Chapter Text
Mirabel freezes, taken aback by the sight of her family, or more accurately, Pedro’s family, sitting patiently in their chairs.
Now, Mirabel isn’t the one to judge, so she does her best not to judge them. Considering she’s very much used to being judged over something she has no control over. Well, tries to. To the best of her capabilities.
She plasters a smile on her face to disguise the tinge of discomfort. It’s not everyday someone has buttons replacing their eyes. It is a Gift. It’s not the strangest thing to happen to her, she supposes.
With a deep breath, she continues towards them, her steps slow and cautious. They’re quiet. They’re just watching her—if she had to assume from their turned heads. It is very strange.
“Our family is finally complete!” Pedro’s eyes, if he truly had them, would undoubtedly have been wide with excitement. They are oddly animated, though. She can strangely convey the emotions of them.
The other Madrigals cheer and clap at Pedro’s words. They seem really excited to see her. She does ignore how they don’t speak until the patriarch does. It’s just respect. Nothing wrong with that.
Although they are her family with button eyes, they are very doll-like. Mirabel isn’t talking about their appearance since all of them have smooth skin due to her mother’s food. It would definitely be rude to call them dolls just because of their lack of eyes. Even though they would look exactly like that if the doll maker decided to make them into dolls.
Rather, she is referring to their actions. Maybe calling them a puppet would be more fitting. That certainly fits the description well. Again, rude. She’s so thankful that Dolores doesn’t have the Gift of reading minds. Wait. Do they still have their Gifts here?
Alma pushes herself up, taking Mirabel out of her thoughts. The most strange thing about the other Alma is the warm smile gracing her face. The exact opposite expression that her grandmother would look at her with. An expression that Mirabel yearned for her abuela to look at her with for years. “I couldn’t agree any more with my Pedro.” Her expression softens. “It is truly a pleasure to have you here at last. We’ve anxiously waited for your arrival for so long. And, ah, it was no fault of yours that your Door finally appeared. I speak for all of us when I say welcome back home, mi pequeña mariposa.”
Her abuela hasn't used that nickname for her since she was a child. It’s odd. It’s welcoming. It makes her feel warm inside.
“Thank you,” Mirabel finally manages to say after her moment of silence. “I never knew this side of my family…” She trails off, clearing her throat and smiling awkwardly. “But it’s nice to be with you all, even though it’s a bit…intimidating. Uhm, no offense, of course!”
Pedro gives a soft laugh. “No offense taken! We understand, nieta.” As the other Madrigals nod their heads in agreement. He gently pats Mirabel's cheek, his touch cold against her warm skin. “See?”
“Right!”
Alma takes a step forward, wrapping Mirabel into a hug, causing Mirabel to stiffen. “Oh…Mirabel, I sincerely apologize for how the rude version of me treats you. If it was me, I would always make sure you were included and loved. Gift or no Gift.” She murmurs. “It’s a shame that you have such a…disgraceful family. How foolish of them to be so blinded for something as trivial as the Candle.”
Mirabel’s smile wobbles slightly. “I…oh, what?”
“There’s no need to be nervous.” Mirabel turns her head to see her mother speaking. “We’ll treat you just right. Think of us as your actual family, we are,” Julieta pauses for a second. “But not those people. We’re better.” Mirabel could hear the underlying bitterness and anger in Julieta’s voice that she had never heard before. Despite everything, her mother is always warm and nurturing, never showing her rage or losing her temper even when stressed. As quickly as the bitterness is heard, it disappears, replaced by that kindness that Mirabel knows so well. “Besides that, we made you a welcome back cake!”
Mirabel’s eyebrows raise. “Welcome back?” Wouldn’t that only apply if she had met them before? She would have remembered her other family if she had met them before.
“Yep!” Camilo grins, winking at her. He’s so excited to have his cousin back! He waited so long! They have so much to do, so many pranks to play! “Though I was tempted to eat it all by myself, mi melliza. Of course, I had to wait on you! You get the first and biggest slice! Or you can give it to me!” He laughs loudly. “No worries, we’ll eat until our stomachs burst out with cake!”
Pepa shakes her head. “Definitely not,” She muses, chuckling under her breath. “That’s unless you actually want to do that, Mira? I’ll tell you right now, the stomachache afterwards will be a pain in the ass—“
Pepa is cut off as Bruno playfully swats at her, earning a huff from her. “Can you not handle that potty mouth of yours?” Bruno didn’t mind the swearing, but his niece is finally here! He knows that she doesn’t swear herself and he’d really, really like it if Mirabel stayed forever. He didn’t want to scare her away. “There’s children here.”
“Oh, please, like this is stuff they hadn’t already heard.” Pepa says with a fond smile. “But I will tone it down. Not because you told me to, but because I want to not make my Mirabel feel uncomfortable with my swearing.”
“You can release all the words you want to say in the bedroom, Pepi.” Félix grins, causing Pepa to blush.
“Ugh. Please, keep this in the bedroom and not at the dinner table.” Camilo groans. “Disgusting.”
“That much would be helpful.” Dolores mutters. She does need to hear her parents attempting to make her another sibling again.
Félix laughs. “Sorry,”
“If it’s not much of a bother, what do you mean by welcome back?”
“You met us before.” Bruno tells her. “Well, to be accurate, you met me and pá.”
Mirabel blinks in shock. “I did?”
“When you were younger, around five-years-old, and had wandered off into the forest unsupervised. That was our first encounter. And gosh, you gave us a heart attack!” Pedro shakes his head at the memory, clutching his chest. “You were lost and had no clue how to get back to that Casita.” It made him realize that Mirabel would not be safe with the Madrigals. He had to keep her to himself. With his family. They wouldn’t be able to make her happy like them. They won’t provide her with the things she wants. They will. “We saved you.”
“Uh-huh…” Surely Mirabel would remember seeing the counterparts of her family members. She doesn’t remember that at all, though.
“You don’t remember us leading you back, do you?”
“…I don’t remember much about my childhood. I do have a diary that I wrote in for years. If I checked it…” Mirabel trails off hesitantly. “Maybe I could try to remember it?”
“Oh, we’re not forcing you.” Pedro clasps his hands, smile widening. “I was just telling you that this isn’t our first time meeting. I thought it would make you more familiar with us.”
“We are your family, after all.” Luisa chimes in. “It’s nice to have my sweet little sister here.”
“W-what about—“
“I can talk to animals!” Antonio beams. “Isn’t that cool, Mira?”
“U-uh,” That does sound cool. “Yes, it is, Toñito! It fits you perfectly!”
“I’ll go get the knife to cut the cake.” Julieta also stands up, smile never faltering. “I wasn’t expecting my daughter to be here so early. I’m glad.”
“Oh, oh, can we set up decorations for Mirabel’s return!”
“A party?” Alma hums. “Why not?”
“O-oh, there’s no reason—“
“We insist.” Agustín states. “It’s for you!”
“Yeah!”
“You deserve a party! A ceremony.”
A ceremony.
Her failed ceremony.
Her ceremony, which people do not talk about, yet associate her with. The only Madrigal without a Gift. Giftless Mirabel. The Odd One Out. The Left Out Child.
It’s what caused her family to become so different.
And distant.
Mirabel jumps when she feels a tap on her shoulder, turning around to see Isabela.
“I-Isabela?”
That made Mirabel realize that Isabela didn’t speak at all. She didn’t say one word to her or to anyone else, just staring. The only Madrigal who didn’t say a word so far.
“I’ve been wanting to meet you for a while, Mirabel.” Isabela says softly. “I wasn’t sure how you’d react to, well, me.”
“I…” Mirabel isn’t sure how to react. There is no underlying bitterness or hatred in her voice. Just softness. She didn’t think Isabela could speak like that to her. “I don’t mind you. I was just surprised. You’re unusually…quiet unlike my Isabela. Not that I mind!” She begins sputtering frantically, eyes widening in panic. “I-I mean, it’s up to you whether or not you want to speak!”
Isabela laughs. It isn’t snarky or condescending, it’s pure joy. She sounds more amused by her rambling than anything. “Oh, it’s alright. I know what you mean, hermanita.” Hesitantly, she steps forward. “I’m pretty quiet because I’m not sure how you want me.”
Mirabel didn’t expect that. “H-how I want you?”
“To be.” Isabela finishes off with an unsure smile. “I know you have issues with the other me and I don’t want to be like her. I want you to be comfortable, you know. What do you want from me?”
“Uh, I…I don’t know.”
“Really?”
“I don’t think so. I just want my…sister back.”
“Alright.” Without warning, Isabela envelopes her in a hug. “Is this something that you want?”
Slowly but surely, Mirabel wraps her arms around Isabela. “…Yes,”
Isabela catches Pedro's gaze behind Mirabel's back, noticing his small smile.
Then, he opens his mouth.
Keep her here.
And Isabela gives him a subtle nod.
She is going to do that anyway.
She couldn’t have her little sister leaving them again. She couldn’t have that terrible version of them trying to take Mirabel away from them.
They’re the better Madrigals.