Chapter Text
The town was entirely covered in strange, yet colorfully beautiful flowers. Their sudden appearance was odd, but only one Madrigal could summon flowers through sheer will. But that one Madrigal also never created anything other than pink and purple roses and similar flowers – He wasn’t good at recognizing plants, that wasn’t his job – which left the brunette utterly confused. “Is Isabela going crazy?” He asked, looking over to his older sister, who was obviously hearing every single word coming from the source of the unusual greenery.
“No…I think she’s finally happy.” Dolores quietly answered. Though the muffled voices of gossip from villagers made it a little hard for him to hear it, he could perfectly read her lips. He became a pro at reading lips, body language and anything in between, having two quiet siblings made him learn.
“What does that mean?” He laughed nervously. Through the corner of his eye, he saw the Guzmán being hit in the nose again by a strange flower. Yep. This is Isabela’s doing alright. His Abuela was horrified, watching through narrowed eyes the roof of their beloved Casita. “Probably something bad.” He whispered to himself, although he knew Dolores heard him.
…
Camilo never thought he’d be alive to see the day Isabela snapped, but it surely came fast. He also never thought it wasn’t only Isabela who’d snap, but their house too. He stood at the steps of the old front door, completely mesmerized by the tragedy of the situation. Gifts gone, the Miracle died, their house crumbled like a badly baked arepa, and now Mirabel was gone too. He knew she was okay, he knew she would be okay. He spun around, looking at his mamá and papá helping Abuela stand back up. He never felt so angry at the matriarch, but it was not like he could openly say that, at least, not for now.
Isabela was a little far in the distance, talking with her younger sister. Her shoulders shook slightly as she leaned against the taller girl. Camilo felt his chest tightening, he couldn’t phantom what she was probably feeling or felt all these years. Yes, they all had dealt with Abuela’s expectations, but he honestly thought that, if he could rank who had the worst, Isabela surely – obviously – was in the top 3. He waited until the wholesome sister moment was over, knowing how an older sibling sometimes depended on their younger siblings, he’ll always remember how he slept in Dolores’s room when they were young, just so she wouldn’t panic with her super hearing. Once Luisa walked away to help look for Mirabel, Camilo approached his oldest cousin.
“The flowers looked amazing.” He started when he was within her ears reach. She turned around sharply, caught off guard by the sudden compliment in the middle of all this tragedy. “I kind of grew tired of the same purple flowers everyday.”
Isabela laughed softly, sitting on a piece of Casita’s walls behind her, “Yeah, we all were…” she looked up at the cloudy sky, the tears obvious in the corner of her eyes, and for once she didn’t try to hide them. “It felt…liberting..”
“I bet. You’ve been on Abuela’s perfect radar for what? Since you were born?” The eldest snorted, shaking her head as if to confirm it. “...How do you feel about it now?” Camilo sat down on the floor in front of his prima, his eyes softening and his smile small. Isabela pondered for a long moment before smiling wider.
“I feel…Like myself.” She stared up at the sky, who was starting to clear out. It was so weird having an almost clear sky when Pepá was over there so stressed out with the entire situation. “Don’t get me wrong, I love the roses and flores de mayo, but… When you're only allowed one thing your whole life, it gets boring.”
Camilo nodded, he didn't fully relate to it, but he knew what it was like to only do one thing. He’s been the unofficial therapist of Encanto since he was old enough to understand his mamá’s gift. It’s all he can do, make everyone happy and fine and keep his mother under control.
“But then Mirabel got me… so mad and I-” Isabela continued, standing up and talking with her hands. “I grew something new! I… I grew something different and– Oh, ‘Milo! It was the best feeling ever!” She spun in her feet, eyes glowing with the memory of the moment. Camilo listened intently, nodding along to his cousin’s happy rambling.
His own eyes glowed with her happiness, he’d never seen her not being perfect and snob and a complete asshole(Wow. Now he felt bad for thinking that way,) seeing her so naturally herself was reassuring. He smiled when she looked over to him, but then her expression darkened. “I shouldn’t be like this…My own sister is missing, our house crumbled and–”
“Mirabel is going to be okay.” Camilo grabbed his prima’s hand, his head slightly tilted. God. He wished he could shapeshift into Mirabel to make Isa feel better, but something inside him said it wasn’t that good of an idea given the situation. “I know her like I know mi mamá, she’s strong…She just needs some time,” Isabela physically sighed and nodded.
“You always know how to make someone feel better, don’t you?”
“That’s my job, isn’t it?” He smiled. A carefree, genuine one. One of those where his eye smiled with him, that his mamá loved oh so much. But Isabela’s own smile faded slightly before her attention was called back to Dolores, who dragged her to somewhere more quiet. Camilo stayed on the grass, staring up at the sky. A lot has happened in just one evening, and he was sure he’d have to lift everyone’s spirits up. Like he always did. But through the corner of his eye, he could see that shadow he fought so hard to drift apart from. He breathed in before said shadow could take a concrete form or voice out its opinion. Standing up, he looked around to see who was the one who needed the most attention and a therapy session.