Chapter Text
Wind whipped her hair around her face and obscured her vision with the curls. Water droplets swirled around her, and her small hands pushed the wet strands out of her hair. Her eyes darted back and forth until she could make out two blurry figures in the distance. Small shouts turned into screaming as the water droplets became waves that knocked one of them off their feet and into the quickly rising sea. She tried to run — toward them or away from them, she didn’t know — but her feet were frozen to the ground, the water rising to her shoulders. She looked back up and saw only one figure remaining in the middle of the storm.
Julieta bolted up in bed, her eyes searching the room frantically and arms reaching for something now sinking into her subconscious. She blinked and realized her memory of the dream had faded away in those short seconds. Whatever, it hadn’t been a good one anyway. Still, there was a deep longing in her chest that she couldn’t quite shake. It must have been about him, then…
She sighed as she resigned herself to forgetting and adjusted to being awake, cringing into herself at the feeling of cold sweat in her sheets. Throwing them off, she scrambled to the edge of her bedside and placed her feet firmly on the soft carpet below. She took a deep breath and untied the ribbon that had held her black curls in a braid all night. Her fingers combed through the few tangles that had formed with all her tossing and turning, and she looked to the wide window behind her.
The sun was just beginning to rise, and the light hit her eyes in a way that wasn’t yet bright enough to hurt, but served as a gentle reminder to get ready for the day. A dress form stood at the foot of her bed, the pink light of the sun filtering through the layers of teal fabric of the gown it wore.
Her coronation gown.
Her stomach flipped at the reminder. Today was her eighteenth birthday, and as such it was her duty as the oldest of her siblings to accept her place on the throne. Their father had been killed when they were just born, and their mother had been lost at sea only half a year ago, leaving her advisor to do her best to manage the kingdom until the triplets came of age. Of course, Julieta had done all she could to help, but she was still too naive and inexperienced to take charge. That would all change today though. She hoped that it wouldn’t be the only thing to change.
As she pulled her nightgown over her head, she thought of her sister and a chill ran up her spine. Whether it was from the sudden cold or from fear, she couldn’t tell. She shook her head as she folded the garment. She wasn’t afraid of her sister. Afraid of speaking to her, maybe, but never of Pepa herself. She had become distant from Julieta since their brother’s death (disappearance, her heart insisted) ten years ago, and they hadn’t spoken a word to each other since the recent death of their mother. But today she would be at the coronation and the party that would follow. She had to be.
She removed her gown from the mannequin and sighed, clutching the bodice tightly to her chest. This wouldn’t be her first public appearance in ten years, but it would be the first with both her and Pepa together. She took a shaky breath before her mind could wander off into the subject of why Pepa had become so withdrawn in her grief over the years. There was no point in that now. They would be together tonight, and that would be enough.
She stepped into the poofy layers of skirt and pulled the bodice up over her chest. Using the full length mirror as a guide, she tightened the ribbon in the back and tied it off at the bottom once she was satisfied with the fit. She turned to face the mirror and adjusted the sheer off-shoulder sleeves, looking herself up and down. The bodice was structured and the deep teal color shimmered under the soft light from the window. Scattered across it were an assortment of purple and blue flowers that descended diagonally from the right breast to the left hip and down the side of the skirt. The skirt matched the sheer sea-green sleeves, and the layers cascaded down to the floor. She stepped into the soft silvery slippers she’d picked out the night before and stood up straight.
She could do this.
Make your family proud.
The thought brought the corners of her mouth up into a bitter smirk. Sure, she could imagine the family members she had lost were somewhere out there watching over her, but really there was only one person left to impress.
Okay, make Pepa proud. Or at the very least, make her feel comfortable.
Tying her hair into a half up half down style with the same ribbon she had used in her braid the night before, Julieta stepped out of her room and into the hall that served as a balcony overlooking the courtyard.
“Morning, Casita,” she greeted the castle as she did every morning, “big day today, huh?”
The tiles bounced eagerly under her feet in response, urging her down the hall. She followed where they led and found herself standing across from the advisor, Señora Guzmán. She was a calm and collected woman — though not nearly as formidable as Queen Alma — and she was maybe a decade younger than the queen had been. She stood just outside Pepa’s room in preparation to knock on the glowing door.
“Oh, you’re up early,” she said as she noticed Julieta approaching, “I was just coming to fetch you and your sister.”
Julieta nodded and did her best to keep her posture as straight and composed as possible. Now that she was to be queen, she couldn’t look sloppy in front of her advisor.
Señora Guzmán raised an eyebrow at her. “Are you alright? You look a little stiff, would you like me to send for someone to give you a massage?”
“Oh, no, that's not…” Julieta sighed, dropping the facade and leaning on the rail of the balcony, “I just… I want to look as perfect as possible today, you know? The people will be looking to me as their leader, and…”
“Oh, dear,” the advisor reached for Julieta’s shoulder and gave it a squeeze, “you don’t have to worry about that. You look just as beautiful as always, and I know you’ll look just as confident as always once your nerves settle down.”
“But I’m not like you, or— or Mamà,” Julieta hesitated before continuing, “I’m not someone who can be trusted to protect the kingdom, to protect the candle—“
Señora Guzmán shook her head and said, “oh, we should have talked about this. I just thought you would know since you never brought it up before, but— Princess, all of that pressure won’t be put solely on your shoulders the instant you’re crowned.”
Julieta felt a weight lifted from her chest. “It won’t?”
“Of course not!” the advisor adjusted a strand of her graying hair and continued, “and you don’t have to be just like your Mamá, and certainly not like me, to be a good leader.”
“But I’m just the healer…”
“Just the healer? Your Mamá didn’t have magic at all!”
Julieta bit her lip as she tried to sort her thoughts. “That’s the thing though… She was strong on her own. When Encanto was created, she didn’t need magic for the rest of the community to look up to her.”
Señora Guzmán nodded in acknowledgment, but gave Julieta room to continue, “but me, all I know is my Gift. All I know is the kitchen. Not that I don’t love my Gift, but how many people go from being a cook to running a kingdom?”
Señora Guzmán grabbed Julieta’s hands and gave them a small squeeze. “Listen to me, you’ve been working right alongside me as much as you could for the last year. The people know this. They know you’re more than just your Gift.”
“Are you sure?”
The advisor smiled, “pardon my bluntness, but Princess… You simply must get out more.”
Julieta was not expecting something so casual.
“Out?”
“Out. I know you get swept up in your cooking, and with our work, but you need to get to know the people face to face. They adore you.”
Warmth spread quickly across Julieta’s cheeks.
“They do?”
“Of course they do! You’d know if you went out and spoke with them.”
Julieta fiddled with one of the flowers on her skirt, smiling at the floor. A tile bounced up and down in encouragement.
“Okay… I’ll go out there and make a good impression.”
“No, no,” Señora Guzmán shook her head, “you’ll go out there and have fun.”
The tiles continued to jump under Julieta’s feet. She laughed and let them lead her away as her hand kept her balanced on the railing.
“I don’t want to see you inside this castle before two o’clock!” the advisor called after her. Julieta waved back at her as Casita’s stairs transformed into a slide and dropped her down.