Mirabel left the school building with a little skip, her new best friend, Luci, who had only arrived in Encanto a couple of weeks earlier, by her side, both of them giggling, coupons to the ice cream parlor clutched in their hands.

"I've never been to an ice cream parlor before," Luci admitted.

"It'll be so much fun," Mirabel insisted, skipping ahead, "The hard part is picking just one flavor," she announced.

"Mirabel!" A voice called out in the distance.

Mirabel stopped skipping immediately, turning around slowly to watch her abuela slowly pick her way through the throng of schoolchildren, "There you are," she said, "I've been looking for you."

Luci stepped in front of Mirabel, "Whatever you think Mirabel did, she didn't," she insisted, "We've been together all day."

Alma gave Luci a hard look, "She's not in trouble," she insisted, "I just happen to have the afternoon free and was wondering if she would like to get ice cream or something with me."

"But we were going to go get ice cream," Luci exclaimed, "We were given coupons today for having straight As."

"Straight As," Alma exclaimed, "Oh Mirabel that's wonderful," she wrapped her arms around her and gave her a big hug.

Mirabel stared at Luci over her abuela's shoulder, confusion in her eyes, Alma Madrigal hadn't hugged her since before her gift ceremony, and that was almost five years ago now.

Luci shrugged in confusion, she had only lived in Encanto for about ten days now, and she never saw Senora Madrigal hug anyone outside of her family.

"You can get ice cream with your friend later," Alma insisted, steering her out of the crowd, "This calls for celebration, it will be my treat."

"But…" Mirabel protested as she was dragged away. What the heck was going on?

Luckily they were stopped by Camilo who came up to Abuela and turning on his best puppy dog eyes, said, "Can I have a couple of pesos?" he asked, "Just enough for a scoop of ice cream? All my friends are getting ice cream."

Mirabel took the distraction to break free of her abuela's confusing grip, "Abuela, I can't get ice cream with you," she insisted, pouting slightly that she had to turn her down, but a promise was a promise, "I promised Luci that I'd get ice cream with her. It's her first time at an ice cream parlor and she wanted me to help her decide on what flavor of ice cream to get. We only get a single scoop, you know."

Mirabel watched as Abuela glanced between her and Camilo. Camilo held his hand up in eager anticipation. Abuela turned to her instead, "Luci's the Hernandez girl that just moved into the Encanto right?" she asked.

Mirabel nodded quickly, "They didn't have ice cream where they come from."

"Go fetch her, she must have worked hard to get her grades up," Abuela announced, "As for you," she turned to Camilo, "Why don't you use your coupon that you got for good grades like Mirabel and your friends?"

Mirabel stopped and turned around in surprise, this never, ever happened before. Abuela scolding Camilo? It wasn't like Camilo got bad grades, he just didn't get good grades.

…

Mirabel and Luci giggled as they ran into the ice cream shop, Alma following slowly behind them. They pressed their faces against the glass and oohed and awed at the different flavors of ice cream.

Abuela stepped up to the cash register, "Two Banana splitaculars," she said.

Mirabel turned to her in surprise, Banana Splitacular was one of the most expensive items on the menu, ten times the cost of the little coupon they had been given. First Abuela wanted to get her ice cream, then she told Camilo that he couldn't get ice cream because his grades were too low to win a free scoop, and now she was buying not just her, but her best friend a lot more ice cream then they thought they'd get.

…

After ice cream, Abuela sent Luci off to her own home, and guided Mirabel home, entering Casita through the kitchen door.

Julieta was already home, cooking, as usual. She paused in her kneading to glance up at her mother and youngest daughter with concern, "What did Mirabel do this time?" she asked, with a heavy sigh.

"Mirabel here," Abuela announced with a large smile that caused Julieta's expression to change from one of resignation to one of pure confusion as her mother tried to pat Mirabel happily on the back, only for her to shy away at the last second, "Got straight As on her report card."

Julieta frowned, "And that's a problem…?"

"No, it's amazing, she must work really hard to maintain such amazing grades," Alma insisted, "She should be awarded."

"You've never rewarded the others for their good grades before," Julieta announced, "So why are you suddenly awarding Mirabel?"

"I thought you'll be pleased," Alma insisted, "You've been always getting after me that I wasn't treating Mirabel fairly…"

"Well, yes… but…" Julieta trailed off, "Mirabel why don't you go upstairs, I'm sure that your Tia would appreciate your help with Antonio, he's colicky, and nothing she does seems to be helping."

Mirabel nodded and run off as Julieta turned her attention to her mother, "While I'm glad you are putting an effort into your relationship with Mirabel, but…" Julieta frowned, trying to put words to her feelings that something about this was off. This was way more effort than her mother had ever put into her relationship with her daughter in years, and while she knew that straight As were something to be celebrated with some children if Isabela ever managed to bring home a report card like that, she'll throw her a party, she struggled in school, badly, and would need the positive reinforcement, but for Mirabel, homework for her was as easy as breathing, Straight As were a given for her. In fact, there had been multiple talks about having her skip a grade. The only thing that was holding her back was her lack of social skills. She struggled to connect with her fellow peers, group projects often left her befuddled and upset. If her mother really must award her for something it should be the fact that Mirabel had connected so well with the Hernandez girl that had recently moved into the Encanto, and not her grades.

"But what Julieta? You complain about my treatment of her all the time, I'm trying to do better, why are you still complaining."

"Because I know it's fake, Mama," Julieta insisted, surprised by her own words coming out of her mouth, "I don't know what you are trying to prove or accomplish, but I do not appreciate you playing around with my daughter's emotions like this. You treat her like something that's diseased like she can't do anything right, and when I call you out on it, your response is to ignore her completely for a couple of weeks before you're right back at it with her, and now suddenly you're rewarding her for good grades?"

"I'll admit that my relationship with Mirabel needs to be worked on," Alma insisted, "but I am trying, and I'd appreciate your support."

…

Mirabel entered the nursery to find her Tia sitting in the rocking chair with five-month-old Antonio fast asleep in her arms. Mirabel shut the door behind her gently, "Mama said that Tonito was really fussy and you could use some help?" she whispered to not disturb her roommate.

"He's okay, as long as I keep rocking him," Pepa insisted, "he'll start crying the moment I stop."

"Tonito likes being rocked," Mirabel agreed, staring down at the small figure in her tia's arms. They stayed quiet for a while, just watching the little boy sleep before Mirabel spoke up again, "Abuela's acting weird," she stated, "She was nice to me today."

A dark cloud popped up over Pepa's head, but she quickly shooed it away, muttering clear skies to herself. Mirabel's statement was surprising, but she shouldn't get ahead of herself, "She was nice to you?" she asked, hoping that maybe she heard wrong.

"Uh-huh," Mirabel said, "She bought Luci and me banana splits for getting straight As this month and hugged me. She hasn't hugged me since just before my gift ceremony. Why is she acting so weird?"

"I don't know," Pepa insisted, "But there is one person in this family that knows everything, maybe she's heard what Abuela is up to."

"Who…" Mirabel asked in confusion, before brightening up, "Dolores! She can hear everything, she'll know why Abuela is acting so weird. Do you know where she is?"

"I think she's in her room, if not, I'm sure that she's on her way home now, it's almost dinner time."

…

Dolores just happened to meet her on the way to her room, dragging her along until they were both secured inside the soundproof room, "I heard you talking to Mama," she admitted with a chuckle, "It's actually kind of amusing… Tio Bruno will probably die laughing when he hears about this…" it would totally cheer him up, Dolores had just wished that she had been there to see Abuela's face when it had happened.

"What happened," Mirabel demanded, too eager to learn about why Abuela was acting the way she was to notice that Dolores had even mentioned their missing Tio.

"You know the Hernandez family that just moved here a couple of weeks ago?" Dolores asked.

"Yeah," Mirabel said, "I'm friends with their daughter Lucia, why?"

"Well, apparently, they've taken a liking to you, not that we can blame them, you are a very likable little girl."

"I'm not little," Mirabel protested under her breath.

Dolores chose to ignore her, continuing on with her story, "Anyway, they noticed how Abuela and Isabela, and pretty much everyone treats you, and heard several people call you 'False Madrigal', and came to the conclusion that you're an orphan that we took in after your parents died.

"Anyway, this afternoon, they approached Abuela with an offer that they assumed that Abuela would pounce on. They wanted to give you a home."

"The Hernandez family want me to come live with them?" Mirabel gasped in surprise.

Dolores nodded sagely, her heart breaking slightly at the surprise in Mirabel's voice to learn that someone would actually want her, "That's right, they had a whole list of reasons as to why it would benefit everyone involved to have you live with them…"

"Is that why Abuela is being nice to me, to soften the blow when she sends me to live with the Hernandez family?"

Dolores shook her head, "I don't know, Abuela told them that she would have to think about it, the next thing I know she was taking you out for ice cream."