Mirabel's Best Friend

9 Years Old

Mirabel was 9 when she found the legs sticking out from under her bed. She blinked confused and glanced down in surprise to see an older version of Casandra, probably 14 or so, with a pillow covering her face.

"Cas?"

She lifted the pillow to glance at Mirabel, "hey Mira."

"Why are you under the bed?" Mirabel asked, confused.

"You and Tio Antonio say it's a good hiding spot," She replied as she covered her face again.

Mirabel glanced at Casita concerned at Cas' actions but Casita shrugged. They were future Casita and had no idea what was up with Cas.

"Why are you hiding?" she asked with concern.

Cas waved Mira under the bed which Mirabel to crawl under noting it was cramp and hoped she never had to go under there with another person again. Cas held out her arm allowing Mirabel to give her the hug she knew she needed and that Mirabel had really wanted to give.

Mirabel pushed the pillow of Cas' face and noticed the tears, "Why are you crying?"

Cas sighed deeply, "I came to you little you to avoid questions...."

Cas almost busted out laughing as Mirabel tried her stern look she said she had been practicing to make Abuela Mirabel, "My....Mom came back..."

That threw little Mirabel for a loop. She hadn't even met Cas' mother and never seen her in all the time she had been visiting. She knew Cas' father had died but all she knew of Casandra and Jaime's mother was 'she was away'.

Whenever she, Hannah, was mentioned it a way that almost like if you mentioned Tio Bruno.

"Isn't....that good?" Mirabel asked confused, she would be happy if Bruno came back.

"I honestly thought it was," Cas cried a little, "But she didn't even know it was me in front of her. I know it had been 7 years but shouldn't she had still recognized her daughter? She didn't bothering learning sign language for Jaime, after 7 freakin years. The first thing she asked for when she saw Abuela? To see Papi...."

Mirabel hugged Cas tighter, "She didn't know Pa had died. I tried to get her to stay. I know Papi is dead but we were still there. We could still be a family....but she left. She came back for Papi not us....and worst she just left Matt too."

Cas would apologize later that night for spilling her heart out to the 9 year old but at the moment she just hugged the tiny version of her grandmother.

That day Mirabel decided she hated Cas' mother and that she would never mention it again to any version of Casandra.

.....

Mirabel was very happy when Marina Madrigal, Dolores' eldest granddaughter, mentioned they should have a slumber party together, all the Madrigal girls that is. Well, grandkids rather.

It wasn't like Mirabel hadn't spent the night in Cas' room before but this was different than just sleeping in Casandra's room because she was too lonely in the nursery. This was like a slumber party, this was how it was before Mirabel's ceremony.

The girls were braiding each other, gossiping about boys, and just enjoying each other's company.

Mirabel glanced at the family tree that Cas had to try to remember who people were.

Marina and Emelina were sisters and the oldest girls, 19 and 16, and Dolores' granddaughter threw her son Victor. Marina was actually floating pillows around setting up while Emelina was setting up blankets.

Then there were Ana, Diana, and Lola. They were also sisters, 15, 13, and 3, and were also Dolore's granddaughters but were the daughters of her son, Ivan. They were sitting on the floor chatting softly as they waited for blankets to be set up.

Finally, sitting happily next to Ana and them were Camilo's granddaughters: Christina, Abigail, and Agate who were 15, 11, and 2. They ironically all were the daughters of his daughter Estela.

"Listen all I'm saying is Maximiano has been a jerk lately," Abigail argued as she watched Agata and Lola playing with some stacking blocks they brought.

"I'm not against it," Marina noted as she finally sat on the floor.

"I am getting tired of his 'as the oldest male of our generation talk'," Diana agreed as well.

"Huh," Mirabel hugged her pillow to her, "Is he that bad?"

Maximiano is one of the few Madrigal she didn't talk to much in this time. But he had seemed...alright...she liked his little brother Julian more.

"He's always being a show off and so proper all the time," Ana muttered looking back down at her book.

"We call him Senor Perfecto," Cas added tiredly.

That earned a laugh from Mirabel, "I call Isa Senorita Perfecta."

"Tia Isabela really?" Marina laughed, "Guess he had to inherited it from somewhere."

As the laughter died down Mirabel thought back tot what they said, "Wait, is Raul not the oldest one? He's older than Maximiano isn't he?"

As a response Christina stood up and walked over to the family tree and pointed to Raul on it, "Yes and no. Raul is closer to our ages, Miguel is too, but they're Tio Antonio's children, not grandchildren so they're technically in our parents' generation."

Mirabel climbed over the now sleeping Cas to look at the wall to see it. She personally had watched Antonio talk with Abuela Mirabel alot and help her around the house but she had never really thought of how he fit into the family till now.

"Wait, Antonio is Tia Pepa's kid?" Mirabel stared at the chart.

"Oh is she not pregnant yet?" Emelina asked surprise.

Mirabel shook her head as she thought about it.

"Oh, the pictures of you and Tio Antonio are so cute from when he was a kid," Ana said, actually putting her book down, "You always teased Tio Camilo that Antonio was your favorite."

She looked at the name on the tree and then thought over the idea.

Someone that would love her with no idea of her "giftlessness", someone to love her, someone to share the lonely nursery with....

.....

Mirabel startled her Tia Pepa and Tio Felix early the next morning by being in there room when they woke up.

"Ah, Mira. Do you need to something?" Pepa asked as Felix try to wave her thunder cloud away.

"I just want to let you know I can't wait for the new baby," the 9 year old smiled, "Me and Tonito will be great friends."

With that she skipped out of the room with a smile.

Pepa and Felix shared a look.

"Are you pregnant?" Felix asked in confusion.

"No, no. I have no idea where she got that from," Pepa replied, thinking of speaking to her sister later.

The joke was on them though as two weeks later when Dolores told Pepa she heard her baby siblings heartbeat.