I decided that this chapter was going to focus a bit more on the rest of the family and I decided that Bruno needed to show just a bit of wisdom when he is genuinely asked for help. Also ten years not living in the walls probably helped.
Camillo was still at the party as he watched his two cousins come home, Mirabel was covered in dry and wet concrete to the point where her skirt looked gray and stiff even from the second floor.
He watched as Father Hernandez and several of the other townspeople approach Abuela before he noticed Dolores and Mariano standing next to him.
"What's going on sis?" asked Camillo
"They're telling Abuela to let Mirabel and Luisa sleep in tomorrow, good thing too, they just got home after working for a solid eight hours fixing that roof, it's two in the morning. Mirabel is usually awake two hours from now working. Mariano's voice might be the last thing I hear before I sleep but Mirabel working is what I wake up to, I'm worried," said Dolores
"Did Isa's vines really cause the roof to collapse?" asked Camillo
"Seems like it, Abuela thinks that pretty and perfect are one in the same but if Isa could grow something else then her gift would be more of an asset," sighed Dolores
None of them noticed Isabella's door was slightly open.
A loud crack reverberated around Isa's room and her rose petal canopy fell and dispersed around her.
"Que?" she asked, bolting upright in her bed. Looking at the massive crack in her ceiling and the gash it had made in her flower walls, dead lifeless petals now scattered themselves through the live ones.
Then she heard her cousins talking.
Her tio had told her that her power would grow like the grapes that thrive on the vine, is this not what he meant? She needed to find out, there was something going on, both with the house and her younger sisters.
…
Breakfast the next morning was pretty normal, except for Mirabel and Luisa trudging down the stairs. Mirabel was mumbling something about coffee but was still noticeably in her concrete-covered clothes from yesterday. Luisa was dressed and slightly more awake.
"You two are exempt from your duties today, the town wants both of you to rest and take it easy," said Abuela, she wasn't happy about the girls taking the day off but the people had been adamant that the girls needed to rest for their own health.
Mirabel nodded, not trusting herself to speak without caffeine.
"Isabella, perhaps you could put some lavender in Mirabel's room, it always helps my mother relax," said Mariano from his place beside Dolores, he had bunked with Camillo for the night, wanting to get to know the kid who would soon be his brother in law.
"I think that's a wonderful idea," said Julietta
"However, I think it would be wise for you to spend the day on the various sewing and embroidery projects you have let pile up, I do not want anyone in this family not spending time earning their gifts. Luisa, you are to stay with Mirabel, if there are tasks for you to do that can be done in her room you are to do them," said Abuela
"Yes Abuela," chorused the girls
"Mama, they were told to rest today, not other tasks, if the town finds out they've been working more when they are supposed to be resting the people will become angry at our family," said Julietta with a frown.
"Sewing can be restful, I take great joy in little sewing projects," said Abuela
"When it's for yourself perhaps, when it's for others it's work," said Pepa under her breath, only Dolores heard her mother.
Isabella stayed quiet, watching the family dynamic with more open eyes than she normally did. Mirabel's perpetual tired look, Luisa's constant concern for her sister, Dolores's pursed lips while hearing everything. Bruno slinked back into his chair not wanting to get involved and feeding food to his rat friends. Something was going on and Isabella was determined to find out.
"And Mirabel, no more coming down to breakfast in filthy clothes," scolded Abuela
"Yes Abuela," said Mirabel quietly
The family then left to go help the town, except for the two who had to take it easy.
"Isabella, a word please?" asked her father as she got up from the table
"Si papa," said Isa, her heart sinking, she could tell she was going to be scolded about the vines, she had seen Luisa looking at her like she had wanted to talk to her all morning.
She followed her father into the kitchen.
"Papi if this is about the vines and the roof…."
"Isa, I know Abuela wants you to use your gifts for the benefit of the town, but flowers and vines are no longer benefiting anyone, especially your sisters. The people would like you to try to make other plants because pretty isn't always useful. If you can't they will understand but please try to be more understanding of how your gift can affect others, in both positive and negative ways," said Augustin, his voice gentle, it wasn't the scolding she expected.
"But I'm always thinking of the family, Abuela says we all have to be perfect, I have to be perfect," said Isa
"I know mi vida, I know. But in order to think of others, you must first look at yourself and see your actions from how others might see them. Your flowers are perfect and pretty but even perfection has flaws, nothing is truly perfect sweetheart. I know I taught you to look at people beyond their physical traits because love isn't skin deep, all I ask is that you apply that same level of sight to your family. There's more to you than how you look and your gift, that goes for everyone, including Mirabel and Luisa," said Augustin
"Si Papi," said Isa.
Augustin hugged his oldest daughter tightly.
"Take a break from flower vines for a while alright sweetheart?" said Agustin.
"I will Papi," said Isa, burrowing her face into her father's shoulder. The one place any girl no matter what age should feel safe, her father's embrace.
…
Mirabel sat on her bed, washed and in her nightclothes, carefully stitching royal blue thread through handwoven silk. She was leaning on her sister who was absently weaving a flower crown of lavender and jasmine that Isa had given her.
"Abuela did not look happy at all," sighed Luisa, breaking the silence of the last hour.
"Nope," said Mirabel, one-word responses were common when she was focused.
Luisa was bouncing her leg on the floor, a common thing for her when she felt like she should be doing something but wasn't.
"Papa looked he was going to talk to Isa about the vines, if anyone can get through to her it's him," said Luisa
Mirabel smiled, her father may not have a gift like his daughters but he definitely had the gift of understanding.
There was a soft knock on the door.
"Come in," said Mirabel
The door opened to reveal Antonio and several jaguars.
"The jaguars thought you might need them, cats always help with stress and Luisa can't hurt a jaguar from a hug," said Antonio as the large felines bounced in and started nuzzling the two girls.
"Thank you, little man," said Mirabel putting down her sewing to scratch one of the jaguars behind the ear making the large cat chuff happily.
"They've asked to sleep with you two until your stress is gone, they can smell it and I told them you two are my favorite cousins," said Antonio, climbing up on the bed and hugging Mirabel
"You're too sweet mi primo favorito," smiled Mirabel
"Why don't you have one of your kitty friends go cuddle your mama, I think she could use it just as much as we do," said Luisa, ruffling his hair with a smile
"I think I have a giant ball of yarn they can play with," said Mirabel getting up and going to her yarn drawer.
Luisa had fun playing with the jaguars as Mirabel got back to work on her sewing, she needed to finish Mariano's wedding suit then make several other garments for the wedding like the bride's maids dresses and the groom's men suits, as well as the table cloths because untrained rats that Bruno hadn't established a bond with, had chewed through all the ones they had used at Pepa's wedding. This meant more weaving and more embroidering for Mirabel.
…
Isabella climbed the stairs to Bruno's tower, she had spent all morning covering the town in a myriad of flowers, carefully keeping them away from the roofs and not using vines. But now she needed answers, both about the house and her own prophecy.
She opened the door and made a large leaf to shield herself from the sand curtain before using the same leaf to surf the sand pile at the bottom of the cave. If she knew her Tio he would be in his vision cave either using his gift or writing a telenovela with his rats.
The mountain of stairs in front of her was no match for her vines.
The cave itself was attempting to portray her uncle as a wise and feared figure, but seeing him with a bucket on his head and showing several rats how to do a dramatic faint put paid to the images on the walls.
Normally she would have laughed at the sight in front of her but she was determined, the sooner she found out why the cracks were happening the sooner everyone would be happy again.
"Tio I need your help," said Isabella
"I already told you your future years ago," said Bruno gently
"But what exactly did you see? Was I making just flowers or could I do other things?" asked Isa
"I don't have all the answers mi sobrina, my visions never show the full story because it is up to the individual to determine most of their own future," said Bruno
"Could my powers be affecting the house? My vines seem to be causing roofs to collapse in town and now everyone is annoyed with me except Abuela, I don't mean to cause more work for Mirabel but she doesn't seem to see my problems," said Isa
Bruno sighed.
"So you've also noticed the cracks? I noticed them a few months ago and I have been helping Mirabel patch them, well Hernando has been helping her patch them. Perhaps if you are so keen to find the root of the problem you should look at the family the way the town does, as if you don't have a gift. Look past the perfect gifts and see the people underneath, I think your papa told you something similar this morning," said Bruno.
"But how Tio? How do I look at the family as an outsider instead of a Madrigal?" asked Isa
"Maybe talk to people in town, I've tried but they're scared because Senorita Cruz claims I killed her fish, rats are so much easier to talk to than people, well people other than Mirabel," said Bruno
"Why is it easier for you to talk to her? You're talking to me just fine," asked Isa, puzzled at how much her Tio seemed to have changed over the years, he was still shy and introverted but there was a small amount of self-confidence and inner wisdom she had never seen before.
"Because she understands people and can empathize with them, I like helping her in town because she knows Jorge likes mixing spackle, and even if she could do it better she lets me because it's something I enjoy and not a duty of her's being passed to me. Granted she still does way too much, she and Luisa both have problems with their self-worth being tied to what they can do. Talk to your sisters, any vision I could have is going to start with that," said Bruno
Isa left the tower determined to figure out what was going on with the cracks, her gut told her that she shouldn't mention any of this to Abuela until she knew how to fix it, but there was one cousin she could get to help her. Camillo was always up for an adventure.