The Human Realm
Luz couldn't believe it. After so long of trying to find a way back to the Human Realm, she was back home with her mother, just as she promised her that she would. But things were different now. Vee has been living with her mom, and Luz didn't come back alone. Gus, Willow, Amity and Hunter went with her and were now stuck here, just like she was when she went to the Boiling Isles.
She knew that they had to go back. They didn't belong here. All of them were just kids. They had families back home waiting for them, well, except for Hunter. But he should stay somewhere where he is loved and wanted. That poor boy had suffered enough. He needed help. Luz took a deep breath.
"Mom," She spoke. "I need to somehow make a portal back to the Demon Realm." Her mother looked surprised. Her friends all looked at her.
"What?!" She said. "But I just got you back."
"Please, Mom!" She began to choke back tears. "I need to see if Eda, King and the others are okay. Eda was the one that took me in. She and King are like my second family to me. King said I was like his big sister. These guys need to go back to the Boiling Isles. They have families there. They don't belong here." Hunter frowned.
"I don't have any family to return to." He said sadly. "Flapjack and I are now on our own."
"True." Luz agreed. "But you don't have to be. I'm sure someone in the Boiling Isles will take you in. I was a wreck when we came back from Belos's mind. But you, you must of had it way worse. You don't deserve that trauma. No one does. Which is why you deserve to go to a nice, loving home, Hunter. Maybe with Eda and King. Heck, maybe if Mom's cool with it, maybe you could live with me. A big brother might be nice to have around."
"I…I don't know."
"Will you think about it then?" Hunter thought about this. He did want a place to stay. He didn't want him and Flapjack to be homeless and be nomads forever. He sighed.
"I'll think about it." Luz smiled.
"I know you will, Hunter. Whatever you decide, I'm sure it will be safe and you will be happy there." She looked at her mom. "Sorry, I suggested to Hunter that he could live with us, Mom. It's just that he just went though some really bad trauma recently and I was just trying to help and cheer him up."
"That's nice, Luz." Camila said to her daughter. "And honestly, I don't know. I guess. In the meantime, he can stay with us." She looked at her other friends. "You all can. Just until my daughter can help you all find a way to get you guys all back where you all belong." Luz smiled.
"Thanks, Mom."
"Of course, Mija." She then frowned. "I'm just sad because we don't have enough rooms for them all."
"That's okay." Luz told her mom. "I'm sure they wouldn't mind sleeping on the sofa and stuff." She looked at them. "Would you guys?" Her friends all agreed.
"As long as we sleep somewhere," Willow stated. "It should be fine."
"And I think Hunter would agree that it's better than where I found him in the paranoratorium the other day, or as you humans call it here, the auditorium." Gus piped up. He nudged Hunter. "Eh, Hunter?"
"Uh, yeah." Hunter quickly agreed. Luz took Amity's hand in hers.
"Mom." Luz told her. "While I was in the Boiling Isles, Amity became more than just my friend. She's my girlfriend, my sweet potato."
"Girlfriend?" Camila wanted to know.
"Yeah, Mom, girlfriend. Please, don't be mad."
"Why would I be mad? I'm just happy and relieved that you have made so many friends over there."
"Oh, well, that's great then. Awesome in fact." Luz felt a little dumb for ever suggesting that her mom might be mad. Still in this day and age, you couldn't be too sure. It was better to be safe than sorry.
"And I know the time has passed, but do you want to go to the cemetery where your dad is buried and buy flowers for each other? I can get a personal day off tomorrow to spend some quality time with you."
"Amity and I just tied some flowers to a balloon to honor him in the Demon Realm, but sure. We can do that."
"I know it's not my place to ask," Amity began. "But can I go? Even though he's gone, I kind of want to learn a bit more on Luz's dad." Camila seemed to think about this.
"Uh, sure." She said to her.
"And the rest of us can explore the Human Realm while you guys are doing that." Gus stated. "My studies on the Human Realm will surely come in handy." Luz then realized something and shook her head.
"Sorry, Mom, but I can't. I already told you, I have to build a portal back. It's not for me. It's for my friends and just to know if the others are ok."
"How are you going to do that, Luz?" Willow asked her.
"We made it here, right?" Luz said to her. "I just need to do the same, only this time, for the Demon Realm."
"But in the meantime, we can have some fun here, right?" Gus asked. "I mean, who knows when we'll ever be back here in the Human Realm?"
"But won't you guys miss your families? And we need to see if King, Eda and the others are okay."
"Yeah, we'll miss them all right. But like you said, we can't go back without that portal. In the meantime, let's have fun and make the most of it while we're here."
"But…" This time, Amity took Luz's hand. Luz looked at her girlfriend.
"Luz, I know that you're worried and you want to help Eda, King, the others, and all of us right away, but what's the harm in having some fun here in the process? Besides, I'm sure Eda, King, and all of the others will be fine and can figure things out for themselves." Luz was still unsure about this.
"I don't know, I…"
"Hang on." Willow spoke. "Can we even get ahold of our parents here?" She looked at Luz. "Luz, were you able to communicate with your mom while you were in the Boiling Isles?"
"Unfortunately without a portal, my texts could not get through." Her friends all looked sad. "Or my video diaries. I'm really sorry." Willow was now determined.
"I'm sure you'll figure out a way, Luz!" She encouraged her. "And we'll all pitch in to help." Luz smiled at her friend.
"Thanks, Willow. I know you will." Amity then noticed something on Hunter's shirt.
"Hey, Hunter, what's that?" She wanted to know.
"What's what?" A confused Hunter asked. He then noticed it. Amity stepped closer to examine it.
"It looks like goo." She then realized something. "Isn't that the goo left over from when the Collector…" Hunter's eyes grew huge in fright.
"Belos…is here?!" He now was hyperventilating as he was now going through another panic attack. "Ph-Philip is alive? Oh, Titan! He…he's here, isn't he?! He…he followed us here. He's…he's going to kill me! He's going to kill Flapjack! He…he'll probably kill all of us! Nowhere is safe!" Gus went up to him.
"Hunter, breathe." He assured him. Hunter looked at him as he put up four fingers one by one on his hand. The Grimwalker breathed in and exhaled out as Gus put them down one by one. Hunter was calm once again.
"Goodness!" Camila observed. "I don't know who this Belos person is, but he must be really bad seeing this poor kid having a mental breakdown like this."
"Very bad, Mama." Luz told her. Camila looked at Hunter.
"Can I get you some water?"
"No." Hunter replied to her. "I'll be fine, really. Thanks for the offer."
"I'm sorry I caused you to have a panic attack." Amity apologized to Hunter. "I didn't mean to frighten you."
"It's not your fault, Amity." Luz said "It's Belos. Hunter trusted him and he lied to him and everyone else. It deeply affected him and he's scared for his life right now." She looked at Hunter, looking determined. "Don't worry, Hunter. I don't know if Belos is here, but I promise you, we will not let him get you. Then hopefully you won't have any more scary panic attacks."
"Thanks." Hunter thanked her. "I appreciate it. After we escaped Belos's mind, that was my first ever panic attack, and I had another one when I was with Gus at Hexside. Each time that I had them, it feels like I'm going to die. That's how scary they are."
"Maybe you need therapy." Camila suggested. "I can call one for you tomorrow if you like." Hunter looked at her and shook his head.
"I don't need whatever therapy is."
"Ok. But it'll probably help. In the meantime, we'll all pitch in to help with anything you need."
"Thanks."
"You might have started out as the bad guy, Hunter," Luz began, changing the subject. "but I'm glad you're on our side now."
"Yeah. Me too." Hunter agreed.
"I also don't want Belos to come after me as well." Vee piped up. Luz looked at the basilisk.
"Don't worry, Vee. We won't let him get you either." Vee smiled.
"I know you won't, Luz. I trust you just like I trust your mom."
"Mrs Noceda?" Gus asked her. "Can we release our Pailsmen?" Camila gave him a confused look.
"Pailsmen?" She wanted to know. Gus nodded. "I don't understand."
"We'll show you." He and the others summoned their staffs and one by one, their Pailsmen came to life. Camila gasped as she now saw Ghost. the white cat, Clover, the bee, Flapjack, the red cardinal and Emmiline Bailey Marcostimo, the blue chameleon. Gus, Amity, Willow and Hunter introduced them one by one.
"Goodness!" Camila said again.
"You're used to feeding just me, Mom." Luz said. "But, surprise! Now it's a full house!" She looked at her friends. "And my mom is a veterinarian, so if a Palisman gets sick, she can maybe nurse them back to health." The kids cheered at this.
"This is just temporarily, right?"
"Of course, until I…" She looked at all of her friends. "I mean, until we build a portal back to the Demon Realm."
"The Human Realm isn't that scary once you get used to it little by little, day by day." Vee told them. They all looked at her. "Despite its name, you will learn to love Gravesfield, Connecticut just like I have." Gus smiled.
"I'm sure we will." This made Vee smile.
"Before anyone goes anywhere." Camila began. "I figured we'd all go down to Iflapjack tomorrow morning. I have a coupon for it that expires the day after tomorrow. I hope you all like flapjacks." This made Hunter frightened again, but it didn't cause him to have a panic attack.
"Wait, flapjacks!?" He asked with great concern. "Why would we do that?"
"Pancakes." Gus assured him. "Flapjacks are another word for pancakes here in the Human Realm." This made Hunter even more confused for he didn't know what pancakes were either.
"I'll also show you a banana." Luz told him. "But, seriously? You don't know what bananas and flapjacks are? You need to get out more."
"But he does know what a sandwich is." Gus put in. "So that's good. He isn't completely out of it."
That night, Hunter was having a hard time sleeping. He was having a nightmare that Belos had captured him and he was back with him in the castle. Hunter was shivering in fright.
"Hunter." Belos said to him. "I am very disappointed in you. I am your uncle. I took you in, yet you have betrayed me. I thought you were different then the other Golden Guards. I guess I was wrong. It pains me to do this every time a guard goes against my back, but yet again, I have no choice." He was about to approach him when Flapjack flew into his face, pecking at him. Belos screamed as he tried to swat the bird away.
"Flapjack, no!" Hunter managed to cry out. "Please, you have to get out of here before…" Belos grabbed the bird with one hand. Hunter pounced on him, trying to stop him. "Leave him alone!" Belos threw him to the ground and looked at Hunter's fearful face, said nothing and sucked Flapjack's essence out of him. Once done, the body of the red cardinal fell to the floor. Hunter's eyes widened in terror.
"FLAPJACK!" Hunter ran to him and knelt down by the fallen bird. "Flapjack?" He touched him, but gasped when the bird wasn't breathing. "No." Tears began to steam down his face. "No, no, no, no, no!" He looked at Belos. Tears were still in his eyes. "Why, Uncle? Why are you like this? Why do you kill so many innocent lives? It's evil and it's not right. I want no part of it!"
"Sorry it had to come to this, Hunter." Belos lied. "You're not supposed to have that bird or any Pailsmen in the first place. Rules are there for a reason and anyone saying that they're meant to be broken is simply a moron. Now, where was I? Oh, yes, I was about to end your life for betraying me." Hunter shivered in fright again as Belos approached him. Both of Hunter's hands were shaking too. "Aw, you're afraid of me again, as you should be. You must be suffering greatly over what you saw in my mind. Don't worry. I will put you out of your misery soon enough." Hunter stood up, still shaking in fear.
"No, Uncle. Please, don't! Stop!"
Hunter awoke with a start. He breathed in and out and breathed a sigh of relief when he realized that it was just a bad dream. He saw that Flapjack was sleeping with the other Pailsmen. They were cuddled together on a blanket on the floor. Hunter was laying on the sofa with the other kids who were fast asleep. Gus, however, was wide awake. Hunter saw that he was looking out the window at the nighttime sky. Hunter got up and went towards him.
"Can't sleep, huh?" He asked him. Gus looked at him.
"No." He answered. "All I can think of is my dad and how worried he must be. I'm excited to be in the Human Realm, don't get me wrong, but at the same time, I'm just a frightened little kid." He sighed. "I just hope we can figure out a way to get back."
"We will. Luz is smart like that. Even though I have nothing to return to, you guys do, I want you guys safe and sound where you belong." Gus smiled.
"Thanks, Hunter. You know, you really changed for the better."
"Well, I have you to thank for that. You and a sandwich. I didn't really have any friends at the castle. Flapjack was my first real friend and then you guys." Gus was impressed.
"Wow! I guess a sandwich can be that good!" Hunter chuckled.
"I guess."
"You couldn't sleep either?" Hunter sighed with a frown..
"No. I had a nightmare about Emperor Belos. Ever since Luz and I was in his mindscape, he's been in my head. I can't seem to be free from him."
"That evil dude really messed you up and got you scared for your life." Hunter nodded.
"Yeah. I was so brainwashed that I didn't see his true intentions. I feel so awful about it. Sorry for my previous actions on you guys."
"You didn't know. You can't beat yourself up like this. It's not good for you."
"I suppose. I still feel guilty. I feel like he's going to haunt me forever." Gus grew serious.
"You know, what Luz said is true. If Belos is here, we will not let him get you. We'll also help you with any future panic attacks you might have. You are never alone in this. This is a safe place, I just know it," Hunter smiled.
"And I won't let Belos get you guys either. I promise you guys that." Gus smiled once again.
"You two can't sleep either?" Willow asked. Hunter and Gus looked back at her. Amity was with her.
"Well, it's understandable." Amity stated. "I mean, all of us are now stuck in a foreign place that is far from home. We are without our families and worst of all, we are just teenagers who are far from ready to live on our own in the real world. That has got to be hard on anybody."
"I'm not yet." Gus stated. "But I will be. I'm only 12, so this is even harder on me." Willow frowned.
"I know, Gus." She said. Gus then looked at all of the sleeping Pailsmen.
"How can all of our Pailsmen sleep at a time like this when we can't?"
"Because they're lucky." Willow answered. "They're only Pailsmen. They don't know how good they have it. They don't have to suffer and fear the world in the same way we do."
"Man, I wish I was a Palisman right down."
"We all do, Gus."
"You know it's funny." Hunter started to say. "At first, I didn't want anything to do with Flapjack. Now, I can't imagine life without him." Willow smiled. Hunter blushed as she put a hand on his shoulder
"That's the good thing about having a Palisman. No matter how bad of a day we're having, we can count on them to make our lives better."
"Yeah. You got that right, Captain."
"And even through, I'm not on good terms with my parents," Amity began. "I still care about them and want to heal our relationships with each other, especially with my dad. I feel it was already healing a little bit."
"I miss my dads too." Willow added. She smiled. "But I'm confident that we'll all go back. If we all keep our heads held high and remain optimistic during these dark times, we will all have our happily ever afters." The four friends all agreed as they looked out at the nighttime sky.