Abominable -- Hunter x Willow THE OWL HOUSE

Chapter 2: Day Two

Date: (as informed by Camila) September 24th / DAY TWO in the Human Realm

I woke up at 3:45 am. Incredibly abnormal. My body works like a well oiled machine-- it's clockwork. I wake up at 4am. Never a minute early, never a minute late. But I woke up at 3:45am.
The reason for this was right in front of me. The leaf had grown. It had been loosely wrapped around my torso the night before, but now it had tight grasp of my thighs. I willed it off me and sighed with freedom.
If something was wrong with the leaf that meant something must have been wrong with Willow.
I raced up the stairs and found her on the couch asleep. She was tossing and turning, her hands shaking. Tears fell down her face and I swiftly wiped them off in panic.
"Willow," I whispered. It made no impact. "Oh Willow.."
I sat next to her on the couch and pulled her body into my embrace. I softly rubbed her back and rested my cheek against the top of her head.
"It's going to be okay. You're safe. You're alright. We're here with you. You're not alone."
She opened her eyes and let out a breath. She pushed herself out of my arms and I awkwardly led her to sit by my side with a little "Ope, here you go."
Seeing her in pain made me stop thinking and I had gained the confidence to do something I had wanted to do for quite a bit-- hug her. Quickly my cheeks were tinted crimson.
She looked grim as if all emotion had been drained from her face. "I'm sorry," she said. "Please forget this happened, Hunter."
Her words sent shivers down my spine.
"Willow..."
"Good night, Hunter," she said under her breath. It seemed as if speaking any tone louder would've made her voice crack. A vine appeared out of the wood floor and pulled me up from the couch and nudged me away from her. I looked back at her sadly. I wish I could know what was going through her mind.
"Feel better Willow," I mumbled before walking back down to the basement where I'd occupy the rest of my time by perusing the stash of costumes and books inside the little room down there.

- - -

Three hours passed and I heard the click of a door. I went upstairs to see Luz sitting at the table with a bowl filled with a white liquid and small yellow particles.
"Morning," I muttered.
"Hey!!" she chimed.
"You seem chipper."
"I'm always chipper. That and Amity and I were snuggling."
"Spare me the details," I rolled my eyes.
"Why are you up," she said with a chuckle.
"I always get up at 4." She dropped her spoon.
"For WHAT. What could you possibly do at 4am when the rest of the world is drooling on their pillows."
"Thanks for the very welcome image. Ordinarily I'd work out. Today, I read."
"I can see the pay off of those work out sessions," she sniggered, "Those noodle arms looking mighty fine today, Hunt." I turned red with rage.
"Hey! I'm a growing boy. AND I work out my legs more because that's more useful for someone who uses magic. I'm never going to punch someone, but running? All the time."
"Fair."
"So why are you up."
"School. I can't make poor Vee go for me anymore. My grades have been too good, it's unrealistic" I bit back a laugh.
"Enjoy school." A silence fell over us and my mind wandered to 3:45 that morning. Should I tell Luz about Willow? Ideally, should I tell any of them? Willow did say to forget about it....but I am worried. What would be the best course of action for her wellbeing? I'm not sure.
"What are you thinking so hard about there, buddy, there are lines between your eyebrows, you're starting to look like Eda when she's out of appleblood."
"It's just... it's nothing actually."
"Okay then. I'm off Huntsifer. Hm, that sounds like something Aunty Lilith would call you, heh. Anywho, tell everyone where I am and that their mission is to be chill and inconspicuous at home. BE ON YOUR BEST BEHAVIOR. K BYEEEEE!"
She stole the "Bye" from me, didn't she.

- - -

Willow was avoiding my gaze throughout the day. I didn't know what to do. I just kept reading. It's okay, Manny's old nerd books will distract me from this suboptimal situation.
After a while, it had gotten ridiculous and I closed the book shut. I began to walk towards her. Her eyes widened and she started to walk backwards. We continued walking until Willow had bumped her legs against the sofa. She plopped down with a sigh and a look of resignation. She pat the seat next to her signalling me to sit down.
"What's going on, Willow," I asked. She smiled in my direction, the impetus for a million butterflies somersaulting in my belly.
"I'm fine. I'm completely fine, Hunter. I assure you."
"It's okay if you're not. None of us are."
"That's precisely why I need to be."
"No. No you don't. Just like Captain Avery says to Lieutenant Scallywagging Michaelmoonster: Compartmentalizing is what delivery men should do in our space trucks. You have emotions and you need to feel them or they'll snowball and snowball and create a crater in your synthetically created heart designed for multi-galactic space travel."
"You've been reading too many of Manny's books," she giggled.
"I know."
"But that's very insightful. I need to take some time and think about it."
"Good. Because that's not what Lieutenant Scallywagging Michaelmoonster did." She chuckled and by this point, every cell of skin on my body had been tinted pink.
"What did Lieutenant Scallywagging Michaelmoonster do?"
"He stole a space ship and started looting all the planets to get enough treasure to fill that crater in his heart."
"Ahh, hence the 'Scallywagging'"
"Yep."
We talked more about space pirates and our conversation would leap to almost every subject imaginable. We talked and talked until the sun disappeared from the window and the clouds parted for the moon.