AUTHOR'S NOTES: All I want to say here is that this chapter has a monster cliffhanger because I'm evil.
Enjoy!
Chapter 3
"Are you sure this is the only way to get answers?" Mirabel queried as she watched Bruno setting things up in his vision chamber. When he paused, looking at her, she frowned slightly as she went on. "I know having visions is hard on you. And I'm trying to not do things to hurt my family, remember?"
Bruno felt a dozen thoughts buzzing around in his brain as he studied Mirabel in amazement. She wanted answers to the questions about her fate, but she wasn't willing to make him suffer to obtain them if there was any other alternative. "It's the only idea I've got," Bruno assured his sobrina. Kneeling across from Mirabel, he lit a small fire in the center before using the same long match to set four small piles of herbs alight as well.
The center fire was to help give him focus. Sometimes the visions wouldn't come easily, and he needed something to direct his attention to. The herbs-bay, sage, thyme, and rosemary-were to help keep him grounded. More than once, he'd gotten stuck in a vision and the only thing that was successful in pulling him out was strong aromas.
Taking a few deep breaths and stretching a bit, Bruno finally held out his hands to Mirabel as his eyes began to glow green. "You might want to hang on," he cautioned as he took Mirabel's hands in his, calling up his magic.
As the sand swirled around them, Mirabel stared at the images that flashed by.
The candle being knocked over as it threatened to go out...
The mountains around the encanto breaking apart...
Mirabel gave a small gasp of horror as he watched Antonio nearly get flattened by his mother's door, escaping as his father pulled him away just in time.
And then... the house breaking and healing as she appeared in front.
But before Mirabel or Bruno could say anything, they both looked equally surprised and confused as Mirabel's image morphed into Isabela and back again.
"This doesn't make any sense," Mirabel said, looking from the vision to Bruno.
But Bruno was looking at another part of the vision and he stood, taking a step towards the new scene. "The river!" he exclaimed, getting Mirabel's attention and pointing. "I-It's something about the river."
"What river?" Mirabel asked, trying to think of where the spot might be. If felt strangely familiar somehow, even as she realized that it wasn't someplace she'd ever been before. Seeing a woman standing there, Mirabel inhaled sharply as she watched herself approach the figure. "Who is that?"
Bruno shook his head as the vision concluded. Examining the new vision plate, he felt like they now had more questions than answers.
x
"I don't understand," Mirabel muttered as she and Bruno examined the vision plate in the den. "Why would Isabela be part of the vision now when she wasn't before? And I still don't get why the river is important or who the woman is."
Sitting in his armchair, Bruno picked at the armrest for a moment before looking up at Mirabel. "The section of river in the vision... is where my mother died."
Mirabel stiffened a moment before letting out a deep breath, reaching out a hand to her tio. "Where we were given our miracle."
Bruno nodded. "Your mama and Pepa go down there every year on your Abuela's birthday, but the last time I went with them... I had a really, really bad vision... of the night she was killed. I had a terrible migraine, fever... nosebleeds... even a small seizure. Ever since, I've been afraid to go back there. There's something about that spot that... I-I-I must be connected to it in some way, but it's... it's-it's cursed for me."
Thinking about her abuela, Mirabel looked down at the vision, picking it up and studying it from all angles. "I think it means that either Isabela or I... one of us is going to have to make some sort of sacrifice... and that sacrifice is going to determine the fate of the family, the magic, and the encanto."
Bruno inhaled sharply as he looked from the vision to Mirabel, devastation and horror etched on his face as he spoke. "Wait, you... you think one of you has to die to save the magic?"
Mirabel shrugged, not certain as she talked through her theory. "It would be just like Isa to try and do something crazy to keep me from having to do the same thing, you know? If she found out about the vision... She would want to do whatever it took to keep me safe."
Rubbing his face with one hand, Bruno absently scratched his neck for a moment as he considered Mirabel's assessment. Giving Mirabel his complete attention, he waited until she did the same before asking, "I think we should tell the family about this." Holding up a hand to halt his sobrina's protests, he amended the statement. "At the very least, we should tell Julieta and Abuelo... and probably Isabela."
"If we tell Isabela, she's going to run with it, and she's going to do something drastic to keep me out of all this," Mirabel countered.
"True," Bruno agreed, nodding. "But it's not just your fate we're talking about now. It's hers as well. Shouldn't she have a say in what happens, too?"
Both Bruno and Mirabel gave a start when someone knocked on the door to the den and Mirabel hastily hid the new vision plate under the sofa cushions before turning her attention to the door.
"Mama wanted me to tell you that Mariano Guzman is coming for dinner tonight," Antonio explained as he came into the den and looked from Mirabel to Bruno. "I think he's going to ask Dolores to marry him!"
"That's great news!" Bruno exclaimed, grinning.
"It really is," Mirabel agreed, trying not to let her worries about the visions show. "I know Mariano loves your sister very much... and he's a really good guy."
But Antonio frowned slightly as he studied his tio and prima. "Is everything okay? If there's something going on, I want to help."
"We appreciate that, really," Mirabel assured her cousin, giving him a sincere smile. "And if there's any way you can give us a hand, I promise we'll let you know."
Once Antonio had left with some of the rats following behind, Bruno turned to Mirabel, giving her a look. "After dinner tonight, let's talk to Julieta, Isabela, and Abuelo. I know you want to leave your sister out of it, but..."
"No, you... You're right that she should know," Mirabel begrudgingly agreed. "I just... keeping this newest vision to myself... I feel like this is my chance to be the protective sister for once."
"O-Okay, but what are you protecting her from?" Bruno pointed out as Mirabel pulled the vision plate back out. "That's the thing," he reiterated, nodding at the vision. "We don't know which one of you is central to this whole situation... or if you both are."
X
As Mirabel helped her mother prepare the food for Dolores's proposal dinner, she was suddenly startled when Dolores briefly sidled up to her and whispered, "We need to talk. Now."
Finishing her task, Mirabel gave her mother an apologetic look as she made up a quick excuse. "I think Dolores has a bad case of nerves. I'll be right back, Mama."
Following her prima to the bathroom and closing the door behind them, Mirabel froze as she saw the look on her cousin's face. "You know everything, don't you?" Mirabel quickly deduced, eyes wide in panic.
"It's worse than that," Dolores confided. "My Gift is fading. Plus, Isabela told the rest of the family that she was the one in Tio Bruno's vision 10 years ago."
Blindsided by the new information, Mirabel felt her heart racing as a thousand possible scenarios ran through her mind at once. "Tonight's going to be a total disaster."
"What do we do?" Dolores wanted to know. "I don't want Mariano to be scared off by this."
"We say nothing," Mirabel blurted out, giving her prima a reassuring nod. "We... We-We get through tonight, and after your future fiancé asks you to marry him, we'll all sit down and talk this through, alright?"
"Right," Delores agreed, nodding, even as her own anxieties started kicking in. "Just... act like nothing's wrong. No problem."
"Piece of cake."
"Easy as pie."
But as Mirabel met Dolores's eyes, they both found themselves wondering who would spill the beans first.
x
If anyone was wondering why Dolores and Mirabel had begun a staring contest the moment they sat down to dinner, no one said anything.
Mariano fit in with the Madrigal family effortlessly as he joked with Felix and Camilo, shared recipes and cooking tips with Julieta, and even asked about Bruno's rat telenovelas, explaining that he'd been a fan ever since Dolores had told him about them.
As the dinner progressed, however, Bruno began keeping an eye on Isabela who seemed to be getting increasingly antsy. Presuming that she was just eager for Mariano to actually propose, figuring that she had some flower display planned, he thought nothing of it until he noticed that Isa and her mother kept exchanging looks while eyeing Mirabel.
Catching his sister's eye, Bruno gave her a 'what's going on?" raise of the eyebrows. When Julieta flicked her glance from Mirabel to Isabela and back again before giving him a pointed look, Bruno's eyes widened slightly as he caught on.
'Well, stop her!' Bruno's next look said, desperately.
'Don't you think I tried?' Julieta's eyes replied, looking aggravated.
"Juli... Is everything alright?" Agustin asked, looking puzzled.
"It's nothing, amor," Julieta assured him, just as Pepa whispered something in her ear.
"Isabela looks like she's about to have a panic attack," Pepa cautioned her as clumps of begonias, rhododendrons, and Christmas roses started popping up.
"I'm fine!" Isabela squeaked with a forced smile as her mother and tia gave her a concerned look. But her efforts to get rid of the flowers resulted in several small cacti sprouting up. "No, no, no, no, no..." she whispered as more and more random flowers began popping up.
Before anyone could inquire what was going on, the walls began cracking and Camilo started shifting into different people without warning.
Standing quickly and pulling Mariano along with her, Dolores tugged him towards the front door, speaking rapidly as soon as they were out of earshot of the rest of the family. "Something's wrong with the magic and we don't know what it is, but Tio Bruno had a vision with Mirabel and Isabela and now one or both of them might destroy the magic and the whole family is doomed!"
Mariano stopped Dolores and after a moment, he kissed her and gave her a smile. "Clearly this isn't a good night for all this."
"It really isn't," Dolores apologized, suddenly not noticing as more cracks appeared on the walls.
"If you need to find somewhere safe," Mariano said with concern. "-my home is yours. My mother would welcome all of you with open arms."
Dolores's smile seemed to brighten the room even as a storm seemed to be brewing both inside the house and outside. "I'm sorry your proposal didn't work out the way you wanted," she said, regretfully.
But rather than being upset, Mariano grinned as he knelt down, pulling out the ring and taking Dolores's hand. "Marrying you means becoming part of your family... for better or worse, si? We may as well get the 'for worse' part out of the way as soon as possible."
Despite everything going on, Dolores couldn't help tackling Mariano with a squeal of delight after he slid the ring on her finger.
x
"I'm sorry..." Mirabel muttered as she looked at the rest of her family after she and Bruno told the rest of the family about the two visions. "I didn't mean to make a mess out of everything."
"So, what does all this mean?" Pepa asked her father, nervously stroking her braid-something she hadn't really done since she was a teenager.
Bruno looked like he wanted to be anywhere else, afraid that he would be blamed in some way for the goings on.
"Maybe the magic is wearing out," Camilo suggested.
"Camilo!" Felix chastised, sharply.
"What? I'm serious!" Camilo insisted. "It's been 50 years. I mean... who knows how long magic houses last?"
"That doesn't explain why Mirabel and Isabela were in Tio Bruno's vision," Luisa argued. "I think it means that there's an underlying problem."
Everyone turned to Pedro who looked just as lost and confused as they all did. "All I know about the magic is that it began the night that Alma died," he stated, trying to keep his voice steady.
Although the last thing she wanted was to draw her family's attention, Mirabel gave her abuelo an insistent look and said, "Tell us the story again... The whole story."
Leaning back in his chair at the head of the table, Pedro took a deep breath and began the tale.
"Alma and I met in town during the evening celebration of the Day of Little Candles," he began, letting his memories wash over him. "It was love at first sight. Each of us felt that we had found something we'd never realized was missing." Looking at Pepa, Julieta, and Bruno, he smiled. "The day your mother told me she was pregnant with triplets was the happiest day of my life. I was so excited to be a father."
"You weren't scared?" Agustin queried, a bit surprised.
"Oh, I was terrified!" Pedro admitted with a soft laugh. "One child at the time would have been scary, but three? Ai, Dios..." The lighthearted expression faded as he went on. "But I knew that together, Alma and I could handle anything... any challenge we faced..."
It was a few minutes before he continued the story. "The cartels were starting to take over the towns nearby and after Alma had given birth, we feared that we wouldn't live to see our children grow up. We spoke with as many people as we could, convincing them to join us in finding a new home far away."
Pedro took a shaky breath as he recalled the long days of trekking through the forests and hills, trying to put as much distance as possible between the weary refugees and the banditos that would attempt to pursue them.
"We came to the river and were crossing when... when they found us," Pedro said in a choked voice, tears welling up in his eyes. "I saw them and tried to get everyone to the other side of the river... I-I'd meant to try and hold them off... give everyone else a chance to get into the denser trees... But Alma was quicker."
Letting out a small sob, Pedro wiped his eyes and looked at his children as he went on. "Alma gave me a kiss... she gave the tree of you to me... and then she grabbed a handful of stones from the riverbank, hurling them at the banditos, cursing at them the whole time. She knocked one man off his horse and she hit one of the horses in the eye. He bucked his rider right off."
"What happened next, Papi?" Julieta asked, coaxingly, as she placed a hand on her father's forearm.
Pedro couldn't speak for a moment, and it took several shaky breaths before he could continue. "The rest of the men drew swords... they cut Alma down in front of me. I screamed at them... I cried... I fell to my knees cursing them for taking Alma away from me... And then... our wedding candle glowed with a ferocity that I had never seen before. It expelled your mother's murderers as the mountains around us grew, creating a protective border."
Before anyone could say anything else, Pedro whispered, "It should have been me."
"Papa..." Pepa breathed, not sure what her father meant.
The cracks in the house slowly started up again as Pedro repeated, "I should have been the one to die that night. Alma was quicker in defending everyone... because I froze. Because I was a coward who couldn't defend his own family! Alma would still be alive if I hadn't..."
The cracking increased suddenly and as the floor rumbled, everyone hurried out of the kitchen and to the courtyard, looking up to see the candle nearly going out.
Without a second's hesitation, Isabela summoned her vines, swinging up to the roof and dashing towards the candle while the casita pushed the rest of the family out of the house.
Hearing Mirabel and their mother call her name, Isa felt her heart clench as the house began to crumble and fall. But focusing on her goal, she grabbed the candle and was about to summon her vines again when her magic failed, leaving her falling to the ground.