Englishman in the Encanto

Hoping to cool off his irritation over the Madam’s behaviour, Sirius went to get a glass of water from his room after his little display to Mirabel.

The girl had gasped when he’d motioned for her not to say anything and had nodded quickly, so Sirius was quite sure that she wouldn’t say anything but even if she did, no matter, Sirius thought. Since he hadn’t had a chance to say anything when conversing with all the adults together, he was waiting to speak and now his status as a wizard was hanging in the balance.

He’d immediately understood what kind of people these were, and Madam Madrigal kept the household going with an iron fist. He knew he would cause more harm than good if he were to go to speak to someone else in the family without her blessing and these people had been kind to him, so he didn’t want to disrupt their life more than he already was.

Someone, most probably Julieta, had left a snack for him, one of those things called buñelos but Sirius wasn’t hungry at the moment and everyone kept insisting that he join them at the party that evening anyway.

He drank the water and lay on the bed for a few minutes, before a squeak called his attention.

He sat on the bed and looked at the bedside table, where a rat was standing on its hind legs looking at him expectantly.

“Oh, hello there.”

The rat squeaked at him, as if in greeting, “Are you trained?” Sirius asked.

The rat squeaked again, then looked at the buñelos and back at Sirius.

“Yes, you can have it,” Sirius answered the soft request. He started getting to his feet then paused and turned to see that the rat was already dragging the food away, “Wait,” the rat looked up, “I arrived here with a big predator, half horse and half eagle. Have you seen him?” the rat squeaked what was clearly a no, “Do something for me,” the rat squeaked in agreement, “See if you can find him and let me know in exchange for food. But if you find him, don’t get too close, he eats rats.”

The rat agreed and Sirius let it scurry away with its prize.

A moment later, Dolores knocked on his door to let him know that they would be ready for the ceremony soon and it took Sirius one look at her to know that she knew. She merely smiled at him and, much like he did with Mirabel, she put a finger on her mouth and squeaked.

Sirius grinned at her, “Thank you, dearie,” he said quietly.

Dolores took her time to accompany him out of his room, telling what the ceremony would entail.

She then left him to join her family and Sirius looked for a secluded spot to see what this ‘ceremony’ was all about.

He glanced out of the window and saw Camilo shift in every single person that arrived, welcoming everyone with a hug. Sirius smiled, the boy was the kind of person that made everyone smile: he reminded him of James a lot.

He scowled when he saw Luisa literally pulling a person down a donkey, and put the donkey inside the fence just outside the house. What? This man couldn’t even get off the donkey by himself? Sirius might have been a little irritated with the man already since it was the same man with the ‘not special special’ basket earlier that day. He still felt ticked off on Mirabel’s behalf.

He ended up once again at the corner near Dolores’s room, in front of the painting with the teapot. He didn’t know why but the smell there was so comforting to him. It gave him peace and it filled his heart with a sweetness he hadn’t known in years. A sense of longing and of belonging. If it was up to him, he’d live here for the rest of his days. His heart broke at the mere thought that one day soon this smell would not be available to him but he knew he couldn’t impose on the Madrigals for too long.

He leaned over the railing, fingers intertwined, and watched the crowd that had formed downstairs. Everyone was looking expectantly at a red curtain. Sirius spotted the rest of the Madrigals all huddled near the stairs in a privileged position to see what was happening.

On the first floor with Sirius but opposite him were only Madam Madrigal and Pepa and Félix. They were standing in front of an unformed glowing door and the matriarch was holding a candle.

Sirius watched from a distance. Dolores had just told him about the ceremony and how it would go so Sirius knew what to expect but Pepa looked terrified and it seemed too much to him. What? Was the child’s life going to be ruined if he didn't get a magical gift? Sure, Mirabel hadn't gotten one but she was a fine young woman if anyone asked Sirius.

And sure enough Antonio appeared when the red curtain parted.

The poor boy clearly had stage fright, Sirius could tell just by looking at the boy’s worried expression.

He supposed it was much worse than the Sorting Ceremony at Hogwarts, where, sure, there were a lot expectations, especially when it came to pureblood families who had been in the same house forever (trust Sirius to be the one to break tradition, he’d been delighted to be the first Gryffindor in a usually Slytherin family), but it wasn’t like you were going to lose your powers if you didn’t get in the ‘right house’ (the question was always to define the ‘right house’).

From Dolores, Sirius had learnt that this was the first ceremony since the one in which Mirabel hadn’t gotten her gift so not only was Antonio worried about being in the spotlight, he was worried about what gift he would get or if he would get one at all. That was a lot of pressure for a five-year-old boy.

He saw Antonio extend a hand in complete silence and after a moment Mirabel turned up, stared at the crowd miserably, then spoke softly to Antonio and walked with him.

Sirius cringed. The boy was too adorable to do anything with malice, surely he hadn’t considered the meaning of asking Mirabel something like this. Even from this distance, he could see Mirabel’s face and she wasn’t smiling.

The poor girl was pale and stone-faced and Sirius admired Mirabel’s courage at facing this whole crowd and still being there for her little cousin, comforting him as he walked to his door. If she got Sorted at Hogwarts, Gryffindor was certainly an option for her. She stood next to Pepa and Félix who were anxiously looking on – it was so very melodramatic, if anyone bothered to ask Sirius. They were hugging each other like they were about to get the results of a medical test to see if their child had a terrible disease. And they were standing right next to their niece!

“Do you swear to serve this community and strengthen our home?”

At five years old? Sirius tensed, not believing what he was hearing from Madam Madrigal’s mouth.

Of course, the boy agreed and went on to touch the doorknob! What five-year-old wouldn’t with the promise of a magical gift? It wasn't like they could understand the implications of an oath.

Where everyone was amazed and looked on in wonder – Sirius wondered about what, hadn’t they seen this kind of ceremony loads of times before? – Sirius inspected the magic with interest, filing information for later.

He grinned when a toucan perched itself on Antonio’s shoulder and the boy talked to the animal. That was certainly rare but some wizards could talk to animals.

The door flashed with light and a carving of Antonio surrounded by animals was now depicted on it.

“We have a new gift!”

Madam Madrigal announced happily and everyone cheered.

Sirius followed the crowd to inspect Antonio’s new room and it was amazing, creating a jungle – a true jungle in which all kinds of animals had run into at the first chance, mingling with the Madrigals and the townspeople.

It was truly interesting, Sirius thought. He knew he was the only one not wondering at the magic but rather wondering at how it worked, analysing it in detail. Certainly, he was out of practice studying but, much like the rest of his friends (except Peter), Sirius had always had a brilliant mind, be it now obviously troubled by his stay in Azkaban. It was very refreshing to see magic working in such a different way than what he was used to, though he’d seen rooms modified in ways not unlike this.

“I knew you could do it!”

Sirius’s attention was called once again on the Madrigals and on Madam Madrigal, who cupped Antonio’s chin in her hands.

“A gift, just as special as you are.”

Out of the corner of his eyes, Sirius saw Mirabel hanging around the townspeople at the family event, though she wasn’t participating in any conversation. He felt for the girl, it must be excruciating.
“We need a picture!” called Madam Madrigal as Sirius looked on with his arms crossed, leaning against the door-frame, away from the townspeople, “Come! Come, come, come!”

Everyone was laughing and cheering and they huddled together to watch as the Madrigals all posed, showing off their powers, those who could. Sirius cocked an eyebrow at the display.

Even Agustín and Félix were there, beaming.

All of them, except Mirabel, Sirius noticed suddenly. He looked around but she wasn’t there anymore.

Sirius hung back. Should he go after her? He quickly decided not to. The girl was clearly upset and Sirius didn’t know her well enough to invade her personal space without seeming creepy. He’d been creepy enough when he'd broken into the boy's dormitory in Gryffondor tower with a kitchen knife, he’d hold off on being creepy with a young girl: a sexual harassment misunderstanding was not what he needed when he was a guest in this house, thank you very much.

He opted to go to the bathroom, to freshen up.

Even Julieta had noticed that her food wasn’t healing him as fast as it usually worked. Since her food had cured his physical wounds, Julieta had expressed her theory that his health (i.e. the starvation and general condition after Azkaban) was to be taken care of slowly and one day at a time and that was why she’d insisted for him to stay, until she was satisfied that he was healthy. Sirius also suspected that he was a new challenge for her, something that she didn’t see every day, since she’d told him that she was used to general everyday wounds and injuries like gashes and broken bones, so she was interested in him for that reason too.

He took his time in the bathroom. He’d probably gotten a bit carried away with the beverages at the party, though it had seemed impolite for him to refuse Félix’s continuous requests to refill his glass. The man was clearly celebrating his son’s accomplishment.

As he dried his face with a towel Julieta had told him had been left for him, Sirius looked up at his reflection in the mirror sharply when an odd feeling caught his attention.

He frowned, not really sure what had caused him to look up but his eyes widened when something in the mirror caught his eye.

Was that a crack?

Sirius turned and indeed it was a crack as clear as day on the bathroom wall. As ice breaking when one steps on a frozen lake, the crack snaked its way on the wall under Sirius’s shocked stare and he stood there spell-bound until the cracking sound got a bit louder and he grabbed his wand.

He passed it in front of the crack, examining it carefully.

“Reparo,” he said quietly but decisively.

It didn’t work.

Sirius paused, then tried again.

He tried other spells but nothing worked. He just stood there, stroking his bearded chin with his fingers, to see what he could do, till, to his surprise, the cracks slithered back and vanished just as quickly as they had appeared.

Something was wrong with this house and Sirius didn’t know what.

He wasn’t sure about what to do. He knew he had to say something to the Madrigals but how to approach the situation? He was only a guest in their house and even knowing his situation they were welcoming and hospitable. He had a guess that Madam Madrigal was the kind of woman that was kind but also very hard-headed and she already didn’t like having him around very much.

Perhaps he could approach Julieta and her sister Pepa? The first was the one to insist on him staying until he felt better so she clearly had a better disposition towards him, though Pepa he couldn’t read. With her volatile mood she kind of reminded Sirius of himself – no, he was not going to say his damn mother because Pepa obviously didn’t have a bad bone in her body.

He was startled out of his thoughts by someone banging on the bathroom door and Sirius quickly left the room, to see a tall black man, who Sirius thought was named Josè.

“Ay, sorry to hurry you, Señor!” the man said hastily before rushing inside.

He really had to pee, Sirius thought with a grin, and looked around when he noticed that many people were getting out of Antonio’s new room.

Sirius saw Mirabel in the centre of the yard, her grandmother following her, and everyone looking around. Had they seen the cracks as well?

“What? But – they were here!” Mirabel looked around anxiously, “Abuela, I promise you –!”

Madam Madrigal raised her hand to hush her. She turned around and spoke, “There’s nothing wrong with La Casa Madrigal! The magic is strong! And so are the drinks! Music! A bailar! A bailar!”

Sirius’s jaw dropped to the floor in surprise. Did the woman just drink-shame her fifteen-year-old granddaughter?

He stayed frozen to the spot, gaping, as he watched everyone cheer, and Luisa held out a piano for Agustín to play, both sporting matching embarrassed smiles.

Everyone filed back into Antonio's room to continue the party, leaving Mirabel alone in the middle of the yard, completely abashed. Only Julieta stayed and once everyone was gone she joined her daughter into the yard, leading her into the kitchen. The last to enter Antonio’s room was Isabela, who cast a long reproachful look at her younger sister before scoffing and going with the others. Sirius scowled. What was the girl’s problem with her sister?

Sirius lingered in front of the bathroom door: he didn’t want to impose on what was clearly a mother-daughter moment, one that Mirabel needed.

The tall black man came out of the bathroom and gave Sirius a cordial smile before running back to the party. Sirius considered following him, but decided against it and went back to the spot he liked, the one with the lovely smell.

The smell lingered but it was faint enough that Sirius doubted anyone but him and animals could smell it. Sirius took comfort in it for a couple of minutes, then gathered his wits about him and went to Julieta and Mirabel in the kitchen.

They were talking when he arrived.

“Mira, my brother Bruno lost his way in this family,” Julieta was saying in a grave tone, “I don’t want the same for you. Get some sleep, you’ll feel better tomorrow.”

Sirius heard Mirabel heave a sigh and a moment later she was out of the kitchen. She looked defeated and she gave him a dejected look, as if ready for someone else to reject her worries.

Sirius smiled at her and patted her shoulder, winking at her.

As if in reflex, which was probably the case, Mirabel gave him a small smile before leaving him to enter the kitchen.

For a moment, Sirius stood on the door-frame, overwhelmed when he caught the scent he liked so much from upstairs. Here in the kitchen too? He wondered if it was Julieta, but he’d been in her company more than once and her scent hadn’t enticed him so much…

Julieta was standing by the counter, pinching the bridge of her nose as her shoulders shook. She was clearly upset. Sirius hesitated, maybe this wasn’t the moment to bother her, but the party was still going on strongly and Sirius doubted anyone would come comforting the woman anytime soon. He knocked softly on the door-frame.

She gave a trembling gasp and looked up, immediately trying to look happier than she felt.

“Oh, hey!” she called with a smile, “What can I do for you?”

Sirius waved her away quickly, “Nothing, don’t mind me. I’m not used to too much noise anymore, I needed a respite so I came for some water,” he paused, “But I can leave if –”

“No, no! I could use some company,” she said quickly, “You look peaky. Chocolate santafereño?”

“I’d be a fool to refuse.”

Julieta smiled and went on to prepare two servings, one for her and one for him. He watched her work in silence, wondering if people usually stopped to talk to her or just left her alone in the kitchen.
When she put the mug in front of him, Sirius took it, “You look worried,” he told her simply.

“It’s nothing,” she said quickly but Sirius cocked an eyebrow at her, and her smile faltered, “Mirabel reminds me of my brother,” when Sirius paused, the mug of hot chocolate inches from his mouth, Julieta’s lips curved upwards, “Who?”

“Dolores.”

“I should have known,” Julieta said gently, “She liked him a lot. She was very upset, kept saying he was still here. We looked but she was mistaken.”

“She said you don’t talk about him,” he replied.

“We don’t.”

“Can I ask why?”

“He disappeared ten years ago,” Julieta replied with a sigh, “Mamá and Pepa are the ones who decided not to talk about him at all. I don’t agree but I do miss him and it’s difficult to even think about him so it’s easy to go along with it. I don’t know what happened – but I can’t blame him for leaving. Things weren’t easy for him here. Even before he left, he lived almost secluded in his room. But not knowing – not knowing where he is, if he’s well – there’s always hope, isn’t there? And if he’s happy I would be happy too but not knowing –”

“I know.”

Sirius looked at Julieta, blinking, shocked that he’d spoken out loud. But he did know and maybe Julieta was the right person to confess to.

“My younger brother, Regulus,” he explained slowly, turning his attention to the mug in his hands, “He and I didn’t see eye to eye at all and he made all the wrong choices. He disappeared fifteen years ago. I don’t know how it happened exactly but even though his body was never recovered, I know for certain that he died. Still, that time not knowing – the idiot made all the wrong choices. Soft, soft enough to listen to our parents and all those rants…”

Julieta listened intently, though she didn’t press for more when his voice trailed off.

It was something Sirius had never voiced before, and she looked familiar with bottling feelings up. He’d been heartbroken when he had to leave his person too but his person only left him positive feelings and the heartbreak came from the absence of this person from his life whereas when he talked about his brother there was anger, guilt and regret. He might have never said anything but twelve years in Azkaban were a long time to ponder his failings and to wonder if things could have been different between him and Regulus.

“He was eighteen,” Sirius said to no one in particular, forgetting she was still in the room.

He gave a shuddering sigh as he got back to her, taking in her shocked expression at the mention of his brother’s age. It did shock her. Eighteen was just one year short of her daughter Luisa and only three years older than Mirabel.

Sirius smiled at her, “You speak fondly of your brother,” he said, changing the subject abruptly, “From what little I have been told and the fact that you have a rule about not talking about him, I assume people don’t share your good opinion of him.”

Julieta grimaced, “Not exactly, the townspeople maybe, they never understood him. And the family never did either but we all did love him. I know that Mamá thinks he didn’t care about the family but I know he did, even if he was basically a recluse by the time he disappeared. I think he felt he had to keep away. You should have seen him with the children, I don't know how anyone could think he didn't care, he adored each and every one of them…”

“Well, the way I see it, he can’t be as bad as people make him out to be. Not if this is your opinion of him – and, if you’ll allow me, not if Mirabel reminds you of him. She’s a remarkable girl, that one.”

Julieta brightened, “I know, and I wish she knew. But I understand that it is difficult for her. Especially tonight. You saw what she did?”

“The thing about the cracks?” Sirius asked.

“I’m sure she wasn’t trying to ruin Antonio’s night,” Julieta said immediately, “But this was the first ceremony since hers didn’t go well and then she went with Antonio all the way up the stairs –”

“Antonio asked her,” Sirius jumped to the girl’s defence, hoping to let Mirabel off the hook for at least that much, since even Julieta didn’t seem ready to believe there were cracks, “I saw him calling for her from where I was watching. She wouldn’t have gone otherwise.”

“I thought as much,” Julieta said wistfully, “But then that thing with the cracks… it must have been so hard. She always tries and… not having a gift…”

“That’s what’s remarkable about her,” Sirius said, “She’s surprisingly well-adjusted for a girl whose time is spent with people constantly reminding her that she doesn’t have a gift, unintentionally as it may be.”

Julieta nodded, “Sí, lo sé. And I try to show her that she’s just as special as anyone else –”

“It has to do with your brother, right?”

“Maybe if I’d been a better sister to him – but when the family started to grow and I had my children – and Pepa and I both started our families around the same time, leaving him behind… and with Mamá’s expectations and with his situation with the townspeople… he tried less and less to interact with us and when he did we – I didn’t have time for him – no, that’s not true, I didn’t make time for him. He was hurting, becoming a recluse and I did nothing…”

Sirius waited for her to continue but she gave a deep sigh and took a sip of the chocolate santafereño, “I don’t know your brother or anything about your relationship with him, of course,” he said when she didn’t keep talking, “But I do have experience in being the single one when people around you start having children and settle down. My godson’s father was my best friend, my brother in all but blood – I sort of got along better with him than Regulus – James got married right after school and got all absorbed in his family life. I remember that he kept assuring me that I would find the one and I would settle down myself but that in the meantime he would always be there for me and he wouldn’t leave me behind,” he snickered at the thought, “You know, you married people always assume everyone wants a family and settle down like you… it’s not the same for everyone. I’ve never felt left behind by James or any of my friends even if they got married and had children. Do you know if your brother was content being an uncle or do you know for a fact that he wanted to marry and have a family of his own?”

Julieta opened her mouth to answer, then thought about it.

“Well, I don’t know about marriage, he never said anything,” she said slowly, “But I remember that there was a time when I hoped – for a short time he was so happy, I’d never seen him smile like that. He never said who it was, no matter how much we asked. But he had that look – he didn’t have to say anything for me to know that whoever this woman was she was to him what Agustín is to me, what Félix is to Pepa. I knew, I knew especially when he didn’t smile anymore. At one point, he stopped smiling, just as quickly as he’d started. No one knows what happened, I tried asking him once but he never said. It was then that he started withdrawing even more. He was hurting – he was dying inside and we rebuffed him…”

Her voice broke.

Sirius patted her hand, trying to bring her some comfort, “I know what you’re talking about. You described exactly what I felt when I had to leave that person. It was a short time, and communication wasn’t easy because of the language barrier and yet – such a short encounter that mattered more than my whole life… I felt – I feel like a part of me stayed with that person and I have never been able to be whole again. I assume since you found Agustín you were never apart?” Julieta nodded, “Then you were very blessed. Being separated from your loved one feels like your heart has been ripped from your chest and you don’t have your heart with you anymore because it’s with them but it still bleeds and fills your chest with an unending, excruciating pain, every time you think of that person. I really hope you never have to separate from him – ever.”

They stayed like that for a while, until Agustín’s voice called his wife’s name and he appeared on the door-frame. His bright smile faltered when he caught sight of Julieta drying her eyes, “Everything alright?” he asked, looking from her to Sirius, who wasn’t openly crying like her but was obviously upset about something.

“Sí!” Julieta chirped far too quickly, “We were just remembering! What do you need me for, amor?”

“I wanted to get some more dessert, but I don’t remember where we put it?”

“Alright, I am on it!”

“Mi vida, if you need a bit of time to yourself I can –”

“No no,” said Julieta quickly, then turned to Sirius, “Will you be alright?”

Sirius nodded, “Don’t mind me, I just had a little too much to drink and it’s been a while… I think I’ll just go to bed, I’m knackered. Excuse me with the Madam.”

“Sure. Have a good night, then,” they both said and Julieta was gone a moment later.

“I hope the party noise doesn’t bother you,” Agustín said, waving at him.

Sirius smiled and shook his head, but then noticed the other man was still there, looking at him. He had an embarrassed look on his face, as if he was trying very hard not to assume things.

For a moment, Sirius stared back, trying to understand what was upsetting him, then he grinned, “Oh, don’t worry,” he said quickly, “She was just sad about her brother.”

Agustín jumped at being addressed about it so directly, “Oh!” he gave a shaky chuckle, “Oh!”

“Julieta is lovely and you’re very lucky to have her,” Sirius interrupted him, “But I’m not interested. I wouldn’t be, even if I was in a position to even remotely think about a relationship right now.”

“No no, I wasn’t thinking that –”

“Agustín,” Sirius stopped the other man’s rambling, “Truly, don’t worry. I don’t swing that way,” he grinned when Agustín choked on his nervous laugh. They heard Julieta call for her husband impatiently, “Have a good night.”

Agustín beamed at him and reciprocated the greeting before leaving him alone in the kitchen.

Sirius took a deep sigh and concentrated once again on his hot chocolate. He closed his eyes and raised the mug to his lips but before he had the chance to savour the lovely taste, a sigh reached his ears. He opened his eyes, pausing. He could swear someone was close by. Someone whose scent was as delightful as the one at his favourite spot on the first floor of the house. A feeble sound of creaking wood stopped as soon as it started, as if the person making it had noticed that he’d heard.

“Is someone there?” he asked quietly.

He heard the sound of itching breath. Sirius inhaled deeply, hounding about to see if he could find anything out. He frowned and turned to the family tree depicted on the wooden panel on the kitchen wall. He jumped at the sound of steps running toward him and suddenly Dolores was on the kitchen’s door-frame.

“Hey, Señor!” she said a little breathlessly.

He smiled at her, “Hey, dearie!” he replied easily, “What can I do for you?”

“Hm!” she chirped, her eyes as wide as saucers, “I – I was – er – huh…”

She looked around frantically, clearly looking for inspiration on what excuse to use. He smiled and stood to his full height and leaned away from the family tree, “Looking for me to say good night?” he offered.

“Hm!” she chirped, again, obviously surprised that he was giving her a suggestion, “Yes! Yes, and I – hm –”

“Alright,” he said, “I was going to bed anyway.”

He joined her on the door-frame and leaned to whisper in her ear, though a moment later he was berating himself for doing so, she heard everything, she didn’t need him leaning to speak to her.

“If you’re here, whoever it is, they are not dangerous for your family, are they?” Dolores shook her head hastily, “Then I won’t insist. I didn’t think it was anything bad anyway. Such a delightful scent…” Dolores stared wide-eyed at him, “Good night, honey.”