Mirabel and I take turns as we go through our vocal warm-ups, rising and falling with trills, "nya"s, and "me, may, ma, mo, mu"s. These warmups, as they were for me when I first started, are particularly embarrassing for Mirabel. Every few moments I catch her glancing back at the door, as if she's making sure none of her little cousins are peeking in with a snigger hidden behind their hands. I encourage her, showing her that if anyone is going to be laughed at, it's the grown woman doing the silly warmups.

"They really do help, Mirabel. Trills loosen your tenseness so that you learn how to sing without tightening up your throat. The weird cat sound will help you develop your mixed voice, and the 'me, may, ma, mo, mu' helps with enunciation and precision. It used to embarrass me when I first started too."

Mirabel's bottom lip sticks out in a pout as she crosses her arms. "You probably didn't start out sounding like a cow giving birth, though."

"Conejita, you sound nothing like a cow. You have a lovely voice, and it just gets better every day. You're turning out to be quite the little alto. We need you to keep practicing so that we can start doing duets together."

Mirabel's eyes light up before excitedly asking, "Really!?" I nod and smile. A new motivation flames within her, sparking her determination. She begins her warm-ups again, the strength of her voice now powered by confidence. We continue through her warm-ups without any issue until we begin reaching the higher notes. Mirabel's voice begins shaking with nerves. On one particular high note, her voice shrivels up and she shrinks into herself, too scared to even try to hit it.

"Come on, chica. You can do it! You have to put power behind it if you want to hit that note!"

Mirabel stands tall, straightening out her back. With a deep breath, she tries again, this time blocking her nerves and letting her notes soar.

"Beautiful, Mirabel! You've done so wonderfully; I'm so proud of you. Let's leave it at that today. And don't forget, you can practice these techniques whenever you want. In fact, it'll be better if you do."

Mirabel squeals before running and jumping into my arms. "Thank you so much, tía!" Before I can even respond, she has hopped back down and run out of the door. A small smile spreads across my face.

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While putting away the breakfast dishes and humming to Chiquita, who is sitting on my shoulder, Pepa bursts into the kitchen.

"Do you want to go to town with me?" she asks, "Julietta needs me to get some ingredients"

"Sure," I say before drying off the last few dishes and putting them away. "I'm ready when you are."

The day is warm and bright, just as Pepa has persuaded it to be with her cheerful mood. As we pass through the streets, many of the townsfolk step forward to greet Pepa, thanking her for the good weather of the day. She nods and smiles, stopping to run through some mild pleasantries every so often. The stalls in the market are filled with fresh fruits, vegetables, and meats, some even holding unique spices and jewelry or clothing. The colors of the town, though magnificent on their own, are magnified through the added busyness of the town market. Chiquita stays hidden, snuggled within my ruana, only peaking out her nose when an alluring scent of food travels by.

"I love going to the market," Pepa says, "so many bustling people and plenty of sound. You could never be lonely in a place like this."

I nod, watching as a woman approaches, a large smile on her face directed toward Pepa.

"Buenos dias, Pepa. I see the weather is nice today."

"Yes, yes. My mood is actually stable for once, I know." The two women laugh before turning toward me, the woman introducing herself as Ana Pezmuerto. I move the basket I'm holding into my other arm before reaching out to shake the woman's hand. She then turns to Pepa, a conspiratorial look on her face as she leans into to whisper. "Have you heard the news lately? About Señor Esteban?"

"No! What happened?"

"Well," says Ana, "One of your brother's old visions finally came true. He told Señor Esteban that he would get horribly ill, so ill that Julietta's food couldn't even cure him. Supposedly, Señor Future-seer had told him that he wasn't sure if he was going to make it."

"No!"

"Yes! Your brother's curses live on even after he's left. A little birdie told me that the day before Señor Esteban was given that curse, he had accidentally tripped your brother, sending him crashing into a market stand and covered in squashed bananas. He had fled in embarrassment before Señor Esteban could even apologize. I wouldn't be surprised if that's the reason why he was given a cur-"

"Why are you saying curse? Doesn't he just see the future, not create it?" The words are out of my mouth before I can fully think them through. The two women stop their gossiping to stare at me, hard looks of confused frustration on each of their faces.

"He says he can only see it, yet he only sees wicked, evil things. Why does he only prophesy the bad? I had a perfectly healthy pet fish, my dear Juanito," the woman glances to the side, face scrunching up in a pain and a hand on her heart, "and he told me he would die. The very next day, I found him floating at the top of his bowl. I couldn't believe it! That man is a menace! He probably left because he saw the future of this town finally standing for itself and turning on him."

"How could you say that?" I nearly screech, my voice close to cracking. "That poor man was trying to warn you all of impending circumstances and you all turn on him?"

"You never saw how many times the actions that he suggested to avoid the circumstances would end up bringing them about. How can you speak for his character?"

"Yes, how can you?" Pepa asks, her voice tight and clenched. A distant roll of thunder grumbles in response. "You never knew mi hermano. Don't speak of things you don't understand."

I shrink back at her anger. "You're right," I lie, "I don't know him at all."

I turn and run back to Casita.

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A flush of embarrassment heats by entire body as soon as I make it back within Casita's walls. I can't believe I tried to defend Bruno! When they don't even know that I've met him! I'm so stupid. The words just ripped out of me before I could even stop them. I thought I had learned with my husband how to control my tongue. Now, I've angered Pepa and that adds a second member of the family to the list of those that have an issue with me.

Chiquita pokes her head out of my ruana, and I softly stroke it with two fingers. What did I even think it was going to do? Change the minds of the town and have them all singing Bruno's praises? This animosity has grown from years of misunderstandings, of which even his disappearance could not dull.

I hold my hand out for Chiquita, which she quickly hops onto. She flips her little tail around, staring up at me with big, black eyes and a twitching nose. Giving her a soft smile, I softly tap her nose with my finger, making a little 'boop' sound to match.

"Well Chiquita, I-"

"What do you think you're doing?" The abrupt, booming echo of the voice sends me flying into the air and scrambling to right myself. I flip around, staring into the shocked and infuriated eyes of the matriarch while I hold Chiquita to my chest. My eyes drop to myself, searching all over for the source of the abuela's wrath. I twist around to seek the cause of her offense somewhere in the room.

"Did I do something wrong?" I ask, my eyes now back on her.

"Y-you, you have that thing. There in your hands." I have never heard the woman stutter the entire time I've been here. She is always direct, always perfect in speech. Whatever I have done has caused her to become so angry, she's uncharacteristically flustered.

I look into my hands, where I am clinging to my little rat friend and understanding dawns on me.

That is the moment that Pepa chooses to walk through the door, a rumbling storm cloud above her head. She looks up at her madre in shock and then turns to look at me. "What happened?"

"S-she has a...a rat. I will not allow it! Not in my home." I expect Pepa's anger to be refueled by this statement, leading to a double attack, but that is not what happens. Pepa rolls her eyes at her Mamá and I am instantly jealous of the woman's freedom to do so.

"Mamá, it's fine. You know the little guys have been around for a while. If she wants to make one a pet, I don't see why she can't. She just won't bring them out around here again, isn't that right?" Pepa turns her eyes back toward me, her expression blank, though the storm still brews above her head. I nod, unsure of what else to do.

"See that you don't," Señora Madrigal states before turning on her foot and striding out the door.

"Forgive my Mamá, Estrella. It was not that you did something wrong. She was just shocked to see you with a rat. That was one of mi hermano's key features. He always had a swarm of those things."

I nod once again, afraid to speak anything, lest I find a way to irritate the woman again. She sighs. "I'm sorry for earlier. I shouldn't have responded like that. Mi hermano is just a...touchy subject for me." Her eyebrows crease and her head tilts downward. Her eyes don't meet mine and a dejected look shadows her expression.

This gives me hope for Bruno. Maybe...just maybe, Pepa does miss him. She just doesn't know how to express it.