Endless Evasion (Bruno x Reader)

End of the Line

(I'm back from hiatus and please excuse if the writing isn't as good as before. It's been a while since I've been able to write like I did before so it'll probably take a little bit for me to get back into my writing style again)

(Y/N) smiled happily as she listened to Antonio talk about his animal friends, one hand holding the young boy's own as they walked through the streets of the Encanto. The day had begun to turn to night, and a beautiful sunset had bathed the area they walked in a warm glow.  It had been some time since she had found herself here, and she was starting to get into a sort of routine. She would still rest in Mirabel's room, but on nights when she found it hard to sleep she would make her way to Bruno's tower, finding that it helped to be near him when that happened . The feeling of belonging she had around him was getting stronger, and she knew that he was the reason she stayed here this long. Sure the rest of the Madrigal family was full of absolutely wonderful people, but something about Bruno in particular stopped her from continuing on her path to evade the poachers. It was almost like a deep pull, a desire to not leave.

But the poachers were the last thing on (Y/N)'s mind as her and Antonio walked. He had wanted to come with her while she did some herb shopping for Julieta, and (Y/N) was happy to have him with her. He was always eager to talk and was such a sweet boy, she couldn't help but smile whenever he excitedly told her about what his animal friends said. As she shifted the basket on her arm, his small hand holding hers gently tugged as he gleefully addressed her,

"Oh! (Y/N)! My Jaguar friend said that he would like to have a race with you sometime!"

The woman laughed as she turned down on of the less busier alleys,

"I'd love to, Antonio. But I know your jaguar friend would probably win."

"I bet you'd be the win-"

Antonio's voice was cut off by the high pitched sound of an animalistic scream. A pained and frightened sound, permeating the once happy atmosphere and causing (Y/N) and Antonio to look at each other concernedly before rushing to the sounds source. But what it was caused their eyes to widen. A baby woolly monkey sat inside a cage, crying out loudly for its mother. Antonio wasted no time in running to the cage and trying to pry the bars open, but (Y/N) was more weary.

Something wasn't right. None of the townspeople would do this, they all were respectful of Antonio's friends and would never harm or capture them. So who would?

But she was ripped from her thoughts as Antonio called out to her,

"(Y/N)! Help me! I can't get it open! She says  that bad people took her! We have to do something!"

Something inside (Y/N) told her to leave the area while she still could. That she would doom herself if she helped the boy and the animal. But one look at two sets of pleading and scared eyes was all it took for her to beat down the thought of running away and immediately go to the youngest Madrigal's side. The monkey started to chitter and scream louder, and as (Y/N) spied a rock on the side of the alley she told Antonio,

"Tell her to stand as far back from the lock as possible. I'll break it with this."

He nodded and the relayed her words to the monkey, and with a hard smash the lock was broken and the monkey was free. The small primate then made its way up the small his shoulder and chittered again to the boy. (Y/N), on the other hand, was breathing deeply and reeling from the adrenaline of that hit. She had put every bit of energy and force she could into smashing that lock, and had managed to get it on the first try. But that doomed feeling wouldn't leave her mind.

Antonio then appeared again at her side, his face full of fear as he looked around,

"She says that the bad people came here to take an Ocelot! (Y/N)! That must be the poachers! You need to run!"

The females eyes shifted as she now understood what that feeling was. They had found her again. And what's worse, she had put Antonio in danger. As she stood and pulled him behind her, three dark shapes appeared out of a doorway to a storehouse close to the place the cage was left by. The leader of the group sneered at her as she tried to keep calm,

"So you thought we'd given up, pequeño premio? Think again. There's someone who cannot wait to see you."

Just then, a small yelp from behind (Y/N) alerted her to more men behind her. The yelp came from Antonio, who was being roughly held by his shirt by another poacher. The females jaw set in anger as the boy kicked and thrashed in their grip, his newly made monkey friend fearfully hiding inside his shirt. She was desperately to stay calm, but a sharp slap to the small boys cheek by his captor enraged her and she launched at the man holding him, transforming into her ocelot form midway and pouncing on the head of the burly man. He let out a loud shriek and dropped Antonio, who tried to search for something in the alley to help (Y/N) with. His efforts were in vain, and the woman was already losing. The larger man ripping her off of him and roughly throwing her to the ground.

"The boss doesn't want you hurt. Which is a shame, because I'd love to beat you senseless for that, tu perra!" He yelled.

The wind was knocked out of (Y/N)'s lungs with the impact and the other men behind her took that moment to grab her by the scruff of her neck and shove her inside a large cage, locking it securely. It was barely big enough for her human form, and as she transformed back she screamed,

"RUN ANTONIO! RUN! DONT WORRY ABOUT ME!"

"But what about-"

"JUST GO!"

The boy gave one more fearful glance to (Y/N) before doing as he was told. Two poachers went to follow him, but were stopped by a shout from their leader.

"¡Abandonarlo! Let's get this trophy to the boss."

With those words a terrible feeling enveloped the caged female. She had fallen for their trap. She should have left the encanto while she had the chance. Now look what happened. She was captured and put Antonio in danger. She could only hope that once "El Diablo" had her he would leave and never return here. As a dark cloth was put over her cage, plunging her into blackness, one thought filled her mind.

"I'm sorry, Bruno. I wish I could have been stronger. Then maybe I could have had a life with you. With your family."