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Chapter Text

It is just like any other day in the casita of the Madrigals, every one is sitting around the table eating breakfast as Abuela goes over everyone's chores for the day.

"Camilo you are on baby sitting duty, Pepa you and Julieta have a day off, Felix and Augustin your are on wood chopping duty, Dolores keep an ear out and do as you see fit, Antonio you go with Isabella and help around town and Luisa do as you usually do, Mirabel go to the nursery and stay out the way." Abuela says.

Everyone replies with a quick nod and then gets to work, except Mirabel who stays to talk with Abuela, "But Abuela why do I have to go to the nursery all day again? I can help Mama in the kitchen or, I don't know, go with Isa and Tonio to help around town." Mirabel replied.

"MIRABEL YOU WILL NOT SPEAK BACK AND YOU WILL DO AS YOU ARE TOLD NOW LISTEN FOR ONCE AND GO TO YOUR ROOM!" Abuela shouts.

"YOU KNOW WHAT ABUELA? I ALWAYS DO WHAT YOU SAY, I NEVER TALK BACK OR IGNORE YOU, SO NO, I AM GOING INTO TOWN AND THERE IS NOTHING YOU CAN DO TO STOP M-" Mirabel is cut off by Abuela slapping her across the face, grabbing her by the wrist as she drags Mirabel to the nursery slamming and locking the door behind her.

TW : SELF HARM, PANIC ATTACK, PASSING OUT FROM LACK OF AIR, BLOOD LOSS AND SUICIDAL THOUGHTS .

Mirabel sits in the nursery hyperventilating whilst grabbing the small flip knife from under her mattress. She takes of her skirt, then her shirt, leaving her only in her underwear before slicing deep into her thighs. Once her thighs are covered in cuts and blood she moves to her wrists to do the same thing. She thinks to herself, 'I am so sorry that I can't be perfect or that because I never got a gift that I will never be good enough for you, so I'm just gonna cut till I pass out or die. Whatever comes first, it's way better than this any way'

She stands up to get a gauze to wrap her leg still hyperventilating but she immediately falls to the ground before passing out with a small smile on her face .

{Chapter published: 7th January 2022
Chapter edited: 26th June 2022
Edited by: keekskeiko}

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After Abuela slams the nursery door, Pepa goes out into the hallway to see her pacing the halls. Pepa then angrily walks up to Abuela and puts a hand on her shoulder whilst asking,

"What's going on, mama, are you okay, is Mirabel okay?"

"Yes Mija, Mirabel is fine, she had to be punished after speaking to me the way she did. I'm sure you heard, you don't need Dolores’ hearing to hear that little witch screaming at me." She seethes.

"Okay mama, just why don't you go into town to make sure things are running smoothly, hm?" Pepa asks whilst hiding her anger at the way her mother had spoke about her niece.

"Yes I suppose I will." Alma replies coldly as she walks down the stairs and out of Casita.

[[TW: THIS IS GOING TO HAVE GRAPHIC INJURY DESCRIPTION AND ALOT OF BLOOD TALK ASWELL AS A PANIC ATTAK SO BE WARNED]]

After Pepa is sure her mother is away, she calls for Julieta who immediately walks out of the kitchen and up the stairs to where her sister is standing.

"What's wrong, Pepa? You're thundering." Julieta asked gently.

"Mama s-slapped Mi-Mira" Pepa stuttered.

Julieta stilled. Silence fell above the two sisters. After what felt like hours, Julieta spoke.

"Pepa go into the nursery and make sure she is okay. I'm going to get some arepas to heal any bruises that might be on her face from the slap."

"Okay" Pepa replied before going to the nursery.

Pepa opened the door, when she walked in she noticed the light was off, so she turned it on only to discover that Mirabel was unconscious in a pool of her own blood. She ran over before screaming for Julieta to hurry up and bring the food. She gently shook Mira to wake her up. Mira groaned as she woke up, upon seeing the blurry figure and realizing she was in her underwear with her cuts visible, she started hyperventilating and crawling backwards away from Pepa in to the corner, where she curled up in a ball and started rocking herself whilst trying to control her breathing. Pepa finally spoke in the softest voice she could,

"hey Mira, it's okay, it's just Tia Pepa and Mama. We are going to help you, what happened to you baby, how did you get those cuts?"

Mirabel slowly started crawling towards Pepa and when she was close enough she fell on top of her trying to hug her only to discover the couldn't feel her arms. This led her to start hyperventilating again only to be lifted onto her Tia's lap, she could feel herself being held and rocked. It was about five minutes later when Julieta ran into the room to see her daughter asleep covered in blood being held and rocked by her sister who was now also covered in blood. She started gently shaking her daughter awake. Mirabel started panicking again, only to be rocked again and told it was okay by her Mama and Tia.

"Hey baby, it's just Mama, you're okay, you're okay," She repeats.

"Listen sweetie, can you do me a big favour and take a bite out of this, please, it will help you, please." Julieta repeats again, her voice gentle.

"M-Mama I don't feel good…"

{Chapter published: 7th January 2022
Chapter edited: 26th June 2022
Edited by: keekskeiko}

Chapter Text

TW THIS WHOLE CHAPTER IS A TRIGGER WARNING WITH PANIC ATTACKS SUICIDAL THOUGHTS AND VOMIT
"M-Mama I don't feel good" Mirabel whimpers clutching her stomach "Well you have lost a lot of blood mija but is it something else do you feel sick " when Mirabel nods Pepa shifts Mirabel so she is lying against Julieta then runs to the bathroom to get a bucket only to discover Mirabel has already been sick all over herself and her mama and is now crying and hyperventilating "hey, hey Mira baby it's okay you're okay it was an accident you didn't mean it its okay its okay breath baby breath". when Mirabel calms down and her breathing is back to normal Pepa gently asks "Hey Mija do you wanna go for a bath me and your mama will help you get cleaned and fixed up" mirabel mumbles something but neither woman understands what she say "mija can you say that a little louder please" Julieta says "don't deserve it " she mumbles again "Mira where did you get that idea from hm?" Pepa says
"what idea the idea that I don't deserve a thing I touch or the air I breath or the food I eat or the water I use to bathe or drink what that idea that idea came from Abuela constantly talking down to me and Isa talking about me and saying I'm a disgrace to the family or how about me getting bullied by all the other 15 year olds in the village simply because I don't have a gift well they don't have gifts either so I don't know why they pick on me but they do the only reason I am still on this planet is because someone caught me trying to drown myself in the river so they pulled me out only to beat me because I was a disgrace but I can hide it all perfectly I've been doing it since I didn't get my gift so today I just wanted to die so I cut till I passed out but I got save AGAIN why can't I just be left to die it would be better for everyone if I were just DEAD" Mirabel yelled whilst crying and hyperventilating ,it took her a couple seconds but she suddenly realized she had broken her number one promise to herself she wasn't meant to talk about her feelings so she quickly got up and started to crawl away from her Mama and Tia only to be grabbed around the waist and sat on her Mama's lap she started to break down crying but she also started to try and fight her way out of her mama and Tia's grips she needed to get the knife from her bed but she couldn't break the grip and when her Tia saw what Mirabel was looking at she stopped helping her sister wrestle Mirabel into a hug to calm her down and stood up she picked up the small flip knife that was covered in dry blood she put it in her pocket only to see Mirabel's eyes go wide and try to get to her Tia to get the knife but her Mama was to strong and her Tia was to far away so she just stopped fighting letting herself be pulled into a hug by her Mama she broke down again and started hyperventilating again and a couple minutes later despite her Mama's best efforts she passed out because she couldn't breath properly . Pepa walked into the nursery again after discarding the knife to see a passed out Mirabel on Julieta's lap ,when Julieta realised her sister was there they shared worried glances as Pepa says "what are we going to do with her I'm so worried she could've died and for the past hour she has been hyperventilating more than she has been breathing normally." "I know I'm worried to she is my daughter after all but right now I think we let her rest although one of us must always be here with her also could you please go and get Augustin and Felix if you want as well they should know what is going on with her " Julieta asks barely above a whisper so as to not wake her daughter "Yes I will be back in a couple of minutes oh um I'm going to get changed first I don't want them to panic if they see the blood but I will be back here with them in five minutes." Pepa replies at the same volume her sister spoke at "okay thank you Pepa for everything" Julieta says Pepa just nods her head in a silent reply.

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After Pepa gets changed she runs down the stairs and round the back of casita where she sae Agustin and Felix are chopping the wood miraculously Agustin isn't covered in bee stings but she decides that doesn't matter as she calls out to them "Felix Agustin come quick it's Mirabel something happened and she needs her Tio and Papa" Agustin's head immediately shoots up at the sound of Pepa's voice talking about his daughter so both him and Felix both run to her "What happened to her Mi Vida is she okay?" Felix asks whilst Agustin runs ahead to find his wife and daughter. "not really no we are about to put her in a bath we got her to eat a little bit off an arepa to heal her as she cut her thighs and wrists until she passed out so we need to get up there in case we need to help Julieta with any thing" Felix just nods sadly as they run up to casita.by the time they get there Agustin still hasn't found them so Pepa says bathroom as she walks up the stairs both men nod and follow when they get to the bathroom they see Julieta rocking a crying Mirabel in her under garments Mirabel instantly looks up at the presence of the three adults standing in the doorway and starts panicking and trying to cover herself up or hide behind her mama because she is just in her underwear so is embarrassed with the presence of the men Agustin sees this and instantly starts soothing his youngest daughter walking in the bathroom picking her up and cradling her "hey Mira it's okay it's just papa mama Tia and Tio here your safe no need to hide your safe your okay now how about we get that bath running so mama and Tia can clean you up hm?" Mirabel looks up to see it really is just her family and not strangers like she thought it was as she couldn't see through her tears so she slowly nods much to her Tia and mama's delight ,they had been trying to get her to allow them to help her and didn't quite understand how Agustin managed to get her to allow it but the were not complaining so with that Julieta took the now very tired looking Mirabel out of her papa's arms as Pepa quietly pushed both men outside the door and helped Mirabel get undressed although she did protest she soon stopped when she realised it was just her Tia and Mama and that her Tio and Papa where outside the door Julieta lifted her almost too light daughter into the bathtub filled with warm water and bubbles and smiled as she saw her daughter relax "okay Mira can I touch your arm I need to clean away the blood so we can make sure the arepa did it's job " Pepa asks gently hold a wash cloth but at the sound of someone wanting to touch her arms she flinched and whimpered pulling them close to her chest starting to panic a little shrinking in on herself as she started to cry and hyperventilate she started thinking 'if I let Tia Pepa see my arms or thighs she's going to stop loving me and so will Tio and mama and papa I already said to much I have to get out ,get out that's what I have to do ' she suddenly jumped out the water only to collapse strait onto the floor completely naked not to mention humiliated she also hit her head on the sink while she was falling at the sound of Pepa an Julieta gasping then suddenly panicking both men burst in the bathroom to find an unconscious Mirabel with a small scratch on her head being held by her mama luckily Pepa managed to put a towel around Mirabel before the men burst in "what happened" both men asked "I just asked if I could wash of her arms to make sure there were no marks and clean off the dried blood and she started panicking whilst holding her arms close to her chest and rocking back and forth muttering something and before me or Juli could calm her down she jumped out the water towards the door only for her legs to give out and she hit her head on the sink" Pepa explained. "well we will go back out side and you finish cleaning her of make sure she is awake though and just call us if you need any thing okay?" both women nodded and gave there husbands a kiss before the men left and Julieta gently sook her daughter trying to get her to wake up "Mira Mira honey you have to wake up" Julieta said, Mirabel suddenly jumped up she saw the door and only managed to get to and open it before she collapsed right in between her papa and Tio who were sitting at either side of the door ,both men jumped but Agustin seeing his daughter immediately picked her up and started rocking her on his lap unfortunately her towel fell of when she jumped but her Tio noticed this and just put it over her but she didn't notice at least not yet she didn't when she did realise that it was just on her and not around her she started to panic because her bare back was against her father "hey mija it's okay don't worry we don't love you any less it just means you're going to need to be kept an eye on but we did that anyway nothing will change so don't worry okay baby we still love you your okay your safe its just Tia Tio and me and mama your completely safe" Agustin whispers in her ear trying to comfort her but he figured it didn't work when she jumped out of his arms and ran to the nursery shutting the door behind her she grabbed a blanket then climbed under the bed rocking and crying quietly, no more than five seconds later was her Mama gently pulling her out from under the bed and holding her gently tucking the blanket more around her gently rocking her crying daughter until Mirabel slowly started to fall asleep
to the lullaby her mama started singing to her very quietly so only she could hear it when Mirabel started protesting "No Mama I'm not tired I just want to be left alone please" she said as she struggled to get free from her mama's grip "hush baby go to sleep you are safe okay we aren't going to let anyone hurt you " Julieta said calmly .Mirabel looked up to see her Tia and Tio sitting on her bed smiling at her then she looked to her left to see her papa gently pushing his hand through her hair she quietly giggled "no bee stings" "no bee stings " he replied with a small smile as she finally let sleep take her.

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When Mirabel wakes up she notices that she is now in her pyjamas and her bed and she is curled up next to someone who is very much awake and running there fingers through her hair, then she remembers what happened and she starts panicking instantly the hand in her hair moves and she is scooped up and put in the persons lap she starts panicking even more as she cannot see who the person is because she doesn't have her glasses on so she struggles only for a second person to take her hand and starts saying "hey your okay it's just Tia pepa and the person holding you is your Tio Felix he hugged you once you fell asleep as he had to go to start chopping wood again but you grabbed him and wouldn't let go okay so you are completely safe look mija here are your glasses" once she slowly put them on she realised it really was just her Tia and Tio she slowly started to calm down and started curling up even more and shaking because she hadn't eaten except a tiny bit of arepa that did nothing not only that but she was cold as well so she tried to curl up more into her Tio's chest hoping to get some heat from him. She heard her Tio mutter something to her Tia but wasn't paying attention so just clung to his shirt still shaking ,suddenly she was gently pried from her Tio's shirt only to have a big fleecy blanket draped over her shoulders "that better mija" her Tio chuckled to which she nodded so fast she had to put her hands on her head to stop the room from spinning "woah be careful there mija your gonna fall off the bed" Pepa said resting a hand on her shoulder to ground her Mirabel just nodded slowly in response before shuffling over to where her Tio was sitting with his legs crossed and climbed onto his lap before grabbing a lump of his shirt in her hand which both Pepa and Felix thought was adorable so Felix whispered to Pepa to go get her sister and brother in law to see it Pepa quickly nodded and went to get her sister just as Mirabel fell asleep again . "Julieta Agustin come quick Mirabel curled herself up in Felix's lap it is so cute "she said whilst grinning ,both nodded and went up to see Mirabel curled up asleep on Felix's lap breathing steadily , about ten minutes later all the adults were still in the nursery when Mirabel started to stir but as they soon found out she wasn't waking up she was having a nightmare they figured this out after seeing her squirming and then mumbling "no please I'm sorry don't leave I didn't mean to I had to please NO PLEASE Tia Pepa I didn't want you to see them ,mama I'm sorry I was sick on you I didn't mean it ,Papa , Tio I didn't mean for Tia Pepa I know I'm not important I know I'm sorry please don't go la Familia is here please I will go 1 is better than four I'm sorry NO PLEASE " she muttered whilst crying and shaking in her sleep "Quick Felix wake her she's having a nightmare" Julieta said he nodded and started gently shaking her whilst rocking them both back and fourth and whispering to her that she is okay and that they all still love her and that they are all still right there with her. When she woke up again she was panicked and hyperventilating so quickly her Mama grabbed her hands gently and put them on her chest whilst saying "copy my breathing baby you're okay nothing can hurt you we are all here you are important I know you didn't mean to be sick you didn't disturb your Tio or Papa" slowly her breathing evened out and she looked around seeing her Tia and mama and papa but didn't see her Tio so she started panicking thinking he had left her but she quickly stopped when she felt a hand going through her hair ,feeling stupid she looked up to see her Tio looking at her smiling gently "you didn't think I left you did, did you?" Her Tio asked softly his question was answered when a light blush spread across her face and she gently nodded "Oh Mija I would never neither would anyone else in la Familia" Felix soothed she nodded again only for her Mama to pipe in "you want some food baby?" she shook her head 'I deserve to be sick and I deserve the pain from my cuts' Mirabel thought "Who changed me mama and" Her eyes blown wide "Wh-Who touched m-my arms " she panicked lifting up her pyjama bottom's waist band enough so only she could see her thighs "and my legs" she finally stuttered out her full sentence "Me and Tia baby we had to they were gonna get infected if we didn't" her mama replied calmly
"B-But now your gonna leave me because you saw me and I'm dirty and disgusting and broken and-" "you are none of those things baby you are smart and beautiful and one of the best people I know so please calm down you are okay we are here to stay okay mija" Agustin interrupted Mirabel. grabbing her hands squeezing them gently whilst Felix gently rocked back and forth with her, she nodded. "now are you going to eat for mama you need to eat something it will make you feel better" Julieta as gently Mirabel shook her head again whilst thinking 'still don't deserve it I just need my knife and five minutes alone and' her thought process was cut off when she felt another gentle squeeze on her hand "What's going on up there baby hm? nothing intrusive I hope" her Papa said calmly , "well unfortunately it is the voices won't give me piece" she muttered "what was that Mija " Pepa said looking at her husbands shocked face as he heard with being so close to the girl "what Felix?" Agustin asked "what voices Mija" Felix asked carefully "you weren't supposed to hear that Tio" she mumbled back "VOICES" her Tia mama and papa shouted causing the girl to jump and whimper, curling in on herself "sorry Mira we're sorry but what do you mean by voices" her mama asked taking her free hand "it's nothing" she said "well it's clearly something baby please talk to us" Agustin pleaded "It's nothing papa please stop ,look can I please go to the bathroom" she asked "yes Mira do you need help " Her mama asked kindly " No mama I should be fine" she said standing up and immediately falling flat on her face with a small 'oomph' sound as her legs gave out. strait away all four adults where on there feet her papa getting to her first picking her up and sitting her back on the bed "you okay mija" her papa asked as her nose started bleeding "yup papa I'm fine but can I get a tissue" she replied whilst getting handed a tissue "um Mama do you think I could get some help to the bathroom?" she asked while blushing hard "yes Mija, No problem" Julieta replies gently lifting her daughter to her feet and guiding her through the hall way "do you need help in there Mija? " " no thanks mama I'm fine" she replied "okay well I will be right out here don't lock the door in case I need in to help you okay?" "okay mama" she says walking into the bathroom not locking the door as she was told but then she starts thinking 'I need to get out of here I'm being a nuisance but how can I get out mama is right at the door , wait the window its a bit small but I should be able to get through yes that's what i will do " she thinks as she opens the window 'luckily It's a first floor bathroom' she thinks as she climbs out only to fall on her face again only this time she was knocked out from the small fall. "Mira are you okay in there baby?" Julieta says and when she gets no response she opens the door to find no Mirabel and an open window "AGUSTIN FELIX MIRA'S GONE" she yells immediately both men are down the stairs with Pepa and ask what's wrong " she went in, window closed I opened the door no Mira, window open" strait away both men left casita in search of the young Madrigal only to find her thirty seconds later when they walked round the house and saw her unconscious ,both men ran to her Agustin scooped her up bridal style and carried her strait to the nursery where he gently put her on the bed and woke her while Felix and Pepa sat at the end of the bed and Julieta got a glass of water and some arepas for her. show woke up with a groan and rubbed her where it was bleeding and then winced because she had dirty hands and just rubbed dirt into the cut Agustin gently pulled her hand away and rubbed her head with a wet wash cloth to clean the wound "Why did you try to run baby ?" he asked calmly "Don't want to live or be a burden on you cause I have to " Her papa winced at that "but baby why do you not want to live hm?" "don't deserve to don't have a gift I'm useless not perfect like Isa or strong like Luisa I'm just useless" she said with a strait face "but baby you are strong and you are perfect maybe you don't have a gift like theirs but your gift is that you don't need one to be strong or perfect" he replied " now how 'bout we go and get some arepas from mama and you eat so you can feel better you haven't eaten in a day it's not healthy so let's go get some grub" Agustin said " Where is Abuela and Isa and every one else why haven't I seen or heard them" she said changing the subject "they are on a camping trip and will be for the next 10 days now how about we go get some food" her Tia Pepa replied kindly "oh ok and no thanks not hungry" she said turning away from the three adults and closing her eyes only to be picked up and sat in her papa's lap "look baby you are going to have to eat something you need to get your strength up and we need to heal those cuts so please just eat something for me and if not for me then for yourself tis isn't healthy mija" Agustin says to his daughter "I'm. Not . Hungry" she insists trying to stand up "Mira stop squirming you're going to hurt yourself c'mon mija please even if you aren't hungry you still need to eat your body needs it" he says "I'M NOT HUNGRY " she yells finally breaking free of her papas grasp and stumbling out the nursery door not paying attention to where she's going she runs directly into her mama and falls down the stairs a sickening snap sound made as she hits the bottom then she starts screaming in pain as her shoulder blade sticks out at an angle , she blacks out for a couple seconds only to see her mama ,papa Tia and Tio standing around her checking her over to make sure nothing is broken the adults stop at her shoulder and she hears her family gasp and start talking to each other suddenly she is being picked up carefully so as to not move her injured shoulder then she is laid down on her stomach and she hears a brief I'm sorry from all four adults before there is a weight on her legs , arms and lower back she then realises 'Oh my god I'm being pinned down' so she starts to struggle when suddenly an arepa is held up to her mouth so she closes it but then someone holds her nose so she has to breath ,so she opens her mouth to breath and some of the arepa was put in her mouth by who she assumes is her mama then someone else who she assumes is her papa is closing her mouth and telling her that "he is sorry " and "you need to chew " so she gives up she chews and swallows the food and suddenly all her cuts heal and her dislocated shoulder moves back into place she is immediately released and strait away they try to hug her but she weakly stands shaking a bit then slowly walks away crying .

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TW PRETTY GRAPHIC SELF HARM AND MENTION OF VOMIT SO PLEASE REED WITH CAUTION.
Mirabel can hear her family trying to reason with her but she walks away anyway as she slowly stumbles up the stairs basically hugging the railing she suddenly falls to her hands and knees and starts vomiting the arepa back out of her system though the healing magic remains once she is able to stand back up she walks back down the stairs and past her family strait to the bathroom where she goes to get a mop and a shallow bucket of water shallow enough that she can carry it , she carries the bucket to where her vomit is and starts cleaning it up the whole time she can feel her family's eyes on her suddenly her mama appears at her side rubbing her back though Mirabel takes a step back denying the contact, then her mama takes the mop and bucket from her hand not allowing her to clean up the mess so Mirabel takes it and walks up to the nursery where she locks the door and cries she just hopes that her family can't find the spare set of keys to get into the nursery .Once she has calmed herself she sakes some white fabric and a black thread and starts sewing them together then she gets an idea 'they took any thing sharp that I could cut with but they didn't take my needle so I will sew my hand not the fabric they won't even know I'm doing it even if they enter it will just look like I have my palm under the fabric I'm sewing a black butterfly onto when I'm actually sewing my hand and this piece of fabric already has a black butterfly on it' she thought so she got to work wincing every time the needle went through her hand she even started crying she didn't know when but she did so for the time it took her parents and Tia and Tio to find the key she was sewing a black butterfly into the palm of her left hand she had no regrets when she finished it so she decided to go to sleep. Mirabel woke up with a jump from a nightmare and instantly she headed butted her Papa when she did this she saw stars and started throwing up on the floor beside her immediately her mama was at her side putting the back of her hand against her daughters forehead only to pull away to discover that she was burning up bad although Mirabel was still mad at her family she leaned into the coolness of her mamas hand getting relief from the cool against her hot skin seeing this Agustin put his hands on her cheeks effectively making the girl go limp into her papa's grasp he caught her head and gently lay it on his lap where he put his hands back on his daughters face cooling it again she whimpered when he took them off to adjust her so she wasn't uncomfortable she heard her papa say something but didn't know what all she knew was she was to warm and her papa had cool hands so she let sleep take her right there and when her papa looked down he smiled seeing her asleep with a slight smile on her face. About ten minutes later Mirabel woke up again once again jumping up but this time gentle arms wrapped around her small frame and another set held a bucket under her chin just in time for her to throw up into it ,the arms that were previously wrapped around her where now rubbing in back and stomach in small circles whilst the voice of her papa told her she was okay and that she just needed to get it up and she would feel better. so she just gave up and stopped trying to stop it she let it happen and passed out, once again being gently caught in her papas cool hands. when Mirabel woke up for the third time that day she was being carried somewhere she tried to protest by talking or moving but neither worked she was to weak 'I wonder papa is carrying me to ' Mirabel thought though she soon found out when her papa handed Mirabel to her mama who gasped at how light her daughter felt then Mirabel saw a glimpse of her Tio Felix's worried face aswell as her papa's just as the bathroom door shut so that's were she was the bathroom 'hm where's Tia Pepa' she thought although that too was answered when she looked around even though she was delirious she could still make out her mama and Tia's worried faces she wondered what she was doing in the bathroom suddenly her mama said "hey baby we are going to have to undress you to put you in a bath is that okay if not me or tia will just come in the bath with you with your clothes on so which one mija ?" Mirabel shakily held up two fingers she didn't want to risk her Tia and mama finding out about the butterfly on her hand so her mama just nodded and stepped into the bath with Mirabel in her arms both fully clothed she sunk down into the cool water Mirabel still in her arms the second Mirabel touched the water she immediately started struggling whilst saying "c-cold mama let me out" "I know mija I know it's cold but we have to get your temperature down your burning up when we unlocked the nursery you were burning up really bad okay so please just do this for mama just a little while longer" Julieta replied gently while combing her fingers through Mirabel's hair Mirabel just whimpered in response but leaned into the touch anyway, then Pepa gently reached out to hold Mirabel's left hand but the second Mirabel felt contact on the back of her left hand she pulled it away pulling it to her chest and holding it there like it was an injured animal "Mira is your hand okay ?" Pepa asks gently to which Mirabel slowly nods her head obviously lying but Julieta and Pepa drop it for now just saying a quick okay looking at each other in secret agreement to check later when Mirabel is asleep. Slowly Julieta hands Pepa Mirabel who is now half asleep and barely staying awake Pepa then strips Mirabel before quickly changing her into some fluffy pyjamas, carefully she picks Mirabel up and shuts the bathroom door leaving her sister to get changed and dried off .As Pepa slowly and carefully carries Mirabel up the stairs she notices something black sticking out from Mirabel's tightly clenched fist she was just about to pull it when she decided against it as she was worried she would drop Mirabel if she got distracted so when Pepa gets to the nursery she lays Mirabel down in the bed before tucking her in then sitting at the bottom of the bed as Mirabel finally falls asleep. When Mirabel wakes up for the final time that day, well night now butshe wakes up to a loud noise and frantic whispering from her family she slowly opens her eyes and grabs her glasses and puts them on to see her family frantically searching the nursery and cleaning up something they just knocked over ' oh so that's what woke me but what re the looking for' Mirabel thought
"Mama , Tia , Papa , Tio what are you looking for is something wrong" Mirabel said timidly the adults looked over to her with worried faces when her Tio walked over to her "hey Mija how many sewing kits and needles do you have and where are they " he asked kindly. Not thinking due to still being groggy from just waking up she said "only three they are in a box under the bed all my sewing stuff is why Tio?" Mirabel replies "Do you need something sewn I can do it for you if you want" she continued "No mija we just need to make sure all your things are there you see we found a needle and just wanted to make sure it didn't fall out okay ?" he said with a sad smile .she just nodded repeating "It's under my bed " He nodded before crouching and pulling out the only box under there and only when she saw it did she realize the real reason they wanted it "oh wait no Tio that's not the right box sorry the right one is in my drawer" she said panicked he only nodded before saying "what's in here then mija?" "oh That's just Tonio's birthday present why?" she knew immediately she had caught herself out Tonio's birthday had been a month ago she had never missed giving a birthday present on time he just smiled sadly again before saying "can I look then " she immediately shook her head taking the box and running down the stairs with it unfortunately for her because she was so weak she had to use the railing but when a tiny skelf caught on the stitches on her hand right at the bottom she immediately fell to her knees dropping the box and vomiting all over the floor due to the pulling feeling the skelf caused not only had she thrown up but she had also spilled the bow all over the floor as well but the worst thing was that because her family had chased her to make sure she would be okay the bloody butterfly fabric along with the needle that was through it landed right at their feet making them all gasp. Mirabel reached out and grabbed her papa's pant leg pulling lightly immediately all the adults looked at her and and saw Mirabel was about to pass out so Agustin crouched down and scooped up his 15 year old daughter like she was a small puppy before carrying her to his and Julieta's room he figured the bed was much comfier and that meant they didn't need to worry about going down the stairs for the bathroom due to the En suite not to mention the fact that Pepa and Felix could sleep in here too as there was a spare bed meant for Mirabel when she wanted it but right now Agustin couldn't imagine leaving his daughter alone so he put her in his and Julieta's bed and tucked her in as he lay next to her she didn't fall asleep again she just cried and clung to Agustin like he was the one thing keeping her alive and he didn't mind later that night the other three adults entered the room upon Mirabel's request Felix and Pepa quickly fell asleep and so did Agustin though he took longer and as much as she tried stay awake Julieta also ended up falling asleep. She did wake up later that night though when she did Mirabel wasn't the hugging her so she panicked waking her husband who also panicked so they woke up Pepa who instantly said it was fine while pulling back the duvet to show Mirabel asleep clinging to a very much awake Felix. Julieta just said "she must have went to the only person awake for comfort and fell asleep .night every one " there was three responses of I think your right and good night.

Chapter Text

When Mirabel wakes up she finds herself soaked in her own sweat but not just that she is clinging tightly to her Tio Felix as if her life depends on him letting her hold on , she notices he is also soaked because of her sweat and she suddenly starts panicking but before he can console her she is up and running to the bathroom to vomit up anything she had in her system so basically just water and bile he quickly runs after her and his heart breaks as he sees her hunched over the toilet bowl dry heaving while crying he is immediately at her side rubbing her back and stomach while telling her she's okay and that he is right beside her just after he finished talking to her he starts calling for the rest of the adults who quickly come from various places to see how Mirabel is doing they walk in to see Mirabel crying and gasping while leaning her back against her Tio's stomach as he rocks them both back and forth gently while rubbing her stomach , as he is doing this he notices some black on Mirabel's hand so he points to her hand with his free hand as the other adults understand and look at the hand he is pointing to they all notice the small amount of black as well not knowing what it is so Agustin walks over and sits next to Mirabel taking her right hand in his he gently turns it over and starts rubbing it gently then Julieta get the hint and walks over to her other side and attempts to take Miras left hand into her into her own only for Mirabel to wince and pull he hand away holding it tightly against her chest again.

"Mija what's wrong with your hand why won't you let anyone touch it" Pepa asks softly

"Nothing I just want one hand free" she replies obviously lying

"Why do you need a hand free baby we are just trying to make you feel better you used to feel better when me and papa held your hands all the time" Julieta says calmly

"Just want it fr-" She is interrupted when she pushes herself over the toilet again as another wave of vomit splashes into the toilet she starts crying again as her stomach starts hurting. she is immediately pulled back onto her Tio's lap gently as he continues to rock her and rub her stomach she soon calmed down at her stomach being gently rubbed she topped crying and said:

"Can I go back to bed please I just want to sleep"

"Okay but you need to shower or take a bathe and answer a couple quick questions first okay?" Her Tio asked

"Wh-what questions " she said panicking a little

"Nothing bad Mija just about something we saw and need to ask about to make sure you are okay, is that alright?" Pepa said gently whilst her papa gave her hand a squeeze.

"Is it about the fabric and needle cause uhm that's just paint" she stammers

"No it isn't paint baby I have dealt with enough injury's to know what blood looks like. Now you do have to tell us why it was like that we need to make sure you are okay." Julieta says with a stern yet soft voice

"Promise you're not gonna be mad at me" she says getting a little panicked again

"Hey Mira we promise we all promise don't we" Augustin says getting nods from the three other adults ,this calms Mirabel slightly though she is still extremely nervous about what will happen when she shows them her hand.

"My hand" She says ,immediately Julieta gently take Mirabel's hand which is currently balled up in a tight fist

"You need to unclench your fist baby" Julieta says , Mirabel just shakes her head and clenches her fist even more wincing when she feels her nails break through the skin of her palm tearing some of the stitches immediately Felix gently takes her hand from her mothers and starts using his strength to pry open her fingers though he is being gentle so as not to hurt her, once he has uncurled her fist she winces when the cool air of the bathroom hits her hand but doesn't say a word as the four adults stare jaws on the floor her mama is crying she made her mama cry suddenly Mirabel starts crying and struggling to get out of her Tio's tight yet gentle hold on her , when she realizes she can't get free she starts hyperventilating curling up her fist tighter than before wincing when she feels her nails go deeper into her hand her Tio is trying to get it undone again when she suddenly pulls her fist back and puts it against her chest curling in on herself to hide it now her papa and Tio are trying to get to her fist she just keeps rocking back and forth muttering over and over "I deserve this I made mama cry" she must have muttered it about 50 times by the time her Papa and Tio got her and free and uncurled though she was still rock and still muttering whilst crying and barely breathing suddenly a soft and gentle hand is gently holding her injured one she looks up to see her Tia Pepa smiling sadly at her whilst half inspecting her hand she looks around the room not seeing her mama she yanks her hand back into herself clenching her fist again as she starts muttering "mama left I made her cry so she left my fault ".
This time it only took a couple of seconds to get her hand back out and unclenched but this time instead of her Papa or Tio or Tia holding her hand it was her mama who took it
gently as she said :
"It's not your fault I'm crying Mija its just what happens when a mama sees her baby hurt so don't you worry about me and let us do the worrying"

"But I don't deserve it only not broken people deserve to be worried for" she stammers trying to catch her breath

"and that's why we can worry because you are not broken and you know what even if you were we would still worry and you would still deserve it cause we love you okay?" Julieta reply's

she slowly nods when her mama speaks again "now I need to see your hand to make it feel better and unfortunately this has to be done so you can either hold it yourself or you we can have Tio Felix hold it for you if you feel like you will try to pull away cause if you do that you will get hurt more okay so you can choose and baby I'm going to lie to you it will hurt so unless you are going to eat to heal it I think maybe you should have your Tio hold your arm steady so you can't hurt yourself more" she finishes

"If I eat I will be sick again so can you please hold my arm Tio?" she says quietly

"No problem mija now if you need a break or if you feel sick don't pull away tell us and we will stop okay? " he reply's

she nods holding her arm out towards her mama who has a little pair of scissors, tweezers and a damp wash cloth. Suddenly she feels a warm hand holding her injured one gently she assumes it's her mama's she has her eyes closed so she doesn't see what's happening when she feels the scissors slowly go under a little bundle of the thread that is on her hand she starts breathing heavily and her hands start to shake her free hand is instantly picked up her papa's (she can tell by the size) who gives her hand a little squeeze to calm her down , suddenly her Tio's other arm is around her holding her close as he whispers something along the line of "don't worry Mira your mama is almost done with the scissors just a few more little snips" this doesn't do much to calm her though as she suddenly jerks and the scissors catch her skin making a small cut immediately she hear the scissors being dropped and her mama is telling her to open her eyes but she is afraid that if she does she will see a disappointed look on her mama's face Julieta seems to sense this and takes Mirabel from her Tio's lap instead placing Mira in her own she starts rocking her whilst saying:

"I promise I'm not mad at you baby so can you please open your eyes it's okay no one is mad at you open your eyes your okay I promise mama didn't mean to hurt you baby you're okay ".

When Mirabel opens her eyes she sees her mama's face gently smiling at her but her mama's face quickly shifts into a worried one when her daughter jumps out of her arms and starts throwing up again almost immediately there are eight hands on her either rubbing her back or stomach or holding her up making sure she doesn't collapse or fingers running through her hair gently so as not to tug it but suddenly she pushes all the hands a way except her papa's which are holding her up ,she then starts to shake as there where to many hands on her she panicked and was feeling overwhelmed. After what felt like hours of her vomiting and crying and getting the sewing removed from her hand she was finally able to fall asleep after promising her mama she would take a bath when she woke so she climbed into the bed her Tia and Tio where using and clung to her Tia Pepa who gladly excepted comforting her niece as Mirabel fell asleep for the first and last time that day.

A total of thirty minute's later Mirabel woke up screaming and kicking ,startling the now very much awake Pepa next to her very quickly Pepa pulled her panicking niece onto her lap before she started rocking her only for Mirabel to jump up and start stumbling to the En suite bathroom locking the door behind her.

"mija are you okay in there" Pepa said through the door concern very clear in her tone when she only head whimpering and crying through the door so she decided to yell for her husband ,sister and brother-in-law to come up the stairs quickly the all came running up the stairs and heard Mirabel whimpering and crying so Augustin said:

"What is wrong with Mira did something happen?" he asks before quickly rummaging through his drawer pulling out a set of keys and listens for Pepa's answer as he unlocks the bathroom door waiting a second for her response to open it.

"I don't know I think she had a nightmare but when I tried to calm her how we usually do she just jumped up and ran crying to the bathroom" Pepa said

"I think we should go over to the bed to see if there was something that triggered her when she woke up " Julieta suggested to which the all nodded and walked over immediately when they got close to the bed they all smelt urine and instantly realised what happened and why she was so panicked and upset she was embarrassed .

"Okay me and Augustin will change and clean up the bed Pepa you should probably get cleaned up quick the why don't you Julieta go and help Mirabel get cleaned up " Felix suggested they all nodded in agreement and walked in different directions it only took Pepa five minutes to get cleaned up and after that she walked quickly to where her sister was waiting on her .

"let's go " she said as she walked in the in the direction of her destressed niece .

when they arrived to the bathroom Julieta knocked before saying:

"Mira baby it's just me and Tia Pepa we are coming in okay?" she barely managed to hear the whimper of response over the shower that was booming against the bathtub loudly.

They both walked in making sure to shut and lock the door behind them making sure the men couldn't come in by mistake. The second Julieta saw her daughter sitting in that shower skin redder that a tomato she ran over to discover that Mirabel had the shower on the hottest heat it would go she winced knowing how hot that water was it was practically boiling so she instantly lifted a very naked Mirabel out the tub wincing as the water burned her arms and hands before handing her over to Pepa who had the softest towel she could find , Mirabel was immediately wrapped up wincing at the contact due to her burned skin and she started struggling only wincing more as the towel felt like sandpaper on her skin while she was moving, Pepa noticed this and took the towel off her instead just sitting her down on the cool bathroom tiles before she gently draped the towel over her small naked form, Mirabel instantly pushed against the cold tile trying to relieve her burned skin though that only lasted a few moments when her mama said;

"Mira honey can you stand up if not I will lift you up but it's your choice you need to get into a cold bath to cool your skin down".

Immediately Mirabel stood up wanting to get into the cold bath fast to get rid of her soreness but as soon as she stood her knees buckled and she fell luckily right into her Tia's arms and without saying a word or looking at her uncovered form she picked her up and gently put her in the cool bath which Mirabel melted into almost right away both her Tia and mama chuckle at the sight.

Five minutes later the men knocked on the door

"all done and clean now just bring her out when you're ready Mi Vida " Felix said through the door to Pepa

"okay we will be a couple minutes though" she replied getting a quick okay from the men .

Julieta pulled back the curtain to find Mirabel asleep in the tub

"Oh crap Pepa I need your help lifting her out the tub she fell asleep she isn't in any danger but still it's gonna be hard to lift her" Julieta said

Pepa just nodded and helped her sister gently lift the small teen out the tub only now did Julieta and Pepa realise how small and skinny Mirabel was she looked like an ten your old girl they shared worried glances before drying her off and getting her dressed into fresh pyjamas ,Pepa then lifted the light teen and gently put her around Julieta's front wrapping her around her mama like a koala on a log Julieta immediately supported the small weight on her front and the both walked out of the bathroom with Mirabel still asleep in her mama's arms.

Chapter Text

Mirabel woke up when her hand started hurting but she couldn't see it due to the lights being off and it being dark outside so she decided to slide out from in-between her parents to go to the bathroom when she shut the door and turned on the light she suddenly started hearing them again , the voices.

'go away ' she thought trying to get them to stop talking so loud

'oh but baby you don't want that ' one said in her mama's voice

'yes what you want is to find something sharp hm?' another said in her papa's

'go on do it slice your skin your family is trying to make you ugly so they have an excuse to leave you so make yourself normal again' two voices sneered in unison sounding like her Tia and Tio

'n-no they love me stop this they are just trying to help I'm pretty the way I am I'm not broken you can't change that' she responded

she then saw her family around her pointing and laughing.

'hahahaha she thinks she's pretty' her cousins say in unison

'she thinks she's so put together' her sisters giggle

'she thinks we want to help her hahaha foolish girl we are just trying to get you to leave faster' her Tia , Tio and Abuela say laughing

'oh and Agustin she thinks we love her ' Her mama and papa laughed

Mirabel woke up in the bathroom with her Mama and Papa and Tia and Tio banging on the door asking if she is okay as well as telling her to let them in. She sees that she put the towel rack under the handle preventing it from opening she also realizes the stinging on her hand , wrists and thighs

'oh no if I let them in they will see me and I'm bleeding and I'm in my underwear wait why am I like this' Mirabel thought

'you know why' her entire family said at the same time 'if you let them in they will leave you ,you ugly ,useless ,broken, little demon.'

"Mira , honey can you let us in please we just want to help we lo-"

"you will just leave me like they say you will you can't love me I'm broken ,useless . a demon" Mirabel cries cutting off her mama before she can finish what she was saying .

"No mija we would never " her Tia says almost pleadingly

"Wait you wouldn't they said-"

'Listen hear you piece of mud you should listen to us not them we are your family now not those fakers' the family sneered interrupting Mirabel

"Who said what mija is there someone in there with you Mija are you safe are you hurt?" her Tio asks frantically

"Voices no one hear just voices I don't feel safe and yes I think I am hurt Please help me " Mirabel whimpers

"Okay get in the bathtub and draw curtain and put your head between your knees with your back facing the door okay baby?" Agustin says , a couple seconds later he hears a whimper and a small okay I've done it.

"Okay I'm coming baby" he says before him and Felix start kicking in the door the hinges creaking with every kick landed after about five strong kicks from each man the door caves falling off it's hinges with a loud bang all four adults are heart broken at the sight of a small figure rocking back and fourth in the bathtub in nothing but her underwear covered in blood with her hands pressed tightly over her ear muttering "go away" over and over again, slowly the adults approach careful not to startle the small girl as she is zoned out and isn't aware of their presence well not until her Tia gently places a hand on her shoulder and the small girl jumped like she heard a gun shot her head spins around so fast that she passes out due to dizziness.

When Mirabel wakes again she is being gently held and cradled by her mama who is crying.

"Mama what happened" she asks as she pushes further into her mama's arms

"Oh honey your awake how are you feeling baby?" she asks whilst still rocking Mirabel .

"Sleepy , Sore and -" she suddenly jumps out her mama's arms only for her legs to give out and for her to start throwing up her mama is there in a split second holding her up to stop her from falling in her own sick. Once Mirabel is done she is surrounded by her Tio and Tia and mama and papa (the other three joining them after hearing the thud of Mirabel falling on the floor) her mama still holding and rocking the crying teen.

"I don't get it mama how was I sick I didn't eat anything" she winced quickly grasping her stomach her Tio sees this and gently takes Mirabel into his arms and starts rubbing her stomach she instantly relaxes as her stomach is slowly settled from the rubbing.

"Well honey technically you did eat you just weren't aware you did when we found you in the bathroom you passed out from dizziness and exhaustion so your papa picked you up and we took you to the kitchen were we blended some arepas to make a sort of smoothie we then briefly woke you up to take a drink of it you see your hand got severely infected so we had to heal you "her mama explained carefully the four adults looked a Mira waiting for her reaction.

"Okay mama" she said simply before saying "mama why is there blood all over and under my finger nails did I hurt any of you" she said starting to panic a little.

Her Tio saw this and started rocking her trying to calm her a little.

"No baby you didn't hurt any of us that must have been how you cut yourself come here so I can clean you up" Julieta says softly, holding out her arms
her daughter slowly only to stop to roll on her side and cover her ears she was right in the middle of her family as they had made a sort of circle around her, she suddenly started crying and muttering " stop go away no they do love me they wont leave me" she way immediately scooped up by her Tia Pepa who started to make it drizzle of rain just on her arm whilst rubbing her other one.

"Hey Mira your okay your right we do love you we won't leave you now can you come back to us so we go and get your hands cleaned up and get you changed into some pyjamas so you aren't just in your underwear with a blanket around you still drizzling on her arm . Slowly Mirabel came round to a slight tickling feeling on her left arm rubbing on her right arm and stomach and gentle squeezing on both her hands.

"Tia closer please cold closer to much please too much" Mira mumbles the adults take this as a sign to stop touching her.

"Okay mija closer okay I get it ... Hey Felix pass me that throw blanket" he nods passing her the biggest blanket they had she quickly wraps it around Mirabel tucking it tight and swaddling her like you would a baby the she pulls Mirabel into her arms as close as she can so Mira's cheek is against her chest and she can hear her Tia's heart beat and slowly Pepa starts rocking her back and fourth as Mira finally falls back asleep in her arms .

After Mira fell asleep Pepa stood up off the floor with Mira still in her arms as she walks over to her and Felix's bed where she gently puts Mira down for a second while she gets changed into some pyjamas in the bathroom (the door was put back on) then when she goes back out she is tapped on the shoulder by her sister saying that they were going to give them piece to which Pepa responds with a nod and grateful smile trying to keep talking to a minimum. Five minutes after the rest of the adults left and Mirabel was now in some fluffy pyjamas tucked into Pepa's side with both of them in deep sleep.

So just a quick note i'm having writers block I struggled to finish this but there should be another chapter tomorrow if not then the next day it just depends .THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR READING AND COMMENTING AND LEAVING KUDOS AND EVERYTHING THIS IS MY FIRST FIC SO I AM SO THRILLED YOU ALL LIKE IT THANKS AGAIN.

Chapter Text

Mirabel woke up in between her Tia and Tio who both had there arms draped over her, protectively shifting closer every time she moved.

'how am I supposed to get out of this ' she thought 'wait I will just slide down and replace myself with a pillow'

Just as she is about to move her Tio rolls over directly on top of her stopping her from breathing when she begins to panic she starts kicking and attempting to scream though it is muffled by him so she kicks and uses her arms to punch his stomach as hard as she can as fast as she can. As she slowly starts losing consciousness he finally wakes up with a loud cough due to getting the wind knocked out of him, almost immediately everyone else is awake startled by the loud noise ,when he continues to cough because Mira had just stopped punching him. Pepa says:

"Sit up so I can rub your back Felix"

So he does and just as Pepa starts rubbing his back she notices a hand grabbing hers at first she screams but then she realises it's Mira and instantly she gives her husband a hard push causing him to fall out the bed with a loud thump just as he gets up to ask why she did that he notices Mira being held by his wife as she gasps for air still panicking because she can't get her breathing under control when he sees what he has done he gets back on the bed and takes her hand sitting it on his chest.

"You're okay Mija just breath with me okay in 2,3,4 out 2,3,4 yes that's it you're okay ,good, see your okay" Felix say calmly as Julieta comes and hits him upside the head
"ow what was that for " he sulks

"Mira may be okay but she nearly wasn't you need to be more careful Felix " She said

As she sits down at the bottom of the bed and takes her daughters hand in her own only for it to be stolen away back to Mirabel' s side with a wince both her arms are hanging limp at her sides and when Agustin came and sat next to his daughter he held out his hand to see what was wrong with his daughters arms .Seeing this Mirabel decided to try and put her hand out into her fathers only to wince and pull back mumbling something .

"Mira baby you're going to have to speak a little louder honey I can't hear you" Julieta says softly though Mirabel didn't need to fill the silence her stomach did that when it let out a loud growl she quickly blushed a deep pink before turning to hide her face by tucking it into her Tia's neck all four adults chuckled at how embarrassed she got they didn't laugh for long as she was becoming restless squirming in her Tia's gentle hold.

"We aren't laughing at you Mija we are just happy to know you are finally ready to eat something not to mention the fact that you are adorable" Pepa said squeezing Mirabel only to stop a few seconds later when she heard a wince from her "sorry mija I forgot" she grinned sheepishly before gently picking her up and carrying her down the stairs to the kitchen and putting her on a seat Mirabel says a quick thanks to her Tia before looking out the window as she starts scratching her arm in one spot still wincing when she moves her hands to fast . Ten minutes later the arepas are on the table still steaming from being newly made suddenly Mirabel winces loudly catching the attention of her family.

"What's wrong Mira are you okay " Augustin asks. concern laced in his voice

"huh sorry ,oh wait yeah I'm fine why papa?" she replies getting concerned gazes from the people around the table

"You winced is your arm okay let me see it" he insisted

"No papa I'm fine just drop it" She replies quickly 'stop lying Mirabel you can fell the blood running down your arm tell him the truth they can help' she thought to herself

"Mirabel what's wrong baby I can't drop it until I have seen your arm which since your hiding it under the table I'm going to assume that you and your arm are not fine so you can either tell me the truth or we can all sit at the table until you do " He said firm yet calm

"I choose neither" she stands up and tries to walk up the stairs only for casita to turn it into a ramp making her slide back down straight into her Papa
who catches her as they both fall.

"It's okay I've got you" he says as he picks her up and gently sits her down on his lap handing her an arepa "here I know your hungry and your hurt so please eat this it will make you feel better baby" he says whilst slowly rocking her as she eats and finishes her first amount of food in five days "are you still hungry " he asks and he gets his answer when she grabs the plateful of them and eats half, slowly but she still does it, her family smiling the entire time . Once Mira finished eating she ended up falling asleep on top of her papa so he scooped her up and carried her up to the bedroom where he lay down with her and she instantly gravitated towards his chest curling up so her entire body was the same length as her papas torso not only that but she also gripped her papa's shirt in her hands balling them up tight. He smiled gently wrapping his arm around the small frame of his daughter pulling her closer.

Mirabel woke up with a whimper as she put her arm over her stomach wincing as she does, immediately the fingers in her hair still, the hand moving to her abdomen.

"are you okay honey? " her papa asks worry in his tone, hand gently moving around his daughter stomach trying to see what's wrong.

"Don't feel good" she replies starting to cry pushing closer to her papa's chest.

"okay honey give me a second" he says gently prying her off his chest before standing up.

"don't go papa" she says pulling at his sleeve

"Don't worry baby I'm just gonna go get your mama or Tia so they can help you to run a hot bath it will help with the pain" he replies softly, she nods gently letting go, her arm falling back to her stomach clutching tightly.

"Pepa , Julieta where are you ?" Agustin asks whilst walking down the stairs.

"I'm in the kitchen I don't know where Juli is I think she might be in the bathroom " Pepa replies before saying "how are you Mira" she spoke as she couldn't see it was just Agustin.

"It's just me, Mira is upstairs I ne-" "YOU LEFT MIRA ALONE" Pepa shouts cutting him off as she ran up the stairs not giving him time to explain. He quickly follows explaining the circumstances adding "besides there is nothing sharp in our room we removed it all and the voices have been quiet since last time" finishing as they reach the door entering quietly to see Felix holding and rocking Mirabel who is still holding her stomach.

Both adults can hear Felix saying quietly to Mirabel "What's hurting you Mija please tell me so I can help you"

The adults watch as she grasps at her stomach clawing at it with her nails breathing fast and heavily, seeing this her Tia runs over and gently takes her niece's hands.

"No Mira you can't do that you're going to hurt your self" she says gently as Mira starts crying again trying to get her hands out of her Tia's firm but gentle grip.
"I need to stop it let me go please Tia it hurts" She cries ,Immediately her Tio starts to gently rub her stomach in small circles trying to chase the pain away, when Mirabel feels this she pushes her back against her Tio and tries to free her hands to prevent the contact. As Julieta walks in the room she sees her own Daughter kicking her Tia's arms as hard as she can (she isn't very strong right now so it's like getting hit with a cushion) to try and get free of the gentle hold her sister has her hands in as she also try's to squirm out of her Tio's grip to get away from the hand that is on her stomach.

"What is going on Pepa?" Julieta says worried as to why her daughter is lashing out

"I don't know but she is freaking out and started trying to claw at her stomach so I grabbed her hands and Felix started rubbing her stomach trying to help the pain but she just tried to get away then she started kicking me but if I let go she is going to end up hurting herself again" Pepa replies while getting kicked.

Immediately after Julieta hears this she takes Mirabel from her sister and brother in law ,Agustin sitting at her side as he gently holds Mirabel's hands squeezing gently whispering to her.

"You're okay baby it's just your family here can you please let mama see your stomach she needs to make sure it's okay?" he says with another gentle squeeze

Hearing this Mirabel starts squirming and kicking again this time not aiming for arms as she delivers a blow right to her papa's chest . Instantly he drops her hands and lets out an 'oof' sound at the impact ,Mirabel's hands are immediately prying at her mama's grip trying to get free so she can try and dig the pain from her stomach although she soon feels her hands being pulled from her mama and held in someone else's .

"Calm down mija you're safe we are not going to let anything or one hurt you okay? please calm down you're going to end up hurting yourself if you don't stop thrashing" Her Tio said calmly.

"No please let me go I just need to be alone I can't deal with it please let me go" she pleads

"I'm sorry baby but me and your Tio can't let you go until we see your stomach we need to make sure it's okay" Julieta said gently

"It's fin-"she suddenly coughing profusely a quiet cracking sound was heard through her coughing as she starts to cry gasping for air. Her Tia quickly stands and walks to beside her niece gently pushing her forward so she can rub her back .Soon the fit dies down Mirabel's crying louder now as she tries to free her hands again and while she is yanking her arms back she accidently elbows her mama in the stomach ,she is quickly let go as her mama grabs her stomach gasping slightly from the air being knocked out of her.

Whilst the adults are still distracted by Julieta , Mira pulls free from her Tio quickly running out the room to the nursery where she crawls under the bed clutching her stomach while crying and shaking when it hit her:

"No no no no no I just elbowed Mama and I kicked Papa and Tia and I punched Tio earlier , I hurt them I deserve this I ran away after hurting them I'm a monster" she whispered still crying and shaking, repeating the last sentence over and over as she did so.

When the four adults got to the nursery they couldn't see Mirabel they could only heard quiet crying and muttering from under the bed so they all walked over sitting on the floor around it while Julieta reached under the bed gently pulling Mirabel out careful not to touch her stomach or jerk her around any as she lays her shaking daughter in the middle of the four adults grabbing a blanket to put over her before putting the girl's head in her lap , Leaning down to hear what her daughter is muttering pulling away after hearing.

"We are okay baby we are just worried about you we know you didn't mean to hurt us okay?" She says softly a small confirmation coming from the other adults

"But I hit you ,I got so upset I hurt myself when Abuela hit me and I don't want to make you do that and I'm sorry I promise please don't leave me or hurt your self's " she sobbed losing control of her breathing a little.

"Hey Mira don't worry about us it's just as your mama said we are fine we know you didn't mean it you were distressed ,we are fine baby don't worry and let us care for you" Her Papa said while lightly rubbing her arm to soothe her.

Suddenly after taking a deep breath she winced her hand instantly flying to her mouth while her other hand frantically tried to push her body up off the floor , Quickly understanding what was happening Pepa stood quickly grabbing the bin that was in the corner of the room before running to Mirabel's side where she put the bucket under the girl's chin just in time as her niece threw up all the food she ate earlier still crying and shaking , once she was done (for the time) her Tia stood up and took the bin to the bathroom where she cleaned it only to return bin in hand to see Mirabel sleeping with her head on her Mama's lap.

"Even though Mira doesn't want us to , I think we need to check her over and make sure she is okay ,I would rather lose her trust than see her get anymore sick" Julieta whispered

"I completely agree we would be a pretty bad family if we let her become anymore sick than she already is" Agustin adds also in a whisper to which both Pepa and Felix nod in agreement.

"What are we going to do if she wakes up, she will start freaking out again if she knows we are looking at her stomach and I personally don't think I can manage seeing her in distress anymore" Pepa says, sitting beside her niece and gently rubbing her arm.

"In that situation we would need to try to calm her down and explain to her that if we she doesn't let us finish checking her over then we will probably have to hold her down" Felix said wincing as he said the last part.

"I think we would though I know she would definitely get distressed but I still think her getting upset is better than permanent damage if we don't figure out how to help her soon." Julieta says

"Well that settles it ,Juli you try and keep her calm and asleep whilst me , Pepa and Felix gently check her over" Agustin says still whispering, the other three adults nod and start doing there parts, Julieta keeps running her fingers through the girl's hair as well as gently rubbing a thumb in small circles on her daughters arm while Agustin gently rolls up his daughters pyjama top to just above her stomach so he can get a better look at it , Meanwhile Pepa checks her arms and shoulder looking for any injuries that could potentially be causing a chain reaction of pain while Felix does the same thing to her legs after rolling up the loose pyjama pant's legs, Everyone except Julieta's actions stop as Mira groans leaning in closer to her mama's hand while rolling on to her stomach.

"No damn it I thought I saw something just above her stomach but her top was covering it so I was gonna roll it up a little more , We need to get her to roll back over again" Agustin whispers worriedly

"We can't if, we move her then she will wake we're going to have to wake her or we can risk trying to move her that way there is a chance she might not wake" Felix suggests

"Okay we will move her on three okay , just be careful don't hurt her" Julieta whispered to which she received a nod from the other three adults.

"Ready? okay one two thr-" Suddenly Mirabel shoots up immediately diving for the bin making it just in time to throw up again wincing as she does. A hand is on her back rubbing before she can even open her eyes but as she finishes throwing up she realizes something: 'that hand is on my bare back " she thinks eyes wide as she notices that are pant legs and sleeves have been rolled up as well as her top being rolled up to just above her stomach she instantly pushes the hand that's on her back away ,shuffling backwards as she pulls her top to cover her fully again hyperventilating as she does so.

Mirabel completely zoned out focusing only on trying to get the pain in her stomach to go away ,when a gentle hand rests on her shoulder grounding her then another hand starts cupping her face whilst a thumb dry's her tears, a voice, she hears a voice, a gentle one, a kind one, there are no signs of cruelty or malice in this voice no this is a voice she recognises, it's her mama's voice she doesn't know what she's saying but Mirabel instantly tries to crawl towards it only for her arms give out , she waits to hit the ground tensing ready to hit her head as she can't catch herself but the impact never comes instead just a gentle pressure on both her shoulder's, then she is scooped up and sat on someone's lap it's her Tio's she can feel his breathing and his hand gently running through her hair , then she is rocking back and forth, a gentle voice tells her to open her eyes as a soft hand takes hers .

'Tia' she thinks opening her eyes slowly as her tears continue to fall.

Mirabel is met with her Tia's face when she opens her eyes slowly rubbing them and looking around.

"What happened Tia did I hurt you again" She whimpers

"No mija you didn't , you woke up and you were sick then you panicked and almost passed out, but you stopped panicking when you heard your mama's voice and felt her hands, you tried to crawl to her but fell so your mama caught you and put you in your Tio's lap and now we are here" she said smiling sadly

"Okay Tia but why are my sleeves and pyjama legs rolled up?" she asked pulling them down and sorting them.

"Well me, your Tio and papa rolled them up as well as your top so we could check you over to make sure you were okay but we didn't get to finish" Her Tia said gently while rubbing her thumb on the back of Mira's hand.

"Do you want to, I don't know what's wrong but I just want it to stop it hurts so bad Tia please make it stop please" She cried while whimpering and holding her stomach.

Straight away she was gently laid down on her back with her head on her mama's lap who gently ran one hand through he daughters her while taking her other one and saying:

"If it hurts squeeze my hand don't talk as that might make you feel more sick so just squeeze hard don't be afraid about hurting me you won't okay?" Julieta says gently while Mirabel nods.

Suddenly her top is slowly rolled up to slightly above her stomach and she starts shaking, getting nervous when cold hands gently start feeling over her stomach.

She squeezes her eyes closed at the same time as she squeezes her Mama's hand receiving a light one back.

"Agustin" she hears her mama say and suddenly the hands stop moving instead moving up to her face gently cupping her cheeks.

"Sorry baby just a couple more minutes and I will be done" her papa says before moving his hands back to her stomach and starts moving them around again when he pauses seeing the same mark he saw before , he nods to the other adults who nod back.

Immediately after he nods Pepa gently takes Mirabel's other hand in a firm yet gentle grip as her Tio also starts rubbing her shin's also firm but gentle, she also feels as her mama's grip tightens slightly but she just thinks they are trying to calm her down more but little does she know they are actually holding her down gently enough for now but the second she starts flinching they would put more strength into it to make sure she doesn't start kicking or hitting anyone again.

This didn't work because as soon as Agustin rolled up Mira's top a little bit more and brushed his finger's against the mark gently she yelped and shot up making him press the mark by accident , Immediately she was on her hands and knees throwing up ,crying and gasping as she did so, she soon felt gentle hands holding her waist making sure she didn't collapse which she was grateful for however the thing she didn't like was the six other hands touching her so in between waves of vomiting she gasped out :

"please stop it's to much, to many hands to much, stop touching please" and immediately all the hands but the ones around her waist moved and as soon as she was done she was gently pulled back by the hands on her waist until she landed gently in between her papa's legs with her back against his chest as he said:

"I'm so sorry for that baby I didn't mean to press it but do you think we could lift your top again so your Tio can take a look at the mark?" "Please no more papa just wanna sleep" she replied still crying.

"Oh Mija we know but please just one quick look and I promise I won't touch you , please we just want to make sure you are okay and it isn't something really bad" Her Tio said gently as he holds her hand ,so she nods saying :

"you promise you won't touch" "I promise I will not touch you " He replies genuinely and when she nods he wastes no time as he gently rolls up her top so it's just barely covering her , feeling this she whimpers and hides her head in her papa's neck embarrassed and just as she is about to say stop she feels her top being rolled back down carefully.

"Don't worry baby we didn't see anything that would embarrass you. Your Tio only looked at the mark and we think you have a cracked rib and that is causing pressure on your stomach, I mean it would explain the cracking sound we heard earlier when you were coughing and that little mark is just where your skin bruised when it happened that is why it hurt so much when your papa accidently pressed it" Her mama explained with Pepa and Felix nodding along in agreement.

"Okay" Mirabel replied her voice muffled by her papa's neck "can I sleep now I'm so tired" she said again and although only her papa heard this she soon got her answer when her papa stood up with her in his arms careful not to move her or touch her stomach, and he moved over to the bed laying her down in it before saying:

"who do you want to stay with you , and don't worry none of us will be upset with who you chose"

"Mama" she says quietly

"Okay sleep well then" her papa says as him and her Tia and Tio walk out the room leaving only her and her Mama who quickly but gently gets into the bed next to her while saying :
"sleep well baby"

"Thank you mama" she replies lifting her head and putting it on her Mama's chest while moving closer to her mama, and straight away her mama is pulling her close as well hugging her and putting a small kiss on her forehead before combing her fingers through her small daughters hair.

It's around two hours later when Mirabel wakes up though no one knows quite yet. she groggily opens her eyes pulling herself closer to her Mama when she hears:

"Yes the letter just got delivered it's from Luisa it reads:
'To Mama ,Papa ,Tia ,Tio and Mira
I hope when you get this Mira is feeling better and you are all well I was just writing to let you know that Abuela and Isa decided to add another week to the trip so they told me to write this to let you know we are all okay but won't see you for a little while longer ,I don't know why but they get angry every time any of us mention Mira or ask about her, they just yell and tell us that it doesn't matter or that we've to mind our own business , so we have stopped asking but yeah Abuela said I'm not allowed to say where we are because we are having a break and don't need to hear the drama so sorry about that but anyway I need to go now but Mira I hope you feel better soon . Signed Luisa, Dolores, Antonio and Camilo. (P.S I tried to get Isa and Abuela to sign it but they said they weren't interested whatever that means.)' " Agustin said finishing the letter angrily.

"Isabela and Mother really don't care about Mira do they?" Pepa said thundering slightly.

"No I don't think they do ,I just feel bad for the others that are with them , Seriously yelling at children who are just asking about a sick family member, I swear to god when they get home I am going to kick both their as -" Julieta is interrupted by a sobbing sound on her shoulder, she looks down to see that Mirabel is very much awake and has been the entire time they were taking about the letter.

"Oh Mira baby it's okay they aren't worth crying over really and don't worry I will be talking to them when they get home okay. You're okay , take a deep breath honey okay. yes okay good girl see you're okay." Julieta said picking her daughter up and rocking her gently.

"No mama I already knew they didn't care I'm sad because I made everyone else get in trouble and yelled at" she says still crying.
Before Julieta can respond Pepa is already sitting next to them holding her hand , Her thunder completely gone.

"No it's not your fault Mija that is the fault of no one but Isabela and your Abuela they are just being cruel because they feel like it and we will all be talking with them when they get back" she says comforting Mirabel who just nods in response her tears now calming to just little hiccups.

"Now how about we go run you a nice warm bath so you can get into some clothes so we can go for a walk in the fresh air what do you say hm?" Agustin asks a smile pasted on his face. Mirabel nods slowly and climbs from her Mama's grip to stand on the floor stumbling slightly at first but quickly regaining her balance. Once she is in the bathroom with her Mama she quickly get's undressed and jumps into the bubble bath as her Mama draws the curtain, giving her Daughter a little more privacy so she can get washed, about ten minutes later Julieta hears the water being drained so she hands a big towel round the curtain to her daughter, which she takes with a quick thank you before drawing the curtain shakily she steps out the bathtub stumbling a little being steadied by her Mama.

"Okay how about we get you into some comfy clothes to go this walk in" Her mama says while thinking of ways she can get Mirabel to eat seeing how she is being swamped by the towel that was the perfect size for her just a week and a half prior.

"Okay mama" she replies as she walks out of the bathroom to the bedroom where her Tia Pepa is sitting on the bed with an outfit made up of some of Mirabel's smaller clothes ready for her to put on .

Okay we will wait in the bathroom while you get changed just yell when you are done or if you need help , and your Tio and Papa are waiting down stairs so try and be quick Mija" Her Tia says while walking into the bathroom with her Mama , Once the shut the door Mirabel Immediately starts putting on the clothes first she starts with her underwear , then her t-shirt , then her socks and pants and finally her shoes , As she walks to the bathroom door to let her Tia and Mama know she's ready she trips over her untied laces falling with an 'oof'.
The bathroom door swings open and her Mama and Tia quickly come out ,Her Tia picking her up.

"what happened ,are you okay?" Her Mama asks

"Yes Mama I'm fine I just forgot to tie my laces so I tripped" she replies brushing off her T-shirt.

Suddenly they all hear running and and then the door bursts open It's Agustin and Felix and they are looking around asking if everyone is okay when Mirabel suddenly falls to the ground and start Giggling like a crazy person.

Immediately all the adult's worry melts away as they all coo at Mirabel's giggling ,This being the first time they have seen her truly happy since this whole thing started.

Mirabel feels her self being lifted and carried over to the bed before she sees her papa starting to tickle her gently careful not to touch her stomach. Once again she is giggling but that stops when she starts crying , Immediately Agustin stops worried he hurt her.

"I'm fine papa it was just I was laughing really hard , so can we please go the walk now " she said smiling while wiping away her tears.

"Yes of course honey" He replies as Mira nods walking out of the room , as Mira rounds the corner from the door to head down the stairs the adults all quietly celebrate the progress she has made before quickly following her down the stairs.

I WILL PROBABLY DO THE WALK IN THE NEXT CHAPTER AS THIS ONE IS TOO LONG ALREADY ,BUT I SAW ALL OF YOU WANTING TO HEAR FROM THE REST OF THE FAMILY AND THAT'S WHAT THE LETTER IS FOR SO PLEASE ENJOY AND I WILL UPLOAD IN THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS.

Chapter Text

As the adults walk down the stairs they see Mirabel standing at the entrance to the house looking out towards the town shaking slightly.

"What's wrong Mira" Julieta says gently as the group of adults come to stand next to her.

"Nothing Mama I'm just a little nervous is all." She replies playing with the a loose string on her T-shirt.

"There is no need to be nervous Mija nothing will happen and in the impossible situation where it does we are all here and will help you okay?" Pepa says gently taking hold of her Niece's hand while the three other adults gently hum in agreement with this.

"Okay let's go " She says still holding onto her Tia's hand tightly.

As the small family enter the village centre the four adults immediately pick up on the whispering and staring directed at them and it isn't long before Mirabel notices as well.

"It's okay Mira just ignore them, focus on the on us and the walk, they aren't important." Pepa says giving her hand a small squeeze.

"Oh hello Madrigals , what brings you into town I thought you were taking a break whilst the others where camping, are they back?" A large man asks while walking towards the group.

"No they aren't back, we are just on a walk to get some fresh air, why do you or anyone else have a problem with that?" Agustin replies sharply while glaring at the rest of the villagers who where staring.

"No no Agustin we just weren't expecting to see any of you until Alma got back with the children, Say Mirabel why aren't you with them? ,where you allowed to go or where you told no because you don't have a gift, was it that they didn't want you there because you ruin every thi-" The man was cut of when Agustin stepped forward and delivered a hard punch to the man's jaw.

"For your own sake don't say another word" Felix said cracking his knuckles.

"WHAT THE HELL AGUSTIN, YOU KNOW SHE IS USELESS, GOD I NEVER SHOULD HAVE PULLED HER OUT OF THAT DAMN RIVER" The man shouted while holding his jaw.

Suddenly Mirabel dropped her Tia's hand as she started running for the forest hyperventilating and crying. Quickly Pepa ran after her.

"I'm going to go help Pepa find Mira ,but please beat the hell out of him" Julieta said with anger in her tone before running after her sister and daughter.

"You heard the women Felix let's do this" Agustin says to felix.

Suddenly both men are running full speed towards the man jumping on him making him fall to the ground as they start beating him up, soon finishing as the man sobs on the ground begging for forgiveness.

"Normally me and Felix wouldn't react this way but this man has been beating my daughter for at least a year now, we only found out because she told us and the only reason we didn't realise before was because of Julieta's gift so if we find out anyone else in this village has done the any wrong to any of our family members then that is what will happen to you" Agustin finishes saying to the villagers while pointing at the bloody man on the ground.

"Excuse me Agustin but what did he mean by ' I never should have pulled her out that damn river' " A women asked while glaring at the bloody man on the ground, Agustin recognised her as a close family friend.

"I'm sorry Valentina but I can't explain that Mira wouldn't be comfortable if anyone knew" He said in response "However I do need to say that I would really appreciate it if you all kept an eye out for a large group of about ten fifteen year old males that are causing trouble around town , They have been beating up Mira and Camilo whenever he tries to stop them. so if you see them and can identify them them I need names so I can talk to their parents because they are out of control" He says before running off towards the forest with Felix.

When Pepa finds Mirabel she is hiding inside an open hollow tree curled up and rocking.

"Hey Mira can I touch you" Pepa says gently

The second Mirabel hears a voice she curls herself up tighter, too overwhelmed to tell who the voice belongs to.

Seeing her niece curl up even more , Pepa decides to take the risk as she gently scoops up the small girl rocking her back and worth while gently running a hand through her hair.

"I should've been left in that river, he shouldn't have saved me, he just hurt me anyway then Camilo got hurt, Stupid Stupid Stupid" Mirabel repeats while digging her nails into her palms causing them to bleed.

"What was that Mira I can't hear you" Pepa says, But she becomes concerned when Mirabel doesn't respond instead she just keeps muttering.

"Mira are you okay are you hurt" Pepa says desperately trying to get her niece's attention, Still no response, so Pepa gently pulls Mirabel back from her slightly as she holds her breath trying to hear what Mirabel is saying.

Just then she hears her sister call " Pepa, Mira where are you we can't find you."

"Julieta keep shouting I've got Mirabel but something is wrong I'm coming to you" Pepa says in return.

"I can't see you we are by the river." Julieta says just as her sister rounds a large tree.
(At the same time Julieta is speaking)
Mirabel is still muttering to herself when she hears the word "river", Immediately she jumps out of her Tia's grip, running in a direction she is unaware of due to her eyes being filled with tears, Though she soon finds out when she runs into someone who grunts as they both fall into the deep river.

Julieta, Agustin and Pepa watch in horror as Mirabel and Felix plunge into the river, Felix quickly emerges from the water ,looking around to see if he can see Mirabel, When he can't the three adults watch as he dives back under the water to find his niece.

When Felix finds her she is kicking and trying to swim to the top, he notices that a large stone is trapped on her foot trapping her at the bottom.

"I'm going in " Agustin says to the women before diving into the river searching for his daughter and brother in law, The second he sees them he dives deeper and instantly helps Felix move the big rock off his now unconscious daughter's foot before they both grab one of her arms and swim to the surface. Both men quickly lift Mirabel out of the water, handing her to Pepa and Julieta before climbing up the small slope that leads to the water.

Upon receiving Mirabel, they lie her down on the grass, gently shaking her trying to get her to wake.

"She isn't waking up, or breathing" Pepa says panicked.

"It's okay move over" Julieta says as she moves to straddle Mirabel.

"What are you going to do" Agustin asks

"CPR" his wife replies while starting chest compressions, water immediately starts spilling from Mirabel's mouth.

"Is it working?" Felix asks

"I don't know, please be quiet" Julieta says, starting to cry.

Suddenly Mirabel coughs and her eyes open slightly, Julieta sees this and stops the chest compressions as she get's off of her daughter, quickly lifting her into a sitting position while gently patting her back.

"m-mama?" Mirabel whimpers

"is it you?, where are my glasses?, what happened?" She speaks again panicked slightly.

"Yes baby it's me ,you fell in the river , and here are your glasses they fell off when you jumped out of your Tia's arms" Julieta says gently putting the glasses on Mira's face.

"Mama I'm cold" Mira replied with a shiver.

"okay let's go home and get you into a warm bath" Julieta said while picking up her small daughter.

As the group walked through the town they where stopped when a women stood in front of them.

"Julieta you need to control your man ,my poor husband has been beat to a pulp by the animal's you call men that are standing beside you." the woman barked

"unless you want the same treatment I suggest you stand out the way and keep your man under control, Especially after he abused my daughter" Julieta said as she handed Mirabel to Pepa before she stepped forward into the woman's face.

"oh please you are lucky he saved that mess you call a daughter so shut it" the woman replied, a smug grin covering her face.

"Pepa take Mira up to the house she doesn't need this" Julieta said rolling up her sleeves as Pepa nodded and started walking.

"Exactly Juli you are right Mira doesn't need this so let's go , she need's you." Agustin reasons while taking her hand before starting to walk away.

"Yes that's right follow your man like an obedient little puppy you couldn't have taken me anyway" the woman says with a grin on her face.

The second he hears this Agustin drops his wife's hand before turning to walk back to the house with Felix .

"try and make it quick Juli ,she really does need you" Agustin says while walking.

"Don't worry this won't take long" she replies stepping forward towards the woman

"You shouldn't have spoke about my daughter in that way" Julieta said.

"Oh please the whole village knows she is a disappointment, you are lucky my husband pulled her out of the river that day."

"He only pulled her out because he was hoping he could kill her himself, If Camilo hadn't stopped him then he would have killed her." Julieta said angrily

"I know I spotted the creature from my window I told him to get payback on her for being such a disappointment." She laughed, Julieta walked up to the woman before punching her on the nose ,hearing a crack noise as her fist landed.

"WHAT THE HELL YOU BROKE MY NOSE" the woman said while charging at Julieta, Quickly throwing and landing punches on Julieta's face, Julieta Immediately blocks though it is a little late as a few blows hit her in the eye, nose, and lip.

Julieta quickly feels the impact of a kick as it hits her ribs, using her advantage of being quicker than the woman she jumps behind her and hits a pressure point on the back of her neck, Knocking out the bigger woman instantly.

"She and her husband are not to get any off the cooking I made for the village, Okay?" Julieta says gasping a little.

A mixture of yes and okay's come from the small crowd that gathered as Julieta walks up to Casita
holding her side trying to asses any major injury.

When she arrives home Agustin is waiting for her at the door holding a glass of water and an arepa.

"I didn't know if you would be hurt so I got this in case" he said holding up the arepa.

"Thank you honey" She says taking a bite after he handed it to her. She smiled as her injuries were healed, though it quickly faded as she thought of Mirabel.

"Where is she?, is she okay?. She says quickly.

"Yes she is fine she is up in a bath Pepa is helping her" Agustin replies

"Okay I'm going to go see her" she says walking up the stairs as he nods.
---------

"Is Mama going to be okay" Mirabel asks crying

"Yes Mija she will be fine, now just relax" Pepa replies while pushing a hand through her niece's hair.

"Okay, but if Mama isn't back when I get out I'm going into town okay" Mira said as she sank deeper below the bubbles.

"Okay Mija." Pepa said laughing quietly.
------

When Julieta got up stairs she knocked on the bathroom door, Entering when she heard Pepa say come in.

"Mama are you okay" Mirabel asked before she was even in the bathroom properly.

"I'm fine yes , more importantly how are you ,does your stomach still hurt." Julieta asked ,closing the bathroom door.

"Yes, but I don't care are you sure you didn't get hurt mama." Mira asked again.

"Well I do care your being in pain matters more to me than my own, so how about we get you dried off and into some pyjamas and then we go and get some food?" Julieta replied

"Okay but please no food , I'm not hungry just tired." She said.

"Okay no food but when you wake you will have to eat something." Julieta said as she helped Mirabel out the bath before Pepa put a towel round her.

"Here are your Pyjamas Mija , do you need help putting them on?" Pepa asked

"No thank you Tia I should be fine" she said while yawning.

When both women left Mirabel started putting on her pyjama's while thinking of what her mama had said to her when they where by the river when she was cold.

'Mama said "Yes baby it's me ,you fell in the river , and here are your glasses they fell off when you jumped out of your Tia's arms", Wait so I fell in the river' She thought while pulling her t-shirt over her head and walking out of the bathroom shaking, she was so deep in her own thought she didn't hear her Mama or Tia asking if she was okay.

Suddenly she was being lifted into the air before being gently sat down, she felt herself being rocked as well as a gentle hand running through her hair, though she leaned into the touch she also wished it would stop.

"Mira, baby are you okay, come on try and focus on your breathing honey you are okay you are safe at home, It's just me and your Tia here" Julieta said gently.

"Mama where's Tio and papa are they still in the river, they saved me, where are they , did I get them killed?" Mirabel finally responded while sobbing.

"No baby they are safe, They're just getting dried off and changed like you did okay, they are safe and you are safe so breath for me okay?" Julieta replied

"Juli look at her foot, it looks broken like really badly broken , I think we need to ask Agustin and Felix what happened when they where under the water" she said , talking quiet enough so as not to alert Mira to it.

" I have no idea how she managed to walk on that, maybe adrenaline? " she continued.

"Yes it must have happened while she was under there , we need her to eat something before she goes to sleep even though she isn't hungry." Julieta replied at the same volume.

Just then Felix and Agustin walked in the room now in dry clothes.

"Crap the rock, we forgot to tell them about the rock , now look at her foot" Felix said pointing to Mirabel's foot

When Mirabel heard this she immediately looked at her foot and started panicking.

Pepa threw her sandal at Felix hitting him on the face.

"you idiot now she's freaking out" Pepa said

Felix instantly ran over and started trying to soothe his Niece.

" hey it's okay Mija its just bruised we can go and get some arepas to heal that okay just try and breath okay. here copy my breathing" he said putting her hand on his chest and exaggerating his breathing. Her breathing quickly turned back to normal.

"It's just a bruise?" she asked

"yes Mija just a bruise" He lied

"But why does it hurt so bad then" she said crying

"It's okay it's just a big bruise and we can make it go away if you eat , do you think you can do that for your Mama?" Julieta said. Getting a small nod from Mira in response.

"Okay well then I will carry you so you don't have to walk on it okay?" Julieta spoke again

"Okay Mama but can we be quick I'm really tired" she replied

"okay well I will just get papa to go and et some food and bring it up instead, how does that sound?" Julieta said.

Mirabel just nodded as Agustin left the room, quickly running down the stairs and back.

"Okay now we need you to try and eat the whole thing , I know one bite will heal you but you haven't eaten a lot so it will help you feel better." Agustin said as he handed the Arepa to his daughter. She quickly nodded as she took a bite , soon finishing the whole thing.

"Good, now who do you want to stay." Pepa said.

"Tio" Mira replied.

Quickly the other three adults left as Mirabel was lifted into bed by her Tio, She instantly curled up beside him and put her head on his chest ,listening to his heartbeat as she fell asleep.

Chapter Text

When Mirabel wakes she is in between her Tia and Tio who are both still sleeping ,in fact she realizes she is the only one awake.

'okay here I go' she thinks as she slowly shuffles down the bed and pops out the bottom, standing with a slight wobble before she quietly leaves the bedroom closing the door behind her.

"Casita could you wake them when I ask you to?" she whispers to the house. She gets her answer when the tiles underneath her wobble slightly.

"Thank you" she says, another wobble.

So Mirabel walks down the stairs and goes into the kitchen.

"Casita can you pass me the ingredients for Huevos Pericos (scrambled egg with tomato and onion) please" Mirabel said. So casita passed her everything.

"Thank you casita do you think you could wake them now, it will only take me a couple minutes to make it." Mirabel said again and casita flipped a tile to answer her.
---------

"Casita what's wrong, Pepa is Mirabel still with you?" Julieta said to her sister.

"No she isn't, Casita where is she?" Pepa said.

So Casita tipped there beds, making them fall out then once they all stood Casita took them to the table.

Mirabel walked out with two plates of food and sat them down in front of Her Tia and Mama before walking into the kitchen, Bringing out another two plates and sitting them in front of her Tio and Papa before sitting down.

"Thank you Mira but why are you not eating.?" Julieta said "and why didn't you wake us when you woke up" she spoke again.

"I'm just not hungry I still don't feel good but you and Tia and Tio and Papa have been looking after me so I decided I would make breakfast for you all." Mirabel replied.

"Are you sure you don't even want a little bit, you really should try and eat something baby." Agustin said

"I'm sure, can you all please eat it's getting cold , It's no good when it gets cold." Mirabel said with a fake smile on her face. All four adults knew it was fake , but she didn't know they knew.

"Well okay as long as your sure Mija." Felix said gently before taking a bite of his food. The other three adults nodded before doing the same.

"Oh my , I'm sorry Juli but she has you beat with this." Pepa said after she took the first bite.

"You don't have to try make me feel good." Mirabel said quietly.

"She isn't it really is that good baby." Julieta replied smiling.

"Okay" she replied , still not believing them.

Mirabel suddenly stood.

"I'm going to the bathroom" she said before quickly walking away.

"Are you okay Mira?" Agustin said, quickly standing.

"I'm fine please just finish your food." she said in a tone not even she believed.

"No you're not , please tell us what's wrong." Felix said.

"Please just finish you're food don't waste it." Mirabel said, shaking slightly.

"Please talk to us baby, Let us help you" Julieta said, walking towards her daughter.

"Please , leave me alone I'm fine " she said , now fully trembling.

"You're clearly not , You're trembling, Please don't lie to us just let us help you." Pepa said.

"I-I'm fine, finish your food" she said quickly walking into the bathroom and closing the door.

The second the door closed she locked it quickly dropping to her knees, she started hyperventilating.

She barely heard someone talking, though she didn't know who.

"Get the spare key quickly I can hear her breathing fast." the voice said , concern evident in their tone.

It took about one minute for the door to swing open, though to her it felt like hours.

She was surprised when they didn't crowd her, instead just her Mama walked in and immediately Mirabel put her arms up making grabby hands at her Mama, like you would see a toddler do when they wanted to be lifted. Instantly getting the hint Julieta picked the crying teen up , putting the girls head into her neck Before walking up the stairs to the bedroom.

When Julieta started pulling away so she could ask what was wrong, Mira started crying harder and started clinging to her Mama even more.

"Okay, okay I won't pull away but can you tell me what's wrong Mira?" Julieta asked , sharing a worried glance with the other adults.

"My tummy hurts" She whimpered into her Mama's neck

'Tummy isn't something she has said since she was 5 what is going on' Julieta thought.

"Is that all Mira?" Julieta asked

"Why are Tia and Tio here?" She asked, confused as she gently turns around on her Mama's lap.

"What do you mean Mira?, We are always here, we have been for the last six days" Felix said , gently taking her hand.

"No you're to busy to play with me or watch me 'cause Cami's getting his gift soon." She replied, this shocked the adults.

"Mira ,what age do you think you are?" Agustin asked.

"I'm four Papa and I'm turning five in." she holds up eight fingers. "this many days and Cami's turning five in four days , Why Papa?. she asks.

"Mira sweetie you are fifteen so is Camilo, you both turned fifteen two months ago." Julieta says.

"Did Cami get you to play a prank on me" She giggles.

"No ,Mira you really are fifteen you didn't get a gift remember?." Julieta said.

"Mama, what kind of prank is this, where is Cami, is he hiding, why am I not in the nursery?." She says panicking.

"It's not a prank." Felix says.

"No it must be, I have to get a gift if I don't then I can't be special and everyone will hate me then ,then " "It isn't a prank you are fifteen you didn't get a gift but nobody hates you we all still love you and you are just as special as everyone else." Julieta interrupts her panicked rambling.

Mirabel just starts trebling again while hyperventilating.

"Hey , Hey calm down breath Mira you're okay , you're safe it's just your family here" Pepa soothes.

"But it's not and I can't ,I can't breath ca-can't breath." She replies still hyperventilating "Help me Mama please , can't breath and I don't know where everyone is ,did they leave cause I didn't get a gift , do Luisa and Isa hate me , where's Cami I need hi-him." She says before passing out.

"Crap, we need to try and wake her , what the hell happened ,she thought she was five how is that possible" Julieta said, starting to get panicked.

"I don't know what happened but what I do know is that if you freak out and she wakes then she is going to feel more guilty so please try and calm down ,my love." Agustin said taking his wife's hand.

"Okay ,yeah you're right ." She said as she took a deep breath. "Mira baby, you need to wake up honey." She spoke again while gently shaking her daughter.

"Mama?" Mira asks

"Yes baby it's Mama, can you do me a favour and open your eyes honey" she replied

When Mira opens her eyes she is met with the concerned faces of her family.

"How do you feel, do you feel sick?" Pepa asks while pressing the back of her hand to Mira's forehead pulling it away quickly as she felt the heat from her forehead, though she decided to wait till Mira told them she didn't feel well to mention anything, not wanting to panic the girl .

"Just a little bit, I feel more breathless and light headed though, like I'm floating" She responds putting her hands up to her head.

"What do you remember baby?" Agustin asks as he rubs her arm.

"Making breakfast, Tia trying to make me feel good about myself and saying I needed to go to the bathroom." Mira replies.

"I wasn't trying to make you feel good about yourself your food really was good, but that isn't important right now, do you remember anything else?" Pepa asks gently

"No Tia, how did I get up here." she replies.

"I had to carry you, you had a panic attack and thought you were five and then you passed out because you were hyperventilating." Julieta explained, running a hand through Mirabel's hair.

"Wh-What. what did I say , I didn't lash out did I." she said, starting to shake again .

"No honey you didn't just relax, slow your breathing and let us take care of you okay." Agustin said, gently cupping her face in his hand.

She pulled away from his hand , as it felt like it was really hot, so she turned around and put her head in at her Mama's neck.

"too hot" She muttered.

"Mira it's freezing in here how are you too hot?" Julieta said

"She's running a fever Juli, I didn't say anything cause I didn't want to panic her" Pepa whispered so Mira couldn't hear.

Julieta nods at this before gently pulling her daughter from her shoulder.

"No mama" Mirabel whimpers, struggling to stop herself from being pulled away.

"Mira it's just for a second I need to feel your head to make sure you aren't sick." Julieta said, pulling a little harder to try and pry her daughter from her. When Julieta is finally manages to pull Mirabel free she is sweating and crying.

"I know Mira but it's only for a second if you are getting more sick again we need to be able to help." Julieta said, putting her hand to Mira's forehead.

"You have a pretty high fever baby I think you should take a nap." She spoke again.

"Don't wanna Mama , I wanna do stuff." Mira said.

"Well what do you want to do?" Julieta replied.

"I need to go clean the kitchen I made a mess when I was cooking and then I need to deal with my-" She quickly realised what she was going to say and slammed her hands over her mouth.

"What do you need to deal with Mira?" Agustin asked.

"Nothing Papa, I don't know what I was saying" She lied.

"We know you're lying Mira tell us what you need to deal with." Felix said seriously

"I'm not lying, Just let me go clean the kitchen" She replies, sliding off her Mama's lap before standing.

Agustin stands and steps in front of her.

"you need to tell us what you need to deal with." He said.

"No" she replies walking round him. She feels a hand grabbing her wrist.

"LET ME GO" She says pulling her arm out of the hold.

"Mira please, we just want to help Mija." Felix says

"Leave. Me . Alone" she says as she walks out the room, slamming the door behind her.

'where can I go where they won't find me' she thinks. 'ah Tio Bruno's tower they would never look there' she thinks again as she runs towards the tower to avoid being seen.

She hear her family calling for her, but she ignores them as she sits against the door on the inside of her Tio's tower.

'Wait no Casita, damn it ,Casita better not do anything.' She thought.

"Casita can you hear me in here" She whispered. No response 'Damn it' she thought.
------

"Casita where is she" Julieta asked. Suddenly all four adults where moved to Bruno's door by Casita.

"She wouldn't, would she?" Pepa said.

"Well Casita brought us here so this is where she is." Julieta replied.

"Felix take them back to the room I will get Mira" Agustin said.

"No we can handle it ,can't we Juli" Pepa said

"If it's for Mira then I can handle anything" Julieta agreed.

Mirabel is looking at her thigh.

'why did I do that, Why did they stop me when tried to fix it, who knew burning yourself with scolding metal would hurt' She thought to herself sarcastically.

Suddenly the door handle was being turned, then the door was being pushed open , even with her against it the door opened with ease pushing her along the floor with it.

The four adults entered. looking in the small entry way.

"you don't think she went through the sand do you?" Felix says to no one in particular.

"I don't know , I mean we can't see her so she must have" Agustin replied

'I might be able to get out if they go through the sand, as long as they don't turn around' Mirabel thought ,forgetting that her thigh could be seen.

"I can't go through there I can't take it" Pepa said suddenly

"That's okay Mi Vida, Agustin can you and Julieta do it, I will take Pepa back to the room" Felix said

"Yeah we've got this" Julieta replied.

"Okay, thank you , Juli" Pepe said turning around , stopping Immediately.

"Oh my god Mira , What the hell is on your leg" Pepa said running to her side , Felix next to her as they both crouched and looking at her thigh.

Hearing this Julieta and Agustin turned around, seeing their daughter with a huge angry red mark on her thigh. Immediately they both ran to her as well.

"Nothing I just fell I'm fine" She lied.

"That is not just a scrape from falling , it looks like a burn." Julieta said firmly.

"It's not a burn Mama, It's a scrape and I'm fine." She replied pulling her skirt over the wound.

"I spend all day in the kitchen and I have since I was ten, I know what a burn looks like so don't lie to me , now tell me how it happened." Julieta said.

"I'm fine , It's a scrap not a burn now leave me alone" She said while trying to stand, Falling over when her skirt rubbed against the burn.

She was quickly caught and lifted by her Tio.

"You're Mama is right, we all know you are lying so can you please tell us the truth." Felix said as he cradled the small girl in his arms, being careful so he didn't touch the injured part of her leg.

Mirabel quickly pushed herself out of her Tio's arms, landing on the ground with a thud. She immediately started stumbling out of Bruno's tower, down the winding stairs as fast as she could before running down the main set of stairs, moving out the way of casita's attempts to stop her, as she ran out the main door and towards the village, She could hear her family calling after her, she could also hear their footsteps about fifty paces behind her as she ran. When she made it to the village she ran into a large man , Face dropping the second she saw who it was. The man turned.

"You little runt look at what your father did to my face, now this is what you will see when you look in the mirror" The man said as he punched Mira continuously in the stomach and on the face, only stopping when someone punched him in the stomach. The large man Immediately dropped the now unconscious Mirabel as Agustin started hitting him.

"You dare touch my daughter or anyone in my family again I will Fucking kill you" Agustin spat as he kicked the man until he was an unconscious heap of blood, Only stopping because Felix pulled him back while Pepa and Julieta ran to Mirabel's side, Julieta scooping up her daughter while crying at the state of her.

It took all of Felix's strength along with Julieta's words to stop Agustin from killing the man right there.

"He isn't worth it Agustin, you need to be with Mira look at her ,at me not him , Please calm down we need you." Julieta cried. Agustin immediately stopped struggling when he looked at his wife and his daughter.

"Okay Felix you can let me go now I'm calm." Agustin said, while taking a deep breath. Felix let go the second he said this.

The family started walking back to Casita.

"WHO THE HELL DID THIS TO MY HUSBAND" they heard a familiar voice yell, Immediately stopping before turning around.

"YOU , YOU MONSTER ,YOU DID THIS I CAN SEE HIS BLOOD ON YOUR KNUCKLES WHY WOULD YOU DO THIS." The woman screeched.

Hearing this Julieta handed Mirabel to Pepa.

"Damn right my husband done that, you wanna know why well all you need to do is look at my daughter and you will see why, SO YOU CAN GET YOUR PSYCHOTIC HUSBAND AND YOU CAN WALK BACK HOME RIGHT THE FUCK NOW BEFORE I THROW YOU." Julieta screamed in the woman's face "SO WHAT'S IT GONNA BE YOU TROLL".

Immediately the woman shook her husband, waking him from his unconscious state before supporting him back to their house without saying a word.

Julieta fell to the ground and started crying, Instantly Agustin was at her side comforting her.

"Hey get lost this isn't a movie go stare at something else" Felix said, chasing off the crowd that had gathered.

"Take Mira home please, we will follow soon" Agustin said to Pepa and Felix, quickly turning his attention back to his wife.

"Please Mi Amor, breath, you need to breath" Agustin said as he pulled his wife into a hug.

"Here Sir take this" A small child said ,handing him a bottle of water before running back to his mother.

"Thank you" Agustin said to the child smiling sadly before nodding at the woman in silent thanks.

"Juli, here take a drink of this" Agustin said handing Julieta the bottle.

After she took a drink and calmed down they walked up to the house together to get cleaned up.

"Jesus how did your knuckles get so bruised" Julieta said to Agustin as she gave him an Arepa.

"I punched the ground a couple times so I wouldn't kill him" Agustin admitted after taking a bite of the arepa.

"God I wish Mirabel would open up like that " she said walking into Agustin's open arms.

"You need to sleep Juli, you haven't been getting enough ,I know you stay up most nights worrying about Mira." Agustin said.

"No I get plenty of sleep I'm fine" Julieta said.

"And now we know where Mira gets it from " Agustin laughs gently , Lifting Julieta into his arms and carrying her up the stairs.

"Okay , okay I will sleep if you put me down." Julieta laughs

"Okay" Agustin says " But first" he quickly kisses all over his wives face before putting her down.

"Geez Agustin you kissed my eye" Julieta laughs , rubbing her eye.

When they enter the bedroom they see Felix sitting on his bed and they hear the bathroom sink running.

"I should go and help Pepa" Julieta says.

"No we had a deal, you sleep , we will help Pepa if she needs it." Agustin says leading Julieta to the bed.

"Okay just wake me if there is a problem and don't take your eye off her." Julieta says as she climbs into the bed.

Julieta quickly falls asleep after being tucked in by Agustin.

Agustin walks over to Felix and sits next to him.

"How was she when you got back" Agustin whispers.

"Not good at all, Pepa brought her up here to get her cleaned off and changed but she was covered in blood and-" Felix said getting cut off by a sharp gasp from the bathroom, Both men quickly stood and walked over to the bathroom door , opening it Immediately.

"Oh my god" they both said.

It was the burn the all thought it was just on the out side of her thigh, but no it was like a burning hot ring had been placed around Mirabel's leg , it was a full circle all the way around.

"You are going to need to hold her down, she is gonna wake because I need to dress this and I need to put burn cream on it first." Pepa said.

Immediately Agustin picked her up and sat on the floor putting his arms around her waist and arm's as Felix held onto her legs. Just like Pepa said she woke up Immediately and started squirming trying to get free.

She noticed that she was in her underwear and that she was being held down but she didn't know by who as her glasses were taken off so Pepa could clean up her face, All she could feel though was burning on her thigh like a red hot poker was being stabbed through her skin.

"Please I'm sorry stop hurting me, I'm sorry please just let me go I promise I will leave the Village if you let me go." She screamed in pain, Immediately waking Julieta who came running to the sound of her daughters screaming.

"Mira Baby It's okay, I know it hurts but it has to be done and we are so sorry but it's just your family here no one is trying to hurt you, we are just trying to help you." Julieta Instantly started trying to soothe her daughter.

"Mama help ,Help me , they're hurting me tell them to let me go." She cried , lashing in her Papa's hold.

Luckily Pepa had just finished and she was Immediately let go as she fell into her Mama's arms crying and gasping.

"I've got you Mira, don't worry I've got you ." Julieta said rocking Mirabel while running a hand through her hair.

Now everyone was crying. Julieta because her daughter is in pain, the other three adults because they caused it (even if it was them just trying to help) and Mirabel because of the mass amount of pain she just went through.

About ten minutes later Mirabel fell asleep in her Mama's arms and all the adults had stopped crying.

"Agustin can you help me up I can't let go of her but we need to get to bed" Julieta whispered.

He didn't speak, he just stood then helped his wife off the floor. All four adults walked into the bedroom and went to their beds , falling asleep with no words but 'good night'.

Mirabel was still in her Mama's arms and would remain that way until she decided she wanted to be let go.

Chapter Text

Mirabel was in the river again, drowning but this time her Papa and Tio weren't under there with her, no instead they were on the surface pointing and laughing so where her Tia and Mama, everything was going black, she was falling unconscious, 'I'm going to drown" she thought frantically trying to swim to the surface. She was to late , her vision turned to black.

Suddenly Mirabel woke up with a jump, she could feel her Mama's arms were still round her protectively, she closed her eyes for a minute, trying to calm herself. When she re-opened them she noticed her Mama was awake and looking at her with a worried face.

"What's wrong baby, are you okay" Her mama whispered, pulling her close.

Mirabel just nodded into her Mama's chest.

" 'M fine just a nightmare" she mumbled, a soothing hand running through her hair.

"You want to talk about it" Julieta asked , still whispering.

"No I'm fine" She replied quietly, pulling herself from her Mama's chest.

"Well how about we try and get more sleep it's really early , the sun isn't even up yet , we can talk about it later." Julieta said.

"Can't, they will just come back" She replied, shaking slightly at the thought.

"They won't, I won't let them, I will protect you." Her Mama said pulling her close again.

"Do you promise?" she said.

"I promise , now no more talking close your eyes and go to sleep." Julieta spoke again

Mirabel just nodded, closing her eyes , letting sleep take her.

Mirabel woke up again, it was light outside now, her Mama was still asleep and hugging her, Her Tia was also asleep but she noticed neither her Tio or Papa where in the room, though she quickly realised where they were when she heard cursing and smelt something burning.

She quickly peeled herself from her Mama's arms and ran downstairs to the kitchen where she saw the entire stovetop on fire, she quickly soaked a tea towel and flung it over the fire, putting it out immediately.

"I thought Tia and Mama banned you from cooking" she said to her Tio and Papa.

"They did, we were just trying to boil water for coffee" Agustin said

"You almost burned the house down because you can't even boil water" she said laughing.

"Yes Mija very funny" Felix said "Just please don't tell your Tia or Mama they would kill us if they find out"

"Okay I won't, here" she said taking the towel off the stovetop before putting the pot on to boil " for the sake of the house please don't touch it I will be back in a minute."

"W-what where are you going you can't leave us with this what if it finishes boiling" Agustin said.

"I'm just going to the bathroom it will take like ten minutes to boil I won't be that long, so just don't touch anything" she said before walking to the bathroom.

When Mirabel got to the bathroom she pulled down her pyjama bottoms and immediately saw blood, then out of nowhere her stomach started hurting.

"Papa, Tio" she shouted hoping they would hear her

She immediately heard two sets of footsteps run towards the door.

"Mira are you okay, Do you need us to come in" Agustin said panicked.

"No papa, I- , are Mama and Tia awake yet?" she said.

"Um no Mija, unless they still in the room, why do you need one of them or both or is it something we can help with" Her Tio asks concerned.

"I only need one of them, do you think you could wake one?" She said holding her stomach.

"Yes, yeah okay" Her Tio said

"Okay Mira just hold tight your Tio is just getting them" Her papa said.
-------

"Um Pepa, Julieta are either of you awake ?" Felix whispers

"Juli is still asleep, what's wrong Mi Vida" Pepa asks

"There's something wrong with Mira, she wouldn't let me or Agustin in but she asked for you or your sister." Felix said

Immediately Pepa was moving towards the door "Wake Juli" she said as she left the room.

"Julieta , you need to wake up Mira is in the bathroom Pepa is going to her now but she might need you" Felix said while shaking her gently.

When Julieta heard this she jumped out of bed and practically sprinted down the stairs meeting Pepa at the bathroom door.

"Mira can we come in it's just Me and your Tia" Julieta said after gently knocking the door.

"Yes" Mira replied.

Both Women entered the room and saw Mirabel curled up in a ball, shaking.

"What's wrong baby" Julieta instantly dropping to her daughter side "are you hurt",

"Not hurt just hurting" She replied in a small voice.

"What's hurting Mira" Pepa asked, going to her other side.

"Stomach" She replied, still holding her stomach.

"Do you think you could move your arm so we can see" Julieta said, feeling her forehead "you're a little warm but not too bad"

Mirabel moved her arm and lifter her top slightly.

"There isn't anything there, Is there anything else anymore pain or literally anything else" Pepa said

"Blood" Mira replied

"Where" both women said loudly

Mirabel flinched.

"Sorry, baby we didn't mean to scare you" Julieta said Immediately. "But we need to know where is the blood, did you hurt yourself?"

"No" she said blushing deeply.

Both Pepa and Julieta picked up on this.

"Where then Mija" Pepa said , taking her hand

"Trousers." She said

"What your legs, are your legs bleeding" Julieta asked concerned.

Mirabel just shakes her head.

"oh ok Mira I think I know what it could be but first you need to tell me what type of pain is it , is it like a stomach ache or does it feel tight or does it feel like its cramping" Julieta said

"Cramping and it really hurts" she said " and for some reason I want chocolate, I don't even like chocolate"

"Well the reason you want chocolate is because you have just started your period so I'm going to tell you how deal with it, then me and Tia will leave so you can get yourself sorted okay?" Julieta said

"Okay" Mirabel said

Julieta reaches into the cupboard under the sink and pulls out a pack what looks like underwear.

"All you need to do is put on a pair of these and then after a couple of hours you wrap them up in toilet paper and put them in the bin , then you put on a new pair okay?" Julieta said handing her the packet.

"Okay, once I've done that can I go upstairs and change into clean Pyjamas so I can clean these ones" Mira asks

"Yes but don't you worry about cleaning them I will do it, just put them in my laundry basket" Julieta said

"Okay, thank you" She replied still blushing.

"It's nothing to be embarrassed about Me and your mama both went through it and your sisters and cousin Dolores still are" Pepa said giving her hand a squeeze before standing up to leave with Julieta.

"Thank you" Mirabel said as they left.

Mirabel quickly did as her mama explained then put her dirty pyjama bottoms back on before peaking out the bathroom door , running upstairs when she didn't see her Papa or Tio.

'I really don't want to see them right now I feel dirty and then they will know I am' she thought to herself.

When she got up to the nursery she quickly found a clean pair of pyjamas before changing into them, running to her Mama's room to put her dirty ones in her Mama's laundry basket.

She then walked downstairs into the kitchen.

"Oh hey Mira didn't see you there" Agustin said as he walked towards his daughter ,trying to pull her into a hug.

Mirabel quickly flinched and stepped back away from her Papa, this gained the attention of all the adults in the room.

"Why won't you let me hug you Mira?" Agustin asked putting a hand on her shoulder.

She immediately flinched away from that as well.

"Mira are you okay" Pepa asked, sharing a glance with Julieta.

"Can I touch you Mirabel?" Pepa asked

Mirabel Instantly started backing away, strait into her Tio.

"Mira are you okay Mija" Felix asked

Mirabel dropped to the floor strait away and curled in on herself.

Immediately all four adults were around her, though they were careful not to touch her.

"Mama , it-it burns Mama." She said

"I'm here Mira what burns" Julieta replied, looking Mirabel over without touching her.

"Everywhere, make it stop please Mama please it hurts so bad" She cried

"Mira can I touch you" Julieta asked.

"Please just make it go away" She pleads ,still sobbing.

Julieta wastes no time in scooping up her daughter, rocking her back and forth. Mirabel falls asleep crying into her Mama's chest about five minutes later.

"What the hell happened" Agustin asked , gently picking up his daughter's hand.

"She had a sensory overload, you see she started her period today and they are common in Madrigal women during their periods, both me and Pepa had them and I was hoping that she wouldn't get them but no such luck. Juliet replied.

"And that Felix is why I kicked you in the balls then soaked your Pants with fake blood" Pepa said.

"Oh you got that too?" Agustin asked.

"Yup, Pepa is hella scary when she get's angry" Felix said whispering the last part.

"Well that's what you get for saying it isn't that bad." Julieta said shrugging, while still holding Mirabel.

Mirabel woke up a couple hours later In her Mama's bed, She quickly looked over and locked eyes with her Tia who was sitting on her own bed smiling brightly at Mirabel.

Mirabel sat up and Immediately she felt a lot of blood come out of her. 'I haven't changed yet' she thought before standing up and running into the bathroom. She quickly realised she must have bled through when she sees blood all over her pyjama bottoms.

"Tia" Mirabel says, trying to not panic.

"Yes Mija" Pepa responds.

"Um do you think you could get me some new pyjamas these, ones are covered in blood." She replied, now crying quietly from embarrassment.

"Ok Mira I will be back in two seconds don't move" Pepa said before quickly laving the bedroom.

"Felix can you go in there while I get Mira a change of pyjamas?" Pepa asked as she walked past.

Felix didn't speak he just nodded and sat by the bathroom door, His heart breaking when he heard Mira crying through the door, It upset him knowing he couldn't go in to soothe her.

Mira quickly changed into fresh period underwear and waited for Pepa to return, while she was waiting she decided to run the bath with cold water and the salt they kept under the sink for the drains and put her pyjamas in the bath before covering up the blood stain with salt, leaving it to soak as her Mama said that it should remove the stain if done quick enough.

"Mira I'm just going to put my hand around the door okay?" Pepa said

"Okay thank you Tia" she replied , trying to hide the fact that she was crying

Pepa handed the clothes in to Mirabel who took them before quickly getting changed. She then left the bathroom and stripped her mama's bed dumping all the bloody sheets in the bathtub , quickly starting to scrub the stains from them.

"Hey Mija you should go eat something, I will do that" Pepa said putting a hand on Mira's shoulder.

"No I'm not hungry and I made the mess so I should clean it" she said wiping a few tears from before with her arm . suddenly she walks out of the bathroom "That needs to steep , I will come back to it later"

"Okay well how about we go get you something to eat, you might not be hungry but you need to eat." Her Tia said.

Mirabel was just about to decline when her stomach rumbled.

"okay" She said as a blush made it's way across her face.

Pepa, Mirabel and Felix made their way downstairs to the kitchen.

"Where's Mama and Papa?" Mirabel asked , making them all sandwiches.

"They went into town to stock up on ingredients and snack foods." Felix responded.

Mirabel handed them both a sandwich and started eating her's

"Thank you" both adults said in unison, she just nodded in response.

"Can we go a walk through the forest after this, It's nice outside and I'm kinda bored" Mirabel said.

"Yeah sure Mija once we've finished eating me and your Tia will clean up while you go get dressed." Felix said , placing a hand on Mirabel's shoulder, Both adults noticed the flinch she made when the hand was put there, though they decided to leave it right now.

"Okay" she said, stepping back so her Tio's hand was no longer on her shoulder.

'You should run, they don't want you , you are disgusting, you don't deserve their love or the food you just ate , get rid of it now.' Her mind told her.

"Um well I'm finished now so I'm going to get changed." She said before walking up the stairs.

"Do you think I hurt her I don't know, She flinched when I touched her you saw that didn't you" Felix said concerned

"You didn't hurt her, I don't know why she would flinch though." Pepa said in return.
-------

The second Mirabel got into the bedroom she ran too the bathroom before forcing two of her fingers down her throat, She instantly started gagging but she could not throw up.

"Damn it just let me get it out' she thought 'wait putting a lot of salt into water and drinking it makes you sick'

So she quickly tipped the toothbrushes out from the glass they where held in before filling it with water and salt, she immediately started gulping it before putting the glass down, almost strait away she started throwing up violently, the smell burning her nostrils as she cried.

Casita wobbled a tile next to her.

"No don't tell them" She managed to gasp out through waves of vomit.
-------

Both adults where still talking when they felt Casita move them to the stairs, rumbling the tiles under their feet.

Immediately both adults where running up the stairs to the bedroom, Instantly smelling the vomit when they opened the door.

"Mira what happened" Felix said he said looking in the bathroom, seeing her stand and wipe her mouth before washing it out with water from the tap, she quickly flushes the toilet and walks past him and Pepa.

"Nothing" She replies with a strait face. wiping a few stray tears away. Pepa quickly grabs hold of her wrist turning her back to face them.

"It is not nothing do not lie to us please." She said calmly yet firm.

"Let go of me, Do not grab me, I can't stand people touching me anymore because when they do it feels like it's out of pity and I don't deserve peoples pity, I deserve to be dead but I can't even kill my self properly cause every time I try I get saved, do you know what it's like to feel like everyone hates you o-or you feel like the second you get close to someone they will leave you, that's what I feel like every time someone talks to me kindly or touches me, I would literally rather be dead than spoken to like a real human because I don't deserve it and even if I did I wouldn't feel like I would, Isa and Abuela made the family sty away longer cause they hate me and they think my uselessness will rub off on them, And don't start with that crap that I am just a special as the rest of the family because I'm not and Tio don't say that you and Papa don't have gifts, I know that but at least you weren't born into a magic family you where just married in, you never got the chance at a gift but I did and I messed it up, I'm not worth loving I never have been everyone around me either get's hurt or leaves, Tio Bruno had to leave because of a prophecy he had about me, Camilo got hurt, BECAUSE OF ME AND WORST OF ALL MY ENTIRE FAMILY ISN'T ALLOWED TO COME HOME BECAUSE OF ME SO DO NOT TELL ME NOT TO LIE TO YOU BECAUSE IF I TELL THE TRUTH LIKE I AM THEN THIS EXACT SAME SENARIO WILL HAPPEN AGAIN, you're crying Tia, I made you cry, Now do you understand that I'm not worth your time, that I'm a-a monster, after all normal people don't make their family's cry." Mirabel cried, realising what she had done she Immediately ran from casita in tears with Pepa and Felix chasing her as she ran past Agustin and Julieta who Instantly dropped the bags to chase her aswell. She ran all the way to the forest and sat against a tree before completely breaking down.

Suddenly she felt a cold wet thing touch her leg, she immediately swatted at it thinking a slug was crawling on her leg, Then she heard a whimper so she looked up, still crying, to see a small puppy just looking at her while wagging it's tail, It quickly hopped onto her lap and started licking her tears, yipping happily as it did so.

"You're all alone just like me aren't ya" She said as she picked the puppy up and started hugging it.

"You're so skinny, you haven't eaten in a while have you" she spoke again

"MIRABEL" She heard her Papa call for her.

Immediately she picked up the puppy and ran deeper into the forest, while she was running she tripped on a tree root and she tumbled down a small hill, balling around the puppy to protect it, as she hit the bottom of the hill her head hit the ground and she was knocked unconscious.
-----------

"Mira, where are you baby." Julieta shouted

All four adults fell silent when they heard an animal yipping loudly, Immediately they ran to the sound, seeing a small puppy wagging it's tail standing next to an unconscious Mirabel.

Agustin instantly scooped up his daughter holding her close to his chest and started carrying her home as Pepa lifted the puppy while thanking it for helping find Mirabel, The puppy was also taken to Casita.

When Mirabel woke she noticed she had been changed out of her muddy Pyjamas and she was now in clean ones and tat her head was thumping in pain, she also noticed a small weight in the bed next to her, she looked down to see the puppy was sleeping curled into her side.

She looked around, and jumped when she saw a figure sitting at the bottom of the bed being held by another, both were crying though their attention turned to Mira when she jumped.

"Mira baby, are you okay" Julieta said moving towards her.

Agustin started rubbing his daughter's shin.

"Please no touching" Mira said shaking.

"Okay no touching that's okay" Agustin said moving his hand to his own lap.

"Can I hug you baby , I know you said no touching but can you make an exception this time please." Julieta asked.

Mirabel nodded and almost strait away she was taken onto her Mama's lap for a hug.

The second her Mama's arms were around her she broke down, crying and shaking and hyperventilating

"Shh Baby, It's okay just let it out I'm not going anywhere I promise" Julieta said running a hand through her hair and rocking her.

"Agustin can you take the puppy down stairs it keeps on nibbling my elbow." Julieta said

"Yeah, okay" He said walking towards the puppy only for Mira to quickly snap around and pick up the puppy gently, holding it to her chest, still panicking.

"Mira, do you want me to go?." Agustin asks

Mira frantically shakes her head.

"Mira can I hug you?" Agustin asks

Another frantic nod, Both adults realised she just wanted to be held right now and they happily obliged.

Mirabel quickly fell asleep in between her Mama and Papa with the puppy which she decided to name Peanut Bear lying asleep on her chest.

(The dog is a pure black German Shepherd with brown eyes.)

Chapter Text

When Mirabel wakes she is still in between her Mama and Papa who are both awake and still holding her tightly, when she realises Peanut is no longer on her chest she rolls over and puts her head on her Mama's chest.

"Mira are you awake baby?" Julieta asks.

Mirabel just nods pulling closer to her Mama, afraid to let go.

"We need to talk about what happened, your Tia and Tio are worried and so are we" Agustin said

Mirabel shakes her head and starts trembling.

Instantly Julieta's arms wrap gently around her daughter.

"It's okay Mira, I know you don't want to talk but you have to, we will do it once your Tia and Tio get back with Peanut they took him for a walk." Julieta said, holding her close while running a hand through her hair.

"I already spoke about how I feel that's how this happened" She said, whimpering as she started to panic a little.

"We need to talk about it and we are sorry that you feel the way you do so, we want to help you, okay baby, Please let us take care of you." Agustin said kissing her head.

Julieta moved to get up and instantly Mirabel's shaking got worse as she hugged her Mama in a death grip, Winding the woman slightly.

"Woah Mira it's okay honey I just ned to use the bathroom, I'm not leaving I will be back in a couple minutes okay?" Julieta says, Immediately Mirabel pulls away from the hug instantly attaching herself to her Papa.

"Woah, are you okay Mira?" Her Papa asks concerned

"No" She replies crying

"Wait, What's wrong baby are you hurt?" He says quickly causing Mira to flinch.

"Sorry" He said

"Did Tia and Tio tell you I was sick?" Mirabel asks

"Yes they did, they told us when they came to get peanut, why do you feel sick now?" He said shifting himself ,getting ready to grab the bucket next to him.

"No, I did that to myself" She said trembling.

"W-what do you mean baby?" Julieta said, sitting next to Mirabel again.

Suddenly she buried her face in her Papa's chest.

"Mira, are you okay?" Agustin asked.

No response.

"Mira?" Julieta asked, concerned

When they got no response for the second time Agustin quickly pulled Mira from his chest so they could see her face.

"Mira, Baby what's wrong?." Agustin said.

Still no response, Just a straight face.

Suddenly Mirabel is standing and walking out the bedroom door, Her Mama and Papa following closely, fearing if they touch her she will break down.

Mirabel continues walking right out the door's of Casita, Walking past her Tia and Tio and Peanut, They all turned around and followed, talking amongst themselves.

"What's wrong with her, is she okay" Pepa asked.

"We don't know she's like zoned out or something"

Suddenly the Peanut started pulling on his leash.

Mirabel stops standing still, Then she collapses, Immediately all four adults are around her.

"Mira, what's wrong, talk to us" Felix says.

Instantly Peanut pulls free and goes to sniff around Mirabel stopping at her head and barking.

"What's wrong peanut?" Agustin says gently lifting his daughter to turn her around so they could see her face.

All adults find that Mirabel is unconscious and is burning up.

"Okay we need to get her back to Casita, she obviously zoned out from being delirious cause of the fever, we need to cool her down." Agustin says as he lifts Mira into his arms.

Pepa picked up Peanut and they all walked back to Casita.

When Mirabel wakes she feels her cold and wet pyjamas sticking to her so she tries to move but she realises someone is holding her.

"Mama?" She says.

"No baby it's Papa, Mama is feeding Peanut it's just me and your Tio here, me and you are in a cool bath to cool you down, you're pretty sick Honey." Agustin says

"Let me out I'm cold" She says squirming.

"Okay, I'm going to pass you to Tio and he will help you get dried off okay?" Agustin says

She just nods before feeling herself get lifted and handed to her Tio.

"Okay go into the bedroom and get changed just leave the bedroom door open a crack in case something happens and your mama needs in, me and your Papa will stay in here." Felix said

Mirabel nods and goes to get changed, leaving the bedroom door cracked open, she has just finished getting changed when she remembers what she had said to her Tia and Tio, suddenly she started to hyperventilate and cry, dropping to her knees trying to catch her breath when she hears barking then hurried footsteps, she feels a cold thing on her face then a gentle pressure pushing her over to lie on her side, she can't see due to tears but can make out a small black ball in front of her face, licking away her tears.

'Peanut' she thinks still crying, when suddenly she is scooped up into someone's lap and a hand is running through her hair.

"Mira honey you need to breathe baby you're okay we are here." She hears her Mama say as she is being rocked gently, The rocking stopped for a moment only starting again after a small weight climbed onto Mirabel's lap.

Mirabel fell asleep on her Mama's lap with Peanut on her own.

Pepa gently picked up Peanut so Mirabel and Julieta could move to the bed instead of the floor.

"Where is Agustin, Felix?" Julieta asked

"Getting dried off, Mirabel clung to him when she was unconscious so he went into the cold bath with her, so he is probably getting dried off and changed in there" Felix said, Just then Agustin came out the bathroom.

"Why was Peanut barking and why is Mirabel asleep?" Agustin asked

"Peanut warned us that Mira was having a panic attack, then she fell asleep after I calmed her down." Julieta replied climbing into bed and tucking Mirabel and herself under the Duvet.

"If Peanut did warn you then I think it's a good idea to have Peanut be with Mirabel at all times, so he can warn us when she is feeling anxious or is about to have a panic attack." Agustin replied, The other three adults nodded before Pepa and Felix left leaving Agustin to climb into bed with his wife and daughter.

"Can you imagine how excited the rest of the kids are gonna be when they find out about Peanut Bear?" Julieta said to Agustin as Peanut climbed into his lap doing a couple spins befor lying down on the spot.

"Yes especially Cami" Agustin replied while petting the small dog. "He's been wanting one for years".

Suddenly Mirabel jumps up and starts panicking and immediately peanut is on her lap with his paws on her shoulder, licking her cheek, in an attempt to calm her down.

"What's wrong Mira?" Julieta says, pulling her back against her, holding her close.

Instantly she relaxes, pulling Peanut into a hug.

"I'm fine Mama" Mirabel whimpered.

Peanut went climbed up her chest and pawed at her chest gently, as if he was trying to tell them something.

Julieta gently placed her hand over Mirabel's heart and felt it beating rapidly.

"You're not fine, your heart is racing baby, Please tell me what's wrong." Julieta said

Mirabel moves her Mama's hand from her chest and squirms to get free, Julieta's arms gently come around her daughter, pulling her closer.

"Please let me go" Mirabel said "You know what I said to Tia and Tio and you still insist on touching me." She said even though she really hated the idea of her Mama letting her go at this time.

This shocked Julieta and she instantly dropped her arms to her side.

Mirabel Immediately shot up and ran to the bathroom, locking the door behind her as she put her fingers down her throat again, this time actually making herself throw up, Tears stung the corners of her eyes as wave after wave came up.

Suddenly there was a hand rubbing circles in her back but this didn't stop her from trying to stick her fingers back down her throat only to have the hand taken into someone else's.

"Let me go." Mira said sobbing and trying to jerk her hand free.

"I can't Mira" Julieta said before shouting for Agustin, Felix and Pepa.

Immediately all the adults rushed to them.

"What's wrong Juli" Pepa said.

"Felix, you and Agustin need to take her, she was purging and she's fighting me so she can do it again" Julieta said struggling against Mirabel.

Instantly Mira was scooped up by Felix who held her close to his body, Making sure to keep her hands by her side.

Suddenly Peanut bit Felix's ankle, causing him to let go of Mira just in time for her to jump towards the toilet and start throwing up again.

"Shit" Felix said, after Peanut bit him only to get smacked upside the head by Pepa.

"Mira is right there." She said.

"The damn dog bit me" Felix said.

"Yes he did and do you know what he is a good boy he warned you she was going to be sick the only way he could." Julieta said in return while smiling at the small dog.

"Just go get an arepa" Pepa said

"Not a chance I'm not leaving Mira" He replied sitting down near her, gently taking her hand.

"Tio" she whimpered reaching for him.

Instantly he scooped her into his lap without saying a word, cradling her as she rested her head in the crook of his neck, starting to cry.

"Hey shh, Its okay Mira I'm here, you're okay" He soothed

"Mira, we need to talk" Felix said

Hearing this she instantly started struggling.

"I know you don't want talk but we need to." Agustin said, running a gentle hand through the girl's hair.

Mirabel stops fighting, knowing it's useless.

"Do we have to, all that happens is I tell you stuff you already know it's pointless." Mirabel replies, getting visibly anxious.

"Calm down, baby, the reason we need to talk is because we don't know but we want to, okay?" Julieta said.

Mirabel shakily nodded as a few tears made their way down her face.

"I don't like myself I haven't since my ceremony and then Tonio got that amazing gift and Abuela slapped me and you all got hurt because of me and I hit you and I-I hate myself because I like being held but I can't stand it because I don't deserve it and I want more than anything to die, I don't even like my body anymore so I try to fix it I need to be like Isa I need to be perfect and I'm too fat right now so I made myself throw up by either sticking my fingers down my throat or drinking really salty water and I don't need help and I don't need any one and I-I." "And you are perfect just the way we are and we wouldn't change a thing about you, you are not fat and the reason we hold you is because we love you and you do deserve it and when you get intrusive thoughts or you feel like hurting yourself you need to come to one of us we will chase it all away and we will protect you with our lives, we love you and you are worth it." Pepa interrupts Mirabel, taking her from Felix and holding her close.

Mirabel is now just a sobbing pile in her Tia's arms, Pepa is comforting her hugging her and soothing the sobbing teen in her arms.

"You are perfect just the way you are, Isa and Abuela aren't worth your time until they decide to be good people, You haven't hurt us, We will stand by your side and shield you and if you get overwhelmed tell us we will back off until you are ready." Julieta said running a hand through Mirabel's hair as Pepa rocks her back and forth gently.

"We love you Mira, You need some more sleep who do you want to stay with you?" Agustin asks.

When he gets no response Pepa gently pulls Mira from her neck gently and a small smile forms on her lips as she sees that Mirabel is asleep, snoring quietly, effectively melting their hearts with one little sound.

"I will stay with her" Pepa says as the other adults nod, Pepa carefully stands with the help of her husband before supporting Mirabel's worryingly light weight into the bedroom where she gently places Mirabel under the covers before climbing in herself, Pulling her close making sure her arms are around the girl, preventing anyone from touching her.

Pepa is just about asleep when she feels a dip in the bed behind Mira, looking up she sees Felix climbing into bed before wrapping his arms gently around both figures.

"Thank you Mi Vida" Pepa says before falling asleep.

Hey everyone I might be taking a little break I am a little worn out and I kinda have no more Ideas for the time being so yeah I might not take too long but I will come back to this, Love yall thanks for the support and I will be back soon <3

Chapter Text

When Julieta wakes she notices no one else is in the room with her but she does hear quiet talking down the stairs.

"What's going on" She whispered

The three adults shushed her and pointed to the bathroom door they were all standing around, Suddenly she hears a voice singing.

"It's a new song she has just started singing, she has already sang a verse" Pepa whispered.

"But now the day bleeds into night fall and you're not here to get me through it all, I let my guard down and then you pulled the rug I was getting Kinda used to being someone you loved" , "I'm going under and this time I feel there's no one to turn to, this all or nothin' way of loving got me sleeping without you, Now I need somebody to know, somebody to heal, somebody to have just to know how it feels, It's easy to say but it's never the same. I guess I kinda liked the way you helped me escape." , "Now the day bleeds, into nightfall, and you're not here to get me through it all, I let my guard down and then you pulled the rug, I was getting Kinda used to being someone you loved" , " And I tend to close my eyes when it hurts sometimes, I fall into your arms, I'll be safe in your sound till you come back around, For now the day bleeds, into nightfall, and you're not here to get me through it all, I let my guard down and then you pulled the rug, I was getting Kinda used to being someone you loved." , "But now the day bleeds, into nightfall, and you're not here to get me through it all, I let my guard down and then you pulled the rug, I was getting Kinda used to being someone you loved, I let my guard down and then you pulled the rug, I was getting kinda used to being someone you loved." Mirabel sang, finishing with a pained sob.

Suddenly the shower turns off and they hear a small thud.

"OW, that hurt damn it, that's gonna bruise, whatever they won't find out so it doesn't matter" She says to herself.

"Mira are you okay" Julieta asks through the door.

"Yeah I'm fine Mama" She replies but they also hear, "No I'm not" she said trying to be quiet enough that they didn't hear her.

She steps out the bathroom in fresh Pyjamas, blushing lightly.

"You didn't hear anything did you?." She asked just above a whisper

"No, Why did you ask us something from in there, we were just coming down for breakfast when we heard a thud" Julieta replied, Pulling the small girl in for a hug.

"No I didn't ask anything" She said.

"Were you crying Mira." Agustin asked as he wiped a stray tear from her cheek.

"No" She replied, way too fast.

"Then why are there tears running down your face." He asked, taking her hand

She just fell silent, looking at her own feet.

"We will talk later how about we go get something to eat" He said

A small nod.

When they got to the table they all sat, except Julieta who began to cook.

Julieta brings the plates and they start eating, Suddenly Julieta is humming the tune to the song Mira was singing.

She froze and began shaking, her breathing picking up slightly, Her family was calling her name but she couldn't hear them.

'They heard, they weren't suppose to hear, what can I do. If I run they will catch me, But if I stay they will coddle me' she thought, Pulling harshly on her hair.

Hands quickly take hers gently prying them from her scalp.

When she comes too, she is on the ground curled up on herself, Her hands being held tightly in her Tia's.

"Y-you said you didn't hear." She gasped.

"I know baby, I didn't mean to hum like that the tune got stuck in my head I'm sorry." Julieta said.

Mirabel was lifted as Pepa propped herself against the wall before gently placing Mira in between her legs, putting Mira's back to her own stomach.

Pepa started gently running a hand through Mira's hair, stopping Immediately when she hears a wince, she pulls her hand away and waves to Juliet when she sees blood on her fingertips.

"Mira baby we are going to need you to eat an arepa, when you pulled your hair you caused you scalp to bleed so we need to heal it." Julieta said handing her an arepa.

She took a small bite and hen just put it on her lap.

"Can you try and eat the rest Mija?" Felix asked, taking one of her hands.

She shook her head and gently pulled her hand from his.

"Mira are you feeling overwhelmed?" Pepa asked gently.

She nodded her head and pushed herself back, further into her Tia.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Pepa asked again.

A shake of her head in response as she rolled over so she could hold onto Pepa and bury her face in the woman's neck.

"Okay, do you want me to take you upstairs for a nap?." Pepa said.

A slight nod, without saying a word Felix helped Pepa to stand before walking up the stairs, opening the bedroom door and climbing into the bed with Mira still wrapped around her.
-------

It was two hours before Mirabel woke up.

When she did she was met with the worried faces of her cousins and Luisa and the sound of yelling from down the stairs. She immediately buried her head in Pepa's neck.

"Too many people" She whimpered.

Obviously hearing this Dolores rushed everyone out, Leaving just Pepa and Mirabel.

Pepa brought a gentle hand to the back of Mira's neck, rubbing in an attempt to comfort her.

"W-why is Mama shouting." She stuttered, crying into Pepa's neck

Pepa immediately wrapped her arms around Mirabel pulling her close.

"Don't worry mija" Pepa said, trying to calm the shaking girl.
---------

"She tried to kill herself Mama, she cut herself we are only now making progress after a week and a half and Isabela do not even think about sneaking off get your ass back here right now." Julieta yelled

"We had to come back early because we got news that you and Agustin were causing trouble and beating people up so do not dare say a word to me." Alma replied sharply

"No shit we bet people up, that man and his wife tried to kill her and he bet her till she was unconscious, you want to know something else he also bet Cami." Julieta said clearly angry.

"You should leave Mama, go back to your camping trip and those who want to go can." Julieta said.

"Fine if I'm not wanted, Isabela go get your cousins and come with me." Alma said

"They already said they didn't want to, me and you will just go." Isa Replied glaring to where the cousins were standing.

Without saying another word they left.
------

"I made them leave a-and I made Mama shout, I'm" Mira said unable to finish, crying and shaking.

Pepa instantly shifts to stand up.

Mirabel stills before looking up.

"Do-dont leave please." She whimpered, trying to hold on tighter to her Tia.

"I will be back in a minute, I'm going to go get your Mama" Pepa said pressing a gentle kiss to Mira's head.

She reluctantly let go.

Pepa left the room closing the door behind her.

"Don't bother her." Pepa said to the kids out side the room kindly, giving them each a hug.

"Is it true what Tia said, Mami" Camilo asked

Pepa nods sadly, Picking up Antonio who is crying.

"What does suicide mean Mama, is Mira okay can we see her." Tonio asked.

"Suicide just means really sad and you will see her later at dinner." She replied to the crying five year old.

She gently put him down before walking down the stairs as the children all walked to their rooms.

When she gets down stairs she sees Julieta being comforted by Felix and Agustin as she is on the verge of a panic attack.

"Juli are you okay Mi Hermana ?" Pepa said.

"Yes I'm fine how is Mira" Julieta replied taking a deep breath.

"She needs you, she heard you shouting and thinks it's her fault, you need to go to her, Me, Felix and Agustin will look after the other's and peanut." She replies.

Julieta nods before running up the stairs and going into her room.

When she looks over she sees Mirabel is hidden under the covers shaking and crying.

"Baby, come out it's just Mama" Julieta said walking over to the bed.

Mirabel uncovers herself and when she sees it's her Mama she launches herself into Julieta's arms.

"I've got you, it's okay, Breath baby you need to breath." She says, carrying her daughter to her bed instead of her sisters.

It only takes Mirabel five minutes to fall asleep in Julieta's arms.

Agustin enters a couple minutes later after Pepa told him what happened.

"How long has she been out" He asks, cupping Mirabel's cheek lightly

"About five minutes, can you help me down stairs with her so she is around everyone when she wakes, she just wants to feel loved right now and the best way we can do that is make sure she has us there at all times." Julieta replied

Immediately Agustin helps his wife to stand.

They both walk down the stairs, Mirabel still asleep in Julieta's arms.

When they see her they all share concerned glances at how small she is.

"What happened Mama is she okay?" Luisa asks

"She will be fine she just need to heal is all, we need to be here for her" Julieta replies, laying Mirabel on the couch before joining the rest of the family on the floor, Suddenly Antonio stands up and walks to the couch, jumping up next to her and climbing under the blanket beside her, Immediately Mirabel's arm comes around him, hugging him tightly like a teddy bear.

Everyone smiled.

Camilo shifted himself so he was leaning against Pepa, giving her a side hug as Dolores does the same to Felix.

"She will be okay, but we need to keep quiet." Pepa said, running a hand through Camilo's frizzy hair.

"Geez Cami I though I told you to take a shower." Pepa said, Pulling a twig from his hair.

"I did Mami" He replied.

"Okay." She said laughing.

Suddenly there was a knock at the front door.

Julieta walked over and opened it to reveal a sobbing Isabela.

"Isa, what happened?." Julieta asked, letting her in.

"I'm sorry where's Mira I need to apologise" She said looking around.

"She's asleep." Julieta replied.

"I need to apologise I have been so terrible to her, to all of you" Isa said

"Okay but what brought this on suddenly?." Julieta asked

"Abuela, she took me to the nice hotel and said that I was the only one she would take there cause I'm the only one deserving, so I ran here to apologise cause I need to, Mira tried to kill herself because of me, she hates herself because of me and I need to make up for that before I break our relationship more than I already have." She said frantically, Her eyes closed trying to stop tears.

Suddenly she felt arms wrap around he waist weekly.

She opened her eyes to see Mirabel weekly hanging on to her barely able to stand.

"I love you Isa." She said sobbing against her older sister.

Isa picked her younger sister up, preventing her from falling.

"I love you too and I'm so sorry, I was horrible to you and I fully respect if you need time to trust or forgive me." Isa said now crying as well

"It's okay, I deserved what I got." She said quietly, Not thinking her family would be able to hear her.

"NO" they all shouted.

Mirabel instantly curled in on herself and started panicking.

"Mama what do I do" Isa said panicked.

"Give her to me quick" She replied holding out her arms.

Isa quickly tried to pass Mirabel over, only for her to grab Isa's dress in a death grip refusing to let go, Holding on tightly while shaking.

"Okay, Okay I've got you" Isa said.

"Just hold her close and try not to move in case she thinks you're trying to leave and do what Pepa is doing with Cami." Julieta said pointing to the pair.

Isa nodded, pulling Mirabel closer to her before running a hand gently through her hair.

Mirabel's breathing evened out after about two minutes.

"Mira are you okay?." Isabela asked still running a hand through her hair.

No response

"Mama I think she fell asleep." Isa said.

"Well I hope you're comfy cause you can't move now in case you wake her" Julieta said with a smile.

"I don't care for comfort as long as she is okay." Isa replied, looking down to see a small smile on her sister's face.

"No, No stop hitting him, hit me instead, stop you're hurting him, stop, STOP." Mirabel shouted in her sleep.

"Isa wake her." Julieta said.

Camilo stood and walked out the room, clearly stressed.

Isa shook Mirabel waking her.

She shot up so fast her head span and she fell of the couch with an "oof"

Agustin instantly picked her up.

"You okay baby?" Agustin asked.

Mirabel didn't respond she just stood and walked out the room.

"Felix you go after Cami, make sure he is okay" Pepa said, Felix nodded in response, following after his son.

"I'm going to find Mira." Julieta said
---------

"Damn it even in her dreams she sees that" Camilo said to himself, remembering the time he fought and lost to the guy who pulled her from the river.

"Cami" Mirabel said, grabbing his ruana as her legs gave out.

"Shoot" Camilo said, scooping her up before carrying her to the nursery.

"Hey Prima are you okay?" He said as he sat her on the bed.

"I-I'm so sorry I got you hurt, It should have been me, I should've been left in the river then none of this would have happened I'm so sorry" She replied.

"No, I do not regret what I did and I never will" He said pulling her close.

"You need sleep Prima, I will be here when you wake" He said as he lay down in the bed with her still in his arms.

After only five minutes both teens were in deep sleep holding each other.
-------

Felix and Julieta walked back downstairs.

"Where are they?" Pepa asked.

"They're asleep in the nursery, Camilo must have found her and took her there" Julieta replied with a smile on her face.

"Well I do have an idea, How about we grab all the blankets and pillows we have and have a huge sleepover in there." Agustin said

Immediately all the faces in the room brightened.

"Can I cuddle with Mira and Cami?" Antonio asked, pulling the biggest puppy eyes he could.

"If you can fit then sure" Felix said, Lifting Antonio onto his shoulders.

It only took them all ten minutes to completely set up the sleep over, and get settled.

"Goodnight everyone" Julieta whispered, getting responses from them all.

(In case you were wondering here is the setup for the sleep over: Obviously Pepa and Felix are sharing a space same with Agustin and Julieta, then we have Camilo, Mira and Antonio in the bed and Dolores, Isa and Luisa sharing a spot, they were gossiping quietly while the rest slept until they did too)

Thank you for all the support I really appreciate it, you guys are the reason I try not to take too long of breaks, I will update as regularly as I can manage, thanks again. <3

Chapter Text

When Julieta wakes up she finds that she is no longer holding Agustin but she is now holding Mirabel in her arms, With Agustin now smiling at her and the small figure in her arms.

"Morning Mi Vida" He says leaning over to give her a quick kiss.

"Morning. Where are the kids?" Julieta replies.

"Down stairs, they are making breakfast and told me to tell the rest of you to stay here so it would be a surprise." He replied, cupping his daughter's cheek.

"Ay Agustin, you let them loose in my kitchen they are going to burn the house down." Julieta said, shifting to stand.

"Dolores and Isa are twenty-two they can handle it, you have been cooking since you were five." He said.

"Okay, but if I smell smoke I am going down there" She replied.

Suddenly Felix lets out a loud snore that makes Mirabel stir and instantly wakes Pepa.

Immediately Julieta flings a slipper at Felix who jumps awake in response.

"What the hell Julieta." He said, sulking

"You are going to wake my baby and if you do that you will be getting hit with much more than a slipper" She replied, gesturing to the snoring Mirabel.

"Oh sorry, but can you just shake me next time, you have one hell of a throw." He replies rubbing the lump that appeared on his head from the slipper.

"You were to far away, If I moved it would wake her." She said.

"Where are the kids Juli?." Pepa asked.

"Making breakfast." Julieta said

"Oh ok" Pepa replied.

Mirabel starts to stir, Pulling herself closer to her Mama, wincing slightly, Of course all four adults caught this, Their faces instantly morphing to one of worry.

"Mama, Closer Mama" She whimpered, trying to shuffle as close as she could.

"Mira are you okay baby, Are you hurt?." Julieta asks, pulling Mirabel closer to her.

"Head hurts, Light hurts" She replied, burying her Face in Julieta's neck.

"Agustin draw the curtains please." Julieta said.

"Okay" Agustin replied, walking over to the window.

Suddenly Camilo bursts in the room.

"BREAKFAST IS READY" He half shouted half sang.

Instantly Mirabel winced, covering her ears with her hands.

"Cami, please don't shout, Mira has a headache" Pepa said

"Oh shoot sorry Prima, are you okay?" He asked walking over to where his Tia and Prima lay, taking Mirabel's hand.

She didn't give an audible response only mumbles and a small nod of the head.

"She nodded Sobrino, Now how about breakfast." Julieta said with a smile on her face.

Camilo nodded and left, followed by Pepa and Felix.

"We will be down in a minute, could you ask them to keep quiet please?" Agustin asked.

"Yeah" Felix replied.

"You want something to eat baby?" Julieta said.

"Not hungry" She replied.

"I know but you need to eat so you can take something for your head" Julieta said, gently massaging her daughter's head.

"Just wanna cuddle" She replied, pushing herself even further into her Mama's hold.

"Well how about we go down stairs to cuddle?" Julieta suggests

Mirabel just nods and instantly she feels herself being lifted, her head still tucked into Julieta's neck.

When they get down stairs everyone is talking so Agustin holds his finger to his lips, quietly asking them to whisper.

Julieta sits at the table with Mirabel still wrapped around her and starts to eat.

About halfway through the meal she gently takes Mirabel's hand and presses a piece of toast into it.

"If you eat that I can give you something for the pain" She says quietly to Mirabel.

Mirabel nods and starts eating it, only taking small bites, Finishing after about five minutes.

Mirabel puts her head back in the crook of her Mama's neck to hide her eyes form the light.

Then she is being carried again.

Julieta sits on the couch, Mira still attached to her front, now sleeping again somehow.

Nobody knows or questions how she can fall asleep so fast, though they assume it's due to exhaustion.

The family are once again sitting in the living room all smiling at the sound of Mira's cute little snoring sounds.
------------

The family have been talking for a few hours when Mirabel shoots up and stumbles to the bathroom.

She is throwing up and shaking when Julieta gets there.

Immediately after she is finished Julieta picks her up, quickly putting a hand to her head, feeling that she is burning up bad.

"Mira are you okay, how do you feel baby talk to me." Julieta pleads.

" 'M fine Mama, don't wor-, why are there two of you" She replies before passing out.

"Agustin run a cold bath please, like now, she passed out from a high fever." Julieta said frantically, trying to wake Mira.

Immediately Agustin is running the bath and before it is even full Julieta is in it holding Mirabel not caring about their clothes getting wet.

"No mama cold" She whimpers, barely conscious.

"I know but we need to cool you down, baby" Julieta said.

After ten minutes they are both out the bath, Mirabel is awake and getting dried off and changed in the nursery while Julieta does the same in the bathroom.

"Mira are you almost done." Pepa asked.

She doesn't get a response so she tries to open the door to find it locked.

"Luisa, you need to come open this door Mira locked herself in." She yelled, grabbing the attention of everyone except a sleeping Camilo and Antonio.

Luisa is there within two seconds bashing down the door only to find an open window and no Mirabel.

"How did she get out, it's a second story window." Isa says

"I don't know but that is all the more reason to find her she could be hurt" Dolores replied. The family immediately dispersed leaving only Pepa to look after the two sleeping boys.
--------------

Mirabel is running through town when she is stopped by someone who looks in his twenty's.

"Hey little lady where are you running off to huh" The man says with a creepy smile.

"No where leave me alone" She replies trying to walk away.

"I don't think so, why don't you come with me for a little while" He says, Harshly grabbing her wrist.

"I said leave me alone" She says, trying to fight, panicking slightly.

"AW c'mon baby I don't bite, well not unless you want me to." He said, cupping her chin, forcing her to look at him as he licked his lips.

"L-let me go" She stutters.

"Aw Baby got a stutter, your voice is getting annoying but I have a pretty good way to shut you up" He said, leaning down to try and kiss her.

"Hey, you better get the fuck away from my Sobrina, before I rip your head off you perv." Felix growled.

Immediately Mirabel is dropped, though she doesn't run she just falls to the ground, curling in on herself.

Felix angrily walks up to the man.

"You have one second to explain to me why you are trying to touch her." Felix spat.

"Oh please the little slut asked for it, she's the one who came up to me asking for a good time, so I gave it to her, the little whore is just attention see-" The man didn't get to finish when a swift punch was delivered to his stomach, Immediately crumpling to the ground he groaned.

"You ever show your face in this village again I will kill you and if you think I'm bluffing then you should come at me and test your luck." Felix said kicking the man.

The second Felix stopped the man winced as he stood up and ran.

Felix was holding Mirabel within the second.

"No please, I'm sorry I didn't mean to lead you on, Please don't touch me let me go I promise I will be good." Mirabel whimpered, Obviously thinking it was the man holding her.

"Shit" Felix muttered under his breath.
----------

Dolores was with Julieta when suddenly.

"Shi- Shoot he found her but there is a problem." Dolores said.

"Where are they what's wrong" Julieta replied worried.

"I don't know but they are this way" She said, walking down an alley.

When Julieta and Dolores find them Mirabel is screaming and crying in Felix's arms and he has a lot of bite marks up his arms.

"Juli we need to get her home I will explain there, you need to take her she will calm if it's you and not a man holding her." Felix said handing Mira to Julieta.

Julieta Immediately begins to soothe her child as they walk home, Felix leaving the two to go find the rest of the family.

When they get home Pepa is waiting for them, Instantly after seeing Pepa, Mirabel jumps from Julieta's arms and stumbles into Pepa, who catches and picks her up, cradling the crying teen.

"Het it's okay Mira, what happened."Pepa asked the girl.

"Man, Kiss, touching, 'slut' " She rambled.

Pepa was shocked but still didn't know what she meant.

"Felix?" Pepa asked.

"When I found her, a man had hold of her, he was touching and trying to kiss her, he was calling her all these names like 'slut and whore', then when I intervened he tried to blame it on her so I bet the hell out of him and warned him that if he every showed his face here again I would kill him." Felix said angrily.

Agustin was already out of casita in search of the man, Julieta tried to stop him but it didn't work.

"Felix go after him please give him backup, though I don't think he will need it." Julieta said.

Felix just nodded before running after Agustin.

"What the hell is in your hand." Felix asked.

"Baseball bat to beat the fucker's head in." Agustin spat.

"Which one is he." He said pointing to a group of about ten twenty year old's

"OOOHHHH I just pulled this girl she was so fit, definitely a little slut, she was just begging me for it, but when I tried to do anything this big dude came up to me and beat the shit out of me for trying to like attack her or some shit, We both knew that she asking for it and yet this dick beat the hell out of me." One twenty year old said.

Without thinking, Agustin pushed his way into the circle before swinging the bat, hitting the man on the head with a loud cracking sound.

Immediately Agustin had ten hands on his body, holding him still as the man beat him up.

Felix instantly jumped in flinging as many of them as he could away from the circle.

Once they both broke free Agustin jumped on the man and continuously punched him in the face until he was unconscious only to be pulled off seconds later, a sudden sharp pain ripping through his stomach.

Felix watched while beating up a group of three as Agustin got stabbed then passed out.

"Shit" He said before running and tackling the last guy to the ground, knocking him out.

Felix quickly picked up Agustin, first struggling but the adrenaline helped him.

"Dolores, Mija I know you can hear me, Agustin has been stabbed I'm bringing him home tell your Tia to have food ready, he is bleeding pretty bad" Felix said, knowing Dolores would hear him.
------- After hearing this Dolores ran up stairs to her Tia's room. "Tia come quick, it's Tio he got hurt, badly he needs food." Dolores said bursting in the room. "What happened, Mama is Papa okay" Mirabel asked weakly. "Yes Mira he is fine, it's just bee stings." Julieta lied. Once Dolores and Julieta are out the room Dolores explains what happened, Immediately Julieta runs down stairs grabbing a plate of Arepas. Julieta quickly ran to the door waiting for Agustin and Felix to come round the corner when suddenly she heard shouting from upstairs and quick footseps thundering down the stairs. Julieta turns around to see Mirabel trying to run past her obviously trying to find Agustin. Julieta quickly puts down the plat on the floor before catching Mirabel, stopping her from leaving. "Mira honey, you need to go back upstairs." Julieta says holding the teen in her arms while gesturing for Luisa. Mirabel didn't respond, when Julieta looked at her she saw Mira's eyes where blown wide and she was starting to shake, Julieta followed her gaze and saw Felix carrying a very bloody and unconscious Agustin in his arms. "Shit" Julieta said, quickly standing passing Mirabel to Luisa, who had to physically restrain her to stop her from running to Agustin. "Luisa get her up stairs now" Julieta demanded before grabbing the arepas and running out the door to meet with Felix. Once she got to them she shook Agustin as much as she could, this being him barely conscious, but it worked enough for her to shove an Arepa in his mouth. "Chew Agustin, damn it." She said Agustin finished the Arepa before passing out again. "Felix, thank you so much, you should go and get cleaned up, do you think you could send Luisa down as long as Mira is calm?" Julieta said, gently putting Agustin's head in her lap. "Absolutely, no problem, I am just happy you sent me as back up, It would've been a lot worse if you didn't" he replied before walking upstairs to the room. A couple Minutes later Luisa was there, she quickly picked up her Papa, taking him to there bedroom. "Thank you Mija, he will be okay he is healed he just lost a lot of blood and he needs time to replenish it." Julieta said, giving Luisa a hug. Luisa nodded and left. After a couple minutes there was a knock at the door, Julieta opened it to reveal Mirabel. 'She must have managed to get away from Pepa again.' She thought as she picked the small girl up, laying her on the bed next to her Agustin, who was now in Pyjamas and the blood was all gone since Julieta changed and cleaned him up. Mirabel instantly curled up next to him, His arms automatically wrapping around her protectively. Julieta smiled and quietly left the room, Bumping into a frantic Pepa who was thundering slightly. "Pepa what's wrong" Julieta said "Mirabel got away again, I don't know how but I can't find her and Dolores said something about Agustin getting stabbed and Felix is in the shower, he walked into our room covered in blood and-" "relax Pepa Mira is in there Agustin did get hurt but he is healed and resting and that was not Felix's blood it was a mix of Agustin's and a group of twenty year olds." Julieta interrupted, pulling her sister in for a hug, quickly she realised how exhausted she felt. "Pepa could you handle dinner, I am exhausted, would you mind you don't have to" Julieta said Pepa pulled away from the hug. "No problem Juli I've got it, do you want me to save food for the three of you?" Pepa said. Julieta nodded. "Okay now sleep" Pepa said smiling, pushing Julieta into her bedroom, where she got changed and fell asleep, Mirabel and Agustin quietly snoring next to her as she did. Hope you enjoyed the chapter, have a good day/night. :D

Chapter Text

Mirabel jumped awake, covered in her sweat and panicking.

She couldn't feel the gentle hand on her back or the soothing words coming from her Papa.

All she could feel was a pain in her head and all she could hear were screams, she wasn't actually screaming so why could she hear them?.

Whenever she blinked she saw flashes of her family either injured or dead, the most common one being her Papa, screaming in pain from a stab wound or Camilo writhing in pain from kicks and punches.

"no no no no no no no" She mumbled over and over.

Suddenly there were two hands on her cheeks and a blurry figure in front of her face.

Finally, she heard something other than screams.

"-Ira, Mira, Baby look at me, focus on me," Julieta said

"M-Ma" She barely managed to stutter out between breaths.

"Shh, baby don't talk, just breath with me okay, in and out, real easy okay, breath Mira," Julieta said

Mirabel screwed her eyes shut, trying not to cry, but all she saw was her family again blaming her for their deaths.

As much as they tried they could not get Mirabel to calm down before she passed out from hyperventilating.

"We need to wake her, we need to talk to her, I will go get Pepa, she has always been better at calming people down after nightmares," Julieta said, standing before leaving the room.

As Julieta walks downstairs she hears a scream then frantic footsteps running, she turns around just as Mirabel bumps into her making them both fall down the rest of the stairs.

Immediately the family is there helping Julieta and trying to help Mirabel to stand, though every time someone touches her she screams and kicks.

Pepa walks up beside her, sitting on the floor and pulling Mira into her arms.

"Mira, it's Tia, can you open your eyes for me Mija?" Pepa asks, running a hand through the girl's hair in an attempt to calm her.

Mirabel slowly opens her eyes, upon seeing her Tia she turns around pushing herself further into the hold, wincing as she does so.

"Tia, I-I can't breathe, I ca- bad, horrible, hurt them," Mirabel rambled not making sense.

Pepa took Mirabel's shaking hand and put it on her chest.

"Follow my breathing Mira, you're okay, just copy me," Pepa said before exaggerating her breathing, making it easier for Mirabel to follow.

Mirabel's breathing evened out after about two minutes, Immediately she tried to stand, wincing again before collapsing back onto Pepa.

"Mira, did you hurt your leg?" Pepa asked.

Mirabel shook her head, standing again, biting down the pain refusing to admit she got hurt.

She tried to walk up the stairs the best she could without limping, though that didn't work because Casita turned the stairs to a ramp, gently forcing Mirabel back down the stairs.

"Mira if you are hurt we need to know where so we can help," Agustin said, taking her hand.

"I'm fine Papa, I'm just tired please let go of me so I can sleep," Mirabel said.

"But you are not fine, otherwise Casita would have let you go, just let me take a look at your leg." He said, pulling her closer to him.

"Please just, it's too much, too many people, I wa-, I need to be alone please just leave me alone" She pleaded breaking his grip on her hand.

"You know we can't leave you alone." He said softly.

"Why not, cause I tried to kill myself, or cause I hate myself so much I have to hurt myself to feel better. You not leaving me alone drives me crazy, over the past two weeks I have Hyperventilated more than I have breathed normally, so is that why you can't leave me alone or is it because you want someone to baby, or because you need to look after someone weaker to make you all feel stronger, cause if that's the case then why don't you try with Luisa or Isa, cause I'm fed up with everyone's shit, I'm not a baby so stop calling me that." She shouted, getting stressed out again.

After Mirabel said that she pulled free from Agustin and hoped up the stairs as fast as possible, breaking down completely the second she got into the nursery.

The family decided to leave her alone, but Agustin did sit outside the nursery door, refusing to move and Dolores kept an ear out.

Julieta was panicking, frantically stress cooking.

"Ow shit" she winced out, immediately Pepa was by her side.

"Did you get cut, Juli?" She asked concerned.

"No" she replied lying, though Pepa didn't go into it instead she handed her an arepa.

"Thanks" She mumbled, eating the Arepa quickly before being pulled into a hug by Pepa.

"NO MIRA" they heard Dolores shout, Instantly everyone was around her and they heard Agustin break the nursery door open.

FAILED SUICIDE ATTEMPT: WARNING

After explaining to the family Julieta ran upstairs to discover Dolores was right, Mira had tried to hang herself with bedsheets.

Agustin was holding the crying teen rocking her, trying to console her, trying to do anything to put her mind at ease.

"Why won't you let me go, I don't want to be here anymore," She said, breaking down in his arms.

"I will never let you go, even when I am gone I will guard you" Agustin replied, now crying himself.

"You were almost gone yesterday because of me, just because I made that guy do that to me cause I'm a slut, maybe I did want it and I don't know and who's to say, even if I didn't that I wouldn't deserve it, If Tio had left that guy alone you wouldn't have almost died," Mirabel shouted into his chest, thumping as hard as she could against it, though it wasn't very hard.

"I do not regret a thing I would do it again, I would die to protect you or anyone else in this family" Agustin replied.

"I AM BROKEN, WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO GET THAT" she shouted again.

"You are not, you never have been and never will be, I love you, Mirabel, we all love you." He said, running a hand through her hair.

Feeling this she Immediately gathered up all her strength and pushed him away, stumbling out the nursery doorway and down the stairs, she tripped on the bottom step but was caught by her Tia, who instantly sat on the ground of casita holding the girl.

"I'm sorry Mija." She said, before hitting a pressure point on Mirabel's neck, knocking her out instantly.

Agustin and Julieta who had just managed to get down the stairs saw this and Immediately panicked.

"What did you do to her," Julieta said worriedly.

"I made her fall unconscious, it's just like sleeping, it was the only option, calming her didn't work, neither did brute force nor proving your love, she was going to pass out anyway I just made it less painful and faster" Pepa explained, cradling the small teen.

"You need to be there for her, so do you, Isa and Luisa, Juli take her to your room be by her side when she wakes," Pepa said, handing the limp girl to her sister.

Julieta instantly pulled her close, noticing the marks around her neck.

"What do we do about those?" Agustin asks, gently putting a hand on her cheek.

"We heal them when she wakes" Julieta replied, climbing the stairs.
-----------

When Mirabel wakes she is in some sort of blanket heap on the floor of her Mama's room, she notices Isa and Luisa are holding her and Her Mama and Papa have their arms draped over all three girls, but they are all asleep, Suddenly she is very aware of the pain around her neck and everything comes flooding back, Remembering what she said made her feel sick, so she scooted out from under her family and ran to the bathroom, painfully heaving into the toilet, tears stinging the corner's of her eyes, she feels herself loosing strength, her body almost going completely limp when a set of hands gently held up her waist, making sure she doesn't collapse anymore than she already has, she wants too push the hands away, too run and scream and cry but all she can do is fall into them, so she does and Immediately there are arms gently draped around her and a soothing humming sound coming from the person holding her.

"Mama I'm sorry" She whimpered, trying to blink back tears.

"You have nothing to be sorry for, don't hold it in, let it out, it will make you feel better and I will be here until you decide." Julieta replied.

"I want to cry but I can't Mama, I feel empty and broken, If I cry now I won't stop until, well I don't know when and I already woke you and, I can't let you see that I can't hurt you anym-" "You did not hurt me, you are not empty or broken, and I don't care how long I have to hold you, I will do it in a heartbeat, with no hesitation, so please let it out, I will never leave you not even when you are begging me too, because that is what love is and I love you." Julieta Interrupted softly.

"Can w-, never mind" Mirabel started.

"Whatever it is it's important and we will do it, if you feel embarrassed, don't be we all love you and will not judge." Julieta said

"Can we go cuddle?" Mirabel mumbled, barely loud enough for Julieta to hear.

"Is that all?" Julieta lightly laughed

Mirabel nodded, A bright blush spreading across her face.

Suddenly Mirabel is lifted and moved to the bed.

"Let me wake the others, two seconds Mira" Julieta said

"Are you sure they won't mind, they look tired" She said.

"I'm sure Mira, just get comfy" She smiled, giving a quick kiss to the top of her head.

"Agustin, Isa, Luisa, Mira wants cuddles wake up" Julieta says, shaking them one at a time.

All three quickly get up and move to the bed.

Mirabel adjusts so she is laying against her Mama with her head tucked into her neck.

"Well how are we expected to cuddle you if you're hiding" Agustin chuckled slightly.

Mirabel sticks her hand out, blindly reaching for his.

"Do you want me to rub your palm?, you used to like it when you where little." Agustin asked, Mirabel responded with a nod which he missed, but he did catch Julieta's nod.

Immediately he started lightly tracing all the lines on her palm with his thumb and instantly felt her relax more.

"What do you wanna talk about Mira?" Agustin asks.

She just shakes her head while mumbling something incoherent.

"She doesn't want to talk" Julieta replied.

Luisa gently took her other hand, doing the same thing Agustin was doing, as Isa gently rubs her back.

Julieta feels a slight wetness on her neck and Instantly know what's happening, though se can feel Mira trying to hold back.

"Let it out Mira, it's okay baby." Julieta said knowing that with this sort of thing she doesn't mind being called Baby.

Almost Immediately Mira breaks down, sobbing loudly into Julieta's neck, who in return runs a hand through her hair, massaging her scalp.

Mirabel's hand fly from her sister and Papa's and strait to her hair where they tug ruthlessly.

Almost instantly her hand are stolen away from her hair, instead being returned to Agustin and Luisa's, who just starts rubbing them again.

Mirabel cry's for three hours and her family held her the entire time, refusing to let go, except Isa who left for two minutes to use the bathroom.

Surprisingly Mira didn't fall asleep she just cried then sat in silence, it only being broken by a few little sniffles and hiccups.

Mirabel was still being held by Julieta when she raised a hand and gently touched Mira's neck, trying to make sure nothing was seriously wrong. The second Julieta touched her neck Mirabel flinched, a sharp gasp coming from her.

Mirabel quickly pushed away from Julieta pulling her hands free again.

"Mira are you okay, I 'm sorry if I hurt you I just had to make sure nothing was seriously wrong." Julieta said, moving to the end of the bed where Mira was curled up.

" 'm fine" She replied, her voice hoarse from the neck injury and all the crying.

"Do you want some food, it will help you and then maybe after that we can watch a movie with Tia and Tio and your cousins?" Julieta recommended.

Mirabel nodded crawling into her Mama's arms.

"D-do you think you could carry me?" She asked into Julieta's neck.

Julieta responded by shifting Mirabel's weight before picking her up, Agustin getting the door for them.

As they walked down the stairs they heard laughter coming from the living room.

Mirabel hid her face, worried about them seeing her tear stained face.

"No need to hide Mira, it's okay" Julieta said as they got into the kitchen

Luisa, who was standing in the doorway heard talking coming from the living room.

"Tia Pepa is coming" she says.

Mirabel quickly hoped off the counter and hugged Agustin, trying to hide herself again.

"Mira, it's just Tia." Agustin said gently pulling Mira back from him.

"Don't wanna see her, got you and Tio hurt and she's gonna be mad." She replied, pushing herself back into Agustin's chest.

Suddenly she was moved and she was holding onto someone else.

"I'm not mad Mira, they chose to do that because they love you" Pepa said pulling her into a hug.

Mirabel started shaking.

"Mira, It's okay, I've got you" Pepa said.

She wanted to cry but she couldn't, she had cried so much earlier that she just felt numb and slightly scared.

Mirabel stepped back form the hug, still shaking slightly.

When Pepa put a hand on her shoulder she flinched.

"Please, no touching, too much" She said quietly.

Immediately Pepa's hand moved, as she knew Mirabel was overwhelmed.

Suddenly Dolores was at her side gently speaking to her.

"Can I touch you Mira?" She said.

Mira frantically shook her head, shuffling back so she was in a corner.

"Mira, I'm going to touch you okay." Dolores said.

Mirabel reluctantly nodded, as Dolores reached forward and cupped her ears, gently massaging just behind them, almost instantly Mira fell limp onto Dolores lap, the sensation calming her down.

"How did you do that." Julieta asked.

"It's something Papa does when I get overwhelmed, so I figured it will help, Papa must've just forgotten about it." Dolores said.

"Are those marks on her neck what I think they are?" Pepa asked quietly so as Mirabel wouldn't hear.

But Mirabel did hear and flinched hard, she started panicking as she put her hands round her neck, covering the wounds, wincing slightly when her hands came in contact with the bruised skin.

"No baby, don't touch it you will make it worse." Julieta said, diving forward taking Mirabel's hands.

Mirabel fought a little before giving up.

"Can you let me go please" She asked.

"Promise not to touch your neck?" Julieta asked, to which Mirabel nodded.

Immediately Julieta let go of her daughter's hands, Dolores was still rubbing behind her ears, Mirabel leaning up against her chest with her eyes closed as she did so.

"Do you think we could go for a walk, maybe the fresh air will help her" Dolores suggested.

Upon hearing this Mirabel shot up running up the stairs into the nursery.

Immediately Julieta and Agustin ran up the stairs, following her into the nursery, only to see her climb under the bead and curl up on herself.

"Mira baby, what's wrong?" Julieta asked, trying to get her out, but all she discovers is Mirabel is too far under for her too reach.

"Casita, help me out please." Julieta said to the house quietly. Instantly Casita gently moved Mira out from under the bed, Julieta scooping her up Immediately.

Mirabel was shaking and clawing at her own neck, not making a sound as she did so.

Agustin gently grabbed her hands, A concerned look on his face as he and Julieta see the bleeding scratches that now riddle her neck.

Suddenly Julieta is carrying her down the stairs, walking past the family as she does so.

Julieta walks strait to the kitchen, sitting Mira down on the counter before grabbing an Arepa, pressing it into her hand.

"Eat Mira, please eat it" Julieta says gently.

"I'm not hungry" she says with no emotion.

"I know baby, but you need to eat, you need to heal." Julieta replies.

"And what if I don't want to heal" She says.

"You need to, you either eat or we take a walk" Julieta said firm, yet gentle.

"Neither, I don't want to heal so I'm not going to, you would have to force feed me again and I won't forgive you again." She snapped, trying to leave the room.

She just managed to get out the doorway when Felix caught her wrist.

"C'mon Mija let us help you." He said.

She pulled out of his grasp, heading towards the stairs.

When she started to climb the stairs, Casita slid her back down them, so she tried again only to be slid back down again.

"Damn it Casita leave me alone" She said punching the tiles on one of the pillars, a sickening snapping sound heard on the impact.

The family watched as she gritted her teeth, a single tear running down her cheek.

Julieta walks up to Mirabel, who immediately moves her hand out the way of Julieta's way.

"Mira I need to see your hand" Julieta said.

"I don't think you do." She replied wincing slightly.

"We all heard the crack." Julieta said.

"I dented the pillar, my hand is fine" She said.

" There is no dent on the-" "Tia there is blood dripping from the hand behind her back." Camilo interrupted.

"Please, leave me alone." Mirabel said.

"Mira when will you understand we are not going to leave you alone, every time we do something bad happens, we love you, we all love you, why can't you understand that, all you need to do is let us in, you need to talk to us, to let us help you, Bruno lost his way in this family Mira, I can't let the same happen to you, we messed up with Bruno I will not do that again, I refuse, Me and Pepa and everyone who met him didn't see he was struggling, we didn't know and we know with you so let us help." Julieta pleaded.

"WHAT SO THAT IS ALL THIS IS, REDEMTION FOR YOU NOT NOTICING WITH TIO BRUNO, WHEN YOU SAY SHIT LIKE YOU CAOULDN'T LIVE WITHOUT ME OR YOU COULDN'T LIVE WITH YOURSELF IF SOMETHING WOULD HAPPEN TO ME, THEN YOU WOULD KNOW HOW I FEEL EVERYDAY I AM ON THIS PLANET." Mirabel shouted, slapping a hand over her mouth when she realised what she had said, so she ran she ran up to the nursery and shut the door before jumping out the window, landing with a roll to break her fall as she ran into the forest as fast as she could.

She heard her family calling for her for hours, but she just stayed hidden in a tree she had climbed.

It was dark and freezing cold when Pepa and Isa finally found Mirabel, sleeping in the tree.

Isabela used some vines gently pull her from the tree, placing her into Pepa's waiting arms.

"We should head back, our priority is getting her warmed up, she is freezing." Pepa said before continuing, "Dolores we found her, we are taking her home she is freezing, find the other's and bring them home." She finished.

Pepa and Isabela rushed home, Isabela running up stairs to get fresh Pyjamas and the warmest blanket she could find, along with some bandages for her hand and any other injury's she might have gotten.

Pepa changed Mirabel into the pyjamas before wrapping the small girls injury's and putting the blanket round herself and Mirabel hoping to transfer some of her body heat to the small girl.

It only took five minutes for the family to get back.

"Where was she, is she okay, is she hurt." Julieta said frantically.

"She is in the living room with Tia, Mama, but we need to keep quiet she is sleeping, she only has a few scrapes on top of what she had before but me and Tia wrapped them, Mama you can't freak out, she was freezing when we found her so Tia is trying to heat her up the best she can" Isa said, Immediately Julieta ran to the living room, upon arriving she saw Mirabel and Pepa tucked into a blanket, Peanut was there too, his little head just poking out.

"Tia, Peanut says her heart rate is elevated and she is breathing heavy, what ever that means." Antonio said.

"Pepa, Pass her here is she is going to freak out I need to calm her." Julieta said after thanking Antonio.

Immediately Pepa got out the blanket and passed Mira to her sister.

"Mira, It's Mama you're okay, you're safe, I'm right here" Julieta said as the girl began to stir.

"Ma-Mama?" She asked.

"Yes baby, it's me" Julieta replied, giving a small kiss to her freezing forehead.

"Mama I-I'm so c-cold" She said shivering.

"I know, we are trying to heat you up, I'm going to carry you upstairs and we will get loads of blankets and my big duvet and we are going to bundle you up okay?" Julieta said.

Mirabel shakily nodded.

Julieta did exactly as she said she would before getting in to the blanket heap with Mira and pulling her close, That's when Mira breaks for the second time that day, sobbing loudly in Julieta's arms.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said what I did you loved Tio Bruno I know that, I was terrible, I'm so sorry Mama" Mirabel sobbed

"It's okay baby, you were upset, it happens don't worry." Julieta soothed.

The rest of the family were setting up beds on the floor so they could stay with Mira, well except Agustin who climbed into the heap with his wife and daughter, everyone in the family falling asleep soon after.
-------

When Mirabel woke, she could see the sun rising through the window, though it was still mostly dark outside.

'it must be about 5am' she thought.

Suddenly she felt a hand running through her hair, she flinched.

"Sorry baby didn't mean to startle you, how are you feeling?" Agustin asked.

"Warm" she replied.

"That makes sense we have about fifteen blankets and a duvet on us." He said

"Why?" She replied, puzzled.

"It was cold last night is all" He lied.

"Re-" Mirabel stopped suddenly.

"Mira what's wrong?" Agustin asked

"It wasn't just cold last night, I was cold and I ran and Panicked and, Oh my god I was so mean to Mama, why, what" She rambled.

Julieta's arms wrapped around her daughter's waist, gently pulling her towards Julieta, who woke up about thirty seconds ago.

"It's okay, don't worry about it, I've got you baby, don't worry." Julieta said.

"How about we go down stairs and get some food, hm?" Agustin said.

"I can't eat" Mirabel said

"Why not Mira?" Julieta said.

"I feel sick Mama" She replied.

"I don't think I'm going to be sick, but I will if I eat, but everything hurts, what do I do Mama?" Mirabel whimpered

"Just relax baby, we will think of something, how about you try and get more sleep for now." Julieta said, tucking the small girl under her arm, holding her close.

When Julieta pulls Mirabel close, she doesn't realise Mirabel's injured hand is sitting there, so she accidently pulls her onto her injured hand.

Mirabel yelps loudly, rolling off of her hand.

When she yelped she woke the family as it was a yell.

"Oh, crap sorry baby, I didn't mean that, are you okay" Julieta asks.

"It's okay Mama" she winces out before continuing "Do you want to see it you did yesterday."

"If you don't mind, I just need to see if it's broken, cause if it is you are going to have to eat." Julieta replied, holding out her hand.

"Is everything okay Juli, what was that sound." Pepa said, while everyone else was having their own conversations.

"Yes, I accidently touched Mira's bad hand." Julieta said.

"Sorry for waking you all." Mirabel said quietly with a blush.

"It's no problem Prima" Camilo said with a sleepy smile.

Peanut hope up onto the bed and gently pawed at Mira's leg.

Mira winced at the feeling, she looked down at her pyjama leg, seeing blood she started to panick.

"M-Mama" She said.

"Yes Mira what's wr-, what happened baby, why is your leg bleeding?." Julieta replied, pulling back the covers to show it more.

"When I said about a few extra scrapes that's what I meant, that was the worst one, she must have fell in the forest." Isa said standing up.

Mirabel started to shake, she had been cutting for years but now for some reason the sight of blood was making her feel light headed.

"Mama I think I'm gonna faint." Mira said.

"No you're okay look at me not your leg, deep breaths, take nice deep breaths" Julieta said, gently cupping her chin to make her look away from her leg.

"I still think I'm gonna fai-" Mirabel faints before she can finish.

"Okay" Pepa said before continuing " Boys go make breakfast or something, you need to leave so we can change her bandages"

Felix and Agustin nodded before ushering the two younger boys out.

"Mira wake up baby" Julieta says after pulling her gently from the heap.

"Mama?" she slurs.

"Yes Mira it's me, now can you do me favour and tell me how many fingers I'm holding up." Julieta said, holding up three fingers.

"Six, no wait let me try again that's only one hand, um five." She said.

"I don't think that's good Mama." Isa said.

"It's fine we will try again in a couple minutes when she has woke up a little more." Julieta said.

"WAIT, IT IS SIX FINGERS HOW IS IT SIX FINGERS, MAMA YOU HAVE AN EXTRA FINGER, WAIT DO I" Mirabel shouted, making Dolores wince.

"Sorrrrrry, Prima didn't mean to shout." She slurred, giggling slightly as she played with Julieta's hand.

"Luisa can you get a glass of water please." Julieta said, looking down at Mirabel, who looked confused as to why she only felt three fingers when she saw six.

Dolores came over and sat on the bed in front of Mira.

"Camilo stop turning into Dolores you're confusing me." Mirabel said, poking Dolores cheek with her uninjured hand.

Dolores gently took her hand.

"Camilo isn't here Mira, you just fainted, you are a little delirious." Dolores said

"Here Mama." Luisa said handing the glass to Julieta.

"Thank you, Mira here drink this." Julieta said, passing Mira the glass, making sure she had it before letting go.

Mirabel slowly drank the water, Julieta taking the glass once she was done.

"How may finger am I holding up now baby.?" Julieta said, Holding three fingers up again.

"Were you holding up three the entire time Mama?" Mirabel said, blushing heavily.

"Yes, I was" Julieta said chuckling.

"Sorry I shouted and poked you Dolores." She said before attempting to turn over, stopping half way when she winced.

"Shit" she hissed, slapping a hand over her mouth when she realised she swore.

"Language" came the voices of the five women in unison.

"Sorry." She said.

"It's fine just don't make a habit of it." Julieta said " Why did you wince what hurt?" She continued.

"My leg" She said, looking down, only for Julieta to gently cup her chin, stopping her from looking at her leg.

"You fainted last time you looked." Julieta said with a small smile.

"we need to change your bandages, but first can I see your hand." Julieta says.

Mirabel holds up her injured hand.

Julieta takes it and slowly starts unwinding the bandage, Mirabel winces a couple times and every time she does she gets a sincere apology.

When the bandage is finally off, they all gasp, Pepa and Isa had saw it last night but it wasn't as bad then. Now it was angry purple colour, with her knuckles being red from fresh blood, When Mirabel sees her hand she starts shaking, Immediately Isa is turning her head from her hand, making a flower appear.

"Focus on this , the smell, the details, the feel of it, you don't need to look at your hand or leg we will deal with them." She said kindly.

"Thank you" She said, though she suddenly went pale." I'm gonna be sick" she said before jumping up and running to the bathroom, wincing with every step she took on her bad leg.

Julieta was there in a matter of seconds rubbing her back.

"DAMN IT" She cried hitting the bathtub with her injured hand, forgetting it was injured.

"No, Mira, you can't do that" Julieta said putting her hand against the bathtub so she was at least hitting something softer then Metal, knowing she couldn't take hold of Mira's hold she grabbed her arm gently.

"What the hell am I supposed to do, I can't heal what's hurt because I will throw up, but the pain and seeing the Injury's are making me faint and throw up." She shouted.

"Mira calm down baby." Julieta said.

"I can't" She said.

Then Agustin burst in the door after hearing all the banging and yelling from downstairs he came up and left Felix with the boys.

"What happened." He asked, looking over at his daughter.

"She was sick then, she started hitting the bathtub with her hand and I can't get her to calm down"

Immediately Agustin walked forward and scooped Mirabel up, keeping a firm yet gentle grip on her arm.

"Mira, can you let Mama take a look at your hand?" Agustin asked gently.

Mirabel nods in response and immediately Julieta is gently holding the hand turning it every so often to look at it better.

"Mirabel, can you touch each of your fingers to your thumb?" Julieta asked.

Mirabel tried but the second she moved a finger she yelped in pain, tears instantly falling from her eyes.

"Mira it's broken pretty bad you're going to have to eat an Arepa, I'm sorry I know you're not hungry, but if this doesn't heal correctly it could leave permanent damage." Julieta said.

"I-I can't" she said, still crying.

"Mira I'm sorry but you really don't have a choice you need to, if we were in any other town you would have to get surgery done, a cast on it's own won't cut it, you need to eat." Julieta said.

Mira still cried but nodded her head, instantly she felt herself being lifter and carried down stairs to the kitchen, immediately Julieta pulled out Agustin's emergency stash and handed her an Arepa and a glass of water.

Then they looked away, except Julieta who watched to make sure she didn't fling it away.

Mirabel ate the food, pairing every bite with water until the food was gone.

It was only two seconds before she was leaning over the sink throwing up the food, luckily the magic still worked and she remained healed.

As soon as she was finished, Julieta picked the sobbing girl up and carried her to the living room, where Camilo was playing with Antonio and Peanut as Felix watched, though they all came to a halt when they say Julieta enter with Mirabel in her arms, though fully healed she was crying and shaking.

Mirabel heard a few quick words before she was being shifted to someone else's lap.

"Hey Mira, come here" Felix said gently pulling the girl so her head was against his chest.

Mirabel had cried herself to sleep on Felix's chest, a hand balled up tight in his shirt as she snored cutely.

"How the hell do we deserve her" Felix said, a smile on his face.

"Simple, we don't" Camilo said, taking his Prima's free hand.

The next couple hours went smoothly just the family quietly joking and talking.

The talking only stopping for a brief second.

"They do love me, I know they do" Mirabel said in her sleep, smiling.

This made them all happy, she was having a dream where someone said the family didn't love her and she defended them.

So yeah that was this chapter, next one should be out in the next couple days or so.

Everyone please welcome keekskeiko, they will be my new editor and will be slowly editing the chapters.

Thanks for all the support, love yall :D

Chapter Text

UPDATE DIDNT ACTUALLY USE THE IDEA IN THIS CHAPTER FROM IHaveRabies69, BUT I WILL IN A FUTURE CHAPTER PROBABLY

When Mirabel woke she was still in her Tio's arms.

She Immediately squirmed in his gentle hold trying to get free.

"Woah you okay Mira, be careful you are going to hurt yourself." Felix said, slightly tightening his grip to make sure she didn't fall off the couch.

"Felix, let go of her I think she is going to be sick." Pepa said.

Felix immediately let go of her.

The second he let go of her she ran to the bathroom, hitting her shoulder on the doorframe.

She yelled out in pain, throwing up all over the floor as she did.

Julieta was immediately by Mira's side, holding her up as she threw up and sobbed.

Mirabel soon finished but was still crying, holding onto her shoulder.

"Mira let me see your shoulder baby" Julieta said, holding the now calmed down girl.

Mira shook her head, gently pulling from her Mama's grasp, she into the bathroom, avoiding the puke, she grabbed a bucket and filled it with water and soap, quickly starting to mop the floor.

A gentle hand pulled the mop from Mira's.

"Let me do it I made the mess" She said trying to take the mop back.

"If I had let you go when you tried to get free, then you wouldn't have rushed and hit your shoulder, you need to let your Mama take a look at it, let me do this." Felix said, gently pushing her hand from the mop.

"You were trying to make sure I didn't fall, you didn't know I was going to be sick." She said, trying to pull with a little more force.

Suddenly gentle arms wrapped around her, She flinched, hard.

"Please don't touch me." Mirabel said, shaking a little.

The hands Immediately moved, Mira gently pushed through her family and started walking upstairs.

She went straight into the nursery, shutting but not locking the door.

She curled up in her bed, holding her shoulder and just cried.

She was only alone for about five minutes when Pepa came in.

The second Pepa sat on the bed Mirabel clung to her and cried, Pepa whispering small reassurances to her.

Mirabel fell asleep, pretty quick.

"I can't tell them." she muttered in her sleep.

"What can't you tell us, Mira" Pepa said hoping she wouldn't realise she was talking.

"If I tell them that I only like girls they will leave, or tell me too" She said, still sleeping and clinging to Pepa.

"We would never." Pepa said, pulling her closer.

She slightly stirred at this.

"What do you mean you would never Tia?" Mira said, confused.

"You were sleep talking" Pepa said.

Mira froze, holding her breath, she started shaking.

"No Mira it's ok-" " What did you hear." She interrupted.

"What did you hear Tia." She repeated, starting to cry.

"Are you a lesbian?" Pepa asked gently.

Mira broke down, now having a full blown panic attack.

Pepa cradled the small, gently rocking her back and fourth while coaching her breathing.

"Better now?" Pepa said gently.

Mirabel just stayed quiet, still trembling slightly.

"Mira no one will be mad with you, we all love you, you are who you are." Pepa said.

Mirabel just stood up and went to the bathroom, returning soon after, laying on the floor instead of the bed.

"Mira, why are you on the floor?." Pepa asks.

"Light headed, almost passed out, it's cooler down here." Mirabel replied.

Immediately Pepa stood, walking over to Mirabel before putting a hand on her forehead.

"I'm going to get Julieta, I will be back in a minute" Pepa said, getting a lazy nod from Mirabel.

Pepa retrieved Julieta as they both ran up to the room to see Mirabel sleeping.

Julieta gently picked Mirabel up and carried her to her and Agustin's room.

Running a cool bath before gently placing Mirabel into it, soaking the girls pyjamas.

Mirabel instantly started struggling, remembering the river, she leapt out of the bath, falling against her Tia, who caught and held the girl.

"It's okay Mija, it's just a cool bath to get your temperature down, you are safe." Pepa said, now getting soaked herself.

Mirabel started giggling.

"Temperature is a big word." She giggled

"It is, can we put you back in the bath, you're sick we can't let you get worse can we?" Pepa said, knowing Immediately knowing she was age regressing.

"Do we have bubbles?" Mira asked jumping up and down on her Tia's lap, wincing when she accidently moved her shoulder the wrong way.

"We don't sadly do you think mama could take a look at your shoulder, baby?" Julieta asked.

Mirabel just nodded, Julieta moved closer to her, pulling the shoulder of her top off gently.

"Mama, why are you all blurry?" Mirabel said.

Immediately Julieta scooped the small girl up and put her in the bathtub.

"Cold mama" Mirabel said, trying to get out again

"I know baby, I know but we need too get you cooled down, your temperature was enough too knock you out, which it almost did." Julieta explained.

Mira decided not to fight, it hurt her head and behind her eyes too much.

She shut her eyes, for what she thought was only one minute, but she actually fell asleep.

"Ok Pepa she is cool let's get her out and changed into fresh pyjamas." Julieta said, lifting Mirabel from the bath, smiling at how cute she was when she was sleeping.

"How did I let my baby get like this." Julieta said.

"You didn't, no one did, she was unhappy and scared, she coped with it the best she could, don't worry." Pepa responded, a gentle hand on Julieta's shoulder.

"I've got her, you go spend time with your kids Pepa." Julieta smiled.

Pepa thanked her before going downstairs.

Julieta dried off Mirabel, checking her shoulder before she changed her, it was just a bad bruise.

Julieta gently carried Mirabel to the bed, laying her down, still clinging to Julieta.

She woke up just over thirty minutes later, with a wince.

"What's wrong baby?." Julieta asked.

"My shoulder hurts" She said.

"When did I get out the bath, why can't I remember anything Mama?" Mirabel asked.

"You had a really high fever, you were probably delirious, you did age regress." Julieta replied gently.

Mira flinched at hearing that she age regressed, she didn't like doing it in front of anyone, she had been doing it for years, what if she told Julieta she didn't like men.

"Mira what's wrong, you're shaking." Julieta said.

"I'm cold" She lied, and Julieta knew she was lying.

"Now the truth please?" Julieta said pulling a blanket around them both.

"I can't" She said, hiding her face in Julieta's neck.

"Mira, do you like girl's?" Julieta asked.

Mirabel tensed up, holding her breath, hoping it would all go away.

"N-no" She lied, still holding her breath.

"Mira calm down baby, it's okay no one is going to judge you." Julieta said, gently squeezing Mirabel's arms, trying to relax her.

"Did Tia tell you?" Mirabel asked.

"No, I figured it out a while ago, instead of looking at the boys during summer when they were by the river sunbathing you would look at the girls, you would never blush when a boy talked to you but you did when girls did." Julieta said, running a hand through the girls hair.

"You don't think I'm disgusting, all my girl friends left me because they said they didn't want me trying to kiss them and all the boys left because they all had an interest in me but now that I was lesbian, they didn't want to be near me in case I 'turned them gay' " She said.

"Those people have terrible judgement, you are not disgusting, you are beautiful and any girl would be lucky to have you." Julieta said, pulling Mirabel closer.

"Could you tell everyone else, I can't?" Mirabel asked.

"No problem, I love you okay, nothing could change that." Julieta said.

"I have been age regressing since I was ten, I hate doing it around you or anyone, only Dolores knew but I made her promise not to tell, she would play with or keep me company." Mirabel said.

"Well I'm happy Dolores made sure you were safe, but from now on when you regress, please come to me, I will play with you and do whatever you want to." Julieta said, earning a small nod from Mirabel who was now half asleep again.

"Do you want to go back to sleep again?" Julieta asked.

Mirabel nodded into her.

"Okay, that's not a problem, I will be here when you wake." Julieta said, smiling as she heard snores.
------

Ten minutes later Julieta heard yelling, then she heard a knock at her door.

"Come in." She said quietly.

Dolores came in.

"Tia, Papa and Tio are yelling at some big man that just came and Mama sent me to get you, I will stay with Mira." Dolores said.

Julieta nodded, gently prying herself from Mirabel, she quickly muttered a thank you and left the room.

Dolores instantly filled Julieta's spot, Mirabel clinging to her in a matter of seconds.

Mirabel suddenly jumped up, hearing the yelling from down stairs.

"It's okay Mira, don't worry they have it covered." Dolores said, gently holding Mirabel.

Mirabel breaks her grip and runs out the room and downstairs to her family.

"Oh, Hi Mirabel how are you" The man said, Mirabel instantly remembered the guy as the man that pulled her from the river.

"I-I'm fine, what are you doing here." She replied sheepishly.

Suddenly Agustin stepped forward and gently pushed Mira behind him.

"Do not talk to her, leave" Agustin said, seething.

"Relax I just want to apologise, can you let me" He said.

"No, leave, before I make you." Agustin replied, stepping into his face.

"Agustin, we should let him." Julieta said, pulling him back gently.

"You have five minutes and we are not leaving" He said, still angry as Mirabel walked to the man's side as he crouched to her level.

He held flowers and behind them he held an open note, that he pointed to, Knowing the family couldn't see behind the flowers, it read.

'You will smile the entire time you read this, when you are done I will apologise and you will thank me, The apology will not be sincere, every time me or my wife see you in town you will smile and wave and once your family trusts us we will ask you to help us, you will come, we will make you wish you were never born, I shouldn't have pulled you from that river and should have flung the shape shifting bastard in with you, if you tell anyone about this I will carve the little one's face up then fling him in the river, I will beat you when your family can't see and maybe I will even make a little profit by selling you to men for a night, I heard that you tried to fuck a twenty-year-old, so I know that you are nothing but a little slut, you would just love that wouldn't you, say nothing you waist of space.' Mirabel smiled through the entire letter and the man apologised, handing her the flowers before leaving, putting the note in his pocket as he left.

"I guess that went better than I thought it would." Julieta said.

"He is lucky he is walking out of this house, but Mira seems happier so I guess it isn't bad, Is it Mira?" Agustin asked.

No response.

"Mira?" Felix said, stepping towards the girl who was still looking at where the man had been.

"Mira, are you okay baby?" Julieta said, moving to where the man was so Mira was looking at her.

Agustin, who was now behind her, gently put a hand on her shoulder.

Mirabel flinched but still didn't respond.

Julieta became worried.

"Agustin move her to the couch" Julieta said.

Agustin Immediately picked her up and lay her on the couch.

"Dolores" Pepa said, knowing she would hear her.

Dolores appeared a couple minutes later.

"Did the man say anything to her" Pepa asked.

"No but I heard paper crumpling as he walked away, like he was shoving a piece of it in his pocket, her hear rate started normal but then it got really fast like she was panicking." Dolores said.

"Okay thank you, is that all?" Felix asked. Dolores nodded then went back upstairs, leaving the adults with Mira.

Julieta sat up on the couch, putting Mira's head on her lap.

Agustin gently ran a hand through her hair, quietly whispering reassurances to her.

Mirabel's was drowning in her thoughts.

'I can't tell, they will hurt Antonio, I can't tell, they will hurt Antonio, I can't tell, they will hurt Antonio.' She thought over and over again.

Julieta heard Mirabel mumbling and put her ear down to hear what Mira was saying, her eyes went wide.

"Juli, what is it.?" Agustin asked.

"She said, 'I can't tell, they will hurt Antonio', but she is just repeating it." Julieta said, gently wiping the Mira's tears.

"I don't think she knows she is saying it, she is in a world of her own, she is drowning in her own thoughts and I think they are Intrusive, we need to snap her out of it." Julieta said.

Pepa and Felix were angry, you could see it, not only had the man threatened Mira but now their son as well, he had to pay.

"I'm angry to Pepi but you have a cloud, you are soaking Mira." Felix said, trying to calm his wife.

That gave Pepa an idea, she calmed herself before making a small drizzle, making it land on Mirabel's arm.

Mirabel subconsciously tried to pull her arm away from it, seeing this Felix gently took her hand, holding her arm in place as it seemed to be working.

It took her around ten minutes to finally come round.

She sat up and pulled her arm from Felix's hold, wiping any left over water from her arm.

"Mira are you okay?" Julieta asked, concerned.

Mira nodded her head.

'If I talk right now I will tell them everything'.

"Mira you're shaking, can I touch you." Julieta said.

She shook her head, unable to meet her eyes.

"Mira look at me baby." Julieta said.

She shook her head.

Knowing she would spill if she looked into any of their eyes.

Julieta gently took Mirabel's chin, tilting it so she could look her in the eyes.

Mirabel just shifted her eyes to look at her hands.

"Mira, please look at me." Julieta pleaded.

Mira quickly pulled her face from her Mama's hold and looked strait back to her lap.

"We heard you say 'I can't tell, they will hurt Antonio' in your sleep." Julieta said gently.

Mirabel froze, holding her breath.

"Mira, you need to breath Mija, you are holding your breath." Feix said.

Mirabel let out a big breath then stood up, shakily at first, quickly being stabled by Agustin who also stood.

She then walked out the room and upstairs, walking into the nursery and locking the door.

"Casita don't let anyone in." Julieta heard her say through through door.

"Casita let me in." Julieta said and immediately the door swung open, revealing Mira with a razor blade she must have taken from the bathroom.

Julieta immediately ran over and took the razor blade from the now crying Mirabel.

Suddenly Dolores was at the door, after hearing Mirabel say don't let anyone in she came running.

Julieta spotted her and walked over.

"Can you go get Agustin and put this back in the bathroom." She said, showing the razor blade.

Dolores nodded and took the razor blade gently, running to get Agustin.

Agustin came up a couple minutes later to find Julieta holding Mira who was crying and struggling slightly.

Agustin walked over, taking Mirabel and holding her tightly.

She started struggling more, managing to get free before pushing off the bed.

Both adults Immediately stood, slowly walking toward her.

"STAY AWAY" she shouted, tears falling faster and harder down her face.

They both sat down where the were, just looking on as Mirabel broke down.

It would appear Dolores heard this, as she came to the nursery door and put down Peanut before walking away.

Peanut ran over to Mirabel, licking her face and nuzzling into her.

"Go away Peanut." She said, sounding broken.

Peanut stayed, laying on her lap.

Antonio came to the nursery a couple minutes later.

"Peanut said I should leave after this but he said that she wants to be held, she is just saying go away, that's why he stayed." Antonio whispered to Julieta before giving her a hug and leaving.

Julieta shared this with Agustin.

Peanut heard Antonio and followed him out, knowing what he said got through to them.

Julieta moved towards her first, gently picking her up.

Mirabel fought at first but just as Peanut said, she wanted to be held.

Agustin also came over and started running a hand through her hair.

She flinched but leaned into the touch.

"Please talk to us." Julieta said.

Mirabel shook her head, still not willing to talk, even though she shouted she wasn't ready to talk about anything else.

"Can you at least look at us then." Agustin said.

Another shake.

"Mira you aren't in any trouble, at all, we need to make sure you are safe and the way you are acting tells us you're not" Julieta said, pulling the girl closer.

"I-" she stopped and shook her head.

Yes they got her to talk at least a little.

"You are safe, we are right here and we are not moving." Julieta said.

"But I'm not" She muttered, hoping the wouldn't hear her, but of course they did.

"How are you not safe baby?" Agustin asked.

Mirabel shook her head.

"Mira, I know you don't feel like talking but I need to know, How are you not safe?" Agustin asked firmly, Immediately regretting it when Mira started shaking.

Julieta shot him a look.

"I'm sorry Mira, I just need to protect you and the family, please talk to us" Agustin said.

"L-leave me alone, please" She said.

"We can't, I found you with a razor, You want to hurt yourself right now and I can't let that happen." Julieta said.

"I always want to hurt myself, this time you caught me." She said sharply.

"What do you mean?" Agustin said, now concerned.

"You really think this is the first time I have found the razors?" She replies.

"You mean you hurt yourself even with us with you?" Julieta asked, concerned.

"Yes, when I was in the bathroom myself, you were asleep most of the time, I was never hungry, I ate to heal before you noticed." She said.

Julieta pulled her closer, motioning for Agustin to check her arms.

He gently took her arms and rolled up her sleeves, just getting a glimpse of red before she pulled her arms away.

"Don't touch me." She said folding, her arms tightly across her chest.

"Mira, I need to see them." Agustin said.

"You don't need to see shit, leave me alone." She said, trying to get free from Julieta's firm hold.

"Mira let us see, please we just want to help." Julieta said, struggling against Mira.

"IF YOU WANT TO HELP ME, HOLDING ME DOWN ISN'T THE WAY TO GO, LEAVE ME ALONE." She shouted, struggling harder.

She finally managed to get free, running out the nursery, down the stairs and strait into town.

She went to the place they wouldn't find her, the man's house, she wasn't thinking, just panicking.

She banged on the door.

"Just coming, oh It's you come in then." The woman said, poison on her words.

"Oh you came, such a good girl I guess you liked my proposition of selling you then huh." The man laughed evilly.

"No, I didn't I just needed some where my parents wouldn't look for me." She replied angrily.

"Watch your tone slut, now how about we put that mouth of yours to use hm?" He said grabbing her and dragging her to a room that was sound proofed or that's what he thought.

When she came out the room five minutes later she had bruises all over her and she was limping and had been crying, her clothes had rips in them.

"I was right, she is a little whore, she will make a killing with the men of the village, we are going to be rich." The man said smugly.

"It isn't just her mouth that is good" He said laughing.

Suddenly Agustin kicked down the door, Felix behind him both furiously stormed up to him, Agustin immediately beating the man to an inch of his life as Felix kicked the man that was now on the ground.

Julieta who was with Pepa and a crying Dolores stormed in, Pepa and Julieta going for the woman who had been laughing at the man's comments, as Dolores went to comfort her cousin who was having a full blown panic attack.

Dolores scooped the girl up, walking out the house as she cradled and attempted to soothe the girl.

About five Minutes later they all left the house, they saw Dolores still trying to soothe the girl.

Agustin and Julieta walked up to her, gently they took a battered hand each.

Mirabel looked up and through her tears she saw the outline of a man, Instantly she stood up and started running, only making it a few steps before collapsing, she immediately
curled up on herself, locking her hands behind her head, trying to protect it.

Agustin tried to go to her but Julieta shook her head.

"You can't what Dolores heard must have happened, she doesn't trust men right now" Julieta said with a pained look.

"Tia, I know it isn't important cause he still did it, but he used protection." Dolores said starting to cry again, the man must have got ripped off cause that room was not sound proof, Dolores heard everything.

"Thank you for telling me, that at least makes this a little easier." Julieta said, now crying as well.

She and Pepa slowly walked up to Mira, Julieta gently picking the small girl up while whispering to her that she is safe now.

Mirabel soon fell asleep, still crying.

The men walked in front of the women so if Mira woke up she wouldn't see them over Julieta's shoulder.

They got home after a ten minute walk, the four adults eating some of Julieta's food to heal what little injuries they had.

Julieta then took Mirabel upstairs to the bedroom.

Mirabel woke up screaming not even a minute after Julieta had laid down with her.

"Hey, it's okay baby, it's just Mama, you're safe, he's not here it's just Mama." Julieta said, pulling the girl into a hug.

"Mama he t-tou" "I know baby, I know, he will never do that again, no one will, you will never see him again" Julieta interrupted.

"Mama, I feel his hands all over me, help" Mira said, crying.

"Okay, how about I run you a bath, do you need my help?." Julieta said.

"Can you?" She said.

"No problem as long as you are comfortable, that is all that matters." Julieta replied, standing with Mirabel still clinging to her.

Julieta ran the bath and helped Mira get undressed and into it.

Julieta had made sure to put bubbles to make Mira more comfortable but even above them she could see large bruises, not to mention the ones she saw when she was helping her into it.

"Mira are you hungry?" Julieta asked.

Mirabel shook her head, sinking further into the bath after she realised Julieta could see her bruises, she knew her Mama had saw them already but she was ashamed.

"Mira, do you want to talk about it?" Julieta asked gently.

Mira shook her head, submerging herself to just under her nose.

"I'm so sorry Mira." Julieta said from where she was sitting, on the edge of the bathtub.

"It's not your fault." Mira replied after lifting her mouth above the water.

"If me and your Papa hadn't have been so pushy you wouldn't have ran." Julieta said.

"I was going to run any way, it was a bad decision going to him." She said, tears slowly trailing down her face.

"And he's probably right, I am a slut." She whispered.

"He is wrong, completely wrong, you are not and never have or will be one." Julieta said.

Mirabel cried silently for a while, getting out the water after about thirty minutes as it was getting cold, Julieta offered to put more hot water in it but she just wanted to sleep.

Julieta helped Mirabel out the bath, also helping her et changed and dried off.

"I will clean up in here you go get comfy and I will be through in a minute" Julieta said to Mira, giving her a quick hug and planting a kiss on her forehead.

As Julieta was cleaning the bathroom she left the bath water to drain, as she turned around to clean the bath she noticed the last of the water that was draining was pink, due to the mix of blood and water.

'Blood, but her arm wounds would have scabbed over by now, oh no my baby.' She thought, she quickly cleaned out the bath before quickly running to the room, instantly she notice that Mirabel wasn't there.

Then she heard footsteps coming up the stairs.

She turned around to see Agustin carrying Mira up the stairs as she was clinging to him.

She breathed a sigh of relief before re-entering the bedroom, Agustin right behind her.

"I'm sorry Mama, I closed my eyes and he was there." She apologised.

"It's okay baby, I know you don't want to eat but you have to, I'm sorry." Julieta said.

"I'm not hurt Mama." She lied.

"I know that you are, you have bruises on your wrists and round your neck honey." Julieta said.

"Those aren't bruises on my neck Mama." She whimpered, gently placing her hands to cover her neck.

"All the more reason you need to eat." Julieta said, gently taking her hands from neck.

"I can't" She said, starting to cry again.

"Why not baby?." Julieta asked

Mirabel shook her head in Agustin's neck.

"Did he make you-" Agustin cut himself off already angry again.

Mirabel nodded into his neck, now shaking as well.

Agustin gently put Mira on Julieta's lap before leaving the room.
-------

Dolores was in Pepa's arms crying as she could hear everything from upstairs, when suddenly she at up and wiped her tears away.

"Papa you have to stop Tio Agustin he's angry, I think he is trying to leave again." Dolores said quickly.

Felix Immediately shot up and left the living room and sure enough he was met with Agustin walking down the stairs furiously.

"Agustin, I know you're pissed but you can't leave, I can't let you." Felix said, stepping in his way.

"That bastard forced her to, he raped her, I'm going to make sure he can never do that again." Agustin seethed, pushing past Felix.

Then Pepa was there, she hated to do this but she was going to use him being a gentleman against him.

She stood in Casita's main door way, knowing that he would never push past or touch her.

"Pepa, please move" Agustin said.

"You know I am not going to do that" Pepa said, taking a step.

Agustin instantly took a step back putting his hands up so there was no way he could even accidently brush against her, but then he saw an opening, as he went to step forward two arms wrapped under his and up round his shoulder's, locking him against Felix's chest.

"Felix let. me. go." Agustin said.

"Not gonna happen, you need to calm down, you need to be there for Mira." Felix replied.

"You don't understand, not only did he take something that is only meant to be taken by someone consensually, by someone that she loves romantically. But he also forced her to, She can't eat or swallow anything cause her throat hurts and the sensation makes her feel sick." He said, breaking free and turning to face Felix.

Felix's face went from confusion to rage.

"Felix, no don't we can deal with that man later." Pepa said.

Both me were just about to leave when a strong arms wrapped around Felix and vines wrapped around Agustin.

"Isa, Luisa, let us go now," Agustin said, struggling.

"We know what he did, but we can't let you go." Isa said crying.

Isa then grabbed Felix from Luisa and tied both men to chairs with vines.

Suddenly Julieta runs past them, a sleeping Mirabel in her arms as she runs into the kitchen, turning on the stove before putting together the ingredients for Arepas before quickly placing them on the stove to cook.

Now knowing that her Papa and Tio won't go anywhere after seeing this, Isa lets them go, she was right, both men followed by Pepa go into the kitchen behind Julieta, the other two girls went back upstairs.

"What happened?" Agustin asked, looking over at the girl who was lying on the table asleep.

"Is she on her period Juli?" Pepa asked, seeing fresh blood leading from the girls crotch on her pyjama trousers.

"No" Julieta replies, crying.

"It's not even just the front." Julieta said, taking the fresh Arepas of the stove top, leaving them to cool as she picks Mira back up, gently waking her.

Just before she woke up they saw a fresh blood stain on the back of her Pyjama bottoms.

"Mira, I know you don't want to, but you need to eat, it's important, you are hurt." Julieta said, sitting down.

"I'm fine Mama." She said lying again.

"Mira, you haven't been able to put your legs together since you got home." Julieta said.

"It's just comfier to have them apart." She replied, shaking a little.

"Exactly, please eat, then we can get you changed." Julieta sad

Mirabel froze and looked down, sure enough her Pyjama bottoms were covered in blood.

She instantly put her legs together, pulling down her top to cover it as she winced from the friction her legs caused.

"Mira, it's okay, breath, I'm right here, breath baby." Julieta said pulling her daughter closer.

Mirabel grabbed an Arepa, wincing as it was still burning hot, she ate the entire thing before jumping up and running to the bathroom.

Julieta followed, Pepa along side her as both men stayed in the kitchen, not wanting to make Mira uncomfortable.

Mira was throwing up and crying.

Julieta was rubbing her back, when suddenly she put two fingers down her throat, making her throw up again.

Pepa immediately grabbed her hands.

"You can't do that Mira." Pepa said.

"I can still taste it, I need it gone, please let me." She cried.

"What, the Arepa?, I can make something different." Julieta asked.

Mirabel just shook her head, quickly going back over the toilet bowl as she was sick again.

Julieta started rubbing her back.

"Mama, help me, why did he do that." Mirabel cried, turning around to cling to Julieta.

"He will never touch you or anyone else again, I promise Mira you are safe baby." Julieta said, crying now as well.

Pepa went to get Felix and Agustin, only to find them gone.

"Shit" Pepa said.

Dolores came out Antonio's room after hearing.

"They are up here playing with us, to keep Tonito busy." Dolores said.

"Thank you, we are going to bring Mira up, she wants to be around her family." Pepa said.

"Juli, we can take her up, Augustin and Felix are up there playing with them." Pepa said walking in to the bathroom.

"Okay just let me change her quick." Julieta said.

After Mirabel was changed she crawled to Pepa, her arms out, as if she wanted to be held.

"Is she regressed?" Pepa asked, picking her up.

"Yeah, She is really anxious and stressed so it makes sense." Julieta replied as the women walk up stairs.

Both women walk in to the bedroom, Pepa holding Mirabel who is giggling and playing with her hair.

"Tia what is she doing?" Isa asked.

"She is age regressing, it's a way of coping, when she gets overly scared or anxious she goes into the mindset of her younger self, when things were easier to deal with." Pepa replies, bouncing the girl on her hip.

Mirabel was playing with Pepa's hair when she accidently pulled it.

"Ay" Pepa winced, a slight cloud appearing above her head.

Mirabel instantly let go and began to struggle.

"It's okay, it didn't hurt, I was just surprised." Pepa said to Mirabel.

"Want down." She said.

Pepa gently put her on the ground, instantly she ran over to Camilo, tackling him.

"MILO." she shouted, luckily Dolores knew that was going to happen so she covered her ears.

"What's up Mira." Camilo asked, holding his cousin.

"Wanna play?" Mirabel asked.

"Sure, what do you wanna play?" Camilo asked a smile on his face.

"Hide and seek and Papa can count." Mirabel said.

"Oh will I now." Agustin said scooping up Mira and gently flinging her in the air.

"Yes" She replied giggling.

"Okay then, you had better go hide." Agustin said, gently setting Mirabel on the ground.

Mirabel grabbed Felix's hand pulling him along with her as she ran to her hiding spot.

Everyone else hid as well, Julieta deciding to count with Agustin.

"Tio, we should hide in the tree branches, Mama and Papa won't look there." She beamed.

"Okay but I will have to hold you to make sure you don't fall." Felix said.

Mirabel held up her arms so Felix could pick her up better.

He climbed up a low branch, sitting Mirabel on his lap as he leaned against the main trunk of the tree.

Mirabel turned so her cheek was against Felix's chest.

"You okay, Mija?" Felix asked gently.

"Shhhhh we're gonna get caught, I'm just a little cold." She whispered.

Felix wrapped his arms around the girl, trying to warm her up.

Mirabel pushed her face into his neck.

The next thing he knew he heard gentle snores coming from her.

Suddenly Agustin and Julieta were looking up at them, Julieta was just about to speak when he gestured for them to be quiet, gently climbing down from the tree to make sure Mira didn't wake.

"When did she fall asleep?" Agustin whispered.

"About five minutes ago, you have been seeking for thirty minutes, how many people have you found?" He asked quietly.

"Everyone, we were just looking for you." Julieta smiled.

"Do you want me to take her?" Agustin asked.

"Yeah please, My arms are dead." He laughed.

Agustin reached to get Mira, gently pulling her from Felix, Stopping soon after though as she was holding him in a death grip.

"I will keep a hold of her." Felix laughed, Agustin quickly placed Mirabel back in Felix's arms.

Felix carried Mirabel from Antonio's room after every one said good night, carrying her to his and Pepa's room.

He lay down on his back with Mirabel curled up on his stomach, snoring quietly.

Pepa came into the room soon after, quickly getting changed in their bathroom before laying next to Felix, gently she took Mirabel's hand.

Both adults quickly fell asleep.
-------

Felix and Pepa were woken to Casita shaking their bed like crazy.

Immediately Felix noticed Mirabel wasn't in the bed anymore, though they soon discovered where she was when they heard vomiting.

They both shot up, heading to the bathroom were they were met with Mira, crying and vomiting.

Pepa walked up to her and gently started rubbing her back.

"Please stop." She cried.

Pepa moved her hand.

Mirabel stopped about five minutes later, Passing out from exhaustion after finishing.

"Shit." Pepa said. "Casita wake Julieta, there was blood in her sick she needs to be healed." She said continuing.

Felix scooped her up as Pepa grabbed the door for him, meeting with Julieta in the hallway on the way downstairs.

"What's wrong Pepa?" Julieta asked, yawning.

"Casita woke us, she was vomiting and it had blood in it" Pepa said.

"I need to get her something with a lot of flavour so she can't taste him" Julieta grimaced.

Julieta made some eggs and put a little extra salt in them hoping to overpower anything else she could taste.

Felix gently woke Mira, she slowly opened her eyes, adjusting to the light.

"Too bright" She muttered into Felix's chest.

Felix gently placed his hand over her eyes, instantly feeling her relax.

"Mira, I made you some eggs, they will help and shouldn't make you sick." Julieta said, gently taking Mira from Felix and sitting on a chair.

"I'm not hungry Mama" Mirabel said.

"Mira, your Tia said you were sick and that there was blood." Julieta replied softly.

"I just have a cut in my mouth" Mira lied.

"Not with that amount of blood you don't, please eat" Pepa said.

"Please don't make me, you know I hate swallowing anything, I'm fine so please leave me alone." Mirabel said as she stood, now crying.

"Mira, you need to eat, you are hurt, I don't know how but you need to be healed, please just eat something for me baby." Julieta said, standing.

"I-" Mirabel stopped talking to grab her stomach and wince, doubling over as she knelt on the ground.

"Mira, are you okay honey?" Julieta asked slowly approached her.

Mirabel stood with a wince, clutching her stomach.

"I'm fine please just leave me alone" She gasped out, leaving the kitchen, slipping past Felix who was in the doorway.

Mirabel was walking up the stairs when two gentle hands landed on her shoulders.

"Mira are you okay, do you feel sick?" Agustin asked.

Mirabel shrugged the hands off, gently pushing past him as she stumbled upstairs.

When she got to the top she fell, wincing as she hit her head, but she just stood up and kept on walking till she got to the nursery.

She shut the door and sat against it, wincing s she pulled her top up to reveal three long cuts along her stomach, her Tio thought he hid the razors well enough but he didn't, she is just lucky she had stopped cutting when her Tia and Tio had found her in their bathroom.

Agustin who was followed by the three other adults entered the nursery with ease as Mirabel weighed nothing against the door.

She had just managed to pull down her top when they found her hiding behind the door.

Julieta spotted the red on her daughter's hand, silently pointing it out to the others.

"Hey Mira, what's that on your hand?" Julieta asked softly.

"I coughed and because of the cut in my mouth, blood came out" she lied.

"Mira what really happened?" Agustin asked.

"Nothing Pa-pa" She slurred, passing out from the blood loss.

Immediately all four adults ran to her, Julieta lifting her shirt to see her stomach.

"Felix I thought you hid the razors." Pepa said.

"I did, I put them like really high up, she must have climbed." He replied.

Julieta lifted Mirabel gently and took her into her and Agustin's bathroom.

She gently propped Mira against the wall, sitting on the counter top.

Quickly she rolled her shirt up as Pepa ushered the men out, grabbing a damp wash cloth she started gently cleaning the wounds.

Mirabel woke up, she hissed though she was still delirious.

"What's going on Mama?" Mirabel said, clearly confused.

"I am cleaning out your cuts and wrapping them." Julieta said, gently wrapping a bandage around her stomach.

Mirabel instantly shot up, Pepa caught her, gently sitting her back down, holding her down gently, If she wasn't going to eat then she needed to be wrapped.

"Let me go, Tia please." Mirabel said struggling.

To her surprise Pepa did let go, just as Julieta was pulling her top back down.

Mirabel opened the door and walked out, going strait to Isa's room, instantly she went in and quietly got into bed with her.

"What's up Mira?" She said sleepily, pulling Mira towards her gently.

"I'm sorry for just coming in and waking you" She muttered.

"Don't apologise, it's okay." Isa replied as Mira clung to her.

The four adults who had followed Mirabel smiled at this, though they left when Isa signalled that she would look after Mirabel, quietly they shut the door.

Mirabel fell asleep in Isa's arms shortly after, Isa joining her in sleep soon after.

Hope you enjoyed the chapter, sorry for such a delayed update, My laptop randomly crashed and I had to start over, but thank for all the support <3

Chapter Text

When Mirabel woke up she was slightly panicked and feeling stressed.

She could feel him, holding her, squeezing her, pulling her hair, touching her.

She couldn't take it, she wanted to scratch her skin off.

Quietly she got out of the bed so as not to wake Isa, she snuck to the bathroom downstairs.

She frantically searched through all the cupboards for any thing sharp or pointy, stopping when she found a pair of nail scissors.

She sat in the bath tub and turned on the sink's tap so no one could hear her winces.

Slowly she started drawing the scissors across her right thigh, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, She switched to the left leg doing the same nine cuts.

She had just started to clean up when there was a knock at the door.

"Who is in there, you are using up all the hot water" Camilo groaned through the door.

"Sorry Cami, be out in a sec." She said frantically trying to tidy up, suddenly she knocked the glass of the sink, watching as it shattered into small pieces, a couple lodging themselves in her legs and feet.

"Shit" She gasped.

"You okay in there Prima, do you want me to go get Tia?" Camilo asked through the door.

"NO" she shouted, "I-I'm fine, I just dropped something, I will be out in five minutes."

"Okay" He lied, Immediately heading up to Julieta's room, he knocked on the door rapidly.

"Tia, you need to wake up" He said anxiously.

He heard quick footsteps then the door swung open, revealing a barely awake Agustin and a worried looking Julieta.

"What's wrong Mijo." Agustin asked, moving to let Camilo in.

He didn't enter instead he grabbed their hands and dragged them to the bottom bathroom.

"She's in there, I think she is panicking about something" He said.

"Mira, are you in there baby?" Julieta asked.

"I'm fine Mama." She said, hoping they didn't hear her wince.

"Mira, why did you wince are you hurt?" Agustin asked, Camilo went back upstairs.

"No, I just have a headache." She lied.

Mirabel quietly managed to remove the last but of glass from herself with a pair of tweezers.

"Mirabel, open the door please." Julieta said.

"Mama, I am in the bathroom, you took away anything sharp, leave me alone." She said.

"Okay, but I am making breakfast, do you want anything?" Julieta asked.

"Only if there is enough Mama" She replied.

This caught the attention of the parent's, They remembered she said she was never hungry she just needed to heal before they caught on, plus she hated swallowing anything right now.

"I will make sure I make enough, anything in specific you want?." Julieta asked kindly.

"No Mama, I will eat whatever you make." Mirabel said.

This made them more concerned, she would always ask for something specific.

"Okay, I will call you when it is ready" Julieta said.

"Can you sit by the door to make sure she doesn't hurt herself, or hurt herself more?" She whispered.

He just nodded and sat.

Mira came out of the bathroom about five minutes later.

Limping out the door after wrapping her injuries.

'thank god for long sleeves' She thought.

Mira was wrapped in a gentle hug from behind, making her flinch.

"Sorry Mira, didn't mean to startle you." Agustin said, turning her gently so he could see her face, it was Blank, no sign of emotion, except some lines from tears.

"Mira have you been crying?" He asked, crouching down to her level.

"No Papa, why?" She asked.

"You have tear lines." He said, gently running a thumb over her cheek.

'Damn it, I though the cold water worked.' she thought.

"I don't know Papa, I wasn't crying?" She said, acting confused.

"Okay, but why are you limping?" He asked.

"My foot just kind of hurts, I must've slept funny." She said, shrugging her shoulders.

"Do you want me to take a look, make sure it isn't bruised or anything?." He said, rubbing his hands down her arms, noticing the flinch when he gently holds her wrists.

"No I'm fine Papa, thanks though." She said, stepping out his grasp, rubbing her own arm.

While she was rubbing her arm her sleeve moved up slightly, revealing a couple cuts to Agustin.

"No, Mira why." He said, gently taking her hand.

"Why what?" She said, acting dumb.

He looked her in the eyes before gently pushing her sleeve up and turning her arm over.

She pulled her arm away and started limping away.

Agustin quickly caught up to her and gently picked her up.

"Let me go." She said.

"You know I can't, what did we even leave that was sharp enough" He said.

"If I tell you then you will hide it." She said, struggling to get free from his hold.

Julieta turned round in the kitchen just in time to see Agustin, carrying a struggling Mirabel in.

"What's going on?" Julieta asked, pulling out a seat for Agustin to sit in.

"Mira, please show us." Agustin said.

"Not a chance in hell." She replied.

Agustin gently took her hand and pulled up her sleeve again.

"God damn it, let me go, If I need you I will tell you, you said, You would be here until I choose, well I choose so let me go." She said, yanking her arms out of his hold.

She broke free and walked out the kitchen, as she started walking up the stairs Casita tried to stop her, but it didn't work, she walked up the stairs, then ran, once out of the eyeline of her parents she looked around for a place to hide, then she saw it a painting on the wall moving from a draft.

Instantly she walked towards it and pulled it back gently, revealing a hole that led to the walls of Casita.

She quickly climbed in, pulling it back behind her.

She limped through the narrow hallways, wincing when she had to do anything like running for momentum or jumping.

WARNING, SORT OF FAILED SUICIDE ATTEMPT BUT NOT REALLY.

Finally she came to a large gap in the floor, she smiled, she couldn't see the bottom that means it would kill her.

So she jumped, though she didn't die, instead she hit her head at the short fall, only being conscious for a few seconds before passing out.

When Mirabel woke, her head hurt and she could feel herself being carried, she opened her eyes, revealing a rather worried looking man she recognised but couldn't quite place.

She groaned, earning the attention of the man that was carrying her through the narrow hallways.

"Oh um, Hi, you hit your head pretty hard back there, I thought you were dead." The man said.

Then it hit her, she recognised that voice, this man used to keep her and Camilo company when their parents where out.

"T-Tio Bruno?" The girl questioned.

"Yeah, what's up kid." He said, a gentle smile on his face.

She remembered this joke.

"The sky" She said, wincing slightly.

"You okay?" He said, looking down.

"Not really, you found me after I tried to kill myself so." Mirabel said.

He stilled.

"W-What?" He said, looking her in the eyes.

Mirabel looked away.

"Just keep walking please, thanks for carrying me by the way." She said.

"Well I saw your feet and legs, there are cuts all over them, so I figured it was for the best." He replied quietly.

She pushed her face into his neck, they used to cuddle all the time and she missed him.

He squeezed her a little, trying to reassure her.

Finally they got to the painting, he was just about to put her down, she knew it, so she clung to him.

"Please don't go, not again." She said.

"I-, Okay." He held her tighter as he pushed the painting open, gently stepping out while still holding her.

"Julieta, I have her." He called, hoping they would hear him.

Pepa and Julieta ran up the stairs upon hearing this, as they reached the top they saw him holding Mira.

They both ran up to him quickly wrapping him in a hug, careful as to not hurt him or Mira.

"Mira, are you okay, Bruno where were you." Julieta rambled.

"Juli, I'm fine, I never left, I couldn't, I found Mira, there was a hole, she had tried to kill herself but instead was knocked unconscious, she cuts on her lower legs and feet and she needs food." He replied quickly.

"Bring her downstairs." Julieta said, wiping away a few tears.

The adults went down stairs, Mira was now shaking in Bruno's hold.

He gently raised a hand to her back and rubbed it while whispering reassurances into her ear.

He tried to sit her down at the table but she refused to let go, so he sat in the chair and awkwardly shifted until they were both comfortable.

"You okay kid?" He asked.

"Please don't leave again." She cried into his neck.

"I'm not going anywhere, I promise." He replied, rubbing her back gently.

Mirabel fell asleep on Bruno's lap, snoring quietly into his neck.

While she was asleep Bruno explained everything to everyone and apologised for worrying his sisters.

He was also caught up on everything, though he knew a fair bit from hearing through the walls.

( A:N I just can't be bothered typing everything)

Bruno moved Mirabel to Agustin's lap while he went to take a shower, he had taken showers while he was in the walls, he would come out late at night to take them.

He quickly showered and got changed, heading into the living room, as that is where everyone was.

He sat on the couch and immediately Agustin shifted Mira back onto his lap.

"Thanks" He whispered.

"Bruno, how bad are the cuts on her feet and legs?" Julieta asked concerned.

"I don't really have a good gauge, especially since I don't know what happened, But she is asleep so you could just check?" He said, gently turning Mira so her back was against his stomach.

Julieta gently rolled up Mira's pyjama bottoms to her knees.

She saw small cuts littering her daughter's legs.

"Tia, I heard something fall, have you checked the bathroom?" Camilo said.

"No we haven't" Agustin said as he got up to investigate.

He came back about five minutes later with a pair of blood nail scissors and a bin bag full off glass.

"The glass the we keep for in there had smashed, the pieces have blood on them, it must have shattered and cut her leg, and these are what she used to cut with, we should probably check to make sure she hasn't cut her thighs" Agustin said.

"I don't think I should be here for that, it might make her uncomfortable." Bruno said.

"No actually, I think it's the opposite, this is the longest she has been calm in weeks." Julieta said.

"O-Okay, what should I do then?." He asked.

"Just try and keep her asleep, and if she wakes try and keep her calm." Julieta said.

He nodded and Julieta quickly rolled up the loose Pyjamas, a sad look crossing her face when she discovered cuts on her thighs, wrapped with thin bandages.

"She needs to eat, they are still bleeding." Julieta said.

Bruno gently started to wake her after Julieta rolled her Pyjamas back down.

"Hey kid, you gotta wake up and eat something, you are hurt pretty bad." Bruno said to the barely awake teen.

"I'm not hungry" She said.

"You might not be but your legs are bleeding and so are your wrists so we need to heal them." Bruno said calmly.

Mirabel flinched after hearing this, they knew, he knew, he just came back and she already messed up, he was going to leave again, he knows how broken she is, he is gonna le-

Her thoughts are cut off when a voice cuts through them.

"-Irabel, Mirabel, it's okay, I'm not going to leave, you are not broken, you didn't mess up, you just need a little more help than everyone else." Bruno said, gently hugging her.

"I can't" Mirabel said.

"You can't what Mira?" Bruno asked gently.

"I can't think or imagine anything anymore, cause when I try all I see is him, I constantly feel his hands all over me and it makes me want to burn the skin of my bones and I can't cope." She said, breaking down in Bruno's arms.

This made Bruno mad, that man had scarred and traumatized his Sobrina, he was going to pay.

Bruno gently shifted Mirabel too his sister's arms.

"I will be back in ten minutes Mira, I promise." He said, giving her a kiss on the forehead.

Mirabel nodded.

Bruno left Casita, as he walked towards the village he felt a hand wrap around his wrist.

"Bruno, where are you going." Pepa asked.

"You will see if you follow me I guess." He shrugged.

When they arrived at the man's door Bruno knocked loudly as he told Pepa to hide around the corner.

The man answered the door abd Bruno couldn't help but smile when he saw the man's face all black and blue.

"Bruno, when did you return to town." The man spat.

"Oh it was right after I had a vision of you." Bruno said, he knew this man's biggest fears, he used to be friends with him when they were teens.

"And what was it exactly?" He asked

"It was were you didn't get the hint and leave the village so you were tortured while you slept until you woke, then the man who was wearing a clown suit slowly strangled you with a guitar string till you drowned in your own blood." Bruno said, smiling as the mans face contorted from a smug smile into horror.

He coughed, choking on air.

"Good day Bruno." He said before shutting the door.

Bruno's grin grew when he heard the man shouting to his wife that they had to leave or they would both die.

Bruno rounded the corner to Pepa, who had a confused look on her face, wondering why he was smiling.

Bruno took his sister's arm and linked it to his as they walked back to Casita, him explaining everything on the way.

When they got home Mirabel was sitting on the couch, anxiously biting her finger nails, too zoned out to notice Bruno returning.

Bruno gently placed a hand on her shoulder.

Mira flinched and her leg flew out to defend herself.

It landed directly on Bruno's groin.

"Ay, shit" He shouted, as he dropped to the ground clutching himself.

The other four adults appeared just in time to see Mira down at his side, apologising and crying.

Agustin and Felix cringed, they knew how that felt.

The pain mostly subsided after about two minutes and an Arepa from Julieta.

He quickly pulled Mira into a hug, trying to calm her down.

"Hey it's okay, it didn't hurt that bad, I should've known better than to just touch you, it wasn't your fault, it's good to have reactions like that." He said, gently running a hand through her hair.

Mirabel continued crying, she still hurt her Tio, all he did was touch her shoulder and she kicked him.

While Bruno is running a hand through her hair, he accidently hits a knot, that pulls her hair, instantly she shoots out of his grasp.

Mirabel instantly curls in on herself, crying and begging.

"Please, don't do this, I'm not a slut, I don't want to be sold, don't touch me please, I'm sorry I will be good." She cries, remembering what the man did, he pulled her hair and made her do things.

Bruno immediately falls down beside her, not touching her just whispering to her gently.

"It's okay Mira, it's just your Tios and Tia and Mama and Papa, I didn't meant too pull your hair and I will never do it again, please just open your eyes, copy my breathing." Bruno said, gently taking her hand and putting it up to his chest.

Mira calmed down after about five minutes.

She climbed onto Bruno's lap and weekly clung to him, He gently wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close before standing up and walking to the kitchen.

He grabbed a couple of arepas.

"Mira, could you please eat this for me?" Bruno asked gently pressing the food into her hand.

She weekly tried to bring her hand up to her mouth to eat but discovered she couldn't, her arms were completely numb from the cuts and the blood she had lost.

Seeing this Bruno took one of the arepas and gently held it to her lips.

Mirabel blushed at having to be fed, feeling embarrassed, she took a bite anyway and then another and another until the stack of arepas was gone.

She fell asleep against Bruno soon after that.

"How did you do that?." Julieta asked, shocked.

"Do what?" He asked, confused.

"You got her to eat like six Arepas, just by asking her, how?" Pepa said.

"I don't really know, I just asked." He said.

"It has been so hard to get her too eat, I was getting worried we would have to force feed her again." Julieta said, cringing at the memory.

"Wait, you force fed her." He said.

"We had to, she had a bad shoulder injury and cuts all over her, We hated doing it." Agustin said.

"Well I guess that's fair, I suppose it will be easier for me to get her to eat cause I'm her favourite." He teased as he walked past the group.

The others just laughed, though that faded when Mirabel started struggling, muttering about how she was going to be sick.

Bruno gently pried the girl from him before sitting a bucket under her chi, just in case.

She woke a couple seconds later and noticed that there were arms around her, she struggled for a second but realised there was a bucket under her chin, she stopped struggling as she threw up, now just shaking and crying slightly.

"It's okay Mira, let it out, you will feel better afterwards." Bruno said gently rubbing her back.

When she was done she got up and went to the bathroom, taking the bucket with her to clean.

Once she brushed her teeth and washed out the bucket she returned to the living room where the adults were all waiting in silence.

Mirabel just sat on the couch and curled in on herself.

"You okay, baby?" Julieta asked.

Mirabel didn't respond, she didn't want to talk right now.

"Mira, can I touch you?." Bruno asked.

Mira shook her head, she didn't want people around right now, she couldn't even get alone time in her own head, every time she closed her eyes it was like she was there again.

Him touching and hitting and biting everything.

She shivered at the thought of it, a couple tears rolling down her cheeks.

A blanket was gently draped over her shoulders, the adults had assumed she was cold when they saw her shiver.

She pushed the blanket off almost immediately, the soft fabric feeling like sand paper on her skin.

She stood and walked out side, sitting against the wall of Casita.

Then she broke down, sobbing loudly as she squeezed herself.

Then there were gentle arms around her, she just cried into them for hours.

She didn't know who it was, she knew they were family by the quiet reassurances, she didn't open her eyes, she didn't focus on the voice, she didn't focus on anything, she just cried.

She cried herself to sleep in that person's arms.

Bruno picked Mirabel up and took her back into the house, gently cradling her to make sure she didn't wake.

He carried her to the couch and laid down, laying Mira on his chest and covering them both with a blanket.

He fell asleep with her on his chest not long after.

Mirabel shot up from a nightmare, or rather shot down from a nightmare as the sudden movement cause her and Bruno to fall off the couch.

"Ay" She said wincing as Bruno fell on top of her.

Immediately he got up and picked her up setting her on her feet, checking her for any injuries.

"You okay Mira?" He asked.

"Yes, sorry for waking you and making you fall.

"I'm not hurt, I'm worried about you, can I see your wrist.?" He asked, holding out his hand.

Mira put her hand in his, quickly he started gently feeling along her wrist, stopping when she winced.

"What's up, did that hurt?." He asked.

"Yeah it's hurt, I don't know how though." She replied " oh and also the sky, The sky is up." She said with a smile that looked more like a grimace.

He chuckled lightly at her joke.

"Can you eat something?." He asked.

"I'm not really hungry, I will just end up throwing up anyway." She said a pained look on her face.

"I did not sit outside with you for almost five hours just for you to starve yourself." Bruno said jokingly.

"I-it was you outside." She said, getting clearly anxious as she looked at her feet.

"Yes and I don't regret it, never will, I love you Mira, I always have, now can you please eat?" He asked gently, tilting her head up so he look in her eyes.

"Please don't make me eat." She pleaded, looking down to her feet again.

"I won't force you to do anything Mira, but please. eat something, if not for me or anyone else, then for yourself." He said, pulling her into a hug.

Mirabel gently pulled free from the hug and tried to walk to the kitchen, her legs giving out after her first step.

Luckily Bruno was there to catch and pick her up.

"Were do you want to go." Bruno said.

"Kitchen my hand hurts, need to heal it." Mira mumbled.

When they arrived in the kitchen the other four adults turned their attention to them.

Mira instantly begins to feel nervous, Bruno feels her fidgeting with his ruana and sits her down on the countertop.

"What do you want to eat?." Bruno said.

"Something plain that isn't doughy." She replied quietly.

"Um, Julieta do you have anything that heals that fits that description." He said swivelling to look at his sister.

"I have some soup." Julieta said.

Bruno turned to look at Mirabel who nodded.

"Yeah, do you want me to heat it or is it still warm?" Bruno said.

"Bruno last time you tried to cook I had to use the Guzman's kitchen for a month while this one was fixed and that was you just making toast, I will heat the soup." Julieta said, smiling.

"Could you bring it to the living room Mama?" Mirabel asked.

"Oh no I could never do such a thing." Julieta said, giving Mirabel a kiss on the forehead, "It will be ready in about five minutes." Julieta finished as Bruno picked Mira back up.

The three other adults followed Bruno, who had a very sleepy Mira wrapped around him.

Five minutes later Julieta walked in with the bowl of soup on a tray.

Bruno gently woke Mira who had fallen asleep.

"Mira, the soup is ready." Bruno said gently.

Mira nodded and turned around so her back was to Bruno's stomach.

Gently, Julieta set down the tray on Mira's lap, it almost slid but Bruno caught and balanced it, holding it in place.

Mirabel took some of the soup and slowly she ate the entire bowl of it.

"Perfect, can I see that wrist now?" Bruno asked.

Mirabel nodded sleepily into him as he gently took her hand, smiling when he saw the bruise was gone.

Mirabel fell back asleep soon after that, snoring quietly against Bruno.

"This is looking good, she didn't throw the soup up, well not yet at least" Bruno said.

Mirabel let out a large shiver on top of Bruno.

"Juli, could you pass me that blanket?" Bruno asked.

Julieta passed him the blanket, watching as he wrapped around Mira.

"Casita do you think you could move my door from the tower, like um next to the nursery?" Bruno asked, Casita flipped a couple tiles to mean yes.

(A:N ~ Plot convenience~)

A couple minutes later Bruno walked out and saw his door had been moved next to the nursery.

He sat back down with Mira still in his arms.

"Well I'd better go get started on dinner, Pepa you mind giving me a hand?." Julieta said.

Pepa nodded and followed Julieta out.

TW: DISCUSION ON PAST SEXUAL ASSAULT.

"So I know what he did to her, but how far did he go?" Bruno asked, gently running a hand through Mira's hair.

"He used protection but, Mira couldn't sit or put her legs together, she also hates swallowing anything." Agustin seethed.

"Did Pepa tell you what I did?" Bruno asked.

"No?, what did you do?." Felix asked.

"I told him I had a vision of him dying, using every detail of his worst nightmares, safe to say he is leaving the Encanto." Bruno said, gently bouncing his knee when Mirabel was stirring.

"That's good, I still wish I could kill the bastard though." Agustin said, Gently rubbing Mira's leg.

She flinched when she felt it and started whimpering.

"It's okay Mira." Bruno said as Agustin took away his hand.

She was mumbling incoherently in her sleep as well as struggling.

Bruno gently put his arms around her, pulling her close.

She woke up with a jump a couple seconds later, panicking slightly.

Her eyes were still blurry from being asleep and all she could see was the out line of three men.

So she panicked, she roughly pushed herself from Bruno's lap, falling to the floor with a thud before standing up and running.

She ran strait to the kitchen falling as she tripped over the blanket.

She fell and hit her head, drawing blood but she didn't care, she dizzily got up and tackled her Mama from behind.

Julieta spun at this, gently pulling the panicking into a hug.

"What's wrong baby?" Julieta asked.

The men came into the room, though they stayed out of Mira's eyeline.

"She woke up and saw it was only men around her and because she had just woke her eyes must have been blurry so she freaked out and ran away." Bruno said.

"You might want to check her over she landed on the floor pretty hard." Agustin said.

Julieta nodded.

"Mira do you feel sore anywhere?" Julieta asked.

She gently touched the top of her head to show she hit it but when she withdrew her hand, she looked and saw blood running down her fingers.

She froze, her breathing picking up slightly.

Julieta gently took her hand and looked, checking to see what was panicking the girl.

Upon seeing the blood, Julieta picked Mirabel up and sat her on the counter top, the girl looked like she was going to fall asleep and Julieta could see her eyes had dilated.

"DO NOT LET HER SLEEP." Julieta said frantically as she wen to heat more of the soup, it had been the only thing she had managed to keep down.

Mirabel's eyes where drifting closed.

Agustin gently shook her and when that didn't work he clapped next to her ear, he could apologise later, concussions can be deadly.

She jumped awake.

"Mama I'm tired." Mirabel yawned.

"I know baby but you can't sleep, not yet." Julieta said, putting the soup in a bowl.

"Here eat this baby." Julieta said.

"I'm not hungry Mama." Mirabel said.

Bruno took the bowl from Julieta and gently pressed it into Mira's hands, making sure to keep his hands on it to make sure she doesn't drop it.

"You might not be hungry but you are hurt, please eat." Bruno said.

Mirabel nodded, attempting to lift the spoon to her mouth, giving up half way through when her eyes drooped closed again.

Agustin clapped again and Bruno gently put the spoon to her mouth instead.

Mirabel took the soup eating impossibly slow.

After about five minutes she had finished and Julieta gently tilted her head down to check if the wound had healed.

When she saw it had she picked Mira up and took her to the bathroom.

"Mira can you stay awake for five more minutes?"" Julieta asked.

Mirabel lazily nodded.

"Why, did I do something wrong, do we need to talk again." She said sleepily.

"No honey, we just need to wash your hair." Julieta said.

"Okay Mama." Mirabel said.

"My head hurts" Mirabel said

"Yeah that's normal, especially since your Papa had to clap right next to your ears." Julieta said.

"Could you lean over the bath?" Julieta asked.

"I can try." She replied.

She got on her knees and put her head over the rim of the bathtub.

Julieta quickly turned on the shower and started gently washing her hair.

After about five minutes Julieta had finished, quickly she dried Mirabel's hair and picked the girl up again.

"Who do you want to stay with you." Julieta asked.

When she didn't get a response she knew Mirabel must have fallen asleep.

She walked back through to the living room where she gently sat on the couch.

"Do you want me to take her so you can finish dinner or do you want me to finish dinner." Bruno said.

"If you take her I will finish dinner, you remember the last time you tried to cook." Julieta said, gently passing Mira to Bruno.

"I will take her up to my room, I asked Casita to change it." Bruno said.

The other adults nodded.

Pepa followed him upstairs as she wanted to see his new room.

When he opened his door he smiled, it was perfect and Mira would like it when she woke as well, he specifically had Casita add another room to his so that Mirabel could have her own room that is connected to his, should she want it.

It also had a small play area for when Tonio wanted to play or for when Mira regressed.

For now he walked over to the bed and laid down, pulling the covers over him and Mira.

Pepa gave them both a kiss on the forehead before leaving.
---------

When Pepa went back down the stairs she noticed Julieta in the kitchen, holding her hand funny.

"You okay Juli?" Pepa said walking in.

"Yeah I cut myself pretty good, got distracted, I just need to wait for the Arepa's to finish then I will heal it." She replied, clearly anxious.

"You are anxious Juli, go sit down I will bring the arepas." Pepa said.

Julieta was just about to protest when Agustin appeared out of no where and flung Julieta gently over his shoulder.

"Agustin put me down, I've got stuff I need to do." Julieta said.

"No can do mi vida, Your sister offered take the time to relax." Agustin said as he plopped his wife down on the couch.

"Fine but only for ten minutes." She said, leaning her head against his shoulder.

Pepa brought the arepa's and Julieta ate one, her cut quickly healing as she tried to stand to get back to work.

"Nope." Agustin said gently pulling her back onto the couch " That wasn't ten minutes."

"Fine" She said putting her head back against him.

Well she stayed longer than five minutes as she had fallen asleep against Agustin.

Since Agustin couldn't move in fear of waking is wife, Pepa gently draped a blanket over her sister.

He nodded in thanks as he gently massaged his wife's scalp.
--------

Bruno felt terrible, he had got up too go to the bathroom and when he came back Mirabel was thrashing and screaming.

Immediately he ran to her side, picking her up and cradling her while whispering reassurances to her.

"It's okay Mira, I am right here, open your eyes for me kid." Bruno said, gently trying to wake her.

She shot up and stumbled to the bathroom, throwing up before she even made it to the toilet.

Bruno gently rubbed her back.

"Don't worry about it Mira, It's not hard to clean." He said.

He gently picked her up once she was done, wiping round her mouth with a washcloth.

She put her head into the creek of his neck, shaking and apologise, over and over again.

"Don't worry about it kiddo, I'm just worried about you." He said

He carried her through to the bedroom again, gently placing her in bed before feeling her head.

"I will be back in a minute okay?" He said gently.

She nodded.

Bruno went back to the bathroom, quickly cleaning up the vomit and soaking a clean wash cloth with cool water.

He returned to the bedroom again, gently draping the washcloth over Mira's forehead.

She swatted it off.

"It's cold Tio." She mumbled.

"I know but you are warm, you have a fever" He said gently putting it back in and holding it until he was sure she wouldn't swat it off again.

They both sat in awkward silence.

"What was it about?" Bruno asked.

"What was what about?" Mirabel replied.

"Your nightmare" He said.

"Him." She said, shaking slightly.

Bruno quickly took her hand, giving it a light squeeze to ground her.

"Do you wanna talk about it?" Bruno asked.

"No" She said, pulling her hand away and rolling over.

"Mira, if you ever need someone to talk to I am alwa-" "Yeah, you are always there until I disappoint you or do something to mess everything up, I did it with Abuela and it's only a matter of time till I do it with everyone else." She said, standing.

Bruno quickly walked round the bed, pulling her into a hug.

She gently pushed away from him.

"Please don't touch me" She said, trembling a little more than before.

She slowly started walking towards the door, But Casita knew better, she was pushing everyone away because it would make it easier when they left her, though Casita knew they would never leave her and she said she doesn't want to be held but that's all she ever wants.

So Casita rolled her back to Bruno.

He immediately hugged her, getting what Casita was doing.

She started pounding on his chest as hard as she could, though she was still pretty weak from throwing up so they weren't hard hits.

The pounding stopped and she broke down again and Bruno held her the entire time.

He didn't talk, he just listened as she told him all her problems.

TW PAST SEXUAL ASSUALT DISCUSSED.

"He didn't just use my mouth, he used everything, I freaked out when you accidently pulled my hair earlier on, I pushed you, I hit Mama and Papa and Tia and Tio when they were trying to help me, and I am fine, I don't need help, he took everything from me, I pushed Abuela to her limits so much so she slapped me, and I can't even blame her, I try to die and fail every time, I am that useless I can't even kill myself properly, what's gonna happen when I finally break Mama or you or Papa, I can't deal with that, I hate myself so fucking much it hurts, I-I" Mirabel stopped talking and just cried.

"Mira, I will never leave your side, not again, everyone in this house loves you Abuela loves you she is just a difficult person, No one in this house is going to leave you cause if they try I will personally kick their ass, I love you Kiddo and you can't do anything to change that. What that thing did is terrible but Tio scared him shitless so he is leaving the Encanto you will never see him again. Mira it is okay to not be okay, I wasn't okay when I was younger but your Mama and Tia helped me through that and I will do the same for you. You are Beautiful, Mirabel Madrigal and don't forget it, everyone will be swooning over you, but no person will ever be good enough for you, and I promise you all of what I said is true, and I promise till the day I die and beyond that I will protect you. And I will kill anyone that looks at you right now cause no one deserves you." Bruno said.

"Only girls." She said into his chest, slightly calmer than before.

"Well that's okay, you see it is only boys for me." Bruno admitted.

Mirabel looked up at him.

"Really?" She asked, happily.

"Yes and you wanna know a secret?" Bruno said leaning down to her ear.

She nodded.

"I am happy you only like girls cause men are terrible, though still no woman is good enough for you and never forget it Niña." Bruno said.

He picked Mirabel up and they headed down stairs to get some fresh air.

Mirabel saw he Mama asleep on the couch leaning up against her Papa who was now also asleep.

Bruno gently put Mira down and she ran over to them and kissed them both on the forehead, adjusting the big blanket so it covered both adults instead of just her mama.

"Ay, Shit" Mirabel heard Pepa say from the kitchen.

She walked through to see Pepa fussing over the dinner that was starting to burn.

Quickly Mirabel tied her hair back and helped Pepa with finishing dinner.

"Thank you" Pepa said, giving the girl a hug.

She flinched at first but then leaned into it.

"Are you okay?" Pepa asked.

Mirabel nodded, she was feeling anxious but didn't want to talk about it so opted for not talking.

"You sure Mija?" Pepa asked, gently putting a hand on her shoulder.

She noticed the flinch and instantly withdrew her hand.

"You feeling a little overwhelmed or are you just in a no talking mood?." Pepa asked gently, holding out her hand offering it to Mira.

Mira stuck up two fingers and shuffled forward to hug Pepa.

Pepa just hugged Mira back, not letting go until Mira pulled away.

She pointed to the pots on the stove and soon began serving up food onto the plates she needed.

She put them on the table with Pepa's help as the family came down stairs.

"Where's Mama and Papa?" Luisa asked.

Mirabel held up a finger then left the dining room.

She walked to the living room and gently shook her parents.

Agustin woke first and smiled at Mira before helping her wake Julieta.

When Julieta woke she picked Mirabel up and peppered light kisses all over her face lovingly, Mirabel moved her head to try and get away while giggling but as she moved her head Julieta was trying to plant another kiss on her cheek but instead it landed on her neck, since Mira moved.

Immediately she froze, stopping giggling, instead shaking.

"Shit I didn't mean that Mira I promise I was trying to kiss your cheek baby." Julieta said, pulling Mira close.

"I-It's okay Mama, I know you didn't mean it", she sounded nervous but also childish.

She gently pulled from the hug to see Mirabel still trying to cling to her.

"Do you want to go get dinner?" Julieta asked.

"I just wanna play." Mirabel said, a smile on her face.

"Oh really, do you now." Agustin said gently picking her up and laying her on the couch.

He gently brought his fingers down and started tickling her, watching as she squirmed and giggled.

"That tickles Papa" Mirabel said.

"I know that's the point" He said, smiling at her cute sounds.

He stopped tickling her and lifted her up, sitting her on his hip.

They walked though to the dinning room, where all the food was laid out.

Mirabel's placement was originally next to Dolores but after they all heard her being tickled, Luisa had swapped places with Mira so she could be in between her Mama and Papa.

Agustin sat at the table, then sat Mirabel next to him.

The everyone had arepas and sausages but Mira had soup, which she was happy with since she could keep it down.

She ate her soup pretty fast, then she started squirming in her seat.

"What's up baby?" Julieta asked.

She held her arms out.

"Oh you just want cuddles?" Julieta said picking the girl up and sitting her on her lap.

Mira cuddled close, listening to her Mamas heart beat.

When everyone had finished eating, Bruno and Felix quickly done the dishes then went through to the living room, where they saw Mirabel and Antonio running around playing.

Antonio didn't understand the age regression, but he didn't care it was fun playing with Mirabel.

Mirabel ran up to the wall on started trying to do a hand stand against it.

"Ay" Agustin quickly stood, getting to her just as she was losing balance.

He caught her feet and gently brought them to the floor, he then picked her up.

"Do you wanna play something?" He said.

"Freeze tag!" She said, bouncing up and down in Agustin's hold.

"I wanna be it" She said smiling.

"Okay well we will do it in the courtyard before it gets any darker or colder." Agustin said.

"The rules are when you are tagged by Mira you have to stand still, no leaving the courtyard and no gifts are to be used, you can be saved if someone taps your shoulder." Agustin said.

"Do you wanna tag alone or do you want me to help?" Agustin asked.

"Alone, let me do it alone." She beamed.

He put her down and they started the game, the family making space between themselves and Mira.

Mira ran at the group.

She managed to tag her Mama and Luisa, who stood still.

She then got Camilo, Antonio and Felix.

Julieta was freed by Pepa but Casita moved them both to Mira, they didn't object it was just a game.

She quickly got everyone else, except Dolores, she had always been really good at games like these.

Mira ran full speed at her, Dolores didn't realise Mira wasn't going to be able to slow down before she dodged out the way, causing Mira to run into the wall.

She fell on her butt and Immediately Dolores ran over to apologise.

When she got to Mira she noticed she wasn't crying, she was rubbing her head which was concerning, but she still went to pick her up.

"What happened?" Mira said when she picked her up, " My head hurts"

"Oh you were regressed and I accidently made you run into a wall." Dolores said.

Mirabel flushed red, embarrassed she had regressed in front of everyone.

Dolores put her down and she walked to the kitchen, she took an arepa, eating it slowly to heal her head.

Antonio was taken to bed as it was getting late.

Mirabel ran to the bathroom after eating the arepa, almost Immediately throwing up.

She banged on the floor with her fist.

Julieta stopped this when she came in.

"Mira, don't worry about it, I will make sure I always have soup so you don't need to worry about eating solid food" Julieta said ,hugging her daughter after she was finished.

"I regressed in front of you again, I hate doing that, then I threw up again." She said, clearly stressed.

Julieta started gently massaging the girls scalp, Smiling when she leant into it.

"No one in this house will ever judge you." Julieta said.

"You have been taking care of me for weeks, you are exhausted Mama, you wouldn't be that tired if I wasn't being such a needy little-" "That better not be a swear word about to come out your mouth. I am always tired baby I cook all the time, I wake early I sleep late, it isn't your fault." Julieta said cutting Mirabel off, the warning at the start of her sentence being a joke.

Mirabel fell limp against her Mama, she didn't have the energy to fight or talk to anyone.

"Do you want to go to bed?." Julieta asked. Mirabel shook her head.

Sure Mirabel was tired but she was also terrified, if she closes her eyes he will be back, she can't deal with it.

"Are you tired?" Julieta asked.

Mirabel shook her head but her body betrayed her when she let out a big yawn.

"You're scared of having another nightmare aren't you?" Julieta said gently.

Mirabel nodded sheepishly.

"What if I stay with you the entire time?" Julieta said "I will protect you and at the first sign of a nightmare I will wake and calm you and hold you until you fall back asleep" She added.

Mirabel shook her head, she couldn't risk waking up screaming again, or lashing out in her sleep.

Next thing she knew, she was being carried upstairs and into Julieta's bedroom.

Julieta tucked them both in to bed.

"You don't have to go to sleep, it is your choice.2 Julieta said, though she contradicted herself when she started singing the lullaby she would sing to Mira when she was younger.

"Duérmete niña, Duérmete tú, Antes que venga, El currucutú." (TRANSLATION: Go to sleep child, Go to sleep, you, Before the Screech owl comes.)

"Duérmete niña, Duérmete tú, Antes que venga, El guanaguana, Qui-qui-ri-qui." Julieta sang. (TRANSLATION: Go to sleep child, Go to sleep, you, Before the Black skimmer bird comes, Caw, caw, caw, caw)

(A:N: I looked up traditional Columbian lullaby's then copy pasted so sorry if it's wrong.)

Mirabel fell asleep before the second part, Julieta smiling kindly to her.

Mirabel didn't have any nightmares that night, her Mama was right, she would protect her.

THANKS SO MUCH FOR READIN WILL PROBABLY UPDATE IN THE NEXT COUPLE DAYS, ALSO CAN I HAVE SUGGESTIONS IN THE COMMENTS?

Chapter Text

Mirabel wakes up screaming in her Mama's arms.

She is being cradled and calmed by her Mama and her Papa is off to the side, gently running a hand through her hair.

Mira calms down after about five minutes.

"I'm sorry," She said.

"You have nothing to be sorry for," Julieta said, pulling Mira closer.

"I woke you and Papa." She said.

"No, you didn't we were already awake," Agustin said.

"Can I go get a glass of water, my throat hurts," Mira said quietly.

Agustin stood and walked to the bathroom, grabbing the glass they keep in there and filling it with water before returning and giving it to Mira.

She drank it slowly.

"Thank you." She said as Agustin took the glass.

He sat it on his bedside table, making a mental note to take it downstairs to wash.

Mirabel stifled a yawn, trying to hide she was still tired.

"Do you want to go back to sleep?" Agustin asked with a smile.

"I'm not tired" Mirabel lied.

"Okay, then we can just cuddle for now," Julieta said.

Julieta looked to Agustin, seemingly having a silent conversation with their eyes.

Yes, they both planned to secretly lull her back to sleep.

Julieta and Agustin lay down on their sides facing each other, then gently lay Mira between them and wrapped their arms around her.

Mira turned into her Mama's chest, then she felt someone rubbing the back of her neck.

That's something they only did when they were trying to put her to sleep, they did it to her as a kid and it worked without fail, as long as she didn't catch on.

"Not tired Mama." She said.

"I know, we are just cuddling," Julieta said softly.

"You're rubbing my neck, you only do that to put me to sleep." She replied, struggling to stay awake.

Juliet noticed this and so did Agustin, even though she was tucked into Julieta's side they could still see her face.

"I promise, I will be here when you wake, so will Papa, got to sleep baby, you are safe," Julieta said, barely above a whisper.

"But I'm not ti-" Mirabel fell asleep before she could finish her sentence.

"We should probably try and sleep more as well, it's early," Julieta whispered.

Agustin nodded as both adults settled down to sleep.

Both fell asleep in minutes.
----------

Mira woke up in a panic and pain.

She looked around to see she had barricaded herself in the nursery in her sleep and she now had cuts all over her wrists, stomach and thighs.

Then she saw the knife, it was the only one her family didn't find, it was multi-chrome and it was a butterfly knife, the blade now had blood dripping from it.

She had gotten it and many others from the teenagers of the village, they liked to stab her in non-lethal places as they knew Julieta's cooking would heal them, they would leave the knives firmly imbedded her legs or arms, they were always careful to avoid arteries.

Suddenly the nursery door was open and her Papa was in front of her face.

Then she was being carried, though she didn't know whereas she didn't make it before passing out from blood loss.

"-ra, Mira wake up baby come on, wake up," Agustin said as he ran down the stairs holding the unconscious girl.

"It hurts, Papa," Mirabel said weekly.

"I know baby, I know, But Mama is going to heal it so you need to stay awake for me." He replied, looking down at her.

Then his foot slipped, it was the worst time, they were only halfway down the stairs.

He could feel himself falling so he wrapped himself around Mira, protecting her from any impact.

The second he hit the bottom he stood, wincing as he did so as his ankle shot a burning pain up his leg.

He managed to get to the kitchen and barely being able to set Mira on the counter before collapsing onto a chair.

Julieta quickly gave him an arepa before finishing heating the soup.

"Mira, open your mouth baby," Julieta instructed gently.

She weakly opened her mouth, Immediately Julieta put the spoon full of soup in it.

Mira managed to finish half the bowl before refusing to eat anymore, she had been healed after the first spoonful but Julieta figured it was best to get her to eat as much as possible.

Julieta put the rest of the soup in a tub and put it in the fridge before turning around and lifting Mira from the countertop.

Agustin and Julieta then walked to the living room.

"Why did you do it, Mira, can you tell me so I can help?" Julieta said.

"Mama, I promise I didn't mean it, I did it in my sleep, I'm sorry," Mira said, starting to cry.

"Okay, it's okay baby, You're safe, you have nothing to be sorry for, It's okay," Julieta said as she started to rub the back of the girl's neck again.

"No, Mama, No please don't, please don't put me to sleep please, I-I can't cope." Mira struggled and begged.

"Mira, you need to sleep, I will protect you from nightmares," Julieta said gently.

"No, Mama please, you can't keep them away nothing can keep them away let me go please, please don't make me sleep" She struggle harder, now starting to gently push or hit her arms.

Julieta was starting to struggle to keep her in place, she didn't have any bad intentions but the girl was visibly exhausted, if she didn't put her to sleep, Mira was going to have a mental breakdown, possibly her worst one yet.

(I AM NOT MAKING JULIETA A BAD CHARACTER NOR AGUSTIN OR ANYONE ELSE, JULIETA IS PURELY THINKING OF MIRA AND HER HEALTH, SAME WITH EVERYONE.)

Julieta looked to Agustin who nodded, he ran to get Felix and Bruno, they needed to restrain her, she was on the verge of something really bad happening.

Agustin returned with Bruno and Felix and even Luisa for extreme circumstances.

Agustin took Mirabel into his lap and started rubbing the back of her neck while trying to comfort and calm her into sleeping.

"Please, don't make me sleep Papa, please." Mirabel cried while struggling against him.

Agustin nodded to Bruno and Felix.

Bruno gently took both her hands in a firm hold, still being careful not to hurt her, while Felix firmly rubbed her shins, essentially holding them down as well.

Agustin was now holding Mira who was crying even harder against him.

She was struggling against her Tio's hold.

"Please, don't make me sleep, I can't watch you die again, none of you please, don't," Mira said, managing to get one of her hands-free from Bruno.

Though she didn't need to worry about getting free as she was Immediately freed after saying that.

She shuffled away from her family and curled in on herself.

"Mira, look at me, baby," Julieta said gently.

"Get away from me." She said, crying uncontrollably.

"Mira, we are sorry, just please look at me," Julieta said.

"NO, you held me down and tried to make me fall asleep, even though I was begging you not to," Mirabel said.

Julieta saw Mira's breathing picking up, so she took a risk, she went to Mira and gently picked her up and held her close.

She made sure to keep a loose grip on Mira so she knew she was not being pinned.

Mira didn't try to get free she just stayed and cried in Julieta's arms.

After she had finished crying she felt her eyes drifting closed.

"Mama, please, I'm falling asleep but don't let me keep me awake, I'm trying to stay awake but I can't, please don't let me." She said

"It's okay baby, you're safe, I will protect you," Julieta said, watching as Mira struggled to stay awake before finally falling back asleep.

Julieta pulled Mira close and pressed a gentle kiss on the top of her head.

Agustin gently put a blanket over them both and smiled at his wife.

"Me and Felix are just going shopping, I will get everything you need, do you need anything extra today?" Agustin asked quietly.

"If you could get the ingredients for the soup I make, I wrote a list it is on the kitchen counter," Julieta whispered.

Agustin nodded and left with Felix and Bruno who decided to come along for the sake of it.
-------

The three men got back about an hour and a half later, carrying bags that looked to be heavy.

Agustin set down his bags and went to his wife and daughter as Felix and Bruno unloaded everything.

"How is she" He asked gently.

"She hasn't moved, she was so still I got worried and checked she was still alive, obviously she was but that isn't all I'm worried about, she was crying but I couldn't wake her, I tried everything." Julieta said, clearly worried.

"Let me try." Agustin said.

Julieta nodded and gently placed Mira on his lap.

He rocked back and worth while gently shaking her.

Then Julieta had an idea, since Mira currently had a mild fever, Julieta could get a cool wash cloth to help, but the coldness of it would wake her.

So Julieta got the wash cloth and gently draped it over Mira's forehead.

Mira jumped awake at the cold sensation on her forehead.

"Why did you let me sleep." Mira said, shaking slightly.

"You needed it baby, when you started showing signs of a nightmare I tried to wake you but couldn't then Papa tried and you had a fever so I was trying to cool you down and that is when you woke." Julieta explained.

"I didn't have a nightmare" Mira lied.

"If you talk about it, they might go away." Julieta said.

"I can't" Mira said as a couple tears made there way down her face.

"You can do it baby, Me and your Papa are here and we won't let anything happen to you." Julieta said, gently cupping Mira's cheek.

"I can't, please don't make me." She said, crying more now.

"I would never make you do anything" Julieta said.

"But you can try and you have, you made me eat and you tried to make me sleep and then I did end up sleeping and I ended up throwing up because of you force feeding me" Mira said angrily.

She pulled herself from Agustin's arms and pushed past Felix and Bruno who were just entering the living room.

She ran upstairs into the nursery only to be met with Pepa, who was cleaning the pool of blood left by her cutting earlier.

She stumbled backwards out the room, hyperventilating as her back hit the railing that ran round the top floor. (If you have seen the movie you know what I mean)

Her eyes went blurry as tears swarmed her vision.

She dropped to her knees clutching her chest as she struggled to breathe.

Pepa had seen this and shouted for Julieta and Agustin who had followed Mira up the stairs anyway.

She wanted to help but also didn't want to get Mira covered in blood and soapy water, she was just about to go over anyway when Agustin dropped in front of Mira.

He took her hand and put it on his chest as her exaggerated his breathing and tilted her head to meet her eyes.

His left hand was on her cheek, wiping away the swift falling tears while his right was holding her hand on his chest.

"You're okay, you're safe, breathe, come on baby deep breaths in and out, copy my breathing focus on me, nothing else, you are safe." Agustin said.

Mira tried to copy his breathing but only coughed when she did, he gently patted her back and decided to try something different.

He took both of her hands and spread out the fingers.

"Okay Mira, we are going to try something different, when I run my finger up yours and when it goes down the other side you breathe out, okay?" Agustin asks.

She shakilly nods, she just wanted to be able to breathe properly.

He runs his index finger slowly up her pinkie watching as she struggles to take a breath in.

Once she has he runs his finger down the inside of her pinkie as she breathes out, repeating for all ten fingers and gently smiling at her as her breath finally evens out.

She tries to stand, failing as her legs give out, making her collapse into Agustin.

He picks her up and she wraps her arms around his neck.

He doesn't fail to notice that she is gently playing with his hair, it was something she used to do when she was a kid.

He walks down the stairs and into the kitchen were he finds the toy he got her.

It is a dog plush that can be put in the microwave to heat up, it is something he thought she would like.

He quickly picked it up and put it in the Microwave for 10 seconds, as the instructions said.

He gently pulled it out and walked through to the living room.

"Hey Mira, I got you a present." Agustin said as he gently pulled Mira slightly forward so he could see her face.

He handed her the warm dog plush and watched as her eyes lit up and she held it into her chest.

"Thank you Papa." She said.

"No problem Mira, do you want me to get peanut bear?" He said.

"Let me get him." She said, managing to wiggle her way free from his grasp.

She jumped off the couch and instantly felt herself start to fall again.

Agustin saw this and quickly caught her under the arms, pulling her back up to his chest and carrying her upstairs.

He quickly put her in his and Julieta's room, leaving her with Julieta while he got Peanut.

He found Peanut in Antonion's room with the other kids and Pepa, since she had gotten cleaned up and finished in the Nursery.

"Hey do you mind if I take Peanut, Mira wants to see him." Agustin said.

"Yeah, Peanut said he heard you coming and wanted to see Mirabel." Antonio said, gently picking the puppy up and handing him to Agustin.

Peanut wagged his tail and happily licked Agustin's face.

He carried Peanut to Mira and gently sat him on the bed.

Peanut instantly ran to Mirabel who was now tucked into Julieta's side, she wasn't asleep but she was clearly relaxed.

Peanut sat on Mira's chest and licked her face as she giggled.

"How come Peanut gets to give you kisses all over your face but when I try it's embarrassing." Julieta asked with a smile on her face.

"Cause Peanut is just a puppy and you always do it when people are near us." She said with a smile on her face.

Peanut hoped off Mira's chest and sat on Agustin's lap as he was now sitting next to Mira.

"Well it's just me and your Papa now so what's stopping me now?" Julieta said as she scooped Mira up and put her on her lap.

"No mama stop" She said laughing as Julieta peppered her face with kisses.

"But I love you so much and I can't help that you are just so cute" Julieta said squeezing Mira, a little too tight by mistake.

Mira winced a little.

Julieta immediately loosened her grip on Mira.

"I'm sorry, what's wrong, what hurts." Julieta said, worry evident in her tone.

"Nothing Mama, my tummy just hurts." She said.

"Are you sure" Julieta said as she lifted her top to see if there were any visible marks, putting it back down when she saw nothing visible.

"Yes, I'm fine, I feel a little sick now but I don't know why." Mira said, gently clutching her stomach.

Agustin reached down to the side of the bin to grab the bucket at the side of the bed and also grabbed a bottle of water from the case he had bought earlier.

He sat the bucket on the bed and passed the bottle to Mira.

"Thanks" She said, trying to open the bottle.

Agustin quickly took the bottle, loosining the cap before handing it back.

She took a few sips and the second she took the bottle from her mouth she launched herself over the bucket, clutching it tight enough that her knuckles turned white.

Julieta gently held her up by her waist while Agustin held the bucket for her after loosening her grip as he could see the edge of the bucket was cutting into her hands.

Once she was done, Julieta gently pulled her back, putting Mira against her chest.

Mira was crying and was clearly angry with herself.

She started clawing at her stomach, trying to get the pain to stop.

Julieta gently took her hands, holding them tightly, though she was still being careful as to not hurt her.

Agustin put the still heated dog plush and placed it gently on Mira's stomach, hoping the heat will help with the pain.

Julieta started massaging Mira's scalp, smiling when she felt Mira go limp against her.

Mira reached out with her hand.

Agustin instantly took the hand and started rubbing his thumb over it gently.

"I'm tired Mama, please don't let me have a bad dream." Mirabel said.

"I promise, I will protect you and if that doesn't work I will wake you and give you cuddles till you forget about the bad dream." Julieta said, giving Mira a kiss on the head.

Mira sleepily nodded and was just about asleep when there were a few light knocks at the door.

She jumped awake, clearly startled.

"It's okay Mira, Come in" Julieta said.

Pepa came in with something in her hand, Mira had closed her eyes after her Mama said it was okay.

Pepa thought Mira was asleep so she walked up to Julieta's side and showed her the thing she was holding.

It was a book on the front read: MIRABEL'S DIARY AGES 10 TO 15 DO NOT READ OR TOUCH.

Mirabel opened her eyes after Pepa came in, instantly her eyes fell on the diary.

Without thinking she grabbed the diary and ran into the en-suite and locked the door behind her.

"Mirabel, open up baby." Julieta said.

"Did you read it" She said.

The adults could hear she was crying.

"Yes, I did, but I was worried there is blood on it I thought it could be recent, I just wanted to see how much and then I saw this page, Mira I'm worried, open the door please, I'm sorry sweetheart" Pepa said.

"Why, would you read it, it has nothing to do with you or anyone but me, you had no right, if you were concerned then you should have spoken to me" Mirabel cried.

They heard the tap running and paper ripping.

"Mira what are you doing?" Agustin asked.

"I'm making sure no one reads my private stuff again." She said through tears.

The tap turned off and the paper wasn't being ripped anymore they heard a heavy thud and then the bathroom door unlocked and Mira came out, pushing past them.

They saw a wad of soaking wet ripped up paper in the bin, so that's what caused the thump, they all thought.

Mira picked up her plushie and Peanut and walked out of the room, putting Peanut down outside Antonio's room since she could tell the dog wanted to play.

"Go play then Peanut, it's okay" Mira said

She knocked on her Tio Bruno's door.

The door swung open and revealed Bruno.

"Hey Mira, wanna come in?" He said gently.

She nodded and he let her in, nodding to the other adults before shutting the door, this showed the adults he would look after her for the time.

The second the door was closed she grabbed onto him,

Bruno lifted her up and carried her to the bed were he lay down with her on his chest, her head tucked into his neck.

"Can you tell me what happened?" Bruno asked kindly.

"Tia Pepa read my diary so I destroyed it, I don't want to talk to them, the diary wasn't sitting out either it was hidden and closed." Mirabel said angrily into his neck.

"I'm sure she only had the best intentions, was there something concerning on the cover." He asked gently.

"Blood." She replied, no longer angry, she just yawned, she was clearly tired.

"She was just concerned for you, I would have done the same thing." Bruno said, though she didn't hear it, she had fallen asleep against him.

"Have a nice nap, pequeña mariposa" Bruno whispered. (the spanish is meant to mean little butterfly but I used google translate so I don't know how accurate it is.)

There is a light knock at the door, just barely loud enough to hear.

"Casita open the door please" Bruno whispers to the house.

The door opens to reveal Julieta, carrying a tray with something on it.

She walks over to the side of the bed and places it on the bedside table.

"It's soup for when she wakes, if it is cold before she wakes just let me know and I will reheat it there are some arepas there as well for you and a bottle of water," Julieta says.

"Thank you, do you know what was in the diary that Pepa read?" Bruno asked.

"Yes, we found out the reason she has so many knives and where she hides them." Julieta said sadly, "We are just getting them all now,"

"Why does she have so many?" Bruno asked.

"From the age of seven, whenever she would go into town alone, the village teens would find and stab her apparently they would always say the same thing it was 'Here is a knife to take your worthless life away.', They would leave the knife lodged in her and she would do up to the nursery take them out, then wrap until she could eat my food," Julieta said, as a few tears ran down her face.

"How could I have been such a bad mother that I didn't even notice when my baby was hurt," Julieta said, wiping away her tears.

Bruno gently shifted Mira off of him and onto the bed before standing up and hugging his sister.

"It wasn't your fault, she's good at hiding things, there is nothing you could have done, we just need to make sure she gets better," Bruno said as Julieta cried into his neck.

They heard a thump and instantly turned around.

They looked and saw Mira weakly trying to stand from the floor, both adults dived down to her, Julieta picking her up.

"I'm sorry," Mirabel said.

"It's not your fault baby," Julieta said.

"I made you cry and you're not bad Mama you're the best Mama in the entire world," Mira said, clinging to Julieta.

"It's okay Mira, go back to sleep, you need it," Julieta said gently.

"I'm not tired," Mira whimpered.

"How's your stomach baby?" Julieta asked.

"It's worse, it hurts bad and I feel sick again," She replied, clutching her stomach.

Bruno instantly ran to the bathroom and returned with the bucket.

"It's there in case you need it, kid," Bruno said

"Are you hungry, there are some arepas or some soup," Bruno said, pointing to the tray.

Mira heard food and instantly shot over the bucket, throwing up while crying.

"It's okay Mira, just bring it up it will feel better after," Julieta said, rubbing Mira's back in small circles.

Mira weakly pushed the hand off her.

She finished soon after and just cried, Julieta gently picked her up.

"It's not okay, I keep on throwing up even though I didn't eat anything,I waste everyone's time just cause I'm sick and it's stupid." She cried into her Mama's chest.

"You can't help that you are sick Mira, you aren't wasting anyone's time and it's not stupid, you matter and we care about you." Julieta said in return.

Mira gently pushed out of Julietas arms and carried the bucket to the bathroom, where she cleaned it out and brushed her teeth.

As she was walking back she suddenly got very light headed and instantly collapsed against the door frame, her vision was blurred and her head was sore.

"Mira, are you okay kid?" Bruno asked as he crouched in front of her.

Mira shook her head, quickly regretting it as it made her head spin even more.

"What's wrong?" Julieta asked, after walking over.

Mira didn't understand what her Mama said, it sounded like she was underwater.

Mira started to panic, her breathing picked up and she started crying again.

"Mama, I don't know what your saying, my eyes are blurry, what do I do." Mira said.

Mira saw the outline of Julieta widen as her Mama held her arms open.

She also heard talking, she assumed her Mama was saying something along the lines of , " Come here."

Mira weakly crawled forward into her Mama's arms and instantly felt a cool hand on her forehead.

"Is it a fever?" Bruno said with a concerned tone.

"It's only mild, I don't know what's wrong" Julieta said, holding the panicking girl closer.

"Mama, I don't feel good." Mirabel said.

Julieta didn't respond instead she started rubbing the back of Mira's neck and she was surprised when Mira pushed into it.

"Please, need to sleep," Mirabel said.

"That's okay baby, sleep." Julieta said, she knew Mira couldn't hear her but she also knew the tone of her voice might comfort her.

Mira relaxed against her Mama's chest, trying to her Mama's heartbeat, shaking slightly when she couldn't

She felt a gentle hand going through her hair, she could feel her Mama's chest vibrating she could hear Mama talking, she didn't know what she was saying, she just knew it felt like it was a soft tone.

"Bruno, can you go get Agustin?" Julieta asked.

"No problem, be back in a sec." He said leaving.

He left the room and was walking towards the stairs when he saw Agustin walking up them, 'That's handy' he thought.

"Hey, Agustin Julieta wants you, she is putting Mira to sleep but there is a problem, she can' really hear anything and her vision is blurry, so Julieta figured sleep was best, they are in my room, I have a spare bedroom in my bedroom, it's pretty small but it has a double bed so you and Julieta can stay in there until Mira wakes and as long as you and she wants to." Bruno said.

"Thanks Bruno." Agustin said as the men walked to Bruno's room.

Agustin walked in and saw Julieta leaning against the wall, holding Mira who was now asleep.

"Do you want me to carry her, Bruno said there is another smaller room in here that has a double bed." Agustin said.

"No it should be fine Gus, could you help me up though?" Julieta asked.

Immediately Agustin was next to her and gently helping her stand.

Both adults thanked Bruno who nodded and smiled, quickly taking Mira's hand and giving it a gently squeeze before letting go.

Julieta and Agustin went into the room and didn't bother to close the door, it wasn't needed and if it was open it would help with air flow.

Julieta lay on the bed while Agustin held Mira, he then placed Mira next to Julieta and laid down next to them, a gentle smile crossed his face when Mira turned to him and cuddled close to his chest.

Julieta passed him the dog plush that Bruno had heated with the microwave he had in his room. ( For some reason, he said it was to re-heat Arepas)

Agustin gently settled the dog plush between him and Mira, making sure it was on her stomach to hopefully help with her pain. ( A:N Mira was facing into his chest and he was on his side facing Julieta who was behind Mira, if that makes sense.)

The girl curled up on herself efectivally trapping the plush in between her stomach and legs, forcing it to stay on her stomach.

Agustin rolled over onto his back and almost instantly Mira put her head on his chest.

"Wow, aren't you lucky, getting hugs whilst I'm over here all alone." Julieta joked.

"Aw feeling a little jealous Juli, don't worry, I still love you Mira just gives better cuddles." Agustin replies.

Julieta let out a fake hurt gasp.

"Oh my heart" She said jokingly clutching her chest.

Mira must have woken up because she giggled.

"I might give better cuddles than Mama, but Mama gives better cudlles than you" She said, sticking her tongue out.

"That's my baby." Julieta said as Mira turned onto her back.

"No, you have corrupted our daughter Juli." Agustin said, while smiling.

"Mama hasn't corrupted me." Mirabel said giggling.

"Oh is that right?" Agustin said as he jumped up and gently tickled her.

"No Mama save me." Mirabel said in between laughs.

Julieta jumped up and pulled Mira to her, squeezing her gently in a hug before covering her face with kisses.

"Ah no I'm trapped, help" Mira said.

"Nope it's kisses or tickling, you choose." Julieta said.

"Why can't we go back to cuddles" She said.

"Hm, well let us think about it." Agustin said.

"Well I would rather kiss your cute little face but if Papa is ok with it I am as well," Julieta said.

"Please Papa," Mira said, as she tried to hide her face.

"Well okay." Agustin said as he flopped down beside Mira.

Julieta has done the same and both adults put their arms around the girl.

She pushed into her Mama.

Mira put her hand back and pulled on Agustin's shirt, wanting him to get closer.

Agustin instantly shuffled forward so his face was almost touching Julieta's.

Mirabel flinched as she jumped up from between her parents.

She shot herself out the bed and over the bucket, Agustin was by her side in a second, gently rubbing her back.

Mirabel punched the floor, wincing when she felt pain shoot up her arm.

"Ay" Agustin said when he heard the crack.

He quickly grabbed her hand, careful not to hurt it as he checked it.

Mira was still throwing up.

"Julieta, I can't tell how badly hurt it is, can you?" Agustin said holding the hand for Julieta to see.

"Just a sprain and a couple bruised knuckles, she won't eat so I will wrap it once she is done, right now we need to focus on figuring out what is wrong and why she is sick," Julieta says as she takes Mira's uninjured hand and rubs it.

Mirabel finishes and is crying, angry at herself for throwing up when she hasn't eaten.

Mira notices her Mama disappears for a couple of seconds before reappearing with a bandage, a bottle of water, a damp wash cloth and the re-heated dog plush.

"Can I see your hand baby?" Julieta asks.

Mira plays dumb, wanting to hide her injured hand she gives her Mama her uninjured one.

"Other one Mira," Julieta says softly.

Mira holds out her other hand which is shaking.

Julieta gently takes it and gives a gentle kiss to her knuckles before wrapping her hand.

"And one more healing kiss," Julieta says with a soft smile as she presses another gentle kiss to the hand.

Agustin cleans out the bucket then returns to Mira, quickly lifting her and laying on the bed with her.

Julieta opens the bottle of water and hands it to Mira who takes a couple of sips then closes it, letting the bottle flop down to her side in her hand.

The bottle is gently pried from her hand, she automatically reaches for something else to hold and is instantly met with her Papa's hand.

The damp washcloth is draped over her forehead, making her shiver.

"Do I have a fever Mama?" Mirabel asked tiredly.

"Only a little bit but that will help and make sure it doesn't get worse," Julieta said gently as she put the warm dog plush on Mira's stomach.

Julieta lay down next to Mirabel and Agustin, smiling as Mira held out her hurt hand.

Julieta gently took it and started rubbing gentle circles over the bandage.

"Love you, Mama and Papa," Mira said quietly.

"We love you too Miraboo," Agustin said.

"Rhymed" Mira gently laughed as she fell asleep.

Mira didn't wake up until the next morning, Julieta and Agustin had switched out with Felix and Pepa after about five hours, so Julieta could take a turn cooking and Agustin could watch the kids.

Thank you for the support, sorry it took so long for the chapter to come out, I was spending time with my family and I was stressed about school and exams coming up, thanks anyway :D.

Chapter Text

Mirabel woke up in a different bed from the one she fell asleep in, it had a different feel it was more firm, instantly she started panicking.

She felt the person next to her move and a gentle hand going through her hair, she hears a gentle voice though she can't quite place it.

Then there was a hand on her cheek, she was sitting on someone's lap.

She tried to talk but her throat stung and she only made a croaking sound.

"Shh, don't talk, it's just Tia and Tio, here drink this." The voice said, breaking the silence.

There was a water bottle pressed into her hands.

"Careful, it's open." The voice said, she realised it was Pepa by the outline she could see.

That means she was being held By her Tio Felix.

Her glasses were placed on her face, making it instantly completely clear to see.

She took a sip of the water, holding it in her lap before Pepa quickly put the cap on it and put it on the bedside table.

Pepa gently put her hand on Mira's forehead, pulling back a couple of seconds later.

She got up and returned a couple of minutes later with a damp washcloth.

She gently placed it on Mira's head.

"Cold, please take it off." She said, her voice still rough from the sore throat.

"You have a fever, it will help," Pepa said gently.

"Where's mama," Mirabel said.

"She's in her room, you slept all afternoon yesterday until now," Felix said gently.

"I'm sorry," Mira said.

"What for Mija?" Pepa said, taking the girl's uninjured hand.

"Slept too long, didn't help with anything, being lazy." She said as she rolled over to put her face in Felix's neck.

Felix gently pulled her out from his neck so he could see her face, which now had tears running down it.

"You are sick, you were not being lazy you were tired so you slept, if we had a problem with that we would have woken you but we didn't because you needed it, there was nothing to help with, there weren't any chores to do so don't worry," Felix said, gently wiping away her tears.

Mira didn't respond she just fell back into Felix's neck and cried.

Julieta and Agustin came in a while later, she wasn't sure when but then again she didn't even know why she was crying.

All she knew is that her Mama and Papa didn't leave, none of the adults did, they just stayed and sat quietly while she cried.

When she stopped she was gasping for air, she could hear her family trying to calm her down, they had been for about five minutes.

Someone took her hand and placed it on their chest, breathing heavily so Mira could copy it.

She tried but ended up coughing.

So her hand was moved then there was a finger tracing around her's, she remembered this from the day before when Agustin had done it with her.

She breathed in as the finger went up, coughing at first but managing to get through it she breathed out as the finger went down.

This was repeated until her breathing evened out.

She was barely conscious by that time.

"Mira, look at me baby" She heard her Papa say.

"Pap-" "No don't talk, just look at me, you are safe, I've got you" Mira looked up into her Papa's eyes when he told her.

She felt so weak and dizzy and sick, and- oh god she felt sick.

She tried to move but her body wouldn't let her, someone must have seen her go pale or see her eyes go wide because the bucket was placed under her chin in a matter of seconds.

A gentle hand ran through her hair as she got rid of any trace of food in her stomach.

Once she had finished her head was gently placed in someone's lap, she didn't open her eyes as the light hurt it.

Agustin saw his daughter's eyes screwed shut in pain.

"Hey, Felix can you turn out the light and close the curtain?" Agustin asked as he leaned over Mira, blocking the light from her face.

Mirabel's eyes opened slowly and instantly she saw her Mama's eyes looking into her own.

"Mama" Mirabel rasped out.

"It's okay baby, I'm right here, try not to talk, your throat sounds raspy, is it sore?" Julieta asked gently.

Mirabel opened her mouth to talk but she nodded her head instead.

Suddenly she felt a sharp pain shoot from her stomach to her neck.

She yelped loudly, instantly putting her arms around her torso and curling in on herself, hoping the pressure would get rid of the pain.

"Mira, what's wrong baby?" Julieta said.

"Stomach, chest, neck, sharp, hurts," Mira said in stuttered breaths.

Julieta rolled her t-shirt so it was barely covering her, she gently felt along Mira's stomach and ribs, stopping at her ribs.

Mira screamed in pain when Julieta's hands just barely skimmed the area.

"It's either a cracked rib or it's a nasty stomach bug, either way, we are going to need to get her to eat," Julieta said, grimacing.

Mira was crying again, but this time because of pain.

"Mama, it hurts," She cried, unable to hold back her tears, she was writhing in pain.

( A:N It is just a bad stomach bug but, yeah I have had a pretty bad stomach bug before it doesn't hurt this bad but I think it can, I haven't done research this is just for plot convenience)

"I know baby, I know, just try to stop moving it will make it worse, let me help you," Julieta said.

Mira didn't stop moving, her back still arched and moved, her arms were still planted tightly around her torso.

Julieta gently pulled Mira's arms from her body and nodded to Agustin who held down her legs.

Her back was pinned by gentle hands on her hips on shoulders, this being done by her Tia and Tio.

She was struggling to get free, stopping after a couple of seconds as she blacked out from the pain.

She came to a couple of seconds later, the pain was still there but no where near as bad her Mama was right, most of the pain was because of how tightly she was holding herself and her moving her back.

She noticed the hands were no longer pinning her, instead, they were hovering over her in case she needed to be pinned again.

Though they moved when Julieta confirmed it was fine.

"Mama, it hurts so much" Mirabel whimpered, her hands still being held gently by Julieta.

"I know, and I know you're not hungry but even if you can take a little soup it might settle your stomach and we can give you something for the pain," Julieta said.

Mirabel nodded slowly.

Immediately Pepa left the room, coming back five minute's later with a bowl of soup and the heated dog plushie.

There was also a bottle of something on the tray she didn't know what it was but she figured she would find out soon.

"Okay Mira, I am going to set you against me it might hurt but it will stop fast okay?" Julieta said.

Mirabel weakly nodded and almost instantly she was being shifted to lay against her Mama's chest.

She yelped as the movement caused a sharp pain to travel up her torso again.

"Sorry baby," Julieta said, once she had finished moving Mira.

Mira just pushed against her in response.

The tray was set on Pepa's lap as she sat next to Mirabel.

Pepa began to feed Mirabel the soup.

Mirabel had a bright blush across her face, as she was embarrassed about having to be fed.

Pepa stopped feeding her after Mirabel shook her head.

Pepa then sat the heated dog plush on her stomach, Mirabel winced at the contact but then relaxed into it as she slowly felt the pain being drawn from it.

However she quickly became restless again when Pepa held up the bottle, it was medicine, she would have to swallow something else.

Pepa quickly opened the bottle and poured the correct amount of medicine onto the spoon, It was just Paracetamol, and whilst technically Mirabel should take pills now, Pepa figured this would be easier to swallow plus it was strawberry flavoured.

Mira opened her mouth to protest, she was going to say she could swallow pills but the spoon was put in her mouth, so she gave in and swallowed the medicine.

Mirabel read the bottle as Pepa was putting the cap back on.

'No she gave me the drowsy kind, I don't want to sleep again' She thought, panicking, 'If I throw up it will be out of my system, I'm going to have to force myself to throw up, if I do it fast enough they won't be able to stop me.'

Mirabel opened her mouth and stuck her fingers to the back of her throat, but just before she could gag her hand was ripped from her mouth.

"No" She cried out, struggling against her Papa's grip.

"You can't Mira, you will get rid of the food and medicine and that's not healthy," Agustin said firmly, yet gently.

"I need to it's the drowsy kind, I can't fall asleep again, I can't, I was trapped in 20 hours of hell when I slept, please don't stop me, let me do it, I need to do it." Mirabel begged

She could feel the pain going away slowly as the medicine took action, but she could also feel herself getting tired.

"Mira, I promise I didn't mean to grab that kind but, sleep will help, it won't do any harm and we will wake you at the first sign of a nightmare," Pepa said.

"You said that last night and I was stuck in a nightmare the entire time, I slept for almost a full day and had to deal with nightmares the entire time, and you didn't notice so please don't let me sle-" Mirabel fell asleep.

"We need to watch closely for any and all signs of a nightmare, even a single hitch in her breathe, we see or hear anything like that and we wake her immediately," Julieta said.

"Ay shit" The adults heard Bruno yell from downstairs.

"Felix and I will go check that out," Pepa said. Receiving a nod from Julieta.

It took Mirabel about ten minutes to start showing signs of a nightmare, but when she did she was immediately woken up.

She was panicking when she woke, frantically looking around to find her Tio's and Tia.

"I killed them, they're not here, what did I do, I'm sorry." She said.

"No it's okay baby they are fine, they are just down the stairs, you didn't hurt anyone, you have nothing to be sorry for it was just a bad dream." Agustin said.

Bruno suddenly appeared at the bedroom door.

"Juli, do you have any Arepa's hidden?" He said, out of breath.

"No why?, what happened?" She said standing, Mira still clinging to her.

"The kids were playing tag in the courtyard and Camilo tripped and broke a vase, it cut him pretty bad." Bruno said.

"Okay, Agustin can you take Mira while I make some food for Cami?" Julieta said.

Agustin nodded and held out his arms.

Julieta passed Mira to Agustin then ran down the stairs with Bruno.

"Is Cami hurt?" Mira asked.

"Yeah but it's just a scratch and Mama will heal it." Agustin said as he rocked the girl.

Mira nodded into his chest, wincing quietly as she did so.

'Please say he didn't hear it' Mira thought.

"What hurts baby?" Agustin said as he gently pulled the girl from his chest.

"Everything." She said, she was telling the truth her legs and her arms and chest all hurt.

"Okay then what hurts the most?" Agustin said.

"My stomach and chest, it feels tight to breath" She whimpered.

"Can I look?"Agustin asked.

"Please just make it go away Papa." Mirabel said as tears slid down her cheeks.

Agustin gently rolled up Mira's top and was shocked to see that her stomach was pretty badly swollen.

"Do you want me to rub it and see if it helps?" Agustin asked gently.

"Please, I don't care what you have to do it just hurts so bad Papa." Mirabel says.

Agustin started gently rubbing her stomach.

Mirabel relaxed into it, it seemed to be working.

Julieta entered the room with a bowl of soup, smiling when she saw Mira relaxed and Agustin rubbing her stomach, though the smile dropped when she saw how swollen her stomach was.

She sat the tray down on the bedside table before quickly sitting by Mira's side.

Agustin tried to move his hand so Julieta could get a better look but Mirabel caught it and put it back on her stomach, the rubbing was the only thing keeping away the pain.

"Mira, you need to let Mama see." Agusitn said

"Hurts" She replied.

"I know but it will only be for a minute baby." Julieta said.

Agustin moves his hand, letting Julieta see Mira's stomach.

Julieta nods and Agustin starts rubbing her stomach again.

Mira instantly relaxes into it, just like she did before.

"Mira, can you et some soup for me?" Julieta asks.

"Did you put medicine in it?" She asked.

"Only a little and it isn't one that will effect the one you have already taken and it isn't the drowsy kind." Julieta said.

"What is the medicine?" Mirabel asked.

"It's just something that will help the pain a little more than the paracetamol did." Julieta said.

(DO NOT TAKE THIS AS REAL MEDICAL SHIT PLEASE, IT IS NOT REALISTIC AND I DON'T KNOW IF IT IS TRUE SO DO NOT REPEAT ANYTHING IN THIS FIC.)

"It's ibuprofen, it will help with your stomach since it is inflamed for some reason." Julieta explained.

"But all Ibuprofen is the drowsey kind." Mirabel said.

"No it isn't honey, I made sure it wasn't please just eat the soup." Julieta said gently.

Mirabel decided to give up, she was in too much pain to argue.

Mirabel ate the entire bowl of soup she took so long it was cold as she was finishing it.

Agustin continued to rub her stomach in small circles.

"I'm going to the bathroom." Mira said.

"Okay, are you okay?" Julieta asked.

"Yeah I'm fine." She said as she walked into the bathroom and locked the door.

Instantly she started running the tap, hoping to drown out the noise she was about to make.

She stuck two fingers down her throat, gagging before throwing up, getting rid of all the medicine as it was making her drowsy.

Because of the tap that was pretty much right next to her ear she didn't hear her parents calling for her to unlock the door.

She also didn't notice when it swung open, though her parents noticed when she suck her fingers back down her throat to make herself throw up again.

Her hand was grabbed by Agustin a little too harshly by mistake as she was moved from the toilet once she was finished.

"Papa you're hurting me." She said with tears in her eyes.

Agustin took a second to process what she said when he realised he was holding her wrist in a very tight grip, he hadn't meant to make it that tight, he was trying to be gentle but he panicked when he saw her making herself throw up, but that was no excuse, he hurt is daughter.

He instantly let go, his eyes going wide when he saw a bruise forming in the shape of his hand.

Mira pushed free from him and stumbled down the stairs, crying as she looked around her for somewhere to hide, though that was interrupted when she found she couldn't breath, she was gasping but she couldn't draw a breath.

"H-Help" She managed to croak out before passing out, the last thing she saw was her Mama and Papa's out line in front of her, they were clearly trying to calm her.

Mirabel was still struggling to breath, even in her unconscious state.

Julieta tried to wake her but it wasn't working, now she was panicking as well.

"-Lieta, Julieta, please breath Mi Vida, we can't let you pass out aswell," Agustin said.

Julieta got her breathing under control as she though of ideas to wake Mirabel.

"COLD BATH, WE NEED TO PUT HER IN A COLD BATH." Julieta said loudly as she picked Mira up and ran upstairs, quickly sitting Mira in it before starting to run the water.

They didn't have time to wait for it to fill up running the water on top of her would work.

Mirabel woke with a jump, she instantly noticed she was freeaing and that there was still cold water running on her so she had to try to get away from her Mama and Papa, she wanted to get dried and change her clothes and she needed to be alone.

She quickly stood in the bath and used the edged of it to launch herself past her parents, she landed on her face but she got up and ran, a trail of drops of blood left behind from her now bleeding nose.

She ran to the nursery and locked the door, she quickly grabbed a towel and a fresh set of pyjamas, getting dried off and changed.

Mira quickly decided nightmares were better than facing her Papa right now so she climbed into bed and fell asleep.

It took Agustin twenty minutes to find the spare key but once he did he unlocked the door and ran to Mira's side along with Julieta.

He was worried when Mira wasn't moving, she was so still it looked like she wasn't breathing so he quickly felt for a pulse, sighing in relief when he found one.

He gently picked Mira up and carried her down stairs, he knew she woke she would not want to be around him and although it pained him he understood, yes he hurt her but it was an accident, something he had never intended to do to anyone he loved.

Julieta quickly put Mira's clothes into wash, along with the towel and joined her family in the living room, or she was about to when the door was knocked.

She walked over and opened it to reveal a girl that looked about the same age as Mira, holding a card and some sweets.

"Hi Mrs Julieta, Ma'am is Mirabel home?" The girl asked.

"Julieta is fine, she is but she is asleep, is there something you need." Julieta asked kindly.

"Well I'm her friend, her only friend and she is mine, and she hasn't spoke to me in like a month and I'm worried I done something wrong or she was sick or something so I brought her a get better card and her favourite sweets." The girl explained.

"Come in out the cold, I will go see if she is awake." Julieta said stepping aside to let the girl in.

"Thank you , Ma'am" The girl said.

Julieta walked through to the living room to see Mirabel still sleeping.

"Dolores, was that girl lying?" Julieta asked, knowing Dolores could hear her heartbeat.

"No, she is Mirabel's friend and I don't need my ears too know that, her name is Natalia and Mira made me promise not to say anything." Dolores said.

Julieta nodded before walking over to Agustin and Mirabel, gently waking the girl.

"Mira baby, we have a visitor, it's your friend." Julieta said.

"Natalia." Mira said jumping, quickly falling on the floor.

Julieta picked Mirabel up.

"Mama I can stand I just can't walk, it would be embarrassing to have you carry me, I will just ask Casita to move me." Mirabel said as she managed to stand on the ground.

"Okay baby, but I really wish you wouldn't be so embarrassed by me." Julieta smiled as she kissed Mira on the cheek.

"Mama." She said as she blushed.

"Okay, okay, just call if you need something." Julieta said as Casita moved Mirabel.

The second Natalia saw Mirabel she ran to her and gave her a hug, Mira flinched and Natalia didn't miss it.

She immediately pulled away, worried she hurt her.

"I'm sorry did I hurt you" Natalia said.

"No, sorry Talia" Mirabel replied quietly.

"What are you sorry for Mira, you didn't do anything." Natalia said, Mirabel looked over to the living room, seeing a rat peek it's head round the door.

"Let's go upstairs where my NOSY FAMILY can't hear us." Mira made sure to say it extra loud so they could hear her without spying.

Before they could get out of earshot they heard someone speak.

"Peanut says he thinks Mira likes that girl." Antonio said giggling.

"Ay Antonio, not so loud." Felix said.

This made Mira blush and she suddenly found the ground very interesting.

Casita moved both girls upstairs, Natalia could have walked but Casita loved her and would often help sneek her in.

Mirabel sat on the bed in the nursery, fidgeting with a loose string.

"Did I do something wrong?" Natalia asked.

"N-no, why?" Mirabel asked.

"You haven't spoke to me in a month and the only reason I didn't come to you is because I was worried you were mad and needed time." Natalia said.

"I'm sorry" Mirabel said, she was just thankful that Natalia didn't mention how skinny and sick she looked.

"You have nothing to be sorry for, you didn't start cutting and purging again did you." Talia asked.

Mirabel flinched before nodding.

"No, please talk to me, what happened help me understand so I can help you, cause I love you" Talia froze after she realised what she had said.

"You do, like in a not friend way?." Mirabel asked, raising her head to look at Talia.

"Yes, I have for a couple years." Natalia admitted.

"Me too, I love you too." Mirabel said.

Both girls were thinking about it and Mira was just about to when suddenly.

"Mira will you be my girlfriend?." Talia asked.

"Yes." Mirabel said launching herself into Talia.

Suddenly they heard lots of footsteps racing up the stairs. Mirabel flung open her window, knowing what was going to happen.

"Talia, quickly lock the door it will give you time to escape" Mirabel said, watching as Talia did it before hanging out the window, Able to stand since Casit moved bricks to make it safer for her.

The key was being turned in the door when Talia turned around, kissed Mirabel then climbed down the house and ran.

"I love you." She shouted, Mirabel was just standing, shocked looking out the window.

She is so zoned out she doesn't notice her parents burst in the room and close the window after searching for Natalia.

She has a smile on her face that hasn't left since Natalia kissed her.

She realises she was zoned out after Julieta wrapped her in a hug.

"We have to talk." Julieta said calmly.

Mirabel nodded.

"First, I am so proud of you and I can't wait to meet her properly, secondly why didn't you tell me about her and we will get to the last point in a minute." Julieta says as she sits Mira on the bed.

"Okay I will talk to her but don't threaten her please, she is too perfect for me to loose and I didn't tell you about her because I was worried you wouldn't like her" Mirabel said.

"Well I don't choose your friends you do and if you trust her then I do too and I will until she gives me a reason to not, the same goes for everyone in the family." Julieta said.

"What's the third thing" Mirabel says, worried it would be about the bruise on her wrist.

"It's about your wrist and what I did, I am so sorry baby, I didn't mean to hurt you, It won't happen again." Agustin said, as he gently took her hand, catching the flinch when he touched her.

Mirabel pulled her hand back and pushed her self against the wall, she knew her Papa didn't mean to hurt her but for some reason she was scared, she trusted and loved him but she was scared, not of him but something.

"Mira, baby please I'm sorry, I really didn't mean to hurt you, if you are afraid of me I will leave until you are ready." Agustin said, his voice breaking when he said the last bit.

"I'm scared." Mira said.

Agustin turned to leave when Mirabel weakly pushed herself to him, just missing as she fell to the ground, tears running down her face as she held onto his trouser leg.

Without a second thought Agustin scooped Mira up and put her face into his neck, rubbing her back trying to comfort her, Julieta sat next to them and held Mira's hand.

"Please tell me what you are afraid of so I can make it disappear baby, I will do anything to protect you and this family." Agustin said as he held the crying girl against him.

"They are gonna come here and you won't be able to stop them, They're gonna take me Papa, then they are going to do what 𝙝𝙚 did, everyone is going to get hurt, please don't let them take me, please." Mirabel said.

"That is not going to happen, I guarantee it no one is stepping foot in this house unless you trust them." Agustin assured.

"Would it make you feel better if we were all in one room, that way we are all together so nothing can happen?" Julieta asks.

Mirabel nods against Agustin.

"Well we can get dinner then we can all go the living room and watch movies till we all fall asleep, how does that sound?" Agustin said.

Mirabel nodded again, Agustin stood and instantly Mirabel thought he was going to put her down so she clung to him tighter.

"Mira, you're choking me a little I'm not going to put you down baby" Agustin rasped out.

Mira immediately loosened her grip.

"I'm sorry Papa." Mirabel said into his neck.

"Don't worry about it Mira, I am not going to put you down till you decide, or I need to go to the bathroom." Agustin said, the last bit being a joke, though Mira knew what he meant.

Agustin and Julieta walked down the stairs instantly being met with a set dinner table with plates full of food at every seat.

"Oh Juli, I was just going to come and get you since dinner is ready, Mira I made some soup for you Mija." Pepa said.

"Thank you Pepa, you really didn't have to." Julieta said.

"It's no problem." Pepa said as they sat at the table.

Mirabel sat in her own seat but put it closer to her Papa's.

Mirabel had just started to eat her soup as everyone else had started to.

"So Mira, you've got a girlfriend now, are you in love." Camilo teased as he shifted into Natalia.

Mira choked on the spoonful of soup she had just taken, coughing and gently hitting her own fist to try and get it to clear, Agustin gently patted her back.

Once she had stopped choking she kicked him under the table.

"You make her look ugly and she is not." Mirabel replied with a half smile.

This made Camilo choke in return.

"Can we please eat without getting food that has already been in someone's mouth on the table please." Julieta said, though she was happy Mirabel was showing signs of being happy again.

"Sorry mama" "Sorry Tia" both said in unison.

"Can I be excused." Mirabel said.

"Yes, are you okay?" Julieta says.

"I'm just feeling claustrophobic, I don't know why I just need some air." She replied, standing shakily.

"What does claustrophobic mean?" Antonio asks.

"It means she is afraid of santa claus" Camilo replied.

"No it doe-" "HO HO HO" Camilo said interrupting his Mama.

"No stop your gonna scare her" Antonio said, jumping up from his seat and hugging Mirabel round her legs.

"Camilo" Felix warned.

"That's not what it means Milo is just being weird, claustrophobic means, I'm feeling trapped like the space I am in is too small or crowded." Mirabel explained.

Antonio instantly apologised realising that he made it worse.

"It's okay Tonito, it wasn't your fault" Mirabel said.

Mirabel walked out side and stood against the wall, she let herself slide down until she was sitting.

'I'm only going to close my eyes for a minute' She thought as she fell asleep.

She woke suddenly to hoards of villagers coming to get her running at her, Mira tried to get back into the house but found the door locked.

"LET ME IN, PAPA YOU PROMISED, LET ME IN PLEASE" She screame but to no avail as two men harshly grabbed her.

Vivid description of sexual assualt.

Then she was in a basement, there was hair pulling and pain so much pain and blood coming out of her mouth... and other places, she was screaming but no one was listening.

Mirabel jumped awake, this time for real to Her Papa holding her tightly against his chest.

"Mira you are okay baby, you are safe it is just nightmare, open your eyes for me, come on honey you can do this." Agustin said as he held the girl.

When she opened her eyes she looked into her Papa's with tears in her eyes.

"You promised, but you locked me out and they were there and they grabbed me, and it happened again, they did it again, and everything was hurting and bleeding." Mirabel cried into her Papa's shoulder, soaking his shirt, though he didn't mind.

"Yes I did promise and I am going to keep it, it was just a dream Mira, I promise you, no one will touch you when I am here, I will kill anyone who tries, and that is not a joke, I shouldn't have went easy on that man I should have killed him, never again, that will never happen to you again." Agustin said, trying his hardest to stay calm.

They stayed outside for a while, Agustin said they should go inside a couple times but Mira always asked him to stay.

It was when she started shivering that his mind was made up, he used the wall to help him stand and walked inside with Mira.

"Dios Mio Agustin she is freezing, so are you, you both need to heat up I will bring you both a tea in a minute go get a blanket wrapped round you." Julieta said, after hugging the pair when they re-entered the house.

Agustin walked into the living room where the rest of the family was, they were all just sitting about all in different groups talking about different things.

Antonio was with Luisa and Camilo talking to his jaguar and Peanut then transferring what they said to the other two.

Dolores and Isa were talking about town gossip and the three other adults were talking about Bruno's rat telenovelas.

The second the adults saw Agustin enter they made room on the couch for him, since the kids took up the other couches.

Agustin sat on the couch in between Pepa and Bruno and was immediately handed a blanket which he wrapped round himself and Mira, he even put it up round her head to make sure her ears got warm.

She relaxed into him and buried her head in the crook of his neck, only then could he feel how cold she was as her cold nose gently touched his neck.

"Bruno can you go into that top drawer and pass me the heating packs that are there?" Agustin asked.

Bruno quickly passed them and Agustin snapped them to make them warm then he gently placed on in Mira's hands, which she clutch as well as putting one in his own and rubbing her back with the hand, spreading the heat around.

Mirabel's nose brushed against his neck again and he shivered, Mirabel felt this and put the heat pack from her hands between his neck and her nose, she also turned her head so her face was in the blanket instead of Agustin's neck.

"Mira, put that back in your hands you're cold and need to heat up that will help, I'm fine." Agustin said.

Mirabel simply shook her head.

"Were did you get your stubbornness from?" Agustin asked with a smile.

Mirabel peaked her head out from the blanket and pointed towards the kitchen, suggesting that it was Julieta she got it from.

"She's not wrong Julieta was stubborn as hell as a kid, she still is." Pepa said with a laugh.

"Julieta was what as a kid, sorry Pepa didn't quite hear you there." Julieta said as she walked in.

"What are you getting old Juli, a little hard of hearing." Pepa said

"What?" Camilo said, pretending he didn't hear.

"I said, Ay dammit Felix why did you teach him that." Pepa said, jokingly rolling her eyes.

Felix high fived Camilo.

"Yes" Mirabel said.

"What do you mean yes Mira?" Julieta said.

"Tia Pepa asked if you were getting old and my answer is yes." Mirabel said with a quiet giggle.

Julieta jokingly grabbed her heart.

"Ah the betrayal, my own daughter." Julieta joked as she kissed Mira on the forehead.

Felix started laughing uncontrollably.

"Felix, you are the oldest here, I don't know why you're laughing." Agustin said.

Felix stopped at this then remembered.

"Oh yeah I'm 52 the Juli, Pepa and Bruno are 50 and Agustin you are 48." Felix said as he started laughing again.

"Yup." Agustin said as he took the cups of tea from Julieta, handing the slightly cooler on to Mirabel.

"It's cool enough you can drink it but warm enough to heat you up." Julieta said to both.

"Thanks Mama." Mirabel said before taking a sip of her tea.

She and Agustin finished them pretty fast and put their mugs on the coffee table.

"What movie do you want to watch." Felix said to no one in particular.

"JAWS" Antonio said.

"Absolutely not you are five." Pepa said to her youngest.

"My neighbor Totoro is good." Mirabel said quietly, quiet enough only dolores could hear and Agustin could feel her talking.

"What was that Mira?." He asked gently.

"My neighbor Totoro, it's kid friendly but is also good for adults." Mirabel said.

"We can confirm." Isabela said as she gestured to herself and Dolores.

"That's a studio ghibli one right?, I think I have seen it, it was good." Bruno said.

"If you have already seen it we could watch something different" Mirabel said sheepishly.

"Nope, we are watching that after we set up the living room for a sleep over." Felix said with a smile.

Quickly the adults pulled out the couches, turning them into their bed counter parts, Bruno set up on one and offered Camilo to share with him, though he declined as he wanted to sleep on the floor.

Pepa and Felix set up on another one, Antonio tucked between them and Agustin, Julieta and Mirabel were on the last one.

Everyone was offered to share but the other four kids wanted to sleep on the floor so they could talk quietly amongst themselves.

Felix un paused the movie and everyone started watching.

Mirabel was asleep peacefully before the opening scene was finished, Antonio falling asleep not long after.

Then went Camilo who was sleeping in the wierdest position imaginable, then Isa, Luisa and Dolores who all fell asleep at pretty much the exact same time.

Julieta got up quickly to lock everything then returned, the movie ended and the adults turned out the lights.

Mirabel was sleeping soudly against her Papa who fell asleep running a hand through her hair.

All the adults were quick to fall asleep after that.

Hope you enjoyed it is currently 07:10 am when I am writing this and I am so tired I haven't sleep , next chapter should be out in the next couple days, Hope you enjoyed the added girlfriend and ttyl :D.

Chapter Text

When Mirabel woke she was up against her Papa's chest and she could feel him running a hand through her hair gently and his other hand was wrapped protectively around her.

She could also feel her Mama right behind her hugging her as well.

Then she felt something tickling her nose and looked down to see one of Peanut's hairs was stuck to her Papa's t-shirt.

Before she could stop it she sneezed, nothing came out, she just hated sneezing around her family because they would always say she sounded like a little puppy, it didn't upset her it just embarrassed her.

"Please don't," Mira said into her Papa's chest.

"Okay I won't," Agustin said.

"But I will," Julieta said before turning Mira around and giving her kisses, "Ay, you are just so cute, sneezing like a puppy." She gently teased.

"No Mama," Mirabel said, trying to escape.

She had just about got out of her Mama's grasp when she was gently pulled back down.

"Help, please, this is torture," Mira said, making fake gasping sounds as she tried to escape.

"I'm coming Mira," Antonio said as he tried to hop off the bed he had shared with his parents.

"No you're not and for trying you are cursed to the same fate," Pepa said as she picked Antonio up and began doing the same to him.

"Noooo," They both said, somehow in unison.

They were both let go about 5 minutes later.

Mira instantly buried her face in her Papa's neck.

"are you tired baby?" He asked.

Mirabel nodded into his neck.

"Do you want to sleep?" He asked again.

He instantly besgn to rub her neck when she nodded, surprised when he felt her push into it.

Mirabel fell asleep against her Papa, snoring softly.

"Can I go into town Mama, I want to go round the shops and see what's new." Camilo whispered to Pepa.

"Yes, Hijo, just make sure your back in time for lunch." Pepa replied.

Camilo quickly left after waving bye.

Lunch time rolled around and Camilo still hand't returned, Mirabel had woken up not all that long ago.

Pepa was just about to leave to find Camilo when Casita's front door was knocked.

She answered and saw a battered looking Natalia supporting and even more battered and unconcious Camilo.

"Hey you wouldn't mind if we came in would you Mrs Pepa" Natalia said, struggling to stay conscious.

"Felix can I get some help please." Pepa shouted, Felix immediately appearing at her side, helping her to get the kids inside the house.

Felix picked up Camilo and rushed him to the kitchen, Pepa not far behind as she supported Natalia, trying to get her to stay awake.

Camilo was lay on the table while Natalia was sat on the counter, leaning against the wall.

When Agustin heard Natalia's voice he peaked out to see her looking beat up, same with Camilo.

Mirabel would freak out if she saw her Primo and girlfriend in this state, so Agustin made the decision to keep Mirabel were she was.

"Who is that at the door, is it Camilo, he is late, he is never late, especially to meals." Mirabel said as she tried to stand.

"Yeah it's Cami but we should stay here, he wouldn't want to be seen getting in trouble for being late." Agustin reasoned, hoping it would work.

"Okay, But can I see him aft-" "Who the hell would hurt Cami and Natalia?" Pepa shouted, her thunder being heard through the entire Encanto.

Mirabel jumped up and sprinted to the kitchen, were she saw her Primo and girlfriend now both unconscious, bleeding and bruised.

She just stood there, eyes wide, then she felt anger, she knew exactly who done this.

Mirabel saw her Mama was just about to speak but before she could Mira ran from the house, strait towards town.

She could hear footsteps behind her, three sets, one light, one heavy and the other was the fastest one it was catching up quickly.

'Isa, Luisa and Papa' She thought to herself.

She had to loose them she knew the village like the back of her hand making a sharp right as she heard them call for her.

Mirabel ran to were the boys would be.

"WHY THE HELL DID YOU ATTACK MY PRIMO AND GIRLFRIEND" Mirabel shouted.

The ring leader stepped forward.

"Cause the little shape-shifting bastard attacked us, it was self defense, as for you so called girlfriend she got in the way and payed the price, the princess was acting tougher than she was, she fought like a girl." The teen said, his friends laughing.

Mirabel stepped forward and delivered the hardest punch of her life to the boys face, hearing two loud cracks, one was the boys jaw which was cleary broken and the other was her hand, also broken.

Mirabel ran as the boys chased her, she ran to were she lost saw her siblings and Papa.

She saw them looking for her frantically, she sprinted to her Papa and got behind him as the boys caught up.

"What do you want with my daughter, and why did you hurt my sobrino and Mira's girlfriend?" Agustin said, his face was strait which only terrified the boys more.

He could see one of them had a broken jaw, he then saw as one of the other boys stepped up a scared look on his face.

"We're sorry Mr Madrigal sir, it won't happen again sir." The boy said.

"Good cause if it does I will set Luisa on you." He said, looking into the boy's eyes.

Luisa smirked and cracked her knuckles.

The boys ran away, the ring leader clutching his jaw as he ran.

Mirabel was shaking behind Agustin clutching her swollen and bruised hand as she cried.

As soon as the boys were out of sight Agustin turned his full attention to Mira.

He gently pulled her into a hug before scooping her up, careful to avoid her injured hand.

"It's okay Mira, It wasn't your fault, Mama will heal you." Agustin said.

"I don't want to be healed, not if he won't be." Mirabel said as she cried.

"Why baby, you deserve to be healed he hurt your family and you stood up for them." Agustin said.

"No , I got so angry I couldn't think strait and now he is hurt" Mirabel cried heavier into Agustin's shoulder.

"Don't worry we will figure it out, how about you get some rest." Agustin said as he started rubbing her neck.

Mirbael fell asleep in his arms on the way home.

When Agustin got home he went strait to the kitchen as the other two girls headed upstairs.

He sits Mira next to Natalia, who is now awake and healed, answering questions.

"Do you know who it was?" Felix asked.

"No but they knew him and he knew them." Natalia said, wincing as she shifted to sit up strait.

"Just a couple minutes fo the Arepas, what is hurt, anything bleeding?" Julieta asked.

Maybe a little." She said, lifting her balck t-shirt to reveal a deep cut in her stomach.

"Dios Mio ,what happened." Julieta said, rushing to get the arepas don't to heal the profusely bleeding wound.

"I may have been gently stabbed when I was defending Camilo." She winced.

Julieta handed her a hot Arepa.

She blue it to cool it then ate it, relaxing when she felt the wound heal.

Pepa and Felix gave the girl a hug.

"Thank you so much for protecting him" Pepa said.

"I am so glad you are the person dating Mira, I never thought I would say it but she managed to find the one person worthy for her." Felix said with a smile.

Natalia started to cry, though she quickly wiped away her tears.

"Are you okay" Pepa asked.

"Yeah, it just means a lot to hear that from you" She said with a smile.

Pepa woke Camilo who groaned in response.

"Here Milo." Pepa said giving him and arepa as she sat him up to lean against her, since he was on the table.

He took and ate it smiling when he could move without pain again.

He hoped off the table.

"Thanks for saving me." He said.

"Eh stabbing doesn't hurt that much." She said, smiling.

"YOU GOT STABBED." Camilo said loudly, making Mira flinch in her sleep as her head drooped onto Natalia's shoulder.

"Yeah, after you passed out they tried to stab you so I simply stood in the way." She said.

"I'm gonna kill them." He said walking towards Casita's front door.

Felix grabbed him and put him over his shoulder before sitting him back on the table.

"You are not going anywhere, who were they, I need names." Felix said.

"I don't know their names, they are just a group of assholes who pick on Mira, that's why I punched him, because he was talking crap about her and how her brother tried to pull her or whatever." Camilo explained.

"Ah so they have a thing for stabbing, the older brother is the one who stabbed me." Agustin said angrily.

"What's wrong with Mira's hand?" Natalia asked.

"I'm just making soup for her, it's broken she broke it when she punched the huy, breaking his jaw." Julieta said, as Agustin had explained when they had walked in.

"So Natalia, were about do you live?" Julieta asked.

"The outskirts of town Ma'am." She replied with a smile.

"Julieta is fine, so just wondering who are your parents, I think we should meet them." Julieta smiled in return.

Then Natalia stilled, she shivered as she stared at her own shaking hands.

"Natalia, are you okay sweetheart?" Julieta asked.

She blinked but kept her eyes closed for a second while taking a deep breathe, bringing her back to full attention of the people around her.

"Yes, sorry, I'm fine." She said wiping a tear that was trailing down her cheek.

"You sure, you can talk to us." Julieta said.

"Yeah, I'm fine, sorry Mrs Julieta." Natalia said, a pained smile on her face.

She looked at the floor, subconsciously scratching her arm.

She stopped scratching her arm when she felt blood running down it. (the only reason no one stopped her was because they didn't notice.)

"Um Mrs Julieta, do you have anymore healing food?" She asked sheepishly as she showed the women her hand that had blood on it.

Julieta quickly took the hand, looking for injury.

"What happened, my food should have healed everything" She said.

"It did, but um this one wasn't there when you gave me the food." She said, gently taking her hand back as she showed the adults her arm.

Julieta handed her another Arepa.

"Thanks." She said before eating it.

"How did that happen?" Pepa asked kindly before passing her a wash cloth.

"It's sub conscious, when I get overly anxious I scratch my arm till I catch myself or until it bleeds, sometimes longer if I don't feel the blood." She said asshe cleaned away the blood on her with a shaky hand. ( I do this, except not till it bleeds it just goes really red and burns a little, it only happens when I get triggered at school for some reason.)

"Do you think you could tell us what triggered it." Pepa asked kindly.

'Here goes nothing' Natalia thought.

"When I was younger my parents would beat me till I was unconscious, one night my house burned down and they died, everyone assumed I died, but I have been living in an abandoned house at the edge of town for years." She explained quickly and panicked slightly.

"I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have asked." Julieta said as she pulled the girl in for a hug.

Natalia pulled away wiping the tears that had spilled.

"I'm sorry, I got your shirt wet." Natalia said.

"Don't worry about it." Julieta said.

"Do you live alone in the house?" Pepa said.

"Um, yes Mrs Pepa." She replied.

"You should stay with us for a while, at least until you are old enough to live on your own, no child even if you are a teen, should live alone." Pepa said.

"N-no, I couldn't intrude I'm fine, I have a job that pays for my food so yeah I'm fine." She said quickly.

"It's not intruding, if you were we wouldn't have asked, it is no problem, we have a spare room and Casita already loves you." Agustin said.

"I-I, Can't, um, yeah I have to go but thanks for healing me Mrs Julieta and thanks for your kindness and the offer, Um I have to go um water my cat bye." She said as she hoped off the counter.

Though she quickly figured out that blood loss makes you dizzy.

She tried to grabbed the counter to steady her self, but missed, it seems she had taken a couple more steps than anticipated.

She waited to hit the ground as her legs gave out but instead she was caught and sat back on the counter.

She looked up dizzily to see Julieta, smiling.

"You're not going anywhere until I make sure you are fully recovered" She said.

"Ay, sorry I collapsed but I'm fine, I just got a little dizzy, I'm all healed, see" She said as she lifted her shirt a little too high revealing a scar on her ribcage, it spelled 'CURSE'.

She noticed and pulled her shirt back down but it was too late they had saw.

"What was that?" Felix asked.

"What was what?" She said, hoping acting dumb would get her out of this.

"The scar it said 'Curse', that is no scar from falling as a kid." Julieta said.

"It is, it's just and unlucky thing, it looks like it says curse but it doesn't" She said, starting to panic a little.

"Okay" Pepa said, gently elbowing Felix who was just about to speak again.

If she didn't want to speak then they couldn't make her.

Mirabel started to stir on the counter top.

"Warm" she muttered as she pushed closer into Natalia.

Natalia looked to the adults and then decided.

'Eh so what, they're gonna see me hold her sooner or later.' She thought to herself as she wrapped her arm around Mira.

Mira instantly took her hand, Instantly finding the ring she had on it as she fidgeted.

"I don't remember coming to your house, Talia." Mirabel said, her eyes still closed.

"That's cause you didn't we're in your kitchen with your family." Talia said through a gentle laugh.

Mirabel shot up strait, a bright blush instantly spreading across her face, though she kept holding Talia's hand.

The adults laughed.

Mira hid her face between her knees.

"Get your dirty feet off my count." Julieta said with a laugh.

She put her feet down but looked to her lap.

"You don't need to be embarrassed, We are just happy you found someone who deserves you." Julieta said as she gently cupped Mira's cheek.

Julieta quickly gave her a kiss on the cheek then walked back to the stove to watch the soup.

"Mama." Mirabel said.

"Why don't you go up to the nursery and take Natalia with you?" Julieta replied.

Mirabel jumped at the opportunity both girls quickly running up the stairs.

"AW they're gonna kiss." Camilo teased.

"KEEP THE DOOR OPEN" Agustin shouted after them.

"Okay Papa." She said before shutting the door, they needed piece.

Agustin heard the door shut and was about to go up.

"Leave them be Austin, they're not going to do anything." Julieta said.

Agustin stayed.

When they got in the room Mirabel jumped into Talia's arms.

Talia walked to the bed and they both lay down.

Mirabel rolled over so her head was on Talia's chest.

TW, NO SMUT BUT THERE IS MAKING OUT THOUGH IT DOESN'T GO INTO DETAIL.

Natalie tilted Mirabel's chin up and kissed her.

Dolores walked down the stairs with a disgusted look on her face.

"You overwhelmed Hija?" Felix asked as Dolores put her forehead on his chest.

"No, Mirabel and Natalia are kissing, and I can hear it, it's gross." Dolores said as Felix began to rub behind her ears.

Before Julieta could say anything Agustin was out the room and up the stairs.

He opened the door and Talia instantly fell out the bed.

Mirabel and Agustin just looked at each other.

Natalia sat bak on the bed but sat slightly further away.

"The door stays open, a-and no kissing till you're 30" Agustin said as he left.

Sure it wasn't the first time one of his daughters had a partner but it was the first time it was his youngest daughter, the baby, he had to keep her innocent as long as possible.

"Half of thirty" Natalia pretended to cough.

Agustin turned around.

"What." He said.

"Sorry choked a little" she said, hitting her chest with her fist as Mira smiled and patted her back.

He nodded before leaving.

He walked back down stairs and hugged Julieta from behind.

"You shouldn't have gone up there." Julieta said.

"They are just like me and you were, remember when Alma said you weren't aloud to kiss anyone till you were married and I fake coughed saying Preagnant?" Agustin said.

"What she didn't say pregnant did she?" Julieta said fast.

"No we were in our twenty's, I said Mira isn't allowed to Kiss anyone till she is thirty and Natalia fake coughed while saying half of thirty, Mira covered for her by patting he back, playing it off as real , the exact way you did for me." Agustin said, smiling.

"We didn't know you heard that," Natalia said, supporting Mirabel's weight.

Agustin rushed over and picked her up, sitting her back on the counter top.

"What happened." Julieta asked as she put the soup in a bowl.

"I threw up again and My hand really hurts." Mira said as she took the soup from her Mama with her good hand.

She ate a couple spoonfuls and felt her hand heal.

She looked to Natalia who shook her head, Mir abodded her's in response.

'okay I got to do this now.' Natalia thought to herself.

"Hey um Mrs and Mr Madrigal." Natalia said both turned to her as Mirabel jumped off the counter and walked to her, taking her hand and squeezing it.

"Yes, what's up sweetheart." Julieta said kindly.

"You asked what the scar was, do you really want to know?" She asked.

Both nodded.

TW: REALLY GRAPHIC INJURY DISCUSSION

"It was the worst beating I ever got, I almost died, I left my room after I was told to stay in it, I found my father and mother watching tv, they were really drunk and when I came out they looked at me and instantly got angry, My father slapped me then took me to the basement were he chained me to the wall, he punched and kicked into me not stopping, my mother came down and kept flinging glass bottles at me, they cut me all over, but they weren't done, my father grabbed a blowtorch while my mother grabbed a knife. He branded me with the word curse then my mother traced over it with the heated up knife, I threw up and passed out from the pain, I woke up in a pool of my own blood half dead, when I went up stairs the house was burned down, the basement didn't catch for some reason but that was fine, my parents were dead, I found the preserves of your food in the town hall, they didn't heal the burn or the cut on top but it saved my life, and I will be forever trying to pay you back for it." She said through tears, Mira hugged her tightly.

The second Mirabel let go Julieta and Agustin hugged her.

She pulled away after a couple minutes.

"Just wondering, you wouldn't happen to have anything that gets rid of scars would you?" She asked Julieta

"Unfortunetly not, sorry." She said with a sad smile.

Mirabel hugged her again.

"It's fine I find your scars beautiful, your physical ones can match my emotional ones after all what goes better than a demon and a curse, plus your body is fine af" Mirabel whispered in her ear.

Natalia smiled widely.

"What did you say Mira." Agustin asked.

"Nothing Pap-" "Mirabel that is the most beautiful and disgusting thing I have ever heard, you should not know were all her scars are." Dolores shouted.

"Well now I need to know what you said." Julieta said.

"Nothing, let's go before they stop us." Mirabel whispered the last part into Natalia's ear.

Dolores entered the kitchen and looked at Mirabel, who just stood with a grin on her face.

"She said 'It's fine I find your scars beautiful, your physical ones can match my emotional ones after all what goes better than a demon and a curse, plus your body is fine af' It is both adorable and disgusting she should not know what her body looks like at that age" Dolores said as she grabbed a cup of water.

"Yeah that's a good question, why do you?" Julieta asked.

"We had to clean each other's injuries some how?" Mirabel shrugged.

"Wait so you, saw her and she saw you. Naked?" Agustin said shocked.

"I mean yeah, we are best friends and I trust her with my life, we were both very hurt." Mira reasoned.

"I- Okay, just nothing like that again please, both of you can come to us for help." Julieta said.

"Okay" Mira said before both girls ran upstairs.

They went back into the nursery and closed the door, this time locking it.

TW MORE KISSING.

The girls quickly went back to kissing.

Natalia broke the kis and gently kissed her neck.

Mira froze.

"Mira, are you okay?" Natalia said.

"I- he, neck, touching." Mirabel stuttered out as tears ran down her face.

"Okay love, calm down, it's okay." Natalia said "What do you need what do you want me to do."

"Mam-Mama" She stuttered out.

"Okay, give me a minute." Natalia said as she ran down the stairs.

"Um, Mrs and Mr Madrigal, It's Mira, um she's panicking I did something but I don't know what she needs help, I think she's having a panic attack and I didn't mean it I'm so so-"

"Natalia calm down, tell us what you did so we can help" Julieta said as she put a hand on Natalia's shoulder.

"We were kissing again and I kissed her neck and she started freaking out, I don't know what I did wrong." She said, tears making their way down her cheeks.

"It's okay Natalia, let's go up and calm her, it's not up to us to explain what happened" Agustin said as she nodded, wiping away her tears.

They made their way upstairs, entering the nursery to see Mirabel rocking and clawing at her arms as they bled.

WARNING PAST SEXUAL ASSAULT SPOKE OF.

"Mira, look at me baby, it's just Mama look at me come one, you're safe." Julieta said as she gently held Mira's hands, stopping her from scratching them.

"Touching, got to make it stop, pain makes it go away." She said tears flowing down her face.

"No baby, Mama can make it stop, just tell me were you feel it." Julieta said.

"Arms, neck, make it stop Mama." Mira said.

Julieta looked to her neck to see it was also bleeding.

"Okay, Okay baby right, I'm going to pick you up okay?" Julieta said.

Mirabel nodded and Julieta picked her up.

Julieta carried her to the bathroom, followed by Natalia and Agustin.

Julieta gently cleaned Mirabel's arms and neck before wrapping them, she also cleaned the girls hands before clipping her nails to stop her from hurting herself anymore.

After she did that she picked Mira back up again and lay in her in the nursery bed.

"Are you gonna be okay baby?" Agustin asked.

"Yes Papa, I'm just tired." Mirabel yawned.

Both adults nodded and left.

Natalia climbed under the covers with Mirabel, smiling when Mirabel hugged her.

"Do you want to tell me why you freaked out or would you just like to tell me things that trigger panic attacks love?" Talia asked gently.

"You know the guy that pulled me from the river?" Mirabel said.

TW TALK OF PAST SEXUAL ASSUALT AND VIVID DESCRIPTION.

"Yeah the bastard left recently." Natalia said.

"He touched me, and he used me, I couldn't sit or close my legs till Mama healed me but I hate to swallow anything now." Mirabel whimpered into the girl's side.

"He can't hurt you anymore, I will kill him and anyone who tries" Natalia says as she gently kisses Mirabel's head.

"I can't be kissed on the neck, my hair can't be pulled and no on can touch my thighs, If I am held still or my wrists are bound I also freak out and the word, Slu-" Mirabel stopped she was shaking, she did't want to continue she was finished except for those words anyway.

"Calm my love, I know what words you mean and I would never use them" Natalia said.

"I love you." Mirabel said as she fell asleep.

"I love and live for you and I always will, I will protect you my little caterpillar" Natalia said genuenly as she ran her hand through Mira's hair gently.

Little did the girl's know, Agustin and Julieta were stood outside the door, smiling to each other.

"They are perfect for each other, Talia, is perfect, she is so kind and she clearly loves Mira." Julieta said.

"I think Mira found her soulmate." Agustin said, both walked down stairs.
-----------

Talia was woken up to shaking beside her.

She looked down and saw Mira's head on her chest, she looked so pale and she was sweating and shaking like crazy.

"Well shit." Talia said.

She looked at the clock and saw it was 6:30pm.

'Okay so Mrs Julieta would have put food aside like she said she would, they will all be eating right now.' Natalia thought to herself. 'Screw it, Mira is sick and I have no idea what to do'.

Natalia got out of bed and picked Mira up, She carried the limp girl Bridal style as it was the easiest.

She walked down the stairs automatically she saw the family sitting round the table, Bruno was the first to notice the girl and the fact she was struggling to hold Mira's restless form.

He shot up from his seat and gently took Mira from Talia.

Julieta and Agustin told everyone else to keep eating while they looked after Mira.

Julieta got a cool wash cloth while Bruno grabbed some water and a bucket incase she felt sick.

Talia sat next to Mira and Mira sat on her lap and buried her face in Talia's neck.

"Here Mira, take a drink of this baby." Agustin said, trying to hand the open bottle to her

Mira shook her head then buried her face back in Talia's neck.

"Mira it will help, take a drink love." Natalia said, looking into Mirabel's eyes, as she had pulled her back slightly from her.

Mira shook her head and pushed back into Talia.

"Hey Mira, can you take a drink for me kid, it will help you to feel better so you aren't sick anymore." Bruno tried since she listened to him most of the time.

Mira nodded slowly into Talia's chest.

"You have to turn around love" Talia said.

She helped Mira turn around and sat her chin on Mira's shoulder.

Agustin handed her the bottle and she took a few sips before handing it back and restong against Talia again.

Agustin noticed how clingy Mirabel was being to Talia and so he wondered if she was regressed.

"Mira, what age are you baby?" Agustin asked.

Mira held out her hand to show five.

Bruno stood and quickly retrieved the plush from the nursery.

He decided not to heat it in fear of worsening her fever so he just brought it back to her and handed it to her.

"Does he have a name Mira?" Natalia asked.

"Splodge." She smiled.

"That's so cool" Talia returned.

"I have a sore head." Mira said as she covered her eyes from the light.

"Come here baby, Mama can help" Julieta said holding out her arms.

Mira climbed off the couch and sat on her Mama's lap.

Julieta instantly started rubbing Mira's temples gently.

Mira went limp against her.

"Um, you wouldn't mind if I went and got some fould would you?" Natalia asked.

"You don't need to ask, there is a plate sitting in the kitchen with food on it for you." Agustin said.

"Okay, thank you" Natalia said before walking through.

She quickly grabbed everyone's dirty dishes and carried them to the sink, they were heavy but not as bad as what she has had to deal with before.

She instantly started washing them, finishing in a matter of Minutes.

In her house she learned to be precise and fast, she wasn't allowed to eat until everyone else finished and she had to clean up before aswell, so the faster and best she did it the better.

Pepa walked in just in time to see Natalia drop a plate by mistake.

She watched as it fell to the ground and shattered.

She ran over to help Natalia clean it up.

When Natlia was picking up a piece it cut her hand deep, she winced but hid the cut.

"Thanks for helping me M'am, you didn't have to." Natalia said.

"Pepa is fine and don't worry about it, let me help you with that cut."Pepa said gesturing to her hand.

"NO" she shouted. "I-I'm sorry I shouldn't have shouted, I'm fine, thanks for the offer." Natalia said, running her hand under water to clean it.

"Why did you do the dishes anyway, we have a dishwasher." Pepa said genuinely.

"In my house if I didn't do the cleaning up I didn't eat so I learned to be fast but also I do it properly, Even though my parents are dead I still do it out of habit, it's like a ritual, I'm sorry for smashing the plate I can pay for a new one" Natalia said as she blinked back tears.

Pepa stepped forward and hugged the girl.

Natalia froze, but relaxed into it when she realised that Pepa was trying to calm her.

Then she remembered her hand, it was against her chest but the injury was pressed against Pepa.

She pulled back and saw a large blood stain on Pepa's dress.

Her hands automatically clenched into fists, making her nails dig into the deep cut.

"I-I'm sorry, your dress I ruined it." Natalia said, as she uncurled her fists.

Fresh blood flowed from the wound dripping to the floor from her hand.

Pepa quickly grabbed an Arepa from the girls plate and shoved it in her mouth.

Natalia was shocked but ate it quickly.

Almost instantly after she finished she was down on her hands and knees cleaning the blood from the floor.

"Let me do that, and don't worry about my dress it's a special type of fabric, it doesn't stain, go relax." Pepa said.

"Let me do it, I made the mess." Natalia said.

"If you don't go through and eat and relax I will have Luisa come through and carry you." Pepa said.

"I- Okay." Natalia gave up, she grabbed the plate of food and walked back through to the living room where she found Mirabel sleeping on the couch, though it was pulled out to be a sofa bed.

Natalia ate her food then lay next to Mirabel falling asleep as well, both girls had smiles on their face as they held each other.

Hope you enjoyed this chapter, I enjoyed writing it :D

Chapter Text

For all of you that are wondering here is what Natalia looks like AKA this is what she looks like on a picture Mira took after adding stickers.

(I did make the character the name up the top is just a watermark from the site I made her on.

So this is our outfit in this chapter and she dyed her to that colour but she was blond before, she wears a binder most of the time and this photo is the scene where she wasn't ready for it to be taken but Mirabel keeps it cause she loves it :D,

When Mirabel woke up Talia was awake next to her smiling gently at her.

"Morning love," Talia said.

Mirabel didn't respond, instead, she straddled her and started kissing her.

The girls had been kissing for about five minutes when water suddenly hit them in the face.

This startled both girls, Mirabel fell from Talia's lap and Natalia flinched exposing some silver from underneath the bandana she always wore around her neck, she even wore it when sleeping.

Mirabel saw that the bandana was crooked and showing silver to Julieta who had just sprayed them with water.

"What is that?" Julieta asked, concerned.

"What is what Mama?" Mirabel asked, hoping it wasn't about the thing around Natalia's neck

"The silver thing I saw," Julieta asked.

Natalia stilled, her hands subconsciously coming up to tighten her bandana impossibly tight.

Julieta stepped forward and gently pulled her hands from the fabric.

"You're, going to choke yourself," Julieta said.

"If you don't want to tell me that's fine but I will need to know at some point, I only want to help and I don't want any harm to come to you," Julieta said as she released Natalia's hands.

"You can look now, but only if Mira isn't here," Natalia said

"But I know what it is love," Mira said.

"Yes but it would hurt you to see what was underneath that," Natalia said.

"I will be fine," Mirabel said.

"No you won't be, I know this, last time you saw me with this thing on you had a panic attack, seeing it off for the first while until I am healed will make it worse," Natalia said.

"As long as I can see you straight after it," Mirabel said.

"Straight after I'm healed" Natalia confirms.

"Are there any soundproof rooms in this house?" Natalia asks.

"Dolores' room is, why?," Julieta said.

"Um, could you get Dolores for me please?" She asks.

Dolores suddenly appeared at the door.

"Oh yeah, super hearing, um how big is your room?" Natalia asks

"Big enough to fit the family plus about five, why?" Dolores asked kindly.

"I'm going to show you what is on my neck then I am going to request all the family but Mr Agustin and Mr Felix along With Mrs Julieta and Luisa go into it." She said anxiously.

"Okay, why those people specifically?" Dolores asked.

"Well Mrs Julieta can heal, It's gonna take Luisa's strength to get this off and someone is going to have to hold me down, that's only if they don't mind I have survived with this just fine for the past eight years, I will be fine if they don't feel comfortable," Natalia said.

"Okay, well very little can shock me, let me go ask the others," Julieta said gently before walking through to the dining room.

"Okay, can everyone listen up, please?" Julieta said "Someone cover Antonio's ears".

"Natalia has something round her neck that has been there for eight years, she wants it removed but only if everyone involved is comfortable," Julieta said after Antonio's ears had been covered.

"We will do anything needed, especially if she is in pain," Bruno said.

"Well everyone but me, Agustin, Felix and Luisa has been asked to go to Dolores's room since it's soundproof," Julieta said.

"And what have we to do Mama?" Luisa asks.

"You have to remove the thing since she said it is metal, Agustin and Felix, you have to hold her down, and I need to heal her," Julieta said, concerned that the girl was really hurt.

Both men flinched but understood.

After everyone finished eating everyone did what they were meant to, Mirabel protested but Pepa managed to coax her into going upstairs.

"Can we see now Natalia?" Julieta asked.

"Are any of you likely to faint if you see a lot of blood?" Natalia asked.

They all shook their heads.

"Good needed to get that out the way," Natalia said before removing the bandana.

They all gasped when they saw a heavy steel shackle around her neck, they could see dried blood beneath it and what looked like spikes going into her neck.

"They don't affect my vocal cords they just hurt like a bitch, hence why I had everyone who wasn't necessary go upstairs," Natalia said, panicked.

Julieta stepped forward.

"Do you mind?" She asked, gesturing to the heavy metal around her neck.

"Just don't move it too much, I don't want to start screaming until it's getting removed." She said.

Julieta gently touched it, noticing the flinch.

"Okay so it latches at the front, it looks like it was welded together but it has a weakness at the back, you need to remember that Luisa, Did they weld that around your neck, sweetheart," Julieta asked as she pulled away from the girl.

"Yeah, there will be a burn scar there as well," She said.

"Okay, are you ready to get this thing off?" Julieta asked.

She nodded, starting to shake as she realised how painful it would be to get this removed.

Julieta put her hands on the girl's shoulders trying to ground her.

"We will do it as quick and painless as possible" Julieta said.

"Why didn't the healing work that you gave her from yesterday?" Felix asked.

"It heals open wounds and whilst technically they are open they are also being plugged by the spike it's the same was as to how if someone was stabbed Mrs Julieta would have to remove the knife before healing it," Natalia said.

"How do you know that?" Julieta asked gently.

"I observed what you did a lot, I did for everyone, I have always been fascinated by what you can do and your work, I also know what works and what doesn't, you can't heal terminal illness or get rid of scars," Natalia said, blushing.

Julieta hugs the shaking girl in an attempt to calm her.

They noticed that talking about Julieta seemed to calm her.

"Okay, how about you tell us about Pepa's gift?" Julieta said.

"Um, Mrs Pepa's gift is also very fascinating, she has great control over it, unfortunately when she has to do the fields someone always has to make her feel bad so they can be watered, but after it, I always see when Mr Felix comes and picks her up and they dance in the rain like nobody is watching but the truth is everyone is watching, it makes everyone happy when they see you both dancing, the dance until the rain is gone, truth be told I have always hated the snow as long as I can remember because I know that when it snows Mrs Pepa is truly sad and yet no one seems to care, they are all too focussed on building snowmen to know what is really happening," Natalia said.

"You're very good at observing, and thank you that will make Pepa really happy that you think so much of her," Felix smiles.

"I think highly of you all, Luisa is so strong and people associate that with being tough but Luisa is one of the kindest people I have met and even though Dolores's hearing is so good, she still lets people talk to her even if she is feeling overwhelmed, Isabela hated being perfect but she can be herself around her family, Antonio is really cute and kind I saw him relax a full-grown man just by asking his bird to sit on the man's shoulder, Camilo is a dumbass sure but he is so kind and lovable, Mr Felix is the only one can calm Mrs Pepa down in a split second just by looking at her, Mr Agustin is accident-prone sure but he would do anything to protect his family and I personally think that him being accident-prone makes him an even better Father because he is always careful around children even if they are not his own, I once saw him trip over nothing just because he was telling a kid to watch where they were going before the walked into a lamp post and Mr Bruno thinks his visions are a curse but they are not, of course he left because of his gift but he also left to protect his niece." Natalia rambled.

Natalia realised that she had just said all that and started to panic.

'They're gonna think I'm creepy, no I can't lose them, I can't lose more family' She thought.

Arms wrapped around her again.

She relaxed into them.

"Let's get this damn thing off me please," Natalia said.

"Okay, let's go through to the kitchen," Julieta said, standing and grabbing a cushion.

They all go into the kitchen.

"Okay, get up on the table and lie face down with your face in the pillow," Julieta said kindly as she helped the girl onto the table.

Natalia did as she was told and felt Julieta gently tie up the hair at the back of her head.

She then felt Agustin and Felix pin her.

Julieta took her hand.

"If it gets too much squeeze my hand as hard as you need and we will take a break," She said to the girl gently

Natalia nodded and instantly she felt the pressure on her legs arms and back get even tighter.

Luisa gently slipped her hands around the Metal and began to pull it apart.

Natalia started screaming and crying into the pillow, thrashing in the men's hold.

Luisa was still doing it went suddenly Natalia went completely still.

"Natalia, are you still with us honey?" Julieta asked after signalling for Luisa to stop.

When Julieta got no response she gently lifted Natalia's head and saw the girl was unconscious and that her nose was bleeding.

She quickly grabbed a tissue, cleaning Natalia's face up before rolling another one up and gently putting it in her nose as a plug until they could deal with it, of course, she left a bit sticking out so it was easy to remove.

She gently set Natalia's head back down and nodded to Luisa who instantly started pulling the metal out again.

Both men kept a firm grip on her though it was significantly lighter than when she was conscious.

With a loud clang, both halves of the metal fell to the floor, blood dripping from the spikes.

Julieta quickly woke Natalia after cleaning the wounds, she had an Arepa and a glass of water ready to heal the girl.

Natalia woke up and was very out of it and dazed.

"Here sweetheart, eat this, it will help," Julieta said softly after leaning Natalia up against her.

"Thanks, Mama," She said dazedly as she took a bite of the arepa.

She felt the injuries on her neck close as she leaned against Julieta.

She fell back asleep a couple of minutes later.

Julieta's mouth was still open wide in shock.

"You guys heard that right" Julieta said, gesturing to the girl that was up Against her chest.

"Yes, I thought it was cute, she thinks of you as a motherly figure" Agustin shrugged, the other two nodding along.

"No she probably just thought I looked like her Mama she is dazed after all and we don't know what she looked like so," Julieta said, trying to rationalize

"Juli, we do, you look nothing like her, she said that because she is comfortable around and trusts you," Felix said.

"Okay, can someone get Mirabel please?, I need to stay with her," Julieta said.

Felix nodded and went up the stairs.

"Help me move her to the couch please?" Julieta said to Agustin.

They moved her to the couch and gently lay her down before covering her with the blanket.

Mirabel all but sprinted down the stairs, face-planting at the bottom.

But that didn't stop her, she stood up and ran as blood dripped from her nose and Lip.

Julieta stopped her Before Mirabel could get on the couch.

"What happened baby?" Julieta asked

"Fell at the bottom of the stairs I'm fine, Talia isn't," Mirabel said trying to get past Julieta.

"Mama I will eat solid food and not throw up if you let me be with Talia," Mirabel said in desperation.

"Well that isn't a good Idea so clean yourself up with this and I will get you some soup," Julieta said passing her a tissue before walking to the kitchen

Mirabel saw that her Bandana had been put back around Natalia's neck loosly.

Suddenly Natalia jumped awake.

Agustin and Felix immediately shot up and lay her back down as Julieta had said she was to be on bed rest.

"It's off you don't need to pin me anymore I have to go see my Tio," Natalia said as she pushed the men's hands off her.

"You have a Tio that let you live in an abandoned house?" Agustin asked.

"Yeah but he gave me a job, he works at the blacksmith, I mostly just sweep and clean," Natalia said "He isn't a great guy, to be honest, not like either of you or Mr Bruno"

"Thank you but where do you have to go in such a rush it's only 12:30 and it's Sunday the blacksmith doesn't open for another hour," Felix said.

"Yeah but I need to clean the shop and I have fifteen minutes to get there," Natalia said as she jumped up.

"Do you still have some of my clothes here?" Natalia asked Mira.

"Um yeah, I have that binder and the bright blue sleeveless top with your black denim shorts and suspenders, the ones with the lesbian flag pin," Mirabel replied.

"Okay thanks," Natalia said giving Mirabel a quick kiss before running past Julieta who yelled after her about bed rest.

When Julieta entered the room she saw Felix and Agustin staring at Mirabel with their jaws on the floor.

"What is going on here?" Julieta asked, sitting the bowl of soup on the coffee table.

"I don't know really, I think they are broken," Mirabel said.

"HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN SNEAKING HER IN FOR" Agustin yelled, a little too loud by mistake.

"I'm sorry," Mirabel said as she started shaking,

Julieta immediately went to comfort mode as she took Mirabel into her arms.

"I'm sorry, I'm not angry, just shocked that she had clothes here," Agustin asked as he cupped her face with his hand, catching a tear with his thumb.

"Couple years," Mirabel said.

"More like seven," Natalia said from the doorway.

"You're not wearing the binder are you?" Mirabel asked as Juliet let her go.

"I am, Why?" Natalia asked.

"Cause if you have a panic attack you're not gonna be able to breathe and it will be worse with a binder on," Mirabel said.

"I will be fine," Natalia said as she kissed Mirabel.

Both girls remembered about Julieta just as she shot them with the water.

"MAMA," Mirabel said.

"What I warned you, I don't need to see that nor do I want to". Julieta smiled.

"Well I don't want to see you and Papa kiss so does that mean I can shoot you with water?" Mirabel asked.

"No cause me and Papa are married Mirabel and you wouldn't be here without us," Julieta said.

"Well in that case," Natalia said as she jokingly got down on one knee and tied a piece of string around Mira's finger.

This caused Julieta to go rapid-fire, mostly soaking Mirabel since Natalia was going to work.

Agustin gently pulled Mirabel from Natalia's grasp and sat her in his lap.

"Bye, I will be back around 13:30 or before if I manage to finish early," Natalia said as she left.

They all said bye and Mirabel hugged closer into her Papa.

"Oh, so now that she is gone you will hug me" Agustin laughed.

" 'm tired Papa," Mirabel said into Agustin's chest.

"You can sleep, I will be here when you wake.

"Thank Papa." Mirabel yawned as she nestled herself further into his chest.

"No problem baby," Agustin said as he stood and lay on the couch.

-----------

"Sorry I'm late Tio" Natalia said as she walked into the blacksmith.

TW EXTREME VIOLENCE AHEAD

"You will be," He said as he turned her around and drove the white-hot branding iron directly over where it was the last time.

She screamed at the top of her lungs as she tried to breathe, the branding iron had burned through her clothes and strait onto her skin.

"I noticed you aren't wearing your collar bitch" He said as he drove it further into her, He tore it away pulling away from a layer of skin that stuck to it.

She passed out then, waking up what felt like seconds later, out in the dirt as heavy rain poured down on her.

She managed to stand against the wall, looking at the wound, that bastard carved over it again.

She weakly used the houses to support herself until she got close enough to Casita to push through the pain.

She entered the house and was Immediately met with Pepa, Julieta and Bruno who were talking in the hallway.

"Oh hey, Natalia how was work?" Bruno asked.

"Just, great. Do you have any burn cream and medical scissors?." She asked weakly, she could see black spots popping up in her vision.

"Why are you hurt," Pepa asked as all three adults turned to pay full attention to the teen.

"Only a little," She said as she revealed her wound from under her hand before Passing out.

Bruno dived forward and caught her before she could hit the ground, he picked her up and carried her to the Kitchen where he lay her on the table.

Bruno then left as he knew Julieta would have to cut away her top and Binder.

Pepa stayed to help.

Julieta removed the suspender and asked Pepa to get a tea towel.

Julieta cut the top open, taking it off her leaving only the binder.

She then cut the binder up the middle, careful to avoid burns and welts.

"Okay, can you please put the tea towel over her breasts before I pull this off her, that means we won't see anything?" Julieta said.

Pepa nodded and placed the towel over Natalia's chest before Julieta pulled her free from the binder gently.

The wound was nasty, skin had been torn away it had been carved over the top of and there looked to be dirt in it.

Julieta got a cool washcloth and gently started cleaning the wound, making sure to make it as painless as possible.

The skin was still hot to the touch so Julieta got an Ice pack from the freezer.

She quickly put burn cream on it then wrapped it in a burn bandage before gently sitting the icepack on top.

"Thanks, Mama," Natalia said for the second time that day, though this time she was completely unconscious.

"It's fine sweetheart" Julieta responded, gently pushing her hair out her face.

"Ah, so you have embraced it, Agustin said you were in denial earlier on," Pepa said.

"Well, I don't mind and she is dating Mirabel not only that but she doesn't have a family, not after I watched Bruno march down to the place and leave as they both ran out the building as it was on fire," Julieta said.

"Yeah and he is leaving town, I made it look like an accident, some mild arson goes a long way" Bruno grinned from the door.

"Okay, well I'm gonna move her to the living room so she wakes up next to Mira." Julieta said as she picked the girl up.

"Do you need any help?" Pepa asked.

"No she's only a little heavier than Mira so I can manage her, though she is  scarilly light for her age aswell." Julieta grimaced.

Julieta went to the living room where she found Agustin holding a sleeping Mira while talking to Felix.

Felix stood and moved to a different couch when he saw Julieta carrying Natalia.

"When did Natalia get home and why is her entire chest bandaged?" Agustin asked.

"She got home about twenty minutes ago, her uncle rebranded her and then cut over it so I put did my best to heal her while she was unconscious and the bandages aren't just covering the wound because I had to cut off her top and binder so it was the only way to keep her covered while Pepa goes and looks for something that might fit her." Julieta said as she tried to put Natalia on the couch.

"No Mama" Natalia said as she clung to Julieta.

"She is still unconscious how does she have this much strength" Julieta said, giving up and just sitting down with Natalia's face tucked into her neck.

Then Camilo entered.

"Why is Natalia only wearing bandages on her top half and why are you holding her?" He asked confused.

"Her uncle hurt her and she refused to let go when I put her down" Julieta responded in a whisper.

"Ah okay" Camilo said as he plopped down on the couch, putting his legs across Felix.

Felix just looked at Camilo.

"What?" Camilo asked with a grin.

"Do I look like a couch to you?" Felix asked with a smile.

"No but am I not allowed to want affection from my Papa?" Camilo said.

"You are but using me as foot rest is not the way to do it" Felix said gantly pushing Camilo's feet off him.

Felix then grabs the boy and tucks him into his side.

"Better?" Felix askes.

Camilo nods.

"Okay if we are doing cuddle piles then I need to go get everyone else." Pepa said as she walked in she passed Julieta a top Dolores had gave her for Natalia to have it was one she didn't wear.

Julieta quickly put the top on over the bandages as Pepa left to get everyone else.

Five minutes later everyone was in a cuddle pile, well two different cuddle piles.

Natalia wakes up around ten minutes after everyone is there though she is confused when she wakes up someone is holding her and her head in in someone's neck.

She tries to move but instantly pain shoots up her chest, originating from the burn.

She yelps loudly, causing the film to be paused.

Immediately Julieta pulls Natalia from her and gently lifts the girls shirt, seeing the wound has already started to blled through the bandages.

She stands and carries Natalia to kitchen, sitting her on the couter.

"Can you take off your shirt?" Julieta asks.

"Who's shirt is this, where is mine and when did I get here." Natalia said, panicked and in pain.

"It's one of Dolores's old shirts, I had to cut your top and binder off and you got here about an hour and a half ago, Can you please take your shirt off so I can heal you?" Julieta asked as she held the girls hand in an attempt to calm her.

Julieta could hear struggle in the living room, since Mira had woken and wanted to see Natalia.

Natalia gently pulled her hand free from Julieta's and tried to pull the shirt off, yelling in pain as soon as she put her arms up, her hand flew to her side as she slumped over and breathed heavily.

Julieta gently pushed her back and lifted her shirt again.

"Okay, sweetheart, if you could just hold your shirt there I can help you, it would have been easier to take it off but it's okay that you can't" Julieta said.

Natalia held up her shirt while holding the injury with her other hand.

"You're gonna have to move you hand sweetheart" Julieta said gently.

She put her hand down at her side and looked tiredly too Julieta.

Julieta instantly started wrapping Natalia, exposing her.

Natalia dropped the t-shirt, trying to cover her self.

"I know you feel exposed but you can trust me, there is no one else here the door is locked the curtains are drawn no one can see in, It's just me and unfortunately the shirt can't be any lower than that, I am not going to look I am only going to look at the injury" Julieta said as she looked the girl in her eyes, making sure to be as comforting as possible.

Natalia lifted her shirt back up but refused to meet Julieta's eyes when ever she spoke, she was too embarassed.

Julieta looked over the wound, she cleaned it again, apologising genuinely whenever Natalia winced.

She then gave Natalia an Arepa, the girl slowly ate it and Jullieta noticed it only healed the cut over the burn.

She wrapped Natalia in a fresh bandage and gently pulled her T-shirt back down to cover her.

When Julieta looked at her face she noticed the girl was crying.

"What's wrong sweetheart?" Julieta asked gently.

"Why are you so kind to me, you only met me a few days ago and I am already being a burden" Natalia said, refusing to meet Julieta's eyes.

"You're not being a burden at all that's why, you needed help so I helped, we offered to let you stay, and even though we only met a few days ago I can already trust the fact that you love this family and will take good care of my daughter." Julieta replied.

Natalia nodded before hopping off the counter, Yelling out in pain when she landed.

She dropped to her knees and clutched her side, Julieta went into the cupboard and grabbed pain relief before helping Natalia back onto the counter.

She gave it to Natalia before grabbing a bag of ice from the freezer, she gently pressed it to where the injury was, smiling when Natalia fell forward and rested her head on Julieta's shoulder.

"Do you want to go through to the living room, we were watching a movie and I'm sure Mira is going to want to see you" Julieta asked.

When she didn't get a response she realised Natalia must have passed out from the medicine that was given to her, It was fast acting and Julieta made sure to give her the drowsy kind so she could rest.

She gently picked Natalia up, pinning the ice pack between herself and Natalia so it soothed her.

She went back into the living room where Mira was being held tightly, practically pinned down.

Mira was going to talk when she saw Natalia in Julieta's arms but Julieta quickly shushed her.

Agustin let Mira go and she moved to the free couch, Julieta quickly put Natalia in Mirabel's arms.

"Don't touch the right hand side of her torso, she is hurt." Julieta said.

"What happened?" Mirabel asked.

"Her uncle happened" Julieta said, not going into detail around Antonio.

Mirabel nodded and the movie was unpaused, by the time it was done Julieta had left to start dinner with Pepa's help and Mirabel had fallen asleep.

Camilo suddenly stood and pulled something from his pocket he walked up to the girls and un-capped the pen, the others didn't know what was going on they just thought Camilo was checking on them.

The pen just about touched Mira's face when Natalia grabbed his wrist and gently pushed him away.

"Not a chance Milo" She said with a smirk.

Agustin then stood and took the pen from Camilo.

"Really, playing a prank on your cousin who is sick asleep and holding her injured girlfriend" Agustin said with a smile.

"Aw c'mon Tio let me have some fun" Camilo said trying to get the pen.

"Okay you wanna do something fun?" Felix asked.

"Yes" Camilo smiled.

"Okay, go help your Mama and Tia with dinner then" Felix said as he ushered Camilo from the room.

"Um, Mr Austin sir I don't suppose you have any non-drowsy pain medication do you?" Natalia asked as she moved to Mira's side instead of on top of her.

"Just Agustin is fine and Let me go check" He said as he quickly headed to the kitchen.

Mirabel rolled over and put her arm directly across Natalia's wound while she was sleeping.

Natalia flinched and tears came to her eyes as she held back a wince, she didn't want to move or hurt Mira.

Bruno Immediately stood and shifted Mira off of Natalia.

"Do you mind if I look?" Bruno asked, gesturing to her side.

Natalia lifted her shirt so he could see the bandages that covered her entire chest.

Natalia looked down and saw blood had seeped through the bandage again.

"Ay, Damn it why can't it just scab over, It did it way faster last time." She said as she put her t-shirt back down.

"Thanks for the shirt by the way Dolores" Natalia smiled.

"No problem" Dolores said as she stood and left the room.

She returned a couple minutes later with Julieta.

Julieta had another ice pack.

"I can't give you anything else for the pain for a couple hours, but this might help" Julieta said kindly.

"Thanks" Natalia said, wincing at the pressure on the wound.

"Dolores said you had bled through the bandage, is that right?" Julieta asked.

Natalia screwed her eyes shut in pain but nodded.

"Do you mind if I take a look it should have scabbed over by now" Julieta said.

Natalia moved the ice pank and lifted her shirt, showing Julieta the bloodied bandage.

"How about we put more burn cream on it, that should help it heal faster" Julieta said.

Then there was a heavy knock at the door.

Felix came from the kitchen and opened the front door.

"Is there something I can help you with sir?" Felix asked.

"Is Natalia here?" The man said.

"Who's asking?" Agustin said from behind Felix.

"So she is, good tell the runt to get ready we are leaving town in an hour." The man said.

Natalia managed to stand and get past Julieta some how.

She went to the front door and pushed past Felix and Agustin.

"Oh hey Tio can you do me a huge favour and fuck off?" Natalia said.

"Do not talk to me like that girl" The man growled.

"Aw your so sweet with your pet names, get lost." Natalia said closing the door.

Just before it closed the man sent a punch and landed directly on Natalia's wound.

The door shut and Natalia coughed, blood coming up as she collapsed to the ground, holding her side.

Before any of the adults could help her, she used the door as support to stand, quickly she opened it and closed it behind her, giving her a slight head start.

She ignored the pain as adrenaline fueled her.

"Hey asshole" Natalia called to her uncle who turned.

"Don't you dare talk to me like that." He said getting close to her.

"I will do what I like, you can't control me and you hate it, well guess what, you suck, you punched me in the side where you fucking branded me, you are a coward" Natalia said.

The man stepped closer raising a fist ready to hit Natalia.

Agustin caught it, using the man's momentum against him.

Agustin made the man swivel before delivering a kick to his back, making him stumble forward.

"You're right you are leaving in an hour, but you're not coming back" He said.

The man left angrily.

"Natalia, I'm gonna sit you down for a sec, you look pale" Julieta said.

"No, I'm fine, It just hurts is all, but that is to be expected when someone punches a burn" Natalia said with a weak smile.

"Yeah, I think in this situation I may know best, you either sit down or I carry you." Julieta said.

Natalia sighs and sits down, they are literally like five meters from Casita but still.

Instead of just siting Natalia, lays back and puts her head in the grass.

Then she sneezes, and yelps in pain.

"Damn hayfever" She winces as she stumbles to stand again.

"You only sat down for like five seconds, please sit and stay for a couple of minutes at least." Agustin said.

"I'm fine let's just go back to the house there is no reason to stay out here when we could be inside instead, where my uncle can't watch us from afar." Natalia said as she pulled the middle finger at the man who was standing at the black smith.

It could be easily seen from Casita as it was just down the street.

The man was visibly angry and started walking towards them, until Felix and Agustin turned around to look at him, instantly making the man turn and walk away.

"It's bleeding worse now, I can feel it" She winced as she held her side.

Julieta gently pulled her T-shirt up to reveal the bloody patch had grown significantly.

"We need to get you healed, right now." Julieta said as she supported Natalia, who looked like she was about to pass out.

Natalia tried to take a step but her legs gave out from under her, the only thing stopping her from falling was Julieta.

Agustin came over and carefully picked her up, careful not to hurt her wound.

They walked back inside and Agustin left Natalia with Pepa and Julieta.

"I'm fine" She said, trying to walk out, her legs giving out the second her feet touched the ground.

"If you were fine you wouldn't be bleeding and you would be able to walk without being supported."Pepa responded as she lay the girl back on the table.

Julieta managed to get the T-shirt off and un-wrap the bandage, She had covered Natalia's chest with a towel so she wouldn't be embarressed.

She cleaned it again, washing away the dried blood before putting more burn cream on it.

"I will be back in two minutes, don't move" Julieta said.

Natalia stayed where she was, she screwed her eyes shut as the burn creme took effect, sure it helped but it hurt like hell.

Suddenly she felt fingers gently going through her hair.

She opened her eyes and saw Pepa smiling gently at her.

"Your breathing was picking up, this helps Mira or Camilo if they get stressed" Pepa said gently.

Natalia relaxed into the touch.

Julieta returned a couple seconds later with a tub of something in her hands.

"This is going to be cold and It will sting but only for a couple of seconds then it will make the pain disappear for the time." Julieta said.

Natalia nodded and almost Immediately felt gentle fingers rub the cold cream round her burns, Julieta didn't lie it stung a lot but it was only for a couple of seconds then the wound went completely numb.

Natalia tried to touch it to experiment just how good the numbing cream worked, but Julieta's hand caught hers.

"Try not to touch it, It's Luisa's she gave it to me to use some to help, It's very strong and will keep the pain away for hours, it isn't something you can overdose or use too much of, but since it's Luisa's we will use it sparingly, it's numbing cream, she uses it when she has muscle cramps." Julieta said.

Natalia nodded.

"But by no means does this mean the injury is healed, I noticed it has started it's scabbing but it still needs time so be careful and you have to take it easy, which is lucky since you are living here so we can make sure you enforce it." Julieta said as she started to wrap the injury with a fresh bandage.

Once Julieta finished, Natalia got off the table again.

Her legs gave out again.

"Damn it" She said, frustrated.

Pepa sat her back on the table.

"You have lost quiet a bit of blood Natalia, you technically shouldn't be conscious, do you know why?" Julieta asked, genuinely unsure as how.

"I almost pass out everytime I move, I push it back by sheer force of will" Natalia said.

"Well that's not healthy but neither is passing out, so I think you should sleep." Pepa said.

"I'm not tired" Natalia said.

"That may be true but healing will be faster and easier if you eat well and sleep well, I already have the eat well part covered, so sleep" Julieta said.

"Fine but can you help me to the living room so I can be with Mira?" Natalia asked.

"No, I'm gonna take you upstairs and Julieta can get Mirabel, you need a bed not a couch" Pepa said

Natalia nodded as Pepa gently helped her down from the table.

Natalia was instantly light headed and spots of black were covering her vision.

"Meirda," she said trying to stop herself from passing out.

"Your body needs rest don't stop it" Julieta said.

Though Natalia only heard sound.

"Kay"  She said before falling limp in Pepa's hold.

Pepa carried her up to the room and Julieta arrived carrying Mirabel a couple minutes later.

Both girls were lay in the bed, Natalia instantly going to Mira's chest as she slept.

Both women left and the girls were only woken for dinner before they fell back asleep happily in each other's arms.

HOPE YOU ENJOYED I KNOW THIS CHAPTER WAS MAINLY NATALIA BUT THE NEXT ONES WILL JUST BE NEUTRAL SO YE.

Chapter Text

Natalia's new room. it does have a bathroom, they all do except the nursery and yall know what that looks like

Julieta's room. this but two king beds and a lot bigger.

Pepa's room. this with an Identical single bed next to it and a bigger room.

Bruno's room, identical bed in a smaller room to the side for Mirabel as well as the play area underneath for when she regresses.

the play area, is mostly green tho.

You know Isa's room and Mirabel's room, same with Antonio's, Camilo's is a stage and Dolores's is just a standard bedroom same with luisa.   (I can't be bothered doing all the grandkids. )

The kitchen is different, here it is.

Painted different bright colours tho.

Living room.

This with more colour and there is a door between this and the hallway.

The main bathroom.

This is it, New chapter should be out tomorrow, prepare, it's a really long one.

Love yall, thanks for the support.

Chapter Text

Natalia wakes up before Mira does, smiling when Mira nuzzles against her neck.

Natalia starts gently running a hand through Mira's hair.

Mirabel pushes closer into Natalia, draping an arm across her injured side.

Natalia yelps but is happy when Mirabel doesn't wake.

A tear makes its way down her face.

A couple of minutes later there is a quiet knock at the door before it clicks open.

Julieta is standing in the doorway, she is holding a tray with food and water for both girls, as well as some burn creme and pain relief.

Julieta comes over and gently shifts Mirabel off Natalia, replacing her with a pillow as she takes Natalia into the en-suite.

She shuts the door and turns to Natalia.

"Do you mind if I look?" She asks kindly.

"Not at all," Natalia says, lifting the shirt.

"Well there's no blood so that's good, I need to take off the bandage, is that okay?" Julieta asks.

"Fine, it hurts worse today than it did yesterday, is there a reason for that?" Natalia asked as Julieta started to unwrap the bandages.

"Not that I can think of, let me take a look and I will see" Julieta smiled.

Julieta was almost finished unwrapping, now it was just a bit covering the wound.

She gently began to pull it free, when it stuck to the wound, Natalia jumped back and yelped, making the bandage tear off the scab.

Her hand went to her side as it started burning profusely again.

"Damn it" She winced, tears flowing freely down her face.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you but that is bleeding bad, let me clean it so I can help you," Julieta said.

Natalia nodded, jumping up on the counter next to the sink as she sat against the wall.

She moved her hand and Julieta instantly started to clean it, apologising every time Natalia winced.

She quickly applied burn cream and some more of Luisa's numbing cream before re-wrapping her.

Mirabel must have woken up because she came in just as Julieta finished wrapping Natalia.

Her eyes widened when she saw that both Natalia and Julieta were covered in blood.

"It's okay Mira, she can't feel pain right now the blood is just from an injury that you knew about," Julieta said.

Mirabel instantly calmed down as she gently lifted Natalia's shirt and saw the bandage.

Natalia and Julieta quickly got cleaned up, well Julieta left to get cleaned up.

"Do you want to go to my house so I can bring my stuff here?" Natalia asked

"Yeah we should get dressed first though, and we should shower," Mirabel said.

"What like together?" Natalia smirked.

Before Mira could talk they heard rapid footsteps coming up the stairs.

"Dolores told," Mirabel said as she laughed.

The door burst open to reveal Agustin.

Agustin came in and picked Mira up.

"NO, YOU SHOWER SEPARATE TILL YOU YOUR 80" Agustin said, panicked.

"Mira, you can shower in our room," Agustin said as he left the room.

Both girls were laughing profusely as Agustin carried Mirabel to his and Julieta's room.

He put her down then left.

Both girls got cleaned up and met up downstairs.

"Mama, we're going to get the rest of Natalia's stuff we will have to go in and out a couple of times but it won't take us too long" Mirabel called as they were about to leave.

"Two minutes Mira don't leave yet" Julieta called.

Mirabel and Natalia walked into the living room where they were met with the entire family, well everyone except Dolores and Antonio.

"What's going on, if there is an emergency I can stay," Mirabel asked

"No, we are coming with you to help you move," Julieta said as she tied her hair back.

"No, it's fine Mrs Julieta, I don't have that much stuff" Natalia spoke quietly, not wanting them to see her run-down house.

"Then we need to get you more stuff as well" Julieta grinned.

"It's fine, really," Natalia said, fidgeting with a loose string on her shirt.

"Nope, let's go," Pepa said as she ushered Natalia and Mirabel out.

Natalia led them to her house, watching as everyone's face dropped.

"This is where you have lived?" Julieta asks, shocked.

"Um, yeah" Natalia sheepishly said, rubbing the back of her head.

"O-Okay, let's go inside," Pepa said.

"NO, sorry, just let me and Mira go inside and we will bring my stuff out, just don't come inside please" Natalia panicked.

Agustin looked to Mira, who shook her head, they needed to go in with her she was hurt and she would need help.

"You are hurt, I think at least two of us need to come in with you," Agustin said. "Mira doesn't count".

"I- can't let anyone else come in," Natalia said, panicking.

Just as Julieta opened her mouth to speak, Natalia turned entered the house and pushed something heavy against the door, blocking everyone out.

Agustin stepped forward and was about to kick the door open after he heard Natalia yelp in pain.

"No, Papa you can't," Mirabel said.

"Why she is hurt and clearly in pain if the numbing cream lost effect then she is in a lot of pain," Julieta said.

"The house doesn't look stable, there is a window on the side that opens if you are careful, you can get to her that way," Mirabel said.

Agustin nodded and took Felix with him.

They found the window and gently opened it.

Both men climbed in and Felix unblocked the door, allowing only Julieta and Mirabel in.

Mirabel because Talia would need her and Julieta to assess any injury or any worrying signs in her old one.

They found her in what Mira said was her bedroom, the house was unsafe but her bedroom was the worst, black mould covered the shredded wallpaper and there was no

window, just a hole covered by a blanket covered in holes, there was no bed just an old dirty mattress on the floor and there were loose nails on the floor and the floorboards

were partially broken, leaving small holes in the floor.

Mira said she had never been in there, it was clear why Natalia would keep her out.

Only Agustin and Julieta entered, Felix staying with Mirabel.

Natalia was trying to lift her mattress, wincing anytime she got it to where she needed it to be.

Agustin came over and lifted it for her, accidentally frightening her.

She winced when she jumped.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you," Agustin said kindly.

"How did you get in?" Natalia asked, panicked.

"The window, we have to get out of here, it's not safe" Agustin replied.

"That's why I wanted you to stay outside," She said as she struggled to pull a box from the floorboards.

Julieta helped her, not failing to notice the blood seeping through her shirt.

"Thanks," She said as she pulled out a guitar and an accordion.

As she gently sat the guitar down one of the strings snapped, pinging and hitting her in the arm.

"Ay, shit," She said as she rubbed the blood from the small cut the string caused.

Though both adults noticed she didn't care about the cut and more about the guitar string.

"It's alright, I have spares at the house, I didn't know you played anything, especially something like the accordion," Agustin smiled.

"I only play guitar and drums, and thanks but I will just repair the string," Natalia said.

"You can't repair strings," Agustin said confused.

"Sure you can," Natalia said.

"How, I didn't think you could?" Agustin said, confused.

"Well I just melt the pieces together, though I wouldn't recommend you do it, It messes with the sound," Natalia said.    (this is not accurate I play the guitar, just get new

strings)

"I will give you new strings I have plenty, it's not a trouble" Agustin persuaded.

"Okay, thanks sir," Natalia said as she lifted a ring box out, instantly her eyes filled with tears.

"You okay Natalia?" Julieta asks, resting a hand on her shoulder.

"Yes, sorry Mrs Julieta" Natalia said, quickly wiping away her tears.

"Nothing to be sorry for sweetheart is that everything?" Julieta asked.

"Um, just one more thing," Natalia said as she reached under the floorboards, pulling out a medium-sized jewellery box.

"Do you mind me asking what's in there?" Julieta asked gently.

"Um, I don't want anyone to know, I'm gonna destroy it anyway," Natalia said anxiously.

"What if only I see, not Agustin or Mira, just me and I will even help you destroy it safely," Julieta replied.

Natalia shook her head.

"I will tell you what's in it, I don't want to show you, the last person I showed hung themselves, I'm not taking that risk again," Natalia said.

Agustin gently put down the mattress.

"Do you want me to stay?" Agustin asked.

Julieta was about to shake her head.

"Yes, sorry yes please, I need someone that isn't Mira to know and I trust both you and Mrs Julieta." Natalia said, "But only if you can promise that you're not gonna hurt yourself

or anything worse".

"We both promise, we will be fine," Julieta confirmed.

"Th-They're photos and audio clips of my abuse" Natalia said, shaking uncontrollably.

Agustin kneeled beside her and put a hand on her shoulder.

"I know you don't want us to look, but we will be fine, do you think we could see, just one" Agustin asked.

Natalia shakily handed the box to Julieta and just as she was about to open it there was a crash.

"JULIETA, AGUSTIN, IT'S COMING DOWN" Felix yelled.

Both adults instantly stood.

Agustin grabbed Natalia and a couple of her Items and Julieta grabbed the rest, leaving only one ring box by mistake.

They ripped the blanket from the hole where the window was and jumped through.

The building came down seconds later, the rest of the family quickly rushing to check on Julieta, Agustin and Natalia, who was still panicking.

Felix had gotten Mirabel out safely.

Natalia was having a panic attack.

Nothing they were trying was working.

Mirabel went to Natalia and hugged her, tightly.

Natalia's breathing calmed and Mira pulled away.

"Are you okay?" Mirabel asked.

Natalia nodded slowly.

"Thanks for helping me get my stuff," Natalia said, standing to hug both of them.

The second she wrapped her arms around them, she regretted it, wondering if she went too far, she started to pull away.

It took a couple of seconds for the shock of Natalia finally hugging them to wear off before they wrapped their arms around her, just as she was about to pull away.

She pulled away a couple of seconds later, smiling at them.

She reached into her pocket and froze, instantly running into the rubble of the house.

She began to dig around where her room had been.

Mirabel went after her.

"What's wrong Talia?" Mirabel asked, concerned.

"The box, it was in my pocket, now I can't find it, I need it, I can't lose him," She said as tears streamed from her eyes, frantically digging through the rubble.

Julieta and Agustin also followed with Luisa.

"What's wrong honey?" Julieta asks gently.

"He's in here, I can't leave him," Natalia said, trying to lift a large stone.

Luisa came over and started to move the heavy stuff so she could find what she was looking for.

Then she saw the red ring box and pulled it to her chest as she curled around it, crying.

Despite not knowing what it was Mirabel quickly started hugging Natalia.

Natalia calmed down after about five minutes, she pulled away from the hug and stood slowly.

Wiping away her tears.

"Thanks for helping me everyone" She smiled sadly.

Everyone quickly responded, no one asked what was in the box, all they knew is that it was important by the way she was gripping it.

Natalia quickly picked up her guitar and put it on her back, hung from the old strap that was on it.

She handed the accordion to Mirabel with a smile, Mirabel looked at her, clearly shocked.

Luisa grabbed a couple of boxes, Only leaving a couple of smaller and lighter boxes.

Agustin, Felix and Bruno each grabbed a box.

Camilo came over to pick up the jewellery box but Julieta stepped in.

"I've got that Milo" She smiled.

"Thanks," Natalia said.

"This isn't a problem, but we need to get you home, right now, your bleeding pretty bad again," Julieta said.

Natalia looked down and saw the blood on her shirt, luckily Mirabel didn't hear.

Camilo quickly pulled off his ruana and put it on Natalia to hide the blood from Mirabel, knowing she would freak out if she saw it.

Mirabel turned to Natalia and noticed the ruana.

"What are you wearing that for?" She asked with a gentle smile.

"Oh, Camilo noticed I was cold is all" Natalia smiled.

"Ok" Mirabel replied, taking Natalia's free hand.

"So, we didn't know you played accordion Mira," Julieta said.

Mirabel tripped but didn't fall, only stumbling slightly as she ran into Bruno.

"Sorry, Tio," Mirabel said as Natalia laughed.

"No problem Mira, just remember, We are not bumper cars" He teased.

This made Natalia laugh even more.

Though she stopped when she realised she was drawing attention.

"Sorry," She said with a grin.

"They don't mind, your laugh is adorable," Mirabel said.

"Uh hu, you would say that you're the one who sneezes like a puppy," Natalia said.

Mirabel blushed.

They soon arrived at Casita, everyone quickly dropped Natalia's stuff in her new room.

"Do you need help unpacking?" Pepa asked.

"No thank you" She smiled.

Mira also went to walk downstairs.

"I will meet you down here I just need to talk to your Mama and Papa about something," Natalia said.

"Okay, I love you" Mirabel replied.

Natalia quickly turned to Agustin and Julieta who were going to be the last to leave.

"Can I please talk to you both please?" Natalia asked.

"Yes, absolutely no problem, unless you are asking to marry Mira then no, not for at least two years," Agustin replied.

"It's not about that but I will remember, two years to this day" she smiled.

She quickly turned and shut the door.

"Is Dolores in her room?" she asked.

"Yes, she always has a nap since she doesn't get good sleep at night for some reason" Julieta confirmed.

Natalia nodded and walked over to the table.

She picked up the jewellery box and handed it to Julieta.

"I trust you and I need to destroy it, but I can't be around a fire on my own so I need help," Natalia said slightly nervous.

Julieta nodded and slowly opened the box.

Their eyes widened in shock when they saw the pictures, they were all so gory and violent, then they came across one that had Natalia and a random boy that didn't look much older than she was now, holding her hands, while they were both bound, he was smiling, trying to calm her while she cried, the boy had an eye patch on.

Then they looked at the next one and it was just a picture of the boy smiling.

"Who is this Natalia?" Agustin asked as he held up the photo.

"That was in there?" Natalia asked as tears sprung to her eyes again.

"Yes sweetheart, can you tell us who it is, there is another one here as well, he seems to be comforting you," Juliet said as she showed her the other picture.

Natalia quickly took both photos and smiled while crying.

"Nathaniel," She said as she held the pictures close to her.

"Who is that honey?" Agustin asked gently 

"He's my brother," She said

"If you don't mind me asking where is he?" Julieta asked.

"He's dead" She replied, still staring at the picture.

"He died the week before my parents branded me and the fire," She said.

"Papa was hitting us again and he went for a killing blow on me, Nathaniel was the only one who loved and protected me, he was sixteen when I was eight, he stepped in the way of Papa trying to kill me and died because of it, that's why my parents branded me, they blamed me, you see I wasn't meant to exist my Mama and Papa did everything to stop me from being born when I was they resented me, Nataniel got an eye patch at the age of thirteen, he was blinded in one eye by a shard of glass that he protected me from, he never used to be beaten until he started to protect me, that ring box and what was in it, was all I had left of him, but you found more pictures, I didn't know they were in there I could never get past the third photo, thank you so much, this was the photo that was taken on his birthday, he and I went out, he took me to the park and bought me a churo, even though it was his birthday he treated it like mine." Natalia ran forward and hugged both adults, now crying happily over the discovery of the photos.

"It's no problem, do you mind if we see the rest of the photos, that way we can see if there are any more photos of your brother," Julieta said.

"Go ahead, I don't think I'm going to destroy them anymore, I survived because of him I shouldn't get rid of the proof," Natalia said.

Here is Nathaniel, the story continues after it.

After about thirty seconds Natalia was handed five more photos and a videotape named 'Nathaniel's Seventh Birthday'.

She had never seen it before and couldn't wait to watch it, it was the year before she was born and Nathaniel had told her they found out about her a week later.

She was about to run off to find a video player when a gentle hand caught her wrist.

She turned to see Julieta and Agustin, Looking worried and a little panicked.

"What's up," Natalia asked

"Your gonna pass out from bloodless, you have gone completely pale," Agustin said.

"Well I feel light-headed but I thought it was just cause I stood up too quickly," She said

Julieta immediately stood from the bed and Gently grabbed Natalia, sitting her on the bed while Agustin and Julieta stood watching her.

"Yeah, your right I'm gonna pass out," She said, counting ten blurry fingers on one hand.

"Just try not to okay, I will be back in two minutes, Agustin try to stop her from passing out," Julieta said, leaving and running down the stairs.

Agustin nodded and sat next to her.

"What do you want to talk about," Agustin asked, trying to keep her awake.

"How long have you been playing the guitar for?" She asked weakly.

"About forty years, I started when I was eight, what about you?" He asked.

"Five years, I don't think I can stay awake sir, it hurts and I'm really tired," Natalia said, desperately trying to keep her eyes open.

Agustin immediately moved from beside her to on his knees in front of her.

"Natalia, look at me, try and stay awake for me honey, or stay awake for Nathaniel," Agustin said as he took her hands.

"He's gonna be so disappointed in me," Natalia said as she fell forward off the bed, onto Agustin.

"No, he won't be you tried, it's okay, don't worry about it, you will be okay," Agustin said as he held the unconscious girl.

Julieta came back into the room with a tray with medical supplies.

"She tried her hardest Juli, she's okay, we just need to get her sorted" Agustin said.

Julieta nodded.

"Lay her out on the bed," Julieta said.

He nodded and lay her down flat, trying to pull away only to realise she had a grip on his shirt.

"She's holding on isn't she?" Julieta asked.

"Yeah, I have no idea how she is so strong," Agustin said, gently trying to pry himself from her grip.

When he realised she wasn't going to let go, he took off his waistcoat since that was what she was holding and stepped back.

Julieta quickly stepped forward and rolled up her shirt.

"I'm going to get Pepa," Agustin said.

Julieta nodded as Agustin left.

Pepa entered a few minutes later.

"Agustin sent me up, what's going on," Pepa asked.

"I might need help but she also might need to be exposed so Agustin left cause didn't feel comfortable and he didn't think Natalia would be either," Julieta explained.

Pepa nodded and stood by the bed in case Julieta needed help.

"Take her hand Pepa, if she feels any pain she will squeeze, it's something I noticed about her, her hands always clench when she is in pain, this way we can tell when she is in pain," Julieta said.

Pepa nodded and took Natalia's hand.

Julieta looked at the wound and had to roll her t-shirt up a little more, exposing her slightly, though neither Julieta nor Pepa were paying attention to anything but the wound.

Julieta looked at the wound and gently felt around the area.

Pepa yelped suddenly.

"What's the wrong Pepa?" Julieta asked.

Pepa gestured to the hand Natalia was holding.

"She's is crushing my hand," Pepa said.

Julieta stopped touching around Natalia's wound to help Pepa pry her hand from Natalia's.

Once her hand was free it was bruised and red.

"Well the good news is, it's not broken just sprained, here, eat this," Julieta said, Pushing an arepa into Pepa's uninjured hand.

Pepa smiled and ate it quickly.

Though instead of watching, Pepa instantly took Natalia's hand again and started running her other through Natalia's hair.

"She is gonna crush your hand again, we can get her something to squeeze," Julieta said.

"If she wakes, she will be happier knowing someone is trying to comfort her" Pepa replied.

Julieta quickly applied burn and numbing cream before re-wrapping and pulling Natalia's t-shirt to fully cover her again.

"I'm going to carry her downstairs, she needs to eat but I need to make food," Julieta said.

Pepa nodded and gently helped Julieta pick Natalia up.

When they got downstairs, they walked past the kids, Antonio was crying and being carried and comforted by Camilo, who was also clearly upset.

Pepa stopped them.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

"Mirabel is having a panic attack and Tio Bruno and Agustin and Papa can't get her to calm down, so they sent us out so she could have a little more space," Dolores said while Camilo covered Antonio's ears.

Antonio knew something was wrong with Mira he just didn't know what, that's why he was worried.

Pepa took Antonio from Camilo.

"It's okay Tonito, she just isn't feeling very well and Papa didn't want you to see her like that, she will be okay" Pepa soothed.

"Now how about, Dolores and Camilo take you upstairs to play with Parce?" Pepa continued.

Antonio nodded and Pepa gave him a little squeeze before handing him back to Camilo.

Instantly Pepa and Julieta walked into the living room, where they found Mira curled in on herself on the floor, hyperventilating and crying and Agustin, Felix and Bruno around her but not too close.

The men turned when they heard the door being closed, seeing Pepa and Julieta come in.

Julieta gently lay Natalia on the couch and went to her daughter, Natalia was fine right now, food could wait, they couldn't have two unconscious girls.

Julieta gently lifted Mirabel into her lap and tried to get her to breathe.

"It's okay baby, breathe, come one breathe for Mama," Julieta said gently.

"Ca-can't Mama" Mirabel stuttered through tears.

"Yes you can, you can do it, baby," Agustin said.

Then out of nowhere, Natalia was in front of Mira, gently tilting her face so she could see her.

Natalia instantly kissed her and didn't pull back for a couple of seconds.

She pulled away and Mira's breathing was normal.

Julieta and the rest of the adults were shocked that Natalia had just kissed Mira right in front of them.

Natalia saw this and smiled at them all before sitting back on the couch.

They continued to stare.

"What?" She laughed.

Mirabel stood and sat on her lap, burying her face in Natalia's neck.

"You had tried to calm her down, I just made her hold her breath so she would need to take a deep breath, making her breathing even out," Natalia said.

Mirabel shifted and accidentally pressed her elbow into Natalia's wound.

"Ay," She said quickly but gently moving her elbow.

"Sorry" Mirabel muttered.

"It's okay love," Natalia said.

The adults stopped staring and sat on the couches.

Agustin and Julieta sat on the same couch as Natalia so they could stop any kissing and the other three adults sat on another.

All the adults watched as Mirabel pulled her head from Natalia's neck and looked her in the eyes.

They were all confused, it was like they were talking to each other but without words.

Suddenly Natalia stood with Mirabel still on her.

Mirabel wrapped her legs around Natalia's waist and her arms around Natalia's neck.

Natalia instantly headed for the door.

"Where do you think you two are going?" Julieta asked.

"Sorry, Upstairs Mrs Julieta" Natalia said quickly.

"What are you thinking about doing with my daughter when you get up there?" Julieta asked with a gentle smile.

"Playing Music, Kissing her," Natalia said, whispering the last part.

"Playing music is fine, kissing her, not till you're 30," Agustin said.

"Mr Bruno, what is half of thirty?" Natalia asked.

Bruno looked up from his book.

"Fifteen," He said.

"Well one adult's permission is enough," she said as she smirked and left the room.

"You fell for that?, you did that exact trick on Alma when you were the same age" Pepa laughed.

"I wasn't paying attention, please hush I am trying to read," Bruno said.

Felix and Julieta instantly went quiet before laughing hysterically.

"What?" Bruno asked.

He turned and paled, Pepa had taken off her shoe and. 

Smack.

"FUCK" Bruno yelped, instantly getting hit again for swearing so loud.

"Do not tell me to hush" Pepa smiled.

"Okay amor, he gets it," Felix said, gently taking the shoe from her and slipping it back on her foot.

Bruno muttered under his breath as he walked out the room the only word being heard by the others was "Bitch".

He was still muttering when he returned with an arepa in his hand.

He ate it and felt the pain and the lumps from the shoe go away.

"What did you say when you left," Pepa asked with a dark smile on her face.

"Oh I was just saying how much I love you Hermana," Bruno said sarcastically.

"And how does 'Bitch' fit into that sentence" She smiled, only not taking her shoe off because Felix was stopping her.

"Oh, that's the part where I was describing you" He smiled before hurriedly leaving the room to run upstairs.

Pepa didn't follow.

As Bruno was walking past Natalia's room he stopped when he heard music.

(For this bit I'm going to either put M for Mirabel after the quotations or N for Natalia after them as I do not want to type their names over and over again especially since I'm typing song lyrics)

Bruno quickly ran downstairs and told the other adults to follow quietly.

"What's going on?" Agustin asked quietly.

"Listen" He whispered back since they were right outside the door.

(Song one, Just give me a reason)

"Right from the start you were a thief you stole my heart and I, your willing victim, I let you see the parts of me that weren't all that pretty and with every touch you fixed them. Now you've been talking in your sleep, oh oh, things you never say to me, oh-oh, tell me that you've had enough of our love, our love." N

"Just give me a reason Just a little bit's enough, just a second we're not broken just bent And we can learn to love again, it's in the starts, it's been written in the scars on our hearts, we're not broken just bent And we can learn to love again" M&N

"I'm sorry I don't understand where all this is coming from, I thought that we were fine" M

"Oh we had everything" N

"Your head is running wild again, my dear we still have everything and It's all in our minds" M

"Yeah but this is happening" N

"You've been having real bad dreams, oh oh, you used to lie so close to me, oh-oh, there's nothing more than empty sheets Between our love, our love" M 

"Oh our love, our love" M&N

"Just give me a reason Just a little bit's enough just a second we're not broken just bent And we can learn to love again, it's in the stars, it's been written in the scars of our hearts, we're not broken just bent And we can learn to love again" M&N

"Our tears ducts are rust" N

"I'll fix it for us" M

"We're collecting dust, but our love's enough" N

"You're holding it in" M

"You're pouring a drink" N

"No nothin' is as bad as it seems." M&N

"We'll come clean." M

"Just give me a reason Just a little bit's enough, just a second we're not broken just bent And we can learn to love again, it's in the stars, it's been written in the scars on our hearts, we're not broken just bent And we can learn to love again, Just give me a reason Just a little bit's enough, just a second we're not broken just bent And we can learn to love again, it's in the stars, it's been written in the scars on our hearts, we're not broken just bent And we can learn to love again" M&N

"Oh we can learn to love again" N

"Oh we can learn to love again" M

"Oh, we're not broken just bent And we can learn to love again" M&N

By now the entire family was in the hallway listening quietly to the live music.

When Natalia started playing the opening to shallow, basically all the women started silently cheering, they had all watched the movie together while the boys had been out one day and had all fallen in love with the song.

(song two: Shallow)

"Tell me something girl, are you happy in this modern world or do you need more, is there something else you're searching for, I'm falling in all the good times I find myself longing, for change, and in the bad times I fear myself" N

"Tell me, something boy, aren't you tired trying to fill the void, or do you need more, ain't it hard keeping it so hardcore, I'm falling, in all the good times I found myself longing, for change, and in the bad times I fear myself" M

"I'm off the deep end watch as I dive in, I'll never meet the ground" M

"Crash through the surface where they can't hurt us, we're far from the shallow now" N

"In the sha-ha- sha-ah-llow, in the sha- Sha-la-la-la- llow, in the sha-ha sha-ha-llow, we're far from the shallow now" M&N.

"Oh, oh oh oh oh, Oh oh oh oh oh oh, Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh" M&N

"I'm off the deep end watch as I dive in, I'll never meet the ground" M

"Crash through the surface where they can't hurt us, we're far from the shallow now" N

"In the sha-ha- sha-ah-llow, in the sha- Sha-la-la-la- llow, in the sha-ha sha-ha-llow, we're far from the shallow now" M&N.

Both girls are heard laughing, once the song finished.

"I don't know how you hit those high notes love," Natalia said.

"My Mama and Tia are good singers, all my family are, I probably get it from them," Mirabel said.

"I don't know how you can go that low," Mirabel said.

"Eh, I try" Natalia smiled as she kissed Mirabel.

Natalia pushed Mirabel gently back onto the bed, laying her down before kissing her.

"What's that gross sound Mama?" They heard Antonio ask through the door.

"You don't have it amplified" Dolores cringed.

"GO AWAY" Mirabel called.

The door swung open to reveal Julieta with the spray bottle.

She instantly started squirting them with water.

Natalia fell off the bed, yelping when she landed on her side.

She quickly got up and went into the bathroom as she felt blood running down her side.

She closed and locked the door, quickly unwrapping the bandage before getting a new one from the cabinet and re-wrapping, she cleaned up the blood on the floor with a  piece of toilet roll and flushed it away then washed the blood from her hands, leaving the bathroom to see Mira and a concerned Julieta standing waiting.

She saw the drop of blood on the floor.

"I'm fine I re-wrapped It must have started bleeding again," She said, pulling up her T-shirt to show the fresh bandage.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you fall," Julieta said.

"You didn't plus it's fine, I'm more embarrassed that you heard me sing and play guitar," She said sheepishly.

Agustin entered through the open door holding a tray with soup, Arepas and two glasses of water on it.

"I don't know why, you were both incredible, and you can play the guitar better than someone who has been playing the guitar for forty years," Agustin said, laying down the tray on the bedside table.

Natalia got back onto the bed and held Mirabel again.

"That is some food for you both to eat, the soup is Mira's and the Arepas are yours, they will help you get your strength up.

"Thanks, Mama," Natalia said.

She instantly realised what she had just said and she went completely pale, she felt sick and dizzy she looked down at her hands as she panicked internally.

Suddenly she felt a hand on her forehead, she flinched.

"Sorry, didn't mean to give you a fright you just looked pale I want to make sure you didn't have a fever, are you feeling okay?" Agustin said.

"Sí, sorry sir" Natalia managed to choke out.

"Talia, your heart is going fast, are you okay?." Mirabel asked, lifting her head from Natalia's chest.

Natalia put a hand on her chest.

"So it is, I'm fine" She responded with a forced smile.

"That's your forced smile, what's wrong" Mirabel insists.

"Mira, I am fine, okay," Natalia says.

Natalia's heart started pounding even harder in her chest, she felt her chest tightening.

She forced herself to take deep breaths so she wouldn't have a panic attack in front of them.

"You don't look well Natalia," Julieta said in a concerned tone.

"I'm fine" She replied as she took another deep breath, trying her hardest to calm down.

Agustin, who was just out of Natalia's eyesight, gestured to Mira to gently rub the base of her neck.

It was something he did if he had the suspicion of Julieta or one of the kids having a headache if they relaxed into it they didn't have a headache, if they pulled away that meant they did.

(THIS IS NOT MEDICALLY ACCURATE THIS IS JUST PLOT CONVENIANCE)

Mirabel nodded and gently started rubbing the base of Talia's neck, stopping when she yelped and jumped away.

Natalia hopped off the bed but stood away from Agustin and Julieta.

"You have a headache, don't you?" Agustin asked gently

"No, I don't I just don't like people touching my neck," Natalia said, finding it harder and harder to control her breathing.

Julieta quickly pulled Natalia into a hug, she could see Natalia was panicking.

The second Natalia felt the contact she broke down, no longer able to control her breathing.

"It's okay sweetheart, just breathe with me okay," Julieta said as she exaggerated her breathing.

It took a couple of minutes but Julieta got Natalia's breathing to even out, now Natalia was just crying into her chest.

"Is your head sore?" Julieta asked gently.

Natalia nodded into her chest.

"Okay, let me go get you something to help it," Julieta said gently, pulling the girl from her chest.

"Please don't go" She whimpered out.

"Okay, I won't." Julieta smiled.

Mirabel and Agustin quickly realised they should leave them alone, Mira didn't mind, it was clear whatever Natalia wanted to talk about, was something that she didn't want Mirabel to hear.

They both left, Agustin, returning a couple of minutes later with some pills for her headache, though he left after dropping them off.

Natalia fliched out of nowhere, startling Julieta.

"What's wrong sweetheart?" Julieta asked gently.

"It's nothing I'm fine, I'm sorry," Natalia said as she moved away from Julieta and sat on the bed.

"What for?" Julieta said.

"I got your dress wet and I-I called you something I shouldn't have, didn't have the right," Natalia said as she plopped down onto her stomach, wincing as she forgot about her side.

She didn't care as she buried her face in her pillow.

 "The dress will dry and if you mean you calling me Mama, then I don't mind, it makes me happy that you trust me enough to call me that," Julieta said kindly as she sat on the bed next to Natalia.

"I've done it more than once?" Natalia said, distressed.

"Yes about five times I think, don't worry about it, do you want something for your headache?" Julieta asked gently.

Natalia gently nodded her head, her face still buried in the pillow.

"Okay, well eat this first then I can give you the pain killers," Julieta said, handing Natalia, who was now sitting up, an arepa from the plate.

Natalia ate the arepa slowly, taking a drink of water as she took the pain killer.

"Why did you flinch earlier?" Julieta asked calmly.

Natalia went rigid.

"Um, when?" She said slightly panicked.

"When you apologised for getting my dress wet" Julieta responded.

"It's nothing," Natalia said, her hand shaking slightly.

Julieta gently took her shaking hand.

"It's something, you're shaking," She said gently.

"I- My mind was going too fast and it was like I was in the basement again with the collar around my neck and the injuries and I could feel it, and it wasn't real and now I think I'm going insane and I can't stop my mind being so loud and I don't know what to do," Natalia said.

Julieta pulled the girl into her.

"You are not going crazy, it's normal to imagine yourself back in a traumatic time, I can guarantee you that although you can feel it, it isn't real, it's called phantom pains, it mostly happens with amputees but you had that thing around your neck for years, you knew what neck movements would hurt so now when you do those by mistake or while you're getting used to doing them again, your brain makes you think you're in pain, even if you are not" Julieta explains as she holds Natalia.

"Thank you," Natalia says quietly.

"What for?" Julieta asks.

"For treating me like I deserve to live and for giving me food to eat and a place to stay," Natalia says tiredly.

"You do deserve to live Natalia, and if you ever have a thought otherwise, please come to me and I will help you through it," Julieta said.

"It was drowsy kind" Natalia mutters.

"Yeah, it was, you looked tired, so this will help, if I sense you are in pain I will put numbing cream around the burn so you can sleep, Do you want to be woken for lunch?" Julieta asked gently.

Natalia shakes her head against her before falling asleep.

Julieta cringed when she realised what Natalia was wearing, it was a button-down shirt with jeans and a belt that was fastened way tighter than it needed to be.

She took the belt off before going to get Mira, as much as she hated the idea of Mira seeing anyone naked, she knew Mira had helped her before, she also knew Natalia likely wouldn't be comfortable with Julieta seeing her exposed.

"Mira, can you go change Natalia into some Pyjamas, there is no way those clothes are comfortable to sleep in," Julieta said.

"Well I would Mama, except she has been sleeping in her clothes since she got here, she outgrew her old pyjamas and couldn't afford new ones," Mirabel said.

"Do you have anything that would fit her until we can get her new ones?" Julieta asked gently.

"Um, no but I could ask Isa, they are similar in height and build" Mirabel replied.

Julieta nodded and Mirabel ran off to get Isa.

"Um, Isa, do you have any pyjamas that you don't wear anymore?" Mirabel asked when she entered Isabela's room.

"I have the onesie I got for Christmas, it is a little too small so I only wore them once but do you not have like the world's largest collection of Pyjamas?" Isa smiled.

"Yeah, but they are for Talia, none of mine will fit and Mama said that we can get her a pair but she is currently sleeping in uncomfortable clothes," Mirabel said.

Isabela nodded and handed the Pyjamas to Mirabel, hugging her before she left.

"Thank Isa" Mirabel called.

"No problem" She replied.

Mirabel entered Natalia's room and instantly changed her into the cat onesie before climbing into bed next to her and holding her close.

When Natalia woke up she noticed she was holding on to someone in a yellow dress.

"Hi, Mrs Pepa" Natalia said as she moved so she was no longer clinging to Pepa, she was embarrassed.

"Oh, your awake, are you okay, Julieta came in about thirty minutes ago to put numbing cream on the wound since you were wincing in your sleep," Pepa said.

"Yeah, I'm fine, sorry for sleeping on you," Natalia said, her face bright red.

"It was no problem, I had come in to check on you, Mira went to play with Antonio, and you latched onto me when I sat next to you" Pepa replied.

Natalia was about to respond when she saw her brother, standing in the corner of the room.

"Natalia, are you okay," Pepa asked, seeing the vacant look in Natalia's eyes.

Natalia didn't hear her.

"I hate you, Natalia, you got me killed, I shouldn't have saved you, I lost an eye because of you," Nathaniel said.

Tears started flowing freely down Natalia's face, she felt her breathing pick up again.

"Natalia, look at me, whatever you are seeing is not there, there is no one and nothing in the corner, look at me, I am real, I am here," Pepa said as she tilted Natalia's face to look at her.

Natalia knew what she was seeing wasn't real but she had to get rid of it.

She gently pulled free from Pepa and sprinted to the corner of the room and started punching the wall.

Pepa grabbed her and pulled her back from the wall, not failing to notice her hand that was bleeding and looked broken along with the large dent in the wall.

 Agustin and Felix burst into the room upon hearing the loud bangs, Julieta and Bruno were still playing with the kids since Mira had regressed.

Agustin and Felix ran over and helped Pepa to restrain Natalia since she was fighting to get back to the wall.

Both men lifted her onto the bed and gently pinned her.

"What's going on?" Felix asked, struggling against the thrashing girl.

"She saw something or someone then tried to get rid of it by punching, I think she has broken her hand, she has a fever," Pepa said concerned.

"Dolores, we need Julieta," Agustin said, knowing Dolores would hear him.

Sure enough, Julieta was in the room within a minute.

"What's going on in here," She said as she entered.

"She's freaking out, she is hurt and she has probably re-opened her wound," Agustin said.

Julieta gently pushed the men away from Natalia.

Instantly Natalia jumped up and tried to get to the wall again but Julieta gently grabbed her and pulled her into a hug, whispering soft reassurances into her ear.

"There is nothing over there honey, you need to try and breath," Julieta says gently.

"I know it's not real but I need to make it go away," Natalia said, crying as she struggled to get free from Julieta.

When she does finally break free she runs straight to the wall and delivers a hard punch to it, a sick cracking noise made on the impact.

Blood gushes from her hand as she screams in pain, though that only lasts a couple of seconds before she falls to the floor.

Felix dives forward and catches her just before she hit the ground.

Quickly he leans her against himself and gently takes her arm so that Julieta could see the injured hand.

She is still crying but has her eyes screwed shut in pain, taking laboured breaths.

Natalia tries to pull her arm free from Felix's hold, though it doesn't work.

"Please, L-let me go. I need. I need to make him go away" Natalia stuttered. 

Agustin stands and walks to the corner, standing where Natalia was attacking.

"Is he here now that I am?" Agustin asked gently.

Natalia hesitantly shook her head.

"Okay, what about now?" Agustin asked as he stepped away from the spot.

Natalia shook her head, tears welling back up in her eyes as she saw the dent in the wall that was covered in blood.

Shakily she looked at her hand and instantly felt sick, it was mangled and bloody.

Pepa gently turned Natalia's face to look at hers.

"Don't look at that, Julieta will heal you, focus on me or anything other than your hand," Pepa said gently.

"Um, Mr Felix sir, could you please let my arm go, I am happy to show you my hand but, I'm feeling a little trapped" Natalia stuttered out.

"No problem, sorry and just Felix is fine," Felix said as he completely let go of Natalia, no longer holding her like he was when she collapsed.

Natalia nodded and curled in on herself a little.

Pepa and Felix got up and left, knowing she was feeling claustrophobic.

They both knew Julieta and Agustin could handle it.

Natalia got up and moved to the bed, stumbling slightly due to being lightheaded.

She was suddenly very aware she was in a cat onesie, though she didn't care as she pulled up the hood to further hide.

Julieta and Agustin walked to the bed and sat on either side of Natalia.

She let herself fall so she was leaning against Agustin's shoulder, too exhausted to care about the embarrassment.

"Natalia, can you eat this please?" Julieta said.

Natalia nodded and took the Arepa from Julieta, eating it slowly.

She had no idea where Julieta got it from but she didn't care, it healed her hand.

Her eyes drooped back closed as she leaned against Agustin.

"Mira is regressed right now and I don't think it's a good idea for her to see you for now, just in case she accidentally hurts you, me or Agustin will stay, do you mind who?" Julieta asked gently.

"No one needs to stay I will be fine, Dolores can hear anyway," Natalia said, it was pretty slurred from her being tired but Julieta and Agustin could still make it out.

"Yeah, well one of us will still stay, it's better that way, it means if you see him again, we don't need to worry about you breaking your hand, or something worse," Agustine said gently as he washed Natalia's hand of the dry blood.

Natalia slid off his shoulder and her head landed on his lap.

He started to run a hand through her hair in an attempt to relax her.

He looked at Julieta, concerned when he felt the heat radiating from Natalia's forehead.

Julieta felt her forehead then stood, returning with a damp washcloth that she lay over Natalia's forehead.

Agustin continued to run his hand through her hair gently, smiling when she leaned into it.

He and Julieta had noticed that she still wore the bandana despite the fact the collar was taken off.

"Why do you still wear the bandana, Natalia?" Julieta asked.

"I don't know, it calms me in a way that I can't explain it was Mira who bought me it when we met, she knew the collar made me insecure," Natalia said, gently pulling the cool washcloth down to cover her eyes as well as her forehead.

"Do you have a headache?" Agustin asked.

"Only a little" Natalia replied.

"You can sleep if you want, I can wake you for dinner,"  Julieta said.

"I'm not tired," Natalia said.

"You are practically falling asleep on my lap, you are tired, sleep, you are safe," Agustin said gently.

"On your lap?" Natalia said confused, jumping up when she realised that her head was on his lap.

"Ay," She said grabbing her head to steady it.

Agustin gently put her head back down onto his lap, which now had a cushion on it so she would be comfier.

"It doesn't bother me, just sleep Natalia," Agustin said.

"Okay, but only for a minute, don't wanna waste anyone's ti-" Natalia fell asleep, Agustin's hand still running gently through her hair.

Julieta put the cool washcloth back on her forehead and eyes since it had fallen off when she sat up.

"I'm guessing we aren't only letting her sleep for a minute," Agustin said.

"Yeah, dinner will be a couple of hours since it's only about three-thirty, I will get Pepa or Mirabel if she comes out of her regression to swap with you in an hour," Julieta said as she gave Agustin a quick kiss on the forehead.

"You don't need to, I will wake her in a couple of hours so she can eat dinner and by that time Mira will probably be out of her regression so she can stay with Natalia," Agustin said.

"Wow, you embraced that fast" Julieta teased.

"Well they are going to share a bed with or without my permission and I trust Natalia so It's better with permission" Agustin smiled.

Julieta smiled, gave him another quick kiss then left the room.

She instantly went to Antonio's room where everyone else was.

When she got there she was met with Antonio crying and being comforted by Pepa, and Mira who was crying in Bruno's gentle hold.

"What happened?" Julieta said.

"Mama" Mirabel cried.

"Yes baby, I'm right here," Julieta said, taking Mirabel from Bruno.

"She said she doesn't feel well then she just kind of broke down, so I tried to comfort her but I don't think it's working, then Antonio got upset that Mira was upset" Bruno explained.

Still holding Mira's hand.

"What doesn't feel good baby?" Julieta asked gently.

"My tummy and head hurt" She balled.

"It's okay, Mama will help," Julieta said as she lifted Mira, Bruno still holding Mira's hand upon her request.

Mirabel clutched her stomach as she tucked her head into Julieta's neck.

"Do you feel sick kid?" Bruno asked.

She nodded her head so Julieta made a B-line for the bathroom.

Julieta sat on the ground next to the toilet, holding Mira in her lap so if she was sick the toilet was right there.

It only took a couple of minutes for Mirabel to be hunched over the toilet, crying as she emptied her stomach of what little was in it.

"Need Talia," She said weakly as she finished.

"You can't baby, she is sleeping," Julieta said gently as she held Mirabel.

"Want Tio," Mirabel said instead.

"Which Tio Mira?" Julieta asked gently.

"Bruno, Tio Bruno gives best cuddles," Mira said sleepily.

"Do you want to go under my ruana again?" Bruno asked as he took Mira from Julieta.

She nodded into him and almost instantly Bruno shifted as he tucked Mira between him and his Ruana, snuggling her into his neck.

Luckily the Ruana was big enough to hold both of them.

Bruno gently wrapped Mira's legs around his waist before standing up and leaving the bathroom with Julieta.

"I will take her to my room, we can play in the little area I had Caita make for her or she can sleep if she needs to," Bruno said.

"Okay, just call me if you need anything, I love you both" Julieta said, wrapping her arms around the pair before going downstairs to start dinner.

"Love you Juli"  "Love you, Mama," Both said in sync.

Bruno took Mirabel to his room.

"So what do you wanna do kid?" Bruno asked.

"Sleepy, want cuddles," Mirabel said.

"Okay, let's go get into bed then" Bruno replied.

He moved to the bed and got under the duvet, gently shuffling Mira out from the Ruana.

She protested a little.

"It won't be comfy to sleep like that, kid, you need space," Bruno said, gently running a hand through her hair.

"Your Ruana smells like coffee and the forest," She said.

"I can take it off if you want," Bruno said.

She shook her head against him, the smell somewhat comforting her.

"Okay, no problem, sleep well," He said as he wrapped his arms around her.

"Thank you, Tio," Mirabel yawned, falling asleep.

"No problem Mira," He said, closing his eyes, hoping to sleep a little as well.

Agustin was still with Natalia, Pepa had come in a couple of minutes before and offered to take over but Agustin said it was fine and that she could go relax.

Now Agustin was just relaxing, reading a book.

Agustin suddenly felt Natalia's body go completely still, she was even holding her breath.

He put down his book and gently shook her.

He was growing concerned.

"Natalia, you need to wake up honey" Agustin said frantically.

Suddenly Natalia shot up, taking a deep breath and putting her hands around her neck.

"Natalia, what's wrong," He asked.

Tears came to her eyes as she forced herself to take deep breaths.

"I'm fine," She said, her voice strained.

"No, you're not, was it a nightmare?" Agustin asked as he gently pulled Natalia's hands from her neck, cringing internally when he saw the handprints that had been left.

"Honestly sir, I'm fine, it's nothing I can't handle," Natalia said with a weak smile.

"O-okay, do you want to go back to sleep until dinner is ready?" Agustin asked.

"No thanks, just wondering could you help me hang something from the roof?" Natalia asked.

"Yes, what is it, I will help you" Agustin replied with a smile.

"Um, let me find it, it's in one of these boxes," Natalia said, standing and walking to the large boxes on the other side of the room.

After checking the top box she tried to move it to the floor so she could check the next one.

"Let me help with that" Agustin said as he helped her lift it to the floor.

"Thanks, sir" She replied, opening the next box.

"Here it is," Natalia said, Agustin, looked in the box to find only one thing, a large punching bag.

"You have a punching bag?" Agustin asked.

"Yup, Nathaniel bought me it one year for my birthday, it was hung in the basement in a corner where my father wouldn't find it, we both used it, though I couldn't hand it in the house I was in after that because, well you saw it, it was falling apart" Natalia explained as she lifted it from the box.

"Okay, Casita any chance you have something we can hand this from?" Agustin asked the house.

A thick wooden hook sprung from the ceiling.

"Thanks, that will hold it," Agustin said as he lifted the bag into the air.

As he was lifting it he noticed that there were multiple pieces of duck tape on the bag as well as some dried blood.

"Why is there so much duck tape and dried blood on the bag?" Agustin asked gently, as he stepped away from the bag that was now hanging from the roof.

"Nathaniel and I used it to vent, as well as each other, we got carried away sometimes is all, I still do," Natalia said, gesturing to the dent in the wall.

"Sorry about the wall," Natalia said, looking at her feet.

Agustin stood in front of her, he gently put a hand on her shoulder, crouching to meet her eyes.

"We were worried about you, not the wall, I can fix that," Agustin said with a gentle smile.

"If you want to blow off some steam, you can, though I will stay to make sure you don't hurt yourself by mistake," Agustin said.

"Thanks, sir, I will get changed in the bathroom quickly first, I would look ridiculous using a punching bag with a cat onesie one, I don't even know where this came from or who changed me," Natalia said confused

"The onesie never fit Isabela so she said you could have it since Mira said you didn't have pyjamas, Mira also changed you" Agustin explained.

"Oh I will need to thank her," Natalia said.

Natalia quickly turned to the box marked "clothes", Agustin noticed it was a small box.

Natalia quickly pulled out a t-shirt, binder and leggings.

She looked at the binder then put it back, grabbing a sports bra instead she also grabbed her Kumpar ( the bandages boxers put around their hands).

She went and got changed in the bathroom, though her hands were not yet wrapped.

"Do you want me to help wrap your hands?" Agustin asked.

"No thanks sir, I should be fine" She replied as she began wrapping the red cloth around her hand, Agustin didn't miss the brown bloodstains on the wrap, though he didn't mention it as Natalia had already explained why the bloodstains were on the bag so it was just the same.

She quickly finished wrapping and walked to the bag, she looked it over and made sure it was secure before delivering a hard punch to the centre of it.

She winced a little as she had punched it weird, but she quickly got the hang of it again.

The bag was heavy, Agustin had lifted it and yet here she was moving it with only her punches, she had to keep on dodging out the way before it hit her, it had hit her once but she had hidden that from Agustin, not wanting to stop just because she was hit on her wound.

"Do you want me to hold it?" Agustin asked.

"Only if you don't mind Sir," Natalia responded.

"It's no problem," Agustin said as he stood, rolling up his shirt sleeves.

"Thanks" She grinned as he held the bag.

He smiled back though it faltered when she saw she was pulling her punches, was she hurt or was she afraid of hurting him.

"Hey, why are you pulling your punches, if you're afraid you are going to hurt me, you won't, I'm not made of glass" Agustin smiled.

Natalia grinned, before punching as hard as she could, he didn't budge, she continued at that pace.

"See that's better, now you are blowing off steam instead of just hitting a bag," Agustin said.

Suddenly Natalia yelped and fell back in pain, landing with a thud.

Agustin released the bag and quickly got to her side, looking her over quick before landing on her side, it was a black T-shirt so he couldn't see any blood.

"Do you mind?" Agustin asked.

"I'm fine Sir, I just punched the bag weird is all," Natalia said, hoping he would be convinced.

Agustin looked over to the bag and saw a couple of drops of blood where Natalia had been standing.

"Can I see it?" He asked.

"Yeah sure, it's probably going to bruise but If I eat Mrs Julieta's food first it won't," She said holding out her hand.

"Can I see your other hand?" Agustin asked.

"Yes," She replied giving him her second hand.

"Neither are bleeding, please let me check your side," Agustin said.

"Before you check, I should probably tell you something," Natalia said.

"Oh?" Agustin hummed, tilting his head.

"I'm sorry I lied Mr Agustin, I know I shouldn't but it's a habit, I always had to lie about my injuries when I was growing up, I was hit on the side by the bag when it swung, I didn't dodge in time now my side hurts like hell, I overturned on a punch, that's why I yelped, I'm so sorry for lying Sir," Natalia said, shaking, she felt scared, she didn't know why she knew no one in this family would hurt her intentionally.

He gently hugged her, trying to calm her shaking.

"It's okay, you have nothing to be afraid of" Agustin soothed.

Suddenly Agustin lifted Natalia, startling her.

She flinched.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you," Agustin said kindly as he lay her on the bed.

Agustin walked to the door and opened it, seeing his wife busy in the kitchen making dinner.

"I will be back in a minute" He smiled before leaving, he left the door open, not that Natalia minded.

Natalia closed her eyes for only a second when she heard it.

"You lied to him, he trusted you as I did, now he dies," Nathaniel said.

Natalia's eyes opened and she saw him standing in front of the punching bag, though she didn't see it, only him in a dark room.

She jumped up, crying as she did from the pain, she launched herself towards him, punching the bag desperately trying to get him to go away, she knew it was only a thing she was seeing, but she wanted to make it go away, so she punched and punched until Nathaniel disappeared and instead Agustin was there in the darkroom with her.

She knew it was still part of what she was seeing as this Agustin was wearing pink, not blue but that didn't stop her from punching it like crazy.

She only stopped when she was lifted away from the bag, she watched as Felix stepped in front of the ripped bag, dissipating her hallucination.

Her fists were bleeding through her wrapping and the bag was leaking sand all over the floor.

She also realised it was Agustin that was holding her shaking form while Pepa attempted to calm her.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I saw him and I couldn't stop and now I'm making a mess and there's blood everywhere, I am so sorry," Natalia said, panicked.

"It's okay Natalia, it wasn't your fault, It's easy to clean up and we will get you a new bag and some new Kumbar since this stuff is all bloody," Pepa said gently holding the girl's bleeding hands.

"Let's get this off, okay?" Pepa said, referring to the wrapping around her hands.

She shakily nodded, tears flowing down her face.

Pepa slowly started to unwrap Natalia's hands.

Natalia suddenly clenched her hands tight.

"I know it hurts but the sooner we get this off the sooner we can heal you," Pepa said as she gently unclenched Natalia's hand.

Natalia seemed to have noticed the fact that Felix had gone.

"He is just getting food for you to heal," Agustin said.

Natalia nodded.

Pepa finished un-wrapping Natalia's hands and gently held them, careful to avoid her burst knuckles.

Natalia let her head fall back onto Agustin's shoulder, though she only rested it there for a minute, getting embarrassed about leaning on him.

"You can relax and put your head back, it doesn't bother me," Agustin said.

"Thank you, Sir," Natalia said as she let her head flop back again.

There were still tears now making their way down the sides of her face, soaking Agustin's shoulder, though he didn't mind, he just wanted to help her.

Pepa got up and quickly went into the bathroom, returning at the same time as Felix entered with a bottle of water, numbing cream, burn cream, a couple of Arepas and some paracetamol, in case Natalia had a headache.

Pepa had a damp washcloth to clean up the dried blood that was on Natalia's hands.

Both adults sat with Natalia, who was being held and comforted by Agustin.

Pepa gently took one of her hands and started cleaning away the blood before grabbing the other and doing the same.

Once Pepa had finished cleaning Natalia's hand Agustin moved to the bed with Natalia, making sure she was comfortable against him.

"Natalia, are you wearing something underneath the shirt?" Pepa asked.

"Sports bra" Natalia replied.

"Okay, well I need to sort out your burn so could you take your shirt off, I can have Felix and Agustin leave if you would prefer," Pepa said gently.

"I don't mind, I will still be covered and it is more like a crop top so it isn't that low cut," Natalia said, not wanting to move.

"I better get back to Antonio," Felix said walking out.

Pepa nodded.

"Agustin, what about you, would you prefer to go?" Pepa asked.

He was about to say how he didn't want to make Natalia uncomfortable when she ever so slightly pushed against him, trying to keep him there, she trusted him and she wouldn't be exposed at all.

"I will only stay If Natalia wants me to," He said, He had to be sure.

"Please don't go, Sir," Natalia said.

"Okay, I will stay," Agustin said.

Pepa nodded.

"Can you take off your shirt please Natalia?, it's a workout top, it's too tight to roll up," Pepa said.

She nodded and sat forward off Agustin to take off her T-shirt, sure enough, it was a crop-top the type most women wear at gyms so it is appropriate and covers her without affecting the wounded area.

She leaned back against Agustin, shivering slightly from the cold.

He gently rubbed her arms, trying to heat them a little bit so she wouldn't be so cold.

Pepa worked as fast and gentle as she could to sort Natalia out, Agustin had to hold her once because Pepa had to put the burn cream on and well, that hurt, but other than that they were all fine.

Pepa had finished in five minutes, giving her an Arepa for her hands after.

Once she was wrapped again Natalia stood and walked back into the bathroom, where the cat onesie was waiting, she changed back into it.

When she came back out of the bathroom she noticed that bag had stopped leaking, lucky for her, the hole was quite high up so the bag hadn't lost too much sand, she walked over to her boxes and pulled a roll of ducktape from one of them.

She pulled two bits from the roll then put them over the hole in an 'X' shape, she then picked up her hand wrappings and walked back to the bathroom, leaving the door open as she ran the tap and filled the sink with warm water, adding a little soap before dumping her wrappings in.

Agustin heard this and walked to the bathroom, seeing her washing out the wrapping.

She looked so tired like she would pass out from exhaustion at any minute.

"I used to box in school, I have wrappings you can have since I don't do it anymore, those aren't fit for use anymore," Agustin said.

"I can't get rid of them, it's the pairs Nathaniel bought me with the bag," Natalia said as her eyes drooped closed for a second.

"You don't have to get rid of them, I only said they aren't fit for use anymore," He said.

"Sir, I am really tired, and I don't know why," Natalia said, stumbling into Agustin.

"You bled a lot from your hands and side, come one, I will put you back into bed, I will clean the Kumbar" Agustin said as he lifted the exhausted girl Bridal style.

She gently clutched his shirt as she fell asleep, not even making it to the bed.

He decided to not pry her off and instead just lay with her in case she had another nightmare.

----------------

Mirabel woke up screaming, waking Bruno from his nap as well.

Instantly he started trying to comfort her.

"It's okay kid, you're safe," Bruno said as he hugged her shaking form.

"Th-They're all dead, I killed them all, blood everywhere" Mira cried.

"There is no blood, everyone is fine Mira, I promise," Bruno said as he held the crying girl.

Mirabel clung to him like he was her lifeline.

"I've got you, you're safe," Bruno said.

"Promise" Mirabel stuttered.

"I promise you, Mirabel Madrigal, I promise you are safe and I promise that I have got you and I will hold you till you feel better and decide you don't want to be held anymore," Bruno said, not a hint of a lie in his voice.

Mirabel slowly stopped crying, instead of just clinging to him.

He could tell by the way Mira was acting that she was no longer regressed, she was now just a very scared and clingy teenager.

Not that he minded the clingy part, he had been in the walls for ten years, he had to make up for the lost hugs and cuddles somehow.

The scared part, he disliked because well obvious reasons, it caused Mira fear and he knew how much that sucked, so he would try his hardest to soothe her, no matter what.

She did end up falling back asleep on top of him, but that didn't bother him in the slightest.

He gently ran a hand through her hair, rolling over so they were both comfortable.

-------------

Julieta had just came in to the room, where she found Natalia, asleep with her head tucked into Agustin's neck.

Agustin was reading a book so didn't notice Julieta came in.

"Agustin, dinner is ready" Julieta said as she sat down next to him, making him jump.

He cringed, hoping he didn't wake Natalia.

"Thanks, Mi Corazon, I will be down in a little while, I should let her sleep a little longer." Agustin whispered.

"I'm awake Sir, I'm sorry for sleeping on you, I was in the bathroom now I'm here, I don't even know how I got like this." Natalia said, trying to move.

Agustin gently wrapped his arms around her to keep her there.

"It isn't a problem, I carried you here you practically fell asleep the second I lifted you," Agustin said, smiling when Natalia relaxed back against him.

"Do you mind if I see your side?" Julieta asked gently.

Natalia nodded and turned around so she was on her back on Agustin instead.

Julieta pulled the zip that ran down the middle, Agustin had turned his head in case she didn't have anything underneath it.

Luckily she remembered to keep her sports bra on, sure it wasn't comfy but it saved her embarresment.

Julieta pulled back the bandage and saw the wound had scabbed though it did look very red, she let go of the bandage and it fell back against Natalia.

"Does it hurt?" Julieta asked, zipping Natalia's onesie back up.

"A lot for some reason, Mrs Pepa put numbing cream on it, okay I don't know when but she did and I'm pretty sure it souldn't have worn off by now." Natalia said.

"It was only half an hour ago, it definitely shouldn't have worn off," Agustin said.

"It's fine, it isn't that bad, definitely not worth wasting anymore of that cream." Natalia said.

"It isn't a waste, Natalia, I bought Luisa a new tub so that tub is for you to use when you need it, so let's get some on" Julieta said.

"Honestly, I'm fine Mrs Julieta, it doesn't hurt that bad" Natalia said standing.

She walked to the bathroom where she found her wrapping had been cleaned and it was dry now as well.

She started wrapping her hands with it.

"That's not a good idea" Agustin said.

"I need to vent, I'm stressed and I need to get it out in a healthy way." Natalia said.

"You can talk to me or Julieta or literally anyone in the house, even the house" Agustin said.

"I, can't do that" Natalia said, finishing wrapping her hands.

"Well if I can't stop you, at least let me help you, I have boxing gloves or some new Kumpar you can use and keep, that wrap is not going to help you any." Agustin said.

"It will work enough, I don't want to be any more of a burden." Natalia said, walking past him and Julieta to stand at the bag.

Natalia had taken the top half of the onesie and tied it round her waist by the sleeves, so she was in the crop-top for punching the bag.

Agustin looked at Julieta before walking to the bag and holding it.

About five minutes they noticed Natalia had screwed her eyes shut tight as tears started to flow.

Agustin let go of the bag and instead caught her punching his hands.

"What hurts." He asked as she stopped punching.

"Nothing, sorry for punching your hands" Natalia said, wiping away her tears.

She went to the bathroom and unwrapped her hands, putting the wrapping back into the box she found it in before pulling the onesie up to cover her torso properly.

She flopped on the bed and both adults could tell by the way she tensed that it hurt.

"Natalia, we should put numbing cream round the burn again, then we can go get dinner, I can hear everyone else downstairs" Julieta said as she sat next to Natalia.

"I'm fine, I'm not really hungry so I will stay up here, you can go eat," Natalia said as she rolled onto her back.

"Your hand is clenched, you are in pain, please tell us what it is, you don't have to hide injuries from us, we can help you" Agustin said.

"I'm just stressed, so I'm tense and that hurts my side" Natalia said.

"Then let's talk about it, dinner can wait they will save us food." Julieta said.

She pulled the hood of the onesie over her head, a sign that Agustin and Julieta knew meant she was feeling trapped or insecure.

"Are we crowding you to much?" Julieta asked.

"I'm not trapped, just cold" Natalia replied.

Julieta was in a dress and Agustin had his shirt on but the sleeves were rolled up, it was a really warm day and Natalia was in a onesie.

"I am going to touch your forehead Natalia, I need to know if you're running a fever." Agustin said.

Natalia nodded, so Agustin put the back of his hand against her forehead.

He was just about to tell her she did have a fever when Casita's door was knocked loudly, startling the dazed Natalia.

Without thinking she jumped up and left the room, looking over the banister where she saw Felix be pushed out the way as A large man, a group of twenty year olds and her uncle enter the house. 

Agustin stepped forward pushing Natalia behind him.

"WE WANT NATALIA AND MIRABEL, NO HARM WILL COME TO ANYONE IF WE HAVE THEM" The big man said.

"You try to touch either of them and I will rip your faces off" Agustin said.

They heard Pepa say for Camilo and Dolores to go to Bruno's room with Antonio and to get Natalia on the way.

Natalia walked right past them, sure she was injured but she didn't care.

"Mira isn't going anywhere Tio, so you can take me alone" Natalia said.

Natalia's uncle looked around to the rest of the men who nodded.

He stepped forward to grab Natalia.

"You really fell for that huh" Natalia smirked as she dodge him, kicking him in the back of the knees before defending herself against the rest of the men.

Agustin and Felix quickly started helping to fight off the men.

Julieta and Pepe were trying to stop it.

But then the room stilled when Natalia went flying across the room, blood pouring from her nose as she fell limp against the wall.

Then Luisa and Isabela got involved, they started knocking people out everywhere.

Pepa and Julieta rushed to Natalia.

-----------

Bruno was relaxing with Mira when there was an extremely loud knock at the door he heard a thud, then yelling then his bedroom door burst open, instantly Pepa's three kids came in, surprisingly Mira hadn't woken up.

"What's going on?" he asked as he took the crying Antonio into his arms.

"The guy that hurt Mira, the twenty year olds that Tio Agustin got stabbed by and Natalia's uncle have barged in, they are trying to take Mira and Natalia," Dolores explained.

"Okay, stay with Mira, do not leave this room until Me or someone else in the family come and get you, lock the door, and try to stay quiet, it will be ok Tonito" Bruno said.

Dolores nodded and he left, waiting to hear the door lock behind him before he moved to the stairs.

Casita turned it into a ramp.

When he got down, Pepa and Julieta were standing next to an unconscious Natalia whilst everyone else faught.

He sped forward and punched a guy that was on top of Agustin.

He helped him up.

"Thanks" He said.

"This reminds me of the bar fight we started." Bruno grinned as he punched one of the twenty year olds.

Eventually the Madrigals had knocked everyone but Natalia's uncle out.

Suddenly the man pulled a gun, just as Natalia was waking up.

"Everybody, freeze," He said pointing the gun towards them.

He cocked it, proving a point.

"Natalia, get your ass over here before I blow there magical brains all over the wall" He said.

"Okay, I'm coming, put the fucking gun down" Natalia said as she stood, limping towards her uncle.

The second she got in range he grabbed her, putting the gun to her temple as he backed out of the house.

The Madrigals had tried to stop them but she would be killed.

(TW PRETTY GRAPHIC, WITH BLOOD AND STUFF)

The second Casita's door's closed they heard a thud then a gunshot.

Bruno held Isabela and Luisa at bay, to stop them from seeing something really bad.

Agustin flung the door open to reveal Natalia's uncle, lying on the floor, a hole on his neck a pool of blood slowly gathering from the area.

Their eyes flew to Natalia, who was in shock, she was pale and covered in sweat, tears running down her face as her hands shakily held the gun.

They watched as she clicked the safety on and found the gun at the corpse after emptying the mag onto the ground.

"I-I, won Bastard, I'm sorry for what I have done Nathaniel, revenge was never to your liking, but I couldn't help myself, I had to protect my new family" Natalia said weakly as she slid down the wall, holding her side.

Julieta rushed forward, going in front of her face.

"I'm sorry, I need to go though, I can't stay with you all, you are perfect and I'm a murderer" Natalia said, trying to stand up from the wall.

Julieta gently pushed her shoulder's back down.

"Sit, you are not going anywhere, we all know what happened, you acted in self defense, and it doesn't matter anyway, you need to take a minute, you are hurt, and you are in shock, you might not even remember all this, so relax, you are not leaving, now more than ever you need to stay" Julieta said.

"I need to, I can't let your family be dragged through the mud." Natalia said, standing, trying again, this time not being stopped by Julieta, but instead her own legs giving out underneath her, she slammed back to the ground, yelling in pain.

Agustin came over and lifted the girl into his arms.

"Plea-please let me go" She said before passing out.

"Pepi, I'm going to the police station" Felix said.

She nodded as he left towards the village.

Felix walked into the police station, blood splatters on his shirt, instantly allerted the officers.

"What happened Felix, is everyone okay?" An officer asked.

"No, a group of people stormed Casita, seriously injuring a guest that is staying, a man tried to kidnap the guest at gunpoint so she defended herself and shot him, the rest of the group has been secured in Casita by Isabela's vines." Felix explained.

"Is the man dead?" an officer asked.

"Yes, we couldn't have saved him, not that we wanted to, he has been a long term abuser of the guest she panicked and shot blindly in self defense, there for, I am telling you that if you try to arrest her you will have to go through the entire Familia Madrigal, we except you may need to ask her questions but she will not be detained and one of the adults from the house will be with her the entire time," Felix explained.

"Well if this truly was an act of self defense, we won't detain her, and we respect your wishes, I do need to know, what is her age and name.?" The officer said.

"Natalia Lopez, she is fifteen" Felix replied.

"I thought everyone died in the fire at the Lopez house, except the brother to Juan of course" The officer said confused.

"She was scared to show herself outside, Mirabel looked after her, they are close friends, Natalia was heavily abused by her family, all except her brother Nathaniel, he died defending her," Felix said.

"How do you know all this, is there any evidence of abuse?" An different officer asked.

"Are you saying she is a liar, because she is not, Myself, Agustin, Julieta and Luisa had to remove a metal collar that was welded round her neck, it had spikes that drove into her neck, she has scars to prove it, not to mention he had branded her  then it had been carved over with a knife, her uncle gave her a job at the blacksmith, she is currently in recovery after that bastard re-branded her, He is the one Natalia had to defend herself against." Felix practically growled at the officer, having to be held back by another few.

"I wasn't accusing her of lying, I was asking for evidence, we need to go collect the men and extract the body so as not to worry the villagers, Natalia will also be brought in for questioning and an adult can be present since she is a minor." The officer explained.

Felix took a breath and had the officers follow him to Casita.

"You can't bring Natalia in right now, she is unconscious" Felix said as they got to the house.

Felix and the officers noticed that the body had been covered.

"That's him, her uncle, the rest are inside, do not disturb any of the children or Julieta, we will come to the station for statements later tonight or tomorrow, depending on when Natalia wakes." Felix said.

The officers nodded, collecting the men and the body before leaving.

(I KNOW THIS IS NOT HOW THE LAW SYSTEM WORKS, AT LEAST NOT IN THE UK BUT IT IS FOR PLOT CONVENIANCE)

Felix walked into the kitchen to check on Julieta and Natalia, he noticed she was only covered by a towel on her top half, he looked away from her, instead focusing on Julieta.

"How is she?" Felix asked, Agustin and Pepa were also in the room, Pepa for assistance and Agustin to comfort Natalia in case she woke.

"Not great, she is in shock, she probably will be for a while, she took a life, even in self- defense that is traumatic." Julieta said.

Julieta quickly finished working on her injuries, she was covered in bruises.

"She has a broken nose, two broken ribs, obviously she still has her burn and a sprained wrist, everything but the burn can be healed when she wakes ,my food will heal it" Julieta said as she gently held Natalia's cheek.

"Bruno went back upstairs with Luisa and Isabela, to try and take there minds off what happened, as well as keep Mira calm" Pepa said.

"I will go too, we all know how persistent Mira can be, Bruno might need help, are you coming amor, you don't have to" Felix said.

"Yeah, I will come with you, our kids will need us" Pepa said.

"Tell Luisa and Isa they can come down if they want, Mirabel can as well" Agustin said.

"No problem" Felix said with a smile.

They left, though Pepa came back down to say Mirabel had fallen back asleep and Luisa and Isa wanted to stay with her, before going back upstairs.

"We should either move her to her room, or the couch, there is no way the table is comfy." Agustin said.

"Okay, but let me get her something she can wear on her top half first" Julieta said, Pepa and Julieta had put some sweatpants on her and Julieta had grabbed a hoodie to go with them, all she had to do was put her sports bra back on then put the hoodie on her as well.

Agustin nodded and left the room, standing guard at the kitchen door.

Julieta quickly dressed Natalia and picked her up.

The second Natalia's was lifted she groaned, burying her face into Julieta's neck to stop the light from shining in her eyes.

"It's okat sweetheart, I'm just taking you to the living room" Julieta said.

Natalia weakly nodded into Julieta's neck.

Natalia was shifted off Julieta and onto the couch.

The light was shining in her eyes but she found she was to weak to move her arms.

Just squeezed them but the light was leaning through her eyelids.

Agustin saw this and covered her eyes gently with a hand, while Julieta drew the curtains and switched off the light, leaving only a dim lamp on the other side of the room.

Agustin withdrew his hand.

"Is that better, we can turn off the lamp if you want" Agustin said.

"No thank yo sir, it isn't too bright or harsh" Natalia said.

"We do have to talk to you about something" Julieta said gently, Neither adult missing the flinch.

"I'm sorry, I never meant to kill him, my eyes were closed and I panicked and shot" Natalia said, tears coming to her eyes at the memory.

"We know that, what we have to talk about is something to do with the police" Agustin said.

"Please don't let them arrest me" Natalia cried.

"We won't we will need to go to the station either tomorrow or or the next day, but only to give a statement and Me or Agustin will be with you the entire time, no matter what, we have set the conditions and they are following them" Julieta said, gently taking Natalia's hands.

Agustin set a hand gently on Natalia's shoulder.

She looked terrified, to be fair, she was still in shock.

Natalia nodded slowly, understanding she needed to do this.

She shuffled back on the couch and curled in on herself, shaking.

Agustin gently pulled her into a hug, letting her cry into his shirt as he looked at Julieta with sad eyes.

"Everything will be okay Natalia, no one will hurt you ever again" Agustin said.

"Thank you Papa" Natalia said, leaning against him.

A sad smile crossed Agustin's face.

She realised what she said with a flinch.

"Sorry" She said, fidgeting with her own hands.

"I'm happy you trust me" Agustin replied.

She leaned into him, a bright red blush crossing her face.

She flinched a little when he put his arm around her shoulder.

"What hurts?" Agustin asked, moving his arms from her shoulder.

"It's fine, they just feel a little bruised, must've happened when he flung me against the wall" Natalia said, sheepishly.

"Do you mind if I check, I didn't see any when you were on the table, but some bruises take longer to form than others" Julieta said.

"Um sure," Natalia said, turning her back to Julieta.

Julieta gently pushed up the back of the hoody, finding a large bruise that spread across her entire upper back.

"Can you eat?" Julieta asked.

"I don't really want to but it will heal my injuries mostly will it not?" Natalia said.

Julieta nodded, standing to grab food from the kitchen.

She returned with a couple of Arepas and a glass of water.

"Here, these will help" Julieta said as she sat the plate on Natalia's lap.

"Thanks" Natalia said as she lifted an Arepa and took a bight, relaxing as she felt the pain of her nose and shoulders going away.

Natalia only managed one full Arepa before not wanting to eat anymore.

"Can you eat anymore, I noticed you haven's been eating a lot while you have been here" Julieta said, concerned.

"I-I don't really ever eat a lot, I never have, I eat little and most of the time only twice a day, I have been eating more since I got here" Natalia said.

"Do you know why?" Agustin asked.

"Um, I was rarely aloud to eat at home, so when I did I ate a lot, they started calling me fat, so I stopped eating as much" Natalia said, anxiously picking the skin around her nails.

Julieta gently took her hands to stop the picking.

"Do you trust me Natalia, It's not  a trick question, it is as simple as it sounds" Julieta said.

"With my life, I have no reason not to, I trust everyone in this house, except alma who I haven't seen, I do not have good opinions of her at all" Natalia said.

"That's fine, none of us do right now" Agustin laughed gently.

"Oh okay, but yes Mrs Julieta, I trust you" Natalia said.

"Then do you think you could allow me to help you, I have dealt with stuff like this before, Isabela had a problem similar, she told me I could tell you that so don't worry." Julieta said.

"How would you help?" Natalia asked anxiously.

"Well first I need to ask you something" Julieta said.

Natalia nodded.

"If you feel you have eaten more than you should have, are you likely to purge?" Julieta asked.

Natalia flinched

"It depends how much I have over eaten" She said.

"Only a little bit more not like another plate" Julieta said.

"It's not very likely then, thought depends on how self comcious I am feeling, that's why I don't really like mirrors" Natalia said.

"I am suddenly very happy your room doesn't have a mirror, we were going to get one for you" Agustin said.

"Oh that reminds me, can I be excused for just a couple of minutes while I run up to the room?" Natalia asked.

"Yes, no problem." Julieta smiled.

"Thanks Ma'am" Natalia said before leaving the room.

Natalia came back down a couple seconds later with an envelope in her hand.

It was very thick for an envelope, at least four inches.    (About this much   <-------------------------> )

She handed the envelope to Julieta.

Julieta opened it to see money, wrapped in a rubber band.

"I have been saving what little wages my Tio gave me for a couple of years now, I'm surprised he paid me at all,  but you are letting me stay here, and you are feeding me, so that should be enough to cover about a month, and I will get a job, I promise" Natalia said.

Julieta put the envelope back into Natalia's hands.

"You keep that, buy something you want or like with it, you are not going to be paying for a thing in this house or for living here" Julieta said sternly, though it was still gentle enough that Natalia knew she wasn't getting scolded.

"I-"    " No discussion, we do not expect our kids to pay, so why should you?" Agustin said.

Natalia nodded.

"So if we can get back to what we were talking about, are there any visual signs we can follow to know when you are not feeling good about yourself?" Julieta asked gently.

"Baggy clothes or anything with long sleeves and if my hair is down then that is probably when I am the worst, I will always have my hair at least partially up, I have this pair of gloves that cover my forearms, if I'm wearing those then, well you can guess" Natalia said anxiously.

"By guess do you mean cutting?" Agustin asked.

Natalia nodded.

"When I feel really self conscious, I don't really liked to be touched at all, unless I engage it" Natalia said.

"Okay, that's fine sweetheart,  now I'm am going to tell you what I am going to do to try and help you okay?" Julieta said gently.

Natalia shook slightly before nodding.

"First I am going to tell you, Under no condition, unless severely extreme, will anyone in this house force you to eat, no one and if anyone tries, tell me and I will tell them to stop, secondly all I plan on doing is upping your portions gradually, so it will start with your normal amount, then it will go up little by little probably once a week" Julieta said.

Julieta was just about to talk again when Natalia flinched and grabbed her own forearm.

"What's going on, does something hurt?" Julieta asked, immediately concerned.

"I need you to follow me upstairs please Ma'am" Natalia said, standing quickly.

"Okay, can Agustin come as well or just me?" Julieta asked gently.

"Um I don't know, I can't be trusted to be alone" Natalia said, clearly panicked.

"Okay, that's fine lets go, Agustin is going to follow us" Julieta said.

Natalia shakily nodded, clutching her arm so tight her knuckels were turning white.

The second Natalia got into the room she started digging through her boxes before getting to the right one, she handed the entire thing to Julieta, who looked inside with shock.

It was full of all sorts of devices that could be used to cause pain on someone, mostly knives and razors covered in dried blood, though there were a few other things like a whip that also had dried blood on it and another spiked collar.

Julieta left the room with the box, understanding what Natalia was feeling.

She returned a couple minutes later to Natalia, Agustin had stayed but hadn't touched or got to close to her.

Julieta walked towards he slowly.

"Natalia, can I touch you please" Julieta asked, seeing how panicked she was.

Natalia stepped forward and Julieta gently pulled her in for a hug, making sure to keep her hands separate since she was sure Natalia had already made a bruise on her own wrist.

"What are you feeling, if you tell me I might be able to help" Julieta said gently as she held the shaking girl.

"I thought about Tio and I killed him and I had promised my parents I wouldn't be greedy but now I am and I told them I wouldn't get rid of the box but I can't cope with it anymore, my skin started getting itchy, it's how it gets when I cut and I can't it hurts," Natalia said, breathing heavily into Julieta's chest.

"It's okay, they were all cruel people, while it is true that promises should be kept these are types of promises that get exceptions, you're not greedy at all, I am just trying to get you back to being fully healthy, you hurt your uncle in self defense, it was him or you, you chose correctly, you are a good person Natalia, he was not, and you're right, cutting does hurt but you were brought up with pain, and as sad as it may be you're used to it, I will help you with that too" Julieta said.

Natalia nodded against her.

"Do you have anything else that is sharp in here?" Agustin asked.

"I do, but I would prefer if you didn't take it away, it's not something I would hurt myself with not even in extreme circumstances" Natalia said.

"Well can you show us so we at least know you have it," Julieta said.

Natalia nodded and pulled away from Julieta, instantly trying to grip her arm again.

Julieta gently caught her hand.

"Does your arm still itch?" Julieta asked.

"A little" Natalia said.

Julieta gently rolled up Natalia's hoody sleeve and firmly rubbed her fore arm, not hard enough to hurt just hard enough to chase away the itchiness.

"Thanks" Natalia said.

"No problem, now can we see the sharp things?" Julieta asked.

"I want to warn you, they are weapons, but they are registered and legal and I would and never have used them on a living being, animal or human." Natalia said.

Both adults nodded.

Natalia lifted a medium sized box to the bed, or she got half way before Agustin took it and sat it on the bed instead.

She opened the box, revealing a blue sword to both adults, along with two daggers that matched.

Here is the sword and daggers, not mine just a pic from online.

She handed Agustin the daggers that had covers on them.

"Those are something I would use, though when I am training I would appreciate if I could use them." Natalia said.

"You can use these, and the sword and whatever is in that box?" Julieta asked.

"Self taught but I have great control" Natalia smiled.

"Do you mind if I take the covers off?" Agustin asked.

"Um can Mrs Julieta do it, no offense but you are really clumsy and they are really sharp and I don't want you to get hurt" Natalia rambled.

"I will be fine, I am only clumsy when I am rushing somewhere, or I am not completely focused." Agustin said.

Natalia nodded, anxiously.

Agustin took one of the knives from it's case, looking at it.

"Where did you get these, no where in town sells stuff like this?" Agustin asked.

"I made them myself, I had to watch the blacksmith for Tio one day when he was out of town, I found scrap metal and made them," She laughed, trying to cover what she had just said.

"So you know how to make things from metal?" Julieta asked.

"Yup, I am terrified of fire though so I mostly did small pieces to try and get over that, but I never have" Natalia admitted, pulling the sword from it's case.

She stepped back from Julieta and Agustin.

"Do you want to see what I can do?" she asked.

"Are you going to end up getting hurt?" Agustin asked.

"It's not likely" She grinned.

"Okay, but be careful please." Julieta said.

Both adults took a step back to give her space.

"Can I see those daggers quick?" Natalia asked.

Agustin nodded and handed her them.

She stepped back again.

She flung a dagger straight up into the air, narrowly missing the roof as it came back down towards her.

She quickly thrust her sword and caught the dagger by the ring on the handle, on the very tip of the sword blade.

She gently flipped the dagger off the sword, catching it lightly in her hand.

She flinched gently.

She gently uncurled her fist, that was loose around the blade.

"They need sharpened" Natalia said, showing a small cut on her hand.

Julieta gently took the hand, it was just like a cat scratch, it wasn't bleeding.

(This part is a fact, at least for kitchen knives but I am applying it here aswell, my mum was a chef so this is definitely true for kitchen knives)

 "How do you know?" Agustin asked

"She felt the cut" Julieta said.

"So why does that mean she needs to sharpen them?" He asked again.

"Simple, when a knife is sharp enough, you won't feel the cut until you touch it or get something in it, or if you wait a while. With a partially or fully blunt knife, cuts hurt as they happen" Natalia explained.

Agustin nodded.

"Does that mean your sword needs happened as well?" He asks.

She gently ran her thumb along the blade, she was cut but it didn't hurt at first.

"Nope" She smiled, gently sucking the tip of her thumb to clear the blood.

"That's not what I meant" Agustin said, he didn't think or want her to cut herself.

She shrugged.

"Name any item in this room, as large or small as you want, but please not You or Mrs Julieta" She said.

"Okay, the door frame, but only at the top." Agustin said.

"Okay, stand next to me please." Natalia said.

She aimed and flung, just as the door opened to reveal Pepa.

She screamed and ducked.

The dagger embedded itself in the door frame.

Natalia ran over to Pepa and helped her stand.

"I am so so so so sorry Mrs Pepa, I promise I did not know you were coming in" Natalia said frantically and panicked.

"It's okay, you didn't hit me, just a question, why are you throwing knives?" Pepa said.

"She was showing us her weapons, she made them herself and we wanted to see how she used them, those daggers are something that we need to be here when she has and uses so she wanted to use them" Agustin explined.

Pepa nodded and walked further into the room, seeing the sword on the bed.

Natalia jumped and un-lodged the dagger from the door frame, landing with a wince as the thump hurt her side a little.

She turned and saw all three adults looking at her, worried faces.

"I'm fine, I shouldn't have jumped" Natalia said, lifting the hoody to show the bandages weren't bloody at all.

"NO MIRABEL YOU NEED TO STAY HERE" they heard Felix shout, followed by quick footsteps.

Natalia turned around as Mira tackled her into a hug both falling to the floor, but not before Natalia could fling the knife and lodge it back in the doorframe, so that neither got hurt laniding on it.

Natalia felt a lot of pain but hid it so her girlfriend wouldn't get upset.

Felix came in and saw Mirabel and Natalia on the floor, Natalia was clearly in pain but she was hiding it the best she could.

She saw Felix, looking at her with a concerned gaxe, so she pointed up to the knife that he was directly under.

"Can you grab that for me?" She asked.

He nodded and had to jump to get it, she clearly forgot she was the same height as Pepa.

"Hey Mira, can we stand up love, the floor is not comfortable?" Natalia said.

Mira nodded and stood off Natalia, holding out her hand for Natalia to take.

Natalia tried to get up but failed, due to the pain

"I will get up in a second" She said, fully flopping onto the floor with a sigh.

Julieta's face appeared in her line of vision.

"Do you want my help to get up?" She asked with a smile.

"Yes please, Mira I know you tried to help but I wouldv'e made you fall again and I didn't want you to get hurt" Natalia said to Mira, who also looked concerned.

Mira nodded

Julieta helped her up, not missing the quiet wince.

"Would you like to see the rest of the stuff?" Natalia asked.

"If you don't mind" Julieta said.

"Oh, this isn't actually mine" Natalia said, pulling a bow and arrow from the box.

"Who's is it?" Julieta asked.

She smiled and handed the bow to Mira.

"This one is mine, we bought them from a travelling trader." Natalia said.

"Do you both know how to shoot that thing?" Felix asked, shocked.

"Yeah we can show you but you have to lock the door so no one will come in and get hurt like Mrs Pepa almost did, sorry again." Natalia said.

"You didn't hit me so it's fine" Pepa said as she locked the door.

"Ready Mira?" Natalia asked, raising her bow.

Mirabel nodded.

They both closed there eyes and let their arrows fly at the same time, Mira's splitting Natalia's down the middle as they shot in the same place.

They opened their eyes and smiled.

Natalia gently took Mira's bow and quiever as she hung both on the wall next to her own, Casita making something to hang them on.

When she turned back around Mira was being hugged by Agustin while smiling at her.

"That was amazing" Pepa said.

Natalia smiled.

"Is there anything else in the box?" Felix asked.

Natalia walked over and pulled out three shuriken, along with a kunai knife in a case.

She handed the knife to Julieta, giving her a look that told her that those were something she could use.

"The same as the daggers" Natalia said.

Julieta nodded and put them in her apron pocket.

"Um, Julieta, Mira is burning up, really bad." Agustin said as he sat down on the floor, leaning Mira against him.

Julieta ran over and sat next to Mira who looked to be drifting in and out of consciousness.

"Mira baby, stay awake for me" Julieta said.

Pepa ran to get a damp washcloth while Felix went to get some ice.

Natalia also sat next to Mira and brushed the hair from her face.

Agustin stood, holding Mira.

Felix came back with the ice.

"Take her to Pepa and I's room, the temperature modulates to what the people inside need" Felix said.

Agustin nodded and carried her from the room.

They settled Mira into the bed, only covering her with a thin sheet.

Julieta had grabbed some medicine from the cupboard in the bathroom.

Once Mira had been laid down she gently propped her head up a little before taking the bottle of medicine and the syringe from the box. (it isn't a syringe with a needle it's on of the ones for kids to take medicine easier)

She filled it with the right amount of medicine and gently opened Mira's mouth, squeezing the medicine from the syringe.

She was happy when Mira didn't cough because that meant she had swallowed it and not inhaled it.

Natalia had stayed in her own bedroom, giving Mirabel some time to sleep.

She didn't want to wake up after a nightmare and wake Mira.

Pepa and Felix climbed into the bed next to Mirabel, gently holding her as they also fell asleep.

Julieta and Agustin went to their rooms and all the kids were sleeping by now.

They too soon fell asleep, leaving only Natalia awake, though that didn't last long, she locked the door and went to sleep after changing he bandage.

THANKS FOR READING, I KNOW I SAID THIS CHAPTER WOULD BE NEAUTRAL BUT IT WAS MOSTLY NATALIA, THIS IS THE LONGEST CHAPTER I HAVE EVER DONE, NEXT CHAPTER I INTEND ON MAKING IT MIRABEL CENTRIC WITH HINTS OF NATALIA SO JUST REVERSING THIS ONE, I LOVE YALL THANKS FOR THE SUPPORT :D    P.S I'M EXTENDING IT TO THIRTY CHAPTERS.

Chapter Text

I'm sorry for not updating this and my one-shot book, I haven't really been Motivated and I don't know, why, It's making me anxious I am sorry, I keep on telling myself to write but I can't for some reason, I promise I will write as soon as I can, I'm worried about school stuff amongst other things and my brain isn't giving me a break, once again I'm sorry I will update as soon as I can manage :D.

Sincerely, R.

Chapter Text

I still can't seem to write for now, but I just want to say/

THANK YOU ALL, SO MUCH NOT ONLY FOR UNDERSTANDING BUT WE HAVE JUST BROKEN 20K HITS, I REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR SUPPORT AND I HOPE YOU ENJOY YOUR DAY/NIGHT :D

P.s, this is my favourite Encanto fanart so I figured I would share it for all you Agustin and Julieta simps. (THIS IS NOT MY ART IF YOU KNOW WHO DID IT LET ME KNOW PLEASE :D)

Thanks again, I hope to upload a chapter at some pint in the next week :D

Chapter Text

Natalia woke up with a jump after hearing a bang from downstairs.

"Sorry mama, I think I broke a plate" She heard Luisa say, instantly relaxing.

She got up and walked into the bathroom, ready to change her bandage when she noticed there was no blood on it, she unwrapped it to see a scar the shape of the branding burn.

"It healed?" She said to herself.

She let down her hair and put on her hoody, she hated herself today.

She saw the shuriken, sitting on her bedside table.

"One won't hurt," Natalia said as she drew one across her wrist, but not just once, about, ten times, on each wrist.

There was a sudden knock at her door. "Natalia, Dolores heard you wince, are you okay kid?" Bruno asked through the door.

"Yes Sir, I just stubbed my toe," Natalia said, pulling on her gloves, hiding her hands in the hoody sleeves before pulling on a pair of sweat pants.

"Well, breakfast is ready," Bruno said, reluctantly leaving.

Natalia put on her socks and shoes before walking downstairs, seeing Julieta and Agustin talking to Bruno before they all looked at her, Concern pasted on their faces.

Natalia instantly turned and went back upstairs when she felt her stomach turn from anxiety.

Natalia went into her room and pulled a target from one of the unpacked boxes, hanging it on a hook casita provided.

She took the shuriken, cleaned them then flung them at the wooden target.

She hit the outer lines first.

"What the hell," She said, confused, she rarely missed a target.

She retrieved them and flung them again, this time missing one completely, the other two embedding themselves in the outer board whilst the other bounced off the wall into the group.

"Mother Fu-" She was interrupted by her door being knocked.

She cleared her throat.

"Um, Yes," She said, hearing the anxiety in her voice.

"It's just me Natalia, can I come in?" Julieta asked.

"I-I'm a little busy," Natalia said, hoping Julieta would believe it.

"Dolores said you were flinging something, and unless it is your sword then you probably have something you can hurt yourself with," Julieta said.

Natalia opened the door, letting Julieta in.

Julieta saw the two shuriken on the board and the one on the floor.

She then looked to Natalia, taking in the fact she was wearing a hoody and her hair was down, plus her hood was up and Juliet could have sworn she saw gloves.

Natalia gathered the shuriken, slipping them into the case before handing it to Julieta.

Natalia walked into the bathroom, gesturing for Julieta to follow.

She pulled the gloves off her hands, exposing the cuts and dried blood.

"Oh, Talia, please come talk to me or Agustin next time," Julieta said, looking at the girl who was looking at the floor, tears running down her face.

Julieta pulled an Arepa from her pocket, handing it to Natalia.

Natalia just looked at it, unsure of what to do, her brain was going a hundred miles per hour.

'Useless, fat worthless, waste of time, you don't deserve to be healed, you killed your only family' Her brain taunted.

Tears streamed faster down her face but it didn't stop her from tearing a piece of the area off and eating, healing her cuts.

"Do you want to talk? It's clear you're not feeling great today" Julieta said gently.

Natalia lifted her hoodie to where her wound was and showed it to Julieta.

"Natalia, can I touch you?" Julieta asked.

Natalia nodded and Julieta gently reached out to brush her hand over the scar before gently pulling Natalia into a hug.

They went to the bed and started talking.

----------------

When Mirabel woke up she was tucked against Felix's chest, he was still sleeping, she felt extremely sick but didn't want to wake her Tio, Pepa was already down the stairs.

She shifted slightly, trying to get free.

"Mirabel, what's wrong," Felix asked sleepily.

Since Mira knew he was awake she jumped from the bed, making it to the toilet just in time to throw up.

Felix followed her and began rubbing her back.

Once she was finished he picked her up and lay back on the bed.

"Why didn't you wake me, Mira?" Felix asked.

"You were sleepy," Mirabel said.

"What age are you Mira?" Felix asked with a smile.

Mirabel held up three fingers.

'She is younger than usual' Felix thought to himself.

"Oh so we have a big girl do we?" He smiled.

Mirabel nodded and climbed into his lap.

She started playing with his hair.

"Do you want me to get Isa and we can make flower crowns?" Felix asked gently.

Mirabel nodded and let go of his hair.

He picked her up and left the room, heading down stairs to the living room.

As they entered Mirabel saw Agustin talking to Bruno.

She woggled out of Felix's hold and jumped on Agustin.

"Oof, Hi baby, how are you today?" Agustin said

"I'm gonna make you a flower crown" She smiled.

"Are you, is Isa gonna help?" Agustin asked, looking over to Felix who was talking to Isa.

"Yup, of course I am" Isa said smiled.

"And we gonna braid flowers through Tio Bruno's" Mira giggled.

Bruno stilled, a look of fear on his face, was he really going to let his 15 year old niece who was currently regressed, put flowers in his hair.

Agustin and Felix smirked.

"Sorry Mira, I can't I need to go do a vision" He said, standing.

Felix pulled him aside.

"She is three, I don't know why she regressed so young" Felix said.

'God dammit, I can't tell her no, that girl is my weakness' Bruno thought.

"Okay, let's go." He said, picking Mira up.

Isa, Bruno and Mirabel all went upstairs, though Bruno was holding Mira.

She was blabbering random words, not making any sense.

"What you talking about Mira?" Bruno asked with a grin.

She just shrugged and continued babbling.

They heard rushed footsteps following them up the stairs.

They turned to see peanut.

(NOT MINE, JUST A PIC FROM GOOGLE)

"Peanut" Mira said, struggling.

"Ay, Mira, we are almost at my room, Peanut will follow us" Bruno said.

"Okay" Mirabel smiled.

Bruno put Mirabel down in her little play area, him and Isa quickly joining her.

Isa belaa grew and assortment of green flowers.

Mirabel quickly started braiding them through Bruno's hair.

They then moved onto Isa who all different colours.

Mirabel even put one on Peanuts collar Before Bruno gently put some flowers in Mirabel's hair.

They then made the flower crowns.

They were all the same 

(Blue, green and yellow for the three main colours or the triplets.)

Mira jumped up and ran with all the flower crowns.

She ran to the living room and gave everybody one, except Natalia and Julieta who were still upstairs.

She slid them under Natalia's door with a note that was written messily.

'Me, Tio Bruno and Isa made these :D'

Mira went back to the living room and saw Camilo sitting on the floor watching the tv.

"Milo" Mira said as she tackled him.

"Geez Mira" He laughed as he hugged her.

"Where's Tia?" Mira asked.

"She is upstairs in our room, little one, do you wanna go see her" Felix respnded.

She nodded and went to Felix.

"How are you feeling Mira?" He asked gently, he could feel her burning up.

"Cold and my head hurts." She said, pressing her face to his chest to hide the light.

"We can turn out the light in Tia and I's room" Felix said as he opened the door to their room after knocking.

Pepa took Mira from Felix as he turned out the light.

Mirabel relaxed against Pepa as they settled on the bed.

Mira saw the book sitting on the bedside table, her Tia had been reading it.

"Sorry" She said.

Felix looked at Pepa, confused and concerned.

"What for Mira?" Pepa asked.

"You were reading and I interrupted and I did something bad" Mira said.

"Don't worry about the reading, what did you do?" Felix asked, concerned.

Mira showed them her hand, it had four little crescent cuts on it that were bleeding.

"Mira, what age are you?" Felix asked.

"Fifteen" She said quietly.

"Did you do this to force yourself from your regression?" Pepa asked.

Mirabel nodded.

"Why?" She asked.

Mirabel flinched.

She pulled away from Pepa and sat against the headboard, curling in on herself.

"Mija, what's wrong?" Felix asked.

Pepa looked at Mirabel's hands and saw them bleeding, she was digging her nails in.

"Mira, if you are slipping you should let it happen" Pepa said.

"Your Tia is right, You know it helps so why stop it," Felix said as he and Pepa uncurled Mirabel's fists.

She struggled against them, still trying to stop herself from slipping.

"I'm gonna go younger, I can't, let me go, I don't trust it" Mirabel said, crying.

Mirabel pulled free and ran to the wall, punching it as hard as she could, breaking her fist.

"MIRA NO" Felix shouted.

Mirabel cried from the pain but she was no longer slipping.

"Mirabel, why would you do that" Pepa said, maybe a little too loudly.

Pepa instantly regretted it when she saw fear flash across Mirabel's eyes.

"I'm sorry I didn't mean to be that loud, I'm not mad or anything like that I am just worried and confused" Pepa said as she gently pulled Mira onto her lap, careful of her hand.

"Please, tell us what's wrong pequeña nube" Pepa said.

"Please don't call me that" Mirabel said, clenching her unbroken hand.

"You used to love being called my pequeña nube, what happened?" Pepa said, confused.

"You know what it does that's why you are saying" Mirabel said, clenching her hand tighter.

"I genuinely don't, tell me please" Pepa said.

"It makes me feel little, I don't want to be little" Mirabel said as Felix uncurled her fist.

"I will be back in a minute" Felix said gently as he stood.

Felix walked into the living room.

"Isabela, do you think you could come help me in the kitchen please, I am banned from cooking and Mira needs some of your Mama's soup" Felix said.

Agustin instantly shut his book and went upstairs, knocking Pepa's door.

"Come in" Pepa said.

Agustin walked in and saw Pepa, sitting on the floor with Mira craddled against her, holding a cleary broken hand.

"Ay baby, what happened" Agustin said as he dropped next to the pair.

"Please, don't call me baby" Mira said.

"Okay, now what happened Mariposita?" He said

"Please, nothing that means little anything, I can't" She cried.

"Okay, I'm sorry, please tell me what's wrong" Agustin pleaded.

"She pulled herself from her regression forcefully by digging her nails into her hands, then she must have felt herself slipping because she tried to do it again but Felix and I stopped her, she then broke free and punched the wall," Pepa explained.

"Pain must stop her from regressing, or at least pull her out of it slightly" Pepa said.

"Why do you not want to be regressed bab- I mean Mira?" Agustin asked.

"I keep going younger and I hate it, I don't want to slip, it's embarrassing and you all keep babying me, like you want to slip, well I can be big as well, I need to be big" Mirabel said, her voice cracking as she finished her sentence.

"You don't need to be anything, you slip when you need to slip, no one and I mean No one, will ever judge you for that, cause if they do I will personally kick their ass, unless it's a woman, then I will let your Tia and Mama do it" He said, lightly poking her sides as he finished his sentence.

She giggled.

"There's my baby" Agustin said, knowing she wouldn't mind.

She squirmed to get away from the tickling, wincing when she accidently moved her hand.

Agustin stopped tickling her and Pepa shifted her so she couldn't hurt her hand anymore.

Mira closed her eyes and relaxed as she leaned against Pepa, almost falling asleep when there was a knck at the bedroom door.

"It's just me," Felix said, Agustin stood and opened the door for him, he was carrying a tray with some soup and apple juice.

Mira groaned and buried her face in Pepa's neck, wanting to fall asleep.

"Mira, can you eat please, it will help your hand." Felix asked gently as he sat on the floor.

"Tired" Mirabel mumbled.

"You can sleep right after you have eaten something baby" Agustin said.

Mirabel groaned and shook her head.

Pepa pried her off and put her on Agustin's lap.

"Not hungry Papa" Mirabel said.

"I know baby, but your hand is really hurt" He said gently.

Mirabel shifted and started eating the soup slowly, she got about half way through the bowl before pushing it away, she had felt sick before eating, now it was worse.

"Can you eat a little more?" Agustin asked, not trying to force her to do anything she didn't want to.

She shook her head and leaned against him.

"That's okay, you did such a good job baby, I know you are sick so it is really good that you could eat" Agustin smiled and wrapped his arms around her.

She leaned into him, she could feel herself slipping but she didn't know if she wanted to.

"Hey Mira, will you let me trim your nails?" Pepa asks.

Mirabel nods and turns over, unaware tears were flowing down her face.

"What's wrong Mija?" Felix asked.

"What do you mean Tio?" Mirabel says back, confused.

"You're crying Mariposa" Pepa said.

Mirabel felt her cheek.

"I don't know why, I'm not sad or anything really, just kinda blank feeling" Mirabel said.

The adults shared a concerned glance, she was feeling, numb, that hadn't happened to their knowledge before.

Pepa went and got the nail clippers sitting next to Mirabel when she got them.

"Can I have your hand please?" Pepa asked.

Mirabel nodded, holding out her hand as she stared blankly at the ceiling.

Mirabel had completely zoned out, unaware of the adults trying to get her attention or their concerned faces.

Agustin Leaned over and put his face in Mira's line of sight.

Mira shook her head and blinked.

"Sorry, I missed that" Mirabel said, hoping they had infact said something and she didn't just randomly say that.

"Are you okay?" Agustin asked, checking her temperature.

"I have a fever Papi, I can feel it, it's not bad though" Mirabel said.

"On the contrary, you are very warm" Agustin said.

"Can I have your other hand, then we will put you in a cool bath to cool you." Pepa said.

Mira gave Pepa her other hand, not fully processing what she said until a couple of seconds later.

"Wha- no, please no cold bath, they are freezing, I can do something else, please do not put me in a cold bath" She said, panicked.

"It will help cool you down, you have a high fever Miraboo" Agustin said.

"I know, but there are other ways to get a fever down" Mira said, pulling her hand from Pepa's not caring that her nails weren't finished.

She stood away from the adults, who immediately stood as well.

She looked at the door and just before she was going to run for it, Agustin stepped in front of it.

"Nothing good comes of you running Mira" Agustin said gently.

Mira didn't fail to notice that Pepa and Felix were moving closer to her.

"If anyone touches me, I will scream" Mirabel said, she was overwhelmed and trapped, what was she expected to do.

Pepa and Felix stopped.

"Mira, listen, you are burning up, really bad, we need to cool you down, we will figure something out okay" Felix said gently.

"Why, why should I listen, you are three fully grown adults, surrounding a sick fifteen year old, why should I listen, you know how trapped feeling I get and yet you are pulling this shit" Mirabel said.

This shocked the adults, she was right, what were they doing.

'Perfect, now they are distracted I can run' She thought.

She moved fast, dodging out the way of the three adults and ran down the stairs, Casita tried to stop her but couldn't.

She got to the bottom of the stairs and ran into the courtyard.

"Mira" Bruno said gently.

Mira turned and hugged him, she was shaking and fighting to stay conscious.

"Fe-fever high" She stuttered out.

Bruno put a hand on her forehead.

"Meirda" Bruno whispered.

He quickly scooped Mirabel up, Bridal style, carrying her past the adults, Agustin followed.

"Can you please tell me why she was running" Bruno said.

"We made her feel trapped, we were idiots and we scared her, she is sick we tried to convince her to take a cool bath but she wouldn't" Agustin explained as he held Mira's clammy hand.

Mira gently tugged on Bruno's ruana.

"What is it little one" He smiled gently, she was regressed when he got to her.

She tried to snuggle closer to him.

"You wanna try something cool Mariposita?" Bruno asked.

Mirabel nodded her head.

"It's a competition so we sit in some cool water and whoever get's out first loses and the winner get's cuddles" Bruno said.

"Wanna play?" Bruno asked.

Mira dazily nodded, okay, let's do it.

When they got to Bruno's room the bath was already filled with cool water and a few toys for Mira to play with.

"I'm gonna hold you okay?" Bruno said as her pulled off his Ruana.

Mirabel nodded again and clung to his shirt.

Bruno stepped into the bath, sinking down into the cool water.

He shivered as he gently held the little.

She picked up a rubber duck and started playing with it.

"What age are you little one?" Bruno asked as he gently ran his wet hands through Mira's hair.

She held up two fingers.

'Younger again, Juli will be happy to have her baby back' He thought to himself.

Mira suddenly started struggling, trying to get out of the cold weather.

"Just a little longer princess" Bruno said, gently holding her.

He quickly pressed a hand to her forehead and she was getting cooler, he would have to get Pepa to help her get dried off and into dry clothes instead of her soaking pyjamas.

"Agustin" Bruno said, knowing he was outside the door.

He came in.

"Do you want me to go get Pepa?" Agustin asked.

"Yes please, mind reader" Bruno smirked.

Agustin smiled and went down stairs.

Pepa came in a couple minutes later with a towel and some pyjamas.

"Do you wanna tell Tia how old you are?" Bruno said genly.

Mirabel nodded and held up two fingers.

Pepa smiled.

"Ay, so you're my pequeña nube" Pepa said as Bruno handed Mira to Pepa.

Mira giggled and put her head in Pepa's neck.

Mirabel started shivering again so Pepa quickly went to get her changed after thanking Bruno.

Pepa went into her own room, carrying the little.

She started shivering harder so she pushed closer to Pepa, hoping to get some heat.

"How about we get you into some warm pyjamas then we can cuddle up in a blanket" Pepa said cuddling the girl closer, not caring about getting wet.

Mirabel just whimpers in response.

Pepa gently pulls of Mira's wet clothes, cringing as they cling to her skin.

She quickly wraps Mira in a towel to help dry her off.

After she was dry Pepa got her into her onesie

She pulled something from her top drawer and held it to Mirabel as an offer.

Mirabel lit up when she saw the pacifier and took it.

Pepa opened her arms for Mira who gladly climbed on her lap.

It only took about ten minutes before Mirabel started squirming and whimpering.

"What's wrong mi pequeña nube" Pepa said.

"Mirabel, what age are you little one?" She asked gently.

Mirabel weakly help up one finger, struggling to get out Pepa's grip.

"Okay, are you hungry or do you need a change?" Pepa asked.

Mirabel started to cry.

"Well your Mama bought some pull ups when you first started regressing, same with a bottle so how about we get one of those on you and you can have some warm milk?" Pepa said gently.

Mirabel calmed down at this and pushed closer to Pepa.

"Okay, let's do that"

Pepa quickly put a pull up on Mira then got the milk and filled the bottle in the kitchen before going to Bruno's room.

She knew Mira didn't want to many people seeing her like this so she figured it would be best if it was just Bruno.

As she walked past Natalia's room the door opened, Natalia walked out, said a quick hi to Mira and Pepa then left the house, Julieta stood with Pepa.

"Hey bebe, how are you feeling?" Julieta said to Mira, Noticing the bottle that Pepa had.

"She won't talk, she's regressed to one" Pepa explained.

Juleita looked shocked for a second before gently taking Mirabel from Pepa's arms.

"Ay, mi bebe is so cute, yes your my little baby aren't you" Julieta said as she peppered kisses over Mirabel's face.

Mirabel giggled and leaned closer to Julieta.

"Let's go get Tio to heat this for you in his microwave" Pepa said, holding the bottle of milk.

They knock on Bruno's door.

"What's up Hermanas" Bruno asks, stepping aside to let them in.

"Can we borrow your microwave Hermanito?" Pepa asked, holding up the bottle of milk.

"Yeah and also quit calling me Hermanito, I am only ten minutes younger than you Pepa" Bruno said.

"Okay Hermanito" She smiled.

"You're lucky the microwave is being used for Mira, otherwise you wouldn't be using it, why are you using it anyway, is there something wrong with the one downstairs?" Bruno asked.

"Nope, Mira would be embarrassed if anyone found out about the baby bottle, so I figured it would be better to use yours" Pepa said, putting the milk in the microwave for thirty seconds.

"I meant to ask, where did Natalia go?" Pepa asked Julieta.

"Oh she wanted fresh air so she went into town for the day, she will be back for dinner, I made sure she ate before she left" Julieta said.

Pepa nodded and took the bottle from the microwave, testing the temperature.

"I will take Mira to my room, thanks for looking after her, both of you" Julieta smiled as Pepa handed her the bottle.

"No problem hermana" Pepa said.

Bruno just smiled and nodded.

Julieta carried Mira to her room and sat on the bed, uncapping the baby bottle.

Julieta took Mira' s pacifier from her mouth before putting the bottle in it's place, holding it for Mira.

(the pacifier)

Mira got about halfway through the bottle before her eyes began to droop.

She fighting to stay awake.

"Go to sleep baby" Julieta said, still holding the bottle in Mirabel's mouth.

She let her eyes close, leaning against her Mama's chest so she could hear her heartbeat.

Mirabel fell asleep.

Julieta took the bottle from Mirabel's mouth, replacing it with her Paci again before capping the bottle, leaving it on the bed side table to clean later.

Julieta smiled at Mirabel and pulled her closer, cradling her like she used to, she had missed this.

"Dolores, if your parents are with you can you send Agustin up, Isa and Luisa if they want as well, if not that's fine as well" Julieta said, just over a whisper.

A couple minutes later, they joined her, cooing at Mirabel when they saw her.

"What age is she mama?" Luisa asked.

"One, it's the youngest she's been" Julieta said.

"Can I hold her?" Luisa said.

Julieta smiled and nodded.

Luisa gently took Mira, hugging her close.

After about ten minutes Mirabel began to whimper.

"Um Mama, Mirabel is whimpering" Luisa said.

"She must be having a nightmare see if you can wake her." Julieta said, standing to walk to the spare bed Luisa was sat on.

Luisa gently shook Mirabel, waking her.

'Why is luisa here, oh no no no no I regressed, I drank milk from a baby bottle and I have a paci in, how young did I go' Mirabel thought.

Mirabel jumped out of Luisa's arms and flung the pacifier out her mouth before running into the bathroom and locking the door.

'God dammit, I told them no pet names, they made me regress, why?' Mirabel thought as she cried.

She was so embarrassed that's when she felt crinkling on her bottom half.

'No, please say' Mirabel panicked, she pulled the onesie free and sure enough she saw the pull up, it was clean but still.

Mirabel zipped the onesie back up and left the bathroom, pushing past her family before running to the nursery.

She changed into some normal clothes, it wasn't her usual skirt it was a pair of shorts and one of Natalia's hoodies.

She flung the diaper away and left the nursery, pushing past her family again as she walked down the stairs.

She went and sat outside in the backgarden, looking at all the plant Isa had planted, she hadn't used her gift for these ones, she bought the seeds and tended to them everyday.

She put her head on her knees, looking at the ground as she closed her eyes, trying ot think of anything but the fact that she had regressed.

But of course that's the only thing she could think of, she raised her fist, ready to punch the ground in anger.

Her fist flew down but didn't land on the ground, instead it landed in a soft grip.

"You're gonna hurt yourself baby" Agustin said as he sat next to her.

"No pet names" She said, pulling away from him.

"Mira, what happened, are you hurt?" Agustin asked, concerned.

"No" She said, a little too angry.

"I'm going to find Natalia" Mirabel said, standing up.

"You can't, you are sick" Agustin said, standing as well.

"Yeah well, I don't really care that I'm sick, I'm always fucking sick, I don't get better I don't know why I am like this, I just want to die, then I can stop being a waste of space, everyone would get over it" Mirabel said, shaking with anger.

Camilo walked out and saw Mirabel shaking while Agustin tried to calm her down.

"Woah Mira, take a chill pill" Camilo joked.

Mirabel looked up from the ground.

Then she took off, running directly past Camilo, past the living room that had the entire family in it and out the front of Casita, she ran into the forest sitting against a tree as tears fell from her eyes, she screamed angrily and started punching the ground underneath her, not stopping when she felt pain shoot up her arm.

----------------

Natalia had just got back to Casita, putting her bags in the hallway, when Mirabel ran out the door.

Natalia instantly gave chase, loosing her a little into the forest, she stopped to see if she could hear anything, when a scream sounded, just like that she was off.

Natalia got to where Mirabel was and was almost sick when she saw how mangeled her hand looked.

She ripped off her hoody, leaving her only in her sports bra as she pulled Mirabel away from the ground.

"LET ME GO" Mirabel shouted.

"I can't love," Natalia said.

Natalia quickly put her hoody round Mirabel's injured hand to stop the bleeding, quickly grabbing a vine to secure it.

She picked Mirabel up bridal style, holding her tightly so she couldn't struggle out her grip.

A sharp pain came from her wrist as Mirabel bit her, hard.

She yelped but didn't let go.

She found Felix and Pepa in the forest, the family had spread out to look for her.

"Mr Felix, Mrs Pepa, I have her, she is hurt" Natalia said, tears rolling down her face due to the pain, Mirabel still hadn't let go.

"Dolores we have her, get Julieta, she is hurt, so is Natalia" Felix said as heand Pepa rushed to the two.

Felix took Mirabel in a strong grip, though he was careful not to hurt her.

He ran home with her while Pepa walked with Natalia, who was still catching her breath from running, and holding her breath the entire time Mirabel was biting her.

Pepa gently took her hand.

"Do you know why she bit you?" Pepa asked, checking if she had anything to wrap round it.

"I was holding her when she didn't want to be held" Natalia said, untying her bandana.

She wrapped it around the bite tightly before tying it.

Pepa took of the cardigan she had on and gave it to Natalia.

"Thanks, but I'm not that cold" Natalia said.

"I know but, you were wearing a hoody and your hair is down, I know you hate that you are so exposed so that will cover you a little more" Pepa said kindly.

"Thanks Ma'am" Natalia said, pulling the cardigan around her.

"No need to be so formal, you are too polite for your own good" Pepa joked.

"I don't think there is any such thing" Natalia smiled.

Pepa noticed a necklace around Natalia's neck.

"That's a nice necklace" She said.

"Thanks" Natalia said, pulling the chain till she got to the locket.

She popped it open, it had a picture of Nathaniel and herself and on the other side was Her and Mirabel.

"That's your brother right?" Pepa said, looking at the picture.

"Yup." Natalia smiled.

Pepa was still looking at the locket while Natalia looked up.

Natalia shot her hand out and grabbed Pepa's arm, just in time to pull her out the way of walking into a tree.

Pepa yelped out of surprise, but Natalia panicked, she instantly let go of Pepa and backed away, muttering to herself.

"How stupid, audible warnings work too you know, fucking idiot now you hurt Mrs Pepa and you grabbed Mir-". Natalia's rambling was cut off when a hand was placed on her shoulder, making her flinch.

She turned to see Pepa.

"I'm sorry I grabbed you, I could have said 'watch out', I'm sorry if I hurt you, I promise I didn't mean to grab you hard." Natalia said.

"Thank you for pulling me out the way, you didn't hurt me I was just surprised is all, and I was too close to the tree for an Audible warning to work" Pepa said, smiling gently at Natalia.

"Casita is just up ahead, you can see it through the trees, Julieta and Agustin just got in" Pepa pointed out.

"I got presents for everyone" Natalia said.

"You didn't have to do that, but thank you" Pepa said.

"Felix told me what you said y'know" Pepa said.

Natalia blushed, her entire face and neck going red.

"No one except my family as ever thought of my gift that way, even my own Mama doesn't think like that, you really are something special Natalia" Pepa smiled.

Natalia was trying to hold back tears.

'You hear that Nathaniel, I think I've found a new family, I wish you were here with me though, I love you' Natalia thought as she looked at the sky.

Natalia couldn't have sworn she felt arms wrap around her and a hand rustling her hair gently.

She froze, tears making their way down her face.

"He heard me" Natalia said to herself.

Pepa turned at this, seeing Natalia looking at the sky as tears streamed down her face, she was crying but smiling.

"What's wrong Natalia?" Pepa asked.

"He heard me" She repeated.

Just then a lightning bolt crossed the sky, hitting a nearby tree making it glow a bright gold, but not in fire, it's a similar gold to the magic doors of Casita.

Pepa quickly put Natalia behind her as a figure emerged from behind the tree.

"Who are you?" Pepa sade

"Um my name is Nathaniel Lopez, do you know how I got here, the last thing I remember is, getting hit in the head with something" Nathaniel said.

Natalia ran past Pepa and tackled Nathaniel to the ground.

"Talia, is that you" Nathaniel said to the crying girl on his chest.

"Y-you died, you were gone for seven years and you herd me and I missed you and I'm sorry I made that happen" Natalia cried.

"I'm sorry I did that, I did hear you, and I think it's great that you have found people, I am never going to leave you again squirt" Nathaniel laughed as he picked Natalia up.

He was now twenty three.

"Nice to meet you, I am Pepa Madrigal" Pepa said holding out her hand.

(AN, I PROMISE THIS IS ACTUALLY NATHANIEL, NATALIA GOT A MIRACLE OF HER OWN AND I WON'T CHANGE THAT)

"Wait, Madrigal, Oh my god, your the Weather goddess, you and your family are all incredible, thank you, so much for taking care of bunny for me" He smiled as he looked at Natalia.

"Goddess is a bit far but thank you, and Natalia is great to have around" Pepa said.

"Yeah, she's great" He said, gently pulling her head from his neck "And asleep"

Pepa laughed gently.

"Natalia said, you were eight years older than her that would make you twenty three right?" Pepa asked as they got to Casita.

"Yup, I'd better get home with bunny before it gets any later." Nathaniel smiled.

"Oh, yeah, about that, your house burned down, Natalia has been staying here" Pepa said.

"Oh" Nathaniel said.

"Come in, she has a room, it's upstairs" Pepa said.

"Thank's Ma'am" He said as he stepped inside.

As they walked further inside Pepa had them go into the living room to see the family.

Mirabel and Julieta weren't in their, Pepa was told she was healed but was upstairs with Julieta sleeping.

"This is Nathaniel, Natalia's older brother, he is twenty three and is Natalia's Miracle" Pepa explained.

"Um Hi, I'm Nathaniel, I guess I just came back to life, thank you all for looking after bunny" He said.

Bruno stood and shook his hand.

"I'm Bruno, Pepa's triplet, Julieta our other triplet is upstairs with Mirabel, my niece, that's Felix her Pepa's husband, Antonio, Camilo and Dolores are Pepa's children, That's Agustin, Julieta's husband and this is Isabela and Luisa, as I've said Mirabel is upstairs" Bruno explained.

"Nice to meet you all officially, Your gifts are incredible" Nathaniel said.

"Do you want me to show you to Natalia's room?" Pepa asked.

"If you don't mind" Nathaniel said.

They walked into the hallway.

"Oh, let me grab these, they are Natalia's bags she was out earlier" Pepa said, picking up the bags.

"I can take them if you want," Nathaniel offered.

"No it's fine, you are carrying Natalia" Pepa smiled, they entered Natalia's room and he smiled when he saw the punching bag.

He put Natalia on the bed and sat at the foot of it.

"Oh I almost forgot, I will be back in a minute." Pepa said leaving the room.

Nathaniel took Natalia's hand, noticing the bandana, he lifted it seeing the bite on her arm.

Pepa came back with a tray, it had two plates and two cups of water.

"This is food for you and Natalia when she wakes" Pepa smiled.

"Thank you, You wouldn't happen to know why Natalia has a bite mark on her arm would you?" Nathaniel asked kindly.

"Oh yes, Mirabel ran into the forest and Natalia had went after her, she found Mirabel well punching the ground so she stopped her, Mirabel tried to get free by biting her, I do have to say, Mirabel is Natalia's girlfriend and I know Mirabel would never hurt her intentionally, Mirabel has had a few too many bad experiences, she must have not known it was Natalia" Pepa explained.

"I met Mirabel, just before I died, she was so kind and Natalia liked her even though she was only eight and I'm sure Natalia has told you about our troubling past as well, we tried to escape once I shook Natalia from her sleep gently and she grabbed a vase from her bedside table and flung it at me in fright, she thought it was father ot uncle or even mother, she didn't mean to hurt me and she was so upset that she did but I assured her everything was fine, Natalia will not hold it against Mirabel, I feel as though Natalia is more likely to blame herself than Mirabel" Nathaniel said, he showed Pepa a scar on his stomach from when Natalia had flung the vase.

Pepa nodded, they talked a little more then Pepa left.

Nathaniel sat against the wall at the bottom of Natalia's bed, holding her hand as he fell asleep.

---------------

Mirabel had just woken up after being healed, Her Mama was still holding her but was now asleep, Her Papa in bed next to them also asleep, No one else was in the room and the lights were off, It was pitch black.

Mirabel gently pried herself from Julieta's hold and walked silently to the spare bed that sat against the wall.

She sat on it, against the headboard thinking.

She could feel she was cold, it was freezing but she did nothing to help, she just sat looking at her hands

Just a couple hours prior her right hand was mangled, bloody and Broken and a few hours before that her left hand the same, just because she was punching stuff she shouldn't have, just because she lost her temper.

What would've happened if she had lost control with one of her family members nearby, she could have hurt some, not to mention the fact that she did hurt Natalia.

Mirabel's brain wouldn't give her a break, she could feel her chest tighten in the familiar way it always did when she was overthinking.

Suddenly a pair of gently hands wrapped around hers and two more cupped her face.

Mirabel fell forward into one of the people, she didn't care who it was.

The arms wrapped around her as the pair from her face moved to rub her back.

She was silent, she felt numb and she couldn't breathe yet, she wasn't panicking she was oddly relaxed.

"You need to breathe Mira" A voice said.

She took a deep breath, the feeling making her lungs burn.

Her breathing evened out but she still said nothing.

Her face was tilted up gently so she could see her Papa, looking worriedly at her.

"I'm fine, sorry for waking you" Mirabel tried to pull away.

Agustin wrapped his arms around her a little tighter to keep her in place, he could tell by the way she was acting she wanted to be held.

"Please let me go" Mirabel said in a tone even she didn't believe.

"Do you really want me to let go, if you tell me you want space, I will give it" Agustin said.

Mira pushed slightly more into him.

"I didn't even know I was making noise" Mira said "I was trying not to"

"You didn't make any noise, I woke up when you moved off me but I thought you were just going to the bathroom, then I woke up your Papa" Julieta explained.

"I tried to be carful so I didn't wake you, sorry" Mirabel said.

"It's okay baby, we are glad we are awake, you were a little panicked so we are happy we managed to help you" Julieta said.

Mirabel shivered at the pet name.

"Are you cold?" Julieta asked.

"No" 'yes' Her mouth and head said at the same time, she was cold, why wouldn't she tell them.

Agustin and Julieta shared a look.

"I am, would you mind if I had a blanket?" Agustin asked.

Mirabel shook her head.

Agustin pulled Mira closer into his chest before walking to his and Julieta's bed, Julieta following.

He grabbed a blanket and put it over himself, putting it over Mirabel in the process.

He gently tucked it around Mirabel's head like a hood.

Mirabel relaxed into him.

"Did I hurt anyone, other than Talia?" Mirabel asked.

"What do you mean?" Julieta said.

"When I ran off, I remember Camilo telling me to calm down, then nothing until I was punching the ground, did I hurt him?" Mirabel asked.

"No, you didn't hurt anyone and your Tia left food for Talia" Julieta said, not wanting to mention Nathaniel until the morning.

"What time is it?" Mirabel questioned.

"It's about four thirty am" Agustin replied.

"Are you tired?" Julieta asked.

"No" Mirabel said as her eyes drooped closed.

"Do you want me to rub your neck Miraboo?" Agustin said.

Mirabel sleepily nodded.

Agustin shifted so they were under the duvet, Mira tucked in between him and Julieta as he gently started to rub the back of her neck.

Mirabel whimpered a little when Julieta shifted.

"It's okay, I'm not leaving, just turning off the lamp" Julieta said.

Mirabel hadn't even realised it had been turned on but that explained why she could actually see her hands earlier.

Julieta quickly put herself back where she was and wrapped her arms around the girl.

Mirabel quickly got comfortable against Agustin 's chest.

Both adults thought she had fallen asleep, but neither could see her face as it was buried in Agustin's chest.

"She has never regressed so little before, I don't know why she thinks we don't love her, or that we are disgusted by her, but we are going to have to show her we do, and if that means peppering her cute little face with kisses till my lips go numb that is fine by me" Julieta said quietly.

Well if you get the kisses I get to give her all the cuddles she needs, and more" Agustin said.

Mirabel let out a little whine, showing the adults she was awake.

"Ay, sorry baby did we wake you?" Agustin asked

Mirabel shook her head.

"So you heard all that?" Julieta asks.

Mirabel nodded.

"So what do you think then" Julieta asked gently as she pushed a hand through Mira's hair.

Mirabel turned over an looked up at Julieta.

"Ay, you are too perfect Mira" Julieta said as she picked Mirabel up and peppered her face with kisses.

Mira giggled the entire time, thankfully she wasn't too loud.

"Ay, Julieta you're stealing my cuddles" Agustin joked as he pulled both close to him to hold.

Julieta stopped the kisses and held Mira close as Agustin held them both.

Mirabel's giggles stopped as well, she felt fuzzy and kinda little, she began to panic a little.

"Miraboo, whatever you're thinking, don't worry about it, you're safe, It's just Mama and Papa here" Agustin said.

"I can't" Mirabel said.

"You can't what baby, tell me please" Julieta said gently.

"Can't be little, please don't call me 'Baby' "Mirabel cried.

"It's okay Miraboo, you can be little, no one will judge you, it's only Mama and I anyway" Agustin reasoned.

"Can't be little, please let me focus" Mirabel said as she tried to fight regressing.

Then there were hands rubbing her palms gently.

Mirabel tried to pull her hands away , but she didn't really want to, she wanted to regress but she didn't, she had no clue and it was driving her insane.

Then there was a hand on the back of her neck gently rubbing.

If her parents were going to judge her they would have already plus she heard them talking when they thought she was asleep so she allowed herself to slip, Going limp against Agustin as her hands were held by Julieta.

"What age are you baby?" Julieta asked.

Mirabel held up one finger and turned, genlty pulling on Agustin's shirt.

"What do you need baby?" Agustin asked.

Mirabel pushed her head onto Agustin's chest slightly harder.

He got the hint and started cradling her.

Mirabel tried to put her thumb in her mouth put Agustin lightly got her hand.

"You want your Paci?" He asked.

Mirabel nodded.

"Do you want some milk first corazonita?" Julieta asked.

Mirabel nodded again

All three went downstairs, Agustin of course carrying Mira.

Julieta opted for heating the milk in a pot since it was quieter then the loud beeping of the microwave.

It only took a couple minutes longer so Mirabel didn't mind.

Julieta got the bottle and filled it up, it had been cleaned earlier.

She quickly made sure it wasn't too hot before handing the bottle to Agustin.

They made their way back upstairs and into their room.

Agustin got sorted on the bed, relaxing with Mira on top of him as Julieta got in next to them.

Agustin put the bottle to Mirabel's lips and almost Immediately she started drinking it.

The bottle was almost finished when Mirabel fell asleep, Julieta gently putting Mira's paci into her mouth.

"I will get her changed and sorted" Julieta said, gently taking Mirabel into the bathroom she put her in a onesie and pull up, quickly going back to the bed.

Julieta put Mirabel in between her and Agustin, both adults hugging her.

Both soon fell asleep.

-----------------------

When Mirabel woke up she was no longer regressed but very scared, she had a nightmare and couldn't wake up.

So when she did she pushed into Julieta's chest and cried.

"What's wrong Baby?" Julieta asked, subtly waking Agustin behind Mira's back.

The second Agustin touched Mirabel she flinched, trying to get away from the touch.

"Mira, it's just your Papa and I, you're completely safe baby" Mirabel looked and saw it was only her Papa.

She calmed down but still stuck to Julieta.

"What happened Mariposita?" Agustin asked gently.

"Not little, just had a stupid nightmare, I'm fine" Mirabel said.

Mirabel felt panic build up in her again when she could feel that the pull up she was wearing was damp.

"I'm going to the bathroom" Mirabel said standing.

"Are you okay?" Julieta asked.

"Yes Mama" Mirabel said, leaving the room, refusing to use her Mama's bathroom.

She walked to the bathroom down stairs since only she ever really used it.

She got the pull up of, put it in the bin after wrapping it with a lot of toilet Paper and then showered, feeling gross.

She got out and dried herself of before putting the onesie back on, though only for a minute as she headed back upstairs into the nursery, she got changed into some normal pyjamas and put her onesie in her washing basket.