The sun was slowly disappearing behind the horizon of the Boiling Isles.
The sky was turning orange mixed with purple while the wind gently blew around us.
Honestly…
After all that chaos, this calm almost felt unreal.
Eda spun her staff before casually climbing onto it.
"Alright kids," she said. "Time to head home."
King immediately raised his crown dramatically.
"Finally. My kingdom awaits me."
"You live in an old broken-down house," Eda replied.
"A royal broken-down house," King corrected with dignity.
…Incredible.
Even after a giant explosion he still had the energy to be dramatic.
Luz quickly climbed onto the staff excitedly.
Then she immediately turned toward me.
"So? You coming?" she asked with a huge smile.
…This girl really smiled all the time, huh.
I looked one last time at the smoking ruins of the Conformatorium.
Then I slowly exhaled.
"Yeah… let's go."
I finally climbed onto the staff.
Eda smiled slightly.
"Hold on tight this time."
Oh no.
Before I could even answer—
FWOOOOOSH.
The staff launched forward like a rocket.
"AAAAAAAAAH."
The wind immediately slammed into my face.
I grabbed on with all my strength while Luz burst out laughing beside me.
"THIS IS SO COOL" she shouted.
"HOW ARE YOU ENJOYING THIS?!" I yelled back.
King crossed his arms proudly despite the violent wind.
"A true king does not fear speed."
One second later a massive gust of wind smacked directly into his face.
"MY EYES."
…Pathetic.
We were now flying through the night sky of the Boiling Isles.
And honestly…
The view was beautiful.
Strange glowing lights illuminated forests in the distance.
Flying creatures occasionally passed near us.
Even the ocean itself seemed to shine under the moonlight.
I stayed silent for a few seconds while staring at everything around me.
This was real.
All of this was actually real.
I wasn't in my old world anymore.
I was truly inside the world of The Owl House.
…And strangely enough.
I didn't know if that terrified me or made me happy.
"You're making a weird face."
I slightly turned my head.
Luz was looking at me curiously.
Ah.
Looks like she had been watching me for a while.
"Huh? No, not at all," I immediately answered.
"Liar."
…Dangerous.
Very dangerous.
I looked away slightly.
"I was just thinking."
Luz leaned slightly against the staff.
"About what?"
…Good question.
Honestly? About a lot of things.
The fact that my existence had probably already changed the original story.
The fact that I was now directly involved with Luz and Eda.
And most importantly…
The fact that I had literally just agreed to live with them.
…When I thought about it like that, it sounded completely insane.
"Nothing important," I finally answered.
Luz looked at me for a few seconds.
Then she smiled softly.
"You know…" she said. "I'm glad you're here."
My brain immediately stopped functioning.
…Huh?
And she said it so naturally too.
Like that kind of sentence wasn't capable of mentally destroying someone in a single second.
I immediately felt my face heating up slightly.
"O-oh."
Amazing response.
Truly incredible.
Luz seemed to notice my reaction and blinked.
Then a teasing smile slowly appeared on her face.
Oh no.
She noticed.
"Wait…" she said with a small amused smile. "Are you blushing?"
"NO," I answered way too quickly.
"You're totally blushing."
"The wind is just warm."
Silence.
King looked at us with a blank expression.
"This conversation makes me want to jump off the staff."
"You wouldn't survive the fall anyway," Eda immediately replied.
"…Fair point."
Luz was openly laughing now.
And honestly…
Hearing that laugh after everything that had happened felt strangely comforting.
Then suddenly—
Far in the distance, a massive silhouette appeared in the darkness.
A gigantic crooked house built on the side of an enormous skull.
Lights glowed from the windows.
And even from far away… that place looked completely chaotic.
Eda dramatically raised her arms.
"Welcome to the Owl House."
…Oh.
So this was it.
The true beginning of the story.
The scepter gradually slowed down as the Owl House became larger and larger in front of us.
And honestly…
Up close, this house looked even more dangerous.
The wooden planks creaked with the wind.
Some windows looked like they had been repaired with… tape?
And there was literally a giant eye carved above the front door.
…Yeah.
Very welcoming.
The scepter finally landed in front of the house in a small cloud of dust.
I immediately climbed off with shaking legs.
"I hate air transportation," I muttered.
King proudly jumped down right beside me.
"Weak."
One second later, he tripped over a rock and fell face-first onto the ground.
…Instant karma.
Luz burst out laughing while Eda casually opened the front door.
"Welcome to the greatest hideout in the Boiling Isles," she proudly announced.
The door slowly opened with a loud dramatic creak.
Then—
"HOOT HOOT HIIIII EDAAA."
…Huh?
I instantly jumped in surprise.
Some kind of demon attached to the door had literally just spoken.
No.
Not just spoken.
It was screaming.
Ah right, this was Hooty, the guardian of the house.
Meanwhile, Luz looked fascinated.
"OH MY GOD THE DOOR TALKS."
"Of course it talks," Eda replied naturally. "That's Hooty."
The door-creature immediately turned its head toward us.
Its huge eyes locked directly onto me.
Silence.
…Why is he staring at me like that?
Then suddenly—
"NEW HUMAN DETECTED."
Oh no.
"ANALYSIS IN PROGRESS."
Wait what?
"WEIRDNESS LEVEL ACCEPTABLE."
…Thanks?
Hooty suddenly moved way too close to my face.
"YOU LOOK TRAUMATIZED. YOU'LL FIT IN PERFECTLY HERE."
…I didn't know how to take that.
Luz was already laughing beside me.
"I love this house."
"You literally just got here," I immediately replied.
"Exactly. And I already love it."
Yeah well.
That definitely sounded like Luz.
Eda casually walked inside while we followed her.
And honestly…
The inside was even more chaotic than the outside.
Strange objects were piled up everywhere.
Books lay open across several tables.
Potions were bubbling in one corner of the room.
And on the ceiling…
…There were literally creatures hanging from the wooden beams.
I slowly looked up at them.
They stared back at me.
…No thanks.
"Make yourselves at home," Eda said while removing her cape.
King immediately jumped onto a couch.
"Finally back in my castle."
The couch creaked dangerously under him.
"Your castle smells like dust," Luz said.
"It's a royal scent."
I let out a tired laugh before heavily sitting down on a chair.
Then immediately—
CRAAACK.
The chair broke beneath me.
Silence.
I stayed on the floor for a few seconds with a blank stare.
…Of course.
Why not.
Luz instantly burst out laughing.
Even Eda looked like she was struggling not to laugh too.
"Sorry," she said with a grin. "That one was already half broken."
"I feel personally attacked by this house."
"That's normal," Hooty replied from the entrance. "IT TESTS YOUR SOUL."
…I wanted to go home.
Well no.
Not really anymore.
That thought surprised even me.
Before, every time something weird or dangerous happened, my first instinct was wanting to go back to my old world.
But now…
I looked at Luz still laughing.
King trying to fix his crown.
Eda casually searching through her stuff while whistling.
And despite all this chaos…
This place was already starting to feel warm somehow.
"Alright," Eda suddenly said. "Before anything else, house rules."
Ah.
Yeah.
Of course there were rules.
"First rule."
She raised one finger.
"If something explodes, don't ask questions."
…Excuse me?
"Second rule. If Hooty starts talking for more than twenty minutes, run."
"I CAN HEAR YOU," Hooty shouted from the door.
"And third rule…"
Eda looked at us with an amused smile.
"Never touch my snacks."
King immediately shivered.
"I've seen people disappear for less."
"KING," Eda shouted.
"WHAT? IT'S TRUE."
Luz laughed even harder now.
Then suddenly she turned toward me excitedly.
"Oh wait."
…Why does that tone scare me?
"That means we can learn magic together now."
Ah.
Yeah.
"By the way, when and how did you even get here? Did someone teach you glyphs, or did you discover them on your own too? Also, is there a difference between normal magic and glyph magic? Oh and also—"
Eda suddenly placed a hand on Luz's shoulder.
"Easy there, cricket. I think after everything that happened today, he's way too exhausted to answer all your questions."
"Oh, sorry," Luz said awkwardly. "I got too excited."
"Oh don't worry, it's fine. Who wouldn't be?" I replied. "I'll answer every question you want after a well-deserved rest."
Luz smiled at me with an understanding look.
"Of course."
Then she hesitated slightly.
"But can I ask one last thing before that?"
"Sure."
"Uh… we never actually finished introducing ourselves."
"Oh right. I still haven't told you my name."
"Don't apologize," Luz quickly replied. "Honestly, I should be the one apologizing. We were classmates and I still can't remember your name…"
She genuinely looked disappointed saying that.
"Oh, that's what's bothering you?" I said before laughing softly. "Seriously, we literally never talked at school. And honestly, I
wasn't very social in class either. It's normal you don't remember. You really don't need to worry about it."
Luz's expression, which had looked a little sad earlier, slowly brightened again.
Then I smiled lightly.
"My name is Percy Greyson."
I rubbed the back of my neck awkwardly before adding:
"But my friends call me Pierc."
A small silence settled after my words.
"Pierc…" Luz repeated softly, as if trying to memorize the name.
Then suddenly her face lit up even more.
"Honestly, that name fits you really well."
…Huh?
I blinked several times, slightly caught off guard.
"Uh… thanks?"
Why was she saying that so sincerely?
Luz smiled proudly like she had just solved the greatest mystery of the century.
"Yeah. 'Pierc' sounds mysterious."
King immediately crossed his arms.
"I also have a mysterious and cool name."
"Your name is literally King," Eda replied.
"EXACTLY."
…Apparently there was no possible counterargument.
Luz laughed lightly before turning back toward me again.
And this time… her gaze seemed softer.
Less overexcited.
More genuine.
"I'm glad I finally really got to know you, Pierc," she said quietly.
…Ah.
That sentence hit me a lot harder than I expected.
Because back at school…
I was nobody.
Just the quiet guy sitting in the back of the classroom.
The one almost nobody really noticed.
But here…
For the first time in a long while…
I felt like I existed a little more.
I slightly looked away with a nervous smile.
"Yeah… me too."
Eda watched us for a few seconds before suddenly clapping her hands.
"Alright. Emotional moment over."
Instantly, the atmosphere changed.
"You all smell like destroyed prison and explosions."
…Fair enough.
"The rooms are upstairs," Eda continued.
"Just try not to die during the night."
"THAT'S AN ACTUAL POSSIBILITY?!" I immediately asked.
"With Hooty? Always," she answered naturally.
"I AM A PSYCHOLOGICAL THREAT," Hooty shouted from the entrance.
I was beginning to understand why Eda explained the house rules so quickly.
Luz was already climbing the stairs excitedly.
"Oooooh I wanna see the rooms."
King immediately ran after her.
"The best room obviously belongs to your king."
"You literally sleep in a closet," Eda replied.
"…The greatest closet in the kingdom."
I let out a tired laugh before slowly standing up.
And honestly…
Now that all the adrenaline was fading away…
I could truly feel the exhaustion hitting me all at once.
My legs felt heavy.
My arms still hurt from the cave-in.
And my brain felt like it had survived twenty different disasters today.
Which was technically true.
I slowly climbed the stairs while Eda continued digging through her stuff downstairs.
Then suddenly—
"Hey, Pierc."
I slightly turned my head.
Luz was standing a few steps above me.
She looked at me with a small smile.
"Thanks," she said softly.
…Huh?
"For today," she continued. "You helped me a bunch of times."
Ah.
My heart skipped a small beat.
"Oh uh… it was nothing," I replied awkwardly.
"No."
She gently shook her head.
"You could've just thought about yourself. But you didn't."
Silence settled for a few seconds again.
Then Luz smiled once more.
"I think the Boiling Isles needed another weird human."
…
Okay.
Why did that sentence make me so happy exactly?
A small laugh escaped me despite myself.
"Yeah," I answered softly. "Maybe."
Then suddenly a massive explosion echoed downstairs.
BOOOOOM.
The entire house shook violently.
I immediately froze.
"WHAT WAS THAT?!"
Downstairs, Eda's calm voice echoed through the house:
"Ah. I forgot a potion on the fire."
Silence.
Then Hooty shouted enthusiastically:
"THE KITCHEN IS ON FIRE."
…
I slowly looked at Luz.
Luz looked back at me too.
Then we both sighed at the exact same time.
…Yeah.
I was really going to live here now.