That night was...rough. The kids barely ate their food. It took them 20 minutes to get the kids to detach from their fathers, and even then they were hesitant. Julieta and Pepa had to beg the kids to eat, which they only ate a little bit of. Once dinner ended, the kids all piled into the nursery. They hadn't slept in there in years but...it provided some kind of comfort to them. They didn't want to be alone, they wanted to be near each other.
Each of the adults kissed them Goodnight, and Casita made sure to comfort them and reassure them that nothing was going to happen to the house. Nothing was going to fall on them, or break, or hurt their family. They were safe, and Casita made sure of that. Pedro stayed in the nursery with them for a while, sitting in the corner reading to them quietly to make sure they didn't have a panic attack like they had a few times earlier that day since the incident at the fountain. They had a bad feeling it was going to be a bad week.
Once Pedro left, Mirabel sat up from her spot in the cuddle pile on the floor. Her butterflies, which had previously been resting in her hair, fluttered for a moment before resting again. The 9-year-old looked around for a moment, then Isabela sat up as well, looking at her while rubbing her eyes. "Bel?" She asked, looking at her sister. She watched Mirabel fiddle with her fingers for a moment.
"Isa..." Mirabel choked out, and Isabela frowned, hugged her sister tightly. Mirabel wrapped her arms around Isabela, squeezing her as she buried her head in her shoulder. The smaller sobbed, body shaking slightly. Isabela rubbed her back, gently petting her curls. She mimicked the way her mama or abuela would calm them down, though she didn't really know it.
"Don't listen to him. You didn't do anything," Isabela said quietly. They sat there for a minute and Mirabel finally stopped crying, rubbing her eyes and sniffling. Isabela took off her glasses, setting them aside and laying down next to her. She made sure her blanket was pulled up, then pulled her own up. Mirabel calmed down, closing her eyes. Isabela grabbed Mirabel's hand, moving a little bit closer.
"Gracias Isa," Mirabel mumbled, yawning.
"De nada," Isabela said, finally going to sleep with her sister.
—
The next day, the family decided to stay home—Alma had decided to let the family stay home for the rest of the week. She stated that she didn't want any of them out working, after what happened. A short vacation was fine anyway, the town could live without them for a while. Most of them were understanding anyway, completely agreeing with what Alma was saying and even encouraging them to take a few days more. She was grateful that they all were so understanding.
Breakfast was quiet. There wasn't much going on, not a lot of talking. The kids usually carried the conversations. There was the occasional whisper from the adults, mostly Pedro to Alma. Dolores had squeaked a couple times, but it remained quiet otherwise. Once they were all done eating, Bruno ushered the kids out of the room.
"You niños go to Dolores' room and play for a while, hm?" Bruno said, and they all exchanged glances before nodding. They didn't bother asking why, because they already had an idea. The adults were probably going to talk about what happened the day before. Anytime the adults wanted to talk about something important, they would always send the kids to Dolores' room—it was soundproof, so not even Dolores could hear what was happening unless the door was open. Once the kids were in the room, Bruno walked back into the dining room, sitting down next to Félix. They were quiet, until Alma finally spoke up.
"We have to tell them," she said, looking up. The others looked at her nervously, or like she was crazy. There were mixed reactions, and Alma continued. "We can't keep it a secret forever. And after what Manuel pulled the other day..." Alma pulled a face, one of anger.
"But don't you think that it would be too much for them?" Pepa asked, a cloud forming above her head. Félix held her hand and she calmed down a bit more. " I mean it's such a sensitive topic. So much happened, and they're only 9!"
Alma paused. That's right, they weren't even ten yet (though their birthday was in a couple weeks). But she knew that they had to tell the kids. They would start asking questions, and they couldn't just leave them in the dark, not forever. It was only a matter of time before they realized anyway, what with how people gossip and talk in their community. So how would they tell them? They couldn't just dump it on them all at once, that would only traumatize them more.
"Why don't we just tell them part of what happened?" Agustín asked, and the others looked at him. "You know, water it down some? We don't have to tell them everything, but maybe we could just give them some information." He continued.
"That would work. But what would we tell them?" Alma asked, and Bruno spoke up.
"We can tell them about Casita's fall and the candle," he said. "But we'll wait till they're older to tell them about, um. Well, you know. That." He said, looking to the side awkwardly.
"But what about Papá? Do we tell them about his original sacrifice?" Julieta asked, and all eyes were on Pedro and he had a look on his face.
"Maybe? I mean they know about the scar across my chest, they just don't know how it's there. Maybe we don't tell them that I died yet," he said, absently touching his chest. "But maybe we can tell them that I was struck down and hurt, and that the miracle healed me. I mean it wouldn't be a lie." He said, looking up, and the others nodded in agreement.
"Alright then. We'll tell them a more...kid friendly version of the story. And we'll go into a bit more detail of Pedro's sacrifice, but not too much. Agreed?" Alma said and the others nodded.
"We should tell them after dinner, that way they won't think about it too much all day, and can sleep on it," Félix said.
With that, the adults left the dining room, off to do their small and menial tasks about Casita and to check on the children. Luckily the children hadn't been curious and stayed in the room. They were clueless when Félix popped his head in to check on them.
The kids stayed at Casita helping around the house or playing in the backyard. They had noticed that the adults were acting a little strange. Whenever they asked a question,they would get rather defensive. And Casita never elaborated, clearly waiting for whatever it was the adults were going to do. While the little ones were curious, they knew better than to keep asking or to keep pushing it. They would just have to wait for them to tell them.
Dinner couldn't come fast enough. The adults were nervous once it rolled around. Thankfully, though, the kids were back to talking again. Not quite their usual enthusiasm, but talking nonetheless. They also ate all of their food, much to Julieta's relief. Once the table was clear, the elders held them back, which they were confused about. They never did this unless they were in trouble, or they wanted to talk about something serious. And as far as they knew, they weren't in trouble, so it had to be the latter.
"Niños...we want to tell you something," Alma began, pausing. Pedro placed a hand on her lap, and gave her a sympathetic look. "It's about yesterday. Now this is very serious, and we want you to know that none of it is your fault," she continued, looking at Mirabel for a moment longer than the others.
"What is it? Did something happen?" Camilo said, scooting closer in his seat.
"Do you know how we got our Miracle?" Julieta asked. The children nodded.
"Yeah, there were some mean people chasing the town a long time ago and the candle formed from Abuelo and Abuela's marriage candle to protect us," Luisa said, the tallest tilting her head.
"That's not the full story. You know how I have a big scar across my chest that your mamá's food couldn't heal?" Pedro asked and the children hesitantly nodded. "We'll...I tried to stop them. From chasing us. And one of the mean people took a machete and hurt me badly. And I couldn't go anywhere for a while."
"Is that why you didn't come back to Casita until we were 4?" Dolores questioned and Pedro gave a half-hearted shrug.
"Yes...in a way. I had to stay away so that my scar could heal over. Julieta's food couldn't fix it in this instance, so it took a very long time." Pedro explained and the children all nodded in affirmation.
"But...what about what Manuel said?" Antonio asked, and the adults all looked at each other, then at Alma.
"Yes, about that. Part of what he said is true—Casita did fall, before you were born. Your abuela did a very bad thing. I didn't do the right thing and I ended up causing Casita to fall," Alma paused, turning her head for a moment, and she had to blink away the tears. "And something really bad happened. We were left alone for a long time. But it was never any of you kids' fault. Especially not you Mirabel. You never caused Casita to fall, and you aren't...a murderer." The kids looked at the adults, who all looked upset. They were really focusing on Alma, who had turned away from the table, and though they couldn't see her face, they could tell she was crying. So Manuel was half right, but still correct in a sense. Casita did break down and fall. Did that mean the Miracle died?
Before any of the kids could ask any questions, memories flooded through their heads. They screamed, Dolores' covering her ears, though she was screaming as well. They flashed by, so quickly, they couldn't even process it. It was like Tío Bruno's visions, but quicker, much quicker. They kept flashing, it was the same scenes over and over. A girl, who looked EXACTLY like Mirabel but older, running towards the candle. Then it switched to them looking around, seeing Casita crack around them, and collapse in on itself. Was this what their abuela was talking about? From their point of view? That was impossible, they hadn't been born yet. Then it changed to them clawing at the floorboards and clinging to the railings, being dragged towards what they could only guess were their rooms. Then nothing. Darkness. It was terrifying. They didn't like it, but it wouldn't stop.
The adults rushed over, holding the kids and bringing them to the floor while trying to figure out what was happening. Casita shook, and Alma looked around panicked, what was happening? Did they see something wrong? Had the magic reacted badly? Did they trigger something, was Casita falling again? So many questions, and yet they couldn't get any answers. Finally, after what seemed like forever, they stopped screaming. They were breathing heavily, clinging to the arm of whoever was closest.
Suddenly Mirabel burst into tears, throwing herself into her abuela's arms. "¡Lo siento, lo siento familia!" She sobbed, and Alma frantically asked what was wrong and what happened. "I saw it! I-I saw Casita fall, and I couldn't save the candle and I hurt my hermanas and primos! Manuel was right!" She cried. Immediately the kids pulled her into a group hug, assuring her that she didn't do anything.
"No, no, that...that wasn't you! You didn't hurt us!" Antonio said, hugging her tightly.
"Y-Yeah, we know that wasn't you!" Luisa agreed.
After a couple more minutes of comforting the kids, specifically Mirabel, the adults picked the kids up, one by one, carrying them to bed. Originally they were going to put them in each of their rooms, but their protest led them back to the nursery once again. They all laid in a pile on the floor, holding each other close. They were tired from what had happened, which sent them to bed early that night. The adults all went back to their rooms, still worrying over the kids.
Bruno, just in case, had a vision. He just needed to make sure they were safe, that nothing would happen to them. Once he finished, he looked at the vision, and was left with confusion. The kids were all within frame, standing over a crib. There was a baby—but it didn't look like any of the family members. Perhaps Mariano and his wife were having another? Regardless, he took the vision as a good thing. Babies were always a positive sign, at least in the Madrigal family.
The cool couple had gone back to check on them, just once. They were asleep, probably exhausted from all the crying they had been doing for the past couple of days. Call them worry warts, but they couldn't help it. Julieta naturally wanted to make sure they were ok. Agustín was no different, but he was a bit more on the protective side. He was willing to get into a fist fight with any that threatened his daughters, or niece or nephews.
The warm couple started to plan something fun to do for the kids the next day. They wanted to make sure they took their minds off of everything that had been happening. It took a lot of calming down on Pepa's end; Félix had to hold her back and keep her from hunting down Manuel and striking him down. But he promised that if he saw him, he would personally put his dukes up on her behalf. In the meantime, they planned a picnic for them, and maybe they would go explore in the woods afterward.
The oldest in the household were in the candle room, finally relaxing. Other than...whatever happened to the kids, they had taken it well. When asked, the kids completely understood. But it still worried Alma. Had they seen memories? They usually didn't see them unless they were asleep. This was the first instance where they were awake. Pedro comforted her, assuring her that they would get through this. She smiled, she was so happy her esposo was here with her.
It was quiet in Casita, and none of the adults knew of the events about to occur in the nursery.
——
Manuel wasn't going to take this. Hewasn't about to have his life ruined by a little girl. Chugging the rest of his beer bottle, he stormed out of the bar (kicked out really), heading back to the church, where his stuff was at. It was the only place he was allowed to stay at. He was basically kicked out of his home where his parents were. He had no girl, so he couldn't live in any house. And the temporary inn wouldn't let him sleep anywhere either.
He rummaged through his rucksack, searching for something. He got angrier as he thought about the past two days. In just one argument, his life was ruined. He was only 24, and his life was already over. Because of that stupid Madrigal girl.
"Whatever happened to respect," he angrily muttered, finally pulling out what he was looking for. He left the church, heading toward the Madrigal home. It was late, really late, probably 2 a.m. He knew that everyone in the house would be asleep, and even Casita would be somewhat dormant. So he was taking his chance. It couldn't be any worse. "I was number one. My family was on top," he uttered.
He thought about his family. His mother and father worked hard to keep up their family legacy. They ran one of the most successful fruit orchids in the Encanto. He was the oldest of his siblings, his brother being 16, and his youngest sister 14. He realized that he wouldn't be there for them anymore. He would miss his brother getting married, his sisters' quinceañera, all of it. All because of Mirabel Madrigal. Why did she get a second chance? So he snapped and spilled some information, so what? She wouldn't die from it, it's not like she remembered anyway. Those other Madrigals overreacted.
Manuel climbed the hill, finally seeing Casita on the top. He had been inside there plenty of times, he knew how to get in and out. He could go through the back door—it was relatively easy, even though he knew that. "I'll show her...I'll show all of those little brats," he said, still drunk and angry. He was an angry drinker, he knew that. But he had long since planned to come for the Madrigals even before he got drunk. He just drank because it was the only thing that would distract him enough so that when he got jumped by the men of the household, he would be unconscious quicker.
Going around the side of Casita,he was quiet as he shoved a piece of metal into the lock, unlocking it. He saw Casita's tiles flutter, but then calm down. Once he was inside the kitchen. He slowly made his way to the main courtyard and up the stairs. Scanning the room names, he found Mirabel's door, and opened it. It was empty. The spacious room was dark and empty, and he knew she wasn't in her bed. He moved to Luisa's room, empty. Isabela's was the same. He checked Dolores' and Camilo's, empty. Antonio? Also empty. The only room left was the nursery.
He dragged himself to the other side, standing by the door. He could hear them inside, sleeping. Camilo was a loud sleeper. Manuel made sure to check his surroundings. So far he had been good, only having a close call with Casita tripping him up. He was confused on why the house had been so silent, but maybe when the Madrigals went to sleep, the house went into a more docile state. Either way, he didn't care. It only made his job easier. Opening the door, he carefully slipped in, closing the door. He stood over the sleeping kids. It was truly surprising how they hadn't woken up yet.
"Stupid brat. I'll show you what happens when you mess with me," he growled, raising his old, beaten up bat above his head. Before his hands were even brought down, he was unpleasantly surprised when his ankles were knocked inward. They buckled under his weight, and he fell, wincing as held on to his legs. He cursed loudly, looking to see who had done it, he saw Dolores, looking scared, though she still stood tall. Manuel cursed again, she must've woken up. He forgot that she had super hearing. Still wobbly from being drunk and having his ankles assaulted, he moved to sit up, reaching for his bat, which he had dropped. It was kicked away, and he looked up, seeing Camilo and Antonio standing on the other side. Luisa had moved next to Dolores, with Isabela helping Mirabel up. He shivered, looking at them. They look mad, really mad. Was he about to get jumped by a bunch of 9-year-olds?
"You're not supposed to be here," Camilo said, albeit quietly. Manuel was confused, why hadn't they alerted the adults? More so, why hadn't Casita done anything?
"You...you brats don't get it," Manuel said, pushing himself up. His words were slurred, and the two sets of triplets could smell the alcohol on him. "You don't understand because you got a second chance. You always get second chances while the rest of us suffer," he said, standing up, towering over them.
Second chances. They were always told everyone could be given a second chance. And they had given Delgado more than enough chances. The fact that he was still there was a bit baffling. He hadn't left the Encanto, though they didn't even know if he could. But if he wanted a second chance, then it was a second chance he would get. Or rather, his family would get a second chance. Mirabel whispered something to Isabela, who's eyes widened.
"Will that work?" the girl asked.
"We can try," Mirabel shrugged. Manuel jumped at the girls, angry on his face. "I mean I can repair bones, which sends them to their healthiest or newest state."
"Don't ignore me!" He stopped, seeing a jaguar present in front of him, standing protectively in front of the girls. He stuttered, stumbling back. He suddenly found himself being held down by Luisa and Camilo. Antonio pet the head of his jaguar, staring down at Delgado. He looked at Mirabel who summoned more butterflies.
"Dolores told us. Are you sure it'll work?" He asked, and Mirabel gave him the same answer.
"We can try," she said again, and the butterflies landed on Delgado. He started to struggle, but he wasn't able to get up with the kids holding him down, along with Isabela's vines preventing him from moving. In his drunken confusion, he panicked.
"What are you doing? Let me go!" he yelled, and Dolores hushed him.
"You said you wanted a second chance. Well we are a magic family," Dolores whispered to him. "So we'll help you get a second second chance."
The butterflies landed on him, multiplying. They kept doing so until his whole body was covered. The whole time Manuel was shouting and struggling, but to no avail. After first he was throwing obscenities, then apologies. He began to cry. The children felt bad for him, he was rambling about how he just wanted to be accepted by the community and his family. How he never hated Mirabel or the Madrigals, and was young and stupid and made bad decisions. He just wanted a second chance like they did. The kids didn't entirely understand that last part, but they would help him get a second chance. Eventually he went limp, and stopped making noise all together.
In the candle room, the candle grew brighter, and Casita's floorboards and shingles rattled again. The kids backed away, and watched how the candle in the corner of the room lit up and grew brighter. They covered their eyes when the light engulfed the room. Once it died down, the kids looked down to where Delgado was previously. The butterflies dispersed, most of them disappearing while the others settled on Mirabel. There were piles of clothes, with a small lump where the shirt was. The kids stared for a moment, then jumped when the lump moved. There was a cooing sound, then whimpering. Camilo decided to be the brave one, moving in on the shirt. He moved the shirt, and he gasped at the sight.
It was a baby. But not just any baby—This was Manuel Delgado. He still had the same features, just smaller and chubbier. He couldn't have been older than a couple months. He had nothing but a diaper on, which Luisa acted quickly on—-she grabbed one of the folded blankets off of the shelf, placing it on the floor. Wrapping the small baby up, she gently picked him up, backing sure to tone back her super strength in order not to hurt him. She was always a little scared of holding babies, especially when she first got her gift, but now she was much more confident.
"It worked...a little too well," Dolores said, squeaking. "What now?"
"Um...I don't know...it's too late to go to his Mamá and Papá's house. Should we go get Abuela or Abuelo?" Mirabel shrugged. She hadn't really thought this far, she didn't think it would work.
"No, we should let them sleep. Besides, Manuel looks tired too. We should put him in a crib," Luisa said, looking down at the small infant who yawned and cuddled closer to the strong one.
The kids talked for a bit more, then finally agreed on what to do. They would have a 'sleepover' in the nursery, and take care of Manuel. Then in the morning, they would take him to the adults and they could go over to his family's house and give him back...hopefully they wouldn't mind reraising their son. Dolores and Antonio dressed the bed while Mirabel and Camilo rummaged through the storage room to look for something to put in him; after all, they couldn't leave him in only a diaper. Luckily they found one of Camilo' old onesies, and after a bit of struggling, they were able to get him dressed and put into the crib.
The kids all looked and stood over the bassinet. Manuel was now sleeping peacefully, cuddling with one of the stuffed animals Isabela found in the toy box. Thankfully they knew what all to do from all the times they spent the night at their Hermano mayor Mariano's house, and had to take care of their baby (or their 'honorary nephew', they liked to say). Camilo poked his cheeks, laughing.
"His cheeks are chubby. I'm going to call him Chubby Manny," he laughed again, and Dolores swatted his hand away, though the boy kept giggling as he transformed into the older Manuel, making faces. He quickly changed back though when Dolores kept nagging him.
"Manny..." Mirabel said absently. That was a cute name, he was a cute baby. She wondered, what went wrong? He seemed so peaceful now. Whatever it was, he didn't have to worry anymore. He was given a second chance, and by God we're going to help him be happy growing up. "Come on, let's go to bed. We can check on him in the morning."
The kids all went back to their spot on the floor, sleeping a bit closer to the crib. Tomorrow would be a long day, so they were going to sleep as long as they could.
—
Casita's floorboards rattled, and the kids were woken up by the soft crying of a baby and an alarm clock going off. Immediately they remembered the events of the night before, and they all scrambled over to the crib. Mirabel pulled Manuel out of the crib, bouncing him and patting back. He eventually calmed down, and settled down on her shoulder.
"We should go get dressed and go down for breakfast," Dolores said, tilting her head. Tía is calling us and the others are waiting too.
"I'll take him," Camilo said, taking Manuel from Mirabel's arms. "My room is closer, so I'll just take him to my room. We can meet at the staircase and bring him down."
"Why can't I take him?" Luisa pouted. She might not have liked older Manuel, but she thought little Manny was adorable.
"Because I'm a boy AND I can keep him from crying with my gift," Camilo said, transforming into the head of Delgado family, Manuel's father. The baby cooed, reaching for Camilo' face. The boy changed back, and Luisa pouted at his points. He wasn't wrong about that. Her room was probably too cold anyway. While there were blankets and stuffed animals everywhere and it was rather colorful, the floor and walls were stone, so it didn't hold heat as well.
The children all went to the rooms, getting ready for the day. Downstairs, the grownups were setting up the table, waiting for the kids to come down. Bruno remembered the vision he had last night, and pulled it from his ruana, gathering the others' attention.
"What's that?" Julieta asked, setting a platter down.
"Well...I had a vision last night, just to make sure the kids were safe," Bruno set the vision on the table, and the adults gathered to look at it. "And this is what I saw. B-But I don't know what it means." He shrugged.
"I don't think Mariano and his wife are having another baby...are they?" Pepa asked and Bruno looked just as confused.
"I mean that was my original thought, but you know, it could mean something else," Bruno guessed. The adults talked about it, stopping when they heard the kids walking into the backyard. There was Mirabel and Antonio, and they both exchanged looks before looking back at the adults. They didn't like that look. What did that mean? Why did they look so...worried?
"Niños? Is something wrong?" Pedro asked, turning to his two grandchildren. Mirabel took a deep breath, and looked at them seriously.
"We're gonna show you something but...you might want to sit down," the 9-year-old said, and the adults cautiously sat down in their usual seats. "Ok so...something happened last night, but we took care of it? Sort of."
"Manuel came to Casita last night and tried to attack Mirabel, BUT!" Antonio stuck his hand out, making the adults pause from getting up in their seats. Pepa was already making a storm, and the others looked just as upset and angry. When did that even happen? Why didn't they tell them? "We took care of him. Er, well the miracle did."
"Antonio. What happened?" Fèlix asked sternly, and Antonio turned to Mirabel, who looked to the kitchen back door. The other kids walked out, looking unsure. Finally, Camilo walked out with a bundle in his arms. A baby, they saw. The elders jumped up, rushing towards the boy. Was that the baby in Bruno's vision? Is this what that meant?
"Hey, back up! You'll make him cry!" Camilo said, turning away from them, and they stopped where they were standing. Camilo walked up slowly, and tilted his arms so they could look at the bundle. "This is Manuel Delgado. But we call him Manny," Camilo beamed, showing off his missing tooth. The grown ups were silent, and so were the kids as they waited for a reaction.
Then chaos erupted. Alma, Pedro and the cool couple were immediately asking questions while Bruno kept looking from his vision to the baby. Pepa was storming and doing her best to avoid getting the now BABY Manuel Delgado wet, and Fèlix was trying to calm her, but he was just as confused. Agustín just stared gobsmacked, unable to process what he was looking at. A nickname, they already gave him a nickname!
Dolores covered her ears, and Isabela walked up to them, using her vines to sit them back down in her seats. "Can you calm down and let us explain?!" She yelled, then quickly apologizing for her outburst. The adults calmed down, and Isabela retracted her vines, Casita toppling the cacti she accidentally sprouted out towards the garden to be replanted later.
"Lo siento niños, just...how?" Alma sighed heavily, looking at the kids and the baby in Camilo's arms.
"Ok. So Manuel—Manny, came to the nursery last night. I had heard him come in, and we planned to kick him down and then come get you guys. But then Mirabel had an idea," Dolores started rambling, something she did whenever she was finally revealing a secret. "So, she wanted to try and use her gift to make him go back to being a little bit younger, but only a little bit! And then Casita started shaking and then there was a bright flash and then when it went away he was a baby!" She finished, taking a deep breath, Antonio rubbing her back and making sure she was ok. The adults took a moment to process what the girl said, then Agustín spoke.
"Why didn't you come get one of us when it happened?" He asked, looking concerned and confused.
"Well we we're, but he was so tired, and we were too, and we didn't want to wake you guys up," Mirabel explained. "So we put him in the old crib and slept in there with him.
"Is that one of Camilo's old onesies?" Pepa asked out of the blue, noticing how the baby had on orange.
"Yup! We took care of him all night by ourselves," Camilo said. Casita's beams dropped a bit. "Oh! Casita helped too of course," he corrected himself, and Casita gave a little jingle.
"So...what now?" Alma asked the kids.
"Well we were hoping to take him back to Señor and Señora Delgado after breakfast," Mirabel said.
The adults looked at each other before Alma sighed. "That's the best thing. Me and your Abuelo will take you, alright?" The kids nodded, and moved to sit down to eat. Alma held onto Manuel while they ate, feeding him some fruit. She had figured out he was probably around 8 or 9 months. He could sit up and eat, but he didn't move as much as she had expected.
Breakfast went by rather quickly. As soon as they were done the youngest members gathered their things to leave. Their mama's and Tio helped them put some of their old baby stuff into a bag, saying that the Delagdos probably didn't have the stuff for a baby, which made sense to them. Alma put Manuel into a basket, making sure a blanket covered him up so that when they walked through town no one would get suspicious. It was a long walk to their home after all.
"Are you guys ready to go?" Pedro asked, picking up the basket that had the now sleeping baby and the baby bag. The kids all gave thumbs up, and with that they bid the ones remaining at the house and Casita goodbye.
Once they got down to town, they were able to walk through without suspension. They had stopped at the Guzmán's house, and while they did ask, they didn't press when they were given a vague answer. Thankfully by the time they had crossed the bridge, it wasn't busy. The farmers land in the encanto never really was, but the Delgado's would get busy in the afternoon because of the kids who would go running around the fruit trees and whatnot, among other things. The kids were all too happy to get to the farm, but refrained from running off to go play. They had to be responsible this time.
Eventually they had finally gotten to the Delgado household. Alma knocked on the door, and a couple seconds later Señor Esteban Delgado opened it, looking upset. His expression quickly changed when he saw the Madrigals at his door.
"¡U-Uh Doña Madrigal!" He was obviously surprised, and his eyes saw that Pedro and the kids were there. "What brings you here?" He asked, and inside they could see his wife, Maria, and other two children look towards the door from the back.
"It's about Manuel," Alma said, glancing at Pedro. "May we come in?" She asked. Esteban's expression shifted. He nodded, letting them inside and closing the door.
All of them were seated in the main room, with Pedro having the basket by his feet. The other two children, Mateo and Sofia, had joined their parents in the room as well. They kept glancing at the basket, wondering what was in it. Pedro and Alma could tell the family was going through a lot, considering one of their family members had literally been banished out of the Encanto. They hadn't been very active in town, simply sending out shipments of fruits for other vendors to sell in the square.
"So what is it about Manuel that happened?" Esteban asked, looking unsure.
"Well...he broke into Casita last night, and tried to attack the kids," Alma said, getting straight to the point, and Maria gasped, grabbing her husband's arm. He stared in shock, mouth agape. Their other two children were just as surprised, unsure of how to react. "Something happened as well, he...how did I put this," Alma mumbled, trying to find the words.
"Wait, did he?" Maria didn't finish her sentence, and Alma immediately refuted.
"No, no, dear Lord no!" Alma said, and the couple looked relieved, though still upset. "It's just a miracle um..."
"He got turned into a baby by the candle. Hm!" Dolores said from her spot on the floor where she was playing with her 5 other siblings. The younger couple looked at the girl, then back at the Madrigals in confusion.
"¿Què?" Maria asked, looking at Alma and Pedro.
"That's one way to put it," Alma said, internally thanking her granddaughter. She really wasn't sure how to say it. "The kids say he asked for a second chance and then the miracle just...you know, I think it's better if you just see it for yourself," Alma said, turning to Pedro.
The patriarch, who had been silent the whole time aside from a laugh under his breath at Dolores' comment, pushed the basket over to the parents. They both looked at the basket, then to the Madrigals, then back at the basket. Esteban carefully removed the blanket,then jumped back when he saw the baby within the basket. Maria picked the baby, holding him close while tears welled up in her eyes. Both Mateo and Sofia gather behind them looking down at Manuel. He yawned,eyes cracking open and looking at his family. He stared at them with big, innocent brown eyes.
"Dios mio," Maria whispered, hugging him tightly when he raised a small chubby hand and touched her face. She looked up at Pedro and Alma, still crying. "G-Gracias! We promise, we'll raise him right, it won't be like last time!" She cried, hugging her now youngest son while her husband held the two.
"Does this mean Manuel can stay?" Sofia asked, and Maria nodded.
"Yes, yes it does," she said, giving a watery laugh at the out of blue question.
Eventually the Madrigals had to leave. Making sure to leave the baby bag with them (Pedro having to insist that they keep the whole thing). Esteban and Maria both thanked the Madrigals profusely until they were gone. As they were on their way back to Casita, the kids were smiling as they praised themselves and each other for their success at delivering Manny to his parents. Sure, they had beef with his older self, and sure they didn't really like him then—but it was different now. Now they got to watch him grow up and now they could actually be friends with him. He likely didn't remember anything from before, so now they don't have to worry about going out everyday and have to be tormented by someone 15 years older than them. Mirabel was particularly happy; her plan may have worked a little too well, but that was ok. The outcome was good, and now her and her siblings could rest easy knowing that they had inadvertently gotten someone banished (because while yes, they did believe Manuel deserved it, they still felt terrible about it).
It had been a rough past couple of days, but thankfully they had all been given a second chance, so it was all ok. Maybe that week wouldn't be so bad after all.