The Chameleon's Grin ll Camilo Madrigal

Chapter 3 : Dinner at la Casita

Camilo's pov:

Carmen ran around the kitchen like a maniac, collecting ingredients and asking me every question she could think of.

"What's your favorite flavor of cake?"

"Uhh, probably lemon."

"Great do we have lemons?"

"Nope, do you want me to get some?"

"Yep."

"What else will we need while I'm out?" I replied, heading to the door.

"What's your second favorite kind of cake?" She asked, and so on.

Eventually we decided on lemon, chocolate, and cheesecake. I ran out to get the ingredients we didn't have, and she started to make due with what was on hand.

We only had three hours until dinner, which was usually at 7. Right now it was rush hour in the market, so to avoid detection I turned into Carmen and shoved what I bought into every pocket of her skirt I could find, which was an alarming amount.

"Carmen?" A random lady asked behind me. I turned around and saw a middle aged woman that resembled Diana. Carmen only had the same eyes as her.

"Uh," I said in my deeper voice. In this situation I would just turn into myself but then everything in my pockets would fall to the ground.

"Sorry ma'am it's just Camilo, I'm out shopping for Carmen but I needed more pockets and a disguise, so this was the best option." I explained to her.

"Oh." The woman blinked. "I have a quick break from my job and was just heading over there to see her, is that alright?"

"Of course, I'll walk you there, I just finished shopping."

The woman smiled warmly. "So your the Camilo Madrigal, eh?"

I rubbed the back of my neck. "I wouldn't say 'the' but yes I am a Madrigal."

"How humble of you." She said, scanning Carmen's features on my face, as if trying to find a trace of me. "How old are you? Around Carmen's age I presume?"

"Yeah I'm fifteen, about to turn sixteen next week."

"Oh how funny, Carmen will be sixteen next month."

I laughed. "Yeah, how funny."

***

When we came back Carmen looked even more frazzled from what I left her as.

"Camilo what took you so lo- mamá?" She asked.

Her mother smiled. "I got out of the restaurant early, so I have an hour until I'm due for housekeeping."

"Oh fantastica!" She said enthusiastically, then looked at me, who still looked like her. "I thought I told you to not do that-"

"I know but I needed the disguise and pockets, which you happened to have a lot of." I said, spilling everything I had bought onto the counter, then returning to my own form.

Quickly she brought a bowl of mixed powders and sugars, then poured in some coco powder and some spice.

"You put spices in cake?" I asked.

"Of course, why do you think it tastes so good? Mamá, could you peel these lemons for me? Camilo mix this all together, and then add two eggs and a cup of milk, got it?" She asked, sliding the bowl towards me.

"Yup."

In the next hour Carmen had put her mamá and I to work, mixing and throwing things into the oven. I had never baked anything before, so this was all new. I was lucky Carmen was so good at explaining things, because otherwise I would've been completely lost.