The Past Is Prologue
Chapter 26: Stinky Fish Boy
I wasn't born in Avalor, though I am Avaloran. My parents fled to Córdoba before I was born, like many musicians. Ironically Avaloran music was heard far more often in Córdoba, Paraíso, Norberg, Hectoria, and the island nation of Cariza than it was in Shuriki's Avalor.
When I heard of Princess Elena's miraculous return and victory, I knew I had to return to the country of my parents' birth, and sing their songs in the land where they originated. – Adelita Beltrán, lead singer, Royal Avaloran Mariachi Band. A People's History of the Reign of Queen Shuriki, compiled by professor Catalina de Torres.
Carla felt all cried out. After that jerk-face David had turned on her (for something she'd done before they'd even met!) she'd hopped on the first cable car from the palace to the plaza and then ran all the way home. She'd poured the whole tale out to her papa, telling him how David had repudiated her upon learning she'd been a minion of Shuriki. Her father didn't tell her "I told you so." He'd just held her as she sobbed. She'd thought that David was different – that she could trust him, that he saw the real her, beyond her past and even her bravado. But no, he turned out to be just like everyone else. No matter what she did, Carla always ended up alone.
Why was that? When she was younger, she blamed it on circumstances – her father's enemies (and they were many), her mother's "death," Queen Shuriki. But so much had changed in her life. She'd been pardoned by Elena and had been given a respectable position as apprentice to the royal wizard. Granted, the royal wizard was just Matato, but still.
Carla always felt like she was acting. Whether it was trying to make friends or keep romantic partners Carla often found herself hiding something – her past, part of her personality, her view of the world – for fear that people wouldn't like the real her. David's reaction to learning she'd been a spy for that evil witch Shuriki just proved that. And it brought her closer to a fear she did her best to keep buried.
"Papá," she said in a small voice as she sat up, wiping her eyes, "do you think I'm a bad person?"
"Of course not!" her father exclaimed. "Why would you think that?"
"I've done bad things," she whispered. "For most of my life I've lied, cheated, stolen, schemed. It's still sometimes hard for me not to be selfish. Maybe David is right about me!"
"No, Carla," Victor said gently, lifting her chin up with his finger. "You are not a bad person. You simply emulated the example your mother and I showed you. You learned what you were taught – what I taught you. The fault lies with me, not with you. And I shall never forgive myself for leading you down a path of crime. You, my Carla, are a good person. You have an innate desire to help others – I've seen it, and so have others, I assure you."
Moved, the young woman took her father's hand. "Papá, I don't blame you for anything. You never told me what to do. It was always my choice. If I hadn't wanted to join in your schemes I wouldn't have. I loved the excitement of it all."
"Because it's what I showed you. And I never should have done so. I am sorry, mija."
"No need to be sorry, papa. I learned useful life skill that most people don't have." In fact, she was thinking it was long past time to teach Olivia a few things so the kid could take care of herself. "I only wish - "
"What do you wish?" her father prompted.
Carla sighed. "I wish I could use my talents for good."
"But you do!" Papá declared. "As apprentice wizards we help Avalor every day!"
"With boring magical tasks. We're glorified arcane janitors!"
"It won't be like that forever, Carla. We're learning to be proper wizards! Just be patient…"
"What if I don't want to be a wizard?" The question slipped out of her mouth before she could stop it. Stupid mouth.
Papá just looked at her blankly. "Why wouldn't you want to be a wizard? You are quite good at magic. You just need to apply yourself more. Why, I remember a time when you wouldn't stop talking about wanting to become a wizard…"
"A malvago," Carla corrected, "and that was because I wanted to impress mamá. "
Her father's countenance darkened. "Ash has a lot to answer for. Do not let your mother's misdeeds deter you from your path. We're learning to be good wizards now."
"You never really talked about magic until I was around seventeen or eighteen. What made you want to be a wizard? Was it a childhood dream or something?"
Papá snorted. "Hardly. I wanted wealth and the respect that goes along with it. Like you I wanted to be a malvago. I was tired of always serving powerful sorcerers and wanted to taste that power for myself."
Carla remembered that vividly enough. Victor Delgado had been a great thief and con artist, and his talents were often useful to a certain type of…clientele, most famously Shuriki. But such people often looked down on the Delgados and Victor and Carla had decided they wanted a piece of the pie for themselves rather than just being the ones to serve it. They'd managed to trick Fiero into making them malvagos, but instead of the respect they'd both desperately craved it had brought them nothing but tragedy.
When they'd agreed to help Elena, both for a chance at a pardon and out of a genuine sense of guilt and a desire to make things right, it made sense that it was their experience at magic and not their more…extra-legal…talents that were required. So when Mateo stripped the Delgados of their malvago powers (non-negotiable, of course, though the young royal wizard had been sweet enough to make it sound like they'd had a choice) they naturally took him up on his offer to teach them good magic.
Carla found it to be slow going after having had the power of malvagos at her fingertips. Then, the magic had just been there for the taking. Now, each and every spell had to come from her – she had to learn every incantation from scratch. Naturally, one still had to study to actually become good at being a malvago, but you could do so much more so much sooner with less effort.
Nor did she understand Mateo's and Olivia's reverence for "the Art," as they liked to call magic. Carla, who'd been raised on the maxim "Do whatever it takes to get what you want; only results matter," viewed magic as nothing more than a tool – a tool to serve and protect Avalor rather than her own selfish ends, to be sure – but still just a tool, one among many. She'd been taken aback watching her cynical father become increasingly entranced with magic as a course of study beyond what it could get him. Many a night would find him, after dishes had been done, pouring over some magical tome loaned to him by Mateo, wearing glasses which he now needed to read, excitedly exclaiming over some magical theory or other. Carla would play along to make papá happy, but privately she just didn't get it.
"You don't really want to quit being a wizard, do you?" her father asked her anxiously. "This is our best path to respectability and security." Carla wondered if papá knew how much he sounded like his back-from-the-dead-again wife. Mamá always used to say that becoming the most powerful malvago in the realm was the only way to keep her family safe.
To appease her father, Carla told him, "No, of course I don't want to stop being a wizard. I'm just upset because of David."
Papá hugged her. "You shouldn't pay any attention to that – that – stinky fish boy!"
"Stinky fish boy?" Carla asked, laughing in spite of herself. "Papá! You're usually better at insults than that."
"I can't help it," he sniffed. "He hurt my little girl. I'm too upset to come up with a proper nickname – yet." The young woman felt love swell in her heart for her father. Her happiness really was the most important thing for him. She hugged him back.
"Now, mija, what would you like to do? We can make dinner together, whatever you'd like; or we can go to a restaurant along the Vía Mercado, or perhaps we can go to Castillo Park to hear any musicians who might be playing there."
"I think the musicians are coming to us," Carla observed as sounds of trumpets and drums became louder by the moment. She rose from the divan to look out the front window, and was stunned to see the Royal Avaloran Mariachi Band step in front of her house, led by… David?
Her father had come up behind her and scowled at what he saw. He opened the window and shouted, "You rapscallions better move along. Stop disturbing decent folk with your racket!"
"We aren't disturbing decent folk, Victor," Esteban's voice rang out. He was here too? "We are disturbing you."
Carla ducked under her father's arm and ran outside, her heart racing. There was David Fisher, holding an orchid. But orchids weren't in season yet!
David began to serenade Carla, backed by the Royal Avaloran Mariachi Band. Esteban just looked goofy as he played the maracas. But Carla focused her attention on the young man singing. No one had ever serenaded her before.
When the song finished, David said, "Miss Delgado, I am truly sorry for how I spoke to you earlier. I didn't really think of your perspective. I was a judgmental dolt. My life was upended a week ago, and since then you've become the most important person in the world to me. I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me." He held out the orchid, which was made out of silk. "I was told this symbolizes affection in Avalor. I hope you'll accept it."
In answer, Carla threw her arms around David and planted a kiss on his lips. He was startled at first, but then leaned down and responded with a passion equaling her own. At that moment Carla didn't care about anything else, and didn't even notice the romantic violin music. She was exactly where she wanted to be.
AN: A story cannot contain a song, of course. But if you would like one, imagine this: a mariachi number in which David sings an apology to Carla.