Lilith swallowed hard, and her eyes narrowed. "Yep." She said, arching her back to get to Luz's level. Looking deeply into her dark black eyes, and golden details. She brushed her hand over her chin, and pulled back. "I'm officially stumped."
Eda exchanged glances with Raine and Camila. "That's not good." She said, and Camila walked over to her daughter.
Luz was visibly panicked, and her occasional pacing had turned into a day to day hobby after they made it to Hexide. Where Lilith and the other students and staff were recuperating, and rebuilding.
She couldn't deny that all eyes were drawn to her. It was like she was a forbidden celebrity in the Boiling Isles - she couldn't say she didn't not like the attention, but it was getting to the point of overwhelming.
Hesitant to say anything, she looked up to her mother, and embraced her. "You're still my Mamá. You know that right?" She held onto Camila, and squeezed a little harder. Hearing her quiet gasp in her pointed ears.
Camila hugged Luz back even tighter, and felt the soft, dark navy fur that covered almost her entire body; and her pointed claws gently curled around Camila's back.
Her mother moved her free arm up to Luz's dark hat, and gingerly pulled it off, her horns creating defined holes in the left and right. Littered with glyphs and designs, setting it down on the table next to them, and began to gently caress Luz's cheek lovingly. "I do, mi hija..."
Luz's breath hitched for a moment, and she exhaustedly nodded, leaning her head on Camila's shoulder. "I'm scared." She whispered, and felt her hands quietly shaking from underneath the thicket of dark fur and claws.
"You'll be okay, it's nothing we haven't handled…right?" Doubt was in the undertone of Calmila's voice, but she kept herself strong, slowly pulling away and ruffling Luz's mane of hair. Camila knew this was a big change. Even for Luz.
She'd been hell and back from saving the Boiling Isles, to stopping an evil warlord from resurrecting the Titan. The list goes on - but her daughter was there the whole time.
She was raised to be strong. Camila thought. A sense of pride washed over her, looking back to Eda and Lilith.
There was a quiet pause, the clamoring of students was the only bridge of deafening silence.
"So let me get this straight." Hunter resumed the conversation. "We thought you died—"
"I did." Luz interrupted bluntly.
"Okay. You died. Somehow came back, destroyed Bellos to ash and pulp, and is now a Titan?" Hunter blinked for a moment, his golden eyes darting around for some hope of a logical answer.
Nothing was logical at this point.
Obviously.
Lilith perked up at his assumption, and felt the need to correct him. "Actually," she started. "I don't think she's a Titan," she gave Luz another glance. "Or at least not fully. Because if so you wouldn't be standing in this room with us."
"King is a Titan, and he's not huge." Amity chipped in. "So how would that work?"
"That's the problem." Lilith replied, "If she was like King, it would be more logical. But she wouldn't still have human characteristics."
They all sighed deeply, feeling the anger of not getting any progress done. Luz on the other hand, felt very pumped up - like she'd just consumed three espresso shots in the span of thirty minutes, but also was nervous, and perhaps a little guilty.
She still didn't have any guts to mention that King's father had wanted her to relay a very touching message to King. But also the fact that she still had power running through her. Any second she thought she could blow the roof off in a Titan-Styled Kamehameha.
Could she really have made things worse for them?
She heard a small cough come from the end of the room. Not like a sickly cough, but a 'I have something to say please pay attention to me' cough.
All of their heads turned.
"I think I have something to say." The Collector announced.