I Was In My Zone (til You Came Along)

I was in my zone (til you came along)

She didn't worry about herself all that much. Without her gift, Luisa was the strongest either way. So she was sure nothing could make her crack

This time for whumptober! Team as a fanily

TW: Torture, violence, blood and injury

Luisa narrowed her eyed, pulling herself forward. Metal dug into her skin, biting deeper. Luisa hung, trying to ignore the burning pain, running inside her veins with every passing second. Blood sting into the torn fabric of her blouse. Forming red patches.

She didn't know how many days she was in here. Dios, she wished for nothing more than her gift to return. These stupid chains wouldn't be able to hold her even for a second if only Luisa still had her empowered strength. Binds gripped into her skin, pulling her back. Luisa felt sick. Her head was dizzy, arms felt like they would fall off with the whole damage. Lungs burned with each gasping breathe. The metal around her neck squeezed it, makind hard to breathe properly.

"Still quiet?" Luisa growled at the voice. These people.... She wasn't sure who they were, but they were asking to where Encanto was. Her home. And, taking everything into account, Luisa was sure they had no good intentions when it came to her or her family.

Luisa was protector, someone strong and resillian. Even without her gift. She had huge pain tolerance. Ability to windstand whatever they did. If she couldn't fight back at the time, she still had to make sure others were safe. This something slammed into her brain with years. She was strong, she had to protect her family, protect them at all cost. Her life was carved into the purpose of being the strongest person.

So she gritted her teeth, feeling her body falling apart (don't scream, don't give them this satisfaction) Stared down at strangers. She didn't know who they were, but after being chained for God-knows-how-long. After she went through the various types of torture. Well, she had even less thinking about any of them having good intentions. Her wrists burned. Collar gripped around her, uncomfortably tight. Almost choking her. Her back burned from fresh injuried, making it hard if not impossible to lean on the wall.

And Luisa had to admit, she wasn't used to be a captive. Until recently, even a thought of this felt like a fever dream. An impossible scenario. But here she was. Chained to the rock wall. Shieving from the cold crawling between her bones. Her gaze stared down at the captors. She would've turned her head, but with a heavy metal restain, every neck movement made her feel as if she suffocated.

It was okay. Luisa could handle this (even if her body begged for a break, what was new in it?) She was able to stand this. She was the strongest person in the world. And it was her direct duty to protect others. She was able to stay unbothered, she must be.

Or, well so she thought. Just until somebody else, Mirabel was thrown into her room. All disheveled, her glasses are missing. People her her tight, and Mirabel didn't have the best physical ability at all. And, taking the fact that they mamaged to get Luisa under control (ableit it took a LOT of them simply trying to hold her wrists until they cuffed.) And Mirabel barely had any physical capability.

"Sis?!" She yelled, panic squeezed her lungs.

Mirabel startled, her head turned at the sound "Luisa?" She asked, squenting. "LUISA THANK GOD YOU..." She cut herself off as seeing her a bit better. "Is it... is it blood?!" Teenager yellped, her eyes widening as the strange copper stains.

Luisa's eye twitched, she held back her cough. "Ah... It's a new shirt?" She tried to sound as innocent as possible.

"Silence!" One of the people snarled, pulling Luisa's hair. Luisa inhaled sharply, her body is getting down. Well, as much as the chains allowed. Collar dig against the sore skin, making it hard to breathe. A slap rang against her face. Luisa did her best not to scream. Even when pain crawled up her exhausted body. This time not only out of pride, but because Mirabel was here. She didn't want to make her worry. Not like it helped, because Mirabel tried to yank herself out, yelling.

"What are you doing?? I-I'm sorry!" She begged, her voice shaking. "I didn't mean it! You're hurting her!"

"I'm o–" Luisa tried to whisper, but her voice was cut off, her head slammed into the bricked wall. The feeling send up a dripping agony. This time she did grunt. This wasn't as bad as beating when theh tried to get some information out of her. But it didn't make it any less unpleasant.

For the moment, hovewer, people seemed to focus their attention on Mirabel, towering over a small figure as she kept panickly apologizing. Mirabel always tended to blame herself for things.

"Are you ready to talk?" Luisa froze, seeing what was unrevealing. This time Mirabel was the one from whom they tried to get information

"FUCK OFF FROM HER!" Luisa yelled. Pulling so hard her wrists were bleeding. When she withnessed Mirabel being pushed into the wall. Whip landing onto her back, cutting the blouse and drawning the red. As Mirabel tried to back away, loking for any reasoning. The stronger Madrigal felt her vision getting red. When the smell on burning flesh got inside her brain. The cold chains bulged, when Luisa tried to break them with more strenght than ever before "I WILL RIP YOU HEADS OFF!" HOW FUCKING DARE THEY?

It continued, Mirabel looked pale. Luisa's heart missed a beat. Her body wrentched, tuggling against the bounds like a wild beast. Her vision became a raged blur, breathing was short and panicked. As Mirabel's struggles become weaker in front of her very eyes. Blood loss showing. And she was weaker than Luisa too. More fragile.

It took her heart away, knowing just how easy it would be to crash her sister. Luisa was strong, she could handle the pain. But she couldn't handle watching. Just onserving how Mirabel was tortured for nothing more than information.

"I'll tell you! Stop hurting her!" Luisa screamed, her body saying something but she wasn't exactly sure what. Maybe it was an actual way to their village, maybe Luisa had said the most nonsense in her life. Her mind didn't care. Only begging to stop the horror she had to witness. Utterly unable to do anything.

Luisa wasn't sure if she wanted it to be truth or not. If it was, the entirely of her family would probably be in danger. (Luisa's heart sank, only now realizing that if she cracked for real it wouldn't be only Mirabel she had to watch like this.) And if she had told them a pointless nonsense, she knew the torture would be worse than anything before.

Dolores: I am not an early bird or a night owl. I am some form of permanently exhausted pigeon.

This tree has Luisa vibes

Some thought but did you ever think there was a chance Luisa WASN'T the only one to lose her gift for a bit during Antonío's ceremony? It wasn't only her door that flickered during the ceremony (and as we can see from the next day when Luisa had troubles with her gift, it began to flicker again)

Isabela, Camilo, Julieta and Antonío would all need to use their gifts in very specific shot of time to know of any problem. And as far as we can see, they all are just dancing and partying. Yes, Julieta does have food but we don't see anyone being actually injured and needing healing. (Assuming they can't really feel their gifts presense in some way). So if nobody had used their gifts, it's possible they didn't know it happened at all

Pepa is a bit more tricky, she doesn't really control her power. But here again comes the fact that even in other scenes we don't see Pepa always with clouds or rainbows. So when emotions aren't too intense it can be controlled

Luisa and Dolores both have the most physical gifts out of the family, which they seem to be using by default. Unable not to. So both of them had the best chance to feel the problem. Again, there's the fact we don't see Dolores saying a word about her hearing being weaker at any moment. But do you think how loud the party would be even without superhearing? Plus Luisa was clearly shown to have some form of anxiety, which does riggle wirh her perception and overthinking of what this all could mean. Or Dolores just wasn't comfortable enough to talk with Mirabel. Tho she's still the one harder to pin than the rest of the family

Bruno, my dear (don't ever dissapear)

She had lost all the hope of seeing him years ago

@encantober-official prompt - Return

She had lost all hope of seeing her brother years ago. It wasn't something she discussed much, but after a couple of years... Well, if Bruno was out of Encanto he could very much be already dead. This thought filled Pepa with dread. Bursting hail that destroyed every crop under the weight of rock solid ice.

Just one thought of Bruno was enough for her to start spiraling, rising the wind until it became a crazy hurricane. Ripping out the trees with the roots, much to Isabela's dismay. She hever was good with getting her weather under control. Especially now. Bruno could've been annoying. His jokes felt like straight up mockery half of the time. And he was distant for years before his physical departure. But Bruno was her brother. And with everything, Pepa cared about him deeply. So what was she supposed to feel when Bruno wasn't here? Hearing that name was like salting an open would. Only worsening the pain.

Days, months and years. Pepa had a third child now. Baby boy. And, no matter what she thought, the idea of naming him after her missing brother wasn't something Pepa had planned. But it took one one look at baby boy's face. And now Pepa had claimed him as Antonío. Nobody dared to say anything about it.

So, when between the shattered ruins of home appeared quiet steps, what followed Mamá, Pepa was sure it was a dream. The idea of Bruno returning was so surreal. After years Pepa had lost all the hope of ever seeing her brother again. But here he was. And if it wasn't for the fact that that gifts had disappeared, Pepa wasn't sure if Encanto would be able to withstand this emotional weather.

"Where have you been?!" She yelled and hugged him, lifting him into the air. Her body trembled. As Bruno, so spiny (he didn't eat enough - Pepa realizes with horror) leans against her, gasping in surprise. When Julieta just comes to them just a second later. Joining into squeezing Bruno. Salty dry water burns Pepa's eyes as she pushes Bruno closer to herself. Not willing to be a twin instead of triplet ever again

Ten years later, he was home. Her brother was back. And Pepa didn't want to let go of him ever again. The loss of their magic fell somewhere at the back of her mind. Between her gift and Bruno, she would choose him any time of day. She doesn't actually care where Bruno was all this time, how he so suddenly came back. Maybe it was a vision, maybe a simple coincidence. But Pepa far more cares about the fact that he did return. After all the nights without sleep. When she felt like bad weather could just merge Encanto with the ground. Years of silent questions without answers. Crying at the night, wondering what Pepa could've done to prevent it. But in the end, it didn't matter for her. Because now Bruno was home. And Pepa would never let him go ever again.

Later she would want to murder him while crying into his shoulder. Walls, really? This brat came to hiding into walls of their own house. Saw how hard it was for everyone to deal with such a sudden loos. How Pepa was destroying everything in her grief. But at the moment it didn't matter. Such a cruel irony they lost Casita, there's again only three of them. It seemed that cuatrillizos were bound to never reunite. (Yes, Casita wasn't actually their sibling but they claimed it as one years ago). But at the day? Pepa would choose Bruno in any time. It wasn't good. The pain still was hard. But, maybe they could heal the ache. Move forward and, as Mirabel said, rise their family from these ruins.

“How do you know you’re aroace??”

Cupid shot me with his arrow and I had an allergic reaction