Chapter Text
It’s been a week since Casita had been fixed up and magic had returned to the Madrigal family. Things weren't 100% great, not that it really ever was, but it was definitely more bearable in Dolores’s opinion.
Less pressure, that's for sure.
During their half year without magic, she wasn’t sure how many conversations were had between her family members, but she guessed there must have been some judging by the way everyone had been working so well together. And still were, even with their magic back.
Having her gift back had put her at ease. Although it could be very overwhelming at times, she had missed it greatly while fixing up Casita. It was nice being in the know again. She paused a moment in thought.
Should probably examine that more…Hmm maybe later, Mirabel needs help outside.
Today was a good day, she had decided as she made her way down the stairs. There was no sense of being overwhelmed and she couldn’t stop the smile that appeared when she heard the various conversations being had within Casita. Sure, there was always talking going on, but these conversations seemed to carry a different weight.
It kinda feels like progress is happening. At least she hoped so.
The smile on her face widened once she reached the end of the stairs. Staying there for a moment, she honed in on the familiar steps of her sibling approaching their prima.
Mmm maybe Camilo can help her then.
“Oye Mirabel!” Dolores snorted,
Oh Camilo, they sounded so nervous.
When fixing up Casita, Camilo had confided in Dolores about how much they had missed hanging out with Mirabel. Both of them had been very close at one point, but when Camilo got their gift and was essentially forced to move out of the nursery, the two drifted apart.
“Oh! Hey Camilo, what’s up?” Dolores could hear the grin on Mirabel’s face.
“Can we talk?” Camilo asked quietly. Dolores could hear the nerves creep into her sibling's voice.
“Oh sure! I was just trying to tidy everything up out here. If you wanna help and talk?”
“Um yeah, that would be great!” Camilo responded with their regular boisterousness.
Dolores knew how much the separation had weighed on Camilo. They had tried to pass it off as if it hadn’t bothered them, but they were never good at hiding their emotions from Dolores. So, she had suggested that Camilo could just talk to Mirabel, that their prima probably missed how close they had been too. She didn’t mention however, how she had definitely overheard Mirabel having a similar discussion with Isa.
They don’t have to know about that. Looks like Mirabel has all the help she needs.
Dolores began to make her way back upstairs, still smiling.
Hmm what to do with the day now…Maybe I could visit Mariano.
Her face flushed at the thought. During the time everyone helped fix up Casita they had been talking constantly and would more often than not be found together. They had officially made it to dating territory just three days ago.
Dolores hadn’t been joking when she had told him to slow down. She really wanted to give Mariano the chance to get to know her.
She may have also been wanting to take it slow in fear that it would all blow up in her face. Isa was definitely not interested in Mariano, and Mariano had expressed that the feeling was mutual but…
Well, when you are told at a young age that the man of your dreams would be just out of reach and betrothed to another, you would be cautious too.
Young Dolores had made up her mind that requited love was not meant to be in her future. Getting to actually be with Mariano was a new, fun and exhilarating experience, but also a difficult adjustment. Not to mention all the chisme that had been going around in town after the engagement had been called off.
People can be really nasty.
Dolores had forgotten just how nasty, especially when she didn’t have her gift. When they announced that she and Mariano were officially dating, let’s just say Dolores heard some nice things, but also an overwhelming amount of not so nice things.
Still hears an overwhelming amount of some very not nice things.
Her attention shifted to the town. The voices and noises that had been in the background became louder and more clear.
No, no nope! Today is a good day.
She shook her head and attempted to find something else to focus her attention on. She listened throughout the house, heard Camilo and Mirabel talking, her dad with Antonio, soft humming, Abuela Alma talking with tía Julieta.
Wait...the humming…
Her eyes narrowed as she focused on the quiet humming coming from the kitchen. Humming didn’t bother her much. There was Camilo who would be doing it constantly when alone, there was also their parents. Honestly the entirety of the Madrigal family were no strangers to breaking out into song, so Dolores was pretty used to it. At times it was even welcoming.
But the song that was being hummed instantly set her blood boiling. She began to make her way over to the kitchen quietly seething, hands balled into fist to keep from shaking.
Who would even be humming that, how inconsiderate, like really?
She stopped at the entrance of the kitchen when the humming turned into soft singing, “We don’t talk about Bruno~ no no no”
“Ah… tío Bruno?” She quietly stepped into the kitchen where her tío had been sweeping.
He startled, nearly dropping the broom. The rat friend that had been perched on his shoulder squeaked in protest and began to fall. He reached out for them, began to slip, then was caught by Casita moving tiles to keep him upright. The broom clattered on the floor loudly, causing him to jump again, Dolores winced.
Bruno held his rat securely to his chest, wide eyes locked with Dolores. It seemed to take him a moment to process who was in front of him before he let out a small nervous laugh,
“Oh Dolores! Hi,” His eyes skittered away from her own as he glanced around the kitchen, absently petting the rat, “what can I do for you kid?”
Her ears were ringing from the impact of the broom on the floor, then the sound of fingers petting fur, Mirabel laughing, her mom sighing, someone in the village yelling about fresh produce, Mariano tuning his guitar, Casita shifting it’s interior in another room, tío Bruno’s heart–
“Dolores? Dolores? You okay sobrina?” He stepped closer, reaching his hand out. Dolores unconsciously stepped back as she tried to focus on their current conversation.
Bruno let his hand settle back into his rat friend's fur, worry clear on his face as he watched her for a moment, “Too loud?” he asked in a softer tone.
She nodded quickly then forced a forced smile, “Sorry, zoned out for a sec. But yeah, no, I’m fine!”
He gave her a look of disbelief.
“Really! My ears are just ringing a little,” She awkwardly laughed, “You see I was gonna help Mirabel with some of the work outside, but then Camilo got to her first, and I know they really wanted to talk to her so I was going to head back to my room,”
Rambling Dolores, you’re rambling now.
Bruno nodded with a small smile, “I see, that’s good for them” his voice was pitched in a hushed tone now.
Dolores paused for a moment.
When she was younger, she always wanted to talk to someone about everything she heard. It was a lot of information and sharing it had always helped her relax, kept her from being too overwhelmed. She had tried with her mom and dad, but, again not everything she heard was exactly nice, even when she was young, those instances had ended up with them all drenched and both her parents ready to take out whoever had been behind the words Dolores had relayed.
Camilo had always gotten bored after some time, she couldn’t really blame them. Most of what she shared wasn’t even actually that interesting, but she just wanted to get it out of her head. If it left her, her brain could move on to the next conversation. Others that she had tried talking to simply nodded along, never truly listening. Her Tío Bruno, before he left, had always listened. He would ask her questions on how the things she heard made her feel. He understood that she didn’t need anything to be done, that she just needed to let it out, for it to be recognized and to move on to the next thing.
Dolores took a breath. That was so long ago.
She made her way further into the kitchen then leaned against the counter, “Then I was thinking, what I should do with the rest of my day. And I thought I might go see Mariano.” She glanced over and saw the way he had paused in petting his rat, he had looked down at the ground, before giving her an awkward smile, “Oh? And what did you decide?”
Dolores felt herself become relaxed.
“Well you know, he’s really nice and these past weeks have been um.. Well, really fun and great! And his poetry has gotten even better, he’s tuning his guitar right now… so maybe he’s actually busy..” she trailed off. Heat rose into her cheeks as she realized she had forgot about his question for a moment, “Um, anyway, I hadn’t really decided yet, I was going to make up my mind but then I heard humming, and I was going to yell at whoever it was, but, umm, that lead me here, and it was you?”
There was a moment of silence, Dolores watched as her tío processed her words. He tensed up for a moment then shifted his weight and glanced away guiltily, “Ah sorry,” he placed his rat on his shoulder and picked up the broom “I hadn’t realized I was being so loud, I can keep it down”
Dolores shook her head. “Um.. no that’s not why I came…”
Bruno tilted his head to the side in question.
“It’s just, what you were humming, how did you…Oh…”
“Oh…?” he looked concerned.
Of course he knew the song, of course he had heard it.
“Oh tío Burno I’m so sorry. You shouldn’t have had to hear that, I can’t even ima–”
She is interrupted by a quiet, but genuine, laugh from her tío, “You have nothing to be sorry for Dolores, it’s a good song.”
Dolores paused, “Perdóname, que?”
Bruno nervously rubbed the back of his neck, “B-but, I mean, if it makes you upset I can stop?”
“No, that's not…” Dolores crossed her arms and gave a frustrated pout, “Aren't you mad? I would be mad. In fact I’m mad for you and I was even part of it!”
Her tío simply raised an eyebrow with a nervous smile, “Again, it’s a good song. You know your mother, singing is one of the ways she expresses herself,” he shrugged, “Besides you had every right to say what you did” he added quietly.
Dolores opened her mouth to disagree when he shook his head with a small smirk, “But anyway, I have known your mamá for 50 years, I can handle hearing a song of two she’s made about me”
Dolores bit into her bottom lip then sighed, “Okay… if you say so…”
“I do! So no te preocupes” He began to start sweeping the floor again.
Dolores gave a small nod.
Camilo and Mirabel were both laughing, Luisa was making her way back from town, Isabella was talking to some new plants she had just grown, funnily enough her mom was singing to herself, Mariano had started playing the guitar, she heard
the buzzing of bees, tío Augustin’s yelp of surprise–
Bruno cleared his throat bringing her attention back into the kitchen, “Um Dolores. Since you are here… I have been meaning to tell you something if you’re not in a hurry?”
Dolores watched him try to steady his shaky hands, tightening his grip on the broom.
He’s nervous. “I’m in no rush”
“I wanted to say… I am sorry, for a lot of things”
Dolores frowned, “Oh tío Bruno, no you don’t have to…”
“No, por favor let me say this, because I really need to. Dolores I am sorry about giving you my vision of your future” he spoke softly.
Dolores could see the regret in his eyes. She swallowed the noise that tried to escape her, “It’s not your fault, I pressured you to tell me…”
She remembers how hesitant he had been to tell her what he saw. But she had been so persistent. She had wanted to know what glorious foresight she could gain with her tíos gift.
Bruno set the broom aside then stood in front of her shaking his head, “That’s no excuse, I was the adult in that situation. I could have done a better job at explaining how it all works, how my visions are just fragments of a bigger picture that can constantly change… it's just I saw how sad it made you…”
He ran a hand through his hair and pulled at the ends, “The way you shoved that all down and carried on like nothing was wrong, like I hadn’t just told you something horrible,” Tears had started to well up in his eyes, “And then you even kept my secret that I was still here, lo siento,” he wiped at his face with a small sniff, “You shouldn’t have had to go through or do any of that and I am sorry” he finished with a small inhale. She could hear his rapid heartbeat.
Dolores had remembered being shocked for a moment after she was told her future. It had been quickly followed by being so very sad and heartbroken. But she had pushed it all aside. Convinced herself that having the man she loved out of her reach wasn’t that big of a problem. Convinced herself that it wasn’t something one needed to be sad over. Especially when she would still be with her family.
She also remembered how she hadn't even realized the rest of her family had been serious when they said they thought Bruno had left.
She let out a watery laugh, “You know… I thought everyone was joking that you left at first? Cause I could clearly hear you. I was going to tell them but I could also hear how scared you got when you were brought up, so I just stayed quiet…”
“I am so sorry Dolores, no me tienes que perdonar”
Dolores couldn’t hold herself back anymore. She stepped forward and wrapped her arms tightly around her tío Bruno.
He let out a small gasp, his own arms came and held her just as tight.
“It’s okay, I forgave you a long time ago” She sniffed.
Bruno tried to calm his stuttering breath and Dolores just focused on the beat of his heart.
“There’s Maracuyá and Pitaya for sale right now,” she stated quietly.
Bruno’s stuttering breath halted for a moment in his confusion.
“Camilo and Maribel are having a dirt fight, gross. Oh! I think Antonio and his jaguar are in trouble for tearing papi’s pants. Also one of the village kids, Mercedes, challenged Luisa to an arm wrestling match,” she let out a small laugh “Luisa let her win, the other kids are going wild.”
Her tio chuckled quietly. She continued sharing bits and pieces of different conversations.
When she was younger, and too overwhelmed to focus on any particular thing, her tio and her would do this. Except he was the one who started talking about the most random things, from stories about him and his siblings when they were younger, to ideas he had for telenovelas. It always helped her calm down.
Once Dolores felt him relax and his heart returned to a regular pace she pulled away with a small smile. He had a small grateful smile of his own.
“But really, it's okay, I mean it all worked out ya know!”
Bruno nodded with a knowing smile, “Yeah, you and that Mariano really do seem to be getting along well.”
She blushed and made her way to grab the broom, “I was talking more about you getting to be with us again but I mean… You’re not wrong” she began to sweep.
Her tío laughed and leaned against the counter, “That too. So… he writes poetry?”
Dolores smiled, “Nothing too fancy-smancy, but he has gotten a lot better than when I first heard him practicing. I gave him lots of pointers, of course.”
She continued on to talk about how everything had been going, her tío Bruno would nod and hum along, occasionally asking a question here and there as he petted his rat.
She had not anticipated spending the rest of the day like this, but they did. It was nice, relaxing and at no point did she feel like she was being overwhelmed. It felt nice being able to share everything she had heard since they got their gifts back, and to actively be listened to.
Well… I guess he never really stopped listening.
Dolores smiled.