Julieta was a little confused when she spotted Mirabel skipping into the kitchen the next morning, all smiles. She watched as her daughter looked over the already-finished parts of breakfast hungrily, and then noticed she was being watched.

Mirabel grinned up at Julieta when she saw her, and waved. "Morning, Mamá."

"Morning, Mira." Julieta tossed the towel in her hand onto her shoulder, and curiously walked over. "You seem happy today."

Mirabel nodded enthusiastically. "Yep. I feel pretty good."

"I'm glad to hear it," she reached out and touched Mirabel's cheek, leaning in a bit. No speckles. "It looks like taking a few days for yourself really did you some good."

Mirabel's eyes darted away for a second. Then she laughed and playfully pushed Julieta's hands away. "Yeah, I guess so." She paused, looking anywhere but at Julieta's eyes. It looked like she was hesitating to say something.

"...is everything okay?" Julieta finally prodded.

Mirabel hesitated for only a second more. She rocked on her feet anxiously. But then, she simply shook her head and went back to smiling. "Yeah, for sure. What's for breakfast this morning?"

Julieta raised an eyebrow. Perhaps she was being overbearing, but…something wasn't quite sitting right with her. "Just some huevos pericos and calentado…are you sure you're okay?"

"Yes, mamá," Mirabel laughed. "You worry too much. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna get a head start on breakfast before everyone else wakes up."

With that, Mirabel started to throw a plate together with what she was in front of her. Julieta simply rolled her eyes and let her do what she wanted.

Mirabel hurried out of the room as quickly as she had come. Julieta went back to work. Teenagers. They had such random ups and downs sometimes.

Still. There was something about the way Mirabel was acting just now. Something that made Julieta the slightest bit uneasy, but…she couldn't put her finger on it.

Another night, another opportunity. Mirabel stuck her head out of her bedroom door, eagerly glancing around. She saw no one, but surveying all her door options got her even more excited. She quickly stepped into the hall and closed her door. Casita clattered worriedly at her feet. She ignored it.

"Let's see, what to do now?" She muttered to herself

There were many combinations to try. Not that any of them had different effects on her, but carrying different gifts changed the intensity of the feeling. At this point, she had tried Antonio with Camilo, Antonio with Isabela, and Antonio with Pepa. Perhaps she could step out of her Antonio streak? His Gift was like training wheels for her, and she wanted to try something different. Maybe Camilo with Isabela? Two wild, fun crazy Gifts. It might be difficult, but she was ready.

As usual, the first one was no issue. Mirabel found herself skipping between doors. She was twinkling in yellow-gold once more, and ready for the next. She paused for only a moment in front of Isabela's door, psyching herself up. Then she touched the knob.

It threw her off for only a moment, but her remedy so far had been to focus on the sparkles. Hm, why were Isabela's sparkles dark blue again? She'd always associated her oldest sister with pastel pinks and lavenders. Perhaps this was because of the recent change in her Gift? Oooooh, did this mean that the speckles could change color in response to how their user utilized the magic? How exciting! Mirabel wanted to see all the possibilities. And blue looked so nice with Camilo's light yellow. If she focused, she could almost see spots in the swirls where the colors mixed and looked green.

Mirabel quietly cackled to herself. No, silly. Green is for Bruno! There was no way that the Gifts could mix together to make other Gifts…right? She hadn't even thought of this! Oh, there were so many possibilities! Their magic was always so mysterious—maybe she would be the way they finally got some answers about it! She was like the perfect mixing bowl for Gifts. So not only was she helping her family with their workloads—she could help them to understand the miracle itself a bit better! This was awesome!

Mirabel was skipping now, down the stairs, humming a tune. This had been difficult the first few nights, with the weight of an extra Gift, but sure enough, she was getting used to it. Just a few more nights, and this would become totally natural. Maybe she could even attempt a third soon! Was that getting too ahead of herself? Maybe. But why not? All these new developments weren't so overwhelming if she just took some time to work with them. And to make it even better, holding lots of Gifts meant less pounding "calls" in her head. If she kept going, then all of them might finally go away—

A hand grabbed her shoulder. "What are you doing?"

Mirabel probably jumped several feet in the air. She barely managed to choke down a scream, and when she whirled around, she found herself face-to-face with the green one—er, "Tío Bruno!"

She laughed. And she laughed a little more at her misfortune. Bruno didn't move.

"Ohhhh my goodness, tío, you scared the living daylights out of me," she giggled. "I totally forgot about how you stay up so late. Why do you do that, anyway?"

Bruno narrowed his eyes, though it was unclear whether or not he was doing that because of the bright speckles. "Don't dodge the question, Mirabel. What are you doing?"

For just a moment, Mirabel wasn't sure what he meant. But then her stomach sank, and she looked down at herself. "I-I—I'm practicing, Tio."

"Practicing? What does that mean?"

"It means what it sounds like." She held her hands up, waving them several times for no real reason. "I'm—I'm—getting my body used to holding more than one Gift at a time. And it's already working! I can feel it getting easier! Look, I'm already way better than the first time I tried it, right?"

Bruno looked her up and down. He didn't say anything, but she could see the doubtful look in his eye.

Mirabel clenched her fists. "Well, what do you want me to do instead, huh?" she snapped. "Just nothing? You want me to keep doing the same thing all the time when I know my Gift is growing! I can feel it growing, I can't just ignore it!"

Bruno didn't say a word. This just made her angrier.

"If you and the others would just support me, I wouldn't need to sneak around at night!" she snapped again. "But it doesn't matter what you say, because I have to do this. I have this power whether we like it or not, and I'm going to use it. If I don't, I'll just end up suppressed like Tía Pepa and Isabela and—and—"

She had to stop for a moment, because she was tearing up. Her vision was getting blurry (from the tears or the magic? She didn't know), but she could tell that Bruno still wasn't moving.

There was a moment of silence as Mirabel tried to compose herself. Bruno took this opportunity to lower his head and escape.

"Alright," Bruno said, so quietly that Mirabel almost missed it. "Do what you want, kid. I'm sorry."

He brushed past her, and Mirabel needed a moment to process. By the time her vision went back to normal and she could form a thought in her head, he was already halfway to the steps. All Mirabel could do was whirl around and say "W-wait!"

Bruno stopped.

"D-don't—don't tell anyone yet. Please?"

Bruno didn't look at her. He did not respond. He just resumed his walk. Mirabel remained in her place, watching him until he had disappeared into his room.

Something was wrong. Isabela could feel it. She woke up in the middle of the night to the feeling of a rush, and thought she had seen some flickering light coming from her door before she fell back asleep. In the morning, however, the memory returned…and with it came unease.

She went down to breakfast, but didn't see anyone acting any different. For a moment she thought she had dreamt it. But then she locked eyes with Dolores, who was staring intently (and pretending not to).

Isabela made a point to sit next to her cousin at the table. As soon as she did, she leaned over and started whispering. "Did anything weird happen last night?"

Dolores sighed and took a bite. "You'll have to be more specific."

Isabela tapped her finger on the table. "Like. You felt something weird or you saw something weird. In your room." She looked around the table before getting even quieter. "Last night I thought I saw flickering lights. And I felt like…some weird energy. I know that's super vague, but do you know anything about it?"

Dolores seemed hesitant. But she put down her fork and started whispering as well. "It happened to me too."

"Really?"

"Yeah, I…" Dolores seemed upset. "I don't know if I should tell you this or not. But the light on my door went out completely, and then a few minutes later it was back. Either something happened with the magic, or it was…"

Isabela felt her stomach sink, and then her blood boil right after. She and Dolores spoke at the same time: "Mirabel."

Isabela slammed her hands on the table, making everyone's eyes snap to her. Dolores grabbed her arm, shaking her head at her vigorously.

Abuela frowned in slight concern. "Isa, is something the matter?"

Isabela grit her teeth behind her lips. Her eyes locked with Mirabel's, and her little sister somehow had the gall to look clueless. Meanwhile, Dolores was cutting off circulation to her arm.

"...no," Isabela finally managed. "Sorry. The gossip just got a bit too heated."

This explanation was apparently enough for everyone, who happily went back to their breakfast. Isabela turned back to Dolores, fuming.

Dolores patted her hand and remained annoyingly calm. "Let's talk to her after. Causing a scene probably won't end well."

"You're right," Isabela agreed. "I don't want any witnesses when I strangle her."

After breakfast, when the house was mostly empty, Isabela all but cornered her sister in the hall.

"Mirabel," she began, trying her best to keep her voice even. "Tell us the truth. Were you messing around with the Gifts again last night?"

Mirabel managed to look somewhat sheepish. She looked between Isabela and Dolores, and gave in surprisingly quickly. "Yes."

Isabela sputtered. She wasn't sure whether to be more annoyed or surprised. "Seriously? Again? I thought you said you wouldn't do this again! I thought you were on a break!"

"Isa…" Dolores tried in vain to calm her.

"You want me to be on a break, don't you?" Mirabel snapped. "You'd like to forget I even have a Gift, huh? Well, too bad, Isa. I can't forget, and I don't want to. You're just going to have to deal with it."

Isabela was a little taken aback. Mirabel was…a little different today. She exchanged a glance with Dolores, before continuing.

"Fine, use your Gift," she scoffed. "I don't care. But why at night, while we're sleeping? That does not make any sense. Why do you have to sneak around?"

"Because if I don't, I get an earful of this," Mirabel said, gesturing to Isabela. "All of you—you're all stunting my growth, holding me back. 'Oh, Mirabel, don't do two Gifts at once,' well, guess what? Turns out I can actually do it just fine!" Her foot started to tap incessantly. Somehow Isabela got the feeling that Mirabel wasn't looking directly at her. "All I needed was a bit of practice. Something that none of you would let me do. Sorry, I know you mean well, but I can't listen to you guys anymore. I'm going to develop my Gift on my own."

"Wh—that's the dumbest thing I've ever heard!" Isabela threw her hands up in the air. Desperation edged into her voice. "Why are you so stupid? You're just gonna hurt yourself, and for what? Is this your way of trying to prove something?"

"Isa, stop," Dolores pleaded, to no avail.

"As a matter of fact, it is," Mirabel replied. Once again, she seemed…different. Isabela didn't know what it was, and it was starting to creep her out. "To prove that I know what I'm doing, while you all underestimate me. I'm here to know when you're supposed to be using your Gift and when you aren't. If you can't handle it, I'll make you hand it over."

Isabela took a step back. "What? Make me—what is wrong with you?"

"Mirabel," Dolores finally stepped in. Her voice was even lower than usual, as if she was scared of something. "Please, we're not trying to antagonize you, alright? We're just asking that you ask before taking Gifts. You can do that, right?"

Mirabel actually seemed to think about this for a moment. Then she smiled an unnerving smile, and her laugh was equally so. "I don't need to. Don't you remember? I can feel it. I can sense when someone needs help."

Isabela gaped at her, at a loss for words. "I—I don't even know what to say to that. I can't wrap my head around what you're thinking, Mirabel. None of that would stop you from asking. If you keep this up, I'm going to get the rest of the family involved. Do you understand?"

Mirabel stared back at her, somewhere between annoyed and tired. Isabela expected her to snap back, to insult her, to defend herself. But instead Mirabel just moved onto the next thing on her mind, as if Isabela's feelings didn't matter at all.

"You're calling. Right now."

Isabela blinked. "What? Huh?"

Mirabel pointed. "Your Gift. You're calling me right now, Isa. I can feel it."

Isabela exchanged a bewildered glance with Dolores. "What are you talking about? I'm not even using it. Your sixth sense is busted, please quit following it already."

Dolores jumped in again. "Mirabel, remember what I told you before? Not every call needs to be answered."

"How could you know that?" Mirabel snapped.

"How could you know that they do?"

"Because I'm the one with the power!" Mirabel cried. She was so loud that Isabela wondered how nobody could hear them, before remembering that they'd all left already. Mirabel continued. "It's mine! I know how to use it, not you! And Isabela's calling, it's coming from her. Come here—"

Mirabel reached out to grab Isabela's arm, only for Isabela to jump back, instinctually.

"Hey! Don't touch me!" Isabela cried. She avoided Mirabel's reach and tried to put some distance between them. She was thoroughly disturbed now. Mirabel never acted like this. "Mira, you've totally lost it. You have to stop."

Dolores tries to intervene, but she, too, was trying to avoid touching her.

Mirabel noticed this. A hurt look crossed her face, before being replaced with annoyance once again. Before anyone could speak again, Mirabel had whirled around and was stomping in the other direction down the hall.

"Where are you going?" Isabela asked.

Dolores stood up straighter. "I think she's going to take it through your door."

"What?" Isabela hurried toward Mirabel, then thought better of it. She threw her wrists forward, growing long vines that snapped toward Mirabel and wrapped around her waist. Isabela held on tight.

Mirabel yelped and struggled against the vine, to no avail. To Isabela's surprise, Casita helped her along, moving Mirabel away from the door.

Mirabel stopped struggling for only a moment to glare at the floor. "Et tu, Casita?" She sighed. "Alright, then."

Isabela pulled Mirabel close, just enough to talk to her again. "You're out of control," she told her. "And you're freaking me out. Just pull yourself together for a second so we can talk to Abuela about—hey!"

Mirabel gave a tug of her own on the vines, surprising Isabela. Their bodies crashed into each other, and that's all Mirabel needed. Within seconds, the vines collapsed lifelessly on the floor, Isabela's door turned dark, and Mirabel's skin glowed blue.

"Wh—" Isabela took a step back in shock. "You…why?"

Mirabel was already down the stairs, hurrying toward the front door. Isabela leaned over the railing, enraged and horrified. "Mirabel!" she cried. "You can't do this! Please give it back!"

Mirabel stopped just before the door. She turned upward, her smile gleeful, her eyes wild. "Make me."

And then she ran outside, while Casita clattered helplessly.

Dolores grabbed Isabela's arm. "I hear her. She's running toward the north edge of town."

"Follow her," Isabela replied. "I'll go get Abuela."

With that, Isabela finally split from Dolores, only tripping over herself a little as she went.

Unfortunately, things did not go as planned, which should have been expected at this point. It was only a matter of minutes before Isabela had alerted the whole family that Mirabel had gone rogue. As they all gathered by the door to discuss, a disappointed Dolores met them there.

"She took it," Dolores sighed. "She said 'I don't want you spying on me,' and she took it."

Isabela whirled to Abuela and held her arms out. "See what I mean? She's gone over the edge. It's freaking me out."

Abuela frowned deeply, but Pepa spoke up first.

"Well, let's all split up and find her, then!" Pepa snapped, storming a little. She tapped her foot anxiously. "She can't just hide forever. We need to set her straight."

Agustin stepped forward, trying to mitigate. "Alright, let's just take a moment to think, everyone. I know we're all upset, but we don't want to ambush the poor girl—"

"Agustin, you spoil her far too much," Pepa snapped. "She did wrong and you know it. She has to be punished."

"Pepa, she already thinks we're standing in her way," Julieta said. "Punishing her would only convince her of it more."

Pepa didn't have a response to this, so Camilo spoke for her.

"What are we supposed to do, then?" he asked. "Just ask her really nicely to stop? That hasn't exactly been working."

Now it was Julieta's turn to be silent. Abuela took her opportunity to speak up at last: "Where is Bruno?"

The family looked around for their other missing member. Unsurprisingly, he was nowhere to be found.

But Julieta perked up. "He can help her. He's able to talk to her better than any of us."

"Go get him, then," Abuela replied. She nodded toward Bruno's room, and Julieta took off. Abuela then turned to the rest of the family with a firm grimace. "The rest of you, please spread out to find her. Recruit some help from the townspeople as well. She needs to be brought back home so we can deal with the problem properly."

Agustin spoke up again. "And if you do find her, please be gentle," he pleaded. "Just be there for her. Even if she takes your Gift or tells you to leave, just stay by her side. She needs it right now."

The others were quiet, but Abuela eventually nodded. "I agree. Let's go, everyone."

While the rest of her family hurried outside, Julieta rushed up the stairs to get her brother. Her heart was pounding, not just from the exercise, but she held herself together. Mirabel would need her to be strong. When she reached Bruno's door, she knocked desperately.

"Bruno!" she called. "Are you in there? Please open the door." She knocked again. "I need to talk to you, right now, it's urgent." Another knock.

Finally, a muffled voice came from inside. "It's open, Juli…you don't need to break it down."

Julieta barely let him finish before she burst into his room. She paused only a moment when she saw him, lying groggily on his bed, surrounded by rats, and looking worse for wear. But there was no time to think about that right now. She rushed to his side.

"Bruno, we need your help," she told him. "Have you not heard the commotion outside? Mirabel—"

"I know what happened with Mirabel," he sighed.

Julieta almost burst a vein. "A-and you're just lying in here? What's wrong with you?"

Bruno stared at the ceiling for a moment before answering. "Look, if you came in here hoping that I'd be able to talk her down from whatever she's doing, it's not going to work. I've already tried getting through to her, but she let me know perfectly well that she doesn't want my opinion. She's just going to see me as another enemy."

Julieta felt her blood boil. And somehow the defeated look on her brother's face was even more infuriating. "So you're just giving up? Your own niece is having a crisis and you're just giving up on her? Because she got mad at you once?"

"Well, what do you want me to do?" Bruno asked. He was finally agitated enough to sit up in place. "Chase her down and drag her home? Beg her to not use her power? It's not like trying the same things again is going to work any better."

"Maybe not, but the solution isn't to just lie in here and let her hurt herself," Julieta snapped. She clenched her fist, disgusted. "I'd rather try the same thing a million times than to just give up on my daughter. I thought you would be the first to try and help her. I can't believe you."

Julieta whirled around, about to stomp out of the room. But Bruno spoke once more and stopped her. "Julieta, wait."

She turned around to glare at him. Bruno was now on his feet, wringing his hands.

"She—" he stammered. "Look, I…" he finally managed to look at her, and she could see the sadness in his eyes "It's going to get worse."

Julieta stopped moving for a moment. She stared at him, a sense of dread slowly creeping up on her. But, when she thought about it…the answer was still obvious to her. She walked back to Bruno, stood up straight, and looked him dead in the eye.

"Bruno," she said lowly. "I don't care what you saw in your visions. I don't care if we're fighting against fate itself—this is my daughter. I am going to help her." With that, she turned to leave again, for real this time. "You're welcome to join me anytime."

She didn't look back at him as she left.

Mirabel was agitated. No, that didn't describe it well, but she didn't know what would. Not only was she holding two Gifts at the moment (she'd still needed more time to practice—darn those two), but she had no doubt the whole family was looking for her by now. She was in for several earfuls, probably more. They didn't get it. None of them got it.

And now, she was curled up on a random ledge up a random hill, hiding from them. Her skin was sparkling so brightly that she was certain it would give her away. In fact, every time she heard someone's voice call out from town, or every time an animal passed by, she was certain she'd been found. Combined, all these factors made her so anxious she could burst.

Maybe this was stupid. Maybe she should have stayed in Casita and faced the music head on. She had no control over what would happen now…but she didn't want to go back.

Sadly, though, her solitude wasn't meant to last. Just as she had suspected, she was found sticking out like a sore thumb—or rather, a teenage girl with bright sparkling skin—to anyone who passed. Perhaps she should have been thankful that it was Luisa who found her, rather than Abuela or Pepa or someone like that. But she didn't have it in her to feel gratitude.

Luisa paused for just a moment when they locked eyes. Neither of them moved. But Luisa took the first step, smiling gently.

"Hey, Mirabel, there you are," her older sister began. "E-everyone's looking for you."

Mirabel grimaced. "Thanks. That's what I was worried about." She hopped off the ledge she sat on, and started to simply walk away, as if Luisa would let her leave.

"Um—sorry," Luisa replied. She stepped over to walk next to her. "They—they aren't mad at you, you know. Just worried."

"I'm not so sure about that, Lu."

"Then come see for yourself." Luisa put a hand on Mirabel's shoulders, stopping her. "Just come back, okay? We want to figure this out with you."

"No, you don't, Luisa!" Mirabel whined. She clenched her fists and refused to meet her sister's eyes. "You just—every time I use my power, you all just tell me to stop it, stop it, stop it. I'm the only one who's actually trying to figure it out. No one wants to help me with it. You're scared. You're all scared of me."

Mirabel tried to shake off Luisa's hand, but of course, it didn't work. When she tried to struggle, Luisa just gripped her arm tighter, while speaking more platitudes."

"I'm not scared of you, Mira," Luisa insisted. "We can help you figure this out! Just tell the others how you feel, and—"

"I tried, okay!" She tried to pull away, but Luisa's grip was far too strong. "Look, can you just leave me alone? I don't want to be around anyone just now. Let me go."

A somewhat horrified look crossed Luisa's face. It passed, but her jaw remained tight and her brows furrowed. Her grip on Mirabel's arm did not let up. Then she forced a smile. "Totally got you! I'll tell the others that you want some alone time—in your room! At home. Not out here."

Before Mirabel could resist, Luisa scooped her up in her arms, held her close to her chest, and was carrying her back home. Mirabel struggled and struggled, so much that colorful blobs danced in her vision. She growled in frustration, but it fell on deaf ears and Luisa kept saying gentle things she couldn't hear.

Luisa's superstrength was too powerful for Mirabel to fight against. In this state, she could only think of one solution.

Or perhaps "think" was too strong of a word. It was more like acting on instinct. As the She felt the energy, seeping from Luisa's skin to hers, filling up her vision like a thousand drops of purple water. Luisa stopped for a moment, holding her tight, but Mirabel hardly felt any of it.

The struggle was a little easier, but even without her Gift, Luisa was strong. And she was, somehow, holding Mirabel even more tightly than before, as if afraid to let go.

"Come on," Mirabel whined. Her own voice sounded a bit distant. "Why won't you let me go already? Did you not see what I did?"

Luisa didn't respond for a moment. What she might be thinking, Mirabel couldn't guess. She couldn't really see her face right now. But finally, Luisa spoke. "It's okay, Mirabel, I don't care about my Gift. I don't mind losing it."

"Huh?"

"I said I don't care about losing my Gift, okay? But I don't want to lose you." Her voice cracked. "I don't want to leave you out here, or let you hurt yourself with all this…this stuff. So just—just come home. Please?"

Mirabel didn't move, attempting to process what she was hearing. The energy in her now was crackling. Powerful.

She laughed suddenly, and threw her arms around Luisa's waist, surprising her. "Ha!" Mirabel cried. "See, see! Do you see what you just said? You don't care about your Gift!"

She squirmed some more to look up at what she thought was Luisa's head. Her smile was wide enough to split her face, or so it felt. "A few months ago, you thought your Gift was all you had," she continued gleefully. "You were terrified of losing it. Now you couldn't care less. See? That's because of me!" She pointed at herself happily. "I did that! Admit that I did that!"

"Y-you did that, Mirabel," Luisa replied. "Yeah, that's it. You helped me see the worth in other things. That's what you do, it's what you've always done."

"Hehehe," Mirabel giggled. "I told you! Now you can tell the others that I know what I'm doing. I'm helping."

Mirabel finally managed to wiggle out of her grasp, and Luisa gently set her down on her feet. Ah, so that's which way was down. Now, which way was forward?

"Are you sure you're okay to walk?" Luisa asked nervously. "How many are you holding?"

"Ummm, three? I think? But it's okay. I feel great."

Perhaps "great" wasn't the right word. She felt, stronger.

"Well, just be careful, I'm getting the feeling that you aren't completely—Mirabel!"

Mirabel's foot slipped, into something she had not seen, and she was free-falling. It hurt a little when she hit the ground, but nothing that would stop her from springing back up, ready to bolt forward. She heard Luisa shouting her name from somewhere higher. But, her instincts were pulling her toward her right.

So she just followed that instead.

Of course, several of the townspeople had already noticed that something was off with Mirabel. Now that they were actively being asked to help, the buzz was growing quickly. And some of their jitters were spreading to the kids in town, three of which Camilo was currently trying to calm down.

"Is it true that Mirabel is absorbing all the magic in the house?" One little girl, Alejandra, cried.

"What's she gonna do with it?" asked little Juancho. "Is she taking it from you guys because you couldn't use it? Or is she stealing it?"

Cecelia wrung her hands sadly. "Is she going to be okay?"

Camilo tried in vain to step away from the crowding children. "Hey, hey, guys, it's gonna be fine. She's—well, she's still your friend, isn't she?"

With these words, he quickly shapeshifted into a perfect image of Mirabel. The normal Mirabel, the good one, from before all of this began. He swished his skirt around and smiled down at the kids the way she always did. "She's still the same one who dances and plays with you guys all the time. You don't think she's actually gonna turn into something scary, do you?"

The kids were slightly comforted seeing the image of their friend. They shook their heads, but still weren't quite looking Camilo in the eye.

"Then let's turn those frowns upside down, okay?" It sounded like something she would say. "She needs our help. Once we find her, we're going to—"

"Aaaaaaaaah!"

A scream from just behind him startled the four of them, and it was soon echoed by the children. Eyes wide, they pointed somewhere behind Camilo before backing away in fear.

Camilo froze. He hadn't turned around yet, but he already knew what was back there. The footsteps of the retreating children barely registered in his mind. But he did notice that the lighting seemed to change, casting strange shadows and making him feel cold. The source of this change was clearer when he finally dared to look, as he was met with a bright light in too many colors, bearing his cousin's face. Somehow, he currently looked more like Mirabel than Mirabel did.

"Milooooo," she giggled, looking him up and down with a smile. "Why are you stealing my face? Couldn't you play with those kids as yourself?"

Camilo didn't answer. He was supposed to be out searching for her, bringing her home. But for some reason, when she took a step toward him, he found himself running in the other direction.

He was still using Mirabel's form, and if he'd had his rational sense, maybe he would have thought to change into someone who could run faster. For now, Mirabel would just have to catch up to her evenly-paced self.

The skirt swished around his ankles as he ran, and pure adrenaline pushed him forward, over obstacles, and farther away from town. Mirabel chased him, bumping into things and tripping left and right, but still somehow following. It was like she was following a sense other than vision.

"Camilo!" Mirabel cried, sounding near and distant at the same time. "What are you running from? Why are you scared?"

"Because you're acting scary!" He managed. He reached an alcove and scrambled inside, trying hard to catch his breath.

He couldn't hear her anymore, but that wasn't comforting. Slowly, he peeked his head around the entrance to his hideout, trying to spot a sign of her. Surely he wouldn't miss all those brightly glowing spots.

He saw nothing. A few more moments passed. He gulped. Hesitantly, Camilo stepped back out into the open and—

Slam! She seemed to descend from the trees above, tackling Camilo to the ground.

"Caught you!" She giggled. "Or, caught me, rather."

Camilo shouted and struggled, feeling his body slowly and forcibly change back to normal. Mirabel looked as if lighting was crackling around her, her skin twinkling as she drained every last bit of power from his body.

"Stop it!" Camilo shouted. "What is wrong with you?!"

"Nothing's wrong!" Mirabel cried back. "I'm using my power, I'm helping you! I felt you calling!"

"I didn't call!"

"You called without knowing. But I knew! That's why I'm here!"

When she finally loosened her grip on him, it was already over. Camilo, drained, stumbled to his feet and leaned against a tree. He wanted to yell at her, demand his Gift back and maybe cry. But as he looked up, she was already gone.

And now, he was leaving too. He just wanted to go home. His mind raced as he hurried home. What had happened to his cousin? Was she too far gone? He was scared, and he wasn't sure if it was for her or of her.

As he finally managed to get home, drops of rain splashed on his face.

Bruno had been intending to waste the day away in his room and feel utterly helpless. Normally that was easy for him, but after Julieta's visit he just found himself feeling restless. He was pacing back and forth around his sleeping area now, trying to rationalize.

Mirabel didn't want him to help. If he tried to help, he would likely make things even worse. And he'd already seen some disturbing glimpses of the future. He didn't want to inadvertently cause it…but what if staying in here is what caused it? Ugh, what he wouldn't give for a little context in those stupid things.

Casita wasn't helping much either. Every time he tried to pace away from the door, the floors would start pushing home towards it.

"Hey!" he snapped, after the fifth time this had happened. "Knock it off, will you? The point of anxious pacing is to move in both directions."

Casita angrily clattered some tiles but he just waved it off. "Yeah, yeah, clank clank, it doesn't mean anything to me. But I'm assuming you want me to go help Mirabel, right?"

More indecipherable clanking. Bruno rubbed his forehead.

"Man," he muttered to himself. "Does everyone suddenly think I don't care about her? Of course I do. I'd like to help, but if I go out there, everyone will expect me to be the main guy, you know? 'Oh Bruno, if anyone can get through to Mirabel, it's you!' I can't do that, okay? I can't be the one to fail her."

Casita was finally silent enough to let him ramble. The rats were also watching, waiting to see what he would do. Not that the conclusion wasn't obvious, but he just needed to get there.

"I mean, what's so special about me? What could I do for her that her own mother couldn't do? Or her father? Or—I don't know, Antonio? They've got a special bond of their own, don't they? Don't they?"

Casita shrugged its tiles. The rats appeared to shrug as well.

"And why does it have to be one special person anyway? I thought we were supposed to be a-a unit, like a—" he connected his fingers together to demonstrate."—Like a chain or a woven tapestry, there's no one most important, it's all connected, if even one of our own goes down, it's supposed to be a group effort. Not a one special bond, it's a—it's an all or nothing! We can't be missing even one! That's what family does, it's a whole unified thing! Can't even lose one…"

He was walking out the door before he even knew what he was doing. His rambling faded as he went further away from his room, much like the sound of thunder which had now fizzled to nothing.

Casita reset its tile arrangement, satisfied. The rats resumed munching on their snacks.

They had told Antonio to stay in his room so he wouldn't be too scared of what was going on. That hadn't helped, however. He was still afraid. With his door slightly ajar, he could still hear when people came and went, rambling in worry about where Mirabel could be and what would happen to her. If they sounded afraid, how could Antonio not be? He didn't want anything bad to happen to his favorite cousin.

Up until this point, the family had been out looking for her. But, one by one, as they continued to fail, they started gathering back on the patio to re-strategize. Antonio had slipped out of his room with Parce while no one was watching, and Casita had guided him out to the balcony to listen.

His mama was there, anxiously rambling about the situation, but there was no cloud over her head. The sunshine was paradoxically, unnerving. Camilo was there too, standing next to his mom and looking disturbed for some reason. And Luisa was sitting down next to her Papá, crying about "failing" and "losing her." Dolores and Isabela were standing by silently, defeated.

As Pepa was wildly explaining the situation to her sister, none other than Tio Bruno appeared, flailing over to the group and doubling over for breath. Julieta caught him up in a hug before he could say anything.

"Bruno!" she said. "Thank goodness. I knew you would come to your senses eventually."

"Y-yeah," Bruno replied. "Sorry about earlier. I'm here now—and it looks like I missed quite a bit…"

"I'll say!" Pepa snapped. "Look, Bruno! Do you see a cloud? Of course not, why do you think that is?"

Julieta wrung her hands together. "Pepa, please try to slow down. Explain to me exactly what she said."

"I don't remember, Juli, it happened so fast." Pepa started biting her fingernails. "She just suddenly appeared before me, like some kind of ghost. And she was glowing so brightly, I hardly even recognized it was her. I think she said something like 'I'll hold on to that storm for you, tía.' And then next thing I knew, both she and my Gift were gone."

"She basically ambushed me earlier too," Camilo grumbled. "It was like something out of a horror novel…"

None of this served to make anyone feel better. They all exchanged furtive glances. Notably, Abuela had not arrived yet. So someone else had to step up and ask the questions.

"Okay…" Bruno began, fidgeting with his ruana. "Let me ask this—by a show of hands, who still has their Gift?"

He raised his own hand. Julieta raised hers.

No one else did.

Bruno's face paled. "Only two of us? That would mean…" He put his hands on his head in shock. "She's holding six?"

The others gasped, but Dolores cleared her throat. "Antonio probably still has his. He hasn't left his room all day."

Antonio ducked back at the sound of his name, but no one could see him.

Bruno relaxed slightly. "Oh, okay. That means she's only got five, heh heh…her limit was two!"

Panic started to spread throughout the group, and only then did Abuela finally come trudging up the hill, with Felix helping her out. At the sight of the chaotic group, she quickly waved her hands to try and calm them down.

"Alright, alright, that's enough," Abuela grumbled. "We need to hold ourselves together, family. Someone, please give me good news."

"There's no good news, Mama," Pepa sighed. "None of us can even catch her—and she's acting completely unlike herself."

"We need to change our tactic," Isabela added. "Chasing her everywhere is obviously not working."

They once again fell into harried discussions. Antonio finally tuned out and turned to his companion. He stroked Parce's fur with a sigh.

"Poor Mirabel," he whispered. "I bet she's scared too."

Parce gave a sad growl and tried to nudge Antonio back into happiness. Antonio shook him off, once again turning to the family for a moment. It didn't seem like they were making a ton of progress.

So Antonio stood up straighter, before climbing onto Parce's back. "I'll go find her," he declared to no one. "She would never run away from me." He patted Parce's back confidently. "Come on, boy. Let's find something to help you track her scent with."

As Parce hurried through the Encanto, tracking Mirabel, Antonio noticed that they were being trailed by three of his (human) friends from town. And, in all honesty, he didn't like what they were saying one bit.

"You didn't see her, Antonio, she was like a…like a scary glowing ghost!" Juancho shouted. "And then she started chasing Camilo everywhere! He was really scared."

"Maybe you should wait until the grown-ups find her," Cecelia added. "They'll fix all this."

Antonio turned to them in annoyance. "You guys are wrong," he snapped. "Mirabel isn't scary. She's not gonna hurt anyone. And I'm gonna find her."

"But what if she takes your Gift too?" Alejandra cried. "You won't have Parce to protect you anymore."

"That's okay. If Parce goes away, I'll still have Mirabel to protect me."

At that moment, Parce excited caught a whiff of what he was looking for. He gave an excited grunt, and Antonio perked up.

"Did you find her? Ok, let's go! Quickly now!"

Parce started to hurry off, leaving the other children in his wake. Antonio vaguely heard them calling after him. No doubt they would alert the others about what he was up to, so he had better find Mirabel quickly.

Parce ran to the border of their little town, and out into the more dense natural area. Antonio was a little worried about what Mirabel would be doing here, but he didn't have time to worry much, as Parce was interrupted by something.

There was a strange multi-colored glow coming from behind one of the big trees. Parce didn't seem to like it much, pausing and backing away. Antonio, however, had a feeling he knew what was there. He slid down Parce's back onto the ground, and gave him a gentle pat. Parce sat down somewhat nervously, and Antonio went on ahead.

He could admit that he was a bit nervous walking around the tree. The nerves were erased slightly when he saw her…but the lights made them spike once more. Maybe he understood now why the kids had been afraid to see her, but he wasn't scared. Never.

Mirabel didn't seem to see him at first. She was pacing, fidgeting, as if she didn't know what to do with herself. Then, she paused and stared at nothing, as if she'd spaced out.

It was a bit unnerving, so Antonio decided to break the silence at last. "Mirabel?"

She jumped, turned to look at him, and Antonio felt like he saw some glowing in her eyes as well. Mirabel's grin widened impossibly.

"Antonio!" she cried happily. She knelt down and held out her arms for a hug. "That's who it was! I suddenly felt another pull and had no idea who could be all the way out here. How did you find me, you silly goose?"

Antonio made no move to accept her hug, but he kept his eyes on her. "Parce helped me," he replied. "But why are you here all alone? You should come back."

Mirabel forgot about the hug. She remained low to the ground but went back to fidgeting. "Oh, no, I—I can't go back yet, Tonio. It's just—the family—they don't really get what I'm trying to do, you know? They think I'm—just trying to stomp all over them, but I'm not! I know things, you know? It's—it's complicated, but I'm not the bad guy! I'm helping!"

She had gotten up and started pacing again at some point. Antonio watched her, noting the pleading look in her eyes. It looked familiar on her, despite…everything else.

"You're always helping, Mirabel," he told her with a smile. "I know you're not the bad guy. I just don't want you carrying too many Gifts at the same time."

"Hahaha! Aw, Toñito, you're the cutest!" Mirabel hopped in place a few times, giggling continuously. "But I can handle it. That's why I have this power. It's gonna grow and grow until holding all the Gifts is a cinch. You'll see." She laughed again, then stopped. She gave Antonio a look that he couldn't quite decipher, and took several strides toward him. She stared, intently, but Antonio didn't step back or look away.

"...why are you calling?" she asked him.

Antonio cocked his head. "Calling what?"

"Me. Your—" She bounced her foot, frustrated. "When someone needs my help with their Gift, they call me with—with their heart. And right now, your heart is calling."

Antonio looked down at his chest and touched it gingerly. When he looked back up, Mirabel had knelt back down, still gazing at him. He jumped slightly at her sudden closeness, but she didn't notice.

"Why would you be calling me?" Mirabel asked again. Her brows furrowed together, anxious and confused. "You're little, your Gift has never given you trouble like the others…right, Antonio?"

She slowly reached up to touch his face. Near her hand, Antonio thought he saw some orange speckles appearing at the edge of his nose. But that couldn't be right.

"My heart is calling you…because it wants you to come home," he said softly, making Mirabel stop. He touched his chest once again. "My heart wants you to be okay."

Mirabel stopped, her hand hovering just above Antonio's nose. The light was bright, but he only blinked a few times. There was a new expression in her eyes, which he still couldn't place. But somehow, she looked more like Mirabel than she did a second ago.

Then, her hand dropped and she just stared at the ground. "N-no, that—that's not how it—how it works. Right? Is that not…?" She tried to stand, but instead fell backwards onto her bottom. She rubbed her head rapidly, looking panicked. "No, I can't go back, not yet. I-I don't know what to do."

Antonio watched her, even more worried than before. But he took a deep breath and put on a brave face. "If you can't go back, then I'll stay here with you," he said firmly. Without a second thought, he approached her, snuggled in close and wrapped his arms around her as tight as he could. She was shaking. So he held on tighter.

Mirabel hugged him close, and it took a second for Antonio to notice that he felt different. For a moment, his stomach sank. But Mirabel didn't seem hurt, only brighter. Her head slumped down to rest on his, and he felt her take a deep, trembling breath.

"T-Tonio," Mirabel whispered. "I'm sorry, I—I can't stop." She gulped. "Are you sure…you're not afraid of me?"

"I'm sure," he replied. "I'm not scared, Mira."

"Good," she laughed, choking on tears. "Because…I am."

Antonio may have stopped hugging her after a few seconds, or a few hours. Mirabel wasn't completely sure. At this point he was now holding her hand and leading her down a path she couldn't see with her eyes, not with all the bright, colored blobs dancing in her vision.

All she knew now was that the calls had lessened significantly. Even though she felt like a mess, falling apart at the seams, it was quiet, and it was relieving. There were only two left, and she was being pulled toward them. This was what she wanted. But…in the midst of it, a creeping feeling of dread clawed at her stomach and refused to go away.

She thought she had known what she was doing. It was her job to know, she was the one with the power, she was the one who could sense her family's feelings, even before they could. Right? Wasn't she supposed to know? Or had she made a big mistake?

Who was she kidding? Of course she had made a mistake. What else would have led to the way she was now?

Somewhere between the globular lights that filled her vision, she caught a glimpse at her own hand in Antonio's. The speckles were so densely packed together that they almost resembled one bright, glowing light. And she couldn't differentiate the colors very well. It looked almost white.

Antonio stopped, and Mirabel almost stumbled over him. The sudden lurching movement sent her head reeling. Nausea threatened to overcome her, as familiar voices drifted into her consciousness.

"H-how did you find her?"

Ah, that was Tio Bruno. His anxious tone was indicator enough, as was the pull. When had he come out of his room? Was he still angry with her?

Antonio was explaining the situation to Bruno, but another voice caught her attention. This pull was stronger, warmer, clearer.

"Mirabel? Mira…a-are you alright?"

"Mamá," Mirabel found herself tensing, torn between jumping into her mother's arms and wanting to bolt. She did neither, remaining in place as tears threatened to pour from her eyes. And she was still nauseous. "I…I don't know."

She felt Julieta take a step forward, only for Bruno to stop her. "Wait, wait, Juli, don't. Don't touch her."

"Bruno!" Julieta snapped. "You're not going to keep me away from my—"

"Just look! Look for a second. Look at your hand. If you touch her, it will make things worse."

Mirabel couldn't see it, but somehow, she could. Within her clouded vision, the silhouettes of her mom and uncle started to appear. Each one was outlined in the speckles of their own colored magic, vibrant green and soothing aqua. And the speckles were moving, gathering at their fingertips and closer to Mirabel. Because of that same…stupid…pull.

Antonio spoke up quietly. "Tío, Tía…your skin is sparkling."

Silence, as Mirabel's breathing started to accelerate. She wasn't doing anything, she wasn't even trying to. What was going on?

Bruno's voice answered that question for her. "I…I don't think she can control it anymore."

Mirabel felt like she'd been smacked in the face. Panic set in, which just made her vision even worse. The energy in her that made her want to run everywhere before started to crackle, like a swarm of bees in her chest, and her breath accelerated so much she could just barely speak.

"I-I'm supposed to be the one helping you!" she cried, trying to hold back tears. "I'm…I'm the one connected to the magic. I just wanted to use it, I wanted to grow, but everyone kept telling me to stop—but I can't just stop!"

The others didn't interrupt her. As she paused for a breath, Julieta spoke gently. "Toñito, go get the others. We will help Mirabel."

"But…"

"It will be okay. Please, go."

Antonio hesitated for a moment, then let go of Mirabel's hand. She felt off-balance now that she was alone, but she wouldn't let him see it.

After another moment, Bruno spoke again, gently. "He's gone. Go ahead and speak, kid. Tell us everything you're feeling."

"I-I…" Mirabel sniffled. "I don't know. It's so many things. I feel like—like I want to run all over the place, and take in as much as I can. And I—I feel like I can feel like I can feel everything but see nothing. But I just—I feel lost."

She began to stomp her foot, frustration flowing out of her. "I thought I knew what I was doing! I just wanted to show you! I wanted to nurture my power and use it for good, but I kept getting shut down! It's like—like putting a lid on boiling water! I don't like being suppressed!"

Bruno gave a soft hum, this time sympathetic.

"All I wanted was to get better, but I know—I know deep down, you're all scared of this. Scared of what might happen. So I was left without guidance, and now, now…" A sob escaped her. "I'm so scared, Mamá. I'm scared of…of before. Of now. Of…everything. I thought I could trust my feelings, but Antonio said…" she hiccuped. "He said something that didn't make any sense. And—and now I don't know what to do. If my power isn't supposed to help me know things, then why do I have it? Why?"

She hugged herself desperately and choked over her words. "Why do I even have this? Why did I get this stupid power? Why is this happening to me?!"

Her rambling dissolved into various hiccups and sniffles. She probably looked disgusting right about now, but she didn't care."

"Oh, Mirabel, I'm so sorry," Julieta whispered. "You seemed happy before, and I…I didn't even realize." She took a deep breath. "It's okay, mija, it's alright. We will figure this out. We'll find a solution that works for everyone and doesn't make you feel quashed down."

She heard shuffling around them. Was that…the others? Had the rest of the family gathered to watch? Mirabel lowered her head in shame, but regretted it immediately when the lurching nauseous feeling got stronger.

"Yeah," Bruno agreed. "But first we should get all that extra magic out of you." She could hear the smile in his voice. "Even a sponge can only hold so much water at a time, right?"

Despite everything, Mirabel cracked a grin at her uncle's joke. "Heh….haha! Yeah! A sponge…I'm a sponge, yeah…hehehe…"

She was starting to get dizzier. The strong emotions coming from the two remaining members were bubbling over, and all she felt was that awful pull toward them. The others seemed to be inching closer to her, but she didn't really notice as she finally succumbed to the tug, toward the magic gathering to her on their skin.

Before Mirabel could say another word, she fell forward, blacking out before she even hit the ground.