Melody's Whispers (discontinued for a rewrite)

Winning Games and Tiny Terrors

With a groan I slammed my head down onto my textbooks.
"I hate everything about this." Ma turned away from her cooking, raising her eyebrow at me. "Don't give me that look. At least I got friends."
"ha! You admit it, we're your friends!" Gus cheered from his end of the Crystal Ball.  I gave him the same look Ma gave me.
"I was meaning Em and Ed. But sure whatever." I took to reading again. Willow and Gus were doing their own homework with Luz with the Crystal Ball keeping them in touch. Turns out, I don't enjoy reading much. Not when it's forced at least. Luz was playing with human sleight of hand tricks, making it look like she'd chopped off her thumb. Gus was shocked. He freaked out.
"you've been talking to them all morning." King complained clinging up to the tabletop. "Don't forget about the Luz and King Comedy Hour!" I groaned to myself again. It was just puns back and forth for an hour. Mostly about bread. I didn't get it. It was just lame really. King sighed as Luz's eight am alarm sounded.  School time, standing up I stretched out my arms and back. Luz kissed King's head I scratched him under his chin, right in that one spot.
"Try not to miss us while we're gone." Luz sung as we left the house.

"You're back!" King cheered, climbing up to Luz's head. "I didn't miss you at all."
"right." I rolled my eyes throwing my bag back onto the table.
"Apparently there's an infestation of pixies at Hexside," Luz explained. "So school's been canceled."
"That sounds like a crumby situation." Well here comes the hour of bad puns and bread jokes. King was cute but everyday for an hour. No thanks.
"Hey, guess what's been in my mouth that I'm about to throw up." We watched as Hooty heaved onto the floor. "The mail!!" Yeah not gross at all. Ma began to flick through the envelopes until she reached a flyer.
"oh! A carnival's in town today!"
"a carnival?!" Luz cheered. "You know, I've been so busy with school lately, what do you say we take this comedy hour on tour? It'll be a Luz and King day!" Luz wrapped her arms around us. "Let's all four of us go!"
"Carnivals bring crowds and crowds bring suckers!" Ma cheered. "This could be the perfect chance to try my new get-witch-quick scheme." Luz and King cheered with Ma excited to go, it seemed like I didn't have much of a say in this.

I wasn't sold on the idea of scamming people at a carnival. The carnival itself was just a massive scam, but Ma was more than keen.
"I'm not helping you. I don't have license to perform here. The whole thing about our scam is one of us actually does it legally. Remember?" Ma shrugged her shoulders at me.
"suit yourself, I'm not sharing the profits." I raised my eyebrow at Ma
"when you get shut down, don't come running to me."
"Friends, welcome!" Ma Luz and King jumped into defensive mode as a small demon, not much bigger than King jumped in front of us with his arms wide open and a grin on his face. "I see you got my postcard!"
"Tibbles, you sent this?" Ma held out the flyer, mean said flyer had the pig demon's face on it.
"someone's gonna have to fill me in here." I said confused. "What's the dynamic here?"
"Willow, Gus and I kinda destroyed his stand with a walking house," Luz admitted.
"and I scammed him out of all his elixir," Ma added.
"Oh, and we destroyed his life! That was the best part!" King cheered. I hid my face in my hands.
"Oh Titan... why am I surprised by this?" I groaned. "You guys can't just go about your day normally can you?"
"technically we were going about our night," Luz said as if she was trying to make things better. No it wasn't.
"Oh no, I should thank you all!" Tibbles cheered. "After my stand was destroyed, I reevaluated my life and found my true calling! I'm now ring master of... Tibbles's Tent of Tiny Terrors!" I got up to his tent and looked to his display, a glass tank with miniature beasts in a set up that looked like a regular circus.
"should I be concerned about how you managed to get a bunch of tiny demons?" I asked. Tibbles shrugged his shoulders.
"I don't buy it, what kind of con are you running?" Ma asked unimpressed.
"no cons here, Owl Lady. Only pros. In fact why don't we toast our newfound friendship with the totally innocent bottle of water?" I raised my eyebrows at Tibbles.
"come on even I know that's a trap." Ma agreed with me and took the bottle from Tibbles's hands throwing it away.
"I know poison when I see it. You can't scam a scammer!" I rolled my eyes at Ma as she rubbed her hands together. "Now speaking of scams..." she shooed off a stall holder, smashing all of his stuff on the ground before taking the spot for herself. "Step right up to Eda's Human Horror House! Humans shed their skin and I've got proof!" Uh huh an old pair of stockings was her 'proof'.
"you should really put a lock on your closet," King told Luz horrified.
"You know what, Eda can pick through my socks all she wants. Because today is all about having a great time with my partner in crime!" I seriously don't think Luz checks the words that come out of her mouth sometimes... King WOULD do crime... he's our pickpocket.
"well, you two have fun. This isn't really my thing. Too loud." I told them turning around to leave. I told Ma I'd go... not that I'd stay.
"come on Mel live a little! Have some fun!" I sighed and shook my head at Luz. She was disappointed.
"ten minutes. I'll wonder around for ten minutes." Luz was happy with that... knowing I wouldn't keep track of the time.

Luz and King had decided they wanted to win games and collect tickets for a prize, a friendship bracelet or whatever. On the way we ran into Willow and Gus. They received an invitation from Tibbles too. Considering what these kids did to his livelihood, I was certain this was a trap.
"But who cares? This place is a Scarris Wheel!" Willow cheered.
"it's like a human Ferris Wheel, but is gives you long lasting nightmares." Gus explained.
"YES! this mama is ready for trauma!" Luz cheered.
"I REALLY wish you wouldn't say stuff like that, you're gonna jinx it." I sighed to myself as Luz explained to her friends that her and King were on a quest to win a special prize for King. The idea of the other two joining them to win ore games came up. Luz loved it.
"Um... Sure Luz. Whatever you want." King wasn't particularly convincing... not to me at least." I watched at the three teens ran towards the games. King barely able to keep up.
"here, Buddy." I picked him up and sat him on my shoulders. "You sure you're okay with the others tagging along? I can talk to Luz if you wanna."
"No it's okay. I do miss spending time with her though." He sounded so glum. "Both of you are always busy with school now."
"I know." I veered from my path slightly to grab a little food. Sharing it with King as we followed behind.

I set King in front of the games and waved the others off.
"it's WAY too loud  down that way, I'm going back to the food carts. Byee!" I picked apart my rotten candy as I scrolled Penstagram.
Em: hey you haven't been online all day. What you doing with you pr day off?
Mel: took Luz and King to the carnival. Kinda a last minute decision. Don't really want to be here if I'm gonna be honest.
Ed: sounds boring, want company?
Mel: anything to keep me from feeling obliged to babysit.
I smiled down at my messages knowing those two they wouldn't be long. I think I waited ten minutes.
"Mel!!" I looked up from my Pensta as Ed called out to me
"hey guys." I smiled at them dusting myself off as I stood up from my bench. "I'm ready to bounce if you guys don't wanna hang around here."
"you don't like the carnival?" Em questioned draping her arm over my shoulders. I shook my head.
"too loud," I told them. "It gets a bit much sometimes."
"can we at least go on a ride or two before leaving?" Ed looked so excited. I shrugged my shoulders.
"nothings stopping you," I told him. "Be my guest."

I didn't mean for them to take me on rides too... but I did enjoy spending time with them.
"Hey let's check this out!" I followed Ed into Tibbles's tent he was putting on a show... when Luz said she was ready for trauma I would bet snails on the fact she didn't mean this. All three teens and King managed to get themselves shrunk down and thrown into a pen with some bloodthirsty or maybe just starved demon beasts.
"are you gonna do something about that?" Ed questioned. I shrugged my shoulders at him.
"she'll be fine. The other two I don't particularly care, but Luz and King... eh, they live in the Owl House this is nothing."
"didn't think I'd see you here." I looked down at Ma dressed in some carnival costume handing out candy crab apples. The three of us bought one from her.
"you got caught running an illegal stand, didn't you?" Ma narrowed her eyes at me. "I won't say I told you so but..."
"you guys owe me!" The crowd started booing.
"Not a single one of those dumb kids have gotten eaten yet!" It was getting way too loud for me.
"wait. Those are my dumb kids!!" Ma shouted, had she not realised before? They were glowing now. I think we missed something. They grew and grew, bursting the pen they were trapped in. See now the thing was... Tibbles had apparently just shrunk down all these starved beasts...
"I think it's time to go. Nice seeing ya, Ma. I'm not staying to clean up this mess."

Screams came from the tent behind us.
"I'm pretty sure I've had enough carnival for today," I sighed. "Don't look so worried. Ma's in there, Luz and King can handle themselves and I'm sure the other two will survive. Come on let's get some real food."
"Uh... if you say so..." I hung my arm over Em's shoulders with a smirk. "You sure you don't need to-."
"there's a human expression that fits this... what was it? Not my circus not my monkeys. To be fair those three squashed Tibbles's market stand with a walking house and ruined his livelihood. They had it coming."
"how do you guys survive on the daily?" Ed sighed to himself. I shrugged.
"We make do. Helps being two of the most powerful wild witches in the Isles though."