Chapter Text
Eda's panicking.
Camila's door is right in front of her, and she can't bring herself to knock because she is completely, utterly terrified that she's about to lose the life she's built for herself. That, once again, she's going to drive away the people she cares for most, and that she'll be forced to spend the rest of her life with the knowledge that it was all her fault. Her and her Titan-damned secrets.
In the end, that's what forces her hand to the door. If nothing else, Eda won't leave without all the cards on the table, for Camila and the kids as much as for her.
Not this time.
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Camila can't help but be reminded of her last conversation with Eda, as they sit silently at the same table. The silence lasts a few seconds, before Camila starts to speak.
"I…I'm not determined to see you as a villain, M–Eda. I know you love our kids, that's why I'm willing to give you a chance to explain. But…god, Eda, how could you keep this from them? You know how it's gnawed at them their whole lives, I've seen them talk to you about it almost as much as they do with me! How could you just…let them suffer like that?"
Camila's carefully restrained anger bursts through a bit near the end of her sentence, and Eda flinches slightly. Still, she squares her shoulders and forces herself to meet Camila's gaze.
"It…it was for a few reasons. Some more valid than others, but…I won't deny that part of it was selfishness. I was afraid of…well, this. That you'd be furious I hid it, that I'd lose you all. Hey–don't give me that look," Eda snaps at Camila's softening expression, "We're both old enough to know that's just an excuse."
Eda shakes her head, briefly holding her head in her hands, only rising again after several deep breaths.
"The bigger reason, though, is because they wanted to know so bad. They would've wanted to go there, and...they wouldn't have been safe there."
Camila straightens in her seat a bit, eyes sharpening.
"King getting sent here was an accident on my end, but I brought Vee and Hunter through on purpose. A couple friends of mine had found out some shit going on with the government back home, and once they found out there were kids involved, well…they came to me. I know we've talked about how it's clear that someone hurt those two before they got here, right? Well, I know who: the Emperor of the Boiling Isles, Belos."
"Philip…" Camila mumbles, remembering the figure from Enzo's stories.
"What?"
Camila looks back up at Eda's confused face.
"Did this Belos…create Vee and Hunter?"
Eda nods slowly.
"...Yeah, Vee and the other Basilisks were grown in a lab and Darius is pretty sure Hunter's a clone of Belos' dead nephew."
"Enzo–that's the Collector–already told us all of this, except they said it was a man named Philip who did it. I already thought he sounded like a bastard, but…you're saying he hurt Hunter and Vee?"
"Yes. He was doing…things I don't really wanna think about to Vee and the other Basilisks, trying to figure out how they drained magic or something. As for Hunter, we never really knew all of what Belos did to him, but he was definitely being trained as a child soldier at the very least. Plus…well, you've seen his scars. Raine–another one of those friends–saw him go into the throne room with an unmarked face and come out covered in blood. That's what made them decide to act, actually."
Camila takes a moment to let this sink in, to pool in her heart and crystallize, until a new truth makes itself known.
"I'm going to kill him."
And Eda can't help but shudder slightly, knowing that somehow, someway, Camila would make good on that.
Once Camila calms herself, she gives Eda one last searching glance, before sighing softly.
"It's going to take time for me to trust you again, Eda, and you're going to have to work for it. But…I do trust that you were trying to keep our kids safe. So: I am willing to give you another chance, on three conditions."
Camila can read the quickly shifting emotions on Eda's face, going from surprise, to tentative hope, to joy, to an excitement she quickly tamps down to an appropriate level. Camila only just barely stops herself from smiling at it; it's still 'serious conversation' time.
"Of course, Cammy, anything!"
"One: no more secrets, Eda. If you want to be a part of this family, the two of us have to be on the same page."
"Two: you have to tell the kids about this. They already know the truth about themselves now, and they deserve to decide for themselves whether they forgive you."
"And Three." Camila hesitates here, just for a moment; she honestly doesn't know whether to ask this, but…no, no, she has to. The kids deserve it.
"You have to work with me to try and find a way for the kids to visit the Isles. I know it's dangerous for Hunter and Vee, and if we really can't find a way, then they can stay here until Belos is dead. But I'm not going to accept that until we've ruled out every possibility."
Camila holds out her hand, and gives Eda a small smile.
"Do you think you can do that, Eda?"
Eda grasps her hand like a lifeline before she can even finish speaking, nodding frantically as she pulls it to her chest.
"Yes, of course I will. I promise you, I will do everything I can to regain your trust, and the kids'."
Camila can see in her eyes that she means every, and she can't help smiling a little wider. She may have her issues, but god strike her down if Eda wouldn't die for this family. There's a reason Camila is…well, maybe those thoughts are best left for later.
She notices Eda, shifting back and forth on her feet, clearly resisting the urge to ask something.
Camila rolls her eyes fondly, before opening up her arms and pulling Eda into a light hug.
"I love you, Cammy. All of you," Eda mumbles into her shoulder.
"I know."
They pull away slightly, looking into each other's eyes from a distance best described as 'non-platonic'.
"So…sounds like we have some planning to do, huh Cammy? Should we start by planning the trip or the assassination?"
"Hmmm…why don't you surprise me, Lyn?"