Outside the Encanto

Hidden in the Treetops

You're left standing there, afraid of what to do. You take a seat on an empty bed, waiting for instruction.

The wails of the child is almost too much for you, reminds you too much of your own mothers loss. You frequently glance at the kid, who's tattoos aren't even prominent yet. In fact, you don't see a single one on him.

"Ah man, I hate this. I truly hate this job." The man says, sitting so tiredly.

"Honestly Dante, who likes it? There's no freaking way anyone could like it." The woman rolls her eyes, leaning against the incinerator brick.

"You're the one who came up with this, Ayla." Dante reminds her.

"Doesn't mean I like it! Besides, we had to find a way to dispose of them, and the place was getting crowded. Remember what Señora Alma said? The curse could kill us all!" Ayla argues, turning to face him.

"Let me go!" The little boy shouts, struggling against his chains, although everyone else has fallen asleep.

"Quit your yappin, kid. It's what got you into this mess in the first place." Dante snaps at the boy, who quiets down. He looks at you with pleading eyes, and you look away.

"Why's the kid here anyway? He doesn't got the marks." You ask, looking towards both of them.

"God Èva, we've been over this. The kid followed us here, saw the dying people, and ran out. Lucky we caught him, or he woulda told the entire Encanto." Ayla rolled her eyes, crossing her arms.

"My Papas coming for me!" The boy shouts, only to recoil when Dante makes a move toward him.

"Your Papas dead, little boy." Ayla laughs. She opens up the incinerator slightly. "Bout time we burn another one, right?"

"No man, it's break time. We got fifteen minutes before we gotta do anything else. Èva, you mind staying here til we get back?" Dante asks, stretching as he stands.

"Yeah no, that's cool. I'll take break when you get back." You respond, afraid to say no. That incinerator did not look fun, and this dude was huge.

The two exit the area, leaving you alone with the dying and the boy.

In one fleeting instance, you know exactly what you have to do. You go over to the boy, who screams when he sees you coming closer.

"Shh! I'm gonna get you out of here." You say, unstrapping his restraints.

"Hold your breath, alright?" You tell the boy, and he takes a deep breath.

You lift him onto your back, and sprint down the hallway, back through the crowd of the cursed people. Several people beg you to take you with them, but others just smile, knowing you're saving a life from the incinerator.

"What're you doing, hey!" Another masked man yells out, alerting at least five other medics.

You pick up the pace, knowing that under the cover of darkness the white suit would stick out. Once near the tree line, you put down child down and hurriedly strip the suit off of you. You roll the skirt up and tie it around your stomach, so that you waist and legs can move faster.

You kneel down, letting the kid hop of your back again, and sprint into the trees. You keep going until you begin to hike upwards, knowing you've reached the border. You hike upwards until you find a stable branch, and carefully put the child down.

You test the branch, and decide it's good enough. The boy takes your hand, and together you carefully walk on the branch, going around the tree and onto another, thicker base with a double branch sticking out.

"We're gonna hang here for a while, okay?" You whisper, sliding down the base and perching yourself in a slight dip between the trunk and the branch.

You open your arms, allowing the boy to cuddle closely to you as the chilly night air settles onto your skin. You hold him tight, like a mini furnace keeping you company.

As the night continues to freeze your bodies, you pull your skirt over to your neck, like a ruana of some sort.

"You should've just let me stay there." The boy whispers, shivering underneath your skirt.

"No, of course not sweetheart." You whisper back, pulling him closer. The fake ruana holds in a ton of heat, keeping you warmer.

"My family's all gone. I have nobody to take care of me." He sighs, burying his nose into your chest.

"What's your name?" You ask, looking down at his shivering figure.

"Filipe." He answers, looking up at you aswell.

"Tell me about yourself."

"I'm 10 years old, I'm an only child, I'm starting defense for my class soccer team, oh, and I love sea salt caramel and coffee ice cream!" Filipe giggles.

"I heard something!" Someone shouts from below, effectively shutting you both up.

"Where's it coming from?" Another person yells, coming closer to you.

You can feel Filipe shaking next to you, this time not from the cold. You pull him closer, focusing on keeping your breathing light.

Several people had passed by your tree, looking in bushes, tipping over boulders, even in a few low branches. But never up.

Eventually they all left, after you realized the sun was peaking out from the horizon. You gracefully put your skirt back on normally, and got Filipe on your back. You climbed down the tree, carrying him as he nearly fell asleep.

You carefully make your way back to your medical wing, where the room is empty. You let Filipe down, planning to hide him underneath your bed for the time being.

"I'll bring you food and water, okay? And this here is the bathroom, but don't leave this room. I'll try to find us a living space of our own, and we can stay there instead." You explain, placing your spare sheets and blanket underneath your bed.

"Y/n, am I gonna be killed?" Filipe asks, crawling underneath your mattress.

"No, I won't let that happen. So- hold up, I didn't tell you my name."

"Of course I know your name, I'm from the poor section of town too. Marco used to babysit me all the time!"

"Oh." You frown, wondering how you'd never met him before. Not to mention Marco was always out with his friends, so when did he have time to babysit kids?

"I'm gonna sleep now." Filipe takes the blanket and lies on top of it, and instantly passes out.

You sigh, and snuggle down on your mattress, ready to fall asleep.

Mirabel came bursting into the room, panting and nearly falling over. You shoot up instantly, quickly getting out of bed. You go over to hold her shoulders, staring into her eyes.

"What's wrong?" You ask, holding a steel grip.

"Your father.. he's.. escaped."