#my family...

"okay now add a crushed etherwing moth."

your little appointed apprentice (an apprentice of my apprentice? how cute! alice's voice phantomly rings in your head) grumbles, momentarily leaving her vahumana textbook alone to follow your directions. "i knowww, as i said, i can do this all by myself. you don't need to watch over me like i'm some kid."

you look up from the bubbling mixture forming in your witch's cauldron to give her a look, "but you are? look, do you want to learn from me or not?"

she huffs, avoiding eye contact with you, "when that knight lead me here, i thought you'd be the key to help me take down alice! i can't betray klee so you're my next hope...!"

"still on about descartes? but i thought you were reunited already. i heard all about your trip to inazuma, you know, lohen told me." you resume stirring, smiling in pride when the cooking glob transitions into a new color: purple.

"your boytoy?"

huh?

"he's not--"

"that i am!" the devil himself comes slamming the door open, always possessing a sixth sense when you two start talking about him. "aww, you two working on something? can i join? i recently got one of those, ah, what'd you call it? hexerei?"