Work Text:
Bruno's POV
"Why, exactly, do you need a prophecy right this minute?" I asked, struggling to keep my eyes open. "The sun's not even out yet!"
"Because I need to know if Esponjosa is okay." Antonio set up the circle of sand around me, before going to get the dried leaves.
I frowned, sitting up. "What's wrong with your jaguar?"
"I don't know." Antonio confessed as he finished arranging the piles of material. "She's sleeping a lot, she doesn't run as much, and she's eating a bunch of arepas."
I tilted my head. "Wasn't Camilo yelled at the other day for stealing a bunch of arepas?" I questioned, raising one of my eyebrows.
Antonio blushed, giving me a sheepish grin.
Shrugging, I grabbed the sand and matchstick he'd put in front of me. "I'm sure he's done something mischievous enough in the last week to deserve being scolded anyway." I winked at Antonio, happy to see he looked a little less somber at the change of topic.
I tossed the sand over my shoulder, lighting the match. I quickly lit the clumps of dead leaves, and, feeling the power rising within me, grabbed onto Antonio's hands. The sand swirled faster and faster, eventually rising in the air and forming a dome over our heads.
"Oh, look! There she is!" Antonio tugged me to my feet, dragging me over to the image of his fierce cat. "She looks like she's holding something in her mouth."
I inspected the image, my eyes widening when I realized what the jaguar was carrying. "Antonio, she's carrying a cub! Your pet isn't sick, or hurt-she's just pregnant!"
I laughed as the sand fell to the floor, catching the newly formed tablet. Leaning down, I showed mi sobrinito the image of Esponjosa carrying one of her babies, with two other ones trailing along behind her.
"Aww! They're so cute!" Antonio exclaimed, jumping up and down. "But...how did she end up pregnant?" He asked, his big, round eyes looking up at me.
I blinked.
"Magic." I blurted out, nodding my head. "It was definitely magic."
"Oh. I guess she is a magic jaguar, so that makes sense." Antonio agreed.
Oh menos mal, can't believe that actually worked-
"Tío Bruno, do you mind if I keep the vision?" El niño interrupted my train of thought
"Sure, I don't mind." I said, handing him the glowing glass.
"Gracias Tío!" He hugged me tightly, before racing up the stairs to his room.
I smirked, glancing at the sky. It's almost dawn. But maybe I can-
Growl.
I glared down at my stomach. "Now you're upset? We had dinner last-well, we had a late lunch." I muttered, recalling that I skipped the evening meal because I was writing a new script for my rats to put on.
"It's not my fault I can't control when inspiration hits." I declared, walking back to my bed. "A few more hours of sleep, and then we'll have breakfast anyways."
I fell face first on my bed, not even bothering to get under the covers.
Just need a few more hours...
•~•
"Breakfast!"
I groaned. Is it really time to get up already? It feels like I fell asleep five minutes ago.
I rolled over, yelping when I realized I'd misjudged my position on the bed. My hands and knees slammed into the ground, the hard tiles sending a sharp jolt of pain up my arms and legs. Sighing, I pushed myself up, only to immediately have to reach for the mattress to brace myself.
Woah. Why do I feel so heavy? I shook my head, hesitantly letting go of the bed.
Carefully, I put one foot in front of me, frowning when noticed how shaky my legs felt. Slowly, I made my way to the kitchen, knowing that if I had an arepa or two, this weird sensation would probably go away.
Probably. I rubbed my eyes, frowning at the way parts of what I could see were obscured by inky black splotches. This is...fine. All I need to do is make it to the--
"Boo!"
I jumped at the horrifying sight of a giant with glowing green eyes, an evil grin, and demon-rats all over his arms. Shrieking, I grabbed at my chest, backing up as fast as I could. At my reaction, the giant started laughing, his voice sounding suspiciously like-
"Your face! It was priceless!" Camilo wheezed, grabbing my shoulders.
I shook my head, fighting the urge to scold him for his antics and risk encouraging him. However, once I moved my head, I noticed how unstable the ground beneath my feet felt. Blinking heavily, I tried to focus on Camilo's voice, but even that became muffled, until it disappeared as well.
Camilo's POV
"You should have seen this coming after you left me high and dry with that prank for Isabela." I declared, scowling down at my uncle. "It was your-"
I froze, noticing how pale Tío Bruno looked. "Tío? Are you okay?" I asked hesitantly, wondering if this was some sort of payback for scaring him. "Because you don't look so-woah!"
I forced my knees not to buckle under the weight of Bruno practically falling forward onto me. Wrapping my arms around him, I gently guided him to the ground, yelling for help. I heard my tía come running into the room, but I couldn't bring myself to tear my eyes away from my uncle.
"What happened?!" She exclaimed, rushing over to her brother.
"I don't know! I just-I just wanted to scare him a little, but then he passed out, and I-I didn't mean to hurt him!" I sobbed while Tía Julieta poured some coffee down my uncle's throat.
A moment passed, before he groaned, his eyelids fluttering. Sighing in relief, I helped him sit up, making sure to keep one of my hands on his shoulder just in case he did collapse again. I opened my mouth, about to apologize, when suddenly mi mamá and mi papá came sprinting into the kitchen, demanding to know what the problem was. Before I could explain, Dolores and Mirabel dashed in as well, followed by the rest of mi familia.
"What's going on?" Antonio asked, yawning.
"I scared Tío Bruno, and then he fainted, and I think he had a heart attack, and-"
"Camilo, I didn't have a heart attack!" Bruno denied, his eyes wide. "And you frightening me wasn't the reason I passed out." He assured me with a wide grin.
"Well, not the main one, anyway." He amended, his face scrunched up in thought.
"But, if Camilo scaring you wasn't the reason you passed out, then what was?" Mirabel questioned, joining us on the floor.
My uncle shrugged. "I'm not sure. I felt funny when I woke up, but I figured that after having breakfast I'd feel better."
Growl.
I narrowed my eyes, glancing between Bruno's exasperated expression and his grumbling stomach. "Tío, when was the last time you had something to eat?" I interrogated my forgetful uncle.
He chuckled nervously. "I had lunch later than usual, so I didn't have dinner. But-" he hurried to add, probably noticing the concerned looks he was receiving-"missing one meal shouldn't cause this! Really!" He insisted, crossing his arms.
There were a few mumbled agreements at that comment, although no one really seemed satisfied by his defense. If it wasn't me scaring him, or him not eating, then what on earth made him fall unconscious?
"Maybe you were just tired." Antonio suggested, giving his uncle a half-smile. "I did wake you up early to do a vision."
"When was this?" Tía Julieta questioned, tilting her head. "I woke up an hour or two ago, and I only saw the remnants of it. But I figured you had maybe done one late last night."
"A little before dawn, actually. Antonio was so worried about his pet jaguar that he couldn't sleep. But, she's just pregnant, so no need to be concerned." Bruno grinned at Antonio, who was nodding excitedly and rambling to our parents about the future cubs and how cute they are and what he was going to name them.
"Perhaps you expended too much energy with the prophecy." Tío Agustín hesitantly proposed, rubbing the back of his neck.
Bruno winced. "I...did feel a little hungry after doing the prophecy." He confessed, picking at the strands of his ruana. "But, I wanted to sleep more, so I figured I'd wait till breakfast to eat."
I facepalmed. "Tío Bruno, if your stomach tells you that you're hungry, you don't just ignore it!" I scolded him emphatically.
He shrunk in on himself. "I didn't ignore it, I just...chose to postpone listening to it." He argued, avoiding eye contact with me.
Mi mamá sighed, smiling as she rolled her eyes. "Next time, get an arepa, and then go back to bed." She insisted, helping her brother stand up.
"Sí, I agree." I blinked at the arepa mi tía handed to Tío Bruno, not having noticed her grab it.
He took a bite, nodding his head.
"Alright, alright." He muttered, taking his seat at the table. "No more visions without food. I'll remember that!"
Sitting down next to him, I glanced around at the rest of my family, smirking at the expressions on their faces while they sat down as well.
Tío Bruno, I don't think anyone is ever going to let you forget.