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achitka · 1 year

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Doors (Chapter 28) Camilo's Ride

Chapter 27: on AO3

Summary: Adventure time! and I managed to make it through another day. go me

Camilo's Ride

Pepa watched as Camilo rode off on Parce into the hallway. She was feeling a mixture of angst and pride for her boy. When she heard her own thunder she forced herself to adjust her thinking. No, Camilo wasn’t a boy anymore. Félix had said as much when telling her about what he’d done, without hesitation, to help the children trapped in that house. Such a fine young man. Another one of her kiddos was all but grown, Pepa sighed, that was gonna take some getting used to. Félix came up next to her just as her gentle rain started to fall, opening an umbrella.

It was probably a good thing that Camilo felt comfortable enough to do as he did. Mamá had asked them all to not interfere when she turned to meeting over to Mirabel. It wasn’t that she didn’t want their opinions, she did, but she also wanted to see how Mira would handle things between herself and the younger generation. Bruno agreed, saying she’d been so long on the outer edge of the family that now that she was at the center of it, he was just as concerned it could be a problem. So, when Camilo spoke up for his little brother, it was hard to just watch and wait. But Camilo, thankfully was past his ‘jerk’ phase. That had ended when Casita fell, and he lost his Gift. A lot of his who he thought he was, was wrapped up in that. He was still hyper energetic but now he was setting goals and priorities for his future beyond irritating his family.

Still, he had always been an extraordinary big brother. He’d do whatever it took to protect Antonio, even if that perceived threat was his favorite prima and honorary hermanita. The cousins were as close as siblings, being born so close together, they’d spent the first four years of their lives with each other every day and neither ever held back once a disagreement started, their fights were almost legendary. It was when they worked together that things would get weird, poor Isabela being their favorite target.

Though Casita had never directly interfered on Mira’s behalf before, Mirabel seemed just as surprised as Camilo that it had happened at all. She’d have to ask Juli what Casita said when Mira asked the house to stop. That eye roll wasn’t for nothing. Pepa was actually surprised that Mirabel did, it was something that would have never happened under her Abuela’s watch. Casita had always been an extension of their mother’s authority over the family. Second only to that candle.

It seemed like yesterday Camilo was five-year-old, excited, and happy to get his Gift. Since he had just entered a growth spurt, it took a little time afterward to figure out why he was eating so much more than the average little kid. You would have thought there was a hole in his foot but rearranging his body used up a lot of his energy very quickly, so the more shifting he did, the more he would need to eat. In the beginning, not knowing why he was eating so much she’d tried to restrict it. That is until the day he shifted his little self until he literally passed out. Just a regular day, he was playing in the nursery with his prima when Mirabel screamed for her and Pepa had never moved so quickly. She flew up the stairs to find him passed out on the floor half stuck in the shape of the last person he copied. Mirabel said she’d tried to get him to stop and go eat but he just wouldn’t listen to her.

Still her misshapen son, lying on the floor terrified her enough that she scolded Mirabel. Insisting that him eating would not have solved this problem. The child had done nothing but seeing her sobrina shrink back from her as she now did with her Abuela made Pepa quickly apologize. She instantly knew that should have never come out of her mouth. She found out later from Felix that her sobrina had crawled under her bed, refusing to come out, for food or anything. Even her sisters couldn’t convince her that primo was fine and that her Tía wasn’t mad at her. Camilo must have overheard because he snuck out of his room after everyone was asleep and went into the nursery. And that’s where she found them both the next morning. Asleep under Mira’s bed.

Once Pepa had scooped Camilo up, she carried him to Julieta in town. Her ever-calm sister told her he was definitely dehydrated. She had cups with special lids for smaller kids and was able to get at least a small amount of juice in his mouth. He woke suddenly reverting back to himself and just cried saying he was so hungry. Pepa’s heart was breaking as she sat on a stool. Mirabel had been right, she seemed to understand before any of the adults that he needed more food since getting his Gift and would often sneak snacks to him before and after dinner, oftentimes saving him seconds. She always seemed to know when he was truly hungry and not just vying for additional treats.

Now Pepa was forcing herself to breathe through her nose and think happy thoughts so she would not rain on her baby. Julieta offered him several buñuelos, which he ate, and he finally stopped crying. Julieta noticed him looking longingly at the arepas on her table and smiled as she told him he could have more but made him drink a full cup of water before she picked up that basket and gave it to Pepa. “Take him home, keep him out of the sun and let him eat his fill, but make sure he drinks a lot more water. We’ll need to watch him since it looks like he may have overused his Gift.”

Word always traveled too quickly in the tiny town and before long her mother appeared with Isabela in tow as Julieta was telling her what she should do. Pepa held Camilo just a little closer, afraid of what her mother would say. There were times she thought her mother would try to take Camilo away from her. That she couldn’t handle her own children. When their mother found out it was Mirabel he was with, she took it as an opportunity to insinuate that Mirabel had done something to make it happen. It was ridiculous, but lately her mother had begun blaming Mirabel for any misfortune that came along. This included the disappearance of their brother six months prior.

Julieta, already tired from a full day of ‘helping’ the community, asked their mother quite pointedly if she was actually blaming her nieta. Julieta did not mince words with their mother. She was always respectful but since Mirabel didn’t get a Gift she’d become hyper aware of their mother’s bias against Mirabel. Their mother, never one to back down, tried to revise what she said by adding that perhaps they were spending too much time together and Camilo wanting to cheer up his prima was overdoing it to an extreme after doing ‘chores’ in the village. The expression on Julieta’s face said it all. It was clear their mother was trying to find a way to make this Mirabel’s fault.

Later that evening Dolores came to her, she looked nervous as she told her about the gossip in town, how they were saying that Mirabel was the one that caused Camilo to pass out. Something she did to him. Pepa realized later what she did not then. She’d unconsciously taken what her mother said to heart and began limiting their playtime in a way she’d not done previously. When Julieta noticed and asked her why, she did not have a good answer, but she also did not stop doing it. With Bruno gone, there was no one to mediate her and Julieta’s nonsensical arguments. He would have told her to stop being so dramatic, Camilo was fine, no one was dead. He always ended with no one was dead. So, the sisters had to work it out on their own. Meaning they did nothing. Just went on about their days pretending everything was fine as the gap slowly widened between their families.

It was times like these that she missed Bruno the most and Pepa grew angry every time someone even mentioned his name. Their mother had just stopped talking about him all together. No one in town wanted to be nailed to a wall with her glare. So, he became a ghost, a painful memory that she did not want to revisit so she did not. Julieta, however, refused to pretend that Bruno did not exist and would talk about Bruno, regardless of the glares and looks given by herself and Mamá but only if the children asked.

In the end Pepa discovered her machinations were for nothing because Camilo already had ideas on how that should be handled. He was much like his father in that regard, and she learned later the two were in cahoots. Felix was genuinely fond of Bruno and did not agree with her that they should pretend he didn’t exist. It was just wrong. When Camilo figured out that she was keeping his prima away from him, he changed tactics asking his father’s advice. His father told him, “You’re both the same age. You go to school together, spend the day in class together, come home together…Whose to know?” Once home though they would be divided when their Abuela decided Camilo needed to do ‘chores’. She never failed to separate the pair whenever she saw them together and Camilo began finding even more ways to make himself scarce.

Now their mother was sitting at the table with concern clearly written on her face. She was watching Bruno but not with impatience as she would have in the past, but with compassion. The use of these ‘Gifts’ they’d been given had always come at a cost. Since the magic returned, it was obvious that the guilt she’d bottled up since the breaking was starting to bubble up. Pepa understood that feeling, her own children’s Gifts had always seemed more of a burden than an actual blessing. Watching them struggle with them and not being strong enough to do more than encourage them to accept their fate as she had.

She looked back over at her brother, he was sitting with his hood up, hands on the table in front of him, tapping his fingers raw. Sometimes it was hard to tell if he was tired or enduring another vision. There had been too many and most of Bruno’s nervous tics were becoming more and more evident. Bruno even suffered a sponty just prior to everyone coming up here. He said it told him that they would need some food, but not why. Pepa knew better than to ask too many questions. She didn’t push since it was clear that Bruno expected her to do something about it and if she did nothing, she would end up doing something about it anyway so went to the kitchen and got the basket of sweet buns. Julieta realized he was out of drafts and went to get the fresh ones she’d set aside for their brother.

When Camilo began rapidly shifting, and she realized he was trying to make fur, the reason for the food was confirmed. Since the magic returned, and with no expectation to use it in the Encanto, he was himself more often than not. Without proper care he’d overdo it for sure. Still, what he’d achieved tonight was quite remarkable. Of course, now he was likely to start trying to imitate other types of animals. Copying people had become somewhat boring for him. He could do it with barely any information, sometimes just a glance was all it took.

Pepa was pleased she was able to come up with a way to help him with what he was struggling with. The fact that he didn’t push her away when she attempted to help, as he had often done in the past, showed her that the breaking had brought them closer. Bruno showed them that Parce was going to find the people they were looking for. He just didn’t know how that would come about. They knew it was Parce and not a wild jaguar because there was someone on his back that was difficult to see. Knowing now that it was Camilo in jaguar clothes and not Antonio made her feel somewhat better about it, but that was still one of her babies. Félix gave her a squeeze and pulled her closer when it rained a little harder and said, “He can do this, mi vida. He looked very determined.”

Pepa nodded. Both Dolores and Camilo appeared to be adjusting to the return and change to the magic, primarily because Mirabel was very supportive of them and believed that they were capable of altering how they used their Gifts. Also, she realized all of her children had never worked as a team before. She included Antonio in this because without him, they’d still be sitting around trying to figure out how to approach this problem. Before the break Pepa herself believed they’d learned all they could about using them. Even she found she could be more deliberate in the weather she manifested simply because she was the one who decided it should be so. That Mirabel prioritized that they should have lives that did not revolve around the use of them made her very happy indeed.

Pepa watched Julieta and Gus go by with Bruno, walking with him back to his room she supposed. They were walking on either side ready to support his slightly wobbly self as he carried the tablet and sketches. They’d all noticed he was moving in that very deliberate fashion since leaving his room earlier. Dragging himself about. Now that things were in motion she hoped he could go deal with the vision that was probably giving him a raging headache. All the signs were there, and she was impressed with how long Bruno managed to hold himself together. While in the past Bruno had been able to push them down for far longer, he’d been having almost non-stop spontys given the number of sketches he’d made. That also made her wonder what sort of vision he’d had in the city.

Mirabel was looking out the window in the direction Camilo would have taken, she was clearly on edge because she started when Abuela got up and asked if they were coming to Mirabel’s room to see how Camilo was doing. This broke the tension and Pepa’s realization that she could in fact check up on his progress caused her cloud to instantly vanish. As they were passing Bruno’s door Mirabel stopped for a moment and looked at it. There was confusion there, but she continued toward her room when Abuela touched her arm pulling her out of her thoughts. Julieta and Gus came out of their room, and they came over and joined them.

“Is Tío Bruno alright?” Mirabel asked her mother.

Julieta looked back at Bruno’s door and said, “As well as he can be, I think.”

Mirabel nodded and they continued toward her room. Once inside Abuela went into her room but left the door open. Everyone else joined Dolores, Isabela, and Luisa. They had spread some blankets and pillows on the floor, quietly chatting, while watching a cluster of lights that had two tiny heads floating amongst them. Dolores was so much more animated, though she was back to speaking in quieter tones. Luisa nudged Isabela and Isa looked over at Abuela’s door and shook Isa head. Luisa sighed as the pair returned their attention to the floor. Isa pointed at something in the picture of Casita and Luisa leaned in to get a better look.

Dolores held up her hand and Isa and Luisa fell silent as she touched the tiny jaguar head and said, “No you are headed in the right direction, but they are more to the northwest – I’d say more north than west.” Dolores paused as she listened to his response and then said “Hmmm, okay try this. Go forward a few meters…ah, okay, keep going straight for a few more minutes I’ll signal you when you should head to your right. If you veer off I’ll let you know.” The little jaguar then continued on in the direction she indicated. Mirabel went over and knelt down to watch with her sisters, complimenting Casita on the adorableness of the floating head. She looked over to the door then as it opened to show Antonio.

He had a rat on one shoulder and a small bat hanging from the other. He moved over to where his sister was. She saw the animals but gave her brother a hug anyway. Antonio pointed at the little jaguar face that Casita had made for Camilo and said, “Is that Parce?”

“It’s Milo, disguised as a jaguar,” Isabela said in dramatic fashion.

“But they are together,” Dolores added.

Antonio nodded. He got down on his hands and knees, face close to the floor watching the little head move.

Isabela then asked, “Why do you have a bat?”

Antonio sat back and the animals rearranged themselves so they wouldn’t fall off and said, “Tina sent her to tell me she found the camp.”

“The owl sent a bat?” Isabela asked.

“Yeah, she promised not to eat them if they helped.”

“Oh,” Isabela said and chuckled, “Well that sounds perfectly logical to me, primo. Good job.”

Antonio smiled and pointed to the bat, “This is Juana,” he said as the tiny bat climbed from his shoulder to his hand and squeaked inquiringly. “No, I don’t think Tina would do that.” Another squeak and Antonio got up.

Mirabel got up as well and said to the bat, “Thank you for your help today, Juana.”

The bat squeaked a reply and tugged on Antonio’s cuff.

“She needs to get back home.” Antonio said. He went to the window then as Casita opened the shutters and the bat leapt from his hand and flew out into the night. Antonio waved before turning back and said to Mirabel, “Tina said she’s going to stay until morning and watch them. She can’t count but said there were a bunch of people there, mostly big ones.”

“Mostly? Are there children, mi vida?” Pepa asked.

“She called them chicks so maybe,” Antonio said with a shrug.

He said this so matter of factly that Pepa smiled. Félix picked him up and was not put off by the rat still with him as he said, “That is good information, Toni, but it is getting pretty late.”

“I know, I’m just a little worried about Camilo, he’s never ridden a jaguar before.”

“True,” Félix said.

“Please Pá, is it okay if I stay up. Just for a little bit?” Antonio asked this, eyes wide and full of hope.

Félix looked at their youngest and then to her. Pepa sighed, she could tell Antonio was tired, but she knew he’d keep popping up without Parce there. She came over and put a hand on her husband’s shoulder and said, “Alright, mi pequeño, for just a little bit.”

Antonio smiled as his father put him down and he rejoined his sister who pulled him into her lap and began telling him about his big brother’s adventures.

----------------------------

Camilo held on to the bounding jaguar, leaning close to his back as Parce made his way up the mountain. Antonio made this look so easy or maybe it was because Toni trusted Parce implicitly. Toni told him to pay attention to the animals, in other words, trust the jaguar, he knows what he’s doing out here. Camilo knew this area, it was directly north of Casita and the path most taken by the residents to reach the outlying farms. The path started to the north then veered westward following the curves of the farms. He was surprised how quickly they were able to make it to the very end of that road and Camilo asked Parce to stop to get an idea of where he was headed. He sat up and asked, “Dolores?”

(Yes, Milo.)

“I’m at the furthest edge of the western farms, where to next?”

(I can see you.)

“You can?”

(Well, I can see where you are. I was able to have Casita label your light while you were still here.)

“Oh,” he said and decided he needed to get a good look at that map in Mira’s room. Probably would have been better if he’d looked before he left but the thought hadn’t occurred to him. “So, any guesses on how far we need to go and which direction?”

(Westerly to start. I’m not sure what the distances are…maybe ten kilometers from where you are now?)

“Got it,” he said and pointed in that direction and said to Parce. “Dolores says we need to go this way.”

The jaguar chuffed and started off again at a more reasonable pace. Camilo still leaned close to the jaguar’s back not wanting to be hit by a random branch as the big cat made his way deeper into the woods. The moon hadn’t risen yet and Camilo was taken aback by just how dark it was and how silently the jaguar moved. Another half hour of walk running and they stopped in the next clearing “Dol? I feel like we’re getting off course.”

(No, you are headed in the right direction, but they are more to the northwest – I’d say more north than west.)

“Only one problem with that, Sis. I got no moon, and the stars are hidden by trees and clouds.”

(Hmmm, okay try this. Go forward a few meters)

“Parce, can you walk a few meters that way?,” he asked pointing. The jaguar did and Dolores said, (Ah, okay, keep going straight for a few more minutes I’ll signal you when you should head to your right. If you veer off I’ll let you know.)

“Got it.” Sounded as reasonable as anything else he’d heard tonight so Camilo pointed, and Parce again moved forward. The trees got even thicker making progress slow. After a while Dolores indicated they should head to the right. Camilo was not at all sure how to communicate that to Parce when they were not stopped. In the end he decided to pat the right side of the jaguar’s neck, get his attention and point. This seemed to work as Parce turned and moved in that direction. Twenty more minutes of walking and he heard Dolores say, (You’re close, but it looks like someone’s broken off from the group, headed your way. Be careful – it’s not labeled but from the sounds of it, it is probably one on the kids…not Fernando.)

He had almost forgotten about the old man and Camilo nearly lost his purchase when Parce veered left and off of the game trail. The jaguar stopped not far into the forest and dropped into a low crouch. Camilo looked around but the trees were pretty dense here. Pay attention, his brother had admonished so Camilo tried to listen to the sounds of the forest. After another tense ten minutes he heard a dog bark then go silent. The night air was cool, but Camilo’s fur outfit was almost too warm as he could feel his sweat going cold on his face. Dolores’s soft voice came, and he nearly shifted out of his fur, (Milo, whoever it is, sounds frightened, their breathing is very rapid.) Camilo got off of Parce and edged closer to the trail and waited. He continued watching the trail as there was another short burst of barking.

“Dol, can you guess how far?”

(Maybe half a kilometer away, I can hear the dog. I’m assuming Doris is near it, but she’s stopped moving.)

“She’s not following?”

(Not yet.)

He climbed back up on Parce and said to the jaguar, “Let’s get as close as we can and see if we can find the kid.”

Parce let out a low growl and moved up the trail. After a few minutes, the jaguar stopped and looked back at him. Camilo got down from the jaguar and moved to the edge of the trees. Parce moved past him across the trail into the trees and Camilo lost sight of him pretty quickly. He remained very still, and Dolores said, (They’ll be right in front of you very soon.)

“Got it.”

Camilo stepped out onto the trail just as a small child rounded a bend. There was no avoiding the collision and Camilo increased his size enough to keep from being knocked down. The dog barked again, it was closer now and Dolores said, (Doris is moving toward you.) The child was at first struggling mightily, but then they looked up at Camilo, squeaked and fainted. Camilo almost dropped the dead weight and remembered he looked like a jaguar. After a moment of uncertainty, he decided to hang on to them and step off the trail. He backed into the forest, not wanting to turn away and was doing his best to not trip. Once out of sight of the trail, he propped the kid up against a tree and Camilo shifted back to himself and pulled off his ruana. He wrapped it around the kid who was to his mind too cold. He waited and watched nervously as Parce came out of the forest and stood blocking the trail waiting for the dog to come around the bend. When it did, it skidded to a halt to keep from running into the jaguar that was at least four times its size. The dog growled but Parce let out an impressive sound as he took two steps toward the dog that made it yip in fright and turn back to run the way it had come.

Parce then proceeded to ‘mark’ the area where the child had run into Camilo. Then rolled about destroying any footprints in the area. (What’s happening? Doris is running toward you now.)

“Can’t talk now…” Camilo whispered.

(Okay, be safe.)

Parce leapt off the trail, climbed into a nearby tree with branches that overhung the trail and just sat. He let out a low growl when Doris came around the bend with her dog. The dog whined and Doris immediately stopped, and Camilo saw the angry face he’d seen in the vision, there were no kids with her, and Camilo wondered why. More questions for his Tío or maybe she was always angry. Doris backed away slowly, keeping her eyes locked on the jaguar. Parce had not moved at all but instead was watching the woman the way a cat watches a bird.

(Doris is moving away now…tell me what’s happening)

“I have one of the kids. He’s or maybe she? Anyway, they're out cold. Accidentally scared them with my disguise. So, what now?” There was an unusually long pause and Camilo asked, “Dol?”

Dolores said, (Hang on, Milo)

Not being able to hear what they were saying was making him even jumpier than he was before.

(Milo?)

“Yeah?”

(Mirabel wants you to start down and have Parce listen for Antonio.)

“Why?” he asked, failing to keep the irritation out of his voice. Wasn’t the whole point of him being out here to keep Toni out of it?

(Just do it Milo,) Dolores said impatiently, almost angrily as she continued, (Doris is on her way back toward you and we don’t know if they have weapons.)

His irritation vanished. He hadn’t considered that and responded, “Right, sorry Dol, getting a bit tired.”

(Me too, hermanito.) she said but the anger was gone from her voice.

Camilo only paused long enough to listen to be sure no one was near and picked up the kid. They were surprisingly light given their size. Parce was waiting patiently nearby, and Camilo carefully placed the child in front of him. He made everything about himself thinner, except his arms, those he let remain their normal size to steady the child and said to Parce, “We’re heading back but Mirabel wants you to listen for Antonio.”

Parce chuffed and started forward, head occasionally turning and ears swiveling. The jaguar chuffed again and turned abruptly left, loping but not running toward a light that popped up in the darkness in front of them. While worrisome, Camilo doubted he would be able to get the jaguar to stop so he could look around and did his best to hold on and not be unseated. The jaguar leapt forward into that light and Camilo closed his eyes against its brightness. Parce skidded to a halt and Camilo fell off, managing to shift back to himself and keep the kid on top of him as he hit the floor. He blinked and realized he was home, probably in the upper tower of Casita. His parents, Antonio, Isa, and Luisa were there. Toni already had his arms around the jaguar’s neck. Parce lowered himself and nudged him. Camilo let his head drop back on the floor. His father carefully lifted the still unconscious child off of him and Camilo rolled on his side and let out a groan.

“You did very well, Camilo. Very well,” his father said. He handed the child off to Luisa and she headed to a nearby door that was open. After a moment, his Tía Julieta popped through and pulled it shut. He sat up and craned his neck to take in everything. Just so many doors. There was only one that was red, so Camilo assumed that was the one that Tío Bruno used to go to Bogota. His mother appeared in front of him and helped him off the floor, then wrapped him up in a fierce hug as if he’d been gone years instead of a few hours.

She released him when the door his Tía had closed earlier opened and Abuela was there with Dolores and Mirabel. His sister sighed with relief but she looked almost as tired as he felt hungry. He’d never considered that her Gift could be so taxing, but there was no reason to think it wouldn’t be. They were both using their Gifts in ways not previously considered, so it would take some time to gauge their limits. He decided Dolores was just better at hiding them than he was. The whole we are the Madrigals and we’re all fine mentality he’d been born into was a hard habit to break.

Speaking of; his stomach picked that moment to protest loudly. Damn, he was hungry. With everything that had been happening, he’d been shifting and holding shapes longer than he’d had to since before the breaking. His mother was now holding a covered basket and he could tell by the smell they were cheesy buñuelos, which were his one of his favorites. She handed him the basket saying, “Made them myself, Corazón, now eat before you pass out.” She then turned and knelt in front of Toni saying, “You did so well, Toni. I am so proud of you, mi vida, but it’s time for bed, no more excuses.”

“Okay, Mamí,” Antonio said.

Camilo had already popped a few buñuelos in his mouth and went over to his brother. He handed the basket to Mirabel and knelt down giving Toni a squeeze and said, “Thanks for letting Parce work with me, Toni. Couldn’t have done it without him.” The jaguar chuffed as if that should have been obvious. Dolores was next to him then and she cleared her throat, arms crossed. “You too, Sis. That’s an impressive new skill you’ve got. Definitely kept me out of trouble.” Camilo got up to hug her as well when Antonio shouted, “Jaguar pounce!”

Dolores smiled through her wince and Camilo caught his little brother midair. He was surprised Toni could even jump that high. Antonio pulled his sister in because he enjoyed nothing more than a good group hug. Camilo’s stomach again protested his lack of sustenance, and his mother came over and lifted Antonio onto Parce and said with some accompanying thunder, “Eat, boy.”

Mirabel immediately stepped forward with the basket, handing it off, then turned to ruffle Antonio’s hair. “Good night Toni, see you in the morning,” she said as Parce headed toward the stairs.

“Night!” Toni shouted as he disappeared down the steps.

“Well, I’m off to bed,” his mother said, “Once I make sure Antonio is down for the night. Good night everyone.” And she too went down the stairs. Camilo popped another buñuelo into his mouth as the plain door opened again and Tío Agustín was there. He waved to them and everyone still in the tower went into what turned out to be Abuela’s room. Camilo was mildly weirded out, he’d never actually been ‘in’ his Abuela’s room before. Only ever seeing it from the hallway. A small cot had been set up in the corner. The kid was in the deep sleep of exhaustion and Abuela moved next to him and said quietly. “Nieto, thank you for helping this child. So many new things you are learning,” She paused and asked hesitantly, “I never got to ask, did your interview go well?”

Camilo smiled. That had completely slipped out of his head. He’d already told his parents and he remembered the box of books he was supposed to be reading and said, “Yes, I’ve been accepted as an apprentice at the school.”

“That’s wonderful news, Camilo,” his Abuela said smiling and it struck Camilo that she looked like his Mamí when she did.

“Yes, that’s my boy,” his father said and put an arm around his shoulders. “Good man.”

“Yeah, congratulations, primo.” Isabela and Luisa said.

Tía Julieta was up from the chair near the bed and said, “That is wonderful, Camilo, but you all need to leave, or you’ll wake this child.” As she passed him , she handed him his ruana. She then went to the door and Camilo was amazed it was not the tower, but Mirabel’s room. Dolores moved past them into Mira’s room and stopped her prima as she went by and whispered something that only she could hear and Mirabel responded with an embarrassed smile and said, “Thanks Dolores, but all I did was rely on all of you. I really appreciate everything you did tonight, but are you really alright?”

Dolores seemed taken aback by that question. As far as Camilo knew no one ever asked his sister if she was alright. Dolores undid the knot that were Mirabel’s hands from in front of her and said, “I’m tired so right now everything is just a little too loud. That can happen when I’ve overdo it sometimes. In fact, I think I’m going to my room.”

Mirabel nodded and said very quietly, “Good night.”

Dolores plucked a buñuelo from his basket and popped it in her mouth as she went by, “Good night, Milo.”

“Night, Sis,” Camilo said softly.

Next to go were Mirabel’s sisters. Isa patted Mirabel’s head telling her she’d totally nailed it. Mirabel pushed her hand away as Luisa patted her back and winked. Isabela said she couldn’t wait to find out how this would all end and how wonderful it was going to be to go to Bogotá. They said good night and left followed shortly by his and Mira’s dads with an admonition to get some sleep. Camilo reached into the basket to discover he’d only a few buñuelos left. He offered one to Mira which she declined, telling him he really needed to eat as much as possible.

“Guess I’ll go to bed too,” Camilo said, popping the last buñuelo into his mouth and handing her the empty basket.

“Yeah, it is pretty late,” Mirabel said, hugging the basket to herself.

He started toward the door and turned back and said, “We really are better together.” Camilo felt strangely embarrassed by that statement and said, “Wow, there must have been extra cheese in those,” he said looking at the floor. “G’night Mira,” he said as he waved while heading out the door.

“G’night Cam.”

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Mirabel watched the door close behind Camilo and said softly, “Sleep well big brother.” Her mother came out of Abuela’s room and put an arm around her shoulders, pulling her a little closer.

“You should get some sleep, Corazón. You have a busy day ahead of you tomorrow and Casita will let us know when the child wakes,” her mother said as she turned her to face her.

“Okay Mamá.”

Her mother smiled and squished her cheeks as she covered her face with kisses. She pulled a mildly resistant Mirabel into a fierce hug and said, “I am so very proud of you Corazón. And not just for this, but for the young woman you are becoming.”

Mirabel smiled and thought this was just the safest place in the world as the tenseness in her shoulders eased and she finally released the yawn she’d been stifling. She leaned into her mother and returned the hug saying, “I learned from the best, Mamá.”

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#encanto 2021 #encanto disney #encanto fanfic #the family madrigal #camilo madrigal #pepa madrigal #mirabel madrigal #julieta madrigal #maybe i should write soaps #abuela alma madrigal #dolores madrigal

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