Damien's pov 

I walked into the kitchen and saw Camilo eating a small chocolate cake. 

"Hey, I'm back."

"Oh, hey. Where's Mirabel?"

"With Miss Isabella by the Spriggans."

I showed him through the window. 

"What are Spriggans?"

"A Spriggan is a protector of nature. They grow from deceased trees. Some even have the ability to control animals, but only if the animal is willing to aid the Spriggan."

"They look dangerous."

"They are, extremely so in fact. However, these are artificial Spriggans. My Mama Sofia created them from a large red oak to protect me when I was a toddler. They are perfectly safe to be around as long  as I'm safe."

I wrapped my arm around his shoulder, enjoying the slight squish of his arms.

"Holy- Mirabel?!"

I snapped my head up and saw Mirabel with her wings out, with pack of Fae all around her.

"Mierda!"

I jumped out the window and ran over to her. 

"Go! You are not welcome here!"

"Oh oh oh! It's the Defect! What are you going to do about? Hmm? This little butterfly is going to be ours, ours, ours!"

Selkie grabbed them and swam to the bottom of the lake. 

"Go to my potion room, Mirabel. Don't try putting your wings away, I half to remove the magic or you'll be in excruciating pain."

"Okay."

She flew toward the house and I conducted damage control.

"Aphid! Spriggans! Selkie!"

Aphid and her pack manifested looking confused, my Spriggans stumbled over holding Isabella like a Queen, and Selkie swam up from the lake, dead Fae spat onto the ground.

"Damage control. Aphid, we have an infestation of Burlona Fae. I need you and your colony  to round them up. Don't let a single one escape. Selkie, go to Camilo and make sure he's comfortable, and to make sure he doesn't touch Mirabel. Spriggans, after Aphid's group rounds up the Burlona Fae, you kill them. Go!"

I caught Isabella when my Spriggans dropped her and set her down. 

"Apologies, Miss Isabella, but I need to tend to Mirabel."

I formed a disk of water and it carried me to my house. I rushed inside to a worried Camilo fretting around Mirabel. 

"Don't touch her!"

I spooked them both and quickly separated them. 

"Mierda!"

I held my hand in pain as shards of Burlona Fae magic manifested in throbbing, red, crystal shards, sprouting from my wrist and hand. I fell to my knees as the shard of angry red crystal stabbed through my skin. 

"Master! I have the potion!"

Selkie slid a potion to me on the ground and I quickly drank it. 

"Okay, I'm fine, for now. Mirabel. Don't touch anything. I'll be right back. I held my wrist as I rushed to my potion room. I made the potion and rushed back out, one eye clenched shut in pain. 

"Drink this. It will negate the effects of Burlona Fae magic on you. Don't touch anyone for a full hour. Now, you had a question, Camilo?"

I gave a pained smiled at him as he chose his words. 

"What happened to mi prima?"

"Okay, before I answer your question, your tios, tias, Abuela, and Bruno need to talk to you. Also, don't mention Mirabel's wings to anybody. It'll put her life in danger. Tell Miss Isabella and don't leave my room."

I walked outside and found Isabella storming toward me. 

"What happened to mi hermana?!"

"Miss Isabella, I have to fetch the rest of your familia. Mirabel and Camilo are in the house. She's perfectly fine, but don't touch her. I'll be back in five minutes."

I sent her on her way and undid the Spriggan's brambles. I opened the door and was buried under Felix.

"Ow..."

"I'm so sorry Damien!"

"It's okay. Please gather your familia and bring them to my house."

"Is Camilo okay?"

"Hmm? Oh yes. He's perfectly fine. I'm just keeping him under observation for today. It's not everyday I have to save a human from acute magic poisoning. I'll be at my cottage. Make sure, all your familia are here."

I got up and stretched before walking back to my house with a hand on my back. 

"Damien?"

"Oh, hey Camilo, you pretty thing. Felix is a heavy man."

"Yeah, sorry bout that."

He was blushing, but I wasn't sure if it was from my comment about him being pretty, or about Felix. I cracked my back and led Camilo to the house. 

"So, Mirabel is a witch now?"

"Yup, she asked me, and it's an honor for a young witch like myself to have a student. She picks up her lessons surprisingly well for someone her age."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, typically, witches find a child to be their student. That way their core can grow into the size they need it to be. A teenager's core is set at a solid human level."

"What's a core?"

I smiled at him. 

"Curious little thing, aren't you?"

"Can't help it."

"Well, a core is  like a heart but instead of blood and oxygen, it pumps magic to every part of your body. All living creatures have a core, but you have to be taught to use it properly to be able to use magic."

We would've continued chatting about cores, but a pesky pack of Burlona Fae flew in front of us. I shielded Camilo with a translucent shield of water. 

"You are not welcome here!"

"Defect Defect De~fect! You don't have the privilege to speak to us! We're better than you and you know it."

I created a sphere of water around them and drowned them and their nasty voices. 

"Damien?"

I flinched and gave him a small smile. 

"Sorry about that, amica mea*. Why don't you go back to the house. I'll send you familia your way, when I'm done with them."

 I sent Camilo on his way to the house and shook myself to get rid of the nasty words. 

"Dami- "

"Luisa, Dolores, and Antonio. Go up to the cottage and wait with your siblings, if you wouldn't mind. Selkie, put up a barrier around us."

The children looked at each other and walked toward my cottage. Selkie put the barrier up and growled at the adults before sitting outside the barrier. 

"What -"

"All of you need to shut up and listen. I am not covering your dirty secret. You need to tell your children their true parentage. It's unnecessarily cruel to them. I don't care if you were a good parent or not. They don't deserve to be lied to."

They all looked shocked. Bruno looked to be on the verge of an anxiety attack and his sisters looked extremely guilty.

"Who told you?"

"That does not matter. Anyone with analytical and reasoning skills put put it together."

"Why do you care so much? They are not your family."

"I have no obligation to share my reason with you. Tell them. The longer you put this off, the more they'll hate you."

I gave the signal to Selkie and she shrunk her barrier until it was them inside. 

"Don't let the barrier down until Pepa's hurricane goes away."

"Yes Master."

I waited next to Selkie until Pepa's hurricane was nothing more than a small rain cloud. I nodded and led the family to my cottage. 

"Mirabel, call everybody outside."

"Is everything out?"

"Just...just tell everyone to come out."

I gave the adults a hard glare before grabbing Selkie and descending into the water. We had our heads poked out under an illusion and watched this mess go down. 

<~>

Abuela : Children, we have to confess something. Mirabel, Camilo. You two are adopted.

Mirabel : What are you talking about Abuela?

Camilo : Yeah, if we were adopted I wouldn't have my gift.

Julieta : Sweetheart -

Bruno : Julieta. Let me. 

Pepa : Are you sure?

Bruno : I have to. Camilo, Mirabel. Five years before I left, I was assaulted by a lady. Ten months later two babies arrived on Casita's doorstep, all swaddled up and holding each other. 

Camilo : No, your lying!

Mirabel : Is this some sick practical joke?! It's not funny!

Abuela : Yes. Bruno is your father.  Please, don't look down on your Tias' and Tios'. It was my idea for them to adopt you after Bruno left. You were too young to understand what was happening, so I told them to treat you as their own children.

<~>

My mouth was agape as Señora Alma spoke of the largest secret this family could ever hold. I walked out of the water, completely dry, and Selkie moved her illusion as we moved. When Pepa formed another hurricane as she sobbed, Selkie moved the barrier over Pepa, causing the illusion to fade. With all the screaming, nobody noticed me. I walked inside and up the stairs to the guest room. I made the room much wider with multiple beds. One for Dolores and a smaller one for Antonio right next to her.  Luisa's bed I made much sturdier. Isabella's bed was covered in flowers. 

I didn't want to put a bed in for Mirabel. Instead, I done up nine identical beds with one of my own special enchantments and a door in place of a tenth bed. In a large circle, I conjured fourteen chairs. Twelve of them were beautiful wooden chairs with each of the Madrigal names carved into them. One chair was wrapped in dark purple silk with my name embroidered in gold. Selkie's chair was next to mine and it was wrapped in fine light pink silk with a seal embroidered in dark green. I sat a table with water and sugarless cookies. 

I walked back downstairs outside and and quickly trapped everyone in a hollow water bubble. They all stopped fighting and looked at me. I gave a slightly annoyed smile. 

"Since you all have plenty of secrets, and are so emotional stunted you resort to bickering like children; you won't ever be able to solve your problems like adults. So, since you can't work it out yourselves, it's time for a Witch's Council."

Vote, comment, and have a fantabulous day 😊😊💖💖
1636 words 
Enjoy 
*amica mea = my love in latin