Maria turned her head away. “Good night, Joaquin.”
That wasn’t how he’d expected her to react. “Maria.” He stopped her from going inside.
“Yes?”
Joaquin took off his sombrero. Underneath the hat, he had her old bonnet from the train station.
“You kept it all this time?” Maria was surprised at his sincerity.
“It’s what kept me going,” he said. When Maria smiled at that, Joaquin asked, “About my proposal—will you at least just think about it?”
Maria nodded. “Good night, Joaquin.”
When she closed the door, Joaquin did a dance on her porch. “Yes! Yes, yes, yes! Joaquin, you’re awesome!”
Xibalba did a little dance too. “Yes!”
*****
Maria lay back on her bed. Chuy snuggled into the blankets. She set aside the picture of Joaquin and looked at an old picture of herself, Manolo, and Joaquin from the day she left town. It seemed so long ago. . . .
Click. A pebble hit her window.
Maria stepped out on her balcony to find Manolo below.
“Meet me at the bridge at dawn.”
“I can’t, Manolo. My father won’t—”
“Please, Maria, I beg you,” Manolo pleaded. Maria gave a little nod of agreement. Manolo smiled as he ran off into the night.
*****
Xibalba held up his double-headed snake cane in the shadows as Manolo dashed by him. The eyes of the snake glowed when he struck the ground. The snake came to life.
“If she meets him alone I will lose the wager. Fix this for me, old friend,” Xibalba said.
The snake slithered off, following Manolo.
At dawn Maria hurried toward the floating bridge to meet Manolo. The bridge connected the island of San Angel to the Mexico mainland. The moon was fading and the sun began to rise.
Maria gasped when she saw that the pathway was covered with candles and flowers. At the top of the hill, a beautiful old tree was glowing with sparkling candles.
Beneath the tree Manolo stood, playing his guitar for her.
Maria tried to remain cool, though she felt overwhelmed by the amazing scene.
“This is what I wanted to show you.” Manolo pointed toward the town. At that exact moment the sun broke through the clouds, hit the stained-glass church steeple, and illuminated the town like a glorious, magical jewel.
“It’s so beautiful,” Maria said.
“What you’re feeling,” Manolo told her, “that’s how I feel every time I’m with you.” He knelt down in the center of a circle of candles. “I can’t offer you a ring. I have nothing to give but my love.”
“Oh, Manolo . . .”
Manolo went on. “I may not be the town hero, Maria, but I swear with all my heart, I will never, ever stop loving you.”
Maria touched his face and dropped to her knees in front of him.
“And I will never stop loving the man who plays from the heart.”
It was a beautiful moment, until Xibalba’s snake slithered out from the roots of the old tree.
“Snake!” Maria warned Manolo, but it was too late for him to escape the snake’s sharp fangs. With a great shove, she knocked him out of the way. The snake bit her, instead.
Maria collapsed into Manolo’s arms. “No!” he cried. “Maria!”
The snake slid back and disappeared among the roots of the tree.
“Help!” Manolo screamed.
*****
There was a boom of thunder before the rain began to fall. Joaquin reached the shoreline just in time to see Manolo walking through the downpour carrying Maria’s body.
“What did you do, Manolo?” Joaquin asked.
Manolo could barely speak. “There was a snake and . . . she saved me.”
Joaquin checked Maria’s wrist for a pulse. “Maria.”
The town began to gather behind him.
Choking on the words, Joaquin reported, “She’s gone.”
The entire town was in shock.
“Why didn’t you protect her?!” Joaquin was furious with Manolo. The medal on Joaquin’s chest began to glow and he reached for his sword, but before he could pull it out, General Posada came rushing forward.
“Maria! Oh no. Oh noooo!” The general gathered her into his arms before turning on Manolo. “This is all your doing! Leave, or so help me I’ll . . .” His voice dropped. “My little girl . . . What have you done, boy? What have you done?!”
Manolo lowered his eyes. “It should have been me.”
Joaquin agreed. “Yes. It should have.”
Leaving the others to tend to Maria, Manolo took his sorrow and pain and walked away alone.
*****
In the museum the kids looked up at Mary Beth with tears in their eyes.
“No! Maria died?” Sasha couldn’t believe it.
“That can’t be right!” Sanjay said.
“What kind of story is this? We’re just kids!” Even the goth kid was upset.
Mary Beth was sad too. She told the children, “As the sky cried with rain, Manolo went back to retrieve his guitar.”
*****
The rain poured down. The candles had all gone out. Steam and smoke rose, creating an otherworldly feel.
Manolo found his guitar in the dirt. He knelt to get it, sighing. “I will never see her again.”
Xibalba, in his old-man disguise, came up behind him. “Are you certain?” Lightning revealed the old man’s true identity. “You want to see Maria again?” he asked.
“With all my heart,” Manolo replied.
Xibalba discarded his disguise and transformed into his ancient godly form. “Think about what you say, boy.”
A crash of lightning revealed a skull shape in Manolo’s face. He looked at the words on his guitar. He knew what he wanted. “With all. My. Heart.”
“Done.” Xibalba snapped his fingers and the snake returned from beneath the tree. Manolo was startled when suddenly, the snake’s two heads bit him hard.
“Maria.” With her name on his lips, he fell lifeless to the ground.
*****
The kids in the museum gasped.
“No! Manolo too?” Sanjay asked.
The goth kid said, “What is it with Mexicans and death?”
Mary Beth knelt down to hear Sasha say, “But, it can’t end like this. Can it?”
Mary Beth put her hand on Sasha’s little head and said, “Oh, my sweet child, death is not the end.”
Manolo woke up next to the same tree he’d fallen beside. “Where am I?” he murmured. His guitar was nearby. It all seemed so normal, until he reached out his hand and discovered—he was a skeleton!
“Huh? Whoa!” He turned his head to see the Land of the Remembered—a festive, vibrant place alive with beauty, music, and magic.
The streets were full of happy skeletons going about their business. Manolo stood on a hill above the city. He watched the skeletons below for a moment, then a hot air balloon floated up to greet him.
A skeleton riding a skeleton horse leaped out of the balloon. The Land of the Remembered captain said, “Welcome to the Land of the Remembered.”
“I made it!” Manolo was pleased.
The captain said, “And on the Day of the Dead, no less.”
“Where . . . Where is . . . ,” Manolo said, confused as he reached around to find his guitar.
The captain said, “You’re going to be a little disoriented at first. Don’t try to take it all in at once. Let’s start with your name.”
Then Manolo remembered. “Maria Posada!” Manolo said.
The captain checked for Maria’s name on his clipboard. “Really? Parents and their crazy baby names. There’s no Maria Posada on my list.”
“No. I’m looking for Maria Posada,” Manolo explained.
“Oh,” the captain said, waiting for him to reveal his name.
“My name is Manolo Sanchez.”
“Another Sanchez?” The captain took a good look at Manolo. “Ma
n, that family just keeps growing.”
This was good news. “My family! They’ll help me find Maria! Can you take me to them?”
“I’d love nothing more than to reunite a young couple!” The captain made room on the horse. “Just hold on.”
Manolo gripped his guitar in one hand and the horse with the other as they started to gallop. “Whoooooaaaaa!”
*****
Mary Beth explained to the children, “The Land of the Remembered was vibrant and joyous! Everything was like the land above, but it was more colorful, it was more beautiful, it was more festive! And on the Day of the Dead, the place was bursting with parties and parades.”
*****
The horse stopped on a long bridge. Manolo looked out at a spectacular parade passing down the street.
“There, your family is in that one,” the captain said.
“Whoa.” Manolo’s eyes were wide.
“Get in there!” The captain shoved Manolo off the bridge.
Manolo flew through the air.
A giant bullfighter skeleton on an intricately decorated Aztec float caught him. “Oh yeah. Another Sanchez bullfighter!” he said, setting Manolo on his feet.
“You are the amazing Carmelo Sanchez!” Manolo exclaimed in awe.
“Yes. I was famous for fighting bulls without a cape!” Carmelo bragged. To show just how amazing he was, Carmelo tossed his cape on the ground and spit on it.
Manolo had to admire his ancestor’s courage, but he was on a mission. With no time to waste, he asked, “Can you help me find Maria Posada?”
“La Muerte can help you. She helps everyone. Hold on.” A massive bull-shaped piñata came toward them. Carmelo knew to dodge it, but Manolo didn’t. The piñata hit him full force. When it snapped open, an avalanche of candy carried him away.
His ancestor cried, “Wait for me, little Sanchez. I take you to La Muerte!”
Manolo crash-landed on the plank of a parade float that looked like a Spanish ship from 1492. He looked up to discover a conquistador bullfighter had conquered the remains of the piñata bull.
“The great Jorge Sanchez!” Manolo recognized the man.
“At your service! I was famous for fighting bulls with only one arm and one leg!” Jorge showed Manolo his skill.
Manolo laughed. Jorge took a good look at his relative and asked, “You’re Manolo, the one who plays the guitar?”
Manolo shifted his guitar into his other hand, saying, “Yeah. That’s me.”
Jorge got a dreamy look on his skeletal face. “You know, when I was younger, I always dreamt of singing in the opera.”
That was a surprise. “You did?”
Jorge nodded. “But as you know—”
Manolo and Jorge recited their fathers’ echoed words. “Music is not work fit for a Sanchez bullfighter.”
Jorge said, “The same story.” They shared a sad moment.
Manolo asked him, “Can you take me to La Muerte?” Before Jorge could answer, Carmelo leaped down onto the end of the plank. Manolo flew up as if launched from a catapult.
“He’s new,” Carmelo told Jorge with a shrug.
“He reminds me of me. But less handsome,” Jorge replied.
Manolo landed on a parade float that looked like a bullfighting plaza. In the middle of the float, three massive bull piñatas were spinning in the breeze.
Manolo immediately recognized the next fighter from his family. “Of course! It’s Luis ‘El Super Macho’ Sanchez.”
Luis bowed. “I was famous for fighting three bulls at once!” He spit in three different directions and stabbed three bull piñatas with a sword. Each piñata exploded with candy.
“Grandpa! It’s me, Manolo.” Manolo rushed forward to hug Luis while Carmelo and Jorge arrived on the float.
Luis took a long look, then grinned widely. “Manolo! I’m so happy to see you.” Then he slapped his grandson’s cheek. “Why did you disgrace the family name?! Playing the guitar?! And you couldn’t finish one bull? You were a clown!”
A Sanchez family clown, riding a bike and wearing makeup, honked his horn.
“Sorry, cousin Chucho,” Luis apologized, putting an arm around Manolo. “Welcome home, mijo.” He pointed to a parade float ahead of them. “Your mother will be very happy to see you.”
Manolo gasped. “Mama?”
The float was shaped like a round pyramid with dancing skeleton girls on every level. Atop the pyramid was Carmen, dancing by herself.
Manolo’s face hurt from smiling so hard. He leaped to the top of the pyramid. Carmelo, Jorge, and Luis followed. When Manolo reached the top, Carmen stopped dancing.
“Manolo?”
It was as if time stood still. The parade sounds and music faded away.
“Mama!”
Mother and son embraced.
“Manolo!”
“I missed you so much.” Manolo didn’t want to let his mother go. He hugged her hard and held on.
“Ay, mijo, it’s been like a hole in my heart. I’ve waited so long for you.” She suddenly pushed him back. “But not long enough! What are you doing here?! It’s too soon!”
Manolo explained, “I’m here to be reunited with the love of my life. You are going to love Maria, Mama.”
Carmen softened. “I’m sure I will. Ay, Manolo, you look just like your father. So handsome you turned out!”
“And I became a bullfighter, just like you wanted,” he told her.
“Me? Are you crazy?! Haven’t you learned anything from your family’s history?”
“What? But Dad said—”
Carmen was angry. “That Carlos, wait till he gets down here!”
She turned Manolo around to where a group of their ancestors had gathered. He waved to them all.
“Now come on, mijo.” Carmen made the introduction. “Everyone, this is my son, Manolo.”
The bullfighters rushed to embrace him. Two tough cousins, the Adelita twins, shook his hand and said at the same time, “Hey, primo.”
“Being with the whole Sanchez family and you, Mama. This is incredible,” Manolo said.
Carmen’s float stopped at the base of a tree-shaped castle in the center of the land. “This is La Muerte’s castle.”
“I don’t see it.” Carmelo was facing backward. Jorge set him straight. “Oh.”
“Savage,” Jorge muttered.
Carmen put her arm around her son’s shoulders. “Come, she will help you find my new daughter-in-law.”
The two massive doors opened and Manolo and his family entered the castle. Glass skeleton chandeliers illuminated the front hall, and the ceiling was covered with paper flags and streamers. The family stepped on a floating bridge headed toward La Muerte’s throne room.
“Whoa! It’s so pretty,” Carmelo said.
“Now, this is a castle!” Luis added.
“We were always her favorites,” Jorge said. “You know how bullfighters flirt with death, eh?”
Carmen moaned. “And that’s why there are so many of you down here. La Muerte’s throwing a big Day of the Dead fiesta for everyone.”
Carmelo walked along a table of food, snatching everything he could grab.
Jorge pulled a dish out of Carmelo’s reach. “Animal!” he cried.
At the end of the long table, a figure sat with its back to Manolo and his family.
Carmen gave her son a nudge forward. “Ask her, mijo.”
Manolo said, “My lady, could you help me find Maria Posada?”
“Who are you calling lady, bullfighter?” The figure turned. It wasn’t La Muerte. It was Xibalba. The Sanchez ancestors around Manolo gasped and backed away in fear. “The Land of the Remembered has a new ruler. Who you ask? Little old me.”
“You again!” Manolo exclaimed.
“But La Muerte would never hand her domain over to you,” Luis said nervously.
Xibalba rudely belched. “She lost a bet.”
“Oh. She would do that.” Luis nodded.
“This land is
finally mine, all thanks to you, Manolo!” Xibalba grinned.
“What?” Manolo hadn’t a clue what he meant.
“Well, La Muerte bet that Maria would marry you. I bet that Maria would marry Joaquin. And since you’re not around anymore . . . Maria is going to marry Joaquin just to, you know, protect her beloved town.” Xibalba glanced up, toward the Land of the Living. “So I win.”
“But Maria passed away. I saw her . . .” He began to realize what had happened. “Oh no.”
“Oh yes. . . .” Xibalba laughed.
Manolo fell to his knees. Luis put his hand on Manolo’s back and asked, “Mijo, what is it?”
Xibalba began to brag about the trick he’d played.
When Maria lay lifeless on her bed, Joaquin came to visit. He leaned down and let his medal brush against her arm.
“One snake bite merely put her in a trance. My champion easily woke the sleeping beauty,” Xibalba boasted.
The medal glowed. Maria’s eyelids fluttered, and abruptly, she sat up, gasping for air.
“Oh my goodness! It’s a miracle!” General Posada cheered.
“Thank you!” The nuns sang and crossed themselves while Father Domingo looked on proudly.
“I’m . . . I’m . . .” Maria started to say.
In the land below, Manolo finished for her. “Alive.”
Xibalba raised a glass from the grand table to make a toast. “Cheers!”
Manolo considered what he now knew. “One bite? Your snake . . . It bit me twice! You cheated!” He was so angry that Luis and Carmelo had to hold him back from attacking Xibalba. “You will pay for this!”
Xibalba stood and walked across the tabletop. “In all my years, no one, in any realm, has ever talked to me like that and survived.” He spread his mighty wings and loomed over Manolo, flashing hundreds of sharp teeth. “So I ask you—are you threatening me, boy?”
The Sanchez ancestors were afraid, but not Manolo. “I will expose you to La Muerte. And then you and I can settle things!” he exclaimed.
“You’ll never reach her in her new realm. I should know, I rotted there for eons.” Xibalba flicked his flinger, flinging Manolo back into his family. “Now, if you’d all excuse me, I have a wedding to plan. Ciao!” He burst through the ceiling and disappeared.
*****
Back in San Angel, Carlos knelt in front of the tree where Manolo had been bitten. There was a poster of Manolo and a humble altar made of flowers and candles, plus a little broken guitar.
The Book of Life Movie Novelization Page 5