Chapter 4

5 years before Encanto


Bruno stared at Pepa's lifeless body, then turned back to Dolores.

She was watching Pepa with an unreadable expression, her eyes empty.

"Kid…" Bruno struggled for words. "I… I'm really sorry."

Félix rushed to his wife's side, followed closely by Julieta and Isabela.

"Hey, hey, hey!" Félix grabbed Pepa's limp and pale hands, rubbing them with his own hands and holding them up against his face, kissing them. "Don't you go anywhere, mi amor! You hear me? Don't you go. We are right here."

Felix hugged his wife's lifeless body to him, taking her hand and holding it to his heart, his voice shaking.

"See? I'm right here. You just gotta stay with us, amor."

Pepa's head fell back limply, her eyes closed. Félix put his hand to the back of her head and gently supported it, his eyes searching her face desperately.

Isabela conjured up a flower, holding it to Pepa's nose, but nothing happened.

"Tía, look." Isabela whispered, blinking back tears. "Open your eyes. You love these ones."

Julieta gently but quickly pulled Isabela aside, bringing an arepa to Pepa's mouth with a sense of urgency.

Isabela glanced at Abuela, who nodded quickly, holding her hands over her mouth to try and hide how upset she was. Isabela could see that Abuela was trying very hard to hold back tears.

Julieta crushed up arepas into her mortar and pestle with quick precision, and with careful hands she opened up Pepa's mouth, spooning crushed lumps of arepa in. She put the mortar and pestle aside and turned back to her sister, gently closing Pepa's mouth and stroking her throat with her fingers to try and make her swallow. Julieta slowly and shakily exhaled, trying not to let the stress get the better of her.

Her sister's face felt so cold.

Julieta could hear sobbing all around her but she tried to block it out, concentrating on the task at hand. She continued to watch her sister's face as she stroked her throat.

"Come on, Pepi." Julieta muttered under her breath. "Come on, come on..."

Julieta knew from people in town that her powers only worked if it wasn't already too late. She knew there was a point of no return, where the food wouldn't help anymore. She remembered that woman with the goldfish, crying at Julieta because her food wouldn't bring it back.

Julieta prayed that Pepa wasn't at that point yet. She felt angry at herself for not doing something sooner. Julieta promised to never ignore her instincts again, even if her mama told her otherwise. She promised to always stand up for what she knows is right.

Agustín put a hand on Julieta's shoulder, then slowly and respectfully reached under the blood soaked blanket, pulling out a small and silent baby. He glanced sadly at Julieta as she helped him to cut the umbilical cord, then stepped back from the bed, holding it in his arms as he gently wiped Pepa's blood from its face. Julieta heard more sobbing from the family and she looked away, focusing back on Pepa.

"I'm so sorry." She heard Agustín say softly to Félix. "He… Isn't breathing."

Isabela put a hand over her mouth and started to cry too. She turned to look at Dolores. Her cousin was standing alone in silence, staring at her mamá.

Isabela looked back at her own mother. Julieta looked defeated, her shoulders dropped and her head hung down in resignation. Isabela frowned. Mamá had tried so hard. It wasn't fair that everything had to be put on her. Isabela felt angry determination rise within her. Wiping tears from her eyes, Isabela headed over to the kitchenette sink, where her father was gently washing the silent baby.

Abuela slowly approached the bed, her hand resting on Julieta's shoulder as she stared down at Pepa. Abuela's mind flashed back to her younger self, standing over her husband's body just like this. Back to her younger self, clutching three babies and promising to always protect them.

"Mamá, I…" Julieta shook her head, unable to look up at her mother. "I… tried. We all did."

Abuela put her arms around Julieta, her breathing shaky as she pulled her in close.

"I know you did." Abuela whispered, kissing her daughter and holding her. "You did perfect."

Julieta rested her head against her mother's black shawl and started to cry.

"I'm so sorry, mija." Abuela whispered as she stroked Julieta's back, looking down at the dark circles around Pepa's closed eyes. She noticed that the last of Pepa's tears were still on her face.

Abuela stifled a sob, knowing that she had asked too much of her daughter.

Abuela had to stay strong for her family. She blinked back her own tears and swallowed, trying to stop her head from dropping in shame. She wanted to fall to her knees under the weight of it all and cry out, but she didn't. Abuela stayed standing. She had to.

Looking out the window, Abuela watched the candle that burned in the distance.

"Abuelo Pedro... Please take care of our Pepa." Abuela spoke clearly, for all of the family to hear. "Don't let it rain on her anymore."

Bruno stood at the doorway and took one last look at his family before turning to leave, unable to live with what he'd done. He breathed in shakily, reaching for the doorknob.

Then, Dolores heard a breath. She quickly hummed and perked up. Everyone turned to look at her.

Bruno stopped and turned back, trying to see what Dolores saw.

"Mamí." Dolores whispered.

Pepa moaned softly, life returning to her.

Abuela gasped, stepping back and watching the colour slowly return to her daughter's face and hands. Julieta made a sound somewhere between a laugh and a sob, throwing herself down over Pepa in an embrace.

Félix laughed too, rubbing his sister in law's back. Julieta glanced up to see Félix looking back at her, his teary eyes full of love and gratitude.

"Thank you, mi ángel." He smiled, gently reaching for her face and wiping her tears, his forehead resting against hers. Julieta smiled back, sobbing in relief.

The wind slowly picked up and started to blow again as Pepa took a breath, and then another. White snow began to fall softly around them.

Abuela approached and knelt down beside Pepa, carefully brushing snowflakes from her face as they fell. She looked proudly over at Julieta.

"Thank you, my darling." She whispered, placing a hand to Julieta's cheek. "I just knew you could save this family. A gift just as special as you are."

Bruno looked down as Abuela spoke, his hands fumbling guiltily in his pockets.

Pepa's eyes slowly fluttered open and she looked up at Abuela.

"Mamá." Pepa mumbled weakly.

Abuela gasped in relief, stroking Pepa's hair.

"I'm here, corazón." Abuela spoke gently.

"I… have a cloud…"

"Shh, I know, mija." Abuela said softly, leaning down and kissing her daughter's forehead. "I know. It's ok."

Pepa turned to see Félix on the other side of her, his face soaked with tears.

"Ay, look at you, mi amor." Pepa smiled weakly, more life returning to her face at the sight of her husband. She reached up for his face and wiped his cheeks with her hand. "You're all wet."

Félix chuckled softly. He took her hand in his and trailed kisses up her hand and along her arm. Pepa smiled and leaned into him, their foreheads touching as Félix kissed her face.

Dolores slowly approached them, standing cautiously by the bed and watching her mamá. Pepa's face softened as the two of them made eye contact. Dolores heard the wind change ever so slightly around them and knew from that sound that her mamá felt worried. But Mamá's breathing sounded slow and tired, so Dolores knew it wasn't going to storm.

Pepa looked at her daughter with sad, apologetic eyes. Dolores glanced at the spot beside her mamá on the bed and pouted her lips, gesturing that she wanted to join her. Pepa smiled weakly and nodded, holding her arms out for her daughter, who climbed into the bed and snuggled against her mamá.

Pepa wrapped her arms around her daughter and Dolores lay her head on Pepa's chest, listening to the sound of Mamá's heart. She sighed, relieved to hear it beating strong again.

Dolores put her hand over her other ear and covered it, so that Mamá's heartbeat would be the only thing she could hear. Pepa placed her hand over the top of Dolores' hand, helping her to find a quiet place. The wind slowed down as Pepa remembered doing this for Dolores when she was little. Pepa rested her head against Dolores and kissed her forehead.

Dolores looked up at her mamá's face and felt the soft warmth of her body around her, the comforting and familiar smell of her hair. Dolores closed her eyes, taking in the soothing feel of Mamá's breath against her face, and the slow rise and fall of her chest as she lay on her.

Everybody noticed the clouds, but not many people knew her real mamá, the one who lived beneath the chaos. The playful Pepa who loved to dance, who got lost in the adventures of story books, the loving Pepa who would do anything for her family. People often knew Pepa as the out of control Madrigal, but very few knew how much she really cared, how much she tried and struggled to fight off the storms.

Dolores knew. She heard it every day.

"Where is Camilo?" Pepa asked Félix, the snow falling a little faster at the thought of her son. "Is he safe?"

"Safe, mi vida." Félix replied with a smile, climbing into bed beside them and kissing her face. "Don't you worry. He'll be home soon."

Felix put his arms around the both of them and his hand over the top of Pepa's, adding another layer of protection over his daughter's ear. Pepa closed her eyes and rested against her husband and daughter. The snow fell slowly again, forming a thin layer of white over their shoulders and hair. They shivered a little and held eachother closer for warmth.

Félix looked over at Abuela, his eyes burning.

"Never again." He said in a quiet but strong voice.

Abuela nodded, looking down and feeling deeply ashamed. She had been so ready to extend the family and grow their protection that she had forgotten to protect the family that was already here.

She took a deep breath and focused on maintaining composure, even though inside all she wanted to do was break down and cry.

"Abuela!" Isabela spoke up suddenly, her voice full of hope.

Abuela turned to see Isabela, Julieta and Agustín smiling by the sink, an oasis of small palm trees sheltering them from the snow.

Under it, Isabela was holding the baby, but he was no longer lifeless. The baby smiled too, looking at the family around him.

"What…" Abuela exclaimed, "How? How did-"

Then her eyes met Julieta's, who gave her an exhausted smile. Flowers and medicinal plants had grown all around them under the trees, many of the leaves cut. Julieta was holding her mortar and pestle in her hands.

"A miracle." Abuela exclaimed, smiling in relief. "My darlings… You… You are increíble."

Agustín pulled Julieta and Isabela in for a tight embrace, smiling with joy. Julieta smiled over at Bruno, but he didn't see her. His head was low as he stood at the doorway, muttering to himself. Julieta left the others to join him. Bruno flinched in surprise as Julieta brushed the snow out of his hair, bringing him back to the present. His sister gestured for him to come and join the rest of the family, but Bruno shook his head sadly. He knew that he'd hurt his family enough. Julieta sighed and held him.

The snow picked up and blew in gusts and flurries as Isabela approached the bed.

Pepa quickly sat up, her eyes wide with shock at the little baby. Dolores and Félix sat up too, both of them speechless. They'd been so lost in their quiet moment that they hadn't realised what had been happening by the sink.

Isabela smiled gently, handing the little baby over to Pepa. As he reached his mother's arms the baby smiled, and the snow around them stopped falling. The room brightened and warmed, golden sun glowing in through the windows and melting the ice around them. The wind grew quiet. The baby smiled again and all the clouds around them disappeared.

Félix put his arms around Pepa and stared down at their sweet baby. He had little pink flor de mayo flowers in his curly black hair. Dolores cuddled up beside her mama and reached for the baby, gently booping his little nose.

"Looks just like his Papí." Félix chuckled, tickling the baby's little tummy. As the baby laughed, rainbows formed around them.

"Look at you." Pepa said affectionately. "Our little Antonio."