Inbox for Kaisou

[nonmagical]

Hola! Leave a message, I'll call you back as soon as I can!

[For all IC messages/action posts!]

Comments

[nonmagical]

Wait what - Camilo!

[That's about all she gets out before she watches him disappear. Where would they go? It's starting to get a little late...?

But admittedly, she is curious where he plans on taking her. She hasn't been out of the house like, at all, since she got back. After a few seconds of debating, Mirabel goes to her closet, picking out something she picked out on her birthday but hadn't had a chance to wear yet. She glances at herself in a mirror, feeling... awkward, feeling like a stranger in her own body. Running a hand down the dress, trying to smooth it out, she tries to ignore her own feelings about her body and eventually heads downstairs to find Camilo.]

All right, where are we going?

[camaleonico]

[ He's resting in the hammock when she comes down, eating an arepa — how is he eating half the time, seriously — but as soon as he sees her at the top of the staircase, he swings his legs off and gets to his feet. He shoots her a bright, warm smile, shoves what's left of the arepa in his mouth, and waves her along over his shoulder as he heads off toward the door. ]

Listo~ Vamos.

[ Casita opens her own doors for them, and closes them once the pair has stepped out. Camilo slips his coat on once they're in the cold night air, and grins at Mirabel again before they set off, a certain glint in his eyes. ]

I found somewhere really cool... You'll see. It's not too far from here.

[ He places a gentle hand on her shoulder encouragingly for a brief second, then steps forward to lead the way. ]

[nonmagical]

[Mirabel grabs whatever coat she can get her hands on - probably Julieta’s, because her current coat she let a small boy keep. She slides it on as Camilo guides her out.

She gives him a slightly suspicious look, one eyebrow raised.]

O…kay. Lead the way.

[She’d be lying if she said she wasn’t curious.]

lol i know that small boy :v

[camaleonico]

[ She should look at him suspiciously, and he thinks so, too, which just keeps his smirk in place as they walk. He explains a little, but not... a lot... ]

When we get there, just follow my lead. Act natural. We don't have these little— I dunno— cards? There's a guy at the door, he asks for some card to check how old you are, I guess. But he let me in last time. Aaand— I think you'll probably pass, too.

[ He's not gonna mention it's because of her fur and her face, she doesn't need to be explicitly reminded of it; she can read between the lines on that one. But why are they going to a place teenagers aren't allowed to go to...? What's he sneaking? Camilo's always been arguably the most likely one to break rules and push the boundaries, of all the kids, maybe almost neck-and-neck with Mirabel — but that's why he's sure he could rope her in on this. They're not exactly rebellious, but... sometimes you just gotta seize a chance when you find it.

Besides — Julieta's an intimidating but gentle presence, whom he certainly wouldn't want to be in trouble with, buuuuut... his own parents aren't here. And Pepa and Félix are much scarier than Julieta and Augustín when Camilo's been in trouble. He's not terribly daunted. And if he does get in trouble? He'll take the fall for Mirabel, and deal with Julieta's wrath. Worth it. Totally worth it. ]

Yes u do ‘u’

[nonmagical]

[Mirabel can’t exactly say she’s never been the rebellious type. She broke into Bruno’s Tower when it was specifically off-limits, called out Abuela, even Booked it almost all the way out of the Encanto…

So it’s not like she’s afraid - maybe a little. Her mom was already stressed out due to… everything she did. She didn’t really want to make it worse.

But that curious side of her wins out. And despite how nervous she felt about her looks, there was something… nice? About going out?]

We need cards or don’t need cards? Where are we going?

[camaleonico]

We need the cards, but we don't have the cards, so we're gonna get in without the cards. You'll see. I did it before. And I don't think he'll clock you, if it's the same guy...

[ He speaks with a smoothness and full faith that this mysterious plan is gonna work, shoving his hands in his coat pockets comfortably as they walk. ]

I've been twice. The first time, they wouldn't let me in. So the second time I went back, I tricked 'im. I mean— not "tricked" him, that makes it sound bad... You know what I mean.

[ ...oh, god, he shapeshifted, that's what he means, that can be the only possible interpretation, knowing Camilo. He'd never do anything sordid or mean-spirited, buuut he's never been above using his Gift to innocently pull the wool over others' eyes to get what he wants. It's a tricky Gift, indeed. ]

[nonmagical]

... You shapeshifted, didn't you.

[She sounds more amused than accusatory, because of course he would. He could make himself look like any of the adults back home, slipping into the disguise of an "adult" to get in someplace adult-only would be fairly easy for him.]

I... don't know how that's gonna work for me. Can't exactly shapeshift.

[Well she sort of can now! Into a dog. Which she doesn't know how to do yet.]

[camaleonico]

[ He's careful not to be too insensitive remarking on her appearance, but really, he's never seen anyone who looks like she does right now, and he would have a hard time pegging her age like this if he didn't know her...? He has strong confidence the bouncer might not have an eye for this, either. But he doesn't want to be too blunt about it, so he pushes quickly past. ]

Yeah but he doesn't know you're a teenager. Just act relaxed. I'll chat him up. It'll be fine. And if it's not— I've got a back-up plan to get you in...

[ Because of course he does. ]

[nonmagical]

Oooof course you do.

[She's still not sure about this, but they're probably almost there anyway. Too late to have doubts, she supposes. Plus she's too interested in where they're going to head back now.]

Work your magic, I guess.

[camaleonico]

Oh, I will.

[ Both his magical magic and his natural magic... He shoots her a smirk. It's not too far before they reach the Brick Alley area of town, chit-chatting along the way, and Camilo gives Mirabel a playful nudge with his elbow as soon as he spots their destination. ]

Oye. We're here— hold up...

[ He inclines his head toward a little nook around a corner, just out of eyesight from the front door... And instantly transforms himself unseen into Mariano Guzman. Oh, boy... He grins at Mirabel, then leads her forward toward the entrance to a night club. There's a short line to get in, everyone looking rather trendy and stylish as Camilo had promised. Camilo guides Mirabel with a gentle hand on her shoulder, standing so much taller than her now. This is... both exciting and foreboding already. As they wait in line, he finally reveals his plan here: ]

Just wait. You're gonna love it, Mira. It was so fun. All the music is in Spanish, everyone dances like no one's watching... I promise you'll have fun.

[ He gives her an encouraging little pat on the back. ]

[nonmagical]

[As they approach the line, Mirabel looks around. She's... never seen anything like this before. They certainly didn't have anything like this back home, and she can already hear the sounds of music through the door.

She feels well - very self-conscious. Everyone is dressed up here so nicely, and while she's wearing her best cute outfit, she's also part-dog right now. And it just makes her feel awkward. But she tries to push that to the side - just in time to see Camilo turn into Mariano. She can't help herself - she lets out a muffled snort of laughter.]

Mariano? Really?

[Well if they're going to sneak in, Mariano is the way to go she supposes. As they wait in line, Camilo talks up the club and it sounds... really fun.]

It sounds like a lot of people are having fun in there. It'd be nice to do some dancing...

[She hasn't been in the mood to dance or sing since she came back from her ordeal.]

sorry for length, just pushing forward past the boring stuff!

[camaleonico]

People are all having fun. Teeeechnically, I think it's just for grownups because a lot of people are drinking, but, whatever. We're just gonna dance. Nothing wrong with dancing.

[ Camilo and Mirabel are both fish out of water here. The Encanto was so lively and peaceful, Camilo never felt like they lacked anything, never wondered about the outside world really, just trusted their community had shut themselves off for good reason and that the rest of the world was a dangerous place. And now? They find themselves in a bustling metropolis by comparison, unfamiliar with the laws, the money, the culture, the technology, the everything. Nothing lacks novelty. Perpetual amazement and bemusement.

But sometimes, it's exciting. Like these moments. And more than anything, he's glad to drag Mirabel out of her room, in spite of everything. She's overdue for fun. It doesn't take long in line until they're next. Camilo whispers to Mirabel: ]

Let me do the talking...

[ When the bouncer asks for IDs, Camilo shrugs nonchalantly, and speaks in his smoothest, adultiest voice. ]

Don't got 'em, sorry. We just showed up here...

[ The bouncer eyes Camilo suspiciously, then nods, pointing at him thoughtfully. ]

You. You were here last week, weren't you? I remember your face.

[ Camilo gives a sheepish grin and another little shrug, more comedic now. ]

Hah, y-yeah, I was. Guess I just have one of those faces, huh~?

[ The bouncer smirks, then turns to give Mirabel the once-over, cocking his eyebrow a little at her odd appearance, but moves on casually without rudely staring. ]

...Aight. And what about you, mama? Age?

[ Camilo's quick to interrupt, wrapping his arm around Mirabel's shoulders and tugging her into a side-hug affectionately, grinning at the bouncer. ]

Ah, this is my cousin! We're the same age. Born in 1934 and 1935~

[ He gestures to himself and then to Mirabel with his free hand, acting cool as a cucumber. The guy rolls his eyes, snorting a little laugh. ]

Right, right, right... I remember... We went through this... All right, all right, ten each.

[ Camilo raises a brow, releasing Mirabel to slowly whip out his cash from his pocket. ]

Ten...? Last time it was five!

[ All the same, he hands the man a twenty dollar bill, still eyeing him cautiously as the man replies. ]

Well, yeah, that was on Latin night – today's Friday. Costs more for the show. Wrists, please!

[ Camilo shoots a baffled look to Mirabel, shrugs at her with an exaggerated frown that says "no clue, same as you" silently, and sticks out his arm to receive bracelet. The bouncer wraps the paper wristband around him, gestures to Mirabel to do hers, and then waves them along, shouting "next!" loudly before he's even done sealing Mirabel's wristband. Camilo places a guiding hand on her shoulder, then pushes on forward past the bouncer's desk, through the doorway beside him, which turns and leads them down an elegant stairwell... He beams at her conspiratorially as they step down. ]

I dunno what that was about, buuut— You ready, parcera~? Put your party pants on, Miraboo, heh.

[ Mocking her dad, ay... It deserves the build-up, though. At the bottom of the stairs is another doorway that opens onto an extravagant, colorful bar with an ornate wraparound balcony above the dancefloor, along with a large spinning disco ball. In the center, there's an empty stage with a runway and silvery shimmery curtains behind the stage, reflecting the colorful lights that shift to the tune of loud, pulsing pop music filling the air in the background. The music, however, is not the Spanish bops that Camilo had expected and promised... And instead of a dancefloor full of people boogying, there's a ton of seats lined up in rows, many of them already taken. But two on the inner aisle along the catwalk of the stag remain open, so Camilo shoots Mirabel another bemused look and a shrug, then heads over to snag those... As they sit, he leans in to speak, cupping his hand around his mouth to be heard over the music. ]

I dunno what's going on? It wasn't like this last time...?

[ He can't help but feel a little giddy about the mistake, though. A show? What kind of show? Everyone seems even more excited than the first time he'd come, a different kind of buzz about the audience as seats quickly fill in. It must be something good if they're charging double the cover fee to see it... ]

[nonmagical]

[Mirabel stays silent, letting Camilo do what he needs to do. The thought that runs through her mind is first, Wow, he's really good at this and then He probably shouldn't actually be good at this. But the deed is done, and they're in. Camilo guides her to her seat, and she looks around curiously. It was some kind of show? But what kind of show is beyond her.]

Looks like we're gonna watch some kind of show?

[... Helpful, Mirabel. The music gets louder, and Mirabel can feel the rumbling of loud beats through her body. It's a pretty unusual sensation - but that's nothing compared to the sounds of cheering and whooping as someone comes out to announce the start of the show.]