A.n this gonna be vee's side of the story and this gonna only one chapter-story.

Lake didn't like going to school.

told what to do, so an entire of following rules and listening to figures of authority wasn't her idea of a good time. But, she got to walk to and from school with Jesse on most days, and hang out with him and their friends between classes. That almost made it worth it. But, most importantly, Jesse's parents had worked really hard to make sure she could go to school, she did it mostly for them. At first, it was pretty rough.

The small Connecticut town students hadn't seen someone like her. She was different from the others, not only with her chrome skin, but with her buzzcut and affinity for black.

Thankfully she was more than capable of taking care of herself. It only took beating up a few bullies to convince the others. Don't mess with Lake. This quickly had made her popular amongst the other outcasts of the school and she made friends.

They made school much more tolerable, sharing their weird interests with Lake. The occult, cryptids, witchcraft, that kind of stuff. The town had a slight reputation for it after all. At the end of the last school year, Lake had been scared for them.

A lot of their parents had heard about a camp that could "normalize" their kids. Some of the parents had noble intentions, only wanting the best for their children. They wanted them to make friends and be able to succeed at school and in life.

But that's definitely not how the kids saw things. Thankfully, the camp hadn't taken away their weirdness.

It had simply drawn the kids who had gone closer together, and Lake was happy to see them bring a new friend to their group. Luz Noceda had always been a loner, even amongst the outcasts. She had never hung out with them before,

even she had also been relentlessly bullied. But at camp, Lake had been told it was like she was a completely different person. After they all returned from camp, Luz became a regular in their friend group and Lake and her became quick friends.

Luz always seemed like she wanted to talk to Lake,

but never asked. Lake assumed it had to do with her past and she appreciated that Luz restrained herself. Lake didn't really like talking about what had happened for her to get here, and most people wouldn't even believe her if she told them.

Today, however, something had changed. Lake couldn't quite identify it yet, but that feeling in her gut told her something important had happened recently. Even after arriving at school with Jesse, she couldn't figure out what had happened. Jesse couldn't feel anything. They parted ways for their classes, Lake still feeling somewhat uneasy.

After school, Lake and Luz were walking home alone. Luz had been acting odd all day and Lake wanted to see if she could talk to her friend about it. At the very least, she didn't want her walking home alone. Suddenly, Luz spoke

Hey Lake? You're...um...a...huh...supernatural person, right?

Lake was left stunned. Most people didn't ask it this bluntly and those who did generally had a malicious intent. But Luz was only curious, maybe even a little...hopeful? Lake didn't know what to make of that question, but decided to answer her friend honestly.

Yeah, you could say that. Why'd you ask?

-Uh, well, you see, um. I'm not...actually Luz. I'm actually a Basilisk pretending to be her.

At this, Luz(?) took off her(?) tuque and glasses, revealing floppy blue and white ears and blue and yellow eyes. Lake gasps, then grabbed their head, closely examining their ears

-Basilisk? Are you from the train? Are some weird replacement person of Luz?

-I'm not Luz! I'm Me, I'm Vee!

At this, Lake let them go. She knew exactly what they were talking about. She had been there.

-Why don't you tell me what happened.

Vee finishes telling Lake about what had happened that weekend. Meeting Luz, being outed to Camilla and Camilla accepting her. The magic she had to consume to maintain their form.

-Camilla accepting me makes me feel better, but I'm still nervous about telling people who I am. What if people don't accept me

Lake answers quickly

That's bullshit. You're you regardless of what anyone else says or thinks. I was told for far too long who I was supposed to be by people who never knew the first thing about them. You can't listen to people like that.

-But it's not that easy. I'm not even supposed to be alive, let alone being around people who accept me for me. Most people will only ever see a failed experiment or just as Luz.

-Then fuck them. Your mom accepts you, your friends will absolutely accept you. Those who truly care about you will stand besides and support you, regardless of who that you turns out to truly be.

-But what if they always see me as some strange version of Luz. A remix of the person they truly cared for, not the different person that I am today.

I...Lake sighs, then pauses for a second

-I also used to be a reflection of someone. Supposed to simply Be that person for the rest of my life, ignore every single part of me screaming that I'm someone different. That I'm someone separate from what all of society and the world expects me to Be.

Lake smiles a little

-Then I met Tulip and Jesse and Alan-Dracula. I met people who cared about me, and wanted me to Be me, loved me for Being me. And if they hadn't been there, I'd simply love myself for Being me. At the end of the day, I'm Me. Not what other people think of me, not what other people tell me to be. Simply, Me.

A comfortable silence comes between the two. Vee truly thinks over what Lake has just told them. Eventually, Vee speaks softly.

-You make it sound so simple and easy.

-Trust me, I'm at the end of a long journey of self discovery that I think you're just at the start of. For what it's worth, I think the person you are is pretty cool, Vee.

Tears start to well up in Vee's eyes

-You're the third person to call me that name...Thank you

Lake is a little uncomftorble, unsure how to deal with a Vee on the verge of happy tears. Suddenly, Vee wraps their arms around Lake. Lake awkwardly returns the hug. After a few moments, Vee breaks the hug, a large smile on their face and tears flowing down their cheeks. They simply sit there, satisfied with their conversation.