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achitka · 1 year

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Doors Chapter 29: Paola

You would think I could get these people to go to bed in a timely fashion…obviously that is not the case. Did manage to make it to breakfast though, lol

Bruno stood up from the table and again tapped his fingertips on its wooden surface. He barely registered the pain this elicited as he collected the vision and the sketches and stepped away. The nervousness he’d been feeling had eased, but he wanted to be by himself. He knew he was swaying some, but twenty-seven spontys in one day was a new record, and he was tired. Julieta and Agustín appeared on either side of him, but Bruno didn’t have the energy to tell them to let him be. He was not entirely sure why he was so unwilling to accept help from them. Neither actually touched him but did remain close enough that if they were needed, they would be able to. Just happened to be leaving the tower at the same time. Besides, he knew he wouldn’t be able to stop Julieta anyway. He looked over at Pepa, she was raining, but then her son was out doing reconnaissance, he was surprised there was no thunder. He made it down the stairs without incident and as they stopped in front of his door, Bruno said, “I’ll be all right, Juli, Gus, just need to get whatever this is out of my head.”

“You sure?” she asked.

Bruno felt his teeth clench, but Agustín responded before he could, “Juli, he’s sure.”

Julieta looked at her husband with mild annoyance, but nodded. “Sleep well, Bruno,” she said and then moved away after giving his arm a squeeze. Agustín nodded and said, “Goodnight Bruno,” and followed after his wife. Bruno unclenched his teeth and reminded himself he had no real reason to be angry, but there it was. He watched them go into their room and went inside his own. He closed the door behind him and sat heavily in the high backed red velvet chair. Bruno stared at the cubbies across from him and noticed he was being observed by several rats. Only Fura hopped from the shelf to the sofa and watched him with glittering black eyes as she sat, waiting for him to call to her. He waggled a mildly shaky finger, and she hopped onto his knee, then scampered up his ruana to his shoulder. She tugged at the hood he was still wearing, and Bruno said gently as he pulled it off, “Okay, pequeño.” Fura squeaked her approval and burrowed into his hair, settling against the back of his neck. A few of the others came over and sat looking at him. Bruno did not have any more snacks with him, but they seemed to know this as they too hopped across to settle in his lap. He put his feet up on the ottoman and decided he would close his eyes for just a few minutes, then promptly fell asleep.

He woke several hours later to the sound of a familiar, gentle tapping. At first, he thought it was probably his imagination, but just as he was going to settle back, he heard the tapping again. He blinked the sleep from his eyes and glanced at the clock as he got up. He opened the door and found no one. Okay, that’s weird, he thought, but before he poked his head out, he crossed himself and knocked softly on the wooden door frame. A flash of something white to the left of him caught his eye, but when he looked, there was nothing there. Bruno tentatively stepped out into the hallway. Everything was quiet. He jumped when Fura, who was still on his shoulder, squeaked. If something was there, it was near the tower stairs.

“Casita, what’s happening?” Bruno whispered.

There was no response.

“Casita?” Bruno looked around as he whispered to the house. Still nothing, so Bruno pulled up his hood and moved toward the stairs. What are you trying to show me, Casita? Before rounding the corner, he paused and whispered, “Bate, bate, bate na madeira,” and stepped quickly around the corner in time to see the door at the top slowly closing. I should just go back to bed, Bruno thought, but instead, he started up the stairs, teeth clenched, tapping the wooden rail all the way. He opened the door and stepped into the tower, saw the flash of white on the spiral stairs, and stopped. That was a person. Fura again squeaked and Bruno put a finger up to the rat. Fura squeaked again but very softly as she moved back into his hood and Bruno waited a moment before going over to the stairs.

He looked up before he put his foot on the lowest stair. There wasn’t any light that he could see, but he started up the stairs anyway. On the way up, he was alternately signing himself and tapping the rail with his fingertips. Bruno paused just short of the top, he took a really deep breath as he looked over the edge of the rail.

Mirabel? What was she doing up here this time of night?

“Mira?” he called softly, “Mirabel?”

No answer.

That’s when he noticed her feet were…missing. Her leg twitched and Bruno came all the way up the stairs. No longer frightened, he was concerned as he moved closer to her. He noticed her feet were sunk into the dirt, and Bruno came around in front of his sobrina. She was not wearing her glasses and her eyes were half lidded. Sleepwalking?

When Mira was small, she would sleepwalk. It started after her failed Gift ceremony, Though he’d already taken to the walls, Casita would alert him. Literally not leaving him be, he was never sure why Casita went to the trouble, but he guessed it was to help his sisters, who were already having to deal with their mother’s anxiety about his disappearance and the magic in general. So, Bruno kept an eye on her because…the house was clearly concerned because Mirabel would often try to get outside.

The one time she did manage to slip out, Bruno spent almost half the night frantically searching until he found her shivering, curled up next to a tree. When he brought her home, he realized someone had gone to check on her and found her missing. Everyone was up and searching, so he couldn’t just bring her back in the house. He instead brought her to the back garden and laid her on the grass. Bruno then backed into the woods and waited to make sure she was found.

Someone finally thought to look in the garden. It was Isabela, and she almost tripped over the still form of her sister. She pulled Mirabel into her lap, hugging and scolding her. This did not wake her sister, but Mirabel was safe now, and Bruno turned to leave. He heard the stick snap and went still. Isabela looked out into the darkness. She did not look afraid, it was almost as if she was daring anyone or anything to come near her and her hermanita. She called out for her father, who appeared just as Mirabel started to wake up. Bruno saw her pointing, but he was sure he couldn’t be seen. So waited for them to go inside. Eventually things calmed down, and he snuck back into his ‘room’ and was glad he had enough food to last for several days.

Mirabel eventually grew out of it, but she must be really stressed if she was doing this again. Bruno backed up as Mirabel moved her leg in an attempt to free her foot, but Casita had sunk her down into the dirt path just enough to keep her from walking into the darkness ahead. Bruno took off his hood. He didn’t want to wake her, but he also wasn’t about to let her wander off into…wherever the path led.

“Casita, let her loose, I’ll get her back to her room,” he said as he placed an arm around her shoulder.

Casita gently clattered a few tiles and as Mirabel tried to take another step, Bruno turned her gently back toward the stairs. Mirabel moved with him and as was the case when she was small, once her chosen path was deviated from, she would collapse. Bruno caught her before she went too far, but she wasn’t a small child anymore, and he fumbled a little as he did so. Fura squeaked and Bruno looked at his mother’s door. He went over to it and tried the handle. He was thankful it opened, so he stepped inside. His mother, who was not asleep, looked up from the book she was reading. She sat up, as he pushed the door behind him closed with his foot.

Bruno was further surprised when his mother got up and re-opened the door to Mirabel’s room, without question. Bruno went over and put Mira in her bed. He tucked her in up to her chin, and his mother followed him to the hallway door. It was open, so Bruno closed it and glanced at it. Neither the trees nor butterflies were looking off, so Bruno put it down to nerves about the meeting tomorrow.

“What happened?” his mother asked also looking at the door.

“Sleepwalking,” Bruno replied, “She was trying to get to the path in the tower.” His mother’s face showed her concern, as she clearly had not heard Mira leave her room. She nodded and looked back at Mirabel. She was curled up now, unmoving under her blankets. “Wait, what are you doing up?” Bruno asked.

His mother looked confused for a moment, then pointed to the cot tucked away in the corner of her room. Bruno looked to where she was pointing. He didn’t notice the cot when he entered the room earlier and said, “Who is that?”

“One of the children from your vision. Camilo collected them while he was out.”

“Collected?”

“It’s complicated,” she said, “I’m just watching over them so Julieta can get some sleep. Were you able to…” his mother said but trailed off.

Bruno realized then that the urge was gone, not even an itch. That happened sometimes when the reason for it had resolved itself. It was also one of the reasons he’d put off actually responding to those urges and he said, “No,” and smiled. Several hours of uninterrupted sleep had done him some good then said, “I’m wide awake now and I feel good, actually. How about you let me sit with them for a while, so you can get some sleep.”

“That’s not necessary, Bruno.”

“Yes it is,” Bruno said meaningfully, “what, you don’t need to sleep now?” His mother’s propensity for overextending herself was something Julieta and Pepa had both inherited. Bruno made himself a promise that he’d be a little more insistent about getting all three of them to take some time for themselves.

His mother opened her mouth to say something, but snapped it shut and held her hands up, waving at him irritably as if to say, fine. She turned and walked back into her room and lay down on the bed. Bruno followed behind and sat on the chair next to the cot and said quietly, “Goodnight, Mamá.”

This was met with an almost angry twitch of her blanket as she turned her back to him and said, “Good night, Bruno.” He was not surprised that his mother fell asleep quickly.

Bruno leaned the chair back on two legs and thought back on those visions. The children had been for the most part out of focus, except for one or two. He reached in his shirt pocket, pulled out a small sketch pad he’d found in that giant desk in his room and the small nub of a pencil. He’d not shown any of these to the family, mostly because he didn't think they were as important as the others. They were just remnants of things from the other sketches, he’d not put much detail into. There were always people and things in the background he didn’t include in those.

Fura came out onto his shoulder and hopped over to the cot. She squeaked and Bruno nodded so the rat curled up next to the child’s face. Fura didn’t often do that with anyone other than him. It was hard to say why but she’d taken a liking to this one. Maybe he’d ask Antonio, he thought and flipped through the pages and realized the child in the picture he’d drawn earlier today, could very well be this child. There were two very different versions he’d seen, one with the kid crying and the other with them smiling. Bruno could not remember which he’d seen first, but whenever a sponty focused on an individual they were important to the future of the Encanto. He reached a blank page and took to sketching. He’d gone through several pages when he heard the door in the other room open. Julieta came in and was standing in their mother’s doorway with a small bundle in her arms.

She waved to him, and Bruno stowed the sketchbook as he got up and walked with her into the hallway. Julieta said, “I would have come earlier, but Casita told me you had things well in hand and that Mamá was already asleep. Thank you, Bruno. You look tired though, you doing okay?”

“I’m doing good, Juli,” Bruno said, “I actually got some sleep. You should know that Casita pulled me out of bed because Mirabel was sleepwalking last night.”

“Ay, no.” Julieta said.

“She didn’t make it outside, but she was headed for that path upstairs. Did we find out where that goes?”

“Yes, it leads to our old hideout.”

“Really? That’s interesting.”

A squeak near his feet made Bruno look down. Fura waved at him and scampered back toward his mother’s room. Bruno and Julieta followed to find the child was sitting up and looking around, eyes wide, as Fura climbed back onto the cot. She stopped near the end of it, and the child smiled and held out a hand. Fura obliged and allowed herself to be lifted, and the child let out a giggle when the rat came to set on their shoulder. The child noticed the adults then, and that small happiness was instantly replaced with fear. Bruno put a hand on his sister’s arm to keep her in place, then said, “I see that Fura, has taken a liking to you.” Fura rested her paw on their ear and let out a squeak. The child’s eyes flicked to the rat, but they nodded.

“My name is Bruno, and this is my sister Julieta,” Bruno said, indicating his sister. “What’s your name?”

There was a long pause, and the child was now gently rubbing Fura. “They named me Paola.”

Bruno and Julieta exchanged worried looks, it was clear that was not their given name, and said, “Well Paola, bet you’re wondering where you are.”

The child nodded.

“This is our home, he said and with extra flourish, “La Casa Madrigal,” then he shrugged and added, “or just Casita for short.”

“Are you hungry?” Julieta asked.

Another pause, then another nod.

“Then you’re in luck, my sister can cook, pretty good too.”

This garnered a small shove and smile from Julieta, who just shook her head and said as she set the bundle at the end of the cot, “Paola, here are some clean clothes. You can leave the dirty ones in the hamper. Bruno will show you to the bathroom if that’s okay. Bruno, come to the kitchen when you’re ready.”

Bruno nodded and Julieta left. Paola had pulled the bundle toward them and unwrapped it. They tilted their head and said, “These are boy clothes.”

“Is that a problem?”

“I’m a girl.”

“Oh,” Bruno said and scratched his beard, “Well, I’m sure we can find ‘girl’ clothes once you’ve had a chance to eat. Come on, bring the stuff, and I’ll take you to the bathroom. You can change there as well.”

Paola looked extremely uncomfortable and pointed to his mother. “Can she take me?”

Bruno didn’t really want to wake his mother. “Hang on,” he said, then went to Mirabel’s bed and nudged his sobrina awake. She blinked and looked a bit startled to find him standing over her with her glasses in hand. She took them and Bruno straightened and said, “The kid’s awake and I need your assistance.”

“Umm, okay.” Mirabel said as she hurriedly got up and pulled on her robe. She went with Bruno to the next room, and Mirabel shyly waved to the child.

“Paola, this is my sobrina, Mirabel,” Bruno said then he turned to Mirabel and continued, “Mira, this is Paola and she needs to be taken to the bathroom.” Bruno turned then and walked out leaving Mirabel alone with the girl.

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

Mirabel watched her Tío for a moment then went over and looked at the little girl as she sat on the edge of the cot. Mirabel noticed the scratches and bruises on Paola’s arms and face. They were old and mostly healed and though her legs were hidden Mirabel guessed they would show similar markings. For all that, there was a fierceness in the girls eyes that made her think of Isabela. “Come on,” Mirabel said quietly with a small smile, “let’s go in the other room,” and held out her hand. Paola hesitated as if remembering something that made her anxious. Fura popped out of the blankets and Mirabel said smiling more broadly, “Oh hi, Fura.” She used to be afraid of the rats around Casita. Her mother and Tía Pepa had differing opinions of them. Whenever her Tía would see them, like Abuela, she’d ignore them or shoo them off. Her mother would see them and look sad, but Mirabel had seen her occasionally feeding them. She knew now it was because they reminded them of her Tío Bruno.

The rat, seeing Mirabel’s outstretched hand, scurried up Mirabel’s arm and sat on her shoulder for a moment, lightly touching her paw to her face while letting out a series of squeaks. The rat then hopped down into the girl’s lap and squeaked up at Paola. She looked at the rat with concern but scrunched the clothes up to her chest as she took the proffered hand. Satisfied, the rat then returned to Paola’s shoulder.

They went into Mirabel’s room and Casita raised the lights and lowered them in Abuela’s room as it gently shut the door. Paola gripped Mirabel’s arm as she watched all this and looked around her room. “What is this place?” Paola whispered.

That’s when it occurred to Mirabel that this one knew nothing about their magic. “It’s our home, Casita.” The shutters waved and Paola gripped her arm a little harder but waved back. Mirabel brought her to the sofa and had her sit down as she opened a drawer and began rummaging until she pulled out a comb and some ribbons. She handed the ribbons to Paola and asked her which she liked best. Paola chose the orange, green striped one and Mirabel put the others back in her dresser.

“Let’s get you cleaned up. The bathroom is downstairs. You ready?” Mirabel asked as she opened the door to the hall. Fura squeaked encouragingly and Paola nodded. She went with her into the hallway, and together they went down the stairs. Paola’s head was turning every which way, taking in the doors in the hall, clearly a bit overwhelmed.

“I’ll explain all this once you’re done in the bathroom,” Mirabel said as they headed down the steps. Paola’s steps were very tentative, but she seemed to trust Mirabel enough to let her lead her on. Mirabel could smell food cooking, and her and Paola’s stomachs growled. Mirabel let out a giggle and said, “Yeah, I’m hungry too.”

They arrived at the bathroom, and Mirabel brought Paola in and showed her where the soap, shampoo and towels were. “Take your time,” Mirabel said, handing her the comb. Fura remained on the sink, so Mirabel stepped back into the hall, closed the door and sat on the sofa that was nearby. Casita clattered some floor tiles near her, and Mirabel sighed, “Not a bad idea,” in response to the house’s question. Mirabel got up and went to her room and hurriedly dressed, thankful the Casita knew where she’d kicked off her shoes last night.

Mirabel sat back on the sofa downstairs and less than a half an hour later, Paola came out of the bathroom dressed in some of Antonio’s clothes. She looked supremely awkward and said as she held out the comb and ribbon, “I have a knot.”

Mirabel waved her over and had her sit on a small stool and as gently as she could, teased several knots from Paola’s shoulder-length dark hair. “Is one braid, okay, or would you like me to get some more ribbon?” Mirabel asked.

“One is good,” Paola said.

“Okay,” Mirabel replied and thought Paola’s hair reminded her of Isa’s as she made a quick braid, tying the ribbon at the end to hold it in place. Her mother appeared and smiled as she noted that the clothes would do for today and asked if Paola would like her to get some girl clothes for her later. Paola said yes, but once again glomped back on to Mirabel’s arm. They followed her mother into the kitchen and Paola was again looking everywhere at once, but when her eyes fell on the table she ducked behind Mirabel’s back.

Mirabel was surprised to see Dolores and Tía Pepa there. Paola poked her head out from behind Mirabel and watched the two women with suspicion. Mirabel twisted and said, “Paola, this is my cousin Dolores and her mom, my Tía Pepa.”

They both said good morning, but Paola would not come out from behind her. Mirabel turned and knelt down in front of her, and Paola stayed focused on her. Mirabel could see the tenseness and fear in her eyes. Whatever had happened, had left Paola fearful of new people. Not that she wasn’t new to her, Mirabel suspected the whole source of the magic nonsense was at play. Paola clearly saw danger lurking whether it was real or not and Mirabel wanting to ease her fear reached up and gave her arm a gentle squeeze and said, “No one here will hurt you, Paola. You’re safe now, I promise.”

Paola’s eyes flicked from her to her family, there was doubt, but she nodded and said, “Good morning.”

Mirabel pulled out a chair and helped Paola onto it. Her mother came over and put a mug of hot chocolate in front of her and the girl. Paola’s eyes went wide, and she looked up as if to ask if this was for her. Her mother smiled more broadly and nodded. Paola touched the cup, but then pulled her hand back, her anxiety keeping her frozen in place.

“What’s wrong Paola?” Mirabel asked.

“I’m not supposed to…she’ll get mad if she finds out.” the girl whispered. It was clear she wanted to.

“It’s okay. You’re a guest in our house, so we can give you hot chocolate if we want to,” Mirabel said with a small shrug and took a sip from hers.

This eased some of the worried expression, but Paola stared at the mug for a little while longer. A look of determination crept in, and Paola reached out and picked up the mug. She held it in front of her nose to smell it. Paola closed her eyes and took a tentative sip and smiled. Mirabel noted all the cuts and bruises faded completely and her mother, satisfied with that outcome, went back to the kitchen.

The sun was almost all the way up, and Mirabel knew the rest of her family would be coming down for breakfast soon. Dolores had left the table, and Mirabel wondered where she’d gone. Her Tío Bruno and Felix came in and poured themselves some coffee and sat down on either side of Pepa. Fura, still on Paola’s shoulder, squeaked questioningly and her Tío held up a hand and the rat settled back.

“Paola, would you like to give Fura her breakfast?” Tío Bruno asked as he held out half an arepa.

This elicited a smile, and she nodded in reply as Mirabel took the food from her Tío and handed it to Paola. The girl took a longer sip from her hot chocolate, then broke off a piece and offered it to the rat that was sitting patiently near her hand. Mirabel saw her Tío Felix lean in and whisper something to her Tía. A small cloud began to form over her head, and Mirabel figured now would be a good time to explain the ‘magic’ before Antonio showed up atop Parce.

“Paola?” Mirabel said, and the girl looked up at her, “There are a few things you need to know about my family.” The frightened, nervous expression returned, and Mirabel smiled and said, “Nothing bad, just different.” Paola nodded and Mirabel indicated her Tía on the other side of the table. Paola saw the cloud that had grown a little more substantial and her mouth dropped open. She turned back to Mirabel who said, “My Tía Pepa, her moods affect the weather. Most of the time, she doesn’t have a cloud like that, and you should see her rainbows,” There was a short roll of thunder and Paola jumped a little, but Mirabel plowed on, “My Tío Bruno, he can see the future and my Mama,” Mirabel indicated Julieta who was in the kitchen, “She can heal people with food.”

Paola then looked at her hands and held them up examining the lack of scratches. She again nodded and appeared to be waiting for more. “I have two older sisters, one named Isabela, she can grow any kind of plant and Luisa, she’s super strong. I also have three primos. Dolores, who you met, has really sensitive hearing and can hear things from really far away. Camilo…you actually kind of met him last night…“

“The jaguar man?” Paola asked in a whisper, leaning in.

“Umm, yeah and no. He doesn’t look like that all the time. He can shape-shift into anyone. Yesterday, he was disguised as a jaguar.”

Paola nodded and absently fed more arepa to Fura and said in a very serious tone, “He was really scary.”

“I’m sorry, I know Camilo would never frighten you on purpose…me on the other hand…well, anyway, my youngest primo is Antonio, he’s about your age. He can speak to animals. When you meet him he’ll probably be riding Parce, who actually is a jaguar, but Parce won’t hurt you either. He’s a very smart jaguar.” Mirabel knew she was rambling, more because she just didn’t want to say it out loud, but hiding the fact was usually more embarrassing than just saying it, so she said, “I, do not have a magical Gift.”

Paola tilted her head and asked, “Are you sure?”

Mirabel just shrugged and nodded.

“Me neither.”

The family began coming in for breakfast, grabbing plates and filling them with the food from the sideboard. Mirabel and Paola got up to get a plate, and her mother stopped Paola and told her to watch how much food ate. She told her, her eyes could be bigger than her stomach. People who have not been eating regularly could get sick if they ate too much or too fast to start.

Paola nodded and rejoined Mirabel, who handed her a plate. “Your mom says I shouldn’t eat too much, but I’m so hungry.”

“She’s right, but who’d ever think, too much food could make you sick?”

Abuela came into the kitchen then and picked up a plate, saying, “Good morning, mi vidas.”

“Good morning,” Mirabel responded. This was said in unison by the whole family that was sitting around the table. Paola was staring, standing very still, but said, “Good morning, Abuela Magical.”

Mirabel almost started laughing but leaned down and whispered, “Madrigal,” and then to her Abuela said, “This is Paola, Abuela.”

“It is nice to meet you, young Paola.”

Everyone but Abuela sat down, and she clapped her hands gently to get everyone’s attention. No one was eating yet, and Mirabel noted that Paola too was waiting for her Abuela to speak. Wherever she was from, it was clear she understood that Abuela was in charge, so may have come from a similar family.

“Everyone, we have a guest with us this morning for breakfast. This is Señorita Paola, and she will be staying with us for a time. Please be sure to introduce yourselves after breakfast. The town meeting will be held at the Church at 10:00 a.m. so if you are supposed to be there, do not be late. Antonio,” and her primo straighten up hearing his name called, “I would like for you to spend some time with Paola during the meeting. You do not have to stay indoors, so feel free to show her around the Encanto. Isabela,” Abuela said and waited for her sister to look up from her plate, “I would like for you to come early to the meeting with myself, Mirabel and Tío Bruno.”

This surprised Mirabel, but in a way she was relieved. Isa, prior to the breaking, was the one that Abuela had been training to take over the family, and she knew a heck of a lot more about it than Mirabel. Isa gave a curt nod but said nothing. Her Abuela nodded then sat down. She picked up her juice glass, as did everyone else, and said “Salud!”

Paola was sitting between herself and Abuela and breakfast was mostly quiet, though it was clear there was a lot of curiosity surrounding their guest. Mirabel asked Paola if she liked the food. Paola nodded as she took small bites of it. Camilo and Antonio had already cleared their plates and had gotten up for seconds. Paola then asked about the magic and where it came from, and Mirabel choked a little on the juice she was drinking.

“It’s complicated, and way too long a story, but I promise I’ll tell you about it later.”

“Is it a secret?”

“No, I just…”

Isabela, who was sitting next to Mirabel, said, “Let me help.” Mirabel sighed and Isabela continued, “Our family, was given a miracle. Or more rightly, our Abuela was given a miracle. This was passed on to us,” she said with a wave of her hand, “we were each given a magical Gift to help the people of our community. I can grow, literally anything,” She demonstrated this by making a cactus pop out of the table in front of Paola, who backed away from the spiny plant.

The room went silent and Mirabel turned to Isabela and said, “Are you trying to frighten her?”

“I don’t think a small cactus is frightening,” Isa said and pointing to it. This caused it to sprout a flower and Paola to lean back in her chair, “See it’s beautiful.”

“Then why grow it under her nose?”

“Why not?” Isabela asked in a not so polite tone. Mirabel was not at all sure what had brought this on, and could feel her anger building. The tiles beneath Isabela’s chair bounced, and her sister had to hold on to the table to keep from being unseated, and she glared at Mirabel.

This made Mirabel snap at the house, “Stop it Casita. I don’t need any help.” There was an angry clatter of tiles and Mirabel just rolled her eyes as her anger evaporated, and she said to her sister, “I’m sorry Isa, I keep forgetting...”

Abuela was watching all this with a small smile, and it made Mirabel wonder what she was thinking. Her parents were speaking with their heads together, and Tía Pepa was trying very hard to cover her laughter. Tío Bruno was rhythmically tapping the table, while Tío Félix, Camilo and Antonio appeared to be laying bets.

Isa saw all this and Mirabel noticed the switch from Isa at home to Isa in town as she said, “No, I shouldn’t have done that. I am sorry, Paola. I really didn’t mean to frighten you,” she said as she stood up. She waved a hand at the cactus, that promptly melted away. Paola was sitting scrunched up in her chair and Isabela looked genuinely contrite as she made a garland of orange flowers and said, “Please accept this as part of my apology, it will match your pretty ribbon.” Paola did not respond, and Isabela’s eyes swept the room again. Mirabel thought she saw a look of melancholy before she said, “I’m going up to my room to get ready for the meeting,” but was looking at Abuela. She then turned and left the dining room.

Luisa sighed as she watched Isabela leave and moved over one seat and put her hand out and said, “Hello, Paola. My name is Luisa. It’s nice to meet you.”

Paola took her hand briefly then pulled it back, but she smiled when Luisa smiled. She said that she too was going to her room to get ready for the meeting and Mirabel watched her go, wanting to follow after her, but knew she needed to stay where she was. Next were Camilo and Antonio.

“Hello, Paola. My name is Camilo,” he said, knelt down next to the chair.

“Is that the jaguar man?” Paola whispered and grabbed Mirabel’s arm.

“Sort of…he really is a nice guy,” Mirabel said and looked at her primo.

“Uh, yeah,” Camilo said as he stood and ran a hand through his hair, “Sorry if I frightened you last night. That was not my intention. I’m glad you're feeling better this morning.”

Paola nodded but did not release Mirabel’s arm.

“Camilo, can you show me? I didn’t get to see it yesterday.” Antonio asked hopefully.

Camilo glanced at Paola’s still intense expression and shook his head as he said, “Maybe later hermanito,” he then left for parts unknown. Antonio frowned at his brother’s back but smiled when he turned to Paola and said, “My name is Antonio, but you can call me Toni. Since everyone is getting ready for the meeting, you wanna come see my room?”

Paola looked up at Mirabel and she nodded. Mirabel picked up the flower crown and put it on Paola’s head. “It really does match your ribbon,” Mirabel said.

Paola touched it lightly and smiled and said, “Now I’m as beautiful as you.” She got down and followed Antonio out of the kitchen and up the back stairs, and heard Antonio ask, “Since you have Fura with you, I guessing you’re not afraid of animals? That’s good cause..”

Mirabel lost track of the conversation as there was another smattering of laughter from the other side of the table. She let out a sigh as she put her face in her hands. Clearly she would need to keep a better grip on her anger otherwise Casita would…Mirabel looked up when Abuela said, “You handled that very well Corazón, now if you’ll excuse me, I need to prepare some things for the meeting,” she said this and got up from the table and walked out into the plaza.

Mirabel really didn’t think she’d handled that well at all but she hoped Isabela would forgive her. She looked at her Tía Pepa who was collecting dishes with her mother and asked “Tía, where did Dolores go?”

“She went to check on the whereabouts of Doris and the other children. She said she would let us know if they were getting close enough to see the Encanto.”

Mirabel sighed, she’d completely forgotten about the people in the forest. Her Tío Bruno caught her expression change and said, “Remember, Mirabel, we’re all here to help.”

“Mirabel,” her father said, and Mirabel looked over at him, “There’s something you need to know about Paola.”

“Oh?”

Her mother had set aside the dishes she was carrying and was now tapping the table and said, “Paola is a boy.”

“What? But why would…”

“I’m sure she has her reasons, Corazón,” her mother’s emphasis on ‘she’ caught Mirabel’s ear as she continued, “They’ve clearly been through a lot, so I’m going to get the ‘girl’ clothes as she requested. If that is what it takes for her to be comfortable, then so be it.”

“We just didn’t want you to find out in an awkward way,” her father said.

Mirabel nodded but decided that it really didn’t matter to her. What a difference a year made. She was glad that her family had changed…or maybe things were always that way and she just hadn’t been paying attention. She was always so focused on making her family proud that she’s missed Luisa’s obvious stress as well as Dolores’ and Isabela’s sadness. Mirabel actually knew of two others in the village that did the same thing. Being on the outside of her family it never occurred to her to tell anyone as she figured they already were aware. She was alone in the dining room when she looked up and said, “I’m sorry I snapped at you, Casita. But could you at least ask me before you start bouncing people around?”

The answering clatter of tiles made Mirabel snort and she raised a hand to cover the smile before anyone could see her.

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#doors #encanto disney #disney encanto #mirabel madrigal #encanto mirabel #encanto fanfic #tio bruno #rat drama #dolores madrigal #abuela alma madrigal #julieta madrigal #la familia madrigal #tia pepa #isabela madrigal #camilo madrigal #antonio madrigal #casita

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