#human/hunter!wad

[welcometogrouchland]

Honestly we see a bit of it in the epilogue (what with his hair being less ashy, his eye bags being gone, etc) but Hunter probably got such a glow-up after moving in with Darius. Like he'd already been doing better at Camila's house than he'd been at the castle (eating more, sleeping more, etc) but Darius is a full on spa girlie. He's taking Hunter with him to get a facial and the kid exits that place GLOWING. Without the dead bird magic this time. His stress induced acne? Gone. His eye bags? Gone. His scars? No longer dry and itchy.

Darius buys him expensive shampoo and conditioner to use (he'd been using shower gel on his hair back at Camila's house. She didn't know. When Willow tries to run her hands through it, it crunches slightly. He thinks this is normal) and honestly? The one good thing he got from Caleb was the Wittebane Gorgeous Hair Genes. His stupid little mullet flows in the wind.

When Hunter first moves in, he's grown out of most of his human realm clothes and there's very few shops/tailors open at the time, so he's borrowing all of Darius' old stuff which, while admittedly vintage, is still wayyy more classy than anything Hunter would've picked for himself. Once he has alternate options he definitely reverts back to his personal sense of style (and if he gets the a-okay from Darius he modifies the old clothes with personal bits of patchwork and embroidery) but there's a period of six months after WaD where Hunter is just consistently the best dressed of the hexsquad at any given moment. Gus and Amity are QUAKING in their boots

[kittiwittebane]

Things I’m thinking of fanfic making (AU’s)

!!!THESE ARE ALL HUNTLOW!!!

Tailor and Florist AU - inspired by @turquoisespace35

Bartender AU - inspired by @avatarmerida , originally from @soldrawss

Heartthrob Hunter AU - permission granted from @savzo

Life in the human realm - everyone does this

Summer camp AU - permission granted from @spacetravels (I think. Whoever made this said I could)

After WAD - everyone does

Future AU - lots do

Harpy Hunter AU - seen it everywhere

Roommate AU - came up with it myself

Coffee shop AU - just came to me one mornin’

[marchtothefuckingsea]

Pay No Dues - Lucifer

My Masterlist. 

Word count: 2.6k

Warnings:canon violence and gore, injury. Lucifer is good(ish) au, don't like don't read.

hurt/comfort, a surprising amount of fluff, enemies to allies/friends to lovers

Summary: Lucifer keeps offering to heal reader when they get injured on hunts, but they refuse. When they're hurt too severely to protest, he finally heals them. They reveal that they don't want to take advantage of his powers, which is a surprise him.

"Here, let me heal that." 

"It's fine. I'm fine." I insisted, pressing a rag firmly against the openly bleeding gash on my bicep. The rag was already soaked, and by the trail of blood I left in the hallway behind me, I could guess it was doing little to stop the bleeding. 

"It looks just a little bit like you're not, but fine. Just bleed to death. See if I care." Lucifer trailed behind me, glancing at the blood droplets on the floor. I looked over my shoulder to glare at him.

"I'd say you care enough to insist on healing me." He scoffed, but finally shut up.

I shouldered my arm under the tap. The water that ran down the drain was a bright, saturated red, and probably more blood than water. I hissed when it hit the open wound, gripping the countertop until my knuckles turned white. I wadded up a bunch of paper towels-the nearest absorbent thing there was-and pressed them to my arm.

Turning back to grab bandages, I noted, with a sigh of relief, that Lucifer had fluttered off to go bother someone else. 

-

Sam shoved the bunker door open, and Dean staggered through, supporting me by my shoulders. A belt was wrapped tightly around my upper thigh to act as a tourniquet. I had been beaten to a bloody pulp and shot in the leg. I was lucky it had missed everything vital, but I knew I would be out of commission for weeks with this one. 

I was released onto a couch with a groan of pain. Dean hurried to the infirmary to get supplies, and Sam stayed by my side, muttering comforting things. My eyes drifted off though, and behind him, another figure walked up. 

"Lucifer." Sam turned to him before my eyes could focus. When they finally did, he was by the side of the couch, looking down at me. 

"No." I said as he opened his mouth. I already knew what he was going to offer. He pursed his lips and crossed his arms. 

"Just let him." Sam insisted. I shook my head. I'd gotten by just fine without needing the angel to heal me. 

"Look, none of us like him-"

"Ow." Lucifer interrupted. 

"But he's here and freely offering. So take it. You're gonna be out of commission for a while if you don't."

"I'll be fine." I groaned, shifting into a sitting position with a shallow sigh. I heard Dean's footsteps down the hall. "At least I'll finally get some time to rest." I joked. 

-

It turned out that Sam was right. The bullet didn't hit anything that would cause too much permanent damage, but it did hit a muscle that had taken a ridiculously long time to heal. In the meantime, I had been stuck in the bunker doing research and babysitting the devil.

"Why are you so independent?" Lucifer had appeared in a chair across from me, and he frowned at the word. I was in the library, sitting on the floor with my nearly healed leg stretched in front of me. I jumped slightly at his sudden appearance. 

I was silent, hoping he would go away. Of course, I should have known better by now, over a month in, that it never worked. 

"Look, I know you've got that big bad hunter thing going on, but you're human regardless." I sighed, shutting the book with a harsh clap. 

"If this is your way of pestering me to heal me again, the answer is still no." I glared at him.

"But why?" 

"I've never needed angel help before, and I don't need it now. Why are you so persistent?" I narrowed my eyes at him. He vanished in a flutter of wings, and I sighed in frustration. 

-

I returned to hunting not long after that encounter with the devil. Even after almost two months, my leg was still pretty tender, and I still carried a bit of a limp that I tried my best to hide. I just wanted to get back into the swing of things, and today I was going to do just that.

The Winchesters were away on a paranormal case, helping out an old friend, they had said. In the meantime, I found a simple vampire case that should have been pretty safe, and so I figured it would be a good start to see how I would fare.

"Where are you off to?" Lucifer had appeared behind me as I packed my duffel. I swung it over my shoulder, grimacing at the twinge of protest from my leg. 

"A case." I answered simply. 

"You're still recovering, aren't you?" 

"Yeah, and?"

"And you shouldn't be going."

"For one, why do you care? And for two, it's been almost two months. I'll be fine." I argued. He crossed his arms, but he was silent.

"I'm coming with you."

"I don't think so." I narrowed my eyes at him, slamming the trunk of my car shut. He remained there as I got into the driver's seat, but as soon as I began to pull away, he appeared in the passenger's seat.

"Lucifer." I grit my teeth.

"Yes?" He raised an eyebrow at me.

"Get out." He continued to stare straight ahead, a small, conniving smile on his face. "Get out."

"No." 

"God fucking damnit. Get out or I'm going to fucking stab you." I threatened.

"You're driving." His voice was tinged with laughter, pissing me off even more. 

"Fuck off." I muttered. 

This was going to be a long drive.

-

As soon as we stepped foot inside the rickety barn, it seemed as if the entire nest knew we were coming. There were more of them than I had anticipated, and they were strong. 

I hissed in pain when one slashed his grimy nails over my forearm, before shoving me back into a wall that was several feet away. With a miserable groan, I crumpled to the floor. Lucifer appeared behind him, taking the vamp's head off effortlessly with the machete I had dropped. I struggled to my feet, pressing my sleeve down tight against my bleeding forearm. The wound began to burn, and my vision blurred more than it should have.

I picked up another machete lying on the floor and swung around just in time to meet a female vamp baring her fangs at me. Her head fell cleanly away from her shoulders. Lucifer turned to me, eyeing me up and down before frowning. I gave him a nod to tell him I was fine, but he didn't look convinced. 

 I turned down the hallway, swaying on my feet and nearly running into the corner as my vision spun. Pausing, I leaned heavily against the wall, and hunched over as a sudden dizzy spell left me barely standing. I could have sworn I heard footsteps, but I couldn't react quick enough to what happened next.

Clawed hands collided with my shoulders, shoving me up against the wall harshly, at the same time a white hot pain coursed through my right shoulder. My eyes widened, and I struggled against the female vampire's hold, gasping.

When she stepped back to admire her handiwork, I realized I was still pinned to the wall. My eyes darted down to my shoulder in horror, and I saw a jagged splinter of metal had been forced through my shoulder and into the wall behind me. I almost gagged at the sight.

It didn't take long for shock to set in. Suddenly my whole body felt cold and numb, and my head dropped to my chest. My eyes drifted shut, until I felt the burning, agonizing pain again of someone pulling the metal out of my shoulder. I was released from the wall, and I staggered forward, barely aware when Lucifer caught me from falling face first onto the floor. He lifted me into his arms easily, and the next time I opened my eyes, I was greeted by the warm lights of the bunker. 

I realized he had taken me to another room, maybe even his room, when I felt my body sink into unfamiliar sheets. My entire being was still in fight or flight mode and I wanted to jolt upwards, but the slightest movement made me choke out an agonized cry. My skin glistened with sweat even though I shivered violently. I was sure I was cold to the touch because even Lucifer's chilly hand felt warm against my forehead. 

I groaned weakly in protest, forcing my eyes open. With one hand, he held my head down and the other he pressed firmly to my shoulder, causing me a jolt of pain. I whimpered, trying to squirm away from him. 

"Calm down. Just let me heal you." He snapped. I flinched at the harshness in his voice; he had never spoken to me directly in that tone before.

I felt a tingling sensation dance over my skin, and then strangely in the deep wound on my shoulder. When I didn't know what he was doing to me, I began to panic. As soon as Lucifer released me, I shot up, banging my head against the wall. 

It was then I realized that I was fine. My shoulder had been healed, along with the rest of my cuts and scrapes, and my clothes were even clean of blood. I eyed him suspiciously where he sat on the edge of the bed. 

"What?" He asked defensively. 

"You know I didn't want you healing me." 

"Oh not this again." He sighed in exasperation. "You're welcome, by the way." 

I was silent.

"What is it with you and my grace, anyway?" Lucifer squinted at me curiously, leaning against the headboard beside me and crossing his arms behind his head. It was then I realized this must have been his room. I shifted uncomfortably at the nearly non-existent space between us. 

I shook my head. "It's nothing." I muttered, turning my head away from him. My arms still rested defensively over my stomach. Despite being healed, I was exhausted and I began to nod off, catching myself when my head lolled to the side. His pillows smelled…comforting. 

The blade at my side was digging into my skin uncomfortably so I groaned and shifted, untucking it from my waistband. I held the blade out to him wordlessly, the hilt toward him to show he could take it. He placed it on the table at his side. I knew I'd have to reach over him if I wanted it back, but somehow I was sure I wouldn't need it.

I propped myself on my elbow as I shifted to face him. There wasn't any personal space between us at all now. My knee bumped his leg, and all I had to do was lean back to rest my head against his chest. 

"I don't think it's nothing." He said simply. His tone wasn't mocking, nor prying. It was almost disinterested, but I knew Lucifer was inviting me to open up to him. I never would have thought about it years ago, when he had first been freed from the cage and demanded Sam to say yes to him. I never even would have considered a few months ago; but things had changed since then. 

"If it makes you feel any better, I try not to let any angel heal me." I shrugged, leaning back against the pillows. 

"Why not?" 

"I don't know. I guess," I had never given much thought towards it until now, so I hesitated. "I guess I don't want to take advantage of their powers. Or yours." 

I glanced up at him to gauge his reaction. He looked taken aback. "Really?"

"I mean I know Sam and Dean don't look at it that way, and I can't really blame them. It's convenient. But it's not something you guys have to do, y'know? You don't have to waste your energy on us." Everything came spilling out freely now. "But you do, and Cas does, even at the expense of his own wellbeing. I appreciate it, but it feels like a debt I can't pay back. I don't like owing people." I frowned. 

I saw him glance down at me from the corner of my eye, and I could have sworn his face softened. "You don't owe me anything, and you never will." 

He continued. "I'd heal you as many times as you need it. I'd bring you back a thousand times, but you will never owe me for it." 

I glanced up at him in surprise. "Where did that come from?" 

"Nowhere." He frowned at himself. 

"No, seriously." 

"No, seriously." He repeated, turning his frown to me. "I've been around you humans too long." He muttered.

"And? Are you starting to care about us pathetic creatures too much?" I asked lightheartedly, but his face remained serious.

"You could say that." He was hesitant. "Maybe too much." 

The angel's gaze was intense, and I found myself looking away. "Look at me." 

With a sigh, I met his eyes. "What?" 

"It's you. You're the one that's made me care." 

"And do you hate me for it?" I questioned quietly. 

"Yes and no." 

"That's reassuring." I huffed.

"I've watched you, and your brothers, and the rest of dad's creations. I watched them for centuries before I was locked away, you know. I never much cared for them and their little routines and mannerisms and such. But you, you've made me come to appreciate it all. I never understood what dad saw in you guys, but I think I'm starting to see those stupidly endearing qualities that makes him like you humans so much." He took a deep breath as if a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders.

"Lucifer, what are you trying to say?" My voice was timid at his confession. 

"You've made me see the good humanity has to offer." He said simply. 

"And for that you're very," He leaned down to my level now, our noses almost touching. His eyes flickered down and he looked as if he was contemplating something before he continued. "Very, special to me." He breathed out. As he pulled away, he pressed a feather light kiss to my forehead.

My mind was reeling as I watched him. "Are you serious?" 

He frowned slightly. "Deadly." 

"Then…I think you might be special to me, too." I admitted quietly. He looked surprised for a moment, but quickly recovered.

At my confession, he snaked an arm around my shoulders and pulled me against his side. I tensed briefly before relaxing against him with a small sigh, my eyes fluttering shut tiredly. 

"Oh, I can't wait 'till Dean finds out about this." I could hear the grin in his voice. 

"Don't you freaking dare." I muttered, digging my fingers into his side. "The less he knows, the better." 

"Didn't feel like getting stabbed, anyways." He laughed. I huffed, relaxing my hand. 

"Lucifer?" He hummed in acknowledgement. "Thank you."

He rubbed my shoulder in response, and I felt his cheek on the top of my head. "Don't mention it." He murmured.

"You've already paid your debt to me a thousand times over." He reminded me softly.

[yaboysafttheenby]

I know this is like extremely messed up, but instead of the nightmare sequence we got in WaD, what if it was replaced with Luz in Philip's clothes (you know the blue coat) while holding the dagger Philip used to kill Caleb with blood and Hunter on the ground with a bloody scar on his chest while wearing Caleb's clothing. Aka Philip killing Caleb, swapped with Luz and Hunter.

Why? Cause angst, Pittwins and Wittebane parallels, Hunter and Caleb parallels, and Philip and Luz Parallels. (Please I have been thinking of this for so long) And the "I AM NOT LIKE YOU!" Luz screamed in Kings Tide at Belos, because Luz never wants to be like Belos. (But like yeah, parallels)

Edit:Okay I just thought of this rn, with WILLOW, WATCHING IT. Cause Evelyn/Willow parallels, and for some reason I also like Evelyn/Amity parallels even tho, their only parallel is falling in love with a human.

I mean, Evelyn and Willow do only have one parallel which is falling for a blonde dude, so......yeah.

[findmeinthefallair]

For the sleepover ask game, share some owl house headcanons about what happened during the time skip. As many as you'd like. :)

Ayyy finally answering this, friend! Sorry that it took centuries to get to!

The one thing I don't shut up about is Hunter's ensuing depression after Belos's death, contrary to the Hollywood kind of ending where everything becomes sunny and everyone can easily move on. We would see the stuff that a therapist would tick the checkboxes for in a mental status exam: slowing down psychomotor-wise e.g. slower speech, flat moods which are the unsettling polar opposite to the earnest emotional expression we love him so much for, distracted attention span, less tidy appearance, and he'd be sleeping excessively for some time. (full mental health meta on this subject here: link) Camila would be making sure he has plenty of movies to watch on the couch so that he isn't locking himself too much in the basement T_T Darius would be monitoring how he helps to rebuild the Isles so that he doesn't overexert himself.

Amity, the twins and Alador would go for walks to the store, in the woods etc, and this bonding time in restoring their relationships would be so important.

Luz's two main challenges would be: 1. becoming more aware of the domino effect of teaching Philip the light glyph spell in the timepool, especially now that everyone is coming out of survival mode, 2. the guilt surrounding Flapjack...I don't think she'd just move on from puppet!Hunter's words "And then I lost him, helping you. But you still get to have your own palisman?!" God this makes me wonder...what was it that the Hexsquad went through in their minds which led to the beautiful decision to get their red tattoos together? I'm gonna sniffle, jfc.

Gus might be the first person to broach the subject of Flapjack again, since he verbally put the same subject out in the open in For the Future (working with Willow, who took the flyer derby photo off the wall to show to Hunter and trying to reach out to him). It's also in line with how he was the first one to express sadness after they became trapped in the human realm i.e. he broke down crying right away. I love this about him whereby he may excel in Illusion magic but he gets down to the truth right away.

Willow is utterly exhausted and there's still some remaining upset from her breakdown about how much she missed her dads, shouldered things on her own and kept things bottled up. She approaches Camila not long after they leave The Collector's Palace to say that Camila was right, and to say thank you. And she needs a bit of space alone for the upset feelings to run their course.

Mattholomule has more surprises up his sleeve for Gus, lol. Gus just doesn't stop being flabbergasted.

The first person to say anything to Kikimora, who is moping and stewing away somewhere, is of course Luz.

Luz and Hunter more or less switch places emotionally if you compare their TTT and WaD demeanors (in FtF, they were both under somewhat similar emotional strain, in their own arcs). In TTT, Luz was very far from her vibrant self, ruminated on her guilt and slowed down so much, while Hunter was on the move: excitedly exploring his self and interests while being in his comfort zone of wanting to help others (he still had the capacity to do so!). Luz wasn't out exploring and connecting with others: she was in the dark prison of depression. If we flip this for the pre-timeskip era: Hunter would slow down by gradually running out of steam to even help others, and isolate himself before getting better...struggling with the absence of Flapjack and Belos, being frozen in time in terms of this bereavement. While Luz, 1. became unfrozen from her long-term bereavement by beginning to accept that her dad and Papa Titan were gone (an emotional place which Hunter simply cannot reach until many months later), 2. was reunited with Eda and King and on the same page as Camila, and would be on the move seeing what she can do to contribute for the Isles. There is a parallel between both of them wrestling with guilt: Luz's guilt about how her encounter with young Philip led to Belos's regime, Hunter's about the impact of his actions as the Golden Guard.

God this one is tough to lay out in clear detail but...the sleeping arrangements for the Hexsquad during the first few nights...emotions catching up to them...I really wonder what it was, and who would want more of their own space and not trouble others (yet definitely not being at peace with whatever was going through their minds) versus who expressed their need to not be alone at night.. Maybe Luz wanted to be with Eda, Raine and King in the Owl House, Amity would have her space back in Blight Manor, and we have Willow, Gus and Darius extending invitations to Hunter. There's no way I can predict which choice Hunter made, coz he may have gone with an arrangement that would've left the others concerned. Whether he obliged out of politeness or was firm enough to say that he didn't want to burden them...hard to tell. OMT, what if he slept alone BUT the palismen secretly huddled by his side in the night like in this beautiful fanart which is one of my faves??: link

Contrary to Hunter, Vee's response to Belos's death would be far simpler closure because she had zero attachment to Belos. Hell, she wasn't raised by him for an entire childhood. And while she would've had some survivor's guilt, we know that the other basilisks eventually came back to life, unlike (ughhhhh) the Grimwalkers who can't be brought back. These are the clues as to how Vee could open up more, smile brightly, and begin to explore the big wide world around her:

Which means she would've definitely been an important influence for Hunter's recovery.

Like...

How long till he could freely smile again? Camilaaaaa...take care of your three precious kids.

These are the first headcanons that came to mind. Might reblog this and add more over time. Thanks for the ask :)

[laurel-finch]

'I Don't Bite' S1.Ch02: Fur

Summary: The Winchesters and their new companion plan their next move... Referenced Episodes: None CW: Gore. Disclaimer: Pretty much all the lore I have in this story is vastly inaccurate to Navajo legend. The Navajo have decided to keep their legends largely a secret and don't share much about their culture. So please take note of the fact that all information in skinwalkers is either from the show, or from my own imagination, and not culturally accurate. Word Count: 6057 Recommended Song: Rock of Ages -- Def Leppard Previous Chapter -- Masterlist -- Next Chapter

"Get up!" I shouted before jumping onto the bed, shifting mid-air. I landed paws first beside the younger Winchester brother and bumped his cheek with my wet nose. Sam groaned and threw his hands up, swatting at my fur. I growled and licked a stripe up his cheek.

Sam immediately jolted up, vigorously wiping the slobber off his cheek with his blankets. Unphased by his disgust, I bounded over him and leaped onto the other bed, where Dean still slept, blankets tangled around his waist. He slept on his stomach, lips parted and green eyes tightly shut. I tackled him, knocking him off the edge of the bed, the blankets falling with him. He hit the floor with a loud yelp.

Dean swore and sat up suddenly, only to find himself nose to nose with a wolf. He groaned, rolling onto his back and throwing his arm over his eyes. "So it wasn't just a bad dream. We did actually adopt a mutt."

I shifted back into my skin and glared at the elder brother, arms folded tightly over my chest in indignation. "I am not a mutt," I grumbled dramatically, holding my head high. "And I'll have you know that I think any dream about me would be a pleasant one."

Sam laughed from the other side of the room. "Only if you're a dog-lover-"

"- Which I," interjected Dean, "am not." He mumbled some swear words under his breath and stood to his feet, dragging the blankets with him, dumping them onto the bed. "Especially not untrained, glorified dogs."

"Mm, that's a shame, considering you're about to be waist-deep in a horde of them," I joked, bumping him in the shoulder with my fist.

"They're not dogs, they're monsters," Dean retorted, pulling a gun from under his pillow. He slipped it into the waistband of his jeans, and I marveled at how he could possibly be comfortable sleeping in such clothes.

"Yet I'm a mutt?" I questioned, pursing my lips and frowning teasingly.

"You're the exception."

I growled playfully and slipped off the edge of the bed. "Whatever, Dean. Just get up. I'm eager for a fight."

Dean glowered at the wad of tangled blankets. "No reasonable hunter should be eager for a fight."

I glanced ruefully over my shoulder, taking in his deliciously disheveled appearance. "I'm not a hunter, Dean. I'm a mutt."

A smile crept onto his face.

—

With the Impala loaded and ready to go, the three of us exited the empty motel parking lot. The sun had just peeked over the tops of the trees, leaving the sky filled with a gray and pink tint. It was still early in the morning and a sleepy feeling hung in the air.

Sam had pulled up directions for the skinwalker base on his GPS. I had only been there once and frankly, I never wanted to return. I wanted nothing with anything involving the typical skinwalker lifestyle. I didn't want a pack, to hunt humans, or anything else that came with the skinwalker title. I just wanted to be left alone.

Why wouldn't they just leave me alone?

Sam turned to glance at me in the backseat and creased his eyebrows with worry. "You look unsettled," he commented. I nodded and fiddled with my fingers restlessly.

"I am," I agreed, avoiding eye contact. "I'm nervous. I've fought before but... it's been a while." There was more to it than that. I didn't like fighting or the thought of having to take a life. I shivered at the thought. "When was the last time you fought?"

I paused to think. "With a human? Before my uncle... left, we used to spar all the time, but it was never a life or death situation. Even on hunts with him, I was never too concerned," I grumbled. Whatever monster we were hunting, I doubted it would be able to kill me so long as I didn’t get cocky. "I'm certainly not rusty. You'd be surprised with how much spunk alligators have in them."

Sam's eyes widened at that. "You've fought alligators?"

"Well yeah. They're pretty easy if you can keep their mouths shut. They don't have a ton of power in their jaws when it comes to opening them. And if you can get them on their backs, they're done for. Taste like chicken too," I remarked with a grin, hoping it masked my nerves.

Sam shook his head and faced forward once again, clearly disgusted at the thought of eating alligator.

After a few minutes, Dean cleared his throat. "How about some music? We have some time to kill before we get there." Sam quickly obliged, searching the glove compartment for a cassette. He handed one to Dean, who quickly read it and popped it into the cassette deck.

Rock of Ages, by Def Leppard, started playing loudly throughout the car. I could see Dean smile from the rearview mirror. The car accelerated, leading us closer to our destination. My mind was spinning. How was the fight going to go? It had been ages since I had fought another skinwalker, and had certainly never killed one. I knew I was capable of killing when the time came.

I couldn't help but think that something would go horribly wrong.

The car sped forward and trees whipped past. Spanish moss clung to their trunks and limbs, absorbing the light the trees needed, all while suffocating them. I sighed and propped my chin in my palm, gazing out the window. The brothers needed my help, they didn't know what to expect when it came to a skinwalker, let alone a pack. I couldn't leave them, no matter how much I wanted to avoid this fight.

I just wanted my life back. Everything had changed when my uncle died. I was alone for the first time in my life, with no one to look for me and keep me in check. I had been so afraid, afraid that I would lose control without someone there to keep me in line. I was afraid I would hurt someone. It wouldn't have been the first time.

The trees cleared up ahead and I caught sight of a rundown old gas station off the side of the road. I straightened, lifting my chin from my palm, and strained to get a better look at it.

"That's it," I said quietly.

"What?" Dean said, glancing in the mirror.

"Dean, that's it! The gas station! Quick, pull over!"

Dean obliged, swerving quickly to the side of the road, crossing traffic. He carefully selected a spot hidden from the view of the station, before parking the car and exiting. His feet hadn't even touched the ground before I was standing at the trunk of the car, waiting for him to unlock it.

The three of us wordlessly stocked up on weapons. I holstered a gun on my waist, adding several magazines of silver bullets to my pockets. Two silver knives hung from my belt, although I was careful not to touch the blade. My skin itched at the proximity to the silver.

Sam, who was polishing the barrel of a gun, glanced at the knives strapped to my belt. "I thought you didn't need weapons?" He joked, smiling down at me.

"You can never be too careful. I'm really only taking them just in case. I doubt I'm going to have to fight without my teeth and claws, but something might happen where I don't have enough room to shift, so I have to resort to your barbaric ways of fighting."

"Barbaric?"

"Yeah. I at least have the decency to fight with my God-given weapons. Humans manufacture weapons that kill easier and faster than anything else. You'd have to be a barbarian to want to improve on killing someone." Why would anyone want to kill easier?

Sam smiled thoughtfully. "I guess that's true. But if you had to defend yourself, even if it meant killing, wouldn't you want the best weapon for the job?"

"I guess," I replied, thinking for a moment. "Are you a lawyer or something?"

Sam's smile dropped. "I was going to be. I dropped out recently."

"Why?"

He opened and closed his mouth as if looking for a good answer. Finally, he shook his head and said, "I'll tell you some other time."

I basked in the glow of the morning sun, loving the feeling of it warming my skin. The pleasant warmth could never compare to the pull of the moon, but I still reveled in its brilliant rays. "I don't think most of the pack will be awake for a while. I think they’re usually awake at night, so they'll want to sleep for another few hours, at least. I'm sure there are a few on guard though," I mumbled out, eyes turned to the sky.

Sam nodded in response, holstering his gun. "Then we should probably get Dean and move in."

I nodded in response and walked around the car to where Dean was leaning against the hood of the car. I had to admit, he looked quite attractive in the weak lighting, with his tousled hair and brilliantly green eyes flecked with bits of gold.

"Dean," I began, "Sam and I are going to move into position." He nodded and straightened, holstering his own gun.

"I know. I could hear you two talking."

I smirked and folded my arms teasingly. "Really? I'm surprised humans can even hear that well."

"I'm better than you think," he smiled softly and quickly walked off to where his brother was waiting.

"Sure. Stay safe," I replied, briskly walking away from the brothers and to their vantage point. The point was on top of a small hill, a knoll technically. It was surrounded by trees, with long strands of moss hanging from the branches, making it difficult to see the hunters.

"We all remember the plan, right?" Dean inquired, as he crouched in the brush. Both Sam and I nodded. "Good. Then let's do this."

The two brothers focused their attention on me. My eyes flashed gold as I began to shift. My nose elongated, my spine changed shape – I could feel my bones breaking as they changed position, fur sprouting along my back as my clothing became one with my body.

There was a time when this would have been painful for me to do. Now, it was second nature. In moments, I was once again a wolf. The light filtering through the trees showed brown highlights beneath the thick outer layer of black fur.

Without turning to look at the Winchesters, I burst out of the foliage and into the sunlight, beginning the short trek into the belly of the beast.

—

Tom Chikaltio was just awful in every way imaginable. He was a brutal leader who hated living in the shadows, who demanded everything and more from his pack, even those few things they couldn't give. He was power-hungry and animalistic, only caring for his status and defending his title. Why none of his pack members had left him, I would never truly understand – perhaps they were afraid of what he would do if he ever found the deserters.

Chikaltio was a fearsome opponent. He'd won a number of difficult fights and ruled his meager pack with an iron fist. His dominion was the equivalent of barbed wire slowly squeezing around an animal's torso until it pierced the skin and blood burst forth in the form of revolution.

I had only seen him once in my short life, and it was an experience I never wanted to relive.

It was a midsummer afternoon, only a few months after my uncle's final hunt. The kitchen was unearthly quiet. My uncle’s little dachshund, an orange fluff ball by the name of Peony, would often waddle around the kitchen, her uncut toenails clicking against the linoleum tile. She never liked me much.

The kitchen was quiet, the lights dim in the bright afternoon sun. I had been nursing a beer with my feet propped up on the coffee table and a book in my lap – frankly, I had never been a big fan of alcohol, but it helped to take my mind off my grief. It was better than other bad habits I had picked up. There wasn't much to do other than enjoy the quiet. Although, there was little to enjoy, as I was so used to my uncle’s booming voice and constant motion. He rarely rested, and the house felt so empty without his lively presence.

A sharp screech was heard from the road, the sound of a car turning into the driveway. Despite the months of solitude, I half expected it to be my uncle’s old truck turning into the drive. I realized quickly that couldn't be the case, as he was never returning home. I stood languidly and stretched, attempting to hold back the flood of negative thoughts, threatening to break through the dam I had built around them, and made my way to the door.

I frowned, leaning against the doorway with my beer still in hand, and glared at the approaching silver Toyota Camry. It was an older model, at least ten years old, and the paint was chipped in places. I took another unimpressed sip of my beer and narrowed my eyes at the man who stepped out of the car. The first thing I noticed was his scent; it hit me like a semi, the smell of car oil and fir tree. The fir was one of the most shocking first impressions I had ever had, as it was a rare smell in rural Alabama.

He was tall and stocky, a coat of thick, wiry hair covering his arms and legs. A thin layer of dirt covered his skin and his short-cropped brown hair stuck out at odd angles. He had fearsome, icy blue eyes trained over my relaxed form, and a heavy palm hovering over a pistol on his belt.

The encounter went smoothly, fear lodging itself into both parties. I feared for my life, knowing if I stepped out of line this man would surely try to kill me. Whether he would succeed was unknown to both of us, and that was what scared him. He feared for his position, knowing a third-generation purebred could easily knock him from his throne.

—

I paused on the outskirts of the parking lot, allowing my scent to drift closer. I wanted them to know I was on their land and to ignore the nearby human presence.

I shifted back, knowing full well that starting this fight in my wolf form left me at a disadvantage. I shivered with worry, disregarding the thick Alabaman heat. The small lot was empty, save for the two cars, one a beaten-up pickup and the other a totaled Camry, both covered by blue tarps and surrounded by wood scraps.

Bones littered the lot, teeth marks evident along the many ridges. The front of the gas station had open windows, some with the glass blown out and others covered in a dirty film. A few shadows could be seen milling within the building.

I squared my shoulders, steeled myself, and set one foot back. This was my home, and I was tired of being pushed around. I just wanted to be left alone. It was wishful thinking, but I hoped that maybe my bold display would send Chikaltio away from my home without a fight. I whistled and all movement from within the station stopped.

I jumped when the door slammed open, a small mob exiting the crumbling building. Growls issued from the mouths of mutts and people alike. My eyes widened slightly, seeing the array of dogs rushing me, snapping their jowls aggressively. Few of them looked truly dangerous, and most were just sitting back, watching the display with interest.

I lifted my head with pride, masking the nerves that had my heart fluttering. It had been so long since I had fought something other than a predatory animal. I didn't know what to expect from Chikaltio, but I did know I wouldn't let him continue ruining my life, or the lives of the nearby humans. I would send him on his way, or I would die trying.

Or so I believed until Chikaltio stepped from the shadows of the abandoned building, a gun clutched loosely in his large palms and a cocky smirk on his whiskered face.

Fuck.

"Finally decided to take up my offer?" he asked, his yellow, sharp canines flashing with triumph.

"You mean the one where you said 'join or die'?" I answered with malice, clenching my hands into tight fists. My eyes flickered between his eyes and the gun in his hand, his finger tapping against the trigger. While I was capable of using a gun, I doubted I'd be able to reach my own before he shot me.

Buy time, I told myself. Keep him talking.

"Not quite, though I do like the analogy. I never took you for a patriot," he continued, crossing his burly arms over his chest and holding his pistol on full display, light bouncing off the barrel. I grimaced.

"I never took you for a historian," I spat. My eyes drifted over the crowd and my hands shook with nerves. "I'm surprised you're able to store any useful information in that tiny grapefruit."

His smile only grew. "What are you here for, purebred?"

"I want to talk, mutt," I countered hastily, heart pounding. He seemed so unphased by my antics, and, truthfully, it set me on edge. "I'm tired of being terrorized. And sending two brainless hunters after me was a low blow. I expected something better from an alpha." I spit out his rank like it was poison. I had little regard for the ways of most skinwalkers – I hadn't been raised the way they had, nor was I bitten and forced to conform.

His shoulders tensed slightly, and his eyes fell to a dog beside him. The animal looked like a mixed breed, with russet, wiry fur, and long drooping ears. Its eyes glowed a metallic yellow.

"I was not the one that told Chavez to send them after you. But-" he looked up, meeting my eyes with his own blue ones that seemed to be glowing more now than they had before, "I don't regret how he handled the hunters. It was clever. More clever than I expected him to ever be."

"You don't give him enough credit. He may have the brain of a gerbil, but even gerbils know how to find scraps."

Chikaltio chuckled at this, crossing his arms over his chest. "Did you just come to insult my pack, or did you want something?"

I swallowed slowly and clenched my jaw in determination. My hand moved to the handle of the silver knife attached to my belt. I exhaled shakily, cheeks reddening with nerves. This wasn’t something I really wanted, but it was necessary; this ended now – I would finally have my life back and would never again attract the attention of hunters. 

"Tom Chikaltio, I challenge you for the position of alpha of this pack."

Chikaltio hissed, fangs protruding from his lips in both shock and disgust. "That wasn't part of the offer, darling."

I swallowed, preparing myself for the fight ahead. I paused to think before spitting out, "Well here's my offer, shitbag. Give up your pack now and run back to wherever your pine tree-smelling ass came from, or lay down and die like the inbred mutt you are." I hissed with malice and the intent to kill if necessary, eyes filling with a molten gold color and hoping my message was clear. A few dogs howled at the challenge, some wagging their tails in amusement, eager for a fight.

"You little bitch," Chikaltio snarled, "I'll fucking kill you."

"Tough words for such a small dog," I responded with a shit-eating grin, crying from fear on the inside. The wolf in me was ready to lunge itself at him and tear his throat out for challenging me, a naturally higher ranking skinwalker. But I held back, acknowledging that I had to keep the ball rolling for this plan to work.

The scent of sweet dough, cherries, and beer filled my nose and I had to restrain myself from looking toward the alluring scent. It was an oddly comforting scent, one I had grown to enjoy over the last twenty-four hours. I couldn't give them away - but if I could smell them, certainly Chikaltio could too.

I widened my stance, throwing my hands up in fists, the now yellow bruise and thin scab from where I had been shot showing clearly. "You want to fight, dipshit? Let's dance."

Chikaltio snarled and lunged, shifting almost immediately. The gun he had been holding dropped from his hand. His brown hair, hinted with red, grew to cover his muscled body, and the skin around his jaw loosened, dropping into jowls.

My eyes widened as he lunged forward, jowls flapping and teeth bared menacingly. He was shifting immediately? Did he have that much confidence in his abilities, or was he going all out because he wasn't sure what to expect?

I snarled as his massive paws collided with my shoulders, throwing me backward onto the ground and knocking the air out of my lungs. He snapped at my throat, fangs only inches from the delicate skin. With an angered cry, I lifted my leg to knee him in the ribs, sending him sprawling on the ground at my side. I lifted myself to my feet, crouched low, and prepared for another assault as he pulled himself to his paws. He stumbled to his feet and circled my tensed form, wariness evident in his blue eyes. Realization hit like a tidal wave, slipping over me and bringing a shiver down my spine. Chikaltio had never seen me fight – he had no clue what to expect from me.

I grinned cockily and held my arms wide, welcoming his onslaught. "That all you got, Tom?" The mastiff snarled and whipped his head to the edge of the circle, blue eyes narrowed at a pair of mutts. The dogs stepped into the thin ring, lips drawn back and growls rumbling in their throats.

Shit. Could I really take on three of these mutts at once? I had never tried such a thing – hell, the only other skinwalkers I had fought had been my parents, and that was years ago. These dogs were larger than their mastiff alpha, but certainly not as fearsome. They were littered with scars from previous fights and the two were in rough shape, looking as though they hadn't won many of their encounters. I had faith that if I could separate them from Chikaltio, I could easily take them.

"Three against one?" I asked coyly, redirecting my attention back to the slobbering mastiff. I had to keep him distracted long enough for the Winchesters to make their move. "Don't you think that's a bit unfair?" Don't give yourself away just yet, I thought. Make them work for it.

The monsters didn't make me wait for them. The larger of the two mutts growled and lunged forward, taking me to the ground once more. The ground was where I was in my element – with all four limbs on the ground, furred or not, I knew I could win. My molten eyes swelled with color as I delivered a swift kick to its gut. The beast's whimper quickly turned into a snarl as he was thrown off like a limp rag and onto his back, a strong punch coming down onto his jaw.

I howled as claws dug into my back and the smaller of the two mutts bit into my shoulder. Their fangs sunk deep into the soft flesh and struggled to tear through the thick skin. I rolled and gripped the animal's jaw in my hand, pulling back on its gums until it released. I snarled and pushed the side of its face into the concrete, only to have the other quickly on top of me. An inhuman sound escaped my lips as the animal clawed at my stomach, attempting to shred the sensitive skin.

The two animals had me pinned, clawing and biting and tearing at whatever they could reach. I fought back, thrashing under their weight with all my might. I gripped the throat of one of the drooling beasts and lifted, putting pressure on its arteries until it loosened its claw grip from my body. My arms shook under the weight of holding the monster, and yet I locked eyes with Chikaltio. His skin went cold at the look of pure rage I cast at him.

I was so tired of this mongrel trying to control my life when all I wanted was to be left alone. Now, he had the audacity to have others fight his battle for him. My skin burned, the blood beneath burning with rage and hatred for this incompetent mutt.

Time seemed to slow around me as my eyes skipped from Chikaltio's worried eyes to a shadowed figure behind the totaled Camry. In the shadows stood Sam, a horrified look on his features as he watched the bloody display.

I flashed him a reassuring smile, meeting his eyes with warmth, hoping he understood my feelings in that moment. I wasn't going to be bested by Chikaltio, or anyone else.

Lifting a toned arm to the throat of the dog above me, I pushed hard. He fell to the side, blocking Chikaltio's view of the fight. I inhaled deeply and rolled my shoulders, ignoring the feeling of nails and fangs in my skin. Fur burst from my skin and my bones cracked, reorganizing into a canine's skeleton. In a matter of seconds, I was in my fur, fangs bared and flying towards Chikaltio.

Chikaltio went down, claws latched to his ribs and fangs sunk into his shoulder, grinding the bone until it shattered between my jaws. Claws raked over my back and sides, though I didn't care. I wanted him gone from my life, even if that meant killing him.

He was an example, something to show all other opposing skinwalkers that I was not to be trifled with.

I was dragged snapping and snarling off Chikaltio's battered form by three dogs, fangs barely reaching my skin through my thick fur. Chikaltio righted himself, blood dripping down his shoulders from several puncture wounds, the skin of his ribs torn and flayed. He pounced, forelegs shaking and jaws aimed for my stomach.

An explosion went off, tossing nearby mutts to the ground. The Camry was splintered, bits of metal raining down over the dogs and persons around it, flames rising high. My sensitive ears were ringing, and through the smoke, I saw the Winchesters charging forward and shooting at any dog who dared to come their way. With a victorious howl, I ripped away from the mutts holding me and slammed thick paws down onto the spine of a russet-colored hound.

I tore into the skin on his back, damaging the dog's spine before rolling to the side and leaving it to rot. A surprised yelp tore out of my throat as another came flying forward, tackling me from above. It snapped its thick jaws at my face and I snarled, lips pulled back to reveal pink gums and blood-stained teeth. With a mighty shove, I dug my nails into its neck, threw it to the ground, and sunk my fangs into its throat. Blood spurted across my face as I yanked, hating the feeling of its blood slipping down my jaws.

I glanced over her shoulder, seeing the third animal writhing on the ground, a silver bullet lodged in its chest. I winced and padded towards it, brushing its cheek with the end of my wet nose. The animal whined, the silver preventing it from shifting back. Taking pity on the bloody animal, I took its skull between my jaws and squeezed, ending the poor skinwalker's misery.

I whipped my head around to face a shaking, bleeding Chikaltio, his short tail tucked. He snarled in defiance, blood slicking his shoulders and running through his red fur. Thin bits of metal decorated his back and he kept most of his weight on one leg, favoring his left shoulder.

I took a few slow steps towards the battered mongrel, teeth bared and lips drawn back in a silent snarl. He held his head high, feet planted wide, and prepared for more. I stopped my slow pursuit and gazed down at his much smaller form with an intensity in my eyes I had only felt on a few occasions. I bent my neck until I was eye level with the smaller mastiff, hoping my eyes portrayed what I was thinking. I hoped they were telling him that if he would submit and leave my home, I wouldn't need to kill him.

As much as I would have liked to send him on his way, I couldn't leave him alive unless he agreed to go willingly. My simple act of kindness would become my downfall – Chikaltio was not one to let something like this slide. He would come back stronger and with help.

He growled, snapping and dripping slobber onto the ground. That was enough of an answer for me. I lunged, gripping his neck just under his strong jaw muscles, and squeezed. He fought but eventually succumbed, muscles relaxing until finally, he fell limp to the concrete.

—

I nursed my wounds and watched the last of her new pack cart out the dead. There were seven of them left and four of them were injured. The only two I recognized left uninjured were an Irish Setter by the name of Sasha and a blue heeler I didn't know. Sasha was rather kind, assisting the pack in whatever way she could, and even provided me with bandages to patch myself up.

To my surprise, I had come out of the fight with no serious injuries. Sure, I was bruised and bleeding in place, but my shoulders and back were the main sources of my pain. The puncture wounds left by the monsters would heal soon enough.

Monster. Nobody fit that title better than I did. I pulled my arms tighter around me, shivering in the nonexistent cold. I understood that fighting was the way of skinwalkers, but I couldn't help but be appalled by what I had done. There should have been another way, one where no one had to die. Perhaps if Chikaltio had shared my philosophy, he would still be alive.

If he had shared my philosophy, there would have never been a problem to begin with.

The Winchesters had done a number with their bullets, although they had eventually run out. There were only so many bullets you could carry in a pistol, and silver bullets weren't exactly easy to make or come by. They had a limited supply.

I sat by myself now atop the beaten pickup surveying the aftermath of the explosion, a sandwich in hand. One leg was hung over the side of the truck and I swung it with little attention. I surveyed my new pack with curiosity, waiting for one to meet my eyes. So far, none had.

I took a thoughtful bite of my sandwich, thinking about the recent fight. My face fell at the thought of Chikaltio's throat between my jaws. It had been so much like hunting a deer, and yet so different. My appetite fled, replaced by feelings of remorse.

I hopped down from the pickup, worn boots hitting the graveled parking lot now stained with blood and ash. I mulled around the pack, hoping to catch someone's eye and strike up a conversation. Oddly enough, the feeling of having a pack made me giddy.

After another few hours of attempted chatter, I was back on the pickup, this time standing on top of the cab. I whistled before I could think to stop myself and all heads turned towards me - furred and not. From within the crowd, I caught Dean's eyes, a reassuring smile on his freckled face. I was thankful that he had agreed to help with the aftermath of the fight. Truthfully, I doubted if I could have done it alone.

The dogs immediately seated themselves on the ground around the truck - those who could at least. Some stood, leaning against each other like makeshift crutches. The air was thick with tension as I struggled to find the words I wanted to speak.

"I'm a vegetarian," I began and then sucked in a shaky breath immediately after, face flushing. That was not what she wanted to say. "My point is... we all have very different lives. I never wanted to be an alpha. I wanted the threats against me to end, and I wanted the deaths of the humans to end. I never wanted..." I gestured to the pack, "... this..."

I ran a hand nervously through my hair and turned my gaze away from my newfound pack. A part of me was disappointed that I had chosen to send them away.

"Listen, I'm sorry. I know I... hurt a lot of you. I know I disrupted your life here. And I know that many of you have very different morals than me. That's why..." I paused and took a deep breath. "That's why I've decided to disband the pack." Hushed whispers filtered through the skinwalkers below me, some of relief, some of shock.

"I never wanted to hurt anyone, and I worry that if I stay alpha – something none of us want – then someone else is going to get hurt. This pack would never thrive by the way I've taken it. So... let's cut our losses and go our separate ways," I spoke with a final weak shrug, not entirely sure how to explain this to them. It felt so alien to me, talking to a group of skinwalkers as their apparent leader, even though I was one of them.

"But," I started again, tone firmer this time, "If I hear that any of you have been hurting innocent people again, I'll be sure to track you down and kill you myself. Worse than I did Chikaltio. That's it."

I hurriedly hopped down from the truck, avoiding their gazes, and passed through the few dogs that were, for a short time, my pack. The Winchesters watched me with intent gazes as I marched towards them, head held high.

I stopped in front of Dean, holding his stare for a moment before saying, "Take me home." I had meant to phrase it as more of a question, but it sounded blunt and demanding as my voice shook. The elder Winchester smiled. "Gladly, sweetheart."

—

I had never been happier to be home, in my own house, in my own bed. I was so excited when I took a shower, washing the dirt and grime and depression from my skin, and cleaning the blood from my hair. The tub would be a nightmare to scrub, but at least I was finally clean.

I sighed and rolled onto my back, gazing at the ceiling. Despite my exhaustion, sleep evaded me, always just out of reach. Images of the recent fight floated through my mind; in a way, I was glad, as I was not yet plagued by the nightmares that were sure to come.

I rolled onto my side once more, gazing out the large window of the second-story loft. I tried to imagine running in that open glade just outside the thin glass, tall grasses brushing against my fur, the wind parting my thick coat until it trailed its icy fingers down my skin. Instead, all I saw were the broken, bleeding, and lifeless faces of those I had killed. The skinwalker with a bullet-ridden chest that I had chosen to put out of its misery. The russet hound his neck I had crushed until blood dripped into its throat, staining my jaws. And finally, Tom Chikaltio, blue eyes lifeless and fur receding back into his skin as he fell to the ground with a dull thump.

I didn't even try to stem the flow of tears that slipped down my cheeks.

[crimeronan]

Hello, got a TOH question for you! I'm trying to write a scene from only-slightly-canon-divergent!Luz's POV, and to dismay finding I'm struggling with it. Any pro tips for writing her you can pass on to someone who didn't study at Luz University? 😅

aw, this is a sweet ask. i'm flattered to be considered a resident luz expert! and i LOVE an excuse to infodump. this got long i'm sorry i just love thinking about. my girl.

luz is usually pretty whimsical and optimistic (which is why her later self-destruction hits so hard), she believes in people and she believes in The Triumph Of Good Over Evil. she's weird and doesn't understand social norms but she cares So Much, About Everything, Ever. she believes that things will work themselves out like they do in stories, she sometimes steps on people's toes when she's trying to fix a situation, she loves an underdog story and it's constantly getting her into trouble.

i think the biggest three things for me when writing luz POV are these:

-

she is UNRELENTINGLY kind and trusting.

this is her biggest strength - she's constantly befriending her enemies through the sheer power of earnestness. and this is how she makes and keeps friends like willow, gus, and eda.

this is also one of her biggest weaknesses - she gave hunter back his staff in hunting palismen when she Really Should Not Have, she didn't pick up on philip's Bad Vibes, etc.

she truly honest-to-god believes the best in everyone and is surprised and hurt whenever they disappoint her.

-

2. she has NO impulse control and CRIPPLINGLY hyperactive ADHD.

luz is all over the place, constantly. her thoughts and hyperfixations go a mile a minute. she can devour a book in a day and learn a conlang in a week, but she can't sit still and she has the type of ADHD that makes traditional classroom learning borderline-impossible.

outside of school, you see this constantly in the decisions she makes, or rather the decisions she Doesn't make. luz always blurts out exactly what she's thinking, when she's thinking it. she always thinks that her first solution to a problem is the best one & rarely plans beyond that. she's not an analytical strategist. in fact she's frequently fucking up everybody else's plans by..... just. being luz.

the fact that luz always says and does whatever she's thinking is, again, one of her greatest strengths: she is SO earnest and genuine, and it makes it easy for people to believe in her. she loves SO openly and is so lovable in turn.

it's also one of her greatest weaknesses because. oh my god, girl. challenging boscha to a witch's duel on willow's behalf. angrily shouting straight-up heresy about belos in public in hollow mind. all the shit that got her into trouble in the human realm before she ran away. u know

-

3. she is Desperately Afraid of hurting people.

i'd say she's afraid of being a Bad Person (TM), but i do think her fear is more specific. in WAD, her nightmare isn't exactly about having committed atrocities herself -- she doesn't even believe she could have! she knows she didn't create the statue graveyard, she immediately tells amity "i don't know what's going on, but i wouldn't have done this."

all of her fears are related to things her friends & family went through after meeting her.... she's terrified that she's going to hurt the people she loves, no matter how much she tries not to. she's terrified that her presence in the world is harmful by itself.

same with her rant in the classroom in TTT. when she says "it would be better if he [i] never existed," she even says (paraphrasing) "who cares about the broader impacts or the greater good. who cares if he was a hero or wanted to do the right thing. it doesn't matter!!! what matters is that he ruined everything anyway!!!!"

her anxiety with papa titan reflects this, too. "doesn't that make us just like belos??" she's figuring out how to navigate the world and complex morality and she's terrified of getting it Wrong. she already feels like she's done everything wrong & it's completely shaken her sense of self. she doesn't trust herself not to hurt people or to work for evil because she doesn't have a clear understanding of what separates her ideology from belos's.

this third point often isn't relevant in fluffy/lighthearted fic because luz's optimism, joy, and simple zest for life are Definitely dominant in her character. but it is VERY relevant when doing character studies or angstier writing exploring her headspace in situations where she feels guilty or afraid.

-

everything else is set dressing. she's quirky and weird, she's bouncy and stimmy, she loves bats and rats and snakes and bugs and creepy crawlies, she loves gross shit, she loves shipping and romance and sweeping high fantasy, she gets Deeply invested in every random plan she ever conceives, and she is Astonishingly easy to love because of how easily she loves.

you don't have to keep every single detail of this in mind when writing her!! this was just a nice excuse to gush about my girl who i love so so so so so fucking much. luz love of my life daughter of my heart FOREVER.

[thedodgyau]

Explaining my ‘Coven heads adopt Hunter AU’

So basically in an AU where Luz never came to the isles, but everything goes smoothingly, just without her??

I mean Willow and Amity might take longer to reconcile, but they will eventually.

Things might take a bit longer, but I imagine that Phillip will have figured things out by himself just a month or two later without her.

So basically, the au starts on the DOU, Hunter has defected at this point, but instead of it being the Hexsquad who run to the human realm, it’s the coven heads.

They have to adapt to life in the human realm, get over there fued, and maybe even develop a bit of a found family bond. Adrain even manages to get a job.

Back in the Demon realm Hunter, who was close with Gus and Willow, had taken refuge at ‘New Hexside’ occasionally thought about the coven heads, and wondered what had come about of them. He has a lot of mental trauma to process, and isn’t doing so good.

Belos, who followed the Coven heads into the human realm, eventually possessed Raine, who was able to fight him off, and ended up with the tear scar things we see in WaD.

They open the portal, get back home, and now have a crusty child abuser and little starbrat to face.

Hunter, needing to clear his head, goes on a walk, and gets attacked and possessed by Belos.

Belos takes Hunter the castle and tried to manipulate The Collector, but when the two get separated, Hunter finds a large body of water and tried to drown him out, and Belos separated from him, and Hunter tried to chase after him, but he was exhausted, and fighting down a massive panic attack. Belos ends up connecting himself to the Titans heart.

The coven heads find the collector, and after being tortured for a bit they manage to try and connect with him, and then go to try and defeat Belos.

They find Hunter in similar circumstances to the way they found Raine, and after a quick reunion with a child whose kind of frightened of them, they end up trying to defeat Belos.

And then Hunter, the child they were starting to grow just a little fond of and realised they’d greatly wronged over his short life, dies trying to save the collector.

Where he meets the golden guards and Papa Titan, gets a hug, some reassurance, and also some badass Titan powers.

So then- Belos is dead, Hunters got some serious trauma that he needs to talk about, The coven heads have managed to aquire a child, The Collector is back in the stars, and everyone is happy.

[thousand-winters]

Any WIPS you wanna discuss? No reason for this, just wanna hear some of your ideas!

Another ask I just answered just reminded me about this, oops, don't mind my late answer, I'm all over the place, but hello!!! 💖 Hopefully you've been having a good day!!!

But yes!!! I think I hadn't written this one down and I half forget about it because of that but I had this idea for a fic that I rambled about once on Discord and I'm going to copy/paste it here because I still think it's fun (even though it was before WAD came out, so I didn't know about the castle crumbling yet, oops)

Basically I had this premise with Hunter talking about Darius in the human realm, and eventually, with Camila's (and Luz's, probably) help, coming to terms with the fact that he would like to try being part of Darius's family and since the man clearly cares for him, at least according to the opinion of others, planning to ask Darius about that at some point after returning But then of course, shit goes down, and by the time everything's over, Darius is lowkey like "oh, so there's been someone taking care of him, okay, cool, this doesn't make me feel any particular kind of way" and after a brief reunion, starts pulling an Eda in ER kind of thing because he doesn't want to hear about Hunter finding a home with the Nocedas, even if he feels bad about it because he should want the best for Hunter regardless of his own feelings. All the avoiding makes Hunter in turn think Darius knows what he's gonna ask and is avoiding having to tell him no, and he's kinda embarrassed to tell Camila and his friends about it because they were so sure Darius would love to take him in, how can he tell them this? So because Hunter has no common sense, he's lowkey like "yeah, sure, he said yes, okay, bye" and goes to the only place he can think of where people won't notice: his old room in the castle (assuming the castle would be kinda abandoned), and keeps pretending for a bit that he is with Darius but Darius doesn't like visits and stuff like that. No Flapjack anymore to impart some reason into this boy Of course it wouldn't last long because Camila and the kids assuming Hunter is with Darius and Darius assuming he is with Camila can only last for so long before either party mentions anything and the other goes "??? what???" but Hunter sure tries to keep it up as long as possible

I was unsure at the time if I could pull it off but this was, dear gods, from almost a year and a half ago, and I have written a fair bit of Dadrius stuff since then, so you know what? I think I can pull it off nicely and I want to do it too! So I'm counting as a WIP now, opening a document to pour this in as we speak so I never forget again.

[lollytea]

How old is the hexside squad in the Neverland AU second question, What do they wear?

Same ages as their canon selves. The girls are between 14-15, Gus is 12-13, Hunter is 16.

I don't have any specific insistence on what they wear cuz I see that as a creative liberty.

Luz and Gus are Lost Boys and those guys just fucking wear whatever. Idk what's going on in these pics but Slay 💅🏻

Anything from pajamas to stolen pirate garments to old scrubby human realm clothes that they wore when they got here that they've patched up or modified. Anything goes. Lost Boy fashion is a lawless land. There's also shit like animal pelts but I don't imagine Luz would wear those. Gus probably wouldn't either. He's a fashionista so

With Amity it's like...I haven't decided on a specific time period but I'm leaning towards the Edwardian era. Loosely. Cuz like. It'll probably get a little historically inaccurate at times but I really don't care and that's why it's a very noncommittal connection to that era. That being said, I imagine Amity appearing in Neverland in her prim and proper period appropriate attire. She would try to keep herself tidy because this is the only outfit she's got and she needs to take care of it and a teacher cannot look unpresentable. But like....Neverland is Neverland. Its still probably got some tatters and torn damage and stains but she's making it work. Something along these lines

Either that or she wears a night dress like Wendy Darling.

Willow is.....she is whatever. In my head Willow has a whole closet of cute little fairy outfits. Fairy outfits are just so CUTE to me and I've been obsessed with all the little fits people have been drawing her in. Artists are fashion designers to me 😌

Inspo of cute little flower petal dresses from fairy illustrations is so lovely to think about

And also gotta remember Emmy's concept art for WAD epilogue Willow, which is SOO fairycore

And honesty I don't even have any ref for Hunter. I don't know. I don't care. Pirate. He wears pirate things. As long as he looks a little fruity, I don't give a fuck what he's got on his back.

[thisisdes]

Things and little details from WAD that I really like and find cute, part 1

1 Stringbean photo and her corner in Luz's room

2 Bee having the exchange program logo in her shirt

3 Luz, Willow, Hunter and Gus having patched that represent themselves or others characters

Luz have potion (Eda), music (Raine), and abomination (Amity) patches. Also a four one that I'm not quite sure what it is, but that represent king most likely.

To me, the emerald entrails logo in Willow's chest is a patch, so it represent her. On the other side, Hunter have abomination (Darius), Emerald Entrails (Willow) and the mirror/illusion earring (Gus).

Gus, just like Willow, have patches that represent him: the titan skull that all the teachers wear and planet earth making allusion to the human realm.

4 Alastor having a representation of his kids on his belt

The gems for Emira (green) and Edric (blue), and the moon for Amity.

5 The hospital where they are taking out the coven's sigils is the same place where Hunter went with Luz in Hunting palismen

There are probably more details that I haven't seen, others that people probably already pointed out, and others that will be in part 2. See ya💙

Oh! Also, if you found some details that want to share please put it down so everyone can see them too!!

[mayhasopinions]

I'm seeing people thinking that Luz's desicion to leave the Boiling Isles is gonna actually happen. i'm here to say confidently that it is definately not going to happen. Luz is going to stay in the Boiling Isles.

The entire point of Luz's arc is that the only thing attatching her from the Human Realm is Camila. Nothing else! She's happy in the demon realm, theres no way shes gonna leave, she'll just be unhappy. It doesn't make sense. besides, Dana wouldn't separate Lumity, that would be a bit stupid.

And also I'm seeing people think that the 3rd episode title "Watching and Dreaming" is referring to the theory that the whole of Owl House was Luz's dream. I'm hinging on no for that theory, because a load of people thought "Eda's Requiem" meant that Eda was gonna die, so i wouldn't take the titles of episodes too seriously. I mean, what connection did the FTF title have to the actual episode, other than Luz's palisman. Plus, WAD could mean a bunch of things. It could be the Collector who was watching and dreaming from their prison or watchinga and dreaming for a better life or a real playmate he can trust. it could be with Eda, watching puppet Raine and dreaming on how things could be different. It could be Luz in another way, watching all this chaos unfold and dreaming of something to fix it, the possibilities could be endless! Plus, how could Luz have dreamed a whole 3 seasons?? The show is from different people's pov's too like amity's, hunter's, willow's, gus's, eda's etc, how would that all be a dream? doesn't make any sense tbh

anyway enough of my tangeant, i'm gonna go back to watching disney burn and dreaming for a human realm and raeda spinoff. or a luca tv show. both would be nice.

[kittiwittebane]

NERDS/NATURE

TIME FRAME: About a year after WAD.

Warnings: ???

Willow patted down the dirt in her garden. She wiped the sweat off her forehead, breathing out in exhaustion.

“Finally.” she sighed. She’d spent all morning planting orchids in her garden at home. She wasn’t so sure if they would survive in the boiling isles, due to the fact that they were from the human realm, but there was no harm in trying.

“Now I just have to plant the sunflowers!” she smiled to herself, looking over at the packets of seeds that rested beside her. She shook her head at herself and decided to have lunch first, getting up and brushing the dirt off her dress. Why did she decide to do it in a dress? Because it had more airflow than pants. She wouldn’t get as hot, in the middle of summer on the boiling isles, in the sun in her garden.

“How’s the planting going, flower?” Gilbert asked his daughter.

“It’s going good dad.” she replied.

“We made your favourite lunch!” Harvey appeared from the kitchen with a plate of spider dumplings.

“Awww! Thanks papa, dad!” she smiled, taking the plate. She sat down at the table and started eating her dumplings. Someone knocked on the door.

“I’ll get it.” Harvey waved at his daughter. “You stay and eat.”

The man walked over to the door and opened it, only to find a lanky, blonde, messy looking boy in a dirty apron at his door.

“Can we help you?” Harvey asked.

“I- I have something for Willow.” He squeaked. Harvey tipped his head to one side.

“Right… and what is that?” he asked. Hunter shyly rubbed his fingers together.

“Just some seeds.” he blushed.

“Seeds?” Harvey questioned.

“Y-yes.” Hunter nodded. “Seeds.”

“Did Willow ask you to-”

“Hunter!” Willow exclaimed, pushing past her papa. “Hi!”

Hunter’s face reddened. “H-Hi!” he smiled awkwardly. “Willow. I have these for you.” he handed her a bag of seeds that Willow immediately recognised.

“They’re-”

“Firesunflower seeds! The single rarest plant on the boiling isles, only ever been found once, not recorded where. The flower emits such a beautiful light that it captivates all that are goodhearted!” Willow exclaimed. Hunter looked at her, surprised.

“Hunter, where did you get these?!” she hissed. Hunter was still taken aback.

“I found them on a flower that I hadn’t seen-”

“YOU FOUND THESE ON THE FLOWER?!” Willow blurted out. “Where!?”

“Look, Will, I’ll tell you later, I-”

“We have to plant them! Come onnnn!” Willow grabbed his hand and led him through the house, all the way out to the garden.

Harvey stood at the door, stunned, while his husband stood inside the house, equally stunned, as they both just watched their daughter drag some random blonde guy through the house. Unsurprised by her surprising strength, Hunter grunted as he hit the ground, hauled into a pile of dirt where he guessed Willow had recently dug up.

“No one knows how to grow one, so we have to try every single different way!” Willow squealed. “Lots of water, not lots of water, shade, no shade, partial shade! And everything in between!” she declared. Hunter admired her determination. She then looked at him, caught him smiling at her. He blushed.

“Uh- I can show you where I found it.” he spluttered. “Maybe tomorrow, because tomorrow is-”

“THE FLAMING SUNSET! The only time of the year when the Firesun Flower has more power due to the alignment of the galaxies just before the sunset which enhances the flower’s fire power!” she didn’t even try to contain her excitement, cutting Hunter off with a logical response. “EEEEEEeeeee!” she squealed. “This is so exciting!” she grabbed Hunter’s shoulders and shook him.

Hunter smiled and blushed a little, seeing her so excited. He liked it when she was happy. She turned back to the flowers.

“Help me plant these sunflowers so that I can figure out where to plant the Firesuns!” she grabbed his arm again, putting him down where the Sunflower seeds were, pushing a packet over to him. He nodded, quickly grabbing the Sunflower seeds and watching how she did it closely, and not only because the way she scrunched her nose when she was focused was cute, but because he needed to know how to do it. He quickly replicated her, and soon, the flowers were planted.

“Thank sooo much Hunter! You’re the best!” She hugged him tightly. He looked downwards, once again, blushing, and nodded. They walked to the door.

“So, I’ll pick you up tomorrow at four?” he asked. Willow nodded.

“Bye!” she waved and shut the door behind him.

BONUS SMALL DETAIL:

“DARIUS!” Hunter crashed through the door. “I accidentally asked Willow to watch the flaming sunset with me because I gave her some Firesun seeds which the power of enhances when the sunset starts and I don’t know what to doooooo!” he wailed. Darius shook his head.

Of course this was his kid.

_

I know I’ve made a small story about this sunset before, but if you guys would like, I’d also like to remake it. Make it better. :3

[theprinceandthewitch]

The way TTT is a really good set-up episode for an amazing series finale but FTF and WAD read like expensive Lumity fanfics with Huntlow as the side pairing written by a 12 year old:

1.) In FTF they made the characters walk from Evelyns house to TOH for no reason. Mind you this place is the first one we see after Philip name drops Evelyn when talking to Luz in TTT.

2.) Hunter gets a power-up for no fucking reason. He doesn't even use Flapjacks magic to help Luz kill Philip. He doesnt get to help Luz kill his abuser. The show erases Hunter's disability and kills off his service animal. Hunter did not need this source of magic - he was perfectly fine with glyphs.

3.) The show erases the titans magic, which makes glyph magic unusable. This erases the theme of disability TOH has tackled within the show, because glyphs are an alternative form of magic used by magicless beings. Which is pretty damn important in a society where you need magic to participate in it. Not having an internal source of magic is a disability and Hunter implies in Hunting Palisman that without Belos giving him artifical magic, he couldnt have a future on TBI's. Luz could not receive an education unless she could cast magic. The glyphs made it so that she could go to school. Also Wild magic [glyphs] was something Luz and Hunter were interested in, so it feels weird to take that away from them. But yeah, by erasing glyphs, they've erased the theme of disability this show was not afraid to tackle. How does this not scream executive meddling? Why would a show that tackled disability through Luz and Eda not commit to it to the very end? Why is Hunter's disability "cured" but Eda's isn't? [Because Hunter's disability isnt as "cool" as Eda's is?] Why was it absolutely necessary for Hunter to get an internal source of magic and for Luz to lose her connection to glyph magic?

4.) The School shit in FTF is such a time waster. Most of this episode could be cut out by having Gus, Amity or Willow have the memory tweezers on them before they come to the human realm. Or you could write it where Luz finds a pair of tweezers hidden away in TOH. I still cant believe Boscha ate up the screentime like that. But even more so I cant believe you'd establish Hunter having Flapjacks powers and not let him use them to help Luz kill his abuser.

5.) Amity is able to carve a glyph into the floor despite the doll magic being a form of magic that robs someones autonomy. Amity freeing everyone and herself from the doll magic with only a light glyph presents a huge problem as it makes King, Eda, and Lilith look like complete idiots for not trying this out sooner. They all know glyph magic.

6.) Odalia looks like she is going to do something conniving in FTF after seeing Eda is free from her cage, but nothing comes from this.

7.) The dream sequences at the beginning of WAD were completely pointless and jarring to sit through.

[mistyfoxxy]

I saw someone say that they think the scenes of (Hunter and Willow) (Camila, Amity, and Gus) (Luz) from the teleporting spell was prob a reference of them splitting up in WAD.

Here’s my Huntlow take on this. And Puppet Willow her design is based off @raystel ‘s design! Also @rainbowangel110 🙂 .

‼️‼️ found this in my drafts. Unfinished. I sorry. ‼️‼️‼️

.

“So… now what?” Hunter asked quietly. An intense yet soft expression on his face.

Willow felt heat rise up to her face. Titan, she hasn’t realized just how much she had been holding back these last few months. She didn’t think it was love quite yet! But she sure felt close as her heart beat faster and she felt herself lean into him. He inhaled a little sharply, his face turning a shade lighter than the red grass she had missed so much. She curled her hand into his and smiled out towards the others. Everything would be fine. She would find her dads, face the collector and free everyone, and everything would go back to normal and maybe this thing she had now with Hunter would turn into somethi-

“ Guys look out!” Hunter called quickly as he scooped Willow into his arms and dashed to the side.

“Luz!” Hunter napped his face to the direction of Amity’s cry.

Amity stood in front of the human, whose arms stretched before suddenly falling to her side.

“Your coming with me human!”

Hunter had to think fast. Stay and try to fight against the immortal child or get away and make a plan.

“Hey! You change my baby back!” Camila cried.

“Another human? Oh come on! Oh. Wait which one of you is Luz?” They pointed angrily, full of confusion. He then shot out another star toward there group.

Now or never.

“Gus!”

He caught his eye, sending a message just through his eyes as they had developed a habit of over the past months in the human realm.

Gus nodded and grabbed Amity and Camila arms, pulling them and jumping off the cliff.

Hunter grabbed Willows arm and jump off the other side.

“Come back here!”

…

Hunter fought the warmth in his cheeks at the feel of Willow once again in his arms. Gus’ illusion had helped them get away safely, distracting the collectors spells or whatever those star things were.

Willow seemed to be quiet as a mouse. Her tiny chubby frame curled up in his arms was a blessing. It definitely gave him the reason he needed to go into mission mode. Otherwise he’d be a blubbering mess because oh! They held hands! Like actually for no reason other than wanting to. Not to lead him and Gus out of the candy section in Dublix to stop them from stealing candy. Not to show him her favorite flowers and stuff to hurry his walk up. Not to comfort herself during a scary movie (we’ll they both did that). No. This felt. More than friendship. Like. If not what Luz and Amity had yet… then advanced friendship?

Hunter crept farther to the darkness, ready to dash up the the bones of the Titan as they had originally planned to. But they were looking for the collector then. They had found them. What were we supposed to do after that? They really hadn’t planned that far… had they.

“Holy tit-“ Hunter mentally cursed himself for his whispered outburst.

Willow had nuzzled closer into his shoulder. Her lips were perked in a line that said ‘what.’ And she wouldn’t meet his gaze, but she remained there, her hair tickled his chin and he felt himself blush so much more when he noticed her own.

He had to get his head back on his shoulders or they were gonna be puppified too. Maybe now was a good time to put her down- Titan she was so cute. Ugh stop it!

“Where did the others go?” Willow whispered softly.

“I don’t know exactly. I told Gus to go without thinking. There probably somewhere around here but I don’t know where. It seems like the collector is still on our tails though.” He muttered back.

“What sort of magic do you think this is? Have you ever heard about it?”

“The collector? Belos.. he never told me about it. All I know is they’re immortal, that the titans power can cancel theirs out. But I don’t know- wait that’s it-“

Willow clamped her hands over his mouth so fast he hadn’t even seen her do it. She remembered when the draining spell was happened and the collector had used his fingers as if they were binoculars. They wouldn’t be too careful.

[a-hobit]

The amount of prep for my watch party for WaD maybe a little insane (I took off work and am doing a Kings Tide, TtT and FtF rewatch which I CALCULATED the amount of time I’d need before to do — ordering food + snacks and have literally nothing else to do the day of than prepare to watch) but BABES I am so excited oh my god! I am praying they can stick the landing here and leave me at least feeling satisfied so here’s my hopes for WaD to feel satisfying for me!

Hunter to have a significant and emotional part to play in this episode/learning he’s related to Eda in at least a small way.

Luz and/or Hunter to see or play out the death of Caleb.

Caleb to have some speaking lines or I really might cry. Like truly the disappointment might make me hate the episode without that.

EVELYN DESIGN. I STG I would be so upset without anything.

Luz to tell Amity and Hex squad that she’s been feeling really shitty and “wants” to stay in the human realm.

Eda and rain KISS PLEASE MAKE THEM KISS MAKE THEM KISSS I WILL DIE!!

OH GUS AND WILLOW WITH THEIR PARENTS PLEASE!!

I need a reunion scene with all the kids and parents hugging and Hunter left alone until pulled into the Noceda Clawthorne group hug IM CORNY I KNOW

Luz and King “meet” his dad — he’s dead yeah but I want some ghost action from him AND Caleb/Evelyn!!!

Just Luz to be happy in the demon realm obvs.

Hooty LORE!!! I will be so sad otherwise!

I want to see them all in some heartbreakingly beautiful timeskip end art!! MAKE ME CRY!!!

I need Hunter to acknowledge his remaining care for Bellos as he dies — I wanna see Hunter get some closure.

Also I want Hunter and Raine to at least have a small chat about possession baby!!

…now this is just me being a crazy person but my WISH my HOPE OF HOPES is Luz calling Hunter Hermano and that Hunter and Camilla will be stuck together for more of the episode even if not fully speaking to each other the whole time I WANT NOCEDA SIBLINGS AND HUNTER NEEDS A MOM.

And really hitting like 8 of those at least will keep my brainworms going forever guys 😅😅