Pepa could feel herself drifting in and out of consciousness, again.

As much as she hated to say it, she was starting to get used to the symptoms of whatever drug they'd been using on her. There was, however, something new. A sharp burning sensation started at the base of her neck and ran down the entirety of her back.

Forcing her eyes open, she found herself face down on some sort of table. Gazing around, she could see all her kidnappers crowding around. What surprised her, though, was that Dante sat tied up on the floor. Her heart sank as she locked eyes with the man.

The man they had tied up may have looked like Dante, but she instantly knew it wasn't him.

It was Camilo.

How had he gotten there? Why was he transformed into Dante? If he hadn't shifted out of that form, did the others know that it was him? What would they do if they found out?

More questions raced through her mind as she tried to sit up.

"Hold her still!" Santos ordered.

"Don't touch her!" Camilo shouted as he shifted into an exact copy of his little brother. The ropes that held him captive fell to the ground.

"You idiots! That's not Dante!" Santos growled, completely caught off guard from the boy's trickery. "That's her son! Keep him back!"

Lorenzo, Carlos, and Hernesto dove for the boy. Camilo, who'd anticipated their attempts to catch him, easily dodged out of the way. With all the force he could muster, the boy threw himself at Santos, knocking them both to the ground.

With everyone's attention focused on her son and Santos, Pepa pulled herself up off the table. The sharp pain in her back didn't subside. On the contrary, it grew with every movement. She could feel (and see) the crimson blood that ran down her sides.

"Nice try boy." Santos growled. In a matter of seconds, the older man managed to pin Camilo underneath him. "We've waited far too long for this opportunity. I won't just stand by and let you ruin it!" Raising the blade above his head, he readied it over her son's still struggling form.

"Get away from my son!" A deafening roar of thunder echoed throughout the cave. A dark thundercloud formed over her head, yet no rain fell. Lightning struck the ground around her.

Taking advantage of the confusion Camilo ran to his mother. Throwing himself at her, he wrapped his arms around her waist, burring her head in her shoulder. "Mamí!"

"Quick, restrain her!"

"Stay back!" As soon as her son was safely in her arms, she felt the familiar power surging through her. Just as she had done days prior, her green eyes faded away, replaced by the glowing gold. A small tornado formed around the pair, creating a protective barrier around them.

"Cami." Pepa sighed in relief as she returned the hug. After a second, she pulled back. Cupping the boy's face in her hands, she tilted his head from side to side, looking for any injuries. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to help you." Camilo explained quickly. "Dante came to us. He wanted to make things right. But two of those men were chasing him. So, I shifted into him and sent the real Dante with Mirabel. She's taking him back to the family to tell them where we are."

She felt relief that her family was, in fact, looking for her. However, there was no guarantee that she'd be able to hold everyone at bay until their rescue arrived. Her spike of adrenaline would only last so long. And when it faded, she didn't want Camilo in harm's way.

"Cami, you need to leave."

"What? Why?"

"I can't hold this barrier for long."

"But what about you?"

"Please, don't argue with me." The redhead couldn't keep the exhaustion out of her voice. "I need to know you're safe."

"No. I won't leave you."

"Cami..." Pepa started to plead with him, but just as she feared, the last remaining bits of adrenaline finally wore off. Camilo watched as the golden glow faded away. Reaching out he tried to catch his mother as she fell unconscious. Unprepared for the sudden weight, he landed on the ground, with his mother in his arms.

"Mamí!"

With the barrier down, Santos wasted no time closing the distance between them. Camilo stood, moving himself in between the approaching man and his mother. "Get out of the way, boy."

"No, I won't let you touch her."

"Then die." Santos had enough of these games. The woman nearly escaped, again. All because of the boy. Swinging the knife towards the boy, he couldn't help the confused look as a small green vine sprouted from the ground. It curled itself around his wrist. With a sharp tug, it pulled his hand away from Camilo. "What the-"

"Huh. Would you look at that?" The curly haired boy said with a smug smile on his face. "The cavalry's arrived."

"Camilo!"

"Pepa!"

The Madrigals came running in. Félix, Isabela, and Luisa entered first. Dante and Julieta arrived close behind.

"Papí! Tía Julieta! Over here!" The two cool colored sisters turned their focus onto Santos and the members of his group as Julieta and Félix pushed past the older children and ran to Camilo and Pepa.

"Pepí?" Félix called out as he gently lifted the unconscious woman off of the floor.

"Pepa, cariño?" The eldest triplet called out softly, but the redhead showed no sign of hearing her words. The paleness of her skin worried her. Sure, Pepa was fair skinned. However, being propped up against Félix, she looked white as a ghost. Pushing a stray red curl away from her face, Julieta spoke more to herself than her sibling. "What did they do to you?"

"Her back..." Camilo started to say. The words died in his throat as the two adults looked at him.

Gently, Félix shifted the redhead in his arms. As her back was exposed to the pair, Julieta couldn't help but cover her mouth at the sight. Tears filled her eyes as she looked at the bloody symbols that littered her sister's back. "Dios. Félix, we need to get her back to Casita."

All Pepa could see was the dimly lit cavern walls that surrounded her. Taking a calming breath, she walked forward. The darkness slowly gave way to light as she stepped out of the cavern.

Blinking, she adjusted her eyes to the newly found brightness. Looking around, she could faintly see the shape of another person. Making her way towards it, she called out. "Hello?"

She couldn't help the chill that ran down her spine as the figure turned around. A perfect copy of her stood in front of her. It stared at here with glowing golden eyes.

"You know they were right." The copy said.

Pepa shook her head. "No, they aren't."

"Of course, they were. I've always been inside you." The impostor said with a vicious smile. It closed the distance between them, tilting its head slightly to the right. "You just didn't know who I was."

"You're not real." Pepa growled. "Pachamama doesn't exist."

"You're not so sure about that anymore. Are you?" It asked. "You feel it. Or should I say you feel me. My power."

"It's my gift. It was given to me because of my father's sacrifice."

"We both know that's a lie."

"It's not."

"Believe what you want, child." The copy chuckled. Reaching out, it took Pepa's chin in her grip. Leaning in, it whispered in her ear. "In the end, one way or another, I will have you."

Slowly, Pepa opened her eyes. It only took a moment for her to recognize the familiar raindrop themed wallpaper. She wasn't in the cave. She was safe and sound inside Casita. Surrounded by those she loved.

So, why did she still have these dreams?

A month had passed since she'd been taken by the crazed cultists.

Thanks to Luisa and Isabela's help, Santos and his group had been captured with ease. It was finding a suitable punishment that the Madrigals struggled with. There were laws in the Encanto, of course. But something of this magnitude had never happened before. Which left the decision of punishment to their family.

Félix and Julieta wanted blood. Bruno understood his brother-in-law and sister's wrath, but he didn't want them to do anything that they'd regret.

In the end, Alma ordered the cultists to be blindfolded and taken far away from the Encanto. Félix, wanting to ensure that the group would in fact be gone, left with Bruno and a couple other villagers to get rid of them.

Knowing she wouldn't be able to return to sleep, Pepa swung her legs out from under the covers. As soon as her feet were planted on the ground, she wandered over to the floor length mirror that sat in the corner of her room. Pulling the oversized sleeping shirt (that she shamelessly stolen from her husband's drawers) up to her shoulders.

Turning around, Pepa let her eyes travel over the haunting reminder of her experience.

Julieta tried to heal the wounds on her back. The second she regained consciousness, Julieta had been by her bedside waiting, arepa in hand. She'd practically shoved it down her throat the second Pepa opened her eyes. The redhead could still remember the confused look on the oldest triplet's face as she checked her back. The arepa had done its job. The wounds disappeared in a matter of seconds.

But pink scars littered her back in their place.

Julieta couldn't figure out how it would have happened though. Eventually, the closest thing they could figure out was that when her powers had been released, a stray lightning bolt must have struck her, cauterizing her wounds.

"Pepí?" Félix's sleepy voice called, pulling her attention off her scars and back towards their bed. "Are you okay, amor?"

Pepa hummed as she released her hold on the shirt, once again covering the horrible marks. "Everything's fine, mi sol. Go back to sleep."

Félix sat up, giving her a knowing look. This wasn't the first time he'd caught her staring at the scars along her back. He'd offered to talk to her about it. To try and get her to open up. But every time he did, she would just brush him off. "What about you?"

Pepa gave a soft smile. She knew all too well that Félix wouldn't just return to his peaceful slumber. Making her way back over to the bed, Pepa crawled beside him. Félix stretched out, laying on his back. Pepa rested her head over his heart.

While there was a truly along road of healing from her experience, she could take comfort in the fact she didn't have to face it alone.

That's a wrap y'all! Sorry, again, for the long wait. I just honestly couldn't get this ending to work the way I wanted.

I want to thank all of you that have stuck around and finished this.