Homey Bean Pod {Ian, Riveras}

[Barley Lightfoot]

<<Even though they're wrong with the Bean thing ^^>>

Barley gave Ian a moment to take in the sort of hotel Miss Coco and her family lived in and its fancy decor. It had taken him a moment as well. Of course, they were in the bigger villa's still connected to the main hotel, giving plenty of room for the family, and consequently giving Mateo plenty of room in his room for a workshop like space, which meant the one Barley would now share with Ian had at least one separate room as well so they wouldn't be tripping over each-other, or Ian hopefully wouldn't be too annoyed with his mess more like.

In an oddly self aware moment now that Ian was here, Barley realized how it just made his not working for anything look worse. Well, or, until he explained it perhaps did. "They're very humble people", he explained. Not rich just because they lived in this hotel. "You'll see. Miss Coco's mother just liked the...theme or something, and the Cast Members were very nice about letting her work for it".

Like he should be doing?

"Oh, that's what the Human Beans who...help everyone trapped here adjust are called. Cast Members". Barley went on, in case Ian hadn't heard yet, and since he had been here less time than Barley, as he had said. It was also a mental subject change from his prior thought...

"Come on!". Barley lead the way inside.

****

Barley thought about checking if Mateo was in, for Ian's sake and meeting the other wizard, but that was bound to happen eventually, so maybe there was no need to rush it; and there was a more pressing matter, as he went on to explain to his brother while he knocked on the Rivera's door. "Miss Coco will be upset if I don't tell her you're here right away so she can make sure you're doing alright too, her being a grandmother and all", Barley kept his voice low and grinned to Ian as he explained.

[Coco Rivera]

Had Coco known how perfect her timing and planning was!

Rosa was in her room, practicing her violin, and Coco thought Papá was helping with that. Mamá was probably at her shoe shop. The spacing out of the villas giving everyone their own room meant that the sounds of the girl's violin were muted, not that Coco would mind hearing her great-granddaughter's talented playing. Yet even the soft tones she could hear were the perfect accompaniment to the sopaipillas Coco was frying up.

Once they had sat long enough on the cooling rack, Coco moved the treats over to a nicely ornamented tray Mamá had manged to find that almost looked like one of Elena's back home, with its homey pattern. She was sifting powdered sugar over them when the knock at the door came. Coco brushed her hands off, removed her apron, and walked over to get it.

"Barley, hola!", she greeted the young man with a smile, her gaze next taking in the younger person next to him, and who looked similar. "Oh! Is this your brother that you mentioned?", Coco let on that Barley had given at least some info on his family. Whether she had that right, or he was a friend, she next waved them both in, "Well, come in, both of you!".

Once they were inside, she quickly fetched the tray off the counter and held it out, "Sopaipilla?", she offered.

[Ian Lightfoot]

((Let Ian have the bean thing!))

Barley mentioned that Miss Coco's mother was the one working for the hotel room. Ian raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, Barley, we both need to get jobs and help out." He wondered if there was something he could do magic-wise to earn an income.

Ian definitely hadn't forgotten Barley's mention of another wizard living near Miss Coco, but he understood hospitality enough to know that he should meet their hostess before meeting their hostess's other guest. Unless the wizard was with Miss Coco... Ian couldn't stop himself from hoping.

Honestly, Ian wasn't sure how he felt about being fawned over. It sounded like Miss Coco was a fawner, based on Barley's words.

Even with the knowledge that Miss Coco was a living skeleton, Ian had to stop himself from staring. He'd known what to expect, and yet it still startled him. If they hadn't been chased by the Gelatinous Cube, Ian would've stared at that, too. He was happy to learn that she wasn't a fawner, much. She offered them... something. Ian didn't know what it was, but he took one.

"Uh, hi. I'm Ian. What is this?" he asked, holding the sopaipilla up. Maybe it was a bit rude to take it first and then ask what it was... But Ian wanted to know before he took a bite.

[Barley Lightfoot]

Ian brought up jobs again. He probably had a point. Living off Mom for a gap-year was one thing, but...yeah they couldn't take advantage of the Riveras. Not that Barley had been trying to do that exactly, he'd just still been adjusting to this new place, he told himself. Of course...he was known to push his...adjusting quota, like adjusting to life-after-graduation...

"Yeah, we will", he assured, but in that casual way of his. Of course he knew Ian wouldn't forget, and wasn't trying to brush past.

"Oh! Is this your brother that you mentioned?"

Miss Coco asked when they arrived. "Uh, yeah", Barley gave a small smile. Hopefully that didn't come off sounding like he went on and on about his family. He had mentioned Ian's name, but before he could go on to give it again, Ian introduced himself, as well as ask after the foreign dessert. Barley didn't recall the name either, but it looked familiar to one of the pastries he had been handed before, though it felt lighter as he picked up one as well.

"Sure, thanks Miss Coco". He was halfway through his when Ian was still asking what it was. Sometimes Miss Coco had explained the desserts and treats she offered, but for his part Barley rarely asked.

[Coco Rivera]

"Well it is a pleasure, Ian", Coco smiled as the young man introduced himself, setting the tray down once both he and his brother had one, but within reach if they wanted more. She had already noticed Barley was not shy about taking two, to three to more of any treats she offered. Not that she minded in the least, it was what they were offered for, any who might want them and she made plenty regularly so that Rosa or Papá were given their treat fill as well.

She also wasn't bothered as Ian asked what they were, used to having to explain the cultural dessert at times, and especially if these two were from some other world entirely!

"Sopaipillas", she repeated the word with a smile, "They're...well do they have donuts where you boys are from?". Of course using donuts as her example was more in the realm of Pan Dulce, but Coco went on to further explain, and it was the closest she could try for a comparison when, again, she knew very little about what the teens were used to.

"Like that, but lighter, hollow in the middle. I also have some honey if you want, we put that on them as well sometimes, it's very good".

[Ian Lightfoot]

Barley sounded a bit too casual about acknowledging they were going to get jobs. Ian narrowed his eyes, staring hard at his brother's back.

Miss Coco explained the sopaipilla thing, and Ian stared at it. It was like a donut? He took a bite, finding the taste to be exactly as Miss Coco explained. "This is really good!" he said around the sopaipilla, spraying a bit of powdered sugar in his excitement. He covered his mouth. "I'm so sorry."

For all Ian's politeness, he couldn't figure out a way to bring up 'so you're a living skeleton' as a conversation topic. He glanced at Barley, who was scarfing down another sopaipilla. Internally, he groaned. He should've known that Barley would've already revealed that he wasn't exactly the neatest elf on the planet. Sometimes he wondered how they were related.

[Barley Lightfoot]

Barley knew that it would just take Ian a little bit of time and then the 'living skeleton' thing would become not that big of a deal. Not that Barley was fully there yet, if he stopped to think about it, it still astounded him, but day to day he was able to put it aside. For the most part.

He just leaned slightly against the nearby counter unashamed as he finished up his second sopaipilla.

"So, in case you couldn't guess by this thing", Barley tapped Ian's staff, "Ian here is a wizard as well, so, I mean, you're gonna be good on the protection thing, with him and Mateo nearby", he told Miss Coco. It was a way to almost mention the other wizard, since Barley could tell Ian was no doubt anxious to meet him, but it would also happen eventually. Barley was also kind of bragging a little bit. As to the living skeleton issue, Barley didn't catch that Ian was also struggling with how to bring that up as well.

[Coco Rivera]

Coco smiled, pleased, as Ian said he liked the sopaipilla, giving a kind giggle as the youth then sprayed a bit of powdered sugar with the compliment, and just fetching a towel to hand him. "Oh think nothing of it!", she assured with a wave of her hand, "While I raised daughters myself, I had plenty of grandsons and great-grand so I'm used to boys". And really, he should have seen what Berto and Abel got up to as young boys!

"So, in case you couldn't guess by this thing, Ian here is a wizard as well, so, I mean, you're gonna be good on the protection thing, with him and Mateo nearby"

Coco smiled back over to Ian after his brother's words. "Really? Well we just seem to be surrounded by magic suddenly". She, of course, missed how she could be counted as unique and perhaps magical herself, being a skeleton here in the Land of the Living.

[Ian Lightfoot]

Miss Coco laughed at Ian’s mishap, and he considered that she took it as a compliment, which certainly eased the tension in the room. Ian felt his shoulders drop some. He hadn’t even realized they were raised.

Barley tapped Ian’s staff, and Ian had to refrain from jerking it away. He wasn’t sure Barley knew his own strength, and if the staff broke, Ian would have nothing. He didn’t know if it was the age of his dad’s staff, or the fact that Ian’s staff had once been a splinter, but his staff was smooth, without a splinter to be found. He certainly didn’t know how to make a new staff. Was that something else Barley could teach him? Something told him not…

At the mention of Mateo, Ian glanced around. Was the other wizard nearby right now? What would it take for Barley to properly introduce them? Or would Ian end up meeting Mateo on his own?

Coco’s words told Ian there was more magic here in the parks than just Ian and Mateo. If Barley had mentioned it, it hadn’t sunk in. He’d guessed that the magic in this world worked for everyone’s magic, but he hadn’t suspected that there would be a lot of magic in the parks. ”Do a lot of people in the parks have magic?” There was Ian himself, Mateo, Elsa… How many more people could Ian add to his list of wizards to talk to?! And with that thought, he drew his notebook from his pocket and wrote down names. With little squares drawn next to each name, he could check them off once they met.

Two names. Two wizards. Ian couldn’t wait to add more.

[Barley Lightfoot]

If Barley noticed Ian move the staff out of the way, he couldn't really be insulted; it didn't carry any of the negative feelings like before. Ian had proved by now that he trusted Barley. Plus...there was the small issue of Ian's (or their Dad's rather) sweatshirt before that didn't exactly lend credence to his not breaking things sometimes.

Miss Coco made a comment about being surrounded by magic, which she could just mean literally, and the hotel rooms on either side, or...as Ian went on to ask about, and they had just been talking about, all of the Parks perhaps...

"Well, I'm still not, magical that is, just the Lore-Keeper, or for Ian's spells", Barley commented and waited for Miss Coco's answer to clear up if he was, in fact, unique for that, and everyone else was magical.

[Coco Rivera]

"Oh, keeping information safe is not to be underestimated", Coco told Barley, "Why, my own Papá would have been...lost from memory if I hadn't kept his foto and letters". It was as close as she could get to mentioning what would have really befallen Héctor had she forgotten, as she almost did, and as Mamá and Papá had further explained later on, after she arrived in the Land of the Dead.

”Do a lot of people in the parks have magic?”

"Well...", Coco thought for a minute. "Let's see, I know of Mateo, of course, and he's told me about Elsa...you...if you don't count all of us being here by Magic, that's all I know of off the top of my head, so no, not a lot, though there could be more".

[Ian Lightfoot]

Ian grinned at his brother's comment of being Lore-Keeper for his spells. Even if his Lore-Keeper couldn't remember every spell in the book, Ian appreciated his being there. "You may not be magical, but you've made my life magical." Oh no. Was that a little too sappy? He cringed inwardly, hiding it with a nod at Coco's logic that keeping information was important. He hoped her papa was okay...

To be honest, Ian felt a little disappointed that Miss Coco didn't have more names for him. He buried that disappointment, though, and knew that he could search for them himself. Meet more wizards he wrote at the top of the list.

Still, Coco's lack of knowledge didn't discourage the young wizard. It actually made him more determined to find other wizards, and bring the knowledge back to Coco.

[Deleted]

On most occasions, Papá Héctor made it a point to spend time with Imelda in the shop. Yet a song was stuck in his head on replay and the inspired skeletal musician couldn't help it. The Danzón No. 2 was too good of a song NOT to pair a duet version between a violin and a guitar! It had never been done, and it just sounded so beautifully in his head! Always making a point to give credit to the original song writer, which he wrote in capital letters on top of the song sheet, the musician wrote the violin portion of the music for Rosa Linda and then wrote the guitar portion for himself on separate song sheets in front of them.

The song began with the most important things: the percussion, which was mainly a repetitive rhythm that consisted of Héctor tapping the floor with his large leather shoe that his wife had made him, whilst he held the guitar in his hands, and it served as a constant beat for their song: Tap-Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.... Tap-Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap..

Meanwhile, Rosa had been practicing her version that he had written for her on the violin until she had finally gotten it in line with each tap that he made with his foot. Finally, he paired it with his guitar that started playing at the beginning of the song; and as soon as they finished, Héctor was so overwhelmed and enamored by how beautiful it sounded! Oh, he could have tears in his eyes if he could!

"AHAAHAHAAYYYYY!!!!! ESO!!! OYE FAMILIA!" After giving out his loudest grito at the top of his lungs from the balcony, the enthusiastic Héctor burst through the door- or as much as he could burst given that it was a sliding door. The first thing he wanted to do was naturally brag about his great great granddaughter. He knew he was great, why did he have to brag about it? But Rosa linda deserved the acknowledgement for her hard working with her practicing! "YOU GOT TO LISTEN TO THE MUSIC THAT ROSA LINDA-!" His pinkish brown eyes instantly fell onto the two that instantly stood out to him because of their blue skin color, causing him to part his mouth wide with widened eyes within his eye sockets. "AY!" The skeleton yelped in astonishment, "You-you're blue!" Although Héctor had seen and experienced a bunch of crazy things, he still needed to point out the obvious. 

In a swift, fluid motion, the father zoomed over to put his hands protectively on either side of Coco's shoulders, given that she was the nearest to them. "You..you're seeing this, Coco?! They - they're blue, mija! Not like the emotion, you know? They are literally blue in the face!" He stared at them and positioned himself as if he didn't want to be anywhere near touching them, much like he reacted to Miguel when he first found out he was alive. Also, he needed to make sure that he wasn't just seeing things. More than that, Héctor needed to process as to WHY they were blue because clearly they weren't frozen or not having trouble breathing! "Wait, wait, wait..Ey, mija!" He tried to calm himself when an idea came to mind and he instantly leaned over towards Rosa, "..Are they that Blue Man Group from the American TV? That music band, you know?" He murmured loudly to Rosa. It was clear that the musician was familiarizing himself with the modern music on TV, but he wanted to make sure with Rosa since she was also modern.  "You play music?!" He asked them with an enthusiastic grin, bearing the gold tooth in his smile, before that smile suddenly faded upon noticing their long, pointy ears! "Wait, wait, wait, wait.." The skeletal great great grandfather moved in a circle in thought of where this image seemed familiar to him, his skeletal finger stroking his bearded chin pensively until he finally reached another conclusion "..No! They-They're duende!" He pointed at them in shock with the bottom of his jaw literally dropping into his skeletal hands. The duende, or elves in their culture, weren't really known to have blue skin, but they did have long, pointy ears like that! 

"No, no, no, not even PAINT looks good like that!" Héctor would know, given his experience with face painting and painting himself as an alebrije - but he kept that part to himself. "Ay, Maguito por favor!" He tugged at the sides of his hat as he stared up at the ceiling, reaching an obvious conclusion as soon as it clicked with him. "You know what? This has Mateo written all over it!" He proclaimed, before explaining. "We were talking about Duende when we first met and I said I didn't believe him, so he sends two over!!" Very funny! Why did he have to say that to the kid? He was just like Miguel accepting that as a challenge or something! 

After taking a few unneeded breaths, he glimpsed around the room with his eye sockets raised out of pure confusion. Why was no one reacting to this?!


(Music Danzon No. 2: www.youtube.com/watch?v=BVO1PSVX7Eg but with the violin instead of the cello)

[Barley Lightfoot]

Miss Coco said that keeping information was pretty important, and Barley supposed she was right. At any rate, he took it to heart; but took even more to heart Ian's prior statement, though thankfully Miss Coco gave Ian the perfect way to shift his focus, by nodding to what she said and allowing Barley's small touched smile to just pass as well.

Something seemed to always come up right as Ian said these things, end of the world curses or what not.

It was also probably good that Barley got to try to hide his small smile at just his brother's List Making Tendency; and not that doing such was a bad thing.

Meeting Other Wizards was a very good goal! And Barley hoped to be there when he did!

A commotion, a lot like what it had been said to sound like when he came out of his room (if you listened to Mom and Ian) next sounded as another skeleton came barreling out, followed by a Human Bean! Barley was getting used to the phenomenon of their being so many skeletons, even if he'd yet to meet Miss Coco's parents oddly. But then, living next door or no, he also didn't come over often.

The skeleton said something about music...and then proceeded to freak out about Barley and Ian being blue. Was this Miss Coco's father she mentioned?

Also, his reaction was odd, Miss Coco didn't freak out like that. Even Barley had been calmer, meeting Reanimated Bones, as he'd called them then, and that was way more substantial than meeting a blue Elf.

Of course, as a Blue Elf...he viewed such as normal...

Despite the skeleton's reaction being odd, Barley couldn't help a small chuckle at his clarifying he didn't mean blue like the emotion, even if the statement wasn't addressed to him.

"You play music?!"

"No", Barley began, "We..."

"Wait, wait, wait, wait....No! They-They're duende!"

"What-ey?", Barley glanced over to Ian, curious if he had any idea what the skeleton was talking about. He wasn't sure why; he was the Lore Keeper after all. But Ian knew Magic now, and maybe he'd heard something.

The skeleton then went on, muttering things Barley didn't understand, not until the other got to Mateo's name anyway.

"No, Mateo can't send us home, so he certainly didn't send us here", Barley clarified, even if again, he wasn't being spoken to.

[Coco Rivera]

Papá came barreling in, as he so often did, and praising the talents and accomplishments of the family (as was also common for him!) before stopping short. Coco smiled over to him, giggling as he came to get almost protectively between her and the boys. She would have tried to explain, but he was pacing and trying to figure it out himself (but for a question to Rosa) before he landed on Duende as the answer.

Coco shook her head, but was nothing but kind as she explained. She didn't blame her father being confused, and loved how he was, she was just also amused by how far he could run with his ideas at times.

"Oh Papá, Mateo didn't have anything to do with it", she smiled, and shot Barley a small sympathetic look as he pointed out how the young wizard could not get them home, recalling when he had first tried shortly after arriving. "They're Elves".

And that was different how...?

Coco caught how, for their culture, that was still the same thing, almost.

"I mean different kinds of Elves from the Duende", she went on.

[Rosa Rivera]

Rosa felt that the the song Papá Héctor had picked out as a piece for them to attempt as a duet was the perfect one to start with. In any kind of a big way, at least. There had been smaller duet tries before, but this was the first full piece.

Papá Héctor starting off with his guitar, and to help her sort of pick out the beat, did help, even when she'd practiced her parts alone. Much like with Miguel's song he'd written, putting in parts for her and Abel as well, but his own guitar starting them off. This wasn't as nerve-wracking as that had been, and when she's first been starting out playing anything, and getting familiar with music in general!

It was a nice piece, and Rosa had enjoyed learning it, and now enjoyed piecing it together. Papá Héctor was also very encouraging, but then she'd already known that!

In fact, this one song was a good stepping stone for her in building her own confidence. She'd mastered coming in as accompaniment, a common role for violins in songs, but at parts through the song she almost carried and started off the change in rhythm, Papá Héctor's encouraging smile bringing out one of her own, and as she nailed the transition smoothly.

Once more, Rosa saw what all of the appeal was, with music, and for her personally the violin, and that pride when she got a piece down!

Papá Héctor seemed to agree, if his response was anything to go off of! As he burst into the main room, saying the family just had to listen to her part, and even if it was a song they both played. Rosa smiled, flattered, then looked intrigued at both their guests...and Papá Héctor's reaction to said guests.

"..Are they that Blue Man Group from the American TV? That music band, you know?"

Rosa just stared at him, trying very hard to curb a smile, while at the same time trying not to shake her head. "...no...", she finally went with for an answer. She wasn't sure how to explain more, but it also didn't seem to be needed, as Papá Héctor went off on another tangent.

Duende.

This time, Rosa did laugh lightly, and as he blamed poor Mateo.

"Where are you from?", she asked them both, and as Mama Coco explained that they weren't duende. She was curious now what sort of world had elves like them.

[Ian Lightfoot]

A door burst open, and another skeleton came running out.

”Well, you’re a skeleton!” Ian shot back at the blue comment, not really thinking it through.

The new skeleton spoke fast, and had a lot to say. Ian and Barley didn’t have much time to defend themselves, or answer questions, or respond at all, really. He mentioned Mateo, and Ian glanced first at Barley, then at the door they’d come through. He couldn’t help but feel a surge of impatience. It made sense that the skeleton knew the other wizard, but Ian wanted to meet him.

Barley spoke in the wizard’s defense, since the skeleton paused to take a breath (or just to pause? It didn’t look like the skeleton had lungs to fill…) and Coco had something to add, calling the other skeleton “papa”.

What confused Ian the most was that Coco’s hair was gray, while the other skeleton had black hair. Did he dye it? Ian knew elves who would dye their hair… Or did Coco dye hers?

Ian finally noticed a human bean with the unnamed skeleton. She didn’t seem to react as much as he had. Maybe he was an actor, and that was why he was so dramatic.

”New Mushroomton,” Ian answered. She was pretty, for a bean. ”Have you heard of it?”

[Deleted]

”Well, you’re a skeleton!”

"What-ey?"

Héctor crossed his arms with a deadpan expression when one of them called out that he was a skeleton, and he would have childishly continued if he wasn't so much more unamused at the fact that the other blue duende acted like they didn't know what duende were, or at least Héctor thought they acted like they didn't know what duende were! Of course they would know what they were! It was so obvious, it was staring them right in their blue faces! The centennial skeleton would have parted his skeletal mouth to say something childishly in response regarding Mateo, but Coco's words instantly hushed him. 

"Oh Papá, Mateo didn't have anything to do with it"

It was so easy for Coco's simple, yet reassuring words to just figuratively melt the paternal skeleton's soul, like a missing piece of a puzzle that just always made him feel whole. That was all it took for Héctor Rivera to fully believe that Mateo had nothing to do with it. For if his Coco said it wasn't so, then it wasn't! Suddenly, it dawned on him with that sweet smile his daughter wore upon noticing was a plate of sopaipilla, that it was actually Coco that must have invited them over! "Coco, you invited these guys??" He asked with his eye sockets tilted upwards as he gestured to them, though it was far from accusatory and more curious than anything. He tried not to say duende after she explained that they were different kind of elves than the duende. For anyone else, especially if it were a boy like Miguel, he would have easily given them a hard time as to how they were not the same, but this was Coco, and he took whatever she said to heart. They were different than the duende, obviously! That was all that Héctor needed to hear.

"Fine, okay! If Coco says you're not Duende, then I guess you're not really duende!" Elves. The skeletal musician tried to repeat that a few times in his metaphorical head. Lowering his arms down to place one atop of his exposed hip where the rope belt around his pants where, he raised an eyesocket attentively as he listened to Rosa ask the duendes - or elves - where they were from. They better answer nicely to his Rosa Linda! Then they responded with a weirdly named place called Mushroomton. It sounded like a section in a grocery store. Fine, maybe they weren't Duendes from Mexico, after all. Even the duendes from Mexico would come up with better sounding names than that! Not that he would know, of course, given that he had never seen one. But still! 

In the end, Coco's reassurance and Rosa Linda's cool head about all this made the centennial skeleton relaxed again in an instant, a jovial smile brightly spreading across his skeletal countenance. "Bueno, if Coco invited elves from..Mushroomton?" Héctor tried to pronounce that weirdly named place with his accent before quickly continuing, "Then that makes you guys one of our amigos!" 

"My name is Héctor!" The skeletal musician extended his skeletal hand out for each of them to shake it cordially, though he'd move on even if they didn't. "Oye, Rosa Linda! Look! Coco made sopaipilla! C'mon, sit! You got to eat, mija!" He held out a chair for Rosa with a gentle smile, gesturing her to sit to eat, as it was the norm for the family to ensure that everyone was fed. 

"I'll go get you guys your drinks!" Héctor offered enthusiastically with a tug of his suspenders and a grin, further causing more attention to his exposed ribs and hole where his abdomen used to be, his spinal column being the only thing visibly seen in the back. Just as he was going to swiftly head over to the kitchen, he stopped in mid-dash with one foot on the floor and the other one in the air after taking a few quick steps when he realized that he had no idea what duen-elves even drank! "Ey.. what do you guys drink anyways? We got some root beers, soda - eh, actually we got only Coca Cola, Aguas frescas - I think Imelda just made some agua de jamaica in the fridge! - you know like fruit juice from hibiscus flowers?" He tried to recount if there was anything else in the fridge that he left out, then glanced over at the elves' blue faces to see what they were interested in drinking. Of course, he was being hospitable as he usually was to even his fake family down in the land of the forgotten, but partly because he was interested in what elves drank, too! 

[Barley Lightfoot]

His statement on Mateo earned him an un-amused look from the newest skeleton. Oh, so he had heard him. At Ian's pointing out the skeleton's classification as bluntly as he had done, the oldest of the Lightfoot brothers grinned in support, and might have thrown his own statement after if Miss Coco didn't defuse the whole situation.

Duende had something to do with Elves, since she told her father (the new skeleton was her father, but that made sense and since she'd just mentioned him) they were a different kind.

As for the particulars, and how Miss Coco looked older...well who knew what kind of logic existed with skeletons? Barley was learning more about them in real life than he ever had from the Quests of Yore book.

Actually, the situation was defused so quickly, Barley was left a bit stunned.

"Fine, okay! If Coco says you're not Duende, then I guess you're not really duende!"

"Uh...yeah", Barley glanced to Ian and then back at the skeleton. Héctor, as he introduced himself.

"Uh...I'm Barley and that's Ian", Barley hesitantly shook Héctor's hand, just still taking in his response. He'd already crossed the phenomenon of touching a skeleton with Miss Coco, and helping her up the stairs when she showed him the hotel for the first time. Not that Mom or Ian knew he'd done that. And not that he did good things to be noticed.

Héctor then turned his attention to the sopaipillas, trying to get Rosa Linda (who must just go by her first and middle name) to actually sit for eating one. Should they have done that? Oops.

Barley had another thought as he glanced back to Ian while Héctor went on about drinks and, in a space he saw he had where none but his brother saw him, he made a face and discreetly tapped his head. This skeleton was a little bit of a nut job!

"Uh, Soda or root beer for me, uh and thanks", Barley then answered, manners back in place. Those two sounded the most familiar. Though he didn't have high hopes, he went on... "You don't have Kobold Cola or Mountain Doom do you?".

[Coco Rivera]

Coco hadn't been looking to stall trouble, just explaining, but she'd also helped with her various generations of grandchildren enough to know how boys thought, and Papá just thought like them so often! He would have no doubt answered back to Ian's pointing out he was a skeleton. She didn't know this wasn't the statement he would have responded to, but rather Barley's, but either-way.

He thankfully took her words at face value, as he seemed to always do. She couldn't tell yet if it was a pattern, though Mamá said it was, and that he acquiesced to her most of all, though she saw how sweetly he spoiled Rosa as well!

Coco smiled. "Yes, I met Barley here when he first arrived and...well we can't have the poor boy wandering alone and un-cared for, him or his brother", she smiled to Ian as well. She wouldn't argue having everyone sit, as Papá tried to coax Rosa into doing, but also wouldn't force it. "You can sit or stand as you'd like", she told Barley and Ian, not wanting them to feel they had to just because Papá was coaxing Rosa to it in that way their family had.

[Rosa Rivera]

Was it bad Rosa was a little bit disappointed she didn't get to watch the 'argument' that would have probably followed from Papá Héctor and Ian's words?

”Have you heard of it?”

"No, but that's not surprising, I've figured out everyone's from everywhere around here", Rosa answered, before she was almost literally swept away by Papá Héctor to sit and have some sopaipillas. She knew better than to argue at this point, and since he was Abuelita's own grandfather! No one denied her when she demanded they sit and eat, and, easy going nature aside, no one denied Papá Héctor either. Or Mamá Imelda for that matter!

Rosa took a seat, setting down some of the sheet music, along with blank pages, that had her parts on it and taking one of her great-grandmother's sopaipillas also and as she thought up further conversation to make. "So...you're Elves", less a guess and more a statement, since Mama Coco had just explained such, "What other kinds of...people are there in New Mushroomton? she asked. She had been about to say Creatures, but next wasn't sure if that was insulting or not.

[Ian Lightfoot]

The deadpan look--Ian realized he’d have to remember to say that to Barley later, as a pun--that the skeleton gave Ian at his rather childish comment was amusing, and Ian bit his lip to prevent himself from laughing. A dead bean gave them a deadpan look.

Ian had to refrain from correcting the skeleton. He was (apparently) Coco’s father, and he didn’t want to be disrespectful. But it was New Mushroomton… Still, Ian put on a weak smile at the skeleton’s attempt. At least he tried, right?

And he finally gave a name! Barley introduced himself and Ian, and the younger elf bobbed his head.

He caught Barley’s gesture regarding Hector, and nodded subtly, wide-eyed. The skeleton definitely had a few screws loose. Not that Ian minded, necessarily, it was just disconcerting for him. Hector was charismatic and enthusiastic. He would just take a little getting used to.

Coco’s comment regarding Barley ”wandering alone and uncared for” almost made Ian roll his eyes. Barley was capable of taking care of himself! He took decentish care of them on their quest, after all.

Rosa hadn’t heard of New Mushroomton, but Ian hadn’t really expected her to. Iduna hadn’t, either, after all.

”The usual. Centaurs, satyrs, cyclopes, trolls. Elves, too, of course.” Hector was rushing Rosa to sit, and Coco told the brothers they could sit as well, if they wanted. Ian sat slowly, propping his staff against the side of his chair. He definitely needed to start sketching designs for a shoulder strap...

[Deleted]

"Yes, I met Barley here when he first arrived and...well we can't have the poor boy wandering alone and un-cared for, him or his brother"

Coco's words struck Héctor more than she probably meant to. He was one of those guys, wandering alone and un-cared for until Imelda took him him, just like Coco did. She was a lot like Imelda in that way. Of course, Héctor was naturally the same way, but that was because he came from nothing. Coco and Imelda were different because they had families and they were still so generous. That took something special. The skeletal musician smiled adoringly at his daughter as he kindly caressed her cheek then nodded in a conceding way before he took the boys in a hospitable way after taking Coco's word como oro (like gold). 

Barley and Ian were indeed strange names, but Héctor's many weird nicknames given to his fake cousins didn't make it feel too strange in comparison. No one else could be named Chicharron, after all, and naming someone after pork rinds was a lot stranger than something like Barley.  "Nice to meet you, Barley and Ian!" Hm. That was going to be difficult to come up with nicknames for. Perhaps this might be one of the few times that Héctor wouldn't provide a nickname, given how short they were already. Maybe. 

Upon hearing their orders for soda and root beer, Héctor nodded and next took Rosa and Coco's order as well, making sure they also had something to drink. 

"You don't have Kobold Cola or Mountain Doom do you?".

"What? Mountain Doom?!" Héctor suddenly stopped in his tracks and lifted an eyesocket inquisitively before he suddenly broke into a laugh. "-Ahaha! You're funny! Ah, that's a good one!" That Barley was a funny guy! Since they were Duendes elves they had weirdly sounding names for their drinks, like Mountain Doom instead of Mountain Dew! In fact, that instantly inspired him to start with the jokes that he used to do while working as a tour guide in the Land of the Dead, which he found out were apparently called Dad jokes for some reason? Either way, that was just what he was coming up with when he returned with everyone's drinks at the table.  "Ey, ey..I got a good one! You know what skeletons say before a meal?! BONE appetit!" He grinned at his joke while he stood between their two guests at the table. "Eh? That is funny, no?" He nudged Barley with an elbow, given that Barley was being funny earlier! 

[Barley Lightfoot]

Barley gave a small sort of half smile as Miss Coco stated she had just been worried for him and Ian. Not that he didn't believe her, he did, and while it was incredibly touching, it was also amusing. Ah, both himself and Ian were fine! Barley himself had them well looked out for.

He didn't contradict the sweet, grandmotherly skeleton, though.

Rosa hadn't heard of New Mushroomton (and her grandfather couldn't say it right, but Barley didn't point that out either), but wrote it off as people being from all over. Yeah, that made sense, Barley nodded. "Yeah, we'd never heard of your kind before either, so, probably is a varying Section of the Realm if you will" he answered with a smile as he sat, and before her grandfather asked about drinks.

Barley looked confused as Hector seemed to find his request funny. "Uh...while I do pride myself on a sense of humor, that's a real drink where we come from, but whatever you've got that's similar will work too". There were so many differences with the Bean World and this one. He proved his statement by giving a half sort of chuckle to Hector's bad dad joke.

Well, it was nice to see skeletons made skeleton humor.

Ian listed off some of the other beings from their world, and Barley picked up the thread where he left off. Rosa might not have been asking for all of them, so he didn't blame Ian for not giving them, but there was one important one that shouldn't be overlooked (and not just because she was fittingly terrifying when angered!) "And a Manticore!", he added.

"Ian and I both can tell you most anything you might want to know on any sort of fantastical creature, well the ones we have met anyway". He paused, and then went on. "In fact, Miss Rosa Linda, maybe you can clear up some stuff on your world too!", he went on, figuring directing most of his inquiries to the "peer" Bean among them, even if she was probably a few years younger than both, might be the best way to go about it.

"First off, do you go by Rosa, or Rosa Linda? Since I'm guessing that's your middle name?", he began with which she preferred. "Ian and I are still learning all about how you and your world too, like for instance do you stay in your pots through infant-hood and then come out, or do you go back at night? How does that work? And is it always for sleep, or do you just hang out there too?". Barley struggled with self-restraint on a good day and had never been one to hold back from asking questions genuinely bothering him, unless it was rude to ask such of a giver of Quests or such.

Also, the thought that Ian might be bothered by his asking this, and so boldly, didn't occur to him any more than the thought that charging up to school, blaring his music in front of his brother's later friends would.

[Coco Rivera]

For her part, Coco just took in the lively conversation around the table and as Papá even questioned if the boys were serious with Mountain Doom as a drink name. Were Mamá here, she might have given him a look at that, reminding him to behave and not embarrass the poor Elves, but Coco knew her father didn't mean any harm, and Barley's response back showed he hadn't taken offense, or not too much perhaps.

Still, the grandmotherly skeleton gave both Elf boys her own small smile of apology for their not knowing as she moved the Sopaipilla plate over to the table and went over to see if Papá needed help with fetching Rosa something to drink while he took care of the boys, or such, and even if she knew she would probably be shooed to sit as well.