Encanto One-Shots

Broken Bridges

Requested by: RecluseCoq

"Mama!" Pepa screamed. "Mama, Julieta, come quick!" Her mother and sister came running to her as fast as they could, finding her near the hallway to Bruno's tower. She was near tears and had a huge thunder cloud over her head, which was quickly spreading.

"Pepa, the cloud!" Abuela said sternly at the same as Julieta put a hand on her sister's shoulder.

"What's wrong, Pepi?" Pepa bit her lip, trying not to cry. She let out a choked sound and pointed at Bruno's door. It was completely dark. "What- Bruno's door- Mama, what's happening?"

Abuela looked up at the door and marched toward it gravely. Her daughters followed her. As they reached it, Felix and Agustin ran over, Felix immediately gathering Pepa into a hug.

"Pepi, amour, what's wrong? The whole town is asking about the storm. I- What's wrong with Bruno's door?" Abuela looked back at the four.

"That's what we need to find out." She pushed open her son's door and the group slowly walked in. The sand in front of the entrance was pouring down and, even as Abuela put her hand into it, it continued to block their path. "Bruno? Bruno, turn off the sand! Right now!" Nothing happened.

Pepa pushed her way to the front. "Brunito?!" She screamed. "Bruno, mi hermanito, please, answer us!" She waited for a moment, then ran towards the pouring sand.

"Pepa, no! Bruno said not to go in-" Julieta yelled, reaching out for her sister. Pepa jumped through, ignoring her. "When the sand's on..." The healer finished.

Felix looked at the others and shrugged. He ran after his wife, pushing through the sand. Agustin followed him quickly, and Julieta raced after them, tugging empanadas out of her pockets. Abuela sighed in frustration and hesitantly stepped through the sand, then was dragged down by its weight and tumbled down the sandy hill, landing on top of the pile of bodies at the bottom.

Once everyone regained their footing, Pepa immediately tore towards Bruno's stairs, rain still pouring onto her head.

"We're not... following her, are we?" Agustin asked, eyeing the large number of stairs. Julieta started to climb, a worried look on her face. "I guess we are."

The group of four had almost climbed to the top when they heard Pepa sobbing and crying in despair. The winds in the room began to blow stronger and stronger, threatening to blow them off the stairs. 

"Pepi, amour, you're tornado-ing us! What's wrong?!" Felix asked as they climbed faster. Pepa couldn't hear him over her storm. 

"Brunito, mi Hermanito! Come back! Please! I'll never tease you, or rain on you, or complain about my stupid wedding, please come out of there! YOU HAD BETTER NOT BE GONE, BRUNITO!!! PLEASE COME BACK!!!" 

By the time her family reached her, Pepa was soaked by her mini-hurricane. Felix went to hug her, but she shook her head. She pointed a trembling finger at the broken bridge.

"Bruno." She whispered. "Bruno is... gone." Agustin caught Julieta as her knees buckled. 

"Oh. No. No no no no no no no- Pepi, he can't- he can NOT be gone. He... Bruno would never leave this family!" Julieta met her sister's eyes. Then she burst into tears. "NO! Not my baby brother! He can't just leave! Not like this! He CAN'T!"

As Agustin and Felix tried to console the remaining two-thirds of the triplets, Alma just stared at the gap between them and Bruno's cave. "Bruno would've never let you storm like that, Pepa, not without trying to help. Julieta, he wouldn't have let you cry for him, he would've come to reassure you. And Agustin, Felix, I'm sure he would be here with you two, with his sisters. I think... We have to face the facts. Bruno is in his cave. And he either doesn't care anymore or... he was un-alived."

Thunder shook Casita. "NO! We could get over there! We could look for him! Get Louisa to bring over a bridge! Or Isabela to grow vines!" Agustin interrupted Pepa.

"My daughters cannot go over there. I don't want them to see what in that cave, and even if they did, there'd be no point. We'll ask Dolores if she can hear his heartbeat and if not..."

The others murmured a bit, then nodded. 

"Please be okay, Bruno. I need you to be okay." Pepa whispered to the chasm.

~~~

Bruno was not okay. 

Dolores didn't hear a heartbeat.

Pepa stormed for weeks.

Julieta didn't cook the arepas that hadn't saved her brother.

Felix and Agustin didn't sing.

Abuela raised her expectations.

The children didn't smile.

The rats in the walls tried to comfort Bruno as he longed for his family.

But he was gone.

Dead or alive, he was still gone.

And nobody in the Encanto could change that.

Nobody did for a decade.

A/N: Oof, Rooster, I hope that was enough of dat nice angst for you! XD