Coco the untold story { Angelofhumor

[KingCrowley]

"Mama why can't we put Papa's photo on the Ofrenda?" A curious, chocolate-eyed ten year old girl asked her Mother, watching as she scattered marigold leaves across the path to their home, where they made shoes together.

"Because your Papa is dead to this family, mija. He left us." Imelda answered with a shake of her head and a tremor in her voice, "And he's never coming back, he's better off forgotten!" she spat, though not at her daughter, since she didn't blame her for being curious. "Speak no more of this now, Coco."

"Si Mama." Coco answered a little sadly. She could only remember a little bit of her Papa these days, she remembered the song he would sing to her, the song they would sing together, and she always felt sad remembering it. She remembered her Papa loving her so much, so why did he leave them? She had no idea her Papa had been murdered, that he was dead and had been dead for seven years now. "Mama, can I go to the plaza?" she asked, gently kicking at the marigold path.

Imelda looked unsure but sighing, she nodded, "Alright mija, but as soon as the mariachi start playing, you come home." she warned her. Coco nodded and sped off out of their small home to the Mariachi plaza. She liked listening to music, but her Mama had banned all of it, and she knew it would upset her if she listened to any, so she would obey for right now. Coco crossed the plaza and then paused when she saw the cemetery, it was quiet for the day before Dia de los muertos. The curious girl made her way through the graveyard and stopped when she happened on a mausoleum, belonging to Ernesto De la cruz, she knew who he was, he had been a friend of Papa's, and she'd heard of his death on the news.

What if her Papa was dead too? She wondered, opening the door to the mausoleum since back in that decade no one thought to lock these things. Coco stared in awe at the mounted guitar above the coffin. It reminded her so much of her Papa's, the way it looked. Of course she had been little at the time, and she didn't realize this was actually her Papa's guitar. Coco climbed up on top of the coffin and took the guitar from the wall, only it slipped out of her hands and fell to the floor, causing one of the strings to snap.

The girl gasped and covered her mouth, "Oh no!" she hopped down and landed not on the mausoleum floor, but on a cobbled path. Coco looked up, there were buildings upon buildings that reached the sky, all brightly coloured and eccentric, sort of like the make up she saw on Dia de los Muertos. She had no idea she had just entered the land of the dead.

[Angelofhumor16]

It has been seven years since Héctor had died. Of course at this time he didn't know he'd been murdered via poisoning by his best friend Ernesto. He still thought he'd died from food poisoning from a Churizo he'd eaten. Though people still mocked him no matter how many times he told them this, saying he choked to death on one. Because of this, and the fact Ernesto never had credited hin for the songs he sang every Dia les muertos he had started to have a bitter resentment of muscians. That, and because of his own mistake.

He'd wanted to play for the world, and he left home. Left his wife and kid, and then because of some horrible luck he died from food poisoning on his way home. Perhaps he was being punished? Maybe it was the worlds way of punishing him for abandoning his familia in the first place. Héctor walked, no limped around the city. He had been quite a lot lately, it was almost Dia les muertos, and he had another idea of getting across that bridge. Or so, he'd hoped it worked. He had to. He needed to his familia again. Especially his daughter. His Coco.

He was carrying some napkins he'd borrowed from Chicharrón. Needing them for his little plan after all. He decided that on Dia Les muertos he'd put the napkins over the camera to try and confuse it. Maybe then it wouldn't have an error, saying that his photo wasn't up. His photo..He sighed. Was his amor really that angry with him? Perhaps when she was with him in the land of the dead he could explain how he was trying to get back. That he died of food poisoning. Surely she'd welcome him with open arms then right? However, on the way there he quickly noticed a little girl wandering scared and alone.

"Ay little girl." He called approaching her,"Where are your--" But he stopped, his eyes going wide. Nearly popping out of his skull. Even of she was a little older Héctor still realized who the little girl was,"C-Coci!? He gasped.

[KingCrowley]

Coco had often heard her Mama Imelda speak unkindly of her Papa to others in the town, how he was a bastardo, and didn't care about her or his daughter. Coco didn't know what to believe, she thought her Papa loved her, but her Mama had a point, if he loved them then why hadn't he come home? The young girl stared in wide-eyed wonder at the huge town. She had no idea where she was but she thought it looked amazing. "¡Esto es increíble!" she exclaimed, hurrying along the marigold bridge and to the security customs. Her excitement and wonder immediately faded though when all around her she saw---skeletons?!

"¡Esqueletos!" she shrieked, running through customs and along the cobbled path. She wasn't looking where she was going, and she ran right into a limping Skeleton in a purple jacket and straw hat. She was trembling, frightened of what she could see. She had never seen dead people before. The girl then turned back to face the Skeleton when he addressed her and was about to ask where her parents were---but then he stopped.

Coco's eyes widened, this Skeleton---he sounded---he looked like----

"Papa!" Coco exclaimed, tears filling her eyes as she threw her arms around Héctor. She knew this was her Papa, she could tell right away, the eye colour, his voice, his hair. Everything. Tears ran down her face, she'd finally found her Papa.

[Angelofhumor16]

This was the seventh Dia Los Muertos that Héctor would be trying to get across the marigold bridge. Let alone security. The first time he had went to get his photo scanned. Only to be surprised and hurt to know that it wasn't put up. Not understanding why it wasn't up there. He told the security that it HAD to be up there, and that it must be a mistake. The lady skeleton just gave him a sympathetic look saying, "No photo on an Ofrenda no crossing the bridge." To which Héctor had, not wanting to believe it, had zipped past and tried to cross. Only to sink into the pedals before being dragged away by security.

He decided after that, mathe Imelda was angry with him for leaving, and that's why she didn't put his photo up. Surely though, word got out about what happened to him? Hadn't someone told his wife he'd been trying to get to her and coco? If only she knew he'd been walking to the train station when he felt indescribable pain in his stomach, being told by his friend Ernesto that it must of been the Churizo he ate, before he collapsed..And woke up dead. Still, maybe next year she'd put it up? How long could she possibly hold a grudge?

However, the next Dia Los Muertos came and still no photo. There wasn't one on the third Dia Los Muertis or the forth, and by the fifth he'd finally had enough. Resorting to drastic messures to try and get across to his familia. Especially his Coco who he desperately wanted to see again. He had tried driving across in a van he borrowed from a friend of his. ((Borrowed being uses very loosely)) to drive across the bridge, and that he had little time to scramble out before it sank and fell into the abyss under the bridge. He tried asking someone to carry a femur, again "borrowed" by that same friend, but it crumbled and turned to dust when a Remembered skeleton tried taking it across for him. Now, it was the seventh Dia Los Muertos. He had gotten napkins from Chicharrón, the same friend, and planned on putting them in front of the camera to confuse it.

Just as he was approaching security though a little girl bumped into him. Noticing how scared she was his heart..Well, his non existent one anyway, went out to her. He had a little girl in the Land of the Living and he knew these girls parents had to be worried. He knelt down, calling out to her in a gentle tone to ask about her parents so he could maybe help her find them, but he stopped when he realized who it was. He couldn't believe his eyes! It was his Coco! He called out to her, and when she hugged him, he held her close, tears in his eyes.

"Mija..I missed you so much." He said, holding her close, but then a thought downed him and he had a dreadful thought. Pulling her back he looked at her in the eyes. A serious expression on his face,"Mija..Are you--I mean have you...passed on?" He asked. Not really wanting to say dead at the moment. Especially when his child was so young. She was still living though, so that was good. He guessed. As much as wanted to see Coco in the Land of the Dead if he couldn't on Dia Los Muertos in the Land of the Living, he wanted her to have a full life first.

[KingCrowley]

Of course back in Santa Cecilia no one knew Héctor had died, so of course no one had put his picture up on any Ofrendas, and then again even if he had died, Imelda would never put up the photo. She hated the man, she hated how she'd been up every night for the next five years with a distraught Coco, while also trying to make shoes so they had money to live on. She never received any money from Héctor, she had no financial support with their daughter---he ruined her life and she would never, ever forgive him----even if deep down he was still the love of her life, the Father of her child.

Coco held tightly to her Papa's purple jacket, not even taking in the fact he was dead for the time being. She remembered hugging her Papa, and this felt just the same, he held her close and she could smell his scent, it made her heart ache. The young girl looked up into her Papa's gentle eyes as he held her at arms length and asked if she was dead. It was then she realized her Papa was dead too, and she placed her small hands on his skull, taking in his features. He looked different and yet completely the same.

"I don't know Papa---I found this guitar and then I ended up here on this beautiful bridge." she explained, "Papa----did you die?" she asked, her eyes brimming with tears again, "Is that why you never came casa?"

[Angelofhumor16]

Héctor held his little girl close. The girls hair still in braids, just as she kept them the last time he saw her. He listened as she spoke, and when she talked about a guitar and how she ended up on the bridge. He frowned. He felt there was more to the story she wasn't telling him. The skeleton of a man opened his mouth. Ready to ask his child to explain more on what happened, but was caught of guard by what she asked next.

"I.." He paused, and sighed. There really was no other way to answer it was there? Not without lying. And he'd never lie to his Coco,"Yes..I died Coco..Food poisoning." He explained sadly.

[KingCrowley]

Coco's beautiful brown eyes widened when her Papa explained that he had died, he got food poisoning. She couldn't believe it, she had always held out hope that her Papa would come home someday, he would come back and they would be a family. That wasn't going to happen now that he was dead. She smiled though, glad she could finally see her Papa again, he looked a little funny as a Skeleton. "What happened to Tío Ernesto?" she asked as Héctor took her hand and lead her through the busy streets of the land of the dead.

She couldn't help but stare at all the skeletons, and in return they couldn't help but stare at her either. She was a living child in the land of the dead, something the inhabitants weren't used to seeing. "Papa?" Coco asked, looking up at the skeletal man with a curious expression. "Do you have a house here?" she asked.

[Angelofhumor16]

Héctor was glad that, despite looking upset about him dying, Coco evemtu smiled. He figured that it was because she was at least happy she could see him now. He didn't want her to be absolutely devastated, it'd hurt him greatly to see his Coco start crying. He took her hand, leading her through the busy streets..Back to Shantytown.

"Tio Ernesto?" Héctor asked, and he looked saddened, but quickly masked it,"He's really busy all the time..So we don't talk too much anymore.." He said, he noticed the other skeletons staring and made a mental note that he would have to paint up Coco face to look more dead,"A house? Well, sort of..It's more like a shack though. It isn't big or anything but it's home." He replied, giving her small hand a gentle and living squeeze as they got closer to his place.

[KingCrowley]

Maybe Coco would have been a little more upset and distraught if she was older, and fully understood death. Her Mama had always told her that those who die would always be with you, and would come to visit her on Dia de los muertos. She wondered if her Papa Héctor had ever come back to visit her on that day. Would he know that Mama had started seeing a very lovely gentleman, would he know that she was excelling in school? Would he have been able to see the first pair of shoes she'd ever made last year? She liked to think so, though she was too afraid to ask because she didn't want to know the answer.

The girl looked up at her Papa when he told her that he and Ernesto had parted ways and no longer spoke, "Lo siento Papa, that must make you sad." she said softly, before asking her Papa if he had his own house, and she frowned when he told her it was basically a shack. Her frown dissipated when the skeletal man gave her small hand a gentle squeeze, she'd missed the little things about her Papa, the way he would make her feel more confident or the way he would cheer her up when he was sad. She loved it when her Papa would take her to the plaza, play a song and then point out his daughter to everyone. She knew her Papa loved her, so it hurt to remember that he had still left them.

Coco followed her Papa down a rickety set of steps and giggled with delight when he jumped down with her, collapsing into pieces before then re-assembling himself. She thought that was entertaining. "Papa, are you okay?" she asked through a giggle, pressing a fond kiss to his skeletal head once she picked it up and handed it to her Papa's body. "You're gracioso Papa!"

[Angelofhumor16]

Of course Héctor would of visited them on Dia De Los Muertos.* Had it been possible that is. Without a photo on an Ofrenda he couldn't pass over and visit his Familia.* Still, that hadn't stopped him from trying to get across every year. Trying in vain to try and cross over to the other side. Okay the fifth time anyway. Since he realized after the four time that Imelda was not going to put up his
photo and neither was anyone else.

"Yeah, it does make me a bit sad." Héctor said, and it made him mad too. Mad that Ernesto never once credited him. Still,* he managed* push down all those bitter emotions. After all his Coco was here now. Maybe not for good, which he hoped not since she still had a full life to live, but at least for a while he could enjoy this. He lead her to Shantytown, laughing as he jumped with her and fell into a pile of bones. He quickly reassembled himself,* and then took his smiling skull from his daughter after she kissed it.

" Si, tu papá está bien Coco." He assured her, placing his skull on his body and making a goofy face at her when she said he was funny, "Hope you don't mean funny looking! " He joked