Chapter 42

40 years before Encanto


"Move your legs." Bruno groaned, shoving Pepa over.

"Are you joking, Brunito?" She huffed. "This is my bed and I'm already on the edge!" She shoved back. "You move your legs!"

"It's not my fault you sleep weird." He frowned. "And spread yourself out like a big bird."

"You sleep in a ball right in the middle." Pepa grumbled. "And you're wearing the pyjamas I don't like."

Bruno gasped in disbelief. "What's wrong with them?"

"They're scratchy." She waved a finger. "I hate the feel."

Bruno grinned, throwing a scratchy leg over Pepa while she squealed. He covered her mouth with his hand.

Pepa wrestled with him, the two of them rolling around as Pepa attempted to throw Bruno out of her bed. She put both feet to his side, pushing against him with her legs.

"Get them off, Pepa!" He cried out. "I don't like them!"

"Why not?" She scowled.

"Do I need a reason?" He grabbed her ankle, pushing Pepa's leg back at her, but Pepa was flexible so it bent up to her shoulder without hurting her.

Pepa laughed and so did Bruno. He pushed harder, but it only made Pepa roll backwards, the two of them tumbling off the side of the bed with a shriek and thump.

Thunder crashed and the room lit up as the two of them shouted and clamoured, rolling around on the floor as they squabbled.

"Dios, enough!"

They both turned with wide eyes to see Julieta at the door, lightning flashing against her silhouette.

Julieta frowned. She wanted to be mad. They were both being so loud, and she was exhausted.

But when Julieta saw their frightened faces, she couldn't help but remember all the times the world had been unkind to them.

Julieta knew she was their safe place. She didn't have the heart to betray that. Her siblings were being so annoying, but Julieta knew they only wanted to play, even if it was right next to her bedroom.

"I've been cooking all night," She explained, rubbing her eye. "And only just got to sleep."

They watched with guilty expressions.

"Sorry, sis." Bruno said quietly, and Pepa nodded in agreement. Pepa hugged onto Bruno's arm, her head resting on his shoulder.

Julieta sighed, unable to stay mad at them. She felt her anger melt away at the sight of their faces.

"But now I'm up," Julieta shrugged. "Guess I could cook one more thing."

Julieta's eyes met theirs, her playful expression making them grin. She rushed over and they both gasped.

Bruno and Pepa scrambled over eachother to get back into bed as their sister chased them.

Julieta jumped forward and grabbed Pepa around the middle, pulling her down onto the bed as she squealed.

"No no no!" Pepa protested as Julieta began rubbing her tummy.

"First I'll prepare the dough." Julieta laughed as she squashed Pepa, who giggled. "Roll it out."

She rolled her sister along to her spot in the bed, then turned to Bruno, catching him too.

"Then the ingredients." Julieta pulled Bruno onto bed and tickled him until he squirmed.

She dragged Bruno over to sit next to Pepa.

"Now the pastry!" Pepa spoke up in a bright voice.

Julieta smiled, kissing her sister's face.

"Now the pastry." She agreed, pulling Pepa's heavy blanket up over the top of them and tucking it over their heads so they were trapped under like empanadas. Pepa squealed in excitement.

"There." Julieta dusted her hands and turned to leave. "I'll be back to check on it in the morning." She glanced over her shoulder. "So the food better keep quiet till then."


The next day


Bruno woke to find Pepa cuddled up against him.

He kissed her forehead, then realised her hair was wet. Bruno touched his own wet hair, then glanced back at her. Oops. She must've had a nightmare, but Bruno had slept right through it.

"Wake up, Pepi." Bruno shook his sister.

Pepa frowned, rolling away.

"We've got school." He reminded her.

Pepa exhaled in a puff, her back to him.

Bruno pushed Pepa but she didn't move. Her soft snores told Bruno she'd fallen back to sleep. He kept pushing until she fell out of bed with a thump.

A cloud appeared over the space Pepa had disappeared, but she didn't emerge.

"Come on!" Bruno urged her, peering over the edge of the bed, but Pepa was gone.

He leaned over, hanging upside down as he checked under her bed. Pepa looked back at him with sleepy eyes, then closed them again as she tried to sleep some more.

"Did you forget about our quest?" He asked.

It took Pepa a moment to process, then her face lit up. She smiled at Bruno and crawled back out.


"Dios, what's gotten into you three?" Alma chuckled, watching her triplets shovel down their breakfast.

"Top secret, Mama!" Bruno announced through a mouthful of food, while Pepa downed her orange juice.

Julieta started to cough as her breakfast went down the wrong way. Alma rubbed her daughter's back, shaking her head at them with an amused smile.

"Ay, hijos." Alma sighed. "Whatever will I do with you."


Pepa raced ahead into the fields, spinning and making rainbows as she went. Alma smiled.

"Good morning to you, Señorita." One of the farmers called, "Look how happy you are!"

"I'm going on a quest today." Pepa whispered.

"Really?" He whispered back. "How brave."

Pepa's smile was bright as the sky. She danced circles around the farmers, making sure they were watching. Pepa liked when people were impressed by her.

"Look what I can do!" Pepa announced, doing a cartwheel. She turned to make sure they had seen it.

"Dios." One grinned, while the other clapped. "Amazing."

Pepa smiled, coming back over. She did a dance for them, shuffling her feet.

"Do you like me?" She asked.

They laughed and nodded.

"We love you," They reassured her. "You're the best part of our day."

Pepa's chest puffed with pride.

"Why?"

The farmers chuckled because they could tell Pepa was fishing for compliments.

"Because you are special, cariño." One smiled. "You're not afraid to be different."

"You're like the daughter we never had." The other added.

Pepa grinned. She did a handstand then a backbend, enjoying how they snapped their fingers in encouragement.

"Why don't you have a daughter?" Pepa asked, standing back up. She held onto the farmer's hand as they led her to the crops.

"Well, we are both chicos." He explained. "You need a wife for that."

Pepa thought about it, then turned to him with a smile. "I know what you can do. You can just marry one."

They both chuckled.

Pepa's face fell a little. She'd been serious. Why were they laughing at her?

"I can't just marry one, cariño." He explained, taking the other farmer's hand in his. "Because I'm already in love."

"With who?" Pepa asked.

They laughed again, glancing at eachother with knowing smiles.

"Go water the crops, beautiful girl." The other grinned. "Mami is waiting for you."


Pepa ran over to Mama, skipping and dancing as she went.

Alma took a deep breath, trying to stay strong. It was always hard to take Pepa to the fields, but days when she was this happy were always the hardest. Alma hated having to take that smile away.

"Are you ready to make it rain, mija?" Alma asked, stroking Pepa's hair behind her ear.

Pepa shook her head, laughing as she bounced away again.

"Pepa." Alma pleaded, her fingers fidgeting with her braid. "Please don't do this."

Her daughter fell back into the long grass and rolled around playfully, pretending she was Shadow. She crawled up to Mama and weaved between her legs, growling and scrambling away again.

Pepa was just so excited about her quest this afternoon, and how kind everyone was being to her. It felt like her life was good again.

Alma closed her eyes, exhaling slowly. This wasn't fair. She fought back the urge to just forget their responsibilities and let her daughter play. But she knew they had to fulfil their duty to the Encanto.

"Come here." Alma called, holding out a hand to the shuffling section of grass.

Pepa popped her head up with a grin, the sun shining bright. She crawled over to Mama, hugging her legs.

"We need to make it rain, mija." Alma spoke quietly. "You know that."

"I don't want to." Pepa grinned.

"Pepa." Alma scolded, but Pepa just laughed, throwing herself back into the long grass.

"If you don't cry, then the crops don't get watered." Alma called after her. "And if the crops don't get watered, the crops die. And if the crops die, what happens?"

She watched her daughter sit back up, her smile fading with the sky.

"What happens?" Alma repeated.

Pepa looked down sadly. "Everybody dies."

"That's right." Alma sighed. "Do you understand?"

Pepa nodded. She closed her eyes, trying to cry, but the tears wouldn't come. She looked back up at Alma, holding her braid.

"Please, Pepa."

Pepa gasped and held her breath, her cheeks puffed. Her chest hurt as she struggled to force out the wrong emotion.

"Try." Alma pleaded. "Please try."

Pepa whimpered. She was trying. She just felt so good today. All Pepa could think about was everybody's kindness, the secret vision, the adventure waiting for her after school. Peps didn't want the good feelings to go away.

"I can't do it, Mami."

Alma blinked, feeling her heart sink.

"Am I being bad?" Pepa asked with worried eyes.

"I know you're trying." Alma sighed. "Come here."

Pepa came over to Mama, her back stiff in anticipation. She wrapped arms around Mama's shoulders, wind blowing as she braced herself.

"You're sure you can't do it in your own?" Alma spoke softly.

Pepa shook her head, and Alma exhaled slowly.

"Look away."

Pepa did as Mama said, then yelped as a slap landed hard across her back, a cloud appearing over her head.

Alma smacked Pepa again, over and over until her daughter sobbed in pain and rain fell down over them.

Pepa took Mama's hands in hers and cried. Her mind replayed painful memories of being hurt in the fields, and Pepa whimpered, her body trembling.

The farmers watched sadly from a distance.

Pepa hid her face against Mama, unable to look at them. Alma hugged her daughter, her own tears falling along with Pepa's. She'd hated doing that.

They sat together in the rain, Pepa curled up against Mama and shaking as Alma held her. Alma rested her head on Pepa's, staring out at the crops with wide eyes. She longed to comfort Pepa, but knew she had to let it rain first.

When it was time, Alma sung softly to Pepa, kissing her face and apologising. Pepa was quiet, letting Mama carry her to school as a grey cloud floated over their heads.


Later


Pepa leaned into Bruno as he drew pictures in class, not taking in anything the teacher was saying. She felt so drained and heavy, like all she wanted to do was sleep.

"You okay?" Julieta whispered, stroking her sister's hair behind her ear.

Pepa nodded, but her expression and cloud said otherwise. Julieta rubbed her back and Pepa winced, shifting away.

"Sorry." Julieta kissed her sister's face. "Can I look?"

The teacher glanced over, but didn't call them out for talking. He could tell something wasn't right, and decided not to push it. Julieta gave him a grateful look before turning back to her sister.

Julieta gently pulled back the collar of Pepa's dress, revealing angry red marks across her back. Julieta heard whispering from behind them and shot the girls a furious look. They flinched, eyes turning back to the board.

She handed Pepa an arepa from her bag, and Pepa took it with both hands. Pepa felt better as she ate it, the sting fading away.

Pepa cuddled up to Julieta and closed her eyes while Julieta held her, feeling annoyed that Mama hadn't just told her Pepa needed healing when they'd first arrived.

Julieta knew Mama was probably embarrassed, but whenever Alma didn't do her job right Julieta had to work twice as hard for the both of them.


The bell rang and everyone rushed out for lunch, but the girls lingered, hoping to find out what had happened. They stood around Pepa as she got lunch from her bag.

Pepa cowered a little into Bruno as they approached, afraid of what might happen to her.

"How did you get hurt, Pepa?" One asked.

"Was it the boys?" Another added. "Please tell us."

Julieta frowned, coming over.

"Do you actually care?" Julieta asked. "Because I saw what was on that note. I know names you called her, and how you teased her and left her out."

Their faces dropped. They all turned to Pezmuerto, who fidgeted nervously.

"You hurt my sister, and made her think there was something wrong with her. That she was a monster." Julieta accused. "When the only monster I see is you."

Pepa leaned into Julieta, feeling overwhelmed. Julieta held her protectively, fierce eyes still on the girls.

"I spent a while deciding how I'd deal with you." Julieta admitted. "I wanted to put something disgusting into my cooking, and watch you and the town eat it. Or hurt you, then heal you, so no one would believe you."

The girls' eyes widened. Bruno and Pepa turned to Julieta in disbelief, but her expression was serious.

"But in the end," Julieta told them. "The best thing I can do is nothing. Because this next part is up to you."

They watched her in surprise.

"You could turn your lives around if you wanted to." Julieta told them. "You could grow up and be good people, like my siblings."

Julieta gestured to Pepa and Bruno, who watched quietly.

"You could do something kind and meaningful with your lives." Julieta continued. "Or, you can continue be dumb, pathetic school bullies. Your choice. But I promise you, if you keep living like this, no one will ever remember you. No one will ever love you. And if you remain bad guys, I will treat you like bad guys."

The girls glanced at eachother, really taking in what she said.

Julieta turned, leading her siblings away for lunch.

"You really meant that?" Pepa whispered. "You think we're good people?"

Julieta kissed Pepa, cuddling her tight.

"I know you are."


Later


"Is it granadilla?" Pepa guessed, leaning in.

Julieta shook her head with a smile.

"Chilli." Bruno tried, holding onto Pepa to stop her from peeking.

Julieta shook her head again, her face excited as she reached into her bag, but before she could reveal the fruit of the day, a loud voice interrupted.

"I know!" Agustin called as he skipped over. "I know! It's papaya! I saw her checking it this morning."

Agustin's face dropped as he saw Julieta scowl at him. He thought that would've impressed her.

He came to join them, then slipped and fell. Julieta rolled her eyes.

"Ready for the adventure?" Bruno asked, straightening his friend up.

"Wait, Bruno!" Pepa frowned. "He's our guide?"

"Yeah!" Bruno grinned, "Shadow, Valiant, meet Abeja."

"Abeja Grande." Agustin corrected him proudly.

The sisters burst out laughing.

"Big Bee?" Pepa repeated, while Agustin's face burned up in embarrassment.

"Come on, Pepa!" Bruno scolded. "We only just told off those bullies for being mean. Don't you start now."

Pepa went quiet.

"It's okay." Agustin smiled. "You know, I meant to tell you, Pepa. You're not so different!" He remarked. "Look here," Agustin held his hand over Pepas. "See? We're the same."

Pepa stayed still as she stared down at their hands. Agustin was right. He was almost as pale as her. She put her other hand over his to be sure.

"My family is from Bogotá." Agustin explained. "Mami said there were lots of people in Bogotá with red hair." He continued. "Just like you."

"Really?" Pepa whispered, holding her braid. She tried to imagine what that would be like.

"Why did she tell you that?" Julieta spoke up.

Agustin jumped at the sound of Julieta's voice. He turned nervously.

"I asked Mama." He explained. "I wanted to tell her about my new friends. And I told her how Pepa was worried about looking different."

Pepa looked at Agustin in surprise. She was his new friend? Pepa thought he was only Bruno's friend.

Julieta seemed surprised too. For the first time, she really took notice of how kind and thoughtful Agustin was.

"See, we're the same!" Agustin grinned, laying a lanky leg out next to Pepa's. "And look here," He leaned in, pointing to his eye. "You can't really tell anymore, but one of my eyes used to turn in, just like yours. But my glasses fixed it."

Pepa took his glasses in her hands and Agustin let her. She put them on herself, then recoiled a bit from how blurry the world became.

"What you see there," Agustin explained, squinting. "That's how I see the world without them."

"Let me try!" Bruno laughed, wrestling Pepa for the glasses while his sister giggled.


That afternoon


Pepa could hardly contain her excitement as the four of them began their quest.

The sun shone bright and a rainbow followed as they ducked and weaved their way through town, avoiding villagers as they snuck to the church. Pepa's hand shook back and forward in excitement by her side.

"There it is." Hernando announced. "Top of that tower is where they have Sunshine locked away."

"That sure is a tall tower." Abeja commented.

"And full of baddies." Hernando told him, and Abeja gasped.

Shadow grinned, bouncing a little as she glanced over at Valiant.

"Let's go in." Valiant nodded. "Never met a baddie I couldn't stop."

The four of them crept forward into the street and towards the church, when a voice called out.

"Señorita, there you are!"

A villager sighed as he approached, relieved at the sight of Julieta. "We've been looking everywhere. There's been an accident. It's really bad."

Julieta's heart sank. She glanced back at her siblings as rain began to fall.

"But we have to finish the quest." Pepa's eyes filled with tears. "Remember?"

"I know." Julieta said in a quiet voice, stroking her sister's hair. "Im sorry, Pepa... You're gonna have to do the next part without me."

Thunder crashed as Pepa pulled away, her eyes fierce. Julieta took a shaky breath.

"But you said we're in this together!" Pepa shouted. "Liar!"

Julieta winced, glancing back at the villager and feeling helpless.

"I can't do it without you!" Pepa began to sob. Agustin and Bruno stepped forward, holding onto Pepa.

"You gotta let her go." Bruno reasoned with his sister. "You know how it is."

"I'm sorry." Julieta's voice broke a little. "I have to. If I don't go, people will die."

"You're just like Mama." Pepa whispered.

Julieta took a deep breath, then followed the villager, blinking back tears as she walked. She felt heartbroken, but had no choice. Julieta couldn't just let someone die to make her sister happy.

"No!" Pepa screamed, the sky lighting up into a storm. "Hermana!"

Agustin flinched, cowering from the lightning, while Bruno continued to hold Pepa tight.

Pepa pulled against her brother.

"We're supposed to do this together!" Pepa called after her. "You're our leader! You're Valiant! You're supposed to help us!"

Pepa broke into tears, her voice quiet now. "You're supposed to save Sunshine."

Julieta covered her mouth, tears running down her face as she walked away.

"You okay?" The villager asked her.

Julieta nodded, feeling ashamed that someone could see her crying. She wrapped arms around her chest, pretending someone was giving her a hug as she quietly sobbed.

"Banana, banana, squashed banana," Bruno sung into Pepa's ear as he rocked her, trying to stop her from crying. "Who's my favourite colombiana?"

Agustin gulped in fear, but stepped out into the storm to try and help Bruno. He danced with his friend.

"Banana banana, squashed banana." Agustin joined in, making monkey sounds as he threw his long arms around. Pepa watched them with a scowl.

"I hate that stupid song!" Pepa screamed.

They both stopped.

"Just leave me alone!" She sobbed. "I'm not a baby."

Pepa wanted to run home and go back to bed, but Bruno held her tight.

"That's right. You're not a baby." Bruno spoke quickly, trying to stop the storm before Mama found them. "You're a dragon, remember? And dragons aren't afraid of anything."

Bruno wiped Pepa's fringe off her wet forehead, his expression determined.

"Okay. So we lost Valiant." He continued in Hernando's voice. "A great loss, but that's life. You just gonna give up now, Shadow? Or will you finish what we started?"

"Life knocks us down." Agustin added, repeating Pepa's advice back at her. "But we get back up again. Right?"

Pepa swallowed, taking in their words. Around her, the rain stopped.

"That's what I thought." Bruno nodded, pulling up his hood. "Now dry those eyes, get up that tower, and let's go find Sunshine."

Pepa glanced at the tower, then back at Bruno and Agustin.

"But there were four people in the vision." She said quietly. "It won't come true with just three."

"Ay... You're right." Bruno sighed. "We're gonna have to find another adventurer."


"To be clear, I'm doing this for Pepa."

Pepa's friend frowned at Bruno as she followed him up the steps of the church tower. "After what you did to Pezito, don't think I'm gonna-"

"Sh!" Bruno held up a finger, ducking from the doorway. Pepa held a hand over her friend's mouth while they watched.

The priest walked past, humming to himself.

"Don't be fooled," Bruno whispered from under his hood. "He may seem harmless, but it's an illusion spell. Under it hides a bloodthirsty goblin."

Agustin gasped and covered his mouth, his eyes wide with fear.

Pepa's friend smiled, whispering to Pepa, "Do you guys always do stuff like this?"

Pepa grinned and nodded.

"The coast is clear." Bruno pressed his back to the wall, peeking around the corner. "Keep going."

The four of them hurried up the steps.

"Now you're coming on our adventure, you need a name." Pepa explained. "See Brunito is Hernando, and Agustin is Abeja."

"Abeja Grande." Agustin corrected her, while Pepa rolled her eyes.

"I could be Wish." Her friend smiled.

Pepa smiled back and nodded. She held onto Wish's hand as they climbed the stairs together. Noticing them do that, Agustin went to hold Bruno's hand, but he was too busy leading the way to notice, narrating the story as he went.

"This staircase is filled with booby traps." Bruno explained. "So make sure you step where I step."

"Why are they called booby traps?" Agustin wondered.

"Because they're scary." Bruno explained.

The girls laughed quietly.

"What's your name?" Wish asked Pepa.

"It's Shadow." Pepa spoke proudly. "It used to be Sunshine. But not anymore. Now I'm a dragon."

Her friend's expression softened. "I noticed you changed your interests after what happened to you."

A cloud appeared over Pepa's head. They were on an adventure, why was she talking about real life now?

At the sound of thunder, Bruno turned around with a protective frown. "You okay, Shadow?"

Pepa nodded, not letting go of her friend's hand.

"I'm watching you, Wish." Bruno gestured to his eyes before continuing up the steps.

"Always watching." Agustin added in a dark tone, turning around too. In doing so he tripped, but Bruno grabbed him before he could fall. Bruno was getting used to his friend's habits.

The girls giggled, then turned back to eachother.

"You know, I meant what I said in the note." Her eyes watched Pepa as they walked. "I really am sorry."

When Pepa didn't say anything back, Wish kept talking.

"I can see how much it's hurting you, Pepa. And not just the boys. Our group, and the things they said to you. How they ignored you... Your sister was right, we really are bullies."

Pepa took a shaky breath, avoiding her eyes. Pepa didn't like talking about things. She just wanted to play, and pretend everything was okay. If Pepa felt like if she didn't talk about something, then it wouldn't hurt her.

"I'm sorry we made you feel like a shadow, Pepa." Her friend said quietly, holding her hand.


They reach the top of the stairs and Bruno stopped at the heavy wooden door.

He turned to the others, gesturing to the ornate metal decorations and lock.

"So the tower is blocked off," Bruno explained. "And this is where the quest gets tricky."

"You didn't tell us about this part!" Pepa whispered.

"It's a plot twist." Bruno shrugged. "Makes for a more exciting adventure."

"A longer adventure." Wish sighed. "My parents will be worried."


They peeked into the church and saw the priest preparing for tomorrow. Around his neck was a necklace that jingled with keys.

"There!" Agustin whispered, pointing it out.

"We need him to take off that necklace." Bruno nodded in agreement.

"So what do we do?" Wish asked quietly.

Pepa grinned. "I got a plan."


The priest heard a knock at the church door and opened it to see Pepa and Pezmuerto standing there.

"Buenos Dias." He smiled.

"Hola Padre. We wanted to come pray for Pezito." Wish explained. Pepa nodded in agreement.

The priest led them inside and over to the pews, then went off to continue his duties. They closed their eyes and clasped their hands, but instead of praying, Pepa focused on crying.

Wish took Pepa's hand in support.

"Do you need help with it?" She whispered, and Pepa shuddered, remembering how Mama had helped her this morning.

"That helps a lot." Pepa said in a shaky voice. Wish put an arm around Pepa's shoulders.

Pepa remembered Mama smacking her because she was happy. She remembered the boys chasing her, her heart pounding in her chest and her breath heavy as she screamed. She remembered the field lighting up as they hit her, how they'd crowded over her. Pepa remembered how scared she had been, screaming and knowing no one could hear her.

"Pepa," Wish whispered, rubbing her back.

Pepa opened her eyes to see the church filled with clouds and flooding with rain. Her nose was running and cheeks streaked with tears as water poured down over the pews, ornaments, and priest.

"I know you are sad about Pezito, but you have to leave!" The priest scolded, shaking his sleeves as he was soaked by the rain.

He shooed the girls out of the church with one hand, the other holding onto his hair as it started to slip off. He glanced up at his bald head in embarrassment, then closed the doors.

From the stairs, Bruno and Agustin watched as the priest went out the back to his living quarters to get changed out of his wet clothes. He hung the necklace on a hook on the wall then went into his bedroom to changed, closing the door behind him.

Bruno and Agustin snuck over, taking the key off the hook.

"You shouldn't be here." A little voice spoke up.

They turned to see the priest's son standing there with a frown, his arms crossed.

Agustin gulped, while Bruno stepped forward.

"Don't tell anyone we were here." He told the kid. "Or all your hair will disappear, just like your papa."

The boy gasped, putting his hands to his hair before running off.

"That was a little mean." Agustin whispered.

"It's hereditary." Bruno shrugged. "Gonna happen either way."

They snuck back up the stairs where they met the girls.

"Did you get it?" Pepa whispered, wiping her eyes. Bruno nodded with a grin, holding up the keys.