Chapter 114: The Heart of Hope Part 2: Bruno's Vision
Mirabel and Rainbow Dash returned to the room as a light came on, waking all the ponies up as Mirabel got dressed to go somewhere, putting on her clothing and getting her bag as she made her way to her door to exit the room as the ponies watched, wondering what she was doing before she stopped, pausing for a moment before turning back to them.
"Wait, how do I save a miracle?" Mirabel asked.
"Sugarcube, what's this about savin' a miracle?" Applejack asked.
"We heard from the grandma that the magic in this house is dying out." Rainbow Dash replied. "She knew about the cracks in the wall and says they're loosing their miracle."
"And how do ya know this?" Applejack asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Well, we tried to get to the candle to have a look at it and might have, sorta, accidentally eavesdropped on her talking to somepony named Pedro." Rainbow Dash replied.
"You spied on Abuela!?" Twilight exclaimed, making Rainbow Dash and Mirabel flinch.
"Look, that's not the point!" Rainbow Dash replied. "The point is she knows about the Heart Piece and is purposefully lying about it!"
"But why would she lie about not knowing about it?" Fluttershy asked.
"And why she would be so protective of it?" Rarity asked.
"Oh, oh, maybe she's protecting the Heart Piece from somepony who might abuse its power!" Pinkie suggested. "Or maybe she really is clueless about the Heart Piece and is planning on finding it herself to give to us as a surprise for helping save the miracle!"
"Or maybe... it was the miracle." Twilight said. "What if the Heart Piece came to her all those years ago and hid in the candle, but it's power is waning due to it's over usage to give gifts and bring this place to life."
"Well, whatever the reason, we need the Heart Piece." Applejack said. "And the riddle said we have to help-"
"Riddle?" Mirabel asked. "What riddle?"
Twilight then pulled out the book, Mirabel looking at the magical book as she brought it over to her.
"This is what's helping us find the Heart Pieces." Twilight replied. "Each place we visit, there will be a riddle for us to figure out in order to get the Heart Piece. And the riddle for this place is to help a girl with no gift find her gift and help the family with whatever kinds of issues they have."
"Issues?" Mirabel asked.
"We don't exactly know what kind of issues the family has, but we'll do our best to help." Twilight replied. "And the first thing we need to do is find out if anyone else has noticed the cracks in the wall."
"And I think I know just the person who might have heard something." Mirabel said. "We'll talk to her in the morning."
The group then went back to bed as Mirabel suggested, laying their heads on the pillows and closing their eyes to sleep, but Applejack was still awake, looking at her ring as she saw orange and red gems decorate it, a single red ruby for the apple as she sighed, looking out the window and seeing the candle, lifting her head up to get a better look at it.
"Spyro, if ya'll can hear me, Ah want ya to know we're doing alright." Applejack said, her eyes on the candle. "We got four Heart Pieces so far and we're workin' on gettin' the fifth, but Abuela doesn't seem willing to help us. Spyro... if ya can, help us... please." She then looked back down to the ring, taking it off and putting it on a counter so it doesn't get damaged, smiling as she looked back up to the candle. "Good night sugarcube. Ah love ya... we all love ya."
She then laid her head down and closed her eyes to go to sleep, sleeping peacefully but didn't notice the candles flame was flickering again, turning purple again before turning blue for a moment, returning to gold. The next day, everyone had just gotten up and was helping with setting everything up for breakfast with the Madrigals, a long table set up for the family and the ponies to enjoy a meal together, even if the ponies weren't family, they were welcomed to the table to enjoy a meal with them. As everyone was getting their food, Mirabel went over to talk to her cousin Dolores to see what she has heard with her super human hearing while the ponies sat together, waiting for Mirabel to return with news about what she has heard or if she heard anything about the house loosing it's magic, leaving the ponies alone while the rest of the family got their food and took their places at the table.
"Alright, let's go over what we know so far." Twilight said. "Fifty years ago, a miracle came to the Madrigals..."
"Which the miracle is actually a piece of Spyro's heart." Rarity continued. "And the Heart Piece is granting each member of the Madrigal family a gift."
"Except for Mirabel." Rainbow Dash pointed out. "She didn't get one for some reason and now cracks are appearing in the house according to her and Applejack. And last night, a voice gave the grandma a warning about what was happening to the magic."
"And the riddle says we need to help Mirabel understand what her gift is." FLuttershy said. "But what is her gift?"
"Oh, oh, maybe her secret gift is she can fly!" Pinkie suggested. "Or maybe she could read minds, or something like what Spyro does and can use the Force!"
"Pinkie, that's absurd." Twilight said. "There's no way Mirabel is Force sensitive... is she?"
They then looked over to Mirabel, who was trying to talk with Dolores, but it was actually her cousin Camilo, who was running as soon as he saw his sister, leaving Mirabel confused.
"Nah." The ponies said in unison.
"If she was Force Sensitive, she wouldn't have fallen for that." Applejack said. "Take it from me girls, Spyro was very smart and paid attention to everything around him, he'd never fall for that... I think."
"Everyone, could I have your attention please." Abuela said, Mirabel trying to sit next to her sister to talk to her. "Family and guests, we are all very thankful for Antonio's wonderful new-"
She then heard something squeak, looking down to see some animals in her chair, looking to the young boy.
"I told them to warm up your seat for you." Antonio said.
"Thank you Antonio." Abuela said, shooing the animals away. "I'm sure we can put your gift to good use."
"Luisa, Dolores says you're totally freaking out right now." Mirabel whispered to her older sister. "Any chance you know something last night about the magic you-"
"Mirabel!" Abuela shouted, making her flinch. "If you can;t pay attention, perhaps I can help."
"Acutally, I was..." Mirabel tried to say before the chair moved her over to Abuela, moving her aunt and uncle next to Luisa, preventing Mirabel from talking to her sister.
"As I was saying..." Abuela said. "We must not take our gift for granted, so today, we will work twice as hard."
"Great, I'll help Luisa!" Mirabel said before the chair pushed her into the table, pinning her to it and making Rainbow Dash snicker.
"First, an announcement." Abuela said. "I have spoken to the Guzmans, about Mariano's proposal to Isabela. Dolores, do we have a date?"
"Tonight." Dolores replied. "He wants five babies."
At the mention of that, Rarity ended up spitting her drink back into the glass as flowers appeared in Isabela's head.
"Wonderful." Abuela said. "Such a fine young man for our perfect Isabela. Who will bring a new generation of magical blessings and make both of our families stronger." She walked past as Camilo shapeshifter into a handsome young man, pretending to want a kiss, but Isabela threw some flowers in his face, turning him back to normal. "Alright, our community is counting on us. La Familia Madrigal!"
"La Familia Madrigal!" Everyone shouted before getting out of their chairs to help out the community.
"Rarity!" Isabela exclaimed, getting her attention. " I saw the outfit you made for Antonio, and it was muy precioso! Think you could make something for me for when Mariano proposes?"
"Why certainly darling!" Rarity replied. "I'll be with you in a minute." Isabela then went to get back inside, running into Mirabel and looking very annoyed with her before continuing. "I'll see what I can learn from Isabela, see if I can find a way to talk with Abuela without getting on her bad side."
"Well I'm going to get that candle and see if I can make it talk again." Rainbow Dash said, about to fly up=off before Applejack grabbed her tail and pulled her back down.
"Hold on there Rainbow." Applejack said, spitting her tail out. "We don't need to get on the grandmothers bad side. If we try to touch or go near it without permission, she'll throw us out."
"Then we'll never get the Heart Piece." FLuttershy said. "What should we do?"
"Whatever we can." Twilight replied. "Rarity, you do whatever you're going to do, I'll talk with the Abuela and learn as much as I can about the houses magic without being too pushy."
"I'll be with Antonio." Fluttershy said, a few of the birds landing on her back, giggling at what they said. "Someone's gotta teach him how to handle some of the animals in his care."
"Well I'm going to find a nice place in the house and take a nap." Rainbow Dash said, flying off and leaving them alone.
"Honestly, that pony." Applejack said. "Pinkie, why don't ya-" They saw Pinkie was already gone, looking around to see if they could find her, only to see her bouncing around towards the house to prepare for when Mariano proposed to her, the farm mare smacking herself in the face. "Honestly, Pinkie can't stand and be still for two seconds without throwing a party."
"It's just Pinkie being Pinkie." Twilight said, watching ads Mirabel was running into the town after her sister. "Why don't you go help Luisa and Mirabel. And maybe try and keep Mirabel out of trouble."
"Sure thing sugarcube." Applejack said. The young farm mare was running into town to catch up with the two sisters, running by some of the people from the town until she saw Luisa moving a church, the people cheering for her while Applejack sat there in confusion. "Wow, just as strong Spyro."
"Luisa, wait!" Mirabel called out, running after her sister as she was picking up the donkeys. "Luisa, you gotta tell me about the magic! What are you hiding?"
"Nothing." Luisa replied, kicking a building up right to fix it. "Just got a lot of chores."
"Ya sure sugarcube?" Applejack asked, running up next to them. "There somethin' ya'll ain't telling us?"
"Yeah, like why your eye is twitching." Mirabel suggested. "Dolores said your eye was twitching and it never twitches."
"Will you two move, you're going to make me drop a donkey." Luisa said, using her leg to throw another donkey into the air, catching it.
"Luisa, please tell me what it is!" Mirabel exclaimed, running after her.
"There's nothing to tell." Luisa replied.
"Sugarcube, Ah work on a farm and Ah know when somethin' is wrong." Applejack said. "Ah got a big brother and a little sister of mah own and when they try to hide something, I know it. So tell us what's wrong."
"THERE'S NOTHING WRONG!" Luisa snapped, shocking both of them as she cleared her throat, trying to act calm as she placed the donkey's down. "Wow, totally snuck out. Listen, nothing's wrong. I'm fine, Luisa's fine, totally not nervous."
They then saw her eye twitch, indicating that she was not alright and something was bothering her.
"Yeah, Luisa' your eye totally twitched." Mirabel said.
"Yeah, ya'll ain't..." Applejack tried to say before music started to play.
[Luisa]
I'm the strong one, I'm not nervous!
I'm as tough as the crust of the Earth is.
She then threw a rock into the sky and it landed on her, breaking into thousands of pieces and spooking them both, but for Applejack, it seemed familiar.
I move mountains, I move churches,
And I glow, 'cause I know what my worth is.
"Yeah, totally." Mirabel said, looking back and seeing the donkey's moving back. "Where you going?"
I don't ask how hard the work is,
Got a rough indestructible surface.
Diamonds and platinum, I find 'em, I flatten 'em.
I take what I'm handed, I break what's demanded!
But under the surface, I feel berserk as a tightrope walker in a three-ring circus!
Under the surface, was Hercules ever like, "Yo, I don't wanna fight Cerberus?"
Under the surface, I'm pretty sure I'm worthless if I can't be of service!
A flaw or a crack, the straw in the stack,
That breaks the camel's back, what breaks the camel's back?
It's pressure like a drip, drip, drip that'll never stop, whoa!
Pressure that'll tip, tip, tip 'til you just go pop, whoa, oh, oh!
Give it to your sister, your sister's older,
Give her all the heavy things we can't shoulder!
Who am I if I can't run with the ball?
If I fall to.
Pressure like a grip, grip, grip, and it won't let go, whoa!
Pressure like a tick, tick, tick 'til it's ready to blow, whoa, oh, oh!
Give it to your sister, your sister's stronger,
See if she can hang on a little longer!
Who am I if I can't carry it all?
If I falter!
Under the surface, I hide my nerves and it worsens, I worry something is gonna hurt us!
Under the surface, the ship doesn't swerve as it heard how big the iceberg is.
Under the surface, I think about my purpose, can I somehow preserve this?
Line up the dominoes, a light wind blows,
You try to stop it tumbling, but on and on, it goes,
But wait, if I could shake, the crushing weight of expectations,
Would that free some room up for joy or relaxation, or simple pleasure?
Instead, we measure this growing pressure,
Keeps growing, keep going,
'Cause all we know is,
Pressure like a drip, drip, drip that'll never stop, whoa.
Pressure that'll tip, tip, tip 'til you just go pop, whoa, oh, oh.
Give it to your sister, it doesn't hurt, and,
See if she can handle every family burden!
Watch as she buckles and bends but never breaks, no mistakes!
Just pressure like a grip, grip, grip, and it won't let go, whoa!
Pressure like a tick, tick, tick 'til it's ready to blow, whoa, oh, oh!
Give it to your sister and never wonder,
If the same pressure would've pulled you under!
Who am I if I don't have what it takes?
No cracks, no breaks,
No mistakes, no pressure!
Mirabel and Applejack were in complete shock, seeing an indestructible force like her starting to feel the pressure of having all the work of the community thrown at her with little to no help from the others, Applejack understanding how that feels as she tried to do Applebucking Season on her own, causing a lot of mistakes and everyone getting hurt, which could have been avoided if she only asked for help. Mirabel felt bad for her sister and walked over, hugging her, which surprised Luisa, feeling a sense of joy as she felt her sister hug her.
"I think you're carrying too much." Mirabel said, which Luisa hugger her sister back and picked her up, almost crushing her.
"Maybe I do overdo it." Luisa said.
"Nah, yer just being given more responsibility than you should be given." Applejack said. "Ya just need to ask for help from time to time. There's no shame in askin'. Trust me, I did the same thing and did more harm to everyone around me and myself than good."
"Well, there is something you two should know." Luisa said, putting Mirabel down. "Last night, when you saw the cracks, I felt... weak."
"Wait, what!?" Mirabel asked, her sister picking up the donkeys. "Wait, what's hurting the magic!?"
"I don't know." Luisa replied, picking the donkeys up again. "But whatever it is, it's bad. I once heard the grown ups say that before Tío Bruno left, he some kind of terrible vision about it. Like, came to him from out of the blue."
"Wait, as in, Bruno saw the future?" Applejack asked. "What was in his vision?"
"Don't know." Luisa replied, walking past them. "They never found it. But if you want to find the answer, start with Bruno's tower. If it's there, you'll find it."
"Wait, how do we find a vision!?" Mirabel asked. "What am I even looking for?"
"When you see it, you'll know you found it." Luisa replied. "But be careful, that place is off limits for a reason."
Luisa then walked off carrying a lot of donkeys somewhere, both of them turning to the Casita to see the tower, walking towards it hoping to find the vision Luisa was talking about and how they were going to get in without being caught. At the house, Abuela was walking with Isabela while Rarity started making sketches for the kind of dress that would be perfect for her, Rainbow Dash peaking over the roof and flying to the window with the candle, starring at it.
"Alright you." She said. "I heard you talk last night and I want to know something... what is happening to this place? Why's the magic fading? And why doesn't Auebla want us to get the Heart Piece?"
Nothing happened, the candle's flame burning brightly as if it didn't hear her, which she grew frustrated, flying there for a minute before turning, coming face to face with a figure in dark robe, spooking her as she called her Keyblade, but he then disappeared as dark clouds surrounded her, creating a sphere of dark energy as it swirled in the air, Rainbow Dash on guard when she saw something in the past, seeing the moment the Heart Piece flew into the candle and the sanctuary was made, breaking Rainbow Dash's focus as her disappeared.
"A loving man... sacrifice for the woman he did love. A chance for peace... given from the skies above." A voice said. "Gifts of power... given to those at five. Protect it with care... like a hornet protecting the hive." The vision then shifted to the house crumbling as the magic faded, causing a shiver to run down Rainbow Dash's spine. "Conditional love... destroys. Toxic perfection... degrades. A miracle of love will fade... a home of hope... unmade." It then shifted to Mirabel on the ground, pulling herself to safety as a familiar figure walked up, holding Void Gear in his hand as he raised it up to strike her down. "Love is key... to all thing's light. Seek the vision... at the towers height. Pieced together... two path's it will show... follow your heart... only then will you know."
The vision ended as Vanitas brought his Keyblade down, releasing Rainbow Dash from the orb, shaking from what she saw, seeing Applejack and Mirabel sneak into a hall and then looking up, finding it lead to the tower of the Casita, remembering what the voice said as she flew down to follow them. Mirabel and Applejack were walking up to Bruno's room, finding the door had an image of him with an hour glass on the door, opening it to find another passage, this time it had falling sand blocking the way, the both of them approaching the sand, Mirabel using her hand to touch the sand, finding it was really sand.
"What are you doing?" Rainbow Dash asked, scaring Applejack and Mirabel.
"Consarn it Rainbow!" Applejack exclaimed. "Ya'll nearly gave us a heart attack!"
"Sorry, didn't mean to scare you." Rainbow Dash said. "But, what are you doing in here?"
"Tryin' to get some answers." Applejack replied. "Luisa said Bruno had a vision before disappearing, so we're gonna find it."
"Yeah, as soon as we get through here." Mirabel said. "Casita, can you turn off the sand?" The floor tile then started to make some sounds, letting her know it can't help her. "You can't help from in here?" The tiles then made more noise, asking her to be careful. "Don't worry, I'll be fine. I need to do this. For you, Abuela, and a bit for myself."
She then walked through the sand wall, expecting there to be solid floor, but she tumbled down through the sand, face planting in it as Applejack leapt through while Rainbow Dash flew through, shaking the sand off and seeing the room, finding it was a massive stone wall with hundreds of stairs going up, taking everyone by surprise.
"Wow." Applejack said. "That's... a lot of stairs."
"You're telling me." Rainbow Dash said, yawning. "Though, I won't be having to climb them now will I?"
"Alright thunder rod, ya don't need to brag about yer wings." Applejack said.
"Hey, at least we can climb up them together." Mirabel said.
The earth pony and the human girl then started to walk up the stairs, going up each set flight by flight, Applejack having no problem going up the stairs as she is use to long days and walking very far everyday, building up her endurance and her strength from working at a farm while Mirabel was struggling, staring out enthusiastic before immediatly coming to the conclusion that Bruno's room was by far the worst room yet with so many stairs. After what seemed like hours, Mirabel finally made it up, Applejack waiting for her and looking like she saw a ghost, Mirabel looking to see a gapping chasm too far for her to jump, making her groan.
"Seriously!?" Mirabel shouted. "Bruno, your room is by far, the worst room ever!"
"Well, we won't get any answers by standing here all day." Applejack said, running to the edge and jumping the chasm with no effort, landing safely on the other side. "Don't worry, Ah got mah lasso! I'll-"
Before she could finish, Mirabel used one of the wooden posts that had rope on it, tossing it in between a couple of stalagmites and testing to make sure it was secure before swinging over,landing safely on the other side of the chasm and cheering.
"Nice going there Mirabel!" Rainbow Dash said. "That was epic!"
"Thanks." She replied, stamping her foot and causing a massive chunk of rock to fall off, hitting the ground below and making them flinch. "What are the chances no one heard that?"
"Oh they probably heard it alright." Rainbow Dash said. "I hope whatever is in here is worth it."
They then walked down the creep hall way, finding there was a vault on the other side of the hall, shivers running down everyone's spines as they went in, finding it was an empty room and nothing in there but sand.
"Well, this was a bust." Rainbow Dash said.
"No, something's gotta be here." Applejack said. "Luisa said-"
A second later, the door closed, causing everyone to scream in fear before a green light lit the room up, all three of them looking to the sand to see something glowing in it, getting everyone's attention.
"Well, we found the vision." Applejack said.
"Wait, vision?" Rainbow Dash asked, looking to the sand.
Mirabel walked over to the sand, kneeling down and digging in the sand to find a piece of the vision, digging up another and examining them before putting two pieces together.
"What's hurting the magic?" Mirabel asked, cracks forming on a rock, which the ponies saw it.
"Mirabel... maybe we shouldn't." Applejack said.
"Yeah, let's just leave." Rainbow Dash said.
"I need to know what's hurting the magic!" Mirabel replied, pulling up another piece and putting it with the rest as more cracks formed above them, the ponies starting to worry as Mirabel put the piece with it, finding an image of herself on it. "Me?"
The room then started to collapsed, sand spilling into the room as the room started to shake violently, everyone fearing the worse.
"We gotta get oughta here, now!" Applejack shouted.
"AJ, help me with the door!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed.
While the two ponies were working on prying the door open, Mirabel was going through the sand, collecting all the pieces of the vision before they were completely buried, Applejack and Rainbow Dash ramming into the door to open it, but it refused to budge, not wanting to let them out even if they found what they needed until Mirabel rammed into the door, busting it open as they were carried by the sand and near the edge of the massive chasm, stopping mere centimeters from plundering to their death.
"Whatever those things are, better be worth it!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed.
"Trust me, it is sugarcube." Applejack replied, looking down the massive passage and gulping air. "We'd better get oughta here before we're caught."
After a while, they exited Bruno's room, walking along the rafter back to Mirabel's room until they ran into Abuela, who looked concerned.
"Mirabel!" She said. "Where are you going in such a hurry?"
"Oh, I'm sorry." Mirabel replied, dusting her hair, which Abuela noticed sand.
"What is in your hair?" She asked, reaching out before they heard something.
"My gift!?" Luisa shouted, running up the stairs. "I'm loosing my gift!"
"What... how?" Abuela asked.
"Mirabel and I were having a talk about me carrying too much." She replied. "So I tried to not carry everything, but it put me behind, so I felt bad that I was gonna let everyone else down, so I was grabbing all the donkeys, but when I tried to throw them in the barn, they were... heavy."
She then ran to her room in tears, clearly upset as she was loosing her strength, Abuela looking to Mirabel in shock.
"Mirabel, what did you do?" Abuela asked. "What did you say to her?"
"Nothing." Mirabel replied. "I don't-"
"Mirabel." Abuela said, clearly annoyed by her before looking at her watch. "I have to go get the Guzman's for the proposal. Stay away from Luisa until I can talk to her. Tonight, we can't have anymore problems. And whatever you're doing, stop doing it!"
She then turned and left, walking down the stairs, leaving Mirabel alone with the ponies as she went to her room, Abuela upset with Mirabel when the cracks appeared again next to her, startling her, but at the end of the stairs was a man dressed in black, his right eye covered while his left was visible, seeing it was red and looked angry with her.
"Toxic... perfection." He said, scaring Abuela. "Conditional...love. Not... the... way."
Dark smoke then came off him as it surrounded him, disappearing into the floor cracks and leaving Abuela alone, confused and scared before looking to the candle again, finding it was red again before turning back to gold, looking to Mirabel's room as she had a sudden suspicion about what was happening. In Mirabel's room, the girl had put the pieces she already put together, revealing her again and sighing, wondering why she was in her uncles vision.
"Why am I in your vision Bruno?" Mirabel asked, thunder arching behind them to see Pepa there carrying something. "Tía, jeez, you scared me."
"More like you scared us!" Rainbow Dash said, taking a deep breath.
"Sorry, sorry." She replied, putting the basket she was carrying onto the dresser. "I was, shoo, shoo!" She shooed the cloud out of the room, closing it to keep the cloud out. "I just wanted to get the last of Antonio's things, but then I heard the name we do not speak." Another cloud then formed over her head, causing her to groan in frustration. "Great, now I'm thundering. And I thought it would lead to a drizzle and a drizzle into a sprinkle!"
"Woah there, calm down now." Rainbow Dash said. "Calm yourself. Now, why don't you want to say Bruno's name?"
"Tía Pepa, if Bruno..." Mirabel said, the cloud returning. "If 'he' had a vision about you r someone else, what would it mean?"
"We don't talk about Bruno!" Pepa replied, twisting some cloth to dry it out.
"I know, but, hypothetically, if he saw you then..." Mirabel said before being cut off.
"Mirabel, please, we need to get ready for the Guzmans!" Pepa replied, interrupting Mirabel.
"I just want to know if it was generally positive, or generally negative, or..." Mirabel tried to say before Félix came storming in.
"It was an absolute nightmare!" Félix said, scaring them.
"What is with everypony today scaring us?" Applejack asked.
"Félix, no!" Pepa said.
"No, they need to know honey." Félix replied.
"We don't talk about Bruno!" Pepa said.
"He would say something terrible and it would come true." Félix said.
"We don't talk about Bruno!" Pepa said.
"But what if the vision was something we didn't fully understand?" Mirabel asked.
"Then you better figure it out quick!" Félix said, music started to play. "Because it's coming for you."
Pepa then pushed him away, the music starting to pick up as she looked angry.
[Pepa]
We don't talk about Bruno, no, no, no!
We don't talk about Bruno, but,
It was my wedding day!
[Félix]
It was our wedding day!
[Pepa]
We were getting ready,
And there wasn't a cloud in the sky!
[Félix]
No clouds allowed in the sky!
[Pepa]
Bruno walks in,
With a mischievous grin...
[Félix]
Thunder!
[Pepa]
You telling this story or am I?
[Félix]
I'm sorry, mi vida, go on.
[Pepa]
Bruno says, "It looks like rain!"
[Félix]
Why did he tell us?!
[Pepa]
In doing so, he floods my brain,
[Félix]
Abuela, get the umbrellas...
[Pepa]
Married in a hurricane!
[Félix]
What a joyous day,
But, anyway...
[Both]
We don't talk about Bruno, no, no, no!
We don't talk about Bruno!
They then came outside, which Dolores was waiting for them and pulled them aside.
[Dolores]
Hey!
Grew to live in fear of Bruno stuttering or stumbling.
I can always hear him sort of muttering and mumbling.
I associate him with the sound of falling sand.
Ch, ch, ch.
It's a heavy lift with a gift so humbling,
Always left Abuela and the family fumbling,
Grappling with prophecies they couldn't understand,
Do you understand?
Camilo then appeared, transforming into Bruno as the son continued.
[Camilo]
A seven-foot frame,
Rats along his back!
When he calls your name,
It all fades to black!
Yeah, he sees your dreams,
And feasts on your screams ([Mirabel, Applejack, Rainbow Dash] Hey!)
[All]
We don't talk about Bruno, no, no, no!
(We don't talk about Bruno, no, no!)
We don't talk about Bruno
(We don't talk about Bruno!)
They then walked out of the house, finding they had somehow appeared outside and in the village, everyone walking by.
[Señora Pezmuerto]
He told me my fish would die,
The next day, dead! (No, no!)
[Osvaldo]
He told me I'd grow a gut!
And just like he said (No, no!)
[Señor Flores]
He said that all my hair would disappear,
Now look at my head (No, no!/Hey!)
[All]
Your fate is sealed when your prophecy is read!
They then appeared back in the middle of the house, Isabela lowering down as a pinkish purple light hit her, Mirabel looking annoyed.
[Isabela]
He told me that the life of my dreams,
Would be promised and someday be mine!
He told me that my power would grow,
Like the grapes that thrive on the vine!
[Abuela]
Óye, Mariano's on his way!
[Dolores]
He told me that the man of my dreams,
Would be just out of reach.
Betrothed to another,
It's like I hear him now.
[Isabela]
Hey sis,
I want not a sound out of you!
[Dolores]
It's like I can hear him now.
I can hear him now!
[Mirabel]
Um, Bruno,
Yeah, about that Bruno,
I really need to know about Bruno.
Gimme the truth and the whole truth, Bruno!
[Camilo]
Isabela, your boyfriend's here! (Ahaha!)
[All]
Time for dinner!
They then started putting everything in place on the dinner table, the ponies watching everything right as Rarity and the others joined Applejack and Rainbow Dash.
[Camilo]
A seven-foot frame,
Rats along his back!
When he calls your name,
It all fades to black!
Yeah, he sees your dreams,
And feasts on your screams!
[Pepa]
It was my wedding day!
[Félix]
It was our wedding day!
[Pepa]
We were getting ready!
And there wasn't a cloud in the sky!
[Félix]
No clouds allowed in the sky!
[Pepa]
Bruno walks in,
With a mischievous grin!
[Félix]
Thunder!
[Pepa]
You telling this story or am I?
Félix:
I'm sorry, mi vida, go on.
They then ran into the room and Mirabel dumped the contents of the bag onto the dresser, reassembling the vision as the song continued.
[Dolores]
Grew to live in fear of Bruno stuttering or stumbling.
I can always hear him sort of muttering and mumbling,
I associate him with the sound of falling sand,
Ch, ch, ch!
It's a heavy lift with a gift so humbling,
Always left Abuela and the family fumbling,
Grappling with prophecies they couldn't understand!
Do you understand?
[Isabela]
He told me that the life of my dreams,
Would be promised and someday be mine!
He told me that my power would grow,
Like the grapes that thrive on the vine!
I'm fine!
[Abuela]
Óye, Mariano's on his way!
[Camilo]
A seven-foot frame,
Rats along his back!
When he calls your name,
It all fades to black!
Yeah, he sees your dreams,
And feasts on your screams!
[Pepa]
Bruno says "It looks like rain!"
[Félix]
Why did he tell us?!
[Pepa]
In doing so he floods my brain!
[Félix]
Abuela get the umbrellas!
[Pepa]
Married in a hurricane!
[Félix]
What a joyous day!
[Dolores]
He told me that the man of my dreams,
Would be just out of reach!
Betrothed to another, another,
And I'm fine, and I'm fine,
And I'm fine, I'm fine!
[Isabela]
He told me that the life of my dreams,
Would be promised and someday be mine!
And I'm fine, and I'm fine,
And I'm fine, I'll be fine!
[All]
Hey! He's here!
Don't talk about Bruno, no!
Mirabel then reassembled the whole vision, everyone shocked to see it while the family was outside still singing as the music kept on going, finding her in the middle of the house as cracks appeared behind her.
[Mirabel]
Why did I talk about Bruno?!
[All]
Not a word about Bruno!
[Mirabel]
I never should've brought up Bruno!
The ponies were in disbelief, seeing that the vision was complete and everything they saw revealed she was in front of the house as the cracks were appearing behind her, everyone dead silent.
"Oh no, this can't be." Rarity said.
"Is this... what's causing it?" Twilight asked. "The magic is fading... because of..."
"Horse feathers to that!" Applejack said, walking up to her friends. "Ain't no way she's the reason for the magic to fade! Remember what she and Rainbow Dash told us? Conditional love... Toxic perfections, Ah think it's got something to do with that and with the grandma, not Mirabel."
"AJ's right!" Rainbow Dash said. "Mirabel is not the reason for the house to loose it's magic! It's gotta be-"
"Mirabel!" Mirabel's father said, coming into the room. "Hope you got your party pants on because-"
He then froze, Mirabel trying to hide the vision, but her father already saw it, knowing the jig was up, her father's mouth wide open with shock.
"We... sorta broke into Bruno's room in the tower and found Bruno's last vision showing the family's in trouble, the magic magic is dying, the house is breaking, Luisa's gift is fading, and it might be because of... me?"
"Don't say that Mirabel!" Pinkie replied. "You're not what's causing the magic to go all faded fade! You're a good person trying to help your family!"
"Please sir, don't do anything that might hurt her." Twilight said. "She's only trying to save the magic and whatever happened to Luisa is not her fault!"
"We tell no one!" Mirabel's father said, picking the pieces up. "Abuela wants tonight to be perfect until the Guzmans leave! You did not he break into Bruno's tower, the magic is not dying, the house is not breaking, Luisa's gift is not fading! No one will know, just you and us, no one else."
They then looked out the door and saw Dolores there, looking surprised before she ran off, leaving everyone alone in Mirabel's room, nervous and confused.
"She's going to tell everyone, isn't she?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"She might." Applejack replied.
"Time to eat!" Abuela announced.
"We better go outside and wait." Twilight said. "We aren't exactly family, so this doesn't concern us."
"You sure?" Mirabel asked.
"Certainly darling." Rarity replied. "In the meantime, we'll try to figure out what to do to save the magic."
Mirabel and her father left the room while the ponies went out of the house to wait for the family to finish their family dinner with the Guzmans, Twilight pacing back and forth while Applejack was watching the window, worrying for their friend as she starred at the family, seeing that Mirabel was keeping her eye on Dolores to make sure she didn't tell anyone what she did and what she found.
"Oh, what will we do?" Fluttershy asked. "The magic is dying and Dolores is going to tell the family what we found, ruining the evening."
"And the dress I fixed up for Isabela was so lovely." Rarity said. "Oh, this is simply dreadful. Why did you two have to find that vision on such an important night?"
"Well we were trying to find answers to save the magic!" Rainbow Dash replied. "Not to mention Luisa is loosing her gift, meaning the Heart Piece in the candle is loosing strength!"
"So the Heart Piece is in the candle." Vanitas said, the girls looking up the tree to see him leaning on the trunk of the tree, multiple Floods and several Red Hot Chili's appeared around them, the ponies calling their Keyblades to defend themselves. "Thanks for the information little pony. Now I know what to get from the house." A second later, several Archravens appeared from the void and flew towards the house as the girls remained where they were. "I wonder what happens when the candle is removed from the house? Will they loose their magic all together, or one at a time?"
"Rainbow, stop those birds!" Twilight exclaimed.
Without waiting for another words, Rainbow Dash flew into the air after the Arcravens to prevent them from getting the candle and bringing it to Vanitas. In the dining room, everything was going wrong almost immediately, Mirabel was doing her best to keep an eyes on Dolores, giving her a warning stare before her view was blocked and she told Camilo what she heard, making him turn to Bruno for a second before having the face of a chameleon, fixing it and telling his father, who spat out his drink, who then told Pepa, a storm cloud appearing above her head as she told Mirabel's mother, who looked concerned as she looked to Mirabel, looking to the ground as cracks appeared, looking closer to have a look at them.
"Mirabel..." Mariano said, making them young girl hit her head when she got up. "Is everything ok?"
"Oh, yeah, swell." Mirabel replied, trying to now ruin the night. "I just dropped something, that's all."
"Anyway, is there something you'd like to do or say?" Mirabel's father asked, looking just as nervous.
"Uh, actually, I wanted to-" Mariano said.
"Oh yes, let's get it taken care of care of right away!" Mirabel said, turningIsabela to face Mariano, which seemed to annoy her.
"Well, speaking of talents, my son is a talented musician." Mrs. Guzman said. "Luisa, could you get a piano for us please?"
nodding her head, Luisa walked away in tears, confusing the Guzmans while the Madrigals looked curious.
"Anyway..." Mariano said, getting down on one knee and presenting a box. "Isabela... my most beautiful flower... will you-"
He was then interrupted when they heard something squawk, looking outside to see one of the Archravens had fallen to the ground, severely injured as Antonio came out to look at it.
"Oh, poor guy." Antonio said, kneeling down to it. "Maybe-"
It then screeched at Antonio, scaring him and pinning him to the ground, looking at the kid with rage in it's eyes before a rainbow flew by and sliced through it, turning the Unversed into a dark cloud. Everyone looked up and saw Rainbow Dash fighting off more to the airborn Unversed, slicing through them and slashing at one, destroying them one at a time as they watched.
"Get back inside, now!" Rainbow Dash shouted.
She then then struck in the back, falling to the ground as Flood appeared on the ground around her, surrounding her when Applejack leapt over and cut through one of them, using the cure spell to heal Rainbow Dash and getting her back in the fight right as Vanitas walked in, his Keyblade drawn as he was escorted by two Thornbites, chuckling to himself as he walked in.
"This world... so full of magic... and yet so vulnerable." Vanitas said as more Red Hot Chili's appeared. "Such a fickle little thing isn't it? A candle... so bright... so powerful... yet so weak."
"That's enough out of you Vanitas!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed.
She and Applejack charged towards Vanitas with the Red Hot Chili's and the Thornbites got in the way, engaging the two Keyblade wielders while Vanitas walked along unchallenged towards the candle. While it was going on, some of the animals had found the shards in Mirabel's father's pockets, Mirabel seeing they were putting it all together and grew fearful.
"No!" She exclaimed.
She tried to stop them, but she accidently pushed the completed vision towards Abuela, who saw what was on it and looked to Mirabel in horror, cracks forming behind her, which only made the fear grow, causing Pepa to conjure a massive storm cloud as a vine of flowers shot up and hit Mariano in the face, dazing them before the doors swung wide open and the people shouted their congratulations, but then saw the cracks and knew something was wrong. Vanitas then looked over to them and walked towards them, the family walking back as Mirabel was frozen to the spot, watching as Vanitas walked over to Abuela and looking at the green crystal, smiling underneath his mask before looking to Mirabel.
"Interesting." Vanitas said, looking to Mirabel. "It seems we got our reason to the fading magic." He then started walking towards Mirabel, which her father got in between then, but Vanitas knocked him away and into a wall, causing him to collapse as Mirabel pressed her back against the wall. "Now... how is it you are causing the magic to fade in the first place?"
"Get away from her!" Rainbow Dash shouted, flying in and kicking him out the window, causing him to roll around as the cracks disappeared, the candles light shining bright as it released a powerful pulse, destroying the Unversed.
As soon as the pulse destroyed the Unversed, everyone ran out, the Guzmans running away with Abuela trying to talk to them, Isabela shouting she hated Mirabel while Luisa ran and shouted she was a looser while Pepa asked what she did, a storm cloud over her head.
"I'm not doing anything!" Mirabel replied. "It's Bruno's vision!"
They were already gone, having run after Luisa and the Guzmans to calm them down while the two ponies in the house walked up to her to comfort the poor girl, who was clearly in distress as everyone now knew about the vision and would blame her for the loss of their magic, looking down, but then saw rats running along with the pieces of the vision, confusing her.
"Where are they going?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"Don't know." Applejack replied. "But they have the vision, we better follow them."
The two ponies ran after the rats with Mirabel, running up the stairs right as the ponies came in, seeing the family in despair before spotting Applejack and Rainbow Dash running up the stairs and ran after them, running up the stairs until they caught up with them, see they had walked over to a painting right as Mirabel pulled on the painting, revealing there was a human sized hole in it.
"Ooh, a secret hole!" Pinkie said. "Where does it lead to!? Where does it lead to!?"
"Don't know, but we're going to find out." Applejack said.
"Maybe some of us should stay out here incase Vanitas or the Unversed return." Twilight suggested.
"We ain't got time to decide who goes and who stays!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed. "AJ, you go with Mirabel and find that vision! We'll stay out here and make sure Vanitas doesn't come back!"
"I'll go with Mirabel and Applejack." Twilight said. "You might need some light in there incase it's dark."
"It looks pretty dark in there to me." Mirabel said.
"Don't worry sugarcube, we'll be with you the entire way." Applejack said.
Mirabel then went in first, followed by Applejack and Twilight, the two ponies hopping into the hole in the wall to find the entire was had bamboo poles in it and some structural foundation native to Columbia back in the old days, but as they walked in, they found that the cracks were appearing on the walls next to them, but then heard the sound of rats squeaking, looking down to find one of them running into the darkness and were about to run after it, but saw the green glow lift into the air, freaking them out until a thunderbolt illuminated the hidden passage through the cracks, revealing Bruno was standing in front of them, the three friends in disbelief.
"Bruno." Mirabel said, Bruno then running away to get away from them.
"Hey, get back here!" Applejack shouted.
The three of them then started running after the fleeing fortune teller, thought they had to run after him single file as it was very cramp in the walls and barely a lot of room for them to spread out. They ran after him, running under floors, hopping from board to board, even sliding underneath some rotting stairs as they chased the missing uncle, running down some stairs and running into a wall, causing someone to yell out as if in pain until they came across what appeared to be a very deep hole, Bruno having leapt from board to board to get to the other side.
"Hang on Mirabel, I can get us across." Twilight said. "All I need to do is... MIRABEL!"
Mirabel took a running start, hopping from board to board while the ponies watched, fearful for their friend and extremely worried for her as she made the journey across until she made it to the other side, the ponies breathing a sigh of relief as she made it across.
"Nice goin' sugarcube." Applejack said. However, a second later, the boards underneath collapsed under her, causing her to fall and hold onto an old bamboo post. "MIRABEL!"
Mirabel was holding onto the bamboo post with all her strength, though she was sweaty from running after her uncle and was slipping, looking into the dark abyss and feeling like her time had come.
"Casita, Applejack, Twilight, anybody, help!" Mirabel shouted, loosing her grip.
He then lost her grip and was falling, but a second later, someone had grabbed her arm and made her look up, finding it was her missing uncle who grabbed her and was holding onto her with all his strength.
"You're really sweaty." Bruno said.
As he said it, the floor gave out underneath him and Mirabel managed to grab onto a root, holding onto it and Bruno, which the ponies breathed sighs of relief, but a rat appeared and scared Mirabel, dropping Bruno into the darkness below, all three screaming for him, but a second later, his head popped up, waving his hand in the air and blowing away the dust to reveal it was a just a five foot drop, Mirabel pulling him up as the ponies teleported to the other side, all looking at Bruno.
"Glad ya'll are ok." Applejack said.
"Yes, glad indeed." Bruno said, looking at her. "Well, good bye."
He then walked off, leaving the three of them confused before running after him
"Hey, wait!" Mirabel said. "Why did you take the vision? What does it mean? Is it the reason why you came back?" They watched as he was knocking on the wood, checking them for some reason before continuing. "Uncle Bruno?"
"You were never supposed to see it." Bruno said. "No one was."
He then threw some salt and it hit Mirabel in the face, causing her to spit it out. They then watched as he was hopping around on the floor, looking to the wall and finding there were signs of cracks, but they were filled in, a makeshift patch job.
"Wait, you've been in here the whole time repairing the cracks?" Mirabel asked.
"That?" Bruno asked. "On, no, no, no, no, no. I'm too scared to go near those. All the patch work is done by Hernando."
"Who the hay is Hernando?" Applejack asked.
"I'm Hernando and I'm scared of nothing!" Bruno said, his hood up and pretending to be someone else before removing it. "It's actually me. I used to have a talent for acting."
"How long have you been back here?" Twilight asked.
"A long time." Bruno replied, walking away as eveyrone followed.
They followed him for a little while before they came to a makeshift room, finding it had many things from clothing, wash basins, furniture and everything someone needs to survive.
"You never left, did you?" Mirabel asked.
"Well, I left my tower." Bruno replied. "A lot of stairs if you ask me. And in here, the kitchen's adjacent from here. Plus, entertainment!"
He took one of his rats and put it with another, putting post cards up to have different scenes, which grossed twilight out and made Applejack a bit uncomfortable.
"I don't get it." Twilight said. "Why did you choose to hide here within the walls of the house and not run away in the first place?"
"Well, for one thing, the mountains around the Encanto are pretty tall." Bruno replied. "And like I said, free food and everything." He walked away to feed his rats, a light showing into the room, so Mirabel and Applejack walked up and looked through the crack, revealing he had a clear line of sight into the kitchen to see everyone eat, looking down at the table to reveal there was a plate drawn into it, looking to Bruno who looked unhappy. "My gift wasn't helping the family. You see, I don't know how to... how to..." They could see how hurt he was, watching as he sit down in the chair, putting his face into his hands. "You should go. I mean, I don't have a good reason for you to go, but if I did, you would be going right now."
"Bruno, why was I in your vision?" Mirabel asked, walking up to her uncle. "I... I just want to make the family proud. I just want them to be proud of me. But if i should stop... if I'm hurting my family-"
"Stop saying that sugarcube." Applejack said, walking up to her. "Ya'll are not the reason the magic is fading. Tell her Bruno."
"I can't." Bruno replied, pulling the pieces out and began putting them together. "That night you didn't get your gift, Mama came to me and asked me if the magic is alright because she was worried about it. She asked me to look into the future, so I did. I saw the magic... in danger. I saw the house break apart and then you. But then I saw someone else come into my vision, someone wearing purple and black, a gentleness around him."
"That's Spyro!" Twilight said excitedly. "It was Spyro you saw!"
"He told me... nothing was set in stone." Bruno continued. "And he showed me that what I saw had many possibilities. Saying that the future is always changing as we change and that Mirabel had an important role in the fate of magic, giving me the crystal tablet. I moved it and it showed no cracks, but no matter what, i knew how it was going to look and how everyone thinks. Because I'm Bruno and everyone assumes the worst, so..."
"You left... to protect me." Mirabel said, looking at her uncle with a new kind of light.
"Who knows." Bruno said. "All I know is that the family, the Encanto, as this Spyro said, you have a critical role in its fate. Whatever it comes down to, it comes down to you."
Mirabel looked at the image, feeling the pressure from what would happen until she saw something in the vision, the symbol on her hand before looking at her right hand and wondering what it meant.
"Bruno... did Abuela say anything about... a symbol?" Mirabel asked.
"All the time." Bruno replied, moving them out his room in the wall. "She said that symbol gave us our Encanto, granting us the magic. Before leaving my tower for good, he came to me, saying that the magic was fading due to someone's need for the magic... relying on others gifts... saying its for the good of the familia and the community... but..."
"But?" Twilight asked.
"But... he said the key is change." Bruno said. "Mending the bonds and... giving love where one doesn't receive it. Saying their gift is not magical... it's natural. Sorry that I couldn't see more."
"See... more." Mirabel said. "That's it! You could have another vision!"
"Hey, you're right!" Twilight said, Bruno backing away. "You can have another vision and it will tell us how to mend the bonds!"
"Oh no, I don't do visions anymore." Bruno replied. "Besides, you wrecked my vision room! I need a wide open space for my gift to work."
"Then we'll find one for ya sugarcube!" Applejack said. "And once we do, we can find out how to fix all of this!"
"There's my room." Antonio said, everyone looking to him and seeing he was there. "The rats told me everything."
Mirabel then looked to Bruno, who looked nervous while Mirabel put her hand on her uncles shoulders, trying to calm him.
"Our family needs help." Mirabel said. "You're the only chance we got to fix this. Plus, you really need to get out of here."
Bruno looked around, finding the rats were using his toothbrush to clean themselves and were causing more harm than good, looking to the ponies who looked at him with pleading eyes before returning his look to Mirabel, looking to her right hand and saw a blue glowing light appear on it for a moment, looking to the shadows behind them as he saw someone stand there, nodding his head before it disappeared.
"Alright, we'll go." Bruno said, eveyrone cheering. "For the familia."
They got everything they needed for Bruno, pulling all the essentials and running out of the room, heading towards the young boys room to see if they can get another vision that would tell them how they could save the magic.