Just like any other day for the past few months, Mirabel got up early, ready to start her routine, a routine of which she didn't have any complaints to express.
She got dressed slowly and left her new room. Yes, now she has a new room. The day they finished building Casita and brought the miracle back, no one was surprised by the new glowing door among the others, except Mirabel herself.
Obviously, they had built her a new room, but she never expected it to glow so intensely; everyone was happy for her, encouraging her to open it.
Mirabel did not know what to do. She was thrilled but frightened at the same time, fearing it would disappear the moment she touched the handle, like years ago. It wasn't until both her excited hermanas gave her a smile and a light push that she mustered the courage.
"There's no need to be afraid, whatever happens will be alright.", she told herself. She reached for the door handle and, the moment she touched it, the door shone like none other.
But contrary to what the others were expecting, the door didn't change to show an image of Mirabel, it just shone. They looked at her with curiosity, waiting to see if Mirabel had received a gift, but nothing in her changed. Even though it was strange, nobody seemed to be bothered, and excitedly they got together with her to look at her new room.
It was enormous. Undoubtedly, it was made for her.
She smiled remembering that day. Certainly, it had been one of the happiest days of her life, celebrating merrily with her family and feeling that, at last, everything would be okay.
She wasn't bothered by the lack of a gift for her, but she would be lying if she didn't find it strange not having received a gift despite the door being imageless but still glowing. Who knew, maybe someday she would get her answer, but for the moment she didn't worry about it.
With a smile, she headed to her bigger hermana's room, Isabela.
Her relationship with her hermanas had improved, even better, they had repaired any rift that may have had separated them.
Both Luisa and Isabela had profusely apologized to Mirabel, regretting all the pain they had caused her, apologizing for not being good hermanas to her.
Mirabel, obviously, forgave them immediately. She was well aware her hermanas had suffered greatly during all those years, and, like her, they had endured a lot, doing what they believed was best for the family.
So, she left the past behind and approached them again, restoring the connection they had before the weight of being a Madrigal fell upon them.
Her hermanas had worked really hard to show Mirabel how much they loved her, leaving the mistakes behind and making quality time a priority among themselves, spending time together and sharing many experiences.
Pajama parties, picnics, and anything they could do together, they shared secrets together, they got close to one another in a way that felt both like sisterhood and best friends, they had become inseparable.
Mirabel was elated every day for the past year. Everything changed for the better since she brought the miracle back, and she couldn't be any prouder.
"Isa, are you awake?"
She entered her hermana's room and found her still asleep, which wasn't strange at all. After abandoning the responsibility of being perfect, she had started to show her true self, the "real Isabela", as her family called her, a brave, rebellious and caring Isabela.
"Get up, Isa, it's time for breakfast." And very relaxed too, sleeping until late became common, waking up almost as late as her tio Bruno.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm awake." Mirabel sighed, amused by the sight of her sleepy hermana, tumbling as she tried to get dressed.
That was her routine every morning. She looked around, smiling lovingly at the sight of the new bedroom, without a trace of pink roses. Now everything around her were different plants and even trees, it was so beautiful that it had become one of her favorite rooms.
She loved seeing Isa's smile every time she added a new plant, asking her to help her decorate her new room with plants and flowers. Her hermana, happy and moved, had helped her by giving her the most beautiful flowers. Mirabel had cried, touched, feeling in that detail all the love from her big hermana.
"Let's go, Mira, I'm hungry." Isa pulled her from her memories by grabbing her hand and heading to the dining room, from where the morning bustle could be heard.
"Hunger is the only thing that seems to pull you out from that coma you fall into when you fall asleep." A mocking snicker came out of her. And it was true. Isabela had started to allow herself to enjoy food without fear of being judged for eating too much or eating something that wasn't worthy of her, miss perfect.
"Ha, ha." Laughed Isa sarcastically, looking with fake annoyance at her hermana. "Breakfast is the most important meal of the day."
Not even all the sleep of the world would stop her from having breakfast.
"Did you sleep well?" She smiled when she saw her hermana nodding.
It was a habit that started a year ago, in an attempt to show her hermana how much she loved her and how much she cared for her. She would start to ask her how she was, how did she sleep, how she was feeling.
A small action that didn't look like much, but it meant the world to Mirabel, it was something she had gotten used to, and she didn't want it to stop.
They both reached the dining room where everyone else was with the usual morning bustle.
Camilo was trying to steal tia Julieta's food. Dolores was sitting at the table with a very excited Antonio talking about his animals. A cheerful tia Pepa was chatting with the always smiling tio Felix. Luisa was beside Bruno, chatting with a small smile on her lips. Agustín was helping his wife serve breakfast while abuela, sitting at the table, looked at all her family with a little smile.
"Good morning!" Said Mirabel with a smile as she entered. Once everyone was seated, the Madrigal family started eating, as usual, with chats and laughter.
"Well, family, enjoy your day and don't forget that I love you." Abuela smiled at them with love, getting up once they all finished eating.
From the day that Casita crumbled, abuela Alma strove to change. She set aside her way of seeing things, apologized with every family member, acknowledged her mistakes and was ready to fix them.
She apologized to Luisa and Isabela for putting a pressure on them that she shouldn't have, for hurting them without realizing what she was causing, with Isabela's almost engagement with someone she didn't love, all for fear of losing the miracle and of putting her family in danger.
For a week, she didn't move from Bruno's side, taking every minute to spend time with him, making up for the lost time, and whenever she had the chance, she would go to Mirabel to hug her and tell her loving words.
She also apologized to her hijas. To Pepa, who had been forced to control her feelings and her emotions at the convenience of others, and to Julieta, who had ended up spending most of her time shut off in the kitchen to heal even the silliest of the townspeoples' wounds.
She apologized and accepted all the blame. Mirabel was right, the miracle was agonizing because of her, and she had been too blind to realize. She was grateful for this new chance she had, and from the start she proved that she wanted to repair the damage and correct what was wrong.
A few days after Casita had been repaired, and the magic was back in the family, abuela gathered everyone to let them know of the changes that the Madrigals would experience.
She had talked with Bruno and finally understood what she had to do: she gathered everyone and apologized once again for making them feel that they were only worthy because of their gifts. "No more of that", she said.
From that day on, everyone was free to do whatever they wanted with their lives and with their gifts, they were free to choose if they wanted to keep helping the community of Encanto, without expectations nor pressure. She understood that she was hurting people by making them so dependent on the gifts of the family, it was a mistake on everyone's part, and they couldn't keep walking down that road.
If they wanted to keep doing it, it would be only when and where it was really necessary. Obviously, everyone chose to keep helping the community.
Everyone loved their people, and they wouldn't abandon them, they would do what they could to help them, but they were thankful for having the freedom to choose.
Luisa could finally take her well-deserved breaks, besides not having to deal with absurd tasks such as the donkeys and or the bridge.
Pepa would be able to express her feelings without them being used to control the climate, she wouldn't have to use her feelings for the benefit of others.
Camilo and Dolores would live as they pleased, in any way that made them happy. Bruno could live as he pleased, continuing his life outside the walls however he wanted, without the fear of being judged.
Isabela would leave behind the enormous burden of being perfect that she had carried for most of her, and she would be and do whatever she wanted without worrying anymore of what her abuela thought.
Of course, not everyone liked these changes. A minority in town was angry, since they wouldn't have the Madrigal's gifts at their disposal, but everything ended in small complaints.
Abuela Alma didn't allow anyone to make demands of the family, they were doing a lot for the townsfolk, and she wouldn't allow any more exploitation. The townspeople would have to learn to live without the constant help of the Madrigals, whether they liked it or not.
This way, things had changed for the Madrigals in a year. The town learned to live without their constant help, becoming self-sufficient.
This way, with everyone working by themselves and the assistance of the Madrigal family, Encanto lived in harmony and with an even better future in sight.
"See you later in the woods." Camilo saw off his primos while he strode off with Antonio to the town.
Dolores did the same with a smile, walking with Mariano, her now boyfriend, in a direction only they knew.
In the afternoon, the Madrigal kids would have a picnic in the forest as usual, they loved spending time together and took every chance they could, like that day, that Camilo and Antonio had to run a couple of errands in town and Dolores would help Mariano's mamá with a small favor.
"Take care, see you." Mirabel saw off her primos and then went to the back of Casita together with her hermanas, where Isabela had her giant garden.
She had started it a year ago after losing her gift, she loved plants and wouldn't give up on them even if she was giftless.
First, she started with some cacti and some herbaceous plants, and they had grown beautifully thanks to Isabela's care and her hermanas' help.
They spent a great part of their days in the garden; laying under an enormous mango tree, in Luisa's case; or knitting and sewing sitting on the grass, in Mirabel's case; while Isabela would take care of the garden, which was now splendid.
When she recovered her gift, she was amazed by all the things she was capable of doing, so she decided to cultivate fruits and vegetables. Even though she used some magic for some fruit trees, she could say that most of the garden was the result of her and her hermanas' effort.
She was proud of that.
Once Isabela was done tending to it, the 3 hermanas sat down in the shade of an enormous tree while looking at the sky in a comfortable silence, enjoying each other's company.
They felt so happy and at peace with just being with one another, they had become so close it seemed that it had always been that way; they had never felt so complete their entire lives.
"So, Isa… What did abuela tell you?" Mirabel turned to her hermana, just like Luisa, who looked at her expecting an answer.
"Well… She just scolded me a bit, and said she would take care of Juan and his dumb friends." Isabela shrugged with a carefree smile.
She was relieved since abuela had just given her a small reprimand, although she wouldn't have minded a more severe scolding, since she didn't feel the least bit of remorse from her actions.
How could she regret defending her hermana?
The thing is, the day before, Mirabel and Antonio had gone to town to run some errands, nothing out of the usual. Despite being giftless, Mirabel was very loved by the townsfolk, everyone was aware of her multiple talents and knowledge, so it wasn't strange that many would request her help with one thing or another.
But as usual, time flew by and when she realized it, it was almost dinner time. She didn't like being late for dinner, and much less worried about her family, so in her hurry to go back home, she didn't realize they were being followed, at least not until it was too late.
"Look who we have here." She didn't have to turn around to know who it was, she could recognize that voice anywhere.
Juan, the guy who would always try to bully her, always making her feel bad for being the giftless Madrigal.
He and his two dumb friends had mocked her several times, hurting her both physically and emotionally.
"The stupid giftless Madrigal." Juan grabbed her by the arm to stop her, smiling at her mockingly.
Mirabel, far from scared, broke free without even giving him a look, and continued walking with a very frightened Antonio, but that only annoyed the boy, and he went furiously after her.
"Mirabel!" screamed her prima when he saw them drag her violently, almost making her fall, but not even that scared her, since she stood her ground against Juan, looking at him defiantly.
"Don't bother me, Juan." Mirabel tried to break free from Juan's strong grip, who answered by laughing with his friends.
"What are you gonna do? Cry?" Juan sneered while his two friends held her by her arms.
His laughter froze when he saw Mirabel's unfazed face, she wasn't afraid of him and didn't seem to care for whatever he had to say.
"Don't look at me that way!" He furiously hit her cheek, he didn't like it when his favorite victim wasn't afraid of him.
Little did he care if the rest of the town saw Mirabel as a heroine, to him, she was just his victim.
"I'll show you…" He raised his hand, ready to hit her again, but before he could, a vine almost completely wrapped around him.
A chill ran down his back when, raising his eyes, he saw a furious Isabela.
Isabela didn't stop to think of the consequences. Just by seeing her little hermana getting hurt, she saw red. With a big, strong blow, she sent Juan straight to the ground.
Not even the sound of his nose breaking and the scream of the boy cleared her mind of her rage. She turned to the other two boys who were holding Mirabel, and she didn't need to say a word, since her raging face spoke volumes. That, and the thorny vines that surrounded them.
Shaking like the cowards they were, they released Mirabel and ran to their friend, trying to escape together.
But of course, Isa would not let them go just like that. Beyond rage, if such a thing were at all possible, and with a move of her hands her vines wrapped around the three boys lifting them up by their heads, with her head full of desire to punish them for hurting her hermana.
She was ready to put her vines around their necks and make them squeeze, with little to no care for the boys' weak begging.
"Isa!" Mirabel ran towards her hermana, grabbing her hand in an attempt to stop her.
She wanted the boys to be punished, but not at the expense of her hermana dirtying her hands.
"They're not worth it." Luckily, that seemed to clear her hermana's head.
Starting a year ago, her hermana had become overprotective of her. It was nice to see Isa protect her from the silliest things, and it made her immensely happy, but she didn't want Isa to get into trouble, especially with people who weren't worth the trouble.
Mirabel let out a sigh of relief when her big hermana turned around to look at her without a trace of anger. Isa nodded, slightly annoyed, but released the boys, who fell down, aching.
"You are lucky that my hermana is a nice person." Isa got as close to them as possible "Do not try to approach Mirabel…"
If the look on her face didn't make the threat clear enough, her words did.
"Or nothing will stop my vines from making you disappear." With a wave of her hand, her vines got closer to them. Frightened, they got up and ran away with terrified shrieks.
Mirabel let out another sigh of relief, approached her hermana and hugged and smiled at her; she loved the feeling of being loved and protected by her hermana, she knew it was her way of showing how much she loved her.
Because that's how Isabela was, a fierce protector of the things she loved; she was lucky to have Isabela as her big hermana. She was about to ask Mirabel if she was alright, but a loud scream startled them.
"Isabela Madrigal!" Abuela Alma had seen everything and was walking up to them, with Luisa, Dolores and Pepa worried "What on earth are you doing?!"
Isabela sighed, knowing what was about to come, but honestly, she didn't care, she had defended her little hermana and would do it again despite the consequences. She wouldn't allow anyone to hurt her in any possible way; she had already suffered enough, and she wouldn't allow her little hermana to suffer any more.
"Abuela…" Mirabel wanted to calm her down and explain it to her, but Isa stopped her, saying they would talk, and she would explain everything, but not there.
"Let's go back to Casita, abuela, we'll talk there." She wanted to take her hermana to the safety of their home.
She wanted to quench the fear that washed over her when Mirabel was late, and had asked Dolores to listen in to know if she was alright. Dolores couldn't even finish the sentence when Isa dashed to get Mirabel.
The relief of finding her didn't last long, since it was replaced by sheer rage when she saw those cowards intimidating and hitting her younger hermana. At that moment, she cared little about the consequences, and it wasn't until Mirabel stopped her from punishing the bullies that she felt something inside her calming down.
She didn't care for the others, her hermana was safe and that was all that mattered.
Abuela nodded, agreeing, and turned around to go back home after looking at them with clear concern. Luisa got close to them to make sure they were alright.
Mirabel had a swollen cheek and Isabela's knuckles were bleeding, but it was nothing that her mamá's food couldn't heal. Tía Pepa carried Antonio while, with Dolores, they asked them if they were okay.
Once they reached Casita, Mirabel watched, worried, as her hermana went to abuela's room, hoping that she wouldn't scold her. She wanted to stop Isabela from getting into trouble, but Luisa and her parents took her to the kitchen, so she could eat an arepa made by her mamá.
Isabela explained everything from the beginning to her abuela, making her anger come back. Not being able to avoid it, she told Alma that she didn't regret her actions and, in case it happened again, she wouldn't hold back.
It wasn't the first time Isabela got into a fight for defending her hermana, and Alma was certain it wouldn't be the last one.
"Isabela, you can't go around attacking Encanto's people with your gift, that's not okay." Her abuela sighed, approaching her to put a hand on her shoulder, looking sternly but without a trace of grudge, "I understand that you're furious, so am I, but you can't use your gift to attack others."
Isa frowned. She loved Encanto's people, she considered them her people and would do anything in her power to help them, but her family came first, and she wouldn't allow anyone to put a finger on them, no matter who they were.
"I promise you I will not let it happen again, I will make sure that those kids get what they deserve." Even if she didn't look the part, Alma was very upset.
Alma and Isabela could be extremely protective, among other things and their family always came first. She would personally make sure that those cowardly kids got their rightful punishment, knowing that her nieta would drop the subject, at least for the moment.
She was still amazed how brave Isabela had become in the past year. Lately, her nietos had "changed", or started to show their true selves, and the biggest change had come from Isabela, who, after abandoning her perfect girl mask, had shown her true colors: a brave girl who's very protective of her family. So much of her had come to light that she couldn't stop seeing her nieta as the perfect girl she knew Isa was. In her eyes, she was perfect.
Isabela wasn't fully convinced, she still wanted to dump those boys on her cacti, but she knew it was best for her abuela to solve it.
She nodded, trusting the matter to her abuela, and gave her a goodnight hug, and Alma hugged her back. Abuela didn't want Isa to feel how proud she was of her, since she didn't approve the use of violence, but she couldn't help but kiss her forehead and look at her with ever-growing pride.
When she exited the room, Isabela noticed that everyone would be asleep by how dark it was, so she headed straight to her room, not wanting to bother her hermanas. The next morning, they would be able to talk comfortably, but as she should have guessed, Mirabel was waiting for her in her room.
"What are you doing here? You should be asleep." Isa scolded her lightly.
She felt a bit better when she saw her smile, without a trace of swelling on her cheek. To her, Mirabel was a miracle, she was the miracle of the Madrigals, and she just wanted to protect her little hermana's innocence.
"I know you, so I brought you this." Mirabel handed an arepa while looking at Isa's hand.
She knew her hermana could be even more careless than Luisa when it came to her health, so there she was, the youngest of the 3, making sure they wouldn't overdo it, or get hurt. She couldn't be any more bothered, she would always take care of her hermanas.
"Pfft, you didn't need to stay awake just to give it to me, silly, I could have eaten it tomorrow." She took the arepa and ate it without a word. She had no other choice, since Mirabel would always worry about everyone's wellbeing. "Thanks, Mira. Go to sleep, we'll talk in the morning." She gave her a grateful smile, and wished her a good night, laughing at her hermana's pout. Now she would have to wait until next morning to know what abuela had said.
"Thanks for saving me today, Isa." Mirabel thanked her with a tender smile and, without waiting for her hermana's usual reply: "I'm your big hermana, I have to protect you", she left for her room.
"What do you think abuela will do to those boys?" Asked Luisa to her hermanas, the 3 of them lying comfortably on the grass.
To be honest, she was surprised that her abuela wouldn't scold her hermana. Even if abuela had stopped being so strict and became more kind and understanding, she would still take the townsfolk's well being very seriously, and since Isabela would often get in fights, she thought she would get a stronger scolding.
"I hope she tosses them in the mountains." Shrugged Isabela indifferently.
Mirabel prodded her with a stern look, but she just rolled her eyes with a mocking grin. Whatever her abuela did, it would be too light a punishment for what those idiots deserve.
"Let's talk about that on the way, it's about time to meet with Camilo and Dolores." Said Mirabel while getting up.
She wanted to be on time, she loved the picnics they all had together once a week in the forest.
And so, the 3 of them headed to the forest, chatting and laughing. People looked at them with a caring smile, it's as if they were kids once again, enjoying the day, running and laughing with joy, spending time together.
When they got there, their primos had already arrived. A few months ago, they had built a small hut with Isabela's gift. It was something no one else knew about, and they loved how little by little it became their favorite spot, since it was their safe space for whenever they needed to think or just wanted some time alone.
Once everything was set and ready to eat, they sat down and, as usual, the meal was full of laughter and jokes, friendly talks, sharing stories and sometimes even secrets. Camilo asked them what had happened the previous night, he was furious since it wasn't the first time they bothered her prima and was always left wanting to give them a beating.
Dolores explained she had heard that Juan was an orphan and with no one to rely on, something that Isabela and Camilo already knew, but that it really didn't matter, that was no excuse to hurt Mirabel, who was a ray of sunshine. After eating, Camilo, Antonio and Mirabel rushed to the river a few meters from the small hut, while Isabela and Dolores chatted and Luisa made sure her hermana and primos didn't get hurt while running around and about.
After playing games for a few hours, they tidied everything up and headed back home. They always came back when the sun was setting, their parents made sure they returned without a scratch, and after asking them if they had fun, they went to sleep after their long and fun day.
That was their everyday routine and everyone loved it. Mirabel and Luisa went to sleep in Isabela's room, whether to keep talking or just to sleep. It was a habit they had adopted, and they didn't want it to change.
Later that night, Bruno was writhing in his bed. A nightmare, it seemed, no, it was something else, a vision, and given his grimace, it wasn't a good one.
In front of him appeared his family, although for a second, he didn't recognize them. They looked tired, and especially sad, since they were crying inconsolably. Then it changed, Isabela, Camilo and Mirabel were shouting to someone in front of them, but he couldn't see what or who it was because the image faded too quickly.
Now Mirabel was holding the candle, a slightly different candle, but what shocked him the most was his sobrina. She looked older, maybe because of her hair, which was a bit longer, but especially because she looked broken, so sad and desperate. He barely had time to process it all, since the image changed again, this time to show him something that almost stopped his heart.
It was his home. All of Encanto was destroyed, including Casita. Everything around was utterly destroyed.
He woke up startled, his body shaking and his breath agitated. He looked at his hands, trying to calm down, knowing full well what he had seen was his future, his family's future. He didn't know what to think, his mind was spinning around, incapable of processing what he had just seen.
His family and all of Encanto were in danger, everything was destroyed, their future was horrible. No, "it doesn't have to be that way", he told himself. He knew it now, he had seen it, and he would find a way to change it.
His family was strong, stronger than it had ever been, they would be able to change it. He took deep breaths, calming his breathing. His fear was still there, but he stood tall with a determined gaze.
His family would be okay. They would save Encanto.
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My first language isn't English, but Spanish. This is a translation from someone else that helps me, and my original script is still here too. I can read English though and any message will be well received and appreciated