Aftermath of the Loss
Chapter 27 - Aftermath of the Loss
Charlie was stunned as she sat there, the shield now collapsing after everything else has fallen. It was at this moment that her family could enter the destroyed site, her parents and siblings being the ones who rushed straight to her.
“Charlie… are you hurt?” Mimzy asked as she looked her younger daughter over.
“Charlie…” Husk muttered as he saw Charlie’s forlorn demeanor.
“Mimzy!” Pentious shouted. “Mimzy, come quick!”
The healing chef was reluctant to leave her previously missing daughter but knew she had to check up on the rest of the family. “Charlie, don’t move. I’ll be right back.”
“Ozzie, Vera, let’s check up on everyone else, too,” the accident-prone man said. The two siblings were reluctant to, especially the brother, but followed with what their father said.
“How did this happen?” Pentious questioned, looking devastated as he looked over the destroyed house.
“Here, let me help you. Let me help you,” Arackniss said as he helped Vaggie settle down on some debris. Charlie had looked at her grandmother seeming all shocked and rattled over everything’s that just happened.
“Everyone’s okay, right?” Husk asked.
“Collin, don’t cry, papito,” Molly said in an attempt to console her youngest son.
“How’s this possible? Vivienne is gone, the Encanto’s broken…” Arackniss voiced.
“What do we do now…?” Verosika inquired.
“My powers… they’re gone… And what about Collin? What’s he gonna do?” Angel voiced, distressed. "He didn't even get to enjoy his Gift for that long!"
“Charlie?” Mimzy asked, when she was done with what Pentious wanted. At looking around, growing worried all over again, “Charlie!? Where’s Charlie!?”
Husk felt his gut drop and voiced, “Charlie? Where is she…? Charlie!!!”
Blitzo was still nearby and so had heard the commotion going on. He thought of the worst case scenario. He didn’t want to think it happened and so was compelled to go to the destroyed house site and check for himself.
However, at getting close enough, the red poncho guy realized that he was also going to be discovered by the same family he was hiding from for the past decade. He wasn’t sure about what to say or what to do should that happen.
However, Blitzo didn’t have much a chance to really think about it because then he heard Ozzie let out a scream. “Who the fuck are you?!”
Everyone else rushed over to where the muscle-bound crossdresser was and took a look at what spooked him. Arackniss was awkward and stayed behind the whole crowd, Ozzie and Verosika were taking a moment to recognize the man in front of them, like they swear that they’ve seen him before, and Collin smiled and waved. However, for the older generation, they were majorly shocked at who they’re looking at.
“BLITZO!?” Pentious screamed, shocked like his wife, sister, and brother-in-law, but also enraged. “Was this- Was this your doing!? Did you- oh, what I am saying? Of course, this was you! All starting with your vision! And now Charlie is gone and I oughta-!“
By pure instinct, the red poncho guy turned tail and ran the fuck out of there. His brother tried for a second to go after him but stopped, since Blitzo was fast as fuck.
“I can’t believe it!!! That-that-that!”
The highly stressed man began ranting while waving around his curled-up fists and pacing about just angrily, like he typically does. His wife automatically tried calming him down during it, his sister joining in this time, too.
“Like it wasn’t bad enough that he would always give those horrid predications. That he had cost people their goldfish or me my wedding. But to put Charlie in danger? To risk losing Vivienne? We actually did lose her! Charlie, too, since she's apparently nowhere around!”
Molly. “Penn, I know you’re upset, but I’m afraid this isn’t the time.”
“I knew that Blitzo was going to make something bad happen when he asked to make that vision that day. This always happen with his visions!”
Mimzy. “Pentious, if you can just remember that this is still your baby brother that you’re-“
“But I never would have thought he’d bring this much destruction and chaos to our home and our family. And this!" Pentious got to gesturing with great vigor the remains of their beloved house. "This is bound to be the whole reason why we don’t speak of his name! I just never realized how right it was until-!”
“Pentious, please! ” Mimzy had yanked her high-strung brother’s sleeve to force him to calm down a little and to make eye contact. The family chef becoming more noticeably upset and distressed as she voiced, “I’m so sick and tired of having to refrain from even mentioning my brother or speaking his name so will you please just. Let. It. GO!!!?!??”
It was just about the most shocking thing ever. To everybody. After all, for as long as anyone’s known, Mimzy was the calmest member of the whole family; she’s even the number two everyone turns to when Abuela Vaggie is already occupied with something. Husk has seen the most extreme emotion from his wife and, even then, it didn’t get like this.
“Pentious, you said you felt guilty about how you treated Blitzo after he ran away. But then you began berating him and being upset with him and now he ran off. Again. Are you really going to keep up this cycle your whole lives?”
That had gotten Pentious stunned silent. For once, he had nothing to say.
The family chef continued, calmer now but with tears beginning to fall from her eyes, “Don’t you remember all the times when we would sneak off to Blitzo’s tower? All the secret bouts of fun there?”
Finally, the ponytailed man muttered, “Our own special place… with shadow puppets, sand angels, and...”
Mimzy nodded. “And just being kids with no responsibilities. Blitzo knew that we needed that more than anything when we were kids, so he would talk us into going there as often as he could."
There was another bout of silence between them before the female of the two spoke up again. "You know Blitzo is a good person deep down. I never liked the constant attack on his character but… we just lost Vivienne thanks to this family being at each other’s throats. Can’t we just put a stop to that? Before we lose Charlie? I mean, really, truly lose her? As well as Blitzo for a second time?”
“Mimzy... I’m sorry.” A short pause of Pentious being awkward. Then, “I just- This- I- oh, I have no excuse. I just wish I realized sooner how you felt.”
The family chef took her brother’s hand, giving it a gentle squeeze, and the brother himself a reassuring smile. “It’s okay, Penn. I know it isn’t easy when you always have to force yourself to be calm. it's bound to take up so much space in your mind.”
“You know, speaking of that, I just realized something,” Husk stated.
Everyone turned the accident-prone man, the high-strung man asking, “What?”
“Pentious didn’t change the weather even once when he was upset just now.”
Everyone was now surprised now that it was said out loud. The former weather manipulator stood there stunned for a second time.
Although, after a while of processing this, Pentious smiled. He smiled big and wide and swooped Molly up in a hug. Tears even went down his cheeks. The sharply-dressed woman understood and just simply embraced her husband with equal vigor, her face seeming rather relieved, too.
Then Husk turned to see Verosika in her kind of messy state, asking, “Vera, are you trying out a new look?”
The woman in question flinched, worried about what her father was going to say about it now. After all, she’s supposed to be the town’s most perfect woman.
“I think it suits you.”
Verosika was blank at first, like she needed to register what was said. Once it was registered, though, her eyes water up and she got to hugging her dad in gratitude.
"Thank you, dad..."