Rain in the Human Realm didn't boil. It was so ridiculous that Hunter was almost tempted to laugh. Belos's assertion that rain in the Human Realm didn't boil had seemed extraordinarily suspect to Hunter at the time, and yet, ironically, it was one of the few things he had said that was actually true. Hunter wondered how he would have felt if Belos had been beside him right now, with the cool, refreshing rain beating down upon their heads. Scared? Proud? Happy?

It didn't matter. Belos never would have brought Hunter to the Human Realm with him even if he'd succeeded in his plans. Hunter was disposable to him, a substitute to whoever he'd lost – Caleb, the original owner of Flapjack, maybe? – and as much as he yearned to think otherwise, it was time to face the truth. Belos never loved him, and Hunter was a moron, a total moron for ever thinking otherwise. Heck, Belos had never even said he loved Hunter. He'd just assumed.

It was time for him to put away his stupid childhood. He had responsibilities. As the oldest of the crew stuck in the Human Realm, it was his responsibility to keep them safe, especially his little brother friend Gus. He would not let any harm come to them. He'd kill and die to protect them.

"It's funny," Gus said, sounding somewhat numb, as they approached the house that Luz said belonged to her mother. "All my life, I wanted to visit the Human Realm, and here I am, and now I'd give anything to be back home. Dad…I don't know what'll happen to him."

"We've all got loved ones back home, Gus," Amity said, her voice gentle, but brisk. She cast a guilty look at Hunter. Hunter wasn't sure why. He had people who mattered to him trapped on the Isles too: Darius, Skara, Viney. "And we're going to get back and save them."

"But there's no magic in the Human Realm," Gus lamented. "There's no way to go back!"

Hunter wrapped his arm around Gus's shoulder. "One thing at a time. For now, we need to get shelter, and food, and sleep."

"Since when have you wanted sleep?" Luz asked. Hunter couldn't tell if she was joking or not.

Hunter treated the comment with the dignity it deserved, also known as none, and proceeded to ignore it. "We need to marshal our forces and strengthen ourselves, both physically and mentally. Luz, are you certain your mother will provide us with hospitality?"

"Sure!" Luz said, sounding completely positive. "Oh, Mom's the best. You're all gonna love her." Hunter had no idea what having a real mother was like. Neither did the rest of them, he knew. Mrs. Blight hardly counted, Gus's mother had fallen victim to a painbow when he was three, and Willow didn't have a mother.

After quite a few moments of hesitation, Luz knocked on the door of her home. A middle aged (probably) human woman with a distinct resemblance to Luz answered the door and let out a gasp, then put her hand over her mouth. "Hey, mom," Luz said, her voice cracking with emotion. "I'm back."

Luz's mother took a step backwards. "Oh, Dios mío, what happened to you? Come in, come in, quickly! You're soaking wet, you must be freezing!" She ushered them into the house.

Luz's mother seemed surprisingly kind, but so did Belos, Hunter reminded himself forcefully. He would never be trusting anyone unconditionally ever again. Everyone who he trusted would have to prove their worth before he let them in. His teammates had done that. Flapjack had done that. Luz's mother hadn't done that yet. However, in the time after she let them into the house, she was doing her best to try, bringing them warm clothes from Luz's closet which they changed into, one by one, in the bathroom. The clothes didn't fit Hunter very well, but at least they were dry.

"Ma'am, we formally request the hospitality of your lodgings until such time as we can return to the Demon Realm," Hunter said with a slight bowing of his head when they'd all finished changing. "My name is Hunter. These are my friends Willow Park and Gus Porter, and my associate Amity Blight."

Luz's mother blinked a couple of times. Oh, crap, had Hunter been too informal? Damn it. Adjusting to the customs of the Human Realm was going to be tough. "Well, it's…it's lovely to meet you. I'm Camila Noceda, but you can call me Camila." A very large part of Hunter rebelled against calling Camila by her first name even inside his head, but he was a guest in her home, and as such, she was the one who made the rules. He would follow them, so long as she provided shelter, nourishment and protection.

Before anyone could say anything, a basilisk of all creatures slithered into the living room, looking petrified. "Mom…what's going on?"

"Mom?" Luz said, sounding as if she was trying to decide how to feel about the basilisk using the term. "So…you decided she's your daughter, then?"

"I have decided I have two children," Camila said firmly, "both of whom I love equally and unconditionally." Unconditional love. What a strange concept. Was that a human thing or just another thing Belos had denied him? "Everyone, I don't know if Luz has mentioned Vee yet, but she's a refugee from the Belos regime, where she was experimented on. She now lives here, and if you seek to take her back, we're going to have a problem."

Hunter felt sick to his stomach. He had no clue Belos had been experimenting on basilisks. There had been a basilisk attack on Hexside, but Belos had told him that it was an attack masterminded by wild witches, and Hunter had never questioned it until now. Would he have done something if he had known? It made him hurt to realize that the answer was no, but it could not be denied, either.

"It looks like you've had a very traumatizing experience," Camila said, trying desperately to keep her voice even. It was a very convincing performance too. Hunter would not have realized it if he hadn't had massive experience in controlling his affect. "So I won't pry for the moment, but I really do need to know eventually what's going on."

Hunter steeled himself. It would cost him to recount the events of the Day of Unity, but it was a price that only he would have to pay. The innocent people of the Isles had suffered enough at Hunter's direct and indirect hands because he was too foolish to see through Belos's lies. If he could relieve the pain of any of the inhabitants of the Demon Realm, no matter how small, no matter how much it hurt, he would do it. "The Boiling Isles is now under the control of an insane god called the Collector. We're trapped here with no way to go back to our home. And we all have loved ones who are trapped there. They could be dead. And that could be the best case scenario. Their condition could be much, much worse than that."

Camila looked stunned, horrified, and frightened. "I…oh, dear. I knew it was bad, but I didn't know it was that bad."

"On the bright side," Hunter said, making his voice artificially chirpy, "Belos is dead! Yeah! Good riddance to bad rubbish, right?" He gave a laugh that sounded horribly fake to his ears. "No one's gonna miss him, right?"

Camila narrowed her eyes. "Hunter…you seem to be rather conflicted about Belos's death. I mean, it's not my place to pry, but…maybe it'd help if you talked about it?"

"I…" He didn't want to tell the whole truth. Vee would try to kill him, and then he wouldn't be able to protect Gus anymore if he was dead. And him versus a basilisk…yeah, he was going to put money on the basilisk. "I thought he loved me. Turns out he only loved himself."

"Hey, it's okay," Gus murmured. "It's gonna be okay, Hunter."

Hunter cleared his throat and drew himself up. "Camila, if we could possibly return to my request for hospitality, that would be appreciated. If at all possible, I'd like an answer presently, so I can start brainstorming alternative lodgings if you refuse."

Camila blinked. "Why, of course you can stay here. Did you really think I'd let a couple of teenagers out on the street?"

"I didn't know if you would," Hunter pointed out patiently. "That's why I had to ask."

Camila looked as if she was pitying him. Titan, Hunter was really starting to hate that look. He was getting it all the time. He got it, he really did. He was screwed up and deprived of a normal childhood. He understood that. People didn't have to rub it in his face every two seconds! "Okay," she said. "Is anyone in need of immediate medical attention?" Everyone shook their heads. "Then I'm going to brew you some hot chocolate."

She went into the kitchen and there was a heavy silence that descended upon the room. "Do you think we'll know if they die?" Willow whispered. Hunter was pretty sure the answer was no, but he didn't want to burst the captain's bubble like that.

"Hey, it's going to be okay," Amity assured everyone, no doubt lying through her teeth. "We've all done the impossible. We can do this. Heck, between Eda and my dad, they'll have the Collector defeated by tomorrow, and then we can all go back home!" Hunter had been lied to by the best, and that wasn't anywhere vaguely approaching the best. Yet everyone chose to believe it anyway.

"So, Vee, how have you been adjusting to the Human Realm?" Luz asked after yet another void of suffocating silence ensued.

Vee's eyes lit up (metaphorically) as she rocked back and forth. "It's going amazing! I mean, people here can be kind of nasty. You…you have a bit of a reputation, Luz. But it sure beats the Demon Realm, hands down. It's nice to lead a peaceful life." A huge smile formed on her face. "Oh my gosh, I forgot to tell you, I have a girlfriend now!"

Luz smacked her hand against Vee's. "All right! Way to go, sis! I got one too! Did I tell you that? I can't remember. And we've had our first kiss! I was all suave and cool, and totally didn't say anything dumb, nope!" She chewed on her nails nervously. "Oh! I know what'll take our mind off things! We could watch a movie!"

"What's that?" Hunter asked. He sighed. "This is one of those things I should know, isn't it?"

Luz shook her head. "No, no, it's a human thing! You know what a play is, right?" Hunter nodded. "Well, it's like a play, except it's been recorded and we watch it on a screen." She grabbed a rectangular device with buttons with it and a picture appeared on the box on the other side of the room. Hunter leaned back on his armchair, content to just turn off his brain for a few moments.

The movie was ridiculously confusing, what with all the human terms, some of which Hunter suspected were made up for the movie. But it was really nice to put all his worries away for once as he watched the Avengers fight the evil Loki and his alien army. Hunter's favorite character was definitely Black Widow. What could he say, he liked women who could beat people up without breaking a sweat. (For some reason, he looked over at Willow when he thought this.) His least favorite character was definitely the Hulk, hands down – his condition of regularly turning into a monster when he was angry reminded him of Belos.

Camila brought them all hot chocolate which was both very warm and very sweet, and made him feel soft and warm and sleepy. But he would not fall asleep. He had to watch over Gus. That was his mission now.

He failed his mission, falling asleep not too long after the final battle in New York started. But as he drifted off to sleep, he realized that it didn't bother him as much as he thought it would.

The light of the dawn surged through the windows and Amity rubbed her eyes to get the sleep out of them. She'd had one hell of a weird dream. She'd dreamed she was trapped in the Human Realm with the Isles under the control of a crazed god. And then she looked around her and she realized it was no dream. Her father and siblings were out there, maybe dead, maybe worse, and she had no way to get back to them.

It was ironic. If you'd told her not all that long ago that she was going to be trapped in the Human Realm with her girlfriend, she could have thought of far worse fates. Now she couldn't think of a single one. Amity didn't know what to do. There was no magic in the Human Realm, and she was going to have to face the strong possibility that she'd never see her family again as long as she lived.

Amity was lying in the bottom bunk of a bed in what had to have been Luz's bedroom. Oh, Titan! She was sleeping in her girlfriend's bedroom! Where Luz slept! No, calm. Calm. Everything's going to be fine. She calmly stepped out of bed and stretched to wake herself up further. She looked in the top bunk, expecting to see Luz, but Vee was there instead, still sleeping. Amity realized in that instant that Luz must have given up her bed so Amity could have a good night's sleep. Wasn't she just the most awesome girlfriend in the history of existence?

Amity walked downstairs. She appeared to be the first one up. Hunter was sleeping on the couch, Gus in his arms, held protectively as if unwilling to let go. Willow was sleeping on an armchair, and Luz slept on the carpet with a pillow and a blanket. She was snoring with an almost violent intensity and drool was pooled in the corner of her mouth. She looked absolutely perfect.

"Oh, good, you're awake," a voice said from behind her and Amity cried out in fright. It was a testament to how exhausting the previous day's events had been that none of the sleepers so much as stirred for a single second. Amity looked into the amused face of Mrs. Noceda. No, Camila. She wanted them to call her Camila. "I was wondering if you wouldn't mind accompanying me on an errand, Amity. I wanted to do some shopping – if I'm going to be taking care of six children, I'm going to need a hell of a lot more food."

Amity nodded slowly. "Shouldn't we wait until the others wake up? They'll worry if they wake up and we're gone."

"Oh, I'll leave a note," Camila said with an airy wave of her hand. "Besides, by the looks of them, it'll be quite some time before they wake up. I want them to get as much sleep as they can. We won't be gone very long."

"Okay," Amity said. In truth, she was nervous about making her first foray into a human town without her girlfriend by her side, but Luz trusted Camila, so Amity was ready to extend her trust to her in turn.

Camila gave Amity a hat that covered her ears, then led Amity outside to the mechanical device she'd seen in front of the house earlier that day. Amity remembered seeing a lot of these devices moving through streets in the movie she'd watched the previous night. It was some sort of conveyance, she knew that much. Yet she still let out a yelp when Camila turned the key in the lock next to the wheel and it made a loud noise. "Oh, sorry! I should have warned you!"

"It's okay," Amity said with a nervous laugh. "I guess stuff in the Demon Realm would be just as scary to you, right?" Camila's face went tight. Yeah, probably the wrong thing to say.

"I suppose so," she said curtly, and then she relaxed. "This is a car. Humans can travel long distances with these, much faster than walking. They can be very dangerous too when not used properly, so I don't ever want to see you using one of these, am I understood?" Amity nodded. "Excellent."

Camila moved the car away from the street and started driving through the neighborhood. "So when the portal opened, the videos that Luz made went through. I watched them all last night."

Amity groaned. She wanted Luz to have the chance to tell Camila about her on her own terms. Well, technically speaking, she did by making those videos, but still, Amity was hoping Luz would have the chance to do it in person. And then a horrifying thought occurred to her. Gus had mentioned once that a lot of humans hated it when two people in the same gender were in a relationship with one another. Before, she'd dismissed it as just more of his preposterous notions, because it was silly. Even Mother didn't have a problem with witches who were in a relationship with someone of the same gender. But what if it was true?

"So…you don't mind?" she said with a nervous laugh.

Camila gave her a calming smile. "Of course not! In fact, I'm extremely happy. Luz had always been so lonely at school. So to find that not only she has friends, but also a girlfriend, well…it's a dream come true for me. Especially since it's clear you adore her."

"So you're completely okay with it?" Amity pressed her. "Even though she's a human and I'm a witch? And…she's a girl and I'm a girl?"

"Oh!" Camila said, as the light dawned. "Yes, yes, of course, Amity. I'm not a homophobe, I assure you. Many humans are, of course – not nearly as many as there used to be, but sadly still quite a lot. But this is a very friendly area to the LGBT community. You don't need to worry about hiding your relationship here." Amity made a mental note to ask Luz what the LGBT community was. Since she was apparently part of it, she'd probably know more than Camila.

Camila's hands tightened on the steering wheel. "Has…she told you about our last conversation?" Amity nodded. "I've regretted what I said to her every single instant since that day…and certainly since I watched her videos. I was…Amity, you have to understand that I was under a great deal of stress. My whole worldview was collapsing around me, and I was losing her…"

Amity gave Camila a gentle smile. "It's okay, Mrs. Noceda, er, Camila. I understand. Luz is just lucky she has a mother who cares about her. My mother…well, the less said about her the better. My dad was pretty bad for a while, but he's getting better, and so are my siblings. I miss them. I hope they'll be okay."

"I'm sure they will be," Camila said, but she was only saying it to be polite, Amity could tell. "I don't want to lose my daughter. But keeping her here, keeping her from you…well, there's more than one way to lose someone. I'd have her here and she'd be safe, but I'd still lose her. Still…the thought of sending Luz back to the Demon Realm…with all that danger…it haunts me. How can I call myself a responsible mother by sending her to a place so dangerous?"

"Well, most of the danger came from Belos's forces," Amity pointed out. "And he's dead. Once the Collector is defeated, the Isles should be safer than they've ever been. I mean, there's still wild animals, and wild plants, and the Boiling Rain. And the occasional gorenado…" She really had to stop talking. Why wasn't she stopping talking? "But I bet the Human Realm has its dangers too."

Despite Amity's fears to the contrary, Camila did look quite reassured by her monologue. "You're quite right there, Amity," she said, a dark note in her voice. "My fellow humans foremost among them. Speaking of which, I have some rules you need to follow and never, ever break. Humans cannot learn what you are. You must pretend like you are a normal human whenever you are in public. That means you do not use magic under any circumstances. If you do not agree to follow these rules, I cannot let you leave my house."

Amity nodded hurriedly. It wasn't as if she had any desire to make abominations right now. They would remind her too much of Dad. "People here are really that dangerous?"

It was a long time before Camila spoke again, and when she did, Amity could tell she was choosing her words carefully. "Humans have long feared what they do not understand. When humans are afraid, they are capable of great cruelties." Like Belos, Amity realized. "I don't know the consequences of them discovering who you are, but I cannot imagine they will be terribly positive."

Amity started chewing her nails, a nervous habit that she'd never quite gotten out of the habit of doing, no matter how many times Mother tried to get her to stop. "But I don't want you to panic, sweetie," Camila said in a much gentler tone. "Humans are also very good at rationalizing, so as long as you don't actually use magic, you should be okay, even if you say or do something strange."

The two of them chattered about much more mundane things for the rest of the car ride. Amity told her about all the cool things she could do with abominations, which seemed to impress her girlfriend's mother. Camila told her about her career as a veterinarian, which seemed to be a combination healer and beast keeper. Amity couldn't help think of Viney, Emira's not so secret crush (and, from Willow's gossip, vice versa), and how both of them may never get a chance to tell each other their feelings.

Before long, they were at the store. A supermarket, she recalled Camila calling it. And it lived up to its name, that was for sure. Amity had never seen so much food in one place before. Humans lived so much more luxuriously than people in the Demon Realm. Amity couldn't help but be jealous. She assisted Camila with finding the various items on her list, none of which Amity recognized in the slightest. A lot of them looked extremely tasty, though. Camila paid for them using a small rectangular object she called a credit card, though many others were using green paper and objects that looked like snails, but smaller and a silver color.

"I think I should warn you in advance that there's a good chance I won't be able to eat some human foods," Amity said as they brought the last of the bags of groceries to the car. "Luz wasn't able to eat some of the food in the Demon Realm."

Camila nodded. "Thank you for telling me. I guess we'll just have to use trial and error." She gave a very fond smile at Amity. "And, Amity, thank you for being there for my lucecita when I couldn't. I'm extremely pleased she has someone like you in her life." She took a deep breath. "Did she…miss me? Do you know?"

Amity nodded fervently. It was true. Luz had told story after story of her wonderful mami and it was clearly tearing her apart to be separated from her for so long. "She wouldn't have ever tried to come back here if it wasn't for you," she said. "I know it for a fact."

Camila's expression was complicated, and Amity really couldn't read it very well. She thought she detected both sadness and relief, though. "Okay. Thank you. Well, let's get home before everyone wakes up, okay?"

It was still jarring to wake up in the Human Realm. It had been many months since Luz had been living there, and so much had happened in that time that it felt like decades. There was a surreal feeling to being back in her house. It didn't feel quite right, because, of course, the Owl House felt more like her home now. That was not a truth she liked facing, but it was one she had faced.

A part of her wished she'd gone with her spiteful desire to kick Vee out of her bedroom and take the top bunk, but she knew she'd done the right thing. Luz was still struggling with the idea that Vee had replaced her, despite Mami's strong assertions to the contrary, but Luz was simply incapable of not being generous to those in need, replacer or not. It was hardwired into the core of who she was, the desire to help others. She was starting to realize that it was, occasionally, overwhelming her desire to help herself. She had to work on that, she knew, but now was not the time.

Mami had made pancakes for breakfast, or flapjacks as she called them, leading to Hunter nearly having a panic attack at the thought of his palisman Flapjack being cooked, but thankfully, Luz was able to show him that Flapjack was alive and well. Luz had stuffed her friends' palismen and her own into her backpack at the last minute. It was a relief to everyone to have their palismen close at hand. Even Luz had hers, though it still hadn't hatched, and Luz wasn't sure if it could with no magic on Earth. She would just have to wait and see.

After breakfast, Mami asked for Luz's help clearing up the attic to provide permanent, if cramped, sleeping quarters for their new guests. But Luz could tell it was really just an excuse to get the two of them alone. Luz didn't object. It was time she faced the music.

"Luz, I'm sorry," Mami said immediately as soon as the two of them were alone. "I am so sorry about everything. I never meant to…to push you away, like I said. And yet…by making you make that promise…I did that anyway, didn't I?"

Luz's eyes lit up. "So you're not going to have me keep it?"

"I don't think so," Mami admitted. "In any case, with the situation so in flux, it's really not possible to plan that far in advance." She sighed. "Luz, you do have to live here and get a human education, even if you get back the portal. Whatever you're learning in your magic school, it won't do you any good here, and I need you to be prepared just in case you get trapped here again."

She put up a finger. "But! It's clear you're very attached to your friends and family there. So, assuming the situation gets resolved in such a way that the Isles are relatively safe, I will permit you to stay over there on weekends, so long as you make sure all your homework gets done and you call me twice a day. And if you get hurt, I need to know right away."

Wow! Even in her wildest dreams, Luz didn't think she'd get Mami to agree to an arrangement that was that good. She thought, at best, she'd be able to go back on holidays and breaks, not every single week! "Okay, mami! I agree!"

"I was expecting more of an argument," Mami admitted. "But then again…I think neither of us have had a really good idea of what to expect from one another recently, have we? Oh, Luz. When did it all go wrong?"

"When Dad died," Luz said and let out a loud gasp. She had not meant to say those words at all. She must have been way more tired and upset than she thought. "I…no, Mom, I'm sorry. I didn't mean that."

Mami shook her head. "You did. And as blunt as it was, you are not wrong. I could never relate to you the way he could. You were always more his daughter than you were mine. I don't like saying that, but it's the truth." She sat down on the floor, abandoning all pretense that they were there to clean up, and Luz sat next to her. "Luz, I never meant to hurt you when I sent you to the camp."

Yet she had. It had hurt immensely. It had felt like her own mother, the one and only person Luz had in her life, had given up on her. That she was saying she'd reached her limit. It had made Luz worry that Mami's unconditional love was more conditional than it had appeared. They were silly worries, like many of the ones she'd had, but she'd nonetheless had them.

"All I wanted was for you to make friends," Mami went on. "That was it. Not for you to give up your imagination, not for you to become another cog in the machinery that is society. Just for you to make friends. I figured people like you would be there…people who you might share common interests with. Vee did."

Luz felt an almost physical pain at the thought of the basilisk who had impersonated her. "Did…did you even suspect it wasn't me? At all? Even the slightest suspicion, even if you just wrote it off in two seconds? ANYTHING?!"

Mami was silent for a few moments. It looked like she was trying to figure out how to spare Luz's feelings, an expression Luz knew intimately well from having on her own face time and time again. But in the end, she gave a plain and simple, "No." Luz hadn't suspected otherwise. "Luz, if Vee had malevolent intentions, I'm sure I would have seen through it. But at the end of the day, for all the differences between you, you had one thing in common: You both love me. And that blinded me to everything else."

Mami reached out and squeezed Luz's hand. "Luz, I swear to you, I vow to you, I pledge it on your father's grave: I have not replaced you. I love you and I love Vee. It is possible for a mother to have love in her heart for two daughters."

Luz nodded slowly. "Did…you see my videos?" Mami nodded. That was a relief, in a way, and a disappointment in another. Luz had really been hoping she'd be able to tell Mami about Amity in person. But on the other hand, relaying the information she'd mentioned in the videos would be very emotionally taxing right now. "Do you think it's possible for a daughter to have love in her heart for two mothers?"

Luz prayed silently under her breath after she asked the question, but her worries were for naught, because Mami just gave her a fond smile. "Oh, Luz. I know Eda is important to you. Of course you can think of her as your mother too. I would never take that away from you."

"You're an amazing mom," Luz said, as she gave her mother the first hug they'd shared in months. It was a fresh start for the both of them, and she wasn't going to squander it.

Mami clapped her hands. "All right! Let's get started!" They started clearing boxes away, a lot of which hadn't been moved likely since Papi's funeral, they were that old and dusty. "Oh, look at this," Mami said with a grin that Luz didn't like one iota. She opened the box and found photo albums inside. "Here's all your old baby pictures. Oh, I bet your novia would get a real kick out of seeing these!"

"You can't!" Luz said, horror filling her voice.

"I can and I will," Mami said with vicious satisfaction. "Oh, Luz, you didn't think you could just get away scot free with running away and lying about your whereabouts for months. Oh, no, mija. There is much teasing in your future. I have many embarrassing stories about you, and Amity is going to learn them all."

"I'm already starting to regret coming back," Luz joked. But both of them knew otherwise. Luz may have missed the Demon Realm and her family there with all her heart, but right now, there was nowhere she'd rather be.