Chapter Text
The day had wound down. The Owl House’s bare necessities had been restored and most of the family had gone off to bed.
The Collector had offered to fix things right away, but Eda had put her foot down and sent them to bed with King. The two gods were now slumbering in her nest with an equally exhausted Raine.
Lilith was on the couch, cuddled up with Hooty like the house demon was a body pillow.
Their parents were resting in an upper room on a bed that had been scavenged while retrieving the other furniture.
Luz and Amity were in the former’s room, cuddling adorably as they enjoyed the first relaxing sleep in months.
The only awake souls in the house were Eda and Camila, sharing a cup of tea now that they were alone for the first time…in a long time.
“So…veterinarian, huh? You were always good with animals.” Eda nervously reached, tilting her cup slowly as if it was something harder.
“Especially birds, as you recall Eda,” Camila replied before smirking, “or do you still prefer that I call you Marilyn?”
The witch sighed, staring down at her tea. “Does Luz know?”
“Know what? It’s been almost sixteen years.” The human sounded tired, as if she wanted to get this over with as quickly as possible.
“You know what! Does Luz know that you and I met years ago, been friends, dated-“
“Got me pregnant.” The Latina interrupted the whispered rant, taking a sip of her own tea as the other woman froze with wide eyes.
“W-what?” Her voice wavered. Eda turned slowly to look at the woman beside her. “What did you just say?”
“Haven’t you noticed how she’s built like you and has little specks of gold in her eyes? She even has your tendencies for good natured chaos.” Camila explained as she turned to meet Eda’s eyes. “Her heart even has a little extra chamber.”
“Hold on. You’re saying Luz is my kid and has a bilesac?” The witch’s face turned into a scowl. “I love her like she was my own, but you don’t need to go making up lies just because….”
“Because what?” The huma placed her cup down and crossed her arms.
“I-“ Eda growled and sat her own cup down to grab at her hair. “I don’t know! She can’t be mine! The curse made that impossible and she can’t use magic!”
“I’ve seen her use Oracle magic. She’s done it since she was a child.” Camila explained. “You said it yourself that one needs to have a bilesac otherwise nothing happens.”
“But she can’t have one. She can’t even draw a spell circle.” The witch explained.
“As I said, it’s small. Much smaller than those pictures that you showed me.” The human retorted. “It’s probably too small for her to use any magic on her own, but she can do things with Stringbean.”
Eda growled in frustration again. It made sense, at least a bit. Luz was a natural, like any Clawthorne, but she also had a tendency to be as stubborn as one. Still…it just couldn’t be true. “What about Manny?”
Camila sighed and placed her elbows on the table to rest her chin in her palms. “I loved him. He was an amazing husband and father whom I’m forever grateful was there for Luz, but didn’t make love until she was two.”
The pair sat in silence for several minutes, both now staring down at the table and their long gone cold tea.
“Do we need to tell her?” Eda’s voice came out hoarse.
“She has a right to know. Why are you worried?” Camila’s voice was gentle. “You were mother and daughter before finding out. This doesn’t change that.” She wrapped an arm over the other woman’s shoulder and gently pulled her closer.
The witch pulled away, glaring. “Of course this changes things! Turns out I’m a deadbeat mom and our kid is a hybrid that couldn’t get something that she deserves because of some genetic mistake! The daughter of the most powerful witch on the Boiling Isles can’t do anything more than be a glorified fortune cookie! She deserves better! She…” the metaphorical wind died in her sails. “She deserves better than me.”
“Bruja estúpida. You have been a wonderful mother to her and there’s no doubt in my mind that you will continue to be one.” Camila pulled her back and wrapped her into a hug. “Luz is going to understand and while it won’t be immediate, this will all work out. She has her mother’s heart after all.”
“When do we tell her?”
“When you’re ready, Mi vieja amor.”
The two held each other in silence, completely unaware of the person just outside the doorway, clutching her mouth as she tried to remain silent with tears running down her cheeks.
Luz didn’t need to be told anything.