Chapter Text
The strains and beats of Stephen Schwartz's (originally and still Gregory Maguire's officially) 'Wicked' still filled Mirabel's head- and Bruno's, making them smile almost secretly as they alternately re-flipped through the pages of 'Little Lord Faunterloy' by Frances Hodgsen Burnett of 'A Little Princess' and 'The Secret Garden' and Jane Austen's 'Sense and Sensibility'. Mira idly wondered as she pushed her round green-framed glasses back up the bridge of her nose *again* if the same was still also happening for their cousin/foster sister Emma while she near-voraciously read through 'Vanity Fair' by Thackery the second time since Sunday. (No judgement- it was a *VERY good* read, and she and Bruno did the same thing with their very own favorite tomes! Heck, *Dolores and Luisa* did, as well...)
Kinda doubtful, after the angry alternately whispering and yelling behind closed doors that had only continued after intermission instead of closing the curtain on the first and final act. All three of the Bailey-Madrigal offspring had either read *and READ* to drown out the shouting- or in Mira's and Bruno's cases, also plugged and stuck in earbuds in order to muffle the 'noise, NOISE, *noise*, *NOISE*' via a movie, music, or an *AUDIO-book* ...but neither of the four always worked.
*What exactly* was the argument about??? Apparently, 'Uncle' Tom Cooper's daughter from his *FIRST marriage* before 'Tia' Andrea- Lisette. See, her mama had gotten *REALLY sick* and died, and the only other relative she had besides her father whom she'd *NEVER BEFORE* met was ...well, NO ONE. 'Tia' Andrea had admittedly frantically suggested that Lisette move in with Uncle Tom's mother- thing was, she was EIGHTY. So, pretty old to look after a thirteen-year-old girl... And Uncle Tom absolutely *REFUSED* to even THINK ABOUT the idea of 'foster care for your convenience'.
'Tia' Andrea had been semi-rightfully very worried (like, *BRUNO-level* complete with knocking on wood, throwing salt over one shoulder and sugar over the other, crossing fingers and praying a rosary while going through doorways, avoiding stepping on cracks worried; *YIPES*) about the kind of upbringing that -Lisette had had. He'd SAID that 'Senora' Nicole had more than likely done a 'fine job of raising her', due to having always been a sensible woman ...but Mira still couldn't help but feel a little uneasy any more than Bruno. He'd had pretty big dark eye-circles and looking a little more pale and drawn than usual as of late...
-Had her 'hermano mayor'/'primo' *Seen* something??? Something even SEMI 'bhaaa-haaa-haaad', so to speak?? And if so, then *bad HOW*- and *FOR WHOM*??
He might not do *OFFICIAL prophecies* anymore, but that unfortunately wasn't able to keep his Gift from having him 'dream green' when he wasn't having the usual kinds of dreams- not since he was five years old and opened his door-
Well, whether Bruno had Seen something or not, the end result which ended up in Mira, Bruno, and Emma crouching down in the tree-house that Uncle Tom had built for Emma when she was younger with a book was this: Lisette was coming to stay with them as permanently as Andrea's own semi-distant relatives after their grandmother had thrown them out of the house were. And that was *FINAL* in all capital bright red glowing neon letters.
Mira just hoped that they would all *SOMEWHAT get along*, if only for the adults' sakes, as they sat in wait on a fairly sunny Friday afternoon in the Bailey tree-house painted a dark green with comfort food for their minds and souls in their hands after school on a Friday, a couple of Bruno's rat 'amigos' perched on either his shoulders or in his hair if they weren't snuggled up in his ruana, shirt, or vest pockets. (Even though 'Tia' Andrea was not too fond of rats, mice, and other kinds of rodents any more than Uncle Tom, he'd been allowed to keep four or five of his furry friends provided that he and Mirabel took good care of them still. More than 'Abuela' had allowed, even though their mamas and papas had in secret; the remaining pack stayed with Bruno's mama, older sister, and younger brother, who also especially had a fondness for aforementioned actually clean, smart, sweet, and cute animals.)
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Just then, a battered white economy car with patches of rust on it that were so big it looked like a metallic not very friendly calico cat pulled into the Bailey-Cooper driveway. Brusquely yet as kindly as possible, the door opened and disgorged its contents of a girl about Emma's and Mira's age and taller than them both (skinnier, too), a carry-on, a black plastic garbage bag, and-
That should have been it, right? *NOPE*. *No, no, Nanette*!! *It WASN'T*.
Mira and Bruno GAPED with blown-wide eyes and dropped jaws when *ANOTHER girl* slowly climbed out of the car with a backpack, purse, and suitcase of her own plus a cat carrier. (Esme, Luz, Ernesto, Gabby, and Rosita squeaked and trembled in understandable alarm at that last.) A girl who seemed younger than Mira and Emma plus the other new girl but not by much- and crying just as hard as Lisette, though a bit more quietly as she and Lisette dragged their respective belongings across the bright green lawn once the car that had brought them there started up their engine and drove away.
Mira cleaned her glasses even though she had done so after lunch that day, and Bruno pinched his arm until it bruised. But still the other girl didn't fade away to reveal her as nothing more than a mirage brought on by the brightness and heat of the afternoon in Florida. Not that they *wanted her to*-! They just *had NOT* been expecting someone *WITH Lisette*, okay??
Both girls' heads were down, so neither Bruno, Mira, or Emma could see even just a bit of either of their faces. What they COULD see alongside their clothes was their hair, heights, and builds. Lisette's was practically an exact replica of Princess Aurora AKA Briar Rose's' from Disney's adaptation of 'Sleeping Beauty' whether animated or live-action- 'gold of sunshine' and spiraling to her waist. The other girl's was as black and shining as a raven's wings ...like Isa's but a little thicker and just a bit wavy, and ending just a little below the small of her back.
They were both skinny, though Lisette more possessed a lithe ballerina grace, and the other girl was near-scrawny (thought not in a *WORRISOME way*) yet slender.
Lisette, in her black dress a size too small and black sneakers a size too big plus *ONLY* her carry-on and a *black plastic garbage bag* likely holding the rest of her worldly belongings, had apparently been 'poor as a church mouse'- literally. The other 'nina', by contrast, looked as though she had been most likely comfortably middle-class- or just very modestly rich. -But why wasn't Lisette trying to comfort her even just a little bit ...and why was the other girl *edging away from* Lisette as though she'd bite, kick, or slap her???
It gave Mira a gut-sinking feeling that Bruno mirrored to the point of 'knock on wood'.
Lisette stopped to check a hole in her makeshift suitcase. It had something sticking out of it- a bit of pretty lightly-sparkling sapphire-colored fabric that Mira longed to see in full (though she forced this to the back of her mind with a reproving shove). Her hand moved to stuff it back in -but instead, lingered on it; *lovingly and longingly stroking it*. And that was when she began to sob aloud, the other girl doing her best to swallow back her own aloud tears for some reason or other.
Much as they kind of as much as Tia Andrea were worried, it still *HURT* Bruno's and Mira's souls to hear and see that. More than likely, whatever the bit of sapphire-colored fabric was attached to had belonged to *her mama*, and given the state of her cargo, was probably one of *the ONLY* things that she had of her left besides a couple of photos.
Emma stayed rooted (heh) inside the tree-house pressing her face hard against the slippery slats of the floor, but Mira and Bruno quietly shimmied down the ladder, though not yet approaching Lisette or their surprise guest. Give them both a little more time- let them try to breathe a bit...
Even down on the ground, the exiled Madrigals still couldn't see either girls' faces. Oh- by now, Lisette had pulled the piece of fabric from the hole in the bag, which turned to be a simple but pretty shawl. She sniffed it deeply before draping it around her stooped shoulders and then knotted the broken bag, dragging it the rest of the way to the doorstep, the dark-haired girl wearing a T-shirt the color of blackberry juice with a medley of black-and-white Tim Burton characters on the front underneath a cream-colored lightly-embroidered shawl of her own, dark grey slightly worn semi-shorts, white socks, and just-her-size black sneakers trailing behind.
Lisette rang the doorbell. Nobody answered- Uncle Tom was at work still, and Tia Andrea was out either on errands or doing some 'recreational shopping', if not both. She rang a few more times. When there was still no reply, she sat down on the black garbage bag that she had set down by the door and cried some more- great racking sobs that shook her shoulders. The other 'nina' was in the same situation, though Mira and Bruno felt slightly differently ...as though it had by now *FULLY* been *SLAMMED into* her that she was no longer wherever she had lived before- could NEVER go home again for whatever reason.
Mira bit down on her bottom lip to keep it from trembling and Bruno swallowed hard as their hazel and deep green eyes stung and watered from both painful memories and this present heart-wrenching scene. Had she too, for some 'reason' or another, been disowned and kicked out of her own home for something that she COULDN'T *help*??? -Or, like Lisette, had one or both of her parents died, and she had nowhere else to go save for *with STRANGERS* i. e. foster care?? Honestly, they didn't know which was the lesser of two evils -so to speak-.
All four of them (nine, counting Bruno's and Mira's rats) sat or stood that way for a long while until the air was (semi)quiet again. It was only then that Emma was able to climb down herself- though funny enough, instead of walking toward the porch as her cousins/foster siblings were doing, she went in the *OPPOSITE direction* toward the street. *WEIRD*, but semi-understandable, given when Mira and Bruno had seen, heard, and observed before and after 'Wicked' and Swenson's.
Just as all three Bailey-Madrigals reached either the porch or the end of the driveway, the two new members of the family looked up. Lisette stared Emma full in the face and smiled through her tears. In contrast, the other girl did so shyly and shakily, her own sunshine beam trembling from crying so much. Mira and Bruno saw so much of themselves plus Lu, 'Lores', 'Juli', and Pepa in her it wasn't even remotely funny!
-That is, once they got over the *SHOCK* they received once they got a good look at her own face.
"Kno- No, no- *nevermind*. *NO, Bruno*- that might be *REALLY* OFFENSIVE to her! Umm, Mira??? -Is it *just me needing your glasses*, ...or are we both actually seeing what we're seeing??"
"'S *NO* dream, heat mirage, or figment of either of our imaginations, Brunito. *We're actually seeing i- I mean, HER*..."
Both Lisette and the dark-haired girl had big tassel-lashed blue eyes set in a heart-shaped face, but the younger 'nina's' was also a bit more rounded in addition and framed by a flop of thick black bangs that matched the rest of her own long hair, and the shade of her own optics was lighter and brighter. It was a *VERY* FAMILIAR face- one usually said to be *male*, and 'normal'-looking upon their owner becoming a 'Real Boy' instead of a- a....
*Pinocchio's* pale cheeks striped and stained from furrows of tears flushed an embarrassed abashed shade of red at Mirabel's and Bruno's flabbergasted expressions, and she shrugged her own small thin shoulders a bit. "Y-Yeah... I'm- I'm- Heh! It's- *'s ME*. *Really truly*."
Neither Madrigal sibling could think of what to *POSSIBLY say* in response, until Bruno finally timidly ventured, "Are- Are you *related to* Lisette?? The- The girl who's come to live with us now that- u-um, you-know?"
Pinocchio bit her lower lip as pale apple-blossom-pink as Lisette's were naturally Slurpee-red (a little fuller and larger, too) and swallowed hard before blinking the same way, thumbing the creamy fringe on the edge of her shawl. "Uh- Uh-huh," she nodded timid, tight, and HURT. Her expressive cerulean orbs for eyes welled up afresh, though she did her best to hold them back. "She's- She's- Um... Y-You might wanna watch out for her, 'f she doesn't just ignore ya both entirely."
'Uh-oh...' "Lemme guess. LITERAL *actual* 'Senorita Perfecta' who *ENJOYS* and *DOESN'T feel stifled* by aforementioned label?" Mira tried her best not to groan or say flatly even if she rolled her eyes.
The former *puppet-GIRL'S* silence was louder than any words or even a scream ...to the point where Bruno wondered worriedly if he ought to try a Vision later tonight after everyone else sans Mira was sound asleep.
"U-Um... In- In case you're wondering, P-'Pinocchio's' st-still my actual name; it's- 's not a *dead-name*. G-Gi-'Giuseppina' just didn't really fit me, and- and 'PINOCCHIA' 's just a *FLAT-OUT* SOLID 'no thanks'!"
Mira and Bruno grinned both bright yet kind at her. "G-*Got it*!" Bruno stammered.
"Gr-'Grazie'. Th-Thank you..."
Mira could have *KICKED herself* for what next came out of her mouth, and she was immediately ready to apologize for it. "Are- Are you-?? A-Are you on the Spectrum?"
But strangely yet thankfully, 'Signorita' Pinocchio wasn't at all offended, shyly admitting with a fiddle of her shorts hem and pushing back of her hair behind her ear, "B-B-Both, actually. And- And *NO*, F-Fa-Father didn't- didn't mind, n-nor Zia Chiara or Jim-Jiminy. Fath- F-Father was an Ally, Z-Zietta Chia's a happily-married 'sapphic', and J-Jiminy's bi/pan."
She was stuttering pretty badly over Signor Geppetto's parental moniker, but not in a way as Mira and Bruno did *HER'S* if they ever deigned to talk about her or the rest of 'la familia Madrigal'. Which *MUST* mean-
Pinocchio saw the wild unhappy guess in Mira's and Bruno's own big eyes, and nodded sadly while futilely brushing away a new wave of tears. "F-Father g-got *AWFUL s-sick*, and d-didn't get better. My- My semi-mama doesn't- doesn't really care about me, a-and my other one d-died after bein' ill for an awful long time too. I couldn't- I couldn't come t' live with Zia Chiara b'cause *there's RULES* for a Wishin' Faerie 'n their families 'nless the younger relative's *a COMPLETE ORPHAN*, so- so I'm- now 'm HERE with L-Lisette 'n my kinda 'patrigno'- step- stepfather. Pl-Plus- Plus you two 'n *HIS family*..."
Mira had never SO *BADLY* in her life wanted to pull someone into a warm gentle hug! But she had to force herself to stop and *WAIT*. More often than not, people on the Autism Spectrum didn't much care for being touched by others outside of their family- sometimes, not even much their own 'familia'.
"Y-You- You can t-touch my shoulder, 'f you want. At- At first. I don't- I don't mind touch 'r hugs..."
"You'd just prefer them to be *gentle*?" Bruno murmured understandingly, since he was the same way along with his elder sister-turned-Mama after Casita had attempted to help fix the *CRACKS* in 'la Familia Madrigal' to no avail, as A-Ab-Abuela was STILL *holding on TOO TIGHT* to the point of one *CHOKING*.
Pinocchio nodded, a bit less timidly than before.
So Mira reached out to gently touch her shoulder, and Bruno carefully took a hold of her small fingerlessly-gloved hand (the gloves also black as well as either cotton or linen) before playfully raising it to his lips and kissing the back of it like a dashing loyal knight with a fair lady back in 'ye olden days'. "Salutations and greetings, milady! 'Enchante'! This lovely lady is Princess Mirabel Madrigal, and I am her favorite uncle-turned-elder cousin and adopted brother Prince Bruno. Um- eh... H-Heh! L-*LONG story*."
Mira snorted quietly and playfully glared at Bruno, though her Friendly Ghost of a smile turned into a ray of sunshine filtering through the leaves at the sound of Pinocchio's soft merry giggles of laughter a cross between a cute little mouse or rat squeaking and a tinkle of Christmas bells either golden, silver, or crystal, her large bright blue eyes now sparkling like the Wishing Star and Second to the Right in her once literal-dollface despite being swollen and red from a surfeit of grief owing to her sweet gentle beloved father whom she loved more than the world ten times over and vice-versa.
"Pl-Pleased t' meet ya both, P-Prince Bruno- Pr-Princess Mirabel!" she curtsied prettily in turn.
Mira could tell that she *WELL knew* Bruno was only joking- kind of (the Madrigals WERE *the founding family* of the Encanto, and therefore sorta were royalty to a point). But 'Nocchi was going along with it just to make them smile as well, the 'carina' (sweetheart)...!
She then saw the books in their hands. "Oh! Th-Those 're real good books- just 's good as their more popular 'family members'!"
The 'outcast' Madrigals sensed a kindred spirit as keenly as Anne Shirley in just about everything they themselves were interested in. One little thing, though...
"U-Um... Do- Do you mind r-rats, at all?? Only- Only you've got *a CAT CARRIER* with you, which I'm assuming is currently housing Figaro..."
"Uh-uh! I actually *LIKE rats 'n mice*, and not just in 'Redwall', 'Cinderella', 'Secret of NIMH', and 'Ratatouille'- plus 'Ben and Me'. And Figaro's feisty, but he's *a SWEETHEART*- aren't you, Figgy? He didn't hurt Cleo, so he DEFINITELY won't hurt, um... Wh-What are their names, 'per favore'?"
"This is Esme- this is Luz; they're littermates. This is Ernesto (don't worry- MUCH *nicer* and much more loyal than *DE LA SUCKS/CREEP* his namesake sorta)- this is Rosita, and this is Gabby."
Hopefully, even if none of the Cooper or rest of the Bailey family were just a little bit warm and welcoming to her, the Madrigal branch of George's descendants could help to heal Pinocchio emotionally...