Basement
“Okay, here’s the situation.”
It was later in the night now, and Camila was standing in the living room. All the kids were sitting on the couch, looking up at her. It reminded her of the babies birds she had once found in a nest near the clinic, and them staring up at her, wondering if she was their mother back with worms.
“Amity and Willow, you will be staying in Luz and Vee’s room,” Camila told them. She had made an effort to quickly memorize all the kid’s names. “I hope that’s okay with you.”
Amity and Willow nodded.
“That’s great, Miss Noceda,” Willow responded. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” she smiled at her. “It’s the least I could do. And, please, call me Camila.”
Luz slung her arm around the other girls’ shoulders. “We’re roomies now!” She smiled half-heartedly.
Amity blushed and smiled back at her.
“Vee is already getting your air mattresses ready,” Camila added.
She now turned to the two boys. They were sitting next to each other on the couch, the smaller one tucked under the older one’s arms. Gus and Hunter, Camila remembered.
“If it’s alright with you, you guys can sleep in the basement,” Camila told them gently. “It’s actually quite roomy and cozy down there, and the stairs lead right near the hallway, close by the kitchen and living room.”
Gus smiled widely. “Is there any human stuff down there?” He asked excitedly.
“Oh, there’s lots of stuff down there,” Camila reassured him.
“Yes!” Gus exclaimed.
“Is that okay with you too, Hunter?” She turned to him, her tone gentle.
He flinched under her gaze and looked away. After a moment, he nodded. “T-that sounds nice.” He said. “Thank you, Ma’am.”
“Can we go down there now?” Gus questioned, his eyes widening.
“Yes, of course,” Camila chuckled softly. “I just need to get some stuff from the car, I’ll meet you down there in a few minutes.”
Luz, Amity, and Willow had already stood up. Luz looked over her shoulder at Hunter, sending him a worried glance before heading to their room.
Gus and Hunter stood up too, making their way towards the stairway Camila had pointed them to. Hunter was nervous about wandering around the strange house, but Gus was tugging at his sleeve energetically, so he followed him. The stairs creaked a little as they walked down, and Hunter winced. But Camila was right, it was cozy and roomy.
Beside the stairs their was a couch, and next to each wall was a table. One was empty, but the other was piled high with random stuff, knickknacks and forgotten possessions left from years before. Lots of other stuff was littered across the floor, but only by the back wall, so the main area was cleared out.
“Oh my Titan!” Gus cried out, letting go of Hunter’s sleeve to run to the table. “This is like a treasure trove! I haven’t even dreamed of so much human stuff!”
Hunter watched him examine the objects, amused.
“Woa!” Hunter looks over to see Gus leaning over the fable holding something in his hands and carrying something around his neck. “Look at all this awesome human stuff!” He pokes a clear shiny thing with his fingers and it pops in a satisfying way. It unrolls and knocks something over. It falls to the floor and shatters. “Whoops.”
Hunter laughs. “I think it’s just ‘stuff’ here.”
Suddenly, he hears footsteps coming down the stairs and whips around, stopping his laughter immediately. He is prepared for an intruder, but it is only Camila. She is carrying several things in her arms, which she dumps on the couch when she gets down.
“I got sleeping bags, bedsheets,” she said, rifling through the stuff and showing it to them. “Pillows, and of course, blankets.”
Gus jumps down from his table of human artifacts and sits next to Hunter on the floor.
“I call couch!” He called.
“Fine by me,” Hunter shrugged.
“Here, if you want to sleep on the floor, you’ll at least need a sleeping bag,” Camila told him, handing him one. He took it cautiously, rubbing his fingers over it. The human fabric was soft, and felt nice even under his gloved hands.
“It’s not much, but I hope you two will be comfortable,” Camila said, smiling at them.
“We will, Luz’s Mom!” Gus told her, grinning.
Hunter glances around nervously. At the castle, his whole life, he had always been told to bow to authority figures. It was normal, right? He had to show his generosity to her, or he worried she would think he wasn’t grateful. He couldn’t let that happen.
Hunter cleared his throat. He got down on his knees, bowing, just like he had been trained to do.
His head still lowered, he said, “Thank you for providing us with shelter, ma’am.”
When he looks up again, he could see her backing away with an uneasy smile on her face.
Oh no, he flinched. Did I do something wrong? Was that not right?
Camila must have noticed the terror on his face, because she stopped, standing still.
“Hey, it’s okay,” she told him. “You didn’t do anything wrong. But please never do that again.” She smiled at him. “And you can call me “Camila”.”
Camila winked at Gus and Hunter as she walked back upstairs. “Buenas noches.”
Hunter still sat there, confused.
So, was bowing the right thing to do, or not?
He was still going to do it, just to be safe.
The popping stopped. “Aw.”