A/N: If I Could Reach Into The Past: Chapter 2

Chapter summary: A recap and a reunion leads to rising tensions between the three ex-friends, as Nita soon finds herself at the center of their conflict.

"Nita Mondragon.."

The name echoed around inside of Manolo's still ringing head, further fueling his curiosity and confusion over the young girl before him. She couldn't be any older than 14 years old, so he was having trouble linking her to his old friend. Still, the last name and those brown eyes couldn't just be a coincidence, and the simple fact that she knew who he was despite the two having not met up until now was another thing that could be questioned.

"Manny?" Nita started, waving her hand about in front of the older person's face with a soft frown. "Are you with us?"

"H-how did this... How did you... Happen?" His brain was still a little too jumbled to form an actual sentence, but Nita could gather what he was trying to ask.

"My parents got married and my mother gave birth to me." Nita replied smartly, showing her mother's wit in her as she folded her arms. "Isn't it obvious?"

"N-no... I mean, how did you happen if... I mean, you look older tha-" He was cut off suddenly by Nita's sudden gasps of surprise.

"Manny... How long do you think you've been gone for?" She snapped suddenly, running her fingers through dark hair in a stressed out manner.

"I-I don't know..." Passing through two worlds twice didn't leave anyone with much time to stop and really gather their thoughts, so Manolo hadn't even bothered to question time up until this point. "A few hours, maybe..."

Nita's eyes softened a little at the answer. For a moment, she looked ready to laugh, but suddenly her awkward smile dropped into the most heartbroken frown that a little girl of her age could muster. Looking up at the elder, she reached out and grasped both of his hands tightly in her's and squeezing them lightly, as if testing to see if he were truly there or not. After a few moments, she took a deep breath and closed both of her eyes.

"Believe it or not, you're wrong." She began, slowly letting go of his hands and dropping her own at her sides.

"W-what? Then... How long have I been gone?" Manolo asked, finally beginning to regain his wits.

"This is going to sound... Crazy. You may have to take a moment to let this sink in when I tell you..." Nita paused to take yet another deep breath, this time taking her time in holding it and then letting it go. "You've been gone for 14 years now."

If Nita hadn't been within arms reach of the other, then he surely would have fallen over and onto the hard ground under him. Luckily, Nita's small hands shot out and took his to keep him balanced and upright. Finally, after he had stopped swaying, she let go of his hands again and tucked her arms behind her back and looked up at him again, waiting for him to react. He finally reacted in what Nita considered to be the most appropriate ways possible... By falling back into the dirt anyway.

"Not taking it well, I see..." She muttered, dropping to her knees beside him to make sure that he was alright.

A few gentle slaps seemed to be all that was needed to bring Manolo back around, and to annoy whatever patience he had left after waking up 14 years into the future after being killed by a snake. Once he was fully back around, he reached up and took little Nita's hand, using it as a tether to reality as he sat himself up slowly.

"14 years..." He muttered softly to himself, using his free hand to rub his temple. "And Maria marri- Wait, Maria!"

"Yes, mom's name is Maria." Nita said slowly, her eyes shifting quickly in a confused and uncomfortable way. "What about her?"

"I haven't seen her in 14 years! Is she still- Has she changed much-" In his panic, he began to tighten his grip on Nita's fingers.

"Manny! Calm down and stop squeezing my hand like that!" Nita shouted suddenly, "You're seriously killing me right now!"

"S-sorry..." He carefully and quickly let go of her hand.

"Don't be." Nita muttered, rubbing her sore hand a little before sighing softly. "Look, I know you're surprised and everything but, I can take you to see her if you like."

"Will you?" He sounded hopeful, quickly pulling himself and her out of the dirt.

"As long as you promise not to tell her that I was out so late at night." Nita said with a not, taking the other's wrist suddenly and pulling him along the rode.

"I won- Wait, what were you doing out here?" Manolo asked, a touch surprised at the girl's strong grip compared to her earlier one.

"I had a hunch." Nita replied offhandedly.

"About?"

"Papa always comes back from villages at this hour, so I thought he might be coming back tonight." Nita sighed, halting suddenly in front of a seemingly random building.

This particular building was a rather old looking structure, with a large roof of dark tiles and pale white bricks holding it upright. The door was as simple as the many, brown windows that decorated the home, but something about them made the house seem a little more interesting. Even after 14 years, Manolo still recognized this structure to be the home of Maria, except there was now two new add-ons to the home. A large tree that stretched all the way up to the third level window, and a white horse that was tethered to it.

"Ha! I was right." Nita giggled suddenly, rushing over to the horse and carefully climbing onto it's back. "Dad is home!"

"I take it he got a new horse since I left?" The man joked, watching as the girl nimbly stood up onto the horse, who seemed rather unphased by the girl's weight.

"I think." Nita replied with a shrug, grabbing onto a nearby branch and skillfully pulling herself up onto it. "Well, good night then!"

"Wait a minute. Where are you going?" Manolo asked, watching as Nita climbed up the tree's branches quickly.

"Keep your voice down." She whispered down to him as she made it to the top branch. "Mom and dad can't know that I'm up this late, so you're going to have to go in without me, okay? I'll be down after things settle, okay?"

"Okay, good night, Nita." Manolo chuckled, watching as she disappeared into the open window and hearing her soft footsteps disappear.

With a deep breath, he soon turned away from the window and turned to face the simple door, which in this moment looked more intimidating than the snake that had killed him. Part of him was very scared and nervous, but the other part of him was constantly reminding himself that the owners of this house were his friends, and that he had nothing to be worried about. Taking a deep breath, he walked up to the door and knocked once, twice, th-

By the third knock, heavy footsteps could be heard moving swiftly across the floor towards the door. A voice that was all to familiar to Manolo soon followed, and the tumblers of the door's lock could be heard falling into place. Within an instance, the door was opened and Joaquin soon appeared in the doorway. What Manolo instantly took into account was the grey that had added itself into the now 34 year old's hair and the few scars that decorated his face the same way his medals still decorated his jacket. He also looked very tired and somewhat annoyed at this time of night.

"Who-" The soldier's voice died in his throat, as Manny was suddenly relieved to him. "Oh my god... Manny..."

"Hey..." Manolo began, standing meekly now as he felt the tension forming in the air. "Its been a while-"

He was cut off suddenly by a sudden and very tight hug. He barely had time to register it, nor did he have any time to hug back before he was thrust out at arms length by Joaquin. The older man's earlier annoyance had melted away to a look of pure shock, as he reacted similarly to Manolo's either reaction to Nita and struggled to find words.

"How- What-" Joaquin stopped suddenly and slapped the other across the face. "Where have you been!?"

"To the Land of the Dead and back." Manolo answered, rubbing his sore cheek and trying not to smile to much.

"Manny... I- How did you even know this ad-" Joaquin stopped suddenly and let his arms dangle at his sides suddenly as his earlier annoyance seemed to return to him. "Nita..."

Manolo couldn't help by chuckle softly, as he spotted the young girl at the top of the stairs just behind Joaquin. Upon hearing her name, however, the girl stood up as quietly as she could and attempted to sneak away before her father could see her. However, his reflexes were quicker than her's as he spun around quickly to fix her.

"Get down here, young lady." He called to her with a gentle frown. "I've already seen you."

"Darn it..." Nita muttered, slowly climbing down the stairs.

"Watch your language." Joaquin scolded, only to then smirk as the girl came into full view. "Did your mother catch you yet?"

"Not yet." Nita giggled, receiving a quick hair ruffle.

"Thats my girl." Joaquin laughed, gently turning the girl around and nudging her back towards the stairs. "Hurry up to bed. I won't tell her this time."

With a nod, Nita hurried back up the stairs quickly and yet quickly. The two men watched her as she disappeared onto the second level of the house before turning back to one another. Earlier shock aside, Joaquin now looked at his friend with a look of fatherly pride on his face.

"I never tell Maria." Joaquin said suddenly, still smiling softly. "My little girl is a master at sneaking around... I taught her almost everything I know."

"I can tell." Manolo chuckled, only to go quiet once again and look back up towards the stairs. "Speaking of which..."

Joaquin's smile fell slowly, his own gaze going slowly up to the stairs and then back down at his friend. With a gentle sigh, he nodded up towards the stair case, already knowing what his friend was thinking.

"Maria... Missed you a lot over the years..." He admitted with a gentle huff. "She tells Nita about you all the time."

"That explains how she knew me..." Manolo sighed, his eyes never once leaving the stairs. "Can I... See her?"

"Maria?" Joaquin muttered, his eyes suddenly widening as his eyes darted back up the stairs. "Y-yes! Of course. Oh gosh, I almost forgot about her... Yes! Follow me."

With that, the soldier lead the former bullfighter up the stairs quickly, both men walking at a dazed speed, about to face the woman who had started the events of the last 14 years. The whole house was eerily quiet, except for the soft squeak of a bedroom door on the third floor, no doubt a curious little girl who was about to watch everything go down.