I woke in the middle of the night.
The faint light filtering through the blinds allowed me to see only the silhouettes of the furniture.
Luigi approached my bed, his head bowed, carrying a red kite.
I heard the soft patter of Pamps's paws.
What was Luigi doing here at this hour?
"Luigi, is that you? Pamps?" I asked, confused.
He stopped beside the bed and lifted his head.
His eyes were black.
So were Pamps's.
"You're not Luigi! You're not Pamps!" I cried out in alarm.
I turned on the light and sat up in bed.
Who were they?
Why had they taken those forms?
And why was he holding a kite?
I prayed the Lord's Prayer, asked for protection, and went back to sleep.
The days passed.
I was in my office when my phone rang.
"Mom, I took the ribbon from the Easter egg, okay?" Luigi asked nervously.
"What do you want that for, Luigi?" I asked curiously.
"I want to..."
"We'll talk about it when I get home."
I hung up, suspicious, and went back to work.
When I arrived home, I walked into the living room and saw the long ribbon stretched across the sofa.
"I told Luigi he couldn't take the ribbon! What if you wanted to donate the Easter eggs?" said Déia, the woman who helped manage the house.
"What do you want the ribbon for, Luigi?" I asked calmly.
"I want it. It's mine..."
"But I didn't give it to you. Ask before taking something that isn't yours."
"Mom, will you give me the ribbon?" he pleaded.
"Yes. And I don't want you arguing with Déia again."
"Okay..."
Without meaning to, I glanced at the ribbon again.
Then I remembered.
The boy's kite hadn't had a tail.
I spent the rest of the afternoon thinking about it.
On Friday, we were studying math on the balcony because his exams had already begun.
"Luigi, your dad's here!" Déia called from the laundry room while ironing clothes.
Luigi finished the last few problems and then, on the same page, drew a picture.
A kite.
"Why did you draw a kite?" I asked, intrigued.
"I don't know. I wanted to draw a square, but I drew a kite instead."
"Oh..."
"I'm leaving now. Bye, Mom!" he said happily.
The kite has a tail now... Through Luigi, the boy asked for the ribbon so he could make one. So that's what he wanted.
Every night, Luigi and I turned off our phones and talked about our day.
"Mom, my imaginary friend came back!" he announced excitedly.
"Who?" I asked, surprised, since he'd supposedly gone away.
"Luís, my imaginary friend! He's back! He looks like he's grown up. He's a little different now. And this time he brought a puppy with him!"
"Where has he been?" I asked curiously.
"In the United States!"
"And why did he come back?"
"I think he got into a fight with his friends, so he came here."
"Where is he now?"
"On the balcony, putting Pamps to sleep."
My irritation grew with every sentence Luigi spoke.
"And where does he sleep?"
"On one of the beds... Sometimes he sleeps with you."
"With me?" I asked uneasily. Then I added, "He has to leave!"
"But he's my friend! He came back!"
"He's not your friend. I've already told you that! He needs to go back to wherever he came from!"
Luigi looked at me.
He seemed strangely detached.
With his finger, he traced the shape of a kite in the air.
Then he suddenly fell asleep.
I was startled.
Was Luigi playing a game with me?
I prayed the Lord's Prayer beside him, and then I saw...
The kite boy.
Luigi had gotten confused.
This wasn't the imaginary friend.
It was someone else.
I went out onto the balcony and prayed over Pamps.
She flattened her ears, frightened.
Then I went to my bedroom, prayed, and lay down to sleep.
It was already late.
The next day, while I was taking a shower, I heard a voice.
"It'll be good for him. I'll teach him a few tricks," the boy said in a tempting tone.
"The nerve of you, coming to talk to me! Me, a daughter of God! You're leaving!" I replied, furious.
I got out of the shower and headed to the living room, drawn by the noise of Luigi and Pamps.
They were running around and shouting, both unusually agitated.
"Luigi, come here. Let's pray," I called firmly.
"I don't want to."
"Sit on the couch. We're going to pray," I ordered, raising my voice and placing a hand on his shoulder.
He shrugged my hand off with disdain and sat down reluctantly.
Pamps hid beneath the TV stand.
I recited the Lord's Prayer and prayed with authority.
"Lord, forgive our sins. I humbly ask that You hear our prayer."
I placed my hands over his ears.
"May every whisper of evil be rebuked right now."
I placed my hands over his eyes.
"May the enemy no longer distort what these eyes see."
Then I laid my hands on top of Luigi's head.
"Remove every harmful thought, every disturbance from his mind. Let all evil leave this life now, in Jesus' name. May Jesus send angels to guard him. Place armor around him for protection. Amen."
Relief spread across Luigi's face.
He let out a long breath.
"Do you feel better now, Luigi?" I asked.
"Yes!" he replied with a smile. Then he added, "Something had been whispering in my ear."
"You need to tell me when that happens."
He nodded.
I knelt on the floor, picked up Pamps—who was whining continuously—and settled her in my lap.
I began reciting Psalm 91, rebuking all evil.
Little by little, she calmed down.
"Something was bothering her," I said after sensing a small presence.
"I saw a puppy coming out of her mouth while she was crying!" Luigi told me.
"What did it look like?"
"Black. With sharp teeth."
"Can you draw what you saw?" I asked, handing him a sheet of paper and a pencil.
"Yes."
The kite boy and the puppy were gone.
Peace returned to us.
Thank You, God.
Thank You, Jesus.