Prologue

Aliana Álvarez and Mirabel Madrigal were destined to be friends for life. But after Mirabel's gifting ceremony, they are separated and forbidden to see each other. So they become secret pen pals, sending each other letters with Mirabel's cousin Camilo as the messenger. Also to busy herself, Aliana starts making frequent trips to the library to read about the foreign world. She dreams of adventure and of exploring beyond the mountains of the Encanto, but of course her parents try to dissuade her from that idea. Mirabel and Aliana are finally reunited at the gifting ceremony of Mirabel's little cousin, Antonio. Aliana plans to finally catch up with Mirabel, but instead the two of them make an interesting discovery - one that might threaten the Madrigals and the entire Encanto. They decide to investigate deeper together. After all, this could fulfill both of their lifelong dreams - for Mirabel, to do something more for her family despite not having a gift; for Aliana, to satisfy her craving for adventure. But as the conflict gets bigger and bigger, Aliana begins to wonder: was adventure too much to ask for? (Copyright: 2022. Cover credits to @dreamforest15. I do not own any of these characters, except for my originals)