I wonder if there's a pizza flavored ice cream

Disclaimer: I OWN NOTHING; NOT THE BOOK OF LIFE OR ANY OF ITS CHARACTERS!


La Muerte looked at herself through a mirror. The frame was completely made of gold with rubies and emeralds adorning the sides of the looking glass. Each rock was connected with extravagant swirls that were etched into the material. But the frame did not hold La Muerte's attention in the least bit, if anything thing it only made her more irritated with its everlasting beauty. She continued to frown at herself, her eyes roaming over her red dress and sombrero.

"This won't do at all." She waved a hand and Mary was now the one frowning in the mirror. She eyed her white skirt and blue shirt with a grimace, she could not wear this to the dinner! She wore the outfit all the time and Maria may think her cheap for wearing it at a formal dinner. Mary snapped her fingers and saw that she was now wearing a sleeveless red dress that ended at her knees. She wondered if she should fix the dress so the plummeting neck line did not show so much cleavage but after a moment she left the dress as it was. The color complimented her hair and she brushed her hand against the left side of the silky strands. When her fingers pulled away, a marigold was now woven into her hair.

She felt excitement curl in her belly as she snapped her fingers once again. A cloud of marigold petals danced around her being and she had to hold back the laughter that threatened to escape. When they disappeared, she was back at San Angel's cemetery. She looked around herself and saw that Chuy was not there to lead her to Maria's mansion. She did not pay this any attention, Chuy was probably taking a nap somewhere.

Mary strolled out of the cemetery and into the main markets. She ignored the stares that some men were giving her, knowing by the way they were leaning out of the bars to get a better look at her that they were simply a little intoxicated. However, one of them whistled at her and called out slurred catcalls at her. The man promptly lost balance and fell into the mud below by a gust of wind.

Sooner than she had expected, she was standing in front of Maria's home. The butterflies in her stomach did not go away, rather they only grew in number as she raised a fist to knock. Just as her knuckles were about to brush the wood, the door opened. She smiled, expecting it to be Maria, but was confused when there was no one on the other side.

A soft baying sound brought her eyes down to the floor. Chuy looked expectantly at Mary with something that looked suspiciously like a smug grin. Mary did not question how the pig had managed to open the door, she simply accepted it and walked into the foyer.

"Where is Maria?" Mary asked, feeling a slight disappointment at the fact that Maria was not there to greet her.

Chuy just gave a small grunt and padded away, going off to do whatever the pig did in his free time. Mary watched him go, wondering if she should have followed him.

"Who's there? Maria, is that you?"

Mary turned her head to where the voice came from. She was shocked to see Joaquin stumble through the right door, fixing his belt with a flushed and slightly dazed look on his face. He looked at her for a moment before his eye widened in horror. He gave a shriek that sounded almost like a girl's, giving Mary a slight start.

Manolo charged into the foyer from the door Joaquin just entered, searching the room for whatever danger caused Joaquin to scream. His appearance surprised Mary but his attire made her continue to stare at him. Or rather, the lack of attire. The man was only wearing boxers that had little bulls and hearts on them. They would have made Mary giggle if it weren't for the fact that tears were in the man's eyes as he finally noticed who had entered his home. With a glance at Joaquin, she saw the same tears in his eyes, along with fear.

"We weren't doing anything wrong!" Manolo yelled out, holding up his hands as if he expected to be attacked.

Mary had no idea what to say, or even what to think about the situation she found herself in. She was spared from any more oddities when the door behind her opened. She looked to see Maria letting herself in, the younger woman halting when she saw the two men and Mary in her foyer.

Maria glanced at the two men and then Mary, the same shock and fear on her face. "Mary, you weren't supposed to be here until another hour," she said lamely.

The older woman only shrugged and replied. "I thought I would come here earlier to surprise you. And perhaps help them with cooking," she added with a glance to the men.

Maria walked further into the foyer and stood between Mary and the two men. She looked back at them and noticed the tears in their eyes. She grimaced and her face turned stoic as she looked back at Mary. "You cannot tell anyone about them," she said, her voice faltering in the end.

"I – tell anyone what?" Slowly the mechanics in her head started to turn. She glanced at Manolo in his boxers back to Joaquin, who had not managed to fix his belt successfully. She finally looked back at Maria who met her gaze steadily. "Wait, Manolo, are you and Joaquin-" The tears that finally slipped from the matadors eyes confirmed her theory.

"Please," Manolo pleaded, Joaquin taking a step towards him, a hand raised above his arm like he wanted to comfort Manolo before realizing that he could not do so without making the situation worse. The hand fell back to his side as Manolo finished, "please don't tell anyone."

Mary saw the desperation in all three faces and quickly shook her head. "Don't be scared! I won't tell anyone." Everything finally clicked into place from Manolo's strange behavior to Maria's reluctance to talk about her marriage. Deep in the darkest parts of her mind, she celebrated but did not know why. She shook her head to get rid of the weird feeling, deciding to ponder on it later when she was back in the Land of the Forgotten.

Manolo's and Maria's faces showed their immense relief, Maria might have been a little more relieved, but Joaquin still looked doubtful. "How can we know that we can trust you with our secret?" he asked, his hand now firmly resting on Manolo's arm.

"Do you love Manolo?" Mary asked back.

Joaquin's chest swelled with pride as he answered. "Of course I do. Who wouldn't?" he added with a glance at Manolo.

Mary nodded in approval and turned her attention to Manolo. "Do you love Joaquin?"

Manolo could only nod.

"Then I don't see why you two shouldn't be together."

Joaquin took a step forward, pointing at Mary with an angry look on his face. Mary could still see the fear that resided in his eye and knew not to take whatever the hero was about to say to heart. "If you tell anyone about us," Joaquin jerked his head towards Manolo to indicate who 'us' was, "I will find you and arrest you for telling blatant lies about a decorated hero. And believe me, no one will come looking for you once I'm through with you."

"Joaquin!" Maria yelled, stepping in between Mary and the man. She pointed a finger in Joaquin's face and Mary was impressed by the immediate effect. Joaquin took a step back and did not meet Maria's eyes as the woman said evenly, "I told you that we can trust Mary and we can. So don't you dare threaten my friend like that."

"I just want to make sure that she won't out us," Joaquin said in defense.

"She said she won't and she won't." Maria crossed her arms and even though Joaquin was quite a bit taller and stronger than her, Maria still scolded him as if he were one of her students.

"I swear I won't say anything," Mary interjected. She knew that she had to defuse the tension and fast, before Maria and Joaquin started to fight. She honestly did not want to explain to the authorities why the town's hero was beaten to a pulp. "If it makes you feel any more comfortable, I know what it feels like to be with someone and have people judge you for it."

Her words seem to have done the trick. Joaquin's shoulders relaxed and he no longer looked at Mary with fear in his eye. "Okay," he said slowly, "I'm sorry for assuming the worst of you."

Mary saw that Joaquin genuinely felt guilty for his accusations. She rested a hand on his shoulder and smiled reassuringly at him. "Don't worry about it. I understand why you are so protective of Manolo and Maria. They're good people."

She looked at Maria and saw that the other woman was watching the conversation with a small smile and the tiniest glimmer of hope in her eyes. "Is this the tight position that you were talking about?" Mary asked.

Maria nodded, the smile growing. "Yes." She looked at the two men. "I told you that we could trust Mary."

Manolo looked grateful, wiping his tears away as he grinned. Joaquin nodded and rubbed small circles in Manolo's back to comfort the man. "Now that, um, that is out of the way, we'll uh," a small blush covered the hero's cheeks, "go find Manolo's clothes." The two left the room.

Maria sighed in relief when the two men left their sight. "Even though I told them you wouldn't judge them, I was still a little scared that you would think that their love was disgusting. No offense," she added quickly.

Mary nodded in understanding. "A lot of people disapprove of homosexuals but there's nothing wrong with their love. They just happen to like the people of the same sex, that's all."

The younger woman smiled at Mary's choice of words. "That's exactly what I think."

"I can't possibly imagine what it would be like to be in love with someone who I can't be with openly." Mary looked at the door where the two men had left and felt pity for them but pushed the emotion away. They did not deserve pity, they deserve support.

Mary could have sworn that Maria had glanced away in shame but before she could say anything, Maria looked at Mary's dress with a small smile. "You look beautiful."

"Thank you," Mary said. "How long do you think it would take for Manolo to – um find his clothes."

Maria shrugged with a blush. "Maybe we should go to the dinner room table as we wait for them."

"That sounds good." Mary followed Maria as she walked through the door on the left.

Maria glanced back at Mary and smiled and gave a little shrug. "Sorry that you got dressed up for nothing."

"I wouldn't say that," Mary said. She looked down at herself and brushed away imaginary wrinkles. "I like looking beautiful."

The younger woman gazed at Mary's dress with an approving hum. She opened a door to the right and slipped inside. Mary saw a long table dressed in a pristine white sheet, the edges frilled. There were four seats situated around the table, one placed at the front of table. Plates with silverware were in front of each seat and on each of the dinner plate was a small bowl with a napkin shaped like a crane.

Already there were steaming plates filled of food placed randomly on the cloth. Mary could tell that there were enchiladas, a big bowl of cioppino, and a plate of tamales. There was a bottle of wine right next to a pair of old fashioned candleholders whose red candles set a relaxing mood in the room. All in all, the dinner spoke of untold hours of effort and Mary felt a little overwhelmed at the amount of the awe and appreciation that bloomed in her belly.

"Say what you will about Joaquin, but he can cook," Maria said as she eyed the cioppino with a look that spoke volumes of how good the dish must taste. "He wouldn't let anyone near the kitchen for half the day."

"Joaquin made all of this?" Mary giggled at the sudden image of Joaquin wearing a pink frilly apron shaking his whisk at Manolo as the matador tried to sneak inside the kitchen.

Maria nodded, still looking hungrily at the bowl of soup. "Yep, he said that towns that could not pay him money gave him food and shelter instead. After a while Joaquin started to cook some of the recipes the townspeople had given him and found he was really good in the kitchen." Maria patted her slim stomach, "I swear that I never had better churros than his."

"And you never will," Joaquin said as he walked in to the dining room. Manolo followed him, his face still slightly flushed, but he was wearing all of his clothes. "I spent days trying to perfect the recipe!" Maria looked like she was about to ask something but the hero interrupted her. "And don't bother asking what I put in it, Senora Garzel trusted me with her family secret and I am not about to dishonor myself so you could eat a dessert."

"I was just going to ask if we could eat now," Maria muttered as she took a seat next to Mary.

The older woman saw that the two were smiling and guessed that their banter was how they simply interacted with one another. It did not go amiss from Mary that Manolo sighed at the display as he sat in an empty seat.

Joaquin poured each of them a glass of wine and Mary hummed as she recognized the taste, it was the first wine she had shared with Maria. She glanced at Maria who grinned sheepishly and shrugged before taking a sip from her own glass.

A soft clinking sound brought her attention to Manolo who had his glass in one hand and a fork in his other. He set down the fork and stood, raising his glass to give a salute to Mary. "Before I begin, I should say that even though we have not talked much, I do know a lot about you from Maria." Mary glanced at the younger woman and giggled when she saw the vibrant blush that covered Maria's cheeks. "And," Manolo said with a chuckle, "from what I have gathered, your donation should not have come as much of a shock. Maria says that you are one of the most generous people she has ever met and after the actions of today" he said with an embarrassed cough and a glance at Joaquin, "I would also dare to say that you are one of the most kind and understanding person we have ever met. We hope that you stay in our quaint little town for a very long time and get to know you more." It was Mary's turn to blush. Manolo raised his glass higher and Maria and Joaquin followed his example with grins on their faces. "To Mary Beth!"

"To Mary Beth!" Maria and Joaquin repeated.

Mary smiled with a blush, she had not expected a speech but she could not deny the little curl of honor in her stomach. She took one of the enchiladas and her mouth began to water at the smell that came off of the food. She took a bite and her mouth exploded with different flavors that went together so exquisitely. She did not miss the smug look on Joaquin's face as she reached out for another enchilada and some of the cioppino. Mary knew it was wrong, but she knew that once Joaquin passed on to the Land of the Remembered, she would try to get him to teach her how to cook these dishes.

The entire dinner went very smoothly. Joaquin and Manolo asked Mary about the town she used to live in and she answered as truthfully as she could. Mary felt the guilt at lying so easily but she knew it would not be a good idea to let her guard down with Manolo here. One little slip up and Manolo would recognize her for who she really was. Mary started to question her decision in weaving the marigold flower in her hair but when she caught Maria looking at it, she shoved the concern to the back of her head.

Soon, the food was gone and Joaquin left to get the dessert. Manolo watched as the hero leave the room with undisguised love in his eyes. Maria rolled her eyes good naturally at the love struck expression and whispered low enough so Mary could only hear. "Do you mind if I spend the night over your apartment. I think that Manolo wants more alone time with Joaquin."

Mary nearly choked on her wine as she laughed. Manolo looked at her in concern as she coughed. She waved away Maria's hand as she rubbed the older woman's back with an apologetic smile. "I'm fine," she said, frowning at the hoarseness of her voice. "And sorry, but I don't have a spare bed or couch for you to sleep on."

"Why would Maria need to sleep over your apartment?" Manolo asked as he regarded the two women with a confused expression.

Maria only laughed and schooled her expression to be one of innocence. "I was just trying to be considerate." When Manolo looked only more confused, Maria explained with an impish grin, "I just thought that you would want peace and quiet before you romance Joaquin."

Manolo only responded with flushed cheeks. He glanced at Mary, "Joaquin and I aren't always like that, I swear. You just caught us in a – uh"

"a good time?" Mary offered with a grin. "You two were just making love, there's nothing to be ashamed of."

Maria smiled triumphantly at Manolo. "Told you we could trust her," she said, not bothering to hide the smugness in her voice.

"You never know though Maria," Manolo said in warning. Mary got the strange sense that the man was not just talking about his relationship with Joaquin. Confused, Mary looked at Maria and saw that the younger woman glanced away from Manolo's gazed with something that looked like doubt in her eyes.

Mary was about to ask Maria what was wrong but Joaquin stumbled into the room, struggling to keep the plate of churros out of reach of the jumping Chuy. "Maria, call him off!"

"Chuy, come here." Chuy looked between the dessert and Maria and decided that eating the entire plate of desserts was no longer his priority. He padded over to Maria and sat on his haunches, however he continued to eye the churros.

Joaquin placed the plate in the middle of the table, keeping an eye on the pig in case he suddenly charged the dessert. Everyone took a churro, Mary seeing in the corner of her eye that Maria had given one to Chuy. Mary took a bite and she quickly took another, it was so good! Once again she saw Joaquin's chest swell with pride. It was settled, she would ask Joaquin to be her personal guard and cook once he passed on.

Manolo chuckled and elbowed his boyfriend lightly in the side. "So Mary, I don't recall you telling us where you are from. What town did you live in before coming here?"

Mary stopped eating her dessert as she started, schooling her features into indifference. "I didn't say?" All three shook their heads. "Well, I was born in a small town near the capital. I doubt you would have heard of it."

Manolo rubbed at his chin with a thoughtful expression. "I could have sworn I heard your voice from somewhere."

"Are you sure?" Mary felt dread in deep in her belly. She glanced worriedly at Maria and saw the woman look skeptical, her eyes trained on Manolo waiting for him to finish his thought.

"Yes. I don't think we've ever met before but your voice," Manolo scratched his head, "I can't really explain it but I swear I've heard it before. You sound a lot like … like – CHUY!"

Mary was confused until she saw that Chuy had come to her rescue. The pig had noticed where the conversation was turning and ran up to Manolo and grabbed the man's dessert when he wasn't looking. Chuy ran to the other side of the table and sat next to Mary, chewing his churro happily. Mary patted his head, whispering, "Thank you," before looking back at Manolo.

Luckily, Manolo seemed more worried about his lost dessert than where he knew Mary's voice from. He plucked another churro from the plate and began to eat it, eyeing Chuy in case the pig decided one churro was not enough.

The conversation became more lively and away from Mary's birthplace. They talked about the food and how good it was, Joaquin beaming with pride all the while. They finished the dessert and Mary chuckled when Manolo leaned against Joaquin and yawned into his hand. Joaquin got the hint and bowed to Mary, "If you will all excuse me, my boyfriend wishes to continue our lovemaking."

Manolo sat straight up, blushing hard and glaring at Joaquin who only chuckled. Nonetheless, Manolo bid the two women goodbye and followed Joaquin out of the dining room.

"Are they always like that?" Mary asked.

Maria finished her glass of wine and gave a so-so motion. "Joaquin's being a little more open with the uh – intimate aspect of their relationship than usual, but I think he just likes having the opportunity to embarrass Manolo in front of a new person." Maria stood up and offered Mary a hand. "Come on, let's go to the library."

Mary finished her own glass and took the hand, allowing Maria to lead her to the library. A new thought occurred to Mary; the library was practically their place. The realization made her grin as they slipped inside the room. Maria took her seat on the loveseat and Mary the chair facing it. Chuy jumped up next to Maria and rested his head on her lap, licking his snout free of any sugar from the churros.

"Can I ask a question?" Maria asked, feeling that what she about to ask could lead to a very dangerous path.

"Anything," Mary said immediately. She knew that she should have chose her words more carefully but right now she found that she would answer Maria's question honestly, even if it meant revealing she was La Muerte. Perhaps she had too much wine to drink.

"Are you really okay with Joaquin and Manolo being together?" Maria was playing with her wedding ring again and Mary now noticed that the band was unpolished.

Mary thought about the words she could say very carefully. "Yes, I don't believe that it should matter that they are both men, as long as they are in love. If Joaquin and Manolo want to give their hearts to one another, then I wish them luck. It is hard enough to find true love without worrying about something as trivial as a person's gender."

Maria nodded as she considered Mary's words. She bowed her head as she scratched Chuy's chin, laughing softly as the pig's hind leg scratched the air. She looked up from behind her bangs as she asked, "And if Joaquin and Manolo were women?"

The amount of hesitation in Maria's voice confused Mary and she berated herself for drinking so much wine that she couldn't figure out what Maria meant. "I wouldn't care if they were women either. Like I said, if they love each other then they love each other. No ifs, ands, or buts."

Maria smiled at the answer. Her hand stilled and Chuy grunted in disapproval.

"Can I ask my own question?"

It took Maria a few seconds to nod. Mary could see the uncertainty and a little fear in Maria's eyes.

"When did you find out that Joaquin and Manolo were together?"

Maria let out a giggle, relief flooding her face. She shook her head with a smile, brushing her fingers through her hair. "Our honeymoon. Manolo accidentally called me Joaquin."

Mary stared at Maria slack mouthed, which only served to make the younger woman laugh harder. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. But you look so funny right now!" Maria clutched at her sides as she struggled to breathe.

"How can you make fun of that? I-I understand that you've accept that Manolo and Joaquin are in love but on your honeymoon-"

Maria lifted a hand to silence Mary's speech. "You asked me when I found out, not how long I was wondering how far their relationship went. I had some hints long before the honeymoon."

"Like what?"

The younger woman hummed at the memory. "The first indication that Joaquin and Manolo felt more than platonic love is when I first came back to San Angel. Manolo threw a bullfight in my honor but there was one moment that made me doubt whether the bullfight was really dedicated to me. The audience tossed roses at Manolo and he picked one up while the bull was distracted. He held it out as if presenting it to me, but his eyes were not on me."

"They were on Joaquin," Mary concluded.

Maria nodded with a grin. "Looking back on it now, I should have known that those two were destined for one another." She looked down at her ring with a small frown. "Joaquin should be wearing this, not me."

Mary made a noise of agreement but she said gently, "But you wearing that ring makes it easier for them to stay hidden."

Maria's eyes snapped up from the ring to rest on Mary's face. "They shouldn't have to hide though! If they're in love, they should be able to be in love openly, not hide it like it's something to be ashamed of!"

Mary did not know what she was doing until she already did it. She got up from her seat and hurried to Maria's side that Chuy was not occupying. A hand rested on Maria's as she looked her in the eye. "Life can be very hard for the living but you must remember that there is a brighter future. Even in death," she added softly.

She knew that she said the wrong thing when Maria looked at her with an unreadable expression. "La Muerte," she murmured.

All Mary knew was that she had stopped breathing, her entire body tensing up. She stared at Maria, waiting for the younger woman to yell at her for lying about her identity. Even Chuy lifted his head to glance between the two women in concern.

"Wh-what do you mean?" Mary asked. She knew that she was in huge trouble but Maria did not seem angry at all. The younger woman was just looking at her with a confused face, obviously she had sensed a change in the older woman's demeanor.

"La Muerte said that."

"Oh, well the museum that I worked at had a section dedicated to La Muerte in the legends exhibit." Mary almost breathed a sigh of relief when understanding spread on Maria's face. She did not like lying to the younger woman but Maria could not find out the truth. Ever.

The realization almost took the breath out of Mary's lungs. Maria trusted her, even vouched for her to keep Manolo and Joaquin's secret, and throughout it all Mary had been lying to Maria's face. Maria believed that Mary was the most generous person she ever met.

But in reality, I'm nothing but a liar, Mary thought.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Mary must have shown some of her self-loathing because now Maria was looking at her in concern. Brown eyes stared intently into blue and Mary had to break the eye contact lest Maria saw the treachery in them.

"Nothing," Mary lied once more. "I was just wondering where you went for your honeymoon."

Maria did not look convinced but she answered nevertheless. "Manolo took me to Arroba." She looked down at her lap. "It was fun but after, well, you know, Arroba lost some of its magical atmosphere." Maria glanced at Mary before darting her eyes back to her lap. "Does that make me a bad person?"

Mary shook her head with a comforting grin. "No it doesn't." A sudden thought bloomed in her head and she smiled as excitement rushed through her veins. "Come with me," she said breathlessly.

"Where?"

Mary grasped both of Maria's hands. "Arroba," she answered. "You can show me that school you went to as a child and the museums!"

Maria still looked apprehensive. "Why?" she asked almost shyly.

"To make new memories that will replace the old. If Arroba means to you as much as I think it does, you shouldn't remember it as you do now." Mary made a gesture to all of the books that surrounded them. "Every novel in here has characters that all have that one place where they feel at home and I truly believe that in this story, Arroba is yours, Maria. Please, let me show you that it is still your home."

Let me make up for my lies, Mary added silently in her head.

Maria's eyes welled up in tears of gratitude but she still shook her head. "I have to think of the orphanage, I just can't leave the children so suddenly."

Maria's excuse only made Mary smile widen. "Then we won't leave so suddenly. Give them a week's notice a-and we'll only be gone for two days. I'll even pay for everything, you know that I can afford to." Mary was glad that the joke earned a tiny but unmistakable chuckle from the younger woman. "Come on Maria," Mary pleaded, beaming when she saw the weak resistance crumble in Maria's eyes. "Come away with me."

"Okay." Maria finally smiled as she gave Mary's hands a light squeeze. "I'll go with you."


Author's notes

cioppino is a Mexican soup. I have not tried it but I hear it is very good.