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Cocooned

Chapter 9: The Sextuplets 1st Birthday!

Summary:

Today is the birthday of the sextuplets! Let's find out what its was liking leading up to it and the day of!

Notes:

Hello hello! I am just. SO SORRY. That this took so long to get out. School was wrapping up and there were finals, and I have babysitting, and there was just so much to do, BUT! I got it out before the month ended (my time, anyway.) So, here's the next, long awaited chapter of Cocooned! Enjoy some soft Abuela for your troubles <3

Translations!:

“¡Preparados…listos…ya!” - "Ready...Set...Go!"

"...mis pequeños milagros..." "...my little miracles..."

"...es el cumpleaños de mis sobrinas y sobrinos." - "it's my nieces and nephew's birthday."

"¿Son estas las niños de cumpleaños?" - "Are these the birthday kids?"

"...mi pequeño camaleón?" - "...my little chameleon?"

"¡Tío, mira mira!" - "Tio, look look!"'

"¡Ven aquí niños!" - "Come here kids!"

"¡Hoy es el cumpleaños de los seis Madrigals!" - "Today is the birthday of the six Madrigals!"

"¡Sorpresa! ¡Feliz cumpleaños!" - "Surprise! Happy Birthday!"

"Hola mi pequeño milagros," - "Hello my little miracles,"

"¡Mal sueño!" - "Bad dream!"

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

The baby's first birthday was coming up in just 2 months, and with it, were a lot more ‘first things’.

For instance, the babies had been crawling around a lot. They were on the move, and had to have a constant adult around, because they had discovered that grabbing stuff is fun! With the help of Casita, they would yank at objects on the counter, sneak into the other rooms and take things; Alma had found she was missing more than a few of her trinkets…

But it was good! Bruno, Fèlix and Agustín would have races, lining them up and seeing who could get to the finish line first. This was one of racing occasions, it was the family’s off day; It was a regular, weekly thing. Every Saturday, the family would take a break from working and spend time with each other.

They were all in the front room, surrounding the children. Agustín, Fèlix and Bruno held the babies in place as Julieta and Pepa sat near the finish line, camera in Julieta’s hands. Alma carefully bent down (taking note of how much easier it was to do so—lately she had felt much more energized.)

“Are all the contestants ready?” Alma chuckled, clapping her hands together. The babies all turned towards their Abuelita’s voice, smiling. They giggled and babbled in delight as they watched her raise a flag. “¡Preparados…listos…ya!” Alma waved the flag down and the 3 men previously holding them back let them go. The adults were cheering them on as the 6 raced towards Alma.

Camilo was in the lead, and Luisa was in last. Luisa didn’t seem to like this—but rather than crying, she stopped and lifted her knees. Her grunts gathered the attention of the adults—and the other babies. The adults watched in awe as Luisa pushed herself up off the ground, grunting as she did. Finally she stood up and took a few steps forward towards Antonio and Isabela. The family erupted in cheers. The adults were a mix of crying, squealing, and laughing, with Julieta taking several pictures. All of the babies crawled towards her and surrounded her, clapping and giggling.

“Ayyyy! Look at my hijas go, they’re getting so big!” Agustín said, scooting closer to the group of children.

“Right? It seems like just yesterday we got them back…And now they’re almost a year old.” Pepa smiled.

It was quite obvious to everyone: these babies were smart. Incredibly so. They seemed to always be in sync with each other and sometimes it seemed as if they were able to talk among themselves. And Luisa was no exception. She noticed how both siblings and all of her primos were attempting to stand themselves. Camilo succeeded and walked towards Dolores—Julieta took more photos and squealed in delight.

“Look at them go, they’re helping each other!” Julieta snapped another photo.

“Luisa has always been so helpful, even as an infant,” Alma cooed.

While the adults were gushing over the photos, Luisa took it upon herself to help her siblings and primos—just like before, always the strong and helpful one. She bent down and grabbed Antonio’s hands, holding in turn wobbled upwards. He himself took a few steps and smiled as he did. Camilo helped Dolores up. She fell down again, but after a few attempts was able to keep her balance. Mirabel was able to do it on her own, and in turn helped Isabela, who had managed to stand, but not walk.

All 6 were standing now, and the adults finally took notice of their efforts. They had been able to stand before; but only for a couple seconds. Now, they were standing up just fine and were even taking their first steps. While Julieta took at least 20 pictures with Bruno and Alma, Agustín, Pepa, Fèlix cheered them on as they watched the babies take their first steps around Casita’s floor. The house had even used its tiles to help the babies keep balance, bouncing them back up when they fell down.

“Rápido, take a photo while they’re all standing!” Bruno pointed. The adults all called out to the babies, who at this point, were all standing. They each looked at Julieta holding the camera up. The babies watched in happiness and curiosity as Julieta snapped a photo of their first steps, capturing the moment forever. While the adults pecked kisses and squeezed the babies and congratulated them, Alma grabbed the developed photo. She smiled at her nietos first steps. She hadn’t been able to see all of them before, so she was absolutely ecstatic that she did this time. She knew now she was doing it right.

Julieta and Pepa squeezed their children, their husbands doing the same, Bruno in tow as well. The 5 were so happy. It had been years since they were all together and this happy.


It was only 1 more month till May 12th, the now dubbed sextuplets’ birthday. The family was planning the party. It would be small, and though usually they held grand parties where the whole of Encanto was invited, this year, they decided to just have this one as a family.

Alma wanted to hand make the babies some blankets for their birthdays. So far, she had sewn and knitted them some outfits a couple times, but had stopped as of late to look after them. Right now her own children were out. Bruno was delivering a vision to a couple who was expecting (she had noticed how wherever Bruno spent more time with his family or was generally happy, his vision seemed more neutral, or even happy.) Julieta had her day off and Pepa was scheduled to help with the fields this week. She had heard Agustín and Fèlix went around to gather things for the party, so that was that.

Right now, she has children. She had just re-entered the nursery with several rolls of soft, plush yarns, all in various colors. She laid them out on the ground and carefully placed the almost-1-year olds onto the rug.

“Alright mis pequeños milagros, which one do you like?” she said gently, gathering their attention. The children looked starry-eyed at the colored yarns in front of them. They each seem to evaluate the colors before finally walking over to one.

Isabela went straight to the deep blue one. It actually surprised Alma a bit. All these years, she had thought Isabela’s favorite color was purple and pink…but now, looking back, she finally realized: that was what Alma wanted her to like...But no more. She promised. And if Isabela liked the blue yarn, then Alma was more than happy to knit her a beautiful blue blanket.

Dolores went straight to the red one. Alma smiled and the child gleefully hugged the soft yarn. Red had always fit Dolores. Alma loved how it looked on her granddaughter, and Dolores always had a fondness for all things red. From flowers, to toys to clothes, it was her favorite.

Luisa went for the indigo one. Alma was caught a bit off guard, but not disappointed. She was glad Luisa picked the color. It complimented her. Luisa always likes frilly girly things, but her Gift and her chores didn’t allow her to wear them often.

“Red and Blue,” Alma chuckled, caressing the two girls’ cheeks. “How fitting.” She looked towards the other and observed what they chose.

Camilo grabbed the orange one. It fit his personality. So cheerful and happy, but still having enough chill. And it complimented his dark brownish-copper colored hair. Camilo would definitely love the blanket. Alma would knit patterns into it—to make it more him.

Mirabel looked at the teal yarn with starry eyes. Alma wasn’t surprised. Mirabel had always loved the shade of blue–it stuck to her family’s color scheme but she could also say it was her own.And the beautiful embroidery she always put onto her dresses…Alma wondered why she never noticed it that much before.

Antonio practically teleported next to the yellow one. It sort of surprised Alma. She knew he liked yellow, but not this much. Then again, she hadn’t really been present in his life. She hated how selfish she was before. She had barely been present in Antonio’s life, and didn’t even see him grow up. And after he had passed the first time—

Alma’s eyes teared up and her throat got dry at the memory. Those 4 months of absolute helplessness she felt, when they weren’t there…It hurt her, even just to remember. She sometimes would remember and occasionally cry, she was still recovering. But not now. Right now she was the Abuela to her grandkids and she would see them grown up. She would be in their lives, Gift or no Gift.

She hadn’t realized it, but tears ran down her face as she blankly stared at the yarn and children. The babies became concerned. They had seen their parents and Tio Bruno cry before. A lot of the time they looked happy. But their Abuela looked really sad. They didn’t like it when she was sad.

Dropping the yarn, they immediately surrounded her, clutching her dress and holding her hand. Mirabel climbed into her lap, latching onto her. She raised her tiny hand up to her grandmother's face and began wiping her tears, just like how her mama or tia would do whenever she or her other 5 siblings cried.

“Tita?” Mirabel said, eyes wide with worry. That snapped Alma out of her saddened trance. Did Mirabel just say her first words…to her? Alma Madrigal stared in shock before positioning herself so he was sitting cross legged and Mirabel was in her lap. The other grandchildren watched as Alma looked at Mirabel in disbelief.

“What did you say mija?” She whispered quietly in a slightly cracked voice. Mirabel just blinked for a moment before speaking again.

“Tita?” She asked again, holding her abuelita's hand. Alma laughed a bit in dubiety. She did! Mirabel Madrigal’s first words, ‘Tita’, were to her, Alma Madrigal! Suddenly Alma laughed out loud in joy as she squeezed Mirabel into a tight hug. Mirabel laughed with her, small arms wrapping around her neck.

Alma remembers when she was told when the others said their first words. Antonio and Luisa’s first words were “Papa”, and shortly after, “Mama.” Fèlix and Agustín bragged for weeks, going on about how much their children loved them and how they were the favorites. Dolores, Isabela, and Camilo had said “Mama” first, then “Papa.” That day, the day was brighter and the food tasted sweeter. Camilo at one point had even said “Tio” to Bruno, and the man was practically bouncing off the walls in happiness; his visions that day had all been relatively good and his headache was minor.

The only one who had yet to say a word was Mirabel. She had been excitedly babbling all the time but hadn’t spoken. It worried Alma, but the others assured her that she would say something when it was time. And now she has!

“Ay, mi mariposita…” Alma said, hugging Mirabel tightly. She was so happy. After giving each of her other grandchildren hugs, she released them to go back to play while she looked at the yarn, planning out the new blankets she would knit.


Today was May 13th. The sextuplets birthday! The Madrigals had been working hard for the past 2 months for this, and now it was happening.

Julieta was the first one up. She woke up extra early. She didn’t do this unless it was a special occasion—which it was! Her mama had her going to sleep before 12 a.m, and waking up at 8, which Julieta agreed too. It took a while to get used to, but she was getting there.

She was in the kitchen at 6 a.m. She was going to cook them something sweet–arepa de choclo. After throwing some sausages onto the hot griddle, she moved to start making the arepas. As she was kneading the dough and preparing to roll it out, she heard the clinking of a metal kettle resting on the stove. Turning around, she saw Bruno setting out the things to make coffee.

“Bruno? What are you doing so early?” she said, rolling out some arepas. Bruno walked over, holding a basket of eggs.

“You really thought I was going to let you cook a birthday breakfast alone?” he sarcastically replied, setting the eggs onto a counter next to the griddle. “And besides—es el cumpleaños de mis sobrinas y sobrinos. I do something special as well.” he chuckled, Julieta sighed and smiled, letting her hermanito help.

For the next hour, Julieta and Bruno toiled away at breakfast, only stopping to take a minor coffee break.

“The food is all done, so we can take it out,” Julieta said, drying her hands while Bruno grabbed 2 of the platters.

“Alright, I take these out—Oh! By the way, Fèlix and Agustín set up the backyard, so we’ll be eating there.” Bruno called before carefully making his way outside.

Julieta nodded as she took in two other platters. As she made her way to the backyard, she progressively saw more and more streamers and balloons lining the hallway. “They must have set this up for them so they can walk down the hallway,” she cooed. Walking outside, she finally saw that it was decked out in decoration.

The table had streamers in various colors lining the edges. She could also see that there were balloons everywhere—a special sparkly one attached to the children’s high chairs. She set down the plates of food, and said that Agustín had brung back to the last 2 out.

“Did you guys do all this?” Julieta asked, turning to her husband. He gave a kiss, holding her. “Yup! Me and Fèlix got up at about 7:30 to set all this up. Did it all by ourselves,” he said smiling. Casita flipped its tiles, some of the streamers lining the house shingles sagging. “Oh, Casita helped us as well—someone had to get those streamers up.”

Pepa walked in with Fèlix carrying some cups. “Me and Fèlix got new cups for them! I think they should be using sippy’s rather than bottles, hm?” She said, showing them off. They were decorated with all the babies favorite colors and things. “A little morning birthday present if you will!”

Bruno nodded admiring the handiwork. “These are great Pepa! I’m sure they’ll love them. Speaking of—after breakfast, I need to get my gift for them ready!” He thought out loud.

“Alright, everyone’s ready right?,” Pepa asked, walking over to the group. “Are we all ready for today?” She asked, excitement present in her voice.

“We sure are! Julieta and Bruno got breakfast ready, me, Agustín and Casita got the backyard ready, and You’ve got their first gift of the day,” Fèlix exclaimed, gesturing to the now set up breakfast table.

“Now all we need is the niños and Mama…” Julieta explained. As if on cue, Alma walked into the backyard, smiling brightly and holding a camera.

“Buenas Dias! I have a little surprise for you all,” Alma beamed., turning to something out view in the kitchen near the doors threshold. “Come on niños! Come show them!” She said softly, ushering someone to the door.

The other 5 adults felt their hearts melt as the 6 babies toddled into the room. Alma had dressed them up; presumably while everyone else was downstairs setting everything up. The girls were wearing laced party dresses, in blue, indigo, teal and red respectively, with brand new shoes in the same colors. The boys were wearing dress clothes, Camilo and Antonio were wearing some particularly nice dress clothes. Camilo had on new sandals and Antonio had on new shoes as well.

At the sight of their parents, they dashed over, the 4 swooping them up in joy.

“Awww! Look at mi hijos!” Pepa said, squeezing Camilo and Antonio as they giggled. “They looked so handsome! Feliz cumpleaños mijos!!”

Fèlix gently adjusted Dolores’ bow, pinching her cheeks. “Look at mi nube, so pretty, just like her mama,” Dolores cuddled close to her father. “¡Feliz cumpleaños Dolores!” he laughed, nuzzling her cheek.

Julieta picked up Luisa and Mirabel and hugged them tightly. “¡Feliz cumpleaños ninas!” She examined their outfits as the toddlers hugged their mama. “I see your abuela dressed you up all pretty for today,”

Agustín held Isabela, spinning her around. “Look at mi florecita! So pretty, all dressed up in blue like her papa, feliz cumpleaños!” Isabela grabbed his cheeks and laughed as they spun around.

“They look amazing mama! Did you do those yourself?” Bruno asked, setting up the high chairs while watching his mama take various photos.

“Yes! I had actually been working on them for a while—and I’d say it’s my best work yet!” Alma said, gathering the plates and setting them out while the others seated the babies. Once the birthday babies were accommodated, the adults worked on their plates.

Plates were set out and the adults cooed at how thrilled the babies got when they saw the syrupy arepas Julieta made. Pepa filled the new cups she had for them with juice and set them in front of the babies.

“¡Feliz cumpleaños mis nubes preciosas!” she shouted, watching as the babies grabbed the cups and admired them with a child-like innocence only they could have.

“Mami yay!” Camilo exclaimed, sipping from his cup. Pepa produced a rainbow in joy and kissed his cheek, then moving to sit down. After she sat down, Alma stood up at the head of the table.

“As you all know, it’s the little ones’ birthday today. Everyone’s schedule is cleared, today is all about them—we’ll each take shifts and take them out to do activities and come back tonight for the party. Who’s going first?”

Before anyone could react, Julieta shot her hand up with a speed and energy that only a young person could have (they had noticed that lately they seemed younger and more energized. And their gray hairs had disappeared completely; even Alma’s hair had more brown than white to it as of late…but that’s normal, right?)

“Me and Agustín will take them! We’ll take them out to the town square and buy them some new toys,” Juli nodded.

“Yup! We’ve got it planned out,” Agustín spoke matter-of-factly. “First me and Julieta will take them for the morning, then Bruno will take them for lunch; then Pepa and Fèlix will take them until sundown and we’ll have the party, then you can have them for the rest of the night.”

Alma’s face showed surprise—she wasn’t fond of being left out of planning. It made her feel…helpless, out of control. But she was learning patience, and she wasn’t some controlling dictator. And besides, it was her nietos first birthday! She would have tired herself out trying to draft out the whole day, so it’s good that they helped her. “W-Well then…I guess that’s settled!” she clapped her hands. “Let’s eat then,”

The family ate away at breakfast. (with a few close calls on the toddlers getting their new outfits dirty, but thank God they had bibs.) Julieta was happy that the children enjoyed the sweetened arepas, sausage and papayas. The adults planned out the day, Alma deciding a nice little surprise for them at the end of the day.

Once everyone was done, Bruno insisted on taking the dishes, pushing Julieta and Agustín off to have fun with the babies while the others prepared for the party that would take place later come nighttime.

“Are you all ready to go to the toy store?” Agustín said, bending down while Julieta went to get what they liked to call “The Line Leader Rope”. The kids all cheered, happy that they were getting new toys.

“Papa, Papa!” Luisa said, hopping up and down. Agustín happily ruffled her hair, brushing off her pretty dress.

“What is it mija?” he asked, beaming at the girl.

“Toy? Go play?” Luisa asked happily, his siblings and cousins following close behind.

Agustín laughed out loud, hugging them all simultaneously. “Si hija,” he pulled back and kissed her forehead. “We’re going to get new toys and then go play.” ONce again, the children cheered, causing Agustín to cheer with them. Once Julieta came into the room, they all rushed over, bombarding her with questions and clapping.

“Alright alright, calm down niños,” she chuckled, calming them down and gathering their attention. “Now, we’re going to go into town today, and go to the toy store! But we need to follow the leader, ok?”

The children nodded and grabbed the rope like they had been taught before. Agustín was the “Line Leader”, the kids were in between, and Julieta was on the back. “Is everyone ready?” Agustín asked, looking behind him.

“Si!” The children all called out enthusiastically. With that, Agustín was off. He started singing a song about marching with Julieta. The kids tried to follow along, but it was obvious they weren’t familiar with the words.

As they made their way to the town square, the other villagers cooed at how they toddled along the brick path. Up ahead, Senora Guzman and Mariano emerged from their house, stopping the line.

“Ah, hola Senora Guzman, Mariano,” Agustín said, smiling at the other two.

“Buenas Dias Agustín, Julieta” She said, looking behind them to the little ones behind them. “¿Son estas las niños de cumpleaños?”

“Tia!” the toddlers yelled, dropping the rope they were holding. Immediately they hugged her legs. She bent down and hugged them, giving them kisses as they called her name.

“Hola niños, ¡feliz cumpleaños!” she shouted with glee. Reaching into her pockets, the tots watched how she magically pulled candy out of her dress, handing each of them a piece. “I got you all some candy!”

“Candy!” They shouted in unison. Each child quickly scarfed down the sweets, then moved to hug the older woman again.

“Oi, where’s my hug?” Mariano asks in mock offense. The sextuplets quickly ran over and tackled his legs, yelling and jumping while he laughed.

“Up! Up!” Dolores and Mirabel shouted, to which Mariano bent down and picked the two up. The girls hugged him tightly. Agustín and Julieta walked over laughing, watching as the other 4 attempted to climb Mariano’s leg.

“So, what are guys doing for the niños’ birthday?” Senora Guzman asked, brushing off her dress. “Anything special planned for them?”

“Well Agustín and I are taking them to the toy store.” she cooed at Camilo who reached for her from Mariano’s shoulders. “And then Bruno’s going to take them for lunch. Pepa and Fèlix will have them for the afternoon and then we’ll have a small party at Casita.”

“That sounds fun! Well, we’ll leave you to it; tell Alma I said hi!” Ms. Guzman said, waving. Mariano let them down, handing them another piece of candy from his pockets.

“¡Feliz cumpleaños!” Mariano shouted, watching the children grab the rope and march off with Julieta and Agustín again.

Once they marched a little ways farther down the road, they made it to the toy store. Once Agustín opened the door, the kids rushed in, toddling their way around the store. Julieta, Agustín, and the store owner cooed as they watched the kids run around, jaws dropping at the toys.

Isabela picked up a balero that was adorned with the blues her family wore. She immediately sat down and began throwing it up and down, trying her best to imitate her father, who had played with one in front of her a couple of times.

Dolores picked up a yo-yo—a simple toy, but Dolores enjoyed simple things. She let it roll, and chased it around, not quite understanding how it worked yet, but never-the-less still enjoying the spinning toy, the pattern gathering her attention quickly.

Luisa picked a hand sewn doll. The dress was similar to hers, an indigo-purple shade. Luisa babbled about how pretty it was and was soon having a full conversation with it, and even dancing around in joy.

Camilo immediately grabbed a small drum. His hands beat up and down on it furiously. He had no rhythm, but he would get there eventually, especially with his father being so musically inclined.

Mirabel somehow managed to climb a shelf and get her hands on one of the balls that were settled on the shelf—it was almost bigger than her, but she didn’t care. She bounced it up and down, giggling as she chased it around the store.

Antonio pulled a trompo off of a nearby rack. He squatted down with a grunt and began spinning it. Or, at least attempting to. His small pudgy hands continuously picked the toy up and pulled the string, spinning only for a mere millisecond, though it didn’t seem to deter the boy.

Agustín walked up to the cashier while Julieta gathered the children and their toys. Pulling out his wallet, he greeted the man standing behind the counter. “Hola senor! How many pesos will these 6 toys be?”

The cashier grinned, cooing at the children. “Since it’s the little one’s birthday, I’ll give you half off,” Agustín stuttered a bit but ultimately paid, waving the cashier goodbye as he and the children walked off with Julieta. The children skipped as they played with their new toys, laughing as they did.

For most of the morning, they had played in the open field with their new toys, with Julieta and Agustín showing them how. The kids loved their new toys, playing with them happily—And their Abuela had taught them to always say “thank you” when someone gave them something, so Julieta and Agustín’s hearts melted when they kept thanking them over and over.

About 2 hours later, Camilo walked up to Agustín and pulled his pants leg. “Tio Gus?” Agustín bends down and picks the boy, who still had his drum in hand.

“What's up mi pequeño camaleón?” Agustín asked, adjusting the boy's dress shirt.

“Go eat por favor?” Camilo replied. Agustín checked his watch—it was already 1p.m, which was lunch time! They needed to take them to Bruno so they could eat!

“Julieta!” Augustin's wife turned at the sound of her voice, hands still helping Isabela with her toy. “It’s lunch time, we gotta take the niños to Bruno!” Julieta nodded and quickly gathered the children, helping them grab the rope and the two adults and six children were off, back to Casita.

Bruno was in the backyard setting up his picnic he made for the little ones. He had worked for 2 hours (with the help of his mama,) to make beef stuff arepas. He knew the children loved to eat them for lunch in the past, and even reincarnated, they loved to eat them.

Just as he finished filling up their new cups with jugo de tamarindo and setting them down on the blanket, he found himself being tackled by 6 small bodies. He yelped in surprise as his rats left his ruana. He was confused until he heard the giggling of toddlers.

He managed to turn himself and saw all of his sobrinas and sobrinos on top of him, brand spankin’ new toys in hand. “niños!” Bruno beamed, hugging and kissing all of them as they giggled at their ever-loving tio.

“¡Tío, mira mira!” Dolores yipped, holding up her red yo-yo. Bruno chuckled as she attempted to use it. “New toy!”

“It looks awesome! Do you mind if I play with it?” Dolores nodded and handed him the yo-yo. Bruno saw his sister and brother in law waving, to which he waved them goodbye as he heard Julieta shout one last thing.

“We’ve already changed their diapers, so they should be good for now!” Julieta said before her and her husband made their ebay to the front of Casita. Bruno nodded before putting the yo-yo on his finger. “Watch this!” He rolled the yo-yo down, and much to the children’s shock, it rolled back up into his hands.

“Woah!!” the children exclaimed, surrounding his legs as he stood and even did a couple tricks before handing it back to Dolores. The girl tried several more times to copy her tio, trying her best to keep it in her hand.

Isabela handed Bruno her toy and ushered him to show her if he could play. “Alright alright, one more!” He took the balero and proceeded to spin the ball and do various tricks before landing it back into the resting position and handing it back to Isabela.

“Tio’s cool!” Isabela giggled, sitting down on the blanket and taking notice of the food next to her, with Bruno settling all the kids down and putting bibs on them, she pointed to the stuffed arepas as Bruno put hers on. “¿Hora comer?

“Yup! Me and Abuela made you all some food!” Bruno sat down and pulled the plate onto his lap, showcasing it to the kids.

“Arepas!” Camilo shouted, already reaching for one. Bruno handed each of the one and watched as they happily munched on the food their tio happily prepared. “¡Comida rica!”

“I’m glad mi pequeno sobrino loves my food so much,” Bruno pinched Camilo’s cheeks, causing the one year old to giggle. “And, after you're done, I’ve got a little present for you all~” At that, the children were even more giddy.

The children have to realize that they like this “birthday’ thing. Their parents had told them that it came once every year, and that’s when they knew they were older. Tio Bruno said that when someone has a birthday, everyone celebrates it just for you—or rather, the six of them. They knew that it was their very first birthday, so they were 1 year old. But their Abuela said something special might happen on their 5th birthday!

An hour later, after the children finished scarfing down their food and Bruno cleaned their faces, they all sat in front of him as he rummaged in his ruana for the new gifts he had gotten them. “You guys ready?” Bruno said, to which the children all declared their readiness very loudly.

The toddlers inched closer to their uncle, who pulled out 2 blue hair ties that were decorated with May flowers. Isabela gasped as she reached out to touch them. “For you mi florecita,” Bruno tied them to Isabela braids, and she squealed and thanked him for the gift. She spun around as she shouted ‘Flower!’, waving her hands around.

He turned to Camilo and held something behind his back. “Close your eyes, hijo…” Bruno said. Camilo clapped his chubby little hands over his eyes, giggling as he felt something pass over his head and rest on his shoulders. “Ok…open them!” Bruno yelled out happily. Camilo gasped as he looked down and saw the brand-spankin-new orange poncho that rested on his shoulders. He jumped up and down in delight as he flapped it up and down, joy in his eyes.

“Me, me!” Mirabel shouted, jumping up and down. Bruno chuckled as he pulled out a white ribbon, which Mirabel very much liked. Bruno tied it into her hair ruffling her curls once it was in place. “Pretty!” she beamed, joining Isabela and Camilo who were now dancing.

“Luisa! I’ve got you something as well!” Bruno called the girl over, her wavy hair surrounding her face. Bruno pulled out another ribbon–although this one was thinner and was purple instead of white. He gently pulled her hair into a small bun, Luisa laughing as she looked up at her hair and touched the ribbon.

“Antonio, look!” Antonio’s attention went from his siblings to his tio as the man pulled out an ascot. He tied it around the little boys’ neck loosely, and Antonio squealed in delight as he admired the gift. He picked up one of the rats and showed it off, before joining the other 5 in their circle.

“And this ones for you Lolo,” Bruno gently played 2 bows on her 2 pigtails and she gasped softly before hugging him tightly. Soon, she was showing off her bows to her fellow birthday buddies. All of the children were spinning in a circle and dancing, a couple of rats resting on Isabela and Antonio’s heads as they did. Bruno chuckled as he cleaned up the backyard, watching them sing and dance.

He liked this. He’d missed this, really. 10 years—he missed 10 years the first time, but he wasn’t going to let it happen again. He ran away last time, and…it resulted in their deaths. He couldn't let it happen again. All he wants is for his sorbinas and sobrinos to be happy.

Bruno found himself being tackled again as he let Casita take the plate and blanket back into the kitchen. “Ay!” he slipped and fell into the grass, the 6 piling onto his back. He struggled under the weight of the 6—they weren’t very heavy alone, but all together? That’s a solid 120 lbs with them all being around 20 lbs. Bruno struggled as the children giggled and laughed, him laying on the ground in defeat.

He heard a chuckle and looked up to see Pepa and Fèlix standing in front of him. “Bruno?” Pepa snorted at his situation. “You okay there hermanito?”

Bruno lifted his hands up and the children finally took notice of the couple. “¡Ayúdame!” Bruno half-heartedly exclaimed. “They’ve captured me—I’ve fallen and I can’t get up!”

“¡Ven aquí niños!” Fèlix said, reaching his arms out to them 6 saddled on Bruno’s back. They all shouted ‘Papa!’ and ‘Tio!’ as they jumped into his arms. “Hola mi nubes,” he said, pulling them into his hold. “Did your tio Bruno make you some food for your birthday?” While Fèlix talked with the children, Pepa helped Bruno up.

“I can’t believe you let a bunch of 1 year olds tackle you,” Pepa covered her laugh with her mouth, to which Bruno playfully smacked her arm.

“Hey! I was attacked. Ambushed even!” Bruno fell into Pepa’s hands in a mock faint. “I was set up! Casita helped them!” Pepa rolled her eyes and dropped him, to which Casita bounced him up as he yelp.

“Yes, well, we’ll be taking the little ambush squad here,” she nuzzled in Mirabel and Antonio’s cheeks. “But before we leave, Mama asked if you could help her set up for the you-know-what later,” Pepa gestured to Casita.

“Alright, alright, I’m going, I’m going...Make sure you have them back by 8! You know how Mama is about punctuation,” Bruno said, walking into Casita, waving them goodbye. “I’ll see you all later! ¡Feliz cumpleaños little ones!”

Pepa and Fèlix waved as they gathered up the children, putting their toys and cups of juice into a bag. As soon as they were ready, they were off to the town square, the children hanging onto Pepa and Fèlix’s back.

Fèlix watched his wife play with her sobrinas. Luisa was riding on her shoulder, babbling about something Bruno did while Isabela and Mirabel were playing pattycake in her arms. Fèlix loved how strong she was—physically and mentally. She was the middle ground, and he loved that about her.

Pepa looked at her husband who was holding their children. The man was laughing about a story Camilo was trying to tell, the boy kept stumbling over his words; the children were smart, and could definitely talk, but sometimes the words didn’t form quite right. Antonio and Dolores clinging to his back, giggling every time Fèlix jumped when they poked him. The sight made Pepa smile. She had missed being like this. A familia.

The couple along with their 6 children walked into the town square where the band was playing jovial music. As soon as the children were spotted, several villagers started shouting happy birthday to them, much to their delight. The children were released from Fèlix and Pepa’s hold, and they all ran over to the band members, who had wished them a very happy birthday.

“Alright everyone!” The guitarist stopped the music, standing up and facing the crowd. The toddlers turned towards them, smiling when they spotted Pepa and Fèlix in the front. “¡Hoy es el cumpleaños de los seis Madrigals! Let us celebrate this with a village wide dance, with the little ones in the center!” he announced.

The crowd cheered, and soon gathered around the fountain, where the 6 littlest ones were standing next to Pepa and Fèlix. The music began,and the villagers soon started dancing in a large circle, singing to the cubima music.

Fèlix was quick to swoop in and guide Isabela, Dolores, Luisa and Mirabel in the dance, spinning them around and throwing them upwards. Pepa grabbed onto the small pudgy hands of her sons Camilo and Antonio and quickly flew into dance with them, right beside Fèlix.

The eight of them danced as the village danced with them, singing in a joyous manner, the tots giggling in delight as Pepa and Fèlix danced with them. Pepa and Fèlix smiled as the children gathered in their own little circle, dancing just like the couple would.

It wasn’t often that the warm duo got to dance like this with the townsfolk, at least not before…the incident. It pained them to think about it. It wasn’t such a pleasant memory after all. The whole ordeal left them scarred for life—it wasn’t like someone could simply forget.

Fèlix swooped Pepa back into the dance, watching as the 4 girls spun in their decorative party dresses like Pepa and the 2 boys attempting to copy Fèlix’s moves in their sharp dress clothes. The villagers continued to laugh and sing as the toddlers danced about, happy about their birthday celebration.

The dances and songs continued until the sun began to set, indicating the Madrigal’s cue to leave. Most of the other villagers had gone home, and the remaining ones sent the Madrigal’s on their way.

The tots were in the hold of Pepa and Fèlix, chugging down the juice they had from the lunch they had with Bruno. Once Casita was in view, they were set down and their clothes (which were surprisingly still clean,) readjusted so they were back to their dress up state. Pepa adjusted the boys' clothes while Fèlix retired Mirabel and Dolores' bows.

"Alright," Pepa bent down to face them, all of them patiently waiting at Casita's door. "We have a surprise for you. Casita is going to open the doors, and then you can walk in. OK?"

The children nodded, and with that, Pepa and Fèlix moved to stand behind them. Casita's doors gently opened, and the toddlers gasped at the sight before them.

The courtyard was decorated with streamers windmills, the several lights from candles lighting up the room. Julieta and Agustín were standing on one side, holding each other and smiling warmly at the children. Bruno was standing next to Alma, both with welcoming expressions on their faces. Pepa and Fèlix moved to their other side, opposite Julieta and Agustín.

"¡Sorpresa! ¡Feliz cumpleaños!" They all shouted. The children ran in, Casita bouncing them up and down, seemingly wishing them a happy birthday as well.

"Come mi nietos," Abuela ushered them to her. Casita tossed the gleeful children towards As, to which they rushed towards her open arms.

"Abuela!" Isabela and Camilo, the others in hot pursuit. Alma chuckled as they all hugged her and kissed her on the cheek, just like she would to them.

"Hola mi pequeño milagros," Alma said. She gave them each a kiss on the head. "Are you all ready for some cake?" They all yelled yes, with Camilo and Luisa being particularly happy about it. Alma laughed again as she guided them over to the table that had been moved to the courtyard. While Bruno and Alma put them into their high chairs, the other adults bring out the various small sized cakes Julieta baked.

Isabela got a torta negra colombiana; her favorite. She clapped as Julieta tied a bib around her and her siblings' necks. Dolores was given a torta de tres leches; she had always favored the sweetened milk used in it. Luisa torta de manzana; she was fond of apples, but put it in a cake? The girl was in love. Camilo cheered when a large rolled slice brazo de reina was placed in front of him, the only thing stopping him was Fèlix, who had told him to wait just a second more. Mirabel was given her all time favorite—dulce de leche. Even in the last, she favored it, and it still hadn't changed. Antonio gasped as his mama placed a torta de dulce de coco in front of him; coconut, the best flavor if you asked him!

The adults gathered and began singing.

"Cumpleaños feliz
te deseamos a ti
cumpleaños Isabela, Dolores, Luisa y Camilo, Mirabel y Antonio~" they all chuckled to themselves as they sang the 6 names at once. "Cumpleaños feliz.
Que los cumpla feliz,
que los vuelva a cumplir,
que los siga cumpliendo,
Hasta el año 3000!" They all exclaimed.

The adults clapped as the children began to eat their cake. Bruno laughed at how puffed their cheeks looked when they ate the cake, but thought it was adorable nonetheless.

Julieta and Pepa pulled their mother aside as the men helped the children eat.

"Mama, we really want to thank you for helping us in all this." Julieta said, pulling her mother into a hug, which she returned. After pulling away, Pepa continued.

"Lo siento...we…We didn't let you in on the planning beforehand. I mean, we did but—!" Pepa was cut off when her mother placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. Pepa saw that Alma's eyes didn't drift to her cloud, but stayed on Pepa.

"It's OK, mija, I don't mind. I would've tired myself out " Alma said, rubbing her daughters back. Pepa took some deep breaths and dispersed her cloud. "Besides…I'll be planning the next one," Alma chuckled as she went back over to the others.

By this point, the children had finished eating and were being cleaned up while Agustín took the plates back and cleared the table. Alma sat down on one of the dining room chairs, where the children gathered at her feet, sitting on the floor of Casita.

"Niños. Today is your first birthday, the day you were given to us. And I want to know that I, your parents, and tio love you so much, no matter what happens." Alma smiled at them, their faces full of curiosity. She loved how interested they looked whenever she would tell stories. "When it was Julieta, Pepa and Bruno's first birthday, I did this for them, and now I will do it for you."

Bruno handed some colorful material to Alma, which quickly gathered the sextuplets' attention.She handed each of them a bundle. The newly 1 year olds unraveled the bundles and took in what they were. They were hand knitted blankets; each one in the color of the yarn the child had chosen just months before. Each blanket also had white embroidery, the little symbols representing each child: Dolores had music notes, Camilo had chameleons, Antonio had various animals, Mirabel had butterflies, Luisa had dumbbells with hearts and Isabela had different types of flowers.

"Blankie?" Mirabel asked, as she pulled the blanket over her head.

"Yes mariposita, it's a blanket. I made it for you all." Alma watched as they pulled the blankets around themselves. They obviously liked them, and immediately went off to show off to the other members.

The children ran around Casita's courtyard with their new blankets, stubby legs carrying them around as they did.

Fèlix and Agustín took this as an opportunity to gather some instruments, playing jovial music as the little ones started dancing again, this time with their Abuela.

The party continued into the night, until the babies started showing signs of fatigue.

"Alright, I think it's night-night time," Julieta picked Mirabel and Luisa, carrying them up while Pepa and Bruno picked up the other four. The 3 went into the nursery while Agustín helped Fèlix and Casita clean up. Alma was quietly wrapping up the leftover food and putting it into the ice box.

The children were being changed out of their party clothes by the triplets.

“No night night…” Dolores mumbled, rubbing her eyes and yawning as her mother pulled her nightgown over her head.

“I know mija, but you have to. You can play tomorrow,” Pepa lifted Dolores and placed her into her crib giving a kiss on her cheek before moving to put Luisa into hers and kissing her head as well. “Good night niños,” Pepa whispered, Fèlix and Agustín walking in to their children goodnight.

“Buenos noches niños,” Julieta whispered one last time as the children drifted into sleep.


Alma was in her room, getting ready for bed. She removed the pins from her hair, letting her hair cascade down her back as she brushed it out. She began thinking back to the past year and even before that.

Before they came back, she couldn’t deny—she was a mess. She couldn’t think straight, her mind wouldn’t focus. Her emotions, she couldn’t handle the sadness.

But then they did come back. And that brought her a joy she never thought she’d see again. One that she never even knew she had. It was like she was given a new light in her life, one that she had been missing since her dearest Pedro passed.

Alma set down her brush and climbed into her bed, the only light in the room coming from the candle that had given her the room. She looked at her locket that had a picture of Pedro on it and kissed it gently. “Buenos noches mi amor.”

She laid her head down, ready to sleep when—

A small knock emitted from her door. Alma sat up and looked for a moment at her door. Who could be up at this hour? It was already, she looked at her clock, 11 pm! She waited for a second before she heard another small knock.

Alma slipped out of bed and shuffled over to the door, opening it gently. She looked around, not seeing anyone, but her attention was caught when her nightgown was pulled at. She looked down and saw all six of her nietos standing at her door, tears in their eyes and new blankets in hand.

“Tita?” Isabela’s eyes watered as she pulled on her Abuela’s dress again.

“Nietos, what…?” Alma immediately bent down and picked up Isabela, soon carrying Camilo as well while the others followed behind, sniffles filling the room as Alma’s door closed. After helping each child onto her bed, she wiped the tears from their eyes, cupping their faces as she did. “niños, what happened? ¿Por qué estás llorando?” she asked softly.

She was met with more tears as the child threw themselves into her hold, basking in her warm motherly aura.

“¡Mal sueño!” Several of them shouted at once, to which Alma did her best to calm them. She spent 5 minutes rubbing their heads gently, calming them down so she could at least figure out what happened.

“You had a bad dream?” Alma asked them, to which they all nodded. Her face went into confusion before switching back to a gentle look. It was strange, but…not out of the ordinary. The triplets used to have the same nightmare sometimes, so it was a possibility with these six. “Can you tell Abuela what happened?” Alma asked quietly, cupping Luisa’s face.

“Casita…Casita fall!” Luisa hiccuped, curling further into her grandmother's hold. Alma froze. There was no way they remember…did they?

“Did…Casita fall on…you all?” Alma gently questioned.

Mirabel nodded solemnly. Her eyes showed a fear no one year old should have, fear that even Alma could barely handle. “Casita fall, go boom! No find Abuela or Mami…”

“Tio bye bye forever…” Dolores rubbed her eyes as he hiccuped again.

“You mean…Tio Bruno wasn’t there? And you couldn’t find anyone?” Alma frowned a bit. She watched as the child cried more, scooping them up into her arms.

“Mami…Papi…Abuela…Tío…Tía…all gone!” Camilo wailed.

“Casita hurt us! Casita hurt!” Isabela buried her face into Alma’s shoulder.

Alma could do nothing but hold the children in her arms, and comfort them the best she could. She didn’t think this would happen—it shouldn’t have happened! They started anew, they were supposed to be happy!

But nothing comes for free. Them coming back was a miracle in and of itself…and the price was that they may have nightmares.

Alma rocked her 6 nietos, holding all six of them in her lap. She began to sing a lullaby she had heard Pedro sing to her triplets several times. Once they finally all calmed down (after about 10 minutes of Alma just continuously humming. The sextuplets seemed to really like it when she sang to them…) Alma pulled them away from her, much to their dismay.

“You all should go to bed now,” Alma gently explained. “It’s a bit late now.”

Mirabel clutched Alma’s nightgown so Alma wouldn’t move from the bed. “Sleep with Tita?” Alma was shocked at the request. Surely, they wouldn’t want to go to their parents?

“You don’t want Mama or Papa?” Alma gestured to her door.

“Tita.” Mirabel said simply, grabbing onto her nightgown sleeve again. The other children seemed to agree, and who was Alma to deny them?

Alma nodded her head, and moved to get them all comfortable. Dolores and Isabela laid on the ends with Camilo and Luisa next to them. Antonio and Mirabel laid closest, clinging to Alma’s arm. As she lay her head down, she watched as they all cuddled a little bit closer, Antonio and Mirabel resting their heads on her arm.

Various ‘night-night Abuela’s emitted from the children as they closed their eyes.

The elderly woman smiled as she closed her eyes. “Buenos noches mi pequeño milagros.”

Abuela and her nietos

Notes:

WOWWWW. That was long, 8000+ words. But I hope you liked it regardless! I had a lot of fun writing this chapter, and I'm glad I could get it out during May. I really like the end as well, and I hope you do too! See y'all in the next chapter :)

I hope you liked my drawing as well! Art by me, watermarked, don't steal please :)