We were made for each other (Camilo x Mariano)

The Rebellion Has Begun

The shifter ended up ditching the heels around twenty minutes in, complaining about how he could "hardly stand" and how he was going to "break his ankles" in them.

Which Mariano believed wholeheartedly.

Although he appreciated the confidence and reach that the shoes had given the other, that could never compare to his angel's wellbeing...

He dropped the golden heels off in his room, having Casita lock the door for good measure, before returning to find Mariano and his siblings and cousins congregating around one of the food tables.

Dolores, who was explaining to Antonio that Abuela wouldn't appreciate his animals drinking out of the punch bowl, was the first to notice him approaching them (obviously), second only to Mariano who offered a bright grin at his presence.

He absently wondered if the hearing Madrigal had memorized everyone's breathing patterns but wasn't given very much time to think on it as he was also noticed by his oldest cousin.

"Ooohhhh, that dress looks INCREDIBLE on you Cami..!" Isabela had squealed, hugging him quickly as she did so, her gentleness matching that of her mother.

Recently she had been getting much looser with expressing her emotions as well as her powers, a newfound trait of hers that most seemed to enjoy, especially her familia.

"Thanks," he replied, flashing an easy smile at her as he returned the hug. "Mirabel helped me make it." He said, looking over at said female gratefully as she rolled her eyes.

"If by "you helped" you mean you brought me snacks while I worked on it, then yeah, you helped." She giggled, no true animosity behind her teasing words, as she was more than happy to help design the special gown for her primo.

Camilo fake gasped at this, dramatically clutching his chest as if tearing out his own heart. "Mira..! Why must you wound me so?" He asked, in a false upset tone, pretending to cry.

Looking closely at it Mariano could recognize the fine handiwork of the chameleon's cousin in the near-invisible seams of the dress, not to mention the embroidery talent displayed by the bow as well as the gown...

Mirabel had simply laughed at the shifter's theatrical antics, pausing only to take a bite out of the arepa she currently had in hand.

Luisa was similarly watching the exchange with a smile while occasionally taking an interest in her own plate of food.

It was at that moment that Mariano realized something was off...

He hadn't quite noticed it before but now that he had it was unignorable...

All of the colours of the Madrigal children's clothing were different from their usual palettes...

"You're wearing red..?" Mariano found himself asking Isa without thinking, a sharp elbow to his ribs from Dolores quickly corrected him however. "I mean, not that it doesn't look nice on you..." he said in a remedial tone. "It's just... different..?"

As Isabela opened her mouth to reply, Dolores cut in, earning her a typical pouty glare from her floral cousin who hated being interrupted. Mariano chuckled, some things never changed...

"We went kinda rouge with the colour choices for this one," Dolores replied to him, shrugging with a smile. "Consider it to be our own little protest." She giggled, watching as the other male observed what she meant.

Mirabel was clad in a bright, canary-yellow a-line dress, with a matching bow in the back of her hair, the yellow contrasting divinely with Luisa's own pretty pink mermaid-style gown.

Said mermaid dress perfectly complementing the strong Madrigal's curves; her hair, for-once, loose from her bun and styled in a casual manner, falling in elegant curls around her shoulders.

Dolores herself was in a deep teal blue empire dress with her hair done into a high bun laced with ribbons, a few dainty ringlets framing her sweet face.

Even Antonio was on board, wearing a brilliant mint-green suit which he and his creature friends appeared to adore. Though Mariano doubted their Abuela had been informed of any of these costume alterations...

"What? You thought Cami was the only one breaking the dress code?" Isabela finally got in, grinning and shooting her eldest cousin a mildly dark look as she did so, with Camilo shrugging in agreement at this logic.

"It was actually our mom's idea." Dolores whispered to Mariano, humming slightly, her voice low as she did so as if she were afraid someone would overhear her as she spoke; her knowing expression reflected on his own face.

Ah, of course... the weather Madrigal was most likely still frustrated with her mother and was now subtly encouraging a rebellion of her authority in the background...

Mariano didn't know why he found that idea as funny as he did...