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"The trees there are green,
Nights are quiet."
The rain doesn't boil here, either. Those words replay like a broken record in Hunter's no-longer-hollow mind.
He fell asleep at some point in the long first night in this unfamiliar realm, after a long conversation with Luz, but one of few words. Just the occasional glance, shift, "It's gonna be okay, right?", and so on.
The first thing Hunter did upon blinking awake was grab his chest, then his gloved hands, squeezing them to try and stop the shaking. The dawn welcomed itself into the Noceda's quaint den. He wanted to stand up, eat something, stretch, but every muscle in his body was weak and telling him to rest, both from the draining spell, and witnessing his 'uncle' get completely splattered in front of him. He could only sit up, zoned out, but broke out of it with a jolt and a gasp as he felt a hand gently touch his shoulder beside him.
"...Are you alright?" A middle-aged woman whispers. "What's your name, son?"
That's Luz's mom...but can I trust her?
Hunter blinks and draws his knees up, hugging them and lowering his head between them.
"Oh, you poor things…" Camila sighs, bearing the weight of now four extra 'children' to look after temporarily. This one looked older than the others, and possibly the most rugged and afraid. He could push that fear aside just to protect Gus, but as soon as his friend was asleep, that courageous façade dropped. Camila understood that he didn't want to speak at the moment, so she sat on the floor beside him, just the one hand on his shoulder, rubbing it gently.
"That's okay. You don't have to tell me now."
"...hunter." He mutters, muffled from his head between his knees.
"Okay, Hunter. Would you like some breakfast? You can help me if you'd like, it will be a nice surprise for the others to wake up to. Oh, and don't let me forget to lend you some clothes. I think Luz's are too small, but if you don't mind, I have some."
This was too kind, too generous. Hunter was so accustomed to needing to work for someone's approval, time of day, and even meals and new clothes that all he could muster at the moment was a small, frantic nod. Camila offered him probably one of the kindest smiles he'd seen in his life, a smile that understood, a smile that said: 'I know.' The mother stands up and offers her hand to the teen, who doesn't take it. He didn't want anyone to touch his hands at the moment. He realized quickly he'd have to take off his gloves to wash his hands and help cook. A wave of dread washed over him.
Something about his hands being uncovered– maybe it was the scars, or the paleness, or the constant tremors, intensified now– horrified him. Camila only nods and paces to the kitchen, allowing Hunter to take his time, which seemed to pass slower in the human realm.
The night had indeed been quiet, and too long. And outside the living room window, soaking in the dawn, were the lush, green trees. He averted his gaze to his friends, still in a much-needed slumber.
It's gonna be okay, right?
After following Mrs. Noceda into the kitchen, Hunter waited for her to be out of his way and turned around before peeling his gloves off and tucking them in his pouch that he still had around his waist. He tried not to look too hard at his hands, pale, sweaty, dirt under the nails, still trembling.
He, unsurprisingly, looked too hard, he kept noticing all the flaws, the grime, the scarring, the clamminess; and then he started to scrub, hard. A little too hard, for the task at hand. Hunter's breathing became erratic, too, uneven and hard to catch.
You're stuck in your head, Hunter. It's okay, you're fine, for now.
He kept trying to tell himself, but the negative voices were winning now, consuming him, threatening him, until Camila walked over and turned off the faucet for Hunter.
"I think your hands are clean now, Hunter." She assures him gently, not asking or assuming he wanted to explain to her everything that was wrong. Luz could fill her in on everyone's behalf. "Will you set the table and wake the others?" The mother assumed that delegating Hunter with a mundane task would calm him, if only a little. In truth, she had no clue how to handle boys, especially teenage boys, and especially severely traumatized and anxious teenage boys who show up at her doorstep late at night, soaking wet, along with her own daughter and company.
Hunter dries his hands, neglecting to put his gloves back on for now, and sets up the table for breakfast. Camila had to show him where all the dishes were kept. The table wasn't big enough for the seven of them total, though.
"I won't need a place. I'll eat at the counter." Camila assures him.
"...then I will, too." Hunter offers.
"No no, you're the guest."
He looks at her for a moment before relaxing his shoulders. Turns out, he didn't have to wake the others, because he could hear them chatting gently as they approached the kitchen. Luz entered first, rubbing her eyes before rushing to her mother and embracing her.
"Mom…" She sniffles as the two embrace tightly. Amity, Gus, Willow, and Vee trail behind her into the kitchen, with Gus going right to Hunter's side, knowing instantly that something was wrong.
"Hey." The younger boy mutters, giving Hunter a reassuring smile that still contained great sorrow. "Remember to breathe, remember what I taught you. You're safe here, okay? You can trust us."
Hunter was zoned out for most of the others entering the kitchen, staring but not exactly knowing what was going on. Too many voices. Gus's words seemed to get through to him, though, and he managed to control his breathing in a few short moments. He'd completely missed Luz introducing everyone to her mother. But now, Camila spoke with the others as if they'd always been a part of the family. Hunter saw her natural tendency to care, and it hit him so hard that he'd only ever gotten that, briefly, from Darius before the incidents on the Day of Unity.
Darius. Oh, no, no, no. Darius– he's–
He excused himself from the room without a word, only clutching his head and shuffling to the living room. Hunter slid down the wall to the floor, hugging his knees once more and trying not to weep too loudly. He didn't want everyone to crowd him because he was upset. He was the oldest, and he knew he had to pull it together for the others and for himself.
Camila noticed his leaving and paused Luz, who was still frantically recalling everything from the days prior.
"Luz, baby, your friend…the older boy, Hunter. Is he alright?"
"...I don't think so, but to tell you the truth, none of us are. Maybe it's best to give him space for now, okay Mami?" Luz shrugs and peeks into the living room to see her ally curled up against the wall.
"I'll check on him." Willow pipes up, sounding determined.
"I'll go, too." Gus offers.
The girl nods with a kind smile and the two excuse themselves from the kitchen. Once in the living room, they also sit against the wall, not too close to Hunter, but still flanking him.
"...you know, Hunter. You must be feeling very scared. I think we all are. No one here knows what's going on in the Isles, and no one in the Isles knows what's going on here, in the human realm." Willow starts, her voice shaking slightly. She was a strong girl, though, and she was willing to prove it right now. "We may not know when or how we're going to get back, but I have a feeling that everyone on the Isles is safe for now. I just know it. Darius, my dads, Eda…they're safe, Hunter, and so are you."
"Everyone just keeps telling me that I'm safe. What's that supposed to mean? I just– I just watched Belos…die, and I've never felt more afraid, but relieved in my life. But, I still don't feel safe. I'm sorry, Captain. I'm supposed to be tough, but…" Hunter sighed and tilted his head back, trying to keep himself from completely falling apart in front of his friend.
Willow listened intently, removing her glasses briefly to clean them on the hem of her shirt. She thought of a response, but it lost her. She looked at Gus, appearing just as worried, confused, and tearful. After a pause that felt far too long, she spoke up.
"It's okay that you feel afraid and unsafe. It's okay if you don't trust me, or believe me right now, but if there's one thing I can promise you right now, Hunter, it's that every person in this house cares about you, no matter what you've done in your past or what you've been through up to this point, even Mrs. Noceda cares for you. We're all here for you because right now, we need one another more than anything." Willow paused before adding: "Us weirdos have to stick together, as Luz always says," said somewhat cheerfully and with a wink.
Hunter lowered his head slightly, looking at Willow with those piercing, but tired Grimwalker eyes. There were too many things he was afraid of at present: his 'uncle', Darius's safety, what will happen to his body in this realm, the fact that only Luz and maybe Gus knew he was just a copy of previous slaughtered Golden Guards; as well as a general, but deep concern for his friends' well-being as much as his own.
"C'mon, let's go eat something, I think we'll all feel a little better if we sit down and eat, just like on the ship, yeah?" Willow says reassuringly, standing up and offering her hand.
She's not going to burn you with her touch, Hunter. Take her hand. She's your teammate, your friend, you…like her, maybe?..
He reached one hand out, to which the girl firmly held his bare hand and wrist, and helped him to stand. Gus supported his other side. Willow noticed his gloveless hands were very warm but shaky.
Hunter had no way to hide the blush on his cheeks and ears, so he only hoped she wouldn't bring attention to that.
And thank Titan, she didn't. There was too much Willow didn't know about Hunter just yet. She didn't know who, or what he really was; and in all honesty, he didn't know that himself. He was led back to the kitchen by his friends, where a large breakfast awaited them, and the others scooted over to let the trio join them at the table.
A seat at the table was a new phenomenon for Hunter. He'd always stood at the Emperor's side, even at banquets and meetings. So, it was nice to have a place on the same level as the others. He never expected in his lifetime to share a meal with friends and loved ones, to be welcomed and trusted, and to belong.