A Nightmare Come True
Camilla never felt so afraid in her entire life.
The veterinarian was sitting on her bed, changed out of her wet clothes into dry ones. Her glasses were sitting on her nightstand, cleaned of water splatters. A towel was still hanging around her neck. Forlorn, she stared down at her clasped hands, her mind reflecting on today.
In a span of a couple of hours, Camila's whole world was turned upside down. Things she thought didn't exist before were now real to her. Magic. Demons. Witches. Other realms. There was even a shapeshifting demon living in her house. A demon that pretended to be her daughter for months.
Her daughter.
Camila covered her mouth with a hand, trying to keep from crying again, even as her eyes stung with fresh tears.
Luz was in some place called the Demon Realm this whole time. Her daughter never made it to camp.
Luz lied to her. What hurt and frightened Camila more was that her daughter chose to be there. Basically ran away from home and got herself trapped there in the process of living out some witch fantasy.
"Did you-did you hate living with me that much?"
Was Camila a bad mother? She never meant to push Luz away, or stifle her creativity. She loves Luz very much and just wanted the best for her daughter. She thought camp would be good for Luz, not only to help her separate fantasy from reality and help her to not get in trouble in school anymore, but to give her a chance of a social life. A chance to make friends.
Now those nightmares Camila had before, the ones she thought couldn't be real despite how vivid they were, were real.
Luz, her daughter, her baby, was in a dangerous place with dangerous beings and monsters. With magic, witches, and an emperor in a terrifying mask.
What if Luz doesn't make it back?
Camila stifled a sob, tears streaming down her face as she squeezed her eyes shut. Every crack of thunder outside sounded like it was her heart breaking apart, the platter of raindrops against her window muffled to her ears.
Camila thought back to her last conversation with Luz, just a reflection of light in the rain and the car's headlights. Right in front of her, but a whole other realm away.
Then, all too soon, pulled away from Camila, being lifted by unknown forces. Unable to grab onto her daughter's arms to make her stay longer.
"When you come home, promise you'll stay here? I didn't mean to push you away. I swear, things will be different."
"Mom, it's not you. It never was."
"Promise me, Luz. Please!"
"Okay, Mom. I promise."
Her daughter, her light fading into the darkness as the rain continued to fall until Luz vanished completely.
Camila wasn't sure how long she stood there, crying until her eyes were red and puffy.
The worst part? All Camila could do was wait. Wait for Luz to find a way back and Camila couldn't do anything to aid her daughter. She couldn't do anything to rescue or protect Luz while she was in that dangerous place. Never had she ever felt so helpless.
Just wait.
Possibly forever.
Like a dam bursting, Camila sobbed into her hands, falling back on her bed and curling into herself.
"Regresa a mí," Camila whispered, voice hoarse from crying. "Please."
According to google, regresa a mi means "come back to me". Yesterday's Lie made me cry. Thinking about that scene too long makes me tear up. I never thought of Camila as a bad mother and this episode proves it. Poor woman is trying to keep it together and her fourteen year old is in some other realm, out of reach. She blames herself for Luz choosing to stay there when really Camila is the only reason Luz is trying to get back to the Human Realm. Being in the Boiling Isles was good for Luz and she found friends that accepted her and her quirks. Yet every decision has some form of consequences. I don't think any blame is needed here, except on Belos. If he didn't force Luz to choose to blow up the portal to save both Eda and Camila, Luz would still have a reliable doorway to travel between realms. I know he's not all to blame, but it's easy to focus my anger on him since he is the show's antagonist. And I am honestly scared to see what happens next since learning that Dana doesn't like happy endings. In the words of Hop Pop from Amphibia, and I quote, "I don't feel safe."
Please leave a review and let me know what you think of this one-shot or of that episode. Stay weird, nerds;)