Chapter Text
Puberty was…hard, for the Noceda kids. Not for the normal reasons, either, or not just for them. No, the difficulty came from the complete lack of knowledge the family had about over half its members.
Luz and Lucia were simple, or as simple as human puberty ever is. Hunter, Vee, and King, though…Camila had no idea what to do for them (Manny was…not around to worry).
How do you guide your kids through their changing bodies when you know less about those bodies than they do? When there's no way to learn more?
What do you do when your oldest son's second set of teeth starts falling out, only for a third set to start sprouting in seconds, this one with cat-like canines?
What does it mean when your daughter's scalera begins turning blue? Is that normal, or is it the sign of disease? Is it bad that she's shedding more and more often?
Your youngest's voice is cracking, he's prone to mood swings, and it all seems so normal, but you're still terrified because you have no idea if it is.
Your daughter comes to you at 12 years old, asking you about the odd feeling she gets around her friend Masha. You calmly explain that it sounds like she has a crush, you give her a warm hug, and you tell her that this is all normal, that you love and support her, and for a second, you bask in the knowledge that you're doing this right.
And then she says there's more to it. That sometimes, her feelings go beyond just wanting to hold hands with them, like there's something else she wants, but she can't picture what it is beyond kissing them a lot. She says that when she thinks about them, it makes her want to coil around something in her true form and sink her teeth into it, and that she starts to smell something weird. She says all this in an unusually nervous tone, not quite meeting your eyes as she silently begs for reassurance, for answers.
You don't know what to say.