You gotta help all my friends outside, or, uh, we won't get to play Owl House."

King eyed the group behind him, hinting at them to play along. Luz caught on, smiling nervously as Amity eyed Luz in confusion, the others looking at one another as they tried to play along. 

"Uh, Owl House. Uh, gosh," Luz smiled shakily. "I love that game!"

"The memories last a lifetime," Amity smiled, clutching onto Luz's shoulder. 

"I play it every day!" Willow chimed in, forcing a smile on.

"I play it every hour!" Gus added on, lifting his hands. 

Hunter squeaked in pain, tears in the corners of his eyes as he smiled weakly. Georgia said nothing, hiding further into Willow as her friend hugged her close, the others smiling awkwardly.

"I'll explain the rules later, but remember, we need lots of players," King shrugged. 

Collector looked behind King, walking past him as the group scattered. They separated ways as the Collector walked towards the window, Willow urging Georgia away as Gus tried his best to lift Hunter up.

Collector squinted at the problem, spotting that the moon had blocked out the sun, yellow rays still being absorbed by the eclipse before looking down, seeing the yellow ray's source. Collector smiled, widening his eyes to get a better look as he saw all the people below, his smile growing.

"Hmm..." He hummed, spotting a particular figure nearby Eda, the Owl Lady clutching onto Raine tight despite having lost an arm.

"Okay!" He chimed, standing up.

The child stuck his tongue out, pointing at the moon with his finger before simply sliding it to the right, the sky returning to its usual light pink as the Collector let out a 'boop'.

The group watched in awe as the sky brightened up. The ringing from Hunter's sigil mark slowly began to fade as the markings began to disappear. 

Willow smiled in relief, Gus following as Georgia watched Collector uneasily, the yellow rays outside dissipating quickly. The people below grumbled, muttering in confusion as their pain suddenly disappeared. 

"Hmm..." Collector hummed once more, spying the area around him with his hand on his chin in thought. 

The group noticed his thought, backing further into the shadows in fear as a chuckle escaped the child, his hands on his hips.

"If we're gonna play Owl House, we're gonna need an Owl House!" The boy jumped up, his arms and legs sprawled in the air as he began to float.

He clapped his hands together, the walls around him breaking apart as they too had begun to float. The boy then held his hand up, twirling around in the air as the walls broke down into smaller pieces, the group of seven teens below him eyeing him in fear.

King stumbled back, the ground shaking as Collector made his adjustments, Luz catching him as the others watched the Collector, the child smiling widely.

"We're gonna have a blast everyone!"

The ground beneath them soon cracked, Willow stepping back before she gasped, searching for an escape. The plant witch spotted the glowing portal door, tugging on Georgia's sleeve as she cried out to the others.

"I think there's a way out!"

The others looked in her direction, running along instantly as Luz picked King up, carrying him as Amity ran from beside her. Georgia placed Xen's arm around her shoulder, helping them across as they winced from the pain in their ankle.

Luz halted, looking back in worry as Amity gripped her arm, the lilac-haired witch urging her girlfriend to run.

"Luz! Come on!"

"Everyone. Eda! I-I can't just leave them!" Luz cried out, tearing up. 

"Luz, please!"

Amity begged, tears filling up her own eyes as Luz looked back at King in worry. The Titan closed his eyes, frowning as he clutched onto Luz tight. The Latina held in her pain, running with Amity as the abomination witch clutched onto her hand.

The group leapt over large gaps, running closer and closer to the portal before Hunter halted at the doorway where Belos' goo lay.

Gus ran ahead before looking back, seeing the traumatised look Hunter's eyes held, Willow helping Georgia get Xen across before the two girls looked back at him in worry.

"Hunter!" Gus cried out, reaching a hand out to help pull Hunter across.

Hunter grit his teeth, stepping into the dark green substance with distaste and discomfort, unaware of the small drop that had landed on his shoulder.

The portal door's light flickered, Luz, frowning as she noticed this, the structure slowly breaking apart. The others panted in exhaustion, stopping at the door. The glow around it grew stronger before Hunter gripped onto the door's handle, prying it open.

They stared in awe and confusion seeing a strange sight before them before the image flashed, changing into a dark blue sky with rain falling down, thunderclaps heard as they froze.

"It's human rain!" Gus smiled. "It's okay!"

Gus ran ahead, Willow and Hunter watching him before following after, Georgia helping Xen through before she spotted Amity's hesitation.

She passed Xen to Willow, nodding at her friend reassuringly before walking over to Amity, gasping as she saw what held the abomination witch back.

"Luz?"

Luz stamped down on another plant glyph, thick vines wrapping around her ankles as they held her in place, vines appearing from behind her as they held the portal's structure together, forcing the portal's glow to remain.

"Luz, what are you doing?" Amity cried out in fear, the portal's image flickering as the Human realm's image temporarily disappeared before it returned.

"I-I have to get Eda," Luz frowned, King, gripping onto her shoulder as he looked at her in pity.

"We'll find a way back to you," Luz smiled, King frowning as Georgia ran ahead, ready to help the human.

Up above, the Collector grinned, spinning in the air before his smile dropped spotting King on Luz's back as Georgia created vines, trying to hold the portal down.

"Go! Go, go, go!" Luz called out to Amity. "I-I can't hold the portal much longer!"

"Then I'll take over for you," Georgia looked at Luz in determination, the Latina's eyes widening in disbelief.

"What? No! Georgia you need to leave! I can't leave you trapped here with him–"

"No, Luz, that's my problem, not yours. You... You've brought a lot of great things into my life, and... you're an amazing friend. And right now, you deserve to go home after all we've been through," Georgia smiled, creating vines next to Luz.

"But I can't leave Eda behind! I gotta stay!"

"Then I'll stay by your side. Hathaway's promise."

Luz looked over at Georgia, the brunette smiling weakly at her Latina friend as the human smiled back slightly. 

That was until Luz noticed King floating away, the Collector nearing with a grin as Luz held her hand out to King, catching onto his little claws.

"King! You promised you'd play with me!" Collector cried out before holding out his pinky. "You pinky-swore! And you!"

King grunted trying to hold on as the Collector's eyes snapped over to Georgia.

"You're a Hathaway... like him! So I have a promise to make you," He neared the girl, Georgia gripping onto the vines tighter. "You bring your Dad to me, and I'll set you free!"

"W-What?" Georgia muttered.

"You heard me!" Collector grinned as Georgia felt a sting on her left arm, ignoring it as the Collector flew back to his main spot, watching King and Luz's struggle.

Georgia's eyes darted back and forth between King's struggling figure, Amity's voice soon cutting in as she dashed towards her girlfriend. Hunter's eyes widened as he spotted the Collector's figure near Georgia, ready to walk through before Xen held him back.

"Don't... it's better you don't interfere, this kid could do anything to her if you mess it up," They whispered, Hunter, eyeing the Collector nervously.

"We gotta stick together!" Luz cried out, holding onto King. "We gotta stick together!"

King frowned, coming to the realisation that maybe... maybe he had to let go.

"I'm sorry," He frowned, tearing up. "Not this time. But I can keep you safe."

"No!" Luz shook her head in disbelief as tears streamed down her cheeks, King smiling a bitter smile at the human.

"Luz, I'm so happy I had you as a big sister."

Georgia winced, feeling a tugging feeling around her waist looking down in horror to see that she was being pulled as well. She looked around in fear before seeing a winged creature fly towards them, a small gasp escaping her.

"Dad?" She whispered to herself as her father soon transformed back into his witch-form, landing messily beside his daughter.

"I sensed that the Titan was in danger, so I flew by," Kyle frowned, pulling a journal out. "I knew that something big was happening once I saw those bricks and I wish we had more time, but you need to take this. Now."

Kyle handed the leather-bound book to his daughter, her eyebrows furrowing in confusion as she held an arm out, taking it while holding the portal together with Luz. Kyle looked over at King, gently taking him and pulling him back.

"Georgia, I wish I could explain everything that I've kept from you now, but we've run out of time. I'll take care of King, and you... you better stay safe. Both of you," Kyle nodded at Luz, the Latina wiping her tears away.

"Take care, Georgia. I love you," Kyle nods, gently pecking her forehead as she tears up, knowing that something's not right.

"Dad– Dad I love you too just please, please don't go!"

"I'm not going anywhere, love," Kyle smiled softly before nodding over at King.

The Titan looked over at Luz sadly one last time before crying out, sonic rings sending the group backwards and through the portal, Luz got up instantly as she ran towards the door.

"NO! KING!" She cried, her voice cracking as ran towards the other side of the portal before the door slammed shut.

"Collector!" Kyle called out to the child as soon as he was sure the kids were safe, the Collector's smile widening.

"If it isn't the big bad wolf!" Collector cheered. "It looks like your little clone kept her promise!"

"She isn't my clone and keep her out of this!" Kyle frowned. "I broke that promise years ago, and I will make it up to you. Leave. Georgia. Alone."

"Ugh, you're so boring!" Collector sighed before humming. "I've already set her curse. I might not be able to break it, but I may change it."

"Then change it!"

"Fine, ugh, you're really no fun anymore," Collector huffed. "Old buddy, old pal, only for you, I agree. Fifteen chances for the fifteen years you promised you'd set me free. If she proves that she's truly different from you? She will continue with her ordinary boring life as your kid."

"...And if she doesn't?" Kyle asked hesitantly despite his glare, King wriggling against the tightened grip.

"She will remain in her beast form forever," Collector shrugged. "Now... let's think about how you'll make it up to me!"

–––

The Latina ran into the door, opening the door quickly. She remained silent, denial growing in the pit of her stomach as she closed the door, opening it over and over again before slowly opening it one last time, the realisation settling into her stomach.

She looked numbly into the run-down house, turning around as she felt a tug in her stomach. Gus teared up at her reaction, Xen hyperventilating as Georgia looked down at the leatherbound book with the same numbness present in Luz's eyes, tears pooled at the corners of her eyes.

Gus then began to shake, breaking down as he rested on