Before this chapter begins, I just want to thank everyone who wished me a happy 18th Birthday a couple days ago... It really meant a lot to me, and I thank you all for it!
Now, enjoy the next chapter of this Thanksgiving special that is now being posted long after the holiday.
Evening had arrived in Gravesfield, and the sun had begun to set. The mood in the Noceda household had cooled down now that mostly everyone had arrived back at the house. All except for Raine and Vee, who were still not back yet.
Eda was near the now unboxed table that had been assembled in the dining room. She was currently mixing some drinks, using combinations of the stuff she bought from the liquor store. Lilith was nearby, looking at a couple of the mixtures she had already made.
"Should this be changing color?" She questioned, looking at one of the glasses Eda had poured.
"No idea. But I'm sure the alcohol rating isn't changing!" Eda remarked, pouring another glass.
Meanwhile, Camila and Miranda were in the living room. The Hexsquad (apart from Vee) were sitting around on the couch and other chairs in the room.
Hunter, Willow, and King were on the couch. Luz and Amity were together on the loveseat next to the window. Gus was on one of the cushioned chairs that had been moved into the living room by Camila.
Said Noceda mother was sitting on another cushioned seat, next to Miranda, who had decided to sit down in the recliner. She was currently talking to what she believed to be her new "grandchildren".
"So, Hunter is your name, right?" Miranda asked, to which the grimwalker nodded.
"That's my name, Abuela ma'am." Hunter nodded, trying to be polite.
Miranda chuckled a bit, but then noticed the state of Hunter's face. Spefically the markings on it.
"What's wrong with your face, estimado? It looks like you've got scrapes across your face..." Miranda commented curiously. "Did something happen?"
Hunter self-consciously put his hand on his face, feeling the scars left by his late "uncle". He felt both the physical ones, along with the mental ones past the flesh.
"His uh... Previous guardian wasn't the best person, if you get what I mean." Luz explained, frowning a bit. "Pretty abusive."
It wasn't hard lying about Hunter's past to her abuela. In fact, it's not like she was lying at all. Calling Belos "not the best person" was putting it far too lightly in the human girl's eyes, and she had a feeling her friends and family agreed all too well.
"Oh... I see." Miranda frowned as well, feeling sympathy for the boy in front of her.
"Yeah..." Hunter sighed, not too happy reminiscing about his past.
Everyone was silent for a few moments. The silence being pretty awkward to say the least.
"So... Everyone excited for dinner?" Luz asked, trying to change the subject to a more positive one.
"I am! I bet it'll be delicious from how Ms. Noceda's been describing it!" Gus remarked.
"Oh, I'm sure it'll be something if it's Camila doing the cooking..." Miranda scoffed, as the Noceda mother refrained from refuting for her own sake.
"From what I heard, Ms. Noceda is making a pretty large dinner for Thanksgiving!" Willow piped up, hoping to get Miranda to say something positive about Camila.
"She's also planning on making Dulce De Leche pie for dessert as well!" Gus added with a smile. It's worth noting he didn't even know what that was, he was just hoping it was a good thing.
"Well, at least you're still keeping up with tradiciones..." Miranda murmured.
"Weh? What's tradiciones mean?" King asked, not knowing what the word meant. Miranda in response raised her eyebrow with curiosity.
"Why do you keep saying that? What does 'weh' mean exactly, nieto?" Miranda questioned.
"Uh, he has Tourettes! Yeah, that's what he has!" Luz claimed, smiling with a hint of nervousness. "He says 'weh' as a tic!"
"Also, why are your eyes yellow?" Miranda followed up the claim with another question, squinting at the Titan's eyes. "Do you have a condition that causes that as well?"
"Uhhh..." King trailed off, unsure how to answer her question without seeming suspicious.
Just then, the door opened, and Raine along with Vee stepped through. They were both carrying a large amount of shopping bags. Luz took this as an opportunity to change the subject.
"HEY! You two are back with the groceries! Want some help?" Luz quickly got up, taking some of the bags from the two.
"Oh, well thank you Luz..." Raine smiled, as the three walked to the kitchen to put the groceries down.
"So, you got everything right?" Luz asked as soon as they were out of earshot of Miranda.
"Yes! We got the entire list of things you needed!" Raine nodded, putting their bags down on the counter.
"How have things been going here?" Vee asked, taking a glance at the living room.
"They've been definitely going... And so has mamá's patience." Luz remarked, glancing at her mother in the living room.
"Well, at least she looks like she's been holding up pretty good..." Vee commented.
"I'm going to go introduce myself..." Raine said, "How should I do that?"
Luz thought about what Eda had made up. "Just say you're Eda's boyfriend or something. It'll be easier that way." She eventually decided.
Raine blushed a bit, but nodded. "I can do that." They replied, before walking off to join the others in the living room.
No sooner than they left, the sound of magical chiming was heard, before something glowing yellow zoomed in through the kitchen window... Hitting the blinds, and crashing to the floor.
A moment later, the Collector hopped back up from the floor. "That was supposed to be open." He claimed, gesturing at the now broken blinds behind him.
"Oh, Collin, you're back!" Vee said, smiling at the sight of the star-child.
"Yep, I am! And I actually got the turkey this time!" The Collector grinned, plopping what he had down onto the counter. "I've named him Mr. Gobbles!"
"Oh my god, it actually is a turkey!" Luz smiled, relieved that the star-child had finally gotten it right.
"Yes! I knew I'd get one this time!" The Collector cheered, "So, why did you need a turkey anyways?"
Vee and Luz went completely silent. The Collector, still with an innocent smile, blinked as he waited for an answer.
"You said you needed one! And that it was a big part of Thanksgiving! So, what did you need Mr. Gobbles for?" He asked again, curious as he patted the turkey's head.
The two remained silent, giving each other looks.
"Well, it's uh... Tradition to have a turkey as a temporary pet for the holiday!" Luz lied, smiling nervously. "So uh, why don't you go put Mr. Gobbles out in the backyard for now?"
"Okay! Will do!" The Collector smiled, believing it as he picked up Mr. Gobbles, and rushed outside with him in his arms.
Luz and Vee sighed in relief as he left. "I feel like we should have seen this coming." The latter remarked.
"Yeah, we really should have." Luz agreed.
"So, what now? We still don't have a turkey for tomorrow!" Vee exclaimed.
"Well, we gotta get one! Preferably not one that's alive." Luz decided, thinking for a few moments. "Could you run back down to the store and get one?"
"...No." Vee flatly responded, thinking about the encounter she just went through at said store.
"What, why not?!" Luz asked, taken aback. "It wouldn't take that long and-"
"Jacob works there now, apparently." Vee flatly explained, cutting off her sister. "He almost recognized me!"
"Crap, that's a problem..." Luz murmured, "He didn't fully recognize you, right?"
That was the last thing Luz wanted to have to deal with. Having to juggle keeping Jacob away from discovering the witches and demons of the group, WHILE also keeping abuela from finding out would be a nightmare.
Her mind was taken off the subject when Amity walked into the room, looking confused and curious.
"Luz, can I ask you something?" She asked.
"You just did." Luz joked, "But what is it, Sweet Potato?"
"That. That's my question. Why didn't you tell your abuela we're dating?" Amity questioned.
Luz sighed heavily. She wished she had explained this to her girlfriend sooner, but now was as good as time as ever she guessed.
"My uh, abuela has had a tendency to be... Old fashioned, to put it simply." Luz awkwardly answered.
"Why does that matter?" Amity asked, confused. "So she likes old traditions, that's not a bad thing... Right?"
"Well, I'm kinda nervous about how she'll react to... Us, being together." Luz sighed, "I only just recently told mamá about it, remember?"
"Oh, right..." Amity clicked her tongue. "That was a good coming-out video though!" She remarked, hoping to lighten the mood.
Luz chuckled a bit, "Yeah, it really was..." she smiled, but it was soon replaced by a slight frown.
"Maybe we should tell her, Sweet Potato..." Amity reasoned, "She'll find out sooner or later, and who knows, maybe she'll be fine with it!"
"I don't know... She can be really stubborn sometimes." Luz pointed out, unsure what to do.
"Well, I'm sure we'll figure it out... Together. Okay, Sweet Potato?" Amity assured her girlfriend with a smile.
Luz smiled in response to Amity's support. "Thanks Mittens." She replied, giving her a quick peck on the cheek (hoping to god Miranda didn't walk in at that very moment).
Amity giggled a little. "Now come on, let's go help your mamá figure out where everyone's going to sleep." She suggested.
"Yeah, I'll meet you out there in a minute." Luz gestured for the witch to head into the living room ahead of her.
Amity listened to her girlfriend's wish, and walked off into the living room to rejoin the conversation in there. Luz meanwhile put the last of the groceries away in their proper places (making sure to hide the boxed products well). She was just beginning to think on how they could possibly get a (not alive) turkey tomorrow to cook, just as the Collector came back inside.
"Okay! Mr. Gobbles has a turkey house set up and a place to sleep now!" The star-child declared happily.
Luz chuckled in amusement, ruffling his hair. "That's good to hear. Now come on, abuela would love to get to know you more." She told the Collector.
"Alright Luz!" He smiled in response, floating to the ground.
Luz wrapped her right arm around his back, and the two walked into the living room together to find what spots remained around to actually sit in.
Yes, King doesn't know much Spanish yet, deal with it.
Remember to leave kudos and a comment if you enjoyed reading! I love reading your thoughts in the comments!