intro log + video;

[camaleonico]

WHO: Camilo Madrigal and you!
WHERE: Labyrinth and network post
WHEN: 14 February
WHAT: INCREASE MADRIGALS...! ever-changing labyrinth for an ever-changing teenager
WARNINGS: none

A. labyrinth

[ Oof… Camilo has a feeling he’s not in the Encanto anymore. It took him a second to process it, at first finding himself in the depths of a wild jungle… Maybe outside the Encanto, which he’s never really seen so he wouldn’t know, truthfully. That, or, uh, got really lost in his little brother’s bedroom… But it seemed too— navigable? It clearly wasn’t a natural jungle, almost like there were clear paths. But the instant Camilo took one definite turn over another direction…

He suddenly found himself in a tundra. He’s gaping in abject awe at the snowscape around him, but just like the jungle, there seems to be some navigable path about it, noticing several types of tracks in the snow that veer off… But after following one, he finds himself in an unusual city, a futuristic Metropolis, flying cars, all of it, but a marked lack of pedestrians — it’s just him on these bizarre empty streets… And when he turns down another street, just like before, the scene shifts once more, and he finds himself inside a volcano, which is, uh, alarming…?! He just turns right back around at that, meaning to go back to the crazy city, but even when retracing his own steps, every other turn he makes lands him somewhere new, dissimilar, overwhelming… all of these places alien to him, seemingly alone in every one. Each environment just gets more and more chaotic and unfamiliar, more unnerving, like a maze that has no actual path to follow. It’s a never-ending cycle.

After (what feels like) a couple a few several hours of playing this incomprehensible mind game with himself, Camilo finally stops running around aimlessly, because there’s absolutely no way he’s picking up on any cohesive clues on how to get out… With every scene change, he grows more and more frazzled and finally… disheartened. At this most recent turn, his surroundings melt into a thick, dark, muggy bayou, as he lands in the swampy waters full-force, soaked head to toe, wet curly hair clinging to the skin on his cheek.

A frog jumps on his head. And for whatever reason, that’s the last straw.

He lets out a loud, exasperated growl, shakes the creature off, and theatrically clambers out of the water and through the tall grass along the shore, bare toes and sandals wet with mud now. He leaves a large puddle in his wake with every step ashore, before finding a mossy log nearby. He plops down, scowling all the while, and tries at first to wring out his sopping wet ruana, but it seems so futile it’s almost funny…? One of those “if you don’t laugh, you’ll cry” kind of moments.

He’s just gonna… sit here a while. After all, when you’re lost, if you keep running around, you won’t be found — especially in dozens of different unpredictable environments. So, feeling somewhat like a lost little kid staying put to wait for his parents to find him, inwardly just as scared, if Camilo’s family does happen to find him in this wild swamp, they’ll find him just like this — chilling out on a log, slumped over melodramatically, looking like a drowned, harassed rat… Another frog (or the same frog? who can say; maybe Antonio, but not him) appears on the log beside him and croaks loudly at the deflated Camilo… And, sounding just as defeated as he looks, Camilo talks back to the frog with a wide, grimacing smile, his voice carried loud and clear through the otherwise empty swamp... only to deliver a bad joke. ]

This place must be pretty hoppin’, huh…

[ That's met with a somehow more disgruntled croak... Like even the frog hated that joke, Camilo. ]

Well, uh, I'd like to hear you do better! Psssh... Didn’t expect I’d feel so relieved to be talking to a frog today, ay. But I guess if I'm trapped in this crazy-kaleidoscope-nightmare-world, at least I’ll have you as a frie— Nope, you left. Like, immediately. Great. Bye...

[ And off it hops, yup. Gone. Camilo lets out a wry half-chuckle, half-groan, in spite of himself, dragging his hands down his face exaggeratedly. Yeah, definitely a “if you don’t laugh, you’ll cry” situation. ]





B. video; un: undecided

[ The video opens with a disgruntled, curly-haired teenaged boy, but he doesn't stay that way for long... ]

Uhhh— Holaaa... I'm looking for people who look like this...—

[ And in a flash, the boy magically transforms into another person entirely: first, a thin, harried-looking, redheaded woman, and then just as effortlessly, into a stouter, muscular man, taking the forms of his own parents one after the other, speaking their names in his own voice, despite the impressive shapeshifting. ]

Pepa and Félix Madrigal. Or, if you've seen Dolores or Anto—niooo...?!

[ He tries to transform once more, this time into a young, pretty, wide-eyed girl, but his efforts to transform again seem to go haywire, and he comes up with some conglomeration of her and a cute five-year-old boy with some pretty unsettling proportional problems... His brow knots in confusion, wearing Anotnio's baby-face pouting with Dolores' bright red lipstick, and he shakes it off, transforming back to his own self once again. ]

...Ahem. Um. Perdón. A-Aaanyway...~ Hah... Just, uh, let me know if you've seen them, or any other Madriga–a—aaal...s—?

[ An obviously involuntary shift this time, to a pallid, unkempt man wearing large, round, lime green glasses and a colorful butterfly blouse that probably doesn't belong to him...? S-Something's obviously going wrong, here. It's clear even to strangers of the family that this kid must be mixing people up. He shakes off Bruno's Mirabel cosplay the mashed up forms, as he successfully regains his own face... Well, more or less successfully. Something feels off still, so with an exasperated little grumble, glowering at his phone with his eyes still unfocused, Camilo places his hand over the camera until he figures out how to turn the thing off. He doesn't even know what the hell an Internet is, but he's pretty certain he just embarrassed himself on it. But that's the least of his concerns right now, really. ]

Comments

video, un: AmazingMadrigal

[nonmagical]

[HOW DO MORE KEEP COMING... She's glad to see him though, she knows Dolores will be too.]

Camilo! You're here!

[By now she's learned that all of her family's powers are a little funky. The struggle to shapeshift is a clear giveaway too.]

You're not the only one either - unfortunately Tia Pepa and Tio Felix aren't here - but Dolores is! And so is tio Bruno, mamá, Luisa, and Isabela! Where are you? I'll come get you-

[camaleonico]

Mira!

[ His face is still not totally unstuck when he gets her video and responds, but the silly, fugue look dissipates as a bright smile spreads over his face, and he blinks himself straight again. Back to normal. ]

You're here! Ay, ay, ay, phew... I'm, uhh— Here.

[ He... doesn't know. So he just turns the phone around (clever lad, he played with this gizmo a while before posting, so he'd know what he was doing a little first) and starts spinning in a circle to show off whatever part of town he's standing in, thankfully in a recognizable part of the city where many newcomers end up on their first wander through town. It may or may not be helpful otherwise, but that's all he's got. ]

[nonmagical]

All right, I know that place. I'll head there - Dolores might beat me there though.

[Gotta collect all these Madrigals! She grabs her coat and heads out in that direction.]

I'm sure you arrived in a weird maze-like place, didn't you?

[camaleonico]

Uh, yeah. Which one?

[ Cuz, y'know, he just assumes that it was like that for everyone and she knows what he's talking about, of course. ]

Video | un: pequeña_montaña

[neverbreaks]

Camilo!

[ Luisa isn't entirely surprised to see her younger cousin, what with their entirely family trickling in. But she sees him struggling with his power, and knowing how her own gift had been weakened it's easy to figure what was going on.

Not to mention the maze. Had he gone through one too? ]

Are you okay? Do you need help?

[camaleonico]

[ He shakes his face back to normal, eyes focusing again as his smile lights up, the image of relief just at the sight of Luisa in this weird little gizmo. ]

Luisa! It's you! I'm fine, I'm fine— I mean, pretty sure I might be going crazy, but other than that, no harm done.

[ Wrap this up in a really wry, awkward stab at a joke even though it's... kind of true. He certainly felt like he was going crazy while in that ever-changing maze. He probably got a bit banged up in his labyrinth but it was likely more for tripping over the unpredictable shifting settings and being a nervous klutz rather than, y'know, fighting monsters... ]

[neverbreaks]

[ She laughs faintly, managing a bit of a wane smile. ] Well, if you are, you wouldn't be the only one.

[ This whole place still felt pretty unreal, honestly. ]

You're not hurt, are you? I can bring you some of Mamá's food if you need it.

[ They had been fortunate to discover that Julieta's food did still have some healing properties, even if it was a bit delayed and not as strong as usual. ]

Video; UN: Beekeper

[pan_acea]

Ay, Camilo, are you okay, sobrino?

Have you eaten? [Priorities.] Are you hurt? [Bigger priorities.]

It seems all of our gifts are not so much gone as... less than before. Where are you? I can come and get you if one of your primas haven't, already.

[camaleonico]

[ His face is back to normal by now and is the absolute image of relief at the sight of his aunt. ]

Tía! Mirabel is taking me to la Casita. I’ll see you at home— I mean, it’s not home, but… you know what I mean.

[ It’s been a Day. His nerves are kinda shot. First order of business will be a bath and then his aunt’s food, even if the magic is weak. It’d still be magical without any magic. ]

[pan_acea]

It's home enough for now. [And that's all they can ask for, besides, a lot of their family is here. Where family is, that's where home is.]

You can have as many seconds and thirds as you like, okay? We can talk when you have some food in you.

A

[kokaiwanai]

[It's been an odd day.

It's only gotten increasingly odd since he stepped into this labyrinth, considering how it keeps changing. It's a good thing he didn't wear any of his nice clothes, he guesses, as he navigates what's now a swamp.

And that's when he hears the voice, loud and clear. It takes Kakyoin a bit to make it over there, but he does, eventually, make it over to the boy sitting on the log.]

Well, ideally, you won't be trapped here for much longer. [A beat passes, where Kakyoin awkwardly clears his throat, and he offers what might be an attempt at a smile, though it looks more sheepish and concerned.] Uh, hi.

[camaleonico]

[ Camilo gives a start when he hears another voice, wheeling around to see an unfamiliar face. He doesn't respond at first, just gives Kakyoin a silent, bewildered stare, letting that awkward beat pass himself. But he doesn't exactly serve the sheepish smile back, just raises a brow, his tone taut and drawn out, uncertain. ]

Uh... ¿Hola?

[ This is the first person he's encountered for hours, and he's not exactly sure what to make of it. Is the guy even real? What's he... supposed to say...? ]

You, uh— You come here often?

[ Nice. ]

[kokaiwanai]

Not terribly. At least, I try not to make a habit of, uh...

[Gesturing at the swamp.]

But, ah... Gate opened up in town, and those tend to have people in them, so... figured I'd check it out? And here we are.

[People have found their way out on their own, yeah, but it always makes him concerned.]

I can't get you home or anything, but I imagine anything's an improvement over... [He gestures around at them.] Everything this labyrinth's chosen to be. [...] And-slash-or can't make up its mind about.

A

[wedonttalkabout]

[Bruno tends to avoid the city-moving through it as quickly as possible and keeping his head down. Which means he...sometimes ends up wandering through into the more...magical parts of the place. He doesn't know how he ended up in a swamp, but he's here now and is trying to hitch his ruana up so it doesn't drag in the gross swamp water. He's trying to figure how to get out of here when he hears a familiar voice. ]

...Camilo?

[He sloshes his way through the water until...yup, there he is. This Kaisou definitely has a thing for Madrigals.]

Heeeeeey kid- you-uh. You okay there? [He onyl asks because you don't LOOK okay.]

[camaleonico]

Tío Bruno...?!

[ Aaaand now he's been caught talking to a frog by a hallucination of his uncle who talks to rats. Because that's what this is, right? Some weird subconscious something? He hasn't seen a single soul in this hellscape and the first person he sees is Bruno? That's gotta mean... something? Right? Maybe? This isn't his department, man. But maybe Bruno's just the guy he needs as his, um, weird... magic nightmare swamp... spirit realm guide...? Seems like his kinda schtick somehow more than Camilo's. Camilo's been having zero luck with it on his own, after all.

He gives a bit of a start when he first hears his name, gazing at Bruno with wide eyes and a shocked, confused look, but all the same... still glad to see him...? Family's family...? He's not sure if Bruno's even technically real, still not totally convinced he hasn't gone crazy, without literally any context for being in this ever-changing maze. He hasn't exactly figured out it's a maze, actually, to be frank. So he's quick to his to his feet to meet the man, letting a very bewildered eye fall on him, but it takes him a beat to really respond... ]

...Sooo, uhh— You any good at interpreting the present, or what?

[wedonttalkabout]

Hah, yeah. It's me.

[He'll off an awkward wave. This is definitely your weirdo tío, Calimo- all terrible at people-ing and everything! He doesn't look super comfortable with all this spirit realm stuff despite definitely being the Most Qualified Madrigal to deal with all of this. But he doesn't look super comfortable with anything ever, so it's hard to tell.

He shifts on his feet- trying to resist the urge to dive into his usual little superstitious quirks to battle the anxiety of being in here.]

Not really. Not my uh...area. But lucky for you, I know where we are. I've been here for a month already. [A beat.] W-well, not exactly here. This is yours. But everyone gets a weird entrance to the city like this. Mirabel had a bunch of doors. Because...symbolism, I guess?

B. text; un: GoldenGuard

[cardinalrule]

[Okay, so he recognizes all of one person that was the subject of all that shapeshifting: the unkempt guy who looks like he's in dire need of a nap. He was nervous and useless, though Hunter is now kind of wondering what the connection is there. Familial, most likely, but beyond that he isn't sure.

Not that it matters. He's way more interested in all that magic that an (apparent) human is doing, even if it obviously isn't working right.]

How are you shapeshifting?

video; un: undecided

[camaleonico]

[ Heee hasn't gotten the hang of texting yet, so this is easier. He's thankfully gotten better control of his face, though. ]

Magic~

[ He says it with some sarcastic dramatic flair, waving his hand at the camera and wiggling his fingers. ...But really, no, that's the answer, isn't it? "Magic?" He doesn't know how it works, man, there's no book explaining the process of a miracle, don't give him a pop quiz. ]

[cardinalrule]

[The dramatic flair would not be anywhere near as powerful if it was through text, even though Hunter is not appreciating it at all because he's expecting more of an answer than just 'magic.']

Obviously. What kind of magic? Are you using some external power source? [Like glyphs or a staff - possible, despite neither being visible in the video....] Or is it something inherent? You're human, right?

VIDEO - UN: SUZUME

[suzume_odori]

[Oh! It's...a kid as old as Antonio, well what do you know! And she seems quite astounded about something- certainly it can't be the cascade of shapeshifting, no not at all.

There's an alarmingly large dog with her, but it's probably fine.

For now, Suzume points and gasps.]

...You were Mister Bruno...!

[The cool man with cute rats....]

[camaleonico]

[ Ah, yeah, that’s a child… Even children get spirited away?! So that means Antonio could arrive too! He’s not sure whether to be disheartened or relieved at the fact. His own labyrinth was scary. He hates to think of his little brother alone in that position for more than even one second.

So he won’t. He’ll think of Bruno. Who’s apparently done a lot of socializing in this place. Guy sure gets around after a decade in a crawlspace. Camilo’s all the more curious about his previously estranged, ex-hermit uncle now, that this is not the first time someone in this weird world has mentioned his name to Camilo. That, at least, is somewhat encouraging… so between that endearing thought and the fact that he’s talking to a little kid and feels the compulsive need to entertain (well, kind of always, but especially with kids), it puts a smile on Camilo’s face. Whatever it is, it lifts his mood. He’s home by now, sitting in the kitchen of Casita (surprise), after a nice bath and an even nicer meal courtesy of his aunt. So he’s a bit more relaxed, and naturally softens his edges when talking to kids, used to comforting his little brother… even though technically Camilo is the one who needs comforting right now — perish the thought. ]

Oh— you mean this guy~?

[ He shapeshifts once more to Bruno, who’s a little, uh, glowier and creepier than the real Bruno she knows… or at least he would be creepy, were he not wearing a very thick, bushy, coiffed mustache, Pepa’s golden sun pendant earrings, Dolores’ big red bow, and have chameleon-y glowing green eyes looking different directions. But at least he’s wearing a wide smile, one Bruno himself probably doesn’t wear so often. But who knows, the family seems to be getting along here.

Now, who can say if Camilo intentionally made Bruno look so silly, or his magic is just on the fritz again… But either way, this kid seems a lot more cheerful talking to this little girl than the scared, confused, grumpy boy in the first video. Just helps him to try to make her laugh or go wow or just smile… That’s the real truth. ]

stares at hands, I must....draw more icons lmfao...

[suzume_odori]

[Even children get spirited away...though at least it seems that Zodiac is taking pains to make sure those spirited children have somewhere to stay. Wherever she is is no Casita, but it's a nice enough little bedroom.

The dog- pokemon, stoutland, best not to dwell really- peers an old eye through a mass of fur and decides to just go back to sleep.

Just in time for Camilo to pull some magic.] WuhhhoooaaaaAAAAA... [The gasp of awe begins-

And then promptly collapses into a giggling snort.] aaffHFHGHG..! That's not mister Bruno...! Th...There's too much mustache..!

video; un: oyente | v. late but here I ammmm

[escuchando]

[Well, maybe it was only a matter of time. Dolores is delighted to see her younger brother and yet... he is clearly having problems with his gift, and rather dramatically visible ones at that. No questions needed as to why that is when her own gift is tuning in and out like a bad radio.]

Ay, hermano. I don't think you got your example of me quite right.

[Despite the joke, she still appears concerned as she looks at him.]

I'm here. Are you okay?

time isn't real, sis, we good

[camaleonico]

[ Camilo's face is washed with relief, a soft smile with an obvious fondness around the corners of his eyes, just so glad to see his sister's face. ]

Dolores...! It was a nightmare!

[ oh my god dramatic... He takes too much after their parents. ]

[escuchando]

[When he smiles at her like that, she can't help but smile back. Though she wouldn't have wished her brother here she is happy to see him, and happy that he appears to be unharmed.]

It's all right, Camilo. [He really does take after their parents...] You're safe now.

[... Mostly.]

Where are you? I'll come and get you.