prontissimo | kaisou inbox

[ Alberto listens on carefully, but as she goes on, he's more and more charmed. The image of tons of candles sounds beautiful, but to hear that's how Bruno's parents met... well, it's kind of sweet. Alberto knows very little about romance and very little about holidays, but from what he's gathered, that sounds like quite the romantic scene. Or at least a lovely way to meet someone. There's a wistful smile growing on his face as he listens, munching idly on the biscotti. ]

Wooow... So, it's a holiday about pretty lights? I've seen fireworks before — on the 5th of July! It was before you got here. Nobody had any candles then, though. But they had sparklers! Those were cool! I bet those would be pretty for la Día de la Velitas~

[ He's got that date wrong, but he's engaged. He likes pretty lights — clearly, looking around the room at all the fairy lights he and Luca have strung up, this mental image is right up his alley. It's a simple detail, but it's already amping up his excitement for his first Christmas, still weeks to come... ]

Hm, you know what, the sparklers would make for a great addition to the holiday. I don’t think I have seen a lot of people using them in the day before. Maybe I could give it a try someday.

(She takes the moment to take some bites on her biscotti and sip on the espresso. Isabela didn’t mind Alberto getting the date of 4th of July wrong for she hasn’t celebrated it before.

So far, the young lady still doesn’t know if she should tell Alberto or anyone else about what happened to her Abuelo ages ago, but now is not the right time to talk about dead relatives or vanished relatives. She has gone through enough vanishings within the family already.)

Ha, yeah! Maybe we can make it a new Christmas tradition~

[ He takes another sip of his espresso and eats a biscotto whole, all at once. It's awful eating with him, Isabela, sorry; her grandmother would be unsettled by his lack of table manners, without a doubt. Luckily, Alberto gets the gist of the Madrigals' story enough, from having become so close to so many of her family members, all since departed but for Luisa. It may be a question he'll open again, always curious about their family and the Encanto. But for now, he's got Christmas on his mind. ]

What else do people do on Christmas? There aren't costumes like Halloween, are there? Cuz that was great, ha. We loved Halloween~ Me and Luca were great at Halloweening, heh.

I do hear about plenty of people talking about wearing sweaters that look so bad for Christmas but, honestly, the sweaters they are talking about don’t look so bad after all. They look so, um, fashionably ugly.

(Isa could have sworn that she almost choke about when she said fashionably ugly, because does how a normal person can be convinced to see ugly Christmas sweaters as fashionable unless someone else can prove them otherwise?)

Maybe we can try to wear those sweaters for Christmas and enjoy ourselves while ignoring snide comments from the snobby people?

[ Alberto grins wide at this idea, mischief and good humor painted clearly over his face. ]

I'd definitely wear an ugly sweater for Christmas fun, hah. But I wouldn't ignore the snobby people's snide comments. Ha! I knew this guy back home — Ercole — he was the snide snobby sweater-type. He's not even here and it'd still feel like sticking it to him, heh — y'know? That kinda guy. A bully.

[ Bruno has heard earfuls about Ercole plenty of times — had told Alberto about some bullies in the Encanto, in turn. So Alberto just assumes Isabela must know — but then again... while she definitely hasn't struck him as a bully herself, she also doesn't exactly give "underdog" vibes the way Bruno and Alberto share. Maybe she's never been bullied. Hard for Alberto to imagine. He's far less meek than her uncle, so even if Alberto's lost every fight or argument with Ercole he ever had, or at the very least had to be saved by Luca or Giulia or Massimo, Alberto was always quick to fight back and stand up for himself, dishing that snideness right back — for better or worse. He's not met anyone as bad as Ercole here in Kaisou, thankfully, but... the eighth grade is rough no matter what time or place, man. He's got a shit list at school, naturally. And he's also made it onto a few of his classmates' shit lists, as well... ]

Hm, he sounds like a major pain to be around. That one person who thinks that they’re better than everyone else in the room. Is he always this bad to begin?

(Isabela is seriously feeling tempted into wanting to run after Ercole with tons of cacti on tow all over the streets if she could and he did show up in Kaisou. Call her a little stir crazy, but she would react with some serious plant power if ever someone close to her gets bullied around these days.)

And I didn’t know how much of a fashion snob this Ercole guy is until now. Is anything he wouldn’t want to be caught dead in? Like mismatching patterns?

[ That the sheer reputation of Ercole Visconti has inspired violent temptations in both Isabela and Bruno Madrigal, is really saying something. It's hard to stir up visible anger in almost any Madrigal, but Isabela and Bruno have a special talent for hiding it, for better or worse. Lord help Ercole if he ever does turn up in Kaisou. Thanks to Alberto and his love of dramatic storytelling and embellishment on his homelife, Ercole will have a list of enemies waiting for him right off the bat.

However, Ercole really is more fashionable than Alberto wants to give him credit for, and since Alberto did think Ercole looked very cool when they first met, he's not quick to shit on the guy's aesthetic, just because the guy happens to be a jerk... he's a cool jerk and he knows it and that just makes him more of a jerk, especially now that Alberto knows more about coolness...! So Isabela poses a tough question, to a boy who's still figuring out human fashion norms, himself. Mismatching patterns have never stopped Alberto from walking out the door confidently. So this takes a little bit more deliberation than she likely meant it.

That said, Alberto scrambles up from his spot in the cushions, clambering over the pile of pillows to grab a maroon wool pullover that'd apparently fallen behind the music cabinet. Who knows how long it's been there, but Alberto seemed to know exactly where it was... He hastily climbs to his feet and throws the sweater over his shoulders the way Ercole used to dangle his fashionably, puffing his chest out with his wrists bent against his hips, nose haughtily pointed in the air with a stiff upper lip. Alberto's best impersonation of Ercole Visconti. ]

Ercole wouldn't be caught dead in a blue ribbon, that's what — cuz me and my friends beat him in a big race and kicked his catfish-butt!

[ ...Missing some key context clues, there, Alberto. He's not told Isabela about the Portorosso Cup, nor Ercole's sad little catfish-like mustache, so these details are mystifying as much as they are entertaining, given the panache he tells them with. But nevertheless, he presses on, collapsing into the pile of pillows beside Isabela again, though keeping his cardigan draped over his shoulders like Ercole used to wear his — and, uncouthly, resting a bare foot up on the coffee table with his leg stretched out, the way Ercole also might've... He's invested, as an actor, clearly. ]

But he's a huge snob, and he definitely thinks he's better than everyone else in town. But he's really just a jerk. And I bet he's terrible at Christmas-ing, too. He wasn't even good at summer-ing. He wore a wool sweater in the middle of summer, and he didn't even really wear it, I mean— come on.

[ He plucks at the sleeve of the cardigan draped over his shoulders, rather exasperatedly. Even from an era that was at the height of this fashion trend, it's beyond Alberto's sensibilities. He can let Ercole have this little piece of poshness... It's lost on him. ]

What?!? He hates blue ribbons for no good reason other than you guys beating him in a race? That is pretty childish of him to react the way that he did. Still he probably deserves losing to you and your friends in the race.

(Seriously if she had been in Alberto’s world when the race happened, she could have silenced Ercole with her vines and possibly dangle him up on a tree so he wouldn’t try to attack Alberto and his friends, including Luca. Logic has definitely been thrown out the window in situations like this)

Yeesh! Nobody should be wearing sweaters in the heat of summer ever. I mean, who in the right mind wants to be all sweaty dressed for the winter during the summer? That is not only stupid of him but also very crazy of him to try defying the seasons too.

[ Alberto feels inordinately proud that he just made a great human-ing joke and even a human didn't catch it. Like he's getting so good at this he's out-human-ing the humans... ...Or maybe he just didn't account for the lack of triathlons and modern sports competitions in the Encanto, ahem. Still, even without knowing the term, Isabela still hit the mark: Ercole is a sore winner. And Alberto feels vindicated to have turned so many strangers against Ercole, even though they're all enemies who'll likely never meet this boy. Should they all be so lucky... Still, he feels a certain self-satisfaction in this moment about how far he's come in his human-ing skills since first meeting Ercole, the first human he ever met, compared to now, shit-talking him in a big city with Isabela and making plans for the human holidays. Ercole can stuff it. Alberto and Luca are great at this human-ing thing! ]

Yeah, Ercole's the stupidest, craziest, childishest guy I know, for sure. You're lucky you've never met him, signora. I know you guys had bullies in the Encanto, too, but— pffft. I miss a lot about home, but not him, hah. If Christmas is about having parties with your friends and family and neighbors, then we can be extra glad he's not our neighbor here. Ha!

Yeaahhh! Pretty glad that I won’t have to run into the guy in this city or have him as a nosy neighbor. Otherwise he is just as insufferable as the fish lady in the encanto. You could even say that not having Ercole around in the city can be considered as one of the greatest gifts one can have this season.

(While taking another sip of espresso, Isabela is thinking of a possible scenario where she and Alberto not so subtly throwing desserts at Ercole mercilessly at a Christmas party in Casita while he whines like a bratty child. Oh what a sight to behold.)

Hah!

[ Alberto gets a kick out of that last line, grinning smugly. But the quip reminds him of one thing he has gleaned about Christmas so far: ]

Ooh! Also: Gifts. That's a Christmas thing, too, right? What kind of gifts? Not candy, like Halloween, right? More like— birthday gifts? Or what?

[ He's finally got some points of reference at play here, wow! He feels so human-y, look at him go~ ]

Yes, everyone likes to give gifts on Christmas a lot. I guess that the Christmas gifts can be like birthday gifts. For example, someone wished for a piece of clothing or toy for their birthday but for whatever reason, that didn’t happened. So the giver would surprise them with the thing they have been wanting for some time.

Like a delayed birthday gift wrapped in the holiday spirit perhaps?

Oooh, okay. Like it's everyone's birthday. You get them stuff they want — or stuff you think they'd like. I can do that! I'm great at that.

[ He... has very little experience with gift-giving. But he threw Luca a birthday party, that was fun! And he made tons of gifts for Bruno — moooostly rat-related arts and crafts. But all the same. He gets the gist, and thinks he can do a bang-up job of that. He'll have to start plotting what to get everyone... ]

Yeah, that is definitely the point. Christmas gift giving is always expected to to happen, anyone can send in gifts for anybody. Even people and businesses have these secret Santa gift exchanges like the one that the flower shop I’m working for is going to host for the employees.

[ Alberto nods along as he listens, sipping his coffee ruminatively. But, on a rare occasion, Alberto actually asks a question about something he doesn't understand. ]

"Secret Santa?"

From what I was told by my coworkers, it is a gift exchange where people draw a random person to send a gift to and they have to find the right one based on some clues given about the person, usually likes and dislikes. The catch is nobody is allowed to know who are gifting to or reveal themselves to their giftee until the party itself.

...Huh. Okay.

[ He stares at her a bit blankly, processing all this, before dipping a biscotto in his coffee, stirring it as he chews all this information over. But he unfortunately also actually chews it over while he's talking with his mouth full. ]

Well, I get the "secret" part, but— What about the "Santa" part? Which Santa? Santa Ricotta? Or, uh— Santa Gorgonzola? Santa Mozzarellaaa... Uh— Santo Picorino...

[ ...Wires have been crossed somewhere. He's on about cheeses? Something's being lost in translation here — o-or something. ]

I honestly did not get that part either until the coworkers told me about this particular Santa a few days ago. When it comes to ‘Santa’, most people would be thinking and/or talking about this guy called Santa Claus.

Big bearded guy, wears a red suit and hat with white trims, and rides on a sleigh pulled by reindeer. He apparently also has a thing for cookies and milk and likes to slide down on chimneys to leave presents under trees. I have seen some people dressed as him during this time.

[ And here is where the wires get crossed. It's Santa who brings secret gifts — not everyone else. But Alberto doesn't connect those dots. Which, in a few weeks, will become apparent, when he secretly leaves Christmas gifts in all his friends' houses while visiting on Christmas Eve... He's got the spirit, at least.

But he's frankly a bit confused about Santa as a figure. He doesn't know what a reindeer is. He doesn't ask. He glances aside skeptically, trying to wrap his head around this. ]

So... What if you don't have a chimney?

[ He obviously casts his gaze around the room to indicate how small and very much chimney-less it is. He only knows what a chimney is because he once watched the Gisnep film Mary Pippins with Luisa... So he's imagining a very chim-chimeny-chim-chim-chiroo scene here... ]

Erm, that is the one part my coworkers seem to have forgotten to tell me. No one has told me about it that much so I have to make up some possible scenarios if he does run into that problem.

My best guess would be that he might secretly sneak from the gardens by hopping over fences or entering from the gates. Or he could have used the emergency exits in buildings where backyard gardens are not commonplace.

[ Alberto gives her a flat stare for a silent moment. ]

...Soooo basically you're telling me this guy's eventually gonna break into our apartment through our balcony. Got it.

Um yeah, that is entirely possible too. He might have a stash of ropes in his sled on hand to get to the higher levels. That man must have a lot of contingency plans to send gifts to people living in different types of housing.

[ Alberto doesn't know whether to be impressed or horrified, and his face shows it. ]

Aaand this guy is— human?

Yes, he is very much a human indeed. A very magical and crazy prepared human to be exact.

Huh. ...Sounds like someone I know, ha.

[ Get it, Isabela? I-It's you? It's a wry joke, but Alberto would totally describe her the same way. She and Luisa have always seemed very on-the-ball to him. Then again, he also considers Pepa very put-together, so his lens may be a bit off-kilter... All the same: Santa sounds creepy, but Isabela has his respect. ]

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senorita_perfecta - 2023-05-10 00:38 (UTC) - Expand

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sorry for the delay! down to continue or drop as you'd like!

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