~Rieka's Pov~
"Move your ass Camilo!" I shove the boy harshly, trying to maneuver through with two full bowls of popcorn in my hands.
"Yes popcorn's here!" Luisa beams, taking a bowl.
"Dolores hand this to Tonito" I reach out just enough for her hands to grab the other bowl. "Alright, there aren't any rats under me so I
can sit now".
I sit between Isabella and Mirabel.
"Bruno we're ready!"
"Okay!" He pops his head through the small curtains, " do you guys like the red curtains, I'm thinking about switching them out for the purple since it might match the theme more-"
"Just start the play!" Mirabel calls out
"Okay okay" he retreats back inside, out of sight. "and...action!"
Bruno opens the small curtains, revealing two rats dressed up in little clothes.
"Holy shit did he make those himself~?" Isabella whispers in my ear.
"He definitely designed 'em, he might've asked your mom for help I can't remember~"
"A long long time ago"
I hide my smile with my palm
oh god not the voice
He raises the grey rat dressed in a dark purple cloak
"There lived a mortal man, gifted with impeccable power yet cursed with a cold view upon the word. He was able to outlive entire dynasties and cast unlimited spells, but saw human kind as a nuisance and a waste of space. His heart was as cold as ice, and his mind was driven with selfish desire to rule the world"
He brings out little cardboard cutout of people
"There were townspeople that lived near his dark lair on the top of the mountain, and they were so frightened of him they gave him the name 'el fantasma', because the closest thing a living person was able to see of him was the mere glimpse of his shadow"
"El fantasma~" I hear Antonio giggle
"One day, however, when winter was at its coldest. A brave young woman put her fears aside and decided to venture towards 'el fantasma's' lair and ask for his help"
He then lifts up a black rat wearing a simple brown dress
"Her name was Melodía, because her voice was so beautiful that it made every living thing around her beam with joy and happiness. During the winters, when the townspeople were sad from the lack of food available and cold snow, she would sing to them until they were happy once again".
Bruno hangs little clouds at the top of the stage, pouring salt to make it look like it was snowing.
"But this winter was so horrible, that not even Melodía's song could bring them out from their despair. So, she decided that very night to venture to 'el fantasma's' lair with the hopes of him using his powers to fend off the cold snow within the town"
He brings the two rats closer together
" Melodía, though frightened beyond belief, managed to greet herself to the man without showing her fear. 'Please sir' she pleaded, ' save my people from this dreadful winter, and I shall give whatever you desire in return for your good deed ' el fantasma, respecting the girl's politeness and bravery, told her of his offer. 'Very well, I will remove the conditions of this winter from your town, and in return...I want you to visit me every night and sing me a song until the next season'. Melodía accepted his offer, and began to sing to him her song, and continued to do so every night as promised".
"How romantic~" Luisa sighs
"With each visit, 'el fantasma' slowly began to realize that he had fallen in love with her, and when she came to sing for him the last day of winter, Melodía saw that the man was very unhappy. 'What is the matter?' She asked him with concern, ' tell me what troubles you my savior'. 'Tell me Melodía...' he said,
'Could anyone ever love a creature as hideous and cruel as me? Answer me that question, tell me the truth, so that I may put such nonsense aside and die a lonely man' "
"Damn~" Camilo whispers, " he's really going through it~"
"Shhh~" Dolores nudges him harshly
I watched on, my heart racing in anticipation for Melodía's answer. I will admit I'm getting a little too into it that I thought, but damn it's a good story.
"Melodía takes a step closer to him, then another, and another, then placed a gentle hand on his cold shoulder. ' I think it is possible' she told him, ' and I am telling you with absolute honesty'. 'El fantasma' was shocked at her response, then asked another question, 'How can you be so sure?' . Her hand moves up to his face, caressing his cheek. 'Because I love you dear sir' she smiled, ' how could I not love the man who saved my people, who listens to my songs every night, who treats me as an equal?' "
Bruno brings the rats closer
" 'Then marry me Melodía' he reaches into the pocket of his long cloak, pulling out a black ring. ' Marry this beast and teach him to be human once more, embrace him with a warm touch and melt his frozen heart, do this and I will guarantee my entire soul to you for all eternity'. He takes her hand, slipping the ring onto her finger. 'Will you do that for me?' He asked, still holding her hand that now wore his ring. 'Yes' she answers, holding him in her arms. The two soon got married, the town no longer had to face such harsh winters and thus renamed 'el fantasma' as 'el Salvador', and they all lived happily ever after".
Bruno closes the small curtains," the end!" He beams happily. We all quickly erupt with applause, taken aback by such a good story.
"That was so good Tío bruno!" Mirabel praises, "you should've been a director! Honestly!"
"Awww~" he blushes, rubbing his shoulder bashfully. " It's nothing really-"
"It was such a beautiful story~" Luisa cries, wiping a tear from her eye. "I knew they'd be together, I knew it!"
"Who ate all the popcorn!" Dolores huffs with crossed arms," I wanted some! But seriously though tío that was so good, can you do this again sometime?"
"R-really?" He questions with surprise," you guys want me to do this again?"
"Of course!" Camilo is the first to respond, " that was some class-act movie skills you got there"
"Looks like you got some fans Brunito" I smirk, gently pinching his cheek.
"To be honest, I actually kind of like the hideout" Camilo admits," it's quite cozy".
"Hang on..." Dolores pauses for a bit then smiles, " Tía Julieta says she's done with dinner".
"I get firsts!" Camilo races out the room
" no fair Camilo!" Mirabel chases after him, " you always hog everything!"
"Wait for me!" Antonio laughs, playing along with a carefree grin.
"Race ya!" I challenge Luisa, running out the room at full speed towards the dining room.
"You won't get far!" I hear her behind me, then feel her thick footsteps drawing towards me. When she passed me, I swear I got whiplash, and maybe a bit dizzy.
"Oh Holy shit!" I laugh, tumbling to the ground
"Rieka!" Bruno quickly runs to my side, taking my arms and pulling me back to my feet. " are you alright?"
"Yea I'm fine" I brush off my knees
"Looks like you lost Rieka~" Isabella teases when she walks passed me.
I stick my tongue out at her, I know very mature of me
"The rats are always talking" Dolores stands beside me, " I know there many, but still don't they ever get tired?"
"They sleep a lot longer than we do" bruno points out
"Aaaah so that's why I don't hear them talking most morning~" she gasps, " thanks tío, that's been on my mind for years".
Before she left, she wiggles her eyebrows at me in a 'I'll leave you two alone' way. I roll my eyes, playfully muffled her shoulder as she walks off.
"Ready for dinner Brunito?" I ask, walking up to the timid man and fixing the hood of his poncho. " you haven't eaten much today, there's nothing wrong with that, I just have this feeling something is bothering you".
Bruno looks at the ground, rubbing his shoulder anxiously.
I hold his face, gently tilting it back up to face me. I lean forward, my lips lightly grazing his ear.
" talk to me~" I whisper, " we can go into your room if you don't want Dolores to eavesdrop".
"I-it's nothing" bruno quickly dismisses, backing away from my touch with a flustered face. "Just...silly thoughts, you know?"
"You're in your head too much" I sigh, " you don't have to tell me, come on let's eat okay?"
I see the corners of his lips curve upwards, showing a hint of a smile.
"Okay"
"Bruno, Rieka dinner table now!" Abuela calls out
"Yes Abuela!" I roll my eyes, hooking my arm with Bruno's and walking with him to go eat.
"Ahh there's the happy couple~" she smiles brightly, " how has everything been?"
"It's been good Abuela" I smile as I take a seat, " thank you for asking".
"I assume my Brunito has been treating you well?" Her gaze sharply turns to her son, eyeing him with suspicion.
"O-of course mama!" Bruno quickly answers
"Good" she nods, focusing her attention onto Dolores
"Dolores dear girl, speaking of couples, I hear Mariano has already proposed to you multiple times now"
"Sí abuela!" The girl answers cheerfully, " but of course it'll be awhile before I actually say yes, I just need some time you know?".
"Good" Tía Pepa nods quietly, " at least one of the children actually thinks before making such a big decision".
Good fucking lord~
"Pepa~" Julieta sighs, "please don't"
"Sí amor" Felix takes her hand, " let's just have a nice dinner okay?"
I felt a sour feeling in my chest, I look over at Pepa and watch as she lightly poked at her food with a somber expression.
My heart can't take the guilt
"How's your day been Tía...?" I ask, hoping to get an answer.
Her gaze stayed locked on her plate, refusing to even acknowledge I exist.
"I was thinking that maybe this weekend we could all go swimming at the waterfall, doesn't that sound fun?"
Nothing
"Pepa" Bruno calls to his sister in an assertive manner, which takes me by surprise. I look over at him, noting his hand clenched into a tight fist.
"Are you really going to keep doing this?" He asks bitterly, browsed furrowed in anger.
"Bruno it's okay-"
"No" he stands from his chair, "she always does this! Even when we were kids. Whenever she doesn't get her way she ruins it for everybody else until she gets what she wants!"
"Excuse me!?!" Pepa retorts, slamming her palms on the table. " this is the future of my baby! Something you can't understand because you aren't a parent!"
"A parent!?!" He shouts, " you call ignoring her and making her feel bad for making her own decisions parenting!?! Look how miserable your making her, I won't let you keep doing this to her!"
"What about how miserable she's making me? Have you every tried to think about that?"
"Oh trust me, we always think about it because you never let us forget! Not everything is about you! Just because you don't like something doesn't mean we should all go through hell!"
I erupt from my seat, harshly tossing my utensils onto the plate with a loud clash before quickly leaving the dining.
I'm not doing this...
My mind just can't take it...
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
~Third-Person Pov~
It got quiet, all heads turned watching the poor wolf girl leave.
"Good job Pepa~" bruno spits coldly, " now if you'll excuse me, I have to go comfort my future-wife, hope you have a nice dinner".
He too left the table, quickly going after the woman he loved with every bit of his soul. Something about him openly calling her his 'future-wife' in front of the whole family made him feel... surprisingly very good.
But not for long, quickly remembering Rieka's upset expression. He went upstairs towards her room, standing closely at the door with a raised hand.
Should he try to see her?
Leave her be?
His heart practically controlled his arm, forcing it to make three gentle taps against the door.
"Who is it?"
"It's me Rieka" he sighs, before turning the knob and entering her room.
There he saw her, laying on her bed, back turned to him. He too slow steps towards her, making his way to her side of the bed and taking a seat at the edge near where her legs rested.
"I-I'm so sorry Rieka" he stutters nervously, feeling his old self creeping back up to the surface. " I don't know what got into me, I-I just hated the way she was treating you and how sad you were, it broke my heart. I couldn't let her do that, at least not without getting a mouthful from me".
He see her lips curve up in a smile
"Don't be sorry fortune cookie~" she giggles, " I just can't believe you'd do that for me, at your own sister. That's...that's so sweet".
"Of course~" he mumbles, placing his hand on hers, " sometimes...I just wish she'd accept it like the others and be happy for us".
"I know right?" She sighs in agreement, "I just...I just thought she'd be the one to understand it the most. Especially with the bond that we have".
Bruno feels her grip his hand tighter
" I need you Bruno~" she gasps, looking up at him with big golden eyes. " I'll always need you".
"D-don't say that-" he dismisses, body on fire from hearing those words actually leave her mouth. "You're strong, beautiful, you don't need a-"
"But I do!" She lunges forward, embracing the man tightly. "I need you with me every second of every day, I can't imagine my life without you!"
"Riekita..."
he held the girl close, letting her bury her face in his chest as she began to quietly sob. He gently rubbed her head, running his fingers through her dark locks.
"Don't ever leave me" she quietly begs the older man, " promise me you'll never leave me again!"
"I promise" he tells her, gently wiping her tears away with his knuckles. "I'm right here, please don't cry my sweet girl, everything will be fine".
"Can I stay with you in your room tonight?" She asked, gazing up at him with tear-stained eyes.
'God she looked so beautiful' he couldn't help but think, watching the tears slip down her cheeks.
He leans forward, placing a small kiss on her head.
~"Of course"~