Huntlow

Huntlow is the het ship between Willow Park and Hunter/the Golden Guard from the The Owl House fandom.

Any Sport in a Storm
In order to prove his worth to the Abomination Coven head Darius, Hunter looks for more Emperor's Coven recruits at Hexside. Willow, meanwhile, is recruiting for people to join her Flyer Derby team. Hunter accidentally bumps into Viney's pet griffin, Puddles, causing him to evade him by flying on his staff. Willow witnesses and is impressed by Hunter's flying skills, and pulls him down with vines. Willow asks him if he wants to join her Flyer Derby team, and introduces herself with an enthusiastic handshake. Hunter introduces himself as Caleb and makes up a fake backstory, before saying he has his own mission to do. Willow asks him to at least take a pamphlet, and he obliges. After seeing the pamphlet saying "best and brightest," Hunter immediately turns around, asking if her club will really attract the best wishes. Willow replies absolutely, so Hunter agrees to give it a try.

Hunter displays his flying skills as a way to attract more members to Willow's team. Willow comments that he's great, and that with him, she can get the Flyer Derby team approved. Meanwhile, Hunter comments to himself that Willow would be a great member for the Emperor's Coven, and that with more witches like her, they're set. When Willow introduces Hunter to the rest of the team, he is put off by their seeming laziness or lack of skill, and walks away. Willow follows him, asking for him to give them a chance, and Hunter replies that where he's from, chances need to be earned, especially for someone considered "half-a-witch" like him. Willow is slightly shocked by this response, though as Hunter walks away, she pulls him into the ground to transport him to the playing field. There, Hunter encounters the team members showing their dedication and skill at the sport, defying his first impression of them. Willow states that they've all been misjudged before, and asks Hunter if he still thinks they're pathetic. Hunter shakes his head, and at that, they proceed to prepare for the game.

After winning the game, the professor asks for their team name to register them as a club. Willow realizes she hasn't thought of one yet, and Hunter suggest the "Emerald Entrails" because they're wearing green and there's more to them than people think. The other members enthusiastically agree, and Willow takes a group selfie.

Hunter then reveals his identity as the Golden Guard. Willow hesitantly asks if he's the one Luz has talked about, and he confirms. Multiple coven members appear to collect the recruits, and they end up in a jail cell for punching one of the guards. Hunter is unable to understand why the team members don't want to be part of the Emperor's Coven and why they feel betrayed. He asks Willow if she's on his side, but she doesn't reply and instead blames herself for getting her team in trouble, calling herself "half-a-witch" Willow. Right then, they are taken by Darius. Hunter has a conversation with Steve where Steve reminds him of the grueling training they had to go through as new recruits to the coven, plus having to give up their palismen. Hunter starts to regret forcing them into this and chases after Darius's ship on his staff.

Hunter's appearance on the ship surprises Darius, giving the team an opportunity to crash the ship and escape. Darius angrily approaches the members with a scythe hand, going through Willow's defenses. Right as he attacks them, Hunter steps in front of them to shield them. He says that they are insolent agitators who are unfit to be part of the Emperor's Coven, and also removes cloak saying that he's not fit for the role of Golden Guard either. He turns around, pleading Willow to leave. With slight tears in her eyes, Willow tells her team that they should go and that they need find a replacement, lightheartedly commenting that it'll be 52 weeks before Caleb's next day off.

At the end of the episode, Willow and her team are looking at her scroll, seeing that Hunter made a new Penstagram account since Darius gave him a scroll in the previous scene. Willow and Gus laugh at his slow typing.

Moments

 * When Willow hands Hunter the flags during their Flyer Derby game, their fingers briefly interlock.
 * Hunter often calls Willow "Captain."
 * After Willow leaves Hunter and Darius, Hunter briefly has a small blush.

Fanon
Before the episode "Any Sport in a Storm", Huntlow was somewhat of a rarepair and crackship due to the characters never interacting and the fact that the two would likely be enemies. The ship gained more popularity with Season 2B promos showing Hunter tied up by Willow's vines, implying the two would meet. It was also fueled more with the episode synopsis of "Any Sport in a Storm" revealing that the episode would be focused on them. When the episode aired, more people were convinced on shipping Huntlow since the two became friends and Willow helped progress Hunter's character development. Hunter also reveals that he was considered "half-a-witch", a nickname Willow was bullied with in the past.

Huntlow is considered problematic by some due to their 2 year age gap, with Willow being 14 and Hunter being 16. They believe that their differences in maturity could create an unhealthy power dynamic. However, people argue that due to Hunter being more sheltered, Willow is the one with more emotional maturity, meaning that their relationship would have no power unbalance.

Fandom
FAN FICTION'

INSTAGRAM

TWITTER