The Owl House: Bella Tales

— Oh, great.

Lost in a forest at night. That was how she imagined this night ending.

Well, she couldn't blame anyone but herself. After all, the idea had come from her own head when she decided to go for a walk at night and follow a mysterious light.

— I need to get home — she muttered.

Not that there was anyone around to hear her.

She started walking, searching for any sign of life that might be able to help her.

She was just an ordinary girl, with short black hair that was now a mess after the fall she'd taken earlier. She wore a long blue coat, simple clothes underneath, and a pair of pants that were much larger than they needed to be.

Her pink eyes were the only feature she considered even remotely noticeable about herself, and right now, they only looked tired.

How can someone be so stupid that they don't even think twice before doing something so simple?

The thought began eating away at her mind, and with every passing minute, her desperation grew.

Her steps gradually quickened until, finally, her eyes caught sight of a light that could either be her salvation...

Or another trap she'd fall into.

Fortunately, it wasn't.

From the top of the cliff, she saw a place that could only exist in the darkest fantasy books she'd ever read.

The city stretched out before her like a strange dream.

A castle seemed to reach toward the starry blue sky, while the houses surrounding it looked as though they had been built by someone who had never studied even the basics of construction. Chimneys released smoke in colors that weren't natural, and beside them stood enormous bone structures that looked like they had been taken from some colossal celestial creature.

For the first time that night, her heart raced with excitement.

Without thinking twice, she was already in the middle of the crowd, a hood covering part of her face.

For some reason, the hood made her feel safe.

Let's say I'm actually in a fantasy world like the ones from those books. I guess I might not even speak their language or...

Her attention was suddenly drawn to a shopkeeper moving his fingers, causing the objects inside his store to float into a chest.

— The shop's closed. If you want to buy something, come back tomorrow, girl.

She held her breath, still frozen in the middle of the crowd.

The shopkeeper wasn't human.

No...

He had an oval-shaped body and a single eye in the center of it.

An appearance that would have terrified any child with common sense.

Bella only became more excited.

— LUZ! CHILD, WHERE ARE YOU?!

Bella turned around and saw a tall, middle-aged woman with long hair that reminded her of snow, even though she'd never seen snow up close. She imagined it probably looked something like that.

The woman rushed through the crowd until her eyes landed on the hooded girl.

— You...

Her eyes widened slightly, a mixture of surprise and curiosity crossing her face.

Bella instinctively grabbed the edge of her hood as the woman gave her a relieved smile.

— You're a human too, aren't you?

Too? There are other humans here? I'm not the only one...

She let out a sigh of relief, but soon turned her attention back to the woman after a moment of silence.

— Y-Yes, I'm a h-human...

She slowly pulled down her hood, her face gradually growing warmer as she struggled to meet the witch's eyes.

— It's okay. You don't have to be nervous.

The woman was so tall that Bella had to slowly tilt her head upward. She could see the stranger's gentle smile, with a single golden tooth standing out among the others.

— That's right, I almost forgot. I need to find Luz.

She scratched the back of her head while looking toward the horizon.

— H-Hmm... I can help.

She raised a finger as if asking permission from some kind of authority.

— Doesn't sound like such a bad idea. Come with me, human!

The woman quickly headed toward the forest, forcing the girl—who clearly wasn't the athletic type—to pick up her pace.

After several minutes of walking, the two finally found a figure sitting near the edge of the forest cliff.

A girl.

— Luz, what are you doing out here?!

Bella was still out of breath and didn't even think to look ahead. She was too busy wondering whether this was where her life ended when...

Her heart skipped a beat.

— Eda, I was just admiring the...

The eyes of the two girls met for the first time.

It felt as though time itself had forgotten to move.

The weight hanging over that night seemed to disappear within seconds.

Why did my body just freeze?!

Bella fought with herself internally, her face growing warmer as her heart pounded faster.

— YOU'RE A HUMAN?!

As Bella finally seemed to snap back to reality, she realized that the brown-haired girl was holding both of her hands, overflowing with an almost unnatural amount of excitement.

So soft...

— My name is Luz Noceda! What's yours?

Their eyes remained locked for a few seconds before the shy girl finally looked away.

— I-I... My name is Bella... Hiraga Bella.

— Wow! That's a really unique name. I like it!

Her response left Bella even more frozen than before.

— So where are you from? Are you lost? Did you come through a portal? Eda, did you accidentally bring her here too?

— No. I found her walking around Bonesborough.

Eda placed her hands on her hips as she examined the girl, who was doing everything in her power to avoid looking at anyone.

— Oh, right... So that means she's going to have to stay with us for a while too, doesn't it?

Silence.

— WHAT?!

Bella and Eda shouted at the same time, equally surprised.

---

A few hours later, the three of them stood at the entrance of the so-called Owl House.

It was a crooked little house sitting in the middle of a cliff, looking like the kind of place that could collapse at any moment.

— So, Bella, everything's already settled. For now, you'll sleep in my room with me.

Luz pointed at herself with a contagious smile while Bella simply answered with a quick nod.

— And just wait until you see the—

— YOU TOOK FOREVER! THE KING OF DEMONS NEEDS HIS ROYAL NAP AND DOESN'T HAVE TIME TO WAIT FOR BED!

Huh?

A tiny creature with what looked like a dog's skull stood in front of them.

It should have been disturbing.

Instead, it was somehow much cuter than scary.

— Oh no, another human... Eda, are you going to adopt every human you find lying around? We're gonna run out of sleeping space!

Bella noticed just how small he was.

He looked like he could probably fit inside a backpack.

— This is King, the King of Demons I told you about.

Luz held King like a kitten.

— Nice to meet you, King.

How can something this tiny and adorable be the King of Demons?

— Alright, it's late! Come on, Bella. I'll show you where the bedroom is.

She immediately dropped King, who landed on the floor and looked ready to sleep right there, before grabbing Bella by the arm.

Luz's steps were way too fast for Bella, who spent most of her time indoors.

— My room's a little cramped, so until Eda finds somewhere for you to stay, if you don't mind, you can sleep in the same bed as me.

Luz gave her a thumbs-up and, with a welcoming smile, opened the bedroom door.

It really was a cramped room.

Not because of its actual size...

It was because of the mess scattered throughout it.

Several chests that looked like they hadn't been cleaned in centuries, papers covering the floor and walls...

The place looked more like an attic than somewhere anyone was supposed to sleep.

Still, the floor was the only part that was in relatively decent condition, even with all the papers lying around.

If she calls this a bedroom... I don't even want to see what the kitchen looks like...

Bella sighed, having actually built up a little anticipation for what was to come.

Then she looked at the floor again and noticed a sleeping bag.

A sleeping bag that would only fit one girl.

WAIT. ONE GIRL?!

She quickly looked at Luz, who was still smiling at her.

How am I supposed to complain when she smiles like that...?

Some time passed.

Not very long in reality.

But to Bella, it felt like years.

She lay on her side with her back turned toward Luz. She was still wearing the oversized shirt beneath her coat, along with her long pants.

Luz, meanwhile, had changed into her pajamas: a white tank top and short purple shorts.

— Bella, are you asleep?

— No...

Yeah... If I could just stop thinking about a thousand different things, maybe it'd be easier to sleep.

— Hmm... You can't sleep, can you? Homesick?

Bella turned her head slightly, glancing at Luz, who was facing her.

— It's not that... My home... Hmm... It's not like it's as nice as this place...

She spoke almost as though she were murmuring to herself.

— How did you end up in the Boiling Isles?

— Honestly, I only remember bits and pieces.

She turned onto her back and stared at the ceiling, which almost startled her with how clean it was compared to the rest of the room.

— I was walking home at night. I remember buying some chips to eat when I got there, and then I saw this flash of light and...

She looked at the girl beside her, realizing that Luz was genuinely curious about her.

— I ended up here. After that, I fell down the hill and passed out for a while. When I woke up, I realized I wasn't on my street anymore.

— That's weird...

— Yeah. But you're probably used to this kind of thing, right? Considering you live in a place like this.

The two let out a quiet laugh, keeping it up for quite a while.

— No, I haven't been here that long. Just like you, I ended up here through some kind of portal.

— Seriously?

— Uh-huh.

Bella turned completely toward Luz, ready to hear how that girl's story had begun.

— Well... Before I came here, my mom... Hmm... I was supposed to go to a camp that I didn't want to go to, and I didn't really have a choice. Everyone saw me as weird and different... Until I followed Owlbert and ended up going through Eda's portal.

— Owlbert...?

— Yeah. That's the name of the little owl that sits on Eda's staff.

— ...That thing is alive?!

— Yep!

Luz burst out laughing at Bella's surprised reaction.

— It's... It's amazing how this place makes me feel normal... Instead of like some weirdo...

She stared at the ceiling, both hands resting on her stomach.

Bella did the same, though she kept her eyes on the girl beside her.

— Don't you miss your home too?

— Sometimes... I can still go back with Eda's portal, so I don't really worry about it.

— I see... Do you think the portal could take me back to my home?

I hope not.

— Hmm... I don't know. We can ask Eda about it tomorrow.

Bella nodded with a small smile on her face.

But deep down, all she wanted was for Luz to tell her that there was no way back.

Bella looked up, taking a deep breath.

Her expression hardened with determination.

I'll do whatever it takes to stop being useless.