Chapter Text
Julieta Madrigal squeezed the blood pressure pump until it was tight. Her patient grimaced.
“Don’t worry, it’ll only be a moment! I need your blood pressure to make sure the medications you take are still safe,” Juli told him.
“I only take anti-depressants. Those never caused high blood pressure before. I guess you know best, eh, doc?” The man smiled at her, a real smile.
Her patients were the few people who smiled at her. She was the only Madrigal with no Gift. Even her youngest, her sweet little Mirabel, had received a Gift. And a wonderful one it was! She could manipulate thread. At first, she had trouble and frequently got tangled in her own thread.
After some lessons from Juli herself and the seamstress, she had gotten so good she could make a new dress in a snap. Or new bandages. Thanks to her sweet little mariposa, she had unlimited bandages! Julieta wanted to try teaching Mirabel to manipulate thread-like things, now.
Mirabel would be insanely helpful to her if she could manipulate veins and muscle fibers. Every day, someone came in with muscle aches or damaged veins. Many times, the one with damaged veins was Isabela. Her strength came with the inability to feel pain.
Isabela’s Gift had also cursed her with CIPA, to Julieta’s sadness. Chronic Insensitivity to Pain with Anhidrosis. She felt no pain, ever. Isabela was missing half of her pinkie because of it.
She’d smashed it under a rock and never knew it was even damaged. Then it became infected, spreading to the rest of her hand. Julieta was able to save the entire hand, but the pinkie was lost.
Her inability to sweat caused a lot of nausea and overheating, as well. Despite Julieta yelling at Mama for hours, Alma had still refused to allow Isa to stay inside more often during the summer heat. She always recovered from her heat stroke just fine. Why keep her here? She couldn’t help if she stayed here.
Julieta smiled at her patient again. He was fine. No blood pressure issues.
“You’re good, Senor,” Julieta told him, writing a new prescription for his refill of anti-depressants.
“Ah, Juli, mi amiga, call me Gus!” He replied, grinning at her.
“Sorry, Senor. That’s what I call mi esposo. I can call you Gustavo?” Juli joked, handing him the prescription.
“That’s fine, Senora Madrigal. Julieta. I appreciate you for all you do for us. We all do. I know your mama gives you a hard time. If you ever need a place for the night or whatever, my husband and I will happily open our home to you!” Gustavo said, gently giving her shoulder a squeeze.
“Gracias, Gustavo. It’s...very tempting sometimes. Like when Isabela comes home with two black eyes because she couldn’t feel the rocks hitting her face. Or when Mirabel’s hands are bloody from making clothes all day. Or Luisa, never knowing who she really is. Without the Gifts, I think...” Juli shook her head.
She wouldn’t dare say it out loud. Bruno’s animals could be anywhere. She wouldn’t put it past Mama to make Bruno spy on her via animal to make sure she was actually doing her job. Mama didn’t believe she even had a job. Alma had yelled at Julieta, telling her she needed to stay in Casita, when she told Mama about her new job at the clinic.
Alma was mad the old doctor retired. Her useless eldest hija couldn’t help anyone! Why would anyone want her to be their doctor? It made Julieta pissed. In her opinion, the doctor had done more good for the Encanto than Bruno putting on plays with his stupid animals or Pepa coating the cobblestones with marigolds.
Julieta counted herself lucky that no Madrigal had been given super hearing. There would be no escape, then. Camilo’s future vision was painful enough. About five minutes after he got his Gift, he had tugged her skirt and asked if he could see her alone. He may have only been five, but he was still rather mature. Pepa’s strict parenting made sure of that.
Little Camilo had handed her an orange tablet with his vision on it. It was her, standing in front of a broken Casita. Julieta had smashed the tablet and told Camilo to tell no one, not even Mami. Camilo was only five, so he quickly forgot about that vision as soon as cake was brought out.
Julieta had taken the vision shards to her room and locked them in the drawer at the bottom of her wardrobe. Only Agustin knew of the visions existence and what it contained. Camilo likely had no memory of it, having been so young. She was glad. Camilo had a big mouth and would spill easily.
“Senora Madrigal? Julieta?” Gustavo asked, waving a hand in front of her face.
“Ah! Lo siento, Gustavo! I’m here. My youngest sobrino’s Ceremony is tonight. I was thinking about what Gift he might get. You’re finished. Go home, and tell Max he has an appointment next week. I know he hates doctors, but it’s necessary!” Julieta smiled at the man and ushered him out.
That was her final patient of the day. She and her nurses were available at any time in case of emergency, but thankfully emergencies were rare. What could she do for Antonio? Get him a present was already done.
Mirabel had made him a special plushie with her Gift. Julieta wondered what she could possibly give him that would be equal to something made with magic. The truth was, nothing. There was nothing more exciting to a child than magic.
After Gustavo left, Julieta got to work cleaning up the clinic and shutting things down. Her nurse, Pietro, was a huge help with this. She had an inkling that he was wanting to replace her when she retired. He would be a good doctor. He was excellent with details.
Julieta finished filling out the charts, hand aching from all the writing. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to cure people with magic? She sighed. It sure would. Magical healing seemed impossible. No child had received a healing Gift. Perhaps Antonio would? Well, if he did, Julieta would finally be truly, utterly useless.
“Senora? I’m leaving now. I finished my charts and emptied the trash,” Pietro called to her, as he closed the door and left.
Julieta frowned. What if she needed more help? Oh well, it was finished. She hadn’t had a lot of patients today. Pietro was fine to leave. The doctor washed her hands and grabbed her bag. She couldn’t wait to see Agustin. He chased away her dark thoughts.
Hola, mi luz! Casita said as Julieta passed through her doorway.
Juli smiled. She loved her bond with Casita. Mama talked to Casita, but only got physical answers like drawers opening or something. Juli could hear her soft, melodious voice. That was pleasant. And it had saved her when she had been forced to stay in the nursery until her wedding.
Mama had finally allowed her to make her own room out of a small storage room. She and Agustin had made it perfect. At least to her. It was small, cozy, and warm. Her notebooks of patients and allergies and medications sat on a short bookshelf with Agustin’s trashy Western novels. Her bandages sat in a box she’d shoved under her bed. Yes, she’d done a lot with very little.
“Mama! Hola!” Julieta only saw a blur before feeling herself lifted about a foot off the ground.
“Isa, carina, put me down. I need to get ready for Antonio’s Ceremony. You know I went to work because Pepa isn’t letting me help! What have you been doing, querida?” Juli asked, brushed Isa’s wild hair behind her ears.
Isabela stood up straighter, shaking her hair back into it’s wild appearance. Her normally straight hair was frizzed and messy, her white blouse covered in blood and dirt, and Julieta saw no shoes.Isa was also wearing blue pants with dumbbells on the hemline. Mirabel’s work. She’d made clothing for each family member that displayed their Gift.
Julieta’s dress had little hearts on it. Mirabel said it was for her job as a doctor, and a display of Mirabel’s love for her Mama. Julieta had wanted to cry. She may not have a Gift, but she had the best hijas ever. Dolores was wonderful, but Julieta would take her Isa, Lulu, and Mira any day.
“Carina? Where did that blood come from? Let me have a look!” Julieta demanded, turning Isabela around and checking her body.
She sighed. Isabela had a huge cut down her back, sliced through her blouse completely. And the girl hadn’t even noticed it. CIPA was a bitch. Julieta removed some alcohol from her pocket and gingerly applied it to Isa’s wound. Isa did not feel the sting of the alcohol, but Juli still felt she should be gentle.
“No idea where the wound came from. Probably Senora Pezmuerto’s house. I was fixing the pipes. They were underground. I had to do a lot of digging. I kinda...went way too fast and sent some metal shards flying. Looks like one hit me,” Isabela laughed. She had zero self-preservation instincts, mostly coming from the fact that she was insanely strong and didn’t know what pain was.
“Please, mija, be careful. You know what happened to your hand! Do you want that to happen to your legs? Your entire body? You need to see me immediately after you’re finished with work! I’m a doctor; I know what can happen when people ignore injuries,” Julieta shook her head at her hard-working hija.
“Well, I am! You just got home, I got home an hour ago. I only went to my room before coming to see you. I’m building a sculpture for Antonio! Don’t tell him. No, mama, I don’t know what it is. Antonio won’t know what it is either. I’m not great at art of any type. I figured something I made would mean more to him than something I bought, right?” Isabela asked.
“Isa, carina, please! You come see me at work when you’re done. At least I can give you some tetanus shots and clean the injuries. You’re right about Tonito’s present, though. He really won’t care what you give him. He loves you, not toys or games, Isa!” Julieta pinched her daughter’s cheek. Isabela winced in embarrassment.
“Juli! You’re almost late. Do you seriously not care about mi hijo’s Ceremony? Or are you just jealous, like Mama says?” Pepa sailed slowly down from the balcony on a swing of vines and mandevilla, showering Juli and Isa with vibrant yellow petals.
Julieta rolled her eyes. Pepa had an attitude problem. No doubt because Mama spoiled her like crazy. She rarely even walked in Casita; preferring to glide around on a swing of vines. Dolores wasn’t near anything like that. She was humble, gentle, and sweet.
And so very calm. Scarily calm. Julieta wondered if Pepa or Mama were forcing Dolores to repress her emotions to avoid storms and keep only ‘pretty’ weather. When they needed rain, Dolores was able to produce it immediately. The girl had to have some deep sadness she could bring up when she needed to rain.
“I’m here, Pepa. I had late patients. I refuse to let people suffer because of a party. Antonio doesn’t get his Gift for another few hours. You know Mama wants to entertain the town first,” Julieta said bitterly.
“No worries, hermana! We got it all done. You know, the offer still stands. You and Agustin can sleep in my guest room. It’s bigger than your room,” It was Bruno, coming in from the kitchen, wearing an apron.
“Stop coddling her, Brunito! Mama says she needs to get over not having a Gift. It’s been literal decades.” Pepa snapped, rolling her eyes in annoyance.
“No one is coddling me, Pepa. Someone is annoying me, though. Brunito, did you finish Antonio’s cake? I hope you didn’t let those rats help!” Julieta said, giving her hermano a nasty look.
Bruno was still kind to her, but he was very tactless at times. Mentioning how small her room is was extremely tactless. She hated her room being so tiny. She and Agustin wanted more than a bed and a dresser. Casita had confirmed that it wouldn’t hurt her if someone built onto her and created another room. Casita herself could not create a room for someone with no Gift, to her dismay.
Casita had really wanted to give Julieta her own room and had apologized over and over. Julieta had hoped that Mama would agree to have a room built for her when she had become pregnant. It hadn’t happened. According to Mama, she didn’t need the room ‘for the baby’ because the baby was inside her and it would sleep in the nursery once born.
“Cake is done! Not burned one bit, for once. Shocker, I know. Hey, Isa? Could you do your old Tio a favor, por favor?” Bruno asked, giving Isabela his huge puppy dog eyes expression.
Isabela went ‘awwww’ and ran right over to Bruno, picking up a rat that was hot on her heels.
“Anything you need, Tio Bruno. I got your friend here. He was trying to bite me, I think!” Isa laughed, handing the new rat to Bruno.
“Hmm. I haven’t seen you around. Where did you come from?” Bruno asked the rat, holding it up to his face.
“Ohh. I see. That’s fine, then. No, she didn’t know. It wasn’t on purpose!” Bruno argued with the rodent, giving it a nasty look.
“Sorry, sobrina. This is Layla. She had a nest under Senora Pezmuerto’s house. You destroyed it when you went, as she says, ‘bonkers on the pipes’. She thinks you owe her, Isaboo,” Bruno giggled at the rat and Isabela.
“Owe her!? She’s a rat. I don’t owe her anything! But if she gets tired of your jungle room, she can sleep in my mountain room. She might like climbing rocks. I know I love rock climbing to relax after a hard day.” Isa told Bruno.
“She says that’s fair. She loves the chill of the mountains. My room might be too warm for her. She’s a type of rat that normally lives in cooler environments. Layla came over on a boat and found her way here. Anyway, I need your help moving the table with the cake on it. I’m scared to move the cake itself. I don’t trust my baking skills enough to feel it won’t collapse!” Bruno explained, handing the rat to Isabela, who took it happily.
Isa loved Bruno’s pets, especially the rodents and reptiles. Julieta had wanted to get her a pet, but Bruno refused to allow any of his friends to be ‘caged’. According to Bruno, animals in cages became very depressed and even occasionally let themselves die in captivity.
“No problem, Tio. Got it. Oh. Mama? Will lifting the table so soon damage my bandages?” Isa twisted her head to try to look at her back.
Julieta frowned at Bruno and Isa. It wasn’t good for her to be lifting things with a huge cut like that, but telling her no would do no good. She would do it anyway, like anytime she was injured. Julieta had no idea why Isa was asking.
“Don’t worry, mija. If it does, I’ll take care of you. Mirabel makes sure I have plenty of bandages. I’m glad, because you get hurt almost as much as your Papa!” Julieta tried joking with Isa, giving her a hug and stroking the small, tan rat in her hand.
Isabela smiled at her mama and went to go help Bruno. Julieta heard Pepa sigh heavily. A very fake sigh. One she used when she was annoyed but didn’t want to say anything. The doctor resisted the urge to roll her eyes.
“What is it, hermanita? What am I doing that could possibly be annoying you right now?” Julieta snapped, regretting it. She hated being rude, but Pepa could be awful at times.
“I bet you don’t even have a toy for Antonio, huh? Mirabel made him a plushie. Isabela is making a sculpture. Luisa had a special ruana made, modeling for the seamstress to get the exact measurements. Mi hijos got their own excellent presents. Don’t tell me, you forgot,” Pepa sneered.
“I wouldn’t forget mi sobrino’s birthday. I’m not like you,” Julieta said back, remembering how Pepa forgot Luisa’s birthday for the last two years.
“Shut up, hermana. I was busy. I’m busy all the time! I’m Mama’s Perfect Marigold. Nothing can go wrong. I can’t waste time buying stuffed animals for a teenager! Besides, Mirabel and Isabela are very vocal about their birthdays. Luisa lets people forget. She never reminds anyone!” Pepa argued.
“Luisa is sweet and shy, Pepa. She would never constantly bring up her birthday like her hermanas. However, you really shouldn’t have to ‘remember’ your familia’s birthdays. Excuse me. I’m going to check on Luisa and Mirabel. I know they were working in her room with outfits,” Julieta pushed past her rude little sister.
Pepa had so much potential. Felix had helped her discover she could grow more than pretty flowers, but Mama hated the other plants. At Alma’s direction, Pepa only grew decorative flowers and occasionally thorny vines when she was mad.
Pepa made a few rude noises as Julieta walked past, going upstairs. She passed her hijas’ rooms, looking wistfully at the glowing doors. She’s used to it. It’s been 45 years since that disastrous Ceremony. She wonders what hers would have looked like. What would her Gift had been?
Julieta stares at the door in front of her for a few more minutes. The woman on the door was tall, muscular, and smiling. Chameleons adorned each corner. Blurred shapes of different sizes were behind the woman, showing her shapeshifting Gift. Julieta was delighted when Luisa had received shapeshifting.
It was a Gift that would be hard to be abused by the town, and Luisa adored dresses. Being able to shift into any appearance whenever she wanted would give her hours of fun when playing dress up. Luisa had so much fun turning into everyone she could. Then after shifting for nearly two hours without a break, she had collapsed.
It turned out she needed to replenish her energy more often than the rest of la familia. She needed to eat, a lot and often. Julieta tried to cook calorie rich meals for Luisa, when she was allowed to cook. The poor girl was hungry almost all the time. Luisa worked out, too, and had rather impressive muscles.
Juli rapped on the door a few times. She knew not to go in a magic room. Now she finally understood it, too. It really was dangerous. The one time she’d gone into Bruno’s room alone, she had almost died. Mama had scolded her for hours. One of Bruno’s jaguars had just given birth. Julieta couldn’t speak to it, so it didn’t know she meant no harm. If Bruno hadn’t returned exactly when he did, Juli likely would have been eaten.
Luisa’s room was fairly safe, but she didn’t want to make Mama mad right before Antonio’s Ceremony. She would just stay out. The stage was beautiful, but the hundreds of mirrors were kind of creepy. She wasn’t sure how Luisa was able to stand it.
Bruno thought mirrors could steal your soul if you looked in them too often, and there was nowhere else for Luisa to look in her room. Bruno absolutely refused to set foot in her room, afraid of the mirrors, and afraid he would break one. He said breaking a mirror is seven years bad luck. Julieta thought it was silly, but she loved her hermanito, so she accepted all his weirdness with grace.
Julieta jumped when Luisa’s door creaked open. She’d been thinking about Bruno.
“Hola, Mama. Que haces?” It was Luisa. She had on a glittery blue dress adorned with sparkling silver chameleons sewn into the sleeves and neckline. The dress looked very...artificial. Which meant it was not a Mirabel creation, but something Luisa envisioned while shifting. Meaning Luisa was shifted right now.
Julieta sighed sadly. She honestly didn’t know what the real Luisa looked like anymore. Were those impressive muscles real or something she shifted so often she forgot it wasn’t real? Her clear skin was obviously not real. It lacked pores, freckles, and the birthmark all her hijas had.
“Mama? Why are you staring at me?” Luisa asked, confused.
“I’m admiring my beautiful young hija! Such a pretty dress! It doesn’t look like one of Mira’s creations.” She told her.
“It’s not one of Mira’s. I got the idea for this dress from a viseo Camilo showed us during our last girl’s night! I loved the ‘prom’ dresses the girls wore! I don’t know what a prom is, but they were stunning,” Luisa had a faraway look in her eyes, almost wistful. A viseo was a moving vision that Camilo liked to use for entertainment.
Julieta smiled at her Lulu. Camilo frequently joined the girls when they had sleepovers. He’d confided in Julieta one night when she caught him crying in the kitchen. Camilo didn’t feel like a boy. He felt more like a girl. Like he was in the wrong body. He greatly envied Luisa’s shifting Gift.
Being able to see the future, Camilo was exposed to the concept of transitioning to a female. Julieta had hormones at the doctor’s office for that exact thing. It wasn’t just a future concept. It was something people rarely talked about, though. The only transgender person in the Encanto was Leora. She was also assigned male at birth, but identified as female.
Julieta had asked Milo if he wanted to be called a different name, or use different pronouns. Camilo wasn’t ready yet. He was still scared of what the rest of la familia would say, especially his Perfect Marigold Princess Mama and his serene, calm sister.
Eventually, she hoped Camilo would feel more open. More confident. Someday, he would get to be the girl he always felt like. Something had to give at some point in this family. Julieta knew everyone was all kind’s of fucked up. Even Perfect Princess Pepa and Animal King Bruno.
The wild prankster that Pepa had been in childhood had been replaced by the princess who couldn’t have a bit of hair out of place. The shy little boy that Bruno used to be was replaced by an attention hog who used his animals to get more audience. He was still sweet and kind, but he loved attention.
Her own hijas...well, they barely knew who they were or were heavily overworked to the point of injury. She hoped Antonio would receive a Gift that lets him be himself.
“Mmm. It’s lovely, Lulu. I just wish you would stop changing your natural appearance so much. You are beautiful, mija. Are you ready for Antonio’s Ceremony? I suggest you don’t attend the Ceremony in that dress. Abuela will have my head if you do!” Julieta brushed a piece of hair away from Luisa’s too-clear face.
“I know, Mama. Dios forbid any of us make la familia look bad,” Luisa said, the last part sounding very bitter.
“It’s going to be okay, mija. Don’t worry. I promise, I’ll protect you however I can,” Julieta pulled Luisa into a hug.
“Gracias, Mama,” Luisa whispered, her voice strained with tears, “Mirabel’s hands were bleeding again. I tried bandaging them the best I could. I’m not a doctor, but I hope I learned a little from you.”
“I appreciate that, mija. Mirabel does too, no doubt. I guess Mira will have to wear gloves tonight. Mama would be upset if she appeared at the Ceremony with white bandages over both hands,” Julieta shook her head.
Mirabel hurt herself, too, but she could feel pain, so she knew when to stop. Sadly, she kept working even when bleeding all over. Her Gift let her keep the threads away from the blood.
Julieta was sure Luisa was starving herself, unintentionally. Alma never let her eat as much as she needed, and wouldn’t allow her to go back for seconds after dinner was over. She was allowed a small snack, just like the other grandchildren. If only Alma would let Julieta cook personally for Luisa.
She could make a calorie-rich food, adding vitamins from her office that would also help the girl stay healthy. Camilo had visited her office, for an admittedly stupid reason; he had pissed himself in fear when someone pranked him back and he wanted to know if Julieta’s clinic had any ‘adult diapers’ for the future. At least he had known she was helpful. Useful.
Even without a Gift, a doctor was good for the family. Any other familia would have been proud of her for becoming a doctor, especially without her mother’s approval.
She’d had to study alone, in the nursery, under the covers. Agustin covered for her a lot when she was still studying. He was the best esposo in the world. Screw Gifts. As long as she had Agustin, she was fine. He was better than any Gift could ever be. That clumsy, silly, loving man.
Julieta gasped when a small blur streaked over to her, clinging to her legs. She smiled. Antonio. The youngest Madrigal, Pepa’s oopsie baby. He loved Mirabel and frequently stayed near her. She was in Luisa’s room, so obviously Tonito would be too.
“Hola, Tia Juli! Did you make my cake? I wanna eat the dough!” He tugged her skirt.
She patted his head, picking out a thread from his curls.
“Tio Bruno made your cake. It’s already done, so the dough is gone. Happy birthday, sobrino. Te amo. I can’t wait to see what your Gift is,” She gave him a soft kiss on the forehead.
Antonio giggled.
“Me either, Tia! But...what if it doesn’t work?” Antonio gazed up at Julieta with those huge brown eyes, so full of fear and sadness. Nothing that should ever be on the face of a 5 year old.
Julieta pulled him into a hug, squeezing him tightly to her.
“That won’t happen, mijo. Lo prometo. In the extremely unlikely case that it does fail, you can sleep with me and Tio Agustin! You’d like that, wouldn’t you?” She smiled at him, trying to force happiness.
“Si, Tia. Gracias! I feel better now. You won’t be mad at me! I know Mama would be. She gets mad at me a lot...” Tonito trailed off, glancing around in fear, as if he were truly afraid of Pepa.
Julieta frowned. That shouldn’t be. No child should be scared of their mother. Unless their mother was Dona Alma, of course. The doctor wondered if Bruno would help her spy on Pepa, to see if Antonio were in danger or being hurt. No, her hermanita was spoiled and snotty, but she wasn’t a child abuser!
“Well, don’t worry, Antonio, carino. Any time someone is mad at you, just come to Tia. I’ll take care of you. Or find Mirabel. You know she’s always there for you,” Julieta informed him, hoping he would come to her if something happened.
“Antonio! Where did you run off-oh! Hola, Mama!” Mirabel had ran to the door, skidding to a stop when she saw Julieta and Antonio.
She had washed her hands, but lacerations still crossed her fingers and palms. Those damn threads were very strong. Almost metallic in texture until the garment was made. Once finished, the threads took on the characteristics of the item Mirabel had made.
“Oh, Mirabel. Mi mariposa.” Julieta sighed and took one of Mira’s hands, “These lacerations have to hurt. Let me get my bandages out, si? Do you have gloves for tonight? I don’t want your Abuela to get mad.”
Mirabel looked sheepish. She bit her lip, trying to smile at the same time.
“Sorry, Mama. I don’t have gloves. I...I can make some, if my injuries really are that insulting to Abuela. Or just don’t bandage me. It’s not like I won’t be sore again in a few weeks, when the next ‘impress the town’ opportunity comes for Abuela,” Mirabel said, rolling her eyes.
“Take Mama’s bandages, Mira! Or I’ll shift into you and do embarrassing things!” Luisa glared at Mirabel.
Julieta knew Luisa and Mirabel were close. Luisa was insanely protective of Mirabel and would do anything to keep her hermanita safe. Luisa had cried when she first saw Mirabel bleeding after using her Gift for so long.
“Fine...I just need to make the gloves first,” Mirabel sighed.
The girl raised both hands, still glittering with droplets of blood. Silvery threads shot out of her hands. She grabbed the thread at the ends and clenched her eyes shut. The threads moved in mesmerizing patterns.
Mirabel’s hands moved in the same pattern, pulling the strong threads along and slicing her hands up. Mirabel yanked a silver clump of thread, tugging sharply. The thread flared silver, the pattern solidifying. A pair of teal gloves appeared in her hands, adorned with butterflies.
Luisa clapped, admiring the beautiful gloves. Julieta pulled bandages out of her pocket and tugged one of her hija’s hands toward her. She wrapped the hand carefully, after applying alcohol to sanitize the wound. Mirabel had shrieked when she applied the alcohol. Oh well. Better in pain than infected.
Julieta took Mirabel’s other hand and repeated the process. Mirabel’s hands were wrapped in bandages now. She watched as Mirabel slid the teal gloves over her hands, flexing her fingers. The gloves were a perfect fit, as were all of Mirabel’s magic clothing.
“Gracias, Mama. It does feel better. I can’t use my Gift with covered hands, though. I’ll have to remove them for the family photo,” Mirabel looked a little sad, but brightened up immediately, “Can you believe it, Tonito? You’re 5 years old today! My little man is growing up.”
“And he gets his Gift. Antonio will finally be one of you. A Gifted Madrigal. A real part of la familia.” Julieta smiled sadly at Tonito and Mirabel.
“Tia, I won’t get a Gift if you don’t want me to. I love you, Tia! If I can’t be your sobrino anymore when I get a Gift I don’t want one!” Antonio crossed his arms and glared at the wall.
“I want you to get a Gift, Tonito. You’re mi sobrino, and you all are mi familia, even if Abuela and Pepa don’t think so,” Julieta said, hugging Antonio, hoping to chase away whatever fears Pepa had put there.
“Don’t listen to them, Mama. Pepa is a snob and Abuela is...well, very strict,” Mirabel said, wincing. She was also aware that Abuela asked Bruno’s animals to spy on people to make sure they weren’t badmouthing her.
“Pepita isn’t a snob, Miraposa. She’s just been pampered all her life, and Felix encourages it. He treats her like a queen. As he should, of course. Agustin treats me just as wonderfully,” She tried defending her sister, but it was hard.
“Okay, Mama. If you say so. If you ever need to, you know, get away...let us know. I could shapeshift into you and give you a break. I couldn’t cover at the doctor’s office, but around here I could be you.” Luisa offered.
“Luisa’s right, Mama. We’ll always be here. Stop saying you’re not really familia! You’re our Mami. We love you. I don’t know what I would do without you! You bandage my hands, you take care of Isa and Papi’s many injuries, and you know exactly what Lulu needs to eat,” Mirabel told her, clearly only trying to make her mother feel better.
That was not a child’s job. If anything, Alma should be here making her feel like part of the family. Or even Pepa or Bruno. Her own children shouldn’t have to try to make her feel better.
“I’m fine, mijas. I promise. I came to see how you were doing. Are the dresses for Antonio’s Ceremony finished?” Julieta asked.
“Si, Mama. Do you need to check them? I don’t want to disappoint Abuela. I remember when I made her a dress...it was too short, and she yelled at me. I’ve tried to be perfect ever since, never a thread out of place. I hope these dresses will make Abuela proud of us,” Mirabel sighed.
“I trust you, mija. You three are going to look lovely! I just hope Isa’s bandage doesn’t show through her dress. It’s across her entire back. Not something gloves can hide. She got hurt at Pezmuerto’s house, digging for pipes. She’ll be fine, don’t worry,” Julieta told them.
“Oh, it’s not open in the back. None of them are. I didn’t think Abuela would like that. She might think it’s too risque. Mine is modeled on a blue morpho butterfly. Luisa’s is a classic princess dress in midnight blue. Isa’s is a metallic blue that shines like her dumbbells. All blue, Mama. We still color-coded ourselves,” Mira grinned at her Mama.
“You know, you really don’t have to do that. It isn’t even one of your Abuela’s rules.” Julieta gave Mirabel a gentle smile.
“I love blue, Mama. We all do. Luisa prefers pink, but blue is a great color!” Mirabel said.
“Si, Mama. Pink will always be my favorite, but I love the gorgeous dress Mira made me! I couldn’t ask for something better!” Luisa laughed.
“Well, to me, you’re all beautiful, no matter what you wear. I have to wear my usual Ceremony clothes, sadly. I would have loved one of your dresses if I could, mija, don’t think I don’t,” Julieta assured her hija, since Mirabel had wanted to make her a dress too.
“I know, Mama. Gracias for checking on us. I hope our dresses are impressive enough that Abuela isn’t embarrassed like the last party we had here. I remember her anger...It wasn’t my fault. I designed the dresses exactly like the customers wanted,” Mirabel frowned.
“Mira, it’s hard for anyone to be perfect enough for Abuela. Except Pepa. She’s perfect without trying,” Julieta sighed enviously.
“No one is perfect, Mama. No one. Not even Tia Pepa, as much as she looks and acts like she is,” Mirabel shook her head, sighing.
She loved her Gift, but sometimes she seemed to envy those who hadn’t needed to study and work hard to get their Gift to work well. Mira had had to study all types of sewing, embroidery, knitting, everything. All because Abuela wanted her thread control to be used to create any form of clothing.
She had to know all about every type of fabric. It was overwhelming when she was just a child. She was getting better at focusing on single projects and types of weaving at one time rather than many at a time now that she was older, but it was still too much for a 15 year old who should only be worrying about being a teen.
“Gracias, mijas. I’ll be heading downstairs now. You should start getting yourselves ready. I’m sure Luisa will take forever on her hair and makeup! And please, Luisita? Make sure Isabela washes herself before putting on her dress. We can’t have it get muddy instantly!” Julieta nodded at her hijas, and excused herself.
Once outside Luisa’s room, she collapsed against the door, trying to hold back sobs. Dios. Her poor hijas. Her poor sobrinos. Was there no way to make this better? Was there no way to heal her broken familia?