Chapter Text
Sometimes Camilo felt like the entire world was watching his every move, every shift, every expression. Escaping into his room never helped when his room was just a huge stage filled to the brim with mirrors. When you’re trying to hide from looks and gazes- a room full of reflective mirrors isn’t the best place to hide in. Which is why as a child Camilo had traveled through every small corner in Encanto to find some place where he could just sit in silence without anyone to stare at him for hours on end.
When he was ten years old, he had finally found just that place, the ruins of an old town near the edge of Encanto. Apparently, the town had gotten destroyed by the rising mountains and its residents had abandoned it. Camilo didn’t really care about the origins of the ruins because they were perfect for solitude and that was all that he cared about.
Today was once again a time where Camilo felt like everyone was watching him- or rather, not him, but who he should be. They never wanted just Camilo, they wanted what he could be and if he was just himself then they lost interest- and then Abuela would be disappointed.
Abuela can’t be disappointed. He’d spent so long trying to make Abuela proud of him and realize that his gift could be useful. He’d finally managed to do that, Abuela was more proud of him than ever- he needed him and his gift, he was useful for her and the rest of the family, and he just couldn’t afford to lose all that progress now just because of a small nervous breakdown.
Camilo had sneaked out of the house when Dolores had gone into her soundproofed room, he’d told Casita that he was going on a walk so that the house wouldn’t wake everyone up- and then he was off toward the ruin he hadn’t visited in a couple of weeks.
The ruins were situated four kilometers from their house, it was right next to the roots of the mountains that circled around Encanto. Most of the buildings had been destroyed and their remains were scattered across the mountains and the plains beneath them- but some remained. Though with no one taking care of them they were unstable and dangerous.
The walk there could be considered long by some, but Camilo had never thought much of it. Granted that could be because of just how much he walked there and back during most nights. This night was no different and he made it to the ruins in no time and with no issue.
During the first time he’d visited the ruins he’d made sure to find a house that was safe enough to sit on. It had been quite a troublesome task, but he’d managed to find one that suited his needs. It was ugly and run down, but in quite good shape and had served him well for five years as a place to just sit and think at.
By this point Camilo already knew the path to the house by heart. From the entrance to the ruins, he walked right, then left and forward for about 100 meters, then one last turn to the right. He’d also figured out the easiest way to get up on the roof. On his first few months of visiting, he’d pushed a crate that reached his knees in height next to the houses façade and by climbing on that he could easily get up.
On the roof he went to sit on his usual spot- the ridge of the roof. Camilo leaned his elbow against his thigh and pushed his hand against his cheek- a position that he’d found out was the most comfortable and safe one when sitting on the roof. Not only was it comfortable- but it also stopped him from sliding down since his wight was equally distributed.
The sky was already full of stars, usually Camilo made it to the ruins by the time the very first stars started appearing. Apparently today he was a bit late on that schedule- that however doesn’t change the fact that the stars are just as beautiful and enjoyable to watch as always.
The only problem was the silence. Camilo hated silence with his entire being. Silence meant a performance or joke gone wrong, silence meant disappointment. Silence meant that he might hear just what everyone thinks of him. Silence was something Camilo had always hated- so to fill the silence he tapped his fingers on the roof and whistled a simple tune. It wasn’t much, but if he really focused it helped.
“Camilo! We need another Alejandra!”
“Camilo- could you turn into Valeria?”
“I need Angelo right now, Camilo.”
Just say you don’t need him and get it over with. That would probably hurt less than dancing around the fact that no one needed him to just be him. Shapeshifting was fun, he loved doing it- but not when he had to push past every single one of his limits and forget little by little just who he really is.
And that was exactly why Camilo regularly made a trip to the ruins, the only place where he could be himself and not have to stare at a wave of eyes silently judging everything he does as himself and not someone else. Someone more useful, because that was something Camilo was not. Useful. Everyone else in the family was useful as themselves, he was useful when he was anything but himself.
Well- everyone but Mirabel. Fuck he was the worst, wasn’t he?
“Oh, what am I even complaining about. At least I have a gift, Mirabel doesn’t and I’m here complaining about mine.” Camilo dragged his hands across his face and sighed in frustration. What right did he have complaining about a gift that his prima didn’t have?
“Hey Camilo! Could you help me with something today?”
“Umm- yeah! Just give me an hour, okay?”
Mirabel… Hadn’t she tried to ask for his help in the morning? He’d totally forgotten about that- fuck. And she most likely would’ve been the only person during the entire day to need him to just be himself. God he was an asshole. He’d have to go see Mirabel about whatever it was that she needed help with tomorrow.
Well, he should probably be heading home anyway. He’d successfully got his mind off… stuff- and he needed to get sleep. Abuela would have his head if he showed up to work with eyebags worse than his mamá’s and an attitude worse than Isabela’s. He shivered at the thought.
Camilo grabbed the ridge of the roof and tried to push himself up- only for his foot to slip and cause him to stagger. “Oh sHIT-!” He yelled out as he tried to re-find his balance by swinging his arms. Camilo quickly slammed his foot back down onto the roof to avoid crashing down- only for his feet to go straight through the roof, followed by a deadly loud crack that echoed through his ears.
The only thing he managed to get out before the roof collapsed down with him was a loud- “ OH FUCK!”
Camilo’s surprised shout turned into pained screamed which then turned into a loud sob. His back hit the ground after the falling blanks and rocks- the uneven ground landing multiple hits on different parts of his back. The rocks caused a sharp, quick pain that lingered on as a muted version of the initial shock while the blanks caused a tinier surge of pain that turned into a nonstop discomfort.
But what made him sob, squirm and plead in agony was his left arm- or rather the little souvenir the collapsed house had so kindly offered to him. That souvenir being a sharp, broken piece of wood that had pierced through Camilo’s arm the moment he’d hit the ground.
“Ple…ase… he..lp.” Camilo could only pray for someone to find him, or maybe for his hermana to hear him. That was his only hope because there was no way he was ever going to get out of the house himself. That was something he knew for sure.
Though what made that knowledge even more tragic was how he could hear cracks running along the walls surrounding him. A warning that the worst was not over, but Camilo had no way of getting away from the worst that was yet to come. He was stuck.
And for that reason, he began to sob. Loudly. Because there was no one to hear him and he knew that.
Dolores had always had trouble in sleeping ever since she’d gotten her gift. Even if her room was sound proofed better than anyone else’s in the entire house, she swore she could still hear the sounds outside. Of course, she’d found out as a child that it was just her mind playing tricks on her due to just how loud the noises that she heard during daytime were- but that finding never stopped it from happening.
Luckily, she’d also found a way to stop this from happening. It wasn’t completely fool-proof and sometimes it just made things worse- but it was the best she had.
Basically, she just went outside her room and listened for a while, if the sounds that she’d ‘heard’ inside her room didn’t match the ones she heard outside of it then she usually could go back to sleep without any issue. Usually. Sometimes the sounds happened to match, and she couldn’t sleep for the entire night.
Today the noises had came a lot later than most nights. Which is why Dolores felt extra annoyed to be waken up by them at an ungodly hour. She dragged herself from her bed to her door and grabbed the handle, taking a deep breath to prepare herself for the upcoming wave of noises- and opened the door.
The first thing she heard was a crack, then someone talking to a woman, then walking, and then-
“OH FUCK!” …Camilo? Why was his voice so far away-
And then a crash, like something collapsed… and then a scream of sheer absolute agony- coming from the exact direction as Camilo’s swear.
Dolores slammed her door shut and began running toward Luisa’s door, who knows what had happened, but Camilo was far away- possibly hurt and Dolores had to get there fast, even if that meant being carried by her younger prima.
Her knocking was loud and frantic- which ended up hurting her ears, but that was the least of her worries. She only stopped her knocking when she heard Luisa get up from her bed inside the room. It didn’t take long for her to open the door with a confused- and slightly worried- look on her face. “Dolores? Did you hear something?” Why else would she be at her door in the middle of the night?
Though there might be some confusion there since she had tears in her eyes.
“Camilo’s in danger. We need to go, now.” Every ounce of exhaustion melted off Luisa’s face in an instant and her breath got caught in her throat. She basically slammed her door shut and began speed-walking toward the exit with Dolores rushing after her. (Though she quickly made a detour to the kitchen to grab something her tía had made. Just in case.) She could still hear Luisa’s quickening breaths. “W-What happened? Did someone- attack him?” Her prima’s voice was wavering between worry and fury.
Dolores could only stay quiet as she tried to pinpoint the location of her hermano, but the way she could barely hear anything only made her worry grow even more. Dolores tried her best to tune out every other sound around her just so she could hear anything from Camilo’s direction-
-“Ple—a-s…e.. h—el..p”
Dolores nearly sobbed upon hearing her hermano’s voice again, she pressed the palm of her hands tightly against her lips to suppress the sound before calling out to Luisa. “We need to get there. Fast.” In response to her reaction her prima stopped walking and turned to her- scooping Dolores up in her arms- “Where to?” Dolores could only point in the direction to avoid breaking down.
Only the same moment as Luisa began running, Camilo started sobbing. And Dolores broke down in tears.
Camilo had already lost his voice on the first few cries, now he was only occasionally letting out a soundless cry that sounded like a strangled seal. The sound got louder every time a new cracking sound echoed through the broken ruins. Camilo had no idea how long he’d lain there, but he was sure that the walls weren’t going to last for much longer- and then he would go down with them.
The only thing he could think- or gasp out, he wasn’t sure anymore- was just what he feared the most in the entire world. What he feared even more than disappointment, silence or his mamá’s anger and melancholy- “…I-I don’t want to die.”
“CAMILO!”
…
What?
…
“CAMILO WHERE ARE YOU?”
…
Was he dead already? Had the walls collapsed?
…
Camilo opened his eyes only to be greeted by the same sight of the cracked-up walls and same pain in his back, arm and head. He definitely wasn’t dead, that’s for sure… But if he wasn’t dead, then who was calling out for him?
Well, there was only one way of finding out.
“H-heRE!” His throat protested against the loudness of his voice and made his words have an embarrassing squeal to them, but he could not care less in the moment. Later maybe. If there would be a later that is. “P-PleASE!” He yelled again when no one responded- or perhaps someone did, and he just hadn’t heard.
The walls cracked again. Dust floated into the air and into Camilo’s mouth as he yelled. He choked on it and began coughing instinctively, the violent motion shaking his arm and flaring up the pain in his arm once again- which in turn caused him to cry out in pain while still choking on the dust. He closed his eyes tightly but could still fear wet tears roll down his cheeks.
“CAMILO!”
Someone was running toward him, someone with extremely heavy steps- and the voice calling out to him sounded oddly… familiar? Camilo dared himself to open his eyes- dust immediately flew into his eyes and he had to force himself to keep them open. What he saw through his squinted eyes was-
-Dolores and Luisa.
Luisa lowered Dolores on to the ground- who in turn immediately dropped down next to Camilo with her eyes full of tears that had already begun staining her cheeks. “Oh Camilo.” She gasped through her sobs- Camilo couldn’t turn his neck enough to see Luisa’s face but based on his hearing- she was sobbing as well.
Camilo could only give a weak smile and a small but infinitively relieved- “Hi.”
“Dolores, we need to get him out of here now. This place is going to collapse any second.” Luisa looked around her nervously, the walls were full of cracks with dust leaking into the air from each one. It wouldn’t take long for them to fully break down with them still inside.
Luisa was already bending down to pick Camilo up when he suddenly exclaimed, though he didn’t say a single word- he just yelled out in alarm. Luisa took a hurried step back and Camilo began motioning at his arm with his head- and only then did she notice the piece of wood piercing through her primo’s arm.
Her blood ran cold, she probably would’ve ripped Camilo’s arm off had he not warned her. Apparently, her horror had made Dolores notice the wood as well- but now they had a whole new problem.
“Camilo. That is going to have to be removed.” Dolores stated with her voice unwavering- but both Luisa and undoubtedly Camilo could see just how afraid she was. Camilo could only nod at the statement, but just like his hermanita- his fear shone in his teary eyes.
Dolores stood up and turned to Luisa- “We need to be fast. Do you think you can remove that carefully?” Luisa nodded, she had made sure to never hurt anyone with her gift and she wasn’t going to make Camilo the first one. Not in a million years. “I can do it.” She added reassuringly, though she wasn’t sure if she was trying to reassure Camilo, Dolores, herself or all three of them.
Luisa knelt down next to her primo and tried to give him a comforting smile- one that was ultimately ruined by her urgent need to curl in on herself and cry- but Camilo only smiled back like the stupid idiot of a boy he was. She grabbed the wood- biting the inside of her cheek when her primo hissed in pain before going quiet. Luisa spared one last look toward Dolores who was staring at the two of them while nervously fiddling with the hem of her pajama shirt.
Luisa took one last deep breath, closed her eyes (for concentration or to avoid seeing all the blood she wasn’t sure, but she still closed them), listened to her primo take deep breaths of preparation for a short moment-
"FUCK- SHIT- FUCKING- HELL- AGHH!"
-and pulled the piercing wood out in one clean and simple motion.
Neither Dolores or Luisa felt the need to comment on Camilo’s rather- colourful- language and instead Luisa only picked him up as quickly and as carefully as she possibly could and all three of them bolted out of the building, only leaving behind a trail of red blood and an even bloodier stick.
Once outside Dolores dug out an arepa she had taken from the kitchen before leaving and gave it to her hermano- who gladly ate it with the same appetite that he was known for. Luisa couldn’t help the deep sigh of relief that she let out when the gaping wound on her primo’s arm healed shut and she could feel his breathing getting a lot easier and better as she held him close.
After a minute of silence and relieved breathing, Camilo spoke up (with his voice still raspy)- “You two like, totally saved my life just now.” His tone had that same lightheartedness as when he was making a joke- but Luisa couldn’t deny or comment on his statement. All three of them knew that he was right and there was no reason to even try to deny that.
Dolores only silently went to hug her hermano as tightly as possible while quietly sniffling into the back of his head. But no one commented on that either.