Disclaimer: I do not own Encanto. All rights belong to Disney.
Antonio skipped merrily to the swing, his knitted stuffed jaguar nestled in the crook of his arm. Cousin Mirabel watched with a simple smile as she trailed behind. They were originally going to head outside yesterday, but the unexpected rain had kept them indoors doing alternative activities. Although Antonio could have used vines or one of his snake pals as a swing in his humungous room, he wanted to go on the wooden backyard swing. He would play on it regularly during his pre-gift days. But just because Antonio didn't swing on that as much anymore didn't mean he stopped enjoying it altogether. It wasn't any less fun than the cool rainforest swings.
Antonio approached the swing, which was tied to a tree branch. The tree stood at a moderate height with several branches full of green leaves. The swing swayed back and forth from the wind's gentle breeze. Antonio sat down and tucked the jaguar in between his legs.
Mirabel got behind him. "Alright, are you ready?"
"Yes," he responded with a cheerful smile.
"Here we go!" She grabbed the two ropes, stepped backward, and gave Antonio a big push.
Laughter rang out as the boy ascended high in the air. When he came back down, Mirabel pushed him with the same force.
"Whee!" Antonio exclaimed.
His pure happiness made Mirabel smile. She caught him by the sides and asked, "Do you wanna go higher, primito?"
"Sí, por favor."
"How high?"
Antonio saw a blue morpho butterfly fluttering above him. He pointed at it and said, "As high as that butterfly."
"Alrighty!" Still holding Antonio's sides, Mirabel pulled him further back. "Three… two… one!"
He went way high up, feeling the gust of wind in his face. He beamed when he saw the butterfly flapping right next to him. Then the next thing he knew, Antonio caught himself looking down at it. He turned his head around and gasped, realizing that the swing had surpassed the insect. The roof of Casita could be seen from this height.
"I guess I pushed harder than I expected," Mirabel said to herself, giggling.
Once Antonio was on the ground, he looked back at Mirabel. His smile was wide as it could be. "That was amazing," he remarked.
"I bet it was. I think that was the highest you've ever been."
Antonio cuddled his stuffie close to him. "Yeah, it almost felt like I was flying."
Mirabel did a soft laugh. "Do you want another go, Toñito?"
"No, thank you. I'd just like to rest against the tree," he said, getting off the swing. He walked to the tree trunk and sat against it, crossing his legs.
Mirabel plopped down beside him. "I'll join you. It's such a beautiful day out."
The older cousin put her hands behind her head and stretched out her legs so they could bask in the sun's warmth. She emitted a relaxed sigh. Her eyes casually drifted to the blue sky; not a solitary cloud was present up there. After yesterday's gloomy weather, Mirabel was very content to spend the rest of the afternoon under this tree. And, unlike many of her days, she had no plans. It was nice to have a "doing nothing" day. What better way to pass the time than to sit back and unwind?
She felt Antonio tap her on the arm. "Oh, Mirabel?" he said quietly.
Mirabel turned away from the sky to the little boy. "Yes, Antonio?"
"Can you make the butterfly move?"
The corners of her mouth curled up, instantly knowing what he was talking about. Sitting on her right shoulder was a pink butterfly that suited the style of her outfit. But what made this design distinctive was its tangible wings. Instead of being fully sewn on the shirt, they stuck out where one could interact with them. This little touch was delightful to Antonio. For him, Mirabel would flap the butterfly's wings to make it "fly." Besides her glasses, the butterfly was his most favorite thing about Mirabel's outfit.
"Of course," Mirabel answered gladly. She wrapped her fingers around the wings, moving them up and down in a gentle manner.
Antonio watched the butterfly in motion with a placid, happy look. No matter how many times Mirabel did this, it would never get old.
He stroked the head of his jaguar that was in his lap. "Butterflies are really pretty creatures."
"They're gorgeous," Mirabel said.
Antonio took a minute to scan the various colorful embroidery patterns that adorned his prima's clothes, noticing more than a few butterfly ones. He looked into her eyes and asked, "Are butterflies your favorite animals?"
"Hmm…" Mirabel's lips briefly pursed. "In a way, they are, but at the same time, I can't say they're my number one favorite. I have other favorites. It's like me having multiple favorite colors. There's no winner in my book."
"I don't have a favorite animal either," Antonio agreed. "All of them are fantastic."
"Buuuut I do have a favorite primito, and it's you." Mirabel playfully tousled Antonio's hair, earning a good old laugh from him.
Just then, another butterfly flew in sight of the cousins. Antonio was the first to spot it, pointing a small finger at the winged insect.
"Look! I see another butterfly!" he yelled in his usual soft voice.
"That there is," Mirabel observed.
"That's the second one we've seen today," Antonio said.
Mirabel was still eyeing the butterfly. It had landed on a flower bush a short distance from the tree swing. "It is butterfly season," she claimed.
Her primo lit up at that fact. "We can catch butterflies."
Mirabel faced him. "Ooh, I like that, Antonio. It's the perfect time for it."
"And I know just the place for butterfly catching," she added.
"Where?"
"The river."
"That one?"
Mirabel nodded her head in confirmation. "That one. I once saw a huge, and I mean huge, swarm of yellow butterflies. It was like nothing I've ever seen. If there were that many, then I betcha lots are fluttering around over there."
"It would be awesome to catch a whole bunch of butterflies," Antonio uttered.
"You might catch hundreds of them," Mirabel exaggerated, spreading out and making an arch-like shape with her arms.
He giggled. "The river sounds good to me."
"Excelente!" Mirabel did two thumbs up.
Antonio's eyes went to his stuffed animal. He wiggled his front paws and then began tossing him up and catching him. Mirabel got into her prior sitting position, only this time closed her eyes, letting them rest. From how today was going, she could easily drift off to sleep, but she was pleased by the tranquil ambiance of the backyard. To stay out here in the middle of butterfly season was divine. Clearly, Mirabel cared for butterflies; everyone knew that. If there was any animal in the world she could be associated with, it was those delicate creatures. She had them as embroidery on her clothes and mochila bag, they were hand-drawn wall art on her side of the nursery, and she hung around them a lot. As Mirabel said before, butterflies were not her top favorite animals, but she had always been fascinated with them. With their vibrant wings and gracefulness, she admired their natural beauty. They have an aesthetic appeal that makes them stand out from the environment, making it quite hard to resist staring at. How this beautiful species starts out as just caterpillars is an incredible thing.
Mirabel couldn't help but wonder if she had received a Gift, perhaps it would have something to do with butterflies. It might be the ability to fly by flapping her skirt or change colors with a touch of her hand. That would fit the most, other than probably having powers related to her passion for sewing and embroidery. The connection between her and butterflies was undoubtedly strong. They were comfortable in her presence, similar to how animals behaved with Antonio. Mirabel felt like a magnet, as she tended to attract them. On plenty of occasions, she would go outside and, within minutes, one butterfly at the least would fly up to her. Some would even stick around for a long while, seeming like they didn't want to leave. Mirabel honestly had no clue why she was left without a Gift despite possible ones being there. Maybe there was no definite answer. Maybe it simply wasn't meant to be. But she knew a lack of powers wasn't something to fret over. Gift or no Gift, Mirabel was part of the family Madrigal as her own unique person, and she would never change any piece of herself.
Allowing the thoughts to wander off, she exhaled a sigh, too peaceful to open her eyes or move. She would for sure remain put until it got close to dark. All of a sudden, Mirabel felt something tickle her nose. The chuckles from Antonio were what caused her eyes to open.
"What's so funny, Antonio?" Curiosity was on her face.
Not saying a word, he pointed his finger at his nose, then his other one at Mirabel's.
Her expression instantly changed by what she saw. It was no other than a butterfly, an Agrias precisely, looking straight at her.
"Well, would you look at that?" Mirabel's smile shone brightly.
"Hello there, butterfly." Antonio reached out his finger to the mariposa and gently stroked her pink, blue, and black colored wing. The wings fluttered in response.
"What a beauty she is," Mirabel said in almost a whisper. Her smile didn't drop.
Antonio chuckled again. "She likes you."
"I like her, too."
"Did you know that butterflies are nearsighted?" The kid informed her.
Mirabel's eyebrows rose in surprise. "Oh, wow. No, I did not know that." An avid animal lover, Antonio would tell Mirabel interesting animal facts; he had been doing that long before his Gift. From occupying his time and communicating with all kinds of animals, Antonio acquired extensive knowledge of them. He might be the smartest little animal person Mirabel knew. Not even she knew everything about butterflies. Antonio was going to be such an expert when he grew up.
"Yep, but even if that's true, they can see many different colors," Antonio explained.
"How impressive." Mirabel looked at the butterfly and adjusted her glasses. "It looks like you and I have something in common."
Mirabel and Antonio continued to stare at the Agrias and all her elegance, savoring the moment. This went on for a couple of minutes until her wings started to flutter.
"I think she's starting to take off," Antonio said.
Mirabel's face softened. "Bye, now. It was very wonderful seeing you."
With that, she left, flying far into the distance. The pair watched her disappear, Antonio waving his hand the entire time.
"Goodbye, miss butterfly." He made his voice loud enough for the creature to hear.
"There she goes," Mirabel spoke.
Antonio smiled at his big cousin. "She was so pretty."
"Definitely. I've seen numerous butterflies, but I've never seen an Agrias that up close. Well, until just a minute ago that is," she admitted.
"She wanted to see you," he said with innocence.
Tenderness was shown in Mirabel's eyes. "I'm glad that I met her."
"Do you believe you can see every butterfly there's been, even ones that are hard to find?"
She rubbed her chin, thinking of a decent answer. "That's a good question, Toñito. It would be stupendous to meet every single butterfly in the world, but I'm not sure that's the case. We do not know exactly how many species there are; there might be countless. And there might be butterflies that haven't been discovered yet. But I do believe it's possible to find as many as you can, if you set your mind to it." She winked at the last part.
Her little cousin gave her a genuine look. "I can imagine you meeting all sorts of butterflies. Maybe some that no one has ever seen. They could be just like the amazing butterflies you make."
Mirabel blushed. "Why, I feel flattered."
"Sometimes you remind me of butterflies," Antonio mentioned.
She released some jolly chuckles. "Do I?"
"Sí," he said, nodding clearly. "You dress up in charming colors, you move your dress beautifully when you dance, and you are very nice."
Mirabel realized he was right. In a sense, she hadn't compared herself to them in that way before. Maybe she and mariposas were more alike than she thought. "That's a good way to put it, Antonio."
"I know you said butterflies are not your favorite animals, but they look wonderful on you," Antonio complimented.
She took a look at her skirt, putting her finger on a blue butterfly. "Thank you. I think so, too. I just had to add them to my outfit since they have a special place in my heart. I wanted to show how much I care about them. I couldn't think of a more perfect way to do it."
"I love that you like butterflies so much. It's what makes you Mirabel," Antonio said warmly.
Mirabel wore a face of pride. "I'm happy to be the way I am."
Antonio fiddled with the butterfly on Mirabel's shoulder. "You will be this way forever, will you?"
Mirabel laid her hand on top of his free one. "Yes, Antonio. I can guarantee you that."