Luz's mouth dropped open in shock as she picked herself up off the ground. Out of all the people she was expecting to see on the Boiling Isles, Camila had not been one of them. In fact, she was very much the last person Luz wanted to see. Luz was finding it hard enough to lie to her father, whom she'd only gotten six years with, much of which she couldn't remember. Lying to her mami would be infinitely harder, even if this wasn't the Camila that Luz knew.

Her mouth refused to work to form a greeting to Camila. Fortunately, she didn't appear to notice this. She was too busy getting hugged by Amity so tightly that Luz was worried she might accidentally end up strangling her by accident. "Amity, mija, I need oxygen!" Camila said, half-jokingly and half-deathly serious.

Amity released Camila with a sheepish grin. "Sorry, mami. But how are you here?"

"I'm your mother," Camila said simply. "I won't let things like barriers between universes get in the way of my job of keeping you safe."

Amity gestured at Luz like she was a game show host showing off a prize. "This is Luz Noceda! She's my girlfriend!"

"Well, I certainly hope so after that display," Camila joked. She held out her hand for Luz to shake. Luz let out some inarticulate sounds. "I'm sorry, did I accidentally insult you or something?"

Luz shook herself out of her stupor. She had to make a good impression on Camila if she was going to win Amity's heart, and she was definitely not doing that. "I'm so sorry! I'm still in shock. You took me by surprise." She shook Camila's hand. As in her universe, Camila had a very strong grip. "I guess I'm a bit in awe too. Amity won't stop talking about what a wonderful mami she has! I'm a bit intimidated by you, if I'm going to be honest."

Camila looked like she understood. "Well, I assure you, Luz, I'm just as human as you are."

"Wait, you are?!" Amity shouted.

Camila's eyes widened as she realized that Amity was taking her literally. "Uh, no! That's not what I meant. It's just an expression." Amity breathed a sigh of relief. "I mean, I'm a normal person. I put my pants on one leg at a time like everyone else."

She went into the house and sat down on a couch, looking very much at home. Camila Noceda had taken a long time to take to the Boiling Isles, but once she did, she acted like she had been born there. Camila Serrano, by the looks of it, was going to take less time to adjust. Luz's eye caught the wanted poster prominently displayed on the wall, and she wondered if she could covertly destroy it.

Camila noticed her looking at it. "It's a striking display," she said with a laugh. "But if you're worried about me having an issue with Eda because of her crimes, don't. As far as I'm concerned, Belos is a monster, and if Eda pissed him off, then that makes me like her even more."

"How long have you been here?" Amity wondered.

"I arrived not too long after you left for your date," Camila responded. "I'm pleased to see that you make Amity happy, Luz, but I'm afraid we're going to have to have a serious and perhaps somewhat unpleasant conversation."

A jolt of fear went through Luz. Did Camila somehow know? It didn't seem logical, but then again, neither did her sudden arrival. Camila was a very perceptive individual, most of the time, though the exceptions could be quite glaring. Well, if she was going to be facing the music, then it wasn't going to be any easier if she waited.

Luz and Amity sat down on chairs. Amity looked politely interested. She didn't seem to be remotely concerned at all about what was coming. Which made sense. She didn't have anything to fear. "I'm honestly not sure how things are done around here," Camila began, "so please understand I'm not trying to blame you for anything. But Edmond tells me he overheard you mentioning that you're sexually active."

Luz couldn't help but laugh out loud. She should have known her little prank on Edmond would come back to haunt her. "That was just a prank we were playing on him," Luz explained. "We were mad he crashed our date, so we were messing with him."

Camila breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh, good. Wow, this must be very awkward for you." That was like saying that the Sahara Desert was somewhat dry. "Okay, let's start again. I'm Camila Serrano. It's very nice to meet you, Luz. I was wondering if you knew where your parents are. I was hoping to talk to them."

"YOU CAN TALK TO ME IF YOU WANT!" Hooty called out and slithered in her direction, only to be promptly met with pepper spray to the eyes. "Sheesh! Hey, Luz, looks like you take after her!" Luz's blood went cold as Hooty returned to his position in the door.

Camila tilted her head. "What does he mean by that?"

Luz shrugged, hoping that she was looking nonchalant. "It's Hooty. Who the hell knows? My parents went out on a date of their own. They had my friend Willow babysit King. My brother, the King of Demons."

Camila looked intrigued. "Really? Tell me, Luz, exactly what sort of role does he have in the government? He's subordinate to Emperor Belos, yes?"

Luz giggled. "If you asked him, he'd tell you that the King of Demons is subordinate to no one! But he's not a real king; he's just a child who thinks he's one." Camila looked disappointed. "He's really sweet though."

Amity sat down next to Camila. "I missed you a lot," she admitted. "I never meant to stay, but the portal door got destroyed and I got stuck here."

"Yes, Steve told me as much," Camila admitted. "He seems a decent sort for a man wanted by the FBI."

"He needed to keep his child safe," Luz asserted. "And that meant staying here. He's absolutely no danger to anyone. Except anyone who wants to hurt us. Also, occasionally himself."

Camila reached out and squeezed Amity's hand. "I am so, so proud of you, Amity. You've been so brave and strong."

"How did you escape the imposter?" Amity wondered. "You…do know that you've been living with an imposter, right?"

Camila nodded. She was silent for a while. "Vee – that's the imposter – is not a bad person. She was tortured by Belos and it made her very scared and paranoid. When she attacked you, she wasn't thinking straight. She thought you were going to bring her back to be tortured." Well, that definitely made sense, and was in keeping with Vee's behavior in the original timeline. "She's very sorry about hurting you. I've decided to adopt her. I know it's a bit strange, but I can't let the poor girl suffer anymore."

Luz looked over at Amity to see what her reaction was. After a few seconds of shock, a small smile came upon Amity's face. "I've always wanted a younger sister," she admitted. "And her relationship with Clara…?"

"After she rejected you, she thought it over, and she realized she was actually bi and she did want to date you. Except she's been dating Vee. And, Amity, I'm so sorry, but I think that Clara's not interested in dating you anymore. She and Vee are…quite the item now. She knows everything, and she's still sticking with Vee."

Amity didn't even look remotely bothered. "That's okay. I've got a pretty awesome girlfriend of my own. Luz helped me through so much. She rescued me after I nearly got myself killed following this con artist guy into a trap. She helped get me into Hexside – that's the school I'm studying at. She's so sweet and funny and affectionate."

"And I love her," Luz said, the words just popping out of her mouth with seemingly no regard for thinking about them first. Hopefully the truth wouldn't pop out next. "I love her so much. I've never loved anyone as much as I love Amity." True, from a certain point of view.

Camila actually looked impressed with her impromptu speech. "The twins also speak very well of their significant others. I haven't heard Edmond be this enthusiastic about anything before. He likes Hunter even more than architecture. And Viney seems like a very nice girl by the sounds of it." She looked Luz straight in the eyes, and Luz flinched. She could not help but feel betrayed, even though she knew, intellectually, she had no reason to be. But her mother had always done her best to respect the fact that Luz couldn't stand eye contact. It was yet another reminder that, despite appearances, a complete stranger stood before her.

"Luz doesn't like it when people make eye contact with her," Amity said.

Camila put a hand over her mouth, looking ashamed. "I'm so sorry! Oh, dear. I wonder how many other taboos I've been unwittingly breaking since I've arrived here."

"It's not a taboo," Luz said. "It's just…how I'm personally wired."

Camila clearly didn't understand completely, but that didn't matter. Luz knew that she would no longer try to make eye contact with Luz. "Well, could you tell me a little bit about yourself, Luz?"

"Well, I like editing anime clips to music and reading fantasy books with convoluted backstories," Luz said lightly, remembering that she'd said just that shortly before her arrival in the Boiling Isles. It was somehow fitting, she believed, that she say that again.

Camila gave a genuine smile at that. "Ah, a creative person! My daughter is quite creative too. Did you know that she used to think she was a wizard back when she was a child?" Amity flinched, and Camila noticed, and then her mouth dropped open in shock. "Oh, Dios mío," she muttered. "You were right all along, weren't you?"

"No," Amity admitted, sounding as if the words were still costing her something. "I wasn't. But I kept on believing it for…for a lot longer than I told you. I still believed it when I came here. I…soon learned otherwise." Luz made a lips zipped gesture. If Amity didn't want Camila to know about the circumstances that led to her realizing the truth, then Luz would keep it from her. "I know it's stupid. Crazy. But I had magic, and I never got a better explanation for it until I came here."

Camila looked down at the floor. "Mija…you hid it from me. Your magic. ¿Por qué? Did…did you not trust me? Did I ever give you reason to believe that you couldn't?" Did you hate living with me that much? Luz couldn't help but remember. "Amity, I won't be angry with you, no matter what you say."

Amity was silent for a while. If Luz had to hazard a guess – which, she would readily concede, could very well be completely wrong – she was trying to figure out the answer to that question herself, instead of having it at the ready. "I guess I didn't want to burden you. Or put you at risk. I was worried you'd want to accompany me on my errantry. Or stop me. It's risky business. Or…at least I thought it was." She sighed. "I've been trying to put a brave face on things. I'm good at that. But I'm so scared here. It's not my home. I don't belong here."

Amity looked over at Luz, looking scared that she'd offended her. "Of course there are good things about it too!" Luz beamed. "But…mami, I want to go home. I've had to fight in a duel, some weird puppeteer demon nearly ate me, I'm being forced into an arranged marriage –"

"WHAT?!" Camila shouted. She stood up, her fists clenched. "No one told me about an arranged marriage!"

"Well, I told Edmond, but it seems that he was too busy relaying gossip to tell you," Amity said caustically. "I'll be out of here before the wedding, but it's got me all freaked out!"

Camila let loose a truly stunning set of curse words in English, Spanish, and Ladino. Luz didn't even know that her version of Camila knew any Ladino, much less so many curse words in the language. "I have half a mind to storm that palace right now and introduce His Imperial Majesty to la chancla!" Luz couldn't help but grin at that image, even though she knew the absolute last thing that should be happening right now was Zoe finding out that Camila was even in the Isles at all.

"Who does this bastard think he is?!" Camila ranted. "You're fourteen years old! FOURTEEN! That creepy perverted old man!" She spat on the ground. "¡Tres veces maldito hijo de puta! ¡Asqueroso pedazo de mierda!"

She grabbed a lamp and threw it at the door out of frustration, just as it opened and Eduardo's first introduction to the woman who would have been his soulmate in another world was getting brained on the head with a heavy object.

Willow was not a person given to panic, Gus knew. She was a steadying force in difficult times. It was hard to get her riled up. Once she was riled up, of course, all bets were off. A Willow on the warpath was one of the most terrifying forces of nature that existed in the Demon Realm. Gus believed that Willow in a towering fury could defeat Belos and make it look easy. But most of the time, she was calm and centered. She always knew the right thing to say. When Boscha and her cronies bullied Gus, Willow was always there with comforting words, with utterly confident assertions that they were wrong about him, that he mattered.

So it had been alarming, to say the least, to see Willow lose her grip on things, at first so slowly that Gus hardly noticed and then decelerating rapidly like a cart careening down a hill. Her reading selection, normally focused entirely on plants and romance novels so trashy that not even a trash slug would go near them, now seemed to focus exclusively on the arcana of the Isles, particularly as it pertained to impersonation spells and shapeshifters. According to Steve, Willow spent a lot more time in the library searching for those books than usual, and had even ventured into extremely dangerous parts of the stacks to acquire them.

Willow started acting paranoid and distrustful of just about everyone. She would quiz Gus and Luz on events that, honestly, Gus had pretty much forgotten about because they were so inconsequential. Luz hardly remembered them any better. Eventually, Gus was able to determine that Willow's paranoia was focused on Luz, and it was causing her to act in very strange ways.

She slipped eggshells into a lunch she shared with Luz and then fired off a question of how old she was. Luz was so startled by the unexpected taste that she accidentally said she was fifteen instead of fourteen, which Gus could tell was not the answer Willow wanted to hear. She randomly tickled Luz, provoking laughter, which, rather than her taking it as a rather normal reflex, seemed to just further Willow's suspicions. And most disturbingly of all, she deliberately spilled a pair of seeds on the ground near Luz, expecting her to react somehow. Luz just helped her pick them up.

Plants mattered to Willow more than anything; they were at the core of her identity. For her to just treat seeds so cavalierly was an indication to Gus that something was dreadfully wrong. It was time for an intervention, which is why Gus decided to show up to Willow's house uninvited while she was babysitting King. He wasn't alone. He brought Viney with him, in the hopes that the healing witch would know if something was wrong with Willow. And Viney brought along her new girlfriend Emma. Gus absolutely ached, almost physically, to quiz Emma about life in the Human Realm, but right now, he had bigger fish to fry.

As soon as Gus opened the door to the Park residence, King practically jumped into Gus's arms, knocking him over. Curse his small stature! Puberty could not arrive fast enough in his opinion. "Thank the Titan you're here!" King said as Gus picked himself up. "She's going to kill me!"

"Wait, what?!" Viney said and charged into the house. Willow was sitting on a chair, looking annoyed to see them, but not homicidal either.

"I'm going to die of boredom with all these questions she keeps asking me!" King clarified. Gus breathed a sigh of relief. "I was told there'd be games! And cake! Instead, she keeps asking me questions about Luz!"

"You know, there's an ancient human proverb: The cake is a lie," Emma mused. Gus eagerly made a note.

King pouted. "Luz is boring. She hardly has any time for her sovereign anymore now that she's got a girlfriend. She had time for me when she was with Avery!" A wistful smile formed on his face. "I miss Avery. They were cool. Never denied the obviousness of my royal blood."

Willow stood up. "Luz has been replaced with an imposter," she announced. "A changeling, most likely." Everything inside of Gus went still. So that's what this was about. And yet…it didn't seem very likely to him. Luz was acting strange, but that's what Luz did. It was her thing. Besides, being half-human was probably making her puberty uniquely unpleasant. She was wrestling with all sorts of strange emotions, no doubt.

"That's one hell of an accusation," Emma said slowly, looking as if she had serious doubts about Willow's sanity. And honestly, even though it hurt Gus to even think about, Gus wasn't sure that he didn't have them either. "If it's true – a big if – then my sister could be in danger. But if it's not…well, we shouldn't do anything drastic either way. If she's an imposter, we don't want to let her know that we're onto her, and if she's not, we could seriously hurt her with our suspicions."

Emma, Gus could tell, did not believe in the slightest that Luz was an imposter and was just trying to humor Willow. "Viney…?" Gus said, his voice cracking. He didn't want to believe that his best friend had gone insane…and he certainly didn't believe that she was right either.

"Gus has indicated some concerns about your mental health recently, Willow," Viney said gently but briskly. "This seems to confirm his suspicions. I myself am undecided. There are some techniques I could utilize to get a clearer handle on things, however. I would only use them with your consent, which you can withdraw at any time."

Willow looked hurt but not particularly surprised to hear this. "Please, Willow," Gus begged her. "I'm really worried about you. I know that you think you're right, but think about it from my perspective. One of my two best friends just concocted a conspiracy theory about the other, out of nowhere. Don't you understand why that's worrying me?"

Willow sighed. "Yeah. Okay, I get it. But I'm right. I know I am." She met Viney's eyes. "Run your tests, Viney. I'm sure they'll come out fine."

Viney nodded, keeping her face and voice carefully neutral. "Let's do them in private. You don't mind waiting, Emma?" Emma shrugged. "Thank you."

Viney and Willow went into Willow's room, leaving King, Gus, and Emma alone. King promptly went onto the couch, closed his eyes, and then was out like a light. "So what's it like living in the Human Realm?" Gus asked Emma eagerly.

"What's it like living in the Demon Realm?" Emma shot back.

"It's exciting!" Gus said, his voice brimming with enthusiasm. "There are new and fun dangers every day. And I've got two of the best friends in the entire universe – in two universes – to help me when things get tough! It must be awesome being the only person other than your siblings that can do magic in your world."

Emma made a face. "It's not. As long as I can remember, I've been able to communicate with animals, and I've been absolutely terrified that someone would find out. I've had nightmares about it, about the Men in Black coming to take me away." Gus made a mental note to ask Steve who these Men in Black were. They seemed to be a touchy subject for Emma. "I've tried not to use it. I took on a goth persona so I could hide my magic in plain sight. And now I'm in a place where it's the norm…and I don't know how I feel about it. I've spent so much time fearing my power that I don't really know how not to."

Well. It was hard to know what to say about that. Gus knew a lot more about the Human Realm than people gave him credit for. He had heard stories about how cruelly people treated each other. But Amity didn't seem to have any trouble feeling comfortable with her magic. Why did Emma?

Either way, it wasn't place to ask. It was time to get to more relevant questions, serious ones that would advance the field of comparative anthropology. "So I hear your vampires sparkle in the daylight. How does that work?"

The door to Willow's room opened, and Viney and Willow emerged. Willow looked very smug. "I didn't detect any mental illnesses that would spark delusions," Viney had to concede. "Other than the fact that she's been under a stupendous amount of stress lately, I'd say that Willow is the picture of perfect health, physically and mentally."

Willow pointed a finger at Gus. "Ha! So there!"

Viney rolled her eyes. "That's not the same thing as saying she's right."

"I have proof!" Willow asserted, and then went on a rant about all the ways she'd tested Luz over the last few weeks. None of it appeared especially convincing to Gus. Nor were any of the things a smoking gnu, as the humans put it, either. (What even was a gnu?) As far as Gus was concerned, Willow was jumping at shadows, and he had absolutely no idea why.

Gus walked over to Willow and put his hand on her shoulder. "Willow, maybe you should talk to your dads about this. They might have some suggestions about people you can talk to about this."

Willow looked disgusted. "You think I'm crazy, don't you? You all do! You heard Viney! I'm totally sane!"

"I'm sorry, Willow, but this evidence of yours is all circumstantial," Emma admitted. "I don't know you. I can't really speak to your mental state, but I'm not liking what I'm hearing. But since Luz is dating my sister, I want to be entirely sure. Is there anything that you can do to prove, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that Luz is an imposter?"

Willow's eyes lit up. She went back into her room and emerged with a thick, dusty book that looked like it was centuries old. It probably belonged in a museum. How had Steve let Willow check out this book instead of stashing it in a vault permanently? "There's an artifact known as the Orb of Revelation." She showed them a drawing of a crystal ball made of multicolored glass. "It can unveil a person's true nature. And I know exactly where it is. Who's up for a heist?"

The second to last thing that Eduardo was expecting to find when he returned home from his date with Eda was to find another human in the house. The last thing he was expecting was for that human to throw a lamp at his face, but that was precisely what happened.

When he opened his eyes again, a middle aged Hispanic woman with short brown hair and red-framed glasses was standing before him, looking panicked. She was very attractive, a distant part of Eduardo's brain couldn't help but note. He ignored that part of his brain. It wasn't helpful. Besides, he was totally faithful to Eda, and frankly, he didn't think he could handle another romantic partner in his life. Eda was quite a handful on her own.

"I'm so sorry!" the woman said. "It was an accident!"

"It's okay," Eduardo said automatically, getting up from the ground. Thankfully, the fall didn't seem to have injured him any. "You must be Amity's mother."

Camila nodded and shook Eduardo's hand. She peered at him, looking confused for a few seconds. Eduardo couldn't help but notice Luz watching them highly intently out of the corner of her eyes. She appeared to be waiting for something. Eduardo was at a loss for what. "You're Eduardo Noceda," Camila said at last, looking as if puzzle pieces were fitting together inside her head.

Eduardo blinked. He certainly did not expect Amity's mother to recognize him. He was at a loss as to how she did it. He'd had some modest success in his journalism career back on Earth, but he certainly hadn't become anywhere close to being a household name. "Do we know each other?" he asked politely.

"No – and that's your fault," she said, sounding half amused, half angry. "You stood me up. We were supposed to go on a date, and you left a message on my voicemail saying you were sick." Luz looked positively aghast at that, as if Eduardo had committed a heinous act of betrayal, instead of told a white lie.

Eduardo shrugged. "I do apologize. I didn't feel like going on a date with you. I was being pressured into it by my parents. I should have been honest about why. I'm surprised you remember that, to be honest."

"The police came to interview me about your disappearance," Camila explained. "That sort of thing sticks with you." Well, that did make sense, Eduardo had to concede. Eduardo was a relatively public figure, and as such, the police probably would have put more effort into solving his disappearance than average. Camila had indeed been the last person he'd been in contact with before coming to the Boiling Isles.

Eda gave Camila a huge grin and then wrapped her arm around Eduardo's shoulders. "Well, your loss is my gain. This guy is the best husband in the whole world. Sorry you didn't even get a chance to find that out." The grip on Eduardo's shoulder tightened slightly. Could Eda be worried that Eduardo would dump her now that he was in contact with a human acquaintance? The idea seemed ridiculous, but Eda could be surprisingly insecure at times.

Eduardo gave Eda an extra-long kiss, just to make sure that he was communicating the depths of the love and commitment he felt towards her. "And I have the best wife in the world right here," he purred back at her. Luz let out a pointed cough, and Eduardo cleared his throat awkwardly. Right. They weren't alone.

"Well, Camila, let me tell you something about your daughter," Eda said. "She is one hell of an awesome lady. She's freed prisoners –"

"Who were imprisoned unjustly and without due process," Eduardo added hastily, lest Camila get the wrong idea.

Eda rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah. She's studying magic like she's been doing it all her life and getting great grades too! Still wish she wasn't so much of a goody two shoes, but at least she's not as bad as Lilith." Camila nodded slowly, obviously having no clue who Lilith was. "She put herself at great risk to save a girl she didn't even like from some really nasty physical abuse. And she's made my daughter happier than I've ever seen her. It's like she's a completely different person!" The blow to the head must have been causing Eduardo to see things, because he could have sworn for a second that Luz actually flinched at that last comment.

"I'm glad to hear that," Camila said. "I really do hate to ask this of you, but I don't have any money, and –"

"Hey, don't worry about it," Eda said. "You can stay at the Owl House as long as you like!"

Camila blinked. "Oh, no, that's not what I was asking. I was hoping you could loan me some money. Enough to rent an apartment for my family and I to stay in for a month. I trust my children, but I don't think it's appropriate for my daughter and her girlfriend to be living under the same roof if it can be avoided." She looked embarrassed, which was nothing compared to the reactions she was getting from Amity and Luz. "I can pay you back."

Eda perked up at that. "Actually, there were some objects I was hoping to acquire in the Human Realm." She summoned a list to her hands and handed it over to Camila.

Camila looked horrified at what she was seeing. "Eda, how on Earth do you even know what an anti-tank missile is, much less expect me to acquire one? Or for that matter, all of the very deadly weapons on this list?"

Eda grabbed the list out of her hand and let out a nervous laugh. "Heh. Yeah, that was just a joke." Eduardo let out a sigh. Eda had promised that she'd stop stockpiling human weapons. Granted, she was a con artist and he was used to her breaking her promises or at least finding inventive loopholes. But still, her last antics had gotten Eduardo arrested. That had not been an experience he was eager to repeat. Eda summoned another list and handed it to Camila, who looked much more relieved at its contest.

"Okay, most of this is doable – though the Holy Grail is a myth, just so you know." Eda pouted. Eduardo was reasonably certain that she had put that on there as a joke, but not entirely. Sometimes, one didn't know these things with Eda, and it was better not to ask. She liked her mystique.

It was decided that Camila stay overnight and go apartment hunting in the morning. After apologizing again profusely for accidentally hitting Eduardo, she quickly withdrew from sight. Eduardo knew exactly why. Though Camila was putting on a very brave face for her daughter, she needed a lot more time to process the sudden change in her entire worldview. Eduardo knew that because he freaked out a lot too after arriving in the Isles. Without Eda, maybe he'd have had a nervous breakdown. Or gotten eaten by something.

Amity was tired after her date, and decided to get an early night, leaving Luz alone with her parents. She looked distinctly uncomfortable. Eduardo wasn't sure when the last time it had been just the three of them without King or Amity around. Luz seemed to be working up the courage to say something. Eduardo gave her what he thought was an encouraging gesture.

"So…what did you think of her?" Luz said in an exaggeratedly casual tone.

"She seems like a very strong woman," Eduardo said honestly. "And it's clear from spending time with Amity that she's a good mother as well."

Luz let out a slightly wistful smile. "Yeah, she's awesome…" She cleared her throat, her eyes wide. "Uh, yeah, but what did you think of her? Like…" She seemed to struggle for the words. "Did you feel anything when you first saw her?"

"You mean besides blinding pain from her throwing a lamp at me?" Eduardo said, trying to make a joke out of it. He had no clue what Luz was getting at. However, he could tell that whatever she was trying to get at, it clearly mattered immensely to her. "I guess I was surprised to see another human in the Isles, that's all." Luz looked…well, it was hard to tell, but Eduardo thought he could sense disappointment in her expression. No, that couldn't be right, could it?

Eda appeared to come to some sort of realization. "Are you worried your dad's going to leave me for her?" she asked. Luz's eyes widened. That was…a part of it, Eduardo could tell. But it wasn't anywhere close to being the whole story. "Because your dad's a faithful guy. He's not going to jump ship for the first human gal to come along."

Luz nodded slowly. It was impossible to tell what she was thinking. "But if he was interested…?"

What in God's name had brought this on? Eduardo wondered. It was easily the strangest thing that Luz had done since…well, since she'd had that breakdown at the Devourer offices. "Mija, I assure you, there will not be anything between me and Camila Serrano. Period. End of story." He tried to give her a reassuring smile. It was not working. "After all, it'd be kind of awkward if Amity became your stepsister, wouldn't it?"

Luz took a sharp breath, as if she had just realized exactly what she was doing…which was good for her, because Eduardo was still in the dark. "Yeah, weird as hell. Sorry about making things awkward. I'm…going to get some studying done! Bye!" She ran to her room so fast that she slipped and fell twice on the way there.

"What was that about?" Eda wondered. Eduardo could just shrug. He didn't get it. And he didn't like it either. Not one bit.

Gus wasn't amiss to the idea of running a heist in of itself. He'd spent enough time in Eda's vicinity for some of her very lax devotion to the law to rub off on him somewhat. But he was against getting killed, and that seemed like a very likely outcome of the insane plan that Willow had put together.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Gus demanded, not screaming it at the top of his lungs only because they were having lunch together at the Hexside cafeteria. Emma and Viney had joined them. A few people gave them strange looks, but overall, people just seemed to think it was natural that the human raised witch and her girlfriend would gravitate to the resident human expert.

Willow looked hurt by his comment. "Nothing is wrong with me. I think it's a very good plan that I put together."

"Yeah, except for the part where you're saying we're going to steal from Näkijä!"

"We're just going to borrow it," Willow said airily. How, precisely, could she be so casual about such an incredibly stupid idea? Gus was even starting to wonder if it was Willow who was the changeling, and accusing Luz to throw everyone off the scent.

Emma leaned forward. "Näkijä's the minotaur lady who teaches the oracle class, right? She seems pretty hardcore. Also, she can, like, see the future, right? So…how exactly are we going to steal from her?"

"Näkijä isn't just a teacher," Gus informed her, but while pointedly looking at Willow to emphasize that the comments were truly directed at her. "She's the most powerful oracle witch in existence. She's been at Hexside for 477 years. She's invented half the oracle spells out there. Hell, she created the Orb of Revelation. If Willow thinks we can sneak under her nose, then she's got another thing coming."

Viney raised a hand. "How about we just ask her? Because I'm really not looking forward to being expelled, and everyone says she's reasonable. Scary beyond all reason, but reasonable."

Willow looked as if the concept of just asking Näkijä politely wasn't computing for her. "She could be compromised too, for all we know! Someone as powerful as her surely should have noticed a shapeshifter impersonating one of her students!"

Emma looked horrified. Not at the insinuation, but at the fact that Willow's paranoia was devouring her. And that, Gus realized, was the reason why they had to participate in the heist regardless of the danger. If it was the only way to get Willow the help she needed, then that's what had to be done. Moreover, if Willow had been mentally compromised somehow, Näkijä would know how to fix it. Surely she'd forgive them for stealing from her if she knew Willow wasn't in her right mind, especially if they returned the orb.

Sure. And maybe Gus would go to the Human Realm and lay waste to the giraffes like he always dreamed of doing.

But right now, he lived in the real world, and he knew that he'd have to handle Willow very carefully. If Boscha learned that she was having a mental breakdown, the consequences could be cataclysmic. There was no telling what that vile bully would do to her favorite punching bag. Gus had lost count of the times when Boscha had dragged Willow away to "teach her a lesson," only for Willow to return later with her clothes disheveled, suspicious marks on her neck that she tried her best to hide, and a dazed look on her face. Titan, how he hated Boscha, and the feeling was very mutual.

"I'd honestly like to run these plans by Edmond," Emma said slowly. "He's the more tactically inclined of the two of us."

"No!" Willow shouted so loud that people on the other side of the room could no doubt hear her. Thankfully, Boscha and her friends appeared to be somewhere else. "No," she said more quietly. "The changeling has corrupted him. He's on her side, and that means he can't be trusted. Think about it, Emma. Is it really normal for him to have a high opinion of your sister's girlfriends?"

"No," Emma admitted. "But that doesn't mean anything."

Gus went over the detailed list that Willow had constructed. He didn't like how detailed it was. If Gus was running a heist against a powerful oracle witch, he'd improvise everything. He'd be as random as possible, so that Näkijä wouldn't be able to get a clear handle on what was coming. Hell, for all Gus knew, Näkijä already knew that they were going to strike.

It was, to be fair to Willow, a fairly good plan on the surface. Näkijä was going to another city for a conference on oracle magic. When she was gone, the four of them would break into her chambers and take the Orb of Revelation. They'd use it on Luz, kill her if she was a shapeshifter (Gus couldn't help but wonder if Willow would try to kill her even if she wasn't), and have it back before Näkijä returned. With any luck, she wouldn't even know that it was gone.

Gus did not feel especially lucky.

For a few moments, he thought about going straight to Näkijä and warning her about the heist, maybe even trying to persuade her to let them use the orb regardless. He did not believe for a second that she was mentally compromised. If something could mentally compromise Näkijä, it wouldn't be wasting its time on impersonating Luz.

But he decided not to for two reasons. First and foremost, he was seriously worried about how Willow would react. She might see it as an act of betrayal and turn against him, and he had to keep her trust to convince her that she needed help. Second, he didn't want to get anyone into trouble if he could avoid it, especially Emma. She had grown up in a barbarous land where people burned witches at the stake, and she was having trouble adjusting to the Boiling Isles. The last thing she needed was to be sent to detention.

"Okay, Willow," Gus said finally. "We'll play it your way. But don't blame me if this blows up in all our faces. Emma, Viney, are you in?"

Viney shook her head. "Sorry, but I'm not risking getting into trouble over this. I won't rat you out, but I won't help you either." Willow looked infuriated with her over this, but she didn't bother arguing.

Emma was silent for a few seconds. "This world is so strange and confusing to me. I don't like it at all, sorry. I like you, Viney," she hastened to add, "but as for the rest of it, not really. I don't know what's possible here and what's not. If there's a small chance that you're right, Willow, then we have to take a risk and do it. But I will not hesitate to pile all the blame on your head if things go wrong." Willow cracked a small smile at this last line, which Gus saw as an encouraging sign. It had been a while since Willow had smiled.

She likely would not be smiling if she learned that later that afternoon, Gus went over to the Owl House. Willow's paranoia was getting to the point where he was seriously worried about Luz's safety around her. She had to be warned. Gus just hoped that Willow wouldn't find out.

But when he went inside, he was dismayed to find that Luz wasn't home. She was at the library, helping Steve build the portal. Gus secretly and sometimes not so secretly hoped that he'd be able to use the portal himself once it was built. He knew that this wasn't going to happen – Eda had never let him use her old portal, because it was too dangerous in the Human Realm. But a boy could still dream.

Eda, however, was home. Ordinarily, he would be quizzing her about details of her visits to the Human Realm, but he had more important things to do. Bigger fish to fly, as the humans put it. And Eda was the most powerful witch in the Boiling Isles, right? Surely she must know what might be influencing Willow.

When he explained what was going on to her, she looked contemplative. "You know, she's not the only person who's thought Luz has been acting strangely," Eda said. "Eddie thought she was acting strange on Bring Your Child to Work Day." That had been weird, Gus had to concede, but it still wasn't exactly a smoking gnu either. "But my best guess is still that puberty's doing a number on Luz. Her witch hormones and her human ones are probably, like, battling each other or something. I don't know. I'm not good with science shift."

"What about Willow?" Gus asked, the words sounding more desperate than he had meant for them to come out.

Eda shrugged. "Maybe she was exposed to something that affected her mental state. Maybe a plant with some sort of psychedelic properties? I know that stuffy old Bump wouldn't let any of those plants into the school." She made a face. "But maybe she's been experimenting? Look, if this gets worse, you're going to need to tell her dads."

"Could you?" Gus asked.

Eda nodded. "Not a half bad idea, actually. Yeah, somebody needs to tell them, and they'd take it more seriously coming from an adult." A huge grin formed on her face. "I can't believe you guys are going to rob Näkijä! Not even I did that back in my day! I could have, of course. I could do anything. I just didn't bother because what would be the point, right?"

Gus couldn't help but grin back at her. He liked Eda a lot. She always treated him with respect, not as a child who needed to be babied. Or, maybe more precisely, she treated him with the same lack of respect that she treated absolutely everyone. "Thanks for your help, Eda. I really appreciate it."

"Anything for my daughter's friend," Eda said, and made that finger gun gesture that she was so fond of.

According to Luz's complaints at lunch the next day, Näkijä's substitute was absolutely dreadful. He even made a fuss over Luz's disability accommodations, which hardly any substitute, much less teacher, did these days, so famous was Bump's wrath towards those who didn't honor them. It made Gus's blood boil. What sort of a monster would look down on Luz just because she hadn't been born with a bile sac? It wasn't as if it was anywhere close to her fault!

Actually, Luz had been getting along much better with Näkijä. It was even rumored that the two of them were on a first name basis, and Gus couldn't remember Näkijä being on a first name basis with anyone. Though, admittedly, it was unclear if this was because Näkijä didn't like the idea, or everyone was just too intimidated by her to ask for it. Still, either way, it was impressive that Luz had gotten either the courage to ask Näkijä or enough respect from Näkijä to believe that she warranted it. Willow, of course, privately saw this as just more proof that Näkijä was mentally compromised.

Well, the Orb of Revelation would soon be in their hands, and then Luz's true nature (which Gus was absolutely certain was totally benign) would be revealed. Surely Willow would realize she was delusional once the Orb of Revelation didn't give her the answers she wanted. Right?

Emma rendezvoused with them after school. She was in the healing track to be closer to her girlfriend, so they didn't see each other very much during the school day. Ordinarily, Gus would try to press Emma to go into the beast keeping track, which she had an obvious aptitude for, but he supposed since she was going back to the Human Realm anyway, it wouldn't make any difference.

"Thanks for helping with this, Emma," Willow said. "I really, really appreciate it."

"Well, my sister's had a tough time of things," Emma mused. "I mean, first her whole worldview implodes, then she has to get married to that horrid bully." Willow's face twitched. "She's already had one imposter steal her girlfriend. If another one is her girlfriend…I don't know what she'll do. But Willow, I want you to promise me that if the orb doesn't show what you think it will, you're going to seek help."

Willow scowled at her, but nodded. "I promise. But it will show me what I want to see. I'm not crazy! Viney said as much!"

Gus put up his hands. He didn't want her to get too out of control. "Let's find the orb so you can prove it, because, honestly, Willow, you're not helping your case by shouting."

Without another word, he strode towards the wing containing the teachers' offices. According to the lessons Eda had given him in the past on successful heisting, the trick to getting around restricted areas without being caught was to act like you had every right to be there. Most people didn't know their peers well enough to dispute it. So Gus used an illusion to make himself look like Näkijä's substitute. Hey, if he didn't want to be impersonated, he shouldn't have tried to deny Luz her rightful accommodations. Maybe if Gus was lucky, the substitute would be blamed for stealing the Orb of Revelation.

Emma and Willow walked behind him, pretending to be just ordinary students being brought to their teacher's office for…academic reasons, ones that Gus hadn't actually thought through. Well, Emma seemed to be able to improvise well. Hopefully, no one would know that they weren't in the oracle track or they were sunk.

Gus stepped through the door and he was in the Human Realm with a longsword in his hands. Effortlessly sidestepping a spell that could have turned his entire skeleton to jelly, Gus charged at the giraffe with abandon. No longer was he the runt he used to be. He was tall, muscular, and strong, a warrior that everyone was proud of. He was respected, beloved by all. The Human and Demon Realms both knew the name Gus Porter. He was one of their greatest heroes after all.

The giraffe made a spell circle with a hoof and his target's head came off. Only for him to realize that it wasn't Gus at all, merely an illusion of him. Gus could do illusions effortlessly now. He was the most powerful illusionist who had ever lived. Who would ever live. Nothing was a match for him.

"This is how it's done!" he called out to the adoring crowd of humans, and then, with a leap that seemed to defy physics, he beheaded the giraffe in one swift stroke. A tremendous cheer emerged from the crowd, as their hero finally killed the last of the accursed giraffes, just minutes before their plan to reestablish the Camelopardine Empire could take effect.

He spotted Willow and he hurried over to her and she slapped him across the face.

Gus couldn't help but feel betrayed. His best friend had hit him? Why? Because she was some weird environmentalist type who thought the giraffes deserved a second chance?

"Snap out of it, Gus!" Willow called out, and Gus looked at her closer. Hang on. She was younger than he would have expected. After all, Gus was now…how old was he again?

He grabbed his head. He had a huge, gigantic headache. "I got whammied, didn't I?" He blinked a couple of times. He was in Näkijä's office, back in the real world. He wasn't a hero. He was just a kid, on his way to do something phenomenally stupid, and on his way there, he'd stepped on a trap, a set of runes that had activated a spell, trapping him in his most desired reality.

"Don't feel too bad," Willow said. "It got me too. Emma got out first."

"What did you see?" Emma asked Willow. "I saw myself as the valedictorian of my high school, with Ed relegated to the role of salutatorian." She gave a gleeful smile at that. Gus had no idea what those unfamiliar words meant, but they must have been a good thing if Emma had wanted it more than anything.

Willow stiffened at Emma's question. "I don't want to talk about it." Fair enough, Gus supposed. He wasn't eager to talk about his embarrassing fantasy of being a giraffe-slaying warrior with rippling muscles.

Willow stepped forward and opened up a drawer of Näkijä's desk. Inside it was the Orb of Revelation. She reached towards it, then hesitated. "You know…this seems really silly now that I think about it," she said, in a slightly dazed tone.

Yes! That was exactly what Gus wanted to hear right now. "You don't know how happy I am to hear you say that," Gus said. "Let's get out of here. We'll get you checked out fully, and I'll help you in any way I can."

Willow nodded slowly, looking disoriented and out of it. She closed the drawer and then an angry look came on her face. "Wait a second, what am I doing?! I have a responsibility to protect my best friend!" She opened the drawer again, and then she looked disoriented. "On the other hand, I don't want to get in trouble…"

"Ooh!" Emma said. "I think the drawer might be trapped with a spell. I read this one book where a really powerful object was protected with an enchantment that sapped the thief's will to steal it. No matter what he did, he wouldn't want to steal the Book of Names when he was right in front of it."

Willow scowled. "Well, if it's a proximity based spell, then I know how to handle that." She went over to the far side of the room and summoned a thick set of vines that enveloped the orb in a cocoon, allowing it to be transported to Willow without breaking. "Bingo."

"Mischief managed!" Emma shouted and gave a high five to Gus.

"Not quite," Näkijä said, as she stepped out from behind one of her office curtains. Gus let out a somewhat hysterical laugh. Of course she'd known the whole time. The whole "going to a conference" thing had probably been a ruse to lull them into a sense of complacency.

Willow held the orb high in the air. "I'll smash it if you don't let us go!"

Näkijä snapped her fingers and the orb exploded in a shower of shards. With another snap of her fingers, she dispelled Gus's illusion. "How dare you break into my office?!" she screamed at them at the top of her lungs. "Were you not children, I would kill you all where you stood!"

Gus looked down at the floor. "I'm sorry, Näkijä."

"I'm not," Willow snarled. "I need the Orb of Revelation! Luz has been replaced by an imposter, and everyone thinks I'm crazy! It's the only way I can prove it! Repair it now!"

Näkijä looked incredulous that Willow was daring to give her orders. "Miss Park, I do not care about your reasons for committing larceny. It will not matter when all three of you are in the Conformatorium for attempted theft." She grabbed a crow, and then there was suddenly a knife in Willow's hand. Gus took a step backwards in shock. He had no idea where she had gotten the knife from.

Willow held the knife to her own throat, looking utterly determined. "Help me expose her. Or else."

"What the giraffe are you doing, Willow?!" Gus demanded. "This isn't right! Luz isn't a changeling, and you're out of control!"

Näkijä was silent for a few moments, doubtlessly calculating possible futures. "The orb I destroyed was a decoy. You want the orb? You can have it, under one condition – you must use it on yourself first."

"Fine," Willow said impatiently. "Give it to me!"

Näkijä summoned the real Orb of Revelation. It was immediately apparent that it was the real thing instead of the cheap fake that had been in the desk drawer. Rather than just staying one pattern, the patterns in the orb constantly changed. Willow looked into the orb, obviously not expecting something to happen. The patterns in the orb vanished and it turned transparent, like a regular crystal ball.

Gus felt himself, his consciousness being pulled inside. In the blink of an eye, he was looking through Willow's memories. It was a few weeks before Luz had broken up with Avery, and Boscha had pulled Willow away for one of her customary "lessons." Gus knew this part already; he had watched it through his own eyes.

Gus steeled himself for the torment that Willow was about to endure at Boscha's hands, but something far more terrifying happened. He watched helplessly as Boscha kissed Willow…and Willow kissed Boscha back.

And she liked it. Gus knew it in his bones. She wasn't ensorcelled. Willow was having an affair with a horrible loathsome bully, and doing it of her own free will. The marks on her neck weren't torture marks – they were hickeys!

Willow had betrayed him. She'd been betraying him for goodness knows how long. She chose to be involved with Boscha. She had a chance to stop Boscha's bullying once and for all, and she didn't. His best friend had been plotting against him, and he was too blind to see it. The Orb of Revelation had shown her true nature, all right. It was just not a good one.

"I'm so sorry, Gus," Willow said, her voice cracking with emotion. "I wanted to tell you. She's not a bad person. Her mother was abusing her. She needed me."

"I needed you!" Gus screamed at her, not caring how loud he was being. "Boscha bullied me and Luz and Avery, and you just let it happen! You lied to us all! There were nights I cried myself to sleep because Boscha called me a useless failure who would never amount to anything and so many worse things! I nearly lost my arm after she stuffed me into a locker!"

Willow started crying. "I love her! I know she's done bad things, but she had to do it or her mother would hurt her!"

"That's a lie," Gus shot back. "You're making excuses for her. You stabbed me in the back. You know what? I don't care if Luz is a changeling. Even if she was, she'd still be a better friend than you are."

Emma grabbed the orb out of Willow's unresisting hands and gave it back to Näkijä. "This was a mistake. Willow, you need to talk to someone. Someone who's not me. I'm out of here."

Näkijä nodded at her. "You are lucky that circumstances mandate that I keep this matter quiet. If this occurs a second time, I will be speaking to your mother." Emma gulped and then scurried away. "The same goes to you and your father, Mr. Porter."

"Gus…" Willow said, her voice frantic. Pleading. Begging. A good person would have reconsidered, Gus knew. He would have stuck by his friend through thick and thin.

Gus walked away.

He didn't bother looking back.

Instead, his footsteps led him to the Owl House. Hooty knew to let him in no matter what. Willow wasn't his friend anymore, but Luz still was, and she needed to be warned. If Willow was their enemy now, then they'd need all their wits about them.

He found Luz doing homework in her room, looking very frustrated. Gus could sympathize. There was nothing illusory about the amount of homework he had to do in his classes every day. Luz, bless her nonexistent bile sac, could tell that something was wrong instantly upon seeing his expression. Gus spilled everything that had happened, complete with his declarations of his newfound undying hatred for Willow and Boscha.

"I can't forgive her," Gus said finally. "Maybe you can. You're a better person than I am. I've always admired that about you. But I can't forgive her."

Luz was silent for a very long time. "Gus…she's right."

Gus rolled his eyes. "Oh, come on! Look, I'll accept that Boscha's mom is awful, and even that she's been abusing her. But Willow let Boscha bully you too!"

Luz took a deep breath. "No, Gus. She's right about me not being the real Luz."

Gus's feet felt unsteady and he took a seat in a chair because he was worried that he might fall down. "What do you mean?"

Luz told him her story, about how she was from another dimension and from the future, how she'd been sent there by a fae queen with a mission to woo the Amity of this dimension, how the constant stress of lying to her friends and relatives was driving her nearly insane. Gus believed her. He believed it all. He just had to look at her to know that she was telling the truth.

"Well?" Luz asked, her voice small.

"I can't believe it," Gus whispered, and Luz's face fell. "My best friend is a human now! That's the coolest thing ever!"

Luz let out a surprised gasp, a huge smile on her face. "So…you don't mind? You really believe me?"

"I do," Gus assured her. "And, Luz, I'm going to do whatever I can to help you. I know you kept it secret from me, but it's not the same thing as Willow's secret. She was wrong to keep it. You weren't." He meant it too. Luz may have been replaced by a variant of herself, but she was still fundamentally Luz at the core. He grabbed her hand. "I'm honored by your trust, Luz."

Gus made his face serious. "However, before we go any further, there's an important question I need to ask you." Luz nodded. "Do vampires in the Human Realm sparkle in the daylight?" Luz burst into hysterical laughter and didn't stop laughing for a full ten minutes.

No one had any respect for comparative anthropology these days, that was the problem with the world.