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It all started with the laptop that was now Luz's.
It used to belong to Camila, but as time passed, Luz's ownership over it grew more and more until it belonged to her — which Camila didn't mind. She thought the stickers that Luz put on it were cute and she took a small interest in the games the girl downloaded, sometimes watching her play while said child rambled about their stories.
It was nice to listen to.
Luz was eleven, before a majority of the stickers had met the laptops surface.
Camila had been using it to keep up with work before she became manager of the vet clinic she worked at. In her free time, or whenever she was bored, Camila liked to pull up google and search up things about animals — mainly elephants — and watch videos about them.
Luz was at school and it was a day Camila was bored. So, she decided to continue her little animal adventures on google.
She clicked on the search bar and...stilled.
As you know, Google shows a history of what's been searched. The most recent search, a short question, caught Camila off gaurd.
What does gay mean?
Camila obviously wasn't angry, nor was she upset.
She was happy Luz was learning.
But that happiness carried an undertone of confusion and worry.
Camila planned on teaching Luz about the community when she was a bit older, so she assumed Luz heard the term at school.
And that's what worried Camila. What kind of situation was her daughter in to hear the term?
'Was it a bad situation? Was she being picked on? Was she stopping a bully from picking on another girl and the bully used the term as an insult?'
Those questions, and many more, swirled in Camila's head as she thought this through. Ultimately, she decided to close the laptop and leave the subject be. She reasoned that Luz would come to her eventually, and Camila didn't want to make Luz feel like she was in trouble by bringing it up out of the blue.
So, time passed.
Everytime Camila opened the laptop, which was less and less as the months passed, she'd find a question or a few questions about the LGBT community. This included a couple "Am I gay?" questions that made her chuckle fondly.
Then, the questions changed after Luz's twelfth birthday.
Why do I think blonde girls are cute?
Camila's heart soared at the thought of her baby having a crush.
Why do I think boys are cute if girls are cute too?
And finally:
What does bisexual mean?
And:
Could I be bisexual?
After that, no more questions about the community were asked and the laptop became Luz's shortly after.
Camila felt so proud that Luz figured herself out. Atleast, that's what she assumed as she switched over to a phone while situating in her new manager position.
So, to subtly celebrate — and to reassure Luz that she'd be accepting — she bought a bi-flag magnet and stuck it on the fridge one night before going to bed.
Then she waited.
—
The next morning Camila was sitting at the table drinking a cup of coffee when she heard the telltale signs of her daughter being awake. A door slamming, feet stomping on the stairs, and Luz running into the kitchen while bubbling with energy.
It was Saturday, so of course Luz was excited.
Luz placed a kiss to Camila's temple. "¡Buenas días Mamá!" She chirped, getting a kiss to her own temple and a good morning in return.
While Camila began breakfest, Luz skipped over to the cabinets to grab a cup.
Camila watched with baited breath as Luz approached the fridge and...opened the door.
Two things could've happened, Camila realized as she turned back to her task:
Luz either didn't notice it
Or
She did and is wondering what to make of it
And as much as Camila wanted to believe it was the latter, she knew how oblivious Luz could be at times...even if it's right infront of her.
So, when Luz ran back upstairs to play video games after breakfest had ended, Camila finally let out a sigh and faced the magnet.
'Oh Luz...'
Days went by.
Those days turned into weeks and those weeks turned into months and then years.
Two years to be exact.
Camila had been waiting for two years, so by now she knew Luz was just oblivious.
'She's just like Manny...' She thought with a fond smile. But that fondness turned into heartache.
When Pride Month began, Luz got jittery and anxious around her. The girl would sneak glances that she thought were subtle but definitely weren't at Camila, trying to gauge her reaction whenever the two were met with anything Pride related.
Those, almost fearful, looks tempted Camila to go to the store and buy every rainbow thing on the shelves just to show her mija that it was okay.
That she wouldn't be angry.
That she'd never disown her daughter for who she is.
That she'd never hate her, even if she did something downright horrible like murder or kicking puppies and kittens for a living.
Then, before Camila knew it, Luz had returned from Reality Check Summer Camp and it was like she was a completely different person.
It broke Camila's heart and she ended up crying herself to sleep that night, regretting her decisions.
She regretted listening to the Principal and that Guidance Counselor. She regretted not standing up for her daughter, instead allowing their words and biases get to her. She regretted sending Luz to that camp. If she knew that this would be the outcome, she would've tried something different.
—
The next morning rolled around and Camila was downstairs drinking coffee, debating on what to make for breakfest, when Luz entered the kitchen.
Quietly.
She waved to Camila with a kind greeting that cracked Camila's heart in two, missing the bubbily and loud energy her daughter used to have. She returned the greeting with a loving smile and a greeting of her own.
Luz opened a cabinet and got a glass, setting it down on the counter, and then turned to the fridge.
Camila watched as Luz approached the fridge and...felt a small spark as she simply opened it without a second thought.
It made Camila smile, relieved the teen still had her painfully oblivious nature.
"¿Como estás, Mamá?"
Camila blinked as the question registered, realizing Luz was now at the counter with a glass of orange juice and a worried expression on her face.
She gave the teen a reassuring smile, taking a sip of her coffee before responding.
"Si, estoy bien. I just didn't sleep well last night," she lied-ish. Is it really lying if you're telling another truth? "Te quiero."
"Te quiero," Luz parroted, returning the carton of orange juice to the fridge.
"Hey Cami- I-I mean, mom, I've been meaning to ask you something," Vee spoke nervously, doing everything in her power to avoid Camila's gaze.
It had been two weeks since Luz's visit and the reveal that Camila hadn't been living with her daughter her human daughter.
After all the terror and the sorrow of the night and majority of the next day had subsided, Camila was filled to the brim with utter relief that Luz hadn't changed.
Matured? Yes.
Became a quiet and obedient rule follower? Nope, definitely not.
Camila smiled reassuringly at Vee, a habit she picked up on to let the basilisk know she's safe. Luz always wanted a sibling afterall.
"You can ask me anything, mija."
Vee took a deep breath to calm her nerves, the reassurance helping aswell. "Well, I uh...Masha's been teaching me about this human realm thing called the LBG- LGBTQ community," she began, wringing her hands together. "A-and I realized that the first, uh, full day I spent in this house I- I noticed something on the fridge..." she trailed off, anxiety clear on her face.
Camila's heart clenched, but she remained quiet, allowing Vee to work up the courage to continue.
"So, I looked again and, uh...why do you have that bi-flag magnet?" Vee finally squeaked out, recoiling in fear that the question came off as offensive.
But Camila only chuckled quietly, confusing the basilisk.
Vee opened her eyes and looked at Camila, who was staring at the fridge with a fond look on her face. "Luz is bi, but she doesn't know that I know," the mother explained, sighing before meeting Vee's gaze. "I've been waiting for two years for that girl to notice it."
"Two years?" Vee questioned almost incredulously, looking completely baffled. "And she hasn't noticed it?? It's on the fridge though!"
Camila couldn't help but break into a giggle fit because of Vee's utter bewilderment. "Well, that's Luz for you. A heart of gold who can be as oblivious as a rock."
Camila was exhausted.
She had been preparing dinner on a particularly rainy evening when the doorbell rang. At first, she thought it was a crazy person like Jacob — or the sick man himself — but nothing could've prepared her for the metaphorical baseball bat that slammed into her stomach when she opened the door.
Standing before her were four witches and her daughter. All of them were drenched from the rain, banged up and bruised, and exhausted looking.
But all of Camila's attention was on Luz and the, still bleeding, gash that sliced through her left eyebrow.
The next thing she knew, she and Luz were crying into eachothers arms, then Camila forced her emotions back in to usher everyone inside.
'Relieved Mama' mode switched to 'Protective Mama' mode and Camila was rushing upstairs to grab towels and the first-aid kit while everyone waited in the livingroom.
Vee was now standing in the doorway that connected the livingroom to the kitchen, curious of all the commotion. She paled at the witches, who she assumed had a similar reaction, until her eyes landed on a very familiar face.
"Luz!" Vee exclaimed, startling the human out of her thoughts(which totally weren't spiraling).
A wave of excitement washed over the two as they darted towards eachother and hugged. Even Vee's tail tried to curl into it, the end of it thumping on the ground with joy as three of the four witches smiled and found the scene cute.
The fourth one, the blonde, continued to eye Vee warily, a mix of shock and apprehension on his face.
"How are you back? I thought the portal-" Vee froze when she pulled away, honing in on the trail of blood that came from the gash on Luz's eyebrow. "You're hurt! Is mom getting the first-aid kit?"
"Mom?"
Vee stilled, dread lacing over her current emotions. "I-I mean, I didn't mean-"
Luz pulled Vee back into the hug, cutting her off. "It's okay, you can call her that. You don't need my permission or anything." The human's smile grew wobbily. "I just- thank you, for being there for her when I couldn't."
If Camila wasn't so focused on patching up four witches and Luz and getting them dried off, she'd be bawling her eyes out while wrapping her two daughters up in a bear hug.
Trust her, it was hard not to do that right now.
Then the rest of the night played out like clockwork.
—
No one slept well that night, especially after Luz and her friends recounted the nightmare that was The Day of Unity. It left Camila reeling as she processed everything she was being told, her nerves fraying more and more as the story progessed.
Vee looked absolutely horrified when the Draining Spell was explained. Bile rose to her mouth and she bolted for the bathroom to vomit, being followed by Camila, who comforted her in any way she could.
Vee was reeling, doing mental gymnastics to not have a panic attack as memories of being observed, tortured, and experimented on flooded her mind.
"That's why we were brought back!" Vee had whimpered, choking on a sob.
Because of this revelation, Vee decided to skip breakfest and distance herself from the others, her small bit of confidence around the witches plummeting through the floor. She put on her Luz disguise that morning and informed Camila she was going on a walk.
Camila had responded with a, "please be careful," and an, "I'll save you a plate when you return."
No one blamed Vee for wanting space, especially after her near panic attack about the Draining Spell. So, they decided to focus on breakfest.
Gus, like the night before, insisted on being the test subject for the food and he absolutely adored it. He savored the flavour and decided to ignore the pointed looks of worried anticipation from everyone. When nothing happened, no vomiting or indigestion, everyone relaxed and began eating.
It was quiet at first until Gus began asking Camila questions about human realm food, becoming the driving force behind the conversations. And for the first time since...more than a week, no one looked like they were on edge.
Camila even took notice to the small touches, looks, and whispers Luz and Amity gave eachother and the way they were trying to hide the fact they were holding hands and...oh.
Oh.
Luz has a girlfriend.
Camila didn't want to assume, but when she picked up on the signs it became glaringly obvious.
Camila wanted to squeal and do the motherly duty of teasing and embarrassing her child into oblivion, but she honed her attention back into Gus's questions instead. She reminded herself that she'd let Luz come out on her own, and in this case her partner was included in that secret promise.
So, as agonizing as it was, Camila took a card from Luz's deck and pretended to be oblivious.
Hunter finished his meal first, but Luz and Amity were the first to leave the kitchen. Their fading footsteps and the creaks from the stairs indicated that the two were returning to Luz's(and Vee's) room.
Camila waited a couple seconds, making sure the two lovebirds were out of earshot, before setting her mug down on the table. "So, I'm guessing they're more than just friends?"
Willow snorted, thankful she had swallowed her drink of orange juice beforehand. "Congrats. You figured it out faster than I could."
Camila giggled alittle. "Mother's intuition," she simply responded before a grin plastered itself to her face. How could she not grin? Her daughter has a girlfriend! "How long have they been together?"
"A little over a month now," Gus answered, a hand on his chin as he stared up at nothing.
"Amity was the first to figure out her feelings," Willow explained, then sighed. "She figured it out way before Luz did..."
Camila chuckled with her mouth closed. "Ay, Luz has always been the oblivious type, weither she realizes that or not. I'm still waiting for her to notice the Bi-flag magnet on the fridge." She turned in her seat and pointed at said magnet with a fond look in her eyes. "It's been two years since I've put that thing on there."
Camila turned back to Willow and Gus and took notice to their looks of confusion.
"Is everything okay?"
Willow and Gus exchanged looks before returning their gazes to Camila.
"What's a 'Bye-flag'?" Willow asked while pushing her glasses up. Meanwhile, Gus had a mix of intrigue, confusion, and excitement on his face.
Camila raised an eyebrow. "Does the LGBT community not exist in the Demon Realm?" She asked before adding, "or do the labels not exist?"
"Labels? Community??" Gus's volume grew with his excitement and his hands began rapidly tapping on the table. "Tell me everything!" He exclaimed while Hunter quietly sat next to him, finally finished with cleaning the plates of those who had finished eating.
"Well, I don't know much about it but..." Camila began her explanation. Her knowledge of the community was limited, like she said, but she was atleast able to explain what each of the letters meant in the acronym. She also decided to spare them from 'homophobia' and what that entailed, instead landing the conversation back on Luz.
"...but please don't tell her I already know she's bi," she requested, placing a hand on her chest. "I don't want to out her before she's ready."
The others nodded their agreement to keep the secret, not exactly understanding what that last part meant, but ultimately deciding not to question it.
Days went by and Camila wanted to laugh at how unsubtle Luz and Amity were being about their relationship. She felt like she was a reused background character in one of those romance movies where the two main characters keep dancing around eachother until they kiss at the end.
But, like those reused background characters, Camila refrained from calling them out. It was so hard not to blurt out that she already knew and that they really needed acting classes.
But the wait was worth it.
Camila watched with a growing smile and a swelling heart as the powerpoint played on Luz's laptop. By the end, Luz had a goofy grin on her face while a 'so what'd you think?' was silently asked with her eyes.
Camila squealed as she jumped up and pulled Luz and Amity into a hug while Gus created a rainbow display of illusion magic above them, creating illusions of himself that ecstatically waved Bi-flags in the air.
Finally, after two years...
And the day only got better after Camila sat back down.
"There's something I need to confess too, Mija."
By now, the others had joined them in the kitchen. Gus was bouncing on the balls of his feet, still shaking his bi-flags close to his face. Hunter was leaning against the fridge, his arms crossed and an easy smile on his face. Willow and Vee were sitting at the table while Luz and Amity remained standing, the laptop forgotten on the table.
"Mom, are you..."
"I already knew you were Bi."
Everyone and everything froze and Luz's jaw dropped as the confession sank in.
Amity had an anxious look on her face as her eyes flickered to Luz, clearly unprepared for this situation.
Unbeknownst to the girlfriends, this is what their friends, especially Camila, had been anticipating.
"Wha- whe- how??" Luz sputtered, finally settling on that one worded question.
Camila couldn't help but crack up at how flabbergasted her daughter looked. "Ay, cariño. I've known since the first question you asked on google. You have to remember that the laptop used to belong to me."
Luz's face scrunched up in confusion as she tried to remember those distant memories. Then, her eyes suddenly widened as realization hit her like when Belos slammed her petrifying body into a table and her cheeks flushed in a cherry red blush.
"I- well- I-I was eleven!" She tried to defend herself; however, her case fell flat because of her own flustered state and her mother's laughter becoming more audible.
Recognizing that she wasn't going to win this, she cleared her throat and instead changed the subject. "Why didn't you tell me you knew?"
Camila reeled her emotions back in so she could give Luz a genuine, heartfelt smile. She placed a hand on her chest and channeled all her love and care into her voice. "I didn't want to out you before you were ready. I wanted you to feel safe enough to come out on your own."
Luz wanted to melt, her smile widening more and more on her face.
But, I did try to help out a littke by getting the Bi-flag magnet on the fridge-"
"The WHAT!?" Luz yelled before whipping around, cutting off Camila.
Hunter quickly jumped away from the fridge to avoid the torpedo that was Luz. Everyone watched as she planted her hands on the side of the fridge and searched for the magnet. She was absolutely focused and...sure enough...
Luz turned back to her mother, who had dissolved into a fit of giggles and snorts, and jabbed her finger at the magnet. "How long has that been there?" She asked in a whisper, already in utter shock and disbelief that it was there in the first place.
"T- two years," Camila managed to get out between her laughter and breaths.
Unfortunately, that answer only seemed to make things worse.
"TWO YEARS!?" Luz practicalky shrieked before smacking her forehead with both hands and dragging them down her face in exasperation. "AGH! LUZ YOU FOOL!"
Camila rose to her feet and leisurely approached her daughter with outstretched arms, trying to contain her laughter. "Awww, mí Luz pequeña has finally noticed the magnet after so long!" She teased.
Luz dodged the embrace with an embarrassed pout in her face. "Don't touch me!" She demanded, her voice centered between a squeak and a grumble.
She crossed her arms and tried to ignore the snickers and laughter from the others and the shit-eating smirk Hunter was giving her.
"Y'know, Mom's right, you really are that oblivious!"
"Vee, I swear-"
Camila pulled Luz into a hug before she could continue — the teen's shoulder against her chest — and began shushing her. "It's okay to be oblivious sometimes, Mija..."
"Ugghhhh," Luz groaned as she shifted positions and melted into the hug, hiding her burning face on her mother's shoulder.
Camila chuckled, then sighed, closing her eyes. "I'm so proud of you, Luz." She paused, a sorrowful smile replacing her relaxed one. "And I'm sure that if Manny were here, he'd be over the moon to learn this side of you."
Luz felt tears build up as she tightened her grip, only able to get out a sniffle and a muffled 'mhm'.
The tender moment lasted another couple of minutes before Camila grinned mischievously. "Now. I was a teenager once, so you and Amity will have to follow a couple rules regarding your relationship. For starters, your bedroom door remains open if you both are gonna be alone in there. I don't want either of you getting frisky with eachother until you're of-age."
"MooOOOM!!!!"