#ler!amity

Camila's house was full of chaos since her daughter brought her witch friends from the Boiling Isles. Foot thumping, glass breaking, or ever cat screeches weren't an unusual sound in here. This time, something different could be heard tho...

Hunters eyes widened as he heard a scream coming from the downstairs.

"NONONONONO!! AMITY! NOT THEHEHEHEHERE!!"

He rushed downstairs, a little worried and mostly curious, about what could be going on there. He took a turn into the living room, just to see Amity pinning Luz to the carpet.

His head leaned sideways in confusion.

The blonde walked closer. The other two didn't seem to see him, obviously busy with their... Uh... Activity? What are they even doing?!

The witch girlfriend was sitting on the human's waist and squeezing her hips, as Luz squirmed left and right as much as she could, and whined with laughter. Hunter decided to approach them.

"Hey.... what are you two doing?" He asked

"AHAHAH!! HUNTER HEHEHEHELP ME!! AHAHhah!!" Luz shouted to him

"Oh-! Hi Hunter! I'm just teaching her about what happens when she calls me the cutest bully she's ever met." Amity replied, clearly not minding her partner's screams.

"I WAS KIDDING!! Ahahaha!!! It was a JOHOHOHOKE!! NOHOHO!!!" Luz replied

"Woah- well- that's funny. Doesn't it hurt her tho? Not that I'm worried, just asking, ya knowww" He was getting even more confused and concerned than he already was. He just wouldn't admit that lol.

"Hurt her? Nooo. I've tickled her more than that in the past, she can handle it" The witch replied.

"Noooo Amihihihityyyy, don't say thahahahat!!!" Luz whined, as her gf slowed the tickle down, now only gently spidering up and down her sides, causing her to giggle and squeak from time to time.

"Uhh, you did what?" Hunter asked, joining in on ignoring Luz and her silly noises.

"Tickled her? What about that?" Amity thought he just didn't hear her right.

"What's that?" He deadpanned

"What's what? Tickling?" The witch replied, still not believing that he understood her properly.

"Yeah, that. What is it?"

Amity froze and stared at him, as Luz laid flat, enjoying the fresh air as she took a few deep breaths and sat up.

"You... don't know... what tickling is...?" This time the human asked, still huffing from the attack.

"...should I?" Now Hunter was truly concerned.

"Well, it's not that you should, but still...* Amity said

The girlfriends just sat there in silence for a moment, wondering what to do with that piece of information. Then Amity got an idea:

"Well, do you want to learn about it?"

Hunter thought nothing of it, before replying. "Uhh sure? It did look a bit terrifying tho."

"Terrifying? Oh, there's nothing to be scared of, it's fun, I promise! Luz just has strong reactions, hehe~" She laughed at her girlfriend, as she groaned with fake annoyance.

"Here, try to tickle her!" Amity said as she pinned the other girl to the carpet again.

"Wha- Hey!" Luz protested

"Shut up, it's in the name of science" her gf replied, then got back to explaining as if nothing happened. "Go on! You can start here." she pointed at Luz's belly, classic spot.

"You mean, just kinda scratch her like that?" Hunter did the spidering motion he saw on the girl's sides earlier, curious and even a bit happy to learn.

"Yeah! Just, gently, okay?" Amity replied

"Oh, okay." He started wiggling his fingers on Luz's stomach, then he watched as she began giggling and squirming again. She just laid there and took it, it's in the name of science after all.

"Eek! Ahahaha!"

"Oh, I can see how it works now. You just touch her, and she laughs, right?" He asked, amused by Luz's reactions.

"Yeah, sorta. Let's go with it for now, you'll learn more later. Why don't you try changing up the spot now? We don't want Luz to get bored" She smirked at her lover.

"Ahaha!! Is it stihihihill in the namehehehe of science...? Hehehe!" The girl asked concerned

"It is, now moving on, you can pick the other spot Hunter." Amity replied quickly

"Uhhh... What about... Here?" He moved his hand up to her armpit, clueless of what's about to happen.

"AHAHAHA!! NOhohoho!! NOT THERE! AHAHhahahHAH!!" Luz nearly shrieked.

"Nice choice, going straight for the kill I see." The purple-head said calmly.

"Are you sure she's alright tho...?" Hunter continued tickling her hesitantly.

"Yeah, she actually loves it. But I think she's had enough, for now~"

Last giggles left Luz as she was let go by Amity, and Hunter had stopped the ticking.

"Good job babe." The female witch leaned down and kissed her partner's forehead, as her own pointed ears lit up with blush. All of this made Hunter roll his eyes at their romantic action.

"So... That's all?" He said.

"Oh nonono. You gotta experience it to really know what you're dealing with." Luz said after finally catching her breath.

"Yeah! Lay down." Amity added.

"Ummm I'm not sure if I wanna do that..." Hunter said carefully, clearly hesitating.

"Oh, you wanna sit? It's alright, we'll catch you if your back gives out and you fall behind on the ground" the human said, grabbing a few pillows and placing them behind Hunter so he wouldn't get hurt if he happened to fall. "Here! Now you will be safe even when you fall."

"okay...?" The grimwalker said quietly as he crossed his legs in order to sit more comfortably.

"Great. Now, put your arms up." Amity went on, while she and Luz positioned themselves on each of Hunter's sides. He did as he was told, putting his arms up in the air.

"We will start slowly, and we'll stop the second you tell us to. And also, don't be afraid if nothing happens, you could just not be ticklish." Amity continued. Then, she and Luz exchanged a quick nod and went in to gently skitter their fingers on each of his sides.

"EEK!!" Hunter screeched as he immediately pulled his arms down and threw himself into the pillows behind him.

"Woah, somebody is really ticklish here." Luz said with excitement.

"Whahahat, what was that? ehehe..." The ticklee asked quietly, surprised at his own reaction.

"Tickles. Funny, isn't it?" Amity said with amusement in her voice

"That was... weird." He replied

"Good weird or bad weird?" Luz asked gleefully, but seeing as blush spread across his cheeks and up his ears, she didn't need an answer.

"Aww, that's adorable." Her girlfriend cooed, making Hunter cover his face with his hands

"Shut upppp" He groaned into his palms. Why did he even get so embarrassed in the first place? He had no idea, yet he wasn't really complaining. It was fun.

"That's literally even adorabler. Adorablier? More adorable?" Luz struggled with words

"Cuter." Amity filled her in

"Oh it doesn't matter. Come here, we gotta get this boy some tickles ASAP" She nodded at her girlfriend signaling her to help her pick up Hunter, who is still laying on the ground. They both supported his back, pushing him, making him sit up.

"Wha- guhuhuys?! What are you doing?" The victim asked lazily - he was clearly enjoying his floor time - yet kind of with anticipation in his voice??

"Oh, don't worry about it. It's in the name of science." Amity smirked as she began tickling his side again, gently spidering her fingers. Her other hand, and one of Luz's hands served as his back support, not letting him fall back into the pillows again.

"Ah! Hahahaha!! Nooohoho!!" Hunter laughed, trying to lean away from the mischievous hand and push it away.

"Ack! None of that, misterrr!" Luz quickly went for his other side, since he so conveniently leaned right into her as he was trying to get away from Amity.

"HAHahaha!! Luzzz!! Hahah!" He squeaked

"Whaaat?" Luz mocked him "Too ticklish there"

"Yehehes!! Hehehehe!!!" He replied

"Oh my God, you're so cute!! I could literally get diabetes just from looking at you, you're that sweet. Hehe~" Amity joined the teasing

"Nohoho!!! Don't say that! EEK!! AHAhaha!!" Hunter squeaked as Luz moved her hand up to his lower ribs.

"But why not? I'm only saying the truth!" The purple-head backlashed

"But ihihit makes the thihihihing worse!! Ahahaha!!"

"It makes the tickles worse? Oh my Titan my heart is melting. You're too adorable." Luz said. Then, she whispered to Amity behind him: "he's growing tired fast, we don't want to kill him, don't we?"

"No, not now. One last thing and we're done k?" Amity replied

"HUHUHUHH??" Hunter immediately grew curious

"Nothing!!" The human chirped as she stopped the tickles. Then she grabbed Hunter's hand and put it over her head, and behind her back. Amity did the same and before the Golden Guard could gain awareness about his surroundings... Bam!

All three ended up in the pillows behind them, only Hunter's both hands were trapped under Luz and Amity.

"ACK!! WAIT- WE CAN TALK ABOUT THIS! Hehehe!!" Some giggles already slipped from Hunter's mouth.

"Talk about what? This?" Luz said nonchalantly while she and her gf started tickling Hunters armpits.

Hunter squealed.

"AHAHAH!! NOHOHO!! NOT THEHEHEHERE!! AHAHAHAH!!!!"

He whipped his head left and right, and kicked his legs, but there was nothing he could do to stop the sensation. In all of this giggly chaos, he found himself not hating it.

Not even a few seconds passed before Luz and Amity stopped. They didn't want to kill the kid - they agreed on it earlier. Instead, they let go of his arms, and laid beside him, giving him time to calm down.

"Oh... ohohoh wow. You're... brutal" He stayed down for a minute or two, catching his breath. Then he tried sitting up, only to be pulled back by his two friends.

"Where do you think you're going? We won't let you just walk away, not after nearly tickling you to death." Amity stated

"Exactly! A nap after tickles is a must!" Luz said happily.

"Well, that's one way to put it. You're not wrong tho." Amity chuckled and put her hands behind head, making herself comfortable on the carpet.

"Huh, fine. I was going to go to sleep anyway." Hunter made himself comfortable as well and closed his eyes.

That afternoon all three clung onto each other. They peacefully relaxed, and eventually fell asleep, as the sun slowly began setting.

Suddenly overcome with a deluge of joy, Luz muffled a squeal with her teeth. Amity just looked so adorable with her lips parted and her pointy ears twitching slightly. Luz giggled and ran her fingers through Amity’s bangs.

“Aww, she still has glitter in her hair.” Luz thought back to the night before, when the two of them had wrapped gifts and decorated cards (protection spells, apparently, for their fellow witches, and a more normal but still heartfelt one for Luz’s mom). They’d come from an evening of ice skating, drinking hot cocoa, and fighting off the Slitherbeast when they’d accidentally disturbed it. They’d stumbled back to the Owl House with snow still clinging to their boots and had probably left their gear strewn all over the place. Oops.

Luz brushed Amity’s lilac bangs back with a happy hum and a recollection of how beautiful it looked with snowflakes caught in it, framing a radiant smile. She uncovered her girlfriend’s forehead and placed a noisy kiss there.

Amity stirred, face scrunching up like a cat’s. “Hrrrmmm… Luz…” she murmured. With a kick under the blanket and a wrinkle in her Hecate-themed pajamas, her cold feet scrabbled to find warmth against Luz’s leg. Her arm, securely thrown around Luz’s waist, circled more tightly.

“Good morning, batata,” Luz chuckled. She lowered herself on her elbow to look her in the face and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. “How’s my beautiful~ girlfriend?”

“Grgh… sleepy.” Amity’s other arm snuck under Luz’s torso, both hands pressed against her shoulder blades to pull her flush against Amity. Luz let out an “oop!” and giggled as Amity’s strength made itself known, dragging her across the mat. “And cooold.”

“Then allow me to warm you up! How does cuddling and drinking hot cocoa by the fire sound?” Luz waggled her eyebrows. She didn’t think to mind the wandering of Amity’s touch. “Does the lady fancy tha– AaH! WahaHA sweeheeheet potahahatohoo!”

Hungry for warmth, Amity’s hands had snuck under Luz’s pajama shirt, and her nails inadvertently scraped against Luz’s spine. Luz jumped at the tingly sensation and buried her now flushed face in Amity’s shoulder.

Amity let out a relieved sigh. “Mmm… you’re warm.” She shuffled the both of them under the blankets until they were up to her chin, then nuzzled into the space between Luz’s arm and ribs. Luz lurched, sunny and bubbly laughter spilling from her lips. Heat spread to her neck; her sweet potato was more like a couch potato today. Or perhaps a sleeping bag burrito. Is Mittens this affected by the cold!?

“AhaHAHA mi lindahHAha! I knohohow I’m tohohoasty buhut it tihihihickles!” Squirming, Luz slipped against Amity’s nerdy silk pajamas and failed to escape her beloved’s hold. She snapped her eyes shut and squeezed Amity tighter, every motion loaded with jittery energy.

Gradually, Amity began to awaken the more she listened to Luz’s buoyant laughter, more potent than caffeine. At first she smiled along, then her brain caught up to her overeager heart and she instantly blushed to the tips of her ears. She pulled her hands out of Luz’s shirt with a quiet yelp; nonetheless, that didn’t stop her kneading into the back of her ribs.

“AHAhamitehehee! This is mehehehean!” Cheeks round with laughter, Luz snorted. She sounded all too similar to Eda.

Amity chuckled, golden eyes finally opened and glancing sideways at Luz’s smile. Her own laugh was low and smooth, like fine silk and rich honey. “Sorry, darling, I can’t help myself.” Earnest as it was, Amity flushed at her own confession. Her girlfriend was sweet enough to melt hearts.

Luz’s eyes popped open as Amity squeezed at her waist, her voice cracking into a cackle fitting for a witch. The doting from her girlfriend kindled the fire in her cheeks, though her heart was warmed more gently. While she sunk into the coziness like a plush bean bag, giggling and snickering at her behest, Luz was the type to return double any favor done to her. She caught sight of Amity’s reddened neck by her cheek and realized the perfect opportunity had been presented to her all along.

Mustering up her “Luzura” willpower, Luz pressed her lips to Amity’s neck.

As Amity shrieked and furiously babbled out protests, Luz congratulated herself with an internal “Score!” Amity’s wiggling fingers turned to lightly pounding fists on her back as Luz kissed up her neck to her chin.

“LUHUhuz nohohoHO! NahaHAT fahahair!” Gasping and squealing, mirth creasing the corners of her eyes, Amity melted like putty under Luz’s affections. “Nnkhaha I cahaHAhan’t!” In such a state of matter, she made it easy for Luz to lift her arm and press her nose in between her ribs, pleased at the healthy layer of fat she found there. Amity arched away, her violent struggling guided by instinct, until she successfully wormed out of Luz’s grasp and deeper under the covers.

Her head ended up buried in Luz’s stomach, to which Luz snorted and wrapped her up in her arms. Amity re-emerged after taking a moment to breathe. Pouting. Like a cat.

Her expression amused a smirk out of Luz. “Hey, you started it!” For a second time she kissed Amity’s forehead, the open and shut of the story.

Amity grumbled, “I was half-asleep,” then caught Luz’s lips with her own, absorbing her heat. Luz happily pecked back.

“So, how are you feeling now? Ready to be up and at ‘em?”

Amity chuckled, clearly still affected by the lazy weather. “I suppose.”

Stretching, Luz lifted herself from the blankets, immediately missing their cocoon as the cold air nipped her skin. Yet as she knelt by the window, she let out a gasp warmed by delight.

“¡Mira! It’s snowing!”

And it was a beautiful view, snowflakes gathering on the ground in powdery clumps, cradling lights of red, green, and gold and returning them even more vibrantly.

Amity joined her at the window, eyes twinkling in wonder. “Wow! It’s so– ah, wait, how do you say it… No, don’t tell me.” Amity paused for a moment as she recalled Camilla’s lessons. Luz silently encouraged her. “¡La nieve es bella!” She smiled and leaned against Luz’s shoulder.

Luz grinned, placing a kiss on Amity’s ear and pulling a squeal from her. “Not as beautiful as you.”

“Youhu sahahap!” Amity brushed Luz off, giving her another peck. All of Luz’s walls crumbled with the kiss, only for her hackles to rise again when fingers squeezed at her stomach.

“AHAhams! Wahahait!” Her lip wobbled as she glanced up at Amity. The competitive glint in her eye softened, but only to a glimmer.

“Oh, don’t think I’m done with you yet,” Amity promised as she released her. Luz was already beaming. “But let’s take this outside. I suspect we’d have a lot more fun in the snow.”

❄ ❄ ❄ ❄ ❄ ❄ ❄ ❄ ❄ ❄ ❄ ❄

Amity smiled, knowing that Luz had not touched her apple blood in the last hour.

“Mmm..okay?” She raised her eyebrows, looking to Hunter to see if he understood what was going on. He only shrugged.

Luz retaliated by scribbling on top of Amity’s knee. In turn, her knee jerked violently, kicking Hunter by accident.

“Ow!” he yelped, jumping. “What was that for?”

Amity glared at Luz before answering the blonde. “Sorry, muscle spasms, y’know?”

“Uh huh.”

Luz stuffed food into her mouth to fight the laugh threatening to make her lose the bet.

A couple more “muscle spasms” and weird faces later, and Willow and Hunter started to catch on.

“Could you excuse us for a moment?” Willow said, pulling Hunter away from the table.

“Uh, yeah! Take your time!” Luz jumbled out, grappling with Amity’s hands where they couldn’t see. When they stepped away, there were immediate whispers coming from them. Not like Amity and Luz could hear, anyway, they were too busy arguing over how unfair it was that they were going after the others' worst spots.

“Have you noticed something…odd with those two?” Willow whispered the second they were out of earshot.

“How could you not?” he chuckled light-heartedly. His tongue poked through his tooth-gap. “No but for real, what are they doing?”

Willow thought for a second.

“Oh!” She yelled, catching the attention of a couple people walking by. They glared at her before walking away worriedly. She giggled nervously. “Uh, anyways. I think they made a bet.”

“Again? They do this every time!” Hunter face-palmed, letting out a groan.

She laughed, tweaking his side and making him jump. “And that’s their bet!”

“What?”

“They’re trying to see who can go the longest without laughing.”

“Ohhh! And that’s why they’ve been making faces and not laughing at our jokes!”

Willow shook her head and dragged Hunter back to the table just as Luz snapped her arms down to her sides. Amity bit her lip as her shoulder shook silently.

“You guys okay?” Hunter asked, resting his chin in his hands.

“Yep! Yes. Perfectly fine!” She yelped, waving her arms frantically, as if she were trying to speak some ancient sign language no one had in years.

“Alrighty!” Willow smiled sweetly.

The date went mostly fine for the rest of the time, despite the squirming and yelping and odd faces. Well, at least until the last 5 minutes, when Amity

“AH!” Luz yelled, falling off the bench . “Ohohokay! Yohouhu wihin!!”

“Finally. I’d hoped that would work,” Amity laughed smugly. Willow giggled and held her hand out to help her friend up. Hunter stayed in his seat, snickering quietly and a little red.

“Oh be quiet,” she said, accepting Willow’s hand.

“Don’t be salty ‘cause you lost,” Amity boasted, booping her girlfriend’s nose. In response, she scrunched her nose and chuckled.

“Fine, if you wanna be that way…”

Amity glanced over in confusion just before she was tackled to the ground by none other than Luz. “AGH!”

Luz wasted no time in digging into Amity’s side. She barked out a laugh before diving into higher-pitched giggles.

“Who’s the loser now?” She teased.

“Yohouhu!” Amity said, latching on to Luz’s ribs and squeezing.

“Wahait!”

Hunter, now sitting completely on the table, chimed in while snickering. “Why are you two always like this?”

“Yohouhu’re nohot ahany behetter!” Amity squeaked out, and Willow finished the thought by squeezing his side lightly. He yelped and nearly fell off the table, but Willow caught his arm and pulled him up.

“Okay, you two, that’s enough,” Willow finally said after a couple more minutes of her and Hunter chattering and Amity and Luz tickle fighting. She grew some vines to separate the lovers, successfully ending their “squabble”.

“Ahawe, buhut Ihi was soho clohose to winning!” Luz exclaimed, playfully shoving Willow towards Hunter.

Dressed in Belos’s clothing, she stood before her friends. Their eyes were empty, devoid of any sympathy or care for her. Willow, Gus, Hunter, and her beloved Amity. They all hated her. Luz was certain of it, and she was certain she deserved it.

“I’m sorry.” She said simply, lacking any real sorrow. “But for the sake of everyone you hurt,”

“Please, no!” Hot tears welled in Luz’s eyes like lava. She couldn’t even bring herself to say that it wasn’t her fault. She took a step back and squeezed her eyes shut, waiting to be hit by a glob of abomination goo, or a spiked vine.

“I challenge you to a witch’s battle!” Witch’s battle?

Luz peeked one eye open. “W-wait… say that again?”

“I said, I challenge you to a witch’s battle!”

Amity’s tone didn’t change at all when she repeated the phrase. It was robotic, as if the response had been programmed into her to say it exactly the same every time. She didn’t move from her defensive, fighting stance. 

“Witch’s… battle?”

She hesitantly approached her girlfriend, then gingerly squished her pretty face in her hands. “Bep.” She playfully flicked her ears. “Boop.”

She observed how Amity didn’t respond, and her fears began to melt away and were quickly replaced by a fuzzy feeling. She lifted up Amity’s arm and poked her, like she was a doll she could position and pose.

“You look like Amity, you feel like Amity, but you’re not Amity, are you?”

Luz’s face broke into a smile as she stepped back. Of course something was weird! 

“Ha! You’re not her! None of you are you!”

“How dare you? Of course we’re us!” Willow spoke, but she barely moved.

“It’s, ‘I challenge you to a witch’s duel,’ not battle!” She waved her finger at them, her confidence quickly returning. “And the Amity I know would never misquote The Good Witch Azura!”

She took a step back and smiled, Stringbean formed a staff in her hands.

“So come on, attack me. I know what’s going on now.” She watched as her friends readied themselves, charging right at her. She closed her eyes, waiting for the first hit, and- “No, no NO!” A childish voice echoed around the bridge. Luz opened her eyes, and her friends were frozen in place. Glowing wires were wrapped around their wrists and ankles, like they were little puppets. Floating above them all, was a very grumpy looking Collector. He had his arms crossed and was glaring down at the group with a pout. “You weren’t supposed to figure it out! This isn’t fair!”

“Collector?!”

“What am I supposed to do now?! Oh, you’re probably so angry with me!” They floated in circles and flipped himself upside down while clutching his hat. 

Luz’s eyes wandered from the Collector to her friends. They were starting to come out of their trance, and their eyes were shining again.

Suddenly, he was right next to Luz. He dramatically flopped onto her shoulder, nearly knocking her over. “You aren’t angry with me, right? For trying to scare you?”

“Uhm…” She quickly glanced at her friends, who were all giving her very hesitant looks. “No?”

“Really?” The Collector’s eyes lit up. Then they scowled. “Cause I’m still pretty mad at you for screwing up my fun!” “W-well, there’s other ways to have fun!” Luz stammered. She backed away from him, in between all her friends. “Like, um, maybe instead of scaring people, you should try making them laugh!”

The Collector tapped his finger to his chin a couple times. Then slowly, his lips curled into a mischievous grin. “Hm… y’know what, human? I think you’re right!” He snapped his fingers, and Luz’s friends went limp. The light in their eyes faded along with the glowing wires. The Collector giggled rather deviously and clapped his hands a few times. Luz’s friends sprang to attention, and grabbed her all at once.

“H-Huh?! What are you-”

“And I’ve got the perfect way to do it! Get her!”

Luz wasn’t quite sure what she was expecting to happen, but feeling the skittering, tickling fingers of all four of her friends definitely wasn’t it! She made a noise that was akin to a startled seagull, which quickly dissolved into confused giggling.

“What in the wohohorld?! Collector! Cuhuhuhit out!”

“Man, you mortals can never make up your minds, huh?” The Collector floated over to her, hovering inches away from her face. Personal space wasn’t much of a concern for a child of the stars. “First you want me to make you laugh, then you want me to stop? Come on, we’re having so much fun! You’re laughing aren’t you?”

Those dang fingers were everywhere! Poking at her sides and belly, scribbling up and down her neck and around her ears, Luz could barely focus on just one spot! Every time she’d flail in an attempt to protect herself, they’d just get her somewhere else. 

“This- this isn’t whahahat I meant whehehen I said- EEK! NOHOHO!”

Nails that unmistakably belonged to Amity made Luz’s sentence crumble when they spidered up her sides and into the hollows of her underarms. If it weren’t for her friends all holding her steady, she was certain her legs would’ve just given up.

The Collector just laughed right along with her. “Man, you were right! Making people laugh is way more fun than scaring them! Just listen to all the silly noises you make!” “COLLEHEHECTOR!” “That’s meeee! Hey! I should try this on your other friends, too! I’ll be back!” They clapped their hands, and they vanished in a puff of sparkly purple smoke. Luz was much too busy laughing her head off to even realize where he had gone, or what he had meant by that. It wasn’t like the feeling was bad, she’d always enjoyed tickle fights as a way of bonding or cheering someone up, but this was ridiculous! And not to mention the fact that it was turning her mind to mush! It couldn’t get much worse than this-

“Your laugh is just so sweet, I could listen to it forever!”

Nevermind. It could.

Amity had leaned over to coo teasing compliments in her ear. It had caught Luz so off guard her knees buckled and her friends all shifted to keep her up. 

“WAIHAIT! Nohoho, Amity, please! You know I cahahan’t take it-” “But it’s true!” Man, the Collector had really gotten her friends' personalities down. And it only became more abundant when the rest of them started teasing too. “Come on, Luz! I know you’re tougher than that!” Willow giggled as she kneaded Luz’s side at a steady rythm, making her squeal “You can take it!” Gus had a different tactic, constantly switching spots and jumping around so Luz could never tell where he was going to strike next. “Where’s the spot that makes her laugh the most again? Is it here- or here- or maybe heeeere?” “Man, if only I had known about this little weakness of yours when we were still enemies.” Hunter had a smug mischief in his voice that just dripped with the cockiness of an older brother messing with his younger sister. It reminded Luz of how he acted when they first met. “You would have been done for! Would’ve made our fights go by a lot faster, huh?”

That was really about all Luz could take. Her loud laughter was starting to turn into wheezes, and her friends finally let up. She sunk to the ground and curled up in a ball, still tingling with phantom tickles. “Collector… thahat… phew…” She looked up when she felt Amity’s comforting hand on her shoulder, and realized something she hadn’t before.

They had that light in their eyes. They had it since the Collector had disappeared!

“H-hey wait a minute! You’re you! Really you! You were tickling me on PURPOSE!” “Sorry…” Amity said with a giggle “I couldn’t help it, you’ve just been so down recently, we haven’t heard you laugh like that in so long.”

“You really needed it.” Willow said, crouching down next to her. “Seriously. And you better believe the nice things we said about you, or else.” Hunter tazed her side, earning him a loud squeak.“You guys are-”

But there wasn’t much time for Luz to finish. Her friends gasped when the puppet strings seized them again, jerking their limbs away from her.

“There’s no time to waste!” Shouted Gus. “You need to stop the Collector, you need to wake up!”

“Wait, but how?!”

Amity used the last of her strength to press a familiar glyph into Luz’s hand and offer her a warm smile.

Alador was done, to say the least. The week wasn't going how he thought it would.

His latest design for one of his abometons was apparently very flawed, his tired mind making more than a few mistakes. The thing practically melted when he tried to use it.

That design had been giving him hell. He had tried tweaking it, using stronger magic, different metals, even asking Amity to assist him. Odalia had been riding him on the deadline, stressing him out and making everything worse. He was burnt out and so, *so* very tired.

He let his head slam on the desk, just hard enough to make a loud "thunk" noise. Edric and Emira, who were creeping nearby, quickly rushed in when they heard the it. Seeing their dad slumped at the desk, tired and frustrated, flipped their "playful comfort" switches on overdrive.

"Hey dad, you alive?" Emira walked over to the desk, her brother right behind her. He grunted, giving her a weak thumbs-up. Yeah right...

"C'mon, don't lie." She gently poked at his side, trying to get his attention. He huffed, swatting at her hands without sitting up. This sparked an idea in the twins, the same idea popping into both of their heads.

Edric smirked and placed a hand near his dad's ribs. Emira patted his knees. Chuckling, they nodded to eachother before beginning their attack. Edric poked and scratched at Alador's ribs while Emira went for his knees.

The inventor snorted, jolting and trying to shove at his kid's hands. He was tired, his squirming weak and slow. It was a matter of seconds before he broke, his laughter loud and deep.

"HEHEHEY! KIHIDS- QUIHIT IT!" The twins chuckled, happy to hear their father laugh. He rarely lets himself go, always stressed and serious. Em scribbled under his knees, close to giggling herself. His laugh is contagious. "Nah, I don't think we will."

He kicked out, grabbing her wrist. He didn't really try to push her away, just laughing. Edric, not wanting to be outdone, pressed his knuckles into Alador's ribcage. The man squealed, both of his worst spots too much to handle. His laughter was loud and frantic.

Emira laughed, moving her hands to his belly. "C'mon, Ed. Don't wanna kill him, we'd be stuck with mom." Edric smiled as he switched to scribbling on his dad's back. Alador's loud laughter calmed to bubbly, sweet giggles.

"Ehehedric! Emiraha! Gehet off!" He squirmed, his efforts to escape useless. If he managed to stop one twin, the other would poke his bad spot and send him back to square one. He didn't really mind the tickling, but he couldn't just let them do whatever they wanted. That spelled disaster waiting to happen.

Meanwhile, Amity slowly crept down the stairs, an abomination poised and ready for attack. She had heard the commotion and assumed the worst. You can imagine her surprise when she rounded the corner. The twins tickling her dad silly wasn't what she expected.

Emira was the first to notice her, nodding her head so her hands could stay busy. "Hey mittens! Dad here was just telling us about how sad he was. We're helping him let loose. Wanna join?"

Looking over at Amity, Alador felt some hope for escape. "Ahamity! Hehehelp!" Surely his no-nonsense daughter would stop this, right? That hope died when he saw the playful smile on her face. The same one she gets whenever Luz is trying to provoke her. He was *screwed*.

The twins snickered when Amity joined them, making room for their sister. Her dad needed to laugh, and this was always fun with Luz. She fluttered her fingers against his neck, occasionally scratching the shell of his ear.

Alador's giggling doubled, small squeaks and hiccups joining the sound. His face turned a deep red as he squirmed and pushed at their hands. Three on one wasn't exactly fair, making it near impossible for him to get them all off. They poked and scribbled, pulling squeaky giggle after squeaky giggle from their father.

"Kihihids! Ihi- *hic* Quihit!" At this point, he had practically gone limp, weakly batting at Emira's hands on his belly. He was tired, and the lighter tickling wasn't all that bad. It was a nice distraction from his work, and was honestly helping to ease some of his tension.

The Blight children smiled, continuing their father's "torment." His light, bubbly giggling was the only thing they rated to hear in that moment. Alador was always way too stressed out. It was nice for them to see him so happy and care-free.

Eventually, he reached his limit, tapping his older daughter's shoulder in surrender. She stopped, nudging Amity and Edric to do the same. Ed ran off to get some water while Amity set up the couch in his workshop.

Emira wheeled his chair over to the couch, helping him sit down. Alador let himself go limp on the soft cushions, giggly softly as he caught his breath. Ed came back with the water, which Alador quickly gulped down. "Thahank you..."

Ed, Em and Amity could tell their dad wasn't gonna last much longer. He needed a nap, and they'd done a good job of tiring him out enough to get one. His kids sat down beside him, Amity to his left and the twins on his right.