"I ask that you leave. I'm sorry, Chachi."Lance told Chachi the next morning.
"But, why. I'm your cousin, you can't treat me like this!"she screamed.
"He has a point, Chachi."her mother told her.
"No, I don't want to go! I won't! I'll stay! And as long as I like, too!" Actually, Chachi would've been very glad to go home, but she always liked to do just what people asked her not to do.
"I'm sorry."Isabel told Lance.
Chachi went upstairs, and saw Ma.Eugenia coming out of the hall.
"You probably asked that I leave! Didn't you?"Chachi yelled at her.
"Suppose I did."Maru answered.
"Well, I'm not leaving no one will make do something I don't want to do. Much less you. It isn't my fault that you're illegitimate,"she pushed Ma.Eugenia, against the banner of the stairs. "Or that you're father won't give you his name, you know, and now, just for the fact that you asked me to leave, I won't. I'll stay. My father said I could if I wanted to."
She pushed Maru, against her weight, the banner broke, and Ma.Eugenia fell down the stairs. Chachi stood petrified, and then ran down the stairs. She kneeled close to Ma.Eugenia.
"Wake up."Chachi told her. "Wake up. You have to wake up. If my father finds out you fell, I"ll be in big trouble. Wake up!" She shook her.
Everyone came running, when they heard the screams. Maru had begun jerking, and making odd noises. Chachi let her fall to the floor, and screamed.
"She's bewitched!"
"Chachi! She hasn't suffered a head injury, has she."asked Ma.Xacinta, then noticing all the people around her, whispered, "oh, no."
"Don't worry, people, it's nothing. Nothing at all. We'll just take her upstairs, to her room, and before you know it, in a few days, she'll be on her feet again, good as new."said Ma.Xitlalli, cheerfully, as she and touched Maru and disappeared.
Chachi stood trembling.
"She fell herself. She fell herself!"she repeated.
"We know she didn't, Chachi. At least, I do. I know you. What happened? You were mad, weren't you? Why? That was no excuse, anyway. You shouldn't be so aggressive, and anyway, you should be grateful she's still alive."said Arthur angrily.
Chachi stood looking at him, and around her at everyone. She wanted to cry.
"She did fall herself."
Chachi's father grabbed her hair, and pulled her, away, screaming.
"That girl is retarded."Jesus sighed. "Seriously, Arthur, that cousin of yours should be in a hospital for the mentally insane."
"You think I don't know?"Arthur sighed. "But what are we going to do about it?"
"Send her there?"suggested Jesus.
"Maru will be all right, won't she?"asked Jean.
"Yes, she will. It's really nothing to worry about, I think." He hesitated before continuing. "I shouldn't tell you this, but well, you've already seen. It's happened to her before, and to the dectuplets. That's another reason, they're so close. You see, they're epileptic. All of them, and Maru, too. That's the 'curse' they always talk about. That's probably what happened. It probably wasn't Chachi at all. Maru probably just had the bad look of going down the stairs when she got the seizure. And Chachi the bad luck of being there. However, don't tell anyone I told you. They are going to be furious with me. But Maru will be fine. Since this looked like a grand-mal seizure, it will take her some time to recover from it. She probably won't be able to eat or speak for a while, because she probably bit her tongue, that was why there was blood coming out of her mouth, and she won't be able to move for a few days. But like Ma.Xitlalli said, she'll be back on her feet in no time."
"Wow, how come we've never seen this before?"asked Kurt.
"Simple."said Arthur. "Because they will usually come at night. For those guys, anyway. Usually grand mals at night. They used to get petit mals when they were younger, but now, they get grand mals, too."
Arthur shook his head.
"Well, we just have to wait for the recovery. There's nothing to worry about. She'll be fine."he said, cheerfully, and went upstairs, to get his Gameboy.
The prof. had decided that they would leave the next day after the wedding, but due to accident, he decided to stay longer, until Maru recovered completely. He told Ororo and Logan so. They agreed with him. Jean and Scott and everyone else also decided to stay, not just because of Maru, but because of all the attention they got, and all the luxuries, and good service.
"I think that the accident came at a great time."said Evan.
"You shouldn't be happy about it. It's not right."Kurt told him.
"I know, but still. You have to admit it wasn't inoportune at all."
"I guess you're right."
But not all everything was bad. While Maru had a seizure, that same day, Francisca woke up from her coma. Everyone was delighted with this. She could move or speak properly, yet, but the dectuplets solved that problem.
"Mother! We're so glad you're better."cried Ma.Xochilt.
"Yes, we are."said Alfonsina.
"You probably don't recognize her, of course. This is Kitty. You're daughter-in-law."said Ma.Xosefina pulling Kitty toward her mother.
Francisca tried to say a few words, but failed, and instead the dectuplets told Kitty what she had intended to say.
"She says she hopes you will be a good wife for her son, and that she while she can't personally see to your care and comfort, she will have Juanita, her maid, see to that for you."
Juanita, who was standing just a close by, nodded her head.
"I think that's a spectacular idea. Juanita speaks English. I don't know why we didn't think of it ourselves."
"I've never had to serve anyone other than the patrona, and I've seen her relatives, but not foreigners,"she said. "However, I will do my best."
"Thank you, Juanita."Kitty answered.
Lance was also there. Francisca asked that he moved closer to her.
"She says that she wants to recover fast, and she will put in all her effort into it. She wants you to stay with her as much as possible. She wants you close to her."
Meanwhile, Meche was standing over Ma.Eugenia.
"What happened, Meche?"she asked with difficulty.
"You had seizure." Meche said shaking her head.
Maru looked up.
"No one noticed, did they?"
"Everyone. Everyone was there."
Maru couldn't believe it. She had tried so hard to pretend that there was nothing wrong, and now everyone would know. She cried.
"Don't cry. It will only give you a headache. Let's hope you recover fast."
Ma.Xitlalli ran into the room.
"Maru, you won't believewhat. My mother woke up from the coma. Just now. Don't worry, you know you'll recover. Quickly, let's hope."
"What did everyone say?"
"They think that Chachi pushed you down the stairs, so they'll probably think that this is just a result of that, you know, there's nothing to worry about."
Maru felt better when she heard this.
Unfortunately, Ma.Eugenia was on the second floor, and there were no means to get here, without climbing the stairs. Xavier asked Ororo to go see how Ma.Eugenia was doing.
"How are you, Ma.Eugenia?"she asked.
"Just fine."answered Ma.Xitlalli, for her.
"Why?"asked Maru.
"I was just wondering."
"How do you think I'm doing. I can't move. I ache all over."
"Of course you do."said Ma.Xitlalli. "We know you do."she added darkly. "Well, we better leave."she said to Ororo.
"Well, I know why you asked, and look, you could at least tell the truth, not that I think Maru is right or wrong, however, nobody likes being lied to."she told Ororo.
"I didn't lie, Maria... which one are you?"
"Xitlalli."
El Padre Juan also went to see Maru.
"Are you feeling better, Ma.Eugenia?"he asked
"A bit, Padre."
"Let's hope you recover soon. I am sure you will."
"Yes, luckily, Ma.Xitlalli told me that everyone thinks it was because Chachi pushed me down the stairs."
"Did she push you?"
"I don't know, I can't remember."
"I passed by your father on the way here. He looks very distressed, and worried."
"It's his fault I'm like this. I never suffered a head injury, there's no cause for me to have epilepsy. The only explanation would be that it was inherited."
"You shouldn't hold that against your parents."
"It's the truth, you know it. At least, my mother always recognized it."
El Padre sighed.
"Well, would you like to see him?"
"No!"she answered.
"I'll pray that you get better, and that you will find it in your heart to forgive him."
"I hope so, Padre. Thank you."answered Ma.Eugenia "Will you give me your blessing?"
El Padre made the sign of the cross, and crossed Ma.Eugenia.
"En el nombre del Padre, del Hijo, y del Espiritu Santo. Amen."
"Amen."