#Huntlow fanfiction

[avatarmerida]

So I know it’s been awhile since I’ve updated anything or shared any news fics but life is doing life things and my hyper-fixation has been coming and going but I’ve had this in my drafts for awhile so I thought I’d share what I have ready! When it’s all done it’ll be called 365 days in my Wintery Junk collection on AO3, for context in this they’re like juniors in college 20/21ish and Hunter is leaving for a year to work on planting more palistrom trees across the Isles. So this fic was gonna be about them like video chatting and keeping in touch and figuring stuff out long distance and updating each other. So here’s the last post of the year I guess! It felt thematic to share today lemme know if it’s worth finishing!

—-

“Hey there, Mr. Man-of-the-hour,” Willow greeted in a low, teasing voice as she shut the door behind her. It was a lovely night, and she knew Hunter couldn’t resist looking at the stars, even at his own party. But she acted surprised anyway. “What’re you doing out here?”

“Oh, just catching my breath,” he chuckled, the cold air capturing it as he exhaled. The muffled sounds of music and laughter broke the silence for a moment as she joined his island of silence on the porch. Her emerald green dress somehow just as vivid and captivating in the dim lighting the low hanging string of lights provided. “I haven’t danced like that in awhile.”

“Yeah, not since Grom I bet,” she said walking over to stand beside him.

“Oh my Titan, don’t remind me,” he groaned endearingly.

“What? You looked so cute!” She insisted. “And you were a really good dance partner.”

“I think I stepped on your toes like 6 times,” he said between clenched teeth, remembering he was wearing the same shoes now.

“Well seven but hey it’s a lucky number!” She said and they both laughed. He had bought a wallet purely for the purpose of keeping their Photo Booth pictures in jt. After the group had gotten their classic shot, she insisted they get as many of just the two of them as possible. They did all the classic poses, it was bright and loud and the best kind of chaos and for the final photo she had pulled him down to kiss his cheek. It was quick and she didn’t make a big deal about it so he didn’t make a big deal about it, at least not outwardly. That was the photo he had gotten laminated.

“Yeah well, alots changed since then,” he sighed.

Not really, Willow thought as she took in his relaxed profile. He was still sweet and dorky but now he was more rested. Her feelings for him certainly hadn’t changed, if anything they’d gotten worse. Well, worse wouldn’t be the best way to describe it, it was an overwhelmingly positive feeling but it just never found the right time to be fully expressed.

When she had kissed his cheek that night, she had intended for it to signify that she didn’t want their first date to be their only date. But Hunter had endearingly mistaken it as a ritual of the event and so she took it as a sign. She couldn’t deny there had been a shift between them after that night, that he felt more comfortable initiating contact and lingering when they found themselves sitting closer during game nights and the way he looked at her… well that might not have changed but he didn’t shy away right away anymore when she caught him. It was like she knew she had him but saying it aloud might undo it somehow.

“Did you ever think when you started helping Dell that you’d be traveling the Isles as this big shot hero?” She asked with a sigh as she took in the cool night air.

“‘Hero?’ Pshh, hardly,” he scoffed. “I’m just doing my part to help fix something I didn’t realize I was a part of hurting.”

“Hey, no one knew,” she said as she put her hand on his shoulder. “I’m not gonna let you blame yourself or deny that what you’re doing is pretty cool.”

He sighed, the fire in her eyes melting any guilt he tried to harbor. “Okay yeah it is pretty cool,” he admitted.

“There ya go,” she smiled, moving her hand up to brush his hair from his face, as though she just wanted an excuse to touch him. “I’m really proud of you Hunter.”

“Proud of me? You wanna talk about cool go look in the mirror Miss Pro Flyer Derby,” he countered, crossing his arms and shaking his face at hers in a cocky way he could only adopt when he was talking about her.

“Okay…” she said with a sigh of fake annoyance that he knew meant to kept going.

“Youngest ever recruit before she even graduated and is already on track to be captain? All while creating her own major in advanced plants studies? Now that’s cool.”

“Well you deserve a little credit,” she said. “How many times did you stay late to help me work on my drills?”

“Well how many times did you stay late helping me find the right PH level for the soil for the trees?” He countered.

“Oof, no wonder we’re so tired,” she joked and they laughed again. Oh, he was going to miss that laugh. He wondered if it would be weird to ask to record it. He knew they promised to talk as much as possible to keep in touch but there was nothing comparable to being beside Willow when she laughed.

“I’m sorry I won’t be able to make it to your first match,” said Hunter sadly, leaning on the railing again.

“Hey you can stream it,” she said, bumping his shoulder with hers. “I’ll give you a shout out.”

“Thanks,” he said, feeling a tug in his chest as he felt like it was some kind of sin not to be there in person to support her. Had he been smarter, he would’ve cherished their last one on one practice session more. Who knows the next time they’d be able to play and have it just be the two of them. “But ya know, it’s only a few weeks away I could probably push my trip back so I could-.”

“Hunter,” she cut him off. “As sweet as that is and as much as I want you to come I can’t let you do that for me. They need you over there and the sooner you go the sooner you can start changing the world.”

And the sooner you can come back, she thought.

“Besides, rookie games aren’t usually that exciting,” Willow somewhat lied. “I might not even play.”

“Well then that’s their loss,” said Hunter, knowing she was right. As excited as he was to go and as much as he cared about the work he was entrusted to do, well he just couldn’t help but care about her maybe a tiny bit more. In a perfect world, he could stop time and help the palistrom trees and come back before her season started. But unlike Willow, the world was far from perfect. “But could I at least get your autograph?”

“Only if I can get your autograph,” she teased, hitting the side of her hip against his. “I wanna brag about you to my teammates.”

“Brag about me?” He teased, inching closer to her. “Oh no no, I’m the one who will be bragging about you to my colleagues.”

“Well I’m the one with half a dozen hand made jackets I get to show off,” she said smugly.

“Oh no, what? You seriously kept all of them?” He asked with a sigh of fake embarrassment. He truly loved making her things and he had improved immensely but his early work was very obviously his early work. But nevertheless, Willow cherished them as though they were from the hottest designer (which in her opinion, they were.)

“Well I want something to remember you by.” She said shyly. She had a jacket for nearly everyday of the week, and for the day she didn’t have a homemade jacket she had acquired quite the collection of his own jackets he had lent her whenever she showed any indication of being cold. They smelled like him, which she used to think was a gross thing to say but she couldn’t argue with the peace it brought her. He smelled like wood chips and old books and fresh grass. It was like an easily accessible embrace when she was out of teleportation distance.

“Oh what, you don’t have enough pictures, ‘Miss 20 Scrapbooks?’” He teased. She loved when they entered this type of banter, how Hunter’s brand of flirting was mostly asking questions as though he knew just how to set her up. They ebbed and flowed until it was like a competition to see who could compliment the other more subtly and they were both extremely competitive.

“Well I blame you for being so photogenic,” she teased back. “It’s not my fault you have such a cute smile.”

“Well it is your fault I smile so much.”

Oooh, he won that round. She sucked her teeth, knowing the blush on her face was clear even in the dim lighting. She was having trouble crafting a response to top that. “Well I’ll gladly take that blame,” she said softly, seeing one of those smiles forming now from the corner of her eye. Oh she didn’t need a photograph to remember that.

She sighed and let her head fall against his shoulder. She was only somewhat overly aware of how much she was touching him tonight. Every playful shove or brush of the hand hid the severe urge to scoop him in her arms and trap him in the tightest embrace. But that would only make letting go harder.

She felt him lean back against her and her mind flash back to a movie night not long ago but now felt like lifetimes ago. They had found themselves left alone, the rest of the group not up to finishing the marathon they had been so excited to start and the pair found it up to them to see it through. It was late, and the movie was fine but Willow had for some reason felt the overwhelming need to be close to him. The way the screen reflected off his eyes, the way he muffled his laughter so as to not awaken everyone else, the way he yawned and stretched his arms and it landed… over her shoulders? She slyly scooted closer to him, testing the waters. He did the same. She pretended to adjust the blanket so she leaned into him more, and his arm held her in place. It was somehow both certain and uncertain, neither of them wanted to bring it to attention in case that was what broke the spell, but they both felt safe and cozy in this midnight bubble.

Now, many midnights later his arm found her shoulder again. More purposely. She looked up at him and he offered her a lopsided smile, still not speaking over what exactly it was but assuring her he was aware. He wanted her this close.

Being this close was another contradiction, the way it was both common and uncommon. They’d always manage to sit next to each other or wind up finding each other but without the guise of a crowd or being crowded, it came down to how to make it happen when you couldn’t simply happen upon it. It felt like always being on the brink of something, so being here now with all the space in the world to occupy and choosing to act magnetized… well how long could it exist without a reason?

“Oh man,” she chuckled, reaching up to cup his chin in her hand, looking up at him to memorize the way he looked in the moonlight. “I’m really gonna miss that smile.” She said it softly, as though it was meant to stay a thought. She brushed a loose hair to the side of his face, another excuse to touch him as their eyes locked. He leaned into her touch again and placed his hand over hers. It was chilling and warm and natural and fleeting. His smile softened just when she thought it couldn’t get any softer and it was so warm she could just melt.

This was the moment he had hoped for. He cleared his throat and went to stand up.

“So there’s actually something I- oh! Ergh!” He stopped himself as he realized he had gotten tangled in a string of especially low hanging lights Luz had added for the event.

“Oh! It’s okay, stand still,” said Willow reaching up to help him untangle himself. “Hang on, I might need a flower to stand on, I can’t quite reach.”

He couldn’t duck down much more lest he bring the collection of lights down with him. Willow’s hands untangled him as carefully and quickly as she could manage, the task making her seemingly unaware at just how close their faces were. Hunter didn’t realize he was holding his breath as he focused on the determined and adorable way she stuck her tongue to the side as she freed him.

“Sorry, I uh think I got taller recently? Somehow?” He said awkwardly, not sure how else to explain it but feeling like he needed to apologize. More feeling like he needed to say something or else the silence would lead him to get lost in her features. He couldn’t imagine how he’d come back from the embarrassment he’d feel if she caught him actively daydreaming about her when she was right in front of him.

“No actually I think I got shorter,” she responded playfully, sensing his uneasiness. They both laughed as the light above them seemed to circle them like a sun, as though creating an illuminated midnight bubble. Like they were living in a fond memory.

“No, you’re the perfect height,” he said just as she freed the last lock.

“Well I won’t argue with you there,” she said softly, staying close to him, always loving the way she looks up to him. The way she could always tell when his gaze was on her. “Seems like even the Owl House is gonna miss you.”

“I guess so,” he chuckled, trying to steady his breath as he tried to determine if she was getting closer or waiting for him to step back. He arms remained at his side, holding back the urge to return to her shoulders.

“I’m sure Luz wouldn’t mind if you took the lights with you though,” Willow continued. “Maybe you could hang them in your new place, like a going away present.”

“Yeah,” he gulped. He didn’t think he’d get a better opportunity. “So uh speaking of that, uh there i-is something I wanted to give you before I left.” His was voice a mixture of nerves and determination she found utterly charming.

“Hunter this is your party, you’re supposed to be the one getting gifts!” She insisted, knowing that Hunter had specifically instructed no one bring gifts and how everyone had definitely not listened.

“Heh, I think you know what I’m gonna say to that,” he said with a smirk.

“That me being here is already the best gift you could ask for,” she responded in her best Hunter impression, playing with his collar.

“Exactly,” he chuckled and nodded. “You just know me too well.”

“Okay so then lemme guess what you wanna give me,” she giggled and closed her eyes to think, her hands going down to take his and swinging them between the two of them as her mind collected her guesses. “Hmmm I know you’ve been trying out knitting recently so maybe a scarf? Oh! Some mittens maybe?”

“Um, well it’s more-.”

“Oh, I hope you didn’t think what I said before meant I had too many jackets cause if it’s a jacket I know I’m gonna love it,” she went on. “Clover loves all the secret pockets you add. Well anyway, I know anything from you is gonna be-.

Before she could finish, he leaned down and gently kissed her cheek.

Her eyes fluttered and looked at him in a small shock, uncertain if this was the gift or if it was just something that had come over him in the moment. Either way his face indicated he did not regret it. It was a simple gesture and he seemed relieved, as though it had been something heavy he had been carrying for her. She wished she could somehow preserve it, tattoo it or frame it or carry it in a locket around her neck. He hadn’t gone too far from her and her eyes quickly darted to his lips and back to his eyes which seemed to have done the exact same thing.

She suddenly wondered if he had been waiting for her out here, hoping she’d wander for air or knowing she’d go looking for him so they could have one last moment to themselves. She felt like she was in a dream she suddenly gained control of, the details of everything were simultaneously crisp and blurry, like Hunter being so close had frozen time and changed the air.

They both held their breath as they gravitated towards each other. It was unclear who pulled who in but suddenly their arms were wrapped around each other as they found themselves in a deep and long anticipated kiss. It was a quiet night, but they brought forth an orchestra and collection of fireworks without saying a word. Like it was the thing they had been on the brink of for all those midnights.

Hunter eagerly moved down to reach her better and she summoned a flower to stand on for a boost so they met the middle. Maybe it was meant to be a quick, chaste peck but it evolved and then evolved again, neither of them finding it in themselves to be the one to break it.

So they didn’t.

His arms secured around her waist and he held her close, cradling her and dipping her like the cover of some grand romance novel and her arms anchored around his neck as one hand found its way through his hair. He somehow knew how to carefully remove her glasses and how to angle his face so their noses didn’t collide as though he had thought about it before. He delicately moved the hand with his glasses to the side of her face, rubbing his thumb over her cheek. He could feel her smile against his lips which made his own wider and soon bits of laughter were mixed into their exchange.

It was a laughter of joy and relief and certainty. It wasn’t shy or awkward, they fell into it naturally as though they had fallen so many times before. But because they hadn’t, they had so much time to make up for.

When he needed a moment to breathe, she covered the rest of his face with kisses. His jaw, his nose, his forehead all demanded to be shown affection. When she went to kiss his neck she could feel his sharp inhale as he pulled her closer and went to reunite their lips with such vigor that Willow subconsciously summoned a vine to wrap around them as her knees went weak.

They weren’t sure how much time had passed or if it had stopped all together and frankly they were fine with that until a loud crash from inside brought them back to reality. They heard the muffled sounds of Luz and King assuring everyone there were okay to a response of laughter. Although they pulled apart, they still held onto each other like they were a life preserver.

They were each breathless, processing and replaying everything as their forehead naturally rested against each other as they panted. Their insync panting brought forth more laughter, hushed as though they were suddenly worried about being caught. It felt as though so long as it was just them then the moment could go on forever.

Willow wanted it to, it felt as though she had waited lifetimes to be able to take in his smile this way, like a wave that had been building and building just waiting to crash.

But they both knew there were other earthly obligations that needed attention and words that needed to be said. But the words were just as complicated and as much as Hunter was elated that his gift had been welcomed and returned, he had only worked up the nerve for actions and less for words. He didn’t know if it was the emotions of the evening that had gotten them here or something brewing longer but he didn't want to tamper with the moment. But he couldn’t just vanish into the night, well he could but he certainly didn’t want to.

He cleared his throat, still memorizing the way the moonlight hit her hair. “Um I have to get up pretty early in the morning tomorrow,” Hunter managed to say at last, his voice hoarse. He was unsure of what he was supposed to say as he handed her back her glasses. He knew what he wanted to say. He wanted to keep her in his arms and tell her how much he adored her and how amazing she was as he kissed the rest of her face, one for every minute he hadn’t taken the chance to.

“Oh, oh yeah uh you should probably get going,” said Willow, meaning the exact opposite. Now that she had been held by him like this she didn’t want to know any other feeling. She wanted to squeeze him and tell him over and over and over again how lucky she was to know him and how much she trusted him and all the things she had written in her diary about him. She hoped he could read her mind and come back down to her so she kiss him silly.

But instead she released him slowly, returning to the ground and felt his hold on her loosen. Leaving his embrace felt like falling from a precipice. They stood there for a moment, both waiting for the other to say what needed to be said. Their hands soon found each other, naturally entering their signature pinky hold like a promise they always returned to. Like a light always visible in the darkness.

“So I guess this is… goodbye?” She asked.

“Yeah I guess it is.” He replied with a sad smile.

He felt like he could kiss her goodbye, that it would be appropriate and wanted and reciprocated. But he felt that if he kissed her now he wouldn’t know when to stop. That he wouldn’t let go. He worried he couldn’t recreate the confidence and passion the spontaneous act had brought out in him. He worried it was a dream. He worried that she had only kissed him because he was leaving. He worried he had waited too long.

“But only for now,” she went on, her voice shaking as it was apparent she was holding back tears. She powered through as she looked up at him, her lipstick smeared over most of his face. “Promise me you’ll message me as soon as you get there?”

“Of course,” he said.

“Okay good,” she said, searching for something more profound to say. She wanted to send him off with something more, something to assure him this was something more. But he already had so much on his mind, she didn’t want to add any uncertainty or pressure to his plate. But regardless of any additional feelings she harbored, she cared about him no matter the label their relationship wore and that was something she did not let him forget. “Have a safe trip, captain’s order.”

“Of course,” he said again with a smile and he pulled her into a hug. She wrapped her arms around his torso and his chin rested atop her head.

He heard her let out a small sniffle and he felt his own eyes sting with tears.

“I’m really gonna miss you captain,” he whispered.

“It’s not that long,” she said, muffled by his shirt. “It’s just 365 days until your next day off, right?”

“Right,” he said and felt her hug him tighter. He remembered the first time she had said that, as if that was the day his days began to hold value. The day he knew he didn’t have to be alone, that he didn’t want to be alone. The day he knew he wanted her in as many days as possible, and one day he hoped to have more days with her than without her. He had endured worse things, he needed to remind himself. Saying goodbye to everyone had been emotional, but saying goodbye to her carried so much more.

“It’s just 365 days.”

He hoped it would be there when they said hello again.

[childlikegoblinqueen]

Three Goblin Art!

I got this GORGEOUS painting of Hunter and Willow and baby [name redacted] from @threegoblinart who is so talented that I don’t even think I deserve to know her!

Please consider checking out her original paintings and her prints!

Rumor has it that she’s going to be opening up commissions very shortly.

[savzo]

I was totally too late to submit my fanart for the awesome fic “ Bride of the Monster Duke” it was honestly such an amazing story all thanks to @kammieceleek and @blunderstorm …you can read it here!! https://archiveofourown.org/works/39451467/chapters/112067986 😊 I hope you like this little piece. Background of course isnt mine.

[sea-creature-things]

Slow Down Time

A huntlow fanfic

This is a huntlow story about the BIID (Boiling Isles Independence Day) and Hunter struggling with his feelings about it.

They are so cute together, enjoy <33

Read here below the cut or on AO3 with this link:

Hunter was lounging on the floor of Willow’s room, the afternoon sun shining through her curtains. Waffles and Clover were playing, flying around the giant green vines thriving around the room. Willow was sitting cross-legged next to him, writing something in her notebook.

They were surrounded by books and articles, pieces of paper scattered everywhere. Willow had an important presentation for one of her plant track subjects, so Hunter offered to help her prepare. He really just wanted to spend time with his girlfriend and, by the way she had smirked, Willow saw right through him.

Besides, if there was any kind of homework she didn’t need help with it would be plant magic.

He just really wanted to be close to her. It made him feel better, especially today. Also, listening to her talk about flowers and true roots in the evolutionary tree of plants was a nice distraction.

Waffles caught up to Clover, apparently winning a game of tag with a tiebreaker. The palismen had tired themselves out, collapsing on the little bee’s bed. They snuggled up in the sunlight, not that it offered much warmth this time of year, but they just gravitated towards it like the little plants they technically were.

As he noticed the beam of light on the floor had moved a few inches again, Hunter felt an uncomfortable feeling creep in and settle in his stomach. He was reminded that he’d have to go home for dinner soon. And soon after that he’d go to bed. And soon after that it would be tomorrow.

Another day closer to the Boiling Ilses Independence Day.

He stretched his arms and rolled over the ground, until he landed on his back with his head in Willow’s lap.

“Hi~” Hunter said, looking up at her pleasantly surprised smile. She put her notebook aside, seeing as he’d basically taken its place and forced her attention on him.

“Hey there~” She replied with a flirty tone, not minding his ploy for affection at all. Actually, she loved how comfortable he’d become with her touch. As long as she wasn’t overwhelming him of course.

She kissed her index finger and booped his nose with it, giggling at his delighted expression. Blissfully enjoying this sweet moment.

Hunter’s stomach erupted in a whole flock of butterflies. She still made him feel so weightless after a whole year. Not that it was their anniversary or anything, but it was around this time he realised how much she meant to him.

He was the last to realise though, as Gus loved to remind him.

He settled contently as Willow kept brushing her finger over his nose, closing his eyes. But the feeling didn’t last. He couldn’t keep the dread from creeping into the edges of his mind.

Her promise that he could tell her everything, anything anytime, suddenly ringing in his ears. She had beat it through his thick skull with much care and he knew it was true.

But he was still a little reluctant.

“I wanna leave.” He finally confesses, forcing it out like a terrible secret he was sworn to keep.

“Okay…?” Willow stopped brushing his nose, taken aback by his intense tone. And honestly a little disappointed too, she thought they were having a nice moment. “You can if you want to.”

Pointing her thumb over her shoulder towards the door, she gave Hunter a puzzled look. Which sent the shock of realisation through his spine.

“No!” He instantly reacted, a little too loudly. He felt his face heat up from embarrassment and paused briefly before explaining himself better. “No, not leave your house, just… leave.”

Maybe not that much better.

Willow smiled softly, he sounded so sad. She ran her fingers through his hair, wishing she could help him.

“And go where?” She decided to ask. She still didn’t really understand what he meant, but just asking for clarification didn’t feel like the right move.

“I don’t know,” he admitted downcast. He shrugged as well as he could with his shoulders essentially trapped in place by her knees. He searched his mind for anywhere he’d like to go instead. “Australia?”

“What?” She was utterly dumbfounded.

A very welcome wave of excitement washed over him as he thought about it more. He shot upright, turning around and looking at his girlfriend enthusiastically.

“Yeah, it’ll be great! We’ll pet kangaroos, feed dolphins, dodge deadly spiders.” He wiggled his fingers at her face, making her giggle as she shooed his ’creepy-crawly hands’ away. He clasp his hands together in a pleading pose. “Run away to Australia with me Willow!”

She burst out laughing and Hunter followed not long after.

“Hunter, we have school.” Willow eventually said as counterargument, as it was the only thing she could think of right now. She was still astonished by his idea and his eagerness for it. “We can’t just go to Australia.”

“We have a week off from school soon.” He smirked, completely indifferent to the absurdity of his own plan.

The more he thought about it, the more he actually wanted to travel across the ocean. Luz had told him a lot about Australia after the first time they watched Bluey. She showed a few videos on her phone and let him research some more on her laptop.

She’d explained the concept of countries way back when they were trapped in the human realm. It was very weird for them, as the other Titans were usually not inhabited and none of them had ever been away from their own Titan. But Australia was definitely his favourite, with its strange creatures that bore a striking resemblance to the demons of his home.

“Yeah, for the Ilses’ Independence Day.” Willow reminded him and it felt like a bucket of ice water was dumped on his head.

Hunter’s bright smile fell, he looked away and fidgeted with his hands. Her stomach squirmed and her heart broke as she finally understood what this was all about.

“Oh…“ she couldn’t help but utter softly. Willow reached out to hold his face, rubbing her thumb over his scarred cheek. She stood on her knees to be taller than him and started kissing his forehead.

“I was never enthusiastic about it,” He despondently closed his eyes, leaning into her touch for support. Her soft pecks were painfully hard to focus on. “But the closer it gets the more I just want to… leave.”

She sat back down, placing a soothing hand on her boyfriend’s knee.

“I understand.” Willow struggled with what to say next. She wanted to help and support him so badly, but she also desperately wanted to go to the celebration with her family. “But I… kinda wanna be home for that, I’m so sorry.”

At once, Hunter wanted to bash his head into the wall from his own stupidity. This is the first time the Isles was celebrating the liberation from Belos and the Collector. Of course she’d want to spend that time with her dads!

“No, no, no.” He desperately waved his hands in front of him. “Please don’t say sorry, I totally get it. You don’t have to come with me- I mean… I’m probably not going anywhere anyways and-”

Willow cut his rambling off by pulling him into a tight hug. Hunter took a deep breath, enjoying the hug and letting it calm him down.

Willow let go, too fast for his liking, and started cleaning all her homework scattered around. Hunter stacked her huge textbooks and placed them on her desk, then watched as she grabbed a blanket and sat down on the edge of her bed. She pat the space next to her and he didn’t hesitate to oblige.

When hunter sat down, she wrapped the blanket around both their shoulders like a warm shield. He rested his head on her shoulder. Waffles and Clover woke up, flying over from the bee’s fluffy bed. The sun was gone and tomorrow came ever closer.

Hunter sighed. Everything anything anytime, right?

“I wish time would slow down, so I could stay here forever.” He mumbled as Waffles hopped in place on his leg, demanding chin scratches.

Willow sighed and smiled weakly. She wanted to agree, but her brain had a different plan. She cocked her head to the side and leaned slightly forward to look at his face, faking confusion.

“Specifically here or just generally in this time?” She teased him as her devious side took over. As she waved one hand vaguely around the space, Hunter rolled his eyes.

“Specifically here.” He deadpanned, removing his head from her shoulder and catching her hands. He pouted with his gaze locked on her fingers, rubbing them softly with his thumbs.

“I wish that too.” She whispered, interlocking their fingers. “I can’t believe it’s already been a year.”

“Yeah…”

They sat in silence for a while. This time Willow put her head on his shoulder and Hunter rested his on her. Their palismen tried to entertain them, playing tug-of-war with the ends of the blanket. Which were pretty much stuck in place by the bodies of their owners.

They were cute, Hunter would give them that.

“… so why Australia?” Willow suddenly asked, a confused look in her eyes and an amusement smile dancing on her lips.

“I know we can’t actually go there.” Hunter muttered, the tips of his ears heating up.

“But why?” Willow asked again. He felt her head trying to escape so he sat up straight in order for her to do the same. She gave him a spurring but kind look.

“Well…” His voice trailed off. An almost nauseating feeling surfaced, but he swallowed it away. He continued as lighthearted as he could. “I can’t be on the Ilses and I can’t be in Gravesfield…”

“So Australia is the logical next step.” She said matter-of-factly, grinning as she bumped her shoulder against his.

“Willow,” Hunter took a deep breath, clapping his hands together and pointing them at her. “They have Emus.”

They both laughed, loudly and full of snorts. Willow’s papa voice interrupted their fit, telling her it was time for dinner. They both exclaimed, loudly and full of disappointment.

Willow stole a quick kiss before jumping off the bed, still making Hunter feel completely euphoric. He got up much slower, carefully folding up the blanket and stalling for time in the most obvious way.

“Why don’t you ask Darius to take you?” Willow asked as she took the blanket and lovingly tugged him towards the door.

“Yeah right.”


“Why not?”

“He planned almost every part of the celebration!” Hunter retorted, whistling to Waffles to leave Clover alone and follow them downstairs.

“It was a group effort.” She shrugged with a cat-like smile.

“Willow…” He shot her a cracky, tight-lipped look.


“I’m serious!” She laughed. “He really cares about you Hunter, you should know that by now.”

He remained quiet, not really sure what to say but also not wanting to say it.

When they got downstairs, Hunter first greeted her parents as they made quick smalltalk about the presentation, then he said goodbye to them. As he put his shoes on in the hallway, Willow studied him like one of her articles on moss.

“Listen,” Willow held onto him in the doorway before he could leave. “If you tell him how you feel, I’m one hundred percent sure he’d drop everything and fly you to Australia himself.”

“You don’t actually know where it is, do you?” Hunter squinted his eyes. He stepped closer to the door, grateful for a few more minutes with her.


“No idea,” She shrugged, earning a soft chuckle from her boyfriend. “But that’s not the point!”

Hunter couldn’t tear his eyes away from her intense stare.

“Fine…” he relented, Willow cheered and clapped her hands excitedly. “But I’m telling you, it’s not gonna happen.”

_______ _______

“Hunter, let me get a picture!” Darius yelled from across the field. He speed walked over, because the caretakers of the animal sanctuary had told them not to run. It could spook the kangaroos. “I promised Camila I’d take as many as I could.”

“She would’ve loved this.” Hunter laughed as he made sure the baby kangaroo in his arms was secure and comfortable. He held the bottle at the best angle for the sweet baby. This might be the cutest thing he’s ever seen in his life.

“Smile!” Darius said as he snapped a few pictures with his scroll. He seemed satisfied with the result, then suddenly realised he was standing in a field and looked disapprovingly at his dusty boots.

“I’m going over there again.” He pointed to the gravel road next to the field where visitors could still feed and pet the kangaroos that came close to the fence. “Remind me to get a souvenir for Eda before we leave tomorrow. She went through all that trouble to get us on a plane.”

“Sure,” Hunter nodded. The bottle was empty so he put it down and started just petting the tiny human realm creature instead. “Were visiting the Outback tomorrow, right?”

“Indeed.” Darius said proudly, puffing out his chest. He’d spend a lot of time planning this road trip after Hunter told him how much he was dreading the Independence Day back home.

Turned out Willow was right. Again.

“They’ll be lots of those creatures you love.” Darius wiggled his hands around to imitate spiders “And then Eber can actually come out of the car.”

“You think he’s still upset?” Hunter craned his neck, trying to see the jeep they had rented in the city.

“Nah,” Darius waved his concerns away. “He knows it would be bad for the humans to see him, but he was pretty sad he’d have to miss these little angels.”

“I think he’ll have more fun with the creatures.” Hunter smiled, writhing his free hand in the same way Darius had done. His guardian rolled his eyes and chuckled in amusement, leaving for the safe gravel at long last. Hunter went back to petting the bundle of soft kangaroo fur.

He was so incredibly happy right now.

[inthenameofallthingsholy]

The Timeskip

There are a ton of Huntlow fans upset that Huntlow didnt get a confession or kiss because of the timeskip, myself included, but what people are missing is how GREAT THE TIME SKIP IS FOR THE FANDOM AND SPECIFICALLY HUNTLOW

TIMESKIP MEANS MULTICHAPTER FICS

TIMESKIP MEANS MORE FANCONTENT TO BE EXPLORED

DO YOU KNOW HOW FRUSTRATING IT IS TO BE ON AO3 WHERE THERE ARE LIKE 3 SLOW BURN HUNTLOW FICS IN TOTAL!!!!!

BE GRATEFUL FOR THE TIMESKIP!

Now if you will excuse me, I shall be sitting here, waiting for the multichapter Huntlow slowburn fics with a romance novel esc confession and kiss to float my way while I procrastinate writing my When Harry Met Sally AU i’m planning

[anfervaldez]

I had not shared the beautiful cover of Champagne Problems here

Many thanks to @DniRobin for the precious commission

You can Read the Fic Here

[sillysistersusi]

This is a Huntlow fanart I did for my fanfiction Sleepless Nights.

It's my second digital drawing so there are still a lot of flaws but I think I am getting better at this.

[fairytales-and-folklore]

• Series Title: Being Human • Author: fairytalesandfolklore • Fandom: The Owl House • Pairing: Hunter | The Golden Guard/Willow Park • Chapters: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16

A canon-divergent series following the Hexsquad's adventures in the human realm over the course of a single year — a little bit of angst sprinkled in between lots of warm fuzzy found family fluff, humor, and slow burn huntlow romance.

[kess-i-guess]

All Roads Lead to Home Update!

[apiculturegal]

“Shallow Waters” Chapter Two: Blood in the Water

i’ve been writing nonstop for basically the last week but i managed to meet my deadline! whippee! thanks for waiting so patiently

[moxidi-fanarts-and-sketches]

Pumpkin picking

Sooo this is the fic ive been working on!! It's a silly lil huntlow/hexsquad fic that takes place the day before TTT!! Also it's my first fic posted here, so don't be too harsh pls

---------------------------------------------------

"So, are we there yet?"

"Hunter, this is your third time asking", Amity sighed. "However, are we there yet?"

"Yeah, it's right over this hill!" Luz said. "But i wanna do a dramatic reveal, so you have to climb up the hill first, and i'll show you and you all will gasp!"

"Whatever makes you happy", Amity said. She hasn't seen Luz smiling much in the past couple of weeks, but this brought her so much joy, so Amity didn't mind some theatrics.

Luz stood on the top of the hill, covering most of the field beside it with her arms and body. She was wearing a red shirt with some bats, a black denim jacket, a pair of black shorts, her usual white boots and unmatched striped socks. It was pretty warm for Gracefield that autumn, so she took advantage of that. Luz watched her friends line up in front of her and took a good look at them - they all decide to wear halloweeny outfits for the ocasion.

Amity was wearing and orange turtleneck, a black skirt with buttons and black heeless shoes. She tucked her hair back with a headband, Sabrina Spellman-style, and looked determined(and extremely beautiful). Gus stood next to her, and he was practically shaking with excitement. He dressed up in an orange sweatshirt with a pumpkin face drawn on it, a pair of black jeans and black converse shoes. Hunter slightly calmed Gus by putting his hand on his shoulder. Hunter himself was wearing an orange shirt with another white long-sleeved shirt under it, light blue jeans and a pair of red crocks, which looked horrendous, but Luz was happy that Hunter was discovering his fashion sence(even if it's awful). Willow, who was standing beside him, was rocking a long black dress with many layers. She tied her hair into a small ponytail, and, for some reason, her footwear of choice was a pair of yellow rubber boots. Luz perfectly knew the energy that was sparking between Willow and Hunter - these two, for sure, wanted to hold hands, but couldn't bring themselves to do it. Vee was absent - she said something about dishes to wash, but Luz was pretty sure it was her strange secret fear of pumpkins.

"A-a-and, you can look!", Luz put her hands down, and the gang saw a field of pumpkins.

"This is not as exciting as i expected..." Hunter said.

"This is just as exciting as i expected!", Gus yelled.

"Okay, first we need to split! I'm going with Amity and Gus," Luz said with a sly smile. "And Hunter is going with Willow! Okaythatsitthelastonetogettothefieldisaloser!"

After blurting it out, she grabbed Amity's and Gus' hands and ran down the hill. Hunter and Willow rushed after them. They gave up almost immediately and decided to walk slowly and take their time.

The first minutes alone with Willow were awkward. Her eyes were so green, full of confusion and wonder. She had a beautiful smile on her face. All the orange around them highlighted her black dress. All Hunter could think about is how much he wanted to hold her hand. And all he did was trying to stare at pumpkins, not at her.

But then she said:

"Look, this pumpkin looks exactly like our abomination teacher did after we beat their team at flyer derby!"

That just made Hunter burst out laughing and broke the tension.

"Can we not choose this one then? That guy creeped me out. Maybe we should take that one that looks like a coffee cup."

"A cup of pumpkin spice latte!"

"Exactly!"

"I love pumpkin spice," Willow said, hiding her eyes away. "Maybe we should get some someday. Like, um, just the two of us..."

Hunter knew what that meant - Luz watched all those crappy romcoms all the time, and when one character wanted to date another character, this is exactly what they said. This meant a lot.

Willow wanted to date him.

Willow wanted to date him!

This thought filled Hunter's entire mind and heart. His face was so red he was sure it's actually on fire. Panic overtook him, and the best he could do is say:

"Yea...um...i need to go to...wash my flowers and...sorry..."

He walked away, slowly at first, but then just started running.

What was he running from? A girl he really, really likes liked him back... Maybe that actually was the reason. No one's ever looked at him like Willow. No one talked to him like her - like she knew everything about him, and accepted all of him. And that novelty was scary, even though Hunter knew that-

He tripped and fell on his face. Great. Absolutely what he needed right now.

"Oh my titan, dude, you found the best one!"

It was Gus' voice. Hunter turned around and saw Luz, Amity and Gus. The latter was holding the pumpkin Hunter tripped on.

"I totally agree!" Amity said. "It's big, and tough, and just the right color!"

Willow reached the group. "Does anyone want to ask Hunter if he's okay, guys?"

"I'm fine", Hunter replied. He looked at Willow, who was so worried about him, and still cared deeply about him even after he ran from her, and added: "And yes. I'd love to go with you very much."

"Go...Where?" Luz said, confused.

"It's a long story," Hunter said. He stood up. "Let's grap this pumpkin and head home."

Him and Willow were holding hands the entire trip back.

[avatarmerida]

Hey fellow losers I’m back with more beta huntlow fluff. I know I’ve written some Paulina/William stuff before but this is based on the most recent even more beta huntlow we got from the leaked show bible. So we’ve gone from awkward little prince and fumbling quirky girl to feral witch hunter and equally feral creepy plant girl and I also love them too so hope ya like it 💛💚

———

“And if the water boils here how do all the plants live?” William asked, balancing on the fence along Paulina’s garden as she did some maintenance and planted some new seeds they had found in the forest. She never tired of answering his many questions about the demon realm, especially about the flora and fauna.

“The same way they do in the human realm I suppose,” she said with a small shrug. “I think the stems here have more coating than the plants you’ve seen, but a lot of plants close up during the rain to protect their petals.”

“Interesting,” he said, jumping down to look at her work closer. “How do you persuade the ones with teeth not to bite you?”

“I just keep them well feed, they don’t nip unless they’re hungry or scared,” she said. “But feeding them the food that helps keep their teeth healthy is tricky because it smells kinda gross.”

“They can smell it?”

“They sure can.”

“Fascinating,” he marveled, looking at them closer to see if he could understand how.

“Can I ask you a question?” Paulina asked, wiping some stray dirt from her glasses.

“Of course you may,” replied William, sitting on the ground beside her.

“Why are you still so upset with Luz?” She asked, changing topics. She saw his body language shift.

“I think it’s very clear why,” he said softly.

“You know she didn’t wake you up early on purpose,” she said gently. “She’s really a very nice person, and she genuinely thought she was helping you. Is there anything she can do to prove she’s sorry?”

“I’m not upset that she woke me from my slumber, I'm upset that she was able to,” sighed William, hugging his knees.

“What do you mean? Do you not want to be here?” Paulina asked, hoping it wasn’t the case. Selfishly, she liked having him around.

“When it happened… my uncle told me I’d awaken to a better world. That the suffering and confusion I was around would be gone. That I’d be awoken gently by my…”

“By who?”

“… by my true love.” He said under his breath, almost as though he was embarrassed to utter the words.

“Oh, so you think that Luz is your-.”

“Ew! Bleh, no!” He exclaimed in disgust. “Er, sorry that was rude. No, no I don’t think that. But I think she able to awaken me the way she did because I don’t have a true love.”

“Oh,” Paulina breathed, seeing the genuine hurt slip though the cracks as he tried to keep his lip from trembling. She ventured this was the first time he had said the sentiment aloud. “Or maybe the spell just wore off.”

“Or maybe it just gave up,” he said with a hurt chuckle. “I mean, it makes sense; maidens didn’t favor me before, why would they ever start now? I was better off sleeping forever, giving the world some peace.”

“William, don't say that,” she said, taking his hand. He didn’t flinch at her dirt covered hands.

“It’s true, is it not?” He sighed, focusing on her knuckles decorated with grass stains and tiny scars from the thorns she did not fear. “I cause you nothing but trouble despite you showing me nothing but kindness.”

“Well technically I did threaten to feed you to my plant,” she reminded him. It was certainly a unique first impression.

“Twas for my own good,” he said. “Plus knowing you as I do now, I know it was merely a jest to teach me a lesson. You are kind and patient and I’m just a nuisance.”

“No you’re not!” She insisted. “Okay, well maybe a little at first, but you’ve changed! You’re still learning and adapting, growth doesn’t happen all at once overnight.” She gestured to her garden as proof, a mixture of progress and color. “Love is the same way, ya know. Usually you have to get to know someone first before you label them as your ‘true love.’” She carefully plucked a vibrant yellow flower and placed it behind his ear.

“So… you don’t believe in love at first sight?” He asked timidly as she went back to her gardening.

He remembered when he first saw her, how there was a rosey spotlight around her like a halo. How time slowed down so he could soak in every detail of her beauty, memorize her voice and her movements before reality set back in and with it brought a new breed of confusion. He didn’t know better, but upon reflection the whole ordeal felt like what the poetry he had read in secret during his studies labeled as the phenomenon of love at first sight. His eyes had not seen such a thing before and ever since.

“Hmmm, not really?” Paulina pondered. “I think it’s different for everyone, but I also don’t think I’d want to marry someone I don’t know who kissed me while I was sleeping.”

“That is a fair point,” William chuckled, leaning over to help her make another hole in the ground for her next round of seeds. “You’re correct, as usual.”

“Exactly, and I’m also correct when I say if you want to fall in love then you will,” said Paulina. “You just have to give it time, it’s not something you can force.”

“You know… much about love then?”

“I mean, my dads really love each other but they didn’t get married the second they met,” she said. “They got to know each other first and they didn’t meet the way they thought they’d meet their spouse. Everyone’s story is different.”

“But it’s also possible that some of us aren’t meant to have a story.”

She couldn’t deny that, but she refused to accept a world where a boy who seemed to cherish love so much wasn’t meant to have it. “Maybe she was able to wake you because she was meant to introduce you to your true love.”

“Perhaps,” he said, his mind fully focusing on how she had been the first person Luz had introduced him to. He couldn’t complain about that logic.

“It also might help if you had a crush first,” added Paulina, carefully pressing the dirt back into the ground as though tucking it into bed.

“Like a duel?”

“Oh well, a crush is like… what comes before someone is your true love,” she tried to explain without divulging how complicated they could truly get. “Like, having positive feelings about someone, and wanting to spend time with them without, like, getting married after a few days. Just like thinking of them romantically.”

“I think I may… have formed this crush.”

“Oh! On who?” She asked with enthusiasm that made him quiet. Paulson wore her heart on her sleeve, but he had trouble expressing anything that was not deeply rooted in fact. Or at least, the facts he had been feed. A few moments ago he didn’t have the words to describe his feelings let alone validation their were sinful. He didn’t know the proper way to share them.

“Wel… um…”

“Oh, I’m so sorry,” said Paulina quickly, sensing the answer was hard for him to bring forth. “I didn’t consider it could be someone from your original time. I’m sorry if that was too forward, you don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.”

“And… not wanting to share it doesn’t make it wrong?” William asked.

“Of course not,” she assured him. “You’re allowed to have secrets, and if you want to tell me eventually that’s fine too; you decide when and if you’re ready. I mean, I’ve had tons of crushes on very different people but sometimes they’re just something small, ya know? Sometimes they take awhile to figure out and sometimes they go away on their own, each one is different.”

“Has there ever been one you weren’t able to escape?”

“Well, I don’t know if I would word it like that,” she chuckled. “Having a crush is supposed to be fun, it’s exciting. And sometimes scary, but that also makes it fun. Like a rollercoaster.”

“A roller… coaster?”

“Oh yeah I forgot,” she giggled. “I’ll have to show you one.”

“A… crush?”

“No a rollercoaster,” she said.

“Ah, haha yes of course,” he laughed nervously, painfully aware that he could not seem to stop. “So w-what does one do if they don’t wish to have the crush dissolved?”

“Well I guess you could ask the person you have a crush on to go on a date with you.”

“And a date is like… a courtship, yes? I would seek to woo them?”

She giggled. “Yes, you would seek to woo them.”

He didn’t know what he said that was so humorous but he’d say it everyday for the rest of his life it meant getting to hear her laugh like that.

“Ah, well then. That’s another obstacle, as I know not the way to do so,” he said with a slight frown. “Especially in this foreign, modern land I feel that any outing I plan would not be up to her standards.”

Paulina’s ears perked, her first suspicion dashed as William made it clear the person he liked was someone he had met since he had awakened, which meant it was more than likely that she knew the person as well.

She wondered how well she knew them.

“I mean, like you said I still have much to learn about this world and this time,” he sighed. “But regardless, I’m still myself and I can’t help but feel as though someone discovering I have this crush for them would be most unwanted.”

“I don’t think so,” said Paulina. “I think they’ll think it’s sweet.”

“Surely you jest,” he scoffed. “You’re kind to spare my feelings but I’m sure if this person was aware of my thoughts regarding them they’d be repulsed and uncomfortable.”

“Well I’m sure they’d be perfectly fine with it,” she insisted. “After getting to know you these last few months I can tell you’re actually really sweet, even if you don’t think so. Give yourself more credit.”

“Oh so if I were to tell you I fancy you and wish to spend my days with you, you wouldn’t find it revolting?” He asked as though it was the most comical thing he could imagine.

“No.”

“Oh.” He said, surprised at how quickly and confidently she replied. He cleared his throat and dared to continue. “S-so if I were to say that I would consider it an honor to hold your hand and escort you anywhere you wish to go, you wouldn’t find it inappropriate?”

“No.”

“A-and if I told you you have the most captivating, soft eyes I’ve ever seen and that they make precious jewels envious you would be… okay with that?”

“Um…” Paulina found herself speechless, struck by his words like they were an arrow destined for her very heart.

“Oh yes of course that sentiment is made of cheese, as you might say.” He laughed, slightly embarrassed. “I should have realized my attempts at poetry were novice at best. I apologize if the example was offensive, I should have-.”

“No, no it was very nice!” she said quickly, not wanting to prevent him from saying such lovely things. “It was a beautiful thought, Will. I think anyone would like to hear that.”

“Truly? Uh, well thank you,” he said, unable to hide the blush that danced across his freckles. “Eh, but I’m sure you hear things such as that daily from your suitors.”

“My suitors?” She repeated with a snort. “Oof, now that’s a good one.”

But William did not find it humorous. “I’m sorry, I’m confused.”

“Well let’s just say when other witches my age notice me it’s usually not for the best reasons,” she said. “Most of them think I’m weird or creepy.”

“My apologies again, I’m still getting accustomed to the colloquialisms of this time, do those terms mean something different now?”

“No, I’m pretty sure they mean the same thing now as they did back then,” she said with a small smile, secretly recalling how when they first met William had a similar impression of her, though in fairness it was more about the witch aspect than her specifically. She wondered when exactly that had changed. “I’ve never been very popular. In fact, after Amity stopped talking to me and until I met Augustus most of my closest friends were plants.”

“Well perhaps it is because those plants have the sense to appreciate being in the presence of a rose.”

It was her turn to blush now. “Well, aren’t you the secret romantic?” She giggled, impressed with how quickly he had provided the response. They sat in silence a moment as William realized he hadn’t complimented her hypothetically this time and that something in her tone had shifted. As much as Paulina was willing to try and spare his feelings, he knew she would not lead him astray in this manner. She would not lie to him about this, but did that mean her words applied to her?

“Miss Park… I have a favor of sorts to ask of you,” he began, taking a deep breath.

“Of course,” she said, and he was taken back by how quickly she had agreed. She didn’t even ask what was in it for her benefit, like he was worthy of her assistance without any bribery.

“I will admit I know little of the courtship rituals from my time and even less about the present ones and I was hoping that you would be willing to help… educate me.”

“Oh yeah?” She said with a smirk, scooting closer to him. “How so?”

He could feel his hands get sweatier under his gloves. “Well, would I perchance be able to take you on an outing I believe suitable for expressing such… feelings,” he said as he cleared his throat as though the word made him dizzy. “And you advise me on if it was a suitable choice? I can compensate you for your time, I’ve been saving the snails I’ve acquired in exchange for my sewing and tailoring skills. We can have a grand collection of treats!”

“That sounds really nice,” said Paulina, adoring the way his full smile was on display and she could see the gap in his teeth without him shying away, too caught up in his own hypothetical excitement. “I would love to go out with you William.”

“Okay, wonderful,” he managed to squeak, and his eyes lit up in a way Paulina had never seen before. “I will uh I shall make all the arrangements! What day favors your schedule?”

“I’m fine with whatever day works best for you.”

“The sooner the better!” He exclaimed, louder than he intended to. He swiftly adjusted his volume. “I-I just mean for research purposes. I look forward to the learning aspect of the evening, heh.”

“I’m excited too,” she said and he couldn’t control the wide grin that consumed his whole face. She began to pat down the dirt to help support the budding bulb she had been keeping an eye on, ready to bloom any day now. “Do you think at the end you might be ready to tell me who you have a crush on?”

“I think that if everything goes as planned… I will be. Yes.”

[childlikegoblinqueen]

Sweet Child o Mine: And if I stare too long, I’d probably break down and cry…

For those who have been sticking with Sweet Child, here's a bit of thanks and a reminder that the first chapter takes place in the future! There's going to be a payoff ... and I commissioned @smallpapers to illustrate the first chapter to give you all some feels! They knocked it out of the park. <3

Thank you again for reading and commenting and all that junk! Longer writing notes to come later and then, tomorrow, a nice Steve and Hunter bonding chapter (with some more intrigue peppered throughout) to drop tomorrow!

I'm not going to say for sure how close to the end I am, but I am thinking 65 % at this point.

THANKS FOR READING!

[savzo]

Another Piece inspired by https://archiveofourown.org/works/39451467?view_full_work=true

Lol the man just wants to cuddle with his wife. Fanfic by kammieceleek and Blunderstorm!

[lightandfriendship]

Guys help I was scrolling through the Huntlow tag reading one shots and I started one and was like “Damn, this is really good. Totally my style”

Then proceeded to realize it was my own fucking one shot.

[haystarlight]

Disabilities and Disclosure

@lollytea made a post about this idea and I went with it.

I don't have dyslexia. If you or someone you know has it, I'd appreciate your input!

@avatarmerida @fairytales-and-folklore

______________________________________________

"Disabilities and Disclosure"

"I'm gonna have to borrow that book when you're done with it!"

Willow wasn't really thinking when she made that promise. She'd been too caught up in Hunter's cool outfit and his sweet smile to realize what she was signing up for. She'd been so preoccupied with flirting with the cute boy she didn't bother to think she was actually going to have to read that book later.

At first, she put it off. They were busy fighting villains, rebuilding society, rebuilding their homes, starting a new semester at Hexside. Then, a few months after she and Hunter started dating, he remembered she had expressed interest in reading Cosmic Frontier.

Oh no.

"Here you go! you can keep it, I have another copy at home."

"Aww, Sunflower, this is so nice of you."

Hunter blushed, he always blushed when she called him that.

Aw fuck. The book was even bigger than she remembered.

"A little fat, ain't it?" She chuckled nervously "how did you read it all in 2 days?"

"Haha well, yeah. I don't wanna brag but you do remember I've been called a 'genius teen prodigy'," He said this in a tone that sounded like he did want to brag. "it's not that fat, tho. A regular reader like you can probably kill it in a week or two. And then you can share your thoughts with me, Gus and Camila!"

Yeah. Sure. A regular reader like her.

A week or two. Sure.

Hunter must've sensed her uncertainty because his voice immediately dropped from excitement to comfort.

"Hey, I won't get upset if you don't like it. Just so you know."

"Aw, yeah, I wasn't worried about that. But thanks."

She tried looking at the summary on the back and almost got a headache. She knew he wouldn't mind if she didn't like it... But would he be disappointed if she couldn't even finish it?

"Oh, and I hope you're cool with this... I kinda wrote stuff on the margins," he said this bashfully.

Willow opened the book on the first page. The first two pages of every book are always blank before the actual story gets started. She'd always considered that a waste of paper.

This time, however, she saw on the first blank page something written in Hunter's perfect calligraphy. He had such nice handwriting. Her writing was so messy in comparison.

Even she was able to read the three simple words written there with love and care.

'To my Captain 💛'

What had she done?

______________________________________________

The days passed by and no matter how hard she tried, the damn book was impossible to finish.

It's not that she couldn't read at all! She could read! She was 16, not 5!

But some words were harder to understand than others. Words that were really long and complicated gave her the hardest time. It didn't help that all these characters had odd names that looked impossible to pronounce and even harder to spell. She kept getting headaches whenever she stared at a page for too long.

She had always been like this, since she started school. It was one of the reasons abominations were so much harder for her than plants, abominations required a lot of reading and theory, plants were direct hands-on action. She had so many memories of staying up late with her parents trying to help her as she agonized over the homework.

And, as the days passed, she kept avoiding having to talk to Hunter. He always asked her how far into the book she was, which scene had she gotten to, who was her favorite character so far. And Gus was no better. Gus knew of Willow's reading issue but it seemed like the young boy had forgotten about it as he got caught up in the excitement as well.

One day, Willow was alone, sitting on the school steps when she suddenly couldn't take it anymore and screamed in frustration, throwing the book away from her.

Luckily, someone caught it.

"Wow! You must be really angry at this thing," Luz said, in between scared and impressed. "did your favorite character die or something? I hate it when that happens."

Willow sighed.

"No, it's just... it's so hard to read."

"Really? It says here the age rating is 13 and up," Luz pointed at the back of the book.

Willow groaned.

"Is it because you don't understand all the weird sci-fi things? I know you guys still don't know a lot about the human world. It makes sense you don't get all the space and science-y thingies," she laughed. "heck, I'm a human and even I don't get it half the time! It's super confusing, you don't have to feel bad for -"

"That's not it either, Luz."

There was a silence between the two of them. Luz felt the weight of that silence and sat down next to her. The human carefully laid a hand on her best friend's shoulder.

"Hey. You don't have to tell me but it looks like it'll make you feel better to tell someone."

"It's... I don't... it's not that I can't read or write! You've seen me do it! I know how to read and write! I'm not a baby!"

Luz simply stared at her, waiting for her to continue.

"But, even though I can do it, I find it very... difficult. There's lots of words that I can't spell because they're too long, the letters sometimes like... move around and blurr together even when I'm wearing my glasses!" She took off the golden frames as if to clarify. "and I keep getting headaches and I hate it when a sentence has too many comas and -"

"Oh, you have dyslexia!"

Willow stopped her rant to look at her friend. She put her glasses back on, confused.

"What?"

"Oh, that's what humans call it! I don't know how witches call it or if it even has a name here. I didn't know witches could have dyslexia... but I guess it makes sense cause human brains are very similar to witch brains. I wonder if-"

"Luz, what's dyslexia?"

"Oh, right, sorry," she smiled apologetically. "it's a learning disability. It's what you just described. Someone who has a hard time reading, who can't spell long words, who struggles with big books... etcetera."

Willow looked shocked, her mouth slightly opened. It has a name? Other people have it?

"I'm not a doctor so I can't really diagnose you. But, if you want, we can do some research! There's lots of info on the human realm! It's actually a really common thing so we have lots of methods to help make it easier. We can look up Cosmic Frontier audiobooks! You can just listen to it, no reading required."

Despite of herself, Willow smiled. Luz was a really good friend.

"Thank you, Luz. That sounds nice."

"And I bet Hunter will love to help! You know how he loves research!"

The smile dropped as quickly as it had come, replaced by panic.

"NO! DON'T TELL HUNTER!"

"Okay, why?"

"He just... Hunter's so smart and I'm..."

"You're smart! Just because you have a learning disability doesn't make you not smart! Mom has ADHD and she's super smart!"

"What's ADHD?"

"Oh, it's another learning disability. I think I have it too but that's a conversation for another day."

"Mmmkay," Willow shrugged and went back to the matter at hand. "Hunter's so smart and he's such a good reader and... and he's always going on and on about how talented and clever I am and he admires me so much and... I don't want him to be disappointed or to see me different."

Luz stayed silent for a moment while she contemplated what to say. She finally settled on:

"I'm not gonna tell him because I respect your privacy but I think you should tell him. Hunter loves you but he doesn't have you on a pedestal, he knows you're a person with limits and weaknesses. He's not going to be disappointed if you tell him this."

Willow didn't respond but she knew her friend was right. Oh, where would she be without Luz the human?

______________________________________________

A few days of research and information gathering with the assistance of Luz and Camila, and Willow was now ready to come clean to her boyfriend.

She sat with him on a picnic they'd set up in the forest as she laid out all the information. Hunter would occasionally ask a question but, for the most part, he just let her speak. In the end, Willow stared at him in deep dread.

"Wow, ok. Thanks for telling me this," he stopped to take a sip of apple blood before continuing. "how can I help?"

Willow stared at him, processing the words.

"You want to help?" She asked incredulously.

"You're my girlfriend and you need help, therefore, I'm willing to do what I can. Is that not how it works?"

Willow couldn't help but smile. Hunter was getting better at this relationship thing.

"Yeah, thank you. I was just... I was being paranoid."

Hunter tilted his head, offering her to go on.

"You're always... you're so smart and well-read and... you always tell me how talented and clever you think I am and you compliment me for knowing so much about flyer derby and plants and insects... I feel like I'll disappoint you if I'm actually not as smart as you think I am."

Hunter frowned. He did tend to go on about how amazing his girlfriend was, he couldn't help it! He loved her! And she had always looked so happy when he said those things, responding with a smile or a blush or a thank you or paying him a compliment in return.

He didn't realize that maybe there was a bit of a negative side to it.

"Willow, I'm not gonna be disappointed in you for having limits and weaknesses. Nobody's perfect! And that's fine! You're the one who taught me that!

The plant witch snorted. It was true, she had been the one to teach Hunter that. Why couldn't she remember her own advice?

"There it is," Hunter said, fondly.

"There what is?"

"You snort like a pig when you laugh, you kick people in your sleep, you take pictures of strangers on the street like a creeper..." He counted on his fingers. "I could keep going but the point is, I know you're not perfect. It's okay to not be perfect. I don't love you because you're flawless! I love you because you're Willow and you're impossible not to love."

He said that last part so sincerely, she had to believe him. The plant witch grabbed her boyfriend in a tight hug. He hugged her back and she felt the warmth fill her with comfort.

"I love you too, Sunflower."

They kissed. They'd already kissed so many times, it came naturally to them by now. Willow was long familiar with the taste of his lips but it still somehow brought firebees to her stomach no matter how many times she did it. It never got old, she would never get tired of it.

Every time they kissed, like clockwork, flowers came out of Willow's head. It was like her heart and her magic couldn't control themselves when she felt his kisses. This time, the flowers on her hair were white bellflowers.

"Now, back to the 'how can I help?' thing," Hunter said, after they had broken apart. "I think I have an idea you might like."

______________________________________________

Normal people would simply find a Cosmic Frontier audiobook for Willow to listen to. Or maybe they would read to her out loud. Or maybe they'd show her the movie adaptation (tho, she'd been told by Hunter, Gus and Camila that the movie was awful and did a terrible job at adapting the original source material).

Hunter wasn't a normal person, not by a long shot.

He'd decided to act out all of the memorable scenes from the book like it was a play. After telling the others, they had also been incredibly excited to help.

Everyone did something. Willow built the stage and props, Hunter made the costumes and wrote the scripts, Vee and Gus were on special effects with their shapeshifting and illusions respectively, Amity brought some abominations for extra manpower and Luz and Camila put together a playlist of songs that went perfect with every scene. Eda and King brought snacks.

When the night of the premiere finally came, Willow sat down at the Owl House's backyard with Luz, Amity, King, Eda and Raine as they watched it all unfold. Luz took out her phone and started recording because she wanted to put it on Mewtube, Amity didn't understand anything that was going on, Eda ate all the snacks and King fell asleep on Raine's lap halfway through. Perfection.

It wasn't a quality production, it was very low budget and DIY. It reminded Willow of those plays the bard witches from the drama club at Hexside often did. It was silly and weird but it was wonderful.

At the heart of it all were the actors. Vee obviously knew how to play a convincing alien monster, Gus and Camila were not professionals but they felt such passion and appreciation for their character's plight that they could bring themselves to do a pretty good performance. And Hunter was just IN IT! He was an artist lost in his art and Willow never wanted him to stop ever.

His voice cracked with emotion on the dramatic scenes, he stricked poses and smiled at the audience, he recited every line from memory, he even cried on the sad parts. It was hard not to love the book when it inspired something so incredible on all these people she loved.

When the play ended, the actors took a bow and everyone clapped. Luz was the loudest, woohoo-ing and wolf whistling. She cheered so loud, King woke up with a yelp.

Willow made flowers with her magic, throwing them at the stage enthusiastic. Gus caught one and pointed a finger gun, winking at her. Vee caught one and giggled. Camila caught one and her smile got even bigger.

She threw a whole bouquet of roses. Hunter caught it and blew her a kiss.

Yup, this was her new favorite book.