At school today, Luz and I were walking through the hall when we saw Gus sitting on the floor, looking upset. "Hey, Gus." I greeted. "You okay?" "I messed up bad, guys." Gus replied. "Willow just needed help with this pixie problem, right? So I thought, oh, that'll just lure them away with an illusion. But then..." "That angered the pixies and they attacked Willow. We heard." Luz interrupted. "I moved up two grades. What's the point of being good at this if I can't do anything good with it?" Gus asked. "It was an honest mistake." Luz replied. "Besides, Willow's as tough as shit." I added. "I'm sure you'll both be feeling better tomorrow."

The next morning, Luz quickly woke me up to go visit Gus, or rather someone else. "It's too early for this." I yawned. Luz knocked on the door, which was answered by Gus. "Gustopher! Gusteban. Augustabeth!" Luz greeted. "Any of those working for you?" "You need my library card to visit Amity, don't you, Luz?" Gus asked. "I haven't been doing a good job of hiding that, huh?" Luz chuckled nervously. Gus and I nodded. "Well, I was also hoping to do a little bit of... research. C'mon."

I stopped for a drink before heading to the library with Luz and Gus. "So, Eda's mom told us that Luz and I aren't the first humans to have lived in Bonesborough." Luz explained. "If that's true, there might be some info on how they got here in the library." "Yeah, okay." Gus sighed. "Looking through newspapers is about all I'm good for anyway." "Spill it, Gustonimo. Are you okay?" I asked. "I've just been thinking. What if it's time for me to explore different kinds of magic?" Gus wondered. "Luz and I are all for trying new things, but what's wrong with illusions?" I asked. "Illusions are just so... you know..." Gus explains as a Slitherbeast was in the alley, attacking Hexside students, until some students from Glandus took it down. Gus and I were astounded. We headed down to the alley to meet these students. "Wow. Just, wow!" Gus gasped. "Plants. Abomination. Construction. You guys took down that Slitherbeast like it was nothing." "Nah, it wasn't that easy." A witch with violet hair said. "Yeah, looks like you had a real hard time out there." The abomination witch teased. "You're Glandus students right?" I asked. "We go to Hexside. Name's Peter, and this is Gus." "Nice to meet you." She replied. "This is Angmar, Gavin, and I'm..." "Bria!" Mattholomule shouted. "I would've helped, but, like, there was this other baby in danger you probably couldn't see." "Mattholomule?" Gus and I asked. "Augustus, Peter?" He wondered. "Back off, twerps! This operation is Glandus kids only!" "Hey, Matty, it's all cool." Bria said. "Did you get the map?" "Yes!" Mattholomule shouted. "And I had to endure 35 noogies from my older brother." "Nice work." Bria complimented. "Well, uh, we se you guys are busy, so..." Gus said. "Wait! Have you ever heard of the Galderstones?" Bria asked. "I've heard of gallstones." I replied. "They're powerful relics." Gavin explains. "Many witches and demons have sought them." "But they've all returned empty-handed, haunted by its guardian." Angmar added. "Until us!" "We heard some coven scouts talking about them, but it'll be rough going." Bria said. "You both said you were Hexside students, right? We could use the extra strength." "That sounds awesome, but I can't." Gus replied. "We promised a friend that we'd help her with something today." "Actually, Luz dragged me out of bed." I corrected. "No, I didn't!" Luz gasped for air after using an invisibility glyph. "Peter, you and Gus ran away so fast, but I didn't want to interrupt, so... I think you guys should go." "Well, they can't." Mattholomule said. "Gus is just an illusionist, and Peter is just a human. They'll only hold us back." "Shows what you know." Luz laughed. "These guys are regular super witches." "Luz!" Gus exclaimed. "I see what you're doing, and it's really sweet, but I don't actually know any spells besides illusions." "No problem." She said, handing Gus some of her glyphs. "Come on, man. You know I'm all about proving jerks wrong." I added. "Count me in!" "Alright. I'm in, too." Gus explains. "Where do we find these Galderstones?"

"We're journeying to the Looking Glass Ruins in Forearm Forest." Bria said once we left. "What's wrong Augustus?" Mattholomule asked. "Scared?" "We all are. Who knows what awaits us out there?" Bria replied. "But we've all got each other's backs, right?" "Yeah, um, yeah!" Gus stutters. "Yeah, alright. Let's go." "That's the spirit, Gus!" I exclaimed, running into the woods with the group.

Luz's POV

At the library, I was checking to see if there was anything on the human realm. ""Mystery vendor floods market with dangerous human goods."" I read. "Oh, Eda." I kept looking to see what I could find, when something popped up on the crystal ball. ""Human resident donates personal diary to library."" I gasped. "Yes! This must be it!"

After I finished my research, I snuck by the kid's corner. Maybe Amity is working today. "Come on. Give it back." Amity said with her hair down. The kid refused. "If you give me back my hairband, I'll read you whatever book you want tomorrow." "Finally! I can learn how to summon the dark lord!" The kid cheered as Amity fixed her hair. "Hi, Luz." Amity's siblings greeted, startling me. "Oh! Hey, Ed. Hey, Em. Hey, Lex." I replied. "Picking up Amity?" "Nah, looks like you've got that covered." I joked. "I'm looking for skincare tips." Edric explains. "I have a date tonight." "Yeah, he needs all the help he can get, after he accidentally texted a poem to their mom." Emira said. "Please don't tell people that." Edric begged, embarrassed. "Isn't Peter supposed to be with you?" Alexa asked. "He's with Gus." I explained. "Are they bothering you again?" Amity asked. "Oh. No, I just came here to see you, and, uh, here you are." I replied, blushing. Alexa and the twins gasped. "Edric, your face!" Alexa lied. "It's exploding with horrific pustules." "Oh, no!" Edric gasped. "Wait, is it really?" "We have to fix before your date, or you'll get dumped." Emira said. "What?! I will?!" Edric panicked. "Come on, Ed." Emira grunted, leaving with Edric and Alexa. Yup. Just me and Amity. No pressure. "I was actually wondering if you could help me find this book?" I asked. "Hundreds of years ago, there was this human named Philip Wittebane living in Bonesborough. And he donated his diary to this library." "And this might tell you how to travel between realms, right?" Amity asked. "Yes! My mom probably thinks I'm missing right now. And Peter wants to tell his uncle about Eda." I explained. "We have to get back to them as soon as possible." "Well, something this old would be kept in the Forbidden Stacks." Amity replied. "Only Malphus, the master librarian, is allowed in here." "No te preocupes. Todo va a salir bien." I said. "Like my mom always said. I'm sure I can find another way." "Hey, wait. I never said that I wasn't going to help." Amity chuckled. "My staff card should be able to open those doors. But once we're inside, you have to listen to everything I say. If we're caught, I could lose my job." "You won't lose your job. I promise." I said, grabbing her hand, just realizing what I did. "Well, let's not waste any time." Amity said, unlocking the door.

Peter's POV

Bria cut through some vines while we followed her into the woods. "This will be a breeze once we find the Galderstones." Bria grunted. "What can the Galderstones actually do?" Gus asked. "If you're holding one, any spell you cast gets a big power boost." Mattholomule explains. "I can grow an entire forest and make my own butterfly sanctuary." Angmar said. "I could create the biggest abomination ever." Gavin added. "I bet Dad will pay attention to that." "Whoa." Gus commented. "Holy shit." I said. "Sorry, doesn't do squat for illusions. Or humans." Mattholomule teased. "Can't enhance what's not actually there." "I know that." Gus scoffed, slapping Mattholomule repeatedly. "Hold up, guys. We've come to our first challenge." Bria said. "Show us what you've got." Mattholomule added. "What did the other human call you? "Super witches"?" "That's a great idea!" Bria exclaimed. "Go on, Gus and Peter. I know you can do it." Gus and I walked up to a couple of giant thorns. He got nervous and pulled out a glyph. "Which one is this?" Gus whispered to me. "Fire glyph." I explained. Gus pretended to cast a spell circle activated the glyph. "Fireball!" We shouted. The thorns were destroyed by the fire magic. Everyone was impressed, everyone except for Mattholomule. "I knew it was a good idea to bring you guys!" Bria cheered. "I don't know what's going on, but I've got my eyes on you two." Mattholomule grunted as Gus and I followed him inside.

Luz's POV

Amity took me through The Forbidden Stacks, which took a while. I was almost getting discouraged. "How much further do we have to go?" I asked. "Actually, we're here." Amity explains. "Whoa!" I gasped. "Let's get looking." "Wait!" Amity warned. We hid from Amity's boss, but I blushed when I noticed how close we were. "So, we'll be super sneaky and quiet. Got it." I whispered. "Malphus is actually the one who gave me my job and my own study room." Amity explains. "He's usually nice, but if we're caught, he'd feed us to the book worms." "I know here that probably means unholy, blood-sucking snake monster, but in the human realm, that's just a kid name for nerds, like Peter." I explained. "The human world sounds odd." Amity chuckled. "Maybe it'd be less odd if I showed you around someday." I offered. "But, uh, let's turn back. I don't wanna push you." "We're getting that diary!" Amity exclaimed, dragging me to the shelves.

Peter's POV

Mattholomule had us follow him with his map. "According to the map, we should be getting close." Mattholomule said, getting tied up by a snake. "Don't worry, Matty, I got ya." Gus explains, setting Mattholomule free with a plant glyph. "Hey!" Mattholomule shouted. "Only Bria can call me..." "Come on, dude." Gavin groaned. "I'm not surprised he couldn't handle Glandus." Angmar added. Harsh. "What did they mean by "couldn't handle Glandus"?" I asked. "Things work differently at Glandus." Bria explains. "Weak students are pushed around by the strong. But if I had a Galderstone, I might be able to change things for the better." "Hey! Over here!" Mattholomule shouted. I think we're at The Looking Glass Ruins. "Okay, Angmar, you're on lookout duty." Bria explains as Angmar was distracted by a butterfly. "Angmar, I said you're on lookout duty. And if I catch you playing with any more bugs, I'll make you eat them, okay? I believe in you."

We walked through the gates to find these Galderstones. We were all left in astonishment. Bria climbed up to one of the statues and grabbed a stone. "Well, we did it, everyone. The power of the Galderstones is ours." Bria said, creating a huge tree. "I can't believe it! The legends were true." While the others were experimenting with the Galderstones, Gus and I decided to take a look around the area. "Hey, Gus." I greeted. "What'd you find?" "Something that said "The Phantom Bringer"." Gus explains. "Gus, check this out!" I called. ""Aleth the Vision Creator."" ""Khari the Mirage Maker."" Gus read. "But, these titles are for..." "Oh, shit." I gasped. We ran to Mattholomule and the other Glandus students to warn them. "Stop! These aren't ruins! This is an illusionist graveyard." Gus warned. "Ew!" Mattholomule groaned. "Aw, Peter, you're saying that as if it's a bad thing." Bria said. "Of course it is." Gus explains. "These stones were theirs, we shouldn't take them." "Even if these witches were alive, what would illusionists use Galderstones for?" Bria asked. "High-def party tricks? Come on, guys. Don't you want to power up those cool spells of yours?" "No, this isn't right." Gus replied. "I won't let you steal these." "Gus is right, Bria." I added. "We're not letting you steal shit!" "I don't think you know what you're saying, guys." Bria grunted. "It's real! The guardian is real!" Angmar shouted. "And it's coming this way!" Fog surrounded the place until a creature appeared. "Why does this guardian look like a Pokémon?" I asked. "I heard it has the power to control weather." Angmar replied. "And summon ghosts." Gavin added. "Well, I wonder if it can handle a little fire." Bria wondered, pushing me and Gus out of hiding. "I'm all out of glyphs!" Gus gasped. "Shit! Me too." I groaned, searching my pockets.

Luz's POV

In the shelves, I was lucky enough to find Philip's diary next to some disintegrating books. Once I opened the diary, though, it was being eaten up by a rat. "YOU LITTLE RAT!" I shouted. Hearing my voice echo in the room, I realized that Malphus heard me. "Amity!" He growled.

Outside of the library, Malphus took us outside, where he fired Amity. "I'm just, like super disappointed in you. Like, I can't even process these feelings right now." Malphus said. "Gosh, it's so hard for me to say this, but, like, you're fired." Malphus takes Amity's staff card away and goes back into the library. I felt so guilty about costing Amity her job. "Amity." I began to apologize. "I am so..." "Not right now, Luz." Amity sighed. "Everything's changed since you and Peter came here. But, just being around you, it makes me do stupid things and I wish it didn't." "It's okay. I, uh, I do stupid things around you, too, Amity." I sniffled. "I think I need to go home." Amity gasped, walking home. I started crying, but I began to quickly calm down. "Nada funcionará a menos que lo haga funcionar." I said to myself. I knew what I had to do now.

Peter's POV

The guardian knocked us down and we hid behind one of the graves. "How do we deal with this guardian?" I asked. "It'll just be an illusion, but maybe I can scare him away." Gus replied, casting an illusion of the guardian in a different color. That's when both of them disappeared, revealing an older witch. "I'm the keeper of the Looking Glass Graveyard. And it has been a very long time since I've had visitors." He explains. "And to think one of them would be another illusionist. Though, I don't remember them being so small." Gus gave him a glare. "Fuck off!" I cursed, giving him a specific gesture with my hand. "Don't give me that face and the finger." He said. "An illusionist has always kept watch over the Galderstones. We gain no powers from them, so we're the least likely to use them for evil. Probably." "Well, we gotta get out of here. Now." Gus explains. "So, the big bad guardian is just another illusionist." Bria said. "Today just keeps getting better." Gavin and Angmar use their powers to trap us in vines.

Barely able to move, all we could do was watch the Glandus students take the Galderstones. Mattholomule picked up one of the stones, only for Angmar to swipe it. "We're playing by Glandus rules, Matty." Bria explains. "You can have anything you want if you're strong enough to take it." Mattholomule walked over to me and Gus. "Hey." Mattholomule greeted. "I didn't know she was gonna do this." "Matty, we need you to hold our stuff!" Bria called. "This is exactly how it was at Glandus. Always Bria's stooge." Mattholomule explains. "Well, believe it or not, we have the same thing in the human realm." I confessed. "Way before I met Luz, I met this kid named Kyle. He was really close with me. But after I came back from an abusive summer camp, I realized that Kyle was using me to do his dirty shit. I even took his place in detention because I thought he was my friend. And after a while, I ghosted people. Even a human like me can also be a stooge." "Better a stooge than a clown." Gus sighed. "Bria was right. Illusions are nothing but high-def party tricks." "Yeah, I used to think that, too." Mattholomule said, cutting us free. But then, I met some dork and his two friends who used his powers to save me from a man eating detention pit. All I'm saying is, if a dumb illusion can save a jerk like me, maybe it's not as useless as you think." "Thanks, Mattholomule." Gus thanked. "It's time to teach those jerks a lesson." "I agree. I'll call the hounds." The guardian agreed. "With all due respect, sir, I'd like to try something a little more creative." Gus said, looking at me.

While Bria, Angmar, and Gavin were playing football with the Galderstones, Gus and I began to create some illusions. I feel my ears sting as I used my powers. Angmar found my butterfly illusion and followed it through the fog. Gavin focused on an illusion of his dad, which is really just an illusion of himself with a mustache. "Come out, illusionist!" Bria shouted. "I'm not dumb enough to fall for these tricks." Gus traps her inside his illusion, but she was able to escape. "That's right! Who's strong now? I never needed those losers anyway. More for me." In the illusion, Gus makes the statues look in Bria's direction as blood flows out of their stone eyes and mouths. The statues come closer to Bria as the illusion made her believe that she was powerless. "No. No. This is all just an illusion." Bria reassured herself. "It can't actually hurt me. It can't even touch me." While in disguise, Gus grabbed her leg, causing her to run away screaming. "Man. That took a lot of concentration." Gus gasped as the illusions disappeared. "Who knew illusions could be so fucking powerful?" I wondered. "Laying an illusion over the whole graveyard to make it seem like the stones weren't working." The guardian said. "Very clever. Keep honing your powers of observation, kids, and there's no limit to what you'll be able to do." "There are some limits." Gus said. "I wish I could repair all the damage they did." "Um, maybe I can help." Mattholomule suggested. "I'll help, too." I added.

Shortly after, Mattholomule and I finished fixing the graveyard. "Thank you for defending the Looking Glass Graveyard, witchlings." The guardian thanked. "Perhaps it's time I hid this place for good." "But there's so much history here." Gus explains. "What if we came back on the weekend to help build your defenses?" Mattholomule suggested. "Yeah, we'll make any trespassing bastards wish they never came here." I added. "I would like that very much." The guardian said. "You boys are welcome to come back whenever you please." "He's definitely a ghost." Mattholomule said. "So, does this mean we're, like, friends now?" Gus asked. "I don't know." Mattholomule replied. "Maybe we could be." I suggested, as we left the graveyard.

Amity's POV

At home, Emira was doing my hair in my room, while Edric and Alexa just hung out. "Sis, you good?" Alexa asked. "Ever since Luz and Peter came here, things have just gotten confusing." I explained. "I'm thinking things I've never thought before. I'm feeling things I never used to feel." "Is that so bad?" Emira asked. "You weren't happy before." "Ed! Don't pick!" I exclaimed. "You'll make it worse!" "Too late." Edric said. All I did was sigh. "Hey, your roots are growing out." Emira said. "Do you wanna dye your hair again?" Maybe it's time for a new look, to show my true self.

After Emira was finished with my hair, my siblings looked at me in shock. "So, how's it look?" I asked. "It looks like you're about to be in big trouble with Mom." Edric replied. "We're definitely not identical twins anymore." Alexa said. "I love it!" "I think it looks great." Emira complimented. "But, yeah, maybe don't tell her I helped." "Hey, Em. I was thinking about highlights." Alexa said as I heard someone knock on the door.

I ran to the door to see Luz at the door, scratched up with my staff card for the library. "I'm sorry about everything." Luz apologized. "I'd understand if you never want to see me again. Uh, it's different." "Oh, yeah. Mom always liked it green." I explained. "I thought I could use a change. How'd you get this back? And what happened?" "Well, to convince Malphus to hire you again, I had to go through some trials. And categorize some man-eating books. And tame something called a paper dragon. That guy was not fun." Luz confessed. "Oh, hey, guys." I looked behind to see my siblings spying on me and Luz. "Well, looks like you made a new friend." I said, pointing at the mouse on her pants. "You're the one that ate the diary!" Luz snapped. "I hate you." "Wait. This is an Echo Mouse." I remembered. "It consumes knowledge through writing and can play back anything it eats. We dealt with them a lot at work. Watch." I rubbed the head of the Echo Mouse as it played out some information from the diary.

My journey through the Demon Realm is far from over. But today, I humbly donate my journal to the ages. Entry one: May 21st... I think. My name is Philip Wittebane. And I found myself in a world so horrid, yet so fantastic, few minds could've dreamt it. If only those at home could see what I have. But perhaps they shall, for the more I learn about this realm, the more I am certain I can harness it's strange powers to return home. Today, I begin recording my journey to create a portal back to the Human Realm.

I gave the mouse back to Luz as soon as the recording was finished. "Thank you, little mouse." Luz whispered. "I hope you and I can become good friends." "Don't worry. You always have a way of sneaking into people's hearts." I said, kissing Luz on the cheek. I didn't realize what I did until it happened. I went back inside as soon as I could. "Uh, okay. Good to see you. Farewell forever. Why'd I do that? Why'd I do that?"