candles to guide you home (Encanto AU)

nine

Mirabel is truly beginning to settle in at home.

She saw Sofia less and less, but she knew she was around by the amount giggling and shrieking she did with her cousins. Her daughter's very loud joy made her feel a little less stressed. Just a couple days ago she was struggling to get her little one to venture out of the room.

The family offered little Sofia a room of her own. It was only down the hallway, but immediately the five year old denied it. She always slept beside her Mamá. That was how she liked it. Mirabel didn't say it loud, but she liked it that way too. Her neña was going nowhere.

Mirabel spent an increasing amount of time with her cousins. Whatever they asked her to do she gladly agreed. She had even played into Camilo's recent prank. Though it was the children who ended up taking blame. They know their tío Camilo was a troublemaker, but the kids were growing fond of their tía Mirabel. They had only known her through photos, and if they were lucky, stories. But the family struggled to tell stories. It made them increasingly aware over the last few years just how long their Mirabel had left.

But now stories were everywhere. Childhood memories explained in dramatic telling, the adults swapping funny stories of their children. Mirabel felt overwhelmingly warm. This was all she ever really needed. It just took a while to come to terms with that.

The only stories Mirabel hesitated to share was the time she spent away. She feared upsetting her family. While she was lonely, she was happy. Mirabel knew that if she hadn't left..that maybe she wouldn't have ever truly recovered. She needed to leave. At least for a little bit.

Mirabel looks around her room. At some point during the last few weeks someone had placed a new sewing machine on the little desk. Mirabel nearly cried at the simple pleasure. She couldn't afford such a lovely gift in the past. She learned to sew swiftly with her hands, and while it perfected her art, it made her a little sad.

All in all, things were moving well. Sofia talks non stop to her favorite cousins, especially Gabriel. He had a sneaky way of getting her little Sofia to participate in reckless activities. He reminded her of her cousin everyday.

Mirabel still sits in her room though. She can hear her family chatting downstairs. Isabela is talking to her husband, David, about a possible date that weekend. Pepa is discussing what she could decorate in the house and Felix is agreeing with everything she says. Somewhere in the mess of the noise she hears Camilo loudly joking about messing with Antonio.

The chatter makes Mirabel feel warm. The time she spent away made her miss it. But even so, she got used to the quiet. While she did work every so often at the school, she spent most of her days catering to Sofia's gentle needs. Which usually weren't very much. The little girl mostly pleaded to read books or dance to music. They dedicated all of their time to each other. And it was seemingly more difficult for Mirabel to adjust than Sofia as they settled in.

Mirabel gathers in thoughts. She looks down at her hands. A sigh escapes her body. "I should go down and join them." Mirabel tells herself. She should watch her daughter run around or sit with her sisters and talk about their love lives and gossip. But she doesn't move.

Mirabel groans and covers her face. She flips back on the bed and lays her arms out wide. The mother opens her eyes and stares blankly at the ceiling. "This shouldn't be hard."

Mirabel frowns her thoughts. It really shouldn't, should it? Questioning thoughts run through her head.

She jumps. Her door opens and she sees her parents standing at the door. Mirabel's smiles shyly, a little blush forming on her soft cheeks. She sits up and brushes off her dress.