Chapter 2

November 18th

3:35am

Julieta

Everyone had said their good nights, and were entering their new rooms for the very first time.

"Well, it's time," Julieta said softly, smiling as she held Agustín's hand. "Let's see what our rooms are like."

"I'm sorry for not listening more when you said you wanted a different Gift," Agustín said.

Julieta was feeling so serene that not even his reminder that he hadn't taken her side could upset her. "It's okay."

"I was just thinking about the town, and I was worried about how to help our children."

The reminder that for forty-five years, Julieta had been the least important person in the Encanto, whose needs and wants and exhaustion and human limits had always mattered the least, succeeded in getting under her skin a little. "I know. That's why I didn't give up before now."

"Thank God for Dolores," Agustín said.

The corner of Julieta's mouth twitched. Poor Dolores. She has no idea what she's getting into. I'll have to help the child as much as I can. Dios mio, it's not as if anyone else is going to help her. "Good night."

"Good night, mi amor."

They kissed and parted ways, stepping into their rooms.

Julieta was almost too awed to shut the door behind herself, but after a moment, she remembered to do so.

The wallpaper was covered with sheet music. She had ordinary bedroom furniture with a fluffy-looking four-poster bed. A chest was at the foot of the bed, and there was a wardrobe and a full length mirror. Different areas of the room had different acoustics and different beautiful paintings. As Julieta explored them, she felt the vibrations of the air change and knew suddenly that these were practice spaces. One area was for outdoors in the plaza, one was for church, and another replicated how she would sound in the courtyard of the house. A final area was marked by a stage, inviting her to perform. As Julieta walked across the stage and looked out at the rest of her room, she was intimidated. Being the center of attention for herself rather than hiding behind her food was a foreign idea.

She left the stage behind for now and crossed the room to a door. The door led into a softly lit bathroom in shades of teal, aquamarine, and sky blue, stocked with fluffy towels. A clawfoot tub was at the center of the room, and nearby it was a stand with oils and soaps. Julieta was drawn to the soft, crisp smell of the bathroom. She came inside and sniffed different soaps, feeling something deep inside her unwind. There was a sink and a mirror, and a toilet in the corner. "Oh," she sighed out loud, half startling herself with her own voice. "My own bathroom." Until this moment, she hadn't realized that she had felt ever since she was a small child that there was nowhere to retreat, nowhere to run. This new Casita had given her permission to deny herself to others, to lock herself in her bathroom and not come out until she was ready.

Tears filled Julieta's eyes, and she wiped them away without her usual frustration and impatience with herself for crying. Somewhere all my own. What was anyone going to say to her bathroom being locked? They couldn't exactly interrupt her taking a bath. No one in the entire Encanto would be so rude. It would need to genuinely be an emergency, or everyone would be too embarrassed. She'd been handed the perfect defense.

Even though it was very late, Julieta drew herself a bath and soaked in it, massaging her scalp and breathing in the delicate scent of the soap. It smelled like a crisp, vast open space, with just a touch of salt. Julieta wondered if this was what the ocean smelled like. After she noticed her fingertips had become pruned by the water, she dragged herself out, dried herself off, and dug a nightgown out of the chest at the foot of her bed, pulling it on. As soon as she climbed into bed and pulled the covers over herself, she was out.

xxx

10:01am

Julieta awoke so joyful that she went to her balcony straight after getting dressed, not even bothering to pin her hair up for the day yet. Pepa was awake; the sunlight was warm and there were multiple rainbows hanging over the house and over the Encanto. Singing just burst out of Julieta as if she were a young girl on the way to Sunday Mass. Sunday had been her favorite day, since there was an extra-long Mass on Sundays, which meant an extra-long time she was allowed to rest and not worry about anyone. And there were extra songs. Nothing made her gladder than singing. Exhilarated, Julieta sang every hymn she could think of off the top of her head, not even minding if she fumbled a word or two. The magic of her Gift surged inside her like the roaring flame of a bonfire.

She stopped because she was mindful of saving her Gift for others. However, the lovely feeling of her Gift igniting made her resolve to sing a few songs every morning before breakfast. Humming to herself, she went back inside and pinned her hair up, then walked down to the kitchen.

Bruno was already up and brewing delicious-smelling coffee, rats perched on his shoulders. He glanced at her with a smile. "Good morning. Sleep well?" He had freshly washed hair, a freshly shaved face and trimmed facial hair, and wore a striking red ruana. Also, he smelled of something pleasantly spicy, like a perfume or cologne. Even though he was pale from not consistently seeing the sun, and there were remnants of dark smudges under his eyes, and he was too thin, he looked somehow vibrant.

"Good morning. I slept deeply, but I'm not sure how well. Of course, we did have a party last night. Did you sleep well?"

"Magnificently," Bruno said. "My bed is exactly what I'd want. It's like the Miracle knew."

"And the new clothes?" Julieta asked. "Why red?"

"I dunno. I woke up this morning and there these were," Bruno said with a shrug, as if it didn't bother him.

Julieta looked in Casita's ice box and sorted through party leftovers. The leftovers would form the basis of breakfast, and would be wonderful with the addition of some more eggs and chorizo. She'd serve it with fresh arepas like always. "Pepa's up. Have you seen her?"

"I think she's probably enjoying her room," Bruno said. He served her a cup of coffee.

Julieta left the icebox alone for now, shutting it, and accepted the coffee, sipping it slowly. "It seems that we're the first ones up."

"That's not particularly surprising. We always were."

They lapsed into silence that was more comfortable than uncomfortable as they each had their first cup of coffee for the morning.

Luisa joined them as Julieta finished her coffee. "Good morning, Mamá! Good morning, Tío!" She did a whirl. "Look at my new clothes!" Her white blouse had pink embroidery, and she wore a pink skirt and pink shoes. "I love it."

"You look great," Bruno said, smiling at her enthusiasm.

"Let's whip up breakfast!" Luisa flexed with a grin. "I'll handle the eggs."

Julieta had to admit to herself as they worked that Luisa enjoyed cooking more than she ever had. Luisa's zest for it made preparing breakfast go much faster. By the time the others woke up, Julieta, Luisa, and Bruno were already plating food and setting it on the sideboard. As Luisa dashed to the dining room and moved the table, Mamá walked in to join everyone, dressed in a charming shade of green. "It seems I am not the only one to receive gifts from Casita this morning."

Mirabel was the last to show, wearing new clothes like most of the others. She arrived as everyone else had already started loading their plates with food. In her Gift-themed clothes, wearing dangling earrings, and brimming with new confidence, she suddenly seemed like an adult instead of a child. Julieta felt a pang.

xxx

11:55am

Julieta was worried about her mother's decision to involve Mirabel in the elders' meeting, but she smothered her anxiety as best she could under the necessity of helping Dolores. As everyone parted ways after breakfast, she went up to Dolores' room and had Dolores show her around. A huge amount of space in Dolores' room was dedicated to shelves of herbs and a massive table with all kinds of supplies all over it, like scales, a mortar and pestle, and pill molds. There was even a fireplace over which Dolores could place pots and kettles. "This apothecary could rival a big city's," Julieta murmured admiringly.

"It's intimidating," Dolores admitted. "I'm going to have to learn how to use your Gift, but with different materials. Part of me had hoped it would be exactly the same."

"I know a fair amount about herbs," Julieta reassured her. "And what we don't know, we can learn together. Borrowing books from the Navarros will help us along, and we can always ask them questions. You know, none of their children are interested in herbs. I think they'll be relieved that you've come along." She gave Dolores a hug.

Dolores hugged her in return, seeming to feel better.

They left together for town, walking to the Navarro medicine shop, which was next door to Dr. Herrera's little doctor's office, which was the first floor of his home.

Señor and Señora Navarro were about the same age as the Madrigal triplets. Señor Emilio Navarro had a hawk nose and a square face, with thick, side-parted hair. He was only a little taller than Bruno. His mother had been pregnant with him when she made the fateful river crossing. Señora Pilar Navarro had also been one of the first children born in the Encanto, about six months after their arrival. She was taller than Julieta and Emilio, with thick, straight hair she wore twisted into a bun. Both had warm chocolate skin and dark hair and eyes.

Emilio watched the front of the shop while Pilar took them behind the door into the part of the shop where the medicine was made. "I have several reference volumes you can borrow," Pilar said to Dolores. "I know most everything in them by heart by now." She smiled. "My guess is that whatever herbs you touch will take on a miraculous potency. So study herbs well." She took a small, thick book off a shelf and handed it to Dolores. "This contains the most common medicines you will need to make."

"Thank you," Dolores murmured as she accepted the book.

"It is wonderful to have another generation of healers to look forward to," Pilar said. "I hope that more young people will become interested in herbs and their uses, and that your family continues to pass down the magical Gift of healing."

Julieta smiled on the outside, but on the inside she still felt guilty that Dolores was taking her place so that she could have a Gift she truly wanted. Reasoning with herself that Dolores did want the Gift of healing wasn't working.

As they left the Navarros' medicine shop, Julieta asked, "Tell me. Why did you want my Gift so badly?"

The deep solemnity in Dolores' eyes reminded Julieta of Bruno. "Because all I could do before was listen as people suffered."

Julieta was chilled. Her imagination supplied all of the worst injuries she had seen in the Encanto over the years and what the moments must have sounded like had she been there: the cries of fear and agony as a wagon overturned in a muddy section of a field, pinning the farmer underneath it, the man who fell off the roof onto his head and effortlessly snapped his arm in two, the cow kicking an elderly woman when she made a mistake in milking it and breaking the woman's leg, the child accidentally trampled by a frightened donkey. On top of that, since Dolores had gotten her first Gift, Julieta had lost count of the number of times the child had come and gotten her because an elderly person was crying for help inside their own home, having fallen and broken a hip, or having had a seizure or a heart attack, or having fallen seriously ill.

Dolores' jaw clenched. "I refuse to be that helpless again."

Julieta laid a gentle hand on Dolores' shoulder. "I've learned that people are more than just their bodies. The person inside the body needs things that administering to their body will never give them. I never felt more helpless or aware of not being able to reach someone than when I was trying to help Bruno. I could heal his body, but I didn't know how to heal his pain."

Dolores' lower lip quivered, just once. She looked deeply into Julieta's eyes. "What are you saying?"

Julieta met Dolores' tortured gaze with compassion. "I'm saying that we should work together. Neither of us has the complete power to help others. Our Gifts are best in combination."

"Deal."

They hugged.