Gus sat in the hallways of Hexside, head buried in his knees. Hunter walked up to him, concerned.

"Hey, Gus. Are you okay?" He asked, sitting down beside him on the floor, leaning back against the lockers behind him.

"I-I messed up bad, Hunter." Gus said, looking up with a worried frown. "Willow just needed help with this pixie problem, right? So I thought, oh, that I'll lure them away with an illusion. But then..."

"That angered the pixies, and they attacked Willow. I heard." Hunter replied.

"I moved up two grades. What's the point of being good at this if I can't do anything good with it?" Gus said, shifting his gaze to the ground. He looked like he was about to cry, but was stubbornly trying not to.

"It was an honest mistake." Hunter said, trying to comfort him. Despite having done this loads of times with Luz back in the Human Realm, he wasn't the best at consoling someone. "Besides, Willow's really tough. I'm sure you'll both be feeling better tomorrow."

However, tomorrow, Gus still felt absolutely terrible.

+.*.+

Hunter knocked on Gus' door, waiting anxiously. He needed to ask Gus a favor, but he kind of felt bad, since... well, yesterday Gus had felt guilty about setting off the pixies and hurting Willow indirectly. He just hoped that Gus felt better about it today.

The door opened to Gus, who looked him up and down. Before Hunter could even say a word, Gus spoke.

"You need my library card, don't you?" He said. Hunter sighed.

"Yeah... they won't let me get one of my own because I live with Eda, and she hasn't paid her tab yet. Well, she's not going to at all, so..." Hunter said, and Gus handed him the card before he could continue rambling.

"Thanks Gus." Hunter said. He paused, not wanting to just leave him there. "Do you want to come with me?"

Gus thought about it for a moment, then nodded. "I don't have anything else to do right now."

Hunter gave a small smile, and the two walked off together (although Gus made sure to close the door behind him).

The two of them walked through the streets of Bonesborough, Gus being a little quieter than usual as Hunter talked.

"So, Eda's mom told me that there was a human who once lived in Bonesborough - with another human called Caleb. But we're focusing on the first human for now." Hunter said quickly. He hadn't really explained the whole 'Caleb looks like him' thing to Gus, Willow or Amity yet, and didn't exactly know why. It just... weirded him out? And rightfully so, he almost looked exactly like the guy.

"Anyway - if that's true, there might be some information on how he got here in the library." He said.

"Yeah, okay. Looking through old newspapers is about all I'm good for anyway." Gus said.

Hunter stopped walking, stepping in front of Gus. Something was clearly wrong.

"Alright, Gus, what's wrong?" Hunter asked, even though he already had a feeling of what it was.

"I-I've been thinking. What if it's time for me to explore different kinds of magic?" Gus asked.

"Well, trying new things is great and all, but what's wrong with illusions?" Hunter asked.

"Illusions are just so... y'know-" Gus said awkwardly, when the two noticed Animal Control trying and failing to subdue a Slitherbeast on the street below them.

Braxas was walking down the street, holding a balloon, when the Slitherbeast growled, ready to pounce on him.

However, two boys wearing uniforms from a different school jump in front of Braxas, using abomination goo and a net of vines to make the Slitherbeast slip and get launched back. A girl wearing the same uniform used construction magic to trap the Slitherbeast in stone.

"Good work guys!" The girl said.

"Yeah!" One of the boys said triumphantly.

"Alright!" The other one, a demon, said with excitement.

Gus gasped in awe, impressed - Hunter was mildly surprised as well.

"Son, are you okay?" Warden Wrath said, his mask off and holding Braxas in his arms.

"Yes, Daddy. Thank you, mysterious heroes!" Braxas said to his dad, before turning to the three students for the last part.

"Stay safe out there!" The girl called to them. Hunter noticed Gus down there and looked beside him, his eyes widening when he realized Gus had run down to greet the three students. Hunter ran over to them.

"Wow! Just wow!" He heard Gus say as he moved to stand beside him. "Plants. Abomination. Construction. You guys took down that Slitherbeast like it was nothing."

"Nah, it wasn't that easy." The girl said, waving it off.

"Yeah, looked like you a real hard time out there." The non-demon boy said, rolling his eyes but smiling.

"You're Glandus students, right? We go to Hexside. Name's Gus - and this is Hunter." Gus said, gesturing to him. Hunter gave a little awkward wave.

"Nice to meet ya." The girl said, before gesturing to the demon boy and the abomination track boy. "This is Angmar. Gavin."

"Hey!" The now named Gavin cut in.

"And I'm-"

"Bria!"

Hunter and Gus turned to see Mattholomule running over.

"I would've helped, but like, there was this other baby in danger. You probably couldn't see." Mattholomule said, panting.

"Mattholomule?" Gus said, surprised. Matt looked and noticed.

"Augustus? Back off, twerp! This operation is Glandus kids only." He said, immediately defensive.

At this point, Hunter zoned out - but he was quickly brought back to attention when Gus moved to walk away from the group.

"Wait. Have you ever heard of the Galderstones?" Bria asked Gus.

"They're powerful relics. Many witches and demons have sought them." Gavin explained. Hunter was intrigued - as he was by most things in the demon realm (particularly wild magic) - but really felt like he needed to go to the library now. It felt like an itch he needed to scratch, no matter how much he wanted to learn about what galderstones were.

"That sounds awesome, but I can't. I promised Hunter I'd help him with something today." Gus said, snapping Hunter out of thoughts. Had he really zoned out for a second time in one conversation?

"Oh, no, it's fine, Gus. You can go if you want to." Hunter said.

"Well, he can't. Gus is just an illusionist. He'll just hold us back." Matt said.

"May I remind you who got us out of detention?" Hunter said, crossing his arms. Matt's cheeks flushed with embarrassment, glaring at them. Gus pulled Hunter aside.

"Hunter, I know what you're doing and that's really cool, but I don't know any spells besides illusions." Gus whispered to him.

"It's alright, I can lend you some glyphs." Hunter said, handing some over. Gus smiled, before he turned back to the Glandus kids. "Alright, I'm in. Where do we find these Galderstones?"

While Gus was walking off with the group, Hunter headed towards the library, Gus' library card in hand.

+.*.+

He sat down in front of a crystal ball, typing in 'human' and seeing what results came up. The first result was an article about Eda using paddleballs mistaken for weapons. Hunter chuckled a little to himself, before swiping to the next result. His eyes lit up once he saw it.

"Yes!" He whispered quietly to himself and Flapjack, who chirped. He stood up, walking past the Kid's Corner, when he bumped into the Blight twins.

"Oh, sorry." Hunter said taking a step back. For some reason, Edric was giving Emira a piggy back ride? However, he had grown not to question their antics anymore, and so did not voice his confusion. "You here to pick up Amity?"

"No probs, bad but sad boy." Emira said. His ears went red at the nickname, only making the two twins snicker a bit. Emira jumped off Edric's back. "And yeah, we're here to scoop up our little Mittens."

"But I thought while I was here, I could look for skincare tips. I have a date tonight." Edric boasted.

"Good for you." Hunter said.

"Yeah, he needs all the help he can get, after he texted a poem to their mom!" Emira teased, her cheeky grin getting wider. Hunter snorted before he could stop himself, as Edric's grin turned embarrassed.

"Please don't tell people that."

"Are they bothering you again?" Amity asked, walking over from the Kid's Corner.

"Oh, no, I actually bumped into them." Hunter said.

"So, what're you doing here? Since we so graciously presented you with our answer." Emira said.

"Well, hundreds of years ago there was this human named Philip Wittebane who lived in Bonesborough. And he donated his diary to the library." Hunter said, turning to Amity. "I was hoping you could help me out with that, since you're more familiar with the library?"

"Ew. Research." Emira gagged. "Well, I'll leave you two to do... that. In the meantime, I'm going to make sure Edric doesn't flop his date."

"Wha - hey!" Edric said, yelping as she grabbed his arm pulled him away. Amity turned to Hunter.

"So... this diary might help you to travel between realms, correct?" Amity asked. Hunter nodded.

"Well... yeah, I'll help out. As long as you're okay with Luz coming along."

"Luz?" Hunter's eyes widened, surprised, but quickly caught himself. "Yeah, of course I'm okay with her being there! This is important for her, too. Plus... I've been pretty worried about her since the petrification ceremony."

"Yeah... I've been too." Amity said, frowning at the ground. "She's told me about it. Her dad. And she... I just..."

She sighed.

"Don't worry, I get it." Hunter said, Amity not needing to finish her sentence for him to understand.

"Well, anyway, something that old would be kept in the Forbidden Stacks." Amity said, leading him to a pair of giant doors, most probably leading to the Forbidden Stacks. An echo mouse squeaked past them and slid under the door inside. "Only Malphas, the master librarian is allowed in here."

"Which is why I'm here!"

Amity and Hunter turned to see Luz, masked and fully in her Golden Guard uniform.

"Luz!" Amity and Hunter said in unison, Amity ran over to give her a hug. After a few moments she pulled away.

"Are you okay?" Hunter asked, taking a few steps closer.

"I... no, not really. But if there's more to learn about getting to the Human Realm, I have to be here." Luz said after some hesitation. Amity put a hand on her shoulder.

"If you need to tap out for a bit, we'll understand." She said. Luz nodded, however the mask covered whatever expression she had on her face.

After one last concerned look at Luz, Hunter turned back to the doors, Amity and Luz doing the same.

"Since I'm the Golden Guard, I have unrestricted access to the Forbidden Stacks. So you won't have to worry about little ol' Malphy." Luz said, cracking a little joke to help thin the tension a little. Hunter's mouth curled into a small smile, while Amity gave a little chuckle.

Amity took out her staff card, walking over to the doors and opening them. Luz took a deep breath, stepping forward with Hunter. Amity slipped her hand into Luz's, squeezing it reassuringly as they headed inside and the door closed behind them.

+.*.+

After a few minutes of walking, they finally arrived inside the Forbidden Stacks. However, they were immediately spotted by Malphas, as he entered through a separate doorway.

"Golden Guard?" Malphas said. "I wouldn't have expected you to be here so soon after your last visit a few months ago."

"I just got a new lead, so that's why." Luz said. Malphas glanced at Amity and Hunter, narrowing his eyes. He opened his mouth to speak but Luz held up her hand.

"Oh, don't worry, they're with me." She said. Malphas glanced back and forth between Luz, Amity and Hunter, and finally gave a hesitant sigh.

"Alright. But remember to put the books exactly where you found them when you're done with them." Malphas said. "Someone already broke in here a month ago."

And with that, Malphas left the trio to search through the shelves for Philip's diary.

+.*.+

Wandering through the bookshelves, the trio plucked any old-looking books off the shelves in the hopes it was the diary - however, they were all incredibly dusty, so it made all of them look old.

However, while searching, Hunter tripped, landing on the ground with a thud and a grunt. Flapjack flew down, lightly pecking at his face with concern.

"You alright?" Luz asked, offering a hand. Hunter took it.

"Yeah, I'm fine, just tripped." He said, as Flapjack perched on his shoulder again.

Dusting himself off, he realized he'd tripped over a book on the ground. It was considerably less dusty than the other books around.

Picking it up, he read the title.

"Grimwalkers? What are grimwalkers?" Hunter read aloud, confused.

"Oh, those are just legends." Amity explained, still looking through the bookshelves. "With certain valuable ingredients you can make a magical copy of someone. But they don't actually exist - they're just scary stories told to children to get them to behave so they won't be replaced."

Hunter turned back to the book, frowning. "Malphas mentioned someone broke into the Forbidden Stacks a month ago. Judging by how this book isn't as dusty as the others, maybe the person who broke in was looking for this? But why would they leave it behind if that's what they were looking for? And why are the pages... crumpled, as if they were holding it really tightly?"

"It's probably less dusty because you just tripped over it." Amity said, putting a book back before grabbing another one.

"...That doesn't explain the crumpled pages, though..." Hunter mumbled, but he put the book back on the floor and continued searching for the diary.

Luz took a book off the shelf and squealed eagerly. Hunter and Amity turned, surprised.

"I found the diary!" Luz exclaimed, Hunter and Amity shared quick smiles before peering over her shoulder to look at the book.

However, when she flipped it open, an echo mouse had eaten all the pages inside.

Luz began shaking, gripping the book tightly. If it weren't for the gloves she wore, Hunter was sure he'd be seeing her knuckles going white.

"You little RAT!" Luz yelled at the echo mouse, sounding like she was on the verge of tears. Her voice reverberated throughout the Forbidden Stacks, scaring the mouse as it scampered away. Hunter tried to place a hand on her shoulder, but it was short-lived as she grabbed her staff and tried to chase after the echo mouse, dropping the eaten diary. "Get back here!"

Amity and Hunter gave each other worried looks and their palismen turned to staff form and they ran after Luz and the echo mouse.

Barreling past bookshelves and jumping over fallen tomes and spiderwebs, the trio chased the echo mouse.

Unfortunately, they lost their trail, leaving Luz to take off her mask and throw it down onto the ground angrily, sniffling. Amity and Hunter cautiously walked over.

Luz looked at them, frustrated tears streaming down her cheeks.

"We were so close!" Luz yelled, wiping her tears away with her hands balled into fists.

"Hey, hey, it's okay. I'll go search for the echo mouse, alright? I know how to work around them." Amity said, placing a hand on Luz's shoulder. Luz sniffled, but nodded slowly. Amity gave a sad smile before leaving in search of the mouse.

Luz sighed, sliding down a bookshelf and sitting against it on the ground. Hunter slowly moved to sit next to her, and she didn't object.

"Do you... want to talk?" Hunter asked gently. After a few moments of silence, Luz opened up.

"I just... I'm mad at myself for not being able to get to the Human Realm quick enough." Luz said, staring down at the ground. "If only I'd been able to get there. Then maybe I could've done something. Maybe Dad wouldn't be..."

Her eyes turned watery with tears again, and she clutched onto Hunter like a lifeline, sobbing into his shoulder. Hunter gently wrapped his arms around her, this feeling being all too familiar for him.

"There was nothing any of us could have done." Hunter said finally, as Luz's sobs began to die down. "And it definitely wasn't your fault."

Luz sniffled, pulling away. "I just wish that I... that I was there. He died before he knew I was safe. I never got to say... goodbye..."

"You're not alone. We never got to either." Hunter said, placing a hand on her shoulder. Luz looked at him, surprised.

"For a week, he was bedridden. When we were about to head to the hospital for a visit, we got a call from them. That's when they broke the news." Hunter explained, looking away. "So... you're not alone."

Luz rested her head on his shoulder.

"Thanks."

After a few moments of them sitting there like that, they both got up, just as they saw Amity approach, the echo mouse gently cupped in her hands.

"I managed to calm it down and get it to trust me." Amity said. "Echo mice consume knowledge through writing and can play back anything it eats. I don't think it really feels comfortable in this environment, though. So... maybe we could head back to my place?"

Luz glanced at Hunter, who just shrugged, as if to say 'I don't really care either way.' Flapjack chirped, agreeing with Hunter's unspoken statement.

"Alright, sure." Luz said, picking up her mask from the ground and putting it back on.

+.*.+

Arriving at the front steps of the Blight Manor, the trio watched as the echo mouse nuzzled into Amity's hands, a lot more relaxed than before. The green-haired witch rubbed its head a little bit, before its eyes glowed and it played a part of the diary. Hunter and Luz watched, amazed, while Amity secretly slipped the echo mouse in Luz's hands and headed inside.

"My journey through the Demon Realm is far from over." A voice said - presumably Philip Wittebane's voice. It sounded familiar, but the two siblings were too excited on learning more about a way back home than where they'd heard this voice from before.

"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 have dreamt it." The voice said, confirming its identity as Philip. "If only those at home could see what I have, and perhaps they shall. For the more I learn about this realm, the more I am certain I can harness its strange powers to return home. Today I begin recording my journey to create a portal back home."

The echo mouse's eyes dimmed, the projection fading away. Luz looked down at the mouse, nuzzling it with her finger.

"Sorry about earlier, but... thank you, little mouse. I hope we can be good friends." Luz said.

"Where will the echo mouse stay?" Hunter asked.

"I was thinking... maybe you should have it at the Owl House." Luz said after some thought.

"Are you sure?"

"Well... not really, but I don't where I'm going to keep an echo mouse in the castle. And I don't think Emperor Belos will be happy about the echo mouse being around either."

Luz gently moved her cupped hands to Hunter, who cupped his own hands. The echo mouse sniffed his fingers for a bit, then nibbled at his fingers for a bit before curling up in his hands. Hunter chuckled a bit, before glancing over at Luz, still masked. However, she took off her mask to give Hunter the smallest of smiles. However, her smile quickly turned confused.

"Wait, where's Amity?"

"Right here."

The two looked over to see Amity emerging from the doorway - however, her hair was down, and was purple instead of green. She gave a nervous smile and small shrug. Luz's small smile turned into a slightly larger one, as she took a few steps closer.

"Wow, purple really suits you! I love it." Luz said. Amity did her iconic full-face blush as she planted a kiss on Luz's cheek - which turned just as blushy after doing so. Hunter smiled, happy for Luz, before walking away and leaving them to their lovey-dovey business.

The echo mouse squeaked, and Flapjack flew from his shoulder to sit next to the echo mouse in his hands. The cardinal used its wing as a blanket over the echo mouse, chirping a short and happy tune. The echo mouse squeaked happily back, nuzzling into the palisman.

Hunter's heart melted at that.