Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Hunter didn’t know much of anything.

Really, he didn’t.

The static of the television stung his sensitive ears, making him resist the urge to cover them up- Uncle Belos didn’t like it when he did that, and he wasn’t looking to get another punishment. 

The scars on his back ached, at the thought.

He shuffled in his sitting position on the floor, and shot a glance behind him at his Uncle, who was seated on their patchwork couch. The older man watched the biblical documentary on the television intently, only taking his eyes off of it to raise an eyebrow at Hunter.

Hunter bit his lip, and quickly brought his attention back to the shotty television, watching as the pixels glitched and warped on the screen. He remembered when the television hadn’t been halfway broken- warm memories of enjoying lovely Christian movies with his uncle on the couch. The older man would explain biblical lessons to him, and ruffle the hair on his head- something that always elicited a giggle to make its way out of Hunter’s mouth.

Those interactions were far and few between, nowadays. He raised his hand absent-mindedly up to his lips, beginning to chew on his nails as he thought. No matter how hard Hunter had tried to understand, he had no idea what had caused his uncle to slowly treat him more and more coldly as he got older. He knew it had to be his own fault, of course. Hunter has committed sins under their household, purposefully or not, and he needed to be punished and repent for those actions- and for that, he was grateful for his uncle’s mercy on him, treating him with such kindness through the years despite the mistakes that Hunter continued to make over, and over again.

He just wished he knew what he was doing wrong. He gnawed on his thumbnail, pondering his actions and trying to think of anything that could have caused this change in behavior from his uncle towards him.

He heard his uncle shift his weight on the couch, and resisted the urge to flinch.

“Boy,” Uncle Belos began, and Hunter quickly shifted his attention back towards his uncle- thumb still in his mouth. 

His uncle raised up from his seat, and then crouched down to Hunter’s level on the floor. Hunter was at a loss for words, staring up at his uncle with widened eyes.

Uncle Belos raised his hand, and pulled Hunter’s thumb out of his mouth, then giving the top of his hand a harsh slap. “Don’t do that again.” He ordered, and Hunter immediately nodded his head, heart practically pounding out of his chest.

“Yes, sir.”

—-

Hunter really didn’t know much of anything.

He pulled his knees up to his chest as he sat on the dirty carpet of their broom closet, rocking back and forth and fighting back the tears that tried to well up in his eyes. The door was locked, and as usual, he had no idea how long he was going to have to stay in the closet.

He was given this punishment very rarely, but it tended to be followed by things much more brutal than simply being locked in the closet for a day or two. The only way for him to be able to pay for his sins, was to isolate himself, and then receive the most adequate lesson afterwards- ensuring that he understood the gravity of his actions. The lessons after isolation ranged pretty widely, but whether he had to harshly scrub his sins away until his skin bled, or receive lashings to drive the devil out of him- he dreaded the lessons no matter what. They were necessary, and he understood that, but it never made it less painful.

Sometimes, he wondered if he had been born as some sort of spawn of Satan. It would make sense, considering his uncle’s treatment of him- he clearly needed extra help to refrain from sinning, and it seemed that he had to work harder for God’s forgiveness than other children would need to. 

It was okay, though. Hunter would do anything to ensure he wouldn’t be sent to Hell. 

He resisted the urge to bite on his fingernails, knowing that was a frowned-upon action, as he continued to rock back and forth. 

The most distressing thing about the situation he currently found himself in, was that he didn’t know what had caused him to be locked in the closet again. His uncle had been acting differently recently, but Hunter lacked the words and knowledge to be able to describe, or understand it. His uncle was making more phone calls than normal, hiding things, keeping the blinds shut constantly- and that was just the smallest bits of his unusual behavior as of recent.

After receiving another phone call, probably the fourth one that day, his uncle had found him in the living room and proceeded to scream at him- words that Hunter didn’t understand, and had already blocked out of his memory- before being dragged and thrown into the closet, being effectively locked away for an indeterminable amount of time.

Hunter’s stomach growled.

He hoped it wouldn’t last more than a day, this time.

—-

Hunter had probably never known much of anything, quite honestly.

He wasn’t sure how long he had spent in the closet so far, but he was certain he hadn’t eaten in at least two days, at this point.

His stomach felt like it was being stabbed, hunger practically taking over his body. He shoved his fist into his mouth, to prevent himself from crying out in pain. His uncle had never left him in the closet for this long.

He would hear shuffling around, and speaking coming from outside the closet door on occasion, and resisted the urge to cry and shout at the door, begging his uncle to let him out.

Hunter had been in the small room for a couple of days now, at least. His uncle had initially opened the door every four or five hours, slid some food and water in for him, and then proceeded to lock the door again. But that hadn’t happened in a while, now.

Hunter was beginning to wonder if he would die here. His breathing began to pick up at the thought, and he once again resisted the urge to cry, attempting and failing to school his panic. Surely, if he died here, he would be going to Hell. Hunter didn’t want to go to Hell. He just wanted God’s forgiveness, and love. He didn’t know what sins he had committed for this to happen, but he found himself pulling himself up onto his knees, and silently praying for forgiveness.

His stomach really, really hurt.

Suddenly, he heard the signature steps of his uncle, and the click of the closet door being unlocked. 

He wasn’t going to die in here, then.

“Uncle!” He called out, his throat sore from disuse. He watched as the door creaked and his uncle stepped forward, with a plate of food and a water bottle. The older man gently placed the plate down, and then gestured for Hunter to come closer to him.

Hunter quickly obliged, desperate for any positive touch from his uncle.

Uncle Belos pulled him into an embrace, held him there for a moment, and then gently eased Hunter off of him. Hunter wished it could have lasted forever. The warmth of his uncle was something he rarely experienced, and after shivering in the closet for several days now, he would have gladly never let go of his uncle ever again.

His uncle rested his hands on Hunter’s shoulders, and looked into his eyes.

“Hunter, I need you to listen to me very carefully.” His uncle began, and Hunter nodded fervently in response, giving his uncle his undivided attention.

“If somebody comes here that is not me, you cannot trust them. They will be trying to lead you to sin- you’ll be sent to Hell if you cooperate with them. God will never forgive you, or let you repent ever again. Do you understand?”

“Yes, uncle.” Hunter responded, instantly.

“Good.” Uncle Belos nodded, sliding his hands down Hunter’s arms, before beginning to stand up.

“You are a good boy, Hunter. I don’t want to see you fall to the hands of the Devil.” He sighed, stepping backwards and keeping his eyes on Hunter as he edged towards the door.

“Uncle,” Hunter began, his heart beginning to pick up its pace in his chest. It would be better to ask this question now, rather than never. “When will I be able to leave the closet?”

Uncle Belos tutted, and gave him a small smile.

“Soon, I’m sure.”

And with that, the door was closed and locked once again.

—-

Hunter knew nothing anymore.

He could hear sirens blaring outside of the house, and the red and blue lights of police cars flashing and leaking through the small crack under the closet door. 

He heard his uncle swear, several loud bangs, and the sound of their front door being kicked down.

Hunter covered his ears, breathing erratically and attempting to curl up into as small of a ball as he possibly could, as his uncle’s swears turned into screams.

There were voices of several men, the chatter of police comms, and other things being yelled out on top of all the other sounds emanating from outside of the closet.

Hunter rocked back and forth, pressing himself into the corner of the room and felt tears slip down his cheeks as he realized his bladder had failed him, from the sheer terror he was experiencing.

He couldn’t hear his uncle anymore.

Police chatter continued, and he realized with a distant thought that they were searching the home. They were going to find him.

He remembered what his uncle had told him a few days prior, and latched onto that memory as hard as he could as another bang echoed from somewhere else in the house.

Hunter stopped breathing when he then heard the sound of the closet door being unlocked, and began a silent prayer.

The door was pushed open, and he heard a shocked gasp as he buried his face into his knees- too terrified to see who his attacker was.

There was more chatter- he had stopped processing any words that were being said a while ago, now- and there was a police officer in front of him, more speaking, and the man extended a hand towards him.

Hunter flinched backwards so violently that he nearly slammed his head into the wall. His breathing turned to hyperventilation, and stars began to swarm his vision.

And just like that, he completely blacked out.

Chapter Text

The past week has been a blur for Hunter.

He was struggling to process and understand what was true, and what wasn’t. The people who called themselves “social workers” and “Child Protective Services” used a lot of words that he had never heard before, and the police had practically interrogated him about his uncle while he was in the hospital- asking him questions about things he had no idea about.

Hunter wasn’t sure what the worst part of the week had been so far, but being forced to go to the hospital because he apparently was severely malnourished, was definitely up there. Everything that he had experienced since being kidnapped from his uncle had been incredibly unholy, and Hunter had found himself praying at every second he managed to get alone- which wasn’t often. He had to repent for the sins that he was being subjected to.

One of the most unsettling sins so far, was that he’d been fed a lot of lies over the past few days. Nearly every adult he’d spoken to had tried to tell him ludicrous things about his Uncle Belos. Hunter was, naturally, in complete disbelief of these things, and he wasn’t convinced that this wasn’t some sort of trick- perhaps from witchcraft or through the Devil. 

And at the same time, he wasn’t sure he’d ever been so terrified in his entire life. 

Being passed around from adult to adult, different buildings, rooms, interrogations, explanations- it was overwhelming, in every single way possible. He’d tried to run away already, several times. After the fourth time he had sprinted out of the building, he was told that he was a “flight risk”, whatever that meant. 

Hunter just wanted his uncle back. He’d never known much more than the church and his home. Always surrounded by four walls. His uncle taught him everything that he knew, and he would have liked to keep it that way. Hunter felt dirty, surrounded by sin- he didn’t trust any of these people and he simply wanted to return back into his uncle's warm and protective embrace. His uncle always kept him safe, made sure he wasn’t giving in to Satan’s temptations, and Hunter was terrified he was going to become a true sinner if he didn’t have his uncle to guide him through it. 

Right now though, Hunter was entering another office- one of many that he’d been forced to visit over the past few days. A man sat in front of him, behind a desk with his hands clasped on top of the table, and giving Hunter a soft smile. The man couldn’t be older than his late thirties- maybe forty, Hunter guessed. His greying hair was messy, and he had a friendly attitude that made Hunter feel a little less nervous than he had before he had stepped into the office. 

Hunter fidgeted with his hands, sitting down and keeping his eyes averted away from the gaze of the adult sitting across from him.

“Hey, kiddo. It’s nice to finally get to meet you.” The man spoke, and Hunter continued to stare at the floor, shuffling his feet on the carpet.

“My name’s Gilbert Park, you can call me Mr. Park. I’m going to be your case manager, and I’ll be in charge of making sure that you’re safe and able to get to a better home, yeah?”

“Yes, sir.” Hunter nodded, raising his hand up to begin chewing on his nails, before catching himself and pushing his own hand back down.

Mr. Park seemed to be his new authority figure, for the time being. Uncle Belos had said not to trust anyone that wasn’t him, and Hunter certainly did not trust Mr. Park in the slightest, but that didn’t mean that he wasn’t going to treat him as the authority figure that he was. He didn’t want to be punished, and he knew that he was dangerously close to becoming a sinner as it was- he wasn’t going to push his luck by talking back to any adult, regardless if he trusted them.

“So,” Mr. Park began, not taking his eyes off of Hunter, “I’ve been doing a lot of work on your case behind the scenes, which is why we haven’t formally met until now- but I just wanted you to know that you have no reason to feel unsafe with me, okay?”

“Yes, sir.” Hunter replied automatically, glancing up at him.

Mr. Park paused for a moment, before muttering an “Alright,” and rolling his wheeled office chair toward his laptop.

“Hunter,” He started, and Hunter looked up at him, watching as he turned on the laptop and began to type something. “I know you’ve been told a lot of things about your uncle over the past few days. And there’s a lot of things that we haven’t been able to tell you about yet, but since I’m getting ready to place you into a new home, I wanted to properly explain things to you.” He looked up over his laptop screen, presumably to gauge Hunter’s reaction.

Hunter frowned slightly, but kept his expression as neutral as possible- despite the fact that he was beginning to feel his heartbeat pick up at the idea of learning what was really happening.

Over the past few days, Hunter had been told a multitude of confusing things- that his Uncle Belos was bad, that he was hurting him, that he wasn’t who he said he was, that he was in jail- but nothing was ever fully explained. None of it made any sense to him. Hunter obviously had not believed them, and he wasn’t sure he was going to believe whatever Mr. Park was about to tell him either. Still, even so, the possibility of getting a final explanation of what was happening and why he was taken away from his life made him incredibly anxious, and he once again found himself chewing on his nails, unaware that he had even started to do so.

“Your uncle, he told you his name was…” Mr. Park trailed off and squinted at his computer screen, “Eric Belos?” He looked at Hunter for confirmation.

“Yes, sir.”

“Alright.” Mr. Park sighed and ran a hand down his face, seeming to be preparing himself to say something difficult.

“Your uncle’s name wasn’t Eric Belos.”

Over the next few minutes, Hunter’s entire world fell apart.

Phillip Wittebane, Mr. Park had said, murdered his parents and kidnapped him when he was just four years old.

Mr. Park showed him police records, reports, and evidence that proved that what he was saying was true. He explained that Be- Phillip, was his father’s brother. That they didn’t know why he killed him, but that he was in jail awaiting trial now. 

His uncle had been on trial previously, for the murder of his brother- apparently right after he had been kidnapped, and was proven innocent at the time. Mr. Park explained that recently a slew of evidence had come to light against Phillip, and the police were able to track him down and subsequently arrest him and rescue Hunter.

The more that Mr. Park explained to him, the more things began to make sense- Uncle Belos- Phillip’s unending phone calls, strange behavior, warnings… it made sense. And oh, how Hunter wished that it didn’t.

As he processed the information, Hunter was almost convinced that he was going to die with how hard his heart was pounding against his chest.

How could any of it be true? How could this be happening to him? Hunter must have done something to deserve this- perhaps his uncle was right, that he was going to be destined for Hell. His breathing picked up its pace, as his thoughts spiralled. Maybe, Hunter already was in Hell, because it sure did seem like it. 

If it was true, and his Uncle Belos has committed one of the greatest sins of all, then…

Hunter’s entire life was a lie.

He pushed himself out of his chair and then dropped to his knees.

“Woah- Hunter, hey, you need to breathe-”

He ignored Mr. Park’s voice, and clasped his hands together as he began to recite his prayer.

“Our father, who art in heaven,” He whispered, clenching his eyes shut.

Hunter’s entire life was a lie. 

“Hallowed be thy name,”

Hunter’s entire life was a lie. 

“Thy kingdom come, thy will be done,”

It was all a lie.

“On earth, as it is in Heaven,”

A lie.

“Give us this day our daily bread.”

All, just lies.

“And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us-”

HUNTER’S ENTIRE LIFE WAS A LIE.

—

The next day, Hunter found himself in the back of Mr. Park’s car, still reeling over everything that he had learned.

Yesterday, Mr. Park had to calm him down by practically restraining him, because eventually, Hunter had freaked out so badly that he’d apparently started hitting himself in the head. Hunter had no memory of doing that to himself, but he did have the leftover headache to prove it. The rest of the day after that incident were small flashes of memories- he could hardly process anything after learning about his uncle. It was like his mind had stopped working, desperately trying to understand how to process the fact that he was…

Hunter decided he was tired of thinking about it and looked out the car window instead. He’d only ever been in a car a few times in his life until this week happened. He found that he got nauseous from the movement rather easily, and it helped to focus his eyes on what was happening outside the car, rather than what was inside the car. 

“You okay back there, Hunter?” He heard Mr Park’s question from the front seat.

“Yes, sir.” Hunter replied, lifting his hand to his mouth and sucking on his thumb. He knew it was an incorrect thing to do- his uncle had drilled that into his mind, but he found it comforting, and Mr. Park hadn’t punished him yet for his strange habits so he decided to let himself do it. He could repent later.

Before getting into the car, Mr. Park had explained that he was taking Hunter to his temporary “foster placement.” When Hunter looked confused at those words, the older man quickly explained that a family was going to take care of him until they could find a permanent home for him.

Hunter didn’t really want a new permanent home. He wanted his real home back; and his uncle. Even if he was a liar, his uncle took care of him and kept him safe. He missed him, despite everything. He wished he could have another embrace from him.

The car was beginning to slow down, and Hunter took his thumb out of his mouth and observed where they were approaching. It was a normal-looking home, with lots of windows, what appeared to be a second floor, and steps leading up to the front door.

Mr. Park rolled the car to a stop in the driveway and turned off the car. He unbuckled his seatbelt and got out of the door, then walked to the side of the car that Hunter was sitting on, moving to open the door for him. Hunter had never used a seatbelt before until this car ride and nearly found himself panicking trying to figure out how the strap worked when it came to removing it.

Mr. Park laughed softly, “Here, let me show you,” He offered, reaching over Hunter. Immediately, he flinched and shielded his face from Mr. Park, expecting a hit to the face.

It never came.

There was a soft click, and the seatbelt retreated.

Hunter moved his arms away from his face and gave a weary look towards Mr. Park before crawling out of the backseat and exiting the vehicle. 

“I’ve worked with the Noceda family before,” Mr. Park began to ramble, shutting the car door behind Hunter and making him jump, “Ms. Noceda is very kind, so there’s nothing to worry about.” 

Hunter assumed he was trying to be reassuring, but Hunter did not feel reassured in the slightest.

The two of them approached the front door, Hunter practically hiding behind Mr. Park. His nerves were getting to him- all of the unknowns about the situation were absolutely terrifying. As Mr. Park knocked on the door, he began to debate on if he should just sprint in the other direction at this point, but his train of thought was interrupted as soon as the door opened.

A short woman stood in the doorway. She wore medical scrubs and her hair was dark and curly- she looked friendly, Hunter thought. But that didn’t mean anything. He edged closer to Mr. Park, making himself look smaller.

“Gilbert!” The woman- Ms. Noceda, Hunter’s mind supplied- exclaimed and held her arms out. Mr. Park quickly accepted her embrace, with a smile.

“Thank you so much for taking this on such short notice, Camila.” Mr. Park thanked her. Ms. Noceda tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

“Oh, it’s not a problem. Hunter seems like such a sweet boy.” She smiled and looked over at Hunter, who was trying his best to turn invisible. Which, quite obviously, was not working out for him.

She extended a hand out towards him, “I’m Camila Noceda, you can call me Camila, okay?”

Hunter eyed her hand warily, and then nervously reached over and shook it. “Yes, Ma’am.”

Camila brought her attention back over to Mr. Park and then gestured for the two of them to come inside. “Well, come on in! Feel free to stay, Gilbert. I was just making coffee and you look like you could use some.”

Mr. Park laughed, “No, I can’t- I got work to do back at the office. You’re right about me needing some coffee, though.” He chuckled, and stepped to the side a bit, bringing his gaze down to Hunter.

“I’m going to leave you with Camila now, alright? I’ll be back in a few days to check in and see how everything is going.” He explained, crouching down to eye level with Hunter.

“Yes, sir.”

His smile seemed to waver a bit at Hunter’s response, but he quickly straightened himself up and looked back at Camila once more. “Once again, thank you so much for helping out. Hunter’s a good kid, he’s just been through a lot.” He placed a hand on Hunter’s shoulder, “Have a good day, both of you.” And at that, he turned around and began to head down the steps and back towards his car.

“You too, Gilbert!” Camila called after him, then brought her attention back to Hunter.

“Come on in. Are you hungry?” She questioned, stepping backwards and holding the door open to lead him inside the home.

Hunter didn’t respond immediately, unsure if there was a correct answer to the question or not. He glanced around his surroundings, taking it all in. It was a small hallway, with a staircase connected to it- pictures littered the walls, which were also decorated with colorful wallpaper. Connected to the hallway, was a doorway leading into what appeared to be the living room of the home.

“...No, ma’am,” Hunter mumbled, fiddling with his fingers. He hadn’t eaten yet that day, but he had no semblance of an appetite. It wasn’t like he deserved to eat anything, anyways.

“That’s okay. Why don’t you come sit down in the living room, and I’ll get you a glass of water, sí ?”

Hunter nodded and followed her into the living room. There were so many things and decorations scattered around the room, it almost felt overwhelming to him. The home was much more lively and colorful than his uncle’s and he wasn’t sure how to feel about it. Once again, he missed the comfort and simplicity of his life before all of… this happened. 

Why couldn’t things just go back to the way they used to be?

Camila patted a seat on the couch for him and he quickly obeyed and sat down while she left to, presumably, the kitchen. Hunter brought his thumb back up to his mouth, taking a moment to observe his surroundings a bit more closely now that he was alone. His gaze drifted around the room, eyeing the decorations. He’d never seen a room so decorated before, besides on television. The living room looked like it was actually lived in, and it was jarring to compare it to his and his uncle’s living room. He was accustomed to an overly clean, cramped living room- fitted with only a couch and a broken television, not… this.

Camila returned, holding a glass of water. She smiled at him and handed him the glass before sitting down across from him on the couch. Hunter scooted a bit further away from her, pushing himself into the arm of the couch and gripping the glass of water like a lifeline.

“I have two other kids, Luz and Vee,” Camila began, leaning back comfortably into the couch, “They’re at school right now, but they’ll be back soon. They’re both sweet girls, I think you’ll get along nicely.” She smiled, looking at Hunter.

Hunter was unsure if he was supposed to respond or not. Just to be safe, he nodded and muttered out a quick, “Yes, Ma’am.”

Camila frowned, “You can call me Camila, sweetie.”

“Yes, Ma’am.” Hunter replied again, automatically, “I mean- Yes, Camila?” He corrected himself, unsure if that was the right response.

Camila’s face softened, “How about I show you around the house?” She offered, and Hunter stiffened up a bit.

He wasn’t expecting her to react in that way- he’d stumbled over his words, surely, that would have been a reason for reprimanding. Hunter felt confused by this woman. She was supposed to be an authority figure, right?

He turned his attention to the glass of water and finally took a sip from it. He hadn’t realized how thirsty he had been and quickly downed the rest of the drink.

Camila reached over and took the empty glass from Hunter’s hand and he barely suppressed a flinch as she moved towards and away from him. 

“How about I show you the kitchen first?” She said, and Hunter once again felt confused.

She stood up from the couch and Hunter quickly followed her as she led him down the hallway and towards where he assumed was the kitchen.

Camila proceeded to give him a quick tour of the house, starting with the kitchen and then showing him the bathroom connected to it. She then led him upstairs and showed him which door led to her room, and which door belonged to Luz and Vee’s room.

“You can knock on my door if you ever need anything at night.” She told him, leading the way back down the hall.

He followed her down the stairs, and she finally led him down to the basement.

“It’s been a few years since I last took an emergency foster placement, so I’m sorry that the guest room isn’t set up very well- we can go to the store tomorrow and get you anything that you need, okay?” She explained as they both descended the stairs. His jaw nearly dropped as he took in the room- there were string lights hung around the ceiling, a couch, an air mattress, and dozens of boxes and other decorations strung throughout the basement.

He could hardly comprehend that this would be where he would be staying- it was so much bigger than any bedroom he had ever been in, and it had so many decorations. The way the string lights lit up the room made it look like a dream. Did he really have this entire room to himself? It felt like a trick- no, it had to be a trick. Maybe Camila was who his uncle had warned him about, that she might be a product of Satan.

He couldn’t trust her, then. This could be a trap to lead him down the road of temptation and evil.

“I’m afraid it’s not much, but the air mattress is fairly comfortable, and I made sure to grab some decent blankets for you.” As she spoke, Hunter wandered around the room, unsure if he was allowed to touch anything yet.

Camila seemed to be waiting for him to say something, so he turned to her and muttered a quick, “Thank you, ma’am.”

Her expression softened at that, and she took a few steps back towards the stairs, “I’ll let you get adjusted, then. I know you didn’t get to bring anything with you, so I’m gonna be upstairs trying to see if I can find some clothes that’ll fit you until we can get you some new ones, sí ?”

Hunter nodded, and she gave him a smile before turning and heading back up the stairs.

He was alone, now. For the first time in a while.

He knew what he had to do.

The boy quickly dropped to his knees, closed his eyes, and he prayed. He prayed for God’s forgiveness and mercy, he prayed that Camila could be saved, and he prayed that his uncle was well.

Only God could save him from this terrible fate- of being under the guidance of someone who was most definitely under the will of Satan- it would most certainly doom him for Hell if he followed Camilla trustfully. 

Maybe, if he tried hard enough, he could save Camila and her family. He could rescue her from Satan, and secure his and her family’s place in Heaven.

Yes, that made sense- that’s what his mission was.

He had to save them.

Hunter finished his prayer, and he found that he now understood his new purpose. Before he was taken from his home, his purpose was to take care of his uncle and learn the ways of God. Now, his purpose was to pass that knowledge down. It all made sense.

He paused, as he heard a noise coming from upstairs. How long had he been lost in his thoughts? That he hadn’t even noticed the sounds of people entering the home?

He could hear three new distinct voices- children, for sure. It had to be Camila’s kids, he guessed, though he didn’t know who the third voice could be.

It was now, or never. He stood up and brushed his knees off, and began to make his way back up the stairs.

It was time for Hunter to begin his mission.

Chapter Text

Hunter climbed up the stairs, fighting back the anxiety that was quickly building up in his chest. 

As he turned the corner from the end of the staircase and into the hallway, he suddenly found himself face-to-face with Camila, and practically jumped out of his skin. He stumbled backwards and slammed his back into the wall behind him.

Flashes of his uncle scolding him flooded his mind, and for a moment Hunter was nearly convinced that he was back home again. 

He felt an immediate sense of comfort and dread at the thought. The soft treatment he’d so rarely get was something he still found himself longing for. He missed him. He wanted his uncle back. And yet…

“Oh- no, Hunter, I’m so sorry-” His uncle- No, Camila- stuttered, stepping forward and beginning to reach out her hand to him, but then seeming to think better of it and, instead, awkwardly lowering it and leaving it by her side.

Hunter blinked back into reality, and fought the urge to simply run away then and there. He didn’t know why he had reacted in that way, from just seeing her unexpectedly, but now he knew that he was going to be punished for the outburst. There was no way that he could get away with that kind of behavior.

He took a few shaky breaths, and then lowered himself to a kneeling position, hanging his head low and making sure the back of his neck was exposed. 

“My- My apologies, ma’am. I won’t do it again.” He repeated the same mantra he was taught by his uncle, “I’ll accept any punishment for my sins.”

Camila went silent at that, and Hunter fought the urge to drop his position to look up at her and see what was taking her so long. If he stopped kneeling properly, she might get even more angered with him and that was the last thing that he wanted.

“Hunter,” She said, and he felt her moving closer to him and dropping down to his level. Hunter assumed this meant she wanted him to look at her, so he lifted his head and found that he was at eye level with her now. 

“I’m not going to punish you, okay?”

He furrowed his brow, and he couldn’t stop himself from asking, “Why?”

Hunter didn’t understand.

“Because you had a normal reaction to being scared. It’s okay to react like that, Hunter.” She told him, and he once again felt himself getting confused. That was quite possibly the opposite of what his uncle had taught him- perhaps it was another sign that she was a victim of Satan. 

“Do you understand?”

“...Yes, ma’am- er- Camila.” He replied quickly, though it wasn’t entirely true. He wasn’t sure he would ever understand, but after all, Hunter didn’t know much of anything anyways.

She pushed herself back up to a standing position, and he copied her movements and eased himself back up as well.

“I was actually coming down to see if you wanted to meet Luz and Vee- they just got back from school.” She shrugged, placing her hands on her hips, “They brought another kid back home with them, even though I told them not to .” Her words got sharper as she finished the sentence, and she let out a sigh and rolled her eyes. Maybe she was capable of punishment, after all.

Hunter was once again unsure how to respond, so he stayed silent.

Her gaze softened once again, “Why don’t you come with me, and I’ll introduce you?”

He nodded, “Yes, Ma’am.”

He could hear a ruckus coming from another room in the house- the noise had been present for a while now, but he realized that he had not been able to focus on it while he was panicking. He must have tuned it out.

She led him down the hallway and into the living room, where immediately Hunter had to resist the urge to cover his ears as he realized how loud the three other kids were. It was practically an assault on his eardrums. 

“King! You can’t just eat books- that’s literally the last thing you should do with a book!” A girl with short, curly dark brown hair shouted at the youngest-looking one in the room- presumably King- who was currently attempting to shove a hardcover book into his mouth.

The third kid, a girl with blue and blonde dyed hair and discolored spots on her face, practically dove towards King and wrenched the book out of his hands, giggling.

“I command you to give that back to me!” The little boy shrieked, clambering over and now attempting and failing to wrestle the blue-haired girl for the book.

“Kids!” Camila shouted over all the commotion and all three children’s heads snapped up towards her. “Calm down, I want you to meet Hunter.”

The girl with dark brown hair immediately perked up and pretty much bounded towards him, causing him to take a few cautious steps backwards.

“Hi! I’m Luz,” She extended a hand towards him, and he eyed her warily, not moving an inch towards shaking her hand. “I like your hair.” She commented, giving him a big grin and gesturing to his messy hair that was currently falling in front of his face.

He didn’t really think there was anything good about it, but he thanked her anyway.

“Alright, Luz, don’t crowd him.” Camila laughed softly and ushered the two children further into the living room, “I’m starting on dinner, you four have fun in here- and ay, dis mío , get me if Eda or Raine come over to get their kid. I don’t want a repeat of last week’s… incident.”

Luz chuckled darkly in response, “Hah, that was fun.”

Camila gave Hunter a gentle pat on the back before turning around and heading back out into the hallway and towards the kitchen.

The blue-haired girl was still wrestling with the little boy, though it seemed like she wasn’t really trying- letting the younger kid pin her down even though he was half the size of her. She smiled up at Hunter as he warily stepped into the living room, and gave him a wave as King continued to attempt to get the book from her hands, “Hey, I’m Vee.” She said to him before sitting up and knocking the little boy off of her.

Hunter nervously fidgeted with his hands, watching all of this happen. The little boy- King- suddenly brought his attention towards Hunter and he could have sworn that he saw the kid’s eyes light up at the sight of him.

“You!” The boy pointed at him and Hunter frowned, “I’m Killian- but they all call me King, ‘since I’m the ruler of the world and all that.” He gave a wide grin and Hunter noticed that he was missing a few teeth. The boy pushed himself up off the floor and approached him with a strut that could only belong to the world’s most confident child he’d ever seen.

Hunter was fairly certain that the kid was not the ruler of the world.

King eyed him up and down before blurting out quite possibly one of the worst questions anyone could ask him.

“What’s wrong with your skin?”

“King! You can’t say things like that!” Luz shouted quickly and pulled the little boy away from Hunter. “I’m sorry Hunter, he’s only eight, so he says some dumb things sometimes.” She explained, giving a pointed look towards King, whose face was turning red from embarrassment as he averted his gaze from the older girl.

Hunter reached up his hand and traced the scarred skin that wrapped itself around the sides of his face, and down his neck. He didn’t like to think about his scars- they were a permanent reminder of the sins he’d committed. His mind flashed back to the night that he had gotten them, the burning and excruciating pain that had come along with his uncle shoving him down into-

He shook his head aggressively, trying to dispel the thoughts and memories from his head. If he thought too hard about it his body would start doing the weird thing where he forgot where he was and he didn’t want that- he didn’t want to think about it at all.

The three other children seemed to take notice of his shift in demeanor and Vee quickly spoke up from across the room, “It’s okay, I’ve got a lot of scars too- they’re just not on my face.” She smiled at him and he made a point of looking at the floor instead of her. Vee was incredibly strange-looking to him. Her blue hair looked unholy, and he had never seen anyone with markings on their face like that- the girl confused him, perhaps even more than Camila did.

An awkward silence enveloped the room for a few moments, and he felt like he wanted to crawl out of his skin. His heart was picking up its pace again as he realized that these children were probably more sinful than he was- he couldn’t believe that he had ever once worried that he was a spawn of Satan when children like Vee existed.

His train of thought was rudely interrupted when King decided to break the silence by shouting. 

“I command you all to speak!”

He remained silent while the other children laughed. Hunter wasn’t sure what was so funny about what King had said. He moved to sit down on the couch, content to watch the other three mess around while he contemplated how he was going to save them from the hands of the Devil.

King climbed on top of the coffee table centered in the middle of the room and made a pose that was quite honestly, ridiculous. Hunter did let out a nearly inaudible chuckle at that.

“As your ruler, I have’ta set some rules!” The small boy explained with a grand gesture, “Starting off, you’re all my slaves now.” He deadpanned.

“King!” Luz laughed, shaking her head and putting her hands on her hips, “That's not a fair way to play a game, is it?”

King grumbled something under his breath and crossed his arms, “Fine.” He made a face, looking off in the distance for a moment, before bringing his attention back to her. “Luz, you’re the princess, Vee’s the prince, and Hunter is…” King trailed off, staring at him for a long moment before breaking out into a malicious grin. 

“The jester!”

Hunter resisted the urge to stand up and leave as soon as the words left King’s mouth.

This was going to be torture.

—

Over the next hour or so- Hunter was unsure of how much time had passed- he tried and failed miserably to try and entertain the little boy who was so sure that he was, indeed, the ruler of the world.

Hunter thought that was a dangerous line of thinking and was unsure if he was meant to encourage that. In the end, he had decided to let it be; he wasn’t encouraging the odd behavior by any means but he wasn’t going to scold the kid for it either. He didn’t know King, after all.

After a while of pointlessly torturing him for his own amusement, King finally let up when he realized that Hunter wasn’t going to play along with his incredibly strange game. The boy turned his attention over to the two girls and began barking commands at them, which Hunter quickly tuned out as he decided he would rather do something else with his time.

He wandered away from the group and worked on exploring and getting properly acclimated to the living room. He had no idea how long he was going to have to stay in this home so he might as well, right?

He prayed that he wouldn’t have to stay for very long, though. 

There was a bookshelf next to the doorway, so he decided to make his first stop there. He ran his hands along the spines of the books, curious as to what kind of stories this family read. Maybe, if they had good Catholic literature, he could read a few. Plus, that would mean the family wasn’t as far gone into the hands of the Devil as they seemed to be.

He furrowed his brows, scrunching up his face as he pulled out each book individually to look at them.

The first book was titled ‘Unmasking Autism’ by Devon Price.

He had absolutely no clue what that was, or what it meant, so he quickly put it back. He could read it later if he continued to be curious about it.

The next was some sort of… picture book? It was titled ‘Demon Slayer’ , followed by a string of words that he didn’t know how to read. If they had a book about slaying demons, then that was a good sign- they weren’t very far gone, and he could use this to help bring them to the light of God.

He slipped the book back into its place on the shelf and pulled out the next one. 

‘The Good Witch Azura; The Field of Deadly Fates’

Hunter frowned at this one. There was no such thing as a ‘good witch’, so he was unsure how to feel. Perhaps the title was a misleading one, or this “Azura” character was a witch who has led away from the Devil and to the light of God, therefore becoming good. He would have to read it later to understand. He gently placed it back and pulled out the fourth book.

He smiled, as he realized it was the Holy Bible. Finally, something good and familiar- it was great that they had it in their home, and he found himself relaxing and feeling much safer than he had beforehand.

He ran his hand across the book cover, feeling the canvas texture. It was a quaint Bible, nothing like some of his uncle's intricately decorated copies, but a wonderful Bible nonetheless. He opened it up and began to thumb through the pages.

“What’re you reading?” An unexpected voice popped up behind him, and Hunter dropped the book- he could have sworn his heart had stopped beating for a moment.

“I- It’s- do you-” Hunter placed a hand on his chest, stammering, “Don’t do that!” He finally managed to get out his words, whipping around to face King once again, who was getting far too close in his space. 

“Jeez, sorry.” King huffed and climbed over Hunter’s lap to grab the book that he had dropped. He quickly found himself getting more annoyed with the boy.

“Don’t take his name in vain.” Hunter said under his breath- it was one of the many things his uncle had ingrained into him.

“What?” King had replied, absent-mindedly, holding up the Bible and examining it.

Suddenly, at least three different sounds happened at once, causing Hunter to throw his hands over his ears.

The doorbell rang, Camila shouted something about dinner from the kitchen simultaneously, and he heard Luz and Vee burst into laughter across the room.

“I’ve got it!” Luz exclaimed, bounding out of the room and into the hallway.

Hunter took his hands off of his ears and finally snatched the Bible out of King’s hands. He didn’t want the boy touching it, or potentially damaging it with his gross, sticky child fingers. King grumbled and made a weird noise, before clumsily getting up and following Luz out into the hallway.

Hunter raised an eyebrow and curiously poked his head out from the doorway to see what was going on.

Luz opened the front door, and there stood two tall adults. The taller of the two had the biggest hair he’d ever seen, it was greying, long, and stook up in ways that he had no idea was even possible. The other, just a few inches shorter than the big-haired woman, looked much more put together. They had very short, grey hair with streaks of blue and a round pair of glasses that sat neatly on the bridge of their nose.

Hunter could tell the one with the big hair was a woman, but the longer he stared at the one with the glasses, he had no idea whether they were a man or a woman. He furrowed his brows, staring at them.

“Hey, Luz-” The big-haired woman began, before being practically trampled by King who had sprinted down the hallway and jumped at her. She caught him almost effortlessly and hoisted him up in her arms to hold him by her chest as he hugged her. The woman let out a hearty laugh, holding the boy close as the other adult seemed to watch amusedly.

“Well, I see you guys kidnapped the King, again.” The adult with the glasses smiled, leaning against the doorway.

Luz laughed nervously in response, “Yeah, but-”

“No, it’s okay. You let us know this time, which is…” They looked at King for a moment, “Considerably better than the last few times you took him here.”

Luz flushed, and fiddled with her hands, “Sorry.” She apologized, while the big-haired woman snorted and began to push her way into the house, making an exaggerated sniffing sound.

“Your mom cooking something good?” She asked, and Hunter noticed she had a golden tooth in her mouth when she smiled. Weird.

“Yeah, mamá is making dinner tonight. Do you guys want to come and stay for it?” Luz questioned, as the big-haired woman set King down once he began to squirm in her arms.

The woman shot a look at the adult with the glasses and they gave a shrug. King began to wander away from the three of them and back to Hunter.

“Sure, kid.” The woman finally responded. 

Hunter had been so focused on watching and listening to their conversation that he hadn’t noticed King had come back up to him; that is until the kid was suddenly yanking on his arm, pulling him out into the hallway towards the two adults. 

“Mom!” King had shouted as Hunter simultaneously yelped and pulled himself out of the child’s grasp- but it was too late, he was already in the middle of the hallway and now the two adults were staring at him.

“This is Hunter, my new jester!” The boy announced proudly, making a grand gesture towards Hunter. His face turned red and he clenched his fists, turning his gaze to the ground. 

This was the worst way to make an impression towards any authority figure, ever.

“Oh, you’re the new foster kid! I’m Eda, good to finally meet you.” The big-haired woman introduced herself, smirking, “I see you’ve met King already, I know he’s a bit much, but I can tell he already likes you.” She winked.

“Eda!” King whined in response, looking embarrassed and then scuttering off back into the living room- clearly having had enough of the conversation already. Hunter wished he could do the same.

“This nerd over here is Raine,” Eda added, lazily pointing to the adult standing next to them.

Raine laughed and extended a hand towards Hunter- who quickly found himself resisting the urge to flinch at the sudden movement. “It’s nice to meet you.” They said, and Hunter couldn’t fight back what was about to come out of his mouth.

“Are you a boy, or a girl?” He blurted out, and then quickly clasped a hand over his mouth. Why did he ask that? It was completely inappropriate, and yet, he’d let himself say it. What was wrong with him?

He watched Raine’s expression, but they surprisingly looked unbothered.

“I’m neither, actually.” They said, and Hunter found himself getting even more confused.

“How?” He asked, immediately. Clearly, his curiosity was getting the best of him.

“Well,” Raine began, crouching down to his level, “Some people don’t feel like a boy or a girl. Those people are non-binary, and that’s what I am.” They explained calmly.

Hunter furrowed his brows, struggling to process the information he was being given, “But-” He began, and then shook his head, quickly correcting himself, “Apologies, I shouldn’t doubt your authority.”

Raine frowned and opened their mouth to speak, but their attention instead snapped to Camila who had just entered the hallway- apron tied neatly around her front.

“Well, are you two going to just stand there, or are you going to help me set the table?” She questioned and gestured to the two adults lingering awkwardly in the hallway. Hunter didn’t detect any real anger or malice in her tone, which once again confused him.

“Damn, if you insist!” Eda snorted, as Raine lightly smacked her arm.

“Language.” They whispered, receiving an eye-roll from Eda. 

The three adults walked together to the kitchen, and Hunter decided to follow them. He was tired of being around the three other children- they were loud and confusing. He’d rather make himself useful instead.

He stood awkwardly in the doorway, shifting his weight between his feet, as he watched the three adults move around the kitchen with ease, collecting dishes and neatly setting things out. They spoke and laughed about things that Hunter, once again, didn’t understand.

He’d never felt so lost before.

Cautiously, he entered the room- making sure his steps were as quiet as possible and approached Camila. She appeared to be busy, finishing up her cooking and not realizing that he had joined her space. Cautiously, he tugged on her apron to get her attention.

“Wha- oh, Hunter. What’s wrong?” She asked, bringing her full attention to him.

Hunter wondered why she had assumed something was wrong- he didn’t think anything was wrong. Had he done something wrong?

“Can I help?” He asked her, meekly.

Camila’s expression changed from worried, to happy.

“Of course! Pull up that stool over there- I’ll show you how to stir.”

—

Hunter felt a tad accomplished with himself, having been able to make himself useful already. 

It was only his first day in the household and he’d already found a job! Validation from Camila felt special. He still knew that he had to be wary of her, though, considering her possible affiliation with Satan. He couldn’t let himself fall into her temptations and her validation was probably part of that.

He now found himself cramped at the round dining table. It was clearly not made for seven people to share all at once, but the adults had managed to organize all of the plates in a way that fits all of them in; though he did notice that Luz and Vee kept bumping their elbows and shoulders together. If he had to deal with that, he would have already left. 

Hunter picked at his fried rice and vegetables, lost in thought. He had completely tuned out the conversation happening around him for a while now. 

He knew that he wouldn’t understand much of what they were speaking about anyways. 

The one thought that would not stop relentlessly returning to him was how badly he missed his uncle. His Uncle Belos- or, Phillip- wasn’t a good man. He saw the proof in front of his eyes and had it explained to him multiple times, but he still didn’t understand how the way he’d been treated was bad. He’d never been treated any other way, so how was he supposed to know what was right and what was wrong? The Bible taught him everything he knew, but everyone else seemed to have an understanding of so much more outside of just the Bible. It confused him and made his stomach do uncomfortable flips, and he would start sweating every time he thought too hard about it.

Something wasn’t adding up.

That urge to run away, to flee- it kept coming back to him. Every single time he started feeling this way, he wanted to run. To get out of there, and never come back. Maybe if he ran for long enough, he’d end up back in the warm arms of his uncle, where everything could return right back to normal- as if nothing had ever changed in the first place.

Oh, how badly he wished that could happen.

Hunter could feel dread filling his stomach- or was it nausea- and his heart pounding against his chest. This feeling, he hated it, he hated it every single time he got like this. It always made him feel like he was going to die.

Was he going to die?

Hunter’s thoughts quickly spiralled out of control and before he knew it he had dropped his fork and was now completely hyperventilating. It felt like his heart was going to explode out of him, destroying all of his insides and leaving him a corpse- a disgusting, rotting corpse that could never be redeemed.

He’d never stood up so abruptly in his life, shaking the table and knocking his chair over as he took in large gulps of air as if he wouldn’t ever get to breathe again. The loud slamming sound of the chair hitting the tiles had him immediately throwing his hands up to cover his ears.

He could see the others speaking- were they talking to him? Hunter couldn’t tell. All he knew is that he had to get out, he needed to leave, he needed- he had to-

He felt a hand place itself on his shoulder, and like that, he was sprinting. He didn’t know where he was going, where his body was taking him, he just knew that he had to leave- had to escape, find safety.

He moved quickly, feeling something wet on his face, and he was completely unaware of his surroundings now- all he knew was panic, his uncle grabbing him, bringing out the-

Hunter’s back hit a wall, and he slid down it until he was on the floor, and then curled up into the tightest ball he could possibly curl into. He could hear crying somewhere, distantly, and he rocked back and forth, burying his head into his knees and pretending he wasn’t here anymore, that he was invisible, or that he wasn’t real.

Where was he, again? Hunter must be in the closet, right? His uncle would be coming for him soon, so he’d better- he should- he should be praying, or getting ready for punishment- he should- he- he had to-

He felt himself getting light-headed, as his thoughts jumbled and bounced around in his brain, completely incoherent.

Hunter opened his eyes for a brief moment, expecting to see his uncle.

He wasn’t there. 

It was someone else- a woman- he recognized her, but in his panic, he didn’t- he didn’t know who she was. She came closer to him, and he scrambled backwards and slammed his back into the wall again.

He vaguely registered that the crying sounds were coming from him.

Spots danced in his vision, and he found that he still wasn’t breathing. This must be how he died, then.

The woman sat down in front of him, tears in her eyes. When he finally realized that he knew her- that it was Camila- he was already falling unconscious.

Falling, falling, falling.

Chapter Text

Hunter came back to himself a few minutes after blacking out, finding that he had been laid out on the couch with a pillow placed carefully under his head.

Oh, his head. It was pounding, his brain felt like it was trying to escape his skull. A small noise escaped from his throat and his tongue felt like it was rolling around in a void- a dry, deserted void.

At least his panic had subsided- now leaving him to feel like an empty shell or a husk.

Hearing voices coming from around him, he reluctantly opened his eyes to discover Eda and Camila were hovering over him, worried expressions etched onto their faces.

“Hey, kiddo… How are you feeling?” Eda questioned, moving out of his view and then dipping to sit on the foot of the couch.

Hunter opened his mouth to answer, before thinking better of it and shutting it with an audible click. He turned his gaze to the couch cushions instead, suddenly determined that if he didn’t speak or look at them, then maybe he would turn invisible. He realized it was childish behavior, but he didn’t have the conscious energy to scold himself for it. He was exhausted.

“¡Pobre gusanito… Here, let me get you a drink of water.” He heard Camila sigh, and he simply let out a low mumble in response, shifting his weight to lay on his side facing towards the cushions. 

He heard Camila’s footsteps exit the room and tried to ignore the intense pounding of his head. 

“I see you’re brooding,” Eda spoke up, and Hunter chose to ignore her. 

She continued anyway, despite his silence. “Y’know, I get it. I’d do the same crap too if I was your age.” She laughed softly and he felt her shift her weight on the couch and cross her legs. “You sure did scare the kids, though- not that I blame you. They’ve seen worse, anyway.”

He groaned in frustration and moved to finally sit up; pulling his knees up to his chest and letting his gaze land on Eda.

Eda smirked. “You wanna know a secret, kid?”

He furrowed his brows before hesitantly giving her a silent nod in response.

“Not everything is what it looks like it is.” She stated, then leaned back into the couch and kicked her legs up onto the coffee table in front of them.

Hunter frowned. What was that even supposed to mean? After a moment of debate, he finally opened his mouth to ask, “...What?”

Eda now had a satisfied expression on her face, which served to confuse him even more. She threw an arm over the back of the couch and watched him carefully, “Well, I don’t know what made you freak out like that, but I know something’s going on in that noggin of yours that’s making you see danger that isn’t there.” She explained with a shrug. “King used to have the same problem. All I’m saying is, next time, maybe think about why you’re scared. Might help you rethink some things.”

Hunter pulled his knees up a bit tighter against his chest, trying to process her words. How could he imagine danger? The more he thought about it the more he realized that she was right, that he had imagined it. He didn’t even know what had caused him to start doing that, or why he had reacted in that way, and as he continued to analyze his actions he felt himself growing more frustrated. He felt the urge to run away again, so he scrunched his face up and buried his head in his knees.

Why did he always want to run away so badly? Why was that always his first instinct?

He lifted his head to look at Eda again, opening his mouth to say something but quickly shutting it as soon as he heard footsteps coming down the hall.

Camilla entered the living room holding a glass of water in her hand, slowly approaching him with a smile.

“Here,” She knelt down to his level and held the glass out for him to take. He unfolded himself from his curled-up position and reached out. His hands were shaking, but he managed to hold onto the glass without spilling anything, and then quickly finished the drink. Camila took the glass from his hands once he was done, and quietly set it down before joining him and Eda on the couch.

“I know this is difficult, but can you tell me what happened?” She questioned, earning a side-eye from Eda.

He didn’t want to answer that question in the slightest and he was unsure if he even had a coherent answer to give. He knew that he couldn’t disobey a direct order, though. He crossed his feet and placed his hands in his lap, preparing himself to speak.

“I, um-” His voice felt sore- why was it sore? “I was… scared, ma’am.” He admitted, avoiding eye contact and beginning to fiddle with his fingers, “I miss my uncle.”

There was silence for a moment, before Camila questioned, “Do you know why you were scared?”

Immediately, he shook his head. “I don’t know.” He answered truthfully, hoping it was the correct answer he was meant to give- he had no other way to put it into words.

Camila nodded, seeming to accept his answer.

Eda stretched out her arms with several pops of her joints, “Well, I’m gonna be heading out. Raine already took King home, and God knows they’re probably fighting to get him to bed right now.” She rolled her eyes and stood up with another series of cracks coming from her hips and knees, “Was nice to meet you, Hunter. We live right down the street if you ever want to visit.” She winked at him.

Camila smiled, “Adiós Eda, get home safely for me.” She requested, and Eda gave her a fake salute in response.

“Will do.” The grey-haired woman replied, turning on her heel and giving one last wave to Hunter before exiting. He stayed silent, listening for the tell-tale sound of the front door opening and shutting.

Once he was certain Eda was gone, he frowned and ran a hand down his face, thinking over her words from earlier. How was he supposed to identify fake danger if he couldn’t seem to tell it apart from real danger? Had he ever experienced real danger? The questions gnawed at him and forced him to come to a realization.

Of course, he’d experienced real danger! He’d been it for his entire life.

It felt like a sinful thought, doubting his uncle’s care like that- but the overwhelming proof was already there and shown to him. His uncle must have been a dangerous man- but he also knew that he was simultaneously loving and caring. He had always been there for Hunter, had always comforted him, protected him, and saved him from the clutches of Satan. 

So why did he fear his uncle and yet miss him at the same time?

The silence in the room continued for a few more moments until he heard Camila speak up.

“Hunter…” She began, and he turned his attention towards her. “Can I give you a hug?” She asked, and when he hesitated she quickly added, “You can say no.”

He contemplated the request for a moment before warily giving her a nod.

She moved closer to him, before gently wrapping him into an embrace. Initially, it was uncomfortable and awkward for him- he was unsure of what to do with his arms or his head- but slowly he sank into the touch, burying his head into her shoulder and letting her hold him closely as she ran a hand through his hair.

He could get used to this.

—

The next day, Camila took him shopping once she had gotten home from work- which had gone about as well as Hunter thought it would have gone.

He’d never been in a grocery store before and he had found the entire experience overwhelming. The lights on the ceiling made his head hurt, there were so many strangers , and all of the noise felt like it was trying to fight his eardrums.

He made it out unscathed, thankfully, though his heart was pounding during the entire car ride home and he’d found that the only way he could keep himself calm was by rocking back and forth in his seat. He’d expected Camila to scold him for his behavior but she never did.

With three bags of new clothes she’d gotten just for him, he quickly made his way downstairs to the basement and spent the rest of the day alone. He didn’t have any more energy left and found it nicer to simply avoid the other people in the house so he could recuperate. Besides, it gave him plenty of time to organize his new clothes.

He went through a similar routine for the next few days. Hiding in his room for most of the day, avoiding the other members of the household and leaving only when he was called out to do so. Though he enjoyed the alone time, he disliked how much it left him with his thoughts- he tended to spiral quickly. Still, after the first few times, he’d managed to learn how to catch himself before it got too bad.

Hunter had been staying with the Nocedas for a few days now and so far the most eventful day had been his first- which he was perfectly content with, thank you very much. He’d rather nothing happen than what he had gone through that first day.

He heard a bit of commotion going on upstairs; it had been going on for a while now, ever since Luz and Vee had gotten home. He’d ignored it, not wanting to interact with whatever or whoever they’d brought back from school this time. He wouldn’t mind seeing King again, considering how entertaining the kid had been, but he didn’t hear the kid up there, unfortunately- so it had to be someone else.

“Hunter!” He heard the distinct voice of Luz shout from upstairs and he resisted the urge to pretend that he wasn’t there. That wouldn’t do him any good, and lying was a sin anyways. 

“Come up here!”

He sighed and made sure to straighten out his clothes to at least appear somewhat presentable to whoever he was about to be forced to meet. His favorite of all the clothes Camila had gotten him was a comfortable yellow sweater, and some soft blue pants, which is what he had on at the moment.

Hunter climbed the stairs, quickly meeting up with Luz who had been waiting for him at the top of the landing. 

She took in a deep exaggerated breath, bouncing up and down, before rapidly yelling his name, “Hunterhunterhunterhunterhunter-”

“What?” He interrupted.

Luz beamed at him, “I want you to meet my friends!” She exclaimed and quickly began to head off in the direction of the living room without an ounce of hesitation.

Hunter didn’t budge.

“Well, are you coming?” As she turned back around to face him, her expression visibly deflated.

Seeing the sad look on her face, he knew that he couldn’t say no to her. He found her incredibly annoying, yes, but he couldn’t stand to see her disappointed expression- it made him feel weird and guilty. Reluctantly, he let out an exaggerated sigh and followed her into the living room.

“Guys! This is Hunter,” Luz loudly announced as they entered the room, “He’s an absolute grump, but I wanted you all to meet him!” She nudged him forward expectantly and he felt a sense of dread- as if all of their eyes were on him. 

Vee was sprawled out on the couch, watching a video on her phone, but there were two other kids that he did not recognize. The first kid was a short, dark-skinned boy who was currently messing around with some sort of electronic Hunter had never seen before. The other was a nice-looking girl, with oversized glasses resting on the bridge of her nose, and her dark hair tucked messily into two braids. She was sitting on the floor with her legs crossed, watching the other boy fiddle with the electronic in his hands.

“...Hello.” Hunter greeted awkwardly, shoving his hands into the pockets of his pants and turning his gaze downwards.

The first one to speak up was the girl with the glasses, who quickly pushed herself up from the floor and approached him. 

“Hi! I’m Willow, it’s nice to meet you,” She grinned and then turned her attention towards the boy who was messing with the strange electronic device. He looked like he was lost in another world.

“Gus! Are you going to say hi, or what?”

Gus practically shot up from where he was sitting, “Sorry!” He exclaimed towards Willow, then scrambling over to greet Hunter. He was considerably shorter than Hunter, which made him wonder how young the other boy was. 

“I’m Gus. Sorry, I was really focused on that old radio. Do you wanna check it out?” He offered.

Hunter thought about it for a moment, before nodding. He followed Gus over to where he had set the radio on the coffee table and he quickly noticed that Luz and Willow were right behind him as well, trying to get a peek at the device.

“My dad found it at a garage sale. I’ve been trying to fix it all day,” He explained and suddenly earned a chuckle from Willow.

Hunter raised an eyebrow and looked at her.

“Oh, sorry- it’s just that he wouldn’t even put it down at school today. Ms. Snapdragon tried to take it from him and he literally wrestled it from her!” She laughed, and once again plopped down onto the floor, “Someone got his first detention~”

“Hey!” Gus replied, looking embarrassed. He pursed his lips together, before finally turning to show the three of them the old radio.

The two of them leaned over, bumping shoulders trying to get a closer look at the device- it looked incredibly old and it was something Hunter had never seen before. He didn’t even register it as a radio until Gus had announced that it was.

“I think it’s from the 1930s.” The younger boy told him. Hunter raised an eyebrow.

He found it suspicious to see anyone working with such a strange object, let alone one that was that old. His uncle always told him not to fiddle with things that he didn’t recognize- they could be cursed or satanic. He’d been told that he could release the Devil by messing with things he didn’t understand. 

“You should be careful, with that,” Hunter said, and Gus looked up at him quizzically. 

“Why?” The boy questioned.

Hunter shrugged, “Because it might be the work of the Devil. You never know.”

At that, the room went deathly silent. Vee turned off her video, Luz stared at him with a concerned expression across her face, and the other two simply looked confused.

Hunter stood his ground. “What? It’s bad to mess with things you don’t understand.” He explained, “You- you could release the Devil with it.”

Vee stood up suddenly, her face looking pale and she quickly exited the room.

“Did I say something wrong?” He questioned, beginning to sweat, “I apologize, I will take any punishment-”

“Hunter,” Luz interrupted him and placed a hand on his shoulder. He flinched.

“Just stop, okay?” She said, frowning, “Don’t do that.”

Hunter didn’t understand.

Luz removed her hand from his shoulder and turned to Gus and Willow. “Let’s go check on Vee, yeah?” She announced, and the other two nodded.

Gus and Luz left the room together but Willow hesitated, hovering in the doorway.

He looked at her nervously- were his hands shaking? What was happening?

“I’m sorry, Hunter. We can hang out another time, alright?” She said, giving him a weak smile.

Hunter furrowed his brows and then nodded. She turned around and left him alone in the living room without another word.

He had not a single clue as to what he had done wrong. Clearly, he’d messed up and now none of them wanted anything to do with him. Of course, he would mess up something as simple as meeting Luz’s friends. He could feel his eyes watering now.

He dropped to his knees and wiped his eyes before he could start properly crying. He took one deep, shaking breath, and once again began to pray for forgiveness. Nobody in this house seemed eager to give him the repercussions he deserved for his actions, so this was the best he could do for himself at the moment.

He was unsure how long he had spent there, on his knees in the living room, but eventually, he heard a set of footsteps coming down the stairs. Quickly, he finished up his prayer, signing a cross across his chest and whispering a small, “Amen.”

Luz entered the room as he pushed himself off of his knees and into a standing position.

“...Hey, Hunter.” She said, cautiously, lingering a bit in the doorway.

He fidgeted with his hands and avoided eye contact with her.

After another moment of silence, Luz sighed and then gestured towards the couch. 

“Can we talk?”

He nodded, and then followed her to the couch. They both sat far away from each other, Hunter practically pressing himself into the corner to create as much space between them as possible.

“So, I know we freaked you out earlier, and I’m sorry.” Luz began, scratching the back of her neck and looking away from him, “It’s just that- well. You really upset Vee with what you said.”

He frowned, struggling to understand. “Did I say something wrong?”

“Well, yeah- kind of.” Luz shrugged, and then finally looked at him. “She has a lot of issues when it comes to religion… It- uh- it’s from before she was adopted by my mamá. So you can’t really talk about that stuff around her.”

He crossed his arms, and his brows furrowed- how could anyone have a problem with religion? It was the only way to live- unless Vee was involved with Satanism. Suddenly, he let out a gasp.

“She’s a Satanist?” He questioned, lowering his voice to a whisper.

“No!” Luz replied quickly, shaking her head, “No, no- she’s not- ugh.” She huffed, clearly struggling with how to get her words out. “It’s not my business to tell you what happened to her, Hunter. But mamá says that she has PTSD. Do you know what that is?”

If Vee wasn’t a Satanist, but she had issues with religion- then what was she? 

“No,” He replied.

“Okay- uh- well, it’s this disorder you get when you go through something really traumatic. Make sense so far?” She paused, and Hunter nodded so she quickly continued. “Well, Vee went through a lot of bad stuff as a kid, that… involved religion. So, whenever she gets reminded of it, she gets really sick and upset. That’s why you can’t talk about it around her.”

“I…” Hunter began, biting his lip for a moment. “I don’t understand.”

Luz went silent at that, so he awkwardly continued.

“How can anyone get anything bad out of God? It- it doesn’t make sense. Our purpose is to serve him, so-”

“Hunter,” She interrupted him, “I- listen. Mamá didn’t tell us much about what happened before you came to us, but- I know you were really sheltered, that you never got to leave your house. ‘Cause of that, I guess you don’t know this but… there’s a lot of people who use religion to do bad things to other people.”

He shook his head, “No, that’s not possible. Everything happens for a reason, it’s all part of God’s plan. And if you really do something bad, then that’s why we have to punish ourselves- to ask for forgiveness. I think that’s what Vee needs. When is Ms- when is Camila coming home? I can tell her, and-”

“No, Hunter-”

“She can give the appropriate punishment, and Vee will be better! I can help- I can bring you to the light of God, I can save you. I’ll save you, and Vee, and Camila-”

“Please stop-”

“And King, Willow, Gus- who were the others? Edna- no, Eda, and Raine- all of them, I can help them all!” Hunter felt himself fill with a new determination, and he stood up from his seat, “Maybe you don’t understand now, but you’ll appreciate it soon.” He forced a smile on his face and then began to exit the room.

This was the perfect time for him to start bringing his mission to life. He could start with Vee- she would easily be the toughest case- and then the others would have to follow along. It was perfect.

“Hunter, no!” Luz shouted and grabbed him by the arm. He whirled around to face her, the smile dropping off of his face.

“Let go. I have to do this.” He snapped and yanked his arm out of her grip. “It’s for the benefit of mankind.” As soon as the words left his lips, he realized he was copying a phrase his uncle had used time and time again. 

His uncle may be a bad man, but it didn’t mean that the things he had told him were wrong, right?

He clenched his fists and started up the stairs towards Luz and Vee’s room. He could hear talking coming from behind the door which was perfect- it meant that all three of them were in the same spot. That would make this easier, then.

Luz frantically climbed up the stairs behind him, trying to get him to stop to no avail.

Hunter forced another smile across his face and then opened the door.

The three kids were sitting in a circle on the floor. Willow had her arms wrapped around Vee, who appeared to be visibly upset, while Gus sat there with a concerned look on his face- fidgeting with the strings on his hoodie.

Vee’s head shot up in his direction and he heard Luz shouting his name behind him. He shoved an arm out across the doorway to keep her from getting past him and into the room as he focused his attention on Vee.

“Vee, I understand now- I understand what’s wrong with you!” He grinned and watched as Vee visibly became even paler. Weird. “You need the light of God to save you! And I can help, you just have to-”

He suddenly felt a hand grab the collar of his shirt and yank him backwards. He stumbled back until he eventually landed on the floor, Luz scrambling past him and slamming the door shut behind her before turning to look at him on the floor.

“¡Cállate, pendejo!” She shouted at him, turning red in the face. “Why would you do that?! What is wrong with you?” 

He pushed himself up onto his elbows, staring at her in shock. He opened and closed his mouth a few times, at a complete loss for words.

He could hear crying coming from behind the door.

Luz was standing over him, breathing heavily. She bit her lip, and he noticed tears welling up in her eyes.

“I hope you’re happy.” She huffed, giving him one last look before turning on her heel and throwing open the bedroom door, then swiftly closing it behind her.

Hunter gaped, staring at the empty space where she had just been standing. She had been right- what had he done ? 

He was trying to fulfill his mission- how could it have gone wrong? Was he really not doing the right thing?

He pushed himself up to his feet, his legs shaking underneath him. If he had messed up that badly by following the purpose his uncle gave him, then what was his purpose?

What was real, and what wasn’t?

As he made his way back down the stairs, he nearly slipped and fell several times as he struggled to get his legs to cooperate with him. Eventually, he made it down and then turned into the hallway to go to the second set of stairs that led to his room in the basement.

He shut the basement door behind himself and then flopped dramatically onto his air mattress, grabbing his pillow and burying his face into it.

Once again, he had failed.

But this time- it changed everything.

Everything .

Chapter Text

After the incident with Vee, Hunter had found himself increasingly more tense and nervous around her and Luz.

Generally, he avoided them altogether as much as he could. He saw them during mealtimes and occasionally when he was doing chores around the house (which Camila insisted he did not need to do but that was an entirely different train of thought). Luz still tried to act friendly towards him but he knew better than to trust anyone after causing any sort of upset towards them.

He’d been in the Noceda household for a week and a half now- he knew because he’d been meticulously keeping track- and knew that he needed to start really pulling his weight around the house now that it seemed like his stay here was going to last longer than he expected it to. Surely his uncle would be coming back for him soon… but it would be smart for him to keep good relations with the family he was stuck living with in the meantime.

Never mind that he wasn’t entirely sure that he really wanted his uncle to come back for him.

To avoid those confusing thoughts, he instead worked himself into a frenzy every day, organizing shelves and keeping every surface of the home as clean as possible.

Recently, on one of her days off from work, Camila had forced him to slow down his chores, sat him down, and questioned him about how he felt about going to school. His uncle had rarely ever let him outside of the house- let alone to a public school- and Hunter had frozen up at the question.

He was lucky that Camila was patient, much more patient than Uncle Belos.

Eventually, he’d given her a simple shrug in response- nothing more. Not using his words when asked to in his old house would have gotten him a punishment, but he’d noticed that Camila tended to let him get away with it so he’d begun speaking the least amount of words possible. Talking was exhausting sometimes. 

After his silent response, she had gone on to explain that because he’d never been to any sort of school before, and they didn’t know what sort of education he had received under the care of his uncle, at the end of the week she was going to take him to some people that would evaluate what he knew to determine where he would be placed in school, pausing to mention that he would most likely be placed in a “special education” program if he were to actually go. Apparently, his social worker had requested for this to be done and had set up the meeting already.

Once he received a thorough explanation of what public school actually entailed, he hesitantly asked her if he could have some time to think about his decision, which she quickly agreed to, muttering something along the lines of “Take as much time as you need, mijo - er- Hunter.”

Camila was probably the only person in the house he felt comfortable with. She wasn’t like his uncle, and he didn’t have to walk on eggshells around her as he did with her daughters.

Speaking of her daughters-

“Hunter! Hunter, come up here! Pleaseeeee!” Luz shouted at the top of her lungs from the top of the basement stairs.

Hunter did not move and instead opted to pull his blanket even further over his head, curling up into a comfortable ball on his air mattress. He didn’t like Luz and he didn’t care about whatever she wanted to show him this time.

He heard her footsteps start running down the stairs, and he let out an annoyed grumble. Maybe if he pretended he was dead, she’d leave him alone.

“Hunter,” Luz said, crouching down by his air mattress and getting annoyingly close to his face.

He kept his eyes closed and didn’t move. A silence enveloped the room, and for a moment he thought that maybe she had decided to leave him alone.

And then she smacked him across the face.

“Wake up!” 

His eyes shot open and he scrambled up to a sitting position, shooting her the sharpest glare he could possibly give her. “What do you want?”

Luz laughed, and began to stand up, “You look like one of those sad wet cats.” She held out her hand to help him up and he slapped it away, instead opting to stand up on his own. Why would he ever need her help standing up?

“That's not-” He began, and she suddenly put her hand over his mouth.

“Shhhhhh, don’t even-”

She pulled her hand off of his mouth abruptly, saliva coating her palm as she stared at him with a disgusted expression. “Did you just lick me?!”

Hunter blinked, and then wiped his mouth.

“Yeah.”

“Wow.” She wiped her hand off on her sweatpants and then continued. “Well, I wanted to ask if you wanted to come and play Mario Kart with me, Vee, and my mom.”

Hunter did not even hesitate a second before telling her, “No.”

“Oh,” Luz frowned, and then looked back up at the stairs. “...Okay.”

She didn’t say another word before she turned around on her heel and then climbed back up the stairs.

He had a distinct feeling that he may have upset her by declining her offer, but he couldn’t really find it in himself to care much about her feelings anymore. He’d already ruined their relationship a few days ago so there wasn’t much point in trying to pretend like it was okay after what had happened.

He shouldn’t be spending his time with sinners like her and Vee anyways. At least, that was the excuse he’d made up to make himself feel better about ignoring them.

One thing about purposefully isolating himself from the others was that he kept finding himself feeling… closed in. Stuck. He’d spent his entire life surrounded by four walls, sure, but now that he’d finally been able to routinely leave and go to other places, he found himself becoming less and less content with being alone and being in one place. 

It was a strange feeling and the more he thought about it the more he became uncomfortable- so he was not going to think about it, thank you very much.

He heard the sounds of laughter and squabbling coming from upstairs and he briefly contemplated throwing his hands over his ears and pretending that he didn’t actually exist.

And then a completely delinquent idea came to his mind.

No, he couldn’t- he would be in so much trouble if it went badly, and yet…

Yeah, alright. He was going to break a major rule. For the first time in his life.

Hunter pulled his socks and shoes over his feet, struggling for a moment to tie his laces, and then silently made his way up the basement steps. He’d already memorized which spots in the stairs and the floorboards creaked when stepped on, which came in his favor.

Another thing that came into his favor was how the living room was down the hall, which is where everyone was, and they would not be able to see him. He continued to sneak down the hallway until he made it to the kitchen and came face to face with the back door.

He was going to sneak out.

He paused and listened to the commotion coming from the living room for a moment, hand hovering over the door handle. He thought a silent prayer, and then quietly slipped out of the back door.

The fresh air hit him like a wave and his pounding heart started to calm despite the dangerous situation he was actively placing himself in. He took a deep breath, enjoying the moment, before hopping off of the steps and setting his sights on the small forest that bordered the backyard.

As he made his way to the trees, he felt a distinct crunch underneath his foot and quickly paused, waiting to see if anybody heard him, before finally dashing off into the woods and feeling for the first time in his life, like he was going on an adventure.

A smile spread across his face, for the first time in a long time, and he laughed and threw himself onto the ground and into the leaves. He’d never had this kind of freedom before. He forgot how nice it felt to just run away- he’d tried it a couple of times after he’d been taken from his uncle, and before he’d been sent to Camila, and though it was never fully successful it always came with such a thrill that he couldn’t put into words.

He rolled around in the leaves, savoring the moment, before pulling himself up and continuing to wander the woods. Maybe he didn’t have to go back to Camila or his uncle, maybe he could just stay here forever. He’d be perfectly content with that.

He walked for a while- he wasn’t sure how long- until he’d come across a clearing and an old dilapidated home sitting in the middle of it. His first instinct was to turn around and head the other way, in case there was somebody in there- but the adventurous part of himself was urging him to continue further. To see what was on the inside. The thought made him anxious but he decided to pursue it nonetheless.

As he slowly and nervously approached the building, he paused and his eyes widened as he heard noises coming from inside. The door was already creaking open and it sounded like… chirping?

His nerves screamed at him to run but he pushed onward, walking up to the old home and feeling a bit small compared to it, even despite its ruined condition.

He gradually pushed the door open further with a loud creak, and as he saw the inside of the building, he quickly understood why he had heard chirping.

A small red bird- was it a cardinal? Was crumpled in a heap on the ancient floorboards, weakly chirping and unable to move. Hunter felt his heartache for the small creature and he quickly rushed to its side, crouching down on the floor and lowering himself to get a closer look.

He could see what the problem was. 

The bird was missing an eye, an infected-looking wound spread across where it should have been, and its wing looked to be damaged. No wonder it wasn’t able to move. He was unsure if he should touch the thing or not but ultimately decided to gently scoop it up into his hands, making sure to not place any pressure on where it was visibly injured.

“How’d you end up like this?” He whispered to the bird, though obviously not expecting a response. He gave it a soft scratch on the head and it leaned into his touch, making Hunter’s heart soar. It already trusted him. 

So of course, once he’d finally felt relaxed for once in his life, he began to hear voices loudly calling his name from a distance and immediately jumped out of fear. He’d almost dropped the poor bird from how startled he’d become until he realized who the voices belonged to.

It was definitely Camila, Luz, and Vee. They must have noticed that he’d run off.

Oh, he was about to have the worst punishment of his life, wasn’t he?

“I- I’m sorry, bird, we’re about to be in big trouble.” He apologized and continued to gently pet it.

It didn’t take long for the family to find him crouched down in the abandoned home, an injured bird in his hands.

“Hunter!” Camila shouted, pushing past her two other kids and placing a hand over her heart, “ Dios mío, estás bien. ” She let out an exasperated sigh, wiping the sweat off of her brow and then fully bringing her attention to him.

“What were you thinking?! Are you hurt? Ay dios mío , let me see you-” She cut herself off as she noticed the bird nestled in his hands. “Is that an animal?”

Hunter nodded shyly, avoiding her gaze. He noticed that Luz and Vee were both hovering in the doorway, looking nervous- but simultaneously relieved.

Camila crouched down to his level on the floor, “Oh, poor thing…” She sighed, clicking her tongue, “Can I see the bird?”

He assumed he didn’t have much of an option, so he held the injured cardinal out to her, which she took in her hands and carefully examined.

She let out a deep breath and then stood up, careful not to jostle the half-unconscious creature in her hands. ”Let’s just go home and I’ll fix up this poor bird- and Hunter, you’re going to explain why you ran away, sí ?”

He nodded, not daring to utter a word, and followed her out of the abandoned building and back home.

Well, it wasn’t his home.

But it was close enough.

—

Camila quickly patched up the bird, all the while giving Hunter a rather tame scolding about not running off- which was actually rather impressive that she was able to tend to an injured animal while chewing someone out simultaneously.

What Hunter did not understand about the situation was why he was not being given a punishment for his obvious sins and lack of regard for their household rules. He’d been nothing but a burden on the Noceda family since he had arrived and harsh punishment was probably the least that he deserved.

And yet, the most Camila had done was verbally scold him- and not even aggressively as his uncle would either- it seemed like it actually came from a place of deep concern. 

After all was said and done, she told him to wash himself up and to get a clean pair of clothes considering he was covered in dirt and that they would continue their conversation about him running off later. She looked exhausted and he found himself feeling bad for causing her such a large amount of distress over the course of the past few hours.

Before he left to follow her instructions, he paused and sheepishly asked if he could stay with the bird for tonight. That he was worried about it.

Camila’s gaze softened and told him that of course he could and to come to get her if anything happens.

And so, that’s how Hunter ended up sleeping on the living room couch with an injured bird wrapped in a small towel in his arms.

Despite how badly he had messed up, he felt safe.

Wow, he felt safe.

—

Over the course of the next few days, the bird was rapidly showing improvement. He- and Hunter had only found out the bird was a boy recently- was now able to move and chirp happily, and the infection where his eye was meant to be was almost completely gone now, instead being replaced by a scab and some mottled scar tissue that was beginning to form. 

He’d spent a lot of time with the bird, who Luz had quickly dubbed ‘lil rascal', due to his habit of latching onto Hunter’s hair and pulling on it. He almost couldn’t stand to let the little guy out of his sight and it almost seemed like the bird felt the same way.

Currently, he was lounging in the kitchen feeling relaxed as he watched the bird peck away at the wooden table. He should tell the cardinal to stop, but it was kind of entertaining watching it fruitlessly peck at a table as if it would accomplish anything by doing so.

He had a habit of getting up a lot earlier than most of the Noceda family and today was not an exception. He enjoyed the mornings, getting to observe the daily routine of the Nocedas- they didn’t mind when he quietly sat and watched them go about their routines, and they never tried to bother him either. It was nice.

Camila groggily dragged herself into the kitchen, as she was usually the first of the Nocedas to get up in the morning. She lazily started up the coffee machine and stared off into space- her mind clearly not having caught up with the fact that she was awake yet.

Next, Vee came in, looking nowhere near as tired as her mother. She opened the fridge and started making herself her own breakfast. Hunter had noticed she had a routine as to what she would eat- Mondays and Wednesdays were cereal, and the rest were for those toaster waffles that he was never much of a fan of. He still avoided talking to Vee.

And finally, Luz bounds into the kitchen last, already on the verge of running late to school judging by how she hasn’t changed out of her pajamas yet. Luz is always disorganized when it comes to scheduling and Hunter isn’t sure he’s ever seen a day where she wasn’t rushing to get ready for school.

“G’morning Hunter!” She called out to him, shoving a piece of bread into her mouth and rummaging through the fridge for anything that she could hastily gulp down for a drink.

Hunter simply waved at her, not bothering to give her a response. The bird hopped towards him and he let himself softly smile as it came closer to his hand and rubbed its head on his fingers.

“I was wondering,” Luz said chewing with her mouth open, which was disgusting, “When are you gonna,” She finally swallowed her food and he grimaced, “Name that bird?”

The bird hopped onto his finger and he lifted it up, the creature chirping out in delight.

“...Um, I don’t know yet.” He admitted, using his free hand to give the bird some pets on his feathered chest.

“Mom!” Vee suddenly interrupted from the other room, getting everyone’s attention. “ Please tell me you’re making pancakes tomorrow for breakfast. The toaster waffles are all getting frostbite.”

Camila was just finishing up her coffee and let out a small chuckle. “If that’s what you want, mija .” She set the mug down and grabbed her car keys off of the kitchen countertop. “Flapjacks coming right up for you tomorrow!”

Flapjacks.

The Nocedas gathered their things and quickly bid Hunter goodbye as the school bus arrived and Camila left to start up her car to head to work.

He lifted up the bird that was perched on his fingers, and he smiled, moving his hand closer to his face.

“How do you feel about the name Flapjack?” He asked.

The bird chirped out in response and fluttered his wings before suddenly lunging forward and grabbing a lock of Hunter’s hair and pulling on it.

“Ow- ow! Flapjack! Come on- It’s a cute name!” He laughed, attempting to pull the bird away from his hair.

Flapjack continued to tug, making chirping noises and eliciting more laughter from Hunter’s lips.

It was a great name for a great bird.

Chapter Text

Hunter curled up in the corner of the familiar living room, knees pulled up to his chest and his heart pounding wildly in his sternum. He was a sinner, he was a sinner, he was a sinner.

Uncle Belos was in the boiler room downstairs, preparing his punishment, and yet the home was deathly silent. It made Hunter’s sniffles and choked gasps sound infinitely louder than they have ever been, and it was overwhelming. He was far too aware of his own existence, and how pathetic his cries were. He deserved this. Why was he crying, when he knew that he deserved this? He was a sinner.

He heard his uncle’s heavy footsteps make their way up the stairs, and the man emerged with a large bucket of water hoisted in his arms, steam emanating from the top. Uncle Belos disappeared into the bathroom, and Hunter tried not to cover his ears as he heard the distinct sound of the boiling water being poured into what he assumed was the bathtub. This was going to be God’s Punishment.

Once the sound of pouring water dissipated, he watched as his uncle reappeared out of the bathroom and-

Hunter screamed, he was screaming, he didn’t want to go, he didn’t want this. All he could see was red, and burning flesh. It was hot. Where was he? His surroundings weren’t real, he was in a forest, he was in a void, he was-

When he woke up, he found that he had screamed his throat entirely raw.

He threw the covers off of his body and stumbled onto his feet, moving somewhere- anywhere- he had to get out, he had to leave- and then his body slammed into something- no, somebody much bigger than him.

He looked up, and realization dawned upon him.

Camila.

She bent down to his level, and before he knew it he was throwing himself into her arms. She clutched him close as he sobbed into her chest, softly running her hand through the back of his hair and whispering that he was safe, that he was going to be okay. She wasn’t his uncle. It’s okay.

He was going to be okay.

Hunter broke down in her arms that night.

—

Ever since that nightmare, things have changed for Hunter in the Noceda home- but not in a bad way, which is what he had initially expected to happen. Instead, Camila has given him unending support and- love, he supposes. Luz and Vee have been a lot kinder to him since the incident as well, which he can’t help but feel a tad bit guilty over- he must have scared them awake that night with his screams. He wished he wasn’t so dramatic- he needed to stop causing so many problems like that.

He’d also discovered that he enjoys writing down his experiences. A few days ago, he had been taken for his educational assessment and he’d made the realization when asked to do some writing exercises. Camila had also been correct about him apparently needing ‘Special Education’ and he had a strong feeling his uncle would not approve of that. He hadn’t received a normal education, and that must have been for a reason, right? His uncle hadn’t done that just to be cruel. There should be a reasonable cause for why he was never taught what a normal child would have. There had to be.

But since he’d expressed an interest in writing, Camila had bought him a journal that he could scribble his thoughts into. Today, he’d decided to conduct an experiment. He’d been watching Flapjack in the kitchen for the past hour and messily writing down the bird’s movements and habits. But now it was time for the ultimate test.

Flapjack received a few berries and sunflower seeds every morning, and Hunter was curious as to what would happen if he gave the bird just one berry instead, nothing else. The creature was sweet, kind, and lovable- but would Flap continue to be that way if denied his favorite food? Hunter quickly scribbled down a few more sentences into his journal before deciding to conduct the final part of his experiment.

He pushed back the wooden chair he was sitting on, stood up, and made his way towards the fridge. He pulled out the container of berries from one of the shelves, and glanced at Flapjack as the bird’s interest was quickly piqued by the promise of food. 

The boy smirked, set the singular berry in front of Flapjack, and then retreated back to his chair and journal. He tried to school his shock as he watched the bird curiously peck at the berry, writing it down quickly.

And then the bird began to peck- not gently- but violently! Hunter gasped and began to aggressively jot down the bird’s behavior. Of course Flapjack’s patience had been tested, clearly the creature was not as angelic as he may have seemed- there must have been evil, bad intentions behind everything, and-

Oh.

Flap nudged a piece of the berry towards Hunter. He’d split it perfectly in half… he was trying to share it with him. The bird chirped and tilted his head towards him, continuing to nudge the piece closer towards him.

Hunter sniffled. He wiped the tears that were threatening to spill from his eyes and gratefully took the berry piece and popped it into his mouth.

Naturally, because he was having such a heart-warming moment with his pet, Luz had to come bounding into the kitchen as loud as humanly possible, not only startling Hunter, but Flapjack as well. God-forbid he ever has anything nice or quiet- oh, he’d have to repent tonight for taking God’s name in vain like that, but it was true.

“G’morning, Flap! Oh, and you too, Hunter. I guess.” Luz laughed, clearly seeming to find this interaction funny. It was not. Hunter let out an annoyed huff and then picked up his pen to begin scratching out the previous words in his journal with a more accurate description of what Flapjack had done for him.

“What are you writing?” Luz asked, suddenly peering over his shoulder, and Hunter quite nearly threw his journal at her face with how badly she’d startled him by suddenly appearing like that. “Oh! shoot- sorry, I didn’t mean to-”

“It’s fine,” Hunter interrupted her before she could finish her apology, “And it’s a secret. So…” He trailed off, closing the journal and pulling it into his lap so she couldn’t see anything in it.

“Alright then.” Luz shrugged, and finally seemed to drop it. She went about her own business around the kitchen, and he quietly observed her. Maybe he should do an experiment on her, too.

Next, Vee walked into the kitchen, not saying a word and immediately heading towards the fridge to make herself breakfast.

Hunter raised an eyebrow. It was a weekend, the Nocedas were usually never up this early- especially not multiple of them at the same time. “...Is something happening today?” He asked, warily.

At that question, Luz perked up and began to open her mouth, but Vee beat her to it.

“Camila’s taking Luz to help out at the clinic today,” She explained, pulling up a chair next to Hunter and setting down a plate of those gross toaster waffles that she seemed to like so much, “Which means it’s just gonna be you and me in the house today.”

“...Oh, okay.” He nodded, attempting to fight back the nervous feeling that was overcoming him. Him and Vee have not gotten along well since he had upset her. They mostly tolerated each other, at best. He didn’t want to spend any more time with Vee than was necessary, and he didn’t understand her; he found her odd and suspicious, and generally was kind of… afraid of her, in a sense. Though he would never admit that.

Eventually, Camila came down to collect Luz and say goodbye to him and Vee, adding that Vee was going to be the babysitter, which he immediately scoffed at and tried to protest to no avail. Soon enough, it was just him and Vee left in the kitchen, the girl slowly eating her breakfast while Hunter sat there awkwardly, fidgeting with the strings on his sweatpants.

His heartbeat began to pick up, and at that, he decided he was going to leave. He didn’t want to be around her. He grabbed his journal and scooped up Flapjack into his hands, abruptly standing up from his chair. “Bye,” He announced, hastily beginning to leave, until he heard Vee making a tutting noise.

“Nope, remember who the babysitter is?” She reminded him, pointing towards herself. Hunter gave her an incredulous look, and she sighed as she seemed to realize he did not understand what she was getting at. “Look, they’re clearly setting us up to be here alone so we’ll bond. The least we can do is spend some time together today.” She explained, and suddenly things made a lot more sense.

“Oh.” He muttered, scrunching up his eyebrows and then reluctantly moving to sit back down with her at the table.

An awkward silence enveloped the room, and he found himself becoming increasingly more uncomfortable as time passed. He let Flapjack entertain him for a few minutes, the bird seeming to sense the tension in the room as well. Once Vee finally finished her food and cleaned up after him and herself, she cleared her throat.

“Uh, do you wanna hang out in the living room?” She suggested, and he nodded silently. 

The two of them made their way over to the living room and then sat down on the couch, sitting respectively as far apart from each other as possible. They had changed the scenery of the situation, but it still continued to be as nerve-wracking and awkward as it was before they’d sat down.

Vee let out a sign, and then made a grab for the television remote. She switched the TV on and flicked through a few channels before settling on one with some cartoon about a boy with a crystal in his stomach. He found the entire premise incredibly strange, personally.

They continued to sit in silence, the cartoon playing on the screen. Hunter couldn’t focus well on it, and instead centered his attention on Flapjack, entertaining the bird with his fingers.

Suddenly he heard Vee let out a groan of frustration, and she stood up and began to pace the room, running a hand through her dyed hair. He wasn’t sure if he had done something wrong to cause that reaction, or if she was just… like that. 

After a moment’s deliberation, he finally asked, “Is… um- what’s wrong?”

Vee stopped in her tracks, turned to look at him, and then threw her arms up in frustration, “I don’t know! You’re just making me so nervous!” She exclaimed, and then brought her hand up to pinch the bridge of her nose, “I don’t get it. I thought I was better than this. I thought that I’d gotten better .”

Hunter wasn’t sure how to respond to that, so he continued to watch as she plopped back down onto the couch. “I know I’m safe, and I’m away from them- I just- you reminded me so much of them…” She explained, extremely vaguely.

Hunter frowned. “Who… is ‘them’?”

Vee’s face suddenly blanched. “I don’t- I just- I’m sorry. You probably need to know.” She ran a hand down her face, and then began to fidget with her sleeves. “Camila adopted me a few years ago, but… uh, before that, before I was put into the system, I was raised in a…” She took a deep breath, “Cult.”

He opened and closed his mouth a few times, but in the end he had no idea how to respond. His uncle had taught him about cults, that they were dangerous, evil places- they did not follow God, not properly anyways. He’d said that those that participated in them were participating in witchcraft, and needed to be purged from the world. He couldn’t imagine having to be raised in such a sinful place.

“They treated me like an experiment, a lot of the time. I didn’t get to be a kid. They kept me isolated, away from anyone else except for others they had deemed were ‘bad’ like me. They- they made me do horrible things, in the name of God. I didn’t know any better.” Tears welled in her eyes, but she quickly wiped them away, “Mamá takes me to therapy, and I’m supposed to have gotten better at all of this. To not be scared of people like you anymore, but…” She trailed off, and lowered her gaze to the floor.

They both were silent for a moment, before Hunter finally spoke up. “I know how it feels, sort of,” The words tumbled out of his mouth before he’d even processed what he was saying, “My uncle kept me away from everyone too, and he hurt me a lot. He made me do a lot of things I still don’t understand.”

Vee raised her gaze back to look at him again, “...That makes sense.”

“I keep finding out a lot of the stuff he told me wasn’t true,” He continued, almost in disbelief of the fact he was saying any of this out loud, “And I don’t- I don’t know how to feel about any of it. It feels like my whole life is a lie.”

Vee nodded, and they found themselves getting quiet as they both pondered the words of the other.

Eventually, Vee looked at him and asked, “Do you ever miss him?”

Did Hunter ever miss him? Yes. Always. He misses his uncle like he’d miss the roof over his head if it ever went missing. His uncle was everything to him, he was all he knew- he was just as much of a God in his life as God was himself, and he wishes somebody could just tell him what to do again. To predictably dole out punishments, to keep him in line- to keep the order, and to show him love, however rare that had been in the recent years.

But… the more time that he spent with the Nocedas, the more he found himself feeling different about Uncle Belos- or should he call him Phillip, now? How he’s slowly come to understand that love shouldn’t come with pain and fear like that. He still can’t really comprehend it, because he still believes he deserves punishment for the smallest of actions; and yet any time he thinks about Camila, or anyone in the house punishing him, his heart drops to his stomach and it fills with a dread that overcomes his entire body. It feels like an insult to her and her family, to suggest they would ever do anything like that to him, and yet…

“Yes,” He finally answered, breathless, “I- I do. Even though I shouldn’t.”

Vee nodded, her brows furrowed, “...Me too. I hate it.”

“I’m sorry you lived like that, Vee.” He frowned, looking away from her.

Vee didn’t respond to that, and fell silent for a few seconds. “I think… I think we have a lot more in common than we thought.” She gave him a smile as she spoke, and Hunter felt a newfound sense of comfort.

Somebody else understood, in a way, what he was going through.

“I think so too.”

The rest of their day together was spent with much less tension- if there even was any, anymore. There was a new bond that overcame them, a sense of understanding of their predicaments, and they found themselves much more comfortable speaking to each other than they had for the entire three weeks Hunter had been in the Noceda house. They had shared experiences, though nowhere near the same- and because of that, it seemed almost silly that they had not gotten along before this moment. How much of an idiot did Hunter have to be to not notice what was directly in front of him?

By the time Luz and Camila got home, Hunter and Vee were passed out opposite sides of the couch, a movie playing on a quiet volume on the television in front of them.

Clearly, their plan to make the two of them bond had worked.

Chapter Text

Hunter’s life has changed.

A lot.

It’s a difficult thing, to accept change. To understand it, to embrace it- and he can’t say that he’s especially done any of those three things, but he does know that things have changed for the better. He’s found himself praying less and less (was that a real sin, anyways?), and he’s grown closer with the Nocedas in ways that he thought wouldn’t be possible.

His entire life, he grew up only knowing the church, his uncle, and… pain. Camila doesn’t yell at him, or scare him, or even hit him. He still doesn’t understand exactly why Camila won’t do these things to him but it makes him feel strangely safe. She’s kind to him, she’s patient with him, and she helps him when he doesn’t understand things. 

Along with Camila, he’s finally begun to enjoy the presence of Luz and Vee- and he’s even willingly getting to know their friends.

Recently, he’d spent time with Willow again, and found himself… really enjoying his time with her, actually. She made him nervous in a way he’d never felt before, a feeling he had no idea how to identify or even explain. She was so much smarter than he was too, and he really admired that about her. She told him about the school they all attended, “Hexside”. It was a school for arts and sciences, and she was on the botany track. There were several tracks at Hexside; Music, Biology, Botany, Chemistry, Theater, Visual Art, Literary, Media, Medical Science, and Zoology. Apparently, Luz was trying to do all of them , which sounded insane to him. Gus was dual-discipline, taking Theater and Visual Art, and Luz’s… Girlfriend? Crush? Best friend? Amity, was in the Biology track.

Hunter and Amity did not get along very well. And sure he’s only met her once, but he did not enjoy it in the slightest. She was overprotective of Luz and was quick to argue with him about anything and everything that he thought. Luz has been insistent that they’ll grow to like each other, but he was… doubtful, of that. He had a feeling they both had a lot of work to do on themselves first before they could ever get along.

He’d also spent some time with Gus, who was probably the easiest for him to get along with out of the entire group. Gus was laid-back and they both shared a love for knowledge and talking about that knowledge. They both could learn a lot from each other. Gus was significantly younger than Hunter but it didn’t feel like it- they felt like equals. Gus had everything he wished he could have had when he was his age.

Despite all of this progress, there was a strange sense of dread that was continuously building up in his chest. The more comfortable and happy he felt, the more he felt like it was temporary. That he is setting himself up for disappointment. That it’s all going to fall apart like it always does with him. That was one thing he did always pray for: he prayed to God that he could keep his life like this, to enjoy the happiness that his new family has brought to him. 

But pushing past all of that, today was a special day. Today was a day for him and Luz, and only him and Luz. She’d apparently been planning this for a while, an entire day set out with activities for the two of them so they could bond. He wasn’t especially fond of this, preferring to hide away in the basement when the Nocedas were all home on the weekends, but she was insistent. And one thing he’d learned during his few months with this family is that when Luz sets her mind on something it, unfortunately, will happen. 

So now here he was, sitting with Luz, who was completely sprawled out across the couch as she turned on her favorite movie. He’d heard her talk a lot about “The Good Witch Azura”, though commonly, he tended to tune it out- sorry, not sorry- but now he had to sit down and experience the whole thing, apparently. Luz could not stop bouncing and generally moving, excitedly explaining what he needed to know before watching the movie. The entire concept sounded juvenile, and he still could not comprehend how there could be such a thing as a “good” witch, considering all of them were drawing power from Satan himself. But to each their own, he guessed.

“Hunter! Pay attention here, this part of the prologue is really important!”

In the end, he guessed he enjoyed the movie. He definitely didn’t feel tears welling up in his eyes when Azura discovered her true family was the friends she’d made along the way, nope. Absolutely not.

Luz leaned over close to him and then poked him in the shoulder.

“So… what’d you think?” She questioned, getting uncomfortably close in his personal space.

Hunter shrugged, “It was alright.” He said, face flushing red and trying to hide the wobble in his voice.

Luz squealed and jutted a finger into his face, “I knew it! I knew you’d like it!” She threw herself back into the couch cushion, gleefully kicking her legs up in the air, “Mr. ‘Bad but Sad’ likes Azura!” She laughed and he rolled his eyes, scooting away from her to avoid getting a foot in his face.

“Hardly,” He huffed, crossing his arms, “It was nowhere near as good as Alpha and Omega.”

She sat up abruptly, “You’re just saying that because you cried like a baby watching that movie!”

“No, I did not!” He shouted, and he hoped God would forgive him for the lie, “Besides, you don’t know the first thing about wolves!”

She laughed, and then raised an eyebrow at him, “Yeah, like what?”

At this point, it was becoming glaringly obvious that she was just trying to egg him on. Nonetheless, he’d never give up an opportunity to rant about wolves. 

He uncrossed his arms and leaned forward a bit, excited to share, “Well, did you know that wolves have 42 teeth? I found that out yesterday!” He explained, flapping his hands around, “Oh, and wolf pups are born blind and deaf! They can’t see anything until they’re about 11 days old, and then they also start being able to move more and they’ll even bark. I bet you didn’t know any of that.”

Luz smirked, “Actually, I knew all of that.”

“No, you did not!” Hunter replied indignantly, “Lying is a sin, Luz.”

She simply burst into laughter again at that and then stood up off the couch. “Look,” She pointed towards the window, and there was rain pattering against the glass. “It’s raining.”

“I don’t see why that matters-”

“Come on!” Luz interrupted, grabbing him by the arm and pulling him up and off the couch. From there she dragged him along out of the living room, surprisingly strong for a 13-year-old, and then stopped outside the front door. She had that distinctive “Luz” look on her face that meant that whatever she was about to do he was about to hate.

It all happened in a few seconds.

She threw open the front door, letting the rain into the house, and then unceremoniously shoved him out the door. He tumbled to the ground until he landed in a pile of mud, the wet dirt completely caking his hair, leaving him a bit dazed.

He then heard the door slam shut, followed by a loud thunk and a splash as Luz threw herself into the same puddle of mud, covering him, and herself, in even more copious amounts of mud and dirt. She laughed loudly, and by the time he had wiped the mud out of his eyes, she was throwing a glob of the stuff right at him.

Hunter quickly dodged out of the way, his dishevelled expression replacing itself with a toothy grin and then scooped up the mud underneath him with his hand before chucking it back at Luz. 

It splattered completely into her face.

They both shared a look before bursting into complete laughter. She wiped the mud off of her face and plopped back into the wet dirt, spreading her arms out and staring up at the sky as the rain splattered down on them. He glanced up at the house for a moment, spotting Camila on the phone with a worried expression, before finally following suit and laying down next to her to stare up at the setting sky, placing his hands across his chest.

The feeling of dread once again began to wash over him, but he pushed it down. This was a nice moment. He felt… good, for once. He wasn’t going to let his nerves ruin that. 

They lay there in silence for a few moments, watching as the sky bathed itself in hues of orange and pink underneath the rain clouds, the only other sound being the pitter-patter of rain hitting the grass, plants, and buildings around them. A gray car drove past the house.

“...Hey,” Luz spoke, breaking the quiet they had briefly enveloped themselves in. “What… What was it like, in your old family?”

Hunter furrowed his brows, continuing to stare up at the setting sky. That was a difficult question to answer, and it took him a moment to formulate a proper response. “It was… lonely, most of the time. Uncle, he’s- well, he was a priest at the cathedral downtown. The only places I’d ever been before living here were the church and home. I didn’t know anything else… I still, um- I still don’t, really.” He explained, fidgeting with his fingers as he spoke. He was glad they were choosing to look up at the sky, instead of each other. 

“So you didn’t have a dad?” She questioned, and he shook his head.

“No, he’s, um- he’s dead.” He explained vaguely, frowning, “But you don’t have one either.”

“I do,” Luz blurted out and he raised his eyebrows and turned his head to glance over at her. “I… I did. He passed when we first moved to Gravesfield.” 

That made sense, actually. “I’m sorry.” He said, unsure of how to respond.

“It’s okay, it was a while ago now. I guess we both have dead dads.” She chuckled sadly, and Hunter sat up to look at her. It was starting to get dark outside, now.

“Well, it’s good you have Camila.” He gave her a wobbly smile, and she sat up alongside him. They both stared off at the nearby forest. 

He heard the sound of another car driving past. Or was it the same one?

She brushed some mud off of her face, “Yeah.” She nodded, “It’s good you have her too.”

Hunter raised an eyebrow at that, and turned to face her, “What?”

She smiled slightly, “Well, it sounds like your uncle didn’t really treat you like family. You have a family now,” She turned to face him as well and looked him in the eye, “ You’re family now.”

“Oh.” He gasped and he felt a warm feeling well up inside of his chest. A warm, sad feeling. It bubbled to the surface and he made a noise he wasn’t aware he was physically capable of making. Luz pulled him into an embrace and before he knew it he was sobbing into her shoulder. Deep sobs that came from his heart. He felt them reverberate through his entire being, finally feeling the culmination of the kindness that this new life had brought him.

They stayed like that for a while, until he found himself out of tears to shed. He let out a soft chuckle and pushed himself away from her, wiping the snot and tears from his face, “Gross,” He smirked. Luz laughed in response. 

The same gray car from earlier drove past the house, slower this time.

The moment was interrupted by the sound of the front door being opened, and Camila shouting out, “ Niños , come inside! It’s getting dark.”

Hunter stood up first and offered a hand to Luz. She gratefully took his hand and pulled her up to a standing position before they both followed Camila inside.

“Ay, you’re both covered in mud.” She sighed, closing the door behind them. He could hear the television blaring their local news station in the other room. There came that sense of dread for the third time today. Flapjack came fluttering in from the living room, landing on Hunter’s shoulder and chirping into his ear.

He watched as Camila leant down and whispered something into Luz’s ear, and the girl suddenly brightened up even more than she typically looked. She gave a grinning nod to her mother, and the woman turned to him. “Hunter, how about a bubble bath to get you all cleaned up? Have you ever had one?”

He felt his stomach drop. “No,” He said, shaking his head, “I don’t want one.”

The woman gave him a warm smile, “It will be great for you, come on. Give it a try.”

He knew he couldn’t say no to authority figures and if Camila wanted him to… well, he would have to go with it. His heart began to pound against his ribcage, and she instructed him to take off his shoes so he wouldn’t track mud into the house, before beginning to lead him towards the upstairs bathroom. 

His hands had already begun to shake, and the scars littering his face and body were beginning to burn with a phantom pain as she showed him the bathtub and a bottle of soap that she was apparently going to pour into it. He didn’t want this- he didn’t- he thought she wasn’t going to hurt him-

The sound of water pouring into the bathtub began and that was the last straw before his brain and his body were violently pulled back to that night.

Uncle Belos dragged him towards the bathroom and Hunter cried, weakly twisting against his hands as he was restrained and then held above the steaming water in the tub. His uncle held his face inches away from the boiling heat and Hunter found himself becoming completely still out of fear. He could feel his heart desperately trying to escape from his chest as every inch of his being told him to run, run, run.

“ I’m going to cleanse you of your sins, once and for all. ” His uncle snarled into his ear. Hunter could feel the man’s breath up against his neck, “ This is for your own good. ”

And then there was heat. And burning . It felt like the skin on the side of his face was melting off, he let out a blood-curdling scream as his ‘sins’ were washed away, the boiling water lapping at his soul, destroying the devil inside him from the inside out. He’d never felt pain on this level before, bright, hot, and blinding. His vision turned white as his innocence was seared out of him, church bells ringing loudly in his ears. 

He could feel the blood moving through his veins, every single pulse of his heart against his chest, the way his joints moved inside of his skeletal system, and the labored heaving of his lungs inside of his ribcage as the world around him spun. He couldn’t do it again, he couldn’t- he had to run, had to get out. There was a hand at his shoulder, a chirp somewhere, and before he knew it he was running. He nearly collapsed down the stairs (since when was there a second floor in his uncle’s home?) and then made a mad dash towards the front door. The chirping was louder, and he felt the weight of a creature land on the top of his head as he hurriedly pushed at the door before finally realizing that he had to pull it open to escape.

Before he left, he reached up to the top of his head to grab the creature- a bird- from the top of his head and he deposited it into the pocket of his jacket. He heard a female voice scream his name but he was already gone out of the door. He was running, barefoot, and he couldn’t stop. He had to keep running, he had to escape. The concrete and dirt scraped against his bare feet and the rain began to pour harder, soaking him to the bone. 

He ran until his feet began to hurt and it felt like the earth was collapsing around him, and even then he continued running. 

He didn’t want to hurt anymore. He didn’t want to disappoint his uncle, he didn’t want to disappoint Camila- Camila?

Oh, God. 

He’d left Camila. And Luz. And Vee, and- where was he? How long had he been running? He shivered in the cold rain as he began to slow down, finding himself in the middle of an abandoned parking lot, surrounded by trees. The darkness closed in around him as fear began to set in. He didn’t want Camila to hurt him, and he’d run- but, but he- he didn’t- 

He couldn’t form any coherent thoughts.

A street lamp flickered, in the distance.

Hunter wasn’t sure how long he stood there, in the middle of the concrete lot that was slowly being overtaken by nature, staring at the ground and wrapping his arms around himself. He could hear Flapjack chirping in the front pocket of his jacket, poking his head out and watching Hunter. The water continued to pour, and he shivered as tears were welling up in his eyes.

The distinct sound of an engine and wheels on the road slowly became apparent to him, rocks crunching underneath the rubber tires of…

He looked up as the headlights approached, and realized it was the same gray car that he had seen earlier. The one that had driven by the house multiple times. It slowed to a stop and the driver’s seat door opened.

The man that stepped out was somebody he thought he would never see again, for the rest of his life.

His long, gray hair travelled down the man’s back and torso, slowly being wet by the rain. His blue eyes stared down at him, and every wrinkle on the man’s face was exactly the same as they had been a few months ago. He was dressed in the least elegant clothes he’d ever seen him in- a sure sign of how much things have changed, despite his… everything, being the exact same as before.

“Hunter.” That sickly, smooth voice said to him. The voice that’s haunted his nightmares for weeks on end.

“...Uncle?” Hunter squeaked, his voice lilting up into an almost question at the end as if he still couldn’t believe it was him.

His uncle smiled down at him. “God sent me back to you. He sent me to save you.” He stepped forward, getting dangerously close to him.

He suppressed the urge to step back, away from the man, it was rude- it was no way to treat his uncle. The man who could speak to God.

He was rendered speechless as his uncle tucked a wet strand of hair behind Hunter’s ear, “I missed you, dear nephew…” The man trailed off, kneeling down to Hunter’s level. “I know the devil has been tempting you for the past few months but you’ve resisted- you’re such a good soldier.” His uncle's voice cracked and he pulled him in for an embrace.

He felt strangely cold. Disconnected. His uncle had never hugged him before. “God spoke to me, Hunter, He told me He has great plans for you,” He spoke into his ear, smoothing the boy’s hair down as he continued to hold him in his arms, “I have you, I’ve got you, you’re coming home, Caleb…”

…Caleb? What? Hunter shifted in his uncle’s arms, attempting to wriggle his way free, “Who is-”

A chirp. And then another.

His heart sunk to the pits of his stomach.

His uncle removed himself from the embrace, noticing the way Hunter’s demeanor had changed at the bird sounds. The man’s entire expression changed to something much darker, something he hadn’t seen since-

The man, in an abrupt movement, practically tore the bird out of the pocket of his jacket. “Hunter, what is this? What do you have here?”

He felt tears prick at the corners of his eyes, “That’s- That’s my- um, I-”

“Words, boy!” Uncle Belos snapped, gripping Flapjack in his hand tightly, the bird crying out in distress.

“That’s my bird!” Hunter raised his voice, straightening up his back and stumbling backwards away from his uncle a bit, “He’s- he’s my pet and his name is Flapjack and I love him.” He stated, clenching his fists at his sides, “I love him.”

It quickly became apparent that every single one of those words, actions, everything- it was the wrong decision.

“Animals don’t have souls, Hunter. To love this creature is to betray me and God.” He squeezed Flapjack a bit tighter, “Why would you ever do such a thing?”

Hunter had no response for that. Fear built itself up into his chest- he hadn’t meant to betray his uncle, let alone God, but he loved Flapjack. He loved that bird with his entire soul. He didn’t understand how-

“Answer me, boy!” His uncle shouted and he flinched,

“I- I don’t know! I’m sorry!” Hunter's knees wobbled and he collapsed onto the concrete underneath him, “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry…” 

Belos crouched down on the ground with him and brought his free hand up to the boy’s chin. He lifted up his head and Hunter was forced to look him in the eyes.

“You need to prove to God that you did not betray Him.”

Hunter nodded as tears began to stream down his face.

Belos took Hunter’s hands into his own, Flapjack tightly gripped in the middle of the two pairs of hands. 

“Now, squeeze.”

Hunter closed his eyes and shook his head. He couldn’t. He could never.

“Squeeze it!” Belos screamed, directly in his face, “This creature is made from Satan himself! It’s bringing you closer to Hell! You have to end this creature’s life, in the name of God, Hunter! Do not betray Him! ” 

He felt Belos’ hands tighten around his own, painfully. Hunter did not move his hands wrapped around Flapjack, but the pressure continued to grow due to no fault of his own. He squeezed, and squeezed, and he looked away, tried to pretend it wasn’t happening- it wasn’t, it was okay, he was back home with Luz, and Camila, Vee, Willow, Gus-

Chirp.

Crack.

Silence.

“Hunter, no!” A scream sounded in the distance.

Was that Luz?

There were sprinting footsteps coming his way, and he felt Belo’s grip on his hands drop. Flapjack’s limp body fell to the ground.

“Hunter!” She screamed again, and he caught her eye as she appeared in the distance. Belos violently grabbed his arm, and began to drag him towards his car. 

He didn’t fight back. This had to be God’s Will.

“No!” Luz shouted one final time as he was shoved into the backseat of the car. The door slammed shut and Belos climbed into the front seat as fast as possible before slamming onto the gas pedal.

He saw Luz one last time as the car sped away. She was dropping to her knees in front of a red shape that was in a heap on the ground. She looked up at him one last time, and they met eyes through the glass.

He should have known this was going to happen sooner or later.

After all, his uncle was not a merciful man.

Chapter Text

Luz dropped to her knees as the gray car sped off into the distance. The entire world was spinning around her. 

With shaking hands, she picked up the still-warm cardinal that was… no longer moving or breathing. Flapjack was gone, and so was Hunter.

And that man. That tall man, with the long gray hair- she had an idea of who it was, but she hoped with her entire being that it wasn’t who she thought it was.

Tears flowed freely down her face as she gently fixed Flapjack’s feathers with her thumb. Her heart was pounding in her ears and the earth was turned onto an entirely different axis; everything was wrong, this wasn’t how today was supposed to go- they were supposed to have a good day. How could she have messed up this badly?

It was all her fault, it had to be.

She widened her eyes as the reality of the situation finally crashed down onto her and she frantically fished in her pockets for her phone, nearly dropping it multiple times trying to just get past the home screen. She pulled up her contacts and pressed the call button for her mom.

—

Once he was in the car, Hunter felt like everything was suddenly moving backwards, forwards, slow, and fast. Time wasn’t linear anymore, it was distorted by past memories mixing in with the present, his brain splintering and struggling to comprehend that what was happening to him was actually real. It couldn’t be, and yet, the scratchy feeling of the car seat underneath his hands was as tangible as ever.

When he’d been unceremoniously shoved into the back seat, he thought that he and his uncle were the only ones in the car. Turns out, the person driving it was… not his uncle, actually. It was a short-looking woman with her hair tied up, and he could have sworn he recognized her. His mind was too disoriented at the moment to remember.

Maybe she was from church?

He kind of wanted to throw up, but that feeling quickly dissipated as his eyes glazed over and he stared down at his feet on the dirty floor of the car. 

He blinked and suddenly they were pulling up into a parking lot. As he raised his head and looked up out the window, the massive town cathedral towered over them. Spires reaching up in the dark sky up towards God- it made him feel small. Smaller than ever. 

Uncle Belos and the woman both exited the car and then the door closest to him was opened. His uncle stood at the door, looking down at him and offering a hand out to him. He took his hand without even questioning it, being escorted out and away from the car. 

“Thank you, Kiki.” His uncle said as they approached the short woman. She looked up at his uncle with nothing short of complete admiration. “God will be rewarding you for your service to Him today.”

Kiki nodded and then bowed her head towards his uncle, “Please, let me know if there is anything else I can do to help, I am forever at your-”

His uncle waved his hand to cut her off, placing the other on Hunter’s shoulder, “No, this will suffice. Go on, now.”

Kiki’s expression morphed from delight to disappointment but she nodded nonetheless, quickly leaving to restart her car.

Uncle Belos moved him forward with a hand still on his shoulder, leading him towards the towering double doors that framed the intricate entrance of the cathedral. He felt dwarfed in comparison, while his uncle seemingly fit right in with the scenery. The older man reached into his pocket and pulled out a set of keys and unlocked one of the doors.

“You’ve been deeply influenced by Satan while I was gone, Hunter.” He began, leading him inside and turning around to lock the door behind them. The sound of the door closing echoed through the building, carrying the sound deeply. Almost every noise was amplified in the cathedral- every small step, voice, squeak or crack, was distorted by the tall arching ceilings and largely empty walls. 

He felt the urge to throw up again.

They walked down the aisle together towards the centrepiece of the cathedral- the altar and the enlarged crucifix centred on the wall behind it, “It deeply pains me to see this happen to you… the same way it happened to my poor brother so many years ago.” His uncle sighed as they walked up the steps towards the altar, “He was led astray by Satan and witchcraft, but you- you, my boy- you are the better version of him,” They stopped in front of the altar and his uncle turned towards him, his figure towering and looming- intimidating. “You’re essential to God’s plan.”

Looking up at his uncle Belos- Phillip? Who- who was he, anymore? His uncle stared down at him and the thoughts continued to run in circles in his mind until he couldn’t hold back the words tumbling out of his mouth, “I- Uncle, I don’t- is that… What did you do? What- what happened to our family?”

Belos’ expression turned sour for a moment before he schooled it back to an emotionless gaze, “You don’t speak unless told to.” He stated, his posture stiffening.

Staring his uncle in the eyes and noticing the tell-tale signs that he was about to be hit, Hunter flinched and stumbled backwards. The man hadn’t even raised a hand towards him, and yet…

He really missed Camila. And Luz. And Vee, and… Flapjack. Horror stuck him all at once as the events of the past hour flashed through his mind. He’d hurt, no- he’d killed- No. He felt his knees become weak as his breathing picked up and he clutched his chest.

“I killed him, you- you made me kill him,” He cried out before his legs finally gave out beneath him. His ears were ringing, static threatening to take over his hearing, but the distinct click of his uncle’s shoes on the cathedral floors penetrated the static as the man approached the heap that he’d crumpled into. 

He felt a hand card its way through his hair, Belos’ large form bending over and crouching next to him, “Poor thing, you’re confused, aren’t you?” He tutted and Hunter let out another choked sob, “You’ve been led astray by those Satanists,” The hand trailed down through his hair and to his cheek, “We’ll cleanse you of your sins, Caleb , I’ll make you new again,” He tilted Hunter’s chin up towards him and leaned in close- too close. He could feel the man’s breath on his face. “I’ll fix you .” He adjusted his grip on Hunter’s jaw and forcefully made him look him in the eyes.

As he stared into those soulless blue eyes, he understood something- something he’d struggled to finally understand for months. He trembled in the man’s grip but he was out of tears to shed. Fear began to replace itself with white-hot anger and desperation. 

He understood it now.

Phillip was a bad, bad man.

—

Luz’s heart pounded in her chest as she sat in the living room, towel wrapped around her wet shoulders, while her mom spoke with the police outside. Vee sat next to her, her eyes glassy.

Neither of them said anything because neither of them had any words for the situation that was at hand.

Hunter was gone and all Luz knew was that it was her fault.

She’d spoken to the police with her mother earlier before being sent inside, giving descriptions of what she saw and the direction they went- unfortunately, the police were clearly incompetent because they were just standing there and talking instead of actively looking for her brother- or, well- housemate…? Was he her brother?

Maybe he wasn’t. They hadn’t even gotten the chance to ask him how he felt about adoption. And now he’s gone.

There was the sound of two more sets of voices speaking outside- one much louder than the other, and then the door was opening. Eda and Raine pressed their way into the living room. King was held in Raine’s arms, clutching onto them.

Luz met Eda’s eyes for just a brief moment and then the older woman was rushing to her and Vee. She fell to her knees and wrapped her arms around the two girls while Raine hung back and watched, a wobbly smile stretched across their face.

Luz returned the embrace and nearly burst into tears all over again.

Eda clutched the both of them tightly, “Gods, don’t scare me like that again I- shit-“

“Language around the kids,” Raine interrupted, only to receive a sharp glare from Eda. They raised their hands defensively, “Okay, okay- I get it.” 

Eda places one hand on Luz’s shoulder and another on Vee’s. “Look. I know you’re scared, squirts,” As if on cue, Luz let out a tearful sniffle, “But we’re going to find him, alright? The cops are stalling- I don’t know why- but Raine and I are gonna head out soon to keep looking; Camila’s going to watch over you kids here.” 

The dam that Luz had built to hold back her emotions suddenly broke all at once and before she knew it she was clutching onto Eda and sobbing embarrassingly. 

“It’s- It’s all my fault! He wouldn’t be gone if I hadn’t just-“

Eda shushed her before she could finish the sentence, rubbing circles into her back. 

“Kid, none of this is your fault.” She pulled back from the embrace and looked her right in the eyes, “That guy- he’s- ugh,” She let out an annoyed huff and dragged a hand down her face, “I don’t know how to explain this to you.”

Luz wiped the tears from her face, willing herself to stop crying and failing horrendously.

“That man, his name is Phillip Wittebane and- damn it,” She turned to Raine, “We need to head out.”

Luz frowned and lowered her gaze. She was not assured in the slightest. 

“Camila will explain everything when she’s done with the cops- come on, Raine.”

—

Phillip forced him down to kneel at the altar. The golden centrepiece was ornate with intricate details, fit with several candles and spires on the top of it, and in the centre- a crucifix. 

The crucifix stared down at him and he stared up at it. The pained, bloodied face of Christ looked off into the distance. He was unable to move, forever pinned to that cross. Forced to bleed for his God, forced to stay in that cruel position with thorns dug into his skull for the rest of eternity- whoever carved the statue made sure of that. 

It didn’t seem fair to him.

If the church- if this life - was meant to bring peace to the world, then why was it full of so much pain? Why was the crucifix, fitted with a pained dying Christ, the centrepiece of the church? What was the purpose of worshipping in front of a symbol of a horrific execution of a human being?

With a lighter, Phillip moved around him and slowly lit every candle in the cathedral.

Not uncle, not Belos- Phillip. His name was Phillip. Hunter hated himself for being delusional enough to think that they had arrested his uncle under false charges. The evidence was all there. 

His scars burnt with a phantom pain at the thought.

As he knelt, his knees trembled underneath him. They were starting to hurt on the cold, solid floor, and he was… scared. Genuinely, truly, and fully scared. And yet he was stuck in place.

It was like a strange numbness had overtaken his mind, pushing out everything else in his surroundings in an attempt to protect him from what was happening. The world was fuzzy around him, and the click of Phillip’s shoes on the floor underneath them was the only thing keeping him fully present in what was happening. 

The sound of walking stopped, and he felt a presence behind him. His heart began to pick up its pace and the numbness was receding as reality began to hit him once again. His eyes, which had dried quite a bit ago, were threatening to spill tears again. He didn’t want this. He didn’t want to be here. He wanted Camila.

“Gloria Patri et Filio,” His uncle spoke, voice echoing and bouncing off of the walls. “et Spiritui Sancto.”

Hunter’s breath caught in his throat as he recognized the Latin prayer. It was addressed towards the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

He heard shuffling behind him, “Sicut erat in principio,” The sound of fabric being moved, “et nunc, et semper,”

He risked a glance behind himself, as Phillip stood over him, now dressed in his priest robes. The intricate details on the fabric caught his eye- but he forced himself to look away. His heart was beginning to pound.

“Et in saecula saeculorum!” Phillip raised his voice, and Hunter squeezed his eyes shut. 

“Amen!” A large crack sound- the switch, oh God- and before he knew it, he had received his first lashing.

He let out a shocked cry of pain, and he could tell it had slashed right through the back of his shirt.

…His favorite shirt.

The switch cracked again and he nearly doubled over, catching himself with his hands. It hurt, it stung- he hadn’t received this punishment in such a long time- he could feel the blood trickling down his back.

“This is for your own good, Caleb.” Phillip hissed.

Caleb. Who the hell was Caleb? He’s not- he’s not Caleb-

The realization suddenly hit him with the force of a lightning strike. He knew who Caleb was.

It made so much sense.

That was his dad. And his uncle- he’d-

Oh, God.

He heard the sound of the switch being prepared again and before he could stop himself- he did the unthinkable. He dodged out of the way.

Hunter rolled to his side with a hiss of pain, and then scrambled up to his feet. There was blood- his blood - smeared on the floor of the church.

He looked up at the expression on Phillip’s face and he nearly dropped straight back down to his knees again. It was contorted into a barely contained rage- the expression was so subtle but he knew all the signs. He knew what was coming.

And he was going to stand his ground.

“I am not Caleb!” He shouted, clenching his fists. “I’m not him! I- I never even knew him! And I-“ He took a shaking breath, “I know what you did, uncle,” He stepped forward, his voice cracking with emotion, “I know what you did to him.”

Phillip’s knuckles had turned white with how hard he was clenching the switch and he stepped closer. Far too close. “You,” The man spoke, softly- but with an indescribable anger laced in between his syllables, “Are such a waste.” He reached over and flicked a strand of hair out of Hunter’s face and he flinched.

Phillip raised the switch one more, and in a split-second decision, Hunter let out a gasp and then attempted to shove him backwards. He had to escape, now . 

“I don’t want this!“ He cried.

The older man stumbled a bit backwards but hardly lost his footing. The barely concealed rage that was initially shown on his face had now been twisted into an expression that he’d never even seen before on his uncle- the man’s eyebrows had lowered, his frown deepened, and his eyes- Oh God.

“Then what do you want, boy?!” He shouted and began to once again advance on Hunter. He walked backwards, terrified of taking his eyes off of the man. “Tell me what you want, if it’s so important! More important than God? Or your family?!” He raised the switch again and slashed it on the floor as a warning. The sound reverberated around the building.

Hunter flinched and continued to stumble backwards, slowly being cornered towards a wall. “You- You want to know what I want?” He began, slowly raising his voice, “I want to leave the church,” Phillip continued to advance on him, “And never step foot in here again!” They were approaching the wall now, and his heart was hammering in his chest, “I- I want to be happy, I want to go to school, and be with my new family!” His back suddenly hit the wall. He had nowhere else to go. “And most of all, I want you to never hurt anybody ever again!”

Phillip continued to press forward until there was barely an inch between the two of them. He dropped the switch onto the floor. “Hunter,” He began and reached down to place a hand on his cheek, “Why are you hurting me like this? I was only trying to help you.” He cooed, face twisting into a deep, upset frown.

Hunter shrunk back further and briefly looked up to meet the man’s eyes. He wanted to believe him. 

But he couldn’t. Not anymore.

He raised his hand to clutch around his uncle's wrist, the man’s hand still gently pressed to his cheek, “You’re-“ He pulled it away from him, “You’re lying!”

There was silence, for a moment. There was no other sound than both of their breathing as Phillip stared down at him. The deep frown that had initially been on his uncle’s face distorted into a near-blank expression. 

“Fine,” Phillip spat, and then in a quick maneuver switched his grip onto Hunter’s arm, holding it tight enough that he let out a gasp of pain- it was definitely going to bruise. “Then there is only one option left for you.” He pulled Hunter roughly forwards and then began to drag him across the cathedral.

“Clearly, you did not learn your lesson the first time I did this,” He dragged him down the center aisle of the church, heading towards the entrance. “You simply continue to stab me in the back.” The man shook his head, heading to a stop at the Holy Water font that resided in the entrance area of the church. 

The water trickled slowly through the large basin- a continuous fountain of blessed water. It was deep enough to place your hand and some of your forearm inside.

Hunter was hyperventilating.

He couldn’t relive this. He already did today, he couldn’t- he couldn’t do it again. He thrashed in his uncle’s arms, doing everything in his power to fight back.

“This is for the good of your soul, Hunter!” Phillip shouted and forced him closer to the font. He placed his hands in front of himself, pushing away- but the older man quickly wrenched them away, now holding him inches above the water.

It wasn’t boiling this time, at least.

“In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy spirit,”

He inched closer to the water. His breath was causing ripples to appear. He made the conscious decision to suck in one final, deep breath. The ripples faded.

“ Amen .”

It was the last thing he heard before his face was forcefully pressed into the water. 

His arms and legs thrashed about, but it was no use- Phillip had him completely pinned under his weight. He let out a garbled scream under the water, which only caused him to begin to choke.

Water filled his throat, his nostrils- there was no way he could get any oxygen in. He couldn’t breathe, he couldn’t do anything.

He stopped fighting back.

His hands clenched themselves at the edge of the basin, clutching the stone like his life depended on it- which… it did, didn’t it?

Water was filling his lungs now. He could feel his limbs growing weak. He coughed under the water- it did nothing. He tried to make a sound, and nothing came out. He opened his eyes, only to realize the darkness was filling his vision.

The terror in his mind began to fade, and all that was left was a sort of… calmness. Almost serene. He thought about Flapjack, and Camila. Luz, Vee, Willow… 

He wished he could thank them for everything they did for him, even if it was all for nothing.

His legs felt heavy underneath him, his hands slipped free, dangling by his sides. Static filled his hearing and his vision.

And then there was nothing.

He didn’t know much of anything anyways.

Chapter Text

Hunter knew too much about everything, now.

Light bounced and flitted in his vision. It was reflective and yet it didn’t exist at all. It was fully corporeal and transparent at the same time.

Reality is something that can be broken down into three main things:

• Senses.
• Emotions.
• Dimensions.

The place Hunter had been thrown into in his mind took these concepts and twisted them until they were unrecognizable. Down is Up, and Life is Death.

The only thing that prevailed over the intensity of the in-between was the overwhelming feeling to let go- to rest .

It felt so easy to drift away in the watery fog of unconsciousness, and for the first time in his life, he felt peace. He could finally lay down.

And yet, something inside of him was tugging back towards reality.

A flash of red, the fluttering of wings.

A chirp.

Flapjack.

He wanted to rest, he didn’t want to wake up- God, he was just so tired.

Another chirp.

It’s not time. Not yet, not for boy. Boy has more to do.

It was easy to let go and drift into the nothingness that was slowly enveloping him.

But he wasn’t known for doing things because they were easy, was he?

Beep .

Flapjack’s presence was comforting. He missed him. He wished he could reach out and touch him just one more time.

Beep .

If he could cry, he would.

Beep .

Senses were slowly returning to his being and with that came emotion. Of course, he couldn’t let go yet. He had so much left to finish. 

Beep .

He’d never be able to find peace if he never had the chance to experience life the way he always longed to.

He couldn’t let go. Not yet.

Beep .

The world came back to him in slow waves.

He pried his eyes open, the fluorescent lights practically felt like they were beaming down onto him. His vision was a blur but awareness slowly found its way to his mind. His ears were ringing.

Senses, emotions, and dimensions. It all came back to him. He’d been here before- this was the hospital. 

Beep .

Oh, and the pain was there too.

His eyes finally focused, bringing to him the image of the room and himself. He was in a hospital gown, carefully tucked underneath a blanket with an IV hooked into his arm, a nasal tube for oxygen, and a heart monitor placed on his chest. 

“You’re awake!” A familiar voice sounded and he tiredly moved his head to see who was approaching to stand by his bedside. 

Camila.

“Mi hijo, don’t ever scare me like that, do you hear me?” She said, her voice cracking as she took his hand into hers. Was she crying? “Are you in pain? Oh, I should call in a nurse now that you’re awake-“

He stopped focusing on her worried voice, exhaustion taking over and making his mind feel foggier than it already was. He turned his gaze to the ceiling and when that proved to be too bright to stare at he simply closed his eyes and let himself drift again. 

The next time he woke up- it couldn’t have been longer than a few minutes- there were a couple of nurses (Doctors? He couldn’t tell.) that had arrived to do some tests. It was the standard sort of questioning, making sure he was lucid and hadn’t sustained any other injuries that they didn’t know about.

Camila guided him through the entire thing, never letting go of his hand.

The last time he was in the hospital he didn’t have anyone to hold his hand. He had been utterly alone.

This was a nice change. 

When one of the nurses questioned him on if he knew why he was there though, all of the tired calmness suddenly burst into a spiral of panic as the events of the past few… hours? Replayed themselves in his mind.

He understood why his back was in so much pain, now. The lashings he’d received, the screaming, the water in his lungs- Flapjack .

Inside the cathedral.

Dear God, if you truly were real, why did you let this happen to him? What was the point?

He was hyperventilating and he could hear the beeping of his heart monitor increasing- this was it, he really was going to die now. It made sense, he clearly wasn’t meant to have anything nice last, and it was all because of his uncle, and the way he was forced to live, and-

“Breathe, please- breathe with me, Hunter.”

He did as he was told since that seemed to be all he was good for anyway. That’s why Flapjack was dead.

Dead, dead, dead.

His breathing began to even out as the calming voice of his- of Camila helped guide him through his panic attack. The present slowly found its way back into view, and the atmosphere of the hospital room surprisingly helped ground him.

Now, he just felt numb. Detached.

The hospital staff continued their questioning now that he was calm, dancing around anything that could trigger another panic attack. It didn’t matter anyway, he was able to now answer anything as if it didn’t actually happen to him. It was like he was drifting away from his brain, watching himself speak from an outsider's perspective.

And, of course, they told him they were keeping him overnight for observation. And tomorrow.

—

Luz and Eda came to visit him in the morning while Camila was at work. Luz practically tried to tackle him in the hospital bed, and Eda barked out a laugh and held her back from crushing him to death.

Hunter didn’t have the energy to talk, but he gladly listened to Luz chatter along with him. She dragged a chair up to his bedside, plopping into it and then scooting it even closer.

“Yknow,” She began, lowering her voice to a whisper, “The police wanted to question you when you woke up? Guess what,” She grinned widely, and he raised an eyebrow at her. “Mom and Eda screamed at them until they laid off!” She burst into laughter.

Eda gave a weak smile, pulling up a chair to join the two of them. Now that he was finally laying his eyes on her, he realized how roughed up she looked. It was fairly obvious she hadn’t gotten any rest, but on top of that she generally just… looked like she’d been in a fight. “Not my fault the GFPD is a bunch of lazy bastards that don’t know how to do their jobs.” She stated.

“Yep!” Luz grinned and reached out for a high five, which Eda quickly reciprocated.

Hunter wanted to ask what was wrong with Eda but he found that the words didn’t want to leave his throat. He let out a whine instead, not knowing how else to verbalize what he was thinking.

Eda seemed to catch on anyways.

“Yeah kid, I know I look rough.” She sighed, and he noticed Luz staring at her with a strange intensity- like she was anticipating what the woman was about to say. “I wasn’t exaggerating about the cops,” She began, running a hand through her hair, “I don’t know how to- ugh-“ She cut herself off, frowning.

Clearly, Hunter wasn’t the only one struggling to verbalize their thoughts.

Luz gave Eda a small nudge and a smile, and that seemed to be exactly what the woman needed to continue.

“We- Raine and I, we found you before the cops did.” She explained, “Got there just in time, too. If we’d been a bit later, then-“ Her voice cracked, and she shook her head, as if trying to dispel the thought, “…Anyways, your uncle put up a pretty good fight. Raine got a lot more roughed up than I did, they just got discharged from the hospital last night.” She smiled, though it was forced and wobbly,

“I’m just so glad that you’re okay.”

He knew that he wasn’t supposed to move much but he pushed himself up and attempted to drag Eda and Luz into a hug anyways. 

Luz let out a squeal and squeezed him tightly- a bit too tight, really, his back was still slashed up- but he didn’t mind. Eda let out a quiet, “Aw, kid,” and before he knew it, he was trapped in a group hug between the three of them. He wasn’t sure he wanted to let go.

He felt comfortable like this.

—

Camila took good care of him during his brief hospital stay. She got off of work early- far too early, she must have only been there for two or three hours at most- just so she could be there with him.

So she could take care of him.

She cared about him .

Camila had never hurt him like Philip had, she’d never threatened to punish or hit him, she’d shown him nothing but kindness for the entire time that she’d been in his life.

He had struggled to understand why for quite some time- but it made sense to him now. That’s just how she is , Camila is just naturally kind, loving, gentle, and protective. She would never hurt him, because it wasn’t in her nature.

It made him feel horrible that he had ever distrusted her in the first place. He’d treated her with suspicion and fear for months , he never treated her like a real human until very recently. And she let him. She hadn’t even been bothered by it- because she, once again, cared about him.

He looked over at Camila as she sat at his bedside, her hand wrapped around his. She was on her phone and for that he was glad. She couldn’t see him staring at her.

Good. She didn’t need to know how guilty he felt.

He was going to have to make it up to her.

—

Being discharged from the hospital was an easy process and before he knew it he was sitting in the back of Camila’s car, Luz by his side.

He stared out the window and watched as cars and road signs passed by. Camila was taking the long way home, to avoid driving by the cathedral. 

He put his thumb in his mouth.

The world felt different, more different than before. He felt like he’d seen too much, that he was dirty from what he’d been through just a few days ago. It hurt to rest his back on any surface, and he hated that the pain was a constant reminder of Phillip.

His family had been rather cryptic around the topic of Phillip in general. He’d been trying to place the pieces together from what had happened when he was unconscious.

Raine and Eda found him before the cops, there was a fight- knowing Phillip, he likely wasn’t doing much of the fighting, the man was far too good with his words- and then the police finally arrived. Something happened to Raine in that period of time, something bad. Nobody would tell him what.

Oh, and everybody has been speaking of Phillip in the past tense .

There are only so many things he can infer from that.

Philip was, most likely, dead.

He hopes that the man is rotting in hell.

The drive back home was quiet- a bit too quiet. Luz was near-silent, something he wasn’t used to.

Maybe, she'd also seen too much. He wouldn’t doubt it.

Phillip tended to have that effect on people. To turn them silent, to break them down- get in their heads. If he was dead, then he was still doing it beyond the grave. Because of course, he was. He never knew when to quit.

They pulled into the driveway, and Hunter didn’t make any movement towards getting out of the car. This was his home, but he felt fundamentally changed after everything. The house looked smaller now. 

Camila opened the door for him, so he finally climbed out of the car. “Come on hijo , I’ve got something for you inside, okay?”

At that statement, his mind immediately began to cycle through all of the possibilities of what that meant. “Okay,” He nodded but began to freak out internally. What happened with Phillip was probably the final straw. She was going to give him to somebody else to foster, or- or something else?

No matter what, it couldn’t possibly be good.

When he walked inside, they led him to the living room- and when the light was switched on he felt his soul leave his body.

“Welcome home, Hunter!” Was shouted in unison as a gaggle of everybody he had become friends with over the past few months jumped out from behind the couch, the room fit with a welcome home poster hung from the ceiling and streamers being strewn about.

Scratch that, this was good.

He laughed heartily, and before he knew it, he was trapped in a group hug. Willow practically tackled him at first, then it was Luz, then Camila, and then Vee- and soon it was everyone holding onto him like they couldn’t possibly stand to ever let him go again. King, Eda, Gus, Raine, even Amity- they all were there.

The excessive squeezing was kind of hurting the wounds and bruises he’d acquired, though.

He squirmed a bit in the hug, and his friends and family took that as a sign to let go. 

Hunter practically beamed- he didn’t think he was even capable of that, after what had just so recently happened to him. And yet…

“Thank you, thank you guys, so much- I-“ He stammered, tears building up in his eyes.

What was this? This- this was love, wasn’t it? He loved these people. And maybe they loved him too. 

Luz took him by the hand and led him to the kitchen, the others following and chattering behind. Set on the table was a meal, filled with homemade sweets, his favorite snacks, and plenty of food for everyone to enjoy.

He squeezed Luz’s hand and she squeezed it back.

“Help yourself, kiddos!” Eda announced, stepping back and letting all of the kids rush forward to get what they wanted from the table. Hunter was willing to bet this surprise party was mostly planned by her.

There weren’t words that could express how he felt right now. The idea that all of these new people in his life cared so much about him to do this… The past few days had felt like they’d aged him by years, but at this moment, he actually felt like himself again.

He didn’t have anything to worry about, he was home.

He was content.

Hunter grabbed some food and then sat back, watching as everybody talked, laughed, ate, and enjoyed being themselves. Enjoyed being human, and enjoyed being happy .

He was glad to watch, he was tired- physically and mentally. His friends and family sat down with him at the table, included him in conversation, and treated him in a way he never thought he’d experience again. Kindness.

You know what? Maybe he enjoyed this too.

He felt… he felt happy . He was happy. For the first time in his life, he understood what that meant. 

He understood what a true family was, what a true friendship was- he understood it now.

Hunter smiled, tearfully, interrupting the casual conversations that filled the room.

“Thank you.”

—

A practical lifetime of police questioning took up the next few days, something which none of them appreciated having to do, especially Hunter.

The good news is that… Phillip is indeed dead. Shot five times by a police officer. 

The bad news was that he wasn’t entirely sure that was good news.

Everybody told him it was. That he was safe now, that Phillip could never hurt him again. And yet… Why does it feel like he’s still there? It was like his uncle was still planted in his head, in his memory- sometimes he started thinking that he was actually back at his old home, or in the church, or-

Yeah. It was a lot to handle.

The worst of all is that he somehow still felt guilt over the entire thing. It was like his world had been completely shattered even more than it had the day Phillip had first been arrested. He wasn’t sure that he could believe in God after everything that had happened- if his uncle, a priest, had tried to…

Surely, there was no God.

And that realization completely rattled him to the bone.

The difference between now and the first time his world had shattered, is that he actually had people willing to help him through this- and he himself was willing to accept that help.

So, currently, Camila was trying to find him a therapist. Immediately, he had scowled at the very idea of it- but of course, his opinion had been forced under the influence of Phillip, who, quite obviously, did not teach him the correct version of anything.

Vee explained it to him as “brainwashing” one night, after he had told her something that was apparently incredibly untrue and incorrect.

“It’s just, well- Hunter,” Vee voiced, “This is… the worst part, really. About leaving. Your uncle, he didn’t tell you the truth about anything. You have to get that.”

Hunter had the urge to scream and cry and throw things at that statement, but obviously, he did not. He wished he could, though. “So… the brainwashing- you, you went through it too?”

Vee nodded, silently.

“I’m sorry.” He said.

“It’s not your fault. Besides, we can help each other!” She smiled, changing the tone of the conversation, “What do you say?” She held her hand out for a handshake and he graciously took it.

So, yeah- that was the night he learned that there was a lot more that he had to learn, besides general education (which, by the way, he was apparently going to start school next month!).

In general, despite the hiccups, he was doing… better. For the first time. And Camila told him he’d feel even better when he starts therapy- that they’ll try to help him stop getting confused with where he is and that they can help him feel less sad and scared all of the time.

He held such an appreciation for not just the Nocedas, but their friends too. The feeling was… new, something he’d only really felt in the past with Flapjack. It was all-encompassing and it made him feel warm inside. It almost made him feel like all of his worries could go away if he just held it in his heart for long enough.

Love.

It was love .

So, maybe Hunter didn’t know much of anything. And maybe he knew too much. Maybe there wasn’t even a real balance between the two.

What he did know was that despite it all, despite the pain- the brainwashing, the conditioning, the trauma- he now had people that cared about him. That loved him. And he loved them too.

And maybe, just maybe, things wouldn’t be so bad. Even if it continued to hurt.

Maybe, he was finally free.

He was finally himself .

He knew that now.

Even if he wasn’t who he was supposed to be, maybe…

Maybe he likes who he is now.