All right everyone! It's about time we got back into the swing of things. Welcome to the "Season 1 finale" of All For Luz! Thank you all for your support on my first TOH fanfic. I'm sorry for the long wait, but I had some other things I had to do. Now that I'm free, you bet I'm going to make up for my absence!

Also, I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas, or holiday if you don't celebrate Christmas. It's 2023, so let's start this year off right with a bang! This chapter is going to be a bit long-winded, so buckle up. You guys are in for a treat! That being said, let's get into…

[Season 1 Finale – Betrayed and Alone]

When Luz opened her eyes, she found herself in a deep, dark void; one that she had become somewhat accustomed to, though equally perturbed by. Clutching her forehead, she looked at her surroundings and saw what looked to be rows upon rows of never-ending cages, all with some misshapen blackish figure in each of them.

The figures within the cages made no noises, nor made any real attempt to communicate with anyone or each other. They simply sat in the cages, peering out from the bars, their misshapen hands gripping the frames of the cells as their deep, soulless white eyes were all trained on her, and her alone. Luz felt a little bit uncomfortable, all things considered. You would be a bit uncomfortable, too, if blob monsters were staring you down as if you were the anti-christ, but that was neither here nor there.

Another change she noticed was the red carpet, and the wooden floor now underneath the chairs that sat by the fireplace. It seemed that the more Powers she stole, the better this place got. That… was a bit weird, but that must've symbolized something, right? Whatever the case might've been, Luz would not be stupid enough to believe that to not be the case.

Off in the distance, sitting where he always did, was Shigaraki. He sat contemplatively in his chair, humming about something with his hands clasped together. He looked deep in thought. Almost like he was mulling something over. That was a bit unnerving. She got to thinking that letting that man think for too long was a bad idea. After a few moments, he noticed her, then sat up straight, hands on his legs as he spoke, a wide smile on his face.

"Ah, Luz. I'm glad you're here. For a moment I was worried about you… The blowback from All For One was able to nearly rip you in half. I'm glad you survived," Shigaraki said, his tone genuine, though Luz could practically hear the forced smile on his face. And then, just as quickly as it came, it left as Shigaraki adopted a more serious expression and tone. "We need to talk."

And Luz agreed with that, standing up while walking toward the chair. When she sat down, she faced Shigaraki with a completely blank expression, and before he spoke, she did instead. "What happened in that forest… I do NOT want to talk about it," Luz stated, narrowing her eyes as Shigaraki raised an eyebrow.

"Which part? The part where you took those kids' Quirks after killing them, or, the part where you nearly blew yourself up?" Shigaraki asked as the teen looked away, bouncing her knee up and down impatiently as her eyes glanced over to the fire.

"The power-stealing part. And… I… I know I killed those people…. I barely remember most of it… but, I couldn't help myself. I was… was just… so….!" Luz stopped herself from drilling her nails into the palms of her hands in rage, as Shigaraki nodded.

"I understand, truly, I do," Shigaraki said. "To see all those you care about dead… any rationally thinking human being is going to want to take revenge by any means necessary. And you did just that. Although, you did spare one individual, Emilia Warstoch, if I remember correctly. Her Quirk wouldn't really have been all that helpful, so no harm no foul, I suppose."

Luz didn't know what to say to that. Of course, there was the obvious bait, which she had learned not to take because that would get him ranting and wasting the time they had in the void to talk about the real important things.

However, there was the other part. The part with her sparing Emilia. 1 person was spared out of 20 others killed. What kind of difference did that make? Not a big one, that's for sure. 20 people, 20 kids were never going to see their parents thanks to her. 20 kids were never going to grow older because of her, and 20 kids would never fully realize their potential because of her. She took their powers and killed them without a single shred of remorse.

What she did… she knew it was awful… it was vile. At that point, she was no better than the person who put them there. She had done what The Governor probably wanted to happen. All Luz did at that moment was make The Governor's job just that much easier. Sure, from what she knew, he was in military custody. But how far was that actually going to go? Chances were that he was going to be acquitted of all of his charges, and return to his job, and it would all be swept under the rug, and be played off as a rumour that never happened.

And she only helped him by killing those kids. Those people.

So if what she did was bad… why didn't she feel bad about doing it? She committed a crime, one of the worst kinds, murder, and she felt nothing for doing it.

Even now, even when she tried to feel bad for what she did, it was hardly working. No matter how much she tried to beat herself up for it, because realistically what she did was a heinous, horrendous crime, she found herself unable to care about it. She found it difficult to look back at what she did and condemn it.

And what was worse… was that she found herself justifying it.

While those kids were just that… kids, they also went out of their way to kill and torture her friends who also would never get to see their parents, loved ones, and friends ever again. A dark, twisted side of her told her that was a fair trade, while the side of her that she always got her morals from told her that human life, no matter how vile, was precious and that doing what she did was wrong. However, it was that moralistic side that was far quieter, than the side that told her that what she did was fair.

And that scared her. That scared her a lot. It was wrong to think that way, everyone knew that. Everyone with common sense knew that. So why didn't she think like that? She used to think like that, but now… it was different. Now… she genuinely found herself not caring about having killed 20 other people. And what was even worse, was that she found herself agreeing with Shigaraki.

"Yeah, I guess…" Luz replied, reluctantly agreeing with Shigaraki, who hummed with a vague sense of approval. Luz felt a sense of shame when she heard that tone, but even so, there was nothing that she could do about it. At least, that was how she felt.

"Now, let's get to the crux of the issue. The reason why you're in here in the first place," Shigaraki started as he looked at Luz with a serious expression. "As of right now, Luz Noceda. Your current body cannot handle the number of Quirks you have taken up within your body. I realize I should've said this sooner, however, I did not think that things would've escalated so quickly. As a result, your body is going to need to… upgrade itself, if you're to be able to utilize All For One, and stay alive for much longer," Shigaraki concluded as Luz rose an eyebrow.

"What do you mean… upgrade itself?" Luz questioned as Shigaraki closed his eyes. A wave of nostalgia seemed to flow through the man's face, before his expression hardened, and his eyes opened, and suddenly, he looked way older than he had any right to appear as. His eyes no longer carried that youthful gleam, but rather, they seemed to reflect a hundreds-year-old entity.

"There are several ways for your body to upgrade itself. For starters, there's working out—becoming healthier and gaining muscle and strengthening your body. For most of my life that's exactly what I did. Every day for 20 years I'd push my body to the absolute maximum so that I could contain and manage all the Quirks that I had. Of course, at one point, that no longer did the trick, and I moved to more… illicit options, but that's beside the point," Shigaraki explained, leaning back into his chair. "For you, I'd suggest doing the same thing. Strengthen your body before you end up imploding again. You're lucky for the Regeneration Quirks you have because otherwise, you would've died right then and there."

A phantom pain washed over Luz as she curled into herself, eyes widening as the image of the diagonal line bursting across her chest and abdomen played out. There was so much blood…. It was disturbing at just how that much blood had come out of her. What's more, was that she still managed to survive after the fact. That was going to leave one nasty-looking scar. However, there was one question lingering in her mind. One that she needed an answer to before this conversation continued.

"What… exactly is my current limit?" Luz asked as Shigaraki raised an eyebrow.

"Your current limit? Hmm… judging by the strength of your body, and the visceral reaction you had when you tried to use as many powers as you did at once…. I'd say your current limit is only 10, and that's pushing it. It's the default limit to what All For One can stand in a regular person's body. Anything passed that is dangerous. Right now you have 28 powers swimming throughout your body right now, meaning, to keep yourself from killing yourself accidentally, you should dump one or three powers on some other people, even if they die from brain death," Shigaraki stated, crossing his arms. "Until then, you shouldn't activate any of the Quirks you have, otherwise you could cause an implosion, and one of these times, it just might be your brain and head that blow up rather than your torso," Shigaraki warned, crossing his arms as Luz paled.

"Only 10?! You sound disappointed! 10 is a lot, isn't it?" Luz asked as Shigaraki deadpanned.

"Kid… at my prime, before my nemesis killed me, I had over 1,000 Quirks flowing through my body, with another 1,000 deposited in a mountain of corpses that I could pull from at any moment and time. 10 is a drop in an ocean of uselessness," Shigaraki stated, crossing his arms before sighing. "That being said, for you, 10 would be a lot. You can do a lot with 10 Quirks. It depends on which Quirks you have. If I were to recommend 10 to keep, I'd say Longevity and Super Regeneration are a must-have. Those Quirks are rare, and it might be a long, long time before someone shows up with those Quirks," Shigaraki explained.

Luz raised an eyebrow. "Rare? There's such a thing as Rare Powers?" The Dominican teen asked the old Japanese man, who smirked.

"Yes. All For One is considered a rare Quirk. No… beyond that. It's the kind of Quirk that exists as a failsafe for the universe. Wherever Quirks are birthed, an All For One is there for a safety measure. Although…." A frown filled the old man's expression. "It is never alone."

Luz felt a chill run down her spine as he said that, instinctively looking over her shoulder. She didn't know why, but she did. "Uh… what does that mean?" Luz asked as Shigaraki's frown deepened.

"I… might have lied about something. All For One…. It isn't a holy unique Quirk. It can be copied with the right tools, and there is more than one of them in the multiverse, but usually in inferior formats. There have been previous users of the Quirk that weren't me, such as No. 6, and another human experiment I was working on named No. 9, or Nine, but they could only hold a limited amount of Quirks at a time, 6 and 9 respectfully. I was never fully able to copy the damn thing to ensure my legacy, however, my statement does somewhat ring true. The original All For One cannot be replicated. At least, not to my knowledge. However, that was not what I was getting at," Shigaraki stated as he stood up from his chair.

Shigaraki was tall, easily 6 feet tall, and cut an imposing figure. Luz stood up as well, feeling like a dwarf in his presence. The man nodded, gesturing for her to follow him. The two walked through the void-like expanse for what seemed like hours. After a moment, the man stopped and stood in front of what appeared to be a pedestal. It looked like one designed by the Greeks, and underneath it was a name.

One For All

Luz blinked, staring at the pedestal with a confused expression. "What… is this?" Luz asked as Shigaraki sighed.

"This is where One For All would be…. If I had it…." Shigaraki said, growling the last part through a clenched jaw. The walls and floor around them rippled, almost like the mind space was reacting to Shigaraki's seemed anger. It made Luz tense for a second, but only a second, as it calmed down as fast as it happened. Luz was ready to move on, but Shigaraki, on the other hand, continued after the fact about the same topic.

"I found it peculiar that it wasn't here when I died, but I supposed it makes sense. One For All is back in my universe. However…. All For One still hungers for it, as do I, which means that the Quirk itself is aware that One For All exists, and it can be reached, otherwise, this unending hunger for the Quirk would've ended when I died, and it passed on to you, Luz. Unfortunately, there is no real way to get there…." Shigaraki said, before pausing, cupping his chin as a small smile appeared on his face. "Well, not totally. There is one way, but… getting there is the issue," Shigaraki mused as Luz tilted her head with a confused gleam in her eyes.

"What… are you talking about?" Luz asked as Shigaraki's eyes widened for a second, before turning to Luz.

"Ah, I was thinking out loud. Oh well… I might as well "spill the tea" as the youth has come accustomed to saying," Shigaraki said as Luz cringed. The old man sighed, shaking his head. "Good… I'm glad you thought the same thing, I will never say that sentence again," Shigaraki stated as he cleared his throat. "You see, there exists a… bridge, you could call it. A dimension between various "human realms" if you will. You can never predict what portal to what "human realm" can be opened at a time, and it is far too finicky. Sometimes it can be your world, other times, it can be another one. The only reason why I knew of it is that I happened upon a portal one time, and, suffice to say, curiosity had gotten the better of me. I was only there for a moment, but the variety of creatures and powers I saw there… was outstanding."

Luz blinked a few times, tilting her head with a confused gleam in her eyes. "Uh… what are you talking about? That sounds… unbelievable, even with the state of the world right now, parallel worlds seem kind of… stupid?"

Shigaraki blinked, before looking at Luz with a disappointed expression. "You mean to tell me that you're willing to accept the idea of a multiverse, but parallel worlds in your own dimension is… stupid?" Shigaraki asked as Luz looked away.

"Okay… now that you put it like that… maybe that did sound kind of dumb," Luz muttered, causing Shigaraki to snort, as he continued his explanation.

"That is beside the point, Luz. However, this does present a goal for you, should you choose to go after it. I do not know much about this dimension between dimensions, but should you happen upon a portal, go through it. It should take you there. Once you are there, I want you to explore, and document everything you find. Leave no rock unturned, leave no person untalked to, and leave no law unread. I wish to know more about this place. In turn, I can give tips as to how you should use All For One, should you find yourself needing guidance," Shigaraki said as Luz looked over to the rows and rows of cages

The amorphous blobs that were the remnants of the people she killed seemed to moan and groan in agony. It made Luz feel uncomfortable. Some even reached out to her, almost like they were begging her to free them. The more she stared, the more guilt she felt. And then, she felt a hand on her shoulder. Looking up, she saw Shigaraki, who was looking at them as well.

"You shouldn't feel bad about what you did. You were not in the wrong. You did what had to be done, no matter what anybody tells you. Those who wronged you deserved their fate, as does anyone else who has wronged you in the past. Keep this in mind as you continue your journey. The world is yours, Luz Noceda. You are the chosen one, after all. The universe blessed you with All For One, and as such, you should use it for its intended purpose," Shigaraki said, as Luz looked away from the man.

"And… what exactly is that purpose…?" Luz asked as Shigaraki smirked.

"Its purpose, Luz, depends on what you think it is. For me, it was World Domination. For you… it could be whatever you desire. What does your heart tell you, Luz? What does your mind tell you? I cannot tell you what you want. I can only suggest. It is up to you to take up those suggestions or ignore them. After all, I am not in control here. I am merely a passenger," Shigaraki said, as the world around them began to crumble. "Ah…. It seems as if your body is waking up. That means our time has been cut short, Luz. I look forward to our next discussion…."

And with that, Luz Noceda began to hear a small, tiny little voice in the back of her head, calling out her name. When her eyes opened again, she saw several doctors and surgeons, as well as her mother, holding her hand with wide and concerned eyes. At that moment, a small twinge of anger roared over her, staring at the person who had dumped her into that horrible situation.

But then, she calmed…. She wouldn't be angry at her. Oh, she could hate her, but she couldn't be angry at her. Her mother most definitely did not know about what happened at that place. If she was going to explain everything to her, it was going to be in a calm, and flat tone of voice. She was not going to lash out in rage.

Her mom did not deserve that.

"Oh my god, Mija, are you alright?! I-I saw them bring you in on a stretcher, a-and, and! Y-You were covered in blood, and I—"

"M-Mom…" Luz rasped, coughing as she lurched, pain shooting throughout her body as she reclined back into the bed. An idea came to her, and so, she acted upon it. She reached her hand out to her mother's head and selected Repair. Her mother was a vet doctor, so she decided to give her that power. She wasn't ever going to use it, but she knew her mama would.

After all, she needed to start getting rid of her extra powers. Why not start with an easy one right off the bat?

She pressed her hand to her mom's head, black sparks jetting off of her arm and dancing over to Camila. When they connected, she transferred Repair over to her mother, and once it did, Camila yelped in pain, as Luz's hand drooped back to her side. "I… Hope you like it…" Luz rasped again, coughing as the doctor to her right made her bed sit her up using its rising feature.

Camila looked at Luz with a confused gleam in her eyes. "Mija… what did you do?"

Luz smiled, before speaking in Spanish, so that only her mother would understand what it was that she had said. "Te di poder, mama," Luz said as her mother's eyes widened. "That's what I can do, mama. That's what my power is…." Luz coughed, specks of blood splattering on the blankets of the hospital bed. "Mierda… Ow, eso dolio…"

"Ms. Noceda, and, young Noceda… I'll explain to you what happened. But… it won't be pretty…." One of the doctors said, a clipboard in his hand. He was wearing all kinds of medical clothing, a mask, a hair cap, goggles, gloves, a blue button-up coat, and overtop of that was a white doctor's jacket. Luz assumed that the only reason why her mom was in the room with her was that she was probably fully sanitized before coming in.

"We have no idea what could've caused it, Ms. Noceda, but when your daughter was transferred over, her entire upper body had… well, had practically been hanging on by a few threads of muscle fibre and skin. How she was able to survive with her heart being nearly bisected is beyond me, but with all these superpowers awakening, it must have something to do with that. The surgery was complex, mostly because young Noceda's body was… healing itself, working overtime to do so. Luckily, it seemed to know what we were doing and avoided getting in our way. We have no idea how this was happening, but all indicators once again point to the fact that it has something to do with the fact that your daughter is superhuman."

Her mom covered her mouth, eyes wide and watery as the doctor then narrowed his eyes, looking away from his clipboard, and spoke in a very matter-of-fact tone. "By all accounts, Ms. Noceda. Your daughter should be dead. There is no earthly way that she should've survived it. Now, I'm no particular believer in God, but… what happened was a miracle. Normally, once this is all said and done, we'd charge you a bill, then send you on the way, but with all of what's been going on, we won't do that. Well, charge you, that is."

Luz frowned in thought. She… should've died? Now she understood why Shigaraki wanted her to keep Super Regeneration. If she didn't have that, she would've been dead, and being dead was…. Well, it most certainly wasn't a good thing.

For a brief second, images of the corpses in the forest clouded her eyes, the vile, smiling face of the governor, Julia's headless body—all of it flashed before her eyes, making her eyes widen, and her breath to be caught in her throat. Suddenly, the heart monitor started to peak, and the doctors panicked. Her mother stood up, as the doctors rushed her out of the room. Luz started breathing faster, and the doctors suddenly realized that she was having a panic attack.

"Mija! Mija!"

"Ma'am, leave, now! Can someone get me a breathing mask!"

And suddenly, things went dark.

xxXXxxXXxx

Camila sat in the waiting room, as one of the doctors came out—Dr. Rodriquez. He was tan-skinned, had short black hair, brown eyes, and the starting of a beard. He was rather tall and athletically built, and he had a burn scar on his left hand. He dressed in the usual doctor's attire, which wasn't too surprising. "Ma'am," his accented voice rumbled, as Camila looked up from the floor.

"Is my daughter alright?" Camila asked. A few hours went by, so she had to ask. In response to this, the Doctor hummed.

"We've done some tests. The healing is going smoothly. Medically speaking, she's fine. Mentally… not so much," Dr. Rodriquez said, crossing his arms. "I'll explain what happened. At least, according to the military officials that found your daughter."

"Military?" Camila thought, frowning. "Why would the military be finding my daughter? I sent her to a summer camp, the military should not have been there," Camila stated, her tone flat, as the doctor sighed.

"Well, I don't suppose you read the news, and this is related, but Governor Rodger Maxwell was arrested by the Military for, and I quote: Human Trafficking, Child Trafficking, Serial Murder, Domestic Terrorism, Endangerment of Children, first-degree manslaughter, Kidnapping, Money Laundering, Emblezment, Fraud, and the list goes on for a country mile, so to save myself from reading a literal novel worth of crimes, I'll cut it short there," Dr. Rodriquez began, as he leaned against the wall.

Camila was shocked. How could one person do that many things? But more importantly…. "What does this have to do with Luz and the Military?"

The doctor shrugged with one shoulder. "Most of the information is being kept down with a lock and key. My impression is that if word got out, the whole world would have a field day with America for not keeping a routine check on its Governors," Dr. Rodriquez replied, sighing. "But, what we do know, from those that survived that death camp, the Governor kidnapped 33 children, one of which was Luz, and all of which had Super Powers to some degree or another, and were forced through a murder game. I don't know the specific details, or how The Governor did it, but when the military found your daughter and arrested the bastards who went along with the Governor… well, they were pretty sure that the blood that was drenching her clothing did not belong to her. And with a corpse inches away from her feet…. Well…?"

That made Camila pale. "M-My daughter… did she r-really…?"

"Self-defence. At least, according to the camera footage that leaked online. It's going viral on places like WorldStar and Vimeo. Every upload to it on Youtube gets taken down… but the camera's caught it all. Your kid is a fucking weapon of war, no different from a super soldier, taking hits and dishing them out like it was nothing!" Dr. Rodriquez said, repressing an impressed-sounding chuckle, which did not make Camila happy in the slightest. The doctor regained his composure and frowned. "Supernatural feats aside, the event wrecked your daughter mentally. We can't say for sure, but… she's got either PTSD or ASD. She shows signs of it, and… Mio's dio, I don't blame the kid. I can only imagine what she went through there…." Dr. Rodriquez said, before clearing his throat.

"We haven't nailed it down just yet. Unfortunatly, due to her medical record, and due to the fact that the type of meds that you're supposed to give to someone with either illness Luz is allergic to, the best we can do is warn you," the doctor concluded.

Camila let out a shaky breath, her hands shaking. "Oh, my god…. Todo esto es culpa mia…."

The doctor shook his head. "Vamos, oye ahore, don't blame yourself for this. You couldn't have known. Heck, I'm pretty sure Luz doesn't blame you either," Dr. Rodriquez replied. "Just so you are aware, we'll be keeping Luz in the hospital for another few days, and if she is progressed enough in her recovery that she can live without any doctors having to be on standby, then she'll be allowed to leave."

Camila frowned… clenching her right hand into a fist. So many things were on her mind, that she didn't know what to say. Anger. Anger was definitely one of the things she was feeling. Not toward Luz, of course, she could never be angry at her, not unless she did something really bad. No. She was angry at herself.

She had pushed Luz into going to that camp. She had pushed Luz to do something she didn't like. And as if God was looking down on her, or maybe even the devil, who knew at that point, fate seemed to screw everything over.

Camila was a religious woman. Her mama was, her papa was, and therefore so was she. Luz wasn't baptized as a baby, much to her mama's chagrin, but there was a reason for it. She wanted Luz to make that choice, and not force her to go to church. Of course, when she was little, very little, she made Luz go with her to the church, at least to the playroom with all the other kids, but that was about it.

If Luz wanted to be a catholic like she had been, then she was free to do so, but she wasn't going to force Luz to be something she didn't want to be.

And so, clasping her hands together and lowering her head, she said a simple prayer, hoping that Luz would be okay and ese pedazo de mierda Governor Maxwell rotted in prison for the rest of his disgusting, miserable life. When she was done doing that, she stood up, looked over to the room that Luz was in, frowned, then started to leave. She had to go to work, but once she was done, she'd spend as much time as she could with her daughter.

She wasn't going to fail her daughter again.

Never.

Never again.

Before she left, Camila looked over at the doctor and smiled. "Gracias, Dr. Rodriquez… and, may I ask for your name?"

Dr. Rodriquez smiled. "Samual. The name's Dr. Samual Rodriquez. Have a good day, Dr. Noceda, I'll tell Luz where you went in case she wants to know." With that, Camila left the hospital and went to go catch the nearest bus to work.

xxXXxxXXxx

It had been about a week since Luz was admitted to the Gravesfield Hospital. It had only been one day since she had left the place, and she had felt like she had lifted a weight off of her shoulders, both figuratively, and literally. Why? Because she had off-loaded enough Powers at the Hospital to be back at a healthy 10. Well, it still put a bit of a strain on her, but it wasn't nearly as bad as it was when she had all 28.

The process was slow, seeing as she was still tired, but, at least now she didn't have to worry about imploding anymore, right? As a result of using her power so much, though, her hair started turning white in a few areas. It was just a few patches, nothing drastic. She had to admit, that it did look pretty cool. Colour theory ruled! Anywho, the powers that she kept were the following:

Longevity, Super Regeneration, Shock Absorption, Super Strength, Spear Fingers, Pain Nullification, Springlike Limbs, Forcefield Projection, Airwalk, and Stamina Negation. The reason why she didn't keep Vines was that if she did, then she'd be clinging to the past. Sure, it would've been nice to hang onto Julia's Power, but, even reminding herself of Julia reminded her of her fate.

The doctors had told her that she had gotten PTSD from that nightmare camp and that thinking back on traumatic moments would only make things worse. So, getting rid of Vines was one of the ways she'd help herself move past that camp. After all, that power was nothing more than an ugly reminder of what happened. Besides, she gave it to someone else. Someone who liked Spiderman.

The powers that she gave away were, at least in her mind, ones that she wasn't going to use regularly. And while Hyper Intellect was cool, when she had used it, it had stripped away her emotions, which was probably why she had felt apathetic toward what she had done. Well, actually, no, because she still did feel apathetic about it.

Realistically speaking, she just didn't want to be super smart. She wanted to be Luz. No one else. She liked how smart she already was. She didn't need to be smarter because of some power. Besides, she felt that giving that to a scientist was a better idea.

When she left the hospital. She felt… different. She felt… what was the word again? Complacent? No… not that. Something else. Something more… profound. The word was escaping her, what was it again?

Oh, right! Contemplative. For as much as she hated her time at that death camp, looking back at it, that camp… did some good, but very little. She had friends now. Friends she reconnected with at the Hospital. Of course, they had to go back to the states they lived in, but Ronny, Jean, Judy, and Stanley all said they'd keep in touch somehow. As for Emilia, she transferred to a different hospital, so she didn't know whether or not she'd get to see her again.

Whatever, it didn't matter. If she saw her again, she'd have a few choice words for her anyway.

Right now, Luz was at a funeral. Specifically, Julia's funeral. She was dressed in a black two-piece suit, with a black tie and white shirt. Why a suit and not something more girly? Well, Luz was never much of a girly girl, and she always preferred suits more to dresses. So… she got a rental suit from a tailor. It was due back on the 12th of July. It was the 10th today, the day of the funeral. So, all she'd have to do is wash it, and return it quickly thereafter.

Speaking of Julia's funeral. It was being held at her community local church, which had A. surprised her, considering she didn't think Julia had been religious, and B. confused her because she thought that Julia wasn't from Gravesfield. Maybe she lied? Whatever, it wasn't important. The funeral was a closed casket, for obvious reasons. No one wanted to see that. It was disgusting, and already being here was enough to put her in a bad mood.

The service had ended, and all Luz was doing right now was sitting in the pews, thinking to herself. She regretted leaving the base that day. Maybe she could've convinced Judy to bring Julia with them. It was a possibility. But even so, it still hurt to think about. "Don't dwindle on the past. I came here to get closure, that's all…." Luz thought, standing up from the pews.

She was about to leave the church, when she heard something that the pastor had said under his breath.

"I cannot believe that her parents didn't even show up to the funeral," The pastor said to one of the choir members. "I knew that she had been kicked out of the house, to care so little about your own child to not have the gall to show up to their funeral…. Those Wittebane's… They're a blight on our community. Always starting stuff when they don't need to… Julia was the only good one to come out of that bloodline."

"Huh?" Luz thought, turning to look at the pastor. Walking up to the pastor, who appeared to be a greying old man, she cleared her throat, catching his attention.

"Oh? Why, hello there, young lady. Say… are you the daughter of Camila Noceda?" The pastor asked as Luz smiled.

"Yeah… this is my first time here. Kinda crappy that it happens to be for a funeral, huh?" Luz replied as the pastor smiled grimly.

"Quite. Hmm… you know, you look just like Camila did when she was younger, minus the dyed parts of your hair," the pastor said as Luz sighed.

"It's… not dyed, Pastor. It's from stress…."

"Oh… Hmm, ah, you were one of the kidnapped kids, weren't you?" The pastor asked as Luz sucked in a sharp breath. The pastor nodded, not pushing the subject. "I see, my apologies for reminding you. It must've been quite traumatic."

"Yeah," Luz said, dejectedly. She needed to get to the point. "Uh… Pastor. I couldn't help but overhear that… Julia's parents didn't attend the funeral. Why?"

The Pastor sighed. "They disowned her for being… what was the word again? Lesbian? Honestly, I don't know the difference. I just wrap them under the term Gay or Queer. My old brain can't retain any more new information or terms nowadays. Oh, anyway, rumours had it that they subjected her to some rather nasty things. But those are just rumours. The only thing truthful about them, at least without solid proof, is her being disowned. Technically speaking, her name on the records was Julia Delmisso, her mother's maiden name."

Luz felt a tick of anger in the back of her head but quickly calmed herself. "I see…. But, you also said that they "try to start things?" What do you mean?" Luz questioned as The Pastor smiled.

"The Wittebane's were a family of witch hunters, during the Salem Witch Trials. You can imagine what that would mean now that supernatural powers have started showing up. They're getting all the families in Gravesfield who were once families of witch hunters together to start "hunting those who were cursed by the devil." In my personal opinion, I think it's a blessing from God. My Grandson's got one of those newfound powers, too. I can't remember what it was... Bah, it's not important," The Pastor said, before looking over to Luz. "It's almost midday. The church is closing, lass. When you go, don't forget to tell Camila I said hi. And remember, if you want, the church has its doors open. You seem like a behaved kid, which goes to show just how great of a parent Camila is. Even if you want nothing to do with God, you're always welcome. Your mother and I are good friends, you know?"

Luz smiled at that. "Thank you, Pastor…?"

"Ah, yes. You can call me Pastor Domenico. Have a good day, Luz," the old man said, as Luz made her way out of the Church. "One more thing, Luz!" Pastor Dominico called out, earning Luz's attention. "They knew…. the Governor and the Wittebane's were in constant contact, though they most likely made sure Julia knew nothing. They knew about it, his plans, the camp, all of it. Luz… I know the strength you carry. Your power even gives you Stigmata wounds in your hands. I don't know why it does, but perhaps it was a sign. And if it is…. Then…. I saw Julia as my granddaughter and those…. Those damnable bastards damned her to hell. Please, avenge Julia for me. Please?" Pastor Domenico asked.

Luz's blood boiled. Anger gleamed in her eyes, as she tried to force down the snarl that was worming its way on her face. Keeping her calm and collected expression, she nodded. The Pastor smiled. "Godspeed, Luz. May the lord be with you."

"Thank you, Pastor," Luz replied, as she opened the doors of the church, and left. Once she exited, she started to walk down the street, hands in her pockets as she thought to herself.

"They betrayed Julia… they did that because of her feelings… they left her alone…. They kicked her out and signed her up for that camp while knowing everything. At least my mama was apologetic…. She couldn't stop crying about it for a week. She didn't know a damned thing. But these guys… these ese pedazo de mierda's did. They knew everything. And now they want to hunt "witches." And by witches, they mean people with powers…. They live in Gravesfield. My Gravesfield. I won't let them do that. Absolutely the hell not," Luz thought, furrowing her eyebrows into a v shape, as her mouth formed into the shape of a deep frown.

This was her town. She wasn't about to let some stuck-up, rich, assholes do what they wanted. She already had enough of that. If she had to become the protector of Gravesfield, then so be it. Even if…. Even if….

Even if it meant she had to get her hands bloody again.

To Be Continued in – Season 2, Episode 1 – Summer Break Shenanagins – Part 1.